Hello everyone and welcome back. Well…the last chapter was a bit of a mixed bag. Some of you liked it, but some of you…really didn't. Of course, criticism is important, so I'll try to take what was said and improve, but I'm always sad when I don't live up to your expectations as I really do hope to entertain you with this story. Regardless, the story goes on and I must do my part to improve my work, so on we go.
I do not own Danmachi
"My king," she said, bowing her heads.
"It is good to see you again, my lady," he greeted with uncharacteristic benevolence.
"And it is wonderful to see you as well, Your Majesty," she replied very eagerly. "How may I be of service to you?"
"You have no doubt felt the rumblings through the world."
"Yes, Your Majesty, I have. I thought it was you initially as they felt quite similar to you yet…were somehow different."
He smiled and she noted that, of the few times she had seen him smile, her king's smile was never so lacking in wrath or sadistic glee.
If anything it seems…proud.
"Keen as always, my lady. What you felt was not me, but one who has a piece of me within him, for what you felt was my son."
"Son?" her eyes filled with confusion, but only for a moment, before they widened. "You succeeded in your great mission?!"
"Yes. After so many years, my captive finally gave in and created the key to our family's release."
"I can't believe it…after all this time," she said, her voice filled with elation. "And the prince? He's well?"
"Beyond well. He grows stronger by the day. Indeed, that is why I call you now, my dear."
The affectionate response made her hearts beat faster. She had always desired her king, wishing desperately to become his queen, but he had always been so focused on his mission and, if not that, his wrath and fury, that she had never gotten close to taking a place by his side as anything more than a servant. However, she now dared to dream of finally taking that spot.
"I-I will do whatever is required, Your Majesty," she bowed her heads again.
"I am glad to hear it, for what I ask is no easy thing. My mission for you is to go and retrieve my son and bring him to me."
"Where can I find him, Your Majesty?"
"That is why it is difficult. He is in Orario."
"Orario?"
Trepidation replaced her excitement and joy, which was not missed by her king.
"I know you are anxious, my dear, and with good reason. Even I avoid that place, but I have faith in your power, and you are no fool who will be led into some adventurer's trap. You are strong, perhaps the strongest creature under the sky beside myself. That is why I call you now, for I trust you will complete this task, and when you do," he approached her, making her raise her heads and stare up with nervous, but extraordinarily eager eyes, "I shall properly reward you. Of that you can be most sure."
Her hearts thundered and she could barely manage the words to respond as all fear was replaced with the single desire to complete this newly bestowed mission.
"I shall see it done…my king."
He smiled.
"I shall eagerly await your return, my Queen of the Skies."
Ouranos had called an emergency Denatus, knowing full-well that most of the gods were practically losing their immortal sanity at this point and would demand nothing less. However, this meeting was to be different than others for many gods, including Aphrodite, called for the meeting to be made public and demanded that they be allowed to use their Mirrors to show the proceedings to ensure that nothing was hidden.
Though some argued this was pointless given that most deities couldn't keep a secret if their immortal lives depended on it, the motion was granted and four giant Mirrors were made all around Babel, causing a huge crowd to soon form.
It was into this openly hostile environment that Hestia and her companion deities entered.
Many of her fellow gods had been ready to pounce on her the moment she entered, even with the knowledge that Loki and Freya were likely to be with her. However, upon seeing fiery-eyed Mania and the ice cold Hades entering, they all stopped mid-scream, and watched uncomfortably as Hestia sat down, her friends immediately surrounding her like a wall while silently daring the others to "come at them".
"It seems everyone is here," Ganesha said, glad that Mania and Hades's presence had saved them from a good 20 minutes of ranting, "so let us begin."
The god of the populous sat down and for a few moments, nothing happened and the room was nothing but silence and uneasy glances towards Loki, Freya, Mania, and Hades. Finally, one god gained enough bravery to stand, that being the goddess Rosmerta.
"We all know why we're here!" she began, her voice loud and harsh as her long ginger hair flowed behind her. "We're here because, yet again, the mad captain of the Hestia familia has terrified Orario, this time by causing an earthquake!"
Many deities immediately rose to cheer, sending their own accusations at Hestia, pointing and jeering as Rosmerta glared down at the goddess of the hearth.
"Quiet! Quiet!" Ganesha ordered, slowly regaining control of the room and opening the floor to the counter.
"Do you have any actual proof of that?" Loki asked, staring at the other goddess with bored eyes.
Before the meeting, Hestia and co. had agreed to allow Loki, Freya, and if need be, Hades, take charge. They had the most power in the city or, in Hades's case, had the most terrifying aura. The others who simply remain silent and in control, not giving the other deities anything that could be used against them or could be seen as a sign of weakness.
"It's obvious," Rosmerta shot back.
"So that's a no," Loki replied just as calmly as before.
Rosmerta sneered, but said nothing.
"Yeah, that's what I thought," Loki said, before getting up. "It takes a special kind of moron to go around making really big claims with absolutely no proof." Rosmerta and the other gods growled, but still said nothing. "Chibi's kid is scary, I'll fully admit that," she said, turning to Hestia, "but do I think he's scary enough to make the whole Dungeon shake? Nah. Heck, I don't even know how anyone or anything could do that since it's never freaking happened before."
"There's your evidence!" another god jumped to their feet. This time it was Gobannos who spoke. "As you say, nothing like this has happened! It is only now that Bell Cranel has arrived that such a thing has occurred!"
The opposing gods cheered again, though not quite as loudly as before as they noticed Loki still looked bored.
"Or…ya know, it could have something to do with the level 8 rampaging through the Dungeon fighting Evilus and whatnot. Something that also has never happened before," she pointed out.
The strength of the opposing side evaporated again, but they were far from giving up the fight. However, it was not Rosmerta, Gobannos, or any of the more belligerent deities who arose, but Aphrodite.
Freya glared at her fellow goddess of beauty and stepped into the middle of the room.
"Loki, I understand and respect that you are defending Hestia, it's quite admirable, and a bit surprising as I wasn't aware that you two had gotten so close."
