Hey guys hope you like this chapter, personally I don't feel like it was my best but I couldn't feel satisfied no matter how many times I rewrote it so I just uploaded it, so I wouldn't keep you guys waiting. Next chapter I'll try doubly hard to make up for it.
***IMPORTANT***
Many people pointed out that the F rank is actually a normal humans abilities while G is subhuman, so by following that logic Issei would actually get weaker CON and LUK when including Archer and Lancer respectively. I agree that this is ridiculous and I'll admit that I was overzealous in nerfing Issei so that he wouldn't stomp everything yet. So I've changed it from everything in the Include being two ranks below the original to being just one (although I was tempted to leave the LCK rank the same). The stat sheet in the previous chapter has been updated if you want to look at that.
Question time:
serialkeller: You're right but desperation can make people do stupid things, remember he had already been in Sona's bad books before that.
Stoiche: You'll see.
Fatelover: By popular demand Scáthach will be added to the harem, I'm still a bit indecisive about Morrigan though. Your ideas for the triggers are close but will they be triggers for Include or Install? Who knows? As for Rider and Assassin…one hint per person.
Polar Wolfstar: Yes Scáthach design is based off the F/GO one, now if only they would tell me what her damned Noble Phantasms actually do so I can use them…seriously why would you give us their names but not tell us what they do yet. Ah well at least they've given us her basic stats.
Kinunatzs: Don't worry I am aware of how magic resistance works in Fate although I am hazy on how it works in DxD, could you give me a basic summary of it?
Akuma-Heika: You were right the effect was called Burst (I think), thanks for reminding me. As for Kiba, I thought so as well but when I double checked on the wiki before I wrote that chapter it said that he got it from his friend's souls. Rather dark isn't it? Finally I'm very impressed you picked that up about Gae Bolg, I thought people wouldn't figure that out until much later.
cj1of4: Funny thing is, the idea for Ddraig being good at chess came from a hilarious fan art I saw awhile back with Ddraig doing that exact thing.
Slayer 10321: Yep he sure does, the Kyoto arc is going to be so much fun to write.
The trolling SnarkLord, YellowHellos: Thanks for the advice about Zelretch's fighting styles, they'll definitely help if I decide to make him actually fight.
ManlyMan: Assassin has been decided, there are hints in chapter one.
BlueXtreme: True Lancelot would have been better, but Berserker vs Heracles was one of the two fights that inspired the idea for this story. So there was really no chance of it being anyone else, also is there anyone who hasn't figured out who he is yet?
eternaldestiny . deathsquad: When he Includes two cards at once the personal skills do stack but his stats don't double. Instead, they simply become whichever is higher of the two Include stats, I'll put Issei's stats at the end of the chapter for you.
Guest: Well considering who Beserker and Archer are…yes the Greeks will be in this story but they will be added later, I'd tell you when but that'd be a massive spoiler.
"Hey Issei did you hear?!" exclaimed Motohama, eagerly.
Issei just groaned as he pushed his head up from the table and stared at the two perverts crowding around his seat, "hear what Motohama-san?" he replied with a yawn.
"We're getting two new transfer students in our class today, I bet they're cute girls," answered Matsuda, excitedly.
The teen just shook his head at the two perverts as a smile spread along his face, "oh please when are we ever that lucky?"
"Let us dream Issei!" cried the Perverted Duo, causing him to laugh and reflect on how the two were starting to grow on him.
After proclaiming him to be a 'Saint of the Oppai' the two perverts had rapidly become permanent fixtures in his school life, and Issei was surprised to find that he didn't mind. It was probably because after a couple of days of having his whole world go into chaos, the normal perverted antics of these two were rapidly becoming his only stability he had left.
Plus his reputation didn't even matter anymore thanks to that damn pretty boy Kiba, so he didn't need to worry about the consequences associating with them. In fact, he could even consider the two perverts to be his only friends in the whole school at this point.
[That's kind of sad partner.]
'Shut it Ddraig, it's partially your fault I'm in this situation anyway,' he grumbled before turning back to the present as he realized the two perverts were staring at him.
"So Issei, we heard you were accepted into the Occult Research Club," said Motohama with a huge grin.
Issei just nodded slowly, "yeah that's right. Why do you ask?"
"We were wondering…" started Matsuda.
"…if you could get us a date with them," finished Motohama with a hopeful smile.
Issei just looked the two of them and sighed, "Alright I'll try but no promises guys, who knows they might have some friends who're looking for a date."
"Issei Hyoudou, you are truly a Saint!" cried the two of them as they choked Issei in a hug, anime tears streaming down their faces.
"Guys…can't…breathe," he choked out before gasping for air as the two let go once they heard the sound of the door opening and closing.
"Alright class, take your seats, homeroom is about to start," ordered their teacher as he walked in and approached his desk.
Issei just waved to his new friends as they left for their seats and zoned out as he began staring out the window, not noticing the sound of the door opening again nor the two figures that walked in. The teen yawned tiredly and began to rest his head on the desk as a combination of stress and exhaustion exacted their toll on him.
"Issei Hyoudou wake up!" yelled the teacher, snapping him from his pleasant daze.
Groaning Issei looked up at the teacher and blinked in confusion as he saw two, oddly familiar looking, girls standing next to the staff. They were both clearly foreigners, likely of European descent from their looks. Each of them gave off an otherworldly beauty that didn't just catch the eye, but demanded that others stand up and take notice of it.
One of them had glossy black eyes and long ebony hair that was braided into a large ponytail, extending down to her waist as well as black fingerless gloves and long black stockings to go with her Kuoh uniform, what caught his attention however was the crow feather resting in her hair. Then for a brief moment, the girl's image changed to that of a woman clad in black with an Ebony spear in her hand and standing in a bloody field with what seemed like an army of spectral figures behind her. The moment passed quickly however and Issei suppressed a shudder as he focused on the other transfer student.
Unlike her counterpart, she didn't have black hair but instead a shade of purple with hints of red appearing when seen in the light. She didn't have a braided ponytail either but rather let her long hair flow freely down her back, stopping just short of her waist. The most eye-catching thing about this girl was her eyes however, as the deep crimson orbs darted around the room before fixing themselves on Issei.
As their eyes met Issei felt a massive headache and the girl before him changed, no longer was she wearing the Kuoh academy uniform. Instead, she was clad in purple skintight leather armour with metal shoulder pauldrons and holding a very familiar red spear in her hands. Snapping out of his vision Issei saw the purple girl grin at him while the black one just glared at the teen.
