Nerin's voice was caught in his throat. Another God stood before him, similar but also entirely different from Askarune. Ishin was a swirling mass of blue and orange flames in the shape of a person, his ears held the same double point as the Ishini he had created, but that was the only feature Nerin could accurately make out.

Somehow, Harudan was holding his hand and not burning. It seemed impossible, but he knew that what he saw was real and not some illusion created by another God. As soon as he was back on two feet, Harudan let go and flexed his fingers, eyes wide with wonder. He might be awestruck by it all, but Nerin was terrified.

Ishin wasn't as big as Askarune had been, the top of his head grazing the high ceiling. He towered over them, but all Nerin could think of was the way Askarune had filled the entire cavern they'd found him in. He backed towards the wall, trying to make himself seem as small as possible.

He never should have gone in, or he should have left when he had the chance. The heat in the palace had been awful. He'd been sitting in his room, trying to find what the home of the crystal pillars meant when he'd felt it, so much like the heat in Ishin's cave months ago. It felt like he was burning alive and there was only one thing it could have possibly been.

The guards in the hall had collapsed and Nerin still wasn't sure if they were alive or dead. Seeing them should have been enough to deter him from going in, but he'd known Harudan was in there and he'd needed to find out if he was still alive. Somehow he had been, but there'd been a crazed look in his eyes.

Because of whatever had come over his brother, Ishin stood before them, watching them in silence. Nerin's body trembled and he longed to run but he couldn't will his legs to move. He was frozen against the cold wall of the room, his brother before him and the God of Fire silent at the front of the room.

Then, finally, Ishin spoke, but Nerin couldn't understand anything he said. The words were familiar, the sound of them and the thick accent Ishin spoke with, but he couldn't place it. Harudan looked over his shoulder at him, eyebrows furrowed in confusion, but all Nerin could do was shrug.

"Ishin!" Harudan said, cutting off the God's words. Nerin gulped at the way Ishin tilted his head; interrupting a God had to be a bad idea. "We do not speak your language."

Even the God seemed confused, if that was at all possible, but he didn't seem to have much issue with Harudan interrupting him. He tried again, speaking the same language, but neither of them understood him. It was all so familiar and Nerin nearly hit himself when he realised what it was.

"He's speaking High Visheran," he said and Harudan made a noise in the back of his throat. "I usually only read it. He has an accent so it sounds a little different from how my tutors were saying it."

"So what is he saying?" Harudan asked, his arms crossed over his chest. Nerin could easily not translate for him and leave, but if he stayed, maybe he could convince Ishin not to help Harudan. His brother wouldn't be able to understand him after all.

Ishin wasn't saying anything, that was the thing, he was just staring at them as if they were something to be adored. Nerin didn't know what it meant, but he stepped forward anyway, trying his hardest to ignore the way he shook. He had no idea how to speak High Visheran properly without offending the God, but all he could do was try.

"Erm... Ishin..." he said but he had no idea what to say in the face of the God. Ishin looked down at him and squatted in a similar way to how Harudan did. However, instead of hugging him as Harudan was prone to do, Ishin grabbed his chin with a large hand and moved his head from side to side, the holes of his eyes narrowing in curiosity.

He didn't let go as he spoke again, much too fast for Nerin to understand, but he was able to catch the word 'changed'. "What did he say?" Harudan asked behind.

"I don't know," he muttered in response, unable to look away from the dancing flames. He took a deep breath and tried again. "Ishin... I know your language, but if you wish to speak to us, you must slow down." Knowing his luck, he was completely butchering the pronunciation, but it was all he could do.

Ishin pulled his hand away but didn't stand, nodding along with him. Even if he butchered the pronunciation, he seemed to understand enough. "Where am I?" Ishin asked in High Visheran, slowly forming each word.

The thing was, Nerin didn't know the word for Ishmar in High Visheran and frowned down at the floor. "Ishmar," he replied in his own language, hoping the God understood.

