Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

Despite spending weeks formulating a plan to efficiently defeat Zeus, Vahn was still surprised by how quickly the errant God had fallen. His original plan had even required the activation of [Laplace's Key] and the combined efforts of Artoria and Amaterasu. At no point in any of his visions did he see Zeus attempt to devour his energy directly, reinforcing the idea that Fate was constantly shifting in ways that were difficult, if not impossible, to predict.

The only surefire way to 'know' the future seemed to involve not doing anything at all, so, despite all his efforts, Vahn was still victim to the whims of Karma and Fate. Even then, he could only accurately predict the future of other people, requiring that he never intervene in their lives after the fact. Since this was impossible, he needed to remain constantly vigilant, shaping his future with his own hands rather than relying on visions he had seen among countless currents...

While his main body was busy reflecting and gathering treasures, Vahn's second body, which had been used to battle against Zeus, teleported down to the surface. There, he found Altera standing atop the 'carcass' of a large humanoid mech. Around her, hundreds of automatons and a number of powerful Demigods had been trying to avenge their fallen God, but, with a literal tempest formed from the Laws of Destruction, very few attacks had any hope of penetrating her defenses.

Sensing the spatial fluctuations, Altera turned her hazy pink eyes toward the direction of her Master, her expression formed into a rare smile that seemingly had the effect of stunning anyone fortunate enough to witness it directly.

Understanding Altera was uncharacteristically happy, Vahn returned a smile of his own, asking, "Did you have fun...?"

Seemingly confused by his words, Altera tilted her head to the side slightly, asking, "Fun...? Mmm...it is hard to say...I can feel my heart beating faster...is that what it means to have fun...?"

Now it was Vahn's turn to be confused, as, over the last couple of years, there were plenty of times when Altera seemed to enjoy herself. This left him at a loss as to how he should answer her, leading to a relatively tense silence as she stared at him, eagerly anticipating an answer.

Not wanting to leave the ashen-haired maiden waiting, Vahn ultimately just smiled a little wider as he said, "It is hard to say. If it is something you look forward to, even without needing to do it, there is a good chance you find it fun. Tell me, if I didn't task you with defeating Ares, would you have still enjoyed trading blows with him...?"

Before answering, Altera adopted a thoughtful expression as she used [Photon Ray] to sweep aside a few of the more powerful attacks heading their way. She noticed that none of these attacks had the effect of making her pulse quicken. Instead, she was beginning to gradually lose her patience, feeling that even the most powerful Demigods present were comparable to ants...

After forming her thoughts, Altera's smile had largely faded away as she said, "He was a worthy foe. I would have liked to battle him again...even if I wasn't ordered to do so..."

Though it lacked spirit, Vahn was satisfied with Altera's answer, nodding his head as he said, "If that is the case, I'd say you enjoyed yourself quite a bit. I'm glad. I've been worried about you lately so it is a great relief to see you smile, even a little."

Hearing her Master's replay, Altera brought her hand to her face, gingerly feeling around her lips as if to confirm whether or not she was actually smiling. Vahn could only smile wryly when he saw this before turning his attention to the small army of Demigods that were, even now, fervently trying to mount a counter-offensive...

Truthfully, Vahn felt somewhat apologetic towards this collective of immaculate individuals. Though their faith was largely the result of conditioning and brainwashing, they were still losing their parents and Gods. Their relatively peaceful lives had been brought to ruin as a result of his desire to remove future threats, and, though they were undoubtedly enemies, he couldn't help but pity them.

Shaking his head, Vahn cleared his thoughts before arriving next to Altera and saying, "We should go. We've already done enough damage...let's leave these people alone..."

Though she believed it was better to remove all potential enemies, Altera didn't refute her Master's words. Instead, she moved close enough that their bodies were nearly touching before gently resting her head against his chest. In response to this, Vahn habitually began to stroke her head, earning a few biting remarks from their surroundings as they vanished into thin air...

Unaware of the deaths of their kin, Aphrodite and Demeter were doing everything in their power to try and buy time until reinforcements arrived. They quickly realized that their opponent, Arcueid, was far more powerful than them, and, if not for Demeter's unrivaled defensive magic, they would have already suffered a rather gruesome end.

Aphrodite's vessel was a woman with vaguely angelic features, complete with two pairs of vermillion wings. Though the outermost pair had two ghastly red skulls attached to the primary arch, they did little to detract from the Goddess' otherwordly beauty. She had an immaculate figure that could be clearly discerned through her semi-transparent silk garments, and, though her forehead stood out quite a bit due to her sparse bangs, the rest of her hair was a rich vermillion on the outside and a luminescent gold on the inside. It extended well past her shapely hips and tender thighs, flowing around her body like a fiery waterfall.

