Ah! 10948 edited. ch2.
Exam time, that time of the semester when it all comes down to brass tacks, where even having a goddess for a girlfriend will avail you not if you haven't been keeping up with your studies. That time when all your concentration and focus needs to be on the task at hand. When the last thing in the world you need to hear is an all too familiar demon's voice calling your name.
"Keiichi Morisato," came the sound of Mara's voice from behind him. "Fancy meeting you here."
"Ma... Mara, what are you doing here?" Keiichi stammered.
"While I know you are going to find it hard to believe I'm here to warn you," she said, "It would appear that Hild has blown a gasket! She has informed me in no uncertain terms that she wants your three pet goddesses off this planet now! I don't know what has happened to get her into such a state, but I do know that she is a level of angry that I have never witnessed this side of hell! She just made it perfectly clear to me that I am to do anything and everything it takes to get Belldandy and her sisters back up to Heaven and I am to make your life absolutely miserable from now on until they leave. A task that I would normally embrace with gusto I might add. However, I'm worried about Belldandy. Lets face it, that girl can out stubborn a mule and if she doesn't take the hint I am afraid that Hild might do something to get you out of the way! I know how Belldandy feels about you and I dam well don't want her to blame me if something bad happens to you because of it!"
"What do you mean by something bad?" asked Keiichi.
"In the state she is in right now I would not be surprised if Hild tries to kill you!"
"Why would she want to do that!"
"I'm not in the loop on this; all I know is that she mentioned something about you and those three goddesses almost destroying the entire world again!"
"That wasn't their fault! They had nothing to do with it! We just got caught up in that big mess is all."
"What!" Mara screamed in disgust, "You mean they really did almost destroy the world again!"
"Hey, be fair," Keiichi snapped back, "The first time was your fault! If you hadn't been so desperate to get the upper hand on Belldandy then the Lord of Terror thing would never have happened."
"Yeah whatever Morisato, regardless of what you might think the reason is, if you hadn't bound Belldandy to the mortal plane then whatever it was that just happened would not have happened. Anyway my orders from Hild don't give me any leeway and she is going to be watching me like a Hawk. Look, I'm just worried about my own ass here and I don't want Belldandy coming after me if Hild takes you out because you were too stubborn to release her contract!"
"Belldandy's not bound by her contract anymore, and she hasn't been for sometime," Keiichi told her proudly. "She stays down here with me of her own freewill."
"Freewill or not Morisato, that contract is what enables her to stay down here, without it the Almighty One would have recalled her a long time ago! Anyway, be advised that sometime today I'm going to put a pie in your face so that Hild will think I'm following her orders. I just stopped by to warn you and give you a chance to save yourself some pain; by the way, do you have any flavor preferences or food allergies I need to be aware of?"
"Apple and no, I guess." said a puzzled Keiichi.
"All right then I'll see what I can do. Look Keiichi," Mara said conspiratorially, "It's those dam goddesses I have a beef with, not you! Do us both a favor and revoke her contract, do it now before you both get hurt."
Belldandy had felt Mara's presence as soon as she appeared on the campus. She had sought her out but Mara had been careful to make her presence felt at the other end of the campus. Then she waited until Belldandy came looking for her before she spoke with Keiichi as he was waiting for his next class. When Belldandy realized she had been duped she hurriedly sought out Keiichi and went to be by his side.
"Was that Mara that was here just now?" she asked as she felt the Demon's presence fade.
"Yes it was," said Keiichi as his mind was still trying to wrap itself around what he had just been told.
"Did she say what she wanted?"
"Yes she did. Hild has found out about Celestin and thinks that we had something to do with the Earth almost being destroyed. Mara told me that Hild wants to drive the three of you off of the planet no matter what! Apparently their intention is to make our lives miserable until you three decide to go back home. She was even worried that I might get hurt if you don't take the hint."
"That had nothing to do with you!" Belldandy gasped. "Celestin plotted all that on his own, in fact had you not been here to help me stop him he most probably would have succeeded. Hild should know that we would never do anything to jeopardize the Earth."
