A thunderous sound accompanies the angels’ descent as they pour from the Rift like a torrent of white birds, swords and armors glistening in the light of their own magic as it spreads across the sky, leaving trails of glowing energy in its wake.

Even from his position, kilometers away, Varzath is able to hear faint screams ordering battle positions to be assumed, and their flight, at a first glance chaotic, soon grows ordered, sweeping the surrounding sky in expectance of an attack which will never arrive...

Varzath has to admit they’re beautiful creatures. Now, if only they weren’t such a pain in the ass, he might’ve even acknowledged an amount of reluctant admiration for their values, and willingness to stand by them in the face of death.

“Have they noticed us?!” Biranal screams above the wind resulting from the breach, having now assumed a position behind Zuriel.

“I’m not sure!” Varzath admits, lowering his defensive spell once the wind begins to finally lose its strength. “They should have. But the question is, what are they going to do about it?”

For a while, the angels continue circling the Rift’s gateway (pointlessly, but then again, Varzath can’t expect them to know they won’t be attacked), before finally, some of them start to point in their direction.

A part of him half expects them to attack immediately, and if the waves of gathering energy are anything to go by, they might have, had one of them not shouted about a hostage.

“Here they come…”

A small battalion detaches itself from the main flock, and Varzath counts up to twenty angels as they approach their position, stopping at about a hundred meters from the ground while watching their surroundings nervously.

“You there, demons! Lay down your weapons and release the hostage!” a woman, seemingly their captain, screams as she points her sword in their direction, “If you do so, we shall grant you merciful deaths!”

Varzath blinks. Is she serious?

Making a show of inspecting his surroundings, Varzath then points a questioning finger toward himself.

“Who else?!”

He laughs, casting the same voice-amplifying spell he used earlier in order to address the angel, “Tempting as your offer may have been, sweety, I think I’ll have to decline it. Now be a good girl and go fetch me someone of relevance, preferably your leader. Trust me, he’ll want to know his belove Zuriel is still alive and kicking…”

The name Zuriel causes the angel to all but stagger midair, while her underlings don’t fare much better. Since they’re wearing helmets, Varzath can’t quite grasp their expressions, but their shock and disbelief are made obvious enough by their silence.

Varzath sighs. “Would it help if I threatened to start cutting off fingers for every minute wasted?”

“S-silence! Your tricks cannot deceive us!”

Varzath waves toward Biranal, who steps forward, kneels by Zuriel, and-

“W-wait…! Damn you… Wait a moment!”

Smiling, Varzath signals for Biranal to stop. “You have a minute to bring me someone of relevancy,” he tells them.

Without another word, the group of angels turns around and heads back toward the main flock, clearly hushing their movements.

Oh, Varzath can imagine what must be going through their minds, if not their mouths: It must be some of sort of trick! Sir, please don’t fall for it! Zuriel has been long dead!

Of course, this entire venture is somewhat of a gamble, as he doesn’t know what type of man Abdiel is. Is he so lost in his own grief, and vengeance, that he wouldn’t even consider the possibility of his beloved being alive after so long has passed? Or is he the foolish, hopeful sort who’d abandon everything for a faint sliver of hope at the very depths of Hell itself?

Varzath doesn’t have to wait for long before finding out the answer, as a single, six-winged angel soon shoots from among the entourage of creatures, fast enough to create a burst of air in his wake.

‘Love, place your mace against her neck. Make so she’s unable to move nothing other than her eyes.’

The angel, who looked for a moment as though he might simply crash against them, abruptly halts his flight twenty or so meters away from their position once Biranal moves, obeying his orders.

“…Seraphim Abdiel, I presume?”

“Lord Varzath…!”

Seeing as the flock of angels in the distance has lost its consistency in the absence of their commander, many of them seemingly about to charge after him, Varzath says, “Have your people stay away. I’ll only warn you once.”

“You think I am a fool?!”

