Arc II: Chapter Two

Of Times Remembered

The air was cool, though not what one might consider cold. Even as the seasons changed on Earth, the weather in Heaven was never far above or below a pleasant room temperature, and the skies were never long obscured by clouds. When night rolled around, the atmosphere would darken just enough to see the bright stars, while still remaining light enough to see as one walked down the smooth stone roads.

Heaven was a place completely devoted to a single thing, running reality. Most Celestials worked for Yggdrasil in one way or another. Some toiled away maintaining and upgrading the hardware, crawling around in the access areas to work amidst the infinite cables and circuit boards. Others worked as programmers, endlessly designing and writing newer, more efficient software to make the Yggdrasil computer run at its best. Many were operators, working the system and searching for viruses or bugs within the network. There were even schools devoted to bringing up young Celestials to take their places as the next generation of Yggdrasil caretakers.

As with any place so devoted to a single 'industry', a need existed for more mundane ways to spend one's time off. Thick forests could be seen in every direction, surrounding the Eternal City, while parks gave rise to trees within the city's borders. A great waterfall came down a hundred meters to form a river that flowed near Yggdrasil's tower home. It continued through the city to feed the legendary Crystal Sea, shimmering beautifully during the day and glowing ethereally at night.

Many places spotted the landscape of Heaven that Celestials used to rest and relax. One of these places was known as the Emerald District. No one knew why it was called this, as there were emeralds to be seen. Even so, the district was normally buzzing with activity as Gods and Goddesses searched for ways to pass their free time. It was home to the Goddess Mall and numerous restaurants and bars. It was a place to forget the day's troubles and have fun with friends.

In the month since the appearance of the Cruel Angel, however, the normally very busy district was virtually deserted. Occasionally a small group of Celestials would wander through, laughing and carrying on, happy to have a few hours away from work. These were the exceptions. After the Hell Storm, almost every God and Goddess was on call, most working double shifts. Unused areas of Yggdrasil had been converted into sleeping areas for the many who didn't even leave work for days on end.

The Goddess Relief Office, once thought of as a pleasant and rewarding place to work, became one of the most overworked sections in all of Heaven. The worldwide disaster had so increased the number of humans requiring help that the GRO could no longer keep up. The critical personnel shortage that emerged not only consumed the waking hours of those who already worked there, but created a new rank of young Goddesses with probationary Second Class licenses.

This grab for Goddesses who had yet to complete their training amounted to a draft, however no one complained. They were desperately needed to help free the more senior Goddesses from more mundane work. At the Goddess Relief Office, this frequently meant updating the backlogged list of humans requiring relief. All too often these girls would have to remove a name from the list, replacing it with an annotation that the mortal had perished while awaiting intervention.

Even with the backlog of work, seniors knew that their people would need a break now and then. Thus, one could occasionally find a figure or two making their way through the Emerald District, and this evening was no exception. This one didn't move with any abnormal amount of speed, but he had a destination.

His dark brown hair reached just below his shoulders, swaying slightly with each step. A navy blue cloak was wrapped around him, concealing his body from view, and rippled slightly around his dark boots. On his face he bore three blue marks, shaped like a tear drop with three points extending upward from the rounded base.

Gilgamesh made his way past the displays on the outside of the Goddess Mall, glancing occasionally at the clothing, jewelry, furniture, and other assorted things that were meant to attract the business of the casual shopper. The storefronts made him think of the days when he came here with all his friends. Xander, Ex, Keos, Chrono, everyone would make their way through these places at least once a week. The Gods would stand around impatiently as the Goddesses looked for new outfits and jewelry. Soon enough it was the girls turn to tap their feet as the warriors looked at a new fishing rod or some such thing.

A smile crept onto his face as he recalled the memories. It was always the same thing. As quickly as it appeared, however, his grin vanished. It won't ever be the same again, though. Even after the war is over, too many have suffered for things to ever be the way they were before.

His pace increased, as if he were unconsciously fleeing from his darkening thoughts. He passed a few other Celestials along the way, but didn't greet or even look at them. At that moment, there was only one thing he could think of.

