Chapter 6
Gabby stared long and hard at the bolt that sat before her on the living room table of her home. Just as she had for the past hour.
And, just like it had for that hour, the bolt did nothing.
"Concentrate."
"I am." Gabby growled through clenched teeth.
"Then why are you speaking to me?"
"BECAUSE YOU KEEP ASKING ME QUESTIONS!" Gabby finally shouted.
Kristine's reply only irritated the teen more.
She smiled.
"You know your father was the same why when I worked with him."
Gabby sighed and closed her eyes again, trying to focus on the bolt in front of her. She was able to use her Angel powers relatively easy, she just needed more practice. Her Goddess powers, though, were a bit rough as her mother couldn't help her train with those. And since Auntie Kristine was already on Terra 2, it was easy to ask for her assistance.
Even if Gabby found her little comments to be a bit annoying.
"…he could barely move that bolt." Kristine reminisced, having continued speaking, "Then he ended up putting it in orbit. I wonder if it's still there?"
"Why don't you go check." Gabby snapped.
Kristine raised an eyebrow.
"Well! Aren't we a bit snippy."
"Maybe because someone wants me to concentrate and yet disrupts my concentration with useless talk!"
"Useless?" Kristine replied with a smirk, "I've hardly ever had one of my talks be considered useless. Now if you want to know about useless…"
Gabby couldn't take it anymore. Something had to give.
And it did.
With a bang and a crash.
Gabby and Kristine both looked up at the small hole in the ceiling the bolt had made as it had left the house. Bits of plaster drifted down around them. Both then slowly lowered their heads and stared at each other.
"As you can see," Kristine said softly, "My talking was hardly useless."
Gabby blinked at her Aunt.
"You provoked me." She accused.
"Yes." Kristine replied, "It's how your father was able to access his powers the first time. Now we will begin to work on your control."
Gabby turned her head upward and looked at the hole again.
"Auntie," Gabby said softly, as her gaze shifted back to her Aunt. "I have a question."
"What is it Gabby?"
"Well…." Gabby paused a moment, "Grandma Sayoko is a Goddess of the Present, Great-Grandma Belldandy is a Goddess of the Present too."
Kristine nodded. "I'm also a Goddess of the Present. While your Grandmother and I are technically considered 'New Age', we fall under the larger Norse Group, like your Great-Grandmother and Great-Aunts."
"What is my domain?" Gabby asked.
"I'll be honest with you." Kristine answered, "I don't know. It was easy for me and your Grandmother, we both had the same markings as Great-Grandma Belldandy. The Present seems to dominate our family. Even your Great-Uncle Keima is a God of the Present."
"So am I a Goddess of the Present?" Gabby asked.
"You have to remember, you have mortal blood as well as Messenger in you." Kristine pointed out, "In fact, your Messenger side is probably the most dominate."
"Tabris did refer to me as the Nineteenth Messenger" Gabby murmured.
"Each Messenger had a particular domain you could say." Kristine said, "The Angel of Might, of Free Will, of the Skies….." Kristine smirked. "Because of her attack, your Mother was considered by some the Angel of Light." Kristine then shrugged, "Which makes sense in a way as her name means the 'light of God'. But Yui told me what she really is."
"And?"
"She had to get your Mom really drunk." Kristine said with a smirk. "Wasn't hard because she'd been in Heaven earlier in the day and Mana's grandmother was present."
"What's that got to do with anything?"
"Mana's Grandmother is a powerful and annoying Demoness." Kristine explained, "And she always refers to Arael by what her Messenger form appears to be….a giant snowflake."
"I know what she looks like." Gabby growled, "I saw the pictures in the archives."
"Your Mother really hates it when anyone refers to her as 'Snowflake'." Kristine waved her hand in front of her face. "No no no. The only one she allows to call her that is your Father. Anyway, Mana's grandmother calls her 'Snowflake' and she hates it."
"What does that have to do with what her domain is?" Gabby asked.
"Getting to it! Soooo when your Mother was drunk, Yui found out why she doesn't correct anyone on her being the 'Angel of Light', because she feels that she'd only be called worse names then 'Snowflake'."
Gabby held out her hands. "Well?"
"Your Mother, Arael, the Fifteenth Messenger, is the Angel of…."
"Say it and Sayoko is short one daughter!" Arael shouted as she burst into the room.
"….birds." Kristine finished before vanishing in a flash.
"GAHHHH!" Arael screamed before vanishing in a flash as well.
Gabby stared blankly at the spot where her Aunt and Mother had once been, then slowly turned to look out the window as the sounds of thunder began to rumble across the sky.
Her father chose that moment to enter the room.