Abdiel waves his hand, and a sudden flash of light washes over their surroundings, causing Varzath to blink.

However, as he recognizes the magic used, he quickly signals Biranal to stand her ground; After all, other than having hurt their eyes, a truth-revealing spell won’t accomplish much in the absence of Illusion Magic to be destroyed…

And then, once having realized his spell had no effect over their surroundings whatsoever, Abdiel finally stops for a moment, hovering midair as his eyes fixate past Varzath’s shoulder, remaining over the bound figure of Zuriel for a long moment.

“…Zuriel?”

The angel’s voice is small, disbelieving, and almost painfully fragile. A look toward Zuriel reveals an expression that all but screams for her beloved to run away immediately… But how could he, when she was the reason he came all this way to begin with?

Varzath laughs. “Touching, truly, but I believe to have given you an order?”

Abdiel glances over his shoulders, toward the army of angels, dozens of thousands strong, about to rush to his rescue.

His shoulders drop.

Then, a moment later, the creatures’ movements grow lethargic as they reassume their previous defensive combat formation, looking hesitant the whole way through.

“Impressive. Now, the helmet. I feel rather at a disadvantage speaking to a piece of metal, you see.”

As instructed, Abdiel raises slightly shaking gauntlets toward his golden helmet, removing it as he simply allows the armor piece to fall toward the ground…

Varzath whistles silently. Discounting the three intersecting golden halos drawn across the creature’s forehead, resembling a crown, Abdiel possesses sharp green eyes (rare for his kind), short blond hair wet with sweat, and a face belonging to a young adult man not a year older than twenty.

Handsome… No, more than that, he’s gorgeous. But then again, so are most of Heaven’s spawns.

The angel doesn’t speak at first, looking almost confused; Varzath supposes, that not even in his wildest dreams, did he imagine this situation.

“What… What is the meaning of this, Varzath, Lord of Hell’s Seventieth Circle?”

Varzath smiles at him. “I see you’ve done your research. And as you can see, I’ve also taken the liberty of investigating matters before your arrival… After all, knowing your enemy makes things far easier to handle, doesn’t it? Please, do not take it personally, but I’d rather not waste the lives of my people on some pointless scuffle against Heaven’s latest suicidal endeavor.”

Abdiel clenches his teeth.

“Oh, does the truth bother you? How many of them even knew none of you would ever return to see Heaven’s splendor after bursting through that Rift?”

“…They knew what awaited us. The only ones to accompany me were volunteers.”

…The worst part? Varzath believes him.

“Well, I guess idiocy is a shared trait among your lot. Nonetheless, I offer you the amazing opportunity to return home in one piece while carrying your prize,” Varzath says, motioning toward Zuriel as he does so in order to leave no doubts as to what such prize might be, “Though, by you, I mean your people, of course.”

Zuriel screams against her gag, causing Varzath to frown. Maybe he should’ve drugged her again, after all?

“And I take it that after I offer you my head in a silver plate, you’ll simply release Zuriel and allow my troops to leave unscathed? Do I look that gullible to you?” Abdiel retorts.

Varzath puts a hand against his heart, pretending outrage, “I’ll have you know my word is sacred!”

In response, Abdiel places his hand against his sword’s pommel. “I should hush you. Zuriel would want me to. She’d never allow herself to be used this way… She’d sooner die.”

“It seems you know her well. Indeed, when she learned you were valiantly coming to pays us a visit, she begged me to kill her… In fact, I’m sure she’d have done it herself, had I not acted quickly to prevent such a tragedy. She was convinced we would use her as bait to attract and kill you, if you can believe it… Such an imagination. But, if you’re truly willing to sacrifice her in order to kill me, then by all means, let us not waste our time any longer with pointless negotiation.”

Varzath closes his eyes, raising his chin slightly and exposing his neck toward the angel.

“…What do you want?”

Pretending confusion, Varzath meets Abdiel's gaze once more while lowering his chin nonchalantly. “What do I want? I thought we had already established as much; I want to avoid the needless slaughter of my people by the blades of suicidal fools. Wouldn’t you want the same, were you in my shoes?”

