When she saw the bold and valiant South American samba goddess assume a long-prepared stance, Selene knew—she was screwed.
Her opponent had timed it too precisely, too perfectly.
Just as Selene reached out her hand to grasp the haft of the spiraling great axe that came tearing toward her, vmmm—!
Like the roar of a thunder beast, the copper-toned axe engraved with dense Runes flared crimson the moment it sensed the immortal magical energy flowing through Selene's draconic beast-clawed hand.
Crack!—
With its divine beast- and god-slaying special properties activated, it shattered the magical shield Selene had cautiously maintained over her body in an instant!
And that was only the first layer of Chaldea's assault—because this was the Axe of Marduk!
Who was Marduk?
In Mesopotamian mythology, Marduk was the chief god of Babylon, and eventually became the national god of Babylonia.
He was famed for slaying not only the eleven monsters born of the creation goddess Tiamat but also for mortally wounding the mother of chaos herself—Tiamat—with this very axe, slicing her throat clean through.
Thus did Marduk rise as the king of the gods.
Clang!—
Like an ancient battle drum signaling war, the bloodstained divine runes on the axe burst forth in brilliance—the glory sung of by mortals and gods alike after it was baptized in Tiamat's blood.
"Aaaaaaa—!"
Selene's internal fragment of Tiamat's Saint Graph howled in agony. The hand that had touched the Axe of Marduk trembled violently and was flung away. Her magical defenses spiraled into disarray; even the auto-targeting serpentine hair writhed in confusion.
Chaldea had waited for this very moment.
In the next instant—vmmmmm—!!!
"This body shall become a burning rock, a comet to strike down the earth—!"
With the chant of a Noble Phantasm, blinding flames overtook all other light. The roar of burning air dominated all hearing, and searing heat swept forth, scorching Selene's cheeks.
Under this solar-storm-like blaze, the snake-hair transformed into giant serpents were instantly reduced to ash.
No time to think—"Aaaaaaa—!"
Letting out a roar born of the primordial reverence instilled by the maternal origin of all things—affecting mankind, Heroic Spirits, even gods—Selene finally moved.
Crack!
Infused with Imaginary Number energy, every scale on her body shone with a vicious, icy gleam. She forcibly suppressed the instability in her body and, bearing the god-slaying power of the Axe of Marduk and the spiritual strain, roared furiously:
"I am not Tiamat!"
CLANG—!
Swatting aside the Axe of Marduk with one arm, ignoring the bleeding cracks splitting open across her arm, Selene's colossal serpentine tail—spanning thousands of meters and rising like a moving mountain—shot up from the earth.
Then, from above, descending through layers of dimensional-jump arrays, came a dropkick charged to its limit—
"—Xiuhcoatl, that burns even gods!!!"
BOOM—!
A thunderous impact rang through the sky, followed by a shockwave that shook the entire battlefield.
The attacker, turned into a meteor, slammed into Selene's raised tail with a monumental burst of flaming magical energy.
BOOM!!!
A violent impact descended, accompanied by an ear-splitting roar as the air exploded. The ground twisted and trembled, heaving like a waking earth dragon—dirt flew, seawater surged backward, and fiery spheres erupted from the earth....
In less than a second, the blast swept across several kilometers beneath Selene and then roared outward with increasing ferocity.
In the blink of an eye, Lancer Karna and Rider Achilles, both bloodied and struggling against Selene, lost sight of her.
A tidal wave of shockwind, carrying shattered earth like a sea crashing in all directions, blasted them several kilometers away in an instant!
Only Karna and Achilles—one shielded by the divine golden armor, the other with an undying body bathed in the River Styx and wielding a god-forged shield from Hephaestus—could endure it.
This level of clash had now drawn a chasm-like threshold for entry into the battlefield.
Ordinary Servants would likely perish just from the residual waves of the fight!
The surface, nearly soaked in lava, quaked and split into massive chunks that launched soot and vaporized sand into the sky—tens, hundreds, even thousands of meters high. The ring-like shock "walls" collapsed in an instant into endless grains, which, swept by the wind, howled across the heavens and earth.
RUMMMBBLLEE—!!
The tremors and shockwaves of destruction surged in layers like burning tides through the rising dust. Even though Jeanne and Mash had rushed to the front line and erected an unbreakable barrier at the first moment, Fujimaru Ritsuka could feel his internal organs rattling from the sheer force of the blast.
