A/N: In which our heroes are forced to listen to the bad guy monologue.

  Boo, Tyranos! Boooo!

  -x-X-x-

  Fuck.

  Oren can only watch helplessly as the fictional age flows off of Tyranos like a whole lot of paint. To be fair, it had been obvious from the second time they'd met him that the Ancient God was hiding his true form behind the appearance of a wizened old man. However, neither Oren nor Sophia had thought much of it. Gods could choose how they wished to look, especially of that age.

  Now though, the wrinkles melt away and the elderly look disappears, leaving behind a tall, aristocratic man with short-cut bck-and-silver hair and a vicious mien to him that causes goosebumps to run up and down Oren's arms. This was not a good deity. Just looking at him, Oren could feel the malevolence wafting off of the Ancient God alongside his powerful aura.

  He should have seen this coming. He should have figured out that Tyranos was not who he said he was. In the end, Oren only had himself to bme for failing once more. Now they were fucked… a sentiment that only solidifies further when Tyranos' lips curl into a wicked, toothy grin.

  "You know, I briefly considered confronting you two on the road the first time we met. Killing you then would have been easy. Capturing and torturing you wouldn't have been much harder. But as… I didn't quite know what had happened to poor, poor Raythe yet. So I let you go. It would seem I made the right choice, in the end."

  Tyranos' eyes flicker over to the armor and bde on the ground next to him and Sophia. Oren's hands curl into fists and his teeth grind in anger. They'd practically presented the God Killer's armaments to their enemy on a silver ptter. Tyranos was exactly who Law didn't want to get his hands on the armor and sword and yet… fuck.

  "Dear Raythe. All he wanted was to expunge the bck mark left on his record when you vanished on us after sughtering the Heavens. All he wanted was to make me happy again. And you killed him for it. Tsk-tsk you two."

  The insincere musings only make Oren angrier. Raythe had been more than ready to hurt and kill them. They'd done what they had to do. Not because they wanted to, but because they were forced to defend themselves.

  "Uncle… please…"

  The broken expression on Sophia's face makes Oren's heart clench in his chest. Her eyes water, even as she's forced to stay almost completely still with Tyranos' walking stick against her neck. The Ancient God could snap Sophia's neck in a second if he wanted to and there'd be nothing Oren could do about it. Fuck, Oren wouldn't even be able to take revenge… because he simply wasn't good enough.

  The st few weeks had been helpful, but they'd also made it clear just how much heavy lifting the God Killer's armor and bde had been doing up in the Heavens that day. Without the armor, without the sword, there was simply no way Oren would have been able to kill Law on his own. He wouldn't have been strong or fast enough… and he certainly wouldn't have been durable enough.

  The gap between him and Tyranos was simirly massive and the amount of progress Oren had made in closing the gap these st three weeks had ultimately felt like he was barely moving the needle. As far as training to take advantage of his Otherworlder nature and limitless potential went, it was perfect.

  … But only so long as Tyranos was on their side. Now that the Ancient God had revealed his true colors, Oren couldn't hope to beat him without donning the armor of the God Killer once more. And that armor was now on Tyranos' side of the cave.

  Still, it wasn't like Oren had a choice. Tyranos could have killed him and Sophia ten times over before Oren was anywhere near done putting on the armor. Frankly, Tyranos could kill them both now and there was absolutely nothing either of them could do to stop it. They were completely helpless at the moment.

  … So then why wasn't he? Just to gloat? Maybe, or maybe there was something else. Maybe he would make a mistake and there would be an opportunity.

  "Begging, Sophia? Appealing to my better nature? Come now. You should know that doesn't work by this point. After all, it didn't work with poor Aureo, now did it?"

  Oren snarls as Sophia flinches. But Tyranos just ughs at the both of them.

  "Ah but to be fair… the deck was stacked against you from the start."

  Wait, what? They both go still at the insinuation Tyranos is making. The Ancient God just grins wickedly again in response.

  "Well, I couldn't very well have you two running off to Oceanus, now could I? The anger and hatred was already there, to be fair. All I did was stoke it a bit. A little push from Tyranny and Conquest and Aureo knew what he had to do. They were all in on it, in the end. Every st one of them. The board had to be wiped clean."

