Ep. 10 - Old Gods (3)

**Old Gods (3)** is the tenth episode of Eros Conquers All. It was released on April 1st, 2022.

## Plot

Lavi and Kai arrive at what appears to be Wander's Paradise. Lavi rushes ahead in her astonishment despite Kai's warnings and trips on a pebble. Kai catches her as she falls backward and tells Lavi to be more careful. Shocked, Lavi asks Kai if he is a god since he is too handsome to be mortal. Kai assures her multiple times that he is human, reminding her that Janus does not grant audience to gods. Lavi drops the subject and Kai presses his lips together before the two of them approach the gate to Wander's Paradise. Lavi expresses her surprise that the park appears to be just as she remembered it and explains to Kai that she had visited Wander's Paradise when she was twelve, pointing out her name that she had written on a pillar. Kai says that the door to Janus' domain had chosen to appear this way because of Lavi's memory and asked if it was a happy one. Lavi recounts her experience as a new immigrant to the United States and all of her anxieties about leaving behind her new country without knowing much in the way of English. On the way to their home, Lavi's family had stopped at a roadside fair named Wander's Paradise. Lavi had enjoyed herself so much that her anxieties gradually faded away. Kai expresses that Janus may be more receptive to their visit since the door had manifested as one of Lavi's happier memories. Lavi asks how they are meant to enter the domain and Kai explains that they need a sigil, or the god's name/aspect, to ask Janus' permission to enter. As Kai gives examples of different kinds of sigils and wonders which Janus would accept, Lavi creates two tickets with sator squares on them, since sator squares are "two-faced" and have historically been displayed on doors. Kai praises Lavi for her idea and the two of them use the tickets to enter Janus' domain. Kai thinks to himself that Lavi is handling the ritual exceptionally well and that Eros might have worried for nothing. As they enter Janus' domain, the eyes of the large mascot head above the gate begin to glow blue.

Inside Sol's domain, Eros expresses his disbelief that Sol does not know what Rue is. Sol ignores him, puzzling over Rue's existence. He notes that she cannot be older than a decade, but also that if a new god had been born, he would have known. He invokes his status as an elder god to command Rue to state her reasons for occupying Eros' domain. Rue answers that Eros is extremely sad, much to his ire, and that they want to take his sadness but Eros had not allowed it. Sol asks if Rue eats sadness, but Eros is unable to confirm if he is correct. He wonders if Rue appearing so soon after dreaming about his dagger is an omen. Eros asks Rue if they would like to officially stay in his domain, hinting that he might allow them to eat his sadness later, and Rue agrees. Eros introduces himself and asks if Rue has a name, since she needs one to control her powers better. He asks if Rue would like a name, and Sol scolds him for making light of the situation. He begins to explain that a god's powers could become hostile if they reject the name, even turning them into monsters, but Eros ignores him and suggests the name *Rue*, which Rue happily accepts. Sol watches the two of them interact and the reader is given a view of Sol's vision, revealing that Eros is glowing red with a bright core and that Rue is glowing blue with a dark core. Sol gasps to himself and notes that something is wrong with Rue.

## Characters

*Characters are listed in order of appearance.*

* Lavi
* Kai
* Eros
* Rue
* Sol

## Notable Locations

* Janus' Domain
* Sol's Domain

## Trivia

* The names written in rainbow ink on one of the pillars in Wander's Paradise are the names of people in the Official ECA Discord server.