"I heard yelling. What's going on?" He then paused to look up at the hole in the ceiling. "Why is there a hole in the roof? Where's your Mother and Aunt?"
"Auntie Kristine told me what Mom was the Angel of." Gabby answered.
"Ah…." Sentaro nodded his head in understanding. "The Birds."
"What's wrong with birds?" Gabby asked.
"Nothing at all." Sentaro replied, "But your Mom thinks being the known as the Angel of Light is more…..threatening."
"And birds aren't?"
"Well….If you are being dive-bombed by a pigeon maybe."
"What about that Hitchcock movie?"
Sentaro eyed his daughter carefully.
"Now just when did you see that?"
Gabby shrugged. "Kat found it a few years ago."
"Oh?" Sentaro crossed his arms and stared at his daughter. "Just what other movies have you and Kat seen?"
Gabby let her eyes drift back to the window.
"What about Mom and Auntie? Aren't you going to…."
"I have determined it's safer for my health to stay out of deity arguments." Sentaro replied evenly, "Just like it'll be safer for your health if you stay out of my office looking for files on the Demon."
Gabby paled even as a loud boom echoed from outside.
The following Saturday found Gabby and her mother back in the Heavens. However, instead of heading towards the main city and the Yggdrasil building, Arael, still sporting a black eye from her fight with Kristine, led her daughter down another path towards a sparsely populated area.
"Where are we going?" Gabby finally asked.
"We're here for two reasons." Her Mother said, "One, to try and bring forth your Messenger form. And Two…." She paused and looked back at her daughter from the corner of her black eye. "to show you just how far you have to go before you are able to face a demon on your own." She then continued to walk.
Gabby blinked, then slowly resumed following her mother.
They walked through a hedgerow and into a large clearing.
In the middle of the clearing, two figures were fighting away while several others watched from the shade of a tree. Arael and Gabby approached the spectators. Gabby was quickly able to identify her Great-Grandmother Belldandy, but the other two she didn't recognize. One looked like the Princess of Hell, but she had both eyes and they were blue. The other had light blue hair and cold blue eyes. She also sported a set of Goddess markings. Gabby also spotted Cayla, but she was hiding further back in the shadow of the tree.
"Belldandy." Arael said in greeting, "Hello Lind, Sayoko."
Gabby perked up and looked around. How could she have missed her Grandmother?
Belldandy noticed this and quickly spoke.
"Gabrielle," she said, "Your Grandmother isn't here. This," she indicated the Princess look-alike. "Is Sayoko Ikari, Mana's daughter, whom we refer to as Yoko to reduce confusion."
Gabby blinked. "Shinji and Mana…."
"Ahh…no." Belldandy cut her off, "At least, not this Mana and Shinji. Sayoko here arrived here by….unusual means."
"Huh?"
"I was sent back from the future." Yoko said, "At least…a future that could have been." She added seeing Gabby's look. "Things…weren't going well."
"In that future," Belldandy said, "Asuka passed away and Mana eventually married Shinji and later had Yoko." She then smiled, "Yui and Dawn both love their half-sister so everything worked out."
"After Asuka threatened Shinji and Mana with death if they tried to give Sayoko a blood sister." Arael muttered.
"Did she?" Belldandy frowned a moment, then looked back at Gabby smiling. "This is Lind, First Class, Type Three, Unlimited. She is a Fighting Goddess."
Lind nodded at Gabby, then resumed watching the two combatants. Gabby turned and watched as well.
Both fighters were dressed in black and wore a helmet with a tinted face shield that covered the upper part of their faces. One wore what appeared to be black leather with a cape and had auburn hair coming out from under the helmet in a single ponytail. Black leather gloves tightly gripped a very vicious looking sword. Gabby figured this must be Mana.
The other appeared to be wearing a black sleeveless bodysuit. Over that was what looked almost like a sleeveless overcoat with tails. It also sported a split cape in the back that when the person moved, appeared to be a set of wings. From under the helmet, blond hair with streaks of purple came out flowing free and unrestrained through the air. Fingerless gauntlets covered both wrists and hands as they griped a six foot-long glaive with a large curved blade on the end. She also seemed to be limping and it grew more pronounced as time dragged on.
Each time the weapons met, sparks flew through the air. That told Gabby that these two were not holding back.
"Who is that?" Gabby asked her mother, indicated the blond-purple haired figure.
"You met her." Arael said, "That is Selene, Goddess First Class, Type Three, Unlimited. She was trained by Lind before your Grandmother was even born."
"Unfortunately the training didn't sink in." Lind said softly, "She was heavily injured on her first mission."
"Only because the Demon was stronger than anyone thought." Belldandy pointed out. "In hind sight she never would have been sent." She then looked back to the fight. "Does Mana know about that?"
