Chapter Text
Chapter 1: Declaration
“Oh man, oh man, oh man…!”
The blue haired individual ran frantically through the hallways, panting heavily at the unusual effort made to increase her pace. As if being chased by a monster, which was more likely than it sounded in her life, she moved like her existence depended on it. Then, after taking a corner, her eyes brightened up. The door! With a giggle she smashed through it, the hinges almost breaking from the force and she spread her arms open in happiness. Just in time, she thought with a wide smile.
“I’M HERE!”
The silence was deafening. The hall, nay, the space she entered was massive, it might as well have been its own country. Defying common sense, it was like an infinite circle around a singular platform in the middle of this place. Each individual seated on their own specially designed spot, with more than enough space between each other, turned towards her at once. Amusement. Judgment. Disgust. All sorts of expressions were directed at the poor individual who was definitely not on time. Ah, she was about to cry from the looks she was getting. It wasn’t like she could punish them for doing so anyway. If a normal mortal had walked into this place, they’d die on the spot from the mere atmosphere alone, filled with their aura.
“Uhm, Aqua, we already started,” a white haired individual in a nun gown raised her hand, smiling politely as she gestured to her side. “Please sit down.”
Damn that Eris! She only made it worse by pointing it out! If not for her she could’ve at least pretended nothing was wrong, with all the dignity and pride of a goddess she had! With a silent glare, causing her fellow goddess to flinch back, she let herself drop down on her little throne, trying to make herself as small as possible. Well, on the bright side, there were so many other gods here, she was certain no one would remember her!...Right?
Given the disdainful look she received from the man in the middle, her hope started to vanish. Shaking his head with a deep sigh, his spiky black hair flowed through the air with a majestic aura, each movement done deliberately in perfect control. Spreading his dark clothed arms, he put on a smile as he took a deep breath, his warrior body showcasing its worth to the audience.
“As I was saying, fellow gods! The time when worlds should be separated has come! We have let mortals act uncontrolled for too long! I say, enough is enough! We cannot just let lesser beings deal with problems that we could deal with ourselves! If the native mortals cannot handle their problems, how could foreign mortals?” He curled his hand into a fist, holding it in front of his face in determination. “It is time we take the reins into our hands as we always should, as divine beings!”
Aqua just went with the flow when the clapping started, causing her to click her tongue in annoyance. A small recap would’ve been nice! But no, no mercy for the poor goddess that just happened to run late! Well, it couldn’t be too important anyway. Not even Eris looked overly excited about this, giving her applause just because she was a polite person. Here and there were some people more interested in this, but not Aqua, no sir. She couldn’t believe she rushed all the way to come here instead of finally drinking her wine she managed to hide!
The man made way for another, this time an actual nutcracker. The goddess couldn’t help but stifle a giggle. Sure, gods like them were eccentric and could choose whatever form they wanted, but this had to be one of the more stupid ones! Ha, even she could come up with a better form if she so chose!
“For too long we have allowed souls to move to other realms instead of giving them their final rest,” the nutcracker said, infusing his words with his divine essence. Putting his hand on his ‘chest’, he solemnly lowered his head. “Our actions have caused faith to waver. It caused much unrest in the realms, as we had cursed them with yet another lifetime of suffering. It is time to give them the rest they deserve as our believers.”
Without missing a beat, a woman with curly purple hair and an over the top royal dress stepped forward, her mouth covered with a fan. Yet despite being hidden, Aqua could feel the smug aura radiating from that, that offended her on an existential level just by principle. When she opened her mouth and began to speak, Aqua winced at the pitch she was speaking.
“It is demeaning!” The woman shouted, before wiping crocodile tears from her eyes, sniffing dramatically. “The pride and magnificence being tainted by such outsiders! How can we grow, ascend, if we keep involving foreigners, who just want to force their views on others? How can the nobility of the worlds, the royalty of their people, respect themselves by not showcasing their own might?”
