Momonga was feeling… Many things.

Gendo had asked him to come see him, as he had some important things to discuss regarding their 'alliance'. What's more, the request had come from a speaker hidden somewhere in his apartment.

Momonga had gotten the impression that Gendo was quite serious, at least if he judged Gendo's tone. Not to mention that the commander sounded almost borderline hostile as well.

He had considered for a moment to just not go, fearing an ambush, but he didn't feel as if the balance of power between him and NERV had been flipped which gave him confidence to enter a possibly perilous situation without ample backup.

Not to mention, the last of his non-ethereal Summons had died a few days ago, having managed to swim over the sea of Japan to China where they had been subsequently detected and flattened by artillery and missiles. It was thus possible that Gendo was either feeling emboldened by the 'small victories', or mistakenly judged that killing Momonga's chaff 'troops' had inflicted a sizable impact on him- both of which would explain Gendo's change in tone.

He had decided to feed Gendo's paranoia a bit by taking Gendo's serious tone equally seriously, and thus Momonga discarded his 'fleshy exterior' into his apartment-bed by simply teleporting out of it, and had landed in Gendo's office in his fully visible 'Overlord Avatar' while clad in his usual 'PVP Regalia'- His version of adopting a 'serious' attitude to things.

'...Hm… I suppose that…' Momonga considered pulling Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown from his inventory to reinforce the show of force, but decided against it as the staff's destruction would cause the Guild to disband as the item was the Guild Item of Ainz Ooal Gown. While he didn't think Gendo had items capable of breaking the staff, the fact Gendo had handed Momonga a 'New World-Class Item' in a briefcase (granted, under coercion, pressure, kidnapping and manhandling) meant that he couldn't afford to not assume that some of the 'New World Class' items weren't mighty enough to rival or surpass YGGDRASIL items.

Gendo had been standing behind his desk with his hands behind his back, looking out of the window.

Momonga had walked next to him while pretending to look out as well, commented something about view and such… And Gendo had told Momonga that something called SEELE had attacked NERV after organizing a manhunt of Momonga's summons. Although Gendo had called them 'clones' for some reason.

Momonga had replied that he was fairly impressed that SEELE could take down his summons, while withholding the information about his ethereal summons being 'alive' and well while making progress.

Gendo's face had been utterly unreadable after the statement, which was largely due to his new visor-like eyepiece that covered a sizable chunk of his face and made it difficult to read his mood from facial cues.

Gendo had then offered his condolences nonetheless, as he had come across the body of one of Momonga's 'clones' during his own strike against SEELE, and had decided to bring it to him.

That statement had caused confusion to Momonga, as his summons would disappear once defeated, so for them to leave a body caused him quite bit of confusion… Before Gendo had waved his hand and a pair of black-clad agents had pushed a stretcher into the office.

For all his preparation, Momonga had not been prepared to see what was being wheeled into the room.

Or rather… To see something he remembered from YGGDRASIL.

Momonga was frozen on the spot while he stared at a operating table, on top of which lied the dead body of one of the Pleiades, the combat-maids of Nazarick's Ninth Level.

Namely, Entoma Vasilissa Zeta.

The insectomancer-maid NPC's body was intact for the most part, and her mask-like face was looking to the ceiling with unmoving and dull eyes.

In the center of her chest was a huge hole that was clearly left by a thrust of some kind of spear or lance, or a high-energy projectile.

Momonga stared at the dead body for roughly ten minutes in complete silence while his mind was struck in a loop between formulating strategies, insatiable rage and anger, feeling of loss of valuable creations of his past friends, and fear for his own safety- Because if something could kill a level sixty 'NPC' with a single clean hit, it was not impossible that such a fate could befall Momonga as well. And while he had 'recognized' it to be true with the Positron Rifle, seeing the reality of it happening before his very eyes made it so much more real and drove Momonga's paranoia to new heights.

'...Alright.' Momonga wobbled a bit on the spot as his mind was getting torn from all sides by conflicting feelings, all the while [Emotion Suppression] kept him dead-locked to a state of forced calmness- Although the recent close-call with Asuka had already strained the ability, so recovering from each bounce was starting to take its toll on both the ability and Momonga's psyche. 'Nazarick is here somewhere. Noted. Positron Rifles are dangerous. Noted. Whoever is responsible for this is going to die horribly. Noted.'