Gil stopped short, realizing that he had just passed his destination. Looking up at it, the place looked nothing like the other buildings in the district, or in the rest of Heaven for that matter. The normal stone construction was abandoned for this establishment, which was instead made of wood. The steps were a little rickety, and wooden sign with faded writing on it was suspended from the overhang in front. Odin's Bar-B-Q and Pub could be read when the light shone on the old signboard. It's not like it ever needed a sign. Everyone in Heaven knows this place.

Grabbing hold of the old, pitted iron handle on the great oak door, he slowly pulled it open, the ancient looking hinges making only the tiniest of squeaks. The large room within was warm and held a thin scent of mesquite smoke, coming from a huge fireplace that took up half the wall to his left. Most of the glowing light came from those hot embers and the few oil lamps that were hanging from the many pillars that supported the ceiling. Numerous old weapons and pictures adorned the walls. A fine layer of sawdust covered the floorboards, a few footprints barely visible in the dim light.

Quietly making his way over to the bar, he gave a respectful wave to a group of five old Templars near the fire. A number of empty mugs cluttered their table as they raised their half-full steins to their younger comrade. Their raucous laughter was filling the whole pub with ease, something that Gil was thankful for. It wouldn't have felt right if the old watering hole was silent.

The old, gray-bearded barkeep glanced up from cleaning one of his large steins when the young Celestial sat heavily onto one of the stools. Neither said a word for several minutes, letting the occasional crackle of burning logs and the drunken singing of the old men fill the void.

The holly green, the ivy green,
the prettiest picture ye've ever seen
is Christmas in Killarney
with all a' the folks at home!
It's nice, ya know, ta kiss yer beau,
an cuddlin under the mistletoe,
an Santa Clause ya know, of course,
is one a tha boys from home!

Gil took a deep breath and sighed. That's right, Christmas is coming up soon, isn't it? I hadn't even thought about it. His mind wandered back to the previous December. They had all gone out to the Goddess Mall and started caroling for some reason that Gil couldn't remember. He did remember that Keos had been less than thrilled with the idea, and poor Chrono was as embarrassed as could be. Apparently, we were pretty good, since people started tossing coins on the ground right in front of us.

A distant smile grew on his face as he remembered that night. They had all come here, to Odin's, to spend their singing profits. The guys, with artificially inflated courage, made their 'heartfelt feelings' known to the Goddesses, who seemed to take great pleasure in flatly rejecting the confessions. The next thing he knew, Gil was dancing atop one of the tables with Xander, singing the same song he was hearing now. He could see the girls happily clapping along, and Barbarus trying not to fall out of his chair from laughter as Keos loudly proclaimed that the two Gods weren't showing enough leg.

His weak grin quickly faded as he realized something else he hadn't thought of. That was the last Christmas they would all spend together. Xander and Barbarous were already gone, and Keos was still on Earth. There was no guarantee that Gil would come out of this war alive either, since he was sure to be re-deployed as soon as his charges fully recovered from their ordeals.

The sound of a glass being set on the waxed surface of the bar brought him out of his ruminations. His brown eyes peered up at the ancient looking barkeep, who was pouring him a drink from a dusty old bottle with no label. "I dinna like it when someone comes in an does ne order anythin'."

Gil looked at the drink he didn't ask for. "What is this stuff, old man?"

The wrinkled face scrunched up as he looked at the bottle, then shrugged. "No idea, lad."

He had to let out a small, huff of a laugh at that. Taking the small glass in hand, he upended it in one gulp. The glass came back to the counter rather hard as the Templar grimaced and coughed a few times. "It's gasoline," he wheezed out, "definitely gasoline."

A smile could be seen beneath the barkeeps beard as he chuckled a bit. "Well, ye looked like ye might need sumthin with a bit ah kick to it."

As the elder God poured another glass, Gil cleared his throat with a rough sound. "Could you just leave the bottle?" The man nodded quietly, and went back to the end of the bar, where his already clean mugs required further wiping with his rag.

Taking his next drink slower, Gilgamesh's mind wandered again, back to when he was still just a child. Xander had just learned how to use basic fire programs and, as his 'elder brother', felt the need to teach Gil how to use them too. For his part the young Gilgamesh was thrilled and excited to have his best friend and upper classmen teach him something that he wasn't supposed to know yet. In fact he was so thrilled and so excited that he put far too much power into the program and ended up blowing the head off a nearby statue.

