Shadow of the Abyss

As they made their way towards the council room, Altair approached the holograph, which hummed to life at his presence.

Presently, Zagreus, Thanatos, Syris, Aurora, and Medusa stood gathered around the holograph, projecting a constellation of logistics regarding the Empire.

"I am against this," Thanatos said. "The Archon of the Seventh Tower is not someone we can just call up. He'd sent a representative."

Zagreus agreed, saying, "He's right. Privacy amongst the noble Gods is something more precious than power. We might have a secure line, thanks to Zero's upgrades. But let's not assume it's absolute. The Seventh Archon is a powerful man. A powerful God, ranked thirteenth on the Omnis Ranking."

Thanatos looked surprised. "How the hell do you know that?"

"Unlike someone who placed work above all else. I was rather interested in the outside world," Zagreus remarked, a coldness that was not there before now on his tongue. He turned to Altair. "It's said that that House Dawn is one of the leading fractions of progression across the Myriad Heavens."

"He is right, Master,' Aurora added. "From what I've read, the Archon of the Seventh Tower is a dreadful character. Some even claimed him to be one of the Dukes of Hell, though there isn't much proof of that."

"And what do we know about his family?" Altair asked.

"Only of what's on the surface," Aurora said. "He has two sons and one daughter. His eldest is called Zelos, and he is kind of the Black Sheep of the family."

Altair raised an ear. "How?"

"No Idea. But it's rumored that Alastair's Wife, who is the Eldest Daughter of the Archon of the Second Tower, Lady Visha Lothal, is known to detest her eldest son."

Altair nodded. "So we don't have much about the family. What about Zelos?"

"He's…" Aurora hesitated. "There were some rumors about him. Nothing confirmed. But it does hint that Visha was quite a cruel Mother to him. From what I've read… she tossed Zelos away at birth to be a slave."

"The hell? Her own son?" Altair asked almost incredulously. He shook his head, waving off a response. "you know what? I'm not surprised anymore. People are weird as they are cruel.

Make the call."

As the holograph shuddered beneath Aurora's computations, a virtual image materialized: one of a masked individual bearing the number "X."

Altair immediately recognized the mask, reminiscent of the one Zero wore.

Altair resisted the urge to frown, glancing up at Thanatos and Zagreus, who looked startled. They, too, recognized the meaning of the mask.

"Tenebrae said that to earn your trust, I ought to wear the mask," the masked man said. " And Zero seemed to approve.

"You aren't Alastair," Altair determined. No ruler Would mask themselves like that.

"No, I'm not," the masked man said, removing his mask to reveal his Blood-Red Eyes. "But I am his son. Greetings, my name is Zelos."

"You know me, it seems," Altair said.

"A little. Not much. Mama Tene mentioned you to me some time ago. Is she with you? You're her kid, right?" Zelos asked, his handsome expression brightening. "I haven't seen her since she had you."

Altair started to feel a bit uncomfortable. He hadn't been expecting this, and he certainly wasn't expecting someone who knew his mother. Nevertheless, he couldn't answer honestly until he confirmed the nature of this man before him.

"I haven't seen her since I returned to Earth," he said.

Zelos winced. " I see, but no matter." He smiled again. "I haven't much time anyway. Father has no interest in Earth, but the same isn't true for the other Archons. I tried sending a proper representative to you, but well… My little brother got in the way, managing to switch my representative with one of his, you know, the one. Mr.

Artivas L'loutos. From what I hear, he's in your dungeon."

Altair nodded. "That is true. Though I've no interest in releasing him."

"Then kill him." Zelos shrugged.

"Mr. Zelos, I don't particularly understand what you want from me—this call, this familiarity. What is it I can do for you?" Altair asked, his gaze poised on the blood-red eyes of the man smiling back at him. The man always seemed to be smiling.

"Your Mother aided me long ago. She helped me find a Master and connected me to the Order of Chaos. I owe her so much that words cannot even begin to express how much love I have for that woman."

Altair listened, his expression unchanging.

Still, Zelos continued. "I know you're in a predicament. The chancellor of Genesis and many of the Archons around the Fourteen Tower are seeking to remove you from your throne. Even the Fifteenth Tower is beginning to hear of your name."

