Outside San Fransico, California, there was another base, yet this one looked more typical of a secret hideout. It was within a swampy region that appeared not long after the World Awakening.
The geography of earth had gone through various changes, but the most prominent one was the different ecosystems that emerged. Mana had given the world plenty of possibilities for evolution, and it seemed earth wanted to become closer to nature.
Within that swampy region stood a massive dome-like structure. It seemed impractical as a location to hold a large number of people, but that wasn’t its purpose. It served to be as inconspicuous as possible.
The reason the dome lacked volume was that this particular headquarters drilled deep into the ground, becoming a bunker of sorts.
And inside this bunker, there were countless villains. Those who had taken this path were all of various shapes and sizes. They used different methods for power, most of them opting for quick bursts even if they had negative effects in the long term.
Some of them didn’t even look human anymore, with protrusions exiting their bodies in various places or skin features that made them look like aliens.
And the ones who caused these transformations were the 3 men that sat in an isolated conference room within the bunker.
The men looked like regular humans at a glance, but this wouldn’t be able to fool the stronger beings on earth. The grotesque features they hid behind those masks were clear to see.
“Isaiah, how is progress with those humans?” One of them said.
“Good, the peasants from this race are much less civilized than those from the Cloud Plane. They fall into our temptations easily, so it wasn’t a hassle at all.”
The first man nodded. “Good, it’s almost time we continue with our main goal. How is progress on that, Weiss?”
The third man in the room began talking.
“The core extraction process will take more time than initially expected. It seems to have made a connection with another being or object, making it difficult to bring it under us. Haldir, unless we find the source of the connection, we will not be able to proceed as planned.”
Haldir nodded casually. They weren’t pressed on time at all, so he didn’t mind a small hindrance. “How is the response of those on Asgard?”
“The copy here on earth is barely a hindrance. They seem keener on keeping the social balance that stopping us, kekeke.” Said Weiss.
“But the true Asgard is increasing the amount of pressure they try to put on us. Their origin planet is moving closer, almost as if they are using it as a vessel for war.
“Niflheim doesn’t currently have the forces nor the strength to compete with them, especially since we’ve been putting our minds to conquering that cloud plane.
“The great benefactors also haven’t spoken in many years. They only said to prepare and conquer as many worlds as we could before they were ready to move.”
Isaiah had a thought that he decided to voice out. “If the great benefactors wanted us to conquer planets, why are we moving to destroy this one?”
“Hmph!” Haldr snorted in disdain. “What could this tiny planet ever hope to provide the great benefactors? We will use the core energy of this planet to enhance our own, while we conquer the middle worlds.
“First we must conquer the Cloud Plane and Asgard, and then we will continue to even the fabled higher worlds with our grand conquest!”
All three possessed fervent looks in their eyes at the mention of this. They had only heard stories about higher worlds, but the thought of putting them under their feet was intoxicating.
“I heard there’s a new variable that popped up recently,” mentioned Haldr as he changed the topic.
“Indeed, something about a boy and a massive beast that arrived on the planet recently. Still, I have heard that he’s weak. He will not hinder our plans, so we can simply ignore him.” Responded Isaiah.
The other two nodded. Their world had advanced more technologically than Apeiron or the Cloud Plane. When they arrived on earth and saw the limited technology and application, they felt repulsed. They even refused to touch these devices lest they stain their hands with filth.
These 3 men were much different than those that came from the Cloud Plane. Their designs for the world were also much more ruthless. Still, it was a plan that they had properly concealed, making those heroes from Asgard disregard their strength.
While the various organizations of the world opting to take their time and wait patiently, life on earth continued with a semblance of peace.
It was the same with Damien. After the month passed, he still continued his daily life lazing around, but every once in a while he’d get bored with the monotonous routine.
It was truly a great change of pace to do nothing, but after working consistently for 4 years without stopping, he missed the feeling of being pushed and pressured by circumstance. He wanted a new goal.
Yet, earth was still too weak to provide him that. Sure, he could go into the gates that opened and slaughter every beast within them, but there was no fun in that anymore. He got tired of dungeons after spending 2 years of his life trapped inside one.
To appease his boredom, sometimes he’d ask Rose to disguise him with her illusions and he’d go fight crime like a wannabe superhero. But even this was losing its spark. It all simmered down to the world being too weak.
Damien thought back to the old man he met when he first arrived back on earth. ‘That old man was a 3rd class, but whatever world he was sent from was able to send him to a beginner world like earth without qualms.’
Damien knew what this meant. 3rd classes must be in abundance in that world. After exiting the temple, Damien had realized that in the grand scheme of things, Apeiron was weak as well. It wasn’t their fault, rather they had hit a roadblock after the Nox invasion finally ended.
Many families that carried talent were wiped out, and plenty of the demigods who died weren’t able to have progeny. While the common populace could birth talents as well, the peace the world had settled into had blinded them.
There weren’t many who felt the drive to improve and stand above everything. Hell, even the geniuses that participated in the Nexus Event didn’t feel that drive. Damien sensed this clearly, and it was the reason none of them were able to achieve much within the secret realm.
Only he, Rose, Ethan, and Matthew had this drive. They all manifested it differently, but all of them desired to stand above the heavens and look down on all creation.
Damien sighed. ‘Maybe I should pay a visit to that old fogey and his friends to see what they’re up to. If they’re enemies, that’s great, but if they’re friends, I’ll have to see what this whole Niflheim nonsense is about.’
Stretching his body, Damien stood up from the bed. “Alright, you girls stay here for a bit while I go meet some new friends.”
Although confused, the girls agreed. It wasn’t like they had to accompany Damien everywhere, and he was staying within LA anyway.
Being too clingy was something even they found annoying. Just imagining Damien following them everywhere with puppy eyes made them shudder.
Well, except for Elena. She had to suppress the sadistic side of her that would absolutely enjoy that.
Damien said a quick goodbye to his mother before leaving the house. His destination was obvious, since the massive Asgard skyscraper was clear to see no matter where in the city you were.
‘Hmm, let’s just walk today. I haven’t taken the time to admire the sights.’
Elena had already done a deeper overview of what had changed on earth while she was explaining things to his mother, but he still hadn’t seen it for himself, nor did he have the chance to appreciate it.
He was faster than flying cars and could fly on his own, so there was no point in that. Also, he had graduated from materialistic vanity long ago. Not to mention he didn’t have any money that would be accepted on earth.
Damien walked through the streets of LA calmly. The wind blew in his face and caused his hair to flutter, painting a beautiful picture for the passerbys.
With earth being less developed, Damien’s handsomeness ended up standing out more once he arrived. The people in this world weren’t used to seeing people who reached his level, and the other 3rd classes were old men. They were appreciated more for their scholarly aura than their looks.
His walk was truly like a novel scene. Heads turned at every intersection and women swooned with hearts in their eyes. Even some men couldn’t help but fall for him. The others simply cast him hateful and envious gazes, as even they couldn’t help but admit Damien’s attractiveness.
And Damien thoroughly enjoyed this. It was a rare occasion that he could simply come out like this and bask in glory. He was usually stopping himself from doing so in order to remain humble.
As he thought about these things, Damien arrived at his destination. Sighing lightly at the fact that his ego trip had to end, he walked into the building.
It was time to differentiate allies from enemies.