NOVEL NEXT 38: All-Encompassing Doubts
Kieran was... unsure.
A couple days had gone by since he’d visited the Leaves of Dawn cafe and the day of the operation had arrived.
But, even now, Kieran had his own doubts.
His faith in the All-Encompassing Crimson Cancer had been wavering as the years had gone by. His prayers hadn’t been answered, his worship hadn’t blossomed into reality, and his eyes had been opened to the fruitlessness of worshiping such a being. It was already intelligent—well, intelligently hellbent on the destruction of the world—and set in its ways without room to change or be reasoned with.
It wasn’t a good look either because he was the leader of the cult that followed this cataclysmic being.
Yet, the world wasn’t going to wait, so he, now partnered with the cult following the Ever-Advancing Viridian Taurus, had come up with a plan for a new salvation.
They’d first summon both cataclysmic monsters to the city, let them wreak havoc, then sacrifice both—along with any other monsters and deities they could capture—to summon another cataclysmic creature, one they could manipulate, or influence at the bare minimum.
And that brought Kieran to the present. Now, he was standing on the side of a building while on the phone with the rest of the deities present within the cult he led.
They were orchestrating an “attack” on the Cerulean Dynasty. Of course, the attack was more of a cover to set up their various rituals, but it was an attack nonetheless. Even more, to aid in their cover, they had “accidentally” leaked their plans to the Federation of Obsidian so they’d also attack at the same time.
Why not exploit the rivalries between these egotistical organizations?
“Is everything set up?” Kieran asked, whispering into his phone while overlooking the Dynasty’s pagodas.
With all the voices in the call being disguised, Kieran listened in as one of his claws replied. “Yes, leader. We’ve also communicated with the cult of the Ever-Advancing Viridian Taurus, they’re also ready to begin their attack on the Church. Just give the signal, they’ll move when we move.”
“And the Dynasty is in position to attack the Church?” Kieran murmured as he watched Lysander leap across the rooftops while disappearing into the distance.
“Yes, all the factions believe there’s an opening to attack another.” The other Claw answered with a quiet whisper. “I’m watching the Church’s forces move towards the Federation right now.”
“Alright, all Claws and Legs, pay attention.” Kieran began, pressing his hand against the wall as faint strands of divine energy began snaking their way into the wall. “I, the Shell of the All-Encompassing Crimson Cancer, am issuing an order. We will begin our attack in two minutes. Watch for my initial attack.”
Nodding along as the various deities replied their agreement, Kieran sighed. How exactly was he going to attack? He couldn’t predict how the Federation was going to attack, so now that they were, it was time for him to answer his own question: what was the best opening in the Dynasty’s defense?
The Dynasty attack force was being led by Lysander and Elyse, but Morgana was still staying behind... So she was the critical factor at play right now.
Pumping his body full of divine energy, Kieran began taking deep breaths to focus himself.
Two minutes...
Well, just over a minute now.
As a quiet air descended around Kieran, the minute passed after what felt like forever. With his eyes snapping right as his watch changed minutes, Kieran leapt into the air, leaving a small crater in the pavement.
Clenching his fist, black-ish red strands manifested into reality, following him as he flew forward. Seconds later, the entire wall he had pressed his hand against earlier was ripped away before being thrown forward.
Splitting the debris into various sizes midair, Kieran took a deep breath before continuing to pump divine energy through his fist. Punching outward, each of the strands ballooned as Kieran strengthened each piece of debris as it came down on the various pagodas of the Dynasty.
Sweeping his hand forward, the chunks of destruction lifted to become the prongs on a huge rake that ran its way through each building.
As divine energy spiked throughout the Dynasty, Kieran laughed as various deities outside of the Dynasty also revealed themselves. “It’s war! Don’t get complacent now, Morgana!
Still alone, Kieran continued his sweeping motion while in the air, wreaking havoc throughout the Dynasty’s territory as walls, roofs, and entire buildings came crashing to the ground. As he moved closer and closer to the headquarters though, Kieran felt a roaring wave of divinity shoot up into the air as Morgana came bolting outward. “You’re late!”
Pushing off against the air to back off, Kieran launched a bolt of dark red divinity backward, latching onto a building far away before pulling himself towards it.
Flipping up and over to land on the building's rooftop, Kieran shrugged and clicked his tongue as Morgana’s cussing figure stayed put to ward off the other invaders.
Without too much else to do, Kieran sat back and relaxed as the rest of the cult began mounting their frontal invasion with the federation in tow.
Using a two-pronged invasion approach, Kieran sat in the middle as the two Claws each led a force: one from the left and one from the right. Beside them were three Legs each, these deities, though powerful, still couldn’t hold a candle to the established deities in the upper echelons of any of Marcen’s Cliffs established organizations.
That was just one fact Kieran had to live with. Running a cult meant they couldn’t raise or recruit people as easily as those big three organizations.
Thus, the legs were for the small-fry and to keep people busy while the two Claws—and him, if needed—did most of the heavy lifting.
Of course, that wasn’t mentioning the Federation. Grinning as the Federation force began their own advancement from the third side, forming a triangle with the two claws Kieran squinted as he tried to decipher who was leading it from their side.
“Well, that’s Cyril. I remember fighting him. How he’s grown. Leading the charge on the front lines. That’s always been his style, indeed.” Kieran murmured, tapping his watch. “And who’s that in the back... Tessa, I assume. It seems Casimir stayed behind. A smart choice because Vera will probably lead an invasion force against them as well.”
Kicking his legs up, Kieran just sighed as the battle came into full swing. He wasn’t built for this!
Watching Morgana summon an entire dome of solid water, Kieran leaned back as a shockwave of divine energy blasted its way outward.
With the dome beginning to spin like a whirlpool, Kieran had to acknowledge: Morgana had him beat.
There was a reason she led the Cerulean Dynasty, the organization known for its oceanic deities. Nobody except Rainier, God of Storms, could hold a candle to the power this Goddess of the Ocean held.
Looking down, Kieran spread and clenched his fingers over and over as his divinity oozed out of his palm and stuck to his hand.
Though his divinity relating to webs sparked his initial fervor towards the All-Encompassing Crimson Crab... it really didn’t serve him well did it?
“I’m just... weak. I’ve hit my ceiling...”
Shelving the monologuing, the melancholy, and the regret, Kieran turned his attention back to the battle. Morgana was controlling the situation quite well in Kieran’s opinion, but under the onslaught of enemies, there wasn’t much she could do. All the deities left in the Dynasty had come out to fight, but the sheer number of enemies sure was proving troublesome–especially since the Federation deities all seemed to have taken another step with their strength.
Kieran couldn’t help but stroke the faint beard on his chin. Had they been training recently?
Well, it didn’t matter to him anyway. Pulling out his phone once more, Kieran connected to the communication network and began to whisper while stretching. “Claws, call me if a situation arises. I’m keeping an eye on it from afar, but I’m available at any time.”
