dwills@world.std.com (David E Wills)

The following is my first attempt at a fan fic, and before I knew
it, it had grown into the monster you now see here.(Help!
Yohko!)<G>
Notes: Some events are drawn from the Manga for Oh My Goddess,
while others are from the anime. Aspects of character personality
may reflect this. Of course, no part of this should be considered
canon, and I extrapolated things where there was no clear guide.
Also, references are made to Yohko^2, which is in production now,
and as such, I could only make some guesses from the plot teaser
listed in a magazine.
The events depicted here take place about two years after the first
episode of Devil Hunter Yohko, which happened concurently with the
events of Oh My Goddess. Yohko and Chi' are about 18, and Azusa is
about 14 going on 15. Skuld is about 14, Belldandy is about 22, and
Urd would be 26 or so. Figure that Keiichi is now in his last year
of college

Apologies to Kosuke Fujishima, Masao Maruyama, H.P.Lovecraft, and
anyone who's characters play a camio here.
This Fan-fic may be posted and copied anywhere, but must contain
this header in its entirety, and may not be sold or distributed for
a charge/fee, and credit made to the author.
                                   Mark Babcock
                                   Gloucester, Ont.
                                   24/08/95



                       Oh My Devil-Hunter

                       By Mark Babcock


Yohko slowly picked herself up out of the dirt for the nth time in
the last ten minutes. "This is not going well" she thought, shaking
leaves from her hair. The demon was currently fencing with Azusa,
who was only just parrying its blows. With a side of swipe of it's
tail, Azusa went spinning through the air to land next to Yohko.
"Aahhg! I can't even make contact with it!" she wailed.
Yohko considered briefly, and decided this patch of forest was
working to their disadvantage. "Time to beat a strategic retreat,
Apprentice."
"Huh?"
"Run!"
"Oh!"
Taking off at a staggering run, they got to the street before the
demon had clued in that they were running. With a howl of horrible
glee, it took off in pursuit.
Running down the street in their torn and dirty dresses, spear and
soul-sword in hand, the local residents of the neighbourhood who
were out for an evening walk were rather taken aback by the pair.
This was nothing compared to their reaction when the demon roared
by seconds later, intent on its prey.
"I *pant* *wheeze* can't go *pant* much further..*pant* " Azusa
managed to get out three blocks from the site where they first
encountered the demon.
"There! Up ahead! *gasp* The old Temple! We'll make our stand
there!" Yohko wheezed.
Running up the stairs to the temple's courtyard, they could hear
the demon's coarse breath just behind them. As they reached the top
of the stairs, under the archway, Yohko caught her toe on the edge
of a flag stone and went sprawling. Because of her training, she
managed to twist in mid air to land painfully on her back, soul-
sword at the ready for one final desperate defence. To her
amazement, instead of the demon dropping down upon her, it stopped
dead in mid leap and was thrown back down the stairs by some
unknown force. It then proceeded to stalk back and forth at the
base on the stairs, thwarted, but not about to give up.
Leaning on her soul-spear, and looking about to collapse in spite
of it, Azusa panted heavily. "I don't get it, Mistress, what's
holding it back?"
"I think its because this is a holy site. The powers that this old
temple is dedicated to must still hold sway." Yohko mused.
"_Old_ Temple, Yohko-sama? This place looks almost new."
"Yeah, its been abandoned since I was a little girl....Huh?"
Looking around, Yohko noticed that the temple, and the small house
that was off to one side of the courtyard, was indeed looking in
very good repair. Yet Yohko remembered coming by here two years ago
on a shopping trip with her grandmother and it had looked about to
fall in on itself. Just then a sliding door on the veranda of the
house opened, and a tall, well dressed woman came out, a mug of tea
in her hands. As she sipped from the mug, her eyes roved the
grounds with a bored expression in them. When they got to the pair,
standing inside the gate leaning on their weapons, she straightened
with a look of interest. "Belldandy! Could you come out here for a
minute?" she called over her shoulder, her voice rich and sultry.
As she proceeded to cross over to them the slight breeze wafted her
long white hair to one side. The devil hunters could see that she
had strange tattoos on her forehead and cheeks.
When she was near Yohko bowed to her. "I apologize for the
intrusion ma'am, but we are Devil Hunters you see and..."
"..And you think you're gonna find some *here*?" The woman said, a
hint of amusement in her voice.
"No, uh, actually we were running from that one...." Azusa said
pointing down the stairs.
"Whats going on, Urd?" another woman, perhaps a little younger,with
long brown hair and wearing a sweatshirt and shorts had joined
them. A girl with long black hair about fourteen or so was leaning
against a post on the verandah, idly twirling what looked to be a
long handled mallet. Both also had the strange markings on their
faces.
"Beats me, sis. They say they're Devil Hunters but it looks like
the devils are hunting them." Said Urd, hooking a thumb down the
stairs.
When Belldandy saw the Demon, her normally pleasant look changed to
one of anger. "How did that get into this world?" She demanded.
"Uh..We don't know *how* they get here. We just try to send them
back when we can...." Yohko sputtered. She didn't know who these
people were, beyond the fact that they are all foreigners, but
something about them made her want to not offend them in any way.
"Well, you would have trouble with a Duke of Hell even if you were
twice as powerful. Leave this to me." said Belldandy, moving to the
archway.
"But...." said Yohko and Azusa together, moving to intercept her
when a hand landed on each of their shoulders, stopping them.
"Watch and learn, ladies. This should be fun." Urd said, grinning
widely.
Belldandy had stopped just inside the arch, her head bowed and her
fingers clasped as if in prayer. "Powers of light, grant all the
sight, and banish the evil from this night" She intoned. She then
opened her hands and a small ball of light appeared there. It grew
in intensity until it was almost as bright as day in the courtyard.
Yohko had to look twice to be sure, but it seemed this Belldandy
was floating up off the ground a good two feet. Just then the ball
of light streaked down and enveloped the demon. With a roar of pain
and anger, the demon faded from sight, the light disappearing with
it.
Belldandy, steadying herself against the arch, paused to catch her
breath. Turning, she looked at them and smiled. "Won't you come in
for some tea?"
"Uh, Yes Ma'am." Yohko and Azusa chorused unsteadily.
Just then, Belldandy noticed the cuts and the blood dripping off
the two. "You're hurt! Please, come in at once and I'll attend to
them."
Yohko stopped just short of the house, looking down at her torn and
dirty dress. "If you'll excuse me for just a moment.....?" She
closed her eyes and called upon the well of power within her. She
dispelled her soul-sword and was soon wearing the loose blouse and
jeans she had on earlier. As she opened her eyes, she saw that
Azusa was just completing her transformation back into her usual
blouse and plaid skirt.
 "Sorry about that," she said "but that dress was not fit for
polite company anymore."
"Oh, no problem. Who likes to be a dirty guest." said Urd, smiling
to take any insult out of the comment.
As the two of them settled at the low table, Urd and the girl made
themselves comfortable across from them.
"Um, Just how did you end up being chased by a Duke of Hell?" said
the girl, a calculating expression on her face.
"Uh, well, just at the right place at the wrong time I guess,
Haha..." She shrugged, an awkward silence descending over the
table.
In the distance, a motorcycle could be heard approaching along the
street.
"Here we are," said Belldandy, coming into the room with a tray of
six mugs, tea pot, and assorted utensils. She quickly had the tea
poured for them all with two mugs filled at vacant places at the
table. Belldandy stopped, and a warm blue glow filled her hand.
Yohko didn't know what this was about, but suddenly she felt a
little dizzy. When the world straightened out, she saw that all the
cuts and scrapes were gone, along with some of the worst of her old
scars. Shaking a little, she thanked her host, and picked up her
tea, surprised she wasn't spilling any.
The motorcycle seemed to have come in via a rear gate and stopped
just behind the house. Shortly after a young man and a woman that
could be his sister came in the back door shedding helmets and
motorcycle jackets. After they had settled at the table,
introductions were made. Yohko properly introduced herself and her
Apprentice. The others were Belldandy, her older sister Urd, her
younger sister Skuld, and Keiichi Morisato and his younger sister
Megumi.
After tea, Keiichi and Megumi excuse themselves and set up lights
outside in order to work on a dragster bike.
Belldandy looked at Yohko for a moment, and asked, "So, you called
yourselves `Devil Hunters'. You evidently have some powers
pertaining to such a calling, as you command soul-weapons. But to
challenge a Hell Duke is not a trivial thing."
"Please ma'am, I have to ask...Who are you? You toasted that demon
where we couldn't even make a dent in it. Please tell us how you
did that..." Yohko said humbly. She wasn't thrilled with the
comments about the level of their skills, but this woman was
something else.
Looking out the door to see if they might be overheard, Belldandy
said. "We three are Goddesses. Skuld here is the Goddess of the
Future. I am the Goddess of the Present, and Urd is the Goddess of
the Past. Why we came to be here is a long story, and not meaning
to be rude, but it is one that is somewhat private, also."
"Goddesses! Oh Wow! Yohko, isn't this exciting! I never met a real
Goddess before!" Azusa gushed, making Yohko wince. While Belldandy
took this with a good natured smile, Urd and Skuld rolled their
eyes.
"So that's how you dealt with that demon like that." said Yohko in
a small voice."When a demon or devil are near, our rings glow
green, and we go into action. It isn't a matter of who or what we
have to face, for it is our duty to purge the world of evil. This
last one was the nastiest yet, and they seem to keep getting
tougher. I thank you for intervening, and apologize for bringing it
to your door."
"Oh, no need for that, you were smart to come here as it would have
perhaps have harmed you otherwise, and then others would have been
hurt or killed. Still, it is a worrisome thing to have such as that
show up in the world and have those charged with fighting such evil
so ill prepared for it." Belldandy paused for a moment, looking at
her sisters. "I think," she said "we should consult with higher
authority about this."
"Uh, problem, I'm still banned from the heavens." Commented Urd,
which got a surprised look, quickly stilled, from the two Devil
Hunters.
"Then we'll use the phone." Belldandy explained, which got a bigger
look of surprise out of the girls.
Moving to the other side of the room, she picked up the phone and
dialled a rather long number. After a short pause, it was answered.
"Hello, Kami-sama? It's Belldandy. We may have a problem.....Well,
does a Hell Duke running down the street sound serious? (she
winced, and pulled the phone away from her ear) Uh, Yes Kami-sama,
that's right....It was chasing some Devil Hunters.......No, they
don't know where it came from.....Yes, I got rid of it......Uh,
hang on... Yohko-san, what is the toughest you two ever had to deal
with?"
"Uh, I guess that would have been the Demon Tokima.." Yohko
replied.
"Thanks...She said the Demon Tokima....Really? Wow....What should
we do about all this.....Uh, huh.....Yes Sir.....Thank you Kami-
sama..Bye..."
"What did he say?" Skuld asked.
"We have some preparations to make....It seems Keiichi and Megumi
aren't the only ones busy tonight. Yohko, you and Azusa should
perhaps spend the rest of the night here... Please feel free to
call your folks and let them know your all right."
"Uh, Yes ma'am..." said Yohko, moving toward the phone.
"Oh, please, call me Belldandy, it makes me feel so old to be
called "ma'am"." She grinned.
As Yohko dialled her home number, the three Goddesses went into a
brief huddle and then Urd and Belldandy left the room heading for
the back of the house. Skuld sat down at a computer and started
using what looked like a graphics program, drawing a complicated
series of rings and circles. Azusa sat down next to her and studied
the screen as Skuld worked for a while. Abruptly, she
exclaimed,"That's a Gate of Power, But I've never seen such a
configuration at the edges before."
"That's because most gates are made to summon the powers of
deities, and concentrate all the power they can get. Because this
is being made by us, we have to control the power, rather than
concentrate it. If we used a gate drawn for human use, we could
blow the roofs off all the houses in town." Skuld paused, looking
at Azusa hard. "How do *you* know about gates of power?"
Azusa pulled, from seemingly out of nowhere, a large, ornate
leather bound Tome. "Oh! Its all here in my copy of `All you Really
Need to Know about Hyper-Space and Pan-Dimensional Travel'." She
said brightly.
(Skuld face-faults)
"Well really!" exclaimed Yohko as she slammed down the receiver.
"Is there a problem?" asked Belldandy, coming back into the room.
"Not really, its just my mom thinks I'm shacking up with some
*guy*!"
"Would it help if I talked to her?" Said Belldandy, a shocked look
on her face.
"No, But what really pisses me off is that if she was just
concerned for me, I could handle it. The point is mom thinks I
*should* be shacking up! Humph!"
"......." thought Belldandy.
"Um...Megami-sama, may I ask a question?" queried Azusa.
"Yes, but please, call me Belldandy."
"That man, Keiichi, and his sister. Do they know about all of you,
or should we watch what we say around them?"
"Keiichi knows all about us, but his sister doesn't know yet, I
think. Which for the moment is as it should be, I guess."
During all this, Urd came out of the back of the house with arm
loads of blankets and then returned with Skuld carrying several
futons and pillows. Skuld then grabbed a sheet from a small ink-jet
printer in the corner as Urd dug into a bag, pulling a box of
artist's pastels from it. Together they went back down the hall.
"Please make yourselves comfortable,"said Belldandy, "you will be
sharing this room with Megumi, as I think they will be working on
that engine 'till midnight for the race this weekend. I've put
another pot of tea on and there is lemon and honey if you desire.
I'm sorry if I seem to be such a poor host, but we three have much
to do before noon tomorrow. Please feel free to help yourselves."
Left alone for a while, Yohko and Azusa sat in silence for a bit,
trying to absorb the weight of what they just landed in. Looking
around, she decided that the futons needed to be laid out and
prepped for the night. With Azusa's help, she laid out the three
futons and placed the pillows and blankets on them. Sitting on the
edge of one, she sat and thought for a bit, until Azusa came back
from the kitchen with a mug of tea for each, her's with lemon as
she liked it.
"Thanks, Azusa-chan. I needed this...."
"Yohko-sama, that circle Skuld-sama was drawing, it was for the
charging of artifacts too, I think."
"I'm sure they'll tell us whats going on in good time, though
Belldandy was sure upset about that demon. I hope we're not gonna
be in any trouble about that." Picking up her tea, she said "I for
one would like a closer look at that Bike!"
