A god's youth is a funny thing… if one could even call it that? My youth, my adolescent days, my first millennia… go scarcely remembered in the scope of ages. But I remember a young god who once quarreled within himself. A God with a fire to prove himself, a God who once etched his name on history.
In the early world, before mortals and men arose from the soil and seas, we existed. Young flames burning among the first of creation, who molded us from the void. Ideals, thoughts, actions, and consequences… each of us representing the aspects of nature. Among the many, two were born, twins of war, one whose cry shook the very heavens and the other… whose solace and quiet discontent would follow him into the future.
I wasn’t so different from my sister. Molded in the aspect of war, it was what we breathed, all we felt. Our differences lay in our own temperament, our ideals; Caranex, the Goddess of War, of the bloody battle, vicious and glad-hearted in the struggle. From her very conception, she raged upon the early world like fire, desiring all to know her name. But I stood still, motionless at the meaning of what I stood for. Duranex, the twin, the brother… the failure.
Skill does not denote position, and title is meaningless without experience. My name held no such ring as hers. I had fought no great battle, no war of importance… I idolized her fame. Perhaps it was the sting of jealousy, but the only true war, was in me.
I sat often within the gardens of Empyrean, which stretched aloft the skies for what seemed like eons. It was quiet, a way to leave the bustle of the Divine City, if only temporarily. Over 7 millennia, it was as if those first days passed by in an instant, and I had nothing to show for it.
Footsteps fell from behind me one day as I sat atop the cool grass. “H…Hello.” A young god, with silken wings, greeted me, his face hidden behind as they wrapped around him. “I…I’m sorry. I hope I’m not intruding.” His voice was like silver.
“You… haven’t,” I stuttered. His wings fluttered gently at my words.
“I’ve seen you here—quite a few times,” he said. “I’d wondered if you were… alright?” His face seemed to peek out slightly from behind his wings as he asked. I could see his skin, tan and supple, and his hair like golden coils of sunlight.
“I… am well,” I said, despondent, an obvious lie.
He was silent for a moment. “I like your armor…” he said suddenly, perhaps louder than he meant to.
“Oh,” I said. “This? Thank you.”
“It reminds me of the sun… the way it shines,” he said.
Something pulled at me in that moment with him, but he distracted me from my plights, something I sorely needed.
“I like your wings…” I said, falling into the moment.
He looked surprised, almost as if those words were uncommon. He furled them away slowly… and behind them stood a statuesque young deity draped in white satin. Though he shifted nervously, there was a grace. “Thank you,” he said. “Would I be able to… sit with you?”
He eyed the empty spot next to me. “Of course,” I said.
The angelic God nodded happily and took a seat next to me. He smelled of hyacinth in spring… The wind blew through his curls. “What is your name?”
“Duranex…” I said.
“That’s a strong name…”
A strong name. I hadn’t thought of it that way, but perhaps… if he thought so. “You’re too kind,” I said. “What’s your name?”
“Cadmius.”
A name more familiar than most… A great number of gods inhabited Empyrean in those days, too many to count, but his name… I could not put my finger on it.
“So… why do you come here so often?” He fluttered.
“Oh, I—well… I suppose it’s the quiet,” I said.
“I hope it’s okay that I’m here.”
“No...” I said, “I mean yes, of course it is.” He looked at me with eyes of a beautiful dark green, his brow furrowed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it like that. It’s just… expectations.”
“Expectations?” he asked.
“Impossible to live up to…” I pulled my knees to my chest. “Living in someone’s shadow, I pray you never have to deal with such a thing.”
“I… understand,” he said, wrapping his wings around him in comfort. “My sister was born loved… revered even by our own kind. Goddess of Light and Life, Love and Kindness,” he exaggerated. “I am the same as her, in many ways, though, she’s just always been— better.”
“I doubt that,” I said. “I’ve only just met you, and… well, you’ve comforted me, despite not knowing me. Is that not kind or loving?”
