Elfen High 2: Skin to Bone, Steel to Rust

[Nightkill the Emperor]

There was a pause. Azazel groaned. "Where am I?" he muttered to himself.

AT THE END, AZAZEL, LORD OF HELL. spoke out a voice like a tomb bell. Azazel turned, seeing a figure standing in the darkness.

"Why...why am I here? Who the hell are you?" Azazel snarled, looking for another fight. He reached for his sword, realising he lacked it. He tried to throw a fireball at the figure, but realised he was powerless.

I AM YOUR DESTINY, LORD AZAZEL. I AM THE FINAL ANSWER, THE ANSWER TO BOTH THE MIGHTIEST RULER AND THE SMALLEST ANT. I AM DEATH.

Azazel glared at the figure. "Alright then. Move me along-"

NOT FOR YOU, AZAZEL. NO, NOT FOR YOUR VIOLATION OF THE NATURAL LAWS... it almost sounded like the voice was angry. Azazel backed away, almost feeling a cold fury from this otherwise perfectly calm voice.

"Why, Death? How did I disappoint you? I gave you so many souls, even if I had to take a few-"

NO. NO, YOU DO NOT UNDERSTAND AT ALL, DID YOU? I CARE NOTHING FOR HOW MANY PEOPLE DIE. IT MAKES NO DIFFERENCE IF EVERYONE DIES OR IF NOBODY DOES. NO, BUT YOUR CRIMES...YOUR CRIMES WERE FAR TOO MUCH, AZAZEL. YOU VIOLATED THE NATURAL ORDER, YOU ATTEMPTED TO RAISE THE DEAD AFTER THEIR TIME...

Azazel felt a door open underneath him and felt shadowy tentacles grab him and begin to drag him down.

THIS DESPAIR IS RESERVED FOR THE ONES WHO WOULD BREAK THOSE LAWS.

"WHAT DID I DO WRONG?" Azazel cried out, genuinely puzzled and stunned by this. But mostly, he was absolutely terrified.

Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.

He felt his body slowly ripped apart from the bottom up as he roared in pain.

"JUST TELL ME WHAT I'M SUPPOSED TO DO!"

In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.

He screamed out in agony as the pain increased and increased ever more.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds and shall find me unafraid.

"PLEASE, HELP ME!"

Death watched on impassively. THIS IS THE PRICE FOR YOUR ARROGANCE, AZAZEL.

The demon lord was pulled under. Then the door shut, trapping him.

It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll.
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.

[Nude East Ireland]

"I'm so glad that you're safe," Barbara whispered. Anton kissed her, his arms holding her close.

"Don't worry, love. I'm still here. I'm still safe," he replied. He held her for several more moments, before allowing her to back up. He kissed her lips, and looked down. Tim and Mary were hugging his legs, and he patted their heads. He smiled, and sighed. "I love you all. I told you I'd come back safe."

Mary giggled. "Yeah dad and did mommy tell you the good news?"

"Good news?" Anton asked.

"Yeah, daddy," Tim said. "Our new brother was born!"

The wizard was taken aback. He looked at Barbara, who smiled. "Yes, Anton. Our son was born and I... well, I was waiting for when you got back." As they watched, a nurse brought their infant son to them. Anton took his newest son into his arms, and smiled immensely. "Who... what..." He looked at Barbara.

"What is his name?" he asked.

"I... wasn't sure what to name him," Barbara replied.

Anton looked down at his child, and smiled. "I think... Minh. Minh Lewis Crowley."

Barbara frowned. "Well, I don't-"

Suddenly, the ground rumbled, and some music played. They were silent.

"Yes, that's fine," Barbara continued. They joined once more, and began walking towards some shelter. "I love you, and don't ever forget it," Anton said.

Tim ran ahead, blasting a car with a bolt of energy. "I'm gonna be a wizard like daddy!" he yelled.

"Yes you are son. Yes you are," Barbara said.

[Nightkill the Emperor]

And Damien walked up next to James. He looked at the Canadian, and sighed. "James Callahan. James. Fucking. Callahan. I've been waiting a long time for this, Callahan. It took two years, two deaths, and a war with the King of Hell to do it, but now I'm here, with you, and now it's time." He smirked, and cracked his knuckles.

"You killed me. You killed me. You... you fucking killed me. But what's honor anymore? Even I wouldn't know. But you... You are the dregs of humanity, Callahan. You're Canadian... and I'm redundant.

But that isn't the point, fuckface. The point is, I hoped we could get along someday. Maybe I'd finance your wedding. Buy you and Jade a nice little house in the North Pole - you've been to Montreal, right? Well, it doesn't matter. But now I guess that's all pointless. Then again, I did fuck her. That was a nice experience. Am I lying, though? Maybe. But, I digress. Now I'm just rambling."

Damien grabbed Callahan's shoulder, and pulled him close. "I fucking hate you. I despise you. And if I were still alive, I'd spend every single cent making your life a living Hell. But I've only got a few seconds."

Then he punched James in the balls, murdering billions of future Callahans. He waited a moment to savor the effects, before he grabbed some shrapnel and removed Callahan's shirt. He observed James' tattoo, and sighed. "I also don't want my face on your back. It ruins my glorious complexion."

He slashed some of the skin from James' back, taking his face from the tattoo. He tossed the skin aside, as well as the shrapnel.

"Well, looks like I'm leaving for that big roleplay in the sky. Bye Callahan."

Damien finally began fading away.

"Oh, and I did fuck Jade. Hard. It was the best fuck I've had.

"Damien, no, wait!" James cried out, lunging for the boy. But it was too late, he had already vanished away. James fell to the ground on his knees. "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..."

"I need two more fucking minutes."

Then, Death, possibly out of the fact a broomstick had been shoved up its ass and because I'm the OP, granted it.

Then Richard popped into being in front of James, a cigar in his hand. He glanced at James. "You'll be keeping the floors clean, correct?"

James got to his feet, ignited his right fist, and spun around. The hand stopped inches from Richard's temple, the flames just barely licking the sides of his face.

"Richard... Fuck you." He stated bluntly. "You aren't supposed to die. Lewis isn't supposed to be dead, Damien isn't supposed to be dead, Jade isn't supposed to be dead, Minh isn't supposed to be dead, and my cousin isn't supposed to be dead. I'm not going to toil away at the fucking floors while the rest of you disappear into oblivion to be forgotten by everyone else.

He withdrew his hand and extinguished the fire, and the scarlet in his right eye faded back to a blue/green. "You all deserve more than that. I'm going to keep all of you alive, all of you immortal. Maybe not directly, but I can at least ensure your stories are never forgotten."

He hugged the old man tightly. "I don't know how, but I will. I can promise you all that much. Just... Come back, alright? Find the others and come back to us, alright?" Steam rose from under his left eye, as a tear was quickly evaporated. "And tell everyone... Tell them I'm sorry, for failing."

Richard laughed. "Kid, sit down, alright? Look, just relax for a moment." He paused. "Did you fuck up? Certainly. In many regards you did absolutely fuck up. But so did I. I've made more fuckups than you can possibly imagine. If I am honest, I am a more powerful man than you, and my errors in judgement have been correspondingly huger." he said.

"Now, you made some screwups. The two personalities thing was really rather a big one. Hiding your powers, yet another. But you also helped. For one, you killed Zacheriah. Not Crowley, not Damien, you did. You killed a few hundred creatures in your two year break. You helped make a good Christmas for everyone at Elfen High, even if they didn't acknowledge it. Most importantly, you helped me keep the school clean."

"James Callahan was born on Earth, and fought harder than anyone else for his home. He was a soldier and a fighter, who tried to fight whoever he could. Often he succeeded. Callahan was also a skilled tactician, and it was an honour to know him." Richard said. "You went for a long time without allies- which was halfly your own fault- but you take the chance to make things better. You're an asshole, a bastard, a dick and a cunt. But you are fundamentally a good person." Richard assured him. "I believe in you as I believed in Crowley, and as I believe in humanity. Don't let me down, James Callahan." he said, beginning to fade.

[Hardened Pyrokinetics]

"Damien, no, wait!" James cried out, lunging for the boy. But it was too late, he had already vanished away. James fell to the ground on his knees. "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..."


James got to his feet, ignited his right fist, and spun around. The hand stopped inches from Richard's temple, the flames just barely licking the sides of his face.

"Richard... Fuck you." He stated bluntly. "You aren't supposed to die. Lewis isn't supposed to be dead, Damien isn't supposed to be dead, Jade isn't supposed to be dead, Minh isn't supposed to be dead, and my cousin isn't supposed to be dead. I'm not going to toil away at the fucking floors while the rest of you disappear into oblivion to be forgotten by everyone else.

He withdrew his hand and extinguished the fire, and the scarlet in his right eye faded back to a blue/green. "You all deserve more than that. I'm going to keep all of you alive, all of you immortal. Maybe not directly, but I can at least ensure your stories are never forgotten."

