God of Reality Part 1.

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(Aden's P.O.V)

It used to be gray. Nothing but a gray world. Devoid of any sort of energy.

I have created two existences during my time. I would create even more in the future. Time was no longer relevant.

I stood alone in a vast, open field. A field of lush green grass, swaying despite the lack of any wind. This place was not in a space above the Overvoid like Gaea. Nor was it contained in the core of Mars like Energia.

I rubbed at my chest. At the symbol of the Avatar, surrounded by other symbols that represented each of the Four elements, lines linking them all to the one at the middle of my chest.

Then each of the elements broke off into small icons representing subskills. Then those subskills broke off into branches of lesser elemental skills.

For fire I had the myriad flames, combustion, Lava and lightning. Then the myriad flames split off into white flames, golden flames, green flames, and so on. Lightning broke off into plasma that was connected to blue flames as well. Combustion broke off into heatwave and impact.

Impact connected to air through shockwaves that were connected to Sound. Air had flight. Air was also connected to Space through blink.

Water had ice, mist, blood bending and Time. Time...was different. Moving on, time was connected to Air through Space. Their icons had a certain quality to them. They felt light yet boundless. You couldn't interact with them in a physical sense (duh). It was hard to explain.

They weren't solid or liquid or gas or plasma. They were just what they were.

Earth had Gravity, Crystal, Metal and Lava which was connected to Fire. Gravity was linked to water and air through Space-time.

The whole chart formed a network. A web of interconnected subskills that let me know regardless of what I had begun with...the road led to the same destination.

I opened my eyes to the single text box infront of my vision.

(Congratulations! Hidden Quest Completed!)

(Ascend to Godhood in all the Four Elements)

(2 new perks Gained)

(Presedence:- Whenever you face an enemy with the same divinity or control of the elements as you, the elements themselves will obey you, denying them the use of any element without your permission.)

(Will:- Who can deny you? Just as you command the elements, any creature that recognizes you as a God will automatically obey you whenever you command them. With a single word, you can command the world itself.)

(Congratulations! Your Authorities have been unlocked!)

Freedom:- Nothing and no one can chain, restrict or keep you captive. Your mind is completely impenetrable to outside influence and your soul is incorruptible.

Hope:- As long as you exist, hope shall as well. As long as hope exists, you shall. You are unbowed. Things don't get bleak for you. You always find a way. You always know.

Change:- You constantly evolve in all facets of your life. Your past cannot be altered. Even when the past you dies, you shall forever exist outside that influence. Time is irrelevant to you. Be careful though, this Authority is so potent, you can affect the past just by thinking about it.

Adamance:- Immoveable, immutable. No one can can teleport you away, banish you, exile you or keep you away from what you want. You are completely bound to your own self. No one tells you what to do.

(New Form Gained: Elemental God)

- The combination of all the elements, this form puts at the peak of godhood. All abilities are enhanced to ×100. You can now create an entire world of Patheons.)

(Congratulations! New Divinity Acquired! God of Energy)

(Congratulations! Requirements met for Apotheosis.)

(Apotheosis Failed!...)

(Soul Piece missing)

I blink away the notifications.

My vision returned to my surroundings. Filled with the essence from the four elements. In the distance, I see a raging inferno, a turbulent ocean, a towering mountain, and a gust of wind that whips through the grass.

I close my eyes and take a deep breath, focusing my mind on the elements around me. I begin to feel the power of water, the element of change, coursing through my veins.

I extend a hand out and watch as droplets of water rise up from the ground, forming a sphere that hovers before me. Clear water. I can feel it's willingness to respond to my will, twisting and turning at any of my commands.

Next, I turn attention to the air, the element of freedom. My hands raise and I feel the wind rush past my body, lifting me off the ground. My body unravels into the gust as I soar through the atmosphere, feeling the winds carry me higher and higher. I feel free and alive, realizing for the first time that with this element, I could go anywhere and do anything.

