Chapter 9

"Anyone tell you that you suck at climbing?"

"Yes. You. Repeatedly for the past six hours."

"Well…..It needed to be said."

Mana looked over her shoulder and glared at the ghost of Sayoko.

"Well some of us being dead can just float at our leisure." Mana growled, "The rest of us can't use our powers because we'll be detected."

The ghost shrugged.

"Sucks to be you."

Mana glared at the ghost, then continued to climb down the rock face.

"Sometime you're going to tell me how you got this way."

The ghost frowned. "What way?"

"You are nothing like MY Sayoko." Mana replied, "There are times I find you irritating, insulting, and so damn annoying that I want to strangle you. What the hell made you like this?"

"Well, let's see." The ghost thought for a moment. Suddenly she perked up. "Oh I know what it was. I DIED!"

"And just how did that happen?" Mana asked, "How did you die?"

The ghost remained quiet.

"Why won't you tell me?" Mana pleaded.

"I will tell you." The ghost replied softly, "In time." The ghost then looked around. "Hey you still have a ways to go. Better keep going."

Mana sighed. "Right."

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AU Belldandy walked down the stairs into the restaurant. She moved across the room and sat down at the same booth as Keima, Asuka, and Celes. In the booth right next to theirs sat AU Skuld, AU Sayoko, Lime, and Bloodberry.

"Good morning." AU Belldandy said with a smile.

"Morning." Keima replied, as did several of the others.

"What's going on?"

Keima popped a bit of toast into his mouth.

"Getting ready for today's soap."

AU Belldandy frowned.

"Soap?"

"Yep." Asuka said, "It's been really interesting as of late. Especially since the other day when his mother from an alternate universe arrived and hit on him."

Now AU Belldandy was really confused.

"Sentaro has at least two people romantically interested in him." Celes said, "Almost three, but I think your Sayoko is out of the running."

"And how." AU Sayoko muttered.

"Who are the girls?" AU Belldandy asked.

"You'll find out." Celes said with a smirk, "It's starting."

Across the way, Sentaro sat down at a booth with his breakfast. He got a few bites in, then noticed people staring at him. He looked over at his audience.

'What?' he mouthed.

Then the other two 'cast' arrived.

Arael stepped out from the kitchen with her beloved waffles. She walked down to one end of the bar to grab syrup. A moment later, Megami stepped out with her breakfast, her tail twirling around in pleasure. Both girls then headed towards the seat across from Sentaro.

At the same time.

CRASH!

"Oh man." Keima murmured, "I'll have to clean that up."

"Don't worry." Lime said, "I'll help."

"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING! NYAO!" Megami shouted.

"I was trying to eat breakfast until you tried to take my seat." Arael replied.

"YOUR seat?" Megami shouted, "Since when is that YOUR seat?"

"Since I began eating breakfast with Sentaro."

"Oh no. I've been eating with him longer then you have! You can just go find another seat. Nyao."

"No. You find another seat." Arael replied with a slight growl.

"I will not."

"Umm." Sentaro began, "Can I……"

"NO!" both girls shouted. They then turned and glared at each other.

"Asuka." Keima said softly, "I think you're really beginning to rub off on Arael there."

"Very nice glare." Asuka said in awe, "I give it a nine."

"Now listen here you." Megami said, "I don't care if you're an angel, or a goddess, or even the queen of hell. You will find another seat, AWAY from Sentaro. Nyao."

"And I say you shall find another seat." Arael replied.

Megami rolled her eyes downward.

"Oh shit." Keima groaned.

"Language!" AU Belldandy said with a frown.

"So," Megami said as she bent downward and picked up some discarded food. "You like waffles…….."

"Megami……" Sentaro began.

"Well have some!" Megami smeared the waffle, syrup side out, into Arael's face.

"Oh man." Keima said, setting his head on the tabletop.

"Come on." Celes said, "Pay up."

Lime, Keima, and Asuka pulled out a few Japoness bills and handed them over to the vampire.

"You gamble?" AU Belldandy asked, horrified.

"Modern God." Keima replied.

Megami removed her hand. The waffles remained stuck to Arael's face for a moment or two, then gravity overcame the stickiness of syrup. With a plop, the waffle landed on the floor. Sentaro covered his mouth quickly. He didn't want Arael nor Megami to see his expression. Asuka and the others however, were further away.

"My Goddess." Keima murmured.

