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Chapter 121: It Was Unintentional So It's Okay III

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"Olympus! Here I come to collect charity! Do you think you can just pledge it and not pay up!?" Ahem...

Mount Olympus, the highest mountain in Greece, said to be the home of the Olympian gods though Ian knows better.

It's not their home, it's merely one of the gates established by the Olympian gods to reach earth.

Ian approached the disturbance in space, his death force already exploring it while his magic was working on allowing him to go through it, to reach his target not some godforsaken place.

"Hmm?" Ian frowned, a bit puzzled as he walked to the space twist, feeding it his magic, allowing it to encompass him, teleporting him into the land of gods.

"Way too easy... I'm starting to get the picture of why Hephaestus didn't bring me the weapon as per our deal... Wrong move... Nah, after a second thought, it's the perfect move."

He spoke his mind out, not caring if anyone was listening because he knows they are. He observed the surroundings, finding himself in a beautiful forest, filled with nothing but greenery.

The trees were extremely high. The grass and flowers were lovely, of all varieties as if it were the heaven of nature.

He was in mount Olympus, the true Olympus residing in Skyland, a far away dimension.

Ian started hovering above the ground, getting higher and higher, trying to get a clearer look at his surroundings.

However, the Olympian woods didn't seem to be as peaceful as he assume because from the shadows of trees, a colossal white lion jumped at him, reaching him despite being dozens of meters above the ground.

'A divine beast? This is a first.' The crime lord of Gotham remained calm as he spread his wings. He controlled his left wing to instantly slap the beast away with ease.

Even in his fight against Etrigan, the wings remained spotless. They were his greatest treasure aside from the staff because even Ian found out that he can not harm them in any way, not yet at least.

Lucifer's wings, one of the strongest beings in the entirety of existence, perhaps even the strongest aside from his creator. Only such an existence would throw his wings away.

And they were quite vast spreading for several meters around him, so using them as a weapon was natural.

"I have never tasted a divine beast, so why not start now." That's all the convincing he needed to convince himself before his staff vanished, coming crashing down on the beast without giving it the chance to show just how special it was.

'Let's make sure before I make any hasty decision though I hope my prediction is right.'

Sticking to his words, he landed before the dead beast and started cutting it to piece after constructing a few remotely controlled magic swords.

He waved his staff, constructing a few more magical tools that went around helping him create a natural fire.

It was all happening too fast, making him further believe that magic was the best thing that happened to the world before his arrival.

Ian took a piece of wood, looking very relaxed amidst the chirping of birds, just waiting for the meat to cook.

However, an uninvited guest approached. A man of colossal build, absolutely ripped. Everything about him spoke of an ancient warrior.

He seemed to come in peace as he had a small smile on his face while taking a seat on the ground close to the undisturbed Ian.

"Human?" The man questioned.

"Kinda... Not sure." Ian shrugged, paying close attention to the meat, sometimes increasing the heat through magic to cook it faster without risking the taste.

Darkness was arriving, and the light was leaving, except for that small cozy campfire.

"Hercules." The man said.

"Ian Rose."

"So what brought you here?"

"Getting someone to fulfill their pledge and a bit of charity on top."

Their conversation was very brief, and peaceful, not something expected from someone who lives in the lands of the Gods, let alone Hercules himself.

Hercules was confused, not understanding what he meant in the slightest, so he just moved on to the next subject, "What about the beast? Why kill him when you can just avoid him? What if it was one of the Gods' pet?"

"It attacked me first, so it's okay." Ian shrugged again.

"Hoh? Uncaring about attracting the wrath of the gods?"

"Hmm, now that you put it this way..." Ian articulated the words in his mind because he really wasn't interested in trouble, "Oh yeah, It was unintentional, so it's okay."

And then there was silence for quite a while. Perhaps Hercules was speechless, so he remained silent until Ian sent a large piece of meat hovering towards him.

"Have your fill." Ian courteously said before starting to munch through the appetizing meat.

"Wow, like... Phew, without seasoning or anything, yet it is still the most delicious thing I've ever tasted."

Ian was certainly enjoying himself, but that didn't appear to be the case for Hercules as Ian curiously asked, "You're not gonna eat it? Is it perhaps below your standards?"

Hercules looked dazed, staring at the piece of meat in his hand, seeming to be sweating a bit, quite the odd thing, "I feel no hunger..."

"Oh," Ian nodded in understanding, "I see... You must be eating such a top-quality meat every day to the point you've grown sick... Sick of it." He strangely emphasized the last point, inducing a twitch on the demigod's face.

