As soon as she entered Lelith's body, Isha found a strange soul inside—a giant green mantis.
The other soul Isha sensed was, of course, the cosmic phantom beast inside Lelith!
"Don't worry, that's Lelith's companion—a special lifeform called a cosmic phantom beast!
The reason her body is so strong, and can host your soul, is thanks to this monster," Rhodes explained.
He gave Isha a brief rundown of how amazing the cosmic phantom beast was.
"Incredible! Fusing with a regular being and raising its life level to that of a demigod!
Such wonders have appeared in the material universe, and our Eldar gods never noticed," Isha said in awe.
Though she'd just entered the body, she could sense how perfect it was. She was stronger in the material universe now than ever before.
With this body, she didn't need to worry about Slaanesh's threat—at least, not in the material universe.
For certain reasons, Slaanesh could sense her as the Eldar goddess of life and would seek her out through that connection.
But with this body, she could wield power surpassing an average C'tan.
No matter what Slaanesh sent, even a Greater Daemon or several Greater Daemons and their Demon Princes, they'd be no match. The gap between a demigod and a Greater Daemon or Prince was huge.
After taking over the body, Isha easily gained control. All Eldar, in a sense, were her children.
Lelith naturally offered no resistance to her mother goddess.
"You need to understand, this body is just temporary for you. I'm not handing it over permanently, so don't get any ideas," Rhodes said sternly.
From Isha's words, Rhodes strongly suspected she wanted to take over Lelith's body permanently, so he immediately ordered the cosmic mantis inside Lelith—if the goddess of life tried anything, attack without mercy.
Isha's face stiffened. For a moment, she had indeed wanted to possess the body forever—it really was perfect for her!
No demigod could refuse a vessel that let them move freely in the material universe and wield most of their power.
If she'd had such a body when Slaanesh was born, she'd never have been caught—she could have come straight to the real universe.
But the thought only lasted a moment. All Eldar were her children; as the goddess of life, she was kind and gentle by nature.
It was just spending so long in Nurgle's place had twisted her a little.
"I'm sorry! For a moment, I really did have that evil thought. I've been in Nurgle's Garden for too long," Isha admitted.
"You're possessing my wife's body. If you harm her,
I'll kill you myself—no need for Slaanesh or Nurgle to intervene," Rhodes said bluntly.
Rhodes had sensed killing intent from the goddess just now, so he sternly warned her of the consequences.
"I understand. I won't do anything. I'm not as cruel as you think. Since my birth, I've never killed an Eldar child," Isha said.
She felt a bit sad. A silvery tear rolled down her cheek, turning into a life gem.
Had living with Nurgle for so long really tainted her heart?
"The Warp is a twisted place—otherwise those four bastards wouldn't exist!"
"You're Rhodes, right? Thank you for your help. You said this girl—my vessel—is your wife? So you, a human, married an Eldar?" Isha asked.
Her children were indeed beautiful, possibly the most beautiful beings in the universe—even by human standards, Eldar were dazzling. Humans were fascinated by them.
Isha wasn't surprised by this, but she hadn't expected a true union. Since Slaanesh's birth, Eldar could only breed in cold, loveless ways.
This child seemed special. Her soul link with Slaanesh had been mysteriously severed.
"That's my doing. Hello, goddess of life. I am the cosmic phantom beast, the great cosmic mantis. My blades can sever cosmic causality.
When I am strong enough, I can even sever your connection to Slaanesh," said the cosmic mantis inside Lelith.
"Amazing! Not only can you raise an ordinary being's life level, but
you can also cut the Slaanesh link! Do you have more companions?" Isha asked.
If she gathered all the War God's avatars, could she revive Khaine, the Eldar War God?
If a warrior volunteered as a host, and a cosmic phantom beast helped, could Khaine be reborn—restoring the Eldar's mightiest champion?
Unlike other Eldar gods, Khaine's power was the strongest—even the Father of the Gods might not beat him in a fight.
If Khaine returned, alongside the Laughing God, the Death God, Rhodes, and the Emperor, maybe they really could kill Slaanesh.
"Of course. But all my companions obey my master!" said the cosmic mantis.
"Rhodes! I want to discuss something with you. If you have spare cosmic phantom beasts, we could revive a powerful ally—our War God!
If Khaine returns, plus the Laughing God, the Death God, your power, and the Emperor, maybe we really can defeat Slaanesh," Isha said.
"You're right, I do have more phantom beasts. But why should I revive Khaine?
He isn't easy to get along with. If I remember, it was because of Khaine that your husband died, and you yourself were hunted by him," Rhodes replied.
Why should Rhodes help with that? If he had time to grow, he could defeat all four Chaos Gods himself.
The four had huge weaknesses—they couldn't walk the material universe. That was Rhodes' greatest advantage.
"Come on, this isn't the time for selfishness. Everyone knows my grudge with Khaine, but I'm willing to set it aside to face our common enemy," Isha said.
Khaine's combat power wasn't weaker than the Emperor's!
Once revived, Khaine could absorb all the universe's war energy.
This war-torn galaxy was perfect for him. Khaine's revival would even weaken Khorne.
Khorne, the Blood God, doesn't just control war—Khaine does, purely.
Some prophecies said the Eldar would kill Khaine, and Khaine would destroy the race to reverse his death.
So he wasn't strictly an Eldar god; his power didn't depend solely on the Eldar.
If revived, all war across the universe would empower him. The current state of the galaxy was perfect for Khaine.
"But the Craftworld Eldar won't just hand over their War God's shards, and after so long, some are damaged. How do you know you can really revive Khaine?" Rhodes asked.
"If I reveal myself, my children will give the shards willingly. Gathering all Khaine's avatars is just a matter of time.
Once the shards are together, Khaine can absorb all the war energy and be perfectly reborn. All we need is a suitable vessel," Isha replied.
Khaine, as the mightiest Eldar god, wasn't so easy to destroy. His avatars proved his ongoing existence.
"So what's in it for me? I already saved you, and you paid me with your life energy. Now you seem to have nothing left," Rhodes said.
"You! This is for everyone's benefit, and you're still asking for a reward?" Isha looked at Rhodes, exasperated.
Shouldn't everyone unite against the four Chaos Gods?
Ten thousand years of lessons wasn't enough?
"I refuse. You can borrow this body for a few hours each afternoon, but the rest of the time belongs to my wife!" Rhodes said, waving her off.
He was busy with the space wolves and getting ready for the crusade.
He had no time to collect Khaine's avatars! The crusade would involve awakening psykers, plague wars, the Dead Zone, the Vigilus War, the Omen Arks, and the Fourth Tyranid War—all golden opportunities for system points!
With those points, he could unlock the top shop and summon bosses from the Ultraman Universe.
"Rhodes, wait! I can handle collecting the avatars. I'll summon my children.
All I need is one cosmic phantom beast and your support. With my life energy plus your beast, Khaine can be revived," Isha said.
"I'm not interested in anything else! Now that you have a body, go back to sleep. You only get a few hours a day," Rhodes said.
Isha stared at Rhodes, then took a deep breath as if making a decision.
"You and my child are married, but you'll never have a child of your own.
Because our two species are reproductively isolated—that's a regret for both of you.
But as the goddess of life, I can use my power to help you have a divine child.
This child would be born a god, with Warp powers and a physical body.
Unprecedented, flawless," Isha said.
Rhodes turned, surprised. She was right—it was a regret for him and Lelith.
Even with Elena, nothing happened yet.
"So how does it work?"
"The child will belong to all three of us. You and she provide the body,
and I, with you, provide the divine soul," Isha said.