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"Once upon a time, there was nothing."
A hiss interrupted him, a young spider slumping dramatically in his bed as he let out a whine, much to the amusement of the golden haired elder.
"Dad!" The spider whined, fangs flashing in the moonlight. "You've told this story a thousand times! Can't you make up something new?"
Tommy ran a hand through Shroud's hair, and the spider hybrid hissed and ducked away. "But, big man, this isn't a story."
Electric blue met red. "It's a prophecy, and it would be wrong of me to not tell you the other half of it."
The boy's eyes widened. "There's more?!"
Tommy shrugged. "Of course, but since you're so much of a big man I guess you don't need to hear it. I guess I could tell you the story about-"
Shroud let out a shriek, scrambling out of the bed to tackle Tommy. They both tumbled to the ground, Shroud landing on Tommy's chest victoriously.
"I wanna hear the story!" Shroud cried, pouting at Tommy.
Tommy let out another laugh. "Alright, Big S. If you insist."
Shroud clamored off of Tommy's chest, ducking under his blankets and shuffling around until he pulled the covers from his face to peer at Tommy, finally comfortable as he eagerly awaited his bedtime story. Tommy rose to his feet, making a big show of settling on the edge of the bed and clearing his throat. Shroud only clicked in annoyance, extra limbs twitching as Tommy took his time.
"Daaaddd!"
Tommy chuckled. "Alright, alright! Now, where was I?"
Shroud clutched his cover tighter, pulling at the cloth until only the top half of his face remained visible.
"Oh, I know! In the beginning, there was nothing."
The void was suppressing. An endless expansion of nothingness, an inky blackness that no matter where you turned it tore and ate and existed. In the beginning, there was nothing.
"And then suddenly, there was Prime. Before Prime, there was nothing, and then, there was greatness."
Shroud's eyes widened. "Isn't Prime like, your mum?"
Tommy shook his laugh. "No, Prime is my God. I'm their patron, the biggest man ever if you will."
Shroud snorted, and Tommy rolled his eyes.
"Anyway, Prime was the first, with the power to do anything and everything. A pretty poggers lad if you as me."
In the nothingness, there was something. Shapeless, a flash of light. It pressed against the nothingness, and suddenly, there was something. The nothingness stared at itself, and a thought was born. "It's lonely here," it breathed, and the nothingness sought to change it.
"Prime wasn't always Prime," Tommy explained, leaning in closer. "Prime didn't have a name. They were like this large shapeless blob. Head empty, only nothin' ya know?"
Shroud raised an eyebrow. "Wait, so Prime is nothing?"
"Prime is everything and nothing," Tommy breathed, eyes glittering. "But, Prime needed a companion, so they pulled at the nothingness until a god was born."
At first, it was simply a light. Pulsing, existing, pressing against the nothingness. And then, it grew, until in the void there was something, and it was not alone anymore. "You will be the god of space. The void is your domain for you to control. You can fill the nothingness with something." Nothingness told the light, and the universe was born.
"Their name is Clara," Tommy whispered, as if he was sharing a secret. "They are the god of the stars. Of all the universes and dimensions and the night sky. The only woman ever, besides Puffy. She is my mum."
"Really?!" Shroud squeaked. "Can I meet her?!"
"You already have, big man."
Shroud tilted his head. "Eh?"
Tommy turned to the window. "Every time you look at the night sky, you're staring right at Clara. And, if you see a shooting star, that means she's looking back at you."
There was a flash of light, streaking across the starry sky. Shroud rose, staring at the sky in awe as Tommy pressed a hand to the glass.
"'Ello, mum," he whispered before turning back to Shroud. "She's not my only mum though."
"You can have more than one?!"
Tommy nodded.
"Clara is my 'birth' mom." He paused, frowning as he thought for a moment. "I was actually born in a lab. She gave me life though, helped me to live 'n shit. I got adopted by the god of death, Kristin. She's also the only woman ever."
"Do you have god powers too?" Shroud asked.
Tommy grinned. "How about I continue the story?"
