"So…" Lilith spoke, adjusting herself slightly on a couch and looking over at Roxas, who was perched on a different couch directly across from her. The Lilim Queen gave a silent nod of thanks to a butler who poured drinks for both her and her grandson, who then silently left the room and shut the door behind him, leaving the Succubus and the Nephalem alone. "Is this meeting about what I think it's about, Roxas? Have you decided to accept my offer from three weeks ago?"
"Not quite." Roxas replied, picking up his drink and taking a small sip out of it. "Or at least, not yet. I wanted to see what I'd be getting out of this before jumping right into this whole Lucifer-Heir business."
"Hm." Lilith remarked, continuing to look at Roxas for a second before nodding. "Wise decision, I suppose." Shifting her gaze to the table between them, she snapped her fingers, causing a magic-circle to open and several files of differing sizes to appear on it, between them. Setting her drink down on a smaller table beside the couch she was sat on, she leant forward, picking up the top file- a rather thick one- and handing it to Roxas. "Well, might as well start with this."
Roxas opened the file, raising an eyebrow as he flicked through a few pages. His eyes flicked from Lilith to the file and back again as he continued, not giving off any visible reaction beyond that.
"Lucifer Clan's got their fingers in THIS many pies?" Roxas asked, lightly shaking the file as he continued to go through it. "Well, I guess something's got to pay the bills for all of… this." He raised a hand, gesturing to the room around him.
"Yup." Lilith replied. "StarCo's got- as you put it- fingers in enough pies that our profits easily number in the hundreds of billions of Souls, yearly. And they're growing every year."
Roxas' eyebrows went even further up than they were already at, causing Lilith to have to hold back a giggle. The Gremory Clan had hardly been poor in recent years, even by standards of the Underworld, but the money coming into the Lucifer Clan was clearly on another level, judging by Roxas' reaction. She didn't need to know the exact figures of the Gremory Large Enterprise's profits to know that, but figured it'd be worth it to sweeten the deal for Roxas anyway.
"And, as the Heir," Lilith continued. "You're personally entitled to twenty-five percent of all profits that come out of StarCo every year. It'll come to you in monthly instalments just like it did with the Gremory Clan, starting from the end of this month, if you choose to accept."
Lilith had an even harder time holding back a giggle, or even a smile, as she noticed the instant micro-reaction that Roxas had to her words: he probably thought she hadn't noticed, but she did. It was the look of someone who, sans something absolutely AWFUL coming into the picture to shit on the whole idea of him being Lucifer Heir, had already accepted the offer. And this was only one out of the five main things that Lilith had in store for her silver-haired grandson and future Heir.
"Wh-what else is there?" Roxas asked, slowly closing the file and setting it back down on the table.
"Though you'd never ask." Lilith smirked, picking up the next file in the pile, a slightly thinner file than the first, and handing it over to the Nephalem. "Here's the next-biggest thing, I guess you could consider."
Roxas took a breath as he opened the file, flicking through it just as he'd done the first one. Slightly more eagerly though, something that Lilith noticed almost immediately. Evidently, just because he'd already decided on accepting her offer, didn't mean he wasn't going to see what the rest of what she had to offer… which was quite a bit.
With every page of the file that Roxas turned through, he was likings things more and more. The file showed off various luxury properties, located across various locations across both the human and supernatural worlds. Barbados, India, Monaco, Wyoming, Lorient, Asgard, Olympus, Aaru, Takamagahara, a good number obviously here in Hell, and so many other places.
A lot of properties, too: Roxas counted at least forty, and those were just the ones he paid more than a couple of second's attention to, there were probably more. And so many different types of properties, too: villas, mansions, condominiums, ranches, even the odd fucking CASTLE. All of which were vastly bigger and more luxurious-looking than his present home in Greece.
"Like what you see, Roxas?" Lilith asked, smirking at the increasingly incredulous look on her grandson's face. "And that's just the ones that aren't currently being rented out. Any of those in that file, say the word, it's as good as yours. Though somehow I get the feeling that even the biggest of them might not be enough for you and everyone you might want to live with."
Roxas looked up from the file, slightly confused.
"What do you mean, not enough?" he asked. "Me, Palutena, twelve peerage members, Venelana, Penemue-"
"And Rias' peerage." Lilith cut in. "And Valian's peerage. Now that Serafall's in with her, maybe some of hers too. Any future peerage members you decide to have move in with you, as well. And whoever else you just decide to take in out of the goodness of your heart, like… what was her name, Joan?" She let out a little giggle. "Get my point?"
"Yeah, I guess you're right." Roxas replied, tossing the file down and looking at the floor. "Fuck. I really liked that L.A. villa, too."
"Hm." Lilith hummed, reaching over and grabbing the file herself, flicking through it for a couple of seconds before coming to the villa in question that Roxas was talking about. "Well, I don't see why we can't have something big enough to fit all of your growing group, while also taking cues from that villa." She flicked the file around to show Roxas that she was, indeed, on the pages dedicated to that very villa, before closing the file and setting it down. "And hell, with a bigger place, you'll be able to have use for all the Lucifer Clan servants you'll have in your employ."
"Wait, what?" Roxas looked up, blinking. "Servants?"
"Yeah." Lilith replied. "Butlers, maids, that kind of thing. Both Devil and Lilim alike, you'd surely like that. And more than enough for you and your peerage- or rather peerages- to be well looked-after."
"Nice." Roxas nodded. "That's good, I guess. What else is there to offer?"
Lilith smiled as she tossed the file regarding properties down onto the table, and leant back on the couch into a slightly more comfortable pose.
"Something semi-linked to the whole 'servants' thing, Roxas: the right to choose a Lucifuge for yourself."
Silence reigned between the younger Nephalem and the older Succubus for a couple of seconds, before Roxas chose to break it with a single word, followed by five more after a second.
"…Huh? What are you talking about? Isn't that Lucifuge Clan just that, a Clan like all the others?"
"Well, no." Lilith replied. "The Lucifuge Clan is, well, a bit different to your regular noble Clan. I'd compare it more to an exclusive club, open only to Devils who those with the family name- and title- of Lucifer deem fit to serve as their right hand, like the original Lucifuge did with-"
"Your former husband." Roxas finished, with it finally clicking into place for him. "And… like Mom with Dad."
"Indeed." Lilith nodded. "Normally, it wouldn't have been allowed in that case, but with the fact that the Lucifer Clan's influence had dropped massively after Sirzechs took up the mantle, and that they really seemed to love each other… I allowed it."
"Fair enough, I guess." Roxas replied. "And I can pick anyone for this?"
"Any Devil." Lilith corrected. "That's the unspoken rule, though considering you're only part-Devil yourself, I don't think anyone would fault you for picking a fellow part-Devil. Though that puts one doubtless candidate out of the running right away."
"Wouldn't have considered picking Palutena, anyway." Roxas replied. "That sounds nice, anyway, though. I think I know who I'm gonna make the offer to, or at least who my first choice will be."
