Ah! The following day

by zeroIQ

Getting married is never really simple for anyone, let alone a certain mortal and his goddess. One might expect that with the hard part out of the way, the rest would be just an ordinary married life. But with those two and the ones around them, there is no such thing as ordinary...

60. Chapter 60

I do not own the Ah! Megami sama / Oh! My Goddess series

---

Odal's diary, Entry 3

With Megumi's anticipated arrival late today, I deemed it necessary to start a bit early and write this down before I had a pretty tricky situation to deal with. I suppose that being a worrywort is something I got from my father, at least in all things not mechanical, given that I'm far more confident when it comes to machines of all descriptions. Dealing with people on the other hand had never been my strongest point, although in retrospect this must have something to do with my upbringing too.

As a young god who aged at a substantially slower rate than the rest of the mortals around me, I had to stay out of sight for the most part, before people started to take notice, and my photos ended up in every social network available at the time. After all, it was difficult enough already to maintain the illusion of normalcy, and with smartphones becoming increasingly affordable and interconnected through the web, we were effectively surrounded by potential spies. Well… that's a bit of a harsh way to put it, but even back when I didn't quite understand all the implications behind such topics, I did notice that part of aunt Skuld's daily routine was to search through the web for any references to our little temple and try to take down or simply bury anything that might attract too much attention to us.

For the most part those were simple things, like comments as to why there was a family living at a temple, and whether we were squatters or not. But then there were also claims of mysterious lights and sounds coming from the general area. While many years earlier it was easy to dismiss all that as part of someone's vivid imagination, the newfound ability to take a photo or even make a video of the incident and then upload it online for thousands to see was a new kind of threat for us. At one instance, someone caught a glimpse of aunt Urd flying on Stringfellow the broom, and while she was too far from the viewer to see any clear details as to what was depicted in the photo, the guy's twitter account was bombarded with UFO theories. Until aunt Skuld, pretending to be an image analysist claimed that this was totally fake, since her 'magnification software' clearly displayed a woman on a broomstick. Which kind of killed all the interest on the subject.

Then there was the whole debacle when a photo of Peorth walking around the temple in her… casual clothes, found its way to the web and in less than a day it was posted on more than five different sites with hundreds of reposts all over the place. And to prevent a horde of eager college students and even middle aged men -single or not- to come all the way to meet this exotic and quite outgoing foreigner, aunt Skuld had once again dismissed this as a case of a cosplayer posing in front of the temple. A claim that was backed by another photo, this time of Lind, who was dubbed as a somewhat original take on Rei Ayanami. And with the comments degenerating in an almost endless dispute between those who actually liked the fresh perspective Lind gave to what was essentially an 'old men's anime' by that point, and those who absolutely hated every little thing about it, calling this a non canon monstrosity, as the cosplayer wasn't even trying.

And as stupid as it sounds, all those incidents made me weary of strangers, as I worried that I might end up doing or saying something out of the ordinary and contribute to the growing list of debacles, aunt Skuld had to deal with. Although much to her credit, she eventually found ways to take stuff down by exploiting all sorts of loopholes -whether legal or even technical- to deal with such nuisance in the most efficient way possible.

Even so, I was still reluctant to wander outside of the safe haven that out temple was, which in all seriousness sounds kind of ironic, with me being a god and all. And given that even my mother found it a bit too much to burden her sisters by turning them into my babysitters, so on more than one occasions she would invite others to spend some time with me, lest I ended up feeling lonely. The most prominent amongst them was none other than her once rival, Peorth, who for some reason loved to take care of me, and truth to be told, I kind of liked her too. Not in that way of course, since I was way too young to even see her in that light, but as a fun goddess who despite what others thought of her was more than happy to sit and play board games with me, or even help me draw pictures. Those were always about roses or flower gardens in general, but even then she was the only one who actually had the patience to instruct me on how to cultivate my artistic side. She was a good songstress too, and often pushed me way harder than my own mother on how to sing, no matter how much I hated the subject. Being timid at the time could do that to you, although… not much changed since then.

After all, aside from Peorth, I had few others I could genuinely call my playmates, with the Daimakaicho being one of those rare exceptions. More precisely, it was Hild's one thousandth avatar that occasionally dropped by to play with me, and the fact that her physical appearance was the closest match to mine back then, made it a lot easier to relate to her. Even then I knew that in reality she was way older than most of us, and not to mention being a demoness, but that still didn't prevent me from spending time with her. And bizarrely enough, Hild was both my playmate and a surrogate grandmother of sorts, to whom I could discuss things I'd rather not with my parents or even my aunts and Peorth.

For the most part I was getting increasingly tired of being stuck in the temple, while others could wander around, and as a child it was hard for me to understand why it was so bad for humans to learn about my nature. So, asking Hild about the world outside of the temple's walls was something I could afford doing without making the others worry about me feeling trapped in my own home. And despite her being the Daimakaicho with far more important things to do, Hild always tried to humor me, offering not only the required information, but tales about those places, even if some of them turned out to be exaggerations or downright fabrications. Still, the soothing tone of her voice whenever she recounted those tales greatly outweighed their validity, and on a few occasions I caught aunt Urd listening in to her mother from a safe distance. I cannot be sure of course, but I have a feeling that she might've enjoyed them even more than I did.

It's quite sad actually, but those two never really got anywhere as close as they are in this world. For all the good qualities aunt Urd possessed, she was so damn stubborn to admit that she loved her mother, and adamantly refused to accept her, citing all sorts of reasons. As a matter of fact, when I learned that Urd turned into a demoness in this world, I was so shocked that it took me a while to convince myself that the others weren't pulling my leg. And for the first time in a long while I was genuinely happy for them, given that Urd was willing to learn more about her demonic ancestry and even called Hild 'mother' on a couple of occasions.

Hell, even Lind would've cracked a smile at that, so it should be fine if I shed a tear or two, right? As dad would love to say, those were manly tears… or something like that.

And speaking of the otherwise frigid and stoic Valkyrie, I'm quite shocked that she's a lot more expressive than she used to. Then again, not only did she befriended Peorth of all goddesses, but also a synthetic being… as well as share a kiss with Hild. Alright, that last one was mainly Hild's doing, but to see her blush like that, well… that was new experience.

Back in my homeland, Lind was still somewhat the quiet and reserved goddess who'd rarely express any emotions, unless it was absolutely necessary. And while she still claimed to be my father's lifelong friend, she was definitely more distant from him and the others, only dropping by once in a while. Still, that was more than enough for me to become fascinated by her role as a member of the Fighting Wings, and though I wasn't nearly the epitome of aggressiveness, just like my father before me, I too enjoyed using my brains resolve a problematic situation, rather than brute force methods. On top of that, it offered me the perfect excuse to build all sorts of machines that could give me a hand on every situation imaginable, and while not the most popular approach when it came to fights, that too was aunt Skuld's preferable method. So, over time I toyed the idea of joining the Fighting Wings too, although on a less combat intensive unit, where I could showcase my actual skills.