"Mom knows." Yoko said softly, "She and Selene don't discuss him."
Gabby looked at her mother curiously.
"We'll talk about it later." Her mother said.
A shout of surprise brought everyone's attention back to the fight. A jet of flame was shooting from the ground and Selene was spinning about, trying to swat out the fire that was now burning one of her outfit's tails. Mana used the distraction to run forward and punch the Goddess in the face with the guard of her sword.
Selene dropped to the ground unconscious. Most of the observers cringed at the punch. Lind closed her eyes and sighed, while Cayla appeared to start to bolt from the shadows, but held back.
"Well," Yoko said, breaking the silence, "She lasted longer this time."
"This time?" Gabby asked, looking at Yoko. "Just how many times have they fought?"
"At least a few dozen times over the years." Lind said with a sigh. "She has yet to actually get a hit on Mana."
Mana pulled off her helmet as she walked up to them. She wiped the sweat away from her brow.
"How'd she do?" she asked.
"Ten minutes this time." Yoko stated.
Mana sighed and sat down on the ground. She then looked at Lind with a smirk.
"More training?"
"I don't know why we continue this." Lind grumbled, "She's a First Class going up against a former Queen of Hell."
"You faced off against the Queen of Hell before." Belldandy pointed out.
"She wasn't at full strength." Lind replied, "Mana is."
Gabby walked away from the discussion over to where Selene lay. She rolled the Goddess onto her back and pulled off her helmet.
"Hey!" she called out, lightly slapping the Goddess' cheeks. "Wake up."
Selene's eyes snapped opened. She blinked several times, then slowly focused on Gabby.
"Gabby?" she asked.
"Hey Selene." Gabby greeted, then held up two fingers. "How many fingers I got?"
Selene blinked and stared at the hand a moment.
"Three?"
"Close enough." Gabby helped the Goddess stand up and led her over to the others. As she approached she noticed Cayla was no longer there.
"You ok Selene?" Mana asked, smirking.
"I will be when the three of you stop smirking at me like that." Selene grumbled. She moved to sit down in the shade, holding her head in her hands.
The others followed her while Arael and Gabby walked out alone into the clearing.
"Ok," Arael took a deep breath. "To transform it's much like finding your power. Only, instead of just tapping into it, you let it flow over you."
"Flow?" Gabby asked questioningly.
"Flow." Arael replied. She then closed her eyes.
Gabby took a step back as her mother began to glow. Slowly Arael rose into the air, As she did, her body shifted slowly into the form Gabby had only seen in the Angel Wars history books.
The Angelic form of the Fifteenth Angel.
Arael floated in the sky a moment, then floated back down, returning to her human form as she did so.
Gabby stared in awe at her mother.
Arael remained silent a moment, then spoke so softly, Gabby almost missed hearing her.
"In that form, I am at my most powerful," Arael said softly, "and deadliest. Which is why I prefer not to use it unless necessary."
"Now then." Arael stated a bit louder. "I believe it is your turn."
She then turned and walked out of the clearing.
Gabby took in a deep breath and sighed.
"Flow." She repeated to herself. She then closed her eyes and concentrated.
Arael watched silently from the shade trees. Belldandy moved up alongside of her.
"Are you worried?" The Goddess asked softly.
"No." Arael answered, "I believe in her."
Then someone gasped.
Areal and Belldandy looked out to see Gabby, glowing white and floating into the air.
And then her form began to shift….
Sentaro looked up as Gabby raced into the house.
"Hi Dad!" she called out before racing up the stairs.
"Umm…hi?" he looked back to the doorway to see his wife slowly walking in.
He knew immediately something was wrong.
"What happened to you?" he asked as he began to rise to his feet.
Arael pushed him back down into the chair and then sat in his lap. Sentaro wrapped his arms around her and she let out a soft sigh.
"I feel much better now." She murmured, resting her head on his shoulder.
"What happened?" he asked.
"Slight injury while sparing with Mana."
Sentaro raised an eyebrow.
"If you're like this, what's she like?"
Arael chuckled. "Not that bad.
Sentaro nodded. "So?"
"So?"
"Are you going to tell me?"
"Tell you what?"
"Does my daughter have a beautiful form like her mother?"
Arael blushed slightly.
"You'll be happy to know her form is the same as mine."
Sentaro smiled and held Arael a bit tighter.
"So both my girls are snowflakes." Sentaro said.
"Which means she's going to be hearing it from the Soultaker." Arael said with a murmur.
"And Gabby will give it right back at her." Sentaro said firmly.
"She will?"
"She is our daughter."
"Good point."
