Disclaimer: I don't own anything in this fic, the only thing I own is myself, and all other things I use belong to their respective owners.
Hello everyone, it's me once again. Man, it's been quite a while since I updated this story huh? but do not worry. For this chapter and the upcoming ones, this will be quite the steamy one.
That's right, the next chapter will almost be completely lemon-based since well, I have so many lovely girls to choose from, so I thought 'Meh, why the fuck not? And so I shall.
Anyway, I've rambled enough, let's get started.
"Hello" Characters Speaking.
'Hello' Characters Thinking.
"Hello" Demons and Dark Beings speaking.
'Hello,' Demons and Dark Beings thought.
"Hello" Techniques are being used.
(Hello) Author speaking.
Chapter 4. Themyscira. Evolving myself!
As we made our way to the port, we kept a watchful eye in case we were being watched by Order spies or assassins. As my now larger family moved discreetly and quickly through the port town. It was still very early in the morning, and we didn't want to attract any attention, yet the early souls that were awake were looking at us in slight awe and fear.
"Guess being subtle doesn't work anymore" I stated as I was wearing my armor, although be it with my hood off and my mouth cap off, as the rest of the girls were in their normal, or fairy outfits, as the Pixies had shrunk themselves to their smaller forms.
"I guess so, since we are a large group, the people would be slightly nervous," Bloom said as I nodded, we were quite a large group of people, yet so far, they didn't interfere with us, and neither had they run away, they were only staring for now, which was good.
"So, where is the guy we bought the boat that will bring us to 'you know where Sivir asked both Que and Hope as they looked around at the harbor.
"He should be here soon, don't worry," Hope said, and as soon as she said that, we saw the large, wooden ship lying on the docks, waiting for us.
"Wow, she's beautiful" Aisha commented as she stared at the ship with Aurora and Niobe, the rest were as much in awe as they were, which included me as Sivir held a small grin, as she was reminiscing.
"Are you two the ones who ordered this ship?" An elderly voice spoke, as a man with a grey beard and short grey hair walked off it, as Hope and Que approached him.
"Yes captain, we appreciate your willingness to give us your boat," Hope said as the elderly man bowed.
"It's an honor, my lady, if my small vessel will help two goddesses in driving the despicable Order from our lands, then it's the least I can do to help," he said as he wore an old captains uniform, complete with hat and parrot, which had me slightly chuckle, but a quick nudge brought me out of it.
"Still, we would like to thank you for this Captain, we promise to take good care of her," I said as the captain's eyes slightly widened, as he had possibly recognized me, as our name had spread throughout the lands a bit.
"Ahh don't worry lad, just do this old man one favor would ya?" he asked as I nodded. "Keep our goddesses and that harem of yours safe, I can see in your eyes how important they are to ya, so don't lose them, you understand," he asked as I grinned, and shook the old man's hand.
"I wasn't planning on giving up on them, I wouldn't be a good husband if I did," I said as some of the girls blushed, but all had gentle smiles on their faces, even though we weren't 'technically married' I still treated them like they were my wives, as they treated me like I was their husband, which honestly felt good to me. The old man laughed as he patted my shoulder and left. I grinned and shook my head as I turned toward my family.
"Well then, now that we got that, let's set sail shall we" I spoke as the group cheered as we made our way onto the ship. Thankfully Hope, Sivir Aisha, and Niobe had experience running a ship, so within no time at all, we were underway toward Paradise, not knowing what would await us there.
(A little while later.)
"We've been sailing for about three hours now, and still we are nowhere close to Paradise, are you sure we are going the right way," Stella asked as she was starting to feel bored and impatient, I could understand where she was coming from. But I understand that this Island was hard to find because almost nobody knew where it was, or that it even existed.
"Relax dear, both Hope and Quetzalcoatl know where we are going, so have a bit of faith in them," Luna told her daughter, who relented, as I placed a hand on top of her.
"She's right, just trust them, we will get there," I said as she nodded as I kissed her cheek, resulting in a nice red blush, as the others smiled, as Albedo and Garnet were feeling slightly jealous.
"Speaking off, you told us that Themyscira was an all-female island right?" Meena asked as the two goddesses turned towards the rest of the group and nodded, while still keeping an eye out.
"That's right, they have been like that ever since the island separated itself from the mainland so many years ago," she said as Meena asked.
"Then...what will they do when they see our beloved?" she asked as I heard some unease in her voice, as the others were worried as well, we had this conversation back at the Casino, only not in detail, although I couldn't help but feel touched by it, as Hope and Que shared a look as they nodded.
"Well, we most likely think that he will have to...prove himself since the island was originally an Amazon-cultured island, they still follow the old Greek culture, as they still worship Greek Goddesses. But over time, another woman they were friends, with joined the island and later defected as the Goddesses separated the island, making it self-sufficient, even though they still needed men to continue their legacy. They don't accept men so easily" Hope explained as the girls were in awe and shock.
"So basically, I have to show my 'masculinity'" I said using air quotes, as I didn't believe in that whole thing. But luckily Hope shook her head with a smile.
"No, but when they see that you're a warrior, they are going to want to test your metal, that's a rule on the island there," she said as I sighed, I grabbed Apocalypse and spun it around once, as I looked at it, as its energies were still flowing through me, I started to learn what this weapon of Hope was capable off, and I respected and feared it both.
One of its abilities was to drain the souls of my victims and power myself up with them, which I started to feel slightly guilty about, but Hope taught me, to only use it on our enemies.
"You'll be fine love, after all, we know that you wouldn't use it unwisely or with evil intent," Machina said as she sensed my distress, it wasn't that I was afraid of fighting women, but I feared the powers of Apocalypse more, but not to the point that I was too afraid to use it.
"Thank you, dear," I said as the water Dragon hugged me and held me close, as the girls smiled as Garnet and Albedo joined, trapping my arms between their cleavage, which send a pleasurable sensation through my body, although I couldn't act on it as Hope and Que perked up their heads as they stared west.
