Chapter 244:
I stared up at the giant flaming bird that blanketed the entire sky. I didn't think a creature of such size could even exist until now. I didn't even know how to go about fighting something that big. Any world-ending meteors I threw at it would probably feel like nothing but mosquito bites. Just when I thought I was approaching the top of this universe, I ran into a being like this.
{The Phoenix Force: Level 305}
With my max level Observe, I was able to see just how powerful the Phoenix force was. Level 305 officially made her the second most powerful entity I'd ever gazed upon. She was a close second to Lady Death at Level 310. I didn't think there was anything stronger than these two in the Marvel universe, other than the One Above All himself.
"How big is she?" Jean asked Lady Death while also staring up at the giant flaming space bird.
"The Phoenix Force is about the same size as the planet Jupiter in your Earth's solar system. She has the ability to take different forms like myself, but this is the one she usually prefers when roaming the infinite cosmos." Lady Death explained.
"Wow…" Jean said in wonder. "That's amazing."
Lady Death shrugged while glancing upwards. "Eh, I think she's just overcompensating. The 'Flaming Chicken' is trying to come off as more impressive than she actually is." Lady Death said teasingly while winking at me.
"SCREEEEEE!"
Lady Death's realm shook as the Phoenix above our heads let out a very loud cry of indignation. It clearly heard her words just now and wasn't pleased with them.
One second I was gazing upon a sky of pure orange and yellow, the next second it was gone. I could see the infinite galaxies above me again. The giant Phoenix vanished in an instant!
"Overcompensating!? And who are you to say that!? You literally sit on a throne made of black skulls! It can't get more edgy than that!" An ethereal voice declared.
I spun around when I noticed there was another person here with the three of us. I was caught completely off guard! Standing next to Lady Death was another woman who had appeared out of nowhere!
The newcomer's beauty was impossibly hard to describe. Her figure and face were sheer perfection. Her skin was flawless and pale, but not as pale as Lady Death. Her long red hair extended down to her lower back and glowed like cosmic fire. Her eyes shined with a golden light and radiated pure power. She was a true vision of beauty, a cosmic goddess.
…She was also completely naked, but didn't seem to mind at all.
"Hello, everyone." The woman said again with her ethereal voice. It was almost musical in a way. "Why are you all looking at me strangely?" She asked while tilting her head.
"You forgot to give yourself clothes again, Phoenix." Lady Death said with a sigh. "Please cover yourself, I can feel my champion getting hornier by the second just looking at you." Lady Death said while pouting at me.
I blushed and did my best to avert my gaze from the incredible naked woman standing only a few feet away. It was hard, especially because I didn't want to.
The woman, who was obviously the Phoenix Force in a beautiful human form, looked down and realized her mistake. "I never understood why the mortal races even bothered with covering themselves…at least until my latest Avatar. She taught me how amazing clothes can be." The Phoenix Force said while smiling at Jean.
"Me?" Jean asked while pointing at herself. "L–Lady Death said I was your Avatar, what does that mean? And I don't remember teaching you anything." Jean added nervously.
The Phoenix in human form smiled mischievously. "Oh no, my dear, you taught me quite a bit. You and your amazing lovers! For over a year now, I've been watching and feeling through our bond as you three made love almost every single night! I admit that I've been deeply enjoying having you as my avatar. I had no idea that sex, when not trying to make offspring, could be so amazing and enjoyable! I've learned so many new things from you. I never knew how amazing clothing was! Not until I observed all the beautiful lingerie your lovers would wear during these passionate trysts!" She explained to Jean, who was sputtering in embarrassment at this point.
"Why are you watching all of that!?" Jean demanded to know. "That was supposed to be private!"
Jean got a shrug in response. "I saw it all because we are bonded. You are my Avatar. Of course I can see through your eyes and experience your senses if I choose too. In return, you have access to my powers. It's a fair trade." The Phoenix explained.
"I've certainly never had access to your powers! And I would think I would know if I was bonded to some kind of Jupiter sized Alien God Bird!" Jean replied in irritation.
"You wouldn't know because the annoying 'Bald One' sealed away our connection when you were a young girl. The seal he placed over your mind weakens whenever your emotions are high. In the moments where your emotions hit their peak, I have been attempting to break the seal on your mind completely." The Phoenix explained to Jean.
