We're closing in on the finale, folks! After fighting their way through Hell, it's now time for DREAM to lay siege to Heaven, where Metatron is planning to bring an end to everything! But as I stated in the last chapter, we'll have two different endings this time. This chapter will lead to an equivalent to a Normal ending. I'll be posting Final Chapter (Normal) after this one, then Chapter 110 (If/True), and finally Final Chapter (If/True).


Chapter 110 (Normal) – DREAM at Heaven's Door! Angels' Final Stand!

Tara glanced over at her beloved and saw him struggling with his decision. She knew that her beloved was born of the same kind of abomination that they had fought so eagerly against – he was akin to the Invaders that had triggered the Getter Ray Armageddon; to Deathless Amon, who had driven the Demon Tribe to madness; and to Muge Zolbados, who had sought to conquer all realities...enemies DREAM had no compunction about killing...

Completely and utterly Other.

"Jan...if you're scared to tell them," she said gently; "You don't have to. I'm sure they'll understand."

Janus sighed a bit, and made his choice.

"I'm sorry," the young man finally said. "there are some secrets I'd like to keep to myself...at least for now." He held his breath for what seemed like an eternity as he waited for his friends' response. Xengar and Xemmey also seemed wary, as if they were sensing that Janus and Tara's companions were getting suspicious.

"That's fine with me," came a response. "I certainly won't force you." The other DREAMers turned when they saw that the response had come from the Turn A Gundam's pilot.

"Loran?" Hyuga muttered.

"What's important is that your actions have proved that you're our friend," the Lunar Kingdom guard said; "There's no need to bare your soul to me if you really don't want to."

"I concur," Ruri said. "Janus Olendra deserves our trust. Time and time again he has put his life on the line for us without hesitation. He even sacrificed himself to protect us from Mazinger ZERO while still trying to save Kouji."

"Ruri's judgment has always been spot-on," Yurika said. "You can tell us whenever you're ready, and not a moment sooner." The rest of the Nadesico crew voiced their acceptance as well.

"I'm willing to look the other way in regards to this as well," Bright said. "Everyone is entitled to keep certain things private, as long as that secrecy doesn't harm anyone." The rest of Londo Bell and other Universal Century mobile suit pilots agreed.

"I told the truth about myself because I felt obligated to," Zero said. "You do not have such an obligation. We shall respect your wishes." The other Knightmare pilots voiced their agreement as well, as did the crew of the Ikaruga.

"I can't say I'm not curious," Murrue said, "but I'm clearly overruled. We won't pry." The other Celestial Calendar mobile suit pilots voiced their own agreements.

"We're counting on you two to lead us to victory over Atik Yomin," Tetsuya said. "If we can't trust you after all you've done for us, what point is there in following you?"

"We believe in you, Janus," Yoko said. "We always have."

"Thanks, guys," Janus said with a sigh of relief. As soon as he said this, the cavern trembled with great footsteps. The group turned and saw familiar and friendly figures approaching.

"The Titans!" Dante exclaimed as he recognized the newcomers. "And the Flame of Hope!"

"Looks like we missed our chance to give the Great Emperor of Darkness a proper ass-kicking," Medusa said as she and the rest of DREAM's allies gathered around.

"It's been some time, Medusa," Lucifer said as he flew up to greet his old ally.

"Lord Satan!" a warrior of the Demon Tribe cried. "You're here after all!" The various demons converged around their former general, clamoring to greet him.

"Welcome back!" "Lucifer, the bringer of light to us demons!" "The enemy of the Gods has returned!" "Lord Satan!" "Fight with us, Lord Satan!" "With you by our side, there's no way we'll lose!" "Hurrah!"

But Fudo saw that the twelve-winged angel was already getting faint from the press of excited demons surrounding him, and his wings were starting to flutter desperately to keep him aloft.

"KNOCK IT OFF!" the Devilman bellowed, his normal voice mixed with Amon's. "GIVE HIM SOME SPACE!" All at once, the demons retreated back a bit as Lucifer slowly dropped to the ground again.

"I'm sorry, everyone," he said, "but I must remain here. It seems my body still needs more time to recover. I have only just been saved from the brink of total dissolution, and Heaven's light might be too much for me."The demons let out various grunts, whines and moans of disappointment.

"Looks like we know who the Demon Tribe really owes loyalty to," Medusa quipped humorously to Dante. Meanwhile, Fudo and Miki flew over to their old friend.

"Just take it easy, my friend," he said. "Dante, Miki, Janus and I have got this covered."

"You would still call me that," Lucifer gasped, "knowing all that I've done?"

"If it wasn't for you," Miki replied, "maybe we wouldn't have made it this far. Besides, we knew you as Ryo Asuka back then."

"When we get done," Fudo said, "I want you to come back to our Earth and see what it's become...a world where demons, Devilmen and humans are learning to live together in peace."

Lucifer smiled.

"I look forward to that," the angel said as an order was given for everyone to return to the Chouginga Dai-Gurren for repairs, resupply and the jump from Hell to Heaven...


Metatron surveyed the scene below him with a twinge of pride - the countless souls who had labored with all of their might were gathering around the Prime Crossgate, beyond which was the heart of Eden Vital, where the Great God waited for them. At last, he could finally save them, and bring their dearest, most heartfelt wish to fruition – union with the source of all things. Hundreds of thousands of winged copies of Nadija fluttered around him, while the original they had spawned from hung in space, just out of view of the gathered workers.

"Fellow children of God, I thank you for your hard labor," the leader of Atik Yomin said, his heart filled with genuine gratitude; "For through it, you and all things in existence shall be saved!"

The assembled crowd cheered wildly.

"As I promised," Metatron continued, gesturing down the Prime Crossgate; "your reward shall be a bliss greater than anything you have every imagined! You need but take the hand of one of my lovely sisters. From there, they shall wing you through the portal into His loving embrace, where you shall remain for all eternity! No more will you suffer pain, sadness or anger, for His all-encompassing love will fill you until there is no room for anything else!"

The assembled crowd cheered again, even more wildly this time. But amid the din, Metatron's ears heard someone ask a question. He motioned for silence, then looked down at the petitioner – Noel Makimura.

"What about those who we left behind?" the man asked; "The friends and loved ones who are still alive? Will they be coming too?"

"Fret not, Noel Makimura," the angel replied warmly, flying down to reassure the man; "They will be joining you soon enough. I swear to you, upon God's name, that everyone you treasure will share this supreme joy with you once all is completed."

Satisfied with this answer, Noel turned to his family as one of Nadija's copies fluttered down and took his hand, pulling him up and out of the crowd, then sweeping him into her arms.

"Come on, Akiko, Taro," Miki's father said; "God is waiting for us." As the one with Noel flew up and toward the portal, another Nadija copy flew down and took Akiko's hand and pulled her up as well. But as a third flew in to grab Taro's hand, the boy hesitated.

"What's wrong, Taro?" Akiko asked. "You don't want to see God?"

"I dunno if we should be doing this," Taro said; "N-not yet, anyway."

"Why?" his mother said, surprised at her son's misgivings. "Miki and Akira will be joining us soon. Metatron promised us."

"O-okay," Taro said nervously, allowing the Nadija copy to pick him up and carry him. But as he flew toward the Crossgate, he spotted the original Nadija floating there, a look of abject despair on her face.

That girl, he wondered; Why is she..?

The doubt he had been feeling came surging back, but it was too late for him to do anything now...


Back in the Chouginga Dai-Gurren's hangar, Kouji worked on last-minute checks on Mazinger Z. But something else was on his mind...and the AI image of Juzo Kabuto – Gorgeous Computer Grandpa - appeared over his controls.

"Something wrong, Kouji?" the AI asked.

"Grandpa!" Kouji exclaimed.

"Come, tell your old grandpa what's bothering you," Juzo said as warmly as he could. "We can't have any lingering doubts in the battle to come." His grandson sighed.

" The Great Emperor of Darkness was...sad in the end," the Mazinger pilot said. "Especially about a woman. He wasn't talking about Grandma, was he?"

"Yes," Juzo said solemnly. "In every timeline where a version of you was born, I - or rather, a clone Dr. Heaven had sent – would seek out a woman named Yumiko Shiozai."

An image of a younger Juzo meeting a lovely Japanese woman appeared above the AI hologram's head.

"She and the clone would fall in love," he continued, "and eventually get married and have Kenzo, who would grow up, and take a wife of his own, so he could have you, and usually Shiro as well."

Kouji nodded as he watched brief snippets of these events - Juzo and Yumiko's wedding, Kenzo's birth, Kenzo's wedding to Tsubasa, and his own birth.

"But on many occasions," the AI continued, "she would meet a younger Dr. Hell at some point after we had become close. Invariably, we would be his only friends."

The Mazinger pilot watched as his grandparents saw a younger Dr. Hell, who had pale skin and a much shorter dark-brown hair and beard, being ostracized by his classmates, only to be invited to sit with them at lunch.

"And when that happened," Juzo continued "he would invariably fall in love with Yumiko, never knowing that she was already in love with or engaged to me."

Kouji grimaced as he saw Dr. Hell staring fondly at Yumiko as the young woman helped him with some sort of difficult schoolwork.

"And when he found out..." the Mazinger pilot said as he realized what would inevitably happen. He watched as Dr. Hell opened a door just as Juzo was down on one knee, proposing to Yumiko. Hell's expression turned from excitement to deep despair.

"You're very sharp, my boy," Juzo said with a sad chuckle as the images played out. "But it always ended badly – and it would be even worse when I actually became friends with him." Kouji watched as Dr. Hell's expression turned to one of the deepest rage and hate. The young scientist pulled out a gun from his hip pocket and took aim as Juzo and Yumiko clasped each other in terror...but there the images ended.

"To have a close friend betray you like that," Kouji said. "No wonder his hatred festered so much. But...why didn't you ever say anything ahead of time?"

"Dr. Heaven was too busy with his own work to pay attention," Juzo said. "Besides, we were young, and too deeply in love to realize Hell's feelings."

"I guess he's only human," the Mazinger pilot said with a sigh.


Elsewhere in the massive warship's hangar, Kyosuke, Excellen, Elzam and Bian were relaxing after finishing work on their own mechs.

"I wonder how Bullet and Kusuha would feel about this," Kyosuke said with a sigh, taking a sip of a can of soda; "having us go up against their own kid."

"I remember Jaan was a stubborn little guy," Excellen replied with a giggle. "He probably picked it up from his old man and Sanger. And Nadija – she was as cute as a button! Those big silver eyes, and that pale blonde hair..."

Suddenly, Excellen's expression changed as if something was dawning upon her.

"Now that I think about it...Jaan and Nadija didn't look like either of them at all!" she exclaimed.

"That is because they are not Bullet and Kusuha's children," Elzam said with the same level of assurance of a teacher telling their students that one plus one equals two; "Not their biological children, anyway."

"EHHHHH?!" Excellen and Kyosuke cried in unison.

"Neither of them told any of the other Steel Dragons," Bian said frankly, "but Elzam and I figured it out on our own." The two demon mercenaries looked at each other.

"Wow, how did we not realize THAT?!" Excellen giggled. "It should have been obvious, in retrospect."

"So, who were their parents?" the pilot of the Alteisen Riese asked.

"We do not know," the pilot of the Valsion replied grimly; "And I doubt we ever will. But I suspect they were taken away from their parents at a young age...and I wager that I know who wanted them."

The two younger pilots, however, seemed to realize just who Bian was talking about.

"Of course, it had to be HIM," Excellen fumed, her face in a pout.

"The question is...why?" Kyosuke said thoughtfully. "Why bother giving Jaan and Nadija to Kusuha and Bullet when he could have raised them himself?"

