First Demonic Dragon

The darkness is as old as everything.

It's tenure throughout the multiverse is lengthy and wide, but it was still a long time before this ancient concept gained consciousness.

And in the prime universe, it had two faces.

One face came to life because he was tied to the birth of another. The other came into being because she was chasing another.

Both developed an eventual infamy independent of each other- establishing their own separate identities.

So it was no surprise that when they finally crossed paths, the encounter caused many oracles to prophesize a catastrophe.

And yet, no such occurrence ensued.

They knew who the victor would be without any contest.

Which is more frightening? The darkness that humans imagine or the one that monsters do?

"You have some gall to show up here uninvited. Do you think that Tehom is a place where you are allowed to come and go as you please?" Audrina asked dangerously.

Erebus formed another lit cigarette in his mouth and inhaled deeply. "I heard my wife was living with you now. She's invited here, but I'm not?"

"That's right, so you do understand the concept of invitations. Now I'm even more curious as to how you could've ignored yours ."

Every god was invited to Odessa's birthday celebration. Erebus was just one of the very few who chose not to attend.

Audrina didn't think she could just let that kind of thing off lightly without hearing a very good reason.

"… I was-"

"Lie to me and I open you from your belly to your nostril."

"… I just didn't feel like attending. I wanted to give Nyx more space." He said altruisticly.

Unfortunately for him, Audrina wasn't buying it.

"A mood that seemed to last all of five minutes seeing as you are here for her already."

The elder sibling did not bother to hide her contempt- making Erebus realize that she and Nyx might have become closer while he wasn't looking.

"Enough time should have passed for her to get over it now, right?" He reasoned. "Telling the time here is difficult for those of us who don't live here."

"Because you aren't supposed to be here. What part of that is difficult to understand?"

Erebus ducked when Audrina reached for his cigarette again and continued smoking.

"Must you make things harder than they need to be? I only came here to get my wife. Now please tell me where she is, because it obviously isn't here." He glanced at the castle they were standing in front of.

His senses weren't as strong as they should have been in the abyss, but even he could tell from here that his wife wasn't inside.

"What makes you think that Nyx even wants to see you?" Nyx suddenly asked.

Erebus assumed a righteous posture and spoke as if his words were natural, irrefutable law.

"We are drawn together. We will always return to each other's side. She is my night, I am her darkness."

Audrina's gaze was droll. "By that logic, I could have already felt the urge to bring her into my bed by now. You may have nothing left already."

"A silly notion." Erebus scoffed.

"Is it? I don't think so. Is there anyone we could not have if we wanted them?"

"No, but you don't want her. You're entirely incompatible." The dark god shook his head.

"I could look past her shallowness provided that she could pull her weight in-"

"She waxes you know? Hasn't had hair down there since man first got kicked out of the garden." Erebus said coolly.

Audrina didn't even bother to hide her disinterest anymore.

Over the years, Abaddon's fetish had corrupted the whole group.

There is something about a natural, woman's charm that, once understood, is impossible to go back from.

She held her hands up in surrender. "Fine, fine, we haven't touched her. "

"Truly, you don't say?" He replied with thick sarcasm in his voice.

Erebus looked up at the sky that was still filled with irate looking dragons- each still waiting to burn him down to his very soul.

"Now would you please dismiss the cabbage patch gang? They're giving me a nasty migraine." He said coldly. .

"And a bit of ptsd as well, eh?" Audrina snickered.

"Shut up, beast."

Audrina waived her hand and the dragons dotting the landscape fled.

"And now my wife?" He reminded.

"I'm getting there, I'm getting there." She rolled her eyes.

"Duke?" Audrina called.

The grizzled old butler appeared in front of Audrina mere seconds after being called.

"My lady?"

"Take Erebus here inside and make him some tea or something while I fetch his runaway bride."

Erebus narrowed his eyes. "Don't trust me enough to let me into your home?"

Audrina smirked imperceptibly.

"It's nothing personal, baby brother, I really am doing this for you. The trip there would be quite unpleasant for you."

Erebus felt slighted.

Audrina had always liked to 'playfully' act as if she was better than him.

It was annoying even when they were young gods, but now even more so.

"I will choose to abstain from any of the pity you're choosing to direct my way. Take me to my wife now if you please."

Audrina shrugged to feign her innocence.

"Well… If you insist." She shrugged.

-

Erebus hadn't seen what happened, but the next thing he knew he was on a black marble floor.

He hadn't ingested food in god knows how many eons, but somehow he felt like he was fighting to hold onto the contents of his stomach.

"What… foul magic is this..?"

Audrina smiled knowingly as she rubbed the walls of the house as one would a loved one.

"Easy now, sweet girl. You can let this one be."

All of a sudden the dizziness Erebus was feeling was no more. It was as if he was never sick at all.

"What sort of game was that?!"

"No game, brother-dear. Our house is a little bit protective, you see? Any unrecognized individual whi just shows up inside without mine or my husband's blood becomes a little nauseous for a bit, that's all."

Erebus thought his sister was insane.

There was so much magic within the walls of this house that even earth might not have held this much in it's entire history.

Who in the creator's name needs that much protection??

"You could have prevented me from feeling sick at any time." He accused.

Audrina shrugged slyly. "Honestly, it slipped my min-"

"YOU!"

Erebus tore his eyes away from his aggravating elder sister and looked down the hallway.

"I… What are you wearing?"

"None of your god damn business!"

Nyx had on a bright pink sweater with black leggings. The words 'Auntie #3' were written across her chest.

His surprise was easily understandable. In all these years of marriage, he had hardly ever seen her outside of anything that wasn't a dress and a pair of heels.

"Why are you here, Erebus!?"

"I've come to make amends. Is that so wrong of me?"

Erebus materialized a bouquet of black roses.

"I should have never cheated on you, and I truly do apologize for -"

"AAAAHHH!!!"

Nyx charged up a fist covered in darkness and struck Erebus across the jaw.

A sick pop was heard throughout the hall and the dark god went flying through a wall.

He landed in the indoor pool; surprising the only three inhabitants inside.

"What the hell is going on her- Oh. Hi, Erebus."

The dark god spit out a mouthful of water and popped his jaw back into place.

Asmodeus held each of his wives under one arm as they shook their heads at the god of darkness.

Nyx came through the hole in the wall wielding a powerful bolt of purple lightning the length of a spear.

Asmodeus, Imani, and Yara scrambled to roll out of the water before she lost her mind.

"Do you know the only thing more shocking than finding you in bed with those cretinous leeches?? THIS!!"

Nyx raised her arm to throw the bolt into the water but Audrina grabbed her from behind first.

"Umm, excuse me. I will thank you very kindly not to destroy my family home with your marital disputes. You're fucking up the peaceful atmosphere we've worked so hard to cultivate."

Erebus climbed out of the pool while shaking the water out of his suit. "She is the one who struck me unjustly."

"You cheated on her, Erebus, you're extremely lucky that's all she did." Audrina rolled her eyes.

The god of darkness was beginning to feel like Audrina was just being heavily biased against him.

"Enough of this madness." She shook her head. "You two want to work out your problems, then I have a much better way for you to do it"

It is important to note here that when Audrina says 'better' what she really means is 'more entertaining for me'.

But the duo wouldn't learn that until it was too late.

-

In another part of the home, Eris was leaving one of the spare rooms with a couple of wash cloths in hand and a few doses of Lailah's special medicine.

As her hand touched the doorknob, her left ear twitched for just a moment and she froze.

"…You're awake, aren't you?"

For a moment, there was complete quiet.

But then, Eris heard the sound of sheets rustling. And Izanami sat up for the first time since her arrivial.