The Embers under the Great Tree

I

It was quiet.

She supposed it was expected, or perhaps unexpected.

Ophelia could not argue one way or the other whether it was natural for it to be as silent as it was.

It was just…alarmingly tense, a sense of unease which had been lingering over the heads of everyone since the arrival of their supposed new allies. She might not have been one to voice her worries where they could be seen or heard, but that did not mean that they did not exist.

And she doubted she was alone.

Her steps slowed, she turned her head and gazed from the window down to the small clearing just beyond the walls of the base, the frozen landscape below, and just stared at the multitude of shapes which wandered around. She did not begin to try and count them but she knew there would be at least a thousand of them there.

Perhaps more?

Perhaps less.

It was still a struggle to piece together what had happened in the direct aftermath of the prison break in Heaven. The only one who seemed to have an ounce of the complete picture - as well as what had transpired - was Jedidiah and he had been spending most of his time in discussion with his newly summoned Familiar.

She winced.

'Servant.' they were supposedly called.

Ophelia felt her lips grow thinner as she turned her head from the window and started to walk once again, only to find that she was not the only one who had been standing there and watching the group. She stopped and stared at the other figure, still wearing the sunglasses, and with an expression that was a barely repressed scowl.

He twitched, then turned to face her.

"...Morning." Connla nodded to her slowly, then looked back down towards the angels.

Ophelia hummed a reply in response but said nothing, with a final stray glance down before she resumed walking once again and perhaps she would have walked right past the teen if he had not called out to her the second she was right past his shoulders.

"Does he know what he's doing?"

She did not need to know who Connla was speaking off to understand his question.

"I do not doubt his judgments."

A huff greeted her, one that was either irritated or resigned, she could not tell which it was.

"It was a yes or no question." Connla replied, turning his head. She heard and felt his eyes on the side of her face, though she did not turn to face him. Instead she just kept her gaze on the hallway and remained quiet as he spoke. "I want to know whether he knows what he is doing. Cao Cao trusts him…that's fine. I trust Cao Cao…but he was the one who convinced him to let all these…"

He fell silent and the sound of grinding teeth filled the hall instead.

Ophelia turned her gaze and saw that he was half turned her way, jaw clenched and brows tight as he was visibly fighting back a more passionate reaction.

"...New associates." He decided, but he managed to make the word sound venomous. "Does your guy know what he is doing or is this…how many more Kuoh's is it going to take?"

Ophelia twitched ever so slightly, then turned her head to face Connla fully.

"You did not raise such protests over the debated attack on Kyoto. Unless you were under the impression that it would be resolved without civilian casualties?"

Her words were logical.

And they were delivered with the cold tone that such logic deserved.

"It was always expected that the end result would not come without bloodshed. It is inevitable that some will die for our mission to be completed-"

"In service to a goal that benefits us." Connla argued before shaking his head, shoulders slumping and whatever fight had been inside of him abruptly vanished as though it had not been there in the least.

Slowly, he turned back to the window and stared down.

"...How does this benefit humanity?"

Ophelia tilted her head. "It is logical. The more the forces of Heaven, Devils and Grigori spend on dealing with this rebellious faction, the less attention they will divert towards us. They provide a greater distraction freed-"

"Distraction." Connla huffed, raised a hand and then shooed her away.

She did not frown at his blatant attitude, but she did step away from him and turn her back. Moving on and putting the conversation out of her mind as she continued on her path. It was the argument that she had been recycling to herself from the moment it happened. Not as though she had received an explanation for it.

Or why they suddenly had the Old Satan Faction supporters fleeing back to the underworld to escape the new angels.

The very least Ophelia could say was their new associates weren't nearly as problematic as the Devils. At least these ones seemed to keep to themselves unless directly approached.

Though that might prove a slight problem when it came to teamwork in the future.

But she was sure that Lord Kirschtaria would have a plan for that, he always seemed to know what the right course of action was.

Jedidiah as well, he was always so certain in whatever he did.

Which meant he had foreseen the outcome and judged it worthwhile.

If the two of them were fine with this, then she could place her faith with them and that would be the end of it for her. There was no reason to further consider this or even allow her mind to stray into the destruction of Kuoh as anything more than the opening salvo of their operation beginning in full.

Yes.

That was just how it was.

So she would simply need to harden her heart to more of this sort of thing in the future and-

"May they find peace under his light."

She stopped and strained her hearing to the whisper, a voice that was barely loud enough to be heard and yet stopped her all the same. Coming from just up ahead at an open door, though the interior seemed to be dark.

"May they be spared further cruelty."

Something compelled her forwards from the voice, she stepped closer and closer until she was upon the doorway.

Turning her head to look inside, though she felt as though she might have been intruding upon a private moment. Yet the door was open, which meant that it could not have been so private a moment?

Perhaps she was overthinking things.

"Let his love find them…even from beyond…Amen."

He was crouched forwards, hands clasped together before a small cross mounted on the wall.

Ophelia kept her face still as she realised who this was and what was happening. She stepped backwards and turned her head away, moving onwards and past the door of Riders quarters.

…She wasn't surprised to find that he had been praying.

If that was how he found comfort, then who was she to judge?

Ophelia shook her head and dismissed those thoughts from her mind and continued onwards.

There were other things to deal with at the moment.

And she had been spending her time wisely since the meeting, examining every avenue that was available to her as well as making use of the contact between herself and Lord Hades - via that of Persephone - in regards to their Valhalla problem.

