AN: As you guys may have figured out, I'm doing this story full time now. And it will not be a series of one-shots. That's right, it's gonna be awesome.
I know last chapter was a huge cliffhanger, so here's the continuation...
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Ch 4: Anticipation
"Ophis!" Issei exclaimed in surprise, turning around to see the a young, petite girl dressed in gothic lolita clothes. Her long black hair and grey eyes gave the perfect indication of her personality, which Issei knew to be plain. "What the hell are you doing here?"
"Curious." She tilted her head at him, trying to figure out something that was bothering her. "I, felt your energy signature," she answered simply, pausing after 'I'. "It was different. Because you have a new look?"
He rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, about that." They may have been on friendly terms, but he wasn't going to start spilling his guts to her. "I'm not the only one, it seems. Last time we met, you were an old dude. I gotta say, as creepy as it is, this suits you better." One expected old men to be wise and easily amused, if somewhat cranky, but Ophis had completely shattered that stereotype. It was strange for him, talking to a quiet, straightforward man who was in actuality many times stronger than Ddraig was at his peak. Of course, he had always told her that she should create a dragon form for herself, since it was only fitting of the one known as the Infinite Dragon God.
"You are out of the sacred gear." It wasn't in any way a question. She had known that fully well from the start. Issei knew he wasn't interesting enough for her to want to visit all of his hosts in order to talk to him. He was also entirely aware that she didn't converse solely for pleasure. In fact, he really had no idea if she felt pleasure in the typical sense.
"I suppose I am." With a sigh, he took a breath. Better rip the bandage off now and get this over with. "You want me to help fight Great Red?"
She made no signs of surprise that he knew that. Instead, she gave him a creepy almost-smile. "All I desire is silence." She glanced past him, as if looking through reality. "For that, I will return to the dimensional gap."
"Trust me... if there's anything I get, it's that sometimes you just want to be left alone." Seriously, he had lived for eternity, host after host stealing his power from the sacred gear. Before then, he was constantly bothered by dragons challenging him and beings like God deciding he was a threat. Then there was Albion. Jeez, he didn't even know where to start about the Vanishing Dragon. "But I can't help you. I'm just some kid going to high school."
Did she seem amused? No, it was clearly a trick of the light. "You are a devil now, Ddaig. How interesting. I, want you to join my faction."
Oh hell no. She had some crazy scheme going, didn't she? "Look, I spent years getting out of that thing and now I get stuck as a devil. I just want this crazy stuff to be over with so I can settle down and find a mate, so no, I'm not joining your faction."
"A mate is what you want? I, can supply that." It took no less than two seconds before Issei began eating his words. Ophis removed her jacket then began pulling down her skirt. He felt his face heating up. W-was she stripping in this little girl form?
He couldn't form words as she reached down and raised her shirt over her head. She was left in a white bra and panties. 'For a young girl, she has rather decent breasts,' he thought idly, smacking himself in his head. He couldn't believe this was happening, gaping at the scene that was unfolding right in front of his eyes. It didn't stop there, however.
As she tugged at her bra, Issei's senses came back. "Ahhh! Ophis-chan, it's fine. Really! You don't need to strip right now!" He wasn't entirely certain why she was so eager to have sex, but it was likely for her own goals in some twisted manner. Perhaps she thought it would get in into her faction, or maybe she wanted to raise a kid to defeat Great Red. He would never understand how her mind worked.
She frowned. "Am I, an unworthy mate?"
"No, nothing like that," Issei sighed, before grinning. She always was so naive. Conversations like this really brought him back. "This isn't something people do in public, you know. And, I was going to focus on getting back to my former strength before considering this."
"Oh." She sounded almost disappointed. "If I gave you power, would you then?"
"Heh," Issei chuckled. "It's not all about that. The work I put in to get back to how I was, that's what matters. I've learned a couple things over the last few centuries, and one is that borrowed strength never ends well." He thought for a moment. "I'm not just Ddraig anymore, Ophis-chan. I'm Issei, I'm a devil servant, and I've got a few things to figure out first before doing anything this crazy."