Wandering out the door of the veranda, she sat down on the edge of
the walkway and nodded a greeting to the two students. Megumi was
helping Keiichi fit a new fuel injector into the engine. A box on
the ground had a part sticking out of it that looked like a
miniature jet fan. Megumi looked at Yohko and asked, "Are you
friends of Belldandy's?"
"Uh, well... truth be told, we only just met her a little while
ago," explained Yohko, " She sort of saved us from a fate worse
than death.."
"That's Belldandy for you, she is always so helpful," replied
Megumi."You'd think she was a Goddess or something, she's so nice."
At this Keiichi slipped with his wrench, barking his fingers and
looking an amusing cross of guilty, surprised, and pained.
Megumi looked at his fingers, "Ow, that must've hurt, hang on while
I get you a bandage or three."
As she went inside, Keiichi looked carefully at Yohko and Azusa.
"You know?" he asked.
"We know." Yohko replied
"You more of her friends from the Heavens?" he asked, looking a
little worried.
"No, we're just a pair nice, friendly, neighbourhood Devil Hunters"
Yohko said with a grin, guessing correctly that Belldandy's sisters
and friends must make life interesting this college student.
"Devil Hunters! I *don't* even want to know!" He retorted with mock
severity, mopping up some blood with a clean sheet of paper towel.
About this time Megumi could be heard returning, and so ended the
current conversation. After helping her brother with the Band-aids,
the two carried on with the work on the bike, the four of them
chatting about various topics, though Yohko and Megumi had fun
annoying her brother talking about what type of guys they'd like to
date. Azusa made trips to the kitchen to bring the tea pot for
everyone, or sat listening quietly to the chatter. Occasionally
Belldandy or one of her sisters would stick a head out to see if
everything was ok, and sometimes join in the chatter briefly.
It was around 11:30 when Yohko started to catch herself dozing off,
Azusa already a limp weight against her shoulder. Excusing herself,
she rousted her apprentice and went in for bed. The last thing she
thought as she drifted off was that there was *NO WAY* Chi' was
gonna find out about these people.
  It had been a dreamless sleep from which she woke, a cold feeling
creeping over her. Looking at the VCR across the room, she could
see it was 3:36 in the morning. The shapes of Azusa and Megumi
sleeping could be seen in it's glow. Padding to the bathroom, Yohko
could see a faint light under one of the doors at the end of the
hall, and hear low voices in discussion. After returning from the
bathroom, the sense of unease was still there. She decided a little
night air was what she needed. Pulling on her jeans and top, she
wrapped herself with the blanket and quietly went outside. She
stared at the stars for a while, and then wandered over to the
Temple, slowly climbing the stairs to the entrance. Inside, the
interior was dimly lit by a pair of large candles near the alter.
Moving to the alter, she took one of the incense sticks from a
bundle, and lighting it from one of the candles, placed it in one
of the holders in the alter. As the smell of Jasmine spread, she
clapped her hands and offered a silent prayer to the gods, as was
customary. Sitting down, she thought about how odd it was what she
had just done, given who was living on these very premises.
She soon became aware that she wasn't alone. Turning, she could
make out a shape standing in the shadows at the far end of the
temple. The figure moved closer to the shrine and showed herself to
be Belldandy, wearing a quilted dressing gown and pink bunny
slippers.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to intrude on your worship." Belldandy
explained. "I needed to think things through, and this is the
quietest place for that." She turned to go.
"Please, don't go because of me." Yohko returned hurriedly. "This
is _your_ temple, after all..."
Belldandy gave her a surprised look, then broke out in a grin.
"Oh! This isn't *my* temple. This is a Shinto temple."
"But, but..." got out Yohko, utterly confused.
Belldandy sat down cross-legged in front of Yohko, revealing a
white flannel night-dress under her house coat.
"I am a Norn Goddess, as are my sisters. I was responsible for
Keiichi getting thrown out of his dorm, and was able to get
permission for us to stay here." she explained.
"We get all sorts of Monks stopping by, and we do provide for those
in need, as best we can. But don't worry about how you worship,
that has always been a private thing, I think."
"I just feel so odd." replied Yohko. "I suppose I believed, really
believed, in Gods and Goddesses when I became a Devil Hunter. After
all, there has to be *something* to oppose that evil. But I never
figured I'd ever be sitting on the floor of a temple in the middle
of the night, talking to one wearing `Bunny Slippers'" she ended,
with a small smile.
Belldandy rocked back with a burst of giggles. "They were a
Christmas gift from Keiichi, and they *are* warm too. I won't tell
you what Urd got him, save to say he went as red as the holly when
he figured out what it was. His sister teased him about it for
weeks afterward. Ah, my goodness." she said, sweeping her long hair
out of her face, which had a fond expression on it.
"Um...Belldandy...?"
"Hmm?  Yes?"
"If I may ask, What is the big worry over that Demon
today...yesterday....I guess? Is it really that serious a thing? I
mean, it was a bad one, but we had dealt with tough ones before.."
Belldandy let out a long sigh, considering her words. "Long ago,
when mankind first walked the earth, the demons and gods made an
agreement. No demon or devil, or god or goddess, above a certain
rank, could enter the mortal realms or affect it directly. and
there were strict rules about how other levels could operate too.
I am almost as powerful a goddess as you can get and still have no
restrictions on what I do. Only seven levels are above me, and I
don't think I'll ever be able to attain them, though. Nor do I care
to, really. I'm happy with what I am..." she continued briskly.
"But that Hell Duke was *way* over the limit, and may be a warning
of more to come. There is something evil growing and I fear that
demon will be the least of our worries, somehow....I should really
get back, those two are libel to start World War Three if I'm not
there to referee." She got up to go.
"And I really should get back to bed, or I'll be grumpy in the
morning..." Yohko laughed, getting up as well.
Together, Goddess and Devil Hunter returned to the house.
                     ************
"Yohko-sama! Wake up! Belldandy-sama said you had just enough time
for a bath before breakfast!" Azusa said, shaking her.
Yohko groaned, silently cursing the 107th Devil Hunter for
providing her with this human alarm clock. She didn't think she'd
been able to sleep in one Saturday since Azusa showed up. Suddenly
the import of her words sunk in, causing her to sit up abruptly.
Letting out a small shriek, Azusa jumped back, looking for all the
world like a startled bunny with her scarf in her hair. Yohko got
up, and pulling the blanket around her for modesty, headed for the
hall. From the kitchen, a pleasant singing, and an even more
pleasant smell, drifted.
 She was drying the loose ends of her hair when she heard voices
outside. Peering out the small window, she could see a large man
supervising the loading of the drag bike onto a trailer by Keiichi,
Megumi, and a tall blond man wearing what looked like spark-plugs
for ear-rings. Belldandy came out with a large basket, and spoke
privately with Keiichi, looking apologetic about something. Keiichi
didn't seem to be concerned about whatever it was she said, and
gave her a reply that caused her to give him a big, passionate
kiss. This caused his sister and his friends to start in on him
with a round of ribbing that left him red faced and glowering at
them, as he took the basket from Belldandy and climbed onto his
bike, an old black BMW with a sidecar. He gave his sister the
basket after she had clambered into the sidecar, still laughing at
him as he fired up the bike. The two older men drove off after them
in a three wheel car towing the bike trailer. Yohko tossed on her
clothes and made it to the living room just as Belldandy and Azusa
came in carrying large steaming platters of okonomiyaki and a large
pot of tea. Urd and Skuld showed up shortly after, looking tired
and both with chalk smudges on their faces and clothes. Everyone
dug into breakfast, and the pile of food soon started diminish.
"So that you know what is going on," said Belldandy, "we are going
to do a summoning for your patron Goddess, in hopes she sees the
nessecity in upgrading you powers and weapons. I have never met
Yoshiko-sama, but I hear she is very beautiful. We will also be
summoning a demoness of our...acquaintance... in order to find out
just how serious the situation is. You will *not* be dealing with
her. She is our little problem..."
Urd spoke up. "I can guess who you mean. Marllar, right?" she had
a sour look on her face.
"I know you don't like her, but she is the one demon I *know* we
can handle safely." replied Belldandy, sipping her tea.
"Oh, don't worry about me. I'm looking forward to making that
little bitch squirm..." Urd said, a nasty grin spreading across her
face.
"You said her name was Yoshiko-sama?" Asked Yohko. When Belldandy
nodded, she continued. "I remembered Grandmother showing me a very
old scroll, written by my ancient ancestor, Haruka Mano, the first
Devil Hunter. Grandmother was always frustrated that the scroll had
been damaged with age, as the name of the Goddess who had granted
her the power was one of the details that was rendered unreadable.
Oddly, there was a drawing showing the Goddess transforming Haruka.
If the picture was accurate, she is very beautiful." Yohko looked
suddenly amused. "Grandmother is gonna jump for joy when she finds
this out..."
At this everyone broke out laughing. Everyone that is, except
Azusa. She had a pensive look on her face and was picking at her
plate. Skuld looked at her from across the table.
"What's the matter, Azusa-chan? You look like someone has told you
you're about to be shot."
"Well....I don't know if Yoshiko-sama will find me worthy. Yohko-
sama is so awesome, and she at least has heredity to her credit."
Azusa looked down at her lap. "I'm afraid she'll take this away."
she said, holding up her amulet.
"The fact that you *are* able to transform into a Devil Hunter
should be a good sign that you *are* worthy." said Urd, buttering
a roll. "That sort of power is never handed out to those who would
waste it or abuse it, and I dare say you are certainly brave enough
for it. Don't worry about it." she said, taking a big bite of the
roll.
"Besides, I'll have something to say about...it..." Yohko's voice
trailed off as she remembered in who's company she was in. The
three Goddesses pretended not to notice as she went bright red,
though she saw Belldandy wink at her with just a slight smile just
before taking another sip of tea. Yohko wished the floor would just
open up and drop her out of sight.
The meal ended soon after, and she and Azusa helped Belldandy clean
up the dishes. Urd and Skuld disappeared down the hall, arguing
about something or other. As the last plate was dried and put away,
Belldandy looked at the clock in the kitchen, and seeing the time,
chased them out and down the hall. The time was 11:50.
When they reached the end of the hall, Belldandy entered the back
bedroom, the floor now covered in intricate circles and loops, all
done in coloured pastel chalk. The patterns even extended up the
walls, with a big main circle enclosing two smaller ones with four
more tangent to it in each corner of the room.
"Don't step on the chalk lines, you two." said Urd, now wearing a
dark blue gown that showed her leg to the waist. She was closing
the circle she was in with a bit of chalk.
"Yeah, it'll smudge real easy and we won't have time to redo it if
you do." Added Skuld, from the left side of the room, opposite Urd.
She had also changed, now wearing an outfit of white and red that
consisted of a mini-skirt and a jacket that had a flaring tail that
almost reached the floor, like a second skirt. She was kneeling on
the floor, arms folded.
"If you would transform, we can get started." commented Belldandy,
studying the floor carefully.
Yohko closed her eyes, and silently said the `spiel' she usually
used when transforming. She could feel her body spinning through
the air as her clothes exploded off her. This time, however, it
felt like something was guiding her passage, and as she landed on
her feet, her Devil Hunting garb forming around her, she could
sense Azusa close by her. When she opened her eyes, she was
standing in the larger of the two circles with Azusa. Looking over
toward the door, Belldandy had changed her clothes as well, now
decked out in a beautiful gown with a blue and white mantel over
it. She was bending over the outer circle, closing it behind the
girls.
Floating into the circle next to the door, she closed that one as
well. Looking over her shoulder, Yohko could see that the circle in
the corner opposite to Belldandy was already closed, runes
surrounding it.
"What ever you do, don't cross the lines around you." cautioned
Belldandy. "When we summon Marllar, she will appear in that circle
next to you. Do nothing in regards to her, she will not be able
break free of here, unless the circle is broken from the outside.
Please call your soul-weapons, and be patient" She looked at a
clock in the corner. It said 11:59.
Yohko called forth her sword, and beside her, Azusa brought into
being the Spear of Fuma, holding it blade up and close to her body.
As the clock flipped to 12:00, the candles in the room ignited, and
the three Goddesses started a complex chant in a Scandinavian
sounding tongue. It then changed to an old and formal form of
Japanese. Turning to look at the circle behind them, the two girls
were just in time to see the floor in the circle glow brightly.
Then a form appeared within the blaze of light, and the light died
away with the chanting. Standing within the circle was a woman in
a black and red dress, that, but for the fact that it was floor
length and had sleaves, was of similar cut to Yohko's own. Her hair
was a rich, deep black that reached almost to the floor, with a
gold brett keeping it under control at waist level. She was easily
as beautiful as the two older Goddesses, yet her looks were not
intimidating.
"Who is it who summons me thus?" she ask quietly, looking around
the room. Yohko saw her mouth tighten slightly at the sight of the
two Devil Hunters only a few feet away, an eyebrow raised slightly
in curiosity.
"I, Belldandy, do summon you, and give you welcome here."
"And I, Urd, do summon you, and hope you hold no anger for doing
so, as we have none for you."
"And I, Skuld, do summon you, in hope that you will share your
wisdom, and aid us in our cause."
"I will hear your words, and measure my response by them. So let it
be." Yoshiko replied.
"So let it be." echoed the three, bowing.
"Now that the formalities are out of the way, what is it you want?
I hope it's not to punish these two for some transgression." Yohko
began to sweat.
"Oh, nothing so minor, we could have dealt with that if it had been
the case." answered Belldandy. "The problem is much more serious,
and was brought to our attention by these two, in fact. A Hell Duke
was loose in the mortal world last evening, and chased these two to
our door."
"What!" exploded Yoshiko in shock. "That's not possible! That
violates every agreement with the Dark Hosts."
"Please believe it, as I dispelled it myself, and you know I speak
the truth." replied Belldandy.
"You *are* a Goddess of rank, and thus I know you do speak the
truth. But this is a worrisome bit of news." She turned her
attention to the Devil Hunters. "Just what were you thinking,
taking on such a thing?"
"M..Megami-sama, we did not know that we shouldn't have. It was a
demon, so we went after it. We only found out later what it was."
Yohko got out in a rush. "And we did distract it from it's intended
victims." She ended, thinking of the couple in the park that had
been terrorized by the Hell Duke before they arrived.
The Goddess looked at them closely. "You have done that which is
your true profession then, the protection of the innocent from
evil." She smiled suddenly. "Even if you have more courage than
brains. No. That wasn't fair, you had no way of knowing. And it is
I who should be berated for lack of brains. Please forgive my
words."