"Well anyway," Keiichi continued, "Mara told me that she's going to put a pie in my face sometime today so Hild will think she's doing her job. She seemed really concerned about me not taking it personally; she even asked what flavor I liked."
"And you said?" Belldandy asked him suspiciously.
"Apple."
"Oh no," Belldandy gasped, "This could be very dangerous for you!"
"How so?"
"Mara is just as twisted as Hild! Don't forget she almost let you burn to death when she tried to seal me before."
"But still it's just a simple prank, just how much do I need to worry?"
"Apple pies are baked! If you get hit with one in your face that is fresh out of the oven you could be badly burned!"
"Oh, I didn't think of that. Maybe I should have asked for Banana Cream instead."
"This is not funny!" Belldandy snapped, "If Hild wishes to cause you harm there might not be anything I can do to stop it! We should go back to the temple right away."
"We can't go back to the temple. If I miss computer class I will flunk the course. I need to get this credit out of the way so that I can start Graduate School next semester."
"All right then," Belldandy sighed, "I will keep a close eye on you until your class is over then we need to go back home and get this mess straightened out before something bad really does happen to you."
Education is a continually evolving science and different fields evolve at different speeds. As a result classrooms are constantly being renovated and teaching materials are constantly updated. Computers for instance are relatively new and fairly light, their power requirements are low and the machines themselves are easily portable. Consequently computer classes can be set up in just about any building where there is available space. Home Economics classes on the other hand use very heavy equipment such as refrigerators and stoves that require special plumbing and a heavy-duty power source. As a result once a Home Economics classroom is established in a certain building it is likely to remain there regardless of the nature of the other disciplines that might be taught in the classrooms that surround it.
In computer class that day.
Keiichi made it to class just seconds before the doors were locked. Taking his seat in front of the console with his name on it he heard the voice of the Professor from the front of the classroom as he said, "All right students, log onto your assigned computers and enter your passwords. Once you're on line you will receive course instructions on today's exam. Don't bother looking over at your neighbor because their exam is totally different from yours. You have one-hour to complete the test. Incomplete is the same as failed and you will not pass this course. If there are no questions then you may begin."
As Keiichi logged onto his computer the system booted up and immediately began its thrice daily OS update containing Daemon William's latest virus, after the requisite 15 minute delay where the computer did everything except what the operator wanted it to do it finally rebooted itself and actually began the test. As Keiichi logged into the evil machine did a cross-reference of the user ID's and the Trojan horse's target files. Once Keiichi's ID was positively identified the system began uploading Hild's DRO program into his mind and began subtly altering his thinking processes. If Keiichi was even aware of that subtle itch in the back of his mind his concern for finishing the test out weighed it.
For their part Hild and Mara had moved to a safe distance beyond which Belldandy could not sense them and were eagerly monitoring the progress of the virus as it was uploaded into his brain via a hardened terminal.
Smiling at the Upload Complete banner on the screen Hild said in satisfaction, "Now all we need do is wait for the appropriate time to spring the trap,"
"You don't really want me to hit him in the face with a freshly baked apple pie do you?" asked Mara.
"No, I was tempted though, but as much as it would please me to cause that idiot more pain we need to stay focused on hacking Belldandy's firewall. Besides they're making cream pies in Home Economics class today so I guess he lucks out and we go with his second option."
"Instead of me hitting him in the face how about I force feed him Sora's pie instead?" Mara suggested maliciously.
"Very creative Mara, I like it, but I don't think poisoning him will do us any good. Let's just stick to the original plan."
"Oh, very well," Mara said dejectedly. "So how do we spring the trap?"
"By forcing Keiichi to exit by way of the Home Economics class. We just need to time it so that he walks by the class the same time the girls are taking their pies out of the refrigerator. I will create a distraction that will cause Belldandy to lose track of him then you can pummel him with pies to your heart's content. Once Belldandy senses he is in danger she will try to establish a link with him. As soon as that is done I will activate the Trojan horse and then we can withdraw and watch the outcome."
