Tyranny of Steel

Night had fallen and the German Emperor stood within the confines of an enormous pyramid which once acted as a temple to the mysterious goddess he had encountered in the ancient city of Teotihuacán. The interior was lit with an ethereal light, which he believed to be the work of the deity in question.

The most notable feature of the interior of this pyramid was not the ornate nature of its pristine fittings, but the countless spiders who crawled among the walls. When Berengar saw this, he felt as if he knew the identity of the woman who sat upon the altar with such grace. Ultimately, he could not contain his shock and voiced his thoughts aloud.

"You are the Great goddess of Teotihuacán, are you not?"

Though Berengar could not tell, the mysterious goddess smiled beneath her headdress before nodding her head in response.

"They said you were knowledgeable about this world's history, and though it is not the same as the one you come from, it's good to see that I am not entirely forgotten."

Berengar was stunned. After all, historians knew very little about this goddess. Not even her name was recorded in history, and her existence was entirely a matter of speculation. Because of this, there were some crazy theories about what role she played in the ancient civilization, the most common one being she was a goddess of the underworld.

Among these strange theories was the idea that she may have been mixed gender. How historians came up with this theory, Berengar truthfully did not know, as pre-Columbian American history was not his forte. However, this became the most pertinent question in his mind, and he struggled to ask for clarification on the matter.

"Are you... you know.... a woman... down there?"

The goddess immediately broke out into a fit of laughter as she saw the awkward expression on the German Emperor's face. After several moments, she calmed herself, before answering Berengar's question with one of her own.

"Would you like to see?"

Berengar gulped his saliva as he heard such a response. He had to admit he was not expecting such a thing. Normally, a man would turn back at this point and rather live in the unknown than know the truth of such a matter. Perhaps it was because Baduhenna had gifted Berengar with the boon of courage, but he slowly nodded his head in silence.

When the goddess saw this, she smiled before parting her skirt, revealing a large, tanned manhood. Berengar almost did not believe his sight, for in the very next moment, the goddess hid her lower half with her skirt before teasing Berengar for his strange thought process.

"I have to admit you are a peculiar man. Most in your position would be curious about how they ended up in this world, who was pulling their strings, and what plans the gods might have for them. However, you are more interested in proving whether an obscure historical theory is correct... Well, are you satisfied with the answer?"

Berengar was struggling to come to terms with what he had just witnessed, and merely gazed at the goddess in shock. He simply nodded his head in silence, with a dumbfounded expression on his face. At the very least, a historical curiosity of his had been answered. Whether it was the answer, Berengar was hoping for only he would know.

Upon seeing Berengar's response, the goddess climbed off her altar and approached Berengar with a seductive sway. She placed her palm on his shoulder as she whispered something into his ear.

"Now that I've answered your question, how about you answer one of mine?"

Berengar did not know how to react to the goddess' movements, but he chose not to provoke her and instead answered her in the affirmative.

"What would you like to know?"

The Great goddess of Teotihuacan removed her bird headdress to reveal an extremely feminine and beautiful face. She had long dark hair which fell to her hips, and dark chocolate eyes. Her skin was tanned like the native population, and if Berengar had not just witnessed her manhood, he would be certain she was the most beautiful woman he had ever encountered.

Aside from her face, she had a curvy body with a perfect hourglass figure which supported a substantial bosom that rivaled that of many of Berengar's wives. In fact, he was actually curious what she would look like naked, considering she had the upper half of a woman, but the lower half of a man. When the goddess saw his inquisitive gaze, she merely smirked before teasing him.

"If you look at me with such longing, I might just have to play with you... However, that will have to wait until after we have had our little conversation. So tell me, what are your plans for the Aztec Empire?"

Berengar immediately snapped back to reality when he heard these words and reflected on the woman's question with fierce intent. There were still a bunch of questions on his mind, but the key among them was the existence of the Aztec Empire in this world.

"So the Aztec Empire already exists in this timeline?"

The goddess nodded her head before responding to Berengar's question.

