Beyond The Impossible

In orbit above Earth

Captain’s office on the Destiny-One

Noriko Null grows impatient. She’s tapping her foot repeatedly, looking at the screen that shows the news being shown to the American public.

They are reporting how the spaceship that used to float above the White House has disappeared, talking about the loss of communications from the satellite network, discussing how the Alien Deportation Enforcement is refusing to comment.

Finally, Torn appears in the room stepping out of a triangle-shaped portal made of Aether energy.

<Took you long enough! Well?> she asks.

<I can confirm your hypothesis: Athena has imprinted specific markers inside countless human souls. I can’t say for sure if your other assumptions are true.> the Demon replies.

<Dammit, not what I wanted to hear. And I don’t like having to call for help.> Noriko admits, activating a long-distance call.

The hologram of a long-haired dark-skinned woman appears in front of her. Roxiana, her resurrected immediate predecessor as a Nexus host, is not in this solar system but the tachyon relay is allowing instantaneous communication.

<Let me guess. I was right about the soul markers.> she says smugly, before Noriko can speak.

<How did you know?>

<I worked with Ulysses, remember? I know he tried to implement something like this as a precaution against me, back when I was in my prime. He couldn’t quite make it on his own, but Athena had the resources and the time to go above and beyond his schemes. If you set foot on your birth planet, the Nexus’s ability to absorb information will be instantly triggered… and the poison Athena put in Earth’s collective consciousness will kill you.>

<Any way around that?>

<Nothing comes to mind. And you have the Nexus now: if you can’t think your way through it, nobody can. I have to admit I almost admire Athena’s trickery… exploiting your connection to this world as a weakness.>

<And yet, even knowing how much it would damage me, Athena was very careful causing as few human deaths as possible. There wasn’t much stopping it her from destroying Earth, and yet she didn’t. There must be something she wants but that she can’t get out of Earth on her own.> Noriko reasons, her silver eyes shining as her mind goes through multiple theories.

<I could get there to help you search. I would be perfectly safe on Earth.> Roxiana proposes.

<But I’m not convinced Earth would be safe from you. I don’t trust you enough to let you get here, and don’t even try projecting your mind here… I would know.>

<You know, sometimes I regret teaching you my best tricks. But, as long as you keep your promise to show me the secrets of the Drylon that you uncovered…>

<I will. We’ve been over this.>

<Then I’ll leave Earth to you. Roxiana out.> she concludes, cutting off the transmission.

<I don’t trust her either. Involving her is risky.> Torn continues the conversation.

<As much as it pains me to admit it, we need her. I wouldn’t have been able to get the Destiny-One up and running this quickly without her help. We have an entire galaxy against us, Torn, I can’t get picky with my alliances.>

<I trust your judgement. But never forget that risky alliances are the whole reason Athena…>

<I know, I know. Listen, there’s a ton of Athenian soldiers and A.D.E. agents left behind on the planet, Kari’s gonna need your help isolating them. Let’s finish securing Earth while I think about the next phase.> she orders.

<We need to be swift. Athena won’t wait long before adjusting her plan.> Torn points out, disappearing into a new portal.

<As if I needed a reminder.> Noriko tells herself, sitting down at her desk.

She has all of Earth’s communications channels at her disposal, but she stares at the blank holographic screen in front of her. Then someone knocks at the door.

<Enter.> she tells the ship.

An extremely muscular man with bronze skin gets into the office. Or rather, a demigod.

<I didn’t schedule an appointment.> she tells Gilgamesh.

<Do I need permission now to see my… I believe the appropriate term is “girlfriend”.> he replies, taking his seat on the other side of the desk.

<No, of course you don’t. Look I know we haven’t seen each other much these days, Gil, but I’ve been a little busy with, well, you know.>

<I’m not here to complain. I may be new to the social cues of this millennium, but I can tell when something is upsetting you.>

<Why would I be upset? Everything I’ve worked for has been turned to s##t by someone I used to trust, my own people sold their souls to xenophobia and embraced tyranny to save themselves, and I can’t even set foot on my own planet without being killed. Why would I be upset?>

<You’re talking metaphorically, right? I thought you were the only human capable of manipulating her soul, and who would pay money to acquire souls?> Gilgamesh wonders.

<I didn’t mean literally, now. But I wouldn’t have been surprised if people tried. For crying out loud, a goddess descended from outer space placing Earth under martial law… and people just kept going on like nothing happened. Except throwing a small minority of aliens under the bus, because of course they did!> Noriko vents.

Gilgamesh nods politely. She cracks half a smile.

<I didn’t mean literally throwing aliens under a bus.> she clarifies.

<I knew that.>

<No you didn’t, but I appreciate you listening. Intellectually I know that not everyone let me down, and that they didn’t have any real way to stand up to Athena… but a part of me is disappointed Earth didn’t rally against her.>

<Earth let you down, yes. But you’re mostly mad at yourself for letting them down. Noriko, there is no shame being outsmarted by a goddess of wisdom.>

<It’s not that. Okay it’s mostly not that… I’m not above admitting my pride was wounded. But Athena did more than depose me, Gil. She told all my secrets, all the dirty tricks I pulled, all the stuff I was ashamed of. Now everyone knows of the deaths that I caused when I transformed into Abyss. And they know that Viper was my clone.> she reminds him.

