The Fall of Elfen High (IC, Closed)

[Rupudska]

Catrin Eberhardt, unlike many others, wasn't fancying herself up for the war in Heaven. Sure, she had one of her nicer [red] skirtsuits on, but other than that, she wasn't wearing anything too fancy.

She didn't see a need to. She fought a dragon in a similar suit, why would fighting Uriel necessitate anything different? The only real difference was that she now had six holsters for six 13mm pistols that she had found laying about in the school garage next to a sign reading 'Use only if you can handle it!' Well, her old .454s were getting a tad worn anyway. There was more than enough ammunition for them... she hoped.

Let's do this, then. And maybe afterwards I'll blow that fucking Nazi's brains out.

---

Yuzuki walked briskly through the halls of Elfen High towards the auditorium. She had parked her old Bentley Continental in the garage. The poor thing had been growing worse for wear. She had a feeling she wouldn't need it again, but just to be safe, she had left a note on the hood, reading 'His name is Sleipnir, please leave him be.' Like many things that she had owned since the start of all the insanity, she had installed an AI.

It was perfect. Her brand-new Kamui, Tekketsu, was pressed and steamed to perfection. Her WWII Japanese Naval Officer's sword was polished and sharpened to the nth degree. Her 'Nambu' pistol rested in its holster, its magazine replaced with a battery and its firing mechanisms removed. Instead, it fired bolts of microwave energy in sufficiently concentrated amounts to simulate the damage of a bullet, but with significantly greater range. And the added chance of popcorning the target.

"Bah. Why you fret over such things is beyond my understanding. They'll just get dirty anyway."

"If I used that logic, I wouldn't have cleaned my office. You have to look nice before going to meet your maker."

"You won't die. Of that I am sure. Who would keep the internet lust machine running?"

She snickered at that comment, but eventually replied, in a more serious tone, "You and I both know that you are in no way sure of that."

Silence. It wasn't comforting for either of them.

Yuzuki sighed, as did Tekketsu.

"Look, I'm sorry that your existence will likely be short. But I can promise that if you do die, it'll most likely be in combat. But I'm not one for speeches, hell, I've spent much of my life putting things in my mouth that prevent talking at all. I can count the number of things that truly made me willing to fight for on one hand."

"You can always back out. You did so in hundreds of Japan's wars, even the Pacific War - you told me that yourself. Why is this war any different? Who are these people to you really?"

More silence. She was in the same hallway as the auditorium now. It wasn't that far, less than a few hundred yards. Damn, the school had gotten even bigger. It needed a public transport system. Perhaps she could get Crowley to add it after the war, if there was an after. Heh.

"The last time I backed out of a major battle with Heaven, I lost one of those things."

This silence was the worst so far.

"I see."



"Well, we're here now. Can't get all sentimental before the battle, can you, you crazy tanuki bitch?"

That got Yuzuki to laugh.

"Of course not."

The door swung open with a swift kick to the handle, and Yuzuki half-walked, half-jogged down the walkway leading past it towards the seats.

"I'm here. Let's kill some angels and shit."

[Astrolinium]

Eric briefly wandered into the auditorium with a guitar, strummed a few bars of Stephen Lynch's "Little Tiny Mustache (I Think You're a Nazi, Baby)", and wandered back out.

[Astrolinium]

Caspian Lawrence frowned, eyebrows slanting downward in a puppy dog-like manner. He was sitting in a chair -- quite an ordinary chair -- and in both hands he held a cup of tea. Gently, carefully, he lifted it to his mouth and took a sip.

He'd taken the day spent on Avalon as an opportunity for a change of dress. His old outfit -- inspired largely by the Second and Eleventh Doctors -- had grown to bore him, so he'd gone back to his roots in terms of where he'd acquired his dress sense, though in a way somewhat more suited for battle. 100% Rebel Time Traveler, he liked to think of it as -- no frills, no scarves, no bow ties, and no umbrellas. Pressed white oxford shirt under a navy waistcoat, with trousers in that same colour. Over that, a black suit jacket -- a bit of a lengthy affair, it went down to his knees -- with a red lining. Black Doc Martens on his feet. The pockets on the coat were, of course, bigger on the inside -- perfect for storing the multitude of futuristic weapons he possessed.