"That does not matter at this point," Elzam said; "We should focus on stopping Jaan before he makes an irreversible mistake." The three other Steel Dragons nodded in agreement...


As Simon was climbing down after finishing his checks on Gurren Lagann, he noticed Paul Zifell approaching and looking up at him. Curious to see what the youngster wanted, he jumped down, his coat flaring upward as he landed.

"Hey, Paul," he said. "You need me for something? Is it something you don't want to talk with Alia about?"

Paul sighed, and looked down to the ground.

"It's not fair," he mumbled with a pout.

"What's not fair?" Simon asked, squatting down to the boy's level.

"Do we really have to say goodbye to the people who were killed...for real?" the pilot of Mimir Alatreox said; "I mean, once this is over, when we go back to our worlds?"

"Of course we do," the digger replied. "The dead and the living aren't meant to share the same world."

"But you managed to control energy on the level of the Big Bang using the power of the Spiral," Paul said, "something even my cousin and Neo Granlif couldn't! Surely, returning the people who died back to life would be no problem for you!"

Simon grimaced – the idea of bringing back Kamina, Kittan, Master Asia, Jiro Yamada, and everyone who had perished in DREAM's conflicts was awfully tempting. He glanced at the Core Drill in his hand, and sighed as he stuck it back in his pocket.

"I'm sorry, Paul, but I can't," the digger replied. "Even if I could, they'd just get in the way of the next generation." Paul clenched his teeth and seemed ready to yell at Simon when someone else entered the conversation.

"He's right, y'know," the newcomer said. He turned and saw Tara's father standing there.

"Uncle Gill!" Paul cried. "But you were killed by V.V.! You still..."

"Even if yet aunt n' I met violent ends," the scientist said; "Our time 'ad come anyway. And now that we've seen you and yer cousins doin' so well, we've no more regrets."

The boy started to tear up as he threw himself against his uncle.

"But I want to get to know you better," he cried as he hugged Gill as hard as he could. "I want to go to the beach with you, and swim in the ocean, and build sand castles, and break watermelons, and...!"

"I know, lad," Gill replied with a little sniffle as he hugged his nephew back. "I know. I wish I could too, but that's the way things are. But at least we got as much time as we did..."

"Guess I'll leave 'em alone." Simon muttered as he went off in another direction, thinking about how he would best say goodbye to Kamina when the time came...


The dimensional transfer went off without a hitch – the Chouginga Dai-Gurren and Zig safelyarrived at the entrance to Heaven...Atik Yomin's home turf.

The golden light that had always lit up the realm was gone, and the clouds seemed to be even thicker than before, without any apparent silver linings either – everything was dreary, like an overcast day. What was more, not a single sound could be heard, save for the dull roar of the massive battleship's engines.

"So, this is Heaven," Daisuke said.

"I wasn't exactly expecting people on clouds playing harps like most people imagine it," Chibodee quipped, "but man, it's depressing!"

"Is this really where good people go when they die?" Miki wondered out loud. She had half-hoped and half-dreaded seeing her father here.

"Good by whose standards?" Dante said with no concealment of his disgust; "Atik Yomin's?"

"This isn't the time for debate," Lelouch said; "We need to find Metatron and stop him from completing that 'final ritual' of his!"

"I'm afraid we cannot allow that," a heavenly voice called out. A gap in the clouds suddenly opened up, revealing what was only part of a vast army of angels...and standing at the head of this army were three angels DREAM recognized.

"Uriel! Gabriel! Raphael!" Tara exclaimed.

"We have been ordered by Metatron, who is one with the Great God, to prevent anyone from passing beyond this point," Uriel replied stoically.

"No one shall interfere with Lord Metatron granting the most heartfelt wish of mankind - eternal union with the Great God, and with one another," Raphael proclaimed. "Only through the ultimate ritual of tzimtzum can they achieve this shared dream."

"This lecture again?!" Janus growled.

"Why the hell would mankind WANT to die, even subconsciously?" Athrun retorted angrily.

"Why do you wish to LIVE?" Uriel boomed; "Answer us that, DREAM."

Everyone presented tried to come up with an answer, only to realize that they hadn't seriously thought about it.

"Why would you continue to live an existence where wrong and right can never be clearly defined?" Uriel continued, seeing that the will of the enemy was wavering; "Why live an existence where contradictions reign supreme? Why live an existence where the most important questions can never be truly answered?!"

"...To be honest, you got us there," Amuro finally said.

"Amuro?!" Simon exclaimed, shocked at the Gundam pilot's reply. "Don't tell me you actually believe this guy?"

"Uriel made a good point," the Hi-Nu's pilot said. "We don't really know WHY we want to live...there's just no single logical answer to that question."

"However...that doesn't mean there ISN'T one at all!" Amuro then cried. "All I know is that the answer is different for each of us, and it cannot be found through reason and logic alone!"

"On the contrary," Gabriel said, a hint of relish in her voice. "You have shown us exactly what your reason to live is."

"You don't honestly believe that we WANT to destroy it all, do you?!" Murrue said.

"You were gifted your ideal worlds within the confines of the Multidimensional Labyrinth," Raphael said; "Everything you claimed to want was there."

"But you rejected those worlds," Gabriel said. "You refused to be satisfied. Thus, we could only conclude that you will not be satisfied until you devour the Great God and become its will. Such is the compulsion hardwired into your genes...the death instinct."

"That's the biggest load of crap I've ever heard!" Shinobu yelled. "And we've heard this lecture before!"

"Creatures consume one another and grow stronger," Uriel said. "They reproduce to pass on their genes, hoping to continue their line. Creatures seek to consume those not like them, either by devouring them or by bringing them over to their way of thinking. If they can't consume them, they seek to destroy them."

"The fear of others and desire to know others," Gabriel added; "you are compelled by these two opposing forces, among others, to act as you do."

"Okay, so we've still got progress to make on that front," Akito said; "But instead of giving people a chance to evolve into something better, you decide to just..."

"Your kind has been given more chances than you can possibly count," a new voice came; "And every single time, you have destroyed yourselves and those around you. It is an inevitable occurrence...it's just that people such as yourselves delay this occurrence."

"Raziel!" Nunnally exclaimed.

"But that can, and shall be changed," the masked angel continued; "Once the final ritual is complete, all shall become one with the Great God. The death instinct, and all the ills it brings, shall vanish as a result."

"But so will all the good things!" Suzaku said.

"It is a sacrifice we of Atik Yomin understand must be made," Uriel replied. "Indeed, it is a pittance compared to what all things shall obtain."

"You're forcing this on the rest of creation!" Akira shouted.

"Then our groups are no different," Gabriel said wryly. "You were forcing your views of 'peace', 'justice' and 'freedom' on your worlds."

"All we want is to give everyone the right to live how they want," Kira replied; "As long as they don't prevent others from doing the same!"

"Impossible," Raphael said; "The only way such a thing could occur is if all had the same dreams, wishes and thoughts. You continue to use those excuses to justify your desire to become the Great God's will."

"People can find a way to coexist!" Rain cried. "We're working on doing just that!"

"But there will inevitably be conflict," Uriel said. "Just as there has been in the past, with or without our influence. Such is the price of living as separate entities with individual thoughts, dreams and wishes."

"And when one individual or group prospers, another must suffer," Raphael added. "You accept such a thing?"

"We can work to minimize the amount of conflict and suffering," Tara said; "But if it really is inevitable, then we just have to accept whatever we can't control."

The three angels were silent for a moment, and Tara started to wonder if she had changed their minds.

"Then it is clear that the core aspects of our respective outlooks are in complete opposition," Raziel said; "You accept the presence of injustice, we reject it."

At last, Zig moved forward, allowing Iophiel to speak to her former subordinates.

"Please, surely there must be a way we can compromise!" she cried. "Let me talk to him!"

The three angels bowed their heads and slowly shook them.

"Compromise is impossible at this point," Uriel said grimly.

"We will not be swayed from this path," Gabriel uttered.

"We shall teach you what it truly means to oppose Atik Yomin," Raphael said. With those words, the three angels summoned their sacred armors...but seconds later, they began to shine yet again, and then meld.

"Don't let them finish combining!" Dayakka cried out.

"MISSILES, FIRE!" Attenborough said as he slammed numerous buttons on his control panel, causing the Chouginga Dai-Gurren to let fly a salvo of Probability Alteration missiles at the glowing white mass.

But they did not strike the trio of High Seraphs...instead, Raziel had gotten in the way - and had survived them all.

However, the same could not be said for his helmet...and as it crumbled off Raziel's head, it revealed a face that almost no one had expected to see - it was exactly like Lelouch's. Everyone, save for Nunnally and Rolo, recoiled in shock.

"...No way!" Yukiya exclaimed. "He looks just like Zero without his mask!"

"That's because he IS Zero," Nunnally explained, remembering her previous encounter with him. "Or rather...he is my brother, Lelouch vi Britannia."

"So...you're another me?" Lelouch said uneasily, still coming to grips with facing another version of himself.

"Indeed - all of you have at least one counterpart somewhere in the infinite realities," Raziel answered with a nod. "And there will always be others who will share your fate." A wave of uneasiness passed through DREAM.

"However, it seems our fates were slightly different, Lelouch." Lelouch's doppelganger continued. "When Nunnally and I used The Zero, I became a wellspring from which Geass power flows, and became the Fell Angel, Raziel Reducis...perhaps you could call me R.R."

"Arr-Two? Sounds a bit like a robot's name," Leeron mused under his breath.

"C.C., the nun who passed her Code to you received her power from me," R.R. then said to the pilot of the Lancelot Frontier; "And it was given to you solely for the purpose of creating a new Geass wellspring...a new Fell Angel from your world's Lelouch vi Britannia."

The green-haired witch couldn't help but chuckle at this revelation - the irony of an immortal like her being just a tool was not lost on her.

"And Akito Hyuga...your brother Shin also received his Geass from me. He was intended to serve as a backup, another candidate to become a Fell Angel."

However, Lelouch was beside himself with rage. Just like with his father, he had been regarded as nothing but a cog, a piece to a puzzle rather than a human being.

"So...that's why I went through that hell?" he growled; "Why my parents went insane...why Nunnally lost the ability to walk and see...why I even instigated my rebellion?! Just so I could become like you...to spread Geass and create MORE tragedies?!"

"That's right," Raziel continued, his gaze aimed straight at Lelouch's; "You and I were to continue spreading Geass across the infinite realities until the death instinct entirely consumed mankind, causing them to return to Eden Vital and unite with the Great God."

"But that failed," Suzaku interrupted, not about to let his best friend succumb to despair again. "Lelouch and Nunnally used the power of The Zero to ensure that life would continue for humanity...and that was because they weren't alone in their struggles!" He drew the Lancelot Albion's twin blades.

"That's right!" Kallen added boldly as the Guren SEITEN moved forward alongside Suzaku's Knightmare; "We came this far because we trusted each other! We forged unbreakable bonds in the furnace of our struggle...our struggle to free and protect our worlds! Don't forget that, Commander!"

"People who think they can live alone will always lose their way," Asuka said resolutely as Super Unit 02 hovered to the Shinkiro's left. "I should know - I was like that until I met everyone in DREAM."

"We need other people to help us find our path through life," Shinji added as Super Unit 01 floated over to Lelouch's right; "And those other people need us just as much!" Hearing Shinji, of all people, speak those words was enough for Lelouch to regain his composure.

"That's just a case of the blind leading the blind!" Raziel retorted angrily. "As long as people exist as separate beings, a kind and gentle world can never be truly realized! We of Atik Yomin have witnessed this fact on countless worlds! The same kinds of tragedies will always happen over and over, in every reality where humans exist! Mankind is incapable of learning from their mistakes!"

At this statement, Lelouch shook his head in disappointment. Even though he knew that the angel was stalling for time, he felt compelled to make him understand. After all, Raziel was another him.

