Trepidation rolled through Rachel’s tight gut as the tainted field rippled above the corroding center stage. A chill ran up her spine in a way she hadn’t yet experienced, as the distorted visage of the Japanese goddess of death loomed overhead, the Seventh Circle solidifying with every slow-motion turn of the gears overhead.
[Location Selection Time - 10 Seconds]
Golden liquid leaked out of Dionysus’ mouth, nose, eyes, and ears, his veins writhing as he tried to slow time to a crawl in order to prevent the location from locking in. Yet, the seductive whisper of Izanami continued to caress every entity’s mind, the death goddess twisting a dagger into the lesser god’s concentration as she flicked to a stop in front of Dionysus.
“Why are you so unsteady, Dionysus? Are you not the powerful lamb in this pen?”
“Shut up! You cannot enter!”
Misfortune coiled like the titanic demonic snakes in the bubbling sea of boiling blood that surrounded them. Faith in Dionysus was waning with every syllable Izanami spoke, her strengthening presence inciting chaos among the lower deities.
[System Conflict - Stage Transition Interference]
Fictitious pain mixed with the woman’s words. “Was I not invited? It is rude to keep a guest at the door…” The distortion leaned close to the trembling man, Rachel seeing his eyes defocus as her soft voice touched his ears. “Let me in, Little Lamb.”
[Location Selection Time - 9 Seconds]
Rachel slowly rose to her feet, a dull thumping reverberating throughout time and space as Dionysus seemed to be holding back a dam from exploding; System Messages flashed in front of all those who remained, mainly roaring demons and devils.
Dionysus refused to look at the rippling dimensional fabric that was the death goddess, now walking on air around him, taunts picking at his mind. He was losing this battle—it was inevitable—and while a big fish on this side of the divide between the 5th and 6th dimensions, he was hardly a minnow on the other side.
Misfortune was pulling tight around his throat, terror in the lesser god’s shaky voice as he screamed, “Change the stage!”
[System Error - Cannot Comply]
“Struggle, struggle… little lamb,” Izunami chortled, her distortions gradually fading away to reveal a scarred, gray-skinned woman, wearing only a silver snake necklace; she would have been a beauty beyond compare at one time, now corrupted by Hell.
Rachel had no clue how this would end, chaos pulsing in waves with each word, and she felt her DNA slowly resonating with the hellish moon reaching out to embrace her; it was only a matter of time until the transformation began.
Conner’s trembling fingers were on his divine pet; he could only use him for five minutes in combat, but just like Nia, the dolphin was his item to use. Nia was hiding inside her fabric, being the little girl soldier she was now; she was doing her best. And the vines holding Eostre were withering away under the pressure Izanami brought.
“Run to close the gates,” she teased before he managed to speak again.
“Change Challenge Rating to one!”
[System Error - Selection Already Made]
[System Error - Cannot Comply]
“Kick Yseress!”
[System Error - Cannot kick Yseress from the audience]
[System Warning - The Arbiter must comply with the rules of the game]
[Location Selection Time - 8 Seconds]
“No! How is this possible—it’s not—stop?!”
[Location Selection Time - 7 Seconds]
Gashes and burns marred her lovely figure as she stopped in front of Dionysus again, her raggedy silver hair covering her naked front, the thick mess framed by two curved horns. Izanami’s voice held a whispering mirth that her dead-eyed stare didn’t reflect.
“Hmm. Was it not you Greeks who have the lesson about flying too close to the sun?”
[Location Selection Time - 6 Seconds]
“I have more power than you, Izanami! I’m not afraid of you anymore! I’m not afraid of my sister or father! I’m not afraid of anything! You have no idea how powerful I am here!”
[Location Selection Time - 5 Seconds]
“Dammit!”
A short sigh and giggle followed, Izanami’s unemotional face solidifying in beautiful horror, and disinterest was reflected in her discolored eyes; it wasn’t hard to see the ruin Yomi’s negative energy had caused on her celestial body. “Dionysus, Athena would be disappointed.”
Her burned, gray hand directed them to the frozen, hellish sky overhead, where a radiant figure beyond perception shone brighter than the noonday sun; Rachel couldn’t look at it as much as understand, that this was merely a fragment of glory that surpassed any mortal conception of the word.
“I do not understand your power?” A sweet chuckle made Rachel’s tail quiver, and she took a step back with Yseress and Dionysus as the fallen goddess’ horrific figure continued to sharpen. “You didn’t think I am some small 6th-dimensional fox or fallen seraph, did you, Dionysus?”
[Location Selection Time - 4 Seconds]
Head tilting to the side, Izanami took another step forward, making Dionysus’ throat catch as he retreated again, gears clicking under her oppressive stare. Even Yseress’ delight had turned to nervously clutching at her bag.
[Location Selection Time - 3 Seconds]
“You are among the fallen old gods,” he said with a strained laugh. “You have no power over me.”
“No?” For the first time, a twitch moved Izanami’s scarred lips. “I held such power amongst the Creation Deities that my own husband could not keep up with my prowess, which is why I know explicitly the power you hold. Such boldness, Dionysus… or is it ignorance of who I am, since Hades fears to sit at my table?”
[Location Selection Time - 2 Seconds]
Hell trembled and shrank away in the flash of glory Izanami made, blood purifying into golden droplets of divine dew, the radiate so bright that light itself would envy its luster. And just as quickly as it came, the effulgence faded away in a rush, leaving a holy space that was drawn into the real Izanami, hidden behind the veil.
Dionysus looked down at Yseress and her, and she could feel his confidence cracking with the barrier protecting them, each gentle tap the fallen creation deity made against his facade making another fissure.
Izanami wasn’t the same as Selene or even Cerridwen; she was at the top of the food chain at one point. The old she-wolf had experience with the highest degree of 7th-dimensional forces that Dionysus couldn’t hope to grasp. If Dionysus envisioned himself high among the 5th-dimensional deities with Nike and all his stolen power, Izanami was among the 7th, all without support from others.
[Location Selection Time - 1 Second]
“My dull-witted, thoughtless, tiny lesser god…” Izanami cooed, moving closer still to hover above him, seeming to grow in size to tower over the petrified man. “You’ve already let the wolves in. So you can run, run, little lamb, but the beasts are in the pen.”
“No, you are not!” Dionysus held out his hands and sent a blast of divine energy at the emotionless, distorted woman; when it faded, Izanami was gone. “It is the time of the lesser gods! It is my time!”
[Location Selection Time - 2 Second]
[Arbiter Breach in Compliance of Selection]
Rachel’s eyes widened as the number went up, and the breach warning hit like a maul against her chest; the draw of Hellish energy was stripped away, darkness overshadowing them. In the next moment, she was hovering in the air, Dionysus’ gold-bloodied hand clasped under her chin, the pressure slowly working into her throat and cutting off her airway.
