Nothingness. A void deeper than blackness, absent of any color, presence, thought. The abyss that existed before Creation. One could go utterly mad if confronted with it. Time was meaningless. This abyss would exist forever, yet untouched by time.
Without warning, the void was rendered, sundered and shattered. In its midst was... a room.The floor seemed carved from perfect, flawless marble, polished to a high gleam with wax. Scattered almost haphazardly along its surface were dozens of carpets of immaculate construction, every thread in alignment, minuscule patterns embroidered into them. The center of the floor was dominated by an immense table, constructed from aged oak, fashioned into a large circle. Several chairs were spread evenly around its perimeter, each one a throne in its own right.
The room had no walls or even a ceiling, the floor simply ended where the void resumed its presence. There seemed no way to enter this room, yet several forms appeared out of nowhere, through one manner or another.
A burst of flame and a whiff of sulfur, and an arrogant figure garbed in red stepped forward. Even his skin was red, and his hair was a deep red shock thrown back from a prominent brow. Mephisto.
A burst of flame vanished almost as quickly as it appeared, leaving a ring of ash in its wake. Rising up from this was a demonic looking figure, skin as black as the ash it has arisen from. Its eyes glowed a baleful red, and taloned hands clenched into fists. A powerful tail lashed behind it, and hair that resembled nothing so much as a mass of spikes. Blackheart.
The void seemed to warp and collapse in upon itself, waves of distortion stretching inward to a minute point before pulsing outward. Dark red flames burst from this nexus, and a figure strode forth from the inferno. Clad in what appeared to be a suit of armor, their head seemed composed of flames burning the same color as those they stepped through. Dormammu.
A section of the flawless marble seemed to crack and fissure, before a powerful form surged through it. A demonic form with a rocky build, colored an olive green, his most noticeable feature was the second face on his stomach. Horns curled back from his head, and low fires burned along his back. Satannish.
The darkness from the void surged forth before coalescing into a slender figure. Skin as pale as bone, and hair that seemed insubstantial as shadows. Dressed in a form-fitting outfit of purple and black, glowing green eyes looked over the others indifferently. She moved forward to take a seat as well. Lilith.
The next form simply appeared, with no outward indicator of just how they had done so. A withered figure clad in a voluminous robe, one gnarled hand extended, with a single crimson fingernail inscribing onto a scroll held by their other hand. They drifted toward the table silently. Chthon.
Six guests in all, they each took a seat. All the while watching each other guardedly. There was not a single bit of trust in the room, each would betray the others at the first opportunity. Yet one by one, they each glanced at one object in particular. The seventh seat at the table. One more guest had yet to arrive, the one who had asked them to come.
Finally, they appeared, in a flash of green and black light. Garbed in an outfit of the same hues. her face was hidden by a green mask which covered her eyes, leaving only white expanses that betrayed no emotion. Hel. She took the final seat, before clasping her hands together upon the table.
"I suppose you all are wondering why I summoned you. Well, all in good time. An opportunity has arisen, and I am going to take advantage of it. Due to our unique connections, it was only apropos that I extend the same opportunity to all of you."Hel gestured and the surface of the table rippled like oil, before it began to show a picture, a recording of what had already transpired. How her father, Loki, had fallen. How she had stormed the gates of Heaven itself, and slayed the Angelic Host. The deal she had made with Black Adam. And even the recent activities of the other Gods- Thor, Odin, Hercules, and once more Black Adam.
Once the display was finished, she resumed her speech.
"The time has come to sunder Fate, to take what we want. Souls. There is an entire planet, and once the Gods are no more, the souls of the mortals will be ripe for the plucking. No more must we remain in check, biding our time and only making a move when Fate allows. No more! I say we seize Fate as our own, and prove that even the Gods can die!"For a moment, no one spoke. Finally, though, one did. Clasping his hands in a faint shriek of metal, Dormammu leaned forward over the table.
"An interesting offer. But why share any of this with the rest of us? None of us have any real alliance, and any promise of such would be a lie.""She offers, because she expects us all to be overcome. She thinks us mere cannon fodder, to distract the Gods and mortals from her own actions. Being so sorely underestimated... Hel, you disappoint me." Mephisto grinned even as he leaned back in his own seat, taking a sip from the glass of wine that hadn't been there a moment ago.
"I say we agree to her offer. And when we make it through, then she'll have to surrender a share of the souls to each of us!" A clenched fist struck the table, though the table was strong enough to not crack under the blow, as Satannish glared at Hel.
"She offers a grand opportunity regardless of her own ulterior motives. If the Gods do fall, then our influence will be felt more strongly than ever. Surely that much evil spreading throughout the world will be worth a little treachery." Chuckling softly, Blackheart nodded his head toward Hel, showing his own stance on the issue.
"Whether she betrays us or not, I for one intend to advance my own cause. You all would do well to do the same. If there is even a chance we can finally cast off the shackles of Law, then by all means we must grasp this chance!" A wheezing cough preceded Chthon's words, but they were no less impassioned as a result.
For a long moment, the last entity seated at the table didn't speak. Lilith considered the issue in silence as she weighed the others' comments.
"If this be the truth, then there is no choice but to say aye. Whether Hel intends treachery or not, it matters not. The Gods and Law have been a thorn in our collective sides for too long. We must take this chance, while the moment is right. Once the last God has fallen, and all our other enemies lay in defeat, then we can return to our traditional roles."Hel smiled slightly as it seemed that the majority of those she had summoned were amenable to her cause. Oh, she knew they would betray her, but as long as she could make them think that there was still more for them to gain, she could control the moment of their betrayal. For now, they seemed to be in accord, they would finally bring about the long-awaited Twilight of the Gods. In time, all of the different pantheons would be simple memories. Odin, Zeus, Osiris, Jupiter... Soon, they would all fall beneath her heel. They all shared the burden of her father's death, they all would share in the punishment. And then, then the earth would be up for grabs. Six billion souls were up for grabs. It would be glorious.
With nothing else to say, they left, one by one. Only after the last one had departed, did the room itself dissolve back into the void. No sign of the meeting ever having took place remained, no trace of the various energies that had passed through would ever be detected.
It had begun.
((a guest chapter written by our Very own Hedoro)) 
