“Thena, Phastos…” panic travelled over Ikaris’ face in waves as the symbiote clone floated towards him. His muscles bulged, a pointless effort against the grip of Dan’s biofield. “You can’t let him do this to me. As the Prime Eternal, I order you to stop him!”
“Speak, tell us that his words are a lie, and I will die trying to set you free,” Phastos gazed upon Ikaris with wounded eyes, face drawn with sorrow as the black sphere approached the bound Eternal. “If you will not do so, then you are not the man I supported as our leader.”
“Sersi…” Ikaris turned to the others, desperation clear as he continued to struggle. “You can’t let them do this… our purpose, our master’s grand design, it cannot be questioned.”
“I can’t believe that it’s true…” Sersi closed her eyes as she drew in a steady breath. When they reopened, the confusion within them vanished. “How long have you known?”
“...since the beginning…” Ikaris clamped his jaw shut as another accidental truth slipped out. His eyes flicked from Dan to the faces of his sombre allies. “We must obey our master, Arishem cannot be…”
“That’s enough of that,” Dan wrapped his hand around Ikaris’ face and let the symbiote clone slide under the Eternal’s skin. There was no need to listen to any more justifications, he would pull the answers out himself. “Now, tell us the truth of Arishem’s plans and let us be done with it!”
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“I thought you said that all I had to do was sit on your throne?” Anakin picked at the stone armrests and gazed down upon the Father and the Son. It had been well over an hour, but all he’d received was the instruction to meditate. “If it wasn’t instantaneous, how did you expect to force me into the decision?”
“You are the Chosen One,” the Father shrugged, unconcerned with Anakin’s impatients. His eyes remained shut, legs crossed in a lotus pose as he floated in the air. “Now that you have touched the throne, your awakening is a certainty. No matter where you go, the balance of the Force will follow.”
“If you say so,” Anakin sighed as he returned to his own meditations. This ‘training’ was nothing to his gruelling apprenticeship with Merlyn. “I just expected something to…”
A tidal wave in the Force swept away his words, ripped from his mouth as an ocean of power poured itself into his mind. It came with the touch of another consciousness, something too vast for his perceptions to grasp. A communication beyond words, a knowledge that carved itself into his bones.
“So much power…”
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“For the last time, keep out of my personal space or I’ll kick you back to Mortis…” May sighed as she shoved the Daughter backward through the solar flame. The Celestial seemed determined to spend time with her, regardless of her own desire to be alone. “Why don’t you go and see how Anakin’s doing, or bug Anissa and Goku on their date?”
Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
“Anakin has connected to the Will of the Force, and I wouldn’t dream of interrupting a young couple on their night out!” The Daughter’s laugh smoothed out May’s frayed nerves as they settled back into the eb and flow of the star. “I’m more interested in learning about you and your Husband. He is hidden from the Force, and you have now moved beyond its vision as well…”
“I’m not about to spill my secrets to someone I just met,” May shook her head to clear the hair from her eyes, too sleepy to care as the Daughter’s shoulder bumped against her own. “Now shut up, I’m trying to sleep…”
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“I can’t believe Ikaris lied to us all these years,” Thena glanced at the symbiote bound Eternal that knelt before Dan like a servant. “Everything we fought for has been a lie…”
“Not everything,” Zuras placed a hand on her shoulder and gave a gentle squeeze. “The bonds we forged over the centuries are real, as are our desires to help humanity toward a better future.”
“Indeed,” Phastos returned his Celestial shield to the void and turned his gaze to Dan. “Just because Arishem has been revealed as an enemy, doesn’t mean there is no path toward the world we’ve always wanted to create.”
“Phastos is right,” Sersi nodded her head, eyes locked on the enslaved Ikaris. She shook herself and scanned Dan’s face, expression a mixture of pain and determination. “Superman has done more to protect the people of Earth than we ever have. If our efforts were combined, the Eternals would have an ally against Arishem when the time comes.”
Dan nodded at their words, his attention divided as he downloaded the bulk of Ikaris’ memories. He generally avoided using Venom like this, since his last experience left him with some of the personality traits of Omniman. The Eternal’s knowledge was worth the risk and his mind was far stronger than before.
“The Eternals are welcome to join the Order of Krypton, or even the Justice League,” Dan finished compressing the new memories into a warded corner of his mind, their emotions sealed behind a veil of runes. “As for Arishem, I’ve already got a plan for him and his kind. With your help, our victory will be certain.”
Ikaris’ knowledge confirmed Dan’s suspicions. This Earth was layered with Celestial technology of the highest order, hidden behind shields that blocked the eyes of even the realm gods. It was the source of the Eternal’s resurrection abilities and the key to the unborn Celestial’s creation.
“I am willing to join your League,” Zuras tapped his chin, eyes misted over as he considered his path. “But I would like to retain the freedom necessary to manage the Eternals in Ikaris’ absence. Many changes will need to be made, if our society is to come into the light.”
“I have long had an interest in that Order of yours,” Phastos stepped up beside Zuras, a tired smile on his face. “The technology you have secreted away in Antarctica is very interesting.”
“I would like to join as well,” Sersi bowed her head, a gesture that Dan prevented with a wave of his hand. “I’ve long wanted to meet with Supergirl, so I shall follow Master Zuras to the Justice League.”
“Very well,” Dan smiled, his joy more to do with the contents of his new memories than the allies he’d gained. Ikaris had a detailed understanding of Celestial technology, enough that Dan could create resurrection chambers of his own. “Come at your own pace, I’ve got work to do…”
Dan glanced at Ikaris, then back at the Eternals. He would prefer keeping the man under his direct control, but if they demanded his release into their custody he would allow it. The Eternal’s greatest value had already been delivered, the rest was an unnecessary bonus.
“You can keep him,” Thena scowled at the expressionless Ikaris as she stepped up to Phastos’ side. “I shall join the Order, it seems to have looser regulations than the League.”
A smile on his face, Dan gave the Eternals a final nod before he teleported both Ikaris and himself into orbit around the Kree homeworld. Venom could put the man to good use out in the greater galaxy, while Dan gathered Stark and Richards to implement the resurrection technology.
“It should be possible to finish within two days, sooner if things go well,” Dan left Ikaris behind and returned to the skies of Earth. “We might need to push the plan back slightly, but the forces of Krypton will have a safety net in our battles with Ergo and Galactus…”