If any more people were going to make those pretentious speeches Aqua was going to doze off. She was as much of a fan of divine dramatics as the next person but even she had her limits, she thought as she idly twirled her hair around her index finger. A part of her felt this whole situation felt a bit off but she decided to shrug it off. Overthinking stuff wasn’t her expertise! She was just going to get this meeting over with and go home! There!
“The arguments have been presented. Shall we gods do all we can do to stop this senseless transfer between worlds? Shall we solve this problem so that salvation can be grasped?”
The nutcracker’s words were followed by the black garbed man stepping forward. With a wave of his hand, two words were displayed in the sky, yes and no to stop transmigration. With a dramatic bow, he gave a look around him.
“The fate of the mortals is in your hands now. I sincerely hope you make the right decision.”
She could see that some gods, like Eris, were a bit torn over this decision. Then there were others, like her, who made their decision in an instant without much thought. After all, it was clear for her. Why ruin a working system? Those three and some others were just being dramatic! Reincarnation and transmigration worked just fine! Sure, her people didn’t take down the demon lord just yet, but it’s called work in progress! A good goddess delegates after all, and she was too busy trying to handle everything herself!
She gritted her teeth in frustration. Well, would be too busy if it weren’t for a certain loser dragging her down to the mortal world! Now she was too busy trying to live as an adventurer! Of course as fate wished it so, none of her opinions mattered... because the numbers spoke for itself.
“Yes to stop the transmigration” had won. It was closer than expected in a sense, but it was still a clear result. Aqua deflated on her seat. Great, now she had to come up with a new solution! So much work for her! Out of curiosity she peeked at Eris before blinking in surprise at the sign that was presented in her hand.
“You voted yes?” She asked, raising an eyebrow as she pointed at her fellow goddess almost accusingly. If Eris noticed, she didn’t show it as she tilted her head innocently while putting down her sign.
“Well, I am starting to feel a bit bad.” She raised her finger with a bright smile. “We could give our blessings to the locals instead of forcing others. I feel like those who died have already had enough on their plate.”
“Fair enough I guess,” Aqua grumbled with a half hearted shrug. Typical Eris and her goodie two shoes personality. Aqua was a bit peeved that she was one of the reasons she can’t send people over anymore... She clapped her cheeks before pumping her fists in determination. But whatever! She could just improvise! There were enough schmu-errr, chosen ones who could deal with the issues at hand!
Anyway, at the sight of the results, the black one chuckled in a low tone, almost sinisterly. Then clapping his hands a few times, a wide smirk was on his face.
“Magnificent! The time of judgement is near for the mortals!”
Aqua couldn’t help but blink, leaning back a bit as sweat ran down her neck. Even when she tended to have an optimistic look at life, no matter what people tried to put her down and what not, even she couldn’t deny that the way that sentence was phrased gave her shivers. It did not bode well for her. Unfortunately for her, her instinct proved to be true, for once in her eternal life.
“To relieve the worlds from their suffering, we shall purge them from the infection that are the mortals brought in from other worlds!”
Aqua could barely process what was just said, instead just blinking slowly, her mouth slightly opening in shock. Eh? Even as her mind blanked out, she could notice the atmosphere in the hall changing completely. There was only utter disbelief and... malice. From the figure with the endless arms, a sagely nod as his light radiated from him, from the pitch black golem, its red wings seemingly twitching with the torn steel like mouth it, from the angelic figure, representing the beauty standards of both male and female as he chuckled in amusement, the negative intent towards mortals and the transmigration method was almost too much for Aqua to handle. Why did they hate them so much? As much as she complained herself, they weren’t so bad! If anyone shared that opinion, they didn’t voice it. Instead, the one who was practically jolly at the prospect of bloodshed stepped forward. The nutcracker bowed at them before clasping its wooden hands. Even with the inability of facial expressions, the puppet radiated a smug, victorious aura that pierced the silence together with his words.
“It is decided! Salvation for all! The sinners and the innocent, the faithful and the heretics, all shall be granted our mercy!”
