Chapter 33

Heavens

The symbol of the hope and pure faith, a harbor constructed by the one true God of Bible for all his children and the faithful. There were many meanings and names to Heavens, but one that Gabriel always preferred was a simple one- home. Indeed, nothing too outstanding or too brash, but simple and comforting. For it truly was her home, her and her entire brethren of God`s children, his Angels, who watched over the faithful and protected them as far their reach power could grasp. Even with their divine Father gone, his work and legacy live on in form of so many beings: Heavens; Eden`s Gardens; Holy System; Angels and many more.

And yet, there is nothing that can outshine God`s greatest creation. The one that was not just his greatest creation, but his one true heir and most powerful of his chosen. God`s True Son and his Demise, Lucifer.

Before there were Angels and Devils, there was God and his first 2 sons, Lucifer and Azrael, his Right and Left Hands. They have served to Him with faith and vigor, bringing his judgment upon the unjust and cruel, as they`ve destroyed and crushed all those that dared to stand in the way of their Father. Unlike Angels, such as Gabriel and Michael, they were bound through true connection between father and sons, for in them ran God`s true blood and essence, not like with Angel, birthed through ancient ways, now long forgotten. They were the ancestors of Devils and Angels, Nephilims, who embodied both of aspects of darkness and light in them and used them to spread the word of God and his will. They were vigorous and powerful, stopping at nothing in their pursuits, but their methods soon began to differ as each brother had his own understanding of following God`s ways. Lucifer saw in mortals and other beings great potential and possibilities for growth and power, while Azrael saw them as nothing more, but cattle and slaves, for God to use and thrive over them. Lord shared the view with only one of his sons, much to a dismay of the other.

As the time passed, Lucifer, without the knowledge of his brother and father, has begun to recruit people and granted them the gift of his blood, granting them a new life as Nephilims. Soon, few became many and many became a legion, serving in God`s name, as he accepted them as his sons. Azrael, however, saw this as an insult made by his brother and has desired to get more and more power. Millennia has passed, and desires of Azrael became strong enough for him to drift away with Horsemen of Apocalypse, powerful warriors of God, who served as his last means to discipline his servants. And so Lucifer and his Legion stopped the rebels, but at the cost of thousands, but as the dust settled, God has decided to punish Lucifer for not seeing through his brother and the rest of the Legion have found their end at the tip of Rhongomyniad. Very few that remained were still loyal to Lucifer and followed him in his own revolt and became known as 72 Pillars and 3 Great Devil Kings, with Lucifer ruling them as Devil Emperor. The rest is a well-known history to many.

Centuries have passed since the day when Lucifer has met his end, but his grasp and power still live in this world, in form of his children and descendants. One of them was none other but Lucia Lucifer, Gabriel`s old friend and youngest daughter of Lucifer. Poor soul that has endured more injustice, cruelty and punishment then anyone can possibly imagine, she managed to live through that nightmare and found her peace with Azazel, as his wife and subsequent mother of their children. Michael and Gabriel were very well aware of the possibility of the birth of a new Nephilim in this world, for Lucifer`s blood may`ve been devoid of Holy aspect, could retain it through bond with one of the first Angels created, like Azazel. Leader of Fallen Angels also knew of that and he knew well enough of the fate of newborn Nephilims, so he and Lucia sought out the help of Gabriel and Michael, for they wished to save their unborn child. Together, the four have managed to seal all the possible power of Alex with immensely powerful seals, effectively rendering him as nothing more, but a pseudo human being. That was enough for Sacred Gear System to recognize him as human and grant him Forsaken Regalia upon his birth. However, that little cheating wasn`t enough to elude the deceased spirit of Lucifer, who has suddenly decided that Lucia`s son is now his True Heir. And now, his spirit is in mortal`s realm with his successor. Most of Angels and Seraphs haven`t learned of this, but Michael and Gabriel know of it and because of that, not only because of Kokabiel`s threat, Gabriel was going to travel in Kuoh and help Alexander.

