.^^ New Grimoire ^^

— James —

At the front of the mob, a small creature swam forward, and floated above me. The armor on its body was a light blue, but it's eyes were green, like most of the others. "The Immaterial One demands you to release her Ancient One, and be gone from this plane of existence."

I bared my teeth. "Tell her that I said, with all due Respect, I'm not leaving until this useless sack of shit tells me where he took my friend! He ABANDONED her out of COWARDICE with a hostile Entity, and I will have my answers, and then He's all yours, to punish for his lack of spine or conviction as you wish."

The being blinked each of its eyes individually, and then hummed. "She is unamused by your insolence, but agrees that you shall have reparations for your friend's life, should it be within Yesha-Cole's abilities, Oaths Notwithstanding."

"I swore not to talk! I did!" He squirmed under my foot.

My sword stabbed into one of his tentacles, and I snarled at him. "An Oath made out of cowardly fear means less to me than the heat of a distant sun!!!"

"Nevertheless, Oaths bind us magically, Young One." The spokesperson shook its head.

I growled and reached for his oath, gripping it as it materialized as a chain around his throat. I traced it back to its owner, a vague directional sense that agreed with the compass, and then snapped it off roughly, absorbing the material into my sword as an afterthought.

"No Oath now Binds you, Worm. SPEAK!" I snarled at him, watching as his green face slowly paled to almost yellow.

The spokesperson hummed. "The Immaterial One agrees... an Oath no longer binds you. You are free to answer, and must do so."

"Fine! I answer to the Immaterial's Wishes, not yours, you insignificant-" I cut off his venomous retort with another severed tentacle. He screeched, and then slowly regained control of himself.

"Be nice." I said simply.

"Fine... You're looking for Xian-She, god of Time and Future-Sight... Rafaela made a deal with her a few years ago, and now she's paying for the deal. Simple. Nothing I could have done beyond what I did, which was to hide her for as long as I did, and then tried to get her away... but when we left that place in Portugal, I felt the Denizen's closing in, so I took us to Texas, Mozambique, Paris, so on and so forth, trying to throw them off... but they caught up, and took us to her realm, outside of time! I wasn't needed, so they made me swear never to speak of it, and then kicked me back here, about two weeks in the past! I've been trying to avoid my past self for about that long." He sighed, deflating. "Do whatever you want to me... I'm done. I'll feed myself to the Abyss, if you want."

I pulled out my Grimoire, and shook my head. "I've got a better idea..." his eyes widened in shock, and he tried to swim away, but my Grimoire bitchslapped him into the ground again, then I hefted it, and touched his face to the cover.

He screamed as the Grimoire ripped him into a binding and cover, leaving the pages made of Thor's skin alone. The spine and cover merged with the new crystalline-leather, and Zaire's face appeared on the cover, his six eyes sharing the jewel that had been on the cover as a conduit to all of my power.

I hummed. "Interesting... you look almost threatening in that! Ha! As if."

The spokesperson hummed. "The Immaterial One is unsure as to whether that is proper punishment for his crime against you, which seems to be only failing to protect your friend, after much effort."

"And don't forget Cowardice. Besides, you heard him, he was going to kill himself anyway, at least in this way he can continue to be of use." I shrugged, and released my godly power, shrinking back down to my normal size, or a few inches taller, I wasn't sure. "Either way, it's all done now, and I appreciate you mediating the dispute. Now I have to go fight a god of time, so excuse me."

I created a bubble, sealing it thoroughly and removing the Ethane, then opened a portal inside it, back to Greece. "Well, you guys shouldn't be caught up in all this nonsense-"

"Oh shut your yap! I know Xian-She, and I will help you bargain with her! Now let me out of the bubble, or so help me god!!!" Zetre crossed his arms and began tapping his foot imperiously.

Manny sighed. "Honestly, I'm not stupid enough to think that I'm any use against a god, and Momma wouldn't want me doing something stupid, so I'm-" he paused, looking at Zetre's glare. "-I'm... uh... totally coming with you... for, uh... moral support, or something... yay..."