“Every single one, and those connected to them, shall die! Erase the filth and restore the purity and natural balance!” The female goddess continued on, her face distorted into an ugly expression of superiority, barely able to contain her laughter, having dropped all pretenses of being a noble.
Meanwhile, Aqua could barely breathe, her skin completely pale. The number was utterly monstrous. The amount of lives and souls meant to be extinguished if they actually followed through with this. And for someone living “eternal” like her? The entire audience was more than able to properly grasp how many would perish, unlike mortals who’d not even have the proper context to see how horrifying it would be.
“We shall deal with the mortals immediately.”
At the spiky haired one’s words, there was more cheering that Aqua was ever comfortable with. It was nothing compared to the clapping from before. In such a wide hall, it actually echoed, causing it to sound like the eerie howl of the wind in the darkness.
“No... “
She had no idea why it was that sound that caused Aqua to turn her head. Maybe it was because of how guilt ridden and broken it sounded. But a part of her was thankful for it, because it let her see something to snap her out of it. Eris, her skin completely ghost white, slumping against her seat as her eyes were completely blank, as if her mind shut down from the horror she unintentionally voted for. For all she bickered with Eris, Aqua never wanted to see such an expression on her face. In that moment, her own shock was broken and replaced by pure outrage. Jumping up, she let her divine aura flare up. It was nothing compared to most gods, eliciting at most a confused tilt of a head... but she got their attention now, as she slammed her hands down on the stone railing in front of her, baring her teeth.
“What kinda joke is this?!”
Her shouting seemed to break the spell that had fallen over those who did not feel genocidal today. One after another, objections were thrown in, the entire area falling into chaotic noise as two sides were formed between the gods. Yet despite all of this... the black god in the middle merely sighed in exasperation, shaking his head.
“Mortals are the core of reality’s problems. It is mortals that wage war, mortals that fail to bring salvation and mortals that cause chaos in their worlds. It is only natural to get rid of the disease rather than just working on the symptoms.”
Aqua couldn’t even process that sort of utter disregard for life when the female goddess let out a mocking sound as she looked at the water goddess with a condescending smirk.
“Hmmm~?” She gasped dramatically, clapping her hands together. “Oh, did you misunderstand? What a pity. We were so clear after all!” She waved her hand dismissively. “I mean, it’s not our fault if nobody asks any questions! How are we supposed to solve any misunderstandings then?”
“Your outrage is understandable. But we must not forget ourselves. We are gods and thus have a duty.” The nutcracker nodded to himself, continuing off his predecessor's words, more polite but just as dismissive. “To spread our faith and remove those without.”
Shocked silence reigned. At the audacity. At the unfairness of this situation. Of the maniacs spearheading this sort of movement. They were completely insane, Aqua thought silently, slowly shaking her head with her eyes wide, dropping back on her seat, strength leaving her legs. Like, not Darkness level of insane. Utterly not fun, deranged, insane. The kind of insane that would give her nightmares, the insanity she turned away from whenever she could. And the worst of it all? None of them could change this outcome now. Once a vote was cast, it was locked in. Not even the gods themselves could prevent it. The vote was binding for all deities. Those three definitely planned all of this! Making everyone not question anything, just thinking it was a regular, non important vote! The most she could do was refuse, but then another god would take the place of the executioner and she wouldn’t be able to do anything against it, in fear of “breaking the rule”!
Seeing that the realization hit in, the first speaker clapped his hands a few times, a victorious smile on his face.
“If there’s nothing else, let us commence the Zero Mo-”
“Please wait!”
Interrupting someone during such a meeting was an unwritten taboo. After all, gods were gods. Yet the strong and confident female voice paid no heed to it as it echoed through the audience, stopping the god in his words. He clicked his tongue in annoyance and turned his head to the source of the voice, just like everyone else. Aqua’s eyes widened at the sight. A beautiful woman with midnight blue hair that reaches her waist. For clothing, she had a rather elegant but formal dress with a hair pin in the shape of a wing. A valkyrie? If she knew what the implications of her actions were, as she walked down the stairs even as she gathered all kinds of looks, she didn’t show it as her face was a calm mask.