Lowering the tea again, Caspian said, voice a bit thin, "That sounds like a pterosaur. I had a nasty run-in with pterosaurs a few years back. But I'm going to make an inference based on the recent talk of dragons and say that that is not, in fact, a pterosaur, though it may indeed fit the designation of 'flying reptile'."

"More than likely." Gabriel said. "Now, the relationship between Fae and dragons. Leviathan. Let's start there. The Leviathan is a beast that existed at the dawn of everything, and quite frankly is everything to an extent...." Gabriel went onto explain the beasts, which I have written about here. "Further questions?"

Caspian coughed quietly and set his tea down on a nearby table. He raised a finger to indicate a further question and said, "What's a furry? That's been bugging me for quite some time, ever since I stumbled across this one web forum... I ask because there was some rather well-drawn, if disturbing, art regarding dragons, so it may be relevant."

He clasped his hands together and put them in his lap.

[Nightkill the Emperor]

"More than likely." Gabriel said. "Now, the relationship between Fae and dragons. Leviathan. Let's start there. The Leviathan is a beast that existed at the dawn of everything, and quite frankly is everything to an extent...." Gabriel went onto explain the beasts, which I have written about here. "Further questions?"

Caspian coughed quietly and set his tea down on a nearby table. He raised a finger to indicate a further question and said, "What's a furry? That's been bugging me for quite some time, ever since I stumbled across this one web forum... I ask because there was some rather well-drawn, if disturbing, art regarding dragons, so it may be relevant."

He clasped his hands together and put them in his lap.

Gabriel placed a hand on Caspian's head, a mental image popping in his head of Gabriel giving an extremely visual demonstration of what a furry was.

He took the hand off, the vision disappearing.

"That's what." Gabriel cheerfully explained.

[Constaniana]

Crowley just facepalmed. He stood up there like that for a few seconds. "Alright, lesson learnt from this? Hilde should not be given a microphone or any type of amplifying device, and her boyfriend ought to keep her mouth busy with other things." he looked at D. "Oh yes, there's Franklin up there." He used the microphone, now powering it with magic rather than electricity. "We will indeed get started with the work. I'm arranging transportation to Bethlehem soon through means of a portal. You have any other remarks?"

"I've got a very important question, Crowley," William asked, raising a hand, "How much time would you approximately mean by soon? I'm just curious if there would be a quick opportunity to have Hilde do other things with her mouth like you suggested," the knight explained, expecting Crowley would sympathize with him on something like this.

[Astrolinium]

Caspian, hand shaking, reached for his tea. He gulped and said, "I see. I don't think I shall be asking my follow-up question about bukkake, then."

He sipped the tea nervously.

[Nightkill the Emperor]

Crowley just facepalmed. He stood up there like that for a few seconds. "Alright, lesson learnt from this? Hilde should not be given a microphone or any type of amplifying device, and her boyfriend ought to keep her mouth busy with other things." he looked at D. "Oh yes, there's Franklin up there." He used the microphone, now powering it with magic rather than electricity. "We will indeed get started with the work. I'm arranging transportation to Bethlehem soon through means of a portal. You have any other remarks?"

"I've got a very important question, Crowley," William asked, raising a hand, "How much time would you approximately mean by soon? I'm just curious if there would be a quick opportunity to have Hilde do other things with her mouth like you suggested," the knight explained, expecting Crowley would sympathize with him on something like this.

"I'm completely sure you're very quick, William." Crowley said, utterly aware of what his originally encouraging speech had become. He then paused, shuffling his feet. "...Fuck. I completely forgot where I was going with this. Look, the gist is that tomorrow we're going to Bethlehem to beat the fuckery out of Uriel. I think that's a proposal we can all get on board with."

[Zarkenis Ultima]

"I'm completely sure you're very quick, William." Crowley said, utterly aware of what his originally encouraging speech had become. He then paused, shuffling his feet. "...Fuck. I completely forgot where I was going with this. Look, the gist is that tomorrow we're going to Bethlehem to beat the fuckery out of Uriel. I think that's a proposal we can all get on board with."

"Agreed." Alastor spoke, his voice loud and clear as he addressed someone other than his minions for the first time since he entered the auditorium. "However, I have a question, Crowley, an important one: How big is this portal you speak of? The one we will cross to reach Heaven. Is it human sized? Perhaps it has the size of a tank or even a battlecruiser? I would certainly hope it is much bigger than that. The entry point will have to be enormous if I am to drive the might of Hell into it."