Not wanting to sound ignorant, but at the sight of the confused Thanatos and Zagreus, Altair felt compelled to ask, "The Fifteenth?"

"Beyond Babels Tower, Within the Land of Arcadia, the construction of the Fifteen Colony Tower of Genisis has just recently been completed. Its Archon named dropped you at one of the Balls."

Altair nodded and asked, "Then your purpose is to align yourself with me. To claim that House Dawn and my House are allies."

"Hmmm. Yes. I'm not particularly interested in ruling. But… such things are being pushed on to me by Father. Ahhh. Life sure is hard." he shook his head.

"If you align with me, you'll not only gain yourself a powerful ally but also the protection of my house."

"I don't need protection," Altair said.

"Are you sure? The protection I'm talking about, Lord Blackwood, is protection from terrorism. In case you haven't realized it, Genesis is a type VII Civilization, transcending the various Heavens. We have the means to wipe out your sector of space with a snap. Ignoring the Archons of Genesis themselves. Their families alone will not allow you to flourish as you please if they can't have a piece.

They'll rather see you destroyed than rise. My own brother has already suggested permission to employ such tactics. That is the true reason why Artivas L'loutos was there. "

"To threaten me."

Zelos nodded. "Yes. My brother Vin had an entire holograph constructed of the Sunset Palace, where he planned on acting as viceroy in the name of our Lord Father. Earth is quite appetizing, harboring resources that might make anyone salivate. Even the Trading Consortium is eying you now."

Altair glanced at Syris, looking at him as if to say, 'told you so.' He smiled, glancing back at Zelos.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

"And what by chance do you get out of this? Surely, you're not doing this for free. Even if it was done as a favor to my Mother."

"Despite my title as an Arcons Son, I am a member of the Trading Consortium. What I want from you and your empire would be Goods. I'd like you to be one of my clients in the foreseeable future. From what I hear, Dungeon Diving is quite a profitable business. And is the cornerstone of Earth's primary wealth."

Altair glanced at Aurora, who nodded in the affirmative.

"Despite your profits, I know you all are struggling to gain footing on Genesis. I've done my research, Lord Blackwood. Your alliance with me isn't just about protection. It's about earning us money. Currently, Earth is pulling in scraps through trade compared to what it could be making. I want a piece of that—twenty percent, to be exact." Zelos said. Your journey continues with empire

Aurora muted the audio feed and said to Altair.

"That is more than four times the amount we pay for various traders across Genesis. However, we don't have much of a relationship with the Trading Consortium due to our low access."

Altair unmuted the audio feed and said, "Mr. Zelos, how does fifteen percent sound for six months? We can't simply stop trade across our sector. But we can't allow you to do as you please without a trial. Aurora, what a good number can we allocate to Mr. Zelos to test his worth?."

'Fifteen Percent of the various ores we mine. Since he is acquainted with Lady Tenebrae, such a number should be acceptable.'

Zelos looked surprised. It was a better offer than he'd hoped. "Good. That'll work. I've already sent a transport cruiser to your quadrant. It's currently circling your outer rim.

I'll send you their tracker information."

"You own your own freighter group?" Altair asked.

"Of course. It's mandatory since everything on this damn planet costs an arm and a leg. I'll be on that cruiser so we can sign the contract."

"Not a fan of digital?"

"All the important documents are still done by hand," Zelos said, his smile rising. "I'll see you there, Mr. Snow."

Altair's eyes went wide, but before he could inquire more, Zelos had already disconnected. He laughed.

"That bastard likes to play games. Aurora. What do you think of him?"

"We haven't had much footing in the Trading Consortium mainly because it's run by many of the banks, along with the Archon Families and corporations. If we use him right, then I'll say our profits might increase over…" She paused, looking dead into her master's eyes. "My Lord, we might actually be earning enough to fully evolve our civilization.

Despite all the technological advancements, we are bely considered a type II civilization thanks to humans' inability to comprehend the greater sciences. Zelos aid is by far anything we would obtain any time soon. If his trading group within the Consortium is large enough, we'll be set for a very long time. And…"

"And if he's an ally—a true ally—we might gain some valuable information from him." Altair grinned, looking at his inner circle with a smile. "Thanatos, prepare for his arrival. Let's see what type of man this Zelos is."