  As the full weight of Tyranos' confession hits them both, the tears building in Sophia's eyes finally start to fall. She chokes out a sob, shuddering in the Ancient God's grasp.

  "You… you made him go c-crazy? You turned him into that… that m-monster?"

  Tyranos scoffs at that.

  "Go crazy? No my dear, I made him go sane. All I did was show Aureo the truth. Everyone betrayed him. The nobility betrayed him to the God Hunters, but the everyday citizens of Goldriver… they betrayed him with their inaction. All I did was help him see the light. The rest he did on his own… and quite spectacurly, mind you."

  Grinning again, Tyranos shakes his head ruefully.

  "I honestly thought I would have to step in for a second there to make sure he didn't kill you both. Who could have guessed that a simple River God would be squirreling away that much power for a particurly rainy day? Certainly not I. It was truly impressive… for a god of his standing anyways. But you two didn't need my help in the end. You sughtered poor Aureo the same way you murdered poor Raythe."

  Sophia lets out another sob, her eyes shut tightly. Oren snarls again, unable to hold his tongue anymore.

  "We defended ourselves. We defended the people of Goldriver. If anyone did anything wrong, it was you."

  He's expecting the retaliation, of course. Maybe even hoping for it just in case it gives Sophia a chance to flee or something. But as, it's not to be. One second he's gring at Tyranos, the next he's dropping to one knee and choking on his own spit as something drives the air from his lungs and nearly crushes him on the spot.

  … Tyranos doesn't even have to move. He just looks at Oren and makes him colpse.

  "Oren!"

  Sophia's worried cry has Oren raising a hand towards her, to let her know he's alright.

  "I'm… fine."

  He doesn't want her doing anything rash. Not for him. Not for the man who failed to protect her yet again.

  Tyranos just acts like nothing happened though, even as he chuckles darkly.

  "Yes… you defended yourselves. Of course. Heh. Just as you defended yourself that day in the Heavens when you killed everyone my dear niece knew and loved."

  On Tyranos' orders, Oren doesn't say. He doesn't need to say it. Sophia knows. And Tyranos is still talking.

  "And you did such a good job too. Killing all of those sheep who followed my brother for millennia, never sparing one thought towards those of us he trapped in the Void. And sying even Law himself… you know, you weren't supposed to be able to do that."

  Wait, what? The Ancient God's grin becomes all the toothier at the confusion on Oren's face.

  "Surprised? So were we. You were never supposed to actually succeed at killing Law, Otherworlder. The rest? Certainly. But Law was always a cut above the others, just like me. We were always so much… MORE than all of them."

  Suddenly, Oren chokes again as another invisible blow nds on his back, forcing him to both knees and almost forward onto his hands as well. Tyranos has dropped the grin and is now sneering at him angrily.

  "Law was supposed to be my kill. Your purpose was to weaken him, to distract him before your inevitable death. Imagine my surprise… my dismay when I came upon his throne room and found him on the floor with the light gone from his eyes, already dead. And the armor and bde used to sy him… nowhere to be seen."

  Tyranos lets out a ugh with no humor in it.

  "Ohoho… I was quite wroth that day. Raythe could have told you if he were still with us. After all, he bore the brunt of my rage. Truthfully, that might have been a mistake. Perhaps if I'd been a little less emotional, he wouldn't have had to spend all those months recovering from his punishment. If I'd sent him to retrieve what you took immediately, maybe all of this would have been taken care of so much sooner."

  Oren is starting to really get sick of the sound of this bastard's voice. Unfortunately, it doesn't feel like there's anything he can do here. Just being in Tyranos' presence is forcing him to the ground right now. He can barely move with the Ancient God exerting so much of his power over him. This was the power of a God of Tyranny, Oren imagined.

  "… But then, I suppose I should be grateful, shouldn't I? This way was best in the end… because otherwise my dear niece would never have come to my attention. And I would never have realized the truth about you, Sophia."

  What? Oren looks to Sophia to see her just as confused as he's feeling. What was Tyranos talking about?

  Suddenly, the Ancient God lets Sophia go. He pulls his walking stick away and allows her to turn around and face him. A seemingly magnanimous gesture, not that it means anything. She's still closer to the King of the Void than she is to Oren, and even if she were right beside him, Oren is in no state to defend her at the moment.

  "What… what truth, Uncle? What are you talking about?"

