Traveling as zamasu

Zamasu sat with his legs crossed, back straight, and hands resting on his knees. 

The moss under him was soft but uneven. The light from the surrounding trees bathed the clearing in a dull, greenish hue. 

Nothing moved nearby. The distant sounds of the rest of Floor 18—birds, insects, voices—were faint now, easy to ignore.

He closed his eyes and took a slow breath. Then another.

His breathing settled into a rhythm. In. Out. No counting. No control. Just consistent.

He wasn't trying to achieve some enlightened state. He was just clearing his head enough to feel what was going on inside his own body.

After a few minutes, his awareness turned inward. Not to thoughts or emotions, but to the quiet pressure in his chest. It had always been there, even when he didn't notice it. A subtle, physical sensation—dense, warm, centered.

That was ki.

Not magic. Nor some divine power. Just energy produced by life.

He stayed still and focused on it—not to summon it or force it out, but to observe how it moved. It wasn't a physical fluid, but it had movement. He could feel it shift slightly when he changed his posture or when his breathing deepened.

He focused on keeping his breathing steady and shifted that pressure toward his arms. Not all at once, just gradually. 

The sensation was faint—like warmth moving slowly down his shoulders into his forearms. It wasn't perfect. Sometimes it stalled or faded, and he had to reset.

He kept at it.

After a while, the sensation reached his hands. His palms felt slightly heavier, a dull tingling starting at the base of each finger.

He opened his eyes and lifted his hands in front of him, palms facing each other, a few inches apart. Fingers naturally curved. Elbows relaxed.

The space between his hands was empty.

He directed the energy from his chest again, this time toward the space between his palms. Nothing happened at first. The sensation was weak and inconsistent.

A small flicker appeared. Then disappeared.

He tried again. The same thing happened.

He adjusted his breathing and repeated the motion. Over time, the flickers grew more stable. Eventually, a small sphere of light appeared between his palms. It was weak—barely brighter than a candle flame—but it held.

He kept his hands still and concentrated on maintaining it. It lasted five seconds, maybe six, then broke apart.

He reset and started again.

Another orb formed. This one faded sooner.

He didn't stop.

He did it again. And again. With each attempt, he pushed more ki into the space between his palms. The orbs lasted longer. 

The warmth in his hands became more familiar. His ability to move ki improved—not by much, but enough to notice.

After what felt like an hour, his shoulders were starting to ache from the repeated motion. His breathing was heavier now. The moss was warm beneath him, but his back was tight from holding the same position.

Still, he continued.

Each orb drained a little more energy. Each failure forced him to correct how he distributed the ki. He tried using less. Tried using more. Shorter bursts. Slower builds. 

No method seemed perfect, but the repetition taught him how to make small adjustments. How to stabilize the shape. How to feel when it was about to break.

The next orb lasted ten seconds before flickering out. It had clearer edges this time—more consistent light. He wasn't proud of it, but he noted the improvement.

Then he started again.

The process never got easier, but he got better at managing the effort. He could summon the orb faster now—maybe three seconds, where it used to take twenty. It still took focus, but not as much guessing. The learning curve was steep, but he was adapting.

He didn't know how long he kept at it. There was no clock. No sun. Just the slow, constant glow of the trees and the faint pressure building behind his eyes.

Eventually, the orbs began to form slower again. His control was slipping.

The energy didn't move as easily through his arms. His palms felt colder. The warmth that had been reliable earlier was gone, replaced by a shaky pressure that didn't respond the same way.

He tried one more orb.

It came out faint. Dimmer than the others. Flickering at the edges.

He held it for three seconds before it collapsed.

He took a breath and raised his hands again.

No light.

He forced more ki forward. The result was unstable. The pressure spiked, then dropped. His arms trembled slightly. His heart was beating faster than it should've been for sitting still.

He went for one last try.

Nothing formed.

The energy was there, but thin. Unresponsive. Like trying to squeeze water from a dry cloth.

He lowered his hands slowly.

His whole body was heavy now. Not sore like after a fight, but drained. Even breathing was harder than it should've been.

He didn't bother trying again. He already knew the next attempt would fail.

He'd pushed too far.

Zamasu shifted slightly and tried to stretch his back, but the movement made his vision swim. His limbs didn't want to respond the way they should've. The fatigue wasn't just mental—it was complete.

His body had burned through what it had.

He leaned back slowly, but not far. His balance slipped, and before he could stop it, he tipped to the side and hit the moss with a soft thud.

He didn't pass out, but he was close. His eyes were open, but unfocused. His breathing was shallow. Every muscle felt slack.

He wasn't injured. Just spent.

That one last push had drained everything.

He stayed like that for a while—half on his side, cheek resting on moss, hands limp beside him.

There were no dramatic realizations. No sudden flashes of insight. Just quiet.

He had worked until there was nothing left to work with.

Eventually, he let his eyes close. From pure exhaustion.

He'd learned how far he could go today.

Next time, he'd go further.

***

Elsewhere,

Inside the main strategy room of the Loki Familia estate, the final meeting was underway.

The table was cleared of all clutter except for the tactical map of Knossos and three colored markers denoting teams A, B, and C. 

The atmosphere was focused, no wasted words. Everyone present knew this wasn't a routine operation.

Finn Deimne stood at the head of the table.

"All teams are set. Ouranos gave the green light. We enter Knossos at 0500."

Riveria gave a short nod. "The passage under Floor 24 is confirmed. No shifts in layout since last scout pass."

Gareth crossed his arms. "And weapons?"

"We got the anti-regen gear from Hephaistos' people last night," Riveria answered. "Custom blades and reinforced harpoons. Every front-line member has one."

Finn continued. "Ganesha Familia begins the diversion at dawn. Routine monster transport from Daedalus Street. Legitimate on paper, enough noise to hide our descent. Nobody will question it."

Tione glanced at the map. "We splitting as planned?"

Finn moved the markers.

"Team A, vanguard. Me, Riveria, Gareth. We breach the first layer and hold the choke."

"Team B hits from the flank once the fighting starts," Riveria added, pointing. "Aiz, Bete, Tiona, Tione. Fast, mobile push. Clear anything trying to box us in."

"Team C," Finn said, "will move in after Teams A and B have locked down the corridors. Lefiya, Raul, and the support casters. Your job is to reach the central core and overload the power channeling system. We're not trying to occupy, just destroy."

Tiona tapped the table. "How long are we giving it before extraction?"

"Two hours max," Gareth answered. "If we don't hit the core by then, we pull back."

Bete leaned forward. "And if they're waiting for us?"

"We fight through," Aiz said plainly.

"Communication crystals are live," Riveria said. "One in each squad lead's kit."

Tione raised a brow. "What if we lose the shaft?"

"Secondary extraction through Floor 27," Riveria replied. "No other options. Don't lose the shaft."

Finn looked around the table. "You all know the risks. We're not announcing this to the Guild. No help's coming if this goes bad. Keep your teams tight."

Everyone nodded.

"No speeches," Gareth said. "We all know what this is."

Finn gave the final order.

"Get your squads ready. We move before sunrise."

The meeting broke.

Chapter 33 end

Was doing a shit ton a research and had to reread volume 11-14 to get an idea on what happen in this raid and had it formulate how it's gonna play out. This chapter is missing quite a lot of information so you might might a few problems with the future chapters.