It was a dark place.

Nothing existed in that place. Endless darkness stretched to all directions. Mass, sound, and even light could not escape its pull. It was a place that existed for millions of years, the galaxy owing its existence to its presence. It was an endless void, a mystery to humanity and divinity alike.

Yet within that place, something stirred.

And it very, oh so very slowly, made its way out. It climbed, for eons upon eons, its way to the exit. It was not a place it should have been able to escape, yet time gave it that luxury.

And so, it continued to climb. After such a long time, it finally reached the threshold. Its 'hand' gripped the 'edge' of the darkness, pulling itself out oh so very slowly. It could still feel the overwhelming pull, threatening to engulf it once again in eternal darkness. However, it had already surpassed the strength of that pull.

It continued its climb as another 'hand' gripped the 'edge'. It could see with its 'eyes' the empty space around it. The tiny dots of light that filled its vision were a welcome sight after such a long time. As it slowly pulled itself out, more of its 'body' appeared. It thought that it would take it even more eons just to climb out. But it succeeded, and soon, its entire 'body' escaped the pull of that dark world.

It floated in space, looking around it as if lost. Left, right, up, down. Directions blurred as it continued its search, a familiar yet alien hum filling its entire being.

After what felt like hours, its 'eyes' settled on a direction, the hum strongest where it came from. It knew it was a very faraway place. But it made a vow that it would reach it again. Its 'children' awaited it there. To be reunited with its 'mother'.

And slowly, ever so slowly, it began its journey to the home of its 'children'…

Gaia…

"We're heading out!" Keiichi Morisato yelled from the door of the house. Closing the sliding door behind him, he headed towards the garage where his familiar bike awaited him. It was a machine that had stayed with him for years, and even though he could feel its time slowly coming to an end, he was not willing to part with the machine yet. The memories contained within every bolt of its frame told a miraculous story.

The story of a man down on his luck, and how that man was blessed by the presence of a goddess.

Freeing the helmet from its resting place, Keiichi got on the bike. He inserted the key and turned, allowing the sound of the ignition to fill his mind. Quickly checking the gauges and seeing that everything was green, he began to make his way to the bottom of the stairs of the temple. It was a short path he had to take around the perimeter of the temple, seeing as he couldn't really take the bike down the stairs by himself. He figured that whoever built this place only realized the sheer inaccessibility to vehicles only after the grounds were finished, and so made a roundabout way to give them some access.

Keiichi never really complained about this aspect of the house. He had worse things to worry about after all.

Like a pair of sibling goddesses blowing up the house to kingdom come on a daily basis.

Soon enough, he made his way to the steps of the temple, upon which she waited. He braked, letting the bike come to a slow stop in front of her so she could climb in.

"Ready to go?" He asked her with a smile. She beamed radiantly at him.

"Yes!"

Climbing into the side car, the goddess made herself comfortable, and quickly put on her own helmet. Once she was all tucked in, Keiichi hit the gas and the bike began its drive. The routine drive to where the pair worked.

And so the drive continued in its usually quiet. The sound of the wind and the road would after all, swallow any sound the two of them would try to make in conversation. At times, Keiichi thought that a car would be a bit more useful in that case as to make the drive more intimate, but once again, he couldn't really complain about such a small detail.

Intimate. With the goddess at his side.

The goddess Belldandy, who after nearly three years together, finally became his wife.

It almost feels like I'm dreaming. Keiichi thought to himself. If someone went back in time and told him that in a few years he would marry a goddess, he would have probably laughed at their face. And yet such a ridiculous scenario became reality for him, and he had to admit that he couldn't possibly be happier.

Two months have passed since the impromptu marriage in the sky between the two of them. He couldn't believe what a crazy situation led to that result. Going to hell, passing the trials of the demons, freeing Hild from captivity, learning the truth of the contract, passing the gate of judgment, and finally being married while surrounded by gods and demons. He honestly believed that he would have a regular, homely marriage with the woman, but after being inducted into the world of the gods he knew he would receive anything BUT normal. But he didn't regret a single minute of it. The goddess next to him made every single moment worth it. No matter how many times he nearly died, or was transfigured, launched into the sky, or whatever other crazy shenanigans he experienced.

And so two months have passed since then, and things did in fact change since then.

It began with that very same night that they were married. Having made their way home after the joyous event, the elder goddess Urd, decided to lay out some new ground rules. And the first thing she did was taking Belldandy's futon from her room and boldly place it next to his own in his room. At first, he began to complain, but the half demoness would have none of it. If beforehand her methods were aggressive, this time it was almost threatening. She just wouldn't allow the kindergarten-level relationship they had to continue after being married. The first step was to put the two together, no matter how much the little sister, Skuld, raged about it.

