Theo's impression of Aveline Maria Lorne was that of an 'Iron Lady'.
Unlike her relatively unkempt mother who couldn't care less what other thought of her, Maria had a stern and dignified air around her.
From her lean yet muscular build to her sharp gaze, she was the textbook definition of a 'highly competent no nonsense boss' that everyone loved and feared at the same time.
She'd most certainly look good in a business suit.
However, her disciplinarian image was obliterated when she assumed her 'panicking form'.
A Panicking Form was the position a person took when shit has slammed into the proverbial fan and said person had no idea how to deal with it.
In Theo's case, he would assume a fetal position, lie on the floor and maybe silently cry his eyes out.
He rarely ever used this, but when he did, you were absolutely sure that he was at the end of his rope.
In Maria's case, it was a human bridge.
First she laid down on the floor with her arms crossed. Then she lifted her hips, back and upper legs until only her head and the sole of her feet remained in the floor.
She then maintained this posture for at least 30 seconds.
"*sigh*.... She really is our daughter.... Your weirdness seems to be hereditary." said Nichola while facepalming.
"Said the girl that swims in her own dirty laundry when she's depressed." replied Theo.
"I-I do not!"
"~Of course you don't~"
Nichola began punching Theo, but her pitiful excuse of an arm strength was made apparent as her weak strikes only made her cuter than she already was.
"Will you stop flirting for 2 seconds! Though I agree with Nicky here. This level of weirdness cant be from Nicky's blood." said Himiko.
"Bah! You've only been friends with her for less than 2 weeks! What do you know?"
As the 3 bickered among themselves, Maria finally broke out of her panic mode.
She quickly stood up, grabbed Theo by the collar and lifted him up with surprising ease.
"AGH! DAMN IT ALL! I'll just have to do it without preparation then! Isn't that right papa?! I have no choice is the matter right?! It's not my fault for not following the plan right?! There's no other way but to improvise right?!" said Maria as she shook Theo like a rag doll.
"C-Calm down Maria! I need to know what's happening first before we can come up with a plan!" replied the panicked Theo.
As per usual, being manhandled by someone who had the strength to snap him like a twig made him shiver in fear.
You'd think he'd get used to facing such powerful people by now.
But nope.
Super powered beings were still scary.
After a few seconds of hysteria, Maria eventually calmed down.
She knelt in front of Theo in a fashion similar to his Reformant units. It looks like Juno's brainwashing extended to their children as well.
This was.... disturbing.
"I apologize for my unsightly display. Let us start from the beginning. Once again, I am Aveline Maria Lorne. Commander of the Eisenmadchen Legions as well as the Royal Guards. A pleasure to meet you all."
"Eh? Eisenmadchen 'Legions'? Royal Guard?" asked the confused Theo.
"It's Juno mama's fault. She really likes the whole knight and empire role play. She pretty much named our army divisions in the same way."
"I know that. But why does it sound like the future me has a relatively large army?"
"Aren't you continuously expanding your forces? A major world event will accelerate the 'recruitment' to ungodly levels."
"And that event is?"
"Christmas next year, AKA your birthday, will mark the beginning of the Third World War."
Whatever happy go lucky energy the Lorne group had, evaporated almost instantly.
Normal humans have always been one of the weakest races in existence in terms of individual firepower. As such they often find innovative ways to twist the world into their own favor.
For example, the vast majority of science based powers were not naturally occurring phenomenons like magic and chi. These were often results of experiments that could be repeated again and again with the same results.
ESPs, mutations and superhuman abilities belonged here.
Another example of human ingenuity were weapons of war.
No other branch of power had the capabilities to make a normal powerless human into someone capable of murdering millions without extensive training or combat experience.
All that person needed to do was press a button.
None can match science's efficiency in wholesale slaughter.
As demonstrated in the first and second global conflict, none can match science in a World War.
And the Third was was only a year away.
"For real?" asked Theo
"Yes papa." replied Maria
"Well.... Shit."
"You have a problem with that? I was under the impression that you loved combat."
"I love killing those who deserve it. Criminals and the scum of societies are my favorites. Those who fight in world wars are mostly good people who wants to defend their love ones back home. Though I'll probably thrive in such a large scale conflict, I see it as a senseless waste of human potential."
"Yeah yeah. We told us about your ideals a bajilion times already. Let's get to the nitty gritty about this upcoming war." said Nichola.
Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.
"I didn't expect you to be interested Mama."
