Chapter 9: Raison d'être
"Michael, I didn't know you were keeping secrets from me," Gabriel accused.
"Gabriel, I—" Michael began, but he halted, unwilling to exacerbate the situation or breed misconceptions.
"Do you not trust me?" she asked, an edge of sadness and disappointment cutting the air between them.
Gabriel's voice softened as she realized his hesitation, her annoyance dissolving with time. "Michael, I know you have your reasons for keeping this from me, but I need to know that I can trust you. Can you please tell me what's going on?"
"I… I apologize for not telling you, you had not been the same since the death of Father. I don't want to burden you with more problems like this" Michael tried to reason with his sister.
"Michael, how dared you keep this from me? You know I trusted and cared for you, and that I've lost enough people in my life. And here you are, betraying that trust by keeping secrets that could threaten heaven!" Gabriel replied, with an angry look, and her sharp green eyes staring at Michael.
Gabriel was clearly upset but still couldn't help but acknowledge his reasoning and genuine remorse. Her anger and irritation had softened as she saw the guilt in his eyes and realized how guilty he felt. She didn't like seeing him like this, it made her feel guilty too.
Oh wow, awkward….
"You're Kiyoyama Nao, right?" Gabriel spoke softly, embodying her usual compassion and love, even in the wake of God's demise.
The boy nodded, and Gabriel continued, "Michael has been trying to recruit you for a long time, ever since that day when you mysteriously took down a group of Fallen Angels by yourself. But paperwork can be cumbersome, and with the growing tension between the three of us, it's challenging."
"I've seen way too much death and destruction in my life already, especially with the loss of Father. I can't stomach the thought of more lives being ripped away and more pain and loss being inflicted on everyone. It's not fair, and I just can't do it anymore." Gabriel's tone was burdened, like she was there but she didn't do enough. Imagine the lives she could have saved if they were strong enough? Father would be alive…
"Gabriel, we lost Father," Michael echoed, his tone subdued and solemn.
"I know," Gabriel agreed, her voice soft and sympathetic, "we lost a lot of good angels, and now we're on a one-way ticket to extinction."
The room fell silent before Nao spoke up.
"You all went to war?"
"We went to war, and we lost our Father in the process. It was a devastating event for us all, but Gabriel's words carry an undertone of resignation and grief, tinged with resentment and bitterness.
"How did God die?"
Gabriel's tone grew firmer as she guided Nao towards the private meeting area with Michael in tow. "I'm afraid this is a highly guarded secret of Heaven. Only four of us know what happened to God."
Nao felt a surge of curiosity.
What happened to God here?
Why is Gabriel acting like this, and why is she risking a highly guarded secret on a high schooler?
Gabriel led Nao and Michael towards a more secluded area, a plush yet formal meeting space. The area seemed almost comically opulent, with its golden walls, extravagant furnishings and excessive security measures. Nao was overwhelmed by the luxurious and excessive surroundings, curious and a little apprehensive. Soundproofing? Bulletproofing? Wait, Heaven wouldn't need bulletproofing.
"Take a seat now, Kiyoyama-san."
Nao sat on the golden chair; it was more than plush, more comfortable than anything he'd ever experienced.
"Where do we begin? God's death? How should we go about this, Michael?"
"I think we should explain our position first, and then we can go from there," Michael suggested.
"The rage and vengeance that radiated from your actions against Dohnaseek reminded us of a dark time in Heaven's history. We've seen that kind of blind fury before, and the sight is a sobering one. We have eyes all over Kuoh, yet this is the first time we've witnessed something like that in a long while." Gabriel explained.
"What she meant to say was, you summoned someone from a distant past, yet no one has heard of him for a long time. It was one of Father's closest secrets. I've only known about it since I took over Heaven."
Kiyoyama's curiosity grew with every word Gabriel spoke, but Michael remained reserved. "It's nothing to worry about," he replied.
Gabriel's expression tightened, her eyes narrowing with annoyance. "It's a big secret for a reason, Michael. Do you want me to tell him?"
"What is this big secret, Michael?" Kiyoyama asked.
"Who he really is and all the stuff he didn't tell us from the beginning. The main reason I haven't charged you with treason is that what you said at the meeting, there might be some truth to it."
"All right, I'm curious," Kiyoyama added, his curiosity piqued further.
Gabriel turned to face Kiyoyama straight on, her expression neutral yet serious. "You have summoned Ba'al, an entity that is not well known to most angels. His existence had mostly vanished from the records millennia ago. Since Michael took control of Heaven, there have still been some lingering secrets, even Father didn't share everything with us."
"Ba'al was a close friend of Father. They both had a mutual understanding and respect for one another until a few millennia ago, when something changed that." Michael went on to explain how the power struggle after Helel's rebellion led to all the gods fighting over the throne of God, almost tearing Heaven apart.
"It was not until the rebellion of Helel that everything went into chaos for a while. Father wasn't ruling Heaven at that time; the title belonged to El. He mentored Father, and El was the reason Father became more interested in human affairs. After Helel's rebellion, all gods in Heaven were at each other's throats, trying to claim the throne of God. Fortunately, we won. That was the only record we know about the fight to claim the throne of Heaven. Technically it was not even called Heaven, but the assembly of gods."