That first night he could barely sleep as he stared for hours at the goddess lying next to him, who also did not go to sleep at all. Yet as the days went on he began to appreciate the closeness with her, and they fell into a blissful routine of going to sleep late as they basked in each other's presence.

But that was not the only change, oh no. With the new status quo in the house, another consequence made itself boldly known. For him, discovering that his very sense of lust was sealed by the gods in order to fulfill the contract was mind-shattering. He could not believe that such a thing was even possible, that Belldandy would keep such an important fact hidden from him. He knew the reasons logically, but emotionally it tore at him in that moment. He felt as if the years they spent together were lies, that their relationship was forcefully kept at a very low level. But despite that, they still passed the gate of judgment together, and so his desire was released.

And oh so very boldly it decided to make that known. It happened one night as they were in their usual routine when Belldandy suddenly began to be aggressive and kissed him, catching him by surprise. They kissed for a long time that night, and with his desire released, the pal downstairs decided it wanted in on the action. He remembered how tight his pants felt that night, that he had to take them off or it would kill him. Not surrendering just yet, he made his own aggressive move as his hand slowly made its way to the goddess' breast. The ensuing sweet moan from her very nearly overloaded his brain. He could feel his face burn up as he struggled to control himself, but that control was slipping quickly, especially when the suddenly arousing goddess made her way down with her own hand, and grasped the raging fellow through his pants. He knew that the big moment was coming, and he couldn't be more nervous.

And then a bomb tore through the thin paper that made up the door to his room.

Keiichi sighed. He was so close, and yet Skuld still wouldn't give him the time of day even after he married her sister. He remembered the disappointment he felt at that moment when the room went up in smoke.

And when he looked at Belldandy, he could see she had her own face of disappointment.

That moment never returned after that night, and he honestly was beginning to get agitated. He was surprised how overwhelming that feeling was. He attributed it to the seal he had on his emotions, that they were kept bottled up for years and were now exploding outward. But he couldn't blame the young goddess, at least not completely. She had always been needy and always wanted attention from the middle Norn. She had hoped that she could separate them before they reached that level, but she still failed. And she was taking it very hard, as a kid normally would.

Not that I would ever tell her that. He remarked to himself.

"Keiichi, we're here." He heard Belldandy tell him. Blinking to reassert himself, he realized that they had reached their destination. The shop Whirlwind, where he worked along with his wife under Chihiro Fujimi, the owner of the shop and former president of the NIT Auto Club.

"Keiichi, is everything alright?" She asked him, looking up from the sidecar with worry on her face.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I was just…reminiscing." He answered with a smile. That was another welcome change in his eyes. No longer did she add the prefix to his name, even after years of using it. To her, it felt appropriate to call her husband without it, him no longer being just a client or just a boyfriend. With him, she could tear down all the walls she had in her heart and finally be herself around him. For it to take marriage to force the two to become more intimate was mind-boggling, but it was just in their nature to take things slowly.

Parking the bike in its usual place near the shop, the couple stood up, removing the helmets from their heads, placing them back in their place on the bike.

"Chihiro-san, we're here!" He said in a loud voice, alerting the owner of the shop to their arrival.

"Yo, Morisato-kun and Bell-chan, good morning." Chihiro said, turning to them as they entered. "Or should I say, Mr. and Mrs. Morisato?" She added with a grin.

And that was ANOTHER change that came to their lives.

It was around a month after they were married when a slip of the tongue to one of the former Auto Club members that revealed the truth to them. To say they were in an uproar was an understatement. Almost instantly a vast amount of guests appeared in the temple for the big celebration. Some congratulating them, some asking about the rush and the secrecy, and others praising him for finally being a man. It was a joyous yet chaotic night that Urd thrived in, and he had to admit they had a whole lot of fun despite the destruction. Having goddesses that could fix the damage so quickly and efficiently was a god-send, no pun intended.

And now he was being teased constantly. "Yeah yeah Chihiro-san, we got it the first time." He said, scratching his head in annoyance. Behind him, Belldandy beamed at the woman's remark. No matter how many times someone told her that, she would never grow tired of it.

"So what's the agenda for today?" He added, quickly changing the subject.

"Hmph, still such a stubborn fellow. Anyway, here is what we are going to do today…" She told him, handing him a stack of papers.

And so their day began.

