And... Cut! So, that's the end of the journey.
I'm posting the Epilogue in a few moments, don't worry about it, but here it is: the end.
That was one hell of a project, and with all the books I took from for this story, not everyone had as much screen time as they could have, though I did try.
Still, when I first started Game On I never dreamed it would turn to such a gargantuan project!
Thanks for reading my stories so far everyone — as for Shadow her adventures aren't over, though my next story will probably lighter and shorter ^_^
Anyway, I hope you enjoy, good reading everyone!
XXXII. One Last Choice
Ella had been entrusted to Grover, and had soon made a home for herself in the satyr's cave – who'd had to add a library for the harpie. Which left the question about why she'd been hunted – and just who those men had been.
Somehow, it was Remus who'd ended up in charge of investigating the mercenaries Hazel and Bianca had dumped to the aurors in Vancouver – or rather, because the werewolf was far too much busy for it, especially with the Black affairs passing to Sirius, who while trained, hadn't expected to be saddled with them so soon…
Thus it was Remus' right hand – the one who'd taken over much of the work Bianca used to do before she ascended and spent over a year in a coma – who did the work.
Percy Weasley… Soon realized he'd stumbled on something very big, and even more dangerous.
Firstly – because the mercenaries had been bought out of prison before the Potter-Black representative could get to him – which told of political power.
The wixen was soon knee-deep in muggle corporations, going through shell society after shell society searching for the elusive backer of the mercenaries.
It took him all of May, and the better part of June, before stumbling on a name.
That was when the murder attempts started.
Which – did mean he was going in the right direction, but made things rather dangerous.
Of course, that was when Luna had fallen in a trance in the middle of the dinner…
"from the seven hills three imperators hail
the voices of fate to silence or fail
for a mortal's wits can tear the veil"
Percy had decided that his next step was to speak with someone from New Rome – Rome was called the city of the seven hills, after all.
Which, after coming to the conclusion that it was the Triumvirate Holdings, a corporation so rich it made oil magnate look poor, who founded the mercenaries, couldn't be a coincidence.
It was with the praetors that he discussed the prophecy – and his findings, but both soon realized they weren't equipped to help with this rather scholarly quest. A retired legionary in his twenties, who'd recently finished her degree in finance and economics.
Megan Bell was a legacy of Mercury – and had a keen mind that could compete with any child of Athena.
She also wasn't afraid to seek help when needed.
"What you've found is big." she agreed quickly with Percy once he'd told her about his researches, and the prophecy who'd brought him to New Rome "And the more worrying in all this…" she gestured at the table filled with printed documents and his own notes on parchment "Is that no one stumbled on it before."
She was right – because the mercenary group that had started all this, the Eagle Division, were subcontractors of the Triumvirate Holdings…
Which meant this company had been the one to help Kronos in his crusade against the Olympians, and had also tried to help the gigantes. Who knew what they'd done before, that they'd managed to slip under the radar of the Greeks and Romans?
The answer was – probably quite a bit.
[New Life Quest! Making the Future!
Goal Complete: find the corporation behind the mercenaries
Reward: +100 XP, Hiding in the Shadows perk unlocked]
[New Perk unlocked
Hiding in the Shadows (6 PP): +10 to spying and city-life survival skills
Available: 66PP]
Because the Triumvirate Holdings were but the latest and more modern iteration of an organization that went back through the centuries. Soon, the duo had to head back to the Moon clan, as they needed to be able to travel in Europe as they followed up the shady corporation through the ages.
The Triumvirate Holdings was an old corporation, dating from the end of the XVIIIth century, it's logo having always been a variant of a golden triangle on a purple background. Back then, they were based in London, and had moved their headquarters to the USA during the early XIXth century.
Before that, there had been a bank, in Paris, dating from the XVIIth century, the Banque Laurier-Tridera – it's logo was gold and purple, with a three-headed eagle inscribe within a circle, with the name of the bank circling it.
That same golden three-headed eagle was on the heraldry coat of arm of the Worshipful Company of Traveling Merchant, based in Bristol, an old merchant guild that could be date back to the mid-Xth century.
It had been a bit harder to find anything further than that, but eventually, they stumbled upon some mentions of a collegia, the old traders associations of the Republic of Rome, that dated from the third century.
¤.¤.¤
"You mean to say that there are some Roman guys who've lived through the centuries, managed to stay hidden from the gods, and are bankrolling their enemies?" a stunned Remus summarized as the clan, Megan Bell among them, was taking their breakfast
"Some old military leader, maybe?" Pandora mused "That's what the imperators were right?"