He hugged the old man tightly. "I don't know how, but I will. I can promise you all that much. Just... Come back, alright? Find the others and come back to us, alright?" Steam rose from under his left eye, as a tear was quickly evaporated. "And tell everyone... Tell them I'm sorry, for failing."

Richard laughed. "Kid, sit down, alright? Look, just relax for a moment." He paused. "Did you fuck up? Certainly. In many regards you did absolutely fuck up. But so did I. I've made more fuckups than you can possibly imagine. If I am honest, I am a more powerful man than you, and my errors in judgement have been correspondingly huger." he said.

"Now, you made some screwups. The two personalities thing was really rather a big one. Hiding your powers, yet another. But you also helped. For one, you killed Zacheriah. Not Crowley, not Damien, you did. You killed a few hundred creatures in your two year break. You helped make a good Christmas for everyone at Elfen High, even if they didn't acknowledge it. Most importantly, you helped me keep the school clean."

"James Callahan was born on Earth, and fought harder than anyone else for his home. He was a soldier and a fighter, who tried to fight whoever he could. Often he succeeded. Callahan was also a skilled tactician, and it was an honour to know him." Richard said. "You went for a long time without allies- which was halfly your own fault- but you take the chance to make things better. You're an asshole, a bastard, a dick and a cunt. But you are fundamentally a good person." Richard assured him. "I believe in you as I believed in Crowley, and as I believe in humanity. Don't let me down, James Callahan." he said, beginning to fade.

"First off, the Christmas stuff was the DH guy." James corrected him. "And while he was doing that, I was being a dickless coward attempting to run away from my problems by adopting another life in another universe."

He sighed. "But... I guess you're right. Maybe... Maybe I can make things right..." More steam. "I just... So many people I let down, so many people who are just... Gone. Everyone I've ever loved is dead - My family, including my parents and brother. I pushed Jade away, and wasn't there when she needed me most. Ivy despises me, Hilde has been gone for a long time, and I shot Damien rather than try and save him. Hell, I was directly responsible for Lewis' death, and in a way I loved him too." He looked the fading man in the eyes. "I guess... I guess I just wanted forgiveness, y'know? To be told by one of them that everything was alright."

[Nightkill the Emperor]

His office was strange, in that it was a normal office that would not be out of place in your average urban American business place.
Perhaps that was merely how humans perceived it.

He had a small pile of books next to a proudly burning candle, a pen, and a stack of papers. The problem with total law and order is total paperwork. That said, it seemed neglected - most of it was written on parchment and there were piles in the corners that touched the ceiling. It seemed that Uriel's office was where the rules came to die. The endgame of the bureaucracy.

Behind the desk was Uriel. He was a mighty man, but he didn't demand to be seen as such. He stood tall and proud with an intimidating glance, but it didn't seem as though he was putting any effort into this. In fact, he seemed rather... bored?

Uriel was younger than one what would expect, but older at the same time. His eyes betrayed the soul of an elder, but he was physically perfect. All angels were.

It was surprising, however. Uriel seemed old, but not tired or even scarred.

"Good evening, Mr. Boyd," Uriel said in a soft, understated voice as his newest "appointment" was tossed roughly before him.

"You can go straight to hell, you wanker!" Mr. Boyd snapped.

"Language, Mr. Boyd," Uriel corrected, his voice not rising but taking on the steel of power.

"Suck my dick, you winged shit-pile, I've seen this place!" Boyd growled, "I've seen what you do to us!"

"Mr. Boyd," Uriel sighed, "please calm down."

"When I came here," Boyd ranted, "I expected a man. A war hero, that's what they made me think. But you did shit. I can see it in your eyes, you're just a bloody bureaucrat!"

Uriel shook his head, "Mr. Boyd, there are a certain set of emotions you associate with war. I do not share the same stigma you humans do. I am an angel."

"What the fuck do you want?!" Boyd demanded.

"I want what everyone does," Uriel explained, "I want freedom, justice, charity. I want law in the name of God. I want utopia. I have it, Mr. Boyd."

"Justice?!" Boyd howled, "THIS PLACE IS JUSTICE?!"

"You humans are far too narrow-minded in your perception of the just," Uriel said, "I am... Biblical. Divine."

"What the hell do you want from me?"

"Mr. Boyd, you have been brought here on charges of gluttony."

"This isn't a court!"

"I decide what is and what is not a court, Mr. Boyd. For your sins, I condemn you to be feasted upon by my angels. For every pound of meat you consumed that you did not hunger for, my angels shall take a pound from you, Mr. Boyd. You shall regenerate your flesh until you reach such a time that your penance is made. Then, we shall see. That is justice."

"Freedom! Freedom! You don't know the meaning of the word?"

"Not true, Mr. Boyd. You do have the option of refusing your punishment and leaving Heaven."

"I'll take that option."

A rift opened before Boyd. He peered into it and gasped.

"You may journey here from Heaven to Hell under your own power," Uriel said, "Nothing shall obstruct your path."

"You're insane!"

"Or you are."

"Charity! Is this what God would want?"

"Between you and me, Mr. Boyd," Uriel said, rising from his seat, "it is exactly what I want. Go."

Boyd gulped and entered the rift.

His screams only stopped when Uriel sealed the rift.

"Charity," he said, opening a copy of Merriam Webster's, "benevolent goodwill toward or love of humanity."

Uriel closed the book and his eyes, hanging his back in reverence.

"Thou shalt beat him with the rod," he murmured, "and shalt deliver his soul from Hell."
(Gracias, Nat)

[Nightkill the Emperor]

Richard laughed. "Kid, sit down, alright? Look, just relax for a moment." He paused. "Did you fuck up? Certainly. In many regards you did absolutely fuck up. But so did I. I've made more fuckups than you can possibly imagine. If I am honest, I am a more powerful man than you, and my errors in judgement have been correspondingly huger." he said.

"Now, you made some screwups. The two personalities thing was really rather a big one. Hiding your powers, yet another. But you also helped. For one, you killed Zacheriah. Not Crowley, not Damien, you did. You killed a few hundred creatures in your two year break. You helped make a good Christmas for everyone at Elfen High, even if they didn't acknowledge it. Most importantly, you helped me keep the school clean."

"James Callahan was born on Earth, and fought harder than anyone else for his home. He was a soldier and a fighter, who tried to fight whoever he could. Often he succeeded. Callahan was also a skilled tactician, and it was an honour to know him." Richard said. "You went for a long time without allies- which was halfly your own fault- but you take the chance to make things better. You're an asshole, a bastard, a dick and a cunt. But you are fundamentally a good person." Richard assured him. "I believe in you as I believed in Crowley, and as I believe in humanity. Don't let me down, James Callahan." he said, beginning to fade.

"First off, the Christmas stuff was the DH guy." James corrected him. "And while he was doing that, I was being a dickless coward attempting to run away from my problems by adopting another life in another universe."

He sighed. "But... I guess you're right. Maybe... Maybe I can make things right..." More steam. "I just... So many people I let down, so many people who are just... Gone. Everyone I've ever loved is dead - My family, including my parents and brother. I pushed Jade away, and wasn't there when she needed me most. Ivy despises me, Hilde has been gone for a long time, and I shot Damien rather than try and save him. Hell, I was directly responsible for Lewis' death, and in a way I loved him too." He looked the fading man in the eyes. "I guess... I guess I just wanted forgiveness, y'know? To be told by one of them that everything was alright."

Richard shrugged. "I can't forgive you on their behalf. But I forgive you on mine. Go out there and give them hell. Just try to do that." Richard told James, before disappearing completely.

---

ARE YOU QUITE DONE NOW?

"Yeah." Richard said. "I am. It was an interesting life." he looked out into the shadows. "Thanks to those humans, my life had been a good life. A life worth living for. And... maybe even a life worth dying for."

Then Richard moved on.

[Constaniana]

Eldliam's Iron Man armour automatically removed itself once the battle was done, dropping to the ground with a loud thud. I should pick that up I guess...I wonder if I get to keep it. It's not like D can't build any more of them The Englishman thought, looking down at the pieces of the suit scattered around him for a few moments, before raising his head and looking around at the wrecked state London was in, thinking back to the adventures he had running around its streets while Crowley pumped his happy gas through the tunnels from Elfen High. Eldliam chuckled a little at the memories he saw with the comforting lens of nostalgia.

"What are you laughing away at? Some new racist joke you thought up?" Asked Daniel, walking up beside his friend.

"What? No, not that....at all...." Eldliam replied, shaking his head in exasperation.

"So...what are you going to do now that all this is done?" Said Daniel after a few moments of silence between them.

"Well, I was thinking about going and travelling the world....or at least Europe. Seems like it would be something cool to do, I suppose," the swordsman responded.

"So, you'd possible go into France, then?"

"Well, yes, maybe..."

"There's a lot of French people in France. French minorities too. You'll obviously need the help of someone experienced in these matters in order to mock them enough." Daniel offered casually.

