Later that Day

12 midnight

Earlier, Maria warned Theo that they were on a tight schedule and things would escalate rather quickly.

Theo most certainly did not expect the events to start while he was making Pani squeal in bed.

As he was shooting his 3rd beam of justice into Pani's Shangri La, one of his minions informed him of a call from Alial Milza, the rich shipping tycoon and best friend to one of the most high ranking Drows in the Underdark.

After a very quick conversation, the two parties were to meet on a small art exhibit in the more civilized side of the ever chaotic Vermilion City.

Theo normally used the trains to get around. As someone who preferred to keep a low profile, being one of the many sardines packed into the moving metal tin cans was perfect for his MO.

Sadly, his future daughter Aveline Maria Lorne had none of it.

Apparently, he was more important he thought he was and had to act like it.

Maria was the personification of a no-nonsense boss lady. She used her more advanced age, logic and reason to beat Theo into submission.

As such, Theo was now forced into a fancy armored limo with 3 suspicious looking vans filled with 5 armed guards each.

In said limo, he had Maria, 3 maid-clad Eisenmadchens and enough guns to start a bank robbery.

However, his greatest gripe was being forced into a fine looking corporate suite. It was brand newness made it extremely uncomfortable to wear.

While trying to shift the collar into a more comfortable position, Theo decided to probe Maria for some info.

"So Maria. What's my life like in the future?" asked Theo.

"Err... Unfortunately, I cannot tell you much of anything about the future." replied Maria apologetically.

"Oh come on! Why not?!"

"Quite simply, the butterfly effect. Who knows what will happen if you gain knowledge of something you should not know off? For all we know, it could lead to a future no one wants. As such, the future you made sure that I would not reveal any more than what is required to achieve the mission."

"Aw... If that's the case, it cant be helped then. But surely there has to be something you can tell me."

Maria thought for a bit before having an 'Aha!' moment.

"There is that thing about how I can survive being trapped inside a coffin for 5000 years."

"Oho! Do tell!"

"In layman's terms, I was born with a specific type of immortality. I am nowhere near as powerful as my siblings, but as long as certain conditions are met, I will not die no matter what."

"Interesting. And what exactly is that power of yours?"

"Quite simply, it's an extremely powerful form regeneration. And as long as I am provided vast amounts of Psionic energy, I can survive anything."

"Even reality trying to squash your paradoxical existence in this timeline?"

"That is correct Papa. Among the Lorne siblings, I am the only one that can survive time travel."

"I see. But how are you even getting this Psionic energy? I don't see any machinery or magic circles on you."

"Sadly, that is something I cannot answer. Humanity is not ready to learn of such technology. One thing I can tell you though, is that Big Sis is the one providing me with power."

"Big Sis? You mean Evangelica Tenma Lorne?"

"Yup. Big Sis Eva second only to Juno Mama in terms of pure volume of power."

"Ho. That's good to know. But wouldnt Juno be the better choice when it comes to battery duty?"

"Juno Mama is a warrior through and through. While mama may have nigh limitless amounts of power, she can only use it to destroy things. This particular technique requires fine control of all the branches of power and no one has gargantuan amounts of power and high level of control other than Big Sis Eva."

"Interesting. Very interesting indeed. What's Eva like?"

Maria's body shook involuntarily.

Was that fear Theo saw in her eyes?

That did not inspire confidence.

"D-describe Big Sis? D-do I have to?" replied the reluctant Maria as her eyes dart left and right, as if searching for someone.

"Err.... Why are you so terrified?"

"Terrified?! NO! Absolutely not! I am most certainly not terrified of accidentally offending Big Sis! Not at all!"

"Yep. She is definitely afraid of Eva."

"Big Sis Eva is very aggres- I MEAN PASSIONATE! Yes! Passionate! She most certainly do not leave people near death when she gets angry! Those are nothing more than unfortunate accidents! Yes yes! Her mastery of nearly all magical and chi based rituals have never been used for petty revenge! I swear on my life!"

Theo made a (T_T) face.

It seemed that Eva was a more aggressive Juno. The very thought of dealing with another monster terrified Theo to no end.

For now, Theo decided to keep his stress levels to a minimum and cut their conversation about his eldest daughter right then and there.

"How about Zach? What's he like?" asked Theo.

