"You know what? I was expecting for a lot of shit to happen today. I thought I might finally get some answers, or at least learn why neither of you even bothered to find me before now… instead, I'm suddenly a mother, and I have more questions now than I did before you showed up," Emi groaned, holding her forehead.
"We have been busy," Lailah said, "Heaven will soon be vulnerable. We will need all the help we can get."
"How the hell is having a child supposed to make fighting a war easier," Maou asked as Emi thrust Alas-Ramus into his arms.
"Daddy, stahp yewwing!"
"Uh-right, sorry… sweetie?"
Alas Ramus giggled and buried her face in Maou's chest. The Devil had never held a child before, so he kept her exceptionally close against him so that she couldn't wriggle out of his grip.
"Maou has a good point," Rika said, "having a child is a serious expense and commitment. The cost of raising a child today ranges anywhere from twenty to sixty million yen!"
"Wow! How did you know that off the top of your head, Rika," Chiho asked.
"I-I've been researching… I mean, I just know, ok?"
Rika's face had gone red, but no one seemed to notice, save Ashiya. Everyone else was preoccupied with Alas-Ramus, who was snoozing peacefully in Maou's tired arms as Emi had a whispered argument with her mother.
"You can't just drop this on us," Emi hissed, "I just quit my job! I have no way to support a child!"
"You and your friends are the only people who can help us, everyone else in my organization is tied up at the moment! We don't have long before things come to a head-"
"I don't care!"
"All worlds are at stake, Emilia! I know that your father raised you to be loving, compassionate young woman," Lailah whispered, sounding depserate.
"You want to talk about my upbringing? Fine, where the fuck were you? And don't give me that 'on the run from Heaven' crap, you came back for my dad as soon as I was out of the picture!"
"Emi," Nord said quietly, "you were safer with the Church. I knew they could help prepare you for what was to come, so I sent you with them. I only ever had your best interests at heart."
"Then why didn't you let me stay with you," Emi sobbed quietly, her tears running down her face.
"Because I knew that if I hid you away, someone or something would come for you. I sent you with the Holy Father so that you might have a chance- to survive. I thought… I thought that by sending you away, I was saving you from the armies that would inevitably come for you," Nord said, taking off his glasses as he tried to hide his tears from his daughter. "I thought of you every night, and I prayed that you would survive and thrive. When I heard you'd died fighting the Devil… I felt my heart break in two."
Emi's brain froze. She'd never even considered that her father had heard she was dead. Somehow, it just hadn't occurred to her. She'd been so busy with work and tailing the Devil that she'd somehow forgotten to think of her father and his predicament.
"If you don't want to help your mother, I can understand. But Emi… if you don't help us, I'm afraid that Heaven will only get more desperate. Your mother is putting herself at risk for the betterment of all worlds-"
"Nord, now is not the time," Lailah said as her face turned pink.
"I have a hard time picturing her as selfless," Emi grumbled, "she never gave up her freedom to help raise her daughter."
"You mother risks far worse than losing her freedom," Nord said quietly, staring his daughter right in the eye, "she has staked her life on this endeavor. And so have I."
"Uh, guys?"
Emi, Nord, and Lailah all turned to face Maou, who looked untroubled by the fact that he'd interrupted a teary family moment.
"Where's Alas-Ramus," Maou asked.
"YOU LOST THE BABY?" Emi and Lailah shrieked in unison, looking as though they both might just burst a blood vessel.
After verifying that Alas Ramus was nowhere to be found inside the Villa Rosa, everyone decided to split into teams and look for her. Even Urushihara was roused from his closet, and was forced to bundle up so that he might help out.
"But its cooooold," he whined.
"Shut up," Ashiya, Maou, and Emi all yelled.
Once outside, Emi, Nord, Lailah, Maou, Suzuno, Urushihara, Rika, Ashiya, and Chiho all gathered at the foot of the stairs to discuss strategies.
"She can't have gone very far," Nord said, "so we should split up and search within a one kilometer radius. One of us is sure to find her."
"I can't believe you lost her," Emi scoffed at Maou, "some father you'll be."
Her words made Maou's hairs stand on end, as though he'd suddenly been zapped with a taser. She couldn't have possibly meant it the way she said it, but the thought alone made Maou's insides squirm.
'Babies… with Emi,' he thought, smirking at the absurd appeal of the idea.
In the end, Emi and Maou would be searching as a team, with Nord going along with them. Lailah would tag along with Urushihara and Suzuno, and Chiho would escort Rika and Ashiya. With the teams picked, everyone zipped up their coats and set off in different directions, fanning out so as to prevent any chance of missing Alas-Ramus.
"So, what happened?" Emi asked.
"What do you mean," Maou replied, feeling a little put off by Emi's father, who was only a few steps behind them.
"You just put Alas-Ramus down and she wandered off? What happened?"
"I… I don't know," Maou said, "I was listening to you guys argue, and then… I looked down and I wasn't holding her anymore."
Maou thought he heard a noise behind him, but it only turned out to be Nord sniffling.
"Perhaps we'd best go back," Nord suggested, "someone might have found her."
"And forgotten to call us?" Emi asked skeptically.
"Hmm."
They continued to walk, keeping their eyes peeled for any traces of Alas-Ramus. Maou couldn't help but feel like an idiot. Alas-Ramus was probably wandering around without a coat, not even sure where she had come from. The thought of her, shivering behind some dumpster as she slowly froze to death put a fire in Maou's chest and a tear in his eye.
"Alas-Ramus," he called, "where are you!?"
No response was forthcoming. Sure, Maou had never held a child, but he couldn't even remember setting her down. Last he remembered, she was resting quietly against his chest, and drooling onto his shirt.
'Alas-Ramus,' Maou thought, his vision blurring slightly. He cleared his throat to push the painful guilt that had risen therein back down into his esophagus.
'Daddy, why awe you sad?'
"Alas-Ramus," Maou asked, "where are you?"
'Stahp yewwing,' she whined.
"Maou, are you alright," Emi asked, laying a hand on the Devil's shoulder.
"It's as I thought," Nord smiled, "Alas-Ramus fell asleep and merged with Satan."
"Call me Maou," the Devil insisted. His brow furrowed as he concentrated. He held out his arms, focusing as he stared into them. He could practically see Alas Ramus, cradled in his arms, and then, with a violet glow, she appeared, just as he had visualized.