She had finally found the solution.

Or at least, the beginnings of one.

He was in his room and had apparently been there for nearly half a day.

Ophelia had figured as such from the moment she realised he was nowhere else and loathed as she might have been to disturb him during his private moments, this was something that she felt could not wait.

Hopefully, Lord Kirschtaria would understand her intrusion.

Pressing the buzzer for his room, she stepped back and folded her hands behind her back. Though not before giving herself a quick once over with her eye to ensure that there was nothing out of place or otherwise untidy with her appearance. The very last thing she wanted to be doing was showing up to his room looking like a slob.

That would be rather embarrassing.

Satisfied with herself, she patiently awaited him to answer the door.

And privately hoped that she had not disturbed him.

Seconds started to tick past.

Then the door slowly hissed, the seal broke, metal rose up into the ceiling and vanished.

Lord Kirschtaria appeared rather suddenly in the doorway, looking down at her in surprise for a mere moment until it vanished, he straightened up and pulled at his shirt. Wearing only a plain black shirt and what looked to be cotton trousers. She quickly shook her head and looked back towards him.

"I hope I am not disturbing you."

He regarded her for a moment, then seemed to blink as though he was surprised she spoke before quickly composing himself and stepping backwards. "Not at all. Please, come in."

Ophelia took only a moment to accept his offer.

"I seem to have allowed time to slip me by during these trying times. I shall attempt to remedy that in the future."

"You do not need to explain yourself to me, Lord Kirschtaria." She replied, stepping into the room and gazing around. Faintly aware of another sound playing off underneath their conversation. The quiet words seemed far off, but briefly drew her eye to the corner of the room where upon a coffee table - and it was nothing more than a plain coffee table - there was a tablet.

The distraction ended as she was stepped past, the blonde moved across to the other side of the room and started to sort through some cupboards.

"Would you care for a drink? I believe I have some tea or coffee for you." He stopped just short of reaching into the cupboard, then turned his head and watched her for a brief moment before he removed his hand. "Or perhaps you are here to speak with me about something vital? I can see there is a rather strong look in your eye."

Was she so transparent?

Well, he was not wrong.

"You are correct." Ophelia confessed with a slight nod of the head. "I have finalised a plan for securing the aid of Loki. Though I…"

She hesitated for a few moments, not quite letting the grimace show on her face but it was a trying thing.

Even speaking this next part aloud felt rather troubling.

It had long since been made apparent that Lord Kirschtaria had an appreciation for well crafted strategies, but she could not lie to him about this.

Under his watchful and inquisitive gaze, she kept her gaze focused on his own.

"I will admit that a portion of it relies on the nature of Surtr himself. If he is ultimately unwilling, then the current iteration of the plan will fail."

She braced herself for chastisement.

He was silent for some time, lips thinning themselves before the sounds of before drew his eyes away to the corner of the room.

This time she was able to hear a little part of it as he moved off from her and towards the tablet.

"-with additional aid being promised by UN member states to assist in the recovery of the region, the Japanese government has declined to comment as to a potential cause of the disaster which has currently claimed at least fifty-thousand lives-"

He switched the tablet off and set it face down on the table, then slowly rose back up and folded his hands behind his back.

A low hum rippled out from him, then he turned around and faced her.

"Are you comfortable in leaving such things to chance?"

"...Not entirely." She admitted with some shame. "But I believe that it has a chance for success and if that is the case, it should be attempted. If nothing else, it will answer the reason of why Surtr never answered the call for the beginning of Ragnarok and how Odin safeguarded himself from it - if he truly did in the first place - and how that might affect us."

With a slow breath, Lord Kirschtaria nodded his head up and down. "That might well be worth learning, but I am unsure as to whether it could be worth the potential risk that you are implying it would hold. The last instance in which you spoke of this plan-"

She straightened. "Lord Kirschtaria."

He stopped speaking and looked at her.

"I am confident in my ability to make it work. I am prepared to face the risk."

Silence fell upon them once again.

With his arms folded behind his back, Lord Kirschtaria turned his head from her and rolled his jaw back and forth. A slow and deliberate movement which only served to raise the tension within her. If he told her to find another plan, she would do exactly that. She was not blind to the risks and yet this too was part of it.

There would likely be some appeal to the trickster God as to what she was intending to do.

Or perhaps the straightforward nature of the gambit would amuse him.

Though she could not say for sure which of the two were certain.

"...Very well."

She straightened at his declaration.

"If that is how you wish to progress, then I will offer no further words of warning in regards to this strategy of yours. If you have spent so much time and have so much confidence, then I will not insult your capabilities or your personal judgement as to how capable you are of seeing this plan through."

He nodded his head.

"You may proceed at your own discretion and I shall await your final report."

Ophelia felt as though her throat had gone dry, she did not speak initially and instead bowed her head once more.

"Thank you, Lord Kirschtaria."

There was little time to waste then.

"Oh."

His words stopped her before she could leave.

"There is a meeting later. Jedidiah scheduled it to discuss the aftermath of the Kuoh Incident…as it has been noted down for future reference."

Incident.

Yes, that sounded far more appealing to the tongue than what actually happened and it would be prudent for them to understand what really transpired after the forces of the rebellious angels and newly arrived Daemons were forced into a retreat.

All she had been aware of, thus far, is that there was now a divine presence in Kuoh on account of the Japanese Gods.

