There is some notion of competition that is inherent within us. A true narcissist may assume the competition unique to them or their group yet it is not so. This competition is found in humans, in elves, in divines, it is even found in dogs when they play. It is merely competition. Yet this natural urge at urge competition can quickly spiral into unsustainability.

It has happened before, the original tyrannical states led by Divines were organised divinity competing against unorganized humanity. Worldbreaking was the reverse, it was the organised race of man bringing the hammer down on divinity and demanding a seat at the table. Now, in what people are calling the Golden Age of Arda, we are left with a middle ground.

The simple fact of the matter is that the competition between humanity and divinity has never stopped, both sides have just realised the cost to it. Now, more than ever, divinity is detached from the world. Great forces have retreated to their closed temples and the only Divines that regularly interact with mankind are those that possess a Divine Order. Likewise, there has never been a time where humanity has interacted less with Divinity than it does now.

I care not grand theories of society or philosophy to try and explain what is happening here. I merely see the problem: this separation will eventually destroy us. Natural competition cannot be fought against or stamped out. This has been tried before and the system always collapses. We are simply so different from each other that pointing fingers is too easily done. Attempting to change primal instinct is a fight no soul can win, yet the silent competition between humanity and divinity has to be stopped. A finger will always be pointed.

Yet there is one thing I have to ask, for now that I look at it, it feels so obvious that it must have been tried in the past: If we are always going to be divided into sides, then why can divinity and humanity not land on the same team?

– Excerpt from the private writings of God Arascus, of Pride

Kassandora looked through today’s notes as she did her midday rounds. Of course, there was no difference between midday or dawn or dusk or the dead of night underground. There were only three different kinds of light here, even the warm orange glow of the lamps that illuminated the main camp and then the choice between overwhelming darkness of the unlit tunnels or the overwhelming brightness of the floodlamps. Either of those latter two were overwhelming in their power. Some men lost their sanity down here, most men lost their track of time. It was one thing to look at a clock and see the number, it was another entirely to see the sun and its position in the sky.

Kassandora though did not let it affect her. She rarely, if ever did so much as rest up above. Sleeping was completely out of the question, even when she had been locked in prison, she did not sleep. Sleep was a luxury for Divines, and Kassandora had never been too indulgent to her whims. She did not particularly care about the landscape, the most annoying thing was the need to stay near the lamps in order to be able to read anything and the cold air.

So Kassandora walked as she flicked through her notebook. She had ran through the clattering engineers already. They were assembling another storeroom since this location had transformed into an effective forward base at this point. If things had worked out perfectly, Kassandora would have placed it closer to the next junction she knew was ahead, but it would do here. Those engineers had become the day and night cycle of the underground, twelve hours on, twelve hours off. Now was midday, so they were shouting and swearing at each other loudly enough that the curses and slurs echoed through the tunnel.

But that didn’t bother Kassandora. What bothered her was that no team of scouts had returned over the past seventy hours. No team sent to find them had returned either. Yesterday’s team, which had only been sent five miles out from the cover of the floodlamps also had not returned. It should have been a thirty-minute drive there and back. The Goddess of War came to a stop and straightened her back when she felt a chill run down her spine. She looked over the line of men that was sitting against concrete barrier and sandbag and peered down the tunnel. For original chapters go to novel-fire.net

Something was there. Kassandora was sure something was there. And Kassandora had no damn clue what it was. The floodlamps extended for miles past the line and they were so overwhelming that there was no chance anything should be able to gaze through them. Kassandora had tried it herself, so had Fer, so had a hundred of the men. Kassandora stood there and leaned from side to side.

She felt the other eyes that gazed at her too. The usual looks of soldiers who would curiously glance at their Goddess in the same fashion they would glance upon their commander, but those, Kassandora was accustomed to. This was something else entirely. The Goddess of War narrowed her crimson eyes and leaned forward towards whatever was watching her. If she could just…

Another set of eyes interrupted her ruminations. She knew this feeling too, it was mediocre Divinity staring up at her. Kassandora turned to see Aslana and Labrys both walking towards her. The Goddess of the Sword was tall, her movements were smooth and it looked like she moved to the motion of some invisible stream that carried her. Each step was weightless and unassuming. And then Labrys walked next to her. Where Aslana had brought her own armour, Labrys swayed in a shirt half unbuttoned. Many considered them opposites, Kassandora did not. Labrys could move just as smoothly, she simply took more pride in being able to draw eyes. Kassandora thought of telling the woman off but it was just a matter of her own prudishness. The Goddess of the Axe raised morale like no one else.

The two oldest weapon Divines, possibly the two most powerful. Definitely the two that Kassandora thought the best at fighting, else she would have not brought them. They were fighters that utterly outmatched human warriors, no matter how many blessing they were armed with. Yet in terms of commanding, they were merely average, Kassandora would trust the judgement of someone like Iliyal more than Aslana. So huge they may be, powerful too, ageless and without any need for food, yet that merely made them mediocre Divines. That sort of thing only impressed the mortals that had to crane their necks to look up at Labrys’ bosom that she waved like a damn-

Kassandora caught herself as the two weapon Divines both saluted. What did they want now? Kassandora immediately saluted back to let them speak. “Aslana reporting, I have found a Godwielder.”

“Labrys reporting, I have also found someone suitable.” Labrys quickly added in that chipper tone of hers.

