The various combatants were probably on bedrest, and I was no exception. All in all, we'd gotten off light. Our side had given a good account of ourselves. Most of us had emerged unscathed. Granberia had been seriously injured. The transformation into her magical girl form had healed her wounds, but only as long as she was in that form. When she returned to her normal form, she required medical intervention at once. Ilias had saved her life by healing her punctured heart, but Granberia would be out for some time. And when I say some time, I mean three or four days. It's Granberia, after all. Although really she should have taken a month off.
For my own part, I was in bed again, and I stayed there for three days. I didn't get many visitors. A lot of planning was going on. If we were going to fight a long war, a strategy had to be decided upon. One thing that had already been agreed up on was that we were fighting with the humans. The Dark God would probably be more successful recruiting the monsters to her side than Alice or her mother. That didn't mean all was lost in that regard. Monsters that loved living among the humans were probably going to stick with the humans. After all, they lived among them, enjoyed the benefits of human civilization, and had human family members. They were not about to allow the humans to be dominated by monster or angel. Ilias had virtually no influence with the angels on Angel World and not much with the angels of the Paradox world. Angel World Ilias would likely be completely dominant in that regard, calling all the angels to her banner. All our Ilias could rely on was her three underpowered Seraphs and Victoria, as well as the more dubious loyalty of Promestein, motivated more by her hate for Angel World's leadership than her love of Paradox Ilias.
I still held out a sliver of hope that the two goddesses would realize that their differences with each other were insignificant when compared to the threat Black Alice posed. But no one else seemed all that hopeful. I also realized that I couldn't fight a long war. My home world had only weeks to live. If I didn't defeat Black Alice and stop the chaos before then, that world would die, exiling my descendants and immortal friends to Earth forever.
I did receive one visitor of note during my latest convalescence. She'd been so quiet lately that I'd almost wondered if she'd returned to her own world.
"How ya been, Luka?" Alicetroemeria asked, sitting by my bedside.
"Got my ass kicked," I replied. "Again."
"You're playing with the big girls now. That's to be expected."
"We missed you out there."
"I don't-"
"Yeah, I know," I grumbled. "You don't fight Ancestors."
"Still…. I wanted to say that I'm sorry I wasn't there for you when Tamamo did what she did to you. That was really fucked up, Luka. Even more fucked up than anything I've done, and I've done some things. I could have gotten to you, you know. The binding spell isn't powerful magic, but it's very, very tricky magic. Hard to break. They never even bothered. Either they couldn't figure out how, or they didn't take me seriously."
"So why didn't you come?" I asked.
"The most important reason is that I didn't know what kind of trouble you were in," she replied. "And second, I'm not laying down my life for you. I wouldn't have fought Tamamo for you. But maybe I could have done something. It bothers me that I didn't."
"You know, you keep saying you're the heroine of this story," I pointed out. "But the heroine fights against impossible odds to rescue the ones she loves. I was in a very similar situation once. I was rescued by someone with no powers, no magic. Just her knife and a hell of a lot of determination."
"Heroines don't die needlessy. They choose their moments. You have a man's view of what it means to be a hero. In other words, a martyr."
"You're not the first person to say that to me."
"Look, I came here to tell you something," Alicetroemeria said. "I'm still here. I'm going to be here until my world is saved. You're going to need someone to lead armies in the coming days. I can do that. I can fight the lesser opponents. I can dominate them, actually."
"And then an Ancestor or archangel comes and you run away?"
"I said I wouldn't fight an Ancestor for YOU. I didn't say I'd never fight one. I'll fight against the odds if the objective is worth fighting for. I just won't die uselessly."
"Well, sorry if I've been harsh, but I'm glad you're on our side. I imagine we will need you. Tell Alice and Ilias that I said to please involve you in their strategy meetings."
"They already have," Alicetroemeria replied. "Your little speech about working together may or may not have reached our adversaries, but they definitely reached your allies. They're sharing everything with me now."
"Good. I guess I'll be along in a couple of days. I've been told there should be a lull in the fighting while everyone heals up. Let's use that time wisely."