<From what I have been told, you can hardly be considered responsible for them.>

<I consider myself responsible, Gil. Just as I’m responsible for Rei. Hell, if you add Void… whose personality is still lurking in my subconscious… that’s four evil versions of myself who caused untold misery. There must be something truly rotten inside me if I keep creating these monsters. And even if you think I’m removed enough from them to avoid responsibility… I was the one who ordered the assassination of Aura when she was President of the Mortal Republic. Keeping that secret nearly broke the Vanguard, and now everyone knows what I did.> she explains.

<Opening old wounds won’t help you heal the Galaxy, Noriko.>

<I can’t take down Athena without Earth, Gil. Not only I can’t set foot there or link to its collective consciousness… how can I possibly ask people to put the fate of their world, of their galaxy, into my hands… when even I don’t trust myself?> she asks.

<Noriko, this is not my first time being part of a resistance movement against a tyrannical god. Trust my experience on this: a leader who questions himself is infinitely better than one that is sure to be doing the right thing.> he tells her.

<Great, just what I needed. Someone else who keeps arguing that I’m the best person for the job when I’m the one thinking I’m full of s##t… I might as well give Ganos Lal my position at this point.> she rolls her eyes, leaning back against the chair and staring into the ceiling.

There’s a couple of seconds of awkward silence.

<You’re not literally talking about s##t, right? Because I know humans need to relieve themselves more often than…> Gilgamesh awkwardly continues.

<Wait. Could that actually work?> Noriko asks herself, with a brief spark of electricity in her eyes.

<Please tell me you’re not seriously thinking placing Ganos Lal in charge.> he says.

<What? No, of course I’m not that crazy. But perhaps I could deflect Athena’s trap to hit another target. Similar enough to me to trigger the trap, but different enough to survive.>

<Another Nexus host? I thought you didn’t trust Roxiana.>

<I don’t, and she wouldn’t work anyway. The ideal target would be Rei, but there’s no chance whatsoever I could lure her here. To have the slightest chance of success, it would have to be someone whose mind was rewritten based on mind.>

<You’re not thinking of your sister, right? You told me her mind was enhanced by a connection to the Nexus, but she’s still a child. Not to mention still in Athena’s prison.>

<No no, the risk of her dying would be too high. But maybe…> Noriko stops thinking out loud, as the speed of her thoughts exceeds her ability to verbalize them.

A light tap on the desk connects her mind to the terminal, and long lines of codes are written at unbelievable speed on the holographic screen.

Gilgames is surprised she’s able to read any of this: to him, it’s barely a blur.

When it finally stops, the screen is showing some sort of list.

<Yes! She hasn’t been captured yet.> Noriko rejoices.

<Care to explain?> Gilgamesh asks.

<Galactic security is constantly exchanging information about the targets they’re looking for; I just tapped into their system and pulled up a list of who has been apprehended.>

<Don’t these channels have the highest security available?>

<I am Null.> she simply reminds him.

<I see your pride is well and good. What did you find?>

<The list of targets issued directly by Athena herself, ranked from lowest to highest priority. Check this out: they have JUST updated it.> Noriko explains, pointing at the screen.

 

Class 4

Apprehended: Bob Null, Catherine Kalama, Kiros Zel

At large on planet Earth: Ganos Lal, Shinobu Tanaka

At large on planet Boreas: Kylon of Megacles

 

Class 3

Apprehended: Ariel Zel, Azure Zel, Imani Zel, Kayla Black, Nalani Null

At large, location unknown: Gilgamesh

 

Class 2

Apprehended: Hades

At large, presumed in the Dark Galaxy: Dionysus, Hermes, Persephone

At large on planet Earth: Noriko Null, Kari Zel, Torn

At large, location unknown: Quantum, Roxiana, Vesta

 

Class 1

At large on planet Earth: Noriko Null

At large, location unknown: Amaterasu, Hera, Skorpios of Troy

 

<What does that tell you?> Noriko asks Gilgamesh.

<That Athena considers me at the same level of Kari’s daughters. That’s a little insulting.>

<No, that Amaterasu is still at large. Her mind and her DNA were partially based on mine; in fact she’s similar enough to me that, when I died, her intelligence was briefly boosted by the Nexus.>

<It is a little disturbing how you can casually drop “when I died” into the conversation. But we have no idea where Amaterasu would be hiding, right?>

<Not necessarily. Amaterasu has the mind of a child: she will run to someone she knows. And of all the people in that list, the only person she could find on her own is Kylon… I’m willing to be she’s on Boreas, the capital of the Winter Kingdom.>

<Isn’t that the first place anyone would be looking for her? And where she would stand out the most, considering it’s mostly inhabited by Lar?> Gilgamesh points out.

<I didn’t say she has the mind of a bright child…>