Unknown Place in the Void
In the long hall, there were tens if not hundreds and hundreds of doors, all leading to unknown places across myriad dimensions and realities. The floor was white, and the entire place gave off a very weird feeling of surreality and uncertainty, yet at the same time, it also gave off the finality of choice.
The sole notable thing in the seemingly infinite corridor was one table, with one man sitting behind a rather ordinary office-looking table, which was giving this entire place an even weirder look than it was before.
He was a blonde man with a slicked hairstyle, looking around someone in his thirties, yet the feeling around him was vastly different, as if he was much, much older than he looked. His demeanor was saying so...
His attire included a beige sweater and a light blue colored shirt with a red tie. He wore a pair of brown, coffee-colored dress pants along with a pair of brown shoes. Like an average salaryman, he also had rectangle-framed glasses.
He also appears to be quite fond of coffee and cigars, judging by the fact that he was constantly drinking coffee and smoking cigars, aside from reading a newspaper.
"Soul Number X-185-157-99745164994 from Dimension Code Number: Primordial Earth X-185."
He tapped on the wooden table with his finger, and a translucent figure or appearance of a man appeared in front of him, like a ghost.
"For the Merit you have achieved for your World, Dimension Code Number: Primordial Earth X-185, you have been awarded with the possibility of Guided Reincarnation if you wish for the choice. If not, then you could enter the eternal rest of the afterlife."
The man behind the table folded the newspaper he was reading and looked at the person who appeared in front of him.
This was the usual procedure with the reincarnations; if they have enough Merit, then the afterlife; if they have tremendous Merit, then reincarnation; and if their Merit is out of standards, then they obtain a chance for guided reincarnation.
"Sirius Grey, Merit Grade: Golden Law, Karma Points: 100,000,000."
Sirius Grey, as he was called during his life, looked shocked, though that would be a severe underestimation of his feelings.
"How?... shouldn't that be reserved for the Saints and others? How do you say it... good people?"
He didn't really understand because he was very far from the definition of a good person.
Merchant of Death, they called him.
He was a weapon developer and weapon merchant who pushed the limits of the weapon technology of Earth by entire decades and started developing various weapons that he saw in the Sci-Fi.
When he was younger, he became obsessed with weapons and decided to bring the concept of sci-fi weapons into reality; after several years of research, he achieved his goal, and the world was really fortunate for him.
Fortunately for him, the 21st Century was filled with several Civil Wars and also World War III, which allowed him to expand his weapon business as the Western Forces were buying everything that he produced.
This, in turn, financed his research even further, allowing him to create even more destructive and advanced weapons that were revolutionizing how Earth functions and the entire society.
His company built everything, ranging from the ordinary Lasguns through large Plasma Artillery to personal shielding technology that forced people to return to close combat as the personal shields were almost impenetrable through conventional firepower.
And that wasn't mentioning countless human experiments that he sanctioned in search of advancing the evolution of mankind. When it was widely known that the shielding technology was so advanced that people were resulting in close combat fighting with cold weapons such as swords and spears, it opened another field of technology.
Genetic enhancement of the baseline humanity to superhuman levels. Indeed, he wasn't any genetics, but he was very smart, and he worked with a lot of people who were the best experts in genetics on the entire planet.
Soon enough, they discovered ways to create supersoldiers and superhumans one way or another.
"Indeed, that should normally be the case, but at the same time, approximately fifteen years after your death, Earth was found by advanced extraterrestrial species called Skriiin, and war broke out. While the aliens were advanced technologically and were far more numerous, the Earth, thanks to the technological breakthroughs of Blackstar Industries, the Earthern militaries were far better prepared for the invasion of the Skriiin. Due to it, they managed to defeat the majority of the Skriiin and, capture a lot of their technology, and reverse-engineer it. In the end, it was thanks to that, Earth survived and was not harvested like most of the species that were conquered and destroyed by the Skriiin."
