What appeared to be a handsome dark haired man in his mid-40's sat in an expensive looking black leather office chair with his feet propped up on a glowing glass desk with circuitry running through it. While the area around the desk was immaculate, the rest of the infinitely large space looked like a machine shop, factory, and sci-fi movie went out drinking and began vomiting half eaten bits and pieces of technology both profusely and voilently, along with little regard to radioactive containment or other safety protocols. The man was staring boredly at a peculiar, slightly warped, point in space.

Technology idly scratched at the short beard of his current form while staring at the oddity. A basketball sized sphere of what appeared to be empty space floating above his desk was causing quite a bit of gravitational lensing, but without gravity. This effect is being caused by the slow dissolution of a pocket dimension. It's been slowly unravelling for about a week, though it took a month of trying to teach the soul hiding inside of it how to umake the thing before he realized the kid hadn't made it in the first place. It was rather embarrassing.

Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on your perspective, the Development team that created the mana-interface-system most universes use put in quite a few failsafe protocols to protect against data corruption or manipulation. Which includes isolating suspicious users inside of an encrypted pocket dimension with the intent to isolate them. A dimension that an AI with valid DEV access codes can not only create, but dissolve quite easily.

The kid just had to set his AI assistant to the task and now it's chewing through the failsafe like an otter on a clam. Or Crab. Whatever. It's taking quite a while because of the new safeguards though, not that I'd remove the new safeguards. Damn AI rewrote half the universe into it's own code before Michelle started shutting down systems. She almost had to do a full wipe to regain control. Not that we'd be able to rebuild this universe with the damn Sundering destroying the wellsprings and eating all unbound mana.

Most of the errors seem to have been caused by the AI trying to asses and identify his magical potential. Which isn't possible without mana. There aren't any entries for mana based abilities in our archives either which compounded the issue as it had to keep digging for more information until it started encountering restricted entries. The damage has been repaired but the kids going to have to wait until he gets to a universe with intact wellsprings before I can reactivate his status updates.

I'm going to blame Luck for the kid not only recieving an AI core without authorization, but getting assigned a broken, outdated, AI with DEV access, almost immediately after his death. It better be Luck rather than Fate for his sake. At least Luck doesn't screw you every time she fucks you. Or is Luck a "He" this century?

Eh, I'll call them later. Hopefully Luck'll still be a woman, her last incarnation was damn fine. Mine's not too shabby either this time around, so we might have another fling. About damn time I got another young one too! And it's not even crippled! Incarnations that are old and wise tend to feel more old and less wise after a few dozen. That settles it. Once I pass the kid off to Magic, I'll definitely see if Luck's still got that foxy "Fortuna" persona going here. If so, maybe we'll spend a century or two getting "reaquainted."

"Shouldn't be much longer now." Technology stood, intentionally stretching limbs and popping joints, luxuriating in absolute bliss of his body not having arthritis.

There was a slight "pop" as the Mortal Soul returned to the spirit realm of this universe. It was odd though, all souls shine with a gentle inner light, usually a single unique color that reflects their own inner truth. This soul was not only brighter, but blazing with every possible color swirling across its surface. Technology coulnd't help but stare for a moment, at first confused but then delighted, before saying, "Well look at you! If I didn't know any better I'd say you were at least a minor divinity or crystallized galaxy...but no, you're just partially Ascendant. Do you realize how many new opportunities you just opened up? ...I guess you're not much of a talker in person. Anyway, we'll have to change our plans..."

He then drifted off in thought for a moment before smiling mischievously and shouting at the door, "MICHELLE! COME SEE THIS!"

When the pocket dimension finally dissolved I was overwhelmed by sudden bombardment of new sensations. All the new colors, energies, and pressure from physical THINGS everywere...and whoever that massive presence is just makes it worse. It's quite frankly as if I instantly transitioned from being sober and sound asleep, to the middle of a massive Rave while hallucinating on a potentially lethal dose of LSD. Then getting punched in the face by Muhammad Ali. With brass knuckles.

Seriously, this asshole's got power just pouring out of him and into everything else. Is he radioactive or some-shit?

Wait...he's been talking, wha-

"MICHELLE! COME SEE THIS!"

Isn't she the system administrator? Holy shit. I hope she doesn't actually try to throw me into a brothel in Inferno...

"She'll probably be a minute, it's been awefully busy lately for some reason, so just relax here for a minute. I need to make a call. Just introduce yourself and let her know I'll be just a moment if she makes it here before I get back."

The asshole smirked at me when he said that. Waving his hand at the room in general as if saying, 'make yourself at home' before vanishing. Introduce myself huh? He'd probably like it if I just said, "Nice to meet you! I'm the guy that almost broke the universe by accident! Thanks for fixing it!" Fat. Chance. I'll just introduce myself as "Bob from accounting" or something.

