Ah My Goddess Fan Fiction ❯ Trial By Tenderness ❯ Part 32 - Avengers ( Chapter 32 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Part 32 Avengers



Belldandy and Co. peered out the front door in surprise as five shapes shimmered out of thin air in front of their temple home. Belldandy abruptly alighted upon a new level of apprehension as the glowing lightspheres coalesced into semblances of glowing human-sized shapes.
After Peorth had rashly re-kidnapped her and returned her to Earthrealm, she had completely forgotten the abandoned omiai with its horrid leitmotiv...Keiichi's outpouring of affectionate kisses and loving hugs had seen to that. Glancing back and forth between Keiichi and the luminous shapes, she acknowledged that her negligence had been a critical mistake...she had never even suspected that *they* would follow her here. Of course they would follow her and Belldandy! No one had taken precautions. And she had even taunted them when she stole away with Belldandy...
"WHERE IS HE!" an angry male voice shouted as soon as the visitors formed into solid corporeality. Peorth shuddered as she heard that voice, her black locks with their red hints shivering in the wind.
"Was it something I said?" she asked mock-innocently, scared out of her wits but still a smartass.
Keiichi looked past Belldandy to see *five* tall beings. Gnawing in the back of his mind was a strong suspicion that these beings were Gods and Goddesses. On closer observation, one of them was a man with a noble bearing, wearing an eyepatch over his right eye. He was dressed in a fantastic set of clothes, like something out of Star Wars. The woman standing next to him was striking...until he noticed that she looked like a fusion of Belldandy and Urd, with Skuld's dun-brown eyes thrown in to complete the package.
Becoming more alert with each passing second, he saw another stunning woman...looking like she was in her late 40s; a very beautiful, statuesque, elegant late 40s. Her hair...it was slowly changing shapes and colors, fading from platinum blonde to a crystallized sheer silver. She wore a cloak-cum-evening gown that further expressed her regal bearing. Standing next to her was another man, wiry in frame with long wild hair and an expression of focused alertness. He was dressed in some kind of green robe with a white fur collar; the robe was covered with mysterious symbols and shapes. And in the middle of the group was a mesomorphic brute of a man that looked like...the Hulk! Only this man had a military-style crewcut, high and tight, with thick red eyebrows that slung low over his eyes and a long braided red beard. He was wearing a military-style uniform, complete with livery, epaulets, medals and a half-coat of armor.
"I said *where* is he? The mortal that my future wife is supposedly in so-called love with!" the man shouted. Keiichi felt an instant foreboding as he sized up this man. His cruel military bearing would have intimidated the most confident toughman. "Hitler" was the word that flashed through Keiichi's mind at the site of this warrior.
"Future wife? So-called love?" he said to Bell-chan, wondered aloud at the man's mysterious words.
"*Nobody* fucks with me! I am Tyyr, Marshall of the WarGods! WarGod, First Class, Military License, Unlimited. I hereby challenge the worthless mortal with whom my betrothed, Belldandy, *thinks* she's in love with!" his voice boomed, filled to the brim with a mega-aggro aggression.
Urd looked at Belldandy in shock as she realized that this...brute...was the intended husband that Mother selected for her sister! Belldandy looked at both her sisters and shook her head insistently; embarrassed and indignant at the same time.
"I am *not* your future wife!" Belldandy replied quietly in a guarded voice. Urd and Skuld looked at her with facefallen astonishment. Peorth shook her head in disbelief, feeling a wash of sadness for her fellow Goddess because of this ridiculous position her parents had put her in.
Belldandy and her sisters had unconsciously formed a protective circle around Keiichi. Keiichi wanted to wave them off; he knew that the sister's reaction to him would disclose his presence to this...WarGod! Keiichi felt himself becoming scared beyond belief...this *God* had the exaggerated musculature of a comic book hero. A vicious scar ran down one side of his face...and his eyes possessed an unearthly set of fiery orange irises.
"Ignore him, Keiichi," Belldandy said to him in a private voice. She could sense his agitation amplifying the air around him, giving it an almost static charge of tension. She didn't want Keiichi doing anything rash...Tyyr had already proven himself to be unpredictable.
"Ah...he's too afraid to challenge me! His cowardly love is but a worthless, pitiful gesture! He refuses to stand up for his woman...slut that she is!"
"Tyyr!" all four elderly divines said in shock at his outrageous insult...then they all confronted him in one arguing, yelling mass. Keiichi felt his anger shoot through the roof...this ogre had actually called his beloved Bell-chan a *slut*! With a very characteristic impulse of courage, he decided to protect her honor. What was uncharacteristic was the amount of defiance he touted, heedless of the vicious bearing of the self-proclaimed WarGod.
"*I'M*...the one you're looking for! Morisato Keiichi!"
"Mortal, First Class!" Urd and Skuld chorused.
"And yes, I love Belldandy with all my heart! Enough to meet any scummy challenge *you* make...whoever or whatever you are!" he said with impulsive abandon. His mind regretted the words as soon as they escaped his lips when he saw the livid expression on the WarGod's face. But his heart was steadfast in its desire to protect the woman he loved...and her all-important dignity.
"At last, the mortal mouse squeaks to make its presence known," Tyyr said triumphantly. With a frame of reluctance, Keiichi realized that the taunts had been intended to bait him into stepping forward.
"Keiichi!?" Belldandy said, her voice tinged with foreboding. Keiichi looked at her eyes and saw that she was totally frightened of this Tyyr. The upset look on her face spoke volumes. Keiichi sensed that he had blundered; his girlfriend was mortified because of her protective streak towards him had been thwarted by his rash outburst.
"N..no, he's not the mortal you're looking for..." Belldandy said haltingly, desperately trying to cover up for him. Keiichi interrupted her.
"Whoever you are...I want you to know that she is mine. Belldandy is *mine*! Not because of any other reason than the fact that she has willingly given her heart to *me*!" Keiichi declared in as 'public' a voice that he could muster. The giant God seemed to bellow up even more with rage...while everyone else was silent.
"Uh...hello, Mother. Welcome to Earth," Urd said in a level voice, Skuld standing partly concealed behind her.