Alas-Ramus rubbed her eyes and looked at Maou tiredly.
"It's cowd heah," she noted tiredly.
Maou unzipped his coat and hugged Alas-Ramus close to him before zipping it back up. Her little legs and arms were freezing, but Maou walked slowly. So as to avoid tripping, and partially so that he could focus on keeping Alas-Ramus from vanishing again. Emi sent out a text to the other groups, who all expressed relief that the young girl had been found.
"It seems she has been bound to you, Satan," Nord said, "this is… rather unprecedented. We meant for the child to be bound to Emilia. We thought Alas-Ramus' power to be poisonous to demons, like celestial force."
"Well, I don't really much any different, so I'm guessing it won't be an issue," Maou said.
Something about Emi's father made Maou feel rather strange. It was awkward to think that he was the father of the woman Maou secretly cared for. Did he fear the Devil? Was he angry that his daughter had allied with Satan? If so, he did an excellent job of hiding it.
Emi, Nord, Maou, and Alas-Ramus were the last ones back to the Villa Rosa, even though they'd traveled less distance than all the other groups. When Maou walked into the room and unzipped his coat, Lailah looked quite overjoyed.
"Well, Satan, it appears you're full of surprises. For a moment, I thought Alas-Ramus had been stolen by Gabriel."
"About that," Emi said, "can we expect him to come for Alas-Ramus?"
"We don't know," Nord admitted, setting his coat off to the side and running his hands through his hair, "he may decide to leave his post, or he may choose to simply cut his losses and protect the Tree more fiercely than ever before. It's hard to be certain."
"I can't see Gabriel abandoning his post so lightly… though to think that Heaven won't send someone is the height of folly," Lailah reasoned, "they may very well have already sensed Alas-Ramus. Now that she has awoken and bonded with the Devil, they may have dispatched someone to apprehend her, and take her and the Holy Sword back to Heaven."
"Let them try," Emi muttered. Her voice shook with anger, and her hands were balled into fists. Her knuckles shone white through her skin as her entire body shuddered with suppressed rage. "Let them come and try to take Better Half. Let them try to take Alas-Ramus. I could use a punching bag right about now."
"You're anger at me is making you irrational," Lailah said soothingly, trying to place a hand on her daughter's shoulder. Emi smacked the hand away and scoffed.
"You? You think this is just about you? You're not only wrong, you must be some kind of idiot! I'm angry because I've watched good people get killed by Heaven's decree. I've seen how they cast away those who don't fit into their society. I've watched firsthand as angels fought and died for what they believed in! I've seen the despair and hopelessness that Heaven has caused. This has nothing to do with you! This is for Raphael. This is for Beliel. Even though they were sadistic assholes, this is for Sariel and Bernael, too. So yeah, let them send an angel. Let them send ten, I'll slice them into a million pieces and send their heads back to Ignora!"
"Emilia, death and violence solve nothing," Nord said quietly.
Emi drove her fist into the table, shaking Suzuno's party platter and making everyone situated around it jump.
"I know that better than anyone! Who do you think had been dealing with death and violence ever since she was a little girl? Who do you think has been trained from day one to kill? I wasn't born like this! I never wanted to fight! I was forced too, first to protect my country! Then to defend the world and its people! Now, I'm fighting for my friends and allies, and a daughter that can hardly defend herself, much less be used as a weapon against Heaven!"
"Mama?"
Alas-Ramus stirred in Maou's arms and clambered onto the table. She peered quite intensely at Emi, who tried to hide her teary eyes from the Sephirah.
"Mama? Why you cwying? Does it huwt?"
Emi pulled Alas-Ramus into her lap and hugged the girl tightly, doing her best to steady her heartbeat and her shaky arms.
"Mama-Mama's alright, Alas-Ramus. I just don't want to lose anyone else."
Emi's words seemed to strike Maou, Ashiya, Urushihara, Suzuno, Rika, and Chiho at their cores. Even though Rika and Chiho were rarely a part of their battles, they were the ones left behind to wait and wonder whether their friends would ever come back. For them it was far harder than being involved in actual combat.
"I never meant for you to take up this burden," Nord said, holding his daughter, and his newly appointed granddaughter, "I never wanted this for you. If I could change how things have been for you, I'd do it in a heartbeat, but I can't. For what it's worth, I'm proud of you, Emilia. You've been so strong for everyone… I only wish I was half as strong as you."
Emi was not a stranger to tears, but somehow the ones she was shedding now felt different. They were more personal. More vulnerable. She almost wished the others would avert their eyes, but when she turned to look at them defiantly, she found they all had bright, tear-filled eyes. The only exception was Urushihara, who was staring quite intently at the floor and blinking hard in a vain attempt to keep up his illusion of flippancy.
Lailah looked at her husband, daughter, and granddaughter with a small, sad smile, wishing more than ever that she had been able to be a part of that moment. At present, Emi would not open up to Lailah, but perhaps if all went well there would be a chance to heal… to forgive and forget the wounds of the past, and maybe, just maybe, there could be a fresh start for the archangel and her daughter.
Lailah's eyes snapped wide open. All at once, everyone seemed to be alert. Even Chiho and Rika cocked their heads, having become somewhat attuned to otherworldly happenings by their constant proximity with magic.
"Something wicked this way comes," Lailah said.
"A gate had been opened," Ashiya muttered.
"And that celestial force-" Maou began.
"It's an angel," Emi muttered darkly. "A powerful one, too."
Lailah could sense it. Each angel had their own distinct power, as each of them had different houses of authority. Lailah could sense something distasteful, as though she were being watched.
"It's her," Lailah frowned, "the Watchgaurd of Heaven. The Divine Vanguard."
"Who?" Emi asked, her blood boiling in her veins as images of Raphael's final moments flashed through her head.
"Tsophiel," Nord muttered, "the Surveyor."
Roughly ten kilometers away, a gate tore open on the grounds of the Imperial Palace in Chiyoda. The void was spinning endlessly, and blue tendrils of energy coiled away into nothingness. An armored boot stepped through the gate, and soon, a woman emerged from within it.
