Ah! The following day ch32 part B

Niflheim, Registry Archives Vault

Walking through the vast corridors that connected the facility’s numerous sealed rooms, the duo reached their destination; the one reserved for Muspelheim’s demons. Stopping before the thick blast doors, Hagall placed her hand on the panel next to the entrance and waited for the authorization process to finish in order to gain entrance.

“Well… Here we are. All there’s left is to locate the actual folder.” Walking into the room with the characteristic sound of her high heels, Hagall didn’t notice Surt as he stopped and turned around, scanning the corridor they’ve previously been for something he thought was following them.

Finding nothing of immediate concern, the Eldjotunn hurried to catch up to the blonde, before she realized that, Urd’s certificate wasn’t the sole purpose for his presence here. This was a perfect opportunity to check for another matter that in his personal opinion was even more alarming; Hild’s personal files. The brief search in Muspelheim provided no results, and if this was also the case here, then something was really wrong. A demoness who came out of nowhere was extremely suspicious and the actual reason why he didn’t want to involve her in the first place. Demons might’ve been ruthless and opportunistic beings, but, for those who followed the old traditions, it was unforgivable to raise a sword to one’s benefactor.

Whether it was figuratively speaking or not, Surt had no desire to stir up a huge fuss over Hild’s lineage which wasn’t even important. Still, several demons would’ve loved to use that as an opportunity to question their Daimakaicho’s position and try to propose another one who was more fitting. Even though pedigree was no longer an issue, with the noble houses being a thing of the past, there were a few who still tried to apply the old rules, even if the vast majority of those so called candidates were weaklings. The really dangerous ones were dealt with during the early days of the revolution that lead to Hild’s own coup.

With a class system that was primarily based on pedigree, demons could only obtain certain types of licenses that were determined on whether or not they were among the lucky ones to be descended from one of the big houses, and not their personal skills, achievements and power. This imbalance eventually led to a situation where a bunch of weaker demons were allowed to rule over the rest, even if that included some far more powerful ones.

During Fafnir’s administration, things had gotten so out of hand, that the general populate had decided that enough was enough and they wanted the recognition they deserved after all their hard work, which led to a full blown rebellion; the biggest one in their entire history and the very same that, Hild used as an opportunity to get the Daimakaicho’s rank and perform the necessary reforms. Still, most of the dirty work was done by demons who were totally unrelated to her, and in several situations, entire noble houses were murdered under mysterious circumstances, without any traces as to their executioners’ identity.

One thing was certain, though; that hadn’t been the act of an angry mob, but, a well orchestrated military operation on an unprecedented scale. That made some to spread rumors that Muspelheim’s special forces were the primary suspect for the extermination of the demonic oligarchy, even though, Hild had adamantly refused any involvement. And since Surt was her top lieutenant at that point of time, he was absolutely sure that this was the case. Unfortunately, that also meant that there was another branch in their forces that acted outside the established chain of command, and as irrelevant it sounded at the moment, the fact that, Hild’s lineage might’ve been totally fabricated could potentially turn into a situation far worse than Hagall’s joke of a coup.

The biggest question was the motive behind such an action. There were two vastly different possibilities, one that they were attempting to help by concealing facts and the other that they wanted to stir up things by making a huge mess. Without knowing their intentions taking any sort of action would’ve been inadvisable, especially if it was the former case, where his investigation could prove to be counterproductive.

“Here it is!”

Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Surt turned to the blonde demoness who had apparently done a much better job at locating Urd’s files. “Good. Is there anything wrong with them?”

“Huh? Oh! Let me see… Um… no, nothing I can tell, and you were right, the digital copy of this folder was wrong. At least, we can now fix it without any worries, since it’s most definitely an error.” While checking the document, Hagall hadn’t noticed that, Surt was going through another folder; the one that belonged to Hild.

And just like before in his own realm, there was virtually no information for her. The only thing was an ancient third class license she got when Hild was a young demoness, but other than that, the folder was totally empty; no mention of parents, place of birth, or even anyone who was remotely related to her. ‘Well… It’s not like I didn’t know that this was the case… Still, I was hoping that our Archive had somehow messed up and the documents here were correct, but… this seems way too suspicious in my opinion. Why anyone with the ability to break into our systems didn’t bother to finish the job and forge some hardcopy versions of them? So, now what?’