* * * * * * * *

"Keiichi, these are my parents," Belldandy began in a nervous voice.
"T..this is my father, Odeyn. He is the God in charge of the Energy Guild. Uh...that's Yggdrasil's equivalent of an electric company. And this is my M..Mother, Freiija, the Goddess of Marriages...formerly the Goddess of Love," she said in a shaky voice, introducing her parents with all the politeness she could muster. Which wasn't much, because she was wracked with nervousness after telling both parents off during the omiai.
Keiichi bowed deeply to Bell's Father, managing as best he could while confined to his wheelchair. He heard a rather obvious snort of disgust as he bowed to Bell's mother. Looking up, he saw an expression of distaste on her face.
Keiichi looked at Bell's father. He never, *ever*, imagined that Belldandy had parents in the mortal sense!
"This is a total mindblower, for sure," he thought as he appraised her...folks.
It was just too...bizarre...to even wrap his mind around the concept. Yet, here they were. Bell-chan was introducing him to them without a hint of reservation concerning his status as a mortal. Bell was acting more nervous than he had ever seen her before. The whole scenario reminded him of the stereotypical scene of a high school girl who was introducing the boy that was taking her to the prom to her parents. Which was almost amusing...in the sense that Keiichi had never seen his beloved in the role of anxious daughter before. A very beautiful, very cute anxious daughter...
He looked at Urd; recognizing in her knowing smile that she found Belldandy's discomfiture amusing as well.
While his girlfriend was extolling his virtues to her parents, Keiichi calmed himself enough to look closer at them. Bell's father projected *presence* like Keiichi had never experienced in his life. Dignity. Strength. Wisdom. Power. Her father looked like the Western concepts of the Christian God...like Michelangelo's God on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. He radiated divinity.
Bell's mother was the personification of the beauty of vibrant maturity. Keiichi knew instantly that she didn't approve of him, but nonetheless she seemed cloaked with a sheer *brilliance*...a kind of love-energy that seemed to penetrate deep into his bones. She was middle-aged, with long golden curlylocks of hair cascading all the way to her heels. Her facial features reminded him of all three sisters...there was no doubt that she was the wellspring of grace from which the sisters had been born with such beauty. She had Bell's face, Urd's hair, and Skuld's eyes.
Belldandy introduced the other Gods and Goddess in turn. Odeyn spoke first after the introductions were concluded.
"Lokii, I must admit that this is an...extremely irregular action on the part of my daughter. Much as I disagree with her intimation that she is enamored with a mortal...we must respect her initial rejection of your son's suite," he spoke in a voice leavened with wisdom.
"Yes...for her sake, I can acquiesce to this fact. However, my son Tyyr has made the challenge...which *was* properly accepted by the mortal," Lokii said slyly in a level voice.
"Excuse me, but how can a mortal possibly accept a challenge from one of *us*?" Peorth interrupted, cutting to the chase. Both maternal Goddesses gave her a scowl...Peorth lofted her head to indicate that she wasn't going to be intimidated by her elders.
"'See ya, wouldn't wanna be ya'" Lokii repeated her parting words back to Peorth in a voice blighted with angry unpleasance. It was the most horrible tone of voice that Keiichi had ever heard. A voice that stole all of Peorth's bravado in a flash. Keiichi's mouth dropped open as Peorth actually slumped into a cower at Lokii's words, scared as a rabbit in front of a lawnmower. Whoever this Lokii was, if he could drain Peorth's defiance with a single sentence...he was outright dangerous! Even Belldandy and her sisters had pallored with fright at his words.
"And when you are called on to answer for your actions...you'll spend the rest of eternity looking into the mirror and repeating those words...if you're lucky!" Lokii added. Peorth was visibly shaking, at the edge of dread-fainting. Belldandy and Urd quickly stepped over and grabbed her as her knees buckled.
"Be that as it may...the nature of her concern *is* the question of the moment, is it not?" Odeyn said in his rich voice. Lokii looked thoughtful for a moment, and then answered.
"No matter what...the challenge must be accorded, for the mortal did accept it," Lokii noted.
"'Enough to meet any scummy challenge you make...whoever or whatever you are!'" Lokii said, quoting Keiichi with an exact duplication of his voice. "Those words most definitely qualify as an acceptance of challenge. They may even be interpreted as a counter-challenge, which brings the matter of whether a challenge was met to a close. Therefore we must keep to the traditions of chivalric combat between rival grooms. Fate has cast us here in this lot, for reasons we cannot fathom. According to the Rules...the challenged party has the right to decide weapons and venue. The challenger of course has all rights to his betrothed, should he defeat his opponent."
"Yes...but Tyyr's opponent is only a mere mortal, as our misguided and insolent young Goddess Relief Office agent has stated," Odeyn replied. Keiichi thought for the briefest of moments that Bell's father was actually standing up for him.
"This is utter nonsense! A mortal accepting a God's challenge? I say that we just simply blast him out of existence...and that would be the end of it!" Bell's mother interjected passionately. This statement brought a flurry of arguing and appeals from everybody.
"NO!!!" Odeyn's voice boomed over the din.
"Dear...it isn't that simple. Namely, because this particular young mortal man is the 'Test Mortal'. Think about this! We cannot alter his destiny by direct interference. A battle, of course, *is* the course of fate allowed for him at this juncture; as he has accepted the traditional combat challenge for bridal suitors. To simply extinguish him out of existence would not only be inappropriate...I can *guarantee* that it would provoke the wrath of Kami-sama. Therefore, we cannot bring harm upon him or ourselves based on our own whims," the Elder God stated, finished on a sarcastic note that wasn't lost on his wife.
"Agreed?" he asked Lokii in the Language of Honor.
"Yes...agreed." When Tyyr kills him, then it would be considered within the realm of chance potentials. And after the mortal expires in combat...the Almighty will simply have to assign another Earthrealm denizen to be the 'Test Mortal', since this one's death will have occurred in accordance with our traditions and by his voluntary agency and free will."
Keiichi felt himself blanching timid at the casual discussion of the surety prospects of his death. He reached over and gripped Belldandy's hand tightly. His chest hurt, as he suddenly noticed that he was breathing very rapidly.
The behemoth WarGod strutted forward proudly, stopping right in front of Keiichi.
"He must be three meters tall!" Keiichi thought as the ruthless God stooped over to face him.
"Little mortal...it will be a pleasure for me to kill you. For what you have done...you deserve worse than death. But before you die, I want you to know that I will take *extra* care of Belldandy...so that she'll never think of you again when her body, mind and Soul are mine to do with as I please," he gloated, brandishing a gnarly metal blade where a hand should have been.
Belldandy looked over at Tyyr, resentful at his casual inference towards her in the third person. A groggy Peorth managed a glare at him, while Skuld stuck out her tongue and Urd flipped him off.
Keiichi stared back at the WarGod without flinching...a fact that wasn't lost on Odeyn.