"At first, yes." the legacy of Mercury agreed "But it was also used for the emperors…"
"And with the violet and gold theme going around…" Arachne interjected
This made Adra roll her eyes "Subtle it is not." she agreed – once the different iterations of the Triumvirate Holdings were side by side, it was rather evident that they were related
"How did the gods miss this?" Leanne couldn't help but wonder
"By the time the Worshipful Company of Traveling Merchant came around," Megan pointed out "The gods had all but stepped out of mortals affairs."
"And those guys were cautious." Percy added "We've managed to tie dozens of deaths of half-bloods to them in the past decade alone, but never directly."
"It's always an accident involving some other society, that can't be tied to them unless you follow their trail over three to seven different shell companies and countries." the ex-legionary said bitterly
"So now what?"
"Now, we need to dig directly in the company." Percy said "It's the only way to learn more… Like whom are the leaders, and just how long is their reach."
"Sounds… dangerous." Remus winced "More than it already was."
"Which is why we need help." the scholarly Weasley agreed "We need a cover. One good enough to pass muster with guys who've managed to fool the gods for over fifteen centuries."
The clan started to brainstorm.
Within a few days, they had orchestrated a large argument between Megan and some senators, ending up in the girl storming out of New Rome in a huff – she ended up in New York, in a small studio, taking some odds and ends jobs.
Percy's argument with his own family was more discreet – but he ended up in the same city.
The two were quickly rekindling their friendship, and heard complaining about the Romans as a whole, or the old-fashioned British wixen world.
It took until the middle of August for the Triumvirate Holdings to take the bait.
[New Life Quest Updated! Making the Future!
Goal Complete: infiltrate Triumvirate Holdings
Reward: +100 XP, No More Red Tape perk unlocked]
[New Perk unlocked
No More Red Tape (2 PP): unlocks administration skill
Available: 45PP (Percy W: 7 PP / Megan: 4 PP)]
Of course – they didn't identify themselves as such, it was a representative of one of the smaller, numerous, shell companies, that dropped by the apartment they now shared and offered them a job 'more suited to their skills' than being a barista or a low-level clerk in a dollar-store.
Beyond their cover, Megan and Percy really had become quite friendly, even if they weren't the couple everyone misunderstood them to be – it would have been rather difficult, the wix quite simply wasn't the right gender for the god-born.
Adversity had a way of making best friends out of very different people – and in their situation, pretending to have left everyone they knew behind, had clearly contributed to make thier friendship as deep as it now was.
Both had also been hooked to Chaos Game – just like the rest of the Weasley family – and while in New Rome, only the two praetors knew of the deception that was the legacy of Mercury's defection, it made sending discreet updates on the situation far more easily than it would have been otherwise.
¤.¤.¤
Still – once they had a foot in the door, climbing through the ranks hadn't been that hard for the duo – Percy had paperwork skills second to Remus only, while Megan's degree in finance had been brilliantly earned.
Both had taken to going on weekend hikes and hunts out of the city – and hadn't been surprised when they'd been followed the first few times. But they really were only hunting.
It was just that it wasn't to vent off their anger like their employees though.
No – the improbable duo of spies was grinding.
Because they had never expected to track someone undercover like they were, this wasn't the sort of quest half-bloods were used to, and Percy had a wix had never even expected to be concerned with a quest.
So, any experience gained through hunting – was quickly going into any skills that could help with their current task.
By the beginning of October, both were promoted into Triumvirate Holdings proper, a lightning fast ascension through the rank that earned them the jealousy of quite a few of their coworkers. They'd also become quite skilled at blending in their environment, always eavesdropping without seeming so, their ability to puzzle out which documents were worth looking more into was uncanny, and rather unexpectedly, Percy had become a wiz in computer science.
It was on Columbus day that the duo of spies stumbled on something unexpected.
Percy and Megan had volunteered to work in a nearly empty office – since the day was a public holiday, there was only a minimal staffing, and the large offices were strangely spooky in the dreary lack of sunlight.
It was also the perfect moment to snoop around more than usual.
The lower levels didn't reveal much, not that they expected them to. What Percy and Megan were aiming for were the levels where only those with the highest security clearance were allowed. A clearance they didn't have, of course – but well, Stirling Wellington, a son of Apollo who'd deserted the legion after three years and had been immediately by the Triumvirate Holdings, was a pompous jerk that could let slip the most important information as long as you lavished him with praises and admiration.
Such as the fact that the security check for the higher level was both magical and technological – with a check of the magical signature on top of a regular face scan and identification code.
Some more buttering up, and the code had been obtained.
The face scan – could easily be fooled by a regular wixen illusion.
It was the magical signature that had been the problem.
But thankfully – Percy and Megan weren't alone, and the clan had come through for them. Bill Weasley and his charming new fiancée had managed to get assigned to some warding work in New York, as the older Weasley sibling was by now trained enough in Egyptian magic that he could set up their kind of wards on behalf of the Per Sesen.