She was built long and lean, like a runner. Her silver armor was slim fitting and light, so as to allow a wider range of swift movement. Her long lilac colored hair was done in a tight braid that fell to her tailbone, and her brow was donned with a braided leather cord. She took in a deep breath and winced. Even though she was surrounded by beautiful green trees, she still caught the horrid stench of human civilization. It was a plague upon her nostrils, and she gagged for a moment before settling her stomach.
"I'm not sure I can do this," she groaned to herself.
Tsophiel was the Spy of God. Her job was to remain unseen and unheard. The best way to do that was to avoid people, which she usually did anyway. Now she was surrounded by them, people were everywhere, and she had to find the remaining fragments of Yesod in an enormous city.
She narrowed her violet eyes and focused her magic inward. Bright white wings spread from her back. With a kick, Tsophiel left the earth behind, spiraling upward towards thick clouds of smog that made it difficult to breathe.
The first rule for her whenever she was on a reconnaissance mission was simple. She would find the highest landmark and sit atop it, memorizing the lay of the land, and every single advantage and disadvantage it provided. Then, she would seek her objective, and meet them on equal footing.
A gleaming spire of reflective glass met Tsophiel's eye, and she glided for the landmark as quickly as possible. The faster she completed her mission, the faster she could return to her other duties.
She made to land on the rooftop, only to find that the top of the building was opened to the elements via a large balcony lined with flowers. She alighted on the balcony, staring out over the Tokyo horizon as she memorized every street, building, and alleyway. Her eyes glowed with an ethereal light as she took in the view.
"Excuse me, miss, can I get you a drink?"
A large man in a waiter's outfit came up behind Tsophiel, but she turned and gave him a hard look. As soon as he met her eye, his face went slack and his eyes glazed over for a moment before he turned and walked away.
"Humans," Tsophiel scoffed, returning to her vigil.
She felt something, a burst of celestial force about ten kilometers west, and Tsophiel's violet eyes narrowed.
"There you are, Hero."
"Emi, wait!"
"No! I'm sick of waiting for people to come and kill my friends! I'm done letting Heaven come to us! I'm gonna go send this Tsophiel bitch packing!"
Emi made for the door, angrily sweeping her hair from her face as she laced up her winter boots. Lailah grabbed Emi's arm, but Emi pulled away.
"Emi, please, you mustn't do this! We have the advantage so long as we all stay together! We need to form a battle plan. There is only one angel, but she is still a force to be reckoned with!"
"What, so now I can't take on one of Heaven's scouts? Please, I took on the Demon King and his armies. I know what I'm doing."
"Emilia, your mother is right," Nord said, "Tsophiel is not just Heaven's scout. She is an Archangel of-"
"I DON'T GIVE A DAMN," Emi yelled at her father, "SHE'S DEAD! AS IS ANYONE ELSE WHO THINKS THEY CAN TAKE MY FRIENDS AWAY FROM ME!"
"Emi."
The sound of Maou's voice gave the Hero pause. She turned to look at him, and she found Alas-Ramus sitting in his lap, crying quietly as she reached out for Emi.
"Mama," the girl cried, "don't yeww. Don't be mad."
Emi shook her head, berating herself for her emotions. She smiled and went over to where Maou and Alas-Ramus sat.
"I'm sorry. I won't yell anymore. Stay here… stay with Papa, ok? Be a good girl?"
"But I wanna hewp," Alas-Ramus sniffled.
"Not yet… stay here and be good for papa. Mama will be back soon," Emi smiled, but with her festering emotions, she felt like her smile might fracture at any moment.
Alas-Ramus reached out and wiped a tear from Emi's face.
"Pwease don't cwy," she mumbled.
Emi embraced Alas-Ramus before putting on her coat and pulling two bottles of Holy Vitamin Beta from her purse, downing one after the other and tossing them into the recyclables.
"I'll be back before you know it," Emi muttered, smiling at Alas-Ramus.
She shot a glare at her mother and father before stepping out onto Maou's balcony. Her anger, which had been moments away from overtaking her, shot to the surface. With it came all of Emi's celestial force, and in a blaze of light, Emi took to the skies, her hair white and her eyes gleaming crimson as she shot across Tokyo with the force of a meteor.
"So what, none of you guys are gonna go help," Maou asked, looking around the room.
"I'd go myself," Lailah said, "but she obviously would not welcome my presence on the field of battle."
"I'll do it," Nord said, putting on his sports jacket and furrowing his brow."Acies-Ara, it's time to wake up."
At Nord's side, the shimmering outline of a person appeared, and in a flash of light, they manifested. She only looked to be about fourteen, and she had short white hair with long forelocks, one of which was violet, just like Alas-Ramus' hair. The girl yawned, stretching as she rubbed her eyes.
"That was nice," she said, "I needed a good nap."
She peered around the room and tutted.
"Who are these bozos? They all look like they've been sitting here crying."
"Acies-Ara, we've worked on this," Nord sighed, "you have to be more polite."
"Yeah, yeah, you're right dad," she said.
The girl's eyes lit up when she saw Ala-Ramus and she quickly dove into Maou's lap as well.
"Big sister! It's so good to see you!"
"Acies!"
Alas-Ramus hugged her sister, all the while Maou looked murderous. He didn't know who this girl was, though by using his superior demon intellect, he correctly deduced her identity as a piece of Yesod.
"So annoying," he muttered as Acies-Ara blabbed to Alas-Ramus.
"Acies-Ara, get off the Demon King's lap," Nord chided, "we have work to do!"
"Wha-oh! Right! Sure thing, papa," the girl chirped.
She vanished in a flash of light that flew into Nord's outstretched hand. After a moment, a sword was revealed, looking strangely similar to Emi's.
"Ready for battle," Acies said happily, her voice just as annoying coming from a sword as it had been coming from the girl herself.
"Nord, wait," Lailah said, "you can't just... I mean, I know she's our daughter, but I can't lose you, too-"
"I'll bring her back," Nord said, smiling confidently as he cupped his wife's chin. Lailah looked torn for a moment before she nodded and turned away.
"Godspeed, my dear," Lailah muttered, "bring Emi home safely."
"That's the idea."
With that, Nord began to levitate. He looked a little shaky, as though it wasn't something he often did.
"I suppose I need a bit more practice," he laughed, sweat beading his brow as he soared through the balcony window and off into the bright afternoon.
