Post by hawksmoor on May 22, 2015 4:54:37 GMT -5
Gateway City
Cassandra Sandsmark ran her hands through her thick, blonde hair, staring out into the weather. Lightning cut the sky in half and seconds later a rumble of thunder jars her back to reality. The rain, previously a small shower grey in weight and volume, filled her ears with the sounds of water colliding with the roof and the ground below.
She turned from the window and headed over to her chair, and a small table stacked with books. Ever since her Mother had “retired” from dig sites, Cassandra had less reason to be interested in actual archaeology and more in personal passion of Folklore and Mythology. As one of the youngest curators in the country, her knowledge of the world of ancient Gods was extensive, but her understanding of fairy tales, culturally significant items and folklore was second to none. She was not a mythology graduate, as she had scolded her Mother on more than one occasion, she was a Folklorist. More recently, however, her thoughts had turned back to a friend of her Mothers, a tall, beautiful woman with gorgeous, black hair, and strong features.
Diana Prince, was the foremost comparative mythologist in the world. Their bond had been stronger than the difference in their ages, strengthened for that gap in time. Since her Mother had her gap in memory, and the disease, aggressively consumed her intelligence, Diana had been a shoulder to rest on, and a mind to spar with. Cassie sighed, and rubbed her eyes. She felt more tired now than she ever had during her life, even her degree.
“Why can’t you just let me sleep?” she asked. Her voice was cracked, and small. She picked up a book from the table, turning it over in her hands.
“Comparative Mythology in the Modern World.”
Cassie shook her head and flicked through the pages, unable to find the willpower or the attention span to read any of the passages. She flicked through pages containing what appeared to be a mathematical formula, as well as vague drawings of huge walls, towering Gods that she did not recognise, and a chapter called “Theoretical Mythology.” This was Diana’s realm, even if the book was written by someone else. Perhaps a colleague of hers. A researcher from China, whose name she did not recognise.
She clapped the book closed and laid it gently on the table again, rubbing the bridge of her nose. For a few days, she had been unable to sleep soundly. She worried over a small notebook next to the table, flicking through the well wore first few pages of it, the corners flicked up from the motion of her running her thumb over it repeatedly.
Opening the small, black book, titled “Dream Diary” in long, complete and legible handwriting, Cassie flicked through the pages once more.
“Tall, thin, White Man,” she said, “Came to me in a Dream, speaking in riddles.”
She turned the page again.
“White man returns, this time in pure white caftan. Spoke of five worlds.” she scratched at the corner of her eyes, to pick the solid clumps of sleep from them.
“Return of Dream man. Introduced himself today. Hall.”
She picked up a pen, flicking forward a few pages to a blank sheet. She put the pen to paper and stares at it for a moment.
“Hall back. He stares,” she scribbled, “Listed Four Worlds of Gods, but a Fifth emerging. Spoke of War. Gods, Demons, Angels and everything in-between. Very vocal.”
She paused, chewing nervously on the lid.
“Spoke of my involvement in creating the Fifth. Said I am new Folklore.”
Cassie put the pen down and re-read what she’d written several times. She picked up the pen again and wrote in caps, and underlined twice.
“Am I insane?”
She closed the book and leaned back in her chair, the rain becoming heavier on her window, thunder shaking the glass. Cassie got to her feet and slowly made her way towards the kitchen. Boiling the kettle and pulling out a Green Tea bag.
Amongst the thunder, Cassie was certain she heard the knock of her door.
Waving it away as a product of fatigue, she continued to make herself a hot drink, leaning on the countertop. The door knocked again, louder this time and more insistent. Cassandra, picking up her dressing gown and wrapping it around her, walked to the door.
“It’s pretty late,” she said, “Come back tomorrow.”
“We won’t have time tomorrow,” the voice yelled back. Cassandra didn’t recognise it, and looked through the peephole. She saw a man in a red biker jacket, and a strange, almost Greek helmet.
“Yeah? Tell it to someone who cares, Spartacus.”
Cassie moved away from the door, back towards the kitchen. A loud back on the door made it ring in on its hinges, and another bang forced the lock away from the doorframe.
“One more and I’ll kick the damn thing in,” the voice yelled back. Cassie shot back towards the door, and braced herself against it.
“One more bang and I’ll kick you in! I don’t know who the hell you are, but if you break down my door, I’m gonna break down your head!”
The man took a step back, lowering his shoulder as though he was going to charge. A smaller hand touched his shoulder, staying his advance. The rain was still heavy, and the apartment landing wasn’t large enough to prevent the group gathered outside Cassie’s door from being drenched.
A small, slender woman, in a, with a thick hood pulled over her head stood behind the large, biker man. Next to her stood a woman that Cassie recognised. Thick, beautiful dark hair, and thin glasses sat on her elegant nose. She was wrapped in a red and blue rain mac, tied with a belt across her midsection.
