Nexus Effect

Ch.111

“So the Slayer and his siblings are gone. Fantastic. At least Heaven was polite enough to leave notes for each of them.” Luna huffed as she looked at the reports presented by Cocoa not even a few hours after each of the leaders of the several Doom Slayer Chapters spontaneously vanished, both from the Fortress of Doom and in the Milky Way.

Curse Twilight Sparkle for leaving her as the next Empress. Once was enough for her and she didn’t miss this. “Cocoa assures Luna-wife that things are under control. The Argentines are still autonomous with no need for bosses watching.” Cocoa informed her Empress and wife kindly. She and Luna’s respective Aspects of Secrets and Dark synergized and she could understand her wife’s dislike for the limelight after a few decades of experiencing it.

“Still, for breeding? Why not us or Urta?! Are they too good for us?!” Wiatr demanded with foam at her rodent lips, her trio of rat tails writhing in agitation.

“Notes included reason. We need you, they need them.” Cocoa answered and Wiatr looked flummoxed, unsure how to really respond at that fairly complimentary notion, that she and Urta were too important to be borrowed like Todd and his adopted siblings.

“There’s also the fact that you blessed them all with enhanced virility and fertility, remember? When you made the true sizes of their testacles matching our breasts?” Celestia brought up casually while she was busy reviewing her own work for her governance of Equus. Poor Tia, nobody wanted to take her place as the world ruler of the homeworld.

“Oh, right...did we?” Wiatr questioned herself and hummed as her tails twitched. “Oh, right. Yes. Shortly after Vinnie decided to try being female and enjoyed it far too-We never Blessed her!” Wiatr shrieked in fear, only for Cocoa to toss her a picture of Vinnie’s womb tattoo. “Oh. Okay then. Hm...maybe We should ask Brennie if she wants one there too...”

Luna shook her head fondly at her adorable wife, eyeing the gestalt goddess’s magic iron collar decorated with Luna’s cutie marks. It had to be replaced several times over the past 7000 years, but each time she had it remade the same way and Luna loved it. “This changes nothing, other than us needing to insist to Visilia that she needs to be more cautious-.”

“Cocoa just got a report of a titan falling on a Hell sieged primitive world. Hunter’s Ghosts report a Slayer not theirs is responsible.” Cocoa suddenly announced and everyone sighed.

“Send a support team to help them collect the ragebeast since that’s in one of our sectors. The Argentines will put him to use on the front where his bloodlust can be utilized.” Luna grumbled discontentedly. They learned from the last True Slayer that they are unstable and untrustworthy.

[1001100 01101001 01101110 01100101]

“Rip...and tear. Demons! Everywhere!” The insane armored brute insanely snarled as he paced in the prison transport shuttle that had picked him up.

“By Queen Visilia’s tits, no wonder they warned us to handle him with caution.” Muttered one of the two Badasses available to retrieve him before the planet was blasted and the debris scoured by the Sweepers. They both wore the full-covering Doom Marine armor, but his was marked to indicate he was one of the Crusaders, whose armor was marked red with depictions of blood.

“He’s a Slayer. I’m just glad we’re not leaving him to die.” Replied his piloting companion. She was a Defender, her armor marked with white depictions of stone pillars and shields. “He’s basically a force of nature, one that would likely appreciate being thrown into the thick of Hell.”

“Is he the OG?” The Crusader questioned before a loud thunk inside made him flinch.

“Rip out their entrails and strangle them!” The Slayer screamed in his madness.

“With how he’s raving, no. The one our fathers are based off of is more of a god-king, something or someone that could take down an Icon solo. This one seems more fresh.” The Defender explained, looking back at the Slayer they had through the bars. He was wearing crude armor, his gray helmet dripping with blood as he passed back and forth, covered in wounds, though not all the viscera on his body was his own.

“At least he’s got the fortitude. I can see his injuries closing up on their own. If he gets modded, he’ll be even more impressive.” The Crusader commented and The Slayer suddenly grasped the bars of the window to the cockpit.

“Give! The demons, they need to be purged! More strength, more blood, more dead demons!” The questionably mortal person raved, his bare hands causing the durasteel bars to creak.

