Aphelios contrarium - An alternate universe story.

intro: Judgement of a faux world.
Reality is a story the mind tells itself, our minds CAN lie, never doubt it...
Through my endless gazing, I see all that can transpire.
The beating of my wings cause storms across the world, or so those fools used to say.
A thread of fate subverted by a single change set forth a series of events that were not to be.
I am but a mere observer, but I shall share the words of the unwritten.
If only to sate my own boredom while I wait for my time to come.
You would be wise to heed them, their words hold wisdom even if such a fate was not meant to be.
A single gear out of place changes the flow of the universe.
those of you from the world that birthed my own shall bare witness to it, much like I.
The gazing soul sword shall be a guide, cast judgement on a path not traveled.
Only a fool would ignore such things, for truths can be revealed in the stars.

This is the tale of the interlopers that failed in their pursuits, causing everything to fall out of place.

Chapter one: insomnia stella.

The day the sky fell echoes in our fractured memories, the wraith of the heavens descended on this world leaving nothing but the echoed ruins of the past.
A waking nightmare that never seems to end as we wonder the wastes that can only count time, our dreams shattered.
We can feel them...the rage of the fractured sky.
Clawing at our mind like a savage beast, much like the others but we refuse to succumb to it.
The whispers eternally echoing as we avoid their radiant omnipresent eyes.
Figments of the past, twisted their minds forgotten stalk the endless ruins.
Nothing but husks with no will of their own, infected into corrupt forms of crystalline malice.

We hear their song, mockery made manifest, there are moments where we hear parts of a innocence crying within.
Is it madness or trickery that we consider it beautiful and terrible at the same time?
Perhaps there's still part of us that's naive...or hopeful.
Do such creatures even have a soul worth redeeming?
Or are such thoughts merely the machinations of their malefic presence?

We can almost see it, when we close our eyes.
The world of dreams that we coveted in the days before our history was erased.
Such pursuits are out of reach, a foolish wish unable to be granted.
We should have headed the warnings.
Perhaps, in another time and we could have...

Thinking of such hypotheticals is a fools errand, such a reality is out of our grasp.
we are asked by children from the endless expanse.
"Why do we persist?"
We often ask that of them, we could allow ourselves to be consumed by the maw of the twisted heavens.
Duty, survival or perhaps it's just sheer spite to spit in the eye of something that claims to be divine.
it would take no effort for such beings to travel realms beyond even our understanding.

...Yet they stay to peruse a world they doomed to hunt us like warriors craving endless war.
They have achieved victory but still their need to end what little still lingers.
It's sheer madness, to what end?
If we did not know any better it was because it feared our potential.
But our crafts lay shattered along with any that would have strong enough will to bring our machinations to life.
There is nothing left for us, or them to stay yet we do.

The voices never cease, parading those it controls as if to mock our situation.
Fortunes of war, soldiers without will.
Subverting all that is sacred to us.
They walk cloaked by obsidian flame, twisted shadows of the past.
Much like us, fractured into pale reflections split from their masters.

My echoed shade is such a fracture.
It guides us, myself from the null ones.
A consensus of sorts a spark of light in the darkness.
Guiding me away from total madness.
It's small form mocks their false divinity.

"Don't go there now, the beast generals gather."
As if I didn't know to avoid that place.
The Zero impact, we called it at the start.
Two travelers of the same kin brought forth conquest.
Time has lost any and all meaning so it might as well have happened days ago.
Crystalline splendor reshaped the very land after the flames of Ares had quieted down.

But what choice do we have?
A fleeting chance to change fate.
Perhaps chasing chance is folly.
Then again, one could say our continued existence is.

"They can feel you."
I know that all too well friend, but we get lost in the endless noise of the minds of those that we have forsaken to their fate.
Fret not, we can forgo caution of thought here.
A small miracle, if nothing else but at such a cost...
Is it darkness or light that allows us to go there?

Amongst the wreckage, the spire of metallic salvation awaits.
Bathed in crimson glow, the place that beckoned the shadow we now face.
The wave that shot out to the blackened heavens like a beautiful song that spelled our doom.
A clock ticks down counting such possibilities into the cosmos.
There is no sense in stalling this, now or never.