Little did I know that this unfulfilled dream would eventually end up becoming my lifestyle much later on, even though I got my combat lessons from both Verthandi and Angrboda. But, that's something I'd rather leave for another time.

I don't know, but I'm all over the place right now. Perhaps it's just my nervousness of having to meet aunt Megumi once again, or maybe the fact that I need to let Hagall handle this rather delicate subject. And speaking of the latter… I'm also at a loss as to what to think about her, too. After all, just as we were about to get out of the bed earlier on, she more or less decided to tell me the true reason behind her aggressive attitude from yesterday, and… she kind of verified my own suspicions.

As it turns out, Hild married us for real.

I knew that there was something fishy about the whole setup, and the moment the Daimakaicho handed me those marriage papers I couldn't find any discrepancy. Then again, I'm unfamiliar with the demonic legal system, so I didn't made a huge deal about it, assuming that it was something so well hidden that someone like me wouldn't possibly pick even in a thousand years. As it turns out though, the same was true about Hagall, who also decided to take a look at those documents and apparently came to the grim realization that our marriage wasn't actually as much of a fad as she originally had expected. And with her being unwilling to take her frustration on Hild, she more or less diverted that anger towards the next available candidate: me.

Not that I can blame her, considering that it's my fault she ended up in this ridiculous situation, although that still doesn't explain why she calmed down afterwards, rather than go all out on me now that the cat was out of the bag.

Oh, and speaking of cats, we just caught one. At least as far as I can heard from all the ruckus that darned cat is making. Better go and take a look, before Hagall signs his fur or something.

XXX

"What's the meaning of this?! I've done nothing to deserve this kind of treatment, so let me go you damned god! Actually… who the Hell are you anyway, and what are you even doing here?!"

'Payback's a bitch, you son of a gun.' Ignoring the incessant rattling caused by Welsper's thrashing around the cage he ended up in, the rogue god couldn't help but grin slightly at the sight of the captive feline. "Name's… Morisato. Odal Morisato."

For a moment Welsper thought that he heard his god not only use a family name in the same fashion mortals do, but… his name too. Which was so unexpected and preposterous that all he had as a response was a rather incredulous, meow… followed by something that was otherwise incomprehensible, though it sounded like a purr.

"Easy there tiger. That's not an intro meant for a most literal virgin to use, but a far more experienced man… or god," came a voice from the corridor, as the commotion had attracted Hagall's attention, and much to her amusement she found that perfect couple's son trying to bully someone; with varying results. 'Not bad, but too amateurish and lacks refinement, although not totally hopeless. I might be able to teach a thing or two, after all.'

"H-Hagall-sama?!" squeaked the startled cat, almost coughing up a hairball in his shock to find none other than the Daimakaicho's deputy here of all places, and in an airy cotton dress on top of it too. "W-What are you d-doing here?!"

"Ah… Welsper, it was about time you'd grace us with your presence," said Hagall as she stopped in front of the captive cat's cage, and stared at him with an amused gleam in her eyes. "You see, me and my husband over there were actually wondering what happened to you."

If the aforementioned god's name wasn't already impossible enough for the cursed cat to accept, then his connection to Hagall, left Welsper in a state of utter disbelief. "Pardon me, but… your what?"

"Husband!" proudly declared Hagall with such a sweet smile that initially caught Odal off guard, until he figured out what was likely going on and a small grin crept on his face. However, before the god said anything, Hagall carried on, now that Welsper had enough time to process that information and went straight for the kill. "We just got married yesterday, and decided to come here for our honeymoon! Not the fanciest of places, I know, but the picturesque surroundings and the mountain air makes this such a lovely option. And not to mention ro-man-tic."

That last word hit the cursed feline like a ton of bricks, as this… god had essentially accomplished the very dream he so much yearned for and yet it remained beyond his ability to realize; to marry someone from the other side of the fence. "How… how did that even happen? Why would you ever marry a… god, Hagall-sama?"

"Well, I suppose that with his charming personality, smarts, and good looks… it was so hard to resist," said Hagall with such a dreamy look in her eyes, that caused nightmares to the poor souls present. Especially as she turned to her husband and have him that adoring look that caused even him feel shivers up his spine. "Right, darling?"

"Ah… yes, of… course… sweetheart," said Odal, doing his best not to gag at use of that last word the left his mouth. Although by the looks of it, Welsper beat him to it and actually coughed out a hairball, causing Odal to glance at the cursed demon. "You okay over there?"

"I'll live," muttered Welsper, giving the rogue god a suspicious look. "So… not only you married Hagall-sama, but you're called Morisato too?"

"That's right. Why, is there a problem with that?"

"No, it's just that I think that you're both pulling my tail… I mean, my leg," muttered Welsper, who found it too hard of a story to swallow. "With all due respect of course, Hagall-sama."

"Oh, now you worry about respect, you damned furball," sneered Hagall, dropping her previous act altogether. "Do you seriously think that I've forgotten your role in granting the Norns the needed permission to enter Niflheim, back during my coup?"

Welsper's ears fell flat on his head, as his pupils dilated in fear for his life, given how vicious Hagall's glare was right now. And knowing from first hand just how vicious she could become, after she more or less convicted him without the slightest hesitation during his trial, Welsper had no desire to find out what she was capable of, once it became personal. "Please forgive me Hagall-sama! I was under Hild-sama's orders to offer my assistance to Belldandy… I mean the Norns! I never intended to defy you, my lady!"

"Hm…" biting her thumb nail, the blonde demoness remained thoughtful for a while; probably far longer than it was absolutely necessary, just to let Welsper to reflect upon his predicament, until she turned to her husband and tapped his shoulder. "Odal, dear…"

"Um… yes?" asked the rogue god, raising an eyebrow at the sudden change of attitude, which most likely indicated that his wife was up to no good.

"Do me a favor and dump him into the pond outside," said Hagall in such a casual manner that was terrifying on its own accord.

"Have mercy, my dreadful lady! I beg your forgiveness!"

Letting a sigh, Odal spent a moment to reassure Holy Bell that despite his previous words he wasn't actually going to do such a cruel thing, before he mentally prepared himself to convince his wife that this joke had got a tad too far. "Look, Hagall. I know that-" Before getting too far though, the sound of a bike approaching the temple caught Odal's attention and the look of realization in his wife's face convinced him that she knew something about this. "Wait, is this?..."

"Oh, right! We were so caught up with Welsper that I almost forgot to tell you that I've already invited Megumi over," said Hagall, before she paused and snapped her fingers causing her dress to change into her formal attire, in preparation for the imminent meeting with her husband's aunt. After all, this was the first of her in laws she was about to introduce herself to, and the last thing she needed was to make a fool of herself, let alone in front of Odal. "Just take Welsper to another room and let me handle this. Trust me, everything's going to be fine, so don't you worry about anything."