Then I land back on the ground, my focus shifts to the element of fire. There are flames flickering in the distance, covering the horizon. The heat and passion of fire runs through me.

I extend a hand and watch as the flames grow taller and brighter into massive pillars that surge from the ground to blaze through the sky. The power of flames, different colored and oh so useful. With it I could ignite the passions of others or fuel my own desires.

Finally, it's Earth's turn. The element of stubbornness. I can feel the solid ground beneath my feet, unyielding and unbreakable. Closing my eyes to focus on the energy, the power of earth flows through the soles of my feet.

Instantly I feel connected to this land. The ground can crack and shift at my command, a symbol of my mastery over the element of adamance.

I don't know how long I stood there. How long I was lost in the elements. It felt like years. I had achieved a new level of control. My Authorities were no longer a mystery and the new perks ensured that I could only go up from here.

I had become what I always knew I could be.

Having control over the building blocks of reality was intoxicating. Especially when I could deny the same to any other God in my zone.

Elemental God. I love the sound of that.

But there was something still missing.

The soul piece that stopped me from whatever Apotheosis the System was talking about. It had to be Order's fault. I was incomplete still.

I opened my eyes, letting my mind return to present times. To the fight I was about to be involved in.

The force they had come with was not anything to scoff at. 4 full celestials, all charged to the max with cosmic energy.

Next to the celestials, I looked like a slightly bigger ant. Equity was gripped tightly in my hand as we faced off.

"Aden Strong. Your crimes against this sector have been determined. Death is the fitting punishment for one such as you. Any last words?"

'Arishem the Judge' the world whispered to me.

He was the one who spoke out. His metallic form was red and out of the four of them, he was the most powerful of the bunch.

"You're going to need a bigger army if you want to take me down."

I told them plainly. I'd been waiting for them. So of course I had prepared.

"Even with the four of you, I honestly have no fear for my life. So I guess the question would be better answered by you. Do you have any last words?"

I Cosmic energy undulated as an attack was charged up from the left. Hargen the measurer, the world supplied once more. These days, I saw existence differently. I had been stumbling in the dark before, confident in the little power I possessed.

Then I had ascended to godhood on all the elements and I understood. The me from before was but a child playing at being powerful. True power was when you stood before your most powerful enemies...and worried for their lives.

Nezarr The Calculator floated forward. Once again, his name drifting to my ears.

"We were creating stars before the first sentient creature emerged. Our power is boundless. You would have been better off begging..."

That immediately pissed me off. Beg? Beg after all I'd been through? All the obstacles I had had to overcome. Going up against 4th dimensional and 5th dimensional beings. Going up against entire Pantheons of Gods. Did he just tell me to beg?

I raised a hand and they stiffened like statues. The energy inside them was frozen, completely halted.

"You know... I've been waiting for this."

I spoke up.

"But now that you're here, before me. I find you...unworthy of a real fight."

I raised Equity.

Then I brought it down.

(General P.O.V)

"Damn."

Chaos said from where he was standing on a balcony. Behind him, Lady Death caressed his back.

"Come back to bed."

She insisted in a seductive tone.

"We both know I cannot do that. Not when we're at the 11th hour."

Chaos replied, staring up at the sky. At the cosmic storm brewing out in outer space, felt across the entire galaxy.

Cosmic energy roared, released from the sudden death of a Celestial.

Then another StarMaker fell. Then another...then the last one.

"Impossible..."

Lady Death lost all traces of a joking mood, her eyes betraying her shock. Chaos on the other hand was counting something under his breath.

"That makes it four... He's coming."

A silence occupied everything for a second. The air stilled, the noise died away as someone simply appeared next to Chaos. The latter didn't even feel it.

Lady Death was similarly caught in the frozen time zone. This surprised Chaos more than anything.

"Wow, boss. Seems like you got an upgrade."