Abdiel grimaces, his expression as though having been forced to eat something rotten. “You can’t expect me to believe you care for the creatures under your command. I know how demons think; To you, they’re nothing but your paws… You’d have no problem drowning us in their corpses.”

The Table wouldn’t.

“Perhaps. But since you know my name, you must also know what I am…”

Abdiel’s expression of disgust speaks more than a thousand words.

“I see you do. Well, is it so hard to believe a creature of love such as myself would want to solve things peacefully whenever possible? I could hardly choose my place of birth… But perhaps not all needs to be solved by unrestrained violence, even in Hell. I’d like to think of myself as somewhat of an innovator, you see.”

“What are you getting at?”

Varzath smiles. “You and me, we shall battle to the death. If I win, your friends shall retreat, to never return, leaving Zuriel here to her fate… But if you, by some miracle, manage to kill me instead, then you’ll be allowed to leave with her, unscathed.”

Abdiel frowns, obviously doubtful. “How do I know you’ll keep your word?”

“Are you stupid? If you win, I’ll be dead; What need would I have to break my word then? And besides, you could always continue on your suicidal charge after you’ve dealt with me… Isn’t that what you came all this way for? To die? Is there much of a difference in how or where it happens?”

With a look of pure hatred on his face, Abdiel slowly unsheathes his long sword. “…Very well. You’re right in that we’ve come prepared to die, demon… And if you defeat me in honorable combat, I have ordered my people to retreat. But they’re no fools… If you have tricked us somehow, or if your creature refuses to cooperate and release Zuriel after I’ve killed you, don’t expect us to hesitate for a second time.”

‘Love, give us some space. If at all possible, find a place where they can easily see the both of you, so they’ll know we’ve kept our word once I lose.’

Heeding his command, Biranal takes flight, carrying Zuriel with her.

“First… Tell me one thing. Why? Why did your people attack us? Why have you kept Zuriel alive all this time?”

Varzath frowns. So far, he’s been careful to provoke the angel only enough to have him fight seriously, but not to the point where he might consider pursuing matters further after his death…

Smiling at him, Varzath also unsheathes his daggers as he casts several buffing spells on himself, then conjures a pair of shadow wings to accompany them (his fight with Biranal the previous night thought him a valuable lesson, after all). “Very well, I shall tell you the truth, but only if you promise me your people will retreat after our duel, regardless of the result.”

“As long as you keep your word, we’ll keep ours… The fact you’d suggest otherwise is insulting.”

Varzath laughs. “Is that so? In this case, I can fight without worries… But to answer your question, the reason the cute thing you call Zuriel was captured and kept alive thus far was for sexual purposes, of course; Well, you should already have suspected as mu-”

Abdiel suddenly swings his sword, sending a wave of white energy from its tip which cuts through the space in between them instantly.

“If you have touched even a strand of her hair…!”

Having appeared behind him by teleporting, Varzath sends several shadow thorns toward the angel’s back, only to have them crash and break against an instantly erect shield of light.

“I’d tell you all about the things we did together, but I’d feel bad if you started blushing!”

Abdiel throws a sidelong glance over his shoulder, seemingly unphased by having his enemy appear behind him, and narrows his eyes at him.

“I don’t know why you’re so confident you’ll be able to defeat me, but I promise you… I’ll enjoy this, demon.”

Abdiel’s sword suddenly glows, shedding light strong enough to blind Varzath; Then, the angel moves, fast, casting several sword slashes in his direction, which Varzath barely dodges by teleporting once more.

Immediately as he appears, Varzath ducks, dodging another sword slash as he creates numerous shadow tentacles which rise from among the trees, aiming for Abdiel’s legs.

The angel takes a glance in their direction, then swings his sword, almost nonchalantly releasing another sword slash.

“…Is this all you have?”