Xander started calling him 'Killer' after that, a nickname that still surfaced from time to time after they became Templars. He claimed that Gil's deadly aim showed that he had a destiny to become a great warrior, or something like that. Their instructors didn't think as highly of the display as he did, however, and they both had their powers suspended for a month.

Taking another slow sip of his dark drink, he heard light footsteps on the wooden floor behind him. "Would you mind if I sit with you?"

He recognized the polite voice even before he turned to motion Belldandy to take a seat. She was wearing her blue Goddess robes, her hair pulled up into a ponytail with a gold clasp. She sat on the stool to his right, looking around at the old bar as if it was the first time she had ever been in one. "What'll you have?" he asked her.

She smiled sweetly as she turned to him. "I've never been in here before. Do they serve tea?"

The God couldn't help but chuckle as he shook his head. "I don't think they have anything like that here, Lady Belldandy."

She nodded in understanding. "Well then, I suppose I'll just have whatever you're having."

"Uh, you may not like it. It's got a pretty powerful flavor to it." That was putting it mildly. "Hey, old man!" He called down the counter as he raised his arm a little. "Something light for the lady here. Put it on my tab."

"Oh, thank you, Lord Gilgamesh," she chirped, "but you don't have to do that for me."

He put his hand up and grinned a little. "It's alright, I want to." Pouring himself another glass, he continued, "You don't need to call me 'lord', either. Just Gilgamesh is fine with me."

"I'll call you Gilgamesh," she countered, "if you'll just call me Belldandy."

"Fair enough," he said, raising his glass a little to her.

"By the way, Gilgamesh," she began after a moment, "I wanted to congratulate you on your promotion! I was told that you just made First Order earlier today."

"I appreciate it." His voice was a bit dour as he responded. "The higher ups didn't have much choice though. So many First Order Templars were lost on Earth that they had to promote. There wasn't even a sparring match against my seniors to see if I had what it took, they just gave it to me. Doesn't feel like I earned it at all. It's more like they just replaced Xander with me."

Her smile didn't fade at his words at all. "You've worked hard all your life. I'm certain that you deserve that promotion as much as anyone." He was certain that had anyone else spoken those words to him, he would have felt patronized. For some reason, though, he didn't get that feeling from her at all. "I understand that it's difficult to move on when you've lost someone you care about, but you must not let that hold your life back."

The men across the room started to sing again, drawing their attention to the group of elder Templars. The pair at the bar turned around in their seats to watch them as they raised their mugs into the air, arms around each other's shoulders, and filled the room with their voices.

Up the narrow street he stepped, so smiling, proud and young.
About the hemp-rope on his neck, the golden ringlets clung.
There's ne'er a tear in his blue eyes, fearless and brave are they,
As young Roddy McCorley goes to die on the bridge of Toome today.

"I'm not sure I understand." Gil looked at the Goddess beside him, who looked as if she were puzzling out a complicated equation. "They all sound so happy, but the song is about a young man dying."

"It's an old Irish song. From what I understand, they don't see death as a time to be sad, but a time to celebrate the life of those no longer with us. I guess that's why those songs are so popular with the Templars." He let out a quiet sigh. "I used to sing them with my friends, but it's kind of hard to celebrate a friend's memory when you know that you can never create new memories with them."

They were both silent for a few moments, listening to the song of the boisterous old men. "There is nothing wrong with missing someone who was close to you." He looked over to see a warm smile emanating from the Goddess. "However, continuing to live your life, with the memories you hold in your heart, will ensure that he will never truly be gone. As long as you remember him, he will always be with you."

For the first time in days, he felt his heart warm a little, and he rewarded her efforts to cheer him up with a genuine smile. "Thanks, Belldandy."

"Skuld asked about you today," she said out of the blue, causing the young warrior to blush as he turned back to the bar. "She said that she hadn't seen you in several days. Since Ex came back to Yggdrasil today, she's been a little bored. She denied it of course, but I suspect that she wanted to spend some time with you."