"Wow." AU Skuld and AU Sayoko added.

Arael's face was coated in syrup. So much, some was slowly dripping from her chin. Arael's eyes burned a bright red, glaring daggers at Megami. Megami just smirked.

"You know, I think you could use more syrup."

"Oh no." Keima groaned as Megami lifted up the syrup can and poured it on top of Arael's head. Syrup oozed through the angels hair and over her face. It rained down on her robes and pooled in a large puddle on the floor. Arael's eyes glowed an even brighter red.

"You know," Asuka said, "I've got to admire her."

"How come?" AU Skuld asked.

"If someone had done that to me, they wouldn't even had a chance to pour syrup on me."

"Why isn't Arael doing anything?" Celes asked, "She looks pissed."

"Because," Keima said, "Sentaro.

Asuka frowned and looked over at the mortal in question. Anger was now on his face, and it seemed directed right towards Megami.

"Megami," Sentaro said as he slowly rose to his feet. "That was totally uncalled for."

Megami looked over at her friend.

"But….."

"I want you to apologize to Arael. Now."

Megami stared at Sentaro, noticing his eyes had a flickering glow to them. She then turned to Arael.

"I'm sorry." She said, adding a bow. She then bent down, grabbed the plates and food from the floor and hurried off to the kitchen.

Sentaro turned and looked at Arael.

"Go get cleaned up." He said softly, "I'll make you some more waffles."

"Thank you." Arael said, her face slightly red. She then started up the stairs.

"Morning Snowflake." The Soultaker said as she moved past Arael. The Demoness then paused at the bottom of the stairs, turned around and looked up at the retreating Angel. She then looked at Sentaro.

"Was she covered in Syrup?" the Demoness asked.

"I hadn't noticed." Sentaro replied flatly.

The Soultaker looked at Sentaro curiously, then at the puddle of syrup on the floor.

"Right." She said, then turned and looked for food. Megami came back out of the kitchen and began to clean up the syrup puddle. Sentaro watched for a moment, then walked off into the kitchen.

"Thus ends today's soap." Asuka murmured.

"Damn." Bloodberry cursed, "I was hoping he'd go up and help her clean off, or at least watch."

Lime rolled her eyes, "He's not as perverted as you."

Keima glanced at Celes.

"Feel like changing your bet?"

"Heck no." Celes replied, "She's still got a shot."

AU Belldandy frowned, "Another bet?"

"Yeah," Keima said, "Arael or Megami: who Sentaro finally decides."

"What would your mother say?" AU Belldandy asked.

"She has a hundred down on Megami."

"….."

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Draco stood before a large glass cylinder. A form, attached to the top by many wires, floated within a clouded liquid.

"He's growing well is he not?" Draco asked.

Loki harrumphed.

Draco frowned and looked at the God.

"What?"

Loki pointed. "You have learned nothing. You created clones of the other Angels and they turned against you. Even now, one of your clones fights for Heaven."

"I have learned from my mistakes."

"Which is why your Soultaker fled us?"

"I have corrected my original errors." Draco replied, "This Angel, unlike the others, will obey my every command. My will shall be his own."

"We shall see." Loki grumbled.

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"Sentaro."

Sentaro glanced up at Megami. He was sitting on the balcony, and had been looking out over the city. He'd been there since after the mornings disastrous breakfast.

"What?" he asked.

Megami walked over and sat down beside him. She glanced nervously at him.

"We're still friends right?"

"Yes."

"Nothing more?"

Sentaro sighed. "No Megami. I've told you that before. You are my best friend. I know you too well."

"Sometimes that's all that's needed." Megami pointed out.

"Megami," Sentaro began, "If anything, you're more like a sister to me. I'll always care about you, just not in the way you want."

Megami now sighed. "So I've lost."

Sentaro frowned, "Lost? Lost what?"

"I lost you to her."

"There was never a competition." Sentaro replied, "You had nothing to lose. I'd already told you we'd be friends and only that."

"What about her?" Megami asked, "Is she a friend? Or is she more?"

"Who?"

"Arael."

Sentaro frowned again. "What about her?"

"What are you dense?" Megami asked, "She likes you!"

"She does?" Now Sentaro was confused.

"Why do you think we fought this morning!" Megami shook her head. "Sometimes you men can be idiots."

Sentaro looked back at the city, only he didn't see it. In his mind, he was going over everything that had happened over the last couple of days. Only now that Megami had pointed it out could he see the looks Arael had been giving him, her expressions, as well as the blushes that went unnoticed by him.

