As son as the TEP incident was dealt with, Eos addressed those who were still in her presence, waiting for further orders. "You can go now, if you wish. The incident has been contained without further damage. If there is something else you want of me, feel free to ask. Otherwise, your are relieved from offical duty until your next deployment," she said to the Meido Twins, as well as Wolf and Endian.

Right about this time, Eos was notified of the presence of another unit, asking for an audience with her.

HR-513 would find out that, just as Eos informed Bonesword earlier, the passage ways of the palace were open for him. Any member of the Machina was allowed free passage through the public areas and this included the High Queen's audience chambers. If that wasn't enough to convince him that he was welcome to Eos' presence, the same security drone he talked to would reply by pointing him towards the massive doors that separated Eos's processing chambers from the corridor.

The doors opened automatically.

"You can come in. What's it that you wish to of me?" the High Queen said, beckoning the Harvester.

---

@Awesomoman64@Ryonara@Lucius Cypher@Spiffy

The Harvester proceeded through the doors and toward the Queen's throne. HR-513 knelt on a single robotic knee and replied in an English accent,"High Queen of the Machina, my request is to become High-Cartographer. I will serve our nation with precision and tact. You will not be disappointed." Then he stood up and continued, gesturing with its' hands in a friendly manner,"My vast knowledge coupled with our Empire's will truly be unparalleled."

As HR-513 finished, it began to warp a cluster of materials and continued to do so with a bright blue light from its' hand. After a few moments, a colorful , metallic set of flowers formed before the Queen's eyes. HR-513 strolled up to the Queen and laid the bouquet down at the foot of her throne.

Wolf was more than thankful when Eos commended them on their work rather than punish them for their failure. Though he had to admit, a bit of him was jealous when Bonesword was awarded and he wasn't. After all it was he who took charge when the mecha maids retreated, hence his earlier comment.

Still, he couldn't be too upset. It was Bonesword who slew the demon puppet and converted a new ally after all, even if they too were demon. For now he would remain silent on the matter and let him have his moment of glory. At least, he thought it would only be a moment. But as it turned out when an angelic threat reared its head, it was both Bonesword and Henry were assigned to deal with it.

Wolf nearly spoke out in protest of this, as sending demons against an angel was tactically unsound, but decided against it as he didn't want to push the patient of his queen. Instead he did as ordered and waiting at attention in case he was needed.

To his surprise, the two were successful, and everyone was excused to leave. “As you wish, your grace.” Wolf said with a bow before exiting Eos chambers.

Not quite sure what to do with his free time, he decided to follow the magical essence of Alexi. Make sure the girl hadn't gotten herself stuck walking down an up escalator.

@KoL@The 42nd Gecko

Fun Time Torture With Henry And Zak

Henry walked into the small room with his sword in his sheathe and his dogs following behind closely. "Hey there dick head. You remember me? I'm the guy you cut in half over in Arcadia, after I tried to run away. Dick move by the way. Anyhow I've been assigned to torture you for information or something, but I don't wanna hear your stupid fucking accent honestly. So I'm just gonna do my thing. So I did a little research on humans a while back, interesting guys. Weak as fuck fleshbags for the most part, but they invented the most clever things. It's how monstrosities like Eos and the Machina were created." Henry's eyes glowed and a small fork/knife was formed in his hand. "Like this thing. They used it for eating while-"

Zak spat a fair sized wad of gooey spit at Henry mid sentence. Disdain lingered on his face, as he stared up with defiance in his eyes at his captor. "Yeah I remember ya. Yer the one with the ugly mug. Sorry I missd that day. Was aiming fer yer face. Might have made ya look a bit prettier. My fault."

Henry frowned as he tried to wipe the spit off his suit. "And they say Demons are evil. We're not the one interrupting sentences." His smile returned though as he turned the knife over in his hand, revealing the handle was a spoon. "Well no matter how ugly I am, you're going to look so much worse by the end of this." Henry grabbed Zak's hair, forcing his head backwards as he brought the spoon towards Zak's face. The angels defiant eyes never steered away from Henry's. "Don't blink, wouldn't want you missing the show." His smile intensified as he brought the spoon closer and closer to Zak's left eye, eventually digging in and scooping the eyeball out, slowly. When the eyeball came out Henry let it drop to the ground and roll towards his dogs. "Don't worry, I'll let you keep the other eye. I want you to watch as I feed you to my hounds." Cero had already eaten the eye and was waiting for more.

Anguish filled cries resounded through the chamber as Zak felt the spoon dig into his flesh. He flexed tightly against his bonds but to no avail. Blood spewwed forth like a stream from the insides of his hollow socket as his eyeball was removed. The screams lasted for several moments, echoing out until they faded into feeble moans. The angels head hung over his lap, breating heavily. Finally, his body shaking with pain and fury, Zak looked up, and with his only remaining eye, stared at Henry, just as defiant as ever. "Is that....the best...ya got?" he sputtered between pained breaths.

"Of course not. We have so much left to cover, what kind of Demon would I be if I didn't save the best for last?"

And so the process began, Henry using the knife to cut Zak's fingers off one by one, cauterizing the wounds with a very hot piece of metal he had brought with him. And it was slow. If Zak ever passed out Henry would slap him as hard as he could until he woke up, making sure he watched while Henry fed each one of his fingers to his dogs.

With each finger removed, the chamber rattled with sickening screams. It sort of reminded Zak of a date he was once on. Except then he at least had a safe word. This time wasn't so 'pleasant' and neither was the one administering the 'fun times.' Still, whenever he had the breath and the composure, Zak returned his gaze, unrelenting and rebellious. "Is this...s-supposed ta be torture lad?...." He forced a pained filled chuckle. "I th-thought ya were...f-from hell..." Consciousness nearly faded away from Zak, but he held firm, knowing there would be no rest. "Guess....I was w-wrong...ya must be from th-that new happy verse....feh..."