[Nightkill the Emperor]

"I'm completely sure you're very quick, William." Crowley said, utterly aware of what his originally encouraging speech had become. He then paused, shuffling his feet. "...Fuck. I completely forgot where I was going with this. Look, the gist is that tomorrow we're going to Bethlehem to beat the fuckery out of Uriel. I think that's a proposal we can all get on board with."

"Agreed." Alastor spoke, his voice loud and clear as he addressed someone other than his minions for the first time since he entered the auditorium. "However, I have a question, Crowley, an important one: How big is this portal you speak of? The one we will cross to reach Heaven. Is it human sized? Perhaps it has the size of a tank or even a battlecruiser? I would certainly hope it is much bigger than that. The entry point will have to be enormous if I am to drive the might of Hell into it."

"It'll be pretty big." Crowley replied. "I'll expand and contract it as need be, but you will be able to get in whatever you need."

"Unless there's unforeseen circumstances." Daisuke noted, almost to himself.

"And now that you've said it, there's definitely going to be unforeseen circumstances, Daisuke. Thank you for that." Crowley sighed. "Anyway, assuming that we ignore the now inevitable unforeseen circumstances, you will be able to bring in all the forces you need for the upcoming battle."

[Zarkenis Ultima]

"It'll be pretty big." Crowley replied. "I'll expand and contract it as need be, but you will be able to get in whatever you need."

"Unless there's unforeseen circumstances." Daisuke noted, almost to himself.

"And now that you've said it, there's definitely going to be unforeseen circumstances, Daisuke. Thank you for that." Crowley sighed. "Anyway, assuming that we ignore the now inevitable unforeseen circumstances, you will be able to bring in all the forces you need for the upcoming battle."

The Demon Lord nodded, seemingly satisfied for the time being. "Very well." He said, considering his inquiry answered. He did not like these 'inevitable unforeseen circumstances', but there was nothing that could be done about that, and, assuming everything went well, the whole of his forces would participate in the war. A good thing, considering the effort he spent gathering Hell's might and preparing it for the war. Not being able to get his forces through would be, to express it coloquially, a pain in the ass.

"So let us hope nothing happens." Alastor thought to himself. Not that he expected much to come from this hope.

Regardless, he fell silent, running numbers in his head.

---

"ZzZzZz- Wha- unforeseen what?" Ciel blurted out, finding that her nap was interrupted. She let out a loud and entirely unstifled yawn, before looking around.

"What's up? Is the meeting over yet?" She asked Daisuke, while rubbing her eyes.

[Constaniana]

"I'm completely sure you're very quick, William." Crowley said, utterly aware of what his originally encouraging speech had become. He then paused, shuffling his feet. "...Fuck. I completely forgot where I was going with this. Look, the gist is that tomorrow we're going to Bethlehem to beat the fuckery out of Uriel. I think that's a proposal we can all get on board with."

"Oi, I could have just been planning a picnic with ice cream or something for all you know," Sir Nilark grumbled. "But yeah, ending Uriel sounds good."

[Agritum]

Caspian coughed quietly and set his tea down on a nearby table. He raised a finger to indicate a further question and said, "What's a furry? That's been bugging me for quite some time, ever since I stumbled across this one web forum... I ask because there was some rather well-drawn, if disturbing, art regarding dragons, so it may be relevant."

He clasped his hands together and put them in his lap.

Gabriel placed a hand on Caspian's head, a mental image popping in his head of Gabriel giving an extremely visual demonstration of what a furry was.

He took the hand off, the vision disappearing.

"That's what." Gabriel cheerfully explained.

Gwen looked at Gabriel, giving him an horrified look. "I have encountered some of the vilest creatures in the Multiverse, witnessed some of the most heinous acts ever, but I would have never though that you'd be capable to top all of that in this very instant, Gabriel." She promptly admonished. "That boy won't be of much use to us, if you continue raping his mind with such warped visions."

[Nightkill the Emperor]

Gabriel placed a hand on Caspian's head, a mental image popping in his head of Gabriel giving an extremely visual demonstration of what a furry was.

