Chapter 28: Gods and Dictators

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"It's over, Anakin. I have the high ground."

- Obi-Wan Kenobi, (Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith)

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<(Atem POV)> 

"*Sigh* it seems that none of you knows too much about your organization. You are just a group of brainwashed ninjas dressed in bright red costumes." Atem sighed deeply as he dropped the unconscious ninja's body from his hands and looked at the dozens of Hand ninjas lying still on the road in different conditions like a bunch of dead flies. "Well, I guess I can leave all of you alive since I doubt any of you would be walking again after this with those half-melted brains of yours." I joked, using some of my dark godly humor that I considered was one of my specialties. 

'At this point, I am pretty sure that Gorr the god butcher would one day be coming after me. I mean I am a good person and all but anger truly does get the better of me sometimes.' I thought to myself as I looked in the distance towards the location from where Doom was observing me.

It looked like he was still there. I guess even expecting him to admit defeat and leave me alone after seeing me mind-rape my enemy's minions was childish in the first place. 

Maybe I should talk with him since I want to complete the quest as soon as possible. After all, which person in the world wouldn't like a magical cape except perhaps a certain old female fashion designer? 

<(Omniscient POV)>

"That was... intriguing. It seems that the so-called metahuman god isn't as 'merciful' as he is described to be by his followers and cultists. Also, it seems that his most powerful ability is his telepathy since that was his trump card in this little joke of a fight. Fortunately, Doom has one of the most powerful mind protection against such mental and spiritual attacks on this planet." Victor Von Doom barely stopped himself from gulping as he looked at the New god standing expressionlessly among the partially brain-dead ninjas lying on the ground groaning helplessly.

'This is enough for today. I have got what I need. The next time we meet, I will truly show you that even gods are beneath...' Doom could not complete his thought as his next words were stuck in his throat and he almost choked on them.

He felt the hair on his skin stand up in the fear of the unknown as he for the briefest of moments felt the weight of the world pressing down on him when he sensed Atem staring at him with his weird purple-ringed eyes. Doom was only able to monitor him through the use of his shamanic magic but for some reason, he felt that Atem on the other hand could not only see him clearly from miles away without the use of any magic but also was somehow able to stare into his very soul.

"What the...?" The King of Latveria could not help but take a few steps back in fear and surprise as the spell he was using collapsed. "... Those weird red-ringed eyes, they weren't the eyes of a god. They looked like the eyes of a cold-blooded monster and not just any monster but a being that could devour the gods and the devils alike." Doom said to himself as he activated his spell again and tried to see if Atem was still there.

Victor knew that he needed to retreat as quickly as possible but for some reason, he could not. He wanted to see more, to learn more, he felt his instincts scream at him to tell him that he could achieve so many things, and grow so much more powerful only if he could somehow learn Atem's secrets. 

"Is he truly a god then?" He muttered to himself as he tried to find the New God with his magic but surprisingly the road where he was previously standing was only littered with half-dead Hand ninjas but the New God himself on the other hand was nowhere in sight. 

"I am. A definite 100%." A cheery careless voice sounded behind Dr. Doom which almost gave the armored king a stroke but somehow he was still able to maintain his dignity and stop himself from yelling in surprise.

"... I see you survived then, Atem," Doom spoke in his signature heavy voice devoid of any emotions after a few moments of controlling his shock.

"Oh, you are trying to be cool. Okay, no prob. But just a heads up, I can listen to your heartbeat and I know it as a fact that I surprised you and you are on the verge of dying from a mini heart attack. So, maybe get some doctor consultation because that doesn't sound good at all." Atem, the god of metahumans said while pursing his lips, making it look like he really cared about the health of the Latverian dictator.

"... Nobody scares Doom, not even Gods." Doom tried to make an excuse to save his pride, acting like he was at the height of cool badassery.

