# Chapter 6 “The gods are dead.” Nova said to the council. Gasps erupted, Lana Bellwether of Veluna put her hand to her face. “Gods above and below.” Jack swore, Charlie walked over and put a hand on his. “When?” Charlie asked. “I felt it an hour ago.” “Shit.” Jack swore again. “So the pact was broken then.” Raven deduced. “They are all gone. That's all I have.” *My father and mother are gone.* Years before, a war had broken out among the gods, similar to the second world war. After the war ended, a pact was made between all the gods. Nobody knew all the details of the pact, but they knew annihilation was to happen after breaking it. “Can we do anything?” [[Marc Ortiz]] of house [[Koryph|Koryph]], god of metal, asked. “No. Meeting adjourned.” Micah Rhodes decided, shaking his head. “We’ll do an announcement tomorrow morning. Just rest for now.” ___ Nova flew above Ironsoul, surveying the undead surrounding it. The ranks were 8 deep, and hadn't let up in weeks. There were easily 15 thousand. Vaelix, god of Chaos and Corruption, seemed to be the perpetrator. It must have been the act to break the pact, otherwise he would have been annihilated too fast to get it set up. Nova watched as the walls swayed, threatening to give. She would have felt uneasy, but her powers numbed everything when she used them, to the point of ignorance. If an arrow struck her, she would not notice. The members of house [[Aevala|Aevala]], in conjunction with house Thanon, had determined there were 2 types of [[draugyr]]. Aevala called the living human ones, the [[hollow]]. They were strong as a normal man, not soft or decomposing. Aside from their filth, they looked like normal men, however they were no longer human. This was clear to boyh houses. The other type of undead was the slackjaw, a colloquial term. They were people who had died and returned. They were decomposing, bones softer than a Hollow. The Hollow also tended to avoid rain and being around at night. No members of ironsoul had turned yet, however there were a good few who had been bitten. They were feverish and weak. Most had returned from missions, scouting or otherwise. Nova snapped back to present, continuing to observe the horrible horde. People of Arex and Koryph used their power to hold the dead at bay, chucking spears or hurling chunks of metal. Children of [[Nephel|Nephel]] and Vaelix united to form mini storms. Nova dove, wings folded but not tucked, allowing her to cut through the air, rather than plummet. She landed with grace, extending her wings, atop the central lookout, along with Raven. As an eternal she was closer to divinity, some were born with wings, others had strange powers. The secondary odd thing was the immortality, Children of Athira called it [[BWR Immortality|Soft Immortality]] Nova preferred to call it [[BWR Immortality|Passive Immortality]], being unable to be killed by natural causes. “Nova.” Raven nodded, not turning around. “Raven.” Nova returned, walking forward, stopping next to Raven. The numbness inside her slowly dissipated. “The wall won't hold another night.” Nova stayed silent, Raven just sighed. “2 weeks. I’m calling for a meeting as soon as possible.” “I’ll tell the others.” Nova replied, shooting into the air once more. The numbness returned, as though it were ice in her veins. Nova spotted Charlie and Jack as she scanned the perimeter. She soared through the sky, then slowed herself, wings like a parachute. “Raven want’s a meeting. The wall can't…” A horrible sound erupted from the western portion of camp. *Oh gods.* “Fuck!” Charlie and Jack yelled in unison. Nova shot back into the air, closer to the western wall, surveying. It was a bloodbath. Slackjaw and human alike. She soared to the watchtower, grabbing Raven and setting her below. “Read my mind. Take care of the people, I will work on evacuation.” Nova summoned her godblade, a shimmering celestial sword. Most eternals were born with an equivalent, it was equally suited for monsters and humans alike. The blade formed out from the air instantly. Icy cold to the touch. Nova ran forward, into the horde, and smiled. ___ Nova fought her ass off, as Raven gathered help. *Lord. Wish I was an eternal sometimes.