-The next day after the War-
Again the rain falls on their shoulders. Dark clouds cover the entire sky of this country, blotting out all the light that ever came to this place. The atmosphere, as expected, was cold, wet and strangely lonely. That woman in the rain, not caring if she got sick from the cold, walked in the direction of Amegakure. Right next to her floated an object covered by paper. Up to this point, it is obvious what that pile of paper conceals. Surrounded by sheets of paper dampened by the rain, there lay the lifeless body of Asahi Toru. Konan was carrying him by her side accompanied by such a painful silence....
"I will stay with you forever. If I am willing to keep this promise, then I will not die. If my life worries you, then I will live and help you. I don't have a place to go back to anymore, so I can look for that place with you. does that make you feel better?"
Those words, like needles in his heart, stuck one after another, hurting him deeply.
...
...
-Amegakure-
"Tenshi-sama!"
One of the guards shouted upon seeing Konan's sudden appearance at the village gate. He immediately approached and tapped his spear against the ground to show respect to her. It had been a while since they last saw the Angel of Pain here. That was the reason why everyone was so surprised. Moreover, everyone had theorized that the Angel of Pain herself left along with the Angel of Death to participate in the war, which was corroborated by the Amegakure shinobi who were present at the war, only they have yet to return to the village.
"It's been a long time. We are glad you are back. Please come forward. The doors of this village are always open to you, after all, it is you and Pain-sama who returned hope to us."
Konan repeated the word "hope" under her breath as she entered ignoring the guards. To them this seemed strange, but since it was Konan, they ignored her and continued to guard the door. Still, they could not ignore the fact that Konan was just staring at the ground with a dull expression on her face.
She walked across the bridge until she finally entered the city. There she found herself back in time. She saw Pain's tower and remembered everything she experienced there together with Nagato and Toru. She sighed tiredly and headed for that tower, but before she could get there, she was surrounded by many excitedly waiting people from the village.
"Tenshi-sama!"
They all shouted in unison, which made Konan look up, noticing all the people who were welcoming her. In the past, she would have greeted them all back, but this time she was in no mood for that. She passed by those people in silence until a recognizable voice called out to her.
"Konan-sama..."
Ajisai's voice. She didn't call her Angel so that was a little less stressful for her. She turned her gaze to see her, for that girl is the disciple of the late Toru. She looked confused by the sudden appearance of this woman, but it was to be expected after receiving that letter.
"Where is Toru-sama?" asked the girl.
This question affected Konan, but she continued with her expressionless face and timidly pointed at the object floating next to her. She replied:
"Here it is..." she said it almost whispering.
"What the...? That can't be possible..." obviously confused, she denied the facts that were presented in front of her eyes. "Toru-sama sent me this letter. He believes in me... so it can't be..."
Konan didn't say anything anymore. She has said everything she had to say. She won't talk about it anymore. She just needs to be alone in her homeland. This led her to ignore everyone again, moving forward silently, tired of everything and with her soulless gaze.
"Konan-sama! That must be a lie! It is, isn't it...? I know he's very strong... he didn't..."
No... he was in front of her, wrapped in paper, which concealed his charred body. Ajisai finally fell to her knees as she watched Konan walk away. Still in disbelief of what this woman said, even if Toru's corpse itself was in front of her eyes, she tried to deny the reality over and over again. In her mind, she remembered how it was that her parents died because of the wars.
"Toru...-sama..."
***
Inside Pain's tower, Konan walks through the cold, metallic-walled corridors. The place was dark, as if it had been abandoned for a long time, but it had only been a few weeks since she had last been here. This place, for her, was full of memories together with Nagato and Toru. At least, in those memories, this place wasn't so lonely.
Approaching the stairs leading to the depths of the tower, Konan hesitated for a few seconds. She sighed and advanced down the stairs. Her path was illuminated by small electric lanterns that still worked after so long, making this place not as dark as the main corridors of the tower. With the metallic sound of her feet touching the stairs, one after another, as if the steps were leading her deep into hell, she at last reached the place she was aiming for from the start.
In front of her appeared a thick metal door that still remains closed. If Obito took Nagato's eyes, he surely used the power of the Mangekyō to enter without forcing the door. So, raising her hand with two fingers pointing upwards, she released the seal that kept the door closed and it immediately opened.
She entered next to Toru's body and approached the paper flower bed spread out in front of her. Konan quickly realized that, as expected, Nagato was missing. She didn't react to this and saw that Yahiko was there so she sighed and held out her hand. The paper followed the orders and they placed Toru's corpse next to Yahiko's corpse, placing it carefully on the paper flowers.
