As the beam of darkness slowly faded and the dust began to settle, the heavens remained dark.

A mass of darkness slowly falls from the sky, touching the ground where Babel Tower once stood.

Their arm formed and swung it as if to remove the layer of darkness covering its demonic form.

Clack!

Clack!

Clack!

Walking up a large pile of debris from Babel, it looks out into the city. It could be seen that many were starting to look at it, and fear began to fill their hearts.

"…"

It says nothing and simply sits down on the pile, watching.

Its red cape moves to its side. It reached in and pulled her out.

"!?"

They could see it holding Ai delicately. Softly stroking her hair and holding her tightly in its grasp. Streams of tears began to fall from its eyes.

Many didn’t know what to do as they sat there gently stroking Ai.

Tap!

Tap!

Tap!

Walking out for the first time in public was Ouranos. Many of people began to murmur with one another and some of the gods followed behind him as he walked a bit away from it.

"... What is your name?" he said in a booming voice.

"I am Alcides, The Final Dark God."

"…Do you no longer love the name Fels, and I gave you... Cirrus?"

Many of the gods were shocked to hear him say those words. Ouranos, of all gods, had another child and even gave them a name to boot.

"Cirrus Zephyr… Is a name I wish to keep from who I am now. My name is now Alcides. Given to me by my birth mother."

"I see… So that was what your mother named you…'Strength'…I can see it now."

"Are you really Cirrus?" Susanoo said as he approached him slowly.

"I was. Now that my heart lay in my hands, cold, I am Alcides."

He clenched his fists tightly. He made a painful expression. He desperately tried to hold back his tears.

"Lord Susanoo, it is fine to cry. I know you loved her as much as a father could, and no father should ever outlive their child."

He slowly falls to his knees, covering his face as he cries.

"So…" said Freya. "What are you going to do about this place?"

Alcides looks around at the destruction.

"First… I am going to devour everyone from Evilus. Not a single god nor mortal shall survive."

His divinity expands massively to show he was serious. They could feel all the negative emotions he was feeling. It crushed them how much pain he was in.

"H-hey Ouranos I don’t wanna be mean about your kid, but shouldn’t you send him up to Heaven?" said Loki.

"…" Ouranos observed Alcides carefully. "I cannot. He is both a god and not one at the same time. Besides, I feel every god in heaven curse on him. He is rejected by Heaven."

"Yes… I am cursed to wander this land till even time runs out. Even death is out of reach." A noose manifested itself, and the gods saw as it tightened around his neck, and they even heard a crack. The light in Alcides eyes is snuffed out.

"!?" Many of the gods eyes widen.

As the noose disappears his eyes reignite.

"Cruel."

"That divinity." Ouranos’s eyes squinted. "It’s him, isn’t it?"

"Yes. You can thank Erebus for that. I absorbed his essence into my being, thus making me into this. If you were to classify me as a species, I would classify myself as... maybe a Nephilim? I call myself a god, but I’m not really like one, am I?"

Some of the old gods were shaken by his classification.

"…Tell me Alcides. Did you inherit Erebus’s memories?" asked Ouranos.

"No." he turned his gaze to the west. "Ah, it would seem the rats are getting away." He held out his hand. "(Circe) make certain that no one escapes."

A swirl of dark smoke appeared, and from it, Circe emerged. She was no longer the same Circe as before. She was no longer short but almost as tall as Nox. No longer did she have hair like the setting sun; it was now dyed in her master’s color of red and black. Her eyes once were like her hair, that of twilight, but were now a freezing ice blue.

"Alcides." She bows before a plume of black smoke covers her and a black hawk soars out high into the sky.

A veil of darkness slowly covers the whole of Orario, tingeing the city in purple.

"A-are you truly going to kill the gods of Evilus!?" said Hermes.

"Did I not say that I would? If not, then let me show you. (Nox), Circe."

Appearing from beams of darkness, Nox appeared in a new form as well. Her once inhuman white hair, which could illuminate under the light of the moon, was now as unsettling as a black hole, swallowing and choking the light that dared to strike it, though strands of white remained, like rays of light beaming down into the depths of the sea. Her glistening silver eyes were a piercing gold. Her skin grew slightly paler. Her attire was a black and white palette.

Circe comes down and lands next to Nox.

"Alcides." She said, kneeling down.

‘What do you wish?’

"Find and bring all of Evilus to me."

"As you ask." Like the flicker of a lightbulb, a brief darkness covered Nox as she turned into a black and white owl and flew off.

Circe took off as well.

"Hecton."

Several dark hands appeared out of the dungeon and it pulled itself up. Its height grew larger and larger, to the height of mountains. Many knew what it was.

"Sir." He said in his cool baritone voice.

"Should any monster try to reach the surface, crush them. When you see the adventure’s still in the dungeon, help them up. Stay there until the dungeon is sealed once more."

"As you wish."

He turned his gaze back to the dungeon and simply watched.

"I recommend you all do not stay here. Return to your homes and by the coming of the next sunrise, everything will be done."

