Author's Notes: Chapter edited and corrected by Scott Fellman.
Sirzechs POV.
"Thank you both for coming." I said with a nod as I looked at the two people in front of me, Azazel and Michael.
"Don't worry, if I'm really right about what you want to talk about, then I can make time," Azazel said almost lazily, though I could sense a hint of seriousness in his voice. Michael, on the other hand, remained silent, staring into the air, then blinked, finally focusing on us and nodding.
"Of course, Sirzechs, I... I'm really curious about this." Michael said with a strained smile, almost trying to appear lighthearted, but there was a tension throughout his body, almost desperate.
"Very well, then let's begin. I know you have questions about young Serena Prince." I said, getting to the heart of the matter. They both tensed up and nodded.
"Well, then... the three of us are in complete agreement that the explanation of the Demonic Brilliance of Evil Light was complete and utter nonsense, right?" Azazel said dryly, and I shuddered.
"It was the first thing that came to mind." I said with a pout. Azazel snorted.
"You're really lucky Serena didn't actually meet any Lucifers besides Vali, because that excuse definitely wouldn't have worked." Azazel sighed, and I sighed and nodded.
"It is, even Ajuka and Serafall realized we were lying. Luckily, they didn't say anything, especially Ajuka, even though he disliked the idea. They're kind of friends." I said regretfully. Really, the last thing I wanted was for Ajuka's friendships to be compromised, especially when he had so few.
"I know, I know, this is terrible, but necessary. There were too many people to discuss it," Ajuka said, frustrated. "It's not that I don't trust your sister or her peerage, but one wrong comment at the wrong time and everything would be ruined." Ajuka said, turning to me. I nodded.
"I know, don't worry," I told Azazel easily. I loved Rias unimaginably, but I wasn't blind to her flaws, much less to those of her Peerage, the new Sekiryuutei {Red Dragon Emperor}… he left much to be desired in terms of personality; he definitely wouldn't be able to keep quiet.
"So... is he really? Is she... is she Father?" Azazel asked tensely, almost anxiously. I could see his leg twitch with anxiety and a tortured look on his face as he stared at Michael. Michael was simply staring blankly into space again, his eyes glazed over—something he seemed to be doing a lot lately. It was truly worrying. He finally snapped out of his trance and grimaced.
"I... I don't know..." Michael said, sounding completely lost, regret in his voice. "It feels... similar, and yet no, it wasn't like Father's divine Light, it wasn't sacred, I didn't... I didn't feel Father's comforting embrace." Michael said, sounding almost empty. "But..."
"But it felt so... the same. That Light... that Light worked miracles, you saw it, the way it created things, it wasn't... magic, it wasn't demonic power, it was simply... creation, it felt like Father." Michael murmured, almost in shock. "But... but if... if she really is Father... why?" He sounded so defeated. "Why?" His voice broke.
"Did Father have some kind of safeguard to... save himself... to reincarnate... why did he do it as a devil? He... Father... abandoned us?" Michael asked in so much pain. I watched in horror as Michael's wings began to flicker.
"NO!" roared Azazel furiously, startling us both. "Don't go down that road, Michael!" hissed Azazel. Michael blinked and almost looked down at his wings in horror. "Calm down, Michael," Azazel ordered. "We'll see this through, whether Serena is a father or not; it doesn't matter."
"For centuries, we have taught humans that God works in mysterious ways and that they must have faith in His designs, and that was never different for us, His angels, His children. If Serena Prince is Father or has some fragment of him or whatever is going on, then it will all make sense sooner or later. Just... calm down." Azazel pleaded with Michael as he looked at him. Michael stared at him in shock before taking a deep breath and closing his eyes. Finally, his wings returned to their full golden color as they began to glow more intensely than before. He finally opened his eyes, much calmer.
"Thank you... brother." Michael said gratefully, looking at Azazel, who slumped in his seat, completely shocked.