Aftermath.
As traps go it had been expertly executed, thought Keiichi as he looked down upon Belldandy's face as he cradled her head in his lap. It had been the epitome of simplicity and misdirection. Looking back on it Keiichi knew he should have realized that Belldandy had been the real target all along. After all Mara had as much as told him so when she 'warned' him of the trap. Keiichi now knew that he had been used as a weapon to injure the one person he cared for most in the world. It was this realization that had sickened him and had set his imagination traveling down the dark paths of the Id.
He didn't know how but he knew that the demons had done something to his mind that had caused his and Belldandy's thoughts to become locked together. Belldandy had been forced to share her mind's innermost secrets with him. The opposite had been true for him as well. The big difference, besides the fact that her fantasies were a lot more… adventurous…than his, was the fact that none of the secrets in his mind threatened the very foundations of Heaven.
At first Keiichi had thought that Belldandy was simply embarrassed by having been forced to share her fantasies with him. But the truth he realized was much darker, Belldandy had a hidden past, a past she so desperately wanted to keep secret from the ones she loved. Belldandy was a murderess!
His reverie was broken by Sora returning from the wash basin as she said, "Here are some more towels senpai." as she offered them to him along with a bucket of fresh water.
"Thank you," Keiichi replied gratefully.
Keiichi took the moistened towels from Sora and after checking to see that the bandages on Belldandy's hands were still tight, he began wiping the blood from Belldandy's face.
Looking back at the events of a quarter hour prior, he could see how the two of them had been played for fools. He had just finished his exam and had logged off his computer when the building's fire alarm was activated. The class had been evacuating down the stairs that passed by the Home Economics classroom when suddenly the doors had opened and those students began evacuating as well. Problem was that not all the cuisine had been graded yet and those students still needing to submit their projects had tried to rescue their creations. Into his line of sight had come Sora carrying the dessert she had made. Keiichi knew in an instant that this was the prank Mara had warned him of and he desperately tried to avoid falling into it but the crush of people was too great. Inexorably he and Sora's paths were being forced to cross.
For her part, Belldandy had been keeping watch on Keiichi from just outside the classroom doors when she suddenly felt Hild's presence in the building. She had gone to investigate and had found Hild standing next to one of the fire alarm stations. As soon as Hild and her eyes met Hild casually reached up and pulled the alarm and then disappeared.
Belldandy quickly realized that she had been tricked into leaving Keiichi unguarded and had hurriedly tried to return to him but by then the evacuation had already begun. By the time she got back to the classroom Keiichi was out the door and down the stairs. Desperately she looked for him in vain, fearing she had been dilatory she sought him out with her mind. Once she had triangulated his position she raced to the nearest overlook in a corner of one of the stairwell landings where she could keep watching him. Unfortunately by the time she had eyes on him he and Sora were already on a collision course. From her vantagepoint she could see which way he needed to dodge to avoid the demon's devilishly sticky trap but knew there was no way for him to hear her voice. Having no other option she linked her mind to his.
Of course, that had been just what Hild and Mara had been waiting for. Once they knew the link was established Hild activated Daemon William's Trojan horse and watched Keiichi go rigid as his mind lost control of all its voluntary thought processes.
For his part Keiichi had felt Belldandy's presence and had started to relax but as soon as she touched his consciousness with hers he felt something in his mind snap. Suddenly he was no longer able to just listen to her with his mind, now his brain needed to know everything. Without knowing how he felt his mind reach into hers and begin rifling through the contents of her memories. Prodding, poking, probing, every door that she had sought to keep closed Keiichi's mind had breached, every fantasy she had, every secret she held his out of control mind had stolen from her.
