I still don't know why I'm doing this.

Yeah, Dad told me to and that's usually enough. But why a diary? I have perfect memory, and I can time travel, and teleport anywhere in "normal time". I'm frowning now. 

I don't know why I should write that, but I am.

We don't even have days in the Void so I have no idea when I would do this again. Whenever I feel like it, I guess? Whatever.

Still though...I guess there was one thing that happened. It was weird and it kinda bothered me.

Dad never pulls his punches with what he tells me. But he was acting all covert when I went into his office. He always for the theatrics with his personal space. This time he was sitting in a Roman palace, and of course, he was lounging on the emperor couch. I don't know what the proper term is. He also brought in some grapes though, so that was nice.

Then just when I'm getting comfy, and finally getting used to this weird-ass setting, he gets down to business.

"B, you're not going to be a child forever, not in the purest sense. I am also not blind to your desire for more responsibilities." He was still lounging in his chez. And he was wearing the whole daily regalia. Two-faced opera mask, jet black cassock, amethyst death eyes: the works. Mordred and the others keep telling me it's creepy. I guess I'm just used to it.

I don't mind saying this: I was excited. I even jumped out of my seat and...squeed. Just a little though.

"Really!? Ohshit-oh-shit-oh-shit what do I need to do?" I don't know how to write that down exactly, but that's the best I can do.

I was super-excited. Was I gonna conquer a galaxy? Was I find a superhero and turn him evil? Maybe I'd finally be allowed to create a brand new species in the Eldritch Horror maker? But no, I got stuck with grunt work.

"You will direct Markus Longstreet's next mission." He said it as deadpan as he's ever said anything. It's like he knew I wouldn't like it and put on his serious face just to piss me off more.

I hate it. And I may have overreacted a little.

"That's it!?" So yeah, I know I'm still not as powerful as Dad. And probably never will be...but I'm still a god-killer. When I got mad, I could feel the space around me start to break and get all distorted. I didn't think about that much before, but it's so cool when I look back.

"Just one mission? And it's just another stealth mission too, isn't it?" I was still upset at that moment though. And I could tell that I'd acted just like Dad thought I would and not in a good way.

"That depends on you." He was still lying down, looking all imperial. This was all a test. The setup for his office, the furniture, all of it. Another powerplay and doing all he could to push my subliminal buttons.

I love my Dad.

It took me a sec but I realized what was going on. Once that happened, I perked up a little. I love the game, even when I lose.

"So, the mission. It's just getting rid of the Chronos Gates on Terra 9, right?" I'd sat in on the different planning sessions with our boots on the ground there. Plus, I chatted up Markus a few times before. This was gonna be a cakewalk. Not my idea of a night out, but it would do.

Then, the awkward part.

"The mission is to ensure the Chronos Gates are no longer a problem. And that they never can be again." Dad says a lot of things in a lot of different ways. This was cold, way colder than anything I'd heard in a long time. He was telling me to figure it out on my own, sure. But there were some other parts to what he said.

How am I supposed to make sure the Chronos Gates are never a problem again? Blow up the lab, kill everyone, and their notes? Someone could just watch the news and improvise. Should I just beat them down into the Stone Age? That would bring in a big-ass load of attention from everyone else. Sure, we can beat them too. But that wouldn't be subtle, and dad doesn't like open war. It's not as fun he says.

But I could tell he wasn't gonna answer any more questions. I'd asking to be thrown in the deep end for centuries now and I finally got my wish. So I just gave him a big salute and turned on out of his office.

"Good luck." He meant it when he said it. He always does.

But as soon as I went through the main door, I could see the space around him start to shift. The palace was already changing to a new web for a different fly.

So off I went to see Markus. I like walking through the Void. Mortals and meat-sacks talk about how they get bored with seeing the same thing all the time, but how can you get tired of starlight? I get to walk on and around suns, exploding stars, and spin around whole star systems the way other kids walk on the sidewalk.

And of course, break into other universes like they're cheap condos.

Gottheim is one of my favorites though. Dad tucked this place away to house the mortals, but Uncle Xavi came up with the idea of parking it right next to Elysium and Valhalla. I still remember when dug up Hades' front lawn and made it look like Odin stole it. Good times.

But we decided to lay it out and put some nice ye olde Victorian-style brownstones on top. The newest one, a smaller house with a bunch of homemade arts and pottery out front, is where Markus lives.

Markus Longstreet...sounds like something an indie author would think up.

My boy was out front though, sitting on the top step and reading to his kid. Course Penelope was there too, looking over them like a proud momma should.

Mom...

Still, the moment I got close to them, Penelope locked eyes on me and I remembered how much she hated me. Or maybe she just hates what Dad and I make her husband do. That sounded dirty. Can Eldritch Abominations even have sex? Why am I even thinking about that stuff?

I'm rambling on. 

I told Markus it was time to go, he kissed his family goodbye and gave a whole tearful speech about how he'd be back soon.

And yes: I was kinda jealous. Not too jealous, but a little.

He marched off with me though, and he didn't say a single word until we got to the portal. That was a whole different story though, and I'm tired of talking about this, especially to myself. And I've got work to do anyway. Markus made it safely, of course, but now I have to make sure he plays nice with Hector.

This was nice. I think I'll do it again. Hopefully before the next apocalypse but who knows. Should I sign off or something? Yeah, sure.

(equivalent) Terran Day 613,507,890,125. Or close enough.

First entry by Soulbinder (B), Me!