"God, it's so delicious..." Ian remarked again, taking another bite of the meat, "Honestly, I should come here more often. You know, to hunt such wonderful beasts."

"You... What would you do if the pledge isn't fulfilled?" Hercules changed the subject with a frown. The conversation turned weird quite fast.

"If? You mean when? I will do it anyway because I already know it won't be fulfilled, unless..." Ian let out a chuckled, shaking his head as he cut off another piece of beautifully cooked meat.

"Unless?" Hercules frowned even more.

"What you don't know can't hurt you. Do you know of the phrase?" Ian asked something the Demigod considered irrelevant, but he still answered.

"I do. I've heard such words before."

"It's false in so many ways that few people can comprehend. It only holds true for the weak... The weak-minded to be specific. What you don't know will most often than not hurt you." Ian softly explained, seeming to be in a good mood.

However, to Hercules, that sounded like a threat. His frown stretched further, seeming to be stressed.

"You kinda know... Albeit too late, so let me ask you just to make sure, why didn't you attack me yet?" Ian was still smiling but the demigod was not.

"I've honed my instincts beyond many, in fact, few can compare to me. Perhaps no one can... I felt it the moment I got close to you. I'm dead." Hercules clenched his fist, eyeing the lion's remains.

"This is your pet?" Ian wondered, genuinely curious, "If so, why send it at me when it's so weak?"

"Weak? It's not. You just never gave him a chance, and you are a monster. I didn't expect things to happen so fast... Yeah, I regret taking her deal." The demigod let out a sigh, giving up on life.

"Such is the fate of the ignorant... Unfortunately, I can not spare." It didn't sound like an unfortunate thing from Ian's tone, in fact, he was kinda glad because they made things easy for him.

"I understand... It's only unfortunate that I can not watch his cubs grow to become a well..."

Instantly, things changed. The air around the area seemed to freeze as every single muscle of Hercules clenched to such an instinct that his blood vessels seemed to burst, seemingly spraying the surroundings with blood.

However, his actions were too fast for his blood to reach the ground as he seemed to have grown in size.

The mere side effect of which created a shockwave so great it demolished the surroundings dozens of meters around him.

Even Ian found himself sent flying backward by the impact only to find his head being held by the bloody colossal warrior in sought of crushing his skull, and with no hesitation he did.

"Hahh... It was worth the try." Hercules let out one last sigh, falling to his knees.

He clearly felt himself crushing nothing but air, his target nowhere to be seen, but what was seen was the staff that has just created a hole through his chest, inducing a gush of blood, forming into a fountain beneath him.

Not just that, he clearly felt the staff devouring him for all he's worth as Ian walked from behind him, crouching to his level, eye to eye, "It was a good try." He complimented.

"I know it was..." Hercules nodded, losing all signs of life, and leaving Ian with a few last words.

"Remember... None of the gods are kind. They're only as kind as the seeing eye expects. Heinous is our middle name, and I'm no exception as I'm sure you kno..."

Ian remained silent until the body turned to ashes, leaving his staff hovering in its place. He held it, tracing his fingers along with its exquisite form, and mumbled, "Another vessel filled... Kinda."

Ian then took a deep breath and turned around, eyeing a certain direction, "If a game you wish to play, then allow me to end it because I have absolutely no interest in playing along."

The staff loomed before him, becoming entirely dark. Pure darkness was being unleashed from it, "Let me show my latest vision. Trigon's flames... The darkest of suns!"

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Chapter 122: The Worst Of Nightmares I

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Ian then took a deep breath and turned around, eyeing a certain direction, "If a game you wish to play, then allow me to end it because I have absolutely no interest in playing along."

The staff loomed before him, becoming entirely dark. Pure darkness was being unleashed from it, "Let me show my latest vision. Trigon's flames... The darkest of suns!"

The darkness from the stuff flew above Ian, forming into an inky distorted sphere. It was soon followed by crimson flames appearing out of nowhere.

The flames were very odd as they mixed with the darkness a little too well. Perhaps it was because of the dark vines flowing through it, seeming to be similar to that darkness.

The two forces blended perfectly, expanding into a colossal dark sun, entirely inky black because the crimson flames weren't on the outside. No, they were compressed within.

The burning flames, standing even above the fires of hell were seeking their freedom desperately, dying to be let out of the darkness.

As everyone knows, Ian is quite charitable and kind, so he gave the flames their freedom as he spoke, "Here, have a wonderful Dessert..."