"Everyone is way ahead of you, hero."
When I was feeling one hundred percent again, I decided to go see Granberia. Surprisingly, she was obeying orders to stay in bed. She looked like she might crawl up the walls, though. She proudly showed me the scar on her chest. I knew that she would get the scar healed. She was surprisingly vain, but in a good way. I'd always admired Granberia for wanting to be beautiful, but in a real way. She never wore makeup, never tried to style her hair or wear glamorous clothing. But she valued what natural beauty she had and worked hard to preserve it. I decided to do something that she would get a kick out of. I removed my shirt.
"Luka, I am hungry, but I don't just eat anyone's semen," Granberia cautioned. "I don't know you that way."
"That's not what this is," I said. "Look at my back. My shoulders."
Granberia did and gaped in astonishment. "These scars…. I recognize the type of wound. Only my sword can leave scars like that! Was that from our last battle?"
"No, they are very, very old. Centuries, in fact. I could have gotten them healed, but Granberia, the Granberia that I called my best friend…. She wanted me to keep some of them. She actually inflicted a lot more than this. When I was being treated by the healers, I let her pick the ones she liked best. She considered those scars proof of her affections."
"I understand completely. She chose well. Those scars make you look like a true warrior."
"Then how could you never keep yours?"
"You know why," Granberia said. "Do not make me say it. It is different for a woman."
"I really hope that someday we can be as close as we were in a previous life."
"I want that too, Luka. I hope that when this is all over we can spend more time together. I would like to get to know you better."
She may not have been ready to show that affection with her body yet, but she did squeeze my hand. Too hard, actually. It had taken my Granberia a long time to learn how to be gentle. I could fight, but I was very soft.
"Can I ask you a question or two?" I asked.
"I won't guarantee an answer, but you are free to ask. You know I am… sensitive about certain subjects."
"The first one I'm sure you'll be willing to answer. Did you intend to kill Uriela?"
"I am not you, Luka," Granberia answered. "I never take life if I can avoid it, but I cannot hold back against one such as Uriela. She left me an opening. I took advantage of it. I was as surprised as you to find out that she could live without her head."
"I'm not judging you, I just wanted to know. So… my other question. Have you reconciled yourself to being a magical girl yet?"
"That I will not talk about," she said firmly.
"Can you at least tell me if you can control your magic at all? You did something rather specific to Saja. Was that what you intended?"
"Something…. Comes over me when the change happens. Being near death, I couldn't stop it. I barely remember what I did and I couldn't even begin to tell you why I did it. I had no idea I could do that. It's a very strange magic. I can't control when I transform or when I change back. And I am not myself when I am her."
"Her? Are you saying that's not you?"
"It is me, and yet… it is not," Granberia replied. "I do not wish to discuss it any further."
She didn't let go of my hand, though. I continued to sit there in silence, holding her hand.
I took a walk outside. I wasn't just taking a short stroll. I was heading for the Demiurge to check on Promestein's progress. I could have teleported out there, but I needed the fresh air. Not that Hellgondo's air smelled good where we were at the moment.
An entrance into the facility had been built at ground level, since the only one who could teleport directly inside was me. Erubetie was on guard duty that evening.
"You know that the Monster Lord would not approve of you being out alone," the queen slime admonished me.
"I know that well," I replied. "But I have spirits, I have my power, and I'm paying close attention to any changes now. I know what to look for. They'd have a hard time ambushing me now. I do learn, despite what people think of me."
"And how do you know that I'm not a variant of Erubetie?" she asked pointedly.
"I guess…. I don't."
"Please have a companion with you in the future," Erubetie commanded. "Even inside the castle. I've been told you rejected that advice when your wife gave it. That is unwise. You may have become better at noticing when your abilities change, but they can still fool you with variants and shapeshifters. You are human and weak. It only takes a second to end your life if you are caught by surprise."
"I get it," I said impatiently. "Can I go inside now?"
"As you wish," she said, bowing her head and letting me pass.
