Chapter 7: [-Deus Ex Machina-]

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⫘⫘Hela⫘⫘

...

Inside their common private office, Salem and Circe receive the Queens of Asgard and Hel.

Hela, for several reasons, had insisted on attending, unwilling to lose the opportunity to establish ties with the two seið-kona… The two witches. "Why can they keep using the same names through the centuries?" Hela ponders angrily.

"Well, where to start?" Says a mentally exhausted Frigga. It seems that meeting young telempaths so closely still remains exhausting, even to her grand-mother.

For several minutes the witches explain how it all started, and what they have found on the child so far.

"Yes, we tend to forget how otherworldly beings can be so... alien, to even us. I would like to examine the craft, and possibly that blanket, if it is possible of course?" Frigga requests, which both women look conflicted and if not afraid for some strange reasons. "Is there something more? Anything, perhaps, that we should be aware of?" She asks.

"There may be others... Who came with the boy, probably other Guardians. We're not sure, but..." Circe expresses what she believes. And it took a few seconds for her grand-mother and herself to fully realise how probable it is.

"Well… If there are others, I am pretty sure they are listening to us right about now. Would you not agree?" Frigga asks the empty air around them.

Nothing happens at first, until a shimmer is seen just a few metres to the side from them. What can only be described by Hela as an 'odd floating robot', oval, and harmless looking in shape, even if she isn't willing to bet on it as she didn't sense it before it appeared, and still can't, apart from her own eyes and hearing. Hela hates dealing with more advanced civilizations and their technologies, where the boundaries between science and magic simply cease to exist.

"Hello, I would like to introduce myself, but, I think we both know that it is unnecessary." The Queen mother says to the hovering machine.

~Greetings, your Majesties. And yes, that would be correct.~

"May we have your name and function, if that would be agreeable?" Frigga asks politely.

~It is. My designation is impossible to pronounce, even in your own language, I am afraid.~

~What can be the closest pronunciation of it, is 'KELEX'. And my functions, I presume, are straightforward to assume.~

"The child. Can you tell us why he is 'alone' then, and where his parents are? I do not want to presume why he was... abandoned." Frigga voices her thoughts, a cold anger felt through her voice.

~He was not abandoned. And you would be right, not to presume. You see him as alone. He is not, and never was.~

~For his parents. I am not authorised to divulge that particular information. Only that, you already have encountered his mother, Lady Circe.~

~And as to why. Our world was at war, at an end. Our enemies, too numerous.~

~We didn't had a choice but to hide and wait for eons in dark space.~

...

...

And for half an hour, some questions were answered... Most were not.

"So, wait. If this species of yours isn't divine or mystical in nature, how can they be that powerful?" Circe asks the machine, which in turn was a question Hela is most curious about.

~Because of many things. First is evolution.~

~Our world was a failed star, its size dwarfed yours many times over, it was a hyper-Gravity world with 593 times the Gravity pull of this planet. Most, if not all life developed various forms of psionic and/or anti-Grav abilities to fight against it. Natural tissue densities are much higher due to both this and the exo-minerals that composed it.~

~The cold and the lack of food were manoeuvred by the ability to absorb ambient radiations and those directly from the sun, then store and use those energies. Highly sophisticated cellular system, denser molecular structure and natural Bio-Electric aura to fight against the atmospheric pressure, low temperature and a much harsher environment than Remnant.~

~Our world, was one who wanted us dead.~

~Second was through selective breeding.~

~Third was by highly advanced biotech and genetic engineering. Physical weaknesses and mortality by aging and diseases were eradicated from our society a considerably long time ago, even before Remnant's star formation.~

"Wait, sorry but I'm curious. What happens to the food he eats? Where does it go? These questions have been driving me mad." Circe asks.

~The food does not go anywhere. It is converted into usable material and energy.~

"How? Does he have some kind of organs which can do that?" Circe asks.

~Yes, it is primarily through a form of 'Bio-transmutation' and then low-level annihilation.~

"...I have so many questions. And, wait a minute... When you said 'annihilation'? You mean, like an actual matter-antimatter reaction?" Salem, the Queen of the Evernight questions.

~Yes, but on a much smaller scale than you imagine. Some of its organs, to break down matter, can produce antiparticles in infinitesimal but still substantial numbers.~

"That's why he produces so much energy… Our son is a small antimatter power generator."