“When we’re on the medical cruiser, you’ll be getting your treatments. Just be warned, if you’re human, you’re in for a shock. You’re one galaxy over from humanity’s port of call.” The Defender warned the deranged carnage causer, who snarled.

“Better than demons.” He hissed before going back to pacing in his provided space. At least he was sane enough not to kill indiscriminately. That was something they could use.

[1001100 01101001 01101110 01100101]

“So, we’re just gonna have to put up with the fact two of the most kickass folks in two galaxies got nabbed and move on?” Gilda asked rhetorically with casual understanding, even if she was visibly annoyed.

“Yes, unfortunately.” Martra sighed and I was still giddy that she’d essentially snuck aboard. EDI knew she was here, but barely anybody realized the civilian who was nominally considered the homebody was on the ship when EDI left Rannoch. She’d come in the night and napped through takeoff. She was along to, quote: ‘drag Saren’s sorry ass back home’, end quote.

“While I don’t like it, I have to accept it as it stands. So we’re heading for Earth to finish hammering out EDI’s registrations since she got the rest of the allied fleets to add her while at the Citadel.” Penny added on, since the ESA, while not as xenophobic as the canon HSA, were still militaristically independent for the most part from the Citadel. Considering they have about a third in total territory to cover as the Citadel races do together, it made sense.

“Damn. Oh well, I’ll still help out where and when I can. Hey, sexy kitty, you mind a quickie?” Gilda asked as casually as if asking for directions and Martra saucily purred before following the griffin out of the bridge towards the crew deck.

“You okay Bee?” I asked when I noticed him watching Martra leave with a perplexed expression.

“I am simply confused. I’ll speak more about it later when I’ve come to terms with it.” Bumblebee replied unsurely and I perked up in instant realization. Bee had a thing for Martra! Well, she was his caretaker and friend for the year I was a ship factory before I came home and they continued to grow closer. Of course Bee would develop feelings! I’m going to have to keep an eye on this, but not interfere unless asked for help.

“Are we also going to see about recruiting Jack?” Yola asked, causing me to feel a pang of sadness at the reminder that my girlfriend, who I cared for and cared back, left for a fulfilling career teaching children how to handle their gifts while I was turned into a shipyard.

“If she wants to join us, I won’t say no. She’s an instructor at Grissom Academy and from what I’ve learned through my contacts while keeping tabs on her; she’s helped them a lot. She’s eccentric and unconventional, but it’s those angles that seem to cause her students to achieve feats of power and even control that previous classes of biotics haven’t had.” Penny filled us in and we all nodded. Even though Jack hasn’t undergone the trials of the Ripatorium, she was a badass in her own right.

“So I get to be poked and prodded by the people who killed me. Yay.” EDI sarcastically droned, but she’d already agreed to this before she went through with the conversion. “Also, don’t worry too much. I’ve been getting plenty of comms traffic between Kasumi and her superiors, so I’m aware that the ESA has been warned about being too invasive.”

“Huh? Kasumi?” Garrus asked in surprise and we all looked around for the sneak-thief.

“Yeah. She snuck aboard while we were at the Citadel. I’ve already registered her on the crew list.” EDI added, clearly enjoying springing this on us instead of telling people right away.

“Aw~, no fun! I was hoping to shock people first.” Kasumi chuckled as she appeared in our midst. She was still bound to Ivara, but she had a black and blue droid similar to a BD unit hanging on her shoulder, but it was clearly a custom job with an astromech-like roundedness to it’s head instead of being a trapezoid. It also had talon-like hands instead of feet for more versatility and gripped her shoulder firmly.

“Kas, you need to learn to open up to people. You even admitted that these were your friends, sneaking about all the time isn’t healthy.” The droid chided with a male voice that was far too emotive to be a one-and-done droid personality.

Speaking of which, I need to remember to visit HK and his crew down in the hangar and armory. They rejected crew quarters on the grounds that they don’t need creature comforts or privacy they couldn’t get in a closet.

“C’mon KG, it’s how I treat everyone, especially friends. Besides, you’ve already seen they’re fun people to be around, even if they don’t see you.” Kasumi giggled at her droid companion who successfully rolled his optics. “So yeah, I’m here. I’m not hired by anyone or anything, I just wanted to hang with you guys again. Later.”

