72 Chaos

Odin thrust the spear forward for the nth time and Doom parried it with his blade. Odin smirked and the spear suddenly bent and snaked towards Doom's heart, completely bypassing the sword. But his grin was frozen when Doom's body wiggled and the skin in his organs moved rapidly to form a hole right where the spear passed.

Taking advantage of the surprised Odin, Doom kicked the fat old god on his beer belly and got some distance between them as his body morphed back to normal.

Odin focused on removing the vibration magic that Doom had pushed into his internals through that kick as he planned the next move. Just as he was about to parry Doom's next attack, a golden flash appeared between them and Savant stood in between the two while holding their weapons in his palm.

"Fuck! I shouldn't have done that." Savant cursed. He had taken on the attacks of both Odin and Doom at the same time. In his attempt to stop the fight in a cool pose, he had to deal with the effects of completely stopping the two attacks.

The energy and the force of the two attacks ravaged his body and clashed within him. The pain was excruciating but thankfully it didn't last long because of his almost instantaneous recovery.

Odin suddenly began to laugh loudly and even Doom smirked a little. "You were planning to stop our attacks with two fingers, weren't you? Hahahaha." Odin almost fell back while laughing.

Savant had gone in with exactly that in mind and he had calculated with his information processing to make the exact catch for both the weapons. In his rushed attempt to act cool, he had overlooked the fact that the people he was trying to stop could increase their force and power mid-attack.

"That was nasty. Fuck!" Savant massaged his wrist even though he didn't really need it and glared at Odin and Doom.

"You reap as you sow." Doom didn't forget to add his sage advice while putting away his weapon.

"If you two have had enough fun, you have entire civilizations to look after so it would be nice if we could go back," Savant said with some urgency in his voice.

"What is the problem?" Doom asked after seeing that Savant was a bit restless.

"I'm not sure. It could be anything. But I feel like there is some malicious force targeted towards me. No, not me but my general direction." Savant explained.

"It is normal to have some sense of danger when you reach a certain level. It is in the realm of pseudo-omnipotence. You might not know everything in the universe but you can still feel the general trends and of course, the dangers heading your way." Odin explained.

Doom nodded and closed his eyes before opening them back again in a few seconds, "I can somewhat feel it too. It is faint but certain malice is certainly being directed at Doom."

"Let us go back then. Heimdal!" Odin said as he looked up.

Savant waved his hand and teleported Cypher beside him and they went back to Earth through the rainbow bridge.

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"There have been many reports of protests breaking out all over the world against Chancellor Doom's policies that have caused unprecedented effects on the economy. People are getting unemployed in the millions and the trend seems to be only increasing. To discuss this issue with us, we have the leader of Anti-Doom League of America's leader, James Chen. What is your take on this situation Mr. Chen?" The voice of the host on the TV program rang out in the dark room.

A dozen or so shadowy figures were sitting around a large round table while quietly watching the interview on the TV.

"What is left there for us to have any opinions about? Now the world is being run by a tyrant who makes and enforces any policies as he pleases. What can we powerless people even do? People are getting thrown to the streets and starving, there are lesser jobs by the second, companies are being shut down and economy is crashing. It is a total disaster. It is funny really, it is in his name but we missed the signs of impending Doom." James Chen answered.

One of the shadow figures cackled in a broken, cracking voice, "Excellent! Who chose this guy? He is doing better than expected."

The TV host spoke again on TV, "But the Chancellor has already announced his wealth redistribution project. Earth will have a universal social security net where everyone will get a satisfactory standard of living that includes food, residence, healthcare, education and other basic amenities."

James Chen snapped back, "Where is it then? Anyone can promise anything as they like, doesn't mean they can fulfill it. And even then, what are we supposed to do for work, to earn money for things we want beyond the security net?"

The TV host then turned to another person, "We have the Press Secretary from the Earth Federation here with us to answer this question, Miss. Helen Perez."

Helen Perez answered calmly, "Firstly, on behalf of the Earth Federation, I would like to inform all the citizens of Earth that within the next six months, the universal social security net will reach everyone. We are already conducting pilot programs in some places."

James Chen interrupted, "More unreasonable promises. Who would even believe a lie like that? How can you get a program as huge as that get done in such a short time. This is just you trying to buy more time."

Helen Perez seemed unfazed by the interruption as she calmly continued, "As for my second point, Mr. James Chen, we are aware about your secret deals with the multiple companies to incite a protests against the Federation. But you will be investigated and charged by your country and not the Federation.

And as for things being impossible, we employ superhumans and actual mages in the Federation. Our Chancellor himself is one of the greatest scientists and magicians on Earth. So, I don't see where this notion of anything being impossible even arose from."

James Chen was screaming in the background about being falsely accused and what not but the proof of his corruption was already being played on the broadcast.

"As a caution to everybody else who has been making false claims and inciting violence and riots all over the world, I would like to remind you that the Earth Federation has multiple ways to find out the truth be it magic, science or superhuman abilities like telepathy. Earth Federation has the rights to use those methods should you be found to be involved in plots that endanger human progress." The calm and quiet looking Latin-American lady on live TV interview with a threat to all the protestors.

One of the shadowy figures in the room slammed their hands on the table, "They are blatantly threatening the people now. Doom isn't even pretending anymore. Why aren't the other countries taking any action."

The other shadowy figures murmured a little but didn't reply immediately, the TV host had just asked the same question, "Is that a threat issued by the Earth federation to the protesting public?"

Helen Perez smiled a little, "Of course not. It is a threat to those who mislead and incite the public who are supposed to be getting what they had been promised. These protests only hinder the Earth federation's efficiency which hurts the same innocent public in the end.

As an example, the Cure Serum that was supposed to be distributed all over the world this month had to be postponed just because of the security risks posed by the protests. There could be many patients on their deathbeds who could be getting better right now but the people are being misled to delay that without even realizing it."

"Fuck!" There was a collective swearing in the room of the shadowy figures. "Those bastards are blatantly manipulating people now. And those sheep will obediently go back to their pens without complaining too."

"The Cure Serum that is supposed to cure all diseases and make every human as fit and healthy as a Olympic athlete or more? That is indeed a sad news. But who are you referring to when you say 'they are inciting the people'?" the TV host asked. Observant people noticed the subtle shift in how the host leaned towards the Federation suddenly.

"I am referring to the power hungry and greedy people who are not willing to share their resources and opportunities with the common people. Those who don't want ordinary people to have a chance at reaching or surpassing their level of wealth and power.

Yes, Eath Federation is breaking apart the economy with its policies. No doubt about it. But it is a necessary change. We are transitioning into an interstellar civilization. There might come a day when nations and corporations own entire planets and star systems. We have to remake an economy that can flexibly adapt such circumstances too. So please be patient with the Federation. May we all progress together." The interview ended and the TV was turned off. There was a silence in the room.

"The protests might be ending soon, but we expected that. It was only supposed to cause some chaos and confusion. It is enough for our lords to transfer their power into Earth. Continue causing more chaos without getting caught or gaining the attention of the Federation. The promised day is upon us. The day when we will become the rulers of this planet is not far. Praise the lord." One of the shadowy figures who seemed to be the leader gave instructions to the others.

"Praise the lord! Praise chaos!" the others followed the chants.