They'd arrived a week earlier – and ended up in the same bar as Wellington, with whom starting to chat hadn't been that hard, as he was always happy to boast about himself. Getting the half-blood drunk wouldn't have been that easy – as a son of Apollo, he was more resistant to all harmful substances.
But the goblins had a magical aura recorder, as the magical aura was one of the ways to secure entry to the high security vault. Managing to convince them to let them use the recorder hadn't been easy – but after hours of negotiation, Bill had signed a contract on his magic attesting that he would only use the device on Wellington; and the Per Sesen had promised to work with a team of goblin shamans to adapt the improved Egyptian teleportation to their own magic for free.
As soon as they were in the high security clearance zone, it was clear that they'd hit the jackpot.
[New Life Quest Updated! Making the Future!
Bonus Goal Complete: infiltrate the high security area
Bonus Reward: +200 XP, +5PP]
Finding the identity of the Triumvirate Holdings was suddenly laughingly easy – their faces were on motivational posters on every walls, just like their aim.
[New Life Quest Updated! Making the Future!
Goal Complete: identify the Triumvirate Holdings leaders
Reward: +100 XP, I'm the Law perk unlocked
Goal Complete: learn about the Triumvirate Holdings goals
Reward: +100 PX, Unveiling the Future perk unlocked]
[New Perk unlocked
I'm the Law (3 PP): +10 administration and politic
Unveiling the Future (1 PP): +10 intuition
Available: 48PP (Percy W: 3 PP / Megan: 6 PP)]
Then they arrived in front of the CEO's office.
There was even more security there; something not unexpected, but that clearly complicated things. Percy and Megan shared a glance, managing a whole conversation in a mere eye exchange.
¤.¤.¤
They could play things safely, stop there and get back to work, taking more time to rise through the ranks and earn enough trust to manage to learn about this particular office security measures and how to undo them discretely.
But it would probably take them several more months at least – and the more they knew about the ongoing affairs of the Triumvirate Holdings, the harder it was to keep to their cover.
"Well," Percy mused, winking at Megan "Gryffindors charge ahead!"
Megan laughed her approval as magic crackled around him, frying the technological security system – then battering against the magical wards.
Percy didn't have his brother's knowledge of wards, or anything like that, but right now, he didn't need to.
They were done being subtle.
[New Life Quest Updated! Making the Future!
Bonus Goal Complete: break in the CEO's office
Bonus Reward: +200 XP, +5PP]
Knowing they wouldn't have much time, as there was no way they hadn't tripped one alarm or another, Percy and Megan went to work quickly, pilfering any document that looked even remotely relevant and stuffing it in their Inventory for a later perusal, the wizard quickly going through the computer that sat on the desk.
Then, Megan stilled, as she hit a hidden lever when going through the rather luxurious bookcases.
A hidden door appeared.
The duo assessed the surrounding office – quickly coming to the conclusion that they'd probably gotten all that they could from the place – and headed through the door.
The room was plunged into darkness, but a quick lumos quickly took care of that. Megan gasped, as she caught sight of what was in the room first.
There was an old fashioned cage, with heavy iron bars, a large padlock – and a child looking no more than ten years old inside.
No, Percy corrected himself – not a child. A god, eyeing them in silence with weary, distrustful eyes.
"Oh, this is bad." Megan whispered "How do we open this?" she asked, hoping the god would answer
"You'd need a fasces to open that lock."
Percy tilted his head, unfamiliar with the word – Megan briefly explained "It's a ceremonial axe. It used to be a symbol of power in ancient Rome."
Percy's mind was moving quickly – then he grabbed something in his Inventory.
"Well, I don't know if it'll work, but when it comes to symbols of power, I've got this."
This – was the rather heavy chain with a valknut of bone steel dangling from it – a necklace all those who'd been named honorary einherjar during the failed Ragnarök had earned, and which gave them access to hotel Valhalla and their suit in it.
A symbol of power from Odin himself, in other words.
"This is not Roman." the young god mused "The powers would clash, but it could break the lock."
Sure enough – as soon as Percy took the interlocked-triangles symbol near the padlock – some sparkles of power appeared around the two items, making the wizard wince as he was taking the brunt of the backlash.
Then with a loud crackling noise, the lock fell to the ground, broken in the middle, and the cage opened.
"Let's get out of here." Megan said urgently – there were voices coming from the nearby offices – she turned toward the god "Need a lift?"
He stepped toward them in answer – Megan grabbed her friend by the shoulder, offered her hand to the god – and with a word, the emergency portkey the duo always had on them whisked them away, just as a pair of rotten, animated, corpses stumbled in the hidden prison.
