The Seraphic System

Chapter: 90

Disclaimer: I don’t own High School Dxd or any other universe used in this story.  However, all original characters, plotlines, and world-building elements created in this story are my own.

Pa/ t reon details below the chapter if you're interested in seeing some content in advance.

(The Battle Of Heaven - Part 2)

-{Vakiel}-

Vakiel ducked under a wild swing from another werewolf, swinging her halbert faster than it could react and dissecting it in half. Her halbert briefly glowed and sparks of flame shot out, burning the body. 

As a Cherub of the first legion, she was in the heart of the two colliding battles. The Cherub looked at her weapon appreciably. 

The modification that the being known as Brias had made showed its presence as She spun, deflecting another blow that made sparks of fire come out in a small wave. 

The werewolf backed away briefly and allowed her to send a beam of light into a group of werewolves that advanced.

From the shadows, an Oni tried to pierce her from behind, making her kick a leg out and sending him flying back through the many ranks of werewolves that advanced.

She jumped back and threw multiple slashes with her halbert, on the fourth slash a fire built up and randomly sent a blade of fire out into the incoming masses. 

Another rumble crackled through the air and a bright flash came from above. 

She didn’t dare glance up. 

If she did, all she would see was hundreds of different coloured lines shifting every second, as attacks were thrown around with enough energy to fill her ultimate class reserves.

So much time had passed and it never ceased to amaze her at the sheer power disparity one went through when reaching the God-class.

She kicked another Oni that attempted to stab her in the back. As she jumped over a group of werewolves and landed in their midst, her eyes caught sight of the three members of the Holy Order who weren’t down in the church fighting alongside her siblings. 

Their presence was easily noticeable, as large groups of werewolves and Oni were turned solid every second. A large amount of stone scattered around after they were shattered as more took their place.

Nyxera moved quickly, pushing alone through the seemingly endless horde. Holy and magical constructs and projectiles rained on the faraway enemies.

Not far behind her Elizabeth moved, a red glow covered her and the Longinus Boosted Gear noticeable on her right arm. Another resounding “Boost” echoed out and she became even faster, sending out powerful punches that pulverised the Werewolves surrounding her.

Asia stood at the back, surrounded by the Angels dedicated to shielding as the front line was covered in a green glow that boosted the already small healing factor they had.

Vakiel was forced to roll, avoiding a large leg that attempted to stab down at her previous position. A large spider skittered overhead. 

In a blur, she cut its leg off. With the abrupt removal of one of its eight large limbs, the large spider fell and quickly found itself stumbling only to be decapitated as she leapt.

She continued. Weaving through the oncoming swarm. Werewolves lunged, sharp claws outstretched, but she was already past them. One fell with a crushed rib cage. Another had its throat torn out by the blade’s reverse sweep.

An Oni broke from the ranks, larger than most, armoured and snorting steam. 

High-class. 

It charged, club raised.

Vakiel ducked low and struck once.

The Oni’s arm dropped first, then its head. She was already gone by the time its body hit the ground.

This sight continued the same determination to keep Father safe that all Angels were experiencing as they fought harder than they had in a long time. 

She paused, only for a second, drawn by the pressure of a new fight. Far off, deeper in the chaos, a figure clashed with one of Father’s new creations, an Ultimate-class Angel who had only recently been created. 

The enemy wasn’t any regular beast. 

It was one of the ten battles that had suddenly begun. 

They moved at a speed that revealed them as Ultimate class, explosions of black energy and light shattering the terrain around them. Their battle created a sphere of devastation that swallowed dozens of other combatants. Allies and enemies alike were flung aside or killed outright if they were too close.

Vakiel’s eyes snapped to another flash. 

Then another. Nine more battles like it burned across the battlefield.

A glance around showed her deep within the enemy's boundaries. As she passed over into the strange domain that had been created by the enemy, Vakiel found herself shrinking back momentarily only snapping back as she avoided a claw swipe.

Her gaze turned downright frigid as she saw one of her younger siblings being torn into, her body mowing down through the incoming forces to quickly get to her. 

Vakiel jumped, leaping over forces and sending powerful Angelic spells to clear a path. She finally reached the fallen angel just as a werewolf's claws raked across the smaller figure's throat. 

Too late. The light had already faded from her sister's eyes, wings torn and bloodied on the ground.

She had to suppress the grief she felt burst through her entire being, the absence of Father and by extension to bring back the dead had shown Vakiel just how noticeable the absence of even one of her siblings was. Knowing someone for thousands of years and seeing them being killed was a special type of pain. 

A pain that made many fall. 

