Blah blah blah, technicalities and crap.
Fujishima Kosuke owns AMG and its characters. I own Xerangref and Daisen, Kruss, Kyuss and Shantar (previous statements about using all of them stand).
A/N: Certain events and plots are hinted and somewhat revealed in this work. If you haven't read at least up to or past volume 19, you may be confused at some points. And for the rest of the chapters posted, it is VERY strongly suggested you not read on if you haven't read past Volume 23…There are plots that might spoil the manga for you.
The series is drawing to a close. Some may like the ending, others may not. Some of you may even think it's cheesy, but oh well.
Major note: The next 2-3 chapters will pretty much follow the manga volumes 24-26 idea of the main plot. I'll add my own unique little twists, but it'll still be close to the same.
Happiness' End
End of Chapter 38:
"You're a complete idiot Keiichi!"
"Thanks for the vote of confidence Skuld," he replied while rubbing the side of his head.
"It's not as simple as that!"
"Maybe…"
"It's not 'Maybe…' you moron! You don't understand it do you? If you knew, you wouldn't take the risk! That would only happen if you knew what was about to happen!"
"Of course I'm not sure. But if Belldandy is in danger, and it turned out I did nothing to help her…then why am I here? Why should I be afraid for only me? I have to help her."
"But…I never heard of something like this…"
"It's alright." Both figures turned to Lind, "If it's Keiichi-kun…it is possible, and he can do it."
She turned to face him, "Are you ready?"
Keiichi nodded, "Ah, I guess so."
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Chapter 39: Tragedy
Hild grinned as she began the process. She had Xerangref move Belldandy into the room with all the other prone divines, making it easier to access.
She began to slowly and carefully place eggs for demon spirits in each of the goddesses lying on the floor. She had skipped over Kyuss, figuring a youngling like he wouldn't be worth anything in the long run.
Each one of the goddesses had a violent reaction to their new guest, but it seemed that each had accepted it without much consequence.
Hild kept her grin throughout the entire process, "Those fools won't know what hit them…"
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Lind leaned in forward towards Keiichi. When their faces were a few centimeters apart, she pulled back.
"That was all, now try to pull yourself together…You may feel a bit strange and a slight pain, as the power accepts you."
Keiichi nodded, and then seemed to wobble slightly and his eyes glazed. "Strange was an understatement…"
"This completes everything…hopefully…"
Just then, Lind turned to look over her shoulder and saw Hild and the Angel Eater behind them. She grabbed Skuld and dove away, trying to protect her.
"You still plan to run? What fun is that?"
"Skuld…" Skuld turned to look at Lind. She seemed to be breathing hard and looking slightly fatigued and red. "I can't do it anymore…it's up to you…summon your angel…"
Lind fell over, but Skuld kept her from hitting the floor. "Belldandy…Urd…Peorth…don't you want to save them? Only you can do it…"
Skuld suddenly remembered all the times Urd and scolded her about Noble Scarlet before, all the advice her onee-sama had given her about her angel, and all the warnings Peorth had delivered.
She finally realized that all her pain and longing wouldn't have supported her angel, and that she had needed a true need and a true desire to be with her again.
Skuld clasped her angel's egg and slowly consumed it, 'Please…come forth…'
After a few seconds, she turned to see a more developed Noble Scarlet behind her.
"Now!" Hild shouted as the meeting was suddenly split and Noble Scarlet began to dash towards the Angel Eater.
'A rescue call…this is how they manipulate the angels and drag them out…but…'
Lind turned, "Now Keiichi-kun!"
"What!" Hild turned to look at a somewhat woozy and apparently drunken form of the mortal.
"Come forth…come forth Coolmint!" Keiichi seemed to wince and grab his shoulder as a one-winged angel once again appeared. But this time, its lone wing was on its right side.
"It can't be…"
Lind seemed to grin slightly, 'An angel uses a goddess' love as a source of power…with all that love Keiichi-kun has received…he can easily…support an angel.'
"Well…this is a surprise. There were actually two inside…One-Winged Lind."
"Not even many in Heaven know…the true name of the twin angels…"
The Angel Eater paused, as two angels appeared before it. It appeared that while two angels were already out, it couldn't target both of them, let alone one.
Keiichi paused and seemed to hesitate slightly. "What is it, Keiichi-kun?"
Everyone turned to see that the demon, Xerangref, had brought in the line of goddesses. They all seemed to hover in mid air, but all were still unconscious. The two warrior gods were also unconscious, but one was lying in the dirt face first, while the other was tied and lying on his side.
The odd thing about Belldandy, Urd and Peorth were the new clothes they sported, as well as the stench of being demonic.
Lind seemed surprised and narrowed her eyes, while Hild grinned. Skuld began to run to Belldandy, but hesitated when she heard Lind tell her to wait.