The Demiurge's repairs had proceeded fairly quickly. Alice's mother had mobilized some of the larger and stronger monsters in the small region we controlled to help with the heavy lifting. The negamite deposits were also kept near, as Ancestors and angels alike seemed to fear it. Inside the castle it didn'thave any effect, since the castle was in a pocket dimension. The Demiurge, however, was a nearly magic free zone, which would have made an assault by beings reliant on magic risky. And immortals hated risking their lives. Promestein had even given us a few more advantages, by creating bubbles of magic in rooms that would allow defenders to use magic while standing in those rooms but deny it to invaders. So far, no one had thought to attack the Demiurge. I wondered how long that would last if Promestein actually got it working again.
I found Promestein and Sonya in the weapons room where I had been hooked up to the main weapon. That room was now good as new, although the weapon itself was still badly damaged.
"Hey guys, how's it going in here?" I asked jovially.
"It's good to see that you're better," Promestein said. "I wanted to update you on our progress. Sonya, would you mind giving him the layman's version?"
"Oh…. Yeah, all right," Sonya said uncertainly. "So this thing's original use isn't of much use to us. We don't want to destroy worlds. We only want to destroy chaos. But it did also have that function, so we're trying to calibrate the weapon so that it only destroys chaos. Which isn't easy, since chaos isn't a thing."
"It seems that destroying chaos was a happy byproduct of the weapon's effects," Promestein explained. "But we haven't yet figured out how to destroy chaos without destroying the entire universe that the chaos is spreading in. We also have the problem of power."
"The Demiurge as originally designed utilized a few of the Ancestors' very bodies as power sources," Sonya added. "We found other rooms with machines similar to this one where Ancestors would have been strapped in so that they could lend their power to the weapon. Kanon seems to have been particularly crucial to its proper functioning. But with Ancestor power, it could only destroy universes. It could destroy chaos. Your power was the missing link. Your power is an antidote to chaos."
"Promestein once described my power as "order power," I said. "Because my power could stabilize holy and dark energy fusion."
"I don't know that your power is truly the opposite of chaos," Promestein said. "But clearly it can annihilate chaos. Unfortunately, it seems that chaos can also annihilate your power. Or at least nullify it. The Demiurge might give us a way to use your power in a way that chaos beings can't nullify. After all, they don't erase your power. They just blind you to it. If your power can be extracted and used without you having to feel it, that would be a nice way around the problem."
"I'd have to be immobile though," I pointed out. "That doesn't sound like a good idea in a fight."
"Currently, yes," Promestein replied. "We're working on that. You know, Sonya is just as smart as we thought. She's come up with a ton of ideas from reading the technical manuals."
"What I really want to figure out is how to use your power in this thing without killing you," Sonya said.
"I was able to do some pretty big things with it without it killing me," I said.
"As impressive as uniting three worlds is," Promestein said. "Destroying chaos is even harder. And you probably wouldn't be able to do it the way you unified the three worlds. You were able to visualize that. How do you visualize chaos?"
"With two great minds working on it, I have no doubt you'll save us all."
"Oh, thanks!" Sonya retorted. "No pressure…."
I walked back, by myself, in defiance of Erubetie and my own wife. Don't worry, I stayed vigilant. I also didn't stay alone long. Ilias was also out alone for a walk. That was unusual for her, or at least it would have been at the beginning, when she was afraid there were people out to get her.
"It's so weird to think that I'm just not important enough to kill," Ilias said, staring up at the stars with me.
At some point, we'd found a comfortable patch of grass in what was mostly a wasteland and decided to lay in it and just look up at the night sky.
"You've taken a lot of bruises to your ego during this whole thing," I said. "Personally, I wish you were the center of attention. I don't like leadership. I don't like being the savior of the world."
"I'm starting to wonder if I ever liked those things either," the goddess said. "How much of my identity is tied up in people's expectations of me? Who is the real Ilias?"
"You don't like being the center of attention?"
