Before I enter the grand dining hall and discuss things with Valian, I need to check up on the state of the world. I need to be ready for the chaos which would tear the world apart if war was to begin at the wrong time. There is also the status of the Meddlers and the extra-dimensional existences which still pose a significant threat to the world. I also need to check on the 'evil' forces sightings which were reported close to my pocket world. It is all so frustrating! Europe is on the brink of total war, the USA is preparing for military action against its neighbours, the Papal State is about to collapse into separate nations, Ismilda is suspected to be planning an invasion of Germany, Greece is on the brink of a second Successor War which could be even more destructive than the Great War, Sistan has experienced a coup by a power who wishes for the destruction of the Greek people and Asia is about to collapse into an independence war in Korea and a war between The Ming Empire and Japan. There are also the countless wars and skirmishes taking place throughout the many Meddler private worlds. Not only is there going to be the forces of 'evil' fighting us in the coming 'final' battle, but there are also going to be hundreds of war-crazed Meddlers leading their experienced armies across the many worlds where the 'final' battle is going to be fought. Will the many worlds be able to keep themselves stable with such drastic loss of life? Then there are also the cults and religious orders which lurk in the shadows, not to mention the countless military orders which are also going to take advantage of the situation. Sometimes it sucks being a god overseeing your world. Oh yeah, and don't even get me started on the myths and gods of other religions who are also going to get involved. I slam my fist into the wall in anger, there is too much pressure with this. Before I can enter the 'local world navies observation' room, I take a deep breath to relax my nerves. Even with all the worries of the chaotic 'final' battle, the tension eases and fades away. With my current state now calm, I enter the observation room. The main observation officer; my friend Aaron Toadik turns to me and salutes.
"Bengelon, it is good to see you. You will not believe the many cat and mouse games are being played at the moment. Tensions are so high, the navies of the world are watching each other in anticipation for a war. It is like they have already forgotten about the utter devastation which the Great War caused" that is a worrying thought. If people have forgotten about the tragic loss of life from that war, then they will likely not be hesitant about starting a war of that scale. There is also the fact that the Great War was one which was fought in slow movements, which prolonged the war and allowed retreating soldiers to construct new fortifications not too far back from the front. In this day and age though, movement is key. Instead of the war lasting for over eight years, I can see it only lasting two at the very most.
"who knows, the decisive blow may be struck on the very first day of the war" Aaron smirks and looks off into the distance with a longing expression.
"a short war. Now that is the type of war I hope we will find ourselves in" I walk over to Aaron and place my hand on his shoulder in a friendly manner.
"but only if the war is in our favour. I would not like to see the war turn against us and force us into a swift defeat" Aaron nods to me in understanding and turns back to look at the holographic map of the world.
"well, here is the current report that I have for you: both the Atlantic and Pacific are going to be in a constant state of war. There are enough aircraft carriers and battleship fleets for an out-of-proportion battle to take place at every island in the pacific. Whether it be dozens of destroyers being sunk for an island measuring one square meter, or three aircraft carriers being lost for an island without an airfield or port. The nations of the world have been building up their navies for this coming conflict. This coming war is going to be one which will be too full of history to ever be truly recorded and documented completely" that is not comforting to hear.
"how do you think the war is going to go for the navies?" Aaron turns away and walks over to the map, so I follow behind him to see what he wants to show me. Aaron points down to a large cluster of ships positioned in the pacific.
"the USA has built up a dangerous number of ships ranging from carriers to cruisers to submarines. Japan, The Ming Empire and the nations of South America have responded by building up their own navies to a similar size" Aaron drags his finger across the map to point to a slightly larger cluster off the coast of Scandinavia, "meanwhile, there are the European powers who are building up their navies to surpass the USA and take control of the seas. There will be 'decisive' naval battles every day, carriers and battleships will be sunk every day" I look over the map and point to each of the giant navies positioned around the world.
"where does the fuel and oil, which supplies these fleets originating from?" Aaron nods to me, as if expecting that question to be one of my first.