The more now-named Sirius Grey listened, the more astonished they remained. It was weird to hear that everything that he built and made was, in the end, beneficial to mankind and Earth.
He would have never thought that this would be the outcome of all of his research and of his life work, the Blackstar Industries. Part of him didn't really know how to feel about this newfound information because it seemed that he would be immortalized on Earth as some kind of hero who indirectly saved their entire civilization.
"Now, that should probably answer the question. Now, for the next, reincarnation or eternal rest?"
The man who had there a small wooden plate where his name was written with ornamental font from metal that appeared to be gold.
Murasaki.
Rather a weird name if someone were to ask him because he didn't think that the person who was most probably for reincarnating the individuals would have some sort of Japanese name, but he had to admit that it sounded a bit intimidating coupled with his entire appearance.
Naturally, Sirius didn't dwell long on that fact and chose reincarnation because he wanted to live even more and he wanted to obtain power.
Which was something as his obsession for a very long time already. That was the main reason why he sanctioned countless human experiments that were aimed at discovering the secrets of the human genome and enhancing the genetics of the baseline human.
Becoming superhuman and obtaining real power was his dream and goal, and of course...
Immortality.
Sirius was afraid of death, and he wanted to live forever, but unfortunately, the Fate was cruel to him, and he died from a genetic disease that couldn't be cured even with the most advanced technology.
Now that he had the opportunity, he wanted to fulfill the goal and obtain as much power as possible and preferably live forever.
Till the End Times.
"Reincarnation."
As he said that, he noticed a world was already chosen for him, though when he saw that, he was frozen in a spot because it wasn't really the best choice. He vividly remembered that anime as he watched it as a teen and probably read a shitton of fanfiction.
While the anime was a bunch of fanservice, together with the light showcasing how easy the world was, he was more wary of it. It was a place where strong ruled, and basically, the most important factor for the quiet and nice life was the background.
High school DxD, while portrayed as the very nice and slice-of-life world, was dangerous as shit, and without power, one would die faster than he could think. He could remember that it was the shitty world, especially if someone one human, because then one was on the whims of more powerful be it Gods or other supernatural races.
If one was human with Sacred Gear, powerful inborn Magic, or something else, then there was a big chance that one would be enslaved by Devils, captured by Fallen as an experimental subject, captured by Gods as a slave, or just eaten by some monster out there.
So, no...
It's not really a good choice in the world if someone was born without a proper background.
"You can use the Merit to redeem things. The better cheat or ability or wish, the higher amount of Karma Points it would cost you."
Murasaki said as he put down his cigar and looked at him, while Sirius was deeply thinking.
"How many Karma Points are for the best background possible?"
Draconic Deus was the peculiar world, and he decided that his best bet wouldn't be on some powerful cheat or anything but on simply being born. For example, if he was born into extremely powerful beings, he would inherit their abilities and also be born into huge factions that would be his support.
"50 million Karma Points for best possible for the Draconic Deus."
That was half of his Karma Points, but simultaneously, Sirius knew that if it was something like that, then he would be born to one of the strongest entities of the Draconic Deus and also with some good starting point.
Having a powerful background was sometimes far more valuable than anyone could ask. Aside from the background, he would instantly obtain some powerful set of abilities, albeit the unknown wasn't that pleasant for him; he was rather willing to undertake the risk.
That was the reason why he chose to invest half of the Karma Points into the backround.
"Then I want that, and also: 'A' the Almighty and Skill Great Sage. And I wish to exchange the rest of the Karma Points for the Fateless One Physique."
'A' the Almighty was Abiltiy of the Yhwach the Quincy King, which allowed him to see the endless possibilities of the future. Not only that, but it allowed one to safely alter the course of the future, and it came with a certain degree of omniscience as it allowed one to perceive everything.
Great Sage was probably one of the most iconic skills from the Tensura and was more or less a supportive skill that had tremendous potential for evolution. Not to mention, its supportive uses were something that could give him a huge edge in everything that he would do.