"When have you ever been to France?" Eldliam asked incredulously.

"Well, I've never set foot or paw or hand in it, but it shouldn't be too hard switching from picking on Vietnamese to French. Or even better, French Vietnamese," Daniel replied eagerly, rubbing his palms together.

"Sometimes I wonder why I'm friends with you at all..." said Eldliam, shaking his head once more, trying to mask the smile on his face. He failed in this effort after a few quiet seconds, bursting out in laughter, which Daniel also did after a moment or two. Life wasn't perfect, and neither were people, but both of those things were so much better when you had someone to laugh at it all with you, even if that person was a slightly-crazy jackass some of the time.

[Hardened Pyrokinetics]

James remained silent for awhile, just getting his stuff back on. He drew his sword and moved it around, as memories filled him...

Then he paused and stared at the wall. Somehow... No, it would be impossible, but... Light had reflected off of the jade "G", hitting the wall and somehow forming the appearance of Jade. Whether it was legitimate or just James' mind creating it was of no consequence. One last time he was able to stare at her, face her.

See her smile.

He twisted the sword and the image vanished. Returning it to the scabbard, he began walking off, but not before pulling out his cell phone and dialing a number.

"Howard? It's James. I know you haven't heard from me in forever, just let your buddies know I'm going to be making a speech regarding the recent war at Elfen High in three weeks. I know you've got a lot of other places to be with the war, but this is going to be quite important..."

[Zarkenis Ultima]

Ciel and Celes both stood by each other's side, holding hands and looking up at the midnight sky, where the stars shone brightly and the moon cast its light upon a world that defied its grim destiny. The towers had long since been brought down by their power, and the demon and the dragon had both been slain by the defenders of the Earth.

Now, there was no threat, there was... Nothing. There was suffering, yes, and grief, sadness, sorrow. But all of these things, they knew it all too well, were ephemeral, and they had reached a peak during the war. Now, then, what could they do, except descend, giving way to positive emotions such as happiness, joy, love?

Love. Each looked at the other's face as they thought about it, as if sharing their thoughts, and smiled. They had found that. They had found it in what they at first thought was the unlikeliest of places, but soon came to understand was the only place. They found it in themselves. And it had given them a lot. For Ciel, it was solace, and a pillar to support her after so much darkness and pain. For Celes, it was hope, and the will to lust only for the blood of those who would hurt her lover.

And it had given them much more than that.

And now, for them at least, there was nothing else. In the beginning, they had known only the darkness in which they were lost. Then they knew shelter as well. Guardians. But all of that was taken away from them soon enough. That was when they knew grief, and the rage that it brought, unfettered and raw. Repentance soon came, as did loneliness. And then, when they arrived at the place where they thought the solution to their problems was, they met much more.

But... None of that mattered now, because they had each other now, and the world still was. They had helped protect it, they had helped save it. For every life they took or may have taken, for every life that they failed to save, thousands more had been preserved. And in this fact, they found redemption. A light that dissipated the shadows of their past, and allowed them to see what truly mattered.

Strider was in peace with herself now.

Looking back at the school, Ciel saw the souls. She thought about perhaps giving Minh one last goodbye, or thanking Lewis for their inheritance. But when she looked at Celes, tilting her head questioningly, the latter shook her head, and Ciel nodded. They understood. This was the moment of those who had lost loved ones. Of those who had families. They knew this. And they didn't mind.

They had each other, and that was a lot.

"What now?" Ciel finally asked, after a long, pleasant silence between the two of them.

"Anything." Celes replied simply. The two of them smiled, before more silence came.

"I've been thinking about this for a while, want to spread the joys of music? The new world will need it." Ciel stated. Celes thought about it for several moments, before another smile came to her lips.

"For love..." She said melodiously, and Ciel understood immediately.

"We'll give it a shot~!"

---

"That was... Amusing." Alastor said, before looking at the battlefield, and at Elfen High. His work here was done.

Opening a portal, he returned wordlessly to his base, his home on the moon. A place called Astaria.

"How many losses did we suffer?" He asked as soon as he was through, and the number was promptly given to him. He nodded after several moments of ponderance. "And Dys? Was it devoured?" He asked afterwards. Everything that happened to Hell, from Vernil's appearance to his departure, and everything inbetween, such as how it was a miracle that Astaria was still in the sky, was explained to him.

However, he didn't seem fazed. He seemed... Glad.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Begin the relief efforts! Offer affected warlords our assistance if they pledge allegiance to us. Help rebuild what little remained of Dys. Conquer through respect. That is what we will do." He said.

Now, with Azazel gone and Dys destroyed, demonkind would surely suffer. But then, there was him. He had the power to help them, didn't he? Of course he did. Without Azazel, his kingdom was the strongest, holding enough power to protect and to subdue, to rebuild and to destroy. And after his role in the final battle of the great Abrahamic War, Humanity owed him, did they not? If he played his cards well, he coud gain so much.

Beneath the helmet, the demon smiled.

[Rupudska]

Yuzuki climbed out of the Bus, pressing a button on the FOB to lock the doors. The Bus chirped twice, indicating that it had been locked. The students of the newspaper club, the ones still alive, stood around her.

She sighed. It was over, the war at least. Finally over. And the only person she would let be better than her, the only person she truly felt deserved to be able to best her, was gone.

Her first genuine true love was equally gone as well.

She took off her helmet, jamming her katana into the ground and sitting down, holding the demon's-blood-stained helmet in her hands.

"What a truly strange world we live in. In the past school year, a whore fell in love and felt the desire to go steady for the first time, Hell quite literally broke loose, as did Heaven, my opinion on the Christian Heaven changed dramatically, and our principal died."

She leaned back until she fell on the ground, on her back.

"Ummm... Miss Kurayami?"

She looked up as the head of the newspaper club, a German okami in her senior year who had actually gotten along quite well with Yuzuki.

"Yes, Kristina?"

"Well, we were wondering... what now? What should we do now?"

Ah yes. I'm still a teacher, after all. I've got work to do.

She stood up, replacing the helmet in its place on her head. "Get back in the Bus, you're a reporter. Dwelling on the past is pointless, what matters to people like us is the future."

[Astrolinium]

And then, in the part of London where Daniel and Eldliam were, a boy popped up, looking extremely surprised. Blood ringed his mouth and was still dripping from his stomach, where a knife was lodged. He clutched his midsection, screwing his eyes shut with pain, and collapsed onto his knees. Then, gasping, he opened his eyes.

"Holy shit, " he said. "Coach Savatar? Mr. Nilark? Holy shit, you're both so... so young!"

At which point he groaned and slumped over onto his side.

[Nightkill the Emperor]

Montreal, Canada

"How is it?" Sanchez asked Shung, his second-in-command in these matters. They looked around the Olympic Stadium where Crowley and Callahan had fought the Lord of Hell just a few short hours ago.

"It isn't bad, really." Shung admitted. "There were some damages- quite a few- but the battle was over quickly. We prevented another Cairo and managed to save most of the population of Montreal in the battle. The resistance was rather token- it seemed like the demons just wanted their boss to be able to have a battle and they surrendered shortly after Azazel died. The Canadian government was keeping them as prisoners of war, but have agreed to hand them over to the ISSR for studies."

Sanchez rubbed his chin, where a beard had begun to grow again. "It could have been a disaster. Good thing Azazel went down fast. Bit of an anticlimax though, but we aren't in a story."

Sanchez sat down in a chair as a few guards ran around the stadium. "We did lose Horn though?"

"A pity. I liked Alexander." the Taiwanese Shung reflected.

Sanchez sighed. "I'll send my condolences to his family." he said. "You know what this all means though, Shung?" he asked his friend.

"That you have a better shot of banging Jameson's wife again?"

"Aside from that. No, what we have here is a brilliant way to move humanity forward. Look at this war. Look at all we have achieved. Do you remember when Google Glasses or IPhones were invented and people thought those things were astounding and would move us forward insanely? Back then, quite a few people thought we were going into sci-fi. Now it's commonplace. And we've known magic has existed- we have had definite proof of that- for eight years now, and we did slowly start to adapt ourselves to it, to learn how to counteract it and use it.

"But things are changing now, faster than we can imagine. Now magic is a tool- it is a tool we can now use and use well. We can integrate magic into so many aspects of our life...this is more changing than any discovery we have ever made. This will revolutionise us as a species, redefine us. We can accomplish the impossible now." Sanchez explained, moving his hands in a gesture around the Stadium. "Look at this! Look at what happened here! And consider that Callahan and Crowley survived, completely good as new. Imagine that they do this every other day, more or less. The healing abilities of magic alone...but then you consider that this can change every single aspect of life..."

"The sky's the limit." Shung noted, glancing up at the starry night. "And not even that. That demonic general had a base on one of Hell's moons, yes? Who's to say we can't pull that off?" he asked his boss.

Sanchez looked up at the sky, a grin forming on his face. "Yes. Who's to say we can't indeed? We are, Shung, truly the masters of our fate and the captains of our souls."

