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She could immediately tell the difference as she was brought back from the Grail War. The body she returned to was not the same as it had been when she'd left. It was as if weights had been lifted off of her. She felt light, and she felt as if some old niggling injury she hadn't even realized had been there had suddenly disappeared. Best of all, that analogy was very accurate in this case.

She had been very specific in her wish to the Grail. Her body in this universe had been slowly changing towards her real body, and she had wished that process to be completed. However, she wanted her old, real, body back. Not the one she’d had from just before being brought to this universe. No, she’d specifically wished for her old, unaltered body from the time she’d just been exiled. As a Celestial, she had been all but invulnerable, but that didn’t mean there could be no attritional damage accumulated over time. And most importantly, this was before she’d slain Slaanesh, before the curse.

Celestials like her self-actualized. If they thought they should be injured, or in her case cursed, they would be. It was not something they consciously controlled. It had to do with the deepest depths of their psyche. Even if she hadn’t truly accumulated any damage over the years, after the life she’d lived, she mentally maybe considered that she should’ve. She had considered herself worthy of the curse laid on her. And if she wanted to get rid of it, it wasn’t enough to just want it to happen. She needed something, some push to make her own unconscious mind really believe it. Accept it.

What had happened during the Grail War was a low point. It was far from the rock bottom or lowest point she’d hit before. She’d been through much, much worse, many times. But it had been a low point. Enough to get her thinking. It was time for the curse to go, and it was also time for all the other self-inflicted harm and gunk in her system to go as well. The wish allowed her enough of a push, a plausible mental shift for a reset. It was time to return to the beginning.

This was not her at her strongest, and yet at the same time it was. She didn’t regain any of the old powers she’d gained over her multiple visits to other universes. In fact, she didn’t even regain the psionic abilities she’d used during the Grail War. She’d made gradual changes and improvements to her body over all the universes she’d visited. This was truly her at her weakest. But it was also her at her strongest. This was still when she’d been a perfect creation of Father and Mother. And not all the changes she’d made since had been good, as evidenced by the curse. Some of those changes had been in response to what she had access to at the time and the injuries she'd gained. Some of the changes didn't necessarily play together well. Now all of that was gone.

This universe had offered her a fresh re-start. She’d finally decided to embrace it. She’d grown since she’d been sent to exile. Mentally and physically. The physical growth she could regain without the accompanying downsides, and the mental growth didn’t disappear just because she’d decided to reset her mentality a bit. She hadn’t become a different person as a result of the change, but maybe she should consider some changes?

Powers could be re-learned, as she’d already done in this universe. Not all her powers, but some of them. She didn’t need all anyway. What was important was that she was now back. She was back in the body that had been created to defend Creation from unknown threats.

She obviously felt stronger as well. Whatever imitation the System and her Father and Mother’s meddling had created, it had not been her. This was her, as Father and Mother had originally intended. Without the ravages of time and bad decisions. They said the stats of this universe only affected what was there. Well, now she had the strongest base there could be. Even without the stats, she had done things no one else had done. No one else could have done. She wasn’t even sure how much those stats still influenced her, as their effect seemed to have somewhat waned.

Perhaps that was because before this she’d been treated as an original inhabitant of this universe, growing strong because of the stats. Now, she was more akin to the other summoned Champions, whose stats reflected her reality instead of creating it. Or, maybe she was some strange hybrid of both? It was hard to tell. She would have to study the effects properly later on. She was about to have company.

The door to wherever she was now, she assumed their ship, was thrown open. “Captain!” Rangiku greeted happily, as Yoruichi walked in behind the bubbly woman. This time the slovenly dressed woman didn’t try to glomp her and approached more carefully. “I’m so happy you’re back! I had no idea Angels grew up so fast!” There was a tinge of unfamiliarity in her voice, likely because she didn’t quite look the same.

"They don't," Yoruichi stated wryly. "This is a new development, and I sense the summons had something to do with it. You won, I assume?”

“Was there any doubt?”

“Well, it did take a while. I wasn’t getting worried exactly, but usually you deal with things faster.” Yoruichi commented. She gestured towards Seraphiel. “What’s with the sudden change? You even feel different. Not bad, just different. You have a…presence about you.”

“Part of my reward for winning.” She nodded.

“Part of?” Rangiku asked rather sharply.

“Yes, I also got rid of a niggling problem, and of course got a huge chunk of EXP.” She summarized. There was a reason why Heroic Spirits were willing to participate in these wars, one of which was the great rewards, even if you didn’t ultimately win. Even at high levels, participation was worth a lot of levels, not to mention winning.