[New Life Quest Updated! Making the Future!
Hidden Goal Complete: free Harpocrates
Hidden Reward: +400 XP, Sub Rosa perk unlocked]
[New Perk unlocked
Sub Rosa (4PP): +10 to sign-language and discretion
Available: 49PP (Percy W: 8 PP / Megan: 11 PP)]
"Well," Percy mused as he flopped in the nearest sofa in the large communal room of the Per Sesen first Nome in the Moon realm "I think it's safe to say we've just lost our job."
"Thank the gods!" Megan agreed fervently "I really hated those guys. Now let's hope we've found enough information to put them down with this." she mused, taking out piles of files out of her Inventory
¤.¤.¤
Their arrival hadn't gone unnoticed, and soon the clan members who were around were entering the common room, Molly Weasley happily pampering the trio – much to the surprise of the freed god – while they started to go through the files they'd stolen, soon helped by all those that were literarily inclined.
It was Julius Kane who found all three leaders of the Triumvirate's location – while Remus stumbled upon some of the plans they had in the works.
"Okay, so somehow, Nero, Caligula and Commodus have managed to either ascend, or live through the ages." Hermione was the one to sum up -since her seventeenth birthday, she had been spending more and more time with the clan, as she could now apparate
"They've backed all plans to get rid of the Olympians." Sirius completed his girlfriend's statement
"But their biggest plan is to get rid of Apollo's oracle, or take control of them to… control the future?" Ron completed, sounding rather stunned at what he was saying "Are they stupid? I'm balls at divination and I know that's not how things work!"
Laughter echoed around the room at his statement – though, truth be told, he was right.
"Well," Leanne pointed out "from what History shows us, quite a few Romans emperors were megalomaniacs." a shrug "And those three were among the worst of them."
"They want to become real gods." Harpocrates interrupted, surprising the clan
Until now, the god had been rather withdrawn and silent, which they really couldn't fault him for given that he'd apparently been captive for nearly a thousand years, the trio of Romans emperors managing to use his own powers against his will to keep under the radar — and no one among the gods had even noticed his absence.
But Harpocrates was a very minor god, and with so much time spent sealed, his powers had started to decline more and more; which was probably the only reason why Percy and Megan had managed to uncover so many things about the triumvirate.
"So… immortals, but not god." Megan mused "That's good, it means we can get rid of them."
"Don't misunderstand 'not a god' for weak," the young-looking god warned "They've gathered power for centuries, and learned to use the faith of their people just like the gods do."
"Holy servants." Carter realized at the same time as Adra
"Corrupted holy servant." she completed, face scrunching up in distaste
"Still," Harpocrates announced "they have a huge weak point," he said "since a mortal body can't harness that much power, and that they look down too much on monsters to become 'half-breed', they had to store their power out of their body."
"The fasces!" Megan guessed
"The fasces." the god agreed "Symbols of power, holding their very life within."
"Well then," Percy's smirk was surprisingly violent for the usually very put together young man – but well, having to play nice with people that were plotting the murder of so many of the people you considered as friends and family would do that to anyone "we get rid of the axes, rid of the monsters, and rid of the way-past expiry-date emperors." he summarized "I think that's when we call New Rome in, right?" he concluded with a wink at Megan
"Right." she agreed with an earnest smile "Time to go home."
The duo immediately left for the outskirts of the Roman camp, while the Moon clan started to prepare for battle.
Jason, who'd been warned about their arrival, was there to escort them inside, since Megan's cover meant she had been declared persona non grata by the Romans.
A few hours later – her status as a citizen of New Rome had been renewed, and the legion was preparing for battle. This time, they hadn't forgotten to call their Greeks counterpart, much to their approval.
¤.¤.¤
A few more hours later – and in the dark of the night, four attacks were launched simultaneously.
The third cohort, who'd drawn the short straw, was staying at Camp Jupiter just in case.
The other four cohorts, each with a team of Greeks and Moon-clan, were striking against Commodus in Indianapolis, against Caligula on his gigantic luxury yacht just off the coast of Santa Barbara, against Nero in his skyscraper in New York and even against Tarquin just outside of San Francisco, the old king of Rome having apparently endured as an undead ally of the old emperors.
They had opted to prepare very little but strike fast and hard – fearing the risk of their information becoming useless the more they waited.
Besides, all among them were old hands at this game of war – if the triumvirate had been able to stay hidden a few more years, things may indeed have been bad. But here and now, having caught them before they were ready to launch their big plan…
Right now, they were the one with the advantage.
The battles lasted through the night.
By the 14th of October early morning, all three emperors and the old undead king of Rome had all been sent to the underworld.
[New Life Quest Complete! Making the Future!