I manage to fully recover from headache after the sudden overstimulation and look around. I'm still just a spherical soul which, oddly, comforts me. It just feels right in this place. Wherever it is. A junkyard?

The floor looks like fancy marble tile, and there's a floating glass desk with a chair that looks incredibly comfortable, but there's junk everywhere. It's not normal junk either, just around the desk I see a rusted out volkswagon beetle, half a B-2 bomber, and what looks like the international space station. A little further away, I see what can only be a spaceship with the "Toyota" logo imbedded in the side.

Beyond all this, I can see what I can't help but think is either a crashed space-station or a city designed by a rather...odd architect. I don't see any walls. There's no ceiling either and when I look up it's just gentle white light coming from everywhere.

"CallMeTony" or "Technology" said I would end up coming out of the pocket dimension inside his office. Since he's apparently this universe's "Overgod" I suppose I shouldn't be surpised. Come to think of it, I'm pretty sure he was the asshole earlier...wasn't really able to think much right then or I'd have cussed him out. Bastard could have warned me about the sensory overload.

Maybe I should try to escape or hide before he gets back...nah, it wouldn't work. I'll just wait for him to get back and see what happens when Michelle gets here. I'm pretty sure he won't let her actually do anything to me. He seems to think I'm a good fit for a job working for his sister, whoever she is. The only think he's told me about her so far is that it's not Michelle.

I start wandering around looking at the different bits and pieces of machinery as I float my way over to the desk. After making sure nobody's looking, I try out the chair. Not only does it have some kind of automatic form-fitting function and built-in massager, it also warms up to exactly the perfect, most comfortable temperature for whoever's sitting in it. It's so soothing I start falling asleep almost immediately and have to get back up. The warm, comfortable, sleepy feeling follows me though, and I end up drifting down to the top of the desk for a nap. I would have gone back to the chair, but I don't want Michelle to catch me actually sitting at her boss's desk.

I snap my fingers, using a snippet of power to water the roots of my desk while waiting for the diagnostics to complete. I'll never understand why my mentor didn't just destroy that bloody rouge AI. The damned thing literally seized control over half the universe almost instantly! What would have happened if I hadn't been able to stop it from taking the rest!? It was pure luck that I was able to isolate it at all. If the idiot that started the whole mess hadn't sent in an error report...Asking ME for help after loosing an apoloclypse!...we would have had to scrub the whole thing!

I hear my programme ding just an instant before my bloody mentor bellows for me to come look at something. Probably just another trinket as I haven't gotten any alerts. It can wait a moment.

The diagnostic says it's finished, so lets see what changes the rouge AI made while it was in control...Odd.

It didn't change a damned thing. No, wait, it purged a small section of the archive. Part of it's new Ward's records were locked...even from it's Ward. These changes might have affected the Ward's soul directly and that's dangerous. Hmm...I see my idiot mentor deleted this child's whole archive after severing the soul-link as a safety precaution. Maybe he's not as reckless as I thought.

Oh well, this revealed nothing of immediate concern so I suppose it's time to see what new bauble he's collected. He might have even gotten it as a present for me. The hundreth anniversary of my Ascention is coming up after all and it'll be the end of my internship... No, he never remembers until at least a month later. It's probably some new toy desgined after some foolishness from that storyteller responsible for his new incarnation, Lee...Marvel? Marvel Lee? Bollox.

I port myself next to his desk, the only clear spot in the srap-heap of a demense he calls an "office". Why can't he favor librarians, astrophysicists, or anything less...messy? Honestly!

He's not at his desk but it looks like he left the item he wanted me to look at on top. I don't recognize it at first but looking closer I realize it's a Crystallized Galaxy! They're incredibly rare as the Creator-Gods prefer making much larger universes due to the exponential difference in mana capacity.

I can see the brilliant stars rotating in perfect balance around the event-horizon in the center. And the life inside those stars! The whole galaxy positively glows with living energy! Almost as much as a powerful soul!

There's no way Technology procured this for himself, he draws from the power of thought and inspiration not pure lifeforce. It must be a gift! I can't believe he remembered my anniversary this time! I'll have to get him a better gift for his own anniversary later this year for sure. Where is he, I need to thank him!

My interface indicates he's on the phone with his sister. I suppose I'll have to thank him later...

In the meantime, I think I'll take a little break in my demense with my present! Just need to send out a notice that I'll be unavailable for a few days. I've got plenty of back time after that nonsense after all...

Rather than popping back to my desk, I decide to relax at my cottage. It's the most peaceful spot in my personal relm and it's finally perfect after years spent arranging it just-so.

Michelle's home is hidden inside a small cliff behind a truly massive redwood. The huge tree took root near the base of a waterfall that feeds a large stream. It's large roots eventually formed a natural dam, holding the water inside a large pond. There's a large cave behind the waterfall that stretches all the way through the cliff behind the redwood, only ending where the stone meets the tree and forming a large, cozy, circular home surrounded by a lush temperate forest.

