"Well, that's not good," I said, staring at the sight of the shattered defenses that meant a kaiju was now coming directly at us.

"Oh no," Agata said, her look one of abject horror. "I should have been down there! I could lent my own power! We could have--"

Bloodstorm came up behind his lover and put his arms around her shoulders. "You would have added a few more minutes. Nothing more. Now our hands are in Aaron and his incredibly stupid plan."

"No pressure," I said, shaking my head.

"Actually, consider yourself under an immense amount of pressure," Bloodstorm said, looking up to me. "Both the woman I love and our child to be's lives are at stake. If you don't save this, I promise I'm going to haunt you from beyond the grave."

I'd have taken that as a particularly black bit of humor if not for the fact I knew he was probably serious. "Don't worry, B. If this plan fails, I can assure you that it is because I've already died myself."

"That's not reassuring," Ania said. "What we want is to figure out a plan that will succeed."

Yeah, that caused me to wince. I'd, justifiably or not, managed to earn the reputation as a master planner who pulled victories out of nowhere. Some people even thought I was the smartest man in the world, just not one of the wisest. The thing was that there was only so much you could do with the ability to quickly process information. For example, no matter how smart you were, you couldn't make two plus two equal five and that was the case with Squidzilla over here. Technically, since Godzilla meant Lizard God, it was Godika, but I wasn't going to fret over details.

"Do you want me to lie?" I asked Ania.

"Absolutely," Ania deadpanned.

I nodded. "Yes, I absolutely have this in the bag. You don't have to worry about anything."

"Good," Ania said, nodding. "Aaron has got this."

Bloodstorm laughed.

Jon just looked confused.

"Let's go kick some ass!" Sparky said, blowing a tiny blast of flame.

I held the scroll in my hands before deciding on my next move. "Ania, Bloodstorm, I need you to both get flying mounts. Dragons preferably. Please also get Rachel and Joan too if you can. We're going to need all the magical juice we can squeeze."

"You lost me with your metaphors, lad," Captain Crunch said. "But if you're going to take that monster on head on, I wish the blessings of Svarog on you. Because you're going to need them."

"I hope you don't expect me to fight," Ivan said, sucking in his breath.

I didn't disagree. "I need you and the Dwarf King to take care of Stage Two of my plan. Please hurry."

Ivan nodded, probably just as glad to get away from the frontlines as he was to try to do something involving alchemy (which was what my plan depended on). Unfortunately, there was no real safety to be had if my stupid plan didn't work. The siege of Dragon Keep was about to become a full on assault and there was not a damn thing we could do about it. Indeed, the next giant ball of ice sailed into Crossroad and landed on a set of houses, crushing dozens of people to death. A lot more would die before I could even begin my counterattack.

As everyone rushed to do their part, I proceeded to begin my summoning. I'd have to trust Susano's "gift" here because we flat out didn't have a chance if she was lying. They would go from slim to nonexistent if this was a trick of some kind. Which was the real reason I was so gracious to my enemies. An enemy turned to a friend was infinitely better than just slaying an enemy and rarely backfired. Well, I mean, forgiving his enemies worked out terribly for Julius Caesar but he was the exception.

Ahem.

"In the name of Aaron, God of Push, I beseech you echoes of those who have passed before! Through my power and will, I summon you not from the realms of the dead but the realms of memory! Come forth, Zorya Nightbringer, lover and enemy both! Come forth, Zorya Dawnbringer, lover and daughter both! I command it."

I really hoped no one heard the lover and daughter part because that would be hella awkward to explain.

Sparky, meanwhile, looked at me. He was still behind me on the battlements and hadn't left. "Lover and daughter both?"

"There is a perfectly valid explanation that I do not have time to give right now!" I said to my dragon companion.

"Is this like you fucking Rachel?" Sparky asked, cocking his saurian head to one side.

"I am not fucking Rachel!" I snapped, irritated. "Also, who taught you that kind of fucking language."

Sparky somehow rolled his eyes, which was something I never expected to see a dragon do in my lifetime. Mind you, up until last year, I'd never expected to see a dragon alive and, in the flesh, either.

Nothing happened for the first few seconds, and I was worried that this had been all for nothing, especially when one of Belobog's giant ice balls slammed into the side of Dragon Keep. Thankfully, the magic woven into the castle walls caused it to disintegrate before it could kill everyone here. That magic, too, had its limits.