"Why didn't you tell Heaven about this? Surely they have the right to know," Nao continued, prying for more information.
"Many angels were born after the bloodshed and strife that tore apart the assembly of gods long ago. But a few of us, including myself, are of that older generation. Remember, we are the Great Seraphs."
Nao shrugged. "I had no idea. The Michael I knew was just a soldier for God. Well a good one at that. He was still loyal to God even after Lucifer took over the empyrean."
Both angels exchanged a glance, their expression of surprise and confusion identical.
"The Empyrean?" Both angels asked in a unison manner.
"Well, it's Heaven? A place where a Nahobino would rule the world, and YHVH was a Nahobino before he was killed by Lucifer. And no, it's not like this, not some comfortable place. It was dark, gloomy, not really a place where the believers want to believe in." Nao explained
"Oh well enough about me. Continue then," Nao said
"Well, we were among the most loyal angels of God, as a few of us… you know the rest." Michael assumed Nao would know due to his familiarity with gods and demons.
Nao asked calmly, "Oh? Satan, Lucifer, and his fellow fallen angels? They're the first who rebelled against God."
Michael smiled. "Right. He was the first to refuse to bow to God after tempting one of God's first creations, Adam... which you're already familiar with.
"Wait, you said humans existed before God? But I thought Adam was God's first creation?"
"Eden… it wasn't on Earth, Kiyoyama. God wanted to try and create the perfect human in his image. Humans have been a thing for some time now, but Adam was his creation."
"Then He created Lilith?" Nao asked.
It's as you said… God first created Lilith. But that did not end well. Once Father banished her, he created Eve for Adam, and you know what happened after that."
It was old but new information to him. Lucifer in his world was not really a fallen angel. And he did what he did, because the neutrality of humans was something that the gods wanted to abuse. YHVH was not a kind god in his world, he was a tyrannical god for all of the Nahobino. Forcing them to split between the human and their demon partners. Only after the death of YHVH was then Nahobino allowed to fuse.
"Now, the reason why we called you up here was because of your immense power; you scared all of us," Michael said, stopping himself before he went any further.
"Michael, you don't need to say it." Gabriel cut him off, trying to smooth things over.
"No, I must," Michael insisted, his tone firm. "We are afraid because we feel the presence of divinity that emanates from you. Everyone in the room felt its effects after you summoned what they believed to be Uriel. And Uriel himself was not pleased, did you not see his reaction? It's like looking at yourself in a mirror – a reflection that appears to be like yourself, but there's much that is different. The familiarity is overwhelming and unnerving." Michael said. Because, well the aura they emanate was the same. If a human were to look at the fake Uriel, they might even believe the fake to be the real one.
"He didn't appreciate that," Nao said to Michael, forwarding Uriel's feelings.
"Wait, you can communicate with him even though he is not present? That is truly remarkable." Gabriel's interest was sparked.
"Gabriel, please stay on the topic." Michael advised. The talk of Kiyoyama's other power can be discussed in later time.
"With all that power you possess, you're capable of destroying Heaven, Hell, and anything in between." Michael's words were heavy with a subtle threat.
"So I offer you an accord, an offer if you will."
"What are you offering me, Michael?" Nao's uncertainty was evident in his words. Despite Michael's subtle threats, he didn't seem intimidated - if he wishes to destroy heaven, so be it. Everyone in this world has tried to manipulate him in some sort of way, be it angels, fallen angels, and even devils.
Well, the offer was not outlandish by any means. It was simply in the best interests of Heaven; they'd keep tabs on the majority of the supernatural activities Nao might encounter, so there went any dreams he may have entertained of hunting stray devils to keep himself warm and fed. Nao's acceptance of it was not without cause, however, for if he were to anger any faction, that would result in another war - a war he'd end up squarely at the center of once more.
"Well, it's not the best deal, true," Azazel chuckled, walking alongside the Nahobino, "But hey, what can you say? Heaven's just really uptight about these sorts of things."
"I don't get it," Nao remarked about the deal he'd made with Michael. "If Heaven's so scared, then why don't they just kill me? Why all this mental gymnastics and protection from other parties? What are they even trying to convey?"
"It's a bluff," Azazel abruptly said.
"A bluff?"
"Let's be real here," Azazel continued, "if they could kill you, they would. But that would make them look even worse. If your involvement with the devils puts them in a worse light, just imagine what a war between you and them would do. The angels' ranks have been depleted to the point of exhaustion because of the news of God's demise. If they were to anger you, and you decide to turn into a tokusatsu ranger and strike with absolute madness, who do you think would win?"
"Fair enough." Nao responded, conceding Azazel's point but not entirely convinced of the situation.
"Oh c'mon, your face says you're apathetic to this. Let's just say that if Heaven were to win and survive, they wouldn't be even able to realistically rebuild. It's really just not feasible for them. And as far as the devils go, they're in the same boat. But I hear they've got something working for them, with Diadora's invention giving them reincarnated devils at a helpful but not entirely significant pace." Azazel mused.