“I—suppose you’re right,” he smiled. “Are you… sure you aren’t a God of Love too?” He laughed.
“No, not at all,” I grinned. “But it’s a funny thought.”
He furled his wings, shifting closer to me. “You haven’t told me yet though,” he said. “Whose shadow are you living in?”
In truth, I didn’t want to think about it, as if such a thing was possible for me… my mind had always been my worst enemy. Trapped within a purgatory of meager problems piled like a tower set to crumble. “It’s… my sister too.”
He smiled comfortingly. “Oh…” he said.
“Caranex is her name. She is amazing, simply put.” I continued, speaking of her deeds and legends, her fervor and thirst for battle, an aspect I sorely lacked.
“She sounds…terrifying,” he said honestly.
“That too,” I chuckled. “I’m sure many of her enemies thought the same. The Berserk Goddess, they call her.”
He shivered. “None of that sounds like you.”
“And that’s where we’re so different. I don’t have that joy for battle as she does. Being called a God of War feels like a joke… a cruel one.”
“I bet you’re just as strong, though.” He nudged me with his elbow.”
“I’m… honestly not sure. Her grasp of our power and meaning is so much greater.” I paused. “That’s not to say I can’t hold my own.”
The sun dipped under the horizon of Empyrean; his curls seemed to burn like fire in the twilight.
“I believe you…” he said.
“I just hope to prove myself, if anything. At times, I feel she doesn’t care to take me seriously.”
“Could that change?” he asked.
“How could I know?” But could it? A thought, vague but blazing, floated at the edge of my mind. If I gained her respect, could she show me… tell me what I could do? “I have an idea…”
“Truly?” he asked excitedly. “What is it?”
“I’m going to find my sister,” I said. “And make her tell me.”
“Make her…?”
“I'll start by proving myself to her,” I said, pushing myself from the ground.
“But what does that mean?” He asked, standing with me.
“I’ll fight her!” I said, gripping the hilt of my sword.
There was a pause; his mouth hung agape. “You’re… serious?” He floundered.
"Very…” I said. “It’s likely the only way I have to gain her respect.”
He seemed to think for a moment, glancing at me up and down. “Well, if you’re sure.” He said.
The sun sank lower, and the sky grew dark in hues of blue and black, with scant rays of remaining daylight.
“I… would like to thank you, again, Cadmius.” I held out my hand.
He shook it softly, his grasp gentle and light. “I don’t think I did much,” he said.
“Don’t discredit yourself,” I chided. “If not for you, I’m afraid I’d sit here until dawn.”
He grinned widely, an expression which would become ingrained in my thoughts.
“You really showed up out of nowhere,” I smiled. “Didn’t you?”
We spoke only a moment more, conveying to me his thanks as well. He unfurled his wings. “Do you think we might meet again… soon?” he asked.
“I would like that.” I said.
With a wide beat of his wings, he lifted from the ground and soared away into the night. Cadmius, I thought… What a wonderful name.
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I began my trot home, to my hall across the Divine City. A certain hope filled me as I walked with purpose. The short journey home seemed only an instant. My sleep that night fell easy for the first time in what felt like ages… a certain smile kept in mind.
The next day, however, brought with it rain, heavy and endless. It beat upon the bricks of my hall like thunder as I woke grudgingly. That hope I felt the night prior… turned sour, a fear gripped my chest.
Could I fight her? More importantly, could I win? I readied myself for the day, donning my usual armor and blade. My reflection in the mirror before me felt as if it were a joke as I stood straight and stiff… I shook my head and continued.
To my fortune, on days of ill weather, Empyrean's streets were so often barren, making the journey to my sister’s hall less tedious.
But ahead of me, emerging from the rain, walked a figure cloaked in darkness, a being much older and much wiser than I, whose pale face peeked only slightly from within his hood. He approached me; a coldness followed him.
