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Down With The Gods
Chapter 56 - Three Two One Action!

Chapter 56 - Three Two One Action!

Having enjoyed enough fun, Wyn is now more determined than ever to focus on becoming stronger. His goal is to raise each team member’s essence count to at least fifteen thousand. After setting conditions with Lisa – no more mazes and minimal puzzles – the team heads to the free “Take On Heroes” attraction on foot. There appears to be a long line ahead, which takes over an hour before they can get in.

“Welcome. Here, you can be heroes. Would you like to create your own story or view others?” An AI voice greets.

Inside a small room with a large floating virtual screen and two bookshelf speakers in front, Wyn selects the “View Other Heroes” option by saying it aloud. A portal opens beneath them, transporting the team to another room. This time, they’re surrounded by floating reels of thumbnails. When Wyn touches a thumbnail, it enlarges with a play button in the center. However, he notices the “Lose” label in the top right corner.

“Not all heroes are successful in saving the world,” Lisa says.

“So,...we can possibly watch someone die in a video?” Wyn asks, which Lisa nods in response.

The title of the current video, “Saving Private Alien Queen,” catches the team’s attention. Wyn touches the play button, and the video player enlarges while the surrounding reels fade away. The forty-minute movie begins to play.

Set in the distant future, Earth has been invaded by several hostile alien species, pushing humanity to the brink of extinction. As a last hope, a group of individuals with elemental powers is created through experimental fusion with alien DNA in a secret underground lab. Fierce battles ensue, and while humanity ultimately triumphs, it comes at the cost of millions of lives. However, not all aliens are eradicated – some survive in hiding, preying on small villages and livestock to sustain themselves and reproduce.

In the aftermath, a group of six individuals with powers, once hailed as heroes for saving humanity, takes up the cause of the “Alien Lives Matter” initiative. They argue that the aliens, who make up only ten percent of the world’s population, cannot pose an existential threat to humanity. Their campaign resonates with the privileged, leading to the aliens being granted protected status, much like endangered species in nature. A strict crackdown follows, imprisoning anyone who opposes the idea.

Years pass, and the alien population flourishes, eventually overtaking major cities. As conflict reignites, the six heroes side with the aliens once more, this time embarking on a mission to protect a young alien queen, nurturing her with the hope of fostering a peaceful future. However, as the queen matures into a brooding asexual entity, her offspring hatch and turn on their protectors, killing all six heroes. The end.

“That ass on the alien queen, eh,” James mentions.

“What the fuck?” Wyn exclaims.

“Right? What the fuck?” James echoes.

“We’re free to make any story we want. The choice of our story determines the creatures we see in it,” Lisa explains.

“So we can make an easy story and just win?” Yu asks.

“There’s no guarantee that the creatures will be weak.”

“Let's see if I understand this right. The six fought aliens, became heroes, then decided to be heroes for the aliens – only to end up killed by them?” Anish tries to summarize.

“They got essence from killing the aliens, it seems,” Wyn says.

At the end of the video, the reels return. As Lisa says aloud “I want to create a story,” everything disappears. A computer emerges from a portal, and the team is expected to talk to the AI about the general theme of the story, such as timeline, place, and types of non-hostile characters. After spending a lot of time arguing with each other, they’re teleported into a realistic set.

“Just go with whatever you want, and the AI will edit everything to look smooth. Once we’re done with a scene, we’ll be given options for the next one. That’s how we progress,” Lisa explains.

“The Brave Hamsters of Hamshire.” In the year “what the fuck wyn what’s with the title,” the hamsters of “Hamshire” live in peace, partying, “boating my boobs hehe,” singing, and reproducing like “wildfire.” One day, “The Fire Nation” attacks, forcing the hamsters to fight for their little lives. In the midst of the war, the elder hamster sends three young, brave hamsters on a journey to seek help from a nearby human village. With their tiny legs, the short journey takes “centuries” before they finally reach the village. Quickly, they visit the “harem,” hoping to find adventurers to aid them in the war. “Licking carpet” on top of a table, the hamsters spot a group of adventurers who call themselves the “Like Seriously Grow Up Now Guys.” The seven adventurers accept the quest, bargaining for “hot young hamsters” as their reward.

When the hamsters and the adventurers arrive at Hamshire, all they find are the ruins of what was once their home. One of the hamsters, “Hamtaru,” cries out in horror at the devastating sight. “The hot” adventurer tries to comfort him. Meanwhile, the other two, “Hammer McHamface” and “Hammorrhoid,” search the remains of Hamshire for any survivors. But their efforts are in vain – they find nothing. As they regroup, sobbing, the adventurers feel “bored to hell.” Just then, a group of creatures emerge from the ash piles.

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“That’s our cue to fight?” Wyn asks.

“Yes, Minster Wyn!” Lisa replies.

The leader of the Like Seriously Grow Up Now Guys, Wyn, summons a powerful cyclone to protect everyone inside while he assesses the human-shaped ash beings. However, the cyclone's force ends up sucking the ash creatures in, dispersing them.

“Essence! Is this it? Am I reaching ten thousand here?”

“These ashoos aren’t worth that much, Mister Wyn.”

“Dang it! Christine and James should split the essence then.”

“Ooh! Options! What’s next, guys?” Yu asks, pointing at the floating option buttons in the sky.