Looking at Azusa, her brow creased. "But where did you come from?
I recognize the ring I gave to Haruka Mano all these years gone on
your friend's hand, but I never gave her two of them. How did you
become a Devil Hunter?"
"I am Azusa Kanzaki, Megami-sama. Yohko-sama's grandmother was the
friend of my grandmother, and when she came to visit, she use to
tell me stories about Devil Hunters fighting evil monsters. And she
taught me how to train to be a Devil Hunter, and I trained very
hard. The last time she came to visit, she said that Yohko-sama was
now a Devil Hunter, and told me that if I wanted to be one that I
should go and ask to be her apprentice. She also gave me this." she
finished, holding up her left hand to show the amulet on the back
of it.
"So that's where that got to. That's the prototype of the ring
Yohko now wears." Yoshiko sighed. "Artifacts have a funny way of
showing up where they'll do the most good or the most harm, even if
you think they're safely stored away...." She looked at Yohko. "And
who is it that is heir to Haruka's legacy?"
"I am Yohko Mano, 108th in a proud line of Devil Hunters, and your
humble servant." Replied Yohko, bowing as much as she dared in the
circle.
"108th...I *have* been out of touch...Hmmm. Yohko-san!"
"Hai!"
"Has your apprentice been worthy of the duties of a Devil Hunter?"
"Hai, Megami-sama! She has been a dutiful and hard working
apprentice, fearless in the face of evil. She even led a rescue
attempt into hell itself!"
"Bet there's a story behind *that* one. Azusa Kanzaki!"
"Hai!" Azusa all but squeaked.
"You are now officially the first of a new clan of Devil Hunters,
though you must stay apprenticed to Yohko-san until you are at
least 16 to compleat your training. Congratulations."
"Yaaayyy!" cried Azusa, getting a big hug from Yohko. The other
Goddesses applauded from the corners of the room.
"But your not going to reach your 16th birthday if we don't do
something about your combat abilities, not if you have to tangle
with the likes of last night." Yoshiko studied the circle. "I see
that you prepared for that possibility, good! Do you know the Flow
Infusion method?"
"Why not use the Well-Sink Tap method?" Ask Skuld.
"I haven't heard of that one. How does it work?"
For the next twenty minutes, the four Goddesses were involved in
technical magic talk. Yohko and Azusa settled on the floor and
tried to follow the discussion as best they could. Which is to say,
almost not at all. Finally, the Goddesses agreed on the conventions
to be used, and the two girls were asked to stand up.
The four Goddesses started a chant that wove between them, first
one then another, two together, and finally all four in some
archaic version of Japanese that Yohko couldn't follow. The floor
started to glow underneath the Devil Hunter's feet, and soon got so
bright that Yohko had to close her eyes against the brightness. The
energies swirling up off the floor was making the loose ends of her
hair fly up, and it felt like something was crawling up her legs
and all over her body. Her soul-sword suddenly felt blade heavy,
then the balance corrected itself. When the flow of power around
her subsided, she risked a peak, and seeing that the glow was gone
looked down at herself, amazed at the changes. First thing she
noticed, the red dress was changed. The dress was now black with
gold trim, and it now had sleaves. The Yin/Yang symbol was done
over in silver and gold thread. The gold bracers were now armoured
pads sewn into the sleaves, with the cuffs embroidered in more
silver and gold. The whole dress was covered in runes and kanji in
silver thread so fine, it was only visible when the light caught
them just right. She now wore knee high black leather boots, the
shins protected by attached greaves, and also trimmed with embossed
gold and silver. Her sword now had a longer and slightly thinner
blade, made from some material that shone like chrome, but looked
like it could cut through rock. It also had letters in some dark
material written along both sides of the blade. The edged hand
guard was also longer and thinner, and the hilt was wrapped in silk
cord.
Azusa's clothes were also changed to black and gold with silver
trim. She also had boots that were the twin of Yohko's, and the
scarf in her hair was now of black silk with more gold thread woven
in. The spear had a new blade, slightly longer than before, and
made from the same material as the sword. It also had characters
written on the haft of the spear, now made of some black metal.
She was obviously delighted by the new look, and was all but
bouncing with excitement.
"Your new clothes are spelled against most forms of lesser Devils
and Demons," Yoshiko explained, "and as such, they will find it
painful to grapple with you, at the least. Don't think this will
make you invincible, as they are still susceptible to counter
spells above a certain level, but should protect you from most
harm. The blades of your weapons are made of a magically created
alloy that is as hard as diamond, and stronger than chromium steel.
The edge will cut through most material, even magical armour to a
degree. So don't use it to carve up your dinners." She added with
a smile, quite pleased with the results. "The writing on your
weapons are a spell of last resort _only_. They will allow you to
channel a single burst of power through them, but use them only
against an arch-fiend or greater, and then only if there is no
other option. The surge could destroy your soul-weapons in the
process, and this may not be something I could fix later."
Both Yohko and Azusa bowed formally. "Domo arigato, Megami-sama."
they both said together.
"We have yet a demoness to summon." said Belldandy,"Would you like
to stay for supper, or do you desire to be elsewhere. You would be
most welcome."
"You won't regret it if you do. One-sama can cook like nobody
else." said Skuld
"With such an offer, how could I refuse? Besides, I too would like
to know what is going on. Please, continue." said Yoshiko, settling
down on her knees, arranging her dress around her.
Belldandy then started a chant in that Scandinavian tongue again,
and was joined by Urd and Skuld. This time, the chant had a harsh,
commanding edge to it, and suddenly there was a *poof* and a small
ball of smoke went up from the centre of the small circle. As it
cleared, a rather good looking young woman was sitting casually,
one arm over her knee, a wry look of amusement on her face. She was
wearing black leather pants and jacket, and a black mesh tank top
that hid nothing. She had long blond-white hair, and a mark on her
forehead in a \/ pattern, and small triangles on her cheeks.
"I figured you'd be pulling this about now." she said, a smirk on
her face. She leaned over and tapped a finger over the circle. A
loud crackling filled the air, and a blue barrier appeared, defined
by the circle and about the hight of the ceiling. She grinned at
the Devil Hunters. "My my... *Two* Devil Hunters, and Yoshiko too!
All this for just little ol' me?" The sarcasm was not lost on the
others.
"You know we can compel you to answer our questions," stated Urd,
cracking her knuckles, "so why don't you tell us what we want to
know."
"Oh, I'll co-operate. Besides, I think I know what this is all
about, and for once, I'm on your side. Eeewww!"
"What do you mean by that? Even you would fight a compulsion just
on principal." Belldandy asked, a suspicious look on her face.
"If I co-operate, I get out of here that much faster. Besides,
It'll piss off Urd." stated the demoness "I take it something way
outside the `Agreements' was caught running around here abouts.
Well, this is the least of your worries. The Elder Gods have
returned." She shivered, stating that last. The Goddesses looked
rather shaken by it as well.
"The Elder Gods have returned? Why? And what has this to do with
the `Agreements'? Asked Belldandy, not happy about this.
"Yeah, they showed up on the third level of Avernus, putting the
munch on everyone they could catch and demanding that we obey them
or die.(or was that,"obey us *and* die?) Anyway the Dark Hosts are
split, and there are two camps. One camp wants to keep the status
quo, and the other want to break out and destroy the multiverse."
Marllar explained, looking uncomfortable about something.
"I take it you're with the group that wants to keep the status quo.
What is the numbers in each camp, and what do you think is the
break point?" asked Skuld, notebook computer on the floor in front
of her.
"About 45% for them, and 50 to 53% for us. There seems to be a
small number who are fence sitting. I think if the numbers get up
to around 65 to 75%, they may try a breakout, regardless of the
consequences. Mestophilese is heading up our side, or he was when
you grabbed me." She was defiantly looking anstsy about something,
and a sweat was starting to form on her face.
"I think we may need to combine forces." Belldandy declared. "Will
you consent to being the contact for your side?"
"Yeah, sure. Whatever. I'll need something to return here though."
"Oh, I have just the thing for that." said Urd brightly, making a
pass in the air with her hands. Suddenly a collar with a large
silver bell appeared around Marllar's neck, with a high musical
chime.
"You bitch! You really missed your calling, step-sister. You wait!
I'll get back at you for this!" snarled Marllar, the bell tinkling
with her movements.
"We will contact our superiors, and we will expect to hear from you
tomorrow morning. We will pass on whatever message you bring.
Agreed?" Asked Belldandy.
"Yeah, yeah, agreed." Muttered Marllar, hugging her knees to her
chest, rocking slightly.
"Fine, then. You are dismissed, Marllar." Belldandy made a pass
with her hand.
"I'm out a here!" she cried, vanishing with another *poof* and the
sound of the bell. As the bell faded away, the Goddesses broke out
in a fit of laughter. Urd was pounding the floor, incoherent with
tears pouring down her face.
"You have no idea how long I've dreamed of doing something like
that to her!" she managed to gasp out at last.
"Ah, well. I can't say that doesn't put paid for some of the
trouble she's caused us in the past." giggled Belldandy. "I think
we're done here." she put on a straight face. "Let the circle be
broken." She intoned.
"Let the circle be broken" echoed the others, and a faint glow
chased around the chalk lines and died.
"You may step out now, Yohko-san, we are done." explained
Belldandy, rising up and adjusting her robes. Skuld was laying out
bits of chalk, each bit the same colour as the line she put it on.
Urd was blowing out the candles, and opening the drapes, let in the
afternoon sun. Yoshiko stepped next to Yohko, looking at the floor
intently.
"Does that say what I think it says?" she asked Skuld, looking
amused.
"It was the nastiest thing I could think of that would put pressure
on her, but wouldn't get me in trouble for it." Skuld grinned.
"Excuse me, Skuld-sama, But what does it say?" ask Azusa, looking
at the unfamiliar runes.
"Oh, just a spell to make her need to go the bathroom *really*
bad." she answered, causing Urd to let out another bark of
laughter. "Now, are you gonna stand here all day, or can I get on
with cleaning up?"
"Ok, we're leaving." laughed Yoshiko, shooing the two Devil Hunters
out ahead of her. Yohko and Azusa stopped in the hall, and watched
as Skuld started twirling her mallet, causing a rush of air. It
seemed to Yohko that the chalk lifted up off the floor, and each
colour streamed to a bit that grew as the room cleared. Within
seconds, the room was clean and a small tray held all the pieces of
chalk, now restored.
Entering the living room, she saw that Belldandy was on the phone,
relating the news to some other deity. Yohko still had her sword
with her, so she decided to go outside and try it out. Though the
sword was perhaps a bit heavier, it was perfectly balanced, and she
moved through the forms with the grace of a dancer, the sword light
and quick in her hands. A movement out of the corner of her eye
caused her to turn, the sword blocking the path of a long staff as
if on it's own. She was surprised to see her assailant was Yoshiko,
who winked and spun the staff in a reverse blow to Yohko's head
that was nothing but a blur of motion. Much to Yohko's surprise,
she stopped that strike as well. She then went on the offensive,
raining a flurry of blows that was only barely parried by the
Goddess, who's hair became a dishevelled mess from the exertions.
The fight moved back and forth across the temple courtyard, neither
gaining the upper hand, until Yohko, manuvering under a sideways
blow of the staff, did a leg sweep. This dumped the Goddess on her
back, her Staff clattering across the flagstones. Yoshiko froze
when Yohko's counter blow whistled down to stop with the blade just
in contact with the side of her neck. Looking at the blade out of
the corner of her eye, she collapsed back onto the ground, roaring
with delight.
"Well done! I yield, I yield!" she cried. "My! I haven't had such
fun since....I don't remember when..." She accepted Yohko's hand up
off the ground, and proceeded to beat the dust off of her dress.
Belldandy and Urd were applauding, but what surprised Yohko was
that Skuld and Azusa were going at it tooth and nail as well. Skuld
had a longsword with an intricately worked hilt that looked just a
little too big for her, but she cut and parried with it like it was
second nature. They both seemed to be well matched as opponents.
The two would come together, weapons flashing in a rapid exchange,
only to part with neither gaining any ground against the other.
This continued for a while, until both were glaring at each other
after one such exchange with a look that said that this was
starting to get personal.
"Break!" shouted Urd, realizing the danger before the two could
resume. "Enough of this, you two. You're both on the same side"
Startled, both girls took a step back from each other, and bowed
too each other, looking a bit embarrassed.
Skuld dug the point of her sword into the ground, panting hard.
"You're good, real good. I couldn't even get close to penetrating
your guard." She said.
"Yeah, you swing a pretty mean sword yourself." Said Azusa,
dismissing her spear."
"Thanks," replied Skuld, propping the sword on her shoulder. "I
need something to cool off with, come on." she finished, leading
the way back into the house.
As they grouped back into the living room, Belldandy appeared with
a tray of wash cloths and small towels, to which the combatants
greatfully descended upon.
"If you'll excuse me, I'll be starting supper soon, but just ask if
there is something you desire." she said moving toward the kitchen.
"How about a Hunk that looks like Biryu-sama for a boyfriend"
muttered Yohko to herself, wiping her neck with a towel.
"You know of Biryu, the son of the Dragon King?" Ask Yoshiko in
some surprise, having overheard.
"Ulp...Uh, Yeah, I sort of freed him and Yanagi-sama, a while back.
These," she continued, indicating her hair ornaments, "were a gift
from them."
Yoshiko got a faraway look in her eyes and said, "Yea, he is a good
looking lad, and many a girl's heart broke when he declared himself
for Yanagi. Not that she isn't a lovely and deserving lady in her
own right." she ended, continuing to brush her long black hair into
order.
Just then, Belldandy could be heard exploding in mock indignation
from the kitchen. A few seconds later, Azusa appeared, looking red
faced.
"Honoured guests don't cook their own meals." was all she said,
sitting down next to Yohko.
Urd and Skuld came into the living room and started laying out the
table for eight, adding a leaf to the low table to make the
necessary room. Tea was also brought in about this time.
After about 30 minutes or so, Belldandy came out of the kitchen,
wiping her hands on a towel.
"That will have to stand for a bit, so I'll tell you what Kami-sama
told me." she said, pouring herself some tea. They are going to
call a Grand Convocation of the Gods this evening to plan strategy,
and set up a liaison with Mestoph's crowd. We have been asked to
keep a watch here on Earth, and thus are omitted from the summons."