Ishin nodded, the blue tips of his hair flicking around the room. "Ishmar," he whispered and went for the balcony. Harudan placed a hand on Nerin's shoulder as the two of them watched the God on the balcony place his hands on the railing and stare out at the bustling city below them.

"Maybe you should come back in. People will see you," Nerin said, biting down hard on his lip. For a moment, it didn't look like Ishin would listen to him, but he turned and walked back in, shrinking so that he was only a few inches taller than Harudan.

"Who are you?" he asked, gesturing to the two of them.

Nerin took a deep breath before he answered, running the words through his mind. "I am Prince Nerin Oshana," he said before pointing at Harudan. "My elder brother, King Harudan Oshana."

"The King," Ishin whispered and moved towards Harudan, holding his face the same way he had Nerin's. "You saved me. I saw you." Nerin rushed to translate, tripping over his words.

Harudan didn't look at all scared, a small smile spreading across his face. How he wasn't trembling in the face of someone so powerful, he didn't know. "You're welcome, Ishin," he said and Nerin translated as best he could. "How long were you trapped in there?"

"Thousands of years," he said and let go of Harudan. "My sister trapped me. She didn't understand. I should see her."

Nerin held out a hand, cutting off his translation. "You can't!" he cried in his own language and the God stared down at him in confusion. "You can't. Nyat is... Nyat died a long time ago."

The room fell silent, the heat being sucked dry until there was nothing left but ice. Not even his powers could keep him from shivering and hugging himself. The flames of Ishin's arms grew in an instant, roaring loudly and shooting towards the ceiling. Nerin jumped back, pulling Harudan with him. He shouldn't have said anything, but Ishin needed to know.

After a while, the flames calmed down, but Ishin was still silent, staring at the floor. Nerin couldn't tell what he was thinking, but he was grieving. He could tell him about Askarune, that he was still alive, but he had no idea how close the two Gods were. Before he could say anything, the God looked up and walked towards them.

"Tell me everything," he ordered.

And so they did, or rather, Nerin did. At Harudan's order, he explained everything about the last ten years as best he could, as well as everything to do with the Old and New Gods. It took a long time, but Ishin stayed silent, listening diligently to everything he'd missed, even though Nerin could only go back a few centuries.

Once he reached everything with Isiah, he faltered. How would a God like Ishin react to the Beast being awake? Askarune had reacted with surprise, but quickly went back to his duty. If the book was to be believed, and it had been telling the truth since Nerin picked it up, Ishin might not be that thrilled with the prospect.

"Tell him, Nerin," Harudan said. He'd been sitting at the desk, telling Nerin what to say for some time. For the most part, Ishin was looking at him and not at the boy actually speaking to him, but it didn't matter too much. He could easily twist the words and Harudan would never know. If he did, then Ishin wouldn't work with him and Harudan couldn't use him for whatever he had planned.

He cleared his throat. "My brother is waging war on Minisia for selfish reasons," he said and Ishin finally looked down at him. "He wishes to take over, believing that Minisia will do better under his rule, but it caused the Beast to waken-"

"The Beast!" Ishin roared and once again the flames that made up his arms exploded, turning blue with his rage.

"Ishin, please!" Nerin said, shielding his face with his arm. "His name is Isiah. He hasn't got all the stones yet, but his goal is to defeat my brother. I'm his friend and I want to help him but I'm stuck here. The war is killing people, Ishin, because of my brother-"

He cut off. Ishin wasn't listening to him, but was watching Harudan, who had fallen silent when the flames exploded again. "Why are you waging war?" he asked in the Ishini language. Nerin choked on his breath and his eyes widened. He had assumed that Ishin didn't know any of their language, but maybe he'd been wrong. His heart leapt into his throat when the God walked past him. If he knew their language, then he understood everything Harudan had been saying and knew that Nerin had been twisting the words slightly when it came to the war.

Harudan stood to meet him, shock in his eyes. "The King of Minisia can't look after his people," he said, briefly glancing at Nerin. "I am taking over in order to make Vishera a better place."