Shung chuckled. "Well, let's clean things up first. Then we make our imagination a reality."

"And humans have active imaginations." Sanchez noted, glancing up at the heavens and then moving on with the cleanup efforts.

[Nightkill the Emperor]

Sir Aleister Crowley. Sir James Callahan. Sir Ediliam Narlak.

Now there was a name. Knighthood. King Harry had bestowed it upon them and the others in Elfen High who had Commonwealth realm citizenship a few days ago. Crowley didn't honestly give even the slightest of fucks, but he accepted the honour regardless. He wouldn't be able to call himself a Brit if he had turned it down.

Besides, it just showed more people seemed to believe in him. That was ironic, especially as a large and great number of people wanted him in jail or worse. Even those calling for merely jail wanted some body parts separated.

But the ISSR was a good protector, as was Crowley's own considerable resources.

Crowley looked down around at Elfen High, putting his hand on the wall. "God." he said simply and tiredly. "It's good to be back home..."

---

They were back too.

The world changed rapidly around them in the next ten years. Technology had skyrocketed and urbanisation was rapid. Not to mention the colonisation of Hell. Hell, Crowley had been at the opening of humanity's first moon base in 2028, along with Carl Sagan, D, Jojo, Daisuke and Sanchez.

Ah, yes, magitech. Crowley occasionally came into the rooms where Daisuke, D, Jojo and a few of their assistants worked, making and building their fancy new toys. Sometimes he edged them along the way, because trying to keep them back was stupid at best.

Humanity was advancing more rapidly than could be imagined. Death rates plummeted due to the advances in healing technology, and the discovery of second lives made things easier for all. Technology became stunning, with discussions of making teleporters suitable for consumer use. And it was, as those asshole kids kept telling him, just the beginning.

Humanity had begun a new golden age, especially for the Americans. They had truly taken command of the world stage, due to the efforts of Sanchez and Eastwood. Sanchez especially was thrilled, having been promoted to Commander of the ISSR, which kept the name. It had become much different than the beginning as purely a research station. It was rather a military of its own now, maintaining order in the areas of Hell that were colonised by humans. It now boasted many millions of soldiers, who fought in Iron Man suits originally copied from the design of D and Daisuke, before they figured out how to build their own.

Ah, the ISSR and Elfen High...they shared an interesting relationship alright. Much of the ISSR now had Elfen High graduates working for them, but it was evident that Crowley and Sanchez butted heads occasionally. It made things interesting at times, especially since they had a tendency to compete for Megan Jameson aside from their professional disagreements.

Crowley put on his contact lenses, checking again his video taken at Lesotho, now the Silicon Valley of Earth and the Southern African region, which had grown to first world standards rapidly in this time.

Rapidly. That was the word he kept using. But it really was rapid. Things were...peaceful. That was bizarre. But they were completely quiet and peaceful right now. Crowley knew he should be optimistic. But he felt that he was in the eye of the hurricane...and the storm would come crashing down around him soon.

But for now, he would enjoy the calm.

Sir Aleister Crowley snorted his daily cocaine and walked out into Elfen High. "Good evening, ladies and gentlemen..." he greeted the class of 2030.

---

"Things...are inmotion now." a voice said. This voice seemed like it was out of synch, moving slowly and then suddenly speaking quickly and crashing the words together.
tick
"Indeed." spoke another voice, Set walking out into view and looking at the observers around him.
tock
"Can you promise...methatyou can bring that time once more?" the voice asked Set eagerly.
tick
"But of course." Set chuckled. "I will return this world to what it originally was. I did it before. And I will do it again."
tock
"You must...or there will besevere consequences." the first voice said sternly.
tick
"Do not worry yourself. We will have that time again." Set paused, savouring the drama.
tock
He and the first voice spoke in unison. "Gotterdammerung."
tic-

[Constaniana]

Eldliam spun around when the mysterious boy popped up, his eyes widening in surprise. "Hey, are you alright?" He said, running up to the boy and trying to use his healing magic on him, although it didn't seem to be too effective. "What do you think happened to him?" Eldliam asked Daniel.

"Coach Savatar? Coach?" Said the Bearmancer. "I'm going to be a Gym teacher?!? NO!!!!!" he yelled, completely distraught. "I WANTED TO ACHIEVE SOMETHING, DAMN IT! WHAT CRUEL FATE IS THIS, CURSED TO A LIFE OF LOWERING THE SELF-ESTEEM OF PORTLY ADOLESCENTS?!?" Daniel wailed, sinking to his knees. "This is the single worst possible ending imaginable. Screw you, Con, you really can be a troll when you want to. And screw you too, fourth wall." said Daniel, glaring at the writer and shaking his fist.

[Astrolinium]

Caspian's, for that was who the boy was, eyes fluttered open again, and he coughed, spitting out blood as he did so. He winced, and slowly said, "Magic... knife. Healing w-won't help me, I'm afraid."

He laughed painfully. "If only... if only I could regenerate, the way that... that the Doctor does." Smiling, his eyes closed again, though he was still breathing a bit. His mind went back to those decades past, when he'd been watching Who with his dad.

Theodore Lawrence put an arm around his boy and said, "Just watch, son. I don't think this episode is over quite yet."

"Not dead!?" Caspian shouted excitedly. The bowl of crisps - he and his father would always put a bag of crisps into a bowl when they watched Doctor Who - was knocked onto the floor, but neither of the two watching the show really cared. Caspian's eyes were just as wide as they'd been when he'd heard the TARDIS noise. A new man? But how! Why, the Doctor had been Jon Pertwee as long as he could remember. Or had it? He knew he'd been watching the show since he was quite small, but he hadn't really gotten into it until about... 1972ish? He'd been about nine or thereabouts, and Jon Pertwee had been the Doctor back then too. As Pertwee was quite old, it was only logical to assume that he'd always been the...

Caspian jumped again. The Doctor's face had changed!

Caspian whispered, "Remember my name... I think this must be the past. You two... will be seeing more of me, I'm sure. Remember my name: Cas- Caspian Lawrence."

And then he stopped breathing forever.

---

June of 2030

It was a quiet day on the English seaside. Wallace and Fatima Devereaux were taking a walk along the beach, when suddenly they spotted something up ahead. As the young, infertile couple approached it, Fatima cried out.

"It's a boy!"

Wallace and his wife ran towards the body, and Wallace bent down, checking for a pulse. "He's still alive!"

The boy was badly cut up, and his long brown hair was a mess. His clothes, completely soaked through, were painfully 1980's. Wallace began to shake the boy, who coughed violently, water spluttering from his mouth. His eyes shot wide open, and he sneezed powerfully.

"Where am I?"

He then looked about and saw the house several meters away - it looked like something out of a science fiction show, sort of.

"When am I?"

[Nude East Ireland]

"Anton Edward Crowley. Sir Anton Edward Crowley. A nice addition, I suppose," Anton said to himself. He smiled, lifting a cigar to his mouth and then puffing out a bit of smoke. He leaned against the balcony railing, looking over the nice, green landscape, broken only by the clean white buildings that made up the Corvo Attano High School campus. Anton smiled, and continued to smoke. He and his family were now living in a beautiful mansion on the campus where Anton was now the headmaster. He lived that. 'Sir Anton Edward Crowley, Headmaster of the Corvo Attano High School'. He felt much more accomplished than he had in a long time. It was much better than when he took up Lewis' and Minh's old jobs at Elfen High, along with his own there. Now he was a relax, more patient person. He enjoyed it very much, and knew where Crowley stood. He picked up cigars and was drinking a bit more, but not to Crowley levels. Yep. Life was good.

---

In England, there is a small city called Dover. For many years, Dover was the capital of advancement. The Silicon Valley of Earth. But now?

Well, there was a certain someone that kept Dover the way it was. A certain young entrepreneur who had an infinite amount of money to keep the capital of the world running. But when Crowley became President and CEO of the Seward Trading Organization, he forgot all about Dover. As Lesotho became renowned, Dover fell into obscurity. The people left, and the city fell into despair and ruin. Now Dover is a ghost town, like Pripyat or Chernobyl. Seward Tower, while still the tallest manmade structure in the entire world, is abandoned, and untouched.

Quite sad, really.

---

Tim placed the bong onto his desk, and sat down on his bed. He coughed, and laid back. "Well, that was fun," he said. He turned to the girl next to him - both of them naked.

"Thanks Tim," the girl replied. "It was fun for me as well. I didn't know you Crowleys were so... skilled." She giggled.

Tim smirked. "Well, I've got my own technique."

"From Al?" she asked.

"No, why?"

"It's just so similar the way you guys..."

"Wait, you've fucked my grandpa?"

"Well, yeah, that's how I keep straight As in all my classes."

Tim sighed. "Well, that explains why you didn't flinch."

"Yeah, I'm kind of a whore."

"All the lesbians are, babe."

She giggled. "I'm not a lesbian."