"We're getting close" they both spoke as the weather turned bad quickly, the sea began to get rougher and the clouds turned from white to dark grey very quickly.
"What the...natural defenses?" I muttered as the boat started to sway along the waves, which were getting bigger and bigger by the minute. Some of the girls started to panic, but thanks to the experience of those who had been on a boat before, they quickly calmed them down and took command. As Hope and Que used their powers as much as they could to guide us through the storm, toward Themyscira.
"Hang on everyone, we're almost there!" Hope yelled out, as another wave struck the wooden boat, I kept myself steady with Apocalypse firmly planted in the wood, as the others held on to either one another or something, as Sivir gave some of us orders.
"Sjoerd, man the wheel, guide the ship towards the island!" she called out, I nodded as I grabbed my scythe, ran towards the wheel, and started to steer the ship towards the island, although this proved more difficult than I imaged as the waves and the wind was working against us.
"Dammit" I muttered angrily as I swung it back starboards, as the waves kept pushing us away.
"Is this why the island was never found because they can control the bloody weather!?" I yelled out over towards Hope, who was doing everything she could to guide us.
"It's one of the reasons, yes, but they are also doing it to test you Sjoerd, to see how you perform under pressure" she yelled out, I gritted my teeth in anger and determination, so this was all a bloody test to see what I could do huh? Well then.
"Alright girls, tie yourself to the ship or hold on to one another, Aisha, Niobe. Help Que and Hope with holding the ship together" I yelled out as they nodded.
"Sivir, get up here and help me steer this bloody thing, Machina, Garnet, transform and blast those clouds and dive into the water, try to get things under your control, or at least make things easier for us" I roared above the heavy winds, Sivir made her way over to me as he both steered the heavy ship, as both Dragons transformed. Machina dove into the water, as Garnet took to the sky, as she started to fire upon the heavy clouds, hoping to neutralize them, as Machina was now under the boat, focusing her powers to keep the water around us calm and steady.
"Alright then, you want to see what I can do, you got it!" I roared as both Sivir and I gave the wheel a hard swing to the right as we were on course again.
On the Island.
"Well well, it seems like they picked a good man to follow huh?" came a sensual voice as the group of people stared into the orb before them, as they saw the wooden ship heading towards their island, they focused on the lone male that was currently holding the ship together, as they saw both goddesses guiding him with their power.
"Hmm, to have awakened Hope, that is quite something, and then winning the affection and loyalty of the mother of all Dragons...could he be the one?" another one asked.
"We shall see, in the meantime..." another spoke as she snapped her fingers.
"Let us see what he will do...about this" they spoke as they watched and waited, curious to see what the male would do.
Back on the Boat.
"We're almost there, keep it up, everyone!" I roared out over the heavy winds, although it had calmed down a bit thanks to Machina and Garnet, we were still far from done, as the waves outside of Machina's control continued to strike against the boat, Sivir was helping me steer the boat in the right direction, as Hope and Quetzalcoatl were busy lighting our path, the rest of my family was hanging on tightly to either one another, or a piece of the ship.
"Sis, I'm scared!" Miele sobbed slightly, as Flora held her baby sister in a warm embrace.
"Don't worry Miele, we're almost there, just a little while longer" she assured her as the rest held on when suddenly.
"EVERYONE, HANG ON!" Machina roared from under the ship as a huge tidal wave came towards us, Sivir and I ducked while the rest braced themselves for the wave to hit. When suddenly.
"KYAAA, HELP ME!" a cry came from one of the girls, as my eyes widened in shock as I saw that Piff had fallen off the ship
"PIFF!" the girls cried, and without a moment of thinking, I took off my shirt, ran towards the side, and jumped in after her.
"WAIT, SJOERD!" Sivir cried out as another wave hit, she cursed the weather as she continued to steer the ship, Machina commanded the water she had under her control to aid me, and I dived deep down as the stream was lucky with me. it didn't take long for me to find the youngest Pixie, as she was unconscious, I wrapped my arm around hers, and dragged her towards the surface.
"Beloved, hurry up, I can't aid you for much longer without bringing the ship in danger," Machina said as I swam with all that I could, as Machina used the last bit of her powers to propel me upwards towards the deck of the ship.
"SJOERD/PIFF!" They cried as I gasped for air, I looked at the girls, and immediately I saw their relieved, and worried looks.
"Stay where you are, leave Piff to me, Hope, Que, keep the ship sailing towards the island!" I commanded as the two goddesses nodded, I listened to her heartbeat, and while it was still there, it was faint. I pressed my hands over her chest and started pumping, after twenty presses, I pressed my lips against her, and started to reanimate her, I did this a couple of times until Piff came back to her senses, as she coughed out the seawater. A sense of relief washed over me as Piff had teary eyes and hugged me, I smiled and hugged her back, while the rest of the girls were happy as well, when suddenly.
"THERE IT IS!" Sivir roared out as the two dragons returned as we saw our destination...Themyscira.
"It's...beautiful" Bloom muttered as we saw that the weather had calmed down, the ordeal now behind us as the island shone in the beauty of the sun's rays.
"Well, we made it...somehow" Hope breathed out in relief as she turned towards us with a smile.
"Are you alright Piff dear? And what about the rest of you girls" she asked as Piff nodded along with several other nods of acknowledgment, a sigh of relief exited my mouth as I was grateful that Piff was fine after that ordeal, as I looked towards the island, I gripped Apocalypse a bit tighter.
"This is it," I muttered, as Hope and Que nodded with me.
"Yes...the hard part...is still to come, are you ready for this beloved?" she asked me once more, as I nodded towards her with a fire burning in my eyes, as I was more than ready. The two nodded as we turned toward the rest of the group and they looked at us.
"Alright then ladies, once we're on the island, we stick together, no wandering off, got it?!" I said as the girls nodded.