[Partner this is bad. Real bad.]
Issei just frowned as he heard Ddriag's worried voice, in the short time he'd known him, the dragon had never sounded like that before. 'What's the matter Ddraig?' he asked in concern.
[Those two are dangerous, really dangerous.]
'Why do you know them or something?' replied Issei as he felt the gaze of the two new students stay fixed on him.
[Not personally no, but someone else does. Just keep your head down and try not to attract their attention, and under no circumstances use the Lancer card, understood?]
Hearing the dragon's worried orders Issei nodded his head discreetly, only to jump as he heard the teacher slam his book on the table and glare at him. "Good to see you're finally paying attention Hyoudou-san, now get moving!" shouted the teacher.
"Moving sensei?" repeated Issei in confusion.
The teacher just glared at him before replaying, "Yes as I've been saying for the past five minutes, while trying to get your attention. The Student Council wants you to give our two new students a tour of the campus."
"What?!" he cried, jumping up from his chair.
[Well partner it is official, you have the worst luck I've ever seen. You're giving Cu Chulainn himself a run for his money.]
'That's not helping Ddraig,' thought Issei angrily as he felt the Lancer card beginning to radiate, was that fear? Suddenly Ddraig's warnings seemed a lot more credible and he had to keep a hand over the cardholder to hide the card's glow from view.
[Easy partner, just go along with it for now. No need to make yourself more suspicious then you already are.]
"Is there a problem Hyoudou-san?" replied the teacher with a glare.
Issei just shook his head and growled, "No sensei."
"Good, then get to work!" ordered the staff.
Issei just silently cursed his Lancer luck as he got up from his seat and walked over to the new students, attempting to ignore the increasing heat coming off the Lancer card as he got closer to them.
"Well let's go shall we?" asked Issei, trying to keep a worried expression off his face as the two girls nodded and followed him out the door.
"So is there any place you two want to check out first?" he asked, attempting to strike up a conversation with the two of them.
The black one just shrugged and turned to her companion whom adopted a thoughtful expression before a grin spread across her face, "yeah does this school have a dojo?"
Issei nodded cautiously, "yeah there is one that the Kendo club uses in the Gym."
"Take us there," she ordered, the grin still wide on her face.
[Partner I've got a bad feeling about this.]
'Think about it this way Ddraig at least it can't get any worse right? Right Ddraig? Ddraig?' replied Issei, only to get a worrying silence in response.
"Well this is it," announced Issei as the trio entered the Kendo dojo.
"Where is everyone else?" questioned the black girl, curiously.
"In class probably, most students shouldn't be out in the halls right now so the place is usually abandoned around this time," informed Issei, only to frown as the two girls shared a glance before the purple one approached him.
The girl just smiled sweetly and for some reason caused a fearful shiver to run down his spine while the Lancer card grew so hot, it felt like it was burning his leg. "Hey, Issei wasn't it? Let's have a spar!" she stated and began dragging him onto the sparring room floor.
'Wait what?! Oi Ddraig what's going on? Who are these people?' demanded Issei.
[It's not my place to say partner. Just go along with it, hopefully we're wrong about them.]
'We?' replied the teen in confusion, only to growl in frustration as he got silence in reply and brought his attention back to the present.
"Hold on, why do you want to fight me?" cried Issei as he struggled to break her vice like grip on his arm.
"Does it matter? A beautiful girl is asking you for a favour Issei, are you just going to ignore her?" replied the girl with a pout.
The teen just gave her a deadpanned expression, "considering what happened last time a pretty girl asked me for a favour and how my luck has been recently, yes."
The purple girl raised her eyebrows and turned to her black haired companion, "did you hear that sister? This pervert just started bullying me."
'Huh? They're sisters? But they look nothing alike,' wondered Issei in confusion as he turned to see the black haired girl give an evil smile.
"I sure did, I wonder how much trouble he'd get into if we told the staff about this?" replied the black haired girl.
"What but I didn't do anything?!" exclaimed the teen in shock.
"That's not what my sister and I saw, you were mean to me and made me cry on my first day," grinned the purple girl. "But maybe you could cheer me up slightly with a little spar and I might forget all about it."
Issei's mouth dropped open at this blatant manipulation as he just glanced between the two before the teen sighed in resignation, "fine but how will we spar? The Kendo club keep all their supplies locked up and I don't know any martial arts."
"That won't be a problem," replied the purple girl as she walked over to her companion and pulled out two long spears made completely out of wood.
The girl then threw one of them at Issei and walked to the other end of the sparing ground as she got into a familiar stance that Issei instantly recognized. That stance was the same used by the hero that resided in his most trusted card that was Cu Chulainn's stance.
"How do you know that stance?" he growled as a frown crossed his face.
"I could ask you the same thing," she countered with a grin.
Issei just glared at her before an idea popped into his head, 'that it! Zelretch did say that my Heroic Spirits came from an alternate reality so this must be my world's Cu Chulainn!'
"You know I never expected the 'Shield of Ulster' to be a female, what's next King Arthur?" laughed Issei, bringing surprised looks to the other two's faces.
"Although I do have to admit you aren't very ladylike. I guess I can see how people would mistake you for a male, wear some armour to hide your gender and no one would notice," mused the teen.
There was silence in the dojo as the two girls just stared at Issei in shock before the black haired one watching from the sidelines suddenly burst out laughing. "Did you hear that Cu Chulainn? Apparently, our friend here thinks you're lacking in feminine charm," she teased through bawling laughter.
[You know partner sometimes I really do wonder if you do this on purpose or not.]
Issei just growled at the dragon before turning back to the purple girl, only to freeze in fear at the sight that greeted him. The girl's eye was twitching as a chilling smile spread across her face, in fact it seemed like her body was covered in a demonic black aura that just radiated killing intent.
"You're such a funny boy aren't you? And here I was planning to go easy on you but now…I'm going to enjoy myself," she said as Issei felt the killing intent intensify around her.
'Oi Ddraig what do I do? She looks serious here,' panicked the teen as the sense of fear from the Lancer card grew exponentially.
[Well we had a good run partner, our time together may have been short but I just want you to know that it was the most fun I've had in years.]