A stark contrast to Aphrodite's exuberant and blatantly salacious appearance, Demeter had features that could only be described as motherly. Her figure was even more shapely than Aphrodite's, but, instead of appearing overtly seductive, her full chest, shapely hips, and milky-white complexion gave off the impression of someone well-suited to rearing children. Her facial features were delicate and kind, her full lips fixed in a perpetual smile as a gentle, infinitely patient, light radiated from her soft purple eyes. She even had wheat-colored hair formed into a loose braid that extended all the way to the backs of her knees, while, behind her, a massive golden wheel depicting the four seasons, slowly revolved like a physical magic circle.

Of the two Goddesses, Arcueid was having a lot more trouble with Demeter. Not only did she have exceptionally powerful defensive magic, but, with the futuristic glove in her right hand, combined the sickle-like staff wielded in her left hand, she was able to instantly cast wide-range offensive magic. To make matters worse, the spells she used caused massive trees and other forms of flora to sprout in an instant, rapidly filling their surroundings.

While trees and plants weren't typically difficult to deal with, it was another matter entirely when the plants, seemingly possessing a mind of their own, proactively sought to entangle you. Their bark was also harder than enchanted steel, and, even without being entangled directly, Arcuied could feel her power draining away. There were even flowers that continually produced fragrant spores, which, if inhaled, caused mushrooms to sprout within the lungs. These same spores also tried to invade the bloodstream, causing tumorous growths that would erupt into fungal colonies mere seconds after the first propagation.

If not for her phenomenal strength and absolutely ridiculous vitality, Arcueid would have suffered a great deal at the hands of Demeter. Instead, her eyes glimmered with an intense blue light as she largely ignored the effects of Demeter's magic. She was able to break free from any bindings in an instant, and, though she had yet to break through the Goddess' barrier, massive cracks appeared every time she slammed her fists against it. This, combined with the fact she was rapidly adapting to the invasive energy, making the attacks progressively less effective, forced Demeter to stay on the defensive as Aphrodite, missing three of her four wings, slowly bled out behind her...

Despite being on the back foot the entire fight, Demeter still had a kind smile and a patient glimmer in her eyes as she formed a globule of green energy in her right hand and said, "Please stop...there is no need for us to battle so intensely. I'm certain we can reach an accord if we just communicate and try to understand each other..."

Immediately following her plea for peace, Demeter released the orb of energy in her hand, causing a gentle pulse to spread through the area. In an instant, all the plants she had created began to swell up in size as Arcueid's throat swelled painfully. Several large mushrooms began to protrude from her mouth before dissolving away due to the magical anti-bodies she had developed. Then, in response to Demeter's contradictory words and actions, Arcueid condensed a monstrous amount of energy in her right fist before slamming it into the rapidly regenerating barrier.

Though her barrier remained, Demeter was forced back a few steps as a small trickle of golden liquid began to flow from her left nostril. She was actually pushing herself quite a bit, consuming her own Divinity to increase the strength and regenerative qualities of her barrier. Her only other option was to siphon energy from the world below, but, refusing to place such a burden on her own 'children', Demeter ignored the insistence of Aphrodite and continued burning her own essence...

Seeing her aunt pushed back, Aphrodite grit her teeth before pushing the motherly Goddess aside and shouting, "Get out of the way! She is obviously here for me! I don't need your protection...!"

Following her outburst, Aphrodite formed a sticky swirl of golden energy, releasing it toward the rampaging Arcueid like a tidal wave. Her actual offensive power was one of the worst amongst the Olympians, but, when it came to influencing the mind and manipulating a person's will, there were few who could even hope to contend against her.

Being covered in the viscous yellow energy for the third time, Arcueid's expression became dour as she glared back at the vermillion-haired Goddess and said, "That won't work on me...do you think I can be controlled by someone like you...?"

After having been controlled for much of her life by Michael Roa Valdamjong, Arcueid's had a nigh-absolute resistance against mental manipulation. Her Love for Vahn also provided her a significant increase against such abilities, causing the six-digit value to drop by a few points before the effect of Aphrodite's attack was completely mitigated...

Rather than back down, Aphrodite's expression became even more resolute as she shouted in a shrill tone, "Oh yeah!? We'll see how you resist this then, you...you sow...!"

Raising her hands above her head, Aphrodite began to gather a large quantity of the sickly yellow energy, forming a sphere more than five meters across in an instant. She refused to believe anyone was capable of resisting her influence, her amber-eyes glimmering with madness as thoughts of how she would make her attacker suffer were already playing through her mind.

Just as Aphrodite was preparing to release her most powerful attack, the surrounding temperature suddenly skyrocketed. Most of Demeter's plants spontaneously caught fire, and, if not for the pale aura that enveloped Arcueid's body, she, too, would have been ignited as a peal of eerie laughter began to echo in the surroundings...