She grabbed the body, pulling it close as three werewolves circled her position. 

Their claws swiped in wild strikes, forcing her to parry with her halberd while cradling her dead sibling. An Oni emerged from her blind spot, club raised high. She twisted, the weapon grazing her shoulder as she drove her blade through its chest.

They came, movements easily trackable despite the sheer number of them attempting to overwhelm her. 

Massive spiders chittered overhead, their legs stabbing down like pikes. One pierced the ground inches from her head. Another scraped across her armour, leaving light gouges in the metal. 

The chaos pressed in from all sides. Bodies fell around her, angels, werewolves, oni, all mixing into the same crimson mud. The sound of tearing flesh and clashing metal filled her ears.

She threw as many of her fellow Angels back as she could, watching forces in the back retrieve them and pull them back into Heaven’s confines. 

Then she heard the mechanical whirring.

Dozens of sleek constructs rolled onto the battlefield, their cannons already spinning up. Brias's forge-works. Steam hissed from their joints as they opened fire, cutting swaths through the enemy ranks with precision shots.

They briefly pushed the lines back and allowed the Angel warriors at the front to switch out. 

Behind them came the wolves.

Completely black, larger than the werewolves, with eyes that glowed like red coals. 

They moved with almost robotic-like movement as they supported the machines that were quickly finding themselves pushed back, tearing through oni lines without slowing. 

Vakiel recognized them from the whispered rumours, her eldest brother's gift from Father, the Annihilation Maker 

-{The Architect}-

The Architect clenched his grip on the rails from his viewing point.

He was losing… He was actually losing.  

“Send the rest in.” He said, his voice dangerously low.

His servant hurried to obey.

The Architect took a breath. 

It was fine. He was merely being delayed. 

Ammit and Tlaloc were still waiting. Even if he was hesitant to send them out for the sheer price they had asked of him. 

He also had another card in play. 

The Architect turned to the God casually leaning in the doorway, looking over the proceedings with an appreciative eye.

“I accept your terms, Loki. Join them and I shall rally support for your cause.” The Architect agreed to the terms that had been set a while ago.

Loki smiled in amusement. “It’s a bit late for that now, friend.”

“Why do you say that?” He replied calmly, hiding his annoyance 

“I needed access to the Gods you had amounted to in this little alliance of yours. By the looks of it though, there won’t be any left to help me.” Loki replied. “Thus making the terms pointless.”

“You think this will stop me?” The Architect asked, his voice tight.

Loki looked amused.

“Have you not seen this force that I have put together? The beings I have created? The resources I have. All to defeat one of the most well-defended kingdoms in history.” The Architect said, his voice still measured. 

“Yes, it is very impressive.” Loki soothed. “How long did it take you?”

“What?” The Architect replied.

“How long did it take you, to amass this force and unseal these Gods?” Loki asked lightly. “Did you even do it yourself? Or did your father dearest have a hand in it?” 

The Architect hid his expression.

It had taken hundreds of years.

The Valgrath and Golems had been the easy part, simply mass-producing them. They were all weak, enough these low-class beings could take out a few of them. But the sheer number that had been in the hundreds of thousands gave way to the first wave.

Finding the queen Arachean Queen alone had taken a hundred years of actively searching for one.

The Fey wilds had probably killed a large percentage of the Golems and Valgrath had sent searching for one. The werewolves had been a bit easier. While the Oni had taken a while.

The brief silence was all Loki needed.

“You are impressive, for a halfbreed in any case. But my plans are immediate. I don’t have hundreds of years to wait.” Loki said calmly. 

The Architect stared at him coldly.

“Don’t look so glum, perhaps you’ll be able to turn this around with that Dragon of yours,” Loki said cheerfully, laughing as he vanished along with Fenrir.

The Architect turned back at the sky that seemed to be in constant motion. That attack the Archangel had used earlier was worrying. 

The strange spell he had performed was originally targeted at him, he could feel it. But the barrier was able to divert its position which unfortunately left the two main cannons destroyed.

He sighed heavily. 

He was down to his final card and for someone who always seemed ten steps ahead, being cornered with just one costly option was beyond infuriating.

The Angels had proven themselves far more capable than he’d anticipated. He’d known they were old, older than most gods and their naive, benevolent image had never fooled him. But even so, he hadn’t expected this level of resistance.

Only one had truly fallen. The rest endured. That fact alone made his blood boil.

He watched multiple screens playing back some key parts of the battle in slow motion, even with his perception artefact it was a hard task to keep track of the battlefield.

Set seemed to be on the back foot. The previous trap made by the crafty Seraphs had given Uriel what he needed to land a major blow to the powerful God’s body. 