"Dammit!" exploded Urd, who subsided grumbling.
"Is something wrong?" enquired Belldandy.
"I was hoping I'd get included in the convocation, so I could get
back to my apartment to get a few things." Urd replied, a sour look
on her face.
"Hey! I'm bribable." chimed in Skuld, a smirk on her face.
"Not a chance, small fry. No way I'm gonna give *you* access to my
sanctum. Besides, 'tis some private things I want to retrieve. Oh,
well." She sighed, sipping some tea. Skuld made a face.
"As I was saying, they will call us in the morning to fill us in,
and we are to pass on anything we hear from Marllar." Belldandy
jumped up as a buzzer sounded in the kitchen. "Ooops, that's it for
now..." she said hurrying back into the kitchen, taking her tea
with her.
For the next hour and a half, the conversation drifted around the
table, Yoshiko asking to hear about the girl's adventures, and the
Goddesses explaining about the hierarchies in the heavens, and the
sphere of influences each have, as well as the makeup of the evil
realms. Belldandy would check to see that all were comfortable, and
would add a word or two. As time wore on, she would look worried as
she checked her watch. Soon after six, the sound of a motorcycle
could be heard coming in the back gate. But instead of stopping in
back, it could be heard to be coming around to the front. Looking
out past the verandah, Keiichi's BMW came into view as Belldandy
came rushing out from the kitchen, worry on her face. As Keiichi
got off the bike, they all saw that the passenger, Megumi, was not
in good shape. Her foot was propped up on the side of the sidecar,
encased in a cast, and her head was wrapped with a bandage, her
face showing bruises on one side.
"Keiichi! What happened to her?" Belldandy cried, moving to help
him lift Megumi out of the sidecar.
"Careful, she has some cracked ribs." he warned, lifting her up to
her good foot. They had all come out, and now made way as Belldandy
and Keiichi helped her up into the living room. Skuld appeared with
what must have been every pillow in the house, and scattered them
around Megumi's place at the low table. She then helped propped
them around Megumi as she was settled into place. Urd put a mug of
tea in front of her on the table. After she was made comfortable,
the story was told. The gang from the Auto Club had met at the
track to test the bike as planed. This had gone rather well, and
everyone was looking forward the race the next weekend, as Keiichi
was getting better than expected times out of the bike.
By mid-afternoon they were thinking of calling it a day, and were
cleaning up to leave. Megumi was taking some trash out behind the
pits to put in the dumpster, when someone pushed a large stack of
shipping crates down on top of her. No one was caught, and as the
rest of the team could be accounted for, all that could be done was
to get her to the University Hospital for treatment.
"Who ever did this to her is gonna be toast!" Growled Urd, magical
energy snapping briefly around her clenched fist. Startled by the
sound, Megumi's head spun around, but she was too slow to see it.
"Shouldn't you still be in the hospital?" asked Belldandy.
"They wanted to keep me overnight, but..well, I *hate* hospitals,
and I don't like being in one. It's not rational, but they scare
me, and I insisted on leaving. I'll check in with the family doctor
tomorrow." Megumi explained. "Sorry if this puts a damper on your
party. What's the occasion, anyway?"
Everyone suddenly remembered that they were still in their robes
from the ritual, and the two Devil Hunters were still in their
"fighting" dresses.
Keiichi excused himself, saying he needed to change, and left the
room after being introduced to Yoshiko.
 Keiichi had just finished pulling on a clean pair of pants, and
was putting on a clean shirt when a soft knock sounded at the door
to his room.
"Keiichi, I know you haven't wanted for Megumi to find out about me
being a Goddess, but I can't just sit by and see her suffer in pain
while I can do something about it." said Belldandy, on entering his
room.
"I know you're capable of healing, but is this wise? A lot of
people saw what happened to her, and if she were to suddenly show
up all better, they would demand to know how this was possible."
answered Keiichi, leaning against a wooden support pillar.
"I am not strong enough to fully cure her, but I can speed along
her internal injuries, and block the worst of the pain. Please, let
me do this. I know we can trust her, and she may have been a victim
of something related to what happened last night."
"Alright, but tell her what you mean to do before you start, or
she's libel to freak out." relented Keiichi.
"Oh, thank you!" cried Belldandy, giving him a kiss.

Back in the living room, Belldandy knelt down next to Megumi and
addressed her.
"Megumi, I can help you feel better, but it will require letting
you in on something that has been kept secret from you. I just want
you to know that I feel that I can trust you, and ask that you
trust me."
"Uh, sure. I guess..." replied Megumi, not certain of what was
going on.
"First," explained Belldandy, "you must understand that my sisters
and I are Goddesses."
"Goddesses?" Megumi said doubtfully. She looked over at her
brother, who, with a small smile, gave her a confirming nod.
Collapsing back into the pillows with a wince, she declared, "I'm
surrounded by lunatics. I hurt too much for this...."
Belldandy closed her eyes, and extending her hand, seemed to mouth
silently some words. From her extended palm, a ball of light sprang
forth and grew, sending out waves of gentle warmth. As Megumi
looked at Belldandy wide eyed, the bruises faded somewhat from her
face, and the swelling subsided compleatly. After a few minutes,
the glow faded and Belldandy opened her eyes with a sigh.
Megumi was now sitting up, feeling her side and her cheek, a
shocked look on her face.
"It doesn't hurt nearly as much..." she looked at Belldandy, an
awed expression crossing her face. "You really *are* a Goddess!"
Suddenly her face burned with a blush. "I...I'm sorry...I didn't
mean to doubt you... I mean, for someone you know to come out and
tell you...Well....Please forgive me."
"Of course I forgive you!" Belldandy said, collecting her in a hug.
"But you must continue to wear that cast, and take care not to
stress yourself for the next few weeks. You were sorely hurt, and
if I heal you further, others will start to wonder. You are welcome
to stay here if you like." She cautioned.
Belldandy tried to stand up, and proceeded to stagger and then fall
into Keiichi's lap.
"Oops! I think I may have over-extended myself a bit today."she
said, leaning hard against Keiichi and looking a little dazed.
"Urd, Skuld, could you perhaps bring out supper for me? It should
be all ready."
As the Goddesses headed toward the kitchen, Megumi looked across
the table to the others.
"Are you Goddesses too?" she asked.
"I am a Goddess. These two are Devil Hunters, mortals who have been
found worthy to defend the world from the encroachment of evil."
Yoshiko explained, indicating Yohko and Azusa.
Megumi took a long drink of her tea and fixed her brother with a
hard look.
"You have a lot of explaining to do, Big Brother. And I _am_ going
to get an explanation. One of these days...." She said, sinking
back into the pillows with a sigh.
The table soon filled to overflowing with food and all dug in,
savouring the meal that even for Belldandy was a tour de force in
culinary delight. As the evening wore on, the platters and bowls
were emptied and soon even the chocolate cheese cake was a much
missed memory. It was a significant point to Belldandy that both
Urd and Skuld offered the last piece to their guests before they
split it for themselves. This was a first as both would usually
fight tooth and nail for such. Belldandy was still weak from her
spellcasting, and spent most of the evening curled up in Keiichi's
arms, much to both their secret delight.
It was around eight thirty when the party started to break up.
Megumi had dozed off in her nest of pillows, and even the Goddesses
were starting to yawn. The two Devil Hunters had changed back to
their `street clothes' in the washroom and with Yoshiko, bid their
hosts good night. Urd and Skuld saw the three out to the arch,
waving goodbye as they proceeded down the street.
"Was it really only yesterday?" thought Yohko, looking at the tall
Goddess striding along beside her.
"I know it is bad manners to invite oneself to someone's home, but
I would like to meet your predecessor, the 107th in your line. Your
mother must be proud of you." said Yoshiko, as she stopped to look
in the front window of an electronics shop.
"Uhhh, well....Mother thinks this is all a lot of silly
superstition, actually." answered Yohko, causing Yoshiko to take
her eyes off of a tv showing a motocross race and look at her with
a confused expression. "My Grandmother is the 107th Devil Hunter."
Yohko explained, a bit red faced.
Yoshiko appeared to consider this as they continued down the
street, ignoring the wolf-whistles from some youths in a passing
car. At a soda stand a bearded American was on his knees pleading
with a young blond girl with ponytails, who was starting to pay
attention to him when he caught sight of the Goddess and lost it.
"David no Baka!" she cried, and knocked him into next week.
They made their way through the streets to Yohko's neighbourhood.
At the top of a hill, the Goddess paused to watch a 747 turn in on
final approach to Narita International. As the jumbo jet descended
into the distance, Yoshiko sighed. "You have accomplished so much
since I last walked the earth. Yet I fear it may all be undone if
this coming crisis is not successfully managed."
"Megami-sama, who, or what, are the Elder Gods?" asked Azusa
suddenly.
"That is a good question. Unfortunately, I do not have a good
answer. They were around millennia ago, causing all sorts of
trouble, and suddenly they disappeared." the tall Goddess frowned
in thought as the proceeded up the street. "Were they Gods from an
older time, lost to us now, or the deities of some other, alien
race? I don't think we'll ever know for sure, but they are very
powerful, and very dangerous. You will likely be called upon before
this is done with, I expect, but I know you will do well."
Yohko was lost in thought about this when a voice behind her made
her jump.
"There you are! Do you know I looked all day for you! There was a
report of a monster last night and could I find you two? No!"
scolded Chigako, standing there with her fists on her hips, her
long ginger-brown hair framing her glasses. "And on top of it all,
we were suppose to go bargain hunting today!"
"Uh...I'm sorry, Chi'. Something came up." said Yohko.
"Who is your friend?" asked Yoshiko.
"I am their wise and dedicated business Manager of all thing
related to Devil Hunting, Chigako Ogowa." answered Chi, holding a
finger in the air and sounding important.
"Oh really?" asked the Goddess giving the two other girls a
questioning look. Yohko just rolled her eyes upwards and winked
back, trying to hide a smile in the process. To this Yoshiko smiled
slightly and turned back to Chi'.
"Yes really!" Chi' seemed to see the Goddess for the first time.
"Uh, excuse me, but are you a Devil Hunter too?"
"In a manner of speaking...." Yohko sensed the Goddess was
controlling her mirth with difficulty. "I am called Yoshiko.
Pleased to meet you." she said, adding a small bow.
They turned into the street that had Yohko's house.
"So..You are a manager of Devil Hunters. How does this work?" asked
the Goddess.
"Well, I got the idea from "Ghostbusters". I think there are people
that would pay well to get rid of some poltergeist. These people
would get in contact with me, and I'd arrange for these two to show
up and do their stuff for expenses and a small but reasonable
commission. If *these* two wouldn't just go rushing off and dealing
with the devils *before* I can get a contract signed, we'd might
actually make some real money! Yes, I've dedicated my life to Devil
Hunting." Chi finished, her eyes flashing.
"I see...Hmmmm" said the Goddess as Yohko led them up to the house.
Yohko was more than a bit afraid that her friend would be turned
into a dormouse or a toad or something. It was obvious that Yoshiko
had something in mind from the small smile that lit her face. She
unlocked the door and lead the way into the house. As they were
removing their shoes, Yohko found a note from her mother saying she
had gone out on a date, and not to wait up for her.
"Azusa-chan, could you please make some tea while I find
Grandmother?" she asked, as her guests settled in the living room.
"Hai, Yohko-san!" replied Azusa, heading for the kitchen.
Yohko went to her Grandmother's study, and found that while she
wasn't there, the computer was on, indicating that she was down
below in the secret library. Tapping an icon her grandmother had
shown her with the mouse, the floor started to lower. As the room
below came into view, her grandmother looked up from where she had
been making notes from an old book.
"Yohko, I'm glad your home! I sense that something terrible is
about to happen..." Madoka Mano's voice trailed off when she saw
this was no surprise to her Granddaughter.
"Grandmother, we have a guest of some importance that I think you'd
want to meet." was Yohko's reply. Madoka looked at her, and then
turned out the work light and came over and clicked the icon that
would raise the floor.
As the two returned to the living room, Yoshiko stood up for
introductions. Madoka stopped in her tracks at the sight of the
Goddess, exclaiming in shock,"You!"
Yohko stepped in. "Madoka Mano, the 107th Devil Hunter, may I
introduce you to Yoshiko-sama."
"Welcome to our home. To what do I owe this unexpected honour?"
said Yohko's Grandmother shakily, bowing low.
"It was my wish to meet the person that turned out not one, but two
exceptional Devil Hunters. Their skills are most impressive, and
the need could not be greater than now." the Goddess replied,
bowing in return.
"Yes, I have detected a growing miasma of evil, of a like I've
never seen before. Do you know what it means, Megami-sama?"
"Oh yes, your Grand-daughter and her apprentice have already dealt
with the first stirrings, and the Heavens are preparing for a
serious showdown."
"Uh...Just who are you, really...?" asked Chi' suddenly, looking a
little pale from her perch at the end of the couch.
"I am Yoshiko, Patron Goddess of the Devil Hunters" she answered,
taking a cup and saucer from Azusa and holding it out for Yohko to
pour the tea into.
"Wha....Patron Goddess.....Oh my......" Chi stammered into silence,
looking like death warmed-over as realization sunk in.
"What are we to do about the problem at hand?" asked Madoka
"Oh, I think three Devil Hunters will be more than enough to deal
with the problem locally, though they may be called away to other
planes to aid some deities of my acquaintance in the near term."
explained the Goddess between sips of tea.
"I am old, but I am ready to take up the hunt as you wish, but I
have given my ring to Yohko." Madoka said, rising.
"Oh! I didn't mean you. You have done your duty to your ancestors
and then some. Though your wisdom may be of useful guidance for the
girls. There is another I have in mind." exclaimed the Goddess, a
smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.
It was all Yohko could do to keep from spraying her tea across the
coffee table, having a good idea who this `third' Devil Hunter
might be. Swallowing with difficulty, she waited for the other shoe
to drop.
"Megami-sama, there is to be another Devil Hunter? Wonderful! Who,
who is it?" exclaimed Azusa, bouncing up and down on the couch in
excitement.
"Why, your friend Miss Chigako, of course. She did say she had
dedicated her life to Devil Hunting, didn't she?" Yoshiko said
brightly, pretending not to notice Chi's whimper from the end of
the couch.
"Yaaaa!" cried Azusa, giving Chi' a hug that the older girl hardly
noticed in her shock.