"For the love of our Father, don't even think about falling, Michael. I mean it, I'll kick your ass." Azazel growled, his voice trembling, as he ran a hand over his face. Michael smiled gratefully.
"I won't," Michael promised before sighing and looking at us. "I'm sorry about that," Michael said with an apologetic smile. I shook my head.
"Don't worry, Michael, I'm really glad you stayed," I told him honestly. Michael was possibly one of the angels who truly didn't deserve to fall, and one of the few whose fall would truly sadden me if it were to happen.
"I've said it before, and I'll say it again, she knows more than she lets on." Azazel sighed wearily, and I nodded.
"Obviously. She's intelligent, incredibly intelligent. She loves to research, experiment, and create things. I saw her working with Ajuka together. It wasn't her helping or trying to keep up with Ajuka; they were working together, almost on the same level." I said seriously. "Oh, Serena definitely has a way to go to reach Ajuka's level, but I have no doubt that she'll get there in no time." I said with a sigh. "A mind like hers definitely wouldn't leave anything uninvestigated. I'm sure she's researched everything she can about The Light and The Darkness and has come to her own conclusions, but what are those conclusions? We haven't the slightest idea." I said in frustration.
"I already asked, but you didn't find anything among Father's belongings, did you?" Azazel asked in Michael's direction; he simply shook his head.
"No. At least not anything that indicates he took any precautions in case of his death. If he did, he didn't leave any clues." Michael sighed wearily. "Unless we're missing something," he added, this time a little more frustrated.
"Damn it." Azazel growled. "So... we have no choice but to watch? I seriously doubt Serena would tell us everything she knows if we asked her directly." Azazel hummed.
"Perhaps it's for the best," Sirzechs sighed. "Serena is already attracting too much attention, with her practically meteoric rise, with her city, and now with Distracted Globe. She really doesn't need angels to start following her in some overly obvious way. The other factions would definitely realize something else is going on if there are angels following a succubus, of all things."
"And the less they know about her, or what she might be, even if we're right or wrong, the better. That will protect her. Like I said, she's smart and strong, and so is her Peerage; she'll be able to take care of herself for now," I finally said.
"But…" Michael said while pouting, I shuddered, that face was really unfair.
"Don't worry, Michael, remember you have a TV show to rehearse and film with her, you'll be close to her, you'll be able to observe her and even talk and bond with her without it seeming too obvious," Azazel teased. Still, Michael's completely cheerful expression was entirely genuine.
"You're right," Michael said, sounding genuinely happy, almost to the point of stamping his feet with joy, almost like a son reunited with his father… yes, and maybe he was. My head was already starting to hurt.
"I remind you, we still don't know if it's really God, or a fragment, or something else entirely, or whatever it is, or even if it is, it may not have and may never regain its memories, if they even exist. We really know absolutely nothing about this situation. So, I'm not trying to play devil's advocate. You can investigate and talk to her, but really, really, you shouldn't get your hopes up either way." I said carefully. That stopped Michael's excitement, and he went back to pouting. Satan, give me strength.
"Should we tell the others?" Michael finally asked, a faint glimmer of hope beginning to appear in his eyes. I raised an eyebrow in his direction.
"Do you really think that someone like Gabriel would be able to restrain herself, even if the possibility that Serena is God is true?" I asked, my voice filled with doubt. They both shuddered.
"Yeah, no, better not to involve Gabriel." Azazel said quickly, Michael pouted again before sighing.
"Well, I... I'll keep it to myself for now." Michael sighed ruefully.
"I'm sorry," I said apologetically. "I'm sure Ajuka understood most of what we meant, so he won't speak. He doesn't like the situation, but he really likes Serena, and he'll protect her in his own way."
"And Serafall... I'm sure she's so excited about the show that she didn't really pay attention to all the talk, so there's nothing to worry about." I sighed as I massaged my temple.