"This will be the end of us, of everything we held dear to our hearts."
We can't just let things stand as they are, what would you have us do?
Forsake ourselves to a endless empty existence at the edge of the universe?
I won't listen to such misguided cowardice, not anymore.
Our kind burns bright with a fury only matched by the radiant stars.
The long slumber awaits, the end shall be called from the void.

A forsaken power, even they could fear things from aeons past.
The interloper that would bring the warped seraphim to heel, our doom is set in motion.
Such a terrible cost, but it would be greater if we remained.
We call forth from the ethereal, to cast judgement.
Darkness has it's place, it shall make the light brighter.
But a shadow is cast from it.

The spears held high, sky's above torn asunder.
I can't hear the voice of the innocent one anymore.
it's gaze meets my own, the fury from things we set into motion.
They were right to fear our tenacity.
It may not be a victory, but I can make peace with that.
If nothing else I shall not be forgotten by them, I wounded their ego.

Nothing left now but the long sleep, an outcome born of rage.
Guided away from damnation, orange wings quiet everything.
A sense of respect as it pierces through.
The hunt met with a bow of honor as it came to a close.
Perhaps in another time and place, things could've played out differently.
But the stars do not grant such boons without a cost, of that I am certain.

In the last moments I hear the song of the lost ones.
A curse no longer bared by our kin.
A result of decades of torment undone in a mere second.
"this won't fix anything."
I know, old friend but at least this way the fog is cleared.
The soaring sky's above lead us to peace.

If I just had one wish, a selfish one at that.
Is that your voice is heard and leads to a path of true salvation.
In the fabled place of wonder, the new world that songs rang out for.
One day the winds of change shall be your end, the only shame is we cannot be here to see.
It's time to face my sins, the sleepless night closes, may our song come to a close.

"Strange horizon, Ready to go."

Chapter two: Paladins lament.

I often sit and stare into the night sky, questioning thine own purpose.
Met with but anti-climax after years of steeling thine-self.
Verily, it is quite vexing I prepared for many moons, only to be met with naught.
Thine loyal blade grows rusted, it's purpose left unachived.
Patrolling the stone halls without reason.
My brothers in arms speak of this.
"A peace we strive to protect."

There is wisdom in that, one cannot deny.
We spar endlessly so that the innocent shall not suffer.
Something that has become an endless routine.
Years stretching into the ether.
A duty none else serve.

A longing for quests of clashing blades fills thy mind.
The yearning for adventure.
Alas, this kingdom is in no need for a hero.
Pale wings without flight.
A cage of splendor stifles.

Thine hollow heart still yet yearns.
A beckoned call unmet.
Seek the mountain of flame.
The guardians await.

The journey of emperium
Long have thy followed this path.
A worthy duel to satisfy thine thirst.
The drake stirs with crimson fury.
Combat that gives satisfaction.

My thirst finally satiated.
A battle most grand.
The flurry of blows met one another.
It's grandeur nothing short of legendary.
Leather wings lay in silence.

The challenge met, a beast felled.
It bows in respect, as do I.
Our duel rung out with thunder.
Thy longing remains no more.
Shall thy no longer yearn?

Perhaps one day I shall find another worthy to battle.
But this land has few who could match thy skill.
A journey into the endless stars, to seek one that could.
Alas, thy wings cannot take me such distance.

For now I retire, in a village of shimmering green and jewels
Dreaming of memories not made.
Waiting for the day a worthy quest shall fall upon me.
A phantom may yet still appear to sour the fruits of these lands.
But we four shall be here waiting for that.

Even if it takes aeons, the time will come when a galactic crisis shall come to pass, I shall be here serving a empty throne.

Chapter 3: Bishop of radiance.

Oh, mighty lord of shining light.
The crown weighs heavy upon you, indeed.
Lo, I am but a humble servant of your will.
What troubles befall your mind?

Ah, a bishops duty is to serve you, bright lord.
To fulfill your hunger is but a simple task.
You guide us with blessings of the shining heart.
A power none other in this realm hold.

The purifying shimmer warms us all.
A ward against the darkness that lays dormant within.
It's radiance blesses us, divine protection from the profound shadow.
The throne you hold guards us from the empty hollow.
Anger and fear shall not be called from the depths of the infinite.

