Chapter 1

"I am Florence, the new God of Light," a voice echoed from the television in the corner of the restaurant. "I apologise for interrupting the scheduled programming, but I have a message to convey to my followers as well as the other New Gods."

I glanced away from the broadcast and noticed that the room had fell deathly quiet, everyone's attention glued to the woman on the television and what she had to say. I put a forkful of fish in my mouth and chewed quietly as I awaited her next words.

"There is an incoming calamity, one brought about by the existence of me and my pe- "

The television cut to black for a moment, causing an outburst of murmurs to erupt, with everyone sharing their opinions on the situation.

"Do you think it's an advertisement for more people to follow her religion? She's been losing popularity recently."

"Do you think the new Gods are turning on us? And it was a warning?"

"Has she lost her powers?"

All of these statements were put to rest by the appearance of a much more popular existence, Kage.

"Please pay no mind to her," he said, only his massive silhouette visible behind the thin sheet that covered a bed. "You are under no danger, as long as I am here!" He raised a clenched fist in the air, and a number of people in the restaurant did the same, letting out a cringey war cry as they did.

I made for the exit, only stopping to pay for my meal as I did so.

I pulled out my phone, looking at maps as I made my way through the streets of Norway. Left, right, straight, right. I felt like I had been walking for a week before I arrived at my destination.

A crowd of two thousand had congregated, screaming for answers as to what the statement on television meant. A woman with wheat-blonde hair and blue eyes stood on a slightly elevated platform, begging for her followers to calm their yelling.

"Please," she screeched, "I will explain everything, but you must allow me to speak."

I walked around the crowd, making my way to a small hill beside the scaffolding before sitting down. Sitting became laying down and laying down became napping. The hope-filled voice of Florence slowly blurred and then faded as dreams of a life prior to this one creeped in.

A few hours had passed before I was stirred awake by the passing of a car. The crowd had dissipated, and the scaffolding removed. I could now see the small house which the Goddess lived in. I noted the several security guards that patrolled the garden and the two who stood guard at the door.

I approached the gate and was approached by one of the guards who shone a flashlight on my face, which was annoying as it blinded me a little.

"Take that snood down," he ordered, his free hand clasping a weapon on his waistband. "What do you want? This is holy ground." I sighed, which irked him. "Think something's annoying? I'll tell you what's annoying, twerp. What's annoying is when some lowlife punk thinks he's all th- "

"Piss off," I mumbled, sending the man flying backwards from his position, and I heard him tumble as he landed unsteadily. I placed a hand on the gate's lock and heard a small click, thankful that inanimate objects didn't need the same verbal orders that living things did.

I made my way towards the bushes that lined the borders of the garden, hiding from the yelling and the flashlights that were shining all over the grounds. It was hard, but I managed to hold back a giggle as the guard tried to explain what happened to his teammates.

"He just mumbled something, and I flew," he pleaded, "and I never even saw him open the gate. I think he's a ghost or a demon or maybe even a New G- "

"Don't say something that you'll regret Paul," one of his friends butted in, saving his friend from the repercussions of saying something so sacrilegious.

I waited until the flashlights had moved from next to the door of the cottage until I made my way there. I stayed low, and hid from any approaching noise, so it took around ten minutes to reach the door.

I used the same trick I had used on the gate to enter the home, then locked the door when I entered.

"Jesus Christ," Florence gasped quietly from behind me, sighing with the same amount of annoyance as I had only minutes prior.

"Not exactly, but close," I joked, kicking my boots off before stepping off of the welcome mat she had laid out.

"I thought you didn't use your blessing in public, never mind against them," she questioned, heading to the kitchen area of the cabin.

"He was a prick," I groaned, following behind her and watching as she put the kettle on. "But that was quite the cry for help earlier."

"And fucking Kage fucking butted his ugly fat fuc- "

"Florence," I called calmly, dragging her out of her uncharacteristic outburst. "It was quite shitty, but I don't know if he, Arran, Jen or Penelope can contact their predecessors like we can. I've not even spoken to any of them before."

"Why did you only show yourself to me? I meant to ask," she inquired, talking just over the kettle's incessant whistling.

"You have the littlest voice. You couldn't even get that crowd's attention," I teased, but laid off as I saw a genuine anger come across her face. "And why don't you use your blessing to manually boil the kettle?"

"Just because I'm blessed doesn't mean I can't boil a kettle, Leon," she shrugged, pouring two cups of tea. "You sound just like them these days."

"But I don't act like them," I rebutted, moving to the living room and taking a seat on the couch. I waved my hand at the television across the room, which switched on, and swept my hand to the side to flip through channels.

"No, you do not," she laughed, setting one of the cups in front of me before sitting at the opposite end of the couch. "You're homeless, leech off of me, and don't have any followers. I don't think anyone knows who you are."

"And what a life it is," I smiled, happy enough at how I had been living.

"Are you ever going to thank me for everything I give you?" Florence asked, which made me chortle a little.

"No," I stopped swiping when I reached the news channel and drank my tea instead. "You owe me."

"Surely, I've paid you back enough for that, no?" She held up her cup and waved it slightly. "It was one guy, I could've gotten rid of him myself. And security was on its way."

"Yeah, yeah," I mumbled, my attention turning to the news, where Kage was airing a message.

A small banner at the bottom of the screen read "God of Strength Tournament", and the bulking figure was this time in a gym, where punching bags made of metal and weights with cars on each end sat in the background. Kage had a pair of boxing shorts on, and nothing else, which revealed his scarred and bulging body.

"I invite everyone from all around the world to Rome," he said, his jaw seemingly as perfectly chiselled as ever. "I will be holding a contest to crown my new right hand man; a position only fit for someone who can prove their worth." Kage turned away from the camera and threw a quick three-piece combo at the metal punching bag, creating holes from where he hit to the other side. "See you in Rome."

"What a pissant," I whispered, taking another sip of my beverage.

"I'll never get his attention now," Florence groaned, rubbing her temples. She was staring at the ceiling, eyes wide open and focused when a thought escaped from my lips.

"I can enter into it."