"So, R.R., you turned out just like Charles," he replied smugly; "He saw only the past...the same goes for you. However, Nunnally and I see things a little differently."

"That's right!" Nunnally added; "We're sure that as long as there is a future, and that people continue to live...they WILL be able to create a kind and gentle world - no matter how many times they have to reincarnate! I believe that with all my heart!"

This statement seemed to strike a nerve with Raziel, as his expression softened a bit.

"...The Nunnally I knew...said the same thing." he gasped.

RAZIEL...DO NOT LISTEN TO THEM, the glowing entity behind Raziel boomed sternly, the voices of Uriel, Gabriel and Raphael speaking as one. THEIR WORDS ARE THE RESULT OF THEIR GREAT IGNORANCE. THEY HAVE NOT SEEN WHAT WE HAVE.

Iophiel grimaced as DREAM watched their new enemy finally complete its formation.

The entity was easily larger than even Michael had been – and he had loomed five times larger than the Chouginga Dai-Gurren. Its body was mostly marble white, but with numerous golden accents; its primary face was androgynous, though smaller faces resembling those on the three sacred armors that it comprised it – Raphael's face was on its abdomen, Uriel's shield face was hanging from its left hip, and Gabriel's grew from a great stalk on its right. Meanwhile, two great wings issuing from its primary head – one feathered, the other scaly. Two pairs of thin arms issued from its torso – two of the hands were clasped together as if in prayer, and the other were held out, the fingers in poses denoting sagely benediction. Its legs seemed to be enshrouded in smooth feathers, while a short scaly tail extended out of its posterior. Finally, a golden sphere hovered just over its head, with three vaguely diamond-shaped gold crystals twirling around it.

WE ARE GOD'S CHARIOT, THE HIGH SERAPH MERKABAH, the new angel said in an emotionless drone that nonetheless oozed menace; THIS IS YOUR FINAL CHANCE...SUBMIT TO LORD METATRON'S WILL AND YOUR SOULS SHALL BECOME A PART OF THE GREAT GOD, KNOWING ETERNAL BLISS BEYOND ALL IMAGINATION.

"Careful," Yoko said; "this guy's power is up there with the Anti-Spiral!"

Yes, Iophiel thought; Even without Michael, Merkabah alone would be their greatest challenge yet. But it also has the majority of Atik Yomin's forces backing it up.

"Well, you guys beat the Anti-Spiral," Kamina said confidently; "this guy shouldn't be too much of a problem then."

"And we're gonna give YOU one last chance," Kouji shouted as he and the rest of DREAM all launched out of the Chouginga Dai-Gurren; "Get out of our way or get beat down!"

"If there was ever a case of an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object," Kaworu chuckled as he watched his siblings shift to their Angel forms; "this would be it."

VERY WELL, Merkabah said; YOU FOOLISH ONES, WHO SEEK TO CONSUME THE GREAT GOD AND BECOME ITS WILL...YOU WHOSE HOPES ARE THE ROOT OF RUIN...WE SHALL SMITE YOU FOR THE SAKE OF THE COSMOS.

Merkabah extended no less than a thousand glittering wings of rainbow light from its back. Raziel, meanwhile, summoned a sacred armor of his own – a thirty-meter-tall white, black and gold Gawain.

YOUR SOULS SHALL BE RENT ASUNDER, NEVER TO EXPERIENCE THE BLISS THAT LORD METATRON HAS PROMISED ALL CREATION.

As if that were a signal, the legions of Atik Yomin soldiers, who numbered more than the grains of sand on Earth's beaches, and the stars in the skies of a single cosmos, poured through the gap in the clouds...


The din of battle pierced through even the dimensional veils that separated the seven heavens to reach Nadija's ears. Her brother was chanting in a language she didn't recognize, and several dozen copies of Metatron's sister were guarding the Crossgate. At this point, all of the souls who had labored to set up the final ritual had been taken through the portal.

"They're here..." she gasped. This instantly drew the attention of three of her doppelgangers, who instantly flew over to her.

"Shhhhh!" one of them said.

"You gotta be quiet," another said. "Big brother's busy right now."

"If you interrupt him," a third said, "he'll have to start aaaaaall over again."

"Good!" Nadija replied scornfully. But as she tried to make more noise, the second copy grabbed her lips and held them shut.

"He's doing this for you," the angel said with a friendly smile that nonetheless sent shivers down Nadija's spine; "and for everyone, everywhere. He wants to make everyone happy."

"It's what our papa wants him to do," the first copy said. Nadija yanked her lips away just as Metatron stopped chanting, having apparently finished this part of the ritual.

"Papa would never want him to do this!" she cried. Suddenly, Nadija's three copies withdrew as her brother approached.

"Oh, you mean him?" he said with that same unnerving smile. "She's not talking about him...she's talking about our real papa."

"Real papa?" Nadija gasped.

"That's right," he said, leaning toward her and gazing deeply into her eyes. "And now, it's time for you to play your part in fulfilling our papa's wish, little sister of mine." She looked back, and got the feeling that it wasn't her big brother staring back at her – even the one who had lost his mind.

With that, Metatron kissed his little sister on the cheek, then mentally removed the forces holding her up, and she began to fall into the portal.

"See you on the other side," he said as his sister plummeted, screaming all the way; "I love you."


Raziel watched as the battle between DREAM and Atik Yomin's legions raged around hin. It was beyond any battle mortal beings would ever know – a family of caelceti, a few dozen mecha, a few thousand Titans and ten thousand Devilmen and demons were going up against no less than 1,276,571,801,477,009,124,333,954,073,528,234,237,722 angels of every rank, at least at his last count.

But he knew, in the back of his mind, that they were merely stalling for time - the only ones who had even a remote chance of stopping DREAM and their allies entirely were himself and Merkabah. He couldn't even trust the power of his Geass to protect him – not against foes who had been awakened to a spiritual potential beyond most men.

Sure enough, he spotted the Alexanders Liberte and Espere bursting through a wall of Principalities and headed straight for him, with the rest of W-0 and six dozen Alexander drones following close behind. Hyuga drew his Knightmare's katana, while Leila and her drones took aim at the High Seraph. But Yukiya, Ryou and Ayano were diverted from this fight by a dozen Thrones that threatened to attack their leaders from behind.

"Hello again, Leila Breisgau," Raziel said as his mech fired off purple beams from its shoulder cannons, destroying ten of the drones. "It's been some time since Weisswolf."

"You're the one who kidnapped me that day, aren't you?" Leila said as her machine's Blaze Luminous deflected Raziel's attack. "And the one who gave Akito's brother his power?"

"Then you're responsible for Leila's year-long suffering," Hyuga said angrily as he rushed past Leila to slash the High Seraph; "For the death of my family...and for my brother's misery!" He brought down the blade as Raziel tried to deflect it with his machine's left hand, and managed to slice off part of the limb.

"I gave Shin that power," Raziel replied as he willed the limb to regenerate; "He decided what to do with it. Besides, they have all achieved true bliss by uniting with the Great God. Such is the nature of death." He took aim with his Gawain's other hand and fired off its finger slash hakens, which in turn sprouted miniature beam cannons and began to fire on the two Knightmares.

"What about the people they leave behind?!" Leila said as she dodged several beams, causing another pair of drones to take the hit; "Do you feel nothing for them?!"

"No more than you feel for the destruction of your drones," the High Seraph replied with a smirk. "But by uniting all things with the Great God, death shall cease to exist."

"And so will life!" Hyuga cried as he dashed behind the massive Gawain; And we won't stand for that!" He sliced with his G-Stone tempered katana, cutting a deep gouge in the sacred armor's propulsion system.

Just then, a pair of Seraphs rushed in to aid their master, forcing Leila and Hyuga to back off. But Raziel didn't have much time to rest, as he spotted the Lancelot Albion slicing through several hundred Atik Yomin soldiers with every movement.

The High Seraph smirked as he contacted Suzaku while taking aim with his beam hakens.

"How interesting that things turned out so similarly in this world as they did to mine, Suzaku" the angel said. He fired off the beams, but Suzaku's "live" command warned him of the attack, and helped him dodge the barrage.

"What do you mean?" the Knight exclaimed as he veered toward Raziel.

"In the world I was born in, there was also a conflict between a Euphie-led Britannia and a Holy Theocracy of Eden Vital led by my father Charles," Raziel answered; "The Black Knights and Britannian forces, you and I among them, fought against an army of Eden Vital cultists while Nunnally confronted Charles and Marianne alone." Suzaku grimaced as he drew his maser vibration swords and rushed at Raziel, who sent out blades of shadow.

"And when it ended," the angel concluded as he used his shadow blades to parry Suzaku's attacks; "you stayed beside her as the world descended into a new chaos birthed by the fall of the old order. I watched as my old world burn in the madness of people consumed by their death instinct."

Suzaku flinched at that last sentence, and didn't see one of the blades sneak past his guard and pierce his cockpit until the last moment. He instinctively ducked, avoiding the snaking black tentacle by inches.

"And I'm sure the same chaos shall befall your world," Raziel taunted as he pulled back and charged up his shoulder cannons. "People won't just go along with your wishes so easily, and the evils that the death instinct awakens in people will not die so easily."

"You're probably right," Suzaku replied as his determination returned; "But I'll face them head-on with her...and with Lelouch, Nunnally, and everyone in DREAM as well!" Raziel couldn't help but smile.

"No matter what world you exist in, Suzaku, you're always the same," the angel chuckled "Well, if that is truly the future what you want, then just try and seize it!"

"Just watch!" Euphemia's Knight cried as the "live" command took command of his mind. Suzaku shot upwards as Raziel fired, causing a trio of Principalities to be destroyed by the friendly fire instead. The Lancelot Albion wheeled around, closing the gap and scoring a direct hit on the two cannons.

But before Suzaku could strike again, he saw the Ikaruga coming under attack by fifty Virtues, and turned to help the ship. But again, the angel got no moment to rest, as the Guren SEITEN came charging in, energy claw crackling with Radiant Wave energy.

"Kallen," he said, turning to the red Knightmare and firing off yet more beam hakens; "Ever the loyal striking hand. You would raise it against me?"

"You bet I am!" Kallen replied as she dodged and wove to avoid the blasts. "And I'll shove it right down your throat, for the sake of the world Lelouch and Nunnally are trying to create!" She managed to reach the massive Gawain, and jammed her Knightmare's claw into the over-sized Knightmare's head.

"The same one my brother Naoto wanted!" the ace screamed as she activated the claw, pounding Raziel with massive surges of Radiant Wave energy. The High Seraph tried to grab the Guren SEITEN before it could pull out, but Kallen was still too quick, and the energy caused the head of Raziel's sacred armor to explode, and for the rest of his machine to start falling apart as well.

"You always were a fierce one," Raziel chuckled as he opened the hatch and flew out. Kallen snarled as she also noticed the Ikaruga coming under attack, and rushed off to help Suzaku defend it. This time, Raziel was able to get a moment to regain his bearings, though not enough time to call a new set of sacred armor as he spotted the Lancelot Frontier closing in, firing off several blasts from its VARIS cannon.

"I find it puzzling, C.C.," the High Seraph said as he easily dodged the two shots; "You were so eager to die for the longest time. Now you have this sudden zest for life...enough that you'd go along with this mad crusade of his." He sent out a number of shadow blades from beneath his cloak, which C.C. managed to dodge.

"I'm quite interested in continuing to live in the world he and DREAM are trying to make," C.C. said.

"What about Claire and Renya?" the angel said; "They tried to create such a world, and failed."

