AN: For those of you wondering why this took nearly two weeks beyond the end of April, where I'd given my final message about this, for it to come out, I hold no good reason for why it didn't, and can only apologize yet again. Truth be told, I made the same mistake I made a previous time. Had it done on the day, but me lacking sleep at that point, I failed to upload the feckin thing, and then after I fell asleep and woke up, I was convinced that I had, and never checked(can't believe I did this to myself twice. First time was embarrassing, but a second? I really must be losing it, I swear).
Why didn't I check? Because I haven't really been online at all the last number of days, since May began. Been far too preoccupied with work, both regular hours, and overtime hours(a lot of those), because I'm saving up plenty of money for a holiday I'm going on late next month(to Greece, funnily enough), as well as other IRL commitments, all of which had me in a state where I just couldn't be bothered to do much, other than sleep, when I had time away. Haven't so much as touched the laptop, until yesterday evening/night, for like a hot minute, where I found out about this. Would've uploaded then, or this morning, just before work, but fanfiction kept giving me some authentication error BS, making it so I couldn't even login, so I said screw it, I'll upload tonight, which is thankfully right now.(Lesson learned for the bagillionth time. Never set a date. Things always go awry.)
If any of you are expecting the usual extended length of a chapter when it takes this long, I'm afraid you won't be getting it, on this one occasion, given its release now, instead of days earlier, was a flub on my end.
The Hyperion section has also been moved to the next chapter, alongside the titan battle stuff. Once I wrote the Toriyama tribute, which I'm uncertain of, and hope is okay, I just didn't feel it right to put another scene right after it, so thus, it was moved. Sorry for those of you who were looking forward to that part in this chapter.
To make up for this error to all of you, I've decided to give myself the kick up the ass, and finally start on that omake stuff I mentioned way back, but have yet to do. Feel free to leave in your suggestions on what you'd want to see in those, and I'll get to including one in each chapter, as best I can.
Anyways, that's enough talk from me, I'd say. On with the chapter!
The Olympian God of Destruction:
Chapter 42: Seed of Destruction II.
Near the land that will one day be called Cyprus…
The air billowed gently across the rippling waves of the sea, as the beautiful body of water shimmered brightly, even without the reflection of the sun's rays upon its form.
Within a certain space, the surface of the water shifted, bubbles of seafoam rising and bulging in a way most unnatural, as the shape of a figure, fully-formed and grown, could be seen beneath. Their body, hard to place, at the time, as to whether it was male or female, stirring beneath their foamy prison, as though being beckoned awake from a slumber they'd been cast into, since their birth.
A birth that'd technically taken place long ago, but unlike the other beings who did gain complete consciousness almost instantly, this one took their time to develop and take their true form.
Prior to today, the seafoam present around its being, shielding the entity like a cocoon, had encased their form more firmly, in a way that regular seafoam simply could not, and was not set to lose its grip, for another few years, at least.
Even unconscious, however, the gestating being had felt something going on, far away from its location. Something raw. Something passionate. Something that tickled at the very core of its nature, of the domains that'd naturally connected with it, even without it being awake and seeking for them, almost as if the connections were meant to be from the beginning. Not quite therein like a primordial, but close enough to separate itself from the other gods, who wouldst so take their time to find their divinity's strongest calling.
The entity felt it all. Felt every action, every motion, every pulse from what was going on a great distance away. It felt the feelings involved, the unshackled sensations and emotions on full display, from two other entities coming together in an act the entity knew all too well, despite never seeing, nor engaging in it yet, itself. And though it was hidden beneath its steadily dissipating holding of white, which was now scarcely going to last a few more days containing the being now, a smile found its way on to their features, wanting to share in such sensations.
Wanting as many as possible to share in such wonderful, euphoric sensations, as well, amongst plenty of others, under the entity's guiding whims.
Whatever the consequences for doing so, may be.
Upon Olympus' Peak… Sometime later…
"Haaaaaaaaa…" A sigh of contentment and bliss escaped Beerus, as he stepped outside of the room he and Themis had just shared. The space warping around the doorway in a light manner, as what lay beyond was still hidden by Themis' divine power, which remarkably held strong, despite the condition of its caster.
Good thing it was, though. The room had become an absolute mess, after all, with a broken bed that had its sheets and pillows torn asunder, and a cracked floor and walls as though a disaster had struck the enclosed area. The place reeking of divine sweat, sex, and other bodily fluids, most prominent of which being his own semen, which covered near every inch of the place, ceiling included, which it dripped down from, as he left. The twitching, unconscious body of Themis laying back-first in a deliriously dazed heap over the battered remains of the bed they'd shared, with her mouth stretched wide and lips curled up, as if in a pleasured moan that refused to end, even if no sound escaped her throat. Her tongue flopped out, as drool fell from her maw, and her eyes rolled all the way back into her head. Her naked figure, bloated to the extreme, once again, with a belly that protruded out a few feet high, being doused head-to-toe in his cream as well, with seemingly endless ropes.
The god could've destroyed most of the evidence, and probably should've, but the thought didn't really cross his mind. Not in the moment, anyway, as he was still fully in the afterglow effect of fully ridding himself of all sexual frustration that his body had built up, both from the celebration, and possibly even well before that, but which had been ignored, until this very day.
Four hours in total. That was roughly how long his time with Themis had lasted, where he'd both tasted of her heavenly nectar and milk more than once, after the first times, in-between nearly each pounding session, where he'd all but eviscerated her pussy. The destroyer having filled up her womb enough times, that if the first time he'd dropped his load inside her hadn't left the goddess impregnated as she wished, somehow, then she was damn sure guaranteed to be now, by the end of their time together.
Beerus had to be honest, he'd not felt this relieved and relaxed in ages. His body language practically screaming such sensations, with his every motion. They were so strong, in fact, that he was almost in disbelief that sex had brought them on, when the few times he'd had it in his past life had never yielded him feeling even a hundredth as refreshed and euphoric, as he did now, and this wasn't even the peak of the high he was on, now, which had come as he was ejaculating his final time. And when he added on the fact that his head was no longer held hostage by this body's urges, the comparison to his few encounters of his old life felt that much more inadequate, by comparison. Beyond forgettable, even, now that he was free of such desires, at least for now.
Though now that he'd gotten a proper taste of what sex was like for him, in this body, he definitely wouldn't be opposed to having more of it in the future, with how amazing it felt. Heck, if all of it was around as good as what he'd had here, he could even see it being something that, in this world, he took to a lot more frequently, of his own volition. Yes, he could definitely see that being the case.
Allowing himself to continue being submerged in the afterglow of hours of divine intercourse for as long as he could manage, without any real thought, seeing as he didn't feel tired enough to have a nap, the destroyer turned and began walking away from the room he'd just come out of. The god holding no destination, in particular.
Feeling the sway of his flaccid cock betwixt his legs, as he did, and the gentle breeze of the pure air of Olympus on his naked skin, Beerus just about summoned up the minimal effort required to make use of his magic, and have his tunic reform completely around his nude form, covering him up.
He still had some modesty, after all. His bare form was reserved for when he was bathing or in private chambers, either when he slept or when he was engaged in carnal acts with someone, like he'd just been with Themis.
In any case, as he walked, mind swimming with the divine equivalent of pleasure chemicals, he couldn't help but reminisce a bit, on how much had happened, in such a relatively short amount of time.
His final conversation with the Grand Priest, before he'd been sent to this place, felt so damn long ago now. Even though he knew it hadn't been, perhaps on a deeper level than ever before, thanks to his temporal domain, that still didn't stop the feeling, given how much that had happened since he'd gotten here, all packed into a little over a year. A timeframe where he'd ended up more active and involved personally, day-in and day-out on a constant basis, than he'd been back in Universe 7 for a very long time. Not since his early days as the god of destruction, before he'd taken to having long naps that spanned anywhere from decades to tens of thousands of years, at the highest.