As Hestia cocked her head, Loki blushed and cracked her eyes open a smidge in embarrassment.
Don't say stuff like that in front of her…I mean everyone! Everyone! I totally meant everyone! Loki thought frantically.
"However, even if we were to agree that Bell Cranel was not the cause of the earthquake which has so rattled the already frayed nerves of the city, that doesn't change the fact that he is an issue. An issue that must be addressed," Aphrodite continued.
"And how," all eyes turned to the cold glare of Freya, "do you suggest we address this 'issue'?"
Aphrodite was a confident woman and she firmly believed that she was more beautiful than Freya, just as all gods of beauty believed they were more beautiful than everyone else. She was not, however, a fool. She knew how dangerous her position was, but there was something she feared more than Freya's wrath these days, and that was Bell Cranel and the power within him.
"Bell Cranel has proven himself to be a unique issue to Orario," she began. "Originally, he was just a point of great interest. The record breaker, War Game winner, and bunny-like adventurer. All in all, while some of us might have been jealous of Hestia for her stroke of luck, he wasn't something that inspired any real concern. Then…things changed."
The room got a little tenser and a few deities even leaned in. Outside, the scene was not too dissimilar, for Aphrodite had mastered charming an audience naturally, including through speech and spoke well and elegantly, with a voice as lovely as a song.
"The monsters appeared on the surface and he acted like any other greedy adventurer," Aphrodite continued as Hestia's fists clenched, hating that her beloved captain's selfless action had been so perverted, "only for his reputation to be saved through his fight with that black minotaur. Then, to the shock of many, Captain Achilles Caesar of the Zeus familia returns, looking for him. This leads us to the explosion over the city when a 'training exercise' went wrong. That, in turn leads us to the tournament, an Evilus attack on the Hearthfire Manor involving Bell Cranel, and the young man's kidnapping by the now imprisoned members of Loki's own familia."
"Is there a point to all this?" Freya demanded.
"You will have to be patient, Freya, if you wish to see where I'm going," Aphrodite responded calmly, though she was shaking a bit.
Freya did not like hearing that from the lesser goddess, but held her tongue, if only barely. Back down in the city, Ottar and the other members of the Freya familia were severely displeased by the blatant disrespect shown to their lady.
"However, once again, Bell Cranel shows himself to be an exceptional young man and spares his attackers in a grand spectacle that had the whole city cheering and chanting his name. A hero, they all proclaimed!"
Where is she going with this? Mania and many of the other deities wondered. However, the more clever, such as Hades, Loki, Freya, and Hermes, already knew, and their frowns deepened and their fists tightened.
"And then…everything changed," Aphrodite said coldly, allowing her words to sink in. "The very world seemed to change that day for we all bore witness to a power we didn't even know a mortal could gain. The power to become a monster."
Hestia jumped to her feet, forcing Hephaestus and the others to do so as well to restrain her. Yet, she did not move an inch after that, nor say a word, she merely stared at Aphrodite with eyes that were the most miserable mixture of rage, fear, and desperate pleading. It broke Aphrodite's heart, but she knew she had to continue.
I'm sorry Hestia. It's for your own good and the good of us all.
"We saw something truly terrifying that day. We saw Bell Cranel, the heroic adventurer, become Bell Cranel, the White Dragon," Aphrodite said, her voice now shaking as badly as her body was. "We saw an adventurer so utterly consumed by wrath and the desire for destruction that it was only by the miracle that is Achilles's Caesar's strength that Orario itself was not destroyed and thousands did not perish."
"I think you've said quite enough!" Freya roared.
"No, I fear not, Freya. I fear I have not said near enough," her fellow goddess of beauty responded. "Bell Cranel is a danger to us. To Orario. Perhaps to the entire world, and to himself most of all. And loathe am I to even consider it, he now stands accused of a terrible crime."
Freya froze, as did the entire Hestia company, for they knew what was coming.
"Aphrodite." Said goddess turned and froze as she saw Hestia's tear-filled sapphires. "Don't."
Aphrodite swallowed and had to hold back her own tears. Though she and Hestia had never been close, their relationship with Artemis connected them in a way that helped them understand each other and she was well aware of how much she was hurting Hestia right now.
"I'm sorry," she said quietly before turning away. "Word is now floating throughout Orario and the world that Bell Cranel killed Ares."
Some of the deities, those who kept their ears open, had heard the whispers, which was the main reason for their contempt of the young captain, but most of those within the Denatus and out in the city, had not, and thus a collective gasp rocked the city.
"WHAT?!" many cried.
"IMPOSSIBLE!" some others shrieked.
Ganesha tried to calm the proceedings, but it was no use, there was no way he could calm the gods down when they learned that a mortal may have murdered one of their own.
"He must die!"
"He needs to be executed!"
"Death!"
"DEATH!"
"EXTERMINATION!"
"ENOUGH!"
The roars finally stopped as all the gods turned with terror towards Hades, who now fully personified Death before them.
"You all will remember who is the true master of death here, and fall…silent."
Furious as they were and desperate as they were to punish Bell for his heinous crime, they knew that attempting to challenge the God of the Underworld there would have been a battle doomed to failure and so slowly retreated to their seats. Once that was done, Hades turned his vengeful gaze to Aphrodite.
"You have laid an egregious charge upon my grand-nephew, Aphrodite."
"I-I…" she could barely manage a word, and it took her a few moments to gain the strength to reply, "I do not do so lightly, Hades. Truly, I don't. Nor do I wish it to be the truth, but I fear, in my heart, it is, and if it is, action must be taken."
"And what action do you suggest be taken?" he pressed, the air in the room turning icy cold.
She swallowed again.
"Well…I don't think he should be executed."
The opposing gods jumped to their feet, but one raised hand from Hades was enough to stop them, allowing her to continue.
"Ares was one of the cruelest members in our ranks. While not officially an Evilus, there were certainly moments he acted like one. At the very least we should have sent him back to Heaven a long time ago. That said, he was still a god, and thus his destruction is something we cannot tolerate or allow to go unpunished. Therefore, should Bell Cranel return from the Dungeon, I call for his immediate banishment."
