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Hump did his best not to let his doubt show as he stood amidst the thrones of dead gods, and before Owalyn. That wasn’t easy. He suddenly wondered if he should have phrased himself with a little less hostility, but with so much essence surging through him, it had gone to his head.
This power… it was intoxicating.
White fire drifted through the air around them, the ancient formation overhead dimming moment by moment, its manifestation in his domain reflecting that of reality. The corpses were just that now—corpses. No longer did they hold even the faintest trace of power. Every spark was gone. The light of divinity was out
It was done. The Pantheon had truly fallen. For good or for ill, there was no going back.
A lot of attention would soon be on him. That was if Owalyn let him go in the first place. Not to mention that the entire world—all twelve realms—would face the consequences of his actions here today.
The ground tremored as the formation reacted to the extraction of the final Divine Spark. The whole palace shook, almost rocking him from his feet, as if the very fragment might break apart.
As the world settled, Owalyn finally spoke. “Too late?” Owalyn repeated. “Too late for what exactly? I did not come here to help the Pantheon.” Owalyn laughed with wild delight, the very air resonating with the sound, ringing with the sound. “Whether or not the Old Gods are free matters little to me. I am surprised, however. To think you would carry out what Baelkor has worked so hard for a millennium to accomplish. I never imagined I would face you today.”
“How can you laugh?” Bud asked. “Is this not a terrible thing?”
Owalyn studied the night briefly, a smile still on her lips. “That depends entirely on your perspective.” The huntress stepped forward, eyes distant now as she looked beyond the chamber, beyond Heaven itself. “The age before the Pantheon lasted far longer than the age after it. The gods of the Pantheon called it chaos. Many who lived during that time would have called it freedom.”
“What about you?” Hump asked.
“A more exciting time,” Owalyn said. “It has been a long time since I have hunted a god. A long time. With Uvdar’s return, my arrows shall taste divine blood again.”
“Then you side with us,” Bud pressed.
“No, dear knight,” Owalyn said softly. “I am the Huntress, but even I could not save you. The people of Alveron have no side. You are obsolete.”
Bud took a furious step forward. “You dare to say that! You may not agree with our gods, but we are just people too.”
“You have no gods,” Owalyn declared. “We stand within the tomb of the Pantheon. Those that remain are gone, and they would not help even if they could.”
Bud clenched his jaw. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Emilia rested a calming hand on his arm. “Do you know why Lady Light is not here? Please, Lady Owalyn, if there is anything you can tell us.”
“I know little of the current times, child,” Owalyn said, her voice filled with the Mother’s warmth. “But Light is no saviour. The ruin she has wrought is beyond even Uvdar.”
“What do you mean?” Dylan asked.
“Uvdar seeks to feast upon essence,” Owalyn said. “To absorb the very intent of the world and take its power for himself. But Light… she found a way to destroy it. And in that moment of destruction the catastrophe she can cause is beyond imagining.”
“The Remnant Realm,” Dylan said, eyes wide. “The barren wasteland.”
“That’s how she forced you into imprisonment,” Hump said.
“Yes,” Owalyn said bitterly. “She would destroy not just Drakalyn, but everything for a thousand miles in all directions. To give up my spark and be bound to that tree was the only way.”
“I did not know,” Celaine said.
“Times are changing,” Owalyn said. “Much that was secret may now be revealed. And secrets best left in the dark shall reveal themselves whether we wish it or not. You, Wizard Humphrey, have brought an end to the reign of the Pantheon. Today, a new era begins.”
“I didn’t do it out of choice,” Hump said. “The formation was already deteriorating. Loften told us there was no way to stop it. The return of the Old Gods was inevitable.”
“Loften told you?” Owalyn snapped. “The man cannot be trusted. He is a worm.”
Hump paused, taken aback. He guessed Loften likely had much to do with her imprisonment. “He was trapped in his tower on the world of Ur. The land of the altari. We, err… we freed him. To make a long story short, he was a large part of why we managed to reach this place.”
“But he is no ally of the Pantheon any longer,” Celaine said. “Osidium killed his wife.”
“Then perhaps he did not lie,” Owalyn said. “So you thought to speed up the process.”
Hump shrugged. “At least this way, the Divine Sparks are kept from the hands of Baelkor, Godfrey, and any of the old gods that might claim them.”