“Diana?” she whispered.
“What?” the biker yelled through the door, “Open the damned door.”
Slowly, and carefully, Cassie opens the front door. The Biker man barrels through, dragging the two women behind him. She slammed the door shut and braced it with his back.
“About damn time,” he said to Cassie. She narrowed her eyes at him.
“Who the hell are you?”
“Orion,” the man growled, “Who are you?”
“Cassandra Sandsmark, owner of his apartment, and experienced dispenser of female-on-male violence. Please be polite, or I will kick your crotch into your face.”
Orion grinned, and thumbed at Cassandra, his gaze firmly on Diana.
“I like her,” he said.
“Yes, I imagined you would,” Diana said. She stepped towards Cassandra and put her hands on her shoulders.
“Cassie…I…”
Cassie stared up at her and shook her head slowly, her gaze quickly switching to the ground.
“I am sorry to barge in like this,” Diana said, “I am sorry about Helena…”
Cassie’s eyes snapped up.
“No,” Cassie said, “Not now, OK? Not in front of these…strangers.”
Diana cleared her throat and let her hands drop away. She took a moment to gather herself, and turned to her companions.
“Cassandra, this is Orion, Warrior God,” Diana said. Orion nodded and removed his helmet.
“Warrior God?” Cassandra asked. Diana nodded solemnly.
“Sure, why not,” Cassie said.
“This is Tro…Donna,” Diana said, pushing the small, pale woman ahead of her. The hood was still drawn firmly over her face, Cassie only saw her chin.
“Donna, will you say hello to Cassandra?”
“Hello Cassandra, I am Donna. Hello.”
Cassie arched an eyebrow and grabbed Diana’s arm.
“Diana, can I talk to you in the Kitchen please?”
“You don’t need to,” Diana said. Orion moved behind her towards the living room, dropping his huge bulk down into Cassie’s chair.
“Hey…Watch it,” Cassie said. Orion flipped her the bird.
“I’m sorry to appear, in the middle of the night. Did we wake you?”
Cassie shook her head. She palmed her hair and pulled it into a tight pony-tail, to mimic that of Diana’s, despite the obviously different being hers was twice the length of the black bun.
“Why are you here with…these two?”
Diana removed her glasses and paced up and down the hallway.
“Orion is helping me…”
A questioning look was shared between the two, Orion’s eyes glaring into Diana’s. Diana shook her head.
“She needs to know, Orion,” Diana said. She moved into the living room as well, guiding Donna towards the sofa.
“She’s trying to get the information out of us, Diana,” Orion said, sneering, “I don’t trust her. I don’t know her.”
“You don’t have to, Orion. I do.”
Diana looked up at Cassie. Cassie gave Orion the evil eye.
“After my…short falling out…with your Mother,” Diana began.
“To say the least,” Cassie said.
“I moved from working on theoretical academics into the world of…let’s say…practical application. This world is far, far stranger than either of us ever gave it credit for.”
Cassie nodded quietly, moving into the living room finally, and sitting on the floor.
“Yeah, some of it turns up in the middle of the damn night and nearly breaks my chair.”
“Comparative Mythology, Modernised Cultural Significance? All of those things are irrelevant. The Gods of Old, New and Unmade never left.”
Cassie twisted her neck slightly.
“Never left. Wait. Unmade never left? That doesn’t even make sense,” she repeated.
“I realise this seems crazy,” Diana said, “But I left to work with…shall we say…some reprehensible scientists, in retrospect.”
“You did what?” Cassie asked. Her tired mind was spinning.
Diana massaged her temples.
“I worked for a company called Deisd Ark, I understand how that sounds,” Diana said. Cassie grinned.
“That…is a stupid, stupid name. European?”
“Lithuanian,” Diana nodded, “The Ark part is the most important, their whole ethos, is based on the idea that Gods, and Goddesses and all the monsters, demons and etc that come with them, are still here, and still doing battle today. They wanted to build…”
Cassie sat up straight.
“They tried to build their own Gods?” Cassie said. Diana nodded. Orion stood up.
“That’s enough,” he said, fussing over Donna’s hoodie, “No more, Diana.”
“You’re a Warrior God,” Cassie said, getting to her feet, “So you’re…artificial?”
He twisted around, and slammed a hand into her shoulder. Cassie fell backwards into the table of books, sprawling out on the floor.
“HEY!” she yelled. She leapt to her feet and charged towards Orion, who snarled at her like a rabid dog.
“I am a God, girl. A New God. I was not created by you, I was made by ME.”
Cassie snorted.
“You’re an asshole, you delusional idiot. Get out.”
Cassie turned to Diana.
“All of you. Out.”
“Orion,” Diana said. He turned to her, and she shook her head.