Goal Complete: send Nero to Hell
Reward: +100 XP, Igni Ferroqueperk unlocked
Goal Complete: send Caligula to Hell
Reward: +100 XP, Ab Absurdo perk unlocked]
Goal Complete: send Commodus to Hell
Reward: +100 XP, Morituri te Salutant perk unlocked
Goal Complete: send Tarquin to Hell
Reward: +100 XP, Mortuus Flagellas perk unlocked
Hidden Goal Complete: reveal the Triumvirate before it's ready to attack
Hidden Reward: +400 XP, +5PP]
[New Perk unlocked
Igni Ferroque (5 PP): +10 to fire
AbAbsurdo (7 PP): +5 to LUCK
Morituri te Salutant (6 PP): +10 to dodging and killing intent
Mortuus Flagellas (7 PP): +10 to curse and necromancy
Available: 54PP (Percy W: 8 PP / Megan: 11 PP)]
Percy and Megan – hadn't expected that it meant one last promotion in Triumvirate Holdings.
"What do you mean, we're the new board of directors?"
"Well, we've just killed them." Jason pointed out reasonably "And even if their leaders were assholes, there are thousands of regular people who make a living working for Triumvirate Holdings." a shrug "We can't just leave them like that, can we? And the two of you are ideally place to know just what to do with this thing." he said, gesturing at some of the stolen paperwork that was still on a table
"Okay." Percy mumbled, taking a deep breath to avoid hyperventilating "Okay."
He wasn't quite managing.
Being suddenly put at the helm of one – if not the – biggest corporation in the world would do that. Funny how, no matter how better he was with paperwork than fighting, he'd still take another battle over this unexpected responsibility.
He took another deep breath.
Turned toward Megan.
"Well, what do you say, partner?"
A smile – she looked just as terrified as he did. And just as ready to take the challenge up.
"At least we're going to be able to afford a better flat."
He laughed, already feeling better about it. Not too far, he could hear Remus bemoan 'loosing another skilled assistant' – he couldn't even fault the werewolf for it, he was already mentally going through the people he knew to find a people or ten he could hire to help with the titanic job he'd just been entrusted with.
In the following days, Percy and Morgan had jumped head first into their new job, happy to live in New York, now that they didn't have to pretend not to get along with their friends and family.
Harpocrates was slowly getting better, the rather shy godling soon taken under Arachne's wing, the spider spirit knowing better than anyone how odd it felt to suddenly be freed after so long – in a prison far more isolated than the Du'at had been from the Egyptian.
It had taken some time for him to open up, explaining his unusual situation as a god stuck between two pantheons – as he was both Egyptian and Roman. In the end, he was welcomed to the Moon pantheon, and finally started to heal.
¤.¤.¤
Then came Samhain. Percy had headed to Hogwarts, where the Moon clan was assembled for the awakening ceremony. This year, for the first time – Adra wouldn't be the one to conduct the ritual, but Daphne, and this was a historical moment for all of the British wixen world. The first real druidic ceremony held on the isles in over a thousand years.
The wizard wasn't the only one to notice the fact that Adra wasn't there, but no one was really surprised – it was after all her first Samhain since Pyxis death.
Then Luna, once more, fell in a prophetic trance. This time, she was far from the only one, as all around the world, all seer and oracles shared the same vision.
"A tide turned at last
a last hero, a last choice
a last price to pay"
As soon as she fell out of her trance, the fey-like witch started to cry.
¤.¤.¤
Adra felt adrift.
It had started after her brother's death, but had grown even worse after the failed attempt at Ragnarök. She knew it wasn't merely grief – while she still keenly missed her brother, this was something different, that went deeper and that she couldn't quite put into words.
Something she was pretty sure had to do with the LEVEL MAX blinking in Chaos Interface, and the strange feeling she'd felt just before Hazel had embarked on her quest, and then again a few hours before Magnus and his team of friends stumbled in Helheim.
She knew it was something big, not only because she could feel it – but because of the stare Luna would throw at her when she thought she wasn't watching.
Adra didn't remember ever seeing Luna so worried – or sad, maybe it was just sadness.
It wasn't any less worrying.
She was also disassociating, and for a goddess, even incarnated as she was, it was a bit more drastic than for a regular mortal. Her mind – and, she was pretty sure, her soul – would leave her body, and wander around, though thankfully it only happened during the night for now.
She'd visit the other pantheons like this, which really wasn't that bad. She'd witness the life of people, all around the world, some of them she knew, others she'd never seen, all of them people she knew had a faint touch of something about them…
It took her a while to realize that it was the touch of fate.