Varzath laughs as he summons his shadow puppets, who appear by his side near the canopy of leafless trees; With his buffs being active, he’s able to control five of them at once.

“Nice trick,” Abdiel says, voice dull. With a wave of his hand, three winged soldiers of light appear by his side, wilding spear and shield.

No more words are exchanged.

Throwing spell after spell, Abdiel and Varzath fly through the sky, crash into the earth, and wreak havoc onto their surroundings, soon turning them unrecognizable.

Midst explosions, beams of energy, shadow and light, dancing, devouring everything in their wake as they meet repeatedly, Varzath laughs, while the angel screams with rage.

Still, in a single word, Abdiel's fighting style could only be described as deadly.

He’s fast, calculating, and relentless, leaving no exploitable openings. Furthermore, his mana seems endless, showing no signs of depletion even after several dozen minutes of constant fighting.

Facing such an opponent, Varzath is all too aware that a single mistake would lead to his premature demise.

A single miscalculated teleport, or opening shown, and Abdiel will separate his head from his shoulders, no hesitation… That’s why, he must push things further, until the angel feels as though he’s been driven into a corner…

Varzath lands, creating a small crater as he stops Abdiel's sword centimeters away from his face; Unclenching his teeth, the angel screams, releasing a sound wave that has Varzath’s ears popping, and his vision blurred.

Having stepped back by reflex, Varzath watches as Abdiel raises his sword again, prepared to land the finishing blow, when a shadow appears above the both of them, attracting the angel’s attention, and forcing him to dodge.

Casting a quick healing spell over his ears, Varzath commands his shadow puppet, now locked in combat against Abdiel, to blow up, then turns and immediately slashes his daggers onto empty air; Except, a sword suddenly appears, blocking his slashes, as Abdiel teleports there.

In a matter of seconds, they exchange dozens of blows, close-range spells, and curses.

Abdiel sword glows, and Varzath steps aside, evading the slash of energy as it courses through space, destroying all in its wake, then immediately thrusts his dagger as he creates a spike of shadow from its tip which cleanly penetrates through the angel’s stomach.

Abdiel screams again, but this time, Varzath is ready for it, immediately covering his head in a protective wind spell.

Unfortunately, doing as much gave Abdiel enough time to teleport away and heal himself.

Varzath smiles.

It has been set, and his opponent must’ve realized as much by now; Albeit slightly, he’s faster.

If things continue unchanged, he’ll overpower the angel sooner or later. To make matters worse, their puppets seem evenly matched, but he’s able to control two more of them, making for an absolute advantage.

Now, faced with his eminent demise, how will his opponent react?

Abdiel screams, then charges, his fighting having taken a desperate tone to it. Throwing caution to the wind, he now chases after Varzath uncaring of receiving wounds or not, then immediately heals said wounds through Holy Magic.

…Cheating bastard. Although Varzath can do some healing himself, it is only on a basic level, and nothing compared to what the Seraphim can do.

Still, currently, his opponent is burning mana almost at twice the rate… As long as he manages to survive for long enough, he’s sure to win their battle.

“Hey, why don’t we stop things here?! Say, if you surrender, I’ll spare you! You’ll have to make yourself useful, of course, but with that face, I doubt you’ll have any problem attracting customers!”

Abdiel dodges through his flying shadow blades, maneuvering between them as he ignores the several gashes they leave upon his armor and skin, then counters with numerous sword slashes of his own.

“If you’re a good boy, I might even let you see Zuriel every now and then! Having you watching us would make her really happy, and I could show you all of her weak spots!”

“Tempting,” the angel murmurs as their weapons clash, “But I’ll have to refuse. Besides, there’s nothing you could teach me about her body that I don’t already know.”

Varzath grins. “Is that so? You would be surprised what a hundred years of sexual servitude might change about somebody… Are you sure you still know her?”

Abdiel’s pupils shrink, and Varzath immediately teleports away as an explosion of light consumes the angel’s surroundings.