Henry chuckled, that was a good one actually. "You're hillarious. Not for the jokes, but the fact that you're trying to 'stay tough' and 'be brave'. I don't care about breaking you mentally. But everytime I hear you scream in pain... God damn I feel so good." Henry moaned a little at the end of that sentence. "Now then, time for the hands. And so Henry moved onto the hands, cutting them off at the wrists and tossing them over his shoulder.

Zak's voice began to grow hoarse as the primal screams that left him shredded his throat and lungs. He violently stomped the ground with bound feet as more and more of his flesh was removed. As the screaming faded once again and the angel struggled to breath propperly, he passed a glance with a glossy eye to the hell hounds before locking back on Henry. As the sensations of pain from his arms began to die down from the shock, he managed yet another pained grin. "Th-they say...smiling....is the b-best revenge...." He coughed heavily, searing pain stinging his throat with each word. He went on. "Ya should....r-really consider goin with dry food....I don't think I-I'm very good for those mutts...." Sweat ran down the angels bloodied body as he strained to resist the intense agony coursing through his body.

"Good for you. It's good to see an Angel considering revenge, brings you one step closer to being me one day." Henry tossed aside the knife and created an axe in his hand. "Thanks for stompin like that by the way, I almost forgot about your legs." Henry raised the axe above his head, looked Zak in the eye, and swung downward as hard as he could, chopping off Zak's right foot at the ankle. One cauterization later and the bleeding stopped. Onto the next foot, this time though Henry didn't quite swing hard enough. He had only cut about half way through, so the foot was kinda dangling. Henry snapped his fingers and Brutus rushed forwards, grabbing the foot with his teeth and pulling back, tearing the foot off with force. "Good boy."

Flesh, nerves, and bits of bone snapped away in a symphony of blood curdling rips and tears as Zak's leg was gnawed away by the snarling hound. Zak had run out of screams and could only manage whimpers and grunts. His gaze was clouded, tainted by the sight of his own blood. The strength to move was beyond him, but not the will. In spite of the blood he lost and he anguish he felt, the bloodied angel looked back to Henry. For a moment it sounded like the angel was weeping. However as it grew louder, Henry could hear instead feeble laughter. "Try harder lad!" Blood spewed from his mouth, staining his lips as his throat bled.

Henry started laughing as well, at first because he thought Zak was crying, but he started laughing even harder once he realized Zak was laughing. "I can't wait to find you next battle! Then we can do this all over again!" Henry finally drew his sword, holding it to Zak's neck and preparing to decapitate him. "Any last words?"

The laughter faded, and with the last bit of strength Zak could muster, he looked back up at Henry, spitting blood at his feet. "Too bad the mutts won't be able to join us....cheers..." A deep glowing light emenated from the mouthes of the hell hounds. Light as bright as the holy lights of heavens smiting fury. Flames spewed from each of the hounds, bleeding through cracks that formed across their bodies. The flames weren't just burning hot with rage, but with heaven's light. Zak's holy flame. Spewing through the room like a display of up close fireworks, the hell hounds exploded into chunks, painting the walls and zak with firey viscera. Zak began laughing again, as the fires spread to what was left of his body, eating away at his flesh quickly. "C'mon lad! Gotta be fast! I won't be here long!" The pain from the flames was agonizing, but only as long as it took to burn away his nerves.

Henry's laughing stopped immediately, his smile morphing into a look of horror as his dogs exploded in front of him. Zak kept laughing, setting himself on fire to spite Henry. He turned to Zak and cut his head off in one swift motion, punting the head into the wall and letting it splatter all over. He ran out the room to his room in the Nile, praying to something that his dogs respawned.

Wolf might note that Alexi's magical signature seemed to be going straight up. No, it stopped. Going up again. Stopped. Going down. Still Going down. Further down than it started. Stopped. Going up again.

Eventually, Wolf's path would find himself.. At an elevator. As the doors slid open, it revealed Alexi simply standing there, watching the door, sword point making a slight notch in the floor as she rested her arms on the guard of the blade, "Oh, hello! That's new. Er, perhaps it isn't.. We think? You're new to the magical door of sometimes different and sometimes the same thing being on the other side when it opens, but we think I've seen you before. Or perhaps someone wearing that same armor? Or perhaps the same someone wearing the same armor? So many of the someones here are the same." Alexi tilted her head in somewhat confusion, though no fear of the great Wolf. Despite the fact that Wolf was the perfect counter to someone like her that relied entirely on magic, and his inquisitor status, Alexi seemed to have no fear. Perhaps she saw him only as an ally? But then again, she was crazy, so maybe that was normal.

"If you'd like to use the magical door of different places, be our guest. I was just hoping it'd eventually take me someplace I wish to be." Alexi moves to the side to allow Wolf to enter if he so wished.

@Awesomoman64

Mephilius couldn't help but simply chuckle at Flos' response.

"Oh, I'm sure you had." the demon responds bluntly, "Honestly I have no idea you've gotten captured, but the fact that you are here, held by these basic iron chains for devil knows how long, is actually quite hilarious. I figured you'd break out of these chains and go on a brilliant killing spree, killing any demon that gets in your way until... well, until Rufus or the other two - no three - 'Ladies' put you back here."

He pauses for a second until realizing what the prisoner hasn't yet.

"Confused maybe? Well I wouldn't blame you... after all you're here in the garbage where you barely hear of any newsworthy material. Well..."

He leans in closer towards the angel's face.

"It's your lucky day... for I got news for you. Lately, lots of things happened here in Hell that can be considered rather beneficial to us. I'm not the type of guy to give off major spoilers... so you can go off whatever I said about... 'multiple lords' however you wish."

