As Leanna, disappeared through the portal, Carl and Klaire moved to catch up.
It wasn't long before the sterile white they were familiar with gave way to spaces far more open decorated with many things that looked to be similar to pre-incursion items.
"You should be proud hybrid, you're the first to see this place." The first variant spoke suddenly and Klaire had to bury a howl rising in her throat.
"Look, maybe it's best we leave." Carl said stopping dead and turning as he extended an arm to usher Klaire back."
"Enough! Plutanis, silence yourself before you succeed in wasting everybody's time." The second variant ordered, making the first glare at him but obey regardless. "Please, do not listen to the yapping of this fool, at least we have a dislike for him in common."
"Well you aren't wrong about that, he's making me realise why even those like Nergal and Ishtar resorted to in-fighting when they had to deal with each other for eternity." Carl grumbled, earning raised eyebrows though they continued in silence.
As they passed through a corridor, they walked past a painting and Carl and Klaire froze. It depicted a city of strange architecture, people everywhere and the strange vehicles that they knew pumped pollution into the air.
"Do you know that place as well?" The first variant asked as his curiosity got the best of him.
"We know it's where Samael first emerged on the day earth was first assaulted." Klaire responded.
"It was a city called London, the greatest city of a country called London, it was destroyed by the time I was born, but it was where I was born." It was clear the man held some longing to see it restored, but neither of them could understand, it was a suffocating oppressive place that seemed even more chaotic than the remote towns where an incursion gate could open any second.
"Come now, Jupiterran. Don't reveal too much." Plutinas scolded mockingly, convincing them all to continue.
Navigating the complex was a lengthy adventure, Carl and Klaire could feel their guides watching them closely and seemingly growing anxious at how calm they were. What they didn't know is that they were mapping everywhere they went with system messages to the faction.
[ FACTION MESSAGE RECEIVED FROM CARL: FIRST LEFT ONTO CORRIDOR TWO HUNDRED METRES LONG, THREE EXITS ON LEFT, TWO ON RIGHT. ]
[ FACTION MESSAGE RECEIVED FROM KLAIRE : SECOND RIGHT ONTO ELEVATOR, FLOOR B-9 OPENS LEFT ONE-HUNDRED METRES WITH ONE EXIT ON LEFT AND THREE ON RIGHT. TWO DOORS OPPOSITE, OPENS RIGHT TWO HUNDRED METRES, ONE EXIT LEFT, THREE RIGHT. ]
As they stepped out and turned to the right, Jupiterran finally asked. "You seem awfully calm, you clearly see us as hostile, but you don't seem concerned."
"I mean you showed yourselves as hostile when you tried to treat my wife as second-class, As for not being concerned, we aren't stupid enough to think we can take you all on, but holding out long enough for reinforcements to arrive is another story."
"Reinforcements?"
Carl equipped Loki's mask, then unequipped it and stored it again. then simply gestured to his sleeves.
Klaire donned her black armour speckled with moonlight and willed the armlet of Primordial chaos to form the bow briefly.
"Also have the ones mentioned in the document we took to Leanna."
"I see, maybe you don't realise that they can't see you here."
"Yeah I know this is a bit broken, but it doesn't stop me from opening my portal. I can literally open that portal anywhere by the skill description and only Margo can change that. Oh yeah and I guess compared to going to his realm to face him kinda made me numb to panicking about you guys, no offence."
Margo's mention was enough to make them tense up as much as Bahamut and Tiamat did.
"Please don't say his name here, we don't exactly have confidence in what you reported."
"Well we aren't frozen in fear next to a spontaneous portal, so I guess you have your confidence." Carl joked, but clearly making them uncomfortable with his overly familiar personality.
Time ticked by and they kept winding through the labyrinth, finally they come to a room that looked like a study of some kind, with wooden floors that seemed entirely out of place and decor that seemed ancient.
Jupiterran waved a hand and the room disappeared and reformed into an elevator. Plutinas approached a small tray and pricked his finger on a needle, creating a drip of golden blood he was about to drip on the tray.
"Sorry, do you mind if I try? My spy mission wouldn't be complete without trying to trick a secret door." Carl said, earning an elbow jab from Klaire.
"It requires divinity of twenty thousand units to open, yours would be almost completely drained would it not?"
"Nah, it never really goes down..." Carl said, completing the thought in his head. 'Well it does, but I just spend some HP and MP and it fills right up.'
"Never goes down? You have flexed enough, but by all means you're welcome to continue and tear the muscle..." Plutinas is goaded with a smirk.
Carl stepped up and pricked his finger, taking the opportunity to store both his needle and Plutinas', before dripping his blood in the tray and then refilling his DIV Instantly. The fact he didn't appear weakened at all, giving texture to the illusion his DIV truly was unique, beyond the fact he could access it with no stars.