Yes, your greatness echoes across our realm.
Your mere presense alters the very shape of things, bending and warping the elements of the world.
Such things you wield and enhance unlike no other could, a potential that spans the infinite.
Rending the very nature of life as your plaything, shaping the universe into a wondrous splendor.
It's deluxe essence is yours to command.

You, the great being of bright.
A miracle you grant though as it was naught but mere trifle.
The shadow of the ethereal lurker was staved off.
their souls filled with but a small piece of your splendor.
A profound arcane power gives those three a new purpose.

A echo of you sullies your greatness.
I too can feel it's darkness perverts the land.
It's rage unyielding, it's malice corrupts across the expanse.
This cannot stand, such a thing is an insult to us, to you.
Such a vile creature lusting for destruction of all.

"just lonely"?
What madness do you speak, my lord?
That thing is naught but miasma to the universe.
Such a being being to allowed to exist is folly!
A creature such as that can only offer ruin, surely...

"A light within yet to be seen within?"
A mere spark, a fluke even that light could be born from such a profound darkness...
But, I do not doubt your words foolish as they seem to me.
I am, after all, but a mere servant to you, my lord...
What would you have us do?

Ah, of course that is not something I considered.
The weapons that can rend the shadows into light.
Connected by the threads that connect our hearts to form.
Mastered blades of bathed in the aurora of color and emotion.
We can gather such things, yes your wisdom knows no bonds.

Well, I suppose then that leaves only one course of action left.
We shall leave the fortress and seek out this lost spark you speak of.
To seek out those we can connect our hearts with to form the divine power.
Our acts of charity shall banish the looming shadow and bring forth that lay within it.
A ritual such as that is simple if nothing else.

The strangers await in parts unknown.
Some beings from far flung galaxies beyond even our knowledge.
But such things matter not as their call is heard.
They shall serve our needs quite nicely.
If nothing else, it makes your own light brighter.

At last, the tools have been formed.
Our journey was most fruitful, the boons granted.
Such simple tasks were mere trifles for us.
We need only now go to the place where it cries out from the empty expanse.
The alter need only be brought to life, to summon ourselves to the mockery of darkness may bring forth a new light.

Oh mighty lord of the shining bright, bless this poor creature with your radiance so that we may bring forth a new age of spring.
The winds of change shall bless this lost lamb into the light.
Chaos reborn into order, the shadows cast aside to dawn.
The gazing eyes given rest at last.
Hear our prayers and be born anew, a miracle made from dark origins.

May our path's cross again, with smiles and joy as you now follow a road you sought all along...

Chapter 4: Threadbare Tinkerer

Why...
Why did you have to...
No, I cannot think like that.
It's selfish for me to do so.
You didn't choose that, none of us did.

But this pain, It won't go away.
no matter how hard I try to forget it.
It burns within me, a profound sadness.
Seeing that empty space where once was joy only amplifies it that much more.

There are moments of sweet memories, but they are only met with bitterness.
I find myself asking "was there more I could of done?"
Only coming to the same conclusion: no, there was nothing.
It was simply an impossible dream, I'm nothing but a fool for having such thoughts.
I am now at a loss, what is there even left but this sorrow?

What need is there for a craftsmen who cannot fix things or build a path?
The feeling makes me numb to everything.
Still yet I am here, it would be selfish to do otherwise.
There are times where I want them gone.
the memories that linger are burden almost too heavy to bare.

...But I must.
To forget such things would be an insult, as if none of it ever mattered.
It sits heavily on my mind, thinking of all the time spent together.
Now only the pictures in my head remain, a cursed treasure.
Endlessly I am tormented by the endless phantoms of the past.

It's almost enough to drive me to madness.
If not for my work, I'm afraid it would consume me completely.
Yet it leaves me unsatisfied.
I don't think I'd have the drive to continue if not for the child.

The one bright spot that makes this pain worth baring.
A last remnant of our love, our miracle.
Such a precious thing of innocence knows not the weight I carry.
But such things are best left unsaid, to burden one so young with thoughts like that would be cruel.
You'd want better for us...for HER.

She's alot like you, you know.
Strong willed, ambitious.
Not one to sit around for anything.
I think you'd be proud, I know your watching over us.

We don't have much but one another now.
Maybe that's all we ever needed.
A simple existence running the business we built together, you and I.
It reminds me of the old days when we first met.
That warm summer, with frozen sweets.