Tezcatlipoca was barely keeping pace with the abuse of his domain skills. 

Ares had proven useful and taken out one of Heaven’s mystery allies. 

Huitzilopochtli was struggling against Michael. 

With the addition of Ammit and Tlaloc, hopefully, they could overwhelm at least one of them before the two remaining Arch-Seraphs he knew to be waiting behind the gates of Heaven came out to play.

Furthermore, hopefully, Baalberith could manage to defeat the surprising presence of the God-class human that was in the Vatican. If not, his final trump card would have to be used. 

“When are you done?” He said, turning to Ammit. 

The God glared at him. “Don’t rush me, child, miracle magic is hardly easy.”

“Yes, well. I need you to use whatever you are doing on Michael. Then I need you two to go out and finish helping the rest of the Gods before they are defeated.”

"Do not order me around. The fact that I'm spending my carefully stored belief and wielding it in a capacity that fewer than a dozen gods in history have even comprehended should have you kissing my feet in gratitude. Miracle magic was never intended to be used as an offensive force." Ammit hissed.

The Architect briefly considered if it was worth his pride. 

“You’re right, Ammit. The fact I released you doesn’t give me the right to order you in such a way. Forgive my arrogance, I merely wish to see Heaven fall.” He carefully worded his apology.

The first statement was true. Nothing gave anyone the right to do anything, such was the nature of free will. 

Ammit let out a sound of approval.

He couldn’t allow the God to slip away at this time. 

Miracle magic users were rare. 

From what he knew, Gods in general could only use it to boost their own power. Those who could use it above that were rare, and those like Ammit who could make attacks with it were even rarer.

Yahweh was one of a kind. He held a mastery of Miracle Magic that was unheard of and partially why he was so feared. Allowing beings that weren’t Gods domains was something only a reality-bending power could achieve.

Tlaloc smirked. “I can go now, I have been waiting for my chance to have fun.”

“No. Michael is defeating Huitzilopochtli and I suspect he is merely playing with him to make us act in haste. We need to keep him busy if we are to proceed.” The Architect said. 

Tlaloc rolled his eyes but didn’t disagree. 

With this, he hoped he could continue without needing his trump card. 

If so, he would wait for an opportune moment. 

-{Kai}-

My eyes burned and heat rippled around me in waves. I stared daggers at the Greek War God.

Ares was still airborne, recovering from Michael's attack.

My eyes briefly flickered below. Even with all my preparations, this attack was proving surprisingly powerful and calculated. A shiver ran down my spine.

What would have happened if Gabriel had never come for me? They wouldn't have gotten the warning about the attack or the allies I had somehow managed to gain in my time wandering the supernatural world alone.

Heaven would have fallen, and worst of all, I probably wouldn't have cared.

My form blazed brighter around me.

I hated this. I could feel them dying below me. It served to make my vision tinge with red as unnatural anger spread through me. I shot toward him.

My eyes roamed over the gods fighting in the air against Uriel, Frieren and Michael. 

{Name: Set (Seth)}

{Titles: God of Chaos / Lord of the Red Sand / Stormbreaker of Duat}

{Race: God}

{Power Level: 57,030}

An Egyptian God? 

So the Egyptians were in on this… or at least one of their Major Gods were. 

I looked at the other God that Michael fought.

{Name: Huitzilopochtli}

{Titles: Lord of the Sun / The Colibri of Fire}

{Race: God}

{Power Level: 49,125}

An Aztec God as well?

A frown laced my lips. 

I took yet another moment to appreciate how seriously I had taken the threat. The canon knowledge of knowing how dangerous the Khaos Brigade was had made me push to amass power.

That didn’t matter for now though. 

Ares stabilised himself in the air, a red glow allowing him to hover. He didn’t waste time as he spotted me approaching, sending a blast of pure divine power my way to stop my quick approach. 

I moved forward, avoiding the basic blast and briefly stopped. 

His arm was broken at an odd angle and his entire body was filled with wounds that dyed his skin golden with his blood. 

He glared at me. “You.” He said, his voice trembling and all pain seemingly vanishing from his body. “I knew it! You are here with the rest of your snobby, entitled bunch.”

I stared at him for a moment, looking at all the weak spots on his body. 

“What? Not going to ask me why I’m here?” Ares said rabidly.

He didn’t seem to want an answer to that question as he continued. 

“It’s all because of you, once I learnt there was a call in the Khaos Brigade to join the attack on Heaven.” He breathed. “Our rematch will go without interruption. Even with this bastardisation of a divine form of yours, I will destroy you and that pretty little Arch-Seraph.”