Once this was done, Konan just stood there staring for a long time.
She was completely silent, her face expressionless, as if she didn't feel anything about it, but....
"Yahiko..."
She clenched her fists tightly and closed her eyes.
...
...
This place had become too big for her. It was all too lonely.
"Nagato..."
She remembered her childhood together with these two people and her heart felt the pain of their losses. Every road she walked beside them was always full of stones that hurt her, but if they were by her side, then she could withstand that pain.
When Nagato also died, she felt that she had lost everything, but at the same time, a new path of hope also showed up for her.
"Toru..."
And the last of all. The one who stole her heart. He was the one who made the walls of ice around Konan's heart melt. He was the one who gave her hope and someone else to trust. But in the end it was more of the same. Everyone always ends up the same way.
"Why...?"
She asked herself. It was all so... illogical. Yahiko, sacrificing herself for her friends. Nagato, sacrificing himself after realizing what he had done and Toru, who sacrificed himself for everyone. That didn't make sense... everyone always....
"Toru..."
She loves him, loves him too much. She felt that together with him everything would be possible. Her world shone again after Nagato's death. She still had hope left so that was good. As long as the two of them are together, nothing bad will happen....
What a cruel lie.
...
"You... you promised..."
...
In front of Toru's corpse, who lay wrapped in the paper, tears began to stream down Konan's cheeks. Losing the strength in her legs, she fell to her knees. She remembered that promise and dug her nails into the ground.
"You promised!"
Was that promise a lie? Did Toru know from the start that this was going to happen? She didn't want to admit it, but she already expected that. She had a feeling that something wasn't right with Toru since the day she met him. In the end, she was right.
"You're a damn liar!"
Every memory with him became sad and lonely. In the end that promise was just another one of Toru's lies. He was a liar, she already knew that. Yet, even at the end of her own life, Toru said goodbye and wished her happiness. Even though his promise was a lie, he didn't want to hurt her.
"Why, why, why does this always happen!"
Her parents, Yahiko, Jiraiya, Nagato, Toru. All the people most important to her had died, all gone, all abandoned her. She was now alone.
"Why, why, why!!!"
She covered her face with her hands to hide her distressed expression. Tears spilled over, running down her cheeks and falling on the floor. She couldn't take it anymore. This life had become hell. An endless cycle of pain, that's what she was living, that's what Nagato and Yahiko had to endure as well. But not only them, but also Toru.
Alone in this place, in front of the corpses of two of the people important to her, Konan let out her feelings in the form of tears. And it was like that for a long time....
-In some strange world-
A war is waged high in the sky and existence trembles with strength because of this. Angels and demons fall into the abyss as this bloodshed takes place. It was a senseless war that took the lives of many, just as humans are wont to do. No one was spared from this. In heaven, on earth, in hell, all are suffering the consequences of this confrontation.
The Goddess is up ahead. She is to blame for this, she created everything that makes everyone suffer today. A being of light, that's how she is described, but no one really knows what this despicable being is like.
...
...
"You're not going to make it, Lucifer. And if you do, you won't be able to against our Goddess."
A woman with six pairs of snow-white wings, whose hair is jet black and her eyes are golden like a certain precious metal, her name is Michael. Above her head floated a golden ring of light that shone brightly. Even though she has been stabbed in the chest with her own sword, she smiled because she knew that this war was already won.
"Have you forgotten who I am, sister? I guess the years have taken their toll on you and affected your memory."
The one who answered self-centeredly was a beautiful woman, more beautiful than any angel present in this war. She had white hair and crimson eyes, just like the blood that at that moment was spilling on her hands. She no longer had a halo hovering above her head, but she still retained her six pairs of wings, only these had turned black, as deep as night, after all, she had long since fallen as an angel.
"I told you, sister. This war is ours to win, that's how it's always been. When our Goddess rises from her throne, then you won't stand a chance."
Lucifer replied:
"When she rises from her throne? Are you telling me she is letting all of you die?"
She chuckled and pulled the light saber out of Michael's wound.
"You're telling me that she can stop this war, but she won't!!! Are you telling me that all these angels and demons are dying in vain!!! Is that what you're saying!!!"
Michael's eyes widened in shock as she realized how foolish she was not to realize it sooner.
"I...no...surely our Goddess has something planned. She wouldn't let us die in vain. She lets us die because our sacrifice will serve a purpose. She is not... like the demons..."
"Sister... you will die knowing that you were the obedient dog of that goddess."
The blood spilled and the sword in Lucifer's hand stopped abruptly. That was when Michael stopped making any noise. After that, in pain, she looked at the large door that stretched ahead and a couple of tears spilled down her cheeks.