* * * * * * * *

While the others were engaged in close debate about particulars concerning the challenge of suitors, Odeyn was recalling the days of his youth. Tyyr's behavior at the omiai was grossly disrespectful to his wife and he; and had brought shame upon his own parents, a truth they will come to recognize no matter the result of this challenge. Observing the young mortal and the WarGod Marshall together drew the Elder God towards his memories.
Once, he was also the Marshall of the WarGods. But unlike Tyyr, his administration of Yggdrasil's military had occurred during precipitous times marked by utter chaos. Yggdrasil had been invaded by the AncienGiants...a race of cybernetic organisms created by the Demons as a proxy military force. Also unlike Tyyr, he had been locked in a desperate battle for the survival of Yggdrasil itself in those bygone days. Since the Almighty couldn't be involved due to the Eternal Agreement with the Dark Lord...only Odeyn's troops of Gods and the all-Goddess Valkyrie Corps could defend the homelands.
Despite the precarious nature of the times, Odeyn remembered how he principaled his forces. The focus was on discipline and valor, not brutality. Mercy was taught alongside martial prowess. Pride was a nonexistent luxury that was ill afforded by anyone in his command.
"These peacetime WarGods have grown up to be spoiled. Irreverent attitudes are replete amongst the troops and the leaders. In days of yore, we could not afford such follies, because we were too busy with weightier concerns, such as saving Yggdrasil and if necessary, saving our asses," he opined with disgust. Tyyr was the worst of them...an utterly bad example of a soldier in a leadership role. Odeyn was disgusted with the fact that Tyyr's foremost concern was with himself; such selfishness was considered among the worst shortcomings a God could have.
"Freiija, *how* could you have chosen Tyyr for our precious daughter Belldandy?" he grumbled to himself for about the thousandth time. Inside, he knew the answer...his wife had fallen in love with a military God. Therefore, his dear wife obviously felt that Belldandy would exhibit the same trait in her preferences. But there was a major difference between he and Tyyr: he had honor, while Tyyr only had aggression. Likewise, Freiija and Belldandy were two Goddesses cut from different clothes. Freiija had a wildness about her, which his eldest daughter obviously inherited. In contrast, Belldandy was meek, but her meekness resulted from a more even temperament.
Arriving here, he quickly reasoned out why his daughter was so upset. She had been smitten with affection for the mortal youth. Right or wrong, she felt fond of him, to the point where she had actually defied his wife and he for the first time in her adult life. Fortunately, she had been rescued before crossing the line where *he* would become upset. Odeyn grinned to himself; as he realized just how cheeky it was for Peorth to actually kidnap Belldandy in the middle of the omiai. It was ironic that Belldandy's friend had known what was best for her, when her own Mother didn't!
What was also ironic was the fact that Peorth would be the last one to admit that she was Belldandy's best friend because of their ongoing rivalry...but Peorth had taken the kind of risk that *only a best friend* would undertake.
Returning to his memories, Odeyn also confirmed that his courage mounted leagues beyond that of Tyyr's. He vividly remembered how he lost his eye...in a battle with the appointed leader of the AncienGiants. In the midst of a stalemating military campaign, he had sought to negotiate a wartime truce between the Gods and the AncienGiants. Desiring no further bloodshed, he diplomatized acceptable terms to conclude the war. The battle would be concluded by a contest of champions; the results contingent upon a decisive match between single combatants. If he defeated the representative leader of his enemy, they would withdraw to Vanagdrasil. If he lost...then his army would surrender.
Such a heavy burden had been rested on his whelpling shoulders. Odeyn recalled the millions of soldiers from both armies looking on as he advanced to the middle of the field of battle. He was challenged to personal combat by the best of the AncientGiants, a DarkHost CyberDemon. He could still remember the *thing* that came out to meet him, fresh in his mind as if it had happened yesterday. He could still remember the *thing* that came out to meet him. It was indescribably ugly and vicious. He remembered looking at it...sickened beyond repulse...afraid beyond fear...his fear turning inside out to become filled with resoluteness of purpose. He stared intently at his opponent out of both eyes...the last time he saw anything out of both of his eyes. He knew that his eyes reflected an insanity of confidence, that day. As the wise one predicted when he drank the draught of Wisdom, Odeyn lost his eye in combat that day. But the loss of his right eye caused his opponent to become overconfident...allowing him the split-second necessary to pierce the vulnerable area...and strike down the Dark AncienGiant.
He felt an intense wash of empathy as he observed the same purposeful look he had possessed that bygone day. It was clearly alit in the eyes of this mortal who seemingly was the love interest of his daughter.
"The eyes are the mirrors of the soul," Odeyn mused to himself as he explored Keiichi's soul unobtrusively, poring over his childhood, his adulthood, his love for Belldandy...every facet of his *being*. Odeyn experienced each distinct moment of Keiichi's life in a nanosecond. He concluded that this young man was far from faultless...but his deepmost kokoro was as far from evil as any mortal's heart he had ever encountered.
He walked up to Keiichi, sizing him up. Leaning down close to him, Odeyn spoke softly...not wishing to intimidate this young mortal man any further. He was well aware that, as Belldandy's father, he was *already* intimidating to any potential suitors...especially a mortal.
"You're not afraid of Tyyr, are you?" Odeyn part-queried, part-stated.
"I'm not half as afraid of Tyyr as I am of *you*, Odeyn. You're Belldandy's father...the father of the Goddess that I love. So of course I'm afraid of you," the young mortal man answered clearly. His sincerity cheered Odeyn, who was wont to laugh out loud at this mortal's reply.
"Times are changing," he thought privately, amazed at the fact that he was actually interviewing a *mortal* who was in love with his daughter. He had to admit to himself...this Earthrealm manchild had spunk!
"Keiichi Morisato...I like you," the elder God said to him with a look of twinkling sincerity in his one eye.
Belldandy had been watching the exchange between her Father and Keiichi with trepidation. She knew that if Father didn't like Keiichi...then their love would be doomed. She could oppose Father's approval of potential suitors...that was just a singular act of determination. But she could never stand up to him for the rest of her existence if he were to reject Keiichi as a husband. Besides, she was Daddy's Girl...and she knew her Father well enough to be aware that he wouldn't settle for anything less than the best for his daughter. He had already thwarted the suits of the *numerous* other Gods who sought after her hand.
Tensely holding her hands clasped over her heart, Belldandy intently observed the interaction between Father and Keiichi. She hoped beyond hope that her Father would somehow find some small attribute of Keiichi's that he could respect. Her entire being cried out for a miraculous sign of approval from her father; a slight nod of the head, or a rubbing of thumb and index finger.
What she saw was unprecedented. She was looking for nuances in his manner...what she got was a starkly explicit reaction. In all the times her father had sized up potential suitors, Belldandy had never observed anything other than a stolid expression on his face. As she looked on, Belldandy saw her father smile...then she heard her father actually laugh loudly...and then he said five words to Keiichi.
Five words...and she was suddenly floating with elation and shock.
As soon as Father said that he *liked* Keiichi, Belldandy felt like a set of fireworks had just gone off in her heart. The strong burst of feelings overwhelmed her towards giddiness. Looking at her father, she beamed with gratitude. Her joy wasn't just hers alone...Skuld and Urd almost danced up to her in excitement, feeling her excitement. They hugged their middle sister, happy that Keiichi had in some slight way impressed their father.
Odeyn watched as all three of his daughters linked hands and jumped up and down in a spinning circle, gripped by girlish abandon, beatific smiles on their wonderful faces. Then he returned his attention to Keiichi, ready to probe deeper by sounding him out.
"One further question. If you, by some miracle, defeat Tyyr...will you make my little Belldandy happy? Will you respect her? Will you be honest with her? Will you make her life exciting? Will you share in her purpose?"
"Of course, er...I mean *yes, sir*! I'm already trying to do those things. If you don't believe me, look at your daughter right now. Bell-chan's filled of joy...because she knows that you haven't readily dismissed me as a possible husband for her," Keiichi said, speaking for the truth as best he could.
Odeyn turned his head and looked at his beloved daughters again. His oldest, Urd, was tragically doomed by her appointment as the Elder Norn...never to experience love again. Yet she was fulfilled with joy, vicariously happy for her younger sister. His little baby Skuld...his precious youngest daughter...was hugging her older sisters tightly, her face animated with the fluid joy of the innocent. And Belldandy...she was looking at him in rapt gratitude and devotion, her heart in from her eyes. Odeyn felt his one eye well up with a tear of empathy...tears he had to hold back. It would be very poor form to cry in front of the others, in front of the young mortal whom he *had* to impress with his dignity. Especially in his adopted physical form. But in his ancient heart, he felt tears...
He knew that his daughter was deeply in love with this mortal man. Odeyn felt a flash of anger towards his wife...her planning of this omiai business had been a serious blunder. It would be a travesty to divide a love as strong as this! And yet...the fact that a mortal man could love a Goddess as pure and innocent as his daughter Belldandy.
"Maybe this is the proof," he reflected. His wife and he had strongly disagreed on the role of Mankind in the scheme of things. This might be the proof he had been seeking for millennia...evidence that the Earthrealm mortals *could* reach the Next Level. He had long advocated that Mankind would eventually reach the Next Level; now he felt ascertained in his opinions.
For a mortal to love a Goddess...
"These times are full of change. But then again, maybe not. They're just like us when we were in our youthtimes. These kids are young radicals," Odeyn repeated to himself, recalling Peorth's brazen kidnapping of Belldandy and the taunt she had left in the air with a cloud of roses. He had to smile at her impudence; Kami-sama had definitely had matched her with the Rune most befitting her personality. She had even caught Lokii by surprise and bested his composure, which is why he was now so angry with her. The look of shock on Lokii's face alone was worth all the worries caused by this misguided omiai.
Leaving the others to their thoughts, he walked around the temple compound grounds, hands clenched behind his back as he admired the terrestrial environs of this patch of Earthrealm. He could see his daughter's handwork in every essence of this adopted home she had made for herself...and the mortal. It brought back memories of Belldandy's first attempts to ThoughtPaint; his middle daughter was never the artist, but she tried so hard to impress him with her work. Now, decamillennia later, he was impressed with her artistry, despite the ravages of the recent storm. As he strolled, Odeyn reached a decision. He would seriously consider the possibility of supporting a match between this young mortal man and Belldandy, despite how his wonderful but sometimes ill-intentioned wife would react to his decision. Even if it meant that she didn't talk to him for a few millennia.
He chuckled to himself.
"Maybe it *would* be easier for all concerned if my dear wife would keep her mouth shut, for once," he thought, as he overheard his beloved Freiija lecturing Belldandy and her sisters...
"B'dandy dear, why don't you be reasonable? We've all played along with this...childish whim...of yours! Of course, you only *think* you're in love with him...but you know as well as I do that mortals just don't feel love like we do. They haven't the slightest concept of..."
"MOTHER!" Urd, Belldandy and Skuld shouted, cutting her off in mid-sentence.
Odeyn could only shake his head.

