Chapter 90: Four Voices, One God
Inside the endless star-filled cosmos that was Alien X, four voices existed in tense opposition.
Ben Tennyson, the voice of reason.
Bellicus, the voice of rage.
Serena, the voice of compassion.
And Hugo, the voice of empathy.
Bellicus, the Voice of Rage, was furious, immediately turning to ben.
"You arrogant, selfish child!" the masculine head roared, his voice shaking the stars around them. "After everything we've done for you, you tricked us and used the Nightmare Spell to escape from us like cowards!"
Serena, the Voice of Compassion, looked at Ben with deep disappointment and sadness on her face, tears slowly forming in her vast image.
"We helped you manipulate fate itself, Ben. We trusted you, and this is how you repay us? By abandoning us?"
Ben looked at the two heads with an exhausted expression, then spoke calmly:
"I never wanted to abandon you, but I couldn't stay trapped in here forever. I had people to protect, which you two didn't allow. So, you cannot judge me for choosing my friends and family over you two."
Hugo, still adjusting to existing as the Voice of Empathy within this vast being, did not fully understand what was happening at first. But he slowly began to piece together the full picture...
These two beings were Bellicus and Serena, the second and third personalities within Alien X that had to agree for the collective being to function. That was what Gwen had told him before he entered the second nightmare.
In the real world, Dagon had descended upon the Beast Realm, and Ben had used Alien X to kill him but not before his world and a vast majority of his people were doomed...
Luckily, it was not all lost as ben had used alien x to create an artificial realm, the fake primus saving his people from being consumed by the dream realm and dagon's corruption.
But there was a new problem awaiting the young hero after he did this insane feat...
Ben could not detransform back into a human due to the consequences of jumping multiple ranks at once. His soul would have crumbled if he became an Awakened again, which led him to create this audacious plan by manipulating fate itself — a scheme that had resulted in all of this mess.
However, Hugo now noticed an important detail that might have been the main reason Ben tried to take over his existence.
That detail was the fact that Ben couldn't remain transformed and maintain full control over Alien X. If he had that control, he could have protected his people indefinitely and ensured their survival even against the Fallen Gods of the Dream Realm, becoming humanity's divine guardian and ushering in a new golden age.
Nevertheless, Ben did not have that opportunity — or, to be precise, Bellicus and Serena had not granted him full control over Alien X. That seemed to be why Ben had decided to escape.
Ben exhaled in the empty space and looked at the two other personalities of Alien X.
"Dagon is here, fully recreated by the Nightmare Spell — an Unholy Terror. You two, of all beings, should understand how dangerous such a creature is. If we don't stop him right now, he could escape this nightmare and enter the real world nd if that happens, he will devour everything."
Ben pointed at Hugo with a serious expression.
"Billions of lives will be lost — both my people and his. We cannot let that happen."
Bellicus groaned, unconvinced.
"And why should we care? We are part of a Divine Titan. A single Unholy abomination cannot touch us, no matter how powerful it is. Motion denied!"
Serena stayed quiet, but her expression was conflicted.
Ben pressed on, trying to convince at least one of them.
"Because those billions of lives matter! We're talking about Innocent people here! children, elderly, entire families ! People who never asked for any of this will die and be consumed by this abomination, not even granted the mercy of death."
He looked directly at Serena with desperation in his eyes.
"If we do nothing, everything will be consumed. Please, just allow us access to Alien X for enough time to kill that thing, and we will gladly stay here and debate with you two for all of eternity."
Hugo suddenly jerked his head toward Ben, a look of surprise on his face.
"We? Who's we? I'm not spending the rest of eternity debating with two unstable—"
Ben shot him a horrified glance, begging him to shut up.
"Ah," Hugo quickly closed his mouth with his hands. "...Yeah, what he said."
Staying here for eternity would be hell… But perhaps they could manipulate a third figure and try to take over him? Wouldn't that be funny…
'What the hell am I thinking about?' Hugo asked himself in confusion.
His mind was not entirely there yet. He had endured going mad and getting corrupted, and then instantly became a god. While his current consciousness was not that of a god, he did feel like one. Perhaps that was why he was taking this entire situation lightly — because he knew Dagon could not possibly harm him.
"That is barely convincing," Bellicus said with a cold expression. "Why should I care about mortals? The flames of desire will eventually create more creatures — perhaps even new gods. Or who knows, perhaps the Eternal Void will be unleashed once again, resetting the world. Either way, we will survive."
Ben's expression turned even grimmer as he heard the two words he had come to despise more than anything else:
"Motion denied."
A long silence stretched between the four personalities.
Ben gave a compelling argument, fitting of the one known as the Voice of Reason. However, Hugo understood why Bellicus and Serena were dissatisfied with Ben. After all, remaining in this void alone with only themselves was bound to be hellishly boring, and from their point of view, they simply did not care about other creatures, wether mortal or Divine.
Perhaps that was why he was the Voice of Empathy.
But empathy was a dangerous thing… If used right, it could sway others easily.
And so, Hugo decided to use that to his advantage, channeling the biggest gaslighter he knew of — Sunny and Nephis— to wield his empathy as a weapon.
"Can't we come to a solution?" Hugo finally spoke, causing the three personalities to turn to him.
"What do you mean?" Bellicus asked, sounding somewhat less angry now.
Serena and Ben were also listening closely.
"You three sure do have a lot of baggage to unpack, and from what I've seen, all three of you are at fault," Hugo said.