"Alright, I'll do as you say and leave this to you. Now, let's go, Welsper," said Odal, picking up the cursed cat's cage, much to the latter's chagrin.

"Well, it's not like I have a choice on the matter…"

XXX

Scanning from side to side with nothing more than a handheld torch to illuminate the interior of this damp and downward creepy subterranean cavern, the former Councilor cursed his luck as well, as that traitorous subordinate of his, for having to stoop as low as to beg for favors. He, who once stood amongst the most influential gods was now reduced to nothing more than a petty beggar, hoping that those he spirited away so long in the past still remembered their debt, and hopefully reach out to return the favor in his hour of need.

'Yeah… as if. Demons are far from known for their generosity, and these guys have nothing to lose too.' Pausing for a moment in his descent to the bowels of the Earth, Thrivaldi pondered if there was another alternative that would spare him the humiliation of have to ask them for favors. And not to mention make sure that he wasn't being followed, especially by that violent Valkyrie who'd definitely murder him, should she realize the exact nature of his contacts. 'And that's why I didn't want to involve her in the first place. If she ever finds out that I'm collaborating with demons… that crazy bitch is gonna murder me. That damned Odal seemed such a better alternative at the time, but no!... He just had to betray me and get all buddy-buddy with Hild and her lot. Hm… although she did reward him handsomely… Marrying him to her deputy is quite a privilege, and a nice political maneuver, as it's likely going to pressure the Councils into pardoning him for his actions. Not to mention that he now gets to tap that bombshell and her glorious titties; that damned brat!'

He was so lost in his own thoughts, that Thrivaldi became totally unaware of the shadows that lurked in the corners of the already dark cavern. And with the sound of running water masking even his own footsteps as he approached the river system that provided the underground lake with its water, Thrivaldi was totally caught off guard when a sharp and cold metal came into contact with the side of his throat, it edge threatening to break his skin. "Wha-?!"

"Get lost. We don't need you wandering here." The voice unfeeling and deep, brought chills to the now captive god, as the veiled demon's free hand pushed the interloper against a nearby stalagmite, all while keeping the dagger aimed for his throat. "You have nothing to offer anyway."

"Y-You… ungrateful bastard!" rasped the former Councilor as he tried to control his voice, before he showed signs of fear while in the demon's presence. "After all I've done for you and your master, you dare treat me like this?"

"We owe you nothing, god. My master offered you enough compensation already, by supplying you with resources, so enough with this nonsense," said the demon in an increasingly agitated tone. "The only thing you'd ever accomplish here is draw unneeded attention to our hideout, and that's something we cannot afford; lest that whore finds out."

"So all you're going to do is stay here and hope that she won't find you? How the mighty have fallen…" said Thrivaldi with all the courage he could muster, already feeling the dagger press against his neck even harder than before. "Now… don't do anything too drastic. One of my subordinates already knows my whereabouts, and if I don't report back in certain amount of time, he's instructed to send this place's coordinates to Hild. I bet you're gonna enjoy this, won't you?"

The demon snarled as he silently pondered if this was nothing more than a ruse, but in the end he had no desire to test this theory, at least not without his master's consent. "Fine, I'll take you to him, but that's about it." Begrudgingly, he sheathed his dagger and took a step back to allow his 'visitor' to regain his composure. "Keep in mind though, that if you try to pull another stunt like this, I'll kill you regardless of whether you'll give our location out or not."

"There's little for me to gain by helping Hild… or anyone of them for the matter," said Thrivaldi, while adjusting his collar. "I'm just somewhat allergic to blades, and I'd appreciate if you don't use such violent methods of negotiations."

"Whatever… Just shut up, and follow me. You gods talk so much," groaned the demon before he turned around and headed towards one of the numerous tunnels, causing Thrivaldi to run after him, since he didn't bother wait to see if the god caught up to him or not. 'Just great… we now need to move to another location. Can't risk her find out where we've been hiding to and send her dogs after us.'

XXX

Tariki Hongan temple

Climbing up the steps two at a time, Megumi had to admit that she actually missed this place. Ever since her brother and the goddesses living with him left, she had little reason to come here, lest she ended up remembering just how lively -and occasionally noisy- this place used to be. Not only that, but she secretly feared that one day she'd find a priest living in this house, at which point it would be rather unlikely for her brother and the Norns to ever return back, as explaining things to any other mortal was more or less out of question. And if that came to be, Megumi had little doubt that she wouldn't see her brother again for quite some time, given that so far she never received any news from him.

Still, it's not like she just passively waited for him or the others to call her. During the first couple of days without a single word from any of them, Megumi searched this whole place for any sign of a phone number that might look strange enough to belong to the Norns' homeworld, and while she actually found a few, dialing them did absolutely nothing. All her attempts failed repeatedly, even when she tried to call those numbers from her apartment, just in case she had better luck that way. Needless to say, none of her calls ever connected, and after a couple of days she had no other option but to give up.

However, all that changed the moment she met that god yesterday, since he agreed to let her talk to Keiichi, and hopefully find out what was going on over there. Even more importantly though, what Megumi wished to know above all was when Keiichi and the others planned to return, and perhaps… whether something good happened while they were away. 'Oh, I wonder if Kei-chan and Bell-chan got even closer than before. I mean… sure, they're already married and all that, but sometimes it's hard to tell if something changed between them.'

As a matter of fact, Megumi's enthusiasm was so great that even as she rang the doorbell, her mind was so busy making a list of all the questions she wanted to ask, that she almost missed the moment the door opened and thus kept ringing much to the hostess' chagrin.

"Hello there young lady! You must be Megumi Morisato if I'm not mistaken," tapping her foot lightly on the floor, Hagall placed her hands on her hips giving the brunette a look of superiority that was further accentuated by her official green dress that not only presented her body in the most flattering -if not downright seductive- manner, but acted as a reminder that despite appearances she wasn't really a human, given how outlandish it was from Megumi's perspective.

'Whoa! He wasn't lying when he said that he married a demoness… and what a demoness too! She's almost Urd's size, if not bigger,' mused Megumi, as a cat like grin slowly crept in her face for the first time in quite a while. "Why, thank you… um…"

"Oh, where are my manners? I'm demoness first class, unlimited license, Hagall," offered the blonde with a polite bow, and then stepped aside and gestured her visitor to enter, even summoning a pair of slippers as to show her hospitality, as well as her understanding Japanese customs that mandated one to take their shoes off before entering a residence.

"So, you're… um… that god's wife, right?" said Megumi, pausing for a brief moment when she realized than in her excitement she had actually forgotten to ask that god's name yesterday.

"That's quite correct, and by the way, his name is Odal, too. Still, sounds pretty strange… being a god's wife, I mean. Up until recently, such marriages were effectively forbidden, with the celestials placing all sorts of hurdles to prevent interspecies couples from staying together for too long."