“Yeah,” he said. He returned to his sitting position.
“No, no way!” Cassie yelled, “Get him out of here, and you Diana, and take this girl with you. I don’t want you just turning up in the middle of the night, and it being OK for you to push me around. This is MY home!”
“I’ll be blunt then,” Diana said, getting to her feet, “For all intents and purposes, I am the greatest comparative mythological database in the world. I know more about these Gods, and some of these…”
She knelt down and picked up the book she was reading earlier, on Comparative Mythology, flicking through the pages until she stopped at Chapter Four.
“New Gods,” she said, holding the book open. There was a picture on the front of huge, hulking forms, one of which looked strikingly like Orion.
“Are you…” she said, pausing. Diana nodded.
“Four Worlds, Cassie. There have been Four Worlds of Gods, and this…” Diana said, looking over her shoulder.
“Is the start of the Fifth,” Cassie finished. She slumped down on the floor, her back against a wall. She felt tears of relief
build in the corners of her eyes.
“Oh Jesus Christ,” Cassie felt the blood drain from her face, and the tears build around her eyes.
“Yes...” Diana said, “but how do you know that?”
“I’ve been dreaming,” she said simply. Diana swallowed loudly and nodded. She turned to Orion who sat down next to Donna, who had remained almost inert throughout the entire exchange.
“Bigger than we thought,” he said, quietly.
“We will deal with that later,” Diana said, kneeling down in front of Cassie.
“Cassandra, listen to me. We need your help. I am good at Myths, Gods, but you? You’re the Folklore database, you’re the one who understands how Gods interact with us, but on a level that is cultural, not physical, or theological. You understand that the Gods influence culture and thus, Culture influences Gods and…”
“You need me to be involved in this…insanity?” Cassie said.
Diana nodded.
“Would it be there another way,” she said, “But I need your knowledge, your mind. Donna understands what she is…Gods help her…”
“Wait…” Cassie said, “You told her?”
“We had to she needed to know what the Fifth World was…” Diana said.
“No! Diana, you’re right,” Cassie said, getting to her feet, “You don’t get the Culture behind it. Gods have origins, in all things. They’re born from universal constants, with ties into culture and belief. Not from being told they’re artificial entities created because you.GOT.BORED.”
She cast a sideways glance at Orion, who shrugged.
“They don’t thrive on worship, they thrive on nichism. On fitting a slot in the universe that nobody else does. You’ve just told this young woman that she is entirely replicable. Congratulations, you’ve made a world and killed it immediately.”
Donna looked up at Cassie with something in her eyes, but Cassie couldn’t tell what it was.
“Donna, do you understand why they brought you here?”
She nodded.
“Hello,” she said. Cassie nodded in return, her face grim. She looked over her shoulder at Diana.
“Congrats, you’ve broken the first God of the Fifth World.”
Diana coughed a little.
“What?”
“She’s not the first,” Orion said, “She’s...what? Fifth? Sixth?”
Cassie let her arms drop in frustration.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” she said, getting to her feet, “You bring me a God, who needs my knowledge, because of what? And now you tell me there’s…at least six. Are they all in this state? Are they all empty vessels?”
“Because if we don’t stop what’s happening now…then the world is going to fall apart. It’s already happening, Cassie, you know…you’ve been touched by…”
Orion clamped his hand over Diana’s mouth.
“Help Donna.”
“That’s what I would try to do, if you two idiots hadn’t already broken her,” Cassie said, “Gods…they need a direct connection to those who believe in them, who fuel them. They need to fill a void somewhere in man’s heart, in their minds. They are not weapons to be pointed at things.”
Orion chuckled, removing his hand from Diana’s mouth.
“I thought you said she was smart?” he said. Diana shook her head.
“We are self-contained, girl.”
Cassie put her hands on her hips and looked him up and down.
“Looks that way, you standing in my home. REAL self- contained.”
“FOOL!” Orion yelled, thrusting his face into Cassie’s, “Diana convinced me that you were best to help Donna, I am now more than convinced she was incorrect. You are a CHILD, you are IGNORANT and you will be our downfall in this world before any of the Fifth Worlders come for her. YOUR kind built Donna, and the others, and YOUR KIND will be the end of the Four Worlds. Congratulations.”
Orion stormed away from Cassie and picked up Donna by the arms.
“We are leaving. This was a waste of time and dangerous. They will be following, like Devilance himself, and we…we are arguing over rhetorics with a bigot.”
“WHOA!” Cassie threw up her hands.
“Bigot? Watch your damn mouth. I thought I was being pretty tolerant, while you pranced around my apartment like some prize cock, thinking you’re the best thing ever. Let me tell you, Orion, Warrior God, and Fourth World Dick, you came here because my connection to Folklore and ethno-centrical supposition is second to none. Diana knows Gods, even some godamned fictional ones, but I know Folklore.”
