"Hm…"

Momonga sat on the Throne of Kings, once again. 'I never truly expected that I'd get to sit here again, in Nazarick…'

He leaned his back against the throne and closed his eyes, feeling himself get lost in nostalgia… And drew himself back almost against his will as he heard a scared whimper from somewhere nearby.

Momonga straightened his back and opened his eyes, causing the red dots in the empty eye-sockets of his skeletal 'avatar' to re-ignite. He then glanced at the direction where the whimper had come from, and saw that Albedo was coughing to her hand while her face was pale. 'I see… I suppose she thought I'd 'disappear' again… Well, her fears are somewhat justified, since I had adopted that exact pose when YGGDRASIL's servers went down…'

He coughed to his hand, or rather, made the emote of doing so as he didn't have his NERV-provided 'meat-suit' on in order to help friend-and-foe identification of Nazarick, and was clad in his signature class-gear. 'Since Ainz Ooal Gown was a guild of extreme-evil heteromorphs, and from what I've discovered from experimenting with my summons, there's a very real risk of friendly fire if I act carelessly, or they discover that I'm… I was… a human, Suzuki Satoru… That being said…'

Momonga looked at the sight of the Floor Guardians who had assembled into the throne room, and who were doing their best to appear stoic, calm and ready.

Albedo, the Floor Guardian of Ninth Floor of Nazarick and Guardian Overseer of Nazarick, was pale and she fiddled with her re-grown waist-wings nervously when she didn't think Momonga was looking- And in fact he wasn't looking, but rather using a [Planar View] that he had cast behind himself in order to look at things from 'third person' and in doing so, keeping an eye on the NPC's when they likely thought he wasn't watching.

'...They seem to be quite relieved and nervous when they don't think I am watching, and pretend to be stoic when I am watching…' Momonga nodded internally as he concluded his paranoid observations of Nazarick's NPC's- for now. 'Regardless…'

Momonga reached up with his hand, causing Demiurge to shake in his red pine-striped suit as the demon was kneeling in front of the throne, alongside the rest of the Floor Guardians while the Pleiades were kneeling near the throne room's gate-like entry door… And then Momonga reached to stroke his own chin for a while in contemplation. "Demiurge. You took responsibility for organizing Nazarick's defense once you and Albedo concluded that she was compromised."

"Yes, my master." Demiurge lowered his face, causing his glasses to glint and turn opaque in startlingly Gendo-like fashion, and causing Momonga to freeze for a brief moment. It seemed like the freezing-up wasn't missed by Demiurge, as the demon froze in turn… Before throwing himself to a deep prostration with his temple against the floor. "I profusely apologize for my failure to live up to our lord's expectations and failing to safeguard the Great Tomb! For this failure I shall justly flagellate myself, and accept any and all punishment-"

"Nothing of the sort. The… transportation… of the Great Tomb, and us by extension, was not a planned event. Rather, it is somewhat of a mystery." Momonga handwaved Demiurge's hasty explanations… Before he returned his hand to his chin in contemplation. '...Hm. It seems that my disappearance was not taken as a betrayal, but rather, as the reverse of it- The NPC's feel that they betrayed my trust and failed me. Hm…'

Momonga considered his place in the 'new world' that he had found himself in. 'NERV seems to have quite a lot of sway in local politics. I should probably try to calm the relationship between us and the humans before the circle of vengeance gets out of hand… Demiurge had ordered attacks against the locals in order to secure a perimeter around the Great Tomb, but it looks like the tomb itself has been kept quite hidden. The fact the area Nazarick landed in seems to be in the Siberian Mountains, that were formed during the Second Impact, must have helped to obscure it… Not to mention, the constant snowstorms and blizzards must make long-range and satellite reconnaissance quite hard at this point of development. Still, if Gendo can spot me even when I'm in the woods and have hidden myself with scrolls, I shouldn't assume that he isn't capable of pinpointing Nazarick if he puts his mind into it… Which originally was my intention in getting him to help me find Nazarick, but him knowing where it is puts us at risk of localized rain of nukes…'

"Aura. Mare." Momonga turned his attention to the pair of teenage-looking dark elf twins, who were clad in clothes of their opposite sexes. "I'll talk with the two of you later, Albedo, Demiurge. Time is of the essence right now- Aura. Nazarick's above-ground mausoleum is quite exposed, yes?"