Luckily, her body from before had been growing ever closer to her real one, so the change was not as major as it could've been and didn't eat up the entire reward budget. Even in a Grand Grail War, something like reforming the body of a Celestial, and getting rid of a curse like that was quite heavy. The faux-Lucifer had mentioned that even the System didn’t have the power to summon her as she had been. The only reason the Grail had been able to affect the change was that she’d already been halfway there. Still, she felt her current level was growing closer to the next Class Evolution, even if not quite there yet.

As she stood up, she noted she’d gained some height, and now had proportions similar to those she’d had during the Grail War. It felt good to be back.

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

“Uh-huh, and what’s the downside?” Yoruichi asked wisely.

“I may have made some powerful enemies, and now my existence is known to all and sundry.” She shrugged, uncaring. Now that she had her old body back, even if not all her old powers, that didn’t matter as much. Fuck the rest of the universe. If they wanted to come for a bite, she’d be happy to give them more than they asked for. Now she was ready to deal with all comers. Now she was in a position to start taking real responsibility for her situation and circumstances.

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Odin looked on in amusement as the whole gathering of gods was abuzz with the recent developments. There had been no summons for a conclave, yet a vast majority of the gods had sent a small fragment of their existence to their usual gathering place anyway. It was not uncommon to see a dozen or two gods here at any time, gossiping and exchanging news, while others had secret meetings in the dark corridors of the dreamlike plane of their gathering place. Ironically, those dark corridors only existed when the gods needed them for just such meetings, as the whole place was always molded for their needs.

The place had no real name. It just was. Every god knew this weird little dimension was where all the politicking and backstabbing of the gods happened. No one remembered who had created it, or if someone did, they were not sharing. Usually, the place was not this full unless a full conclave, a gathering of all the gods, had been called.

“Father. I hear congratulations are in order.” A deep male voice spoke from behind him. Odin had of course sensed the approach, as it really wouldn’t do to not be aware of your surroundings in this place. More than one god had been assassinated in this place. That’s part of what made this place fun, as here anyone could be killed. “A rather large victory in a risky bet.”

“You should know betting is only risky if you do it blind.” Odin smiled a little. He’d won very big indeed in betting on the subject of all these rumors and hubbub. “I hear your namesake among the Asgardians got defeated rather easily in the recent event.”

It was not surprising that news of the event had traveled fast. The gods were perennially bored, and the events put on by their Champions and other agents were one of the best ways to entertain themselves. And an event that included several of the top Champions, even if in a slightly diminished capacity due to how the summoning system of the Grail Wars worked, was going to draw a lot of attention.

Thor scoffed. “I’m not sure how much I like that idiot going around abusing my name. The Asgardians have always had a bit of an ego. But I suppose it could’ve been worse. He kept up until midway at least, even if his team did not do well.” Unlike his Asgardian namesake, the god Thor was a lot more strategic and sly being, as shown by his approach of Odin. “You obviously know something, as you implied.”

"Let's just say I had some information beforehand that most gods didn't have. I've run into the winner before and knew of her potential participation. I also know of the Exile, as do many others. I could put two and two together." He admitted freely.

“Good. Otherwise, this whole thing could’ve been a disaster. Suriya and Indra reaped some of the largest benefits as usual, thanks to their Champions, not to mention Rhongomyniad.” Thor nodded, satisfied. Suriya was Karna’s father, and Indra had sired Arjuna. When their Champions and sons did well, so did the gods themselves. “The three of them have been doing a little too well lately, even if Rhongomyniad almost never comes out of her hiding place.”

“The really interesting part is, who else benefitted?” Odin looked around the gathering place and pointed at the area holding the Chaos Gods. Sometimes it was hard to tell how much any single god benefitted from any event, as betting and glory from their Champion were not the only ways to benefit. “Case in point, The Changer of Ways has been growing a lot stronger lately, and this event somehow boosted him up even more.”

“I can sort of see how that happened.” Thor narrowed his eyes. “Things are changing. And if anything, this Exile does seem to be an agent of change, even if unwittingly.” He paused for a moment. “And I can see why the Prince of Pleasure might have benefitted from what happened as well.”

“Oh yes, Freyja rather liked that last part as well. As did Aphrodite and others of their Domain as well.” Odin nodded sagely. “Light also benefitted for some reason.”

"And here comes the main beneficiary." Thor pointed out as a very Human-looking woman in very mortal clothing walked through the large doors of the gathering place.