Cassie stormed up to him, and slapped him across the face. He looked stunned for a moment.
“We do this, because this woman here?” Cassie looked at Donna, “She needs help more than you do. You need a god kick in the junk, and Diana?”
Diana looked Cassie up and down from across the room.
“I am disappointed in you.”
“Cassie, wait…”
Cassandra held up her hand.
The rain’s weight grew exponentially, almost caving in the sides of the apartment. Cassie instinctively drew herself away from the walls, closer to Diana.
“They’re coming,” Orion said. His eyes seemed to unfocus, as they darted around the room.
“Who?” Cassie asked. Donna sat, ridged on the sofa, looking at Orion’s face.
“Intellectron’s,” he said, “The Gentry are coming.”
Cassie cocked her head to one side.
“I have literally no idea what the hell you’re talking about,” she said. Diana put a hand on her shoulder.
“There are…worlds and worlds of Gods out there that we’ve not catalogued yet, Cassie. Whole universes of Deities who exist for any number of reasons. They exist because they believe in them, imagined them. They exist because we didn’t. They exist because of relativistic idealism, physical laws, anthropomorphisation, cultural dreaming identity, even non-organic ideals for non-sentient entities. We are the tip of the iceberg and the Gentry…”
A low hissing began to build in the corner of the room.
“The Gentry are terrifying creatures of universal destruction. They want access to the Godshpere, and they’re going to do it whatever way they can. They’ve tried Fourth World Constructs before,” Orion said. Then he smashed his fist into his open palm, “We are not puppets.”
“How do you know all this, if there are so many unknowns?” Cassie asked.
“It’s that’s my job,” Diana said. There was a look of abject determination on her face, as the rain grew harder again. The window panes rattled in their sils, and Orion wrapped a hand around Donna’s arm.
“We have to leave, immediately,” he said. Diana nodded.
“Cassie, we need to go,” she said.
“I’m not leaving my apartment,” she said, stepping back from Diana, “for all I know…”
She paused, reading the face of her Mothers former friend. Diana looked terrified, but determined.
“Cassandra,” she said, “I am so sorry I’ve dragged you into this, but we need you. We need your knowledge, and we need your mind. Most of all, you’re part of this now, and I am sorry for that, but…you’re not safe here. With the Gentry about to manifest…”
“No more time,” Orion said. He hauled Donna to her feet and threw himself through the door, the back wall began to warp and shift.
“What is...”
The mass of the wall was transforming itself. Shifting into an Egg shape, the size of a large car. A single staring eye watched Cassie, and blinked. The blink felt like all of her blood being frozen inside her veins, knocking her back a few paces. Diana gripped Cassie’s shoulders and pulled her back, the big, black, veined wings of the floating egg flapping a single time, and swiping the air inches in front of Cassie’s face.
“Jesus,” she whispered.
“GO!” Diana yelled, throwing Cassie towards the doorway. The Scientist followed her quickly. Orion, with Donna over his shoulder, was already on the street below, two stories down.
The hissing grew in intensity. Drowning out all other sounds. Cassie couldn’t think. Couldn’t see. Diana was stumbling down the steps, half leaning over the banisters, half stumbling thanks to Gravity. Above them, the Black Egg floated, dominating the senses.
Cassie felt herself falling, tumbling over the edge of the banister towards the ground below. Before she hit, she felt a tug on her arm, her vision exploding into freedom, eliminating colour, but expanding to see more than she ever had before. Her hand was gripped by a longer than human arm.
The entity owning it, who stood at around ten feet, was slender. Arms as thin as pipes, and pure as fresh snow. A thin face smiled at Cassie, and allowed her to drop to the ground without harm.
“Go Cassandra. Welcome in the Fifth World.”
Colour came crashing down into her vision again, pinning her to the floor. Her hands were grazed, and her ankles hurt. Diana tumbled down the steps in front of her, and grabbed her arm, pulling her towards the van that had screeched to a halt in front of them.
“IN!” Orion yelled.
Diana, throwing Cassie through the door leapt in behind her and slammed it shut.
“Good Lord you’re tough,” Diana said. Cassie looked up at her, spaced out.
“The White Man saved me. Hall.”
Diana’s expression grew puzzled. She checked the back of Cassie’s head for any damage.
“Did you land on your head? I just saw you fall.”
“No, I was caught. Hall caught me.”
Orion looked over his shoulder, as the Van sped around a corner, throwing the pair into the wall.
“She’s delusional. We should have left her behind. Is he infected?”
Diana shook her head.
“No, she’s not what the Gentry want anyway. She has no access to the Godsphere.”
Cassie felt her eyes grow heavy.
“I need to…”
Sleep grabbed her quickly, pulling her into blackness.