'Ddraig? Ddraig! You useless dragon!' growled Issei but any further insults were interrupted as a wooden spear slammed into his stomach.
Collapsing to the ground Issei dropped his spear and tried regain his breath as the teen struggled back to his feet, picking up the wooden spear in the process. 'What just hit me?' he thought, groggily.
Looking back at the female 'Cu Chulainn' in front of him Issei frowned as he saw her still standing in the same place as she started with a smug look on her face. 'It couldn't be her could it? She hasn't moved from that spot since we started,' he reasoned with a frown…then he blinked.
When he opened his eyes again Issei saw the purple girl literally inches from his face as she raised her spear and slammed it into his gut. Winded Issei was brought to his knees and looked up to see his opponent back at in the same spot as she started in.
Issei struggled to his feet again, as he gripped his own spear with white knuckles and glared at the girl, "no human can move that fast, not even Cu Chulainn himself. Who are you, really?"
The girl just smiled, "if you can land a hit on me then I'll tell you."
[BOOST!]
Issei frowned as the Boosted Gear appeared on his arm and he gripped his spear tightly before charging the girl, only for a loud clack to echo throughout the room as the two spears collided together. As the two weapons met Issei was brought close to the girl's face and immediately wracked by a headache, as the Lancer card began glowing so brightly that the entire cardholder was covered in light.
The two fighters stood facing each other at opposite ends of the field, both of them holding a wooden spear in their hands. The first was a young looking blue haired man wearing blue leather armour, the other was an equally young looking woman clad in a similar purple leather armour.
Neither said a word to the other, neither needed to, the two's eager smiles on their faces speaking volumes. The blue clad man moved first as he rushed towards her at a ridiculous speed and the woman did the same. The two met with a clash of spears but it was clear that the woman was winning as she started pushing her opponent back until their faces were inches apart. In desperation the man head-butted the girl as their weapons locked themselves together before he was kicked in the gut and sent flying away.
"You've still got a lot to learn if you want to beat me Sétanta," laughed the woman with a fond smile.
"Oh really?" coughed Sétanta with a smirk as he pointed to his forehead.
Frowning the woman placed a hand over her face and her eyes widened as she felt the blood running down her skin, "well I'll be…you finally landed a hit on me."
The young Cu Chulainn just smiled as he struggled to his feet.
The images faded away from his mind and snapped Issei back into the present as their spears were still locked together, the girl showing no strain from holding back Issei's doubled strength. 'What was that?' he thought in confusion.
"So that's the legendary Longinus, Boosted Gear?" scoffed the girl, breaking the teen out of his thoughts. "And they think that can kill a God? That's ridiculous, I should know I've killed a few myself."
[BOOST!]
Issei just glared at her for insulting his partner and again went on the offensive, only for the girl to sigh in disappointment as she blocked the strike. As the two spears collided Issei tried to use his newly doubled strength to overpower her, only to see the girl not only hold her own but start to push him back.
"Cute, but it'll take more than that to overpower me," she grinned before as she used her strength to press her face inches from Issei's.
[BOOST!]
Issei tried to push her back but she was just too strong and in a move of desperation he head-butted her as the girl pressed her face in to him again. Eyes widening the girl staggered slightly while Issei just fell to the floor in pain, his head feeling like it had just hit a brick wall.
"That move…" muttered the girl as her crimson eyes bore into his "Looks like Morrigan and Lugh were telling the truth after all, you are connected to him."
"Your lack of faith in us is insulting," remarked the black haired girl watching from the sides with a frown.
"Morrigan? Lugh? What are you talking about?" questioned Issei, frowning at the mention of the Celtic Gods.
"It doesn't matter," replied the purple girl as she eyed him with an appraising look. "Oi use your card already, I'm getting bored her."
Issei just froze as a cold feeling spread across his body, "card? What are you talking about?"
The girl glared at him before she instantly appeared inches from Issei's face, "I mean the Lancer card that somehow connects you to Cu Chulainn."
[Well looks like the cats out of the bag, partner.]
'Ddraig what do I do?' panicked the teen as he sent his spear at the girl, only for her to catch it in one hand as she ripped it from his grip and snapped it in two.
[They already knew about it somehow, so there's no need to keep it a secret.]
Nodding Issei backed up from the girl, whom just watched with a calculating expression as he grabbed the glowing cardholder and brought the Lancer card. "Include Lancer!" he shouted and both the girl's eyes narrowed as they saw the spear in his hands.
"What do you think? You spent more time with that spear then even your student did," asked the black one curiously.
The purple girl nodded with a frown, "you were right Morrigan. That spear definitely has the same aura as Gae Bolg."
'Student?' thought Issei before his eyes widened as a look of fear and realization crossed his face, Cu Chulainn didn't have any pupils and only one person could ever call Cu Chulainn their student. To make matters worse she called her companion Morrigan, as much as he wanted to believe it was a coincidence, even Issei knew he was deluding himself.
[BOOST!]
"You're Scáthach, Cu Chulainn's teacher. What could you and the Goddess, Morrigan herself, want with a human like me," stated Issei as he gripped Gae Bolg tighter.
Scáthach just smiled, "we'll tell you but first I have a little test for you."
"Test?" repeated Issei.
The immortal witch held out a hand as if to grasp something and Issei saw a red light form in her hand before it extended to nearly her height in length. As the red light died down Issei gasped as he saw a familiar blood red spear in her hand, giving off an incredible amount of bloodlust.
Scáthach got into her stance, "let's see which is stronger, my Gae Bolg or yours."
The cursed spear of the Celts, descended from the Norse spear Gungnir, and Brionac, the spear of the Celtic God of the Sun, father of its most well-known wielder Cu Chulainn. The tragedy of Gae Bolg is one of the most infamous of all the Demonic weapons in the world, yet despite its infamy very few have ever seen the weapon as it is jealously guarded by the Celtic Sun God, Lugh. Those few who have seen it all report the same thing however, a blood red spear with an overwhelming amount of bloodlust emanating from the weapon.
Originally obtained by the immortal witch Scáthach through means that have been lost to time, she eventually gave the weapon to one of her most successful students, Cu Chulainn. The witch then asked her student to kill her but sadly; she had grown so powerful that she had been cursed to 'not be considered human.' Not even the cursed spear could end her existence and so Gae Bolg failed to kill the one person it was intended to.