"Right." Lilith nodded. "Well, I'll let you discuss it with her when we're done here. Or just at your leisure, I don't know. Anyway, moving onto the final thing that being Heir of the Lucifer Clan gives you access to… noble status."
"Oh, boy." Roxas remarked, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. "Noble status. What fun."
"Yeah, and it gets even more fun the higher-up you go." Lilith replied. "Being the Heir of the Clan formerly headed by the guy who literally started Devils as a race, you're certain to get at least Ultimate-Class. Probably Satan-Class, or maybe even Super-Class, who knows? Satan-Class is my personal guess, though."
"Right." Roxas replied. "And I'm sure that'll come with a load of bullshit."
"Eh…" Lilith shrugged, smirking as she noticed Roxas' eyes flicking to how her breasts bounced in reaction to such a small action. "Maybe just a little bit. Most you'll probably need to do is attend the occasional event, or maybe fill in for me at any events that I'm unable to attend myself as Head of the Lucifer Clan. Oh, and take an active role in overseeing any chunk of the Underworld that you end up picking out for yourself, thanks to the noble status I mentioned earlier."
"Uh huh…" Roxas nodded, adjusting himself on the couch. "And that's it?"
"That's it." Lilith replied. "Both the extent of what you'll be expected to do as a result of your new noble status, and everything that you'll be getting as Heir of the Lucifer Clan."
Roxas nodded, picking up his drink and downing the rest of it in one go, before setting it back down on the table.
"So…" Lilith leant forward slightly. "What do you think, Roxas?"
"I think…" Roxas paused for a second, looking down for a second and then back up at his grandmother, before standing up. "That there's definitely more ups than downs to becoming Lucifer Clan Heir. I think, then, that I'll take you up on that, Lilith."
Breaking out into a wider smile, Lilith got up- just like her grandson, stepped around the table that separated the pair of them and wrapped her arms around him in a deep hug.
"I'm glad." The Lilim Queen whispered into Roxas' ears, holding onto him tightly for a few seconds before pulling back, before leaning back in and gently, briefly, pressing her lips against his. "I'm so glad, Roxas."
Roxas could only let out a small "heh", in response to Lilith having pecked him on the lips, but still smirked as he stepped back, running a hand through his hair as he did so.
"There'll have to be a celebration of at least some sort." Lilith continued, stepping back herself. "I'll arrange it, Roxas, don't worry about a thing. You can go, by the way."
"Right." Roxas nodded. "I'll see myself out, I know the way." Waving to his grandmother, he made his way out of the living room and shut the door behind him, leaving Lilith alone as she sat down, dispelling the files that she'd summoned to the table with a wave of her hand, beginning to mentally take notes on everything that would be needed for the celebration-gathering that she had already begun planning in her head. Though as she did so, part of her mind couldn't help but linger on the similarities that Roxas had to her deceased husband. As she spent more and more time with him, she was beginning to notice more and more of them.
It was at the point now that she was slightly- only slightly- unnerved by her grandson. Yet at the same time, MASSIVELY turned on.
Roxas didn't even break stride as the transportation-circle housing him appeared and opened in his living room, instantly making for the kitchen. He spared the collection of couches and chairs little more than a passing glance as he strode past, only vaguely acknowledging the sight of Palutena, Venelana, Aphrodite and some redhead that he didn't wholly recognise sitting and chatting with each other as he pushed the door to the kitchen open and made his way inside… wait, what?
Aphrodite giggled as Roxas turned on his heel and walked out of the kitchen without saying a word, making a beeline for the four women sitting in his living room.
"Not often that someone just notices me and walks right on by, Roxas." The Goddess of Love remarked, winking at the Nephalem in greeting.
"Yeah, skipping breakfast can do that to you." Roxas replied, stretching slightly as he made his way over to the couch that Palutena was sat down on, and plopped down beside her. "And having a crazy number of women willing to jump on your dick." He added, gently pecking Palutena on the cheek before looking back at the blonde Goddess and unknown redhead. "What are you doing here?"
"That was just what we were getting to, before you arrived." Venelana remarked. "How was the meeting with Lilith?"
"Good." Roxas replied. "Tell you the details later."
Venelana nodded, looking from Roxas back to Aphrodite, who cleared her throat.
"I suppose it would be easier to tell you with Roxas here now, anyway." She remarked, before turning her attention to Roxas. "Not sure if you know this already, Roxas, but the leaders of the Christian and Olympic Pantheons have been hard at work ever since… recent events came to pass, figuring out the new terms of our collective future."
"Like reparations?" Roxas asked, raising an eyebrow and adjusting his position slightly on the couch.
"If you want to call it that, sure." Aphrodite replied. "Doesn't matter, really. Anyway, One of the terms that we found quickest to agree on were the remaining forces that worked under Hera's command during Operation Divorce. The most major of which was this lovely young lady over here." She laid a hand on the redhead's shoulder. "Diana's former apprentice, Pyrrha."
"Huh…" Roxas hummed, looking Pyrrha up and down, down and up, as she nervously looked back. "Let me guess, you want me to take her?"
"Zeus' own suggestion, apparently." Aphrodite replied. "And Sirzechs agreed to it. Neither of them told ME specifically why, but you might be able to figure out some reason or another that they might have. Or you could just ask either of them next time you see them and they'll tell you, who knows?" she shrugged, adjusting her own position on the couch and continuing to look steadily at Roxas. "So, what do you say?"
Roxas let out a breath, continuing to look the redhead over.
"Pyrrha, right?" Roxas asked. "You're okay with this, yeah?"
"I… I guess so." Pyrrha replied, her eyes flicking from Roxas to the floor and back again a couple of times. "I mean, better this than things being irrevocably worse between our respective Pantheons, right?"
"Yeah, I suppose." Roxas remarked. "If you're alright with it, then I guess an extra pair of hands around the place can't be a bad thing." He shifted his gaze over to Aphrodite, and nodded. "I'll take her."
"Fantastic!" Aphrodite clapped her hands together, before getting to her feet. "I'll let Zeus and your father know the good news when I'm back at Olympus."
Roxas nodded, pecking Palutena on the cheek again and standing up as the blonde Goddess stepped away from the couch, making her way towards the door. She didn't need to turn around to know that Roxas' eyes were glued to her incredible ass, and could only smirk as she slowed her pace ever-so-slightly, in order to give the Nephalem just that little bit more of a show.
"You mind getting a room set up for Pyrrha, Venelana?" Roxas asked, making his way past the couch that Aphrodite had just gotten up from, and that Pyrrha was still perched on, as he made his way back to the kitchen. "Or at least, getting Katerea, Shyelin or Catora to do it?"
"Sure." Venelana shrugged in reply, getting up herself as Palutena lay back on the couch. "Then you can tell me all about how that meeting with Lilith went."