Turning back to Yohko's Grandmother, the Goddess continued. "To
that end, I must ask, do you have someplace with at least 3 meters
on a side of clear space?"
"Hmmm...I suppose the garage might have enough free space.."
answered Madoka thoughtfully
"Well then, may I make use of it for a while?"
"Of course, my house is your house. Please, If you need anything,
just ask!"
"Thank you, but would be rude of me not to ask permission first.
Shall we go?" Yoshiko asked, standing.
Madoka led them to the door leading into the garage, Yohko firmly
tugging Chi' along by the wrist.
The garage, meant for two cars, was empty but for a Yammaha V-Max
motorbike, and the girls bicycles. A small but neat workbench stood
in the back corner. Azusa was sent in search of some candles, while
the Goddess made some preparations at the work bench. From a pouch
purse at her waist, she drew forth a stick of charcoal, and a small
bar of silver and another of gold. She deftly drew a small
pentagram on the bench top, and placed 5 of the candles that Azusa
had produced at the points of the star, and placed the silver and
gold bars in the centre. She then dug out of her pouch a small and
rather plain looking stone, and placed this on top of the metal
bars. With the girls gathered around she made a pass with her hand
and the lights went out, and the candles sprang up in flame.
The Goddess started a low chant, her hands raised around the
circumference of the pentagram. In the centre of the star, the
metal and stone started to take on a greenish glow, and it looked
like the bars were starting to melt. The glow intensified until the
girls couldn't see to it's core, and the chant, in some unknown
language, got louder with it. In a few minutes, Yoshiko stopped,
and the glow died away. In the centre of the pentagram was a ring
very much like Yohko's, and two small shells of stone that had
contained the green gem now in the ring. Picking up the ring,
Yoshiko turned to Chi', who was looking at it with an expression of
wonder and dread.
"I know you didn't have this in mind when you said you had
dedicated your life to Devil Hunting, but I sense within you the
potential to become a great Devil Hunter, and you already are
trusted by your friends, and, I think, that you trust them."
"B..But, M..Megami-sama, I don't know how to use a spear or sword,
how can I help Yohko and Azusa if I can't even protect myself?"
Chi' asked, her eyes wide behind her glasses.
"Soul weapons tend to be that which are best suited to the user.
Yohko had been trained by her Grandmother here to use a sword like
weapon, and I assume Azusa-chan practised with a pole or spear.
Don't worry, you will be of use and aid to your friends. Now," said
the Goddess briskly, "To compleat this procedure."
With the girls help, a larger pentagram was drawn on the floor
while Madoka sat out of the way and watched with great intrest from
the seat of her Yamaha. The candles were transferred to the larger
pentagram, and Chi' was asked to sit in the centre. Yohko and
Azusa, when asked, then changed into their Devil Hunter garb,
drawing a gasp from Chi', and compliments from Madoka. The girls
knelt down equidistant from the Goddess and each other, and Chi'
was instructed to put on the ring. A different chant was started
and soon a flair of green colour came up off the ring on Chi's
hand. In a burst of energy, her clothes exploded off of her body as
it was drawn into the air over the pentagram. As she settled back
to the floor, her new clothes formed around her ripe figure. The
dress was of similar cut and pattern to Yohko's old dress, but
where her's had been red, Chi's was a brilliant emerald green.
Instead of the low shoes and metal shin guards, she had knee high
boots like the other Devil Hunters had, only dyed green to match
her dress. A bandanna to hold her hair out of her face and a pair
of long green leather gauntlets, one of which was modified to
accept her ring as part of it, completed the picture. Her left hand
crackled with energy, and as she looked at it, it flowed out in
both directions to form a compound bow, with a quiver of arrows at
her back.
Yoshiko had stopped chanting by this time, and was kneeling back
admiring her work, her head cocked to one side like a cat.
"I hadn't expected a bow to be your soul weapon, do you know how to
use one?" asked the Goddess, the surprise evident in her voice.
"It makes sense, Megami-sama," interrupted Yohko, "she compeats in
the inter-school games, and has won several trophies too."
Chi' knocked an arrow and pulled it out to a full draw. She then
slowly released the tension on the bow and lowered it.
"It's perfect! If only I had this last spring...." she said to
herself, awe in her voice. She turned to Yoshiko, bowing low, the
bow clasped across her chest.
"I will do my best to become that which you need, Megami-sama,
Thank you!"
"You will have to serve as apprentice to Yohko, with Azusa, until
she deems you worthy of the title of Devil Hunter. I'm afraid
you'll have to put aside any ideas of getting rich from Devil
Hunting, as it is now your duty, not a vocation. Do well, as I
think you will, and you will start another lineage of Devil
Hunters." The Goddess said, putting out the candles and putting
away her things. She looked over to where Madoka was sitting on her
bike, giving Chi' a critical eye.
"I understand you have records of your ancestors. Would you allow
me to study them for a while?"
"I would be pleased to. We'll leave the girls to clean up here."
said the small woman, hopping off the big bike.
As the two left the garage, Yohko handed out a broom and a brush to
Azusa and Chi', taking a smaller brush herself to the workbench. By
the time she was done the floor was clean of the charcoal as well,
and Chi' was inspecting Azusa's new clothes.
"They're beautiful." she said, fingering the silk of her own dress.
"Tell me, where did you meet her? And what about that monster that
was in the park last night?"
Sighing, Yohko changed back into her normal clothes, and after the
others had changed as well she led them upstairs to her bedroom,
where she and Azusa filled in Chi' as to what they had learned in
the last day or so. This did nothing for Chi's confidence, and as
the evening wore on she started to look a little worried.
"Goddesses living with college students, Elder Gods, Demonesses in
biker leathers, all we need now is a cat that talks....What are we
going to do?" she wailed.
"We do what we can, to the best of our ability, and hope it is
enough." Yohko said with conviction.
"That's right! Why, with the three of us, the powers of evil will
have plenty to worry about!" enthused Azusa, waving a fist in the
air.
As by this time it was getting late, Chi' figured it was a good
time to make her way home, with the promise that the girls would
meet in the morning at the local coffee shop.
After she left, Yohko and Azusa cleaned up the things left over
from tea, and made their way to their beds. Yohko's last thought
was to wonder what the next few days would hold in the way of
surprises.

                             **********

Yohko woke from a confused dream where her alarm clock was
possessed by evil demons and she was chasing the thing around her
room trying to dispatch it with her sword, only to find that the
alarm clock must have indeed been possessed as there was no way she
would have set it to go off so early on a Sunday. Prying her eyes
open, she bashed the clock with her hand and looked at the time.
Sitting bolt upright she swore as the clock read 10:00. She almost
ran into Azusa leaving her bedroom, who, dressed in a bath robe,
was on her way to the bathroom as well. Yohko decided a shower was
probably faster, and had a quick scrub down while Azusa brushed her
teeth. The girls then switched places and Yohko had to cringe while
Azusa sang off-key as she took her turn in the shower. Yohko
brushed her own teeth and with a towel wrapped around her headed
back to her room. She pulled on a clean pair of jeans and a t-shirt
with the logo of a western rock band that she and Chi' had seen
when they were in Japan for a concert. The t-shirt seemed a little
tighter across the chest than she remembered, and turning sideways
to look in the mirror, decided she had perhaps filled out a bit
more up top since she last wore it. Her musings were interrupted by
the sound of a bell coming from the window.
Turning, she saw the Demoness Marllar lounging on the window sill,
an amused look on her face.
"You're on very dangerous ground, coming here, Marllar." Yohko
growled, snatching her ring up from the dresser where she left it.
"Don't get your knickers in a twist, girlie. I'm not here to give
you any grief," Marllar snorted, the bell on her collar ringing
with her movements. "Quite the contrary, I'm here to give you some
advise and to make sure you know whats going on, and to give you
this." she continued, holding up a scroll.
"What's that? And why should I even begin to believe anything you
tell me?" Yohko wasn't sure, but it looked like the bell had been
stuffed with wads of tissue, to no effect.
"<sigh> I can't help being what I am any more than you can help
what you are. *This* is a partial list of the true names of those
idiots that are siding with the Elder Gods. Take this to Belldandy
or Yoshiko and they'll clue you in. They already have their
copies." The Demoness considered Yohko for a moment. "What do you
think your job is anyway?" she asked.
"To rid the world of evil, of course!" retorted Yohko, as Azusa
came charging into the room in full combat mode. Yohko motioned to
Azusa to stay back with her hand.
"Oh, Please! An army of Devil Hunters couldn't do that if all the
demons were asleep for a week! Your job is to act as a balance to
us. If some demon or devil gets too far out of line, you swat him
down before the balance gets too far out of kilter. Just as my job
is to give Belldandy and her lot as much grief as I can get away
with. Not that they haven't pulled a good one on me *this* time."
she said, giving the bell a flick with her finger.
"The Elder Gods don't give a squat about the balance, and I suspect
they destroyed their world as a result."
"I would have thought that the dark forces would have loved to grab
the chance to gain the upper hand. Most of the ones I've dealt with
want to take over the earth and enslave everyone." snorted Yohko.
"Oh, there are lots of those around, some even on our side. The
problem, you see, is that in normal course, folks like you two, or
Goddesses like Belldandy's crew, will deal with the threat, and
shove things back onto more or less an even keel. And the universe
continues. But this is serious because not only could the world be
destroyed, but destroyed compleatly! No Gods or Goddesses, no
people and no Demons and Devils. So like it or not, you're gonna
have to deal with some demons and devils in the near future, and
that means you're gonna be fighting *with* them, not just against
them. Though I wouldn't exactly trust them in any event."
The Demoness looked around the room. "Nice digs, would be fun to
throw a party here. Look, if you don't believe me, talk to your
patron or Belldandy or someone, I gotta go, but we will meet again.
See ya!" With that she jumped off the sill and disappeared.
"You don't believe her, do you?" asked Azusa as Yohko picked up the
scroll from the floor with her towel and tossed it into a plastic
grocery bag that was in the corner.
"Actually, I do, for most part. She may not be telling *all* the
truth, but I think she's scared, even if she can't admit it to
herself, and that she is right about us not being able to fully rid
the Earth of evil. Not that I'm not going to do my best, whatever
she says."
Grabbing her socks and stuffing her wallet into her pocket, she
followed Azusa out of the room. Azusa disappeared into her room and
appeared in her usual clothes as Yohko finished getting some cereal
out for the two. After they had a bowl and cleaned up, Yohko took
the scroll to her Grandmother's den, and seeing no one there,
lowered the floor to the library. There she found both her
Grandmother, and Yoshiko. The latter, now dressed in a skirt and
blouse, with a long coat over top, was reading from a scroll like
the one Yohko had in the bag.
"Good morning, Yohko! You sleep well?" her grandmother called from
the table where she was touching up an old tome with a fountain
pen.
"Hai, good morning Grandma, Megami-sama. Um.. I had a visit from
Marllar this morning, and she left me this." Yohko replied, holding
up the bag with the scroll. "I don't trust her, so I haven't
touched it, and I thought you might want to check it over for
Booby-traps."
"Well, bring it here then." instructed Yoshiko.
She proceeded to wave a hand over top of the bag, and mumble a few
words of a spell. A small *poof* of blue smoke billowed out of the
bag, and the Goddess's hand changed it's motion to waving away the
smoke with a slight cough.
"Well, that little demoness is a nasty little bitch. She had the
whole scroll laced with a sneeze and an itch powder. Good thing you
hadn't tried to open it, or your room would be hell on earth for a
few days. Not that it would have actually have harmed you, but it
wouldn't have been pleasant. Go ahead, its quite safe now." She
commented, a wry expression on her face.
Yohko pulled the scroll from the bag as Azusa came down the ladder
set into the wall and joined them.
"She said it was a partial list of `true names' of some of our
opposition." Yohko said as she undid the ties and unrolled the
scroll on the table. Yoshiko placed her scroll next to the other
one and started to compare the two. After a few minutes she sighed
and said, "Well, it looks correct, but you need to know who's who
before it'll do you much good." Rolling up the scroll, she gave it
back to Yohko. "Your lot should be familiar with the major names on
this list, they're listed in the first half page or so, but try to
remember as many as you can, as it might make your job easier."
Yohko took the scroll, and thanking the Goddess, explained that she
and Azusa were to meet Chi', but they'd look at it over at the
coffee shop. Bidding fairwell, the two took the elevator floor back
up to Madoka's study. As they were going down the hall to the front
door, Yohko's mother could be seen in the living room, wearing a
house coat and nursing a hangover. She waved weakly to the girls as
they said good morning, and wincing, went back to her coffee.
Looking through the window, Yohko decided that she might need a
light jacket later, and so grabbed one out of the closet. Azusa
also grabbed her jacket and so armed, the girls left for the coffee
shop.
 As the two entered the coffee shop, Chi' waved from the back of
the shop where she had grabbed a booth in the corner.
"Sorry if we were late, Chi'. Things have already been weird today,
and may get stranger." Yohko explained as she slid into the seat
across from her friend, Azusa next to her.
"Oh, it's ok. I over-slept too, and only just got here myself."
answered Chi' with a dismissing wave of the hand. "I just can't
believe that I'm a Devil Hunter. Uh..In training, that is. I had to
transform this morning to convince myself that it wasn't a weird
dream!" she concluded, looking a little bemused.
Chi's order came, and Yohko and Azusa ordered cheesecake and
American style coffee. When they had received their orders, Yohko
took out the scroll from her jacket pocket and explained the
importance of the document to Chi'. After they had finished their
cakes, Yohko unrolled the scroll and they spent the next hour and
a half memorizing the first page of it. Surprisingly, Chi' was the
best of them at rattling off the strange names on the document, and
it wasn't long before they had ordered another round of cheesecakes
to celebrate their success. It was while they were waiting for
their order that the door to the shop opened, and Yohko saw a
familiar face enter. Waving, she got the attention of the young
Goddess as she was about to sit at the bar, and with a grin, Skuld
joined them in the booth, sitting next to Chi'. After introductions
were made, Yohko explained what had transpired the evening before,
and brought Skuld up to date on what had been said and done that
morning by Marllar.
"Figures! Marllar would try a stunt like that!" Skuld snorted. It
will really piss her off when she finds out you didn't fall for
it." turning to Chi', Skuld held out a hand. "So you're now a Devil
Hunter too, Congratulations!"