The Witch Queen had given me something, though, as the scroll started to glow, and I felt an immense amount of energy leave my body. So much so that I was forced to my knees and felt like all my "divine power" was gone. I was, instead, just poor ordinary Aaron again. Well, poor, ordinary Aaron and still a wizard.

There was that.

Two glowing blue-white translucent figures appeared in front of me, and they were instantly recognizable. The first was a beautiful elvish looking woman with a witch's hat, voluminous robes, and long black hair with an enigmatic smile. The second was a tall, muscular, and yet still incredibly sexy Asiatic woman in armor with a ponytail so large that it went down past the end of her back. To be frank, they looked more like they belonged in anime than they did Medieval Fantasy, but I wasn't going to complain too much. Err, because they were incredibly powerful goddesses we need the help of, not because they were hot.

Honest.

The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

"Hi," I said, getting up and waving. "Nice to see you two again. Sort of."

"Ghosts!" Sparky said, rearing back. I was afraid he was going to blast both and cost us our advantage but he, thankfully, stayed his attack.

"Yeah, kind of," I admitted. "Okay, Zoryas, this is going to be awkward to explain but--"

"You killed us," Nightbringer said. "Which, to be fair, I kind of had coming. As much as I was able to purge the Twisted Ones' influence from my mind, it was not enough to prevent them from bringing my worst qualities to the forefront."

Dawnbringer looked at her sister. "I mean, honestly, you were always an enormous bitch. The big difference between you and Veles was that you were happy to have the living worship you."

Nightbringer glared. "At least I didn't trick my lover and student into siring a child on me so I could merge with it. That's disgusting even by my standards."

"Actually, your mother may have made it so you'll reincarnate in Agata's child," I said, pausing. "Which means that you'll be my niece when I marry Ania."

Both Zoryas looked at me in shock.

"That is messed up," Nightbringer said, reminding me that she'd lived in my world as a punk rocker.

"I know!" I said, throwing my hands out in the air and unsure how I could rush this along.

"Agata's baby is going to be your girlfriend?" Sparky asked, once more surprising me by reminding me of his existence.

"No!" I said, grimacing. "Forget you heard that! It's a secret."

"I wish I could forget it," Sparky muttered.

I'd say the gods hated me, but I had ample proof already. "Okay, listen, I don't know how this works--"

"We're drawing energy from you to manifest avatars based on our past selves," Dawnbringer said. "Unfortunately, we're limited by the amount of divine energy you possess."

"If you'd absorbed it all we could do a lot more," Nightbringer said. "Your hesitation to become a true god may be a crucial factor."

Man, was I getting sick of everyone telling me that. "Yeah, well, the wrist bands are radioactive. They got EMP blasted or something. Either way, it's not an option right now. Any minute now, Belobog is going to stop hurling rocks and realize he'd be better off just knocking over the walls to let his army into Crossroads. So, we need to go kill him. You up for that?"

"When there is war, I am there to inspire those about to die," Dawnbringer said, puffing up her (ample) chest.

"That is a terrible motto," I said, staring at her.

"I always hated my brothers," Nightbringer responded. "I'm in."

"Good," I said, taking a deep breath. "Let's roll."

I could already feel myself becoming winded from sharing so much power with the pair of them and had no idea if I'd be able to sustain them in full combat. I was glad to have both women by my side rather than in my path, though.

Both women raised their hands together simultaneously and conjured demon steeds for them to ride upon. I felt agonizing pain as they did so, more energy passing from my body. It passed quickly, though, and I moved to mount on Sparky's back.

"Mind carrying me on top than in your claws?" I asked, patting Sparky on the side.

"You okay with me fighting now?" Sparky asked.

That was a complicated question because Sparky and Joan were both still children from my perspective, teenagers at best and adolescents at worst. I didn't want to be the kind of monster who put children into battle but, bluntly, I wasn't sure there was a choice to save everyone. "No, but if you don't fight, you'll probably die anyway. So, yeah, we fight together now."

"Super!" Sparky said, hearing none of the nuance. "Let's kick some butt!"

He reminded me way too much of my nephew for this to be anything but uncomfortable. "Yeah, let's do that."

Sparky proceeded to take into the air as I cast WEB to make sure I was sealed to his back. It would prevent me from doing something insane like leaping off Sparky to stab Belobog but, well, that would have gotten me killed anyway. Both Zoryas joined me in the sky, and I sucked in deep breaths as they conjured weapons: a magic staff for Nightbringer and a giant sword for Dawnbringer.

