Edward walked through the dark corridors of Tartarus carrying Hera in his arms, her head resting against his shoulder. Behind them, Siegfried followed at a respectful distance, still trying to process everything he'd witnessed. The legendary hero had spent thousands of years in isolation, and now he was watching the Queen of Olympus—married to a godslayer—being carried like a bride while discussing their life together.
"I've missed this," Hera said softly, her fingers tracing the edge of Edward's jaw. "Through the avatar, I felt everything—your warmth, your touch. I also sensed it when our son was born. But feeling you here with me directly, with my true form... it's so much more vivid."
"Alphonse has grown so much since you last had a clear connection," Edward replied, his gruff Kratos voice somehow managing warmth. "He's become an incredible craftsman. Built defense systems that even Brainiac couldn't fully penetrate."
"I wish I could have been there, before Zeus sealed me completely. Time flows differently in the divine sphere. We don't perceive time as humans do, yet I felt every second of it when I was sealed." Hera said, her voice carrying both pride and pain. "I truly wished to be there myself. Watching our son, creating wonders that blend magic and technology. His brilliance, his gentle heart—"
Her voice cracked slightly. "I've missed so much of his life. Through the avatar, I felt him growing, learning, becoming this amazing young man. But I want to hold him properly. Tell him how proud I am."
Edward held her tighter. "He knows. The avatar made sure of that. But having you there in person will mean everything to him. He's been working on something for months,won't tell anyone what it is. I suspect it's a gift for you."
"Home," Hera muttered the word like a prayer. "I've dreamed of Avalon for so long. Our chambers, Alphonse's workshop where he creates his wonders. My avatar showed me glimpses, but I want to walk those halls myself. Watch our son work while he explains his inventions in that enthusiastic way of his."
"And the girls too," Edward added with a slight smile. "Diana's grown so much. She remembers the stories you told through the avatar when she was young. And Cassie—well, Cassie's been herself. Trying not to break stuff."
Hera laughed softly, though tears gathered in her eyes. "Diana, whom I've loved as my own since she was a child. And Cassie, Hippolyta's fierce girl. I've felt their lives through the connection, but I want to be there properly. Plant gardens with Diana. Spar with Cassie." She paused. "And Soph? How is our youngest doing?"
"Growing into his power," Edward said. "Death's influence is strong, but he's learning control. It's hard when you are born as something fundamental to the multiiverse."
Siegfried, listening to this, finally couldn't help himself. "So you're actually married? You have a son together?"
"Yes," Hera said, not looking away from Edward. "Alphonse is our son. And we have other children I love dearly. Diana, Cassandra, and Soph. Even if they aren't mine. The family Zeus could never give me because he was too busy chasing anything with a pulse."
Her voice hardened on Zeus's name, millennia of resentment and rage bleeding through.
"When my avatar severed our marriage bond and married Edward instead, I felt freedom for the first time in eons," Hera continued. "I experienced what actual love felt like. What it meant to have a partner who was faithful, who valued me, who treated me as an equal rather than a possession.
We had a son together—beautiful, brilliant Alphonse. And I wanted more of it. I wanted to merge with my avatar, leave this place, go to Earth-X and truly live that life instead of just experiencing it secondhand."
"Zeus didn't take that well," Edward added darkly.
"No, he didn't." Hera's laugh was bitter. "He couldn't accept that I'd chosen someone else. That I'd found happiness with the very person who'd killed his avatar on Earth-X. That I'd borne another man's child while still technically his wife in this realm.
His pride couldn't handle the humiliation—Zeus's wife, running off with his killer, mother to a child that wasn't his. So he did the only thing his petty, vindictive mind could conceive."
"He imprisoned you," Siegfried said quietly. "To maintain his reputation."
"Exactly. If I'd simply left, every god would know Zeus's wife had abandoned him for the godslayer who'd humiliated him. His authority would be questioned. His power structure would crack. So he trapped me here."