"Indeed, in fact, that little girl you carried to these ruins is the third princess of their Empire. So allow me to reiterate, what are your plans for the Aztec Empire?"

Berengar thought long and hard about this question. He feared if he gave the wrong answer, the goddess would claim his life. Thus, in order to test the waters, he posed a purely hypothetical question.

"Would you be enraged if I my answer was conquest?"

The goddess did not behave as Berengar had expected and immediately giggled before retorting to his question.

"You think I care about the Aztecs? They aren't even aware I exist, let alone worship me. No, the civilization that once saw me as their goddess is long extinct, do with the Aztecs as you please. I'm just curious whether you plan to follow the same path as your last life."

Berengar was relieved when he realized she would not kill him for answering incorrectly, thus he did not hesitate to voice his honest thoughts on the matter.

"Initially, I had planned to conquer Mesoamerica. After all, there is a vast stockpile of resources here that I need for my Empire to truly prosper. However, as I dwell on this idea, such a thing seems not only unlikely but also the longest route to success. If I were truly to pursue the route of conquest, there is only one feasible way I could gain the resources in the region. That is through slave labor, and I am abhor such a thing.

The fact of the matter is I simply do not have the population to colonize Mesoamerica in this lifetime. Which is why I have considered an alternative, and that is to force the Aztec Empire beneath the heel of the Reich and make them acknowledge us as their suzerains.

In doing so, the Aztecs can continue to rule these lands, and use their massive hordes of slaves to mine the resource deposits I tell them to, where they will then pay tribute to the fatherland. This allows me to slowly and steadily introduce the gold and silver to my economy, in a way that won't destroy it."

The goddess merely smiled at Berengar and nodded her head in approval. After doing so, she grabbed hold of his head and kissed him on the lips. The moment she did so, Berengar felt a searing pain inside his body, and in the next moment, he fell to his knees, grasping his chest in indignation. He gazed up at the woman in fury as he interrogated her for her actions.

"What the hell did you just do to me?"

The goddess frowned and flicked the German Emperor's forehead before scolding him for his tone.

"You should be thankful that I have taken an interest in you. If you must know, I removed the mark the Abrahamic god has branded upon your soul, and replaced it with my own. When your body finally passes away from this world, your soul will reside here with me for eternity. This is the greatest gift I can give you as a goddess of the underworld. Trust me, it is a better alternative than where you were headed..."

Berengar gazed at the woman in shock. He could not believe what he had just heard. Thus, he could not help but ask the question on his mind.

"The Abrahamic god is real?"

The goddess frowned when she heard this. Evidently, she was not on good terms with the Abrahamic god. However, ultimately, she sighed as she nodded her head before responding.

"Indeed, though, he is not nearly as powerful as his worshippers tend to believe. If anything, he is among the weakest of the gods, hence why he has no actual effect on the world outside of what his followers do in his name.

However, because your parents had you baptized at birth, he had a claim over your soul, and believe me when I say that old bastard had you destined for the pit. It's a shame, but the only way to remove a god's brand is for another more powerful deity of the underworld to replace it with their own."

Berengar gazed around at his surroundings and nodded his head in approval before making a joke about his situation.

"I suppose an eternity here is better than the pit, especially when I have such a beautiful goddess to look after me..."

The great goddess of Teotihuacán was awestruck when she heard this response. Even after revealing her lower half, this crazy bastard still had the gall to say such a thing. She could not help but blush before muttering something under her breath.

"Just don't go getting any other deity to replace my brand, or else I will never forgive you!"

Berengar gazed at the goddess with a questioning gaze. He had not quite heard what she said and asked for clarification.

"I'm sorry. What was that?"

In the very next instant, the goddess acted as if she had never said a thing.

"I didn't say anything..."

Berengar scoffed when he heard such shamelessness before switching the conversation to something more important. After all, this was the longest and most productive conversation he had with a deity, and he wanted to learn everything he could about the supernatural aspect of this world.

"So if the Abrahamic god exists, then why was I reincarnated into this world?"