"The wise thing to do would be to head towards the temple over there, I can sense a lot of power of different kinds being centered there, maybe we can find some information there," Tecna said as we nodded, as the ship entered the shores of Themyscira, we jumped off one by one as we prepared ourselves, and then heading towards the temple.
(Pov Skip)
"They are here!" a gorgeous woman spoke as she narrowed her eyes as her two daughters looked at her, as did several others.
"Then that means..." the younger one started as her sister nodded towards her as she looked at the others.
"Prepare the Coliseum, we will bring them there, our goddesses will join us later," she said as the women in the room nodded.
"Of course, Diana. Let's get started girls!" a woman with blond hair and an all-white assembly said as they nodded as they flew/teleported/walked out.
The Queen of Themyscira sighed as she stood up, she was confused as to why the goddesses asked her to do this, but she knew better than to question them, it would also be nice to see her old friend again.
"Mother, are you sure this is wise, someone like 'him' has not set foot on this island for at least 1000 years, why would the gods choose him to set foot on our island," Diana asked her younger sister Donna nodded.
"Yes, I mean, what is to say that he isn't like the others we have met, what makes him so...' special'" she said with air quotes, as her mother sighed, and shook her head.
"I don't know for sure, but the gods have never lied to us, so all we can do is wait and see," she said as the two daughters nodded. "Now then, lets us go to the Coliseum, for they are close". She said as she flew towards it, with her daughters following.
(Meanwhile)
We were walking through the forest, and the leaves were the only thing that we heard as we stuck together, with Hope and Que leading us, with me in the middle, and the rest of the group stuck either with their mother or partner.
"I can sense something within this forest like it's guiding us somewhere" Flora spoke as we continued walking. I looked at her and asked.
"Are you sure about that?" to which she responded by nodding.
"Yes, the trees and the wind are guiding us somewhere...somewhere old it seems," she said.
"Well, considering that this whole island is a myth, that's not saying much Flora" Stella responded to her friend, but she shook her head.
"No, there's something far more powerful on this island...and we're heading towards it" she exclaimed, making the group tense up even more. As we kept a close eye on our surroundings, we didn't notice that a pair of red eyes were following us from the shadows as we continued our walk through the forest.
"Hey look, I can see something ahead!" Chatta said as we looked towards where she pointed, by this time we were almost out of the forest as we saw a clearing at the end of it, there stood a giant Rome-like Coliseum, with the entrance to it being lined with pillars of a similar style.
"It looks beautiful" the girls exclaimed as I nodded.
"Yeah, beautiful...but deadly as well," I said as Hope and Que nodded along with Sivir. And as soon as we headed towards the arena, I saw something move towards us. In a flash, I grabbed Apocalypse and swung it in a downward arc toward the creature. It cried out in pain as it backed up I managed to scar its eye, and the girls immediately jumped into action as we saw more of those creatures come towards us.
"What the hell are these things!" I roared as two of the wolf-like creatures jumped toward me, I moved back as Stella shot a ray of light toward them, they snarled as they focused on here, which gave me a few seconds to see how the others were doing.
"Roxy! Can't you communicate with these wolfs to calm them down!" Sivir called out as she threw her weapon in a deadly arc towards them as she managed to slice one's head clean off, as the fairy of animals answered.
"I've tried that already, but they don't seem to want to listen to me, it's like they're being controlled or something" Sivir clicked her tongue as she swiped at another of the wolfs as it lost one of its legs, I jumped up and planted my scythe in its neck, killing it and begun to drain its soul.
"Let's see if these mutts like this" I muttered as I planted Apocalypse with its blade first into the ground, as its energy erupted as I called.
"Apocalypse: Beowulf!" As the soul of the now-named Beowulf appeared only this one was clad in the colors of Apocalypse, it let out a roar as it charged towards the black Beowulf's and started to take them out.
"Here, let me help you. Summoning: Bone Wolves" Hope said as she cast a circle where several skeletal wolves poured out of them and took on the Beowulfs who were getting killed one after the other, with some already retreating.
After a few minutes, the beasts were either dead or they had fled back into the woods, we caught our breath as I called my first acquired soul back into Apocalypse.
"Is everyone alright?" I asked as I got several confirmations from the girls as I looked at my weapon and then towards Hope as I asked her.
"Hey Hope, how come I absorbed the soul of that Beowulf, I mean I know I was thinking of doing that, but why didn't it activate during our fight with those dark mages?" As we walked further through the woods on our way to the exit thanks to Flora.
"Well as you said, when you thought about it, Apocalypse will make it so, but the main reason I think that it worked now is the fact that you have grown more comfortable with it," she said as I looked at her with a raised eyebrow as she continued,
"As I told you before about what it could do, you must have subconsciously suppressed that particular ability" at her answer I looked somewhat surprised, but I knew that she was right, I still was somewhat afraid of what I could do with Apocalypse, but I respected its power as well, it had allowed me to continue to create and protect this family of mine as I took a quick look at the girls as we neared the end of the forest, I gripped my weapon and muttered softly.
"No more" was all I said, and as if it heard my words it glowed for just a moment, Hope had a proud smile on her face as we exited the forest.
(Meanwhile)
"Hmm, not too shabby" A woman with long blond/golden hair spoke in a very sensual voice as she stared at the projection that they created as she along with others were watching us exit the forest.
"Indeed, their teamwork and trust in one another are quite remarkable" another one answered, she had long dark brown hair that was hidden beneath her helmet, she looked at her fellow sisters as they continued to watch us.
"However," she said. "It is still clear to me that he isn't very comfortable with Apocalypse yet, but at the same time, he's slowly learning how to become more adjusted to her". She said as the others nodded.
"Then shall we test him...alone?" This time a red-haired woman spoke as she adjusted her bow, the others nodded and with a wave of their hands, a new test was created.
"Now then, let's see what will happen" they spoke as they continued to watch.
(Pov Change)
As we made our way toward the arena, I felt something wrong, a slight tingle went up and down my spine.
"Sjoerd are you ok love?" Que asked me as I turned towards her.