“You did this, Rachel! Whatever you are—whatever plot the Creation Deities and Hell Lords made by planting you here—you will not take this away from me!”
[System Error - Imbalance]
[System Error - Action Required]
She winced, her hammer just now clattering against the ground next to Yseress. When did I drop—
Her hands reached for Dionysus’ wrist, only for her fingers to pass right through it as if it didn’t even exist. Her legs lashed out to meet nothing but air. There was no way she could fight Moongmor—a demigod—much less a lesser god and misfortune was now closing around her own throat. Her odds of survival were tilting the opposite way.
Conner jumped on his dolphin and flew up to them. “Stop, Dionysus! You’re breaching the Legend Quest laws! If—”
“I am The Law!” he spat, bringing Rachel into a slow spin to see the nearly empty stadium that had once been packed with lesser deities and powerful entities. “You must entertain me, and I am not entertained! Besides,” he gave a vicious laugh, “they’re more guidelines than rules, and I can change them whenever I want!”
[System Audit - Rules in Review]
Her airway was cut off; something big was building, but she needed more time.
“Rachel!” Shimmering lights brought a red-faced, snarling five-year-old out to try and tackle the lesser god. “No—stop hurting her!”
She passed through the laughing man, lunar energy punches not even touching him as she flipped in the air to land on the cracked stone beside Yseress. “Help her! What do I do, Rachel?!”
“Nothing, little lambs,” Dionysus roared, a sea of vines and alcohol flooding the area. “What can you do? Not even a princess of Hell can hope to touch me!”
Slow clapping came from the giggling woman beside Nia, a toothy grin igniting her seductive face. “Quite true, Dionysus. We are all but little lambs in the grand scheme of existence… but sometimes, lambs can grow teeth.”
A bright glow cut through the darkness, filling Rachel with a familiar, confident bud that bloomed with a bright pink, white, and orange flash that exploded between them, forcing the air out of Rachel’s lungs.
World spinning, a short grunt, and small arms closed around her chest; hitting the wine-covered ground, she slid to a stop, coughing and sputtering as she rolled off whoever caught her. Nia mirrored her, holding her chest and groaning as a little, colorful bunny sat beside them in the bubbling wine.
“Ack—Nia… Moongmor?!”
“My chest hurts,” she cried, crawling over to check on her. “H-He left bruises on your neck—can you breathe—is she going to be okay, MoonMoon?”
“Mhm! Mhm!” he chimed, nervous leg taps spraying them and giving away his lie as his big eyes turned to the side. “He’s not happy…”
Vision stabilizing, heat filled her heart as three giant celestial spheres orbited above them, cutting through the darkness Dionysus created; Eostre’s auburn hair alight with life and a divine glow emanating from her body while floating in front of the enraged lesser god.
“Eostre,” he said with a crazed laugh, smacking his forehead and shaking his head. “I can’t believe the only one that stayed beside the fiends was you. I didn’t even consider you would try to approach me—Rachel, Rachel, Rachel… How did you get this… coward to step up for you? You have been orchestrating my end since—no…” he trailed off, red face going ghost white as a new System Message appeared.
The threads of misfortune snapped tight around Dionysus’ neck.
[Lunar Pool I - Advanced to B-tier]
[Divine Lunar Surge I - Advanced to C-tier]
[Lunar Cap I - Advanced to B-tier]
[Beastial Instincts II - Advanced to E-tier]
[Bringer of Misfortune I - Advanced to A-tier]
[Strategic Mind II - Advanced to E-tier]
[Mental Acceleration II - Advanced to E-tier]
[System Audit Concluded - Rules Sustained]
[System Correction - Balance Required]
[Arbiter In Breach - New Selection Initiated]
Rachel’s head rose to fissures that fractured the sky, Eostre’s moons promptly fading as the tulpa flew to their defense. A sober frown was on the woman’s face; a part of her dress had been blown apart, much of her gorgeous hair burning away, and sections of her divine body were blackened from the excessive power she’d had to channel to free her.
“Rachel!” Dionysus screamed.
His wine started to steam, yet moments later, barbed crimson chains broke through space and sank into the lesser god’s flesh. In an instant, they were back to the original sandy arena, the amphitheater whole, and Dionysus hung in the sky, bound as Nike had been when she’d first entered this Legend Quest.
“What are you?! What are you?!”
A lump sprung up in Rachel’s throat as writhing, shadow-like tentacles reached out of the void to close around Dionysus’ throat in a noose, and a gnarled, seven-fingered hand reached out of the fissure, nearly as large as the stadium itself.
Its slick digits gathered the tendrils, inky liquid seeping out of its claws, and spikes ripped through the obsidian arm. The spikes transferred to the tentacles, moving down its length to puncture the choking Greek god’s body, stakes exiting his bronze skin from the inside out. His golden blood tinted purple as the barbed tips released violet smog. And the hand turned scarlet red, and gently, almost caringly, pulled him into oblivion.
She recalled the original Arbiter’s horrific laughter and warning to the lesser god as Dionysus’s Misfortune sealed itself, carrying him to a fate filled with nightmares unending for not performing what The Balance required. And in the ensuing silence, the clapping of one pair of hands rang out with the Princess of Hell’s elated laughter.
“Beautiful performance! What an absolutely wonderful act this has been. Such insight and hubris, Dionysus! You gave Icarus a run for his money. Prometheus would be proud to see your noble sacrifice in paving the way,” she cackled, lifting her hand to the host of fiends, overjoyed roars meeting her. “Now… What will our next act be?”
Rachel breathed out the stress in her lungs, rubbing her burning throat and feeling the heat on her skin from the bright sun overhead. All eyes turned to her, and Conner flew down to land beside her. Nia was still looking up in horror at the place Dionysus had been pulled into oblivion, mouth part open.
“What are we—”
Their gaze shot to Eostre as the System Message came, Yseress’ beaming smile appearing in front of them from a blaze of Hellfire.
[New Arbiter Recognized]
[Legend Quest Authority Granted: Eostre]
“I’m… the Arbiter?” the woman asked in shock, the damage to her dress and skin recovering in a bloom of flowers as the night overtook day. “I never asked for it.”
Rachel rolled around her shoulder, smiling as the confused tulpa’s first act was turning to send a rush of fragrant wind toward her, healing the bruise on her neck. “It seems you were the next best candidate since… well, heh, everyone else kind of ran.”
She gestured at the stands, mostly empty, and Yseress hopped forward with a twinkle in her devilish eyes. “I expect the previous game will be sustained… but maybe with a slight tweak. My mistress isn’t a fan of the first layer of the 7th Circle, but I was afraid going deeper might not work. Can I test it?!”