Then, he continues to teleport away repeatedly, dodging sword slash after sword slash as they seem to pinpoint exactly where he is going to appear.

Well, his opponent can’t keep this up fore-

Varzath abruptly stops, staring toward Abdiel, now many hundreds of meters away, as the angel grabs his sword, slowly raising it above his head as it begins to radiate light.

In the split of a second, Varzath realizes that, even if he tries to rush back, he won’t make it in time, and defending or running away also seems out of the question, meaning his only options are to meet the angel’s attack head-on with something of equivalent power, or teleport at the precise instant the magic is about to hit him, not a split second too soon or too late.

But, this energy… By the way the air shimmers and distorts around Abdiel as he lowers his now blindingly bright sword, it is obvious the angel is putting everything he has into this move.

Varzath takes a deep breath… Heh, finally.

Abdiel was the real deal. Even now, had he truly wished to dodge the spell, or match it, Varzath isn’t sure he’d be able to.

He’s also young, which means he’ll grow even stronger from now on.

Born on the right side, talented, and handsome to boot?

Bastard…

Varzath closes his eyes, activating his tattoos. A brief wave of heat against his skin is all he feels, followed by nothingness…

…Huh?

Strange.

He assumed there’d be nothing beyond this point…

Well, he hoped to awake again someday, preferably in a Mortal Plane, since it was the whole point behind their plan.

But this…

Strange.

It feels as though his thoughts take time to form…

A lot of it.

How exhausting…

He’s sleepy, but after that stupid Seraphim’s spell, he could use one of Salmorol’s massages.

Right, she said she’d wait for him, didn’t she?

Stupid girl.

He should stay awake until then, or she’ll be upset.

How bothersome…

He…

He wonders if Zuriel managed to return safely.

He hopes nobody did something stupid after his death.

Damn it, he should’ve fucked her at least once.

He’s a demon, for fuck’s sake!

Raping an angel or two is to be expected!

Ah… Sunnazoth was right, he’s way too damn nice for his own good.

But hey, in his next life, all going according to plan, he’ll reincarnate as a human, so his good nature won’t be frowned down upon anymore.

He could save as many stray cats as he wants, and no one would bat an eye.

Wouldn’t that be a nice change of pace…?

Oops, he almost fell asleep for a second there…

Gotta stay awake for that massage…

But man, this is boring.

Shame he can’t kill time by beating it.

Then again, thinking about it, he doesn’t remember the last time he masturbated.

Having an entire castle of maids ready to satisfy your every whim will do that for you.

Heh.

It was a nice life, if he says so himself.

Shitty start, but a great ending.

If he were to list his regrets…

He should have thrown another orgy or two when he had the chance.

Funny.

He truly can’t think of anything other than sex.

…Ugh!

Almost fell asleep again.

Gotta stay awake.

Think of Biranal.

On all fours, knees apart and head lowered…

He’s horny.

Is it possible for a Soul to be horny?

The Soul of an Incubus…

In the body of a human…

What could possibly go wrong?

…Ruby eyes, gleaming with desire.

Lords, he wants to fuck her.

Over and over again, until one of them begs for it to be over…

Considering her stamina, he’ll probably be the one to beg first.

But that’s fine…

He wonders if Sunnazoth took care of things properly.

If he’s reborn to find she fucked things up monumentally while he was away, he’ll be pissed.

Then again, he did sort of force her to assume the Domain.

Nothing to it, since she was by far the best suited for it.

Sonog would’ve locked himself in his workshop far too often.

Salmorol is just way too nice for a leadership position.

Zugdradak is still too immature, though he might’ve made the cut in another couple of centuries.

And the others…

He just doesn’t trust any of them enough to consider it, or they’re far too weak.

Biranal isn’t a demon, so she can’t have her own Domain.

Just…

Gotta stay awake…

Maybe he should start counting…?

No, isn’t that how you fall asleep faster?

It… It can’t take much longer than this, right?