Lastly, the Fateless One Physique was the Physique from the Xuanhuan novel Sage Monarch, where one was not bound by the concept of Fate itself. He chose this for a very simple reason: in the DxD, there were several opponents that could practically force some kind of Fate on him.
And that wasn't talking about some other beings that could see the future or Fate of someone through Divinations or other similar skills and abilities, but with the Fateless One, he would be immune from such things.
The Fateless One would also allow him to be free of any constraints of the Reality, meaning if there was some power cap that was limiting everyone else, due to the influence of the Fateless One, he would be able to bypass all restrictions.
He also counted on the possibility of utilizing the Fateless Aura of the Fateless One on some of his subordinates that were loyal or his family, which would allow them to reach even higher levels of power, and, in turn, his background would grow more powerful.
"All of the Karma Points used up, the reward of the Golden Law Merit distributed. You can go."
With a swish of white light, the translucent silhouette of Sirius Grey disappeared from the endless white corridor of doors.
***
Mount Kailash, laying in the Kailash in the Transhimalaya, the western part of the Tibetan Plateau.
Mount Kailash was traditionally recognized as the abode of Shiva the God of Destruction of the Hindu Pantheon and one of the Triumurti.
A loud cry rang through the enormous heavenly palace, which was home to the God of Destruction of the Hindu Pantheon, as a powerful and weird aura swept through the palace, and everyone went numb from feeling it.
It was extremely powerful and potent...
A weird and indescribable combination of the Destruction and Holy Power of the Angels of Heaven belonging to Yahweh. Both of the energies were overwhelmingly powerful and would obliterate from existence even most of the room if they were not contained immediately.
In the center of the palace, in an enormous luxurious room that eclipsed anything that could be ever made by the mortal hand, several people were standing together and looking at the bed where a child was delivered.
"What shall you name him?"
The woman was holding the baby boy, as her lustrous golden hair was shining and Holy Power was radiating from her, though it was visible that she was, too, already tired from the delivery.
She looked at the baby with a loving expression before she looked at the man with wavey, long blue hair; his golden eye shone with boundless wisdom and divinity, not concealing the endless power.
"Yhwach, as blessed of Yesod, he shall be known as Yhawch, son of Shiva the Destroyer and Thashamal the Seraph of Doom and Damnation."
As he named his son, in a mere moment, suddenly everything went blank, as the third eye on his forehead opened and shone with the brightest color for the past several hundreds of thousands of years.
Even his wives, both Thashamal and Parvati, looked concerned and stressed about what happened because this wasn't something that had happened for a long, long time already.
Even though Shiva was the God of Destruction, he was especially proficient in Clairvoyance and Divination. He could see the future of countless possibilities, and through his third eye, he could see the certainty that was waiting for them.
After several seconds, when the vision ended, he sighed deeply because it meant that the things had started moving.
"What did you see?"
His first wife Parvati asked him in concern because this was the first time she saw her husband so... helpless?
"Death... death is coming for all of us. From the different world, mighty Gods that would destroy our own world."
Draconic Deus was by no means a weak world; they had several top-notch Level 8 Beings and even a few Level 9s, so one could say that their world was fairly power, even when it was compare to the other worlds.
Especially when most of their strongest were Gods, the strongest beings in existence, and they even had Dragon Gods on their side. One could say that the Draconic Deus Dimension was a world that greatly favored Gods and Dragons.
Yet, from what Shiva saw in his vision, no matter how many Gods and Dragons they had, no matter how many powerhouses of the Draconic Deus rose to fight against the invaders, everything was futile in front of the might of their enemies.
"And the worst thing is, the gears have started moving; from the moment the Etoulde chose someone from our world as their pawns against their rivals, our entire world has become a target."
His vision didn't allow him to see much, as unfortunate it was, because the begins in the question were far stronger; some of them... were on the level of Level 10, the strongest Primordial Gods like Chaos; that wasn't something that they could defend against.