As female Seraph gazed through golden clouds, looking through them and witnessing how a battle was going on down there. A mere recon mission was in reality a trap, as Nephilims and Exorcists were engaging in fierce battle on three fronts. And Gabriel was watching at Alexander battling against his friends and colleagues, receiving inhuman amount of injuries and simply regenerating and going on against his opponents.

As Gabriel was observing the entire ordeal, Michael has come closer to his twin sister and spoke.

"Gabriel." Calm and kind voice of her brother brought Gabriel`s eyes upon him. "What has captivated your gaze, dear sister?"

Gabriel smiled to him.

"Something that is worth your attention, Michael." Gabriel moved her hand and revealed the view of fierce battle. "Alexander, in order to estimate Kokabiel`s forces and the power he commands, decided to investigate with his team and Exorcists the territory of the enemy, but Kokabiel must`ve expected this and turned the entire territory in his command into a trap for Alexander and his group. I fear that this may be too much for him and his friends to handle. Especially for Alexander himself." Gabriel concentrated on him, as he was battling Sieghard and others.

"To do battles with close friends and those that you consider family… There is no worse trial someone must endure." Michael sadly commented. "I have seen Sieghard before and have always considered a kind and good-natured soul, but now he is forced to battle against his friend and a brother-in-arms. As much as it shames me admit it, but I truly despise how Kokabiel has decided to gather his forces. To turn so many people against their very being, no matter what is true nature, is atrocious."

"I agree with you, brother." Gabriel agreed. "This might just be one of the hardest trials for Alexander both as a leader, but also as a Lucifer, to overcome." Seraph admitted, as she saw how Alexander began to evade the ice spikes and was then pinned by his foot. "A new enemy? And one that uses powerful ice magic?"

"No, not a mere magic, but a Counter-Longinus Sacred Gear, Demon`s Extract." Michael noted. "Gabriel, it is time for you to go and assist them. I fear that any minute we waste on mere talk will only diminish their chances of success."

Gabriel nodded to her brother and followed his command, creating a portal and moving through it towards the human`s realm. Michael truly hopped that Alex will strong enough to withstand against the sheer power of one of the Counter-Longinus Sacred Gears, created as a safe guard against Longinus-level Sacred Gears if they were to be ever used with ill intent. And Demon`s Extract, wielded by Esdeath, Alexander`s former second-in-command, was a force of utter destruction and one of the few Sacred gears out there to actually have a Sub-Species Balance Breaker. And as for the woman herself, she was someone that even gods were afraid of battling. And she now was facing off against Lucifer`s Heir.

This could possibly be an end to Alex, which is something that Michael and Gabriel couldn`t allow. For with him, lied a slim hope of salvation for entire Angel`s race.

Meanwhile. Kuoh`s Forest.

Archer seriously was cursing his damned luck, as his Kanshou and Bakuya, twin married short swords, representing yin and yang, clashed with Sasaki`s long sword, dancing with their weapons in the pale of moon light. While Kojiro wasn`t the most fearsome foe Archer had faced, he certainly made up in space with his wiles and skill with the blade, which most certainly rivaled Arturia`s, who was interlocking her Divine Excalibur against Arthur`s prized possession and prime weapon of choice, Caliburn, the Strongest Holy Sword in existence. Just now Arturia pushed forward and launched another barrage, all to waist as Arthur was fully capable of blocking and evading all of the attacks, as Arturia wasn`t even going all out. As for Archer`s other companions, Medusa was evading and maneuvering, closing her distance to Chaste Priestess Atalanta, moving akin to lighting, as Nekomata`s light arrows were trying their best to get her opponent. And while Medusa was making a progress on the run, literally, Kuroka was actually faring quite badly as her opponent just so happened to be Sun Wukong`s descendant and current Monkey King, Bikou. Master of staff and martial arts, quick-footed youkai was dealing unholy amount of damage at Kuroka, who even with all her Senjutsu and Youjutsu, was on the retreat. In fact, Archer had to notify that Kuroka was really not in the good shape for some reason and wasn`t going all out against Bikou, even though he had more than enough horse power to take it all. Something was wrong with her…

