[DISCONTINUED, but there is an "ending"] The Divine Powers - Book 1 -

Chapter Sixteen - Dea est Mors Castle

———————— January 10th ——————–

"Alright, everyone ready?" Ranboo says, holding his bow staff over his shoulder in a sling to hold it. The others nod, each one holding a small bag containing water, small nutritional snacks for energy, and their personal copy of Phil's training notes, all edited and filled with their own handwritten tips. Most of them stand in the cramped bedroom belonging to Tubbo,  while some stand in the hallway, as Ranboo opens a portal, and it hums softly with energy, before the Divine Army all step in one-by-one.

As they all arrive at the large stone stronghold, they see a large flock of crows  scattered around the castle, some sitting atop roofs and walls, and others flying around the looming towers. Sitting among the flock, Phil gazes out at the horizon, the  evening sun setting from a warm orange sky. Noticing the teens down on the ground, he smiles softly. Phil stands and glides down to the ground gracefully, before bowing courteously. "Welcome back! My flock welcomes you all back to Dea est Mors Castle." Noticing Puffy, he eyes her warily. "And who might you be?"

"Puffy. Some people call me Captain-"

"Puffy, hm? Are you a, uh, friend of these?"

"Yeah, she's with us!" Meghan grins giddily.

Phil, still slightly wary, stands tall. "Alright then. Well, if you're a friend of them, you're a friend of mine." He held out his hand for Puffy to shake, which she did so gingerly. "Anyway, how have you all been? Hope you all trained. Otherwise, next week will be rough." The group nods and give small thumbs up, to Phil's relief. "Good, good. Now then, I have something to show you all. If you would, please follow me."

Striding with pride, Phil leads the group into the castle, to his own personal study. There were bookshelves, all lined with books (believe it or not), but not nearly as many as the Gamers' Library collection. In the center of the room, is a mahogany desk, with small scratch indents, most likely from Phil's crows. Smiling, Phil grabs ahold of a book on the shelf, its spine tattered and worn. But, he pulls it downward, and a rumble begins, as two bookshelves on the opposing side of the room move apart from each other, revealing a hidden staircase. Phil grins mischievously. "C'mon, follow me!" Beginning down the staircase, the torches that line the walls seem to light aflame on their own as Phil walks past.

Reaching the bottom of the stairs, Phil walks a bit forward into the hallway, before turning around to face the Divine Army. "So, welcome to-er-" Looking back at the teenagers, Phil finally notices that they were all panting on the way down, and now they all were breathing heavily. "A-are you lot ok-?" He says, stifling a laugh.

"Y-yep," heaved Shelby. "...all good..."

"Ooook, well if you're all alright, keep up." Keeping a steady pace, Phil begins back down the hallway, his steps synced in time like a metronome ticking.

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"I see that you have... failed us many times Nemesis. This cannot happen again."

"Y-yes sir. I-"

"Don't want to hear it. You know what happens to people who don't listen."

She thought of Harpocrates, a fellow member, who was terminated after defecting from the Evil. Another casualty in the vast universe.

"...yes sir."

"Good. Grab Chronos and Astraea. You'll all get a briefing on your next mission. Now, just- leave my presence."

"At once, sir."

After a few moments, his assistant spoke, "Sir, hate to be intruding, but wouldn't it be wiser to send our most reliable? Those two have failed many missions, and Chronos hasn't even been on one yet."

"I appreciate it, truly, but this is how it must be done. It is the Everdark's way."

"...of course."

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After what seemed like forever, the group finally reached a door at the end of a long hallway. The door, its handle worn from being held many times, was old, the wood having many indents in it. Phil opened the door with a 'creeeeak', as it revealed a large round room, with a mural covering the vast majority of the wall.

"Welcome, to the reason this castle is known as Dea est Mors Castle. 'Dea est Mors' means 'Goddess of Death', and this is her castle. The goddess of death is actually my wife, but since she's, y'know, busy, I'm usually alone here. Other than my flock, of course."

A moment of deafening silence rang throughout the room, before a loud shout was heard. "YOU MARRIED THE GODDESS OF DEATH? WHAT-?" Mika yelled. A rush of chatter erupted from the teens, as Phil awkwardly tried to hush them.

"Alright, uh, yes, I did marry the goddess of death. But when I met her, she looked just like any other human mortal. Long, dark hair, she said her name was Kristen..."

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"So," Phil started, blushing slightly as he and the woman were sat on the bench, the sun descending down into the stunning orange-yellow sky, "what's your name?"

"My name?" She hesitated a moment, before answering. "Kristen. Yep, that's my name. What's yours?"

"Phil. Phillip, actually, but my mates call me Phil."

"That's cute." Kristen smiled warmly, as Phil felt his face reddening.

An awkward silence fell between the two of them, before anyone spoke again. "So, um, are you doing anything tonight?" He asked timidly.

Her face softened. "Nothing important. Just a day in life."

"W-well, w-would you like to go for dinner sometime later?" Phil buried his red face in his hands, yet the blush crept through. He tried covering himself with his dark wings, but to no avail.

Kristen gave Phil a soft, reassuring smile. "I'd love to." Giving Phil a small tender kiss on the cheek, as both of them blush madly.

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mumza and philza are the most wholesome ship change my mind. ITS SO CUTE! also lore lore lore worldbuilding woo!

sorry its been a bit, still dealing with writers block. in the meantime, im gonna edit and maybe write more of the wizard of mcc maybe idk go check it out ig but you dont have to but you could

eat your veggies,
m.p