Unfortunately for the Draconic Deus, the small number of the Level 10 beings it had, most have already perished due to fights between themselves, some wandered into the Cosmos and never returned, and some were confirmed being killed in the other worlds.
One could say that without their defense of them, they were defenseless, and the ones that still remained in the Draconic Deus were either severely weakened or in very deep slumber that they wouldn't wake up no matter what.
The worst thing was that; their world didn't give birth to Level 10 being in countless millenias, probably it has been around four hundred thousand years since the last was born, and the being that had the best chance to ascend to the Level 10 lay dead somewhere un the Dimensional Gap.
"What shall we do about that?"
This time, it was Thashamal who was lying on the bed, holding her newborn son Asuryna with worry.
"We have more than enough time to prepare. The ideal solution would be to find the Chosen Ones of the Etoulde and kill him immediately, but he is protected by someone at Level 10, so I can't even divine his identity. No... we need to get stronger and prepare for the possible all-out war or..."
He then stopped amidst the sentence as he looked at his son.
"Or to have someone so strong that the Evies would negotiate with us and see us as equals. From what I saw, the Living Machines are very strong, one of the strongest species in the Universe, and we, as the Draocnic Deus, didn't even leave the Dimensional Gap that is cornering our part Galaxy."
In fact, Shiva wasn't very keen on fighting against Evies; the short time he saw their power made him realize that they had numbers and power...
Yet, if they invited the Draconic Deus they would be slaughtered en masse by the Living Machines, so another way was needed.
To grow their power as much as possible and, during that time, find the Chosen One of the Etoulde and kill him. That should slow down the arrival of the Evies considerably, and if they arrive later, they would either fight or negotiate as equals.
Part of him was, of course, enraged at the sheer audacity of the Eoutlde Spirit Gods.
Because with a single motion, they have doomed the entire Draconic Deus for inevitable destruction.
Though...
This feeling of helplessness, the inevitability of Fate itself, made Shiva ponder about how mortals or weak begin to feel when their lives are decided by Gods or someone much more powerful than them.
'Just wait... I have enough patience, but all of the Eotulde shall die, one way or another.'
Through Shiva's vision, he was able to obtain some rudimentary information about Evie and Eotulde.
The world of Evie Etoulde was divided between Evie and Etoulde, who have been at war with each other since ancient times. Their world was much older than the Draconic Deus and they have been waging war for millions of millions years.
Due to the Malevolent God Melvazoa possessing the power to manipulate his existence as well as time, the conflict between the two groups was at a stalemate.
The war between the Evie and the Etoulde war ongoing as the Evie have successfully exterminated all other organic life on Evie Etoulde, leaving only the Evie and the Etoulde as the only surviving species of Evie Etoulde.
The Evie also began invading and conquering numerous other planets, to search for the resources to sustain their war against the Spirit Gods Etoulde.
***
Somewhere at the Draconic Deus
A man wearing circular sunglasses, an aloha shirt together with a jewel around his neck was laying on the bean and enjoying the sunset. He was rather tall, around 195cm, and had a buzz-cut hairstyle with greenish-brown hair color and lavender eyes.
Suddenly, he twitched as he looked in the distance because he sensed that someone was approaching his resting spot, someone who was really, really unwelcomed here right now.
It was not like the person who was coming here would be welcomed at different times because it was very hard for the man in the Hawaiian shirt to hide his distance from the newcomer.
"Why are you here, Shiva? To boast about your youngest or whatever?"
The man said with a strong distaste and even a certain degree of hostility for the new coming individual.
Indra, the Lord of Heaven and leader of the Devas that has defeated several strong opponents, such as the Evil Dragon King Vritra, which ended with his soul being split and sealed into multiple Sacred Gears.
