[BL] Daily Disposable Persona

85: R'lyeh 09

Before the highest and most central palace in R'lyeh, Zong Yan gazed silently upwards.

The Great Old One Ithaqua was dutifully following the floating city of Carcosa.

The weakest of the Great Old Ones, also called "Wendigo", he was a subordinate god of the King in Yellow, just as Dagon was to Cthulhu. The two evil gods seemed to be engaged in an unspoken rivalry. Whatever one did, the other immediately copied.

In London, Zong Yan fought the Death-Walker, Ithaqua's incarnation. He never thought that through a quirk of fate they'd meet again, though Zong Yan had now become an evil god himself, while Ithaqua had switched to his true body.

Not only that, this was the second time Zong Yan had encountered the city of Carcosa, including the King in Yellow.

Only now did Zong Yan realize how many evil gods he'd met. Whether it was their avatars or true bodies, it was like he was a magnet for them.

But it was still a bit unfair.

On Carcosa's side there were at least two Great Old Ones, while R'lyeh just had one. Cthulhu was away and Zong Yan hadn't fully mastered an evil god's power. The situation was grim.

But it was important not to show the slightest hint that anything was wrong.

Inside, Zong Yan felt a little uncertain. In the past he'd had a trump card called Azathoth. On some level, it gave him a sense of security and confidence, so he'd never felt too anxious going into a fight. He knew he could always take down an enemy, even if it meant sacrificing himself. But his superpower hadn't responded in a long time. If things went south, like he suspected they might... he didn't know if he could win.

Anyway, there was no point in worrying about it now.

Zong Yan silently called out to his other self for help, but he didn't know if his big brother was too far away. The message sank like a stone in the sea without a response.

He made himself calm down. "Prepare for battle. Victory belongs to R'lyeh."

"Yes, Your Majesty! Victory to R'lyeh!"

"R'lyeh's glory will last forever!"

The Deep Ones raised their harpoons high, and the sunlight left mottled patches on the uneven texture of their skin.

The shoggoths waved thousands of tentacles that stank like tar, rotating and gyrating their bodies like an irregularly-shaped ball of dough, forming themselves into a wall to serve as R'lyeh's first line of defense. In R'lyeh there were Elder Things who specialized in the enslavement of these shoggoths. The shoggoths hadn't yet undergone a transformation, so nearly a hundred million more years would pass before their first rebellion. By that time, R'lyeh would have sunk beneath the sea. Today Zong Yan didn't have to worry about whether these shoggoths would obey their orders.

The Star-spawn were floating in the sky. They were the only air power R'lyeh possessed.

The true body of the great king of R'lyeh resembled an octopus, which affirmed Cthulhu's inherent mastery over water. The Deep Ones and shoggoths were also creatures with affinity for water, and R'lyeh itself was incomparably rich in aquatic resources. In the past few days Zong Yan had tried a lot of interesting and delicious seafood snacks.

According to the historical timeline, amphibious life on Earth had just evolved. Zong Yan wasn't sure if it was because so many evil gods had bathed the Earth in cosmic rays while visiting, but the native marine life in the sea rivalled whales in terms of size.

A few days ago, Zong Yan had watched the Deep Ones hunt a rare type of fish. They took a thin knife and cut its flesh across the grain of the muscle, then respectfully presented it to their Lord.