The exceptionally tall, dark-skinned male stormed through the heavy doors of the Audience Chamber, his presence alone providing Renatus with much needed relief and reassurance. A heavy cape embellished with golden embroidery detail on its ends laid on his wide shoulders, adorned with voluminous black fleece that spanned from his shoulder to just above his chest, with the golden emblem of Kaufernis acting as a clasp to hold it in place, fitted with a golden arc consisting of small golden rays pointing outwards behind his right shoulder. A steel shoulder guard with golden trim rested on his left shoulder, complementing the thick gold bangles that rested on his forearms and beneath his biceps, in addition to the solid golden belt that kept his loose toga in place.

“Even if the Death Dealer were here, it’d only complicate the issues further, considering their alleged power and independence. If my brother got my hands on such power, then he would become an unstoppable force through his powers of omnipotence,” the man diligently advised, stroking his beard as he eyed the other bearded folk before him, who scowled at him in response.

His long, luscious deep brown hair was always subject to the envy of others, even by those in the Higher Authority, in addition to his one-of-a-kind sunset orange irises. “And knowing you folks for years, I know you would’ve been tempted to do the same - and surely, without a doubt, succumbed to it without guilt.”

Shortly after his speech, a golden suit of armour caught up to him and briefly stopped in his tracks to catch his breath. 

“Apologies, Your Highnesses, I could not stop him in time,” the GateKeeper heaved in exhaustion, with sweat somehow leaking off his shiny armour. 

The distance from the Gate to the Audience Chamber was rather minimal, leaving Renatus to assume that he was having the time of his life chasing the Lord of Kaufernis around in circles before he slipped and gave him a small window of opportunity to storm through the doors of the Audience Chamber.

“Why are you here, Hiram? You have no business here,” the bearded man fumed, furrowing his eyebrows as he folded his arms in a poor attempt to appear intimidating. He was certainly a lot more agitated now than he had been with Renatus alone, noting to himself that he needed to climb the ladder if he intended on becoming the most chaotic being in the Realms, at least in the eyes of the Higher Authority and possibly beyond them.

“Well, he does, sir. He is, in fact, a god, if you hadn’t forgotten,” Sir Golden Hat replied sternly. “He does not have time of day to attend our conferences due to being the Lord of Kaufernis. Please pay your respects to His Worship.”

“Touché. Continue, Hiram. State your intentions regardless.”

The scar over Hiram’s right eye became prominent as he huffed in response. He was never fully accepted by the Higher Authority, regardless of his status as the Lord of Kaufernis. Had he not been a god, they may have dismissed him as easily as they had done with Renatus, with their fear of being forcibly removed from their positions of power keeping them in check. It left him bewildered to think that such incompetent individuals were selected and appointed into such power. “Although I am in an almighty reputable position no longer, I advise you to focus solely on investigating my brother. Blaming someone who doesn’t exist, let alone has nothing to do with the issue at hand is wasting valuable time.”

In the corner of his eye, he noticed the GateKeeper’s stance waver slightly, with the sword that kept him standing firm and steady positioned slightly off centre. “We must remember that Godric is not only the most powerful being with his powers of creation - he is also clever. We must critically seek other avenues he may use to avoid our attention...” He turned his direction directly towards the GateKeeper, raising an eyebrow as he observed his noticeably skittish behaviour, the tension between them gradually increasing as the Higher Authority watched them silently in confusion. 

Upon noticing the odd gesture, Renatus raised his voice as he began making his way towards a nearby pillar, reaching deeply into his waist sash to fetch his rope. “And you know, I’m the ‘demon’ that Ylipeste threw out. Things were meant to resolve on their own once they exiled me, yet you had the audacity to turn to me for help, after turning your back on me throughout the years. I’ll be taking my leave, then. Thanks for nothing.”

“Vaina is alive and well,” the GateKeeper stammered hesitantly. 

There was only silence when Renatus sharply turned around in dismay, eyeing the Higher Authority’s unexpected shock as the words continued to echo into the back of their minds. His mind began racing, his heartbeats sharply lunging against his chest as his breaths grew shallow. The voices that constantly commanded him to seek her despite her alleged death, and to not believe the lies that the Higher Authority had told him were suddenly coming to light.

Although it was something he should’ve been relieved to hear before the Higher Authority, he felt rather uneasy, his chest sinking awfully low as his world momentarily stood still. It was something he’d always wanted to hear, yet he still couldn’t fathom the truth behind those words. “Who…told you that? Why should I believe you? All you do is guard the Gate anyway.” 

“Godric’s most trusted spokesperson, Malachi, the Messenger himself. I am uncertain if it was Godric’s direction to do so, though I highly doubt that considering your…circumstances,” the GateKeeper replied, maintaining a strong direct gaze towards him. 

He truly wanted to doubt his words, but he knew that in the back of his mind, that the GateKeeper only spoke with sincerity. Malachi had acted as Godric’s messenger long before his own creation, delivering all sorts of information ranging from highly confidential reports to trivial gossip across the Realms in a matter of seconds thanks to his lightning speed, a blessing conferred by Godric himself. He could easily be missed in a blink of an eye if one were to seek him, becoming a mere blur amongst the city lights akin to a soft stroke of paint on an oil canvas. He barely left a trail as he ran across ragged mountaintops and flew amongst the hazy clouds, merely dropping a trace of a feather now and then. Even so much as a whisper could travel across the Realms and find its way into Godric’s ears, making him a suitable spy that made even the most despicable cautious around their words. 

