Beyond the Limit (DC)

Chapter 260: 260

Damn. Zeus was the real deal.

The attack had struck him faster than he could dodge—even with the Speed Force. Faster than his Nova Sense could detect.

His suit, made of some of the strongest materials in the universe and reinforced with anti-magical metal, had melted in several places, though it was already regenerating.

It wasn't just powerful—Zeus had absolute control over it. Hermes, lying legless at Joseph's feet, remained completely unharmed.

And yet, Joseph had absorbed most of the lightning. He didn't know whether it was his upgraded physiology, the Nova Force, or his Amazon ancestry, but he had managed to take in a portion of Zeus's power.

//It is because of the Father Box technology integrated into your upgraded physiology. You are able to absorb divinity,// Nova intoned helpfully.

Neat.

The result was… electrifying.

Is this what Captain Marvel feels every time he yells "Shazam"? Sensational.

But such raw, unfamiliar power was dangerous. Joseph redirected the potent lightning magic into the Soulsword in his grip. The blade shifted—from a simple iron broadsword etched with faint patterns and a soft blue glow into a massive greatsword radiating brilliant blue light.

It almost resembled his defunct Alien Excalibur now.

Then Joseph turned his attention to Zeus, who was staring him down.

The King of the Gods possessed a physique that looked carved from living marble. His massive frame—easily over eight feet tall—was draped in a simple white chiton, with gold armor plating around his waist and forearms, and leather sandals on his feet.

On his head sat a golden crown, while thick silver-white hair and beard framed a face of weathered authority. His solid white eyes hummed with the quiet, terrifying energy of a brewing storm.

He stood behind Hermes' body, holding a massive golden spear with a broad, curved blade at the top and a sharp point at the base. The weapon emitted a blue, glowing aura, signaling its divine power.

But Joseph wasn't scared.

The Old Gods weren't actually all that.

Joseph realized he didn't even need Nth metal anymore. His Soulsword and his Nova Force were enough to slay divinity. And there was little the gods could do to truly hurt him.

Hermes' caduceus, which could bypass dimensions, had been tricky—but even that had been forced to stop once it entered his body.

Hermes was the quickest among them, and Joseph had still managed to keep up.

If not for the spectators—and the nearby countries—Joseph could have simply released a nuclear-level burst of Nova Force and ended the fight instantly.

Against Zeus, who was known for his lightning—which Joseph could absorb—and raw might—which Joseph was confident he could match using the Strength Force—the gods were on his level.

No…

He was above them, because he didn't need faith or worshippers to grow stronger.

"Is this how the so-called righteous Olympus operates?" Joseph asked. "Interfering in a divine duel not once, but twice?"

Zeus' gaze had shifted from the boredom he'd shown through the portal to something closer to wariness.

"This divine challenge is over," Zeus said. "We will permit the Bana-Mighdalls to move to Themyscira and continue worshipping their gods—"

"Husband—" Hera tried to interject, but Zeus silenced her with a stern look. At that, Hera flared in anger and disappeared in flames, along with the wall of fire surrounding the arena, which now looked like it had been bombed for days.

"I know you've long since stopped caring about the plight of man, but this is ridiculous," Joseph said. "You want me to spare Hermes after he attempted to genocide my people and potentially open the floodgates of war in the Middle East by mobilizing nearby militaries?"

"When is this region not at war?" Zeus replied. "Is that enough reason to make enemies of Olympus?"

Joseph stared at Zeus before falling into thought.

Zeus clearly didn't care about the lives that would have been lost. Earlier, this had all been a charade to him. The only reason he intervened was to save his son, who was now unconscious.

But Joseph couldn't claim the moral high ground. For something as small as disrespect, he'd been fully prepared to abandon his mother's people to their fate.

His ego and pride had grown too large.

But could he really be blamed, after everything he'd done?

Not even a month ago, he'd stopped a powerful demon who had conquered multiple universes from taking Earth.

He'd saved the planet more times than most, avenged his mother, taken control of powerful organizations and secret societies, and—with LuthorCorp—was genuinely improving the world.

All within his first year of having powers.

He knew what he was capable of.

And he had just defeated a god.

But he couldn't let that ego blind him.

Wonder Woman and her mother had defied their own gods to protect the Amazons of Bana-Mighdall—flawed and brutal as they were.

While he often thought the Justice League could be naive, their ideal of saving everyone was undeniably noble.

The belief that even sinners deserved a chance at redemption was almost Christlike. And since Joseph knew Big G was real—having interacted with Judas Iscariot, the Phantom Stranger—it mattered that people like them remained symbols for the world.

He, on the other hand, would handle what they wouldn't.

But murder and mind control couldn't always be the answer. He didn't want to become just another story of a god drunk on power, doing whatever he pleased—like the stories told of the two standing before him.

He remembered Wonder Woman's words after he fought Grail:

Don't kill if you can wound. Don't wound if you can subdue. Don't subdue if you can pacify. And don't raise your hand at all until you've first extended it.

Maybe it was time he started extending his hand more often.

"Fine. I'll spare him," Joseph said. "I'll even patch him up—for you. I'd rather be on good terms with Olympus, now that Earth is under my rule."

Zeus raised an eyebrow. "Under your rule, is it?"

Joseph pulled Hermes' severed legs toward him with telekinesis and reattached them to the unconscious god's body. Though both ends were cauterized, Hermes was a god—human biology didn't apply.

Joseph flooded the limbs with golden healing energy, and they gradually reconnected.

"All you old gods have stepped back," Joseph said. "Someone has to guide humanity—and protect it from Armageddon, beings like Trigon the Terrible, and itself."