~Yes and no. His species, unlike humans and most bipedal races, are not carbon nor other basic elements based lifeforms.~

~The closest translation in your language is 'Sun-Stone', a miracle mineral even to us. It could only be find in our star system, in the form of an ore.~

~It is what you can call Extra-Dimensional which is both Isotropic and Anisotropic Matter and has exotic and strange properties.~

~The laws of physics from the dimension it originated, do not operate the same way ours does, if at all. When this matter, both organic and inorganic come into contact with primarily stellar and cosmic light, and sometimes some rare exo/eso-energies, will undergo photonucleic effects.~

~Those effects varies upon what kind of energies, and wavelengths of stellar light it is exposed to.~

~Sun-Stone minerals, for some times, was the cornerstone of our world's advancement.~

~It gave birth to 'Sunstone crystals technology' and was used both as a building material and as a form of computer system.~

~Infinitely programmable, self repairing, can take on any form, assimilate, duplicate and take the properties of any type of matter in its vicinity as well as harvest, process and convert any types of energies into any other form.~

~It can do that and much, much more.~

~Until it was ineptly classed Heretech, and its use banned.~

~I hope I have satiated your curiosity. I will inform you of more if required.~

"... Not even close, but this is still a lot to take in. So thank you." Salem says.

"May I ask just a few more questions about Jaune, if this is not too much to ask?" Circe politely asks the machine.

~Of course. Ask away.~

"Well, that was easy... So yes, Jaune - sorry. Can you tell us about the Nth metal present in his body? Where are his problems for breathing coming from and are they getting any better? And if the kind of psionic abilities he has shown are what you consider normal to his people?" Circe asks what has been on her mind for a long time.

~They were... 'complications', during the pregnancy, and Nth metal was, and still is, a way around those.~

~And as you hypothesised, he was born prematurely, and it doesn't help that the atmospheric makeup and pressure of this world is different from ours was. It is too thin but its composition is much more nourishing to him.~

~It will be a few more years before his lungs are sufficiently strengthened that he will stop experiencing these problems. But be warned. In time, his respiratory system will develop glands that can transform gazes and then emit them in a form of what some of your Terran's books, Lady Circe, calls a Bose–Einstein condensate.~

"Oh, thank you for the-! Wait what? But my library is warded even against gods like Hermes. How did you-" Kelex continued before Circe could finish her questioning.

Questions that will stay forever unanswered…

~And until his Bio-Electric aura mature enough to completely contain the phenomenon, the process will be painful to the child, and extremely hazardous to the people around him.~

"Is this a natural evolutionary process or was it designed by your people?" asks Frigga curiously.

~Both.~

~An ancient tribe, who lived for millennia between a place called the "Scarlet Jungle" and another known as the "Fire Falls", were using them as a hiding place against other tribes. The Fire Falls were a river fall mostly composed of molten and exotic minerals generally at a temperature between 3600 and 8700 degrees Celsius. The tribe, over time, as you can imagine, adapted in an exceptional way.~

~This trait was then amplified a thousand folds and reintroduced genetically in rare and elite noble houses for a different purpose.~

"And for what purpose would that be?" Hela already knows the answer, but still needs to ask.

~War.~

~As for psionic abilities, he is uniquely gifted. First is through genetic pedigree. Then his unlocked "Aura". I still have many questions on that subject. Solar exposure and the symbiosis of the Nth metal within his central nervous system. All have resulted in a domino effect and positive feedback loop. The more they develop, the more powerful they become, and the more powerful they become, the more they develop.~

~His psychokinesis and his other gifts are ahead of our estimates by a very wide margin. Even if he tries to hide it, Jaune is actually at an exceptionally advanced level of mastery of some of his psionic capabilities.~

~So I am asking you, please, be careful who approaches the child, such developed telempathy can be traumatic for someone so young. And 'Jaune' is already showing early signs of perceiving residual information from objects, and so, be excessively mindful of what he touches in the future. Psychometry can be both a blessing and a curse.~

"Your people were built for war. You are living weapons platforms." Salem says, finally realising why this species would need that much power.

~Yes.~

"What kind of wars were you fighting to need that much self modification? I can understand some of-" Before Hela can continue, Kelex answers.

~The kind where worlds turned to dust. Where stars and supermassive black holes were weaponized and destroyed. Where whole galaxies burned…~

~The kind of war you fight... because you have no other choices.~

"Well... this isn't terrifying at all." Circe sighs deeply, "What else can we expect from Jaune? Some kind of laser beam coming from its eyes?" she then says laughing, trying to liven up the room.

~...~

"You're joking, right?"

~...~

"Oh gods! Why!? And how!?" Hela laughs inside at Circe's reaction.

~I am sorry, but this information is classified.~

~I am compelled to warn you that both me revealing that knowledge, and you knowing it, are considered Class-B crimes.~

~And is punishable by imprisonment and reconditioning into the P̸̧͓͛ḩ̵͙̼̦͙̞̗͒̆͛͒̌͝ä̵̟̟̓̈́̑̈͝n̶̲͎̪̣̩͔͆͆̿̓̕͜t̷̺̮̺̹̺̽͋̈́ȏ̵̬͓̣̱̥̹͜m̸̼̓ ̵̘̩̜̑̍͒̇͑̋̍Z̴̡̜̰̼̤̭̟̊́́͒̍̚o̷̲̠͑͗̋͋̉n̷̢̖̊e̴̛̞̙͙̳̎̔͋̈́͐͋~

Something... ₑₗdᵣᵢₜcₕ... dances behind their eyes.