I don't think we'll ever be wealthy, but I am content.
Spending my time with the person we brought into this beautiful, tragic world.
I'll make sure to care for her like you always did for me.
Carrying your willpower within my own heart.
We will build a future together, one of simple gizmos that bring joy to everyone.

I know, in time, we will meet again when the clock of the universe tolls.

FINAL: gemellus asterism

Our hunt comes to a close, a rather unsatisfying result.
For aeons, we ruled over the sleepless ones with weapons in hand.
Total domination was in our grasp, only for our pray to cheat a pointless stalemate.
Perhaps, it was reckless for us to use those...things as our eyes.
Still, the result could have been worse then this.

We each have peered into their fragile minds, countless times.
Their potential was dangerous, their tools could've posed a threat to us.
Best to snuff out such ambitions before they were to bare fruit.
Those machines of war were mere playthings for us, still it would be foolhardy for us to have let them persist.
Their minds dreamed up devices that could wipe out all life in a blink of an eye, vile things.

The beast lords served as our stalwart generals.
With our influence their power became that much more then the fragile pawns we came to dominate.
Even before we brought them to heel, they dwarfed the physical limits of those detestable builders.
Their noble hunting instincts much like our own was the only thing we found respectable on this world of spires and metal.
What did those...things call it? "spoils of war?" yes, that's rather fitting.

It's baffling, really.
They brought forth their own destruction.
Calling us from out from the unending with strange sounds.
I didn't think much of it, nothing but noise in the darkness.
But my brother made some sense of it, he always saw the angles I did not.

We came to that world, following what we now know as "music"
I'm unsure of what that is personally, some form of...what was it called again, brother? "art?"
Too many thoughts to make sense of all the noise, I'm not sure how you figured it out honestly given the sheer number of thoughts we saw.
If I had not culled the herd I think my head would've exploded with physic feedback, we quieted such thoughts.
Personally I see no value in the knowledge of insects, but as tools for our hunt? now that's something I can use.

They wanted to subvert nature itself.
Only being able to make mere fractions of our power was amusing, if nothing else.
Creating things that made no sense, to me at least.
Meaningless tales, falsehoods dreamed up by their minds.
For what reason would they bring such concepts to fruition is beyond me, outside of weapons, naturally those have purpose.

Still they are now all gone, snuffed out by their own.
I had almost forgotten what quietness of my own thoughts were like.
It's been quite some time since we had first landed.
All due to a stubborn little nat who just wouldn't submit to our hunt.
...A small part of me respects that level of pettiness, throwing out everything just to spite us, what a foolish creature.

My brother seems a tad bit somber over the loss of "music" but such thoughts will pass.
Much like the star children, had we left them to do as they please, we would become the pray, of that I am certain.
Feeble ants such as that are no threat by themselves, but you saw their thoughts too, you KNOW that they would of done it given enough time.
Had we not acted, had we not come here, it would've spelled doom, possibly for everything, the fact one of them escaped us for so long is proof that their potential is...was limitless.

...Yes, that is the lingering question.
"What do we do now?"
Nothing but ruins and our battle scars of the land remain.
Perhaps we should just wipe it all away...
No? well it makes no difference to me I suppose, there's no thrill in smashing fragile lifeless monoliths...outside of using them as crude weapons.

No sense in mourning fools, but using this world to mark as their graves is fitting.
Seems that settles it, nothing left but to find a new world for pray to hunt.
Lingering here any longer serves no purpose nor grants any boon.
Let us seek out worlds that can satisfy our hunt.

This world shall be forgotten, to bloom nevermore...

The end...(?)

EPILOGUE: Ethereal Scales.

...
The thread of fate severed, a malleable falsehood.
Nothing left but a forgotten dreamscape that was never to be.
Mere echoes of a song never sung.
But the words linger in a impossible realm.

One who is an observer unable to act on fate unless the stars align just so.
But do not weep, for they are the cries of a world that never was.
Besides, one day I shall bring an end to all possibles, even ones beyond the blind veil with those that give them form.
The thread of fate is guided by the needle held by hands much like yours, the world you weave is beyond even my influence.
I am merely a Shepard of death who casts judgement on souls that cling to life, I take no joy or hatred in it, simply it is my role as force of the universe.

I am...

The true end.

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Pub: 21 May 2026 05:45 UTC

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