I was close. The Gate to Arcadia is almost open.

Clenching my chest as my heart palpitated, I couldn’t stop myself from smiling. How many mistakes did I create? How many foolish judgment calls backfired on me? I spent so long looking for this. Research after research risking friendship, experiencing betrayal, and committing evils that broke an ungodly amount of people.

I laughed, bellowing over the night skies of Iluthath. I surrendered to the madness gnawing like a pack of wolves at my mind.

“Mepho… It isn’t over yet. It’s far from over yet.” A voice that sent a chill down my spine rang. Familiar with sound, I paused, frowning as my eyes turned to my surroundings.

“Izalith.”

She giggled.” Ves said I shouldn’t come to bother you. But… Messing with you has become a pastime of mine.”

“Killing me wasn’t enough?” I mused with a teasing smile, tracing my fingers against my neck. .

“Not for all the torment you put me through. Think of this as revenge for the revenge you will inflict on me.” She playfully said, but my mind spiraled at the thought.

“… You’re insane. You came back to the past. But rather than change it. You made sure I… You made sure I would find you to get revenge.”

“Hehe. Yup. I rather liked the torment.” She whispered in my ear as heat roiled through my skin, putting my hair on end. “It was… Exciting. More so than you know now. But you’re too weak right now. You’re not as seasoned as my Mephisto. Not yet, anyway.”

“Nonsense.” I retorted, nearly snorting in response. Seasoned? I was at the peak of—

“It’s true. But then again, you are not a true man in this form. You’re incomplete. Your power level might be the same, but the memories you sealed are… what makes you, you.” She laughed, and for a second or two, I saw an invisible outline in front of me. An outline of an entity standing in the higher dimension.

“Father is about to reach Archeon. And you need to become the second man to reach that level. As you are now. You’ll be no match for the Acolytes of—”

Thunder roiled through the skies in a blinding flash of judgment, sending a dark chill down my spine as Father’s aura began to temper the skies.

Izalith went silent. Her translucent figure froze for a second before she clit her tongue: “I could take a hit, right? Uncle Zariel took a hit three times in his life. I can—”

“Stop…” I begged. “Who the hell thinks like that? I like this clone. You might live, but Father’s aura is the bane of my clone’s existence.”

And she giggled yet again. ” I know. That’s what makes it fun. But it’s fine. You’ll figure it out anyway.” She said, kicking at the air like a lost puppy. It went silent. Leaving me to believe she had left, but I could still see the outline of her figure. ” Enoch is playing with fire. He is a problem to us.”

“Enoch…” I muttered, disturbed by the name. But it wasn’t the time to speak from the heart. “What did he do?”

“I tried telling you when we first met.”

“Is that before or after you killed me?”

She grinned, her translucent figure beginning to come into color as my eyes began to track the dimension she hid in: “We’ve met before that, silly. It’s just you can’t remember. Mephisto, in this timeline, you’re my little doggy, just as I was your toy in my past. You’re my bitch, and you don’t even know it.”

I raised my finger: ‘ Fuck off. No way that’s true.”

“Hehe. Well, you’ll figure it out soon: You mind fuck me. I’ll mind fuck you right back. Now. Enoch, as you know, changed once he went to the Abyss.” She started growing a tad bit more serious. ” During that time… He met with the Eternals and the Fractured Great Ones. The same ones that followed me through time.”

“The Great Ones aren’t really an issue. The Eternals are the ones that—”

“Like the Pale Lord? She’s an idiot. Not even one of the best top one hundred schemers.”

Izalith sighed: “Damn. Mepho’s got no chill. Look. No matter what you think. The Entity to whom Enoch has sworn servitude is an issue. A big issue. More than what you or I can deal with. Shit. How do you think I got sent back through time? Do you think I wanted this bullshit to happen? Hell no. It’s been torture. My wounds aren’t even healed yet.”

This is… Interesting. “The Great Ones and Eternals. Who do they serve?”

Thunder yet again roiled through the heavens, and a blaze of wrath silenced Izalith, all but her chilling smile. ” Power. Upon the Other side, there exists a Throne of Ash and Blood. One shattered by the One and withered to rot by the All.”

The Heavens thundered with such anger I felt my ears bleed as the echos of mortals and gods began to howl and cry. Father came like a storm whirling the heavens into a nightmare of death and decay.

Sweat dotted my brow, but Izaliths laughter could be heard as she continued. ” Stained by the Blood of the One, and All. There exists a throne that hides a presence that once broke Arcadia. Causing the skies to bleed once a year for an entire month.”

Blood of Father? Father… was hurt? What… No. That’s not possible.

“Is your spine tingling?” she chimed in, leaning onto my shoulder. “It’s a blood bath back in my time. It’s in such chaos even Father, the Lord of the Archeon, nearly lost his life.” Sounding more excitable than needed. The sound of delight slipped from her tongue like honey. “If you think the skies could bleed, you’d never seen what true torment is. Arcadians, Abyssals, and those of the Myriad Heavens are all howling, begging for their menial lives. The Seraphim, Fallen, Abyssals, and Primordial are all dying. Do you know who died first? You know her. I’ll give you a hint. It’s a woman. A primordial.”

Bellowing into wild, untamed laughter, I stood there, somewhat disturbed by the spawn of Arsene. There was insanity… then there was this.

“It’s war, my friend! And we are doomed to fail! And it’s all our fault! HAHAHA!!!”