"Correct, my lord." Aura nodded her head, and Momonga ignored the fact her voice had a small shake. However, he couldn't quite ignore the fact Mare's words were barely audible due to his stuttering and nervous squirming.

Aura reached to pinch Mare's cheek as his stammering failed to produce anything but an avalanche of stutters. "A-a-a-a-a y-y-y-e-es, o-o-o-oh, o-ouu… uuu… lo-lord!"

Momonga sighed, causing Mare to jump on the spot and hug his gnarled wooden staff against his chest nervously. The fact the teenage elf boy was clad in a short skirt and girl's clothes was not making the sight any easier for Momonga's psyche. 'Bukubukuchagama… I swear…'

He coughed to his fist, causing Mare to freeze utterly still and attempt to hide behind his staff. "It's alright. I'm not mad. Mare- You are a druid, and your skills are quite crucial in the task I am about to give you. I know you won't fail me, so please do not be so afraid."

'...I can't believe that the 'experience' I got from coaching Shinji to find his courage is paying off by allowing me to talk to my NPC's in a fatherly way…' Momonga wasn't sure what he was feeling when he looked at Mare who seemed to find a modicum of courage. "I need you to go out and cover the mausoleum in a way that prevents it from being seen from directly above."

"E-Eh?" Mare blinked. "D-Does the enemy use birds to scout? A-are we expecting an attack?"

"The enemy has satellites- er, they have launched mechanical items into orbit- ahem, really high, and are using them to look down and see things all around the world. They are roughly equivalent to [Planar Eye], except with the ability to record what they see and without a limit of daily casts or mana cost." Momonga caught himself a few times as Mare scrunched his face when faced with a concept that didn't quite exist in YGGDRASIL. 'Orbital weapons and satellites weren't exactly a 'thing' in the fantasy world of YGGDRASIL, so I have to be a bit more descriptive… Although, those kinds of things weren't exactly uncommon in Neo-Japan… I think one of our rival companies got one of their warehouses rod-from-god-ed when they failed to pay the corporation owning the land for 'asteroid protection money'...'

Momonga resisted the urge to shake his head in order to draw himself back to reality, as he was well aware what kind of reaction that emote would prompt from Mare. 'Sheesh, the relative normalcy of Tokyo-3 and now the whiplash of returning to 'YGGDRASIL' is seriously screwing with my state of mind… I need to stay on my toes or I'll start to think that I'm still playing a game…'

He got an idea and brought out a spent anti-tank launcher casing, and put it against the Throne of Kings so that it was in his view. 'That should help remind me… Still, I'm not sure Misato should be allowed to be near kids if she thinks that it's rational to open a door with a rocket launcher of all things…'

"Aura." Momonga eyed the dark elf girl who was clad in boy's clothes next, causing her to jump a bit as she had been staring at the empty tube while scrunching her eyebrows curiously. "I need you to go out and see about gathering a horde of local animals. Your specialization as beastmaster should allow you to utilize local animals to form a semi-coherent 'fighting force' that you can then use as a deterrent to keep locals from finding Nazarick by stumbling on it."

"Yes, my lord… but-"

"You can call me just Momonga." Momonga sighed, before he got an idea and addressed the rest of the gathered NPC's. "Actually, this applies to all of you. We're in a spot of bother right now, so please disperse with meaningless formalities."

