Michael's Revenge

Chapter One

"Aphmau!" Zane yelled across the palace, looking for his opposite. It was almost time for her to raise the sun and he wasn't able to wait to lower the moon. She was going to throw them off schedule.

Zane was a guy of average height, his black hair long for a man. His complexion was rather pale, though that isn't too weird when one remembers that he's the God of the Moon. The one eye you could see was a brilliant blue. He was wearing a grand outfit: a loose fitting with tunic and pair of pants, a black cape, and black, pointed shoes. A silver crown of stars sat upon his head.

Suddenly, he heard a giggling coming from around the corner and rolled his eyes. Well, eye. He had lost his right one in a fight with his brother, Garroth, long ago. He keeps it covered with his hair, since a god cannot regrow body parts, unless that ability was put in place by Irene, their creator.

Zane followed the sound of the giggling around the corner and saw a large lump behind a tapestry of all of the gods, a small pair of feet beneath it.

He sighed and pulled the tapestry back to reveal a small woman curled up where the lump had been, a large smile stretching across her face. This woman was quite short and had short, black hair pinned up in a bun, some strands of hair falling out in the front. Her skin was a soft caramel and her hazel eyes sparkled. She was wearing a purple dress that went down to her knees, a white cord wrapped around her waist, and no shoes on. This was Aphmau.

"AH!" she screamed with joy, "You found me!" She threw her arms around Zane's neck and gave him a big hug that nearly knocked him to the ground.

"Aphmau," he said, removing her from his person, "I've been looking all over for you. It's nearly time to lower the moon and raise the sun."

Aphmau's face instantly fell as she whipped her head around to look at the grand clock at the end of the marble hallway. It was indeed 5:30 A.M., and sunrise was at 5:45.

"Oh, geez," she exclaimed, "I had no idea what time it was. Come on," With that, she hurried off down the hall, Zane pulling up next to her, his stroll matching her run because of the height difference.

They reached the Celestial Balcony at 5:40, just five minutes before sunrise. They found Sylvanna, Aphmau's guardian and "mother", waiting for them.

Sylvanna wasn't really Aphmau's mother, but she might as well be with how she treated her. She was a short woman, much like Aphmau, with long, black hair and caramel skin. Her eyes were a soft hazel that could burn with fury when she was mad. She was wearing her usual: a long, maroon dress that went down to her ankles, and scandals, with her hair tied up in a loose bun.

"There you are, mija," she said upon seeing Aphmau. She took off her scandal and smacked her over the head with it. "Why are you so late?"

"Ow, mama," Aphmau said, rubbing her head, "I was playing a game and lost track of time."

Sylvanna pursed her lips before turning on Zane, who had been standing off to the side trying to hide a smug smile. It vanished once he saw Sylvanna looking at him.

"Why didn't you tell my daughter about the time?" she said, brandishing her scandal like a club.

His hands went up in surrender. "I tried," he said, "but she kept hiding from me."

Sylvanna glared at him for a second, then put her scandal back on in one, quick movement. "Well, come on, you two. Time for sunrise."

Sunrise was a lovely time. All the other gods and goddesses came to watch it, even if they never wanted to see sunset. The sun was something they loved, the moon was not. The only goddess that did come to watch sunset every night was the Goddess of Love: Kawaii~Chan. That wasn't her real name, but most have forgotten it in favor of calling her that.

Aphmau and Zane looked down from the Celestial Balcony to see all the other gods and goddesses watching the horizon. They went back and raised their arms, Zane facing west and Aphmau facing east. Zane lowered his arms, the moon following until it touched the horizon. Aphmau began raising her arms, the sun following her movements. They moved in tandem, the moon disappearing beneath the horizon as the sun rose above it completely. Everyone below them cheered.

"I'd say that you guys did a pretty good job," a voice said. Aphmau and Zane turned to see the Goddess of Water, Katelyn, standing in the doorway of the balcony.

Katelyn looked like the embodiment of water. Her hair and eyes were matching shades of baby blue and her porcelain skin reflected the sun beautifully. She also shown with great power, like the strong current of a raging river. She was wearing a flowy, blue shirt and pair of pants that seemed to ripple, and she wore a pair of grey scandals, like the stones on a riverbed.

"Thanks, Katelyn," Aphmau exclaimed, running up to her friend and giving her a slight hug.

Zane murmured his thanks and quickly left, already getting uncomfortable with the amount of people on the balcony. He soon ran into Kawaii~Chan.

Kawaii~Chan was what one would call a meif'wa, which meant that she had a pair of cat ears and a tail. They were black. She had bright pink hair and bright, round eyes that were a brilliant shade of gold. She had a pale complexion, but it was still quite a bit more tanned than Zane's. She was wearing a light pink dress that parted at the skirt to reveal a white skirt underneath. On her feet were golden shoes that sparkled in the light.

"Oh, hi Zane~Kun." she said, looking up to meet his eyes. She was a slight bit shorter than him.

"H-i, Kawaii~Chan," he stammered, his ears turning a slight shade of pink. Kawaii~Chan usually did this to him.

"That was a beautiful sunrise," Kawaii~Chan continued, stepping back to give him space, "Kawaii~Chan liked the way the moon glowed next to the purples of the sky." That was another thing about Kawaii~Chan: she talked in third person. No one knows why, it even annoys some others, but she usually shuts down when someone points it out, so no one really questions it anymore.

"Th-thanks," Zane stammered out, curling up.

They stood there in silence for a moment before Kawaii~Chan cleared her throat. "Well, Kawaii~Chan has stuff to do, so..." and she quickly left.

Zane breathed a sigh of relief, his ears returning to their normal color, and briskly walked down the hall towards his room in the west wing.

Meanwhile, Aphmau and Katelyn were having their own conversation on the Celestial Balcony.

"You know that Aaron is coming back from his trip tomorrow," Katelyn said absentmindedly, brushing a stray hair from her face.

Aphmau froze, joy written all over her face. "He is!?" she squealed, clasping her hands together and jumping up and down.

Katelyn watched her, an amused smile creeping its way onto her face. "Yeah," she said, "I heard that he was even more buff than the last time you saw him."

Aphmau froze again, narrowing her eyes at Katelyn and shoving her slightly. "Sh-shut up," she stammered, her face turning red. Katelyn laughed as Kawaii~Chan poked her head around the corner. She had heard them talking.

Now, Kawaii~Chan may be the Goddess of Love, but she doesn't work like one would expect. She doesn't walk around making everyone drool all over her with her looks, nor does she make sure everyone likes her. No, she's more of a fangirl. She sees people that she thinks would make a good couple and starts shipping them, a power of hers that can cause the individuals that she ships to fall in love with each other. She, herself, can't seem to find anyone that she likes. She's dated a few people, like a handsome human named Reese and a servant of Aphmau's named Damien. Neither of the two relationships worked out.

"Did Kawaii~Chan hear Katelyn~Sama say something about Aaron~Kun?" she yelled, coming to stand next to the two other goddesses.

Aphmau hid her burning face with her hands. "Nooooooo," she moaned out, earning her a laugh from both of her friends. They began to have a shoving match, running around the balcony, then the whole palace when it escalated to a game of tag.

Unknown to any of them, a man by the name of Ein was heading into a cave that would soon lead to their doom.