Nodding absently while taking her shoes off, Megumi was only peripherally interested in the details of Hagall's personal life and her involvement with Odal, given that she was never all too into things like gossip. However, the moment the topic about interspecies couples was brought up, it was hard for the brunette mortal to avoid thinking about her brother's relationship with Belldandy, who not only lived together for a few years but also ended up married together. "Uh… excuse me for probably asking something obvious here, but… did this also apply for my brother's relationship with Belldandy?"

"Of course it did! Why else do you think there was virtually no progress for so long? Their whole relationship was stuck in a standstill, with neither of them pushing things beyond holding hands… which is so kindergarten level that it's not even funny! Of course, it's not entirely their own fault, not with them having to pass a validation test of sorts, that was supposedly meant to prevent some sort of future calamity should something went wrong in their lives. Which in reality sounds more like an excuse if you ask me, but that was their law, and one thing you should know about goddesses is that they love to follow the rules." Even though this was merely the simplified version of what happened, omitting a lot of unnecessary details that would've only require a much longer explanation; one that she wasn't quite in the mood to provide at the moment. "That's a thing of the past though, as they passed that dreadful test a while ago and the moment they did, Belldandy's mother who also acted as their examiner effectively called for their marriage."

"Wait!... So, that's why they married all of a sudden! That sure explains a few things, although… out of sheer curiosity..." said Megumi before she paused to consider the best way to phrase this. "What would've happened if they failed that test?"

"To put it simply, they would've been separated. But that never came to be, so you don't have to worry about them. Actually, with the test now officially defunct -for reasons totally unrelated to them- it's not even going to become an issue for them; or anyone else for the matter. Which is also the case for me and my husband."

'Separated?' thought the younger Morisato, as the implications of the demoness' words became quite clear to her. Still, Megumi chose not to make any comments about it, given that this would've only acted as a distraction; especially as it didn't turn out to be the case for either couple, anyway. "Actually… speaking of your husband, he did mention something about calling my brother for me. It's not that I haven't tried myself, but…"

"You wouldn't reach him," said Hagall with a knowing nod. "That's pretty normal, actually. Now, I know that Odal probably promised you that, but he's kind of busy setting up a few pieces of furniture here, so, I'll call your brother instead. Would that work for you?"

"Of course! Either way is fine by me!" said Megumi with a wide smile, watching Hagall head for the temple's old, rotary phone and began to dial a long stream of numbers. 'Finally! I wonder how Kei-chan is holding up. It's been a while since he left for their word, so he must be quite homesick.'

XXX

Helheim

Overseeing the vast expanse the that Hall of Remembrance was, a being born out of both light and darkness used her own eyes for the first time in what felt like an eternity; in what was really several billion years from her perspective. Below her was her new yet decrepit hostess, which was nothing more than a remote interface to the computer that sustained her, feeding her with both power and… substance, as she was not meant to live on her own. Though unfinished, this shell was of no consequence to her, and nor did it mean to her as much her original mistress used to.

"Ah, I see you've gotten out to stretch your wings. It was about time to show us that beautiful face of yours."

Almost like a deer caught in the headlights, the being turned to stare at Hel's second avatar, given that the prototype was still with Loki -their common father and creator- leaving her to oversee her main body's operations, together with her sisters. Both those who were identical to her, and this one; the most different and yet relatable of them all.

"What are you-... What are you doing here, unit two?" asked the third avatar, once she had regained her composure after that moment of inattendance. "I was under the impression that our network decided for me to oversee this operation. Surely you know that as well."

"That I do, Sister. But being a sister is more than sharing the same framework with you, or the same network that connects us together. It's also about caring for each other," said the second avatar as she approached the third, and gave her a pat on the shoulder. "So, how are you holding up?"

"Why do you insist on such illogical interactions? It's bad enough that the prototype is acting like a normal girl who wants to spend more time with her parents than accept her responsibilities… now I have you on top of it?"

"Yes, I know. Although being so angry isn't just you, and that's something that makes not only me uneasy, but the others too. Do not deny yourself feelings, all while you let that one eat you from the inside like cancer does to mortals," pleaded the second Hel, and for the briefest of moments there was a flicker of empathy in the third's face; as much of it was there anyway.

"Downplaying the significance of the threat we're facing is what brought us down in the first place. Drunk in our sense of invincibility we only reacted when it was far too late even for gods and demons to make a difference. Betrayed by our kind, we failed to see past rules, regulations and petty politics, wasting our precious time with endless squabble, all while those seeking to obtain control did such an unimaginable damage by unleashing that nightmare upon us, and even upon themselves for the powers they messed with were far beyond their imagination. Moreover, I have little faith that in this world things will be much different in that regard. It's most likely that just like our world, both celestials and infernals will be so worried to take any decisive action where such is appropriate, that the best way is for us to take matters in our own hands. We shall relentlessly hunt those thriving to impose their world order to the ends of the nine realms, we shall purge them without a hint of mercy, we shall remove those who sympathize with such ideas from the face of this world and cast them to the depths of Ginnungagap, where even death is an uncertainty."

Only silence met the third Hel, as her counterpart walked towards the edge of the observation platform and cast a glance at the massive assembly line where Odal's original robots were undergoing an upgrade meant to equalize them to gods. With the Ironwood dryads from Jarnvid in their possession, they now had the means to bind the cores of those synthetics to grant them power almost comparable to immortals, yet a body even mightier in resilience than them, almost mitigating the physical restrictions of the dryads. And with the memories of countless mortals in their possession as well, they could instill them the finest aspects of humanity, including those that most contemporary humans had all but forgotten about.

"I'm still not convinced that going this far is justified," said the second avatar, expressing the concerns of her entire network. "Although I understand your rationale, we're not only performing the very thing that their creator explicitly wished to avoid, but taking the extra step to transcend them beyond the limits of mortality. At least back in that world, they were never assimilated with their dryad cores, only paired with them. And by enriching them with a distilled collection of human memories, instincts and personality profiles… we're essentially creating a new type of humans; one whose sole purpose in life is to serve the Tree."

Nodding slowly, the third stepped up to her counterpart and peered down at assembly line, where additional units were under construction compared to the original number of synthetics that agreed to undergo this procedure. "I'm fully aware of that fact. Which is exactly why I've asked them whether they wished to take part in this. And considering that they accepted my offer, I don't see why you're so concerned."

"Because we're effectively trying to replace both gods and demons by creating a substitute for them? Well, at least as long as having them serve as the Tree's retainers, but you know what I mean."

"Indeed I do. However if both gods and demons they cannot do their job, then what else can I do? Preach them on how to prioritize the fate of the world over their so precious market share? It's almost as pointless as telling humans to live harmonically with each other," said the third avatar with a shrug. "If you honestly want to do that, then by all means go ahead. I have better things to do than waste my time like that."