“Valkyrie.” The interrupted god asked in a low tone, narrowing his eyes ever so slightly. “You know the rules. Once a vote is cast, it cannot be denied.”
Respectfully, the demigod raised her dress a bit and bowed with a curtsy. Then, putting her hand on her chest, she gestured towards his general direction.
“I am aware of this. But it would be a pity to let things end like this.” A faint smile appeared on her face as she held her chin. “After all, it could be more exciting, don’t you agree?”
Aqua gaped in disbelief. What the heck was that woman saying?! Here she thought the Valkyrie might have some super duper plan to fix this situation, but instead she was rambling some nonsense! But for whatever reason, the spiky haired god hummed in intrigue, leaning forward with his arms crossed.
“Hoh?”
Taking it as her cue to continue, the intruder twirled her hand in elaboration.
“We may not change the vote, but we can always add a condition according to the rules.”
“And what condition do you have in mind?” The nutcracker asked, similarly intrigued and ignoring the enraged expression of the woman among the two of them. At his words, the Valkyrie smirked as if in victory as she spread her arms open.
“Allow them to defend themselves. Allow them to fight for their survival against you. Thirteen against thirteen, one on one matches. The venerable gods win the most victories, the vote goes through as planned. The reincarnated and transmigated win, they shall live.”
Aqua’s eyes widened. Eris’ eyes widened. Heck, everybody’s eyes widened. They knew exactly what the demigod was talking about. It was a side note in the rule book, probably a joke by one of the guys who made it in the first place. Aqua grabbed her hair as she let out a silent scream. She was trying to pull the Ragnarok clause?! Putting mortals against gods, that was insane! She might as well just accept the vote as it was, that way it’ll be a lot less humiliating for people like Kazuma! Naturally the other gods thought this was a joke as well, especially the bitch in the middle who after getting her wits together again, began to chuckle dryly.
“As if we-”
“Hahahaha... “
An amused laugh. What was different about it? It sounded genuinely excited. Everyone turned their heads to the god who started this whole mess, his spiky hair covering his eyes a bit. Then he stared at his hand, which curled into a fist.
“I should blame the blood in this body…” He snapped his head up, utter glee in his eyes as he began to clap his hands. “But the moment you said ‘fight’, I cannot help but feel anticipation to crush those mortals! Yes, a final lesson! Wonderful!”
“Indeed.” The nutcracker’s mouth creaked a few times, giving the impression of a laugh. “To demonstrate why we deserve faith in the first place. The omnipotent power of our divinity. I have no objections, Brunhilde. I am in favor of one last lesson.”
Huh. So that was her name, Aqua thought dumbly at the turn of events. As the valkyrie gracefully bowed, the third goddess in the middle repeatedly turned her head between her supposed allies. Incomprehension filled her face as the mood in the area changed. Anticipation, glee, pride, all of them surged from the gods that agree to kill mortals completely... in response to the challenge, nay, free spectacle they were going to receive. At the face of this, the goddess realized she couldn’t turn the tide and thus opened her fan to cover her irritated expression.
“Pah! Fine! Some halftime entertainment won’t hurt!” She closed her fan and pointed it at the intruder with a snarl.“We agree to this little play of yours, valkyrie!”
The vote was quick. The cheers were deafening. And Aqua had no idea what to think of this. But all she knew was that she had to chase that valkyrie down. Leaving Eris behind, still in shock on her seat, she ran after the retreating woman.
“Hey, hey, hey! You!”
Just before she could reach her, Aqua stumbled. With a cry, she slid over the ground, the rough ground messing up her skin. Whining, she looked up, seeing Brunhilde stare at her with an unreadable expression. Turning her head away, she reached out with her hand.
“What is it, Lady Aqua?”