The hamsters decide to resurrect their shire, setting their sights on obtaining tears from the notorious killjoy fiery chicken. The adventurers, sensing the challenge ahead, bargain for a new reward: “hotter young hamsters.”

Embarking on their journey up the fiery “Gondola” mountains, they encounter various creatures along the way. With their prowess and “gondola really anish,” none of the creatures poses a serious threat. At the top of the mountains, they discover a nest filled with two baby red and black frogs.

“Frogs? I thought we were looking for chickens!” Anish says.

“Wait…are these mountain chickens? They’re frogs, not chickens,” James realizes.

As soon as the baby frogs croak, they immediately grow to full size. At the back of the group, the mother killjoy fiery chicken blocks the team’s exit. The creatures stand as tall as Wyn’s chin. They’re literally on fire, with even their pupils shaped like burning flames. Though their bodies resemble frogs, their feet are more like chunky chicken feet, complete with three sharp claws on each.

“How do we get the tears?” Wyn asks.

“Let’s ask the damn hamsters, eh!” James responds.

At the sight of the enemies, the hamsters quickly hide behind “Mira’s bobs.” Hamtaru instructs the adventurers to jab the frogs in the eyes for their tears and put them in the vials, which the other two happily cough out of their mouths onto Mira’s hands.

The adventurers split into teams to tackle the frogs. Wyn summons a rock pillar to block the mother frog’s fiery tongue lash. Anish, lifting himself above the pillar, throws his javelin at the frog’s eye. In response, the frog curves its tongue to catch the javelin midair and hurls it back at Anish. Swiftly, Anish dematerializes his weapon. Wyn then punches his pillar, sending a cyclone carrying rocks toward the frog. Using its chicken-like feet, the frog springs up vertically. It spins itself and its fully extended tongue in a spiral, sweeping everything around. As it lands, Wyn and Anish are ensnared in its tongue.

Fortifying himself with rocks, Wyn frees himself from the burning tongue. Using his chakrams, he slices through the tongue, which goes motionless and loses its fiery glow. With the severed tongue no longer a threat, Anish is freed. The mother frog lets out a screech of pain as the remainder of her tongue starts to lose its color.

“Hamtaru!” Wyn shouts.

Hamtaru leaps out of Mira’s cleavage, carrying a vial in his mouth. As Wyn and Anish thrust their weapons into the frog’s eyes, Hamtaru quickly fills the first vial with the creature’s tears. To finish off the beast, Wyn slices its throat.

Yu and Christine summon an avalanche onto the frog, forcing it to leap forward with its claws extended, aiming to slice them. James erects an ice wall as a shield, causing the frog to grip the ice wall. Yu thrusts his blade through the wall and into one of its feet, then detaches the blade tip, leaving it embedded. The frog collapses, writhing in pain.

Christine, combining her and James’ weapons into a snowball hardened by ice, prepares for the final strike. Yu directs the ball upward with a water stream and then brings it crashing down onto the frog. James summons an ice pillar to lift the frog’s head, directing the impact of the snowball into its eyes. Meanwhile, Hammer McHamface jumps out of Mira’s cleavage, carrying the second vial to collect the tears.

The frog lashes its tongue repeatedly at Mira, who skillfully defends herself with her explosive whip. With each explosion, the frog's tongue becomes increasingly damaged until it is finally blown to bits. All the while, her fire pillars behind the frog keep it contained for Lisa to get a clear shot. Lisa, having fully charged her weapon, unleashes shocking laser beams, obliterating the frog in a single, decisive hit.

“Oops. We can’t collect tears from this one now,” Lisa remarks with a sigh.

“TEN THOUSAND, BABY! YESSS!” Wyn exclaims, glancing at his essence collection count on his band with a grin.

“ME TOO! WOOHOO!” Anish chimes in, high-fiving Wyn in celebration.

“I’ll pass on my share, so Mira and Yu can hit ten thousand too!” Lisa says with a smile.

“Thank you, sister! Love you to the moon and back and to the moon again!” Mira gushes, hugging Lisa tightly.

“Arigato!!!” Yu says, bowing to Lisa with heartfelt enthusiasm.

“Pfft, so close…just a few hundred more! But hey, thanks, Lisa!” James adds.

“Yeah, same here. But like, thanks, Lisa,” Christine says.

With the tears collected, the group returns to Hamshire. The hamsters lead the adventurers to the center of the shire. They uncover a round metal plate buried beneath the dirt, with lines extending from it to vital parts of the shire. Carefully, they pour the contents of the vials into the central hole of the plate. The plate and the lines illuminate, and the shire glows with a golden light. As the light dims, the shire is restored to its original state, and the hamsters reappear as well. However, The Fire Nation is also revived.

“Are there any consequences to not saving them?” Mira asks.

“No, it’s just going to be a story for others to watch,” Lisa replies.

With an evil grin, Mira and Lisa begin stomping the fire ant-like creatures beneath their feet, much to the hamsters' cheering. However, In a shocking turn of events, the girls start stomping the hamsters as well. The small creatures squeal and scramble for their lives, but the relentless stomping continues. The shire is left in devastation, with nothing alive except for the Like Seriously Grow Up Now Guys. The end.

“...They are sisters, alright,” Anish remarks.

“You…you guys aren’t allowed to call me weird anymore,” Wyn says.