"Well, I suppose we can leave it for now. It's not like we can solve this right away," Azazel said, shrugging. "I mean, I can see parts of Father in Serena. They both like to create things and investigate, they both fiercely love what they consider their own, and they're both terribly jealous." Azazel snorted.
"Father wasn't jealous," Michael said defensively. Azazel rolled his eyes.
"I didn't say he was bad. Father loved fiercely, as was his nature, but he hated sharing the things he loved. For some reason, we had so many holy wars with the other pantheons to keep humanity on our side. Father really doesn't know how to share." Azazel retorted. Michael grimaced, and I shuddered.
Satan, save us all. I have seen Serena's jealousy, and the thought of God reacting the same way made me shudder.
"The only thing Serena needs now is to start creating a new race that will worship her like Father, although I suppose succubi already fulfill that requirement." Azazel snorted mockingly.
"Actually…" I began thoughtfully. They both looked at me, and I grimaced. "Serena has shown an ability to bring objects to life," I said timidly, meeting their gazes. They both blinked intently.
"Life... you mean life, life, like, a soul?" Azazel asked, almost horrified.
"Right now... not really? She hasn't used it much lately, but her tail is capable of bringing things she hits to life, like, I think it magically animates them and gives them a little bit of consciousness, but I don't think they have souls?" I said, confused. "It's really not my area of expertise." I shook my head as I apologized to both of them.
"She can give life to things... just by... hitting them with her tail?" Azazel asked, almost incredulously.
" Yeah? I mean, it seems like something inherent in her; her tail can move just as fast as she does and hit thousands of things in an instant, and can bring them all to life," I said quickly.
"That... is certainly impressive, but it tells us nothing," Azazel sighed in frustration. "I mean, Father was also able to create life with ease, but his creations had souls, like us," Azazel added before humming. "I don't think she's capable of deciphering the principles of life on her own, at least not for centuries, so unless she's able to find the Sephiroth Graal, I don't think she'll be able to do anything like what Father did." Azazel said with a grimace, and I froze.
"Sephiroth Graal…" I said in shock, both of them looking at me once more. "Yes… About that, I think I might have some information about them." I added timidly, then cleared my throat. "I suppose you remember my sister's bishop, Gaspar Vladi?"
"Yes, the possessor of Forbidden Balor View." Azazel said immediately as Michael nodded. I nodded.
"Well, Gaspar was a Dhampir before reincarnating as a devil, and that's why he has a Sacred Gear. Gaspar had a close friend, another Dhampir, Valerie Tepes, whom the Tepes family and their faction imprisoned."
"Well, she showed up in Kuoh. Without any trace or memory of how she got there, someone just left her in the old school building." I said seriously.
"I... I must admit I don't understand where you're going with this," Michael said, confused. I grimaced.
"Well, Rias and Gaspar questioned Valerie, and it turns out she was the wielder of the Sephiroth Grail. The vampires were using her to remove their fatal weaknesses." I said with a grimace. They both froze.
"Was it?" Azazel asked cautiously, and I nodded.
"She was. She's safe, and we've checked, but she doesn't have any Sacred Gear, and she wasn't even injured. Someone removed the Sacred Gear so cleanly that Ajuka himself had to examine Valerie, only to find tiny marks on her soul where the old Sacred Gear had been."
"And yet, Ajuka said that, in time, those wounds would heal, and it would be as if Valerie had never had Sephiroth Graal in her body," I said with a grimace.
"Oh?" Azazel said, sounding equally worried and interested. "Has anyone found a way to remove a Sacred Gear so cleanly?" Azazel asked curiously. I nodded.
"From all the tests we did, yes, it was really clean," I said easily.
"So... the question is, who has the Sephiroth Grail and where did it go?" Michael asked seriously. I nodded.
"That's the point," I said with a grimace. "Very few people actually knew about Valerie's Sephiroth Grail, apparently only the vampire nobility, and it was a really well-kept secret." I frowned, and Azazel hummed.