'...That should also give me an idea on their states of mind, and what exactly they think of me and my way of doing things. I have not yet paid Nazarick's monthly upkeep, so the NPC's and Nazarick's defensive mechanics are severely weakened, in other words, if they turn on me I should be able to make a fighting retreat, or possibly even win if I manage to draw out and fight the Floor Guardians one-on-one…' Momonga was feeling quite paranoid over the possibility of the NPC's turning on him, but at the same time, he was also feeling pressure over allowing Nazarick's defenses to remain lapsed for a second longer. 'I have an excuse since the upkeep dates were missed twice already, but… It feels as if I'm balancing the legacy of my friends against my own safety…'

"At the moment our best and only way of guaranteed survival is to stay low-profile and avoid detection." Momonga told Aura and the rest of the NPC's in the Throne Room. "To that end we should employ visual camouflage, and refrain from using pop-monsters or summons to deter intruders from finding Nazarick- It's much easier to stay hidden if the locals avoid this spot due to a higher-than-normal polar bear and gray wolf population, but not so much if the locals start finding ghosts, undead or massive spiders that are not usual for this region. Or this world as a whole."

"...Yes, my lord." Aura was clearly conflicted over the orders, as were quite a few of the NPC's.

'...Hm, they seem to be wavering.' Momonga noted with a bit of worry in his thoughts. 'Then again, I suppose it'd seem odd that 'superior beings' cower from mere humans…'

"...There was an excursion into the Human Dungeon, as you know. Demiurge?" Momonga decided to impart some of his paranoia to the NPC's in the hopes that they'd see things his way. "I believe that there were losses among those sent out. Namely…"

"Entoma Vasilissa Zeta, my lord." Demiurge's prostration continued. "It was due to our mistake that-"

Momonga raised his bony hand to stall the demon before he could start. Mostly because everyone present was already aware of the events, but also to ensure that the NPC's remained in the illusion that Momonga was in control of the events. "What has happened, has happened. However, I received information of her death through… allies… that I have already made among the locals. Alongside her corpse, which my ally had liberated from Entoma's killers."

Momonga then reached into his inventory, dragging Entoma's dead corpse from it and placing it on the floor in front of the throne. "I have learned that the enemy who did this belonged to a group called 'SEELE'."

He heard muted sounds from the Pleiades maids who were kneeling near the gate-like entrance of the throne-room, well back from the Floor Guardians as if to signify their status as 'servants'.

Momonga noted a cavalcade of emotions on the faces of the Pleiades maids from a sad, near-crying look on the Dullahan, Yuri, to emotionless yet unbroken stare of the automaton, Shizu, to a oddly perverted look on the werewolf-maid's, Lupusregina's face. Not to mention the steel-hard look on the head butler's, Sebas Tian's face as he knelt in front of the maids to signify his rank, yet kept his unwavering stare level on Entoma's dead body with the man's fists gripped to such tightness that Momonga could see the man's gloves start to disintegrate from the grip-force.

"The enemy that dealt that wound would be also capable of doing the same to any of us. Even me." Momonga explained, well aware of the destructive potential of the Positron Rifle after seeing it in action. "The locals use massive weapons of war named 'EVA's, alongside weapons appropriate of the size, to fight Angels. These Angels are not quite what we know, but rather, are more… Beast-like."

"...Would that be what I saw my lord- Momonga-sama fight? A magical box in the human village showed Momonga-sama fighting against a large creature of… unique appearance." Sebas voiced, making Momonga nod.

"Indeed. Moreover, the Angel's attacks seem to be increasing in strength and ferocity, based off my personal experiences. My ally among the humans has been developing weapons to fight them… As well as to fight other things, I suspect. And among 'those other things' likely being us, if my read on that faction's leader is correct. And I advise taking that threat seriously, even if they are only humans." Momonga made a motion towards Entoma's body to drive the point. "However, right now we should adopt a posture of mutual exploitation towards the human allies I made, while preparing for an inevitable conflict once we run out of shared enemies. In fact, I have acquired a local 'World-Class Item' from our allies in exchange for aid with one of the Angels."

Momonga reached into his Inventory and pulled out the case containing the new-world class item, 'Adam'. "It doesn't look like much, but it is effectively an infinite mana battery. I assume I don't have to say much else to convince you to take our enemy seriously?"