"That explains why you've been bursting into flames during the middle of sex, Jean." I said to her and the Phoenix nodded at me.
Jean raised an eyebrow. "Seriously?"
The Phoenix nodded again and confirmed that I was correct. Jean 'bursting into flames' was the Phoenix's power leaking out as it tried to break the seal on Jean's mind. The seal was placed by Charles Xavier when Jean was a child because he feared her Omega level mutant powers and her connection to the Cosmic Entity. With the seal broken, Jean would have access to her true power and she could assume the mantle of the Avatar of the Phoenix Force in this Universe.
"It would have only taken a few more 'sessions' for me to completely break the seal. Now that we're truly here together, that's no longer necessary. I can break the seal myself." The Phoenix explained to Jean. The Phoenix couldn't visit Earth herself to remove the block for certain reasons. Since Jean was currently in Lady Death's realm though, the Phoenix was free to do so in person. She strutted towards the mutant girl and placed her hands on both sides of Jean's head.
Jean shifted in place and looked nervous as the entity did so.
"Do not worry. This shouldn't hurt. Accept the mantle and take up your destiny!" The Phoenix said as she started to easily remove the mental block Professor X left in Jean's mind.
A second later, an aura of cosmic fire erupted around the mutant girl. Her power started to rapidly rise along with it! Wisps of the flames kicked off of her and I had to take a few steps backwards. The flames coming off of Jean felt as dangerous as my own Amaterasu flames.
{The Avatar of the Phoenix, Jean Gray: Level 105}
Seriously!? That was unfair! I worked so hard to level up and Jean Grey managed to jump from the peak of Mid Class to above Super Class in an instant!
[Don't be jealous, Host. You'd still probably be able to beat her in a fight since she won't immediately know how to use her newly gained power.]
I still felt a bit bitter, but the System's words helped. At least Jean didn't spontaneously become the White Phoenix. She would have at least jumped straight to Level 200 if she did…
Lady Death started clapping sarcastically. "Congratulations on fixing your Avatar. You can leave now, Phoenix. You're no longer needed here." Lady Death said dryly and made a shooing motion. "I wish to speak with my Champion…in private." She paused before giving me a soft smile.
The Phoenix chuckled at Lady Death. "Yes, I'm sure you two will be doing plenty of 'talking.' How very professional of you Death…" She said with a touch of sarcasm. She was clearly aware of the relationship between Lady Death and myself. If she had been watching through Jean's eyes all this time, then she probably learned about it from Akeno.
Lady Death narrowed her eyes at the Phoenix. She moved forward and stepped in front of me defensively. "My personal relationship with my Champion is my own business. Besides, you have no room to talk. You just admitted to having been spying on your own Avatar when she was with her two lovers." She spat out in annoyance.
"Can we please stop talking about my sex life…" Jean whined. "Seriously, what is with today?" She lamented to herself.
"I'm not judging." The Phoenix said with a laugh. "It's just amusing that Death has a sex life." She giggled before turning towards me. "There was something I required from your champion however. I have a task for her and my Avatar." She elaborated..
"You have need of me, Lady Phoenix?" I asked her respectfully. There was no need to antagonize such a powerful entity just because I had Lady Death's backing.
She nodded with a small smile. "You are correct. As you may know, one of the purposes of my existence is to purge planets that become the antithesis of life. Most of the time, this is handled by my Avatars." She said.
"Wait, what!?" Jean asked in shock. "I'm supposed to destroy planets!?"
The Phoenix shook her head. "Destroying an entire planet is a waste. It is usually better to just cleanse the entire planet's surface with fire and let life bloom again from the ashes a few million years later." She explained.
Judging by Jean's put off expression, I could tell that she did not find the idea of doing that any better than just blowing up an entire planet.
"Why do you want my help?" I asked. "You need me to cleanse a planet? This sounds like a job for your Avatar." I pointed at Jean who pouted at me.
"I don't want to destroy any planets!" Jean put her foot down.
The Phoenix ignored Jean's outburst and answered me instead. "Did you not destroy an entire planet infested with the dead in another universe? You clearly have the experience my Avatar currently lacks. I would like for you to 'show her the ropes' as it were." The Phoenix explained while bringing up my time in the Marvel zombies universe.
