Preparation for war

When Alex awoke, three hours exactly after he'd fallen asleep, he felt completely refreshed and ready to get to work.

Of course, that didn't mean Reiri was ready to do the same.

Glancing at the woman still slumbering at his side, Alex quickly conjured the newest product that was being sold by Suzu, Kiryuu and Risa, the Dragon Emperor body pillow line.

It was a body pillow as long as Alex was tall, and was covered in thick red fur that replicated his own exactly, smelled like him, and even emitted heat equivalent to Alex's own body. They had become popular instantly, spreading like wildfire in and out of Asora. Even the majority of Alex's own wives had gotten their hands on one.

Swapping himself out for the pillow, Alex instantly dressed himself via magic before sensing a gaze upon his back.

Turning curiously, he found the cat he had summoned laying down while seemingly glaring at him for some reason. Confused, Alex approached the cat and made to pet it, only for it to start growling at him in irritation.

"Who pissed in your milk?" Alex pouted at its sudden shift in behavior, before turning around and bending space.

"You coming?" He asked the cat before stepping into the rippling portal he'd created. Surprisingly, the cat leapt down to follow him, though Alex noticed it appeared to be walking bow legged for some reason.

It still however followed followed him through the rift, and into the room of three young girls. It was the room shared by Myuu, Videl, and Kale.

There was of course more than enough space for them all to have their own rooms if they wished, they just preferred sharing.

As he approached one of the girls Alex didn't notice the look the cat was giving him, which was of incredulity.

Based off of what she'd observed, and experienced firsthand, there was only one reason she could think of for him to be approaching three young girls so late at night. And if he so much as laid a single hand on any of them in front of her, then she'd have no problem taking it off.

Unaware of the misunderstanding going on behind him, Alex gently woke one of the girls.

Kale's eyes shot open in surprise as the instincts that had been drilled into her activated, only to ease when she recognized Alex above her. He then put a finger to his lips to indicate silence, which Kale slowly nodded as she got the message.

"Is this the 'night visit'?" Kale asked quietly with growing excitement, making Alex deadpan at her.

"No it's not. We're going to be training." Alex told her sternly, changing Kale's excitement to disappointment.

"Get ready." He ordered quietly, so as not to wake Myuu or Videl.

Kale nodded slowly as she threw the covers off of herself to do just that, revealing her naked figure along with ALL her tattoos to him.

"Why are you sleeping naked?" Alex asked her in an unamused tone, making Kale fidget anxiously under his gaze.

"Myuu said we should always be prepared for any possible night visits..." Kale uttered in a small voice, making Alex groan.

Of course it was her....

A quick check told him that both Myuu and Videl were naked under their covers as well, making Alex shake his head in exasperation.

Myuu was....expected if Alex was being honest, as she had always wanted to become one of his wives. Videl on the other hand was a complete surprise considering how she was towards Alex when they first met. Then again, Myuu was more than likely pushing her into it.

Promising himself to spank Myuu later, Alex waved his hands and all three girls were suddenly dressed, Myuu and Videl in nightgowns as they continued to slumber peacefully. Kale meanwhile was dressed in compression shorts and a sport bra, as Alex meant it when he said he was taking her to train.

With another wave of his hand Alex and Kale were transported to a new location along with his cat, who had her opinion of Alex raised slightly.

Their destination was Alex's personal floating island, which Kale eagerly looked around to examine everything she could since this was her first time there. All there was to see however, was a solitary fighting ring surrounded by a serene forest.

Alex meanwhile led her into the forest itself, so Kale quickly followed until they arrived at a clearing that held only a single space-time orb.

"Is that where we're training?" Kale asked hesitantly, to which Alex nodded as he told her,

"It was specially made by Elaine, Kusu, Vados, and Marcarita, and designed to contain more power than all the others combined. It would take someone on the level of Ophis or Zeno to destroy it."

Kale looked between Alex and space-time orb in awe, before she hurriedly put her hand on it when she saw him doing the same. The two of them, along with the cat, were sucked inside where the four aforementioned Angels were waiting for them.

"You all did well. Good work." Alex said as he looked around the space they were in.

They didn't need the same fancy environment and creatures as the other sub-space orbs, so Alex had the Angels go with the same design as the Hyperbolic Time Chamber from Kami's Lookout. There was a single small villa surrounding the orb where they would be able to rest, sleep, bathe, and eat, while the surrounding area was an endless sea of empty white space.

Kale also looked around in awe of the seemingly endless white space, before asking, "how far does it go?"

"It's still growing." Vados answered.

"It's constantly feeding off of the energy being emitted within it by us. The longer we're in here, the larger it'll grow." Elaine added.