* * * * * * * *

"So what *can* I do? I'm stuck in this stupid wheelchair!" Keiichi exclaimed in exasperation.
"Keiichi, you *have* to challenge him!" Urd reminded him, pulling on his ear to remind him of the seriousness of this matter.
"He already *did* challenge that big doofus," Skuld said dryly.
Keiichi was still wrought with anxiety as he recalled Tyyr's image. Tyyr looked ogreish, like a nightmare villain resurrected from some horror show. His enormous stature stood in contrast to the other Gods. Keiichi knew that any one of the Gods or Goddesses could choose to manifest in a form the size of the Moon, if they wished. Tyyr's bulky form was just an outward show. He had no doubts in his mind that both sets of parents were many times more powerful than Tyyr...and they chose to appear in bodies that were reasonable by mortal standards.
Yet, Keiichi's still felt his resolve waffling when he considered the sheer bulk of his opponent. Not to forget his own present disabilities. Both of them.
"Belldandy, can't Peorth just heal me or something? I bet I could beat Tyyr in a roadrace if I was well!"
"No, much as I would like to...I can't do that. To tamper with your physical condition between the startpoint when you answered the challenge and the actual contest...would be considered an unconscionable breach of protocol. Actually, I think it would be deemed as a forfeit decision on your part. It would likely result in your death, Belldandy's having to marry Tyyr...and a permanent license revocation for me, or worse!" Peorth pointed out.
Skuld had been quietly listening to the discussion, wondering what she could do to help the situation turn in Keiichi's favor. Upon seeing the brutish Tyyr, she had made her mind up instantly: she did *not* want such a bizarro machoman as a brother-in-law. She sensed that Tyyr would possess all the bad manners...like those TV celebrity professional wrestlers so many mortals were enthralled with. Skuld realized that she was personally invested in this upcoming challenge between Keiichi and Tyyr.
"Damn! If I could only race..." he repeated.
"Keiichi, why don't you race him in a videogame?" Urd suggested. Everybody in the room turned to look at her with a look of disgust; the Demon Rally episode still fresh in their minds. Megumi shot her an especially narrow-eyed face.
"I was only trying to help...you don't have to bite my head off, guys!" Urd said defensively.
"Long story," Megumi whispered to Peorth, noticing her confusion.
Skuld was trying to remember something in the back of her mind...it was suspended just beyond the reach of her recall. She knitted her brows as she redoubled her concentration. It had to do with something that she noticed when she went to the mall with Tomohisa recently...something in one of the specialty stores...
"How about a wheelchair race?" Peorth suggested. Several groans ensued on *that* suggestion.
"Aw...c'mon, Peorth! Be real! Did you forget to manifest the brain part of your mortal body?" Keiichi chided her. His keen engineering mind knew that her suggestion would be impossible anyway; Tyyr's larger mass would require a bigger wheelchair, with a bigger wheelbase. By sheer logic, this would give Tyyr a decided edge.
Meanwhile, Skuld tuned out the others and strained her memory. She recalled going to two sports stores...then a malt shop...then a music store...then they ate lunch at the food court...then they went to a video arcade...then an electronics store...then to a couple of toy stores...oooh, that delicious Strawberry Jam Parfait at the malt shop...
An image of Tyyr and her sister came to her mind...rankling her grievously.
"THINK!!!" she scolded herself. In response, a mental impression formed.
It was something inside the toy store...not the computer games...not the train set...
"I GOT IT!" Skuld shouted, bringing the intense flurry of multiple conversations to a standstill as she bounded up off of her zabuton, finger pointed in the air.
"*What* could you probably offer that we haven't already considered?" Urd said, irritated by the rudeness of her little sister's interruption and her equally rude childish acting out.
"Slotcars," Skuld answered matter-of-factly. Keiichi looked at her in surprise; then the idea seeped into his mind like grape juice soaking a dishtowel...staining the fabric of disillusion with a twinge of possibilities.
"Ehhhhh?"
"Slotcars?" several voices echoed, brimming with curiosity or astoundment.
Skuld checked her throat so she could assume her 'clarification voice'. The sight of the diminutive Goddess preparing to explain always amused Keiichi. From his perspective in the wheelchair, Skuld was almost a foot shorter than everyone in the room...but she stood above him. He barely repressed a snicker as everyone looked *down* towards Skuld, their interest piqued by her suggestion.
"Yeah, you guys. Slotcars!" Skuld said, her voice tinged with defiant confidence. "I was in the toy store at the mall before the supertyphoon...and I saw several slotcar tracks for sale. Since Keiichi is so good at racing real-size cars, he easily should be able to race miniature cars. The principle is the same. The same physical laws would apply. And...his wheelchair would *not* be a disadvantage to him. By the way, how many of you think that the big pervert...oops, I mean Tyyr...has *ever* raced cars before? I could 'tweak' Keiichi's car too...which would be fair, since all he would have to do is set the venue for the challenge! It wouldn't be cheating in the sense that it wouldn't be anything affecting him directly. It would just be the *equipment* used for the contest!" she lectured the group.
Keiichi smiled at Skuld.
"That's *brilliant*, Skuld! Besides, I used to race slotcars when I was little, didn't I Megumi?" Keiichi added to her little spiel. Megumi nodded, a mixture of distaste and amusement on her face.
"Yeah, I *do* remember! Racetracks all over the floor of *our* bedroom and the living room. Yes...Big Brother, I remember... I remember...you *never* putting them away, and me *having* to!" she said in a taunting voice betrayed by a wide grin as she tweaked Keiichi's ear playfully.
"I can do this...I definitely have an edge when it comes to racing reflexes...and I'm willing to wager that Tyyr has never seen a slotcar racing set in his existence!" Keiichi enthused.
Belldandy was quiet, listening carefully to each point. She was more than simply caught up in the outcome of this discussion. Her whole future depended on them *getting this right*. She was absentmindedly twirling a branch between her fingers; it presented a green-brown circular blur in her vision.
Circles of fate.
But it was more than her future that was going to be decided. More than just her love with Keiichi was on the line. In fact, she knew deep inside that Keiichi's *life* was on the line. What would happen if he lost...which was quite possible since he was going up against a God. What if?
If she had to accept a life married to Tyyr in order to prevent the WarGod from killing her mortal boyfriend... She struggled to resolve to herself that she would. It tasted bitter, the repellent notion of her being condemned to sharing the rest of her existence as Tyyr's wife.
"Yes...I would gladly make that sacrifice for you, Keiichi. Your life is far more important than this issue of whom I'm supposed to marry," she said to herself under her breath.
"What'd you say, Bell?" Keiichi asked her.
"I'll tell you some time...but not today," she swiftly replied.
"But...maybe my little sister has come up with a way to defeat Tyyr," she hoped. Belldandy felt a sense of relief that Skuld's suggestion didn't involve any life-threatening combat. Theoretically, Keiichi could lose...and not come to any physical harm. But she was decidedly unsure of how Tyyr would react, win or lose. From what little she had seen and felt of his presence, she sensed that he would be a merciless victor...and a malcontent loser.
She looked at Keiichi with conflicted emotions. She was happy that his spirits were so bubbly...yet she was troubled by his confidence.
"Keiichi...don't let confidence evolve into overconfidence," she advised quietly. She knelt down next to his wheelchair and expressed her fears.
"Tyyr is reckless. As the Marshall of the WarGods, he has a militaristic attitude that I don't think you've ever encountered before. He is ruthless and flaunty. Remorseless. If you lose...I'm worried that he wouldn't hesitate to kill you. He was entirely disrespectful to me during the omiai that my parents hosted. That illustrates his disrespect for my Father...who was formerly a WarGod Marshall. Besides, he..." she lowered her voice to a whisper and informed him of the insults to her body that Tyyr had made during the omiai.
"HE WHAT!!!?" Keiichi exclaimed angrily, almost repeating aloud the words Bell had told him privately. He could feel his face almost swelling with the bloodrush. Tyyr had tried to molest Bell-chan! During the omiai, he played grab-ass/grab-tit with her. Bell's revelation made Keiichi *extremely* pissed-off at the WarGod!
"That guy is a total asshole! He doesn't deserve to be a God! And I'm gonna bring him down! This is one race I'm *not* going to lose...even if I have to go to Hell and back," he promised, looking at Belldandy with angry eyes.
Belldandy almost flinched when she saw the intensity of Keiichi's expression.