* She shifted her body into that of a wolf. One of the perks of being a child of Vaelix. They were able to change into a bunch of different animals, most chose one to specialize in. Raven gritted her teeth as she felt her skin tear, bones shattering and reforming. Once shifted, she wouldnt be able to change again for several hours. It took a lot of energy to do it, and moreso if she shifted twice quickly. Other children of Vaelix, the halfborns, could only shift about once a day. This made for some awkward dinners after war games. Her breathing slowed, her vision sharpening.“We need to topple the southeastern portion of the wall.” She shouted to the children of arex and nephel who gathered. Her voice was still that of a human, though rougher and muffled through the throat of the animal. The entire group ran for the wall, Arex in front, using their strength, and Nephel throwing torrents of water at the wall. Raven and other god’s kids fought off the rows of slackjaws slowly making their way toward the larger group working on the wall. “Gods this is taking too long. Screw the wall.” Gavin Hayes shouted in frustration. *He’s right.* Raven thought, much to her dismay. Thousands of slackjaws and hollow had already gotten in, more pouring in by the minute. *Holy shit.* “Defend the people, find a way to evacuate.” *Gods this is a horrible idea.* She thought, racing to find Charlie and Jack. The bloodshed and slaughter all around was horrible. Half-eaten corpses of Demigods, beheaded and mutilated corpses of slackjaws. Raven shivered, and shortly spotted Charlie. Her red hair shone in the sunlight, behind her was Jack, they stood back to back, trying to hold back a swarm of the dead. Raven jumped into combat, crushing one head, beheading another with her claws. Jack crushed that one under foot, smiling at Charlie. “We got this shit girl.” ___ Raven sighed as she surveyed the broken and dying group of demigods. “Got a Publix a half mile ahead, Raven.” Alex Cross of House [[Navitor|Navitor]] reported. Their father being the god of travel gave them the power of speed, thus they made excellent scouts. *[[Josh Chase]] was one of the best…* Raven thought, lighting a cigarette. She inhaled the smoke, letting the nicotine fill her lungs. 20 thousand slackjaws. They'd broken the western wall, decimated the camp, and killed over a thousand demigods. Only around 200 remained. They all desperately needed a camp, the neighborhood they'd raided the day before just wouldn't suffice. “Where?” “Southeast, half a mile.” Raven thought for a moment, “They turned the old Kroger into a Publix?” “Yep. Was changed over last year.” *That's new. Makes sense, i guess.* “Gotcha. And before we move, give searching a couple more hours. We’ll discuss next steps later.” “Sounds good.” Alex nodded, bolting off. Raven continued puffing her cigarette, images of the carnage replaying in her mind. Josh Chase brought down, Micah Rhodes overwhelmed, 90% of house Veluna was slaughtered early. Charlie, Nova, Ivy, and Jack survived. *Some solace, I suppose. ‘Cept we lost our camp leader.* The twins, Jack, and Nova took charge, leading everyone they could into vehicles. They'd lured most of the slackjaws to the north, allowing most to escape through the decimated wall. 2 buses got overwhelmed, tires gunked up with gore, surrounded by the dead. Jack had broken the windshield, standing on the hood, but was only able to save a handful of people. Raven flicked her cigarette butt, then sought out Jack. The group resided in a forest for the time being, having formed a small camp. They'd gone a few miles into the forest that morning, and sent scouts out around 11. It was now 1 in the afternoon. The demigods were battered, bitten, and broken. Smoke filled the forest, not from fire, but cigarettes. If not for the new processes in recent years, they'd all have cancer by now. Raven felt drops of rain on her pale skin, which was still fresh from shifting back to human. The rain was a blessing, it hadn't rained in the last 2 weeks since the fall. She spotted Ivy by a large tree, sketching with a fountain pen. Before the fall she mostly drew animals, now her notebook was filled with viscera. Raven shivered, soon finding her sister and Jack sitting shoulder to shoulder, by a small tree. She smiled at the sight, *finally he chose.* “Scout reports?” Jack asked, sitting up a little straighter. “Publix to the southeast, i sent them on for another couple hours.” Jack nodded, “if it ain't totally destroyed it sounds like a good place.” He paused, then continued, “granted, you did tell them to find useable places.” “Yep.” Raven replied, taking a seat by a tree across from the couple. The rain continued to fall, obstructed by the canopy, falling sporadically in fat drops. Charlie's breathing was slow and peaceful, the wind in the trees was also relaxing. Raven pulled out another cigarette, twirling it across her fingers. *Fucking hell.