Chi' shook hands with Skuld, and looked a bit startled when Yohko
explained that this raven haired girl was a Goddess, and was the
younger sister of Belldandy.
The cheesecakes came about this time, along with a large banana
split and a soda for Skuld, the waitress winking at Skuld with a
smile as the Goddess giggled with delight at the fact that she was
going to order just that.
"Guess they've got me pegged!" she laughed, digging into the
confection.
"How is Megumi this morning?" asked Yohko, sipping her coffee.
"Sore, grumpy, and in a really foul mood. In short, feeling better.
I think she wants to find who's responsible for a little *personal*
pay back. She even has Urd taken aback with her viscousness.." the
small Goddess said around her spoon.
"Belldandy and Keiichi have gone to the track to investigate the
site of the incident to see if it was related to whats been going
on, or just somebody being unpleasant." She continued.
"Have you heard from the other deities yet?" asked Azusa, popping
a piece of cake in her mouth.
"Yeah, and I think your not gonna like the answer. We've got a
meeting with Mestophilese for this afternoon, and Belldandy is
asking Yoshiko-sama if she can borrow you lot as bodyguards." Skuld
explained.
"This afternoon!? Where? And why would she need us? You're all
Goddesses, we wouldn't be much use." Yohko got out as Chi' choked
on her coffee and fell into a fit of coughing.
Uh, well... That's the bad news. The meeting will take place at the
gates to Nifflehime. Actually, you lot will probably not be doing
much beyond standing around and looking tough. Though if some
upstart gets carried away, you may have to toss him back through
the gates, so to speak. Oh yeah, if you *do* toast some demon while
you're there, its permanent. They don't come back 100 years later,
nope, nada. So you see, you lot will be a real good incentive for
them to behave themselves."
Just then they noticed the waitress standing by the table with the
bill and a worried look on her face. Yohko accepted the bill as
Skuld forced a laugh. When the coast was clear, Skuld quietly
thumped her forehead on the table saying "BAKA" each time.
The other girls waited until she had finished, and proceeded to
toss together the cash to pay the bill.
As they left the cafe, Skuld explained that as Goddess's, they were
bound by the truce to not attack demons at the meeting, but some of
the demons might be from the other faction, and could try to upset
things, hence the need for the girls.
She lead the way back to the temple, chattering on about this demon
or that devil and the things they would be prone to do. As they
were walking down the street that the temple was on, the sound of
a motorcycle could be heard approaching from behind. As they turned
to look, Keiichi, with Belldandy riding in the sidecar, roared
past. With a wave from Belldandy, the BMW turned into a side street
that led to the back of the compound and disappeared. The girls
hurried up the stairs to the temple compound and arrived as
Belldandy and Keiichi appeared from around the side of the house.
"Konichiwa! Thank you for coming!" She called.
"Konichiwa, Belldandy-sama, Keiichi-san!" Yohko answered, bowing to
the Goddess.
As they entered the house and shed their shoes, Yohko introduced
Chi' to Belldandy and Urd, who had come into the hall as they
arrived. Further introductions were made when they entered the main
room and found Megumi propped up with pillows watching TV.
"Oh, this is so wonderful! A new Devil Hunter!" exclaimed
Belldandy.
"Well, I'm just an apprentice for the time being, really.." replied
Chi' uncertainly.
"Ah...You'll do ok. Just follow Yohko-chan's lead, and everything
will be just fine." said Urd, slapping her on the shoulder.
Everyone had settled down around the table except Urd and Keiichi,
who had gone to get the tea, when Belldandy started to fill them in
on what she had found out at the track.
"It was definitely a demon." she said. "4th, maybe 5th class,
limited.. Not too dangerous, but a potential threat to those like
Megumi who would have had no warning. It seems to have gated back
to it's native plane, so there isn't much we can do about it unless
it comes back again. I've spelled the area it came through so as to
trap it should it return, but I think it was a one time event."
"All I want is ten minutes alone with the creep!" Megumi snarled,
a dark look on her face.
"Well, I can't help you there, I'm afraid. Gomen." Belldandy said
quietly, a bit taken aback herself.
Just then the phone rang, and Urd jumped up to answer it, as she
was the closest. Yohko was idlely wondering what their long
distance charges were like when Urd held out the phone to her.
"It's Yoshiko-sama..." she said as Yohko took it from her.
"Hai!.....Yes, Skuld-sama explained what they wanted....Hai....Yes,
they're both here, too....Good....We'll do our best, Megami-
sama.....Sayonara.." Yohko hung up the phone. "She's made it
official. We're at your disposal, Belldandy-sama."
"Good! Then I guess we'd best get going.." She suddenly looked
bothered by something. "Uh, Keiichi? I'm going to gone the rest of
the day, but we should be back by late tonight."
"Belldandy, I know the Ultimate System Force is suppose to keep us
together, but if the Elder Gods get their way, then we won't be
able to be, as I see it. So I think it would be in the interests of
the System Force for you to deal with this as you see necessary."
Keiichi replied with a wry grin. Both Urd and Skuld looked wide
eyed as the implications of what he said and the wisdom of it sunk
home.
"I suppose that true....Well! I guess we're on our way, then." She
said.
As they got up, she led the way out onto the verandah and across
the yard to the Temple. Even Megumi came, helped along by her
brother.
When they reached the Temple, Yohko and the others could see a
pentagram already drawn on the floor before the alter. It was much
larger than the one that had been drawn in the Goddesses bedroom.
"Yohko-chan, if you and your friends would change, we can get
started." Said Belldandy.
Yohko was all set to recite her "mantra" when she noticed Keiichi
watching them curiously. "Uh, Megumi-sa...Could you cover your
brother's eyes while we do this?"
"You mean like this?" Megumi replied, moving behind her brother and
clamping both her hands over his face.
"Yeah, that'll do." answered Yohko with a grin.
"I don't see why I have to put up with this...." grumbled Keiichi.
"Its so you *don't* see..." explained Urd in a teasing voice.
Yohko and the others were quick to change, and when Megumi saw
*why* she had been asked to cover Keiichi's eyes, she clamped down
even harder, causing a squeak of protest from her brother.
After the transformation, she let go of her brother and as he tried
to get his eyes to see straight, and looked on in amazement at what
the three girls were wearing now. Yohko's and Azusa's dresses she
had seen the night before, but the bright emerald green of Chi's
dress was most striking.
"Keiichi, if you would sit there, and Megumi over there."
Instructed Skuld as she took a place in one of the points of the
star. Urd stood in a point two to her left, as Belldandy took up
position in the point next over from Urd. The Devil Hunters, with
warnings not to step on the lines, were instructed to stand in the
centre pentangle. After Keiichi and Megumi were at their places
outside the main circle, each at the empty points of the star,
Skuld explained that they were under *NO* circumstances allowed to
cross into the pentagram, or to disturb the chalk lines in any way.
The three Goddesses then changed into their robes, and proceeded to
chant in a Scandinavian tongue. The Pentagram started to glow,
first the lines, and then the areas between them. The glow grew
until it became a cylinder of intense light. When it faded, the
Goddess and Devil Hunters were gone, though faint spots of light
chased around the Pentagram, showing it was still active. Megumi's
face as she looked across the circle at her brother was full of awe
and amazement. Settling herself more comfortably, she said, "I
think now would be a good time for you to explain how all this came
about, Dear Brother." She gave him a look that brooked no
arguments.
Sighing, he launched into the story how he had met the Goddess, and
how a promise had been made and eventually kept, and a wish
fulfilled. The sun was setting as he finished his story, but
neither wanted to leave the Temple.
                        *******
The first thing Yohko noticed before she even opened her eyes was
the smell. That burnt smell of rock and other, more unspeakable
things. "How Totally Cliche" she thought yet again as she surveyed
her surroundings, taking in the gates set into a rock face a small
distance away. They were decorated with demons doing unpleasant
things to terrified young women. In other words, the usual demon
shtick. She called her sword into being as she followed the three
Goddesses as they picked their way over the broken ground to a long
and ornate table set up in front of the gates.
Turning, Belldandy said in a quiet voice. "Do not drink or eat
anything here, no matter how good it looks. For to eat here is to
loose a part of your soul to the underworld."
The table had three chairs on each side, and after a brief
inspection, Belldandy stood in front of the centre chair as Urd
took the one on the right, and Skuld took the one on her left. The
Devil Hunters took up position just behind and to one side of the
Goddesses.
They waited only a minute before a loud gong sounded, and the gates
before them opened slowly. Standing in the centre of the group
revealed was a darkly handsome man with a neatly trimmed goatee and
wearing richly appointed clothes. Despite herself, a slight shiver
ran down Yohko's back as she saw that his eyes were solid black
orbs with glowing red puples. To his left, a Lamia swayed gently,
her head and torso that of a beautiful and comely woman, blending
into a snake's body from the waist down. But for gold jewellery and
arm-bands and bracelets, she was naked. To his right, a familiar
figured hulked. The Demon King that Yohko and Azusa had vanquished
in the Forest of the Orb stood there.
In behind the three were two Imps, and Marllar standing around
looking bored. When the Demoness saw Yohko she started to grin
until she saw the smile and small nod the Devil Hunter gave her. A
small frown crossed her face as she surveyed the others, and the
frown deepened as she got a good look at Chi'.
"Do you abide by the agreements made pertaining to these
proceedings, and speak for those in your entourage, Arch-Demon
Mestophilese?" ask Belldandy
"I do. Will you, Norn Goddess of the Present Belldandy, abide the
agreements made pertaining to these proceedings, and speak for
those in your entourage?" answered the tall demon in a rich,
cultured voice.
"I will, and so saying shall we begin?" The Goddess replied, taking
a seat.
As the others sat down, she noticed that the Demon King was giving
Yohko a hard look. "Is there some problem, Uujookan?" Belldandy ask
as the hulking Demon King settled himself into a chair that grew to
accommodate his large frame.
"Don't like those two being here. Object to their presence, I do."
He said with a snarl.
Belldandy turned to look at Yohko, who simply said, "We trashed his
ass the night Azusa-chan gained her powers in the Forest of the
Orb."
"That hass nothing to do with why we're here, sso we will forget it
for now." said the Lamia, coiling into her chair, which adapted to
fit her body too.
Reaching into her mantel, Belldandy pulled out a large scroll and
held it up. "This is a break down of our chain of command and
disposition of our forces to date." she said laying the scroll down
and breaking the seal.
>From his coat, Mestophilese pulled a similar scroll and laid it
down on the table in front of him, also breaking the seal. "And
this is a list of the hosts we know are still loyal and our chain
of command, though it is somewhat incomplete. Some hosts are also
split, each contingement following different leaders, some of them
*both* declaring for us, against us, or both...Quite a mess,
really."
As the discussion got down to details, Yohko concentrated on the
two Imps that were in the background with Marllar, who didn't seem
to want anything to do with them. As time wore on, she noticed that
while one of the Imps was twitching about with that nervus energy
that they all had, the other seemed to be fixated on Belldandy, and
was way too calm compared to its companion. Suddenly, it let out a
scream and bounded over the top of Mestophilese's chair in a high
arc that would have landed right on top of the startled Goddess,
had its forward flight not been interrupted by a green bolt of
light that inbedded itself into the Imps' chest. As the Imp was
thrown back over the Arch-Demon's chair, the bolt resolved itself
into a green fletched arrow. The body of the Imp changed to that of
another demon briefly before exploding with some force,
disintegrating compleatly. It was all Yohko could do to keep her
follow through from taking Skuld's head off as her sword passed
through the spot she had figured on hitting the Imp. Looking to her
right, she could see that Chi' had another of her green fletched
arrows knocked, bow bent and ready, pointing at Marllar.
"Chigako-chan, please relax, I think there will be no further
*incidents*." Belldandy said in a measured voice. As Chi' lowered
her bow and relaxed the string both she and the demoness she had
been aiming at let out a long breath, both their faces white.
"I am sorry for this breach of protocol, Belldandy-san. I do hope
this doesn't cause problems between our two groups?" said
Mestophilese, a frown on his face.
"Actually, I'm glad this did happen, as I did sort of expect
something like this." she drew another scroll from her robes.
"These are the *real* documents to which we must discuss strategy.
I think you might have another scroll, with a bit more accurate
data, I'm sure?" Belldandy said, cocking an eyebrow.
Letting out a chuckle, Mestophilese also dug out a new scroll, and
the six principals got back down to negotiations.
While the discussions at times got rather heated, mostly between
the Demon King and Urd, the details got sorted out rather quickly,
and in fact the big holdup was with Skuld and the Lamia, who were
making notes of the proceedings. Skuld was pounding furiously on
the keyboard of her NoteBook computer, and the Lamia was scribbling
on a scroll with a pen. It was several hours later that the
negotiations wrapped up with Mestophilese and Belldandy, who had
for some reason put on some large, wire frame glasses, were reading
over Skuld's print out, and the Lamia's scroll, respectively.
Satisfied with what she read there, she signed the document, and
waiting until Mestophilese had signed his copy, she exchanged
copies with him and signed her name to the document after verifying
his signature. Rising, she bowed politely to those on the other
side of the table, and made ready to leave.
"I didn't know you Norns were into Devil Hunters," Mestophilese
commented as he returned her bow. "I always thought they were
Yoshiko's pet hobby."
"We're not, and they are. These three are on loan, as it were."
replied the Goddess, putting away her glasses. "They certainly
proved their usefulness this day...." she replied with a smile, to
which he chuckled shortly.
"I suppose, my dear, I suppose...We must be going ourselves, as I'm
sure poor Kikarra here is finding the air much to dry for her
tastes." he said, indicating the Lamia. She made a sour face and
replied, "Yess, itss much too dry, sso sstop yacking already and
letss go.."
With a final bow, Belldandy lead the way back to the spot where
they had first appeared. Yohko, Azusa, and Chi' all kept an eye on
the demons until the gate had closed behind them, and then hurried
to catch up with the Goddesses. Standing in the middle of the
Goddesses, Yohko couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't
right as the three Norn's linked hands and chanted in their own
tongue. To Yohko's surprise, she could understand the words of the
chant, if not the meaning of the phrases. It occurred to her that
the Norns had spoken the whole time in their language, and that the
demons had spoken in either a harsh demonic tongue, or in a thick
British accented English in the case of Mestophilese.