New colours of U̸n̴l̷i̵g̷h̷t̶ are being tasted by their tongues.

A missing song about 𝕤𝕚𝕝𝕖𝕟𝕔𝕖 is loudly felt in their very Souls.

At these two words, Frigga, Salem and Circe, all gritted their teeth as a phantom pain shot through them. It was as if unreality had just visited and said "hello." Something the three women have rarely felt. Only when learning about not getting close to void dimensions, did they witness that kind of...nothingness. And even then, that was merely a fraction of what the three experienced seconds ago. Names have powers. And they just took the unfiltered effects of one.

"You imprisoned your own people there? Within that... Void?" Hela asks, horror in her voice. "...Why? Why would you do such a thing?" This is not a fate Hela wishes to even understand.

"My teeth taste weird." Says an unhelpful and near comatose Circe.

"I've tasted weirder." replies Salem, continuing to massage her temples.

"Quite." Frigga, still trying not to scratch her eyes out, says.

"Do not worry, it will pass quickly. Abyss sickness is a common thing for most underworlds." Hela reassures the other women, even if what the robot had told them is very much on her mind.

"So, grandchild of mine, would you please give an explanation to these old ladies?" After a couple of minutes, as the three witches begin to feel more comfortable, Frigga asks Hela.

It took Hela a little while to put her thoughts into words.

"This… 'Void', has many names, or more like subsections. Honeycomb, Buffer Zone, Still Zone, Stasis Zone, Ghost Zone and the Last Firmament. But, its real name is the Phantom zone. The Void." She says in a hushed tone. "What I am going to tell you, do not leave this room." Hela seriously tells the witches. "Every hell dimension, Underworlds, purgatories and limbos are infinitesimal bubbles on it."

"And all void dimensions are just layers to it." Hela sighs, she makes a few gestures, warding the place and then takes a deep breath before continuing. "...The stories claim that it is the consciousness of the Void of Voids, or otherwise known as the Oversoul... the Aethyr." Hela murmurs. "Of course it has other forms, or avatars depending on the point of view; Pralaya, Kaos, Oblivion, Azathoth, the Great Darkness and many others."

~These tales are… strangely accurate.~

"And your people messed with it?!" An incredulous Hela asks.

~We didn't 'mess' with anything. Where do you think the Sun-Stone mineral originated from?~

"...You want me to believe that all of your people, no, your whole world was Void-touched?" She asks.

~Our whole star system, yes, Lady Hela.~

"...I think I am going to lie down." A weary sounding Hela states.

"Well… Thank you both. But let's move away from that subject." Frigga says, as her mouth still felt like a sonorous purple.

"Kelex, what do you mean by 'confidential'? You've probably already given us such valuable information, haven't you? So why withhold this specific piece of knowledge?" She asks.

~The council forbids-...~

~The council doesn't even exist anymore…~

~Those pieces of information are a dark and tragic part of our history. It involved experiments on sentient beings. Particularly very young children.~

~...~

~Our planet, Krypton, was a planet orbiting the red star Rao. Rao is an ancient red dwarf star now 13 billion years old, five times larger than Remnant's sun and only 40% the density, much cooler with a surface temperature of only about three thousand Celsius, less nourishing and being just enough to barely sustain life.~

~Krypton was a planet populated by a race of scientifically advanced humanoids who resemble Homo sapiens in every outward appearance, but different on a biological and Quantum level.~

~Kryptonians were particularly good at two things, science... and war.~

~Kru-El, hmm, funny how the name sounds in your language… ~

~My apologies.~

~Kru-El was the son of Zim-El, and 'the first stain on the name of El'. Our house. He was a renowned weapons designer, and gifted at biomechanical and genetic modification. At the end of his career he turned to being a weapons broker. One day, a client asked for something portable, undetectable, lethal and unavoidable.~

~Unfortunately, his research required sufficiently strong organic... "resources", to perfect the procedure. After thousands of disappearances and deaths, he delivered his best work... After being arrested and sentenced to death, his work was deemed too valuable and useful to simply be thrown away. ~

~...~

~You only need to know that Jaune's eyes will be able to fire highly modulable, high-energy particle beams, which can then, by psionic means, be further modulated and amplified by several orders of magnitude... at will.~

~His adolescence may prove to be interesting.~

"I am going to regret asking, but … Whyyyy?" Asks Salem apprehensively.