They weren't Chosen Ones – not even, she realized, all those baby heroes she'd collected as family during her childhood. No – they'd travelled the path that Fate had laid out for them, traveled it successfully, and now their road would be of their own making, thought a lingering blessing remained…
It was only on the night of her seventeenth birthday, as she stepped in the forest between realms, that she came to a startling realization.
Currently, and more to the standard she was used to, there was only one Chosen One alive.
What was more unusual was the identity of said Chosen One.
Her.
[Sixth Rite unlocked
- Black House: +10% MP,+2PERC, +1 INT, Black Familiar Bond or Black Battle Mage Aura or Black Metamorphmagus Mutation unlocked
- Lovegood House: +10% MP, +2 PERC, +1 WIS, Lovegood Familiar Bond or Lovegood Shamanism or Lovegood Beastspeak(reptile) unlocked
- Moon House: +15% KP,+2AG, +1 ST, Moon Atavism or Moon Beastspeak(canine) or Moon Magical Animagus unlocked
- Peverell House: +10% MP+2 FORT, +1 INT, Peverell Familiar BondorThot's Favor or Peverell Necromancyunlocked
- Potter House: +10% MP, +2FORT, +1 INT, Potter Familiar Bond or Potter Reiki Regeneration or Potter Hematomancyunlocked
- Ravenclaw House: +15% MP, +2INT,+1 WIS, RavenclawFamiliar BondorRavenclaw or Psilós Áeras or Advanced Magic Sensing unlocked
- Slytherin House: +15% MP,+2WIS, +1 INT, Slytherin Familiar Bond or Psilós Néro or Slytherin Parselmagic skill unlocked]
She spent her time in the enchanted clearing, simply chatting with the spiritual beasts and enjoying the night.
They were far more talkative than they'd been the first few times she'd seen them, the knowledge about how to claim dreamless wixen having scattered around the world, somehow making their rather dull days far more exciting, not to mention how they all looked forward to the yearly awakening at Hogwarts, even if there were, naturally, less and less new-bloods to claim – soon, it would be only the young muggle-born starting school for the first time who would need to be awakened.
And while they loved the fact that it was Adra herself who called them every year – the fact that for the next October, it wouldn't be her but Daphne who'd head the ceremony, and Neville the following year, was making all of them rather excited, as it was proof that the wixen were regaining their knowledge about the old holy arts.
¤.¤.¤
After losing the ministry, Voldemort had both upped his attacks, and disappeared.
There were randoms attacks of Mesopotamian monsters around the country weekly, and more targeted Death Eaters raids at least twice a month.
But Voldemort himself – still hadn't been seen.
Adra should have been frustrated about this, but she just felt – expectant. Something was missing, she knew.
One last step.
¤.¤.¤
Her disassociation became worse after her birthday, but Adra wasn't really surprised about it anymore, as she'd realized what was going on.
This was an old world, Time&Eternity had told her, one where she'd been able to use the most her powers as a goddess.
It hadn't been without a price.
The bindings on her soul were slowly coming undone. Far more gently and slowly than they would in any other world, but undone nonetheless – it could have been avoided if she'd used her godly powers more sparingly, but this wasn't really the point of her incarnating.
She'd been sent to assist Fate's Chosen Ones, and bring the world back from the edge.
While she hadn't really needed her godly powers when it came to her troupe of brilliant little heroes, the balance of the world had been quite another problem.
Adra finally understood what was going on – and she couldn't quite bring herself to regret it.
¤.¤.¤
She spent the following months traveling around to see all her friends and family while waiting for Luna to tell her the blood-pendulum had finally worked, and Voldemort was found.
She spent hours, sparring with Carter, hunting with Dionysus, lazying in Elysium with Hades or trying the latest of the Weasley twins products with Leifr and reading books with Sirius.
On Samhain's morning, Adra woke up with a peculiar feeling.
She enjoyed the usually rowdy breakfast with the clan, then spent the next few hours doing some paperwork while taking care of Pyxis' twins.
As the evening dawned, and all were getting ready to head to Hogwarts, she took Luna to the side.
"It's time."
"It is." her fellow goddess agreed, hugging her tightly, before letting an item fell into her hand
A pendulum, the crystal blood-red, with darker swirls twirling lazily in it as if it were made from liquid. Adra was pretty sure the young seer had been done with it for a while.
Adra followed the pendulum further and further north, up to the Orkney Isles, and to the Wideford hill's cairn.
She stepped in the dark corridor leading to the inside chamber of the three-rings structure – and each step brought her a bit deeper – and a bit out of the mortal realm.
She had made no attempt to hide her presence, and soon, the corridor was opening on a wide chamber, far larger than the cairn she'd entered in the mortal realm; a chamber filled with monsters, who were all snarling and growling menacingly, yet kept at bay by their master's orders. Deeper in the cave, the Death Eaters were assembled around Voldemort – except of course, by now, the wizard's mind and soul had long since been torn apart and consumed by Nergal, and the Death Eaters who'd been so eager to get rid of their gods were now serving one far darker.