Renatus drew a sharp breath, still processing the shock from hearing the news. 

“This… There’s no way that’s true. Malachi himself informed me of her death,” he shakily said under his breath. 

But he couldn’t deny that Malachi might’ve been instructed to lie to him to prevent him from attempting to return to Ylipeste in a fit of revenge. To think that the GateKeeper of Kaufernis had heard this information before him, and for how long had it been kept from him? How long had he been lied to by the Higher Authority? The thoughts began to irritate him one by one, more questions arising from the singular answer that he anticipated to ease his life’s worth of unrest. To think that Godric’s daughter, Vaina would also become subject to the Higher Authority’s watch seemed awfully convenient.

“I don’t see why bringing her up would be relevant to any of this. Why do you of all people know about her?” 

Hiram firmly patted his back, reminding him to maintain his composure. He appreciated the gesture, since losing his temperament would be devastatingly detrimental to his sheer focus on getting his highly sought-after answers from the Higher Authority themselves. They knew what that name meant to him, what she meant to him - from his creation until his sudden exile, she had always been there, never leaving his mind ever since he eventually woke up in the Underworld Realm.

For the longest time, the fact that her alleged death had occurred soon after his exile had been planted into his mind and left him shaken for a large majority of his life. If she had suffered the same abuse he did, he couldn’t forgive himself, the thought plaguing not only his mind but also the very depths of his once-innocent soul. Even when he tried to leave the memories behind, they persisted in constantly reminding him of her and his time in Ylipeste, terrorising and haunting him not only in his nightmares, but even in his daydreams. 

“We suspect that she may be able to provide us with the answers we seek, considering she is the daughter of Godric,” the golden hat individual said. 

Whatever Godric had planned, Vaina was certainly the centre of it considering that she was made in his image - pure perfection, without a single flaw both physically and spiritually - a fact that was difficult for many to believe, given their contrasting difference in personality. She upheld the most ‘true’ and pure angelic aura most expected from the Higher Angels of Ylipeste, many detailing their accounts of feeling instantly relieved standing in the same space as her, her refreshing smile removing any doubts and anxiety they carried. Her character at heart was of pure intention and nothing but unconditional love and kindness, with many even hailing her as a saint of Ylipeste. To think that she was the daughter of such a strict tyrant made Renatus laugh. 

“Not only will your angel background be useful in accessing both Realms, but your skills as a fully-fledged assassin may also prove to be useful, especially given the unknown dangers ongoing in Ylipeste as of current,” the winged being added, the bells on their shoulder pads chiming in a melodious manner as they leaned forward on the bench.   

Renatus exhaled in exhaustion and took some time to deeply process the situation before him. On one hand, he was deeply hurt and irritated at the fact that the Higher Authority did in fact lie to him his entire life as he suspected, and dismissively ignored his pleas for help. But on the other, he would finally be able to seek the answers he yearned to resolve since he was exiled - all without needing to sneak past the GateKeeper, which was a huge benefit. And most importantly, he could finally seek revenge on Godric however he wished, in addition to verifying the truth behind Vaina’s status, finally putting the inescapable voices in his head to an end once and for all. 

“I’ll do it,” he declared. “Just give me the details.”

The three Higher Beings and the GateKeeper sighed in relief, the stiff tension relieving itself immediately to a state of tranquillity. 

“The unjudged souls are currently waiting in limbo in The Middle Ground due to the unresolved blight issue in Ylipeste. We fear it may taint, or even destroy souls without Judgement,” the golden hat individual raised. “This Realm overlooks other minor Realms beyond Death, so it is imperative that we resolve these issues. Otherwise, existence as we know it may falter entirely.”

The winged being flicked through some documents before them, not lifting their head as they said, “Those who don’t make it to either Ylipeste or Kaufernis go there instead. It currently acts as a bridge between the Realms, despite the boundaries. It’s starting to affect the Mortal Realm as well, as The Middle Ground is continuing to expand infinitely, affecting the individuality of souls as they start to wander and become lost in distinguishing the Mortal Realm and the Afterlife.” 

“We want to deal with these issues with haste. The effect of the blight is starting to cause mass hysteria in Ylipeste. We don’t want it bleeding into Kaufernis either,” the bearded man added, watching Hiram nod with enthusiasm.
“Why can’t you just…leave the souls there, as is? It’d just make things easier for everyone,” Renatus genuinely asked, as Hiram held back a laugh at the remark.

“We don’t know the impacts of letting souls bypass the Gate without proper Judgement, since both Gates are required to be open to do so. It may cause further disturbance in our respective Realms, the existence of The Middle Ground in itself causing a huge disturbance already. The space-time continuum now has a small tear in it, but we can’t even investigate it since it's outside of our jurisdiction. That’s why we need you in particular,” the winged being responded, putting aside their documents into one neatly stacked pile.

“Please report to us any findings, both significant and insignificant. And do try to convince Vaina to cooperate with us, so we can get to the bottom of this mess. We need to figure out Godric’s intentions for Ylipeste once and for all - with evidence - so the Council can do something about his power hunger before it's too late.”