"Oh boy."

"Damn right." Megami replied, "Since I'm only your 'best friend', it's my job to point these things out to you."

Sentaro was quiet.

"I'm sorry Megami."

"Eh?"

"I'm sorry I couldn't return the feelings you have for me."

"Hey, you're not the first one." Megami said, "You probably won't be the last."

"You'll find him."

Megami smirked. "Who said it had to be a 'him'?"

Sentaro whipped his head around. "What?"

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"I think there is something wrong with me."

Asuka watched Arael pace back in forth in the bedroom she'd been using over the restaurant.

"I think it's a result of helping Sentaro get into Sayoko's mind and Yggdrasil." Arael continued. "Or maybe when Peorth and Kami-sama closed my link."

"What makes you think that?" Asuka asked.

"I've become………clumsy." Arael replied, "Always around Sentaro."

"Oh?"

"I get warm whenever he's near." Arael continued, "My heart beat accelerates uncontrollably."

"Really." Asuka said, smirking.

"And my emotions have….." Arael's voice trailed off as she noticed Asuka's smirk. "What do you find so amusing?"

"I'm surprised at you Arael." Asuka said, "After all those movies you've watched with Rei, you haven't figured it out."

Arael frowned and mulled that over a moment. Then her eyes popped open.

"No."

"Yep." Asuka said, her smirk growing to a grin.

"I can't."

"You can."

Arael turned away from Asuka.

"It's not right."

"Why not?" Asuka asked, "You're a girl, he's a boy."

"But……"

Asuka walked over and put her hand on Arael's shoulder and spun her around gently.

"Don't go all guilty on me." The Guardian said, "You always go guilty on me or Sayoko. The Past is past. Stop thinking about it."

"But he's HER son!"

"So what?" Asuka asked, "You've practically become a sister to Yui, and she's MY daughter."

Arael remained quiet.

"Don't worry about it." Asuka added, "Sentaro hasn't figured it out yet, and unless someone tells him, he probably won't."

"I find that depressing somehow." Arael muttered. Then she opened her eyes wide. "What do you mean someone? Are you going to….?"

"I won't tell. But Arael….." Asuka put her arm around the Angel, "Everyone else, even Megami knows."

Arael paled.

"Oh no……"

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"Well?"

AU Skuld glanced over at Celes. The Vampire had taken the Goddess to Japoness castle where the storage unit from the future Yggdrasil was being held.

"What?" AU Skuld asked, "I just got started."

Celes crossed her arms and frowned.

"I thought you were a genius."

"You can't hurry greatness." AU Skuld replied, "Plus look at the material I have to use."

"Quit complaining Auntie." AU Sayoko said as she entered, holding a bag. "Mom thought you two might be hungry."

"Your mom or Keima?" Celes asked.

"Both actually." AU Sayoko started to empty the bag, then paused and frowned. "I can't believe he's my brother."

"Believe it. He's got the same stubborn streak. I think it comes from you're father's side."

"Keiichi? Stubborn?" AU Skuld said, "Yeah right."

Celes turned and smiled at the Goddess.

"He never gave up on the wish did he?"

AU Skuld grumbled as she continued to type into the terminal. She then let out a cry of triumph.

"Got it!" AU Skuld shouted. She then leaned over the terminal. "Now let's see exactly what we have."

AU Sayoko and Celes watched as information scrolled past the main display.

"Oh wow." AU Sayoko muttered.

"We gotta tell our Sayoko this." Celes said.

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Belldandy sat behind her desk in her office. On either side of her sat Sayoko and Kristine. Shinji, Yui, Rei, Skuld, and Mist stood behind her. All looked at the holograms of those on Terra 2, AU Skuld, AU Belldandy, AU Sayoko, Celes, Keima, Asuka, and Morgan, floating before them. Cayla remained outside the office, standing guard.

"A roll call?" Belldandy asked.

AU Skuld nodded.

"Complete up to the moment the storage unit was pulled, in the year 2970."

"400 hundred years." Sayoko murmured.

"Yes." Keima said, "and it doesn't read pretty."

"Dare I ask." Belldandy replied.

AU Skuld took a deep breath. "If what this says is true, when this unit was pulled, Heaven had lost over ninety percent of its force, as well as everything but the Yggdrasil main building."

