Arc Eight. Side Story. In The Stars. Gods And Monsters

She was on her twentieth life, and they had all been glorious. It was a shame that at first the lesser creatures kept exploding, but once she found a few hardier species she adapted into one of them with no issues.

She had no idea what they were called, as once her essence slipped in it obliterated whatever memories and life the creature had before her. She lived among them, taking in everything she could before the flesh prison she inhabited failed and she moved on. Maybe it was time to find a species she could not only possess properly but would actually survive the process.

Not that sometimes it mattered. Her younger siblings took great pride in their work, and on several occasions, she had just incarnated and then bam, one of them could decide the experiment was a failure and call on the Purple one, she couldn't remember their names and never cared to, but he seemed to be their executioner. They all worked diligently, even as the Yellow one followed them around in cloned form as made note of each of their works.

Some built, some created new spheres of life, and she would always find the most interesting ones and play until sis came along, or one of the young ones. Death was a part of life, and as she took in more and more she realised that there was no cruelty in their actions, they fought and argued, discussed what should be done with the lower realms and if an experiment proved too dangerous, or interesting enough to warrant further study the simply called the Blue one who sealed off the entire space and then the Red one pinched it off like a bubble, creating a minuscule corridor only he could open.

It was fascinating for her. Life bloomed in all shapes and forms. Animals, birds, insects, slime, rocks, machines, any conceivable form, liquid metals lived and created baby alloys, living planets took breaths every hundred thousand years and each one was amazing, and eventually, each one died. Her sister made sure there was always an end, but it was her brother she worried about.

Death was everywhere, creatures ate smaller creatures to live, planets were battered by rocks that whizzed through the cosmos and life ended every nanosecond in every part of the universe, but it was always reborn. A planet smashed to pieces might deposit material on another, sparking a flurry of activity and new life forms that sprang from the mix, but nothing ever truly ended.

Null was absent in the universe, nothing truly stopped ending, only moving from one form to another, and if she was being honest with herself, she was worried. They were given form for a Purpose, they were tasked with a Purpose, and for one of them to ignore that was unthinkable.

She couldn't even enter the space he had taken for himself, the inky black void that existed in a sphere around the ever-expanding universe. Space and Time moved everywhere except there, in fact, it was so close to the cosmic boundary she wondered if any of their Purpose would work, and that Null was even still alive. She had even once tried to pierce his veil and found the flesh prison she was inhabiting simply stopped, its form turning to ash before vanishing completely. She hadn’t tried to repeat her experiment, feeling the pull upon her own essence.

She had to laugh to herself, none of them was truly alive. She could feel the cosmic energy that made them up and it was only a glimmer of thought. There was only their Purpose, and nothing more. As the incarnation of Life, she knew that better than any of them. Fleeting energy that one day would fade and be extinguished, but it would be once their Purpose had been completed, and Null’s barrier was too early, too dangerous, even to her.

Which was why when the first taste of death blasted through her she shuddered and fell to her knees, even in the flesh prison she had taken over. A massive jolt of energy had swept through her, shaking her Purpose to its core. A new rebirth would take place, but with the scale of the death it would take millions of years before the being that was dead would walk the stars again. The flesh prison leaked and shuddered its own final breath. As she floated free she had to find what had happened, death on such a scale would tip the delicate balance each of them was created to maintain.

Why? Asked Space as the blackness tore through his chest, spilling the thick blue fluid that ran through his body on the ground.

They had received a startling and unexplainable message, a single planet, checked and passed on as uninhabitable, had started to produce life. A single organism, a thick slime creature with no apparent purpose had appeared, and the smaller creatures they used as scouts and gatherers had failed to return. 

As more were sent, reports started to come back. The creatures would take them over, coat them in a strange skin and attack their colleagues.

As the casualty list grew it was eventually the care of the Celestials themselves to identify and render judgement on this new unexplained creature, but when they got to the planet and conformed to its physical laws, even they were attacked.

Unable to explain why the simple creatures could not only harm them but seemed able to absorb and control whatever energy they threw at them, the first of their kind had fallen.

As the creature coated Mind, his arm stretched into a long spike and it pierced through the chest of his brother, as it spread and obliterated his from the insides all he could do was ask,

Why?

But Mind could either not answer or refused to. As Space lay dying, his blood pooled on the ground and the creature known as Mind bent forwards and began to eat, creating a thick razor filled sharp-toothed maw to crunch through the thick armoured plates to find the thick energy-rich flesh within.

As Life had felt the Celestial die, so had Death. She flew into a panic. To destroy one of the Celestials was to change the cosmic balance, and to eradicate one was to lessen the universe. If the feelings she was getting were right then Null had figured out a way to destroy the Infinity Stones, and reabsorb them back into himself, and once he did that, he could end the Gems as well.

That idiot. If he manages, he’ll destroy the universe.