I… suppose.” Eostre hissed out a long stream of air, reaching out to let Moongmor hop into her hand to nuzzle against her bust. “I’m sorry I worried you.”
“I was so scared, Mistress! He could have really killed you…”
“There, there… I had to live up to Rachel’s expectations and example,” the tulpa whispered, showing a charming smile while petting her crying bunny; Nia was quick to latch onto Rachel’s skirt and start weeping. “It may be written a few times in history, but I have rarely seen mortals actually stand up to tyrannical gods. You gave me courage.”
Rachel flipped back her hair so as not to drape Nia in it and knelt down to hug the terrified bunny child; it was a sharp contrast to the soldier she’d been as an adult, but it wasn’t Nia’s fault she was now a five-year-old.
“We’re going to be okay, Nia. We’ve done the impossible… We took out a god. And you had courage long before I met you,” she said, turning back to Eostre.
Yseress’ smile twitched, impatient to continue, no doubt, and see her mistress again; there was something troubling about the Hell Princess that bugged her. Perhaps it was her part angel and devil heritage or how tied to Izanami she was, but her instincts told her there was something unusual about the Nephilim.
“You’ve been dealing with a landscape where you’re basically the lowest on the totem pole, and you could have run away long before, but you didn’t. I respect that trust. And am I to assume the next ‘potential patron’ Cerridwen mentioned is Izanami?”
The woman’s guilty eyes drifted to the side. “Only because Cerridwen terrifies me far more than Dionysus, and yes, I don’t know why she has continued to choose entities from the… Infernal Spectrum of deities, but Cerridwen is a cunning woman.”
“Very cunning,” Rachel mumbled, glancing at Yseress as she glanced between them, gears turning in her devilish head. “Almost all of this came from her planning and my sense of misfortune in following it. Ultimately, Dionysus’ death was by her plots, not mine.”
“How humble! Can we continue now?!” Yseress asked, bloody wings intensifying. “I must receive further instruction from my mistress.”
Conner stepped up as Eostre sighed and moved to the side to listen to what the corrupted Nephilim wanted to ask about. “So… you are backed by goddesses beyond the dimensional wall. Hah. I should have known… I can see why, though. Hot hare girl with a temper and mind to get shit done. Huh… Honestly, I can say you’ve changed how I view life.”
Rachel rubbed Nia’s shoulder as she glared up at the mostly naked man. “Nice pickup line, bud… C’mon, Nia, let’s sit down…”
She glanced over at the fallen Nephilim, the others noticing the woman trying to argue with the tulpa to have her mistress join in the stands and if the Seed had the power to do it.
“I think Yseress and Eostre are going to be a bit,” Rachel muttered with an encouraging nudge. “Want to braid my hair, and I’ll do yours?”
“Okay! I’m watching you, though,” Nia growled, pointing at Conner, who lifted his hands with a laugh. “Yeah, keep three meters, pervert.”
Rachel had to wonder exactly how old Nia’s mind was or how age worked for a Soul Item but decided it would be best to feel out the extent of the girl’s reversed age. Plus, she had the option of breaking the curse in the next round, or at least putting some kind of dent in it without the lesser god stepping on her toes.
Her skirt folded under on its own as she sat cross-legged, and Nia dropped down in front of her, scowling at Conner. Despite her fear, Nia still tried to tackle a god to save her; the Living Denier still had a soldier’s heart.
Nia’s power over her outfit shone through as the girl braided her hair without so much as touching it, and Rachel slowly pulled the child’s locks into a much messier version. In the aftermath of Dionysus’ fall, she spoke to the man she would soon be battling to the death. It was a little surreal to have this conversation with Conner, considering how they’d met.
“So… how did you get wrapped up in the Scarlet Hand and Relica?”
He grunted while dropping to his butt, glancing around at the empty stadium with a strained chuckle.
“Glory… money. I needed a sponsor to wrestle internationally, and they approached me. I was already a piece of shit before The Oscillation. I’ve killed people in underground wrestling matches in Greece. I wanted a way to get bigger, and my brutal nature ended up killing a lot of opportunities. I love violence. Not much else to say about that.”
Rachel snorted. “Yeah, I was kind of an asshole, too, but not the killing part… that came after. In fact, you’ll be my first human murder. Lucky me?”
She glanced up to see him frown; he looked off to the side at the tulpa and fallen Nephilim, going over all sorts of loopholes the woman was trying to impose with how much she could get from her ‘location’ choice.
“What’s on your mind, having a face like that?” Rachel asked, spotting Moongmor observing them. “Having second thoughts because I’m so cool?”
“The opposite, actually,” he whispered. “I’ve never really felt… respect for anyone. You know, eventually, I think I’m supposed to die anyway… Antaeus is killed by Heracles in the stories. I expected to go out in a match like that, which is whatever, so long as it is a good show… Instead, I got you.”
Rachel’s ears drifted to the left, left eye narrowing as she studied the reflective Legend. “You’d rather fight me than the Legend of Heracles?”
“Why not?” He flashed his handsome grin and pointed up at the moons filling her with energy. “I’ve seen you battle armies, turn into nightmares, and put the fear of death in monsters of hate… In the battles leading up to our stage, I’ve fought the nightmares of hobgoblins, a baby Kraken, and had an epic battle, might I add, with a bleeding lava dragon… This is everything I ever wanted.”
He paused as his dolphin drew near, and he reached over to pet his smooth skin. “I guess what I’m saying is… It’s an honor to have met you, Rachel. It’s not often I find badass women who can make me want to box—well, you’re actually the first,” he laughed, rubbing his neck.
“Well, thanks,” she said, chuckling as Nia growled and threw a handful of sand at him. “When you were fighting that dragon, yeah, I thought it was badass, but you have to work on your selection of deities in the next life…” Her hard, glowing clover eyes fixated on him. “Because I’m winning this competition. It just sucks I didn’t gain any EXP from what I did to a lesser god, but I guess all I did was piss him off enough to distract him from the real threats.”
Interest sparked in his face. “Huh… Your misfortune telling you that?”
She shook her head, seeing Eostre getting fed up with the exploitative fallen Nephilim. “No. Right now, the flip of the coin could decide where we both land at the end of this.”
He slowly nodded. “Good. And I’ve been wondering what you think about all those changes you go through during the different moons? Is it you or something else possessing you?”
Rachel got to her feet and brushed off the sand, a smirk lifting her mouth as the world began to shift into a dreary wasteland instead of the burning Hellscape, and the System Message announced her next stage.
[Location - 7th Circle, 2nd Layer - The First City of Yomi]
“I am who I am. I’m a Bringer of Misfortune. Just because I’m feeling a certain vibe doesn’t mean it’s not me acting on it.”
“Excellently said.”