When the light had dimmed from the spell, they found themselves in
almost compleat darkness, the only light from a dim candle at the
alter. After her eyes had adjusted to the light, she could just
make out Keiichi, with his sister's head pillowed on his lap,
dozing against the wall. With a smile, Belldandy moved to them,
only to stop when Yohko made a small sound to get her attention.
Yohko then indicated her clothes and gestured with her hands them
going away from her. Belldandy broke out in a grin as she
understood, and moved to block Keiichi's view of the Devil Hunters
should he wake. The girls quickly changed, and then Belldandy bent
down and gave him a kiss on the cheek. Yohko then noticed for the
first time that she wore a diamond ring on her left hand. More to
the point, she had noticed the ring before but hadn't made the
connection with the young student until now. As Keiichi stirred,
she saw the look of joy on his face as he saw who it was who woke
him. After a few quiet words were exchanged, Megumi was roused, who
complained about being stiff as she sat up. Both Keiichi and
Belldandy helped her up, and with one on each side, led her to the
door of the Temple. Skuld stayed behind as the others left the
Temple, and Yohko presumed it was to clean up the pentagram on the
floor. Sure enough, as they crossed the yard, a noise like a small
whirlwind came from the temple. Soon the house was brightly lit,
and tea and cakes were handed to all. Belldandy excused herself,
saying she had to go somewhere for a short time, and then stepped
into a mirror, causing both Megumi and Chi' to choke on their tea
briefly. The mirror swirled for a time, and then settled down.
"Do you lot do this sort of thing all the time?" Megumi asked, as
she wiped the edge of the table with her napkin.
"Sometimes." Skuld replied cheerfully. "And other times, we're just
like everyone else.
"Yeah, right. I always thought things were weird around here, but
before yesterday, I couldn't figure out why." Megumi snorted, then
broke out in a shy grin. "But it does sort of kick the supports out
from under reality to find out that my future sister-in-law is a
Goddess."
"I wouldn't worry to much about it, Megumi-chan. Your biggest worry
is to not eat too much of her food, or your figure will start to
suffer." Urd said with a wink, refilling everyone's mugs.
"Sister-in-law?!" Broke in Azusa, eyes wide. "You mean Belldandy-
sama and Keiichi-san are engaged? Wow!"
"Uh-huh, happened late last fall. They're planing to tie the knot
when Keiichi graduates and gets a job." Urd explained, spiking her
tea with a little sake.
"Uh, yeah well....I don't think its right to for me to sponge off
her, even if she is a Goddess. A man should support his wife with
an honest living...." Keiichi put in, a little red faced. He poured
a small amount of the sake in his mug, and handed the bottle to
Yohko, who took it with some surprise. After a moments hesitation,
she poured a little into her mug as well and passed the bottle to
Chi'. Chi' poured a bit into her mug, and then after a thoughtful
pause sloshed in a bit more. The sake went around the table, and
even Skuld and Azusa had a little.
Urd raised her mug, and in true Norn fashion, intoned, "To Victory
and success for our side, defeat and confusion to the Elder Gods!
Skl!" She then tossed back her drink as everyone echoed her and
took a sip of their own.
Though Skuld and Azusa abstained from the sake after the first
round, the rest raised toast after toast until the sake was gone.
Yohko was rather ploughed by then, and was sitting quietly watching
the world spin in a detached sort of way while Chi' and Megumi
commiserated about their mutual lack of boyfriends and proclaimed
that all men were pigs except certain ones that lived with
Goddesses. Urd staggered around waving the empty bottle like it was
a mace telling some story about Thor and his hammer, as Keiichi
ducked her swings. Azusa was sitting in the corner with Skuld, who
was playing an instrument that look like a cross between a guitar
and a mandolin.
About this time the mirror started to swirl all rainbow colours.
"Wow, far out! I wish I could find a mirror like that for my
bedroom." was the thought that drifted through Yohko's mind, when
Belldandy stepped through the mirror into the room.
Taking in the scene, she gave Urd a hard glare that went ignored
and dumped three large bags that rattled and clunked as they hit
the floor.
<Hic!> "Hey, lil' sister! What did the old farts say about the
treaty?" Urd said unsteadily from the table where she had plunked
herself.
"Oh, they were quite satisfied." She said as she sat down at the
table and poured the last of the tea into a clean mug and took a
sip. "I also got the things you wanted from your apartment too,
*except* the cask of 50 year old scotch." She said reprovingly.
Urd gave her a dirty look and stuck out her tongue.
Looking at Yohko and Chi', Belldandy gave them both a look of
disappointment that said more than any scolding could have.
She then raised an eyebrow at Skuld as she plucked out a funeral
dirge on her instrument. She then sighed, remembering when she had
been young and foolish, and decided that there was no real harm
done.
"I've brought Megumi and you something that you might need in the
next few weeks." the Goddess said as she dragged one of the bags
closer to the table, addressing Keiichi.
She then proceeded to pull pieces of armour, helmets, and a pair of
beautifully worked Katana out of the bag.
"In the morning, Yohko will start to teach you the basics of sword
fighting, as things are about to get very dangerous, I think, and
you will need all the protection you can get."
"Uh....Belldandy? I can't even lift a sword, let alone use one..."
was Megumi's protest.
"I know, but you should wear this armour, at least, and the swords
are lighter than they look. The armour is that which a Valkyrie
would wear, and as such, is magical. You will also be the first
living mortal in history to wear such as this." Belldandy replied,
indicating a pile she had made to her right with the armour.
"The armour I brought for you, Keiichi, is also magical, and was to
be a gift for you under better circumstances. Sadly, circumstances
warrant that I give it to you now for your own protection." She
continued apologeticly.
She continued to pull pieces of armour out of the bag and make a
second pile to her left. This pile seemed to have a lot of gold and
platinum pieces mixed into it, and both Yohko and Chi' looked on
wide eyed as they tallied up a rough estimate of the cost of the
armour at current prices for the metals alone.
"Skuld, the items you asked for are in that bag." Belldandy added,
nodding toward one of the two remaining sacks.
"Arigato, One-sama!" said Skuld as she put down her instrument and
started digging through the bag, handing things to Azusa until she
was in danger of dropping stuff. The two then disappeared with
Skuld dragging the sack behind her.
Yohko noticed that the bag next to Belldandy still had a lot of
things in it, and the Goddess, with a sigh and a stretch, stood up
and bent to pick it up.
"Umm...Let me, please?" Yohko asked, gathering up the bag.
"Oh, ok, and thank you." the Goddess replied, picking up her tea
instead.
Yohko's head spun for a little bit as she stood up with the bag,
but she forced her eyes to focus on Belldandy as she led the way
out into the hall. They ended up in the room where the ritual had
taken place the day before. Now, however, there were three futons
laid out for bed, and other personal effects ranged around the room
in a simple, yet tasteful, manner. Belldandy indicated where Yohko
could place the sack, and digging under a pillow, pulled out a
nightgown.
"Belldandy-sama?"
"Hmmm? Yes?"
"I'm sorry...."
Belldandy looked at Yohko, and smiling slightly, sat down on the
edge of her futon.
"It should be me apologizing, for not warning you about my sister.
But it is not for me to judge you, and as long as one learns from
one's mistakes or errors of judgment, then all will sort itself
out, eventually. And you and you're friends were a big help,
today."
Yohko was almost in tears of shame, despite the kind words. She
still felt dizzy too, in fact, and it was getting worse.
"Ulp....`Scuse me...Megami-sammmm....." Yohko got out as she
scrambled for the bathroom.
She was seriously tossing her cookies when a warm hand touched her,
supporting her forehead. After what seemed to be an eternity of
retching that left her quite empty, she collapsed into a heap on
the edge of the empty bathtub, holding her head in her hands. Her
head was pounding of a sudden, and if it weren't for the support of
Belldandy holding her, she likely would be on the floor. Belldandy
took a wash cloth and wiped Yohko's mouth and chin for her. Azusa
showed up with a glass of water for her, which she drank with
Belldandy's insistence. She did feel a little better after the
water, even if it only washed the bile from her mouth.
"Azusa-chan, would you call your folks, and tell them that you'll
be staying with us again tonight? And ask Skuld to set up the
living room for Megumi-chan and your people?"
"Hai, Belldandy-sama!" Azusa said, taking the glass back. Her
cheery reply making Yohko wince in pain.
"Are you feeling better, Yohko-chan?" Belldandy asked
Yohko nodded weakly, getting to her feet with the Goddess's help.
She paused to get her balance against the sink, but almost didn't
recognize herself in the mirror. The face peering back at her was
almost grey, with dark circles under the eyes. As they entered the
living-room, Keiichi was clearing away the table to one side of the
room, as Chi' sat against the wall, holding her head. Azusa was
talking on the phone, chattering away as Skuld came into the room
with some futons. Of Urd, there was no sign. Megumi was sitting in
the doorway to the yard, keeping out of the way, examining the
armour she was to wear.
Belldandy let Yohko sit down next to Chi' and proceeded to coax the
brown haired girl to her feet, leading her down the hall.
It was a few minutes later that she led Chi' back, the latter
looking as grey faced as herself. She started to help Skuld, but
was firmly told to stay out of the way by the small Goddess as the
blankets were laid out, and Megumi's nest of pillows was
distributed around the room. Keiichi, after picking up his sword
and armour, said goodnight to the girls, and, getting a goodnight
kiss from Belldandy, left for his room. Azusa hung up the phone and
gave Belldandy a thumbs up, who then thanked her and then bid the
girls goodnight herself.
Skuld helped Megumi to her bed, and then slid the outer door shut.
She also took her leave, leaving the girls to get undressed for
bed. Yohko was asleep almost as fast as she hit the pillow, curling
up into a little ball under the blankets.

                        **********
Yohko woke slowly, the dim light of the dawn filtering through the
drapes. But for the sound of breathing, the room was quiet. She sat
up, drawing the blanket around her, and pondered on what she had
allowed herself to do the night before. True, Urd-sama hadn't seen
it as a problem, but Yohko was starting to see that the Goddess was
somewhat less than responsible, at least compared to Belldandy. And
true, no real harm had come of the incident, but Yohko knew that
was just stupid luck. They could have had a major incursion of
demons, and with the exception of Azusa, the local Devil Hunter
contingement would have been fairly useless.
She quietly got dressed, and pulling on her jacket against the
chill dawn air, went outside. She strolled around the compound,
looking at nothing in particular, until she came to a large rock
set into the garden next to the temple. She found that the rock was
just the place to watch the dawn, and it there, an hour later, that
Belldandy found her. The Goddess was wearing gym shorts and a tank-
top, with sandals on her feet.
"Ohayo, Yohko-san. Did you sleep well?" she enquired
"Hai, Belldandy-sama, I did. You?"
"Well, If you excuse Urd's snoring, yes." the Goddess replied,
winking. From the house, a loud sneeze could be heard.
"Breakfast will be ready shortly, If you care for some."
"What? And miss one of *your* wonderful meals?" Yohko hopped off
the rock. "Take me to your muffins!" she said, striking a dramatic
pose. The two both dissolved into giggles, and headed back to the
house.
As they entered, Urd was sitting at the table growling something at
Skuld, who looked less than pleased with her oldest sister at the
moment. This didn't make much impression on Urd; Urd didn't seem
too pleased with Urd at the moment, either. Skuld was wearing a
pair of shorts and a t-shirt, as was Megumi. Urd was still in her
dressing gown, and as Yohko could see from her location, she seemed
to favour wearing black lace teddies to bed. *Transparent* black
lace teddies.
Chi' and Azusa were both sitting at the table, looking very much
like they wished they were elsewhere than ground zero in an
argument between two Goddesses, one of whom was hung-over.
Keiichi showed up a few minutes later, also in shorts and a t-
shirt, as Skuld and Belldandy started bringing out piles of food.
Everyone dug in, and Urd's temper seemed to improve with the mug
fulls of coffee she poured into her with her meal. The breakfast
was truly wonderful, yet Yohko had the feeling that she and her
friends should start contributing if they were to have many more
meals at the Goddess's hospitality.
After breakfast, Skuld, with Azusa's help, showed Megumi how to put
on the Valkyrie armour. First to go on was a pair of leather
britches and a loose silk shirt. It was decided that the boots
would support her broken ankle with some re-enforcement, and so the
cast was carefully removed. Belldandy supervised the binding of the
foot, and after the boot was laced up, Megumi tested her weight
carefully on that leg. Satisfied, Belldandy resumed helping Keiichi
into his armour. As piece after piece was laced into place, Megumi
wise-cracked that she probably looked more like one of the Mongol
Horde than a Valkyrie, bringing a retort from Skuld that "At least
the Horde had a better sense for armour than some people did at the
time." Urd had wandered out of the room while all this was going
on, commenting that she had to get ready herself. When Megumi
finally put on the helmet with the small wings sitting flush with
the side, Yohko had to admit that she did look impressive, and the
Katana, slung with the hilt over her left shoulder, really didn't
look out of place. With her bruises, she even looked like a veteran
campaigner.
Keiichi by this time was looking even sharper, his armour shining
in the light coming in through the open door. Yohko made the
comment that he looked like Parn from Record of Lodoss Wars.
Keiichi said that Parn was taller and better looking, bringing an
objection from Belldandy, who stated flatly that she would prefer
her Keiichi to some hot headed glory hound.
"Besides," said Skuld, teasing, "He's too busy chasing that Elf to
notice anything else." Belldandy chuckled at the comment.
Skuld then left to put on her own armour, taking Azusa with her.
When Belldandy stepped back from Keiichi, he *did* look every bit
the young hero from some sword and sorcery Anime. The armour was
put together much in the same manor as Megumi's, with mobility and
protection of vital body parts given priority over style, but
stylish was still a good adjective to describe how he looked.
"Darn! I wish my camera was here. I'd like to send a picture to
Mom. She'd get a real kick out of seeing you dressed like that!"
Megumi complained.
"She would probably think you all went and joined the local chapter
of the S.C.A." Chi' said with a grin.
"Keiichi, don't you have a camera?" asked Belldandy
"Uhh...Well...Now that you mention it...Yeah, I do. It's in my
room." he said reluctantly.
Before he could voice any protest, Megumi hobbled out of the room
and down the hall in order to retrieve said camera.
"I will leave him in your capable hands then, Yohko, while I go get
ready myself." Belldandy said, patting Keiichi gently on the cheek.
"Ok, uhh... I just got to get changed, won't be a minute...." said
Yohko as she gently shoved Keiichi out the door an slid it shut.
