» The order of the mortal knights

By Javier Delgado R.

Fan fiction, inspired by "Oh my goddess" by Kōsuke Fujishima.

Preparations

CHAPTER XLVI

Nidhogg, the great supercomputer that controlled Hell, was functionally a twin system to Yggdrasil, although over time both universes had added many different functionalities to their systems. However, demons had never implemented complex systems such as the dx-654 Predictive Defense Program, and other systems that the gods had created in order to predict and control the future. Because of this, its maintenance was simpler and required less staff.

By his actions helping Hild, the demon Walharen was now the director in charge of Nidhogg, however since much of what he had done should be kept secret most demons could understand why Hild had given him more authority than a Nidhogg administrator should have. However, given that not only he had Hild's support, but als had a direct line to her, no one dared to question him. Soon that would have unexpected consequences.

Walharen was in the main control room surrounded by a small group of young demon technicians. The previous team had been formed by recommendations. In a society that valued combat skills more than intellectual work, attending to Nidhogg's maintenance was considered undesirable. The intelligent and ambitious young people usually prefer other positions and so the previous team had been formed with those who had no abilities. The result had resulted in a bureaucratic organization whose main goal was to support itself, taking care of their few privileges and seeking to make as little noise as possible.

As soon as Hild had granted Walharen high privileges as a reward, he had dedicated himself to look for the fittest young people, attracting them with step promises and promotions... he had never consulted with Hild. Walharen was obsessed with getting results without considering how it was done.

- "What are the results of the new scan?" - said Walharen, without addressing anyone in particular. Several voices answered.

- "The main core is without problems"

- "Secondary memory zone without problems"

- "I/O Ports without problems"

- "There are no reports of extra processes"

- "¡The system's energy consumption continues at maximum values!"

Upon hearing the latest Walharen collapsed in his seat with an air of defeat.

- "Again that thing escaped, there must be undocumented areas of memor where it´s being hidden"

A general silence was made in the room. Everyone knew what it meant. They had managed to enter areas of the system that had never been studied, but still failed to stop the intruder malware that was hidden in the giant supercomputer. Walharen grunted from fatigue and looked at the technicians around him. Yet he couldn't help but smile despite the bad news. Unlike other Hell organizations he had achieved a team of brilliant demons with a great sense of camaraderie. Partly because of the promises he had made to them, but also because he had managed to make them understand the seriousness of the problem. Walharen had not hidden anything from them and they were aware of secrets that surely Hild would not have allowed to know.

- "We will take a break, get everyone out, come back later and look for new ideas. Mortals have a system called "brainstorming" that I want to try. Apparently one of the requirements is that everyone is relaxed ... "

- "Hey boss!... will you accompany us ?. Shak-ar's competitions have resumed. When the madness invaded us they were suspended, now that they have returned there are many new demons contending so it will be very interesting. "

Walharen smiled, in addition to being a spectacle, the Shak-ar was a competition where high-level warriors were selected, so all the young demons tried to participate. He had managed to reach a decent level, enough to apply for a position as a warrior, but his previous boss had denied him permission to do so. Now, being in a much higher position of authority than he would have achieved as a warrior, Shak -ar no longer seemed so attractive... but his demons helpers were no doubt attracted to the special status of warriors in their society.

- "Sorry, for this time I will not accompany you, I had the opportunity to see Anang-Reh fight, shortly before his death and I think there is no one to better than him. But if any of you manage to reach a good level, I will give you all my support. I will stay to review unfinished work. Do you have something interesting for me? "

The young demons looked at each other, and a particularly young scratched his head and spoke somewhat hesitantly:

- "Ahh... There is a request from the healers guild to verify a transmission. That should be a work for the security department, but it seems they are saturated. I planned to do it after finishing this test. "

- "A transmission? Where from?