The overwhelming shock was enough to cause Momonga to finally default into his 'ruler' persona, or rather, the persona of 'Overlord Momonga of Ainz Ooal Gown', rather than 'Suzuki Satoru, the seven-to-six businessman'.

"...I see." Momonga's rage was finally defaulted to one of cunning and preparation, rather than a rage-filled lash-out. "In that case… I need you to verify your claims, Gendo-kun."

"SEELE facility in Russia-" Gendo turned towards Momonga… And his words were muted as Momonga teleported right in front of Gendo and grabbed his head.

The bony fingers were long enough to almost wrap themselves entirely around the man's head, and Momonga lifted him up from the floor by his head.

Gendo, however, maintained his earlier pose with hands behind his back almost as if he wasn't dangling in the air by his neck.

The confidence shown by Gendo intimidated Momonga a bit and he instantly began to suspect that Gendo had a plan to neutralize him, as he expected the man to either flinch or try to convince him of the honesty of his words when threatened with instant death.

"[Control Amnesia]- Hmng?" Momonga opened the mental 'backstory sheet' that belonged to Gendo, like he had done for Kaji, in an attempt to peer into his near-past to see if he was truthful with his words…

However, instead of a messy diary-style list of Kaji, or a neat dictionary-like entry like one akin to the NPC Momonga had modified in Nazarick had, the 'backstory sheet' belonging to Gendo was… Different.

It was akin to a scroll, and instead of words, it was made of pictures. Of grotesque hieroglyphic memes of ancient creatures on cracked tablets, framed by a creature of vaguely torso-like shape, shining red circle in its center and halo of white light above it's burning, unknowable 'head' behind which lies A Creation, a gate behind which lied a cross bound in burning symbols that no eye could see...

Momonga stared at the 'backstory', and realized that his [Immunity to External Mental Ailments] was starting to crack and creak in a desperate attempt to stem the flow of [Madness] that surged from the knowledge the sight attempted to impart on him.

He dropped Gendo on the floor, breaking the spell, and the man landed on his feet while only bending his knees and back a bit, his hands still tied behind his back and his face stuck to the same stern yet neutral look. "Are you satisfied with… Your inquiry, Second?"

'...Does he know what I tried to do?' Momonga was feeling shaky, but [Emotion Suppression] brought him back from uncertainty- And made him remember that he needed to bullshit hard in order to get out of the pickle that he had found himself in. "I found what I wanted. Now then… We had a deal, I believe?"

"We had." Gendo agreed while the man kept his visored stare aimed at Momonga.

'...Alright, not good.' Momonga recognized the hidden threat in the words. "I believe I fulfilled our part of the bargain. The Sixth Angel is dead. Your debt comes due."

"The Key has been turned. The Gate is destined to open. You have felt it, felt it's approach. Such a demand is not yours to call." Gendo spoke, and Momonga thanked his foresight that he had left his fleshy overcoat to his apartment as it meant his facial expressions were not visible due to his skeletal features.

'Alright, what the heck was that?' Momonga, however, knew better than to try to ask questions when Gendo was still seemingly under the misconception that Momonga knew more than he let on. "Yet, there is more to do. I seek my home. A walking dead seeks naught but to rest in his tomb for eternity."

"..." Gendo seemed shocked for a brief moment before his posture re-established itself. "So I was correct, then. Your plan is opposed to that of SEELE- I was correct in aligning myself with you, even at grave peril that befalls both NERV and myself due to my allegiance."

'Um? I wanted to be a bit mysterious but tried to lead him to thinking that I'd get out of his hair if he found 'a large tomb', which would eventually lead him, and me, to Nazarick… Ideally without destroying the tomb, since if it was, then I'd remain to bug him…' Momonga was feeling quite frustrated as he maintained a careful balance of his emotions by trying to not think about Entoma whose body was on the stretcher. 'Moreover, if I got to Nazarick, I should be able to pay for Entoma's resurrection… The summons I made are immune to resurrection after a test, and NPC's couldn't be resurrected with scrolls or such, you needed to pay money from guild vault to re-summon the NPC…'

"SEELE seeks to destroy your goal. If their version of Human Instrumentality Project is unfolded, then the rest you seek is forever denied to you. Either you become part of Liln, the Sea of Life, or your creation is tossed aside like so much trash. You have proof that SEELE is seeking your demise- They have become aware of your puppets and agents, and your power through your victories against Angels. SEELE will soon send it's own Angel, the First and Second-Last Angel here." Gendo spoke without a hint of hesitation in his voice… And he lifted his hand up. "I am not willing to become a tool of SEELE, nor lose what I am to their machinations. If that means I choose a torturous existence in a doomed world, then that is my choice and that of NERV. Choose whether you'll accept our aid or not- I will not offer this again."

