First Demonic Dragon

"Come on, come on, we'll be late!" A young angel was pulling his father by the hand out into the streets.

"Please, Ciel, take your time." The father made sure the door was shut before hoisting the child onto his shoulders. "I fail to understand why you are so interested in laying eyes on these outsiders anyway..."

"Because nobody ever comes to The White City, Pa! I want to see the outsiders!"

The father seemed exhausted before they had even taken a step.

"I don't understand why you want to see those ... colorful characters." The father spent a long time looking for something nice to say, but colorful was just about the best he could do. "The other divine beings aren't exactly as virtuous as us."

"So they're like sinners? From the bad-bad place or Earth?"

"Kind of, yes." The father admitted. "But that's not important. I need you to remember that just because we are spectating this gathering does not mean that we are going to have an opportunity to play with these deities."

"Awww..." The child lowered his head. "But what if one of them looks extra sad? Can I play catch with them?"

The father took to the white skies with an unsure look on his face. "I... Maybe?"

"Sweetness."

The duo were not the only ones out and about today. Angels were clogging up the streets and the skies alike as they deigned to take a look at the 'outsiders'.

All of them were heading toward a colosseum of an impossibly large stature. Built to contain more individuals than any sporting arena on earth.

The air was filled with the sound of the angels' beating wings and their resplendent singing.

It was customary for the angels to greet newcomers with song. The sound of their voices within a chorus was said to be quite a magical thing to witness.

Their hymns were bright, soft, and yet also powerful when need be. There was very little that could've compared to the sound of their combined voices hitting just the right note at just the right moment.

The angels had a place within the Colosseum as well. They either floated into whatever seat they could find or hovered above the colosseum in the air.

But they never stopped singing.

As more and more of the guests started to arrive, they too were treated to the sound of song.

They were either surprised or blatantly indifferent.

...For the most part.

*Rumble.*

The sky overhead briefly turned stark and gray. The powerful, bearded face of the winner of the Titanomachy appeared in the clouds.

"Quiet." Was Kronos' only warning. The angels didn't have to be asked to heed it a second time.

At the bottom of the Colosseum, there was no gladiator's pit.

Instead, there was a white marble slab laid down to mirror the floor of a grand hall.

A table in the shape of a U was already playing host to several important figures.

Among them was the grumpy deity who had already made himself known to the angels- and everyone else as a matter of fact.

Nothing had even happened yet, but Kronos' ire had already been sufficiently sparked. He absentmindedly tapped his finger on the table in front of him at a million miles a minute.

He'd yet to notice, but at some point, he had put an indent in the marble that resembled the site of a meteor crash...

"Today is far from the day for all of your hostility. Stow it somewhere else."

Kronos' bloodshot eyes darkened further.

He stared across the table at a falcon-headed man- and the current chief deity of the Egyptian pantheon. Horus.

"When I am in the mood for your observations, whelp, I'll preen your feathers myself. Before then, I suggest you mind your manners."

The table full of chief deities was quite surprised.

Everyone knew Kronos to be an unlikeable asshole. But he wasn't this short-tempered before. Or at least, not without provocation anyway.

He's getting worse. Everyone at the table thought at once.

Standing behind him, Zeus cleared his throat while Hades just tried to pretend he was anywhere other than here.

"My father is-"

"Hush, boy." Kronos hissed. "I am a ways away from needing something thoughtless like you to speak for me."

Gazes swiveled in Zeus' direction. He couldn't meet them.

Instead, he dropped his gaze to the floor while regretting ever even opening his mouth.

It was a sad sight to see. Witnessing a man that large suffer such humiliation was pitiful in a way that was hard to describe, and equally hard to forget.

Despite their status, every god at the table understood what it was like to find yourself at the mercy of an oppressive force. They had all dealt with it before, in one way or another.

They could not help but feel pity for Zeus. But they knew that subjecting him to that was tantamount to adding insult to injury.

In a situation like this, it was best to pretend that they hadn't seen or heard anything. As impossible as that might've been.

However, just because no one had stepped up to chastise Kronos on behalf of Zeus, that did not mean that others were willing to ignore his treatment of Horus.

From behind the Egyptian god, two curved swords landed on either side of him and bit into the table.

Their wielders were two women who could've been twins. One, a black-skinned- panther-headed goddess with sharp golden eyes. The other was a red and gold-skinned woman with the head of a lioness.

"You will mind your tongue when you refer to my pharaoh. Or you may swiftly find yourself without one." Sekhmet hissed.

Kronos was calming down for a very brief moment, but that was all in the wind now.

His fist pounded the table in front of him and split it. The olive coloring in his skin was becoming a more intense purple color from all the blood rushing to his face.

"Beast..!" The word curled off his lips like a foul slur. "Do you understand who you are talking to right now?"

Bast and Sekhmet smiled in unison.

"Do you understand that there is a reason why time is said to run out for everyone equally?"

"If not, we would be quite happy to remind you."

Kronos stood up and threw back his chair. Every vein inside of his body was pushing against his skin.

"All of you sit down and mind your manners within our hallowed domain. Have none of you any shame?"

Heads swiveled in Uriel's direction.

The charming archangel was clearly less than pleased with the recent turn of events and she seemed liable to flip the table over at any moment.
Experience tales at My Virtual Library Empire

"My faction was kind enough to play host to this consortium of degenerates, and this is how you honor our gracious invitation?"

"I know it is difficult for you pigeons, but do not overinflate your own self-importance." Kronos scoffed. "We are here at the behest of only one winged creature, and it is most certainly not you."

Uriel's eyes sharpened. "I wonder what the Eldest would say if I told him about your erratic behavior before this auspicious meeting has even begun."

Kronos was still getting angry, but now it seemed like he wanted to laugh as well. "Going to run and tattle on me to your precious relative? My, how far the warriors of the white city have fallen since the days of old."

Uriel's pride was not so fragile that she would flinch underneath some simplistic taunting. "I don't particularly like skinning my own potatoes. What is the harm in asking someone else to do it for me from time to time?"

Kronos' gaze hardened once again.

Before he could open his mouth to unleash another cruel response, heavenly singing began again, albeit much quieter this time.

Kronos whirled towards the angels and yelled at them with every ounce of power in his body.

"I SAID STOP SINGING!!"

His voice was so powerful that it produced a shockwave large enough to turn a mortal body into a paste.

Before it could strike her kin, Ulriel erected a golden wall to protect them.

Archangel Azrael appeared behind Kronos and slid the blade of his scythe around his neck.

Kronos honestly seemed amused.

"Is this what we're doing now...? I can promise you mine's bigger than yours, pigeon."

"Stow away the crude attempt at humor. Your mind is so diseased that you almost attacked my people for a slight for which they bear no responsibility."

Kronos growled. "I asked them once already to stop-"

He finally looked at the angelic faction once again. Closely this time.

They weren't singing. He could still hear music, but their mouths weren't moving. Rather, they were all shut in a thin line and trembling with fear.

"So, things are going as expected here then. That's a shame."

Everyone looked towards the table once again.

The final two seats that were waiting to be filled had finally been claimed. Although the duo was one that they didn't expect to see.

Both women had dark cinnamon-like complexions, but only one of them possessed a natural glitter to her skin that made her seem like she was made from gold.

She wore simple, thigh-high stockings and a pure white dress that was cut to allow her thighs to breathe.

A thick black cloak was draped around her shoulders and gave her an aura similar to a mob boss.

As she absentmindedly fiddled with the blue and gold wesekh around her neck, her sharp golden eyes conveyed that she was less than pleased.

"Unfortunate... maybe my people will get what they want after all. I'm sure they'll be thrilled."