Rachel sighed once reaching Nia; upon closer inspection, the girl showed several cuts on her outfit and fair skin, leaking white blood, and a light burn was on her thigh.

There was a level of discontent in her, seeing the damage to the teenage bunny girl; still, despite Rachel’s quivering insides—reeling from the price of using the Hades Moon—she tried to keep a light tone to ease the crushing demonic pressure around them.

“Let her escape, huh, Lunar Abyss?”

“W-What? No, Lunar Eclipse, look, I was doing great, okay?” she pouted, pointing at the growling woman behind the barrier. “I had her on the ropes! I was pushing and kicking, and then she tricked me! Stupid fox; illusions are cheating! I don’t have your illusion eye thing, Rachel! I need them!”

“Uh-huh, and the crew?” Rachel asked, glancing down at the ravenous Rabbit Gang, no longer empowered by the Hades Moon; of course, Persephone was as wicked as ever.

“Oh, uh… they’ve been smacking the barrier thing—I tried a few times but got bored,” she mumbled, holding her hands behind her neck.

Her ears suddenly stiffened upon seeing a giant Demon the size of a four-story building giving the rabbit girl a wicked smile. “H-Hey, Buddy! I’m not your eye candy! Look away! S-Stop it!”

Rachel and Scarlet giggled to try and fight the pressure of the colossal host of Demons and Devils that could easily rip a planet apart.

“Have they said anything?” Scarlet whispered as her melancholy tone returned, eyeing her mother, still praying on her knees.

“Gibberish mostly—yeah, I see you lookin’—good, keep those eyeballs off me, Bub! Brrr… they’re so creepy. Umm, let’s see… they’re all about the ‘oh, no! None of this should have happened!’ ” she melodramatically acted out.

Dancing to the left, she continued her one-sided reenactment, firm and serious glare taking her cadence. “ ‘That doesn’t matter, idiots! I’m the strongest wibbly-scribbly guy! I can write words real good, and this cute, devil-bunny girl can’t possibly destroy my barrier. Mua-hahaha!’ ”

Figuring the bunny was spiritually resistant to Hades because of her tie to Yseress—like herself—it helped to have her dramatic mannerisms; although, Rachel wasn’t sure about the exact wording the girl was supposedly repeating from the cast.

“And, and I’m like… ‘ho-ho! You think so?! Well, I’m just playing around—you haven’t even seen my final transformation, foolish mortals! I’m just feeling a bit hungry, or I’d destroy this entire realm!’ ”

She suddenly pointed at the big Demon as his three eyes drifted to her again. “Yeah! Including you, Buddy! Ugh, being a powerful damsel that hasn’t eaten in over twelve hours—Rachel… when's dinner—can we leave? I’m losing power by the minute…”

“Hehe, I love you, Nia!” Scarlet giggled, trying to restrain her tension at the horrifying host surrounding them. “Uh, probably when we stop this whole Hades thing?”

Fulgencio and Lifen opened their eyes, making Nia jump back and take up a fighting posture, yet they smoothly rose to their feet, and only the fox was looking at the teenager.

“Hmm?” Rachel lifted an eyebrow, giving him a condescending half-smile as the man stepped up to the barrier wearing a grim expression. “Got something to say?”

Her focus shifted to the dark-furred woman when a sharp stream of air passed through her nose. “I’ll rip that tail off your tiny—”

“Haha!” Nia cut her off, leering at the fox. “You’re so weak, you couldn’t even handle this little tail of mine, and now you’re acting all big! I’ll have you know, I’m still a teenager, you old lady!”

“Grggg…”

The Mythickin snarled, stroking her patchy tail, having taken a few hits from Nia’s Hadesfire, it seemed; the two had traded flames, and the damage appeared fairly even, yet that was still a significant accomplishment for the Living Denier rabbit girl.

The strategist pulled Rachel’s attention as his vision drifted to Izanami. “It’s too late for your Hades Lord to stop Revilla’s resurrection, Rachel.”

Shifted against Scarlet’s shoulder to look at the swirling mass and symbols, her expression became a line. The liquid, bone, and flesh hovered in the air as the cuneiform patterns twisted, expanded, and pulsed to their own rhythm; the fluid mirrored some of the scripts to enter the broiling mess.

Izanami held her hands behind her back, devil tail swaying a tad while observing its progress, and Rachel recalled what the Hades Lord had said concerning the ritual.

“I knew that already, Fulgencio… Heh, but she can stop whoever this is from completely resurrecting; should we call this a draw?”