"Stooooop!" The hiss fell to deaf ears as the darkest of suns flew to its destination, accelerating quickly.

It was like Ian had eyes everywhere because far away from him, beyond the woods, there was a colossal hill, and behind it was his target.

Well, what leads to his target. Behind it there was a cliff, looking out on several rock structures standing extremely high, and on the largest of the bunch, there was his target.

It looked like an absolutely gorgeous city made with things humans can only dream of. It had the touch of gods on it, obvious to any watching eyes, a level of architecture humans can only dream to achieve

Ian suddenly found himself standing right on the edge of the cliff, gazing at the dark sphere hurling at the city in sought of its destruction.

"Such a pure darkness..." Ian heard someone talk as he was right next to him, but no, he was far far away, appearing before the sphere of darkness.

The persona to speak, a burly man adorned in golden ornaments and a few pieces of clothing, aking to those of ancient greek.

The man's hair was dark grey, speaking somewhat of his age, but what shone most about him was his electrical eyes, and a cloak seemingly made entirely of blue lightning, an exquisite appearance befitting that of a God.

The God of lightning spread his arms wide, unleashing an ocean of blue lightning enveloping the dark sphere in its embrace, seeking to extinguish it.

"Hmmm have your freedom, little thing," Ian murmured, clearly feeling the darkness and the flames of the sphere as if they were perfectly under his control, and he allowed them to go.

The flames within desperately sought their freedom resisting the ocean of lightning, consuming it even.

Zeus frowned, feeling the overwhelming force coming out to the point that it was swiftly expanding, his ocean of lightning barely able to hold it anymore.

"Hahh..." Zeus let out a breath of crackling electricity, a breath that soon turned to a roar as his muscled arms tensed, getting shrouded in lightning, soon inflating into giant electrical arms.

The ruler of Olympus then flew towards the swiftly expanding sphere, befitting of his divinity, he was extremely fast as the giant hands found themselves slapping the sphere in less than a second.

Even the ocean of electricity followed, rushing at the sphere like a broken dam, urging it away.

Zeus was successful in his pursuit as the sphere was hurled away colliding with one of the other rock formations far away.

The result of which was nothingness, literally annihilating anything in its way until it flared outwards, devouring a huge chunk of the cliff before vanishing.

"Who are you?" Zeus frowned, eyeing the damage, then laying his eyes on the amused Ian, who seemed to very much like the effect of his new move.

"Oh, excuse my rudeness," Ian apologetically smiled before formally introducing himself like the courteous person he is, "Ian Rose, here to collect what was promised, as well as a bit of charity."

"I see... I've never met a human more audacious than you in all of my life, and that should say a lot," Zeus spoke with unquestionable authority while approaching the confused Ian.

"Audacious? I? No no, you just don't understand how generous I'm because honestly, I would've done worse if I didn't fear not getting enough charity,"

Ian further rubbed his temples in exasperation, "I honestly didn't see it coming. The audacity of the gods made me a bit speechless, especially when I know for a fact that the demons of hell are more courteous than the bunch of you Gods, like common, do you not see the irony?"

"Huh?" Now it's Zeus' time to be confused, especially with how emotional Ian seemed about the subject. He honestly had no idea what he was talking about, so he asked the person that appeared behind him.

"Do you know what he's speaking of, Hera?"

"I do... He doesn't deserve to live." The woman behind him gritted her teeth, desperately wanting to jump at Ian to strangle him, only she wasn't sure if she can handle him.

"Hmm, I see... As I thought." Ian remarked, eyeing the gorgeous woman before him. Hera, the goddess of women and marriage was... Well, captivating with her enchanting and beautiful eyes and soft white skin.

She was very stunning, tall, and even her venomous words took nothing of her elegance. Her royal attire and graceful crown only complimented her beauty.

"You should be the one, right? Hera, the queen of Olympus. Only someone like you would be so vindictive for accidentally doing something you don't lik..."

Ian was thoroughly amused, finally getting a complete understanding of why the pledge wasn't processed, but Hera was not, "Shut up!"

"Such a waste of fine wine..." Ian remarked much to the two Gods' confusion because he really looked regretful, "But is it a wonder for the wine to become poisoned if you continue to sprinkle poison in it for centuries, millennials even?"

"I've heard enough..." Zeus shook his head, uncaring about the words of who he assumes to be just one of those strong mortals. He'd even go as far as to assume that Ian can not use the previous move again.

"But it all matters not. If You had come in peace and remained courteous, then I might've heard your pleas, but not anymore.