Nobody spoke. Everyone, most especially the god and goddesses present knew what that meant.

"Are the Guardians listed?" Asuka asked.

AU Skuld flipped through her notes.

"Yes," she replied, "Two."

"Two?"

AU Skuld gulped and read.

"The roll call lists only Guardian Rei and Guardian Yui as active."

Asuka leaned back in her chair, stunned.

"Wait!" Shinji said, "What do they have the rest of us listed as? Inactive? Retired?"

"I hate this you know." AU Skuld said, "I really do."

Celes grabbed the notes.

"Guardians Touji and Asuka both became deceased within a day of each other, well before the unit was pulled." The vampire read, "Shinji became deceased about three days before the unit was pulled."

Asuka looked up, her eyes searching out Shinji's. They met a second later.

"The girl." Keima spoke up, "Is the girl listed?"

"Um." Celes replied after a moment. "I don't know. Several sections of the roll call are under a seal."

"What kind of seal?" Belldandy asked.

"From what I could tell, it require three, maybe four people to release." AU Skuld said, "It will also require Yggdrasil."

"Who are the four?" Sayoko asked.

"Well," AU Skuld grabbed her notes back. "Asuka, Shinji, Mana, and Sayoko." AU Skuld frowned and flipped through her notes to a page. "The code was created by Kristine Aida."

Everyone glanced over at Kristine.

"Me?" Kristine asked.

AU Skuld's frowned continued to deepen. "It looked to me like some demon programming was also used."

"Mana?" Sayoko asked.

"Possible."

"Find Mana on the list."

AU Skuld scanned her notes. Celes moved over and help. After several minutes, AU Skuld sat back.

"I didn't find anything."

"I did." Celes said softly, "But it wasn't Mana."

"The girl?" Keima asked.

"The only one on here that's four or close to four." Celes replied. She gave a cautious glance at Asuka.

"What?"

AU Skuld grabbed the notes and looked them over. She paled, and then slowly handed them to Asuka. Asuka looked at them, then read them out loud, her voice betraying little emotion.

"Sayoko Ikari, age four."

"Ikari?" Sayoko repeated.

"There's a note too." Asuka added, "Added by Kristine. Says she was named for the parent's fallen friend."

Both Sayokos and Belldandys paled. Keima grabbed the notes and flipped through them.

"Sayoko Aida, deceased," Keima looked up, "Four years before the unit was pulled."

Sayoko sat back in her chair, stunned. Belldandy looked at her daughter and gently placed her hand over hers.

"If I'm dead," Asuka said slowly, "who is the mother of Yoko?"

"Maybe Yui had a kid." Celes said.

"Ugh," Yui groaned, "Out of wedlock?"

"Modern Goddess." Skuld mumbled.

"Well, at least she has red hair."

Sudden Asuka sat up straight.

"No……." she whispered, "Not red hair." She slowly turned and looked at Shinji and Sayoko. "She told me herself, she has AUBURN hair."

Both Shinji and Sayoko blinked. Both then turned to each other.

"Oh my god." Sayoko swore.

"Her mother….." Shinji stuttered, "It's……."

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"Alright dammit!" Mana shouted, "I climbed down the damn cliff. Now what!"

The ghost pointed towards a cave. "That way."

Mana frowned. "What's in there? Hell, where are we? None of this is supposed to be here!"

"Just because it was never officially listed, doesn't mean it doesn't exist."

Mana's frown grew deeper. "Did Hild know of this place?"

"Hild helped to create it." The ghost replied, "Along with Kami-sama, and a few others."

"Well what is it?"

The ghost smiled, then floated off into the cave.

"Hey!" Mana shouted, following.

The cave was dark and cold. Mana muttered a spell that formed a small glowing sphere. The walls of the cave lit up, revealing that it was just not some dark unfinished cave. Carvings covered the walls. Mana's eyes widened as she saw Demonic code written beside Yggdrasil code. Mana followed the cave until it reached a large room. The demoness stood in the center and looked around. Three large statues of women dominated the room. More carvings filled the walls, both from God and Demon.

"What is this place?" Mana asked.

"A doorway." Came the ghost's voice.

"To where?"

"Hope."

Before Mana could say another word, carvings on the floor that had gone unnoticed lit up, revealing a large Mandela. Mana barely had time to scream before the Mandela swallowed her. The Mandela glow for but a moment longer, then went out, returning the cave to darkness.