"I see," Zeus replied, watching as Hermes' severe burns faded and his body restored itself. Once Joseph was finished, Zeus slung Hermes over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

"And his caduceus?" Zeus asked.

"It's my compensation. You and Hera did attack me," Joseph said, extending a hand. "To our friendship."

Zeus snorted faintly in mild amusement and clasped Joseph's hand.

From that brief contact, Joseph understood one thing: Zeus was way beyond Hermes.

Like the difference between a falcon and a grizzly bear.

Zeus wasn't on Trigon's level—but even with the Strength Force, Joseph wasn't sure he could face Zeus at full power without destroying Earth… and possibly the entire solar system.

"And don't worry about Hera finding out about your daughter," Joseph said.

The old god gave a curt nod, then vanished in a flash of lightning, neither confirming nor denying Joseph's words.

Joseph snorted in amusement.

He looked over the battlefield—a saturated crater field where the once-flat terrain had been reduced to overlapping pits and pulverized stone.

Hera might have been insufferable, but at least she had contained the battle within her barrier.

Both tribes of Amazons approached from opposite sides.

As Joseph raised his Soulsword, the crowd erupted into cheers.

**

| Mount Olympus - November 24

The vast, tiered spires of Mount Olympus rose like jagged teeth from a sea of eternal clouds, their white stone facades weathered by eons of divine storms.

Interconnected by high, sweeping stone arches and precarious bridges spanning the thin mountain air, the complex formed a labyrinth of fluted columns and domed halls carved directly into the living rock.

Mount Olympus was the home of the Olympian gods, located in the greater dimension of the divine realm known as Skyland.

Skyland, also called Hightower, existed within the metaphysical reality known as the Sphere of the Gods.

It was home to all the gods and pantheons worshipped by the ancient cultures of Earth—including, but not limited to, the Olympians, the Roman gods, the Celtic deities, the Divine Bureaucracies of China, the gods of Mexico, and the gods of Oceania. Each pantheon occupied its own region within Skyland.

Beyond Skyland, still within the Sphere of the Gods, existed other metaphysical planes such as the Realm of Order, the Dreaming, Heaven, the Spirit World, and the Graveyard of the Gods—a kind of hell for lesser or forgotten deities who had perished or faded from losing their worshippers.

Like all realms within the Sphere, Skyland had a companion realm that served as its opposite—much like Hell opposed Heaven, or the Realm of Chaos opposed the Realm of Order. For Skyland, that counterpart was the Underworld.

The Underworld encompassed all lands of the dead and prison dimensions conceived by ancient Earth cultures, as well as Krypton's Phantom Zone. It included the Duat, the realm of Hades, and Jahannam.

As the most powerful god of Olympus, Zeus possessed the cosmic awareness to understand such truths accumulated over eons. This knowledge granted him a perspective on existence far beyond that of mortals.

It was also why he had chosen to withdraw himself—and his pantheon—from mortal affairs.

At the summit lay the open-air throne room, where a massive stone pedestal supported a throne of cold, unyielding rock. Beside it, a constant waterfall cascaded into a deep basin, its rhythmic roar echoing through the hall.

Zeus sat there, enduring the familiar sound of his wife's complaints.

"Did you hear how that arrogant New God spoke to me?" Hera said, incensed. "Did you hear what he said? How can we allow Earth to fall under the rule of a boy who dares to think himself a god?"

Zeus remained silent for a moment before replying calmly.

"I know when you are being conspiratorial, my wife. What is your endgame?"

Caught out, Hera dropped the pretense.

"Only that the gods of Olympus reclaim their rightful standing among mortals. We could have used the Bana-Mighdalls as an excuse—flimsy as it may be—to begin interfering with Earth again."

"This is a fool's errand," Zeus said. "You know nothing good comes from entangling ourselves in the absurdities of man. You have been manipulated, my wife. War is the only outcome here."

Zeus paused as one of his children teleported into the chamber.

"Surely the goddess of women and marriage does not profit from war," the newcomer said.

Hera turned sharply, her eyes flaring with golden fire.

"Athena, you dare speak to me that way?!"

Athena wore a simple sleeveless white chiton, cinched at the waist with a rope cord. Her short, curly hair was partially covered by a golden Corinthian helmet adorned with a tall blue plume. Thick gold bands circled her neck and wrists.

She clearly disapproved of Hera's attempt to destroy the descendants of the Amazons she had helped create.

"No, wife," Zeus said, his voice firm. "Tell me plainly—what role has Ares played in this?"

Eons ago, Ares had descended into madness, his role as the God of War warping his mind over time. The Olympians had agreed to imprison him before he could cause further destruction.

Hephaestus forged unbreakable shackles to bind Ares' power, and Aphrodite was tasked with placing them upon him. Unexpectedly, Ares had submitted without resistance.

He was imprisoned within a hidden pocket dimension on Themyscira, accessible only through a sacred tree. The Amazons were given the eternal duty of guarding his prison, ensuring he could never unleash his wrath upon the universe again.

"Whatever do you mean, husband?" Hera replied coldly. "Ares remains bound in chains."

She had been the only one to oppose his imprisonment.

Zeus held her gaze, waiting for her to reveal more—but she did not.

It seemed the passage of eons had not changed her as it had him.

"Regardless," Athena interjected, ever pragmatic, "with the Amazons of Bana-Mighdall joining, we will have more guards to watch over Ares. We may also guide them toward accepting us again. This could even improve relations between pantheons."

"Yes… that is acceptable," Zeus said, finally breaking eye contact with Hera, who turned away as well.

"But heed this," he added. "Do not meddle recklessly with Earth. The New God possesses power rivaling the Titans of old. A direct conflict could destroy the very realm you seek to reclaim."