Indra was one of the most powerful Gods on the Draconic Deus and was a very powerful Level 8 being, feared as much for his power as he was for his temper because he was never shy from using his power as he wished.
Especially against those who offended him, no matter their origin or whatever.
"Nothing for that, Indra... I just came here to show you something... something that will decide the Fate of the Draconic Deus as we know it."
While it was not any secret that the Lord of Heaven and leader of Devas was disliking Shiva for various reasons, he also feared greatly the power of the God of Destruction. Shiva was one of the strongest and most powerful beings in the Draconic Deus.
While both he and Shiva were Level 8 Beings, the disparity between Shiva and Indra were tremendous, especially due to the fact that the God of Destruction was already nearing the Level 9, the realm of the Dragon Gods and beings that could destroy the worlds when they wished.
There was also the fact that Shiva commanded the divine authority over destruction, which was one of the strongest Divinities in existence and perfect for combat. There were not many who could stand on the same level as the Divine Authority of Destruction, and fewer could be even more offensive than it was.
"Whatever... then give it to me."
Shiva nodded as he passed a whisp of weird bluish energy to Indra, who closed his eyes as he went over the information and, at the same time, over the Future.
Instantly, the air around the Heavenly Emperor changed. He looked incredibly tense and serious, forgetting his distaste for the God of Destruction immediately, as if the hundreds of thousand years of their mutual hostility didn't exist at all.
"How did you obtain it?"
The God of Destruction came closer, as he sat down cross-legged and watched the sun setting.
"When my son was born, he was born with the physique of the Fateless One, creating Divergence in the Fate Nexus, allowing me to experience and see the Future Fate of the Draconic Deus, and I am guaranteeing that we already don't have much time. Especially if the enemy is powerful like that, our entire world is being used as pawns by someone of much greater power."
Shiva explained what had happened because the indications of it were far more severe than anyone could imagine. While Indra was indeed shocked by the fact that Shiva's son was born as the Fateless One, during a few million years of his existence, he had seen such individuals a few times.
Fateless One was basically a boosted-up version of the racial ability of the Dragons, not being tied by any kind of Fate and becoming master of their own Fate. It was almost unheard of to be born with this kind of Physique; as stated by the Jade Emperor, only grand individuals would be chosen to bear this burden.
Indra contemplated the matter for some time because if it was like Shiva said, then it was certainly possible that Shiva experienced the Future Fate of the Draconic Deus, and it was nothing good.
That he could see himself when he experienced everything that Shiva saw after his son created Divergence within the Fate Nexus.
"So, what do you want to do about our most precarious situation?"
All the distaste and personal feelings were discarded almost immediately when Indra experienced the same vision that occurred to Shiva a few days ago. In the face of a greater threat, it was clear that they would need to work together and end their squabbles for good.
Survival was far more important right now.
"For now the best thing we can do is to pay attention to the world once again. We need to reunify our Pantheon entirely, pay attention to the Supernatural World, increase our personal strength, and recruit talents."
Shiva listed a few things that could be done almost immediately because they were the most simple ones. Right now, the Hindu Pantheon wasn't in good shape, as everyone was basically divided between Shiva's Faction and Indra's Faction.
Of course, there was also a considerable faction of neutrals, but this kind of internal division greatly weakened them, even if they were the strongest Pantheon out in the Draconic Deus with the number of powerhouses they had.
"That could be done... though you left out the most important matter out of the all... mortals."
Indeed...
This was a touchy subject for most Gods because although the Gods did not depend on Faith to survive or to maintain their power or anything, at least for the majority of them, the Faith produced by humans and other begins still played a significant role.
Gods could refine the Faith and assimilate it, use it to either expand their Divine Energy or to deepen the comprehension of their Divine Authorities and Divinities. There were many things that could be done through the Faith, not to mention that the souls of the Faithful were one of the most valuable resources for God.
"They are a failed project."
In an essence they were... for many of the Gods, they were failed a project.