"That is acceptable. I shall give you time. You do not wish to join the Khaos Brigade?"
'Khaos Brigade?' That was a fairly unusual name for a faction of Ophis's. Last time she called it 'Kill Baka-Red,' but that one was kind of a flop. "Not unless you've got anything to convince me. I'd rather not go joining other factions when I've got a devil I'm supposed to be a servant of." He wouldn't do that to Rias. An asshole of a king maybe, but probably not someone as kind (and hot) as Rias.
"Your rival."
What did this have to do with that bastard? "Albion? How's he a reason I should help you get rid of Great Red?"
Ophis smiled, scaring the pants off of Issei. "His host has joined."
Issei leaned closer. "And who is this host? I'm gonna meet him and gloat in the White One's face."
"Their name, is Vali."
He smirked eagerly. Finally, the sweet taste of victory will be his. All he needed was some time to get his body in better condition. "Get him to meet me here in a week, and we'll talk about the Khaos Brigade." Now that he knew he could be on the same team as his rival, constantly asserting his superiority, this offer grew a whole lot more enticing. Of course, he still had to consider the fact that he'd have to put up with Albion all the time, but maybe this generation's host wouldn't be so bad.
Heh, this second chance was kicking ass already.
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"Where were you?"
On second thought, it had been a mistake to text Rias the moment he was done with his attempt at scoring a contract. She had to show just how worried she was in front of the entire peerage. She, a high-class devil, was worried about him, a heavenly dragon... how absurd! Of course, she knew he wasn't back to full strength, and he had told her that some people out there would take advantage of that for his power, but come on! It wasn't like he was helpless or clueless. Most of the time on the latter, at least. He didn't think he was that clueless.
Kiba, the Casanova that he was, seemed endlessly amused at their president's worry and Issei's nigh offended reaction. Issei glared at him. "What're you looking at?" He mumbled inaudibly under his breath.
"What was that?"
Ah! He forgot that devils had enhanced hearing too! "Nothing!"
Akeno, on the other hand, seemed to have expected this. "Buchou, don't you think you should tone it down? He is a dragon."
Rias realized her fault, letting out a small breath and smiling. "Yes, that's right." She stood from her desk, walking more towards the center of the room where everyone else was. "However, it's only the typical action of a master to worry over their servants." Well, he did admit to her earlier that he was way weaker than he used to be.
"Speaking of," Kiba redirected, "how did your first summoning go?"
"Horrible," Issei deadpanned, the memory of the huge failure making him hold his head in his hands.
"Ah well," the knight shrugged off, not the least bit perturbed. "I'm sure you'll improve with time." See, this guy was just too polite to be real!
"It wasn't my fault," Issei argued. "The guy only wanted Koneko-chan." Said cat-girl didn't even seem sympathetic at all. How cruel.
Rias hummed. "In hindsight, it was a rather poor decision to give you that client specifically. You will be able to make contracts in the future, that I am certain of." She really was something, to have such faith in her servants.
'I guess I'd be a good choice to have faith in, considering that I'm the Red Dragon Emperor. Still, I utterly failed this small, simple task.' Issei hung his head. "I'll hand out flyers, then."
The club president waved her hand. "No, there's no need. In a few weeks when there is a full moon we can get you a familiar to do that for you. Dragons value their pride, right?"
"Thank you, Buchou. I'm glad you're the one that revived me, not some other devil. If it is alright with you, I'd like to get home now. My parents are probably debating on whether I died or not..."
"Ah yes, they're quite the interesting bunch aren't they." She crossed her arms. "Did you really have to tell them everything?"
Issei didn't waver at all, replying resolutely, "yes, I did." He had no regrets about that. If anyone could figure out who or what he was, it'd be the two who've always been there for him. His gaze softened, knowing she wasn't trying to insult them, merely pointing out that it was bad practice to spill the supernatural beans to an average human. "Tomorrow, Buchou, I'll prove that I can get that contract."
