The Fate Of A Xeruxby DiscordantKireChaptersPrologueThe Fall Of A XeruxThe Miscalculation ProloguePrologue When you looked upon the apartment, you wouldn't think anything of it at all. Standard, Grey, Lifeless. These words seemed to define this place down to a meaningless spec of dust upon the floor. It seemed to be all so very normal.. in fact.. a bit too normal. It never changed, it was always clean, There was always food, and if you looked more than once upon this place, you would see the furniture never moved, not even in the slightest detail. If you were to look upon this small apartment in the complex, you would almost find it hauntingly normal. It was not vacant, yet there were no signs of life at all. It sometimes made Deus chuckle. Deus wasn't concerned about people finding out, why should he be? Normal people are dense.. and rather pointless in all aspects really. Why would he bother with them at all? They were such basic creatures who had no purpose. They were truly better off simply leaving and leaving Deus undisturbed.Their presence was nothing more than a nuance to him after all. Deus was by no means an advanced practitioner in.. the 'arts', but he knew enough to fool people so utterly simple as to be blind to the truths of the very world around them. The Glamour was barely enough to fool a mediocre practitioner after all! That was simply how it was in Deus's mind. Pitiful creatures. They were whom he was forced to call his 'own kind'. Simple simple humans... he felt nothing but disdain to even be of the same race as them.. it was shameful. His master from all that time ago had told him that the being that was man, was and is superior, and that he should be proud to be of the flesh of man. In Truth, Deus only felt disgust toward the race of men. They were lazy, easily broken, easy to manipulate by brute force alone, and while highly adaptable, also highly inefficient. He has suggested countless numbers of times that research be done into human transmutation, but the high sorcerers seemed to think him nothing more than a young and mad fool. He was nothing but fool hardy Xerux after all. At least thats what they all told him. There are several paragons of the 'arts'. manipulation, natural, physical, ethereal, elemental, One could spend a a lengthy amount of time naming the different fields. There were also specific paths within them. Deus was in particular had quite the affinity to Manipulation based sorcery; that is, the kind of arcane influence that works around bending something into behaving differently than was 'natural'. Making water flow upwards, manipulation of the mind, influencing the cycle of a tree's growth, these were some of the things that Manipulation based Sorcery did with ease. Deus's pride and joy however... was in making new things. Forcing a inanimate object to behave as a lifeform, even though it clearly was not. Making something unique out of something... boring. It was all Deus Stood for. Making something no one other than himself had thought of, something no one could do better than he. Most importantly... it not being BORING. Deus loved to have fun. Deus was not well liked because of his 'taste' in fun. Some thought he went too far with his 'jokes' and creations. Deus thought he had not gone nearly far enough. It was merely a small fraction of what Deus really wanted to do. Deus true desire was merely to be accepted as who he truly was. Alas it never did seem to go that way. The other Sorcerers scoffed at him for his foolish 'delusions of grandeur' as they called it, they thought his fun was nothing but irrational nonsense... it sometimes almost made him want to make them see things his way. That’s when the voices came. The voices changed everything. They told Deus about glorious creations that made normalcy look like a grand failure. Deus was shown marvelous things that dwarfed anything even the Arch-Mages had come up with. Reality manipulation, Mind influence, Control over the very forces of nature themselves!!! All the others within the Sorcerer society told him it was madness, such forces 'should not be controlled', 'it was not our place to do so'. 'Such forces should only be controlled by the gods, and even they show restraint in the control of such vast entities. They were all fools though. To Deus, they were just getting in the way of true and real progress! He did have to wonder though... those voices which had given him everything, taught him so much, so much that he had never heard before.. what were they? [iWe are what you are. We are what you could have always been.... Deus... But that's not right... that name isnt who you REALLY are is it? Why do you run from what you were meant to be? Why do you reject fate? Why call yourself by a name that bears no meaning? Why do you hide from us? “Us?” Deus woke on his couch after lackluster night of sleep. He rarely had a nice period of sleep or waking recent days. Deus yawned as he considered what needed to be done for the day. First and foremost, he thought, he needed to complete the calculations in order to finish his great project. The "Gate". That was his priority, nothing else was really all that important in comparison to that. The Gate was all he had ever wanted. It lead somewhere he very much wanted to go. Where? Anywhere but were he was now. But the best part, oh the best part of it is he would finally be rid of what irked him most. By going through, and leaving the rules of this horrid place, he would leave