I laughed and closed the portal, and let them out of the bubble. "So enthusiastic, man. Fine, we'll go together. Your Dad is going to kill me..." I sighed, but started following the compass, after replacing my Grimoire into my bag.

It hit air, and instead of exploding, the low-Germanium content crystal, (which I'd identified as Argyrodite, a beautiful crystal that emitted low-levels of photons as its atoms decayed rapidly in open air,) set itself on fire, a tiny flame that turned itself into the many colors of the rainbow, and simply kept burning, though it wasn't hot enough to harm anything. I gave the crystal a regenerative property, having it use Alchemy to rebuild every atom that was destroyed.

Zetre whistled when I pulled it out. "Now that is a Grimoire... god-leather for pages, a Flaming Cephalopacian for Leather spine and cover, with the same squid-god's spirit as it's semi-Sentient Mind? Oof, I want one..." he shook his head.

"Who are you calling semi-sentient, you uselessly over-evolved chimpanzee?" Zaire hissed telepathically, from his residence inside the Grimoire's Pages.

"Whoa-lly shit!" Zetre yelped, hiding behind me.

"Yeah, he did try to save Rafaela, even if he failed miserably and ran away like a little rat, so obviously I didn't kill him." I said dryly, and shoved the Grimoire back into my bag.

The compass led me to another rift, after a few miles of swimming, which was surprisingly fun. "Wanna go scuba-diving some time? I'd like to walk along Marianna's Trench. Maybe discover some creatures that scientists haven't yet."

Zetre sighed. "We would die from the pressure."

"Luv, You're standing under the weight of a few astronomical units of hyper-condensed Ethane, weighing in excess of 11.2 billion tons per square inch. Marianna's Trench is a cake-walk by comparison." I said dryly.

He blushed, realizing his completely blonde statement, and grinned a bit. "... right... I knew that! Shut up."

I laughed and led us through the Rift, bracing myself for any sort of atmosphere, only to find none at all. I quickly altered the others' barriers, drawing air through a tiny portal for them, and connecting us all so that anything we said would travel through like a communication circuit, despite the lack of an atmosphere to transfer sonic vibrations.

The needle was still pointed forward, so I set a small fire under my feet as propulsion, and increased its power until we were drifting nicely towards the nearest point of light other than the glowing Rift, which the compass was pointing at.

"This is so beautiful!!!" Zetre laughed, spreading his arms and likely pretending he was Peter Pan.

"It is." I nodded, glancing at the glorious nebula that was spread around us. Vast clouds of red and white matter were swirling with invisible electromagnetic cosmic winds, mixing in an aesthetically pleasing way.

"You don't seem... enthused?" Zetre asked slowly.

"I don't want to put a drag on your good mood, just ignore me." I smiled, and kissed his hands, flying further towards the destination.

"What, a Extradimensional Nebula isn't enough to excite you?" He laughed.

"No, not really. Once you've seen them created... do you know what the Flowers from Alderaan is?" I asked.

"You mean 'Are'." He corrected my grammar.

"No, I mean 'Is'. 'The Flowers from Alderaan' is an effect that certain things have on you. The story of the Flowers from Alderaan is that these flowers were the most beautiful thing in the universe, no contest, all things considered, they were the most beautiful thing in the history of the universe. So one guy smelled them, looked at them, enjoyed them, blah blah, and then he went home, and suddenly the world looked like a total trash-heap." I explained casually.

"Ahh, I remember a reference to that, Some guy ate the most incredible food ever, and then everything he ever ate after that tasted like cardboard, right?" Manny piped up.

"Yes, Exactly. I experienced the Creation of a Star, once. It was a beautiful, cosmic experience... but Nebulas are just big clouds of matter with some other stuff in them, now." I shrugged.

"Ouch... I suppose that's a lesson in getting what you wish for." Zetre sighed quietly.