Shroud nodded eagerly.
"The nothingness named Clara, and in turn she named the nothingness Prime. They are the god of everything and nothing at the same time. Clara created the stars and planets, and Prime created Eexde."
Prime glowed, the inky blackness filled with glimmers of light and stardust. It smiled and Clara, and she bowed back in her veil of stars. "With the universes, there must be life," Prime whispered, and with a wave of their existence, Eexde was born. "You will be life," Clara smiled. "You are creativity, the light in the dark, and the birth of a new dawn." Eexde was radiant, and when he spread his wings, sentience was created."
"Clara created the starborn. They are actually the stars, and they have thoughts and feelings and they shine brighter with the help of Eexde."
Tommy ran a hand through his hair. "When I was created, I was given the name Sol."
"What's that mean?" Shroud questioned.
"It's the name of the sun," Tommy replied.
"Are you the sun?! But that's not a star, it's the sun!" Shroud cried, earning a laugh from Tommy.
"I suppose so," he mussed. "To us the sun is the sun, but to the rest of the universe it's another star."
"But how are you here when the sun is the sky?"
"I told you, big man, I'll explain it all to you. I promised you the whole story, didn't I?"
Shroud scowled. "This doesn't sound anything like what you told me before." A hiss. "Does that mean you lied to me before?"
Tommy's jaw dropped, a scandalized look crossing his face. "Shroud, Big S, my son, I would never lie. At least, not to you. I was simply givin' you the little man version, but now that you are a big man I can give you the full story!"
Shroud contemplated his words. Finally, the spider boy nodded.
"Okay, I believe you," he spoke, and Tommy ruffled his hair."
"Good. Anyway, after Eexde was created, all the gods realized there needed to be a balance, so the god of death was created. Her name is Kristin."
Prime was the dark, and Clara was the light. There was balance and order, and all was right. And then there was life, and to keep that balance, there was death. Kristin was born, and existence thrived. Planets were filled with life, born from bits of stardust and sentience and thoughts granted by Eexde. A cycle was created, and Kristin would gather the life in her cool hands and return it to the flow that had been created. Prime was not alone anymore, and they were happy.
"There are other gods, like my friend Drista, and then there's Foolish, and the blood god, and even the god of order."
A pause.
"And then there's the prophecy of the star eater."
Shroud shrunk under his blankets. "That sounds scary."
Tommy frowned. "Yea. . ."
"The starborn are dangerous," Eexde told Prime once. They will grow until they cannot grow anymore. They are too close to the Nothingness that you are, and if we are not careful, all will be left in ruin." Prime did not wish for all that they created to return to the nothing it once was. Clara did not agree with Eexde. "My children are not creatures of destruction." She told Prime gently. "They are the light in the dark, and they are hope when there is nothing left." Prime was satisfied, but Eexde was not. And so, with his power he created a consequence. Sentience became a double edged sword, and the starborn began to fall.
"Legend has it that a starborn will fall, driven to madness by Eexde until they begin to collapse in on themself. They'll create a void that'll suck everything up, all the universes and the gods and planets until there's nothing else. They call the one who predicted this the Messenger in Flames."
Shroud let out a whimper, and Tommy swallowed hard.
"Is the story scaring you?" He questioned. "I won't continue if you don't want me to."
Shroud shook his head. "No! I'm a big man! Big men don't get scared!"
"That's not true," he weakly retorted. "Big men get scared all the time, and that's okay. Puffy told me that, and since she is the only woman ever I believe her. All that matters 's that you're brave."
"Are you brave?" Shroud asked, eyes wide.
"The bravest." Tommy affirmed.
"Then I'm brave too!"
Prime deemed that there would be no more starborn created. Only stars, never to be granted sentience again. This did not satisfy Eexde, as he wished for the power of creation to be his and his alone. One by one, the starborn began to fall, and yet, the fated one never appeared. The gods had one rule, to never directly interfere with life, and give them the abilities of a god. Eexde broke that rule, and a final starborn was created. Prime, in an effort to prevent another mishap and prevent the prophecy from coming true, granted each god a patron.