"If you're talking about people wanting to kill me, no," she chuckled. "I like looking unimportant in that case. The enemy might be short on ammunition."
"If only. We aren't dealing with that kind of enemy, alas."
"No, we are not," she agreed.
We continued to just stare up at the sky. I tried to find constellations Alice had taught me to look for. This world had different ones from Earth. I wasn't sure why. So much was different. The end of magic so many millennia ago on my birth world had profound consequences for the laws of nature and the very structure of the universe.
"This is such a different view for me," Ilias sighed. "I got used to staring at the surface the way I stare at the stars now."
"Didn't you ever wonder what was out there?" I asked.
"I do now. I was very uncurious about it before. I was the most important being in the universe. If there were aliens out there, they'd just have to worship me. I never stopped to consider how insignificant I was compared to all this. Did you know I couldn't travel farther than the moon? I always told myself that I didn't want to go there anyway. I was pretty great at lying to myself. I lived by so many assumptions. Now I feel stupid. My brain was as big as a galaxy, but it was all centered on me. I rarely looked outside of myself except to turn my gaze upon what I hated."
"Maybe that was your way of finding your true identity," I mused.
"The truth is, I don't have an identity," she said bitterly. "That was the ultimate delusion. I'm not a goddess. I'm just a concept. The elemental spirits have understood this for millions of years and been comfortable with it. But Alipheese and I…. we wanted to be something more. Just because we were more powerful than the elemental spirits. And smarter. They could never see what we saw. But did it make us wiser? I know now that it didn't. Becoming mortal. Becoming limited… that's what made me truly see. And you know something else, Luka?"
"What?"
"For the first time, I think I'm truly happy. My existence could end at any time, and yet I've never been happier or more content. Because I have friends. Real friends. It's been said that you change people, Luka. But I can't give you credit for changing me. That credit goes to Alice. To Sonya. To all the other monsters that showed me kindness even though I committed horrible crimes against their people. I always thought monsters were vengeful. I guess people are more complicated than I gave them credit for."
"Monsters are vengeful, if you hurt them or people they love," I said. "That's just how the mortal perspective works. We can only truly care about those close to us. Caring about our entire 'kind', that's a little more difficult. You, or your counterpart anyway, were gone for thirty years. Nearly all of the monsters with us are young. They don't know you. They've only heard about you. You never hurt anyone they actually know. Your evil is abstract to them, stories passed down from their ancestors."
"Yet even the ones who did know my counterpart here, they welcomed me too."
"You're not her," I shrugged. "they have you a chance. Not that there wasn't mistrust at first. It was all I could do those first few days to keep you and Alice from fighting."
"She's a remarkable person, Luka. Not perfect, but…. It just seems right, you two. I have a confession to make. I'm madly in love with you, Luka."
"Others have noticed it," I said. "So I've been aware of it. Ilias, I'm sorry if I can't give you what you want from me."
"It's fine," Ilias sighed. "Besides, what I need as a concept is different from what a true woman of flesh and blood needs. I'm guessing that's why the Ilias of your world never tried to steal you away from Alice. Instead, she waited for you to die and just stole your soul. I can certainly understand why she did that. I don't know if I can ever let you go. Not that I could do anything like that at my current power level."
"At some point I have to be allowed to go," I said. "Although I guess my reasons for wanting to move on aren't really valid right now. I wanted to rejoin my loved ones. But most of them won't be there. Due to the paradox, their souls are spread out over many worlds. Except for my Alice. She's right here."
"Along with every other Alice that ever lived," Ilias scoffed. "I'm in a similar position. I got a piece of this world's Ilias, as well as a piece of this world's Micaela. They are now a permanent part of me. It hasn't been tough for me like it's been for Alice. We think alike for the most part. I have no internal conflict that they didn't already have."
"Ilias, I want to be a part of your life as long as I live. My relationship with your counterpart back on my world was… strange. There was affection there, but also a lot of old resentments, on both sides. I have no such issues with you. All the time we've been together, we've been on the same page. We've fought together, risked everything for each other. I now consider you one of my best friends. I want to have you as a friend when there's no crisis forcing us to cooperate."