Eventually Cu Chulainn left, taking Gae Bolg with him and forged his own legend as the 'Shield of Ulster' but in the process ending the lives of his close friend and son with the cursed spear. It is known for its ability to 'reverse the nature of causality' ensuring the opponent's heart is pierced, however what is not as well-known is its second ability, that was developed and mastered by Cu Chulainn. When thrown Gae Bolg supposedly…
"Kiba what are you doing?" questioned Rias, as she walked into clubroom.
Kiba immediately snapped out of his book and stood up to greet his King, "Buchou, I was just doing some more research on Demonic weapons. I thought there might be something to help us identify Issei's spear Akashi."
"Oh?" replied Rias with raised eyebrows. "Have you found anything?"
The knight frowned as he pushed the open book towards her, "I had a hunch that I wanted to follow up on and I think I found something, Buchou was there anything about Akashi that stood out to you?"
"The bloodlust. I've never felt anything like it before, even from other Demonic weapons," replied the Devil with a frown.
Kiba nodded and gestured to the book in front of his King, "exactly, no normal Demonic weapon would ever emit that much bloodlust. So I looked up famous Demonic spears that had a reputation for their bloodlust and I found something."
"Gae Bolg?" replied Rias with a shake of her head as she put the book down. "Kiba while I applaud your efforts to find answers about Akashi, I think you might be seeing connections that aren't really there."
"Buchou just hear me out," argued the knight. "Gae Bolg is described as a red Demonic spear that practically oozes bloodlust, Akashi matches this description exactly."
"It also is one of the most well-guarded artifacts of the Celtic Pantheon, trust me Kiba if it had been stolen we would have heard about it by now. In fact if Issei did have Gae Bolg don't you think the Celts would have already come here to reclaim it?" replied the red haired Devil.
Kiba frowned and his eyebrows furled in concentration as he considered these points, only to sigh as he couldn't fault the logic behind the arguments. 'Still why do I keep feeling like we're missing something important,' he thought as his frown deepened.
"Buchou did you have any luck finding out about any Sacred Gears that use cards," asked the knight, curiously.
Rias just shook her head, "we found a couple but none of them match what Issei showed us, if anything it seems more like your Sword Birth then any of them."
Kiba just froze before a smile spread across his face, "Buchou that's it! Issei's Sacred Gear must create copies of legendary weapons!"
The red headed Devil frowned, "Kiba putting aside the fact that if a Sacred Gear like that existed then we would have heard of it, this Sacred Gear would have had to of seen the originals in order to copy them."
The knight nodded eagerly, "I know Buchou that must be why he can only use one of the cards. He can only create the copy of Gae Bolg right now."
Rias sighed as she sat down in her seat, "so you think that Issei, an ordinary human, managed to see one of the most well-guarded weapons of the most reclusive of all the Pantheons?"
"Perhaps he did it unknowingly? Maybe he saw it by chance while visiting Ireland? Remember how the Church often takes Holy Swords around the world to find Holy Sword wielders, this situation could be similar," replied Kiba, causing a thoughtful look to cross Rias' face.
Seeing this the knight continued, "it would explain why we never heard of this Sacred Gear before, none of its other wielders ever encountered a legendary weapon so the Sacred Gear never activated."
The red headed Devil was silent for a couple of minutes before she shook her head again with a frown, "Kiba, while your theory makes a scary amount of sense there is one problem with it."
"What's that Buchou?" asked the blonde knight.
Rias' frown deepened as she closed the book in front of her and handed it back to the knight, "you're underestimating just how isolationist the Celts are. There is no way they'd ever take Gae Bolg out of the Otherworld, the God Lugh would never allow it."
"Therefore the only way for Issei to have seen it, was if he somehow entered the Otherworld and befriended one of their deities. Something that I assure you is downright impossible," concluded the Devil.
"But Buchou-" whatever argument that Kiba had died unspoken as both the Devil's flinched and started shivering, feeling an overwhelming amount of power and bloodlust coming from the Gym.
Without saying a word the two Devils rushed towards the building, meeting up with the rest of Rias' peerage along with Sona's on the way. As the group of Devils ran towards the Gym, they felt the power and bloodlust from the building dissipate and began to pick up the pace. Once they arrived at the entrance everyone readied themselves for combat as the doors opened, and low gasps of shock echoed from everyone present.
Scáthach grinned as she saw his shocked expression, "surprised? This is the Gae Bolg that I gave to Cu Chulainn, part of the deal I made with Lugh and Morrigan here, was to get it back in exchange for my help."
The immortal witch then frowned, "honestly when they told me what was happening I thought they were mistaken, it should be impossible for there to be two Gae Bolg's and yet here they are."
Scáthach spear's tip began glowing a bloody red light as she looked at Issei's spear with an almost pleading expression on her face, "now if there are two Gae Bolg's, does that mean that one is stronger than the other? Could yours be able to do…what mine could not?"
Without waiting for a response Scáthach attacked with a slow jab, expecting the human to once again fail to react in time, only to be surprised as she heard the two red spears give a resounding clang as they met. The immortal witch's eyes widened slightly as Issei used his Gae Bolg to block her strike before deflecting it away from him, creating an opening in her guard as he slammed the blunt end of the spear into her stomach.
[BOOST!]
Scáthach was stunned, not from the pain of the blow, which she barely felt, but from the surprise of the unexpected attack itself. 'His skills have increased dramatically,' she noted, analytically eyeing his form as she backed up.
Compared to the start of the spar where he was barely passing as an amateur spearman, these new strikes were precise and masterful, but most of all they were familiar. 'So that card somehow imprints Cu Chulainn's fighting style into him,' she mused as the witch lazily dodged a jab at her chest.
However, it was clear that while the boy may have the knowledge he still didn't have the experience, speed or strength to go with it, causing little mistakes to occur. Overextending in his swing every now and then or stumbling when his attacks were unexpectedly blocked by her Gae Bolg.
They were only small mistakes, and against anyone else, they would have meant nothing but Scáthach had taught Cu Chulainn everything he knew, often sparring with the hero at full strength and coming out on top. There was no way she could lose to this flawed and weaker style that Issei used and everyone knew it as the boy's spear kept getting deflected with a lazy ease.
"Scáthach, I think this has gone on long enough don't you?" sighed Morrigan as she watched the one sided beat down.
The immortal witch just shook her head at her companion, "not yet he looks like he still has some fight left in him," she replied in an approving tone as Issei picked himself up from the ground.
