Chapter 4

"Are you sure you won't be needing any help, Rias?"

Rias Gremory smiled faintly at the concern in her normally stoic friend's voice as she held her cellphone to her ear. "No, Sona. This is a problem my servants and I have gotten ourselves into. I won't drag you into it unnecessarily. I just wanted to let you know what we're up to."

"I see," Sona mused. "I was wondering why there were so many familiars in the city. Well, if that's how you feel, I'll respect your decision. But call for me if you need help. My peerage and I will be ready."

"Thank you," Rias said. "I'll talk to you later."

"Yes," Sona said. "Later."

The phone call ended, and Rias set her phone down on her desk. With a sigh, she leaned forward onto her elbows and pushed her face into her hands. It had been hours since they had retreated from the fallens' church, and it was morning now. Lack of sleep coupled with the stress and the early sunlight streaming through her windows was giving her a headache.

After they had left the church, Rias had taken her entire peerage back to her mansion. It was the most secure place in the entire city, protected by wards to prevent scrying and barriers to turn back any intruder. Most of her servants had taken to bed quickly. Akeno, whose wounds had been the worst, had nearly fallen asleep while still in her bloodied uniform. Even though Asia had healed her terrible wound, the act of enduring the blood loss and pain had drained the strength out of her.

Issei had been the last to sleep, talking with Asia briefly before also retiring for the night. They had not talked about anything in particular. Little things. They talked about what the date they had gone on before Asia had been taken by Raynare. They considered what they might do again in the future. Rias had been there, too, thinking that she might have time to better explain to the former nun what it meant to now be a devil. She hadn't had the right opportunity to cut in, however, and Asia was largely unresponsive to her attempts to broach on the subject.

Just as well, Rias thought. For a Christian, her current situation was quite possibly the most difficult to accept. It certainly would not happen overnight. In fact, it would be abnormal for it to. But Rias was patient. Whether it took a day or a year or more, she would be there to lend her support, until the time came when Asia Argento could fully embrace her new life.

Rias's thoughts began to drift, as sleep-deprived minds tend to. She thought again about the preparations she had laid out to hunt down the shapeshifter, wondering if it would be enough. She had spent all night charting out patrol paths through the city and gathering enough familiars from her family's manor to patrol those paths. There were over one hundred familiars roaming the city, each searching for the slightest trace of magic not related to the Gremory or Sitri clans.

Surely that must be enough. No, perhaps it was overkill. Rias wasn't sure, and her thoughts began to fade into a murky fog.

Rias leaned heavily against one hand, feeling her eyes close, until she heard the door open and someone clear their throat.

"Ahem."

Rias's eyes opened unwillingly. Akeno was standing at the doorway, wearing one of Rias's spare nightgowns (it was her favorite: a red satin negligee that fell down to the thighs), and had two cups of what smelled to be freshly brewed coffee in her hands. Judging from the slightly disheveled state of her hair, Rias judged that Akeno had only just woken up.

"You should sleep some more," Rias said, her voice slightly slurred.

Akeno arched an eyebrow and set one cup down in front of Rias. "I should sleep more?"

Rias shrugged and took a sip of the coffee. The warmth was heavenly.

"I was going to go to sleep," Rias said. "Soon."

"Uh-huh." Akeno looked at the paper strewn about the desk. They were all copies of the map of the city, with bright markers drawing out the routes Rias had planned for her familiars. "Right."

"How are you feeling, anyway?" Rias said, deciding to change the subject.

"Better," Akeno said. "There's not even a scar left behind."

"Good," Rias mused. "It seems that the famed Twilight Healing is as vaunted as its reputation claims it to be."

"It'll definitely be reassuring to have Asia's support from now on," Akeno nodded.

"Yes, especially for the Rating Games." Rias took another drink. "You have good timing. I wanted to ask you now that you're better, what did you think about that shapeshifter?"

"What did I think?" Akeno hummed, turning her cup around in her hands. "Well, at first I thought how amazing he was. I could keep striking him with lightning enough to have killed a stray devil a few times over, and he wouldn't die. It was so exciting. At the time, I was thinking that he was a toy I would never get tired of."

Rias's lips twitched.

"But I guess you want to know more what he's capable of than how much fun I was having," Akeno said, looking amused.

"I didn't realize that getting cut in half was fun," Rias replied. "I think your hobbies may have become even more perverse, Akeno."

"Yes, well," Akeno smiled ruefully, "all good things have to come to an end, right? Anyway, he's a strange one. He's strong and fast and hard. Tactically, you could think of him as a Queen-piece devil, with additional abilities. His shapeshifting is free and practical, which makes him unpredictable, and he also possesses power over the light."

