The Greatest Sin

“Raptor-One, comms-check, over.”

“Raptor-Two, comms-check, over.”

“Seer-Central, copy both of you loud and clear. Raptor-One, Raptor-Two, you are on interception course. Do not respond. Do not respond. I repeat: Raptor-One, Raptor-Two, you are on interception course. Do not respond.”

Kassandora swung Joyeuse from side to side as she took a step forwards. Her mind became a spiderweb of decisions and choices. Each move with its dozens of outcomes as her eyes scanned the sight of a shattered Olympiada. Iniri’s felled great oak had cascaded onto two palaces. Alkom was still in the air, Zerus was recovering from the hit but Elassa was being shielded by her mages. That blade throw was the best decision, taking the Goddess of Magic out of the fight had removed the queen in this game. “Kavaa.” Kassandora said slowly, she knew Of Health would hear her. “I need your men.”

“They will follow.” Kavaa responded immediately. “They know.” Kassandora swung her sword through the air once again, simply to feel the sensation. Freedom had been joyful but this battle? Each breath she took was a gulp of pure euphoria. This was her demesne. Kassandora raised her sword and let her power spill into the Clerics around her. Of Health’s blessing was one of individual resilience, but Of War’s?

War fuelled War. Kassandora saw through the Cleric’s eyes, heard through their ears, she heard their subconscious. Their fears of defeat and of marching against the Pantheon, their dreams of being of wiping away disease, their worry of simply being pawns in a game of Divines. She pushed them away, no word was said, but phalanxes began to form. Clerics moved to secure doors, they pushed into the Seekers that were still at the doors of the Lower Prison, they grabbed Helenna by the arm and pulled her out of the fray.

War fuelled War. Their strength was shared with Kassandora. Joyeuse, bane of kings, her greatsword, became the weight of a mere dagger, her armour grew lighter, her movements fasters. She silently gave decisions as Sceo rushed Zerus into the air and Alkom, God of the Sun, stared down at her. “We have defeated you once Kassandora. It will be done again.”

“I will be defeated when I’m dead.” Kassandora said and the Clerics echoed her.

“To the death!” Kavaa looked around, her eyes wide as her men started to push her back towards the entrance of Olympiada. Staying here would be a mistake. Allasaria could return within hours, Fortia and Maisara likewise, they were the true forces to fight against. These Gods of Forces? What was something as petty as the Sun against War? War raged day and night until eternity, the Sun was so lazy it needed to rest half the time.

Kassandora crouched, her legs tightened, and she cracked the marble stones with a jump. Alkom was like Neneria, a pocket-army, not a fighter in his own right. He had to eliminated to protect her army of Clerics. Zerus turned in the air pulling away from his wife and flicked his fingers. A second later and Alkom would have been split in two, instead, two forks of lightning blasted down from the dark clouds overhead and slammed into Kassandora.

Lightning caught her helmet, raced through her body, frying her muscles and slamming into the ground. “Kavaa!” Kassandora called out as she thought to maintain her conscious. Her arms broke as she slammed into the ground but the Goddess of Health was upon her as Alkom retreated into the air. “NOW! DO IT!”

Kavaa slid her fingers under Kassandora’s black helmet and around her neck. Of War held her breath, bit her tongue and felt the fires of healing try to incinerate her sanity once again. Blood burst from her mouth, bones rearranged themselves, a thousand knives clipped her muscles and then pulled them together. Kassandora got to her knee through a heavy breath. The pain of Zerus’ lightning was nothing compared to that.

Of War scanned the battlefield again. Alkom held a growing ball of fire above his hands, now the size of a barn, Zerus and Sceo were below him. Elassa was enclosed in a protective bubble as a dozen mages circled around her. The Goddess of Magic clutched at the bleeding wound in her stomach, blood soaked her dress, dripped off her feet and made a small puddle of red in the bottom of the bubble. She was out for now…

Kassandora’s Joyeuse pirouetted around her like a ballet dancer, Alkom had to be stopped, but he was untouchable as long as Zerus was around. That was a rather easy fix. She swung the greatsword, it danced through her fingers, twisted it, spun, her core muscles tightened and she sent the sword flying at Sceo.

Time seemed to slow as Zerus’ eyes widened. “Iniri, accept me!” Kassandora shouted, she felt the gates to Iniri’s mind open and pulled on the Goddess’ power. Wooden spears rose around Kassandora as Of War adopted a throwing stance. A wooden branch grew into her hand and she launched it at Zerus. Another one. A third. Fourth.

Zerus moved like lightning, one instant, he was on the other side of Alkom to Sceo, the next, he was in front of his wife. Sweat burst out of his angered face, he held his arms forwards and called upon the clouds once again with a thunderous roar. The skies above answered his cries as a rain of lightning came upon the spinning greatsword heading towards his wife. One, two, three. They did little to change the blade’s trajectory but the speed faltered, the whir faltered and he caught the blade, they split his hands and stopped at the wrist.