"What's the story behind it?" Nao asked.
"Nah, too much. I'll fill you in later. Just remember, all the major players have their own agenda - including me. So watch out, okay? I know you're one of the most powerful beings around, and even I'm frightened," Azazel said. "You can easily defeat Heaven if you want. It won't stop you from killing all other factions too. Even though the beings you have are different, their powers are more potent than ours."
"How do you know?" Nao wondered the truth about it too? Are the demons that he have more powerful than the same beings in this world?
"Well, let me see myself, Azazel, the Azazel that you know, bring him forward." Azazel requested.
Nao's Azazel appeared in a flash of red fire, wearing edgy clothing with a bat symbol covering his crotch. Like a sudden breeze, he stood there with a pair of devilish horns atop his head.
"What do you want, weakling?" the faux Azazel asked, gazing upon Azazel with a look of contempt.
"Y-Yeah..." the Azazel of this world mumbled, his mouth still agape.
"Huh, you are the being I would call pathetic. Look at you, smelling like booze and women. I am ashamed we share a name. I am the one who sets free mankind, to give them free will. But you, you disgust me." the faux Azazel said, his tone dripping with disdain.
"I…" Azazel said, trying to come up with a retort but he was too taken aback by the insults that he was unable to think.
Before the situation could escalate any further, Nao wisely recalled Azazel, realizing that the interaction would only cause more harm than good.
"Oh wow, that was a handful." Nao mumbled to himself, still reeling from the tense interaction he had just witnessed.
"We are so different, yet he and I share a connection to one another. It's not something I want to experience. It felt so surreal." Azazel seemed at a loss for words, his thoughts scrambling to process the revelation that he had just wanted to see himself, but that was not what he was expecting. True, both of them have the same background, but the faux Azazel that Nao summoned seemed to want humans to have a better life. Unlike himself, who only used his power as a Fallen Angel to get some thrills from human women in exchange for helping them create new weapons.
"Kid, when he said he wanted to free mankind, what did he mean?"
"The fundamental difference between our worlds, I suppose. In my world, gods and Demons have used humans to do their bidding, and Azazel wanted to free them. But because he was acting under God, he got banished. I assume that's not the case here?" Nao shrugged, trying to make sense of it all. His world was clearly different.
"Similar, but with many differences. This is not how I imagined my time with you would go, you have broken my worldview, and heaven too." Azazel said, his mind filled with questions and concern. "But looking at how powerful you are, why are you so... apathetic about the supernatural world? You have a power that many of the gods would kill to have even half of it." He continued, his tone shifting to one of curiosity and a bit of envy.
"The supernatural world has taken my friend's life, decimated the world I know and love and forced me to wage a battle for survival and slay the most powerful being in my world. How would you react?" Nao retorted, his tone tinged with subtle anger but his eyes betraying no malice of any kind.
"With all of your powers... yet you still choose to be a normal human student?" Azazel said, his tone still filled with curiosity and a hint of disapproval.
"You have no right to tell me what to do," Nao snapped at the Azazel, his face full of anger and rage. "You are all the same, you all want me to do your bidding! I AM NOT SOME KIND OF TOOL TO BE USED!" He continued, his emotions continuing to escalate.
"I am sorry kid, I didn't mean to-" Azazel started saying before Nao started raising his voice and getting even more emotional.
"No, you're not sorry about this! Why do I have to do all the random shit you guys give me? I... I..." Nao's voice broke up, and he started crying. His emotions were overflowing, and he let it all run loose. "I just want to see my friends again… All that I had done for them and for what?" Nao cried, his voice breaking as his anger, hurt, sadness and frustration overcame him. "An alcoholic angel trying to order me around? Angels trying to monitor my every move? And devils that would definitely want me to be their slaves?" Nao cried even harder.
Awkward silence, that was what Azazel felt at the child's sudden eruption of emotion. So strong, and yet so weak. Only circumstances pushed him to be like this.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to snap like that," Nao tried to reason, suppressing his emotions. Azazel seemed to understand, and he pulled Nao into a comforting, yet still slightly awkward hug.
"Y-You smell l-like a-alcohol." Nao finally managed to squeeze out through his sobbing.
Azazel sighed, exasperated at the entire situation, but he continued to hold the boy in his arms anyway.
'This damned kid' Azazel thought.
Well this chapter took longer than expected... My bad guys, it's just in 2023 I had lost my will for any Shin Megami Tensei and Highschool DxD related content, I had initially planned this for the next chapter but things happen and let's just accept it and move on. So... with the announcement of Shin Megami Tensei Vengeance, do you guys want me to continue this story without mentioning the existence of it? Should I rewrite the story to fit the new narrative? Or maybe I can make something new with the upcoming game? Anyways I am hyped for it, as the original Shin Megami Tensei V was a good game but lacked in narratives and story. Atlus has cooked with the release of Persona 3: Reload and I have been enjoying my time playing the game, and I hope this carries on to Shin Megami Tensei Vengeance too!
That's it for this chapter guys, thank you all for the likes and follows, even though I haven't been active. Haha...