behind what he hated more than anything. “My Humanity.” This wasn't about the Arch-Mages or about proving himself to the other sorcerers that he was not as foolish and wrong as they all assumed. No, this was a far greater Goal. To do as no other Sorcerer before had done. He was going to transcend his pitiful body at long last, the gate would ensure that when next he would look upon a mirror, he would finally be able to see something which he did not hate. The gate would bring him to his utopia, even if for others it could quite possibly be a land of nightmares. He would leave this pitiful body, and reform as... as... well... "I probably should consider that... I haven't considered any of the possibilities, the vast outliers, if i would even be sentient.. there are many things to consider, most of all If the gate will even function as I have hypothesized." It will work fine... you have been working for months upon end... enough waiting, enough caution... It is almost complete Deus. We are so close... for so long have you have been trapped; for so long have you sought to escape this dreadful plane to avoid this abyss of meager form and mind! I tell you Deus that the time is Close, and should be hastened as much as possible. The voice that spoke from within was his own... right? Why would he not trust... himself. Very very soon, it was going to be done. The only thing he needed left to finish the puzzle was the spark. The Final push to bring the Energies of the Gate to Life, and utilize its power. He had no means by which to ignite the portal himself, he was not powerful enough for that he knew, but if he could find another source... one he could use as fuel for the spell... He held his head up thoughtfully as he considered the parcel which he had ordered months ago to be delivered to his residence. That would contain the final piece of the puzzle, and then finally, finally.. he would be free. But will you be truly free? Or gone from this prison only to find a new one? Author's Note First Chapter is now UP For everyone to come and see, All please please PLEASE comment on this and tell me your honest opinion. DO NOT SUGARCOAT IT. That is bad for my already massive ego :D Let me know what you think, what i could do better etc, and most importantly have fun guys! EDIT: This is not the original chapter, I just got done re-editing the chapter to be less monotonous because of request to make it more... well more correct really. Let me know still if you like it, if you dont like it, why or why not, all in the comments or even in the likes/dislikes. I would much rather recieve a hundred Dislikes than be told i have a great story when its not true. Im writing both for myself as a writer and hopefully to entertain you guys, so please let me know what irks you about my writing, and let me know what i can do to make it better. Until then, c ya later! The Fall Of A XeruxWhat price must be paid? Deus thought to himself as he lay in bed, looking at his grey apartment with a peculiar feeling of disdain. It was all so boring really, it was beneath him that he of all people should have to bear this menial existence.. He should be lounging with the gods for how much better he was, for how much more he had to offer. Yet, it was always those foolish Arch-Mages who stepped in the way of true progress. They impeded progress for pitiful causes like, morality, and, humanity. It was all pointless. For all the knowledge he had gained from working among them, he had learned only one real lesson. Progress was a sin. To the Arch-Mages, Progress meant evil. To Deus, it was worth. There might be 'minor' suffering in the moment, but at large, the price far was lesser than the gain. What did one insignificant life mean anyway?. I mean come on! The Arch-Mages are afraid of 'altering the flow' how foolish. And moreover, rather stupid. I don't feel as if there is hardly any reason at all that research cannot be done, that glorious glorious progress cannot continue. Of course... they just don't understand. Your nothing but a worthless, pitiful, incompetent... Xerux... that's all you are.. all you will ever be. Stupid Humans... He thought to himself again as he once again realized just what he was saying. He was a human, like it or not. There was little he could do about that annoying little fact. Imperfect, boring, impractical. It was almost depressing really. But he had to put all of that aside for now. He was coming closer to his goal. So long as no idiots got in his way like they always did. Luckily for him, his friend Vex was on his side, its true he wasnt quite adventurous enough to openly admit to the mages that he sided with a 'foolish Xerux' but he was a good friend, one he could count on. One with whom Deus felt secure in telling the secrets of the gate. Unfortunately, Vex had no interest in helping. What did it matter anyway, no one believed he could transcend his flesh, i mean, not permanently. Poly-morphing was simple, but only temporary. He was talking about changing the very natural form of his body itself! And he was damn well close to doing it as well. He just needed a little more time. A knock on the door pulled him out of his thoughts, and his eyes drifted lazily to the door from the couch he had been laying upon. "Well its about time" Deus said aloud to himself, as he rose to open the door. Upon reaching said door, he peered through the eyehole, and saw exactly what he was hoping for. A mailman dressed in the traditional