Sickle

"This isn't the "ended world", Held. This is the place everyone returns to when they have completed their lifetime in the Third Period: the Heavenly Yard."

- Sickle

Sickle, also called the Master of the Heavenly Yard, was the god that created the Third Period. After the destruction of the previous world, the god created a new world, incarnating his fellow gods there before incarnating himself as a bat. Accepting the name humans gave him, "Sickle" chose to solely observe his creation, curious about what path humanity would follow without his interference.

Early Life
"It's the world you created. It's fine for you to do with it as you like."

- Held

During the time after the Second Period came into existence, the god of creation resided there with his close friends and fellow gods Held, Levia, and Behemo. While there, he often farmed the land and maintained a human form. Sometime after the destruction of the Second Period, he decided to create a new world, spawning the Third Period and the creation of its landscape, including the Bolganio continent, and rules; among these rules, Sickle prepared for the world he created to end in four different ways, with it being a violation to prevent any of these endings.

When creating the humans that inhabited the landscape, the creation god used Held as the basis for its Elphe race of people. Giving the twin gods new forms, he made Levia and Behemo into a twin-headed dragon, Levia-Behemo. After the two gods began breaking his rules and caused chaos in the newly-made world, the creation god reluctantly placed the ark, Sin, into the Third Period to imprison the gods and let them be freely worshipped as deities by the humans.

528 years before the establishment of the Evillious Calendar, the god of creation tasked Held with watching over the twin gods and protect humanity from them, incarnating his green-haired friend as an immovable tree. With both Held and Levia-Behemo set as "temporary gods" for a limited time, the god incarnated himself as a bat and roamed the Third Period's landscape to see what path his world would take without his interference. During this time, he continued to cultivate the Second Period, making it an afterlife for all the humans of the Third Period: the Heavenly Yard.

Observing Evillious
As the Third Period continued, the god observed multiple individuals in Evillious, including Elluka Clockworker, whose resurrection through the ark Sin and transformation as a vessel for the twin gods caused her and them to continue existing long after his set rules for time. The creation god also kept watch over Irina Clockworker and her actions over the course of Evillious' history involving the Seven Deadly Sins.

Following the events caused by the vessels of sin, he witnessed the Venomania Event and later saw Banica Conchita devour herself and become a demon. At some point, the bat was spotted by a human and dubbed "Sickle" for his oddly shaped wings and the god decided to adopt the name for convenience. At the turn of the sixth century EC, the god witnessed the events in the Kingdom of Lucifenia unfold, interested in the Lucifenian Revolution.

By the time Allen Avadonia died, Sickle realized the boy was outside his scope of creation and continued to exist even though he shouldn't have; as a result, he locked the boy in a black box and kept it in the Heavenly Yard. Around the same time, he was concerned by Held training Michaela as a successor and grew curious about what the earth god expected of her.

When Allen expressed his desire to interfere in the world to protect his sister, the Master of the Heavenly Yard answered his whims and let the boy return there for a brief time. After seeing the battle at Marlon in EC 505, Sickle again permitted Allen to interfere with the third world when his two sisters battled Irina. In EC 549, Sickle noticed that war began breaking out in the Eastern region and flew toward its source at Jakoku.

Finding the former maid, Chartette Langley, just outside Enbizaka, he witnessed the old woman hand off two pairs of scissors to a young man that reminded him of Duke Sateriasis Venomania. Once the Venomania descendant left, he saw Irina battle and swiftly defeat the aged Chartette in battle. When the sorceress unexpectedly looked up at the sky, seemingly straight at him, the confused god felt her immeasurable hatred before she returned her eyes to the ground and moved on.

Brief Return Home
"But in the end, you obeyed the duty I gave you. Therefore I don't understand. Why did you leave Michaela as a successor?" "Well, aren't you plotting something too?"

- Sickle and Held regarding Michaela and Allen

Afterward, the god watched the civil war across Jakoku, paying particular attention to the young man from before as he slaughtered his opponents. Once he saw the war end and a new ruler be crowned, Sickle left. Realizing Held had probably already returned to the Second Period, Sickle flew back to his golden rice fields and, back in his human form, immediately began reaping any weeds he found.

Once Sickle found Held at the center of his field, the green-haired god noted how he still maintained his farming hobby and said it was meaningless to cultivate the "ended" world. Insulted, Sickle countered that it was where everyone went to after their life in the Third Period was up and Held scoffed at how that way of thinking was what infuriated Levia. The scythe-wielding god questioned if he meant his neglect for the Hellish Yard and asked Held's thoughts on the matter.

When Held expressed the belief that segregation of good and evil was necessary, Sickle brushed it off as his opinion and asked why he left Michaela as a successor. Held refused to answer, instead pointing out the black box in the sky and saying Sickle too had been plotting something. When pressed why Allen received special treatment, the creation god explained the boy's "irregular" nature.

In response to Held's conclusion that he was choosing to exclude the child, Sickle insisted it was the opposite and summoned the box down. The Master of the Heavenly Yard then stated their talk was over, since Held refused to elaborate on Michaela, and Held left, saying he too loved the world Sickle created. After unlocking the box with the golden key and finding the sleeping Allen inside, he wondered if the recoil from his visits to the Third Period tired him out and asked the unconscious boy how he was feeling.

End's Approach
As time went on, Sickle reviewed the course of Evillious history and noted that the Third Period had been induced by a certain individual to follow the path for the worst of the four endings. Disapproving of these events, he planned to break his rules and borrow Michaela's power to interfere, saying it would soon be another individual's turn.

Personality and Traits
"Doing your farm work hobby as always, I see."