Shiva believed in the category of Gods and didn't really care much about them at all; their lives and experiences were meaningless, and their worship towards his person was also not a point of his interest.
"They are arrogant, self-coincited, and completely forsake the worship of their Gods."
Contrary to the Shiva's indifference, Indra's great distaste towards the humanity couldn't be hidden at all.
"That will change with time... both of us know, that with what is coming for us, it would be time for the Supernaturals to return to our rightful place. The seclusion was a mistake; humanity went down their path, and with the threat of the Living Machines and Spirit Gods, we cannot remain idle."
It was decided that after the Great War of Supernatural, all factions would withdraw from Earth and let the humans fend for themselves. Around two thousand years have passed since that point already, and yet the effects are affecting all of them to this day.
Everything started with the civil war between the Three Factions of the Biblical Pantheon, and slowly, it spread to all...
At that time, it was one of the most powerful Pantheons, if not the most powerful Pantheon, even overtaking the Hindu Pantheon and Celestial Court, though it was mostly attributed to Yahweh, who was a very powerful Level 9 Being.
Even though Yahweh was no combatant, he was very skilled and proficient in Magic, Sealing Arts, Creation, and other aspects that made him a terrible enemy to face. There were also rumors, not baseless ones, that Yahweh was preparing to reach Level 10.
In the end, everyone was affected and dragged to another series of conflicts between almost everyone in the background in the Great War of Supernatural. It was a rather bloody conflict, as people clashed against each other in one huge meatgrinder, and it was also a conflict that didn't have a winner.
Everyone just got losses from the Great War of Supernatural.
"I will convene a meeting of the entire Hindu Pantheon to sign a new Covenant between Devas and Asuras. Meanwhile, we should start sowing the seeds of the Faith once again in the territories that are still worshipping us in India and some of Asia."
The Hindu Pantheon was basically divided into two factions, Devas led by Heavenly Emperor Indra and Asuras led by Shiva. Meanwhile, Shiva was also a member of the Trimurti together with Vishnu and Brahma.
"I will contact Okhwang and Odin with this information; both of them could be trusted and would see the severance of the information and the future."
Both Okhwang, the Jade Emperor, and Odin Borrson, the All-Father, were one of the strongest Gods in the Draconic Deus and leaders of their respective Pantheon. Most importantly, both of them had a strong power of Foresight and would be open to discussion.
Odin Borrson was one of the most feared God-Kings of the Draconic Deus. Due to his ruthlessness, he suppressed the rebellion after the unfortunate death of his father, Bor Burrison, many, many tens of millennia ago.
He then went onto the conquest the Nine Realms and brought all of them under heel, with the steel and magic of the Aesir, and he was also considered one of the most powerful Gods.
Okhwang the Jade Emperor, was the sole undisputed ruler of the Celestial Court and creator of the cultivation to the mankind, or more precisely to his subjects who were loyal to him and creating the first generation of cultivators. He was also one who ruled probably the biggest territories adjusted to the Earth of Draconic Deus, as the Three Realms of the Celestial Court were enormous.
Both of these Gods were close associates of Shiva, and both of them had powerful Foresight and Prophetic capabilities, so when they saw what Indra had seen, Shiva was confident that they could create some sort of mutual alliance.
In the end, they only had one world, and it was their home.
***
Mount Kailash, Transhimalaya, the western part of the Tibetan Plateau.
Age: 0
Race: Hybrid - (Angel and Demigod)
Class: Demigod, Holy Being, Fateless One
Rank: Level 3 (Middle)
- Divine Energy: Level 3 (Middle)
- Holy Power: Level 3 (Middle)
- Physical Parameters: Level 1 (High)
Energy Types: Holy Power, Divine Energy
Divine Authority: Destruction
*
Innate Abilities: Holy Light Manipulation, Destruction, "A" the Almighty
Unique Skills: Great Sage>
Those words were the first words that he heard when he was born... it seems that the Great Sage was functioning well.