Such is life, Somnus thought, you do everything right and you still die.

The very human-like thought startled Somnus. As if the thought wasn't his own, but planted by someone else in his mind. He looked around, but could not detect any signs of interference. The origin of the thought was himself.

This was not the first time he had thoughts like these, but now they started to creep up on him like a slow death—like a plague—and he was far less aware of the difference between his normal thoughts and speech patterns, and this strange human-like psyche.

What scared him the most was that in some forgotten vestige of his subconscious he may actually desire to be human. He resented that possibility, but he could not deny that it may exist.

He wanted to return to his origin.

He pa.s.sed through the Gateway after everyone but the goblin engineers did, and the sight that greeted him was a mixture of wonder and resentment.

In the distance, spires made of silver and gla.s.s challenged the heavens with their height, infused with every bit of advanced knowledge the civilization that built them possessed. The fact that they belonged to someone other than humanity was an affront to Somnus and in his petty human heart he desired to crush them.

Ashborn Knights and Deathbringers formed the ranks in a formation to receive the attack of an enemy force that stood hundreds of meters before them, at the edge of a clearing that was easily kilometers wide. Outside the clearing, heavily forested areas betrayed that this clearing was created recently for the Gateway.

"Master," Lod appeared next to Somnus, the goblin's words reaching him before the speaker did. "Elf gather here when we come through, but not attack. Elf too many and Lod not sure we win, but for salary raise, Lod work hard and do miracle, yes?"

"Idiot," Det said, stepping from behind Lod as if he was always there. "Master kill them all in blink of eye. No work for goblins."

"Shut up," Lod replied angrily, rolling his eyes. "Why you always follow me and ruin plans? I want raise to pay debt."

Det narrowed his eyes, and then a flash of comprehension flickered in the goblin's dead eyes. "Master, Lod right, enemy too many. Master should rest and enjoy the scenery. We goblin take care of problem for small, not insignificant, raise."

Lod nodded. "Why problem make when you don't problem have? Goblin take care of this. Master study Gateway? Maybe this side have more success?"

Somnus found their serious attempts to manipulate and deceive him to be pathetic and funny, but it was true that this side of the Gateway might actually contain the activation sequence. He didn't think that would be the case, but when he looked at it, his sight was flooded by magical information.

The goblins were right. This side did contain the activation sequence. Somnus was dumbfounded by the amount of information and the size of the spell formation—it vastly exceeded his own abilities. How was that even possible? Who created this thing?

When Somnus suddenly turned and began approaching the Gateway, the goblins knew the conversation was over and their shoulders slumped. Without spoken permission to attack the enemy, their career advancement will have to wait.

"Why Lod have to mention Gateway?" Det asked. "Idiot."

"Shut up," Lod replied. "Look, Ashborn girl looking at us. Lod think she fancy Lod."

"She looking at Det, not…" their voices faded into the background.

As Somnus approached the arc of the Gateway, he realized that many smaller spell formations worked together to form the large one. After thinking about it for a moment, Somnus found this method to be inefficient, but effective. There was no way a mortal, or even a G.o.d, could create the Gateway on their own. It contained so many symbols that it would take Somnus a day to decipher all of it, and that was with all the advantages he had. For an ordinary person, it would take decades.

Civilized creatures always found a way to make the impossible happen—this was just one example of their creativity. There he stood, a being vastly more powerful than almost anything on this planet, and this pathetic creature has managed to create something that he could not create himself. This is why he feared Humanity in his old life. Even though he was capable of eradicating their entire race, they could still find a way to eliminate him. And they did.

"This knowledge was gifted to us by Seraph," someone beside Somnus spoke in a female voice. "Many, many, years ago."

Somnus glanced towards the source of the voice and saw a person, about his height, clad in silver robes. From the hood poured a stream of golden hair.

"He said that one day, someone will appear seeking the mechanism behind it," she said. "Even though we surrendered to Seraph, he gave us the knowledge to create the Gateway, so that we may preserve our way of life."

"Identify," Somnus said. "Comply."

The woman looked to Somnus, but her face remained concealed in the shadows. "Yesterday, I was the G.o.ddess of the flowing waters. I did not even have a place in the pantheon," she said with a sorrowful voice. "Today, I am the Queen of the Alfar G.o.ds."

Somnus began turning towards her when she spoke again. "I have no desire to fight. If you must kill me, I will not resist."

"Why?" Somnus asked.

The G.o.ddess raised her head a little, allowing the noon sun to illuminate her jaw and cheek. "What is the point? Fighting, in victory or defeat, has never brought me closer to what I wanted."

Somnus thought about her words, and although at first he vehemently disagreed with her, he could not deny that there was a glimmer of truth to them.

"We came to this continent with conquest in mind, and ever since then, we have not remained the same. We are splinters, fragments of our old selves, unable to return to how we used to be, or where we came from. In the past, before coming here, we slaughtered the t.i.tans and spun the wheel of restoration. Now we are nothing," she said calmly. "Perhaps it is our destiny to fade away. Who can resist that?"

She touched the solid spell-wrought arch of the Gateway and looked up towards the abyssal black spot in the sky. "It is someone else's turn to fight the Silence," she said and then glanced at Somnus. "And to kill Seraph."

"What does designation Seraph have to do with this?" Somnus asked.

"Have you learned the true story of the Destroyer's Avatar, Somnus?" the woman asked.

Somnus stared at her, expression unreadable.

She smiled. "Aurora's doing, I suppose."

Somnus narrowed his eyes at the G.o.ddess.

"Aurora has always tried to protect you from this world and the G.o.ds. For a thousand years, she kept Seraph suppressed, and the Fragment locked away," as she spoke the last part, she pointed at Aeon who was still in a different dimension. "All for the sake of meeting you one day."

Somnus relaxed slightly at those words. "You know designation Aurora?"

The G.o.ddess nodded. "I was one of her allies. Perhaps, like me, she desired to redeem herself for all she had done. I wish I could've helped her before she became a slave to the Will."

Somnus felt the urge to kill this G.o.ddess slowly crumble away with each word she spoke.

"What is your designation?" Somnus asked.

"Hana," she replied as she stepped away from the Gateway and then turned to face Somnus. "This Gateway will now take you to the Empire."

Somnus looked at the Gateway but he did not sense anything different about it. Although, any minute changes in it would be nearly impossible to detect, considering the size of the magic formation.

"Before you go, there are things I would like to teach you about your origin. Will you come with me to Eliandros?" she asked, pointing to the silver and gla.s.s spires in the distance. "Your men are also welcome to visit the holy city."

Somnus looked at the Gateway and then back to Hana, considering the offer. "Define motive."

Hana chuckled. "A promise I made to Aurora."

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Somnus considered her words and then nodded. "Very well."