Adele’s jaw tightened, vision opening as she struggled to her feet, wincing while putting her palm against the smoldering hieroglyphic in her flesh; her cheeks were puffy, and a bruise, as if she’d been struck.

Concern crossed Scarlet’s face at the pain her mother seemed to be in, and Rachel could empathize; if her own mother was standing in Adele’s place, she didn’t know what she’d do. Adele totally believed in her cause to save countless lives, including her daughter. It was certainly a more complicated issue than she wanted it to be.

“Why… Why won’t you believe me, Scarlet—Rachel? If you just… If you allowed me some time, I could have shown you what I saw… The destruction… universes without end. Scarlet… nothing will be left if Twilight or Revilla does not stop the creeping oblivion!”

“Mom…” Scythe still in her hands, a line of crimson returned to her cheeks to leak out of her eyes. “There has to be another way… There must be.”

Rachel’s hand tightened around her friend’s shoulder. “Scarlet… there’s no use in trying to convince her… as much as there is a chance in convincing us. We’ve taken different routes.”

“We don’t have to,” Adele said, chest fluttering and tears dripping down her cheeks. “Why would you trust a Hades Lord… someone who only wishes destruction to this universe over… Over me, Scarlet… I love you… I love you so much it hurts…”

“Mom, it’s not… I know Scarlet isn’t what you believe—she’s inside me, Mom! Why can’t you trust me?”

“Scarlet… what I’ve seen—”

“What I’ve felt, Mom!”

Rachel’s hands tightened around her shoulders as Scarlet sniffed back the blood in her nose; all that would follow would be more torment for both of them. “We should leave them for now, Scarlet.”

“Gah,” Aleister groaned, “why it be the bleedin’ Hades Hare the only one I can agree with here; it be what it be, Lasses!”

His giant misshapen finger scratched his nose before folding the two back appendages across his muscular stomach. “So, why don’t we take a seat and wait for the show… Aye? Ya seemed to have a grudge against Relica—meh, I can respect it—but don’t we all got bigger problems?”

Aleister nudged his head up. “Like, hehe, what might happen if this bridge were to snap and we were left stranded in Hades. Am I right?!”

Lifen’s oriental accent thickened. “It might not be such a bad thing for these things—they seem to be demons already.”

Nia puffed up her chest. “Yes! Hmm-hmm-hmm! Fear me, Fluffy One!”

“Grrr…”

Fulgencio shook his head, and a stressed sigh exited his lips, grimacing at his raised ruined limb for them to see. “I’ll return the favor eventually… Rachel,” he spat.

“Oh?” Rachel returned, guiding Scarlet away from the barrier. “Heh, I look forward to taking your other arm, and don’t feel too safe; Scarlet could probably cut that barrier in two and kill you all. Count your blessings, Fulgencio… heh, or pray to your goddess.”

Scarlet gave her a forced smile while the Rabbit Gang and Nia stuck their tongues out at the group, hopping after them. “Do you… really think we can capture them after this?”

Vision darkening, Rachel’s gaze drifted to the Hades Lord. “My skin itches when I look at that bloody mass… What about you?”

“Mmh… I know it sounds weird… I think Twilight is laughing in her sleep, and it… I don’t know, it makes me feel… conflicted?”

“Mmh…” Rachel slowly nodded, more concerned than before now. “Anyway, we will have bigger problems than them, and you need to be strong enough to handle anything that comes our way. Relica was their main agent drawing support; I get the feeling some of them are having second…”

She trailed off as a resonance rippled from the writhing mess, the Soul Stone rising to meet it as a flash of white light came from Izanami; a three-dimensional sphere of devilish script spun from the Hades Lord to weave into the floor and encompass the horrific amalgamation.

“Rachel!” Nia hissed, running to her side to hide behind her. “I’m scared… It's scary.”

Hayan boldly jumped in front of them, gesturing with his ears for his sisters to get behind him for Rose to slap him on the head and hop beside him, glaring up at the cyclone.

“I got you, Nia … You want to go back into your outfit?”

“N-No, I’m brave… I’m here to help—eek!” quivering, she hid behind her shoulder.

Rachel winced as the Devils and Demons roared, clicked, and pounded their chests, yet Izanami took a step away, flaming eyes narrowing when the Soul Stone touched the liquid.

This is it…

The mass compressed in a fraction of a second before expanding into a mangled mess of horrific contortions that silenced the forces of Hades, an outbreak of titanic pressure causing all to feel the same—overwhelmed.