* She sighed, lighting, and taking a drag from her fresh cigarette. *Born old enough to watch the world end, and born too young to watch it revive.* Quite a depressing thought. Mist overtook the woods as time passed, wet air mixing with the smoke. Before she knew it, the scouts returned. “Verdict?” Jack asked Alex. “Publix.” He replied simply. “Camp Ironsoul. We leave for publix in half an hour.” Jack shouted, helping others pack up. The move to Publix went smoothly, and the store was still filled with goods. Rice, cans, dried meats. “I swear, Jack, people are idiots.” Charlie chuckled. “Never grabbing the essentials, only luxuries.” Jack replied. He was right. All the paper goods and chips and the like were completely gone. *Some people just lack common sense.* Raven could smell the pasta and rice the Athira and Ateran kids were making. *Gods It's good to have some fresh food.* ___ Jack smiled, watching the demigods stir around camp. Ironsoul had regained its spirits, it had just taken several days. There had been no further deaths in the camp, aside from those bitten, but they had turned rather quickly. The storage area they made held several hundred pounds of rice and canned goods, but not enough water. They lived comfortably, not in a state of emergency, but certainly concerned. “Charlie, get Raven, we need to have a raiding party.” She ran her hand through her hair, pulling her red hair into a bun. *Gods. She is beautiful.* They eventually settled on Jack, Charlie, and [[Logan Breaker]]. Logan was a fullborn, of Koryph, god of Metal, and Aevala, goddess of Life. He was a powerful man, a little older than Jack was. The trio set off around 4pm, stealing an SUV from the parking lot. They made their way around the loop, stopping to raid several vehicles. “We’ll have to go wrong way on the way back.” Logan commented. “Won't be so bad. Can't get stuck in traffic, or pulled over.” “Reminds me of that time you got a ticket.” Charlie chuckled “90 in a 35.” “Hey can't fault a man for a joyride once in his life.” Jack smiled. “I am still dumbfounded he let you off without taking your license.” “Sounds like an expensive ticket.” Logan commented. Jack could hear a siren in the distance, not insanely loud but noticeable *What the hell?* Jack looked at Charlie in the mirror, instantly calming his nerves. *Gods. Thank you, Vaelix and [[Nythrana|Nythrana]]. Your daughter is like a goddess.* In some sense of the word, she was, just not Divine. Today she wore a long sleeved lacy flowered shirt, topped with a tan vest. The twins were very nearly identical, except Raven wore darker clothes and dyed her hair black as night. She wore heavier eye shadow, and generally let her hair be in her face. The trio had been unsuccessful thus far, nor had they come across any mortals. *So odd, even in the end of the world, you'd expect to find some. Need to find some to talk to us. We have been far too isolated.* “Pull over.” Logan said, pointing ahead. A white van was flying their direction. Jack did as told, and could feel power emanating from Logan, which he later learned was him cutting the vehicles power, snapping wires. Then he felt a massive wave from Charlie, and the vehicle slowed as it passed the trio, then came to an abrupt halt. *Holy shit.* Charlie was incredibly powerful, as was Raven. Jack didnt know the extent of their power, they rarely used it, but he could feel it. Charlie walked to the door, and Jack felt another serious blast of power. Charlie opened the door, climbing in. “Out cold.” Jack and Logan walked to the rear of the box truck, lifting the roll up door. *Speakers,* there were tons, large and small. The siren still sounded in the background, distant. “Siren.” Logan said from deeper in the truck. He tossed it over the speakers, Jack catching it. “Smart bastards.” Jack said, “looks like they had a generator, based off the tracks here.” “Luring a herd I guess, didnt notice it north of Athens.” The groul hadnt returned with much water, much to their dismay. The next day, back at camp, the captives awoke. Charlie retrieved her sister and Jack, bringing them to meet together. “Who the hell are you?” The male demanded. “i'm Jack. This is Charlie, Raven, Nova, and Logan.” Jack smiled, “Welcome to Ironsoul.” [[07i Interlude]]