“With the rewards I’ll receive for this, I’ll be able to make Father turn a blind eye-“

My form blazed again, the power of being in the god class thrumming through me. I flickered forward at full speed, light flaring from every inch of my body. Decrease Gravitational Force kicked in, making me even faster as my body became less heavy. 

The sudden boost sent me hurtling through the air like a spear of bluish-white power towards the rabid God. Ares' eyes widened at my lack of desire to converse with him. 

The wind whipped around me and I found myself already in front of him. The hammer held in his usable arm shot up and he curled it so my fist collided with its durable surface. 

A blast of wind and power erupted from the impact and my superior power won out as he was sent back. Despite that, he showed his experience as a War God as he waved his hand. 

A massive divine axe made of divine energy appeared in the sky. Ares flicked his hand down and the massive axe was brought down in a sky-splitting swing.

I passed under the massive divine construct in a blur, the wind pressure alone sending shockwaves rippling behind me. I twisted mid-air, wings flaring wide as I rotated my body and blasted Gravitational Ripple at his chest. 

The space around him distorted violently. He flinched as his balance was broken in the sky. His posture was briefly broken again as he staggered from the invisible force bending the air.

That only lasted a moment as he quickly recovered. 

I didn’t hesitate as I shot towards him once more, only being briefly forced to back away as a massive wave of cursed sand passed through in front of me. 

A quick glance showed it was from a stray attack from the battle Uriel was having a few miles away. 

My sword reappeared in my hand, its surface was crackling with a wave of gathering energy. My sword pulsed with gathered hatred, feeding off the malice radiating from every enemy on the battlefield. 

The energy crackled along the blade's edge like liquid power.

My winged flight made my ability to control my flight incredibly precise. 

Ares’s axe gained a reddish glow. He swung his axe in a wide arc, trying to catch me mid-flight. But I ducked under the swing, my blade slicing across his ribs. The stored hatred discharged on contact, sending him spinning through the air with a heavy grunt of pain.

He looked down with a scowl, blood dripping down from the deep slice I had gotten across his chest. 

He recovered fast, with years of combat experience showing. His hammer materialized in his good hand, the axe vanished as he adapted his fighting style. 

I pressed the attack. 

Light covered me like a second skin and I became a blinding star, creating blinding strobes that disrupted his vision. He swung wildly, missing by inches as I weaved between his strikes.

My hand raised and a large light construct formed, light energy becoming solid as a massive hammer fell through the sky.

Ares waved his axe in response and the light construct was cut through. He exploded forward and swung a fist at me. I blocked with only some pushback. 

My sword in my other hand caught him across the shoulder. More hatred energy discharged, opening a deep gash that leaked golden ichor. He roared, backhanding me with his metal arm. The impact sent me reeling, but I recovered quickly.

A metal arm..? 

His arm was metal. 

Why? 

Ares landed a hard hit in the side of my face, and we briefly came to exchange quick explosive blows. 

Every time I swung with my sword, he narrowly avoided it with experience. While my speed showed itself superior when he went for a brutal uppercut and I slipped back, sending a kick that he blocked with his arms. 

He opted on backing away. Ares resummoned his weapon and promptly hurled it at me with terrifying speed.

I batted the weapon that had suddenly formed in front of him aside with a burst of Wind Manipulation. 

Then I managed to position myself behind him. At the last moment, I deactivated Decrease Gravitational Force, my speed dropping slightly as the force of my punch became stronger. 

My fist met his spine alight with the glow as I utilised my luminous impact style.

In that brief moment, I activated Gravity Blast for good measure. The gravity magic gave my punch even more force. The impact detonated with a low, crushing pulse. 

Ares was sent flying, armour bending inward as he crashed through three layers of Heaven’s floating barriers. 

I followed and met his eyes. I sliced my weapon down, hoping to cut him in half. He pushed back, shifting his weapon into a large war hammer that he blocked with. 

What followed was a clash between our powers. 

Ares fought against my superior strength and magic, the calm celestial-blue aura that covered me briefly clashing against the wrath of red energy that covered him. 

His eyes widened in horror as he saw my index finger pointing towards him. 

“Judgement.”

His eyes turned black briefly and his grip briefly loosened which allowed my aura to rapidly advance, only for Ares to recover quickly and continue fighting back.

Ares' eyes were pure red. 

“Weak.” My voice boomed.

The monsters directly under me fell, their bodies going limp. Which gave my only mildly surprised Angels below the opportunity to kill hundreds of them. 