Alex nodded to let her know he heard her, before saying, "that's good, so long as we don't risk breaking it."

Kale cocked her head curiously as she asked, "how would we break it?"

Alex directed a serious look at her and said, "because, we will be training to fight Markus in here."

Kale paled at Alex's declaration, and she hesitantly asked, "y-you want ME to help?"

Alex nodded seriously and knelt down before her, and said, "Kale, you and I are our secret weapons to use against Markus. We both have something that no one else does."

As he said that Alex stood and turned to walk away, and Kale watched as his fur began to recede until Alex was in his base form. However, she then watched as the tattoos decorating Alex's body also began to fade, until all she could see was his smooth skin.

"Vados, watch over Kale and instruct her. Kusu, Marcarita and Elaine, you're all with me." Alex commanded as, with the disappearance of his tattoos, the power radiating from his body began to spike upwards.

Goosebumps formed on Kale's skin as she felt the power coming from Alex rise, and rise, and rise some more until it rivaled, and then even surpassed the power she'd felt coming from his SSJ4 form. And he was still in his base form.

And then, when his power finally stopped rising, the three aforementioned Angels surrounded him as they all prepared to do battle.

"Remember Kale..." Alex said while taking in a deep breath through his nose. "THIS is the power we possess!"

And with that as his declaration, golden-green light radiated from Alex's body as his already tremendous power skyrocketed even further.

***

Rias' chest heaved as she panted exhaustedly, but her opponent gave her no room for rest.

"Stop moving bitch!" Snarled the man trying to hit her.

"No!" Rias declared as she yet again flashed away from her previous position.

As the two continued their game of cat and mouse, a singular figure watched over them with a bored gaze.

"Rias is powerful, but her body lacks development for physical combat. She's essentially a glass cannon..."

"Vegeta meanwhile has yet to even awaken his own Destructive potential, but he has the raw physical strength and power to compensate. If Rias hits him with even a single blast of Destruction though, then he's as good as dead...."

The figure, Beerus, muttered to himself as he watched the two fight.

He had already been training Vegeta for the upcoming tournament when Rias barged into the space within Kusu's scepter, and demanded more training herself after explaining what had happened outside.

Beerus hadn't cared in the slightest about Markus or the threat he supposedly posed to all of them, while Vegeta had immediately gotten fired up about facing such a powerful opponent.

Now Vegeta and Rias were sparring with one another at Beerus' command, though it hardly seemed like a spar from where he was sitting.

"Enough!" Beerus suddenly declared, making the two stop in their tracks.

"Tch." Vegeta clicked his tongue in annoyance as he canceled his SSJ2 transformation. He STILL hadn't managed to get to the next stage, even after all his training with Beerus.

"Haaa..." Rias however sighed in relief, as it had taken every little bit of her focus and attention just to avoid Vegeta's attacks at the very last split second.

Her relief and Vegeta's frustration were short-lived though, as Beerus told them, "this isn't working... We need to up the ante."

Beerus then smiled evilly as he activated one of the functions available to him within the scepter, and summoned projections of numerous figures.

"These are projections of different fighters from throughout Universe Seven's history. And if what she told me about this thing is correct, they're ALL as strong and skilled as the originals."

Both Rias and Vegeta went on the alert as the figures moved, all taking offensive stances in preparation to fight.

"Oh, and they're all going to be trying to kill the two of you. So good luck!" Beerus smirked maliciously.

He also had the capability to revive the two of them if they did somehow die with the controls he had in the scepter, but Beerus didn't see the need to tell them that. Instead he just watched as Rias and Vegeta fought for their lives against some of the biggest powerhouses that had ever existed in Universe Seven.

Rias' expression was grim as she fought the projections, who she was able to use her power of Destruction against, but they just simply reformed afterwards.

She in particular was bound and determined to become stronger, as she suspected that her power of Destruction would be critical in dealing with with this Kryptonian, Markus.

***

"..."

In one of the subspace orbs a large group of women were gathered around a particularly majestic and large waterfall, all sitting beneath the cascading water in silent meditation.

Nearby a little girl that looked to be a little older than a year sat playing, her black hair tied up into pigtails while her red monkey-like tail swayed behind her.

"Mama!" The little girl suddenly cried out, alerting one of the women who was meditating. And as she opened her eyes, the raven haired woman beheld a slinking feline type monster slowly approaching her daughter.

Instantly, the woman moved from her position as her hand slid into her shadow, only to draw a sinister black blade that appeared to draw in all of the surrounding light. And while those who could, barely, follow her movements saw her swing her sword, they were still amazed at what happened next.