Once more, a terrible noise arose from the gods, only now they were joined by the distant noise of the city, creating a cacophony of voices both for and against the punishment.
There was no point in even attempting to rein in the gods, for any attempt would only add to the chaos. As such, all Hestia and her companions could do was wait. Wait for them all to scream themselves hoarse and for the floor to open again.
The minutes dragged on and at some points the volume and chaos grew, however, slowly the voices grew dimmer and fell silent and the gods, exhausted from ranting and raving, returned to their seats. Only when the last finally sat, leaving only Aphrodite on the floor, did Loki finally speak again.
"Aphrodite, I got a question for ya, if ya'd be willing to answer it for me."
"And what question is that?" the goddess of love asked, unsure of where this would go.
"Are you out of your mind?"
The already silent room seemed to somehow get quieter.
"What?" Aphrodite replied.
"I asked if you were out of your mind. If you were crazy. Bonkers. Insane," Loki repeated. "I mean, you'd have to be nuttier than a squirrel's treasure trove to claim that anyone killed a god without proof!"
Aphrodite frowned as many gods jumped to her defense, however, given their previous ranting, and Ganesha ensuring there would be no repeat of the previous chaos, they soon quieted down.
"I am reporting what I and many others have heard," she stated.
"And telling us we should banish Hestia's kiddo because of it," Loki pointed out, deepening Aphrodite's frown. "Now, to be fair, I wouldn't mind if the kid got kicked out of the city." Hestia's eyes widened with shock and hurt, but only for a moment as Loki, knowing this, quickly added, "after all…he stole my Ais-tan from me!"
The disbelief in the room was immense. No one could believe that during such a serious discussion that she would make such a statement, Hestia included. However, after a moment, her eyes softened and she smiled.
Next time you want to ease the tension, I'd appreciate it if you didn't give me a heart-attack first, Loki.
"I haven't been able to snuggle her for weeks due to the rabbit!" Loki growled before sighing in a clearly exaggerated manner. "But Ais-tan would be upset if he were to leave, so here I am defending bunny boy," she turned back to Aphrodite, once again completely serious. "Unless you've got some serious proof that Bell Cranel actually killed Ares, then you'd be wise not to ask for his banishment. Besides, that's just one rumor or many. I heard it was a monster that did it. Roared so loud that it shook Athens."
"That could have been Bell Cranel, given his power," Aphrodite pointed out.
"It could have been, or it could have been, you know, a real monster," Loki countered, "and none of you have asked the obvious question, I've noticed. Why would Bell Cranel kill Ares?" Loki looked around. "Why would he want that moron gone that badly? It couldn't have been because he kidnapped his goddess or else he would have killed him months ago. So, pray tell, what's the motive huh?"
Mania shrunk a little, feeling guilty for what she deemed to be her "part" in the whole affair.
"You are not to blame, Mania," Hades said beside her, "not even a little bit. And were Bell here, he would say the exact same thing."
Mania turned to him and, after a moment, smiled.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome."
The gods tried to come up with other reasons for Bell's supposed murder, but could not find any that made sense and as time went on, they floundered more and more until finally, they fell silent again. It was then that Freya arose.
"Let us have a show of hands," she insisted. "Who wishes for Bell Cranel to be banished?"
For a moment, no one raised their hands, knowing that doing so would automatically make them enemies with Freya. However, Aphrodite, firm in her conviction, slowly raised her hand high then lifted her chin in challenge.
"I vote for the banishment," she said.
Another moment of silence before Rosmerta rose and raised her hand.
"So do I!"
Next was Gobannos.
"As do I!"
A momentum had been gained by the pro-banishment faction and soon dozens of gods and goddesses were raising their hands. At least a third of all the deities in the city voted for the banishment by the end, but they did not reach the majority and would not, despite most gods actually wishing for the banishment. The reason for this was simple; they were afraid.
Those that wished for the banishment, but didn't dare raise their hands were those like Horus, whose familias had been decimated and torn asunder by what they knew was the Freya familia not 24 hours earlier.
They had lodged complaints, naturally, demanding the Guild do something against the rampaging goddess and her crazy children, but there was no concrete proof of their involvement, so the Guild's hands were tied. Yet, they all knew that it was Freya, and worse, they now knew she could get away with tearing them apart, a fact that did not inspire confidence in their chances of opposing the great goddess of beauty.
"It seems like that's the last of the hands," Ganesha said, "and it appears that the vote to banish Bell Cranel has failed."
"Oh this wasn't a vote, Ganesha," Freya said so sweetly it made everyone's skin crawl.
"It…it wasn't?" he asked.
"No. It's a challenge," she replied before turning her gaze back to the deities who still had their hands raised. "A challenge I shall now issue. So, to all those who raised their hands, I challenge you to a War Game."
Mouths dropped all over the city, even some of the Freya familia were surprised, though, naturally, Ottar was not. In fact, this was one of the rare times he smiled.
"W-What?" Aphrodite asked, slowly lowering her hand.
"I'm challenging you, Aphrodite, and all your little friends here, to a War Game. Me versus all of you. That seems fair, no?" Freya explained just as sweetly as before.
Immediately half those who had voted dropped their hands or began to plead and make excuses, but Freya blocked them out, instead focusing all her polite wrath upon Aphrodite.
"Surely you won't deny the city such a grand spectacle, my dear? Just think of it. A hundred familias versus the strongest familia in the city. Wouldn't that be a sight?" Freya continued.
Second strongest, Loki quickly noted.
"I…I…"Aphrodite tried, watching as her "friends" abandoned her as quickly as they could in hopes of not being forced to participate in the War Game that, despite their numbers, they very much suspected they would lose.
"You…you what?" Freya asked with barely concealed malevolent glee. "You accept?"
Understanding that if she did not say anything now, Freya would take it as an acceptance, Aphrodite vigorously shook her head.
"No! No, I don't accept! I don't want a War Game!"
Freya finally dropped the polite façade and glared at her fellow goddess of beauty, even as her smile remained.
"But that's the only way I will allow his banishment. You have to beat me in a War Game and have Bell's or my own banishment be the prize. So," she turned to Ganesha, "it seems like we're done here."
