The plan had been simple enough. Havik had planned it out in great detail, checking and rechecking every scenario, taking into consideration every possibility, probability, and issue they may encounter. He had been meticulous, even discussed it with Kayla for days before finally bringing it up to his fathers. They had been hesitant at first, as they usually were whenever Havik brought something to them. However, since he had never given them any plan or suggestion that hadn’t worked out in the past, they were willing to listen. It had taken some careful discussion and coaxing, but in the end, Hawk and Hero agreed.

In order to rebuild the barrier, and make it work more efficiently, they would have to reorder the Realms themselves, one on top of the other, surrounding the Mortal Realm. Access to and from every Realm would be more efficient, and if a closure ever had to occur again, more discussion would need to be had among a committee, and far more time given to ensure all who needed to be on any side were where they needed to be by the time the barrier closed. More failsafes would be put into place, and a group of Divine would be created in order to keep it and all the Realms safe from attack or sabotage. Permanent doors leading to specific areas would be created to help with easier transportation, and any temporary doors had to be closed up within a week. 

All in all, Havik’s plan was to better protect every Realm with one very strong barrier that would be protected and monitored on both sides. First, however, they needed to shift the Realms a bit and rebuild the barrier. 

Hero would move the Heavenly Realms, Hawk the Veil, Havik would hold the barrier remains along with Ynda, and Toji would move Hell and secure the barrier when it was complete. On the other side, Nox and Charlotte would back Toji, guiding and placing their parts of the barrier around Hell. Persephone would help Hero, while Alerik helped Hawk. Jordan and Elaine were to be sent to Helman Hall to make sure Kas Strannick and Noah Strannick hadn’t taken off before everything was complete. They needed to be there long enough for Havik to make the exile and all the conditions that went with it, including the removal of them from everyone’s memories, official and permanent. 

It was a smooth plan that should take no more than ten minutes to accomplish. Of course, when the merge happened, it caused Havik to worry that too much of the Realms had already mixed, making it more difficult to set the barrier. He was concerned it might damage the natural energies that ran through the Mortal Realm, making several places uninhabitable, or hot beds for corrupt Divine to escape to and spread to cause more havoc. Ultimately, he had to press forward with the original plan and worry about the effects of the merge afterward.

Everything was in place for a smooth rebuild with no major issues predicted to arise.

However, what Havik failed to take into consideration were two things, both to do with Toji:

His unyielding and unparalleled love for Natsu Kanaki.

And, more disruptively, his temper.

-*-

Hero took a deep breath and focused on the family’s link, making sure every door was open to each one of them. It was the only way everyone would know where they all were, if they were in trouble, and how they were doing. It was also their only means of communication. They were all thousands of miles apart, but in the link, they may as well all be in the same room. 

“Alright,” he exhaled, his body beginning to glow as he brought into his mind’s eye the Heavenly Realms. “You guys all ready?”

Everyone acknowledged in the affirmative, including Toji. 

“Alright, Dad,” he said softly. “You go first.”

Ynda, Havik, and Hawk all focused on their cores, drawing out the strongest power they had, the one they were all created from, and the one they never used; their star magic. Hero could feel a slight pull coming from Toji, his energy blazing hotter and more powerful than the rest. He pushed the sudden worry that rose up in him to the side, telling himself it was only because of his unique abilities and the near infinite amount of power he held within him. 

Moving his hands in graceful, fluid motions, he took another breath, and focused on Persephone and the Heavenly Realms. He had to think of it as just another object to shift, something solid and tangible, even though none of it truly was. It existed outside of this reality, a dimension all its own, a space and universe all its own. It went the same way for the Realms of Hell and the Veil. The Mortal Realm, where they stood, was itself a universe and dimension outside the rational minds of mortal man, something Hero had come to acknowledge not long after he had ascended from a normal human to a powerful Mid-God. Seeing the universe as it was, as it really was, had been a complete mind-blowing experience, one he never imagined was possible.