You've stained the dignity of Olympus, so be ready to fall to Tartarus for as long as your measly life span permits."

Such is the way of the gods. Zeus had already sentenced Ian to death the moment he sensed the colossal power seeking to devour Olympus. The human's reasoning was just miscellaneous for him.

"Huh... Of course. God, I miss dealing with demons. It was so easy to get them to give me charity, but it isn't so easy now, is it? Now, I'll have to..."

Ian squatted down, his words stopping in their track, feeling a knife almost scratching his neck.

"Gods are even scummier than demons, like Wow." Ian shook his head, leaping backward with a speed incomprehensible to the normal eyes, leaving orange lightning behind him.

On the previous spot he stood, from the very ground erupted numerous snakes of lightning almost consuming him whole.

Indeed, before the gods of Olympus, how can Ian remain defenseless? The Rose of speed force was already in effect, and that wasn't the only thing he prepared.

His speed certainly surprised everyone around, especially Hermes, the god that just tried to sneak attack him. Still, the swift God smiled, "I didn't expect him to be so fast, so I didn't try my hardest. He isn't so fast anyway."

The gods seemed to have quite the ego. Every one of them, Ian noted.

"This will be hard, and I may have to use it this time... No, I will use it now. It's been a long time anyway."

Ian murmured to himself in a bit of anticipation as he approached the Gods, speaking a few last words, "Death fighting style, let's start."

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Chapter 123: The Worst Of Nightmares II

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Ian murmured to himself in a bit of anticipation as he approached the Gods, speaking a few last words, "Death fighting style, let's start."

Hermes spoke the truth, he wasn't using nearly his top speed, and he was certainly much faster considering Ian's top speed with the speed force can reach up to sixty Mach.

That's actually not that much when considering he holds the powers of the speed force, something that puzzled him quite a lot.

It was as if something was holding his speed back but was having a hard time doing so, and he has a very good idea of what it was.

"Hera, go back and await my return." Zeus ordered before eyeing Hermes, ignoring Hera's frustration as always, "Hermes, you know what to do."

He did know what to do as he vanished, running at such an extreme speed he should've disintegrated into nothingness. Not just that, the entire area around him should've been destroyed at his sheer speed.

However, similar to the speed force, he seems to ignore the laws of nature, physiques, and all that can slow his speed down. A diving halo of sorts surroundings him, keeping his speed controlled.

His speed was so much faster than Ian's even with the speed force appeared frozen for him. Hermes was just so reliable that Zeus trusted he could finish the job without any imperfections.

In fact, Zeus believed Hermes was more fit than him for such situations because he was just that fast, the fastest of the gods by far.

His boots touched the ground but seemed to have no impact as he was running through space, seemingly not needing a ground to move.

He had two small knives, one in each hand. As soon as he moved, the knives were already swung because a moment later, he reached Ian, and the knives were near the crime lord's throat.

However, in contrast to all expectations, especially Hermes', the physical realm actually affected him as he stumbled on a small rock.

You see, the action of Zeus redirecting the darkest of suns away affected a nearby rock structure. Most of it was totally consumed, but the resulting impact still sent some rocks flying.

One of those rocks had a very important destiny. It was meant to save a kind life, so it fell right in front of Ian.

The strange part about the event is that Hermes didn't see any rock, so he didn't react to it.

His speed not only allows him to run fast but also to react fast, so stumbling on his steps was rarer than the times Zeus was able to resist his horniness.

Yet his steps led him to stumble on that specific rocks, his knives barely scratching Ian as he fell to the side.

Normally, he would be able to easily get his balance back and continue on with his pursuit, but he was in shock.

In fact, he was in so much shock he just remained frozen as Ian's newly flared wings smacked him down further into the ground with such a force he nearly passed out.

'Hmm, easier than I thought. I underestimated the overwhelming ego of the Gods,' Ian mused as the God Killer, and Kryptonian sword both appeared in his hands, ready to decapitate Hermes.

He totally ignored the lightning strike coming toward him, in fact, he leaned slightly into it to make sure it'd kill him.

The odd thing however was that the lightning avoided him encircling Hermes and flying with him back to Zeus, almost as if it's solid, leaving Hermes intact.

"Very odd..." Zeus's frown was only stretching since meeting Ian, finding everything about him strange, "Hermes, wake up or I'll let you know what shock truly means!"

And Hermes was indeed awakened, standing up at a speed akin to that of lightning before tidying himself up though he still seemed a bit dizzy.