Rachel’s stomach squirmed as the soft caress of Izanami’s voice touched her mind, but instead of the horrific corruption of beauty that had faced Dionysus, a gorgeous woman dressed in an extravagant, blood-red kimono walked off of an old wooden boat that just touched the shore. Yseress was by her side, the picture of a princess and poise.
“Lady Izanami,” Rachel said with a nod, Nia hiding behind her as the elegant fallen goddess’ gaze drifted to her. “So, are you going to go on the conquest now that you’re free from the higher realms? Can I get an answer as to what this plan is that you and Cerridwen have cooked up?”
Conner hung back, listening intently as a soft smile moved the powerful Hell Lady’s eyes, and her focus returned to her.
“A mere illusion, I am afraid. By no means does this Seed have the power to actually allow me entry into your reality. I can enter this universe when called since it is separated from the maelstrom we are all trapped in. Dionysus simply didn’t have the sight to understand what I was doing, despite having the power.”
She looked out across polluted land of dead trees and a neglected ancient city of the dead, where blue distortions flickered across the gloomy scene, ghostly figures dressed in old Japanese ceremonial robes passing between buildings or floating along the dirty river. In the distance was a massive black tori gate.
“As for Cerridwen and I, we are merely acquaintances, but she tantalized me with the idea of meeting a mortal that would catch my interest. In fact, I have a suggestion, Eostre. Would you give me your ear?”
Rachel stood straighter as the autumn-haired woman appeared from a flash of light, looking somewhat nervous again. “What kind of suggestion, Izanami? You don’t seem like the kind of woman to make suggestions.”
The cunning, wolf-like gleam in the woman’s red eyes. “Why don’t you make me the Arbiter of this contest, Eostre? Allow me to set right this Balance that you are meticulously studying in fear of following Dionysus’ fate.”
“Sketch,” Conner hissed, muscles tightening and looking away at Yseress’ machete-like smile. “I can’t think of anything going wrong with this.”
Rachel studied the cool-faced fallen creation deity and her agitated divine intermediary. “Eostre, if you really are worried you cannot fix The Balance, then give it to her.”
Izanami turned her head to Eostre with a thoughtful tilt to her lips, the struggling tulpa debating on what decision to make, and took a needle to the tension. “Why not make me an Assistant Arbiter and allow me to guide you through it? This way, I can stay, you remain in control, and this event can continue without further blunders.”
A strained smile brightened the tulpa’s face. “I… would appreciate that, Lady Izanami.”
“Wonderful.”
[Legend Quest Secondary Authority Granted: Izanami]
Conner crossed his arms across his chest, looking between Yseress and Izanami. “What’s the first order of business, then?”
The dead goddess glanced at the empty stands, a stone throne appearing behind her as she took a seat and leaned against the side. “What a delicious mess…”
Lifting her hand into the air, she snapped her fingers, the sharp sound sending a ghostly blue flame through everything; Eostre went stiff as a board, looking up at some unseen thing in the cloudy heavens.
[System Audit - Rules in Review]
[System Audit Concluded - New Rules Sustained]
“It was… that easy? You… got rid of two matches.”
Izanami twisted her finger in the air. “Consolidate energy, shift the power draw, and optimize the resonance… opening the gate to invite all that will come.”
Rachel looked up in shock as an endless sea of beings filled a stadium grander than she could imagine. “So… after this round, Conner and I fight? What about the upgrades? I want to free Nia of the age curse she’s under.”
“I think you have had enough preparations,” Izanami smirked, gesturing to Eostre, who was still marveling at the extent of her handiwork. “What do you think about the new rewards I have set for this Legend’s Quest by uniting the potency of both in this balance?”
Eostre raised her hand to show them a System Message that made her grin.
[Winner’s Prize]
[Conner - All accumulated EXP and two requests of the Arbiter.]
[Rachel - All accumulated EXP and two requests of the Arbiter.]
“Naturally,” the autumn-haired woman explained, “all of that EXP will be spread amongst your party members if you so choose. With all of the excess energy gained used for the requests, it should provide some unique rewards.”
“Indeed, it will,” Izanami said, her thoughtful gaze drifting to her. “I look forward to what your creative minds—hmm-hmm, excuse me, mind, will craft for us to fulfill… Now, Conner, here are the options for Rachel’s next opponents. Who will she face in Yomi, under the Hell Moon?”
She pointed overhead as the clouds parted, revealing the devilish symbol on its burning surface. It was very clear the Legend’s Quest was in new, and far more capable hands, as the Hell Moon’s hellish rays didn’t touch her, the same way as the sun’s hadn’t when the stadium was brought back to its default state.
Izanami’s throne floated into the air with Yseress, a second, extravagant throne appearing for Eostre to take; the goddess of death was now in control. Conner looked up at the Challenge Rating 3 message overhead, tight eyes shifting to her, and Rachel put her thumb up.
“Don’t tell me you’re getting shy after our heart-to-heart, Conner… Give me a challenge.”
“You’re right,” he laughed, vigor returning to his voice. He swiped through options until pausing over a rather curious figure that had Nia shaking her head and Rachel rubbing between her eyes. “Huh? Is this really what I think it is?”
Three wolf-like girls wearing chains and other hellish dog bobbles emerged out of varying shades of fire: blue, red, and green. Izanami motioned to each of the provocative and vicious-looking girls with an entertained smirk.
“You are Greek, after all, Conner… One that is three, and three that are one. Would it shock you that Cerberus has had many female companions, some of which result in situations like this? Half Cerberus and half humans. Triplets and individuals, yet also one and in disorderly harmony.”
“Would they be a challenge?” Rachel asked.
Yseress doubled over with laughter. “Personally, I would say it was suicide without the support of the Hell Moon and its effects on you. At least, I hope it will be enough to handle Aleka, Irida, and Thalia. It would be nice to have something to talk about if you ever meet their father! He adores his girls; the boys can shove off.”
“And if I kill them?” Rachel asked with a forced laugh.
A wicked smile lifted Izanami’s lips. “Impossible for you at this time, be it with the Blood, Black, or Hell Moon as your support. The girls are playful in nature; their goal isn’t to kill you but give you a fighting chance to prove you can scrap.”
Conner roared with laughter as Rachel’s sparkling clover eyes narrowed. “I’m guessing that lit a fire in you?”
“It lit something,” she snickered. “You good to go, Soldier?” Rachel asked, kneeling down to brush back Nia’s silver hair; they’d gained a decent amount of energy from the three moons that Eostre had made earlier.
A determined, slightly frightened look came over the five-year-old. “I’m tough! I can beat up some puppies.”
Rachel figured all that bravado would probably melt the second the triplets started breathing fire, and she’d run like the little bunny she was, but that was fine. Nia was one broken curse away from being a good soldier again.
Conner returned her thumbs up and locked it in.
“Monster: the half-cerberus sisters.”
