God Yet Lives

"Remember that time when Noah kido chained you to Lilith? Kira was the asshole that I was fighting that day. He was also there for a bunch of other battles," Noct said, "Now, lets go." With that she dove down.

--

Mortal popped up on the other side, and nodded, "Yup, now this I can believe to be hell."

E"Oh yeah. I didn't like that guy."

L"Neither did I. You're heavy."

*She jumps down. After a minute, everyone else follows.*
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*They pass through a water barrier into a world of smokey gray clouds. When they touch the bottom, it's hard rock with occasional pools of boiling yellow liquid spewing smoke into the air. From the slope, it's clear they're on a plateau.*
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*She tries her best to block, & is thrown again.*

Enkidu stopped and took a heaving breath, his halo flickering slightly and becoming slightly dimmer again.
"Eye man! Why are your lieutenants not helping me?" Enkidu didn't bother looking at Zommari, but just yelled very loudly. "We need to finish her off now, before reinforcements turn up!"

"Well, we're here," Mortal said, "I'm surprised we have not been carpet bombed yet. Where's Gevurah?"

Zommari<But of course.>

*As Hisagi & Nanao make their moves, they find themselves both knocked out by hooves as Nel leaps back onto the scene. She then canters back over towards Soi Fon.*

Nel<They are already arriving.>

*Heedless of this new development, Rangiku points at her, a torrent of ash in the vague shape of a cat running at her. When Nel goes to attack it, it begins running circles around her, scattering a thin ring of dust.*
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S"Keter wants us to see all of her realm before we die."

E"That's just creepy."

L"It gives us time to catch up, though. How was your vacation?"

E"...Are you serious?"

*Euryale heads to the edge of the plateau & stomps, forming a wide set of stairs down.*

"It was nice actually," Noct answered, "The coral reefs there were amazing, and we went to an aquarium and swam with dolphins and a whale shark."

Mortal, Sab, and Noct follow after Euryale.

Astarte followed the other girls after taking in the scenery. She was very glad to find that there were no lava-spewing volcanoes in sight.

Enkidu ran forward and stabbed his flame sword down into the middle of Rangiku's ash ring.

L"A whale shark? Why do you mortals even go anywhere NEAR the sea?!"

E"Whale sharks don't live near Japan. Besides, they don't eat meat. Usually. So. You stayed with the Hollows? Were you in Hueco Mundo?"

A"What do you mean by 'the Hollows'?"

L"I was for a little bit, but then we moved to a mansion in the mountains near your city."

E"Odd. I didn't even know there was anything up there."
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*Nel uses her Lansor Verde to dampen the blow. Naturally, this means that she loses an arm. The dust is blown away by a gust of wind.*

???<Hey now, don't you know it's rude to stab a lady on your second meeting?>

*Standing on one of the nearby buildings is a Soul Reaper Captain with 5 O'Clock Shadow & a Manly Carpet of Virility. He is also wearing a pink, flower-patterned cloak over his Haori, & a straw hat. A sun symbol appears on the air in front of him, indicating that he had placed a Severing Void.*

???<Yeah, I thought you might try that.>

Mortal smiled waiting for Lilith to say exactly what happened, "Why don't you tell them specifics Lilith? Who exactly did you do up there?"

"What." Sab corrected.

"What?"

"You said 'who'."

Mortal giggled.

S"It would be 'whom' anyway."

*Euryale throws her arm in front of everyone.*

A"What is it?"

E"I...ran out of stairs. This must be a really tall plateau."

*She stomps, creating more stairs.*

A"But we must be getting close. I can kind of make out Keter's tower in the distance. It looks like the base is connected to some kind of ziggurat."

L"...So, since Mortal is determined to tell the whole world, I had sex with Senthose."

*Euryale would have fallen over were it not for the fact that the ground literally goes out of its way to make sure it does what she wants it to.*

Noct looked at the two of them, "You know, I'm probably not as surprised as I should be... Was it just a physical thing, or do you actually like him?"

Mortal is visibly happy, bordering giddy, "You guys reacted better than her mother. If only I could mix all of your reactions together."

S"You would have approximately nothing."

E"Of course you don't 'like him,' how could you? He's insane!"

S"Alright, apparently she had more."

E"This isn't about you, shut up. Don't you remember all of the things he did?"