Belldandy had felt it too, as soon as the link was established she could feel an alien presence in his mind. A hungry ravenous string of living demon code that wouldn't be sated until every secret she held was exposed. She had reeled at the thought of opening her innermost self to Keiichi but knew if she severed the connection his mind could be seriously damaged. So there they had remained, each one being forced to share their most closely held secrets with the other. To their credit both Keiichi and Belldandy had relaxed their minds, allowing the duplex link to flow unrestricted, thereby reducing the strain on themselves and each other. As their minds remained locked together Keiichi found himself unable to move, the crush of the crowd forcing him and Sora closer together. Finally the inevitable happened, Keiichi felt his legs go out from under him and he fell face first into the Cream pie Sora was carrying.
As soon as Keiichi hit the floor the alarms went silent and the crush of people started to ease. The humor of the event didn't go unnoticed by those around him and a contagious laughter began to erupt easing the tension of a few moments earlier.
"Well Mr. Morisato, how does it taste," came the voice of the Home Ecc. Teacher as she struggled to contain her laughter.
Seeing the fearful look in Sora's eyes Keiichi knew that the fates had placed her GPA in his hands. Sealing himself he took a large portion of the sticky concoction and stuck it in his mouth. The unexpected and quite delicious flavor caught him off guard. The smile that lit up on his face told Sora she had a winner.
"Actually this is very delicious," he remarked.
"Well let's see then," said the Prof. "Sora, you get an automatic pass for submitting your project on time, I'm going to bump you up a letter grade for originality, and another bump for presentation; A Morisato Chocolate Banana Cream pie!" She finished before succumbing to fits of laughter.
"You really think it tastes good?" asked Sora excitedly. "I got the recipe from Belldandy you know."
"Yes, I really do," he replied, "speaking of Belldandy, you haven't seen her around by any chance have you?"
He looked about and glancing up his eyes found Belldandy as she stood at the top of the landing, the look of absolute horror on her face. As their eyes met her expression changed to one of revulsion, suddenly it seemed as if she no longer could bear to look at him and she turned and ran crying from the building.
Just as suddenly Keiichi became very concerned; while Belldandy had failed to protect him he really hadn't been in any danger. But the look on her face was one he had never seen before; she wasn't angry or mad. She had been revolted! He hurriedly excused himself and followed her from the building, using an apron that Sora had given him to wipe off his face as he ran.
Belldandy didn't know where she was running too; she only knew that she had to get away from Keiichi's gaze. A gaze that she was afraid she would never be able to bear again. As a result of her mental confusion she had begun to lose control over some of her power and her built in fail-safes were being force to release contravening energies to maintain her inner balance, burning tremendous amounts of her power in the process. She had made it as far as the tennis courts before all the strength left her legs and she collapsed on one of the benches crying hysterically. Keiichi finally caught up with her and as he sat down he placed his arm around her. He had only meant to reassure her, however, instead of her relaxing he felt Belldandy stiffen up as if she loathed his touch. Hurriedly he removed his arm from around her shoulders. He couldn't understand the reason for Belldandy's rejection but he supposed that the sharing of their two minds might have been a little more intimate than either he or Belldandy might ever want to get and she might be embarrassed. Still he felt that something wasn't right about her behavior.
"I'm sorry Belldandy," he apologized, "I don't know what to say, those images in my mind, the things you saw, they were just fantasies. Things that you were never meant to know about me."
"It's not that," she said through her sobs.
"Then what is it?"
"You know," she cried, "You know everything, everything about me. Everything I feel, everything I hope for and everything I've ever done!" she finished before starting to cry again hiding her face in her hands as she did so.
Keiichi tried to take her hands to reassure her but as he moved them from her face he reeled in revulsion. Belldandy's face and hands were covered in blood! Looking more closely Keiichi could see that she was bleeding from two huge wounds on her palms. Noticing his expression Belldandy followed his gaze looking down at her bloody palms, for the first time noticing the wounds herself.
"Oh no, no NO!" she cried.
She tried to get up and runaway but Keiichi wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly refusing to let go.
"Stop! Belldandy stop!" he cried desperately, "What's wrong? Why are you bleeding!"
"Its punishment!" she cried to him, "Punishment for my sin!"