“And from me it would seem.” What do you intend to do with the insight that was stolen from me?” Her eyes were like arrows as she said the words, her piercing gaze seeing right through him, touched with a deadliness that he knew he couldn't do anything about.
The moment the words left her mouth, killing intent flooded the chamber. It descended so suddenly that Celaine and the others stiffened at once. Nishari hunched forward, scales shimmering with gold as she snarled, fire building in her mouth.
The white fire of Hump’s domain bent around the pressure, while the air itself sharpened like a blade to his throat, pressing against his soul.
It reminded him of the Dragon Keeper Trials. Back then, he had endured Owalyn’s power through stubbornness alone. This time was different.
His domain answered instinctively. Overhead, runes filled the air with silver script—an incomprehensibly complex pattern of runes that defined Owalyn’s intent. White fire brightened around him. The molten cracks beneath his feet glowed hotter as his authority pushed back against hers. Not enough to overpower the goddess—not even close—but enough to hold his ground beneath her gaze.
Enough that he did not bow.
For all his newfound strength, it was far from enough. Even possessing her Divine Spark, the gap between them was so great that it didn’t matter. If she wished it, his death would be near instant.
Celaine glanced at Hump too. “What did you do?”
Hump let out a slow breath, feeling the weight of his actions. Two-hundred and sixty-seven Divine Sparks were now in his possession, and with it, the formation holding back the Old Gods would come apart. Already, its power was fading. Every minute counted now.
And he needed Owalyn’s help if he were to make a difference.
“I am not keeping your spark from you. It was part of the formation you see fading overhead. I extracted it along with the others, and only after its power was already flowing through me did I recognise it as yours.”
Another tremor shook the palace. This one stronger. The building groaned around them. The subtle streaks of golden essence erupted upward in vast streams, flooding through cracks in reality itself. The air became heavy with the ancient intent.
“Your spark is for you, and you alone,” Hump continued. “I only ask that you hear me out before I give it to you.”
The pressure lingered for several long seconds before finally receding.
Owalyn studied him in silence. Then slowly, the eyes of the Huntress returned once more to the Mother.
“You have changed, Wizard Humphrey.” She stood utterly at ease amidst the white fire, silver eyes roaming across his Soul Domain. The rivers of molten stone. The drifting ash. “I recognise the divine in you.”
Then her gaze drifted to Nisha. For the first time since arriving, genuine concern crossed Owalyn’s face.
“What have you done?” she asked softly. “No… what have you both done? How is this possible?”
Nisha pressed herself against Hump’s side uneasily, black and gold scales gleaming in the light of his white flames. Nervousness flowed through their bond.
“Scary lady,” Nisha thought at him. “Fight?”
Despite everything, Hump nearly smiled. “No, Nisha. Don’t fight. That is Owalyn. Do you not remember her?”
“I mean you no harm, little one,” Owalyn said gently. Owalyn looked back toward Hump, and the softness vanished from her expression once more. “But I do require answers.”
“The Divine Sparks were bound here by a formation,” Hump explained. “One tied to whatever prison held the Old Gods. The structure was already deteriorating, so I removed the sparks before it collapsed completely.”
“And claimed one for yourself.” Owalyn frowned. “Or rather, half of a spark. I did not know such a thing was possible.”
Hump nodded. “Either I claimed it, or the devil, Karlac, did. After Karlac was killed, Nishari absorbed part of the spark to keep me alive.”
Owalyn smiled at Nisha. “You are a brave one. There has not been one like her amongst wolf dragons for an age.”
“What do you mean?” Hump asked.
“Nishari possesses the potential to become a true dragon. Already she is half a step there.”
“She is healthy then?” Hump asked.
“Yes. Is particularly good health.”
“That is good to hear.” Hump sighed in relief. With all the things that had happened to her, he’d feared the changes to her body may have done some damage.
Even as he spoke, the chamber trembled again.
The ancient workings of Heaven were failing. Golden streams of essence rose from the floor in radiant currents while distant fractures spread across the palace walls. The formation was dying now that its purpose had been undone.
“There isn’t much time,” Hump said. “Will you help us, Lady Owalyn?”
“That is what you wished me to hear?” Owalyn asked.
Celaine bowed her head. “Please, my lady.”
Owalyn’s gaze drifted toward Celaine. A faint smile touched her lips. “You truly did choose an interesting one.”