With those words, the dragon left.
The remaining peerage members noticed the thick, ominous silence that hung in the air after Issei's abrupt declaration. Rias took a seat on the couch, still looking towards the door. 'How strange.' Issei Hyoudou was a tough guy to pin down. While he could act like a normal teen most of the time, there were moments when it was clear that he was an ancient, powerful dragon with his own agenda. Perhaps she was allowing too much freedom for her new servant? After everything was said and done, he still technically belonged to her, regardless of the fact he had been and still was a heavenly dragon.
"No," she muttered out loud, breaking the silence and drawing the attention of her peerage. "Dragons are free spirited, and I can only expect Issei to be the same."
"Talking to yourself, Buchou?" Akeno chuckled.
Rias smiled. "I suppose I am. You could say I'm excited about the future." She somewhat selfishly knew that he would become an incredibly valuable piece, one that could solve a problem that had plagued her for most of her life. More than that, though, he would become a friend and a member of her family, and she couldn't wait for that to happen.
"You like him, don't you?" The queen inferred. "Well then, be prepared for some competition."
Koneko sighed. "...Great..."
The blond prince noticed her quiet, sarcastic words while the two busty third years had an intense stare-off. "Yep, Issei-san is going to have his hands full. Even a dragon wouldn't want to get stuck between those two."
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Sleep was for chumps. As a devil, the night was his domain. As a dragon, his stamina and energy were through the roof. Why would he waste his peak hours with something as lame as sleep when he had a rival somewhere out there that he needed to obliterate? Screw school tomorrow, there was nothing better than the feeling of training for hours and hours. He had long since tossed his sweat-covered shirt away, revealing his well-toned abs and body. In the past, he had never lazy with his workouts. Though the draconic energy leaking into his body for years had helped immensely with his strength, he had taken it upon himself to stay in top shape. Now, though, he could go further.
Gripping the top of his door, he pulled himself up, muscles shaking. He was only a couple hundred pull-ups in, there was no reason to give up now! After doing push ups for hours and squats using whatever weight he could find, this was all he could come up with. Sure, his body may have felt like it was burning from the inside out, and he knew he would pass out eventually, but he had to do this. The more he built up his physical prowess, the more boosts he could take. As ridiculous as this training sounded, it was nothing compared to his life as Ddraig when he could, according to himself, destroy the world many times over without boosting much. Dragons valued pure strength far more than any other species, and it showed.
So he hung there, shaking, trying to get another one in. Then, all the sudden, the door swung mom came face-to-chest with his half-naked body.
"AHHHH!" Issei screamed, crashing unceremoniously onto the floor with a loud thump.
"Issei Hyoudou!" His mom admonished. "What are you doing?"
"Well," he rubbed the back of his guiltily. He knew she wouldn't approve of this. "I was training all night."
She placed her hands on her hips. "It's a school night, Issei, and I expect you to stay awake through all of your classes. I don't care if you're a dragon or not, you better not be ruining your education. Is that clear!?"
Man, was she always this scary? "O-of course."
"Okaa-chan, what's going on?" Great, now his father was going to rip on him too. The glasses-wearing businessman arrived at the doorway, taking in the scene. "Oh, I know the signs perfectly. You're trying to impress some woman, aren't you."
"What, no!" Issei denied zealously.
He nudged his son's shoulder. "Not even that foreign redhead?"
"Y-you mean Buchou? No, absolutely not! I swear, it's just so I can beat my rival."
His mom sighed. "Oh, young love, how I remember those days."
Issei deadpanned internally. 'I'm older than you, you know.'
"Well, you better get to school," his father suggested. "You know how your mother feels about you arriving late."
The teen sighed and closed the door, wandering back into his room and diving face-first onto the bed. "And take a shower!" His mom added, shouting.
He was an essentially immortal, omnipotent dragon that was more powerful than most gods, and here he was, ordered around effortlessly by these two monsters of human beings. "Maybe I should've let Buchou deal with this," he considered randomly, burying his face in a pillow. One thing was for sure, he was not going to suffer through the humiliation of Albion meeting his family. Ever.