Before him, Aden floated in a new form. Cosmic power blazed around Equity, the amount enough to take out a few galaxies. At least he knew where the bulk of the Celestial's essence went.

But the thing that stood out to Chaos was the huge tattoo taking up the entirety of his chest.

"Chaos, you need to get ready. The Celestials were only the opening act. The true threat arrives in..."

Aden stopped, a frown coming over him.

"They're already here."

The sky changed as portals of all kinds begun opening around the grey skies of Titan. Only a cosmic entity on the same level as he could manage to break the time freeze.

"How dare you?!"

Lady Death muttered in disbelief and anger, eyes as black as night as she straightened up, chest moving up and down in harsh breaths. 'Why was it so hard to breathe...', she wondered.

Aden ignored her, only for a black necrotic sword to be immediately aimed at his neck. Then Chaos' hand came out of her chest, spearing through her back with a spray of dark blood.

The shock hit her first. She tried to warp away.

"You...you can't kill death..."

She muttered, a trail of black blood falling from her chin.

"I...I am necessary..."

"Shh."

Chaos whispered at her.

"We always knew you would be a problem. Out of every other Cosmic entity, you like to meddle in things that don't concern you the most. It's true I can't kill you...but I can supplant you."

Death felt something get ripped out of her. She was forcefully getting refined. Her power stripped from her her forcefully. It was jarring and terrifying.

"How does it feel to be the one used like a play thing?"

Aden asked, walking past her to stare at the portals in the sky I've the walls of the city.

"How many?"

Chaos enquired, Death's body flaking off into dark energy that he absorbed.

"All of them."

Upon Aden's Answer, a green dragon shot out of one of the portals, a bald woman following closely behind it with another woman in tow. Aden recognized them from his memories. Moon Dragon and Phylla Vell.

Another portal deposited a Ghost Rider on top of a speeding bike, firearms covering his body.

Then another with Spiderman...spidermen. He could recognize Miles Molares, Spider Gwen and OG Spiderman.

On and on it went. Outside the city, the forces of 'good' were gathering to deal with him. Numerous Avengers, the fantastic four, X-men, Midnight Sons, Guardians of the Galaxy, X-force and many other unaffiliated heroes and villains flew out of the portals with seemingly no end.

"Fuckers knew they wouldn't stand a chance against me in a straight fight. So they brought in heroes from parallel Earths."

Aden shook his head with a smile.

"They believe I will hesitate to kill them."

"This is something we have been preparing for."

Chaos stated, joining Aden at the Balcony, his body thrumming with a new power.

"Earth and Mars are tucked away someplace they can't find. So fortunately they can't use that to threaten me."

Aden added. His Homunculi Puppet had seen to that before he came to Titan.

"Boss, why is the OAA even allowing this to happen?"

Chaos wondered.

Aden gave no reply for a few seconds. The rush through the portal died down. A man draped in robes and carrying a medallion around his neck stepped forward.

Doctor Strange looked up at the Palace that had belonged to the Mad Titan. His hands begun flashing with numerous circles of magic.

"I've had Friday analyze the city. There's a core powering the security and defense measures. We need to get rid of that before we can break through."

Iron Man said in a variant of his Godkiller Armor, landing next to the Sorcerer.

"We can handle that Stark."

Captain Marvel replied, Nova and Blue Marvel behind her.

Iron Man nodded, turning to Strange.

"Be honest, Gandalf...are you sure this will work?

At Doctor Strange's side, Thor gripped his hammer tight. He could feel the threat of death this figure before them presented. A hand clasped onto his shoulder.

Thor looked back at his future self, he had wrinkles around his face and a great white beard bigger than even Odin's. He didn't need to speak. They understood each other.

"This day much was lost."

All Father Thor addressed Iron Man and the closest Avengers.

"If the Seidr is confident we can do this differently, I advise you all to listen."

Nobody refused.

Doctor Strange finished his spell. The spell helping project his voice through the large distance.

"Aden Strong, I have come to bargain."