Her voice shook with rage, "He sealed me in the deepest pit of Tartarus, sealed behind so many wards that even other Olympians wouldn't sense me. He told everyone I was in seclusion, mourning some made-up tragedy. And he put Aphrodite in my place, maintaining the illusion of a functioning pantheon."
"While you suffered alone for thousands of years," Edward said, his voice dropping to something dangerous.
"I survived because of our bond," Hera said, touching his chest where she could feel their connection thrumming with power.
"Even with Zeus's seals, he couldn't completely sever it. A trickle of your power reached me, just enough to keep me alive. And through it, I felt everything. Felt you raising Alphonse. Felt his first words, his first invention. Felt you guiding Diana, training Cassie, teaching Soph. Felt my avatar living the life I wanted to live."
She looked up at him, tears gathering in her eyes despite her fierce expression. "Do you know what that was like? Experiencing happiness through a connection while your true body rotted in chains? Feeling your son's triumphs, your family's love and warmth, all at a distance, like watching through frosted glass?"
Edward stopped walking and held her close. "I'm sorry. I should have realized something was wrong. Should have investigated when you lost connection—"
"You had no way of knowing, love." Hera interrupted. "Zeus hid me perfectly. And you had enough crises to deal with. I don't blame you, Edward. I blame him."
Her eyes blazed white with divine fury. "And I'm going to make him pay for every single year he stole from me. Every moment with our son that I missed. Every family dinner, every milestone, every quiet evening—he stole all of it."
As they reached the entrance to the Underworld, the threshold between Tartarus and the upper levels—Edward's divine senses flared. Multiple presences approaching. Powerful ones. Divine authority radiating with the intensity of suns.
He stopped walking.
"Siegfried," Edward said without turning around. "Leave. Now. Find Brunhilde and tell her to summon the thirteen human warriors she prepared. They should gather in Valhalla, ready to fight what's about to happen. They might be able to help a bit, though I doubt it'll be necessary."
Siegfried hesitated. He owed this man his freedom, but abandoning him before a fight felt wrong. "Will you be alright? Those presences, I can feel them even with my weakened senses. That's Zeus and Odin coming, isn't it?"
Edward's smile was sharp as a blade. "It's those gods who should be worried."
The absolute confidence in his voice left no room for argument.
Siegfried nodded, clasped his fist to his chest in a warrior's salute, and ran. His footsteps echoed through the corridor before fading into silence.
Edward looked down at Hera, who was already pushing herself out of his arms. "You should rest. Let me handle it."
"No." Hera's feet touched the ground, and she stood on her own for the first time in millennia. Her body was still thin, still marked with scars from her imprisonment, but there was strength returning to her limbs.
"I'm recovered enough to fight. And more importantly," Her eyes glowed white with divine power, "I want to beat up Zeus myself. He kept me from our son. Kept me chained while Alphonse grew up. I'm going to make him bleed for that."
Edward felt her reaching through their marriage bond, not just drawing power but actively channeling his strength, his authorities, his divine essence. The connection flared brighter, and Edward watched as Hera's body transformed.
Her slim frame filled out with muscle, not bulky but defined like an Amazonian warrior. Her divine armor materialized, golden and regal but designed for combat rather than ceremony. Her purplish-black hair seemed to gain life, flowing with divine energy. Her eyes blazed with white fire, reflecting the power flowing through their bond.
She looked like what she'd always been meant to be, not a decorative queen sitting on a throne, but the goddess who'd helped Zeus claim Olympus in the first place. The version of herself she'd had to suppress for millennia to fit Zeus's image of what a wife should be.
"Zeus and Odin are approaching," Edward warned. "This won't be like fighting avatars. These are their true forms, at full power."
"I know," Hera said calmly. She held out her hand expectantly.
Edward understood immediately. He reached into his dimensional storage and withdrew the Blade of Olympus, the massive sword that had once belonged to Zeus himself, claimed by Kratos in another world, and now carried by Edward as a proof of divine conquest.
The blade was magnificent and terrible. Golden metal that seemed to contain the essence of Olympus itself, inscribed with runes of power and kingship. The weapon was designed to kill gods, to pierce divine flesh and destroy immortal souls.
