Beyond The Impossible

Midgard Station, Antarctica

Over the past months, this part of the world has seen more activity than over the entire history of the continent. It’s been a endless parade of planes and shuttles bringing more and more people to the station, whose permanent staff has already increased above three thousand people.

Very few of them have ventured outside, and for a good reason: humans just aren’t meant to survive in this frozen environment. This doesn’t matter in the slightest to the tall redhead standing barefoot on the ice, wearing only jeans and an orange tube top, but that’s just because Vesta is a goddess.

The two mortals next to her aren’t feeling as comfortable: both Noriko Null and Kari Zel are covered head to toe in several layers of thermal clothing, and they’re still shivering.

<Can you hurry up? I’m freezing my t##s here.> Kari complains, looking over the shoulder at Noriko: the genius is reading a very long list of calculations from a holographic tablet.

<I said you could wait inside.> Noriko reminds her.

<And miss this? Not a chance. Besides, I need to make sure it works; this is so ridiculously expensive even you can’t afford to mess this up.>

<Which is why checking the numbers a few dozen times is so important. Alright, I think I have it, power up the reactor.> Noriko instructs Kari, who manually activates a plasma reactor the size of a small car while Noriko pulls the wires that connect it to the Gravity Gloves she’s wearing.

<Get ready, Vesta. You’ll only have a minute.> Noriko warn through the Neural Transmitter.

<I’m ready.> is the response received by radio waves.

Noriko powers up the gloves, pausing when she notices Kari pulling out her phone to film her.

<What? It’s for research purposes.> Kari lies.

<Yeah, sure. Initiating multi-vector gravitational assembly program… now!> Noriko says, her silver eyes shining as she begins providing very precise instructions to the Gravity Gauntlets.

Over the horizon, hidden by a few inches of snow, there are hundreds of metallic plates, each slightly larger than a human and weighing thousands of pounds. They suddenly flow into the air, made weightless by the gauntlets; then gravity is meticulously modified for each single panel, forcing them to fly into a specific formation: a gigantic wall that surrounds Midgard Station, which rises rapidly until it forms an immense dome that obscures the Sun.

<Gods, this is so freakin’ cool!> Kari exclaims, able to watch only thanks to the light generated by Vesta’s body: the goddess is surrounded by fire and flying towards the dome.

<Would you mind? I don’t have enough power to keep this up for long.> Noriko reminds her: the plasma reactor powering the gauntlets will soon run out of power.

<Oh, yes, sorry. Panel smart locks activated; it’s all yours, Vesta.>

The goddess accelerates, flying near the dome so fast that it looks like the entire surface is on fire. It’s enough heat to weld together the plates; she can’t do it with any sort of precision, but she doesn’t need to: under Noriko’s supervision, the panels are able to absorb and redirect the heat to provide a stable arrangement. Once she turns off the gauntlets, the immense dome is already capable of withstanding its weight in addition to even the strongest earthquake.

<It worked, right? Is it done?> Vesta asks, landing next to Noriko.

<Almost. Activating daytime retro-reflectors.> Null answers, providing the final command sequence. The panels provide a holographic projection of the image behind them, pretty much making the entire dome invisible from the inside.

There’s still a lot to do… until she installs the thermal regulators, it’s still as cold as before… but she feels a real sense of accomplishments.

<Take a good look, girls. The construction of Midgard City has officially started.>

 

A bar in New York City

One of the advantages of both Max Black and Kari Zel hiding their powers to the general public is the chance to mingle with regular people without attracting too much attention; even the girl’s purple hair isn’t that uncommon these days.

<I really don’t get you, Max; if I could be at Midgard City today, I’d be there.> Kari tells him, as both approach the counter.

<You are there.> he points out.

<You mean one of my duplicates! We can’t all go to the same place, it would make my power really pointless. But come on! Noriko is finally building her own country, isn’t that cool?>

<I guess. After all we’ve been through, it feels… I don’t know. I just don’t find it that exciting.>

<You’re just bummed out ‘cause Lily left you, aren’t you?>

<Wow, Kari, and I thought Torn was the insensitive one…>

<Look, I like Lily a lot, but it’s not the end of the world. If it makes you feel any better we can have sex together tonight.>

<Kari… you’re married.> he reminds her.

<So what? This is just a duplicate body, it’s not like I’m cheating on Kiros. Besides, he’s probably doing the same right now. It’s a Myridian thing.>

<Well, I’m not Myridian. Please tell me you didn’t ask me to hang out specifically because…>

<Are you guys ordering something, or is this a bad time?> the bartender asks them. It’s a cute brunette with long hair styled into a ponytail.

<A Blueberry Lemon Drop for me and a Touchstone Margarita for the other me, I’ve never tried it.> Kari says, turning to her side to talk to a newly created duplicate… or rather that’s what she intends to do: she just stares at nothing, because she failed to materialize a duplicate.

<Is your friend alright?> the bartender asks Max.

<That’s odd.> she says, concentrating to create a copy of herself. Her face rapidly goes from confusion, to frustration, to excitement in the span of five seconds.

<Oh. My. Gods. I’m pregnant again! That’s awesome!> Kari exclaims, excitedly jumping up and down for a few moments before taking out her phone.

<I need to call myself right away!> she says, unceremoniously leaving Max behind as she runs out of the bar.