Trepidation rolled through Rachel’s tight gut as the tainted field rippled above the corroding center stage. A chill ran up her spine in a way she hadn’t yet experienced, as the distorted visage of the Japanese goddess of death loomed overhead, the Seventh Circle solidifying with every slow-motion turn of the gears overhead.
[Location Selection Time - 10 Seconds]
Golden liquid leaked out of Dionysus’ mouth, nose, eyes, and ears, his veins writhing as he tried to slow time to a crawl in order to prevent the location from locking in. Yet, the seductive whisper of Izanami continued to caress every entity’s mind, the death goddess twisting a dagger into the lesser god’s concentration as she flicked to a stop in front of Dionysus.
“Why are you so unsteady, Dionysus? Are you not the powerful lamb in this pen?”
“Shut up! You cannot enter!”
Misfortune coiled like the titanic demonic snakes in the bubbling sea of boiling blood that surrounded them. Faith in Dionysus was waning with every syllable Izanami spoke, her strengthening presence inciting chaos among the lower deities.
[System Conflict - Stage Transition Interference]
Fictitious pain mixed with the woman’s words. “Was I not invited? It is rude to keep a guest at the door…” The distortion leaned close to the trembling man, Rachel seeing his eyes defocus as her soft voice touched his ears. “Let me in, Little Lamb.”
[Location Selection Time - 9 Seconds]
Rachel slowly rose to her feet, a dull thumping reverberating throughout time and space as Dionysus seemed to be holding back a dam from exploding; System Messages flashed in front of all those who remained, mainly roaring demons and devils.
Dionysus refused to look at the rippling dimensional fabric that was the death goddess, now walking on air around him, taunts picking at his mind. He was losing this battle—it was inevitable—and while a big fish on this side of the divide between the 5th and 6th dimensions, he was hardly a minnow on the other side.
Misfortune was pulling tight around his throat, terror in the lesser god’s shaky voice as he screamed, “Change the stage!”
[System Error - Cannot Comply]
“Struggle, struggle… little lamb,” Izunami chortled, her distortions gradually fading away to reveal a scarred, gray-skinned woman, wearing only a silver snake necklace; she would have been a beauty beyond compare at one time, now corrupted by Hell.
Rachel had no clue how this would end, chaos pulsing in waves with each word, and she felt her DNA slowly resonating with the hellish moon reaching out to embrace her; it was only a matter of time until the transformation began.
Conner’s trembling fingers were on his divine pet; he could only use him for five minutes in combat, but just like Nia, the dolphin was his item to use. Nia was hiding inside her fabric, being the little girl soldier she was now; she was doing her best. And the vines holding Eostre were withering away under the pressure Izanami brought.
“Run to close the gates,” she teased before he managed to speak again.
“Change Challenge Rating to one!”
[System Error - Selection Already Made]
[System Error - Cannot Comply]
“Kick Yseress!”
[System Error - Cannot kick Yseress from the audience]
[System Warning - The Arbiter must comply with the rules of the game]
[Location Selection Time - 8 Seconds]
“No! How is this possible—it’s not—stop?!”
[Location Selection Time - 7 Seconds]
Gashes and burns marred her lovely figure as she stopped in front of Dionysus again, her raggedy silver hair covering her naked front, the thick mess framed by two curved horns. Izanami’s voice held a whispering mirth that her dead-eyed stare didn’t reflect.
“Hmm. Was it not you Greeks who have the lesson about flying too close to the sun?”
[Location Selection Time - 6 Seconds]
“I have more power than you, Izanami! I’m not afraid of you anymore! I’m not afraid of my sister or father! I’m not afraid of anything! You have no idea how powerful I am here!”
[Location Selection Time - 5 Seconds]
“Dammit!”
A short sigh and giggle followed, Izanami’s unemotional face solidifying in beautiful horror, and disinterest was reflected in her discolored eyes; it wasn’t hard to see the ruin Yomi’s negative energy had caused on her celestial body. “Dionysus, Athena would be disappointed.”
Her burned, gray hand directed them to the frozen, hellish sky overhead, where a radiant figure beyond perception shone brighter than the noonday sun; Rachel couldn’t look at it as much as understand, that this was merely a fragment of glory that surpassed any mortal conception of the word.
“I do not understand your power?” A sweet chuckle made Rachel’s tail quiver, and she took a step back with Yseress and Dionysus as the fallen goddess’ horrific figure continued to sharpen. “You didn’t think I am some small 6th-dimensional fox or fallen seraph, did you, Dionysus?”
[Location Selection Time - 4 Seconds]
Head tilting to the side, Izanami took another step forward, making Dionysus’ throat catch as he retreated again, gears clicking under her oppressive stare. Even Yseress’ delight had turned to nervously clutching at her bag.
[Location Selection Time - 3 Seconds]
“You are among the fallen old gods,” he said with a strained laugh. “You have no power over me.”
“No?” For the first time, a twitch moved Izanami’s scarred lips. “I held such power amongst the Creation Deities that my own husband could not keep up with my prowess, which is why I know explicitly the power you hold. Such boldness, Dionysus… or is it ignorance of who I am, since Hades fears to sit at my table?”
[Location Selection Time - 2 Seconds]
Hell trembled and shrank away in the flash of glory Izanami made, blood purifying into golden droplets of divine dew, the radiate so bright that light itself would envy its luster. And just as quickly as it came, the effulgence faded away in a rush, leaving a holy space that was drawn into the real Izanami, hidden behind the veil.
Dionysus looked down at Yseress and her, and she could feel his confidence cracking with the barrier protecting them, each gentle tap the fallen creation deity made against his facade making another fissure.
Izanami wasn’t the same as Selene or even Cerridwen; she was at the top of the food chain at one point. The old she-wolf had experience with the highest degree of 7th-dimensional forces that Dionysus couldn’t hope to grasp. If Dionysus envisioned himself high among the 5th-dimensional deities with Nike and all his stolen power, Izanami was among the 7th, all without support from others.
[Location Selection Time - 1 Second]
“My dull-witted, thoughtless, tiny lesser god…” Izanami cooed, moving closer still to hover above him, seeming to grow in size to tower over the petrified man. “You’ve already let the wolves in. So you can run, run, little lamb, but the beasts are in the pen.”
“No, you are not!” Dionysus held out his hands and sent a blast of divine energy at the emotionless, distorted woman; when it faded, Izanami was gone. “It is the time of the lesser gods! It is my time!”
[Location Selection Time - 2 Second]
[Arbiter Breach in Compliance of Selection]
Rachel’s eyes widened as the number went up, and the breach warning hit like a maul against her chest; the draw of Hellish energy was stripped away, darkness overshadowing them. In the next moment, she was hovering in the air, Dionysus’ gold-bloodied hand clasped under her chin, the pressure slowly working into her throat and cutting off her airway.