Meanwhile, the bored blonde was trying to find other things to occupy herself with. She felt it was strange that the Eldjotunn was still searching some folders, even after she sound what they were looking for, but before she interrupted him, curiosity got the best of her. Making sure that he was still preoccupied with whatever he was doing, Hagall managed to get hold of his own folder and take a look into it. ‘Hm… Orphaned at a young age due to war... placed under Hild-sama’s supervision… joined Muspelheim’s military… Bah!... boring stuff. Wait a moment… married?... That’s news to me, I never heard anything about that. Let’s see… where’s… Aha! First class demoness, unlimited license, Sinmara [deceased]. Uh… wasn’t she one of Hild-sama’s other students at that point of time and... deceased?’

Unaware of her surroundings, Hagall totally missed the person who was slowly and stealthily floating towards her in an attempt to see what she was reading. However, due to a slight miscalculation on the newcomer’s part, she approached her target a bit too much, resulting in a pair of soft mounds to come into contact with Hagall’s back.

Screaming from getting startled like that, the blonde took several steps away from the potential threat, before she turned around to see who it was. “H-Hild-sama?!”

Equally surprised, the Eldjotunn was ready to throw an enchanted knife towards the intruder, until he realized that she happened to be the last person he needed right now. ‘Rats...’

“Well… well… Looking for something? I’m sorry if I scared you, Hagall-chan, but, you were so busy, you didn’t even notice me,” said the Daimakaicho with a deceptively innocent smile. She had in fact being utilizing a concealment spell to creep up to them, hoping to find out what they were up to. After Ehwaz informed her about their brief meeting, Hild wanted to figure out what was going on, and this seemed to be a rather peculiar place for them to be in.

“I-I... W-We… U-Uh…” Stammering, this was the second time in a relatively short period of time, Hagall had to explain herself, although, on this occasion she wasn’t entirely sure what to tell her boss. While it sounded to be a good idea when the Eldjotunn had originally proposed to do this behind the Daimakaicho’s back, she had never thought that they’d get caught in the act.

Fearing that once she opened her mouth, the blonde would reveal way too much, Surt tried to come up with some nonsensical excuse, but hesitated to do such a thing. Past experiences from similar attempts had convinced him that while silly at times, Hild was a deceptively sharp individual and as such, she could easily see through any attempt to fool her despite how she acted.

Not getting an immediate answer from either of her subordinates, the Daimakaicho tried a different approach, by using some of the knowledge she managed to gather when she got here. “Let me make it a bit easier for you… Why were you looking at his personal files, Hagall-chan?”

“Huh? My files?” The demon in question, stared at the blonde who seemed to be close to get a nervous breakdown as she was caught twice in a row, both by her boss and by her accomplice in this whole mess.

“Why do you sound that surprised, Surt?” asked Hild with a smirk. “What else were you looking at?”

“Uh… Nothing in particular…” said the Eldjotunn, having a very bad feeling that she wasn’t going to buy such a pathetic reply.

“Is that so?” said the unconvinced Hild, turning to the blonde demoness once again. “Come on, Hagall-chan, we don’t have all day. Could you please be kind enough to give me something a bit more useful than that?”

Fearing that her boss was reaching the point where she was actually getting angry at them, Hagall had a very hard time to come up with anything that could get them out of their pinch, or even remotely plausible by any standards. Stammering a bit more, she accidentally blurted the first word that came to her panicked mind, which unfortunately was one of the last ones she read from Surt’s files. “Married…”

Hild had lived long enough to have enough experiences to make it virtually impossible for anything to actually phase her. And yet, she simply stood there with a stunned look on her face, a very similar to the one that, Surt also had after Hagall’s laconic explanation. “What?”

“Uh…” turning to the bewildered Eldjotunn for any support, Hagall realized that he was far too confused to offer any assistance, leaving her with a troubled look on her face, unsure what to say to her boss. “I-I mean… Um…”

“Yes?...” asked the irate demoness, stomping her foot on the floor. This was now getting a lot more annoying than fun, since none of those two wanted to give her any useful bits of information or even an excuse that might be something to start from. Instead, they stood there staring at each other and then back at her without the slightest of ideas as to how to deal with her. “I’m still here you know… Well? Anything? Okay… then what was that married stuff all about?”