"We're home!" Keiichi yelled as he opened the sliding door to the house. The day had been very normal for them. As a motorbike shop, their days usually consisted of repairing the bikes of customers, but recently Chihiro upgraded and told them they would start sponsoring in order to bring in more money. It was a very happy occasion for her, seeing how it meant that her shop was finally gaining the recognition it deserved. It meant more work for them but again, Keiichi couldn't complain.

"Welcome back." Urd said, stepping out of the living room. "Anything new?" She asked them, her hand on her head.

"Not really," Keiichi replied, removing his coat and handing it to Belldandy who graciously took it from him and folding it in her hands. "Just a regular hectic day with that slavedriver."

"Is that right." The elder goddess said. Deciding the conversation was too bland to continue, she headed back into the living room to continue watching her show.

"I'll get started on dinner then." Belldandy said with a smile after hanging his coat on the hanger. She then headed into the living room, glancing at Urd who floated in the air in front of the TV, and then into the kitchen to begin cooking.

Keiichi decided to head into his room first to put his things away. He entered it, taking note of the various new decorations that adorned it. After settling into the room, Belldandy decided to liven it up a bit. It gave him such a weird feeling at times. She was always very minimal, and the only real changes were changing the label on the entrance to 'Keiichi and Belldandy's room' from his old 'Keiichi's room', a new flower pot and some pictures that hung on the walls. He approached the low table at the back of the room, and one by one took things out of his pockets and placed them on it. Keys, wallet, some wires he probably forgot about, the present-

Realizing something was wrong, he looked again through the pockets, not feeling the object he was looking for. Panicking, he exited the room in a hurry and went to his coat, rifling through the pockets to check if it was there. Finding nothing, despair filled him. He slammed the door of the house open and ran to his bike, checking everywhere he could to hopefully see if the object was there.

And yet he found nothing. He sat on the ground, contemplating where he could have misplaced it. Hopefully in a place Belldandy wouldn't find it. He searched through his memories long and hard.

Suddenly, it came to him. He left it in the shop, hidden behind some tools in the back of the small shed. He was going above and beyond to hide it from Belldandy and it made him feel horrible to keep secrets from her, the ring he bought her years ago on that Christmas night coming up to his mind. But this was important for him as the anniversary of her arrival of Earth was coming up and there was no way he would leave something so important laying around in a place someone could find it. He had to go back for it. Dinner would wait for now, Belldandy will understand.

Heading back into the house and into the living room, he spoke up. "I'm going back to the shop. I forgot something so I'm going to take it. Leave some dinner behind for me."

"Ah!" Belldandy exclaimed, stepping quickly back into the living room. "I can go get it for you…" she suggested before Keiichi interrupted her, his face flushed.

"Nonononono it's ok! You just finish dinner! I'll be back real soon I promise!" He said, waving his arms in front of him in a panic. No way he could let her see it. It would blow the surprise.

Scurrying quickly back to his room to get changed, it took him less than a minute to get ready. He bolted straight to the bike, starting it and headed out as fast as possible to the road, leaving the household stunned at his quick leave.

"I wonder what is wrong…" Belldandy wondered, her face falling. She knew there was something on his mind but couldn't put her finger on it. She knew she was a bit of a scatter brain at times, but keeping secrets after being married was an unpleasant feeling for her.

"Just let him do his thing," Urd told her. "It's probably like that time with the ring. Keiichi doesn't have the guts to do something dangerous behind your back anyway." She added, huffing. With the show over, Urd headed back to her room while Belldandy stayed in the living room, the miso soup in the kitchen still warming up.

Meanwhile, on the road, Keiichi tried to calm himself down. He realized he had been a bit too hasty in his escape from the house, but he just couldn't give Belldandy the chance to follow him. He had to make sure she didn't find out. It would be for another two days, that's all. Just two days and he can give it to her and see her wonderful smile again.

It took him around twenty minutes to reach the shop again. It was fairly late at night, the stars above shining overhead with all their luster, and the full moon providing some light for the darkness. Parking the Beemer in its usual spot, Keiichi headed to the door to the shed behind the shop, and began looking around the area where he hid the object. It took him about a minute to remember exactly where it was, but after a quick check he felt it, and took it out from its hiding spot, and looked at his find with a smile.