She then strode out, the other deities gawking at her as she departed.
"Show off," Loki said before she got up and left as well, quickly joined by the victorious, pro-Bell faction.
The divine Mirrors evaporated, allowing the citizens of Orario to begin discussing all they heard.
However, it was not only the Orario citizens who now had much to contemplate.
"How interesting," Guinevere said with a smile.
"Your Majesty?" Alexander Al Andromeda questioned.
"Oh come now, Alexander, you're a clever man, surely you can see how the Holy Kingdom could benefit from such a divided Orario."
"I…suppose I can, Your Majesty."
Guinevere practically burned with eagerness and glee at that moment as she smiled up at Babel.
"Those fools fight amongst themselves so desperately to get rid of one boy. Pathetic, but lucky for us," she turned back to Alexander. "With you and Sir Lancelot remaining in the city, we shall be able to exploit this division and weaken them from the inside. Once they're rotten to the core, we shall strike and the Holy Kingdom will finally be the unquestioned premier nation of the world!"
Alexander was by no means as excited as his queen. In fact, he felt a pit of dread open up in his stomach.
This will not end well.
The adventurers had charged through the 51st floor, cutting through the monsters that inhabited it with extreme precision and prejudice as they rushed to get to the Evilus and Bell.
Finally, they reached the 52nd floor, at which point Finn immediately stopped them.
"This is the Dragon's Vase," he announced, "everyone below a level six will stay here until we've cleared it."
"I can help," Ryuu affirmed.
"I'm sure you can, but I want you to protect the others in case something tries to ambush them while we're gone," Achilles replied.
She nodded and the highest leveled adventurers.
"Fuck yeah, a real fight! I've heard about this place. Valgang dragons shoot up pillars of fires from the 58th floor to roast adventurers alive. I'm almost getting off on the thought of it!" Argana declared.
Behind her, the lower leveled adventurers shivered, grimaced, or scowled at the bloodthirsty amazon.
"I'll boost all of you," Haruhime offered, stepping forward.
"No," Achilles quickly said, "as much as I appreciate it Haruhime, we're getting close to the Evilus and I need you to be at your best for that confrontation. Besides, Valgang dragons are nothing to us," he added with a smile and gesture towards the other high level adventurers.
"Okay," she said with a nod, quickly returning to Wiene's side.
"Here," Welf said, holding out a pair of his magic swords, "I know you guys are tough, but it never hurts to be prepared."
"Thank you, Welf-san," Gareth said as he took one of the swords while Tiona, who had been positively awestruck by the weapons, took the other, practically bouncing at the thought of using it herself.
"Alright, we're heading out. Keep your eyes open and be prepared for anything. The Dungeon likes to throw surprises our way, as we were so recently reminded," Finn stated.
Riveria turned her gaze to her lover.
What secret could you know that is so terrible, Achilles? She asked herself.
This was not missed by Finn, who shot a glance at the Father On High.
He knows something about the voices, and I don't think it would be wise to let it be, the Loki captain thought. That said, he needed to let it be for now, as they had a battle to get through.
"Everyone ready?" he asked, looking upon the collection of adventurers. And what a collection it was. An amalgamation of familias, races, ages, and creeds. From the young and eager, like Ais and Tiona, to the hardened and vicious like Allen and Argana, and then to the calm veterans like Gareth and Mia. It was quite the sight to take in, and had the situations been different, Finn would have taken time to enjoy it.
"Ready," they all replied.
"Alright. On three. One. Two. Three. Charge!"
The adventurers all rushed through down the corridor, knowing that to stop was to be roasted.
Soon, the first pillars of fire shot through the floor from the deep.
"That's our cue, Gareth!" Achilles called.
The two stopped and quickly jumped into two of the multi-floor holes.
"Knock knock," Achilles said to himself as wind whipped passed his ears.
Naturally, the Valgang dragons did not fail to notice the two descending juggernauts and sent out two more pillars of flames at them. However, this was for naught, as Gareth simply raised his ax as a shield and slammed through his dragon's body as he had done before, while Achilles clad his blade and body in lightning and cut through both the fire and the dragon in one fell swoop.
"There's more than usual," Achilles noted.
Normally, there were only 10 to 20 great dragons on the floor, which was plenty of challenge themselves, but now there were at least 40, all of whom seemed angrier than normal.
I wonder if this has anything to do with them? Achilles thought nervously. However, this was no time to contemplate or worry, this was a time for action, and seeing the dragons approaching, he and Gareth quickly rushed into battle.
"They're down! Next group, go!" Finn ordered.
Next up was Allen, Mia, and Uriel, the last of whom used her wings to fly down the giant hole at a truly ludicrous speed. Once she emerged, she continued her flight and swiftly cut off the heads of one of the Valgang dragons before noting the situation.
"Loud beasts," she hissed before continuing her battle as Allen and Mia emerged, obliterating their given dragons in mere moments.
"I'm not waiting anymore!" Argana bellowed, having lost any semblance of patience. She quickly jumped down one of the holes with a warcry.
"Wai-! Damn it!" Finn growled, before shaking his head. "Tiona, Bache, Bete go!"
"Got it!" Tiona cheerfully proclaimed before leaping into the hole, Bache and Bete following silently a moment after.
"Wooooo!" Tiona cheered as he plummeted.
She landed with an epic crash before looking around the floor.
"There's extra dragons today! Nice!"
As Bache and Bete landed and jumped into the fight, Tiona took Welf's magic sword off her back.
"Let's see what this can do."
At that moment, one of the Valgang dragons noticed her and turned his maw her way to unleashed an inferno towards her.
"Oooorah!" the amazon cried as she swung the magic sword.
A crest wave of golden fire erupted from the sword and rushed to intercept the dragon's attack.
The two waves of fire clashed and, to Tiona's amazement, the golden fire of her sword cut through the dragon's flames, to its apparent shock, before slicing the dragon itself in half.
Tiona's jaw dropped as her eyes began to sparkle.