"Yeah, I just..." Before I could finish my sentence, a magic circle appeared right underneath me and I was teleported away in an instant.
"SJOERD!" the girls cried out but it was too late and I was gone, they were flabbergasted as they stood there in silence, not knowing what to do.
"WHERE DID HE GO!" Albedo cried out in panic as Hope closed her eyes and tried to track me with her magic.
"I found him, he's...underground?" She answered surprised, for in but a moment he was magically transported to somewhere far under the arena. As the girls grew worried and were discussing what to do, a group of women approached them.
"My sisters, we welcome you to Themyscira"' the leader of the group spoke up, she was a woman with an almost unnatural beauty.
"I am Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons of Themyscira, and its ruler, next to me are my daughters Diana and Donna" she spoke as she introduced herself and her two daughters
"Greetings sisters" Both sisters spoke as the group looked at them, Albedo wanted to step forward and confront them, but Hope held her back and approached Hippolyta with a small smile
"Greetings Hippolyta, it has been a while hasn't it?" She said as the queen nodded.
"It has been quite some time since your last visit Lady Death," she said as Hope's smile turned sour.
"Then can you explain to us why you brought us here, and why you teleported our husband underground!" She stated with the rest of the group nodding along with her, Hippolyta sighed as both Diana and Donna were surprised as were the rest of the girls who had joined them.
"Wait hol up, you mean to tell me that ya'll are sharing him?" A woman from the other group spoke as Hope nodded.
"Yes, White Death, as he is called is our husband and wielder of Apocalypse," she said with pride. "Is in fact our shared husband, as we are all dating him and each other, which is why I want to why you sent him underground near your arena?" she said, and before Hippolyta could answer, another voice spoke.
"That's because it was us who did it, dear Hope." The same sensual voice spoke as the Amazons bowed before their gods. As Hope looked at them she sighed with a small smile as she approached them with Quetzalcoatl.
"Hello there ladies, it's good to see you all," she said as the gods gave each other quick hugs as the rest stared in awe and shock.
"Wait Hope, you know them?!" It was Stella who exclaimed this as Hope nodded along with Quetzalcoatl.
"Yes, they are some of the gods of the former Greek Pantheon before the Order came." She said as the apparent leader of said group stepped forward with a small smile.
"I welcome you to Themyscira, I am Hera, the former queen of Olympus," she said as the rest of the gods introduced themselves one by one.
After the introductions were done, Hope and Que asked them again why they send him underground as they were walking towards the arena.
"The reason we did that, was because we were indeed watching you as you all made your way towards us, we saw that he was still not fully adjusted to wielding Apocalypse and her power, so that's why we send him there," Hera spoke as they were getting closer and closer to the arena, the group meanwhile while they were listening they were also looking around the island.
The streets were filled with women from all walks of life doing their own thing, but what surprised them the most was that besides the Amazon woman, their group along with most of the other residents were either superhuman or non-human which amazed them. Hestia saw this and smiled as she moved a little more toward the back of the group.
"Are you all surprised?" She asked as the girls turned towards her as they nodded, Hestia smiled sweetly and explained that, while the island first belonged to the amazons with their blessings along with several goddesses blessing the island, over time others joined them for a bunch of different reasons, mostly it was because they were close friends with each other and they had helped each other turn over a new leaf.
By the time the Order had closed its grip around all of Eternia, they were safe and sought a way to help the world be turned back to the way it was before, but alas, the Order struck first by destroying or corrupting several other gods, leaving their essence scattered or sealed away inside powerful artifacts.
"That's horrible" Bloom exclaimed as Hestia nodded and put a gentle hand atop the Domino Princess and softly stroked her hair, this brought happy memories back from her childhood when her mother did this along with her former boyfriend. Marion smiled as she saw this and asked.
"If some of the gods were either destroyed or sealed, is it safe to say that there aren't a lot of you left?" as she asked this, Athena turned towards her and answered her question.
"Fear not, for we gods are not so easily destroyed, The Order realized this, hence why they sealed most of us away, but we have a way of bringing them back, although if they would be the same as before, that would be a matter of chance," she said as this raised a few eyebrows from them except Hope and Quetzalcoatl.
"Wait, what do you mean by that?" Albedo asked as Hera looked at the group as they had just arrived at a massive bathhouse, it was constructed in the familiar Greek style that was visible all over the island, as they were escorted inside, Hera spoke.
"When we reclaim the artifacts of our fellow Greeks and others outside of our former pantheon, we can use those artifacts to resurrect them, but they could either become male or female, honestly its a 50/50 chance by this point, this is also one of the reasons why we brought Sjoerd here, to help us acquire the others and reform them into a whole new Pantheon, one that stands united against the Order" she exclaimed as Hope and Que looked at Hera.
"A noble cause, and thank you, Hera," they both said as they entered the bathhouse they were joined by the gods and several others, as they lowered themselves into the waters, Hera conjured a mirror-like reflection into the water, as the girls saw Sjoerd as he was moving towards the arena while still underground.
"Now you know the why, we will see if he passes our trials," she said as the group watched.
(POV Switch, a little bit earlier)
"Urgh, where the hell am I?!" I asked as the sudden teleportation left me quite dizzy for but a moment, as the dizziness wore off, I saw that I was transported to some kind of cavern, with the stone walls being close together with but a single path going forward, the walls were thankfully lit by several torches, so this made it somewhat easy to see what was going on.
"Okay, only one way to go I guess," I said as I moved forward toward where the path was leading me, as I walked several thoughts entered my head, mostly about why I was the only one that was sent here, and how are the girls doing, these thoughts were the motivation for me to keep moving forward.
After a while, I noticed that the path had gotten larger and bigger, and before I knew it, I was standing in front of a giant pair of old symbol-engraved doors. as I looked at them, I also looked around and saw that right in front of the doors was a plate of some sorts, it was engraved with the same strange symbols that were on the doors.