  Tyranos grins again.

  "It bothered me so very much that the Otherworlder managed to kill your father before I could, Sophia. I really, really wanted to be the one to kill my brother with my own two hands. But more than just my desires, I couldn't fathom how the Otherworlder had gotten so strong. His training should not have allowed him to overcome someone like Law. For the longest time, I just couldn't figure it out… until I finally met you and saw some examples of your work."

  What was Tyranos talking about? Oren didn't understand and while he couldn't see Sophia's face anymore, he could tell she was just as confused as he was simply by the way her shoulders were hunching.

  "My w-work? I don't understand. What do I have to do with my father?"

  Tyranos' eyes take on a cruel glint to him.

  "What did you have to do with Law's death, my dear? Everything, I'm afraid."

  No, that wasn't true. Oren starts to snarl, but Tyranos doesn't let him get a word off this time before more pressure pushes him onto his hands and knees, forcing him to focus on just continuing to breath. Sophia gnces back at him, before looking back to her uncle.

  "Uncle please! Don't kill him!"

  "We're not talking about him, Sophia. We're talking about you. Tell me, have you truly no inclination of what I mean? Even after all this time? Law has been dead for months now. His work should have unraveled by this point but you're still clinging to it so very hard."

  Oren wishes he could tell Tyranos to fuck off on Sophia's behalf, but at this point he's reduced to nothing more than a bystander. Just the process of getting air into his lungs is a struggle in and of itself.

  "We talked of what Law must have done with all those so-called 'dark gods' who were born after the schism once before, Sophia. Now that we're being honest with one another, I can tell you… none of them made it to the Void. Your father couldn't risk us getting out after all. The Void isn't a jar where the lid can just be pulled off and put back on over and over again."

  "Then… then what did he do with them?"

  Tyranos shrugs.

  "The vast majority, he probably killed off, I would imagine."

  Sophia lets out an emotional croak at that, but Tyranos isn't done.

  "However, I know for a fact he didn't kill them all. He couldn't bring himself to. One of them was spared."

  … No. Oren's eyes widen as he realizes what Tyranos is saying. He struggles to get up, to do something, but he can't pull himself off the floor.

  "O-One of them?"

  The look the God of Tyranny and Conquest gives his niece is unamused.

  "Quit pying dumb, girl. You know the truth, deep down inside. Law slew those born with 'evil' concepts in their cradles, making sure they never grew to be a threat to his rule ever again. But when it came to his own flesh and blood… when it came to his own daughter, he couldn't do it. He couldn't kill you. And that proved to be his undoing."

  "No… no, you're lying. I'm a Goddess of Wisdom… of Equity. What's dark or negative about those domains?!"

  "Nothing! But then that's the point, niece! You're not a Goddess of Wisdom. You're certainly not a Goddess of 'Equity'. What a ridiculous sham! Your father repressed your true domains and yered false ones over them. He forced your true nature into the dark and in doing so dealt himself a mortal blow that he bored under for hundreds of years until the Otherworlder finally killed him."

  Sophia shakes her head vehemently.

  "T-That's not possible!"

  But Tyranos isn't having it.

  "Enough! My brother's little weaving should have finished unraveling ages ago, but you cling to it like a safety bnket niece. It's time for you to see the truth! And if you won't open your eyes of your own volition, then I will open them for you!"

  With a snarl, he sshes his walking stick through the air and something… something changes. The air ripples out from Sophia. It even gives Oren a brief respite, allowing him to force himself off of his hands and back onto just his knees. However, he can't bring himself to be relieved. Not when it's obvious that something has been irrevocably altered about the goddess before him.

  Tyranos smiles, his eyes glinting as he takes in whatever he sees on Sophia's face.

  "There we are. The falsehoods stripped away and only the truth left. You see it now, dear niece. And so do I. How fascinating. This expins an awful lot, doesn't it? You were never a Goddess of Wisdom or Equity. All this time your TRUE domains… have been Misfortune and Folly."

  Oren doesn't want Tyranos to be right, for Sophia's sake more than anything. And yet, as the goddess' shoulders slump, he knows that the Ancient God is telling the truth. After all, sometimes… sometimes the truth is worse than any fiction.

  -x-X-x-

  A/N: Did you all see THAT one coming? My attempt at a twist within a twist, heh.

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