"Not anymore you aren't," Tim said. He smirked, and closed his eyes. It was time for bed. He was tired as shit.

---

Anton sighed. He puffed out the last of his cigar, and rubbed the rest into an ashtray on the railing. He smiled, happy to see the moon out. He heard someone step on the balcony behind him. He turned around, to look at the suited man.

"Who the Hell are you?" he asked.

The man smiled. "Hello, Mr. Crowley. I represent the Fuhrer. And you're coming with me."

The man raised his hand, and before Anton could act, he was unconscious...

[Hardened Pyrokinetics]

Elfen High Auditorium, 16/05/2021

Sir James Callahan waited nervously behind the curtain, his scarlet suit hot and heavy. His shoes, finely polished, tapped repeatedly on the hardwood floor of the stage, and he constantly fidgeted with his white silk gloves. He could see them - The cameras, the reporters, the dignitaries, the staff and students - All waiting for him. Was it ostentatious? Undoubtedly, but James could think of no other way to explain his actions and his crimes, and to take the first step to absolution, than this. Two minutes before he was to come out. He reached up and gently rubbed the half-jade/half-ruby phoenix pin on his lapel, swallowed, and walked out.

Silence. A crushing silence mated with the gazes of thousands as he strode out from behind the curtain and made his way to the podium. Inside were the notes he had meticulously prepared over the past five weeks, ever since returning to Elfen High. He had slaved over them, even as he went about cleaning out rooms and lockers. He had struggled to find the right words, the right tone. As he stepped up to the microphone he withdrew the stack of papers, cleared his throat, and focused his mind.

And tossed the papers across the stage. "I had a speech prepared." He explained. "But then I figured you wouldn't want some meticulously detailed and constantly edited lecture. All of you want the truth, whether you really want to admit it or not. You want the raw truth, without any barriers or conveniently-forgotten facts, and while words aren't my strong suit I will do my best."

He took a deep breath, and began. "First off, I want - no, need - To apologize. Specifically, to Daisuke Taka, Megan, Rosalind, and Damien Jameson, Aleister Crowley, and the many others whom have lost loved ones because of my actions." As an indication of what he meant, without a movement, save the changing in the colour of his eyes from blue/green to red, he formed a ball of fire in the air above him. "I sought to keep this, the fact I had found a way to retain my abilities even after Fixban's power-drain two years ago, from you. I attempted to hide it for selfish reasons that I will get to in the next paragraphs - And because of that I was directly responsible for the deaths of Minh Taka, Richard, Lewis Jameson, Jade Gates, and a slew of others. My attempts at secrecy directly caused the abduction of Rosalind and the corruption of both Damien Seward and my own cousin - and last remaining family - Pierre Steinman. While I do beg for forgiveness, I will understand if you choose to hate me.

Now, on to my reasons for hiding my re-emerging pyrokinesis. Loki's attack on the school two years ago was the first time I had been able to access it in my adult life - I couldn't even remember when it first emerged at age 7 through 9 - and having it torn from me in addition to my failure at protecting Ivy Green and Fixban left a rather heavy mental burden. At the same time, Aleister Crowley had disappeared, and at the time I believed he was the only one who could have helped me. By the time he came back I had developed a hatred of him, and when he offered up Gram I immediately believed that he was attempting to bribe me - And at that time not even I was aware that my powers hadn't been taken away. Because of that I left the school and eventually cut off all ties with it, including Jade. While alone on the streets of Paris attempting to figure out where to take my life, I discovered that a shard of Loki had implanted itself within me - And that shard contained the vast majority of the Asgardian's powers. With my mind still muddled by post-traumatic stress and coupled with living on the streets, rather than return to the school I began a complicated plan of revenge."

He took another deep breath, and the fireball dissipated. "I created two layers of personalities - The first, a version of myself that retained use of my name, but became a braggart with delusions of awesomeness. The second, the bloodthirsty and deadly Snowflame. These twin personalities proved enough to barrier my true intentions from the shard of Loki, and I was able to begin leeching magical energy from his shard to refuel my own pyrokinesis. At the same time I began a one-man war on the supernatural, blaming them for the events that ruined my life and for keeping humanity down. As I engaged on my crusade across the globe, I also set the ground work for a paramilitary organization that would rid the Earth of magic, and eventually face and destroy Heaven, Hell, and the Gods themselves. This organization became known as Pure Earth, and I directly oversaw its rise through the use of several aliases. At the same time, in order to cut ties with my past, I traveled to my old home outside Windsor and burned my own family to death."

He stopped again and collected himself. "As the organization grew, I knew that the only way to truly begin the revolution would be to remove Elfen High and the powerful beings associated with it- In particular Aleister Crowley. I had also anticipated that the Fae or Azazel would attempt another invasion, and planned to manipulate events to my advantage by removing several powerful figures in the supernatural world. Thus I set myself up for sabotage and returned to the school with the facade of a wanted dead man desperately searching for salvation.

And everyone bought it. Through a combination of arrogance and focusing too much on themselves I was able to infiltrate Elfen High and set the rest of my plan into motion. If I could destroy the school and everyone in it, my revolution would be able to commence. But, instead, I found myself enjoying being at the school again. Even though I was still pushed aside, I found it enjoyable to be helping Richard keep the school clean, I found it refreshing to once again be able to see all the friends - and in the case of Pierre and Jade, family - I had missed, and the new kids I was able to help mentor. Although I tried to hold on to my hate, I eventually regained my love of this place.

And then, something I was entirely unprepared for - Loki tearing his shard out from my mind. Although I had recharged significantly, I was merely but a tiny fraction of where I could have been, and while I still had the ability to recharge thanks to the link with Loki it was at a far slower rate. Then, realizing what damage I could do, when I encountered my alternate universe self he and I concocted a plan to switch places. Rather than truly face my problems I instead attempted to run away from them, a plan that had the fortunate side effect of making me just miss this place even more. So when Aleister forced me back here, I was more motivated to saving the school that destroying it, although I still wanted to follow my plans.

But then everything, if you will excuse my language guardians of the underage, went to shit. Jade was killed with I should have been with her, Lewis and Polarbeard fell through the soul-sucking bullets I had commissioned, my cousin corrupted into a slave of the Fae to forever be remembered only as a coward and a prick. As more and more of these developments occurred I began to question my mission and my reasons for them."

A heavy sigh. "And then Azazel attacked Montreal and attempted to kill Aleister Crowley. I could have left him to die, I could have allowed Azazel that one victory and begun the revolution - Even if I died, so long as I took Azazel with me I would have become a martyr and a legend. But instead I saw the light and realized that my plans for vengeance and revolution would come at the cost of all those I cared for, if not the destruction of humanity itself - So I absorbed my other two personalities, severing my link to Loki, and revealed the truth. Now I stand before you a Knight, a hero, a human that is a role-model to children everywhere." That last bit was sarcasm.

He shook his head disgustedly. "Truth is I am none of those things. I formally reject my wrongly-gained accolades, including Knighthood, and turn myself over to the International Criminal Court for trial and judgement for my crimes. Finally, I ask that all Pure Earth members reject the philosophy of hate and prejudice I espoused. Rid yourselves of your weapons or use them for good. I will not reveal any of your names, but it is now up to you and you alone, individually, to do what is right. Protect the Earth through understanding and compassion, not through prejudice and hate."

As the press hawks erupted with questions, James Callahan strode away from the podium and back behind the curtain. Only then did he allow himself to cry.

[Nightkill the Emperor]

There was a pause after James walked off the stage.

"Did you get that?" Howard said to Cameraman 2, slapping his back and causing the poor tramatised bastard to wince. "Oh man, this is awesome." he muttered to himself, turning around and thinking rapidly. "Alright Gopher, scrap the plans for a movie about Azazel. I got a new idea," the Scot said. "The Legacy of Callahan. Excellent, we can make a brilliant film out of this. Forget that stupid shit they made about Dick Cheney, we got something brilliant here. Maybe we can interview the real Callahan, but that speech has covered everything. Come on now, go check the Wikipedia page- they locked it? Fucking bastards, guess they had too many visitors- and now let's start rolling the cameras, get everyone's reactions, let's go..."

And thus life, and capitalism, went on.

Crowley listened to the speech by Callahan expressionlessly. "Interesting." he said simply. As James walked out, he would find a cigar teleported into his hand, a note attached. You fucked up. But I forgive you regardless.

Then Crowley retreated into his office and life went on there as well. Under him and on top.

[Constaniana]

"Well....that's a bit depressing...." said Daniel after Caspian died. "Even more so than the fact that I have to become a gym teacher. Well, it could be worse. I could be the dude stuck cleaning the floors,"

---

Sir Eldliam Nilark sat on a beach in Mauritius, leaning back in a reclining chair and drinking from a coconut, because that's what everyone does at African beaches, clearly. The knight's relaxation was interrupted by the ringing of his cell phone, and he answered it quickly, holding back any sound of his irritation. "Sir Nilark, who is this?"