"Yup." Roxas nodded, taking another couple of steps towards the kitchen, and then looking back at his greenette wife. "Hey, Palutena, you want anything while I'm…?" he trailed off, pointing towards the kitchen door. Palutena raised a half-dismissive hand, before flicking it at the TV in order to turn it on.
"Nah, I'm good for now." She replied. "Just eaten."
"Fair enough." Roxas nodded, his eyes flicking from Palutena to Pyrrha, who had turned around to look over at him. "I don't know what it is, but you… look familiar. Should I be remembering you from somewhere, or am I just imagining things?"
"Maybe you should be remembering." Pyrrha replied, before looking down at the floor. "Though with what I've heard about you, Roxas, I wouldn't exactly fault you for not remembering. I mean, it was only one time… thirty years ago."
"Thirty years ago?" Roxas repeated, casting his mind back around three decades, trying to think of a possible scenario in which he could have met Diana's former apprentice… and within a couple of seconds, it clicked: Diana was an Amazon, Aphrodite had said that Pyrrha was Diana's apprentice, that could only mean-
"Oh, fuck." Roxas whispered, fully turning away from the kitchen door and looking back to Pyrrha. "That was you?!" he cried out, slightly incredulously.
"Huh?" Aphrodite turned around, just as she'd made her way to the door, with Roxas' raised voice catching her attention. She looked from Roxas' shocked expression to Pyrrha's blushing face, interest and curiosity beginning to bubble in her. "You two know each other?"
FLASHBACK:
A long, thin, gold and red javelin streaked through the air, having been thrown by Pyrrha a second or so earlier, before the pointy end embedded itself into a tree that just happened to be in its flight-path with a dull thunk. Within a few seconds, Pyrrha had dashed up to the spear, yanked it out of the tree in a quick, fluid motion, and dived into a roll. As she came up from said roll, before she was even fully back on her feet, she had thrown her javelin again, towards another tree about twenty-five feet away. Just like with the first tree she'd thrown her javelin at, the redhead's aim was true and the spear embedded itself into the tree's trunk, with another dull thunk.
Without even breaking stride, Pyrrha broke out into a sprint towards the tree, closing the distance between herself and it within only a couple of seconds, she'd yanked it out of the tree, though it took a bit of a harsher tug than the last tree that she'd pulled the spear out of to get it back into her hands. Quickly planting the spear in the hard ground with one hand and reaching into a scabbard worn on her hip with the other, and pulling out a regular short sword, she took a couple of strong but controlled swings at imaginary enemies in front of her. Letting out a growl of effort, she dived into another roll, swinging her sword low, as if she was swinging at a foe's ankles. After coming out of the roll and after she was back on her feet, Pyrrha reached behind her and pulled out a shield: dark-gold/bronze in colour and mostly circular, with sections missing on either side, and modified to have a razor-sharp edge by Pyrrha herself, allowing it to function as a throwing weapon as well as a shield.
Leaning back, Pyrrha grunted once again in effort as she threw her shield- more an enormous discus than anything else- aiming for the tree. Unfortunately, however, her aim with her shield wasn't as true as it was with her javelin, and it ended up sailing slightly wide of the tree that she'd been aiming at without hitting it at all, and dropping to the ground rather close to the cliff by which she'd been training. After a couple of seconds, it came to a stop right on the edge of the cliff… before sliding off of said cliff a couple of seconds later.
Sighing in frustration at her own sloppy throw, Pyrrha walked towards the cliff, gently stretching as she went, though the sound of someone calling out "Shit!" from the bottom of the cliff that her shield had just fallen off of almost made her jump. She quickened her pace, jogging most of the way towards the cliff before breaking out into a run, jumping off of the cliff and sailing through the air before landing on the soft sand below. It didn't take long for her to find her shield, as it hadn't landed far from where she herself landed, but there was something else on the beach that caught her attention.
Or rather… someone.
There was someone else on the beach that Pyrrha had just landed on, someone who definitely HADN'T been there before. Medium-length silver hair, red eyes, clad in clothes that were sticking to them like crazy due to being soaked through, toned physique and a bit of a bulge between his legs. Pyrrha had never actually seen a man in person, only drawings in the occasional book that Diana or Hippolyta- Diana's mother- had shown her: this was her first time seeing one in the flesh. And though men were banned from the island, under penalty of death, something primal inside her couldn't help but like what she saw in this one.
"Ahh, that's better." The young man muttered to himself, as the clothes he wore dried. His whole body seemed to be warming up: Pyrrha could feel the heat emanating off of him. If she had to guess, the man was using magic to warm himself up. She'd seen some Amazons using magic, but the kind of magic she'd seen out of them was far more combat-oriented than something like this, which seemed downright mundane by comparison.
"Muuuuuuch better." The young man, now fully dry, muttered again, stretching as he got to his feet. Looking around, he scanned his surroundings, but the sound of Pyrrha's boot pressing down against the soft sand as she took a step backwards immediately caught his attention. He span round, finally clapping eyes on Pyrrha as she slowly backed up, bent down and picked up her shield. There was an awkward silence between the two for a couple of moments, before Pyrrha chose to break it.
"You're a man." She spoke, keeping her voice even. For all her training under Diana for all her life, she'd never actually been coached in any way on what to do if a man actually came to Themyscira's shores. Seemed like a bit of an oversight, now that she thought about it, considering most Amazons' distaste for men, and the known fact that men were forbidden from stepping on their shores. You'd think that maybe there'd she'd heard SOMETHING of what to do if the one thing that shouldn't happen… happened.
The man, in reply to what she'd said, reached down and pulled on the garments around his legs, pulling them away from his chest and looking down for a couple of seconds.
"Yup, still there." He remarked, before letting them settle back to where they originally were, and looking up at Pyrrha. "Yeah, I am. And I'm guessing by the light armour, weapons and… girl-ness, you're an Amazon."
"I am." Pyrrha replied, still warily watching the man in front of her. "I am Pyrrha. Who are you?"
"Call me Roxas." The man replied, stretching again. "And it's nice to know that the first Amazon I meet doesn't immediately try to kill me."
"What are you doing here?" Pyrrha asked, her eyes narrowing slightly as she took half a step closer to Roxas, closing the distance between them slightly. Roxas let out a sigh as he took half a step back, re-opening the distance between them.
"No small-talk, then. Got it." He remarked to himself. "Well, I guess you could say I was dared to come here."
"Dared?" Pyrrha repeated, tilting her head as she took another step closer to Roxas, closing the distance between them again. "You were told to come here as a challenge from someone?"
Roxas, this time, didn't take another step back.
"Yeah, let's go with that." He replied. "And to bring back something from here, in fact. You know, to prove that I actually came here, rather than just pretending to and lying about it."
"I see." Pyrrha replied, pausing for a moment before bending down, picking up a small rock, about the size of the palm of her hand, and lightly tossing it to Roxas. He caught it easily, though the expression that formed on his face as he looked down at it, and back at Pyrrha, was definitely… something to behold. It was the kind of expression one made when they didn't know whether to laugh or not.
