N01-Ragnarok, a million miles from the Vulcan Forge
All sorts of gods have been on the Vanguard’s capital warship, but most of them have either stood defiantly in front of the captain’s chair or have been by its side… both literally and figuratively.
But now something else entirely is going on. Hebe, Goddess of Youth and only legitimate heir to the Throne of Olympus, is floating in the middle of the bridge. She has her eyes closed, her legs are crossed in the lotus position, and her simple white dress is barely touching the floor.
Noriko Null sits in front of her, cross-legged in a meditative position.
Torn stands between the two unlikely allies, while Kari Zel sits on the captain’s chair and Quantum is next to her to observe the ritual with utter puzzlement.
<I have to warn you. Mortal and divine souls are very different: this is dangerous for both.>
<I’m aware of the risks. But this is the only way to take out Hera.> Noriko replies.
<I shall be careful, Sir Torn. I have no intention of hurting Lady Null.> the goddess says politely.
<In case I need to intervene, I will save her. You’ll have to manage on your own.>
<Torn, please…> Noriko tries to intervene, but Hebe interrupts her.
<No no, I appreciate his honesty. Besides, I’m used to nobody coming to my rescue… you may proceed when ready, Sir Torn.>
The Demon is not convinced, but he knows better than to argue with Null. He also has to ready his soul for this unprecedented stunt.
<Now find your center. Focus your energy.> he instructs.
<Ready. Connection to the Cosmic Background Network established.> Noriko says, the glow of her silver eyes growing so bright it’s visible when her eyes are still closed.
<Now… SOUL FUSION!>
As Torn links her soul to Hebe’s, Noriko releases a fraction of her own mind as a mental projection… one of the tricks she learned from Roxiana.
Two different scenes are simultaneously projected into her soul.
100 million years ago
Othrys, capital of the Universal Empire
As Queen of the Titans, Rhea is a familiar sight on Othrys. When she gently lands on the palace that floats above the surface of the white star, all the gods that dwell there stare at her in the distance. It’s been some time since she landed here: a divine pregnancy lasts about a century, and she just had her baby.
In this era it was unfashionable for gods to take too much of a humanoid form. Rhea is distinguishably female, her body purposefully designed to resemble that of a Lar woman: the earliest primates have barely started to evolve on Earth. But instead of flesh and blood, she’s made entirely of solidified kinetic energy.
She finally reaches the holiest of places: the throne room of her husband Kronos, the Emperor Of The Universe. Twice the size normally assumed by other gods, he’s a terrifying sight: his head is constantly on fire, and he’s covered in dark leathery armor that contrasts with the shiny metal of the Throne Of The Universe.
He’s not alone: his siblings and most trusted generals, Hyperion and Theia, are on opposing sides of the Throne. They are also made of energy, but it’s clear to any divine sight that even their considerable power pales in comparison to Kronos.
Rhea kneels before her husband and greets him:
<My love, I’ve come to present to you our daughter.> she says, holding in her arms a baby made of glowing blue energy.
<You had another one? Why?> Hyperion wonders.
<My idea. The Egyptians are getting uppity again: we could use a power boost against Ra.> Theia adds, moving towards Rhea to inspect the child.
<She’s considerably more powerful than the others. I suppose congratulations are in order.>
<Her name is Hera. She’s going to be the goddess of…>
<Oh gods, she gave it a name. She’s not going to make a scene again, is she?>
<What do you mean again?> Rhea asks worriedly. Kronos raises a hand, without saying anything, and holds it out expecting something. Theia doesn’t hesitate, snatching the baby from her mother’s arms and ignoring her cries.
<My love, wait! Our first and second daughters have already provided more than enough power to conquer the Nine Galaxies… do you really need the third?>
Kronos looks at his youngest daughter: she’s so young and he’s so massive that he’s able to hold her in the palm of his hand. The baby stops crying, mesmerized by the fire and the glowing eyes that she’s barely able to see behind the flames.