In the sky around Crossroad, I could see other dragons had taken to flight and were readying for an assault on Belobog. There were a few less than when we'd started this battle, and it was clear that they were not the game changer we needed them to be.

Belobog had started his charge toward Crossroad, stomping like a earthquake as he prepared to destroy the walls and let his army into the city. It wouldn't be an instant loss for our side, there were a lot of soldiers waiting for his forces, but if Belobog stomped on them then there wouldn't be much we could do about it.

That was when Belobog let out an enormous roar that echoed across the battlefield. It was agonizing and partly mystical in nature, striking at the hope and confidence of everyone who heard it. "Aaron Bartkowsi! Come face me! I am the Lord of Good Fortune, and it is my blessing to share with you the gift of a swift death! All those you cherish will be smashed beneath my feet and all those you love will be slaughtered to the last! This is only mercy that can be shown them for Veles' reign is at hand!"

The wave of despair that poured out from Belobog's words had an instant effect on a huge chunk of the army. Veteran soldiers willing to stand against the two-hundred-foot-tall thing threw down their weapons and ran for safety while terrified conscripts curled into fetal balls. Peasants and nobles screamed alike while mothers clutched their children in fear.

Me?

I was just pissed off. "Sparky I'm going to need you to get close."

"How close, Lord Aaron?" Sparky asked, dodging away from spells fired from the ground by undead sorcerers like they were fantasy artillery. Which I supposed they were. Explosions were occuring all around us.

"Real close," I said. "Close enough to shave."

Sparky, I swear, grinned.

Belobog's eight eyes looked up, each of the crimson orbs zeroing in on Sparky and me. That was when he focused his despair generating voice on me. "You have come a long way to die, Champion. You will never know the touch of your lover again. You will never know peace. All to try to win a pointless war with a foe you could never have beaten. When you die, you will be raised as an undead horror that will be tortured every day for the rest of eternity as punishment for your hubris. You will be--"

"Shut.the.fuck.up," I said, summoning every bit of my willpower and hoping that my time in Skyworld counted as resting.

I raised the Sword of Perun up as Sparky charged right at the monster and I cast PUSH on the hilt of the sword as I aimed it with my telekinesis. It was the same tactic I'd used against the Wind Demon and the blade flew into one of Belobog's eyes.

Belobog reared back and let forth a below that threatened to shatter my eardrums. The sword sunk deep into its bibulous flesh. The squamous horror (which I'd always wanted to say) didn't die, though. Instead, it just looked pissed off and you had to be really pissed off to have your emotions reflected on a giant squid faced demon's face.

"We got it!" Sparky said. "It's hurt!"

"If it bleeds, we can kill it," I said, quoting Arnold in Predator.

"Demons of the Sky! I call upon you!" Belobog said, raising a tentacle-like set of fingers to the sky. "Smite these fools in my name!"

It was funny how Belobog had gone from being a silent menace to a chatty cathy. I was focused on dodging out of the way as storm clouds rolled over the battlefield and began pelting down lightning bolts at me. It was ironic that I, the descendant of a thunder god, was now struggling for my life against a bunch of electrical attacks. Sparky was good at avoiding the first few blasts, but the rain of lightning didn't stop and we started veering into a more coming down. I cast a GLOBE OF INVULNERABILITY around myself and Sparky that knocked away a few of the attacks. It took almost everything I had because the goddesses began their attacks.

"Have at thee, brother!" Nightbringer shouted, redirecting his own lightning bolts in mid-air to strike at him. A dozen or more of them orientated and blasted into the monster.

"BLADE OF HEAVEN'S STRIKE!" Dawnbringer cried out, conjuring a spear the size of a football field before hurling it through Belobog's chest.

My heart pounded as my eyes watered. I'd exhausted every bit of my divine power and the spells they were hurling were now drawing on my lifeforce.

"Aaron, are you okay?" Sparky asked.

"No," I whispered. "I think I'm dying."

That was when the rest of my team arrived on dragonback, guarding a flying galleon sporting the flag of the Dwarvish Empire on its sails.

Belobog was not impressed. "I will smack your airship out of the sky!"

That was when the galleon smashed itself into the chest of the Old God, igniting the hold full of every bit of alchemical powder and flaming oil that we had in our reserves. Which was a lot given I'd built an alchemy factory in the city.

The explosion was beautiful, detonating Belobog from the torso upward and sending his gooey-god parts in every direction.

It also knocked Sparky out of the sky. I lost consciousness with the magic of my marks returning as they absorbed Belobog’s power.

“GOD SLAIN.”