A/N: So...here's the next chapter. I'll leave the main A/N at the bottom for those who do read them.

Chapter 16: The Expedition (Part 4)

Someone up there must hate her. She wasn't talking about the Divine Realm, because Loki was sure there were lots of people up there that hated her; she was talking about the place beyond that, if such a place existed.

If there was someone more powerful than the gods (she wasn't counting Godou, of course), then nothing other than a personal grudge could explain her misfortune and Loki didn't even know what'd she done to earn their fury.

Because here was Enyo, standing right between her and Godou. The being Ouranos had warned them all about—an unknown entity that sought the destruction of the Gods.

The hooded man smiled at them all, looking at her in particular. "Tut tut, now here's something you don't see everyday. A God. In the Dungeon. I should lodge a complaint to the Guild."

"You do that," Loki said. "I'll even walk into the Guild with you."

Loki forced herself to appear calm, if not for the sake of her Familia, then for herself. That Enyo knew about the Guild at all meant he had some means of contact with the outside world. It was entirely possible that they'd bumped shoulders on the streets before.

She focused her attention on him, using her Divine senses to discern his nature. It was futile—whatever magic he'd used to hide his presence earlier also hid his entire aura.

"Calm down, goddess," Enyo said. "I'm not here for you. I'm here for him."

Then Enyo pointed at Kusanagi Godou and Loki's heart lurched. Why Godou?

He hadn't moved a muscle since Enyo's arrival. He stood warily, one hand resting on Ame no Murakumo no Tsurugi, while Lancelot stood in front of him, changing her sword for a spear and pointing it straight at Enyo.

Finn gave her a look. Enyo's back was turned and her Familia's hardest hitters stood in his blind-spot. For a second, Loki considered it. But then she shook her head. They were injured, and they would be fighting someone even the Gods knew nothing about.

Godou opened his mouth. "You seem like a bad guy."

It was hard for Loki to not smile at Godou's candidness. Of course Enyo wouldn't faze him.

Enyo lifted his arms and plucked at his cloak as if he was adjusting his appearance in front of a mirror. "I see your point. But what if I told you that beneath this menacing and shady outfit, I am a charming and handsome man seeking to better the world?"

"Then take off the cloak." Lancelot said, "the words of someone who doesn't even have the courage to show his face can never be trusted."

"So much hostility," Enyo said. "I already said it, didn't I? That's enough fighting for today. I just want to talk. Or can your bullheaded brain only speak through blades and steel, Lancelot du Lac?"

Loki froze. It was possible for Enyo to know Lancelot's name if he'd secretly observed the Expedition. But even Loki hadn't known her full name.

Godou narrowed his eyes, putting one arm on Lancelot's shoulder. The goddess looked furious, and it seemed Godou's hand was the only thing stopping her from charging at Enyo. "How do you know her full name?"

"Because I know everything about you, Kusanagi Godou. I know that you are a Campione. I know about your sister, Shizuka. I even know about Erica, Yui, Lilliana, and Ena."

Loki didn't know what Enyo was talking about, but from Godou's pale face, he clearly did. Then his expression darkened, and he pulled out Ame no Murakumo no Tsurugi and raised the midnight blade.

"Weren't you listening?" Enyo said. "I just want to talk. No need to draw swords and point spears."

"Then talk," Godou said. "Now."

Godou was upset, and Loki thought back to all her previous interactions with him. She'd seen him angry, seen him depressed, and seen him deeply hurt. Most of the time, she had been to blame in some way or the other, and she took a little bit of pride in being able to draw out such reactions from the normally stoic man.

But the Kusangi Godou in front of her now was nothing like she'd seen before. He looked unhinged, with crazed eyes and trembling limbs. Knowing that Enyo had made him like this caused her to dig her nails into her palms. But she had to admit—ashamedly—that a small part of her only felt curiosity.

What happens if someone pushes him over the edge?

Then Enyo spoke and despite herself, Loki listened.

"Did you know a person's soul is like a book? It writes itself as they live and is finished when they die. Have you ever read a person's soul, Kusanagi Godou?"

Loki had never heard of such a thing. But then again, she wasn't a death God, so she'd never really interacted with the souls of the deceased when they returned to the Divine Realm.

"No," Godou said. "And I don't want to."

"That's understandable," Enyo said, shrugging his shoulders. "People are generally boring, predictable creatures. They all want the same things, do the same things, and all end up living similar lives one way or the other. But your life, Kusanagi Godou, was quite a fascinating read."

"You...read my soul?"

"Well, I stumbled upon it, to be exact. And once I started, I couldn't stop. You shouldn't be a surprised. Knowing what a Campione is, do you really think the Gods of death have any dominion over your soul?"

