The party rages on in the dining hall, as guests keep pouring into the crystal palace. Dancing and singing fill the hallways and corridors, as people celebrate to their hearts content. Kyungsoo makes his way to sit next to Kai, him being the only one who can stand his smart remarks and maybe even finds them a little endearing.

“Here,” Kai hands Kyungsoo a drink “You look like you could use it.” and he takes it, sipping the fine nectar as it warms his throat and sends him into a state of conscious bliss.

“Thank you.” Kyungsoo says, setting the glass onto the marble table and turning towards Kai. 

“So,” Kai continues, “what has the god of the seas been up to? Making waves I hope, I haven’t seen you for a while.” tilting his head to the side, smirking like he always does.

Kyungsoo laughs and nudges his arm, looking down at his lap and back up again. “You see me all the time, always giving me messages from Baekhyun and Suho.”

“Yeah, but I haven’t seen you since yesterday and that’s been a while for me,” Kai looks at Kyungsoo and the shorter boy looks away. 

“Oh stop, you know you can come see me whenever you want. It’s not like I do anything anyways.” Kyungsoo leans back against his chair, putting his hands behind his head and letting out a sigh. “Plus I like your company, you’re always fun to be around.” He adds, turning to look at Kai with a smile. He knew he didn’t receive compliments like that often. 

“Thanks, although you seem to be the only one who thinks so,” the taller god finishes, now looking towards the far corner of the room, realizing he’s there. The God of the underworld.

The Sea god taking notice of who Kai was looking at, asks, “Who is that? I’ve never seen him before.” and raises an eyebrow, turning towards him in response of waiting for an answer. 

“His name’s Taemin, God of the underworld. I’m not surprised you haven’t seen him before, he rarely ever leaves the place,” Kai states, looking back towards Kyungsoo. “I invited him to come since I constantly run into him, guiding the dead into the underworld and all. I didn’t think he’d show up though,” He finishes, giving a defeated look. He wouldn’t have thought that Taemin would have come, because parties didn’t seem like his type of thing, but he appeared dressed to the nines, outshining even Kris and Tao themselves.

Taemin stares at Kai, adjusting his gaze every now and then, but still staring all the same. Fondling with a largely sized ruby ring on his left index finger, he disappears, as if he were never there. 

“Does he always stare at people like that?” Kyungsoo asks, wondering for the sheer knowledge of knowing if he was indeed actually that creepy. 

“Not usually, but either way he’s gone now.” Kai answers, assuring Kyungsoo everything is fine. “Like I said, I didn’t think he’d actually show up, I guess parties aren’t his thing.”

“Guess not.” Kyungsoo finishes in a sigh of relief, Kai handing him another drink, and he kicks back with ease. 

Suho comes up from behind them, laying a hand on each of their shoulders and pulling up a chair to sit next to them. “What’s happening over here?” He asks them with a cheerful tone dripping from his voice. 

“Nothing at all, but we did just see Taemin, which was interesting.” Kai responds, making Suho’s eyes widen in intrigue.

“Really now?” Suho asks ecstatically, “It’s exciting to know that our celebration even has the god of the underworld himself leaving his humble abode.” He finishes and clasps his hands together, seeming to be very proud with himself.

“All he did was stand there and glare at Kai for 5 minutes, then disappeared. He doesn’t seem all that special to me.” Kyungsoo states, rolling his eyes as he sips more of his drink.

“Well someone seems to be in a sour mood.” Suho laughs, throwing his head back while Kai chuckles along next to him.

“I’m not sour,” He continues, “I just don’t think it’s very flattering to come to a party, stare at someone, then leave as if you were never here, that’s all.” Kyungsoo finishes, running his hand through his hair and letting out a huff. “Anyways, where’s Tao?”

“He’s over there with Kris,” Suho points over to the opposite end of the room. “Probably coming up with strategies and talking about things no one cares about.”