The ground trembled, and so did the hearts of all present.
But unlike Selene's fury, Fujimaru Ritsuka, prone on the ground, suddenly swung his arm forward, barely suppressing his excitement.
"Huff... Hey, brat, is this the reinforcement you called in while we stalled for time?"
Charred and wretched, smoke still curling from his mouth, Rider Achilles gritted his teeth and held firm behind his round shield.
"Yeah. Her name is Quetzal!"
"A god. Main deity class."
Shoulders aglow like the sun, the radiant barrier blocked out the force of the blast. Though his exposed body was covered in purple-red corruption marks, Karna stood solemnly, staring at the storm's eye.
"But most crucial is that axe. Because of it, the Spirit Origin of the 'Black' Rider is breaking down.... Master, how could you be sure she would choose to reach out and touch it? What if she had opted for a magic cannon blast? What was the backup plan?"
"That's thanks to Miss Jeanne...."
....
A few minutes earlier, elsewhere.
"According to Miss Jeanne's details about the Holy Grail War in Romania, and analyzing her behavior, that woman—Selene, the supreme ruler of that foreign divine nation—is a greedy and domineering tyrant."
Next to the composite spirit summoning circle, a silver-haired man with peculiar pointed ears stole a glance at a certain golden sparkle and smiled with delight. "That's her fatal flaw."
"After being summoned by Lev and given the Beast II Spirit Origin once belonging to Tiamat, I'm sure she's aware that by devouring it, she would inherit part of Tiamat's weaknesses from myth..."
His tone shifted sharply, and Merlin's voice grew forceful.
"But! Even so, her reckless and overbearing nature—I can say with certainty!"
"Even if struck by the axe that once wounded Tiamat—the Marduk Axe—she would not dodge. Gods are prideful.... ah, ah, ah, apologies, apologies! I wasn't referring to you...."
Facing the sudden sinkhole beneath his feet, Merlin offered repeated, sunny apologies to the ground, seemingly appeasing a hardworking, overburdened goddess. Then, he gave a light cough and cleared his throat....
"Ahem... Especially for a supreme ruling god like Selene, rather than dodge, this foreign god would more likely desire to claim the Marduk Axe as her own."
"Think about it this way: if a god used the divine weapon that once nearly destroyed them to turn the tables and kill that weapon's wielder—or the wielder's descendants or followers—wouldn't that be a perfect triumphal display of a conqueror's pride and majesty?"
Leaning on his uniquely shaped flower staff, the white-robed Magus of Flowers made a show of listening for applause as he spoke with evident self-satisfaction.
Unfortunately, the sweet underclassman was busy tanking damage on the front lines, so no one clapped.
"Tch, what a nasty-natured deity."
A Servant from the Lawful-Good side muttered.
"Ahahaha... I actually quite like that god-king," said the red-cloaked, armored warrior with red hair, slapping his chest with a hearty laugh. "If she weren't our enemy, I'd want to share a drink and talk philosophy with her."
"Oh Iskandar, another 'Feast of Kings'? Hah, dream on. I won't even bother mocking you—she probably wouldn't even glance at us mongrel half-bloods during a divine banquet."
The long-haired 'consort' who normally played the submissive role before his majesty showed rare defiance. "Alright, defeating Selene is our top priority. Lady Scáthach, we're counting on you...."
...
"Quetzalcoatl!"
Forcing herself to suppress the turbulence in her Spirit Origin and ignore the tearing pain in her body, Selene drew on both her magical power and the musculature of her spiritual body. A terrifying magic of destruction surged within her.
No more messing around.
In her current state—Beast II's Spirit Origin not yet fully restored—if she didn't get serious now, those clairvoyant Chaldeans would find an opening. And if that happened, she'd become the perfect cautionary tale: "Overconfident from the start, charged in recklessly, died midway, and became a laughingstock."
Before touching the Marduk Axe, Selene had indeed cautiously applied a layer of Honkai energy to her arm. But her mindset had already started drifting.
Maybe she'd been holding back, waiting for Goetia to fall into a trap. That play-it-safe attitude—mixed with a hint of cockiness—meant she wasn't as careful as she should have been.
Hit hard by this fiery, passionate goddess, Selene immediately realized the severity of the situation.
She was strong!