¤.¤.¤
"Adrasteia Potter." he greeted "The girl with the soul of a goddess."
"You finally noticed."
"I admit having been a bit too… distracted, at first, to realize just what you were." he agreed "After all, having a real body once more took some time to get used to."
"You mean the restrictions."
"Not only, not only." he contradicted with a genial smile "It is far more interesting to live among my faithful subjects after all." he pointed out "My godly body had grown rather inured to such mortal pleasures."
"You mean your nearly faded, powerless form." Adra answered with a playful smile, enjoying the flash of anger in his eyes
To think he was conceited enough to try to sway her to his side. This, she really hadn't seen coming!
"The Egyptian really had the right of it," the other god mused as if she hadn't said anything "What better life for a god, than to run your kingdom, and receive the prayers of the faithful directly?"
"The Egyptians have changed their ways." she contradicted once more – this time, the annoyance was more visible
"You could receive the respect and worship you deserve, if you'd only joined me." his smile could have been charming – if his eyes weren't so cold and calculating "After all, don't you want to change the world? Isn't this why you went against all the current pantheons traditions and was born as a mortal?"
She couldn't help it – she laughed.
"Oh, Nergal…" she let her glamour slip with a thought "Change the world? I've already done it." she said, her arms making an encompassing gesture "Respect and worship…" she smiled "I already have in troves."
¤.¤.¤
At that very moment, the air shuddered, and thousands of voices echoed, in the unique, dreamy quality, of seers telling a prophecy.
But of course, the voice Adra recognized the best among the multitude, was that of Luna.
"A tide turned at last
a last hero, a last choice
a last price to pay"
The next moment, she could feel hundreds of thoughts and prayers, all of them messages of love, cheering for her, hoping for the future.
How they'd known – she couldn't say – but she was grateful nonetheless.
It was the one last push she had needed.
Not for her choice, this she'd made a long time ago – but for her godly powers to finally break through the invisible limit they'd been hitting against, knowledge and power finally coalescing together in a new, unique, form.
Adrasteia Potter was replaced by Shadow, goddess of heroes.
[Holy Affinity unlocked
Clairvoyance Art reached 25/25!
Destiny Art reached 25/75!]
[New Godly Domain created
Auspice Art (Clairvoyance/Destiny/Revolution/Soul): 5/100]
Fate's affinities weren't a surprise, she was honestly more surprised they hadn't appeared earlier since Clairvoyance was tied to the insight she got on the new worlds she was sent to, and the preternatural intuition – while Destiny was tied both to heroes and self-determination.
But maybe she had needed to accept herself as who she was for the godly powers to finally manifest correctly.
And while Shadow had accepted her status as a goddess surprisingly quickly, she identified herself more as Death, then Chaos' sister, than by her own powers.
Paradoxically, it was being reborn as a hero – that made her understand she wasn't just any goddess.
It was being the Girl Who Lived once more – that made her realized she was the goddess of heroes.
She eyed the new power, that just like her Wild Art was a blend of several primordial domains – Auspice Art.
She liked the name – liked the idea of guidance behind it.
She wasn't simply a teacher or a trainer, nor was she there to do the job in her heroes' place.
But gently guide them toward what she knew they could accomplish?
That – she could do.
¤.¤.¤
But for now – she turned her attention back toward Nergal, that even without the notifications could tell something had changed.
It wasn't disassociation this time, she was still there. But as the bindings came undone, she felt something slip away – there was no coming back this time, a mortal body wasn't made to channel godly powers like she was right now.
She saw the god's eyes widened as he whispered in disbelief "Old One."
It was already too late.
She stepped toward him, but the incarnate god couldn't possibly measure against an unleashed goddess from the immortal realm.
He tried though – she felt him soak the power he'd carefully squirreled away around his under-hill dream world, and though their youketsu were better hidden than those of Apophis had been, she was also far more in tune with her powers right now, and finding them was as easy as breathing.
Her blade cut through invisible maelstroms of power twelve times, easily side-stepping the spells and brute waves of power Nergal was sending her way.
With each power reserve disappearing, she could feel his despair rising.
But he wasn't done, oh no – the next source of power he tried to use, was that of the soul of the Death Eaters assembled around him.
Shadow snapped through the parasitic soul-bonds with a snarl, not even bothering to use her blade, as the green and golden aura streaked with violet around her jumped toward the links like a puppy eager to please.
¤.¤.¤
Shadow's eyes delved in the depths of the incarnate god's soul.