Somewhat unfortunate, if they hoped for further intrusions into Japan.

"I shall attend."

Lord Kirshctaria nodded his head.

"Then I shall see you then."

With that done, she turned on her heel and made for the door once more, sparing only a single glance over her shoulder and seeing that he had turned away from her and was setting the tablet back on the table, flipping it up and turning it on once more. The same news report flashed up.

The door closed as the words of destruction came tumbling out of the reporter.

Ophelia kept herself in the doorway for only a few seconds.

She would need to check for the precise timing of the meeting, but until that happened, she could-

"Oh?"

A voice from further up the corridor, her eyes snapped towards it as the next shout came a touch louder.

"¡Hola!" The volume had her fight back a wince as it echoed off the enclosed space and before she could even register the new arrival - at least beyond the logical assumption of who it was - there was a sudden blur of yellow and camo pattern which all but flew into her personal space and flung a tight hold over her shoulder.

She tensed at the contact, lone eye snapping across to the slightly taller individual.

A beaming smile met her and she very pointedly tried to avoid looking at the fact the teeth were more akin to a sharks than a human, her eye shot up to the green orbs which burned rather brightly as the hold dragged her just that little bit tighter to the embrace of the Goddess.

Because personal space was apparently optional.

As it had been since the moment this one arrived.

"...Lady-"

The smile turned a touch sharper and the eyes glinted with a hint of warning.

Only to change into a pout.

"...Quetzalcoatl."

Even that just made the pout all the more deeper.

Absolutely not.

She was not going to stoop to that level just to please the Goddess, there were certain lines that she would not cross and that was one of them. Projecting as much from the flat stare that she was sending the way of the blonde.

With a huff and an exaggerated moan of sorrow, the Goddess stepped away from her with slumped shoulders in a manner akin to some chastised child.

Ophelia had to remind herself that this was a Chief Goddess.

It was a difficult task, especially as she had met others.

And there remained the clear distinction between this one and Hades.

"Why can't you call me hermana mayor?" Folding her arms and shaking her head, the goddess raised a questioning brow. "I thought we had found an understanding with one another, sí?"

Ophelia thinned her lips. "I dropped the formalities as was requested of you, Quetzalcoatl."

"But-" She stopped and then sighed, tilting her head. "The others agreed to call me it."

And?

"That is their own personal choice." The reply earned another pout and she decided to end this before it became an argument.

By switching topics entirely.

"Are you meeting with Lord Kirschtaria?"

The expression brightened a little bit. "I am! I'm going to try and cheer him up!"

Ophelia kept her expression from twitching at great strength.

"If you say so." It was an even response, despite the fact there was something else she would have rather said but far be it from her to be rude or insulting. This was, at the end of the day, still a Goddess who had allied with them.

"And what about you?"

She blinked very slowly. "My mood is adequate."

She was fine.

Perhaps a touch nervous as to the future but there was no reason for her to feel anything other than fine. This was something that she had long been expecting and mentally preparing herself for. There was no surprise in the outcome and she had been forewarned.

What was she supposed to be feeling other than tense for the future?

Surely that was ordinary, yes?

Quetzalcoatl, however, seemed to find something else in her face as she leaned forwards and loomed over her ever so slightly. Almost to the point that they were nose to nose with one another. Eyes squinted a low and warbling hum rippling in her throat that reminded her faintly of some sort of lizard.

Then she stopped crowding her, giving a soft smile. "Feel free to join if ever you feel it!"

And then she was away.

Ophelia barely suppressed a twitch of the eye at the way the Goddess just barged into the room without even requesting entry, the raised voice of the Goddess echoed loudly behind her as she tensed her shoulders and turned away. Marching down the corridor as the voices receded.

It was truly a testament to Lord Kirschtaria that he could endure such things and remain unaffected.

…She found herself struggling with the Goddess at times.

And she had been the more friendly of the two.

…But then again, Daybit and Lord Kirschtaria were just…better than her.

So of course what she thought impossible would be very possible for them, she did not need to understand how they did it.

She could just trust their ability to do it.

Final preparations for her plan were underway.

Until the meeting was called and she could leave, there was little else to be done except for going over them all over again. Making sure that everything was right and proper.

Once more, she turned her eye to the side of the room where the shape had lingered since the moment she entered. The vaguely humanoid shaped shadow had remained in the corner of her eye from the moment she stepped into the room and she was certain that it had been watching her.

But she did not confront it.

It had not approached her so there was no need for-

"What is it that interests you so deeply?"

Ophelia jerked ever so slightly, the table thudded as her knee almost struck it and she was rendered still for a short second before catching herself and composing to avoid looking as though she had truly been frightened. Very slowly, she brought her head up and then turned to look at the speaker.

Then she felt herself go numb.

It had not just been the shape of a shadow.

It was a shadow.

The cloak shifted in a breeze that was not felt or seen, and the mask bore down past her into the tomes in front of her. Behind the bone white lay twin specs of twinkling light, tiny little reflections and nothing else. For several terrifying moments, she felt herself struck by the silence and the emptiness of the room.

Then she took in a slow and measured breath and looked back to the book in front of her.

But the one behind her answered first.

"...The prophecy of Ragnarok."

The feminine voice whispered in a…tone that she could not place.

It was not interest, but it was not exactly apathy either.

Briefly, she was curious enough to ask a question.

"Was it a topic that was ever discussed?"

The masked angel behind her remained silent for some moments.

