Chapter 24
By: Milai Sapphire
Disclaimer: Don't own Ah! Megami-sama characters.
Hours passed into night, Celestin still remained in his recovery stages of the poison. Suddenly, a ring was heard throughout the house. Belldandy picked up the telephone to hear Peorth's voice on the line, but very faintly behind the massive amount of static. The discussion moved very slowly, as Belldandy tried to pick out certain phrases to piece together like a puzzle. Urd, Skuld, Trakin, and Keiichi all entered the room as Belldandy nodded slightly in fear.
"What's wrong Belldandy?" Keiichi asked approaching her, as she looked grave and solemn glancing over at Urd and the others.
"The system is almost fully corrupt except a small percentage, which was sealed away by Peorth. Melusina has entered our system…" Belldandy looked up, "She's staging an attack right now as we speak. We must depart to fight." She removed an earring from her right ear, as it elongated into a rod, and her outfit changed with the assistance of the clouds while Urd and Skuld covered Trakin and Keiichi's eyes. When she finished, Urd and Skuld quickly transformed, both in their regressive forms. Taking a cup of sake from the kitchen, Urd returned to normal size, and Skuld did the same with the assistance of ice cream.
"That should last a while. At least until we can defeat Melusina." Urd said, "Stay here Trakin, Keiichi. Wait for Aurora and Morgan to return. Now, let's go."
"…to Chiansu, our aerial battlegrounds." Belldandy spoke disappearing with her two sisters.
Far in the distance where the darkness spilled out pain and suffering, Belldandy, Urd, and Skuld saw a familiar figure reveal herself to them. Mythalia's eyes remained laden with sorrow and void of life, whilst her voice sounded like a forgotten harmony.
"No need for introductions I presume…" Mythalia began, "Are you all so confident only you three are willing to fight us?" Melusina laughed haughtily, as Belldandy stepped forward setting herself for an attack with the twirl of her staff.
"No, we aren't fighting alone. With the power and spirit of love we can overcome your evil, Melusina. You will not win!"
"With just you three I think not…" Melusina raised her staff pointing its crackling end in Belldandy's direction.
"Think again!" Aurora, Peorth, and Morgan all appeared, "With us alone we can defeat you…" Aurora screamed looking at Mythalia, who was ready to aim fire at her former best friend.
"Very well then…let's see what you are capable of!" Melusina called out redirecting her shot at Morgan, and shooting her attack, which Morgan dodged in the knick of time. Charging forward, Morgan changed into her fairy form, flying at a tremendous speed. "You've brought this upon yourself Morgan!" Melusina called out, as their attacks clashed, one of fairy butterflies of fire and the other such of thunder.
"I have brought nothing but hope upon myself! Hope and faith in those that love each other, but must past the Judgment Gate in testing their love…"
"You support such a system of the gods! You're a fairy, Morgan! You are not one of them!" The massive power of both attacks sent both fairies back from each other a few feet.
"Nevertheless…I believe in true love and the wish for happiness…"
"That false meaningless hope with which they infest your mind! That same thing that destroyed my life! Tearing it apart over something as stupid as LOVE!" Melusina cried out, pinning Morgan down upon the platform in the sky with one of her staves, "Listen Morgan, and listen well. What would your mother and father think of this! You, a fairy princess! There is no such thing as TRUE love…there is no such thing as love. What I thought to be 'love' was not love at all. It was a game. It was something for the gods' own enjoyment!"
"Times have changed Melusina! They aren't…"
"That's what you think! That Gate that those infatuated with one another must pass through if from different worlds, is another way around my dilemma I faced many a decade ago!" Melusina aimed a ball of thunder at Morgan, but missed. "For your disobedience, and disloyalty to the realm of fairies as a princess you will pay for such disrespect to your people!"
"Melusina!" Morgan called out to her cousin, who raised both staves to attack Morgan.
"It's called remorse, Morgan." Morgan was hit with lightening attacks shocking her body and leaving her vulnerable.
"Morgan!" Belldandy called out to the young fairy that was rendered helpless from the attack. Flying over to her friend and comrade, she held her in her arms looking up at Melusina. "Morgan…answer me…"
"I'm still here Belldandy." Morgan watched, as Melusina grew tiresome aiming an attack at the both of them, "Watch out!" Morgan pushed Belldandy out of the way as she ducked down.
"Two against one. How exciting…the more the merrier! Sylphs, nymphs of air, come forth!" Melusina screamed out, directing her subjects to attack Belldandy, who tried to dodge each attack by the multiple enemies she had been fighting.
"Why are you doing this Melusina?"
"I must repent for what I've lost, for what I've gained, for him…for Nereus…" she called out in agony and pain, her suffering still hidden behind her scream. "For I loved him, but love is nothing anymore. It's a mere word that is used recklessly. It has no meaning to me anymore. Revenge is what I seek, and the gods will pay their dues. A new era will begin, and the past will fall!"
"The past is over, gone…"
"It's not over until this fraudulent system is cremated by my fires of hatred." Melusina used her fairy wings to blow away Morgan, and cast another attack on her, "I will give you one more chance my cousin…" she raised her staff above her head and Morgan remained sprawled out on the floor trying to get up after the last attack.
"When hell freezes over…" she spat in her cousin's face rolling off to the side to avoid the attack shot out of Melusina's staff. "I will not allow you corrupt the lives of those living satisfied and happy with the way things are right now!"
"And what about those that oppose it greatly? What about their lives that must live with this injustice?" Melusina charged forth her hands meeting with Morgan's as sparks of thunder clashed creating a resounding roar. "What would they do…?"
"If they truly believe, then they will test that love…" Morgan spoke calmly, breaking off the attack.
"Have you forgotten Morgan? You went through that same test yourself, and look at what happened to you. You strayed from the path of truth…you cannot see what I do. Love is a failure."
"It wasn't a failure. He was in love with someone else, and couldn't devote himself to me. He thought that I deserved better than what he could offer."
"Hearing this is making he sick." Melusina cringed stretching out her arms, as the two staves appeared in her hands. "This isn't only about love Morgan. You have something I want." She said directing an attack directly at Morgan's heart.
"What? What do I have that you so cruelly desire?" Morgan inquired receiving an unexpected blow from Melusina that sent her flying twenty feet back.
"Something that is rightfully mine. You know of which I speak." Melusina spoke approaching Morgan, "My country…"
"Ugh…Melusina you won't get away with this…" she attempted to stand up, but was rendered defenseless when a blast of energy emerging from Melusina's hands knocked her out cold.
"I assure you I will. Once Celestin is back under my control everything will go according to plan…" Melusina smirked looking over at Mythalia, who had been fighting relentlessly.
Author's Note: I have not updated this in a good two years (this is one of my favorite stories I've written in past), but I just wanted to get the chapters out there so I finally list this is as complete. : ) Anyway, doubt anyone is reading this still. But yeah. It's there if people want to read, and if you do, please review.