* * * * * * * *

"What!!" a roaring voice yelled in dismay and confusion. "He's actually challenging me to some kind of mortal sport? Combat by a jousting battle called 'slotcar racing'?"
Tyyr looked at everybody with a face full of rue. Settling his stare on Keiichi, his face quivered with barely controlled anger. Keiichi saw his reaction and fought back his fears...Tyyr's eyes seemed to bore right down to the core of his soul with diamond-sharp precision.
"That's right. You heard me the first time. I choose slotcar racing for our competition. And you have to remain in mortal form in order to participate," Keiichi reiterated. He heard Urd snickering as he repeated himself.
"What are you laughing at, loveless Norn of the Past!" Tyyr said as he walked towards Urd, looking like he was ready to hit her. Odeyn stepped firmly in front of the younger WarGod, blocking his path.
"That's my oldest daughter you're addressing, Tyyr! You leave her alone if you know what's good for you," he said in a menacing voice. Tyyr backed down and stormed off. Urd looked at her father with grateful eyes, then glared at Tyyr. Belldandy had confided in her about Tyyr's perverted groping during the omiai; now all Urd wanted was for him to be utterly humiliated at the hands of Keiichi. Urd *hated* Tyyr, more passionately than she had ever hated anyone before.
"Actually, it was *my* idea! Nyahhh!" Skuld said, sticking her tongue out at Tyyr...angry at his threat to her oldest sister. Tyyr stopped dead in his tracks and turned, walking towards her with even more anger. Skuld screamed in fear.
Skuld watched as her Daddy put a restraining hand on Tyyr's beefy arm and hauled him away from her. She stuck her tongue out again, safe in the awareness that her Daddy would protect her.
"Skuld...don't let childishness make matters worse!" Odeyn said crossly to his youngest. Skuld reacted with a little whimper, then quickly stepped partway behind Urd and Peorth, the paternal scolding shifting her fear from Tyyr to her father.
Keiichi was watching the whole surreal interaction between Tyyr and Bell's sisters from a detached perspective. He was mentally preparing himself for the upcoming race. Every time he saw Tyyr, he was more aware of the WarGod's volatile nature. Now Tyyr was pacing back and forth in the driveway.
"That God is a walking timebomb, Bell-chan!" he confided in a private whisper to his girlfriend. Tyyr glanced angrily in his direction, causing Keiichi to wonder if he had heard his comment.
"He's just mad because you have your arm around me," Belldandy reassured him...then leaned her head against his shoulder. Tyyr clenched his fists and glared at her, then resumed his pacing. She was secretly pleased by his reaction; a vengeful part of her *liked* the idea that Keiichi's attentions to her were cueing the WarGod to anger by leaps and bounds. Finally, Tyyr spun away from the couple, apparently too resentful to watch any further as Belldandy kissed Keiichi on the cheek for confidence.
"Hmmm, since the game has been set, perhaps *I* should be the one to design the track?" Lokii said to the assembled group with an innocuous smile, his aspect deliberately humble. The sisters watched as their parents readily agreed to this suggestion.
*Oh no*!" Belldandy thought as she saw Lokii's expression change to a flicker of a mischievous smile upon their acceptance of his offer.