"Always, Luka," she said, taking my hand. "Always and forever."
Now this would be a good place for this tender little snippet to end. Character development has been acknowledged, we're close to the end of the story, it's perfect, right? Well, we're talking about Ilias here, so she had to make it weird.
"What's your most perverted fantasy?" Ilias asked out of nowhere.
"Ilias, really? When we're having this moment?"
"That was like… ten minutes ago!" she exclaimed. "Luka, part of what's changed me has been experiencing what a mortal body can experience. I don't ever intend to give that up, by the way. Now that I understand it, I can simulate it even if I get my full divine body back. But I'm still so new to this. The monsters in the castle, at least the ones willing to play with me, have taught me so much! But I want a man's perspective too. What is one thing you've always wanted to experience that you haven't yet?"
"Given how many monsters have played with me, why would you assume there's something I haven't experienced?" I asked. "Heck, I've experienced countless things I didn't even know were possible. It seems like every monster or angel has something new for me."
"Don't play coy with me, Luka! I may not have understood the male mind, but I've seen inside it! No matter how much a man experiences, there's always something sick and depraved that he hasn't yet but can't stop thinking about!"
"It's really gross," I cautioned her.
"And I'm really intrigued," Ilias said, shifting to her side and supporting her head with her hand.
"I…. I've always wanted Alice to swallow me."
"She doesn't swallow?"
"No! I mean… yes! I mean swallow the way a snake does her prey."
"Ohhhh…. Wow, that is perverted. But if it is, I'm the same kind of perverted. I don't know that I could ever trust a monster enough to let them do that to me. But I'd sure love to find out what it feels like to get digested. I've heard it's greater than any pleasure anyone can feel. It's also the last thing you ever feel."
"I don't want Alice to digest me, just…. Swallow me, hold me there for a minute or two, then spit me back out. Not even for the feeling of being digested. I've experienced that already, at least in part. Alice once tried to eat me with her lower mouth and got about a third of the way there. And Cassandra gave me just a taste of what it would feel like to get digested pleasurably. It was… intense."
"You have a fetish!" Ilias crowed.
"I do not!" I protested. "I assure you, I have very conventional sexual tastes!"
"No, no, no, don't even try it!" she laughed. "If you had never experienced the sensation of digestion, it could just be called a desire to experiment. Uh uh. The idea of being swallowed whole turns you on! You know Alice's mother would simulate unbirth on you. All you'd have to do is ask."
"No," I shuddered. "That's definitely not for me. I only want to go in through the mouth. Not even the lower mouth. That thing is… scary. Just her… normal mouth."
"Like I said, fetish. You have a fetish," she sang.
"It's not a fetish!"
"Is too."
"Is not!"
"Is too!"
Ilias and I continued that way for awhile. It was good to see that beings as old as we were could be so mature.
Ilias and I walked back to the castle together, our debate unsettled. Ilias, who long since had given up hiding from me what she had become, told me straight out that she was going to get herself eaten all up, or at least get as close as she could to it, by visiting the Akaname Sisters. I decided to focus more on business, choosing to go to the throne room. I also wanted to check on the welfare of Alice's mother. She'd survived the battle, in fact, she'd taken less damage than almost anyone else.
When I walked down the long hallway to the throne room, I found it empty. Sigh. Well, it was the middle of the night. It was pretty silly of me to just expect that the Monster Lord would always be in the throne room. I decided to head to the royal quarters. Alice would be there as well. Perhaps I'd sleep in her quarters tonight.
Before I reached Alice's door, however, the door to her mother's room swung open and I was pulled inside.
"Luka!" Alice's mother exclaimed. "I…. I don't know what's happening to me! I think I'm dying!"
"What?! Is there anything I can do?!" I yelled.
"You…. Know… what…. You must… do…." She gasped, falling over and hitting the ground, her tongue lolling out of her mouth.
I began hurriedly removing my pants. Alice rushed into the room. "Mother!" she yelled. But her voice was not one of fear. It was one of scolding.