He took the hand off, the vision disappearing.

"That's what." Gabriel cheerfully explained.

Gwen looked at Gabriel, giving him an horrified look. "I have encountered some of the vilest creatures in the Multiverse, witnessed some of the most heinous acts ever, but I would have never though that you'd be capable to top all of that in this very instant, Gabriel." She promptly admonished. "That boy won't be of much use to us, if you continue raping his mind with such warped visions."

Gabriel shrugged. "I was just giving him an explanation." he said, opening the door of the ship with a snap of his fingers. "Let's head on out now, to the prison of Alcatraz. Explore history and so on. Keep close together, all of you." he warned sternly, his face becoming more serious. "Then we can all move on to greener pastures."

The view outside represented a rainy island, surrounded by an ocean. It was a dark and turbulent sky above them, a stormy day. The prison itself was in disrepair, at least on the surface. The gates were broken, and would open with just a gentle touch, allowing one to effortlessly explore inside.

[Nude East Ireland]

Alice nodded. "Be right there," she replied.

The two suddenly appeared in Bethlehem, in the restaurant with Horn and Sanchez. Francois pulled out a cigarette, which Alice lit via snapping - Roy Mustang style.

"Lovely to see you again, Alexander," Alice said. "And Rick. It's... well, I can see you. What do we need to discuss."

Francois coughed, smoke flowing out of his mouth and upward into the air. "Clearly we need to discuss when this place got here. I've never had poutine in Israel before." The Frenchman nodded at the man at the counter. "Poutine, and lots of it. Oh, and some beer."

Notably, Horn and Sanchez were not currently in the same place anymore. Sanchez had left - Horn was using his laptop to project a hologram in Alice's office. He looked surprised at seeing the two already. "That was quick." he noted. "Anyway," he shuffled in his chair as the Arab man went to get some poutine but skipped out on bringing beer. For some reason, alcohol was not particularly liked in the holy (and Muslim majority) city of Bethlehem. "This restaurant was built a few years ago, when the ISSR was building a lot of other stuff. Because of the conflicts in Lebanon and Egypt, you know. We had a few Quebecois who wanted a taste of home, so they encouraged building this." he gestured. "I'm sorry to hear about Henry. He was a good man."

"Thank you," Alice said. She sat down. "We've been through quite a bit."

Francois brought his poutine to the table and took a seat next to Alice. "Poutine is fucking amazing," he said, dropping his cigarette onto the ground and stomping it out. "Horn, I think you and the Quebecois should think about joining FU in an alliance. I'm sure we'd do wonders for the world. I mean, what have the English ever done?"

[Swith Witherward]

"I'm going to see if I can gain any more information," Fen squeezed Emi's hand.

Hilde's speech had left a sour taste in her mouth and she was uncertain if her roommate wanted to be anywhere near the speciest. She made her way down the aisles and approached the group gathered around the Headmaster. Sir William received a warm smile but Fen refused to look at the German.

"Hello Daisuke, Headmaster." The Polynesian had overcome much of her initial shyness since her arrival. While she certainly didn't feel a friendly closeness to either gentleman, Fen had grown accustomed to seeing them as actual people rather than foreboding authority figures.

She acknowledged the Demon Lord with a polite bow. "I'm sorry for interrupting your conversation. Headmaster, when exactly do we leave for Bethlehem? Any last minute instructions?"

[Agritum]

Gwen looked at Gabriel, giving him an horrified look. "I have encountered some of the vilest creatures in the Multiverse, witnessed some of the most heinous acts ever, but I would have never though that you'd be capable to top all of that in this very instant, Gabriel." She promptly admonished. "That boy won't be of much use to us, if you continue raping his mind with such warped visions."

Gabriel shrugged. "I was just giving him an explanation." he said, opening the door of the ship with a snap of his fingers. "Let's head on out now, to the prison of Alcatraz. Explore history and so on. Keep close together, all of you." he warned sternly, his face becoming more serious. "Then we can all move on to greener pastures."

The view outside represented a rainy island, surrounded by an ocean. It was a dark and turbulent sky above them, a stormy day. The prison itself was in disrepair, at least on the surface. The gates were broken, and would open with just a gentle touch, allowing one to effortlessly explore inside.

