章節 5: The Adorable Dori

Time stood still.

Diana Keene opened her icy ocean-blue eyes. Coughing once, she tried to sit up only to find she lacked the strength. Her muscles ached and every breath invoked new waves of pain. Crying out of despair and pain, she lay sprawled on the snow-covered road. She continued to weep, writhing from the bruises and broken bones that sent jolts of pain throughout her body. Wails of anguish, anger and injustice resonated within her throat - threatening to snap Diana's already worn vocal cords.

"Are you finished crying?" asked the muffled voice of a little girl.

Diana opened her wet eyes and fell silent at the sight she beheld.

She was laying in the middle of a street in Edinburgh but the usually bustling city was lifeless. Once-magnificent manors had fallen into a state of ruin - held together by a patchwork tapestry of rusting steel fortifications. Corpses of soon-to-be Undead lay among shattered glass and jagged pieces of metal. Stripped chassis of cars laid strewn about like skeletal creatures from an era gone. The smell of ash and gunpowder filled the air; clouds of ominous black smoke blocking out the sky. A symphony of gunshots and screams echoed throughout the broken city streets, almost drowning out the roaring flames of the inferno that engulfed the city.

Standing among the wreckage and ruins watched a little girl in a yellow dress. She wore a leather gas mask and stood atop of the skeletal remains of a car. Her mask was old - from the second world war and made from leather worn from use. Golden eyes blazed behind the mask with the power of a billion suns. Bright yellow balloon in hand, the little girl jumped down from the car and skipped merrily over to Diana with her red boots.

"Hiya!" squealed the girl while waving at Diana with her free hand in a giggly tone.

"H-Hey," croaked Diana, sobs silenced but eyes still watery. With one raw hand she wiped away the tears. [Where am I?] she asked herself while finding the strength to finally sit up, [and who is this little girl?]

"Well, we're in Edinburgh… in the future! Or well, a possible future! There's so many, an almost infinite number! Isn't that so cool?" answered the little girl, smiling behind her mask, "And I'm the adorable Dori - the God of Choices, Foresight and Prophecy!"

Diana laughed maniacally. [I must be dying,] she thought, [because I am going insane].

Dori's fists clenched tightly and Diana was suddenly thrusted towards the little God. Suddenly she came to an abrupt stop - hovering centimetres above the ground and mere inches away from Dori.

"I. Am. Real. I. Am. Here." began the little god through gritted teeth, "To give you a tiny piece of my power so you can have a chance at surviving! You think you can survive the apocalypse without help? You can't even walk! I could end your existence with a thought! I should end y- "

"You're the God of Choices, Foresight and Prophecy. Like, uh, Janus from Greek Mythology." interrupted Diana, shying away from Dori's outstretched hand that contained a shimmering bolt of crimson energy.

Dori fell silent.

Slowly Diana was placed into the ground into a sitting position - gently supported by an unseen force that somehow felt soft, like a pillow.

"You… you know of me..?" asked the little god in a small voice.

"Uh, yeah I do. You're also the God of passageways, doorways, beginnings and ends. They're all sorta covered under Choices, Foresight and Prophecy though." answered Diana. Sweat had gathered along her brow and her voice shook as she spoke. [This little girl, this god, could literally kill me], she worried, [holy fuck].

Janu Dori squealed with delight, dancing around in a little circle before standing still again.

"That's me! Though I've changed my form a little since then, it was kinda weird having two faces. But it's so fantastic to be recognised! Nobody cares about the smaller gods, everyone knows Zeus and All Father and Shiva and the other high tier gods. Anyway it's so good to be recognised!" said Janu Dori with genuine happiness in her voice, "Since you know me, I'll let you call me Dori!"

Diana smiled awkwardly, most due to nerves, and replied "Well, uh, nice to meet you Dori"

"Nice to meet you too Diana Keene. Keep this up and I might even make you my avatar." returned Dori with a cheery smile behind her mask.

"What's an avatar?" queried Diana, tilting her head to one side. Only now did she realise her pain had subsided and wounds had been healed, alleviated by the childlike God before her.

"Don't worry 'bout it, 'kay?" reassured Dori in response "Anyway, to start I can't offer you any of my stronger or more useful abilities. You don't have the mana, the mental energy, to use them anyway. So to start I'll give you my ability called Master Key. It's not very strong but can be very useful and if used creatively, very annoying. Basically, if you can see a lock or locking mechanism you can lock and unlock it at will without a key or even touching it! As long as you can see it, you can lock or unlock it! I know it is not super powerful but later on you'll be able to literally see briefly into the future - and that's not even my strongest ability! Your powers and mana are kinda like a muscle, you gotta work them up to heavier weights or more powerful abilities."

Diana paused for a moment to think. [If I had the Master Key ability I could be useful], she thought [I can't survive on my own but if I was useful to someone they would help me. I'll probably die before I get another offer like this.]

"Okay! So you accept! You're almost useful now, Good job!" replied Dori, literally reading Diana's mind, "Just kidding, I believe in you. You're tougher than you think. Also there's a man nearby that will help you - for nothing in return. You can trust him, you should trust him, although I can't tell you why. Stick with him and you'll survive Diana!"

"Wha-" began Diana however she never managed to finish as her vision faded to black and sleep enveloped her.

***

Meanwhile…

***

Nathaniel gazed down at Diana's unconscious body. In the last apocalypse she had been known as the Prophet. She had become his most trusted ally only to betray him a decade later. After her betrayal she and her fanatic followers managed to re-arm a nuclear missile - reducing Paris to a radioactive crater. She had killed over a million people in the name of a greater good conveniently only visible to her in her visions. The power of prophecy had corrupted her, turning her into a reckless and impulsive warlord. Past Diana was capable of defeating any opponent simply because she could see their future moves in real time. It was an unfair advantage, even if her visions could seldom see beyond a few seconds and were only correct at the moment she experienced them - the future was not set in stone. It was an unfair advantage. Eventually she was able to even 'undo' damage done to her allowing her to heal near-instantaneously and making her incredibly hard to kill. Only Nathaniel had been able to finally put her down.

[But will it happen again?] thought Nathaniel, [things are different from last time; the explosion, Minvera making a deal with me and Diana seems to be paralysed from waist down].

Nathaniel sighed. Time travel, especially when you get to relive your life, is a mindfuck. Would Diana even betray him? Would she even make a deal with Janu the God of Choices, Foresights and Prophecy? Nathaniel decided to help her, but to remain vigilant. After all: once bitten, twice shy. Yet this Diana was different from the past. Her frame was not nearly as athletic and lacked the famous barbed wire tattoos around her neck and wrists.

While throwing Diana's body over his shoulder into a fireman's carry, he noticed that her blue dyed hair was also different. It was short at the back while long and thin at the front and sides. [Interesting, another minor difference], he thought, [things are definitely different from last time]. Nathaniel grabbed Diana's wheelchair with his spare hand and lugged them both up into his hotel room. He then laid her on the bed before taking a seat in the wooden chair in the corner of the room. Normally Nathaniel would have treated her wounds, even a small cut could get infected and kill you in the apocalypse. [Must be a god visiting her], he thought.

While Diana rested, Nathaniel began packing backpacks salvaged from the hotel foyer for travel. If he was going to find the Nine, he would have to leave for London by tomorrow. Then he would have to leave Great Britain and somehow trek across the globe.