- "From heaven!. It is an information requirement. Hild ordered to cooperate with the healers from heaven and share all the information we have about madness ... but they never answered until now. However, this transmission does not seem to be authorized by heaven ... and yet not only requests information, but wants a direct conference with some authority. The healers committee requests the identity be verified. However, any attempt to contact heaven authorities to verify credentials by official means has been ignored. "

Once he was alone Walharen reviewed the request ... A quick search confirmed that all communication channels with Heaven were closed... and the only one channel open did not include official authorization protocols. Walharen forgot his tiredness. That was an interesting anomaly. That should be a security issue... but since his current level was higher than that department, he didn't have much respect for them. For him they were nothing more than a group of paranoid bureaucrats...

The easiest solution seemed to be... to answer back! If security protested he could outrank them...

The gardens of the Tarikigonhan temple had a new guest. Under a beautiful and leafy tree, which had flourished and grown rapidly thanks to the magic of Lind and her Valkyries after the destruction of the temple, there were resting two somewhat incongruous figures.

The demon Wotan / Odin wore a comfortable yukata, the kind the Japanese used in the onsen and was lying on a chair. Next to him the lady of Hell was sitting in a bamboo chair wearing a revealing western summer outfit that highlighted her seductive forms. Both enjoyed tea, however the demon was restless:

- "Hild, please listen to me, I'm feeling fine now. I can return to my work. I feel younger than ever and I wish ... "- The demon eagerly looked at Hild's beautiful body. She couldn't help feeling some satisfaction at that...

- "You can't move yet, you don't even have the energy to resume your transformation. What you feel is the "intoxication of life", something common to gods and demons who spend a lot of time on earth before they get acclimatized. Even I can feel its effects because I have never spent so much time in the mortal world "

It had taken scientists almost a month to restore Odin's body, however they had not returned the energy they had extracted from him. The demon's internal healing processes were not yet complete, but they decided that it was better to let them act and let him absorb Gaia's energy more slowly.

Hild settled into her chair and looked at the convalescent demon with a sigh. In the last month a whole series of barriers she had created, to defend her life, her position and her daughter had fallen. At least for the moment, she didn't need to pretend anything. For now she could speak freely knowing that none of that would affect her image as the frightening and powerful ruler of Hell. The demon in form of the sighed in resignation and tried to change the subject:

- "Isn't it dangerous that you stay so long out of Hell? Although Marler has been shown to be surprisingly capable, rumors cannot be avoided. "

- "Everything is fine, my DOUBLE has turned out to be quite capable." - She laughed with happiness, and that would normally cause many demons to faint in terror...

- "But... a former Valkyrie in charge of the administration of Hell... I wonder what that young woman would think. "

- "You forget that causing problems to the gods is the obligation of every demon..."

Faced with the unexpected joke, Wotan blinked in amazement... and then slowly he began to laugh along with Hild.

At the sound of steps both demons restrained themselves and sought to adopt an attitude more appropriate for two powerful demons, but their attitude softened when they saw Keiichi carrying a tray.

- "Good morning Odin sama, Hild Sama. Belldandy prepared something for you to enjoy. I know you don't need to eat, but I think you can enjoy these flavors. "

Odin straightened a little and sniffed the air, then took a deep breath:

- What's that? It smells delicious

- "It's a western drink called coffee. It is Ms Rosenthal's favorite drink. I also brought some fruits and snacks that you may like. "

- "Ms Rosenthal? Is she the mortal you told me about? The one that helped develop the way to contain and stabilize my energy? "

- "That's right, she has just arrived with her husband and asks permission to speak with you."

"Marvellous!". Hild, aren't humans amazing? "

Hild looked seriously at Wotan.