“Oh now who’s the sour one?” Kai tilts his head and looks at Suho through raised eyebrows. 

“Please, they’re best friends, there’s nothing to be sour over.” Suho waves a hand and a glass of wine appears in it. “I’m just not interested in what they talk about. I find it boring.” And with that being said, Tao strides over to where the three gods are conversing.

“Suho, Kris wants to see you, something about your own little ‘celebration’ later.” Tao shudders at the thought. “Something I didn’t care to know, but he so happily informed me. You should probably go talk to him about that.”

“Well, I don’t know about you guys, but I’m going to go see a man about getting laid.” Suho sits up from his chair and struts away. “Talk to you later,” and he waves off, with a little extra pep in his step. Then Tao takes his seat and begins conversing with the two remaining gods in place of the latter.

“What I would give to not go through that ever again.” Tao states, tossing back a shot of liquor to recuperate from the sudden uncomfortableness.

“Me too.” Kyungsoo says, raising his glass in the air. 

“Me three.” Chimes in Kai, raising his glass next to Kyungsoo so all three of them can toast for the best.




Xiumin has been kicking back drinks as if they were water all night, only rivaling that of Sehun, god of wine himself. He had gotten himself so inebriated that Luhan had cut him off, worrying that he’d be passed out for days on end. Luhan had carried him off to one of the many spare bedrooms of the crystal palace and went back to the dining hall for him to sleep it off alone. Laying him down in a quieter place in the castle, where the nymphs and Satyrs won’t bother him even though he’s sure nothing could wake him at this point. There’s one thing Sehun can do that Xiumin can’t and that’s to continuously drink without consequence. 

The bedroom door glides open even though there’s nothing to be seen slipping through the entrance way. It slides shut a moment later and there’s footsteps traveling up to the side of the bed where the god of love is sleeping. Taemin fumbles with the ring on his index finger and appears, standing over Xiumin, catching a glimpse of the gleaming diamond around his neck. Knowing exactly what it’s capable of, he grasps it and pulls it from the sleeping boy’s neck.

“I’ll be borrowing this for a while,” Taemin says, analyzing the passed out body before him. “Doesn’t seem like you’ll be missing it anytime soon.” He turns away and walks off, disappearing behind the door as it closes with a light click.

 

The moon is dimmed by clouds with not a star in sight as Baekhyun makes his way through the crowded field of dancing creatures who chime loudly in divine song. An exuberant smile graces Baekhyun’s face as it almost always does; his ears delighted by the chanting symphony, even if some of them are a little off key. “I’ll be back,” his voice oozes from his throat like honey. He doesn’t have to shout, but merely speak in an almost whisper for it to catch the attention of every being in the meadow. 

Baekhyun’s hand is occupied by a glass of Sehun’s richest wine, and he sips the bitter beverage as he walks toward the woods that boarder Sehun’s residence. They’re filled with trees of black bark and silver leaves that are illuminated by the nearly hidden sky. He isn’t sure what calls him to go there, but it’s strong in the pit of his gut, as if it were tugging his feet forward step by step. 

He approaches the forest that seems anything but barren. The air is cold and still around the woodland in comparison to the lively hood of whimsical celebration, he thinks. An all but quiet hum and trickle sounded from the trees, their leaves rustling together as if wind was tickling at their stems. If they were a harp, the sound would be the plucking of their silver strings; sweet, gentle, and almost certainly daring.

Walking into the riveting forest, he wonders if it has always been there, because he can’t quite recall. He feels as though he would remember the lure of such a seemingly secretive place, or the thrum of nature’s unknown instruments. It’s possibly a fair bet that he can hear the trees vibrating harmonies through their roots, and into the ground beneath his feet. In fact, he’s quite certain that they are.

He places his ear to the nearest tree and flinches back once he feels the ice cold temperature of the coal black bark pressed against his fevered skin. “I’ve never..” his eyes are wide in shock and his lips slightly parted in awe. Baekhyun’s long fingers graze the frigid bark, chills crawling their way up his arm, and he can’t help but to snatch his hand away. 

