Erebus sat down in a pool alone as the clear water around him rippled slowly, there stood no one around him as he breathed in and out slowly.

  Marble pillars surrounded Erebus as he stared up at the vast and endless sky.

  “I’m so alone, in the wake of my fury I have driven everyone away”.

  Erebus ran his fingers through his hair as he stood up from the pool, his toned muscles glistening in the bright sunlight.

  “Nakamura really is a pain, can I really beat him? Who am I really kidding, of course I can. He’s just a human”.

  Water dripped from his body as he wrapped himself in a towel and walked down the staircase.

  Droplets trailed behind him as hordes of demons waited for him at the bottom of the staircase.

  All of the demons surrounded Erebus, smiling and clapping for him like faceless robots doing the same actions over and over again.

  Erebus kept walking past them as he stared down at the red carpet beneath his feet.

  A golden throne stood in front of Erebus as he walked up to it and sat down, staring at the crowd of demons before him, smiling uncannily at him.

  [These Demons, they don’t care about me, they’re scared, afraid]

  Erebus’s eyes squinted, as his eyes glowed red.

  His breath was wispy, with every breath of Erebus made every demon sweat profusely, making sure not to anger him.

  [Happiness is but a fleeting moment, suffering is eternal]

  The demons bowed before Erebus as they began to chant.

  “All hail Erebus”.

  “All hail Erebus”.

  “All hail Erebus”.

  Erebus held his chin, as his eyes began to wander.

  “I don’t care”.

  “Not even my children mean anything to me, Nyx was the only thing that kept me hopeful”.

  “All hail Erebus”.

  “All hail Erebus”.

  The chanting was drowned out by the sound of water dripping onto the throne.

  Erebus’s breathing sped up as the faces around him began to meld together, they all looked the same to him.

  “All this and I don’t have enough to bring her back, I could only mourn while she’s gone”.

  The chanting completely stopped

  Water dripped from the ceiling like echoes of time as the demons in front of him began to fade, one by one as the ground beneath him turned into clouds.

  Erebus stared blankly ahead, unfazed by anything and everything.

  Erebus was alone, with monarchy comes loneliness and a longing for someone to relate to.

  A whisper, a sound that was soft and deliberate.

  “What happened to you, Erebus”?

  The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

  Erebus didn’t even look back at the voice, instead his sight still stared ahead.

  He doesn’t move, doesn’t breathe.

  He didn’t want to turn around, Erebus was worried that it was her, or it wasn’t.

  “You used to be so happy, so gentle. Now even our children are suffering because of you”.

  Erebus closed his eyes, trying to drown her voice by focusing on something else instead.

  “You burn the world and our children and for what cost? For Khaos’s energy? What makes you so sure that gaining her power will bring me back”?

  Erebus gripped harder on his throne but his face remained calm, as the golden began to shatter at his fingertips.

  “Khaos is infinite, she’s the strongest, if it isn’t for her then how am I supposed to bring you back”.

  His voice began to squeak.

  “You don’t Erebus, you have to move on”.

  Erebus started to shake.

  “No, why would I move on when I still have a chance to bring you back, that’s the whole reason I’ve been watching, observing these humans”.

  “You have to move on”.

  “No”.

  “Move on”.

  “No”.

  “Move”.

  Erebus gripped his head as he began to rapidly scratch his scalp.

  “I’m not moving on damn it”!

  “Erebus, you’re too proud. You were gentler when you were weak, you’re a monster”.

  “You don’t know how much I’ve done for you Nyx, you don’t know how much I—-“

  “I know, I know what you’ve done, but it’s time to let go”.

  A hand touched his back.

  Erebus gritted his teeth as he finally turned around, there was nothing there but darkness surrounding him, a faint smell of Nyx wavered in the air, the darkness beneath him began to ripple like a liquid.

  Erebus stood up from his throne.

  “If I can’t bring you back then the world will burn for it”.

  “All hail Erebus”.

  “All hail Erebus”.

  “All hail Erebus”.

  Erebus’s eyes turned bright red.

  It was even before the beginning of the universe.

  Kronos was always the problem child, he was smart, worryingly so, he knew how to pull the strings of everyone.

  Erebus was always the quietest in the void, Nyx would always come up to him and cheer him up.

  “Nyx, why do you always bother me”?