"What sin? What could you have done to deserve this!"
"I killed them!" she screamed through her tears, "I cast them down and I killed them all!"
"Who, who do you think you killed!"
"The guardians, the guardians of the gate!"
"The gate, do you mean the Judgment Gate?"
Belldandy just nodded her head yes as she stared in horrified fascination at the blood flowing from her palms.
Using his newly acquired memories Keiichi scrolled backwards through Belldandy's past to that time seven years earlier when she had been betrayed.
"Knowing the answer isn't worth much if you don't know what the question is," he remembered one of his professors saying. "Knowing how to ask questions is what we teach you to do. With each new question come new answers and new knowledge." Keiichi knew the answer to Belldandy's conundrum lay within. But until she asked the questions of herself she would never be free of this horrible guilt. He knew he had to get her to look inside, to the dark place where he knew her answers lay. "Another thing to keep in mind," he also remembered his teacher telling him, "In a debate the setup is often more important than the actual question, state your opinion in such a fashion as to force your opponent to either defend his position or acknowledge the validity of yours."
Knowing he was going to hate himself for it later on Keiichi asked Belldandy disdainfully, "I wonder, why did a god who held a seat on the council need a fifteen year old girl to fight his battles for him?"
Belldandy's eyes suddenly met his as she recognized the edged undercurrent in his words, "What are you trying to say?" she asked him fearfully.
"It's a straight up question Belldandy;" he said sarcastically, "Celestin crushed the gate, actually made it implode, with only one hand while simultaneously copping a feel with the other! So I'll ask you again," Keiichi spoke his voice now taking on a more hardened edge, "just what in the hell did he need you for!"
Keiichi had never spoken so harshly to Belldandy before, but he knew that he had to force Belldandy to face herself down.
"He said he needed me to help him realize his goal." She answered him, her eyes not meeting his.
"But why you," Keiichi prodded her, "and why did he take you there in the first place?"
"He crushed it so easily," she said looking back, "and then when it was over we were just standing there on the dais and he was talking like there was nothing wrong. They were on us so suddenly, they called him villain and they tried to seal him and he was just standing there screaming in pain and and…"
"And what?"
"And he just stood there," she realized. "He was just standing there, screaming, I could tell he was in such awful pain," she said in a haunted voice. "But he never, he never lifted a hand to save himself."
"Why?"
"I don't… I don't know why."
"Are you sure?"
"Keiichi I said I don't know," she answered, trying to escape his question, "don't press me!"
"You know what I think," he charged, "I think the reason you don't know is because you don't want to know Belldandy!"
"What is it that you think I should know!" she cried, "I was just a child! How could I have known what he was thinking!"
"You're not a child anymore!" Keiichi replied sternly, "Why didn't he try to protect himself, why didn't he try to protect you!"
"I don't know! I don't know! I just don't know! Please stop asking me that!" Belldandy begged him.
Keiichi realized that Belldandy had dug herself in and would not allow herself to be pushed any further. So he decided to attack the problem from a different angle. "Isn't a lie still a lie, even if it's just to yourself?" he asked.
"Yes." Belldandy answered him meekly.
"I thought you told me that you First class goddesses can't lie," he pressed.
"I'm not lying!" she answered him even as she averted her eyes.
"Then why don't I believe you, why won't your eyes meet mine?"
Realizing she had been boxed in, Belldandy pleaded, "Keiichi please stop it, please I'm begging you don't make me go there. Don't make me look inside."
Keiichi was moved to tears by the desperation of her plea and almost relented. But he already knew what it was that Belldandy feared to tell him and he also knew that if he allowed her to keep the truth from herself any longer then he would be complicit in the lie as well. Knowing how tightly Belldandy held to her core beliefs any lie, even an unspoken one, would be enough to begin eroding the faith they had in each other.
"Belldandy I have had your memories inside my head for only a few minutes and I already know the answer. So how is it possible for you to not know it for yourself?"