"That. Was. AWESOME!" She turned to the sword and hugged it. "You are amazing. Oh!" She put the sword onto her back before grabbing her Blade Rolan. "But you're still my favorite, don't worry. Now come on, let's kick some butt!"
"Alright, hopefully they've created a big enough opening for you," Finn said, turning to Riveria.
"If not, I'm confident in Ais's abilities to fend off our scaly welcoming committee," the High Elf replied.
The Sword Princess nodded.
"Please let me assist as well."
They all turned to find Galadriel and Riveria frowned.
"I'm sure myself and Ais will be enough," she replied harshly.
The dark elf retreated a step before clenching her fists and recapturing the other elf's eyes.
"Please Riveria, allow me to make up for my horrid mistake. At least a little."
Riveria's eyes turned into a glare. While she had accepted the reintegration of the Hera and Zeus familia into their ranks, she wasn't sure she would ever completely get the image of Achilles's burnt flesh and smoking body out of mind, which made even working with the Black Sun difficult. However, she wasn't a fool and knew that denying help when freely offered was beyond stupid, especially when it came from a member of the Hera familia.
And I am also aware that Achilles has already completely forgiven them, she added to herself.
The Nine Hells sighed.
"Very well," she conceded.
Galadriel smiled and bowed.
"Thank you."
"Alright, looks like we have our next time. In that case, I'll see you all down there," Finn stated.
A moment later Riveria, Ais, and Galadriel were descending towards the 58th floor.
Finn turned to the last person remaining.
"I can lead the others down if you want to get in on the action," he offered.
"And miss out on some time with you, without my annoying sister there to bug me? Not a chance," Tione immediately replied, making him smile.
"I figured, but I just wanted to make sure."
Ais, Galadriel, and Riveria fell down the giant hole until they reached the 58th floor.
"My," Riveria said, looking at the ensuing battle, "seems like everyone's having fun."
If she was trying to joke or ease the situation, she failed for far too much had and was happening for the High Elf to so easily brush away.
At that moment, one of the few Valgang dragons not engaged in battle, turned to them and breathed its fire at them.
"Tempest."
Ais wind surrounded her, allowing her to charge head-long into the fire, cutting through it and then the ill-prepared dragon.
"I'll ensure none of these noisy creatures get in your way," Galadriel vowed.
"You sounded a little like Alfia there," Riveria noted. It wasn't meant malevolently, despite her earlier misgivings, and she stopped, realizing what she'd said and turned to the dark elf. However, to her surprise, her fellow elf was smiling.
"I suppose I did. Not too surprising given I grew up with her," Galadriel replied, her eyes assuring Riveria she was alright, before she turned back around and rushed towards the nearest dragon.
Riveria sighed again.
When did everything get so complicated? She looked back at the backfield. Well, at least this is still nice and straightforward.
"Time for me to get to work," Riveria said, holding up her staff which began to glow with her power. "Let's see how you obnoxious lizards handle this."
"Come to me oh archers of old and ye servants of light," she chanted, mana surging through her veins. "Aid me now so that I may repulse thy enemies. May our blinding precision make their hearts tremble and send them fleeing from battle! Light Shot!"
Blinding light surrounded her staff and the Nine Hells turned her eyes looking for her first target.
You first, she thought as she raised her staff. A moment later a beam of light shot from her staff and straight at one of the dragons and blew a hole right through its chest, turning it into black dust.
Riveria was far from done as she turned and, seeing one of the Valgang dragons, doing its best to batter through Gareth's ax, she raised her staff again and shot another beam.
Gareth watched as a beam of light suddenly blew off the top half of the dragon's jaw, making it roar in agony.
"Thank you kindly," he said, before jumping and slamming his ax into the agonized dragon's chest cavity, simultaneously cutting the beast open and crushing its entire rib cage.
Riveria continued her attack, aiding where needed and destroying where she could until the battlefield fell silent.
"That appears to be the last of them," Galadriel said, returning to her side, Ais close behind.
"Alright, everyone gather up, we don't want any surprises catching us off guard while we wait for Finn and the others," Achilles commanded.
The adventurers did as ordered, though not without a growl from Allen and waited. Luckily, they did not have to wait too long as Finn, Tione, the remaining adventurers, and the Xenos arrived in good time.
"Glad to see you guys could handle it," Finn said.
"I'm rusty, but not an ounce weaker than I was," Mia stated, stretching her next as her girls rejoined her side.
"I'm just glad I finally got a proper fucking challenge!" Argana bellowed, making a few people frown.
"Well, there's plenty of challenges ahead. Let's keep moving," Achilles said, turning towards the floor exit.
"Wait."
Achilles stopped and turned to Finn.
"Why? We should be hurrying to find the Evilus and Bell," the Father On High pointed out.
Finn's hand tightened on his spear and his thumb throbbed, but he took a deep breath and asked, "you know what those voices were, don't you?"
There was no doubt that the 58th floor had never been so still. The very air seemed to stop and stare at Achilles, wanting an answer.
"We don't have time for this," Achilles said, turning again.
"We have more than enough time for this," Finn countered.
"My son is being tormented in case you forgot," the Father on High growled, his eyes now glowing dangerously.
"As I told you before, Achilles, he's strong, and we'll rescue him safe and sound. More to the point, every moment you stall is another moment he has to suffer."
Achilles nearly charged at the Braver after hearing that, but the others jumped in-between, with Riveria and Haruhime placing themselves before the ex-captain.
"Please Achilles, if you know something, tell us," Riveria pleaded.
"Please Achilles. You can trust us," Haruhime joined.
"This isn't about trust," Achilles replied instantly.
The others, now desperately curious, practically made the father combust with their eyes.
He sighed.
"Yes, I know what and who those voices were," Achilles confessed. Everyone, even the Xenos, leaned in. "But I have no idea why they would cry out or why they cried out what they did. I only know that them doing so means something…extraordinary and terrible has happened."
"Who… and what made that cry?" Finn questioned, even as a nervous bead of sweat dripped down his temple.
But Achilles shook his head.