Because she was pretty much the mom of the group, and because she wasn't really a dick, and because she was basically the last decent person in the multiverse, Gwen decided to go forward and slowly push the gate open, checking the insides of the prison.

"Cover my back." she uttered to the others.

[Nightkill the Emperor]

Notably, Horn and Sanchez were not currently in the same place anymore. Sanchez had left - Horn was using his laptop to project a hologram in Alice's office. He looked surprised at seeing the two already. "That was quick." he noted. "Anyway," he shuffled in his chair as the Arab man went to get some poutine but skipped out on bringing beer. For some reason, alcohol was not particularly liked in the holy (and Muslim majority) city of Bethlehem. "This restaurant was built a few years ago, when the ISSR was building a lot of other stuff. Because of the conflicts in Lebanon and Egypt, you know. We had a few Quebecois who wanted a taste of home, so they encouraged building this." he gestured. "I'm sorry to hear about Henry. He was a good man."

"Thank you," Alice said. She sat down. "We've been through quite a bit."

Francois brought his poutine to the table and took a seat next to Alice. "Poutine is fucking amazing," he said, dropping his cigarette onto the ground and stomping it out. "Horn, I think you and the Quebecois should think about joining FU in an alliance. I'm sure we'd do wonders for the world. I mean, what have the English ever done?"

"Fucked us." Horn shrugged. "But, frankly, an alliance is something to consider after the war, when we make it out alive. Unless you have a hell of a case."

[Esternial]

"I'm going to see if I can gain any more information," Fen squeezed Emi's hand.

Hilde's speech had left a sour taste in her mouth and she was uncertain if her roommate wanted to be anywhere near the speciest. She made her way down the aisles and approached the group gathered around the Headmaster. Sir William received a warm smile but Fen refused to look at the German.

"Hello Daisuke, Headmaster." The Polynesian had overcome much of her initial shyness since her arrival. While she certainly didn't feel a friendly closeness to either gentleman, Fen had grown accustomed to seeing them as actual people rather than foreboding authority figures.

She acknowledged the Demon Lord with a polite bow. "I'm sorry for interrupting your conversation. Headmaster, when exactly do we leave for Bethlehem? Any last minute instructions?"

Though she responded with a calm nod, Emi was contemplating ways to permanently end Hilde's existence. The bitch had a repulsive scent that made the homunculus seem like the pot roast, made by that cousin that sucks at cooking, at a family banquet. It was probably one of the reasons why she disliked Hilde so much, but obviously not the main reason.

Then Emi realised something, and her anger faded away. She was going to tolerate the shit out of that less-than-human bitch, starting...now.

The Walloon vampire remained seated and didn't move a muscle, patiently waiting for the order to move out. Maybe it was the importance of the upcoming battle, but she could feel her hands trembling for a brief moment before he tightened her grip around the scabbard of her sword.

[Nightkill the Emperor]

"It'll be pretty big." Crowley replied. "I'll expand and contract it as need be, but you will be able to get in whatever you need."

"Unless there's unforeseen circumstances." Daisuke noted, almost to himself.

"And now that you've said it, there's definitely going to be unforeseen circumstances, Daisuke. Thank you for that." Crowley sighed. "Anyway, assuming that we ignore the now inevitable unforeseen circumstances, you will be able to bring in all the forces you need for the upcoming battle."

The Demon Lord nodded, seemingly satisfied for the time being. "Very well." He said, considering his inquiry answered. He did not like these 'inevitable unforeseen circumstances', but there was nothing that could be done about that, and, assuming everything went well, the whole of his forces would participate in the war. A good thing, considering the effort he spent gathering Hell's might and preparing it for the war. Not being able to get his forces through would be, to express it coloquially, a pain in the ass.

"So let us hope nothing happens." Alastor thought to himself. Not that he expected much to come from this hope.

Regardless, he fell silent, running numbers in his head.

---

"ZzZzZz- Wha- unforeseen what?" Ciel blurted out, finding that her nap was interrupted. She let out a loud and entirely unstifled yawn, before looking around.

"What's up? Is the meeting over yet?" She asked Daisuke, while rubbing her eyes.

Daisuke shrugged. "Crowley was giving a heroic speech, but it's gone off the rails considerably since. Hilde gave some borderline racist speech that barely stayed within political correctness. I tempted fate and may have dammed us all by mentioning how we may have some unforeseen circumstances. So nothing much happened, to be honest."