"There are very few options. If it had been Khaos Brigade, the vampires wouldn't exist, or they wouldn't have bothered to remove the Sacred Gear so cleanly and then return it along with their old friend in Kuoh," Azazel said with a grimace.
"Exactly, if it wasn't Khaos Brigade, and it wasn't any of us, then it was someone else, someone who knew about the Sephiroth Grail, and I can think of very few people, and only one of them is a vampire with enough authority to know." I said with a grimace. I could see them both thinking quickly.
"Bellatrix Black. Serena's queen." Azazel said, snapping his fingers. I nodded.
"She's a vampire, the strongest I've ever seen, honestly. I haven't seen her with the normal weaknesses of a vampire, and she's the princess of Wallachia. She fulfills all the conditions to know about Valerie's existence and the Sephiroth Graal." I said seriously.
"And you think she told Fath - Lady Prince, and she took the Sephiroth Graal away from Valerie?" Michael asked seriously.
"It's a possibility," I said with a sigh.
"It's quite a mental exercise to have reached that possibility." Ajuka snorted. "But I don't deny that it makes sense." Azazel groaned loudly. "Really, she's being quite a problem, whether she's father or not." Azazel snorted.
"Would she... be able to create more angels?" Michael asked almost calmly; we both grimaced.
"Impossible," Azazel said immediately. "Even if I were able to survive and stare into the abyss that is Sephiroth Graal and that Light, whatever it may be, it's impossible for me to create an angel."
"She's a devil, a succubus at heart, and she truly revels in her lustful nature with her Peerage, creating something as pure as an angel..." Azazel said with a sneer. Michael shuddered slightly.
"Hmm, I'm sure she's capable of bestowing her Light upon others," I said, frowning. "In her last public Rating Game, one of her new pawns came out to fight—that girl with blue skin, Rebecca. I'm certain she used the same manifestations that Serena used against the White Dragon," I added, frowning.
"Oh? I saw the fight you're talking about, and you're right that they're similar. It's a shame I didn't see it live so I could feel if it was really that Light," Azazel said with a grimace.
"She participates a lot in the Distracted Globe Arenas." I pointed, Azazel hummed and nodded.
"Maybe I'll drop by one of them; I'll have to assign someone to let me know when they're about to participate," Azazel said easily. I nodded.
"And I suppose that's something else they won't tell us, right?" Michael asked with a sigh, and I smiled apologetically.
The Youth Tournament is coming soon. Serena and her Peerage will be participating in the Devil Rating Game Tournament, so if we can't find out now, we can observe them closely at that time." I added immediately, and the others nodded while sighing.
"Well, with all that said, I guess in the meantime, we'll stick with this stupid idea that she inherited the Demonic Brilliance of Evil Light from the original Lucifer, or a variant of it. We're lucky there are so few living devils and angels who are intimately familiar with Father's holy light." Azazel sighed as he massaged his temple. "Besides, she has... something special about four-pointed stars, right? I mean, her pupils are stars, she has star tattoos all over her body, and her tail, too. I know we made up all that stuff about Lucifer's Demonic Brilliance of Evil Light, but it's ridiculously convenient as a descendant of the Morningstar." Azazel groaned in pain.
"You know... I've never asked her about that." I said honestly, and Azazel groaned.
"So... if Serena really is father... should we call her Father or Mother?" Azazel asked, completely serious. Michael looked genuinely offended.
"Father is Father, no matter what form he takes," Michael said seriously. Azazel snorted and crossed his arms.
"I mean, we already had a father, it wouldn't hurt to have a mother too." Azazel argued. Michael opened his mouth before closing it again, thinking it over carefully. I groaned loudly and ignored the conversation. Damn it, Serena, you couldn't just be a simple, super-strong succubus, could you?
Author's Notes: Serena isn't God, but misunderstandings and coincidences conspire to make others believe she is, so... maybe she is?