Maou looked at Alas-Ramus and found her staring after them longingly. An idea came to the Devil and his face lit up.
"Alas-Ramus, can you do that, too?" he asked quickly.
The girl nodded happily.
"Alright," Maou said, "I think I have an idea."
"No!" Lailah snatched Alas-Ramus away from Maou, causing the little girl to instantly start bawling and crying for her papa.
"WAAAAAAHAHAHAAAAA!"
"No! I forbid you from using Alas-Ramus' power! She was only just born," Lailah insisted, speaking over Alas-Ramus' wailing.
Maou pinched the bridge of his nose as he felt the day's events start to take their toll on his psyche. Laila continued to tell him that, under no circumstances, would he be allowed to carry Alas-Ramus into battle.
"Ok, fine I get it," Maou snapped, causing Lailah to blanch, "you look after Alas-Ramus, then. I'm going after Emi."
"B-But King Satan, I sense your powers are not as strong as they once were… perhaps you should stay here," Lailah suggested nervously.
"NO! I'm not like you! I can't just send people out to do my bidding and trust that things will work out! I can't hide in the shadows, I have to go help her!"
"But you'll die," Lailah said, "you'll die for nothing! You'll leave your kingdom in shambles!"
"It's already in shambles, and death doesn't scare me!" Maou shouted.
"PAPA! Stahp yewwing," Alas-Ramus cried, holding out her arms and reaching for Maou.
"I'm sorry, Alas-Ramus. I'll stop yelling, but papa has to go help-I have to go help mama."
"Satan," Lailah asked.
Maou turned to Lailah, but disgust was etched into the lines of his face. Maou's words seemed to echo within Lailah's head for a moment before he turned towards the window.
'I'm not like you!'
"Count us in, too, sire," Ashiya said, "Urushihara and I have your back."
"You know, I don't mind fighting when I actually have a shot at winning," Urushihara grinned, pulling Bernael's sword from out of his closet.
The three demons clambered through the window before taking off after Emi, Nord, and Acies-Ara.
This left Chiho, Rika, Suzuno, and Lailah all sitting in the apartment awkwardly, but Lailah couldn't contain her frustrations any more. She sank to her knees, tears spilling from her eyes as she recalled the looks of disdain and dislike the Devil and the Hero had given her.
"Whewe my papa go?" Alas-Ramus asked quietly, her big violet eyes filling with unshed tears.
"He-he went to help your mama," Lailah smiled, "they'll be back soon… I-I promise."
Chiho watched as Lailah shuddered, still kneeling on the floor as she held onto Alas-Ramus like the girl was her only hope. Suzuno stood and swept over to the Archangel, laying a hand upon her shoulder.
"Are you alright, Lady Lailah," she muttered.
"My child hates me," Lailah's choked, "her friends despise me… I thought that by distancing myself I would not be such a burden… it turns out I've only made things more difficult for you all. I'm sorry."
Suzuno looked unsure for a moment before she steeled her gaze and sank to her knees before the Archangel, forcing Lailah to stare into her eyes.
"Apologies do nothing," Suzuno told her, "the best thing you can do… is fight for the people you care about. Even if your bones are broken and you've no other weapons save tooth and nail. That is all we have ever done here on Earth. If you want your daughter to trust you, show her that your interests align with hers… and fight until your very last to defend those interests."
Lailah's tears stopped. She'd been dreading the day she'd have to enter the fray herself. She was never one for the front lines, and even though she was confident in her abilities, she would be openly opposing Heaven. The consequences would be dire, at best.
Lailah took a shaky breath before grinning weakly, "I guess it was only a matter of time."
Tsophiel's narrowed eyes spotted something akin to a shooting star. It moved with such speed and light that she could barely make out the long white hair, furious red eyes and long, silver blade before an armored boot sank into her gut, sending her flying clear off the skyscraper balcony.
"You picked a really bad time to go sightseeing," Emi hollered, flying after Tsophiel, her entire being shrouded in holy light.
The Archangel Tsophiel turned in midair, her wings snapping open to right her fall. Emi zipped in faster than a comet, Better Half poised to strike. Tsophiel drew her own blade, which was thin and light, and parried the blow. The force of Emi's attack pushed her past the angel, who quickly punted Emi in the back of her head, sending her crashing into the side of a skyscraper.
"So, you're Emilia the Hero?" Tsophiel mused. "How delightful it is to make your acquaintance! I am Tsophiel, Archangel of Espionage, Intrigue, Widsom, Strategy and Understanding. Perhaps your mother has told you of me?"
Emi sat up, having crashed through the glass and steel and come to a stop inside a fancy guest suite of the hotel. She clambered to her feet and brushed off her evil-slaying regalia, frowning up at Tsophiel.
"Geez, you know my mother, too?" Emi asked.
"Of course! We used to work together. Lailah is the Archangel of Night, Victory, Secrecy, Tactics and Foresight! Our job descriptions were practically one and the same," Tsophiel explained cheerfully.
"Somehow, that makes perfect sense," Emi muttered.
Her form once more ignited in a blaze of holy magic, and Emi flew at the Archangel like missile. She slashed with Better Half, sending out a wave of frost to encompass her enemy, but Tsophiel countered it with a blast of holy fire.
"DIE, DAMN YOU," Emi screamed.
She struck head on, driving at Tsophiel like a madwoman. She swung Better Half in a two handed grip, pushing the angel back through sheer ferocity. The sound of their blades clashing sounded more like someone dropping a drawer full of forks onto the floor, as their strikes were so fast, one could not trail off before several more rang out.
Emi's eyes were wide as she simply hacked away aimlessly at her opponent, roaring with fury. Tsophiel kept one arm behind her back, expertly parrying every single strike. Occasionally, she would simply dodge the attack all together, only serving to fuel Emi's anger, like throwing gasoline on a fire.
"My, my, someone has been having a bad day," Tsophiel laughed.
Emi slashed diagonally, but Tsophiel caught the blade of Better Half against the guard of her sword and twisted, pushing downward. Better Half twinkled brightly as it spun out of Emi's hand, falling towards the streets of Tokyo.
Emi was about to summon the sword again, but Tsophiel had already rested the blade of her rapier against her collarbone, just as Emi had done to her mother.
"You have Lailah's looks, but it seems you lack her skill with a blade," the archangel muttered, tucking a free strand of violet hair back behind her ear, "now then, be a good girl and hand over Better Half, would you?"