“Ah… young Duranex,” his voice seemed to echo.
“Lord Xenon,” I said, greeting the God of Death with a polite bow, “What brings you to Empyrean on a morning like this?”
“Gloomy, is it not?” he said with a hollow laugh. “I’d come only to converse with my brother… It has been ages, after all.”
“Is Lord Zyphor well?” I asked.
“Oh, our God King is as… insufferable as ever. But do not repeat that,” he said coldly.
I nodded.
“But I suspect I’ve taken enough of your time,” the God of Death exhaled. “The Underworld may fall apart at the seams if I am gone any longer.” His tone was sarcastic as he waved his hand dramatically. “Best of luck to you with your sister.” He said, traipsing away.
“Oh… thank you.” I shouted as he disappeared again into the rain. Lord Xenon, I thought, his very presence was overwhelming. I shook off the chill and continued.
My sister’s hall lay in the far western reaches of Empyrean, among the fields and valleys, far from my own. Built in her honor, a symbol of her valor and a foothold of her divinity, it loomed overhead for miles, its sheer stature a marvel of its own.
The rain beat upon its steel-lined walls, decorated with the weapons and likenesses of those fallen at her side in battle. Upon my approach, the doors flew open wide as if inviting me into the mouth of a beast. A moment of apprehension tensed my legs, paralyzed by… fear? “Enter… brother.” I heard a voice echo. With a deep breath, I stilled myself and entered.
The air grew very warm, and there was a gentle breeze… as if it was its own little world. Grand portraits adorned its walls, memorializing her most legendary battles, memories seen through her own eyes.
The Battle of the Dread Maw, one of the last wars of the first age. This quadrupedal species plagued the first mortals for generations; their gnashing jaws and crushing fangs tore through bone and flesh like paper. Whole settlements laid waste too in only minutes, but in one, lay the Matriarch… hunted into a corner by mortals who dared to fight back, cowering in her hive. Though scattered and outnumbered, they fought for life, for vengeance and peace, and at what would have been their final stand, as the Matriarch emerged with millions of spawn at its feet. Caranex burst from the sky with her legendary axe, Earthrender, in hand. She dove through the earth as if it were water, rending the landscape for miles. The mortals watched on as she laid waste to the spawn, and in the carnage stood the Four-Armed Goddess, her eyes fixed upon the Matriarch. “Damned beast,” she spat. “Now die.”
The Matriarch let out a bloodcurdling roar, mourning its spawn and proclaiming its rage, but the Goddess would waste no time as she called upon her weapon. “O’ Earthrender,” she shouted, “Destroy all that oppose me. Break the world from its bed!” She leapt at the beast with ferocity, her weapon glowing a sickening purple. “Let destruction fall!” She sunk her axe into the nape of the matriarch, who flailed about in pain and desperation. She lifted and swung again, and again… Blood flew into the air like a geyser, coating her skin and flooding the area. With a final great strike, like the force of a crashing star, she decapitated the great beast. Its head fell upon the shattered earth, decorating the battlefield… a trophy. To this day, it is said that her corpse remains in the mortal world below, as a religious site for her followers.
I could see many other memories throughout the hall. A great battle against the Dragon kin where she slew many in search for the greatest of their kind’s progenitor. Another where she fought the Tortured One, known as the greatest of executioners and torturers of the Underworld. Once they sought to bring their ideals to the lands above, but she sent them back to their pit.
We all feel jealousy… some more than others.
“Duranex,” a voice pulled me from my trance. “What’s brought you here, brother?”
I turned to greet her as she made her way down the stairs from the chamber above. “Hello, sister…” I said hesitantly.
She eyed me. “Have you come only to greet me…”
“No,” I said. Her yellow eyes glared down upon me, monstrously.
“Then you wish to fight me,” she grinned.
Taken aback, I paused, “I… well, yes,” I stated, “I suppose that is what I came here for.” My heart began to race. She is a god of the bloody battle; of course she’d know my intentions.