"They're not like Lelouch," C.C. replied casually, not bothered by Raziel's knowledge of those times. "You should know that better than anyone else." He drew her own maser vibration swords and went on the attack, slashing wildly at the angel. But again, the High Seraph was too quick, and avoided the witch's attacks before spinning back and performing a high-speed dive kick, instantly shattering one of the Lancelot Frontier's arms and sending it crashing into one of the clouds that passed for ground. The witch felt her limbs and spine snap and her skull shatter before she blacked out.

"C.C.!" Nunnally's cried as she and Rolo saw this.

"She'll be fine," Rolo said. "She can't be killed so easily." Even so, the princess growled, pulled out the Code Geass' katana and dashed at him. Rolo tried to go after her, but was quickly assailed by eighty Powers, which he quickly turned his Geass on before readying his own blades, trusting that Nunnally's own Geass would protect her from the High Seraph's attacks.

"Big brother...no, Fell Angel Raziel!" Nunnally cried as she rocketed at Raziel. "If you insist on getting in our way and harming those I care about, then I'll cut you down without hesitation!"

The Code Geass' blade sliced through Raziel's armor as easily as the Mark Nemo's had before. The High Seraph turned to strike back, but Nunnally's Knightmare had already wheeled back around and zipped past him, striking another heavy blow.

As she came for another pass, a Principality came and took the blow. For some reason, this particular angel had stuck out in the High Seraph's mind, and he remembered why when he saw its face - it was the one he had assigned to reveal the truth about Lelouch's Geass to Shirley.

"Ghanima!" he cried.

"Lord...Raziel..." the angel croaked before bursting into cosmic dust. He turned back to face the Code Geass, who was busy throwing off some more Principalities who had rushed to their lord's aid. For a moment, he felt something he had not felt in what seemed like forever:

Fear.

But the angel quickly shook off this pang of terror and called forth another Gawain to protect himself with – just in time for it to take a hit from a pair of hadron blasts from behind. He turned around and saw the Shinkiro closing in.

"Terrified of my little sister, aren't you?" Lelouch said with a chuckle. "I don't blame you. We always wanted her to stay innocent and helpless. It gave us a sort of power over her...yes, that's what it was."

He saw my moment of weakness?! Raziel thought. He felt genuine anger building in him at this, and at his alternate self's exploitation of that moment.

"Silence," the angel shouted; "It was nothing like that!"

"But now that she's regained her legs and her light," Lelouch taunted as he closed in and charged up the cannon on the Shinkiro's chest, "her true strength is too much for you to bear!" Raziel grunted as he fired off a pair of blasts from his Gawain's shoulder cannons, but one of them was overwhelmed by Lelouch's own weapon. Nunnally, seeing her brother in combat with Raziel, broke away to help him deliver a final blow.

"You really think you can beat us?" the prince chuckled as his sister joined him. "We have the power of destruction and salvation...the power to create miracles!" With that the two siblings' Knightmares flew at their enemy together. Raziel snarled as he fired off all of his beam hakens - but Nunnally was able to use her Blonde Knives to destroy the hakens - her evolved Geass had kicked in, allowing her to see their path even earlier than before.

"I see them, big brother!" she said as Code Geass slashed at the wires that kept the hakens connected to their source; "The lines of the future!"

"It doesn't take future sight to know how this will end," Lelouch said as he fired another concentrated beam from Shinkiro's shoulders, blasting the two cannons apart. Finally, the two came together and focused their shots right at Raziel's cockpit. The angel felt his body being torn to shreds as his sacred armor exploded.

But when the smoke cleared, the two siblings saw that their foe was still alive. As they drew closer, they saw that he would not be for much longer.

"So, it...seems my wish...has been granted," Lelouch's doppelganger chuckled weakly. "I'm going to be free...of my duty..."

Upon seeing Raziel's face again, the hatred Nunnally had for the alternate version of her brother dissipated like mist in the morning sun, leaving only a deep sympathy, and a hatred for herself for being this way toward Lelouch – even if the one she had always known was right beside her, and the one dying was her enemy.

"It didn't...have to be this way," she sniffled. "You could have..."

"Raziel," Lelouch asked. "Is there any way we can change Metatron's mind? Any way at all?"

"...I'm sorry," the dying angel replied as his body started to disintegrate; "There's no way...to stop him. Only...his dem...ise...can end...this."

Lelouch gritted his teeth while Raziel closed his eyes.

"You two, who bear my sister's resolve," the angel said as the breakdown of his form accelerated; "Go...and fight...finish the rebellion you be..gan..."

As Raziel of Atik Yomin crumbled completely, one last word left his mouth...

"Nunna..lly..."

The two royals looked down at the space where Raziel had been, then at each other.

"Let's go, Nunnally," Lelouch said. "This battle has only begun." Nunnally nodded, and the two Knightmares turned to dive back into the fray...


Elsewhere in the chaotic fray, Merkabah watched the battle as trillions upon trillions of angels gave it their all to hold DREAM back. Whenever an enemy got too close, the fused angel would unleash one of its component High Seraph's ultimate attacks.

But after dispatching a pair of Titans with a Lily's Petal Prison, the mighty Chariot spotted Mazinger ZERO, Mazinkaiser and Mazin Emperor G closing in.

THE MAZINS OF LIGHT AND DARK, the angel said; OPPONENTS WE CANNOT AFFORD TO UNDERESTIMATE.

The angel conjured up a blade of crackling electricity in its right hand of benediction, and raised it up high.

FLASH!Merkabah roared; GODLY THUNDER BLADE!

It brought down the electrified sword on the three Mazingers, but they all managed to grab the blade, stopping it with nothing but their hands. The Black Boxes on ZERO and Mazinkaiser flashed, and their Scranders dispersed the electricity harmlessly.

"You should be afraid!" Kouji yelled. "We're gonna pound you flat with our fists of justice!"

"I was thinking more along the lines of corroding away its injustice," Koji quipped. His counterpart and Tetsuya both had puzzled looks on their faces.

"Just follow my lead," the pilot of Mazinkaiser sighed. Photon Power, acid and corrosive particles frothed in its mouth grille.

"RUST TORNAAAAADO!"

As the whirlwind struck Merkabah's face, the other two Mazingers also began to gather power for their own corrosive whirlwinds.

"RUST HURRICAAAANE!"

"RUST TYPHOOOOON!"

Soon, Merkabah was engulfed in a storm of Photon Power, acid and particles of rust.

"CRUMBLE TO NOTHING!" the three Mazinger pilots roared; "THREE-FOLD MAZIN WHIRLWIND!"

Nearby, Kyosuke and Excellen saw this stormy display as they dispatched a trio of Cherubs with their machines' weapons.

"Wow, there's a neat trick," Excellen quipped. "Looks like Merky's hide is gonna be easier to pierce."

"A shame," Kyosuke chuckled. "Alt's Bunker has been itching for a real challenge. But I guess it'll be solid enough. Let's go, Excellen." The two demon mercenaries flew over toward Merkabah as it forcefully dispersed the cloud that had engulfed moments ago.

DEMON MERCENARIES, Merkabah boomed; YOU WERE CHARGED WITH PREVENTING THE CAELCETI FROM BEING RELEASED. AND NOW YOU STAND AGAINST US.

"We didn't like our employer all that much," Excellen quipped; "So we quit."

"Besides, we're not on board with the idea of being smushed back together as one entity," Kyosuke said.

WE ARE AFRAID YOU NO LONGER HAVE A CHOICE IN THE MATTER, the angel said as he sent out a barrage of feather-like missiles. Excellen quickly used her triple beam cannon to take them out, then switched to her large rifle and fired off several physical rounds, one of which struck the Uriel-face on Merkabah's hip. Alteisen Riese then began to rush in while Rein Weissritter began to fire off numerous beam blasts, shifting position between each shot at such a speed that she seemed to be in hundreds of places at once.

"Pierce through, Bunker!" Kyosuke cried as he stabbed the Uriel face with his stake weapon. He then fired off several rounds that punched the stake through the angel's armor, leaving a deep hole in it. Meanwhile, Excellen fired off several yellow beam shots at this spot while Kyosuke sliced it with his machine's glowing horn.

"Here's my claymores! They're round and heavy!" Alteisen Riese's shouted as he opened up two hatches on his mech's shoulders, revealing numerous cannons and fired off a barrage of dense spheres from them.

"Like my breasts?" Rein Weissritter's pilot said with a smirk as she charged up and fired an extra-large beam blast.

"Not the time, Excellen," Kyosuke groaned as he flew back around to avoid his partner's final blow. As he flew up, two words appeared on his monitor:

"SHOUT NOW".

His machine's feet began to glow with demonic power as Alteisen Riese somehow bent its legs as close as possible to its body.

"KYUKOKU..." he said loudly and heroically. Excellen quickly covered her ears as if bracing for a truly loud noise.

Then, as Alteisen Riese rocketed down toward the damaged spot, Kyosuke screamed two words so loudly and with such hot blood that the very fabric of Heaven's spacetime trembled and cracked in several places, while several thousand minor angels that were rushing to Merkabah's aid were blown backward:

"...GESPENSTO! KIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIICK!"

The kick itself was almost as mind-blowing as the scream, smashing off a huge chunk of the Uriel face and staggering the star-sized angel.

Nearby, the Mazinger pilots winced as Kyosuke's scream caused their communicators to sizzle a bit.

"Now that's a pair of lungs!" Kouji laughed.

"Indeed, Kouji Kabuto," the voice of Bian Zoldark said as the Valsion flew past them and toward Merkabah, who was just recovering from the Alteisen and Weissritter's combined attack; "This man broke the speakers of every one of his allies with a cry like that not once, but twice."

MAGUS-GENERAL BIAN ZOLDARK, Merkabah said after shaking off the dizziness from Kyosuke's cry; WE HAVE HEARD MUCH OF YOU. HOWEVER, YOUR VALSION IS NO MATCH FOR US. YOUR SOUL WILL BE ANNIHILATED, AND NONE SHALL REMEMBER YOU.

The massive High Seraph charged up a whirlwind of green energy.

BE SHREDDED TO RIBBONS! HEAVEN-SENT TYPHOON!

Undaunted, Bian spurred the Valsion toward Merkabah as he activated a barrier system around his machine.

"Even if my soul is destroyed here," Bian cried as he rushed headlong into the storm, ignoring the damage his machine was suffering; "It will not stop these youngsters! I am more than willing to wager it all on them!"

Valsion began to generate immense gravity waves as a black and dark purple sphere surrounded it, dispersing the Heaven-Sent Typhoon.

"Merkabah, so-called Chariot of God," Bian bellowed; "For us to achieve our goals, you must be eliminated here!" The red demonic robot began to shine brilliantly.

"Just try to stop it," the magus-general roared; "MEGA GRAVITON WAAAAAAAAAVE!"

Valsion suddenly unleashed all of the gravitational energy it had built up, pounding the Gabriel face with titanic force, tearing a large chunk of it off and shredding it at the atomic level.

IS THIS THE POWER OF THE DEAD? Merkabah grunted as it flinched from Bian's attack; TO HARM EVEN THE CHARIOT OF GOD?

But as Bian prepared to charge up another attack, four Cherubs rushed in and peppered Valsion with a barrage of light arrows, forcing him to change his focus. But as Merkabah focused on repairing the damage it had suffered, the angel spotted Silene and Kaim closing in.

DEMON TRIBE WARRIORS, Merkabah exclaimed; WHY DO YOU OPPOSE US? YOUR TORMENT IN HELL IS ABOUT TO END! YOU SHALL...

"You used the Demon Tribe for your own purposes!" Kaim shouted.

"The mighty Silene and Kaim cannot forgive that!" Silene screeched. With that, they began their assault, this time aiming for Merkabah's primary face - the bird demon lobbed one of her iron talons at Merkabah's eye while Kaim wreathed his twin horns with electricity and firing off a pair of energy bolts.