"Eexde is a real wrong'un," Tommy told Shroud. "His patron is a wrong'un too. If a pussy comes to you asking you to meet an egg, stab the bitch and run. I can give you one of many knives for protection, because I have a lot of knives."
Tommy tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Just don't run with it. You might stab yourself, and then that would not be poggers at all."
Shroud hissed. "If you stab yourself with your own knife then you're a pussy!"
Tommy grinned. "Yep!"
Shroud beamed, and Tommy continued the story.
"The Messenger in Flames got that name because they're the closest to the fated star. Their real name is Clementine though. Another poggers lady."
"Do you know Clementine?" Shroud asked.
"That's a story for another day," Tommy replied, and Shroud huffed.
"Clementine is the patron of Clara. She's an astronaut. Before I learned the truth, I thought Clara was an astronaut. I think she still might be," Tommy mused.
"You cannot change fate," the patron of the stars warned. "No matter what, the will of Prime will always come to pass. Even if Prime themself does not consciously wish for it." The woman raised a hand to the sky. "Goddess will fall, and fire will scorch Gaia's heart. Sentience is a double edged sword, one created of greed and a list for power."
"Only a wrong'un will want the universe destroyed. I bet the starborn doesn't even want to hurt anyone."
Shroud frowned. "Then why does everyone believe they will?"
Tommy sighed. "Because people are asses, and they force what they want on others."
"You cannot fall, Starlight." The stars whispered. On the pillar he stood, a hand outstretched to the night sky. "I can't do this anymore," he whispered. "I don't want to do this anymore." The wind curled around him, and it felt as if a hand brushed the side of his face. "If you fall, he will win. The boy is his watcher and you his ward. Go to the patron of the blood god. They will protect you." He swayed. "He wasn't my friend? He was only here to watch me?" Silence. The boy fell.
"It's getting late," Tommy told Shroud as he stood. "There are lots of wives to be had tomorrow."
Shroud grabbed Tommy's hands as the teen began to tuck in the child. "Wait!"
Tommy raised an eyebrow.
"What happens next?"
His grip tightened on the sheets. He wanted so badly to tell his son, but Shroud was a child, and Tommy didn't wish to curse the boy with the knowledge. He wanted Shroud to grow up happy, to keep the innocence he was never granted.
He forced a grin on his face.
"The Starborn changed their fate. They kicked Eexde's ass and swore to never hurt anyone. They also protected everyone they cared about."
Awe filled Shroud's eyes once more.
"Really?" He gasped. "They changed fate?"
Tommy nodded. "Yep! They told fate they can shove it and because fate was imitated by their big manliness they were like 'oh yes Starborn, we're sorry Starborn, do whatever it is you please!' and the Starborn lived happily ever after!"
Shroud wrapped an arm around the offered moth plushie Tommy held out as he spoke. "Do you know the name of the Starborn?"
Tommy began to exit the room, pausing at the door.
"No," Tommy answered after a pause. "Only the gods and the Starborn themself know the name."
Tommy grabbed the lantern that sat near the door. "G'night, big man."
Shroud snuggled into his bed. "Night dad!"
Tommy shut the door quietly, sinking to his knees slowly. Tears pricked his eyes and he willed them away blinking his eyes rapidly. The universe called to him. Wishing him home, to leave the place that hurt him and to be cradled in it's embrace.
He couldn't.
He couldn't, because he had people to still protect.
He couldn't, because he had a son to take care of.
He couldn't, because if he returned to that lonely existence, to that isolation where everyone was hundreds of millions of light years away, Eexde would win.
He couldn't, because as Sol, as the one destined to fall, he had to find a way to change fate.
Once again, Tommy had to be the hero he never wanted to be, and save everyone from himself. And if he had to fight a god again, then so be it.
The universe frowned. The Messenger of Flames grinned. "This is quite unexpected," they muttered with a grin. Sol stood before them, a once blackened spot slowly retaining hues of oranges and reds. The universe nodded in agreement. "Unexpected indeed."