Celaine straightened slightly.
Owalyn turned back to Hump. “Very well. I will help you leave this place alive.” Her expression darkened slightly. “After that, I make no promises. You carry the divinity of the entire Pantheon now. There will be many who seek to kill you for it.”
“I don’t want your help to escape,” Hump said. “I want to save my people. I want you to kill Baelkor.”
Owalyn shook her head immediately. “No. Baelkor is an enemy of the Pantheon, not mine.”
“The Pantheon is dead,” Hump replied. “Now he’s just slaughtering the people of Alveron. They will die for this place. For nothing! We can’t allow that.”
“Some of the Pantheon still survive,” Owalyn said calmly. “And Uvdar would not look kindly to someone killing his servant before his return. There is nothing in this for me.”
Hump frowned. There had to be a way. Something he could do. As much as he wanted to leave this place, imagining his people outside—his friends—he could not flee. Vivienne, Marcela,Wizard Aldric, even Randall and the many other adventurers and Chosen he had come to know.
“Then do it for the hunt,” Hump said. “You have been imprisoned for a thousand years. Let Baelkor remind everyone of why you are the Huntress.”
Owalyn smiled. “You think to appeal to my sensibilities.”
“It is all I have,” Hump said, then bowed his head. “The only other thing I can do is ask. I shall owe you a favour. Please help us.”
At his side, Bud, Emilia, and Dylan bowed their heads.
Finally, Celaine fell to one knee. “Lady Owalyn, the people of Alveron are not responsible for the actions of the Pantheon. They are victims too. Please, help them.”
Owalyn’s eyes narrowed slightly. “I will not reveal myself. You shall confront Baelkor, keep him in place, and my arrow shall slay him. But Uvdar will come for you.”
“He will come for me already.”
“For all of us,” Celaine said. “We’re in this together.”
Bud gave a nod. “At least one good thing will come out of this day. What tomorrow brings matters not.”
“I’m in,” Emilia said.
“And I,” Dylan said.
Nishari grumbled at Hump’s side. Hunt. Kill.
For a moment, silence filled the chamber save for the distant groaning of collapsing formations.
Then Owalyn’s smile turned as dangerous as one of her arrows. “Very well. Then I shall remember your favour, Bearer of Infinity. Perhaps you will go far enough on this path to power for it to be worth something.”
“Thank you,” Hump said.
The others added their own appreciation.
“Enough of that,” Owalyn said. “For the first time in a thousand years, I world shall feel the bite of my arrow in full. Hand over the spark, wizard.”
Hump pressed a hand to the phylactery. He could feel the divine energy brimming inside—so much power contained in such a small space. “How’s it going in there, Walt?”
“A little messy but we’re all good, kid. Nothing’s falling apart. Whatever you did this time, it’s far less messy. You should have started this way.”
“Hindsight is a wonderful thing,” Hump said. “I need to take back one of the sparks. Is it safe to do so?”
“Err. No.”
“There’s no choice.”
Walt’s sigh was long and tired. “I just got everything put away. Go on then. Try not to make too much of a mess.”
Hump searched for the familiar power of Owalyn, his intent roaming the phylactery. It did not take long to find it. Even amongst divinity, the power of the Mother and Huntress stood out. The moment he found it, he pulled it back to him.
There was no resistance this time. No formation bound it in place, so it flowed into him with ease. If he tried to do anything with it, the very act might kill him but acting as a conduit he could manage. His essence channels tingled as the power flowed through them.
Before he could say a word, Owalyn grabbed him by the hand, and all at once the power was drained from him. Siphoned away with so much force that there was nothing in this world he could do to stop it, even if he’d wanted to.
Once it was gone, Hump stared at Owalyn. There was no outward change, but he could sense the turmoil within her. There was a silver shimmer to her eyes.
“This will take me some time,” she said.
“How long?” Hump asked, trying to hide his exasperation—should could have mentioned that first.
“I do not know. I have never attempted to absorb my own insight. In this matter, I believe you hold more experience than me.”
“Not too long then,” Hump said.
“Time is one thing we’re short on,” Bud said. “We cannot wait here.”
“Then go.” Owalyn took a seat directly on the floor and crossed her legs into a meditative position. “Join your people. Hold Baelkor in place at the gates until I take my shot.”