She vanished and we all shrugged. Kasumi will do as Kasumi does. “Okay then, well I’m going to go pay HK and our droid friends a visit. I haven’t spoken to them much since we went on vacation.” I wonder what they got up to while on said vacation.

“You can find them down in the armory or hangar. Alright everybody, we have a day before we get to Earth, dismissed.” Penny stated and we all scattered about the ship.

“Oh, ah, fuck!” I heard from the armory.

“Is that Bones?” I muttered to myself and poked my head in-and quickly jerked back with a blush. Okay then, the droids got transferred to biomech bodies that had skin tones matching their original droid colorations with ‘tattoos’ that mark them as former droids both stylistically and as proscribed by Rannochan law so people of non-LI origin wouldn’t get confused so easily. It was discovered rather unfortunately that simply uploading a droid to a biosynth body could cause immense personality dysphoria and resultant suicidal tendencies.

“Ahn~! Yes! Deeper HK~!” Bones wailed and I rubbed my hand down my face. I’m going to have to pressure them to get a room-. “Guh~!” -When they’re done. I’m not a cuck.

[1001100 01101001 01101110 01100101]

“I don’t appreciate you treating us like we’re just convenient resources.” Slayer snarled at Jehovah, who calmly sat upon their throne with an ambivalent smile and understanding in their gaze. The entity that many of the Christian, Jewish and Islamic faiths in the Milky Way worshiped as their deity was a polymorphic person whose appearance suited their desires and needs. Right now, Jehovah was an unrealistically attractive winged woman who, annoyingly enough to Slayer, matched his personal preference of a lithe, petite, elegant beauty, rather than the maternal beauty the majority of this sex-crazed universe possessed.

“I understand your resentment and I accept it. I also must remind you that you and your siblings can leave whenever you want. Nothing is stopping you from taking your leave, Todd.” Jehovah gently reminded him and he grit his teeth, his iridescent white wings and halo shimmering with his rage.

“You know that’s a load of bullshit!” Slayer couldn’t leave because he couldn’t abandon his family here.

“Your siblings chose to help us. You may continue to choose to abstain from our request and relax here or you could go home and fight right away. Or you could join them in helping us. You could also try to kill me again, but we both know how that turns out.” Jehovah playfully smiled and Slayer hated her playful and casual dominance. She didn’t hold it over anyone either, that’s what made it so hard to defy her.

She also was a master of grappling and enjoyed playing ‘uncle’ when she had him in a particularly painful hold, gently demanding he apologize earnestly before she’d release him. “You’re displaying really well why I’m pretty much an Atheist even with so many living gods running about my new universe.”

“I’m not asking for your worship, Todd. I don’t mind if nobody worships me, so long as they retain Good in their hearts and souls like you and your siblings, even if they perform acts of Evil for the Greater Good.” Jehovah kindly stated, the God/Goddess of Good smiling brightly, her pearly white teeth matching her white halo and wings, as well as her toga and brassier. If her skin was any paler, she’d almost seem like a pale entity aside from her star-bright blue eyes.

“Better than being imprisoned.” The Goddess of Evil huffed when she appeared in fire and Slayer leaped away from Luci, who very much embodied the ‘standard’ sense of maternal endowed beauty that Andromeda coveted so much. “Hey Sis.” Luci chirped happily with a wave. Her blood-red flesh rippled with muscle and her black horns and demonic wings seemed to absorb the light around her.

“That’s your own fault, sister. You’re the one who created demons and then let them usurp you.” Jehovah chided her sibling who pouted and her wings wilted. What?!

“Wait, what?” Slayer asked in confusion, dropping his raised fists from the shock at this revelation. He was suddenly glad he didn’t have his weapons by this point after Jehovah playfully disarmed him the seventh time he damaged infrastructure. “You fucking lost to your own creations?!”

“She only has power around her castle, in a remote plane, with demons constantly bashing the door to try to get in and rape her to make more Lords of Hell. The armies of Hell have rulers, dark lords, but Luci is not part of the true power there, never has. Gods to the demons are just tools to make more demons.” Jehova explained and Luci sighed.