"Goodbye, Michael."
Michael fell into the abyss through the clouds and the shining armor of light that covered her vanished and appeared over Lucifer's body. She felt the pain of this armor burning her, but understood that this would protect her more than the pain it is causing her.
With this, she kicked open the door and inside was someone.
The inside of this place was a large church with windows decorated with the most important events in the history of creation. In the background, watching Lucifer silently, was a tall woman, about three or four meters tall. She had dark skin and her hair was golden as were her eyes and perfectly manicured nails. She had large breasts and behind her back floated a large golden ring with a completely dark center, after all, it was a black hole. She wore a general's uniform much like the one worn, ironically, by a certain Austraic painter in a horrible time for mankind, only the colors of it were different. Gray, white and gold, colors that represented angels quite well.
"You were always my favorite creation, Lucy. Come back to my side and I'll stop all this" In his hand appeared a whip, which he struck against the ground only once.
"What a twisted mind you have, just as I remember. Besides, you changed your appearance again, that you didn't like looking like that actor?"
"My tastes are constantly changing, my child."
"Yes...you always hide under an appearance you never had. If I may say so, my dear, you are the evil that must be destroyed."
"Fufufufu. Says a fallen angel? It can't get any funnier. Evil lies in the hearts of beings who are aware of it. I am not evil and I know it. I am the light in this world. So, if you came to the Seventh Heaven just to kill your mother, then let's not waste time talking. Right now I'm a little angry because you killed my second favorite creation after Adam and Eve. So, wield the sword and face me. Let's end this war."
The Goddess rose from her throne and swung the whip, lashing the ground repeatedly. She smiled arrogantly and her bright golden eyes flashed three times. Lucifer saw this and frowned. She knew better than anyone that the Goddess was the most powerful being of all, for she created everything in existence. It took more than luck to defeat her, but Lucifer had already prepared for this.
In an act of causing harm to the Goddess, Lucifer split the ground after taking a leap and raised the sword.
"Oops!"
Smiling at Lucifer, the Goddess closed her eyes and let herself be struck by the sword of light. This one did not cause her any harm.
"Guess who gave that sword to Michael" She held Lucifer by the neck. "Creation Mechanism: Augmented Gravity" she gave her command and existence obeyed her.
Lucifer felt his body grow heavier and in less than a second he shot out against the wall, smashing through it and reaching the Third Heaven in that small span of time.
"Lucifer!!! What happened?"
Crashing weapons into one of the lesser angels, Judgement, a demon with dark skin and white hair, just like her eyes, saw Lucifer fall next to her, so she looked surprised.
"Judgement? She... the Goddess, she returned me to this place in one fell swoop!"
"What the fuck, was that crazy woman that strong?"
Suddenly, interrupting the conversation, the Goddess appeared in front of the two women and taunted them.
"You underestimate me, prosecutor."
"Fuck!"
Seeing the Goddess descend to this place so suddenly, Judgement panicked and tried to look for a way out so she could flee together with Lucifer and create a strategy, but Lucifer stopped her.
"You know what to do. Get out of here. I'll take care of this bitch."
"Lucy, are you seriously planning to do that thing you said earlier? I thought it was a joke at first. Considering how you usually are..."
"I'm the CEO from hell. All the curses in history fall into the palm of my hands. So leave me here and go with the other girls. Goddess don't kill each other with luck."
"Huuuuuh... what are they talking about so much. You bore me" Raising his whip high, the black hole in his back grew larger over his head. "Creation Mechanism: Holy Black Hole."
The Black Hole grew gigantic over the Goddess. Judgement gaped at this "What holiness can there be in a freaking black hole!" she screamed as she fled in terror.
In the distance, a portal opened, and some demon girls along with an angel peeked out only to take Judgement with them.
"What a coward your friend is."
"Hah... anyone would run away if faced with a black hole. Luckily, I have my tricks too."
Lucifer stabbed the lightsaber into the ground and it turned black with a crimson aura. His eyes glowed as the Third Heaven began to turn dark. No, it wasn't just the Third Heaven. The Goddess saw with her Creation Mechanism: Eye of God, that all dimensions were being consumed by this darkness. Something bad was happening and she knew it. Moreover, she knew what Lucifer was doing. So she activated the Black Hole and it began to swallow everything, but Lucifer held on to the sword and frowned with a serious expression.
"Creation Mechanism..." said the fallen angel.
"No way, how do you know how to use that!"