Hera's hand closed around the hilt, and the blade sang with recognition. It had been forged from the power of all Olympian gods, including hers. The weapon acknowledged its queen, power flowing through the connection.
"Be careful," Edward said, his voice carrying genuine concern. "Zeus and Odin together, even with my power flowing through you, they're dangerous."
Hera looked at him and smiled—fierce and beautiful . "I've been careful for thousands of years. Careful, patient, waiting. I'm done being careful. I want to fight. I want to hurt the bastard who kept me from our family."
She hefted the Blade of Olympus, the massive weapon moving like it weighed nothing in her empowered grip. "Besides, I can at least help you rather than just watching. I'm not some damsel who needs protecting. I'll fight , for you and our family."
"Never thought you were," Edward replied with a grim smile. "We'll fight them here in the Underworld. Limit the collateral damage."
They moved together to a vast chamber that had once served as a judgment hall for particularly evil souls. The space was massive. Easily over thousands of miles across, with a ceiling that stretched into darkness. Stone pillars thick as houses supported the structure, and the floor was solid bedrock worn smooth by millennia of use.
It was a good place for a battle. Lots of room to move, structurally sound enough to handle divine power, and far enough from the mortal realm that humans wouldn't be caught in the crossfire.
They didn't have to wait long.
Reality tore open, and two figures stepped through.
Zeus, King of the Olympians, stood in his full divine glory. Not the frail old man he sometimes appeared as, but the warrior-king in his absolute prime. His body was sculpted perfection, muscles that could crack mountains rippling beneath bronze skin.
His eyes crackled with lightning, and his presence made the air itself vibrate with power. He wore simple robes that somehow made him look more regal than any amount of golden armor could.
Beside him stood Odin, the Allfather. Tall and imposing, wearing battle armor inscribed with runes that glowed with eldritch power. His single eye blazed with wisdom and fury in equal measure.
Gungnir, the legendary spear that never missed its mark, rested in his hand. Ravens circled overhead, Huginn and Muninn, thought and memory made manifest.
Both gods radiated power that would have made lesser beings kneel. Divine authority concentrated enough to warp space, to make reality itself bend to their will.
They stopped in their tracks when they saw Edward.
The pale, ash-covered skin. The red tattoo. The cold, ancient eyes. The Blades of Chaos hanging at his sides, their chains wrapped around his forearms.
The Ghost of Sparta. The godslayer who'd killed their avatars. The nightmare made flesh.
"You bastard," Zeus breathed, his voice carrying barely contained rage. "I'd heard rumors, whispers that you might appear here. But I didn't believe it at first."
His eyes fell on Hera, and his expression twisted with fury. "And you brought my wife as your whore? How dare—"
"Former wife," Hera interrupted coldly, her voice cutting across Zeus's like a blade. "I severed that bond long ago. I am Edward's wife now. Mother to his son. And I'm going to enjoy watching you bleed."
Zeus's face purpled with rage. Lightning crackled around him, arcing between his fingers. "You think being in my true form will make a difference?" he snarled at Edward. "My avatar was limited, constrained by the mortal realm's rules. Here, in the Divine Sphere, I am power incarnate. I am the storm that destroyed the Titans. I am—"
"You're a rapist and a tyrant," Edward interrupted flatly. "And you're about to die. This time, there will be no coming back. No avatar to retreat to. Just you, your arrogance, and my blades."
Odin's eye narrowed as he studied Edward. "My avatar told me of you before it died. Said you fought with the precision of a master and the fury of a berserker. Said you knew runes better than most Aesir."
His grip tightened on Gungnir. "I've spent millennia preparing for this encounter. Learning from my avatar's failure. You won't find me so easy to—"
"Save your speeches," Edward said, his voice cold as the void. "You rotten wastes had imprisoned my wife. Kept her chained in darkness for thousands of years. Kept her from our son. There's nothing you can say that will change what's about to happen."