"Change of plans. Capture him!" Zeus ordered, and Hermes complied, this time trying to run much faster and with much more cautiousness... Poor Hermes, he passed out.

"Huh? Why?" Ian wondered, genuinely confused, "Do you not sense the magic around me? It's a magical spell called magic barrier, and I had literally just cast it before you, like, did you not see the staff behind me shining blue for a split second? Aghh, I'm losing it!"

It was that simple. When Ian noticed Zeus' move, he instantly cast the spell, knowing he might've noticed something a bit too fast.

The following was quite simple, Hermes ran at the magic barrier, cracking it easily but also passing out in the process.

"Enough!" A thunderous roar reverberated throughout the entirety of Olympus... Zeus was angry. Ian was straight up looking down at him right in his face, "I do not know exactly how you work, but it won't matter soon. Tartarus will be your new home..."

"You know, that sounds familiar," Ian stroked his chin in contemplation, looking a bit serious, "Oh, right. Etrigan said something similar before..."

"Before?"

"Before... Oh, it's done!" Ian smiled happily as Hermes vanished from the ground, appearing in the black Rose dimension.

"I might've honestly been too biased against you Gods, especially you Zeus. I mean you were even kind enough to stall for time for me while I'm transporting Hermes far away... For that, I'm grateful."

Ian even went as far as performing a slight bow as thanks. He truly felt grateful and apologetic like never before.

"Hah... Hahahahaha... HahahahahahahahaHAHAHAHAAHAHA!" Zeus laughed. He laughed like a maniac for a while, his laugher breaching the very concept of sound, reaching every nook and cranny of the Skyland dimension.

"Hm? No need to be so happy man. It wasn't that big of a deal, right?" Ian spoke with a bit of confusion, finding the surroundings have become a bit dark, and they were getting darker by the second.

The sky across the entirety of the dimension turned dark, inky clouds seemingly forming from nothing, and the sky was raging.

Zeus laughed so loudly he almost cried from laughing, two bright tears sliding from his sparkling eyes, and so, the sky chose to weep with him as it started to rain, heavily so.

His loud voice was followed by the thundering of the sky, his every breath letting out sparkles of lightning just as the sky started spitting lightening about every moment

"You come to my domain hahaha! You come to my domain and you laugh at meeee? I? The king of Gods?"

At that moment, every God of Olympus that was watching, and intending to help in eliminating the invader changed their minds, hurling themselves into whatever hole they lived in.

"Zeus has never been so angry before..." This was what was in almost every Olympian God's mind, all except one, a very odd God whose attention was on Ian's magic.

The said God was hiding far away, in a crack somewhere in the Skyland dimension, watching the show with interest, and curiosity, "Magic... Magic with an unknown source?"

Zeus's laughter halted in an instant, "Very well... Let it rain bursts of lightning, ones of such rage never seen before and will never be again."

Ian looked up, narrowing his eyes with a beautiful smile, "Amazing. Fascinating... Such an unimaginable power."

It was an unimaginable feat, surprising even Zeus himself. His wrath was somewhat exaggerated, and he sensed that yet he couldn't help it.

There is just something about Ian that he can not understand, and it fucking drove him mad to the point he created the spectacle before Ian.

The sky was no longer dark, in fact, the dimension became more full of light than it had ever been because the sky became nothing but lightning all around.

Indeed, the entirety of Skyland's dimension's skies became nothing but lightning. Several earths' skies combined wouldn't be able to contend.

"Hahh, let it lighten, then fall..." Zeus hovered above the ground, the lightning shrouding him completely, seeming like a form of pure lightning energy, floating near the clouds of lightning as he commanded it all.

"Huh... What have I gotten myself in..." Unfortunately, Ian couldn't finish his words because...

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Chapter 124: The Worst Of Nightmares III

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"Huh... What have I gotten myself in..." Unfortunately, Ian couldn't finish his words because a power higher than gravity took effect, raining it all down.

And there is no evading lightning, not unless you can react to it. All of the blue lightning across the dimension followed in Zeus' footsteps, seeking to eliminate him.

Indeed, Zeus was the first to attack, launching down at Ian with such a force he would surely be able to bring the entire island on which they stood down.

However, Ian vanished using his favorite trick. He was in an entirely different dimension, looking a bit nervous because even though he was prepared beforehand, and tried to get into the black rose before the lightning started to fall, it still almost got him.

"I will only use them as last resorts lest I alert Trigon, so I have to try my best." Ian caught his staff tightly before appearing again in the dimension of Skyland only to disappear again.

