Bob's Bar

Bob woke up in amazement at his attribute points. He felt he was stacked now for points considering the amount of fights he had. Bob was in a good mood, he did his normal morning routine, ate his meal, washed up, and meditated. He heard the Pitboss come in to escort an avatar to their fight, then come back a while later, no avatar behind him. The Pitboss started his rounds, telling the fighters their next opponents. It had taken a long time for him to make it to Bob's cage.

"Your next fight has been postponed by two days. Lord Life and Lord Death are holding a grand ball that all of the gods must attend," the Pitboss said. "Your next fight is going to be another group battle. This time, however, it will be five on five. You will not be given the names of your opponents, and you will not be granted time to train with your group. This match is meant to be utter chaos."

"This doesn't sound good," Bob answered. "Why are we not allowed time to practice together as a group? Chaos will definitely happen."

"Aye, it is a blood bath these matches. I have escorted many avatars to them, but not many have returned."

"So when exactly is the fight?"

"It will be three days from today. The gods are having their grand ball in two days. Only a few smaller fights are happening in the interim."

"I guess you can't tell me much more?"

"You know the rules."

"Doesn't hurt to try. Guess I will get back to my meditation for now. Unless..."

"Get back to it then."

Bob chuckled a little as the Pitboss left his cage and moved on to the next. He went back to his meditation, clearing his mind of the anxiety wanting to take over.

~~~

The interior of the palace was bustling with all types of beings. All of the gods were in attendance as required by Life and Death, as well as a massive number of followers acting as servers for the gods. All of the followers wore robes signifying which god they belonged to, looking from above it was a rainbow of colors undulating and moving in all directions. On the grand ballroom floor gods danced with one another, and others mingled and shared small talk. The atmosphere of the party was light, but there was an ominous undertone hiding away. Mischief, Pain, and Luck had for the most part stayed together in a small group, occasionally talking with other gods passing by. They didn't let it show on their faces, but the sudden ball felt off to them, and they were worried about being discovered. Life appeared above the dance floor and gave instructions that the doors were to be sealed and nobody present was allowed to leave. All of the lesser gods were instructed to stay in the grand ballroom and continue to mingle. The ascended gods were asked to depart the floor and move up a level to the grand theater. There they all found luxurious seats all facing towards the stage. No followers or attendants were allowed in.

The curtains opened up revealing a raised dais with both Life and Death in their thrones. There was an altar placed in the center of the stage, off of the dais. A crystal sphere sat on the altar. All of the ascended gods knew what that crystal was. It would glow a bright red light if the god touching it harbored any ill will towards the greater gods.

"It has come to our attention," Life said in an imperious tone. "That one or more of you may have had your loyalties towards us shift in a direction that would be most unfortunate."

"One by one, you will all come up to the altar, place your hand on the sphere, and swear your loyalty to us," Death said. His power radiated from his body, and all of the gods near the front felt the pressure of it. "Let us begin."

One at a time, the gods walked up to the altar and swore their loyalty to them. It was acceptable to only show loyalty to one or the other, it was less common for an ascended to show loyalty to both. All of the gods watched as one after another placed their hands on the orb, only for it to have no negative response. Hunt's turn was coming up soon. He had been forced to use this orb before. He was confident nothing had changed since that last time. Finally, it was his turn, he walked up to the altar and placed his hand on the sphere.

"I the ascended god Hunt, lord to all who brave the wilds to put meat in their families bellies, lord of protecting beasts from being over-harvested or poached, hereby swear my undying loyalty to the Greater gods Life and Death. For without them, there would be no cycle."

The orb did not react negatively. He kept a straight face the entire time looking at both Life and Death. He took his hands off the orb and was about to turn away when Life spoke.

"Hunt, why do you show us both loyalty?"

"Without you Lord Life, there would be nothing for my followers to hunt. Without Lord Death, the slain beast's souls would not be able to enter the afterlife."

"Why have you chosen to grant your favor to an avatar that hasn't made it out of the fifth fight yet?"

"He demonstrated to me an excellent understanding of his abilities, and how to use them to their fullest potential. He showed great courage in fighting up close even though he is a ranged class. He kept track of his prey the entire time, and came out victorious."

"Very well."

There were only a few more gods to swear on the orb after Hunt. They finished quickly. Once everybody was seated again Death spoke to them once more.

"It pleases us that none of you have forgotten your oaths of loyalty towards us. In a few moments, we will be announcing a change in the rules for all avatars fighting in their fifth match. It will no longer be a group contest. Instead, it will be ten fighters, free for all, with only one survivor allowed to leave. This will guarantee that the later-stage fights will be more entertaining to watch. Are there any questions?"

None of the ascended gods spoke.

"Excellent, let us go down to inform the lesser gods," Death said.

They all blinked to the grand ballroom. Death announced to the lesser gods about the change in rules. The ballroom was silent as everything was explained to them. Afterward, Life and Death joined the attendees on the dance floor and the ball resumed. The doors to the ballroom were still sealed. Nobody was allowed to leave just yet. Life and Death walked around the ballroom floor stopping occasionally to share a few words with some of the lesser gods. The atmosphere had grown tense, and it was clear that hardly anybody felt comfortable anymore. At least it was that way for the lesser gods. Mischief, Pain, and Luck had been standing off to the side, but they grew more and more weary as Life and Death slowly approached them.