Then spoke curtly.

"It was not relevant to our task to gossip about the state of other pantheons."

Ophelia noted that it was not exactly an answer to her question, rather it seemed to be more of a deflection.

She looked out of the corner of her eye and then noted that the shadow was gone as if it had not been there in the first-

"But."

Her head whipped back around to the front of her.

The Angel was now standing directly before her table and gazing down, head tilted ever so slightly.

"...We briefly discussed the threat Odin would pose if he were to wage war during our weakened state. It was a topic the Second Morning brought to Brother Maalik when he argued for an end to aggression. He claimed that the danger and warmongering of Asgard would sweep in and wipe us out if we persisted and revealed the true extent of our weakness."

Ophelia thinned her lips. "...Odin presents a grave threat-"

The mask was suddenly right in front of her, she felt her throat go dry and her words sputter out.

"Yes." The angel replied very slowly. "He does. One that you have volunteered to remove."

Very slowly, the mask left her personal space and the figure vanished once more.

There was no warning and no sound.

They were simply there one second and gone the next.

Ophelia did not do anything as drastic as turn her head about in some wild display to see where they would next appear. Instead she controlled her heart and started to prepare herself for if - when - the next place they would manifest would be and to answer whatever question they would pose.

If they posed one at all.

Yes.

If the male Angel was Maalik…

Then this was the other one.

Their name was Susāʾīl, if she was to recall correctly.

Cold swept over her nape, she tensed as the voice whispered once more.

"Yet why comb through the records of something that never came to be? What is it that interests you in those broken promises of what was to come? It is no more than a testament to the arrogance of those who believed they could match the Heavenly Fathers gaze."

Closing her eyes, Ophelia answered.

"I shall not comment on the Clairvoyance of God, merely that it was clearly exceedingly powerful. Jedidiah has spoken as such, claiming that his own is a step beneath that of the Abrahamic God."

The cold vanished from her nape, but seemed to spread around the room.

The light flickered above her head.

And there was the feeling of something looking down on her from above, but she did not turn her head to stare. Her lips grew thinner still, her heart hammering without her own control over it. Clearly the work of some passive aura exuded by the Zabaniya angel, on account of where they had been stationed and what their role was.

It was expected of the guardians of Hell to be somewhat off-putting to mortal humans.

And yet…

Lord Kirschtaria would likely be unaffected, she clenched her jaw and exhaled.

"But I am…not certain that the prophecy was wrong, merely that it was delayed."

The room was bathed in silence.

She could see white in the far corner of her eye, nothing detailed, but the blur was enough to tell her the position of her audience.

"I do not believe even Odin holds the capacity to prevent fixed events, but shifting the dates is another matter entirely…or removing certain aspects entirely. Yet the moment they are returned or put into motion, I believe everything shall proceed as was foretold."

That was, ultimately, what she was convinced was the case.

Prophecies were not something to be taken lightly.

And she did not believe that Odin would have been taken in at the words of a seer with no ounce of truth. Else he would have been more of a fool than wise. Which meant there had been some way of validating this seers claims and had caused him to act and prevent them.

The prophecy was well known.

…It was a pop culture icon.

The details were known and yet something had caused it to never come, which meant that there was something amiss.

"And you believe you can trigger this?"

Ophelia slowly shook her head. "No. I believe that I can find one who can…or open the path for it to be caused. It is…simpler to remove Asgard as a threat entirely, rather than to merely slay Odin. He is a danger but as a whole, Asgard would seek revenge and they have many individuals who are of great strength."

Susāʾīl was silent.

Then she heard a response. "...The Thunder God…and the one blessed with invulnerability to all threats. Physical or magical."

Thor and Baldur.

The former was just pure might that his strength was legendary,

The latter was just immortal and invincible.

Fighting both was a daunting prospect, but Ragnarok foretold of their demise.

All they needed to do was trigger it and hope that the preparations of Jedidiah were more than enough to contain the destruction to Asgard alone, rather than having it spill outwards.

"An inspired plan." Susāʾīl commented, but it was hard to tell if it was praise or mockery.

Ophelia looked back to her book.

"It is the plan I am moving forwards with."

"...As you say."

The shadows started to recede, but not without one final remark.

"Which leaves the penalties for success or failure on your head alone."

Ophelia clenched her jaw and looked up.

The room was empty save for her.

…The consequences were on her shoulders?

Of course she knew that, she did not need it being spoken aloud for her to know.

Though if there was one thing she would have preferred, it was that their newfound allies understood the importance of personal space and privacy.

She eyed the small golden wolf like creature that sat at the feet of Kadoc, then allowed her lone eye to climb to his face.

He said nothing and gave no indication he had noticed her gaze.

She had never seen it stray from his side in all the time since he had returned and he looked far from comforted by the presence, but was choosing to ignore it. Slouched forwards with atrocious posture and hands in his pockets, the same awful bags clung to his cheeks and wearing a face that looked to have the skin slipping away from him.

"...Did you receive adequate rest?" It was something she felt the need to ask.

Her only response was a slow side-eye from Kadoc before he huffed back in response and shook his head.

"Sleeping won't cure this." He grumbled back rather quietly. "And I'm not all too comfortable in sleeping with all these angels crowding around…or that literal Old Man of the Mountain who is now somewhere here."

Ophelia neglected to mention that there was a good chance said Hassan was in the elevator with them right now and neither of them knew it, but Kadoc appeared to be losing whatever hold he had on his tongue.

