Hey guys and gals, before I start things off, I just thought I'd apologize. I apologize for the lack of updates, much thanks to laziness, and the two times the story 'updated' on the story list. Essentially, it updated when I deleted the chapters I had posted, that being the update in November, and chapter 4.5.
For why I deleted chapter 4.5, it's because I felt it was incredibly rushed, and didn't add much to the story, not to mention the horrible OOCness. Essentially, it was something that needed to be deleted, so please just forget it even existed.
Other than that, I apologize for the six months of absolute nothingness. Now, to the chapter!
Volume 2, Life 5
It was shortly after one in the land of the Rising Sun, as Azazel continued to watch the situation from afar, eyes narrowed in worriment as he watched the magical monitor placed in the Student Council room. Though he did not get anxious about Issei and the others failing the mission, it was still his duty to make sure that they came out alright in the end. Thus, the lack of communication was beginning to make him uneasy.
Irina, on the other hand, watched with her own struggles. She wished that she could have been part of the mission, and been by Issei's side. In the end, however, she was forced to sit on the sidelines. It was a direct result of the people that they were facing up against.
Still, Irina did not worry about that, believing that their side was righteous like always. No, it was simply the lack of authorization that frustrated her, Michael claiming that his side were to only intervene as a last resort, believing that interfering would fan the flames that these rebels began, possibly using it as a justification for their actions.
Not really interested in constantly seeing an aerial view of the city of Canterbury, Azazel looked away from the monitor for a brief moment, glancing over in Irina's direction. He realized that he was not the only one beginning to get annoyed at the situation, as he watched her cross her arms, huffing in annoyance as she stared at the monitor herself. A small smirk appeared on his face as he thought up of a way to ease the tension in the room.
"Frustrated that you're not able to be alongside fighting with your beloved 'Darling'?" He asked in a teasing manner.
Irina suddenly stopped her huffing and looked at Azazel in surprise instead, before becoming flustered with her cheeks flaring red. In an attempt to hide her embarrassment, she turned away from the Fallen Angel, away so that he couldn't see her reddening face. 'Was it really that obvious?!' She thought to herself, panicking in her mind. Of course, her turning away only caused Azazel to give a jovial laugh that cut through the room's tension.
Sensing her level of discomfort rising, the Fallen Angel apologized. "Sorry, sorry, forgive me little Angel-chan. It's all fun and games, right?"
Rather than puff up her cheeks and complain about the injustice of teasing a young maiden like herself, she simply a glare his way. A glare powerful enough to tell him that he shouldn't do such things from now on if he still wanted to be taken seriously. Sensing that he wasn't fazed by the stare at all though, Irina sighed and decided to let the subject drop for now, before turning her attention back to the monitor.
After several more moments of bothersome silence from the screen in front of them, Irina decided to ask the Fallen Angel leader next to her a question.
"Sensei." She said, not taking her eyes off of the screen.
"Hmm?"
"Last week, you told us that these 'Templars' could become incredibly powerful, and that they could get on the same level of us if we were to give them enough time. Do you really think that?"
Azazel did not grace her with an answer right away. Rather, he took the moment by stroking the small amount of pepper-colored stubble on his chin as he closed his eyes in quiet contemplation. Eventually he did give his opinion on the subject, though it was one that didn't satisfy the self-proclaimed Angel next to him.
"Did I really say something like that?"
In a dramatic manner, Irina nearly collapsed on the spot. It wasn't nearly so much shock at the serious tone in the answer, but rather, what caused this was a more crestfallen feeling that filled her chest, disappointment and sadness filling it and keeping her off-balance.
"S-Sensei!" She called out, not wanting to lose faith in the man over something so simple.
Azazel laughed though. In his position, it was the only suitable response. In times like these, laughter was a defense mechanism, meant to ease the weary and pained souls that worried non-stop. In moments like these, it needed to be done.
"Forgive me, Irina. I did say that, didn't I…? Well, I suppose that you, out of everyone else, would know if that was true or false."
"Ehh?"
Azazel shrugged his shoulders. "Don't tell me you've never thought about it? Much like Issei and Xenovia, it wasn't until very recently that you were human, right? So tell me, having been an Angel for little under a year, do you think your old self could beat the current you?"
But Irina stayed silent, staring at him in confusion. Azazel could only sigh in response.
"I guess the thing I'm trying to get at is that it honestly depends on the person. Sure, I could have said it better, but honestly I don't think it doesn't matter as much in the end, so long as the message gets across."
"So… You don't think that Issei and the others are in trouble?"
But Azazel simply shrugged his shoulders once again. "Who knows? Besides, it's probably best that they think they're in trouble, if anything to make them more wary. If you go in thinking that you're capable of beating the crap out of the bad guys and not take any damage in the process, thus underestimating them, chances are the results of the fight are going to quickly change in the enemy's favor."
"OOH! So you mean you did it to make them worry, therefore taking the enemy seriously! I get it now!" Irina exclaimed, finally feeling proud of herself for understanding what the Fallen Angel had been trying to get at. Azazel, on the other hand, felt a bit guilty as he looked away from the now-smiling Angel.
It was true that he believed that Issei and the others could easily wipe out this group, but at the same time, the lack of information on this group and their fighting prowess could very easily cause things to go badly. If these 'Templars' were on par in terms of people like the wielder of the Ultimate Longinus, Cao Cao, or perhaps even the former wielder of Durandal, Vasco Strada, Issei and the others would sure to have a serious fight ahead of them. Luckily for him though, his pesky thoughts were interrupted by the ringing sound of monitor in front of them, signaling that someone they knew had been trying to connect with them via video-chat.
"Sister Griselda!" Irina spoke out, instantly recognizing the elder sister of Xenovia, and the Queen of the Archangel Gabriel, as the video was answered and materialized.
The woman on the other side felt the ends of her lips curl upward as she saw the young Angel greet her, before glancing over to Azazel and bowing respectively. After doing so, she turned back to Irina and spoke. "It is good to see you in great health, Irina. I hope that Xenovia is doing similar?" She asked, and Irina immediately replied to her friend's adoptive family with a yes.
Without letting the conversation get out of hand before it even began, Azazel coughed once, stepping in and speaking for Irina. "Although I'm sure we'd appreciate your call some other time, Sister, I'm afraid that we're in the midst of something important."