[She got you there. You did literally blow up an entire Earth…]
{Quest Started: Burning away the corruption. Complete the Phoenix's task in any way you see fit.}
{Reward: +3 Levels, Access to Cosmic Energy}
{Failure: The Phoenix will be disappointed in you…}
My eyes boggled at the rewards for helping The Phoenix! Access to Cosmic Energy could make me much more powerful! This was a Quest that I could not turn down! I told her that I would do it. I was already imagining the cool things I could do with cosmic energy!
"Excellent! I will give the details to my Avatar here. We'll let you and Death have your private 'talk' now." She teased as she grabbed Jean by the arm. The two of them vanished from the spot in a burst of flames.
I couldn't help but worry a bit. I had brought Jean here, which meant I was responsible for returning her safely to Akeno. I had no idea where The Phoenix had just taken her.
Lady Death was easily able to read the expression on my face. "Jean Grey will be fine. The Phoenix will return the girl to Earth once she's done with her." Lady Death told me. Once her rival was gone, she stepped forward and wrapped me in a tender hug. "I missed you, my champion…" Lady Death hardly ever leaves her realm, so we could only be together whenever I visited her here.
I hugged her back. "I missed you as well." Lady Death was much more affectionate with me than most people would expect. I always suspected it was a result of her spending eons by herself in this realm of hers. When the Phoenix Force was here, she had to put on a more professional facade. Once the "Flaming Chicken" left, Lady Death could be more personal again.
"I've been watching over you. Your daughters are all beautiful and will all be very strong when they grow up. Hilga especially will be a very powerful Goddess. Much stronger than her other mother." Lady Death explained as she let go of me.
I smiled hearing that. "Of course she will. She's MY daughter after all!" I bragged jokingly.
"How humble of you." Lady Death laughed. She knew I was joking of course.
"So, did you actually need to talk, or did you want to 'talk?'" I asked huskily.
Lady Death leaned forwards and placed a tender kiss on my lips. "Can't it be both?" She asked me as she leaned back again.
I smiled. It looked like I was getting lucky twice today. "It certainly can. Why don't we take care of business before pleasure though." I suggested.
She nodded at me. She held out her hand and a black orb manifested in her palm. I wasn't sure what I was looking at. The small orb radiated divine energy, but it felt tinged with death at the same time.
"This is the Divinity of Hades." Lady Death explained and my eyes widened. "He chose to attack you, my champion, and so I stripped him of his affinity over Death." She gestured for me to take the orb from her. I grabbed hold of it and placed it into my inventory.
"Wow! Is he no longer a God?" I asked her. Part of me forgot that she could even do that. All Death Gods technically answered to her.
She grinned vindictively. "Indeed. Hades is now a mortal man. A powerful mortal, but nowhere near as strong as he was as a God. After I stripped him of his Divinity, he fled to parts of the Universe outside of my domain. I suspect he might have even sought out the likes of Dormammu…" She trailed off.
"I'll be on the lookout then." I replied. Doctor Strange was officially out of the picture, so if Dormammu ever showed up on Earth, it would be up to me and my friends to face him.
"I'm glad you understand. Give the orb to Hela. You can tell her that her war shall begin in a few days time. The Orb will give her back the ability to command legions of the undead. However, be sure to remind her that this ability is a privilege and if she abuses it I will once again strip it away." Lady Death told me.
I was nervous that a multi-planet-wide war was about to break out, but glad that Lady Death was giving Hela her full powers back before it did. Even with tens of thousands of my siblings in Asgard, our forces were still heavily outnumbered by the tens of millions of Fire Demons and Frost Giants. This would definitely help even the odds.
"Thank you for the amazing gift." I said sincerely while reaching down and unbuttoning my pants in front of her. "How can I ever repay you~?"
Lady Death licked her lips while she watched me start to undress. "I can think of a few ways…" She said before she punched on me and smashed her lips into my own!
I smirked into her kiss. It looked like I would be a few hours late getting back home. I'm sure my clone could handle things back home anyway while I was busy.