"…Cir—I mean Alcides," Hermes said, walking a bit forward. "What do you plan on doing? I mean… You have killed a god and are going to—"

"Does it really concern you? Or any of you? They played the role of Evil Gods, and now that their time has come to die. Do you wish to spare them? I think not. They are going to truly experience what it means to lose. There is no next time, there is no quitting the game. They lost, and now I will devour them. That is an absolute certainty. What else can heaven do to me? I am already miserable, and if you yourself, Lord Hermes, wish to defend them…" A deep and thick bloodlust falls on him. Even the other gods could feel it directed at Hermes.

"!?"

"Then I shall eat you along with them. Any conspirator shall meet the same fate as those they aligned themselves with to line their pockets with wealth or to satiate their perverted desires. I will not tolerate any 'Evil' god. Understood."

"I-I-I-I understand!" he said, walking back sweating bullets. "W-well see you all later! Bye-bye!" He quickly took his leave.

Few of the other gods took their leave as well, with only Ouranos and Susanoo remaining.

"Lord Susanoo, I wish to ask you something?"

"…What did you wanna ask me?" he said with puffy red eyes.

"Where is her village located? I wish to go and bury her in her homeland."

"…Sure thing."

He told him where her village was. North of Yamato, a few miles from the eastern seaboard, there lay a village of white-haired Renards.

He thanked Susanoo as he took his leave.

Now only Ouranos remained.

"Is Fels not coming?"

"…I do not think so. I think they are at a loss for words. Worry not; they will come to you when they are ready to meet their son."

"... Understandable. If my child looked like this now, I wouldn’t want to see them until I was ready. Are you going to stay and watch?"

"No. I think I will take a walk around and help where I can. It has been many years since I walked the land…" Alcides could see the pain in his face as he turns around. "I hope the next time I see you; you will be in a more harmonious state."

Alcides watches as Ouranos leaves.

"…It’s just you and me, Ai." He holds her tightly and resumes stroking her hair. "Ain’t no sunshine when you're gone♪ It’s not warm when your away♪"

The wind picks up his voice and carries it. Many who heard the song could feel a heartache that many stop to cry.

 

One hour before the sunrise, Nox and Circe brought them all together. Alcides puts Ai back into his darkness.

"So… You are Apate and you... What is your name?" Alcides said, looking at Thanatos.

"I am Thanatos. I have to say I didn’t think your spirits would be able to find me in the Knossos?"

"It was easy." said Circe. "With the magic gained from Alcides and with how Evilus managed to get past the barrier, the only way that would be possible was through another entrance. I just looked around underground and, to my surprise, I found a nest of rats."

"You’ll pay for this in heaven!" shouted Apate. "Not only did you kill a god, but you even stole his Arcanum!"

"…Tell me who conspired with you? And is there anyone else?" Alcides looks her in her eyes.

"Why the hell should I tell-Grab!!"

He grabbed hold of her jaw and held it tightly.

"…I am not playing. Nox."

Nox walks over and blends into his darkness. His arm began to pulsate in a disturbing black and white light.

"W-w-wait I'm-GAK!?" He tightened his grip even more.

"…You." He looked at Thanatos. "You are going to tell me."

"Lady Apate!!" shouted Valletta and Olivas.

Several people from the Apate and Thanatos Familia came to save their gods.

"Just like the bees when you take their queen." Circe said, turning into a bird and landing on Alcides' shoulder.

"You fucking monster!!" They shouted.

"Ah… Great job Nox, Circe. [White Night]."

"!?!?" Everyone watched as a white light began to encroach onto Apate.

"Gaaah!!! Gaaaah-AAAAAAHHHH!!!!" she felt her very cells and existence begin to burn and be eaten away, atom, by atom.

Boom!!

Apate was struck by a blinding beam of light. But the beam of light was slowly consumed until it was gone. Her divinity was gone from Gekai and Alcides’s divinity grew even more.

"Ah~" Alcides lets out a sigh as all of the Apate Familia were cut off from their Falna. "You tasted absolutely disgusting."

They could see as his divinity gained Apate's quality and grow even stronger.

"Y-you ate a god!?" Thanatos said he was afraid and shocked.

"What is wrong, God of Death? Are you afraid of your own concept?" Alcides looked at him with his glowing eyes and his bloodlust flooded out. "You should worry. I’m not gonna make it painless, oh no. You're going to feel every second of it."

 

Before the sun had risen, Alcides did as he said. He found and killed every last one of them along with their conspirators, no matter where they were or what they were doing. All met a bloody end.

Whoosh!

Whoosh!

Whoosh!

The early morning breeze blows to the west. His cape flaps in the wind as he takes out Ai and holds her again.

"Come on... Let us go on our journey."

Clack!!

Clack!!

Clack!!

And with each step he takes, he can feel a noose around his neck the further he walks. His mask grew heavier and heavier as Ai’s smile haunts him.

Only by stroking her hair did the air no longer feel heavy and that noose loosens up.