It was a pendant. A small, elegant ruby carved into a triangle sat connected to a metal chain by a shiny metal clasp. It was a simple yet beautiful thing he found one day while looking through the antique shop he and Belldandy went to when they were researching the mysterious camera they were given by the seniors. When he looked upon the gem, he was instantly taken with it. It was beautiful, yet minimal, something that Belldandy will surely appreciate. It was a fairly expensive thing for an antique shop, but the shop keeper gave him a discount as thanks for helping him clean up the shop. Satisfied he found it quickly, he let out a relieved sigh. He could finally calm down and head home to eat some of Belldandy's delicious dinner as always. Maybe he should just hide it somewhere she wouldn't look. He didn't have as much privacy as before since she roomed with him, but again he couldn't really complain.

"How strange to see the famous Keiichi Morisato all alone this night."

The sudden voice caused Keiichi to look up and hurriedly look around him, trying to find the source. "Who said that?!" He yelled, careful not to wake up the neighbors. He quickly pocketed the pendant as he looked in all directions. Left, right, up, down.

Finally, his gaze settled on the roof of the shop, and his eyes widened.

A man stood there. In the darkness of the night he couldn't really make out his face, but his long flowing hair and the strange clothes he wore seemed to wear gave Keiichi an inkling of what the person was. The stranger smirked in the darkness, and in one fluid motion jumped off the roof, floating slowly to the ground until he was facing Keiichi, his form shrouded in the shadow of the shed.

"I never thought the opportunity would present itself so quickly and easily. It must be fate that we meet here and now." The man said. Slowly, he stepped out of the shadows, allowing Keiichi to finally see his features, and as he thought, the markings on his face gave out his identity.

A god. A god showed up out of nowhere and was standing before him. He wondered if it was another attempt by Heaven to grant his wish, but he quickly shot down that idea. After all, meeting a god face to face shouldn't cause him to suddenly be so on guard.

Well, anyone would if a stranger appeared out of nowhere, carrying an overwhelming sense of bloodlust.

Swallowing once, Keiichi asked the god. "What…what do you want?"

The deity gave a small, yet disturbing smile. "Why, I want one thing from you,"

"I want you to die."

A chill went down Keiichi's spine as the god said the words, the smirk still on his lips. He had to get out of there. He didn't know what the hell the god was on about, but if there was something he knew he had to do, was buy time. At this point Belldandy and the others would have felt the disturbance, and would come rushing to his location.

"Tsk tsk tsk, that's not how it is going to work, mortal." The god said, taking a step forward. "I made sure to seal off my signature. Nobody is going to come and save you. Belldandy won't even know you are dead until long after I am already gone." Energy coalesced in his open palm. "It is her we are after anyway. Cutting away her bonds to the earth will only make this so much easier on us."

This is very bad. Keiichi thought to himself. It was supposed to be a regular night. He was supposed to be at home eating the dinner made for him by his wife. Yet here he was, on a cold night, being threatened by a deity who was supposed to be helping people, not killing them.

He had to escape somehow. If he could just get to somewhere populated, then maybe this god will stand down, giving him ample time to call for assistance.

"I can tell you are itching to escape. Feel free to try, little mortal. Do try to make this amusing for me before I kill you." The smirk turned into a savage grin.

And that was his cue. Quickly running to the shed to grab the fire extinguisher from where it sat, he threw it towards the rogue god. With a swipe of his hands, the god sliced the fire extinguisher in half and it exploded, sending white vapors all over the place, obscuring him from Keiichi's view. Taking the chance while the god's sight was hindered, Keiichi bolted to the street. He didn't have time to reach his bike. He had to escape as fast as possible to somewhere safe. Picking up speed, he ran in a random direction, hoping it would take him where there are people. At this time of night he doubted it there would be many out, but he had to take his chance.

Running as fast as he could, he dared to glance back behind him to see if the god was following. Seeing nothing behind him, he let out a relieved sigh as he continued running, turning his head back forward.

And then the god appeared in front of him in a small flash of light. With a grin still etched on his face, the deity swiped his hand horizontally, meaning to cut off Keiichi's head in one blow. His instincts screaming at him, Keiichi ducked and rolled past the god, swiftly returning to his feet and resumed running. The swipe let out a shockwave that cut into the surrounding light poles, cleaving through them down the middle, sending them tumbling down to the road. Several lights went out around them.

Keiichi knew that ultimately, his struggle was futile. There was no way a human could really escape from a god. Yet he still had to try. If somehow he could get Belldandy to feel his distress, he would be safe. The overpowering feeling of powerlessness filled up his being.