I laughed. "That's true, isn't it? There's a reason no one really strives for perfection, only improvement. Perfection is a dull, lifeless thing, and it rots away at the rest of your life."

"Spoken wisely... but as a Wise Human once said, 'the fact that Perfection is unattainable, is no excuse not to strive for it'." A being convalesced into our realm of perception, sitting on a chair made of the Inky-Black fabric of reality.

I spotted Rafaela in a crystal cage, off to one side of his little throne, as the castle built itself around us from nothing but liquid darkness. I snorted softly. "Oh, great. Another immortal being who wants us to think that they are the one-true almighty god, worthy of eternal worship! Great." I said dryly.

Zetre nudged me with his elbow as we finally stood on the ground, then cleared his throat, stepping forward. "Great and wise Xian-She, I, Zetre Lithos, beg an audience within your glorious presence."

I snorted. "Don't grovel, dear one, it's not like you. I've got this."

"No! You don't. I'll handle it." He snapped sternly.

"An audience? It's been so long since someone came to see me in my own realm... most often they only pray to me for power... what is your desire, little brave one?" The being took a decidedly feminine form, with a matronly body-type and voice alike, differing from the Cosmic Entity it had looked and sounded like before.

I tapped my foot as they went through the pleasantries, staring at Rafaela, stewing like a teapot.

Zetre noticed, and rubbed my arm gently. "It's alright, I'm getting there, Alright?"

I frowned, and nodded. "I'll wait a few more minutes, then I do it my way."

"Oh!!! How dreadfully brash of you! You really should shield your mind if you're thinking of doing violence, it's terribly rude." The entity sighed disappointedly at me.

I snapped, and simply began roaring at the celestial bitch. "Oi! Oh I'll show ye RUDE, ya Fuck-Head! Yeah, I'm talkin' te' YOU, ya Cunt-slick who thinks ye can take friends from me with nary a fuckin' reckoning! Well I say to ye, wit' no regrets, Fuck off back whence ye came, Ye stupid, feckless, FUGLY, arrogant, pus-sucking meal-worm! Ah've ripped int'eh pieces of meat tougher dan ye, and Ah will again, so Ah'm no' impressed by yer stupid castle an' song an' dance! Give me back what's mine, ye stupid rat's ass, an' ah'll be gone from yer rotten sight, an' ah'll be no' bother te ye no more!"

I heaved for breath I didn't really need, seething mad with rage so potent I was sure she could feel it washing over her in waves.

She blinked slowly, and then frowned. "How Rude! A time-out should do for you, young man, to think about what you've done!" She snapped her fingers, and I felt something tug at me, but I shredded the tether, and started marching towards her.

"Ah'm no' yer son, bitch, an' Ah won't be talked down te like a common Trog! Ye'll give me what's mine, or ah'll feed ye to the Abyss where ye belong, stealin' folks from dey're families an' such! Ye should be ashamed, but what type o' god would ye be if ye weren't an evil cunt?" I drew Cat-Scratch, and let it ignite.

The castle began melting around me, replaced with the earlier picture of an empty nebula, but with a being on a throne, and a variety of crystals, each holding a creature from another realm.

The entity frowned at me, and stood up slowly. "I will not allow you to continue insulting me so vulgarly! I don't care if you're a New God, you need to learn to respect your elders!"

"Respect?!? Why? Respect is earned, and so far all I've seen of you is that you like to kidnap people and keep them in crystal cages, draining away their life-force like batteries because no one worships you anymore! Hardly worthy of respect, you self-serving narcissistic psychopathic vampire! How's that for an insult that wasn't vulgar, hmm? Seemed accurate to me!" I snarled, and sent a wave of fire at her, as hot as I could.

It turned as hot as was literally possible without dissolving the electrons involved in the flame, so hot that it reminded me of what the Forge of Creation must have been like, when it created a Star as if it was cold iron.