"Fine… I just hope that we won't cause a bigger problem than the one we're trying to avoid," said the second Hel in resignation. However as she was about to leave, the half demoness paused and peered over her shoulder at her counterpart. "Oh, and before I forget… when are you planning to wake her up?"

"Soon," said the third avatar, almost clutching at something hidden in her robes. "Very soon."

XXX

Asgard

"Your analysis?"

Following the Valkyrie's gaze, Excalibur studied Keiichi's almost blank expression, and despite his own nature, the synthetic couldn't help but shake his head. "I'll spare you the technical aspects of my analysis, since it's pretty obvious that he's so absorbed by his own thoughts to even realize that he's holding that book upside down. All that I have to say is that he's definitely stressed, which is exactly the same thing you're probably thinking as well."

"That's quite correct," said Lind with a nod, frowning slightly as she watched Keiichi flip a page, still unaware of the fact that he was holding the book upside down. "He's been like this ever since he had that conversation with Odin-sama, yet no one found out why that's the case. Neither Belldandy nor Urd managed to get that information out of him, and I doubt that Odin-sama will provide us with those answers either. Especially as he didn't make any comments about the topics of their discussion when Frigg-sama asked him about it too."

"I don't know about you, but I definitely find the whole thing rather suspicious," said Excalibur before the sound of the phone interrupted him. More importantly though, the synthetic noted that Keiichi kept a rather distant look in his eyes, failing to react to the phone at all, which left Belldandy to answer it, since she was the one closest to it.

"Hello, Morisato residence here," said Belldandy almost out of habit, yet despite that she didn't make any attempts to correct herself. After all, this was still technically the case, as she hoped that her beloved Keiichi felt at home even so far from the mortal realm; just how she felt the same while they lived together on Earth.

"Well… I guess some habits die hard indeed," said Hagall from the other end of the line with a soft chuckle. "But I didn't call you just to waste your time with my musings, so I'll get straight to the point. Due to my recent… vacations, I'm currently in staying Nekomi, and thanks to that I ended up meeting your sister in law. And apparently she wants to talk to her brother, if that's not too much trouble."

"O-Of course it isn't!" said the startled Norn of the present, as she would've never expected for Megumi to successfully make contact with a demoness. Stranger yet was the fact that out of all the possible vacation destinations on Earth, Hagall chose Nekomi, a city that wasn't exactly known for its tourist attractions. "I'll get him, so please wait for a moment."

"Sure, go ahead."

Letting the handset down, rushed towards the room she shared with Keiichi, causing Lind and Excalibur to seek a hiding place in the corridor, in order to avoid being caught spying on her husband. "Keiichi! You've got a call!"

"Huh? I… I do?" After what must've felt like an eternity for his concealed audience, Keiichi finally managed to snap out of his reverie and set his book aside for now; especially when he realized that he's been holding it upside down for who knows how long, and he could only hope that Belldandy didn't notice. The last thing he needed was to make his wife worry about him, and the fact that he had no idea what to do about this situation left Keiichi with no option but to try and avoid the whole subject as much as he possibly could.

"Yes, it's actually Hagall, and… hm… just talk to her and you'll see," said Belldandy with a ghost of a smile, hoping that it would be a nice surprise to find out that the one who actually wished to talk to him was Megumi.

In all honesty, Hagall was the last person he expected to call him for any reason, but having no reason to refuse to talk to her, Keiichi headed to pick up the phone. "Yes?"

"Kei-chan, is that you?" came a voice that most certainly didn't belong to Hagall, causing Keiichi to almost jump from his surprise.

"Megumi? What are you doing in Niflheim?!"

"Eh? What do you mean by that? I'm just over at your place," replied the baffled mortal, not understanding just what Niflheim had to do with anything, until it occurred to her that she had enlisted the help of a demoness. Which in turn made her brother think that she had somehow found herself in the infernals' capital realm; an assumption that she wished to correct, before her worrywort of a brother began to freak out about her safety or something. "Oh, you mean how I met Hagall? She's actually on vacations here on Earth! Or should I say honey moon, since I met her husband yesterday."

"Oh, so that's what it was all about…" said Keiichi with a sigh of relief. He was worried for a moment that his sister had somehow made contact with the demons in order to reach him, but for once he was quite happy to be wrong. However, once he calmed down, the dark haired god couldn't help but notice a certain detail that he didn't pay too much attention at first. "Wait… did you just say Hagall's husband? And she's on her honeymoon… in Nekomi? Why there, of all places?"

"Hey, that's my line as well. I never thought that anyone would choose this place for their honeymoon destination, but-," said Megumi, until she came to an abrupt pause, when something about her brother's statement didn't sound right to her. "Hey, wait a second!… How come you don't know anything about it? I mean, they're kind of living in your home and all, so… didn't they ask for your permission or something?"

"Uh… not as far as I know, Megumi," said Keiichi as he desperately tried to recall if he ever heard about this before, and came up with absolutely nothing at all. "Actually, I never heard anything about Hagall getting married, let alone her choosing to live over there."

"Really now? But… she married a god, so, it should've been quite the news over there, right? After all, I've been told that they're the first couple to pull something like that in history."

For several long seconds, all Keiichi could do was stare at the nearest wall, almost as if he was made from the same stuff. He knew that he should've seen this one coming, since all the hints were there, yet his ever optimistic part of him failed to put all the pieces together and look at the whole picture. From the very beginning he should've realized that Hagall's presence in Nekomi must've something to do with the very god, Odin told him about.

"Just out of sheer curiosity, what's that god's name?"

"Well, if you mean the one who married Hagall, I think that it's… Odal?" said Megumi as she tried to recall the god's name. "But then again, I was a bit too excited that I would be able to call you, so I hope that I got it right."

'I don't have just a son… I have a daughter in law, too. And she's… she's…'

The moment she noticed her husband wobble, Belldandy immediately rushed to catch him, even though she had absolutely no idea what caused him such distress to make him pass out. This was by no means the heartfelt reunion between siblings she had in mind, even if happened over a phone call, although it did confirm her suspicion that there was something going on with her beloved Keiichi. However, that would have to wait for later on, as the Norn had much more immediate problems to worry about.

"Keiichi! Get a hold of yourself!"

XXX

Earth

Pacing about the dark cavern with only a floating ball of light to illuminate his immediate surroundings, Thrivaldi couldn't help but worry about his own well being. This was taking far too long, and the lack of any update as to whether his request for audience was accepted or not, left the nervous god with the sinking feeling that his hosts were probably planning something. And considering that those were demons to begin with, Thrivaldi had no delusions that he wasn't going to like it.

"So… we meet again, and this time you're the one groveling for favors." The voice deep and harsh sent shivers up the god's spine, especially as it reverberated inside the vast subterranean chamber. Furthermore, heavy thumps accompanied the sound of a massive body dragging onto the rock ground, as it edged closer towards the former Councilor. "How the mighty have fallen… Eh, Thrivaldi?"