The chase continued as Keiichi continued sprinting through the night. At every turn he tried to take, the god appeared and once again swiped his hands. And once again Keiichi ducked and rolled. He could feel his stamina depleting as he continued running. Dodging the god's attacks was taxing his endurance, and he was never really a person who focused on sports so he couldn't keep this up forever. Yet something within him gave him energy. He wasn't completely sure what it was, but it helped, and he picked up as much speed as he could as he kept on running.

Eventually, Keiichi found himself at the beach. He didn't know how the hell he got there with his limited stamina, but he did. The strange feeling that gave him energy disappeared, and he collapsed to his hands and knees on the sand, panting heavily as he tried to take in air. He should get his bearings while he could, and maybe he would be able to shake off the god—

"All out of steam are we? Such a shame." The god said, appearing in front of him. Gasping, Keiichi raised his head to look at the deity.

And then a kick smashed into the side of his head, sending him flying across the sand.

He felt his body leave the ground, his senses in a daze. After a second of air time, Keiichi landed in a roll, feeling like his head almost flew off his shoulders. He kept on rolling, and then his back smashed into the wall of an outhouse on the beach. Pain wracked his senses as he coughed up blood. Laying down on the ground won't do him any good. He struggled to get up, his legs shaking from the pain. He heard the crunching of the sand as the god lazily walked up to him.

"It sure was fun, human. Seeing you scurrying around like a rat was most amusing." The god said with a hint of humor in his voice. Keiichi tried to crawl away from him, to get some kind of distance from the renegade, but he barely had any strength left in him to do anything. The god walked up to the downed human, and then slammed his foot right on Keiichi's back.

Keiichi's agonized scream echoed throughout the beach as even more pain shot up to his brain, his consciousness threatening to leave him. The sound waves of the scream carried on beyond the beach, reaching all the way, despite their weakness, to a familiar temple.

Belldandy shot up from where she stood. "KEIICHI!" she yelled, having heard the small voice of pain. As a goddess, she had extremely sensitive hearing, especially when it comes to voices. Hearing the pained cry of her husband put her on alarm instantly. She dashed out of the living room, leaving everything behind. Collecting as much power as she could, the entrance door blew off its hinges as the Norn flew towards the sky, trying to find the source of the voice. She looked around hurriedly, hoping she was not too late.

In the house, Urd and Skuld opened their bedroom doors, alarmed by the sudden sound of gushing wind that Belldandy left behind. Puzzled at their sister's behavior, they stood still for a moment to take it in.

Urd didn't even need to think twice. Running towards the entrance herself, she shouted to Skuld behind her. "Hold down the fort kid! I'm going to check it out!" and quickly took off towards her sister in the sky, leaving the youngest Norn alone.

Gaining altitude quickly, the elder Norn climbed towards her sister. "Belldandy! What's wrong?" Urd asked her as she flew to Belldandy's height.

"I heard Keiichi screaming. I have to find him! But I can't! Something is blocking me!" She yelled, her voice pained. Urd couldn't bear to see her sister's pain faced as panic filled her, her eyes still looking around, trying to find some sort of direction.

"Let's split up!" Urd suggested. "We can cover more ground this way! Don't worry Belldandy, we'll find him! Maybe whatever is blocking you will disappear!"

Deciding to take her elder sister's suggestion to heart, yet still panicking, Belldandy took off towards the city with such speed that sonic booms were nearly left in her wake. There was no time to lose. Following her lead, Urd took off towards the city as well, hot on her tail.

On the beach, Keiichi continued to writhe in agony as the god tortured him, smashing his foot on his back again. "I see that's all you have." The deity said, his voice bored. "Humans truly are a boring race. Your eventual fate will be nothing more than mercy at this rate." Having had enough of kicking the human in the spine, the god kicked him in the stomach, causing Keiichi to flip over to his back. Barely conscious, Keiichi tried to pick himself up, managing with great pain to put his arms behind him, giving him some support.

"Damn….you." He growled out through the blood in his mouth. "I…can't…let…myself…die…to…you…"

"Oh really? And what are you going to do about it?"

"Bell…dandy…is…waiting…for…me…" Keiichi let out weakly, barely able to open his eyes.

"That's very cute, but it's useless. I told you she won't be coming." The god added, the smirk leaving his face. He had enough of messing around. Raising his palm towards the downed human, energy once again gathering at his fingertips. "Time to die."

The gathering light nearly blinded Keiichi, and being unable to move, he could only stare in wonder at it.

Yet fear was not coming, to his surprise. Was it a sudden acceptance of his death? He wasn't sure. But he was not afraid.

Something stirred within him.

"I…can't…"

Something glowed beside him.

"I can't….."