Kassandora’s allowed herself a smile as she reached forwards to recall her greatsword. The God of Lightning let out a lion’s roar, clouds rumbled overhead and then they faltered. Wooden stakes dived into his chest. His front became a porcupine as a dozen spikes crashed into him. Kassandora threw one after another. Sceo caught her husband, swept her hands through the air and a gust of wind threw the rest of the spears away from them. She wrapped her arms around Zerus and pulled back further beyond even Elassa.

And now Alkom. God of the Sun. Tall and thin, Bringer of Day, Bearer of the World’s Hearth. The fire above grew to the size of a palace and he finally spoke. “Kassandora, today you die.” He groaned, his jaw tightened, sweat poured from like a shower, as he heaved and pulled the sun down on the courtyard.

“Kavaa!” Kassandora shouted. Joyeuse back in her hands. The armour on her back disappeared revealing her pale skin. “Strengthen me!” She felt Of Health’s hands on her back, the terrible magic of healing pour into her, her muscles tore once again, her chest crushed itself as every fibre of her being twisted and rewound into a stronger, faster, better version. Kassandora called on Iniri’s magic, an oak raised out of the ground, pushed them above the Clerics as they raised shields to try and guard from the terrible heat of a star.

Kassandora swung Joyeuse into the Sun. The blade effortlessly passed through the flames, a trail of fire following it. She let go of the sword, it embedded itself deep in marble as Of War put her hands up. Alkom’s fury and rage pressed down on her, the oak set alight, Kavaa cold hands pushed into her back as her armour start to melt. Black drops of steel fell onto the ground below them as the Clerics carried Iniri and Helenna off.

Kassandora’s skin turned black, her fingers cracked, her blood evaporated still within her body, her wrists burst from the inside, her bones charred, turned to ash, blew away in the wind. Blood burst from her nose, her vision started to go dark and Kassandora screamed. “OUTHEAL HIM!”

The Sun burned with fury of a thousand stars above, Kavaa’s healing burned with the power of Life itself. Kassandora’s bones regrew, turned to ash, regrew again. Her hands reformed in that heat, her vision went away entirely, her senses grew dull with the raging flames above her, fires cracked her armour, it molten metal seared her skin, nothing but heat and Kavaa’s healing remained.

Elassa clutched at her chest, her eyes widened, through the blue haze of the shield around them, she saw the impossible. Kassandora, Glorious Goddess of War, submerged in flames, roared and stalled a star.

Kavaa took her breathes as her head started to spin. Never had she expended this much power in a single healing, never had she thought it was possible for one person to take. Willpower would eventually give out, minds would crack, bodies would reject healing after being put through so much. A state like that once reached would be a death without wounds, as if Death itself had simply come and claimed the soul, leaving an empty barren husk. Kassandora held a star above her head as Kavaa poured more of her power into her. The woman had become a shield for the army below them, holding up the sun as her Clerics retreated.

And then, she felt her powers cool down. Where before Kassandora was beckoning a flood, now it was a mere torrent, then a river, a stream. The sun above them started to shrink, Alkom moved away, wobbling in the air as if about to faint. Kassandora roared a bestial growl gave one final push as the ball of fire started to crack, the tendrils of flame it spat became loose, the heat above Kavaa lessened, it started to shrink.

The sun in Olympiada’s courtyard burned out.

Gone just like that. Steam rose out of the dead, from the ashes that once composed Iniri’s great oak. From the molten marble itself. The oak below them gave way and Kavaa caught Kassandora in her arms as she landed on the ground. Above them, Sceo was in tears, Zerus was barely holding onto her, Alkom had grown pale and Elassa had a gaping hole through her stomach. “Do-Don’t!” Kavaa tried to stop Kassandora, but Of War, still stood. She rocked from side to side.

“This was a warning!” Kassandora shouted. Joyeuse appeared in her hands as her helmet disappeared to reveal a burned face. “These three are under MY protection!” Kassandora took a step forward and smashed her greatsword in between Kavaa and the Divines in the air. Seekers from the other districts took a step back, then fled.

“Kass.” Kavaa put her hands on the woman as Clerics came rushing back into the courtyard. Their armour started to singe in the heat, cloaks set alight, but they still stood. “We’ve won.” Kassandora turned, her eyes red with bloodlust. Her face black, muscle and teeth exposed across her face but it still twisted into bestial anger.

“We’ll win when they’re all dead!” And then Kassandora fainted.

Kavaa caught her before she fell, the Clerics formed a battle line, but there was no more fight to be had. Three of the four Divines in the air had been incapacitated. Iniri had begun to recover, Helenna was still unhurt, Kavaa was fatigued, but she could still fight. They turned their backs to the Gods in the air, and Kavaa carried Kassandora off the Divine Mountain.