"Huh, so they are connected to each other in some way then," I said after a few minutes of looking at them both, but I was kind of stumped on what to do next, I tried to open the doors but they wouldn't budge, I didn't want to blast the doors open with Apocalypse, so I did the next best thing, I sat on the plate, with my scythe on my lap and just began to think on what to do.
As I sat with Apocalypse in my lap and my eyes closed, I didn't notice that both the doors were glowing along with the plate that I was sitting on, and when I noticed it, it suddenly disappeared.
"What the...?!" I exclaimed as I thought for a moment, and then it clicked for me, I sat back down as I placed Apocolypse back in my lap and closed my eyes again, and began to focus. and this time, I was surrounded by my own magical energy along with Apocalypse energy as both plate and doors glowed again, and before I knew it...I was somewhere else completely else.
(Inside Apocalypse mindscape)
When I opened my eyes, all I saw was a field of white, with a black-colored lake under me, I was apparently walking on water...somehow, this confused me for a moment, until I heard a sensual voice speaking to me.
"Well well~ you're finally here partner," it said as I looked around trying to figure out where it came from, this made the voice giggle as suddenly in a swarm of blue and white smoke, she appeared.
As I stared at this otherworldly woman in front of me, I failed to notice that she was carrying a very familiar weapon, the same one that I was carrying around on my back for quite some time now.
"Are you going to stare all day, not that I mind it mind you, but we do have some things to talk about partner~" she said in the same sensual voice with a hint of teasing at my staring, I blushed and shook my head, trying to regain my focus.
"S-Sorry about that..wait, partner? whom are you exactly?" I asked as she laughed.
"Come now, surely you have figured out who I am, we've been partners for a while now, and you fed me plenty of souls," she said as it finally clicked for me as I pointed at her.
"No way, your Apocalypse!" I said as she laughed and clapped her hands together in joy.
"BINGO!, you figured it out, yes Sjoerd, I am Apocalypse, the soul of the scythe whom you now carry," she said with a smile as I stood there with my mouth agape, I never knew that Apocalypse was alive, even more, so that she was this gorgeous.
"Why thank you, your quite handsome yourself partner~," she said with a small blue-colored blush as I blushed as well, she could apparently read my thoughts, that wasn't embarrassing for me. after I recovered we sat in front of each other as she began to talk.
"You know why your here right?" she asked as I nodded.
"Yeah, to open those doors right?" she said as Apocalypse shook her head. this surprised me as she said.
"You are here to learn how to wield me, properly, you're here to overcome your fear of using me, then and only then can you move forward," she said as my eyes slightly widened, as I looked at her to see if she was lying to me, but she wasn't.
I sighed as I looked at the scythe that she was wielding, she grabbed it and pointed it toward me.
I was hesitant for but a moment as I grabbed the scythe as she smiled and said.
"You will see my history, and learn how to use me to your fullest potential, together you and I, we will put an end to the Order and the pain they caused. That is what you wanted yes?" She said as I nodded.
As I grabbed the blade, a flash of foreign memories ran through me, as I saw Eternia from way before, a time before the Order even existed.
As I saw how Hope and Apocalypse along with the other gods were steering the land and its people along the right path, yes there were some conflicts here and there, but they seemed to all live in peace, then they came, and I watched how they sealed a large number of gods away within their artifacts and even killing a couple.
"These were difficult times indeed, after I was sealed along with my best friend Hope, we had to watch on how the world we helped shape, was drastically changed in so little time, that was until you were born." She said with a smile aimed at me as I looked at her.
"When you were born, I knew for certain that you would be the key towards peace, towards a restored and healed Eternia, and that's why I chose you that day, and now, I will teach you how to use me to your fullest," she said as the last memories were now firmly planted within my brain, as a few tears escaped me as she held me within a comfortable embrace. After a few minutes, my tears had dried up as she said.
"Are you ready now my dear?" She said as I nodded.
"Yes, but what will happen to you when.." I couldn't finish my sentence as she placed a finger on my mouth.
"Don't worry, I"ll always be here, right by your side, right where I belong" she said as I smiled, not forgetting the fact that she was almost fully naked, but that didn't matter to me as we stood up.
As she looked at me and with a nod between us both, she held my head as she kissed me, this surprised me a little but I adjusted quickly as our tongues swirled around each other, our magics merged as we floated as we separated, she floated a little higher than me as she then disappeared and the scythe took her place as it glowed, I smiled and held it in both my hands as the room around me disappeared, and with a finale smile, I woke up.
(Outside)
As the energy disappeared, I stood there with a smile on my face, I grabbed Apocalypse and just looked at it for a bit, my smile never leaving. I no longer felt afraid of her, instead feeling more...whole? yeah something like that, I felt more complete which made me feel good. I pointed her at the door as the energy curled around her and aimed as the doors and the platform responded. with a heavy rumbling sound, the doors magically slid open until they couldn't open themselves anymore.
I stepped off the platform and adjusted Apocalypse onto my back and walked forward, as the path wasn't as small as it was in the beginning, I noticed that they were leading me to a pair of downwards going stairs.
"Huh, deeper we're going then I guess?" I said softly as I followed the stairs.
After a while we saw a giant clearing with another set of doors on the other side, somewhere up high on the walls, the clearing was scattered with rocks, stalactites, and stalagmites, as we entered the clearing, a shiver ran along my spine as Apocalypse warned me.
"Be careful love, something powerful is nearby" she said as I nodded, I grabbed her and held her at the ready, and even to be safer, I summoned my Beowulf as the Grimm approached me and I patted it, telling it to be ready as it took a more aggressive stance, as we approached the middle of the clearing, we heard a rumble.
"Get ready!" I said towards my Beowulf as we looked around, as we tensed up for anything, I felt an almost electric tingle wrapping around my body, when suddenly.
"ABOVE YOU!" Apocalypse called out in panic as suddenly a massive creature tried to get the drop on us, I immediately teleported backward as Beowulf jumped back with me. the ground shook as the creature landed down, and it was surrounded by the dust cloud it created.