It doesn't matter where he appears as the lightning seems to have eyes instantly lunging at him. He was however able to do what he sought which is waving his staff around.

Numerous spells were being cast, most left in the black rose while the rest sought after Zeus.

The skies of the dimension of Skyland became a theater for a show with fireworks erupting everywhere. It was truly a fascinating sight to behold, but getting close would only mean death.

"Finally," Ian murmured, strangely appearing very close to Zeus. He let out a breath before bringing his staff before him, yet not a speck of lightning reached him yet.

"You coward! I dare you to stay!"

Zeus tried and tried, and he was succeeding, but Ian was just too much because at the moment he was surrounded by what could only be assumed to be hundred of defensive magical spells.

They weren't doing much to stop Zeus' destructiveness, but as a collective spell, they definitely protected Ian long enough.

The collective spell he constructed instantly surrounded the place in the form of numerous magic circles enveloping the area, each had a connection to the Black Rose.

"Magic Spam- Collective Instant." Ian unleashed the collective magical spell because from every magic circle, some sort of magical spell erupted all at the same time, and all purely destructive.

The majority of them were simple Eldtritch blasts, but they were extremely effective depending on how potent one's magic is.

The potency of Ian's magic was clearly reflected in Zeus's eyes as even he feared death, but he was the King of the gods, so he acted quick, spreading his arms outwards before waving them clockwise.

Every speck of lightning followed in his movement, rotating around him with immense speed and force, creating a hurricane around him.

The question remains, will he still be able to survive the thousands of magical spells falling at him with such immense force its impact was able to reach the heart of Olympus far away?

Ian's blurry blue eyes looked in anticipation at the spectacle because this is the first time this spell was put in effect.

Just to make sure the spectacle remains in his memory in its every detail, he reactivated the Rose of speed. The collective instant is a tremendous spell that has a lot of requirements, ones he found out he could only satisfy when using the Rose of Magic.

For several long seconds, most of the gods of Olympus could only see a blinding light overwhelming the entirety of the Skyland dimension, and some of them could only gape in shock as the scene finally cleared up.

Zeus was down on one knee. Every speck of lightning has vanished but Zeus was clearly still alive though his face was looking down, his expression remaining hidden.

Honor states that thou shall not strike a foe when they're down, and Ian being the generous and understanding person he was, upheld himself to that honor.

However, his staff acted fully on its own accord without his control. It sparkled with orange lightning, and it even let out a burst of magic as it flew at Zeus, appearing before him in what seemed to be an instant.

Only, a sigh reverberated throughout the place. Someone appeared very close to Zeus before the latter was teleported next to her, "Why did it have to come to this?"

It was Athena, not just her, many other gods appeared one by one, eyeing Ian vigilantly.

"Give me it..." Zeus ordered in a low tone as he slowly stood up, and Athena did, handing something akin to a bolt of lightning though it strangely looked solid.

Ian wholeheartedly ignored Zeus and eyed Athena instead, 'She's dangerous. The most dangerous of the bunch, but...'

Athena also eyed Ian with narrow eyes, sizing him up more closely before glancing at Hera to the side, "Why did you start this without knowing anything about him?"

Hera was the queen of Olympus, yet Athena didn't show much respect to her. Instead, she was obviously reprimanding her.

"I wanted him dead... That's all." Hera responded, also eyeing Ian with vigilance.

"If I didn't know better, I would've assumed you want Hercules dead." Athena shook her head, "Are you sure you want to continue?"

Her question was pointed at Ian though Zeus responded in his place, "It doesn't matter what he wants because I do..." He was already hovering towards Ian as he spoke.

Ian held his staff again, caressing it with a strange expression before eyeing Athena, "I suddenly have a deep desire to extinguish this dimension in its entirety."

"Zeus! Come back!" Athena yelled at Zeus, growing alert in an instant.

"You're smart, as expected of the god of wisdom." Ian nodded while waving his hand, and in an instant, there was only silence.

There was only an eerie silence as the gods of Olympus stared at the change in the scenery, speechless.

Around Ian, seven dark spheres appeared, slightly vibrating in what could only be assumed to be immense power. The spheres looked exactly like the darkest of suns except for their immense size.

'Trigon, You have my gratitude for being an unlimited battery of immense destructive power...' Ian gently smiled looking at their faces, already sensing the delicious charity destined for him.

Long ago, Ian dictated a significant portion of the black Rose into becoming a sea of Trigon's fire.

Trigon's scroll was always swimming within it, constantly releasing its flames. It was using Trigon's dimension as a battery to create a domain of pure destruction.

