Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

Though he shouldn't really care, as Hippolyta's problems were the result of her own willfulness, Vahn couldn't help but give her a bit of advice. His words were a little harsh, but, if she took them to heart, there was a chance her nation could thrive. For now, her lack of experience was bound to cause her a considerable amount of stress. There was even a chance that she, like a sad number of Heroes before her, would be 'broken' under the strain of trying to lead a bunch of people who saw her as nothing more than a means of securing their own self-interests.

Back when Hippolyta had been alive, the Gods were still causing trouble in the world. There was also constant war and strife, ensuring the Amazons, a group that worshipped war, always had a battlefield to fight on. This allowed them to regulate their population, but, more importantly it was a method of empowering themselves during a time when most women were treated as little more than bargaining chips, often exchanging them for a breeding pair of goats or a pen of chickens. It was so bad that, at one point in time, it was normal for orphaned females to become the property of their Uncles or Cousins, forced into marriage as early as their first periods.

While the current state of the world wasn't exactly pleasant, it was still significantly better than the average ancient civilization. The existence of Common Law made such arrangements impossible, and, with a Companion at their side, the average child had no need to fear an adult. The rights of children were one of the most highly protected aspects of the Common Law, and, depending on the severity of a violation, people could be put to death even for minor violations.

Ultimately, the founding principles of Amazoness society had no grounds to stand on the modern world. Though it worked now, during a time of uncertainty, things would undoubtedly take a turn for the worse once the population of New Themyscira reached a certain point. There were simply too many people with extremist views taking up residence within the nascent nation, and, without a 'real' enemy to fight against, they would eventually tear themselves apart due to infighting.

Eventually, Hippolyta would need to put her foot down just to keep order. This would only make things worse, however, as public opinion would undoubtedly turn against her once she began to use violence against her own population. Dissidence would grow in the shadows, and, with their morale broken, an increasing number of people would simply become lazy, keeping their heads down and leeching off the resources of New Themyscira, resources obtained from the Empire...

---

After returning to Avalon, Vahn spent the remainder of his time idling about and making a few minor preparations. Then, around three in the afternoon, he gathered every major combatant in the War Room, the place where his War Council generally assembled.

Seeing everyone fully geared out in increasingly more futuristic weapons and armor, provided as a courtesy of Da Vinci, Vahn couldn't help but smile. His own confidence swelled up just seeing everyone with resolute and determined expressions on their faces. Though most of them would not have the chance to fight, as the enemies were simply too powerful, Vahn could tell they would not hesitate to throw themselves into the fray.

Taking the initiative to lead the discussion, Vahn had everyone quiet down before showing a large projection of fifteen figures. Of these, only six were highlighted, including three distinctly alien-looking males and three beautiful, yet equally alien, females. These were the targets for today's raid, the figures representing Zeus, Poseidon, Ares, Hera, Artemis, and Aphrodite. As for the other nine figures, the majority occupied a completely separate sub-texture, leaving only Demeter as an outlier amongst their potential targets.

With everyone's attention focused on the projection, Vahn explained, "Our primary goal is the elimination of Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, and Aphrodite. If we can eliminate them, reaching an accord with the others is not impossible. At the very least, I would like to avoid killing Demeter, but, due to her relationship with Aphrodite, there is a fair chance she would want to take revenge. We'll deal with that when the time comes, so, for now, let's discuss our plan of action..."

Following his opening dialogue, Vahn changed the projection to show a rather futuristic city that was seemingly situated in a starry void. There, countless Demigods lived relatively peaceful lives under the rule of Mount Olympus, a crystalline mountain that was nearly the size of present-day Australia. This mountain was actually an amalgamation of pure mana, harvested from the people that resided within the relatively small planar texture. It was used as nourishment by Zeus and the other Olympians, but, within his visions, Vahn had confirmed it would also be weaponized once the marble-skinned God was pushed to his limits.

One of the greatest benefits of being able to view the Flow of Fate was the ability to 'simulate' future battles by viewing various currents. Though it was impossible to guarantee things went as planned, it was the most powerful tool for information gathering as Vahn could see his opponents use their trump cards before he ever faced them. This allowed him to strategize, prepare ample countermeasures, and, by picking the right people for the job, it was possible to all but guarantee a certain outcome.