Then Kronos opens his mouth and proceeds to unceremoniously devour her. Rhea looks away from the gruesome spectacle, but it’s impossible not to feel just how enormous the power boost that her husband is gaining.
Hyperion and Theia kneel before the Throne, terrified and humbled by their brother.
<Lord Kronos. Now you must be more powerful than the Primordial Gods themselves. What is your command to your most trusted generals?>
<Leave me alone with my wife. We must conceive another child.>
<But… my love… you’ve already eaten three…>
<More. I need MORE.>
The vision quickly fades away: as Hera’s divine essence is absorbed into the body of Kronos, the last bit of ancestral memory can no longer be maintained.
50 thousand years ago
Olympus, capital of the Olympian Galaxy
A spaceship descends on the same landing area that will eventually be used by the Vanguard as well. Hera makes her grand return to her husband’s palace after a century of absence, greeted by a squadron of Talon robots that kneel before her.
You could never tell by looking at her perfect figure, but only three days have passed since she gave birth to the infant she’s carrying in her arms.
<Queen Hera. Welcome back to Olympus.> one of the robots say.
<Why are there so many of you things here? My idiot son didn’t lose yet another war to Demeter, did he? I swear I cannot let my eyes off that disgusting failure for more than…>
<Lord Hephaestus assigned us to Olympus until your return, which is not scheduled for another three years. Until then, we must request that you remain outside the palace.>
<You are giving ME an order?>
<The instructions of Lord Hephaestus were most…> the Talos begins to explain, until it’s summarily annihilated by a sudden burst of blue fire. The rest of the squadron rises to initiate offensive maneuvers, but Hera doesn’t give them the chance. Each of these robots is powerful enough to lay waste to an entire planet, but Hera disintegrates them in the time it takes her newborn to start crying.
<Moooom, was that really necessary?> Ilithyia complains. The Goddess of Childbirth has barely entered adulthood, meaning she’s had thousands of years to get accustomed to Hera’s attitude.
<Your father is about to hear an earful from me!!!> Hera exclaims, practically shoving the child to Ilithyia’s arms to fly towards the palace. Ilithyia follows her, taking extreme care to keep a safe distance from her furious mother.
<ZEUS!!!> Hera screams as she kicks open the doors of the Chamber Of The Twelve Gods.
She finds no less than three dozen beings there, at various levels of divinity from mortals to demigods to full gods, of all genders and species, in various states of undress.
All of them look at her in abject terror, except for a grinning naked Zeus.
<Babe, you’re back! And by me, your boobs look amazing… we should get kids more often!>
<Don’t you “babe” me! What are these THINGS doing here!?>
<I didn’t think you’d be here so soon. What, you expected me to just wait for you?>
<YES!!!> Hera screams, releasing a significant fraction of her power. When the wave subsides, every single being in the room has been reduced to ashes. The same fate would’ve befallen her daughters, if Zeus didn’t protect them with his own power.
<Well that was just childish. Look at what you’ve done, you made the cute one cry!> Zeus chastises her, taking the baby in his hands and starting to play with her.
<“The cute one”?> Ilithyia repeats with spite.
<Like you care about her! You only think about yourself! You don’t even know her name!>
<Oh quit your nagging, will you? I swear by me, you just came back and you’re already annoying.>
<You’ve never called me “cute”.> Ilithyia pouts.
Zeus stares into the eyes of his youngest daughter Hebe, ignoring both her sister and mother.
<Don’t listen to them, okay? You’re going to be so much more than they can imagine.>
26 years ago, New York City
The second vision ends far more abruptly then the first one. Noriko also finds herself experiencing a new vision in a wildly different way: she’s not just a spectator, she’s inside the scene… even when nobody else seems to notice her. It doesn’t take much for her to recognize what event this is.
