The Death-Walker stood silently, internally deliberating the situation. "I think betrayal is to blame."

The moment it spoke, Carl looked back at the more experienced immortals, all of whom shrugged with absolutely no idea as to what it could mean.

"Apologies, you will need to explain."

"I sensed that I should come here with the others and let them build a nest. it felt like the desire of Death and Nothingness. I was sure it was..." The Death-Walker paused, clearly trying to continue analysing the predicament as it explained. "...Was this wrong?"

"I don't know, did you want me to ask Nergal to come and help you figure it out? If someone is somehow impersonating laws it could be disastrous."

"Agreed. That would be best."

Carl called and Nergal was quick to answer, in total agreement about the potential danger of someone managing to impersonate the laws.

"So, Death-Walker. How long ago did you hear this?"

"Not long. It was less hear and more feel."

"Feel? Like the law itself came to you?"

"Is that rare?..." Gillian asked the question allowed while sending a message for Carl to throw up a barrier. "...Lillim and I felt the law of Infinity activate along with a sub-routine of that Ishtar had Remus install in my system. I figured it was like a blessing they bestowed on Elder-Gods or something."

"No, I am the eldest son of Death and I have never heard my father's voice in all the time mankind has existed. Death-Walker, I fear you have indeed been tricked, I suggest you thank Carl for engaging with you and inform the other Death-Walkers."

The Death-Walker began carving something into its hand and approached, the moment somehow catching every single one of them off-guard in a way that could not be mere coincidence.

When the Death-Walker came to a stop and started speaking, it was too late and none of them could react in time to stop it. "The only thanks I have to offer, is my own understanding of the law of Death."

The words came as the Death-walkers hand was closing in on Carl's face, the flash of recollection glyph which connected before anyone could do anything. Even the Death-Walker, who was too confused by everyone's aversion to the thanks, couldn't stop what he had started.

[ LAW OF DEATH MASTERED ]

[ RESURRECTION SUB-ROUTINE ACTIVATED ]

[ SINGLE-USE SKILL ACQUIRED : KEY TO THE EIGHTH GATE ]

[ KEY TO THE EIGHTH GATE ACTIVATED ]

As the final notification burned itself into Carl's eyes, he had already lost control of his body.

Words began to spill from his mouth in a language he didn't know and when the others tried to interfere, they were all pushed back violently by a highly complex barrier. Then, one-by-one, his mind-forms and soul-form emerged and began speaking the same language.

Whilst the others were focused on trying to smash through the shields and stop whatever was happening to Carl, Nergal had asked the Death-Walker to plead for the law of Death's intervention and begun speaking the same language as Carl.

"What language are they speaking!?"

"Sumerian, I think. That doesn't matter right now! Everyone, we need help!"

In an instant, Lillim, Faylorna, the dragon twins, their children and all the allies Tiamutael thought to bring were present.

"What the hell is going on!" Lillim shouted as she looked between Carl, Nergal and a Death-Walker.

"Forget that. Who do we stop?" Illerion snarled bitterly at being ripped back and clearly away from some kind of revelry.

"Carl. The law of Death did something. Nergal's trying to counter it." Kyubi said as she continued trying to burn Carl's barrier away with the help of Blanc.

"Ugh, damn..." Illerion shrugged and shook her head. "...No chance. Nothing can stop whatever he's doing, all of focusing every ounce of our power wouldn't dent that barrier. I doubt even that one could."

As Illerion spoke, she may as well have summoned him, he appeared and placed a hand on the barrier.

"Indeed you're right. This is the power of all my siblings working in unison."

"Your siblings? Did you forget that no one knows anything about you?" Illerion was trying to act confident, but her voice was barely even audible, his presence rendering them all weak at the knees.

"The status quo is about to be shattered. Any who wish to survive should return to the sanctuary world of Carl's, it will be a family affair anyway."

Tiamutael didn't wait to be asked, he pulled them all back to Haven, including his mothers. and when they tried to ask him to send them back he broke down in tears. When they decided to portal themselves, their other children stopped them.