"That's troubling news," Rias frowned.

"No, not really," Akeno said. "He's not very strong in that area. Only Issei and Asia would have any problems with his light, I think. Its his physical abilities and his shapeshifting to worry about."

"I see," Rias said. "Do you think he's some sort of angel?"

"I don't think so," Akeno said. "He's definitely not one of Grigori, and I can't imagine that one of Heaven's own could ever become like that."

"Peculiar. That's something to think about another time, I suppose." Rias yawned involuntarily. "Excuse me."

"You should go to sleep now," Akeno said. "I'll see to the others for you."

"Would you?" Rias nodded and dragged herself away from the desk and flopped onto her bed. "I'm grateful, Akeno," she mumbled even as her eyes closed again and her consciousness faded to dreams.

"Have a good rest," Akeno said as she took Rias's still mostly full cup and left the room.


Asia Argento had not slept that night. She laid in her new bed for hours, unable to feel even the slightest touch of exhaustion.

Her new room was extravagant. Her new master had given her the best guest room her mansion had to offer, second only in size to her own. It was a gesture of warm welcome. She was lying on a king-sized canopied bed covered in red velvet sheets. A painting hung on the wall behind it, illustrating a landscape of mountain, lake, and sky. It was surely made by a master artist, Asia thought whenever she looked at it, for it was too real and awesome to have been made by anyone less. An oriental rug covered the floor, a few feet past the foot of her bed, and set on top of it was an elegant tea table and two soft armchairs. To the side, there was a dresser with a large mirror girded in meticulously crafted silver and gold and supplies of makeup. Asia had never used makeup before and did not know how to, so she left them alone.

Her private bathroom, too, had been magnificent. It was so white, golden, and pristine, and the bathtub was large enough for her to swim small laps in once fully filled, had she known how to swim. And the closet – it was easily more than twice as large as the largest room she had ever lived in during her time as the holy maiden of the Catholic Church. It was empty now, but Rias Gremory had promised to fill it with her old clothes for her to choose from in the morning. For the time being, however, she had been given a spare nightgown to change into, her old dress having been in tatters. The truth was, though, she liked seeing the empty closet. It was nice to have at least one place that wasn't so overwhelmingly opulent.

Asia buried her face into one of her pillows. (Her bed had more pillows than she had ever used in her entire life.) She desperately wished she could sleep, for it would have been a blissful escape from the memories that haunted her.

She remembered it all in vivid detail. She remembered how angry Raynare had been for her attempted escape and how she had initially refused to return when found at that fateful park. She had been punished harshly for it, and though her Sacred Gear had wiped away the physical scars, the mental ones still remained.

"It is fitting that a former servant of God should die like the Son of God," Raynare had said to her with frightening calmness as she chained Asia to that steel cross.

Asia clasped her hands beneath her breasts, feeling her body press down on them into the soft mattress. She held that pose for a moment, and then released. She had learned her lesson after several sporadic and painful attempts throughout the long night.

She could no longer pray.

It was saddening and she refused to believe it at first, but eventually she accepted it as proof that she was now a devil in service of her new master, Rias Gremory. She could not pray to the God whom she had worshiped all her life, for every attempt sent debilitating pain lancing through her skull, as if someone was sinking a sword through her brain.

With a great sigh, Asia rolled over in her bed, just as someone knocked on the door. Asia quickly sat up and bade them enter.

Akeno Himejima walked in, dressed in a lovely nightgown that put even Asia to blush. These devils, she thought, were far more open about wearing such revealing dress in front of others than those of the Church had been.

"Good morning," said the older, black-haired devil. "I hope I didn't wake you too early."

"No, I was already awake." Asia made to stand up to greet the older girl properly, but was waved back down. Instead, Akeno sat down beside her.

"That's good," she smiled. "I wanted to thank you for saving me." She gestured diagonally across her chest.

"Oh, that's not a problem," Asia replied. "I'm just glad that you're okay." She frowned. "You are feeling better now, right? Does it still hurt at all?"

"I'm fine," Akeno laughed. "Perfect recovery. Twilight Healing is as miraculous as it's said to be. You should be proud to hold such a powerful Sacred Gear."

Asia gave her a smile that did not quite reach her eyes.

Ever since she had first realized her Sacred Gear, she had always been glad to possess it. The number of people she had helped with it were each reason enough that she would never have given up the power had she had the choice. But to be proud of it? She found that difficult. After all, it was for this that she had been excommunicated from the Church, when one day she had healed a devil like Akeno, and herself now, she supposed, without realizing what he was.

It was deemed a heresy. There were no regrets in her for what she did, but there was a grief, a gaping hole in her life that made such pride impossible.