"See the power of Silene and Kaim united!" the mighty bird demon cackled as the bolts went not for Merkabah, but for the whirling claw. The electricity surrounded the flying limb and made it seem to grow, reaching maximum size as it struck the High Seraph's right eye. The angel raised a limb to cover the wounded organ, but was then impaled by huge energy lances courtesy of a rushing attack from a fused Silene and Kaim, who had somehow merged during the attack.

"Fall, accursed angel, fall!" Silene cried as she pumped countless volts of electricity into the angel's wounded hand. But the fused demon was quickly flung off as Merkabah's colossal hand pushed it away.

IS THE LIGHT OF THE GREAT GOD EMPOWERING THEM? Merkabah thought as it regenerated the damaged eye. But its thoughts were interrupted when it spotted Hyperion and almost two thousand Titans, wings of light propelling them forward even as the dust from a million Atik Yomin soldiers flowed off their bodies.

SO, HYPERION, WE MEET AGAIN, the angel said as he turned to face this incoming foe. IT SEEMS YOUR SUBJECTS HAVE TAKEN QUITE A FEW LOSSES.

"Servant of the Great God!" the bearded Titan roared; "We will see you destroyed for what you did to us!"

YOU ARE STRONG, TITANS, the High Seraph said; BUT WE ARE FAR STRONGER. YOU CANNOT STOP WHAT IS TO COME.

"Perhaps we can't, but the children of the Black Moon can," Hyperion replied. "For now, We shall remind you why we Titans were able to push you to greater desperation than anyone else until now!" With those words, he and the other Titans let out an ear-splitting unified screech as their wings began to grow even larger.

WE HAVE HELD BACK LONG ENOUGH,Merkabah said as it sensed the power of the attack; IT IS TIME TO TAKE THIS BATTLE MORE SERIOUSLY. Its eyes flashed as its entire body became wreathed in electricity, ice and wind.

Hyperion grimaced and surged forward, hoping to stop whatever attack was coming.

Suddenly, the entire space around the Titans and Merkabah was engulfed by a strange sphere, similar to the one Mazinger ZERO created when it used its Final Breast Nova. A wave of invisible force struck the Titans, stopping them in their tracks.

Merkabah loomed over them as massive planetoids made of crackling, wind-swept ice formed around them. They were all covered in all manner of icy blades and spikes, all hard and sharp enough to pierce through even the strongest metal.

THIS IS THE PUNISHMENT FOR THOSE WHO DEFY GOD'S WILL, the angel intoned as it waved its hands, sending the planetoids crashing into its victims, slashing and impaling them with every impact, punching through the AT Fields they tried to project. After what seemed like hours of this mayhem, the planetoids and wounded Titans began to gather above Merkabah's outstretched hand.

YOU WILL NEVER KNOW THE BLISS THAT AWAITS GOD'S CHILDREN, the angel said as the planetoids began to push violently against one another, as if being drawn towards each other by a gravity well. The mass of ice, electricity and flesh began to undergo atomic fusion as if a star was forming. The glowing sphere rapidly did transform into a star, which began to grow quickly and in an unstable manner.

NOW...BEGONE, the angel shouted as the star was engulfed in an explosion akin to a supernova. At last, the space disappeared, and the dust that had once been the Titans blew across Heaven. Only Hyperion's skull managed to survive the assault, and it crashed into the ground at the feet of Super Eva Unit 01, which was cleaving through a Cherub with its Magorok E Sword.

As Shinji turned to see what had landed, he felt an aching pain in his heart...one that he was sharing with his seemingly mindless Eva. He already felt himself struggling to recall who had just perished, but his Eva helped him hold on to the memory.

"That's right...that was your dad," the boy murmured; "And my dad...my mom..."

Shinji turned his gaze up to Merkabah, who was now firing off streams of angelic feathers at Hathaway, who countered with a barrage of Funnel Missiles. Sharing Super Unit 01's grief, he sprung into the air, activated the Eva's flight module and flew up toward Merkabah, screaming all the way.

SHINJI IKARI, the fused High Seraph said as it turned toward the charging Evangelion, YOU GRIEVE FOR A BEING THAT YOU HAD ONLY JUST MET? TRULY, HUMANS ARE A PUZZLE. The angel then aimed its feathers at Super Unit 01.

"Unit 01 isn't just an Evangelion!" Shinji cried as he raised his AT Field; "Hyperion was its father, and you just killed him and destroyed his soul!" Merkabah's feathers struck the field, but bounced off.

YOU KILLED YOUR FATHER, Merkabah replied as he pressed his attack, sending more feathers streaming at Shinji; BY YOUR STANDARDS, YOU ARE AS GUILTY AS WE ARE.

"I wish I hadn't needed to!" Shinji grunted as he struggled to withstand the press of Merkabah's attack; "I wish there had been another way for us to be happy!"

YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO HAPPINESS FOR WHAT YOU HAVE DONE, BOY, the angel said pitilessly as it again wreathed itself in ice, electricity and wind.

"But you guys stole that from me," he sobbed through gritted teeth; "From all the Eva pilots...and from countless other people too!"

As the space that had consumed the Titans enclosed Merkabah and Shinji, the Eva extended six wings of bronze-red light from its shoulders and back.

"AND I'M NOT GONNA LET YOU STEAL HAPPINESS FROM ANYONE ELSE!"

But before Merkabah could start forming the spiky planetoids, Shinji rocketed up to the angel's face and slashed it, cutting a deep gouge from its forehead to its chin. The space that had enclosed them was dispelled as the angel reeled.

"Shinji-kun, you truly are amazing!" Kaworu said excitedly as he watched Merkabah stagger from atop Zig's back. All around him, the Angel children were working to protect the caelceti from the Atik Yomin soldiers.

No wonder he was able to beat us, Sasch said as he ripped apart a pair of Principalities with his powerful arms.

But before Shinji could press his attack, he spotted his fellow Eva pilots struggling against a few hundred Principalities, led by a quartet of Seraphs. He flew off to help his friends, allowing Hi-Nu Gundam to approach.

AMURO RAY, Merkabah said as he sent waves of feathers to attack Amuro's machine; PERSONIFICATION OF THE NAME 'GUNDAM'...A SYMBOL OF MANKIND'S DESIRE FOR ABSOLUTE DOMINANCE OVER ALL THINGS.

"Gundam is a weapon, yes, but its pilot determines how it will be used," Amuro replied; "And I will use it to secure mankind's freedom from your influence, and to elevate it beyond its worst instincts!"

With those words, Hi-Nu Gundam became wreathed in a Psycho Field, and sent out its Fin Funnels. As the Newtype sent the remote weapons to strike Merkabah, he also whipped out a heavy bazooka and fired off some physical shells. These struck the High Seraph in the face on its gut, while the Funnels blasted the angel with ultra-powerful beams that tore through the angel's tough armor. Finally, Amuro whipped out the Hi-Nu's beam sabre, rushed at the spot the bazooka rounds had damaged, and slashed it repeatedly while still evading the blizzard of feathers Merkabah was send after him.

But the ace knew when to not press his luck and backed off, allowing the Turn A Gundam to approach.

WIELDER OF THE TURN A GUNDAM, Merkabah said as he tried to engulf the Turn A in the same extra-dimensional attack; WOULD YOU USE THE POWER OF THE MOONLIGHT BUTTERFLY TO OVERTHROW THE COSMIC ORDER AND BECOME THE GREAT GOD?

"Of course not!" Loran replied bravely as he avoided getting caught in the dimension; "I just want to protect our worlds, and make sure a day dawns where such a horrible weapon will never need to be used again! But until that day comes..."

As the Lunar Kingdom soldier spoke those words, he released the Moonlight Butterfly from within his mobile suit, and while its eyes turned red.

"I'll use whatever I have to!"

With Great Zeorymer on the battlefield, the Turn A's systems could use the nanomachine weapon at its full potential - the cloud of technology-destroying particles would have stretched from Earth to Jupiter if they were not being used to engulf Merkabah. The angel winced as the Moonlight Butterfly gradually ate away at its armor.

"Nice job, Loran!" Andrew said as the Strike Freedom, Infinite Justice and Eternal closed in while Loran flew away, withdrawing the cloud of nanomachines once more.

"Merkabah!" Athrun shouted; "For all the people who perished as the result of Atik Yomin's manipulations, we'll see you defeated!"

WE ONLY GAVE THOSE WHO COULD SHAPE THE WAR'S OUTCOME THE NUDGE THEY NEEDED TO DO WHAT THEY WERE ALREADY INCLINED TO DO, Merkabah replied as he turned a stream of feathers toward the two Celestial Calendar mobile suits and their support shit.

"Then why did you even bother?!" Kira replied indignantly as he dodged and wove around Merkabah's attack.

NOTHING COULD BE LEFT TO CHANCE, the High Seraph said; WE HAD TO ENSURE HISTORY FOLLOWED THE PATH WE FORESAW.

"You could have tried to stop the conflict!" Athrun cried as he slashed away some of the attacking feathers; "Maybe people would have listened!"

WE HAD TRIED THAT BEFORE, IN COUNTLESS OTHER WORLDS, Merkabah said; IT NEVER WORKED, AT LEAST FOR LONG.

The angel's main eyes flashed, then fired off a pair of powerful beams that struck the Eternal.

"Lacus! Andrew!" Kira cried.

THEY FORGET ALL TOO EASILY, the Atik Yomin general said; THAT IS WHY THEY CAN NEVER LEARN FROM THEIR MISTAKES. THAT IS WHY LORD METATRON'S PLAN IS NECESSARY.

"You're right," Lacus grunted as the Eternal shook from the attack; "Humans, as a species, are quite forgetful. Without frequent reminders of their past mistakes, they repeat those errors. But we'll make sure that people never forget!"

The idol's righteous fury peaked, and her SEED factor activated, causing her pupils to contract.

"And for that to happen," she declared, "there still need to be people! We won't let you take that from us!"

"METEORs 1 and 2, liftoff!" Andrew called out as the two weapons platforms lifted off. The two Gundams quickly linked with them and flew forward, extending their large beam sabers and flying in a circle around Merkabah.

Athrun rushed in first, while Kira came in from behind. Both were able to cut deep gouges in Merkabah's head-wings. They then turned and took aim with all of their available weapons, bombarding their enemy with an all-out barrage of beams, railgun shots and missiles.

But they didn't get a chance to continue their attack, as Kira spotted the Archangel coming under attack. Forced to back off as so many others had, they nonetheless allowed for yet another group to come in and take a shot at the High Seraph – the Battle 7 and all of the available Variable Fighters

"Hey, Merkabah!" Basara shouted; "Listen to my song!" With that, he started to sing a rousing round of Try Again, which energized his allies and damaged the angels who were gathering to protect their general.

CURSED ANIMA SPIRITIA, Merkabah boomed; KNOW THAT SONG CAN ONLY BRING RUIN TO ALL. LORD METATRON SHALL REPLACE IT WITH PEACEFUL, BLISSFUL SILENCE.

Those words were enough to make Basara play a wrong note, and stop the song entirely.

"A world without music?!" the rock star exclaimed indignantly; "Are you nuts?! Why would I...no, why would ANYONE want that?!"

DO YOU NOT RECALL HOW YOUR SONG ALMOST CAUSED GEPELNITCH TO CONSUME ALL LIFE IN YOUR REALITY? Merkabah said.

"We failed to understand the dangers of Sound Energy when we used the Sound Buster Cannon," Max said as his Sturmvogel swooped in and let fly its reaction bombs; "But now we know better!"

"We can learn from our mistakes!" Milia said as she did the same. The pseudo-nukes struck dead on, and were even more powerful than before thanks to the lingering effects of Basara's melody.