"There." Pyrrha remarked, slightly triumphantly. "A rock, fresh from the shores of Themyscira. Will that suffice?"
Roxas let out a slightly forced chuckle, as he lightly threw the rock up into the air and caught it again when it came down.
"Hehe, that's… nice, Pyrrha." Roxas replied, tossing and catching the rock again. "Though it'd be kinda hard to get someone to believe that this rock" he held it up in front of her "came from here, this island. I mean, I live by the beach myself, I could've just gone down there and picked up a random rock, you know?"
"I see." Pyrrha nodded. "I think I understand… something a bit more specific to Themyscira than a rock, hmm…"
"Maybe something from one of the Amazons?" Roxas suggested, helpfully. "Maybe something from you?"
"Something from me?" Pyrrha repeated, her eyes widening slightly in surprise. "I can't think of anything of mine that would prove you've been here. Nevermind anything that I'd be willing to give to a complete stranger."
"Hm." Roxas hummed, quickly scanning Pyrrha up and down, down and up, with his eyes before refocusing on her face. "Fair point, I guess. Though maybe you'd be more willing to part with something if you got something in return. Something that made it worth your while?"
"Maybe…" Pyrrha replied. "Are you suggesting giving me a weapon of yours? Or perhaps, something else? Something that I've heard that a lot of men like and desire?"
"I might be." Roxas remarked, taking his own step forward before dropping the rock. "Although, I've got it on good authority that women can like and desire it, too. If I'm right in guessing what you're referring to."
"You probably are." Pyrrha nodded, shuffling her feet slightly and looking from side to side, feeling her heartbeat quickening slightly at the sight of Roxas so close to her. Aphrodite above, there was just something about him…
Roxas had to fight to keep down a smile. He thought that he'd have to fight tooth and nail to get his hands on the panties of an Amazon, risking life and limb: never in his wildest DREAMS did he imagine that things would start going THIS easily.
"I've read up on that kind of thing." Pyrrha continued. "I've done it to myself from time to time, but I can't help but feel curious about what it feels like to do it with… with a man."
"Well, then." Roxas remarked, taking another half-step closer, so that he was close enough to reach out and touch Pyrrha. "I guess we both have something to gain. I satisfy your curiosity, and then we can figure out something of yours for me to take home with me. That sound like a good deal?"
Pyrrha bit her lip, the rational part of her mind suddenly going into overdrive in an attempt to find a reason to NOT go through with this, to run off and call for help from the other Amazons, from her mentor Diana… but that part of her young brain found itself quickly overpowered by a certain other part, one that started acting out whenever she felt herself getting a bit, what was the word… horny?
"I suppose so, yes." Pyrrha replied, shuffling in place as she looked up at Roxas. "That does sound like a good deal, Roxas."
Flashback end
"And you did it right there and then?" Aphrodite asked, her eyes wide as she looked from Roxas to Pyrrha. "Damn, Roxas."
"Yeah." Roxas nodded, taking a breath and looking over at Pyrrha. "Sorry I didn't remember you at first, Pyrrha, but it IS as you said. Only one time, thirty years back- give or take-"
"It's okay!" Pyrrha cut across the Nephalem, shaking her head for a moment. "You don't have to worry about that. Even if it was only once, it was… was…" she trailed off, as her face went rather red, and she turned away from Roxas, trying to hide her face.
"It was…?" Aphrodite asked, smiling widely as she moved back into the house and over to Pyrrha. "Was it nice, Pyrrha?"
Pyrrha didn't reply, only electing to bury her face in her hands as Aphrodite approached.
"Was it hot, Pyrrha? Did Roxas make you feel better than you've ever felt in your life, before or since? Have your thoughts maybe lingered back to him, from time to time, wishing that you could have another shot at such pleasure~?"
Pyrrha seemed to attempt to bury her face further into her hands than she already had been, in an attempt to further hide the blush, but that didn't stop Roxas, Aphrodite or anyone else in the room from seeing her nodding, eliciting a triumphant smirk from Aphrodite.
"Well, I suppose the solution to all of this is pretty simple, don't you think, Roxas?" she asked, turning to face the silver-haired man and winking. "Fancy catching up with a past Amazonian fling, Roxas?"
"I guess…" Roxas replied, shrugging as Aphrodite turned back to Pyrrha.
"Pyrrha, fancy catching up with the sexiest man alive? Believe you me, the second time is always better than the first~"
Pyrrha took her face out of her hands, revealing her beet-red blush to all in the room, and nodded again, her green eyes squarely on Roxas.
"Right." Aphrodite remarked, gently wrapping an arm around Pyrrha and pulling her closer to her, before looking over at Roxas. "Lead the way, Roxas."
Roxas shrugged, before his mind registered the implications of what Aphrodite had just said.
"You're coming too?" he asked, looking over at her. Aphrodite merely smiled.
"Why wouldn't I?" she asked, by way of reply. "I haven't got anything else going on for the rest of today, I think I can relax for a bit."
"Fair enough, I guess." Roxas replied, stepping past both the blonde Goddess and the redhead Amazon, and making for the stairs. He had a feeling that making up a room for Pyrrha could wait, as he began ascending said stairs, with Aphrodite and Pyrrha right behind him. As they got further and further up, closer and closer to Roxas' bedroom, he could hear Aphrodite and Pyrrha talking with each other as they followed him. Well, Aphrodite was doing most of the talking.
"Did he eat you out the first time he did it? It's AMAZING when you get eaten out just right, believe me."
"E-eaten out?"
Roxas, unseen to either of them, rolled his eyes. Now that he thought back to it, he HAD eaten out Pyrrha that day on the beach on Themyscira. He'd done more than that. In fact, he'd done quite a lot with her.
"She means having someone use their mouth on your pussy." Roxas remarked, without turning around. "Which I DID do, by the way."
As he got to the top of the stairs and began making his way down the short hallway to his bedroom, Roxas could practically HEAR Pyrrha's blush coming back in full force… along with Aphrodite's giggle.
"I'll have to see how he does it to you when we get to it." Aphrodite remarked. "When he did it to me… his lips on me, his tongue inside me…" she let out a lustful sigh, only vaguely noticing that Roxas had stopped in his tracks. "Olympus, it was divine."
"When I did it to you?" Roxas turned around, just before they got to his room, an eyebrow raised. "I think I'd remember eating out YOU of all people, Aphrodite."
"And I'm pretty sure you do remember." Aphrodite replied. "Probably pretty well, as a matter of fact. As well as that nice watch that you received from me as payment for that job."
"That watch…?" Roxas tilted his head slightly, initially confused by what Aphrodite had said, but after a second, it clicked. "Oh. Ohhhh… of course. Of course." He sighed, shaking his head slightly. "I mean, you've been thirsty for me ever since Palutena and I moved to Greece. Fuck, before that, even. Why am I not surprised that you'd disguise yourself as a pornstar? That really sounds like something you'd do.