He'd gone from being reborn in this world, and going through the utterly shitty experience of being swallowed whole by a dirtbag who, unfortunately, was his father in this place, to breaking himself and his siblings out and declaring war. He'd then gone on to train and bond with his siblings, along with his mother and Gaea, who'd been his teacher, and at this point, now that he'd caved, was all but set to become a lover of his, in the future, even if just for a one-night-stand. An idea that, in his early days here, would've been downright disgusting to him, much like having such relations with any of his sisters, for what he'd thought were obvious reasons, only for it to turn out that this world's logic gave the middle finger to his original, with pretty much everyone being related, but also not, because DNA didn't exist. At least not until Prometheus finalized it, exclusively for the humans that would eventually be created a second time, in this place, for the gods didn't have it, and had no need for it, which still baffled him, even now.
Moving along, before he got too deeply into thinking about that, and all of his 'moments' he'd had with numerous goddesses, which would likely only excite a certain part of his anatomy again, even after what he'd just done, in one of said 'moments' to calm it, he'd then actively make alliances with others. Up to and including breaking out Gaea's imprisoned sons, after killing their 'warden', for lack of a better term, who was likely to reform at some point, if she hadn't already. He'd then gone on to risk it all, after being given his new weapon, to force himself into a True Divine Form well before he was ready, just to defeat that arrogant ass-hat Hyperion, whom he was going to be restoring soon, after he'd managed to force his way through their barrier. And one way or another, he was getting what he wanted, whether that be him grovelling for him now, or going back and remaining in the state he was in now, until such a time in the distant future where Beerus maybe felt like letting him off… after he'd grovelled for his forgiveness.
Yeah. He'd made a vow to each one of those pricks on Othrys that day, and he intended to have it fulfilled, even if Theia's husband took longer than the rest. He'd have plenty to occupy him, in any case, if they did end up going the long route, so Beerus could more than afford to be patient, in this particular instance, unlike with his two brothers and nephew, who would absolutely be grovelling by the end of tomorrow, once he was done humiliating them.
He could still remember seeing it in their eyes. The defiance, and the hint of confidence that they had a chance against him, three-on-one. Ha! Oh, they'd learn the hard way that, at this point, they could've had their entire army from the beginning of the war on their side, fighting against only him, and it wouldn't matter. He'd crush them all the same, and show them why he was never to be trifled with, ever again.
Regardless, going back down memory lane, when he'd awoken after the confrontation with Hyperion, he'd gotten back to training himself, perhaps harder than he ever had before, and assisting where he could with his siblings' training, when necessary. All the while having to aid his side in defending against the onslaughts from his bastard father seeking their end. Meanwhile, putting his absolute faith and trust in others to not steer him or those he'd actually come to care about wrong, and it'd paid off splendidly each time. None more so than with Metis, when he'd put her in charge of battle tactics and strategy, leading the defensive and offensive. She had certainly proven herself quite capable with each plan she'd come up with, and had shown above and beyond, that she was worthy of his respect, if for nothing else, then her mind.
Speaking of her, seeing as Themis and Styx had their roles assigned, pretty much, he wondered what he'd assign her, to further take off the load that would otherwise be pressed solely on his shoulders. Because there was zero chance in hell he wasn't going to be taking full advantage of her intellect, in whatever way he could, knowing how useful she could be. His youngest brother was a lucky god to have her by his side, because he was certain that without her constant guidance, Zeus would've had a far rougher time of things, than he'd ended up having. Heck, the only reason he'd been as decent as he was, when they first sparred, was because of Metis' tutelage, as the younger god himself had admitted. He didn't even want to waste the brain power on pondering how poor Zeus' performance might've been, that day, if the Oceanid hadn't been in his corner. He'd probably have not even landed a single hit, for all he knew, even with Beerus holding back, as much as he had been.
Getting past that though, he got to what had to be the single most satisfying day he'd had, in this life, and possibly even his old one. When his side of the war had been victorious, with a little intervention from Ouranos beforehand, where he'd finally, thoroughly kicked the crap out of Kronos, destroyed him, and then gone on to have the best damn celebration after the fact. And yes, that was even with his more embarrassing conduct included, while drunk.
Conduct which right now, aside from the grooming, he only found embarrassment in, for doing in-front of so many people, though the vast majority of them wouldn't recall any of it, and he already knew the few that would. In the privacy of a bedroom with another, as he'd just done with Themis? No. He couldn't say he did. He'd developed too much of a liking, already, for what the divine body of a goddess could produce, tickling the new hornier side of him, along with his gourmet side at the same time. A ruthless combination, indeed.
Beerus sighed again, eyes closing as he dispelled the track of such thoughts, yet again, with a shake of his head, before their salacious nature could fully take root. "Good grief. I need to get better at keeping those thoughts in check." He muttered, though there was very much still a pleasured smile on his features.
"Forgive me if I'm being intrusive, but, whatsort of thoughts do you need to keep in check, brother?"
"Hghh…!?" Beerus halted mid-step, eyes snapping open again, at the sound of that familiar, masculine voice.
Before him, leaning a shoulder against the wall, where the destroyer was almost sure the dark-haired deity hadn't been, just a second ago, having somehow not made a single sound that he caught on to, beforehand, or made himself known through the golden glow of teleportation, was Hades. His pale countenance looking slightly amused, as he struck him with his gaze. The slightest twitches of a grin on him.
"Well?" He pressed, just a little bit more, almost as if channelling his inner-Poseidon. Beerus could even swear he saw a hint of knowing mischief in his eyes.
"Uhh… Nothing you need concern yourself with, Hades." The destroyer replied, as his words fully registered, giving a dismissive wave.
"Hmm. I see." Hades nodded, and Beerus knew him well enough to know that he was unconvinced, despite there being no change in expression. "Wouldn't happen to have anything to do with your antics during the celebration, would it?" He asked calmly.
Well… looks like we're doing this now, then… Were it not for the high he was still riding, Beerus would've winced slightly. "It did." He acknowledged, seeing no point in lying, given he'd been meaning to swiftly address this, since the doling out of punishments, some hours ago. "Just so we're clear, I'm uhh… sorry for what I did. My actions weren't my normal behaviour, as you should know."
"Well aware of it, dear brother. I've already forgiven you." He revealed rather easily, not seeming too bothered about it. "That said, I do hope you've spoken to mother, seeing as you did a lot more to her, then to me." He coughed into his fist. "She was in quite the state of shock, after you were done with her. Barely said a word to me about it when you freed me from your magic, and I went to check on her." Hades then narrowed his eyes at him. "Wait. You do remember what I'm talking about, right? I mean, you did consume a frightening amount of that altered nectar, far more so than anyone else, so it wouldn't surprise me if you struggled to remember much of what transpired. The goddesses who you ordered to carry me off, for instance, most can barely recall anything that happened the other day, despite only drinking a fraction of what you did."
"Oh, I remember it all, alright." All thanks to Rhea. "And yes, I have spoken with our mother about what happened and apologized for my drunken idiocy. She accepted and we've put it behind us." Hopefully, anyway. For all he knew, with his luck, there might just be a repeat of this incident, in some form, no matter how much he tried to avoid it.
"That's good to hear." He smiled a little more broadly, able to sense his sincerity and looking relieved. Beerus didn't need to think about why. "I didn't want to doubt you, after all we've been through, but I was concerned there, for a moment, given what I saw you do, and how wild you got, under the influence of that nectar."
"That's fair, I suppose." Beerus nodded back. Grateful there hadn't been any tension, and this little chat he'd non-verbally promised to have was over with and settled even quicker than he'd expected. Then again, of course it was. It was Hades he was dealing with. His favourite brother for various reasons. His attitude with him right now being one of them.
Sensing his opportunity, and perhaps emboldened by the still-powerful afterglow of hours of coitus, he asked the question he'd been curious of, pretty much since his memories of the celebration had been regained. "Speaking of those goddesses that took you away, though, your time with them went well, I hope?"