'Ahem… Can I get that on paper and a day to analyze what exactly you just said?' Momonga thanked his luck that skeletons couldn't sweat. 'Accept NERV's aid? Come to think of it, isn't that just a roundabout way of saying they'll help me? I have no clue what he meant by that talk about angels and SEELE… But if they are responsible for Entoma's death, their suffering will be legendary.'

Momonga didn't think Gendo was telling the truth, but whatever he had done had disrupted Momonga's ability to read him to such a great degree that he couldn't ascertain the truth… At least, not through magical means. 'I need to keep an eye out on Gendo, and work on his subordinates… Kaji wasn't resistant to mind-reading… if NERV and I pretend that we are allied then I can claim I was rooting out corruption or something should someone spot me reading their minds… And if Gendo is indeed telling the truth… SEELE's debt is one they can never pay. Not to mention, if they can take out Entoma then they are a threat to me that needs to be eliminated post-haste.'

Thus, Momonga decided to agree to Gendo's proposal. '...So, peace… For now…'

He offered his hand to the man who took it after a brief moment, and the two shook hands. "A human gesture between two who are not. How quaint."

"We all have our masks to wear." Momonga decided to end on a cryptic note as he was already trying to push Gendo's paranoia. "To that end… I'll be using Katsuragi to carry out my orders. Do not hinder her, and give her what authority she needs to carry out my orders. I'll remain in close contact with the rest of the Pilots as well."

'Katsuragi is brash and about as subtle as an artillery strike, but she seems to get results and using a liaison means I don't have to play mind-games with Gendo all the time… Not to mention, if Gendo finds out about Nazarick and is the one responsible for Entoma's death, he might attempt to destroy the guild base without telling me… Misato likely wouldn't be able to hide her discoveries from me.' Momonga hoped that his demand wouldn't get much pushback, as he worded it as somewhat inconsequential detail after the deal was already made.

"I see… I didn't expect that secret to stay secret as long as it did. The Zeroth Child already serves as liaison between us, so your demand is not an issue. However, please return her as she is to me when I need her to act in her role as Chief of Operations." Gendo told Momonga, and once again the skeleton thanked his calcium-based form for lack of facial cues. "Outside that you're free to do what you want with her."

''Zeroth Child'? What? Ugh… So he instantly tossed Misato into the meat grinder…Er, actually that's really not an appropriate word after what Gendo implied… ' Momonga felt resigned over the fact that Gendo had likely seen through Momonga's attempt to play on Gendo's paranoia by using meaningless sentences, and had countered by using a meaningless sentence of his own. He recognized that Gendo might be using such degrading wording to try to make it seem as if his request wasn't bothering NERV, but losing constant access to an officer of high competence and rank would hurt their operational capability. 'Right… I need a few days to go over this…'

"In that case, our business is concluded… For now." Momonga decided to retreat to figure out his avenues of attack and intel-gathering. "I'll see you again."

"I see… Very well. In that case, let us see each other, unmasked, when the Promised Hour comes." Gendo turned around to look out of the window, making Momonga a bit annoyed as Gendo had taken the initiative in the dismissals to dismiss Momonga instead of Momonga dismissing him.

However, Momonga knew that he couldn't afford pride getting in the way of things which were necessary for his reunification with the legacy of his friends. 'Entoma's death… I should keep her gear safe until I can re-summon her in Nazarick, so that I can equip her with it. Genjiro spent a lot of time and money to make the Pleiades NPC's, the least I can do to honor his memory is to keep his creations, his legacy, from falling to wrong hands…'

Momonga put his hand on the broken body on the stretcher… And moved the corpse into his inventory.