"I know as much, Former-Governor, and I wouldn't have interrupted you as such without reason. I simply wished to know my sister and her friends were doing, but I suppose that can wait another time, can't it? I am calling you because we have new information that I believe you would be appreciative of."
Azazel's brow managed to rise a bit as he suddenly became interested. "Oh? And what new information is that?"
"It's more information regarding the Canterbury Cathedral, and what hides underneath it. Apparently, the British Crown did not want to have information about certain treasures being hidden down inside the caverns where only select few can get to being openly public. After all, the amount of treasure hunters and explorers would sure to rise dramatically, along with the death toll of those foolish enough to try. It just so happens though, that one of those 'prizes' so to say, is something they believed that had been driven over the seas multiple millennia ago by the people of a certain Celtic Goddess, has actually been imprisoned underneath those English grounds all this time. If the target of the 'Templars' is this, and if it were to be released onto today's England, it would be sure to cause mass havoc and destruction that would sure to ruin much of the country, not to even mention the damage it would do to the world of the supernatural, before we could get it sealed once more."
Azazel's eyes narrowed. "And what creature exactly would require being imprisoned underneath the cathedral for hundreds, if not thousands, of years? What have we not been told about?"
"It's…"
~~*Oppai-Dragon*~~
The female warrior flew forward, her blade raised high. Surprised at the speed, Issei had very little time to take a defensive stance, folding his arms in front of him in expectation. The sound of her blade bouncing off the thick metal he wore never came though, and both he and the spectators behind him were surprised as to why.
As it was, just before the Templar knight struck the Gremory Pawn, she stopped. Her blade, mere centimeters away from the crimson armor, swiftly moved in another direction hoping to strike in another position. But once again, the blade stopped just short of the target, and the young maiden jumped backwards, giving herself space between the two.
Whilst Ravel watched on with confusion, Kuroka on the other hand, squinted her eyes in suspicion. Her senses told her that something was obviously off. Not because of the strangeness that was the Templar's fighting style, but rather, because of the darkness that seemed to ooze out of the Templar's eye. That, blackness, allowed her to do something that they were yet to understand.
Issei on the other hand, did not notice the connection between these two. Instead, he had used the precious little time he had when the young warrior in front of him had distanced herself to use a signature move. Though he had wanted to wait a bit before using a trump card like this, he was hopeful to learn of her precious plans and end this quickly so as to move on and meet Rias and the others at the end.
Acting as though he was about to shoot a beam from his right hand, Issei extended his arm outward, yelling with all his might.
"Bilingual…! Huh?"
Dumbfounded, Issei's eyes widened, and even the girls behind him stared in disbelief. The moment he casted the well-known perverted area-of-effect spell, it had surprisingly no effect. The result wasn't because he had casted it wrong, or had even missed the spot he had been aiming for. It wasn't even because the warrior was secretly a boy! No, it was because, the moment he had casted the spell, the warrior in front of them had disappeared in a flash! Gone without a trace, not even a presence left behind as if she never existed in the first place. Not one of them were able to sense her. The only thing of her proving her existence were the scratch marks from her skates left on the floor. Not even the sound of her footsteps moving from the position she once stood in was heard by the devils.
"H-How the…" Ravel muttered under her breath, the most shocked of the three.
The Bishop continued to stand confused, but the Queen next to her was already snapped out of her puzzled state and was looking for any signs of the enemy. It didn't take long though, her feline ears picking up the sound of an object dropping down from the sky, something that sounded like an iron-like metal bouncing off itself.
With Issei and Ravel continuing to look around the room, Kuroka looked up, seeing what she feared. She yelled out, hoping to get her King out of the way in time. "Master!"
But like a meteorite, the warrior came crashing down.
An explosion on impact, dust from debris kicked up and surrounded Issei, blinding the two spectators behind the lines. At the same time, the noise of something passing by at a high speed echoed close to Ravel's ear, her family's inherited power of the Phoenix immediately flaring up after the sound as flames puffed up from her neck, repairing the damage that had been done. Everything happened so fast, the girl's brain did not even register what happened in front of her for several seconds. Still in a semi-stunned phase, the girl brought her hand up to the spot she had felt her skin be healed, still feeling the warmth of the fire that burned away the pain.
Though it took several seconds to occur, the dust finally managed to settle, and the two spectators were shocked at the scene in front of them. They did not want to believe their eyes, as what they were seeing was something they never would have expected to have happened.
Sitting on his haunches, the Crimson Dragon was holding up his hand, tightly clenching the sharp point of a blade that should have not been there in the first place. The blade itself was floating mere inches away from his face, as his helmet had broken in some way that the spectators were unsure of. However, that had not been the problem.
"… You came quicker than I anticipated."
The one who said that, was the warrior-girl whom Issei was still holding off, her blade being the one that was hovering over his face, and if you looked closely, one of her skates completely broken off her foot. However, the sentence itself had not been directed at him, nor at the girls behind him.
Yards behind the female knight stood twenty more, all wearing the same symbol that she wore, with four more in the back holding some type of box that had decayed over time, and one with an unknown item wrapped in cloth in his hands. Dressed in modern military gear and hunting garb, all holding various guns of all shapes and sizes, they showed that they were indeed ready to give up their life if needed. However, the one that stood out from the rest, was one particular figure who had been far larger than the others.
He, as it was, stood in front of the pack, dressed in the armor of times passed. Unlike his comrades, he gave off an atmosphere that made it feel like he was far more experienced, and possibly even more deadly, than the others.
"It seems that you've gotten yourself in a bit of trouble, Danette." The figure said, his voice a bit incomprehensible, as his face was covered by the metal that bore the marking of a cross on it. Reaching for the large blade that was sheathed on his back, he continued. "Have you become incapable of handling such nuisances?"
The figure took a step towards the girl, ready to help her out with her target. However, as the figure was walking towards her, Issei's helmet had been able to regenerate and protect his head once again. The figure, as it turned out, froze in place the moment he got a closer look at Issei, but not for reason that Issei and the others thought of, muttering something under its breath the moment it stopped walking.
"You…"
The split second that the figure froze, the girl warrior jumped back next to the mysterious figure, leaving her blade in Issei's hand, and bright flames erupted from once she was. Both Ravel and Kuroka ran up to Issei's side, pulling on his arms as they helped him up from the ground.