"I'm going to see if I can gain any more information," Fen squeezed Emi's hand.

Hilde's speech had left a sour taste in her mouth and she was uncertain if her roommate wanted to be anywhere near the speciest. She made her way down the aisles and approached the group gathered around the Headmaster. Sir William received a warm smile but Fen refused to look at the German.

"Hello Daisuke, Headmaster." The Polynesian had overcome much of her initial shyness since her arrival. While she certainly didn't feel a friendly closeness to either gentleman, Fen had grown accustomed to seeing them as actual people rather than foreboding authority figures.

She acknowledged the Demon Lord with a polite bow. "I'm sorry for interrupting your conversation. Headmaster, when exactly do we leave for Bethlehem? Any last minute instructions?"

"We leave early tomorrow morning. May be a good idea to bring a towel and toothbrush. A great wizard named Douglas Adams once wrote that everyone should carry around a towel, and I agree with him." Crowley said with an entirely serious tone and straight face. "My last minute suggestions would just be to be ready for anything. You're a healer, yes? I may assign you to a non-battle role, perhaps a medic rather than a fighter, unless Sanchez has a different idea. But this is a last day at Elfen High. I'd recommend just relaxing for a while, perhaps reading about
Heaven in the library or some such."

[Swith Witherward]

"We leave early tomorrow morning. May be a good idea to bring a towel and toothbrush. A great wizard named Douglas Adams once wrote that everyone should carry around a towel, and I agree with him." Crowley said with an entirely serious tone and straight face. "My last minute suggestions would just be to be ready for anything. You're a healer, yes? I may assign you to a non-battle role, perhaps a medic rather than a fighter, unless Sanchez has a different idea. But this is a last day at Elfen High. I'd recommend just relaxing for a while, perhaps reading about Heaven in the library or some such."

"Thank you, Headmaster." Fen excused herself and navigated her way back to Emi.

A medic? Wonderful prospect, especially as Fen wasn't all that keen on frosting the allies around her. The downside was that she might be separated from Emi. She had a towel and toothbrush although she failed to see how either would be handy. Nonetheless, if Crowley recommended it then it must be a vital thing. Then again, she'd been at Elfen High long enough to realize that Crowley had a demented sense of humor and she would possibly be the only person on the battlefield wielding bathroom items.

"I'll bring the toothbrush out of spite," she nattered to herself, "It would it be a fitting end to Uriel if Sir William stabbed him with it."

She settled into the seat next to her roommate again. "Early tomorrow morning, Emi. That leaves us the rest of today to prepare. Maybe read some books about Heaven in the library. Study. Prepare our minds and steel our bodies for battle. Take a deep breath and walk the halls and savor every last, sweet memory of this place."

Fen's head rolled to the side. She regarded Emi through half closed eyes. "Or we can say 'fuck it', find a bunch of people and hit up a pub."

[Zarkenis Ultima]

Daisuke shrugged. "Crowley was giving a heroic speech, but it's gone off the rails considerably since. Hilde gave some borderline racist speech that barely stayed within political correctness. I tempted fate and may have dammed us all by mentioning how we may have some unforeseen circumstances. So nothing much happened, to be honest."

Ciel was in the process of letting out another yawn, when suddenly she started laughing instead after hearing Daisuke out. "Heroic speech..." She said to herself after having calmed down a bit, still greatly amused. "Anyway... You should've let me sleep if nothing important's happening." She added afterwards, quite obviously ignoring the fact that he hadn't really intended to wake her up, though she wasn't all that serious about it, either. "And don't beat yourself up over tempting fate. Everybody does it now and then." She continued, now throwing an arm around Daisuke. "Sure, you're an idiot, there's no questioning that right now, but at least you're a lovable idiot."

[Nude East Ireland]

"Thank you," Alice said. She sat down. "We've been through quite a bit."

Francois brought his poutine to the table and took a seat next to Alice. "Poutine is fucking amazing," he said, dropping his cigarette onto the ground and stomping it out. "Horn, I think you and the Quebecois should think about joining FU in an alliance. I'm sure we'd do wonders for the world. I mean, what have the English ever done?"

"Fucked us." Horn shrugged. "But, frankly, an alliance is something to consider after the war, when we make it out alive. Unless you have a hell of a case."

