Held Yggdra

"Us gods have been negligent in our endeavors."

- Held

Held Yggdra, regarded as the Tree of Held or the Millennium Tree, was one of the four gods of the Evillious universe. Incarnated as a tree during the Third Period, Held became the guardian of the forest in Elphegort. After witnessing the creation of the vessels of sin, he tasked Elluka Clockworker with collecting the vessels and monitored her progress throughout the centuries.

Early Life
"Before the third paradise was completed, sixty-two of the kin had lost their lives. The god of the earth grieved. He buried their souls in the center of the land. Soon there grew a great forest."

- The Third Period's creation reinterpreted by the Levin Bible

In Second Period, Earth, Held Yggdra became a prominent multi-disciplinary biologist, professor, at one point judge, and the head of a clinic and research institute with Levia and Rahab Barisol on staff. He also became known for developing the Swap Technique as a method of studying the occult. As the Second Period began to collapse due to HERs contaminating the world, Held and 71 other scientists boarded one of several spaceships intended to travel to inhabitable planets and repopulate them, theirs under the name Climb One. As they lost contact with all their fellow spaceships, the crew of the Climb One realized they were the last inhabitants of Earth and decided to create a new species in the image of earthlings.

After finding a new planet to inhabit, Held helped with creating the forests of the world and was used as a model for one of the races. During this process Seth Twiright, an HER who had secretly boarded the Climb One, instigated the deaths of 62 of the crew members and contaminated the new species to have a possibility of developing HER Syndrome; with Levia Barisol preserving the spirit data of the dead crewmembers, the grieving Held had them reincarnate into forest spirits to help watch over the new world.

Knowing that his fellows were also infected with HER Syndrome, Held and his colleague Hazuki rejected the idea of some of the earthlings reincarnating into the Third Period as gods to guide the new humans, and again rejected using the Hellish Yard to separate HERs from normal humans in the afterlife. In the ensuing fight over this the Climb One crashed, killing everyone aboard and leaving only their spirit data; as Levia and her brother Behemo planned to escape by transferring their spirits into the body of a dragon on the ship, Held helped Hazuki sabotage the plan. Sometime afterward, around the point when the new human race began, Held managed to move his spirit off the ship and into a Millennium Tree.

With Hazuki moving into the body of a bat, the two became "gods" of the world, Hazuki the sun god and Held an earth god. Held was additionally tasked with monitoring Levia and Behemo should they ever escape, with the Climb One in which they were trapped becoming the revered "Sin" ark of the new Magic Kingdom Levianta. Around this time, the gods agreed to hide the existence of a third colleague that became the moon goddess of the world. Although required not to directly involve himself in human affairs, Held over time became worshiped by the people of the nearby country of Heldogort, spawning a cult sect in the Levin religion.

The Quest
"If you say not to interfere with humans, what would you call what you're doing?" "Elluka... I have never directly had any involvement with the 'Vessels of Deadly Sin'. It was specifically because I couldn't get involved that I asked you, a 'human', to take care of it."

- Elluka and Held

Following the Levianta Catastrophe in EC 013, Held noticed that fragments of the dragon Levia-Behemo had fallen into the forest and fused with the twins Hänsel and Gretel, turning them into deteriorating copies of the dragon. In EC 014, Held learned that the twins had unleashed into the world seven vessels of sin, using mainly the souls of former earthlings that had been reincarnated as demons. Meanwhile during the catastrophe, Levia and Behemo had also been reincarnated into the body of Elluka Chirclatia and, with Levia as the dominant soul, become the sorceress Elluka Clockworker.

After meeting Elluka Clockworker himself, Held realized that Levia's reincarnation caused her to lose all of her memories of her former life, save for knowing that they were once friends. He thus went along with the ruse that "Elluka" had been resurrected after being murdered by her sister-in-law Irina Clockworker, causing the Levianta Catastrophe. In EC 015, he explained to his "old friend" what had transpired with Adam, Eve, and their foster children; then, to keep Elluka busy, he requested she collect and seal the vessels of sin before they could cause calamity for humans.

Not long after sending Elluka on this task, Held met the sorceress Irina Clockworker, who began to frequently visit him in her red cat form. Worried the mage would learn the truth and somehow reawaken Levia's memories if they met, the god remained silent about Irina's existence to Elluka. Some time after the Venomania Event of EC 137, Elluka came and described the event to Held, as well as how she had failed to acquire the vessels of sin owned by Duke Sateriasis Venomania and Count Karchess Crim. Held also learned Elluka had swapped bodies with Lukana Octo, granting her the Loop Octopus Clan's unique prophetic dream ability.