"Sorry girls." Issei muttered so that only they could hear. "It seems she was quicker than I thought."
Ravel thought otherwise though, shaking her head in disagreement. "You were too kind to her, Lord Issei. You could have defeated her easily, but you held back. I disagree that you should have, but Lord Issei is Lord Issei, and would never mean to harm a lady unless needed to."
Issei smirked and laughed a little under his helm, but not in a happy way. It seemed that Ravel put too much hope into him as a hero, and thought him to be some type of saint that would never harm a fly. How disappointed she would be if he were to tell her that he had been going all-out from the beginning. Well, perhaps he had been holding back a little bit, and at least he could make the excuse that the fight was far too short for him to do anything meaningful.
After pulling the Crimson Dragon up all the way, the two ladies let go of him, both taking stances next to him as they readied themselves for the new fight. Issei crushed the blade that he had continued holding, and made it unusable by the warrior.
Kuroka grumbled under her breath about having to fight that day, while her nails extended themselves to become as sharp as razors. As they did so, the air around her felt heavier, her power increasing. Her talent as a Bishop, and now as a Queen, was sure to show the moment she started fighting. The golden beads she continually kept on her broke apart, forming a circle behind her, as the symbol of a mystic rune took place in the center of the circle.
Ravel had also been prepared to fight, as two bright and glowing wings formed behind her back, the wings of a Phoenix ready to take flight. At the same time, her entire body had begun emitting an aura of fire around her, so that any who came close would be burned.
The humans in front of them grew frightened, even taking steps backwards as if to escape the battle that was to occur. If they were capable of running away, it seemed like they would. All but two that was.
"Jensen!" The large figure called out, still staring Issei and the others down.
Upon being called on, the figure holding the wrapped item replied nervously. "Y-Yes!"
"Give Danette the item we found."
Without even answering his obvious superior, the feeble human walked anxiously towards the female warrior, clutching the item close to his heart.
Reaching the calm and collective warrior, the human slowly unraveled the item to expose a blade, one which made the devils, though still composed, have their hairs stand on end. It seemed to affect the warrior as well though, as for the first time, the girl managed to show emotions as her eyes widened in surprise at the sword, her breath stopping in excitement as she instantly recognized it.
"Master." Kuroka whispered.
"Yeah, I know. That sword-"
"The holy sword 'Joyeuse'." The female warrior uttered aloud, griping the blade in a careful manner as she inspected it carefully. The golden pummel on it, unmistakable by her eyes as she pulled the silvery sword out of the gem-encrusted and fleurs-de-lis covered sheath. "The legendary blade of King Charlemagne… But how is this possible? I thought-"
"That it was in that pitiful building of 'art' back in your home country? No, it seems that the British Crown has a few more secrets to hide than just a corpse, much like that Barghest you managed to kill earlier. Speaking of which, we should begin to hurry this up, lest we be trapped here when it wakes up. Now, take it, and ready yourself for battle."
Rather than be surprised and refuse such a massive gift, the eyes of the warrior went back to normal size. With the emotionless voice returning, she holstered the sheath onto her belt as she pulled the blade out completely. Swinging it a few times, she got use to the feel of the sword, each swing feeling lighter than the last.
"Allow me to take on the red one." The commander spoke, taking out his large sword from out his back. "You and the others shall have more than enough fun with the other two."
"… Of course, Ferdinand."
~~*Oppai-Dragon*~~
Back in the main cathedral, Kiba and Xenovia watched over the defeated Templars with hawk-like eyes.
Though the initiates were easy to handle and take out, it was the master at the end of the cathedral that had given them the most grief. However, it seemed that not even this exorcist could withstand several pincer maneuvers in a row, tiring him into submission shortly after Issei and the others had left. Bound together with cloth torn from the tapestries laying around, the warrior sat cross-legged in the moonlight slowly turning into daylight piercing through the holes made during battle and grumbling about his defeat.
"Shitty devils, cheating and using two-on-one tactics to fight against me. The fuck type of fair fight is that, huh?! Where the fuck is your honor?!"
His argument would not go far though.
"You speak of honor? Of fair fights? Where was your honor when you subjugated women under your control, violating them as a so-called 'reward' for your work in the church, along with murdering those who could not even defend themselves? The Head Priests may have looked the other way for your transgressions because of your power and skill, Emanuel Portela, but do not think me as someone so lenient."
The ancient blade, Durandal, was risen to Emanuel's throat, threatening to end his life once and for all. The wielder of the blade held a mask of stoicism, but under that mask, Xenovia felt absolute scorn towards the former Exorcist.
"Xenovia."
The young man behind her watched the scene unfold. He initially didn't wish to intervene, but if his comrade were to harm the prisoners, things for them would become far worse as they had the duty to make casualties a minimal. Thankfully, simply saying her name had sufficed, as she let out a breath that she had not even realized she had been holding, and pulled the sword away from the prisoner's throat. Unfortunately, the prisoner did not seem to pick up on the fact that Xenovia was more than willing to kill him, and that Kiba was the only thing keeping her from doing so.
"Bullshit! Like you fucking devils can even talk! I may have left the church, but at least I ain't some sort of two-bit traitor that goes over to the enemy!"
The wall next to Emanuel instantly exploded, and rocks made from the wall flew backwards. It was easy to see that Durandal took the place of where the wall once was.
"Do not assume you know my life, traitor!" Xenovia snapped. "I may have become a Devil, but my love and belief in God has never gone away! Even now, the only thing keeping me back from taking your head back to the Vatican is that only our Lord and Savior may condemn mankind, and shall be the final judge of all acts of humanity!"
'Don't you usually just head into battle straight-on, not following any strategies? What part of that is holding back?' Kiba quietly thought to himself.
Of course, rather than being met awe or applause, Xenovia's declaration had been met with laughter. It first started out as nothing more than a soft chuckle, then, eventually turned into a full-blown cackling that filled the cathedral's chambers.
"A-A Devil?! Believing in God?!" Emanuel said, continuing to laugh hysterically in-between his statement. "W-What type- What type of horseshit nonsense are you spouting?!"
Xenovia, though not one quick to take matters into her own hands, had nearly had enough of listening to the former-Exorcist in front of her. Raising the Sacred Blade above her head, she was ready to end his miserable life once and for all.