“Cassandra,” a voice said, carefully, “Welcome back.”
Cassandra Sandsmark ran her hands through her thick, blonde hair, staring out into the weather. Lightning cut the sky in half and seconds later a rumble of thunder jars her back to reality. The rain, previously a small shower grey in weight and volume, filled her ears with the sounds of water colliding with the roof and the ground below.
She turned from the window and headed over to her chair, and a small table stacked with books. Ever since her Mother had “retired” from dig sites, Cassandra had less reason to be interested in actual archaeology and more in personal passion of Folklore and Mythology. As one of the youngest curators in the country, her knowledge of the world of ancient Gods was extensive, but her understanding of fairy tales, culturally significant items and folklore was second to none. She was not a mythology graduate, as she had scolded her Mother on more than one occasion, she was a Folklorist. More recently, however, her thoughts had turned back to a friend of her Mothers, a tall, beautiful woman with gorgeous, black hair, and strong features.
Diana Prince, was the foremost comparative mythologist in the world. Their bond had been stronger than the difference in their ages, strengthened for that gap in time. Since her Mother had her gap in memory, and the disease, aggressively consumed her intelligence, Diana had been a shoulder to rest on, and a mind to spar with. Cassie sighed, and rubbed her eyes. She felt more tired now than she ever had during her life, even her degree.
“Why can’t you just let me sleep?” she asked. Her voice was cracked, and small. She picked up a book from the table, turning it over in her hands.
“Comparative Mythology in the Modern World.”
Cassie shook her head and flicked through the pages, unable to find the willpower or the attention span to read any of the passages. She flicked through pages containing what appeared to be a mathematical formula, as well as vague drawings of huge walls, towering Gods that she did not recognise, and a chapter called “Theoretical Mythology.” This was Diana’s realm, even if the book was written by someone else. Perhaps a colleague of hers. A researcher from China, whose name she did not recognise.
She clapped the book closed and laid it gently on the table again, rubbing the bridge of her nose. For a few days, she had been unable to sleep soundly. She worried over a small notebook next to the table, flicking through the well wore first few pages of it, the corners flicked up from the motion of her running her thumb over it repeatedly.
Opening the small, black book, titled “Dream Diary” in long, complete and legible handwriting, Cassie flicked through the pages once more.
“Tall, thin, White Man,” she said, “Came to me in a Dream, speaking in riddles.”
She turned the page again.
“White man returns, this time in pure white caftan. Spoke of five worlds.” she scratched at the corner of her eyes, to pick the solid clumps of sleep from them.
“Return of Dream man. Introduced himself today. Hall.”
She picked up a pen, flicking forward a few pages to a blank sheet. She put the pen to paper and stares at it for a moment.
“Hall back. He stares,” she scribbled, “Listed Four Worlds of Gods, but a Fifth emerging. Spoke of War. Gods, Demons, Angels and everything in-between. Very vocal.”
She paused, chewing nervously on the lid.
“Spoke of my involvement in creating the Fifth. Said I am new Folklore.”
Cassie put the pen down and re-read what she’d written several times. She picked up the pen again and wrote in caps, and underlined twice.
“Am I insane?”
She closed the book and leaned back in her chair, the rain becoming heavier on her window, thunder shaking the glass. Cassie got to her feet and slowly made her way towards the kitchen. Boiling the kettle and pulling out a Green Tea bag.
Amongst the thunder, Cassie was certain she heard the knock of her door.
Waving it away as a product of fatigue, she continued to make herself a hot drink, leaning on the countertop. The door knocked again, louder this time and more insistent. Cassandra, picking up her dressing gown and wrapping it around her, walked to the door.
“It’s pretty late,” she said, “Come back tomorrow.”
“We won’t have time tomorrow,” the voice yelled back. Cassandra didn’t recognise it, and looked through the peephole. She saw a man in a red biker jacket, and a strange, almost Greek helmet.
“Yeah? Tell it to someone who cares, Spartacus.”
Cassie moved away from the door, back towards the kitchen. A loud back on the door made it ring in on its hinges, and another bang forced the lock away from the doorframe.
“One more and I’ll kick the damn thing in,” the voice yelled back. Cassie shot back towards the door, and braced herself against it.
“One more bang and I’ll kick you in! I don’t know who the hell you are, but if you break down my door, I’m gonna break down your head!”
The man took a step back, lowering his shoulder as though he was going to charge. A smaller hand touched his shoulder, staying his advance. The rain was still heavy, and the apartment landing wasn’t large enough to prevent the group gathered outside Cassie’s door from being drenched.
A small, slender woman, in a, with a thick hood pulled over her head stood behind the large, biker man. Next to her stood a woman that Cassie recognised. Thick, beautiful dark hair, and thin glasses sat on her elegant nose. She was wrapped in a red and blue rain mac, tied with a belt across her midsection.