And it was not as though she would deny his complaints.

Some forewarning on how many allies they received would not have gone unappreciated.

He looked at her and grunted. "Did he tell you about any of this?"

Ophelia was not sure how she was supposed to take the question, instead she just slowly shook her head from side to side.

Kadoc just offered a wry smirk and then lost the trace of mirth entirely.

That was an expression she did not find herself pleased with seeing in the least. Her eye narrowed just a little as she turned her head from him and spoke. "Lord Kirschtaria is free to inform me of developments as and when they happen. I do not demand any more information than he deems fit to inform me and you should be satisfied with the same."

"...You can say that because you weren't dumped in a fucking woods and got attacked by a werewolf."

A small grumble met her ears, she glanced down to the golden wolf animal sitting at Kadoc's feet.

It seemed to have snorted before looking towards her and shooting an almost challenging glare her way.

The intellect in the eyes was as alarming as ever and she quickly felt it prudent to remove her attention from it.

"You agreed to the expedition." She pointed out. "Complaining about it even now seems far from sensible."

"Yeah." He huffed. "Whatever."

The elevator continued in silence, then ground to a stop.

The doors opened, but not on the right floor, and only to reveal the presence of some others on the other side. She quickly went upright and tensed, behind her she could hear the shuffling of Kadoc as the couple on the other side took a step forwards and into the elevator and looked between the two of them.

Vali raised a brow at them, then shrugged and turned around, completely ignoring them.

Kuroka had a more visceral reaction and leaned back from Kadoc, though she did not have her eyes on him. Rather she was reacting to the wolf at his feet and looked close to snarling at it. In turn, the golden animal just huffed dismissively towards her and turned its nose up to Kadoc.

He looked down briefly and then shook his head and looked back up.

"Awww~ I knew you cared." Kuroka teased.

Ophelia resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

"...I can change my mind at any moment, you know?"

Vali chortled in front of them. "Please do…I am very curious to see what would happen."

He wasn't even facing them, yet she could feel the smile in his words as he spoke.

Ophelia sent a warning look the way of Kadoc just in case he was fool enough to take the bait, but she was worried over nothing as his posture just slumped and he was back to looking at the ground and trying to avoid even being considered part of the current elevator population.

Meanwhile, she was more curious as to something else.

"Lord Kirschtaria invited you to attend the meeting?"

Kuroka was the one to answer her instead, switching her line of sight and immediately-

Ophelia blinked and had to turn her head to look down at her left as the feline woman slipped into her blindspot and put her up as a barrier between them and the golden wolf. Despite doing that, she maintained a visibly confident expression and managed to suppress her uncomfortable twitchings rather well.

It was only the slight spasm of her right brow that gave her away.

"He did." Kuroka replied with a slight roll on her words. "It seems as though I might have captured his eye…mmmmh?"

Ophelia did not even dignify the insinuation with a response, showing as much with a deadpan.

Kuroka pouted. "You're not very good at this, are you?"

"..."

"At least Kadoc responds…even if now he has that thing following him around and yes, I know you can hear and understand me." Kuroka leaned past and pointed towards the golden animal, levelling a finger towards it and narrowing her eyes.

There was likely some sort of joke to be made here.

But it was not all that funny.

No one really knew quite what the wolf was, only that it was not really a wolf despite looking like one.

Some ideas floated around was that it was some manner of elemental taking on the shape of a wolf and that really…was something that was somewhat disturbing. None were more troubled than Kadoc, given how it had attached itself to him. Nor the way it seemed to watch his every movement.

"Yeah, that's what I thought." Kuroka huffed at the silence of the wolf and turned her attention back to her, the smile dropping ever so slightly. "...But this is mostly so I can have a shout at a certain someone."

Ophelia had liked to believe that they were not so foolish, but they looked to be a little on edge at the moment.

More than that.

"Why are the two of you present with the Zabaniya and Daemons here?" She felt the need to ask, not that she would accuse either of them of being weak.

Injured though the Angel leader was at current, that did not diminish the presence of the second one who she had encountered earlier.

And whatever wounds the Daemons had been inflicted…that extended to the three who had been in Kuoh.

Not the other nine who were still very much active and uninjured.

"Oh? Are you worried-nya?" Kuroka smirked. "Are you worried as well, Kaddy-nya?"

"...I'm worried about how likely I am to get caught in the crossfire." Kadoc muttered a response.

Ophelia did not know what she was supposed to feel about the fact he had actually responded to the nickname.

"Even if they did have a problem." Vali answered in front of them, finally deciding to speak up. "Tezcatlipoca has already made it clear that this is an area of non-violence that he shall enforce…though they are free to pick a fight with me the second they leave, not that I care much for testing the strength of the vaunted Daemons."

Leave it to the White Dragon Emperor to sound cavalier at the prospect of fighting such things and not sound concerned in the least.

But yes.

They had two chief gods enforcing non-violence.

When they themselves were not picking a fight with the other.

Ophelia felt her eye close as she just realised how volatile their situation truly was in regards to their associates - perhaps acquaintances at best - were with one another and how likely it was that a single thing could set them all off.

"...So we can take bets on how long this is gonna last?"

Ophelia snapped her eye open and sent a glare at Kadoc."Refrain from making such jokes."

Kadoc looked unbothered and just shrugged. "Just a matter of time, lets face it. The Old Satan faction dipped the second those guys showed up and haven't talked back to us since then."