And that wasn`t the only thing that was wrong, for this simple gather info mission has gone to Argentina from the start. Nobody actually expected that Kokabiel will be ready for them to come here, especially with all their friends. To use dimensional distortion as not only disruptor of magic, but also as beacon was practically genius and Archer would applaud to the crazed bastard, but only after he killed him for using his comrades as pawns in this sick game. Nephilim was sure as hell that the rest have gotten in the same kind of trap and were fighting for their lives and Alexander was most probably in the tightest grip, for he was a leader of this group and Kokabiel`s obvious target, along with Excaliburs, if Archer were to make a bet or two. And they`ve played him right into the hands. Just great…

Archer dodged another slash from Kojiro and moved his left blade at his arm, wishing to injure the man and incapacitate. Sasaki saw it and retaliated with a stabbing attack at Archer`s chest, which he blocked from the downside with Bakuya and then backed it up with its spouse, interlocking and moving the blade away. Using the opportunity, Archer jumped upwards in the air, switching to his bow, preparing to fire one of his best attacks in the air.

"I am the bone of my Sword…" As he chanted, in right palm formed his drilled sword, Caladbolg II, which changed into an arrow form and was placed in the position. "I`ll apologize later for this." And with that he fired his bended sword at Sasaki.

As the weapon reached the ground, the entire area near of him exploded with a great power, destroying a nice portion of forest here. It was fortunate that Archer didn`t charge his weapon fully, because it would most certainly cost Sasaki his life, as 30 percent charged simply knocked him out and made sure that it was for a while. That was guaranteed and Archer never missed on calculations. Now he had the chance of helping out his comrades. As he landed on the higher ground, he began to scout of his new prey to target and allies to help.

While Archer was dealing with Grigori`s Samurai, Arturia was dueling against her older brother Arthur and his Caliburn. Her thoughts were in chaos and heartbeat was out of its usual balance, for Queen of Knights was most certainly not looking forward to battling against her brother, but she was forced to. As much as she tried to call out to him, Arthur remained silent and emotionless to the pleas of his sister and continued his relentless attacks at her, moving his Caliburn to her neck. Arturia arched her back down and managed to avoid having her throat cut, as Divine clashed with Arthur`s sword and the two interlocked once more, only now it was Arturia that pushed her brother back and then began her assault, bringing her Excalibur to the position of slash from the downside and she proceeded with it in her mind, only meet with Caliburn`s blade blocking the path and pushing Arturia back a little. As Arturia regained her momentum and got into the defensive position, she concentrated.

'As always, Arthur`s balance between attacks and defense is great.' Arturia thought to herself. 'Okay, concentrate, Arturia, and think rationally. Caliburn`s and Divine`s powers are equal, so the matter will not be settled with by swords themselves, but by the wielders of those swords. Arthur`s style is more focused on precise and quick attacks, but he is no slouch in strong attacks either. My only advantage is my strength of the Rook, but Caliburn`s blessing to its wielder allows it to compensate for the lack of physical strength, so in matters of speed and strength and style we are on equal grounds. Well, seems like I have no choice but to apply a different approach to this situation.'

As Arturia concentrated and brought the sword closer to herself, Divine Excalibur suddenly began to glow and in one instance, as Arturia exhaled the air, Divine emitted very powerful beam of Holy Energy, which she then brought directly upon her opponent. This was Divine`s trump card and the Balance Breaker of her Infinity Forge, Full Unleash, fully exploiting the powers of its creations and their unique abilities, such as Divine Excalibur`s Divine Burst attack, which has been enough to knock out Arthur. Good thing that Arturia wasn`t using her most powerful attack, or there would be nothing left in a kilometer radius. As Arturia dispersed the Holy Energy, she saw that Medusa was standing there and simply looking at her as if she wasn`t really impressed. Medusa spoke in her usual tone.

"Are you done flashing your sword around the forest for our opponents?" Medusa asked Arturia. "Because I would prefer not to have to deal with more enemies."

"At least I don`t flash my enemies like you prefer to do." Arturia returned the snarky remark. "And what about Atalanta? Weren`t you busy with her?"