With this in mind, Vahn explained, "We'll need to keep Zeus away from the other Olympians to prevent him from subsuming their power and authority. If he is pushed into a corner, he won't hesitate to betray and absorb his fellow Gods, so, to prevent him from becoming even stronger, we must separate him from the rest. This also means we'll need to prevent the others from going to his aid, so, while I am distracting Zeus, each of you will separate into teams in order to deal with other Olympians..."

Though they had already discussed the plan several times in the past, Vahn reiterated the tasks that everyone had been assigned. He would have Altera face off against the God of War, Ares, as there was simply no way he would ignore the existence of the Photon Ray in her possession. She also had a near-absolute advantage against him, as, due to the nature of her existence, Altera was able to slowly siphon his Divine Authority. This was an important aspect of Phase Three, but, more importantly, it gave Altera the chance to cut loose for the first time in years...

While Altera was stealing Ares' Divine Authority, Artoria, Amaterasu, Arcueid, and Illya would be doing much the same. As for everyone else, several other tasks had been assigned, including the destruction of Mount Olympus at the hands, or, more specifically, teeth of Fenrir. She had the ability to devour the 'Heart' of Mount Olympus directly, and, in doing so, her power would greatly increase at the expense of Zeus' last resort. Fortunately, while his battle with Zeus would require a considerable amount of focus, Vahn still had a number of ways to completely overwhelm the other Olympians...

Though the discussion had taken more than two hours, only seventeen minutes had passed in the outside world. This gave them close to twelve hours to finish preparations, but, due to how eager everyone was for the coming Raid, nearly everything had been finished prior to the meeting. As a result, Vahn decided to move up his schedule slightly, donning his own armaments before tightly clutching the Asauchi as he said, "Let's do this...!"

Following a loud hurrah from a veritable army of females, Vahn created a live feed to show what was occurring on the other side before teleporting, not just himself, but Tiamat into the very heart of Mount Olympus. At the same time, he transferred Artoria and Illya to the location of Hera while simultaneously transporting Altera into the center of a large Coliseum, Amaterasu to a large bow-shaped space station, and Arcueid to an eerily organic-looking craft with two large, mushroom-like protrusions...

---

Though he had seen it through his intent, Vahn had to admit that the majesty of Mount Olympus was difficult to even comprehend in person. Unfortunately, he didn't have much time to admire it, as, immediately after teleporting, a thunderous roar, literally causing lighting to ripple through the surrounding space, exclaimed, "Who dares violate the sanctity of my chambers!?"

Without flinching in the slightest, Vahn stared back at a tall man with skin that seemed to be cut from bluish-white marble. He had an overall height of 246cm and an impossibly muscular frame that would cow even the most committed bodybuilders. His golden eyes seemed to glow like small suns, and, with his majesty mane of white hair, flowing seamlessly into his beard, Zeus had what could only be described as a 'striking' presence.

Currently, after creating several powerful barriers in a desperate attempt to get some peace and quiet, Zeus was lounging in a large bed with half a dozen women, none of which were Hera. The most disgusting part of this, however, was the fact that one of the girls was simultaneously Zeus' daughter and granddaughter, a woman who had been reared by her own Mother-Sister to serve as a replacement when the latter began to break.

Fully aware of all the monstrous acts Zeus had committed, Vahn's answer to his outburst was to pull out an Elemental Star from his Inventory, smiling maliciously as he sent it hurtling towards the incensed God.

Seeing the familiar orb, Zeus' anger became transcendental as he released an overwhelming aura of bluish-white thunder. The force was so great that his bed, and the women occupying it, simply disintegrated into nothingness as the furious God charged forward with the momentum of a tidal wave.

Vahn felt some regret about the deaths of the six women, but, knowing they would have readily sacrificed themselves to grant Zeus even more power, there was little he could do. In fact, most of the residents of the futuristic city below had been brainwashed by Aphrodite to unhesitantly give their lives to power the Gods, so, while Vahn would have liked to liberate them, doing so was all but impossible. Even Merlin would struggle to modify the memories of a Demigods, meaning the vast majority of the Texture's residents were their enemies...

Without having to block Zeus' charge himself, Vahn stood idly as Tiamat seemed to appear out of thin air, her mouth parting to reveal two rows of sharp teeth as she released a sonorous, "Aaah~."

