Distant Cathartic

Distant Cathartic I (Mind 3)

The rumbling from Athlon's dream echoed in the quiet of space, and then a mighty crack shook Khenti-Amentiu. As Athlon watched, the ground began to come apart, like an earthquake along two perfectly straight plates beneath the primitive city. Seeing the sudden danger, Athlon tried to fly to the city's aid, but was once again stopped by the unseen force of Osiris.

Athlon waited for the city to fall into the maw of the earthquake, but instead it began to rise. Something was pushing upwards from under the ground. Athlon could see frightened people running in the streets of the simple city, terrified by the sudden catastrophe. The buildings cracked, and chunks of the city began to fall to rubble under the force of the rise. From beneath the city emerged something massive; Athlon searched for answers, trying to understand the horrific events. Soon he could see what was pushing upwards: it was another city. This one was much different from the home of thousands being destroyed by its emergence; it was black, made of huge spires and buildings that dwarfed the humble city in uprooted.

Dark tendrils emerged from beneath the ground, fueled by some hidden rage. They felt their way along the edges of the dying city, finding citizens and wrapping around them, pulling them underground. Athlon fought the force holding him in place, pushing with everything he had to get free to no avail.

With a surge, the buried city split its smaller counterpart in half, and continued to rise as rubble fell around it. Osiris' ancient city rose slowly into the air, huge and menacing. Free of its tomb, it picked up speed, and quickly penetrated the atmosphere of Khenti-Amentiu. Moving towards Athlon, it spun slowly, revealing a row of massive cannons. The whole city was built like a fortress, protected by tall walls and defended with heavy weaponry. It came to a halt above the planet and fell silent, the huge wound it had inflicted on Khenti-Amentiu gaping from below.

Athlon felt himself come free of the unknown force and immediately sped for the hole where the only sign of life on the planet had stood moments earlier. He searched frantically for any sign of activity amidst the rubble, his sensors scanning for life signs. He found only death.

The ground continued to rumble beneath Athlon. Desperate for answers, he flew deeper and deeper underground, his eyes blazing with a powerful light to reveal the interior of the planet. Even so, he was blinded when a fearsome ray of orange energy pierced the dark and rushed up to meet him. Athlon was sent sprawling, crashing into the wall of the vertical tunnel.

"You are here to serve a purpose. Do not try to fight me, Champion of Olympus. I am The God Of Death; you cannot compete with my power."

The braid of energy plunged into the ground, loosing a huge piece of rock that hit Athlon, forcing him downward. He tumbled for miles, trying to spin to face the boulder. Finally, he managed to turn upward, and threw a mighty punch that cracked the wall of rock pressing on him. Broken in two, Athlon sped between the pieces back towards the surface of the planet. The light turned to meet him, slamming from one side of the cavern to the other, trying to slow the Android down. Athlon darted back and forth, evading the tumbling rocks. He blasted out of the tunnel and up towards the black city. No answers had been offered, no understanding had graced Athlon's mind, but one thing was obvious: Osiris' city had a greater purpose, and surely death would follow.

Athlon meant to destroy the impossible city, but as he rushed upwards, the braid of orange and black passed him, punching through the atmosphere and entering the black city. Immediately, one of the massive cannons came to life, and spun to meet Athlon. A huge blast struck the would-be destroyer, sending him reeling. Stunned, Athlon found his bearings and turned back towards the city. The light had surrounded the impossible fortress, and was absorbed by its dark walls. The voice retuned in Athlon's head:

"Remember this moment, Android. Today, Osiris returns to power. Those feeble descendants of my prey provided me enough strength to raise my glorious city. Here, in these walls, I will rule once again. My subjects have risen with me, and are thirsty for the blood of the living. From my city we will purge this galaxy of light. My shadow will reign in every corner of existence, and you will have the honor of witnessing my campaign.

"I exist disembodied, with no vessel to command. My essence is pure power, but I must have a place to rest before I dissipate.That, young Athlon, is why I have invited you to the Genesis of my Resurrection.

"You are a spectacular creature. I can feel the treble matter in your brain. It practically begs me to claim you. From your remarkable body,

"I will command my armies, and spread my shadow across the stars. Every person who dies by my hand will join my army of death.

"They worship me, Athlon, and give me strength.

"I must kill my children in order to save them."

A twisted beam of energy arced from the highest tower of the city, and struck Athlon, working its way into his mind. Athlon screamed in pain as his systems shook in a sickening lurch. Osiris spread along Athlon's neural pathways, wrapping himself around every part of the positronic network that made up the Android's brain. The laughter was deafening, and Athlon felt his internal components overloading. The pain was greater than anything he had ever experienced, and his vision flickered under the strain. Memories flashed through Athlon's mind, and he understood that Osiris was reading them like a book. He saw Olympus on fire, the Titans of The Dopinephrine nebula cluster, and Rhythm's long pilgrimage with Poetry. Osiris laughed at the power of Pyke, amused that it had taken so little to bring a mighty kingdom to its knees.

As Osiris' grip solidified, Athlon felt himself being pushed out of his own mind. For a long, strange moment, the only thing he could think about was a long weekend he had spent babysitting the prince of Portsmouth.

Athlon had a vision of Osiris' city firing on peaceful planets, leaving a streak of death and fire in his wake. The amount of casualties was incomprehensible. The pain became too much, and Athlon passed out as his body overheated under the siege.