"Xenovia!"
Kiba marched quickly towards the girl, wrapping his arms around hers as he did his best to restrain her. "Don't let him antago-"
"You don't know what he's done, Kiba!" Xenovia yelled, hovering the sword above her head as she contemplated in her mind whether or not to go through with the action, despite Kiba's arm holding onto her. "You don't know of the stain he's left on the on the Church, one that will never fade away, no matter how much time passes! It's because of people like him that people look at our organization, our faith, and see darkness within it! It's because of people like him, that our followers are turning away and not believing! And now he's here, desecrating the House of God as if it's nothing!"
"You had a hand in doing that as well…" Emanuel muttered under his breath, not seeming to be the least bit disturbed at the girl's actions.
"If I can just wipe him away! If I can just end it all! Just perhaps-!"
"Killing him will solve nothing, Xenovia!" Kiba reasoned. Using his strength, he forced the girl to turn around and look at him in the eye. She was a bit reluctant to do so, and even used her own strength to try to pull away, but eventually allowed him to do what he wanted.
"This is not like you." He said with a calmer voice, putting his hands on her shoulders as Xenovia lowered Durandal to her side, listening to her comrade and close friend. Kiba could see tears coming down her face, tears of frustration. It was obvious that even she knew what she wanted to do wasn't like her.
"You may be right, I don't know what he's done… What I do know though, is that the Xenovia I know isn't like this… Think of Irina. Of Asia. Think of what they would say, what they would do… Think of what Issei would say."
"B-But he… He…"
Xenovia tried to make a reason in her head, but it was her heart that refused to let her do so. Perhaps, it wasn't her choice to make after all.
"Puh, weak."
As he let Xenovia cry out her frustration, Kiba caught the words said under Emanuel's breath, showing him that he was not amused. "I'd appreciate it if you stayed out of our business, if only for your own good."
"Yeah? And what the hell are you and that weakling going to do, huh?!"
The sound of Kiba's knuckles cracking echoed within the chamber, as he began walking closer to Emanuel. He was annoyed, that much was certain, as the exorcist before him had given him and Xenovia more than enough grief for one night. He pulled out his blade, facing it towards Emanuel, just as Xenovia had done moments ago.
As Kiba drew closer, Emanuel could not help but laugh at the feeble attempt to intimidate him. "Oh? Are you going to do it now? The little girl wasn't able to do it, so now she needs the big boy hero to do it for her? HA! You probably don't even have hair growing down there yet, and you think can frighten me?!"
Kiba didn't give him the pleasure of answering.
With a flip of his blade, Kiba changed the way he held his sword as he rammed the pummel of the blade into Emanuel's stomach. The Templar finally became quiet as he was instantly knocked out from the quick and powerful blow given to him. Immediately after doing so, Kiba put his blade away, looking down at the now unconscious Templar.
Xenovia was able to recuperate from her crying fairly quickly, as Kiba tapped her on the shoulder, showing her Emanuel in his current position. "Think you can help me carry him outside?"
~~*Oppai-Dragon*~~
The two Gremory Knights worked together to carry Emanuel out from the cathedral. Xenovia with his feet, and Kiba, the shoulders. Marching outside with an unconscious man, the police not far away recognized the pair as being part of the group responsible for going in, and were quick to rush towards them, helping them take the man out. Once Emanuel was nice and hoisted away by the fellow humans, the captain of the police force had been there to ask what had been happening.
"He happens to be one of the terrorists that was attacking the church." Kiba explained, showing the captain the tied hands.
"I see. I'm sorry you kids had to go through this; would have gone in ourselves but got orders from some very important people to keep it all under wraps, to leave things to you kids… Back to the baddie over there though. Did he happen to say what they were after? Why they were doing this?"
But the captain was met with the solemn shaking of heads. "Time is running short, and we can't be wasting it right now on interrogating him." Kiba mentioned, motioning towards the light that seemed to be growing over the horizon. It wouldn't be long before day broke, and the police and other figures wouldn't be able to keep this attack silent.
"I see… Well then, thank you for your help tonight. Do you need anything? Is there anything we can do?"
But the two shook their heads once more. Understanding that there was nothing else that was needed, the captain took note and left the two alone, once again thanking them for their help before going back to his unit to check up on the newly captured prisoner, and the status surrounding the cathedral. He, along with pretty much every other human there, were just thankful that it seemed they wouldn't get erased from existence for knowing the existence of the supernatural. That, and getting paid by the taxpayer's pence to do pretty much absolutely nothing at the current moment.
"Kiba-! Xenovia-!"
The two Knights turned their heads as the refreshingly friendly voice of Rossweisse, shortly followed by the other two members who did not participate in the raid, made their way towards them. However, it wasn't as refreshing as they hoped for, as the worried look on her face as she got closer to them, along with the tone she had yelled out their names, seemed to indicate that something was amiss.
"Rose? What's the problem? Did some of the terrorists manage to escape?"
The former-Valkyrie shook her head as she managed to close the distance with the two Knights. "No, it's not like that. We received word from Azazel."
Kiba and Xenovia both stood up straight. If Azazel had contacted them, then it was serious after all. "What's the news?"
Before she gave them an answer, Rossweisse looked around them, looking for suspicious characters in the crowd of people surrounding them. When she didn't see or sense any, she still took precautions and leaned forward, whispering to the two of the news she received. "Azazel got word from Rome. They think they know why the Templars are here."
"What is it?" Kiba eagerly asked. If they knew what it was, then there might still be time to stop them from getting what they wanted and finish this all before daybreak.
"Apparently an incredibly powerful witch is supposed to be buried here. Supposedly, she was forced to slumber for eternity underneath these grounds thousands of years ago, back when these lands were barren of humans. She was even supposedly equivalent to a god. If she were to be unleashed here-"
"Then there's no telling how much damage would be unleashed in this city. Possibly even to the country as a whole."
"Should we try to catch up with Issei and the others to make sure that doesn't happen?" Rossweisse questioned, looking towards Kiba who had his hand on his chin, going into deep thought of what to do next.
"Who isn't to say that they managed to take care of it already? Can't we just call them and see?" Xenovia voiced her opinion, but was immediately rebutted by Rossweisse, shaking her head.