They watched as she swung her sword one time, so fast that the monster couldn't even react. Instead, all of the gathered women watched as that one swing of her dark blade bisected the monster, before it suddenly separated into thousands of neatly sliced pieces.

The cuts were so clean that there wasn't even a single drop of blood until the pieces hit the ground, at which point the little girl happily cried out while going, "Gan mama! Gan!"

The woman, Shizuku, smiled wryly at her daughter's gleeful laughing, knowing she was demanding that she do it again.

"Not right now my little flower blossom." Shizuku said softly as she picked her daughter up to cradle her lovingly.

Meanwhile the blade she'd used to cut the monster dissolved into shadows before reforming into the figure of a great black dog.

"Jin! Jin!" Shizuku's daughter, Yeagashi Saya, cried out excitedly as she made to grab at the dog. It was perhaps the word she was best used to saying alongside 'mama' and 'dada'.

With a smile, Shizuku set her daughter down onto Jin's back, where she grabbed two fistfuls of his shadowy fur before he started trotting around with her on his back.

The once serene and peaceful atmosphere was filled with joyful shrieks as Saya squealed her glee from riding around on Jin, while Shizuku and her followers watched on. Under her warm smile though, the Knight of the Dragon Emperor was thinking.

Despite her skills more resembling that of a ninja, Shizuku had devoted herself to the way of the sword for Alex's sake ever since he made her his Knight. And in return, she was happier than she'd ever thought possible while following such a path.

Now however there was someone who threatened that happiness, Markus.

Shizuku had been thinking long and hard ever since they'd learned of his existence, and of everything they'd seen in the projection of Grant's memories. And finally, she had made a decision.

Shizuku was going to start completing quests from the Chatroom, and use it's shop to buy her own Zanpakūto.

Though Jin was everything she needed in a weapon, the opponent this time was a being unlike anything they'd fought before. So, rather than throwing her skills at Markus and potentially having all her efforts be for naught against him, she decided to acquire a weapon that she'd already seen work on him.

Mentally communicating to Jin to watch over Saya for her, Shizuku turned about and walked off to get started.

As she did so she left behind her students and followers, who were still in awe of Shizuku's earlier demonstration. After all, it wasn't every day they watched their teacher/master slice a mountain in two just to kill a single monster.

***

*CRASH!*

*BOOM!*

*SHING!*

Within one of the subspace orbs, the sound of battle rang out as two titans faced one another.

One, a warrior maiden dressed in thick plates of metallic armor that somehow still appeared erotic on her, a massive battle axe in hand. Her scarlet red hair trailed behind her in a long ponytail adorned with numerous bands of metal.

The other a Demon, her long white hair flared upwards like she had gone SSJ, hands and feet in the shape of lethal claws with what appeared to be plated scales covering her limbs up to her elbows and knees, horns protruding from her forehead, and a thick tail extending from her backside.

There was a slight pause in the duo's dance of carnage and destruction as they stared at one another, before they suddenly rushed at each other yet again.

"Promotion, Queen!" The Demon cried out, increasing all of her stats tremendously as she bared her claws along with a powerful surge of magic.

"Goliath." The warrior maiden stated calmly, even as she surged forward.

The armor covering her body shimmered as it changed into a set that was significantly thicker and heavier, eliminating her speed. Meanwhile her axe changed into a mighty hammer, which she swung in a wide arc while planting her foot into the ground.

The warrior maiden pivoted as she transferred all of her momentum into her hammer, swinging it in a wide circle before bringing it back around to meet the Demon's claws head on, blasting her away with its force.

Rather than taking any significant damage from the attack though, a set of wings sprouted from the Demon's back that halted her flight. Her own form then shimmered before her appearance too changed, with black armor plating covering her arms, legs and stomach under her breasts.

Power began to radiate from her that turned her surroundings to dust, the 'evil' power of hundreds of Devils that had lived for millennia while consolidating and increasing their strength.

Several sinister dark orbs began to form around her that also radiated power, which she then shot at her opponent ruthlessly.

The warrior maiden was unable to avoid the attack, weighed down by her heavy armor that sealed her speed, so she vanished within an explosion of darkness and shadows.

*KABOOOOOOOM!*

The resulting explosion rocked the subspace orb, destroying the land along with the creatures who called it home for hundreds of miles around while the Demon watched on impassively from the sky.

And once the attack was over, an eerie silence settled on the land as the Demon watched the dust settle.

Not a single thing was left standing for miles around, leaving only a barren wasteland that was devoid of life, vegetation, mountains, and even rubble.

Not a single thing standing, save for a dome of metal right in the middle of the devastation.