Vali snorted.

"Likely on account of what happened to them and their mage allies when they tried something."

Quite.

Katarea was still missing and presumed dead.

If it was revealed she was dead, then Ophelia would not be surprised.

Nor would she feel anything towards their death.

The room was half full by the time she and the others arrived and already there was a tension in the air that could not quite be described.

Especially as she looked across to the other side of the table and saw a rather surprising figure.

That being the angel who had led the attack on Michael.

Maalik.

Ophelia would admit that she was surprised, after the state that he had been dragged back to, she would have thought he would be recovering for at least another week, but whether or not his injuries were recovering, he did not seem to be showing any sign of weakness as he looked over the table in the far corner of the room.

The skull mask snapped to her and she stiffened purely on instinct.

Only to realise that he was not truly looking at her, but rather something behind her.

Her confusion only lasted until she felt that same cold presence as before, she did not need to look over her shoulder to know who had appeared. It became clear when the darkness passed between her and Kadoc and moved across, without even looking back and settling beside Maalik.

Susa-il.

How long had they been there just following her?

…Had they ever even left her alone in the first place?

She tried not to think about it.

With thinned lips, she walked across to her own reserved spot and then lowered herself down, glancing to the others and seeing that Kuroka was glaring at Maalik with a rather naked expression of hatred that, for the benefit of all involved, did not seem to be reciprocated.

But perhaps the fact it was being ignored was all the worse.

A flurry of gold and she looked across, the wolf had jumped onto Kadoc's lap and had positioned itself so that it was sat down right in front of his face, forcing him to stare over the top of its head and between the ears.

His only response was to sigh rather loudly but otherwise make no more to displace the world.

If he even could do that in the first place.

She thought very little further of it as instead the rest of the room started to assemble, those who had merely been waiting and watching were now finding their seats. The leaders of the Hero Faction and their own forces, what remained of the Old Satan faction had been outright replaced by Maalik and his own angels.

And on the topic of the angel, he was among the last to find his seat.

Even then, he did not sit down, with only a glance in the direction of Kuroka and Vali, he turned his head from them and then just stood behind his own seat without even touching it. Making it perfectly clear that he would not be doing much sitting during this meeting. Either because of some personal grudge against the Devils or some other reason she could not fathom.

Likely the first, rather than the second.

The door hissed open, the final members entered.

She straightened ever so slightly at the appearance of Lord Kirschtaria and Daybit, each of them flanked by the mesoamerican gods they had allied themselves with.

The final member to enter was Jedidiah.

A sweep of the room with rust coloured eyes and then a single nod of the head before he was striding across to the head of the table, his gaze lingered upon Maalik longer than all others before he eventually found the head of the table and settled himself down in his chair, dragging himself closer.

Ophelia found herself at a brief loss.

She was unsure as to what the meeting would even begin with.

So much had happened and a great deal had changed, such that she was certain it would be difficult to sum up with mere words.

Lord Kirschtaria cleared his throat, then leaned forwards, folding his hands onto the table and looking around.

"I would like to remind everyone involved, before we begin, that we have an agreement of non-violence and that while we can air whatever grievances we have here. I wish those who consider doing so to understand that if there is the slightest hint of further aggression, there will be interference."

He did not look in the direction of Maalik and Kuroka.

Even though it was clear he very much was referring to them.

Cao Cao grunted. "Well, with that out of the way. We might begin the meeting in earnest by discussing the aftermath and what our next steps should be…so that we are all on the same page here."

He looked around to see if anyone had anything to say, then grunted and folded his arms before nodding his head, seemingly satisfied.

"Good. Well, in that case, I shall hand over the damage report of the Kuoh incident to you, Jedidiah…seeing as though most of this happened on account of you."

Ophelia had to fight back a blink at that.

Jedidiah?

He made no effort to deny and instead leaned forwards and nodded one single time. "I was in correspondence with Azrael since before my encounter with all of you and informed him of what would transpire. He accepted it upon receiving proof of my abilities, with the stipulation that he would not agree to aid and release Maalik and the other prisoners from Heaven until the meeting came to fruition."

With the implication being left that all of this could have happened much, much earlier.

The thought was startling enough that Jedidiah had known about all of this for a rather exceeding length of time and had been planning for it.

Though it did beg the question of why none of them had been informed.

Or perhaps Lord Kirschtaria had been and just never saw fit to inform her, which was likely.

It was hardly as though she needed to know the information. It was not as though it was relevant to her.

"And it is upon mine brothers insistence that we even stand here." Maalik stated without preamble.

The bone mask sweeping over the room rather briefly, lingering on Kuroka and Vali the longest.

"...Despite the company that is kept."

He returned to being silent.

Jedidiah continued onwards. "As you have all been doubtless aware for the last forty-eight hours worth of news reports, the Kuoh Incident has become a mainstream topic to the world. Though it is fortunate that, as of yet, the provided excuse of a rather sudden volcanic eruption from a previously undiscovered cluster beneath the town have been accepted."

A sudden volcanic eruption.

That was certainly an excuse and she was sure that were it not for the memetic spells woven into the news agencies, then they would be more unwilling to believe such things.

In this one instance, the cover stories provided by Devils and other factions worked to their advantage.

"It was a minor eruption which, unfortunately, spilled into a gas pocket underneath the town which ignited."

…That seemed excessive.

Then again, the damage to the town was total.