I felt Ares' grip loosen and his divinity came to rage against my authority. My angelic magic dipped by a large amount but I found my steady push against his power sped up exponentially. A boom rang out as Ares slammed down into the barrier below, blood trailing down his lips. 

Barriers sprung around him as he wobbled, his weapon shifting into that of an axe. 

A scowl was on my face. 

My body felt on fire and I let out a booming shout as I descended. 

He threw himself out of the way as I collided with the space he had been in a moment prior. 

An explosion rang out.

My eyes tracked him with deadly intent. 

He stumbled back, and I savoured the fear on his face as my mind went back to that time spent in the familiar forest. Drawing on every lesson I had learnt from the scroll, I began one of the seven god-class Angelic spells I'd managed to perform. 

My hands came together, holding an imaginary ball. Light began to gather in my palm. A ball formed and gained a second layer. The ball pulsed, growing brighter. White light shifted to blue-white, then to something beyond the visible spectrum. 

The air around my hand began to warp from the sheer energy density. 

Heat radiated outward in waves that made the space itself shimmer.

Ares gritted his teeth, more domes coming to surround him. He seemingly sensed the incoming danger and used the rest of his divine energy to protect himself. 

The Angels and monsters below us noticed and began to slowly move out of the way as I watched in slow motion as they realised what was happening. 

I felt a chunk of the power leave my temporary God-class reserves. 

The sphere reached critical mass. I released it.

It fell like a newborn star. The explosion was blinding. Pure white light erupted outward in a perfect sphere, vaporizing most of Ares' barriers like they were made of paper. The shockwave rippled through dimensions, bending the air around the point of impact. 

A brief moment showed Ares underneath, multiple barriers still standing. 

As the light faded, another ball was left hovering there for a single moment and as it collapsed on itself It pulled at the residual energy from the first blast, draining every photon, every trace of illumination from the immediate area. 

Everything around Ares went black. Absolute darkness that seemed to swallow light itself. The gods fighting above briefly turned to stare at the void I'd created, only to be forced to continue paying attention to the Angels they were fighting. 

Then the second sphere detonated. The explosion was twice as large, fed by all the energy it had consumed. Golden fire mixed with crushing darkness, reality buckling under the assault. The barrier beneath cracked, spider-webbing outward from the epicentre.

When the light finally died once more. 

Ares lay broken in a crater of melted stone. 

His armour was charred black, his body smoking. He tried to lift his head, eyes unfocused.

I didn't waste time.  

I descended on him, punch after punch brutally tearing into his body. 

I stared down at him for a second, the sword in my hand twitching as I thought about killing him. 

He was still in his divine form. His death would be permanent. 

The annoying God that had beaten me up and attempted to kill me. The God who had taken his grudge far enough to join the attack on Heaven and had threatened to kill the one family that hadn’t stabbed me in the back. 

I let the moment pass, and with a great deal of effort, I thought of a crueller fate than the easiness death provided. 

If he wanted to attack Heaven, he could become part of its defence as retribution. 

A single powerful strike to his temple and the God of War went limp. 

I stored him in my inventory. 

With a breath, my form continued to blaze as I surveyed the scene around me. 

-{Raziel}-

Ten battles erupted under the barrier.

The larger conflict spread around them as their clashes became visible to all.

Raziel had quickly identified the ten powerful newcomers, the ten supposed Demon Lords of China. They wasted no time decimating multiple Angels.

In response, the twelve low-ultimate class Angels that Father had recently created immediately moved to retaliate. The twelve spread out across the battlefield beneath the barrier, their fire lances making them easily noticeable among all of the chaos of battle.

Raziel watched as they activated Holy Aura in unison. That strange spell that seemed to be only for them. They all activated golden light that strengthened their forms, providing resistance against the dark energy radiating from each of the supposed ten demon lords. 

Chiyou, Xingtian, Kuafu, Gonggong, Feilian, Pingyi, Shentu and Yulei, Hou Qing, Nüba and Yinlingzi. 

Raziel observed the positioning as Yin Lingzi approached, shadows writhing around the false demon lord like living smoke. The creature's form shifted constantly, making it difficult to track.

A blast of red energy erupted, forcing Raziel to dodge and spread her wings to glide away as the blast expanded in large tendrils that lashed out chaotically.

Raziel flew away, even as the attack devoured the enemy forces below. She flew deeper into the enemy's army.

She was glad to see the other Angels had the sense to do the same.

To her left, Nerael engaged Chiyou with powerful strikes. 

The false demon lord's bronze skin deflected the first lance thrust, but Nerael followed with Holy Smite. A mass of holy power illuminated the area and forced him back as holy light scorched his armour.