[BOOST!]
"See," laughed Scáthach as she deflected Issei's attack before tripping him over as he passed her and placed her Gae Bolg above his chest, while his own was resting tip first into the floorboards.
"Not bad Issei but if my student couldn't beat me then you must know that you stand no chance," she commented with a competitive grin.
"You never know until you try right?" smirked Issei, and Scáthach immediately sensed the familiar feeling of Rune Magic beneath her.
Glancing down her eyes widened as she saw the rune that Issei had carved into floorboards with his spear, begin to glow brightly before a brilliant sphere of light enveloped the two of them and blinding the witch. 'So it's not just his fighting style that is inherited. Clever boy, using a Rune of Light like that,' she thought in approval.
[BOOST!]
"Include Archer!" Scáthach heard the twin announcements as her eyesight returned and the witch saw Issei standing in front of her with Gae Bolg ready and a large black bow stored on his back.
"Oi boy, why did you activate that card? You must realize that Atalanta's bow isn't going to help you in this fight right?" frowned Morrigan as she eyed Issei and caused Scathach's eyes to widen in surprise.
"Go ahead. I shall pass in front of you afterward like a squall," quoted the teen in response with a grin before bringing his spear up to block Scathach's incoming blow, shocking the two females.
"How well do you two know the legend of the Chaste Huntress?" asked Issei as he blocked another of her strikes, causing a frown to appear on Scathach's face before she began picking speed.
Scáthach suddenly found herself on the receiving end of Issei's Gae Bolg and had to quickly abandon her attack and bring her own spear up to deflect the counterattack. The two Gae Bolg's creating a shower of sparks as they clashed, 'what's going on? Even if I'm only at half speed he shouldn't be able to keep up with me.'
[BOOST!]
"Atalanta was often fond of letting her opposing racers get a head start in her footraces before overtaking them and winning. In fact some even believed that as long as she let her opponents move first, she could predict the outcome and change it in her favour," elaborated Issei as he continued blocking each of Scathach's strikes, the witch moving so fast that she wasn't even visible to the human eye anymore.
Scáthach just blinked and laughed as she stopped her assault while giving Issei an approving nod, "if you can't react to my attacks then the next best thing is to try and predict them. You really are a resourceful one aren't you?"
The immortal witch then gained a hopeful look on her face as the Gae Bolg she held began glowing a deep crimson and bloodlust filled the room. "Scáthach what are you doing?! We don't want to kill him!" shouted Morrigan.
Scáthach just ignored the Goddess as she stared at her opponent, "Issei Hyoudou, activate your Gae Bolg, if you don't then you will die," she promised as her hopeful expression morphed into a blank face.
'I need to know which is more powerful, I need to know if he can grant me my wish!' she thought, desperately as the tip of her spear started shaking in anticipation. The teen just gave her a sad look but did as he was told and the room was illuminated with twin crimson glows.
[BOOST!]
"Both of you stop! The Boundary Field can't take much more!" ordered Morrigan desperately, only to be ignored as both combatants continued funneling power into their spears.
The entire dojo was caught up in a maelstrom as the doors and windows began shaking from the force of the crimson energies swirling around the room and forming around the two blood red lances. However, it was clear that Scathach's spear was by far the superior as it gathered more and more of the crimson light, dwarfing the amount surrounding Issei's.
"Is that weak excuse really the best your Gae Bolg can do?" sighed Scáthach sadly, as her wish was again out of reach.
"I suppose it was wishful thinking that I could overpower you in only the Include state, but don't you dare insult Cu Chulainn's symbol," growled Issei fiercely, and the witch watched as the Boosted Gear on his arm began to glow.
[Dragon Booster Second Liberation!]
When she looked at the gauntlet, Scáthach raised an eyebrow in confusion as it appeared to look more…evolved then before with a second jewel now glowing as well as the first. "I'll show you the real power of Gae Bolg," promised Issei as he glared at her.
[TRANSFER!]
Suddenly the crimson energy surrounding Issei's spear expanded rapidly until it was even rivalling the amount forming around Scathach's, and still it kept growing. Morrigan and Scáthach just watched in awe as the entire building began shaking from the forces that were now assaulting it, windows shattering and the doors struggling to stay upright.
As the two looked back at Issei they instantly gasped as the teen's pupils narrowed to familiar beastlike like slits, his iris' glowing a bright orange as he jumped backwards and crouched in a stance similar to a runner's before a race. The two females blinked and no longer were they looking at a teenage boy but Cu Chulainn himself surrounded by the swirling mass of crimson energy.
"Gae-"called the figure, sounding as if two people were speaking at once and the crimson energy condensed into the spear's tip.
[BURST!]
With that announcement, Scáthach watched as just before he was going to activate Gae Bolg the image of Cu Chulainn disappeared and the boy suddenly collapsed to the ground. The energy that condensed around his spear disappearing along with Gae Bolg and Tauropolos, which reverted back to their card forms.
Dismissing her own spear, Scáthach and Morrigan turned to look at each other in complete and utter shock before they approached the down teen. "What just happened?" questioned the witch as they stared at Issei.
"A side effect of the Boosted Gear, he must have gone past the limits of his body," replied Morrigan as she knelt down in front of the teen's form and picked up the Lancer card.
"That's not what I meant and you know it!" growled Scáthach as she checked Issei for injuries.
The Goddess of Death just shook her head in confusion, "I don't know, it felt as if their souls were…joining…merging…becoming one."
Morrigan then sighed before she picked up the Archer card and put both of the cards back in their holder as she lifted up Issei's prone body. "Come on we need to get out of here," she ordered and headed for the door.
"Why?" Scáthach frowned in confusion before her eyes widened. "Oh, that's why."
The Goddess shook her head again, "I told you the Boundary Field couldn't handle any more power, now every person that has even the tiniest sensing ability within six blocks will have felt the two of you."
Scáthach growled softly but said nothing in response as the two of them quickly carried Issei out of the ruined dojo, all in all it was quite the first day of school for the two Celts.
"What happened here?" gasped Rias as the group took in the sight of the wrecked Gym.
"Tsubasa, Tomoe, Saji, send word to the staff that the Gym has been closed due to structural failure, then block off the area. We don't want any normal students walking in here until we've assessed the situation," ordered Sona.
"Understood," replied the three Devils as they nodded and left the building.