---

As Hell began to finally relax from its several century chaotic monarchy, a decently-sized ship suddenly emerges from a portal a good distance away from the Castle. The ship looked rather high-tech, resembling much like a gunship from the Machina forces, however it looked heavily modified, with additional thrusters, a slight hull change, and sported two bright red stripes running across the main cockpit to the back rotary blades. Was it a real Machina ship trying to send some covert invasion team to assassinate a high demon lord or to blow shit up?

As it flies closer to the castle, it doesn't prepare to open fire on any nearby defenses or cloak to go invisible. It simply flies right on in without a single shot being fired from it or the castle defenses, nor any alarms have been triggered in the process. Surely this ship has been expected and is also confirmed to be an ally as well. The ship lands close to where Rufus parked his own giant cruiser softly, with a low hum being emitted from the powerful twin hover engines on each side of the wings. Once it lands softly by the entrance to the castle, the back cargo door opens while releasing steam to introduce a new character.

From the sprawling mist, comes a woman with a bright crimson-red coat attire, light blonde hair, and a red hat with several feathers and a blood-red gem on the top. She looked rather fancy in her clothing of choice. She has good taste. She also holds a high-tech blunderbuss gun by her shoulder as she exits the ship. Depending on who is around, her presence will surely be noted by anyone near the throne room... especially the newly erected "Council" if they really cared about it. She slowly enters the room in a nice stride as she walks towards the leaders...

Wandering through the Library of the Machina of Man, Maceroy took some time to glance over a couple of touchscreen pads, casually dismissing them when he recognised bits and pieces of information that he'd scanned through before, or had already known about even prior to the enslavement of his kind in Hell. T'was a shame, he felt, how hard it was to find new knowledge sometimes. He felt he knew so much already... and, well, he did, certainly compared to the brutish race that he happened to share genes with, but oftentimes to those who supposedly lived within the machina to boot.

Bah. And yet even most of my knowledge will become irrelevant, if HR-513 succeeds in his goal, he pondered, at once hoping the Harvester succeeded for how much extra knowledge he might be able to bestow upon the harpy, and resenting the possibility that he would. After all, half the reason the machine valued him was his ability to provide him with more knowledge, and if he held access to all of the Machina's information, that left Maceroy with just his own ideas and those of Heaven's backward stores. These were not indefinite founts. Once they ran out, it was entirely plausible that HR-513 would see no further use for him... hardly an acceptable end to their deal.

For now, though, there was naught he could do about the situation. The machine's logic was impeccable, and no amount of persuasion would have lead him astray, so Maceroy hadn't even tried. Instead, he'd gone to the Library of the Machina of Man, a room bearing the usual sleek aesthetic of Hyperion in its somewhat minimal decoration, short of the pads themselves. Some had access to more records than others. If he could find one of those, maybe he'd be able to figure out and fulfil another of the Harvester's requests, something about a spacesuit that would accommodate many types of physiology. Not that shapeshifting technology was difficult to manage, but it became exponentially harder to engineer for the more forms one needed to account for... maybe a suit that worked on the grounds of nanotechnology... or a cloud of nanites to surround the user, to generate air as needed and deflect projectiles? That had potential, but it didn't necessarily account for actual vacuum protection the way a full suit did. But then the solution to that was so obvious it didn't bear bringing up... and propulsion! Wings weren't exactly useful in the vacuum of space, after all, so that'd be important for angels and demons alike...

Something in one of the pads caught Maceroy's eye as he scrolled past it. He quickly flicked back to the document in question, an exposé about the supposed nature of the Nexus' reality as being entirely based in subjective, rather than objective reality. Something relating to the double-slit experiment, and how observing atoms changed how they acted. Foolish, on the grounds that the atom changed how it acted specifically because "observing it" required tossing something on an atomic or subatomic scale into it, forcing it into one state or another rather than its usual quantum activity. But with that in mind... perhaps one could use that property, or a similar property, to one's own ends? Atoms- nay, the fundamental particles making up everything, atoms included- were subject to magical manipulation, his very own power to create light that erased shadows proved it. Could such means also provide the capacity to change the nature of atoms? To perhaps pluck and prod at even the individual strings and points of reality itself, on an impossibly miniscule scale replicated over and over to affect the macroverse? And if so, what could such manipulation achieve...?

One could only ponder. He let the presently-unrealistic idea rest in the back of his mind, continuing to idly scan through the pads for potential additions to his thought process until his goal for a spacesuit altered to fit any potential wearer was set in his mind. Once it was, he began to make his way out of the Library, having it in mind to return to his and HR-513's shared workshop. Technically, it was his alone, but since the Harvester was so valuable, he felt it was only fair to provide its services freely to him... especially since the android was technically the one who crafted most things within it anyway, often at the harpy scientist's request.

Somewhere deep in the unknown confines of the Nexus, a slam was heard. There might have been a groan sifted into the mix as well but to the perpetrator, it was little concern. After all, Harley was hardly in the mood to be playing nice. And she knew very well the likes of Ciel could handle a little abuse-nay, she deserved it. Even now Harley's hand clutched deeper into the other girl's throat as all sorts of rushing ideas made itself reality in her mind. But she wasn't going to kill her; that would be counter-productive. Another slam then, Harley raising her arm back and pinning Ciel to the wall harder than before. "I'm going to ask you again pet. What do you think you're doing in my Nexus?" Harley asked.

"Gah!"

A groan was the first sound to escape Ciel's throat as she was so violently slammed against a wall by Harley. "Wha—what are you talking about?" The Stargazer didn't find this situation very entertaining at all. She had no idea of what Harley was thinking. The pressure in her throat made Ciel unconsciously fight against Harley's grip. The platinum-haired girl kicked weakly as she tried to used her meager strength to relieve Harley's grip on her, the expression in her face becoming paler and paler as Ciel's breath was reaching its limits.