"Hehe." Hades chuckled with some form of mirth, as he pulled away from the wall and walked closer. "It did. I won't get into the details much, but of all the things you did while under such influence, sending me off with them is one I came to very much enjoy."
"Heh. Good to hear." And the destroyer meant that. He was pleased that his favourite brother had a nice time, rather than a poor experience. "You catch any of their names? I know they were on our side and all, but I can't recall if they ever introduced themselves at all." If they had, it clearly hadn't been memorable enough for his mind to conjure back up, and thus, been completely forgotten.
"Just the one, brother." Beerus could see the fondness on Hades' expression, as he gave a small laugh. "The least influenced out of the lot, which is probably why she was even able to remember to introduce herself. She's the one I spent the longest amount of time with, after the others fell unconscious. Her name's Minthe, and I must say, I've taken quite a liking to her."
"Have you now?" A new smirk found its way unto Beerus' face, having to hold himself back from the urge to lightly tease his brother.
"Yes. Enough about me, though." The younger sibling then met his older sibling's eyes with curiosity of his own. The knowing, mischievous look having returned. "I presume your time with Themis went well too, Beerus? You were in that room with her an awfully long time, after all. Must've been some very serious meeting indeed, with quite the climax." Hades' grin grew cheeky. A rare, but welcome sight on his visage, as he made what had to be the single most obvious pun in all of existence, not even attempting to be subtle.
Not even the slightest bit embarrassed, Beerus smirked even more, sensing his brother had rather easily pieced together what'd been going on between them. "Well, it got intense, I'll say that much."
"That'd be one way to describe it." The younger god snorted. "Pretty sure you two had the whole mountain vibrating with your activities, after a certain point. Even if what you were doing couldn't be heard, it was certainly felt. And given that you reek of sweat and other bodily fluids, much like I did, when I awoke, it's not hard for me to piece together what you two got up to. As I'm sure it wouldn't be for anyone else, were they to come across you, as I have."
He was lucky – and Themis even more so – it wasn't Hera or Demeter, in particular, given how they could be with him, as he'd seen himself now plenty of times. The two of them, along with Hestia and Bia, still very much asleep, alongside most of the other deities, which was quite remarkable, the longer he thought about it, with how the mountain had been shaking for some hours, until his brother and Themis had finished their 'meeting'.
A part of him couldn't help but find it a little funny though, to be honest. With how often two of his three elder sisters clashed heads and clearly vied for his attention, no doubt wishing to be his first, and in Hera's case, his only, with none coming after, and the elder Titaness had just swooped in and taken what they both wanted, seemingly without much effort, from what he gathered. But then, he wasn't privy to all the details.
"The whole mountain, huh? And here I thought it was just our room." Beerus grinned back at him, not having known the extent to which their activity was affecting their surroundings, having just thought it was relegated to the space they inhabited. He probably could've known, if he'd paid more attention, but then, he'd been far too preoccupied with his first lover in this world to even notice such a thing, beyond the confines of where they'd chosen to partake in their actions. "If that's the case, I'm surprised nobody else is awake, right now." He said, as he pulled his stepping foot back and took the time to glance around.
He could sense it. The unconsciousness of near every god and goddess around them, including his sisters and Styx' daughter, especially, which was quite astonishing. The rest of them hadn't drunk nearly as much as he had, and yet he had woken up before them, without any disturbance to assist him? That nectar must've hit them all harder than it did himself, despite the lesser intake.
"Well, actually, now that you mention it, Hestia did awaken some time ago, while you and Themis were together." The ghostly-pale deity revealed, as he stroked his beard, taking Beerus by surprise. "She wasn't up for long, but she did leave the room you left her in. I came across her in the halls, as she was walking along."
"I s-" Beerus stopped himself, as he recalled that last he'd been with her, she'd been naked. The thought of her navigating the hallway like that, potentially still inebriated quite badly, and running into someone in such a vulnerable state like that, even if it was Hades, whom he trusted, opening a pit in his gut that no amount of afterglow from sex could mitigate.
His hand then slapped down on Hades' shoulder, and were his brother a lesser god, such a sudden act, including his strong grip, might've caused him to flinch, as he eyed him intensely with a frown. "Hades, hold nothing back. Tell me what happened."
Hades rose a brow at the sudden shift in his brother's demeanour, but made no mention of it, seeing how serious his brother was. Obvious concern flashing through his eyes for their eldest sister. The only sibling to have been born before the purple-haired deity.
"There isn't much to say, brother." The younger sibling went on. "She appeared to have her wits in order, given the fact she was dressed in her usual tunic, and spoke to me as kindly as she normally does. I didn't notice anything awry with her." His words had an instant calming effect on Beerus, who looked especially relieved hearing she was dressed. She'd no doubt used her power on herself to achieve the state Hades had found her in. "She greeted me well, and told me she was fine, when I asked her if she was doing alright, and asked me the same. After I replied in kind, she asked me if I knew what you were up to, as she'd apparently tried to materialize herself where you were, only to fail."
The destroyer winced at the thought of her succeeding in that endeavour, only to find him fucking Themis. That would've been painfully awkward. His stomach twisted at the mere notion, and he found himself thanking Themis' foresight to set up that barrier to keep all others out, for the sake of privacy. "Did she say why she wanted to go to me?"
"She said that she was curious as to what you were doing, as she could sense the vibrations travelling throughout Olympus came primarily from you, but also that she wished to speak with you about something. I know not what though, as she didn't say." Hades said composedly. "I told her, as politely as I could, that she'd have to wait, as you were 'busy' with Themis, and I knew not when you'd be done. It took her a moment, but she seemed to understand what I was implying."
Beerus had no idea why, but confoundingly, his gut twisted a little at that.
"After that, she thanked me for letting her know, and said she'd go to you later, when you were free, before heading off back to bed for some more sleep. Said she needed it. I didn't question her." The dark-haired god concluded.
"Ah. Alright then…" Beerus wasn't sure for what reason he felt the need to ask what he did next, but did so regardless, as he awkwardly rubbed his own head. "Did she… uhh… look upset, by any chance?"
Hades blinked, before raising a brow. "Uhh, No? Not that I could tell, anyway." He visibly saw his brother's shoulders sag at that. "Why do you ask? Should she have been?"
"Ehn. No. No. Forget I asked. That was a stupid question." Beerus shook his head, wondering himself about why he did, and why he felt a strange mix of further relief and… was that disappointment? Disappointment over what, exactly?
"If you say so, brother." Hades shrugged, sensing Beerus' own uncertainty as to why he had asked, himself, and chose to throw him a bone, by not pressing any further.
"Anyway, is there anybody else seeking me out like you, Hades?" Beerus suddenly asked, seeking to change the subject as something clicked in his head, and he saw the potential chance to get some other business handled, as his high slowly came down, but wouldn't be fully gone for a while yet, which he was glad for. "I believe Zeus wanted to see me as well, for whatever reason." He also had more reason to speak with Hestia, too, given what'd just been revealed by his brother, but seeing as she'd gone back to sleeping, and he did not want to disturb that, he'd let her be for later. If she'd really said she'd be the one to come to him, then he'd trust her word.
There was also Pan who he had to speak with, for other reasons, but that could also wait for later.
"Ah." Beerus blinked, when he saw his brother's demeanour shift, becoming a little confused, but also intrigued, as he mounted his hands on his hips. "Well, actually, that's the other reason I've sought you out, right now, brother. I don't know about Zeus, but it would seem we have ourselves a little visitor. A rather peculiar one with an appearance that is… unique, to say the least. And one who, when I came across him, didn't seem to know where he was, yet somehow, he recognized your name, when I mentioned this being your abode that he found himself in, and asked if it'd be alright to see you."
He recognized my name, despite not knowing where he was…? Beerus' eyes narrowed in contemplation. Not to mention he'd specifically asked for an audience with him. "What does he look like, if you don't mind me asking?"