He clenched his teeth as hard as he could.

"I can't let myself….be killed…."

The light reached its peak.

"BY A BASTARD LIKE YOU!"

"Well said"

And then the arm leveled at him was cut away by a spear of light.

"What?!" The god exclaimed, shock filling his voice as he watched the severed arm fly through the air, turning into nothingness, and the light gathered in it harmlessly dissipating. Pain traveled up his shoulder, yet it was not like the human's. A deity's arm can be restored. It only needed a fairly simple procedure to do so. Turning his head to where the spear came from, the god saw the interloper's form bathed by the moon's light behind him. He couldn't make out their form, but he could make out the shape of the object they were holding.

A bow. A complete strange, whose origin was unknown, fired a strong enough arrow that sliced off the god's arm.

"Who would have thought that I would be brought back here to protect someone." The stranger exclaimed, lowering the bow. "Usually the bitch sends me here to clean up, but now I need to be a baby sitter? What a joke. This is a new low, even for me." The stranger stepped forward from the coast, approaching the human and the deity. Turning his head as well to the voice, Keiichi had a very hard time understanding what he was seeing with his muddled senses, yet he could make out some details.

It was once again, a man. A man dressed in strange garb, with dirty white hair and tanned skin. Piercing gray eyes gazing at the god whose arm he shot off. In his broken mind, Keiichi could swear that the man was Urd's brother, or something like that. Yet the presence, the aura he gave out did not seem familiar like the goddess'. Black armor covered his upper body, with what seemed like a red cape fluttering in the wind behind him. Pants black as night covered his lower body, ending in boots that seemed to be covered in some kind of steel.

Keiichi could only hang his mouth in surprise at his savior. He had expected Belldandy to be the one to show up and help him, but instead this unfamiliar person arrived. It seems he had a knack for bringing in strange people.

The god moved away from Keiichi and faced the man in red. "Who are you?" He asked him bluntly. "I do not take kindly to being interrupted."

"You have no need to know, Mr. God." The man in red responded to him, his piercing gaze locked to his eyes. "All you need to know is that I can't let you kill that idiot over there." He added, shrugging.

"Is that so?" The god said in an insulting tone. "Then, for the crime of standing in the face of judgment," The energy gathered once again in his hand. "I sentence you to death."

The god held out his remaining hand to the stranger, and the energy shot out in a straight, thick line that threatened to engulf him. Yet he stood strong, facing the approaching storm. When the moment came that he could feel the heat of the attack prickle at his skin, his eyes widened.

And then he vanished, the beam passing by where he once stood and far into the horizon.

"What?!" The god exclaimed as he looked around him to find the interloper. His head moved from side, desperate to locate him. His eyes settled back on the downed human, who still had a look of shock on his face from the recent events. Anger marred his features as he leered at Keiichi. "You! What have you done?! What is this man you called her-"

His anger was cut off as his divine senses screamed at him, and he turned around swiftly to where they detected the danger coming from.

And what he saw was the man in red, wielding a pair of twin blades, coming down to slice him in half.

The god barely managed to dodge the blades as he jumped forward, twisting in midair and landing a distance away from his opponent. However, the stranger did not plan to give the deity the chance to regain his bearings. Landing on the soft sand, he pushed against it with all his might, launching him towards the retreating god. Caught by surprise by the lightning-fast attack, the god raised his remaining arm. Power surged through it as it became hard as steel, and when the man in red swung the black blade, the god blocked it with his strengthened arm. The sound of steel crashing against steel echoed throughout the beach as the god grimaced, not expecting the strength behind the blow as it rattled the bones in his arm.

He had made a severe miscalculation, that was the conclusion he reached during his brief fight with the stranger. The plan was hinged on two possibilities: one, in the event he successfully killed Keiichi Morisato, Belldandy would be too devastated to fight back when they would come down to take her. Or two, if by any chance Belldandy did arrive in time to rescue the mortal, he could be used as a hostage in order to enforce her obedience. It was a simple plan that had a high chance of success; at least that what was his superiors told him. The last thing they expected was a third party they did not know about to appear out of nowhere, and even less for that third party to be able to match a god in power.