"If a girl has certain virtues, wouldn`t it be nice to show a little of them." Medusa moved her hips and waist a little, as if teasing Arturia. "But, it is understandable why you would prefer to wear all this armor and dress. As for our lovely Atalanta…" Medusa pulled her chain a bit and Arturia, through ripple, noticed fully chained up and tied up knocked out Atalanta. "Our lovely Atalanta and I have had a very nice chat and I`ve managed to charm her up. She most certainly had some fun about it."

"Now I understand why you and Akeno get along so well…" Arturia commented, while Medusa scoffed disapprovingly.

"That girl has no real understanding of BDSM whatsoever. She thinks that it`s all about pleasure through pain, but completely ignores the most vital and sacred part of this art: bonding through mutual trust between the partners, who entrust themselves to each other in intimate act." Medusa disapprovingly said. "She may have some enthusiasm, but no understanding of true act of love. In bed, I think she would hurt herself and Alex just to get a momentary kick out of it."

"And you wouldn`t?" Arturia asked her.

"Oh no, I would much rather prefer to take a careful and slow momentum. BDSM isn`t all about pain and whips. Communication, slowly built passion and process of all night`s long sex with lovers giving in to their deepest desires with one they love the most." Medusa said knowingly. "You know, I could lend you a couple materials to you, if you are willing."

"I… will consider." Arturia actually agreed. "Now, where are…"

"AAAAAARRRGH!" Both girls immediately looked to the source of that shout and went to there.

There was no mistaking that this was Kuroka and that something has happened to her. Both Arturia and Medusa hoped that it wasn`t something serious, because if it was, then they would really hate to see Alex`s face when he finds out. The best way for an enemy to hurt Alex is through attacking his closest and Kuroka wasn`t just Alex`s first love, but also the on that practically nurtured him back to life and healed his soul. She was a treasure to him and also his wife. Arturia and Medusa weren`t going to let her get hurt. As they`ve reached a top of the small hill, they saw knocked out Bikou, definitely through repeated firing from Archer, along with Archer tending to Kuroka, who was wincing and screaming a little from serious pain. As Arturia and Medusa closed in, they`ve notice a sizable bloodstain on her kimono, between her legs. Arturia was the first to ask up.

"Archer, what is going on?" She demanded an explanation.

"Internal bleeding from a damaged organ, probably. Wait a second." Archer reported, as he used his Structural Analysis on Kuroka.

Usually it was meant to reveal more than enough about an injury, but in this case…

"Oh hell…" Archer widened his eyes at pained Kuroka. "We have to get her out of here immediately!"

"Wait, what is wrong with…" Medusa was going to ask him.

"If we don`t, then both she and her child are dead!" Archer immediately answered, utterly shocking both girls. "Internal damage to her organism has jeopardized her womb`s protections and a baby is almost suffocating. If she doesn`t get out of her now and receive some serious help, then we`ll lose both of them!"

Arturia and Medusa glanced at each other, finally realizing what the hell it was. Kuroka… was pregnant… with Alex`s child. They`ve actually conceived a child together, even though it wasn`t Kuroka`s mating period, during which her organism specifically begins to work to conceive a child from a partner. They knew that Nekomatas very rarely conceive outside their periods and it was usually considered a miracle. Aside from that, Nekomata`s pregnancy period is significantly shorter than most of the species and a lot less noticeable due to their body structure, stemming from their cat`s nature. Usually, Nekomata`s period is less than two months, which meant that Kuroka`s child was already formed and…

As the girls were about react, they`ve heard a loud sound of wings behind them and immediately turned to the source of the sound, weapons ready and waiting. Fortunately for them, it was Scathach, Ravel and Raynare, looking a bit dirty, but well enough. Scathach was the first to speak up.

"We`ve heard Kuroka`s scream." Scathach looked at pained Nekoshou. "Was she hit?"

"Worse, internal damage with… a serious risk of miscarriage." Arturia replied.

"Miscarriage… Great Morrigan, no." Scathach understood what it meant and began to cast a special rune on the ground. "Ravel, get to her and do what Alex have taught you to do with those Flames of yours. Raynare, prepare to help Archer transport Kuroka inside the house. I`m going to open a trans-dimensional rift and through it get out of here."