"Uhh… I'm not quite sure how to describe him, to be honest." His little brother replied somewhat sheepishly, as he rubbed the back of his head. "His clothing is certainly different from anything I've seen, and his face is… well, his mouth seems to protrude out, like so, though it doesn't move when he talks." The pale-skinned god continued, curling the fingers of his hand, so that the index and thumb touched and formed a circle, before pushing it up to his lips, as if to mime the 'protrusion'. Both knew he could've just shape-shifted to take his form, but Beerus didn't feel the need to point that out or press for it, given that it was clear Hades simply didn't want to, and it ultimately didn't make much of a difference, here. "He's also, as I said before, little. As in, he barely makes it up to my thigh." He indicated, while tapping said part of his anatomy.
Well, the protruding mouth rules out Lord Zeno, anyway. Not that Beerus ever thought the Omni-King would bother to visit him here personally, but when it came to the Lord of Everything, either one of them, seeing as there had been two, thanks to Son Goku and co's timeline shenanigans, you just never knew, sometimes.
Still though, someone who had clothing his younger brother had never seen before, only reached as high as Hades' thigh, and who had a cylindrical-shaped, protruding mouth? He didn't know anyone, from this life or his old one, who matched that description, yet this person, whoever they were, knew who he was?
Was it possible they were just some really unique-looking god from this realm, who had managed to accidently bring themselves into his palace? Or were they a being from his old multiverse, who'd either met him, at some point, or at least knew of who he was in passing, enough to where they'd react to his name and ask for him? if the latter was the case, how the heck had they even got here? He held no doubts the Grand Priest or the Omni-Kings could get here, rather easily, if they wanted to, but some guy he either hadn't met, or had, but wasn't intriguing enough for him to remember?
Interest, for the moment, most definitely piqued, Beerus nodded toward Hades. "Well, if he wants to see me, then bring me to him. I'm curious to see who this is."
The paler sibling didn't need to be told twice, before nodding at his brother, as a soft, golden glow permeated over his form, quickly passed over on to Beerus, who didn't resist, and both vanished in the blink of an eye to a different section of the palace, where their 'little visitor' awaited.
Meanwhile… Atop the remains of Othrys…
"So, are we all in agreement as to how we shall proceed against Beerus tomorrow?" Atlas rumbled out the question, massive arms laid over his legs with eyes focused and steely, as he, along with Krios and Koios sat upon earthen seats in a circle, around a table formed of the same, with various stone tablets atop it, depicting various ideas for their coming fight against the destroyer. All conjured by the former general of Kronos' army to help them brainstorm their battle-plan, as the trio were once again garbed in their respective tunics.
And also, this time, the three had made sure a barrier was put up around them, to block out any potential eavesdropper, such as Ouranos, from spoiling it to their enemy.
"Yes. I believe this will do nicely." Krios was the first to reply, smirking at his nephew, as his fists clenched over his knees, now knowing their finalized plan, after hours of running through ideas. "That arrogant bastard won't know what hit him, once we enact this strategy on him!"
"I concur. He may hold more power than us individually, but if we play this right, then even he shall fall." Koios nodded with a small grin, chin held up by the knuckles of his balled fist, feeling some confidence in what they – or more accurately, himself and Atlas, given they'd done much of the leg-work – had come up with. "With our powers combined, used in this fashion, it should be all but a certainty."
Iapetus, who sat a way's away from the trio on a piece of rocky debris, just close enough to be within the barrier, sighed into his hand, as he held his face. "I knew those three could be stubborn in their beliefs, but this is truly something else…"
It'd been some time ago since he and his granddaughter had followed these three here, and Iapetus couldn't say he was surprised that the location they chose to come to, was the site where their fortress used to be. A place that'd once been their home, but was now just a devastated terrain, with hardly anything, other than a few pieces of rubble remaining, where the abode of Kronos, previously that of their father for his physical form, before they usurped him, had once stood.
He'd have preferred to be sitting next to his kin, right now, and doing his best to talk some sense into them, when it came to their expectations, but alas, he got the feeling they didn't want to hear a word out of his mouth. Especially Atlas, after his son had confronted him and Kalypso, and asked them both about what happened on their ends, for he had wanted to hear every detail from their mouths. He could still remember the way his son's eyes had darkened on him, upon hearing exactly what he'd done, both during and after the final battle.
Not a word had been said by him, after Iapetus had explained his side. The look was all the elder Titan needed, in order to know that Atlas currently held him in a very negative light. It stung to see, but there wasn't much he could do about his boy feeling such a way about him.
"Well, if nothing else, it is a good plan, from the sounds of it. One that should, at the very least, entertain Beerus, so he'll lighten their punishments, when this battle in concluded…" Kalypso, choosing to be more the optimist here, piped up from his side, standing up, unlike the rest, while holding her hands by her waist, as she put on her best smile.
"Oh, of that I have little doubt, dear granddaughter, but I'm more concerned with the delusion they have, that they can actually beat him, even after what I've told them, as have you…" Iapetus groaned, while eying his son's progeny. "I understand it is a good thing to have confidence in oneself, when going into a fight, and to have a high morale, lest you lose the light of Elpis. However, seeing them apply their hopes to the unattainable, rather than what is attainable, in this coming match, is downright painful to watch…"
"Remember. There can be no room for error here, if we are to succeed." They both heard Atlas remark, turning their gazes back towards him, as his eyes narrowed, and he crossed his arms. "Everything must go as we have laid out. For that to happen, none of us can allow ourselves to be baited by him, no matter what he says or does. Faltering in our path to victory, purely because any one of us allowed him to get under our skin and irrationally strike out will not do. Calm and focus are key, here, for all of us. If he gets you angry, do not let that anger control you. Rein it in and harness it for added motivation and energy, if you must." He stressed to his two uncles, who both nodded sagely at his advice, understanding well the importance of his words themselves.
"You know, if nothing else, I'll give them this," Iapetus piped up, loud enough for only himself and Kalypso to hear, as he stared intently at his brothers and son, hands clasping almost in prayer, as he laid his chin over them. "Were this to be against any one of Beerus' siblings, I could legitimately see them claiming victory with what they've come up with, seeing as they've all become set on that being the goal." Kalypso nodded, in full agreement with that. "Perhaps if they'd been a little wiser, in hindsight, and somehow managed to bait Beerus into having one of his brothers or sisters take his place…"
Another sigh broke through his lips then, as he considered that scenario as a thought exercise, while watching the trio before him go through their finalized plan step-by-step, once again, with his son narrating their roles, before ultimately shaking his head, as he managed to see the flaws in even that route, after a few moments, should they have managed that deal. "Actually, no. That probably wouldn't work, either, as Beerus could always give a blessing toward the chosen sibling, in order to help ensure their victory. With the power he now wields, it's doubtless something he's more than capable of…"
"True." Kalypso didn't bother to contest that, as she eyed her grandfather. "And that isn't even getting into what else he could be capable of, beyond what he's already shown. My father's and granduncles abilities will be quite well known to him, because of all the battles they've been in, whether through his own experience, or through one of his allies that fought them. And I know that father has to be aware of this, but…"
"There's nothing he can do about that." Iapetus finished for her, as he turned to her again. "Nothing that any of them can do, to account for whatever else he has in his bag of tricks, which he doesn't even need, in order to beat them. One way or another, my brothers and your father are moving into a situation they're bound to lose in, and which I can only hope that in defeat, they give Lord Beerus enough 'entertainment', as he put it, to allow for the lessened sentences."
"I-" Kalypso looked about ready to verbally agree, once more, before she stopped in her tracks, as a shadow fell over the elder Titan, causing her to glance over at the one who cast it, slightly startled that she had not heard him coming over. "O-Oh, father! Are you done with discussing the plan?"
Within barely a second, Iapetus' attention snapped over to the looming form of his son, as he stood over him. The younger, but stronger Titan not acknowledging his daughter's question right away, as he sent a glare down at his father. One so intense that were he any weaker willed than he was, he would've wilted beneath it, in an instant, instead of meeting and enduring it.
"Have something to say to me, my boy?" Iapetus soon had to broach, feeling the tension between them thick in the air.
