The dimensional space settled around them like a cage made of warped physics.
Tony's enhanced perception struggled to process what he was seeing. The environment existed in a state of contradiction. Walls that were simultaneously present and absent. Ground that felt solid but looked like liquid mercury. A sky that might have been a ceiling or might have been infinite void.
Grimmey set Yuki down carefully, his expression darkening. "Sovereign Space. This is bad."
"What is it?" Yuki asked, her voice shaking.
"A Concept," Marcus said, his eyes scanning their surroundings. "Dominion. The ability to claim territory and rewrite local rules within it. Whoever caught us isn't just strong. They're specialized."
Tony analyzed the space. The dimensional pocket had structure, which meant it had rules. And rules could be understood. Possibly exploited.
"Can we break out?" Tony asked.
"Not easily. Sovereign Space is self-contained. From the outside, we've probably vanished completely. Time might be flowing differently here." Marcus's hand moved to his pocket again, withdrawing what looked like a simple pen. It shimmered, form unstable, reality uncertain about what it actually was. "We'll have to either defeat whoever created this or find a weakness in the construct itself."
"I vote for finding a weakness," Yuki said. "The whole 'not fighting a trained god-hunter' plan sounds better."
"Agreed, but they might not give us that option." Grimmey rolled his shoulders, divine essence beginning to leak from his body in visible wisps. Physics responding to his presence, gravity fluctuating slightly around him. "Anyone else feel the essence drain?"
Tony did. His mortal body felt heavier, slower, as if the space itself was pressing down on his divine nature, trying to suppress it.
"The domain is anti-divine," Marcus said. "Not completely, but enough to hamper us. Clever. Makes fighting harder, escape nearly impossible."
A voice echoed through the space, coming from everywhere and nowhere simultaneously.
"You're more perceptive than expected, Hermes."
The voice was male, cultured, carrying an accent Tony couldn't quite place. European, possibly. Old. The kind of accent that came from speaking dozens of languages over centuries and blending them all together.
"Show yourself," Marcus called out, his casual corporate consultant demeanor completely gone now. This was Hermes, High God, Messenger of Zeus. Authority radiating from him despite the suppression.
"Of course."
Space folded, and he appeared.
Tall. Perhaps two meters. Dark hair pulled back in a style that could have been from any era. Sharp features that suggested intelligence and calculation. Expensive suit, perfectly tailored, not a wrinkle despite the dimensional manipulation he'd just performed. His eyes were the most striking feature, gold, literally gold, with pupils that resembled compass points.
"My name is Arcturus," the hunter said, inclining his head slightly in what might have been respect or mockery. "High God of Dominion. I serve Zeus as enforcer and retriever of... problematic assets."
Tony studied him. The way he stood suggested combat training. The way he spoke suggested careful control. The way his essence manifested, barely visible but present as a golden aura that seemed to push against reality itself, suggested immense power held in check.
"You're here for Tony," Marcus said. Not a question.
"Obviously." Arcturus's attention shifted to Tony, those gold eyes assessing. "The eighteenth child. Syntax. Computer Science. The one the goddess of Knowledge hid in mortal flesh." He smiled slightly. "You're smaller than I expected. Less impressive. But then, you're just a fragment, aren't you?"
Tony didn't respond. There was no tactical advantage in confirming or denying.
"Zeus offers terms," Arcturus continued, addressing all of them now. "Surrender Tony Code. Allow me to transport him to the tenth dimension for... discussion. In exchange, the rest of you walk away. No harm. No pursuit. Zeus's word on it."
"Zeus's word," Grimmey said, his tone dripping with sarcasm despite the obvious danger. "That's worth absolutely nothing."
"Perhaps. But it's the offer." Arcturus spread his hands. "Or you can fight. Here, in my domain, where I control every physical law. Where your essence drains by the second while mine remains stable. Where I've had centuries to perfect combat applications of Sovereign Space." His smile widened. "I'm curious which option you'll choose."
Marcus's grip tightened on his pen-weapon. "We're not handing over Tony."