It was then that Belldandy seemed to regain consciousness, and summoned her spirit. A spirit that was purely demonic in region and power. The backdraft of power had to be held back by Coolmint, Lind and Skuld and her angel.
"Whatever it takes…however long…no matter what! We will save Belldandy!"
Lind looked over her shoulder at Keiichi. He still seemed to be out of it, but had a determined look on his face.
"Someone…is always saving me. Not anymore, not now!"
Lind looked to her side at Skuld. "I see…would you both leave this place?"
"What are you saying?"
"Don't you trust us?"
"I don't feel the need to protect you anymore…thus I want you to run salvage and get the angels away from the Angel Eater."
"How would you manage that? Belldandy's power was already strong, but now she has demonic power as well. It would take all of you to hold it back successfully."
"Is Hild right?"
"No…I'm using a booster…to help fight. I have five more left as a last resort…if I use those all at once, I can shield you to do your operation."
"Wouldn't that be bad for you?"
"What? It's not like I'm going to die…so…Here I go! To support all of you!" Lind crossed her arms and began to summon her last powers when she heard Belldandy's voice.
"Please stop."
Lind looked up at her in surprise.
"There is no need Lind…this child is no longer a threat." Lind turned her attention to the demon and saw that it was turning white, and its demonic energy was dissipating.
Soon, the devil seemed to scream and the black remains flew off of her. Moments later, the devil was completely white and began acting like an angel.
Hild seemed stunned. She hadn't ever expected the outcome to happen like this. Apparently, she had underestimated Belldandy and her power of heart.
"Cool and Iceblade!"
Hild ducked quickly, avoiding the attack. "You almost caught me by surprise. To think you could actually use that power. But you missed!"
"No," he replied with a slight smirk, "I hit my target."
Hild turned around to see the Angel Eater completely frozen. Skuld then began to chant a spell for a water wall to surround Noble Scarlet. After it was complete, both her angel and the wall hit the Angel Eater with extreme force.
Noble Scarlet soon returned, dragging all four angels that had been taken with her.
Immediately, all angels returned to their owners. The result being that the demons Belldandy and Peorth had acquired were forced out of their bodies, returning to eggs. Kyuss seemed to regain conscious almost immediately, as he stood and looked around. He moved to assist Shantar after it seemed that the goddesses had everything in control.
The only problem was Urd. It seemed that due to her dual nature, the demon and angel had both taken hold of her. No one seemed to notice, as the battle continued.
"Now Lind, all that is left is your angel."
"Yes, let's get her."
Lind was hit with an antenna as Hild began to speak, "It won't be that easy. Even without its power source, my little devil is still quite strong."
Lind landed near Keiichi and turned to him, "Coolmint re-call request!"
She put her hand on his chest and moved close to him once again. After a few moments, the right winged angel appeared behind Lind instead of Keiichi.
Keiichi soon fell over from feeling slightly weak. He also felt a sense of loss, as the angel went back to Lind.
"Thank you…"
"Eh?"
"That is proof that you've given your all to the angel. You gave your full trust and power to her…that is what Coolmint tells me."
Lind turned back to face the Angel Eater and summoned her battle axe.
"Just because the angels have returned doesn't mean a thing. You can't attack my little one without hurting your angel."
Lind dashed at Hild quickly after claiming to not hurt her angel. The Angel Eater released an energy attack at her, which caused her to drop her axe and guard. When the light cleared and Lind looked at Hild, she saw that her axe was in the antennae of the Angel Eater.
Hild shrugged, "Too bad. So close too. Now what will you do without your weapon?"
"Weapon? No…that was a restraint. As long as I was using that, your safety and health remained in tact."
After a quick burst, it seemed as if all the Angel Eaters legs were simply crushed. Spearmint fell out before long. Hild and Skuld seemed shocked, but Hild had no time to react. For as soon as Lind appeared, she disappeared again. Hild was hit with an odd attack and eventually stopped herself in midair.
"That attack…was the one attack that hints at my true strength."
"Well if we have to get serious…I supposed I can let off some seals…"
The two stared at each other before Hild seemingly vanished. When Hild looked at her side, she saw Xerangref still in position to transport objects or people.
"And pray tell…why did you interrupt out fun, Xerangref?"
"My Lady, look before you."
Hild looked out at the scene they had just left and saw the Angel Eater releasing tremendous amounts of power and running wild. In addition, she also saw her daughter in much the same position.
"It would be best if we make haste away from this, My Lady."
"Exactly. When things get too hard to handle…leave them for someone else!"
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As the Angel Eater continued to run out of control, Lind also received rather harsh damage as blasts rained everywhere in the area.
Belldandy dashed out and began to support Lind, so she wouldn't fall under siege.
