Master of Time

Chapter 142: God of Lightning

God? At least his name checks out.

But I am somewhat disappointed. No. I am really disappointed.

I am under the assumption that Gods would be glamorous.

You know, unearthly, heavenly and godly beautiful or handsome. Those sorts of things.

It is actually one of the many reasons to why I am really looking forwards to seeing the Goddess of the Moon in person. Considering how incredibly sexy the dark elves are in general, it is safe to assume that their Goddess is beyond heavenly beautiful.

She must be. She is a Goddess.

Please don't take that away from me. Please. Please.

Who the hell am I praying to?

I admit that Zeus is a handsome young man. Most women would fall head over heels for him. Did I say women? I mean sluts. Proper and mature women do not pay attention to those things.

And I shouldn't either.

Did I just compare myself to proper and mature woman?

I guess the shock and surprise of seeing Zeus in person did get to me, assuming that he is actually who he say he is.

People lie to each other every day. Gods are no exception.

Therefore, I take everything I heard with a grain of salt, including the stuff that Terra has told me when I met her. She is obviously lying about a few things to make herself more important.

I would to in her position due to my pride, but it is annoying on the receiving end of it, especially when I am completely in the dark about what is truly out there in the multiverse.

For example, these guys.

Aside from the fact that they do not belong to this reality, their powers aren't magical or technological in nature. And I seriously doubt that their power is spiritual either, considering that one of them is a fucking ghost.

How do I kill a ghost?

They are already dead, so is it possible to make them deader? Is that even a word?

And if I can't kill them, there must be a way to trap and imprison them. Calling the Ghostbusters is not a solution. Did I tell Mystic to get started on those proton packs?

Yes, I did. I also recall that Alex and Hans thought I was crazy.

They believe in magical undead zombies, but they didn't believe in ghost? Well. That was before I have brought the haunted house. The house will open their eyes to the supernatural.

Supernatural stuff exists now. Just more thing I have to defend myself against.

In any case, Zeus did mention that the ghost – Ghostly – is not with them. What is with that name? It feels like a joke, but then again, it didn't really matter to me.

What matters is that my time power couldn't create temporal copy of ghost. Zeus seems to be aware of this. He seems to know a lot of thing that I do not.

"Disappointed? I get that a lot."

Zeus speaks up when I remain silence. He seems to read my mind, so he must really get that a lot. And as he is a smart guy, I do not need to beat around the bushes. It would be insulting to his intelligent.

"Yes. I assume that you are Zeus, one of the Olympian Gods in Greek Mythology? I guess it is not really a mythology anymore. Should I also assume your friend Hades is your older brother?"

I response.

Zeus cracks up and shakes his head.

"Hades isn't my brother. My brother is dead. All of them. And so are the rest of the Olympians, at least in the reality that I was born in. In this reality, I am a myth. Most reality, really.

It seems that the chance of someone capable of peering into another reality is more frequent than the Gods coming into being. In fact, it is better if Gods do not exist –

Zeus cuts himself off. It seems that he has said too much.

Still, that is an insane amount of new information.

What did Zeus mean by someone capable of peering into another reality?

"I am not aware that there are people who can see into another reality. Are you saying that all mythical stories and legends are because of those people, writing down what happened in another reality?"

I question. It actually makes a lot of sense if I think about it more.

"Not just mythical stuff, Max. The Ori you are impersonating certainly exist in another reality, and they are as dead as the television show depicts them to be."

Zeus responses. He confirms what I have already suspected long ago. Fictional realities do exist. Does that mean there is also a galaxy far, far away? Not so far that I couldn't go there.

"Yes, Max."

Zeus smiles, seemingly knowing exactly what is on my mind. It isn't really that hard to guess, especially when I am impersonating the Ori.

"We will give you the spatial coordinates of those realities if you join us. Your Power of Time will be a great addition to our team. Don't worry about the harvesting thing. It is actually a real pain in the ass of finding another suitable wielder if we kill you."

Zeus offers or maybe threatens. He did it very subtly.

"Boss-lady? For a God to serve another. Aren't you putting yourself down, Zeus?"

I question while trying to figure out what makes him tick. If I know what button to push him, I am sure to get more information out of him.

Zeus chuckles and shrugs.

"I don't mind serving another as long as I get what I want, Max. She can offer me it, so I will serve her and help her kill an Aspect. Aspects are the guys who sit at the top. I have never met one myself, but I heard powerful cannot even describe them. Gods aren't at the top of the food chain. It is really funny how I once believe I am all powerful all knowing.

I am actually nothing in front of an Aspect, and I wish to be something."

Zeus tells me more than he should. But he didn't seem to mind.

"Sounds heavy. Is the boss-lady an Aspect? By the way, what is her name? Calling her the boss-lady all the time is troublesome."

I ask calmly.

I am just having a casual conversation with a God. It feels as normal as it gets.

Honestly, I wouldn't even think of Zeus as a God right now. And he seems to have very low opinion of Gods themselves. He also expresses no pain or sorrow when he mentions that the Olympians are dead, meaning that he cares nothing for them.

I wonder what had happened to the Olympians.

Zeus hums a little, thinking to himself.

"Unfortunately, I cannot tell you that, Max. Even I do not know her real name. As to whether she is an Aspect or not, I think you already know that."

Zeus smiles. Did he just realize that I am an Aspect?

No. He did not. If he did, he wouldn't be smiling like that. He assumes that I can come to the conclusion myself with everything he has told me. Of course, I already know that she isn't an Aspect.

The reason is very simple. Aspects are immune to each other's power.

Terra has demonstrated this when I first met her.