“Diana?” she whispered.
“What?” the biker yelled through the door, “Open the damned door.”
Slowly, and carefully, Cassie opens the front door. The Biker man barrels through, dragging the two women behind him. She slammed the door shut and braced it with his back.
“About damn time,” he said to Cassie. She narrowed her eyes at him.
“Who the hell are you?”
“Orion,” the man growled, “Who are you?”
“Cassandra Sandsmark, owner of his apartment, and experienced dispenser of female-on-male violence. Please be polite, or I will kick your crotch into your face.”
Orion grinned, and thumbed at Cassandra, his gaze firmly on Diana.
“I like her,” he said.
“Yes, I imagined you would,” Diana said. She stepped towards Cassandra and put her hands on her shoulders.
“Cassie…I…”
Cassie stared up at her and shook her head slowly, her gaze quickly switching to the ground.
“I am sorry to barge in like this,” Diana said, “I am sorry about Helena…”
Cassie’s eyes snapped up.
“No,” Cassie said, “Not now, OK? Not in front of these…strangers.”
Diana cleared her throat and let her hands drop away. She took a moment to gather herself, and turned to her companions.
“Cassandra, this is Orion, Warrior God,” Diana said. Orion nodded and removed his helmet.
“Warrior God?” Cassandra asked. Diana nodded solemnly.
“Sure, why not,” Cassie said.
“This is Tro…Donna,” Diana said, pushing the small, pale woman ahead of her. The hood was still drawn firmly over her face, Cassie only saw her chin.
“Donna, will you say hello to Cassandra?”
“Hello Cassandra, I am Donna. Hello.”
Cassie arched an eyebrow and grabbed Diana’s arm.
“Diana, can I talk to you in the Kitchen please?”
“You don’t need to,” Diana said. Orion moved behind her towards the living room, dropping his huge bulk down into Cassie’s chair.
“Hey…Watch it,” Cassie said. Orion flipped her the bird.
“I’m sorry to appear, in the middle of the night. Did we wake you?”
Cassie shook her head. She palmed her hair and pulled it into a tight pony-tail, to mimic that of Diana’s, despite the obviously different being hers was twice the length of the black bun.
“Why are you here with…these two?”
Diana removed her glasses and paced up and down the hallway.
“Orion is helping me…”
A questioning look was shared between the two, Orion’s eyes glaring into Diana’s. Diana shook her head.
“She needs to know, Orion,” Diana said. She moved into the living room as well, guiding Donna towards the sofa.
“She’s trying to get the information out of us, Diana,” Orion said, sneering, “I don’t trust her. I don’t know her.”
“You don’t have to, Orion. I do.”
Diana looked up at Cassie. Cassie gave Orion the evil eye.
“After my…short falling out…with your Mother,” Diana began.
“To say the least,” Cassie said.
“I moved from working on theoretical academics into the world of…let’s say…practical application. This world is far, far stranger than either of us ever gave it credit for.”
Cassie nodded quietly, moving into the living room finally, and sitting on the floor.
“Yeah, some of it turns up in the middle of the damn night and nearly breaks my chair.”
“Comparative Mythology, Modernised Cultural Significance? All of those things are irrelevant. The Gods of Old, New and Unmade never left.”
Cassie twisted her neck slightly.
“Never left. Wait. Unmade never left? That doesn’t even make sense,” she repeated.
“I realise this seems crazy,” Diana said, “But I left to work with…shall we say…some reprehensible scientists, in retrospect.”
“You did what?” Cassie asked. Her tired mind was spinning.
Diana massaged her temples.
“I worked for a company called Deisd Ark, I understand how that sounds,” Diana said. Cassie grinned.
“That…is a stupid, stupid name. European?”
“Lithuanian,” Diana nodded, “The Ark part is the most important, their whole ethos, is based on the idea that Gods, and Goddesses and all the monsters, demons and etc that come with them, are still here, and still doing battle today. They wanted to build…”
Cassie sat up straight.
“They tried to build their own Gods?” Cassie said. Diana nodded. Orion stood up.
“That’s enough,” he said, fussing over Donna’s hoodie, “No more, Diana.”
“You’re a Warrior God,” Cassie said, getting to her feet, “So you’re…artificial?”
He twisted around, and slammed a hand into her shoulder. Cassie fell backwards into the table of books, sprawling out on the floor.
“HEY!” she yelled. She leapt to her feet and charged towards Orion, who snarled at her like a rabid dog.
“I am a God, girl. A New God. I was not created by you, I was made by ME.”
Cassie snorted.
“You’re an asshole, you delusional idiot. Get out.”
Cassie turned to Diana.
“All of you. Out.”
“Orion,” Diana said. He turned to her, and she shook her head.
“Yeah,” he said. He returned to his sitting position.