Using a rune technique in conjunction with the Marduk Axe, the assault pierced Selene's magical defenses. The goddess who launched the attack was—Quetzalcoatl.
Maybe the name isn't well known, but what if we say: the Feathered Serpent God?
Quetzalcoatl is the supreme god of Mesoamerican Aztec mythology, governing life, harvest, culture, wind and rain, and much more.
Due to her bizarre appearance and ever-changing powers in myth, she was at times even worshipped as a sun deity. Some legends claim she hails from Venus, and her domain overlaps with Ishtar's—both being symbols of Venus.
As a mythological figure at the very top of her pantheon, Quetzalcoatl stands on equal footing with Zeus of Greek myth, Marduk of Mesopotamia, and Odin of Norse legend.
In fact, due to the Aztec mythology's cycles of destruction and rebirth, Quetzalcoatl represents a dual-origin god of both creation and annihilation. She both forged a golden age of gods and is intricately tied to the Aztec civilization's demise.
It's no exaggeration to say her divine authority surpasses that of most chief gods around the world.
Back in the Seventh Singularity—Babylonia—if Quetzalcoatl hadn't sided with Chaldea, they never would have stood a chance of victory.
Because she attacked Gorgon's temple, Quetzalcoatl violated the vow of non-aggression within the Three Goddess Alliance and had half of her divinity sealed, drastically weakening her strength.
Yet even so, Quetzal remained Chaldea's irreplaceable top-tier damage dealer!
And now, before Selene stood a fully divine Quetzalcoatl!
BOOM—!
With a roar that ripped the air itself, Selene's massive form visibly staggered.
This power... not enough. If they wanted to break through her defenses, this level of output alone wasn't going to cut it!
Golden hair fluttering in the wind, her South American-Mayan attire revealed sun-kissed, crimson skin glowing under the bloody sky. Sweat trickled along her impressive form, tracing out flawless curves.
Just as Selene regarded Quetzal as a formidable opponent and took her seriously, Quetzalcoatl held Selene in the same esteem.
This one is outrageously strong!
No wonder—having devoured the Spirit Origins of both Tiamat and Gorgon, this foreign supreme deity surpassed even Tiamat herself in every way save for the final component of the Beast II 'Return' Spirit Origin that would strip her of the concept of death.
Tiamat never had this kind of agile, violent aura.
Whoosh—!
Exhaling deeply, divine markings on Quetzal's face flared even brighter as she unleashed another surging fireball of magic!
Though her breath began to falter and her strikes showed a hint of fatigue, her expression only grew more radiant.
Aside from her many legends of benevolence, Quetzalcoatl also bore the ferocious traits of a war god. A lover of wrestling, beneath her noble and warm facade, she was a deeply hidden battle maniac!
HAAAH—!!
Sky and earth clashed. These two Servant-deified beings, with nearly identical death-defying natures, collided with overwhelming force. The resulting devastation shook the heavens.
The earth cracked. Mountains collapsed. Seas overturned. Raging flames boiled mountains and oceans alike. The tectonic plate beneath Honshu began to crumble. Countless fissures spread, near-shore tsunamis surged.
Far from Fuyuki, people wailed. Nearby cities visibly shook. Mount Fuji's snowy peak broke apart. It looked like the end of the world, with calamities erupting one after another.
CRACK—!
Selene's colossal divine body, which blotted out the sky, began visibly to tilt. Victory's light seemed at last to shine upon Chaldea....
Suddenly—BZZZZZZZZ—!
The sound of Spirit Origin output resuming. The buzz of immense magical pulses. Even Merlin's face changed at once.
"Already?! The divine power of Marduk is being suppressed."
"Ereshkigal! Are you done yet?!"
"Stop rushing me!!! Your task this and that—ugh, you people are so bossy!"
A voice nearly identical to Rin Tohsaka's echoed from the earth, laced with both exhaustion and tsundere pride.
"Also, this isn't the Mesopotamian underworld! Maintaining the Underworld Barrier here is already a nightmare, and now you want me to stabilize the entire tectonic plate too?! Ugh, it's so annoying!! There are mana clusters everywhere in here and—oh no—collapse!!"
A moment later, a rumbling like a mountainside sliding echoed along with Ereshkigal's panicked yelp.
With her nearly in position, Merlin, Gilgamesh, Waver, and Romani on the comms all exchanged glances and nodded.