The NPC's nodded their heads, although Momonga could tell that some were not particularly happy with the orders- With Pleiades looking specifically unhappy that they would not be allowed to instantly charge to slaughter everything they saw.

"Now then… I believe that we should move forwards thinking that our main enemies are SEELE and the Angels, while NERV should be considered tenuous allies- A organization which I believe is fairly well connected with quite a bit of human government. They use this symbol." Momonga lifted the empty launcher tube and pointed his bony finger at the symbol of NERV printed to the side of the launcher. "So try to not antagonize this faction needlessly. Questions?"

"None, Momonga-sama." Demiurge and Albedo said almost in unison.

Momonga glanced at the two Floor Guardians who had been quiet, namely, Shalltear and Cocyutus.

The gothic lolita-dressed vampire curtsied deeply at Momonga. "Momonga-sama, I shall strive to excel at thine orders. After all, a battle from the shadows is a vampire's speciality."

Momonga tried to not feel slimy as Shalltear's eyes roved hungrily over his skeleton during her speech. Although he couldn't quite ignore the way how Albedo scowled in quite a hostile manner at Shalltear. "Albedo. Shalltear. Try to get along, please… Ahem, umu, nevermind."

Momonga caught himself as he momentarily forgot that he wasn't looking at Asuka quarreling with her fellow Pilots, but rather, the creations of his friends. Who could also pose a serious threat to Momonga if they got offended by his words and decided to turn on him. '...Hm. That time in Tokyo-3 must have made me a bit too comfortable around people, or rather, around children… Well, those two are children of my friends, sort of, but not actual children so… hm. Haa…'

"I. Do. Not. Truly. Understand. Why. We. Must. Hide. Instead. Of. Fighting. As. Warriors. But. I. Shall. Obey. The. Supreme. One." Cocyutus's speech was accompanied by a freezing mist coming from the mandibles of the massive four-armed insectoid warrior.

"We are not so much hiding, but rather, preparing. Only a foolish warrior would neglect his weapon and gear in a rush to do battle, only to be defeated in shame when their armor broke and they drew rusted weapons from sheathe." Momonga lectured out of instinct, as he had been thinking of NERV's role in what was to come which made him associate Cocyutus's speech with Shinji's usual worries, and had act accordingly. "Ahem, please disregard that." 'Umu! I was so preoccupied thinking that I was acting too comfortable that I let it slip again! I have to be more careful or they'll…'

"I. Understand. My. Lord. I. Apologize. I. Was. Too. Hasty." Cocyutus's pose changed, from what Momonga guessed had been indignance to one of excited clarity. Or at least he assumed it was something of the sort, as the insect-like warrior's mandibles started to click together rapidly. "I. Shall. Take. This. To. Heart. I. Will. Not. Be. Found. Wanting."

"Excellent. Very good. Now then…" Momonga was quite glad that skeletons were unable to sweat, and that the racial talent of [Emotion Suppression] kept him calm, as he somehow managed to probe the Floor Guardian's heads without causing them to turn on him. "Victim is not here, nor will he be moved from the Eighth Floor. We'll need his ability to safeguard Nazarick's lower floors if the worst comes to worst. Mare, please let me know if you need anything when making a camouflage for the mausoleum. Demiurge, Albedo, please stay. Others, dismissed to your duties."

The rest of the Pleiades maids sent a mournful look at Entoma's body, making Momonga lift his hand to stall their departure. "I'll have Entoma resummoned, once I've paid Nazarick's maintenance and such a thing becomes possible once again, so rest assured- Your sister will be with you soon."

The maids seemed to be quite relieved, with the exception of Lupusregina who had a complicated expression that was somehow happy yet at the same time disappointed.