"Big Bro Zach is amazing! As far as I know, he's one of the extremely few people that can actually talk Big Sis Eva down without being obliterated! And even when it does come to violence, he can beat down Big Sis no problem!" replied Maria in a boastful and proud manner.

"Eh? He's that strong?"

"Not at all Papa. Big Bro's power might be stupid and weak, but the way he uses it is beyond ingenious. None of the Lorne siblings has bested him in combat."

"Even Eva?"

"Especially Big Sis Eva."

"Damn. Just what is Zach's power?"

"As far as I know, Big Bro has a science based power where he can shrink himself and anything that touches his skin into a microscopic level. Naturally, he can unshrink it at will though I heard there's a limit to how many things he can shrink at once."

"Hmm.... That does sound weak and stupid."

"That's the standard reaction. However, I have seen Big Bro kill an imperfect Omegaman clone by unshrinking 5 fully loaded M1 Abrams tank inside his butt hole."

"He actually weaponized a meme? One hell of a mind that kid has."

"As I told you earlier Papa, Big Bro Zach is amazing."

"That's good to hear and all, but what's he like as a person? How does he act, what are his hobbies and alike?"

"Oh. Big Bro reminds me a lot of you Papa. He's way too faithful to his desires and loves to do things by his own hands. He also wants to be funny but he has a horrible sense of humor. In most cases, he would humiliate himself when his jokes fail to land."

"Hey! Are you saying that I have no sense of humor?!"

"Huh? No no no. You misunderstand Papa. I'm saying that Big Bro Zach has no sense of humor. You probably have one, but it's too 'unique' for most people."

"Gah! You just had to say it! Fine! I'll make you laugh so hard, you'll burst into tears!"

For the next few minutes, Theo fired off every single joke in his arsenal while Maria did her best not to cringe.

While they this, Theo could not help but think if this was what having a child was like.

If so, then he eagerly looked forward to the future when he can mess around with his children.

-:-

30 minutes later

Theo never really understood why the rich and weird art often went together.

All around him were paintings and sculptures of the surrealism genre, and in all honesty, these were some of the ugliest crap he has ever seen.

But more shockingly was the eye popping price tag for each of these abominations.

Though he was technically already part of the 1%, his taste in visual media has never strayed from anime and hentai.

All he could do was ask to himself..

"What the hell is wrong with these people?"

Theo's group followed the local security guard through the museum until they reached a decently sized room still filled with questionable 'artwork'.

There were 2 groups waiting for him. Alial Milza's and the scantily clad Drows.

He was warmly welcomed by the Alial's 20 bodyguards.

Ever since being acquainted during Elven Hunt incident, the bodyguard regiment have become loyal customers of Theo's. He provided them with military grade cybernetics complete with check ups, servicing and maintenance at a 70% discount.

Aside from those who use Chi and Magic, most of Alial's bodyguards has some of the best cybernetics in the market.

FYI: Aside from Theo, Juno and the Eisenritter units, his sister-in-law Meridith Lorne had the most advanced cybernetics he to offer.

As for the Drows, they were as kinky as ever.

Tight fitting enchanted leather armors + flawless skin in various shades of gray= characters straight out of a hentai.

Aside from the wizard looking Du Al Ryien, there were 10 drows around with him.

3 of the drows were particularly eye catching. For one, they were all teenage women in revealing bikini dancer outfits. They had grayish white skin and had straight jet black horns growing from their foreheads.

Were they priestesses or something?

While Theo was trying to figure out their significance, the 2 big wigs approached him.

"Young Lorne. It's been too long." said old man Alial Milza.

"Right you are Mr. Milza." replied Theo as he gave the old man a bro hug.

"Apostle Lorne. A pleasure to meet you again." said Du Al Ryien while lightly beating his right fist over his chest.

It was the standard Drow salute.

"I'm not sure about the Apostle moniker, but it is nice to see you again." said Theo as he returned the Drow salute. "Anyways, why am I here? And why are there scantily clad Drow women here?"

"I was actually wondering about that myself. Young Lorne here is an extremely lustful lad. The presence of beautiful women is extremely distracting to our young friend here." said Milza.

"Ah. They are not related to the mission but they do have a role in it. Allow me to tell you about Drow culture to answer the question." replied Du Al Ryien as he went on a relatively long winded history lesson.