The Sitri heiress then turned to her remaining peerage members, "the rest of you spread out and see if you can find any clues about what happened here."
"You all do the same," ordered Rias to her peerage, whom just started searching the area as Gremory heiress approached her Sitri counterpart.
"What do you think happened here Sona? I know you already have some ideas," whispered Rias softly.
"A fight clearly, judging from the fact that it occurred in the Gym we can assume that it was likely a spar that got out of hand. We also know that they have to be students or they wouldn't have access to, or knowledge of this area," replied the other Devil as with an annoyed frown.
"Which means that Kuoh academy has been infiltrated, the question now is, by who and how long?" agreed the red head.
Sona's frown just deepened, "it might have been a coincidence, but today we got two new transfer students from out of the country."
"You checked their backgrounds right?" questioned Rias, causing her fellow King to nod with a sigh.
"Everything checked out and our reports indicated that they weren't members of any of the Three Factions," replied Sona.
"What if they weren't from any of the Biblical Factions? You said they were from abroad correct? What country did they come from?" asked the Gremory heiress as a worried frown crossed her face.
"The paperwork said they were from Ireland, whether that is true or not remains to be seen," replied Sona, only to narrow her eyes as Rias' worried expression grew. "Rias I know that expression anywhere, you know something, don't you?"
Rias quickly glanced at their peerages, making sure they were out of hearing range as she nodded, "I think we might be dealing with the Celts."
"The Celts? Impossible, Rias they haven't shown any interest in Devils before, why start now?" countered Sitri heiress.
"I don't think it was us they were interested in," muttered the Gremory clan member in response.
"What do you mean Rias? If they weren't here for us then who?" asked Sona.
"Issei Hyoudou," announced Rias, bringing a stunned expression her fellow King's face before Sona's demonic aura began leaking out. "Sona are you okay?" asked her friend in concern at this strange behavior.
"Of course it would involve him," growled the Sitri clan member as she turned back to Rias. "What does he have to do with any of this?"
Rias just raised an eyebrow at this as she responded, "right before this happened my knight, Kiba and I were discussing an unusual Sacred Gear that Issei had."
"Akashi? That Demonic spear you wanted us to look up? What has that got to do with any of this?" replied the member of the Sitri clan.
The red head just sighed, "Kiba proposed that Issei's Sacred Gear could copy any legendary weapon that its user saw."
"That's-" Sona was left speechless as she thought about the implications of such a Sacred Gear.
A whole host of legendary weapons at a single person's command, wars could and had been started for less. The Devil gave silent praise that the original Excalibur had been broken years ago, if the Church had had the ability to make multiples of the most powerful Holy Sword in existence they would have wiped out her kind years ago. As it was, they had enough trouble with those damned fragments that the sword left behind after its destruction.
"My reaction exactly," replied Rias as she noted her friend's horrified expression.
"Rias this is very bad, please tell me that Kiba was wrong," asked Sona with a pleading tone in her voice.
Much to her horror Rias' frown only deepened, "he believed that Akashi was actually a copy of the Celtic cursed spear, Gae Bolg, but that left one major problem."
"How did Issei Hyoudou see the original," sighed the Student Council President.
The red head nodded, "exactly, that left two possibilities. Either Kiba was wrong and Akashi has nothing to do with Gae Bolg…or Issei has friends among the Celts."
Sona pinched the bridge of her as she replied in an exasperated voice, "So you think that members of the Celts snuck into Kuoh academy to visit their friend? Rias, why would they bother? They could have just gone through the official channels if they wanted to. We'd be happy to host them, it would she the world that we aren't the monsters they think we are."
"That's exactly why they didn't Sona," replied the Gremory heiress, bringing a confused look to her friend's face. "Think about how much attention would be put on Issei, the reclusive Celts finally venturing out of the Otherworld and befriending him."
"He would be watched day and night, manipulated and Maou knows what else to take advantage of his connection to them," nodded Sona, and the two heiress' frowned as memories of their own pasts caught up to them.
"Still you're making a lot of assumptions Rias, we don't know for sure if the Celts are responsible for this," reminded the Sitri heiress.
Rias was about to reply when she was interrupted by the sound of Tsubaki calling them over, "Kaichou, I think I've found something"
Everyone stopped what they were doing and approached the Sitri Queen as she pointed down to a symbol carved into the wooden floor of the sparring area. Everyone except Sona stared at the symbol in confusion while the Sitri heiress' eyes just narrowed as she crouched down to examine it before giving a tired sigh.
"Well Rias, looks like you were right after all," she announced with a shake of her head.
"What do you mean Sona? You recognize that symbol?" asked Rias, receiving a nod in return.
"I've seen it from some of my sister's journals, you are aware that my sister is in charge of Foreign Affairs correct? She was sent various books on the different factions around the world to help with her job, not that she ever pays attention to them," explained Sona as everyone focused on her.
"What we are looking at is Rune Magic, Rias. It is a form of magic originally developed by the Norse…and perfected by the Celts," she finished with a frown before standing back up.
"We need to find Issei, maybe he'll be able explain to us what's going on. I'll send Kiba to go collect him from class," replied Rias as Kiba nodded and headed for the door.
"He won't be there," informed Sona with an almost embarrassed look replacing her usual stoic expression.
"What do you mean by that Sona?" questioned the Gremory as she frowned at her friend's repeatedly strange behavior.
"Kaichou sent Hyoudou-san to give the new transfer students a tour around the school, they could be anywhere on campus," explained Tsubaki after it became clear that Sona wouldn't respond.
"What? Why did you do that?" asked Rias curiously.
"T-That's not important, what matters is finding him and that's what we should focus on," stuttered Sona as she walked out of the room with her peerage running after her.
Rias and her peerage looked at each other with shocked expressions, did they just hear Sona Sitri stutter? Something that previously only her sister could cause? 'This day has just been one big bag of surprises,' thought Rias with amusement.
Issei groaned as he opened his eyes and looked around, only to find himself alone in the school infirmary. 'How did I end up here?' he thought, groggily as he got up from the bed and noticed a necklace with a note lying on the bed stand next to him.
[Nice to see you up partner. You had us worried there for a while.]
'Ddraig? What happened? How did we get here?' he asked, trying to ignore the massive headache he had.
[Those two took you here after you collapsed during the fight, healed you, and then left that note and necklace on the table before leaving.]