Momonga checked Lupusregina's backstory quickly through Throne of King's interface while Pleiades filed out of the throne room, and he sighed at the orange-glowing floating holographic panel that came up. 'Mekongawa-kun… I understand that you made your NPC a sadist cleric, but seriously… 'Lupusregina enjoys the suffering of others, with her pleasure proportional to how emotionally close the sufferer feels to her'? So she enjoys the suffering of people who consider themselves her allies? Sheesh… I'll have to be careful when trying to get the NPC's to coexist with the residents of this world. Even if humanity has waned greatly after the Second Impact, they still possess enough firepower to seriously harm us, or at least, Nazarick…'

Momonga thought for a moment about the illusionist-Angel that had sieged the carrier group at sea and had been fought to standstill at the hills near Tokyo-3 before being finally defeated. 'If that attacked Nazarick when the tomb's defenses were weakened…'

"Lord Momonga?" A voice brought Momonga back to reality, making him sigh as he realized he had started to daydream, or rather, day-nightmare in his stressed-out state.

He looked down to see that Albedo and Demiurge had knelt in front of him while the rest of the NPC's had filed out of the throne-room, as per Momonga's orders.

"Demiurge. I would like to propose that both you and Albedo take care of Nazarick's defense in unison. I recall that Albedo was effectively demoted to a scout? She has completed her task with flying colors, so I hope that you will be able to mend your momentary break in ranks, and co-operate going forwards." Momonga moved to grab the case that he had put to the arm-rest of the Throne of Kings. Although he wasn't quite sure if what he'd suggest was a good idea. "Moreover, Demiurge-san. I've read- erm, know that you have a sharp and inquisitive mind. So with that in mind..."

"I understand, my lord!" Demiurge bowed deep while kneeling, taking Momonga's hesitation as a signal to speak up. "I am deeply upset at myself for daring to think that this whole situation wasn't within the palm of the Supreme Being among Supreme Beings! My panic and hasty plan had resulted in loss to us, when all I needed to do was to stay calm and think rationally- After all, our lord had left us a clue, yet in my foolishness I thought it a flaw!"

'U-um…'

"Likewise I am deeply upset at myself for doubting myself- That the odd yearning that I felt was a mistake, a flaw, that I was compromised… When it was in fact a guiding light to my lord. I see it now." Albedo bowed her head deep. "I am deeply ashamed that my hesitation led to Lord Momonga's self-imposed exile to last as long as it did. We needed to prove ourselves, and realize that we must strike with guile and care instead of reckless charge in this… place… that we have found ourselves in."

"Indeed, I recognize that our lord's self-imposed exile was both a test of our intellect, of our strategic acumen and ability to adapt in the face of strong, unconventional foes, our loyalty, and to see if we are still worthy of serving the Supreme Beings… And I am forever ashamed that it took us this long to calm ourselves and realize it for what it was." Demiurge spoke with great degree of pain in his voice, and his round glasses turned opaque to hide his eyes from view.

'Eh?'

" I understand the deeper meaning in showing of Entoma's body to the rest of the Floor Guardians- That the responsibility of her death weighs on our shoulders, and that my failure is not one that can be swept aside so easily, while Momonga-sama's all-reaching wisdom could predict even my failings by our lord going as far as retrieving her corpse. Which also means that our lord was fully aware of what was going on in Nazarick, therefore this was a test of our capability- A test we would have failed even more thoroughly, had it not been for Albedo managing to decipher the clue left behind by you- A clue that the rest of us rejected, because it didn't fit with what we understood from before. We were unable to adapt to changing circumstances, and failed the expectations of our lord because of it." Demiurge changed his pose to prostration, alongside Albedo. "I am not worth forgiveness, my lord. My worth and reputation as a Floor Guardian, much less as one responsible for Nazarick's defenses, is in shambles."

'Ahem… umu. That… was not at all what I intended, but… Erm…' Momonga cleared his 'throat', albeit internally as he didn't want to make any motions that could be misinterpreted. "However, you have learned your lesson, no? You might have failed to keep Nazarick's denizens safe in my absence, but a failure does not necessarily mean the end- But rather, take it as a lesson and learn. Turn this failure into strength- Do not let Entoma's pain be for vain."

"M-Momonga-sama…" Demiurge shook on the spot for a while before reaching to adjust his glasses and also dab the corner of his eyes with a cloth, even if his eyes were perfectly dry.