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That evening at the Occult Research Club everyone except Rias was out serving a client. Issei sighed, realizing that it was going to take a while to get the hang of this whole devil stuff. Pleasing other people hadn't ever made his list of top favorite things to do, and it certainly wasn't one of his main skills as a dragon. Unless they wanted to challenge him to a fight for their contract... that would rock. Alas, Rias knew no one who would summon a devil for that purpose.
'Kiba gets all the hot chicks. Akeno gets businessmen looking for relaxation. Koneko gets some freaky guys who want are interested in young, cute girls. And what do I get? Nothing!' What kind of person wanted to summon him when they could get the Casanova or a well-proportioned Akeno? Sure he was a dragon, but they wanted a devil. Maybe it was best not to focus on contracts for now; they weren't all there was in the life of a devil.
"Something on your mind, Issei-kun?"
Oh, right. Was he awkwardly thinking in the middle of a conversation? He wasn't that used to being expected to talk with people, considering his past. "Actually, yeah. How did you say devils gained power again?"
"Reincarnated devils generally focus on contracts," she replied, placing a hand on her chin as she thought. "Although it is a slow process, it builds up their natural reserves over time. Of course, training works as well."
"What about magic and stuff? Admittedly, despite the variety of hosts I've had, I don't know much about how that works." Most of his hosts were regular, run-of-the-mill humans who focused only on wielding his power. In retrospect, that was probably what caused most of them to go crazy and waste their life force in Juggernaut Drive when they had no other option.
Rias shook her head. "Over time, I expect that you will learn some things, but I didn't place the bishop in your body for a reason. Your physical strength is far more impressive." True enough, the bishop piece wouldn't affect his dragon abilities whatsoever. Boosting wasn't a magical skill, as strange as that seemed. It was a quality of his being.
"Then what piece did you use?"
She genuinely seemed surprised. "I thought you knew? No matter, I made you my rook, like Koneko. It enhances both offensive and defensive capabilities." That was awesome! Issei grinned. She could not have chosen a better fit, and that was based on a single look after Raynare had stabbed him. Not only was she observant, she was intelligent as well.
"What's got you so curious about powering up all the sudden? You've lived a long life and surely can appreciate that good things come with time."
That was a valid question. He wasn't sure how much Rias believed that, but it was something that he had learned over the years. "To be honest, I wasn't planning on telling you this. I found Albion and will fight his host in six days."
"Six days!" Rias exclaimed. "I refuse to let you do this."
"Oh come on, surely you can't be serious."
"I am serious," she answered immediately. Unsaid words hung in the air, silence engulfing the conversation. Rias let out a long breath before continuing. "I am aware that you aren't one to trust that I know what's best for you. Dragons are independent creatures, after all. But fighting Albion this early is a mistake. As it stands, you were able to defeat a low-class fallen angel at the cost of a completely shattered hand and a whole night of rehabilitation. I doubt the White Dragon Emperor would be such a simple enemy."
"Grrr." Issei fumed. "Are you saying I can't take him?"
Rias chuckled. "Not at all, Issei-kun. After so long, I understand that you're eager to fight for yourself. Something like this can't be rushed. You have amazing power, Ddraig, but you have to relearn how to contain it."
Her use of his other name caught him off guard. "I gave myself six days. That's plenty."
"It seems that you aren't backing down from this, then?" She questioned.
"Not a chance."
She smirked. "Well then, I suppose I have choice but to help you train."
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AN: I apologize so much for the short chapter. I wanted to extend it, I really did, but it just didn't fit properly and this was the best part to cut it off. As you can see, this is going to be quite different from canon. Next chapter will probably introduce Asia and we can hopefully move forward. Don't worry, Ophis isn't gone yet and she'll make a reappearance very soon!
What do you guys think about the changes I've made so far? Obviously, I'm edging towards Ophis in the harem, and this was just her introduction.