- "Are you sure you want to do this? You could re-activate the alert. "

- "It seems mortals did a great job removing the blockage. I never imagined that all demons and gods had some hidden codes. I need to know more about it and we will only know if we exchanged information with mortals. The information provided by Shugahara Dono intrigues me a lot, especially after exchanging notes about the old legends. Now, this mortal that helped to save my life wants to know more so I have to offer something in return. "

Hild got up and said:

- "I don't want to hear anything you say. You have my permission to speak freely, but none of this conversation should be known in Hell. Keichi, please take me with Urd, I will soon have to return to Hell and there is still much to talk about. That mortal has my permission to speak with this old and silly demon. "

In the great control center of Yggdrasil the beautiful goddess Peorth supervised a new revision of the system, when she was interrupted by a security call. He anxiously looked around and immediately generated a barrier to avoid being heard. A call from that office always caused nervousness, but the appearance of a familiar face reassured her.

-" Chrono?. I didn't know you were in charge of security. The last time I heard about you, you were still a cadet for the Valkyrie post. "

-"After everything that happened many cadets were promoted to ranks of officers, even without finishing the training. Now I'm the head of communications security…"

-"Is there something wrong? I hope this call is not for official reasons. "

- "No... or rather... -" the young goddess looked extremely nervous, and after some hesitation she whispered- "we need to meet..."

Peorth felt a chill... Chrono must have a high position... but her nervous gestures told her that she could not speak freely... She needed an excuse to go see her, so with a big fake smile she spoke as if in secret.

- "I understand ... you mean those special documents that Urd brought... I think they are called "yaoi manga". Of course I had to confiscate them... - Then she added with a wink- "I would gladly leave them to your care... "

Chrono was baffled for a few moments...

-" Yaoi? - Then she blushed, THAT material was known to her, however she had guessed the goddess intention and spoke out loud.- "Of course, I demand that you immediately bring THAT... material to me. "

After the communication was closed Peorth became silent while pondering what to do. Apparently Chrono wanted to tell her something important, but it seemed she was guarded... So she would have to sacrifice some copies of her private collection to justify her visit to the intelligence center.

In Hild's rooms there were two women, a former Valkyrie and a demon checking a large number of files and reports. Marler had deactivated the morphic field that gave Lind the appearance of Hild. Both were reviewing reports of reconstruction, assignment of crews, resources, and reorganization of resources. Suddenly Marler got up with a long yawn, while showing satisfaction at the job. She materialized a beautiful tea set. As she began to prepare a brew , she said:

- "Lind, I think you can rest a little, you've done more than enough for today and the work is almost done... After all, you are not Hild, just her substitute... "

Lind tried to protest... to immediately change her expression, as if he had suddenly realized what he was doing... she dropped onto the chair and covered her face with her hands, exclaiming furiously.

- "What the hell am I doing... none of this should matter to me... this will only benefit the demons..."

Marler gave a loud laugh at her predicament... and proceeded to offer her a cup of tea. Lind sighed with resignation and accepted it.

- "I think you are discovering that deep down we are not so different. We have similar needs and similar problems... and you just can't stand to see a job in half or poorly done. "

Lind sipped the tea carefully ... the aroma made her relax, and then drank it greedily, Marler smiled and said:

- "I am surprised at the ease with which you have managed to handle the highest bureaucrats. Some of them are so stubborn and proud that even causes problems to the real Hild. Is this how you handle your subordinates? "

Lind looked at her meditating, and began to laugh softly... then more intensely... slowly approached Marler and put a hand on her shoulder as if trying to keep her balance and barely holding back the laughter she said.

- "On earth I had a lot of training that has helped me..." - Marler looked at her intrigued - "In recent years I have been working looking after children ... some are worse than ... those old demons."

Marler froze... suddenly she understood what the old Valkyrie had told her and shortly thereafter both were hugging, laughing non-stop.

Chrono was in her cubicle at the security center where communications were supervised. Normally in the center there was great activity because it was common for the contracts made by gods and demons with mortals to be verified and settled both in Hell and in heaven. That implied a series of open communication channels that require constant supervision... but now Kamisama had given the order to close all communications so the place was almost deserted. There were only Chrono and a couple of her subordinates. At that time she received a notification that the goddess Peorth from Yggdrasill control center had come to see her.