"Oh, drat!" her mother pouted, getting up from the ground. "I almost had a delicious midnight snack! I swear, daughter, you are so greedy, always trying to keep the tastiest treats for yourself!"
"You nearly gave my husband and me a heart attack!" Alice yelled. "What were you thinking?!"
"What I was thinking, my dearies, was that good daughters share with their mothers. I shouldn't have to be dying to get a little semen."
"You got plenty before he got here, you can get plenty now! This is my husband, mother!"
"What?" the Monster Lord countered. "You act like I'm trying to have sex with him or something! I just want to suck a few shots out of him! What could possibly be wrong with that?! He likes my mouth!"
"He likes everybody's mouth," Alice sighed in frustration. "I don't need you making him more of an addict than he already is. It will be hard enough weaning him off when this is all over. I'd like to become a normal married couple after this. If that's okay with you, mother. Luka, put your pants back on!"
Alice angrily dragged me out of her mother's room and down to the dungeon.
"Wow, Alice, don't you think taking me to the dungeon is a little extreme?" I asked.
"Idiot, I'm not punishing you!" Alice exclaimed. "You did the right thing! I had no idea my mother was so greedy!"
"Gee, I wondered where you got it from. I guess now we know. So why are we here in the dungeon?"
"We have a guest here. Remember when we kept Eden down here after she tried taking your power and became mortal? Well, I released Raphaela from Angel Halo while you were resting and she's been down here ever since. I thought you might be able to talk some sense into her."
Alice led me to where Raphaela was being kept. Tamamo was sitting in a chair, dozing. Alice slapped her awake with her tail.
"Wha! What's going on?! Are we under attack?!" Tamamo said in confusion.
"Luka's here to talk to Raphaela," Alice replied. "Come on, Tamamo, let's give these two a little privacy. I'm sure they have much to discuss."
Tamamo and Alice left me alone, down in the dungeon with Raphaela. This really was feeling like déjà vu. Long ago, I'd faced Eden under very similar circumstances. Raphaela wasn't sleeping. She was clearly exhausted and looked very irritated, but was valiantly resisting the urge to sleep.
"You really should get some rest," I advised. "Your mortal body can't handle not getting sleep."
"I won't be mortal for much longer," Raphaela replied grumpily. "And when my divinity returns, rest assured I will slay as many of you as I can on my way out."
"No," I said firmly. "You won't. You know why you won't?"
"I have no idea. Why wouldn't I slay everyone in this den of iniquity?"
"Because right now you're helpless and we haven't slain you. But if you're going to make threats like that, I might have to kill you while I can to protect the ones I love."
"You don't have the fortitude," Raphaela scoffed. "You're not a killer."
"Threaten my friends and you might be surprised at what I'm capable of. Make that threat again."
I summoned up my power. I began glowing. I wasn't sure I could actually murder Raphaela in cold blood. It probably wouldn't matter anyway. Angel World Ilias would merely capture her soul and give her a new body. Raphaela was mortal at the moment, and mortal souls were very easy for the goddess to capture. But at least she wouldn't be in the castle creating havoc.
"I will not harm anyone," Raphaela sighed. "You have my word. I apologize. Being mortal makes me irritable. Everything hurts. I can't sleep because I can't get comfortable. How do you humans endure daily life feeling this way?"
"You get used to it," I answered. "Soon enough you'll get so tired that you'll fall asleep anyway. If you need more pillows I can get you some."
"That would be kind of you, thank you."
"Raphaela, have you ever thought of why Ilias chose you to rape me?"
"Because I was the most worthy to possess your power," she answered simply.
"Or the most expendable. Maybe she didn't know. It's possible. I know Ilias. She's a genius, but can be lazy sometimes. Or maybe she did know, or at least knew the risks, and ordered you to do it, knowing that if things went badly…."
"If things had gone badly, she would have captured my soul and give me a new body. All is proceeding according to Ilias' plan."
"Oh, so now she planned for the situation she now finds herself in?"