Centuries later, Elluka visited Held again in EC 325 and mentioned that one vessel, the Twin Blades of Levianta, had been located at the Levin church in Lucifenia, only to visit later and report that the vessels were fake. After Held calmly discussed her failure, he brought up with her how the magic kingdom had since been rebuilt, concerned that its new inhabitants would unearth the Sin. After that, he listened to Elluka explain how a new thief she captured, Platonic, looked exactly like Mikulia Greeonio of centuries previous, who in turn had looked like the Original Sinner Eve Moonlit.

They talked about the possible connections each woman had to the other; assured Mikulia and Platonic had no demonic presence in them, Held wrote it off as a coincidence. Elluka shortly after departed when Held caused her to remember she'd left Platonic without any food. Several hours later, Irina approached him under her "AB-CIR" persona. With her cat body, she began scratching Held's trunk and demanding Elluka's location, Elluka having stolen one of her subordinates.

As Irina was unwilling to kill him, Held pointing out that he could destroy her with his real self if she did, she continued scratching his trunk when he refused to answer her demands. Held refused as well to answer why he was so unwilling to let Elluka and Irina meet, even as Irina made clear she would approach Elluka one day in the future. After several minutes of weathering Irina's scratching, Held refused to divulge Elluka's location and she eventually left with her medium.

After Irina had left, Held summoned one of his forest spirits, Gumillia and instructed them to have the other spirits strengthen the barrier around the forest to prevent powerful magic users from entering--even if this also included Elluka. Struck with the idea to have Gumillia monitor Levia and Behemo after he was gone, Held also confided that one day they would need to leave the forest to protect Elluka from someone. Soon after, Held fell asleep. When the barrier around the forest lifted, Elluka returned to Held and described how she had lost the wine glass vessel of sin owned by Duke Banica Conchita to Platonic.

Reign of Evil
"I will lend you two of my spirits. One of them you should raise as your apprentice. But the other one will stay here, and I will have them search for the 'Vessel of Deadly Sin'."

- Held

During the latter half of the 5th century EC, Held learned from Elluka that she become the court mage for the Kingdom of Lucifenia after taking its side in a war. Around EC 492, Elluka visited the god and related that she had exorcised a demon from the Lucifenian Princess Riliane and sealed it in a hand mirror vessel of sin. She later returned in January of EC 499, having received a prophetic dream of Lucifenia's destruction, and asked him to let her reincarnate some of his forest spirits as humans, hoping to prevent the kingdom's end using them as her apprentices.

Questioning her, Held learned that Riliane had once again been possessed by a demon of sin and would likely bring calamity just like previous sin contractors before her. He also determined that, since this time the demon was more deeply rooted in the princess' soul, Elluka desired to use the Clockwork Secret Art, to Held's concern. The two also debated why Riliane was still possessed, Held suggesting that the mirror Elluka exorcised and sealed was only a piece, with the demon living in another part of the vessel somewhere else.

Held then asked the specifics of Elluka's premonition and she related that she saw had seen Princess Riliane being executed, armed people invading the royal palace, Lucifenia invading Elphegort, and Mariam Phutapie murdered, with the invasion of Elphegort being the purple dream of the four. Learning she intended to flee the country if she failed, he lectured her on her flighty nature and argued that the destruction of Lucifenia might benefit the world. As Elluka pointed out it was her duty to stop the vessels of sin, Held finally agreed to think her request over and fell asleep.

Held awoke later that month and learned that one of his spirits, Michaela, had left the forest during his slumber. Once Michaela finally returned, he furiously and tirelessly scolded the spirit for leaving when he had forbidden it. The next day, Michaela apologized for breaking his rules; after forgiving them, Held slipped into another slumber and awoke days later. By then, Michaela had witnessed a Netsuma named Clarith praying for him to give them a friend; as the forest spirit searched for a way to help the persecuted young woman, Held chastised them for becoming too involved in human affairs.

Their conversation was overheard by Elluka upon her arrival; after pointing out the irony of not involving himself in human affairs while still asking favors of her, she brought up her previous request for apprentices. She also stated that she had felt signs of a vessel of sin in Elphegort. Meditating on this and his coming mortal death, Held decided to set up Michaela and Gumillia as her apprentices; while Gumillia kept an eye on Levia and could reseal her if she ever regained her memories, Michaela could learn about humans in preparation for succeeding him as the Millennium Tree.

Somberly reflecting on his inaction as god, Held offered both spirits to Elluka and clarified that Gumillia could be her apprentice while Michaela looked for the vessel of sin in Elphegort. Making Elluka promise that the two would return to being spirits after three years, Held let her depart with Gumillia and Elluka for the reincarnation ritual. Having saved a copy of Michaela and Gumillia's memories in advance, he overwrote them onto the incarnated humans once the ritual was completed, hoping to keep Elluka in the dark about the sun god's rules for reincarnation.