"I'd sooner die," Emi snarled.
The archangel's face split into a depraved grin.
"That can be arranged, my dear," she said, drawing back her arm and preparing to stab Emi right in her throat.
Tsophiel was about to thrust when her arm was clamped in a vice-like grip. Emi's eyes widened. The archangel followed the Hero's gaze, only to find a businessman with long red hair holding her wrist.
"Pardon the interruption," he said quietly, "but that's my daughter your threatening. You'll have to go through me-"
Nord was cut short as Tsophiel kicked him right upside his head, sending him flying several blocks as he crashed towards the ground.
"Wow," the archangel said, shielding her eyes from the sun as she watched Nord fall, "maybe there's something that runs in your family, but you guys really know how to take a hit!"
She turned back to face Emi, but found that the Hero was gone. The sound of something heavy shooting through the air was heard, and Tsophiel turned to see Emi flying off after her father.
"The hunt begins," Tsophiel whispered excitedly, her wings beating the air as she gave chase.
Emi found her father quickly regaining air control. It looked as though he had very nearly crashed onto a highway, but had managed to stop just before impact. He was smoothing back his hair as Emi flew up and looked him over.
"Dad," she muttered, "are you ok? How the hell are you-"
"Duck," Nord shouted, shoving Emi downward.
Tsophiel sliced at Nord, but he parried, summoning Acies-Ara in blade form. Sparked flew as the two blades collided. Tsophiel made to kick Nord again, but her caught her leg and spun her around, sending her careening off towards the highway.
"Dad-was that-are you holding-"
"I'll explain later," Nord said, laying a hand on his daughter's shoulder, "for now, let's focus on staying alive."
"Too little, too late," Tsophiel muttered in his ear.
She put Nord in a headlock, but even as he fought, Tsophiel felt a tapping on her shoulder.
"Wow, you're sort of a… what do you call it… bitch," Acies-Ara chuckled, smirking at the Archangel.
With ease unbefitting a small fourteen year old girl, Acies carefully pried opened Tsophiel's arms and released Nord, who fell down to the sidewalk in a huff, clutching at his throat.
"I'm getting too old for this," he groaned.
"You little brat," the archangel snarled, grabbing Acies-Ara by the front of her overalls.
The fragment of Yesod let the archangel drag her close. Tsophiel reared back her fist and drove it as hard as she could into Acies-Ara's stomach. The girl's smiled only widened as the sound of bones shattering broke the stillness.
"AAAAAAAAAARRRRRGHH," Tsophiel howled, withdrawing her hand to reveal a mangled mess of bloody fingers and splintered bone.
Before Emi could even wince in discomfort, Acies-Ara had appeared by Nord's side, carefully helping him to his feet.
"I told you, daddy," she scolded the man, "you need more practice!"
Emi's eye twitched… what did that girl just call her father? Nord noticed Emi's look of sheer disbelief and quickly shook his head.
"I'll explain later," he said.
"At this rate, I'm expecting a pretty lengthy explanation," Emi sighed, turning her attention to the Archangel, who was quickly healing her broken hand.
"You heretics," she muttered, "how dare you turn the Sephirah against us! You'll pay dearly for this."
"Oh? And how do you plan to do that when you're so clearly outmatched," snarked a cocky voice.
Hovering over the scene, looking like they were modelling for the latest catalogue of 'Demon Vogue' magazine, were Urushihara, Maou, and Ashiya. Ashiya was wearing his cape, as was Maou. Urushihara had Bernael's sword resting upon his shoulder.
"Lucifer…it seems fate has a strange sense of humor. I initially turned down this mission, now I find nearly all of Heaven's enemies and primary objectives all wrapped up in a neat little package for me," Tsophiel called up to the fallen angel.
"What makes you so sure you can best us," Maou asked, "from what I saw, you seem to have trouble beating one little girl."
"I am the Divine Vanguard," Tsophiel said, "my duties include scoping out other worlds and figuring out whether or not they are suitable for angelic domestication and inhabitation."
"So?"
"So… I deem that this planet, Earth, is unfit for angelic inhabitation, nor inhabitation of any kind! By my right as Heaven's Vanguard, I condemn this world to purification by Holy Fire!"
The archangel's eyes lit up with violet malice, and with a single wave of her hand, the streets of Tokyo were engulfed in bright golden flames. It paid no heed to what was and was not flammable, and it spread faster than any fire they had ever seen. People sprinted, running for their lives. They abandoned their vehicles, barely escaping before they turned to dust in the holy fire.
"I'll raze this entire world, I'll purify you all, and I'll pick the fragments of Yesod from the ashes and return to Heaven in glorious triumph!"
Maou cursed. Something told him that even if they managed to put out the fires, Tsophiel would not be easy to defeat.
"Looks like we're taking the back seat of this fight, guys," Maou said hurriedly, "fan out and try to find a way to neutralize those flames! Keep them from spreading!"
Ashiya, Urushihara, and Maou all flew off in different directions, towards the outer perimeters of the fire. Nord and Emi took to the skies as well, narrowly avoiding the golden flames that raced along the streets and sidewalks.
"Hey, where'd that girl go," Emi asked.
"I'm right here," a voice said, emanating from the glowing purple crystal in Nord's sword.
"So it is another Holy Sword," Emi realized.
"Yes and no," Nord said, "her name is Acies-Ara."
"Nice to meet you, Emi," the sword said, "Nord has told me so much about you!"
Emi wasn't quite sure how to feel about that, so she turned her attention back to Tsophiel, but the archangel was preoccupied in her own right.
She stared down at the streets, watching as the golden flames spread. They ate away at everything, reducing the city to ashes with no regard to anyone or anything.
"It seems this world has no guardians," she muttered, "else they surely would have shown themselves by now."
"That's where you're wrong!"
Out of the sky fell an angelic woman in a white dress. She smiled at Emi and Nord, but when she turned her attention back to Tsophiel, she almost looked nervous, or scared.
"Lailah," Tsophiel exclaimed, "I was just thinking of you!"
"And I you," Lailah replied.
"Have you come to help me? Shall we burn this world together, for old time's sake?"
"I'm afraid I can't let you do that," Lailah crossed her arms, "my daughter and her comrades are happy here."