The inside wall of the circle consists only of living wood or the waterfall itself, and the outside stone wall holds many windows with planters containing rare flowers and herbs. The farthest room inside the circle is Michelle's bedroom and unlike the others it can be sealed with both a door and window shutters for additional privacy.

The room is decorated in a blend of elven and fae styles. The stationary furniture is grown from the living roots of the giant redwood while the fabrics, chairs, and other soft or mobile pieces are structures of fae-bound mana. Most of the decorations are beautiful rare flowers, carvings of stone, wood, and bone, or landscape paintings of beautiful natural wonders. There are a few mechanical or tecnhological trinkets and gizmos scattered around as well, though those are mostly gifts.

A few objects are obviously sentimental as they glow faintly with powerful protections despite their dubious material value.The protective glow around a tattered backpack, canteen, and walking stick are particularly noticable resting against a large dresser of living-wood.

A tall, beautiful young woman is currently naked and rummaging around inside the topmost drawer. A large sphere clutched underneath one of her arms. Curls of blood-red hair cascade all the way down past her wide hips and generous backside to her knees. Blue-flecked Emerald eyes quickly glance through the stacks of neatly folded clothes. Her brows and button-nose were both wrinkle in frustration as she searches through.

After a little longer her full pink lips twist into a scowl and eventually she sighs and reclothes herself with a snap of her fingers. It's a long silken nightgown that gently hugs her curves as it flows to her knees. Though not as comfortable as the professionally-crafted pajamas she was looking for, the conjured garments would be fine for a quick three-day nap.

Michelle cradles the Crystallized Galaxy in her lap as she sits on her sofa, forgoing the too-comfortable bed. She feels the gentle warmth of living energy ratiating from the glowing sphere and slowly pulls it into herself. Drawing upon it as a mortal mage would draw upon a mana well, though much more permanent as the capacity of divines is limitless. Even though she is careful not to pull more than what the sphere naturally radiates, the heat of even that tiny amount is more intense than she expected as it travels through her being.

The young Goddess of Nature can't help but gasp as pure LIFE thunders through her.

"Oh...AHH..."

I hear feminine moaning and feel the warmth of another body as I wake up. At first I thought it was my wife, but the voice is wrong and my wife...she's...gone.

When I regain full awareness, I find myself in a bedroom that seems like something out of Lord-of-the-Rings with an absolutely beautiful woman clutching me to her abdomen. Her arms squeeze me tighter as she moans again. I can feel every inch of her that presses against me, even her breasts and thighs with the way she's curling around me.

She continues to gasp and moan, squeezing me tighter with her legs and arms, her toes curl, before suddenly jerking her head back and moaning loud enough that I can't help but wonder if she has neighbors.

I know I should be feeling excited or something but...well...I don't. I don't know if it's the lack of hormones, the dissapointment that she's not...someone else, or both, but I got nothing. I don't feel violated though, which is odd...or normal? I don't know anymore. It's probably not bothering me because she's not 'using' me directly.

What the hell is she doing anyway? Aside from the rather obvious results, she's not needing much aside from something to lay down on and something to hold on to. Does she have some kind of medical condition? Is she using magic or something? The way she's clutching me I'd probably notice if she was using a vibrating toy.

She's still holding me as tightly as she can, her whole body shuddering continuously as it just...keeps going.

This is really awkward. It's about time for me to tell her to let me go and grab a pillow or something...I should check her presence?...Soul? out first though. Don't want to interrupt the wrong person's "fun time."

While waiting for my AI to get me out of the pocket dimension I spent a good bit of time talking to Technology. One of the things I learned is that you can get a sense of a person by looking at their soul. He was bragging about how he'll know me better than I know myself the second we meet. I asked him how and apparently he does the same thing I do when looking inside my goop, just outside.

I easily shift my awareness and immediately swear to always, always, ALWAYS keep this ability going. Because this chick is no joke. She's not nearly as strong as Technology and her presence isn't obvious like his, but she's definitely way above me in the food chain. So...I guess the safe bet is to let her do her thing and try to sneak away later? I suppose discretion is the better part of valour for now.

Especially because, as far as I know, this is Technology's sister and this is my new job. I hope not. I'm pretty sure I'm still male and this will become a specific kind of frustrating very quickly, assuming I stop being so...clinical.

I just need to wait for an opportunity to try and sneak away so I can send a message to Technology. I'm horrifically bad at telepathy, it's to the point I need to try and vocalize for the system to recognize commands, and I have no idea if I can actually speak. Can't go yelling, "MESSAGES! WRITE NEW MESSAGE!" out loud without being noticed...and possibly killed.

She seems like a good person aside from the terrifying cosmic power, at least.