"Why are you still here?" Atlas asked bluntly, catching his daughter by surprise with the sheer coldness behind his words, while earning a deep frown from his father.
"Pardon?" This being the first words the muscle-bound Titan had uttered to his father, for the last few hours since just before he, Krios and Koios had begun their brainstorming session, Iapetus wasn't quite sure how to take them.
"You heard me, father. Why is it, that after what you admitted to us earlier, you still chose to remain around us, for this long?" The hulking Titan inquired, as he mounted his hands on his hips. "I'd have thought you smart enough to know when you were not wanted, and make yourself scarce without being told, but it seems as if, just like with your pride, you cast away any semblance of wisdom you had, as well."
Iapetus grimaced, while Kalypso gasped in disbelief, smile dropping completely at the insults being thrown, having never once heard her father say such things to his own dad, before. "F-Father! Why are you-"
"Kalypso, dear." Atlas cut her off sternly, though, notably, compared to Iapetus, his tone was a good deal softer, as his gaze briefly flicked to her. "I'll have to ask you to please be quiet, for a moment, and not come to your grandfather's defence, for I know you will try. Your kindness would be wasted on him."
"W-Wasted…?" Kalypso almost took a step back from the shock.
"Yes. Wasted." Atlas nodded. His expression softening further, but still carrying that stern air about it. "What occurred with you, my dearest daughter, and why you ended up making the deal that you did with that bastard Beerus, I can understand and do not hold against you, especially seeing as it is the reason that I and my uncles are getting this chance to knock that arrogant god down to size. Do not worry, I and your granduncles will make sure you do not have to lower yourself by being a mere servant for Kronos' most horrid son."
You shouldn't be making her a vow like that, which you won't be able to keep, Atlas, even if it comes from a good place. The Titan god of mortality thought critically, as he heard such a declaration.
"Meanwhile," Atlas continued, as he swapped his gaze back to Iapetus, and Kalypso flinched involuntarily, when she saw that glacier-cold glare return full force, as her father's expression hardened back into granite. "As you were forced into a corner, and went out of your way to sacrifice yourself on my behalf, we have this once proud Titan. A father that I once greatly looked up to, reduced to little more than a coward who fled from the battlefield while the rest of his kin continued to fight. A betrayal almost as bad, in my eyes, as what my treacherous aunt did to Krios, stabbing him in the back to curry favour with our enemies."
At the reminder of what his sister had done, Krios growled akin to a wild, aggravated beast. His teeth grounded together in a snarl, while his fists balled tight, nails nearly drawing ichor over his legs.
"Then, as if your actions couldn't get any more detestable, you went so far as to go back to Olympus, just so you could grovel at Beerus' feet and beg for forgiveness from him. A shameful act that mere days ago, I could never have imagined you doing."
That did it. If the Titan of mortality had been trying to remain silent before, he could no longer do so now. "Just like I never imagined I'd have to fight my own sons, your brothers, not too long ago, and have the genuine concern of my brother, Kronos, putting them to the scythe for going against him, and then having to deal with not only my own anguish over that, no matter how much I foolishly denied it, at first, but your mother's, as well." Iapetus shot back strongly, meeting his spawn's glare with one of his own, unrepentant.
"Lord Kronos would not have done that!" Atlas barked. His loyalty and belief in the now-erased Titan holding strong, even now. "Sending them on an extended stay down to Tartarus, perhaps, but he wouldn't have-"
"Oh, yes he would've!" Iapetus cut him off harshly, earning an even greater scowl from the Titan of endurance. "He wouldn't have thought twice about making an example out of them, just as he would've his own progeny, and all those others who were closest to them, amongst their allies! All to ensure he put the fear of his wrath into any who remained, so that a situation like the one we found ourselves in, with the war, would never be repeated again."
Gaze shooting between the trio of Titans that would do battle against Beerus tomorrow, Iapetus struck them all with a question that now burned on his mind, and which he liked to think he already knew the answer to. "Imagine any one of you were in my position, before you curse my name for what I have done. Would any of you have been able to fight your own children in a war which you knew the end of, if you won, would seal their fates to a most deplorable and agonizing existence, presuming a semblance of them even survived the bite of Kronos' scythe?"
Though Atlas' glare didn't disappear, and neither of his brothers even desired to gaze upon him, right now, Iapetus noticed the twitching of each expression at his words, and knew that regardless of what they'd admit to, openly, he'd struck a chord in each.
Kalypso, meanwhile, understanding and feeling empathetic to her grandfather, for she had held similar thoughts, when it came to how Beerus would treat her father and herself mere hours ago, turned and made to reach out for him, so as to place a hand on his shoulder in comfort.
Her hand barely made it halfway, however, before the massive hand of her father engulfed her slim shoulder, stopping her in her tracks, and then, with great ease and remarkable gentleness, given his strength, pulled her toward his side, away from the Titan god of mortality. Her eyes snapping up to his face in surprise, as he did so, only to see a stony mask, as his arctic gaze remained unflinchingly on his father, who went on.
"You may call what I did a betrayal if you wish, my son, as I'm aware that in abandoning the battlefield, I did turn my back on Kronos and the rest of you, however, it is not a decision I regret." Iapetus said firmly. His voice remaining even, but carrying an emphasis to it with each word. "And as for my 'shameful act', as you put, while my ego took quite the blow having to do it, I admit, I'll take that being bruised any day, over playing a part, in having two of my sons be reduced to a state of being even worse than what my horrible father was, and in yours, your daughter's and Menoitios' case, reduced to nothing!" He growled.
Standing up and meeting his son eye-to-eye, as he felt the heated glares of his two brothers on him now, too, but also the understanding and compassionate one of his granddaughter, Iapetus balled his fists by his sides, as he spoke resoundingly, with the same deadly serious, paternal tone he'd always had with his four sons, as he trained them so many moons ago. "That said, I do have but one regret, as I stand before you now, my dear boy, and it's that I did not have the decency to take Prometheus more seriously, when he came to us with his vision of the future. And instead of stubbornly, stupidly sticking to my younger brother's side, I should've joined Prometheus and Epimetheus instead, all while doing everything I could to convince you and Menoitios to do the same, as much of a pain as I know that would've been to do, with how you both are. At least that way, you wouldn't have to be going through what you are, right now, Kalypso would've come with you, and would thus be better off, and Menoitios wouldn't be disfigured and buried beneath a bloody mountain!"
"That's seriously your only regret? That you didn't turn traitor sooner!?" Atlas bellowed angrily, veins beginning to pop out from his temple at the gall his parent had, to utter such a thing. "Good grief, father. Where did the proud Titan I once knew and admired go? For you to disgrace yourself and us with such words is beyond insulting!" The musclebound Titan felt the urge to punch his parent as hard as he could, send him careening off Othrys and out of his sight, but stayed his hand, though he was fast getting to a point now where he was wondering why he did so. "What happened to you? When did you become so pathetically weak-willed!?" Atlas wrenched out, and Iapetus nearly winced, when he saw the tinge of hurt in his son's eyes, as if he couldn't believe who he was looking at right now. Couldn't believe he was the same Titan who had raised him into the Titan he was today.
"Call me what you wish. Think of me how you will, from here on, but know this, son." Iapetus said calmly, genuinely, in a tone rarely used by him, as he placed a hand on his son's shoulder, like he'd used to do to show affection more physically, as he grew and as they and Atlas' brothers spent time together. It was no different here, other than the heavy tension he felt in his son's muscles, instead of the way they'd always been relaxed – or would relax before – all the other times he'd done so. "If it means ensuring that you and Menoitios," His gaze briefly shifted to Kalypso. "as well as your own daughter, don't end up like your uncle Kronos has, gone forever, I'd bare whatever humiliation I have to, go through whatever tribulation Lord Beerus would have in store for me, to make it so you all live… even if you and your brother, Atlas, come to despise me for it. I'd rather shoulder that burden, than the anguish of never being able to see any of you again."