"Survivors?"

She was unsure who asked, but Jedidah answered quickly.

"Sirzechs Lucifer acted before the fighting between Maalik and Second Morning and the survivors of the battle have been accounted for. The grand total stands at fifty-seven. All are either students of Kuoh academy or related to students within the academy. As of current, they are being housed in Gremory and Sitri territory."

Maalik sharply intook breath. "They have abducted the survivors then."

The survivors whom he would have burned to nothing, she did not mention despite the fact she was sure everyone else might have been thinking it.

Especially with the rather bemused look Kadoc wore openly.

"They will be dispersed into different territories in the coming weeks after recuperation." Jedidiah continued on. "They will become irrelevant and otherwise lose contact with one Issei Hyoudou. Some of the deceased were personally close with him, thus I would expect heightened aggression from him to anyone allied with our cause in the future."

Yes.

So would she.

Her eye drifted to Vali in order to see how he would receive the news and was surprised to see that he was silent and otherwise unmoving. Face devoid of emotion as he had his arms crossed and was just staring into space.

"Katarea and those who accompanied her are dead."

She turned back at the declaration.

"Susanoo arrived shortly after the fighting had ended and our forces had retreated, upon learning of her affiliation he slew her on the spot. The mages who had accompanied her all perished in the earlier crossfire."

That was not an insubstantial loss for the Old Satan faction.

Katarea was one of their oldest and most influential members, perhaps not quite the most important one that remained, but it was still one of the few high-class devils they actually had to call upon. Beyond that, there was the weight her name represented.

That she was now dead in a failed attack on the Satans…

"How have the Old Satan faction reacted to this information?" She questioned, leaning forwards ever so slightly.

Daybit replied instead, surprising her with the fact he had spoken. "They have retreated further underground. Their contacts have distanced themselves from our affiliates. Reasons involve our current alliance with the Zabaniya and the hope that while we are distracted in battling one another, they might stage an attack on the now weakened Sirzechs Lucifer and assassinate him."

She did not need Jedidiah's eyes to tell her how that would end up.

Though the topic of the injured Lucifer brought a spark of light into the eyes of Cao Cao, his lips curled into an amused grin.

"And how fairs the current Lucifer? I was rather surprised to hear of the extent of his injuries."

Jedidiah, meanwhile, frowned. "His survival was problematic but not unexpected. He will be recovering from the damage inflicted by Rider for the next month before he can approach his former strength. The wounds were deeply inflicted and he is fortunate to remain alive…his resilience cannot be questioned now."

Cao Cao hummed. "That was hardly ever unknown…but I see no reason why we cannot aid the Old Satan Faction in causing further discord amongst the Devils."

"I'm surprised you would not wish to launch the incursion yourself." Lord Kirschtaria commented.

With a shrug of the shoulders, he chuckled. "I am being realistic. I doubt that the Lucifer is going to be leaving the underworld until he is fully recovered and getting in to try and kill him is far beyond what we would be capable of without a full scale assault…and given we are already planning for an incursion into Asgard…"

He trailed off but the implication was clear.

Ophelia cleared her throat. "I concur with Cao Cao. The Old Satan faction is far more useful in causing discord in the Devil's own homeland and setting off another civil war for them will only strengthen our position. We can offer them information, rather than direct aid."

She glanced over to see what Maalik had to say on this, if there was to be a voice of opposition, she thought it would have been his.

He stayed silent.

Which she assumed would be proof of consent for such a plan.

"...It would distract the forces of the Devils away from us if they are rushing to shore up their defences from the Old Satan Faction and though the other Satans are powerful, they are not quite in the same league as Sirzechs Lucifer."

Cao Cao, meanwhile, glanced back over to Jedidiah.

But it was Kadoc who spoke up.

"So…Susanoo just showed up?" He grunted. "Does that mean the Shinto Gods are getting involved now?"

Jedidiah frowned. "That is far less transparent. I am aware of ongoing discussions between the three factions and the Shinto Gods, but I would not risk utilising my clairvoyance where Amaterasu becomes involved. It would be unfortunate if she were to detect my sight."

She grimaced but said nothing on the matter.

The warning was heard loud and clear.

"It seems as though the Devils, Angels and Grigori are in the process of fighting to keep the right to remain in Japan. Though the Kuoh incident has sparked discontent amongst the Japanese Gods…the Yokai have yet to directly comment but it is still early days. There is time for them to make their stance clear enough."

He turned and looked right towards Kadoc.

"Action against the Yokai will have to begin swiftly. Amaterasu's involvement if we should begin operations in Japan again is highly likely. The presence of Susanoo and Hachiman in Kuoh both confirm that they are taking a centre stage once more."

Someone whistled.

Then there was a faint thud and a tremor across the table.

Tezcatlipoca had put his shoes up, leaning back as far as he could into his chair and was chuckling rather quietly. "I didn't think that Hachiman would have glassed what was left of the town…guess he was really pissed off about all the fighting happening around there. He'll be eager for some revenge against his people so…I'd watch out for that if I were you."

Maalik grunted. "I will not run and hide from some pagan deity."

Tezcatlipoca pinched his brows and turned his head, looking right at Maalik.

He did not even so much as spare a glance the way of the God before he spoke up.

"The fighting capacity of Heaven has been crippled, but with the means now available to him, the Second Morning will start to fill the gaps in their forces with the false shepherds."