“Ahh, you’ve found my forest,” a voice breaks through the song of the trees, and Baekhyun gasps, dropping his glass of wine in shock.

“Excuse me?” he says to the unfamiliar company he seems to have acquired. There’s a large amount of hope in Baekhyun’s chest, that the unknown visitor couldn’t hear the crack in his speech.

“Now, now, don’t be frightened. It’s a burden to the heart to hear such a beautiful voice waver,” a solemn laugh rolls from his chords. 

“Those trees. They, they were singing,” Baekhyun scoffs. He can’t think of a time he’d seen, or heard, that in all of his years. Mermaids, oceanids, nymphs, centaurs, satyrs, many more of the like, those were all normal, but never singing trees. 

“The souls of the nymphs must go somewhere when they die. The god of the underworld has never had the patience for their sly and playful ways. None the less, they deserve a home, even after death. Don’t you agree?” A black fog can be seen between the trees that stand tall in front of Baekhyun. Tendrils of smog wrap around the stems as a figure approaches through the dense clouds of black.

Baekhyun watches the visitor, slightly tilting his head as he eyes the man who stands before him. A sheer cloak hangs low over his eyes, which seem to be nothing but abandoned holes, adorned by cheek bones sharper than a warrior’s keenest knife. Hallow cheeks make for a shadowed face, fitting of a skeleton’s skull. He’s beautifully ugly, if Baekhyun were to decide. “The singing are the souls of musical nymphs?” His voice is careful, trained, and not willing to let discomfort settle through. 

“Right you are!” A smile shows his teeth with a taunting measure, and they are each pointed like shards of glass. “Their lullaby is what keeps me sane these days.”

Looking behind him, Baekhyun can no longer see Sehun’s field. Odd, he’s sure he’d only stepped a few feet in. He turns back to the man he was speaking with, who is now only inches away from his face.

“You surely are the god of light and the sun. Your skin beams with gentle rays of such beautiful yellows and reds, but I’m sure you’re aware. However, I had no idea they would continue to shine so fervently in the night. Apollo, the god before you, had nowhere near the beauty you hold,” he shakes his head, a sound of petty leaving from his lips. “You already seem brighter than the sun itself.”

“Apollo.. You knew him?” 

“All too well, my boy.” He places his hand on Baekhyun’s shoulder, and he isn’t surprised when the younger god doesn’t jerk back.

“You’re one of the original gods. You’re a primordial,” a hint of excitement jolts through Baekhyun’s abdomen. None of the newly created gods had seen a single primordial, besides when they had been created by the Goddess Nyx. Their mother. 

Primordials are rare, being the few gods that had not been destroyed by Nyx, and he feels incredibly hasty to find out which one this might be. Although, he thinks he may already know. 

“Correct you are. Your mind is as bright as your light, I see,” and he bows his head toward Baekhyun, showing respect for the God. 

Baekhyun bows in return, trying his best to hide the feeling of elation and honor from meeting one of the Gods who came long before him.

“I was hoping I’d see you on this fine night. I have a gift for you,” his jagged teeth flashing through a smile once again. 

“For me? I’m afraid I’m not worthy. I truly cannot say that I’m aware of who you are.” Baekhyun’s cheeks beam hues of red, ignorance kicking at his pride.

Baekhyun winces in surprise when wings of black smoke descend from the primordial’s back, tendrils of the fog seemingly melting and flowing toward the ground, surrounding his feet. His wings possess a darkness that Baekhyun had never encountered; something much deeper than a simple color. And he knows it was just who he had thought.

“Thanatos,” the younger god speaks, his voice strong and proud. 

“You were right all along, you shouldn’t doubt yourself. You’re a god, not a mortal. You know a lot more than you allow yourself to believe,” Thanatos says to him as if he’d known what Baekhyun had been thinking from the moment the thought crossed his mind.