'I'm guessing demon's can't exactly cry or something… Well, it's not like I'm innocent of using 'emotes' that I technically don't need to do like coughing or sighing…' Momonga thought to distract himself from the confusion of seeing the NPC in such emotional distress. 'NPC's are really like people here, huh… Between Albedo's acting, and everyone else… Hm.'

Momonga stood up from the Throne of Kings to offer his hand to Demiurge, who looked at it in brief confusion before finally realizing something… and he put his hand on Momonga's, and Momonga lifted the demon to his feet. "Stand tall, Demiurge. You have failed, yes, but you will learn. You will make Ulbert, your creator and my dear friend, proud. You will not fail Nazarick again. I know this. So stand tall, and stand beside me."

'I swear, I never thought I'd be using the lessons I've given to Shinji on self-confidence to reassure Nazarick's NPC's…' Momonga sighed internally while he pat Demiurge's shoulder and looked to the side to give some privacy to the demon, as Demiurge's face had contorted to a fascinating expression that was a combination of abject shame and the look of an emotionally battered man finding clarity at last, which manifested in the demon looking like he'd bawl his eyes out. At least if he could.

Instead, he reached to offer his hand to Albedo, and lifted her to her feet as well. "Albedo. You've done well, as I've said before, and I ask you to resume your role as Guardian Overseer of Nazarick. And to that end, I'd like to ask you and Demiurge to perform a task for me… And for you two as well."

"Anything, my lord!" Came from two throats and Momonga had to keep both of the NPC's up on their feet by their hands before they'd prostrate again.

"Here, take this." Momonga grabbed the case he had put back to the arm-rest of the Throne of Kings when Demiurge had interrupted him. "I'd like you two to study the full capabilities and functions of this World-Class Item. It's from the locals, and it serves as a near endless mana battery… Or a huge bomb. This is a task that requires dedication, precision, and care. I wish to entrust this task to the two of you, as I know that if you put your thoughts into it, neither of you lacks in any of those talents."

'At least, I assume so. They are supposed to be quite intelligent, at least if their 'backstory' has manifested fully… Not to mention, I have no clue about the mumbo-jumbo of that 'Adam'-item's backstory from the time I used [All Appraisal Magic Item] on it… And, er, my education is not nearly complete enough… I curse thee, mathematics…' Momonga offered the case to Demiurge while trying not to think of the amount of mental gymnastics the demon would need to jump in order to make sense of the item's function. "This will also be a joint task to mend the two of you's relationship, as the trust between the two of you would have shattered or at least strained when Albedo was cast out as 'compromised'."

"M-my lord…" Albedo had gained a similar look as Demiurge mere moments before, except unlike the demon she had thick streams of tears and snot running down her face while she held to the front of her dress. "T-that you'd care about us so… We shall swear that we shall not let you down! Nothing will get in your way!"

"Good. Now then, I need to go to the Treasury, so excuse me." Momonga patted Albedo's shoulder briefly, causing her tear-streaked expression to turn into something far less innocent for a brief moment before she got herself under control. 'I'm not good at dealing with crying women… and u-umu, right, she's succubus and I made some… alterations to her backstory… I should stay on my guard…'

He nodded to the pair, put [Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown] to his finger, and teleported in front of the Pleiades quarters to fetch a pair of maids to accompany him- Shizu as she'd have full mental encyclopedia of Nazarick's defenses at all times and thus could help Momonga remember all the protections around Treasury. and let him know if the NPC's had added any of their own, and Yuri as she'd be somewhat useful in controlling the… monstrosity… that Momonga had put to guard the Treasury.

Momonga got cold shivers down his spine as he thought about confronting his creation. 'Calm down, calm down Momonga, you can do this… You've been exposed to that already, in Tokyo-3, I should be inoculated so that it won't break me… '

Suddenly, Momonga got a cold feeling down his spine- A vision of doom, of his future death.

A vision of Asuka shaking hands with a creature clad in khaki uniform.