"I have already sent out investigation teams. So far, there are links to Meddlers who are suppliers of fossil fuels. Aside from those, we do not have much. We suspect that the force of 'evil' are working behind the scenes to accelerate the approach of the war, but we do not have enough evidence to conclude that is the case. Most of the Meddlers who are tied to the cheap supply of fuel appear to be ones who lean on the side of creating and profiting off war, too. The gods of the seas and oceans such as Poseidon, Neptune, Njord or Anuket seem to be interested in the possibility of an increase of activity with the navies, but they have all expressed their displeasure at the thought of a repeat of the Great War and how many ships sank in that conflict" so they are not going to even try to step in? I personally do not believe that the gods are going to just sit back and watch as their world is pushed to the brink of total collapse. Even with their religions mostly gone, the gods will still protect those people who do. There are also those gods who will defend their people, even after their people have ceased to believe in them. If I am to factor those gods into the coming 'final' battle, there is a large chance that we could win. If I can somehow convince those gods to join me in this coming war, the war could quite possibly already be decided. It may take some time, but I will try talking to those gods once I am done with helping Valian and Lothar with their trials. Those two will be journeying across the world after all, so I should have enough time to convince the gods to side with me.
"do you think the navies of the world will one day come to understand how stupid an all-out war would be? Do you think they would come to understand that they would be almost guaranteed to be completely wiped out?" Aaron eases into his chair and looks down at the ship fleets on the map.
"when it comes to war between nations, the soldiers are not always the brightest. That goes for the ones in-charge of the military too. Once the war does start, only the lucky or head-smart seem to survive" I need to continue on with my checkup of the other reports, I have spent enough time talking to Aaron for now.
"yes, there seems to be a filter when it comes to war, like an alternative form of natural selection. We can continue this discussion later, I need to speak with the others on other reports" Aaron nods and waves me goodbye.
"I will continue my observations on the movements and actions of the navies of the world" I nod to Aaron and leave the room. As I pass through the door, I can already hear everyone in the dining hall. Their voices are a good indicator that nothing bad has happened, nor has a Meddler sneaked their way into the hall to fight. I may be prepared for a fight in the dining hall, but that is one of the last things I want to happen at the moment. I walk further away from the dining hall and reach my next destination: The Universal Embassy for All Gods. It is here where I can ask the ambassadors for any information regarding the relations between the many gods and if there will be a war in the coming weeks. Luckily, Aaron was able to remind me of the influence the gods have on my world. I may be the current most powerful god, but that does not mean in any way that the other gods are less powerful. There is also the possibility that the many gods that are now considered irrelevant will reveal themselves to the world at large and bring about a titanic shift in the path the world is taking. All mythical and godly beings in the world have agreed that minimal intervention is the optimal approach to maintaining a stable world. As I pass through into the embassy area, the many rooms dedicated to the gods of each religion. I quickly find my closest devil friend, who has connections everywhere. The man turns and spots me, standing up, displaying his jet black suit and showing me an excited grin.
"ah, Bengelon! It is so good to see you again! I have lots of news from every corner of the world of gods" oh great. That is only further evidence that some of the gods are going to reveal themselves in the near future. One of the other ambassadors belonging to the christian religion steps out from around the corner; an angel wearing white robes like you would expect.
"luckily, no one died during this period of information gathering. We are truly blessed during this time!" the angel clasps his hands together and starts mumbling to himself. My devil friend; Aivel, shakes his head and turns back and walks to his desk.
"yeah, we did not suffer a single casualty during this information gathering period. But there is even better news than that. We have got word that the Orders of Saints: Klark, Alexios, Spartos and Kota wish to borrow your infinity dungeons under lease, since they are said to be the best for creating powerful warriors. That will prove useful for when this supposed 'final' battle you keep speaking of finally begins. The Orders of Saints and forces of Heaven are already beginning their preparations for the coming war, so having at least half of the devils and most of the ones in-between would definitely make a significant difference in our chances of defeating that woman you are so afraid of, and your nemesis" after the events of the last three centuries, the allegiances of the many gods and races of the worlds have shifted to the point where devils, angels, servants of the underworld and other demons work together without issue. If the end result of an 'evil' victory wasn't the end of the world, there would not be as many who would want to help in this conflict. When the coming war is nearing the end, there will be a very likely chance that humans serving in the nations' armies of the world will be fighting side-by-side with the many mythical and godly beings that they have worshipped for many millennia. In a way, it will be humanity's brightest, and darkest moment.
