: Choice (Book 1 : The Nairda Series)

Chapter 12 : First mission

They were standing outside Ragnar's house when a ship descended from the sky. A tractor beam pulled them into ship and Adrian couldn't help but feel giddy, thanks to Kate he would be heading out for his first mission. Once in the ship, Ragnar took the time to explain the afterlife a little better. "

Demons are a xenophobic racist faction of gods who want to take over planets and wipe out all life aside from themselves. Millennia ago, they came into conflict with the other gods - and were able to force the each other to a draw.

“Demons and the Gods drew up a treaty, with terms prohibiting the demons from wiping out all life and the gods weren't allowed to influence mortals directly. As a result, the demons devised more deniable methods of conquest, methods that would enable them to wipe out mortals without anyone realizing until it was too late.”

Central to the demon's plans were symbiotes, a hive-mind native to the realms of chaos. The symbiotes are living weapons, genetically engineered by demons and programmed to be obedient to them. The typical plan was to leave a symbiote and its database on an inhabited mortal settlement such as cities or nations and when that settlement reached certain technological milestones, the symbiote would activate and bond to one of the native inhabitants. The symbiote would overwrite the host's personality with the demon's programming, creating an infiltrator in the demon's service, armed with the symbiote's vast range of lethal weapons.

“Millennia ago, the demons secreted many symbiotes on Earth, awaiting the day when they would awaken and summon its masters but unknown to them , the gods had acquired some of the reverse engineered this technology.” he said pointing at his own armor. “Since the gods and demons couldn't interfere, the symbiotes took over a large majority of Earth's population.”

“This led to a civil war between gods and demons, and that's how the Paragons and the Houses were created. The houses protect the living, while the paragons protect the dead.”

“Why are the gods interested in protecting us?” Adrian asked.

“No-one really knows for sure, all we have are rumors. The short version, we went to war with the gods, they lost, we enslaved them. There was a second war and this time they won. After that, everything gets a little hazy, apparently there is a prison that holds something important to them and only a sequence can open them.”

“What's a sequence?” he asked not quite sure how to react.

“No-one knows. The only thing we know is that when he shows up, we all disappear.” Kate replied “Bachuus and I were at a party and he told me there has been at least 6 different paragon civilizations before us. Do you know how crazy that is, imagine if everyone on the planet disappeared and a few millenia later a new version of humanity rises without any knowledge of the previous civilization. That's us, the oldest mortal soul in any of the realms is from the dawn of the Egyptian civilization, we don't know what happened to the souls before him, even she doesn't know what happened to them.She says she had a family and friends but she's never seen them in any after life.Not Hell or heaven, Duat or Valhalla.Nowhere, it's like they were completely wiped out”

Adrian suddenly felt a chill, he noticed how the other team mates were looking at him. Aside from Ragnar and Kate,there were three more who had not spoken. Keen to change the subject he turned to Ragnar and asked.

“You mentioned houses?What are they?”

“The Houses started out as a social club for the social elite and wealthy, as a way to provide its members with pleasures that often defied the moral standards of the time and to allow members to consolidate their influence over economic and political matters. The club’s purpose was to obtain and exert power through politics and economic influence instead of outward conquest and domination. Since its foundation, they have been involved in wars and assassinations. The organization is ran by the Inner Circle, this secret group assumed the titles of chess pieces, with the leaders being the respective Black King/White King and Black Queen/White Queen, followed by Black Bishop/White Bishop and Black Knight/White Knight.  Membership is hereditary, meaning many of the world's elite are members by birth but many do not accept the formal membership or just attend their lavish parties.”