"Have you forgotten already, mother, how did you create me? Me, the most perfect angel of all, with power, with intelligence, as your right hand. Do you know why I betrayed you back then? Because I realized that I could be a better goddess than you. You are just like the conscience of this world. You only create to entertain yourself. You love no one but yourself. So, this is my way of ending things, by destroying your little dollhouse."
Everything shook with force and existence began to shatter like glass.
"Even if you destroy my world, all I need is to create it again, more fun, more exciting, more entertaining to play in. Even if you destroy my world, I will still be here. I am immortal, I can transcend any concept and you won't be able to overcome that."
"You know that's not true, gods bleed too..."
"You... You damn brat! You did it on purpose" Realizing what Lucifer was planning, she lunged to attack, but Lucifer smiled as tears began to spill down her cheeks.
"Creation Mechanism: Solitary Void."
As the world was being destroyed, a certain entity reached out its arms behind Lucifer's back, which caused the Goddess to stop in her tracks, for she could see that entity. It was a crimson shadow that embraced the fallen angel tenderly and stroked his hair. The shadow seemed to smile, after all, she had gained a new daughter. She was worthy to be that being who brings misfortune and destruction to the worlds. So, being surrounded by a strange energy, Lucifer began to change. His body became dark, his nails grew like claws and his beautiful black wings spread. His skin seemed to crack, showing a bright red color. Right there, that entity, as Lucifer lost control of herself to the energy, said to her:
"Rise, my daughter."
It was then that the destruction began.
***
"Uh...?"
She felt a somewhat strange feeling. Her body was quickly returning to normal, but there was something between her arms. She didn't know what happened after that voice spoke to her, but she remembered how it felt. It was a feeling of pure ecstasy, as if something had awakened inside her. Her true nature was revealed and that voice welcomed her.
But putting that aside, she looked down and it finally dawned on her. There was the Goddess. She had horrible wounds from bites and cuts, as if a wild animal had attacked her. Seeing this, she understood that she won this war, but she did not celebrate. Instead, a couple of tears fell down her cheeks and she hugged the corpse tightly.
"Mom... I'm sorry... Forgive me..."
She apologized to the Goddess of the past, the one who was indeed worthy of her race and title. A benevolent woman, with a pure heart, the one who created Lucifer. The one who at some point became corrupted and turned into what she was now.
With her actions against the Goddess and the World, Lucifer has become the enemy of all worlds, but she only did it to eliminate the evil that was born in her mother. She now, although she never wished it, although she never planned to destroy this World, in the end she became an Overlord. Now she belongs to the beings who destroy worlds and those who are enemies of Order.
-Years later-
It was a chaotic city, with the crime rate no longer in the sky, but in space. On every corner there was death, destruction, vice and a lot of fun. Even though this world was so chaotic, she considered it home. It was a crimson place full of selfishness, a place where those wanted by Order could gather and rest.
"Lucy, we're out of milk, do you have 'units' to order some home?" Judgement opened the fridge and realized that the primordial was missing.
"I want milk too, lots of it..."
"Modeus, stop talking about anything like it's sexual. I'm tired of it."
"Just ignore her, Malina. Life is about ignoring the things that bother you."
"You're good at doing that, Justice. You're blind at the end of the day" x3.
"No coffee either, Lucy. Buy more."
Listening to these kept broads, a vein swelled in Lucifer's forehead. He slammed the door hard and looked at them all with annoyance.
"If you want your damn coffee, then work and buy it!!!"
"Calm down, you angry bitch. We have Modeus. She'll work for us."
"Zdrada, you're no help at all. Even Malina tries to become a hacker to steal a few pennies. And that she hates her own life."
"Shut up, Azazel, if you don't want me to publish your secret pictures in the bathroom."
"Sorry..."
Lucifer felt a headache as he listened to these demon girls, and an angel, talk to each other. Well, at least he was still together with them after so long so it shouldn't be a boring life. Even though he couldn't forget the past, he could still continue together with these crazy girls in this building and guild renting.
'Now that I remember... there are no ingredients left to make pancakes.'
In the end, Lucifer decided to go buy the missing things her friends asked for along with what she was looking for. Even if she ran out of any money, even if she had nothing to eat, she shook her head wryly.
'The CEO from hell, stooped to this, huh.... And I've got laundry to do..."
...
...
Life is strange.
...
...
...
-Impure World-
The place was completely dark, but there was a light up ahead. It was like an empty path of pure darkness with light as the only destination. It was confusing to him, everything was so strange, it didn't seem real. Still, he understood that this was okay so he walked to the light.
When he was close enough to the light, he began to hear voices. The voices seemed to speak animatedly to each other. So, with curiosity rising, he stepped into the light and then....
"I see... so if I'm dead."