Not to mention never being able to look his wife in the face again. She'd be inconsolable for all of eternity, had any one of their sons met such an end. And he also knew, that regardless of the animosity that'd manifested between them, and the misgivings they all had with each other, both Prometheus and Epimetheus would still be hit hard by such a fate befalling their siblings, or the children of them.
With his piece said, however, and knowing that outraged look in Atlas' eyes, when he saw it, even when his face was like a mask of stone, Iapetus sighed for what felt to him like the millionth time today, even if it was actually far less, as he stepped back and removed his hand from his son's shoulder. His granddaughter's gaze and expression making it clear she was the only one really on his side, whilst his brothers and son were very clearly, at the minute, viewing him as little more than a betrayer and a craven, for his actions.
He hoped that after they lost, their perspective would change, just a little bit. For now, though, it was clear he wasn't welcome, and things would go poorly if he stayed any longer. So, with that in mind, he bid goodbye to them all, and took his leave of Othrys. His body dematerializing into golden specks.
Atlas watched him go, pushing down the conflicted feeling that'd arisen in his chest, in place of the righteous rage he also felt. The same one he'd use as fuel for himself, in his and his uncles' upcoming bout with Beerus tomorrow, as he scoffed at his father's departure.
"Good riddance."
Meanwhile… Back on Olympus…
Beerus and Hades arrived where the latter meant to take the former, without much fanfare, other than the usual aftermath of teleportation.
Before them both, was one of the longer hallways within the palace's walls, and Beerus' eyes narrowed when, almost imperceptible to the eye, he saw the light distortions upon the otherwise stony surface, right down the centre of the right-side one, like ripples in a body of water.
What caught his attention even more, however, was the creature that stood near to it, idly glancing around. The one that Hades had attempted to describe for him.
Donning what appeared to be a dark-grey and silver gas mask of all things, which explained the 'protruding mouth' that Hades had spoken of, the being was short and stout in build, and as Hades had put it, reaching no higher than his thigh. For clothing, he had on what looked like an open lab coat worn over a light-grey shirt, with a tie that was striped yellow and red, deep blue pants pulled up to the person's waist, alongside dark, semi-triangular shoes. Atop the being's head, and therefore, their gas mask, was a purple cap, with the name 'TORI' blazed front and centre, in a creamy-yellow shade.
It didn't take long beyond that, for him to also notice the tiny guy's hands, which definitely weren't made of flesh, but metal, from the looks of things. Like a primitive robot, without opposable thumbs or fingers, but instead, two somewhat rectangular-shaped, curved appendages pushing out from the metallic wrist, which looked like the kind of thing he recalled seeing on multiple worlds, in his old universe. What was the name of that piece of machinery again? A crane?
Regardless, Beerus could confidently say one thing, upon finally laying eyes on this guest of theirs, and it was that, in fact, just as he'd thought before coming here with Hades, he had never seen this diminutive being before, in all his existence. Their visage – somewhat comical in its design – was that of a complete stranger to his eyes.
And yet, despite that… for some bizarre reason, he couldn't shake off the definite feeling of familiarity that he was getting from whoever this was. Like he'd known whoever this was, somehow, and that they held a connection together, which was hard to put into words, the longer he kept his gaze on him. The destroyer knew not why this was, but what he did know, is that whomever this small creature was, for the feeling they were pulling from his gut, this being most certainly had his full attention.
"Ah, your back!" The small being remarked, in what was definitely a man's voice, and Beerus knew he'd heard the accent, or something similar before, but he just couldn't place where, as the tiny male took notice of their presence and shifted his full attention to them, while he gave a polite wave of his hand to the two. "Was beginning to wonder for a moment if you'd just ditched me, or something, hehe."
"Ditched…?" Hades' brow furrowed with a small frown, hearing such phrasing for the first time.
"He means left him behind." Beerus almost chuckled at the befuddled features of his brother, who'd been lost to the meaning of that word, which was a more modern one, in his old world. "That's not really important, though." He continued, ignoring the inquisitive look from Hades, as to how he'd known that, as he focused in on the smaller male. "I heard from my brother here, that you wished to see me?"
The smaller guy cocked his head, his big eyes blinking in confusion, at the destroyer's words. "See you?" He gave him a once-over. "I'm sorry, but I think there's been a mistake, sir. I'd heard that this place belonged to Beerus, and I uh… suppose I got a little too excited for nothing, because you're definitely not the Beerus I was thinking of, when I asked for you. I apologize if I've inconvenienced you." He said sincerely, rubbing the back of his head bashfully with what sounded like a genuinely apologetic and… sad tone?
"What are you…" Beerus was about to question what the heck he was talking about, but stopped when he realized, he was in his new, more human-looking form of this world, rather than his old appearance. An old appearance, which it was possible, this being had been expecting to see, as it was known to him, unlike the one he was in now.
"Hades, would you mind leaving us be? Rest assured I can handle this alone." Beerus said after a beat, briefly turning his attention to his ghostly pale-skinned sibling, who glanced back at him with a mild look of surprise.
"You're sure, brother?" Was all he asked, not out of concern, for he held no fear for Beerus' safety, given his might, but purely out of curiosity for their tiny guest and his interaction.
"Oh, I'm sure." The god of destruction nodded affirmatively.
"Very well, then, I guess. I'll see you later." Hades replied with a small sigh, and then, showing the good brother he was, despite his intrigue over this figure, he acquiesced to Beerus' want for privacy here, though not through the usual means of teleportation. Instead, his body seemed to rapidly darken, becoming like a shadow, before it dropped down into the floor, almost like a large portion of goo, only no sound was made. It dispersed right before his very eyes, leaving not a trace behind.
Huh. Guess I know now how he appeared near me, without me noticing, before. The destroyer mused with a light grin, seeing his brother's new trick.
"Huh. I think I wrote a power like that, at some point. Or was it something else?" Beerus heard his 'guest' mutter to himself, before he turned his attention back to him, seeing him rub at his head, as if trying to stroke something back into memory. "Meh. Can't remember…"
"So, you were saying I wasn't the Beerus you were thinking of?" The god asked the smaller being, completely ignoring what he was babbling on about, in favour of what he saw as the more pressing matter at hand. "Could you perhaps tell me what your Beerus looked like?"
"O-Oh! Sure!" The small guy bobbed his head somewhat enthusiastically. "The one I know about, is a cat!"
"A cat, you say?" Beerus, for some reason, couldn't help but quirk his lips up in a grin.
"Yeah! A cat! A hairless one that's purple in colour, just like your hair!" The little guy exclaimed. "He's usually lazy, has a bit of a temper, loves tasty food, and likes to sleep a lot!"
"I see." Beerus' grin broadened slightly, even while hearing two of his more negative traits getting called out. Something about this being just made him not care, though perhaps that was also assisted by the high he was still on, even if it had come down a bit, by now, as he used his magic to cast an invisible barrier around them, so as to block out anyone trying to listen in, such as Gaea, if she chose to be nosy. "This cat of yours, does he happen to have an attendant and mentor named Whis, by any chance?"
The 'eyes' of the smaller male's gas mask somehow widened in an expression of surprise, one that looked so strange, yet oddly funny to the purple-haired deity's gaze. "He does! How did you know that?"
Rather than answer him verbally, right away, Beerus sensed out around them, and finding that nobody was near enough to see them, he immediately made use of his shape-shifting power to morph his form in an instant.
The 'eyes' of the smaller male's gas mask bulged this time, almost as if out of a Saturday morning cartoon, as he watched the tall, muscular man before him shrink, both in height and mass, losing a good deal of muscle, as he became more lean, borderline anorexic-looking. His hair vanishing, as the colour of his skin changed to match it. His humanoid face morphing, becoming more cat-like, whilst long, triangular ears sprouted out up from his head, on either side, with the left one having a gold piercing. His eyes changing as well, with the sclera becoming the colour of his irises, while the latter themselves became coal-black, and a whip-like tail swayed forth behind him.