"I tried calling Rias and Issei earlier about this, but even my magic was being blocked out by something. It would only make sense, seeing as though they wanted these ruins to remain hidden for obvious reasons."
"Which means our only option is really to catch up and tell them ourselves. It would be bad if this 'witch' was released while they were still down there."
"You make it sound like they can't handle it."
Kiba shrugged his shoulders. "We don't know what this 'witch' is capable of. I have complete faith in Rias and the others, but what I don't like is them walking in there blind."
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's move!"
But the moment they finally resolved their little problem, a bigger one had emerged.
As they stood there, getting ready to move out and back to the cathedral, the ground began to shake in a tremendous way.
The waves of tremors shook the entirety of the town. Giant cracks began to form inside the earth, as cars began to go off, streetlights began to fall, and buildings began to crumble. Something that had never happened in the entirety of England shocked everyone to their very core.
Having survived past quakes in Japan, Kiba had been less prone to the shock than some of the others in the area, and was the first to come out of his stupor. He immediately began to gain control of the situation, telling everyone to get away from the buildings from the nearby street, and get into the green fields surrounding the cathedral where they would be safest of all.
The entire DxD group did as they were told, and even some of the police followed his advice and moved as quickly as possible without falling over. Others, however, did not take his advice so greatly, and began to do the opposite as he told them, running towards the buildings nearby in an attempt to lean on them to balance themselves.
A clean crack began to carve itself into the ground, splitting the earth into two as half the city began to sink into the ground.
Some of the victims were crushed by the police trucks in the area as they lost their footing, the massive vehicles tipping onto their sides as the ground broke in two. Others were unfortunate as the nearby apartments and businesses began to crumble, most likely killing anyone who were inside.
Those who had followed Kiba's advice however, managed to reach the grassy area surrounding the cathedral shortly before the ground had begun to crack. Immediately getting onto the ground, those who had survived waited in fear in hopes of the quake ending soon. Kiba, however, was more worried than that, as he watched the thousand year old gothic building that was the Canterbury Cathedral, crumble bit by bit, until the entire thing had been flattened whole.
The ground continued to shake for several minutes, but for the people experiencing it for the first time, it seemed to be a lifetime.
When the shaking finally stopped, much of the surrounding area had been reduced to rubble. Numerous lives had been lost, and Kiba still hadn't a clue as to why, as this strange turn of events still shocked everyone.
Kiba still knew that they didn't have time to lose though, and immediately began barking orders to everyone around him. They still had a mission to do, and Issei and the others were now trapped down in the ruins. If there was a chance that the tunnels had collapsed, there was no telling what happened to the people inside. But, Kiba still believed in them.
He commanded Koneko and Gasper to try to find a way inside the cathedral so they could find Issei and the others, while Rossweisse and Xenovia were to go out and try to help those buried in the rubble and mayhem that was created. He could only hope that they would make it in time to possibly find Asia and heal those who were severely injured.
Given their orders, the small group lead by Kiba immediately began to move out to do the tasks that they were told. Kiba, on the other hand, met quickly with the police captain who had been one of the few to follow Kiba. He told him to immediately get in touch with the military or similar personnel to tell them what had just happened.
The captain, still dazed about the current events, seemed to slowly grasp what Kiba was telling him, and immediately tried to find a nearby radio to call in support.
Meanwhile, as if by sheer dumb luck, Emanuel had seemed to survive the chaotic ordeal with only a few scrapes and bruises. He managed to wake up to find himself on his back inside of a flipped police car, with the windows broken, and police seeming to be too busy to even consider bothering with him right now.
Seeing that escape seemed easy, Emanuel effortlessly broke his cloth shackles and climbed out of the car, looking in all directions in case someone managed to see him. Believing that the coast was clear, he took off in a random direction, hoping to gain enough distance that the police wouldn't notice his absence until several hours later. It was a shame that he had to leave his hammer behind, but in situations like these, the only thing that mattered was his own skin.
~~*Oppai-Dragon*~~
Before the battle began, Ravel could not help but think back on the night before.
Quietly studying away, she believed it to be like any other night. After a while though, she had begun to feel hot. Pulling off the knitted sweater she had received as a present from New Years, she continued working, forgetting that the reason for the heat was because of the furnace that she had requested to be on. When that hadn't been enough though, and since it had only been her in her room, she decided to go one step further and pulled off the t-shirt that had been underneath the sweater just moments ago.
Now, with showing off her milky-white skin to no one in particular, her breasts were free to breathe in the air. She did this, as she had accidentally run out of bras without realizing it that morning, with all of them being in the washer, thus, the sweater on a spring day. Doing this though, she believed that she could get back to her studying with ease. Unfortunately for her, it had not been that easy.
Having enough of the heat, she walked on over to the balcony connected to her room. She opened the door to the fifth floor balcony of the Hyoudou mansion, where a soft and chilled breeze came in, bringing much-needed coolness to the stuffy room. With a refreshing sigh, Ravel situated herself back down at the table she had been laboring over, ready to continue on with her work.
As several minutes passed, Ravel had completely forgotten about becoming topless as she worked tirelessly on her homework. So, when someone had come knocking on her door late at night, she couldn't help but welcome them into her room.
"The door is open." She announced, never looking up from her table.
With a click, she heard the door slowly creak open, she turned her head to properly greet the guest. Of course, if she knew the situation she was in, then chances were that this guest was the last person she wanted seeing her at that moment.
"Ah, Lord Issei! What brings you here this late hour?" She asked with glee, pleasantry surprised that her master would come to see her. Had it been any other situation, chances are she would have been guessing that something erotic and dirty was about to happen, given the time that it was.
Issei had not initially seen Ravel, as he had been looking away when he walked through the door, hand behind his head as he scratched at it. Whatever it was, something had been bothering him so much that he had sought out the assistance of his Bishop.
Managing to close the door behind him, the young man began to speak. "Hey, Ravel. Um, I had just finished talking to Kuroka and Asia about this, and well… I just wante- just… jus-"
Issei trailed off though, as he stared straight at Ravel, his eyes unblinking at the sight he saw. Suddenly stopping his speech, Ravel became confused, and tried to snap him out of his distraction. "Lord Issei? Is something the matter?"