"Well… no," Raphaela admitted. "Your actions were unpredictable. Inconceivable even. Beyond even her ken. But she knows what must be done. The monsters will be destroyed and then we shall turn our attention to the most evil monster of them all, the Goddess of Chaos."
"Do you even realize how nuts that is? How long did it take you to defeat the monsters the first time? Do you really think you have that much time? Do you think that even if you do commit another genocide that you can take on Black Alice?"
"Ilias has a plan. I only do as my goddess directs."
I facepalmed. This was just like talking to Eden back then, except even less productive. Raphaela was younger and her relationship to Ilias was of a different sort. Eden had worshipped Ilias as a mean girl's lackeys in a high school worship their leader. Raphaela, on the other hand, was a good soldier. She simply assumed Ilias knew what she was doing. No matter what Ilias did, Raphaela would follow orders. Eden had refused some of Ilias' orders, although she could never abandon Ilias herself. Raphaela would do anything for her master. Even give up her virginity and her divinity at the same time.
"You know what, Raphaela?" I said. "I'm going to get you some pillows. For now… sleep."
I smiled in satisfaction as Raphaela fell onto her side in the bed and started snoring. I'd never thought to use my power in such a minor way. I was surprised at how easy it had been. Of course, Raphaela was as weak at the moment as a random human woman. I guessed that little trick probably wouldn't work on more powerful opponents.
I joined Tamamo and Alice outside the dungeon. Alice asked how it went. I shook my head. Raphaela was hopeless. She certainly did have her virtues. She had been fair to me and honorable towards Fumi, even taking Fumi into her care while I was in Sariela's prison. I could not hate her. But there was no possibility of reasoning with the angel side through her. Tamamo expected as much.
"Monsters have a lot more autonomy than angels," Tamamo said. "We feel more free to argue with our goddess and even rebel against her. I'm certain that Saja at least will counsel peace. The rest, I'm not so sure."
"What will Alipheese herself do?"
"It really doesn't matter. Ilias will decide whether the war continues or not. Alipheese values the world and its people. Ilias says she does, but she's motivated primarily by her hate for monsters."
"So during the Great Monster Wars, was every battle like that one? I'd always been under the impression that you'd have these long duels that would end indecisively, with neither you nor your opponents getting hurt too badly. But what I saw in that coliseum… you were tearing each other apart."
"That's how it was," Tamamo replied. "We were ripping off each other's limbs and beating each other with them. I'm being literal when I say that. Tamamo getting set on fire… that happened to me several times, although never with hellfire. So strange and disturbing that an angel would practice black magic. Hiruko would swallow Seraphs and archangels and they'd cut their way out of her stomach, emerging half dissolved. Hiruko herself would lose nearly all her blood in the process. Micaela was my most frequent opponent. I have nine tails. During the Great Monster Wars she cut off forty-eight of them. I counted. I beheaded her, disemboweled her, crushed her with my tails…. She beheaded me, sliced me in half at the waist, even cut one of my breasts off once. We're immortals. If it doesn't kill us, we get better. Unless god level magic is being used. We always knew to retreat when Ilias herself got involved and the Seraphs always knew to get the hell out of there when Alipheese showed up. Being touched by their magic meant permanent injury. Fortunately, neither Ilias nor Alipheese intervened directly very often. So for hundreds of years, we would meet every so often and beat the ever loving hell out of each other."
"Unfortunately, me and my Heavenly Knights aren't immortal," Alice said. "Except for you, of course."
"I'm afraid that in my sealed form I'm pretty vulnerable," Tamamo said. "The four of us are very tough, but a lot easier to cripple or kill. We acquitted ourselves well against more powerful opponents that night. Especially Granberia. I'd judge that in terms of pure fighting ability, the Heavenly Knights are a match for the Ancestors and Archangels. It's just that we can't walk away when we get dismembered or beheaded like they can."
"We'll have to be sure to only use my Knights for extremely important objectives," Alice said. "And please, Tamamo, try harder to keep my mother out of battles."
