Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

Vahn had thought of an explanation for Anubis, so he said, "It's strange, but this chain, [Enkidu], seems to have appeared in my body. I've never used it before, and it seems to be bonded with my soul." As he spoke, he disabled [Veil of the Traveler] to reveal his soul for Anubis to see. Her eyes opened wide when she suddenly had the chance to see Vahn's unique soul once again. Like before, it had a beautiful golden color with rainbow hues swirling within; she could now see a sphere of pure golden chains spiraling around each other.

In a somewhat dazed state, Anubis slowly spoke out, "It's so beautiful..." Vahn nodded his head because he thought she was talking about [Enkidu], not admiring his soul itself. In Anubis's eyes, Vahn wasn't simply an anomaly or someone with a mutated soul, but he was something far greater. She suspected it had something to do with his origins, and she very much wanted to know what had transpired to create something as unique as the soul before her. As Vahn hadn't hidden it away, her vision was instinctually pulled as she gazed deeper into the interior of his soul. She felt like it contained the power of infinity, and had a strange desire to probe its depths.

Vahn concealed his soul again because he had noticed that Anubis's eyes had actually begun to glaze over. He wondered if just the sight of [Enkidu] had an effect, but noticed that her dazed state faded almost immediately when he hid his soul. Now, she looked a bit sad and forlorn, almost like she had lost something precious to her. Even her ears, which normally pointed toward the sky, had drooped down a bit. Vahn was a bit worried about her, so he asked, "Are you okay, Anubis?"

Hearing the concerned voice of her Master, Anubis's ears twitched before standing back up. She turned to him with a smile on her face as she bowed politely, "Forgive me, Master, I just got distracted for a moment." Seeing that Vahn hadn't been relieved by her words, she continued and tried to change the mood by asking, "So, those chains suddenly appeared in your soul? Do you have any idea about their use?"

Her words reminded Vahn of his reason for calling her, so he explained with a bit of worry in his tone, "It seems to be able to pierce anything, though there is a bit of a delay before it takes effect. The primary function, though, seems to be...to bind things that possess Divinity..." Anubis was very interested in the effects of the remarkably beautiful chain, but hearing the last part of Vahn's words surprised her quite a bit. If what he said was true, then the chains would be a powerful artifact against gods, demigods, and some spirits.

She suddenly had a thought and, with a strange glint in her eyes, asked Vahn, "Do you want to try it on me...Master?" Vahn was surprised, not only because her words coincided with his intent, but because she asked the question on her own initiative. Though he had 'ordered' her to come to the room, he hadn't done anything to make her take an interest in the chains other than displaying his soul and discussing the effects of [Enkidu].

Vahn's surprise faded and he nodded with while saying in a cautious tone, "I do want to try...but the effects may be uncomfortable, or even painful, for you. I don't want to do anything that would bring you harm, but I would like to know the effects of the chains." Anubis didn't seem bothered by his words at all, as even her tail started to gently wag back and forth. She was pleased that Vahn was concerned for her, but she always wanted to help him if she could be of use. So far, it had been primarily Vahn taking care of her and her children, and she had yet to do anything worthy of mention.

Anubis walked forward and grabbed the chain with her hand while Vahn was still hesitating. She asked in a curious manner, "What should I do?" Vahn hadn't expected her to be so unconcerned after he warned her of the danger. He was worried about the fact that her Loyalty may be influencing her decision, so he sent a mental command compelling her to speak her true thoughts.

While she continued to fiddle with the chain, Anubis started speaking in a somewhat plain and dismissive manner, "I really wish Master would be needier. If he wants to bind me up in chains, he doesn't even have to ask. The idea of being bound by the Master I chose to follow makes my heart itch with anticipation." Though she hadn't paid it any attention when speaking, after her words finished, Anubis had a shocked expression as she stared wide-eyed toward Vahn.

Vahn also had a very shocked expression as he looked at Anubis who appeared as though her brain had stopped working. It wasn't just the two of them either, as even Nanu stared slack-jawed from the side, almost as if she had turned into a statue. Hearing her goddess casually announce she wanted to be bound by their Master was a big impact on the young girl.

After a few seconds, Anubis's lowered her head and refused to make eye contact with Vahn as she explained in a frantic manner, "I don't know what came over me! Please ignore what I just said, but I really meant it!" As she finished her words, Anubis once again paused after hearing what she just said. She had no idea what was going on, and all of the thoughts she buried in her heart seemed to be pouring out. Her ears began to twitch while her tail looked like it was trying to free itself from her body. She was incredibly embarrassed by what had just happened, not once, but twice.

Vahn was still shocked, but after realizing the cause of her strange behavior, he quickly dismissed the original 'order' he had sent. He now knew that some of his orders had lasting effects, and he worried that he may have done something to severely damage Anubis's Loyalty. Interestingly enough, instead of going down, it had actually increased to 99. Vahn was confused as he stared at the flustered goddess who looked like she was trying to shrink into the smallest form she could. He never expected her to have such a reaction to embarrassment.

At this point, Nanu was doing her best to look away from the scene that was playing out in front of her. If it weren't for the fact that Vahn was the 'Alpha' and her Master, she would have lost all the faith she had in her Goddess. However, when thinking about having her Master bind her with a chain, she couldn't help but slowly wag her tail from side to side just like Anubis. As a chienthrope from the Southern Tribe, the idea of a hierarchy and being somewhat submissive to those in a higher position was deeply embedded in her heart. She felt like the attention of her Master would raise her own value, and she would be able to brag about it to the others.