"that is good to hear. The more allies we have when the 'final' battle begins, the higher our chances will be of defeating very one of our opponents. I have been told that I am destined to die against Fronther when we face off one last time, but I do not wish to leave my family behind, vulnerable" Aivel nods and hands me a folder that he has been holding since the beginning of our conversation, but he has kept is at his side.
"this has all the information you will need for making trade deals with the thousands of factions that wish to fight alongside us during the 'final' battle. There is also information on which factions wish to use your infinity dungeons" with all of these people wanting to use my infinity dungeons so suddenly, I am going to need to create a lot more. But that will require a lot of time that I might not have, but I might have to make more. I will have to create more pocket worlds and then forge each dungeon individually to give them the same power as those I currently have. Using so much power might also impact my combat capabilities if the war starts any time soon, but that is a risk which I am going to have to take. If I can provide some infinity dungeons to those who wish to join me in the 'final' battle, that could improve our chances of success by a significant degree. Aivel hands me the folder and sits back at his desk.
"thanks Aivel, I will make sure that this opportunity is not squandered. By the time the 'final' battle finally begins, we will have a powerful army fighting with us" Aivel nods and returns to doing some paperwork.
"I trust that we will win this war. From what I recall, you also have to check with asset acquisitions and requisitions to see what new weapons they have. I heard that they even have one of those 'Thousand Miles Disintegration' sniper rifles that Sintay has been after" if I give Sintay one of those, he would become one of the best snipers in the family. I definitely have to purchase one of them.
"that is good news. I am going to head there now, I do not want to miss out on a chance like this" Aivel nods as if he already knew those were the words I would speak.
"yeah, I bet. Just make sure to teach your kids about how survivability is more important that making a difference in the battle. They still have a promising future to look forward to, I would hate to see any of their lives cut short. Dying is for those of us who are the oldest" with that final exchange, I continue on towards the exterior armoury, where the general of the logistics for my army is residing at this moment. With my powers, I just simply leap out of my window and glide down to the ground. With minimal effort, I am now standing in-front of the exterior armoury. I push the door open and stroll in, the place seems to be nearly vacant of life. I spot my general sitting at a map of the many worlds and planets out in space. Laid out on the map, there are thousands of fleets positioned everywhere in the galaxy, awaiting the day the 'final' battle can begin. Although after the initial engagements, they have been instructed to converge on the main location for the final engagement. Neither I or Fronther have any say in the location of the 'final' battle, that is more so Ismilda's decision. At this moment, Ismilda holds the card which will determine the location of the 'final' battle: The sphere. Although it would be a bad idea to fight Ismilda or the forces of 'evil' while that powerful item is nearby, we may not have much of a choice. Though playing guessing games might prove useful in preparing for the battle effectively. If we can make an accurate prediction as to where the battle is going to take place, we might be able to begin the battle at an advantage. At the moment, the most likely location for the battle would be the Greek capital. It would be big enough to accommodate the numbers needed to power the sphere and increase its power to the required level. The general spots me and notices that I am in deep thought, so he approaches me to interrupt my trail of thought, like the soldier he is.
"what weapons do you want from me today? I am not a factory, y'know? Most of the weapons I have been receiving are from those who are adventuring in the Infinity Dungeon of Loot" unless he is using a D.I.I, I don't see how using those dungeon items is safe. He should know the status and numbers for each of the items he has on record.
"so I can safely assume that you do not have any weapons of significant power?" the general tilts his head from side to side and shifts his shoulders like scales.
"none of the items I have received have caused me injury, so I would say not. It appears that fro what you are saying, there is nothing in my armoury which you would take, other than ammunition for those light machine guns you took last weekend" the seven light machine guns will be useful for creating at least two more fortified positions during the 'final' battle. We are going to need every inch of ground we can get.
"then that will be all for today. I am sorry that my visit was so brief" the general shakes his head and waves me away. The general returns to inspecting a strange mechanism on his bench.