This wasn't something he wanted to talk about. He knew he should just come right out and say what was on his mind, but he just couldn't for some reason. That was why he had made himself scarce the last few days. Unfortunately, he hadn't really thought of any way to deflect the conversation. "Uh, well, you know, I've been kind of busy. The promotion and all that."

"Oh my," she giggled. "With a response like that, someone might think you were avoiding her."

Dammit! "Uh, th-that's not, I mean…" They were both silent for a moment, and since the singing had paused while the next tune was decided, it was uncomfortably quiet.

Then Belldandy's hurt voice cut through the air. "You are trying to avoid her." He felt as if he had been stabbed through the heart. He couldn't take it. If he felt horrible now, what would it be like when Skuld heard?

"It's not what you think, Lady Belldandy," he instinctively addressed her politely in reaction to her pained voice. "I just, well, I just don't want her to be more hurt than she has to be." This drew a perplexed look from the Goddess.

"I don't understand what you're saying, but avoiding her is definitely going to hurt her feelings."

Gill lowered his voice as he decided to just come right out and say it. "Well, you're going back to Earth soon, and with my promotion, it's almost guaranteed that I'll be getting orders to head back as well. There's no doubt that we're going to go after the Cruel Angel again at some point, and if I die down there…" He hesitated a moment before continuing. "Well, I just don't want anyone else to have to go through what Ex did."

He stared down at his half empty glass. There, I said it. That wasn't so hard. But before he could think much further, he felt a gentle squeeze on his shoulder. Looking up, he could see a reassuring light in her eyes. "Skuld knows how dangerous things are for everyone right now, and I'm sure that she's ready for whatever happens. Besides, I'm going to talk with some friends of mine and see if we can't pull a few strings. I'm sure everything will work out." Her smile radiated so much confidence, that he couldn't help but feel the same way. He didn't even think to ask what she meant by pulling 'a few strings'.

The old man had made his way back down the bar and set a glass down in front of them. "Here ya go, lass. It's been a long time since I saw ya last."

She looked at him in confusion for a second as Gil brought his drink to his lips. Suddenly, recognition lit up her face as she reached across the bar to wrap the old man in a tight hug. "Uncle Odin!"

Gilgamesh spit his drink all the way to the back wall. Uncle Odin? Sucking in a quick breath, he managed to blurt out, "Odin? The Odin? The First Templar? You never said a thing to us!"

Bell was now half-floating over the bar, still tightly embracing the old God. "Nobody e'er asked," he stated simply, a smile on his lips.

"I've been calling you old man for years! If I'd known…"

"If ye'd known, lad," he gruffly interrupted, "ye'd ne'er ave been able ta be yerself in here. Besides, after hundreds ah years o hero worship, it's nice ta just be known as 'old man'."

"I'm sorry, Uncle Odin." Belldandy pulled away, looking as if she'd just ruined someone's birthday party. "I didn't realize that you were trying to keep your identity a secret."

A not so subtle guffaw echoed through the pub. "It's alrigh', lassie. This old man's jus happy ta see ya again!"

"Ohhh! Uncle Odin, maybe you can help!" She returned to a happy state faster than Gil could blink his eyes. "I wanted Skuld, you remember her, to be able to go back to Earth with me. She still can't use her powers very well, so it would be a little dangerous for her, with the war and all." She put her hand on the young Templar's shoulder again. "Do you think you could talk to someone and have Gilgamesh here assigned as Skuld's bodyguard?"

Gil's brown eyes went wide as saucers. "What? N-Now wait a second…"

"Sure I can!" Odin's bellows again seemed to shake the whole bar. "I'll jus' head on over in tha mornin' an talk ta the Almighty 'imself!"

The Almighty? Holding both hands up to try and calm their enthusiasm, Gil tried to get a word in edgewise. "You really don't have…"

"Thank you, Uncle Odin!" She hugged him again, then looked over to the beet-red God sitting next to her. "Isn't that wonderful, Gilgamesh? You'll get to spend lot's of time with Skuld, now!"

He wanted nothing more than to hide at that moment. "Yeah, uh, thank y-"

His quiet voice was drowned out by the tremendously loud belly laugh that the ancient warrior let loose. "I see now! Ye fancy tha little lassie, don'cha? Ye better take care o' Skuld, lad, or ye'll be answerin ta me!"