"No," Godou said, reluctantly.

"So what do you think happened when you died?"

Loki blinked. Godou...died?

Enyo didn't wait for a response. "Your soul just drifted around, waiting to be read by anyone who picked it up. And it was a good thing I did, because I liked you so much I decided to give you a second chance at life."

Godou tensed. "So you were the one that brought me back."

"Your welcome," Enyo said.

Loki desperately wanted to interrupt—what in Heaven's name was going on? Godou came back from the dead?

"Why?" Godou asked.

"Because I wanted a weapon, of course," Enyo said. "You have no idea how much having a Campione at my command will accelerate my plans." Then he sighed. "But alas, as you can see, things didn't work out as well as I hoped. I underestimated how stubborn a Campione's soul was and couldn't force you to submit to me. A failing on my part, nothing for you to feel bad about."

"I don't feel bad at all," Godou said.

"Really?" Enyo said, brightening up. "Then let's begin negotiating!"

"...negotiating?"

"Well, I couldn't make you work for me. So how about working with me?" Enyo said. "I can make it worth your time."

Godou narrowed his eyes. "What are you after, exactly?"

Don't do it, Godou, Loki thought. Enyo's a bad person. But nothing came out of her mouth when she tried to speak.

"Me? I just want to make a better world."

"So you want to destroy the current one," Godou said. "And that's why you want a Campione."

"See? You know exactly what I'm thinking! We'll make a great team, Kusangi Godou."

"If you've read my soul before," Godou said, "then you should already know the answer."

"Is there really nothing I can say to change your mind?" Enyo asked.

"No," Godou said.

Loki let out the breath she'd been holding. Now if they could hurry up and get out of here—

"If you won't listen to me, then what about these four?"

Enyo snapped his fingers.

The first to form, from nothing but the dirt of the ground, was a black-haired beauty that reminded Loki strongly of the people of the Far East. She had the same straight black hair that Tsuchimikazuchi's children had, with long bangs that reached just above her eyes. She had a shapely figure and pretty face that Loki knew was above average by mortal standards.

"E...na?"

She smiled Godou. "Hello, Godou."

The second girl had silvery-gray hair that was tied into a long ponytail. She was thin, and looked petite, with elf-like features and stern eyes. "Kusanagi Godou. I, Liliana Kranjcar, am here to serve you."

"Liliana!"

Loki bit her lip. Godou looked as if he were seeing ghosts, and from what she knew of his past, the possibility was there. Were these the close companions that he had lost?

His hands dropped limply to his sides. Ame no Murakumo no Tsurugi fell tip-first into the dirt.

"Godou. You look well." The third girl was dressed in very plain white robes, with long brown hair that reached her waists. She held her hands together and blushed when Godou's jaw dropped at the sight of her.

"You too, Yuri?

None of them were illusions. They had real life energy coursing within them.

They were alive.

The last girl took a step forward. The hem of her red dress parted to reveal toned legs, and she placed her hands on her hips, an action that accentuated her large bust. Golden hair flowed down her shoulders and stopped above her generously-displayed cleavage.

"Hi, Godou. Did you miss me?" Her voice was sultry, and it irked Loki when Godou stepped towards her longingly.

"E...ri...ca?"

They're all girls, Loki realized, a bad taste forming in her mouth. She'd never expected Godou to be romantically uninvolved in his past life, but...this wasn't what she was expecting at all.

Godou sunk to his knees and the tears began to fall.

"How...even?" He turned to Enyo. "They're alive. You did this?"

Enyo bowed. "Yes. You like it? I tried to recreate them as you remembered."

"As I remembered?"

"My King," Lancelot said, putting herself between Godou and the girls. "Snap yourself out of it. It's not really them. Feel them, Godou. The souls in those bodies aren't theirs."

"She's right," Enyo said. "I don't have their souls. What I do have are your memories of them. They're imitations, Kusanagi Godou."

The four girls crumbled back into dirt.

Godou's lips wavered, then his features looked as if they were cast in stone again. He stood up, but Enyo raised a hand before he could say anything.

"I can bring back the real ones, Kusanagi Godou, if you help me," Enyo said.

Loki saw it. The spark in Godou's eyes. Not quite hope, but more than just a curious interest.

They were losing this battle.

But something gripped at her, an explainable sensation that tightened around her heart that kept her from doing anything but watch.

Not fear. Something else. Something that made her want to just sit back and watch everything unfold, even though every other fiber of her being demanded she intervene.

"Do you know what lies at the bottom of the Dungeon?" Enyo asked, turning to everyone. "I'll tell you. Even all you adventurers. Listen well. I'm going to reveal the final objective of all your expeditions."