"Let us send this mislead one back."
"It isn't possible Belldandy! When its in rage like this, there isn't an alternative than to kill it. Plus we can't make gates to the demon world."
The former devil appeared behind Belldandy, "No, with this child and you…it is possible."
"It isn't worth it Belldandy. If we can't stop it, if we can't send it back…others may be sacrificed instead! That isn't what you want is it?"
Belldandy wrapped her arms around Lind in a small embrace, "You're such a kind person…but you need to find joy in something other than fighting. You do not fight just for the sake of it. You are one that takes up the responsibility of others. This time, you don't have to do that. When there comes time for a true fight…we will be alongside you."
Lind seemed to draw back slightly as she looked at Belldandy, "Now…we can send it back."
"Understood."
However, before the process was started, both were interrupted by a scream. They looked over to see that Peorth and Urd had both regained consciousness, but that wasn't the shocking part.
What looked like a battle as happening behind Urd. Her angel and now devil were fighting each other over the host, neither willing to back down.
Peorth had taken her distance, due to the tremendous power that Urd was radiating. The two gods had backed away and began to shield themselves as well as Peorth.
"We must subdue the beast first…then help my sister."
Lind nodded and turned her attention back to the Angel Eater.
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Urd had never experienced such pain in her life. First thing she remembered was her angel being pulled away. Next, was an odd feeling of evil and anger…
The last was a feeling of immense pain and torture. The last still continued on as her two sides continued to fight.
Her natures had always fought inside of her, but her restraint and sense of duty had always won true. Now, though, what was happening couldn't be stopped.
Now, each side had an actual physical embodiment that was fighting both inside and outside of her. It was a war of her soul, and it was beginning to tear her apart. She had released her pain in the only way she knew how.
She screamed.
She could barely open either eye, but she saw what was happening around her. Belldandy and Lind were dealing with the monster, while everyone else seemed to be cowering in fear of her.
Shantar and Kyuss were covering Peorth while Keiichi tried to shield Skuld.
With each passing moment, Urd could feel her resolve and determination to stop the fight slipping further and further away. Things were getting more and more violent. She was passing through various moods and stages of pain.
As her control slipped, as did her ability to control her two guests. Soon World of Elegance and the demon spirit were exchanging not only physical blows, but magical ones as well.
Bolts of energy dashed off in various directions. A variety of directions soon exploded with different colors.
As things escalated further and further, Urd's movements and trashing became increased. She was more vocal with her screams as well, which seemed to reach a higher pitch each time she let one loose.
Skuld was looking on in fear as Keiichi tried to shield her as best he could. Even then, the young man also looked fairly shaken.
The same was also true for the two gods and Peorth, as they watched the scene unfold. It took both of them to hold a shield powerful enough to guarantee the safety of everyone near them.
Urd's screaming and fits didn't go unnoticed by Belldandy either. She turned and watched what was happening to her sister before she turned back to Lind.
"Lind, we must subdue this creature quickly. I fear Urd will not hold out much longer. Use more force if you need to…"
Lind nodded and summoned her battle axe once again. She began to distract and slowly work away at the demon. Soon, Belldandy was able to get a sealing spell that would hold it in place as well as restrict its power.
However, the few precious minutes that the process took fared worse for Urd.
As both Lind and Belldandy turned around, they saw Urd grabbing her head while the continual screaming still took place.
She was tired of the pain. She was tired of the screaming. She was tired of trying to regain control. She was tired of fighting. Urd was generally tired and getting extremely angry and irritated.
As they started towards her, Urd seemed to grip her hands into fists, clench her eyes shut, scream even louder and slammed her fists on the ground.
What followed was an extremely loud crashing sound and a blinding flash.
When everything cleared, Belldandy quickly looked around to assess anything that could've gone wrong.
She saw Lind still standing next to her, also looking around. She turned her head and saw both Shantar and Kyuss still shielding Peorth. Skuld was trying to push Keiichi off of her, as he apparently smothered her to prevent her from getting hurt.
The last figure lay on the floor with a lone figure above her. World of Elegance smiled weakly at Belldandy before holding out her hand and dropping the demon seed. She quickly ducked back into Urd to rest after completing her task.
Belldandy rushed to Urd's side to check how she was doing. She was relieved to find that any traces of manipulation her mother had over her were now gone. Urd was pretty much back to normal, aside from being extremely drained of energy and physically exhausted.
Belldandy was so worried about Urd that she failed to assess the damage around them. The explosion, from what it seemed, was a massive unleashing of numerous power bolts by both World of Elegance and the demon spirit.
In every direction, a crater could be seen with the magical residue of divine or demonic energy. For the most part, the blast seemed to have steered clear of everyone.
That was when Urd slightly opened her eyes and Skuld screamed.
