The Red Hand

*SPLOOSH* *SPLASH* *SQUAWK*

“It hasn't been the worst ride across the ocean in my life.” Kanato laughed as she ship bobbed up and down in the ocean. He was standing at one of the sides of the ship, watching the water chop and churn below. “That ferry ride to Okinawa was definitely worse, though maybe its not fair to say that since we hit a Typhoon.” He chuckled.

Kanato's journey to the Holy City had reached its last leg, and it would be a matter of days until the ferry he was on docked in harbor. It was a rough ride over what was basically open ocean, and many, including the fairies, got seasick.

"Ocean... Bad..." The female fairy sat on Kanato's head, her head swirling from the motion of the ship. “Tummy... Sick...” She, as well as the other fairies, had tried to float in place to avoid motion sickness, though that came with other problems.

"No Soup..." The two male fairies were similarly out of it and were sitting in a bag tied to the Hero's waist. “Sad...”

"I swear to Christ if any of you barf on me again, I'm throwing you into the bay and using you as fishing lures." Kanato grumbled. He'd had the pleasure of cleaning up fairy vomit, which while looking like pretty rainbows, was extremely hard to get out of clothing.

{Should I even be shocked that fairies puke up rainbow at this point?} (Kanato)

"Taste rainbow..." The female fairy continued to swirl, and Kanato could tell that another round was coming. “No... like...”

{NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!} (Kanato)

Not wanting to get covered in more rainbow, Kanato grabbed the fairy girl and held her over the edge of the ship, allowing her to release the rainbow of doom into the ocean.

{Sorry Mr. Fishes...} (Kanato)

"Seriously, how the hell are magical fairies that fly this susceptible to motion sickness?!?" Kanato grumbled as the rainbow continued. "And why doesn't healing magic work on this?" He figured that Hitomi could probably cure motion sickness, since regular healing power wasn't working.

{Shiroe isn't great with carriages either, from what I recall. But still!} (Kanato)

"Shiroe..." Kanato reflected on the past week's events as he held the fairy away from him. "I'm sorry... But I swear, I'll bring you back..." As the fairy finished expelling the rainbow into the ocean, a familiar voice startled him from behind.

"I'm hurt. Here I am worried about you after what Father told me, and I find you here on a boat wistfully worried about another woman." A blonde-haired woman with white angel wings said from behind him. She had a massive black scythe on her back and she had a warm smile that was truly anything but.

"Rehael?!?" Kanato spun around to see the unexpected form of his first wife, someone he wasn't expecting to see. She was wearing her usual black dress that Kanato swore had nothing to do with the Goth loli fad back home. The Angel girl seemed to enjoy it a lot, and it went well with her massive scythe that earned her the nickname of Grim Reaper.

"Who else out there is this beautiful?" Reheal smiled seductively. "Don't tell me that you've forgotten me in our brief time apart." She slowly walked over to him and stole his lips, cupping his cheeks in her hands.

"Mpfh!" Kanato was taken aback by her forwardness, but that was what he loved about her.

"There, do you remember now?" Rehael said playfully as they parted. “I sure hope so.”

"I..." Kanato pulled her into a hug, dropping the female fairy to the floor with a thud.

*BONK*

"Owchie..." The female fairy landed head first, a bump forming on the top of her head due to the impact.

“Heh. Heh. Fall... Go bonk.” The two male fairies giggled.

"What's this?" Rehael was uncharacteristically surprised by the sudden hug. "Did you miss me that bad?" Kanato was trembling as he gripped onto her, and she could tell that his emotional floodgate was about to burst.

{Oh joy...} (Rehael)

"Now, now, baby." Rehael hugged him back. "It's alright. I'm here for you." Her lips curved not into a warm smile, but rather one of a predator that had found its prey. "Just let it all out... Tell Mommy all about it." Which is exactly what Kanato did as he cried in her arms. Kanato was never a particularly emotional person, and he was always told growing up that real men only cried on the day their children were born. But in that moment, a lifetime of instilled discipline broke, and he balled like a baby in his wife's arms.

"I... I thought... I was..." Kanato couldn't even finish a full sentence, and Rehael slowly rubbed his back in an attempt to calm him down. “I thought I'd never...”

"There, there." The Angel cast a bit of magic in an attempt to calm his emotions, noticing that something had attached itself to him as she did.

{What is that power? It similar to... Nevermind. More importantly, it seems to be affecting his mind, but that shouldn't be possible. Only I or one of the Gods can manipulate the Heroes. How interesting.} (Reheal)

"I've heard all about what happened to you and the others from Father, and rest assured that we are doing everything in our power to bring Shiroe back from that world." Rehael's sweet voice was infused with a small amount of magic that caused Kanato's emotional storm to quiet down.

"We failed..." Kanato said as he looked into her eyes. "We... Rehael, the Spirits, we-" He paused, something deep within telling him not to voice his doubts about God's plans to Rehael.

{She's Gale's daughter... But she's also my wife... But... I know her well enough to say that if I tell her about what I learned back on Earth... She might kill me if it's true.} (Kanato)

For the first time since he met the bewitchingly beautiful Angel woman, he felt a twinge of fear in his heart. He had never seen Rehael get angry, save for instances where he or her companions were in harm's way, but he'd heard the stories of her past. The Grim Reaper moniker wasn't just something that she was called due to her scythe, she earned it by virtue of being Gale's go-to for when he needed someone dead.