The New Millennium Tree
"Is it here, Clarith?" "Yes, this should be her original home."

- Rin and Clarith while planting Michaela with Held

When the Millennium Tree Forest was burned in EC 500, Elluka's intervention protected Held and much of the forest from destruction. At the conclusion of The Green Hunting, Held was approached by Elluka and Gumillia, curious as to why Michaela's body had become a tree sapling. Explaining that his mortal form would soon perish, Held revealed his original plan for Michaela to succeed him; he afterwards learned that Gumillia had chosen to remain human and help Elluka. Not long after, he fell asleep again.

In EC 505, as Held contemplated his fate, he witnessed Clarith and Rin approach, pray, and plant Michaela's sapling in the ground. He then watched Rin and Clarith's conversation, before they fell to crying and praying before the sapling for the rest of the night. After Kyle Marlon was possessed and transformed by the Demon of Pride, Gumillia consulted Held on how to defeat Kyle and he told her to strike during the full moon, where hers and Kyle's magic would be its peak. During Kyle's battle with Gumillia and her companions two weeks later, Held convinced Michaela to sing to help subdue Kyle. Around the EC 530s, Held's earthly form perished and he passed on from the mortal realm, leaving Michaela with what he taught her.

In the Heavenly Yard
"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, you are plotting something as well, are you not?"

- Sickle and Held

Held later returned to the Second Period, which had been transformed into the Heavenly Yard, in his human form. While there, he discovered Black Box above the rice fields with Allen Avadonia inside. Later he met with Hazuki, who had adopted the name "Sickle", in the sun god's human form. After remarking on his habit of reaping rice in this world, and remarking on Sickle's mentality of letting everyone, even HERs, enter the Heavenly Yard, Sickle asked Held in turn about why he had left a successor in Michaela.

Held evaded the question by asking Sickle about his plans for Allen in the black box, told that Sickle was isolating him because he was "irregular" and outside his realm of creation. Once Sickle refused to elaborate further, Held dropped the matter and left. On January 30, EC 611, Held spotted Allen Avadonia heading toward the Gardens of Champ-Élysées, Behemo having returned to the Heavenly Yard and let the boy out of Black Box so he could use it.

After bringing Allen back to the black box, Held greeted Behemo after he exited and chastised him over his behavior, as well as his letting Allen out and using Sickle's box without permission. After Held defended his continued loyalty to Sickle, he ordered Allen returned into the black box. Before he was put back inside, Behemo conversed briefly with Allen and prepared to leave; Held stopped him, asking where he was going, and was told by Behemo that he was just going to look around the world for a while. Once his former pupil left, Held returned Allen to Black Box to continue his lessons.

Defying the End
"I am here... But, you could also say that I am not here. Due to the restricting regulations he established, I can only manifest my form on this ground without interfering. You are still able to hear only my voice, so I must be doing rather well."

- Held

After the destruction of the Third Period by Punishment in EC 998, Sickle met with Held and related his plans to have Allen meet the souls of previous vessel of sin owners to review history in preparation for restoring the fallen souls back to the Heavenly Yard. To help, Held manifested himself in the ground world in an incorporeal form alongside Michaela, greeting Allen when the boy arrived. In response to Allen's questions, he explained how he was incorporeal so as to abide by Sickle's rules of not interference, as well as explaining that even the forest they were in was an illusion with the real one destroyed. After conversing with Allen a little longer, he oversaw as the boy departed.

Legacy
"The mage Elluka has been asked by the guardian deity of the forest, Held, to go out on a journey... and to collect the seven vessels of sin. The characters are most confusing."

- Excerpt from Gammon Octo's writings

After Held's earthly demise and departure from the mortal plane, Michaela succeeded him as the new Millennium Tree, acting as the guardian of Millennium Tree Forest and mankind while being worshiped as Held's reincarnation. Centuries after his "death", Ma and Gammon Octo wrote several screenplays concerning Held and his interactions with Elluka and Michaela. The scripts were subsequently reviewed by the Master of the Court, considering Held's disappearance from the mortal world crucial to the theater's origins.

Personality and Traits
"It is a disgrace that the 'Vessels of Deadly Sin’ came from this forest. By all rights I must take responsibility for that. But as you can see, I cannot move from here. Even so I have always thought that I should assist you at least a little bit, instead of just relying on you to do it."