Anubis seemed to recover a bit and tried regulating her breathing before fixing her posture and resuming her normally elegant and poised manner. She gave Vahn a gentle smile before bowing politely and saying, "Please forgive my verbal slip Master. I only wished to express my willingness to assist you in understanding the effects of the chains."

Vahn was impressed with how quickly she was able to recover and even more so by how easily she seemed to be able to put the matter behind her. He promised to do something to make it up to her later since it was his fault she had been subjected to such an embarrassing plight. For now, he still wanted to test the [Enkidu] that she had been holding onto for a while. It seemed to have no effect just being held by a goddess, so he wasn't sure what to do to activate it.

As Vahn was thinking how to 'bind' Anubis with the chains, he felt a pulse pass through [Enkidu] and it broke free of Anubis's hands and seemed to come alive as it danced through the air. While both Vahn and Anubis were surprised by the sudden lively chain, the chains itself seemed to coil around in the air surrounding Anubis as it continued extending from Vahn's hand and rapidly draining his energy reserves.

Vahn began to panic as he stared at Anubis who had been encircled by the swirling golden chains. He tried willing [Enkidu] to stop, but it seemed intent on performing its duty as the chains froze in the air and began to contract. Anubis's eyes opened wide at the sight and she felt an incredibly dangerous feeling well up from the very core of her soul. She felt like, if the chains closed in on her, she would never be able to escape.

Time seemed to come to a crawl as Vahn stared in horror at the sight as it was unfolding before him. He shouted inside his mind with as much force as he could manage while a cold sensation exploded out of his mind, ("DON'T YOU DARE HARM HER!"). The hatred Vahn felt at [Enkidu] and his own actions seemed to shatter reality itself as all color drained from the world around him. The pulse passed through [Enkidu] and, instead of rapidly closing in on Anubis, the chains slowed to a crawl and gently entangled her figure.

The fear that had overwhelmed Anubis previously seemed to fade in an instant as the chains gently embraced her body. Anubis was surprised by the warm feeling of the chain and was curious at how metal was able to make her feel comfortable when it should feel much more restrictive. Seeing Vahn release a heavy and relieved sigh, Anubis said, "I don't feel any different Master. If anything, the chains are actually comfortable..." Realizing how her words could be interpreted, Anubis's eyes widened again and she suddenly wanted to crawl into a hole and hide.

Vahn didn't seem to catch the innuendo contained in her words as he asked with a bit of relief and a tinge of curiosity, "Can you try using your Divinity? It doesn't have to be a large amount, just try activating it." Anubis nodded her head before standing still for a few seconds. After a while, she tilted her head in a confused manner after realizing nothing had happened. Even though she had 'activated' her Divinity, there was no release of aura or shaking in the atmosphere.

After realizing what this meant, Anubis's confusion turned to shock as she picked up a segment of the golden chains with a reverent and awe-filled look. It was like she had found the most beautiful treasure in the world, and it made Vahn a bit curious, so he asked, "Did you notice anything?" Anubis looked toward him as he asked the question, and for some reason, she had a very big smile on her face as she said, "I can't activate my Divinity at all! It's like all my power is completely sealed."

Vahn was satisfied with her answer, but he wasn't sure why she seemed to be excited at having her Divinity sealed away. Before he could ask, Anubis motioned Nanu over with her hands with an anticipatory look on her face. Nanu, though confused, didn't hesitate at all as she trotted over to Anubis. She came to a stop directly in front of her and waited for Anubis's order.

Anubis still had a smile on her face as she said, "Take off your blouse, I want to try and update your Status Board real fast." Vahn was surprised by Anubis's actions, but it didn't seem like Nanu shared his shock as she immediately removed the black sleeveless blouse she had been wearing. Though he had seen her figure before in the bath, Vahn was a bit dazed at seeing someone undressing in the middle of a place like his workshop. Though her breasts were rather small, only marginally larger than Tiona's, she was wearing a form-fitting black sports bra with golden embroidery.

After removing her blouse, Nanu turned around and Anubis quickly rolled up the back of the stretchy fabric. As she was standing between Vahn and Anubis, Nanu was staring directly toward him with her breasts exposed. Though Vahn felt a little flustered, Nanu seemed completely indifferent to being seen, so he managed to keep his expression from changing. He remembered that, as the 'Alpha', she had an inherent respect for him, and he didn't want to damage her image of him.

Vahn just continued to hold eye contact with Nanu who stared at his face unblinkingly as Anubis tried updating her status. After a few failed attempts, Anubis's smile grew wider as she looked toward Vahn with a strange and almost passionate gaze. Vahn was curious, but without having to ask Anubis explained, "These chains seem to completely restrict the effects of a gods soul on a mortal body. As long as you wrap up a god or goddess with these chains, they'll be just a normal man or woman."

Vahn nodded his head at her explanation, but he couldn't understand why it seemed so interesting to her. Anubis smiled widely and explained in a manner that even Vahn could understand, "It means, if you tie up Lady Hephaestus's arms when you have sex, you might be able to get her pregnant. I'm really interested in seeing what is going to happen in the future. It seems like I chose my Master well~!"

(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'There are no absolutes in the world','Godhand Learns a Useful 'Technique','Anubim, because there is no S in Anubis')