Groaning, Surt felt very tempted to just tell her the whole truth, as much as he originally wanted to avoid that. All this nonsense was getting nowhere and the Eldjotunn wasn’t confident that the blonde would be able to salvage the situation in any way. If nothing, he was worried that she would only make it worse if she kept saying incoherent things.

However, before he had the chance to speak up, a sudden shift in one of the room’s corners caught his attention. It appeared to be the telltale sign of someone utilizing a stealth spell and for a moment, Hild’s sudden annoyance caused it to ripple as it attempted to evenly disperse the excess energy in the rest of its surroundings to keep its user concealed. It was so brief, most would’ve simply thought that it had been their imagination, but, the Eldjotunn’s training took over causing him to summon a dagger and much to the others’ surprise, fling it over Hild’s shoulder and towards the invisible intruder.

“What do you think you’re?!...” started the shocked Hagall, while the Daimakaicho simply moved further away from the projectile’s trajectory without making much of a fuss about it. She did got surprised when the knife smacked against a barrier that caused it to dematerialize.

Far worse, a dark clad figure was left standing in the same exact spot where the dagger would’ve landed, a wooden staff on one hand, while the other was extended towards the group, before he lowered it. “Not bad… I’m glad that kids your age are being able to see through such a crude spell.”

“Kids?” Gritting his teeth, Surt lunged at the impudent intruder summoning his angel, Laevateinn and turning it into its sword form ready to skewer him. Before the Eldjotunn got too far with his plans, the seemingly unimpressive staff simply blocked the fiery blade, much to its owner’s shock.

With a swift sideways swipe of his staff, the dark figure sent the Eldjotunn towards the closest walls. However, his victory was too short, when he spotted Hild mere inches away from him and ready to deliver a potentially painful strike. Bringing his left hand at the nick of time, he barely managed to stop her fist from coming into contact with his midsection, harmlessly dissipating the electric charge she had added into the attack. “Nice punch… But… off you go…”

Using her captured arm for leverage, the dark figure flung the Daimakaicho towards Surt, who came to an abrupt stop, not wanting to crash into her. Despite the fact that she was caught of guard, Hild didn’t seem to spend too much time worrying about it. After all, it had been a while she had a nice challenge, the last worthy opponent being Thor many centuries ago. “So, you can fight, huh? Not bad for one who keeps hiding in the shadows.”

“In all honesty, I would’ve never called my little attempt to stop you as something worth commenting about, but, thank you for the gracious compliment. It’s rather refreshing to see a Daimakaicho who’s not acting like a pompous jackass, especially coming from ones who clearly don’t deserve such a title. And now you’ll have to excuse me, I’ve got other things to do thank play games with you,” said the dark clad figure, turning around and murmuring a spell.

“Direct point transfer? Oh, no you don’t!” Extending her hands, Hild prepared a binding trap that would’ve immobilized him in place, however, it seemed to be far too late. The intruder had vanished moments before he was hit by her magic, which simply dissipated as it went across the room and hit the wall. Cursing under her breath, the demoness looked over her shoulder at Surt who was also rather annoyed by this unexpected development. “Okay, what’s going on here?”

“Quite frankly… That’s what I’d like to know, as well. Look… we’ve got a bit of a problem,” said the dark haired demon, offering the Daimakaicho the folder he was previously holding; the one with her personal files. “Check what’s actually there.”

Giving her subordinate a puzzled look, Hild was rather confused when she inspected the contents. More specifically, it was alarming how little there was in there, compared to what she would’ve expected. “Where’s the rest of them?”

“That’s all there is to it, I’m afraid,” admitted Surt. “That’s why we came here in the first place. I happened to notice that the same files were missing from our own Archive in Muspelheim and I wanted to see if that was the case with this one as well.”

“And it appears that not only that was true, but, we’ve got others involved, too…” added Hild, with a thoughtful expression. “Very well, let’s go to my office and we’ll discuss things in a more private setting.”

“Yes, Hild-sama!” said Hagall, while Surt simply nodded.

XXX

“There you go, Keiichi! I hope you like it!”

Offering her husband some of the cake she made with her grandmother, Belldandy took a seat next to him in the house’s front patio. Most of the other goddesses were talking to each other in the living room, while their angels were outside in the temple grounds.

