Upon a hill, under a lemon tree, during this chaotic state of the world, an old dog stood stoically, awaiting their owner.

"Any moment now," the dog thought to itself, shivering in the cold.

Laying down, the dogs tried warming themselves up, eventually closing their eyes.

(Splat)

They opened their eyes to find a man with the stench of death splashing in the mud as they climbed up the hill.

"Grrrr... Go away! Back! Get back!" they barked at the young man who reached for one of the lemons.

"No! Not yours!"

Thane:?

Before grabbing a lemon, Thane noticed the dog beside him. Crouching down, Thane curiously stared at the dog which barked and barked but got no reaction from the Champion of Death.

Thane's eyes then decayed, becoming pale and lifeless which made the dog bark louder.

"Go away!"

Thane: Why?

At first, the dog was taken aback but quickly barked back.

"Not your tree! Go away!"

Thane: Who's tree is it?

"It belongs to mommy! She'll be back soon! So go away!"

Thane: Can I have just one lemon?

"No!"

Thane: Fine... I'll ask this "mommy" lady when she gets back.

Sitting down next to the dog Thane ignored their growls and snarls. Instead, he leaned against the tree making the dog angrier.

Thane: How long have you been waiting?

"Grrr..."

Thane: Relax. I don't want to hurt you or this tree.

"..... She's been gone a little bit. But will be back!"

Thane: How long is a little bit?

"What do you mean?" the dog asked.

Thane: Minutes, hours, days?

"I do not know what those are."

Thane: How many times have you seen the moon?

"A few times," they answered.

Thane: 1? 2..3? 5?

"What do those words mean?"

Thane:..... How does one explain the concept of numbers to someone with no understanding of math...?

Thane: I guess it's like explaining color to a color-blind-

Thane:(stares at the dog)...

Thane: Huh... Being a dog sucks.

"You suck! Go away!" still eager to get rid of Thane, they took any excuse to bark at him.

Thane: Tell me... What's your mommy like?

"Mommy is the best! She feeds me yummy food! Takes me for lots of walks! And gives me rub-rubs!" they waggled their tail in excitement over the thought of their owner.

"She's is very smart too! Told me to wait here if I ever get lost! And I got lost! But she will come!"

Thane: Does she have white hair and wrinkles?

"How did you know?!" the dog was shocked.

"Are you a mind reader?"

Thane: Just a guess.

The Champion glances at something next to the tree before turning his gaze to what the dog stood upon.

Thane: Do you love your mommy?

"Yes!" they barked out without question.

Thane: What's it like to be so loyal to someone?

"It's not like anything! I love Mommy and Mommy loves me. Loyalty comes with territory." they gave surprisingly profound words to Thane.

Thane: Wow. That's not too far off from faith...

"What's Faith?"

Thane: I see we found the limit of your depth.

"You stink! Go away!"

Thane: I can't do that. Not until you do.

"I'll never leave! Not until Mommy comes back!"

Thane: She isn't coming back... Couldn't even if she wanted to.

"Lies!!" they began to growl at Thane.

Thane: Look down.

"Huh? Why?"

The dog looked down to see a pile of dog bones, which confused them.

"How did these get here? Oh well, better get rid of them before mommy comes!" they say as they lean down to grab them with their mouth.

But they find their mouth goes through the bones.

"Huh?"

Confused, the dog tried again, until they began to try and claw at the bones only to find their paws fade through the bones as well.

Thane: You're dead.

"What?"

Thane: You died.

"But I feel fine. Never better."

Thane puts his hands through the dog.

Thane: You're dead. Sorry, but that's the case.

"Wh-What about mommy? I'm supposed to meet her..."

Thane: You still can. Just not here.

"Where?"

Thane: Well, you'll just have to see for yourself. Regardless... We have to wait for someone.

"Who?"

Thane: Either a doggy like you or a wonderful lady.

"Oh... Okay..."

"Why am I dead?"

Thane: It was probably your time- wait, you don't know what that is.

Thane: Everything dies. It was just your turn.

"What about mommy?"

Thane: The same thing.

"No! Mommy can't die!"