"It is, and it was." Aphrodite nodded, winking. "You can't deny that that was a fun night though, Roxas."
Roxas shook his head, sighing again and running a hand through his hair.
"No, I guess not." He replied. Noticing the look of growing confusion on Pyrrha's face, and her mouth opening, he cut across her before she could even start asking her question. "I'll fill you in later, Pyrrha. Aphrodite'll probably want to share some of the lewder details."
"Aww~" Aphrodite leant forward, grinning. "You know me so well, Roxas."
"Eh…" Roxas shrugged. "Probably not THAT well, honestly. Enough to know that you're hotter as a blonde, though."
Aphrodite could only shrug as Roxas backed up towards the closed door to his bedroom. Instantly seizing the opportunity that she saw, she closed the distance between herself and Roxas in the span of an instant and pushed him up against the door, grabbing his shirt with one hand and pulling him towards her so she could kiss him. Though initially taken aback by the sudden kiss, Roxas quickly melted into it and rested one hand on Aphrodite's back, before said hand quickly slid down said back and rested on her shapely ass, while he reached around with his other hand in an attempt to get at the doorknob so he could open the door.
He found it after a couple of seconds: upon opening it, he and Aphrodite almost fell over backwards/forwards as they went through. They were able to catch themselves before they went over, though. Probably for the better, considering they wouldn't have gotten back up had they gone down. Pyrrha shut the door behind Roxas and Aphrodite, blushing all the while, and walked around them before perching on the bed. She began pulling off the clothes she was wearing as Roxas and Aphrodite collapsed on the bed beside her, still kissing hard and even grabbing at each other's clothes in an attempt to pull them off each other.
Pyrrha had a feeling that this was going to be a fun afternoon.
"So, the Sanctum Sanctorum is the headquarters of your SSPCH?" Diehauser asked, looking up at the said building as he and Roxas appeared out of a transportation-circle, in a convenient alleyway right in front of the said building. Upon Roxas' own recommendation a few minutes earlier, the new Satan Leviathan was dressed in far more casual-looking clothing than one would expect a Devil of his station to be dressed in. Though considering his predecessor, the standards for what passed as 'Satan-like' clothing had probably long since gone out the window.
"Nah." Roxas replied. "Where we meet changes every time we have a meeting." Last time it was Moscow, time before that it was at the Hellsing Mansion, time before that it was Shanghai, time before THAT it was-"
"Alright, alright." Diehauser nodded. "I think I get the point." He narrowed his eyes slightly at the powerful sunlight as he and Roxas stepped into it. "Shall we?"
"We shall." Roxas nodded in reply, leading the new Satan Leviathan across the street and towards the home of the Sorcerer Supreme. He gently pushed the door open and entered the building, with Diehauser following close behind him.
Most of the members that Roxas knew were in the Sanctum's main foyer, milling about and quietly chatting to each other: Dr. Strange, with Medea standing beside him, was engaged in quiet conversation with Integra and Steve. Gondul, Scathach and Kali were talking with each other. T'Chaka was sharing a drink with Sanzang and Wukong. Hassan and Thanatos were… stood in opposite corners, probably trying to see who could look more silently imposing from their positions in the corners.
Medea was the first to notice Roxas' presence in the room, as well as Diehauser's alongside him, and nodded to her contracted Nephalem, who offered her a nod back. Strange noticed Medea's nod, looked to where she was nodding at, and a small smile came over his face at the sight of Roxas, who he waved over. Roxas, looking at Diehauser and shrugging, walked over, with the former Head of the Belial Clan following suit.
"Good to see you could make it, Roxas." Strange remarked, by way of greeting. "I don't think I got the chance to say anything at… your grandfather's funeral," he lowered his voice. "…I'm sorry. I-"
"Doc. Save it." Roxas replied, holding up a hand before the Sorcerer Supreme could continue. "It's fine."
"Alright." Strange nodded, though his brows furrowed a bit for half a second at the use of the 'Doc' nickname. "If you say it's fine, then it's fine. Anyway, why…?" he gestured with his eyes to Diehauser, an eyebrow raising slightly.
"Oh, right." Roxas cleared his throat. "Diehauser's just here to sit in on today's meeting, so he knows what this-" he gestured to everyone else talking to each other. "is all about. If that's alright, of course."
"It is." Strange replied, inclining his head to Diehauser. "Nice to meet you, Diehauser, and congratulations on your ascension to the position of Satan Leviathan."
Diehauser inclined his head in return, offering his thanks as he did so.
"Who else are we waiting on?" Roxas asked, casting his eyes around the hall and back to Strange, who did the same.
"Ozymandias, Tiamat, Arash, Blavatsky, Nobunaga." He replied, just as the door opened and Blavatsky and Nobunaga walked in. "Actually, scratch the last two."
"We know if there's gonna be someone from the Greeks coming today?" Roxas asked. "Or the Hindus?"
"You know how Indra is." Strange replied. "So I think that answers that. As for the Greeks…" he shrugged. "I have no idea."
"Actually, Zeus did mention something to me about that." Diehauser spoke up. "That he'd be bringing a new representative for the Greek Pantheon to… replace Diana."
Roxas and Strange both looked around at him, Strange with a raised eyebrow.
"He mentioned it to me when he found out that I'd be attending the latest meeting with you, Roxas." Diehauser added, prompting a nod and a shrug from Roxas.
"Well, guess that answers that." The Nephalem replied. "If Zeus isn't too busy being balls-deep in some random asshole, guess we can expect him to show up."
Within a few minutes, Ozymandias, Tiamat and Arash had arrived at the Sanctum. After Tiamat- the last of the three in question- stepped in and shut the door behind her, Strange let off a magical bang to catch the attention of everyone, before summoning a table and enough chairs around said table for all the SSPCh members to sit at.
"We all know what we're here for," Strange remarked. "So let's sit down, and get started."
Everyone did, with the exception of Diehauser, who after being informed of his having to stand up by Roxas (who had sat down between Scathach and T'Chaka), didn't mind having to remain standing behind the soon-to-be Lucifer Heir. Roxas noticed Strange sat at the head of the table, with Medea stood behind him, and clearing his throat.
"Now that everyone is here and seated," the Sorcerer Supreme spoke up. "I would like to declare the Eleventh SSPCH meeting in-"
The sound of loud knocking on the Sanctum's doors rung throughout the hall that everyone was sat in, startling some of the humans seated and only surprising a couple of the supernatural figures. Roxas looked at Strange, who closed his eyes and sighed.
"Two for two on being interrupted before we can even start…" he muttered to himself, before raising his hand and flicking it in the direction of the door, opening it and revealing-
"Zeus." Strange spoke, standing up from his position at head of the table. "I almost thought you weren't going to be attending with a new representative for your Pantheon."
"And I wouldn't have, had Poseidon not reminded me a couple of hours ago." Zeus replied. "Apologies, am I interrupting?"
"Yes." Roxas replied, bluntly. "But it's fine, whoever you brought hasn't missed much. Or anything at all, really."