- "Please accompany her to the department for isolation of demonic materials, I will attend her in a few moments. After i got in, you must put all the seals until I tell you "- At the questioning look of her young assistant, she told her. - "Goddess Peorth brought some material from the mortal world considered dangerous."- The young goddess opened her eyes with surprise and whispers in secret.

- "Are they... light novels and manga?. I heard rumors that there was such material in the goddess assistance center and in the Yggdrasil control center ... May I take a look at it?"

- "Sorry, the material that Peorth brings today is of a very special nature. No goddess should see it. You know that not everything Goddess Urd brought is ... legal. I must examine it first. If I consider that it is suitable material... I will let you see it. Roger that?"

- "Yes ma'am!" - the young goddess replied with energy... and with hope.

Shortly after Peorth and Chrono found themselves in one of the isolation chambers designed to analyze captured demonic objects. The magic seals were so intense that they even blocked the light.

- "Well Chrono... Now tell me what is so important. "

- "We detected activity in an open communication channel with Hell."

- "Are there not several communication channels with Hell?"

- "Kamisama ordered a complete block of all channels" - Peorth paled understanding the implications. - "But I also know that one of Belldandy's orders was to open a special channel of communication with Hell among the healers. Because it was not operating before, it was not included in the block, but recently the channel was activated. Someone from heaven has requested a communication with Hell... and they have responded by requesting verification. It's something abnormal, I think you have contacts that can help me know what's happening. I don't want to release the alarms, it could generate a great panic, especially if it's something related to Belldandy. As a security supervisor I must report it and block it... "

Peorth cried

- "Please do not do it" - The young Valkyrie was surprised at the agitation of the goddess, after a few moments Peorth spoke with a whisper.- "The communication was opened by a young healer who is fulfilling orders from Chancellor Myr. It is important that it be carried out..."

Chrono stepped back... that seemed treason, and yet he respected Peorth as his former superior... cautiously she replied:

- "Are you telling me to authorize it? this is weird, like,
okay, what's going on? Do you know what you are asking me? "

Peorth bit her lips nervously... it seems she neede to get the confidence of the young Valkyrie and unite her to the conspiracy.

In a cubicle in the large computer center, a man with messy long hair and a colorful shirt lay in an armchair, where he had collapsed from exhaustion. On his face you could see the traces of a deep tiredness resulting from several weeks without sleep in search of a solution that would allow him to release Ghadril from her magical prison. In the room you could see the remains of his battle. Not only was the board full of equations, the cubicle walls were also full of math and on the computer screen there was also part of a complex code. In addition there were mountains of disposable cups for coffee, remnants of junk food packaging and half-eaten food scattered on the floor, there was also a pungent body odor as a result of not leaving the place except for the most basic needs.

In the end his effort seemed to have given results. Galileo was at that time doing the simulations of the process, in order to verify his work.

Slight knocks were heard at the door and after not receiving an answer, Dr Shugahara gently pushed the door, he entered silently, accompanied by Professor Kawazu.

He looked with some disapproval at the state of the cubicle but smiled when he saw the exhausted Takahashi.

- "I think we can talk normally. I doubt he wakes up. "

- "According to the report he sent us, he managed to solve the problem and left the rest to Galileo... I tried to convince him to take some breaks... but he is as stubborn as you... "

Shugahara just smiled, because he couldn't deny the charges...

- "I understand what it is to suffer for someone you love and fight with all your might to save her, he is a mathematician and all these are his weapons" - he said pointing to the walls - "and apparently it was a heroic fight. Galileo, you can give me the status. "

The kind voice of the artificial intelligence resounded

- "The simulations are in progress, but I can already estimate a 65% chance that it will work."

- "Only 65%? That is to say, we must take precautions. Don't tell Takasaki ... but I'm not attracted to the possibility of having a Valkyrie out of control again. "

- "But you were able to stop her..."

-"I was lucky. No one would expect a mortal to have access to a magical seal, but whatever it is that controls her, now knows it. "

-" So what can we do? Could Belldandy and Urd help to contain her? "

- "Belldandy still does not recover all her power, but Urd could help... however I think we can have someone even more powerful."