"I've survived being hunted by both the Ecclesiarchy and the Mosque for most of my entire life by being prepared. And unlike Theo, I'm more than willing to profit from the suffering of others."
"That's cruel. Dont you care for your fellow man?" asked Theo.
"My love only extends to you, my child, my fellow wives and a very small hand full of friends. The rest of the world can burn for all I care."
The entire room made a collective ~awww~ at Nichola's unexpected yet very in-character sweetness.
She would have been the perfect waifu if it wasn't for 'the rest of the world can burn' bit.
"Okay. That's enough of Mama's diabetes bombardments. We have a lot to talk about and very little time. For now, no interruptions. Gasps and violent reactions are allowed, but absolutely no interruptions. Do I make myself clear?"
With a 'Yes Maam' from the audience, Maria began a tale that deeply unnerved Theo specifically.
The first seed that would sprout into the third world war was planted approximately 2 months ago during the Eldorado Election Incident.
Mainly the appearance of a Godlike that had enough power to influence the world in such a massive way never before seen since the founder of the Ecclesiarchy faith all the way back in 1 BC.
Quite simply, it was the golden fist of the Machine God.
The major powers took a way 2 things from the incident.
First: Like the Ecclesiarchy founder, they viewed the Machine God as a harbinger of great change. And since the Machine God has only ever appeared in times of conflict, most believed that the great change would come in the form of a war.
Thus an arms race has began behind the scenes.
Second: The Machine God was an unaffiliated and uncontrollable force.
There were 3 times the Machine God has made big moves.
The Alkebulan Nuclear Incident, the Eldorado Elections and the recent Ally of Justice Riots.
These incidents had nothing in common and aside from some publicity, there were no tangible benefits in any of them.
This meant that the Machine God was extremely erratic and did things for no good reason. For all they know, it could join one of the major powers just for shits and giggles.
The major powers were implementing 2 strategies. One was to try and get the Machine God on their side while the other was to prepare measures to eliminate it if it ever became an enemy.
It went without saying that Theo was none to pleased with any of these.
The Terminator Armor was just another tool to be used when the situation required it. It was no different from a condom or a pistol.
If it wasn't for Juno's shenanigans and Nosferatu's annoying prank, the world would probably just ignore its existence.
Despite Theo's desire to unleash all of his violent reactions, he held it in and kept quiet.
He had a bad feeling that the worst was yet to come.
"Well then, let us begin with the main reason why I was sent back in time. Approximately 1 week from now, the 'Garden of Eden' will be returning to this world and everyone who is anyone will want it." said Maria, much to everyone's confusion.
"Garden of Eden? You mean the one in the Ecclesiarchy Codex's creation myth?" asked Theo.
"That is correct Papa."
"I'm not an Ecclesiarcan so I'm not entirely sure, but isn't that the supposed paradise where the first 2 humans once lived? Isn't that suppose to be a fairy tale or something? " asked Nichola.
"That is also correct Mama. At least the Ecclesiarcan version of it. No one actually knows its real name, who made it, where it came from or why it was created. However, most of the major players know its function. It is a 20 square kilometer psionic powered facility made to create life."
"Like a cloning facility?"
"Incorrect. Cloning is copying a specific individual which the Garden cannot perform. The Garden simply 'creates' life. It doesn't matter if its human, elf, dwarf, plant, bacteria or even spirits. As long as it is alive, the Garden of Eden can create it. There's even a hypothesis in my time that every single living thing in this world was created by it."
"I see... A scary weapon indeed." Said Theo.
"Really? I get that you can throw infinite bodies at the enemy but that's about it." replied Nichola.
"Imagine 100 guys that rival Omegaman in power."
"Oh.... In that case.... I see."
"It doesn't work that way Papa. The higher the quality, the more materials and time are consumed. Do note that I have never been to the Garden before and my knowledge is second hand. Take everything I say with a grain of salt."
"If you say so. By the way, what's a 'Psionic'?" asked Theo.
"Ah. In the future, that is what we call anything that clearly uses the 3 branches of power."
"So it's just a label?"
"Correct."
"Understood. Then let's get to the most important part. Why is the fate of the world hanging between Vivi's legs?"
"Eh? I used that sentence?" replied the surprised Maria.
"Yep. I'm sure there's a very good reason why it sounds like a plot straight out of a porn flick." said Theo.
"Well... that came out wrong."