The Demon watched as the metal retracted into a single small shield, wielded by the warrior maiden who had donned yet another set of armor that had heightened her defense.

"If I didn't know any better Mirajane, I'd think you were seriously trying to kill me right then." The warrior said to the Demon.

"Erza please, you know we'd have to go at LEAST that seriously if we want to improve enough to face Markus and his armies." The Demon said with a hint of humor to her voice.

A hint of a smile graced the warrior's fair lips in response to the comment, as her armor changed yet again.

"Very well. Let's fight to the death then."

The Demon smiled viciously at that as she landed right before the warrior, allowing them to look the other in the eye, before they resumed their match with relish.

***

While the others were in different subspace orbs or training grounds, a certain golden haired assassin had asked Alex for a different form of training.

"Hehehehehehe..."

"I knew you'd come back to me!"

"Let's relive our best memories together!"

"I've missed you so much, Yami."

Dozens of overweight men who appeared identical surrounded Yami, their disgusting things erect and ready for action. Meanwhile numerous slimy and disgusting tentacles appeared out of nowhere to bind each of her limbs, before they slithered into her clothes to rub their mucus covered selves against her flesh.

In a second Yami was stripped as the tentacles tore her clothes off, before forcing her legs apart so that she was completely exposed.

Yami tried to will her arms and legs to move, to transform, to do ANYTHING!

But none of them followed her command as her nerves and terror reached an all time high.

The slimy tentacles then began to rub up and down her slit and down her butt crack, rubbing their mucus onto her holes to lubricate them while others began to play with her nipples.

And STILL the terror overpowered her will to resist, despite her disgust and revulsion as numerous memories flooded her mind. Memories of her days as 'that man's' pet.

At the same time the numerous copies of 'that man' moved closer to her, stroking their dicks as they did so while one stepped right up in between her legs.

"Just like old times, right Yami?" He sneered down at her, pressing the head of his cock against her opening.

"!!!"

All of a sudden Yami was in her bed, panting and sweating as she awoke from the horrifying nightmare.

And while others would feel relief that what she was going through was 'just' a dream, she instead only felt frustration.

"Let's call this off Yami. I don't like watching you go through that." Said the voice at her side, drawing Yami's attention to Kurumu.

The succubus was attending to Yami during this particular 'training', as she worked to overcome her past trauma and weakness.

"No. I need to do this." The petite assassin declared firmly, her will resolute now that she was awake.

Even Alex had gone so far to help her, using his new authority over the power of Dreams and Nightmares to attach her consciousness to the Quagmire, the realm of nightmares.

This ensured she would only see and experience the things most horrific to her every time she fell asleep, giving her the chance to overcome them and perfect her own Ultra Instinct.

Yami decided to focus on this aspect of her training after the Daedric Prince Vaermina used her own trauma against her back in the HOTD world, which had instantly created the opening for her immediate defeat.

Kurumu of course was here to ensure she didn't actually go through the horrors conjured within her mind.

"Again." Yami stated as she laid back down as if she were going to sleep.

Kurumu just sighed as she used her powers to help Yami relax and rest, before returning to her front row seat as she watched the assassin being assaulted.

***

Of the many different sub-spaces within the space-time orb, there was one unlike any of the others.

It was in fact not a subspace, but an entirely different dimension created by a certain budding goddess of Time and Space. And within this realm, tens of thousands of her loyal subjects had gathered to worship and praise her.

Among them were thousands of cat-like beings such as the Exceed from Earthland, the Snackians of Universe Seven, the Khajiit from Tamriel, and even the Werecats that Alex had created after obtaining his Lycanthropy divinity. The vast majority of their population however was made up of the thousands of house cats that she had been collecting for several years now.

Every single eye within the realm was directed at the same location, a massive temple upon which a single figure rested, the energies of Space and Time bending around her. Ready to answer her bidding.

She sat cross legged with her eyes closed, feeling the energies flowing around her, flexing her fingers to play them as one would an instrument.

Most importantly, she could feel the power flowing into her. The power of the belief of the tens of thousands gathered below her as they prayed to their goddess.

Suddenly, the power flowing around her reached a tipping point as Time and Space both folded in on themselves.

Every second that passed was an eternity, and an eternity passed in a second as knowledge and power both flowed into her, saturating every single cell of her body with divine energy.

And when she opened her eyes, they radiated with a brilliant golden divine light that illuminated the entire realm.

Seven cat-like tails danced behind her, all the pitchiest of black before, but now lined with numerous golden rings at the tips, matching the golden fur now also tipping her cat-like ears.

After years of determination and working towards her goal, a new goddess was officially born.