"You know I try, Alice. And you also know how futile it is."
I judged the time to be around two in the morning. Far past my normal bedtime. But I was hungry, so decided to head over to the kitchen to get a little something. I wasn't really alone. A couple of night owl monsters could always be relied upon to be in the dining hall having some late night chow. Sometimes that late night chow was a man, who they would usually just lay on the table and go to town on. Quitea sight if you're the voyeuristic type, which I wasn't. That night, however, was more typical. Saki was enjoying some yogurt. Matis was having an ice cream cone. Carol, one of our stronger minotaurs, also walked in, probably to order some beef from the automated staff.
I had different intentions. I always preferred to go to the pantry myself. So I entered the kitchen, and since I was alone, I was on my guard, ready to call for help or use my power if needed. Sure enough, there was a stranger inside the kitchen. But the stranger was neither monster nor angel. Rather, it was a rather large dark skinned man, middle aged, and he was cleaning the kitchen.
"Oh hey," I greeted him. "I haven't seen you around before. Are you new?"
"New?" the man asked, a creepy smile on his face. "I am definitely not new. I am even older than you."
"And…. So you are cleaning the kitchen…"
"You're here too," he pointed out.
"So what's your name?" I asked. "And can I make you anything to eat?"
"My name is not important. What is important is what I am about to tell you. You see, Luka, death has a plan. And you disrupted that plan."
That put me on my guard. Maybe this dude was a threat. He wasn't armed, unless you count a mop as a weapon. I checked to make sure my spirits and my power were still available. They were.
"In what way did I disrupt death's plan?" I asked warily.
"The Monster Lord," he replied. "You cannot prevent her death. You can only delay it. And risk your own life if you keep getting in the way."
"That sounds like a threat."
"Death does not threaten. The grim reaper has no need for threats. Everyone meets him in the end."
"Him?" I asked. "I thought the grim reaper in this world was a she."
"A competing version," he said uncomfortably. "That situation will be resolved a time of Death's choosing."
"So you're not Death?" I asked. "Or are you doing that annoying thing where you speak in the third person?"
"Just take my warning seriously. Let fate claim who fate claims. Your fate is unclear, at least in the short term. The Monster Lord's is not. She will die, and the reaper will claim her soul. Death has been frustrated as of late. He's not getting the steady stream of souls passing through his domain in recent years. No one can truly die until all variants of them have died. She is a rare case. All of her variants are dead. She is all that remains. With her passing, Death will have a prized soul indeed."
"I'm afraid that's my mother in law, so I can't let your boss just take her," I said. "So if you want me to make you something and send you on your way. A grilled cheese sandwich, maybe?"
"I do not want a grilled cheese sandwich!" the man exclaimed. "What I want is for you to stop denying Death what rightfully belongs to him. The consequences for you should you continue to interfere will be dire."
"Message received," I said. "Now, about that grilled cheese…"
"I said, I don't want-!"
The kitchen doors burst open and Alice's mother stormed in.
"Oh, what a tasty looking man!" she exclaimed, grabbing him and swallowing him whole, head first. I watched his legs kick as she swallowed again and again, until he disappeared down her throat.
"You can't just eat a human!" I exclaimed. "Spit him out!"
"I shall not!" Alice's mother said haughtily. "I don't spit. I only swallow."
"You already said that!"
"Because it happens to be a principle of mine. Spitting is rude."
"Please spit him out before he dies, your majesty!"
"He will not die," she said. "he can't die. He's a concept. One that doesn't even belong her. By eating him I simply return him to where he belongs. That is, when he stops kicking. Calm down in there! Just enjoy it!"
"Wait, so he is Death?! Did you just eat Death?!"
"No, I cheat death. This is merely Death's helper. He may even have been human once. He is no longer. He doesn't even taste very human. As a matter of fact, he tasted sweet. Almost like a man made of candy. Ah, he's stopped kicking. Now, be a dear and make me a dozen grilled cheese sandwiches. That really was a fantastic suggestion, I must admit."