- "Do you mean Hild ...?" - he said with fear- "I think several of our teammates might be too impressed if she shows her power."

- "I'm sure she will help us. We help save Wotan's life and she hates getting into debt. But you are right, we need an isolated place away from everything, just in case. The first thing is to wake up Takahashi. "

- "Wouldn't it be better to let him sleep a little longer? ..."

Shugahara took out his metal case and chose a dermal patch.

- "Normally I would agree, but in his state it may take more than a day to fully recover and we will need all his talent. This will help him recover. Urd prepared this potion especially for him. "

He took the mathematician's arm, rolled up his shirt and placed the patch. A soft light enveloped his body. In a few seconds the signs of tiredness disappeared from his body, his breathing became calm. A couple of minutes later he started to open his eyes... He suddenly jumped and started screaming.

- "Gadhril!, how is she? I know how to release her, how long was I asleep?. We have to hurry.

Shugahara took him by the shoulders to calm him down.

- Easy, everything is fine. You have the seal that contains her. We need to make preparations to free her. "

- "We have to do it immediately!"

-" Calm down... First I think you should take a bath and eat something healthier. We have to prepare the right place and the equipment. And we need you to be fully recovered"

- "But Gahdril has told me that my smell does not displease her..." - Takashi broke off after taking a sniff to his shirt... and made a face... he blushed and said shyly- "I think I need to take a bath..."

Walharen was humming and floating peacefully in the control center. When he reached one end of the room with the limb closest to the wall, he pushed lazily to the other side... like a giant ping pong ball in slow motion. It was his favorite way to relax to think... and now as the boss he could do it freely without anyone telling him anything. Also his team of technicians were still enjoying the Shak-ar.

Suddenly a sound indicated that there was an incoming transmission... and without verifying the origin he simply activated it.

An image formed in the center of the control room and a voice spoke.

- "Starting a special communication channel, I am responding to your authentication request".

Walharen was speechless. It was the image of a beautiful young goddess in a military uniform... It was his first contact with a god. It was completely different from what he had imagined. He had expected the image of a proud and arrogant healer. He lost his concentration and distractedly deactivated the spell that made him float... so he went crashing down to the floor.

The young goddess looked at him with alarm...

"Are you okay?"

Walharen got up in a hurry... and tried to fix his clothes. A contact between heaven and Hell should not be made lightly... and for the moment his dignity had been a bit bruised.

- "Yes!... I... I'm fine!... ahem!... "- The worried face of the beautiful goddess had left him speechless, then he did his best to regain his composure-" Hi!...err, I mean. Here Walharen, first class demon, general manager of Nidhogg. I ... this ... I mean, this is an unauthorized channel and I needed to verify its origin... "

The young goddess had tried to maintain her composure... but with the awkwardness and hesitation of the young demon she could not help but start laughing, suddenly she covered her mouth when she realized what she was doing. It was not appropriate for an officer to laugh in the middle of an official communication, she took a deep breath and spoke with her best military tone:

- "I am Chrono, Valkyrie of second class, superintendent in charge of security protocols."

Walharen had been captivated by that spontaneous laugh... he had never heard such a "heavenly" sound before, and he remained silent looking at her dumbfounded... then he realized what he was doing and said the first thing that occurred to him.

- "Sorry... I did not expect... I thought that all the gods were old farts... especially a security officer." - He panicked for a moment he realized what he had said and began to nervously slapping in a vacuum as a lunatic.

- "You are not what I expected either. I expected to see a proud and arrogant healer. Are you really a manager to Nidhogg? You are very young. Shouldn't this be an issue for the security department? "

- "Hey! They are very busy... and... well, I have a higher level of security." - The demon spoke proudly trying to impress her. - "That's why I decided to take this matter personally... Are you really a Valkyrie? I thought they were all scary!...you are so cute!... hey! You are also very young for a security post... "

Chrono could not hide her anger... She was very proud to have been accepted as Valkyrie and did not like to be questioned... Impulsively she whispered a magical spell and with a violent gesture she materialized her sigil, the magic circle exclusive to each god where his/her abilities, achievements and merits were described.