blue suit, with a stereotypical stachel upon his form. He was dropping off a small box on the doorstep. Deus opened the door without hesitation, and immediately came out with cheerful expression held, and looking right at the mailman. "Are you Carter Stones?" The mailman asked impassively. Deus inwardly twitched. He hated the name given to him by his parents... it was so... boring. "Yes that is me." Deus replied with a barely hidden sigh. He reached out and took the wooden pad being held out to him awaiting his signature. He signed it quickly, and handed it back hardly batting an eye. "Thank you very much for this, this is very important." "Yeah whatever pal, i got more deliveries to make, so hurry it up." Deus smiled a wry smile at his rudeness, but said nothing of it. He picked up the package and nodded to the mailman as he headed inside, but not before he touched the wall with a minor amount of mana. The mailman turned around about to head out, when the wind chimes above him crashed down on his head without warning. The mailman bent down while rubbing his head in confusion. He put the wind chimes back up, shaking his head, then tried to head out again, this time the mailbox opened as he was leaving hitting him in the chest, with a surprising amount of force. The mailman stumbled back, and looked to be getting highly annoyed by this point, but deciding enough was enough, grabbed his bag and left before anything further could happen. Deus inside was laughing on the couch after that little stunt. It was so simple to taunt the stupid humans... They were so... pitiful. Your one of them Deus... no matter how much you hate... no matter how boring they are.... your the same. No I am not. I am just a freaking Xerux right? Nothing but a stupid Xerux. We both know thats not what you really think. But it doesn't matter. Your almost done Deus... your only a step away. Right Deus said aloud, once again considering it rather strange he had just conversed with himself... again. That could wait, but this could not. Within that small box laid the item he had spent 6 months searching for. He wrapped his gloved hands around the box, feeling physically on cloud 9. this was it. This would mark the end of the search. He opened the box. Inside was something small. Something precious. Something that could not be taken, only given. It was a small vial. No bigger than his index finger in length. It contained a clear liquid, which he knew all to well what that liquid was. The tear of an angel. He was not powerful enough to spark the gate himself, but if he used the power within this.. he would have more than enough power. He would have to separate himself temporarily from both mind and body, but that would be the easy part, being in ethereal form was simple, at least for him. The hard part... the hard part was... what was it again? You have forgotten nothing. There is nothing left. All you need to do is activate it. Its ready Deus. Its ready. No, there is something i have forgotten, something important... something very important. NO. It is done. All you need to do, is light the spark.. and be free. Right... of course.. of course you are right... i mean... we are right...hopefully... The Miscalculation The Miscalculation It all went so wrong... everything was planned. It was going to be perfect. It was going to solve all of my problems. Deus looked up from the ashen ground around him, bleary eyed, and barely able to see anything. "But what went wrong? ~ One Hour Earlier Deus rubbed his hands together in anticipation. He glanced at the tall dark structure before him he had been assembling for such a long time. The Gate stood ominously above him. It was circular in shape, with large tesla coils jutting out at the corners in a V shape, and the entire frame engraved with very powerful runes that Deus honestly shouldn't have been meddling with, but this was no time for Cold calculation. This was time for what he had dreamed. No More waiting. Its ready. There are no further calculations. No further planning. Enough planning has already been done. You know what your doing. All you need to do now, is THROW. THE. SWITCH. Deus spoke aloud to himself once again, "No, that's not right. There is something i'm missing! There is something important that isn't present... something that must not be forgotten..." Dont be a fool. Its ready. YOUR LIFES WORK. ALL YOU ARE IS RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU. Are you saying you dont want this anymore? You dont want happiness? Fine. Just take it down. It doesn't matter to me. Panic filled his heart to the core. He knew, of all the things he wanted, to NOT do this was at the top of the list. This was his only path to true happiness. To finally be rid of his mortal flesh... and its past. But now was not the time for mourning, You i mean... we are right! No more delays. "We are ready to go!" Deus yelled as he threw the switch. Cogs twirled within, light spurted, the Angel's tear in the vial dissipated instantly, its energy was now fueling the reaction now. It was only a catalyst however, Deus still needed to supply his own magic to the formula. The gate was making many audible noises, ranging from a song, to a scream. The reaction needed more, and Deus knew it. Deus raised his hands, and brought forth the raw magic to his fingertips, and shot it straight into the Gate. That was when he knew something was horribly wrong. Something wasn't happening. The reaction didn't finalize. It was