"I can't lie," she admitted, "but I'm not omniscient like my father. I can be wrong regarding things about which I have no knowledge."
"That might have been a good excuse for the child Belldandy, but the goddess Belldandy, the Belldandy with the power to change the world; she can't afford to be that selfish. That Belldandy, the Belldandy I'm in love with would want to know why he did that to her, why he wouldn't lift a finger in order to save her."
Closing her eyes and looking deep inside herself Belldandy went to the place she had been so afraid of going and relived those awful moments. Seeing it all happen again after so many years the pain was just as real has it had been the first time, but this time she wasn't a scared little girl, this time she was the goddess Belldandy. Painful or not she would not be cowed. She would know the answer why for herself!
Focusing her eyes on some distant point in space as the memories played out in her mind she finally answered him. "I guess he was waiting."
"Waiting for what?" Keiichi asked her softly.
"He was waiting for me to… He was waiting for me to…" she repeated her voice starting to tremble. "Oh no, no, no, he tricked me!" She cried as the answer finally came to her. "I let him trick me! I let him trick me into killing those poor… those poor… No no NO! How could he betray me that way!" Belldandy cried as she buried her head in his shoulders holding him tight. Keiichi could feel the warmth of her blood as it soaked his clothes.
"I trusted him and he used me," she sobbed, "I let him use me to kill another!"
"The truth was always there for you to see Belldandy; you need only look for yourself." Keiichi whispered into her ear.
"Oh Keiichi," she cried, "this awful truth has been hidden from me for so long and even now I can't accept it. Beloved, I know now that I am a murderer, a destroyer of innocent lifes. Even though I'm unworthy, is it even possible, can you still truly love one such as I?"
"I know what you know now Belldandy," Keiichi answered her, unintentionally ignoring her plea, "but I still see things with my own eyes. You were the youngest goddess in all of Heaven to receive her first class license. I know you must have been very proud. But ask yourself this; why did he push you so hard? What was the hurry, why the big rush? Can't you see Celestin had been manipulating you all along? He was in my mind so I know how he felt about you; I know he saw your innocence as something precious; something he thought needed to be protected. But he used your innocence to his own ends nonetheless. Can't you see the real truth? He was waiting for them, he could have stopped them anytime, and he could have stopped you if he wanted. He wanted you to kill them, wanted you to seal your fate to his. He wanted you for himself!"
Belldandy's eyes went wide with this newest revelation. When she spoke again her voice was little more than a whisper, "I never, I never had a choice did I? I just did what he wanted and I never thought to ask why."
"That's right," Keiichi answered her, "he never taught you to question, to ask the reason why, he just indoctrinated you, taught you to act without thinking. He wanted to turn you into a mindless automaton, just a pretty toy in blue robes that he could use as he saw fit."
"I, I never really had a chance against him did I?" Belldandy asked tiredly.
"That's right Belldandy, you didn't."
Her inner turmoil finally resolved Belldandy collapsed in Keiichi's arms, her face and hands still covered in blood. That's how Sora found them a few minutes later having followed the pair after receiving her grade so she could share her good news with them.
Belldandy's collapse had resulted in a small but distinct gravity pulse that was felt by both Urd and Skuld back at the temple. Urd was instantly in flight through the TV but the nearest exit to Belldandy's location was some considerable distance away in the campus dorms so she had been forced to run the remainder of the way.
Meanwhile news of Belldandy's injuries had started to spread like wildfire throughout the campus and a crowd had started to form. Probably for the first time Sora was grateful for being president of the Motor Club. Using her cell phone she had summoned all the members and they had formed a cordon around the bench where Keiichi and Belldandy rested keeping the others at bay. Tamiya and Otaki were first on the scene and stood with their backs to either end of the bench facing the growing crowd.
It was Otaki who recognized Belldandy's condition. "It's a Stigmata," he said.
"A what?" asked Tamiya, not taking his eyes off of the crowd?
"A Stigmata, it's a spontaneous bleeding of the hands. They say it's the mark of a very special person."
