Abaddon’s expression had become complicated and far away.

Judging by the way that he had fallen silent, Aj could harbor a guess that maybe things were a lot more nuanced than he thought.

Valerie suddenly draped her arms around her husband’s neck and offered him the same kind of smile she always used before she asked him for something.

“Boo-boo-bear.”

Courtney recoiled. “Eww..”

Abaddon and Valerie flipped off their daughter without looking back.

“I know you can’t help them directly, but it still wouldn’t hurt just to listen.” Valerie smiled. “No matter how difficult it is for you, you aren’t the one facing the real burden here. They are.”

The other wives seemed moved by Valerie’s sentiments, judging by the way they smiled at her fondly.

Abaddon, however, was still a little on the fence about the whole thing.

He knew that he should, but the last time he made the mistake of listening to human prayers, he and Yesh had one of the worst fights of his life…

The things that gods could influence on Earth were limited to the supernatural community.

Interfering with humans in any way was a surefire way to make Yesh and Asherah come down on you like a raging storm.

And even though they generally gave him more leeway than others, Abaddon was a firm believer in not abusing the couple’s generosity.

Exceptions to their rules were few and very far between. Shiva is the only primordial being permanently allowed on earth, and the humans in his monastery know full well of his existence.

The reason why- they limit or cease all contact with the outside world so that they have no effect on it’s happenings.

Other exceptions are Asian minor gods. Deities who are so-called lords of mountains, rivers, and other landmarks.

Their power is so minuscule that they are basically members of the supernatural community. They don’t really have the power or the influence to majorly alter the world’s events.

“I’m not sure, I…” Abaddon’s words trailed off again, and his eyes went hazy before they refocused.

Audrina raised her brow in genuine suspicion. “…They’re trying an invocation now, huh? I hadn’t thought that they still knew how…”

Abaddon knew that he couldn’t get away with it this time, judging by the look on his wives’ faces.

Quietly, he closed his eyes and let his mind be pulled to a world miles away.

– Earth: Unknown Location

Dust and spiderwebs clung from the rafters of a dingy old building. Too small to be considered a cathedral, and too ominous to be thought of as a church.

At most, there were fifteen different people- all of them with dark skin and unnatural blood-red hair.

Some of them had more flesh exposed than others, and those that did all seemed to share the same monstrous tattoo on various parts of their bodies.

One old man stood in front of what looked like an altar. It was a large, rusted cauldron with faded jewels embedded in the rim.

Orange flames billowed in the air from the pit. Heaps of black smoke wafted up into the air and turned the room very inhospitable very fast.

The humans inside were beginning to feel more than a little agitated.

“This musty old place already smelled like shit before, now it’s just unbearable…” A young woman held her nose.

“Shut up, girl, and stop disrespecting our temple.” The old man snapped. “Get over here and help me with this water.”

The young woman came over and assisted the old man in lifting up a cauldron of icy cold water.

Together, they poured the water into the cauldron and extinguished the charred entrails once and for all.

As a hissing noise filled the air, steam billowed up into the air and the mixture inside of the concoction turned a muddled black color.

The old man stared into the metal cauldron for a few moments. Their brew still wasn’t strong enough to reach the darkness below.

But they could always rectify that.

“…Bring the rest.”

Two of the younger members brought over some more materials, including witch hazel, aconite flower, and finally a crushed precious gem.

Finally, the old man let his eyes roll into the back of his head.

Without looking, he reached for a torch that was being offered to him.

The shaman held the fire up in the air above the cauldron and began chanting rhythmically in a language no textbook would recognize.

Meanwhile, the rest of the men and women inside followed his example and began humming along.

None of them felt the ground beneath them rumbling.

Their awareness of the world around them somehow faded away. The only thing that they felt for certain was the air in their lungs and the moving of their lips.

“Such a miracle…” A new voice said.

All at once, everyone in the temple ceased their humming and chanting.

The shaman dropped his torch on the ground, and the flames slowly petered out.