Death knew their power was weakened as their Purpose flowed from them and into the universe around them, death was her domain but death only existed as long as the Death Infinity Gem did, if the Oblivion Gem reabsorbed the lesser stones their purpose in the universe would cease to exist, and space, time, mind, soul, power and reality would cease to exist along with them.

She could blame Null for this problem, but it was his nature. She sought out death, Life sought out the next life, and Null sought to end all things, he was acting within his Purpose, he was just too impatient and the universe had only begun.

Landing on the planet she spied the slick black creature devouring its fallen comrade

A celestial? And as her senses reached out she knew it was Mind feasting on the body of Space.

Null? She asked and the creature hissed at her. She could feel his power though, whatever the black coating was it was Null’s form in this world.

He had created a form for himself to corrupt and devour the energy from the stones, taking them into himself and if she didn't stop him, then not just the six stones were in danger but herself and Life. If he managed to destroy each of them who knew what other havoc he could reap on the multiverse.

Null, please stop, and as the creature opened its maw and the leg of Space was crushed and eaten she knew she had no choice, stop or I will stop you.

The creature hissed at her and tendrils escaped from its form, inky black against the night sky,

Feed, only hunger of the void, was all it said as they launched themselves at her.

Ignoring his meal the Null creature sprang at her and as he batted away several of its inky tendrils it pulled itself closer and she screamed in agony as it bit down on her shoulder. Struggling under his ravenous assault she coughed as blood filled her throat and her limbs became weak and heavy.

As the Null creature tore chunks away from her shoulder, it screeched in pain as a bright flare of light tore through it, gathering over the wound and sealing it shut,

We were born in the fires of creation Null, I am the remains of that fire, and its power is mine to command.

Life, covered in a bright aura of burning starlight floated down to the planet's surface, her hair a bright crimson glowing fire and her body wreathed in flowing energy.

Your Purpose is to wait, and to be the final ending of this universe, why so impatient brother, why so desperate. There is no time for us, the purpose of time is only for lesser creatures, not for the three.

Null hissed, they create and I feel its pain, they take from my void and it howls as it is filled, I only feel hunger, I only feel the need to consume and return to the peace of nothingness, existence is pain, my life is pain

Then stay in your realm, spread out and become nothing, and wait, you do not need to do this, there is no conflict here.

NO! Null hissed and launching himself at Life she batted him away with a fire coated hand,

You cannot combat the fires of creation Null, even Power Gem is strong enough to- but she paused and tilted her head, and as she screamed as she grasped at her head,

But we can, we can take from the yellow one and take its power, as we took from grey and now death and mind are ours. As Minds eyes pulsed yellow, Life held her head and writhed in pain,

We let you feel your antithesis, you feel death, you feel their deaths, all their suffering before the night claims them.

As the fires dimmed Null stalked over to her, and now we feast upon you and snuff out the fires of creation.

Life screamed again, as his tendrils latched on and his maw carved a chunk of her flesh. As she struggled to release herself from the torment he was causing her the pain caused her will to break further. She could not suffer not only the anguish of the dead but the pain of the living. Her form was ill-suited to combat, but as his jaws clamped on her throat and tore at it, his body was ripped from her and thrown across the rocky landscape.

Sister, I am so sorry, and as Death touched her paling flesh Life nodded and as her form faded and its essence poured into the rocks Death stood and screamed into the night

You cannot hurt me, sister, I am stronger than you, and with the power I now possess, it is enough to destroy this wretched place.

Death huffed and her lip snarled at the creature, I know, but while you are stronger than me, are you stronger than them?

Null looked up, and saw the remaining Celestials hovering above the skyline,

You are not of us, yet you kill one of us. You dare creature! And as Power raised his staff, a purple gem glowed and a blast of pure cosmic energy slammed into Null sending him flying.

As Power turned he stared at Death, you, you are not like us, and not of us, what are you? But Death shook her head,

We all have our Purpose Seeker, do not forget yours, and as she waved an arm and soon the entrance to her own realm opened and slipped into Hel, the world of the dead, she sealed herself away, waiting until her sister returned to her.

Soul? And he shook his head

It is not one of mine, I know only what Mind can tell us and- but he was cut off as the breath left his body. Looking down he saw several black tendrils sprouting from the ground, impaling him through the groin,

Reaching out a hand he could only whisper, Brother, before they tore into his flesh and he exploded into chunks that splattered across the landscape

All of you, all meat for my hunger, all will feel the jaws of the devourer, all will find their end.

The three remaining Celestials surveyed the rocky and desolate planet. It had been created to test the survivability of certain races, and so far, none had succeeded. They had found its surface unsuitable and had constructed newer spheres to hold their creations, leaving this one forgotten.

They had arrived and seen the black creature coating Mind kill and consume the fire-haired woman, and her companion escaped through a spatial tear, and that made no sense. So far all cosmic lifeforms had been eliminated, to keep the stability of the universe whole. It was only after defeating the planet eater and scattering his remains to seed new life that they had all felt the death of Space and rushed here.

