FALSE GODS

06 Desperate Prayer

As the lava golem approached Niobe, she went mute and motionless, pincered by her emotions. Mortal fear and crippling loss mingled into a toxic mixture, debilitating the woman.

"It is my fault that Felix is dead," she wailed. "I brought him to the middle of nowhere. He followed me blindly because of love and trust, but I could not protect him."

Niobe raised her trembling chin to the monstrous hulk plodding towards her like the god of death. "Am I going to die as well?"

Humans facing death and destruction often turn to gods, kneeling in prayer to have their grace and protection. What does a god faced with mortality do? Did the Ascendancy lie to her about immortality?

"What should I do, Felix?" she cried at his headless corpse. "Shall I accept my end readily, or must I resist till the last moment like a cornered animal? Will I disgrace the gods either way?"

"I love you," Felix's ethereal voice sounded in her head. The young god really loved her and gave up his life without a second thought. Niobe had to honor his sacrifice by surviving. "But how?"

The injured goddess gazed bitterly at the stubs that had once been her hands. She was crippled and helpless. Niobe let out a cry of anguish and joined her broken stumps as if praying.

"Only a Titan can rescue me," she told herself in a trance as her eyes glossed over. "I will pray for protection from the house I belong to."

Niobe filled her lungs with air and screamed at the top of her voice, louder than ever. "O Queen amongst goddesses! O Guardian of fire and lightning!"

"Anaktoria Ifianasa Elektra! Heed my prayer!"

The lava golem felt no danger from Niobe's desperate wails. He approached her and knelt before her like a beast about to have its meal. Its mouth opened again, revealing the hellish vortex within, bubbling with ghastly miasma.

Niobe's eyes were directed towards the sky. "I need your protection, O Great Titanide, Elektra!"

Her cry for help radiated from her like a tidal wave, resounding throughout the forest and reaching ears far and wide.

A few seconds later, a static pillar of light shot into the sky from the citadel on Mt. Radomir. Citizens of the plebe cities gasped in wonder as it streaked across the night like a blazing comet.

On her end, Niobe, the amputee goddess, prepared to have her life taken. She lowered her face to the executioner of her lover—the lava golem. Up close, she could tell it was a mindless creature animated with dark words. It had no emotions; therefore, begging for her life would be pointless.

"What are you?" she demanded frantically. "Who is your master?"

The monster, with its trap opened wide, scooped out a fistful of the red ooze from inside itself. It looked like magma indeed and burned the grass wherever it dripped. The lava golem meant to blather Niobe's little head with the frothing poison.

"I hereby serve you the nectar of a true god," it explained fluently. "False gods," it added, pointing an accusatory finger at her. "Must die…"

Niobe had already lost the will to resist her attacker. Actually, now, she agreed with the lava golem. Wasn't she a false goddess? The disgusting lie perpetrated by the Ascendancy Government that gods were immortal had been debunked and defiled.

Niobe closed her eyes, realizing she was moments away from death. It was going to be very painful, though. "I am joining you on the other side soon, Felix," she said her final words bitterly.

The monster raised its hand to butcher her face, but suddenly stopped short. It was as if he had received an emergency order.

The lava golem looked up to the skies as if expecting it to rain. Then, suddenly, it jumped to its feet and ran back twenty paces.

Niobe opened her eyes, perplexed by her assailant's behavior. Wasn't the monster going to kill her? Did it have mercy? Why was it retreating all of a sudden?

Crackle! Boom! The sky rumbled tumultuously even though there were no clouds in sight. The goddess immediately realized what was happening.

"Oh," she murmured, as a tear escaped her eye. "You heard my prayer, Your Providence. You have come to rescue me, O mighty Titanide Elektra!"

Boom! A massive thunder crack sounded, and from above, a sheer bolt of lightning zig-zagged into the meadow. Rumble! The ground rippled and cracked where it landed. Temperatures rose drastically, and a halo flooded the area.

As the dust settled, a figure rose from its crouch. Goddess Elektra emerged from the rubble and flash like an ancient entity. She stood at her full height, surveying the area.

Over seven feet tall, Elektra was one of the four titans reigning over the land of Theikos. Niobe was a goddess-prior in House Elektra.

"Who is making this commotion in my land?" Elektra boomed.