Izanami’s half-smile lifted a tad, yet to Rachel, and it seemed like she was questioning her own decision to face the resurrecting entity; fissures ran through the barrier the Fallen Deity made to contain the rising pressure, causing Rachel to grit her teeth, muscles tensing as tight as they could manage.

Soft, feminine laughter rang inside Rachel’s mind, followed by the cry of numberless tortured creatures writhing in the amalgamation before transmitting to all through a beat of soul-shattering rhythms that rubbed against her soul.

“What a… cute welcome.” An attractive female figure settled into being as the air hummed and space cracked like glass for a metallic throne to force its way through. “You are far out of your depths, Dear.”

Pale, smooth skin came from the blood and bone to display an amused lilac-haired woman, right knuckles resting against her cheek. The figure’s revealing white dress was practically transparent, showing a well-endowed physique.

The unusual ornaments gracing her body tilted in her casual posture; if it weren’t for the undeniable chill passing through Rachel’s bones, or the screams of countless trapped souls quaking against her ears, she would have laughed. As it stood, she couldn’t move.

Even from this distance, she couldn’t so much see but feel the entity’s callous silver-blue irises lingering on Izanami, and in a gap of time, her vision was on Scarlet, a wave of death flooding Rachel’s paralyzed brain. “Finally…”

The colossal outline of a draconic head instantaneously appeared around them, savage rows of fangs twitching in the writhing mass as an infernal beam erupted within, and Rachel couldn’t act; lungs locked, she wasn’t sure when it had even come into existence, yet the corrupting fumes it released seemed sealed in space.

“An… unorthodox method for a Hades Lord,” the unearthly woman mused.

In the next second, the abomination receded, allowing Rachel to see it be dawn back into the entity’s arm; her other was still boredly placed against her cheek as she stared at Izanami, and it was then she noticed the golden lettering circling the figure and sinking into her flesh.

“Mmh… hehe, a Divine Binding, and far beyond the ordinary… in Hades? No… A fake Hades Lord. Fascinating.”

“M-My Lady Revilla! Please, I do not recall this in the visions from the Revered Goddess!” Rachel’s ears twitched as Adele’s voice cried out. “Please, help me understand what I did wrong!”

Izanami’s wings flexed, the Hades Lord having remained utterly silent through the exchange as she studied her opponent, yet Revilla’s countenance suddenly lightened, compassion entering her voice while turning her attention to Adele’s party.

“Be not concerned, my faithful priestess… I will show you what needs to be done. My voice will not reach you for a time; the fiends from Hades, and Rachel’s taint in your beloved daughter’s mind, will be a difficult challenge to overcome. We shall prevail against these plots.”

Rachel’s fingers tightened into fists as the creature in human guise blamed her. She couldn’t defend herself since her tongue wouldn’t leave the roof of her mouth, and it was all she could do to remain standing in this horrific thing’s presence, even with the protection Izanami provided.

A short chuckle left Izanami, yet it was so diminished even Rachel had to strain her ears to hear it. “Still playing the savior… and dampening all sound so no one can counter your narrative… Humph. Revilla, was it?”

The entity’s entertained smile hadn’t diminished, left arm gradually splitting apart to reveal terrifying creatures of bone, flesh, and liquid that radiated a pulsing sound more frightening than anything she’d heard thus far from Izanami’s legions.

Gradually, the golden script swirling around her was breaking down; there wasn’t a doubt in Rachel’s mind that this thing could wipe out everything she knew with a blink of her eye, yet Izanami was finding a way to hamper her restoration.

“Why should I bother engaging with such a… pathetic wretch as yourself… Hehe, hiding your shame behind so many layers of illusions. What are you trying to hide… terrified I will discover who you really are?”

Izanami’s lips tightened, lifting a hand for more golden letters to form and weave toward Revilla as gruesome elk, fish, and raven-like entities eased out of the swirling mass the ungodly entity’s arm produced to resonate a pulsing thump, making the Fallen Deity wince and Rachel’s fingernails dig into her palms.

“Hmm-hmm-hmm… Ah, so that’s it… A Fallen Creation Deity? My, you’re even more of a pariah than I thought. You must be utterly miserable, locked to the 6th Dimension, yet… I recall one of this universe’s creators being named Izanami. Hmm… is that you, heh, masquerading as a ‘Demon’ to not feel so pathetic?”