As the dust disappeared, I stared in wonder, awe, and a slight amount of fear at the giant creature, it seemed to be some kind of electric-looking wolf, only way bigger than I had ever seen before.
"What is that thing!" I asked Apocalypse as the beast stared at us as Beowulf growled at the massive beast, it was massive in size and it was surrounded by an electric glow.
"That is a Zinogre, a wyvern of a different kind, they came from lands far away from here, but what is this one doing here underground is something I don't know, they are usually more often found in the forest and mountain regions, perhaps its a guardian for those doors?" she said as my eyes never left the creature as Apocalypse relayed this information to me. As the staredown continued between us, the Zinoger let out a loud roar and was on us in less than a second, I teleported out of its way and asked Apocalypse as I readied the scythe and aimed at its head.
"Where are its weak points!" I asked as Apocalypse said.
"Its head along with's its claws along with its tail, also be careful when it's charging itself, that's when the real fight starts," she said as I nodded, I swung downwards and with a roar of effort, I managed to scar it slightly atop its head, the Zinogre let out a roar of pain as it tried to get me off with its electricity, Beowulf charged in as well as it swiped at the massive beast, but the Inogre moved away as it fired several balls of lightning at us, I charged Apocalyse and lived through two of then with Beowulf biting through one with its fangs.
'Alright, let's see what I've learned' I thought as I continued my assault on the Zinogre, I moved in a zig-zag pattern towards it as I focused my magic around my hand and trusted it forward. this resulted in a giant white-blue colored hand grabbing the beast by its tail, and with a roar of effort I threw the beast toward one of the walls, once it connected with the wall, I ordered Beowulf to charge a shot as I held it in place, the beast was struggling to get free as I pushed my power into my hand construct as Beowulf fired its shot, it did hit as the best slid down slightly staggered, it shook its head and growled, I teleported up and grabbed Apocalypse and said
"Apocalypse, form change, blade mode!" as Apocalypse changed from its usual scythe into a beautiful but deadly katana.
"Apocalypse: Divine cuts!" I said as I drew my blade and in but a single moment, several cuts appeared on its skin as it roared in pain, and tried to swipe at me using its speed and claws along with its tail, I shifted around using teleport and sh...
"Alright Zingore, one versus one!" I said as the east roared at me as I saw that it had somewhat changed, as it was now supercharged, and with one leap, it closed the distance as I moved away, but I was knocked by its lightning. I grunted as we both had taken a fair bit of damage.
"Apocalypse: Frozen blade", as I coated my blade with my magic as this made it razor sharp, the beast fired several shots at me and I cut right through them, and send several slashes it's way as it moved away from my now long-range cuts.
'This is taking too long, I need a way to either kill it or make it my ally somehow' i thought as Apocalypse said.
"You can make it yours you know?" she said as she relaid the technique to me, as I widened my eyes and grinned. it was a good technique to use as I focused on performing it.
'Alright, step one, restrain it' i thought as I avoid its attacks as I lured into the middle of the clearing, as it charged at me with a lightning-covered strike, I shadow traveled up and said.
"Apocalypse, Soul Chains!" I roared as I pointed my blade downward as several blades of white-light blue planted themselves into its tail along with four in each of its limbs, it roared in pain as it tried to get loose, I landed on its back and focused again on my hand, but this time, I was using a different technique as a collar appeared around its neck with a chain of the same colors wrapped around my arm.
"Alright, now...BIND!" I said as I focused my magic into the Zinogre, and after several difficult seconds, the beast calmed down as the swords disappeared from its limbs as its wounds healed up, I panted as I jumped off Zinogre, as it looked at me, and then suddenly, gave me a long lick, this surprised me as I patted it.
"Well done Sjoerd, you bound your first living beast to yourself" Apocalypse complimented me as she appeared next to me. I smiled as Zinogre wagged its tail, but as I turned towards Apocalypse she suddenly had a massive mischievous grin on her face and said.
"You know you can ask it to change forms now, a more...human form~," she said in a teasing tone as I looked at her in complete surprise as Zinogre nodded, as I looked between them, I thought 'well, why not and asked it.
"Zinogre, can you change to a human form?" I asked as she let out a happy growl and glowed, and after a few seconds, there she...WAIT SHE!
I stared at her for a good while with my mouth dropped and eyes open wide, Apocalypse was laughing her ass off at my stupor as Zinogre grinned and crossed her arms under her bust, knowing that it would enhance them only more. as I stared in awe and amazement, I unintentionally checked her out from head to toe, and her curves matched the other girls, with her bust almost matching Hope and Que.
"Are you enjoying yourself, master?" Zinogre said with a grin as I blushed, this caused both women to giggle. after a bit, my blush had gone away and the girl had gotten over their giggles, although they still would tease me for checking out Zinogre.
She explained that she was brought here by Artemis in order to test me, this surprised me, how had they known that we would be going towards their island, Apocalypse placed a hand on my shoulder and said with a soft smile.
"The gods know more than they sometimes let on, they must have had a vision or something like it, there are also people both here on the island and in the rest of Eternia with this gift," she said as I nodded, and turned towards her and said.
"So they knew we would go the Thermyscyia, so they brought Zinogre here to test me and you, but what was she guarding?" I asked as I turned towards Zinogre as she smiled and said.
"I was guarding the last door to your freedom, the last test is behind those doors, that is all she told me," she said with a shrug as I stared at her dumbfounded. it appeared that even she didn't know what was behind those last sets of doors.
I and Apocalypse teleported ourselves towards the two doors while Zinogre climbed up with relative ease, once we stood in front of them, I looked at both of them, and with a nod of encouragement, we pushed them open.
(Pov Switch, back with the girls)
"My~ My~, he's tamed Zinogre, he's much better than I had thought off!" Aphrodite said with an impressed tone as she and the others had long exited the baths and were now watching Sjoerd's progress from the arena, everyone was sitting along and watching as they were more than impressed with how far he had come.