"Well, let's save it for later then," Francois replied.

Alice whipped out another cigar and lit it. "So, Horn, why are we here, exactly? Another fallen Angel perhaps?"

[Lazarian]

Gwen looked at Gabriel, giving him an horrified look. "I have encountered some of the vilest creatures in the Multiverse, witnessed some of the most heinous acts ever, but I would have never though that you'd be capable to top all of that in this very instant, Gabriel." She promptly admonished. "That boy won't be of much use to us, if you continue raping his mind with such warped visions."

Gabriel shrugged. "I was just giving him an explanation." he said, opening the door of the ship with a snap of his fingers. "Let's head on out now, to the prison of Alcatraz. Explore history and so on. Keep close together, all of you." he warned sternly, his face becoming more serious. "Then we can all move on to greener pastures."

The view outside represented a rainy island, surrounded by an ocean. It was a dark and turbulent sky above them, a stormy day. The prison itself was in disrepair, at least on the surface. The gates were broken, and would open with just a gentle touch, allowing one to effortlessly explore inside.

"Why exactly are we here again?" asked Ivy, looking slightly perturbed.

She hadn't done very much in the last two weeks - angels, apparently, because of better designed biology, didn't sleep very much. While it had been an excellent discovery at first, she hadn't really been able to do a lot with the extra time. Sure, a flying castle was interesting and all, and touring the cryogenic chambers had been fascinating for the first few days, but it had gotten a bit old. With only Gabriel, Gwen, Gabriella, and Caspian as company, there wasn't very much to do - well, okay, that wasn't exactly true. She had almost (maybe) considered taking up Gabriel's suggestion of strip poker (before Gwen shot it down, that is), if only as something to do. Gabriel was a bit perverted for her taste, and the fact that his hands kept "accidently" landing on her ass was a little bit of a turn-off, honestly. Gabriella was irritatingly naive, and Gwen was too busy managing the ship to spend time having small talk with some random angel - and, honestly, Gwen seemed to distrust her. Coming out of a Fae tomb did tend to have those effects, regrettably.

Admittedly, out of the group, Caspian was by far the most likable. Always had a few interesting comments; he'd been places in his life. Quite a capable man. That being said, his tangents on things like Pan-Galactic Gargle-Blasters and the Battle of Agincourt did tend to get a little old, eventually. Not to mention his use of tenses was absolutely infuriating. "You can't use "past" for the 2500s!" she had objected once, before receiving a thoroughly thought out rebuttal on a bunch of wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey science which she didn't understand. She had dropped her objections after that.

To be honest, she probably wouldn't have been quite as irritable, but she missed Calliel. Quite a bit. She missed his smile, and running her hands through his hair, and the way they finished each other's sentences, and, well, a bunch of sickeningly cutesy stuff she almost felt embarrassed about. It was like she loved him more in his absence, and it was frustrating. She hoped he'd be alright. She had no idea how long she'd been gone - time really didn't have much meaning in these dimensions. Had it been two weeks? It felt like she'd been with those four for longer than that.

That being said, these four were the group of people she was about to talk into an abandoned prison full of God-knows-what with.

She had her reasons to be a little perturbed.

[Norvenia]

Daniel Andreas stood toward the back of the auditorium. He was reminded, not for the first time, of how small he was. In his own day, Daniel had been a tall, strong man. As late as the Second World War, he'd been roughly average in size. But now? Now, Daniel was a head shorter than most of the men in the room, a few inches shorter than many of the women, and - despite his comparatively broad shoulders - as slightly built as a willow. When the priest moved - and certainly when he fought - no one ever noticed that; the fluid speed and strength of the ageless Sabbatanoi was what folk saw, not the slight frame of a man born in 1530.

But when Daniel wasn't moving, certain facts remained immutable. One of which was that, when he stood at the back of an auditorium, he had the devil's own time trying to see over the heads of everyone in front of him.