To see Mind covered in the black ooze, they knew something had survived, but it was not enough to deal with them all, even if Space, Soul, and Mind were already gone. They knew their bodies were transient, but their power was immortal.

Power levelled his staff once more but Mind dodged the purple beam as it disintegrated the landscape in a straight path, Mind launched himself and tendrils reached out for Reality, who warped space around himself and the air became hard and the tendrils slapped harmlessly against it, moving away

It is hostile brother, even the planet eater sought to reason with us before its demise

It is of no matter, once we harvest it, we can test its power, and judge it worthy of its life

But as he raised a hand Time shook his head, no brother, it, it's not life, it’s not anything, and a tendril reached and severed his hand at the wrist, pulling it into its grasp. As the maw extended it swallowed all of Soul’s hand and with a sickening crunch swallowed the limb whole.

Brother! Power shouted and levelling his staff again sent out a stream of energy that sent Mind flying.

Stop, the creature is taking your power. You cannot hurt it that way, and Power blinked at what his brother had said.

As Reality shone a red light over the corpse of Soul he shook his head, can you? and Time shook his head

Whatever the creature is, it is immune to our powers, and as he motioned over at Mind, who was shaking the crumbled rock from his body, and it appears to be gaining power, how do we kill it before it destroys everything?

Can you contain it? Power asked and reality and time both shone a light over at Mind, who shuddered and the black ooze seemed to retract slightly,

It is not of this universe brother, I cannot change its true nature, 

and Time nodded, and it is eternal, I cannot stop its time as it exists outside our influence.

As Power lifted his staff and shit more energy at Mind he was blown backwards once more, but we are hurting it, he said as Mind lifted his maw and hissed as the trio, his skin bubbling under the blast from Power.

It must be a creature from the beginning, from before we were born, and as Mind jumped Power allowed the energy to gather around his staff and he swatted Mind from the air, slamming him into the ground, together brothers,

As Reality, Time and Power all blasted their coloured bolts at Mind, his own light shone bright yellow and then tendrils of creeping blackness extended out from him. Copying the same move Reality hardened the air around himself, slamming it into the tendrils, severing them from Mind.

Yes, Brother, we did it, we can hurt the creature, but as Time moved to blast Mind once more the black creature coating him wrapped itself around his neck and spinning took his head, launching itself at Time. 

As Mind’s form crumbled and faded, Time raised a hand, trying to stop the creature's advance but nothing worked, the creature was fixed, moving it forwards, backwards or stopping it had no effect, and Time was swallowed by the ravenous black ooze.

Yes, yes, now we exist in all spaces and all times, we shall move and consume each moment.

No, and Power motioned to Reality, bring her back, she exists within our domain, and she must help us. As Reality searched for signs of the strange women, Power levelled his staff once more and blasted more energy at Time, 

The pair fought. As Time moved faster than light Power would already be prepared for him, sensing and manipulating the flow of energy around him. Even Time was unable to fight properly as Power simply overwhelmed him,

I found her brother, and Reality split open a hole, and pulled the wounded Death from her domain,

No no, he will consume us all, and Reality simply shrugged

We must stop him, Power

As Power raised his staff he blasted Time away and marched back to Death, There is no other choice, and laying a hand on them both he pushed all his purpose onto them

No, no you can’t, but Reality nodded.

As the power of the cosmos flowed from him, Reality allowed it to alter the very fabric of the universe around them, nothing could exist within this domain of death, as he altered the three of them he combined and multiplied their purpose. A slice of death, powered by the power of the universe extended out in a sphere and stopped time.

Their actions had brought about a new cosmic power, something so terrible it was the singularly most destructive force in the universe. A tear in reality, where nothing but power and death existed, ending anything that fell into its crushing depths.

Yes yes he screamed this is my desire, bring forth the true death of the universe but the trio shook their head and spoke as one

No, only we four shall perish, outside the sphere, we protect and allow life to continue and as Time tried to use his power to escape it was used against him,

There is no time here, no life, no escape, this is true death, and we give it to you.

As the sphere collapsed into the first black hole, the four were stripped of their powers, Time and the others screamed as the sphere consumed their forms and then exploded, crushing the planet beneath them into a million pieces. As the sphere of blackness contracted further and further it collapsed, forming a supermassive black hole, spinning and casting off the remains of the dead planet beneath its massive gravity.

Unseen by the four, Mind’s head, severed and lifeless, flew into the nothingness, containing a single speck of black, The creature seeking the death of the universe refusing to succumb to death itself was Null's last cruel joke on the universe.

As the memorial, the giant swirling black nothingness spun, the rocks and debris around it crumbled and were scattered by its sheer mass. 

Soaked in the blood of the Celestials, the fragments held strange powers and when they formed new planets, the life that evolved upon them grew wild and unchecked, with strange abilities and a lust for battle.

And the six stones tumbled through the welcoming darkness, to find and form new destinies amongst the stars.

Malisson

I hope you are all having a wonderful time, regardless of how you celebrate this time of year.

Thank you for reading, commenting, and likes.

- Mal