FA Chapter 23 Conjecture
Ares felt the need to punch someone, mostly the people squeezing her within their midst, but ultimately had that thought and intent fizz out before it dangerously activated her murderous intent.
Those death hunters of Hades would most definitely sniff her out. She wasn't sure that they had come along with Zeus this time, but it helped to err on the side of caution.
For days now, she had been making sure to mingle within the common public, even going as far as changing her appearance and habits to make herself blend in.
Like now, her skin tone had darkened and her hair had become brunette with silvery pupils. And the most annoying, or you could even say the most significant change came with her attire, where she was spotting a long black skirt falling down to her ankles when standing and a pair of black glasses, mostly for fashion purposes as any disease of the eyes was treatable now, whether genetic or normal.
Honestly though, she had wanted to stay back in the building. Bora's spontaneous decision to bring them out for fun had blindsided her, making her fail in making thorough preparations.
Zeus had shown up in Kampala city. For those that didn't know the man, they would take the previous statement as normal. But that had been bewildering to her.
He had an ego inflated to the heavens... And the one thing he absolutely hated was appearing in someone else's domain.
She had thought that he wouldn't dare to come. But reality had been subverted at its seams. The man had come!
There had been a faint hope that he would lose control of his temper and attack Musana. At least then, there would be a chance that he would die. Alas! That too failed to pass.
And now, here she was, scurrying around like a rat, believing even the two normies pressing into her to be agents of Hades.
Of course even the rational her wouldn't put that past them. The new Hades was an insidious man. Even Zeus himself was wary. If he had a choice, he would have loved to choose a new one. But once the holder of the position reached the crystal stage, then it was set in stone, unless he decided to dispose of him, which would lead to battle.
Zeus! Ares hated the man. Her mother had been killed because she was just a normal human, not the Hera he had already chosen.
And she wasn't alone in her grieviences. Everyone in Olympus, even the chosen gods had a bone to pick with the man. The only reason they hadn't revolted was the existence of that man, the Contract Forger.
Her fists tightened, rumpling her skirt as she became angry at her powerlessness.
Zeus had to die! But for that to happen, she had to become stronger, or enlist the help of a powerful Forger.
She had won the tournament to become Ares, but before the awakening serum could be bestowed, someone had helped her get away. And now, she was tied with a death contract.
The good thing was that today, it would all end and she would be free to move on from this city. Though, she might have to wait a few days, to make sure that Zeus had gone back, before making her exit.
She knew. Normal humans were oblivious, but for those like her, they knew that authority favoured the Forgers. If the man requested to have the surveillance of this city, no one would stop him!
That's why, she had to be very very careful everywhere, even in her hotel room.
Ares was also hoping that the hounds of Hades hadn't arrived within the city earlier than Zeus, or else... She was doomed!
You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.
Even as thoughts of despair and a few other negative emotions threatened to devour her, the bus shaped public transport continued its maneuvers through the air, moving within a predetermined route that circled the Borasaek building closely.
She was going to spend the rest of the time on this locomotive, waiting for the time she could go back to her room.
Considering that Zeus himself had made an appearance, Ares deduced that the speech was probably going to be important.
-----
"I must say, Adebayor is a lucky man..."
That sentence attracted Bosingwa's attention. And through the corner of his eye, Ice too, had latched on.
They were within the crowd, having already given up on making it to the front due to how packed it was. Of course, everyone was experiencing viewing Adebayor as if the man was just in front of them due to the neural link creating a realistic virtual image.
"Why?"
Larssen grinned when Bosingwa took the bait. Annoyance became painted on his face at the grin.
The reason Bosingwa hadn't accepted the man's offer in the first place was the fact that it was very hard to tell whether the man was being serious.
"You see, most Forgers...this is just my theory so don't take it seriously... But, let me give that man Lwazi, as an example."
"After scrutinizing him, I came to the conclusion that his crystal stage ability had absolutely no relation with his physical body. Why? Because there was no sweat on his forehead even though he had just moved at speeds incomprehensible to the naked eye, not to mention the way he trapped that explosion."
Bosingwa gave the man a thumbs up in his mind. He had been unconscious, yet was certain that he wouldn't have scrutinized the Forger that closely. He had been told of the tense situation that had developed upon the man's arrival...and Larssen being calm enough to even take notice of such things, brought to light either his resolve, or craziness.
"At the liquid stage, we Forgers gain the ability to even manipulate genetic material... Yet most Forgers, forget that once they reach the crystal spiritual stage, giving in to flashy powers like the manipulation of the very laws of Physics." Larssen shook his head as if in lamentation at such a choice.
Even Bosingwa had been contemplating what sort of powers he was going to give himself the moment he reached the crystal stage. That's why, his attention became taken up by Larssen's words.
"I have come to the bold conclusion that everyone who creates such powers that aren't based around their physical constitution will ultimately either lead them nowhere, or might even curtail their advancement to a higher level."
Now, that was a chilling thought. Of course all this might be pure hubris. But Bosingwa felt that there was a sliver of truth as he had poured over many sacred tomes of nerds, the cultivation novels. In order to master a Dao, or law, many realms had to be crossed. You didn't just start at the level of having mastered a Dao or law without a primed body, or an elevation of some sort in your consciousness.
If the Forger path made it so that you could master such profound laws at just the third step, wouldn't the crystal stages have become akin to gods by now? Even able to move in outer space with their own bodies!
But why were they still confined to the Earth? Even Musana, someone who had a power capable of emulating the sun itself wasn't capable of surviving in space.
"Of course, I could be mistaken as the one flaw in my conjecture actually lies with the origin of the Forger path... Musana himself. Why would he choose an outer power like the sun? That's one mystery I haven't yet managed to solve, which mostly makes me feel only 70% confident."
"70% is still a substantial number. Looking at your face I can tell that you believe its even higher than that, right?"
Ice was the one who asked the question, apparently very interested. Even that vigilant expression had given way to one filled with curiosity. Bosingwa couldn't blame her as he too was interested.
"I won't tell you my other reasons. After all, we ain't in any sort of partnership. Instead, I will leave you with a hint, Adebayor."
Bosingwa directed his gaze back to the image of the giant man, dwarfing him even in the image on his retinas. There was a path Bosingwa had felt that would suit him well, even having come up with a few prototype powers the moment he reached the crystal spiritual stage.
But Larssen's words had just thrown all that in doubt.
-----
"Its about to start. Hurry up! I don't want even the slightest disturbance to get in the way! You are the ones who encroached upon my room, so you have to follow my rules. Don't look at me like that!" Shouted a frustrated Bosingwa. These people had still decided to keep up their antics!
Night had fallen, with just two hours to midnight and the speech was about to start. Within the virtual venue, Bosingwa was astounded by the number of people in attendance, who had to be numbering in the millions! Maybe billions too!
Only a personage at Musana's level could ganner such a crowd. Even the most established of celebrities struggled to reach such turnovers!
"Wow! I have never seen this many people gathered in one place, even if they are just virtual avatars." Commented Mrs. Namatovu.
In the virtual hall, they had chosen seats on the same row, close to each other. Even Bora and Luna were just beside him, with far graver faces than them. It was as if they expected something significant to happen during the speech, or some sort of world-changing reveal.