“Thanks, Belldandy!” Taking a bite from the delicious dessert after the meal they had previously, Keiichi gave his wife a thumbs up. “It’s really tasty!”

While she was normally happy to hear his praise, no matter how many times he said that, on this occasion the goddess of the present was troubled, thinking that there was something lingering in his voice. Almost as if he slightly forced himself, and her cooking had nothing to do with it at all. “You’re welcome, dear. However… I can’t help but notice that something’s troubling you. What’s wrong?”

“Well… I wouldn’t say that there’s anything wrong. I just realized that in a way I’m no longer a normal human, for the most part at least. After all, no mortal has their own angel and I wondered what the consequences in the long run would be.” Fidgeting a bit, the dark haired mechanic tried his best to find a way to ask the next question without upsetting his wife. “He does look very happy at the moment, but, what’s gonna happen to him… let’s say, in a century or two?”

Raising her eyebrows a bit, the Norn of the present realized the true meaning behind his words and decided that going around the subject wouldn’t had been the best option. “In the event that the host passes away for whatever reason, the angel is typically reverted into an egg. However, that’s not always possible and depends on the actual circumstances behind every incident. At any rate, you shouldn’t worry about him, since it’s unlikely that he’s gonna suffer due to your mortal nature.”

“That’s a relief, actually,” said Keiichi with a sigh. “Sorry to bring such a topic right now, I guess that sometimes I worry too much about everything.”

“Not at all. This simply means that you care about your angel,” said Belldandy with a warm smile. “You shouldn’t feel guilty about asking those kind of questions. As a matter of fact, is there anything else you may want to know?”

“Hm… In the past, Blue Lance was able to use some of her powers while I hosted her,” said Keiichi as he remembered that event. “Is this something I can do with him as well?”

“I’m not entirely sure how much energy your angel can handle, but, If I had to make a guess, then I’d say that some of the simplest spells might be doable,” answered the brunette goddess. “I can try to show you how to use a few of them, and if that goes well, we can try to push it a bit further, as long as it doesn’t strain your body too much.”

“I’d certainly love that! I wouldn’t have asked for a better teacher, Belldandy!” Before he even had the chance to finish his sentence, a pair of hands rested on his shoulders, as someone leaned on him.

“Oh? What about little old me?” asked Urd with such an innocent smile that it was positively suspicious. “In terms of unusual angels, I’m a much better candidate for the job.”

“If having an uncommon angel is a requirement, then I suppose that I’ll be a suitable tutor,” said Lind, much to everyone’s surprise.

Before Peorth got the chance to make her own offer, she glimpsed at the irate elder goddess of their group and decided to remain quiet and simply enjoy her cake along with Skuld who couldn’t say much in a situation that involved magic.

“Your enthusiasm is commendable, however, in this case it’s much better to leave them alone. This is a perfect opportunity for the two of them to bond on top of having a simple lesson in spell casting,” said Frigg with a tone that left no room for negotiations. “Besides, if it came to experience, as the eldest goddess present, I’d be the best candidate for a tutor.”

“Yes, ma’am!” said Urd, causing Lind to snap to a salute out of of habit, until she realized that she wasn’t in front of her superiors.

“Good. Now, Keiichi-kun? Have you come up with a name for your angel?” asked the elder goddess.

Taking a look at Holy Bell and his tiny counterpart who was resting on her head while they talked to the other angels, the young mechanic nodded. “I think I do.”

“Very well. In that case, we should prepare the naming ceremony, although, I think that it would be more fitting if Belldandy and her sisters oversaw the procedure,” said Frigg, glancing at the Norn of the present.

“Of course, grandmother.” Summoning her goddess attire, Belldandy turned towards her sisters, who also followed suit and joined her in the middle of temple grounds where they’ve created a small circle.

Realizing that this was his cue, Keiichi headed towards them, as the rest of the goddesses and their angels also gathered around to witness the event.

“Please take your time and let Holy Bell help you along with the ceremony’s details,” said Belldandy as Keiichi and his angel took their position in the center of the circle.

Nodding, the mortal took a deep breath while he thought about the words he had to say. In reality, it was a strictly personal matter, which meant that there was no wrong way to do this. All that was needed was to offer a description of what their angel meant for them and then provide them with a name.