<I almost forgot how crazy Noriko’s friends are.> the bartender comments.

<You know Nori?> Max asks.

<Uhm, yes? You don’t remember me? We’ve met before. You were wearing your mask.> she answers, lowering her voice to a whisper for the last sentence.

<Ah, well, this is awkward, but I don’t… wait, if I were wearing my mask, how did you…?>

<Recognize you? Please, that mask just covers your eyes. Max, isn’t it? It’s funny, I don’t even know your last name.>

<It’s Black. Max Black.>

<Okay, fine, you don’t really need to make up one. I’m Jane, by the way. Jane Blake.>

<Wait a sec. You’re that Jane? Noriko’s friend? I thought you were the same age!>

<I am. It’s been six years, remember?>

<Yeah. You’ve grown.> Max comments, obviously checking her out. She looks away pretending she hasn’t noticed.

<Anyway, I should probably let you go; I’m sure you’re busy saving the world or something.>

<Actually, it’s my day off. And it looks like my friend just ditched me, so…>

<I’m off in twenty minutes. Do you want to get something to eat?> Jane asks.

<Sure, why not. It doesn’t look like the world needs saving tonight.>

 

Somewhere in the Zeus sector

The name of the planet doesn’t matter. There is only one mortal who remembers it, and he’s cowering in fear inside a temple.

As far as he knows, this is the only planet in the universe. As an Oracle of Zeus, he’s the most powerful mortal on this world; but that’s not particularly impressive, since he’s the only mortal alive on the entire planet. The flames that rise from the nearest city are visible behind the temple’s columns; the corpses of his assistants and concubines are scattered everywhere, and not all of them are still in one piece. Three animals are coming closer to him, beautiful peacocks with blue feathers; other birds are currently pecking the remains of the others.

<Your Queen is disappointed. Very disappointed.> Hera tells him. She’s floating above the ground, her beauty and the brightness of her blue dress contrasting the ugliness and bleakness around her.

<My husband, Zeus Almighty, grants dominion to one of the worlds of his domain to some of you pathetic monkeys for thousands of years. And what do you do the minute that filthy bastard Apollo shows up? You agree to worship him instead of the legitimate rulers of Olympus!>

<I beg you, Hera, have mercy! Apollo promised to give us access to the stars!>

<You don’t need the stars, monkey. And what about my daughter Ilithyia? She’s the goddess of childbirth! Isn’t her blessing enough?>

<We… we prayed to your daughter, but… many of our women still suffer and die giving birth…>

<And what about me, uh? I’m the one who has to suffer the indignity of losing territory to a bastard! How utterly inconsiderate of you. Eat up, babies.> she says, and the three peacocks leap forward: their feathers become blue flames once they start feasting on the still alive Oracle.

<These mortals, I swear to myself…> Hera mutters.

 

Naqada Galaxy, 17 million light-years from Earth

Ilithyia appears out of nowhere, her body appearing as quickly as the halo that brought her here vanishes. The excitement of having figured out how to operate the Silver Key of Heaven is immediately replaced by the disgust of being surrounded by rotten flesh: she’s submerged by hundreds of dead bodies. She rapidly flies towards the atmosphere, and things don’t look any better: the pile of corpses and skeletons extends as far as the eye can see.

The air is filled to the brim with the gas emitted by putrefied mortals, and the Goddess of Childbirth throws up. There doesn’t seem to be anybody who can witness her undignified response: in fact, there doesn’t seem to be anyone here, period.

The only sign of activity is the appearance of small portals, all over the planet: they open suddenly, deposit a fresh corpse, and then disappears.

It doesn’t take much exploration to see that not only the entire planet is like this, but it’s not even a real planet: there isn’t any ground beneath the corpses. Only skeletons and other dead bodies, a disgusting mass created by an entire galaxy throwing their dead into this colossal pile.

Then something moves. Something large enough to create earthquakes is swimming in the sea of death, until it finally decides to rise to the surface. Ilithyia has to get some distance from its scales to recognize it as an enormous snake, a cobra that could easily devour an island with one bite.

The goddess holds the Key with all her strength, wondering if she should get away while she can.

<You are tresspasssing> she hears a woman hissing behind her, and Ilithyia’s immortal heart skips a few beats. When she turns, she’s facing a goddess sitting cross-legged on a throne of bones.

She has dark green hair, eerily glowing green eyes, and her brown skin clearly hasn’t seen any sunlight for a long, long time. She’s wearing metal armor that completely cover her from the neck down, adorned by the symbol of a black snake’s head on her chest.

<Nephthys. Goddess of the Dead, Lady of the House, sister-widow of Set. I ask forgiveness for my unannounced visit.> Ilithyia recites: Egyptian gods are heavy on protocol. And Ilithyia certainly doesn’t want to upset one of the Nine Gods Who Rule The Universe.

<I recognize you, little goddessss. You are one of the ssspawn of Zeusss. Why do you disssturb my sssacred work?>

<I wish to defect to the Egyptian pantheon. If I deliver to you the Olympian Galaxy, do I have your word that you will grant me dominion over my own sector?>

Nephthys leans back on her throne, her green eyes become brighter, and she smiles.

<I sswear on the dead body of my husssband. But be careful: try to betray me and you will be fodder for my sssnake.>

<Better that than work with my mom.> Ilithyia comments.