"No," he continued, still shaking his head. "No, I will not tell you. Not," he quickly added, "because I don't trust you. Though there are some here that I don't," he eyed Allen and Argana and made a quick glance over the many other adventurers behind them, "but because this information shakes the very foundations of the world. It rewrites history and spits on everything you thought you knew. As I told Hestia-"
"Hestia?" the members of her familia stepped forward.
"She knows that I know this information. She confronted me after I told her about the Hourglass as that is connected to all this," Achilles explained to them.
"What hourglass?" Tsubaki asked.
Achilles sighed again, but the question gave him an idea.
"I won't tell you who we heard," he repeated, but before the others could protest he quickly said, "but I will tell those I trust about what I think Enyo wants."
Most didn't understand what that meant, but for those that did, their eyes widened.
"You mean you're willing to tell us about the items?" Finn questioned.
Achilles nodded as those behind them questioned what that meant.
"The two I believe Enyo wants, at least, as well as the Hourglass. But I get to choose whom I tell."
The others looked between themselves and, after a few moments, nodded.
"Alright," Achilles said, "then-"
He listed off who could join him and Finn ordered the rest to back away. Those included were: the Hestia familia – naturally –, the Loki familia high rankers, the Mania familia, the Miach familia, the Take familia, the Zeus and Hera familias, the Hades familia, Tsubaki, Asfi, Mia and her girls, and even the Xenos were included, which royally pissed off both Argana and Allen.
I really hope I'm not making a terrible mistake with this, the Father On High thought as he brought them away.
"This is a big secret, one that not even the other members of the Zeus and Hera familia know, so you'd best all understand the gravity of me telling you this information," Achilles warned.
"Even members of your own familia aren't aware of these items you spoke of?" Asfi questioned, looking at the equally confused members of Zeus and Hera familias.
"No. Only the captains were ever informed of them, and I suspect Hera would flay me with a rusty spoon if she knew I was sharing this information with so many. Yet, here I am," the ex-captain took a deep breath. "There are, in the Zeus and Hera familias' possession, many ancient and powerful items of varying powers and abilities. Many, if not most of these items predate the descending of the gods, some by many many years," he began before holding up three fingers. "I will inform you about three of them, the first of which is the Hourglass of Kronos."
Ais tensed a bit at this, which Dido noticed and found odd.
"This item," Achilles continued, "has the power to manipulate time, even to the point of pulling something or someone through time in the right circumstances."
The Loki familia, understanding what this meant, turned to Ais who nodded.
"I'm not the brightest coal in the fire, but it seems most of us are missing something," Ajax noted.
"That is for Ais to reveal, should she choose to," his former captain replied.
Why is it up to her? What connection could she possibly have to this Hourglass? Dido wondered, her eyes narrowing. Was it used on her? But why? She tried to find an answer, but couldn't, though she did note something else. And why does she look so familiar?
"The next one I shall tell you about is a bit of a wonky little thing, so pay attention," Achilles pressed on, dragging all attention back to him. "It's called Pandora's Box. This item was created many millennia ago during a period of great chaos and instability. Its purpose was to end that chaos by trapping the chaotic elements of the world inside of it."
"Like a prison?" Uriel questioned.
"Yes, but the Box is much more than that. The box, in the right hands, can trap not only things like monsters, who are the physical manifestation of chaos, but also trap chaotic and dangerous emotions."
"What the fuck does that mean?" Bete demanded.
"The box, in the right hands, had the power to actually pull dangerous emotions from people. Wrath, fear, greed, could themselves be pulled from someone and trapped in the box just as a monster could," Achilles explained.
"That's incredible," Haruhime stated, somewhat awestruck.
"Indeed. However…there was an unintentional consequence to all this."
"That being?" Mia asked, not liking the sound of it at all.
"The box, as you can imagine, didn't function like a regular prison. The box itself is only this big," he showed with his hands dimensions no bigger than his chest, "meaning you couldn't even shove a couple of goblins in there, at least not if it was normal. However, it isn't. Pandora's Box is a world all by itself. A realm separate from our own with its own rules and abilities."
"Abilities?" Lili did not like the sound of that.
"The realm of Pandora's Box does not simply hold what it captures in a static state. The monsters and emotions are not simply carted off to some cell to stay, in other words. They mix, combine and change in their little cauldron of malevolence, creating new, more dangerous creatures."
"How…how do you know this, Achilles?" Imilce questioned, her voice shaking nervously.
"Because of what happened," he answered. "You see, when the box wasn't traveling, it was placed in a vault where a woman named Pandora guarded it. She's where it gets its name from," he stated. "Pandora was tasked with guarding the box, however those who gave her the task did not inform her what was in the box and Pandora had one great weakness. She was terribly curious."
"Oh no," Naaza said.
"Yeah. After years of guarding the box and years of being denied the truth of it, Pandora's curiosity and imagination got the better of her and she opened the box without the proper protections, unleashing the horrors within. That's how we know what happens within the box, because of what came out of it," once more he held up three fingers. "The Hydra with its many venomous heads. The sea serpent Scylla, and Nidhogg the all-consuming dragon. These three monsters, some believe, were the precursors to the Great Beasts and perhaps even their inspiration."
Many shivered or huddled closer together after hearing that.
"You said this box thing was sealed away right?" Aisha questioned.
"Yes. All the items are sealed away and no one but I, Zeus, and Hera know where they are or how to get them.
That eased their concern somewhat, but only somewhat.
"And what was the third item?" Finn questioned.
"Are we sure we want to know?" Patroclus asked, though many in the group wondered the same thing.
"Probably not, but we should probably know anyway," Finn replied, before signaling for Achilles to proceed.
"The last item isn't as bad as Pandora's Box, at least not in terms of creating monsters."
"But it's horrible in other ways?" Lili pressed.
"The next item is very powerful and capable of great destruction, so in a sense, yes," Achilles answered honestly. "It's called Mjolnir or Mjolnir the Giant Killer. It's an ancient and powerful weapon that bestows the user the power of lightning and increases their strength, mana, and durability to an extraordinary degree. However, it will only grant this power to those it finds worthy and will kill those it doesn't."
"I'm not sure I like the idea of a weapon killing someone for trying to use it," Krysta said, touching her guns.