- Held

As the god of the universe and its creation, "Sickle" was easily attached to his own works, especially the Third Period, developing a unique aesthetic for each human race there. Curious of how the world would develop without his interference as God, the deity purposefully isolated himself from his creation, choosing instead to act as a mere observer in its progression. In contrast, the god showed indifference towards the suffering and death the third world's humans endured, treating the concept with an aloof matter.

Despite this, he still valued his creations, demonstrated by his efforts to turn the decimated Second Period into the "Heavenly Yard" for all of them, good and bad, to arrive at after death. Although fascinated by the unique existences of Elluka Clockworker and Banica Conchita, Sickle was especially attracted to Allen Avadonia's "irregular" existence and isolated the boy's spirit from the others in the Heavenly Yard.

Despite his impressive role in his creations' lives, Sickle preferred to watch the world in anonymity and showed no desire in flaunting himself as their maker; as a result, he wasn't bothered by the names the humans gave him while in his bat form or being mistaken as simply a unique species. He also held steadfast to the rules he created for the world and expected all gods, including himself, to abide by them.

Regardless, the creation god, despite restricting himself only to observing the third world, had no qualms indirectly interfering with it by permitting Allen to return there to satisfy his whims. He would also choose to interfere in the world directly when its course was influenced by a third party. Sickle had a hobby of farming and took pride in cultivating much of the destroyed Second Period into a golden rice field. Therefore, the god was sensitive to criticism and stubborn, ignoring Held's advice despite their close friendship and brushing off his concerns as merely his opinion.

This mentality extended to his thoughts on the Third Period's humans, lacking faith in them progressing without eventually developing their own pantheons and chose instead to have them worship "temporary gods" he set up for a period of time. Similarly, although considering his fellow gods as friends, Sickle disregarded Levia and her role as the Master of the Hellish Yard and forcibly made the hated siblings one being to act as humanity's temporary gods; he also imprisoned them, although reluctant to do so, and used them as tools for his plan for humanity.

Skills and Abilities
As the god of creation, Sickle was able to create an entire universe along with its laws and inhabitants. The extent of his power allowed him to even recreate the gods in new, mortal forms, as he had done when creating the Third Period. While in the Second Period, the god of creation maintained a human form with an always severe expression, even when not angry. In the Third Period, Sickle assumed the form of a bat with wings that had the unique shape of scythe blades.

Regardless of his form, Sickle maintained immortality and, when not restricting himself, omnipotence. As a bat, Sickle was capable of flying for days without getting tired and could quickly travel across the Bolganio continent to observe anywhere in the world. Aside from his godly powers, Sickle had a talent for farming and was careful when reaping the golden rice fields of the Heavenly Yard.

Character Connections
Held: A close friend and a fellow god. The god of creation got along well with Held and valued his contributions to the Periods, later modeling the Elphe race after Held's human appearance. Appreciating Held's wise sense of judgment, the creation deity trusted him to monitor Levia and Behemo in Bolganio; despite this, he occasionally argued with Held over his ideals for the Heavenly Yard and was curious about the other god's intentions for Michaela.

Levia: A fellow god. The god of creation originally trusted Levia and worked with her during the Second and Third Periods, turning her into a powerful mortal form to watch over Bolganio. After Levia began causing problems with her brother, he recognized the danger that they both faced and sent Held to monitor them. He showed a disregard for the god's feelings, neglecting her role as Master of the Hellish Yard and merging her with her hated brother.

Behemo: A fellow god. The god of creation originally trusted Behemo and worked with him during the Second and Third Periods, turning him into a powerful mortal form to watch over Bolganio. After Behemo began causing problems with his sister, he recognized the danger that they both faced and sent Held to monitor them. He showed a disregard for the god's feelings, merging him with his hated sister.

Elluka Clockworker: A woman the god of creation kept an eye on. Although acknowledging that she is a friend of Held, Sickle disapproved of how Elluka's broken his rule of time, enjoying an extended lifespan through unnatural means.

Irina Clockworker: Another woman the god of creation kept an eye on. Sickle deeply disapproved of the pain and suffering Irina brought to others, considering her an incarnation of malice, and felt she deserved close surveillance.

Banica Conchita: A woman whom the god of creation had observed. He found Banica's actions and transformation into a demon deplorable; he believed that she was incapable of understanding the situation, particularly in becoming the Master of the Graveyard, and that she didn't comprehend what consequences there could be.

Irregular: A boy the god of creation gave attention to. Becoming fond of Allen Avadonia and overseeing his transformation into Irregular, the god of creation found him an oddity that was beyond the scope of his own creation. Due to this regard, he would often allow Allen to interfere in the world despite his own rules against doing so.

Conceptualization and Origin

 * Sickle's name and bat incarnation are taken from mothy's logo, comprised of two crossed sickles that vaguely resemble the form of a bat.
 * The god may be inspired by Cronus, the leader of the Titans in Greek mythology; he was often portrayed as wielding a sickle or scythe.
 * The Master of the Heavenly Yard's relation to the Heavenly Yard is connected to the event of Heaven in Hieronymus Bosch's The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things.

Curiosities

 * Although having created the "Third Period," it is unknown if Sickle was responsible for the creation of the First and Second Period.
 * In Heavenly Yard, Held addresses the god as お主 (onushi), a polite form of "you" used to address one's equals or inferiors; it contains the Japanese character 主 (nushi) used for the four "Masters".

Appearances

 * Waltz of Evil: The Deadly Sins of Evil Guidebook
 * Heavenly Yard (first appearance)
 * Quartets of Evil (non-canon appearance)
 * The Muzzle of Nemesis (album)