Gil tried to bury his head in his arms, as he considered crawling beneath the bar. He could feel his cheeks burning in embarrassment, but under it all he felt a little happy. A small smile, hidden from the others, crept onto his crimson face.

Skuld's bodyguard. That doesn't sound too bad.

Could this get any worse?

Israfel massaged his temples, trying to drive away the headache that was beginning to irritate him as much as their situation.

"I'm hungry, Is-Is!" Kidara's whining wasn't making his headache any better. "Can't I go with you this time to get food? It's so boring in this stupid cave!"

At least he could agree with her on that point. The few Demons that had stayed with his group, twenty-three of them to be exact, were using these caves as a hideout for their remoteness. It was easier to hide here, but on the other hand, food was a bit of a chore to obtain.

Normally, they wouldn't even need food, but since Hell had fallen, the system was being more and more erratic. Sometimes the connection would simply disappear, leaving them with only the power reserves in their bodies, which didn't last very long in combat. To make matters worse, the system in Hell could track the locations of Demons who used a significant amount of power. Whatever it was that attacked might find them the moment they tried to conjure up something.

Thus Israfel and a few of the other remaining Demons had been forced to make raids on burned out human towns, sifting through the wreckage for foodstuffs. It was degrading, to be sure, but he could think of no other way to stay alive and hidden.

"No, Kidara. How many times do I have to tell you, we don't go on these raids for fun." He did his best to keep his voice level. Having his little sister loose her temper and do something stupid could easily get them all killed.

A pair of skinny arms wrapped around his neck, her lips right next to his ear as she spoke at normal volume. "C'mon, Is-Is! I promise I won't bother you!"

"You're bothering me now," he snapped. He was a little surprised when she didn't respond, and even more surprised when her arms slid away from him. Looking over at her, he sighed. She was sitting on her feet, her hands folded in her lap. Her lip was trembling and her red eyes, which were looking at the stone floor of the cave, were beginning to tear up.

Leaning his head back against the rock wall, he closed his eyes. He put a hand on the young girl's head, sighing again. "How in the world are you a Demon? Crying at something like that." She sniffed a little, but seemed pleased at her brother's pseudo-sign of affection. "We're still in a precarious situation, Kidara. One mistake and we're all history."

She was quiet for another few seconds before responding quietly. "Like Uno-pon?"

Israfel had never explained to her that Unowe was dead, and wasn't coming back. She had seen it happen, but couldn't wrap her mind around it. The first three weeks, every time he came back from a food raid, she would ask if he had found Unowe, but the last few days, she had been conspicuously quiet about him. I guess she finally realized what happened. "Yeah. Like him."

She nodded a little under his hand. Standing up, he started toward the entrance of the cave. "You're going to stay here like I asked, right?" He called over his shoulder to her. "You're not going to use your powers, are you?"

"Bring me back some peanut butter cups!" He slumped a little at how abruptly she had returned to her hyper-cheerful self.

"Sure, sure," he nodded in resignation. "I'll do my best."

For Hild's sake, why do I have to put up with this crap?

A few minutes later, he was leaping from treetop to treetop, zooming to the town he had raided the day before yesterday. He hoped that there was still some food left in the rubble. Thankfully, he didn't have to worry about water. One of the caves they had occupied had a small spring within, supplying them with what they needed. It would have been hell to find enough liquid to keep them all going, let alone carrying it back.

It was only ten minutes later that Israfel found himself getting winded, his lungs and legs burning. The damn system had cut off again, and left him without a power source. Dropping down to the dirt in a small clearing, he immediately plopped onto an old, uprooted tree. Panting, he leaned forward, hands on his knees.

He had no idea how long it would take for his power supply to return, but past experience told him it could be anywhere between an hour to three days. In other words, he was going to have to walk the last three or four kilometers to the town. The Demon groaned out loud as he cursed his misfortune, something that had become a bit of a habit over the last month.

That was when he heard it. The snap of a dead limb that had fallen to the ground, probably during the Hell Storm. He froze, holding his breath within his tight chest, listening carefully. Opening his senses a bit, he heard the ever-present voices try to invade his mind. Pushing them aside, he felt a presence, something he had never felt before, and it was close.