still going, his magic was still flowing into the gate, and it showed no signs of stopping. Deus tried to pull his hands back, and retrieve his magic from the Gate's grip, but it was drawing more and more power, and it was pulling all the magic inside. All he heard was that lingering voice in his mind. Thank you Deus. Now as you die at least die knowing you achieved something wonderful. Deus gasped as a shadow came out from within his very body, and manifested into a twisted form. This was no mortal. This was no random mystic being that desired to bring misfortune to him, no, this was far worse. And it was not a Him. The being took upon a elegant female form, wrapped in a dark gown, the color of midnight, her skin was pale, but still beautiful. Her eyes were a sharp amber, and she stared at him with a look of... hunger. He was not looking upon some power lusting demon. He gazed upon something that made Demon's look like a mild inconvenience. He was helpless. He couldn't move as he was still tied to the reaction that was even now draining the magic, and by extension, the life from his very body. He was descending into nothingness. He could feel his very soul leaving him as he watched the Dark form of the woman in front of him manifest, as she smiled at him fading into nothing. She spoke then to him in the voice of an angel, she sounded like beauty incarnate, but was also curled with a dark presence beneath the surface. "This is your End Mortal. But I am in a Jovial mood. I am feeling generous even. Ask me a single question, and you will be answered truthfully, which believe me, is not a common thing." Deus shouted back, "What good is a question when death comes knocking at the door??!" Deus had tears in his vision as it darkened, and she smiled at him all the broader. "That's not a question.... try again..." She said it almost Jovially, as if this was a common day occurance to see a man being stripped of all that they were before her. Felt almost hauntingly familiar... Deus looked at her with hateful eyes, and after attempting to move again, but failing, shouted again, "Who Are you?!" She frowned at this. "Really? I would think you smarter than that. I mean in order for someone like me to be here you would have to be a certain kind of person. But perhaps you were just lucky enough to draw my presence, I mean after all, we gods don't just come down to you willy nilly now do we?" She smiled once again right in his face as his face was contorted in pain from trying to maintain consciousness and not be dragged into nothingness. She sighed, and spoke this time in a ever changing, and extraordinarily loud voice, "Very well mortal, while your question is stupid and i would think better of you, I am obliged to answer it. Who am I you ask? Why I am the only Deity who may ever hope to understand you Deus. I am the changing of the air, the transformation of things, the bender of ways. Who am I Deus? I am Eris. Goddess of Discord." Deus's eyes widened at this. It didn't matter though, nothing mattered. He was about to die. This information would do him no good. He stared at her, while he was being siphoned away, his very body beginning to physically fade as the magic essence of it was being drained away. Deus's eyes then shot open, he knew a way to get out of this! He was a Xerux! As much as the others detested that, Being a Xerux right now may be his only hope. "Changer of ways huh? Hows this for a change?" Deus said channeling more of his magic into his palms before being siphoned out, casting with his very lifeforce a spell that may ironically save him. His form twisted and malformed, and then burst entirely. His physical form was gone, and was nothing but energy. That energy though, went through the Gate. It had been enough energy from his life to finally fully fuel the Gate to its full power. He was spinning through reality next thing he knew. He saw vibrant color, distortion, and nothing all at the same time. He is nowhere. He was everywhere. He was where he should be. He was where nothing should ever dare go. He was in reality. He was no longer a part of it. He felt a vague cracking as if all of his once physical nerves were shooting him one last message that read proudly: THAT HURT. The next thing he was aware of, he was laying on muddy soil, completely covered in mud, no clothes to speak of, and he had a body that shouldn't even exist after what he had just been through. Deus groaned, and turned on his back to look at the sky, which was brighter than he remembered. "Where in the world..." He said barely conscious. He opened his eyes and saw a pink pony of all things looking down upon him. For a moment he merely stared at it in a state of "Whaaaat???" As it stared at him. Then to his horror, it spoke. "Where are ya?" She giggled continuing, "Well your in Equestria silly where else would you be?" Deus stared at the pink pony, until his head fell back and he fell into unconsciousness. One could hear him mumbling to himself... "Talking ponies..... awwh fuck..." Were his last words before he fell fully unaware. ~ Eris stood looking at the gate with a sinister grin. "I knew he was clever after all... using his own lifeforce to go through the portal without being drained by it? Clever... I knew i picked well when i chose him. If only he knew what I have in store for him next..." She closed her palm, and the gate shattered to pieces. She turned, her from becoming not but shadow, and she went back to the realm of gods. "We will just have to see what happens..."