As if they were unfurling from the void itself, a whispy tail of flame, followed by eight more, began to manifest out of thin air. They quickly formed into a 'ball' that looked reminiscent of a tiny sun before 'blooming' like a flower to reveal a child-like figure with a mischievous, borderline sadistic, smile on her face. Her two large ears and sakura-pink hair gave her a rather cute appearance, but, with vibrant red markings around her light-squinted eyes, she also radiated an unnatural amount of feminine charm.

With the smile on her face curling up at the edge, Amaterasu brought her index finger to her bottom lip as she mused, "Ara~? Are you having a bit of trouble, Arcueid-chan~?"

Before Arcueid could respond to Amaterasu's teasing, Aphrodite unleashed the now ten-meter wide ball of sickly yellow energy, shouting, "You can both die together...!"

Moving her gaze almost lazily toward the approaching sphere of energy, Amaterasu simply raised her hand, stopping the massive globule in mid-air. Then, like a drop of water that had fallen onto a hot pan, the energy began to sizzle before evaporating away entirely in less than three seconds.

With an incredulous expression on her face, Aphrodite appeared to be on the verge of tears as she shouted, "Who the hell are you people!? Why are you attacking us like this!?"

Completely ignoring Aphrodite's outburst, Amaterasu briefly glanced toward Demeter, a predatory glimmer flickering across her eyes before quickly fading away as she turned to Arcueid, asking, "Why are you holding back~?"

For a very brief moment, an awkward silence persistent in the air as a result of Amaterasu's sudden question. Aphrodite's expression became even worse, and, though her smile didn't fade away, there was a visible surprise in Demeter's pale-purple eyes. This was exacerbated quite a bit when Arcueid, as if it was an irrefutable truth, simply stated, "I think Vahn would be upset if I killed them both. He is already going to be somewhat depressed after this battle is over...I didn't want to make things more difficult for him..."

Hearing Arcueid's response, Amaterasu released a slightly exasperated sigh before muttering, "Both of you are too soft...the only way to prevent chaos is to either subjugate or slaughter the other Gods. Mercy will only invite future troubles and increase the amount of competition..."

Towards the end of her words, Amaterasu looked towards Demeter with an accusatory expression, confusing the motherly Goddess and earning an understanding look from Arcueid. In spite of this, however, she was insistent, stating, "He does so much for us...I just want him to be happy..."

Realizing she wouldn't get anywhere trying to convince Arcueid, Amaterasu decided to ignore her, focusing, instead, on the vermillion-haired Goddess. Aphrodite was one of their primary targets, so, even if she ultimately decided to spare Demeter, the same courtesy would not be extended to the errant Goddess of Love. She was simply too dangerous, and, while not as bad as someone like Zeus, the total number of victims suffering due to Aphrodite's whimsical 'love' exceeded seven digits. She had a bad habit of brainwashing and controlling others, completely disregarding their free will and ruining countless lives, including Medea's, in the process...

With no discernible hesitation, Amaterasu created a massive ball of golden flames, shaping it into a small sun before releasing it towards both Demeter and Aphrodite. This caused Arcueid to show an expression of panic, but, before she could take action, Amaterasu telepathically sated, ("You are too short-sighted. Those bodies are not their true forms so stop stressing out over nothing. Demeter is still floating around near the surface so you should have just destroyed this entire ship from the very beginning...")

Stunned by Amaterasu's reminded, Arcueid could only stare blankly as the miniature sun impacted Demeter's barrier, fragmenting it in an instant. She attempted to form a replacement barrier in the brief interval before the sun reached them, but, due to the intense heat, such a chance never came. Her body, much like Aphrodite's, was incinerated to ash almost instantaneously. The only thing left behind was Demeter's giant seasonal wheel, her sickle-shaped staff, a laurel wreath tiara, and what appeared to be a futuristic gardening glove.

With a wave of her hand, Amaterasu created a spatial lock around the four artifacts, ensuring they could not be recovered easily. She knew her Master would be upset after she toyed with Artemis in a rather vicious manner, so, rather than return empty-handed, she intended to offer her spoils of war in exchange for praise. She had grown rather fond of his peculiar sake, and, though she would never admit it, his warmth was even more addicting than his offerings...

Thinking of her Master, Amaterasu was eager to wrap things up, so, seeing Arcueid standing idle at the side, she adopted a relatively serious expression, stating, "Get on with it. Who knows what this parasite is capable of if you leave her be? Destroy her core or consume it, I don't care which. Just do it before our Master is finished with his business. I don't know about you, but I'm eager to return to the Surface. I hate the feeling of being trapped on the Reverse Side..."

Following her words, a slight shudder ran through Amaterasu's body before she quickly vanished from view. As for Arcueid, she released a small sigh before shaking her head and searching for the location of Aphrodite's core. She was very aware of the latter's wrongdoings, so, after finally locating the sickly yellow core, she immediately destroyed it without a second thought...