Monarch of Darkness, Arsene

“Arsene!” A bright voice shouted, stirring me from my meditation. I snapped my eyes through the still yellow light of dawn and glared at Mephisto, smiling brightly. ‘Come on. I made breakfast.”

“I”m not as good as the sandman, but I make a mean breakfast.” He said, with his usual lazy eyes, staring at me with expectation.

My lips buckled at the annoyance, but I still rose, as I was actually still hungry after the Court of Nox attacked.

I should have just hit up a random food stall. It’s been a while since I had pizza or a burger.

The eccentric fallen chuckled. “Great! Come, I made it American style, so your one hundred percent about to get diabetes.”

My brow twitched. “It’s not so bad.”

“Pancakes drenched in syrup, bacon, hashbrown, and egg. No wonder everyone there is so fat.” he chastised as a whiff of morning coffee slithered its way into my nose. Nostalgia struck me hard as I smiled, recalling my usual morning ritual.

During my early years, my best friend was eggs and ‘sausage’; I used to wake up two hours before work just to cook breakfast.

“Is it actual bacon or—”

“It’s turkey bacon. I know you don’t like bacon, oddly enough. I’ve heard people say bacon and human taste the same.”

“Idiots. They taste completely different.”

Mephisto turned to me, sitting by the dinner table, ” you don’t like fish, you don’t like bacon, do you like anything?” 𝗯𝗲𝐝𝐧𝗼𝐯𝗲𝐥.𝗻𝗲𝐭

My brow twitched, and I didn’t respond but stared at the grand meal Mephisto had prepared. I had a mild addiction to pancakes, but that was only when I made them. I once had to call the ambulance to get my stomach pumped from eating too many pancakes. That was embarrassing.

Breakfast was set family style, and for some odd reason, Mephisto was staring. “Can I help you?” I asked while getting a stack of six pancakes alongside eggs and turkey bacon.

“The day is approaching, Arsene. I’m just wondering if you are prepared.” He said, and a bit of a snort escaped me.

“You’ve been watching me like some pervert, so you should know. Do I have what it takes to survive reopening the gates? Wait. How are we near the end? I still have to find a replacement for—”

“Never mind about that little detail,” Mephisto remarked, cutting me off but revealing just what I needed to know.

Yu Jing was alive, or at least he found a replacement. Either way, this was good news.

“You would know best if I’m ready or not. After all, you are the one who put me in this position.”

“Me? Gods no, I merely ensured that every course of action you took somehow benefited me. Everything you’ve done is on you, Arsene. I’m quite an avid believer of free will.”

“Black Sabbath is designed to steal free will.”

He stared at me and turned his cheek. ” Ummm, no, it’s not,” he said in a pipsqueak voice.

“Get serious!” I barked, and the bastard laughed.

“I jest, my boy. Only making fun during this peaceful morning.” He claimed but can a man like Mephisto ever simply jest?

“No shit. What is it you want?”

“Let’s talk about the little ones.” He said, growing a tad solemn. ” How about I train one of them?”

“Are you high?” I flatly asked. ” No one is raising my kids without my presence. It’s not like I don’t trust you, Mephisto, but I don’t trust you. Nor Izavith, for that matter, with my babies.”

“Really?” he asked in surprise as though it were not obvious, ” You don’t even trust Izavith?”

“She seems like a woman that would try to smash my newborn son,” I said, trying with my all not to smile as I could feel her intent burn like the flames of a thousand suns.

“I would think every man would want that for his child. Well, whatever. Time to get down to business,” He said after I finished plating my food; he began to grab his.

“I’ve fate you’ll open the Gates, but right after that, you’ll find that the land below is filled with many monsters. I’ve got a present for you.” He said, in between bites, and pulled out a crystal box that sent my eyes wide as I felt the almost chaotic aura.

The entire box had a glossy touch, filled with azure crystals that burn deep within its depts. It almost felt like the box was alive.

“Pandora’s Box,” Mephisto said. ” I’m sure you’ve heard of it. It’s quite famous as it was created by me when I journeyed the Abyss.”

“You made the box?” I shouted.

“Of course.” Came the reply, “I’ve made many things throughout the many Mythos. My influence can be traced to almost every conceivable Mythology. I’ve lived a very long life, my boy, and I get bored quickly. You should have seen the Greeks the first time they opened the box and released the Evil of the Abyss. Back then, things had gotten so bad that Father was forced to act and add hope into the box.”

“B-b-but Zeus made the box, right? No, wait! What era was this?”

“I believe it was a little before Zariels era when I gave the box to Zeus to give to pandora and blah-blah-blah; the rest is history.” He said, simplifying things. “But what’s important is the box here.”

“I don’t understand,” I said, narrowing my eyes.

“Well, you see, Zariel and Aurelia were supposed to take the box but never did, thanks to Zariels ability to communicate with the Weave. A mistake on my part, but now the box is yours.”

“How is it you can act when Zariel can’t? How do you seem to be so exempt from the rules, Mephisto? Lucifer and the rest never acted till you got involved personally.” I pointed out, unable to understand it.

Despite the restrictions around the myriad heavens, Mephisto’s influence seemed to be everywhere.

“Oh, that? I asked, and Father, despite his trepidation, allowed it. Unlike the other Fallen, I never truly fell as they did. So that makes me kind of the bridge between Heaven and Hell. Just like how you’re the bridge between the Abyss and the Myriad Heavens.”