âLet's hang back a bit, yeah? Catâs got a hot head and I donât want to get caught in her crossfire.â Theo warns him. Navi nodded, though he had been able to ascertain as much on his own. The goddess had all but spat venom when Yongmul challenged her, Navi didnât want to incur that sort of wrath.
Navi closed his eyes for a moment, looking inward - pleading for Ra's wisdom. His presence was tangible, but he remained still. It'd been months and still Ra only came to him in his dreams, always speaking in riddles. The days blended together in his pocket realm, spending his time reading basking in the warm sun. He had no concept of the state of things before, of the heightened tension. The current state of things was all he knew. The other gods had encouraged him to take his time adjusting to his emergence but looking back it all felt rather frivolous.
Catarina does an exaggerated eye roll as Ahya spoke, the precocious god fluttering between them. Catarina had more respect for Ahya than she did for most, but the girl was soft at her core. Not suited for the sort of the ugliness necessary to feed her very own livelihood. When Ahya looks pointedly at Arsen, Catarina catches the eye of the river nymph as she giggled - Destiny quickly wiping the look of amusement off her face.
"It sounds like some of you want to do nothing because you have nothing to offer if war actually showed, which isn't a surprise, we've all known each other for a while. You even said it yourselves,â he almost laughs, âsome of us just aren't built to see adversity, yeah?â
Catarina tilts her head to the side, beaming up at Arsen as he speaks making no effort to mask her glee. They could all continue to pretend to play politics, that had always been one of Nemesis' favorite games but when war came knocking on their doors with god killing weapons - it was those who held power that would be left standing. If it came down to which side would be left standing, itâd most certainly be the one with Arsen and Catarina. Nothing short of death itself would get the better of Nemesis.
Destiny shrinks when Nex speaks. She knows better than to speak up against him, or any major god really. While she avoided politics she still wasnât looking to piss off the big guys, upstairs or downstairs. Besides, as much as Destiny ignored the Pantheon she still knew her place within it. When Yongmul spoke her ears perked up, turning to him with an expression of gratitude. He manages to keep the storm beneath a calm surface though Destiny could recognize his waning patience. A murmur ripples out at the mention of striking titles and while Destiny can agree to Yongmulâs points she understood the reservation. Titles were more than just power, it was order - and gods did not do well with chaos.
Catarina laughed at Yongmulâs call for unity, drawing his piercing gaze. âYou can keep delaying the inevitable, but the war has already begun.â
Daeyoungâs eyes cast towards Nemesis, the disdain within them clear though his face remained impassive, âA war against who? We donât even know our enemy.â
âWhat donât you get?â Catarina sighed heavily, raising a hand to her temple and shaking her head in frustration. âTheyâve already started the war, it doesnât matter if we know what to call them or not.â
âThen who would you have me set my storms on, who should I be striking in this war of yours?â Yongmulâs growl sliced through Daeyoungâs voice, his seemingly human teeth beginning to grate in a way more reptile than mortal, âContrary to what you may believe, I am not some God of Peace. The ocean has only been a safe harbor to those that I allow it. I am asking that we use our powers to find whoever is killing us and destroy them, rather then continuing to argue about some unseen enemyâ
It took every bit of Nemesisâ willpower to keep Catarina from rolling her eyes. She glanced back to Arsen - not to ask him to tag in but rather to keep herself in check. At the end of the day it didnât matter what they godâs said, theyâd come out on top - Oswald too. That much sheâd be sure of. When Catarina looked back to Yongmul the rage in her expression had dulled, though still evident.
âIf you think that this is as simple as just rounding up a few rogue mortals, youâre positively delusional. Theyâve killed not one, not two, but three gods.â Catarina held up a finger at each count, allowing each death itâs own pause to allow the gravity of the stakes sink in. âI am not proposing we strike blind - but maybe itâs time we take off our gloves and act like gods instead of pandering about, wringing our hands about mortal matters.â
âAvoiding the deaths of those undeserving is not pandering, you would be the god of nothing without those mortal mattersâ Yongmul seethed, âIf you are not proposing we strike blind, then where should we strike?â
A smile split across her expression, all teeth and devoid of joy as she turned to face the other majors. âIâm glad you ask Yongmul - should it please the other gods I believe we should entrust some of us gods of war to go and find out exactly that.â