Harley was tempted to keep going but unfortunately she had other matters to see to. And as much as she enjoyed putting Ciel in her place, this wasn't the point. Slowly her fingers released their individual hold, one by one, before she let the Stargazer drop to the ground like a dead weight. "I guess you should be used to choking on air, eh? But let's get to why we're here Ciel. There are certain Vassals that should not have appeared here. I can waste my time listing them all off for you but I think we both know what I'm talking about," Harley said, leaning down and meeting Ciel eye for an eye. "Don't make me REPEAT myself."

The first thing that Ciel did was cough hard while trying to massage her sore throat. She certainly wasn't made for, or used to, this kind of manhandling. Then again, as long as she remained in her current 'job', it's not like Ciel can avoid abuse from the likes of Harley. That was part of her nature. As soon as Harley finished her explanation, Ciel looked up, "I—I know what you mean. But I could never imagine that... would happen," she said while trying to calm her slightly teary eyes. "The last time I talked with Helena she said that she wanted my help with something. She was looking for a star chart so I didn't see why I couldn't help her. I—I had no idea of what she was going to do with it."

A swift kick into Ciel's would be Harley's answer, the monochrome girl digging her shoe in deeply into the Stargazer's gut to seal the pain in. A few seconds of silent observation and she finally said, "I see you've grown soft pet. Taking orders from others who aren't your owners. Well...I guess you'd like to have a little freedom once in a while. But what did I tell you about talking to strangers," Harley said, frowning and scratching the back of her head. "Now look what you've done. You've made me annoyed again. I wonder how I should get rid of this itch of mine...."

"Ahh!" Ciel cried as Harley quite literally ground her against the ground. "Tha—that's not what I meant. Am I not the one who takes care of all of you?" Ciel said between coughs and tears. The Stargazer didn't raise her face to look at Harley's, partly to avoid triggering the other girl even more, mostly because her neck was hurting too much for her to strain it like that. "I—I was just trying to do my job. That and... hmm..." Ciel dragged on, unsure if she should even say what she just thought.

"Hmmmmm? Doing your job, eh." Harley removed her foot, mismatched eyes regarding Ciel beneath her. "Well, there's nothing to be gained if you can't learn. This is a learning experience for all of us," she said, reaching over to rub her thumb against the side of Ciel's cheek in small circles. "You just need to learn not to talk to strangers and I'll learn how to overlook your heaping piles of failure and disappointment to us. Ok?" Harley's expression twisted into a smirk and she watched the other girl's reaction carefully. "By the way. What was that you were saying pet?"

Ciel recoiled unwittingly when Harley changed moods once more. The gentle touch made the Stargazer feel... uncertain. No matter how much she was mistreated by some of her 'children' , particularly Harley, Ciel couldn't really get herself to resent them. That was both in theirs and hers natures. To say the truth, she wondered more than once if this was really free-will but these thoughts were dismissed as fast as they came. After all, what's free-will for someone that is so intimate to the whims of Fate such as Ciel? That was the biggest burden of knowing the many roads through which the world can travel, but not having any power to choose which turn to take.

"I—I'm sorry," Ciel replied, before looking up at Harley once the other girl asked her about what she meant to say a moment before. Ciel hesitated again, looking apprehensively at Harley, looking every bit like a frightened pet, torn apart between feelings of dependency and fear, just like the way she was being addressed as. In the end, Ciel's sense of self preservation won over her apprehension. "I was... hmm.... I was feeling kind of lonely. I didn't stop to think that much when she came asking for my help. I just... miss you all coming to me the whole time," the Stargazer finally admitted. After all, Ciel knew well that denying that reply to Harley would likely earn her some more mistreatment.

Following this confession, silence was created between the two girls. Harley stared at the downed Ciel until it was fairly certain her eyes were boring into her skin. "All people have a role to play. If your role doesn't have "loneliness" in the description then you're not allowed to feel it," Harley said in a matter-of-fact tone. "To display abnormalities is to go against one's personal fate. But you really should know that better than anyone else." As she said this, Harley leaned forward, her intent probably to engage in more physical contact with Ciel.

What should have resulted in more pain and abuse instead became a gripping hug from the monochrome Vassal. "I want you to get rid of every Vassal in the Nexus. The only ones who will remain will be a SELECT few I deem worthy," she said next to the Stargazer's ear. "You don't have to feel lonely anymore Ciel. Because only the RIGHT Vassals will be here to give you comfort and warmth," she continued; by her tone it was easy to see the twisted smirk in Harley's features. It all culminated into a clamp as Harley tightened her hug like a needy child, near-suffocating Ciel anew.

"..."

"If I see that bloodsucker in my Nexus again...well, we can find out together just how big of a MESS I can make."

Ciel listened to Harley's soft spoken words silently. It wasn't because she agreed to them. In fact, a mere look at the shock expression in Ciel's face made it obvious that she couldn't believe what she was hearing. Yet, even Ciel knew that such a threat shouldn't be unanswered. Otherwise, she didn't knew what Harley had in mind for the other Vassals, or even for Ciel herself. Even if the Stargazer was used to being mistreated by now, she couldn't tolerate the idea of allowing her precious Vassals... her 'children' to be hurt like this. Not after all of this time. Naturally, her only option was to ask "What do you mean by getting rid? You don't want me to hurt them, do you?" and hope that Harley's answer wasn't what she was thinking.

A slight pause before Harley said, "No. We already have enough civil war between us. I want you to make sure they can never enter my Nexus again. You get one more chance caretaker; if I find out you failed to do even that, and I assure you, I always find out, then maybe you won't have any use for us anymore." Harley's grip loosened a little and this time the hug was much more casual. "I'm sure it would just break your heart to find out you no longer have a purpose to us, right? What good is a pet who can't perform tricks."