“You did this, Rachel! Whatever you are—whatever plot the Creation Deities and Hell Lords made by planting you here—you will not take this away from me!”
[System Error - Imbalance]
[System Error - Action Required]
She winced, her hammer just now clattering against the ground next to Yseress. When did I drop—
Her hands reached for Dionysus’ wrist, only for her fingers to pass right through it as if it didn’t even exist. Her legs lashed out to meet nothing but air. There was no way she could fight Moongmor—a demigod—much less a lesser god and misfortune was now closing around her own throat. Her odds of survival were tilting the opposite way.
Conner jumped on his dolphin and flew up to them. “Stop, Dionysus! You’re breaching the Legend Quest laws! If—”
“I am The Law!” he spat, bringing Rachel into a slow spin to see the nearly empty stadium that had once been packed with lesser deities and powerful entities. “You must entertain me, and I am not entertained! Besides,” he gave a vicious laugh, “they’re more guidelines than rules, and I can change them whenever I want!”
[System Audit - Rules in Review]
Her airway was cut off; something big was building, but she needed more time.
“Rachel!” Shimmering lights brought a red-faced, snarling five-year-old out to try and tackle the lesser god. “No—stop hurting her!”
She passed through the laughing man, lunar energy punches not even touching him as she flipped in the air to land on the cracked stone beside Yseress. “Help her! What do I do, Rachel?!”
“Nothing, little lambs,” Dionysus roared, a sea of vines and alcohol flooding the area. “What can you do? Not even a princess of Hell can hope to touch me!”
Slow clapping came from the giggling woman beside Nia, a toothy grin igniting her seductive face. “Quite true, Dionysus. We are all but little lambs in the grand scheme of existence… but sometimes, lambs can grow teeth.”
A bright glow cut through the darkness, filling Rachel with a familiar, confident bud that bloomed with a bright pink, white, and orange flash that exploded between them, forcing the air out of Rachel’s lungs.
World spinning, a short grunt, and small arms closed around her chest; hitting the wine-covered ground, she slid to a stop, coughing and sputtering as she rolled off whoever caught her. Nia mirrored her, holding her chest and groaning as a little, colorful bunny sat beside them in the bubbling wine.
“Ack—Nia… Moongmor?!”
“My chest hurts,” she cried, crawling over to check on her. “H-He left bruises on your neck—can you breathe—is she going to be okay, MoonMoon?”
“Mhm! Mhm!” he chimed, nervous leg taps spraying them and giving away his lie as his big eyes turned to the side. “He’s not happy…”
Vision stabilizing, heat filled her heart as three giant celestial spheres orbited above them, cutting through the darkness Dionysus created; Eostre’s auburn hair alight with life and a divine glow emanating from her body while floating in front of the enraged lesser god.
“Eostre,” he said with a crazed laugh, smacking his forehead and shaking his head. “I can’t believe the only one that stayed beside the fiends was you. I didn’t even consider you would try to approach me—Rachel, Rachel, Rachel… How did you get this… coward to step up for you? You have been orchestrating my end since—no…” he trailed off, red face going ghost white as a new System Message appeared.
The threads of misfortune snapped tight around Dionysus’ neck.
[Lunar Pool I - Advanced to B-tier]
[Divine Lunar Surge I - Advanced to C-tier]
[Lunar Cap I - Advanced to B-tier]
[Beastial Instincts II - Advanced to E-tier]
[Bringer of Misfortune I - Advanced to A-tier]
[Strategic Mind II - Advanced to E-tier]
[Mental Acceleration II - Advanced to E-tier]
[System Audit Concluded - Rules Sustained]
[System Correction - Balance Required]
[Arbiter In Breach - New Selection Initiated]
Rachel’s head rose to fissures that fractured the sky, Eostre’s moons promptly fading as the tulpa flew to their defense. A sober frown was on the woman’s face; a part of her dress had been blown apart, much of her gorgeous hair burning away, and sections of her divine body were blackened from the excessive power she’d had to channel to free her.
“Rachel!” Dionysus screamed.
His wine started to steam, yet moments later, barbed crimson chains broke through space and sank into the lesser god’s flesh. In an instant, they were back to the original sandy arena, the amphitheater whole, and Dionysus hung in the sky, bound as Nike had been when she’d first entered this Legend Quest.
“What are you?! What are you?!”
A lump sprung up in Rachel’s throat as writhing, shadow-like tentacles reached out of the void to close around Dionysus’ throat in a noose, and a gnarled, seven-fingered hand reached out of the fissure, nearly as large as the stadium itself.
Its slick digits gathered the tendrils, inky liquid seeping out of its claws, and spikes ripped through the obsidian arm. The spikes transferred to the tentacles, moving down its length to puncture the choking Greek god’s body, stakes exiting his bronze skin from the inside out. His golden blood tinted purple as the barbed tips released violet smog. And the hand turned scarlet red, and gently, almost caringly, pulled him into oblivion.
She recalled the original Arbiter’s horrific laughter and warning to the lesser god as Dionysus’s Misfortune sealed itself, carrying him to a fate filled with nightmares unending for not performing what The Balance required. And in the ensuing silence, the clapping of one pair of hands rang out with the Princess of Hell’s elated laughter.
“Beautiful performance! What an absolutely wonderful act this has been. Such insight and hubris, Dionysus! You gave Icarus a run for his money. Prometheus would be proud to see your noble sacrifice in paving the way,” she cackled, lifting her hand to the host of fiends, overjoyed roars meeting her. “Now… What will our next act be?”
Rachel breathed out the stress in her lungs, rubbing her burning throat and feeling the heat on her skin from the bright sun overhead. All eyes turned to her, and Conner flew down to land beside her. Nia was still looking up in horror at the place Dionysus had been pulled into oblivion, mouth part open.
“What are we—”
Their gaze shot to Eostre as the System Message came, Yseress’ beaming smile appearing in front of them from a blaze of Hellfire.
[New Arbiter Recognized]
[Legend Quest Authority Granted: Eostre]
“I’m… the Arbiter?” the woman asked in shock, the damage to her dress and skin recovering in a bloom of flowers as the night overtook day. “I never asked for it.”
Rachel rolled around her shoulder, smiling as the confused tulpa’s first act was turning to send a rush of fragrant wind toward her, healing the bruise on her neck. “It seems you were the next best candidate since… well, heh, everyone else kind of ran.”
She gestured at the stands, mostly empty, and Yseress hopped forward with a twinkle in her devilish eyes. “I expect the previous game will be sustained… but maybe with a slight tweak. My mistress isn’t a fan of the first layer of the 7th Circle, but I was afraid going deeper might not work. Can I test it?!”