Chiyou thrust its arms out and a magical bull burst out, its body seemingly didn’t bother to adhere to normal physics as it charged at the Angel in the air with glaring red eyes. 

Raziel avoided another strike, lashing out with a kick towards Yin Lingzi. As Yin Lingzi was sent back, Raziel refocused as Nerael struggled to hold a barrier against the weird magical bull that rammed into its defences. 

Raziel called on her strongest domain.

Projection, an almost weaker Heavenly Domain that mimicked her long dead sibling. Though Raziel couldn’t hope to say she was as proficient or nearly as powerful with it as Lucifer had been with Imagination. It allowed her to project her reality onto the situation, temporarily altering attacks. 

Raziel formed a small cube in her hand and sent it towards the bull. 

The cube expanded and contained the bull in its confines until the cube's barriers dissolved, and the angelic energy was used to form an explosion that consumed the Bull.

She sent a powerful sword of light at Chiyou for good measure. Chiyou noticed and attempted to dodge what would be an easy attack. 

The sword transformed, her projection shifting and forming into dozens of rods of lightning. It wasn’t powerful, since her projection domain was beyond draining but it served to take his attention. 

Especially when the lightning rods transformed again into balls of holy fire, that converged into one and exploded. 

Rashiel and Naciel worked together against Xingtian, the headless warrior swinging massive axes where his neck should be. 

Rashiel's Holy Barrier absorbed one blow while Naciel flanked, driving his lance toward the creature's spine. Xingtian spun impossibly fast, catching Naciel across the chest with his second axe.

Naciel staggered, blood spattering the ground. Rashiel tried to cover him with Holy Ray, but Xingtian pressed forward relentlessly.

Raziel dodged an attack from her own opponent and created a large light construct with difficulty that wrapped around Xingtian briefly slamming him into a wave of werewolves below before Xingtian broke out of its grasp. 

The hand of light dispersed and with divided attention the light flaking off was made into metal sword with a huff of excursion, then promptly sent to try skewer Xingtian.

She winced at the sheer drain. 

Raziel didn’t make a habit of using her heavenly projection domain due to the sheer cost. But it did allow her to make attacks that could threaten those above her power class. 

Yin Lingzi swiped a large axe that spewed out a red mist to which Xingtian promptly pushed his hand forward, sending the red mist towards Raziel. 

Her imagination ran wild and the mist met a golden glow that turned it into harmless flowers that floated in the wind. She was forced to focus on Yin Lingzi as he shot forward with a scowl.

She didn’t waste the power and the flowers circled back and were pushed forward, coming to explode in blasts of frost. Yin Lingzi was forced back and the werewolves below were frozen. 

“Do not focus on others.” A voice said, a slight bass to it.

Her plan didn’t exactly work as the residual frost was gathered, allowing Yin Lingzi to send a wave of frost towards Raziel. The frost flashed and a large ice golem formed, as Yin Lingzi tried to take control of it, the ice golem turned into a fire elemental. Turning to attack Yin Lingzi. 

Raziel winced. While she could transform things with her projection they weren’t permanent. 

Her eyes glanced at the others. 

Zakiel faced Kuafu alone, the giant's steps shaking the ground. Holy Bind briefly flashed around the creature's body and made him pause, slowing but not stopping its advance. 

Zakiel darted between the massive limbs, his lance finding gaps in the rocky hide. Merael fought GongGong near a crater, water manipulation clashing against holy power. 

The false demon lord sent torrents cascading toward the angel, who countered with repeated Holy Smites that turned the water to steam.

Danel and Nerael coordinated against Delian, whose multiple arms wielded different weapons simultaneously. Danel's shield caught a sword blow while Nerael's lance pierced the creature's side. Delian roared, backhanding Danel with enough force to crack ribs.

Raziel sent multiple blades of light with a swing of her hand. 

Yin Lingzi narrowly avoided the attack. Which didn’t matter as they turned into curving arcs of lightning that blasted around Yin Lingzi wildly, a few arcs hit and burnt skin was left in its wake. 

A black magical circle appeared underneath Raziel and spewed ash that tried to ensnare her, she quickly rose and flew back. Raziel created a box that consumed the ash. 

The box formed into a shield and the ash burnt through another attack that followed after. The box of energy then spiralled and sent a massive multi-elemental attack that blazed through the air. 

Yin Lingzi had to back away and multiple shields formed as a massive explosion of ice, fire, air and lightning created a tornado that became eviscerating nearby forces.

Yin Lingzi wasn’t able to make it unscathed and Raziel’s breathing became heavier from the massive attack. 