"Ssssure. Anyway, I needed to talk to you about the hyperdrive designs that you were trying to get your hands on. I actually need you to forget about them or anything else from the Baxter Foundation for that matter. I mean, you can still try to insult or kill Reed all you want but you will have to stay away from Susan or her brother. Swear all that to me and we will never ever have any problems even if you go ahead and attack Wakanda or something." Atem said, conveniently forgetting about the existence of Ben in the team as well.

"Are you requesting or threatening? Because Doom doesn't like threats. He does whatever he wants, whenever he wants." The masked king spoke up as he subtly began to chant a spell.

"It wasn't a threat, simply a warning. You will do well if you abide by it. Because if you don't, no amount of magical spells can save you from what will come next." Atem slowly raised his left palm in the air and lightly squeezed it using his telekinesis which immediately cracked the floor around him and splinters appeared on the nearby walls. But it also shattered the form of Doom like a piece of glass and revealed another Doom who was slowly trying to approach Atem from behind.

"Are you a fan of Loki or something?" The New God of Domination asked as he used his telekinesis to hold Doom in place, using his force on the dictator's armor to slowly destroy it with Doom still inside.

But just as Atem was wondering whether to kill Doom and make this an international issue or let him live and risk Doom coming after him again later on, Doom's eyes suddenly lighted up in an eerie green hue and a magical explosion spread out from him which not only destroyed the roof of the skyscraper they were on but even slightly affected Atem himself as he was forced to release his telekinetic hold on Dr. Doom.

"You made a contract with a dimension lord already? Interesting and I thought you were just a beginner in the mystic arts. So, what did you sacrifice in return for this?" The New god asked as he saw the smoke coming from his hand. There was no burn or pain but it did feel itchy for a second.

"My wife." He said with a straight face.

"You don't have a wife." Atem reminded him.

"Exactly," Doom answered as he wrapped his hands in a green magical aura and fired bolts of mystical energy at Atem, hoping to kill him without much effort. 

"So you cheated, smart. But still as impressed as I am by this, I still have a job to do and that is to protect my own investments and assets by making sure that no one can profit off of them except me. And Reed's inventions are quite some important assets for me. Hence, you won't be leaving here without agreeing to my conditions, capeesh?" Atem asked as he calmly dodged all the blasts and slowly closed in on Doom. 

"I will never bow," Doom yelled as he focused all of his magical energy into his palms and fired a concentrated beam at me, hoping to bring me down with raw power.

"You will, you just don't know it yet." The god of metahumans said with a small evil smile as he used his own divine energy to erect a crimson barrier in front of him which successfully blocked Doom's attack like it was nothing. There wasn't even a single crack on the barrier due to the effect of Dr. Doom's full-powered attack.

"I will not lose. DOOM WILL NEVER LOSE." Victor Von Doom screamed as he dug out whatever energy he had left inside him and summoned all the might he was allowed to, from the dimensional entity he had previously contracted and poured them all into one single beam, resulting in the intensely glowing green magical beam getting more and more ominous and powerful. The light originating from it alone was almost blinding and looked like an industrial-grade laser if viewed from a distance.

"I love how passionate you are about not losing to anyone or not ever surrendering but I only wish you had the power and skills to back it up as well because unfortunately for now, you don't." Atem declared with a calm voice as he for the first time in a battle began to use the witcher universe's chaos magic he had received as one of his rewards.

"By the way, this is only slightly going to hurt but don't worry, after this little therapy session, you would be a changed man." The New God of Metahumans said with a voice filled with 'kindness' as his eyes began to glow red.

"Igni" 

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(A/N: Dr. Doom is hands down the most complicated character in Marvel, way more than any other hero or villain in the multiverse and I am realizing exactly that right now while writing this Dr. Doom origin arc. I truthfully wanted Doom to be Atem's Genos (in a way) but now, I am having doubts. So, what do you guys think? Normal villain character or a loyal follower/student like Genos of One Punch Man?)

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