"Chi', I want you to join us, as there are some tricks you need to
learn."
"Great!" was the response from her friend.
They both transformed as Belldandy headed for her bedroom, and
Yohko led the way outside. A wide eyed Megumi following with the
camera and a tri-pod.
Yohko started with some stretching and warm-up exercises, noting
that Keiichi and Megumi both seemed to know how to stretch the
right groups first. Forming her soul-sword, she had the two adopt
a stance like her's, and she slowly ran them through the forms that
she had learned from her grandmother. Megumi was doing fairly well,
despite her injuries, but Keiichi was a real surprise. Though
hesitant at first, he quickly gained a level of grace that
indicated that he had some training at one time. During a pause to
give Megumi a breather, they both admitted to having taken Kendo in
public school for a few years, but never continued it in High
school.
"Excellent! There are a few moves that are done differently, but on
the whole, my style is much the same. Though one thing I'll teach
you, is that some moves will get you killed against a demon. And
remember, There will be no judges, and your opponents will use
every foul and dirty trick in the book, and a few that aren't."
She left them to practice for a bit, and showed Chi' how to form
and use energy balls, and other `psychic' attacks. Leaving Chi' to
blow up some hapless cardboard boxes, she then asked Keiichi if he
had any boken. He said he did, and as he turned to get them, he let
out a gasp.
Standing on the porch, with a proud, icy expression on her face,
was the oldest of the Norns. She looked every inch the part, from
the two braided locks hanging down either side of her face, to the
really impressive longsword that rested under her hands, it's tip
digging into the wood. Her armour shone with platinum and gold, a
skirt, slit to the thy, swirled mid-calf over well tooled knee-high
boots. A metal cap, with a long white horsetail coming out of the
top and lined with fur, sat on her head, her white hair flowing out
from underneath. A long dark blue cape hung from her shoulders,
completing the picture.
"Wow..." said Yohko, Keiichi, Megumi, and Chi' at the same time.
Urd, pleased that she got the desired result from her entrance,
took the long sword in one hand, and stepped down onto the
flagstones of the temple compound.
"Mind if I join you?" she asked pleasantly, limbering up.
"Sure, Urd-sama." was all Yohko could say.
Keiichi ran inside as she turned to give Megumi some pointers on
how devils and demons attack and the best ways to counter them.
Megumi was holding up better than Yohko had expected, but she
decided that the college student was going to take a break a little
later.
Keiichi returned with a pair of the bamboo swords used in kendo.
Yohko dismissed her soul sword, and took one, testing its weight
and balance. Squaring off with him, she bowed, and came on guard as
he mirrored her. After a little bit of gentle feeling out, he made
an attack that was pretty good despite being a bit sloppy. Yohko
stopped it easily though, and counter attacked, pleased to see he
was using the defensive routines she had taught him. They duelled
back and forth across the flagstones until she tagged him on the
side of the head. He collapsed, more startled than hurt, shaking
his head to clear it.
"Not bad. It's too bad you didn't continue with the training. You
have potential." Yohko said as she took a breather.
"Yeah, well, I didn't exactly figure I'd end up fighting monsters
in order to survive." Keiichi replied, picking himself up.
Acting on some deep seated warning sense, Yohko suddenly dropped
the boken and called her soul-sword into being, turning and
parrying in the same motion. She found herself nose to nose with
Urd, their swords locked together. The Goddess smiled in amusement.
"Not bad, yourself. Let's see how you do with me!"
Urd pushed Yohko off, and then followed up with a flat swipe of her
longsword that rang up and over Yohko's head, only just deflected
by her soul-sword. The ensuing combat tested Yohko's abilities to
the breaking point, as the swords clashed and danced. A demented
look of glee was on the white haired Goddess' face as Yohko had to
avoid getting split from one end to the other again and again.
Suddenly, as Urd was pulling her sword back in a wind up, a hand
grabbed her wrist from behind, and spun her around.
Both Skuld and Azusa were standing there, Azusa was looking
worried, Skuld looked annoyed.
"I said `Break" more than once, sister. What are you trying to do?
Kill her off as a favour to Marllar?" Skuld snarled at her older
sister.
An expression crossed Urd's face that had Yohko afraid she'd go at
Skuld. Then, with deep breath, she seemed to relax compleatly.
Sheathing her sword, she said, "You know how I get when the battle
lust is up. It's the berserker in my blood. Hey!" Turning toward
Yohko, she held out a mailed backed glove. "Sorry if I was a bit
rough with you, I tend to get carried away..."
"Uh, It's ok, really!" Yohko replied, breathing hard. "I think a
break is in order. Got anything cold to drink?"
"Over on the porch, Yohko-sama." Azusa answered, pointing to where
a tray with a pitcher and glasses sat.
As Yohko filled her glass, she studied Skuld's armour. It was quite
a departure from what everyone else was wearing, as it looked more
like she lifted the design from the movie "Aliens". Over a tunic
and britches, was a white and red painted clamshell made out of
some composite material. Thy protectors of the same material, plus
heavy looking boots with odd little vents on the ankles protected
the legs. Attached shoulder and arm guards were present as well. An
odd looking backpack, with a thick cable running up to a flaring,
American style helmet, gave the Goddess the look of a diminutive
Mecha. Her longsword's hilt was visible over her right shoulder,
and her ever present mallet also rode there. Urd was busy making
derisive remarks, as Skuld listed how much better her armour was.
She said the armour had diamond fibers over layers of titanium
steel and ceramic, held together with a high-temperature resin.
Reaching up and pushing something under the edge of the helmet, a
small square popped down over her right eye. At the same time, a
short barrelled weapon sprang up over her left shoulder, and
started to follow the movements of her head.
"I got the idea from `Predator'." the young Goddess explained
proudly. "It'll fire a `shock wave' without needing to use your
hands."
"I thought Belldandy said you couldn't watch that movie." said Urd,
with a "you're in for it" expression on her face.
"Well, she never said anything about the Manga, did she?" Skuld
stormed off to test out her new "toy" on the remains of the boxes.
Yohko had no idea what she was talking about, but she suspected
that the "dark haired girl who wasn't" was probably better armed
than a tank company. A movement behind her made her turn to look.
"I'm sorry for taking so long." Belldandy said, coming out onto the
verandah. Where as Urd looked impressive, Belldandy had a look
about her that while not flashy, was still formidable. It wasn't
because the armour was awe inspiring, it just looked like the owner
was very good at protecting herself. She had on a silk embroidered
shirt, over which a short sleaved chain-mail shirt reached to her
mid-thy. Over top of this was a tooled leather vest that extended
to just past the tops of black knee high Buccaneer boots. Lozenges
of platinum inlaid steal were stitched onto the vest to protect the
legs. Dark blue leather pants were tucked into the boots. A wide
tooled belt, with a pattern that Yohko had seen on various items
around the house, held the vest and supported a bastard sword. The
sword alone was note worthy in that it looked rather plain, if very
well made. A small ruby was set in the pommel, its only visible
decoration. The scabbard was black leather with runes written down
the side in platinum. Yohko figured she could guess what the runes
said. Leather gauntlets, the same colour as the pants, were tucked
into the belt. A small steel cap, like Urd's but with a small band
of white fur running around the edge, and without the horse-tail,
sat on top of her head. Her light brown tresses were woven into a
thick braid down her back.
Yohko and Azusa gasped, the changed was so startling in the pretty
Goddess. Keiichi could only stand and stare, his mouth wide.
Belldandy came up and took his hands, suddenly looking shy.
"Is something wrong? Keiichi-san?" she asked.
"No...Uh...You just look so terrific, that's all." he replied in a
rush.
"My knight in shining armour." Yohko heard the Goddess murmur as
she put both arms around his neck and planted a passionate kiss on
his lips. Urd started to say something derisive, but Skuld shut her
up with a kick to the shins and a hard look. Looking at the two,
Yohko suddenly felt very lonely, and wished she had someone
herself. Looking over at her two `apprentices', she saw a similar
look on Chi's face, while Azusa had a dreamy expression on her's.
Belldandy and Keiichi parted, blushing hard, and the Goddess turned
to Yohko.
"Forgive me, but he looked so handsome I just had to..." She
blushed deeper, unable to finish her sentence. Pulling on her
gloves, she then asked briskly, "May I practice with you?"
"Uh, sure!" answered Yohko. Finishing off her drink, she followed
Belldandy out into the yard, stepping over Megumi who had propped
herself against a roof support to enjoy a glass of ice-tea as well.
After waiting for the Goddess to stretch, Yohko and Belldandy came
`on guard'. Yohko studied the Goddess's eyes across from her, and
saw a calm, collected opponent. She moved almost without knowing
it, and parried a lightning riposte and counter attacked in the
same move. Belldandy deflected Yohko's return and slashed back at
her, trying to get under her guard. The dual slowly increased in
the speed of the exchanges to the point that to outside observers,
the two swords became a blur of silvery fire that occasionally shed
golden sparks. This was turning into the toughest fight that Yohko
had ever encountered, yet she found herself revelling in it.
Whereas Urd was all strength and aggression, Belldandy was a
technician. Yohko found it a thrill to fence with the Goddess, and
was hard pressed to keep up with the sheer skill behind the
attacks. After several minutes of hard fencing, Yohko gave
Belldandy a look that indicated she'd had enough, and the two broke
apart cleanly. Panting heavily, Yohko sagged against her soul-
sword, looking at Belldandy with much respect. Belldandy, for her
part, was also breathing hard, a grin across her face as she wiped
her face with a hanki. Cheers from the porch could be heard in the
background.
"I think you will do well in the upcoming battle, Yohko-san. My
goodness, its been too long since I've done this. I'm rusty!"
"YOU'RE RUSTY??! Goddess, I don't *ever* want to fight you when
you're in form!" Yohko exclaimed, a dazed look on her face.
Belldandy laughed merrily, and throwing an arm around the younger
girl, guided her back to the porch, where Chi' and Skuld had
brought out damp towels. Yohko dismissed her soul-sword, and
plunking down on the step, accepted another glass of ice tea from
Skuld. Something was bothering her, and she finally put her finger
on it.
"You said we'll do well in the battle. You mean we'll be fighting
right next to Gods and Goddesses? What good would *we* do in such
company?" Surprisingly, it was Urd who answered.
"Don't sell your abilities short there, girl. You have today fought
with a Goddess who is perhaps better than any demon and held your
own quite well. I know. Little sister here wasn't pulling her sword
by very much, if at all, and we all saw you trounce Yoshiko-sama
the other day. If you had intended to, I think you could have
beaten even me, eventually. Do not think you will have no small
part in the up-coming battle. The mortals that will be taking part
in this may be the deciding factor. I hear Yoshiko-sama will be
collecting all the Devil Hunters of the world for this one."
"Great, that means that I'll likely have to put up with cousin
Ayako and her `attitude' again." Yohko muttered to herself as she
took a sip of her drink.
"Oh, probably. Then again, you might get the chance to meet some
really cute guys, too." the eldest Goddess said with a sly wink.
Sighing, Yohko leaned back against the wooden pillar, and closed
her eyes. Without realizing it, her head sank down on her chest,
and she slipped into a light doze.
"Yohko-chan! Wake up you lazy girl!" Yohko came awake with a guilty
start, wondering how her grandmother was going to attack her this
time. Looking around wildly, she found herself still on the porch
of the temple's house, Yoshiko and her grandmother looking on with
some amusement.
"Hai! I'm sorry, Megami-sama, grandmother!" Yohko cried, leaping to
her feet.
"Seems our Yohko has been very busy today, to be so tired out."
Madoka Mano said, a smirk on her face.
"Actually, she *has* been rather busy this day." Belldandy said as
she came out onto the porch from the living room. "Won't you all
come in for some lunch? Yohko realized that the sun was high
overhead now, and the mention of food caused her stomach to
complain loudly.
"Well, one part of you has better sense than you do." Yohko's
grandmother laughed. "
"I would be most honoured to dine at your table again, Belldandy-
san." Yoshiko said, bowing formally. With a slight rattle of mail,
Belldandy returned the bow, and gracefully gestured them inside.
After Yohko's Grandmother had been properly introduced, they found
themselves jammed around the table, which had been expanded as far
as possible. Lunch consisted of sandwiches made from cold cuts that
everyone could select from a large platter in the centre. More ice
tea was served to wash the meal down.
After the meal, Yohko's grandmother took control of the training,
and worked them all very hard for the rest of the afternoon. About
the only one to be somewhat spared from her training was Megumi,
who Belldandy ordered to bed when her ribs started to hurt so bad
that it was interfering with her breathing. Yohko was close to
collapse by the time she and her friends made ready to leave for
home. It was agreed that everyone would meet back at the temple for
more training in the morning. Madoka and Yoshiko left for home on
the Yammaha, and the girls trudged wearily home. As she got ready
for bed, she wondered about how she could be so casual about the up
coming battle. True, she had been "dead" once before, and that was
not an experience she wished to repeat, but that the whole world
depended on the out come of this battle should have left her
shaking. She decided she was just tired, and was asleep with that
thought.

                     ***************

"Yohko-sama, Yohko-sama! Time to get up!" came Azusa's voice in
Yohko's ear. She sat up abruptly, as usual getting a squeak from
her apprentice, and let out a scream of pain as every muscle in her
body let her personally know that this was simply not any way to
treat it. After a hot shower, she sat down to a large breakfast
cooked by her grandmother, and as usual played referee for the
altercation that invariably arose between Madoka and her daughter.
After she and Azusa made sure that no lasting harm had befallen
them, they hopped on their bikes, and collecting Chi and stopping
at a bank machine along the way, they headed to the old temple that
was home to some unusual people.
Belldandy came out to greet them as they parked their bikes,
already wearing her armour.
"Ohayo gozaimasu! I'm sorry, but Keiichi is a little slow this
morning, or we would be ready for you."
"Oh, no rush, I'm still sore myself from yesterday." was Yohko's
reply. "Good morning to you, Belldandy-sama." Yohko bowed formally,
mirrored by her two apprentices.
"There is tea ready if you like?" the Goddess invited.
As the others entered the house, Yohko tugged on the Belldandy's
shirt sleave to get her attention. She then held out an envelope to
her.
"Please, Belldandy-sama, accept this to help cover the costs of
food for my Apprentices and I. You have been so very generous, but
I feel we should chip in as well."
Belldandy look at the younger g