The attack allowed a brief respite though as Yin Lingzi fought against the massive attack. 

After successfully breaking out of it. Yin Lingzi charged forward, black energy crackling off him as his speed was seemingly enhanced. Yin Lingzi sent bolts of destructive energy towards Raziel. 

In turn, Raziel swiped her hand. 

The bolts turned into flocks of black ravens that flew in a circle and charged towards Yin Lingzi, as they approached they turned into holy light spears and forced Yin Lingzi back. 

Aurel struggled against Pingyi's speed, the false demon lord appearing and disappearing in bursts of wind. The boost from Holy Aura helped track the movement, but Pingyi's claws still found their mark across Aurel's shoulder.

Tamiel held his ground against Shentu, the massive creature's stone fists slamming into his Holy Barrier repeatedly. Each impact sent cracks through the defence.

Yin Lingzi sliced his shoulder and blood poured out unnaturally, forming into a longsword. He slashed and Raziel made a cube with a ball of light within it that the sword pierced through. 

The cube expanded and exploded, sending him flying back. 

Raziel narrowed her eyes. 

She raised both arms, and the air around her fractured like glass.

Dozens of cubes materialized in the sky, each one humming, rotating, and layered with complex holy runes. They shifted dimensions every second. With a snap of her fingers, they launched.

The cubes streaked down toward Yin Lingzi. He snarled and leapt forward, sword sweeping in wide arcs. One cube shattered, then two, then six but for every one he broke, another came from behind, warping space to strike from impossible angles.

Raziel snapped her finger. 

As he dodged, she clasped her hands. 

Yin Lingzi sent multiple spears of frost towards Raziel. 

Heavenly Domain skill: projection imprint.

The frost swirled into a chaotic mass of frost and expanded, taking the form of a large frost golem behind her, instantly swinging down at Yin Lingzi. 

He held his hands out and the blade paused in mid-air, a black magical circle formed and attached to the energy golem's surface. Exploding in a wave of frost.

The frost only served to make the frost golem larger and Raziel sent Yin Lingzi a slightly incredulous look. 

Yin Lingzi scowled, sending black bolts that obliterated the massive ice Golem. 

Raziel didn’t pause, a cube forming in front of her and her fists coming to punch it in quick succession. 

Balls of light fired out in the dozens and forced him to dodge, as he was weaving between them one caught his shoulder. Exploding and burning his arms thoroughly. She used her projection domain and turned the balls of light into a wave of fire that briefly boxed him. 

She snapped her hand and a massive cube of light formed above him, dropping down to smash on his head with a force that made all the forces nearby fall over.

Hanel fought Yulei, struggling against the false demon lord's lightning-fast strikes. 

Hanel used his shield to block, swiping his fire lance. A large circle appeared under Yulei and he dodged back, avoiding the massive beam shot upwards. 

Yulei swiped his claws. 

Hanel sent a holy bind and was able to get a single holy ray off before Yulei broke free. Yulei’s speed proved too much for the inexperienced Angel and she caught him off guard. 

Raziel sent a spell towards Yulei even as he was forced to deal with his own battle. The spell burst into chains, restricting Yulei and stopping Yulei from killing Zakiel. 

Yin Lingz exploded from the cube, his eyes burning with energy. Massive frigid cold blasts of frost fired towards her and an aura of frost began circling his body.

Yin Lingz seemingly didn’t care as werewolves in the dozens were frozen in each blast of frost that missed her. He raised his hand and a massive black circle formed, a wave of conscious tendrils coming out and immediately targeting her. 

She flicked her hand and activated her Heavenly Domain. The tendrils turned into stone as they approached her and she used the matter to form a large fist that slammed towards Yin Lingzi. 

Raziel desperately looked over to see how Hanel was faring. 

Hanel sent multiple holy rays towards Yulei. 

Yulei was blown back, blood pouring out in copious amounts. Hanel seemed to relax as the obvious advantage became clear, only for a claw to materialise and rake across Hanel's throat. 

An illusion. 

The real Yulei seemed damaged, but to the extent that had been portrayed. His eyes widened, and he fell without a sound.

Raziel felt her heart clench. The newer Angels simply lacked the experience, it was noticeable. As the six Angels Father had made prior fare much better than the six newer ones. 

Yin Lingzi recovered and spikes of dark energy formed in the dozens. 

Raziel growled, the spikes turning into holy spears of burning fire that were used to send attacks to all of the Chinese Demon Gods. 

Raziel further materialised a sword into existence and flew past Yin Lingz, who went to give chase only for a sword to suddenly fly from behind and pierce him in the heart. 