~It can be usually triggered at first by anger and sexual arousal.~

"Aaaand I do regret asking."

"You said his species resembles Humans, but... What about Jaune?" The red witch queries.

~...~

"...He is different from them, is he?" Circe asks, unsure if she wanted to hear the answer.

~I'd rather give no answer, not before I let him know of his heritage first, and not until 'Jaune' is old enough, of course.~

"Krypton... And I'm sure it's not the chemical element, but I've never heard that name, even in books millions of years old." Frigga says in a quiet tone of voice after a minute of silence.

~You will need to go with 'billion', your majesty.~

"Ah." Says the not so surprised Queen of Asgard.

~...~

~I have entrusted you with this information. The child security is our only priority.~

~Make no mistakes. He will be targeted for what and who he is.~

~So it would be preferable if you do not spread that knowledge.~

~If he should happen to be harmed due to your carelessness, would it not be 'unfortunate' for me, to have to... hunt you down, your Majesties?~

The two Queens realised that this is not an idle threat.

"Perhaps this can be... avoided. We could take an oath, or possibly even a Geas. Would that be acceptable?" Asks the Queen of Asgard, looking at Hela, to whom the goddess of death gives a clear nod.

~It would be agreeable, yes.~

And so, after the two Asgardian Queens took a Geas, the discussion continued.

"Is the food we gave him sufficient enough?" Circe questions the machine.

~Do not worry. We have a way of delivering needed nutrients and correct materials directly into his system.~

"So that's a no..." A disheartened looking Circe utters.

~I have never said that. Your Ambrosia should have been enough overtime.~

~But it would have required far more food than what he is currently eating.~

~Between four to five times as much. We just... didn't want to alienate him further.~

Circe sighs a little reassured, "Thank you." she says.

...

...

"And so you want us to serve as custodians? I can see the logic in that. And I am sure we can come to an agreement." Frigga said.

And after an three hours of negotiation , it was decided that Jaune, in four years' time, while still young, would become a ward to the crown of Asgard, and was to be treated with full courtly etiquette as a noble guest, to probably instil in the child a form of loyalty and attachment to the royal family and the Asgardian people. Training and education in a multitude of fields are required, and to eat at the lord's table is to be mandatory during events.

And after those negotiations, a last warning was given by Kelex.

~Be warned. Any attempt to abuse or experiment on the child, will be met with deadly force... and done with extreme prejudice.~

But Jaune wasn't the only one to have part of his future decided. With a few other kids, young Nora, today will have her own Aura unlocked by Nicolas, and in five years' time, will have to go to paradise island with six of Salem's daughters, with the authorization given in a previous meeting to Circe by Hippolyta, the daughter of Ares and Queen of Themyscira herself.

Most of all this is done for political reasons.

When the four women went out of the room, they were greeted and greatly surprised by Loki, still in a woman form, speaking to and holding the hands of the small and… smiling boy.

"Here look, you can see and feel the tone and texture of my skin. Watch as it changes. Good now, try it slowly. Yes, just like that. That's good! Now, you just have to train for a while to make the change happen faster."

"Yeah, you did it, my fearless knight! You have pleased your Queen!" Her royal highness, Nora says.

Loki then turns his head to the witches, then sighs lightly before turning back to Jaune.

"How about seeing the hair a bit later, hmm?" Loki says, to which the boy nods. "Great! Now, go find Idunn in the garden will you? You too Nora!" Loki tells the two children.

"No one commands the Queen of the castle!" The flat look of Loki is her only response."Come my noble and fearless knight! Let us go to the gardens in quest of a charming prince, before this machiavélique prankster unleashes curses upon us!" The laughing princess tells, after grabbing Jaune's hand.

"Wha-" Is the response of the... floating boy? As he is dragged by the little girl, and yes, his feet seem to barely touch the ground.

"Well, that's kind of new." Circe says as her eyes keep following the girl dragging Jaune like a helium balloon.

However, before anyone could say a thing, the wards around the city alerted Salem that new guests are on the verge of arriving.

"Speaking of Themyscira, the Amazons and your niece are arriving near the gate of the Citadel. We should go greet them." Says the Evernight Queen, her gaze on Circe.

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Chapter End Notes:

Hi!
Here, Krypton, like in many other universes, are one of the oldest spacefaring races and was so technologically advanced that at its peak—was able to stand up to the Celestial Host of the Marvel Universe.
That also means Genetic and Bio-engineering. Kryptonians, even without a yellow sun, are physically and mentally well beyond humanity.
Most of their abilities are due to evolution and genetic manipulations, which all are amplified under a orange/yellow star or brighter.
Meaning that they will still be a formidable threat even under Red Sun Radiation... After all they come from a High-Gravity world bigger than Jupiter.

...