Before this, very few would’ve even known about the being known either as Charlotte Richards or The Goddess. Now, she was on everyone’s mind. The claim about being the beginning of everything was something that few took seriously, but it was something that everyone had heard about. It wasn’t the first time someone made similar claims. Many gods have considered themselves creator gods before being brought into this universe. Some of them even had some merit to their claims.

“And here comes trouble.” Odin nodded towards Gaia approaching the new goddess from the opposite direction. He didn’t hear the initial words the two exchanged before everyone went quiet, but he did hear the next ones.

“What kind of self-respecting goddess names themselves Charlotte? Sounds like you plucked some random mortal name out of a hat.” Gaia mocked.

The new goddess grinned. “I don’t feel the need to be quite as pretentious as some. Though, if you insist, you can call me The Goddess, seeing as that is my official title in the System.”

"Bold of you to try and assume the moniker of The Goddess in our presence," Gaia stated in a half-accusing, half-proud tone.

"And yet, none of you can challenge me for it," Charlotte stated with a tone that practically dripped mockery and defiance. "Go ahead and try. Nothing would make me happier."

Gaia looked thoughtful for a moment before making a decision. “System query: legitimacy of the title The Goddess.”

A swirling portal appeared in the air, and the System embodiment Odin had been seeing a few times lately stepped through. The handsome-looking Angel gave a small bow towards Charlotte. "Mother. Good to see you again." Those words sent a wave through the gathered gods.

"Good to see you, son," Charlotte responded with a smile.

The System embodiment turned towards Gaia. “To answer your query, the title is legitimate, and applies only to a single being, the one standing in front of you, also known as Charlotte Richards.” His words confirmed Odin’s suspicions, and he was glad he’d picked the path he had. Having the title confirmed didn’t confirm her words about being a Creator Goddess, but it did lend her words credence.

Obviously challenging the title and being proven wrong was a huge blow to Gaia. There was no real price to be paid in making a query but making it like that in front of everyone was tantamount to calling the other person a liar to their face. And being proven wrong so decisively came with a loss of prestige, and likely the hostility of the deity you challenged. Sometimes the game was very blunt, and other times it could be quite subtle.

“Makes you wonder, doesn’t it?” Thor asked. “When did she even appear? Why isn’t there any real following for her? As far as I can tell, she has exactly one believer and worshipper, and that’s her Champion.”

“Yes, but when that worshipper and Champion is the Exile…” Odin pointed out.

"I've heard rumors, but I don't think any of my fragments have had close contact with the Exile," Thor muttered.

“Let’s just say there has existed a silent agreement for a long time that no one shall try to summon the Exile as a Champion. Someone tried before, and the System shut that down hard.” Odin explained. He was one of the older gods present and was one of the major gods that held dominion over a Core World. Normally only a single god out of a pantheon did. The Norse pantheon was a bit different in holding three.

The confrontation between Gaia and The Goddess had reached a new height as Gaia tried to suppress her opponent with sheer power, but that didn't have even the slightest bit of effect. Gaia was not some minor goddess either, as she was widely worshipped in several universes before they'd joined with this one. She was not one of the major gods, but she was right on the cusp of becoming one. It was quite likely that Gaia had planned on using this confrontation as a stepping stone on becoming one. That plan had obviously badly failed.

“It’s cute when a minor pretender goddess tries to flex their powers like that.” The Goddess stepped closer to Gaia and condescendingly gave the latter a pat on the cheek. “Though you’re lucky my husband isn’t here. He doesn’t like such defiance, even if He has mellowed out somewhat lately.”

Gaia practically growled. “I wouldn’t be so smug if I were you. Even if I can’t touch you, I can still reach your Champion.”

“Denied.” The System embodiment suddenly announced, drawing everyone’s attention to the fact that he was still here.

“Oh, now this is getting interesting.” Odin narrowed his one good eye.

“What do you mean denied?” Gaia demanded.

“Just that. Your powers and access are insufficient to curse or otherwise affect the person you are attempting to curse. She is being protected by forces more powerful than you. Thus, your attempt has failed.” The System simply clarified.

The rest was lost to the commotion again. “So. The Champion is being protected by The Goddess directly?” Thor speculated.

“Probably, though I don’t think that’s the reason. There are others holding back any divine interference as well.” Odin gestured towards the place where the Chaos Gods resided. He didn’t mention that he too had a bit of his own power invested in said protection. Had to shield his investment after all.