It felt like a bolt of heavy lightning striked Can throughout his entire body. Goosebumps was felt all over.

"The Beast God... Emperor?" he stammered.

The beast gods were powerful beings that existed way before human civilization has begun. They were the ones that taught the first beast summoner of magic skills and onto the humans. They were the ones that created magic itself. They were magic itself.

Everything was rooted from them. They were gods. And they were ruled by the Beast God Emperor.

To this day, their very existence was still a mystery. Everyone thought of it mostly as a myth, but Can knew. He knew the truth. The First Beast Summoner told him the story of their existence although he did not reveal why the beast gods left the dimension. It would only be the First Beast Summoner; the imprisoned God of Mischief, Pond; and other beasts would be left. Eventually Can became the dimension's guardian.

Seeing how Can reacted, the twins realized that Can knew of their existence. They gave a meaningful gaze at one another.

"So, you're already aware of his existence?" Marco asked curiously.

Can slowly nodded.

"Then you must be aware of what HE is capable of..."

"But what does he need from my children?" Can asked holding Kit and Kat tighter.

"We need to harness their power to destroy the curse created by an evil traitorous witch of ours," Maririn answered. At least she thought that this person deserved to know what they were going to do with them after taking them away.

"A good cause," she said.

Those words triggered Can.

"What do you mean... a good cause!?" he whispered. He was shocked by those words. That emotion changed into rage.

"You want to take away my family from me for your own gain? You just expect me to let you do that!?" Can shouted. He found it ridiculous and infuriating how these two just barged in and thought that he was just willing to take his children away willingly.

Maririn pointed at Can. "We gave you humans our essence. The gift of magic that helped you grow into a powerful and successful society. We handed it to you, for the betterment of your kind. Now, we're asking for help. A small sacrifice on your part."

"You just expect me to agree? Are you insane?" Can roared. He did not care about the gift of magic they gave the humans. They could take it away for all he cares! His spiritual pressure further burst, but it did not affect the twins, at least they did not show that they were affected.

Can's anger filled him. Just because they were beast gods did not mean he would let them do whatever they wanted.

Maririn calmly stated, "We're not expecting you to agree at all, Can Rathavit. We'll take them by any other means possible."

"You have to go through me then," Can said. He had no choice but to fight. Although he knew that he might lose, he has to give it all. Why was there always problem after problem?

Can knew that he could not fight in this mansion. It was too dangerous. He needed another location to fight.

"I thought so too," Maririn whispered.

The twins moved. As they were about to approach Can with a step forward, their surroundings changed. In a blink of an eye, they were in a different area. Another dimension.

Lush greenery. Ancient buildings. Beasts of various forms living in harmony. Strong spiritual energy. A quick glance and they knew. They immediately felt familiar and connected to it. It was Alethran. Their home. The homeland that was forced to be abandoned due to a powerful curse that even their father could not destroy.

Marco shivered. "Maririn!"

"I know!" Maririn said with irritation.

They could not stay here. This place they call home was now cursed. Any beast god who entered and touched by the black mist would be cursed which would lead to misfortunes and ultimately death. It was described that as soon as the black mist touched a part of your body, it would mark the end of your doom. That curse would slowly consume the life force and spiritual energy of the victim until nothing was left. A curse that must be avoided at all cost even by the most powerful beast god.

But Maririn was given an important mission by his father. He could not fail him or else it would cause the beast gods their lives. They may or may not have another chance to take the children. This was a golden opportunity since Can was at his most vulnerable.

"We'll have to take him down with our full power," Maririn said. They have to do it as soon as possible. The moment they were detected by the curse, it would be disastrous. It was a gamble. If the two of them use both of their full power, they could overwhelm Can immediately.

"But...," Marco hesitated.

"We have no choice and very little time Marco. We can't go home empty-handed," she said. They have to complete their mission. They must!

In front of them, Can was standing up. He was not holding his children.

"Where..." Maririn frowned.

