"What happened, Rias?"
The delivery of the question is calm and direct. Sona had to be informed of the events of today despite the emotional toll her friend is going through.
Currently, the two are located within the Occult Research Club room in order to find out exactly what happened. More importantly, who the individual was that managed to kill off one of the leaders of the Grigori, Kokabiel.
"I don't know," the Gremory heiress murmurs.
Rias looks off to the side to avoid Sona's calculating gaze. Her mood has taken a drastic toll considering certain circumstances.
After the individual known as 'Avenger' attacked Koneko, the young, snow-haired Nekomata had gone into a state of shock as her body began to convulse due to a foreign substance. Her eyes became bloodshot. She writhed in pain as she clawed at her throat for a single gasp of air.
It was this sight that sent Rias into a panic. Fear quickly grew to be the dominating instinct. She rushed to her Rook's side – paying no attention to Avenger as he jumped back and disappeared once more. Taking Koneko into her arms, Rias pleaded for Asia, the user of the Sacred Gear, Twilight Healing.
The former nun quickly makes her way over towards her King and lays her hands over the young Nekomata as she activates her healing abilities. A green aura washes over a suffering Koneko. However, no matter how long Asia continues to heal her, the healing effects are unnoticeable. All the while, an injured Issei continues to bleed out.
"For a moment, it seemed that the fight was over after Kokabiel was taken out. I don't know where he came from, I don't know who he is, and I don't know what he wants."
The candles lighting the room flicker. Once more, silence overtakes the room as Sona attempts to discern anything from her friend's demeanor.
"This 'Avenger' managed to take out Kokabiel, right? All by himself?"
"Yes. He didn't appear to have too much difficulty in doing so."
Sona takes a moment to ponder on the situation. Making a rushed decision this early on could be a fatal mistake. However, a threat with the power to take down one of the leaders of the Grigori singlehandedly is not something that can be left alone. Considering the fact, for most of the fight, it took the combined efforts of everyone present to even damage Kokabiel speaks volumes about the difference in strength between them and Avenger.
"It appears that you'll have to inform your brother and I, my sister. The fact that one of the leaders of the Grigori attempted to proclaim war has to be known. However, it appears that we will not be able to handle this current situation by ourselves. Whoever Avenger is, he is leagues ahead of us."
Rias looks up. Her eyes widen, shocked by the statement, as she glares at Sona.
"Do you expect us to do nothing? We were just attacked; my peerage was attacked! If he's out there, then he has to pay for what he did!"
The Sitri heiress adjusts her glasses before meeting her friend's gaze.
"There's nothing we can do, Rias. I understand that you're hurting right now – I would be too. The best thing to do now is to wait until we are better prepared to handle this situation."
"We can still fight! If we all went at him together then it would be over before he realized it! If we go after him now it won't be too late! We can-"
"Rias!" Sona yells out her name. "There's nothing that can be done about Koneko's death."
The Gremory heiress freezes. She knew that it was impossible to undo that truth. Still, she had to do something. There had to be a way.
"For now, we have to stay close together. If Avenger thinks about attacking us again, it would be best for the fight to be on our own territory. We can't let him lead us on into his own trap."
"Then-"
The room is briefly invaded by a scarlet light through the windows which alerts the two Devils. They frantically look around for the source until several moments later, a monstrous roar of thunder passes through the sky.
"What… was that?" Rias asks.
Sona makes her way towards the window – being careful not to make too much noise. She gingerly pushes the curtains out of the way only to be met with a streak of crimson light that breaks through the sky; as if a star was soaring through the heavens.
A shadowy figure runs through the forest surrounding Kuoh. It leaps onto the branches of the tree as it attempts to gain a higher vantage point. The rustling of leaves is the only indication of its presence. Once it finds a suitable location, it stops.
Just above the tree line, the figure looks over the city. A blast of wind explodes forth from the being and washes away the aura of darkness surrounding it – revealing Avenger. An expression of boredom is spread across his face.
"It's a shame that the day is about to end." Avenger glances over his shoulder. "Wouldn't you agree?"
A young man wearing a black high-collared leather jacket appears behind Avenger, slightly floating above the treetop. He has a fair complexion with a head of silver. Likewise, his demeanor is much of the same as Avenger's.
The man doesn't answer.
Avenger raises an eyebrow as he sniffs the air. He thinks back to only moments ago when he encountered the Gremory peerage. The scent of the individual behind him is reminiscent of something strong.
"Say, you remind me a lot of that one guy back there. Don't think it would be too much to ask for a name, now would it?"
"So, you're the one that managed to defeat that old crow?" The White Dragon Emperor cuts off Avenger as he stares him up and down. "Hmph, I expected something more. Still, if you managed that, then you should be competent to a certain degree."
A white aura encompasses Vali. A bright flash of light explodes from him to reveal an armor that has the characteristics of a dragon. Wings spread out from his back with the webbing being replaced with a constant stream of blue energy. Throughout there are gems of the same color placed periodically along the armor.
"Heh. I guess this is the only real way for the two of us to hold a conversation. I'll just have to oblige."
Avenger casually reaches for another card from the folds of his clothing.
Class Card Include: Lancer
In place of the card, a deadly crimson spear takes hold of Avenger's grasp. He takes an offensive stance and readies the weapon with both hands. His demeanor changes into that of a starving animal.
The forest goes silent.
An aura of killing intent permeates in the air. It is suffocating.
"Why don't I show you how to kill a god with a single perfect strike from this spear?"
A/N: An incredibly short chapter this time around. I've decided that I don't want to limit myself with reaching a certain word count because I want this story to be relaxing to write. Hopefully, this doesn't bother too many of you.
As for this chapter, nothing much happened except for that tease at the end. That's simply tying up loose ends. If you're looking for more blood, wait for next chapter. Then, it's a simple matter of building up to the main cast of characters.
Oh, and sorry, guys. Issei's still alive. I'm going to have him suffer for a bit longer.
Reviews
jmspikey: Throughout the show, I have a hard time believing that Issei has struggled to get to where he is. Yes, he's had to fight several antagonists but it's usually through some outside force. I just want to have a scenario where nothing can come in the last minute and save the day.
: Koneko was just a little taste of what's to come. Eventually, this whole conflict will lead to something outside of the Gremory peerage.
Klim770: Avenger just seems like the best option to use for the flow of this story. I'm going to have fun writing for him.
Dxhologram: Everything seems handed to the main characters in DxD and it just infuriates me. Which is why the idea for this story is to slowly take away everything from them.