ProloguePrologue When you looked upon the apartment, you wouldn't think anything of it at all. Standard, Grey, Lifeless. These words seemed to define this place down to a meaningless spec of dust upon the floor. It seemed to be all so very normal.. in fact.. a bit too normal. It never changed, it was always clean, There was always food, and if you looked more than once upon this place, you would see the furniture never moved, not even in the slightest detail. If you were to look upon this small apartment in the complex, you would almost find it hauntingly normal. It was not vacant, yet there were no signs of life at all. It sometimes made Deus chuckle. Deus wasn't concerned about people finding out, why should he be? Normal people are dense.. and rather pointless in all aspects really. Why would he bother with them at all? They were such basic creatures who had no purpose. They were truly better off simply leaving and leaving Deus undisturbed.Their presence was nothing more than a nuance to him after all. Deus was by no means an advanced practitioner in.. the 'arts', but he knew enough to fool people so utterly simple as to be blind to the truths of the very world around them. The Glamour was barely enough to fool a mediocre practitioner after all! That was simply how it was in Deus's mind. Pitiful creatures. They were whom he was forced to call his 'own kind'. Simple simple humans... he felt nothing but disdain to even be of the same race as them.. it was shameful. His master from all that time ago had told him that the being that was man, was and is superior, and that he should be proud to be of the flesh of man. In Truth, Deus only felt disgust toward the race of men. They were lazy, easily broken, easy to manipulate by brute force alone, and while highly adaptable, also highly inefficient. He has suggested countless numbers of times that research be done into human transmutation, but the high sorcerers seemed to think him nothing more than a young and mad fool. He was nothing but fool hardy Xerux after all. At least thats what they all told him. There are several paragons of the 'arts'. manipulation, natural, physical, ethereal, elemental, One could spend a a lengthy amount of time naming the different fields. There were also specific paths within them. Deus was in particular had quite the affinity to Manipulation based sorcery; that is, the kind of arcane influence that works around bending something into behaving differently than was 'natural'. Making water flow upwards, manipulation of the mind, influencing the cycle of a tree's growth, these were some of the things that Manipulation based Sorcery did with ease. Deus's pride and joy however... was in making new things. Forcing a inanimate object to behave as a lifeform, even though it clearly was not. Making something unique out of something... boring. It was all Deus Stood for. Making something no one other than himself had thought of, something no one could do better than he. Most importantly... it not being BORING. Deus loved to have fun. Deus was not well liked because of his 'taste' in fun. Some thought he went too far with his 'jokes' and creations. Deus thought he had not gone nearly far enough. It was merely a small fraction of what Deus really wanted to do. Deus true desire was merely to be accepted as who he truly was. Alas it never did seem to go that way. The other Sorcerers scoffed at him for his foolish 'delusions of grandeur' as they called it, they thought his fun was nothing but irrational nonsense... it sometimes almost made him want to make them see things his way. That’s when the voices came. The voices changed everything. They told Deus about glorious creations that made normalcy look like a grand failure. Deus was shown marvelous things that dwarfed anything even the Arch-Mages had come up with. Reality manipulation, Mind influence, Control over the very forces of nature themselves!!! All the others within the Sorcerer society told him it was madness, such forces 'should not be controlled', 'it was not our place to do so'. 'Such forces should only be controlled by the gods, and even they show restraint in the control of such vast entities. They were all fools though. To Deus, they were just getting in the way of true and real progress! He did have to wonder though... those voices which had given him everything, taught him so much, so much that he had never heard before.. what were they? [iWe are what you are. We are what you could have always been.... Deus... But that's not right... that name isnt who you REALLY are is it? Why do you run from what you were meant to be? Why do you reject fate? Why call yourself by a name that bears no meaning? Why do you hide from us? “Us?” Deus woke on his couch after lackluster night of sleep. He rarely had a nice period of sleep or waking recent days. Deus yawned as he considered what needed to be done for the day. First and foremost, he thought, he needed to complete the calculations in order to finish his great project. The "Gate". That was his priority, nothing else was really all that important in comparison to that. The Gate was all he had ever wanted. It lead somewhere he very much wanted to go. Where? Anywhere but were he was now. But the best part, oh the best part of it is he would finally be rid of what irked him most. By going through, and leaving the rules of this horrid place, he would leave behind what he hated more than anything. “My