With the serpents not physically present, Raijin adresses them mentally. "Fair enough. Have a pleasant day." Then he crosses his arms and looks at Oxy.

"You must have a funny view of the Heavens. Sure, other gods exist, but they're up there, not down here. And I feel you overestimate their power over him. A long time has passed since my father talked to me of how things work outside the bounds of this world, but if I recall right, the gods of planets and stars are not serfs - they are like sovereigns of foreign nations who pay fealty to an emperor. And that fealty is often nominal at best. I have never seen what kind of beings my father answers to nor have I ever heard of them interfering with his actions. What they give to and require of him, if anything, is very obscure, as is what he gives to and requires of them. I find it possible that if he chose to cease answering to them one day, it would not affect his station much at all."