Chapter 238: The Fading of Eden
Adonis Kingsbane was the most powerful being in the entire universe. He was a universal entity with a power so vast that it was completely immeasurable. If he wanted to, he could create a sparkling new universe with a simple snap of his fingers. If he felt angry, he could destroy a billion galaxies just by frowning.
He had the ultimate power of absolute Chaos. But Adonis did not want to do any of those things. He was completely done with destroying things. He had lived past lives full of sadness and destruction. Now, he just wanted to be a good husband and a very loving father.
To get away from the noisy mortals, the greedy kings, and the annoying gods, Adonis built a perfect sanctuary. He placed it in the absolute deepest, darkest corner of the universe. Nobody could ever find it. It was a beautiful, secret planet surrounded by a bright colorful nebula.
On this planet, he built a massive mansion surrounded by endless gardens and crystal clear rivers. He did not interfere in mortal lives at all. He just lived a simple, happy life with his large and amazing family.
He had 10 beautiful wives, and he loved them all equally with his entire heart.
His first wife was the Star Empress Mariana. She was a gorgeous woman with hair that literally sparkled like the night sky. She ruled the cosmos, but she preferred to spend her time baking sweet buns in their kitchen.
His second wife was the Golden Knight Claudia. She was the strongest protector in the mortal realms. She wore shining golden armor and had a heart full of absolute justice and bravery.
His third wife was the Dragon Empress Sapphira. She was a fierce and incredibly beautiful woman with small red horns on her head. She could turn into a massive dragon, but usually, she just liked to sunbathe on the green grass.
His fourth wife was the Goddess Of Darkness Millia. She was the absolute ruler of the shadows. She had pale skin and dark hair, and she was very quiet and mysterious, but she loved Adonis deeply.
His fifth wife was the Vampire Primogenitor Valentina. She was an ancient, elegant vampire who drank sweet red wine instead of blood. She wore beautiful gothic dresses and carried a cute lace umbrella to block the sun.
His sixth wife was the Ice Empress Isabella. She was the cool and calm ruler of frost. She had long ice blue hair and a very gentle smile that could melt any frozen heart.
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Adonis was also blessed with six wonderful children. He had three strong sons and three sweet daughters.
His oldest son was Ignis. Ignis had bright red hair and loved to practice fire magic. His second son was Minos. Minos was very tall and strong, and he loved to build big castles out of earth and rocks. His youngest son was Devon. Devon was very smart and liked to read books about water magic and deep sea creatures.
His oldest daughter was Myria. Myria was a very kind girl who healed injured birds with her warm light magic. His second daughter was Aria. Aria was very fast and playful, always using wind magic to fly around the garden. His youngest daughter was Sylph. Sylph was the cutest little girl who loved talking to the flowers and the trees.
It was a very beautiful and sunny afternoon in their secret sanctuary. The sky was a perfect, bright blue. The grass was a deep, healthy green. Adonis was sitting on a comfortable wooden chair on the patio. He was drinking a warm cup of herbal tea. He watched his family having a wonderful picnic on the lawn.
"Catch the ball, Minos!" Ignis shouted loudly. He threw a glowing red ball of harmless fire across the grass.
Minos laughed and caught the ball with a wall of soft dirt.
"Haha,You throw too softly, big brother!"
Adonis smiled a very big smile. His heart felt completely full. He looked over at a large picnic blanket. Star Empress Mariana was cutting a large strawberry cake into slices. Golden Knight Claudia was polishing her shiny sword. Dragon Empress Sapphira was taking a nap with her head resting on Goddess Of Darkness Millia’s lap. Vampire Primogenitor Valentina was holding her umbrella over Ice Empress Isabella so she would not get too warm.
Everything was completely perfect. Adonis truly believed he had the best life ever.
But then, something very strange and terrible happened.
It did not happen with a loud explosion. It did not happen with a scary monster attacking them. It happened completely silently.
Adonis blinked his eyes. He noticed that the bright blue sky suddenly looked a little bit dull. The deep green grass suddenly looked a little bit grey. The vibrant red color of the strawberry cake started to fade away. It was like someone was slowly turning down the color dial on the entire world.
"Aria, Can you pass me the watering can?" Myria asked softly.
She was sitting near the flowerbed.
Aria stopped flying in the air. She landed on the grey grass. She looked down at the metal watering can. She tilted her head in extreme confusion. She picked up the watering can and stared at it like it was an alien object.
"Sister, What is a watering can?"
Myria frowned. "It is the thing we use to give water to the flowers, Aria. You know this."
Clang!
Aria suddenly dropped the watering can. It hit the ground with a dull clunk.
"I do not remember. I do not remember what water is. I do not remember what flowers are."
