<h4>Chapter 267 Impressed.</h4>


    [Everyone. The time has arrived. We will be charging the enemy stronghold in a matter of minutes, and we have two goals to achieve.]


    Just as the ship was about to enter the spatial distortion, Mimir''s voice came through the speakers spread throughout the craft as she made the announcement. The Nephilim had already been informed of the change of ns which gave them enough time to prepare. Each one had donned her armor and summoned her,?ready to fl out at any moment.


    [Out first goal is to free our brethren from the enemy''s mind control. Do not hesitate to incapacitate them if the need arises.] Though they didn''t like the idea of fighting their own, the Nephilim were left with no choice. If breaking the mind control turns out to be tooplicated, they were instructed to disarm the brainwashed girls and injure them enough for their bodies to shut down. Unlike humans, Freyja''s Children didn''t bleed to death. Even if they were to lose all four limbs, as long as they''re able to withstand the shock they would be able to go back to normal after a few days.


    [The second goal is to suppress the invaders and capture their leaders. In order to ensure we have the upper hand in future wars, we need to learn more about the enemy. Those key figures hold a great value to us and our allies so it''s necessary that we don''t allow them to escape.]


    The appearance of the key figures was already known to everyone participating in the battle thanks to Nino''s ability. That said, even if they didn''t have their description, thebatants wouldn''t have much of a difficulty recognizing them as they are the most troublesome opponents they would have to deal with and thus stood out like a sour thumb.


    [This battle will be the first of many. Unlike the one waged by Queen H, our fates and futures are on the line. Let us show those ignorant fools who they chose to mess with. Let us take back out home and teach them that we are a force to be reckoned with, each one of us!]


    There were no cheers and no battle cries. Everyone simply focused and prepared their minds, the halos over their heads spinning faster as a signs of their readiness.


    Sam was in the bridge surrounded by his Valkyries. Each one of them had her role to y so they were readying themselves to depart.


    "Are you sure about this, Nino?" Sam asked, looking a bit worried.


    "Well, if I''m not the one to do it then who would?" The Japanese doll replied, shrugging with a wry smile on her face. "She is my sister so I have to be the one to face her."


    "But fighting her alone…"


    Atropos was a strong fighter and a formidable enemy. After seeing what she did during her fight against B3 and the others Sam was hesitant to let his fiance face her alone.


    "I''m happy that you''re worried about me, but please rest assured." Nino said. "I''ll end things quickly with her so we can have our wedding as soon as possible."


    Sam could only smile back at her, feeling the confidence in her voice. When she pulled on his sleeve he leaned down and kissed her on the lips. A momentter she teleported away, hoping to get some time with herself before the big confrontation.


    "Alright, then." Sam said, turning to the others. "This is your chance. Anyone else wants a kiss before the battle starts?"


    He looked at the Valkyries one by one, all of their cheeks flushed as they struggled to decide what to do. He expected Zero Three to ask him for a kiss, but since she was going to stay by his side she decided not to. The others felt that it would destract them so they put it off as well. The only one to step forward was Zero Five. She was selected to y an important in the uing battle so she wanted him to kiss her as some sort of wishing her good luck.


    "Doctor." Five said, a determined look on her face. "I love you."


    For the first time in a while Sam felt a quite embarrassed. The sincerity of her words broke through his defenses and hit him right in the chest, and with so many eyes war hing them he felt his face hearing up with each passing second.


    "I love you too." He said, kissing her again to hide his embarrassment.


    Five volunteered to handle Thor, the current Nephilim queen. Sitta and Trenta would be her support, but even with those three Mimir wasn''t sure they would be able to do much against the crimson haired queen.


    Despite her warnings, Five insisted that she would be the one to do it. Sam was worried as the ponytailed Valkyrie was used to overexerting herself, but in the end he decided to put his trust in her.


    Five teleported away as well, leaving only four Valkyries around Sam.