The god clenched his teeth, and with a yell pushed back against the black blade, pushing the man in red back, trying to gain some ground. But the interloper instead used the force of the push to turn in midair, and then bring down the white blade in his other hand upon the reeling god. Caught completely by surprise for a fourth time, the deity barely managed to avoid the strike coming down on him. The white blade gleamed in the moonlight as it sliced a shallow cut on his chest, causing the god to cry out in pain. Anger boiling within him, he let out a yell, causing a sphere of pure energy to explode around him, throwing sand in all directions. Pushed back by the sudden explosion of power, the man in red crossed his blades in front of him as a shield, their flat side protecting his face. They held momentarily, but the surge of divine energy was too much for them to withstand, and they shattered, the metal shards flying in all directions. Landing on his feet, the man in red watched as the fragments of his swords dissolved into light.

He took a moment to study his opponent. The god was seething with rage, his chest bloody from the shallow cut. He had meant to completely slice him in half, but he figured he couldn't underestimate the divinity of his opponent. He fought his own fair share of divinities in the past, and he knew better than to look down on them.

Not like his opponent though. Part of his rage stemmed from the fact that he did not know how the stranger managed to injure him so. It made no sense, he was supposed to be a god, an existence the humans both revered and feared! Yet the man in red was calm, his expression neutral as he watched him.

The brief skirmish ended, a gentle breeze flowing through the beach. The god, his teeth clenched, spoke up first. "You…what are you?! There is no way a human could possibly stand up to me!"

The man in red shrugged. "Who knows? I never admitted I was a human anyway. You jumped to your own conclusions like a fool."

The god growled. A demon then? No, he doesn't have the markings nor the aura. Even if there are spells that can mask their presence, I should have been able to discern his nature the very moment he appeared! His thoughts raged as he attempted to find an answer to his dilemma, trying to see how he could counter his opponent's strange tactics.

"Whatever it is you are thinking about, you should probably hurry it up," The stranger told him, breaking him away from his thoughts. "With your concentration broken, that seal you put on yourself disappeared."

For a moment, the god did not know what the man was telling him. However, realization dawned on him quickly as his eyes widened.

"You probably don't want to be here when they come. After what you did to that idiot over there," He said, pointing lazily to the downed Keiichi, who was still staring in awe at the scene. "Anything I could do would pale in comparison."

The god cursed, realizing his plan was in shambles. Despite his anger, he was still a god, and as such had a fairly rational mind. If he stayed for even a second more, Belldandy would arrive, and he did not want to spurn the gentle Norn's ire just yet.

"Tch." He clicked out in annoyance. He looked to the skies, and he could feel a presence approaching their location at incredibly high speeds. He looked one last time at the man in red, who crossed his arms, his mouth upturned into an insulting smirk. Moments later, the god waved his remaining arm in the air, disappearing just in time to miss the presence he had felt land on the beach with full force, sending clouds of sand in all directions.

And from the huge cloud of sand Belldandy walked out, looking over the beach in all directions, trying to find her husband. Her eyes settled briefly on the man in red. Her mouth gaped in shock as the man shrugged, and pointed towards the outhouse. Overcoming her surprise, the goddess turned her head to where he was pointing, and her eyes widened in fear.

"KEIICHI!" She screamed out, sprinting towards the downed human and completely ignoring the man in red. She reached him and crouched beside him, careful not to aggravate his injuries.

"Hey…Bell…I…knew…you'd…come…" He hoarsed out weakly. Tears welled up in her eyes as she studied his condition. Not waiting even for a moment, she laid him down on the sand, and held her hands over him. Forcing all the power she could muster into her palms, she chanted a healing spell softly, and watched as green light left her palms, settling on the injured human. It was a process that would take some time, but she had no intention of stopping, even if it drained her of every bit of magic she had within her.

Meanwhile, Urd landed next to the pair, having sensed the power thrown around as well. The two had been flying all over the city, trying to find any clue as to Keiichi's location. A sudden surge of power alerted them, having felt it come from the direction of the beach. Urd, who was closer to it, believed that she would arrive first. About half way through the distance, Belldandy zoomed past her in insanely high speeds, this time leaving sonic booms in her wake as she rode the winds towards her husband.

Urd looked at the pair in alarm, and watched as Belldandy worked her magic, slowly but surely healing the human, who at this point was feeling darkness fill the edge of his vision. Figuring that her sister had the situation under control, Urd turned towards the stranger, her expression guarded. The man stood his grounds, his arms still crossed over his chest as their eyes met. Tension filled the air as Urd welled forth power within her, ready to fight at any moment. Noticing the situation through his blurry vision, Keiichi let out weakly. "No…Urd…He…helped…"

Having heard his words, Urd turned her head towards the human, her eyes wide. Glad that his words reached her, Keiichi smiled weakly as the darkness filled his vision, exhaustion filling his frame. Taking in one last look at his wife, Keiichi fell into unconsciousness. Belldandy choked on a sob as she watched her husband close his eyes, for a moment fearing the worst. It was when his chest heaved and she saw him still draw breath that she calmed down, her hands still over him as she poured more magic into healing him.