A list of items as well as a corpse entered his list of items. '...Six hundred and eighty-seven sutures and stitches? Did Genjiro equip Entoma with traditional medical supplies? He really thought about everything…'

Momonga thought he had seen something near the office's doorway, and he looked further to see that the pair of black-clad agents who had carried the stretcher into the room had collapsed at some point with black, inky substance coming from their eyes and their bodies were severely disfigured by boils, black rot and malformations that caused a small near nervous-system like 'branches' to extend from their skin and wave in the air.

It looked like neither of the men were dead, but neither were they alive… And Momonga realized that he had unconsciously activated his Auras in his moment of fear, anger and despair. '[Aura of Despair: IV] should inflict [Instant Death]... Yet those two aren't dead… Something fishy is going on…'

He realized that his [Negative Energy Touch] was also enabled, and then realized that he had touched Gendo while the power had been active, and Gendo had been utterly unaffected by it. '...Right. I need to analyze this…'

'I need to go for a walk, clear my head, and then think…' Momonga teleported out of the office without further elaboration, although not before deactivating his Aura's and on-touch abilities- He needed to be strategic with his violence.

.

.

Gendo looked at the reflection of Second that was visible to him from the corner of his gaze as the wall-sized window of his office was reflecting light from within the room, allowing him to see a reflection of what was behind him.

Second, or rather, the 'First Demon' moved the corpse of 'Second Demon' into his portal, looked up… And disappeared.

Gendo waited ten seconds, and then walked back to his office-seat, ignored the fact that it had been ruined utterly by black miasma, and sat down on it.

He put his elbows against the table that remained sturdy despite the fact it was horrible to look at, its very core had been corrupted to a nightmarish shape, far cry of its previous dark oaken form.

He then swept his hand across the surface of the table to break off the myriad of fingers that had risen from the dark 'wood', and returned his elbows on the table while resting his mouth against the back of his hands.

Gendo allowed himself to pale and sweat as he had managed to somehow keep his posture up for the whole duration of the negotiation with Second- Largely due to the fact the Key of Nebucandezzar embedded in his flesh removed him from the flow of fate.

The memory of Second looking at the body of 'Second Demon' returned to Gendo's mind.

The skeletal monster looked at the dead body without flinching, like a statue.

And then the screaming started from across the upside-down office building in Geofront.

The two Section-Two Agents beside the door had started to claw at their eyes, as black pus flowed down their face while their bodies rot from the dark miasma that gathered around Second's body and wafted out like swamp-mist.

The white bones visible through Second's robe flowed with dark energy that corrupted the forms of all that strayed near, while the skeletal visage became streaked with shadows and miasma of despair, making him look less like an Angel and more like his true form- A Demon that had come to torment Mankind. A fate worse than death made manifest, a shackle of eternity where the dead would seek naught but to find their tomb to lie in, forever denied the peace of death or joy of life.

A physical reminder for Gendo that Angels, for all their fury, were neutral in the grand scheme of things. Neither good nor evil, but rather a force to return all to what it was- A rebirth.

The Demons were anathema to all of it. A cruel shackle, a just punishment to Humanity who so greedily devoured the Fruit of Knowledge, unaware of the burden of such knowledge nor the horrors it would attract.

Never had that been so clear to Gendo than just now, from seeing Second take off the cooperative 'kind' mask for a moment and remind Gendo just what sort of monster he was dealing with. The creature's words in regards to 'wearing masks' further solidified the theory.

'The 'other pilots'... Either Second misspoke, which is effectively impossible at this point, or he was present during the Second Contact Experiment, where Katsuragi was supposed to be the median to speak to Adam's shackled body… A 'Zeroth Child' who would speak to Adam, as opposed to the First, Second and Third Children who would speak to Lilith's vessels, EVA's, when their time came… But instead the Second Impact happened, Adam rejected Humanity… Adam was reduced to such a pitiable state after the Impact, while humanity's future changed…' Gendo sighed in exasperation as he realized Second had his claws deeper in the future of humanity than he let on, while leaving breadcrumbs in front of Gendo's mind to draw him deeper into the cold and cruel truths. 'It makes sense. Second was present, but meddled with the experiment to doom us all into an eternity of suffering. In other words, while Humans reached for the stars, the Demons dragged us back to the marsh of mortality…'

'I wonder if driving me insane is one of Second's goals? Nonetheless… Whatever it did to me when it lifted my head, caused a gigantic migraine…' Gendo wished that conventional medicine worked for him, but such help was beyond him after being embedded with the Key. 'Either he believed me… Or it is beneficial for him to pretend to believe me. The latter seems likely- Second is not an incarnation of rage, but a shadow of death and despair. It likely knows of my deception- But plans on using NERV just as I plan on using him…'

'SEELE will pay for my treachery, either way… But it is for the sake of my Human Instrumentality Project. No, of our Human Instrumentality Project. Both Second and I know that this 'alliance' is but a farce- Our goals are nothing alike. However, in the end, all of my means will be justified by the results… Right, Yui?' Gendo felt ancient and weary for a brief second before he got hold of himself. '...The hands of the pendulum swing ever faster. The Hour Cometh, and I am not yet ready… WE are not yet ready.'