Both Pawns got to their designated posts. Understanding that Ravel was the weakest in physical plan, Alex made a focus of her trainings in supporting roles, such as usage of her Phoenix Flames to aid the team through covering fire and using it to actually heal people, as Alex has actually been able to do so and, after some grueling experiences, taught Ravel to do just that. As Ravel concentrated all her powers, she began to pass the healing energy towards Kuroka and her unborn baby. The effect was immediate as Kuroka`s screams and wincing lessened Alex`s pawn spoke up.

"I am no doctor, but I think I`ve stabilized her and the child." Ravel informed. "Better to get some real help for her though. Do you know anyone who specializes in this kind of thing?"

"Yeah, I do." Scathach said, finishing the rune. "My grandmother is a literal goddess of Life. I`ll give her a call right away."

"But what about Alex and the others?" Raynare asked right away.

"He would say to go without him and save his lass." A new voice spoke up, turning the crowd`s attention. "As much as it pains me to say it, he would be right, as usual."

On the edge of a hill stood a pair of lancers, with one heavily leaning against another. Seasoned veterans immediately recognized their friend, Diarmuid O`Dyna, carrying wounded Cu Chulainn, whose wound wasn`t healing at all. It was a fortune that out of the pair, Hound of Ulster was faster on a spear draw, especially with long lances, akin to Gae Bolg and Gae Dearg. This skill has allowed him to release his cousin from control of Ruler through a single scratch. And behind the duo, they actually saw a duet of Irina and Xenovia, who`s shoulder looked worse than anything. Cu Chulainn spoke up weakly.

"Not to sound like an asshole, but we have a couple wounded here and my wound is made by Gae Buidhe. I would like to get some serious med help." Hound spoke up.

"Wait, where is Griselda?" Irina asked.

"We got separated during our fight." Raynare reported. "Ravel and I dealt with a couple of my old friends, and Scathach had two Cerberuses to deal with. As for your teacher, I think she left us and went ahead."

"We aren`t going to wait for her, if that`s what you are asking." Archer said, helping Kuroka a little. "Scathach, how much longer?"

"NOW!" And with that, the portal opened up and the entire hill immediately became empty, as the group left it be, with the forest and their leader.

In everyone`s mind, they were all hoping that their leader was going to make it out of there alive.

Back to Lucifer.

Lucifer was seriously questioning whatever the higher being there was about why the hell he was having such a freaking bad luck. Because at this point, it has reached the level of ridiculousness and continued to impress him further with the amount of shit the life was throwing at him. Alex could handle a lot of stuff and it took a lot to make him go down. Unfortunately, the situation he was facing currently at the moment, could very easily be classed as the worst possible scenario for anyone: 93 percent of magical energy was gone from the body, exhaustion, several fresh wounds on legs and a lack of any communication or potions to heal up. In short, Alex was in deep shit, but all those factors weren`t the worst yet. Oh hell no… Because the worst factor was the person he was facing off right now.

Esdeath, his former second-in-command and current leader of Grigori`s Special Forces, along with a commander of her own anti-terrorist team Jaegers.

Out of all the people that Alex had to work with, none has struck more fear, admiration and respect at the same time then Esdeath, and that`s not to count for her killing looks, for which she earned herself a title of "Ice Queen". When the unit was put up for the first time, Alex and Esdeath actually had to duel one another, because neither had any intention of backing down. Only by a pure luck and a certain promise he made to Esdeath, did he win and she official recognized him as her leader, becoming his second-in-command. After that duel, their relations progressed smoothly and without any excesses or incidents, as both Alex and Esdeath were acting purely professionally and effectively leading the teams and a whole division. Their commanding positions, however, didn`t deter them from actually working directly in the field with their teams, but they had different approaches to the situation. Alexander, due to a lack of any special traits or powers, acted as real-life spec ops, supporting and coordinating attacks. As for Esdeath… Whenever she entered the field, the battle could be considered over, for there was nothing that could stop her or anyone to defeat her. Esdeath was not just one of the strongest members, but the strongest member of Spec Ops, all due to the perfect combination of combat experience, Sacred Gear mastery, near Cadre level of power in general. And her Demon`s Extract powers were enough to lay waste to the entire armies and cities, freezing them over or impaling them with spikes, or simply crushing them to pieces. His father once said that Esdeath`s Demon`s Extract was not simply a Counter-Longinus, but a high-tier Longinus level itself, with her mastery. Nobody has been able to use it to the same extent as Esdeath. And in all of Grigori, there were only select few who could give her a good fight and win, but those were just too few. After all, this lady has been able to bring down Vali Lucifer in his Balance Breaker and Cao Cao with his Longinus at the same time. So, Alexander`s chances of surviving her were relatively… screwed.