"Eldliam! When are you going to get a job at Elfen High?" Daniel Savatar yelled bombastically through the phone, causing his longtime friend to recoil.

"It...wasn't in my plans, really....life is good for me right now," Eldliam replied, hoping he could get out of the conversation.

"Too bad, chump! Future kid Caspian said you were a teacher! I've been stuck as head of the P.E department at Elfen High for the past three years, you can put up with being the cooking or swords teacher or something like that." Daniel responded, prompting Eldliam to sigh in resignation.

"Alright, I suppose messing with the flow of time is a bad idea. I'll be there in a week or two," Eldliam responded, before hanging up and sighing again. Well, how bad can things be at Elfen High? he thought, not really wanting an answer to his question.

[Zarkenis Ultima]

After the fall of Azazel, the parts of Hell not colonized by Humanity fell into anarchy.

Said anarchy did not last.

With nobody occupying the seat of power, those who had might competed against each other, all of them trying to take Azazel's vacant throne. After the destruction caused by Vernil, the land was in a terrible state. All of this caused misery on an enormous scale, even more than when there was someone in charge, however cruel. But when things looked bleakest, the armies of Astaria arrived. Most warlords, recognizing their superiority, joined them inconditionally. Those who refused were swiftly crushed, and their people were allowed to choose by themselves. Throughout the course of several months, hundreds joined Alastor, giving him their power in exchange for hope. Who likes living in a nightmare, after all?

Eventually, all that was crushed, was rebuilt. Under the guiding hand of an ambitious man, billions joined in an effort to create a better future for their people. Hell was conquered by a great force, the respect that this person inspired in his fellow demons. A city was raised in the place of the fallen Dys, a city where demonkind would come together, a city that would bury the painful past once and for all. And on top of this city, and every other demonic city under the rule of Alastor, a flag was raised. The lower half was the color of blood, while the upper half looked like it was covered by blue flames. In the middle, above a certain symbol, a majestic and terrifying infernal bird stood, holding in its beak the horn of the severed head of the scapegoat. This flag was a symbol with which demons identified themselves. A symbol of their unity.

Under the guiding hand of an ambitious man, the land healed.

But then, demonkind was at a loss regarding what to do. The land had healed, yes. "What now?" They asked. "Where do we go?" They asked. Alastor, however, knew the answer to these queries very well.

Forward.

At first, it was not very easy. Rulers had a tendency to supress innovation and progress. But with Alastor, it was different. He encouraged these things, and under his rule, progress resurged. He himself helped massively through his prior advancements. The magic battery, for example, was perfected and then mass-produced, and this invention by itself revolutionized many things. Magic battery-powered vehicles emerged as an alternative to mounts. Magic-powered machinery emerged. Magic weapons like Alastor's black magic gun soon became commonplace amongst soldiers. Self-maintaining portals were opened between Hell and Astaria to allow free transit, as well as between Hell, Astaria, and the other moons that demonkind colonized. All of this and more, over the course of ten years. Relationships with human nations were rocky at first, as even though Alastor's forces had helped in the Abrahamic War, humans still saw demons as their enemies, and on the other hand, there were the experiments they performed on demons at the ISSR bases. However, the warlord, making use of his silver tongue, soon managed to create a balance, however precarious.

Seeing all of this, demonkind couldn't help but ask itself: If after millenia of tragedy, we did this, what can't we do?

The responsible for all of this, Alastor, stood in a tower in Astaria, the tallest tower of the greatest city in the United Demonic Realms. A tower where he found solitude. He looked up at the sky.

"I shudder to think about what would have happened if you and Altair had succeeded, Astaroth." He said with a small chuckle. "But that is in the past now, I suppose. Look at the now, father. At what I have done, thanks to you. This moon is the proof. It is your mark." He said, spreading his arms.

"And now I must make mine. And I swear it will brand the bowels of Hell itself!"

At that moment, a small alarm ringed. Alastor looked at his cellphone. "Ah, time for Hell History class, it seems."

And just like that, he was gone.

[Nationstatelandsville]

D drained his coffee and looked up from his instruments, at insignia above.

"TAKA-JAMESON INCORPORATED", it boasted. D smiled to himself - his idea, this company, even if it was just an excuse to get Dai as a permanent assistant. He did not care for money - Damien had left him enough - and not for the distribution of his creations - he studied for himself, not anyone else. Very few of D's inventions were actually practical for sale; they were either too expensive to mass produce or just plain pointless, created for D's pleasure. Still, though, it felt good to run the world's most eminent technology company, no matter what Jojo Simus had to say about it.

Besides, D had what Jojo never would - a purpose. A, dare I say, divine purpose. The study of gods. It was the only project D had not finished and he hoped he never would. It was difficult and confounding, but that's why he loved it.

"Mr. Crowley, what went wrong with your head?" he sang under his breath, turning his attention back to his work.

---

Megan immediately took employment at Elfen High to justify her presence there, but very few noticed. In her decade of service, she only ever appeared to teach her class (Biology) and disappeared back to her room.

Without Lewis, Elfen High seemed pointless. To be honest, without Lewis, everything seemed pointless. She would have killed herself many years ago, but two things held her back - Lewis' memory and, of course, her children.

She did love them, in her own Megan way.

She was a ghost. Some people at the school didn't even believe she existed. Those who did thought she might be a vampire or a werewolf or something.

Some even more foolish said that, sometimes, in the dead of night, they heard her laugh. But that was insane.

Mrs. Jameson didn't find anything funny. And she certainly didn't like anyone.

---

"Oh, Mr. Crowley, did you talk with the dead?"

---

Sometimes, students (likely the same who thought Jameson laughed) would claim they saw a shadow.

Not a normal shadow - a fleeting, flickering thing. It would rush past them in the hall and disappear. But, a living shadow? Mad, even for Elfen High.

---

"Your life style to me seemed so tragic..."

---

D stood up from his worktable to get another cup of coffee. He looked down on his work from a perspective he rarely had; the perspective of a man seeing the big picture, not working on the little details.

Despite his lack of progress overall, he had done more work towards "cracking the code", so to speak, than anything else. His lack of success did not discourage him - he did things because they were fun, not because they brought results.

He remembered the first breakthrough he'd made with the DNA...

---

"With the thrill of it all..."

---

"Dai," he said the day after Dys fell, wheeling his partner into his lab, "Dai, there's something I need you to know."

D placed the young Taka next to one of his several desks, before disappearing for a second. When he returned, he carried four packets. He handed them all to Daisuke in one big pile. With a suspicious glance, the quarter orc began to skim through them.

"Subject: Ri"

"Subject: Ca"

"Subject: Th"

"Subject: Cr"

Dai grimaced and looked up.

"What is this, D?" he demanded.

"Genetic code," D replied, "If you can call it genetics. It's a map of their, for the lack of a better word, DNA."

---

"You fooled all the people with magic..."

---

"So what?" Dai asked.

"Just look at it," D ordered - Dai sighed and began to leaf through the papers. As he did so, his eyes began to widen.

"Compare them," D said, "that's what I took them. Th was the control - a god. His DNA is completely different from a human's and, one would assume, unique to him. But when I looked at Ca, I saw unbelievable similarities between the two. Ca wasn't an exact match, no, but he had a lot of the qualities we thought were unique to the gods. He seemed like some sort of... half-breed between human and god, a mix of their species. Like he was created, built, from both.

But it wasn't identical to Th's, not the god DNA. No, it came from something else. Something related to Th - Thor, by the way - but not in a family way. A more general, evolutionary way. I had a hunch and looked into it; Ca's genetic code is a copy of a human's and one specific god.

I couldn't tell you, for sure, what god, but I had very good reasons to suspect one in particular. I looked into it. I started paying attention. There were subtle hints. Only one god ever claimed to construct life, only one god acted the way this one did, only one god could be responsible for Calliel and the angel's. And I knew.

Dai, Ri - Richard - was Yahweh."

---

D smiled. Yes, that had been fun. Revealatory. It was why he loved science so much.

He sipped his coffe. Ah, but that was ten years ago. Ten years after Dys. Ten years and the school year started soon.

Ten years and Megan would return from seclusion. Ten years and D would leave his lab. Ten years and Rosalind would emerge from the shadows.

But that, my friends, is another story.

[Ende]

"I've got nothing to say to any of you," Damien announced, as he pushed his way through the crowd. He stopped at Crowley, and sighed. "Aleister," he began. "I never really said goodbye to you. I'm still mad at you for being a dick. You know, when I killed my family. But I've got five minutes left, and I'd rather use them to tell you that after all we've been through, I love you like a father. I always will. Thank you, Al. It meant a lot, all those times we chatted. But I'm sorry I wasn't strong enough to live for a little longer. Ah... well... what are you going to do, you know?"

He looked down for a moment, then hugged Crowley, squeezing him tightly. He let go, and then smiled. "Well, I don't have much to say. Never did, never have, never will. Well, I'll be dead soon. Death is a douchebag. But he mentioned some other reality that he sent the dead to. Sounds better than being reborn as some snot-nosed punk. Well, some poor snot-nosed punk. But before I go, I have to talk to James. Well, not talk. But things will be said."