'But I will be…'

.

.

"Over? The situation is 'Over'?" Asuka growled while she walked out of the ready-room, still clad in her red plug-suit.

"It looks like we got a false reading from MAGI." Misato clearly attempted to sound convincing. "We had to be sure… We're investigating, although Fuytsuki says that it was some sort of sensor glitch which necessitated a possibility where we needed to have all EVA's ready for close combat at a moment's notice."

"Uh huh. Well, I'm off." Asuka huffed while she walked in front, and Shinji and Rei were walking behind Misato.

The walking order was mostly because Misato was trying to calm Asuka down, and Asuka didn't want to see Rei and Shinji holding hands while walking. Even more so when Shinji's face looked like a ripe tomato while Rei had the faintest of blushes on her cheeks.

"Asuka-chan… Hey, what about this. Let's go eat outside. I'll pay!" Misato struck a cheering pose with her fingers up to a 'V'. "I recently got a raise in salary so I'm rolling in dough!"

"I heard it through the ceiling, thank you very much for interrupting my sleeping." Asuka growled angrily and Misato sighed.

"At least try to meet me half-way, Asuka-chan…" Misato seemed to despair… Before she froze entirely.

Asuka kept walking while she was looking behind herself to growl at Misato so she didn't see what was happening before she had collided with it.

"Oof! Dummkopf! Watch were you're… walking…" Asuka looked up as she had collided with something tall.

And she first saw a violet robe, followed by seeing a huge skeletal form with a red orb just below it's ribcage.

And she saw the leering skull, which's facial features seemed somehow familiar.

Asuka took a step back while her face lost all color and her limbs refused to cooperate out of fear. "Wha… A-Angel-?"

"Greetings, Asuka." The Angel offered her his hand, with the fingers having sharp talon-like endings. "Umu. Your presence is actually quite beneficial… I need something to distract me before I lose myself in rage. Your Chuuni will do."

"Y-You…" Asuka stammered as she stumbled and almost fell to her back… Only for the Angel to lunge forward and grab her by the waist. "H-Hey! Wait- um…?"

Asuka's eyes widened as she connected the dots as well as the speech-pattern, and-

"Second. Why are you in that form?" Misato moved between Asuka and the Angel, allowing Asuka to stumble back to her feet while she felt light-headed.

'Second? That's Second? THAT Second?' Asuka's stomach cramped from terror of seeing the Angel without it's skin, with it's S2 Organ in full view, reminding her that the man-shape she had become acquinted with was just that- A cover, a set of clothes made of flesh.

And underneath… Was an Angel. A true horror.

Asuka only barely resisted the urge to flee, and instead channeled her fear into rage and growled at Second.

"I had a… Talk with Gendo. Let us not speak too much of it. The conclusion is that NERV and I are allied, and we share an enemy. To that end Gendo offered you to me as an official liaison and transferred you over to my command. I'll brief you in on details later, as well as tasks I expect you to fulfill." Second spoke with a tone that seemed it was only barely restrained from turning into furious howls, and the undertone was enough to cause Asuka's rage to turn into ice-cold fear. Then the tone returned to a calm and controlled one, allowing Asuka to take a breath she hadn't realized she had been holding. "Regardless, I need some time to clear my head. So excuse me."

"I- what?!" Misato seemed to be taken aback, but before she managed to do much else than take a stumbling step backwards, Second was gone.

"Ah… So he too feels anger…" Shinji seemed to mutter quietly while Asuka and Misato stared at the spot Second's skeletal form had occupied mere seconds prior. "I see… I was foolish to try to suppress it… I needed to find a release…"

Rei merely stared ahead while a butterfly flew around her head for a while and finally landed on top of her blue hair.