Can has decided to let his summoned beasts hide them somewhere within the dimension where they could be safe. He separated them both as well just to make it harder for his enemies just in case he failed. He could not just leave them in the mansion in case these two had backups. There were too many risks in doing so. Tin could not fight anymore. Pete would only be overpowered within seconds. No one that he knew could match them. It was just him and his summoned beasts.

With him, he summoned his most powerful beasts and integrated their skills and pieces of armor onto him: Valkyrie's spear, Satan Morroc's armor, Amdarias boots, Detale's helmet, etc. Of course, he wore the strongest shield known to mankind: Guyak Shield. He still was not sure if this was enough.

"They're here. Both of them scattered in the opposite direction," Marco said. There was a mysterious symbol that illuminated a blue color as clear as the vast ocean on his forehead. It was a "V" sign that has a dot in the middle.

"Change plans. I'll distract him, find them," Maririn said as she eyed Can within his helmet.

Marco opened his mouth and closed it again. He then firmed himself and went away to find the children.

Can was about to give chase when Maririn came close. Her cloak flutters and her flaming sword with her right hand. She made a vertical slash. Can raised his shield and blocked. She was quick!

Marco got away quite fast like a whirlwind.

"Damn it," Can muttered angrily.

With his spear, he went ahead and traded blows with Maririn. He did not think he could easily slip away from Maririn. So, he went ahead and fought her.

Unfortunately, as they went on Can could certainly feel that he was losing. It was expected since he has not fully recovered yet. Although this might be the case, he was not the one to easily give up.

Wherever the two of them land, huge explosions of debris, cloud of dusts, and tremors were felt. The beasts were shaken in fear as they flee the battle. Can was a Supreme Ruler. He was the most powerful in the world. As for Maririn, she was considered the strongest fighter among the beast gods. Although Can was putting a fight, Maririn was not breaking a sweat. Her full might was staggeringly strong. Stronger than anyone Can have faced. It was only thanks to the Guyak Shield that he could still stand this long. If it were not for it, he was certain to die a long ago.

On Marcos's side, he sensed where one of the babies was located. It was inside of some cave filled with defensive and offensive spell traps. Luckily, this was his expertise. Still, he cautiously entered and disabled them one by one. The devil minion beasts called Deviruchis inside the cave panicked. They were all experts in spell traps and for someone to easily remove them, they felt shamed and fear. The three small devils with their small pitchforks the size of a normal fork made a promise to Can that they will protect the child no matter what. And so they will.

Soon, Marco reached the end of the cave without even sweating. He found the three small devils. Small wings like a bat behind their backs fluttering. Their pointy ears wiggling. Small hands that were even shorter than the baby they were protecting. The pitchforks they held were pointed at him. They were certainly cute and he would not even think that these three would be the ones who created those complex spell traps that he unraveled.

The three devils made a move against him trying to penetrate Marco with their pitchforks but the difference in their powers was like heaven and earth. With a wave of Marcos's hand, the three devils fell. They were not dead. Only knocked out. Marco was not the murdering type, unlike his sister. They were polar opposites. He was the kind one, Maririn as the cruel one. He was the more casual one, his sister as the serious one. Even though this was the case, they were very close. They care for one another. His sister cares for him too much that she would shield him from anyone who tries to harm or criticize him. She would carry the burden for both of them. No wonder father was always disappointed in him. He tried to be like his sister, but he was not like her. He was comfortable with the way he was.

With the three devils out of the way, Marco picked up the baby who was covered in now a dirty piece of white linen. The baby cried.

Marco observed the baby and felt guilty. He tried to calm the baby, but he could not do it. Although he felt awful about this, it was a necessary thing to do. This was for the survival of the god beasts. His people.

He left the cave, but before he could move to track the other baby, he felt a sudden chill behind his back. With sharp reflexes, he jumped away and looked behind him while keeping the baby in his arms. It was the black mist!

=====

Check out my etsy store:

https://www.etsy.com/shop/BoboeTheWhale?ref=seller-platform-mcnav