Loki saw her Familia, and Tsubaki, perk up with attention, even though they still eyed Enyo with distrust and were covered with wounds. Even Loki wanted to know.

"Life. That's what lies at the bottom of the Dungeon. Pure, unadulterated, life energy. You call the Dungeon alive. That's not quite right. The Dungeon is life. Where do you think all these monsters come from? Everything comes from the immense reservoir of life that lies at the bottom. You can make yourself immortal. You can create living creatures from the earth. You can bring back the dead."

"The dead are supposed to stay dead," Loki said, compelled to speak. That was the law.

Enyo smiled. "And who decided that? You did. All you Gods, sitting high in your thrones, isolated and uncaring about the lives of your creations. You do not know pain. You do not know death. You do not know what it means to be alive. The Dungeon can change that." He turned to Kusanagi Godou and the adventurers. "If you reach the bottom of the Dungeon, what you gain is the power to make your own rules. Become the gods of your own lives."

They looked at Loki, and she let nothing show on her face. She didn't know if she could trust Enyo, but she had to let Ouranos know. If such a power really did exist at the bottom, then they had to do something about it.

"Kusanagi Godou," Enyo said. "Join me, and help me create a new world here. With my help, and the power of the Dungeon, we can go back to your home, take back the souls of your beloveds, and have them be at your side again. You won't be alone anymore."

She knew when Godou was thinking hard. The boy would always tilt his head slightly to the side, and the fact that he was doing that now was not a good sign.

What will you do, Kusangi Godou? Enyo is offering your greatest desire. Will you take it and herald the fall of the Gods?

She could feel the hope forming within him. Like a clearing storm, centuries' worth of despair parted and made way for that single ray of hope.

The boy's gaze fell to the piles of dirt that had been the four girls.

What will he choose? she wondered. If he turned Enyo down, the apocalypse would be postponed. If he joined Enyo, then as a God Loki would have no choice but to—

That line of thought came to a screeching halt.

What was she doing? Why was she still doubting him? Loki had promised herself she would trust him. She knew Kusanagi Godou.

She'd seen Godou use Ascalon. The fear on his face when he'd pulled it out, worried about how she and the others would judge him.

She'd heard Godou speak. The care and compassion that formed the bedrock of his character.

She'd observed him, often annoyed that he was satisfied with cooking simple meals and washing other people's dishes even though he could be so much more.

Kusanagi Godou was no harbinger of the End. Kusanagi Godou was no monster that wanted to kill Gods. Kusanagi Godou didn't even want to be an adventurer, and if Loki couldn't convince him to be that last one, then there was no way in hell that Enyo was going to persuade him to be the other two.

Kusanagi Godou just wanted to be a normal human that did normal human things, and if that dumb idiot couldn't remember that, she was going to have to remind him.

Because that was the kind of man that she'd fallen in love with and she didn't want it any other way.

She stormed up to him, ignoring the looks of her Familia.

Lancelot raised an eyebrow, but stepped aside to let her pass.

Enyo frowned.

Godou's eyes were glazed, looking through her as if she wasn't there. Lost in his own thoughts, it seemed.

Well, there was only one way to break him out of his stupor. She grabbed his collar, dragged him down to her height, and planted her lips onto his.

His eyes widened and he made a noise of surprise.

Big mistake. When his lips parted, she pushed her tongue into his mouth to find his.

He shoved her off him, and Loki smiled at him, licking her lips contentedly. That was much better than the first one. At least she would remember it this time.

To her annoyance, Godou wiped his lips with his arm. "What are you doing!?"

"Reminding you that you're not alone," Loki said.

Godou blinked. Then, his shoulders relaxed and he closed his eyes and let out a deep breath.

"You're right," he said, reopening them. There was no more uncertainty in them. He turned back to Enyo, who wore an ugly scowl. "I'm not alone anymore."

"She's a God," Enyo said, spitting out the last word.

"She's a good person. And she's more than a God, she's a friend," Godou said.

Loki's eyelid twitched, and she cleared her throat loudly to let him know of his mistake.

Godou looked down at her and then looked embarrassed when she glared at him. "She's more than a friend, I mean."

Loki thought about it, and then shrugged. She could compromise—that was fine. For now, at least. She grabbed his hand and held onto it tightly.

"So you've chosen," Enyo said. "Is that your final choice?"

This time there was no hesitation. "Yes."

"You will regret this, you know," Enyo said.

"Is that a threat?" Godou asked.

"No," Enyo said. "I will not fight you—I'll lose. But it is a warning. The Gods will not take your existence lightly when they learn the truth. And by the time you learn of their true nature, I might not be so generous with you. I've found a Campione soul before, I might be able to stumble upon one again."

"I can handle them," Godou said.

"I know," Enyo said. "That's why I'm leaving your options open. If you reconsider, you know where to find me."