Now, some of the destructiveness was unleashed and even complemented with darkness to create seven dark suns.

Then Ian vanished, but the spheres still floated there, obediently holding back their hunger.

Athena frowned. Things were certainly going out of his hand, especially when she heard his words.

She felt like he really meant it, like he really wanted to destroy the entire dimension, and his confidence told her he can do it, that and her deduction and observation.

And as predicted, the colossal spheres hovering in the skies of Skyland should certainly be able to cause quite the damage, and even annihilate the entire dimension if they don't interfere.

Athena's eyes gazed in a specific direction. There, she could see a ring just like some of the other gods do, only the ones very experienced in magic, "What do you want?"

She knew that if she destroyed the ring, he'll likely not be back instantly because it seems to be how he teleports, but the spheres will still be here, and they'll likely go out of control if that happens.

"Now we're talking. I want what was promised from Hephaestus, and I want to borrow him for a while to make a few things for me. The materials are of course provided by your charitable hands, the best of course."

His voice floated along the winds to reach them, seemingly from nowhere, and he wasn't done just yet, "As for Hermes, well, you won't have him back, but don't worry, he'll probably live... I think."

It was certainly a humiliating experience, especially for Zeus who could only eye the darkest of suns in the sky while gritting his teeth... He felt defeated while Hera on the side felt afraid. She knows all of his anger will be unleashed on her, not on anyone else.

"I will do it." The one to speak this time was Hephaestus who looked to be in a bit of a sorry state. He found himself limping among the gods, agreeing to finally satisfy the pledge that Hera stopped him from fulfilling.

"Oh, perfect." Ian's happy voice sounded right next to Hephaestus as he appeared next to him, seeming to be defenseless much to the dismay of some of the gods.

Athena however seemed to notice a few strange things as she shook her head, signaling for no one to take action.

Ian smiled at her, nodding as a sign of respect before walking up to Hera much to her distress, and the gods were ready to act. However...

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Chapter 125: The Worst Of Nightmares IV

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Ian smiled at her, nodding as a sign of respect before walking up to Hera much to her distress, and the gods were ready to act.

However, all Ian did was hug her, leaving everyone absolutely baffled, especially after hearing his next words, "Thank you."

He wasn't done just yet as he whispered in her ear, "Please try to do something similar, you know, like reasons to give me charity, and thank you again."

"Alright, I'm done here." Ian smiled, acting as if everyone around didn't hear his whispers. They're gods for god's sake.

"Hephaestus, let's go and study the blueprint. I won't know what it'll take to make them, so I'm counting on you. I will send what's needed after he's done, alright dear Athena?"

Athena nodded with a frown, giving Ian one last warning, "Do not harm Hermes. You'll only face unnecessary wrath of the gods, especially his mother."

"Hmm, I'll keep that in mind." Ian nodded before vanishing with Hephaestus as well as the seven darkest of suns, leaving the area absolutely quiet for a while.

"I want him dead, one way or another." Such is the way of the gods. They couldn't risk their own home, so they showed restraint, but they won't let his offense slide.

"Let me observe him first... He's strange. I have to make sure he isn't hiding something else." Athena stated, stopping Zeus from doing anything reckless. She's the god of wisdom after all, among other things.

"Also, what he wants Hephaestus to make may be too costly, perhaps even for us. His tone at least said as much."

That night, Olympus experienced an eerie silence. Some even had dreams. Such a thing was a wonder to gods. Well, they weren't exactly dreams but nightmares.

It was also that night that some individuals experienced something that might as well be a dream, just because of how delirious it was.

"It's not bad at all. It actually exceeded my expectations." Ian was seated on his couch in the mansion after a long tiring day. Fighting gods wasn't easy after all.

Before him, on the table was a black whip, looking exquisite with beautiful engravings running along with its form. It seemed to have a faint dark glow, a testament to its peculiarity.

This was the weapon Hephaestus made for Selina. The artifact he pledged but didn't deliver until Ian set foot in his own home.

Ian of course didn't blame him at all. He was even thankful because that made things so much easier.

'That was a bit dangerous. I need more methods to avoid getting caught. That's just too much of a weakness.'

His greatest weakness is getting caught. He isn't afraid of getting killed because common sense forbids that, but being held a prisoner. That's an entirely different story.

His biggest worry in the previous confrontation was just that. Thankfully, Hermes made a mistake, making Ian take a note of how just how massive of an ego the gods have.

That single mistake affected not only Hermes but also Zeus, leading the former to pass out, mostly of his own volition.