* * * * * * * *

The track was skillfully laid out by Lokii to cover the whole extent of the temple grounds. The starting position was right in front of the covered front porch doorway. From here, it wove up and down the hallways and the rooms of the temple house, and then exited out behind the house via the sunroom.
Traveling through Belldandy's now-defunct fruit and vegetable garden, it circled the storm-flattened remains of Cevn's meditation garden. Then it veered towards the temple wall and traveled until it reached the Rock Garden in the southwest corner of the temple compound. Weaving in between several rock outcroppings and jumping over the small stream there, it traveled upwards, circling a tree up and down.
Moving east, the racetrack reached the temple compound's southeast corner, then crisscrossed between the shrubtrees there. Shifting to a northerly direction, it dipped in and out of the storage shed. Reaching level ground, the track ran past the mecha shed, and then it lifted off the ground in a series of hoop jumps until it reached the roof of the mecha shed. On the roof, the racetrack ran diagonally to the roofline, jumping off the corner eaves into a small sandpit. The landing had to be precise; otherwise the car would miss the slot in the center of the track and wipeout in the sand.
After the sandpit, the slotcar track ran up to the gravel driveway, and then whipped a sharp left towards the temple house. A series of weaving turns in front of the temple house finished with a double jump across the surface of the koi pond. The last short stretch of track floated in the middle of the pond, gracefully curved upwards like the end of a ski jump. The drivers would jump the remainder of the pond and land on a stretch of track partly buried in the matted grasses leftover from Supertyphoon Akira.
After this series of risky ramp jumps, the track traveled parallel to the road until it reached the torii temple gate entrance. Pulling a hairpin 180 degree turn, it traveled towards the vehicle garage, then wove snakelike between a series of moving obstacles there, driving up a ramp and out the back window of the garage. From the garage, it traveled northeast until it reached the temple bell. Once there, the cars had to 'ring the bell', ricocheting off the temple bell itself to land on a stretch of track. A short distance further, that track spiraled upwards like a ten-level parking garage in the corner until it reached the top of the walls surrounding the temple complex.
Upon gaining the top of the wall, the cars would travel walltop until they reached Skuld's Trees in the southeast corner of the temple complex. From there, they would make a dramatic leap into the trees, landing on a series of ramped descent slopes until they reached the ground. Looping through the trees, the trackway shifted direction towards the repair garage. Once inside the repair garage, the drivers would have to negotiate even more severe moving obstacles...finishing with a ramped jump through a moving bicycle wheel at the doorway to the garage. From the repair garage, the racecourse traveled back south to the gazebo...then circling the gazebo in an extremely complex set of turns, the car would travel back to the temple house.
That was just one complete lap. The race would have ten laps.
Skuld had installed microcams on each car, so that the drivers could control their cars once they were out of the line of sight.
Keiichi and the others were in "Skuld Labs", looked over the holoCAD layout analysis floating in mid-air, displayed on her Holophotic Videmeotron. From any angle, the slotcar racecourse looked...impossible.
"Lokii, whoever he is, sure can design a difficult course. An *insanely* difficult course!" Keiichi had to admit to himself. Since Belldandy informed Keiichi that Lokii was the head of the office of the Deliberate Chaos Ministry, he had expected the God to design a slotcar racecourse truly worthy of his title. As he watched the floating hologram, Keiichi knew that Lokii's course had far exceeded his own imaginative capacities to design a treacherous race course.
Observing its intricate weaves and effects, he was reminded of a show he once saw as a kid, where someone was trying to set a world record for the longest stretch of dominos knocked over by one push. There were several million black tile dominoes, laid out in an exceedingly intricate pattern. This racetrack made that pattern look simple by comparison. Keiichi wasn't even sure that he could complete one lap, let alone ten.
All he could do was marvel at the design of the course while Skuld familiarized him with the remote controls of his car.
"Pay attention, this is important! Don't you wanna win?" Skuld said, grabbing his ear with a pinch for good measure.
"Why is *everybody* pinching my ear?" Keiichi asked exasperatedly.
The control had a fingerwheel for steering; he would use his index finger by inserting it into a hole in the disc, thus steering the car with circular motions of his finger. His other thumb would control the accelerator pad on the console. The console possessed a mini version of Skuld's Holophotic Videmeotron videoscreen, almost windshield-sized. In fact, she explained that this would almost precisely emulate the view out the windshield, rear or either side of a car. There were a variety of controls for other functions, such as braking and gearshifting. She had decided on using a physical vidscreens instead of putting Keiichi in a 'virtual holographic car' because Tyyr would have an advantage if they used a full sim of his vehicle; his WarGod-honed reflexes needed to be limited as much as possible. The more primitive the representation/simulation technology, the more he would have to rely on a mortal-equivalent sensorium, such as line-of-sight vision and acoustic cues. Skuld wanted to level the playing field as much as possible so that Tyyr would have to run the race using near-mortal skills.
Keiichi was relieved that Skuld had designed the console...it was pretty straightforward. Probably the only straightforward thing in this whole mess.
"Can I see my car?" he asked.
"Of course, silly! It's really cool! I spent a lot of time designing it!" Skuld bragged. Keiichi let that one slide...Skuld had only had a day to whip up the cars for the race. She showed him his slotcar, roughly double the size of the Tyco industry standard. As usual, she was stroking it with sensual grace...just like she always did with her mechas.
He had to agree, the little slotcar was really cool in a Speed Racer sort of way. For once, Skuld had made something that didn't bristle with mecha wingdings. The car was simple and curvingly aerodynamic. Keiichi craned his head to take a closer look...and felt his heart soft touched by what he saw. On the hood, Skuld had painted the letters for N.I.T. Then she showed him the sides of her car. Resting in the palm of her petite hand, the car had delicately painted hearts with lettering on each door: "Keiichi" on the driver's side and "Belldandy" on the passenger's side.
Keiichi patted her head in appreciation...she had obviously painted the names on the small car *by hand* with painstaking care, since her higher-level Goddess powers were revoked. Skuld's wordless expression of thanks swam in the dark brown irises of her eyes as she smiled shyly at him. Once more, he was reminded of the complex mix of personalities Bell's little sister possessed. One moment, she was being flippant against Tyyr...the next, she was being shy in the face of his praise.
"Oh...that's so *cuuute*!" Belldandy said as she saw the little racer in Skuld's palm.

* * * * * * * *

All parties agreed that the race would begin tomorrow morning. Thus, Belldandy had the daunting task of hosting her parents, plus Tyyr and his parents. She didn't mind the extra work, and in fact cooked up an incredible repast of Earthrealm culinary delights for everyone. She secretly thrilled at the opportunity; in this way, she was flaunting herself in front of Mother.
"Unlike Mother, I don't mind getting my hands dirty by cooking for others. If you only knew how it pleases me to bring such pleasure to others, my dear Mother," Belldandy thought as she set out the serving trays.
There were three tables: one for Tyyr and his parents, another for Belldandy and her family, and a third one for Keiichi, Megumi, Genji and Tomohisa. Belldandy had prepared a cuisine blending all the cultures of the Earth...
It was absolutely indescribable!
Keiichi felt proud of his girlfriend...especially at how diplomatic and considerate she was being under the circumstances. He glanced over at Tyyr.
"You don't deserve to be eating anything Bell-chan has cooked, you thug!" he thought with disgust. The sight of the three sisters and their parents eating together as a family kept waxing strange on his mind. Keiichi once more fought with himself to keep from staring...there was just so much *power* at that table. Several times, despite his wheelchair-bound state, he made it a point to serve the family beverages...hoping to impress Bell's mother.
"This is so weird...her mother doesn't like me...and my mother *adores* Bell-chan. My dad can't stand her, but Bell's father seems to like me. It's so *opposite*! 'So contrary', as Bell-chan would say," Keiichi ruminated as he sat back down to eat. He had a briefly humorous thought about bringing the two sets of parents together...
It was then that Megumi filled him in on what had happened between Peorth and Cevn when the fourth Goddess arrived. Keiichi felt a sickening sensation in his heart...sensing the shock that must have jolted Cevn towards his present state of imbecility. Worried about Urd as well, he shot an angry glance at Peorth, who didn't seem to understand the source of his sudden ire. But he had much more important things on his mind than his friend Cevn. The race tomorrow would be decisive, to say the least.
*Everything* depended on the outcome of that race!