Wincing at the sound of his own words, the fugitive god knew that this demon wasn't going to let him off the hook that easily. After all, back then it was he who mocked him for the spectacular fall from grace, and right now it was apparent that the reincarnated demon was more than vindictive enough to get some payback for that heinous insult, regardless much time had passed since then. "Ah… it's been such a long time, Fafnir. I hope that life's been-"

"Cut the bullshit, Thrivaldi. I'm not here to humor you with pointless small talk," growled the demon turned dragon, slithering his wingless body across the cavern's floor, given how small his limbs were to even support his own weight. On either side of him were his most trusted of guards; at least those who barely managed to survive the catastrophe that Hild's coup was. "Just spare both of us the trouble and get straight to the point: What do you want from me?"

Letting out a heavy sigh, the fugitive god's shoulders slumped in utter defeat, and taking a moment to recollect his thoughts, he decided to do as being told and avoid a lengthy introduction. "As you must've heard by now, I've been stabbed in the back by one of my own allies. Which is exactly why I've not only lost my position in the Gods' Council, but also the vast majority of the resources I've painstakingly gathered over the eons. And as if that wasn't bad enough, the few remaining allies I have are expecting me to come up with some sort of plan to rebound from this predicament, and even set free our comrades who've been captured during Tyr's assault on our hideout."

"And in order to appease them, you've made a lot of promises, while in reality, you have nothing," said the former Daimakaicho with a hearty chuckle, as if he was thoroughly enjoying his associate's predicament. At least now that snobbish moron of a god was finally getting a taste of the humiliation he personally tasted, back when he pleaded him for a place to hide after he barely managed to escape his solitary confinement on Phobos. It was the lowest point of his entire life, being reduced not only to an oversized lizard at the aftermath of that coup, but also to have no other option but to grovel for a hiding place, knowing all too well what would happen if Hild found out that the dragon locked on the largest of the martian moons was nothing more than a clone; an empty shell of the three dimensional representation of his true body.

"Unfortunately… that's exactly the case," said Thrivaldi as he lowered his head in shame. It was utterly frustrating to have to deal with this smug demon, especially while he was having such a great time laughing at his failings, causing Thrivaldi to clench his fists in annoyance when Fafnir started to chuckle once again.

"Excellent! At least now you're far more likely to listen to reason, rather than piss me off with your stupid delusions of grandeur," said Fafnir with a sneer, before pausing and adding in a much more compassionate tone. "Still, as someone who's already been in your shoes, I can attest how infuriating it is to lose practically everything you've worked so hard to achieve, all thanks to a single mistake on your part. Just like yourself I too underestimated Hild at the time, thinking that as an orphan of no social standing she'd never entertain the idea of turning against the demonic nobility, for no one would ever ally themselves with a former street urchin. And yet that upstart not only did she take me down, but the rest of the nobles as well; a feat that was previously thought as impossible."

'I know your sob story already…' thought Thrivaldi with a roll of his eyes, trying his best to hide his annoyance, lest the former Daimakaicho -or his guards for that matter- notice his sour expression. "Indeed, that was unfortunate. Yet that's a thing of the past, and as such we can do little to change it. What I'm interested though is the future, and any feasible means to regain what we've lost."

"Regain?" The dragon's rumbling laughter caught almost everyone in the cavern in surprise, given that ever since he was reduced to this, Fafnir was known for his ill temper, and occasional fits of unadulterated rage. "You blathering fool! You think that it's so simple? That we can so easily undo the damage that's been done? Listen here, and listen well for I hate to repeat myself. Just like I'll never become the Daimakaicho again, you too are condemned in a life full of regrets and lost opportunities. Not a single day will pass that you won't think back to the moment where everything went wrong, and what you could've done to prevent it, even though it's now far too late to make a difference. To put it simply, your days as a Councilor are over, and the sooner you accept it, the better."

"So, what? Haven't you already admitted that Hild's rise to power was totally unexpected? What makes you think that we can't make a comeback as well?" countered Thrivaldi in a much louder voice, feeling disgusted by the dragon's pessimistic attitude. Of course, he had to stop before he went too far, as the looks he was getting from the former Daimakaicho's guards were downright vicious, and spoke of great pain should he kept pressing on the subject.

"That may be," said Fafnir after a couple of tense seconds, gesturing for his guards to stand down and let him handle this conversation. "However, even back then, Hild was at full power and had an army to support her. On the other hand, I'm nothing more than an overgrown lizard, and my servants as faithful as they are… they also happen to be vastly outnumbered by our enemies. And as things currently stand, any attempt to make a comeback will only result in a fate far worse than this."

"Yes, but I was under the impression that you weren't just hiding here; you're plotting something," insisted Thrivaldi, summoning all his courage to press on the subject. "And if we combine forces than our chances of success will definitely improve."

"What I might be planning isn't your business. After all, I have no room for error right now, and your recent record of failures makes you far from a worthy ally. If nothing else, you might end up screwing up everything, just like you did with your own plans," said Fafnir, without the slightest effort to sugarcoat the harsh truth. "And before you even say it, I don't care if one of your allies betrayed you. The sheer lack of any contingency plan speaks volumes of how ill prepared you are for these kind of operations. Just leave and try to find something else to do with your life."

"Stop looking down on me!" shouted Thrivaldi in frustration. "Believe it or not, I was a member of the Gods' Council, and one of the highest ranking gods, and to treat me like an idiot is simply unacceptable! With me having to live up to the expectations of one of my position, I had to trust others with my hidden agenda, and I ended up betting on the wrong horse so to speak. However, now I'm in charge of what's left of my allies, and I have no intention to leave some brat to screw everything up for me. All I'm asking is for us to join forces, since I'm severely running out of resources, and in exchange I can offer you the manpower you need to proceed with your plans."

"Hm… as much as I'd like to agree with you, there's also a part of me that wants nothing to do with this. At least not without making sure that you won't balls up something really important, and for that to happen… you need to work for me," said Fafnir, emphasizing the last part, just to make sure that the fugitive god got the message. "Unless you're ready to make some sacrifices, then you can stop bothering me and get lost, for I have nothing more to discuss with you."

That was far from what Thrivaldi wanted to hear, yet at this point he was in no position to make demands or even negotiate anything on equal terms. It was up to Fafnir to accept his proposal, and truth to be told, the demon had little reason to trust him, let alone consider him as a valuable ally. Still, if he returned empty handed, then his own allies would simply abandon him, as he'd fail to realize his promises to them; even though they were blissfully unaware that he was quite literally making deals with demons. And if any of this reached Sanngrid's ears, then she'd probably murder him, regardless of the Doublet System.

"Very well… I believe that this will be for the best."