"Of course, as expected of our hubby," Albedo said with a huff as she had expected nothing less, Garnet nodded and shared a high-five with her fellow sister-wife.
"It seems like our future king also has a cute side, which is adorable," one of the many women in the crowd said as several nodded with some giggling and smiling as they saw the interactions between Zinogre and Sjoerd. Hope also giggled.
"Oh yes, he is still somewhat shy when he gets teased like that, but that only makes It more fun for us," she said with a blush as she was very impressed with how far he had progressed, and what made her even happier was how he and Apocalypse had worked together, she saw clearly that Sjoerd was over his fear of using her power and was now fully embracing her power.
"He has come far.." she said with pride and care laced in her voice, her fellow sister-wives agreed with her statement as Hope turned towards Hippoylita and asked.
"This is his last test, right? what's behind those doors?" Hippolyta turned towards her along with Hera, who nodded as if to give the go-ahead to tell smoothing... secretive.
"Behind those doors are his last power-up, two people that existed along the same time as the gods and the dragons back when they were freely roaming Eternia," she said as everyone looked at her and the goddesses with wide eyes.
"W-What?!, you have two dragons from our age here!" Que said in surprise as Hera nodded.
"Yes, we bought them here as a means to protect them when the Order came with their Age of Corruption, we refused to let everything that we had helped create go to waste, so with their permission, we sealed them here, under Thermyscyia, they knew about our vision of a hero being born during this age, so they agreed to wait and wait they did... I fully believe that Sjoerd is the chosen hero from our visions, he will bond with them, and deliver us all to the Age of Peace" she said with the fullest amount of conviction, this shocked the others as Hope sighed and looked at Hera.
"You really haven't changed haven't you?" she said as Hera laughed.
"Of course not, I want what is best for my family, and I know that this is the best for us all," she said as Hope recognized the look Hera wore, her eyes were filled with determination and love, so she simply nodded and believed in both Hera's plan and in her beloved husband.
(POV Switch)
"Well, this is it," I said as the door opened and it lead me to a pair of stairs, but instead of going downstairs, they were going up which was a good thing, Apocalypse and Zinogre were still with me, standing both on my right and left respectfully, Zinogre was in her human form still as I had summoned Beowulf as well, it was walking next to me and Zinogre. as we walked up the stairs we suddenly heard.
"Chosen Champion of Thermyscya, follow the sound of our voice!"A powerful set of voices said as I grabbed my scythe in alarm as Zinogre tensed up and Beowulf growled, the only one that wasn't surprised or tense was Apocalypse as she stayed neutral, almost as if she recognized the voices.
"Who were those voices, where was that coming from!" I said as the three of us looked around as Apocalypse floated forward towards a side of the wall, I stared at her in confusion as she placed her hand on the wall, and to my great surprise a magical symbol appeared on the and as quickly it had appeared, it left.
"Don't worry my love, they won't hurt us" she said as I nodded, we followed Apocalypse towards the voices in the narrow path, I still noted that we were still going upwards somewhat, just not by much. after a few minutes the pat and our surroundings began to change, instead of it all just being rock, it was now much more detailed, with the stones all being engraved with symbols and runes of some sorts, and my biggest surprise was the two giant dragon statues we saw.
"You are almost there Champion, come to us to begin your destiny" the voices spoke, much more cryptically, I raised my eyebrow as I started to question them, Apocalypse saw this as she approached me.
"Sjoerd, ease your mind, they mean well," she said as she stroked my cheek, although it was slightly embarking, it was very comforting as I leaned into her hand a bit.
"Sorry Apocalypse, I'm just worried you know, what do they mean my destiny, and why does it seem like you know them?" I asked her as she smiled and kissed my forehead softly, a token of affection from her as Zinogre hugged me as Beowulf laid its head in my hand, allowing me to pet it. their actions were calming me down as Apocalypse spoke up as we were in front of a temple of some sort.
"I do indeed know those voices, they are ancient dragons from a time before the Order, and if I know them well enough, they will help you in any way they can," she said as this calmed me down a little more, but I was surprised by her answer. but she told me to ask them as she turned towards the temple and walked through its entrance, I followed her as did Zinogre and Beowulf.
Once we were inside, I was looking around as we were now standing in the middle of the temple, it looked old but very well-detailed, its pillars were engraved with dragons and symbols I had never seen before. but before I could call out to the voices, they responded first.
"Welcome Champion, to our home!" They said and before I could even respond, two tornadoes appeared in front of us, one was a red flame and another was a green flame. as the flames died down, in front of us stood two giant Dragons, one red and one green. i was in awe as next to Garnet and Machina, I had never seen Dragons like this before. they stared at me for a moment when the red dragon spoke.
"Welcome you all, my name is Alexstrasa, the former queen of the Red Dragonflight, the Ancient Aspect of Life" she spoke as she turned from her dragon form into a human form.
"And my name is Ysera, Former Queen of the Green Dragonflight, the Ancient Aspect of Dreams." the green dragon spoke up as she to changed into a human.
Once I saw what they looked like, I blushed a little as they had an almost unnatural beauty to them, similar to Hope, Que, and Apocalypse
Once I saw what they looked like, I blushed a little as they had an almost unnatural beauty to them, similar to Hope, Que, and Apocalypse. I guess that was to be expected since they are Ancients, but what didn't really help my blush, was the fact that they both were smirking as if they knew I was slightly checking them out.
"Well well~~, looks like we still have it sis~," Ysera said as she looked at her sister who now joined her next to her, as they both walked towards me and began to circle me like a pack o lionesses around their prey. this certainly amused both Zinogre and Apocalypse as they wore identical smirks.
"Don't go looking too hard now, he still needs to function, ladies~" Apocalypse said as I send her a look of betrayal as she giggled, Zinogre was just eating it up as she crossed her arms behind her head as the two dragons continued to look me over.