She’s in a hospital room, where a teenage Leiko Tanaka is laying on bed; in addition to showing the exhausting signs of childbirth, she has a black eye. The newborn Noriko is in the arms of a nurse instead of her mother’s, and her teenage father is currently being beaten up by Japanese thugs.
<What is this? I’ve never heard of this happening.> Noriko admits, her words remaining unheard. She concentrates on the person clearly in charge of the situation: her grandfather Daichi, standing in a corner with his arms crossed, overlooking his goons hurting her father.
<There you are.>
The voice sends chills down Noriko’s spine. The scene completely freezes in time, and a wall of fire emerges right behind her. The voice is coming from the fire… that grows eyes.
<We meet again. This is long overdue, Harbinger Of Destiny.>
<Kronos. You caused this vision, right? I can tell… but how? You died a million years ago.>
<I saw you invoke images from my future many times in your past. When I conquered Hell. When I destroyed the Lar Empire. When Hera was born. I was there, watching you, and I will be there watching you. I am Kronos, the God Of Time. I am eternal, Harbinger.>
<Stop calling me that. I am Null. You were the god of time, but you’re dead now… aren’t you?>
<I transcend time. That is how we are able to talk across eons.>
<Then I should probably tell you nothing. You already know too much about your future.>
<I know everything, Harbinger Of Destiny. I know my children will betray me and depose me. I know the power they possess. And I know how you can stop Hera.>
<Assuming you’re telling the truth, you also know I can do this by myself. So don’t even think about tempting me to make a pact with the devil, okay? I don’t need you.>
<Of course you don’t. We are the same, Harbinger. We both conquer everything before us.>
<Yeah but you’re kind of the god of evil, so I don’t know why I’m losing time with… wait. You are also connected to the Cosmic Background Network, right? That’s how we’re able to talk and… and I think that’s how you were able to absorb your children’s power.>
<I told you, Harbinger. We are the same.>
<Keep telling yourself that, Kronos. We are done talking.> Noriko cuts him short, gathering her willpower and her mental abilities to completely shut down the vision and return to her body.
Reality
Noriko is used to running multiple train of thought simultaneously, but living more than one life at the same time is disorienting. Not only she’s fully aware of what’s going on around her body, still in the bridge of the Ragnarok, but her mental projection is also watching the battle between Hera, Vesta, Enyo and Athena.
And she knows she doesn’t have much time left. Vesta and Enyo are too exhausted to continue the battle, and even Athena is starting to lose ground against the full power of Hera.
At the same time, Noriko can see her body and Hebe’s being engulfed in the same electrical aura.
For a brief period, they are both connected to the Cosmic Background Network. Noriko previously accessed it to cure Enyo’s wounds, and now she’s done some adjustments to Hebe as well.
She can feel her conflicting emotions towards her mother. And as she preys that the connections she made inside her brains when accessing Hera’s ancestral memories, both the girl and the goddess shout the same thing:
<TIME ERASER!!!>
Hera hears them as well: now that she’s ascended to being a Class-1 goddess, her senses go beyond her wildest dreams. But she’s not worried by the stream of energy coming towards her.
<Have you learned nothing!? Your powers have no effect on me!!!> she boasts, evading a strike from Athena’s spear and pushing her aside.
The full brunt of the attack hits her, and she laughs when it completely fails to do any damage.
<See? This is useless! You might have been able to destroy the minds of lesser gods, but I am… what’s wrong with my voice?> Hera wonders: she suddenly sounds definitely more high-pitched.
She looks down at herself: she has to adjust the cleavage of her dress, as her breasts are now too small to fill it up properly.
<Is this an illusion? This can’t be! Hebe’s powers don’t work on gods!> she complains, already looking like she’s barely started her puberty.
<It seems Null has made some upgrades. Fascinating.> Athena comments dryly.
<Don’t just stand there watching! I am your Queen! You must obey me, do you hear me? You ga ga dee da!> Hera continues, babbling incoherently now that she’s regressed to being an infant.
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