“The nymph’s souls make sense now,” a gentle chuckle travels from Baekhyun’s lips. “What a privilege it is to meet the personification- No, God, of death.” He bows again.

“There is no need for formalities, Baekhyun. I am only your brother.”

Those words spark pride into Baekhyun, even if all the gods are his brothers.

Thanatos gently lifts his hand in a graceful manner. A white marble case with spirals of gold decorating the rims appears in his grip, amethyst crystal adorning the lock that holds it shut.

“An extraordinary gift given to the god Apollo, the god from which your powers derived. I’ve waited so long, and I feel that the time is right. This if a gift I have kept for you, brother.” He out reaches his arm toward Baekhyun, waiting for the latter to accept his offering. 

Baekhyun attempts to look into the eyes of the god, but remembers that he can’t as he sees that there is nothing there. Nothing but uninhabited pits of black that seem to see everything better than if he did have them. 

He takes the case, observing it with wonderstruck eyes. It’s beautiful, and it emits the same warmth as Baekhyun’s skin. He looks up at Thanatos, almost as if he’s asking for permission to open it. 

“Go on,” the primordial instructs.

Baekhyun sits on the ground, and if he couldn’t feel the vibrations of the souls singing before, he definitely could now. His fingers fumble at the lock as he sets the case between his legs, eager to see the gift that he is so gracious to receive. The case opens in a rush, pushing Baekhyun’s hand away with force and he can’t help but be impressed by the power that the instrument seems to hold. A lyre lay comfortably in the purple velvet inner casing. The strings radiate the color gold, the body made of white marble as well. It calls to him, he can feel it. His fingers itch to collide with the strings and his hands shake in need.

“Please, do play a song for me?” Thanatos tips his head to the side, the request lingering for too long.

It was like his hands couldn’t survive a moment longer without the instrument, because they darted forward and grabbed it like it were his child running toward a fire. Baekhyun breathes a sigh of relief, a weight being lifted from his shoulders when the instrument is in his grasp. He leans against a tree, the cold being laughable compared to the warmth of him and his lyre together. The entire woodland is lit up by the passionate glow of him and his instrument, a personal sun for the souls. 

His fingers skim over the strings. A buttery smoothness of the destined chords give him chills and causes his light to burn brighter. The pads of his fingers begin to pluck at them, riding in harmony of the singing earth and his mind gets lost in a whirling frenzy. Strings bounce and vibrate when his fingers strike fast with a nimble fury, and he could swear they were melting beneath his touch. 

The nymphs sing louder to Baekhyun’s melody, or maybe he’s just so engulfed in the symphony that they’re all he can hear. Voices crescendo with the lyre, growing so loud that Baekhyun thought his ear drums might burst, but he can’t stop. And oh, how his fingers ache, but it just isn’t enough. He can’t begin to care about the trickle of blood he felt weep from his fingertips, the throb of his ears, the steadfast orbit of his mind, or the cold of the tree that is beginning to seep into his bones. He only cares to play faster.

A croaky voice, stark and frightening, rips Baekhyun out of his reverie faster than he was pulled into it. “You can thank the Fate sisters for this one, brother.”

His eyes shoot open, their color fading from a brilliant yellow, back into hazel brown. “This isn’t right,” Baekhyun stammers; his eyes searching rapidly. He’s back in Sehun’s field, the woodlands are completely gone. Except for twelve trees that stand lifeless. Trees from the forest. Their bark is dead and peeling with cracks running up them like scars of lightning. And the leaves, once bright and reflective, are now scattered on the ground, black and burnt. 

Baekhyun shuffles quickly to his feet, dropping the Lyre that almost seemed glued to his skin. Walking to the trees seems like a questionable movement, but he can’t help himself. He presses his ear to the battered bark, listening for the voices, feeling for the cold.


Nothing.