"Hmm, a strong body, a vital spirit, and good looks, my we certainly chose our Champion well~," Alexstrasa said as they glided their arms over my armor, after a few minutes of them 'inspecting' me, the joke came to end as we sat across each other as they began to explain what my destiny was, and why they needed me.
I was quite shocked after they had told their story to me, and why they had brought me and my new family over here, and the longer I thought about it, the more the pressure started to weigh on me, if I accepted this responsibility, I would become the number one enemy to the Order, and not only that, I would also have to look for any god or other mythological beasts and add them to my team or revive them in case of the gods. honestly, the pressure was immense...yet I only had to think about my girls and look at Apocalypse, who had laid her hand on my shoulder to show that she would support me no matter the choice I would make, to make my fears subside.
I began to think back way, as to why I started this journey of mine in the first place, and it was to help people, to no longer be afraid of the Order and its evil, corrupted ways. to replace the love that my family had given me, with the love I felt for these girls that had become my new family. to do all that, I knew that I couldn't run away from this.
"Alright then... I'll do it!" I said as I looked both Ancients in their eyes as they seemed to shine, I could practically see the relief, the joy they had for me saying yes. and out of nowhere, they both hugged me tightly and began to thank me, with a soft voice full of care, I returned their hug as we stayed like this for a couple of minutes.
"Thank you, but are you really sure, if you go through with this..you won't be fully human anymore," Alexstrasa said as our hug had ended, she looked at me, as did Ysera, wanting to know if I really wanted to continue. I gave them a smile and a nod, and they smiled back and nodded, as Apocalypse went back inside the scythe along with Beowulf, as Zinogre stepped back, waiting for what was about to happen.
(POV switch)
As the ceremony between Sjoerd and the two dragons was about to happen, Hera suddenly disappeared the magic, this got the others, except the gods, to look at her in confusion.
"Lady Hera, why did you do that, right at the most important part!" Diana asked in complete confusion, as her fellow sisters nodded, Hera didn't answer immediately but first turned towards her fellow gods as they placed barriers around the arena, confusing the rest even more. once they were done doing that, Hera turned toward Diana and asked.
"Because what we are about to witness, we need to see with our own eyes," she said, this confused them even further when suddenly they felt a raw power being unleashed, the whole arena began to shake and tremble.
"What the...What's going on!?" Albedo asked as the girls were looking around in slight panic as they didn't know where it came from, but then suddenly.
"Everybody, get down!" a couple of the girls cried out loudly as they also created their own barriers for those that held no magic, as suddenly the floor of the arena broke up and a massive pillar of extremely powerful magic burst upward's, it was a dark blue color with black mixed in, and everyone could feel that this magic was vast and enormous. as the pillar rose, they all heard a very powerful dragonic roar from within the pillar as they looked up and saw a massive figure within the pillar.
As the figure flew upward, the pillar of magic had transformed itself into a tornado or vortex as it swirled around the figure for a good bit, but then suddenly, with a motion of its wings, they could see what it was, and what it was, shook and surprised them all.
A massive Dragon flew just above them, they stared in awe and slight fear as the beast looked down at them and with just a bit of its magic, the ground that it had come out of was completely restored, as it flew up and made a few rounds as it then...
The girls in attendance didn't know what to think, or what to do, as they stared at the beast with mixed emotions: Fear, awe, respect, and plenty more.
"My Lady!" It was Hippolyta who called it out towards the gods as the dragon had locked eyes with them, yet instead of feeling afraid, they smiled as they teleported towards it, with Hope and Quetzalcoatl doing the same.
"Wait, Hope, Que, come back, that Dragon is dangerous, it will rip you apart!" Sivir hollered at them, yet all they did was smile at her as they joined their fellow goddesses. as the dragon lowered its head to look at them, it let out a soft rumble as magic enveloped it, to the amazement of the girls, and within seconds, instead of a deadly dragon, they're stood someone else.
As the dragon lowered its head to look at them, it let out a soft rumble as magic enveloped it, to the amazement of the girls, and within seconds, instead of a deadly dragon, they're stood someone else
"Welcome... Sjoerd Ryusen, King of Thermyscyia, Champion of Peace... Aspect of Death" they greeted him as this shocked the girls.
"Wait...that's...Sjoerd?!" Albedo said in a completely flabbergasted tone, she couldn't believe her ears, and neither could the rest.
"No way that's him, he looks completely different than before...wait does this mean that..." Donna began as Hera looked at the crowd with a smile.
"Indeed, Sjoerd Ryusen has passed our tests, and he has accepted our mission and our offer. he will lead us towards the Age of Peace, he will restore the Pantheon of Unity, he will drive the Order out of Eternia, and we shall help him do so, for that is our destiny" she said loud and proud as the gods smiled at their chosen/husband.
As the others began to approach him, it was Albedo who stood in front of the one they called Sjoerd, she began to touch his chest plate and asked.
"Are you...really him?" she said as Sjoerd grabbed his helmet and revealed his face to them with a soft smile, his transformation had given him slightly longer hair, just reaching his shoulderblades, as it also had affected his brown eyes as they had a slight blue tint to them. Albedo smiled wide as she hugged her husband who eagerly returned the embrace, this was followed by the rest of his wives joining him for one massive group hug.
"I can't believe it, he really did it! " a younger girl with orange skin and long flowing red hair said to her sister as she nodded.
"He did sister, and now he's our king" As her younger sister nodded with a massive smile and a slight blush, this was also visible on some of the other girl's faces. Sjoerd overheard this as he looked at the crowd and spoke.
"I know that you all don't know me that well and that I am now placed in the position as your king, however, I want you all to know that I would like to take my time with this, and get to know you all on a more personal level first," he said with a smile as the girls cheered. he would explain everything to them later that night while they were partying and chatting with one another, this of course included both Alexstrasa and Ysera whom he had gotten the power from. The party went on too long in the night, and by tomorrow, Thermyscya would have a new leader.
And so, his life as King of Thermyscya had begun!