“You who exist within the deepest part of my mind, closer to my soul than any other… One of divine origins and yet resident of a mortal shell… light that shines like a star here on Earth… I name you, Terrestrial Spark.”

“Congratulations Keiichi,” said Belldandy as she offered him a hug. “That was a very nice choice for…”

‘Hello, Spark Plug!’ said World of Elegance, causing the tiny angel to blink.

‘Actually, I’m called... ‘ started the little angel, only to be interrupted again.

‘I know, I know… It’s just that I thought that this was a more… let’s say fitting name for one who’s bound to Keiichi,’ finished the dichromatic angel.

‘That’s not right at all! I think that Input Manifold sounds much better,’ said Gorgeous Rose.

‘You’re both wrong,’ interjected Noble Scarlet. ‘Camshaft is obviously the best choice!’

‘Master, I think that they’re making fun of us,’ commented Terrestrial Spark, as he turned to his host, who seemed to be rather amused with the whole exchange.

“Welcome to my life.”

XXX

Castle Utgard, Jotunheim

Deep underneath the main complex of Jotunheim’s ancient stronghold was a network of interconnected chambers that served as the headquarters of Ratatoskr, the military branch of the Intelligence Sector. While they favored mobility and avoided to become dependent on a stationary central command which could become a weakness, it was also necessary to have a place where Ratatoskr could store whatever they needed to keep away from the prying eyes of others, both friends and enemies alike.

Access was highly restricted and only a handful of demons had a sufficient clearance level to even know about the facility's existence, let alone enter it. In such a place, a group of demons clad into what appeared to be a heavy duty hazmat suit were moving a cylindrical container to a newly dug pit where it was going to be buried for safekeeping.

“Everything went according to plan, my lady. No contamination caused by sample NDH004589 was detected in the surrounding area or the bodies of or operators.”

Looking at the officer next to her, the demoness in charge nodded, feeling a great wave of relief knowing that nothing went wrong with the last recovery effort. Even a single one of those spikes could cause unimaginable damage and for that very reason, they were stored in the deepest part of Jotunheim, behind extremely thick walls made by the toughest materials they could get their hands on.

“Excellent. Make sure it stays like that, I don’t want any surprises.”

“Yes, ma’am!”

The demoness let out a sigh, as her subordinate headed towards the others who were still working in the distance. Her relief was short lived when she spotted a certain someone she had no intention to deal with at the moment.

“What are you doing standing here without any protective gear?” asked a dark clad figure as he approached her.

“Look who’s talking… I don’t see you wearing yours, so, what’s your problem anyway?” shot the demoness back at the newcomer. “Or is this another one of your excuses to lecture me?”

“I’m not trying to do that and you know it. Besides, I’ve dealt with those things eons before we even made anything to protect us from their effects,” countered the dark figure. “On the other hand, you…”

“I’ve been exposed to them in the past, which gives me a certain immunity,” said the demoness with a dismissive tone. “Although, speaking of hands… what happened to yours?”

“There’s a vast difference between a controlled exposure and an accidental one, especially when it leads to an overdose. On top of that, you’re not really much more immune than the average demon, and that’s something you need to keep in mind,” said the dark clad figure.

Snorting, she turned her attention away from him and back to the group she was supervising. “Whatever. And you still haven’t told me where you got that bruise from.”

“Stop making such a big deal about it. I just had a run in with… kids, that’s all,” said the demon, hiding his hurt wrist from plain sight.

“Do you really think I’m naive enough to believe that some kids managed to harm you? Not to mention that most are considered to be children compared to you, old man,” sneered the demoness. “So, who had you actually fought?”

“Hey! That’s slightly offensive! I may be older than most, but, I’m still in my prime,” objected the dark clad figure. “As a matter of fact, I’m in a much better condition than most of the youngsters these days!”

“Still avoiding the subject, huh? Fine, be that way… It’s not like a care or anything,” spat the tired demoness. “And go heal that injury, jackass!”

“Y-You can’t call me that! I’m…” started the dark figure, before he was interrupted.

“Pull rank on someone who cares, because I clearly don’t! Now, unless you’ve got something useful to add, I’d like to continue my job.” Getting no reply, the demoness watched him slowly walk away, finally leaving her alone.

‘Maybe, I should go and see if his grandson knows anything.’