Urd winced and put a head to her head quickly, "Ow…not so loud brat. It feels like I have a world class hangover…"
"Nee-san! You're alright!" Belldandy quickly drew her sister into a large hug.
"Ow ow ow ow! Belldandy! Not so hard!" Urd pleaded as she drew away.
Belldandy smiled at her, "I'm sure that you will be alright soon…there is nothing to worry about anymore."
Urd looked over her shoulder and seemed to pale, "Why hasn't your devil left yet? It should've gone…"
"I haven't released her yet, as we need to send the Angel Eater back to where it belongs."
Urd seemed to nod, the grabbed her head as pain and a dizzy spell assaulted her. "How is everyone else?"
Belldandy looked at the trio of divines that were now heading towards where she, Lind and her sister were sitting and smiled, "It seems that Peorth, Shantar and Kyuss are all safe."
"What about the brat and Keiichi?"
Belldandy's smile immediately vanished as she turned to where Skuld and Keiichi were when she last saw them. Skuld seemed to be shaking Keiichi and trying to get him to move. Belldandy immediately dashed to where they both were and saw something she hoped to never see.
Keiichi had blood dripping out of the corners of his mouth, as well as a puddle of blood that was forming under him. Despite the awful scene in front of her, Belldandy couldn't help but notice that Keiichi was smiling.
He seemed deathly pale and was wheezing a great deal. But enduring it all, he still smiled at both Skuld and her.
"I'm…glad…You're alright…Skuld…"
"You big moron…you should be more worried about yourself instead of me," Skuld replied as she seemed to tear up.
Belldandy leaned over and pulled Skuld near her. She also put one hand out in front of Keiichi and cast a quick scanning spell. She was in extreme dismay to find out that, while protecting Skuld, he had been struck by one of the beams as it passed.
The beam was of demonic power. It had simply sliced through most of his upper back on the left side. It sliced through a couple ribs, barely touched the liver, and cut through the top of one of his lungs.
She soon began to softly chant a spell of healing, but found that all energies involved in those spells had been restricted.
Normally, Belldandy wouldn't have been worried about something like this, since she could heal Keiichi. But with this new obstacle, she began to get extremely worried.
"Nee-san! Peorth! Shantar! Kyuss! Can any of you cast any sort of healing spells?"
Everyone turned to look at her from a distance, eyeing her strangely. Soon they shut their eyes and began to chant softly, but nothing happened. Each in turn shook their heads to show it was no good.
Belldandy turned to Keiichi to look at him painfully. Things were just starting to go right between them, and then this had happened.
Skuld began to cry into her sister even harder, which started causing Belldandy to cry. She couldn't hold in her fear or pain anymore, as she looked at Keiichi.
His eyes were fogged over and his smile seemed a bit empty. He also began to shake from being cold due to loss of blood. His breathing was still raspy and labored, but came in much more shallow breaths and much longer intervals.
"No, please don't leave me…please…" Belldandy took one of his hands and rubbed it against her face. It was ice cold. His grip seemed to tighten on it slightly.
"I'll…see you again…won't I?" Keiichi whispered out between breaths.
"Please, don't speak like that! You can't die…you can't…I won't let you…"
"Thank you…Belldandy…" Keiichi tried to smile at her, but coughed up a bit of blood instead. "I hope we can still…be together…"
"Please…not yet…we still have so much to do with each other. You can't go yet…" Belldandy began to cry again as she held his hand to her cheek. He released his hand from her grip and shakily wiped away some of her tears and caressed her cheek before she grabbed his hand again.
Soon after, he took a very deep and raspy breath and was still. Skuld ran over to where Urd was and buried as much of herself as she could into her sister and continued to cry. Urd could've sworn she heard Skuld mumble 'All my fault…' between sobs.
Belldandy simply sat with his hand still in hers, looking at Keiichi. He had gone with a smile on his face, in the presence of the person he loved most.
After a few more minutes, Belldandy raised her head towards the sky and screamed. All her pain, all her anguish, all her love and anger, everything. She put it all into one ear-shattering scream before breaking down into sobs on top of Keiichi.
Urd looked at the entire thing with sadness and remorse.
The dream they had all lived…was finally over.
A/N: I know some of you may think I'm an unoriginal screw off by taking pretty much 2 volumes of ideas from the manga…but I can honestly say I don't care. I needed the overall idea of what Fujishima-san had used, thus it was used. I changed what I wanted and even had my own little twists in it here and there. The ending to it, as you can see, was vastly different. This is the end ideal I had.
And a note on those of you that think I may have screwed up with Kyuss and Peorth when they got 'attacked,' I didn't. Yes, the Angel Eater can't target multiple angels when they are out, but it already had Kyuss' guardian with it before taking Gorgeous Rose from Peorth.