"there is no need to apologise, you need to speak with some other people anyway" it looks like the general is about to start shooing me out, so I am going to leave before he gets the chance to. With the general now seen, I need to talk with Rionide; The Hero of Heroes. Rionide is working as my 'Hero Coordinator', who determines who can use what and when. This is very useful for when there are too many people in the infinity dungeons. It did not occur to me during the creation of the infinity dungeons, but the area in which they span, is not infinite. After the monster encounters became less frequent for most due to the spawning areas being stripped bare, certain restrictions had to be put in place. Rionide was the one who I put in-charge of preventing the issue from becoming worse. Rionide even went above and beyond, returning the dungeons to the original state, when they were filled with monsters. Thinking back on it now, I could have just created more dungeons. But there was also the issue of the 'Fifty Five Meddler War', that conflict created many issues and prevented me from using my powers to the full limit. A sudden wind blows past my face, making me look back to see what the source of this sudden breeze is. In-front of me, one of my children is standing. This child of mine; Roko, has supposedly only just reached the twentieth floor of the 'Infinity Dungeon of Training', so he must be coming to tell me about it. Although he does not have the expression of someone who is eager to tell their parent about their recent achievement.
"hey dad, I have been wondering about something. Why do people still use blades so frequently when guns have been around for so long? In every fight, the person holding the gun appears to be at an advantage. So why do so many people in our big family like to use bladed weapons?" I have spoken about this with every single one of my children who have reached the certain age when they notice this strange phenomenon.
"well Roko, there is a technique that can be perfected, which can allow a user to not only deflect bullets, but also redirect them towards the person who fired them. Also, guns are considered for foot soldiers, while blades are intended for one-on-one combat. If the leaders of two opposing armies were to meet, they would fight in a deadly clash of blades, or magic if they have it. It is due to that, that swords are still used today. Though there is also the fact that guns can only be found in certain places around the world, while blades are already everywhere" Roko thinks to himself for a moment, raising his eyebrow and tilting his head in confusion.
"that does not make any sense. If the foot soldiers were given guns, wouldn't that mean that there would be lots of guns throughout the world for the soldiers who need them?" I shake my head to Roko and wave away the confusion.
"no, guns are only common for the military. Swords are most commonly utilised by civilians. There are heavy restrictions when it comes to regular people and guns" Roko raises his eyebrow and folds his arms.
"then wouldn't that mean that only the soldiers have guns? There seems to be a power imbalance if that is the case" my son still has a lot to learn before he can make good observations on how this world works.
"Roko, you greatly underestimate the lengths the majority of the population would go to if it meant their safety was guaranteed. That is how most of the current authoritarian regimes got into power. The only ones that have risen to power in other ways are Sistan with it's desire for revenge, and The USA with it's rapid conquest of Northern America and pledge of bringing prosperity" before Roko can say anything, someone leaps in-front of me. In-fact, it is the very person who I was supposed to be seeing; Rionide.
"Bengelon, we have a situation with some of your children" even when there is a gathering in the breakfast hall, my kids are always up to something.
"what kind of trouble have they gotten themselves into now?" Rionide raises a touch pad to me, showing a video of one of the dungeon entrances.
"during an annual adventure into the Dungeon of Exponential Growth, your children were attacked by three god-level boss monsters. We are still gathering the reports, but it is almost certain that they have scattered into the lower levels of the dungeon" that is one of the most dangerous dungeons for a person to be alone in. If my kids have become lost in that dungeon because of an extremely rare incident, I would not be surprised if the dungeon spirit wants to push them to their limits. I do not want to lose any of my children to anything that is preventable.
"then after I speak with Valian briefly, I am going to enter that dungeon and save my kids" Rionide nods and looks over to Roko.
"are you going to join us in this rescue effort?" Roko shakes his head and looks over to the touch pad with a fearful glance, almost stepping back.
"I am only just starting with my adventures in the infinity dungeons. I would only be a burden for the rest of you" Rionide nods to Roko and turns back to me.
"certain tasks are best left to those who are at minimal risk of being killed. We are not going to send a beginner against such powerful beasts from the get go. We are going to gather up some powerful heroes like we always do. So I am going to be moving around with Bengelon and asking some of his stronger children if they want to save their siblings from certain death" putting it that way, I am certain that not a single one of my kids will say no. I would be very mad if one of them denies going into a dangerous dungeon full of powerful monsters to save their siblings, but I would also be very disappointed in their cowardice. Roko waves to us and turns to leave.
