First Demonic Dragon

There are few instances where Abaddon has exhibited unmitigated cruelty.

While he tries his best to be seen as objectively kind and a force of universal preservation, sometimes he may fall short of his wish and acts on a dragon's natural temper.

He often regrets those times. He strives to be an example for his children and show them that they can be better than their nature. Be above it.

However, the cruelest thing he has ever done is his decision to imprison Jaldabaoth.

Being compressed into a single finite point until one reaches the 0th dimension is… a hell unlike any other.

It isn't the physical pain that scars you. Torture and bodily harm are rudimentary things in the same category as rotary phones and cowboy saloons.

The effect on the mind is what damages you irreparably. There are so few experiences that can even remotely compare.

You are stuck. Truly so.

It's not like being imprisoned behind four walls or locked within a facility. At least there you can turn your head. Lift your arms. Even get yourself off if you want.

But the 0th dimension is completely different.

The only thing that you can ever possibly be aware of is yourself.

The fact that you are stuck.

The fact that time is no longer flowing through where you are.

Or that you can't even scream beyond the metaphysical boundaries of your prison.

Jaldabaoth could have spent the equivalent either centuries or seconds imprisoned in that solitary dot out in space. It was hard to say.

But the toll it took on his psyche was devastating. He had nothing but his mind and his hatred to occupy him. So it was no surprise that he drove himself insane.

The mere mention of his imprisonment- brief or otherwise, was enough to send him into a blind, snapping rage.

That Apophis forcibly restrained him only made him even more irate.

He was so angry that his wounds reopened, and he coughed out blood all over the floor.

Abaddon looked vehemently disgusted.

"How unbecoming… I will thank you kindly not to give the maids any more work to do. They work hard enough already."

"Does this amuse you..? Having our roles so reversed in this moronic twist of fate..?" Jaldabaoth huffed.

"Not really. I don't think all that much of you or this situation. I just want to know how you escaped what should have been certain destruction." Abaddon replied in a bored manner.

For the first time, the creature smiled at his old enemy through cracked teeth.

"Lo and behold Abaddon the Shortsighted. Abaddon the Arrogant. Abaddon the Overconfident. You have inspired quite the consortium of individuals who would like nothing more than to see you perish."

"I bet."

"You will not be able to remain so coolheaded forever, dog. Especially without your family 'benefactor' around to tip the scales of power in your favor."

Abaddon brought his hand down on top of Jaldabaoth's snout. The entire room heard the sound of bone crunching underneath his grip.

Abaddon was fine with being insulted, mocked, and taunted until the cows came home.

But what he wasn't fine with was having Yesh's ailment being brought up in his face as if it were some kind of topic appropriate to the conversation.

Which was why he seemed to get just a little bit upset for the first time today.

"The horrors I will subject you to will be excruciating..." He growled.

"Do your worst…" Jaldabaoth wheezed. "It will change nothing in the end. The enemy who knows all is circling you at the same time as the enemies who you cannot see. It is only a matter of time now…"

There are two different branches of enemies..? Abaddon thought to himself. He would have thought that they would have all been working together as some part of coordinated effort.

Did that make things better for him…? Or worse..?

It was best to be prepared for both.

But after a split second of reflection, he believed that he may have had an answer to at least part of his equation.

"I see… And might one of these enemies be the one who gave you this to spread around?" Abaddon pulled out the bedazzled book that Mira had recovered.

When Jaldabaoth saw it his entire expression changed.

"Your child dared to desecrate the sacred tome… For this I would see her-"

"Whoops~"

Valerie poured champagne all over the book.

"My bad, honey. I'm clumsy." She smiled.

"It's alright." He smiled back at her.

"No it is not alright, you disgusting urchins!!" Jaldabaoth snapped.

""Yea, yea.""

Jaldabaoth seemed angry enough to physically implode.

Every named horror has the power to impart a portion of their power into one of these black books.