His clothing also changed too, forming away from his tunic to become more Egyptian-themed. A golden collar appearing around his slimmer neck, along with bracelets of the same colour on his arms and wrists. A black cloth falling down over his shoulders and chest, lined in white and striped in blue, with an orange diamond at its centre, leaving his sunken mid-riff exposed. Below that, he wore blue Gi pants, with a darker blue obi at the top, around his hips and waist, with a black sash lined in gold flowing down from the front to about his knees, with three diamonds going down in descending order, with the first two being white, and the last being another orange one. To finish off his old ensemble, were simple brown shoes, with golden anklets around them
"Is this what you had in mind, when you heard my name?" Beerus asked, as he mounted his hands on his hips. "Because this is my original form, before I was sent to the realm we're in now."
"O-Oh my…" The small guy gawked at him. The gas mask yet again able to express his astonishment in a comic fashion that Beerus legitimately had to try not to laugh at. Seriously, how was he expressing so much with something that wasn't his actual face? Or… was it? The destroyer honestly couldn't tell, the more he paid attention to it.
"I-It really is you!" The smaller guy suddenly got even more animated, as he pointed one of his hands at the destroyer. Disbelief and joy reigning strong on him. "Haha! I can't believe it, it's actually you! I'm really speaking with one of the characters I designed, right now! This is amazing!"
"Yes. Yes. It's I, Lord-" Beerus stopped himself, as the smaller being's words actually sunk in and he blinked, as he tried to process the absurdity of what'd just been uttered. The god staring at his charge in complete confusion. "I'm sorry, come again? Did you just say you… designed me?" What the heck did that even mean? He'd been born normally, just like any other creature, in both this, and his prior reality.
"Ah! Sorry, sorry! I got ahead of myself, there." The creature said, as it all but bounded forth jubilantly, causing Beerus to subconsciously take a step back, as he got within his comfort zone. "I'm just so excited that this is actually happening! Of all the things I thought might happen when I died, this isn't one of them, but I'm so glad it is!"
"Hang on a minute, what do you mean you 'died'?" Beerus' brow furrowed in further befuddlement at how little sense this guy was making. He was standing here, after all, looking as healthy as can be, and didn't even have a halo, to show he was part of one of the afterlives! "You're not making any sense, right now!" He growled. "Which of the 12 Universes were you from? Because if you came from Universe 7, it's gone now, along with everyone in it, with few exceptions. And I know you didn't compete in the Tournament of Power, so if you did hail from there, Lord Zeno's power should've fully erased you, just like it did for everything and everyone else, outside of those like myself, or the ones who competed, after we lost it!"
That got the diminutive guy to freeze. "Huh? What do you mean you lost it?" Now it was this guy's turn to look baffled, as he stared at Beerus wide-eyed. "My memory's not the best, I'll admit, but I could've sworn you won that!"
"Yeah, well, we didn't." Beerus scoffed bitterly, feeling his high from earlier come down further. "I don't know why you think we did, but Universe 11's strongest, Jiren, proved to be too much for us, in the end."
"…He did? But that's not…" The short-statured being suddenly looked even more lost than Beerus himself, as he looked down. "Am I losing my marbles?" He muttered lowly, though Beerus still picked it up easily. "I'm certain the anime and manga followed what I put in my notes… I'd have definitely heard about it, if they didn't… We even had whole new stories after it!"
The more this guy talks, the more I can feel my brain frying… Beerus thought with a twitch of his eye. This person just continued to make no damned sense, whatsoever!
"Alright, look, just who or what are you, exactly?" The destroyer finally asked, running out of patience. "I don't know how you actually know me, because I refuse to believe that nonsense you said before about 'designing' me, whatever that means, or any of the other crap you just said, but you're aware of who I am, somehow. And for some reason, I have this strange feeling that I know you, too, even though I've never seen you before, in my life, so spill, before I get anymore annoyed."
The smaller being glanced up, officially pulled out of their own thoughts, it seemed, with both a startled and apologetic look. "Ah. Sorry! In all the excitement, I forgot to introduce myself to you, hehe." The smaller guy bowed his head in forgiveness, a gesture that had any annoyance Beerus had begun to feel for him melt away surprisingly fast for the god of destruction.
"My name's Akira. Akira Toriyama." He officially introduced himself, raising his head as he stuck out his hand for a polite shake. "And I mean it when I say this. It's a pleasure to be meeting you, Beerus!"
"Well… looks like you have some manners, at least." Beerus replied, feeling the oddest smile grace his lips without even conscious thought, as he took Akira's robot hand in his own, giving it a firm shake. He'd expected to feel the coldness of steel on his skin, but instead, the sensation he felt, as he gripped the hand, sent a feeling of warmth through him that he hadn't expected, as though he was greeting an old family member he hadn't seen in eons.
It was strange, and Beerus should've been weirded out by it, but he wasn't. If anything, he felt… content? Happy?
Just what in the world was going on here?
"Hey uhh… Can I ask you something?" The small being – Akira Toriyama, as he'd called himself – suddenly broached, as their hands separated.
Beerus could only shrug. "Sure. I'm in a good enough mood, so go right ahead."
"Right. Well, you see… if this isn't Universe 7, then, where are we, exactly?" He asked, as he glanced around, gaze shooting to the part of the wall that the almost imperceptible ripples were coming from. "Since I died, I'm not sure what happened, but I ended up getting stuck in this weird space tunnel thingy, until it spat me out here, and I've no idea where this is, other than I'm apparently in your home, according to that other guy, who left."
"Yeah, before I answer that, I think I'm going to have to question you, on you being dead." The destroyer narrowed his eyes. "If you come from the same multiverse as me, and died recently, then unless you were revived with something, you should have a halo above your head, and I don't see any on you, so what's going on there?"
"Well, that's probably because I'm not really from there, like you are." Akira shrugged, despite how much of a jaw-dropping answer that really was. Not that he gave Beerus all that much time to process it, while staring at him bug-eyed, before he moved on. "Where I come from, truth be told, I'm not even sure if there's a heaven, or not. All I know is, I definitely died, because everything went black for me, before I suddenly found myself waking up again, but in this body, within that space tunnel thingy." He said, while motioning to himself. "This isn't how I looked like before. It's how my avatar looked, when I'd draw myself on manga sheets." He said with a kind of mirth that made it clear he knew how comical his current appearance really was.
"I… I see…" He absolutely did not. He was even more lost than ever before, but no longer felt like asking further about this, as he could sense a headache coming on, so he nodded along and pretended like he did.
"Real shame I died when I did, though." The man bowed his head sadly. "Not just because I miss my family, and wish I was still there with them, but also because I was really looking forward to seeing what everyone thought of my latest project, which I'd put all my heart into, but now I won't get that chance…"
"Erghhh… I'm sorry for your loss…?" Beerus spoke awkwardly, not used to giving condolences, and not even sure himself why he bothered. In this situation, for this guy, it just felt like the right thing to do.
"It's okay… It was just my time, I guess…" He sighed, slumping his shoulders at all he was missing, right now, as he gazed down at the floor somewhat depressively.
Feeling a compulsive desire to push him out of such negativity, which he excused as being because he simply didn't want it to affect him, Beerus shifted the subject back to what he'd been asked before. "Alright, getting away from that, you asked me about where we are?" He got a small nod, so he continued, knowing that his charge was at least somewhat paying attention, and not fully caught up in his own thoughts. "All I can really tell you, is that it's the Universe the Grand Priest and Lord Zeno had me sent to, by pure chance." The destroyer then smirked. "Which I'm set to become king of, soon enough."
That last part got an immediate reaction. Head snapping up so suddenly, it was a wonder his neck didn't crack from the whiplash, once again, the being, Akira, stared up at him wide-eyed in shock. "Wait. You're going to be king of this Universe?"
"Yep." Beerus nodded, noting how his stunned expression only intensified, especially as he added, "Made the decision myself to give it a shot. Don't know if it'll go well or not, but I'll give it my best attempt. See if I can do better with handling this position, compared to when I was the god of destruction for Universe 7." He revealed, feeling no qualms about doing so, with this guy.