'I see,' blinked Issei as he picked up the necklace and examined it. It seemed like it an ordinary rock marble rock attached to a string, nothing odd about it until he flipped it over and saw the large number of black Runes that had been carved into the stone.
Placing the necklace back on the desk, Issei picked up the note before sighing as he opened it up and frowned as he read it.
Hello Issei,
Unfortunately, we weren't able to be here when you woke up, I might have scared the Devils slightly with our spar. I'm sure you're wondering why we approached you but sadly we don't have time to explain, so we'll have to talk about it later. However, near this note you will see a necklace with Runes carved along one side, this is to remain on your person at all times. You are not to take it off under ANY circumstances and before you ask, it's for your sake more than ours. Don't worry you'll be seeing us again real soon, I don't want to miss any time with my new sparring partner.
Your new best friend, Scáthach.
P.S. You tell the Devils about us and I'll kill you, okay? Good, glad you understand.
Issei just shook his head as he pondered what he'd done in a previous life to deserve this kind of treatment, 'first a trolling magician, now an immortal witch and Goddess of Death. What's next? My childhood friend turns out to be an overenthusiastic exorcist? Nah that'll never happen.'
Elsewhere a certain Irina Shidou sneezed.
Issei shoved the note in his pocket and just put the necklace around his neck with a shrug as he tucked the stone behind his shirt. "Man sensei is going to be mad at me for missing so much class, still at least it can't get any worse," he muttered, depressed.
Issei should have remembered what happened last time he tempted fate.
"Issei-kun! I found you, come quick we don't have a lot of time," cried a familiar voice as the teen felt someone grab his hand before dragging him down the corridors.
"Soooo…what's the occasion?" asked Issei as the two groups of Devils just stared at him in disbelief.
"Issei where were you for the past 20 minutes? We've been searching for you," replied Rias, with a frown.
"Unconscious in the infirmary probably, why?" answered Issei truthfully.
Everyone shared a look at his response, "Issei why were you in the infirmary?" asked the Gremory heiress.
He was about to respond when the teen spotted something outside the clubroom window, a large black crow watching him with a familiar glare. 'Umm…Ddraig is that who I think it is?' asked Issei, remembering what the note had said.
[Possibly, she is a God after all. Better safe than sorry in this case partner, at least we know how they found out about the cards now.]
Agreeing with the dragon wholeheartedly, Issei sighed and plastered a fake embarrassed expression on his face, "I kind of fell down the stairs while giving those two transfer students a tour. I woke up in the infirmary about two minutes before Kiba found me."
"Oh really? You fell down the stairs, did you?" replied Sona as she gave off a smug yet hostile atmosphere. "You don't seem to be injured from your little trip and neither does your uniform look dirty from the floor. You must be quite lucky, mustn't you Hyoudou-san."
Issei just shuddered in fear from the amount of pain that was promised with that one word before laughing nervously, "y-yeah that's me, good old lucky Issei."
[Partner there are many words to describe you and lucky is definitely not one of them.]
'Shut up Ddraig! It's not my fault that the universe is out to get me,' growled the teen as Ddraig's laughter echoed across his head.
"Issei I'm going to be straight with you so please do the same with me, do you know of the spear called Gae Bolg?" questioned the Gremory heiress.
The teen felt his blood run cold as he tried to maintain a confused expression, judging from the look the two heiress' sent him, he wasn't entirely successful. "Gay Bolg? What's that? Never heard of it, sounds made up," he replied with another nervous laugh.
Rias just frowned while Sona grinned evilly and the others glared at him, "Issei, my brother is the Father of Lies. If you want to deceive me you'll have to do better than that."
Issei just sighed before he looked out the window at the crow that was still watching him with unblinking eyes, "what makes you think that I know anything about this Gay Bolg."
"Akashi for one, your spear bears a remarkable resemblance to the Celtic cursed spear," answered Rias with a raised eyebrow.
"I don't know what to tell you, coincidence maybe?" shrugged Issei.
Sona suddenly approached Issei, her hostile aura increasing, "you're lying."
"Kaichou I know you're mad that I beat you chess but you should stop making baseless accusations," argued Issei, hiding his growing fear behind a smug grin.
"You beat Sona in chess! When?" exclaimed Rias in shock, momentarily forgetting about the purpose of this meeting in the wake of this new information.
Sona sent a deadly glare at Issei who ignored it entirely, "just this morning, I made a bet over a chess game and won. Right Kaichou?"
The Sitri heiress gritted her teeth in anger as the temperature in the room dropped a couple of degrees before slowly nodding her head. "Ara, congratulations on your new engagement Issei-kun," said Akeno with an amused smile.
Sona just froze as an expression of horror crossed her face while Issei looked at Akeno in confusion, "engagement? What are you talking about Akeno-san?"
Rias just burst into laughter, "Sona didn't tell you? As part of her marriage contract she will only marry the man who can beat her in chess. Congratulations Sona I hope you two are happy together, I'm sure the two of you will make a nice couple."
"We're not a couple!" shouted the both of them, only to blink and glance at each other in surprise.
"Ara, look at the two of you. Already so in sync with each other, truly young love," teased Akeno while Rias continued giggling softly into her hand.
To the shock of everyone present the Sitri heiress actually gained an embarrassed blush before coughing as her calm stoic expression returned, "The match wasn't sanctioned by the Sitri family so it isn't counted by my contract."
"That's a shame still at least that means there's still a chance for you right Buchou?" sighed Akeno before she turned to her King, whose face rapidly turned the same shade as her hair.
"Akeno I told you we're not like that!" she shouted, angrily.
Issei just watched the interactions between the Devils with a confused expression as he began inching towards the exit, only to stop as he felt a strong hand grab his shirt and the teen was lifted up into the air. Flailing wildly in the air Issei looked down to see what had grabbed him and was shocked to see Koneko lifting him up one handed as she carried him back to the middle of the room.
"Not done yet," informed the white haired girl as put him back on the ground.
"Ara, ara, Issei-kun, you weren't planning on leaving without permission were you? Do so again and I might have to punish my little kohai," said Akeno with a sadistic smirk as lightning began crackling around her fingertips.
[Partner don't you know any normal girls?]
'Ddraig if there's one thing I've learnt in these past couple of days it's that there is no such thing as a normal girl,' sighed Issei in response.
[You are wise beyond your year's partner.]
