Villain Retirement

"We—I have come to like living with the living."

The Primordials.

This was not the first time Hannah was seeing them up close and personal. After all, she idiotically approached them during Riley's Tournament and suspected them of being Riley and his team. She did not really feel any grand presence then, and she was still not feeling it now.

All of them were naked, but Hannah did not feel like they were.

It was truly weird. Unlike the themarians, the norinlads, evaniels, or even Riley — these primordials did not really emit the aura of being all-powerful, which they are. They felt completely familiar, like someone Hannah would just meet on the sidewalk and not think of again.

Even as they stood here in the emptiness of nothing, Hannah was completely relaxed.

"Does that mean you will be trying to end my existence now, Navi?" Riley stepped forward and met with Navi's calm eyes, "I suppose it will take a while as I am now — but someday soon, I will wake up capable of ending all of you too."

"No, Riley Ross," Death also stepped forward; her white, slightly grayish hair locked in dreads, flowing in the expanse of space, "We are not capable of ending things, you are the only Primordial actually capable of doing so."

"..." Riley blinked a couple of times before looking around the universe Death and her brethren just tore open, "I do not believe that is the case, Death."

"You may have already noticed since you now have the power to do so, young one…" Celestial; the tallest one in the group, one who held a sort of maternal gentleness in her voice. Her golden hair was long, trailing down her large bosoms all the way to her ankles,

"...but the thing you call time is currently halted."

"Hm."

"If a thing is destroyed when time is stopped," Celestial snapped her fingers, causing a spark to flash in her hands — and within that flash, Hannah and the others could see some sort of miniature galaxy,

"And then it is created again without change before time once again ticks, then has it really been destroyed?"

"Yes," Riley answered without any hesitation, "Because all of us present here know that you and the others destroyed it, Celestial."

"I hate you to the very core of my existence, Riley Ross," Celestial closed her hand into a fist before pointing at Riley, "How can something like you even exist with us!? You—"

"Forgive her."

And before Celestial could finish her words, she was pushed by a skinny man without even a single trace of hair on his body. His skin was dark, incredibly so that if he closed his eyes and did not carry a smile on his face, he would disappear in the dark expanse of space that surrounded him, or her — it was vague.

"Celestial truly hates you for some unknown reason. I should introduce myself, I am Elementia," Elementia bowed, "I exist, because the others exist. And they exist, because I exist."

"I am Riley Ross," Riley also bowed, "I exist, and therefore nothing else should."

"This young one truly knows how to infuriate me. You—" Celestial once again stepped toward Riley, only to be pushed to the side by a small boy with purple hair.

"What's up? You met my father several times," the boy stretched his hand to Riley.

"Ruin," Riley reached and shook Ruin's hand, "Yes. I have met him plenty of times."

"What's he like?" Ruin squinted, "I haven't actually met him even once although he's supposed to have directly created me. Can you ask him if he forgot that old sister Death was already here when he created me?"

"If the opportunity arises again, Ruin."

"I'll give you the opportunity now," Celestial scoffed. She did not approach Riley this time, however, as the gentleness in her face returned when she placed her attention to Aerith instead, "Did you know that I created the very first themarian?"

"I'm… aware that you created everything that breathes," Aerith lowered her head as she spoke to Celestial.

"For you to be directly involved with Riley Ross," Celestial sighed as she gently held Aerith's chin, "I am truly sorry that you have gone through that. You too, Hannah Ross."

"...Right, yes. Thank you," Hannah did not really know how to act. She just tightened her hold on Paige… only to finally realize that she was not actually there anymore, "What the—Where's Paige!?"

"Gone," And finally, Machina, who had been keeping quiet the entire time, stepped forward; crossing its arm as it looked Riley in the eyes. Like Elementia, it was hard to determine whether Machina's body belonged to that of a man or a woman.

"...Gone?" Hannah's eyes widened, "You… didn't kill her, did you?"