"Mind you, I don't disapprove. In fact, I'm quite excited what hentai-like situation I'll be dragged into! This is gonna be fun! I know it!" replied Theo who did not bother trying to hide his glee.
After everyone collectively facepalmed, Maria proceeded with her explanation.
"First and foremost, I misspoke. I had no intention of making it sound so lewd. Second, the statement was not technically wrong. It has less to do with Uncle Vivi's genitalia and more with his genes."
"I see. So we rip his balls off. That'll probably wont work. He is called the greatest healer of our age for nothing."
"Papa! That's disgusting!"
"Just contemplating the worse case scenario."
"Geez. Anyways, moving on. As stated earlier, there's a theory that all beings in this world, including humans, was created by the Garden. The main evidence for this is the existence of a 'Chosen One'. For a limited time, this person's psionic signature somehow matches with the garden's creators, thus capable of using it. A Chosen One appears once every 500 or so years and it matches when the Garden returns to our world. This time around, it's Uncle Vivi."
"What do you mean 'for a limited time'?"
"Well, psionic signatures are finicky to say the very least. If even one of the 3 powers within the body changes, so does the psionic signature. The one that's prone to erratic change happens to be the Chi part since it's an integral part of the body."
Upon hearing Maria's words, Theo realized the problem.
"Ah shit..... So that's why you're in such a rush."
"Oh my. Did you really get it Papa?"
"Eh? Theo, you know what's happening?" asked Nichola.
"Yup. If you know Vivi as well as I do and if you use context clues, the answer is painfully apparent." replied Theo.
"Don't keep us in suspense then."
"Here's the relevant bits. First: The whole 'the fate of the world lies between his legs'. Second: The Chosen One. Third: The Garden of Eden. Fourth: Psionic Power or more specifically the Chi part. Lastly: Vivi being a spineless harem protagonist. This all leads to one thing.... Vivi's right as a Chosen One and the control of the Garden of Eden can be passed onto other via sex. Am I right?"
"How the hell did you reach that conclusion?" asked the annoyed Nichola.
"I've watched enough hentai to know where this is going. One particular Imp hentai had a plot device called 'Sexual Cultivation' which, as the name implies, allows the user to gain strength by plowing someone. I don't know if such an amazi- I mean reprehensible practice exists but it does match with the whole scenario."
"*sigh*.... I cant believe you used such a stupid logic to arrive at the correct answer." said Maria as she facepalmed.
"For real?" asked Nichola in disbelief.
"Yes Mama. Papa is correct."
".... Unbelievable..."
"Don't underestimate the men of culture. We know our shit." said Theo as he puffed his chest in pride.
"*sigh*... Whatever. Let's move on to the main reason why I was sent here. I don't have a monopoly to the info to the Garden itself. The knowledge about it has been around since ancient times. But the info about Uncle Vivi's Chosen One status is recent news to most of the major powers. I'd say the big ones are probably moving in to secure either Uncle Vivi himself or sending women to get his seed. I hoped that we had more time to prepare, but that doesn't seem to be the case." said Maria.
"So our mission is to cock block Vivi? HELL YEAH!"
"Err... That's not exactly wrong Papa, but why are you so excited?"
"Because it's not fair that he's the only one getting the hentai protagonist treatment!"
"*sigh*.... I've been sighing a lot today.... Anyways, there are 2 missions. First: Prevent Uncle Vivi from having sex with anyone. Second: Destroy the Garden of Eden. That thing is simply too dangerous to exist."
"Aww. I'm kinda interested in it, but I guess it cant be helped." said Nichola. "So, how do we do it?"
The usually calm Maria squirmed at the question.
"W-well.... I don't know.... The target date I was sent to was 6 months before D-day so that I would have enough time to gather info and prepare. Who would have thought that I'd be sent back 5000 years back and morph into a monster?"
"Did the me in the future send you here?" asked Theo.
"That's correct Papa."
"That's just weird. No way I would have sent you here unprepared."
"There's actually an explanation for that. You made sure to send me with minimal info to ensure that the space time continuum will not be disrupted. All the things that are about to happen, both good and bad, will ensure the 'desired future'."
"Damn it. Fuck time travel."
"Mind your language Papa.... though I share your disdain."
"So what do we do now? Finding and cock blocking Vivi is easy enough, but the whole Garden thing is another matter entirely."
"Don't worry Papa. While I was given very little info on the mission, I was given the knowledge of one very important event. Tomorrow, the Drows will request your assistance on the Garden. Accept it and go from there."