I… suppose.” Eostre hissed out a long stream of air, reaching out to let Moongmor hop into her hand to nuzzle against her bust. “I’m sorry I worried you.”
“I was so scared, Mistress! He could have really killed you…”
“There, there… I had to live up to Rachel’s expectations and example,” the tulpa whispered, showing a charming smile while petting her crying bunny; Nia was quick to latch onto Rachel’s skirt and start weeping. “It may be written a few times in history, but I have rarely seen mortals actually stand up to tyrannical gods. You gave me courage.”
Rachel flipped back her hair so as not to drape Nia in it and knelt down to hug the terrified bunny child; it was a sharp contrast to the soldier she’d been as an adult, but it wasn’t Nia’s fault she was now a five-year-old.
“We’re going to be okay, Nia. We’ve done the impossible… We took out a god. And you had courage long before I met you,” she said, turning back to Eostre.
Yseress’ smile twitched, impatient to continue, no doubt, and see her mistress again; there was something troubling about the Hell Princess that bugged her. Perhaps it was her part angel and devil heritage or how tied to Izanami she was, but her instincts told her there was something unusual about the Nephilim.
“You’ve been dealing with a landscape where you’re basically the lowest on the totem pole, and you could have run away long before, but you didn’t. I respect that trust. And am I to assume the next ‘potential patron’ Cerridwen mentioned is Izanami?”
The woman’s guilty eyes drifted to the side. “Only because Cerridwen terrifies me far more than Dionysus, and yes, I don’t know why she has continued to choose entities from the… Infernal Spectrum of deities, but Cerridwen is a cunning woman.”
“Very cunning,” Rachel mumbled, glancing at Yseress as she glanced between them, gears turning in her devilish head. “Almost all of this came from her planning and my sense of misfortune in following it. Ultimately, Dionysus’ death was by her plots, not mine.”
“How humble! Can we continue now?!” Yseress asked, bloody wings intensifying. “I must receive further instruction from my mistress.”
Conner stepped up as Eostre sighed and moved to the side to listen to what the corrupted Nephilim wanted to ask about. “So… you are backed by goddesses beyond the dimensional wall. Hah. I should have known… I can see why, though. Hot hare girl with a temper and mind to get shit done. Huh… Honestly, I can say you’ve changed how I view life.”
Rachel rubbed Nia’s shoulder as she glared up at the mostly naked man. “Nice pickup line, bud… C’mon, Nia, let’s sit down…”
She glanced over at the fallen Nephilim, the others noticing the woman trying to argue with the tulpa to have her mistress join in the stands and if the Seed had the power to do it.
“I think Yseress and Eostre are going to be a bit,” Rachel muttered with an encouraging nudge. “Want to braid my hair, and I’ll do yours?”
“Okay! I’m watching you, though,” Nia growled, pointing at Conner, who lifted his hands with a laugh. “Yeah, keep three meters, pervert.”
Rachel had to wonder exactly how old Nia’s mind was or how age worked for a Soul Item but decided it would be best to feel out the extent of the girl’s reversed age. Plus, she had the option of breaking the curse in the next round, or at least putting some kind of dent in it without the lesser god stepping on her toes.
Her skirt folded under on its own as she sat cross-legged, and Nia dropped down in front of her, scowling at Conner. Despite her fear, Nia still tried to tackle a god to save her; the Living Denier still had a soldier’s heart.
Nia’s power over her outfit shone through as the girl braided her hair without so much as touching it, and Rachel slowly pulled the child’s locks into a much messier version. In the aftermath of Dionysus’ fall, she spoke to the man she would soon be battling to the death. It was a little surreal to have this conversation with Conner, considering how they’d met.
“So… how did you get wrapped up in the Scarlet Hand and Relica?”
He grunted while dropping to his butt, glancing around at the empty stadium with a strained chuckle.
“Glory… money. I needed a sponsor to wrestle internationally, and they approached me. I was already a piece of shit before The Oscillation. I’ve killed people in underground wrestling matches in Greece. I wanted a way to get bigger, and my brutal nature ended up killing a lot of opportunities. I love violence. Not much else to say about that.”
Rachel snorted. “Yeah, I was kind of an asshole, too, but not the killing part… that came after. In fact, you’ll be my first human murder. Lucky me?”
She glanced up to see him frown; he looked off to the side at the tulpa and fallen Nephilim, going over all sorts of loopholes the woman was trying to impose with how much she could get from her ‘location’ choice.
“What’s on your mind, having a face like that?” Rachel asked, spotting Moongmor observing them. “Having second thoughts because I’m so cool?”
“The opposite, actually,” he whispered. “I’ve never really felt… respect for anyone. You know, eventually, I think I’m supposed to die anyway… Antaeus is killed by Heracles in the stories. I expected to go out in a match like that, which is whatever, so long as it is a good show… Instead, I got you.”
Rachel’s ears drifted to the left, left eye narrowing as she studied the reflective Legend. “You’d rather fight me than the Legend of Heracles?”
“Why not?” He flashed his handsome grin and pointed up at the moons filling her with energy. “I’ve seen you battle armies, turn into nightmares, and put the fear of death in monsters of hate… In the battles leading up to our stage, I’ve fought the nightmares of hobgoblins, a baby Kraken, and had an epic battle, might I add, with a bleeding lava dragon… This is everything I ever wanted.”
He paused as his dolphin drew near, and he reached over to pet his smooth skin. “I guess what I’m saying is… It’s an honor to have met you, Rachel. It’s not often I find badass women who can make me want to box—well, you’re actually the first,” he laughed, rubbing his neck.
“Well, thanks,” she said, chuckling as Nia growled and threw a handful of sand at him. “When you were fighting that dragon, yeah, I thought it was badass, but you have to work on your selection of deities in the next life…” Her hard, glowing clover eyes fixated on him. “Because I’m winning this competition. It just sucks I didn’t gain any EXP from what I did to a lesser god, but I guess all I did was piss him off enough to distract him from the real threats.”
Interest sparked in his face. “Huh… Your misfortune telling you that?”
She shook her head, seeing Eostre getting fed up with the exploitative fallen Nephilim. “No. Right now, the flip of the coin could decide where we both land at the end of this.”
He slowly nodded. “Good. And I’ve been wondering what you think about all those changes you go through during the different moons? Is it you or something else possessing you?”
Rachel got to her feet and brushed off the sand, a smirk lifting her mouth as the world began to shift into a dreary wasteland instead of the burning Hellscape, and the System Message announced her next stage.
[Location - 7th Circle, 2nd Layer - The First City of Yomi]
“I am who I am. I’m a Bringer of Misfortune. Just because I’m feeling a certain vibe doesn’t mean it’s not me acting on it.”
“Excellently said.”