Plutinas eyed them with caution, whilst Jupiterran was clearly deep in thought, trying to figure out the trick. He seemed to have the same issue with Carl as Bahamut did, he was overthinking obvious things simply because Carl was being too vague to limit the breadth of his thinking.
"How long have you had this "limitless" divinity?"
"Err, I think it was after I earned the "Hand Of God" Reward after graduation."
"Did you say "Hand Of God"?"
"Yeah it is a bit pompous for my liking but it does the job when I need it too" Carl laughed, bringing a grin to Klaire's face as she stood shaking her head and made the connection between this variant and Bahamut.
"Carl, Grandma Lillim will get mad if you give away all your secrets." Klaire dug her elbow in again, leaving the two variants to read even more into nothing and tie themselves into knots.
After a pause, where the variants were clearly trying to figure things out, they regained there awareness and ushered Carl and Klaire into the elevator.
"So I admit I'm curious, you accessed DIV early, did you do so with laws as well?"
"Sorry those elbows add up I'd rather avoid too many." Carl laughed as the elevator descended.
"So that's a no..." Plutinas goaded.
Carl held his hands up in sarcastic defeat, earning a grimace from both of them.
When they finally came to a stop and the doors slid open. They found themselves in a large square room the same style as the illusory study that concealed the elevator.
The walls were padded with pristine leather panels along the lower half and the sterile white of shielding panels on the top half and ceiling. Each wall other than the one from which the elevator opened had three doors embedded.
The Hardwood floors were covered by rugs along half of each side, leaving the wood bare at the corners, but each side rug joined in the middle by a large circular section upon which rested a table.
The table itself was large and had ten seats positioned around it at regular intervals, seven of which were occupied.
"What is the meaning of this? Why is the hal-"
"Why do you all seem to think I'm going to stand obediently while you insult me wife? I'm getting bored of it, so let me make it clear, one more word about it and we leave."
"Don't get arroga-" Carl huffed and opened a portal to leave.
When he stepped to walk through it, Plutinas moved to block his path until Klaire's howl ripped his soul from his body and all but two of the others made ready.
"Seriously how can you all be so stupid? You're acting like children. Carl, I'll be frank; our views differ greatly, but I do not wish us to be at odds. If you wish to leave, then do so, but for the sake of humanity ignore these fools." The variant speaking was older, riddled with deep scars earned over centuries of battle.
"For what it's worth, I side with the old man. I'm almost certain there is no less than two elder gods on the other side of that portal. Likely the mother of demons, the fox, the witch of Faylorn and the twins lizards as well."
"What makes you so sure, Jupiterran?"
"Open your eyes Marsia, look at their arms and the girl's finger, Carl also showed of the mask of Loki and no normal howl could leave Plutinas in such a state."
"If you need proof about the Bahamut and Tia, I can create some beasts using the stored creation memory." Carl said, only half-joking.
"That won't be necessary, but I feel it may be best to delay talks to give time for good sense to prevail. We need Leanna at SATS until a suitable replacement can be found, but she will no longer be asked to report to us and may enter your territory freely."
"Actually Marsian, I already offered that. Thanks to Plutinas, we nearly didn't make it this far."
"Fine, then we will concede another point. You may have either full claim of Lugaria or the two you requested."
"I'll take the two we requested, maybe what happens to them will show how far your attitude towards Klaire will get you with me." Carl gestured for Klaire to leave, then he forced the soul of Plutinas back into his body, grabbing a slither. "Do you mind if I take a bit of him? Making it into one of my pets, will help me call it even."
"Haha! On that our views are not so different, by all means take a piece of him and at the the very least we can call it even between us two."
"You can't be serious!" Another variant shouted, one of the few that was a woman, though no less scarred than the others.
"I am Venusiah, if he had come here and insulted any of our partners, we would demand far more... Now go Carl, if any try to stop you I will intervene."
Carl bowed as he would with Kon, then forced the soul back in and left, unaware that Plutinas' arm had immediately tried to follow.
As he smiled at those waiting, the arm that had reached for him was severed. "Ooo that's handy!" Gillian's comment was met with glares.
Carl sighed and picked it up before opening a portal back, using Levi as a secret anchor left behind in case they needed to retreat and return.
Carl then stepped through and returned the arm, as they looked at him shocked. "Thank you for the donation, but this would just go to waste, I'm not stupid enough to risk putting too much of you into a pet." He then waved and stepped through once last time and the crackled shut.
"Well I think it all went rather well..." Klaire said, with a smile that left everyone in disbelief.