Nothing was tangible, everything was pliable and made to shift and move at the will of the gods. Everything was together, and nothing was. Every world was felt and ignored, every creature seen and unseen. Humans and Divine walked among each other all the time but never knew or suspected a thing. 

It had been this way since the dawn of time and it seemed unlikely to ever change. 

Until now. 

Mortals were seeing too much of the Divine world, had experienced its wrath and judgment first hand, their eyes opening to a more terrifying reality than they ever could have believed in. Creatures they were once in awe of, they came to fear. Myth and legend had become real. Places and worlds they never imagined tore through their lives, literally uprooting what remained of their already broken and devastated Realm of existence. Unless they could pull some insane miracle out of their asses, there was no way Hero and the rest could make the rest of the human population unknow what they now knew. The best they could do was separate all the Realms, and make it so contact between the Divine and humanity was minimal at best until they came to forget the Divine all on their own.

Hero felt a tug on the Realm, almost as if someone was trying to pull it out of his hands. His heart skipped.

“Daddy, what’s going on?” Ynda asked.

“You felt that, too?” Havik asked.

“Yeah, same here,” Hawk said, all of them sounding confused. 

“So, it’s not just me?” Hero said. 

There was another sharp pull, everyone raising their voices in alarm.

“What the hell is going on?” Ynda exclaimed. 

“I have no clue,” Havik said, sounding more annoyed than worried. There was a pause. “Where’s Natsu? Isn’t he with Toji?”

“Where is Toji?” Hawk demanded.

Everyone went silent. They all searched the link, trying to find any trace of the missing Devil God. They knew he’d been there, he’d just talked to them a minute ago just before they began the rebuild.

There was a horrible blast that seemed to rock the earth at their feet, followed by a teeth clattering screech.

“What the fuck is that?” Liza shouted, covering her ears.

“If I knew, I’d tell you!” Hero replied. He held tighter to the Realms, fighting against the massive weight that seemed to pull even harder against him. He gritted his teeth, setting his feet firmly in the ground and increasing his energy.

He could hear the grunts, groans, and yells as he and his family continued to strain against the phenomenon. 

“Goddammit, what the hell is this?” Hawk shouted. 

“Oh, fuck me…” Ynda said in a low voice, the realization dawning on her and spreading through the link.

Hero jerked, almost losing his grip completely, denial weighing heavy on his heart. “No,” he whispered. “He can’t…he wouldn’t…”

“Are you sure about that?” Ynda asked through gritted teeth.

Hero and Hawk both felt the same pain shoot through their chests. They’d lost him…they’d just lost Toji for good and it was all their fault. Hero let the Realms slip from his fingers just as Hawk tempted Toji and created a door to get to his husband. Hero collapsed into his arms, unable to move, scream, or even cry. Hawk held him tightly, his body shaking as he fought his own rush of confused and intense emotions. 

Havik screamed loudly as the barrier finally slipped through his fingers. “No! Toji, don’t do this!” He fell to his hands and knees, shaking. Modette and Carla ran to him, trying to help him to his feet, Modette sending waves of warmth into his sore back.

“Ynda, what the hell is going on?” Mei demanded when she saw Ynda fall backward to the ground. She knelt before her girlfriend, her eyes filled with panic.

“It’s Toji,” Ynda huffed, trying to regain her breath from struggling against the barrier. “He just hijacked the entire goddamn universe.”

They felt the ground beneath them shake violently, sending Mei and Nikolai falling to their knees. Megura went to her belly, whimpering with despair.

“I lost him, I lost him,” she moaned.

“Who?” Ynda asked, turning to the large gray wolf.

“Natsu!” Megura sobbed. “I lost my son! He’s gone!”

Ynda fell back, her hand going into her hair, her mind reeling. She searched the link, scoured every inch of it, horror washing over her like a tidal wave. Natsu wasn’t the only one missing from their link, Toji was, too. Both of them were completely, and utterly, gone.

-*-