"Lady Scáthach, Ishtar, Little Al, Sir Mordred, Her Majesty Semiramis, Lord Avicebron... everyone, advance ahead of schedule!"
"Waver, contact Chaldea. Prepare the mana supply."
"Fujimaru, get ready to amplify with Command Spells...."
....
"Aaaaaa—!!"
Having fully suppressed the Tiamat Spirit Origin's rebellion and consumed the rampaging power of Marduk within her body, Selene spread her wings wide, blotting out the sky. Her serpentine hair whipped violently as her monstrous divine form let out a roar of sheer violence and exhilaration.
"I must admit, Chaldea, it's been a long time since my blood has boiled like this!"
"I owe you an apology—for treating you as mere ants I could crush at any time, for holding back just to prolong my amusement. That was a mistake. From now on, I will give you my all, as a sign of my respect."
"In my world, the greatest respect I can show an opponent... is complete annihilation!!!"
It was as if ten thousand thunderbolts exploded at once!
Spirit Origin: Unleashed!
Authority of the Beast: Engaged!
Anti-Genesis (Nega Genesis): Activated!
Imaginary Sea: Unlocked!
Honkai Dimension: Connected!!
....
Crimson light burst from Selene's scarlet eyes like radiant gemstones. A massive blood-red magic circle—over a kilometer in diameter—formed instantly before her.
"Ah, that's more like it. This is how it should be!"
"Selene, though ambushing you wasn't my intention, this isn't a wrestling match. This is about Fujimaru, about the survival of humanity! Tactics are a form of battle—it's inevitable."
"Let me properly introduce myself. I am Quetzalcoatl! And I declare war upon you!!"
Spreading her arms wide, Quetzal suddenly released her kick-based Noble Phantasm. With a crouch, she launched thousands of meters into the air, her flames burning even brighter.
"Existing in the past, present, and future—gale, surge forth! Thunder, descend! This is the most radiant moment of Venus! The sun shines beyond! — Piedra Del Sol!"
After a sweeping surge of crimson light, Quetzal continued to rise in flames. But even higher above the heavens, a rift of gold and crimson tore the sky open. From that "gate," a violent solar wind erupted.
Shoom!
A humble-looking round stone gently descended, transforming into golden brilliance as it shot toward the airborne Quetzal.
The stone was small—so tiny that even a sparrow would tower over it. Its simple form resembled nothing more than a roadside pebble, seemingly worthless. Yet the intense heat and burning red flames it emitted could not be ignored.
This was the Piedra Del Sol—the Solar Calendar Stone. A symbol of life's prosperity, but also of complete destruction.
Buzz buzz—!
"War, is it? Then let me see what Chaldea is truly made of."
Down below, as Selene activated her composite Noble Phantasm, the magical particles around her became violently visible to the naked eye.
"Become a colossal divine body—tear the earth asunder, erase the sky, melt everything—!"
The magical eye ritual circulating her immense mana warped the surrounding space, twisting all sunlight into unnatural distortion.
RUMMMMMBLE—!!!
The ground beneath Selene exploded into dust within moments, launching debris in every direction. A crimson tidal wave of chaos erupted and churned the shattered soil into even finer ash.
Yet the chaos tide did not stop. It spread in all directions from Selene, inch by inch transforming the land into a crimson sea, as ominous magical energy surged upward!
And in that very moment, Selene sensed something wrong.
Within the torn spatial rift, there appeared... a pure white world.
It was a boundless garden of flowers—no sky, no earth, no edges. A glowing silver field of grass blanketed in colorful blossoms.
"Avalon... a nightmare illusion!"
Which meant—somewhere along the way, the information she had been receiving had been falsified. It was all a deception!
"Forced Seal: Pandemonium Cetus!!"
Without hesitation, a dark red magical cannon burst from Selene's eye-formed magic circle. In the blink of an eye, it pierced to an incalculable altitude, slicing the nightmare realm in two.
RUMBLE—!
The pure white mirrored world shattered piece by piece, reflecting Selene's narrowing, diamond-shaped pupils.
Cough, cough—pfft!
"Even if it only confused her for a brief moment... it was enough! Everyone, it's on you now!"
Tactics—this, Quetzalcoatl, is what you meant by tactics....
Heh. In that case—bring it on!
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