Esdeath`s rapier clashed with Alexander`s Mimic, shaped as an armored gauntlet, producing sparks, that burnt on Alex`s face, making him growl. He disengaged and jumped back, avoiding as much ice spikes as he could possibly handle, but as he landed back on the ground, his voice screamed through the entire forest as he looked down and saw something that he most certainly didn`t need. Large ice spike coming out of his stomach, as it had pierced his through his back and went out in the outside. The entire area was already reminding of an Antarctic and that mission he and Esdeath had there. Only back then it was will less stabbing and killing, but still…

"Grragh!" With a feral growl, Alex slowly pulled himself out of the spike and used up every bit of energy he had in him to regenerate the wound.

He did manage to lessen the wound itself and close up the one in the back, but in his stomach was really bad and bleeding, even with eternal organs restored. From this point on, Alex understood that he was really in shit and there was no regeneration to regrow anything. And Esdeath was already closing in on him with her powers fully active and without even the slightest sign of tiredness. It was at this moment that Lucifer decided to click in.

"Alex, I seriously suggest you a full retreat." Lucifer gave him an advice. "You are way too exhausted and wounded to even think about defeating her. Heck, I doubt that at your full power you could take her on."

'Oh, just how nice of you to click in, gramps.' Alex sarcastically replied. 'You obviously haven`t met Esdeath. Even in this state, there is no escaping her. Ever, and trust me, I`ve checked. Once she is on a mission to kill someone, he is dead already.'

"Sounds a lot like someone I used to know. Only he was a man and someone who actually made me work my ass out to defeat and make him my partner." Lucifer recalled. "Anyway, if we can`t escape this ice lady, what are you going to do? And for both of us, I seriously hope that this will allow you to live."

'I`m really out of any options here, except for… Lucifer, Excalibur Ruler`s power is command anyone`s will, is it?'

"Absolutely, although there are limitations to it, like truly powerful Gods, but against her it did work perfectly." Lucifer remarked. "If you are asking about the ways to reverse this spell, then there are only two ways to do so. First one requires a powerful anti-magic spell or weapon, like that other red spear. As for the second one… Well, you have to give this lovely lady a kiss full of love and passion, but…"

'Just what I`ve thought.' Alex remarked. 'Good thing that I`ve got plenty of this left in me. Now I only have to…. SON OF A FUCKING WHORING BITCH!' Alex screamed internally as he felt cringe-inducing agony and pain.

He quickly looked at from where did this sudden pain come from and immediately saw just what was it. Esdeath`s ice blades out of the ground… that just severed his entire left arm! He should`ve acted far more carefully and faster, but now… Not only did he lose an entire arm, but Excalibur Mimic with it and the agony was practically blinding his mind from any thought. Cruel and effective, just as Esdeath preferred, as she now drew out her blade and prepared to deliver the final finishing blow. Gathering up all of his strength and bits of will, Alex waited for a moment to strike. And once the tip of the blade was nearing his chest, he quickly and without any hesitation used Clarent to bring it upwards, opening Esdeath to him as she literally flew right towards him. Just as he needed right now, for waking right to he was already too painful. Once her emotionless and 'dead' face was near of his, Alexander made the absolutely the craziest and most ridiculous move in his entire career and life. With force, he pressed his blood-soaked lips against Esdeath`s blue lips, capturing her in a full mouthed kiss. He has heard of ancient ways to lift a charm or a curse and this kiss of love wasn`t as idiotic as it sounded. Pure feelings, emotions and powers, such things were one of the purest forms of energy and magic of its own. When two beings shared the powerful passion or love to each other, then their combined might of such strong feelings could break even strongest curses.