'N-no, that is just a nightmare, the amount of chuuni per square foot must never be allowed to rise that high… The concentration would instantly kill my psyche!' Momonga gulped audibly even though he couldn't exactly 'gulp' traditionally.

He realized that his bony hand was shaking and stabilized himself, although [Emotion Suppression] helped quite a bit with that. And then he knocked on the door to the Pleiades's quarters.

.

.

A gaggle of homunculus maids peeked in wonderment from behind a corner like a sparkling totem-pole as their impeccable master had returned to Nazarick at last, and seemed to act nervous and pace back and forth a bit while standing in front of the quarters of the fabled Pleiades Six Sisters, who were effectively 'idols' to the rest of the homunculus maids of Nazarick's ninth floor.

The master of all Beings seemed to gather his courage after a moment, and after shaking on the spot nervously for a while, stabilized himself and knocked on the dorm's door before letting himself in.

The trio of homunculus maids stared a bit at the bizarre sight. Not so much their master entering the room of the Pleiades, but that he'd act so meek and nervous before doing so.

"Do you think something is wrong? Should we expect an invasion soon?" One of the maids piped up. "Like the last time? Surely if something makes Lord Momonga act nervous it must be of grand importance and of great threat."

"No, there would be nothing in existence that could shake our lord. It must be something else. Something deeper, likely not a threat, as those would not faze Him." The second of the maids denied vehemently. "It must be something about… er, I'm not sure, actually… Cixous, do you have any ideas?"

The third maid thought for a while with her eyes closed and face scrunched up in contemplation… Before she pat her palm in sudden realization.

"I see!" The third maid's, Cixous's, expression turned from bright to nervous and she blushed in an instant. "I've heard from Lady Shalltear about some customs of… erm… places, when she's been to the bar to complain about having nothing to do… D-do you think Master Momonga went to… u-um… visit the quarters of ladies at night?"

The two other maids stared at Cixous a bit, clearly not getting it.

"W-when a esteemed lord visits a lowly maid's quarters at night, it can only mean one thing…" Cixous's face turned entirely red and then she explained her revelation to the two other maids, whose faces turned equally red.

And then the rumor started to spread.

.

.

The icy rain battered a small fishing trolley that patrolled nets in the new Siberian Sea which connected the continent to the arctic sea.

The bounty of the sea had been ever dwindling, and a elderly fisherman sat down on a peg aboard the trolley to empty his nets before he'd set them again, cursing under his breath at the rain and the cold that seeped into his bones.

The man's gray hair tousled back and forth in the icy breeze as a gust of wind almost toppled the small boat and tossed the elderly fisherman's hood from his head.

The old fisherman grumbled and got up to lower the anchor of the ship in order to keep the ship from being tossed around so much… Except that the anchor seemed to hit land much earlier than he thought.

The elderly man looked down and saw that the waves had also started to… bulge upwards.

His eyes widened in horror as he realized that the sea parted in front of a monstrous fin that was like a skyscraper lifting itself up from the sea and piercing the surface of the water, and that the anchor had not hit the ground, but rather had hit against something massive coming towards the surface of the water.

The small fishing trolley broke into splinters of wood and sheared steel as a massive, shark-like creature with a maw resembling that of an unholy union of a pelican and horror from the deep dark sea raised itself to the surface of the tumultuous water… And within moments, it reached the shore.

The True Sixth Angel, Gaghiel, washed ashore and began to vibrate.

In mere seconds the Angel swam across the solid land as if it had turned liquid, turning the newly surfaced bedrock and ever-frost of Siberia into warm, swampy mud in its passing...

.

.

"The Sixth Angel has reached shore." Makoto announced as NERV's command-bridge stared at the satellite feed of the massive creature advancing towards some unknown target. "Should we… I dunno, do something about it?"

"Do nothing for now." Gendo's voice came from the top of the command bridge, making Misato rub her eyebrows on the second level of the bridge.

"Coffee?" Ritsuko offered a cup to Misato.