…
–Omake: Shadow Clone Layla–
Clone Layla was holding Hilga in her arms as they followed Natasha down the grocery store aisle. She was doing her best to avoid all the shocked looks the other patrons were giving her. It was not every day that the most famous Angel in the world–the woman who helped drive off an Alien incursion and then revived thousands of dead soldiers afterwards–went diaper shopping…
"Natasha, did we really have to come to the store ourselves to buy diapers?" Clone Layla asked while staring at a wall with dozens of different diaper options. "Can't we just order them online? Hell, I could create diapers with my Rinnegan if I really wanted to." She said.
Natasha booped Layla on the nose causing the baby in her arms to giggle. "No swearing around your daughter. And no! And these diapers are just fine. Using Creation Magic like that will just make you lazy." Natasha replied while looking between a few of the better brands.
Layla sighed. She honestly had no problem using the legendary Creation of All Things to make a few sets of diapers, but Natasha seemed to think it was wasteful.
"Oh, this brand has a buy one get one going on. That's a great deal." Natasha commented. Natasha sometimes forgot how much wealth they had access to–unlimited basically. As a 'Government employee' for years, Natasha never actually got paid that much.
By the time Natasha finally decided on a brand, Layla was considering just buying out everything in the entire aisle. Of course, she wouldn't actually do that because it would leave a bunch of families without access to diapers.
"Ok, that's taken care of. Now we just need to pick out some baby food." Natasha said while pushing the cart.
"What do you think, Hilga?" Layla asked her baby daughter in her arms. "Would you and your siblings prefer peas and carrots, or apples and bananas?"
"Bawawaba!" Hilga replied enthusiastically.
"That sounded like Banana to me." Layla said with a laugh. She grabbed a bunch and put them in the cart.
"That's everything. Let's check out before the paparazzi show up." Natasha said as they made their way to the front of the store. More and more people were starting to gather nearby and record them or take pictures. Thankfully, no one directly approached them and ruined the small family moment.
They made it to the checkout counter when there was a disturbance from the front of the store!
"Everybody on the ground now! This is a robbery!" A man wearing a ski mask and holding a shotgun yelled loudly.
"That's right! Empty the registers now!" Another masked man yelled as he pointed a pistol at a nearby cashier. They quickly started doing as they were told!
Hilga shifted uncomfortably in Layla's arms before she started to cry. She didn't like the loud yelling. Layla glared at the two robbers for upsetting her daughter.
"Hey, shut that annoying baby up!" The man with the shotgun shouted threateningly. When he pointed the gun towards them, Layla saw red! "Shut it up or I'll shut it up."
[What an idiot…]
The man with the pistol glanced at who his partner was yelling at. He thought she looked very familiar. He definitely recognized her from somewhere.
And then 14 black wings, he'd only seen on TV, burst forth from the back of the woman holding the crying baby. "Uh oh…" He said before he started shaking in fright.
…30 seconds later, both robbers were on the ground, crying to themselves in agony. They both had dozens of broken bones and the man with the shotgun was probably never going to walk again. They got off lucky in Layla and Natasha's opinions. Had so many camera's not been on Layla, those men would have never been seen again.
"Next time you can just create the diapers with your Rinnegan." Natasha said with a sigh. "This city has been becoming more and more dangerous lately."
"I'm honestly surprised Spider-Man didn't show up." Layla commented. "He's usually right on top of things like this."
"You can't expect one guy to be everywhere at once." Natasha shrugged as she started putting her groceries on the conveyor belt. The cashier was looking at their group with worship in her eyes.
"D–Did you find everything ok?" She asked shakily as she started wringing up their groceries.
Layla smiled at the woman. "We did, thank you. Sorry about the mess." She gestured at the two twitching thugs on the ground.
"Oh God, I can't feel my legs!"
The cashier barely spared them a glance before smiling back at Layla and her daughter. "It's no trouble. The police are already on their way. Thanks for stopping them for us!"
After paying for their groceries, Layla waved to all the onlookers and opened a portal back to their Penthouse.
Unbeknownst to her, 10 seconds later, New York's newest vigilante burst onto the scene! Spiderman came swinging into the grocery store by bursting through the front windows! "Don't worry everyone! I'm here to save–oh." He cut himself off when he noticed the two beaten robbers on the floor. A bunch of shoppers were staring between him and the window he just broke awkwardly.
"You're a little late. Are you gonna pay for that window?" One of the cashiers asked him.
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