Zeus was also dangerous because he seemed to be able to make his lightning solid. Ian had no idea what limitations such an ability has, so he had to be cautious, and act as a bit of a coward, gladly so.

Ian also knew that he definitely couldn't face all the gods at once. That was certain capture, so he used his biggest trump card.

Somewhere in the black rose dimension, Trigon's scroll still floats about. It's still to this day one of Ian's most precious treasures, and his plans for it are just starting.

'Now I just need to wait. Well, I can do a few things in the meantime. Leaving Hephaestus in Nanda Parbat is definitely the move, especially with what I tasked him to do.'

Ian stroked his chin with a strange expression, 'I hope the government, and Lex Luthor aren't mad. Now that I think about it, wouldn't the green lantern guys also be made? Nahm I'm sure everything will be okay.'

He shrugged and stood up after sensing a few life forces approaching very quickly.

And just then, he noticed a dark blurry shadow entering the place, and only a second later he found Selina in his embrace, hugging him tightly.

"Ahh, this smell," Selina murmured before licking his neck, "God I missed you!" That was followed by their lips entangling together in a passionate kiss.

"Mmm, miss your smell," And she seemed like she did as she buried her head in his neck, sniffing him like a Cat. Well, her powers seem to affect her quite a lot, and she likes it.

"Phew, ok. Kinky but I like it..." Ian remarked with a smile, gently stroking her hair while she purred cutely.

The next person to join them was none other than Ivy though in contrast to Selina, she kept a bit of distance, walking a full circle around Ian before letting out a sigh of relief and hugging from the back.

"You're okay..." She seemed extremely happy though her mood seemed to turn sour in an instant, "Darling, can you take me to hell? I will just visit it for a bit, and I won't do anything bad... Please?"

She seemed to want that way too much, acting all cute and such. Usually, she acts all seductive to get Ian to help her in something, especially things that can accidentally destroy the world.

She ends up being rejected most of the time, but her cute act on other hand... It was special, but she finds it quite embarrassing, so seeing her like this, Ian could only laugh.

"So you won't go on like a rampage huh? You'll just go sighting?" Ian questioned with amusement.

"Exactly." Ivy nodded with a bit of embarrassment.

"Sighting?! I wanna go also! Also also, I want wings!" The all familiar energetic voice reverberated throughout the place as Harley came running through the door in her usual outfit.

"Huh?" She eyed the odd position the trio was in before her eyes lit up as she leaned forward with her hands on her knees, seemingly breathing heavily, "Hahh, I almost died trying to catch up to them. I think if it happens again, I'll definitely die from running for too long."

She barely stood up straight and approached Ian from the side, giving his cheek a long kiss, "Husband, don't you think I need wings so I can stay alive? Or how about this, how about a power that would allow me to reach you first?"

"Huh?"

"..."

"Wait wait..." Harley wasn't done just yet as she kissed Ian on the cheek again with her eyes seeming to shine, "How about teleportation! Then I can move at like sixteen crushed skulls per second!"

Suddenly, she seemed to remember something as she eyed Ian with affection, "Of course, the most important thing is that I can go to you always! So you wouldn't reject me, would you?"

Ian gazed at Harley with a strange expression before a light smile surfaced on his pale face. He slipped his hand out, pinching her chin before giving her a light peck, "You're lovely, keep being you."

"Ian..." Selina gently whispered, and he got the hint, vanishing with Ivy and Selina directly into the bedroom.

Harley on the other hand remained frozen in her place for a while. She then eyed the table where a golden bat lies, looking exquisite. It was the god killer.

She picked it up and walked away in silence to get herself a drink only to meet someone on the way who seemed to be having a drink himself.

She instantly lifted her bat up and brought it down right at his head much to his shock. He reacted quickly though and leaped away, falling to his butt with confusion, "What the fuck are you doing?"

"Me? What are you doing!? Why did you evade?" Harley strangely yelled back, something that might sound unreasonable to others, but the man finally understood.

"Huh? No no! I'm the real one." The man was Multiplex, and noticing her bat already in the air ready to crush something, he hastily created a few clones, letting her vent.

A bat after bat fell on their skull, allowing her to let out a sigh of ease, "Yup, nothing happened! I have dementia, so I forgot everything that just happened!"

However, Harley and Multiplex were both unaware that there was someone in the coffee with them, sitting in the darkness in one of the chairs, seeming to be invisible.

The ghastly figure was just waiting in darkness with barely any movement, and that went on for the entire night until...