The being known as Akira Toriyama only stared at him then, for a moment, as though wondering if he was truly speaking to who he thought he was.
Which, to be fair, considering he truly did seem to know of him from before, which he still didn't quite know how, even with faulty history, such as thinking he and his universe's team had won the Tournament of Power, then the look made sense, as he was probably at least somewhat aware of how poor a job he did in his role, back in his old world.
"You're willingly giving being a responsible ruler a go?" Akira's tone sounded flabbergasted at first, before he blinked. Yes, blinked, with what Beerus had thought to be the 'eyes' of a mask, instead of an actual face, and met the destroyer's gaze with what seemed to be more surprise, but also an inkling of… pride? Beerus could even swear that, despite not having the lips for it, he could feel the smile on Akira, now. Like that of a father watching his child grow up, before his very eyes. "Heh. And here I'd thought you'd always choose to remain the same old, lazy cat."
"Hmph. Never a good idea to just assume things, you know." Beerus retorted, feeling oddly affronted, but not in a way that made him hostile to this guy. Far from it. If anything, he felt a swell of something within him. He didn't understand what it was, but it felt good, so he allowed it.
"Hehehehaha! No, I suppose not!" He laughed back, and the sound of it was something pleasant to Beerus' ears, as though he'd somehow heard it many times before, and was happy to hear it again, as the small guy tapped his leg a few times in good humour, all traces of his sadness, even if just for this moment, gone. "We all have the ability to improve on ourselves, after all. Even old geezers like you and I!"
Beerus' eye twitched in earnest annoyance. "Oi! Don't call me an old geezer! Who do I look like to you, the Elder Kai?"
"Ahahahahaha!" Akira just laughed even more, at his reply, clearly thinking what he'd just said was hysterical, even though Beerus didn't see what the joke was.
He'd be lying if he said he didn't like seeing this guy be in higher spirits again, though, for whatever reason.
After a moment, the shorter male calmed down, though there was still some mirth in him. "Ah. This is even better than I thought it would be, getting the chance to actually speak with one of you, like this!"
"Hmm." Beerus didn't even bother to prod into the exact verbiage of that, this time. He just took the compliment for what it was.
"It's unfortunate it can't last, though." Akira went on, another sigh coming from him, as he turned his sights back to where he'd come out of. "While I'd love to stay a bit longer, I can't help but get the feeling I'm not supposed to be here. That this isn't where I should be, you know?"
"Thinking of trying to return to where you came from?" Beerus had to ask curiously.
"A little bit." The smaller male admitted. "Don't think I'll be able to, though. If that's where I was meant to be going, now, then I don't think I'd have died in the first place."
"Hnn. A new adventure to somewhere else, then." Beerus lightly grinned, as Akira turned back to face him. "Who knows? You could end up like me, becoming a king of your own world."
"Hah. Yeah, no thanks." He waved the destroyer off with a chuckle. "Dealing with deadlines and all the hassle my editors used to give me for my manga was bad enough, I'd rather not have to go through something similar, but on a much grander scale, and for something way more important than what I did before. I'd probably die again from the stress alone!" He joked, or at least, Beerus assumed he was joking, given the animated way he waved his arms about.
"Still," He went on, as he stopped waving his arms and began rubbing the back of his head with a relatively chipper mood. "a new adventure does sound nice. Maybe I could even get sent to my own personal paradise!"
"That's the spirit." Beerus nodded, feeling a small bit of intrigue as to what he considered his 'personal paradise', but not enough to ask.
"There's uhh… just one problem, though." He remarked awkwardly, as he made his way back over toward the rippling section of the wall. His hand pressing against it, and failing to sink into it, no matter how hard he pressed. "I can't seem to get back inside this thing."
"Really now?" Walking forward himself, Beerus came up next to the spatially-distorting section of the wall, several feet high and wide, right beside his acquaintance. His eyes squinting, as he properly scrutinized the entryway and exit to the space tunnel that the short-statured being had come out of.
With his new domain of time, in all aspects, it allowed him to get a proper feel for it, just by being near it like this, to sense its properties, despite how anomalous it was, and recognize that it wasn't too much different from a standard wormhole through spacetime. One that he sensed, if he were to go through himself, there would be nothing there for him. It wouldn't do anything for him, and couldn't bring him anywhere.
The same could not be said for the smaller guy next to him. It was almost as if it was linked specifically to him alone, to bring him to other places. Other realities.
And it'd spat him out here, but then refused to let him back in, by himself. He wasn't sure why, but then, as he'd found out the hard way, in his old life, wormholes could be finicky, sometimes. Irksomely so, when they weren't being made by Whis.
Actually no, even then, the wormholes could be annoying, sometimes, though that had more to do with Whis intentionally making an error just to mess with him, in his early days as the god of destruction. The angel having been a bit more immature, when annoyed back then, but then who was he to talk?
"Uhh, sorry to ask this of you, but do you think you might be able to help me get back inside?" Akira asked politely, not sounding too sure of if whether or not the destroyer was capable of such.
"Huh? Oh. Sure, no problem." Beerus agreed readily, which should've surprised him, but at this point, it was clear whatever bizarre familiarity he had with this guy was causing him to be of a more friendly persuasion with him, then he'd otherwise be. "You'll owe me for it, though." He added with a look, though doubted he'd ever actually see this guy again.
The small guy, Akira, seemed to be aware of this, too, but it didn't stop him from chuckling again. "How does a story sound? If we ever meet again, I can give you a manga I'll draw and write about, with you in it?"
For some reason, Beerus quite liked that, even though he didn't quite know what a 'manga' was. "Heh. Guess that'll have to do."
The destroyer then pressed his hand against the warping wall, and with a flash of gold and purple, his power pulsed into it, enforcing his will over it, and no sooner did he do that, did he feel the metaphorical door open, as his palm slipped inside the tunnel that awaited. "There. It's open again. Have a nice trip."
The little guy seemed a bit surprised at how easily he'd done that, but only for a brief instant, before giving him a look of gratitude, and a quick bow of his head.
"Hehe. Thanks! I'll do my best to!" The gas-mask faced entity responded with some jubilance, before he pulled up from his bow and patted his hand on Beerus' leg again, with some degree of affection. "Hope you enjoy your stay here, as well, wherever this is!"
"Oh, believe me, I already am." Beerus smiled, as he brought his fists behind his back and touched them together. "Now get going, already. Don't want to keep your new world waiting, now do you?"
"No. I guess not." He laughed one final time. "This is goodbye, then. I don't know if we'll see each other again, but regardless if we do or don't, I just want you to know, it was great meeting you in person!" He added genuinely, with a passion behind his words that nobody could've ignored, while giving him a wave.
Right as he walked through the spatial distortion, though, the destroyer just about caught sight of him thrusting his other hand up in the air. A single, excited exclamation of, "Banzai!" resonating out, as he fully disappeared through the distortion, and less than a second later, Beerus felt whatever connection was keeping this spatial anomaly in this realm sever. The ripples fading away, leaving nothing other than the wall as it usually was, behind.
"Hmph. Akira Toriyama, huh?" Beerus muttered after a moment, no longer feeling that man's presence now, as he turned away from the wall, and began walking away, as his form shifted back to his new look, tunic and all. "What a strange guy."
He was definitely memorable, at the very least, though. He'd be sure not to forget him.
AND CUT!
Well, that's the end of this one. Hope I did the tribute some justice, as even now, looking at it, I'm kinda nervous that it isn't up to par, but I guess we'll see.
As for the chapter overall, not much else to say, other than, when it comes to the beginning, those who have even surface level knowledge of Greek Myth, you know who that was, at the beginning, lol. The official introduction will be very soon, that's all I'll say, and when that character makes their long-awaited debut… an impression will definitely be made, I can say that much!
In any case, hope you all got some enjoyment of this chapter, and I'll see you in the next one, which will be sure to have plenty of action in it. See ya then!