“No, no way!” Cassie yelled, “Get him out of here, and you Diana, and take this girl with you. I don’t want you just turning up in the middle of the night, and it being OK for you to push me around. This is MY home!”
“I’ll be blunt then,” Diana said, getting to her feet, “For all intents and purposes, I am the greatest comparative mythological database in the world. I know more about these Gods, and some of these…”
She knelt down and picked up the book she was reading earlier, on Comparative Mythology, flicking through the pages until she stopped at Chapter Four.
“New Gods,” she said, holding the book open. There was a picture on the front of huge, hulking forms, one of which looked strikingly like Orion.
“Are you…” she said, pausing. Diana nodded.
“Four Worlds, Cassie. There have been Four Worlds of Gods, and this…” Diana said, looking over her shoulder.
“Is the start of the Fifth,” Cassie finished. She slumped down on the floor, her back against a wall. She felt tears of relief
build in the corners of her eyes.
“Oh Jesus Christ,” Cassie felt the blood drain from her face, and the tears build around her eyes.
“Yes...” Diana said, “but how do you know that?”
“I’ve been dreaming,” she said simply. Diana swallowed loudly and nodded. She turned to Orion who sat down next to Donna, who had remained almost inert throughout the entire exchange.
“Bigger than we thought,” he said, quietly.
“We will deal with that later,” Diana said, kneeling down in front of Cassie.
“Cassandra, listen to me. We need your help. I am good at Myths, Gods, but you? You’re the Folklore database, you’re the one who understands how Gods interact with us, but on a level that is cultural, not physical, or theological. You understand that the Gods influence culture and thus, Culture influences Gods and…”
“You need me to be involved in this…insanity?” Cassie said.
Diana nodded.
“Would it be there another way,” she said, “But I need your knowledge, your mind. Donna understands what she is…Gods help her…”
“Wait…” Cassie said, “You told her?”
“We had to she needed to know what the Fifth World was…” Diana said.
“No! Diana, you’re right,” Cassie said, getting to her feet, “You don’t get the Culture behind it. Gods have origins, in all things. They’re born from universal constants, with ties into culture and belief. Not from being told they’re artificial entities created because you.GOT.BORED.”
She cast a sideways glance at Orion, who shrugged.
“They don’t thrive on worship, they thrive on nichism. On fitting a slot in the universe that nobody else does. You’ve just told this young woman that she is entirely replicable. Congratulations, you’ve made a world and killed it immediately.”
Donna looked up at Cassie with something in her eyes, but Cassie couldn’t tell what it was.
“Donna, do you understand why they brought you here?”
She nodded.
“Hello,” she said. Cassie nodded in return, her face grim. She looked over her shoulder at Diana.
“Congrats, you’ve broken the first God of the Fifth World.”
Diana coughed a little.
“What?”
“She’s not the first,” Orion said, “She’s...what? Fifth? Sixth?”
Cassie let her arms drop in frustration.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” she said, getting to her feet, “You bring me a God, who needs my knowledge, because of what? And now you tell me there’s…at least six. Are they all in this state? Are they all empty vessels?”
“Because if we don’t stop what’s happening now…then the world is going to fall apart. It’s already happening, Cassie, you know…you’ve been touched by…”
Orion clamped his hand over Diana’s mouth.
“Help Donna.”
“That’s what I would try to do, if you two idiots hadn’t already broken her,” Cassie said, “Gods…they need a direct connection to those who believe in them, who fuel them. They need to fill a void somewhere in man’s heart, in their minds. They are not weapons to be pointed at things.”
Orion chuckled, removing his hand from Diana’s mouth.
“I thought you said she was smart?” he said. Diana shook her head.
“We are self-contained, girl.”
Cassie put her hands on her hips and looked him up and down.
“Looks that way, you standing in my home. REAL self- contained.”
“FOOL!” Orion yelled, thrusting his face into Cassie’s, “Diana convinced me that you were best to help Donna, I am now more than convinced she was incorrect. You are a CHILD, you are IGNORANT and you will be our downfall in this world before any of the Fifth Worlders come for her. YOUR kind built Donna, and the others, and YOUR KIND will be the end of the Four Worlds. Congratulations.”
Orion stormed away from Cassie and picked up Donna by the arms.
“We are leaving. This was a waste of time and dangerous. They will be following, like Devilance himself, and we…we are arguing over rhetorics with a bigot.”
“WHOA!” Cassie threw up her hands.
“Bigot? Watch your damn mouth. I thought I was being pretty tolerant, while you pranced around my apartment like some prize cock, thinking you’re the best thing ever. Let me tell you, Orion, Warrior God, and Fourth World Dick, you came here because my connection to Folklore and ethno-centrical supposition is second to none. Diana knows Gods, even some godamned fictional ones, but I know Folklore.”