Humanity.” This wasn't about the Arch-Mages or about proving himself to the other sorcerers that he was not as foolish and wrong as they all assumed. No, this was a far greater Goal. To do as no other Sorcerer before had done. He was going to transcend his pitiful body at long last, the gate would ensure that when next he would look upon a mirror, he would finally be able to see something which he did not hate. The gate would bring him to his utopia, even if for others it could quite possibly be a land of nightmares. He would leave this pitiful body, and reform as... as... well... "I probably should consider that... I haven't considered any of the possibilities, the vast outliers, if i would even be sentient.. there are many things to consider, most of all If the gate will even function as I have hypothesized." It will work fine... you have been working for months upon end... enough waiting, enough caution... It is almost complete Deus. We are so close... for so long have you have been trapped; for so long have you sought to escape this dreadful plane to avoid this abyss of meager form and mind! I tell you Deus that the time is Close, and should be hastened as much as possible. The voice that spoke from within was his own... right? Why would he not trust... himself. Very very soon, it was going to be done. The only thing he needed left to finish the puzzle was the spark. The Final push to bring the Energies of the Gate to Life, and utilize its power. He had no means by which to ignite the portal himself, he was not powerful enough for that he knew, but if he could find another source... one he could use as fuel for the spell... He held his head up thoughtfully as he considered the parcel which he had ordered months ago to be delivered to his residence. That would contain the final piece of the puzzle, and then finally, finally.. he would be free. But will you be truly free? Or gone from this prison only to find a new one? Author's Note First Chapter is now UP For everyone to come and see, All please please PLEASE comment on this and tell me your honest opinion. DO NOT SUGARCOAT IT. That is bad for my already massive ego :D Let me know what you think, what i could do better etc, and most importantly have fun guys! EDIT: This is not the original chapter, I just got done re-editing the chapter to be less monotonous because of request to make it more... well more correct really. Let me know still if you like it, if you dont like it, why or why not, all in the comments or even in the likes/dislikes. I would much rather recieve a hundred Dislikes than be told i have a great story when its not true. Im writing both for myself as a writer and hopefully to entertain you guys, so please let me know what irks you about my writing, and let me know what i can do to make it better. Until then, c ya later!
The Fall Of A XeruxWhat price must be paid? Deus thought to himself as he lay in bed, looking at his grey apartment with a peculiar feeling of disdain. It was all so boring really, it was beneath him that he of all people should have to bear this menial existence.. He should be lounging with the gods for how much better he was, for how much more he had to offer. Yet, it was always those foolish Arch-Mages who stepped in the way of true progress. They impeded progress for pitiful causes like, morality, and, humanity. It was all pointless. For all the knowledge he had gained from working among them, he had learned only one real lesson. Progress was a sin. To the Arch-Mages, Progress meant evil. To Deus, it was worth. There might be 'minor' suffering in the moment, but at large, the price far was lesser than the gain. What did one insignificant life mean anyway?. I mean come on! The Arch-Mages are afraid of 'altering the flow' how foolish. And moreover, rather stupid. I don't feel as if there is hardly any reason at all that research cannot be done, that glorious glorious progress cannot continue. Of course... they just don't understand. Your nothing but a worthless, pitiful, incompetent... Xerux... that's all you are.. all you will ever be. Stupid Humans... He thought to himself again as he once again realized just what he was saying. He was a human, like it or not. There was little he could do about that annoying little fact. Imperfect, boring, impractical. It was almost depressing really. But he had to put all of that aside for now. He was coming closer to his goal. So long as no idiots got in his way like they always did. Luckily for him, his friend Vex was on his side, its true he wasnt quite adventurous enough to openly admit to the mages that he sided with a 'foolish Xerux' but he was a good friend, one he could count on. One with whom Deus felt secure in telling the secrets of the gate. Unfortunately, Vex had no interest in helping. What did it matter anyway, no one believed he could transcend his flesh, i mean, not permanently. Poly-morphing was simple, but only temporary. He was talking about changing the very natural form of his body itself! And he was damn well close to doing it as well. He just needed a little more time. A knock on the door pulled him out of his thoughts, and his eyes drifted lazily to the door from the couch he had been laying upon. "Well its about time" Deus said aloud to himself, as he rose to open the door. Upon reaching said door, he peered through the eyehole, and saw exactly what he was hoping for. A mailman dressed in the traditional blue suit, with a stereotypical stachel upon