XXX

Odal's diary, Entry 4

If there is one thing that sets me apart from my parents is that unlike them, I'm far from an adventurous person, and much more happy to simply follow the well established path which I know where it leads. Perhaps the only exception to this rule is when mechanical topics come into play, since I thoroughly enjoy the challenge of improving or even discovering new designs to overcome each and every problem I run into. However, when it comes to people -whether mortals or immortals alike- then that becomes a whole different sort of ball game.

It's not that I genuinely don't like people per se, but living a relatively secluded childhood can do that to you, especially when I had to keep my own nature a secret from everyone around me. And it really pains me to admit this, but as I grew older, I wasn't terribly fond of my father's reluctance to relocate on Asgard. I know that just like every other kid of my age, I was too self centered to try and see things from his perspective. As a result, I just kept distancing from him,. which is kind of ironic given our somewhat similar interests and even personality quirks. Yet back then, I generally preferred the company of my aunts over my father's, and to a certain degree I also enjoyed being around my mother but only as long as I had her full attention.

Even celestial children can be so selfish sometimes, and the more I think about those days, the less proud I am of myself. Honestly… a part of me wishes nothing more than to kick my old self's sorry behind for being such an ungrateful brat, yet… another part can't help but point out just how ironic it all sounds. While I was far from excited to live here on Earth, thinking of it as an imprisonment of sorts, the first thing I do after my marriage is to bring my wife in the exact same place I once used to hate. Well… maybe hate is too strong of a word to properly describe my feelings, since I had far too many good memories to genuinely say that I loathed living here, but the overall feel of being restricted certainly put a damper on things. That, and the more I approached my teens, the more difficult I started to become.

Equally ironic is that while I liked to think that I resembled aunt Skuld the most, judging by what took place so far, I can safely say that I'm indeed my father's son. Heck, even the way I act around Hagall is reminiscent of my father's mannerisms when he had to deal with the numerous female in-laws of his; although in my case, being attracted to a demoness might be something that goes one generation up in our family tree.

Wait… no, I'm seriously not just looking for a cheap way to get some, and from someone as attractive as Hagall, but… I suppose I'm one of those suckers who get all excited when a pretty girl tries to do something for them. Especially when she happens to be the first girl I interact with for any extended period of time, that's not a relative or one of our close family friends that I became accustomed to as I grew up, and therefore never saw them as potential girlfriends.

From that perspective… I've probably surpassed my dad and then some. After all, married or not, Hagall doesn't seem to be terribly impressed by me and there's little doubt that if it wasn't for Hild pushing for this arrangement, my wife would've already left me.

And here we go again with the negativity… One more aspect of myself that certainly didn't come from my mother's side.

Although in all fairness, I don't believe that my father was a pessimist either. Probably living on a dead world that the Earth came to be, can do that for you. Especially when I had no one else other Sigel and Banpei left with me for decades, until it became too hard for me to repair them. I don't want to talk about any of this, but… it's somewhat easier done when writing such things down, at least compared to having an audience.

It was about the time when the discussion about profiting from human souls became the next big thing, and the tension between both sides escalated to the point where a small task force was stationed in a low Earth orbit. Then, amidst all the negotiations we received a phone call from grandfather requesting for mother and her sisters to go back to Asgard as soon as possible, and along with them, father too decided to tag along just like he did back during the rebellion in Niflheim. Unfortunately, we were all so distanced by what was taking place at Asgard that they thought that the whole thing was nothing too important, and thus I was left behind. Who knows… maybe they feared that once I saw Asgard then I'd never wish to go back to Earth, which… is something that my foolish, young self might've done.

Anyway... I stayed up awake for hours since their departure, and yet no news arrived until I got tired and went to sleep, thinking that by the next day everyone would be back; that I'd wake up to the sweet aroma of mom's food, and even hear dad's rather cliched praises for her cooking.

What I actually woke up to though, was the unimaginably violent groan of the earth, as one of the orbiting celestial ships decided to fire at the demonic flagship, Myrkr. And given the shallow angle of the full broadside, the shots were deflected in such a way that they ended up somewhere in the Pacific Ocean.

It's hard to even describe how violent the tremors were, especially as the sound had yet to arrive. I mean, I grew up in Japan, a seismically active country where earthquakes are far from unheard of, yet… I've never felt anything of that magnitude. And not in terms of the tremors' intensity, but the feeling it left me was… overwhelming. For the first time I could honestly tell that something horrible was about to take place, and as I tried to reach my parents over the phone, the tremors became worse and worse, until the loudest explosion almost flattened me against the floor.

By the time I managed to get back on my feet and looked outside the broken door panels, the stars had disappeared from the horizon. Which… was kind of strange at first, so I went outside to get a better look, only to find out that the sky normally dark night sky was light ablaze in a bath of fire and brimstone, while a literal wall of darkness spanning across the entire horizon and kept approaching Nekomi at an alarmingly high speed. It occurred me later on, but what I was looking at the time was a three hundred meters tall tsunami; one that washed away my hometown. The very place I used to think as my prison was gone in a blink of an eye, and yet… there was no sense of relief that followed; only emptiness and regret.

They often say that you don't know the value of what you have until you lose it. Well, I can attest that there's true wisdom in those words.

XXX

Closing his diary, Odal wasn't sure whether he wanted to continue with that particular entry or not. Although old those memories still proved more than enough to elicit some strong emotions that the fugitive god didn't wish to deal with at the moment. After all, things hadn't gone exactly according to plan -if there was even such thing as plan right now- and Hagall had to keep Megumi busy while the rest of his relatives over at Asgard figured out why Keiichi lost consciousness all of a sudden.

Admittedly Odal had a nagging suspicion as to what was going on here, yet he was too nervous himself to get directly involved in this. He had already set up the western style bed in his parents' old room -which he now shared with Hagall- and even sat down to write another entry in his diary as a means to kill time, yet no matter how long he waited there was no resolution to this arising crisis in sight. If nothing else, things were going from bad to worse now that Megumi had more than enough reasons to worry about her brother, and with her only source of consolation being a demoness, Odal had little doubt as to overall result. Not that Hagall wasn't trying to help, as surprising as that was, yet neither she nor even Odal himself had the soothing aura of the middle Norn, who could calm down even the most distressed souls, and even make it seem as if it was easy.

Getting up from the newly assembled bed, Odal paced about the room, feeling increasingly frustrated by his own reluctance to take action. It was utterly ironic how he tried to 'save the world' while the best thing he could currently do to resolve a mere family crisis was to… hide in his parents' room and hope that someone else was going to intervene on his behalf. 'Let's just face it… this isn't working at all. And if Hagall decides that she had had enough humoring us, then it's only going to get worse from there on. I guess it's about time I man up and at least try to offer a plausible explanation to Megumi. It's almost as if I'm repeating dad's approach of keeping her in the dark for as long as possible, and even he eventually admitted that it was a mistake. So… what does that make me: Too stubborn, or too foolish?'