“Whatever your reason for challenging me, I’ll happily take you up on the offer.”
“If I win, will you answer a question for me?”
She rolled her eyes, “Always the questions… I suppose, dear brother.”
Her axe, Earthrender, appeared in one of her hands. “I won’t apologize; if I hurt you, you understand.”
I exhaled; it was our way, I knew it; however much I despised such a fact. I gripped the blade at my side and slid into my stance, preparing for whatever tactic she would employ.
Suddenly the room began to change, the bricks and portraits of battle disappeared, and a new area formed around us, that of a battlefield, torn by war and singed by fire.
“This is where we will do battle. Are you ready, brother?”
I rolled my eyes, “As long as you’ll answer me after.”
“Oh… I promise,” she grinned widely. Her axe lifted into a wide stance as her legs parted, and after a brief breath, she burst forward, shards of the earth at her feet breaking under the speed.
I remained composed, gripping the hilt of my blade tighter as she moved closer toward me. “I WILL NOT BE MOVED.” Her axe crashed down upon my blade as I unsheathed it; she let out a sick laugh as my feet were pushed into the earth under her force.
The edge of her axe lifted as she doubled down into a stronger stance, swinging violently in an effort to move me. Each slash was calculated, each movement stronger and swifter than the last.
Sparks flew from my sword as I blocked each strike. I could see her eyes upon each parry; a glimmer of pride shone in her bloodshot eyes… a snide smile.
My feet would not move, though she slashed with such force, it rent the land behind me.
“Perhaps I cannot move you with brute force alone. But my axe is more than meets the eye.”
That purple I had seen in her battle with the Dread Maw began to glow across her weapon. And every hit became heavier, my knees began to buckle, and my grip strained upon my wrists.
She sneered madly, and with one great lunge, she broke my stance, her axe crashing into the ground beside me, sending me flying as it shattered the stony earth.
I crashed with a deafening thud feet away from where I stood.
“Come on,” she said. “Have you no weapon besides that dull blade?”
Gods of war can forge their own weapons, blessing them with power akin to a god. But I had yet to master such an ability and fought only with divine arms and armor, great, yes…but not blessed.
Downtrodden I could not look at her, and her smile faded. “This is no fun if you pout, Dura.”
I thought for a moment; I recalled the way his wings fluttered as a word flashed across my mind; my armor reminded him of the sun. “Sunsteel,” I shouted.
“What?”
I stood, using my blade as a support to push me to my feet. “I may not have a weapon like yours,” I grunted in pain, “but I have my armor, Sunsteel.” In that moment, my armor shone brightly, filling me with a newfound strength. “And with it, I will never fall.”
“You give me chills, brother… My blood boils. Here I come!!!” She sprang forward once more. And with this newfound strength, I followed suit and crashed my blade against her axe, much to her surprise. “Show me your fervor!”
Our blades crashed repeatedly, lighting the air aflame. “Show me your rage!”
An opening came just as soon as it left, and my slash meant to disarm her was sidestepped as she swung, breaking my guard. “Show me your resolve… your lust for battle!”
I recovered, making some space between us. My breath was heavy. “Put out already?” she said, composing herself. She hadn’t even broken a sweat. I looked at my sword, the edges chipped and dull… It wouldn’t last much longer.
She began walking to me, radiating an intense aura, her axe glowing even brighter than before. The sweat that beaded upon my brow fell down my cheek like a tear. What could I do?
But in the heat of this battle, a sudden stillness fell over me, and my heartbeat slowed. As if something within was unlocked, something I hadn’t known before. My armor glowed, shining once more as it did before. “This is… my resolve.” I said, moving into an offensive stance. “I do not rage in battle. I do not delight in war with righteous fury. My fervor is tempered by steel, which cannot be bent or broken! A mind that will not succumb to bloodlust.” I pointed my blade toward my sister, its edges reforming with every word I spoke. “I am Duranex, God of War… and I will not be moved!!!”