"Come now, Lailah, you can't be serious," Tsophiel asked, gliding closer to the woman in white, "you would never actually turn your back on Heaven… would you?"
"I…"
Lailah looked into her daughter's eyes, and in that moment, she thought not of herself, but of the life she'd taken from her daughter to conserve her own status.
"I would," Lailah said firmly, "and you will not hurt anyone else I care about!"
"Such a shame," Tsophiel frowned, "we could have been sisters in arms again… but it seems you've made your choice."
"I made my choice long ago. I've only delayed the inevitable up until this point," Lailah laughed nervously.
"Well then, Lailah, you leave me no choice… I hereby call upon Raguel, the Proclaimer of the Fallen! Cast down this recreant angel from the bosom of our Lord," Tsophiel cried.
For a moment, nothing happened. Emi's face twisted into one of terror, and with a small, sad smile, Lailah's wings faded away, and she plummeted towards the ground, which was so consumed by holy fire that it looked as though she were being cast into the Inferno itself.
"Goodbye, Lailah," Tsophiel spat.
"NO!"
Emi took off in hot pursuit of her mother. The blinding flames and intense heat clawed at her like monsters, but still she dove headlong towards the golden flames. Using Better Half, Emi managed to quench some of the flames using her Heavenly Ice Dance technique. She saw Lailah, still falling, only moments from hitting the ground. Emi released the holy frost from her body in waves, barely beating back the flames as she dove into their heart. She managed to scoop Lailah out of thin air before kicking off of the ground and racing out of the raging inferno as it rose behind her.
"What are we supposed to do? Nothing seems to be stopping these flames," Lucifer called.
"Keep trying," Maou shouted, "we have to do something! The whole city will be destroyed at this rate!"
"My Lord, this fire seemed eerily reminiscent of Greek Fire, which was used during the Byzantine Empire," Alciel chimed in, shooting beams of frost magic from his hands.
"Well, how did they counter Greek Fire," Maou asked.
"They didn't, to my knowledge. It was so potent that it continued to burn, even as enemy ships sank beneath the waves."
"Yeah, that really doesn't help us right now," Maou shouted.
Urushihara slashed at the flames, sending out a blanket of darkness, but it simply covered the flames like a blanket for a moment before the golden fire ate through it.
"I got nothing," Lucifer sighed, "not unless Maou feels like summoning a flood for old time's sake."
"Sure, cause one mess isn't enough," Maou jibed.
From behind Maou came the sound of a sharp 'Tut,tut.'
He turned, only to find his landlady, Miki Shiba, floating in midair, her dress blowing in the breeze as she surveyed the destruction.
"L-landlady," Maou said.
"Sire! You paid the rent, didn't you?" Ashiya asked.
"Of course I did! That's probably not why she's here, Alciel!"
"Satan is correct. I am not here for his rent. I received it on time, as per the rental agreement. I am here because Lailah foresaw that Tsophiel would cause such a mess," she said distastefully, the gold flames reflected in her eyes.
Maou, Ashiya, and Urushihara all waited patiently for Miki to act, but she simply looked on as the fire spread further and further.
"So-um, Landlady-"
"Mikitty, dear," the landlady said.
"Uh-right… Mikitty," Maou said, feeling the bile rise in his throat, "are you going to do… something?"
"I already have, my darling Demon Lord," Mikitty chuckled.
Below, on the near deserted streets of Tokyo, most of which had been evacuated due to the fires, a rogue van screeched its tired as it veered back and forth across all lanes of stopped traffic.
"Who the hell just parks in the middle of the god damned street," Amane shouted, cranking the wheel hard to avoid an abandoned sedan. Up ahead, golden flames roared as they spread across the highway.
Amane could smell the city burning, and the acrid smoke made her throat sore, but she swallowed the foul taste it left in her mouth and put the pedal to the floor. It didn't make much difference, as the van had a rather limited top speed, but she felt better knowing that she was giving it her all.
She stopped a block and a half away from the billowing fires before parking her van by the sidewalk and stepping out onto the empty street. Shadows danced across the pavement as the fire advanced, almost as if it could sense life, and it were hell-bent on snuffing it out.
Amane rolled up the sleeves of her flannel shirt as she quickly threw her hair into a messy ponytail. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes as the flames fanned out and encircled her, like a pack of wolves closing in for a kill.
The crackling of flames died away. The feeling of moisture was heavy against her skin, and the cool, damp fog she controlled came to her beck and call.
The golden flames began to lose their heat. She opened her eyes and found the flames shrinking away before her. A wall of thick fog rolled in, sweeping through Tokyo as silently and peacefully as the fire was loud and ferocious.
With a grin, Amane stepped back and was immediately shrouded by the wall of dense, cloudy moisture.
"Looks like water beats fire," she muttered quietly to herself.
"Demon King, General Alciel," Mikitty said suddenly, "I'd like you both to pool your power and create a time-freezing barrier around the city until this is all sorted out."
Maou and Ashiya nodded and set to work, creating a shroud of greyness that froze people in place and seemed to still time all over the city.
"What about me," Urushihara wondered.
"Conserve your strength, Morningstar," Mikitty said, "you'll need it for the clean-up."
"I hate cleaning," the fallen angel scowled.
Emi held on tightly to Lailah as the archangel thrashed in her grip, but it was difficult. Lailah's dress was charred and burnt, and she smelled like burnt hair. Even as Emi watched, her mother's hair and irises became violet, like Urushihara's. Every single muscle in Lailah's body seemed to be tensely clenched, and though she managed to keep her jaw clamped shut, Emi knew that Lailah wanted to scream and cry out in pain.
"Do you feel that," Tsophiel jeered, "that tremendous sense of overwhelming loneliness? That distinct taste of abject failure? Remember that, Lailah! It will forever remind you of what you gave up for your bastard child."
"Excuse me. It's 'Tsophiel', right?"
"Huh?"
It was Nord, who was carefully stowing his spectacles in the breast pocket of his sports jacket. He swept the loose hair from his face before turning to glare at the archangel.
"I want you to remember this, because it's going happen every single time I hear you mocking my wife and daughter."
Nord shot forward and threw a terrifyingly powerful right hook, this time reinforcing his own body with Acies-Ara's power. He hit the archangel in the gut, tearing clear through her armored breastplate and sending her rocketing off across town.