Crowley nodded and smiled at Damien. "You know what kid?" he asked. "You too." he hugged the British boy back. There was a collective "aww" from our studio audience, who exist and are tightly bound up in chains so they cannot ever escape. "It's fine. You lived as long as you could and...its really all fine. I'm sorry for everything, but..." Crowley paused, an idea in his head. "I have an idea on how to try to make it up for you. A weak way, but still a way. You'll see later. Well, you won't, but..."

Then Crowley turned to Minh. "You." he said warmly, shaking Minh's hand and hugging him tightly as well. "I'm sorry. For everything, really. You deserved better. You always did. But I'm going to make sure Daisuke gets a better life and I'll treat him better than I did you. You did too much for me and I did too little, far too little in return."

Minh merely gave a chuckle and a smile. "You know what? It's fine, Crowley. Just watch Daisuke for me, alright? I think things work out alright. I can rest now." he laughed. "I can finally rest at last...my role here is over." he smiled. "And you-" he turned to D. "Pleasure knowing you as well, kid. You'll go far, even if you annoyed me sometimes with the requests to destroy half the world with your experiments."

Finally, Richard.

Richard nodded to them all, giving a chuckle. "Yes. We all need to talk, I'm sure. The child-" gesture to D. "Knows what I am. Ask him that. Personally, I want to say this." he looked around the room. "I'm sorry. For quite a lot, really. There are a lot of things I could have stopped, a lot of lives I could have saved...but I was a fool. I was an idiot a long time ago. For a while, I just tried to stay out of the spotlight, keep the floors clean, keep the corpses out of the way and just try to keep things from falling apart...

"I was wrong. I was so wrong. I could not do that. And my attempts at subtly trying to change things and trying to forgive myself...it wouldn't have worked. As I die, I'm dying-" he struggled to explain his words. "I'm dying with the hope that maybe things might be different for you guys. Maybe eventually you can forgive, maybe eventually you can wash clean the things I've done and remember the good. I tried-"

Then Crowley grabbed him in a hug. "You tried well enough." he said simply. "You tried damn well enough." he said.

Richard laughed. "No. No I didn't. I managed to help you, and I managed to help quite a few others...but no. I could have done much more. Could have given a lot of others more time..."

He was quiet. "And now I will admit one last thing. One last act before I go." he sighed. "I'm a true bastard." he confessed to Calliel and Ivy, keeping his eyes hidden. He took a deep breath and began. "That child of yours...I knew it would be a stillborn." he admitted. "I expected that I was going to be dying very soon. April 4th was the day I died- I assumed that it would also be the end of the world, since I couldn't see anything further. As I learned more, I realised it was my death that was approaching soon. And so..." he gave a weary chuckle. "I...fixed things. I arranged it so you would have that child, but it would be my new body, a body for my soul to rest in..." he was quiet again. "I am a bastard." he confessed. "But I will try to redeem that..."

He rested one ghostly hand on the child's, then the ghost of Richard began to break down. "I will end my soul and try to give one to yours. It won't be me, but...it will be alive." As the ghost of Richard began to smash down, he grinned at Ivy. "Talk to Michael. He's still here, he has some answers he might be able to give you. But...keep your son safe, alright?"

Then he had one last piece of information to depart. "Tell James Callahan to keep the goddamn floors clean. And we need some more disinfectant, we've been running out."

Then Richard, janitor of Elfen High and much more, finally disappeared.

Then the baby started to cry, life entering it as the doctors just stared.*

*One of them retired the same day, stating his reasoning as "Fucking bullshit, man."

Ivy stared for a few moments, unbeliving eyes staring at the events that unfolded.

And then she heard her child cry. It was alive. She had...Richard had...

She looked off into space for a few moments, and then she burst into tears, clutching Calliel to her.

"It's going to be okay. It's all going to be okay. It's...it's all okay. God, Calliel...it's okay. For once...it's all okay." she choked, burying her head in his chest, crying tears of...relief? She was exhausted, bruised, and broken...but it was all okay. It was going to be okay. She and Calliel could...their child was alive. It was almost impossible for her to believe, really. Just a few moments before, she had been on the verge of...oh, god, she wouldn't have really done that, would she? No, that...tha - it didn't matter. She hadn't done it. Everything would be okay.

Drawing slowly away from Calliel, she shakily took a few steps over to her child, and tenderly lifted him up, cradling it in her arms. She paused for a moment, staring down, and then she smiled. She felt genuinely at peace, for the first time in...she couldn't even remember. It had been almost two years. Two hellish years. After everything - Heaven, Hell, and everything in between - and, for once, it was all okay.

And she would be fine.

She looked down at her child for a moment. He was crying vigorously, his red face wailing. Pressing a soothing finger to his lips, she cradled him gently in her arms, rocking him peacefully back and forth. After a few moments, the crying subsided, and Ivy smiled faintly, breathing a silent sigh of relief. Gently, she laid the sleeping child on her bed, and then stood. She looked down at him for a few moments, enjoying the quiet, and then she looked back up at Calliel.

"I...I think I'll name him Richard." she said quietly, beaming up at Calliel. "Is that okay?"

Calliel smiled a perfect smile - of course he did.

"Ivy...of course it is. I don't care. As long as you're happy. And...Ivy, I just want you to know...I said this on our wedding day, but I'll say it again. I am with you. I will carry you through it all. I won't leave you, I will catch you every time. I promise you that no matter what happens, you won't be alone." he said, hugging her deeply. "I love you, Ivy Green. I am here and so are you."

"Actually, Calliel...it's Ivy Michaelson now." she replied, grinning slightly, wiping tears from her tearstreaked face.

And then she kissed him, throwing her arms around his neck.

------------

"So...it's all worked out?" said Calliel, pacing back and forth, hands clasped together, the wind tussling his blond hair.

He looked slightly unsure of what was going on, really. Ivy had told him that they were getting a real house, and...it was confusing to him. Humans were still so confusing. It had been just a few days since the war had ended, and it had all happened so quickly.

"Yes, Calliel," Ivy replied briefly, throwing a box roughly into the back of the convertible, "it's all worked out. We've got a place to live, it's nice, out in the country, the rent on it is already paid, and we can stay there. Together. Crowley's paying for it. He's...well, I still don't know what to think about Crowley." she said briefly, picking up another box, staggering under its weight. "He's still, well, Crowley, but...well, somewhere inside, he has a genuinely kind heart. Somewhere."

Calliel looked over at her. She looked beautiful. To him, at least. Her hair was a disorganized mess of green and white, blowing everywhere in the wind. She was wearing a white collared shirt with a nice red vest over it, a long red skirt trailing down her legs, and, to him, she was the most beautiful woman in the entire world.

"Come on, Calliel, we're going now." she called to him, pulling open the driver's side door. "I...we'll actually live now, Calliel. We'll live a normal life. Like normal married couples do. Can you imagine that? Normal. I can't wait. It'll be fun!" she said enthusiastically, turning the keys in the ignition.

He looked at her questioningly for a moment.

"Ivy, you've only been in school for...a year. You're still young. Don't you want to keep going to school? Isn't that what humans do?"

Ivy shuddered.

"No." she said firmly, clasping both of her hands on the wheel. "I...I'd like to learn and know more, Calliel...but I have eternity for that. We...we'll be young forever, Calliel. A million years could pass, and I wouldn't age a single day. I...I don't know geometry, or calculus, or much at all, really, but...Calliel, that's not important to me. I just want to be happy. I just want to be with you."

Calliel still looked slightly confused.

"But...Ivy, back at the hospital...Richard said that you should talk to Michael. He said that Michael had answers. Don't you want answers?"

Ivy laughed, slightly exasperated and rather amused at the same time.

"Calliel, I don't care. I honestly don't care. I don't care how you made me pregnant, or whether I'm still a virgin or not, or how everything happened, or what was going on...I just want a happy ending. With you. Come on and get in the car, would you? I'd like to unload all of this stuff before night falls, really, and we'll need to be leaving soon."

"I understand, Ivy. I just wanted to know. Just making sure."

"I don't blame you, Calliel."

Smiling, Calliel climbed into the passenger seat.

"Wait," he said, pausing bluntly, concern painted on his perfect face, "do you know how to drive?"

Ivy grinned.

"You'll find out." she said, and then she gunned the engines.

----------

The sky was a dark red and there was screaming. Screams of pain and occasionally of joy. And there was blood in the air.

A tired man looked down at her, his features perfect like every angel. "Who are you?" he asked her bluntly, a sword in his hand. "I do not have time to waste."

"My name is Mary, sir. Soldier under Michael's command. Ready for orders."

"You are a liar." the angel said simply. "You are a human. We would never allow a human to serve as a soldier of such caliber. And you do not know that Michael has left Heavensgate?" he asked. "Why, you are a liar. And I know of liars. You will follow me, human and liar. And we will punish you and make you repent for your sins." he replied serenely and earnestly.