In response to her cry, an exceptionally powerful barrier appeared, receiving Zeus' attack without much difficulty.

Seeing a nearly-naked female appear before him, a greedy look immediately flashed across Zeus' golden eyes as he shouted, "Good! I hope this woman is important to you! I can't wait to see the look on your face as I ravish her in front of you...!"

Following his outburst, Zeus released an even greater volume of lightning, instantly creating a few cracks on Tiamat's barrier as he released a feral shout. He had a truly sickening expression on his face as his figure towered over the much smaller Tiamat, arms spread wide as if he was prepared to grab her the moment the barrier shattered.

Tiamat's only response to Zeus' provocation was to release another sonorous shout, creating two more barriers, each more powerful than the previous one. At the same time, Vahn vanished from sight, appearing behind the enraged God, stating in an icy monotone, "I have never seen a more disgraceful God..." as he swung the Asauchi in his hand.

Zeus had previously been naked, but, feeling the ripple in the surrounding Space, his raiment burst into existence. This included a massive golden shield, the legendary [Aegis], an armament that could even sustain direct blows from some EX-Ranked attacks without buckling. What he didn't expect was for his assailant to simply cut at empty air, completely missing the shield by several centimeters.

Just as Zeus was about to ridicule his opponent for incompetence, he felt a searing pain pass through his body, interrupting the flow of Divine Energy in his veins. This came as a considerable shock, causing him to instinctually use his Divine Authority over the Sky to teleport a safe distance from the source of danger. At the same time, he left a golden scepter behind, the upper half of which was a brilliant blue lightning bolt.

Vahn could feel the Space around him 'solidify', seemingly intent to keep them in place as the unbelievably powerful artifact began to release a torrent of lightning that was capable of tearing through virtually all defenses. Even Tiamat's barrier wasn't able to hold up, being pierced as if it were little more than paper. Fortunately, as he had other bodies present, Vahn simply teleported her to a location deep beneath a seemingly infinite expanse of ocean. At the same time, a large grin was plastered on his face as he ignored the rampaging lightning, gripping the [Thunderbolt] with his bare hands...

---

Finding herself in the middle of an expansive Coliseum, Altera looked around with a disinterested look, her wine-red eyes showing a complete lack of disregard even as a rhino-sized creature tried to trample her underfoot. Her only reaction was to raise her seemingly powerless arm, extending her delicate fingers to simply 'catch' the charging beast, stopping its momentum in an instant...

With no wars to fight, Ares had very few ways to entertain himself while simultaneously dealing with his destructive urges. Thus, soon after they were forced to the Reverse Side of the World, he had built a large Coliseum. Here, powerful monsters were bred from the lineage of dragons and other Phantasmal Species, some of which could even give weaker Gods a run for their money.

Ares never expected that, in the middle of a scheduled match between two gladiatorial factions, a strange woman with bronzed skin, white hair, and virtually nonexistent clothing would appear out of thin air. Her presence immediately reminded him of the Amazons from ages past, but, feeling a familiar presence inside of her, his blood began to boil before his mind could make sense of what he was experiencing...

Seeing the woman about to be run over by an Armored Praxa, Ares' red eyes began to glimmer in interest, as, instead of moving, the woman simply raised her hand, stopping a monster that could slaughter even trained Gladiators with ease. Then, with a simple 'push', she forced the monster to fly back a few meters, seemingly without any effort whatsoever.

Though he didn't know who the woman was, Ares found himself leaping into the arena before he even realized it. Something about her called out to his soul, compelling him to do battle against her. It was an irresistible urge, and, when the woman suddenly turned her attention to him, he was unable to even find words as he released a loud warcry, leaping toward her with his spear pointed toward the tri-colored gemstone embedded in her forehead...

Altera didn't know who the bronzed-skin man charging toward her was, but, the moment she saw him, a strange sense of familiarity welled up inside her. This didn't cause her to hesitate when it came to drawing her weapon, however, as, based on the man's actions, he was undoubtedly an enemy. Enemies were meant to be destroyed, so, before the man's spear could get anywhere near her, she swung [Photon Ray], creating a massive wall of flames that crashed into the man's body before sending him flying with meteoric force into the far wall...