She growled in pain as the splash of heat charred her arm to death, but her size in ratio to the wound was immense, and she swung her foot, kicking out at me.

I threw Manny and Zetre far above us, out of the firing line, and then simply caught her foot, after summoning my godly form and bracing myself against the fabric of the universe casually.

She tripped, confused by my sudden tanking on her toe, and I decided to quit playing the mouse, in this scenario. Her form fell, shrinking as it went, until she was the same height as me, about 12 Feet tall. When she looked mystified, I hauled off and punched her in the jaw, flooring her.

"Well? Get up. I'm not leaving and you're not resting, until I have Rafaela, and I know she's okay and that you'll never screw with her again." I growled, and let my true form take over for the first time, instead of simply making a larger version of myself.

Having the head and legs of a spotted lion was disorienting, at first, but I shook out my mane, and head-butted the goddess, sending her reeling, and following up with a sharp knee to the kidney, and wrapping her neck in a choke-hold.

She didn't react properly, and I realized she didn't actually have a kidney, nor did she need to breath, just before she retaliated, elbowing me in the throat and kicking my chest like a sledgehammer covered in titanium.

I slammed into the walls of her newly recreated castle, and growled, summoning cat-scratch, and letting it merge with my body again. I roared as the power of all my previous opponents surged through me, and launched myself at the angry celestial being.

She flung out a hand, and I halted, directly in front of her, with my claws against her throat. She moved, while I was totally still, and then sighed. "There. Now we can talk calmly, or rather, I can talk, and you can listen!"

She sat on her throne again slowly, having shrank it down to her new size, and the crystal cages appeared behind her throne in a thick hexagonal pattern. "The beings you see displayed here were not kidnapped, for your information, but rather they made deals with me. Time spent in this realm is immaterial, after all, once they leave, but not to me. If you had stayed in your realm, she would have returned in a matter of moments!"

She sighed and touched one of the crystal prisons, and the burn wound on her arm disappeared. "See? Useful... so yes, you would have gotten her back, but she has been here, for about a thousand of your solar cycles, her everlasting youth feeding me, in much the way you pictured it, though it is by no means involuntary. A Deal was Struck, after all, and she knew what she was getting into. She only forgot the part about when I would come for her. I did say Two earth cycles, but you humans lose track of time so easily..."

She leaned back into her throne, and gazed at me calculatingly. "So you see, Not only is your coming here useless, it causes me a bit of a tricky conundrum... see, the other gods have their own little methods, their own petty cults to feed them, but me... I prefer to drink from the source, but drinking from the Ghent is not allowed, unless you're a Keeper of Souls. So, I Keep Souls, and drink from them regularly, while the Ghent keeps them young and vibrant. It's a nice little loophole!" She showed me as a few drops of liquid gold welled up in the crystal cage she'd drained energy from, restoring the color to the resident's epidermis.

'And you don't want your secret to get out.' I thought as sarcastically as possible.

She smiled. "Precisely! So what should I do with you?"

'Fuck off and starve in a gutter like the trash-rat you are?' I smirked mentally.

She glared at me, and then turned her nose away. "I do not appreciate your tone!"

'YEAH? Well, I don't appreciate your Stupid, FUGLY FACE!!!' I laughed, and opened a portal under Manny and Zetre, hiding it from her, then scooped them up, dropping them somewhere in Greece, the best I could do in this position.

She gritted her teeth, and shook her head. "Your mother should be ashamed of how you're speaking to me. Absolutely no manners!"

I laughed. 'HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!My mum TAUGHT me these insults, ya STUPID FUCKIN' CUNT!' I dropped a portal under every single crystal cage, all at once, and sent them all to the same place as I'd sent Manny and Zetre, the Parthenos Compound.

She flinched, and then screamed in rage, crushing me with her power, until it suddenly failed, with her power-Source gone.

I cracked my neck, and strode forward. "Well, seems you'n me are due for a little reckoning! Clench your Teeth."