Astraeus remained silent for a long time. He appeared conflicted, and sometimes, in pain. Arthur could feel the tremor in his hands and could see the fear in his eyes. He looked like a mortal, not a god.
"It's the machine," the god said. "Yggdrasil is…"
Then, the world turned silent. Arthur squinted his eyes, as he could see the god's lips move, but no sound came out. Realization and fear appeared in the divine creature's eyes, and he looked upward.
In the sky above them, which was a blend of night and day at the moment, a pair of giant eyes manifested. They looked like an infinite number of rings, golden and white, interloping with each other. The pair of eyes was watching them.
A scream escaped the god's lips as he collapsed to the ground. Arthur turned toward Astraeus to find him panting on the ground, clutching his chest.