"I don't get it. Where is it going? And why? And why aren't we sending EVA's? If that's a fish-based life-form, from the looks of it at least, then it's bound to be pretty helpless on solid ground… Well, as helpless as an Angel could be, anyhow." Misato complained under her breath at Ritsuko. "Yet every time I try to advise for an attack, you know, as chief of operations, Gendo just overrules me… Frustrating…"

"That Angel is not a threat to us… Yet." Gendo spoke and Misato groaned as she had forgotten the microphones on the command bridge's every level. "Calm yourself, captain. Your time will come soon."

"Soon, as in 'next week'-soon or 'Oh fuck the Angel is nibbling at our heels we need solution right now'-soon?" Misato groaned upwards and got a silent treatment in return from Gendo, and a small frown from Fuytsuki who was standing next to Gendo, as usual.

"Very soon. We'll merely need to track that Angel to… hm… 'Source'." Gendo's eyes were hidden behind his visor so Misato couldn't tell what the commander was looking at exactly, but she was fairly sure he was staring unwaveringly at the massive fish-like Angel that was swimming along the surface of the icy tundra towards some unknown destination. Likewise the man's expression was frozen to cold determination, making it hard for Misato to figure out just what the commander was after with his orders.

"Can I at least command the pilots to get ready?" Misato asked, making sure to show her indignance with her tone and choice of words. It clearly wasn't missed by the bridge crew who shuffled awkwardly.

"...Very well." Gendo looked like he had finally realized that by taking exclusive command of the 'battle' and overriding Misato's every order in front of her subordinates, without also taking command of the deck as it'd force him to take decisive action against the Angel by doctrine, he was not so much stepping on Misato's toes but driving back-and-forth over them with a semi-truck.

"Alright- Announce a recall for the pilots and get them ready. Are the heavy transports ready yet?" Misato slammed her hand on the steel panel in front of her to shake the bridge crew out of their stupor after having to sit on their hands and watch the Angel move unopposed.

"Captain- Hm. Proceed." Gendo started to belay Misato's orders, but stopped midway through, which first caused Misato to raise her eyebrow at the commander in an aggressive manner while she had her eyes closed and a massive vein throbbing on her forehead, and then for her to blink in surprise.

Misato turned around and saw on the screen that the pelican and fish-like Angel had picked up speed and had jumped into the air like an orca, and then dove down almost vertically into a… Mausoleum of sorts.

The chief of operations blinked at the odd structure that seemed almost comically small against the massive angel, not to mention how odd it was that there even was such a structure in such a remote location, mostly buried in snow so that it was hard to see unless one knew what to look for- At least before the Angel dove right on top of it, crushing the stone-made building under the massive Angel's weight.

The Angel wasted no time in starting to bury itself downwards in a vibrating frenzy, until only it's tail-fin remained above the surface… And a moment after that, only a huge, empty crater and slowly freezing trail of mud remained to testify for the Angel's passing.

"Found you." Gendo hissed under his breath, and Misato only barely managed to pick it up due to the fact the entire command bridge had fallen silent. "Well then. Captain? You have a Angel to slay."

"Y- ugh, fine, rgh… Fighting an Angel in a tunnel or something is going to ffffucking suck, especially when Mari's out of action as she's the only pilot who has experience in that… Not to mention that we'll have to set up a temporary HQ somewhere outside so we can keep MAGI's c&c up with the EVA's when they're underground…" Misato grumbled while she brought a wired phone to her ear to bark orders while she fiddled with her mobile phone to call Shinji. "All hands. Raise the alert level to Pattern Blue. Get pilots on board the heavy transports, prepare underground fighting equipment for EVA's and mobile base vehicles. Shinji-kun? Are you home? Yeah? Right, get ready to go, we're going after an Angel. And please… Pack my comfy winter jacket. I'll never forgive you if you forget. Thanks."

The phones were put down, with the command bridge exploding to action and Shinji squeaking something through the phone before the line was cut.

"Let's go fish ourselves an Angel!" Misato declared while slapping her hand against the steel guard-rail of the command-bridge and striking a heroic pose.

She ignored the way Gendo harrumphed at the words from somewhere up above.