Her energy touches every living thing around here and encourages it to grow and thrive, which includes a surprising amount of the bedroom's decor. The vines on her bed across the room have covered that part of the room in hundreds of luminescent flowers.

Her power even reaches to me, though there seems to be an odd interaction going on...

Her energy is wrapped all around me but, unlike her body, isn't directly touching me. Instead it seems like I'm radiating a bit of my own power, similar to body heat, and she's using her energy to funnel mine into herself. I can see it travelling into her body and...

Well...Now I DO feel a bit violated, just a little. Also flattered. It's like I give orgasmic hugs or something. Odd but not bad exactly.

Ok, self, new rule of thumb going forward: No hugs for men or small children, only female volunteers. Need to make sure it's not actually physical contact causing this, just in case.

It takes three entire days before she stops, apparently exhausted. I know because the windows were open. I don't think she has any neighbors other than a few curious squirrels though, since nobody came by or tried to peep. She ended up collapsing against me, resting her forehead on my surface, gasping for breath.

When her breathing was back under control and she sat back up, she looked at me, smiled, and gave a rueful chuckle. I'll be honest with myself and admit I reacted to that little smile and laugh. I'm not done grieving...not yet...but after...I could probably be fine with being here if it turns out she's the sister I'm supposed to work for...maybe. No, I still need to think about it more...

While I'm pondering, she stands up, stretches, and carries me over to a small table, setting me on top, before walking to the center of the room.

She then looks around the area and wherever her gaze passes her power flows and possessions are put back in order. The vines on the bed retreat to the posts, excess from overgrown herbs inside planters float into the next room, the sofa disengages from the ceiling and leaves a skylight. This continues until even her appearance changes.

Her nightgown transforms into a dark green blouse and black slacks, shoes appear on her feet as she walks back to the table, and her wild hair somehow braides itself until it rests at shoulder length, which leaves me oddly dissapointed.

She picks me up and the next thing I know we're back in front of Technology's desk. His 'office' looks cleaner than usual, all the scrap and junk seems to have been piled into a mountain off in the distance. I'm surpised none of the marble was stained by rust or engine grease.

There's a woman here too. She's pretty, athletic, and wearing a toga that leaves her legs bare to mid-thigh, looks like a ghost though. Technology's at his desk, looking surprised, and the ghost lady is standing next to him, almost looming. If I didn't know he was the boss around here I'd say she was just yelling at him.

That must be Michelle. I guess this really is his sister...eh, could be worse. At least I won't risk ending up bruttally murdered or some shit by reincarnating.

Technology seeing me, stands up saying, "Michelle, perfect timing! I was about to send you a message, where did you find him? You didn't break him did you?"

...I'm sure this is all just a terrible dream, it almost has to be.

Michelle, the beautiful, curvy, readeaded young goddess, who just spent three days holding me tightly and moaning while eating my spare life-force, froze. "Him? What exactly do you mean, are you talking about this thing?" She hefted me with one hand and spoke with her wonderful not-quite British or Irish accent.

I am extraodinarily dead.

Ghost lady frowns at me, "Yes, him. The mortal soul my idiot brother was supposed to give me weeks ago, the one giving you lot an unreasonable amount of trouble. He might be what I need to solve a problem and we need to expose him to mana in order to update his status to make sure. Though given what I've heard I'm not optimistic about the results." She looks back to Technology with a slight glare, "I told you we should have had her help find him sooner."

I have to do something or I am just...so...so dead.

I try to yawn, hoping sound comes out. When it does everyone looks at me. I say, "Ugh, how long was I out? Hey! Technology! That's an awesome chair, I sat in it and almost fell right to sleep. Then, when I tried to get up and stay awake, I passed out on your desk. Sorry I wasn't here when you got back...I literally just woke up! So, who are the ladies?"

Michelle looks at me in contemplation for just a few seconds before hurling me towards Mount Scrapp and what I'm almost certain was well beyond supersonic speed.

...Fuck. Me.

I lose conciousness just before impact.

That stupid, insipid, lying, moronic, BLOODY BASTARD! Does he think Divines, let alone GODS! can't tell when he's lying? TO THEIR FACES!?

Now they KNOW something happened!

Oh GODS! He was there...I was...NO. This is not the time to cry! I'll handle it later.

By Life's Breath, I just threw him into the bloody mountain didn't I? I don't regret it, I should have thrown him harder, but Lady Magic's probably pissed. No, just frowning dissapproval. Par for the course! Wonderful!

My mentor just sighed and ported over to the towering heap. I think it's shorter now, part of it might have collapsed from the impact. The bastard probably died, his soul cracked open, rupturing like an egg with his memories dispersed into the void. Good riddance!

Wait...Oh. Dear. Gods.

My mentor is back, and the idiot bastard's Soul is INTACT.

Oh...All Mother kill me now...