"You did not fail, my love." Reheal smiled. "This was merely a minor setback, so do not allow it to cloud your heart with doubt." She pressed up against him, stealing another kiss. "Father is already working on another plan, and this time it will work without fail." She giggled. “So don't sully that pretty face of yours with tears.”

"Lord Gale..." Kanato said under his breath. "But, why are you here?" He pushed her slightly away. "I thought that you were busy with your other duties?" The Angel was typically away from home, which meant that raising their young son was left to some of the other Heavenly servants.

"Father is preparing a special task just for me, and part of that requires my presence in the material world." Reheal traced her finger across his chest. "Thus, I exited the Heavens via Aunt Reflia's portal at the top of Kalmya, and low and behold, the first thing I sense is my little man sailing straight toward the Holy City." She giggled. "I knew that you were wandering around down here, but I never expected to find you here of all places."

{Why is he going to the Holy City anyway? And why is he traveling with fairies?} (Reheal)

"I honestly didn't expect to see you here either." Kanato gave a wry smile. While Reheal was his first wife she was also the one he saw the least due to her status as a Demi-God and line of work. The two could easily go months apart from one another, though they tended to make up for such separation with interest. "How is Arlo doing?" He asked about his only son, who primarily resided in the Heavens at her insistence.

"He is well." Reheal said as she took a step back. "The boy resembles you more and more with each passing day, and it won't be long now until he starts speaking basic words." Their child was over one year old by this point, and as a quarter God, he was quite a bit different than your average mortal. “I saw him just before I left, and he was quite happy.”

"Good." Kanato smiled at the news that his son was well. "I'd like to see him soon if I get the chance. Maybe we can bring him down here to play with his sisters?"

"Perhaps. Though it may still be a while until he stabilizes enough to safely descend. I've told you before that rushing such things will only harm him." Reheal's warm smile belied her true emotions, which consisted of displeasure at the idea of her son playing with his mortal half-siblings.

{Those bastard children have no right to breathe the same air as my son, and even if they share this idiot's blood, they're still trash born of inferior mortal sows.} (Reheal)

"I see..." Kanato said, disappointed. “Well, I just hope he's able to come down soon.”

"But more importantly, what are you doing on a boat heading to the Holy City? Is this a secret rendezvous with Hitomi? Are you finally adding her as the fourth wife?" Reheal said in fake shock, knowing that such a thing was impossible.

"You and I both know that Hitomi and Rafferty are inseparable, not to mention that said crazy fox would probably castrate me if I so much breathed on Hitomi in the wrong way." Kanato gave a nervous laugh.

{She really fucking would too.} (Kanato)

"Well, we can't have that, now can we?" Reheal laughed as she pat him on the chest. "I have too much use for your lower half to risk losing it!"

"I see that part of you is the same as every..." Kanato sighed at his wife's vulgarity. "But to answer your question, I'm going to the Holy City to speak with Hitomi. I want to see how she's doing after everything that happened on Earth, and I want to speak with her to find out if she knows anything else about the situation that could help us." He easily lied to the Angel by blending a mostly true story together.

"Understandable." Reheal nodded. "Father will want your help again for this next part, so having all the Heroes on the same page will be helpful."

"Will you be coming with me?" Kanato asked, hoping that the answer was no.

"As much as I'd love to, I've business elsewhere." Reheal sighed. “So sadly I cannot stay with you.”

"Does it have anything to do with that so-called Demon Lord who's been attacking places?" Kanato had heard the stories during his travel. “I've heard some interesting rumors about what happened in the Imperial Capital.” He was certain that whatever had defeated him and tampered with his memories had followed them back and was now causing chaos on Enoris.

"No, that job is being handled by Aunt Reflia. I'm tasked with an extra special super secret mission directly from Father." The Angel put her finger over her lips. "And I'm sorry, but I can't tell even you." She giggled.

{Thank god...} (Kanato)

"But." Rehael slowly moved forward and wrapped her arms around Kanato like a snake enveloping its prey. "I see no problem with keeping you company until your ship lands at the Holy City." She kissed him again. "How about we make up for a bit of lost time?"

{You know what, I'm in no shape to say no and I need this right now.} (Kanato)

"Sounds good to me." Kanato kissed her back, and the two retreated to his private room where they spent quality time with each other for the next three days. The stamina of both a Demi-God and Hero was quite high, and both had quite a high libido meaning that once things got started, they got started.

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*DING-DING* *DING-DING*

In what felt like no time at all, the ferry docked at the Harbor of the Holy City, and it was time for Kanato to depart. He was a bit sore from his intimacy with the Angel, but he felt completely refreshed.

"I'll see you later, ok?" Kanato gave his wife another kiss. "And be safe. You know I can't live without you."

"You too as well, my love." Reheal stood on the pier as he turned away and departed, the three fairies floating alongside him.

"Crazy human." The female fairy said.

"Crazier Angel..." The two male fairies said in unison.

As he vanished into the crowd, Reheal's warm smile turned into a slightly perverted one. "Yes, my little pet, go onward." The Angel spoke under her breath. "Play Hero for mommy." She giggled. "For that's all you're really good for, isn't it? Being mommy's little Hero and being such a good boy."

{Ah, to have him look at me with those boyish eyes and stupid little smile. It truly electrifies me. Perhaps I should make another child with him since the first time was truly.... Delightful.} (Reheal)