"Basara song save universe, not ruin it!" Sivil shouted. The rest of Fire Bomber and the Battle 7's crew and pilots shouted in agreement.

"Indeed!" a new but familiar voice proclaimed from seemingly out of nowehere. "We shall show you the power of song!"

"We've got warp signals!" one of the battleship's crew exclaimed. Suddenly, numerous ships and an armada of Variable Fighters appeared out of nowhere as if by boson jump...including a massive horseshoe-shaped vessel.

"That ship," Exsedol exclaimed; "those machines...the Protodevlin?!"

"Lord Gepelnitch!" Sivil cheered.

"Hail, warriors of Spiritia," the leader of the Protodevlin called out enthusiastically; "We have come to complete our ancient mission! Let us add our voices to your own!"

THIS CHANGES NOTHING, Merkabah said as it prepared to unleash its deadliest attack again. But Basara would have none of it – he began to play a different song this time – his cover of the Gekiganger V theme. It wasn't long before the other humans, Protodevlin and Varuata began to sing along, even as the Battle 7 changed to its robot mode. Merkabah let out a moan as the melody seemed to eat away further at its armor, helped along by a massive salvo of missiles and beams from the reinforcements.

"Shall we use it?" one of the Battle 7's crew asked.

"Yes," Exsedol said; "We shall unleash the Sound Buster Cannon once more, for the sake of all things!"

"The Sound Buster Cannon is fully charged," one of the Battle 7's operators called out as she watched her monitor. "Whenever you're ready, acting Captain!"

Exsedol nodded.

"SOUND BUSTER CANNON...FIRE!"

The Song Energy-boosted Macross Cannon fired a powerful pink sphere straight at Merkabah, completely incinerating one of its right shoulders, causing that arm to fall off.

"Nice shot!" Yurika cheered as the Nadesico, all of the Aestivalis and Gekiganger-type machines approached next; "Now it's our turn!"

"This is it, Akito," Jiro said eagerly as his Super Aestivalis closed in. "Our enemy's giving it all they've got, but so are we! And since the theme song is being played, I'm sure victory will be ours! Just like in Gekiganger's final episode!"

"But there's more at stake than just the Earth," Akito said as he peppered a nearby Cherub with shots from his mech's cannons.

"That's right, darling," Yurika said; "Everything that is and might be is on the line!" Akito blushed with embarrassment at being called 'darling', but said nothing.

YOUR RESOLVE IS TOUCHING, CHILDREN OF MARS, Merkabah said as it sent out yet more feathers; BUT OF NO USE. YOUR SOULS SHALL BE DESTROYED, AND YOU SHALL NEVER KNOW THE BLISS OF ETERNAL UNION WITH GOD.

"We'll see about that," Ruri said. "Shall we hit him with the Phase Transition Cannon, Captain?"

"Make it so, Ruri!" Yurika ordered. As the Nadesico crew worked on starting the firing sequence for the ship's ultimate weapon even while the ship's Distortion Field held back the barrage of feathers.

"Okay, boys and girls," Akatsuki said; "Let's keep our many-winged friend's attention away from our fair ship." The Alstroemeria started Boson Jumping rapidly, slashing at Merkabah's scaly wing.

"You heard the man!" Ryoko shouted. "Let's take this clown all the way downtown!" With that, the three 0G Frame Aestivalis charged, peppering that same wing with bullets.

"Come, friend!" Tsukumo said as his Daitetsujin and Genichiro's Daimajin formed up. "Let us show this tyrant the power of our bond!" The two machines got close together and charged up their gravity cannons.

"DOUBLE GEKIGAN FIREEEEEE!" the two men roared in unison as their Gravity Blasts fired simultaneously, smashing Merkabah's wing with titanic force.

INSOLENT JOVIAN,Merkabah said as he turned to face Tsukumo; YOU ARE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE ALIVE. WE SHALL REMEDY THAT BY DESTROYING YOUR SOUL UTTERLY.

But as the High Seraph turned to bombard the Daitetsujin with a wave of feathers, a bolt of crackling demonic energy incinerated the projectiles and seared more of the fused angel's wing.

"Mind if we cut in?" Dante said as he and Medusa swooped over the two Jovian machines. Merkabah turned toward the demon king and his consort.

MAOU DANTE, the angel said; YOU ARE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE ALIVE EITHER.

"Am I an unforeseeable factor, then?" Dante asked with a chuckle.

WE HAD SEEN YOUR RETURN AS POSSIBLE, BUT HIGHLY IMPROBABLE, CONSIDERING THE MEASURES WE TOOK, Merkabah replied. IT WAS ONLY WHEN ZENON CRAWLED BACK TO US TO REPORT YOUR RETURN THAT WE REALIZED THAT LUCIFER HAD FOUND A WAY TO CONFOUND LORD METATRON'S PLANS, EVEN FROM HIS PRISON.

"It will be same as it was with the Gods," Medusa said. "You will fall thanks to our hero Satan's genius, and his faith in our abilities!" At that point, the Nadesico had finished charging the Phase Transition Cannon, and fired it, striking Merkabah's belly and starting to fold the space of Heaven itself to squeeze the massive angel.

"Let's add a little more oomph to it, shall we?" Dante said to Medusa.

"Indeed, love," the female demon replied. With that, Dante fired off another energy bolt from his horns, while Medusa shot a rather large pair of petrifying beams from her eyes. This caused the Phase Transition Cannon's space folding to start twisting and warping, until finally it had entirely folded much of Merkabah's belly out of existence, causing the now-divided angel to start drifting apart.

"Yeah!" Minato cheered when she saw this. "That got him!" But Merkabah grunted, and golden tendrils of light extended from the two separated halves of its body, wrapped around each other and pulled the two halves back together.

"Aw, should have figured it was too good to be true," Megumi sighed. The crew collectively cried out as the ship was rocked by attacks from a trio of Seraphs, forcing them to turn their attention away from Merkabah.

But again, the leader of the Atik Yomin forces didn't have long to rest – it spotted Fudo and Miki closing in, with much of the Devilman Army behind them, including Agira.

YOU WHO CARRY THE SEED OF DEATHLESS AMON, Merkabah said; WE SHALL NOT ALLOW YOU TO REACH EDEN VITAL AND CONSUME THE GREAT GOD.

"Deathless Amon no longer holds no power over me!" Fudo replied. "I'm doing this to save the people of the infinite realities from losing it all!"

WHEN ONE CONSIDERS IT, the angel mused as it fired more eye beams, HUMANS AND DEATHLESS AMON ARE NOT SO DIFFERENT. LITTLE WONDER YOU STAND TOGETHER AGAINST US SERVANTS OF THE GREAT GOD.

"We stand together because we're humans!" Miki replied. "The world where the children of the Gold and Silver Moons are learning to live together in peace...we won't let you take that from us!" The Devilman Army let out a cheer of roars, howls and screeches. They then charged as one cohesive unit, unleashing every attack they could muster – acid, blades, needles, sonic blasts, flames, ice, electricity and even gusts of cutting wind flew at the High Seraph, damaging it in numerous places on its body. In the midst of this wild assault, none of them seemed to notice a black, dusty smoke enter Merkabah's wounds.

"So that's the true power of the Devilman Army," George said as he watched the attack, having just dispatched sixty-five Principalities with a Rose Hurricane.

"We can't let them show us up!" Chibodee said as he smashed a Power with a Burning Punch.

"This is not the time for showing off!" Rain shouted as she shot through ten Virtues with a Rising Arrow. "We have to do what we can to get through this!"

"You guys keep these grunts busy," Domon said. "Master and I will go after Merkabah." With that, God Gundam and Master Gundam rushed in, dodging and weaving through the crowd of angels that still surrounded the fused High Seraph.

SHUUJI KUROSU, Merkabah said to Master Asia, YOUR CHOICE TO TURN AGAINST US AND HELP DESTROY THE DEVIL GUNDAM HAS LED TO THIS MOMENT. HAD YOU CONTINUED TO WORK WITH US, METATRON WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN FORCED TO PERFORM THE FINAL RITUAL.

"That's a load of crap, Master!" Master Asia's student shouted; "Don't listen to him!"

"Don't worry, Domon," the old martial artists said; "I don't regret my choice one bit. Even in death, I shall continue to fight for the future of not just my Earth, but all Earths!"

"Let's blow this fiend away with one shot," Master Asia suggested.

"Yes, Master!" Domon said as he and his teacher leaped to opposite sides of Merkabah. The two mobile fighters turned gold as they focused their wills.

"Now," they chanted in unison as they charged their ki into their Gundams' hands; "THE SCHOOL OF THE UNDEFEATED OF THE EAST'S ULTIMATE SECRET TECHNIQUE!"

"SEKI!" Master Asia cried.

"HA!" Domon yelled.

"KYUUKOKU...TENKYOKEEEEEEEEEEEN!"

Both martial artists fired Sekiha Tenkyokens, each of which manifested as gigantic fists of energy. But instead of going against each other, the fists crushed the angel's head between them, dealing immense damage with a single, massive blow.

Merkabah let out a grunt of annoyance as it swatted the two mobile fighters away. Next to approach was Final Dancougar.

BEAST MACHINE GOD WHO LAID LOW MUGE ZOLBADOS, the angel said; IF YOU HAD SETTLED FOR DEFEATING HIM ALONE, METATRON WOULD NOT HAVE RESORTED TO THE FINAL RITUAL.

"Dancougar was created to protect the Earth and the human race from those who would do it harm, no matter who they may be," Ryo said.

"We weren't about to let you just do whatever you wanted to our Earths," Masato cried.

"And if you stand in our way, then our burning rage will consume you like an inferno!" Sara yelled.

"Let's show them our power, everyone!" Alan cried.

"You said it!" Shinobu said as Final Dancougar began to glow with a pink aura; "YAATZE YARUZE!"

"ROAR! RAGING BEAST ATTACK!" the five Cyber Beast Force members cried simultaneously as they allowed their power of Instinct to flare out. Final Dancougar's aura changed from pink to blue as the machine split into its component parts, each charging at Merkabah at high speed. The Land Cougar and Land Liger attacked viciously and simultaneously, smashing through Merkabah's left wing. Then the Big Moth charged in, busting through the right wing. Finally, the Eagle Fighter and Black Wing bisected the angel's damaged head completely by flying through it.

But just as before, golden tendrils reached out from the split parts and pulled them back together.

"Man, this guy just DOESN'T go down!" Masato groaned as Dancougar recombined.

"That's fine by us," Haman said as the Titania and Nightingale streaked by. "There are still things we need to ask." As they closed in, Char began to address the massive angel.

"I would have answers from you, Merkabah," he said; "Tell me...how much did you influence my world's events?"

ENOUGH TO ENSURE THAT IT WAS HEADING IN THE PROPER DIRECTION, the angel replied.

"Were you the one who convinced the Zabis to murder my father, Zeon Zum Deikun?" Char then asked, resentment and anger just beneath his calm tone. "Were you the ones who convinced Enzo to rebel, throwing Axis into chaos and ensuring the dominance of the Zeon hard-liner faction?"

...THEY WERE ALREADY INCLINED TOWARDS THOSE ACTS, Merkabah answered; WE MERELY SERVED TO CLEAR THEM OF ALL LINGERING DOUBTS AS TO THE RIGHTNESS OF THEIR COURSE.

"Was it because you feared my father and his Newtype theory?" the Red Comet said with a leer.

WE SEE NO REASON TO ANSWER THAT, the High Seraph replied.

"That's all the answer we need," Haman said as she summoned her funnels. "Begone from my sight!" The funnels also rushed in and began to hammer Merkabah's still healing face while she pulled out all six of Titania's beam sabers. Meanwhile, Char sent out all of his funnels and drew the Nightingale's beam tomahawk.