Not wanting to actually answer his own question, Odal let out a heavy sigh and decided that hiding in here was far from what a god worthy of his legacy should be doing right now. However, before he left the room, Odal remembered about his diary that was left on the table after he finished the latest entry and went back to properly stash it in a drawer. Even if it was a pointless notion, for anyone could easily gain access to it, he still felt much better knowing that it wasn't just left in plain sight. And besides… tossing it aside like that would also imply that its contents were equally worthless to him, which in reality was far from the case.

Opening the bottom drawer of his father's desk, Odal carefully placed the diary under some old notebooks, and once that was done, he got up and was about to turn around… only to come face to face with an eerily familiar looking brunette whose head was poking through the room's mirror. And unlike past occurrences, this wasn't the middle Norn's dryad doppelganger, but the goddess of the present herself. "WHA-?!"

Belldandy winced slightly when she watched the god backpedal from her, and then trip over a forgotten screwdriver that he must've used to assemble that bed earlier. After Keiichi's fainting spell, Belldandy wanted to get some answers as to what was eating her beloved, and with him being reluctant to provide them, even under Urd's semi-serious threats to use a truth serum on him, the Norn felt that watching the events from the sideline was no longer acceptable. She had wasted more than enough time already by letting Keiichi handle this, but it was becoming obvious that he needed her support, and for that reason she decided to teleport to her home away from home and check what was going on here.

And considering that this god was so distracted that he failed to notice her presence right away, Belldandy paused in mid transfer to observe his behavior. After all, this was the same rogue god who had infiltrated her home in the past to steal Skidbladnir, although at the moment most of his activities seemed eerily… benign. Apparently he had set up a double bed for him and presumably Hagall, whose voice could be faintly heard in the distance, and even appeared to be interested at keeping some sort of written record, although she had no idea as to its subject.

Still, this was the same god that once sliced her bracelet off, and yet she didn't quite find him as threatening as she should. Sure, appearances can be deceiving, especially after living in the mortal realm for long enough to run into all sorts of hypocrites and con men to know that an innocent face is far from enough to consider someone harmless, yet this god didn't feel threatening to her, and that's what prompted Belldandy to fully transport through the mirror and hover towards the dark haired man. "Excuse me for the intrusion, but… I used to live here, so I thought that it was alright for me to come uninvited."

Staring at his mother not unlike a deer would an oncoming truck, Odal remained rooted on the floor, not even making an effort to get up in order to properly greet her. After all, he had no idea how to handle this, since he was unsure just how much Belldandy knew to begin with. Even his assumptions about his father's fainting spell were exactly that; assumptions. As such, Odal had to tread lightly lest he added yet another mess to the lot; only to be betrayed by the one closest to him.

Emerging from the rogue god in a majestic display of swirling feathers, that caught her hosts -both former and current- off guard, Holy Bell smiled at the momentarily shocked Norn whose angel also emerged to stare back at her counterpart. The two identical looking angels spent a few seconds inspecting each other, before Odal's Holy Bell grabbed Belldandy in a bear hug, leaving the Norn's own… Holy Bell to stare at them with the same stunned expression present in Odal's face.

'Mistress! I missed you so much!' squealed the older of the angels, leaving her counterpart to lean closer, looking for signs of some sort of attempt at deception. The latter even poked the other angel a few times, just to make sure that she wasn't like those illusions made by Hagall, and yet no matter how much she tried, this Holy Bell was as real as herself.

"Wait! What on Earth do you think you're doing?!" screamed the horrified Odal, as he attempted to pry his angel from the dumbstruck Belldandy, who could only stare between the two Holy Bells. "Come back here, you!"

'Only if you can catch me, master!' laughed the elder Holy Bell, hiding behind Belldandy, even though she had to squeeze herself between the Norn and her younger counterpart who kept staring at her in utter disbelief.

"You picked the wrong time to play games with me, Holy Bell! Now, just… come back, and stop being so difficult all of a sudden!" Trying to get a hold of his angel, Odal forgot just how close to his mother was, which prompted the latter to take action once she snapped out of her reverie.

Placing her hands on Odal's cheeks, Belldandy brought their foreheads together and for a moment her diamond shaped markings resonated, causing the god's to reply in kind and light up in calm blue light. "Hold still, it'll only take a few seconds."

"Um… look, I need to-" started Odal, knowing all too well what the result of his mother's probe would be. Which also meant that he was far from surprised when Belldandy pulled away and stared at him in sheer disbelief, and this time not due to his angel but Odal's energy makeup itself. "Okay, you don't have to say it… we're closely related. I think it's like in that old movie we saw at some point with dad… you know the one with that time traveling car. Sure, I'm not exactly a time traveler myself, but that's the first example that came to mind. After all, the guy there also met the younger version of his mom and all…"

"But… I have a daughter, and you're a god," said Belldandy in tiny voice barely above a whisper.

"Right, you have a daughter and-" Coming to an abrupt halt as Odal processed what he just said, or rather what his mother said mere seconds earlier, it didn't take long for him to find just what in that entire sentence was wrong. As a matter of fact, if that wasn't coming from his mother, he would've just taken it as a joke or at a prank. Yet… Belldandy wasn't known for being a prankster, and lying about it was out of question too, leaving him with only one possibility. "You have a WHAT?!"

Pulling away a bit, Belldandy and her Holy Bell nervously bit their lips, while a shocked Odal and his rather intrigued angel stared back at them. "Well… um… no one knows it yet, but I definitely have a girl."

Thankfully for him, Odal had his angel out to spare him from the hard collision with the floor when he promptly lost consciousness. And just in time for Hagall to show up, after hearing the unmistakable sound of her husband's scream.

Sliding the door open, the blonde demoness took a nice look inside the room before letting out a long sigh. "If you started like this with your son… then I really don't want to know what you'll do to me; mother."

"Uh… yes?"

---

AN: I would like to thank everyone that has offered their feedback and support both here and on the Goddess Relief site.

Now, there are a few things that I'd like to note for this chapter.

This chapter reveals a bit more of what happened in the alternative timeline (not to be confused with the current one), as well as few more hints as to what's going on with Hel. However, since the latter is a spoiler, I think I'll have to leave her for another chapter.

The demon mentioned here is Fafnir, who was also mentioned in earlier chapters as Hild's direct predecessor. He shouldn't be confused with Ymir who was the first Daimakaicho, as Fafnir is a lot younger than him, and used to be the leader of demonkind until Hild usurped him. Needless to say, he's not particularly happy about that.

Also thanks to the developments towards the end, I can now merge the two groups, and bring some of the goddesses back on Earth. Oh, and for those paying attention… yes, that's exactly what Belldandy by saying that she's got a girl (a goddess). You can expect Keiichi to faint in the next chapter, and this time not due to Odal.