his form. He was dropping off a small box on the doorstep. Deus opened the door without hesitation, and immediately came out with cheerful expression held, and looking right at the mailman. "Are you Carter Stones?" The mailman asked impassively. Deus inwardly twitched. He hated the name given to him by his parents... it was so... boring. "Yes that is me." Deus replied with a barely hidden sigh. He reached out and took the wooden pad being held out to him awaiting his signature. He signed it quickly, and handed it back hardly batting an eye. "Thank you very much for this, this is very important." "Yeah whatever pal, i got more deliveries to make, so hurry it up." Deus smiled a wry smile at his rudeness, but said nothing of it. He picked up the package and nodded to the mailman as he headed inside, but not before he touched the wall with a minor amount of mana. The mailman turned around about to head out, when the wind chimes above him crashed down on his head without warning. The mailman bent down while rubbing his head in confusion. He put the wind chimes back up, shaking his head, then tried to head out again, this time the mailbox opened as he was leaving hitting him in the chest, with a surprising amount of force. The mailman stumbled back, and looked to be getting highly annoyed by this point, but deciding enough was enough, grabbed his bag and left before anything further could happen. Deus inside was laughing on the couch after that little stunt. It was so simple to taunt the stupid humans... They were so... pitiful. Your one of them Deus... no matter how much you hate... no matter how boring they are.... your the same. No I am not. I am just a freaking Xerux right? Nothing but a stupid Xerux. We both know thats not what you really think. But it doesn't matter. Your almost done Deus... your only a step away. Right Deus said aloud, once again considering it rather strange he had just conversed with himself... again. That could wait, but this could not. Within that small box laid the item he had spent 6 months searching for. He wrapped his gloved hands around the box, feeling physically on cloud 9. this was it. This would mark the end of the search. He opened the box. Inside was something small. Something precious. Something that could not be taken, only given. It was a small vial. No bigger than his index finger in length. It contained a clear liquid, which he knew all to well what that liquid was. The tear of an angel. He was not powerful enough to spark the gate himself, but if he used the power within this.. he would have more than enough power. He would have to separate himself temporarily from both mind and body, but that would be the easy part, being in ethereal form was simple, at least for him. The hard part... the hard part was... what was it again? You have forgotten nothing. There is nothing left. All you need to do is activate it. Its ready Deus. Its ready. No, there is something i have forgotten, something important... something very important. NO. It is done. All you need to do, is light the spark.. and be free. Right... of course.. of course you are right... i mean... we are right...hopefully...
The Miscalculation The Miscalculation It all went so wrong... everything was planned. It was going to be perfect. It was going to solve all of my problems. Deus looked up from the ashen ground around him, bleary eyed, and barely able to see anything. "But what went wrong? ~ One Hour Earlier Deus rubbed his hands together in anticipation. He glanced at the tall dark structure before him he had been assembling for such a long time. The Gate stood ominously above him. It was circular in shape, with large tesla coils jutting out at the corners in a V shape, and the entire frame engraved with very powerful runes that Deus honestly shouldn't have been meddling with, but this was no time for Cold calculation. This was time for what he had dreamed. No More waiting. Its ready. There are no further calculations. No further planning. Enough planning has already been done. You know what your doing. All you need to do now, is THROW. THE. SWITCH. Deus spoke aloud to himself once again, "No, that's not right. There is something i'm missing! There is something important that isn't present... something that must not be forgotten..." Dont be a fool. Its ready. YOUR LIFES WORK. ALL YOU ARE IS RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU. Are you saying you dont want this anymore? You dont want happiness? Fine. Just take it down. It doesn't matter to me. Panic filled his heart to the core. He knew, of all the things he wanted, to NOT do this was at the top of the list. This was his only path to true happiness. To finally be rid of his mortal flesh... and its past. But now was not the time for mourning, You i mean... we are right! No more delays. "We are ready to go!" Deus yelled as he threw the switch. Cogs twirled within, light spurted, the Angel's tear in the vial dissipated instantly, its energy was now fueling the reaction now. It was only a catalyst however, Deus still needed to supply his own magic to the formula. The gate was making many audible noises, ranging from a song, to a scream. The reaction needed more, and Deus knew it. Deus raised his hands, and brought forth the raw magic to his fingertips, and shot it straight into the Gate. That was when he knew something was horribly wrong. Something wasn't happening. The reaction didn't finalize. It was still going, his magic was still flowing into