Frustrated by this persistent assault, Merkabah tried to smash the two mobile suits between its hands by clapping them together, only for the two Newtypes to dodge out of the way.

"Hyoma, let's use our other combination attack!" Kenichi said.

"Right!" Hyoma said. "Time for the Grandasher, guys!" The other Combattler pilots nodded, and focused as Combattler V shot out a track of Choudenji Power that narrowly avoided Merkabah. It then folded down into its Grandasher formation while Voltes, Tenkuu Ken in hand, landed on top.

WIELDERS OF CHOUDENJI POWER, the angel said as it watched the two Choudenji mecha approach rapidly and shot off yet more feathers; YOU WOULD USE THAT SUPREME ELECTRO-MAGNETISM TO BIND ALL TO YOUR WILL?

"No way!" Chizuru shouted; "We'll use it to free our worlds from tyrants like you!"

"Then we'll use it to build a brighter future for mankind," Kenichi said as he slashed the feathers aside with Voltes' sword; "and for the people of Fleed, Vega, Boazan and Campbell!"

"Take this!" Hyoma shouted. "GRANDASHEEEEEER!" With that, Voltes leaped off as Combattler collided with Merkabah's face. The force of the blow still allowed the machine to bounce off, just in time for Voltes to come down with a ferocious overhead slash. Yet again, Merkabah closed the wound with golden tendrils, though it was slower than before.

"Looks like we're wearing it down, Kamille!" Judau said as he noticed this. "We just need to keep hitting that same spot!" With that, the two Gundams swooped down to get a shot at Merkabah.

NEWTYPES, Merkabah grunted. THOUGH YOU CLAIM TO HAVE DEVELOPED THE ABILITY TO COMMUNICATE WITHOUT MISUNDERSTANDING, THAT IS SOLELY LIMITED TO YOUR OWN KIND. LEFT UNCHECKED, YOU WILL DEVOUR ALL ELSE IN YOUR QUEST FOR ABSOLUTE DOMINANCE.

"We won't let that happen!" Judau cried.

"Especially if it's you who keeps us from developing that understanding!" Kamille added.

Without any need to exchange words, Kamille shifted Zeta Gundam to its Waverider mode while Judau began channeling power into ZZ's biosensor.

"HI-MEGA CANNON, FULL-POWER! NRRRRRRROOOOOGH!"

Judau fired off a huge pink blast, combining the one on ZZ's head and on its torso into one. Zeta Gundam managed to skim the top of the massive pink blast, and began to surf on top of it and absorb some of its energy, supplementing the already immense amount flowing into its own biosensor.

But then, thanks to the energy of Eden Vital that permeated Heaven, the aura around the Zeta turned gold, and an image of a golden Chinese dragon appeared for a moment, just before impact. As a result, the attack punched a hole straight through Merkabah's right eye.

Even then, the angel was still able to regenerate, just in time to spot Great Zeorymer as it approached.

IT SEEMS THE SUCCESSOR OF MASAKI KIHARA'S WILL HAS COME, Merkabah said; TO CLAIM WHAT HE BELIEVES IS RIGHTLY HIS. The angel waved its hand, trying to enclose the ultimate Hakkeshu machine in the pocket dimension, only for it to teleport away.

"Maybe becoming the Great God's will is something Masaki wanted," Masato replied, "but it's not what I want!"

"We want whatever everyone else in DREAM wants," Miku said, "the right to live how we choose without needless outside interference! We don't want to impose our will on everyone else!"

"If you would deny us that," Yuratei said, "then you shall face Great Zeorymer's full power!" With that, Great Zeorymer warped closer and up high as the orbs on its body began to shine brilliantly as its three pilots prepared to smash the two orbs on its arms together. In response, Merkabah silently ordered a million of the closest angels to converge on its attacker, but they came too late to stop the attack.

MEI...OHHHHHH...

But a single Virtue managed to strike Great Zeorymer with one of its wings, causing the resulting blast completely to shift from Merkabah's head to its legs, consuming them in a blast of pure dimensional energy.

"You shall not destroy God's Chariot!" the Virtue cried.

"Curses!" Yuratei said; "That should have done it!" Great Zeorymer extended one of Rose C'est La Vie's beam swords, slashing the attacking Virtue in twain before turning her attention to the rest of the million-strong squadron of angels.

Scribe Odrade, Merkabah thought as it regenerated its legs; Faithful to the end. You have earned your place in the Great God's embrace. It then turned and spotted Chouginga Gurren Lagann rushing in, fingers outstretched and with spinning drills on their tips.

SO, MAN OF THE SPIRAL, the High Seraph said as it swatted the outstretched arm aside; YOU WOULD COME AND CAUSE THE TRUE SPIRAL NEMESIS?

"No!" Simon shouted. "I'm here to stop that! And so is everyone else in Team Dai-Gurren!" As he said that, he struck with his planet-sized Gunman's other hand, burying its drill fingers in Merkabah's flank.

"Metatron's final ritual is going to return all existence to the Great God, right?" the digger continued as he shoved Chouginga Gurren Lagann's other hand at Merkabah's face; "Then there won't be any cosmos! The Great God will be the only thing that exists!"

THE TRUE SPIRAL NEMESIS IS A FINAL END, the Atik Yomin general replied as it pushed the transformed warship back; WHAT LORD METATRON SEEKS IS TO GRANT ALL LIVING THINGS THEIR DEAREST, MOST HEARTFELT WISH WHILE RESHAPING CREATION TO BE BETTER.

"How do you know it will be better?!" Yoko yelled; "Or are you just following orders blindly?!"

WE COULD ASK THE SAME THING OF YOU, Merkabah said with a slight chuckle.

"You're right," Simon said with a chuckle of his own. "We don't know. But we're going to do what we can to make the existing realities better!"

IMPOSSIBLE, the High Seraph said. METATRON'S WAY IS THE ONLY WAY.

"Man, it's like talking to a wall with these guys," Kamina quipped. "Walls with broken records in them." His Gurren Lagann was back in the massive warship mech's hangar, drawing Spiral Power from it.

"Yeah," Viral said in agreement; "and you know what we do to walls that get in our way!"

"CHOUGINGA!"

"GIGA! DRILL! BREAAAAAAAAAAAAAK!"

Once again, Chouginga Gurren Lagann extended its drill tentacles - and managed to puncture Merkabah, paralyzing it with a dose of Spiral Power. It quickly retracted the tentacles as the two drills on its shoulders suddenly shot off and stacked on one another, forming into a single huge drill. This gigantic drill then attached to the massive machine's right hand.

"Bro, Viral! Together!" Simon called out.

"CHOUGINGA!" the three pilots bellowed in unison as the massive drill began to spin.

"GIGA...DRILL...BREAAAAAAAAAAAK!"

Chouginga Gurren Lagann rocketed forward, drilling straight into the High Seraph's torso. But this time, it didn't pierce all the way through – at the last moment, Merkabah had managed to break the paralysis and catch the drill. But Simon was able to break away, leaving the Giga Drill embedded in Merkabah's chest.

It was a nail that Guy Shishioh seemed to be intent on hammering in as Genesic GaoGaiGar approached, with Goldymarg close at hand.

"Merkabah! I've come for you!" the Evoluder cried.

WHAT, Merkabah said with just a hint of amusement in its voice as it struggled to remove the huge drill from its chest; NO BITTER...WORDS REGARDING YOUR...FATHER'S DEATH?

"I was able to reunite with him in Hell," Guy replied, "but tell me...how many children lost their parents because of Atik Yomin's manipulations? How many lives did your plans swallow?!" The God of Destruction let out a lion's roar that made Heaven tremble as an echo to Guy's words.

NECESSARY SACRIFICES...FOR THE SAKE OF ALL CREATION,the High Seraph said as his attempts to remove the drill grew more frantic.

"My courage blazes for the sake of those so-called 'necessary sacrifices'," Guy roared as Genesic's body began to blaze green; "Not my own! GOLDYMARG!"

"SYSTEM CHAAAAAANGE!" Goldymarg bellowed as his body shifted to its new hand and hammer form. Meanwhile, GaoGaiGar shot off one of its hands to allow the Marg Hand to connect.

"HAMMER CONNECTO!" the leader of the Brave Corps cried as Goldymarg connected to Genesic's upper arm, then grasped the new Goldion Hammer. "GOLDION HAMMEEEEEEEER!" As the God of Destruction grasped the Hammer, its body turned entirely gold, though it kept a greenish tinge from the overflowing power of the hyper-charged G-Stone.

As Merkabah decided to try and stop the approaching Genesic GaoGaiGar with its ultimate strike, it failed to realize that his head wasn't Guy's actual target, even as the God of Destruction formed a blazing green and gold nail from the hammer's handle.

"HAMMER...HELL!" Guy roared as he jammed the nail into the Chouginga Giga Drill, then struck it, pushing the drill just far enough to poke through the High Seraph's back.

"HAMMER...HEAVEN!" Genesic's pilot then yelled as he ripped out the nail and the drill in one smooth motion, leaving a gaping wound in Merkabah's body. Finally, Guy raised the Hammer overhead, causing it to grow into its full Goldion Crusher size in seconds.

"HIGH SERAPH MERKABAH...HIKARI NI...NAAAAAAAAAAAAAARREEEEEEEE!"

With that cry, Guy brought down the planet-sized Crusher on Merkabah's head, turning it and several hundred thousand angels into light.

For a moment, the battle stopped, and silence once again filled Heaven. But suddenly, DREAM noticed something...

Merkabah's head was still there...and it was building a new form.

It began by sprouting two small wings from its head, then a larger face below it – one that was split between an effeminate human with a sardonic smile and a vicious, devil-like human with a hateful scowl. Then both halves started to extend more parts that followed this theme...the angel half was festooned with bird wings, feathers and blades, while the demon half was covered in scales, bat wings and monstrous teeth and claws.

"Dang it," Goldymarg moaned. "I was sure that was gonna do it!" However, the Newtypes and other sensitive members of the group quickly realized something as they stared at Merkabah's new shape.

"Deathless Amon..." Judau gasped.

"What about him?" Kei asked.

And the rest of the Atik Yomin soldiers seemed to realize it too.

"The cells of Deathless Amon have infected Lord Merkabah!" a Seraph cried out. "A Great Devourer has taken over our generals!"

But the curse of Deathless Amon was purged from the Demon Tribe, Fudo thought, wasn't it?!

The unfiltered energy of Eden Vital must have reawakened Deathless Amon's cells, Iophiel thought. But it decided to possess Merkabah because it was a stronger host!

THIS HAS GONE ON LONG ENOUGH! Merkabah roared; WE SHALL ELIMINATE YOU ALL HERE AND NOW! ONLY LORD METATRON HAS THE RIGHT TO EXIST NOW!

The corrupted angel extended wave upon wave of golden and pitch-black tendrils that grabbed wildly at everything in sight – even the other Atik Yomin soldiers – and pulling them into its twin maws. As DREAM and their allies tried to think of something, they were quickly grabbed as well...


After Shin Getter 3 blasted a trio of shapeless horrors, it stopped, its head turning left and right as if looking for something amid the chaos of the endless battle between the armada of Getter Robos and the horrors of Outside. Inside the Super Robot, its main pilot had a look of grave concern on his face. Thankfully, this wasn't lost on his fellow pilots.

"What's up, Benkei?" Ryoma asked. "Something bugging you?"

"I have this strange feeling that Kei and the others are in danger," Benkei replied. "Terrible danger."

"I'm sure they can handle it without us," Hayato said. "DREAM has gotten out of plenty of sticky situations." But to their surprise, they heard the voice of the Supreme Commander in their minds:

Getter Team 550-988-653-914UC...go, he said as the colossal Getter-faced ship approached...the Getter Emperor.

"What?!" Ryoma exclaimed.

