Chapter 224 - Dragon Slayer (2)

Death isn't kind. It never was and never will be. Yet death can be peaceful. However, there wasn't a sliver of peace in a world born from chaos. For chaos consumes everything, and Tiamut was the harbinger of chaos. 

Those who dared to attack the dragon now knew, they were out of their wits to do so. What was supposed to be a quick and decisive battle had turned into an all-out war. They were afraid, but unlike the last time, they didn't give up. Well most of them didn't. They still had their weapons in hand but they couldn't move. It was as if their feet had grown attached to the ground, refusing to move. But in reality, it was all due to the murderous intent Tiamut was letting out.

In the end, most of them thought about abandoning the city along with the mission and escape once the evacuations were done with. They were right in their place. It was better to retreat and regroup with the rest of the forces than to fight only to get a meaningless death. The only problem was... There was no escape. Tiamut wouldn't let her prey get away after they dared to attack her.

Arnold's attack had infuriated her to no limits. And he solely had her attention now. While the monster was focusing on him, a few of the warriors finally snapped out of their fears and made a break for it. They had willingly abandoned their comrades and rushed out to save their lives. While those who stayed were doomed to be merciless slaughtered. Arnold's summons too were witnessing all of this firsthand. 

Since they were animated beings, usually they were immune to their foe's psychological attacks. But to their horror, even they were being affected by Tiamut's aura. The only ones who still had a grip over themselves were Arnold and Johnny, but even they were speechless. Then it happened... 

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WARNING⚠

The Goddess of Dragons, Tiamut, is about to use a lethal ability [Halahala]

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(Author's Note: According to Hindu mythology, Halahala, was the most potent and dangerous poison to ever exist and was created during the dire attempt for the gods and demons to obtain, 'amrit', the nectar of immortality. But before the nectar could be obtained, a poison was secreted out by a serpent. All of the gods and demons were dying and that's when Shiva came to their rescue. I won't spoil it anymore because there's a little surprise towards the end of the chapter.) 

The moment the text appeared in front of his eyes, a thick fog started acc.u.mulating around them. But it was no ordinary fog. It was a poison that one of Tiamut's heads were leaking out. 

"EVERYONE COVER YOUR NOS-" Arnold yelled but was interrupted by none other than Tiamut. 

"Covering your orifices wouldn't do you much good," She said while laughing hysterically, "The poison I secrete is somewhat special, mortal. I'll let you in on a secret since you're all going to die either way. You needn't breathe the poison in, the poison would do it by itself. It'll seep through your skin and kill you from the inside. Furthermore, the poison would keep spreading throughout this realm of mortals even if you were to sever the head until... Well, I don't think I should inform you about the sole weakness of my ability, now can I?"

Arnold opened his mouth to give Tiamut a piece of his mind, but he was interrupted by one of the warrior's frantic gasps. The man had been nearest to Tiamut and hence was the first one to get affected by the deadly poison. Arnold thoughtlessly rushed towards the man, while Tiamut let out a maniacal laugh. She was sure she was going to destroy them all. Especially, the paladin. 

By the time Arnold reached the warrior, he had already collapsed on the ground, trying hard to breathe. But no matter how hard he tried to breathe, the air just wouldn't go in. He felt like his lungs had been tied in a knot. 

Between the gasps, the man begged Arnold to save him. The proud warrior wept like a child, saying he didn't want to leave his family alone. Arnold just stayed silent. He didn't know what to do. He was... Defeated. Slowly the man's conscious faded away. Even in death, his eyes begged Arnold to save his soul, and Arnold just stayed there. The man's dead body in his hands. He was so consumed by guilt, he didn't even notice something Tiamut and the others did. 

"Interesting... It seems your armour is protecting you from my poison. Even so, your armour would fade away sooner or later and once it does it'll be over for you." Tiamut blurted out, "But the same couldn't be said about your allies. They are not special, like you. They are simple mortals and they would die like the one in your arms. That's the price you'll pay for inciting my fury! Hahaha..."

Arnold didn't reply. He gently closed the warrior's eyes and carried him back to where Alice and the others were. He laid him on the ground and turned around. 

"Master..." Talos wanted to comfort his master but Arnold told him to shut it. He wasn't in the mood to talk. 

He then looked around. Most of the humans were still to react from the poison. Since his summons were already dead or didn't have life in them, Tiamut's ability did not affect them. But the poison was slowly but surely spreading throughout the city, and if it did then no one would be safe. No one. He had to contain the poison before it was too late. 

Thankfully, he already had his answer. His domain. 