Adonis stood up from his chair. His heart started to beat very fast. He dropped his cup of herbal tea. The cup shattered on the stone patio, but it did not make any sound. The sound was just gone.
"Father!" Ignis called out from the other side of the yard.
The young boy was looking at his own hands in absolute terror.
"Father, my fire! My fire is gone. I cannot remember how to feel warm."
Minos and Devon stopped playing. They both sat down on the ground. They had blank, empty expressions on their faces. They were forgetting how to play. They were forgetting how to be happy.
"What is happening to the children?" Knight Claudia asked quickly. She stood up to grab her polished sword. But when her hand touched the handle, she stopped moving. Her shoulders slumped down. The brave, heroic light completely vanished from her eyes.
"Why do I have a sword? I do not want to fight. I do not want to protect anything. It is all completely pointless."
Adonis ran off the patio and stepped onto the grass. The grass was totally grey now.
"Claudia!" Adonis yelled in panic. "Snap out of it! You are the bravest knight in the world!"
Empress Mariana looked up at the sky. The colorful nebula was completely gone. The sky was just a blank, white sheet of nothingness.
Mariana dropped her knife into the cake. "The stars are gone, Adonis. I cannot hear the stars singing anymore. My heart feels so empty. I do not feel love. I do not feel anything at all."
Valentina dropped her cute lace umbrella. She stared at the grey grass.
"Husband, I am so cold. Not a physical cold. It is a coldness in my soul. I feel like I am disappearing."
Ice Empress Isabella did not say anything. She just closed her eyes and curled into a tight ball on the picnic blanket.
She looked like a broken doll.
Dragon Empress Sapphira woke up from her nap. She tried to roar, but nothing came out of her mouth. Her fierce dragon pride was completely erased from her mind. Goddess Of Darkness Millia looked at her own hands. The mysterious shadows that always danced around her fingers were dead and gone.
"My darkness is whispering to me, Adonis. It is telling me that we are not supposed to exist. It is telling me that we are a mistake."
Adonis felt a pure, terrifying horror grip his chest. He realized this was not a normal attack. Nobody was shooting magic spells at his family.
Something was attacking the very concept of their existence. Something was rewriting the rules of the universe to erase their happiness, their memories, and their love.
He turned around and ran frantically back into the massive mansion. He ran down the long, grey hallways until he reached his private armory deep underground.
He opened the heavy iron door and looked inside.
Resting on a beautiful stone pedestal in the center of the room was his ultimate weapon.
It was the Chaotic Harem Sword.
The sword was acting completely crazy. The broad obsidian blade was vibrating so fast it was blurring. The glowing violet veins inside the crystal were flashing violently.
The sword was letting out a frantic, high pitched humming noise. It sounded like an animal screaming in absolute agony.
Adonis walked up to the pedestal. He reached out and grabbed the hilt of the sword.
The moment his hand touched the weapon, a flood of ancient, terrible memories rushed into his brain. He remembered his life as Liam, the lonely author on Earth.
But deeper than that, he remembered his life as Khaos. He remembered being the Archmage of Chaos. He remembered destroying the Golden Capital of Solaris. He remembered murdering the Primordial Celestials and turning their ancient bodies into grey ash.
The vibration of the sword traveled up his arm and into his chest.
It was a warning.
Adonis suddenly understood everything. When he destroyed the old universe and created this new one, he did not completely erase the old gods. The murdered Primordial Celestials had left tiny pieces of themselves hidden in the deepest darkness. Over billions of years, those tiny pieces had joined together.
They were not coming back to fight him with swords or magic. They were coming back as a cosmic curse. They were infecting his new universe. They were targeting the things he loved the most. They were taking away the color, the memories, and the emotions of his beautiful wives and sweet children. They wanted him to feel the exact same absolute emptiness that he had forced upon them so long ago.
Adonis gripped the Chaotic Harem Sword tightly. The violet veins tried to turn gold, but the grey sickness in the air was fighting back.
He was a universal power. He could create and destroy at his whim. But he could not just blow up this curse, because the curse was woven into the minds of his family. If he used his destructive power, he would kill his own wives and children.
"You think you can take them away from me?" Adonis whispered to the empty, grey armory.
His voice was shaking with anger and fear.
"Buy I stopped being the Villain of the Universe so they could be happy. I just wanted a simple life."
The Chaotic Harem Sword hummed loudly in his hands. It was telling him that a simple life was no longer an option.
Adonis Kingsbane realized the terrifying truth. His dark past had finally caught up to him. The Whispering Void was here. The perfect sanctuary was dying. He had to leave his home and face the ghosts of his ancient sins, or his family would become completely hollow shells forever.
The battle for the universe was starting all over again.