"okay then, I will see you later!" Roko picks up speed and zooms into the distance. Rionide waves out to Roko as he leaves our field of view. Rionide turns to me and points back to the way I came from.
"should we get started on looking for some volunteers for this rescue mission?" I shake my head to Rionide and also turn to face the way I came from.
"we have to go and speak with Valian first. He has been through a lot and we thought he died. I need to make sure that he does not face another one of those situations unprepared" Rionide nods and tilts his head from side-to-side, showing his understanding of my position. We begin our walk through the palace to reach Valian and everyone else who is inside the grand dining hall. As we walk through the long stretch of hallway that leads into the grand dining hall, many of my children and friends pass us by. Every single one of them are wearing gear that they have obtained from their adventures in the dungeon. From what I can see, I am hoping that the gear each of us possess will help to turn the tide of this coming war. But even with our infinity dungeons at our disposal, Fronther also has his infinity dungeons which he uses to train up his children too. It is horrible to think about, but Fronther and I are involved in some kind of children-arms race. Both of us are trying to make our children as powerful as possible, while also giving them the best gear we can. I fear that we have both focused on this race as much as the other has. I also fear that equal powers fighting in the biggest war that will ever be seen in the millions of worlds, will just result in mutually ensured destruction. That is why I am hoping that Valian is able to grow his universe-creation powers to the level in which they are immune to the effects of the sphere. Because once the sphere is activated, the surrounding fifty years can no longer be altered or accessed with time travel abilities. The current interference with time travelling in the last century does not bode well either. There is a very high chance that the sphere will activate in some capacity in our world, but I still have hope that we can prevent it from being activated. Rionide turns to me and lowers his eyes.
"are you thinking about the possible state of the world if we are to fail?" in a way I am, but I would not consider thinking about the clash between Fronther and I as something related to the world after we fail.
"I am more so thinking about how prepared my children are in facing off against Fronther's children when the 'final' battle begins. I fear that they will never be ready to face off against those powerful spawn of 'evil'. It is highly likely that Fronther has pushed his children to their limits so that they can grow faster" Rionide sighs and looks back towards some of my children as they pass by.
"the only way we will ever be able to find out if they are ready, is when they fight against Fronther's children on the day" these worlds of ours are cruel ones to be in, for so many lives to be hanging in the balance. I wish that this would never need to happen. If there is a chance that I can face off against both Ismilda and Fronther in single combat, there is a chance that I will be able to bring them both down with me. That will leave a lot of fighting still remaining, but the main threats would be gone.
"when that time comes, I am going to try to end this coming war as soon as it starts. I am going to head straight for Fronther and fight him alone. I do not care if it kills me, I do not want to see a single one of my kids dying in the war. Once both Fronther and Ismilda are dead, the command structure should collapse into itself, bringing an end to the most dangerous part of the war. We should also end up having the many armies of the world on our side too, seeing as though Ismilda is trying to take over the planet" Rionide nods softly in agreement.
"as the person who is managing the deployment of heroes in the field, I will also be there by your side, ready to fight Ismilda and Fronther to the end. We can also expect many of your closest friends to also be present to fight Fronther with you, but they will likely be fighting their rivals and nemesis', who are friends with Fronther. You can see it as well as I can, that this fight is going to be far larger than we could ever fear. In order to even prepare for the bare minimum to survive, we will have to take every possible factor into account, since it will be present" there will never truly be another time when there is a more significant loss of life, nor will there ever be another time when the world is unified against a foe who can't be defeated by modern weaponry. There will also be the issue of the outer orbit and outer space battles which will be happening throughout each universe when the 'final' battle begins. To each world, this will be Armageddon, and they will be right. Depending on who wins, the world may take more than a millennia to recover to what it is at this moment. I doubt that Fronther truly cares about the world that he rules over. He would only care about his own world at this point, after being the god of 'evil' for so long.
"no matter what we do, I fear that we will lose, since Fronther has nothing left in this world to lose"