* * * * * * * *

Keiichi got up really early, and did his pre-race mental exercises. Darting his eyes about his room, he would dart a glance at a bookshelf and try to memorize the title on the binder of the book second from the end. Then he would look back and see if he got it right. This 'blink of the eye' rigor tested his reflexive visual acuity. Then he would stare out through his window and try to mentally slow down and then speed up his perception of the moving branches of the tree. After this, he performed a number of exercises to test his eye-hand coordination.
Bell's parents had slept in the sister's bedroom...which was no doubt crowded. Keiichi wheeled out of his bedroom, then down the hall to the bathroom. Getting undressed, he put the plastic bags on both of his leg casts. There was a light knocking on the door.
"Keiichi, can I come in?" Belldandy whispered as she opened the door just a crack. She came in, wearing a silver and pink cloud design bathrobe. She put her finger up to her lips and hushed him. She was carrying a few roses that she had been keeping in her room. Setting them down on the rim of the bathtub, she smiled a special smile at him. Keiichi's eyes grew wide as she casually untied the belt to her bathrobe and let it slide off of her shoulders.
Belldandy watched as Keiichi's expression changed from surprise to softness as she stepped out of her bathrobe. She knew the effect that her body had upon him...and she knew that they hadn't made love for a very long time...ever since Supertyphoon Akira. Ever since his injuries.
"Keiichi...in the four years that I've known you...I've never even washed your back *once*," she said in a delicate whisper. "I would love to make love with you, but that'll have to wait until your legs are healed. S..so I want to make love to you with my hands," she whispered in his ear. His reaction thrilled her...his fear struggled with desire and vibrant affection. She gently slid her fingers up and down his back, rubbing his soft skin sensuously with her fingertips...relaxing him. Keiichi seemed almost afraid of her touch...as if he felt guilty in some way.
"Bell-chan...your *Father* is here, in this house. W..what if he catches u....mph?" Belldandy cut off his question, sealing his lips hungrily with a deep passionate kiss. She reached over and grabbed a sponge from a nearby shelf and dipped it into the warm rose-scented bathwater.
"No...more...questions," she said softly as she wrung the sponge out over his back, sending hot streamlets of water down his backbone. She kissed the nape of his neck, feeling the shivers as she rested her breasts lightly on his back. The electricity of pressing herself up against his back in this new way made her wonder if *she* was shivering even more than he was.
Belldandy *wanted* Keiichi, more now than ever before. She had hoped that they would spend their fourth anniversary together, doing something very special. But now, all she had was this moment. She wanted time to slow to a standstill, so that her whole universe was just she and Keiichi. She soaped his back and then rinsed it with soft strokes of the sponge and her hand. Then she brushed his back lightly with the ends of her hair, tickling him. Keiichi giggled as she feathertouched his shoulder blades...then she hugged him tightly from behind, resting her chin in the cuff of his shoulder.
"She's making love to me...*without* making love to me!" he thought in amazement as Bell's 'spiritual acupressure/massage' was totally bringing him into tranquil bliss. He looked up at her with his eyes winging appreciation.
Belldandy felt their breathing synchronize; both of them lightly exhaling shallow breaths. She thought that...at this moment, if she were to lose Keiichi...then she would be miserable forever.
She helped him into the bathtub, making sure that his casts were sealed away in their protective bags. Then she stepped into the deep tub, facing him. She felt Keiichi gently pull her into his arms...and then he held her protectively as she kissed rings on his neck.
They remained, slowly rocking each other in the balmy waters of the bathtub, surrounded by Bell's poppouris. Keiichi wanted this moment to last a lifetime...and he knew that Belldandy wished it too. He was starting to worry about today's race when he felt a kiss on his ear.
"Happy anniversary, honey!" she whispered in his ear, and then held him chose as his body shook against hers with joy.

* * * * * * * *

Urd noticed that her sister was gone, so she put herself on sentry duty, so to speak. She looked down the hall to the bathroom, noticing that Keiichi's shoji door was ajar...he had failed to close it after wheeling out of his room. Urd smiled to herself; she *knew* where her younger sister was.
"You just take your time in there, Belldandy," she whispered to herself. A short time later, Mother was awake. Gripped by an instant's paranoia, Urd deftly engaged her in the one topic that Mom could rattle on about forever...Yggdrasilian manners and fashions.
"A small sacrifice to make for my sister's happiness," Urd thought as Mother droned on about trivialities.

* * * * * * * *

Belldandy emerged from the bathroom after helping Keiichi into his N.I.T. t-shirt...the one with cherry blossom designs that had thrown Urd for a loop a few years ago. She walked up the hallway, startling a little as she heard Mother's voice locked in deep ramblings with her sister Urd. Opening up the door, she heard Father's familiar snoring. Urd looked up at her and winked...and Belldandy instantly knew that her older sister was covering for her.
Urd saw Keiichi's t-shirt...and thought of the missing one. The one who was mutely despairing in his room.
Belldandy smiled to assure her sister, noticing that she was briefly upset. Then she repaired to the kitchen to fix a massive breakfast, not wanting to be around either Mother or Tyyr. She felt a glow inside of her as she hummed to herself while she mixed the sweetdough blueberry muffins.
"Keiichiiiii," she thought pleasantly.

* * * * * * * *

Belldandy's insistence that Cevn was all right didn't suffice for Urd. After breakfast, she sought refuge the only way she knew how. It was bad enough that her boyfriend had emotionally barricaded himself away from everyone...but Urd was much more concerned about her sister's future happiness. It all came down to today. Pouring herself another draught, Urd almost choked on her sake when she saw Belldandy emerge from their bedroom.
Belldandy was dressed neck to toes in a black leather catsuit, emblazoned with "N.I.T." up one leg and Keiichi's name across her chest!
It was snugger than snug, tighter than tight...in fact, Urd's eyes were almost fooled into thinking that her younger sister had simply sprayed black paint on her body. Belldandy looked at her with a sheepish expression, seemingly looking for her approval.
"Belldandy, it seems that your taste in fashion is finally catching up with your age. Why, you're finally dressing like an adult Goddess," Peorth commented as she emerged from the sunroom.
"Yeah...it's almost caught up with *me*, Bell," Urd quipped as she floated around Bell's form, surveying her with approving nods.
"Hmmm, it almost seems like you're trying to dress *sexy* for Keiichi! I *never* thought I'd see the day when you would try to dress like me. Yet...it doesn't quite become you...you still have that innocent face," she said as she lightly grabbed one of Belldandy's rosy cheeks, reminding her who the eldest sister was.
Watching Urd and Belldandy, Peorth knew that her time here was finished...she should have returned to the Goddess Relief Office the moment Belldandy was safe and sound back on Earthrealm. But she knew that she had to stick it out...if anything, she wanted to see that her sacrifice had been in not been in vain. Also, Belldandy had confided in her that all three sisters had *no* powers, except for Urd's very slight Earth Spirit Grade powers. Hearing this, Peorth decided to stay...just in case Tyyr or Lokii or Freiija decided upon foul play. She knew that her powers weren't a match for any of them...but still she wanted to be present, especially if her presence meant security for Keiichi.
"B..Belldandy," was all that Keiichi could say. He had *never* seen her in an overtly sexy outfit. She had always dressed 'soft' or 'hard'...but never sexy. This outfit...it was like something the manga Catwoman would wear. Or in that Avengers movie that came out years ago. Or last year's Oni sequel computer game.
She looked so...wonderful.
"That'll really irk Tyyr off...seeing *my* name across her chest!" he thought with a brief flash of glee after he caught his breath.
He examined the console clamped on to his wheelchair, then tapped it to see if it was securely fastened.
"Once more, my fate is being decided by a race," he thought wearily as Tyyr emerged from the house. They would race from side-by-side positions underneath the canopied front entrance. Despite the month that had passed since Akira, the temple grounds still exhibited many telltale signs of destruction. The trees looked sterile in the cool November air, bereft of any foliage...several of them stripped of limb and branch. The compound wall was still cracked, chipped and broken in many places. Skuld had restored the koi pond to its previous graceful condition; miraculously, none of the koi had been killed by the storm. The two garages still were missing numerous rooftiles. All of this could have been repaired in a flash if Bell-chan had her powers back.
Odeyn and Lokii jointly explained the rules of the competition. No cheating, no magical or arcane interference, no direct technological subterfuge, and no killing...at least until the competition was concluded. In addition, neither opponent could touch the other's console. To do so would result in instant disqualification. Next, they listed various and sundry subclauses to the rules, then confirmed that Belldandy's omiai would determined by the results of this race.
Keiichi almost felt nauseous as he realized on some deep level that he was competing with Tyyr...and Belldandy was the prize. It seemed barbaric to his sensitivities. Yet, there were many things about the Gods that were very henda...very weird. No matter how often Belldandy tried to explain things to him, his head would swim in confusion. It just didn't make sense: the omiai, this competition, Belldandy being betrothed to a goon like Tyyr...
"What about the Almighty and the Ultimate Force? Aren't they supposed to prevent us from being separated?" he wondered as Belldandy gave him a good-luck kiss...just like she had done so often during his races at N.I.T.
He wheeled his chair down the wooden deck that surrounded the temple; his approach heralded by the few extra creaks which remained as a legacy to the fury of Supertyphoon Akira. Positioning his wheelchair next to Tyyr, who was sitting on the ledge of the wooden gallery, he tested all the controls for a last time.
"Grrrrrrr..." he heard in his ears. He thought he was hallucinating, until he noticed that Tyyr was actually *growling* at him through gritted teeth, trying to look and sound as menacing as possible. Keiichi looked at his competitor...Tyyr's eyes were as red as his thick brown-red eyebrows. His bladed 'hand' on his mechanical arm was replaced by a steel hand which looked like a metal glove.
Lokii waved an arm to get everybody's attention, and then carefully set both cars side-by-side on the track.
"What do I do now?" he asked.
"I think the correct words are: ready...set...Go!" Friijda said. Whereupon Tyyr floored the accelerator to his little slotcar and shot down the track with a burst of speed.
"They had that *planned*!" Keiichi thought with a mix of panic and disgust. He had been expecting a real startup call by Lokii, but instead they had cheated and Tyyr started off as soon as Lokii's wife said "Go!" He started his car, already meters behind his rival's slotcar.
Tyyr's mocking laughter crawled under his skin.

