- Heaven's Last Breath -

The Gatekeepers

- Death -

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After completing our preparations, the time had come for us to make our move. This was not done without thought as there were only certain days, when the previous night had a new moon, that the path to Heaven's Gate would be open to us.

According to Aetherea, we had to navigate Mount Ascencion and at the top, the Gatekeeper would be waiting for us. That meant we had to pass through Elf Kingdom's northern gate and surely enough, the path would be open.

Adding onto that, this route was only possible now that Aaron had dealt with the four River Titans. With their deaths, the flow of the Four Great Rivers would become unstable enough for Heaven's Gates to be revealed to us.

In total, there were eight of us, including Aaron who was leading the way with Jade close by his side. Behind them, Circe, Hurakan and Raya were following closely. Amenet was talking with Ariel and I was bringing up the rear as we made our way through the streets of the Elf Kingdom.

Around thirty minutes later, we had exited through the northern gate, descending down the wide stairs onto the dirt path. In the distance, a large mountain rose through the clouds, its summit hidden from view.

"That looks like Mount Ascencion. The next stop is at its summit." Aaron turned to the rest of the group and from the look on his face I could tell that he wasn't used to leading a group like this.

In fact, the young man had always preferred to do things by himself. As we progressed through our journey, he had allowed himself to rely on his allies more and more. For that, I was proud of him, a small smile creeping onto my lips.

I didn't track the time but some hours later, we arrived at the mountain's peak. Snow capped the rocky surface everywhere I looked, even though there wasn't any signs of recent snowfall. The skies were clear and the midday sun shone brightly overhead.

In the distance, I spotted an unusual presence and not long after everyone else had noticed it too. Aaron nodded over to me as I quickly joined him at this side.

"This is it huh. You think they'll just let us in?"

The wine haired boy shrugged his shoulders, shoving both hands into his pockets, "Maybe but I don't think they'll be so lenient. I did say I was coming to destroy Heaven after all."

As the two of us approached the unusual presence, I felt an intimidating gaze on me. WHen we drew closer, the mysterious figure came into full view.

The man had a humanoid figure, standing at well over ten feet tall. His skin was coloured a light grey, the man's face long and thin. He was clothed in a draping white robe, a golden button keeping the dress attached at his shoulder.

Two large feathery black wings stretched out from the man's back, his eyes coloured a bloodshot red. Protruding from his forehead there were two long black horns, a pointed tail swaying beneath his legs. The man's lips were curled into a welcoming smile, one that didn't exactly match his appearance.

"Lucifer, it's good to see that you're still working the nine to five."

Slowly, the tall man shook his head, a small smile crossing his lips as he looked down to us, "You have arrived, exactly two years after threatening to destroy the very foundations of Heaven itself."

"Uh, so can we get in?" Aaron didn't hesitate and I sensed that there was no animosity between the two of them.

"Well of course, I am only the Gatekeeper. As a Celestial, I cannot refuse your request and so I shall permit your friends to enter Heaven as well." Lucifer looked up from us to the group who were watching from afar, "It appears Hurakan will be returning to Heaven after some time away. I can only guess that he will be fighting by your side."