Urd turned back to the stranger, no longer as guarded. "I suppose we should be thanking you, then. " She said. Standing upright, crossing her own arms under her breasts. "I don't know what happened here, but he is alive thanks to you."

"Your gratitude is not needed. I was only fulfilling my obligation." He responded, not at all fazed.

Urd furrowed her brows at his response. "Obligation?"

"That's right," he answered her, meeting her gaze. "Obligation. I was sent here to protect him, nothing more, nothing less."

"Protect him? From what?" She asked, puzzled.

"Who knows?" He said, shrugging his shoulders. "I don't even know myself."

"Do you really think that is a good enough excuse?"

"Excuse or not, that is the truth."

"I see," She said, lowering her arms. "Well then, Mr. Obligation, what do we call you?"

"Hm?" he let out in mock surprise.

"I said," the elder Norn repeated, annoyed. "What do we call you? Do you have a name? We at least want to know who helped us."

The stranger regarded her for a moment, studying her expression. "A name, huh?" He let out, as if confronting a matter her had not spoken of for a long time. "I don't have one of those."

"You don't have a name?" she asked him, her tone surprised.

"That's right, I don't have one. Not one worth mentioning anyway. I gave it up a long time ago." He responded, his tone low. Urd could not miss the tiny shard of sadness in the voice. She was sensitive to such things, even as a half-demon. Deciding not to push the subject further, she went on to a different approach.

"Alright then, do you have maybe a nickname, or something we can call you? I don't want to constantly refer to you as 'the guy in red' or something ridiculous like that." She said, her voice taking on an amused tone.

The stranger regarded her for a moment, narrowing his eyes. He let out an amused shrug, which surprised the Norn.

"I see, then I suppose you could call me…" He said, contemplating.

"Archer."

'Am I in hell?' he thought to himself.

All he could see around him was fire. A great blaze consumed everything in his vicinity, and his ears registered the horrifying sounds of people screaming. He was not sure what was happening, where he was, or how he got there. It was a strange sense of disconnection, of being completely clueless as to what brought him to this place.

He looked around, seeing the devastation brought about by an unknown cause. His heart clenched in his chest as he took in the horrible sights. Smoke and ember filled the air, yet he did not feel it. The heat and the despair did not cling to him, as he watched powerlessly at the scene.

No, this was worse than hell. He had already been in hell once before, and it was nothing like this. It was scary, for sure, but it was nothing like this. This is not a hell brought about by the hands of demons. Even they were not so savage as to cause such a catastrophe.

No, this was a hell brought about by people.

He looked towards the sky, and he saw it being covered by a blanket of smoke and flame. He could not even tell if it was night time or not, the smoke was just that thick that it blocked out the view. Yet within it, he swore he saw something else. It almost seemed like a tower to his eyes, a tower blurred within the rising smoke. A black tower that spoke of evil and hatred, the source of all the destruction. And atop the tower, he swore he caught a glimpse of a pitch black sun. Blinking once, the image disappeared, and he was left looking at the hell around him.

And yet, within that hell, he witnessed a miracle.

A young boy, barely the age of six, was walking through the hell. He could see the despair in his eyes, the hopelessness and the sorrow as he walked. The boy ignored everything around him, the fire, the destruction, and the screams. He just walked forward, with no goal or destination in mind. At that point, the boy merely existed, parts of him being shed one by one as he walked.

He watched the boy in wonder as he continued trudging through the hell. It was the only thing he could do, it was the only reprieve in this godforsaken place.

And eventually, the boy stopped in his tracks, his energy expended, and he collapsed to the ground among the ruins. He breathed weakly as he stared at the sky.

'No! You have to get up!' he screamed at the boy, but it was useless. The boy could not hear him. Would not hear him. Everything around him lost meaning, and the boy surrendered himself to his fate.

That was until a second miracle made itself known.

It was a man. The strange man arrived at the scene, staring at the fallen boy in joy. He ran to him as fast as he could, and crouched next to him. The boy weakly looked at the man, and saw the expression that would change his life forever.

The man smiled in joy, happy to have found someone he could save.

"Thank you." He murmured, taking the boy's hand, as if to affirm that he did in fact find someone alive.

The spectator looked on with tears in his eyes, the man's expression etched firmly in his mind.

And from there, the boy's arduous journey began.