A silence fell upon the battlefield. My sister, still as the air around us, smiled widely. “There it is,” she says, her axe disappearing. “I think we’re done here.”
My brow furrowed, “What?”
“Let's move on,” she waved her hand, and the area reformed suddenly, and we found ourselves once more standing within her hall.
I sheathed my blade. “But… why?”
“I wanted to see if you have spirit… and so you do.” She said.
A test? Typical… it was her way. Testing the strength of those close to her. I shouldn’t have been so surprised, but my question had remained.
“Now… you had something to ask me?”
We stood amidst a silent hall, her eyes piercing through me as I choked back my words.
“Well, if you won’t speak…” She said, “Then I will. I could tell you came here to find something missing within yourself, something to prove. And you felt that fighting me was the answer?”
“Yes…” I exhaled.
She rolled her eyes. “Well, fighting me won’t achieve that. You found a fire within yourself, but gods like us can only find that spark in war… in the battle.” She crossed her arms. “You do not need approval or respect from me. You need to find that within yourself.”
“I am a fraud of a War God, Cara. I’ve fought nothing, done nothing. You have done everything that can be done.”
“Everything,” she gritted her teeth, “Perhaps I have done much, but not all. And I have lost my share of battles.”
“Lost,” I chuckled in frustration, “Once? Twice? You lie surely?”
She glared at me, “There are forces even we gods cannot stand against. Primordial entities that ravage the world, forces of catastrophe… You wouldn’t understand!”
“I want to understand! Damn it. Everyone looks to you to handle these battles. How do I grow and make a name for myself? Is there no glory left for me? Will you lap it all up like a damn dog?”
“A dog! You speak like a child. Even if I told you where one of these forces lay, you’ve only just discovered your power; you need another few centuries before you could dream of taking one on.
“Typical. You only care for your own glory.” I shouted, turning away.
“I don’t have time for you,” she waved her hand. “Go home, Dura; I have to get ready.”
“Yes… lap up more of that damned glory for yourself. Don’t worry, Caranex; I'll find a way on my own.”
She rolled her eyes once more and headed back upstairs.
I slammed through the door. I knew I was being childish, but her ways, her words… nothing cuts more than a family’s refusal to help you.
“Damn it,” I shouted into the rain as it soaked my hair and face. It was time to make another plan… My resolve to prove myself had only deepened.
On the other end of Empyrean lay my home, a hall similar to my sister’s but significantly smaller. Reminiscent of a rather simple tower. I trudged my way there slowly, not caring about the rain… the coldness of it was a strange comfort. It was night already; our fight must’ve lasted hours.
The doors opened at my presence once I arrived, like a castle welcoming its king… But I was no king, only a failure. The hall was dark, even during the day, lit only dimly by a few torches. I made my way up the steps and to my room… my bed, a welcoming site as it almost seemed to beckon for me to bury myself within its comfort. I gave in; the wear from our duel had become apparent. “Just some rest, an hour, perhaps two.” Sleep took me quickly.
A crash of thunder echoed within my mind, and lightning arced across the sky. I was surrounded by clouds, the ground at my feet seemed go disappear, like the sky had consumed me. The air grew thinner, and I heard a familiar voice, though strained, echo through the mist. “Dura!” I heard, “No… run!”
A loud knocking forced my eyes open. “Damn it!” I said, my heart still racing from the dream. But as with any dream, it escaped my memory quickly. I wiped the sleep from my eyes and made my way downstairs. “What is it?” I said.
The knocking continued, “What is it!” I yelled again, almost ripping the door from its hinges. I was greeted with a bright smile.
The winged deity from before gave an awkward wave of his hand. “Cadmius,” I said.
The torchlight of the hall glistened in his eyes as he wrapped his wings around himself awkwardly. “Hello…” he smiled.
How do you think Duranex will prove himself.