- Held to Elluka

Held was a meditative and reserved god. Highly observant, Held recognized everyone's strengths and flaws, and listened carefully to everything he was told before giving his own advice and insight into affairs. Cautious and careful to appraise a situation, Held often refrained from action and preferred to hesitate in view of the larger picture, although this made him stubborn and rare to budge on his own regulations. This was reflected most of all in his agreeing with Sickle's philosophy that the gods should remain uninvolved with human affairs. Despite this, he used indirect means to take responsibility for his actions and deviated from Sickle's will in appointing Michaela his successor.

Held's prudence, however, led to him having a slightly more stratified view than Sickle; blaming the mixing of good and evil to be the cause of the Second Period's demise, he believed heavily in segregation and a defined order. He therefore disapproved of HERs and evildoers being allowed to go to the Heavenly Yard with the innocents. Held similarly was strict and protective of his forest spirits, reluctant to let them go near humans; he was also disappointed with the dwindling of religious faith in most humans, although accepting of it due to his and others' mistakes as "gods."

Normally calm and slow, Held was rarely provoked to anger and had the speech patterns of an old man despite his true youthful appearance. He was similarly forgetful in his long life and could be incredibly lazy, sleeping for months at a time as a tree. He was similarly calm enough to withstand a myriad of verbal and physical abuses. Underneath his nature as a calm old man, Held could also be quite deceptive, concealing many things from Elluka despite their friendship, and he hid his worries about Elluka learning her true identity under a false concern for the Vessels of Sin.

Skills and Abilities
"That's because your transforming into an animal is from Held's power. Don’t confuse my abilities for that of a god."

- Elluka to Gumillia

As a god, Held wielded great magical power, able to create lands and seas as well as flora. Similarly, he had the capability to manipulate his kin's forms while they were in the forest, providing them the means to transform into physical animals and himself turning Michaela into a sapling. Conversely, in his true form he could eradicate a human being's soul should he will it. However, as a god he was unable to perform any action that could cause physical harm in the Third Period, only creating and extending life rather than destroying it. The god could also manipulate memories, including the difficult art of copying and reapplying them.

Because he was transformed into a tree by Sickle, Held was unable to move, being rooted to the ground, and his divine power was limited to the borders of his forest. Should his mortal form be destroyed, he could momentarily use his full power in the Third Period. Held in his tree form was naturally unable to defend himself, although having no nerve endings he was unable to feel pain and was capable of regenerating over time. Though lacking a proper face, he could contort his tree form to resemble an aged visage when engaging in conversation. Held was an impressive heavy sleeper as well, easily slipping into a comatose state for months at a time.

His abilities as a god reflected his skills as a scientist in the Second Period, being extremely intelligent and well versed in biology as well as mechanics, soul manipulation, and other fields. He was similarly a credited mediator, being appointed as a judge at one point in time, and was able to become a professor to instruct others in his craft.

Character Connections
Elluka Clockworker: An old friend of Held. Knowing her true nature as Levia, Held maintained a ruse with her about collecting the Seven Deadly Sins, as well as taking other measures, all out of concern she would learn her true identity. Despite this, he seemed to get along with her and would offer her advice through her "quest."

Michaela: One of Held's forest spirits and successor. Held mourned for Michaela's death as an earthling and was extremely protective of her as a spirit. At the same time, he saw her interest in humans as opportune for her to become his successor, maintaining the hope that she would be able to correct his past mistakes. Held considered her most dear to him among all the forest spirits.

Gumillia: One of Held's forest spirits. Held mourned for Gumillia's death as an earthling and was protective of her as a spirit, continuing to guide her even when she later became a human. He also recognized the value of Gumillia's serious and methodical nature as a means to monitor Elluka.

Hazuki: A fellow earthling and good friend of Held. The two were close from the Second Period; Held demonstrated great respect for the sun god and his rules for the world, agreeing with his policies of non-interference. Despite this, Held was at times frustrated by his friend's enigmatic and indiscriminately benevolent nature, and hid from him his true intentions concerning Michaela.

Levia: A fellow earthling. While Levia worked for Held in his clinic, he was a strict boss and seldom gave her vacation time. As crewmembers he and Levia were close, but they ultimately faced a division due to their opposing viewpoints and Levia's HER Syndrome. Held additionally thought of her as a bit of a hysterical woman at times.

Behemo: A fellow god. Held and Behemo were presumably close before the Third Period, but he saw Behemo's youth as being wasted on him and disapproved of his crossdressing habit.

Conceptualization and Origin

 * The Master of the Court's relation to the Court is connected to the event of Judgment in Hieronymus Bosch's The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things.
 * Held's last name, Yggdra, references the Yggdrasil, otherwise known as the "world tree" of Norse mythology.

Curiosities

 * Held easily falling asleep may be a loose connection to Elphegort, which is associated with the sin of Sloth.
 * It was purported that the members of the Zvezda family inherit Held's blood, though the claim was never validated.

Gallery
Songs=