He pointed a finger toward Bellicus and Serena. "Firstly, you two kept Ben Tennyson here without his permission and denied him access to Alien X, causing him to become a living statue who slowly watched the last remnants of his civilization wither away. Is that correct?"
Serena hesitated a little, before nodding her head and speaking in a gentle voice :
"But you must understand, we did it because of our loneliness and most importantly, young Ben is not yet ready to become a full-blown god."
Bellicus, on the other hand, spoke with a much more aggressive voice.
"Of course we did! Do you have any idea how boring it is to stay here, doing nothing but talk to each other? Having a third conversation partner was a blessing, and we denied this brat usage of Alien X because of one important thing. If he used the full power of a Celestialsapien in the Dream Realm, then all the profane deities would wake up and come for us. Do you have any idea how dangerous that is for our existence, especially if the [unknown] awakened?"
Hugo nodded "I understand. But surely, you could've used Alien X's powers to create a second soul or body for Ben, or better yet, allow him to detransform without his soul shattering. But you didn't, did you?"
This time both voices remained silent, admitting their fault.
Hugo suppressed a smile
'Got you.'
Hugo then turned his attention to Ben.
"And you. You tricked the two people who allowed you to save your people and abandoned them to gain a new body. Clearly showing that you are an ungrateful little shit."
Ben wanted to retort at the blatant insult, but he chose to remain silent after noticing that Bellicus and Serena were slowly being convinced.
"So, now that you are all in a nightmare and reunited together, why don't we all agree to kill that bastard first? Then, after that, we could use the power of Alien X to make it possible for Ben to communicate with you without transforming into Alien X, making it so that you're never bored or lonely again. Doesn't that sound good?"
Serena was the first to yield, a happy expression blooming on her face.
"That sounds marvelous! Motion carried!"
Bellicus grumbled for a long time before finally relenting with an irritated sigh.
"Fine, but under one condition."
Hugo raised an eyebrow.
"And that is?"
"You must be included in that communication. You are certainly much more pleasing to speak with, Voice of Empathy."
Hugo nearly blushed from the compliment, but he nodded.
"Thank you for the compliment. And sure, I don't mind extra voices in my head! I already have multiple of them inside, so two more won't be a problem at all !"
The three personalities looked at him with dubious expressions, but they said nothing.
Well, except for Bellicus and Serena, who suddenly started glowing with a pinkish light.
"Motion to grant Ben Tennyson and Hugo full access to Alien X — motion carried."
"Motion carried."
The two voices repeated.
Then Hugo looked at Ben, who simply nodded with a calm expression, knowing what they needed to do.
"Motion carried."
And lastly, it was Hugo who spoke.
"Motion carried."
The air around the world suddenly changed as Alien X's full consciousness awakened, with all four personalities having come to an agreement.
—————
[Elsewhere — The Surface of the Moon]
Max Tennyson had become something far greater than a mere Supreme.
He had fully become Ketzelkan, or to be precise, Condemnation. A Sacred being of inconceivable size, standing several kilometers tall. His body was a nightmarish amalgamation of stone, soil, shattered bones, crumbling buildings, trees, vines, shadows, wind, and mist — all held together by an invisible, malevolent force. He resembled a malevolent spirit that had somehow possessed an entire ruined city and fashioned a body from its remains.
Even from a distance, merely witnessing Condemnation was maddening.
Condemnation clashed against Dagon, unleashing the full cataclysmic power of his Sacred Will.
The battle could only be described as apocalyptic.
Every strike between the Sacred and the Unholy Terror sent catastrophic shockwaves across the world, shaking the Moon and sending it flying through space with each impact. On Earth, tsunamis rose from the depths of the oceans, engulfing human cities. Volcanoes erupted, filling the skies with lava and ash. Vortexes tore across the land, and earthquakes delivered the final blows, burying entire regions.
All of this was caused by the clash of the two gods.
Condemnation fought with the fury of a newly born Sacred, assimilating and consuming everything around him — space dust, volcanoes on Earth, and even parts of Dagon's existence — to fuel his attacks.... And yet he was losing.
Dagon was merely toying with him, not using his full power.
The Unholy Terror's profane Will was on a completely different level from condemnation's, being vaster, more powerful and infinitely more potent. Every attack from Dagon carried overwhelming corruption, changing the laws of this realm to the point that concepts such as life, death, time, and space all became meaningless, shifting and changing at Dagon's every whim. Every glance eroded Condemnation's mind and body, slowly turning the sacred god's authority against him.
The difference between Sacred and Unholy was vast, like comparing a bonfire to an endless abyss.
Dagon's voice resounded through the world:
"Is this all a Sacred can offer? How disappointing."
Then, one of Dagon's tendrils expanded through the world at an unimaginable speed, exceeding the speed of light in mere moments. The tendril reached deep into space and grabbed on into something.
In the distance, one of the stars suddenly seemed to get closer and closer, as if being sucked towards this solar system by a black hole...
Condemnation's eyes widened as he realized what the mad god was doing.
He was pulling a star closer… using it as a sledgehammer.
Condemnation tried to use his Sacred Will to protect himself, but it was too late.
The star smashed directly into him, exploding into an inconceivable supernova.
The blast destroyed everything around it — the Earth, the Moon, and the Sun. The entire solar system was suddenly bathed in eternal white light, annihilating everything and everyone in its path....
And just like that, condemnation was gone.