Akeno noticed and nodded, resting a hand on her shoulder reassuringly. "It is difficult to accept what you have become, isn't it?"

"No," Asia replied hastily. "I'm grateful to Miss Rias for saving my life. And I..."

"It's all right," Akeno smiled. "You know, I used to be a priestess, too. Or at least, the daughter of one."

Asia's eyes widened. "Were you a Christian?"

"No," Akeno said. "My mother and I were of the Shinto faith. We worshiped the gods of Japan. It's not the same, but I understand a little of what you're feeling now, I think. It's hard to become what you've been taught to hate, right?"

Asia bit her lip, but after a long moment, slowly nodded.

"Would you like to talk about it?" Akeno asked.

For another long moment, Asia said nothing, not out of hesitation, but to collect her thoughts. All the while, Akeno waited patiently for her to begin.

"I'm just... confused," Asia said. "You're right. I was always taught that devils are all evil, every single one of them. But then I met Issei, and then Miss Rias, and now you, Miss Akeno. Issei is my friend. He showed me around town and tried to save me from Miss Raynare. Miss Rias brought me back to life. And I think only a nice person would be willing to sit down and listen like you are, Miss Akeno. It feels wrong to be anything but grateful, for everything."

"But..." Akeno prompted gently.

"But I still can't help it," Asia sighed. "I'm happy I'm alive, and I'm so thankful that I don't think I'll ever be able to repay my debt to Miss Rias, yet I'm also so unsure of what I've become, and maybe even a little ashamed." Asia wrapped her arms around her head. "It's all so contradictory. I'm sorry. I don't really understand it myself."

"That's okay," Akeno said. "It's actually quite clear what you're trying to say. You're having a hard time reconciling everything you learned in your previous life with the state of your new one."

"Yes," Asia nodded glumly. "Please don't tell Miss Rias about that. I don't want her to get mad for wasting an Evil Piece on me. That's supposed to be very valuable for devils, right?"

"It is," Akeno said. "But you don't need to worry about Rias. She wouldn't get mad over something like that." Akeno chuckled. "It takes a lot more than that to upset her."

Asia smiled. "You must be very good friends with her."

"I tease her constantly," Akeno grinned. Then it dipped back down into a empathetic smile. "Asia. You should try going to the Underworld."

"Why?"

"Because the image you probably have of our kind, whatever the Church has taught you, is probably outdated," Akeno answered. "We, or at least most of us, aren't the great evil that the Church says we are, not for a couple centuries now. We're all just people, too."

Asia frowned. "I never said you weren't."

"But somewhere in your heart, you were thinking of us as some 'other,' weren't you?"

The frown creased further, and Asia nodded once.

"How do I go to the Underworld?" she asked.

"Rias can take you," Akeno said. "Once this is all over and we've returned to our daily lives, I'll ask her to take you for a visit."

"I would appreciate that," Asia smiled. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Akeno replied. She stood up. "I'm going to go check on the others and get some breakfast made. Do you have any requests?"

Asia shook her head. "No, I'm all right," she said. "I don't need breakfast."

"You sure?" Akeno said. "If you're refusing because you think it's a bother, don't."

"It's not that," Asia said. "I promise."

"Well, let me know if you change your mind, then," Akeno said before leaving the room.

Asia waited until the door was closed before putting a hand to her stomach. How strange it was, she thought. It had been hours since she had last eaten, and yet, she wasn't feeling hungry at all.


In an alley hidden away from the gloom of the early dawn, Alex Mercer hid from sight. He wore the face of a homeless man, with a shaggy grey beard, a ragged brown jacket so full of holes it did nothing to keep out the wind, and pants and shoes in equal disrepair. He watched from the corner of his eye as a small bird flitted through the air, chirping its song. It perched on a nearby streetlight, staring at him with beady black eyes, before moving on.

Alex grunted and raised the collar of his jacket closer to his face. This was the seventh familiar he had seen in the past two hours alone. Rias Gremory was making a truly concerted effort to find him. Fortunately, it didn't seem like her familiars could see through his disguise.

"Damn," Alex sighed. If only he had been a little faster, he and Asia could have already been boarding a plane destined for New York. In another day, they would have been in Manhattan, and Asia could have restored his sister to consciousness.

But that ship had already sailed. Plan A had sunk. It was time for plan B, a fact that rankled Alex, for it meant that he had to wait that much longer before Dana could be brought back from her coma. He bit back on that growing sense of irritation. The end was in sight. And what was a few more days or even weeks when compared to the months she had already laid as if in repose? For this, he could wait. For this, he could be patient.

Alex dipped his hand into his pocket and pulled out what he knew was going to be the key to his plan.

He smiled and turned deeper towards the alley.

He had already won.