Luckily, it seemed to work, as Issei immediately broke contact with Ravel and looked away, scratching his cheek as both of them become bright red. "O-Oh! Um, no! Nothing's the matter. It's just- I-I didn't take you to be the type to work while naked, that's all."
Confused by the statement Issei had made, Ravel looked down at her body, and was quick to have a reaction similar to Issei's. Her cheeks becoming red with embarrassment, she quickly folded her arms around her chest, as to hide it from the rest of the world.
Rather than screaming for help though, the young Phenex had told Issei to turn around. Issei did so out of respect for his Bishop, even as a part of him deep down told him to do otherwise. That part, of course, was now standing upright at the sight of the topless Ravel, instinctively comparing her in his mind to the other girls in the house.
After grabbing her t-shirt back, she told her master that he could turn around once more, continuing the conversation that he had intended to have. "So, Lord Issei," she began, her cheeks still bright red from the events just before, "what was it that you wanted to speak to me about?" She asked, covering herself with the shirt as Issei managed to slip in one last glimpse at her rosy nipples.
With the shirt now blocking his view, he had no more excuse to delay the inevitable. "H-Huh? Oh, right! Um, about the whole deal with the Templars-"
"Yes?"
"I, well, I-…" But Issei could not get out what he wanted to say.
Looking around the room, the young man tried to find something that could help motivate him into speaking. Eventually, after looking around the room long enough, his eyes onto a picture frame. In it was one of the few pictures of Ravel, along with her entire family. Again, with her family being so busy all the time, it was almost next to impossible for all of them to be together. But, the picture hurt him emotionally, because it also showed the smiling face of a girl who hadn't smiled like that in a long time without faking it, standing next to someone he could have called friend, as well as a rival, sadly no longer a part of this world.
As he continued to stare at the picture, the girl behind him spoke up, a somber tone in her voice. "That had been taken shortly before the big match."
If Issei had turned around at that moment, he would have seen a tear slowly growing out of the corner of her eye. Memories now passed began to swell, too painful to the heart. Issei continued to look at the picture, he couldn't see the girl forcing a smile, not helping but give a small chuckle as she thought back on the moments before her brother's unforeseen death sentence.
"My brother…" she said softly, "he had been arrogant, cocky, a womanizer, and sometimes even a complete and utter idiot as he ignored my advice…" her voice had begun to break, the sounds of snuffling coming from her as she continued to speak. "A-and yet… I loved him, very very much. I failed him. I failed him because I was weak. I let him die because I didn't fight, and he's never going to come back because of me." She ended, crying hysterically now as the emotional dam broke free, the last time having done anything of the sort having been the time she had thought the man in front of her had shared a similar fate.
Issei sighed within his mind, not because he tired of listening to her, but rather was upset at the man who had reduced his Bishop to tears. 'If you were here right now…' he thought to himself, his fist clenching tightly as he thought of giving a single blow across the face of the man he once knew.
Issei placed the picture back down where it had been, turning back to the sobbing girl and walking over to her. Without hesitation, he wrapped both his hands around her, much to the shock of the girl in question. Though her tears had not stopped, she had been capable of sobbing less enough to question his motives. "L-Lord Iss-?!"
Issei closed in and wrapped the girl into a close embrace, holding her crumbling form in an attempt to keep her together. She was a precious person to him, and he would do anything in his powers to give back what she and the other girls had given him. Endless joy.
The girl did not seem to mind though, but rather, seemed to have embraced the sympathetic hug, as she wrapped her arms around him and brought him closer, keeping him there until she was satisfied enough. For nearly half a minute, the two stayed like that, embraced in each other's arms, before finally breaking off.
Issei looked at the girl's face. Though be believed his little trick had worked somewhat, tears continued to stream freely from her eyes, staining the beautiful face he longed to smile once again.
"Ravel…" he said quietly, gently brushing away a rogue lock that had messily covered Ravel's face. As the girl was hiccupping, Issei said the words she needed to hear, if only for the sake of herself.
"You beat yourself up too much. You did nothing wrong, and you know this… Let me be your crutch, Ravel. Let me protect you. You're not alone."
~~*Oppai-Dragon*~~
Fast forward to present time, and Ravel was going to begin her first real fight.
She grabbed hold of her master's hand and gave it a small squeeze, nodding to him as he turned his head toward her. Underneath that helm, she could see the Oppai Dragon smiling back at her, ready to protect her should anything go wrong.
Turning back to the enemy with a newfound resolve, she began to chant a spell, ready to fight. "In the name of Lord A'lare; in the name of Lady Alis-Rah-Zor! You shall all burn within the Phoenix's flames!"
The girl launched up into the air at that moment, fire enveloping and wrapping around the youngest Phenex sibling as she flew high above the crowd. Her flames, now truly covering her, took on the form of a massive bird. The beast looked down on the prey before it, ready to set all in its way ablaze. None would escape its wrath.
"Ho-o-oly shit!"
Issei couldn't help but scream and smile even more as he looked up in the air, his first time seeing such a magnificent feat from his precious Bishop. It seemed like in a small amount of time, one of his dear juniors had grown immensely.
Using Ravel's performance as a distraction, Kuroka launched herself forward, ready gouge out the nearest enemy that was unlucky enough to be her target. Blood flew in the air as the Nekomata made the first strike of the battle, her nails stabbed through the victim's heart and chest and out the back. The other members of the enemy faction did not have enough time to really comprehend what was happening before the body had been quickly dispensed of and thrown into the group like a giant ragdoll.
After seconds of quiet shock, the other humans couldn't help but begin screaming curses and terrified pleas as they raised their weapons at Kuroka who had already began charging at her second victim, hoping to inflict wounds that would bring her down. She was, however, too quick for them to hit, stabbing another poor soul who dared to defy her.
The Templars raised their guns, firing sporadically in hopes of hitting her. But Kuroka did not care; she did not fear. She rose the body embedded by her claws and moved it in front of her. The enemy was bleeding out slowly, asking for salvation when the piercing, agonizing feeling of metal entered his back at high velocity. His wish was soon granted as Kuroka continued to use his body for her own protection, waiting for her enemies to reload.
When the sound of empty clicking came, the Templars began to fumble at trying to reload their weapons. Kuroka took this moment to her advantage, throwing the now-deceased away as she rushed towards her next target. With a single bound, she flew into the air, her claws spread out wide as she landed. Her nails sliced through her target's body like metal through wet paper, the warm and wet feeling of blood soaking her hand. A lustful smile came as she began to enjoy the battle, immersed in the scent of iron and fear coming from her enemies.