Walharen had to make an effort not to give a whistle of astonishment...

- "Awesome…! And you were also working in Yggdrasil "- he gave a sigh -" Despite having the right credentials, they never authorized my transfer request to the combat section. "

- "Do you have combat training? Are you not just a technician?

This time it was Walharen who materialized his sigil. The complex magic circle showed that his credentials in combat training, his excellent qualifications as a technician and several recognitions by Hild, also he had an administrative level that gave him direct access to Hild.

- "For special services I have Hild's confidence... Currently I am above the hierarchy of the combat section ... although I really would have liked to be part of it."

Suddenly Chrono cleared her throat... The conversation was beginning to take on a very personal level, especially after having exchanged some private information...

-"Ahem. Since we both seem to have the right credentials, I think we can both authorize this communication channel... unofficially. "- The young woman placed special emphasis on the last word -" We have orders to establish a total communication block, but... in this case we can leave this channel open... confidentially. "

Walharen perceived the nervousness of the goddess by her last words...

- "Anyone else besides the healers will have access to this channel?"

The question took Chrono by surprise ... that was a sensitive issue that hse still didn't want to talk about. She hesitated, but as a goddess she could not lie so she added quietly...

- Chancellor Myr..."

- "Who? Isn't that one of the most important gods after Kamisama? That's too much for an unofficial communication channel... Is there something wrong?

The young goddess spoke quietly and nervously... looking around.

- "The chancellor has expressed his desire... to establish... an unofficial communication... with some authority of Hell... and keep it discreet"

Walharen swallowed... This seemed to be more serious than a simple exchange of medical information. The young goddess nodded slightly... without saying anything. He looked around and also needed to make sure this was private... he began giving a series of orders to the Valkyrie while he quickly generated control information.

- "Open a new level III encrypted communication channel. Now switch to alternate channel with prime number 999983, I will send you a private encryption key level IV. Now switch to primary transmission protocols. "

He had quickly changed channels, at each step sending information to increase security... with satisfaction he saw that the young goddess had followed him without problems.

- "You are very good, you had no trouble following me!. In this encrypted channel nobody can listen to us. It will look simply as part of the standard synchronization protocols of Nidhogg and Yggdrasil. I don't know what's going on, but it seems important. I can use this channel to speak with Chancellor Myr. If I consider it important, I decided to put him in touch with Hild. "

Chrono was pale... she knew that from that moment, from the point of view of heaven, she was committing an act of high treason, but Peorth had explained what was happening.

- "I will inform Chancellor Myr... I think that's all..."

Walharen felt a jump in his heart... and quickly interrupted her.

- "Could I... communicate with you again? Maybe we could talk about other issues, er.. I mean… OFICIAL issues!"

The Valkyrie looked at him with surprise and nodded shyly before cutting off the communication.

From that moment on, two communication contacts had begun between Heaven and Hell. Both would be surprisingly decisive.

In the isolation center of demonic materials at the security department, the goddess Peorth was lying on the floor... while a shower of rose petals began to wrap the place. The goddess let out loud laughter, and the young Chrono changed her face color... Between laughter and laughter Peorth began to speak.

- "I wish there would have been a record for this for future historians. That conversation could become legendary and worthy of study. "

Chrono closed her eyes and muttered stubbornly.

- "I fulfilled the objective you asked me... We must bring Chancellor Myr here"

Peorth began to laugh harder and said.

- "I will, I will ... But, I think you have promised to establish another type of communication "- Chrono groaned without knowing what to say -" I must say that this young demon is very attractive and has a promising position... I can give you some advice, I am the love goddess..."

The blushing young valkyrie just covered her face with her hands and shouted.

- "Please... don't say anything else!. I looked so silly!"

XXX

End of chapter XLVI