L"Well...yeah, but...the more I used my Mask, the more it felt like ancient history. You have Hollow powers, I thought you'd feel the same way."

"I don't think it is really about hollow powers so much as the fact that he has unapologeticly murdered innocent people for no reason," Noct said, "Wow... why don't I have more of a problem with him?"

Mortal was still happy, "Oh come on, he isn't THAT bad. I was more weirded out about the tentacles than anything else."

S"Hey, I do so have reasons for my murders."

E"What was your reason for killing my parents?"

S"What's your reason for omitting the part of the story where I save your life like four times?"

"Different story," Noct said, "I'm also pretty sure you cero'd a city block of people just to get the attention of a few soul reapers. I'm not saying you're heartless, but you come pretty close."

"And now he is with your friend," Mortal said, "I love the way the world works."

"So Lilith, you never answered the question," Noct said, "Should I expect Senthose over to visit whenever you come?"

E"No. No you should not. Letting him live & letting him in the house are 2 different things."

L"How should I know? I don't even know if we're going to make it out of Hell, much less what our respective living arrangements will be. And Euryale...I'm sorry if this upsets you."

*She turns around & folds her arms.*

E"Whatever. It's not like it's any of my business."

*Even if the Cero doesn't hit him, the blast forces Kite out of the cloud of smoke. He prepares to flashstep.*

"We're going to make it out of hell," Sab assured.

Noct looks a bit shocked by Euryale, "Sorry Lilith, you can't take Senthose over the house with you. Euryale said so."

"Guess we know who wears the pants in that relationship," Mortal remarked.

"No, I just won't agree to anything that upsets the person I love," Noct replied, "Does anyone know if we're getting close?"

S"I wasn't planning on visiting you any more than I was planning on taking Lilith to see the Gillians."

E"Pretty close. I can feel the ground down there getting closer."

L"We're...we're still friends, aren't we?"

E"Yes. Of course. You shouldn't even have to ask."

"We're just not a fan of your choice in men it seems," Noct said, "I'd expect catty remarks, and not so subtle hints at our displeasure should the subject come up."

L"I just thought you might be happy for me, but maybe that's asking for too much."

*There is an awkward moment of silence as they have to hold their breaths to get through the thick layer of smoke. After that, they can plainly see the white sand that stretches on into the distance, with regularly-placed skulls in it. The landscape is dotted by the occasional large cross that is taking in spiritual energy from the atmosphere, & even more occasionally from a pool of lava or boiling yellow fluid.*

L"There is still some Reitsu in this dust."

S"This must be what ultimately happens to those who keep dying here."

"So, this dust is just the remains of bones then," Mortal said, looking around.

Noct shrugged, "Hey, I kept asking if it was a serious relationship, and you didn't give me an answer," Noct said, "I'm not going to congratulate you on every lay you get, but I will be happy for you if you think it is serious. I might not be 100% cool with the guy you chose, but I'm more concerned with whether you are happy or not. If you are, then I'm happy."

"Hey, gloomy girl, bone dust, hell, more important things," Mortal said.

"Letting Lilith know that I want nothing for her but happiness is more important."

L"It's about 89.7% serious. (Also it was my first.)"

S"We calculated it out. If you ever get to my age, you'll realize why you can't answer that question with a yes or a no."

E"These crosses are Quincy technology, aren't they? They must take in power to maintain that gaudy eyesore of a tower. Is this really all Keter wanted from Aamon's research?"

S"It is likely they have secondary functions."

"Your first?!" Noct asked, "Oh man, that is, you've... Wow."

"I know right!" Mortal smiled again, and kept grinning.

"I thought you were talking about 'more important things'," Sab said.

"Be quiet," Mortal said.

"Make me."

Mortal reached out towards Sab's head, and Sab bleated like a sheep and teleported behind Aroma, "That isn't nice."

E"Quit making her feel bad about being a virgin."

*She turns around & places a hand on Lilith's shoulder.*

E"Remember this: You can always eat ice cream later, but if you pull it out of the freezer too soon, it'll be rock hard & by the time you've cleaned up the mess you've made dishing it out, it will have melted & you can never get it back.*

L"What?"

*Aroma, thinking she has been told a surefire way to reassure Sab, runs her hands through her hair & rubs the bases of her horns.*