Rachel’s stomach squirmed as the soft caress of Izanami’s voice touched her mind, but instead of the horrific corruption of beauty that had faced Dionysus, a gorgeous woman dressed in an extravagant, blood-red kimono walked off of an old wooden boat that just touched the shore. Yseress was by her side, the picture of a princess and poise.
“Lady Izanami,” Rachel said with a nod, Nia hiding behind her as the elegant fallen goddess’ gaze drifted to her. “So, are you going to go on the conquest now that you’re free from the higher realms? Can I get an answer as to what this plan is that you and Cerridwen have cooked up?”
Conner hung back, listening intently as a soft smile moved the powerful Hell Lady’s eyes, and her focus returned to her.
“A mere illusion, I am afraid. By no means does this Seed have the power to actually allow me entry into your reality. I can enter this universe when called since it is separated from the maelstrom we are all trapped in. Dionysus simply didn’t have the sight to understand what I was doing, despite having the power.”
She looked out across polluted land of dead trees and a neglected ancient city of the dead, where blue distortions flickered across the gloomy scene, ghostly figures dressed in old Japanese ceremonial robes passing between buildings or floating along the dirty river. In the distance was a massive black tori gate.
“As for Cerridwen and I, we are merely acquaintances, but she tantalized me with the idea of meeting a mortal that would catch my interest. In fact, I have a suggestion, Eostre. Would you give me your ear?”
Rachel stood straighter as the autumn-haired woman appeared from a flash of light, looking somewhat nervous again. “What kind of suggestion, Izanami? You don’t seem like the kind of woman to make suggestions.”
The cunning, wolf-like gleam in the woman’s red eyes. “Why don’t you make me the Arbiter of this contest, Eostre? Allow me to set right this Balance that you are meticulously studying in fear of following Dionysus’ fate.”
“Sketch,” Conner hissed, muscles tightening and looking away at Yseress’ machete-like smile. “I can’t think of anything going wrong with this.”
Rachel studied the cool-faced fallen creation deity and her agitated divine intermediary. “Eostre, if you really are worried you cannot fix The Balance, then give it to her.”
Izanami turned her head to Eostre with a thoughtful tilt to her lips, the struggling tulpa debating on what decision to make, and took a needle to the tension. “Why not make me an Assistant Arbiter and allow me to guide you through it? This way, I can stay, you remain in control, and this event can continue without further blunders.”
A strained smile brightened the tulpa’s face. “I… would appreciate that, Lady Izanami.”
“Wonderful.”
[Legend Quest Secondary Authority Granted: Izanami]
Conner crossed his arms across his chest, looking between Yseress and Izanami. “What’s the first order of business, then?”
The dead goddess glanced at the empty stands, a stone throne appearing behind her as she took a seat and leaned against the side. “What a delicious mess…”
Lifting her hand into the air, she snapped her fingers, the sharp sound sending a ghostly blue flame through everything; Eostre went stiff as a board, looking up at some unseen thing in the cloudy heavens.
[System Audit - Rules in Review]
[System Audit Concluded - New Rules Sustained]
“It was… that easy? You… got rid of two matches.”
Izanami twisted her finger in the air. “Consolidate energy, shift the power draw, and optimize the resonance… opening the gate to invite all that will come.”
Rachel looked up in shock as an endless sea of beings filled a stadium grander than she could imagine. “So… after this round, Conner and I fight? What about the upgrades? I want to free Nia of the age curse she’s under.”
“I think you have had enough preparations,” Izanami smirked, gesturing to Eostre, who was still marveling at the extent of her handiwork. “What do you think about the new rewards I have set for this Legend’s Quest by uniting the potency of both in this balance?”
Eostre raised her hand to show them a System Message that made her grin.
[Winner’s Prize]
[Conner - All accumulated EXP and two requests of the Arbiter.]
[Rachel - All accumulated EXP and two requests of the Arbiter.]
“Naturally,” the autumn-haired woman explained, “all of that EXP will be spread amongst your party members if you so choose. With all of the excess energy gained used for the requests, it should provide some unique rewards.”
“Indeed, it will,” Izanami said, her thoughtful gaze drifting to her. “I look forward to what your creative minds—hmm-hmm, excuse me, mind, will craft for us to fulfill… Now, Conner, here are the options for Rachel’s next opponents. Who will she face in Yomi, under the Hell Moon?”
She pointed overhead as the clouds parted, revealing the devilish symbol on its burning surface. It was very clear the Legend’s Quest was in new, and far more capable hands, as the Hell Moon’s hellish rays didn’t touch her, the same way as the sun’s hadn’t when the stadium was brought back to its default state.
Izanami’s throne floated into the air with Yseress, a second, extravagant throne appearing for Eostre to take; the goddess of death was now in control. Conner looked up at the Challenge Rating 3 message overhead, tight eyes shifting to her, and Rachel put her thumb up.
“Don’t tell me you’re getting shy after our heart-to-heart, Conner… Give me a challenge.”
“You’re right,” he laughed, vigor returning to his voice. He swiped through options until pausing over a rather curious figure that had Nia shaking her head and Rachel rubbing between her eyes. “Huh? Is this really what I think it is?”
Three wolf-like girls wearing chains and other hellish dog bobbles emerged out of varying shades of fire: blue, red, and green. Izanami motioned to each of the provocative and vicious-looking girls with an entertained smirk.
“You are Greek, after all, Conner… One that is three, and three that are one. Would it shock you that Cerberus has had many female companions, some of which result in situations like this? Half Cerberus and half humans. Triplets and individuals, yet also one and in disorderly harmony.”
“Would they be a challenge?” Rachel asked.
Yseress doubled over with laughter. “Personally, I would say it was suicide without the support of the Hell Moon and its effects on you. At least, I hope it will be enough to handle Aleka, Irida, and Thalia. It would be nice to have something to talk about if you ever meet their father! He adores his girls; the boys can shove off.”
“And if I kill them?” Rachel asked with a forced laugh.
A wicked smile lifted Izanami’s lips. “Impossible for you at this time, be it with the Blood, Black, or Hell Moon as your support. The girls are playful in nature; their goal isn’t to kill you but give you a fighting chance to prove you can scrap.”
Conner roared with laughter as Rachel’s sparkling clover eyes narrowed. “I’m guessing that lit a fire in you?”
“It lit something,” she snickered. “You good to go, Soldier?” Rachel asked, kneeling down to brush back Nia’s silver hair; they’d gained a decent amount of energy from the three moons that Eostre had made earlier.
A determined, slightly frightened look came over the five-year-old. “I’m tough! I can beat up some puppies.”
Rachel figured all that bravado would probably melt the second the triplets started breathing fire, and she’d run like the little bunny she was, but that was fine. Nia was one broken curse away from being a good soldier again.
Conner returned her thumbs up and locked it in.
“Monster: the half-cerberus sisters.”