* * * * * * * *

"Well, that's par for the course for Lokii and his wife," Odeyn commented to his wife, noticing how they had twisted the startup of the race to their own ends.
"That's just fine by me...I hope Tyyr *wins*! Anything they do to help him is very much appreciated by me!" Freiija said.
"Wife of mine, aren't you ill-considering the one whose feelings are paramount in this matter...our middle daughter Belldandy's?"
"B'dandy should know better than to pretend to be in love with a mortal..." she commented.
"But dear? If our daughter is in love, why should we try and stand in the way of it? You've seen how she looks at this Keiichi mortal...it's obvious that she has *deep* feelings for him," he argued.
"That's the point. She can have deep feelings for him, husband. But he's only a mortal. How can *he* have deep feelings for her...feelings that even come close to what our daughter feels? He's little more than a terrestrial animal. They have feelings too...but you don't see any of the mortals marrying their pet dogs and cats, do you?"
"That's not the point, Freiija! Mortals...are much nearer to us on the spiritual evolutionary scale then their Earthrealm animal kingdom is to them. Besides, how can you explain the fact that our daughter...loves him so? If he couldn't reciprocate her feelings, how could she be so attracted to him?"
"I think the question is *why* would she care for him?" Freiija asked. "You know Belldandy. She always has been the sensible one...the only one of our girls who isn't rambunctious in some way. It's in her nature to be kind and generous. Just like her mother."
Odeyn scowled at the irony of her statement. His wife was being anything but kind and generous in *this* concern!
"If she takes after you, then why don't *you* practice some generosity and call off this insane omiai, dear?" he said coldly.
"NO!" Freiija said, stamping her foot on the ground to accent her response. "That would doom my daughter to a life of drudgery, chained to that mortal...*boy*."
"If he was a boy...I daresay that he wouldn't be standing up to Tyyr the way he has been."
"He's doing so because he's reckless," Freiija commented.
Odeyn decided to attempt another tact.
"Hmmm... Doesn't that...recklessness...remind you of a certain someone *you* fell in love with...a few hundred thousand years ago?" he said, trying to bring the argument to her heart. One thing he had learned in the ten millennia he was Marshall of the WarGods was when to bring on the heavy ammuntion.
Freiija looked at her husband with a wide-eyed expression...then smiled inwardly at the memory. She reached over and hooked her slender arm through his stocky left arm and leaned against his shoulder. Then she looked at how intently the young mortal was trying at the race...trying to win the hand of her daughter. She reluctantly had to concede that there was a grain of truth in her husband's words. Looking at Keiichi, she saw a faint echo of the young Odeyn who had stolen her heart with his intense passion and determination.
"Could Belldandy feel the same attraction to this mortal...that I felt when I fell in love with Odeyn?" she asked herself.
"Maybe...just maybe I've been too hard on our B'dandy. Maybe you're right, dear husband," she whispered in his ear.
Urd watched as her parents seemed to be lost in a moment of romantic whimsy...the first display of true affection they had shared since they arrived two days ago.
"What is going on with Father and Mother?" she said in a low voice, elbowing Belldandy to get her attention. When Bell didn't respond, she turned to look at her. Her sister was engrossed in the race.

* * * * * * * *

Keiichi felt like his sensorium was going into warped space. In the most random of wild dreams, he would have never imagined his temple compound becoming a racetrack. Yet, there on Skuld's holovid display, he had a ground's eye view of their home and its environs. His parked motorbike looked like a skyscraper as he drove past it; it loomed large and then towered over the racetrack, casting a long shadow that reminded him of the buildings in Sunshine City, in Tokyo. For some reason, the miniaturized perspective led him to imagine himself as a scurrying mouse; rapidly traveling the temple environs low to the ground.
Blades of grass loomed almost as large as his slotcar as he negotiated a series of weaving banked tight turns. This was the *ultimate* Hot Wheels racetrack, only with slotcars! The course curved right, then left with a fast snap of horizon.
Tyyr's car was way out in front of his as he approached the vehicle garage.
The scale of the cars and their speed had resulted in an almost vertigo-inducing perspective that Keiichi fought hard to control. According to the speedometer on the console, his car was traveling at a scale equivalent of over 650kph! The usual blurring of nearby objects when he raced in high-speed situations in life-sized vehicles was accented into a dizzying blur of almost everything in sight. The track seemed to rear up its black plastic mass...*rushing towards him*, instead of the other way around.
"I hope I can get acclimated to this kind of speed real soon!" he worried as more landmarks of his temple environs fuzzflashed by him.
Once inside of the garage, his view became more disoriented, as several different-colored strobe lights activated. Ahead were a number of large tools: pipewrenches, large socket wrenches, hammers and the like. All had been suspended from the ceiling by long strings or wires. They swung slowly across the racetrack, almost skimming it.
"Do I stop and go, or chance it?" Keiichi wondered to himself. He reached within his heart with a reflexive eye...looking...looking...
He slowed down, then timed the open corridor...and gunned it. His little car sped through the hazards, which appeared as swinging building-sized objects in Keiichi's holographic 'windshield'
"Whoooa," he said as his car snagged the slot in the track and powered up the ramping track and out the window.
* * * * * * * *