Drows and Elves were pretty much the same. Both have excessively long lifespans, relatively low fertility rates and were really pretty to look at.

The main difference came in the form of diplomacy.

The Elves skillfully outplayed the Drows by convincing everyone else that the Drow were evil to its very core.

It was not completely a lie given the Drow's war focused society, but the Elves left out that they themselves were just as messed up.

Surrounded by enemies from all sides, Drow society became an extreme meritocracy.

Anyone and everyone can move up in Drow society, but you have to prove that you have the skills for job.

Murdering, bribing and ass kissing were looked down on, and could result in a fate worse than death. Their low population and precarious situation required only the best. No incompetents allowed.

There was, however, one position that most Drows could not rise to. And that was the leader of the Drows.

The Dread Queen.

This position had only 2 requirements: Overwhelming power and decent skill in empire management.

Mind you, it did not have to be female who sat at the top of the throne, but there was one magical mutation that only appeared in females that gave them extremely high magical capabilities, thus almost guaranteeing them to the role.

Drow women that grew horns could somehow manipulate magic in ways beyond mortal comprehension which made them extremely valuable to a race that is the enemy of all.

What exactly their capabilities were was a closely guarded secret. But all that mattered was that they could make a lot of people very very dead.

The girls brought by Du Al Ryien were candidates for the Dread Queen position. They would be joining the mission as part of their many many trials to prove their worth.

"Interesting. But why the sexy bikinis?" asked Theo.

"This was to make sure that they have no hidden weapons, enchantments or anything that could give them an edge over their competition. All of the feats they were about to perform was of their own power alone." replied Du Al Ryien.

"And if they were guys?"

"They would be in their underwear. We will not take any chances when the lives of Drows are in the line."

"I see. That makes sense. Let's move to the main question then. Why am I here?"

"Ah that. Have you ever heard of 'The Garden of Eden'?"

For the next few minutes, Du Al Ryien pretty much restated what Theo has already heard from Maria.

Naturally, Theo pretended that this was the first time he has ever heard of it.

Once the Drow's opening pitch was done, Theo asked 2 very important question.

"Okay, I understand the danger this thing poses. I have 2 questions though: Why come to me? And why does the Drows have a bone to pick with the garden?"

"Allow me to answer the second question first. The garden travels not only through Time, but also through Realms. The Elves used that thing 2000 years ago to create a race that annihilated Svartálfheim, the Drows home world, and forced us to move to the Underdark." replied Du Al Ryien with a hint of ice cold anger in his voice.

"And that race is?" asked Theo.

"Orcs. Based on the fictional depiction of the green menace in this world, you have a good idea of the horrors my kin has faced."

The standard trope for Orcs revolved around stupidity and violence. In hentai, they're also an all male race that had insatiable libido and forcefully bred with other races to increase their numbers exponentially.

"Wait. The Elves made the Orcs?!" asked the shocked Milza.

"That is correct my friend. Who else have the magical know-how to create such a foul race? It was most certainly not us Drows. As a race that is in constant state of war, we focus everything in combat. Our magic also reflects that. We don't know how to artificially create life. The Elves, however, can. They will never admit it, but they created the plague that has spread through all of the realms."

"Damn. Now we really need to destroy that thing." said Theo.

"And that is why we came to you Lorne. My friend Milza has shown me a, what do your people call it..... a beedo?"

"Video, my friend" corrected Milza.

"Yes. That one. He showed me the events that happened during Vermilion City's 'Hellgate Incident'. More specifically, that large weapon your people used to kill that Greater Demon."

"Oh! You mean the BFG Prototype?" asked Theo.

"Is that the weapon's name? Anyways, we need that much power to destroy a portion of the garden and you are the only ally we have such a weapon in hand. Naturally, we will pay for your services. Name your price."

"I see. That makes logical sense. In that case, I accept this mission and we'll iron out the details at a later date. However, if I may be so bold gentlemen, I would like to make a proposition. If you were impressed with the prototype, then you should be interested in the fully functional version of the BFG."

Theo had one of his minions produce a laptop and downloaded all of the relevant info on the BFG 1.0 from his brain.

After a few minutes of pitching, Theo took Milza and Du Al Ryien back to his secret base to show them the prototype and the real thing.

Let's just say, the Drow made the most evil smile Theo has ever seen.

Another satisfied customer.