How respectful! She even averted her gaze to avoid seeing a goddess in such a state! Kazuma could learn something from her! Dusting herself off, she accepted the hand. Then she remembered what she was here for. Puffing out her chest, she pointed at the valkyrie with a frown.
“How did you pull that off?!”
“If there’s anything that’s absolute, it was the lust for blood in that room. Given such an opportunity, I knew they would bite the bait,” Brunhilde explained in a calm tone. Made sense, Aqua thought. But still, she had more questions. Her voice reaching a higher pitch, she began to wave her arms frantically.
“That’s great and all, but this won’t change anything! There’s no way mortals can beat gods in a fight! Do you even have any volunteers for this?! Of course you don’t, nobody is that dumb!”
Ever so slowly, the Valkyrie turned her head. At that moment, Aqua was confused. She glanced behind her. Weird. Nobody there. So what was she looking at, as if she was staring at complete garbage? She blinked when Brunhilde covered her face with her palm, letting out a sigh. Huh. Must’ve just been her imagination then!
“I can’t believe I left Geir behind for this... “ She muttered to herself. Then reaching into her cleavage, she pulled out a weird device. An Youpad or something? “My lady, please calm down. I already had a lineup prepared before this meeting even started.”
“Eh? Really?” As the woman poked away at the screen, Aqua raised her arms in excitement. People that actually have a chance against a god? That’d be awesome! Jumping up and then, she danced around Brunhilde before peaking over her shoulder. “Great! So, which great warrior is up fir-”
Her entire body froze. Her face, despite smiling, was empty. The reason? The individual shown on screen. Someone she actually knew personally. Because of that... she could only put her hand on the valkyrie’s shoulder, her eyes filled with resignation and pity.
“...They’re all going to die.”
“I never said the team was perfect,” the Valkyrie responded, her eyebrow twitching despite the smile. “But I have faith this will work out, no matter who they face.”
“Agh! Damn it, fine! I’ll do whatever I can to help!” Aqua announced. Damn everyone, they could just bring it! Blessings, weapons, whatever, she’ll provide it if it meant to wipe those smug faces off the face of reality! Blinking in surprise, Brunhilde was taken aback by her enthusiasm. Then, she shook her head.
“To get the help of a goddess against the divine.” A scoff escaped her as she began to walk down the halls once more. “How hilarious.”
///
The arena was built like the coliseums of old in ancient Rome. Yet in comparison to the works of the mortals, this divine work defied common physics as well. Massive was one way to describe it. Impossible another. Worlds worth of deities and mortals, may they be human, beast or demonic, were gathered in the vast seats of this place, their cheering shaking the air itself. As if summoned by the excitement of seeing two individuals try to kill each other, the arena suddenly darkens. Then, a spotlight revealed a small figure. With a cloak over his weird head, sharp teeth and pointy ears included, he raised his horn before screaming into it, easily rivaling the combined volume of the arena.
“WELCOME TO RAGNAROK!” As the audience exploded, he laughed loudly, spreading his arms open to take the atmosphere in. Then he took a deep breath once more. “I am your announcer, Heimdall, for this divine war between gods and mortals!” With his free hand, the god raised his hand into the air. “Thirteen fights, two fighters each, only one winner! Will the gods reign supreme as always and purge the worlds?! Or will the mortals of several realms defy all odds?! A question that demands an answer! And that answer shall be revealed in this first fight!”
“First up! The vanguard of the divine!”
A choir suddenly sounded. Angelic in tone, it grasped the hearts of even the least faithful believers. Then, from the one entrance, white feathers gently floated out of them.
“The angels were the eyes of heaven. The angels were the voices of heaven. Perfect creations to guide mankind! But among them all, one reigns supreme over all as the greatest of them all, in good and in bad! A being that could be called perfection itself!”