Toru smiled wistfully and moved forward. All around him were hundreds of souls interacting with each other. There were houses formed by the memories of the deceased and many things that managed to materialize here due to the strong feelings of the spirits. The sky was completely dark and there seemed to be rivers with bridges where floating lamps illuminated this darkness.
It looked a bit like the world of the living except that everything was dark. Curiously he walked and explored all this, observing every detail until in the distance he saw someone familiar chatting with someone else. It was Itachi and Kisame... Toru froze at the sight of them. They noticed Toru's presence and seemed to say.
"It's a pity you're here too."
Toru didn't hear it, of course, so he continued exploring because there was something he wanted to find before talking to his friends. He walked for a few minutes until he finally found what he was looking for.
If objects materialize because of the strong feelings of spirits, this big house must have been very important to the soul that brought it here. He knew who was responsible for it.
'It looks just like it did back then'
He felt himself brought back into the past. In front of him was the house of the main family of the Asahi clan. He didn't think things through and opened the door of the house very excitedly. He walked slowly through the halls, brushing the walls with his fingers. This place was so nostalgic for him.
It only took a few seconds before he stopped in front of the door where it all ended. His mother's room. He opened the door, but found no one there. This made him feel a little disappointed, but there was one place he had yet to visit.
So he approached a certain room overlooking the garden and opened the paper and wooden door. His eyes widened as he saw her there. That black-haired, black-eyed woman was admiring the Flowers of Hell with a soft smile on her face. She looked so at peace that Toru felt he shouldn't approach, but he plucked up his courage and said:
"I came home, Okaa-sama."
Kyoko's eyes, not taking her eyes off the flowers, widened in shock at the sound of that voice. It was the voice of a young boy, but somehow, in her heart, she knew who that voice belonged to.
In her mind, Kyoko said to herself. 'Please... don't do this to me...'
Slowly she looked back and her nightmare became reality in front of her eyes. He had grown quite a bit and his look was a bit off, but it was him....
It was Toru...
Tears started to run down her cheeks because she didn't want to accept what she was at that moment her eyes were seeing. What she never wished for her son has been fulfilled, he was still too young. Still, as she always tends to do, she sighed and saved the tears for later. She smiled for her son and replied.
"Welcome, Toru-chan" extending her hand, she accepted the reality.
Toru remembered that smile, those kind words. She was his mother, she was his real mother. He smiled slightly and this surprised Kyoko. He has come home, he is here... back.
She tried to shake Kyoko's hand, but when her hand was about to touch her mother's hand....
...
...
...
...
-Place unknown-
"Okaa-sama...?"
She disappeared. Everything around him disappeared. Moreover, he looked at his hand and realized that it was smaller. The place had also changed. Luxurious walls rose up around him with windows pointing to the garden outside. The ceiling was quite high and the floor had an expensive carpet on which there was a bloodstain.
He turned around and there he saw the door to a room.
"No..."
That door, Toru recognized it. It was his old room, the one from his past life. The bloodstain belonged to him. This was all too real a reminder of his past. It was a memory, wasn't it? A voice began to speak in his mind. The voice was whispering, trying to communicate with Toru. He just gasped because this was not what he wanted. He was dead, he should be with his mother in the Unholy World.
Suddenly, footsteps echoed and a woman approached Toru. He turned around and....
"Mother..."
The woman was drunk and carried a glass bottle in her hand. Her gaze was too dark, full of hatred towards Toru. At that, the door to the room opened and, unable to control his own body, Toru walked in next to the woman.
She smashed the bottle against Toru's desk and approached him with the worst possible intentions. Right there, Toru saw his reflection in the mirror. His appearance was the same as that of 12-year-old Alek Gusev. It was then that the woman raised her hand with the broken bottle and the voice in his mind told him.
[Welcome, Hero]
The woman slammed the bottle against Toru, who fell to the ground with a bleeding head.
A deep silence formed until Toru could react to the words of that voice.
"I am not a hero..." with tears spilling down his face, he denied everything the voice told him.
The voice told him one last thing as slowly the door to the room closed. Toru understood what it told him, but denied it again. He wasn't a hero, but he didn't want to be a villain either.
The voice finished by telling him:
[Welcome to the Throne of Heroes].
The door closed and Toru's hell began.
To be continued...
***
In case you were wondering which Lucifer is the one shown in this chapter, it's Helltaker's Lucifer. I wanted to introduce a bit more of the multiverse, as later on she along with her demon girl friends will be an important part of Toru's life. She is also an entity similar to Toru "Overlord", more on this later.
Without further ado, thank you for always reading. You don't know how grateful I am to you guys for always supporting me on this.