"I see. Good." Zeus replied, offering a nod to Roxas and stepping aside as someone else- who Roxas assumed was Diana's replacement as the Olympic Pantheon's representative: a calm-looking man clad in leather armour, mainly coloured white and green, with green hair and turquoise eyes, and wearing sandels upon his feet. His most striking feature, however, was the tail (with the same colour as his hair) protruding from a hole in the back of his tunic. Other than that, he looked as perfectly ordinary as someone like Ozymandias, Thanatos or Tiamat.
The tailed man inclined his head towards the other SSPCH representatives, as Strange sat down.
"I'm the one that Zeus chose as the new representative for the Olympic Pantheon within this society." He began, bringing his head back up. "My name is Chiron. I hope that we'll be able to co-operate well with each other."
"So long as you don't try and kill anyone here, you're good!" Sanzang spoke up, to limited chuckles up and down the table, including from Roxas himself. Chiron allowed himself a good-natured chuckle himself, and shook his head as he stepped further into the Sanctum, while Zeus leant against the doorframe.
"I guess we're all alright with Chiron as the new representative?" he asked, quickly scanning up and down the table. When no dissenting voice arose, and when Strange and Roxas both nodded, Zeus nodded in return and turned around. "Alright, then I won't keep you from your important meeting any longer."
And without another word, Zeus stepped away from the Sanctum's doorway and disappeared from sight, leaving Chiron alone with the rest of the SSPCH. Strange quickly waved his hand, conjuring up another seat between Kali and Wukong, which Chiron took his seat in. Within a second's silence after he did so, Strange cleared his throat again.
"Alright. NOW, I would like to declare the tenth official SSPCH meting as in session."
There were, again, smatterings of laughter throughout the table, as well as light applause all around.
"Alright, first order of business on the agenda," Strange continued, as the applause faded. "Something that I do believe several of us among the human side of our group, as well as some from the supernatural side as well, were rather involved in: the attack on the capitals of the three biggest former members of the Grand Alliance by the Millennium Organization."
Roxas' eyes flicked to Integra, to Steve, who he'd personally encountered during Millennium's attack. To Helena, to Xuanzang, to Wukong, who he'd heard had also fought against their forces in Moscow, as well as Diana…
"I have death tolls from that night here," Strange continued, snapping his fingers and sending copies of a summary of what had happened that night to all seated members.
"I've already discussed what happened with those who directly participated in the fight against Millennium, a couple of days after the incident in question," Strange continued. "But for those who don't know, you can catch up on all you need to know, here."
There was a moment's silence as everyone- particularly those who weren't privy to the details of what had gone down during Millennium's attack- quickly pored over the summary in front of them. Roxas heard Diehauser leaning down behind him, and turned around.
"Weren't you one of those who fought against Millennium that night, Roxas?" the grey-haired Satan Leviathan asked, in a low voice.
"I was, yeah." Roxas replied. "Along with her organisation-" he gestured to Integra, "him and his friends," he gestured to Steve, "and her, and her, and Wukong over there." He gestured to Blavatsky, Xuanzang and Wukong, the latter of whom looked up for a split-second upon hearing his name, before looking back down at his copy of the summary. Diehauser nodded, and straightened back up as Roxas took time to quickly scan the summary: he didn't really need to, it was full of stuff that he already kinda knew, but it was still worth it to get a refresher on the events, since this was the SSPCH's first topic of discussion.
Screw a couple of months, with everything that had happened recently, it felt like Millennium had attacked a couple of YEARS ago.
"This attack was absolutely a tragedy." Strange spoke up, when it looked like most of those seated had finished reading the summary. "There's no point in arguing different, but what it also was… was the closest that conclusive knowledge of the supernatural has come to coming out to humanity at large. Which, wel…" he held his arms wide. "Kind of runs counter to what we do, doesn't it?"
"It does, yes." Scathach replied. "Though we have Project Morningstar in place for this, if something like that were to ever happen."
"That we do." Strange remarked, nodding. "But that was established back at the first meeting. When the last time humanity really came this level of close to finding out about the supernatural had been decades, maybe even centuries, in the past. Project Morningstar might need another look over sometime soon, perhaps at the next meeting."
"Excuse me, but Project Morningstar?" Chiron spoke up, raising his hand and leaning forward slightly. "Forgive me, but I don't know what that is."
Roxas quickly glanced at Diehauser, who didn't speak up but looked like he wanted to know what Project Morningstar was all about, too.
"Nothing to forgive you for." Strange replied, immediately. "You wouldn't have known, Chiron. In fact, maybe we should've briefed you on this before we got started." He took a breath. "In any case, for the uninitiated," his eyes flicked from Chiron to Diehauser and back again, before he looked further down the table. "Project Morningstar is the… well, project that we've put together and refined over several meetings, back at the beginning of the SSPCH's existence: a recommended outline for supernatural factions to follow if it…" he paused for a second, swallowing "were to ever get out."
No-one spoke up. All knew what Strange was referring to, without him even having to say directly.
"The first phase," Strange began "Is for all statements to the factions that they represent to be put out by all the members here today. Statements that, ideally, would mitigate most of the panic that'll doubtlessly erupt across the world- on both sides- once things get out."
Roxas mentally noted that, once this meeting and what he had going on immediately after this was done, he was probably going to want to update his own statement a bit. Maybe switch some of the wording a bit.
"The second phase," Strange continued, after taking a gulp from a glass of water that he conjured up at that very moment. "Is for the heads of the factions represented here, as well as the nations represented here as well, to begin fostering relations with one another, aided by us SSPCH reps." He made a quick gesture to everyone in the audience, before taking another sip of his water. "Phase three, after that, is to give humanity- or rather, the armies of humanity- supernatural training. With knowledge of the supernatural out in the open, those related to the supernatural who would harm humans will definitely be more open and direct about their desires to do so, so it only makes sense that humanity have an open and direct way of dealing with that, rather than just hoping for an Angel to descend and do the job for them out of the goodness of their heart. Or a Devil to rise and do it, I don't know."
There were titters among some of the representatives as Strange cleared his throat, and continued.
"Phase four, once the supernatural and human worlds have become closer, the main order of business will be education: teaching general human populations about the supernatural world. Some of you who were here since the beginning might remember Roxas having pitched some ideas about a dedicated academy that humans could come to in order to learn about the supernatural. Any progress on that, Roxas?"
"Not really." Roxas shrugged. "Other stuff's got in the way. And to be honest, that pitch was just an off-the-cuff thing. Probably not one of my better ideas."
"Yeah, right up there with running away from your parents after accidentally killing your girlfriend." Wukong remarked, sparking more titters and a couple of outright laughs from the representatives. Roxas even allowed himself a good-natured chuckle as Strange continued.
"So, yeah, that's about the gist of Project Morningstar, or at least the barebones of it, Chiron. With the Millennium attack still relatively fresh in everyone's minds, and the danger that it posed, I propose that we look again at Project Morningstar and begin work on refining in future meetings."