"Emi," Nord muttered, flying over to his daughter, "let me help you."
Together, they held Lailah over the sea of flames. She had stopped thrashing, but she looked much as Raphael had done after his fall from Grace: disbelieving, unsure, and hopelessly, irrevocably alone.
"Nord," she muttered, staring off into the sky, "Emilia…"
"Yes, dear," Nord asked quietly, taking his wife's hand, "what is it?"
"Do you hear that? Those… those screams?" Lailah coughed and shifted her head, as though listening. The sound of sirens was heard in the distance, but screams? Emi and Nord heard nothing of the sort.
"Darling, are you alright," Nord asked.
"I hear… I feel… So much pain and hatred… how do you shut it out," she asked, covering her ears as the sounds of negative human emotion filled her head.
All at once, Emi had a terrible realization that very nearly made her drop her mother.
"Of course! We used to work together! Lailah is the Archangel of Night, Victory, Secrecy, Tactics and Foresight! Our job descriptions were practically one and the same!" Tsophiel had said.
And then, from way back during the Bernael Incident, Emi heard Urushihara say something.
"An angel of Darkness, serving the light? That's like Maou trying to ingest Celestial Force, it weakens him, and that's exactly why Heaven held onto dear old Bernael for as long as possible: so that he couldn't grow stronger."
Emi's voice was weak as she asked, "Mom?"
"The… the screams," Lailah said, hugging herself, "they're too much."
"No!" Nord gripped Lailah's hand in both of his, looking down at her with pleading green eyes.
"No, you're stronger than this! You knew this might happen, remember? You can't give up! We're all in this together! Those screams are your new source of power, Lailah. You have to accept them!"
"No," Lailah sobbed, "don't make me-please-I-I can't stand it… so much pain… so much sorrow."
"Snap out of it, Lailah," Nord said desperately, "please! Everyone else is playing their part! Emi is fighting, your daughter is fighting! Show her you care by standing with her!"
Lailah shook her head, hiding away her tears as she was overwhelmed by her Fall. Emi looked around. The golden flames were receding, pushed back by a wall of fog which should have been impossible that far inland. High up over the highway, Emi could see Maou, Ashiya, and Urushihara.
Her vision warped, and suddenly she saw two demons… and a fallen angel.
"Hold on, mom," Emi said, "I think I know someone who can help."
The sound of flapping wings beat against Emi's eardrums, and suddenly Tsophiel fell upon Nord, sword flashing as she sought to kill him. It bounced uselessly off his skin due to the Yesod he was bound to, but she was still able to drive him back.
"Take your mother to Lucifer," Nord shouted, "get her to accept her Fall!"
Emi furrowed her eyebrows, flying through the air as though she and her mother were weightless. Much to Emi's surprise, she found the demons were not alone. Maou's landlord was present as well, watching the fog push back the fire with a smirk and a twinkle in her eye.
"Uh-hi… it's Cat, right? Or-no, kitty-something?" Emi asked lamely.
"No need for pleasantries, dear," Miki Shiba said hurriedly, "Morningstar, do your duty."
Lucifer looked at Lailah and sighed. He didn't say anything, because he knew if he did Emi would surely try to kill him, so instead he laid his hand on Lailah's sooty forehead and delved within Lailah's mind.
When he awoke, he was laying on a hill covered in flowers. It was one of many like it in Heaven. Apparently, Lailah had molded it after her old home world. He stood and looked around when a voice spoke from right behind him.
"You-you're Lucifer," Lailah said, "what are you doing here?"
Urushihara looked down. He was his old self; tall, strong, and he had his coat back. It was probably the thing he missed most about Ente Isla.
"I'm here to help you get through your Fall," he said dryly, "so… what's up? You want to talk about it or something?"
Lailah looked around, taking in the brightness and beauty of her inner world. As she stared, black cracks appeared in the blue sky. They wound up and over her, as if she were sitting in a crystal ball that was slowly fracturing.
"I'd rather not," she muttered, looking away from Lucifer.
Urushihara took a seat next to the angel. In her mind, her eyes were still red, and her hair was still silvery white, but the cracks surrounding the beautiful hillside slowly grew larger and larger.
Lailah stared at them fearfully, but Lucifer just chuckled.
"When I left Heaven, no one had ever fallen from Grace," he mused, "now you guys are dropping left and right and I'm supposed to play guidance counselor… I'm not much for feelings, and I'd sooner let you figure this out by yourself but… well, Emi was looking pretty pissed, and we still have to deal with Tsophiel."
"I didn't want my daughter to see me like this… what will she think of me now that I have to choose between using demon magic… or going without magic?"
"Well, she seemed to hate your guts a few hours ago," Lucifer reasoned, "only way to go from here is up."
"You know, you're pretty annoying, Morningstar."
"I get that a lot… but Lailah-"
The rumble of fracturing glass grew loud. The blue sky was spider-webbed with cracks. Just beyond the blue sky, Urushihara could sense the familiar taste of fresh demonic energy, just waiting to be absorbed.
"Look, as an Angel of Night, you'll have some pretty awesome powers… you may even be stronger than you were in Heaven. Now, you can sit here on this hilltop and get devoured by the pain and anger and sadness that's bearing down on you… or you can turn it into power and fight."
"For what?"
"Your husband? Your daughter? I don't care what you fight for. Hell, you could do it just cause you like the way it feels to take a life, I don't give a rat's ass… but if you don't accept what's coming, you'll be washed away by it, and what will that solve?"
The sky dented inward. Shards of blue glass fell and shattered against the flowery hill.
"Peace out," Lucifer said, vanishing from Lailah's side as the blue sky turned black and a tidal wave of negative emotion crashed inward from all sides.
Lucifer's eyes snapped open. He saw Emi watching him and Lailah closely.
"What's happening?" she asked. "Did you help her?"
"What do you think?" Lucifer grinned, gesturing at Lailah with his chin.
Emi looked down to find Lailah had vanished into thin air. The fires Tsophiel had created were now gone, replaced by an impenetrable fog, and the wailing cries of what sounded like a dragon. The people of Tokyo were frozen like statues below the supernatural battle, their faces twisted into expressions of terror and hopelessness.