"-sei? Issei!" cried Rias, snapping him from his thoughts.
"Sorry Rias, I zoned out for a second there," he apologized.
"I was asking who those two transfer students are and how you knew them?" repeated the Devil.
Issei just frowned as he saw the crow outside focus on him, "what makes you think that I know them?"
"That necklace you have around your neck, I know Celtic Runes when I see them," replied Sona as she took over that investigation.
Issei's eyes widened as he looked down and sure enough saw the rune necklace that Scáthach gave him hanging around his neck. 'It must have fallen out while I was flailing from Koneko,' he realized with a sigh.
"Alright so I do know them, we met online a while back. They wanted to learn Japanese and I wanted to learn Gaelic, eventually we became friends and I convinced them to come study here," he lied, making Sona grin triumphantly.
"If that's true then you should speak Gaelic, correct?" asked the Sitri heiress.
"Sure," answered Issei, after all the chances of anyone here actually speaking the language was slim to nil.
"Funny thing about Devils Hyoudou-san, we are able to speak all human languages, including Gaelic," she smirked and immediately said something to Issei in another language, causing Issei's hope to sink like a stone.
[Don't worry partner, she's not the only one who can speak Gaelic. Just repeat after me.]
The teen smirked as he repeated what Ddraig said, "is cuma cad a deir tú mo bhean chéile daor."
Sona's triumphant smirk faded into a shocked expression that quickly evolved into an angered one as the floor boards beneath the devil's feet turned to ice, looking out the window Issei could have sworn he saw amusement in the eyes of the crow observing him. 'Nice work Ddraig what did you say?' he congratulated his friend.
[Beats me, I'm just the messenger here partner.]
Before Issei could respond Rias spoke up, "Issei we know that your two friends are aware of the supernatural world, please tell us who they really are."
Everyone was silent as they looked at Issei who gave them a sigh, "it's not my place to tell you. If they want you to know they'll tell you themselves. Don't worry though, they're not here to cause trouble for you all."
"Then explain how the Gym was destroyed!" replied Sona with a small growl, causing everyone to stare at the normally composed heiress in shock.
"Ah that…well that was just a bit of fun that got out of hand," answered Issei sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his head.
Sona's eye began twitching and the heiress started trembling as the temperature in the room plummeted, "you're telling me…that you destroyed…the entire Gym of my school…for a 'bit of fun!'"
Issei just laughed nervously and backed away towards the door as Sona started approaching him again, "is there an answer I can give that doesn't result in me turning into a Popsicle?" he asked, only for the Devil's eyes to narrow in anger.
'Ddraig a little help please!' begged the teen.
[Don't worry partner. We've got an idea!]
As the dragon explained the plan Issei's eyes widened and his face blanched, 'Ddraig are you insane! She'll kill me!'
[Partner this is a case of damned if you do, damned if you don't. It's either this or be put on ice permanently. Take your pick.]
"This is not going to end well," sighed Issei quietly before walking up to Sona.
"Any last words Hyoudou-san," smiled the Devil.
Issei didn't respond and instead leaned in towards the heiress' face and, to the shock of everyone present, kissed her on the lips. Sona's eyes became dinner plates while everyone else's jaws just dropped in comedic expressions of shock.
As the kiss broke off Issei stepped back and braced himself for the retaliatory attack, only to see Sona stunned stiff. Blinking in confusion Issei just waved a hand in front of her blank unseeing eyes and again got no reaction from the heiress.
"I think I broke her," he said to the others, ignoring the shocked, amused or downright horrified expressions that were being sent his way. "So are we done here?"
Rias just nodded slowly, still trying to get over the shock of what just happened and bringing a smile to his face, "before I forget Motohama and Matsuda wanted to know if you all knew any girls that would be willing to date them."
There was silence as everyone just continued staring at him, everyone except Koneko who snapped out of her trance before nodding and writing down a number on a piece of paper and handing it to him. Issei smiled at her and patted the white haired girl on the head, only to frown as he swore he heard the sound of a cat purring.
"Thanks Koneko-chan, I really appreciate it. Let's see here, Mil-tan? That's an odd name," pondered Issei as he looked at the piece of paper.
"She's perfect for them, senpai," replied Koneko.
Issei frowned as he thought he saw an evil smile appear on stoic girl's face but it disappeared quickly, 'no there's no way innocent Koneko-chan is actually evil, is there?' he thought worried.
[She is a Devil partner.]
Shaking his head Issei put the thought aside as he pocketed the paper, "thanks Koneko-chan I'll give it to them later."
The teen then headed to the door only to stop as it was half opened and turned back to the room of Devils, "you don't need my help to find out who they are Rias. You already have all the information you need, you just have to put it together. Don't over think it and the answer will reveal itself."
With that Issei shut the door, just in time to hear Sona scream, "WHERE IS HE? I'LL KILL HIM!"
'Looks like Sona snapped out of it that means it's time to go,' thought the teen fearfully as he ran down the corridors to the exit. Only looking back to see twin ice spears pierce the door he had been leaning against moments before freezing the entire door in a solid block of ice. Running out of the old school building the teen was never so happy to hear the end of day bell ring as he evacuated the school premises.
Running away happily Issei failed to pay attention to where he was going and collided with someone, sending the two of them sprawling across the ground. Groaning the teen picked himself up from the ground before looking to see who he hit, helping the nun up with a smile.
"Sorry about that, my name's Issei," he introduced, warmly.
"It's nice to meet you Issei, I'm Asia," replied the nun happily.
Archer-Lancer Dual Include:
STR: C
CON: D
AGI: B
MGI: C
LCK: D
Personal skills and Noble Phantasms of both. (See previous chapter for details I'm not writing them down again).
Boosted Gear Gift: A
Type: Anti Unit
Maximum Number of Targets: Depends on the energy being transferred.
An evolution of the basic Boosted Gear Longinus, the Boosted Gear Gift retains all the abilities of the original Sacred Gear but also has the ability to Transfer the increased power to other people or objects. The transferred power can be performed on multiple people/objects at the same time, however, this decreases the efficiency, and some of the power will be lost in the transfer. This can also be used on a certain part of the user's body such as the eyes for enhanced vision.
## Sorry to anyone that actually speaks Gaelic, I was using Google translate so it was likely wrong.
Also next chapter we have our next Class Card reveal, take a guess on who you think it will be.