"But our duty," Hayato said. This exchange had caused them to momentarily drop their guard, allowing a massive, shapeless abomination with thirty-two claw-covered legs, ten suckered-mouths and sixty bloodshot eyes constantly firing energy beams to close in on them. But then, it was bisected and destroyed by another Shin Getter 1 – the one from the Celestial Calendar.

"Your duty is to your friends and loved ones!" the Celestial Calendar's Ryoma said.

"Besides, we held the line without you for ages without you," Hayato's counterpart said. The Universal Century Getter Team looked at each other via their screens, and nodded.

First, we shall loan you some of our power, the Supreme Commander said. Getter Emperor fired off a series of small Getter Beams from its side. But instead of damaging Shin Getter, it began to blaze green and pink.

"Our Shin Getter's output just spiked!" Hayato exclaimed.

"Supreme Commander..." Benkei murmured joyfully. He would get to see his adopted daughter one last time.

Go and help them, the Supreme Commander said. That is an order. Squadrons 728-566XG, 1337-1213RD, and 2222-4444DM will provide covering fire...as shall we.

Ryoma grinned savagely.

"Let's go, you guys!" he cried as Shin Getter 3 split into its component machines; "Time to see some old friends again!"


"Damn it...all!" Kouji grunted as Mazinger ZERO struggled to escape from the pull of Merkabah's tendrils. Already, ninety percent of Atik Yomin's forces had been consumed by the corrupted angel, who was all but overwhelmed by Deathless Amon's insatiable hunger - only its fanatical devotion to Metatron kept it from going completely mad.

"This is just like what happened when Gepelnitch went berserk!" Gamlin growled as his VF fired all of its engines to escape the grasp of Deathless Amon.

TRY AS YOU MIGHT, CHILDREN OF THE SEPHIROT, Merkabah growled; YOU CANNOT ESCAPE THIS...YOU SHALL BECOME A PART OF US...

"I can't...go on...any more..." Kei panted, exhausted more than the rest of the group with keeping Shin Dragon from being pulled in.

But just as her will was about to completely give out, a familiar cry echoed through a portal that suddenly opened near them:

"STONEEEEEEEEER! SUUUUUUUUUUN...SHINE!"

A sphere of hyper-concentrated Getter Rays whizzed through the portal, sizzling through some of the tendrils that bound Shin Dragon, and struck Merkabah in its main face, stunning it and causing its grip to loosen on the rest of its tendrils, allowing DREAM to escape.

"That attack...could it be?!" Bright exclaimed. The others turned to see the portal...out of which flew Shin Getter 1.

"Hey guys!" Ryoma quipped. "Miss us?"

"Ryoma! Hayato! Benkei!" Michiru cried with both sheer elation and disbelief; "But how?!"

"It's complicated," Hayato said.

"Dad!" Kei cried. "You're okay!"

"Sorry it took so long to get back here," Benkei said. "We got caught up in another battle."

"Told ya they weren't dead!" Musashi cheered. "Guuuuuys!"

"Is that Musashi?" Hayato gasped when he recognized the voice of Getter 3's pilot; "Our Musashi?"

"We'll see for ourselves later," Ryoma said.

"Glad to see you, guys!" Simon said as the massive warship-mech flew over to greet them.

"So, that's Chouginga Gurren Lagann," Hayato chuckled as he looked at the transformed Chouginga Dai-Gurren from head to toe. "Guess our little gamble back in the Death Spiral Field paid off."

"You should see what else it can do!" Leeron chimed in. By this point, Merkabah had regained its bearings.

SHIN GETTER ROBO, the corrupted angel said with a scowl as it loomed over the comparatively tiny mech; A THREAT AS GREAT AS ANYTHING TO THE COSMOS. HOWEVER, YOUR PRESENCE AT THIS POINT IS MEANINGLESS.

"Is it, now?" Ryoma chuckled. As if on cue, countless pink beams, all scattered around a single central beam that rivaled the Infinity Big Bang Storm in power, blasted out of the portal, striking Merkabah dead on. The portal then closed.

"That was..." Go gasped.

"Just a little help from the comrades we have in the battle we just left," Hayato said as Shin Getter turned to face the wounded High Seraph. "I think they did a good amount of damage there."

"But they left us with the final blow," Benkei said. "Let's not waste this chance!" As if on cue, Fudo, the Mazingers, Grendizer, Dante, and Shin Dragon all formed up behind them.

"Everyone, are you ready?" Ryoma asked his fellows.

"Let's finish him off right now!" Tetsuya replied.

"We'll get this done in no time," Koji and Kouji said in unison.

"Ready when you are!" Daisuke said.

"This guy's dead meat!" Fudo snarled eagerly.

"Lead on, Getter Team!" Dante said.

"Let's begin," Go said. With that, Dante and the four Mazingers took off while Shin Getter remained behind. Fudo flew over to Shin Getter and fused with it, forming once again into Devil Getter.

"Go, Kei, Gai!" Ryoma said as Devil Getter charged pink energy into its navel. "Let's blast 'em!" Go didn't reply, although Shin Dragon's mouth began to froth with green Getter Rays.

"FINAL...GETTER BEEEEEEEEEEAM!" the six Getter pilots and the Devilman cried in unison as the two Getters fired huge beams of energy, which spiraled together and formed into an even larger blast. This struck Merkabah dead on and smashed it into a mass of celestial cloud, leaving a crater. The two Getters kept the blast going as Mazinger ZERO and Mazinkaiser moved into position, then charged energy into their heat sinks.

"ZERO TO INFINITY...DOUBLE BURNING FIREEEEEEE!" the two Kabutos roared as they launched a Breast Fire and Fire Blaster at Merkabah, the sheer force deepening the crater as they sustained their attacks. Meanwhile, Dante, Mazin Emperor G and Grendizer prepared to launch their own attacks.

"DIZER TERA MAX!" Daisuke roared, causing Grendizer to go into its overdrive state. Mazin Emperor G, meanwhile, somehow summoned a thundercloud over its head. The two Mazingers, along with Dante, then aimed down into the crater.

"DEMONIC...DOUBLE LIGHTNING BUSTER!"

Bolts of energy burst from Emperor's finger as well as Grendizer's and Dante's horns, pounding Merkabah even further. The combined force of the attacks was now pushing Merkabah deeper and deeper into the ground.

"It's...beautiful..." Musashi murmured as he watched this unbelievable display of power.

"Put everything you've got into it, you guys!" Ryoma bellowed. The demon lord and five mechs quickly increased their output, widening the crater and forcing the angel downward ever farther.

"THIS IS OUR TRUE TRUMP CARD!" Ryoma shouted as he and the other mechs turned around. "FINAL DEMONIC SPECIAL..."

A colossal beam of light shot out from the clouds, creating an explosion rivaling that of twenty thousand supernovas as they shouted the final words...

"...ULTIMATE EDITION!"

The surviving Atik Yomin soldiers were all annihilated by this final blast, but quick thinking from Simon allowed Chouginga Gurren Lagann to shield the rest of DREAM and the Flame of Hope from the explosion with its powerful Spiral barrier.

Once the explosion's force had finally subsided, Fudo split off from Shin Getter.

"That was intense!" Fudo whooped. "There's no way he could have survived THAT!"

But as the clouds and dust cleared, they saw Merkabah start to hover back up. It was heavily damaged, but was already beginning to regenerate.

"It even survived that..." Hayato gasped, "after getting hit by the Supreme Commander's own Getter Beam?!"

"It's being empowered by our enemy," Ryoma said. "I suppose we shouldn't be surprised."

"Deathless Amon's vitality is truly amazing," Medusa said.

So this is the power of the beings that I'm descended from, Janus thought, a grimace on his face. But there's got to be a limit of how much it can take!

Tara, seeming to sense what Janus was thinking, turned to their AI co-pilots.

"Xengar, Xemmey," she said; "how much power can the Exogenesis Engine safely output in a space like this, without damaging our allies?!"

"One hundred percent," Xemmey said without hesitation.

"Everything it's got, eh?" Tara said with a chuckle. "All right, then."

Janus gasped as he realized the implications of this.

"Tara, you're not thinking of..."

"You bet I am!" Tara said, grasping her controls. "Paul! Alia!" Janus grinned and changed into his sphere-winged form as the Exogenesis Engine's output spiked.

"You ready, Paul?" Alia asked as Mimir Alatreox flew toward their cousin's mech.

"As I'll ever be," Paul replied.

TZIM/TZUM system Synchro level MAX activated, Xengar and Xemmey said in unison; All enumerations, simultaneous activation...Exogenesis Engine, full drive...

Neo Granlif's chest opened up, revealing a trio of energy generating prongs eerily similar to the Granzon's, which immediately began forming a sphere that shifted between all the colors of the rainbow, and some colors that shouldn't be visible to the human eye.

"Quark-gluon plasma field generated!" Xengar called out. "Power set at 100 percent!"

But instead of firing the blast, the white machine pressed Mimir Alatreox against its chest with both hands, the prongs somehow fitting neatly in Alatreox's body. The sword handle began to absorb the colossal energy inside the sphere of quark-gluon plasma - and as the energy flowed through their machine, it in turn, flowed through Paul and Alia. The two youngsters grimaced as the godly power filled every cell in their bodies, causing their eyes to turn blue-on-blue again.

After several seconds, their bodies turned a brilliant white, and a single pair of rainbow light wings sprouted from their shoulders, while their eyes shone a lustrous gold.

"Exogenesis Blade charge complete!" Xemmey called out. Neo Granlif then pulled the sword handle off and held it aloft as it sprouted out a gargantuan blade of crackling and swirling energy that extended for seemingly thousands of light-years. This also caused Tara's two cousins to start sprouting more pairs of light wings.

The still-regenerating Merkabah let out a hideous screech and sent out tendrils, each tipped with what appeared to be Amon's head, to grab Neo Granlif. But the sheer energy flowing through the godly machine managed to repel them.

"So t-this is Neo Granlif's m-maximum output?" Paul grunted. "I-it's unreal! I feel like the entire universe is flowing through me!"

"Hurry!" Alia cried. "I d-don't know if we can handle this for much l-longer!" Tara and Janus nodded, then let out a heroic cry:

"EXOGENESIS...GALAXY-CLEAVING BLADE!"

The energy suddenly coalesced into a single titanic blade made of shimmering rainbow metal. Then, as the godly robot brought down the blade, both sets of pilots let out one last cry:

"GEKIRIN...DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!"

Merkabah shrieked violently as the power of Neo Granlif's fully-powered sword cut it in twain. The cells of Deathless Amon within the fused angel couldn't keep up this time, and were incinerated. As it perished, the three High Seraphs that made up God's Chariot let out a unified wail of despair...

WE ARE...UNDONE! LORD METATRON...HURRY...THE DEVOURERS ARE...

With that, the last of Metatron's generals disappeared in a cloud of cosmic dust.


"It's all set...now I just need to..."

"Ungh...my head..."

You've done well, son. Leave the rest to us.

"No! Not you! Get out! Get out of my head!"

You cannot withstand us all. We WILL become the arbiter of fate.

"No...I have to...I have to..."

"Good...everything else is set. All that remains are the holy words...words that we, Euzeth Gozzo, have already obtained!"


The stage is set! Nothing else remains for the Normal route except the final battle! Here's the requisite preview:

-DREAM's struggle is coming to an end at last! As Metatron prepares to complete the final ritual, he has suddenly been overtaken by Euzeth Gozzo, who claims to be his father! Will DREAM be able to stop both Euzeth and Metatron from achieving their goals?! Find out in the epic conclusion for the Normal route for SUPER ROBOT WARS U: DELUXE EDITION! Stay turned for Final Chapter (Normal): Dream! Until next time, mecha fans!