And she was forced to a wall. A burning wall.

Ivy tried to pull away from the wall, which was quickly growing warmer and warmer - in fact, enough to scald in burn. The angel, of course, was much stronger, and she was unable to move a single inch a way - and the temperature increased. She could smell the back of the veil starting to smoke, and the wall pressed through the fabric of the robe, starting to scald her back. She stood there, motionless and silent, as the wall grew warmer and warmer, until it was like being pressed against metal in the middle of a desert. Imagine being set on fire, but not actually being set alight - and that would be exactly how it felt. She cringed in pain as it burnt into her, reducing almost the entire back of the robe to ashes, and tried desperately not to scream as it scorched into her back, burning and scalding her horribly.

And then the pain was simply too much - it burnt like fire, and it was hell. Anything would be better than this. She gasped, desperately trying to push away from the wall.

"I'll tell you the truth! I'll tell you everything!" she screamed in desperation, struggling to push away from the fiery wall behind her, as it roasted into her, at an unthinkably hot temperature now. "Please, just let me go! Stop!" she screeched, feeling agony for yet another time. "My name is Ivy, I'm from Heavensgate, I serve under Archangel Raphael, please let me go!" she shrieked, tears streaming down her face, as the wall continued to burn.

"Please stop!" she sobbed, screaming in pain, writhing as the flame burnt into her.

"Please, just let me go! I'll tell you everything!" she choked, crying loudly, tears streaming down her cheeks, and then...

She opened her eyes. Her back was aflame - the scars lit like candles - she was...

She was in a bedroom.

In her house.

It was late at night - she could hear crickets chirping outside - Richard was sleeping next to her - and Calliel's arms were holding her close.

"Ivy." he said nervously, "what's wrong? Please tell me what is wrong. Please be okay." he begged, pain visible in his eyes. "You were screaming. Are you hurt?"

Ivy continued crying for a few moments, and then she gradually stopped, her breathing broken and punctuated with sobs.

"I...I'm fine, it was just a dream, it's okay, it's all okay, I'm fine, it's okay, it's all okay, it was just a dream." she said rapidly, breathing quickly, her body shaking. "It was just a dream."

"Ivy." said Calliel firmly, looking over her, "you're hurt."

Ivy shook her head, wiping tears away, still quivering slightly.

"No, it's okay, I'm fine, don't be worried, it was just a nightmare. That was all." she insisted shakily, a few last tinges of pain shooting through her back. Calliel stared at her for a few moments, and then he sighed.

"Ivy...I am with you. I will carry you through it all. I won't leave you. I will catch you every time. I promise you that no matter what happens, you won't be alone." he said, hugging her close to him. "I love you, Ivy. I am here and so are you."

"I know." she said quietly, closing her eyes. "And that's why I'm okay."

-----------

"So, Calliel," said Ivy cheerfully, running a comb through her green hair, sitting across the porch table from Calliel, "there's some news I need to tell you today."

Calliel looked up from the newspaper he was reading. He loved reading newspapers. It was fascinating. Humans were fascinating. It had been a few months now, and, still, every day, they surprised him. He didn't think he'd ever quite understand them fully, but that was okay. Some things were better if you didn't understand them all the way. Like emotions. He thanked the Lord every day for those. They were...wonderful. Staring into Ivy's eyes, he looked at her for a few moments - god, he loved her. She was the world to him. And he knew that to her, he was the same.

"Yes?" he said, taking a sip of coffee.

"Well," she continued nervously, idly messing around with a piece of vine in her hands, "there are some people we'll be meeting soon, and they're kind of important to me, and I think you'll like them."

"Friends of yours?" questioned Calliel, fascinated.

"Actually...Calliel, I found my parents. After I died, they moved, and of course I didn't know. I visited our home when I came back from Heavensgate - it was the first thing I did...and they weren't there. The people who lived their said that the previous owners had died, but...well, it's a bit of a long story, but they're alive. They're still alive." she said, beaming at him, smiling brightly. "So...today, I received a call, and..."

She sighed.

"I have a lot to explain to them. It's...it's going to take a while. It's going to take a very long time." she said frankly, setting her fork down, chewing the last of the sandwich she was eating.

"I'm sure they'll understand." Calliel replied reassuringly.

"Oh, I'm sure they will." she said, rising from her chair, picking up the dishes off the table. As she walked towards the door, she paused, looking wistfully off into the sunset for a few moments.

"Calliel," she said calmly, "I love you."

Pulling his chair out, he walked over to her side, looking over the balcony with her at the falling son. The wind tousled their hair, flapping the folds of Ivy's white dress in its breath. Calliel smiled as he looked into the horizon. There was a few minutes of silence, and they both watched as the red rays of the sun set into the east, fading slowly away, sliding into night's embrace.

"I love you, Ivy Green. I am here, and so are you."

"I will carry you through it all. I won't leave you. I will catch you every time." she replied, pulling him into a close embrace.

"And I promise you that no matter what happens, you won't be alone."

[Nude East Ireland]

The man appeared in the silent night.

He approached Ciel and Celes, and nodded to them. "Howdy," he said, puffing smoke from his mouth as he did. He removed his cigarette from his mouth and smiled. "You're both very talented. I like that. And not to mention that there's two of you. Normally I don't accept two at a time, but you are both the same person. So I can make an exception."

He reached for Banjie, taking it and holding it close to him. "Ah, it gives me happiness just to touch the Holy Instrument. The Prophet Lewis Jameson gave this to you both, and I trust you," he continued. He handed Banjie back, and sighed, resuming to smoke.

"Name's Vernil, by the way. I'm the Demonic Prince of the Song. Have been since before Time began." Suddenly, they were in space. Down below them was Hell, along with their moons. He motioned towards the planet. "I did that. Destroyed a lot. But it was a necessary evil, to redeem the Prophet Lewis Jameson.

Anyways, I'll cut right to it then. I want to extend my services to you both. I'd like to make you both my Prophets. The successors to the Prophet Lewis Jameson, along with Mozart, Beethoven, Bach - fuck, all the greats. To summon me, play the song "Ice Ice Baby" on Banjie. And if I need you... well, I'll always be watching over you. Last time I was foolish enough to allow the Prophet Lewis Jameson to die. Not this time. Not with you two. You're both special. Very special, in fact. I see your futures, and they're bright. Lots of success. Lots of music."

He tossed his cigarette away, and it fell down to Hell. He smiled at the two.

"What do you say? Do we have a deal?"

[Zarkenis Ultima]

Ciel and Celes had spent the day together, simply walking around the school, looking at things, packing their stuff and saying farewells to those very few that would want them who still lived. They spent part of the day doing other things too, of course, but they were young, energetic, hormonal and enamored. What are you gonna do?

So when the night fell, they stood outside Elfen High, looking back at the school. They had bad memories of it, yes, but they had fond memories as well, and they focused on those, because if you didn't, life was miserable, and they had been through that already. They had no particular desire to return to that.

Then, the man appeared. At first they were wary, but when he started talking about music and about Lewis, they decided to hear what he had to say. Lewis was someone they had trusted, after all.

The sudden change of environment surprised them, and they saw the enormous crater that was once Dys, along with some others were smaller moons had crashed. Indeed, a lot of destruction had been caused. They were dealing with someone powerful, but then, he had also aided their cause, in a way, and he did it in Lewis' name. That was something they respected. That, and Vernil's very musical nature, but that was to be expected, considering who they were.

So when Vernil finished and asked them if they were willing to become his prophets, Ciel and Celes looked at each other. Did they want to? Did they want to become the prophets of music, successors of Lewis Jameson and all the great musicians of history? The answer to that, was yes.

Thus, they looked at Vernil and nodded. "We have a deal." They said in unison, smiling.

[Nude East Ireland]

Vernil smiled at the two. "Good. No, great. Amazing! Marvelous!"

The two were back where they were, outside of Elfen High. A large bus also appeared next to them, with a license plate that read "V3RN1L". The bus had black paint and flames on one side, along with black tinted windows. On the other side were white-tinted windows, a white color, and clouds and rainbows instead of flames. At the front of the bus was the image of Lewis playing Banjie, and the images of Heaven and Hell merging behind him. At the back of the bus was the images of Ciel and Celes, both holding Banjie as the images merged behind them as well.

Meanwhile, Vernil was off. He flew through the clouds, through the atmosphere and all the -pheres, and into the stars. Through time and space, Vernil slowly left the Galaxy - no, the Universe. He flew out of the Universe, passing through the Dwarven Universe, and the train tracks of the Conductors that ran the Omniverse.

Vernil came to a stop, assuming his human form once more, and he sat down in a small chair. On one of the chairs arms were several buttons. He ran his finger along them, until it landed on play. And he pressed the button. And a quiet song played. Vernil smiled.

He sighed happily. "To be continued, I suppose."