    CS and Juni were already gone, having joined the ranks of the Nephilim who would handle disrupting the Ritual. Their gigantic creations were well suited for wide area destruction so fighting outside was left to them.


    Zero Three, Venti, Triska and Ichigo were going to apany Sam and infiltrate the pce. Their role was to activate the portal to their world and call for reinforcements.


    The countdown began and the ship entered the spatial distortion. The world seemed to blur for a moment as colorful lines traced the outline of their surroundings, but after a very long second everything returned to normal signaling that they had arrived at the other side.


    ~[]~


    The nauseating feeling of the spatial warp was soon reced by the ear splitting cry of the of the wrathful Primordial being as it tore its way into their in of existence.


    The moment the Nephilim ship appeared on the battlefield, all five of the otherworldly giant eyes turned in its direction as if drawn by its presence, or he presence of something carried on its back.


    Another devastating cry resounded through the region, and the hole in space from which the Primordial peeked began to widen. Gradually, more and more of its unsightly form squeezed through the gap in the fabric of space.


    At the same time, small light particles began to flicker into existence, forming glowing white rings over the heads a number of women, each one wearing a mask that covered the upper half of her face.


    Those were the remaining captured Nephilim saved for the second phase of the Ritual. As the Runes making up their halos blended together in a single ring of white light, more light particles began to form around them. In a matter of seconds a new set of Runes shimmered into existence. Those were muchrger than the ones typically used by those who get a glimpse at he Truth. Creating them was beyond the abilities of a single person, but with the coordinated efforts of a few dozen it was possible to achieve something of this magnitude.


    The Primordial being released another cry at the appearance of the white ring. It could already sense its effects making it realize the mistake it made. The Red Tower shttered, its walls turning into dust that disappeared in the wind. At the same time the hole in space began repairing itself cutting of the Ancient''s escape route.


    Above Odin''s pce a small orb of light floated, shining with a pure golden light suppressed inside the walls of a multiyered barrier. The orb was thepressed essence of every dead human on the, the umted souls gathered by the Ritual to create the only bait that could draw the attention of a Primordial.


    The five eyes moved around frantically. They gazed at the approaching ship, the closing hole and the glowing orb. Should it choose the feast? Or should revengee first? The white Runes were slowly stealing away the Aether that made up its very being. Unlike the purge it had experienced before, the process was much less painful, although it could feel its power seeping away alerting it of the dangerous situation.


    Unfortunately, escape was no longer an option. The hole in space was already closed and opening a new one would take too much effort. The Primordial was left with only one choice; to destroy anything and everything that stood in its way. Only then would it be able to ensure its own survival.


    The ck Stone Giants became motionless for a moment, but in the next they all released a collective battlecry that shook everything for miles. Immediately after their attacks begame more vigorous as they targeted the Nephilim trying to imprison it and take its essence away. At the same time, the ancient alien being reached out with its tentacles trying to take hold of the umted human souls. White disks zoomed past them, splitting into smaller parts, taking their ce as thin blue lines connected their corners.


    "World Cleaver."


    The next moment, translucent blue walls appeared in the sky severing the elongated tentacles before they reached the orb. Standing at a distance, Atropos watched as the severed parts disintegrated, turning into small white particles as they slowly seeped into the Aether Orb causing the barrier surrounding it to expand.


    "I''m impressed." Said a voice. "I''ve never seen this amount of Aether in one ce before."


    Hearing the rxed voice, a smile slowly formed on Atropos'' lips. With her crimson de in hand, she turned around and let her eyes fall on the person who had just teleported behind her. If it weren''t for the clothes they wore and the weapons they carried, the thought that she was looking at a mirror would''ve crossed her mind.


    "We meet again, dear sister." As she spoke, several white disks manifested from behind the raven haired Olympian.


    Nino gazed back at her, and the next moment a smile formed on her face as she let out a sigh.


    "I know it''s been a while, but…" spinning her Yari around, the Japanese doll took a battle pose. "Can we get done with this a bit quickly? I don''t want to leave my fiance alone for too long."