Thane:(glances to the side) You'll see her soon enough. So don't be whiny.

A Death Jackal then appears, approaching Thane.

Thane: Took you long enough.

Jackal: Champion...

Thane: Oh. You're not Medina.

Jackal: I'm one of her sons. Mother needs you.

Thane: Where is she...?

Jackal: Continue heading north, once you see a lake, follow its beach around. You can't miss it.

Thane: Alright. In the meantime, take this pup to its owner.

Jackal:(stares at the dog) Since you brought this subject up...

Jackal: Champion, I must warn you. Mistress Azrei is missing, and most of the pack is tracking her.

Jackal: Her scent leads to the forgotten afterlife.

Jackal: And with the majority of the pack out to retrieve her and wither her being gone...

Jackal: A surplus of souls will temporarily be trapped.

Jackal: That's not even mentioning the cloud of souls around the world-

Thane: What's your name?

Jackal: Anubis.

Thane: Anubis, stop worrying.

With a rotten hand, he pets Anubis.

Thane: Now you do your job. And I'll do mine.

Anubis: Understood.

Grabbing the soul of the dog, Anubis races into the afterlife. Thane gets up and looks at the grave beside the lemon tree.

Thane: Your dog was kinda dumb. But loyal.

Thane: I wonder if I'm that loyal...

Burying the dog next to the woman's grave, he carved something into the tree, before grabbing a lemon and heading North.

Upon finding the lake Anubis talked about, Thane continued to follow the road, as he saw a familiar queen on the same road.

Medina limped with a few of her children, who scattered off upon noticing Thane.

Thane: Funny meeting you here.

Medina: You're still alive...?

Thane: I feel like that's my line. What happened?

Medina: The God of Choas...

Thane: You met him too? He's such a prick, right?

Medina: They took over the castle and sent the gods to the forgotten afterlife according to my children.

Medina: Not to mention flicked me three and two-quarters of a lap around the world...

Medina: So yeah, he's a prick...

Thane: You counted the laps?

Medina:(stares)...

Thane:....

Thane: Anyway. What's this "Forgotten Afterlife"?

Medina: Cardsha's afterlife for his followers. It's basically a world where literally anything can occur at random.

Medina: It's the one place the other gods would have trouble navigating.

Medina: I give them a week before one of them blows it up.

Thane: Can't they do it right away?

Medina: They aren't doing it right away because they would risk damaging one of their afterlives.

Thane: Alright. I'm guessing we're going to the castle to kick Cardsha out?

Medina: Not exactly... We need to take back control of the castle,

Medina: Seeing as you're the only one who physically can...

Medina: You're going to be challenging a god.

Thane: Alright.

Medina: Hehe... I think I'm starting to value your fearlessness. I even wish I had it...

Thane: I may be fearless but not stupid. Do I honestly have a chance against him?

Medina: Cardsha isn't who you'll be fighting. It is the castle itself. And you won before.

Medina: You see, Cardsha is still locked behind the gate I guard that houses the void.

Medina: The room is enchanted by the 7 other gods. So not even he can break it.

Medina: However, the gate is a weak spot, which could eventually be cracked open.

Thane: What makes the gate a weak spot?

Medina: It opens. For Lady Azrei needs access to the void.

Thane: What for?

Medina: That is her business.

Thane: Got it. You can take a break. I'll go handle the castle.

Medina: No! I'm coming with you. It's my duty.

Thane:(walks faster)

Medina: You little...

Thane:(sigh)...

Medina: Without the other Champions, you'll need backup.

Thane: Doubtful. But I do have a few questions, so...

Throwing Medina over his shoulders, Thane picks up the pace towards the castle.

Thane: Aren't there like vents into the void room? And didn't we run through it in our vent adventure?

Medina: The vent was likely a fake... As is the room we flew past.

Medina: But because it's fake, does not make it any less dangerous for us to look at.

Medina: The Void was used to trap a god. Even a drawing of the void, if accurate enough could have a similar effect.

Thane: Hmmm... I'm kinda interested in looking at it now.

Medina: And now, I'm back to believing you're a complete fool....

(Ending Theme)