The priest could hear just fine, though. He smiled wearily during Hilde's speech. There was a time, Daniel supposed, when he would have had similar words for the assembly. When he would have called for the world to be cleansed; in Daniel's case, he would have seen it cleansed of the reprobate, of Romish popery as much as of inhuman malice. But that was a long time ago: before de Sade smiled and Aravalli choked out her lifeblood and Stefan muttered his last forgiveness and Mirek walked into the gas chamber and Martin looked up from the podium in Memphis and sighed for one last time. Before Daniel met good sorcerers and unimaginably wicked men who unselfconsciously declared that they were "normal". Before the comfortable distinctions got all muddied, somewhere back along the line. And before, somewhere in those shadowy grey areas between good and evil, Daniel had found the courage to forgive his enemies, his world, his God, himself.

Hilde's speech didn't make Daniel feel angry. It didn't make him feel sad. It just made him feel tired, and so very, very old.

Then there was some lowbrow humor at the German's expense, which Daniel couldn't bring himself to feel too upset about, and a few good pragmatic questions from Alastor, whom Daniel had not seen since the mission to Armenio. With a slight tremor of foreboding, the priest thought of Set. We will meet again, priest, and your impudence will be remembered. Daniel smiled grimly. It's the end of the world. All things now move toward their reckoning. There will come a day when I have to face the consequences of what happened on that moon.

There will come a day when I have to face the consequences of a lot of things.

"Bethlehem," Daniel murmured softly, turning to Zoryana. "You know, I've never been to Bethlehem." The priest's slender, hard-calloused fingers toyed for a moment with the simple bronze cross that hung from his neck; Daniel was wearing his plain dark blue cassock with white clergy collar, though one might be able to see the faint bulge of a sidearm strapped to his thigh beneath the garment's skirts. "Curious, that. Jerusalem, once or twice. Never Bethlehem." The priest raised a pale gold eyebrow. "You, Zoryana?"

[Nightkill the Emperor]

Daisuke shrugged. "Crowley was giving a heroic speech, but it's gone off the rails considerably since. Hilde gave some borderline racist speech that barely stayed within political correctness. I tempted fate and may have dammed us all by mentioning how we may have some unforeseen circumstances. So nothing much happened, to be honest."

Ciel was in the process of letting out another yawn, when suddenly she started laughing instead after hearing Daisuke out. "Heroic speech..." She said to herself after having calmed down a bit, still greatly amused. "Anyway... You should've let me sleep if nothing important's happening." She added afterwards, quite obviously ignoring the fact that he hadn't really intended to wake her up, though she wasn't all that serious about it, either. "And don't beat yourself up over tempting fate. Everybody does it now and then." She continued, now throwing an arm around Daisuke. "Sure, you're an idiot, there's no questioning that right now, but at least you're a lovable idiot."

Daisuke chuckled. "Well, thanks for that, I appreciate it-"

Bursting into the room, very suddenly, was a perturbed John Goodman, wearing a ponytail. "Just going through some stuff right now." he muttered, walking off. In his hand, he held a wrench. Behind him followed Donald Glover, also holding a wrench. Danny Pudi followed with a pipe in his mouth, as well as wearing a lab coat and speaking in an English accent.

Daisuke paused. "That just happened." he noted. "In any case, you have any ideas for what we should do right now? There's going to be a war tomorrow. Might be good to prepare for that. We can use the battle simulator for it, actually."

"Fucked us." Horn shrugged. "But, frankly, an alliance is something to consider after the war, when we make it out alive. Unless you have a hell of a case."

"Well, let's save it for later then," Francois replied.

Alice whipped out another cigar and lit it. "So, Horn, why are we here, exactly? Another fallen Angel perhaps?"

"Several, actually." Horn said. "You just went through four cigars in the last five minutes, by the way. That's actually somewhat concerning. Don't relapse back on that habit, it'd be bad for you." he advised. "Anyway, let's go check on the angels." he stood up, pulling a lever on his desk. A big red lever that had been there. Astounding nobody noticed it.

After pulling it, the chair swooped downwards into the ground, landing in some sort of underground base throughout Bethlehem. "I give you-" declared Horn in dramatic English. "The Science Room!"

Thunder was heard in the background though they were underground and it was a sunny day aboveground.

All around them lay angels on bedsheets, dead and still, in various states of robotification. Some were almost completely steel, some were very nearly ordinary. And some were mishapen, misformed shapes masquerading as humanoid. Horn gestured at one slimey tentacle protruding from one such specimen. "I think Uriel's been busy modifying his soldiers. But why? And why send them down?"