"How hard is it to be deemed worthy?" Ryuu asked.
"Pretty damn hard. I mean, its owner and first wielder was Thor herself so…"
"Wait! That weapon belongs to Thor? Like, Loki's big sister, Thor?" Finn questioned.
"Yep. And I'm sure she'd throttle Zeus if she knew we had it. On that note, please don't inform her or her familia as I really don't want to be throttled myself," Achilles requested.
No one knew how to respond to that. I mean…what does one say when you find out that someone has in their possession a weapon that once belonged to a literal god?
Finn sighed.
"Well, I can see why you kept all this hidden. I still wish you would tell us who those voices were, but I understand now that it's really not a matter of trust."
"Thank you," Achilles returned.
"Why the bloody hell did Zeus and Hera collect these things?!" Ajax asked.
"Likely to keep them out of the wrong hands, though I would prefer them destroyed myself," Galadriel replied.
"Many of these items can't be destroyed, at least not without the risk of destroying half a country," Achilles explained.
"Oh that's precisely what Lili wants to hear!" the prum declared.
"I'm with you on this Lil' Lili. I think I would have preferred not knowing about all this," Welf said.
"How…?" Achilles turned to Haruhime who looked nervous. "How many items like this do you have?" she questioned.
"I won't give you an exact number, but lots. We have lots of them, and some of them are worse than the two I just described," he answered.
"There's something worse than a super weapon and chaos box that spits out new, more horrible monsters?" Leanna questioned, her vampiric eyes looking at him in disbelief.
"I'll put it to you this way. The knowledge of those two items make me very uncomfortable, but there is one item in our possession that's very existence I fear," the Father On High said with deadly seriousness.
No one dared to inquire after this item as they much preferred the idea of being able to sleep at night.
"Now, seeing as you all understand a bit more about myself, the world at large, and what's at stake, I say we continue," Achilles stated before turning and finally moving forward.
The others, after a few more moments, did likewise, calling the others to join them as they prepared for the final confrontation with the Evilus.
Enyo sat silently in his chair thinking about all that had transpired.
What connection could he possibly have with them? Or is he not connected to them? Was it the machine that made them cry out or something else entirely?
He growled. He didn't like being in the dark, especially not on something like this.
The masked god was pulled from his thoughts as Thanatos burst in.
"Enyo, I beseech you! We must kill that…thing!"
"That would be a great waste of all the time and resources we've used to bring the boy to our side," Enyo replied warily.
"Who cares about all that?! You heard the same thing I heard! They called to him!" Thanatos cried.
Enyo's fists tightened. He was very reluctant to simply discard Bell Cranel after all he had invested into the young captain.
He was meant to be our greatest weapon. The one to tear down the old world and begin the new one. However, he remembered the voices from the deep and what they had called out, if it is their intention to make him their weapon, then he is far too dangerous to be allowed to continue, even for my purposes.
The masked figure met Thanatos's gaze and gave him a single nod.
Thanatos's shoulders slumped in relief.
"Thank you," the god of death said before departing the room and rejoining his familia who were all waiting with baited breath. "Do it."
The Evilus children rushed out of the room and towards where Bell was being held.
The room where Bell was now held was well lit so that the Evilus could watch their terrifying prisoner more easily. Said prisoner was now restrained by every manner of chain, lock, and binding that could be found in the world and was also sedated so he did not wake.
The Evilus members entered and the guards, of which there were many, instantly knew why they were there, but made no move to stop them, in fact, they stepped aside as their fellow members rushed in.
"Let's make this quick," the leader of the murderous band ordered.
The Evilus pulled out their weapons and approached the unconscious Bell. Once they had surrounded his body they looked at each other one final time before plunging their weapons down.
CLASH!
CLANG!
CRACK!
Their weapons shattered upon impact.
"What the?!"
"He's a level six, we should have expected he would have stats high enough to block such a meager attempt. Get new weapons and those with higher stats come forward!" the leader commanded.
They did so and the highest leveled adventurers came forward. However, the highest level amongst them was only a level three and they wondered if they would be able to fulfill their mission with such a disparity.
"Here!" someone called.
They all turned and found the person holding up Valletta's recovered sword.
"This should be strong enough to get through his hide, even at level three. It's also cursed."
"Good. Good," the leader said, handing the weapon off to the highest leveled member who took it in hand and placed the tip at Bell's heart.
"Die creature," they said before plunging down.
This time the blade pierced home, tearing through Bell's flesh and bone, and entering his heart.
Bell gasped, shooting up from the bed before quickly crashing back down.
One of the assassins crept up to Bell and checked his breathing. Finding nothing, they checked his pulse only to find it no longer existed.
"He's dead."
The Evilus sighed in relief.
"It's done."
That's what they thought. They were wrong.
"What is that?!"
They all turned and, to their shock and horror, they found black dust flowing from the Dungeon walls towards Bell's body. They immediately backed away in fear, but that fear only grew as they watched the dust flow over Bell and healed his wound despite the curse upon blade. Then they all jumped as the young captain suddenly gasped before continuing to breath as normal as if nothing had happened.
"How?! What?!" the leader cried. "Kill him again!"
The sword wielder went back to Bell's body and stabbed him again and again to try and ensure that, this time, the Hestia captain truly perished. Yet the black dust simply continued to flow from the walls and heal his grievous wounds.
Evermore desperate and alarmed, the other Evilus joined in, hitting Bell over and over again with their weapons, and even striking him with spells, yet no matter what they did, the dust would always heal his wounds.
"What the Hell is going on?!"
Revis sat in her room contemplating all that had happened. Truth was that she would have preferred to stay with her mate, but seeing him in that state, the state she had effectively put him in, was too much for her, and she fled.
I've never wanted anything before. I was fine simply being a tool. But then he piqued my interest. I felt desire. Need. For once I had something that I actually wanted, and look what it's brought him.
She was no fool, she knew she wasn't 'good', but for him, for Bell, she wanted to be, or at least she wanted to save him from being Enyo's plaything.
