Athena wept tears of joy, her beautiful and dignified face unable to hide her overwhelming happiness.
For the first time, she truly felt like an independent, free soul.
In this universe, she had severed the connection with her original self.
How long she had sought this hope.
Since the birth of this universe, she had been casually given a fragment of power by her original self and cast into this universe.
She had grown with the universe, traversing planetary surfaces, and studying ways to break free in the silent desolation of the cosmic wilderness.
She had tried to unite with all the divine avatars in this universe to find a way to break free from their original selves.
But all the gods told her it was impossible; their lives were but fleeting fireworks, meant to shine brightly for a moment and bring a fleeting smile to the face of their original selves. This was their fate.
The universe itself was just a brief flash of fireworks to them.
Athena had initially given up her research on breaking free because she realized that no matter how much she studied, she was merely examining the sparse power bestowed by her original self.
She sought external help, observed the struggles of the tiniest forms of life until they became intelligent beings, and began to place her hope in such resilient creatures.
She silently watched generals on the battlefield, who remained unyielding until the war ended, only to be falsely accused and executed by paranoid rulers.
She saw ambitious scholars travel the world, write books, and educate others, leaving a lasting legacy and becoming a beacon of faith in their land.
She helped hopeful warriors slay dragons, only to see those warriors become the new dragons.
She aided fallen princes in their quests for revenge, watching them ascend to emperorship.
She supported revolutionary armies that overthrew corrupt dynasties to establish new ones.
The entire universe cycled endlessly, with wars and conflicts never ceasing. She began to feel despair, yet she continued her relentless search for a way to break free.
With despair tinged with defiance, she kept searching for a hope that seemed unattainable.
Searching for this hope had become her only purpose for existing in the universe.
Though she placed her hope in H'el, it was merely a routine action for her, no different from the hopes she had placed on others in the past.
Still helping them, watching them, and aiding them in reaching their desired positions and ideals.
It was no different from before.
Now that H'el was planning to join forces with Darkseid to attack Oa, she couldn't even send a message to Zeus. She thought she would be imprisoned in this micro-universe by H'el, but unexpectedly, she received such a great surprise.
The Olympus pantheon no longer mattered at this moment.
"How do you feel?" H'el asked, smiling as he watched Athena, who was crying tears of joy.
This was quite interesting.
Such a severance from the DC Universe's influence proved that the universe accessed through the teleportation vortex had no connection to the DC Universe.
The Flash TV universe was an exception, as it was still within the DC Universe.
Even more interesting, Darkseid, Highfather, the Olympian gods, Zeus—everyone's ultimate wishes in the DC Universe—could be realized in his hands!
Athena's tears of joy sparkled and scattered, creating a beautiful shimmer. In an instant, she regained her dignified and beautiful appearance. Her eyes, filled with immense joy and serious solemnity, shone brightly. She gracefully extended her slender, refined legs from beneath her white robe, and knelt partially before H'el:
"Your Majesty, from now on, where your gaze falls, my sword will point."
Her voice was incredibly solemn, as she performed a ceremonious and serious act of loyalty towards H'el.
In this moment, she abandoned the Olympus pantheon and solemnly pledged her allegiance to H'el.
H'el was the only hope she had seen in the universe after such a long time.
Her pursuit had not been in vain, and she knew she had to stay closely bound to H'el, becoming an independent and free soul.
"Stand up, I understand," H'el said.
H'el was quite satisfied. He saw in Athena's pursuit of her own freedom a glimpse of the choices other divine avatars might make in the future.
Few divine avatars could resist such temptation.
Athena remained kneeling, her white robe taut, accentuating her graceful curves. Bowing her head before H'el, her long, slender neck was exposed.
"Your Majesty, I wish to be in a closer, inseparable relationship with you," Athena's voice was soft yet resolute.
In this universe, severed from her main body, Athena could clearly sense she was an independent and free soul. But if she returned to the other universe, she would still feel the constraints and ultimately become sustenance for her main body.
She couldn't deceive herself by hiding in this universe forever. She desired the freedom to control her own life and death.
Only H'el could offer her such hope.
"Oh? What kind of relationship?" H'el asked, his expression suddenly intrigued.
He had no particular intentions towards Athena, despite her beauty, perfect figure, and the fact that she was a literal goddess. She embodied a male's fantasy of an ideal woman.
However, his career always took precedence over women.
"If you are willing to have an empress, I wish to be your empress," Athena hesitated for a moment, not because she was unsure about becoming H'el's empress, but because she feared it might be too presumptuous and provoke his displeasure.
Proposing to be H'el's empress at this moment, Athena felt a pang of anxiety, worried that her suggestion was too forward.
The ability to sever the connection between a divine avatar and their main body was invaluable. Any female divine avatar would willingly sacrifice for their freedom.
Even a goddess known for her chastity would forsake her pure image, abandoning all powers bestowed by her main body to achieve independent will.
Moreover, Athena could already envision H'el's potential. Just by being able to reach a new universe unaffected by the DC Universe, the knowledge and power he would gain could make H'el as powerful as a True Form God.
H'el's future was incredibly bright.
Reflecting on this, Athena felt ashamed, believing she had overstepped.
Someone like H'el might only be suited for an empress of his own divine stature.
Before H'el could respond, Athena quickly added, "I misspoke. I'm not coveting your power. I just want to be closer to you, to be your consort. I want to bear your children."
°°°
Hungry for more chaps? Then check out our pătreon!
Link: Påtreon.com/BaphometFiction
I post 10 advanced chapters of this fanfic there.