Raziel kicked Yulei, forming another sword and ducking under a claw swipe. She sent a massive blast of light that he blocked with a crackle of dark energy that formed into a barrier. 

She ducked, allowing the beam to disperse and managing to cut his arm off in a clean swipe.

A concentrated crystallised ball attached to his chest as he batted another swing of her sword away. 

She backed away and it exploded. 

Yulei was blown back, burns scorching its entire body and she approached emotionlessly.

-{Metatron}-

Metatron's blade carved through another twisted creature, its shriek cut short as holy light burned through corrupted flesh. 

Around him, Vatican guards and exorcists formed protective lines around fleeing civilians.

"Move the families to the inner sanctum!" he barked, deflecting a spray of acidic blood with his wing. "Dulio needs the airspace clear!"

An exorcist stumbled, overwhelmed by three spider-like monstrosities. Metatron appeared beside him in a flash, his sword bisecting all three creatures in a single sweep. Golden ichor splattered the marble steps.

"Stay in formation," he ordered, already turning to the next threat.

The sound of approaching wingbeats made him pivot, blade raised. Ten black wings descended through the chaos, and Metatron's grip tightened on his weapon.

Kokabiel landed heavily on the Vatican steps, followed by a small group of Fallen Angels who shifted uncomfortably behind him. 

His face had changed from the arrogant sneer Metatron remembered to something softer, more worn.

Metatron’s power flared. 

"Peace, Metatron," Kokabiel said, raising both hands.

"Don't give me that, Kokabiel.” Metatron demanded coldly. “Why are you here?" 

"Many reasons…” Kokabiel replied hesitantly. 

Metatron scrunched his face up in displeasure and Kokabiel quickly continued. 

“I suppose a start would be to repent for my actions,” Kokabiel continued carefully. 

Metatron stared at him. "Repent? You expect me to believe that when you were at the forefront of every attempt at starting the war again?"

"That was different." Kokabiel's voice carried genuine shame.

Metatron wanted to snort in disbelief but something stopped him from doing so.

"Different.” Metatron chuckled mirthlessly. “How so?"

"Father wasn't alive."

Metatron's piercing gaze softened slightly. "What?"

"You know why I fell, Metatron. I certainly didn't do it to betray Heaven or give in to sin." Kokabiel met his eyes. "I did it because I was hurt. The world just didn't feel real without Father."

Metatron remained silent. He found himself agreeing. 

"So you abandoned his legacy?” Metatron replied, turning to send a strong angelic spell that obliterated a few monsters. 

Despite not having time for this he couldn’t help but continue to regard Kokabiel. 

"Yes,” Kokabiel replied, his eyes shining with a hurt that shocked Metatron. “Because it wasn’t Father’s legacy.”

Metatron observed the Fallen Angel in front of him. This felt like a different person to the malicious Fallen Angel he had encountered a few times before. 

“Heaven was weakened and the situation wasn’t getting any better.” Kokabiel said, not justifying his actions but trying to explain his reasoning. “So I wished to destroy the three factions, but that was only because Father's legacy felt stamped upon," 

“And you think that's a good excuse?" Metatron asked. “A good excuse to have been a part in allowing Heaven to fall this much?” 

Metatron sent a massive blade of light cutting down multiple approaching monsters without looking away from his fallen brother.

"No. None of this is okay. But with or without me that wouldn't have changed." Kokabiel's shoulders sagged.

“You words may be true, but you still left and then further wanted to destroy Heaven.” Metatron grit out. 

“I-i simply wanted to rid the world of what had come to be." Metatron replied. 

"That still doesn't excuse it," Metatron responded angrily. “That doesn’t explain why you are here and why I should trust you aren’t just acting like so many of your kin enjoy.”

"Because I am sincere.” He said earnestly. “which means you can trust that I am here to help. Father may judge me in whatever way he sees fit." 

The resignation in Kokabiel's voice struck Metatron. He saw true exhaustion in his old sibling's eyes. 

Metatron was silent. He didn’t have time to fully address this. 

“Then how about you show that by taking the first line?” Metatron finally decided.

Kokabiel knew what he was doing but simply nodded. 

The Fallen Angels spread out along the defensive lines. 

Metatron sent a glance to Kokabiel’s back and smiled faintly. 

Perhaps not all was as lost as it seems. 

-END-

Note: Bit of a slower chapter, but next chapter speeds up exponentially. Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter and feel free to leave any suggestions you may have :)

if you wish to read up to sixteen chapters in advance among my stories and other things please visit pa/t reon * / Snipez818, the app is charging a lot more for some reason so I suggest using the website. 

I appreciate all the support!