"We can not end things," Machina repeated Death's words, "We merely sent the entity known as Paige to where it belongs. Unlike Riley Ross, Paige is more similar to us — a creature of creation."

"If she is truly meant to replace us…" Navi raised her hand, causing all the other Primordials to take a step back as she stood in front of Riley again, "...Then it is only right that she should learn how to harness her abilities to their full potential."

"What else is there to harness, Navi?" Riley placed his hand on his chin, "Once I destroy everything, the reality Paige will create will replace all of Creation. Her abilities may not be able to interact with everything else, but once everything else is gone, then only her truth will remain…

…She, alone, will hold all of your roles — she, alone, will replace all of you."

"Do you hear the words that come out of this young one's mouth?" Celestial pointed at Riley and scoffed.

"Truth comes out of my mouth, Celestial," Riley nodded, "None of you will be necessary in her creation — and my role is to make sure that none of you remain."

"But is it, truly? Your role?" Death approached Riley with her eyes closed; the smile on her face, almost familiar, "We can talk about everything and anything, and yet the universal fact remains — we know nothing. Even the preprimordial known as Nothing knows nothing."

"..." Hannah could not help but just squint her eyes as she looked at Aerith, who seemed to be just as confused as her.

"There is, however, something that we know ever since the dawn of our births," Navi smiled as she looked Riley in the eyes,

"The stronger waves will always prevail. Is your truth stronger than ours, Riley Ross?"

"I suppose," Riley shrugged.

"No! You…" Celestial seemed to want to strangle Riley there and then, "...Look, you are not the first to challenge our role in the Creation, Riley Ross. You might not even be the last — but there are many who have come before you, and they are still trying to prove if their truth is stronger than ours… and yet universes have come and gone, and still their truth remains to be false."

"You will be sent to the same place where Paige is," Navi raised her finger, summoning some sort of portal. This portal, however, had a white glowing ring surrounding it, "The place where gods, new and old, reside. A place that sits only beneath ours…

…the Domain of the Gods."

"No," Riley shook his head and just turned around, "I still have a lot of things to do, universes to end."

"That is true," Celestial smiled, "But we were not asking."

"Riley!"

And there and then, both Aerith and Hannah watched as the portal just suddenly moved on its own and swallowed Riley; instantly closing after.

"I apologize for separating you from the man you love," Navi let out a short but very deep sigh as she looked at both Aerith and Hannah, "Although I do not understand love at all, I feel that it must be very strong for the two of you to still stand by his side after all that he has done."

"...I've heard that three times now," Aerith could really only let out a short chuckle, "...And honestly, I am as clueless as all of you are when it comes to love. I do feel that I am in love with Riley — but how, exactly, when all we have ever been are enemies? And as long as he wishes to destroy all life, he will always remain an enemy…

…but there are gaps there where his humanity shows and all you can see is the beauty of what could have been. And those gaps, I love him in all of it."

"I…" Hannah blinked a couple of times as she just stared at the spot where Riley disappeared, "...He's my brother."

"He might no longer be when he returns," Navi once again sighed, "But that is why we need both of you, the Sister and the Lover."

"We have brought all of you time," Celestial opened her arms and smiled, "At the expense of all my children, we have brought you time."

"...What?"

"Figure out a way to stop him," Machina also opened her arms, "My avatar will assist you in the right conditions."

"...How long do we have?" Aerith asked.

"...A year, a decade, a century, perhaps even an eon," Navi and the other primordials closed their eyes; their silhouettes, very slowly fading away, "A month, a day, an hour, a minute, or perhaps it might not even take a second. The only truth we know…

…is that he will return."

***

In an endless field of clouds, Riley found himself staring at the equally endless horizon he suddenly found himself in. He could see something colossal slithering up and down the clouds, very slowly, but surely approaching him. And very soon, it stopped just in front of him.

[I welcome you, young god…

…to the Domain of the Gods.]

"Hm…

…Interesting."