"Seconded." Roxas remarked, immediately. There were other calls of ascent to Strange's idea, prompting a nod out of him once enough had come.
"Guess that's settled, then." He remarked. "Next order of business today: between last meeting and today, Cao Cao- who had previously gone rogue- has recently been apprehended. Some time ago in Kyoto, we found that he was responsible for the recent abduction of Yasaka, leader of the Kyoto Youkai, if you haven't heard about that already."
There were murmurs of ascent from those who had: most of the representatives seated.
"Roxas, Scathach, Wukong and myself were among those that apprehended Cao Cao and his so-called Hero Faction during the battle to recover Yasaka." Strange remarked. "And after that, he was handed over to the Kyoto Youkai Council. Kali?"
"Yeah." Kali nodded, clearing her throat. "It was a pretty quick decision by the council, in all accounts. Cao Cao and all those from his faction that were captured that night had their memories erased, and their Sacred Gears safely removed thanks to technology provided by the Grigori of the Christian Pantheon. They were then returned to their places of origin, so they won't be a problem. Ever again."
"I see. Good." Strange replied, nodding. There were other murmurs indicating that most of the representatives around the table agreed with the fates of said Hero Faction members, though the Chairman of the SSPCH noticed a couple of faces from certain reps that looked like they didn't agree with them: namely Steve and Roxas.
From there, the meeting continued onto other, smaller topics of discussions: proposed ideas that could be discussed in future meetings, updates from the heads of factions/governments that the SSPCH represented, and just general pleasant conversation with topics that vaguely related to the SSPCH's purpose. It was generally a good, relaxed time overall, once the more serious topics of discussion were out of the way. Things went on for another hour before Strange decided to, eventually, call an end to the proceedings once Chiron had gotten done talking about something or other related to the Greek Pantheon.
"I'll have Medea send magical copies of all the notes taken during this meeting to you." Strange called out, standing up as he did so and indicating that everyone else should do the same. "Until next time. Six months' time, I'll let you know the exact date, location of the next one, in due course."
Roxas stretched as he got up, groaning slightly as he felt something pop in his back.
"Ahh, that went on longer than most meetings do." Roxas remarked to Diehauser, who was also stretching as he walked over to him. "Sorry if you got bored, Diehauser."
"I wasn't bored at all, don't worry about it." Diehauser replied, walking past Roxas. "I've been in loads of meetings much longer than that, and I'll probably be in far more that are way longer, too. In the future."
Roxas chuckled, nodding as he shoved his hands in his jacket-pockets.
"Yeah. I'm sure you will." The Nephalem remarked as Diehauser left the Sanctum and eventually left his sight entirely. Roxas nodded, at nothing in particular, as he turned to make his way towards the main doorway to the Sanctum, which Hassan had initially pushed open on his way out. Before he could get there and teleport back to Greece, however, he felt a gentle hand laying on his shoulder. Raising an eyebrow, he turned around to see Scathach standing there, hand on her hip, a smirk on her face. "Hey, Scathach."
"Hello." Scathach replied, shifting her weight from one foot to another as she looked Roxas over. "I heard, during Operation Divorce, that you… killed Ares. The big bad God of War himself." A small smile began to cross her face as her red eyes made their way back to Roxas' face. "That's impressive."
"I mean, I had help." Roxas admitted, shrugging. "Aphrodite powered me up a bit. In her own… special way."
"Still impressive." Scathach replied. "You might have had help in terms of power, but it's not just power that wins a fight. Skill plays a part, too. You were still skilful enough to beat Ares, when things were evened up in the power department. Help or no help, that deserves praise, recognition."
"Well, if this is your way of giving that to me, thanks." Roxas replied. "Consider me praised and recognised."
Scathach let out a little giggle, as Kali walked past behind Roxas, heading towards the door. There weren't many left in the Sanctum now, apart from Roxas, Scathach, Strange, Medea and one or two others.
"Oh, no, this isn't it." The purple-haired spear-wielder remarked. "I was thinking of something else. Maybe something a little more… how do I put this, physical?" Her smile grew slightly larger. "Get where I'm going?"
"I think I do." Roxas replied, his own smile coming onto his face. "And I like the idea of what you're getting at, Scathach."
"Thought you would." Scathach remarked, taking half a step closer to Roxas and leaning in close enough to his face that he could feel her hot breath on his ear, which she was leaning closest to.
"If you fancy taking me up on that, Roxas," Scathach whispered, directly into Roxas' ear. "Then, well, come find me in Dun Scaith. I'll be waiting, if you think you're enough."
She pulled back, her smile now turning into a full-on smirk as she turned on her heel and walked out of the Sanctum, now leaving Roxas totally alone, apart from Strange and Medea. He didn't say anything as he watched the pair of them for a couple of seconds, for long enough to see Strange leaning down and gently pressing his lips against Medea's head, and a light dusting of pink come across his Pact Mage's cheek.
Roxas had suspected that the pair of them were an item, ever since the meeting after the pair of them had been introduced to each other. The pair of them kissing, without making much of an effort to hide it, seemed like good enough confirmation to him that they were, in fact, an item. Good for them, he thought, as he turned and headed out of the Sanctum himself. It only took him a minute or two to get to an out-of-the-way alley and be able to teleport back to his home villa in Greece without any danger of being seen by any humans.
Palutena didn't even move from her position on the couch as the transportation-circle appeared in the living room. She only turned and looked up at Roxas as he appeared out of the transportation-circle, which faded away underneath him.
"Hey."
"Hey." Roxas replied, walking over and vaulting the couch before plopping down beside his greenette wife, leaning over and pressing his lips against her head.
"How was the meeting?" Palutena asked, tilting her head to look over at her husband for a couple of minutes, before turning her attention back to the TV.
"Fine." Roxas replied. "Nothing too major, just talking about the shit that went down with Millennium and Kyoto, some other shit… Scathach kinda came onto me a bit, the usual."
"Damn." Palutena remarked, smirking as she looked over at Roxas again. "Scathach, coming onto you? What did it?"
"Might've been the whole 'I killed Ares' thing." Roxas replied. "She heard about it, guess she was impressed by it. Enough to probably think of me as worthy to feel the inside of her cunt, or whatever."
Palutena let out a giggle, and gave her husband a playful shove.
"Nice one." She remarked. "Well, with how much you thirsted over Scathach to me, after the second SSPCH meeting, you've gotta be feeling pretty pleased with yourself, huh?"
"Yeah, I'd say so." Roxas replied, smirking. "I mean, she's hot. Scorching. Top 10, easy, highest of third. The outfit she structs around in certainly doesn't hurt, either."
"Oh, definitely not." Palutena nodded. "I've seen Scathach, and I know what you're talking about. She's gorgeous."
"Right?" Roxas grinned. "Knew you'd get it. Plus, the whole warrior-woman thing she's got going on… that certainly doesn't hurt."