“Yeah. All the cursing you guys do against me are kinda misguided. I may be the Goddess of Evil, but I have standards. There’s the brutality of excessive Evils such as murder, torture, slaughter, war, which are boring as, well, Hell to me. Then there’s the ‘lesser’ and far more fun Evils of conflict, pettiness, greed, y’know, the stuff that drives sapient folk to act? Those are my bread and butter. Discord and his ilk understand.” Luci declared with a sage nod.

“Besides, Evil is necessary to life, in portions. Even if a corporation turns evil, strays from the light, much of the technologies and wealth they make help Good in ways that are unseen. It is this power struggle that helps other God’s Aspects grow. We’re the gods of gods not by power or birthright, but by our roots driving you all forward.” Jehovah explained.

“Okay, then how do you explain my brothers’ world’s destruction by Satan? He locked me up before I could do battle against him and he’s still going around consuming things.” Slayer questioned the two.

“Technically, you and Brennie are holding aspects in my corner. As for Satan; he’s my firstborn. He loves posing as me and all that. He got the idea from the traitor maykrs.” Luci clucked her tongue disapprovingly at Jehovah, who for once looked ashamed. “If I could, I would decapitate him myself, but my power pales to his now since everyone considers him the Root of all Evil, when that’s me.” Luci sighed in resignation and Slayer wasn’t sure whether to feel annoyed with her or pity her position.

“Yes and the maykrs were an experiment of mine, to try and spread good and advancement to the dimensions. I was following Luci’s lead after she snuck into my garden of creation.” Jehovah said with an annoyed look at Luci.

“Hey, they were ready! You don’t keep thousands of species locked up! That’s Evil and I couldn’t let you potentially corrupt yourself.” Luci huffed and Slayer blinked at the odd polarity there. The Evil sibling is the one who ensured her Aspect didn’t pollute her Good counterpart? At least these two are far better off than the Jehovah and Lucifer from the Spawn comics.

“But I was still testing them, humans were supposed to have tails, but I couldn’t figure out how to work with their pelvises! And the human’s back is so messed up, they slowly break down over years! And what about your xenomorphs, they’re a perfect organism in terms of design, but you didn’t give them higher thought!” Jehovah chided and the siblings glared at each other.

“Don’t tell Brennie. She’ll want a planet full of those things to kill.” Slayer said, while the idea of fighting against such a creature intrigued him, the consequences outweighed the excitement.

“Right, well, I could let that happen, but it would have to be on a primitive world. Also, just to clear this up before you get the wrong impression; we never created species outright. We mostly made a blueprint for life to follow, 10 to the googol of designs, sent throughout creation-.” Jehovah was interrupted by Luci popping up next to her and playfulling pulling on her cheeks, the smaller sibling flailing about as Luci smiled.

“With a Big Bang!” Luci shouted and pulled on Jehovah’s unnaturally elastic cheeks and snapped them back audibly, her sister whining as she held her mouth.

“I thought that was just a theory. Nobody could prove it happened.” Slayer stated curiously as he wondered when the conversation turned to the creation of this universe.

“Nope! I dumped everything into a big powder keg of sorts and ignited it before I GTFOed out of the mortal plane we’d decided on before it went off. Oh~ was Joey mad!” Luci giggled as she patted Jehovah’s head and the goddess scrunched up her face in annoyance.

“And you wonder why Brennie blames you for all of Humanity’s faults; you get easily pushed around and undermined, by her, get easily pissed off and it will reflect on the rest of us. No wonder some depict you as being vengeful.” Slayer flatly said with a shake of his head.

“We’re not perfect.” The sisters replied in unison and shrugged at the same time.

“I blame mom for not giving us another sibling to buffer between us.” Luci commented while Jehovah gave her the stink-eye. “Anyway, I’m here because Satan finally battered down the door, I wasn’t just checking in. I need a place to crash sis, mind if I do it here?”

“Yes I mind! Todd, you don’t want to be here? Take my sister with you please.” Jehovah pleaded with him and Luci smirked at how unhappy her extended presence would make her sister.

“No.” Slayer firmly answered.

“I’m afraid you kinda don’t have a choice-.” Luci was saying before she and him were suddenly on a grassy field that Todd faintly recognized. “Yeah...she does that. So! You have a lot of repressed rage and frustration, let’s talk about it!” The naked sexy Goddess of Evil chirped happily and Todd groaned as he double facepalmed.