Back on Earth, the only ones not pulled away by Tiamutael were Carl who even he couldn't reach, Nergal, that one and the Death-Walker who was struggling to process everything.

"Nergal, stop your foolishness. You can't stop what's happening, best you save your strength and have enough to try and save him after."

He shook his head as Nergal ignored him and kept speaking the ancient tongue of his pantheon and then approached and pressed his aura onto Nergal enough to make him freeze.

Unencumbered from Nergal's interference, whatever the system possessed Carl was trying to do, progress much more smoothly and a large stone gate like that which Nergal sometimes arrived by erupted from the ground.

Nergal watched helplessly as it was joined by another and another and another, until finally they were encircled, trapped and surrounded by seven of them. Carl continued speaking for a while and then the doors reposition and interlocked so the first to appear pushed into the second and so on.

Finally Carl moved to the door and with barely any effort at all, he pushed it open and in doing so, gave Nergal the courage to speak again.

"Carl! You can't! If anything comes through that gate we will all cease to exist in the end! Your loves and children will die!"

Carl still had no control of his body, but he heard Nergal's words, could sense the truth in them and could also see something approaching the far end of the gate. As Carl desperately tried to regain control of his body, he ran out of options and done what he had done when Dracula harmed Leanna.

'Divinity, whatever it takes, give me the means to keep my family safe.'

A warmth built-up inside of him, a warmth which grew hotter and hotter until the influence of the other laws and even the system was burnt out of him. He then used his power to stop anything crossing through the gate, the figure at the far end hammering against it furiously.

"Why can't I push this thing back!?"

"There is no divinity over there, it is the death of all immortals."

Carl sighed, then before anything else could be said or done, ran in and punched the figure with his soul-form, before slamming the doors shut behind him.

Nergal watched in horror.

That one watched with a feeling somewhere between respect and reverence.

The Death-Walker simply remained still, as though waiting for everything to come crashing down around him.

"So to preserve everything a little while longer, he threw his life away without hesitation? Truly, he has grown into a hero."

Nergal rose and finally done what no one had been able to do before and struck him. As Nergal's right fist connected with that one's jaw, his fist and entire right arm disintegrated and he had to fight to speak instead of scream.

"He died a hero! There is no coming back from where he is now! It's over. You should go announce your victory, the game is over and the hero is gone. Can I go and let his family know?"

"I won't stop you from doing what you wish."

Nergal was about to strike him again, but he just evaded and suggested he might need at least one arm to function, then disappeared.

Nergal tried in vain to open a portal to the others, but couldn't even find Haven and had no luck getting through to Tiamutael.

"Lord Nergal. Please punish me. I have betrayed the laws."

"You did no such thing. I think they betrayed us all..." Nergal burst into half-crazed laughter. "...We really were just a mistake to be erased, weren't we? All the meaningless violence and blood shed, now our only hope at undoing our greatest mistake is gone because I was a fool and asked you to thank him."

"Lord Nergal, the laws are by nature, beyond us. There was no wa-"

"Do not comfort me. That boy who just died, he understood the laws to a degree we could only dream almost immediately after learning of them. "Kin-Slayer" they call me. I had one absolute duty that was the purpose of my existence, to keep the eighth gate a secret and beyond reach. How did he open it? Was this my sister's doing? How did she learn of it beyond its existence?"

"Lor-"

"It was rhetorical! Go! Consolidate the strength of your species and all of Nothingness!"

The Death-Walker could feel Nergal growing unstable and followed his command, leaving him there alone.

He tried one last time to reach Tiamutael, but heard nothing.

When that failed he stood and approached the gate, placing his remaining hand on it.

"Damn it, Carl! You should have sent me in there or robbed that one of his divinity. Please. You have exceeded every expectation everyone has ever had for you at every step, exceed this one and do the impossible and come back.

I'm sure your family will kill the messenger, when I get there, I'll do my best to get you back. Everything ends without you anyway, at least if you cross the threshold you cease to exist together."

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