God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.

Death was the end...

Every being that possessed life lived so it could die one day. It was common knowledge that once that day arrived, it was all over.

However, this was clearly not the case for some beings...

Death did not possess the power to hold some entities forever. Some managed to evade it, some could defeat it too.

There even existed a rarity that had dominion over it...

Still, those who could cheat it weren't very numerous.

Cain was one such individuals...

Staring at the sky, or lack thereof, above his head, Cain let out a sigh...

Embedded in the empty void overhead, was a strange star. This star radiated a beautiful, blinding light that suffused the ocean beneath his feet with the breath of life.

Like a dear goddess, blowing the endearing winds of prosperity.

However, the other side of this star, was a terrible darkness.

It was a congregation of horrors the mind couldn't process. Even staring at it was enough to consume a man's soul.

The wicked, cold, malevolent, and harrowing power of death was locked away in the other half of the star.

Sitting up, Cain took a few moments to get himself.

After a while, he let out a sigh,

"So I died again, huh..."

He heard a chuckle come from behind him. This time, thought, he wasn't surprised at all.

Turning around with a slight smile, Cain greeted,

"We meet again, Lyx."

The beautiful goddess clothed in stunning apparel behind him also smiled at him,

"I didn't think I'd get to see you so soon, Cain."

The white robe was incredibly provocative, showing a criminal amount of cleavage and skin.

Compared to the 'Black' Lyx, this Lyx appeared far more human. The original 'Black' Lyx was more like a terrifying Devil Goddess.

The difference was like night and day. Literally...

Staring this devilishly beautiful Devil, Cain's mind was filled with all sorts of impure thoughts.

However, those thoughts quickly died away as he realized what he was staring at was an eons old entity that had most likely been living before his world had even come to be.

It was scary to think about it. This being, almost as old as the origins of time itself was seated right there, having a conversation with him.

Cain shrugged, "Turns out having the body of a human isn't always a good thing. Not very durable in my opinion."

'White' Lux chuckled a bit. Staring at Cain, her terrifyingly beautiful eyes seemed to sparkle, creating a contrast with the backdrop of darkness behind her.

"Indeed, that might be the case. Then, do you want to become a Devil? It wouldn't be hard, considering you are already on the path. The body of a Devil will become far more stronger than that of a human."

Cain sighed, "I would have taken you up on your offer, but I can't do that right now." Cain lied.

'White' Lyx smiled softly,

"Is that so..."

'That definitely didn't fool her!' Cain thought to himself, his expression remaining unchanged. Regardless of what he would have liked to believe, there was no way he was going to follow an eons ofl being. No way at all.

Staring at the endless stillness around him, Cain's thoughts slowly drifted away...

His mind was already fixed on what had happened not too long ago.

He had already identified his flaws.

However, they weren't things he was capable of fixing immediately.

It was more of a foundational problem. From what he could tell, things were only going to be getting worse.

He had seen it first hand.

'White' Lyx continued to stare at him for a while before speaking.

"Cain, what is bothering you?"

Cain jolted, a bit surprised,

"Huh? Oh, it's nothing..."

Cain blinked, and the Devil Goddess was already seated before him.

'It certainly isn't nothing. This is the third time you've been here, but you have never looked like this."

Cain's face darkened,

"What if it's because I want to know how best to kill Devils?"

'White' Lyx chuckled,

"So that's it..."

Cain shrugged, "You Devils go to a world and devour it. I cannot, under any circumstances, allow my world to be destroyed.

Lyx nodded, "As you should."

Cain raised a brow. Seeing this, Lyx chuckled, then continued,

"Like it or not, we Devils are a force of nature. We fulfill a purpose, doing that which we were made to do, even if it isn't by our will."

Lyx stared deeply into Cain's eyes, her eyes filled with a strange melancholy,

"You can build your walls and strengthen your fortifications, but will you be able to defend them?"

Cain answered calmly,

"Depends. Are your soldiers strong enough to breach them?"

Lyx chuckled, "For now? Probably not. From what I can tell, you possess quite a young soul, Cain. Your world, most likely than not, recently saw the inception of the ashes of gods and mana. You still do not know true fear."

Cain felt a chill envelope him. He narrowed his eyes,

'Sure enough, a Devil will always be a Devil.'

Suddenly, the chill disappeared. A smile spread across Lyx's face,

"For now the soldiers are still young. They have enough time to grow. But you are young as well. I believe in due time, you might come to understand yourself more, Cain."

Her words were warm and cold at the same time. They confused him greatly. Stretching her hands, Lyx lightly cupped his cheeks.

"Humans... Such strange, fragile creatures."

Silence reigned for a while, before Cain calmly disengaged. Pulling the cold hands from his cheeks, he stared at them briefly. Her fingers were white and dainty, but her curved claws were inky black. A clear depiction of Devilish nature...

With a sigh, Cain stood up,

"It was nice talking with you again, Lyx."

Lyx smiled, "I'm sure you'll be back soon. I hope we can have a longer conversation then."

There was a momentary pause before she continued,

"Remember what I told you, Cain... We breath, feel, and live; just like you do. Even the vileat of beings possesses a soul."

Cain nodded, "I'll keep that in mind."

With that, he turned around and began walking away...

Towards the Levónt...

Recalling the memories of that horrid place, Cain felt his stomach churn as he walked.

Trapped beneath the still waves, are the souls of an uncountable number of Devils, walking towards the Othershore. Once they reached the end of their journey, which was the Levónt, they would be reincarnated.

And when they died, they would be forced to repeat the same process.

Rinse and repeat...

For all of eternity...

Perhaps there was a way to change this. Although Cain truly doubted this. If there was, then these powerful beings would have used it by now.

As Cain walked, the shadows beneath his feet, both great and small, followed behind him.

Some were already before him as well. But all in all, they were all harmless shadows at the end of the day.

They could see nothing, hear nothing, and speak nothing.

Right now, they weren't even Devils, as they had shed their devilish nature.

Instead, they were simply souls...

Souls going on a long pilgrimage to repeat it all once again.

Cain had a strange look on his face as he continued walking. He kept thinking about the words of Lyx.

Sure, the Devils were creatures of ruin and disaster. But perhaps that wasn't all they were.

Still, he was extremely doubtful. Not just because of what Lyx had told them, but also because of what he had experienced.

The Devils he had encountered so far has all either been worthy of the death he had given them, or they had killed him. It wasn't a very good history.

Cain sighed, 'Now isn't the time or place for such thoughts. For now, I'll have to get out of here as soon as possible.'

Staying amongst the dead for too long was bound to place a curse of him or something of that sort.

And so, after walking for a while, Cain finally reached it.

A magnificently harrowing gate.

The jaws of hell itself. How ironic, that Cain was going to have to use the entrance to this hell to get back into the living.

Staring at the gate with a black expression, Cain decided not to test God. This gate was filled with terrible-looking runes that appeared as though they had been scratched into it.

Not only that, but the skulls of many creature; big or small, were placed into the gate, fusing and becoming a part of it.

It was incredibly strange and off-putting, but it wasn't something he wasn't used to.

He was so used to it, the fear was already coming to him without him entering through the gates.

Sensing a living soul approach, the doors spread open by themselves. The doors stretched even beyond the surface of the sea, going deep into the depths. More Devils flooded through the gates even as a terrible fear wrapped around Cain's neck.

"Damn it." Muttering a curse to himself, Cain got his mind ready

With no more time to hesitate, Cain plunged into the open maw of the Levónt.