Cassie stormed up to him, and slapped him across the face. He looked stunned for a moment.
“We do this, because this woman here?” Cassie looked at Donna, “She needs help more than you do. You need a god kick in the junk, and Diana?”
Diana looked Cassie up and down from across the room.
“I am disappointed in you.”
“Cassie, wait…”
Cassandra held up her hand.
The rain’s weight grew exponentially, almost caving in the sides of the apartment. Cassie instinctively drew herself away from the walls, closer to Diana.
“They’re coming,” Orion said. His eyes seemed to unfocus, as they darted around the room.
“Who?” Cassie asked. Donna sat, ridged on the sofa, looking at Orion’s face.
“Intellectron’s,” he said, “The Gentry are coming.”
Cassie cocked her head to one side.
“I have literally no idea what the hell you’re talking about,” she said. Diana put a hand on her shoulder.
“There are…worlds and worlds of Gods out there that we’ve not catalogued yet, Cassie. Whole universes of Deities who exist for any number of reasons. They exist because they believe in them, imagined them. They exist because we didn’t. They exist because of relativistic idealism, physical laws, anthropomorphisation, cultural dreaming identity, even non-organic ideals for non-sentient entities. We are the tip of the iceberg and the Gentry…”
A low hissing began to build in the corner of the room.
“The Gentry are terrifying creatures of universal destruction. They want access to the Godshpere, and they’re going to do it whatever way they can. They’ve tried Fourth World Constructs before,” Orion said. Then he smashed his fist into his open palm, “We are not puppets.”
“How do you know all this, if there are so many unknowns?” Cassie asked.
“It’s that’s my job,” Diana said. There was a look of abject determination on her face, as the rain grew harder again. The window panes rattled in their sils, and Orion wrapped a hand around Donna’s arm.
“We have to leave, immediately,” he said. Diana nodded.
“Cassie, we need to go,” she said.
“I’m not leaving my apartment,” she said, stepping back from Diana, “for all I know…”
She paused, reading the face of her Mothers former friend. Diana looked terrified, but determined.
“Cassandra,” she said, “I am so sorry I’ve dragged you into this, but we need you. We need your knowledge, and we need your mind. Most of all, you’re part of this now, and I am sorry for that, but…you’re not safe here. With the Gentry about to manifest…”
“No more time,” Orion said. He hauled Donna to her feet and threw himself through the door, the back wall began to warp and shift.
“What is...”
The mass of the wall was transforming itself. Shifting into an Egg shape, the size of a large car. A single staring eye watched Cassie, and blinked. The blink felt like all of her blood being frozen inside her veins, knocking her back a few paces. Diana gripped Cassie’s shoulders and pulled her back, the big, black, veined wings of the floating egg flapping a single time, and swiping the air inches in front of Cassie’s face.
“Jesus,” she whispered.
“GO!” Diana yelled, throwing Cassie towards the doorway. The Scientist followed her quickly. Orion, with Donna over his shoulder, was already on the street below, two stories down.
The hissing grew in intensity. Drowning out all other sounds. Cassie couldn’t think. Couldn’t see. Diana was stumbling down the steps, half leaning over the banisters, half stumbling thanks to Gravity. Above them, the Black Egg floated, dominating the senses.
Cassie felt herself falling, tumbling over the edge of the banister towards the ground below. Before she hit, she felt a tug on her arm, her vision exploding into freedom, eliminating colour, but expanding to see more than she ever had before. Her hand was gripped by a longer than human arm.
The entity owning it, who stood at around ten feet, was slender. Arms as thin as pipes, and pure as fresh snow. A thin face smiled at Cassie, and allowed her to drop to the ground without harm.
“Go Cassandra. Welcome in the Fifth World.”
Colour came crashing down into her vision again, pinning her to the floor. Her hands were grazed, and her ankles hurt. Diana tumbled down the steps in front of her, and grabbed her arm, pulling her towards the van that had screeched to a halt in front of them.
“IN!” Orion yelled.
Diana, throwing Cassie through the door leapt in behind her and slammed it shut.
“Good Lord you’re tough,” Diana said. Cassie looked up at her, spaced out.
“The White Man saved me. Hall.”
Diana’s expression grew puzzled. She checked the back of Cassie’s head for any damage.
“Did you land on your head? I just saw you fall.”
“No, I was caught. Hall caught me.”
Orion looked over his shoulder, as the Van sped around a corner, throwing the pair into the wall.
“She’s delusional. We should have left her behind. Is he infected?”
Diana shook her head.
“No, she’s not what the Gentry want anyway. She has no access to the Godsphere.”
Cassie felt her eyes grow heavy.
“I need to…”
Sleep grabbed her quickly, pulling her into blackness.
“Cassandra,” a voice said, carefully, “Welcome back.”