Alexander had enough of love and passion towards Esdeath to count for that, as there was no reason for him to deny her own feelings to him. Years of work together, seeing each other in best and worst, long talks and emotional deepness, coupled with mutual respect, admiration and a natural passion. Everything and more for Alex to fall for Esdeath, dangerous and merciless, but also sincere and true to her feelings. She was a bit obsessive about him, but never to the point of killing others, as she did understand that he was simply like this and he had this effect on people. The real reason as to why she even allowed him to win back then was a promise that he would help Esdeath to find her real happiness, with someone she wished with. Over the years, her ultimate goal became as clear as day and plain as arrow, with Alexander. She gave her word that she would be there for him and with him no matter what and he promised to always be there with her when she needed him. After Scathach, Esdeath must`ve suffered the worst out of this whole mess. Alex only hopped that there was still a spark of love in her heart left for him.

And he was soon proven that there was more than a spark, but a true fire, when Esdeath dropped her rapier and brought him as close as possible, now dominating his mouth and tongue. She preferred to be one in charge and there were only a couple of instances when she allowed others to take over the reins, with Alex being the single person to make her feel goodwhen commanded. But now… She was in control and she took from her chosen all she could of the moment, but was generous too, as she didn`t want hurt him more than he was already. After a long minute, Esdeath finally parted ways with Alex and looked with loving and devoted eyes at him.

"A kiss of true love and passion to break the spell…" She finally spoke. "I had never expected such a thing to be a reality, but I am truly glad that it is true."

"Esdeath… I really missed you." Alex smiled weakly to her, before almost collapsing on to the ground.

Esdeath was quick to catch him and gently put him onto the ground and examine him quickly, but then she suddenly saw how most of his minor wounds were burning away, along with a gaping wound in the stomach, leaving only the arm not reconstructed back. Esdeath was a bit shocked and decided to ask right away.

"What in the world was that?"

"My own brand of regeneration." Alex answered feeling more refreshed, but still tired as hell. "During that Rating Game against Riser, I`ve managed to literally take his flames and integrate them into myself, giving me a powerful regeneration and fire control, though regeneration of limbs really is a hell and each of them is painful in its own right, believe me. It must`ve kicked back in after our kiss, must`ve been an exchange in energies."

"Looks like you and I are now even more perfect, with your flames and my ice." She added sultry, but smiling to him. "I hope that you can forgive me, considering everything that…"

"Hey, it was the Ruler, am I correct?" Esdeath nodded to that one and Alex continued. "Then the only one I am actually really pissed off right now is a certain Fallen motherfucking crow, who had the gale to use my own men against me." Alex rose up, with some difficulties. "And once I find him, he is going to…"

"Do what, exactly?" A new voice came over both of them.

Esdeath and Alex looked up and saw the 10 black-winged man, smiling with a feral scale on them both. Both of them already knew who the hell this was and why he was here.

"So, we finally meet at last. I have been long awaiting for an opportunity to meet you, Azazel`s brat." The man spoke. "After all, out of all his damned servants, you are the only one who has managed to piss me off the most."

"Kokabiel." Alex greeted the renegade, gripping his blade more tightly. "I would say that the feeling is mutual, but that would be a serious understatement. You`ve crossed one line you should`ve stayed the hell away from, crow."

"And what are you going to do to me now, brat? You`ve lost most your energy, all of your friends have fled and you are missing an arm." Kokabiel stated. "Do you honestly think that you stand any chance someone like me?"

Alex simply looked at Esdeath, who nodded to him.

"Who said that I am alone here?" Alex gripped up his Clarent in one arm and prepared for the fight with Cadre.

Kokabiel simply laughed at that one.

"Well, this is going to be interesting." He smiled wickedly.