They are to be given to a 'caretaker' on behalf of the beast, who then spreads it among mortal civilizations to help gain followers and sacrifices.

They can't be destroyed by normal means, but anyone in this room could probably torch it just on accident.

The destruction of the book wasn't even the greatest problem.

No matter what, the books were supposed to be kept out of reach of another named eldritch horror because if they can find a way to destroy them, the power that they were made of becomes up for grabs.

For a cannibalistic and anarchic race like the horrors, letting another member of the family tree eat your power is not only embarrassing, but it could also be the thing that marks the difference between supremacy and bottom feeding.

So naturally, the book's caretaker is highly motivated to keep them from outsiders' hands.

"You fools have no idea of what you are messing with!! He is not one to suffer trifles like this lightly!!" Jaldabaoth roared.

""I'll bet."" Valerie and Abaddon waived their hands dismissively.

Jaldabaoth ground his teeth together until they were noticeably less sharp than before.

"You cretins… Yog-Sothoth knows the gate. Yog-Sothoth is the gate. Past, present, future, all are one in Yog-Sothoth. He knows where the old ones broke through of old, and where they shall break through again… and you are all dancing within the palm of his hand."

This admittedly gave Abaddon pause. His face said that he had finally heard something interesting.

He had been waiting to hear that name for millions of years now… there was only one other that he wanted to hear just as badly.

"So he's showing his head after all of these years…You should tell him to hurry and come home. Tehom just isn't the same without him." Abaddon smirked deceptively.

Jaldabaoth hissed loudly in retaliation.

All of the sudden, visible cracks began to form along the scaly body of their captive.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

Ultraviolet light poured out of them bit by bit, filling up the room with it's glow.

In an instant, Jaldabaoth's expression reverted from vengeful to abject terror.

"N-No… He wouldn't! Master! I can still-"

"So he was listening then." Abaddon sighed. "I thought he might be. He's still quite the secretive sort."

While Jaldabaoth continued his breakdown, Abaddon stared at the individual like he was looking beyond him.

"…You cannot hide from me forever. It would serve you better to surrender before I have to come for you myself."

Jaldabaoth took a moment to stop screaming and stared at Abaddon with a cold, twisted smile. "He… he laughs at you. I can hear the sound as clear as day..! You will never find him, or any of them!"

Abaddon snapped his fingers and his age old enemy was suddenly encased in a glowing blue cube.

"Oh..? A shame that you won't be around to find out if that's true."

True to Abaddon's claim, Jaldabaoth exploded shortly after leaving behind his ominous message.

He was shredded down to his very soul, but Abaddon still made sure to store his remains in oblivion just to be certain.

For a while, no one said anything and merely allowed Abaddon to pace about the room; thinking to himself.

This wasn't the first time he'd been threatened, and it likely wouldn't be the last. So he did possess a notable degree of calm.

But no matter how many times Abaddon had been in this situation before, he never rested on the sense of accomplishment his prior victories gave him.

He still felt a need to act.

The only problem this time was his enemy's awareness.

Similar to how Abaddon knew when an entity left / entered Tehom or Space, Yog-Sothoth would know when an eldritch horror left just the same.

Abaddon didn't even know if suppressing genetics would work.

'But maybe…'

Abaddon finally stopped pacing and looked up at Audrina.

In response, she waived back at him, and she and Lailah giggled.

"Ah… So you two have already thought of it then."

"As soon as I heard his name mentioned." Lailah shrugged.

"But it was very cute to watch you think so hard, Avernus." She blew him a kiss.

Part of marrying a knowledge goddess was that they arrived at every conclusion at twice the rate of normal deities.

And since Lailah was the smartest woman in creation, her conclusions came just that much faster.

"Well, it's nice to know that we've got at least one thing settled." He smiled.

He then looked down at the bejeweled book in his hand and absentmindedly flipped through it's pages.

"Now… What am I going to do with you…?"