  Her long black hair draped over her shoulders as a gray gown wrapped around her.

  She smiled as she began to walk around him.

  “You’re always alone, you look so lonely, I can’t help it”.

  Ananke walked up to the two of them.

  She had short crimson red hair and she was lightly dressed, showing as much skin as possible.

  “Stand up, you two, we’re watching mother Khaos create the universe”.

  Tartarus stood in corner leaning against the pillars of creation as he crossed his legs.

  “Where’s our eldest brother”?

  Ananke’s shoulders shrugged

  “Phanes is always wandering around, it’s not like he cares about anyone else except himself, why would he care about mother Khaos’s creation”?

  Gaia sat on the ground, her green hair surrounding her like a pair of vines, a black dress accentuating her body.

  “What’s the purpose of this? Why is this such a big event even”?

  A hand gripped onto her shoulder, Kronos smiled as he stared at her.

  “Don’t be like that, this will be the beginning of Khaos’s greatest creation”.

  “Don’t touch me Kronos”.

  Gaia stared daggers into Kronos as she removed his hand.

  “I’m sorry”.

  Kronos backed off as his expression died down turning into a look of distain.

  “Whatever”.

  Erebus’s eyes wandered towards a single light within the darkness around them, like a small star sparkling, the temperature around them eventually started to rapidly rise and the small light exploded.

  From that single, silent point, the universe bloomed like fire unfolding in slow motion. Time began its first tick. Space unfurled like a cosmic scroll. What was once smaller than an atom swelled outward with a furious brilliance, faster than light could chase it.

  Stars began to rapidly appear within the sky as Erebus stared up at the specks of tiny white clouds in above him.

  Nyx sat beside him, she was completely mesmerized by the bright lights and the sounds of creation.

  “Isn’t it beautiful Erebus”?

  She smiled as she pointed towards the thousands of explosions appearing above them like fireworks, bursting into an explosion of pure energy.

  “Yea it really is”.

  Erebus replied as his eyes shone with lights.

  Kronos looked at the two of them, gritting his teeth as he clicked his tongue and blankly stared at the fireworks above him and crossed his arms.

  Gaia looked around her as the universe began to expand before her very eyes.

  “I can’t believe mother is giving up her life just for this, I’m going to miss her”.

  “Yea, you’re right”.

  Kronos walked up behind her.

  “Shut up Kronos, why are you even here anyways? You never cared for her”.

  Gaia looked at him with malice in her eyes.

  Kronos sighed.

  “That’s not true my dear sister, she brought {me} into existence, why would I not appreciate her”?

  “This is why no one likes you, Kronos”.

  Kronos’s face turned emotionless, as he clenched his fist and began to walk away from her.

  “I wonder, will there be any worthy opponents for me to fight? This will clearly spawn new life wouldn’t it”?

  Tartarus began to slowly sweat as his face turned slightly pink.

  There wasn’t any air. There was no sky yet, no gravity, no planets just the sounds of the universe beginning.

  Erebus stared at the thousands of explosions happening throughout the universe.

  “It’s so bright, unnecessarily so”.

  Nyx’s gray gown gently brushed against his thigh as she gazed at the glowing flicker.

  “Mother’s final act. She’s creating all this and splitting herself into shards to fill this place with life”.

  “It’s reckless of her”.

  Nyx smiled as she stared at the vast reality above her.

  “She’s creating life, other universes can be destroyed and created with a snap of her finger yet life isn’t something she needs to sacrifice her life on. It’s quite beautiful”.

  The light began to fill space, a quiet thumping began to fill the far distance.

  “Erebus, what do you see”?

  “The end, I see change and the withering, why did she even create all this when it’ll end in a couple of years”.

  Erebus looked around, at the empty space between his fingers at the bright lights above.

  “You always see the dark side, the ending of everything”.

  “Because I’m the embodiment of darkness, the lack of anything and everything, I am the darkness that follows the light”.

  Erebus stared down at the ground, his pupils empty and sad.

  “So am I, Erebus, we’re the most similar out of our siblings but it doesn’t mean you have to be so broody about it, our titles don’t dictate who we are”.

  “Going into poetry are we? How unbelievably boring of you”.

  Kronos stared down at the two of them.

  Erebus crossed his arms and stared daggers into him.

  “Shut up”.