It was as if the light turned off. As darkness grasped the area, the shining sun that seemed to walk out, nay, levitated out, was so much more blinding. Three wide white wings from the back, two small wings on the head and one each on the legs, fluttered ever so gently. But despite the light, the air was heavy, suffocating as the serene smile looked over the area, as if staring at amusing bugs.
“He is the mightiest of them all! Combining the beauty of man and woman! He rebelled against his creator! His desire to destroy humanity is second to none! Hell is his kingdom, demons are his servants!”
With a snap of their fingers, the individual combining both female and male traits gathered the darkness underneath them, the light returning to the place. Then with a strong clap, the shadows retreated to where they should be.
“Yet, even if his creator cast him down, even if he had committed the sin to work together with demons... his divinity cannot be denied! His wish for humanity’s extinction is the same! Now, in this tournament, he joined hands with the pantheons of all reality to see the Zero Mortal Plan go through!”
The wings flapped with strong force, causing powerful gusts of wind to cover the deity like a tornado. Then, with a sudden movement, it was blasted away, revealing the fighter with wings and arms wide open in invitation.
“The one and only…! SATAN!”
At his name, the entire audience was struck with silence. Both gods and mortals couldn’t comprehend what they were seeing. The latter saw a final boss of final bosses as their first opponent, a being that tried to kill humanity since the dawn of its history. The former on the other hand saw a rebel that had no reason to work with them beyond the desire to eradicate mortals, which caused some concern in them.
“How the heck is Satan divine, jackass?!”
An twitching eye. A nervous gulp. And an audience that searched for the source of that voice. Among them was Brunhilde, hidden on a higher level and in the shadows, blinking in confusion.
“Who was that?” She muttered quietly, before glancing at her ‘ally’, who for some reason began to laugh nervously.
“N-no idea~!” She lied as badly as a child. The valkyrie narrowed her eyes for just a moment before shrugging. It was a sentiment shared by Heimdall who cleared his throat, raising his horn once more.
“On the side of humanity!”
There was no triumphant music. No change in atmosphere. Only steps could be heard, sounding from the entrance halls.
“If anyone can represent what mortals are, it is this individual! He lacks strength. He lacks talent. His surroundings succeed more than he ever did. Just a normal human, dragged to another world, with nothing but his clothes on his body.”
Slowly, the figure revealed itself, the shadows showing a young man of average size and build, his short black hair barely moving in the wind.
“Even after transmigrating, he was nothing special. Overshadowed by his surroundings, he stuck to those with more power.”
His fists were curled up. His face was grim. In a black and orange jumpsuit, the young man took strong steps forward, eyes not leaving his opponent. If he was intimidated by the inhuman appearance, the raw divine power or the surprised look he received, he didn’t show it.
“Yet, for all his mediocrity, for all the lack of accomplishments... he is the one who decided to step forward as the first fighter! His determination and willpower is his strongest trait! His loyalty is to be commended! Against all odds, he is now standing here!”
With a deep breath, he glanced behind him. Worried looks of a blue haired maid, gritted teeth of a purple haired knight, folded hands and closed eyes of fear of an white haired elven girl. With a small smile, he nodded at them, before throwing his fist into the air.
“SUBARU NATSUKI!”
There was no cheer. Disbelief. Shock. Outrage. Then, in the end, dismissive laughter mixed together with objections and terror. That was the vanguard of the mortals?! A teenager with not a speck of great deeds in his life?! It took Heimdall screaming as loudly as he could to silence the audience so they could begin, focusing solely on the fighters.
“Are you ready?!”
It was a laughable image. The definition of an angelic being, the strongest angel of them all, against a mere average mortal wearing nothing but a stupid jump suit. The outcome should be obvious. There was no chance of victory in the eyes of the despairing humans nor the smug gods. Yet the fighters in the arena paid them no heed. Satan covered his mouth, intrigued at the turn of these events, while Subaru rolled his shoulders a few times, exhaling calmly. Nodding at their reactions, Heimdall raised his horn before blowing into it, the horn sounding across even dimensions to announce the beginning.
The beginning of Ragnarok.