Something heard that thought. Something dark and ancient, yet connected to the creature woman in a way she did not know, and it now called out to her.
"Save him."
She jumped to her feet and grabbed her sword, but found nothing.
"What was-?"
"Save him!"
She turned again, but still found nothing.
"They're trying to kill him."
"Who's there?!" she demanded.
"They're attacking him!" The voices continued.
"Who?!"
"Save him!",
"He needs you!"
"WHO?!" Revis demanded again.
"BELL!" The voices all cried in unison.
Her eyes widened and she rushed out of her room, sword still in hand. She did not even hear the final call from the voices.
"SAVE THE KEY!"
"Will you just die!" the Evilus holding the sword demanded.
"The Dungeon keeps healing him!"
"That's impossible! Why would the Dungeon heal him?! Even if it wanted to, how the fuck would it?!"
"Who cares, just keep killing the-!"
The sound of someone bursting into the room stopped everything.
All Evilus turned and found a vengeful Revis staring at them all with loathing and bloodthirsty rage.
"T-T-Thantos ordered us to-" the leader tried to say. He was the first to die.
Revis tore the Thanatos familia apart with a fury that would make monsters tremble. Most barely got a chance to even scream before their blood became a red mist that painted the walls of the room. By the end, at least two dozen Thanatos and Evilus members were dismembered or otherwise slaughtered about the room.
"What the bloody hell is going on here?"
Revis spun around, finding Enyo, Thanatos, Ein, and Alfia behind her.
"You promised me! You'd promise he would be mine!"
Enyo turned his gaze from the carnage to his creature, and replied in a voice both calm and disgusted, "I lied. Of course I lied, you and he were only ever tools for my purposes, but now he is too dangerous a tool to keep and thus, like any bad tool, is to be discarded."
Revis, her blood already boiling and devoid of all mercy, charged straight for him, sword posed to plunge directly into his heart.
"Gospel."
Revis was sent flying back into the wall beside Bell's bed, smashing into it with such force it created a crater.
"Gah!" she gasped, blood spitting from her mouth, only to be slammed right back into the wall when Ein's hand grabbed her throat.
"Have you completely lost your mind?" the creature asked the redhead.
Revis tried to strike her, for she still held her sword, only for Alfia to grab her arm and snap it, forcing Revis to drop her weapon with a cry of pain.
His formerly loyal creature now subdued, Enyo approached.
"Is this defiance really just from him? Has he really piqued your interest and desire so much that you forget what you are, what your purpose is, and who you serve?" he hissed, eyes aflame and disgust radiating from his body. "You are not some maiden or damsel needing a hero, my dear. You are a tool and a butcher, a fact you used to understand and even revel in until you gained the desire to mount that…boy!" He punched her in the stomach and though it was nothing compared to Alfia's Gospel, she still coughed up more blood. "But no longer," he signaled for Ein and Alfia to place her before him. They quickly did so, dragging Revis from the wall and forcing her to her knees before Enyo who grabbed her face and made her look into his eyes. "What are you?" Revis gave no response, whether this was because she was in pain or an act of defiance didn't matter for Enyo's wrath was now unleashed. "WHAT ARE YOU?!"
Powerful as she was, terrifying as she was, Enyo was worse, and Revis knew that, so she whispered back, "a tool."
"And who do you belong to?!" he demanded.
"You."
"Good girl," the god replied before turning away. "Alfia, kill him."
Ein quickly grabbed her hair, making it so Revis could only watch as Alfia approached the still unconscious Bell and raised her hand.
"Gospel."
The spell slammed into his defenseless body.
"Gospel."
Again, the spell crashed into him.
"Lugio."
An explosion rocked the room and Thanatos backed away, not wanting to be caught in the crossfire.
"Gospel."
"Lugio."
"Gospel."
Over and over she hit him until no mortal could survive, at which point she went up and checked his body, finding neither breath nor heartbeat.
"Good, now-" Enyo tried only to find, as the previous Evilus had, the black dust moving from the Dungeon walls to Bell. "What is this?"
They all watched as the dust settled over Bell's body and healed his wounds. Soon enough, his breath began again, his chest rising and falling peacefully.
"They're protecting him. Making sure he can't die," Enyo said in disbelief.
"What do we do?!" Thanatos cried. "If they're keeping him alive they really must want him for something! He must be the key to their freedom! We're doomed! Doomed! We need to find a way to kill him!"
"Calm yourself, Thanatos," Enyo ordered. "Do not forget where we are. We are in their domain. Their power is at its greatest here. However, we should be able to kill him if we leave the Dungeon as their power can't reach outside its confines. Unfortunately for us that will have to wait as the expedition will be here soon."
Enyo began to pace the room as he wondered what to do. Finally, he came up with an idea that brought back some of his sadistic pleasure.
"Ein, go wake up our second new recruit as she should be ready by now and we'll need her for the upcoming battle. Then take a Jewel Fetus and feed it to one of the Reapers. That should make a most interesting mix. And don't worry about our new pet, I'll handle waking him up. I'm sure he's positively dying to meet Achilles, after all."
"Yes, Enyo-sama," Ein said, throwing Revis to the floor before leaving the room.
"What about him?!" Thanatos questioned, pointing at Bell.
"That's quite simple my dear Thanatos. I said I wanted to make him the emperor of all monsters, didn't I? And emperors need crowns don't they? So let's give him one."
Done!
Alright, I promise, this will be the final chapter before the big battle commences and the Evilus War comes to its great and bloody conclusion. But don't worry, the next chapter is far from the end. Indeed, I'll give you a little spoiler by saying that the next few chapters will be nothing but battles between the different big players. If I remember correctly I've got 8 big fights planned, which means 8 individual chapters for said fights. I hope that makes you all excited as I'm quite excited to get the real battle started.
Anyway, I hope this was an improvement over the last chapter. I know some of you are concerned with where I'm taking this story and while I can't say that everything I write is pre-planned or, admittedly, well thought out, I DO have an overall plan and the big points I have brought forward do have explanations and points that will appear in the future.
All that said, I'll bid you all a fine farewell and I hope to see you in the next chapter. Have a wonderful day.