“You are… quite the piece of work,” Izanami countered, composure fracturing slightly as Revilla attacked her false image. “A Hades Lord that has found her way to even greater heights, I assume… I have to admit, your mastery over the natural forces of Hades is… rather imposing.”

Ripples in space followed the creature's clicking hum, cracking Izanami’s barrier more and causing a layer of her illusions to shake before ripping away; Adele bit her lip, looking hopeful as Revilla seemed to be breaking free of her bindings.

“Hmm? My little Fallen Creation Deity… Oh, no, no, no… I have never seen a more pathetic thing than you in the dozens of multiverses I have consumed.”

Rachel’s eyes widened while watching Izanami’s revealing gown, night-black wings, and even her tinted skin color torn apart to reveal a gorgeous, silver-haired woman with a black, flaming crown and curved, elegant horns.

The Fallen Deity wore an exquisite shoulderless black and gold dress, neck guard, and emerald jewelry more refined and bright than any she’d seen.

“Still holding onto that image are you, Izanami; the way you looked before partaking of Hades’ fruit? Hehe, self-conscious of the hideous mess you’ve become? I’d expect nothing less from such a self-righteous, vain wretch. Embrace your true self… oh, but you’re ever so lonely—”

A lump appeared in Rachel’s frozen throat, Revilla’s head straightening in alarm as she seemed to notice something. “No, you… How? A fallen Creation Deity—in a corrupted Nephilim? Twilight…” she growled, shimmering vision narrowing while darting to Scarlet.

Time moved to a crawl as the Hades Lord half-turned to smile at Rachel, an unstressed voice entering her mind, yet in Izanami’s lovely, burning orange irises was desolation and heartache she hadn’t seen until now—something beyond age and space—unending.

“Rachel, take care of Yseress for me…”

A wave of radiant beams swirled around the woman, chaining Revilla as she snarled, and a warm breeze forced her upward to smash into the barrier barring the Seventh Circle.

“You’re only delaying the inevitable…” Revilla hissed, and Adele cried out in panic as fissures materialized in the shell from the uplifting and angelic hum that filled the space before slowly melding the entity through to the other side.

Izanami’s illusions vanished, leaving Yseress’ yellow-skinned and sickly body collapsing to the floor; whatever pressure Revilla exuded gone, allowing air to fill Rachel’s paralyzed lungs, and fighting through the pain, she winced as Scarlet transported them under her to be caught in the girl’s cushioning blood.

“Big Sis!” Nia cried, tears leaking out of her eyes as she leaned against the bed Scarlet made. “Rachel, is she okay?”

“I think so…”

Gut tightening, she looked up; in the same instant Izanami left Yseress, the Fallen Creation Deity’s true self met the outer-universe Hades Lord beyond the barrier, yet this was the first time Rachel had seen Izanami’s unfiltered image.

A horrific, mutilated naked corpse of a once glorious woman hovered before the snarling fiend, picking herself up off the shell she’d been forced through.

“You… hehe, clearly overestimate what divine powers you once held… Ugh…”

The Fallen Deity looking down on her, celestial orbs of pure light taking shape around her, and utterly emotionless in sight and tone, Izanami held up a hand for a snake to slither into existence, matching the necklace she wore, whispering, “Lucifer… Amaymon… ”

A tremor shook the barrier Rachel stood on as crevices split the space around Revilla in a wide triangle for a muscular, glorious black-winged Angel to float through; the other side, a ghastly red-armored Devil, wielding an ungodly spear and riding a colossal dark horse.

Rachel bit her lip, minty blood touching her tongue. Don’t die, Izanami… I’m actually beginning to like you.

A proud smirk lifted the Fallen Archangel’s smooth lips, his voice like honey on wine while exiting the fissure. “My, look at you, displaying your true, ‘divine’ self. Bold, Izanami, to leave your gates open and call my name… Hmm, although… it seems we have a rather… hmm-hmm, appalling, and might I add, boorish, uninvited guest in Hades this fine evening.”

Amaymon spoke with the voice issuing numberless screams for war. “An invader, hmm? He-he, are you asking for our help, Izanami?”

Izanami’s voice was as cool and uninterested as her desolate cadence. “I can only keep her weakened for so long… You must stab her before I lose what strength I have left. Can you handle that?”

Vicious laughter came from Revilla as she rose into the air of the Seventh Circle, Izanami’s armies roaring for war as the Fallen Deity’s shimmering divine lights left holy script on the entity’s figure. “Ah-heh… friends? Cute.”