Now, the only source of illumination in the room was the glow that came from the cauldron depths.

The shaman’s entire body was wracked with tremors.

He stumbled backward and was barely caught by a young man standing behind him.

“You spook quite easily. One could almost think you didn’t know what you were doing.”

The shaman dropped to his knees while trembling in front of the pot.”M-My great god, I-“

“Please, spare me the theatrics. Stand up, Clay.”

The old man was shocked that the god somehow already knew his name.

He stood up on trembling legs and wandered towards the cauldron.

There, a single reptilian eye was floating amongst the black water.

“Y-You know my name.” The old man said into the pot.

The eye blinked. “I know far more than that. The only thing that escapes me at the moment is why you have summoned me after all of these years.”

Clay tried hard not to be too starstruck and nodded slowly. “Right, right… I’m sure it must be disorienting to be back on earth after all of this time… the world must feel out of place to you, so I’m sorry for the discomfort.”

For some reason, the eye took it’s time responding to that as if it wasn’t sure how.

“…Indeed, a very long time. The word feels completely out of balance.”

The murmuring of awed humans filled the room.

“Tell me the reason why you have called for me.” The eye said.

Clay dropped don’t one knee and lowered his head. “God Bellow Gods… Your faithful are under attack. Enemies from the shadows are-“

“Clayton. If you are about to ask me to give you power to aid in earthly matters, then I must stop you before you begin. Did Mabel not imprint that upon you?”

Clay faltered. “M-My mother… She did indeed. We do not call you lightly, Lord.”

Before the hodcould respond, a new voice brazenly called out.

“Man, we’re getting attacked! Are you going to do something about it or not??”

A young man suddenly arrived in the cathedral. Like the others, he had dark skin and red hair but stood out due to his pierced eyebrows and nostrils.

“Isaac! Are you out your mind, boy!? This is a god you’re speaking to!”

The young man, whoever he was, remained obstinate. “He a god, but where’s the reward for our belief? Why is he letting us get chased around by monsters while he sitting in fairyland comfortable! We should be-“

A light could be seen shining through Isaac’s clothes. The giant tattoo across his chest was turning bright red.

Suddenly, Isaac started floating in the air and began screaming.

The sound of flesh sizzling was barely audible over the screams. And yet, it was somehow still heard by all.

Everyone was too scared to make a wrong step.

“…You’ll have to forgive me, it has been… so, so long since a being with less than thirty years of life has tried to speak to me unkindly. I’ve less patience for it than I remembered.”

Isaac dropped out of the air and hit the ground face-first.

Clay stumbled over to the young man and used his old body as a protective shield.

“Forgive the boy, my God! His heart is full of grief as he mourns for his brother!”

The eye briefly fell silent.

When it spoke again, it surprised everyone in the room.

“…Nathaniel. He is dead?”

Clay picked up his slack jaw as he nodded. “Killed around three days ago, God. And he isn’t the only one, I fear we’re being attacked from all over!”

The eye blinked a few times and the group could tell that it was thinking about something rather hard.

“Their wounds?”

Clay knew what he was asking instantly. “Claw and fang marks, my god. Not the tools of man.”

“The supernatural community wouldn’t dare harm any of you, you’re practically celebrities. And even if they tried, you should all be able to handle yourselves even if outnumbered.”

Clay nodded profusely. “All true, my god, all true. And yet I promise you that we are being hunted all the same. We beg of you to help us..!”

“Please. Lord..”

“We beseech you..”

“Please help us..”

It was unknown if the fervent prayers of all of the followers actually had an effect on the ancient being or not.

But they must not have fallen on fully deaf ears either, because after a few more moments of silence, the eye finally responded.

“…How long will it take you to reach the United States?”

The group lifted their heads as they glanced at each other. That was the absolute last place they expected him to ask about.

“We can probably be there around noon tomorrow.” Clayton surmised.

“…I will give you a location. Go there and prepare for my descent.”