"To make Vishera a better place," Ishin repeated and tipped up Harudan's chin with the tips of his fingers. "That is why I'm awake, isn't it? To help you?"

"No, I got you out because it was the right thing to do," Harudan answered, a subtle smirk on his face. "I heard about why Nyat locked you away. Because the people couldn't look after each other. All you wanted to do was make a better Vishera."

Ishin pulled away. "Yes," he said in a thick accent from a time long passed.

"Wait," Nerin said, rushing to his brother's side. "How do you know our language?" He needed to change the topic somehow, needed to convince Ishin that his brother's side was the wrong one.

Ishin barely spared him a glance. "I listened," he said.

"You can learn that fast?" Harudan asked, his voice laced with surprise.

"I am a God," Ishin said as if it explained everything. All it did was remind Nerin of Askarune again, when he said they were like Gods, but not in the way they expected. Ishin had a different opinion of himself, one far more arrogant than the other God. "It is not important. What is important is the Beast's whereabouts."

Silence filled the room for a moment as the brother's stared at each other. Nerin knew, somewhat, but Harudan had taken the book from him. There was a high chance that he knew too if he'd looked through the book. If he had figured out what it meant by the home of the crystal pillars, then he was a step behind, a step he couldn't afford.

"I have someone going after the Beast as we speak," Harudan said and crossed his arms over his chest. "The boy is a pacifist and my men are highly trained. His powers will be difficult to defeat, but I have no doubt that my men will get the job done."

Even without many features, Ishin didn't look all that convinced. "The Beast will stop at nothing to make sure you lose this war if what your brother says is true. He is the one who wants this world to stay as it is, an unchanging mess of murder and deception. If you doubt your men for an instant, then I will personally rid the world of the Beast," Ishin said. Nerin paled, his heart falling into his stomach. Everything was wrong, but he had known it would be, he had, and he'd let it happen anyway.

"I don't doubt them at all," Harudan answered. He didn't doubt Jonin, that was what he meant. "The war is failing. I wish there had been another way to do it, but it was the only way. But my army ran into a massacre and I don't have any more men to send them."

"You wish for me to aid in your war," Ishin said and sighed. "I suppose I could. Aiding in your war would bring the Beast to me. If I kill them, then nothing can stop me from making Vishera a better place. That's all I ever wanted. It's what you want too."

Harudan let out something that sounded like a laugh. "It is," he whispered. Nerin wanted to scream. This wasn't what was supposed to happen at all. He was supposed to convince Ishin not to do anything, but the God had been convinced for centuries that the Beast needed to die. Nothing a child like him said would change that.

"You rescued me from my prison, allowed me to continue my work. If you truly want to make Vishera a better, safer, place, then I will help you," Ishin said, his voice echoing loudly around the small room. Nerin was frozen in place, his voice caught in his throat. "But if I discover any lies, I will not hesitate to do what is needed. If your men fail, I will kill the Beast myself."

This was what Askarune had warned them about back in the Sanctum. He hadn't known what exactly it was but to Nerin, it was obvious. The thing that came after Harudan, after the war, was Ishin. Isiah would have to defeat his own God or else all of Vishera would fall. That was why Nyat had imprisoned him in the first place and Harudan had set him free.

Nothing could put him back. The crystal was gone and Nyat was dead. The only thing Nerin could do was warn Isiah of what was coming. If Ishin found out that Harudan was lying to him, because Nerin did not doubt that some of what he said was a lie, then he would die, the army would be destroyed and Isiah would be killed. He couldn't let that happen, but there wasn't much he could do.

The conversation between Ishin and Harudan continued, but it was muffled in his ears. Breathing became a struggle as panic overtook, but he couldn't leave, not without it looking suspicious. He had to stay, had to listen, had to come up with a plan to make sure Isiah was prepared for what was coming. With Ishin, Minisia would surely lose unless Isiah did what he was needed.

But he didn't know how a pacifist could do it. There was a part of him that he couldn't ignore that had no hope in the Beast's abilities. If Isiah couldn't come to terms with killing, especially killing a God, then Vishera was doomed.