At the same time, Ravel had begun her attack as she dived down at the group. She had missed most of the group, but simply getting close to the ground had proven to be effective, the floor itself now raging like oil caught on fire as flames went wild, before landing on the ground and positioning herself to face the enemy. Ravel leaned forward, her wings bending as though she was on all fours, before opening her mouth. With disregard to her aiming, balls of fire spewed forth from her, each one crashing down on the ground like a meteor.
The enemy had very little space to move, and few were even unlucky enough to be caught in the flames of the Phoenix. Their minds did not even have enough time to register the pain they received, as their bodies became black and charred before shortly collapsing and turning into ash. The heat was too much.
As Ravel continued her onslaught of fireballs, the female warrior, Danette, noticed one of the balls heading for the box that had been dropped by the four Templars designated to haul it, running for their lives as they tried to seek what little shelter there was from the monsters that appeared before them. Not even the monsters from before, from the tunnels, could compare to these two.
Danette tried to dash over to the box to protect it, but fate decided otherwise as her foot twisted, nearly breaking her ankle. She quickly realized that the damaged skate from earlier, the one that had broken on Issei's armor, was minimizing her movement. Still, it was a risk she was willing to take if meant furthering the motives of the Black Templars.
In the quick amount of time that all the thoughts managed to process through her head, she dove, her newly equipped blade in hand as she reached out to deflect the fireball.
As the fireball fell towards the box, the silvery blade managed to make contact with it, and with all her strength, Danette batted the fireball away, and protecting the box. Hopefully she wouldn't have to do this too much more, as she realized she needed to quickly take off the skates by slicing off the leathery bootstraps if she were to fight on par once more.
The onslaught continued for quite some time, but it had to come to end eventually. The giant bird shrunk, turning back to the normal Ravel. Her breathing had become hard and ragged, the form she had taken most likely taking a large amount of stamina to control as it only lasted a few minutes. But even with her old form back, the girl was still willing to fight, her normal fiery wings flaring up once again. At the same time, Kuroka had managed to mop up the last of the weaker Templars.
Having gotten rid of her skates and now in her bare feet, Danette had planned to charge at Ravel while she was powering back up and recovering, but she was forced to turn to face the direction that Kuroka was in as she felt the killing intent now charging towards her. The female warrior managed to block the blow that came her way as Kuroka launched herself forward once more, striking at the center of the warrior's chest. For now, she would have to stand her ground if she wanted to survive this encounter.
Close by, the mysterious warrior Ferdinand continued to stand still, watching the Draconic Devil in front of him, along with every move he made. He made no effort to help his allies, ignoring the cries and pleas to help as they were taken down one by one. A single soldier who had seen the foolish mistake they had made, decided to make a run for it in the direction towards Ferdinand, where the exit was close by, in hopes of being saved. Alas, the Templar knight spent no effort to cut him down the moment his blade became close enough.
Issei, shocked by this, called out. "The fuck was that for?! Wasn't that your comrade?!"
"Comrade…? No, a soldier. A soldier who had pledged his life for his duty, and one who failed said duty. Those who retreat without the Commander's call, do not deserve to live at all."
"I see. In that case, take down the commander, and the soldiers can go free!" Issei launched forward, aiming for Ferdinand's chest in an attempt to tackle him down. But the warrior had a surprise for him.
Before Issei had even got within arm's length of the warrior, Ferdinand reared back with one arm, throwing everything he had into it as he unleashed it downward. Striking Issei in the back of his head, the Red Dragon immediately crashed into the ground. Though his armor absorbed the damage, his attack stopped immediately, his head rattling around in his helmet. It seemed the warrior was far stronger than what Issei initially expected.
As Issei continued to lie in front of him, Ferdinand began to feel annoyed at the lack of movement from his opponent.
"Do not tell me that you are finished already?"
Though it took a moment, Issei managed to push himself up slowly onto his hands and knees, shaking any rubble he had on him, before pushing onto knee and brushing himself as he stood upright once more.
Without so much of a warning, Issei brought back his own fist as he tried to surprise his enemy, but the attack backfired. As he went through with his punch, the attack was stopped just before the Templar's face, a hand, his hand, blocking its way.
Though Issei could feel that the Templar was struggling on his own, having difficulty keeping Issei's fist in place, he was still shocked at the sheer power the human had.
Issei tried his best to continue punching through the Templar's defense, but the Templar in question used his other hand to stretch behind his back, grabbing hold of the blade he used to fight with. With a firm grip on it, Ferdinand swung the heavy two-handed weapon into Issei's side with immense power, swinging it like a club more than a sword and sending him flying a few meters away. As Issei rolled away, Ferdinand spoke up.
"Is this all you can muster…? I have heard from various sources of the accomplishments you have managed to make, the tales of the Red Dragon in the Underworld, and of the exploits he had managed to take advantage of in such a short time… Defeating the son of Lucifer; resealing the Beast of the Apocalypse before it could destroy the world; even going as far as befriending the Heavenly Dragon of Infinity… Is this some type of joke?"
"Sorry to disappoint you!" Issei yelled out as he pushed back up from the ground, growing annoyed with Ferdinand's attitude. "I didn't really want to fight today. I mean, I really didn't want to fight… do you know what it's like? Having to fight every single day, protecting those that you love, when all you want to do is spend the rest of your life, lounging around?"
"I'm afraid I can't say."
Dismissing Issei's question to him, the Templar knight began to walk towards the Red Dragon, the large blade at his side. Though his weapon had done little to damage Issei, it did not matter. As it was, all that did matter was buying precious time until the Templars could make their escape.
Issei did not bother to announce his next attack, charging head first into Ferdinand once again. When Ferdinand raised his blade to counter Issei's attack once more, but was shocked to find that he had a change of plans this time around.
Spreading his dragon wings out as far as he could, Issei slowed his momentum into the Templar knight, thus missing the blade that was supposed to have come crashing down on him. Using the brief moment to his advantage, Issei lifted his arm, not giving his opponent the time he needed to dodge. Concentrating a small amount of magical power, a small but destructive beam launched from Issei's hand.