Nord had never fought so hard in all his life. Try as he might, he found his connection to Acies-Ara growing tenuous. Each strike seemed to sap her strength, and it wouldn't be long before their connection faded entirely.
'I can't keep this up,' she murmured in Nord's mind.
'Just a little longer, Acies-Ara,' Nord thought back, panting as his own body grew weak and exhausted.
Tsophiel tossed her long lilac braid over her shoulder. She extended an arm out in front of her while drawing back the other, as if she were firing an arrow from a bow. Violet energy crackled, and in her hands appeared a longbow, with an arrow of humming purple light aimed right at Nord's heart.
In that moment, Nord knew he was finished. To say his life flashed before his eyes was a stretch. In reality, all he saw was Emi. He saw his daughter, young and carefree as she smiled up at him.
'I love you, daddy,' she said brightly, beaming at him.
"I love you, Emi," Nord whispered.
Tsophiel released the bowstring, and the arrow lanced down toward the old farmer. Acies-Ara was asleep, and her residual power was all that kept him airborne. Even if Nord moved, he was sure the arrow would follow him. He closed his eyes, not fearing for his life. What was fear when death was only a moment away?
That was when it became hard for Nord to breathe. He found that fear still had a grip on him, and a demonic presence that was both vast and intense appeared right in front of him. Nord opened his eyes, fully expecting to see the Demon King assuming his true form, but instead what he saw scared him even worse.
Lailah hovered before her husband, her enormous black wings spread out behind her, cleaving the sky like massive scimitars. Her dress, once pristine and white, was now black. Her hair was the same dark purple as Lucifer's, and her eyes glowed with violet energy.
Against her black dress and dark hair, her skin looked deathly pale. In her hands she held a black katana that burned with billowing black flames.
"Tsophiel," Lailah muttered darkly, "you have hurt my family. You have sought to destroy this world, and the innocents within it. Even now, I can feel the dread and despair you caused them. I can hear the screams of those whose lives you have affected."
"What of it," Tsophiel asked, nocking another arrow of energy and levelling her aim at Lailah.
"I've spared you thus far because we were friends once. I let you live because I feared Heaven's wrath."
"Spit it out, already," the archangel called, "my fingers are slipping!"
"You've gone and rid me of all the things that have kept me from destroying you up until this point," Lailah murmured. "And now I won't abide by your crude methods any longer."
"Lame," Tsophiel muttered, loosing her arrow.
The energy shot at Lailah, but she deflected it off of the blade of Lucifer's katana. Before Tsophiel could nock another arrow, Lailah had vanished and appeared behind her old comrade, her blade raised to strike.
"Dad, I've got you," Emi said suddenly, swooping in and grabbing her father as his gentle glide downward turned into a freefall.
"Ah! Thank you, dear," Nord huffed, "Acies-Ara is a bit worn out after all the excitement. I can't say I don't envy her little naps."
Emi flew upward once more, dragging her father out of the fog he'd drifted into. The sun had begun to set, and was painting the sky a brilliant blood-red, but Tokyo itself was still grey and silent as Lailah and Tsophiel did battle.
"Wow," Emi said, "look at her go."
Lailah managed to swing the katana just as fast as Tsophiel swung her rapier, which would've snapped from sheer force if it hadn't been an angelic weapon. Their blows rang out like metallic gunshots as they danced to and fro in the air.
"Yes, your mother is an exceptional swordswoman," Nord smiled, "you have her talent."
Emi could hardly believe how the two of them fought. It was almost like watching two expert strategists go head to head in a game of chess. Each would set up an elaborate ruse, only to have it fail and make the slightest change to avoid being defeated.
Tsophiel parried, letting Lailah's blade slide along hers until she locked guards with her. Tsophiel twisted and pushed downward, but Lailah simply caught the weapon in her other hand and pressed Tsophiel back.
"Should we… help?" Alciel asked, watching the two angels as they fought across the Tokyo skyline.
"I think they've got it," Urushihara said, "even without using my sword, Lailah's pretty much got this in the bag. She's an angel of night, and night's falling even faster now that it's autumn."
As Lucifer spoke, the sun vanished below the horizon, sending Tokyo into a state of twilight, and making it easier to see the stars, and the countless constellations that sparkled above the ongoing battle.
TWO HUNDRED THOUSAND WORDS! WE KNOW EACH OTHER SO WELL! YOU MAKE ME HAPPY IN BAD WAYS-Ahem. Sorry, got a little excited. If you're a fan of any of the following, the chapter you just read was probably your favorite thing ever.
-Overused tropes
-Poor grammar, spelling, dialogue,etc.
-Melodramatic speeches
-Angry teenage angst
-Predictable battles
-Incessant scene changes
-Cliché anime fights
-Other (Insert your own gripes here)
Well, that was fun. Here's an interesting bit of info: this wasn't actually in the plotline that I developed at all. I'm just winging it. That said, I suppose this is the official start of the 'War Arc.' Tsophiel, as with all the other OCs in this fucklong fanfiction, is an angel of the bible that I sort of took some creative liberties with. Go ahead and give her a google if you'd like to learn more. The tower she uses as a vantage point is the Andaz Tokyo Toranomon Hills Building, aka the tallest in Tokyo. Feel free to google that as well to learn more about it. Anyway, I railed this bastard out last night and early this morning. I edited it to some extent, so excuse any major errors. Or don't. Whatever works. I have to admit, it was fun practicing my large-scale battle writing. It's not something I get to do nearly as often as I'd like. Anyway, I think I'll take a little break from writing. Nothing insane, mind you, just a couple weeks to really think up some good moments to squeeze into the main plot. Pleasant days to you all. With any luck, I'll have more for you soon. By the way, sorry for those of you looking for constant MaouxEmi. I was running out of ideas. Let's just say the strongest bonds are forged in the heat of battle. *winks*
MUSIC!
Go To War-Nothing More (I've been saving this song for this particular arc)
Gold-EDEN (Holy crap, he's releasing an album guys)
Chop Suey-System of a Down (when angels deserve to die)
Choke-I DON'T KNOW HOW BUT THEY FOUND ME (probably how Tsophiel feels... or Emi)
Machines- All Good Things
Hand of Sorrow-Within Temptation
Friendly Fire-Nothing More
And finally, here's to you guys for inspiring me to keep writing this story!
Victorious-Panic! At the Disco