Ciel's answer was nothing but lowering her head and staring at the ground aimlessly. What Harley was asking for was something terrible from the Stargazer's point of view but there was no way for her to deny. The confirmation that she understood it would come in the form of a sob as Ciel said a weak "I get it... I just don't want to be thrown away," admitting her weakness. Harley probably wouldn't be pleased until the Stargazer did so, anyway.

"Of course you do," Harley said more gently, going back to wiping away Ciel's tears with her fingers. "Personally, I think you're my favorite little pet. It breaks my heart to see you go against our wishes. But no, no, no more tears now. We see much bigger and better things in your future, caretaker," Harley said, all smiles and grins.

The Frog stood besides Mephilius in silence. He didn't know, nor did he have, anything to say on the matter. He was standing over a respected Angelic general and watching the verbal abuse of someone lesser just pound into their spirit. As bad as it might sound, it made the Frog feel a sense of something he never thought he'd feel for an angel. Sympathy. The angel was once a strong fighter, but now... he's reduced to nothing. He's simply wasting his life away here, people like Mephilius coming down here only to talk down the angel. It was sad.

An explosive sigh escaped the lips if the fine featured young man as he leaned back in his chair. Before him laid a sizable table absolutely covered in a collection of books, scrolls, crystals and artefacts. Basically anything that could be used to hold information through means magical or mundane. It was a testament to the craftsman's skill that the table hadn't collapsed under the weight of it all.

Saef wasn't sure how long he had been in the massive library to be completely honest. He knew he had missed at least one meal, if not more. There was just so much knowledge in the building that it boggled the mind. He could have spent the rest of his mortal life in here and still only scratch the surface. Nevertheless it had to be done. Saef and his men were new to Heaven and some of the older residents seemed to find their mere presence unpleasant. They needed information if they wanted to do much good here. It was up to those among the group both curious and stubborn enough to wade through the oceans of books in Heaven's many libraries to get it.

Saef himself had decided to focus on one subject in particular. The mysterious ruler of Heaven herself, Imperator Deva. It wasn't an easy task he had learned. Those who would talk to him tended to be more on the young side and not know much themselves. Books had seemed to hold more promise, they couldn't refuse to talk to him at least.

After being (not unexpectedly) refused entry to the restricted sections of this particular library the newly made immortal had done the best he could with the more mundane sections. Working off of the logic that the older something was the more likely it was to have something useful in it Saef had piled his table with the oldest material he could find that might even tangentially relate to the Imperator.

Saef refocused his eyes from where they had been staring at some indeterminate point between him and the gilded ceiling far overhead. He needed to take break soon. Get out, stretch his legs and give his brain a rest. The stupid thing kept wandering and trying to figure out the make-up of all the different types of paper he was reading from.

I'll just finish this last book, then I'll take a break. He promised himself as he leaned forward once again and found his place in the book that he was fairly sure was older than recorded history on his home planet.

"I see," was Eos' initial response to HR-513's request. The High Queen took a moment to consider it while commanding an android handmaiden to take the flowers away to her personal chambers. As soon as she reached a conclusion, Eos addressed the battle droid once again, "Your acceptance or not on the position you have requested will depend on your ability to complete a trial."

"In preparation for future necessities, the Machina require a complete chart of the Datascape. As soon as you have fulfilled this task, you shall be granted the authorization to perform the function of High Cartographer," Eos said as a holographic display close to her showed the message: [SUBJECT: DATASCAPE; INSUFFICIENT INFORMATION].

"Is there anything more that you would like to request?" the High Queen asked of Harvester.

At the hallowed halls of Celestia, more precisely at the Heavens' Grand Library, one of the Divine Imperator's newest retainers would have the chance for a rare meeting. Or better, it wasn't that the being Saef was about to meet was that elusive —even if that was partly true, given her true nature— but rather that not many people visited the Grand Library so, the chances of meeting The Librarian, were quite small for many of Celestia's best.

The feline being's presence was announced by the soft jiggling of her tail bell. Nevertheless, even in the rather silent ambient of the Grand Library, it only became audible when she was a mere few feet away from the former human.

"I have never seen you around here," she said in a slow, seemingly bored —or perhaps sleepy— voice while taking her time to give Saef a once over. Her trained eyes scanned the contents of the books and artifacts sprawled over the table in a mere moment. "If you want to learn about ancient history, these won't help you. You would be better off cherry picking runes at someplace like the Ruthria's ruins or Arcadia, than reading this."

"Depending on what you want to know, I may be able to help you. But, you can always search for the right answer on your own, if you know where to look. The world around yourself better than these dead tomes."

On the pits of Hell, a certain scarlet garbed bounty hunter would meet a quirkier individual. Standing not far away from the entrance of Pandemonium, the Hell's capital fortress, there was a... very unique looking being. At first, the azure demon girl didn't seen to have noticed Marie. In fact, she was talking with a truly sinister looking creature.

The demonic courier and the demon girl chatted until the moment when Marie was about to get to a normal human's earshot distance. In case her hearing was finer than this, the Bounty Hunter would be able to notice that the two of them were already saying their parting words. The rider mentioned having to deliver a message about the raise of the new rulers of Hell to the rest of the underworld before taking his leave.

The demon girl waved him off, turning around startled at Marie's approach. "Oh my, are here because of the news as well?" she said with a confident voice, completely ignoring the fact that she had nearly jumped out of her skin a moment ago. "And, if I say to you that the cherry of the cake is yet to be revealed, you may as well not believe me. It really looks like there ain't no rest for the wicked..." the demon girl went silent for a moment, as if assessing Marie's reaction, before adding in an apprehensive voice, "you got that one, didn't you?"

---

The Harvester looked at Eos, taking in every word. When she mentioned "datascape" HR-513 searched its' vast storage for the proper information and found nothing on it. Unacceptable. It had to have the information on this in order to start the trial and fulfill its' purpose of acquiring the position of High Cartographer. There was no secondary option. Whatever got in its' way would be assimilated or destroyed. No exceptions.

"I do not have the necessary information about this datascape, High Queen of the Machina. Where must I go to proceed with this trial?" It asked with a perplexity. It had to know about the datascape. It was integral to its' purpose. It did not like riddles and pointless fetch quests. It wanted to get to the bottom of it immediately. Queen Eos had a vast collection of knowledge herself and she most definitely had the information HR-513 required.

As Marie places her scarlet boots down on the deep-red brick of the castle floor, she soon sees a strange individual nearby talking to some chariot driver. The individual in question was an pale white-skinned girl with azure colored clothing. At first glance, she doesn't look like someone who belongs in this hellhole, only until you happen to see her deep blue horns piercing from her head along with her shiny icy-blue tail. The bounty hunter became rather intrigued with their little conversation. She slowly strides towards the two to eavesdrop on their chat, pretending that she is looking at something else entirely. After all, being the bounty hunter that she is, she has trained her ears to pick up individual conversations from within even the loudest of taverns and parties. At first, Marie thought she was late to the conversation, as the two were already beginning to say their parting farewells. It would've been a waste of time if not for the rider mentioning a letter regarding the rise of 'the new rulers of Hell' before taking off.

How long had Marie been gone? She must've been gone for a pretty long while, only to come back here and hear that 'new rulers of hell' have taken over. Has this forsaken place finally achieved inner peace with itself? It was about damn time. Of course, it could be for the best or the worse and frankly the bounty hunter didn't care much regarding their pitiful politics. She only lives for two things: the hunt and money. That was it. Regardless she'll need a bit more information to confirm her suspicions. And that meant getting up close and personal. As the azure demon waves the rider off, Marie slowly approaches the girl as the sounds of her heels clunk one after another with each step.

"You're quite the odd customer here, aren't you sweetie?" the bounty hunter remarks to the demoness with a smooth and savory voice.

This startles the female demon as she jumps before turning around to greet her.

"Oh my, are here because of the news as well?" the girl responds confidently as she can while trying to hide her startled nature, "And, if I say to you that the cherry of the cake is yet to be revealed, you may as well not believe me. It really looks like there ain't no rest for the wicked..."

A rich chuckle escapes Marie's luscious lips as she looks down at her.

"You mean the news that Hell finally spawned an oligarchy to replace the old monarchy?" she replies to get confirmation from the girl.

The demoness replies in a tense tone saying, "You got that one, didn't you?"

"Well if that's what you mean't," replies the bounty hunter as she pauses briefly to take out a jet-black cigarette holder and blows a puff of smoke into Hell's sweltering air, "Then sure I have. Unless you actually mean't something else, hm?"

Anguish and suffering quickly numbed away, replaced by the gentle kiss of warming light washing over Zak's naked body and mind, making him whole again. Ethereal tides of energy swirled in a luminescent vortex on all sides, carrying the angelic soul towards a glimmering eternity. Faint Hymns bled through the roar of whirling essence guiding Zak forward. A looming silence crept over him as he gazed into the lustrous sea of light. He was hesitant. The opportunity to escape this reality was before him. Thoughts ran through the ever contemplating mind of the angel as he began to think critically. Something he hadn't done in eons. War, long and unending, made him jaded to the universe. Yet there was still more left for him to do. More left for him to see. To learn. To grow.

Zak took a hold of his line to resurrection, and took a hold of his fate. He was going to gain more power. More knowledge. After millennia of thought hidden behind indifference, the archane fool was ready to take the universe that flung him around like a kite in a storm more seriously, and map the chaotic flow of the Nexus. He started by accepting his role amongst his brethren of angels, following the light and will of Imperator Deva to strike down her enemies. The first would be the demon pest who tore into his flesh. Fire burned in Zak's soul as he was enveloped in light and pulled back into existence.

As he opened his eyes, Zak saw the pearly marble pillars and shining citadels of heaven around him, and the alter of resurrection glowing beneath him. A new determination filled the angel, though he dared not let it show. Not yet. For now, he thought only of gaining knowledge and interesting objects just as he always had. Only instead of simple entertainment to distract him from the triviality of the universe, he now had purpose to his quest. Clothes were born from a brief shower of flames that engulfed Zak's body before dispersing. Walking off the alter, Zak made his way through the familiar halls of the holy citadel, stretching the tenseness out of an arm. "Time to be gettin' back to work then."

Before long, after a while of walking the lengths of the pale bricked walkways and pearly corridors that snaked across the radiant landscape winding through imposing architecture and towering buildings, Zak eventually arrived at the foot of large wooden doors decorated in angelic carvings and rosaries. Pushing his was inside, the fiery haired angel found himself surrounded by the great celestial library. Rows upon rows of books lined the towering shelves that reached into the rafters and lined the walls. Dim lighting filled the maze like lanes peppered with the occasional ladder or set of stairs leading to raised floors that ascended to multiple levels over head. Zak made it a point to visit this place decades ago, but he kept putting if off til later. Since he happened to be in the area, and his lunch plans were ruined, he figured now was as good of a time as any.

Zak roamed around for a while, picking up and browsing through random tomes before tossing them in a disorderly fashion back onto random shelves. He was hoping to find something related to empowering runes that might unlock hidden potential, or perhaps a map to some relic which bestows abilities, or maybe information on finding some ancient powerful weapons. At this point the angel was open to anything. Soon he stumbled passed a brief interaction between a young woman and a man with pale silvery hair. Zak reversed, pulling his head out of a book on the significance of paradigm shifts in battered warriors, and peeked in on the conversation between the librarian and Saef Harken from then end of the lane with poorly hidden interest.

Endian arrived to Eos’s Throne room in gloomy silence. She had been unable to defeat Helena, and while she survived the battle, ultimately she failed her mission. Even as Wolf took responsibility for what had happened, Eos would surely know better. Even Endian’s slight victory to bring Henry to join the Machina Faction was hollow to Endian, simply because she failed to defeat Helena as she had promised. Now away from all the chaos and fighting Endian knew that despite the upgrades given to her, she knew that she wasn’t nearly as strong as she should be as one of Endian’s commanders. The machina were disorganized at best, and with the addition of rogue elements like Henry the Machina had strength, but lacked skills. Endian knew this best, as her time as Grafdakka was nothing but power tossed around haphazardly, without any real consideration for strategy or precision. Endian needed to solve this.

The only other matter which Endian concerned herself with was Eos’s command to continue cooperation with Doctor Karizawa. His name was in Endian’s databanks as one of the researchers for the Machina, creating mechs and other automatons. He had recently taken up residence in Grafdakka’s former warehouse, before Krieg had his operations moved to Endian’s production facility. Endian made a mental note to visit him for a possible upgrade, as well as keeping an eye on him as the queen had commanded.

Soon they were dismissed. Endian rose and was about to leave when another robot came in. HIs designs seemed more… Primitive compared to most of the Machina. It reminded Endian of something that Krieg would have put together before he had Endian’s AI integrated into himself. He wished to become a cartographer for the Machina, mapping out their empire and future empire. A noble task; information about the every changing Nexus is always vital, no matter how fruitless it may seem. But of course the High Queen would not give the machine such a lofty task if he could not fulfill it. To that end she had requested the machine, which Endian was now able to identify as HR-513, to explore the Datascape. Except HR-513 knew nothing of the Datascape.

It was at this point that Endian stepped forward and bowed towards Queen Eos as she offered her assistance in this matter. ”My queen, if you would excuse my arrogance, perhap I may be of some assistance. I have information on the Datascape and I will do all that you will allow me to inform and prepare him for this task.”

@Kol@Spiffy

---

In Hell, Fran had quickly left the Throne Room before all the leaders had arrived. While it would normally be a momentous occasion for most, too much was on Fran’s mind to care about that. She couldn’t help but wonder what Suparna was doing and generally feeling like shit. At first she tried to pleasure herself with a nearby slave, but she couldn’t bring herself to really get into it. It was empty and meaningless, and Fran needed to find something more fulfilling to do than mindless, rampant sex. So Fran wandered around Hell, listening to the sounds of screams and torture while trying to revisit old memories. She eventually arrived to Suparna’s old place, that tomb that doubled as her home and laboratory. Granted it was never really a laboratory to anyone but Fran. But it had books and stuff that wasn’t just for torturing or killing people, so it may as well have been.

Sure enough when Fran went inside most of the place was dusty and barren. There were still a few books lying around, a couple of rusty tools too, but it was clear that someone had been in here already and took anything important. Fran went around and found all the bloodstans of prisoners she had brutally maimed here with Suparna, and a table where she had butchered them for her lolita’s maggots. ”No, no Fran. Stop that. She’s not yours anymore. She’s just… Suparna.”

Fran wandered around the place and looked through the books. She was never really much of a reader, and even pornographic novels didn’t really interest her as much as the real deal. Most of the books were filled in information that Fran wasn’t too interested in beyond the fact that Suparna might’ve read them at some point. But that was why Fran was reading them now; surely somewhere in here was a formula or device that could cure Fran of her malaise.

That was when Fran stumbled across an interesting tome. It was a book of lore, something that didn’t completely go over Fran’s head. She knew that many demons, angels, and even machina had powers rooted in ancient lore of questionable origins. Many of the gods were creations of human myths made reality, or something like that. Fran remembered demon propaganda something something to that effect anyways. Point was that this book was mildly interesting. ”Poetic Edda huh? Should be interesting.” Taking the book with her Fran left to find a place to read it. Perhaps a hotspring; these demonic books were notorious hard to damage, so she wasn’t worried about getting it a bit wet.

@KoL@Inner Demon



A slight start jolted through the paladin when the Librarian spoke. She was way too quiet for anyone who wore a bell as a personal accessory. Having his nose buried in a book hadn't helped much either. He'd had no clue the small catgirl was even in the area until she addressed him.

"My people and I are new to Heaven, recent uplifts from a world invaded by Demons. Much about our new home in unknown to us. Something we are our working on rectifying. I myself am focusing my studies on Imperator Deva. Rather a challenge it seems. These books hold precious little on Heaven's leader considering how's long she has been in that position. "

Movement in the corner of his eye caught his attention and he glanced over. A rather flamboyant Angel was standing there with a very interested look on his face. Saef gave the man a friendly nod and turned back to the slip of a girl in front of him. At least she looked like a girl. He was learning not to judge a book by its cover when it came to the immortal.

"I don't suppose you could tell me much about the Imperator?"

The Queen walked into the throne room of Hell, wand held firmly in one hand, honey in the other. She was ready to get back into the swing of things, claim a few new pieces of sweet property for her hive home, maybe even a few new workers to build that hive... eh, whatever she could get was fine. Her little sweeties would be able to pick up the slack if her new servants were... incompetent. Maybe they'd even whip them into shape? Who cares? As long as the job gets done, Apia didn't care. She would reward her sweeties regardless.

It was then she overheard the talk of two of Hell's citizens. One was a bounty hunter she once-considered employing, and the other was... she felt like she had encountered her before, but she couldn't remember her name. Ah well. She would hopefully remember it in time, but she didn't remember that Hell had an oligarchy now. That was news to her, especially considering how adamant the previous rulers had been on keeping the throne. Maybe it was a good idea to somewhat slide into this conversation to learn about Hell's new rulers?

Well, she was gonna try that anyway, as strange as that sounded. "Excuse me, ladies, but did I happen to overhear you two talking about Hell having an oligarchy? I've been in retirement for far too long, so excuse me once again for my... ignorance..."

~BGM~

To those who had taken up Helena’s offer, the journey away from the Nexus would be filled with wonder. Star light shined all around them as one by one, those chosen few found their bodies, souls, and minds lifted from the tethering grip of the Nexus. Not even the mass coils of the Great Snake nor the mysterious forces circling the dimension could stop the mass exodus into a new world and a new life. One by one the funnels of light carried each participant over and between their individual rays they would see the spiraling flickers of infinity all around.

So too would they also witness the Nexus in its grand entirety. The titanic-sized scales of the Great Snake wrapping around the isolated space was only off-put by the slithering of something within the darkness of space. Something equally massive but no less invisible to the mortal eye; yet that was no longer the concern of those departed. In moments, they were gone from this side of the cosmos, brought into the atmosphere of a new reality, one that had been untouched by the Nexus’ influence.

With the clouds breaking all around them, these traveling beings would enter a place of second chances and possibly even redemption. For all extents and purposes, this plane was aptly named the Happy Verse. The flumes of light each individual was traveling in would slowly halt before gently depositing them in random locations of the high-sprung city. The air was clear for once, no longer reeking of war and bloodshed.

Perhaps the most striking discovery of this new land were the rather strange occupants. Indeed, almost every living creature looked to be strange and unique in their own way, as if they too had just now fled from the Nexus. Some of them looked to be Angels, Demons, Machina, creatures never seen before…and cats. Lots and lots of cats, going about their business and engaging in their daily activities. For despite the shape or form, all of them carried on as if this was normal life.

And for them, it was normalcy in its sublime nature. A universe untouched by the Nexus and, hopefully, gone from the eyes of the mad gods who had built that place of strifing conflict. The rules were different now and for those arriving from the Nexus, witnessing a civilization that was not reliant on warring among one another or mindless conquest was perhaps a bit stifling.

New rules were in place and it would take some adjusting to settle in. Problems that were once non-applicable, such as mortgages, taxes, jobs, and community service, were suddenly the newfound and governing reality. Nevertheless, it was the promise Helena had made and so she had kept her word. Few things could threaten this budding land of peace.

Flos's head tilted to the side in response. "You have a very interesting choice of words for something whose purpose is to hold both angels and machina in pure contempt, regardless of interest." The screaming from the remaining prisoners may have been reduced, but with the conversation at hand, he needed some quiet so that nothing could be misinterpreted. His fingers extended, and be bellowed "silence!", echoed through the wing and the sound of screaming creatures were reduced to pure silence.

Flos took a deep breath, before returning his attention to the demon spawn in front of his face, and couldn't help but chuckle. Was he seriously considering letting Flos let loose on a couple of his enemies? It was almost insane...almost. "To be honest, I've seen a lot of you lot, and I've ripped a couple of jaws off in a few meetings, so it's strange that you're giving me such a proposition."

His fingers tensed, a faint wind was felt, and with a quick move, the sound and sliced metal echoed the room, and the chains binding the Flower felt to the ground. Flos stood still, before slowly standing up with the Sister's in his hand, before his stature towered over the crafted spawn of hell and his out of place companion.

"Elaborate," he said, before one of the sisters emitted their white mist, and beckoned the Final Gaze to Flos' hand.

Although the Meido sisters were called to meet the High Queen, only Hibiki arrived to answer her call. Shizuka was in solitary confinement due to potential corruption from Helena’s dungeon. Much to the despair of Hibiki, it seemed like some foul influence took over her sister and made her want to spar the demonic spawn of Hell, even going so far as protecting her. Hibiki had no choice but to kill Shizuka, even at the cost of her own life, and quickly subdued Hibiki after they had both resurrected back at Hyperion. Shizuka was currently in stasis getting her body and mind checked for any demonic influence while Hibiki took on the tasks for the queen herself.

Listening to the queen’s decree, Hibiki was grateful for the merciful treatment. While Hibiki highly questioned the acceptance of Henry into the Machina forces, Hibiki wouldn’t go against the queen’s words. Though Hibiki would make it a point to keep a watch on the demon herself. More importantly Eos had mentioned that she and Shizuka would be overseeing a scientist named Doctor Karizawa. It wasn’t a familiar name to Hibiki, but she could easily find information on him."I shall take my leave, my queen. please, call upon me again if you are in need of anything." Without another word Hibiki left.

Meanwhile Shizuka was in suspended animation at one of the Hyperion Medical Centres. Demonic Corruption was a common and inevitable ailment for many Machina soldiers, one that can’t always be purged by executing the soldier right then and there. Indoctrination and conditioning was needed to cleanse the mind of the negative influence. But in this instance Shizuka was not overtaken by any demonic force, but her own conscious. She could not have turned her weapon against a little girl, whether or not she was a demon or not. Yet to see her own sister more than willing to do that, and kill Shizuka as well… It was a shock. By the time Shizuka had recovered she was already being apprehended by Machina Robots tailored to deal with angelic prisoners. It wasn’t until Shizuka finally arrived to the facility that she realized she was arrested and being tested for corruption.

Despite being paralyzed Shizuka was conscious the entire time she was inside the sealed tube. She wondered what had become of Hibiki. Her kind, caring older sister who had done everything she could to protect her. And now she would kill her without an ounce of remorse. Shizuka wondered what happened to herself too. How could she have been so blind to what Hibiki had become? Helena’s words came back to Shizuka. Those vague promises of a world outside of the Nexus. Though Shizuka ignored it at the time, she couldn’t have helped but wonder what it was like to be away from this conflict. She wondered what Hibiki would be like if she didn’t have to fight so hard. Shizuka never questioned herself about these things until now.

"When did things get so fucked up?"