"It don't take no genius to figure out Belldandy's something special." Tamiya had replied.
By the time Urd found them a fairly large crowd had grown around the pair with the Motor Club members forming a human wall around them keeping all the looky loos at bay. Urd had forced her way through to the center when one of the newer members of the motor club sought to block her path. Without so much as a blink Tamiya swatted the unfortunate member to the ground.
"That's Miss Urd," he growled to the prostrate freshman, "you treat her with respect."
Stepping over the prone unfortunate Urd was taken aback by what she saw. Belldandy herself was unconscious, Keiichi had apparently bandaged her hands for some reason, there was somebody's blood all over her face and clothes, Keiichi appeared to be covered in blood as well. Too much of what she was seeing added up to only one frightening conclusion. Knowing she wasn't going to like the answer she asked, "Keiichi what happened!"
In silent answer to her question, Keiichi held up Belldandy's bloody hands for Urd to see.
As soon as she saw them Urd recoiled in fright as her worst fears were confirmed.
"A Stigmata!" she cried in dismay. "Keiichi this is very serious, you need to be very careful."
"I think the worst is over now," Keiichi replied has he stroked Belldandy's hair.
"You don't understand," Urd said, "Keiichi you're holding a live bomb in your hands right now!"
"What do you mean?" he asked her.
"Have you ever heard the term 'the power is in the blood?'"
Keiichi responded by nodding his head in affirmation.
"Well in a goddess… our case, that isn't just a metaphor. It's the living truth. Right now with Belldandy bleeding that power, her power, is not contained. Fortunately for you that power is dormant right now but it can be released in any number of ways."
"What do we do then?" Keiichi asked her.
"There is no we here buddy, I can't touch her! I would get knocked flat on my ass if I tried. You should be doing the nerve gas boogie right now. However, I suppose that you two have been together for so long that your pulses are in nearly perfect sync."
"Well what do I do then?"
"Fortunately water neutralizes the effect so you did the right thing by washing her off. Still we need to get her back to the temple so we can help her and since you are the only one who can safely touch her you are going to have to take her there."
"I can't carry her all the way back to the temple from here!"
"I know that let me think!"
Urd furled her brow as she pondered the problem for a moment then came up with a plan.
"Okay listen up everyone," she addressed the curious crowd, "Belldandy isn't well right now and she needs your help! Otaki, you go get Keiichi's bike and bring it here! Sora, I need you to get a large drop cloth big enough to hold Belldandy and bring it to me. You," she said pointing down to the unfortunate member who had tried to block her way, "can you hot wire a car?"
"Yes I can Miss Urd." He answered respectfully.
"Good, then stop staring up my skirt and go find me a water tanker truck and bring it here now!"
"Yes Ma'am." he said as he took off running towards the nearest fire station.
"Tamiya?"
"Yes Miss Urd?" the big man answered.
"I need for you to make dam sure that nobody comes near this bench. When that idiot gets back with the truck I want you to hose down this entire area. Do you understand me?"
"You can count on me Miss Urd."
"Everybody else," she said glaring at the crowd, "I need for all of you to help clear a path wide enough so we can get Keiichi's bike up here so we can load Belldandy into it and get her to safety. It's very important that we get her out of here immediately so please make sure nobody gets in the way. All right people move it now!"
"Yes Miss Urd," came the chorus of replies.
"Wow," remarked Keiichi as he notice the dutiful actions of the crowd, "that must have been some powerful spell you cast just now to get them to do all that without question."
"That was no spell Keiichi," Urd smiled back at him, "they are all each and every one of them helping of their own free will. I guess that shows just how much Belldandy is really loved."
"Yeah," he said looking down on Belldandy's face now so fully at peace, "I guess it does."
From the background, safely shielded from Urd's senses, the two denizens of the netherworld had been watching as their little drama unfolded.
"What now Lady Hild?" asked Mara.
"We do nothing for now," Hild replied, "That crowd out there would tear us to pieces if we tried. We'll snatch Keiichi from the temple."