Therefore, if the boss-lady wants to kill me, she does not need people who can nullify my power if she is an Aspect herself.

Besides, Aspects are brothers and sisters.

There is no need to get stabby like that eccentric doctor back in the 31st century. I did pay him, right? It is so long ago that I couldn't bother remembering.

If any of the Aspects have a qualm with me, I am sure we both can sit down and talk it out over a nice cup of tea or coffee with big sister, Terra. At least for a little while before the Primordial think we are plotting something against them.

"I assume the boss-lady is not, considering that she is looking for people with powers that can nullify an Aspect's power. The Aspect of Time. Why do you think that I could?"

I question. Is it bizarre that the boss-lady is indirectly recruiting me to kill me?

Zeus cracks up again.

"No, Max. I don't think you could nullify an Aspect's power no matter how powerful you are. As great as your Power of Time is, the Aspect of Time can instantly kill you. But if you can give the Aspect pause, for even a fraction of a second, it is enough for the boss-lady. I think I have said enough. It really feels like you are fishing for information."

Zeus answers me. His smile is also gone.

It seems that no one in the right mind really wants to mess with an Aspect. That makes sense for Zeus, who is only a God. Didn't Terra make a Dragon God her bitch?

"So, are you in or not, Max?"

Zeus asks.

Even if I want to take up Zeus on his offer, he is just a temporal clone of the original. Therefore, he has no say in the matter. The original Zeus is no longer in this reality.

"And what if I refuse, Zeus?"

I question just out of curiosity.

"Nothing much, Max. Just a lot of destruction while we try to harvest the Power of Time out of you. I don't think you can fight all of us at once."

I probably could since my time power affects them just it affects normal people. But I will see whether I can beat them all up by myself later regardless of the fact they are temporal clones created from my power. I really need to figure out how to do that, so I can be in all realities simultaneously.

That will not cause confusion at all.

For now, I want to extract as much information from Zeus and his buddies as possible.

Zeus is actually very forthcoming. Whether it is the truth or not, I will confirm with him later.

"One more question, Zeus. Are you responsible for what happen in this world?"

I question.

Zeus narrows his eyes slightly before letting out a sigh.

"No, Max. We are not. The wielder of Power of Decay got killed, but Powers cannot be destroyed even if the wielder is dead. It will seek out a new wielder, and if it cannot find any, it will linger around like this until one is found. This is considered very tame."

This is very tame? The destruction of all life this reality is consider tame.

Zeus chuckles.

"Yes, Max. It is very tame in contrast to other powers. For example, if it was Power of Destruction, the entire universe will devoid not only of all life but of everything else. If it is Power of Incineration, I think there is only fire everywhere. That is how dangerous unwielded Powers are, but it is very hard to find the right host. Wrong host will just make thing worse."

Zeus then shakes his head as if he is trying to clear some bad memories.

"Anyway, I don't think you want to join us from all your questionings, Max. Shall we fight it out? It has been a while since I go full out."

It is hard to keep tricking Zeus into giving me information. I pay attention to the Queen of England as she has finally drawled out the fake Excalibur, earning the cheer and applaud from the people.

The real Excalibur is much more terrifying, and it is currently in the hand of Hades. What other magical weapons are his possession? In all of their possessions?

They seem to have wander the multiverse for a while now, so they must have a lot of crazy artefacts.

Fighting them going to be a pain in the ass. But I will fight them just to see where I am currently stand in the grand scheme of things.

"Sorry, Elizabeth, I will have you do it again."

The moment I have said that, time reversed.

"Did you not get it from my name? Unlike you, who is impersonating a God. I am a real God."

Zeus tells me. He didn't seem to notice that I have rewind time. None of them do.

"God? As in the Olympian Gods? You're telling me that you are real?"

I ask, changing my question as well as my tone.

Playing smart makes him suspicious. But playing dumb will make him even more suspicious due to my current persona as the Ori. I will have to find the right amount to get him spill everything, and I really do have unlimited tries to get it right.

Furthermore, there is no need to ask the same questions as before since I am trying to gain new insight from Zeus and his comrades.

Although it is easier to just beat them all up and then download their memory, but sadly, it is not really possible with a temporal clone. Enough physical or emotional trauma will make them disappear as if they are an illusion.

And it is hard to capture them intact without actually beating them up.

"Yes, Max. The Olympian Gods are real, but not in this reality… hmm…"

Zeus speaks up before shaking his head. He narrows his eyes slightly before returning to normal. I do wonder what is that about?

"As I was saying, Max. The Olympian Gods are real, but not in this reality. The reason that you believe them to be myths and legends because someone from your reality as well as this one was able to peer into another reality and write down what they saw. It actually happens more than you think."

Zeus continues.

"Aside from Hades, what happen to the rest of the Olympians?"

I question. I am theorized that they were killed by the boss-lady or her underlings, since it feels logical, considering that Zeus is working for her and able to wander the multiverse.

Zeus narrows his eyes suspiciously. He then looks around the room before returning his attention to the cloaked drone again.

"I see. Interesting. If you must know, Max. They are dead. I killed them. And I will kill you for that.

You really think I haven't noticed? Fool me once shame on me, but fool me twice, shame on you."

Zeus announces. Electricity crackles around his body before erupting outwards, spreading across the face of the planet at about one third the speed of light, destroying every single drone upon contact, regardless whether the drone is cloaked or shielded.

Even the people in the arena are electrocuted to death right before my eyes before a pillar of lightning pierces the sky and strikes me directly, shaking the entire world and vaporizing the coliseum.

Getting hit by a kazillion volt bolt of lightning does that.

And time instantly reverses.