Zeus's eyes widened slightly as he looked at Hera. Saw the way she stood beside Edward, not behind him. Saw the matching divine auras, the marriage bond that pulsed between them with power that rivaled his own connection to his authorities.
"You merged your authority with him," Zeus said, disbelief coloring his voice. "Fully. Not just the avatar, your true form married this... this mortal?"
"He's more than you ever were," Hera replied, her voice dripping with contempt. "He's been more faithful in our years together than you were in our entire marriage. He's raised our son with love and patience. He's built a family that actually functions instead of a dysfunctional pantheon held together by fear and tradition."
Zeus's expression went from rage to something darker—pure, murderous fury. His form began to glow, lightning dancing across his skin, his eyes becoming pure white electricity.
"You betrayed Olympus," Zeus said, his voice dropping to something terrible. "Betrayed your pantheon. Betrayed me. And for what? To play house with the creature who killed me? To birth a bastard half-breed? I should have killed you when I had the chance instead of just imprisoning you."
Hera grabbed Edward's face and kissed him—deep, possessive, claiming. When she pulled back, her smile was vicious. "I've finally found someone to love. Someone who actually deserves the title of husband. And he's a thousand times the man you are, Zeus. In every possible way."
The insult, delivered in front of Odin, witnessed by the Underworld itself, was too much.
Zeus roared, his voice shaking the chamber. Lightning exploded from his body in all directions, scorching stone and turning pillars white-hot.
"I'll kill you both!" Zeus bellowed. "Tear you apart slowly! Make you watch as I erase every memory of your bastard son from existence! I'll—"
Edward moved.
The Blades of Chaos materialized in his hands, wreathed in crimson flame. He crossed the distance between them in a heartbeat, moving faster than Zeus expected, and brought both blades down in a vicious cross-slash.
Zeus barely got his arms up in time, divine power hardening his skin to marble toughness. The blades sparked against his flesh, not cutting but leaving scorched trails.
The battle had begun.
Odin thrust Gungnir forward—the spear that never missed its target streaked toward Edward's back with impossible speed.
But Hera was there, the Blade of Olympus intercepting the legendary weapon with a clash that rang like thunder.
"You want to fight?" Hera snarled at Odin. "Then fight me. Let me show you what happens when you imprison a goddess for thousands of years."
Odin's eye widened as he felt the power radiating from her, not just her own divine authority, but Edward's strength as well, flowing through their bond and amplifying her strength to terrifying levels.
The battle split naturally. Edward against Zeus, Hera against Odin.
Edward pressed his attack on Zeus with relentless aggression. The Blades of Chaos whirled in complex patterns, each strike aimed at vital points—throat, eyes, joints, anywhere that might prove vulnerable. The chains allowed for unpredictable angles of attack, and Edward used every inch of their length.
Zeus defended with raw power, lightning forming shields that the blades crashed against. Electricity arced toward Edward in savage bolts, but he dodged with inhuman reflexes honed by millennia of combat.
"You think you're strong?" Zeus roared, his fist erupting with concentrated lightning. He punched forward, the air itself ionizing from the power. "I am the Skyfather! I am—"
Edward caught the punch.
His hand closed around Zeus's fist, and for a moment, both of them simply stared at each other.
Then Edward squeezed. Divine bone creaked under the pressure, and Zeus's eyes widened with the first real hint of fear.
"You talk too much," Edward said flatly. Then he yanked Zeus forward and headbutted him.
BANG!
The impact was devastating. Zeus's nose shattered, golden ichor spraying across Edward's face. The King of Olympus stumbled backward, shocked that his divine flesh had actually broken.
Edward didn't give him time to recover. He swung the Blades of Chaos in a wide arc, the weapons screaming through the air with enough force to split mountains.
Zeus threw up a shield of compressed lightning, but the blades tore through it like paper and carved deep gashes across his chest.
Golden blood—ichor, the life essence of gods, flowed freely. Zeus looked down at the wounds in disbelief. His true form, his full divine power, and this mortal-turned-something-more was making him bleed like he was nothing.