the gate, and it showed no signs of stopping. Deus tried to pull his hands back, and retrieve his magic from the Gate's grip, but it was drawing more and more power, and it was pulling all the magic inside. All he heard was that lingering voice in his mind. Thank you Deus. Now as you die at least die knowing you achieved something wonderful. Deus gasped as a shadow came out from within his very body, and manifested into a twisted form. This was no mortal. This was no random mystic being that desired to bring misfortune to him, no, this was far worse. And it was not a Him. The being took upon a elegant female form, wrapped in a dark gown, the color of midnight, her skin was pale, but still beautiful. Her eyes were a sharp amber, and she stared at him with a look of... hunger. He was not looking upon some power lusting demon. He gazed upon something that made Demon's look like a mild inconvenience. He was helpless. He couldn't move as he was still tied to the reaction that was even now draining the magic, and by extension, the life from his very body. He was descending into nothingness. He could feel his very soul leaving him as he watched the Dark form of the woman in front of him manifest, as she smiled at him fading into nothing. She spoke then to him in the voice of an angel, she sounded like beauty incarnate, but was also curled with a dark presence beneath the surface. "This is your End Mortal. But I am in a Jovial mood. I am feeling generous even. Ask me a single question, and you will be answered truthfully, which believe me, is not a common thing." Deus shouted back, "What good is a question when death comes knocking at the door??!" Deus had tears in his vision as it darkened, and she smiled at him all the broader. "That's not a question.... try again..." She said it almost Jovially, as if this was a common day occurance to see a man being stripped of all that they were before her. Felt almost hauntingly familiar... Deus looked at her with hateful eyes, and after attempting to move again, but failing, shouted again, "Who Are you?!" She frowned at this. "Really? I would think you smarter than that. I mean in order for someone like me to be here you would have to be a certain kind of person. But perhaps you were just lucky enough to draw my presence, I mean after all, we gods don't just come down to you willy nilly now do we?" She smiled once again right in his face as his face was contorted in pain from trying to maintain consciousness and not be dragged into nothingness. She sighed, and spoke this time in a ever changing, and extraordinarily loud voice, "Very well mortal, while your question is stupid and i would think better of you, I am obliged to answer it. Who am I you ask? Why I am the only Deity who may ever hope to understand you Deus. I am the changing of the air, the transformation of things, the bender of ways. Who am I Deus? I am Eris. Goddess of Discord." Deus's eyes widened at this. It didn't matter though, nothing mattered. He was about to die. This information would do him no good. He stared at her, while he was being siphoned away, his very body beginning to physically fade as the magic essence of it was being drained away. Deus's eyes then shot open, he knew a way to get out of this! He was a Xerux! As much as the others detested that, Being a Xerux right now may be his only hope. "Changer of ways huh? Hows this for a change?" Deus said channeling more of his magic into his palms before being siphoned out, casting with his very lifeforce a spell that may ironically save him. His form twisted and malformed, and then burst entirely. His physical form was gone, and was nothing but energy. That energy though, went through the Gate. It had been enough energy from his life to finally fully fuel the Gate to its full power. He was spinning through reality next thing he knew. He saw vibrant color, distortion, and nothing all at the same time. He is nowhere. He was everywhere. He was where he should be. He was where nothing should ever dare go. He was in reality. He was no longer a part of it. He felt a vague cracking as if all of his once physical nerves were shooting him one last message that read proudly: THAT HURT. The next thing he was aware of, he was laying on muddy soil, completely covered in mud, no clothes to speak of, and he had a body that shouldn't even exist after what he had just been through. Deus groaned, and turned on his back to look at the sky, which was brighter than he remembered. "Where in the world..." He said barely conscious. He opened his eyes and saw a pink pony of all things looking down upon him. For a moment he merely stared at it in a state of "Whaaaat???" As it stared at him. Then to his horror, it spoke. "Where are ya?" She giggled continuing, "Well your in Equestria silly where else would you be?" Deus stared at the pink pony, until his head fell back and he fell into unconsciousness. One could hear him mumbling to himself... "Talking ponies..... awwh fuck..." Were his last words before he fell fully unaware. ~ Eris stood looking at the gate with a sinister grin. "I knew he was clever after all... using his own lifeforce to go through the portal without being drained by it? Clever... I knew i picked well when i chose him. If only he knew what I have in store for him next..." She closed her palm, and the gate shattered to pieces. She turned, her from becoming not but shadow, and she went back to the realm of gods. "We will just have to see what happens..."