She found only a greed for power, a complete lack of remorse, and at the source of it all, a deep fear of fading.
Nergal didn't even have the excuse of going mad from the lack of balance, like Kronos or Apophis had – he was no chaos god after all, but a death god, with some affinity with war and diseases.
It was, maybe, what had made him so dangerous – the fact that he'd held to his mind so tenaciously, when hundreds of other gods had faded.
But now, he was on his last leg – with only mortal magic left to him as it was clear his godly powers couldn't measure up to the Old One in front of him. In a last ditch, desperate attempt, the spell he was the most familiar with left his wand.
"Avada kedavra!"
Shadow didn't even bother to dodge.
She'd already lost her mortal body after all – and the only reason why she hadn't forced out of this world yet was a testament to how old and powerful it was, though of course it wouldn't last.
Her mind went through her options.
Sealing his powers wasn't even in question, Nergal was a god who'd gone against his domain, and the general balance of the world he was responsible for, repeatedly, and while in full possession of his mind, all without a shred of remorse.
But his most dangerous weapon may well be said mind – and she feared that if she merely sealed his powers, he could brew trouble again, even without powers, just out of sheer spite. Or boredom.
She could seal his memories, just like she'd done temporarily with Gaea, but there was always the risk of the seal breaking or being broken.
¤.¤.¤
Shadow eyed the incarnate god who was still lashing out at her, having taken out a couple of daggers that clearly dated from his days of glory – she'd been parrying and dodging instinctively while she was thinking.
He would have been an even more dangerous opponent, hadn't he chosen to forgo his own mastery of martial art and instead favoring magic to appease Voldemort, before he'd grown strong enough to get rid of him.
No matter.
She knew what she could do.
"The Covenant have been broken."
There were two very familiar voices echoing her own, she realized with fondness, as she felt a breach between the mortal and immortal realm break open.
Nergal had been brought to his knees, and he was screaming in terror and agony.
"Balance must be upheld."
"Duty must be upheld."
Chaos and Death echoed at the same time, both voice crystal clear despite speaking different words together.
Emerald green and molten gold powers swirled violently around the incarnate god, making him disappear in a storm of power that would be deadly to anyone but a god.
"From Ashes and Dust, back to Void and Abyss."
¤.¤.¤
Where there had been a defeated god, was now a baby, crying angrily – an immortal, albeit powerless baby, whose memories of the past four thousand years had been utterly annihilated.
The shadows curled around him – taking him to Bianca in Hell.
Shadow shuddered, as she started to feel the strain that her presence in the mortal realm was placing on the world.
"Nearly done, little sister." two voices cheered her together – accidentally this time
There wasn't much left to do.
She'd already settled her affairs during the past few months, had ensured that each of the families she had a duty to had an heir ready, writing this very morning letters to say goodbye to all her friends and family – which was more than Death had been able to do.
All that was left – was the unbalance between order and chaos; but between Damasen and Bianca both becoming gods of chaos, Anubis embracing his father's power, and rather importantly, awakening Hùndùn, who was undoubtedly the most powerful chaos god on this world, the balance had already started to shift back toward equilibrium.
The Wild Hunt, of course, had helped too.
The numerous nearly faded gods, who'd started to gain some power back, a number among they tied to chaos, had contributed too.
She just had to give – one last push.
Her soul and mind were all over the planet at once, touching softly the soul of all those chaos gods she'd met, befriended and even loved for some of them, leaving behind her blessing to them.
Some would gain an increase in already existing powers – others would gain a new power.
Then, she focused on the very fabric of the world – this wasn't strictly necessary but…
She was Chaos' little sister, she wouldn't be herself if she didn't sow a bit of harmless mayhem before leaving!
[System update! Welcome to Moon Game 1.0
Salazar Slytherin is now System Administrator
Godric Gryffindor is now System Administrator
Rowena Ravenclaw is now System Administrator
Helga Hufflepuff is now System Administrator]
[please consult the System Log for a list of all the changes to the Interface]
She smiled.
She could feel the balance of the world shift, shifting back from the edge.
This – she smiled, as her newfound Auspice Art told her – this was a Light World, one where heroes would still be born and change the world, but that wasn't at risk of falling into a cesspit of unending violence and destruction.
She sent a last wave of love through her bond with Carter, knowing once she was back in the immortal realm without him, said bond would be muted.
She got back a wave of feelings just as strong – and of comprehension.
¤.¤.¤
Finally done, she stepped back – toward the gap between realm, where her two brothers were waiting for her.
The three Old Ones disappeared, the breach closing behind them – and the world was left bereft of the Girl Who Lived.
Who, once more, had chosen death to save the world.
"A tide turned at last
a last hero, a last choice
a last price to pay"