Across the chamber, Hera and Odin traded blows with similar brutality.
Odin was a master spearman, his techniques refined over thousands of years of warfare. Gungnir moved in patterns too fast for mortal eyes to follow, each thrust precise enough to split atoms. The spear's magic ensured it never missed—once Odin committed to an attack, reality itself would bend to make sure it landed.
But Hera was fueled by Edward's power, amplified by rage that had been building for millennia. She moved with speed that defied Gungnir's magic, her enhanced reflexes allowing her to deflect strikes that should have been unavoidable. The Blade of Olympus clashed against the legendary spear again and again, each impact sending shockwaves through the Underworld.
"You were supposed to stay buried!" Odin snarled, his runes flaring. Mystical chains erupted from the ground, trying to bind Hera's legs. "Zeus assured me you were sealed! That no one would ever—"
Hera shattered the chains with a pulse of divine power. "You helped him!" she shouted, realization dawning. "You helped Zeus imprison me! Lent him Norse runes to strengthen the seals!"
"You were destabilizing the divine order!" Odin shot back. Gungnir swept low, aiming for her knees. Hera jumped, and the spear gouged a trench in the bedrock.
"A queen abandoning her king, bearing children with his enemy, it set a dangerous precedent! We couldn't allow—"
The Blade of Olympus came down with enough force to crack Odin's guard. The impact drove him to one knee, and Hera's follow-up strike carved a line across his chest armor, parting divine metal like cloth.
"You kept me from my son!" Hera screamed, her voice raw with pain and fury. "From my family! From the life I deserved!" She struck again, and this time the blade sunk into Odin's shoulder. Ichor flowed freely , not just minor wounds. "You don't get to justify that! You don't get to—"
Lightning struck her from behind. Zeus's attack sent Hera crashing into a pillar, her armor scorched. She coughed, golden burn marks spreading across her divine skin.
"Stay out of this, woman," Zeus snarled. "You'll get your beating after I—"
Edward appeared behind Zeus, moving with impossible speed. The Blades of Chaos wrapped around Zeus's throat, chains pulling tight. Edward yanked backward, lifting the King of Olympus off his feet and slamming him into the ground hard enough to crater the bedrock.
Zeus gasped, electricity erupting from his body in a desperate attempt to break free. The lightning scorched Edward's arms, burned through his leather armor, left blackened marks on his ash-white skin.
Edward didn't let go. He planted a foot on Zeus's back and pulled harder, the chains cutting into divine flesh.
"That's my wife you just attacked," Edward said coldly. "The mother of my son. The woman you imprisoned for thousands of years because your ego couldn't handle rejection."
He pulled harder, and Zeus choked, ichor leaking from where the chains bit deep. "You're going to die screaming, Zeus. And every god watching will know you died to the man who made you mortal and weak."
Odin tried to intervene, Gungnir streaking toward Edward's exposed back. But Hera tackled him mid-thrust, driving them both through a pillar in an explosion of stone and divine power.
They rolled apart, both bloodied now. Odin's armor was cracked in multiple places. Hera's dress was torn, burn marks and cuts covering her body. But neither backed down.
Edward released Zeus and kicked him away, giving the god room to stand. Zeus rose slowly, his neck a mess of bleeding wounds, his chest heaving as he struggled to breathe properly.
Zeus coughed, spitting golden blood. His pride warred with his survival instinct. He'd expected to crush this godslayer easily, to demonstrate the superiority of true divine forms over whatever Edward had become.
Instead, he was losing. Badly.
"How about this," Zeus said, his voice raspy from the chain-strangling. "You show up in Valhalla tomorrow. Face the gods in front of all creation. If you're so confident in your strength, prove it before both gods and men."
"You want to call a truce?" Edward asked mockingly. "Settle this in Ragnarok? Let me fight as humanity's champion in your little tournament?"
Odin's eye also lit up with hope. Maybe they can use his hubris against him.
Hera tried to interject, worry flickering across her face despite her injuries. "Edward, they'll—"
"Fight me all at once?" Edward finished, his smile sharp and terrible. "Gang up on me with every god present? Is that the plan?"