"Understandable." Palutena replied. "By the way, you said Scathach was the third-hottest woman you'd ever seen at most. Who are the top two?" she asked, with what looked like a knowing grin forming on her face. Roxas immediately noticed, and let out a chuckle.
"Guess even a goddess isn't above having a little ego." Roxas remarked, pausing for a couple of seconds as he met his first wife's gaze. "…It's you and Lilith, okay? In that order."
Palutena smirked, nodding as she turned her attention back to the TV, closing her eyes and enjoying the next peck on the cheek that Roxas delivered to her.
"That's what I thought." She remarked, more to herself than anyone else. Roxas let out a small chuckle as he heard it.
"So, you ready to head up?" he asked. "Or do you want to wait a bit?"
"Wait a bit, I want to finish this episode." Palutena replied, raising a hand and vaguely gesturing at the TV. "Then we can go. Only about fifteen minutes left."
"Got it." Roxas nodded, getting into a more relaxed position beside Palutena and kissing her again, as he focused his attention on the TV as well.
True to Palutena's word, it didn't take more than fifteen minutes for the TV episode that she was watching to finish up, after which he helped her to her feet and took her through a transportation-circle, landing in the entrance to Sixth Heaven. Their sudden presence in the home of the Seraphs immediately attracted the attention of all in the room that they appeared in: namely Raziel, Sandalphon and Gabriel. The latter of whom was the first to verbally react to the sight of Roxas and Palutena teleporting onto their doorstep.
"Hi!" the blonde beauty remarked, moving away from the two other Seraphs that she'd been having a conversation with and making a beeline for Roxas and Palutena. "You here for the…" her eyes flicked to Palutena's belly.
"Yeah." Roxas replied. "We, uh… yeah. We are."
"I'll take you down to Fifth." Gabriel nodded, waving a hand and opening a transportation-circle of her own. "That's where all the equipment is, anyway."
Roxas nodded, and found himself gripping Palutena's hand as the pair of them joined Gabriel in her transport-circle, which- true to her word- had them one level down from where they'd come into Heaven. As far as Roxas was aware, Fifth Heaven was home to several members of what was now the Grigori, before they'd all fallen for various reasons. It was also where the Brave Saints, like the one that Michael had used on Irina, had been created, and- judging by the look of where Roxas, Palutena and Gabriel had come out- it was home to Heaven's medical facilities too.
The three of them seemed to be in the reception of a hospital, judging by the white walls and Angels walking about looking like nurses and/or doctors. There was a large desk right in front of where they'd warped in, with Angels that had previously been sat at it scrambling to get to their feet and bow low to Gabriel, upon the realisation that one of the Great Seraphs was in their presence.
"It's fine, it's fine. As you were." Gabriel remarked, looking over everyone that bowed to her. "Roxas, Palutena and I am just going to be using the special room for…" she gestured to Palutena's belly. "We'll be in and out before you all know it."
The Angels in question all nervously, silently, returned to their prior posts as Gabriel led Roxas and Palutena past them, and down a hallway. It didn't take them long to arrive at the 'special room' that Gabriel mentioned: upon entering it, Roxas was immediately reminded of the hospital room Ingvild had been held up in for a while, after the events of the peace conference. It was far grander-looking than one would expect any average hospital room to be: large bed, some medical-like equipment that Roxas didn't have enough Sitri blood in him to understand beside the bed, beside table, circular table with a few chairs around them, open windows with a nice view of the rest of Fifth Heaven outside… seemed like a nice place to be holed up for a bit.
Raphael, wearing not the average white robes of an Angel but something closer to what one would expect a doctor to wear, was sat on one of the chairs around the aforementioned table, reading through some papers. He looked up immediately upon seeing Gabriel, Roxas and Palutena entering the room, however, and set the papers down on the table before standing up.
"Alright." He spoke, his eyes flicking from Roxas to Palutena to her belly and back again. "Let's get this done, shall we?"
"Let's." Palutena replied, nodding as Raphael raised a hand and magically raised her into the air, moving her towards the bed and gently setting her down on it. "So, how will this whole thing work?"
"Nothing too complicated." Raphael replied, pulling the equipment a bit closer to him and Palutena, before snapping his fingers and summoning what looked like a container full of a gel-like substance. "Scanning probe, here," he picked up a small device attached to a wire. "Goes on your belly. Scans inside your belly, allows us to examine your and Roxas' child. We'll be able to get an image of them, see what they're like."
"Like if they're a boy or a girl?" Roxas asked, prompting a chuckle out of Raphael.
"Yes, like if they're a boy or a girl." Raphael replied. "Along with how big they are right now, any physical abnormalities, stuff like that. You being… well, you, I doubt anything could end up too wrong with your child, but hey. Can't hurt to check up, right?"
"Definitely not." Palutena replied, grinning as she lay back on the bed and lifted up the front of her dress, while Raphael opened the container, dipped his fingers into the gel and rubbed it over Palutena's belly.
"I got to say, I can't wait to find out more about your child, Roxas." Gabriel remarked. "Part God, part Angel, part Devil: the potential of a child like that has got to be… nearly unlimited, I bet."
"Probably, yeah." Raphael mused, as he moved the scanning probe towards Palutena's gelled-up belly. "God slash Angel slash Devil, that's a fun idea for a hybrid if I've ever heard one."
Roxas let out a small snort, smiling slightly.
"Hopefully with a name that's less of a mouthful." He remarked. "All of that, what you said, Raphael, takes a while to say."
"Divine Nephalem, perhaps?" Palutena suggested, adjusting her position on the bed.
"Maybe." Raphael replied. "In fact, yeah, that sounds pretty good. Now, shall we get this started?"
So Nephalem finally hit 1,000,000 views on this site... I'm speechless. I really am. What a fucking milestone to hit, thank you all so fucking much.
Anyway, that's Chapter 63 of Nephalem completed: only two left until the end of this first stint. Roxas is another step closer to officially being called the Heir of the Lucifer Clan, which I think we can all agree is a pretty big step up from being Heir of the Gremory Clan, or just anything related to the Gremory Clan in general. On top of that, the fabled Amazon that Roxas said he slept with, all that time ago? Pyrrha goddamn Nikos. Couldn't have ended up being a better woman...
Also, turns out Aphrodite disguised herself so she could fuck Roxas. Surprise? That a surprise? I don't think it's a surprise. Also, Scathach wants to fuck Roxas. See Aphrodite.
And on top of all of that, Roxas and Palutena are FINALLY about to find out more about their kid. Boy? Girl? Who knows? Me! If you want to guess, go for it.
Anyway, hope you readers enjoyed this chapter, and you have it in you to leave reviews to tell me your thoughts, or if you want to chat with me (about the fic, DxD in general or something else entirely), drop me a PM, look me up on Discord (my name's on my profile) or join my Discord server (link to join that is also on my profile. Just paste it into a browser and take out the spaces). Any of those methods works just fine for me.
Seeya!