"Expected, but disappointing." Arcturus sighed. "Hermes, you of all gods should understand pragmatism. You served Zeus for millennia. You know how he operates. Tony will be captured eventually. Today, tomorrow, next week. The hunt always ends the same way. Why not minimize casualties?"
"Because I made a promise," Marcus said quietly. "To someone who mattered more than pragmatism."
Something flickered in Arcturus's expression. Understanding, maybe. Or recognition of similar loss. "Meltiy. Yes, I heard about that. The crow pendant. Unfortunate." His tone suggested genuine sympathy. "But she's gone, Hermes. The promise died with her."
"No," Marcus said. "It didn't."
Arcturus studied him for a long moment. Then nodded slowly. "Very well. I respect conviction, even when it's foolish."
He raised one hand, and the space around them shifted. The mercury-like ground solidified into something that looked like obsidian. The walls crystallized into geometric patterns. The ceiling became visible, a dome of interlocking golden segments.
An arena.
"I'll give you one chance," Arcturus said. "Fight me. All of you. If you win, I release the domain and you go free. If I win, Tony comes with me and I let the others leave."
"How generous," Grimmey muttered.
"It's more than Zeus would offer." Arcturus's expression hardened. "I don't enjoy killing gods, Physion. Especially not siblings of Knowledge. Your mother's work was impressive, even if misguided. But I have my orders."
Tony's mind raced through calculations. Arcturus was confident, which meant he had reason to be. His Concept, Dominion, gave him control over the battlefield. They were fighting in his territory, under his rules, while their essence drained and his didn't.
The probability of victory: extremely low.
But not zero.
"We accept," Tony said.
Everyone turned to look at him.
"Tony..." Marcus started.
"Probability analysis indicates fighting is suboptimal but necessary," Tony said calmly. "Surrendering produces guaranteed negative outcome. Fighting produces potential negative outcome with non-zero probability of success. The choice is logical."
Arcturus laughed. "I like him. He thinks like a machine. Very appropriate for Computer Science." He gestured, and weapons materialized around the arena. Swords, spears, energy constructs, things that defied easy categorization. "Arm yourselves if you wish. Though against Dominion, weapons matter less than will."
Marcus's pen-weapon shifted, becoming a proper blade. Silver, gleaming, etched with symbols that hurt to look at directly.
Grimmey didn't take a weapon. His hands began to glow instead, physics equations appearing in the air around him as visible mathematics. Gravity, momentum, force, all becoming tools at his disposal.
Tony had nothing. No weapon. No combat training. Just his enhanced mind and whatever divine abilities he hadn't accessed yet.
"Yuki, stay back," Marcus said. "Don't interfere. Don't draw his attention."
She nodded, moving to the edge of the arena, pressing against the wall.
Arcturus watched them prepare with the patience of someone who'd done this hundreds of times. "Begin when ready. I'll even let you have the first move. Courtesy between High Gods."
Marcus and Grimmey exchanged a glance. Some silent communication passed between them.
Then they moved.
Marcus deleted the distance between himself and Arcturus, appearing beside him faster than perception, blade already descending toward the hunter's neck.
Simultaneously, Grimmey raised both hands and inverted gravity directly above Arcturus, creating a localized singularity that should have crushed him instantly.
Arcturus didn't move.
The blade stopped centimeters from his neck, suspended in midair as if striking an invisible barrier.
The gravity inversion twisted, redirected, flowing around him harmlessly.
"My domain," Arcturus said calmly. "My rules."
He snapped his fingers.
Marcus was thrown backward, his body ragdolling through the air before slamming into the far wall hard enough to crack the obsidian.
Grimmey's gravity construct collapsed, backfiring, pulling him to the ground with force that should have shattered bones.
Tony watched both gods struggle to rise, already breathing hard, essence visibly leaking from them faster now.
They'd lasted three seconds.
And Arcturus hadn't even moved from his position.
This wasn't going to be a fight.
It was going to be an execution.