Zeus smirked despite his injuries, seeing that Edward understood the trap. "If you're strong enough, it shouldn't be a problem. Unless you're afraid?"
The taunt was clumsy, obvious. But Edward nodded anyway.
"Very well," he said calmly. "I'll see you in the arena. And I'll exterminate the root of it all, this corrupt divine order that thinks it can erase humanity on a whim."
Odin, still bleeding from multiple wounds, limped over to Zeus. The Allfather's eye was cold with calculation. "You're making a mistake, godslayer. In the arena, with all the gods present, you'll be overwhelmed. There's bravery, and then there's suicide."
"I've killed many gods before," Edward replied flatly. "What's a few dozen more?"
Zeus laughed, a harsh, pained sound. "We'll see how confident you are when reality itself bends against you." He grabbed Odin, and divine light enveloped them both. "Tomorrow. Valhalla. We'll end this properly."
They vanished in a flash of lightning and runic power, retreating to heal their wounds and prepare for the coming battle.
Edward stood in the ruined chamber, breathing hard. His arms were scorched from Zeus's lightning, his armor was in tatters, and several ribs felt cracked from impacts he hadn't fully dodged.
But he was smiling.
Hera limped over to him, her own injuries extensive but healing rapidly thanks to their bond. She looked worried despite her battered state.
"Husband," she said softly, "are you sure about this? All the gods, attacking at once, even with your power, that's..." She trailed off, unable to finish the thought.
Edward pulled her close, ignoring the pain from his injuries. "I'm empowered by my endless authorities now. Plus, every god I've killed, every power I've absorbed—it's all made me stronger than I've ever been.
I'll kill them all, Hera. Every god that threatens humanity. Every divine being that thinks mortals are disposable."
He looked down at her, his scarred face softening slightly. "And then I'll take you home. Back to Avalon. You'll merge with your avatar, and you'll finally get to hold Alphonse properly. Get to experience family life the way you've always deserved."
Hera smiled through her tears, her hand coming up to cup his cheek. "You promise? After all this violence, after all this bloodshed, we'll go home?"
"I promise," Edward said. "You can truly feel for yourself the joys of family. No more experiencing it secondhand. No more chains, no more prisons. Just us, our children, and the life we've built together."
Hera's smile widened, and she interlocked her arm with his. "I'll hold you to that, husband. You better not die on me tomorrow. Our son needs his father."
"I don't plan on dying," Edward replied, starting to walk toward the exit. "I plan on showing the gods exactly why they should never have messed with my family."
Behind them, the Underworld burned with divine power. Pillars had collapsed. The bedrock was scorched and cracked. Golden and red blood mixed in pools that steamed with residual energy.
Tomorrow, the arena of Valhalla would look worse.
Much worse.
****
Zeus and Odin materialized in Asgard's healing chambers, both gods immediately attended by divine physicians. Their wounds were severe—not fatal, but humiliating. Zeus's throat was torn, his chest carved with deep gashes. Odin had lost significant blood, his armor shattered, his pride wounded as badly as his body.
"He's stronger than we anticipated," Odin said grimly as a healer worked on his shoulder.
"We need everyone," Zeus replied, his voice raspy. "Every god willing to fight. Tomorrow, we end him. No mercy. No hesitation. We crush him utterly."
"Agreed," Odin said. His single eye gleamed with cold fury. "The godslayer thinks he's invincible. Tomorrow, we'll teach him what divine wrath truly means."
Neither god mentioned how close they'd come to dying today.
Neither acknowledged the fear that had flickered in their eyes when Edward had made them bleed.
They just planned, plotted, and prepared.
Unaware that the being they were scheming against had fought Darkseid and the Anti-Monitor just last week.
Unaware that their full divine power was nothing compared to true cosmic threats.
Unaware that they were about to provide humanity with the most spectacular demonstration of divine mortality ever witnessed.
Tomorrow was going to be a bloodbath.
And the gods had only themselves to blame.