That was to be expected though, especially as the ability had been revealed to have tried and tested. She would have been surprised if Heaven did not immediately start rolling it out the second that they recovered from the initial attack.

"Did you not try to rally a bunch of them to your cause?" Hercules cut in with a dismissive grunt, turning and raising an eyebrow towards them. Raising a large hand, he pointed in their direction. "Or were you not able to convince many of them that they should betray Michael-"

"The Second Morning." Maalik interrupted him with a noticeable bite to his words. "And Susa-il completed her orders as was demanded of her. The word was spread and if any of those who did not take up arms against us have sense, they will abandon him and seek us out."

Hercules raised a brow. "That might have been before you slaughtered a bunch of them."

Maalik tilted his head. "Thou speak only to complain. Hast thou anything thou would say openly?"

He took the bait, rather predictably at that. "Yeah. You-"

"Hercules."

Cao Cao did not raise his voice, but there was a hardness in his eyes. Hercules settled back down at the leader turned his gaze towards Maalik. "He speaks truly. Perhaps you would have found more allies in the ranks of Heaven if you had not immediately taken to slaying those who did not immediately take your words at face value."

"Angels do not lie to one another." Maalik defended. "Those who heard the words of Susa-il would have known them as the truth. If not then, certainly now. Those who have an ounce of love for what the Heavenly father stood for will desert the traitor for our cause."

It was a rather simple answer, all things considered.

And relied far too much on the idea that the Angels would willingly set aside the fact that their own brothers and sisters had set upon them with Daemons after delivering a single rendition of Michael's actions without further context.

Then again, they were clearly zealots.

Zealots among the angels as well.

She was reminded more of the rants of how the 'true devils' would welcome back the Old Satan faction once they took power.

Ophelia wisely neglected to make such comparisons in any other place than her mind.

Maalik twitched before continuing. "Though the concern of the false shepherd rings true. I would not put such things past him now. For that reason, Azrael has travelled to the Vatican to recruit the Burial Agency."

He…what?

Someone coughed and choked.

Ah, that was Kadoc.

"That is possible?" Ophelia hoped she did not sound as surprised as she felt, but it was difficult not to.

Certainly it was a possibility, but she would have thought that to be rather difficult by now.

Maalik looked her way. "If I have been told truths about their loyalty, then it is possible and likely."

From across the table, there was a surprised shuffling.

Jeanne leaned forwards with wide and surprised eyes. "Can…does that mean that the Church is going to collapse? Because if the Burial agents defect…those are the most loyal and zealous exorcists there are."

She was now looking around to see if others had perhaps realised as she had.

Ophelia was nodding her head.

This was, in no uncertain terms, crippling for the Church and Heaven.

Especially if Azrael succeeded in winning over the faction of Burial Agents and however many exorcists would follow suit.

Though that held the problem of painting a greater target on their back, their strength had been the capacity for stealth movements because they held smaller numbers than the factions but now, they were a force in rivalry of the abrahamic faiths.

To say nothing of the pantheons they were now in active aggression against.

Lord Kirschtaria raised his finger. "Right now, we must temper our expectations. This is a decisive blow against Heaven and the Devils, but a costly one. We have revealed much of our hand and though the alliance between us and the mesoamerican Gods remains unknown, I doubt it would change much of our standing against our newly realised opponents."

"Wodime is correct." Daybit spoke up. "The Devils will have already begun mobilising and the Grigori will be using their contacts to their fullest advantage. The next target for attack should be Asgard and the removal of Odin. He would be the one most amenable to an alliance with the three factions."

Ophelia tensed at the reminder.

And then she frowned and spoke up.

"I shall handle the foothold against Odin before they can secure an alliance with him. After this meeting concludes, I will depart and begin my operation."

"Do you require assistance?" She shook her head at the question from Cao Cao.

"No. I believe success would be greater if I were to travel alone."

Cao Cao raised a brow, then hummed and shrugged his shoulders. "As you wish."

He glanced around the room. "Is there anything else to report?"

None said anything else.

"Then I believe-"

"I have a question."

The room was silenced.

Kuroka was stood up and looking squarely at Jedidiah, she barely had her mouth open before he released an almost tired sounding sigh and stood up, adjusting his cufflinks.

"Your sister was supposed to die prior to the events of the peace conference."

Whatever Kuroka was going to ask, died there as she blinked rather owlishly, only for horror and anger to creep into her face.

Vali lashed out, catching her by the upper arm and stopping her from visibly launching herself across the table.

"In a confrontation with Fabro Rowan." Jedidiah finished, showing no reaction at all. "As far as I am aware, she has survived this encounter. Twice on account of the intervention of an unexpected variable but…that shall be dealt with by me personally. It does not present a clear and present danger to our agenda."

He raised his head and looked across.

Ophelia did not know if he was trying to look bored on purpose or if he just was bored.

"...Have you anything else to say?"

Kuroka just glared before ripping her arm away from Vali and turning on her heel, stomping out of the room without looking back.

Vali just thinned his lips and slowly stood up, then paused for a moment and looked towards Jedidiah.

Then he smiled.

"...Oh. That guy." He hummed.

Jedidiah narrowed his eyes. "I have made my stance clear on the matter. If you cannot convince your host to keep his distance, Albion, then I shall force the matter myself."

Vali just laughed and shook his head, not taking the threat seriously in the least.

Ophelia felt as though she had missed something important there, but it was not for her to worry about.

She needed to prepare herself to depart.