"Johnny, and everyone else. Leave. I'll stop this monster by myself." He said. 

Johnny protested, "You want to fight that thing alone? Are you out of your fcking mind?"

But Arnold was having none of it. He had already made up his mind. Reluctantly Johnny and everyone backed off, while Arnold's summons surrounded him. The minute Johnny and the others were out of his reach, he summoned his domain into the real world, just like he had done while fighting with Jake. Pitch black darkness surrounded Tiamut, his summons and himself while the others were locked out of the space.

Doing this took a toll on him but it was necessary. This way the poisonous gas would stay locked up in his domain till he figured out a way to deal with it or till he died. Both of these scenarios had an equal possibility of occurrence. For now, he had dealt with the problem at hand. But now he needed to figure something else out... 

He had literally locked himself up with the deadliest monster to have ever stepped foot on the planet. A bold move but not a wise one. Even with his summons, he wouldn't be able to kill Tiamut. 

'Hell... Why do I have to clean up after the mess of a God? Fck my life.'

Unbeknownst to him, the God he had cursed was intently watching over him as the events unfold. 

***

"Why are you smiling, my love?" Lady Parvati, Shiva's eternal love asked him, "Your precious mortal could potentially die and yet you're smiling?"

Shiva didn't immediately reply, keeping his eyes on the one who was destined to be his Vassal. Finally, he tore his eyes from Arnold and looked at his love. 

"Tell me Parvati, doesn't this scene seem familiar?" 

Lady Parvati finally realised what Shiva was talking about, and so did Nandi, who had been watching the entire thing while staying at his Lord's side. She remembered what was Shiva referring to.

***

It happened very long ago. Long before the existence of the lesser gods. It was the time when the higher gods decided to hold a test to select candidates to fill up the place of lesser gods in the coming millenials. But before that, the young candidates had to prove themselves. For the task, the candidates had to churn out the hidden 'Amrit', the nectar of immortality, from the cosmic ocean. Upon consuming the nectar, they would become gods.

But all was not well. 

Under the guise of gods, few demons snuck in and corrupted the holy Land. They too wanted immortality and hence devised the plan to rain on their parade. But because of their presence, the universe let out a deadly poison to cleanse itself. But the poison killed everyone demon or not, around itself and proceeded to destroy the universe itself. The God of creation, Brahma, saw this and cried for someone to help. Many higher gods rushed to his aid but they all ended up dying from the poison. 

"Everything... All of my creations are getting destroyed... Someone. Please, help me! Save the universe!" Brahma wailed and wailed but no one responded to his call. They all were afraid of their lives... Until one man did. 

"I will cleanse the universe. I will bear the burden of all of its sin." 

Everyone turned to see who was foolish enough to do something like that. 

It was Shiva. 

Both Parvati and Nandi had tried to stop him from doing so. But Shiva didn't listen. Whenever the universe was threatened, it was his duty to help maintain the equilibrium. Parvati had asked him why? And Shiva's reply resounded throughout the universe. 

"Being with you made me realise that my anger isn't something the universe needs. But it's my compassion. My compassion for the universe is forcing me to do this. This is my 'Dharma', my self law."

Stating this, Shiva entered the ocean and opened his mouth. He sucked in all of the poison. The dark poison slowly faded away and as it did, everything that had lost their lives to it came back to life.

Even consuming a small amount of this poison could kill any divine being. But Shiva didn't even flinch after consuming the entirety of it. It was now clear, even to the 'Higher Gods' that Shiva, was no mere God. From that day onwards, he was worshipped as a Supreme Being and while he was not always interacting with the universe, he was there to protect it when it really mattered.

Still, consuming the poison had its effects on him. Shiva's fair skin turned blue and more than that, his throat, where the poison had been stored turned into a deeper shade of blue. For his brave efforts, Brahma gave Shiva a new name, 'Neelkanth'.

(Author's note: As usual, this is my own interpretation of the mythological texts. If you want to know what happened as it's written in Hindu holy texts, you can search and read about, 'Samudra Manthan'. Which translates into 'Churning of the ocean'. And before I forget it, 'Neelkanth' means 'Blue Throat'.) 

***

"So is this another test?" Parvati asked. 

Shiva silently shook his head, "It isn't. This wasn't a trial I planned, but a hand of destiny."

"Then shouldn't you stop it?"

Shiva once again shook his head. If he kept helping him, then Arnold would never be able to achieve what he was destined to have. He had helped him once during Arnold's fight with Vritra, by letting him use his weapon. But this time, he had to forge a path on his own. A path worthy of a God.