Kassandora answered immediately. “Good job.” It wasn’t a good job, men did not get awards for waking up on time and this was easier than that. But alas, Divines were not men and Divines had to be coddled. Kassandora had almost forgotten how it was back then, she had been spending too much time around competent people. The Goddess of War stared at them until Aslana felt awkward enough to speak.

“We were talking Commander, but about these disappearances.” Kassandora put her hands behind her back and spread her legs as her mind trailed away. Weapon-Divine, the purpose of such a creature was in the name. Weapon-Divine. If Kassandora wanted someone to talk to, she would have called an Idea-Divines. “We could… Me and Labrys I mean, we could go on a scouting run ourselves.”

Kassandora took a deep breath as her crimson eyes narrowed on Aslana’s blue. The woman’s refined face, all smooth and reminiscent of a rapier, did not look good when it was obviously nervous. Kassandora slowly turned her eyes onto Labrys and saw the Goddess of the Axe swallow her own spit. Honestly, why did these two even have such a reaction? Kassandora wasn’t some monster about to eat these idiots. “You two want to go on a scouting run?” Kassandora had to re-ask the question.

“Well…” Aslana said, she looked to Labrys and the shorter of the two laughed.

“We’re just stood around here.”

Kassandora supposed that these two didn’t know what they were facing. But then did they not know that Anassa had been injured? Or that Neneria had ran into Legion. Frankly, they were lucky that it was Neneria who had ran into that monster and not anyone else. Or maybe that Iniri had faced Ashmodai? “That’s not going to happen.” Kassandora said. “We’re being watched here.”

The two Weapon Divines suddenly stood up straighter and looked around. Kassandora smiled and rolled her eyes at this farce of a performance. Oh. Now they were aware? Now they pretended to be looking around? Kassandora extended her arm out to the darkness. “It’s looking at me, whatever it is.”

The two Weapons both looked over the line of men. Some of the soldiers had overheard and stopped taking it easy. They knelt behind their barriers. A few began checking their guns. Cigarettes were put out and chatter went silent. Kassandora realised she shouldn’t have been so loud. This sort of talk only bred paranoia and worry and that was good for no one. But it had been said so Kassandora couldn’t make the men un-hear the words. “It’s looking at you?” Labrys asked. “From over there?” She pointed towards the darkness that began miles away from, past the sign of the floodlamps.

“It’s some Prince.” Kassandora said. “It can’t be a flameseer and I doubt it’s a telescope.”

“Why’s that?” Labrys asked in that annoying voice of hers.

“Glass glints in light.” Kassandora answered dryly. Weapon Divine everyone. Weapon Divine that had to be told glass glints against light. The Goddess of War was impressed that they had managed to find a Godwielder for themselves.

“Oh.” Labrys answered cheerfully. “That’s smart.” Kassandora had nothing to say. Inside, she could be as cruel as she wanted, but outside… No, it simply would not do. Not with Labrys. Kassandora was too respected to be allowed to be cruel.

“You girls should prepare.” Kassandora said. “And your Godwielders should always be by you.”

“I’ll go get them!” Labrys squeaked and ran off. Kassandora caught her move like a flash with the corner of her eye. She didn’t turn to watch her go, but it always impressed her how these Divines could move. Something that large should not be so fast and so quiet. Aslana took a step forwards to stand just slightly closer to the front line than Kassandora was.

“It’s still there?” She asked.

“It’s still there.” Kassandora said. “It’s been there all this time.” Aslana did not reply. She just stood, as still as a statue. Kassandora inspected the Goddess of the Sword for a moment, it was still the same Aslana as back then. The Weapons may be simple, but Kassandora had to admit that Aslana was an expert, it was obvious in the relaxed posture she stood with, each joint just slightly angled to allow her to suddenly twist into any direction.

“I’m going to carry on the inspection.” Kassandora said. There was not much else to it, no one but Kassandora here had the power to feel gazes on them, so what were they supposed to do exactly? Just stare off into an endless abyss as they let their thoughts run wild? Sanity was a rare resource down here, too many men were waking up with cold sweats and begging to the see the sun already. “At ease men! Continue as you would!” Kassandora shouted, saw no one move and realised she needed to rip the stress right out of them. “Everyone better have a cigarette now or I will personally shove one up your ass!”

And immediately, the flood of worry that threatened to drown the men was scorched away by a blaze of humour. Some men tried to hide the fact they were laughing at Kassandora’s joke, others didn’t bother, some even followed the instruction and sat back down to light up a cigarette. Kassandora took another few steps.

Ash from lit cigarettes touched fell to stone as the burning sticks of paper and tobacco slipped out of mouths. Soldiers raised their rifles. Men on emplacements rose to crew their weapons as the camp fell silent. Aslana closed the distance to Kassandora. Labrys returned and planted herself next to her friend. Kassandora’s eyes grew wide. Others took positions, some men even dropped to lie down on the ground and make themselves even smaller targets. From behind, the rumble chaotic clatter of engineering teams at work stopped for a moment as everyone looked towards enemy territory.

The camp went so silent one could hear a pin drop and yet silence did not befall them like it always did in this underground. One did not need Kassandora’s sixth sense to know something was out there.

Laughter echoed from past the frontlines.

Kassandora caught the glint of metal.

“ASLANA! LABRYS! TO ME!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep