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Chapter 32 - Close to Heaven.
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-Third Person Pov-
-Heaven-
Contrary to what everyone thinks, the city where the angels lived was not entirely white, floating among the clouds, but it was impeccably clean.
When he was young, he was impressed by how clean Japan was, and also by Germany when he visited.
But the white city of Heaven has no trash, not a single crack, nor a single stain on its pristine buildings and streets.
Accompanied by gold decorations and the familiar statues of various well-known angels
Some lower-ranking angels paused to sense Lucerion's might.
They did not kneel, but placed a hand over their hearts and bowed their heads as a sign of respect.
Heaven was aware that the god of the cosmos was coming for a "visit."
Lucerion was following Michael with the True Longinus held between his hands, he was ready to let the spear go—after all, he had no interest in it.
And he already had the perfect wielder in mind for it.
They walked past the gates and along a couple of streets until they reached a large, upscale building.
When Lucerion walked through the door, the building was completely clear; the entire hall was empty, and another angelic figure was waiting in the center.
The entire group—consisting of Lucerion, Michael, Azazel, Gabriel, and Sirzechs—came to a halt, they had reached their destination.
"Here?" Lucerion asked.
"Indeed. We decided that this would be a good place... for what you're going to do." Michael spoke with uncertainty.
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Lord Lucerion. I'm Seraph Uriel." The seraph, who was already waiting in the building, interrupted.
He presented himself with a firm tone, it seemed as though he did not harbor a shred of fear toward the god of the cosmos.
"Ahh the flame of god…" Lucerion smiled, shaking his hand. "And the king of diamonds?"
"Indeed. It would seem you are well-informed, Lord Lucerion."
"He is awfully well-informed of everything." Azazel scoffed, earning a glare from Uriel.
"Normally, I'd burn the two of you alive." Uriel said with disdain looking at Azazel but glaring at Sirzechs…"but after talking to Michael...circumstances have changed."
A fallen and a devil touching the heavens was one of the highest-caliber blasphemies in his books after all.
But it's incredible how flexible the rules become when it comes to someone with Lucerion's power... and what he claims he can do.
"Lord Lucerion, I'll be frank...I'm not so sure I believe you can bring back Father's consciousness from the spear." Uriel, as always, decided to be honest and direct.
Michael sighed at how crass his brother was.
"...Brother." Gabriel muttered.
The Seraphs were surprised to receive the news from Michael. Yet they were also somewhat wary, they did not want to harbor false hope that might hurt them and risk their falling.
They weren't stupid, either, they don't fully trust Lucerion. Even though he is the new god of the pantheon, they aren't going to hand him the Heavenly Father's throne on a silver platter.
It doesn't matter that he is the strongest, it is his father's throne they are talking about.
"It's okay...here, Yahweh I choose you!" Lucerion said with some laughs.
God's consciousness resides within the True Longinus, creating an opening to the real world that allows his presence to slip through and project itself onto the physical plane.
'Fuck…this is quite hard even for me.' Lucerion cursed.
Snapping the fingers of his free hand, he used his reality-warping powers to boost and create a temporary avatar for Yahweh on this plane.
The eyes of those present widened in astonishment as they saw and felt what was happening.
Azazel was left speechless again... Lucerion was too much for his sanity.
After struggling a bit more, the avatar was ready. As Yahweh knelt on the floor with difficulty, the transition from one plane to another can be an unpleasant experience.
The hall fell silent upon seeing the god who once reigned in the heavens return.
"And this is for you, Michael. I can't think of a better wielder for the True Longinus than his own son." Lucerion handed the spear to an astonished Michael, who received it automatically.
"..."
No one could speak of the absolute madness that had just occurred.
"Guys? This is the perfect moment for a tearful reunion with your father." Lucerion offered.
"Maybe we should give it a little more time, even I am surprised by what you just did." Yahweh said, shaking his head a little.
"Now that I don't see you in that dreamlike world, you really look like Adam." Lucerion said again.
Yahweh looked like an older version of Adam from Record of Ragnarok.
"Not gonna lie, I was expecting the cliche white bear Santa Claus style…or Morgan Freeman too." Lucerion joked out loud mostly for himself.
"Sorry to disappoint? Samuel…you are different from the time we talked too…" Yahweh said looking at Lucerion
"Lucerion now. King of Stars or God of Cosmos…whatever aspect you like more." Lucerion waved his hand lazily, explaining calmly like it was the most natural thing.
"So you make it then…"
"KID WHAT THE FUCK!!!?" Azazel shouted, being the first to break the collective shock.
The fallen one didn't care that Lucerion was the strongest, he was still just an eighteen-year-old brat...but what just happened makes absolutely no sense for him.
"...Rude, it was quite difficult but I made it." Lucerion said calmly.
"HOW!!?"
"Divinity and reality warping shenanigans. Cool right?" Lucerion said, not really waiting to explain right there and now.
"Thats not the point!"
"HAHAHAHA."
The hardest part was opening the channel and materializing the avatar, even with his powers, he couldn't make it permanent.
Perhaps if he had had the other "Sacred" Gears with him, they would have served as a more powerful anchor—but he didn't have them. Still, he didn't need them anyway.
"F-father." Gabriel began to cry.
Michel shed a few manly tears as he gripped the spear tightly.
Uriel gaze was on Yahweh the whole time.
"Good enough for you?" Lucerion asked with mirth to the seraph.
"...I-I apologize for my assumptions, Lord Lucerion." Uriel knelt in gratitude to Lucerion.
"And from the bottom of my heart... thank you."
"No problem. I am a generous god." Lucerion mentally checked one of the many phrases he always wanted to say.
"Well I will let you guys have a couple of hours with our reunion…"
Azazel wore a complicated expression upon having his father back, he wanted to turn around and leave.
"Great idea, kid. I'm going to show you the place where I used to spy on the angels while they bathed…" The Grigori was trying to play it cool.
"Not so fast bucko…you stay too." But Lucerion was not having any of it.
Azazel let out a very weary sigh. "You know about that too?—of course, you know everything." He said it with a chuckle.
"Not exactly, I deduced it when I saw your face...Azazel just talk to your father, it will be the last time after all."
"Kiddo you are too much." Azazel sighed again but he agreed to stay.
'What's with me? fixing this crazy family? First Vali and now Azazel heh' Lucerion laughed to himself.
The average reincarnator will be trying to fix the crazy chicks with the power of D after all.
But Lucerion was pleased with how things had played out with Vali and now Azazel, after all, he had done the bare minimum, and things had turned out quite well.
Yahweh had a lot of things to say to His children—and to say goodbye properly this time.
"Sirzechs let's go on a walk until they finish?" Lucerion offered to the awkward devil in the room.
"Y-yes."
The god and the devil left the room, heading out of the building and onto the street.
A small crowd of curious angels gathered outside. They had come upon sensing the magical power and the shift in reality when Lucerion materialized Yahweh.
They looked at the two of them, a bit confused, Lucerion simply pointed inside the building with a smile, inviting them to go and see. Making his intention clear.
Sirzechs and Lucerion kept walking until they stopped and sat down.
"This is the closest we can get to the throne without raising the alarm and having the whole army of angels come hunting us down, hehe." Lucerion said.
"I see. Is it wise to leave Azazel there?" Sirzechs asked, he wasn't stupid, Lucerion had told him to come with him for a reason.
Lucerion gives him a knowing smile "He needs this, he has daddy issues after all…But now things are going to get sorted out once and for all...and say goodbye properly too."
Sirzechs sighed "You're incredible."
"Lucerion... no, Lord Lucerion...what is going to happen to the Devil race from now on?"
Sirzechs looked at him with determined eyes, the future of his race depended on this question.
Lucerion had made it clear that he wanted to take the reins of the three factions, and the situation was even better now, as peace had been declared and the Khaos Brigade had been annihilated.
It was prime time for The God of Cosmos.
"Prosperity."
"Prosperity?" Sirzechs repeated.
"True prosperity." Lucerion said. "I'm going to eradicate the entire peerage system." He added.
Sirzechs widened his eyes but before he could speak…
"I understand what it entails, I don't want to hear the excuse that it's used to boost the Devils' numbers because they struggle to reproduce."
After all, if they really wanted to boost their numbers, they would recruit ordinary humans... yet they conveniently "recruit" people with Sacred Gears or other beings with special abilities.
"The noble houses aren't going to like it…" Sirzechs said slowly.
"That's the neat thing...the noble houses won't be ruling anymore, any council or syndicate where they used to make the decisions is being dissolved."
"Lucerion…are you being serious?"
"Dead serious, Congratulations! From today on, you will be one of my administrators for the Devil Race." Lucerion said with a smile.
"A new civil war is going to break out when the nobles find out about this, they're devils... they'll never allow it." Sirzechs said with concern.
"Don't worry, after this, invite all the noble houses of the council—I will go with you."
"...And what do you plan to do?"
"I'm going to convince them... and I won't lie to you, Sirzechs... I'm going to use someone as an example... I'm going to kill him." The god confessed easily.
"Who?"
"If I take control, stripping the nobility of all its power, who is going to raise a huge outcry?" Lucerion said hypothetically.
Sirzechs He leaned forward, easily letting the answer slip out. "Zekram Bael the leader of the Great King Faction."
"Bingo."
The old man thinks he's in heaven after Lucerion has wiped out all his opposition, but sadly, he is about to face the greatest disappointment of his life.
"The old man must have found out by now that I wiped out the entire Khaos Brigade... he's probably celebrating his undisputed rise to power... but in reality, he's hit the ground."
Sirzechs nodded.
"I hope you and he aren't close?" Lucerion asked.
"No, our relationship was always strictly political."
"So, Zekram failed to rule properly... he always sought personal gain while the devils suffered. He is not like us, that is why he must disappear." Lucerion disintegrated a small stone he had grasped in his fist.
Even the nobility suffered, Sairaorg is not the only one who suffered in silence.
Lucerion didn't need to explain this to Sirzechs, the Maou knew it very well.
"Rest easy, Sirzechs... your father and your friends are out of danger. I know your father is no saint, but I leave that matter to you, as the administrator." Lucerion said, calming his heart.
"Zekram is going to get the stick—what's going to be the carrot?" Sirzechs asked, revealing a small smile. He wanted to know if there was even a single carrot to begin with.
Lucerion's smile beamed a bit "I'm glad you asked that." Lucerion took the holy water of life out of his inventory and placed it in front of the devil.
"...What is that? A potion?"
"It is called the holy water of life... one sip, and that strange hit or miss infertility of the Devils is resolved…and cures any ailment, physical wounds too."
"!!!"
"This one is for Misla Bael." Lucerion said giving it to Sirzechs.
It seemed more than fair to him, kill one Bael and save another.
"It looked to me like you were getting along well with Sairaorg at that gathering." Sirzechs said with a smile, putting away the potion.
"Lion help out lion after all." He stated with a serious face.
Sirzechs raising an eyebrow at his antics asked "The name of the potion worries me a bit—"holy"—won't that be dangerous for a devil?"
"Nah, it's just the name, give it all to Misla—I've got more with me. Later, if Ajuka is interested, we could make a watered-down version for the devils."
"...Huh." Sirzechs was a bit stunned.
'So this is the carrot…'
This was of incalculable value, and Sirzechs knew it better than anyone.
Of course, the potion available to the public will be less potent and obviously won't be free, it will cost just enough that a middle-class devil could—with some difficulty—afford it and start a family.
The nobility will be able to buy it too, but it doesn't matter to them anymore; they won't have any power in decision-making...and if they step out of line...well, they're playing against Lucerion, so good luck.
"You are nothing like him—I mean Yahweh." the red haired man said "After all, he never wanted to rule the Devils."
"Of course not... after all, he gave Lucifer free rein. His big mistake."
After all, God's mistake cost him his life.
Learning from this, Lucerion decided to eliminate the ringleader and rule himself—even though, with Zekram dead, it wouldn't be a good idea to simply leave the devils to their own devices.
Ajuka Beelzebub. One of the "good guys" created the Evil Pieces system, he isn't stupid clearly, he just didn't give a damn or can't do anything about the blatant slavery.
In either case, it is his fault, as the creator, he never took responsibility.
…After all, they are Devils.
But there are good people in that race too—Rias, Sona, Sairaorg, and many more.
Evil is always in the minority, yet that minority also tends to control the world—or any group—ruining everything.
But it doesn't matter anymore, that system is going to be abolished, the affected victims will be treated and returned to their families, and that's that.
Lucerion is waiting for any stupid devil who wants to stop him—if anyone dares, he wouldn't mind making an example of someone else.
"But to be honest with you, if things had been different and—by some miracle—Yahweh were ruling the Devils... it still wouldn't have worked." Lucerion lazily said.
"Why?" Sirzechs immediately asked out of curiosity, it was strange for him that Lucerion didn't believe in Yahweh regarding that.
"He is pure light."
Sirzechs closed his eyes and sighed. "I understand."
"I am, too, in part…but." The god of the cosmos slowly tapped his crown—half of which was made of dark matter—with his index finger.
Sirzechs, looking at the black part of the crown, understood what was being referred to.
"I and the entire devils race are under your care, I promise to serve the God of the Cosmos to the best of my ability." Sirzechs knelt and lowered his head.
Lucerion, who was sitting beside him with his legs crossed, simply nodded. "It's okay, sit normally with me." He waved his hand lazily.
"The crown looks different since the last time I saw you." Sirzechs said, looking at the breathtaking crown.
"Hoh you notice? yes, I added circular ornaments around the head on each side—one for nebula and one for vortex."
Even when he was human, Lucerion was somewhat obsessed with skins and in-game fashion, now that he can mold cosmic materials, he's taking things a step further—basically, he wants a legendary skin for himself, or perhaps something even beyond that tier.
"You are truly one of a kind Lucerion…" Sirzechs said.
"Heh."
The two of them talked for hours about the future and other people of interest, while also getting to know each other a little better—after all, they're going to be working together for a loooong time.
After five hours, Yahweh had finally returned from his talk...and with him, he brought every angel from heaven.
'Holy shit…thats a lot of people.'
Lucerion hadn't expected so many people for this...even Azazel had brought other Fallen, like Shemhazai and Baraquiel, to witness it.
'When you have power like this, things just naturally move in your favor sometimes I suppose.'
Lucerion stood up slowly as Yahweh approached. "Are you finished?"
"Yes, I thank you for giving this old man the chance to say goodbye properly and bring peace to my children." Yahweh nodded.
Lucerion simply nodded, it was time to let Yahweh speak.
The Heavenly Father turned around, looking at all the others—at all His children.
"Please, my children, this is my last wish as your father... please, from now on, follow Lucerion." Yahweh spoke in a serious tone.
The ancient god had already discussed it with the ten principal seraphs, seeing as they were the first to kneel.
"He is going to lead the Abrahamic pantheon into a new golden age of prosperity, he has already unified the three factions, single-handedly defeated the Khaos Brigade, and was the one who brought me back temporarily."
Some seraphs and other low-ranking angels opened their eyes in surprise. Several gasps could be heard all around.
Lucerion is going to give him the good news later that he also killed all the demons, right now, he didn't want to interrupt.
He also noticed that Azazel was working fast, filming this whole event for DevilNet and other magical portals on the "web."
'Zekram's heart is going to jump right out of his mouth when he sees this, hehe.'
"With my seal of approval, I present to you your new god—the new god of the Abrahamic pantheon, Lucerion, King of Stars."
Lucerion did catch that...Yahweh didn't call him God of the Cosmos...he preferred him as King of the Stars...he preferred his aspect of light...not the other one.
'In front of the cameras huh, mischievous old man.' Lucerion thought about it with a smile.
It took him by surprise a little, but it was to be expected.
Michael approached and bowed before Lucerion, offering him the spear he had used prior to receiving True Longinus.
Lucerion was already planning to make a couple of modifications to the system so that Michael could use the True Longinus.
"Lord Lucerion, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for what you did for us, and from this moment on, we angels offer you our lives." The seraph said.
"And I will protect your lives with all my might as your god. I will protect and cherish the legacy of my predecessor, Yahweh—the Heavenly Father—so that it shall never be forgotten."
Lucerion accepted and grasped the spear now his, raising it into the air with conviction.
"I am your god, Lucerion, King of the Stars, God of the Cosmos, follow me, and I promise the eternal prosperity of the Abrahamic pantheon!"
*ROOOOOAR*
*CLAP CLAP CLAP*
The ovation and applause erupted thunderously.
"It 's time." Yahweh spoke as he opened the doors to the throne of God.
It was time for his second coronation—his coronation of glory.
And there was the throne of God.
A gigantic throne with a sapphire-like appearance. The throne was supported by a cloud of fire that held the lightning, the lights shone with a brilliant white and gold.
The surrounding floor was made of beautiful blue-green glass.
Yahweh took Lucerion by the hand and led him to the throne.
Lucerion wore an impassive expression, yet he was a bit nervous about having so many people around and the fact that it was being recorded for the whole world to see.
Nothing like his other coronation, which was more private.
Yahweh seated him on the throne.
It was not the first time Yahweh had granted that throne to a man. He had done so with Adam in the beginning. Now, in keeping with an ancient tradition of the heavens, He was repeating the same act with him.
Well…with someone who was human until not so long ago.
Yahweh materialized the crown he hadn't seen for so long.
"This brings back so many memories." The god said, making Lucerion chuckle.
Lucerion enlarged his own crown, and made it aethereal to allow the other one in his head.. it fit his head perfectly, moreover, his cosmic crown complemented Yahweh's golden crown.
After seeing that the two crowns did not overlap, he materialized his own once again.
"Perfect, huh?" he muttered.
But his thoughts were diverted when cheers and applause erupted once more as Yahweh finished crowning him.
*ROOOOOAR*
*CLAP CLAP CLAP*
It didn't end there, the angels began to sing praises to the new god of their pantheon.
As Azazel filmed the throne, he knew this video would go viral on the Devilnet—it would sell like hotcakes...the revenue it was set to generate would be worthy of a case study.
The Abrahamic pantheon is rising from the ashes and taking the world's number one spot—as it should be, and as was expected of the world's most popular religion.
After an hour of celebration, Lucerion raised his hand, grateful.
He signaled Azazel to cut the video there.
"Thank you all very much, I am going to speak with you and introduce myself personally to each of the angels later in a couple of hours."
Lucerion looked out at all the angels—there were quite a few of them. He intended to hear their names, shake their hands, and move on to the next one...but that would come later, for now, he needed to speak with Yahweh about other matters.
The angels quickly understood without the need of saying a word, the celebration was over, and they bowed respectfully to the throne in an orderly fashion before leaving.
Lucerion spoke with Yahweh as they watched the angels leave... when the two were left alone...
"What do you think of the throne?"
"Meh, my other one is better." Lucerion quipped.
Yahweh shaking his head. "These young gods have no sense of good taste."
The two of them laughed and talked about other things, Lucerion also had to speak with Michael and the others after this, and needed to send a message to the Hindu pantheon regarding Indra's death—speaking of which, he needed to see Indra's body to pull a his Sun Jin-woo move as well.
"The look on your face tells me you want to tell me something important, Lucerion."
Lucerion scoffed a bit.
"I killed the demons…all the demons." Lucerion said directly.
"...Oh."
"...Just that?"
"Forgive me, but I'm a bit surprised—though coming from you...indeed, it makes sense."
"Im sorry... I know they were once angels, but... they were preying on humans." Lucerion said.
"Fair enough, you're right... in the end, I had to do the same thing." Yahweh sighed. "But please, don't lie to my face, Lucerion, I know you don't feel it one bit."
Lucerion was taken aback ... After all, he was standing before one of the most ancient gods.
It's time to be honest.
"You're right, but well, you know how I am... a punisher of evil." he nodded "Which brings me to my other question…"
"And that question is...?" Yahweh asked, looking at the young god.
"Tell me about Trihexa."
"!!!"
After some seconds Yahweh clearly understand his intentions, ending things for good means killing Trihexa.
"....what about her?"
"What the fuck…" muttered Lucerion looking at Yahweh.
Lucerion's mind raced, he sensed neither a lie nor a joke.
"HER!!??"
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Word count: 4000 and something.
Author notes:
- You can't really end a DxD fanfic without killing Trihexa right? hehe
Alright guys, the next chapter is the final fight of the fic.
Basically, there are two or three chapters left, plus the author's final notes.
That's what I'd like to say, but I'm actually enjoying writing 3,000-word chapters; I find them more compact and easier to produce.
3,000 words isn't the average, the average is 1,500 to 2,000, here in webnovel and wattpad, and honestly, I just can't bring myself to write 2,000 words, lol.
That's why I prefer to do 3,000 and be at peace with myself and with you guys.
I said this, and I just gave them a 4,000-word chapter—not counting these author's notes... pretty funny.
Anyway, I'm mentioning this just to let you know... I'm really liking the 3,000-word format, so I'm going to stick with that from now on—always 3,000 words, or maybe an extra 100 or so to cover a few added details.
Anyway, next chapter, more conversation, maybe a bit of politics, humor, and the fight.
After this, there are still two little things I want to do that will be quite fun to write.
It's my first time posting at 11 p.m.—almost midnight; I want the weekend off, lol.
See you in the next one, bye.