Disclaimer: I do not own Xenosaga. That right belongs to Tetsuya Takahashi & Bandai Namco Entertainment. I do own the crazy idea that I am putting the characters through.


He watched as the four walked down the hall away from his office. It'd been ten years since the day Gabriel had almost manifested the Scales of Judgement.

Smiling, he turned and went back inside his office. There he was greeted by the dark glare from Dr. Lillith. Feeling amused, he smiled at her, shutting his door with a loud 'click.'

"Dr. Faust, it has been a decade, and they are now emotionally stable. We need to continue the Arch Angel Project."

"Yes, I am aware of how stable they are. And just how good they've become at acting, Dr. Lillith," He said. "But do you and the Admiral think forcing them won't have repercussions? That they won't retaliate with how strong their 'Ether' has gotten? Is Zarathustra that important to risk lives?"

His questions had the woman stiffening. Her eyes widened as her pupils shrank, letting him know he'd hit the nail on the head.

It hadn't been easy, but he'd finally found why the military was so intent on weaponizing the children, graphing their blood, and extracting ancient text from the Zohar. It was all for Zarathustra, A thing never meant to be in humanity's hands.

"How? Who are you really?"

Shaking his head, Dr. Faust stopped before Dr. Lillith. He despised people like her.

"Someone who knows that Zarathustra should never be awakened," He said, leaning over her and trapping Dr. Lillth in the chair. "and that it was sealed away so it could not be used as a weapon."

Once his nose touched hers, he let the power of Anima he kept hidden away inside rise. He was watching as her eyes went blank.

"As for who I am, you need not know. My purpose has yet to be fulfilled," He continued to speak. "Now you'll leave, write that the children are not ready and to continue with the current program to not agitate them. Or I'll not restrain them if they choose to judge the sins that weigh on your soul."

The audible swallow followed by a soft 'yes' had him withdrawing his Anima, backing up, and watching as the detestable woman left his office.

"Mary, I hope I'm doing this right," he said as he leaned back against his desk, running his hand through his white hair.

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Gabriel felt her lips curl into a smile. The odd power that seemed to rush over her back left her feeling warm inside.

"Dr. Faust must be doing that thing to Dr. Lillith again," Raphael murmured.

Tilting her head to look at him, Gabriel saw his eyes flash with dark amusement.

"If so, it means she wanted to push for us to begin the project again," Uriel said in his normal bland tone.

"She's a vile bitch! I want her, the Admiral, and a few higher-ranked officers to die," Michael growled. There was no disguising the disgust and hate in his voice.

"And this is why Dr. Faust is doing whatever he can to prevent it. That man is very perceptive," Raphael said. "And he is aware we are aware of his powers. But I want to know why he sides with us?"

Silence descended as Gabriel looked forward. Her brothers had shot up, filled out, and now looked like they were between twenty and thirty years of age. Each can draw attention from males and females alike with their ethereal good looks.

Then again, she'd barely broken five feet, staying on the short side. But Gabriel was okay with how her body was developing. She was pretty average all around in looks except for her hair and eyes.

"Hey, let's hurry back to our quarters," Michael suddenly blurted out. "I'm getting the urge to gauge out eyes again."

Rolling her eyes at how dramatic she thought Michael was being, she reached out and held his hand—squeezing it to comfort him. She had no clue why he got like this every time they were out, or just her and him. She wondered if his war-like nature made him mentally defective to the attention of others.

"Pfft, yes, let's. We must protect a truly pure innocent," Raphael said in a teasing tone while chuckling.

"I concur. Precious things must never be tainted," Uriel chimed in. That rare hint of amusement coloring his words.

Gabriel pouted openly and couldn't understand them. Boys, especially her brothers, were weird. Well, excluding Dr. Faust and her father.

"Fine," she muttered when she felt their eyes on the top of her head.

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Dr. Xavier Johanes watched his four children. He'd heard the conversation they'd had.

He was proud of how well they were turning out. They were proof of the evolution of science and history. His ancestor had found the original Zohar and set the path to the future they were all walking.

But some deep instinct told him this peace and advancement was bound to be shattered and soon. Protecting the four children here, his wife and daughter on the Gamma Space Station, and all this research data dating back to his ancestor on earth were priorty.

Sighing, Dr. Johanes moved to start making a backup file on a server his hacker wife created.

TBC!