With that, Enyo crumbled into the dirt as well.

Loki clicked her tongue in annoyance. The coward had never truly been here either.

With Enyo's disappearance, the adrenaline that had kept everyone going vanished as well. Her tired children collapsed onto the floor, breathing hard and nursing their wounds. Riveria's healing magic and their magical potions could only do so much.

Tsubaki was panting hard. "Is there always so much drama in your Familia?"

"You'll get used to it."

Loki looked up. Godou was smiling at her as he replied. Another indescribable feeling welled up in her chest, but it was completely different from the previous time.

She squeezed his hand, and he squeezed back.

XxXxXxXxX

It was just the two of them in the secret springs of Rivira.

Loki had really wanted to take a private bath with Godou, but of course he had refused, citing some excuse about decency and modesty.

So she'd settled for a surprising second choice.

"That's so not fair!" complained Hestia, pulling at her pigtails. "Why? Why? Why? What does he see in you? I mean, you're flat as a board!"

Hestia, or any other God for that matter, had been the last person Loki expected to bump into in Rivira. And it wasn't just Hestia—Hermes had been with her; they'd snuck into the Dungeon to rescue Bell Cranel after he'd been Pass-Paraded by the Takemikazuchi Familia. It only reminded Loki how much Hestia's concern and understanding of mortals surpassed hers.

But still, she couldn't let that comment about her chest slide.

"Well, look who's talking! Obviously with cow-tits like yours, Bell's never going to even look at your face! I bet whenever you're talking to him, he doesn't listen and just stares at your boobs! No wonder you can't get him to like you!"

"Gah! I'm so annoyed! And I can't say anything because you got Godou! Urgh! This is so unfair! I bet you did something, didn't you? You must have made some kind of love potion, or threatened him, or—"

"Don't be jealous just because I can win a man's heart and you can't, Loli-Big-Boobs. You know, I bet it's because I'm a real goddess, not some road-seller begging people to buy my friend potatoes."

"Argh! Did you just call me here to gloat? Because if you did, I'm going to ignore you," Hestia said, sinking into the water.

"No, I called you here to thank you," Loki said.

Hestia's head bobbed back up. "What?"

"I wanted to thank you," Loki said. "For helping me. You taught me what was important. None of this would have been possible if you hadn't come into my room that day."

"Oh," Hestia said, somewhat unconvincedly. "Well, you're welcome. And, uhm, I guess I'm happy for you too, Loki. I'm glad Godou's found someone. He really needed it, that poor boy. Now if only Bell could man up, too..."

Loki grinned. "He'll fall for you one day, I'm sure of it."

Hestia splashed out of the water and stared at Loki, wide-eyed. "Really? You really think so?"

"Yep," Loki said. "You're not a bad person. And you're trying really hard, aren't you? I mean, you came all the way into the Dungeon for him. One day, the message will get through. He's just an idiot. Kind of like Godou."

Hestia sighed and scooted backwards to sit next to her. "They're always idiots, aren't they? Why are men so stupid?"

"Well, it's cute sometimes."

Hestia mumbled an agreement, and the two of them stayed quiet for a while after that.

"Hestia?"

"Yes, Loki?"

"Isn't that Hermes sitting on that tree branch spying on us?"

XxXxXxXxX

Their bags were packed and their bodies were rested.

She strolled up to him, and he smiled at her. The others made room for the two of them, and they walked slowly behind the main group.

"Well then, what did you think about your first Expedition?"

"You were right. It wasn't that bad. Actually, it was kind of fun."

"I'm always right. You should have realized that by now."

He rolled his eyes. "Come on, let's go home."

XxXxXxXxX

A/N:

FINALLY, the Expedition Arc has come to an end. At the point of writing this, Fanfiction has hit 4k followers, which is a new record for me. But at the same time, I noticed a sharp drop in readership after the previous chapter on both SB and FF, which is kind of a bummer. I don't think it's a coincidence that it happened on the very chapter Godou and Loki's relationship had its biggest change yet, and I'm really hoping that it was because of a disagreement with the plot direction, rather than a dissatisfaction with prose/character/etc. For those who continue to read, I hope you can help shed some light on this since it is bugging me.

Onto this chapter then, so this is the first real chapter we have in Loki's POV, which is the reason why it was split from the previous one (they could have been joined, but it splitting seemed better imo), and I felt she was due one. Other than that, I'm just glad the Expedition is over, and I had to pull alot of things from my ass that deviated from canon greatly (basically everything to do with Enyo and what he said), so I hope that won't turn you guys off, either.

As always, if you enjoyed this chapter, leave a like (on SB), Fav/Follow (on FF), and reviews are welcome.

Now, back to my original project.