Shit! It's behind me! Diving to the side, he heard an angry growl as the thick fallen tree shifted loudly, bits of wood raining on him. Scrambling to his feet, he spun around to see his assailant.

They locked eyes, at least, he thought those were its eyes. The thing was a huge quadruped, patches of dark fur spotting the pinkish, bloated flesh. It stood at least a meter and a half at the shoulders, and two short tentacles were growing out of its back. Its maw was a forest of yellowed fangs, dripping saliva as it let out a guttural growl.

Great, now the freaking animals are being corrupted, too? He didn't even have time to lament his horrible luck before it lunged at him again. Its snarl gave the Demon a split second of warning before it came. Not much, but it was enough.

Drawing together his power was a strain, but he forced it into his arms as he made a quick chant in the Infernal tongue. Releasing his energy, a fiery ball flew from his hands. The creature had closed too much of the distance, however, and when the fireball exploded in the creature's mouth, it was only an arm's reach away.

Not only did he feel the heat scorch his face and hands, the mass of the monster impacted him heavily. He was dazed, and as he shook the stars from his vision, he found himself on his back several meters away from the thrashing animal. He had to get away.

It was proving to be quite difficult however, as his limbs didn't want to respond. He managed to flip himself over, and was scrambling toward the tree line when the creature was suddenly quiet again. Glancing over his shoulder, he saw it slowly stalking him, far more cautious of him than before.

Quickly looking about him, he searched for something that he could use. Anything. All he could find, though, were some dry and brittle branches and a few stupid rocks. You gotta be kidding me! I survived the fall of Hell itself, and I get killed by a mutant bear in the middle of freaking nowhere!

The creature was looming closer, Israfel could smell it now. It was like a steak that had been left out for days mixed with sour milk. He didn't even know how fast he was breathing, how hard his heart was beating against his ribs. All he could see was the blackened jowls of the thing that was about to kill him. As it lunged at him again, all he could think of was, 'Not like this.'

A rush of air blew past as a dark blur zoomed over his prone body. The creature was thrown back by the small form, followed quickly by a blinding flash. His ears were buzzing, and his watery eyes were slowly clearing. He wasn't sure if it had been seconds or minutes, all he knew was he couldn't move.

The dark form moved strangely, almost staggering over toward him. The closer it got, the more certain he was that it was human shaped. They were wearing a tattered cloak, a hood pulled over its head. As they stumbled beside him, they dropped haphazardly to their knees, a small, darkly tanned hand falling on his chest to steady itself.

"Are you unhurt, Israfel?" The quiet, child-like voice of a girl was not what he had been expecting.

He was still trying to catch his breath, but still managed to gasp out a response. "I guess. Who are you? How do you know my name?" She seemed to be putting most of her weight on his chest, but he barely felt it. Whoever she was, she was very light.

"We are tired. Take us somewhere that we can rest. We will tell you the rest later." With that, she flopped forward onto him, her hood falling away from her dark face and white hair. The sleeping girl looked as if she was eight or nine years old, but the red star centered on her forehead told him something else entirely.

A/N

I know, I'm horribly late. I tried to get this up as soon as I finished it, so there are probably mistakes. Please let me know about anything major so I can fix it. I will endeavor to do better from now onward.

Important to note: In this story Celestials and Infernals are not immortal, age wise. Those who are youger, like Belldandy or Israfel, age at a rate a little slower than humans (maybe about 120-150 years). The oldest, like Odin, live much longer (like thousands of years). Think of it like the people who lived in Genesis. The first humans lived 800-1000 years, and it steadily decreased as the generations progressed. It's kind of like that.

I can't really make the generalization that all Irish people think of death in the way that I described in the chapter. I heard it somewhere, and I suppose it's just a stereotype of some sort, but it fit the story, so there you go. If someone is offended (though I don't see why anybody would be), I apologize.

The two songs, Christmas in Killarney and Roddy McCorley were pieces that I heard sung by a group called the Irish Rovers. I think they're old folk songs.

Thanks to you reviewers out there, and again I'm sorry for the wait for this chapter.

Katamari Damacy