Protectors- Consequence

Prologue: Loss

Annabelle Stone walked hand-in-hand with her fiancé. They had been together for almost a decade, and their wedding was only a couple of days away. He had decided to take her for one last date before they became husband and wife, a delicious coffee before the end of a relationship, and the birth of a stronger one. He kissed her gently on the cheek as he let go of her hand, the Australian air hot and humid,

"Just a moment, my dear," He smiled happily, overjoyed to be in her presence, as she was to be in his,

They had been the best couple, inseparable, but not to the point of toxicity. They had different interests, different friends, different hobbies, but together they were, and they loved each other unconditionally. Around the nearest alleyway, he had placed a bouquet of flowers, amaryllis, her favourite, their red tones suiting her blonde hair and tendency to wear similar shades of red. He knew that she came from an abusive household, and even to some extent had been told of the criminal cult that Anna's sister, Samantha had run. There were no secrets between them, and both trusted each other with their lives. His name was Cassius, a name that she loved to say, rolling each "s" of the tongue as if it were a tantalising dessert. He was middle-eastern by looks, but had been born in Western Australia, to parents who had passed years ago, leaving him to fend for himself. Cassius had worked his way through university for years, before attaining a degree that allowed him to pursue geology and make a lot of money at mine sites, when he decided to party a lot. That's when he met her, a person who had escaped an abusive situation in Bali, and they hit it off immediately,

"Here," Cassius smiled, handing Anna the bouquet, "I know they're your favourite,"

Anna accepted the gift with a wide smile, joyous as her hair blew in the sudden wind. She had always been a biologist by trade, working with mechanics to create technology that could be implanted in place of things like organs and bones. Despite growing up with domestic violence, she had never been a violent person, and that was part of the reason that her and Cassius had gotten on so well. She would always love the sleepless nights they spent, wandering through the cool forrest, listening to the birds, staring up at the endless stars. She loved him more than life itself, and thought to herself that if Cassius was ever to perish before her, she would be grateful that he would not have to feel the anguish of living without her. That's when her face fell. The entire sky had been painted a bright red, heat and air swirling around faster than ever,

"Cassius, run!" Annabelle screamed, 

She took off, running ahead of Cassius as bangs shook the area, superhumans crashing around the city like gladiators, rushing power creating bangs like thunder. She turned to watch as Cassius caught up, the greatest explosion she had ever witnessed shaking the ground. She felt cold, as if her face had been opened to the air conditioning, before a brutal agony shook the lower half of her face,

"Help!" She tried to scream at Cassius, but no coherent words could be made by her smashed jaw, 

"Anna!" Cassius roared, like a noble lion, springing into battle,

He wrapped his strong arms around her, taking off again, avoiding the smoking tarmac that littered the ground after an explosion a man called Jones Blakk had created as his last-ditch effort to be a hero. That's when a tall figure, clad in robes of white, splattered by a viscous, crimson fluid ran past, speeding along at a great speed, the knife in his right hand dripping from fresh blood. A car, huge and menacing, flew towards the speeding man, who avoided it effortlessly, spinning out of the way with finesse. Before she had time to react, Cassius threw Annabelle aside, taking the force of the vehicle head on. His body was crushed like a bug, splattering everywhere. She was still for a moment, as if time itself had frozen around her, before she raised her head, the figure clad in a black hood unveiled before her eyes. She knew that he was Noctum, a so called hero, and hated him, more than she had even hated her father. Noctum was the one who had thrown the car, the one who had claimed Cassius' life. She recognised the scars on his neck as well. He was the kid her monster of a father had tortured, had killed the kid's parents in front of his weeping self. He may have been a victim, but right then, in that moment, Annabelle swore, beyond the deepest blood-oath, that she would not only kill Noctum, but she would break him mentally, break him beyond the point of any repair. To not only break his mind, but his soul as well, and then crush him physically. Anna sobbed, ugly, great sobs over the remains of her lifeless lover. One moment, she had had it all, and the next, it had been burned to the ground, leaving nothing but depression to settle like ashes over the great fire that had been her life.  

The god with the Jackal's head was the first to awaken, rising to his full height in an instant. He wielded a flail, forged from the alloy his people had created from Aura, a technique they had developed in order to advance their civilisation, but one that had eventually cast it to ruin. The God could see that nothing remained of his world, the once great cities overrun by luscious plant life in the absence of carers. Not many had left on the fateful voyage to the other habitable planet, but allowing Apis aboard the ship had proved dangerous, something he now knew,

"Anubis," Shu, the God with the head of a lion began, his mane crackling with fiery power, "where is Apis, he has not yet struck us down,"

"He is not on this world," The jackal replied, his flail disappearing into thin air, "he appears to have returned to the planet from before, the one whose civilisation treated us as deities,"

Anubis turned to Ra, who had also stood, his headdress glowing from the light of its decoration, which was the shape of the sun. He said nothing, but as he stared at the skies, his intentions became clear,

"You wish for us to find the orb Apis spoke of when he fought us," Shu spoke, "it has the potential to create imbalance in the universe, and we should stop it from destroying the planet while we can,"

Ra gave a curt nod, and Anubis began to chant, a dangerous green Aura spreading from his body as it began to construct a ship, one that would take them across the stars to this planet. They already knew that they would not harm the people of the planet, as even though they had revolted, that had been millennia ago, and with their feeble lifespans, the inhabitants had probably forgotten everything about them. The feeling of unease that settled at the bottom of Shu's stomach was from something entirely different. If Apis had been unable to dispose of their bodies, that would mean that he was defeated on this planet. That logically meant that on the planet, there was a being capable of defeating Apis, a being they would have to look out for, because despite their godlike strength, Apis had bested them all, giving the concept that he could be defeated a whole new light of horror. They set sail across the stars then, the comfortable interior of the massive spaceship covered in the near-impenetrable alloy that was stretched thinly enough in areas to provide views into the galaxies, a humblingly spectacular reminder that no matter the Gods' strength, they were merely blips in the grand process of the multiverse.

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CHAPTER ONE: FIVE YEARS LATER...

RELEASES APRIL