VALKYRIE SMASH

Somewhere in the multiverse…

"This is… so bad…"

Flipping through the pages of a small paperback, a disappointed sigh escaped the lone beauty. Light entered from the tall window reflecting on her long pure white hair giving it an ethereal glow. The light fabric of a black dress clung gracefully to her slender frame as she stood in the soft radiance. Her piercing ruby eyes, framed by wisps of silver, held a depth that seemed to mirror the mysteries of the cosmos. Above her head, a crimson crown floated weightlessly. Its countless parts moved in perfect harmony forming complex shapes that intertwined with mesmerizing precision. The room hushed in awe as she exuded an otherworldly presence, a living portrait of elegance and grace.

The only blemish on this otherworldly scene was the book's title, written on its cover in large bold letters; Valkyrie Smash.

The book was mediocre to say the least. The title caught her eye as she looked for something to pass time, mainly because it felt out of place among the luggage her companion brought from their previous world. As she read through the story, she came to learn that it was nothing more than the perverted delusions of a hormone driven teenager, or maybe the lustful desires of a grown man with no literature skills.

The plot is very simple; a soldier who works in a Resistance base finds himself getting close to the Valkyrie by pure coincidence. From there on he starts to have many sexual encounters with them, finally getting to satisfy his boundless sexual appetite.

"This sounds exactly like Sam…" she muttered with a smile only for it to fade the next second.

The image of her beloved childhood friend came to mind and the crown over her head faltered, shattering into tiny particles before fading away.

Another sigh escaped her and she closed the book.

"I see you're doing pretty well."

The voice startled her and she whipped her head in its direction.

"Shizuru!?" Her voice was full of surprise. "Welcome back."

"I'm back, Alice." The Asian girl said as she stepped inside the room. "Did you miss me?"

"The children are getting out of hand." Ignoring her question, the white haired beauty pulled out a complaint. "Erza and Lucy have been fighting nonstop, and Noelle has been sneaking into the city every day!"

"Ooh, I see they're growing. Maybe it's time to adjust their bodies?"

"And a few years in that VR world!"

With Freyja giving birth to more and more of her children, Loki's plan to create a new race was slowly moving ahead. With the stolen equipment she brought with her she was able to build a new Asgard for the children to train and grow, but its capabilities were limited so some were instead given physical bodies and allowed to roam the real world. That said, allowing a bunch of kids capable of destroying entire worlds to roam around unchecked wasn't good for anyone's mental health. As the one responsible for looking after them, Alice was way too stressed out.

Ignoring her complaints, the Asian girl looked down at the stack of books then placed her hand on a particular paperback, a smile tugging on her lips as she saw the title.

"I saw Doctor the other day."

Her words cut away at the white haired beauty's frustration and the mood in the room changed.

"Sam…?" Alice moved her lips, her eyes widening gradually as she understood what her friend had just said. "He's… alive…?"

"Apparently." Loki picked up the volume and flipped through its pages. "From the looks of it he managed to create the ASC in time. Probably had some help from Heilung."

"Father too!?"

Alice's surprise was understandable, considering the situation in which she left her world. Her mind was in shambles after learning the reality of her existence and it was only after she left with Loki that she realized the cruelty of her decision. Unfortunately, her only choice was to live with the decision she made. She couldn't just return to the forty sixth base and expect a warm welcome. Not when she knew her entire life was nothing but a lie.

Before she realized it, tears began flowing down her cheeks. Her knees gave up the next moment and she fell to the floor, holding a hand to her mouth as she sobbed quietly.

Loki told her everything she had learned from the long trip she had taken. The Asian girl was able to learn quite a few things during the chaos, though she didn't need to make that much effort to learn what Sam planned on doing.

"He's teaming up with the Nephilim…" Alice muttered.

"Well, with less than two hundred Valkyries at his command he doesn't have much of a choice." Said Loki. "He has acquired a key as well. That should keep him busy for the time being."

When Alice didn't offer a reply, her friend raised an eyebrow and asked "Do you want to go see him?"

Still no reply. Alice stared at her hands for a while, not knowing what she should think of the news. Knowing that he was alive was more than enough for her. Even though she felt an unbearable longing for the man, she didn't know if going back was the right thing to do, not that the Asian girl would allow her to go just like that.

"Of course I do." She replied, looking into her friend's eyes. "Don't you?"

Loki let her smile turn to a mischievous grin.

"From what I've seen, he has gotten quite the upgrade." She said. "It's nine inches long now."

Alice didn't get it at first, but then her face flushed red.

"N-n-nine inches!!?" She exclaimed.

"Yup. And his harem keeps expanding." Heaving a sigh, Loki shook her head. "To think he's been having fun with other women when we are dying from loneliness. Oh how I wish he would ravage me once again."

"Nine inches…"

"Unfortunately, unlike you, I doubt he'll ever give me a second chance." Heaving a sigh, the Asian girl leaned back in her chair. "Well, it's the necessary price I guess."

Alice came back to her senses and her head quickly cooled down. Though their reasons differed, neither of them could reclaim their old lives. The Asian girl was still a mystery. Even after everything they had gone through since they left their original world, Alice couldn't tell if she knew her that well. One thing she made clear was that her feelings for Sam were true. Despite all the tricks, deception and betrayal, the love Shizuru felt toward that man was real, and it was the only thing Alice felt was real about herself as well.

"If…" she spoke, her eyes slowly descending. "If we obtain the Keys and… and reach that place. Would things really be able to…"

She couldn't bring herself to finish the question, after all she had no idea what she was trying to achieve. Did she wish for things to be back to normal? To forget about the truth and continue to live as a human, unaware that she was a fake?

"Alice..." Loki spoke, her eyes taking on a sharpness that was uncharacteristic of her usual kind front. "You abandoned any chance of a normal life the moment you decided to come with me. There is no going back now, and even if we reach Akasha, you will never be able to wish for something like that."

Alice knew. She understood. It was easy to wish for something, but when presented with the chance to turn that wish into reality, it was doubtful whether she could bring herself to make that choice. Wishing for a normal life would be the epitome of selfishness. For that wish to become real, she would have to trample on the lives of others, erase their choices and decisions, and rewrite everything to match her vision.

More than that, she didn't know what a normal life would be for her. The Alice Schneider everyone knew was nothing but a fake, a vessel for her father's desire to see his daughter grow. The life she has lived so far doesn't belong to her but to the child whose memories were implanted to her. With that in mind, could she say that any of the experiences she has gone through were hers?

No matter how much she desired it, the only choice she had was to move forward. She has to make her own choices, live her own life, and once that happens, once she has her own identity, only then would she know for sure whether her existence meant something.

"I know." She said eventually, raising her gaze to look at the woman sitting across from her. "That's why I made that choice."

"Good." Picking up the paperback, Loki smiled as she showed her the title. "Now, how about I tell you more about our nature?"