"Dragon Shot!"
The beam of power hit Ferdinand square in the chest, launching him back into a wall that seemed to exist within the area, destroying the illusion of an endless space. A plume of dust covered Issei's vision from the place Ferdinand crashed into, but just by sensing the power that had been coming from him, he knew that his enemy was still alive.
"Intriguing. It seems the Dragon has more bite than I thought."
Ferdinand was sitting in the spot where he had landed, a large hole in the wall behind him. He stood up to his full height, brushing himself off before he began to make his way towards Issei as though he had not even been phased by the attack.
As the Templar made his way towards Issei, the young Devil whispered to his friend within his arm.
"… Are you ready, Ddraig?"
[Been ready since the start, partner.]
Ferdinand walked closer and closer towards Issei, and with it, he began to finally take the fight seriously, powering up for what would hopefully be the final blow.
He boosted several times, and as Ferdinand got within range, Issei kicked off the ground, his wings spread wide once again. He was faster, stronger, and more agile than before, just like many times before. He was sure to win and end this fight, and with it, hopefully go home and live his life peacefully once more.
Meanwhile, the sound of Kuroka's claws and Danette's sword banging against one another echoed clear within the large room. No matter the tactic or move, the Templar girl always seemed to be one step ahead of the Nekomata.
Kuroka had tried to use clones to trick Danette into attacking and blocking the wrong one, but as she found out, the girl would not take the bait. She always knew which one was the real one, and would always block the fatal attack that came her way each and every time. And if Ravel were to try to help with her flames, the Templar girl would simply cut the attack down, the magic disappearing the moment it touched her blade.
Kuroka and Ravel grouped up and moved away from within striking zone from Danette, planning their next move.
"She's- She's too good." Ravel breathed heavily, sweat beginning to form and drip down her brow.
With a huff of her own, the Nekomata beside her spoke. "T-This is so unnatural for a human…"
The Phoenix girl could not help but agree, giving a single nod to the comment.
Their opponent continued to maintain her distance, studying their every move. Though she seemed to be more than alright to the two devils before her, she too was beginning to become fatigued. It would not be long before she would be forced to retreat if she wished to survive.
With a new plan formed, the two devils did not waste time in initiating another attack. Not wanting their opponent to get too comfortable, Kuroka began the plan by sending in another volley of attacks.
Opening up with her magic, the Nekomata rushed in head first as she summoned orbs of magic, launching them towards Danette. As the orbs made their way towards the Templar, Danette did exactly what the two devils wanted, slicing away as each orb got within striking range. Each and every one of them lost their energy, becoming absolutely useless as attacks as they disappeared.
In the meantime, as Danette was focused on attacking the orbs, Ravel made her own attack, this time at the box that Danette had been protecting. A large orb of fire began to grow above her head, the attack hopefully being more than enough to finish this battle.
Kuroka continued to get Danette to focus her attacks onto to her, hoping that the Templar would not expect the fiery attacks coming their way. She tried striking the Templar numerous times with her claws as this was happening, but just like all the other times, Danette had managed to block each and every one of them with her sword or buckler.
Simultaneously, the immense heat from Ravel's body continued to grow, her spell nearly complete. The moment she believed it to be ready, the young Phoenix moved her arms from above her head forward. The giant orb followed suit, making its way slowly towards the box, picking up speed as it got closer. Exhausting all her stamina, Ravel could not help but collapse forwards, nearly passing out from the fatigue brought on by her earlier spell.
Sensing the notion of another attack coming towards the box, Danette managed to get a glimpse of the fireball out of the corner of her eye, and quickly sprang into action to stop it.
After parrying one last attack from Kuroka's claws, Danette used her buckler to swing at Kuroka, making the Nekomata leap backwards to avoid it. With enough distance between them, Danette could only hope to have enough time to save the box. Sprinting at full speed towards the crate, she had just managed to get in the way of the fireball and the crate, though not without harm. The fireball split in two as it made contact with her holy blade. Her flesh became scorched, her sides being charred as the flames brushed past her.
Whatever was in that box, Kuroka thought to herself as she stood off to the side, she was just happy to get the plan to work.
While Danette continued to be scorched, she failed to realize the flames that brushed by her were still close enough to the box to set the four-hundred-year-old wooden box aflame. It wasn't until the spell had finished, and all flames gone, did the Templar girl realize her folly.
With the flames having sapped away her strength, she had become too badly burnt and wounded to be capable of moving. The fact that she was still standing and breathing against the Phoenix flames were still a miracle in itself, but for this mission, the prize in that box was worth far more than her life in her eyes.
The warrior tried to get up on her feet, raising herself a few inches, only to collapse right back onto her knee. She tried to move numerous times, only able to turn her body ninety degrees at best, but her body refused to listen. It had had enough from the battle already.
Kuroka looked on at the Templar, wondering if she should make the final blow. Her nature as a cat spirit though suggested for her to wait, to let the enemy suffer a bit more before killing her. Either way, she continued to watch Danette squirm, fighting with everything she had just to move.
"Kuroka."
With her name called out, Kuroka's thoughts were interrupted, her head turning to the speaker in question.
Ravel was still lying on the floor, the only thing moving for her being her head as she was apparently too weak to move her body on her own. Seeing her comrade in such a position, Kuroka's sadistic streak couldn't help but make her burst out laughing at the poor girl's suffering. Even at the most inappropriate times, the Nekomata continued to get on Ravel's nerves.
"Would you stop laughing and help me already?!" She yelled, the feeling of paralysis in everything below her neck.
Walking over to Ravel, Kuroka crouched down beside her and began poking. The chances of her being able to tease Ravel like this again was fairly low, so she thought that she would have a bit of fun. After all, the Templar girl was still in terrible shape and wouldn't be able to continue fighting, while Issei was off fighting the other Templar person.
Even though Ravel's body was paralyzed, it was only due to stamina and magic. Her was still very well capable of feeling, and feeling she did. The poking of her breasts and sides was beginning to get on her nerves, but she knew without the cat's assistance, there was nothing she could do. "Do you mind?!"
But Kuroka didn't listen, continuing to tease Ravel for more than a few moments.
"I am so going to burn you until your corpse becomes nothing but ashes!" Ravel blurted out, trying her best to face her head towards Kuroka who was simply laughing at her proclamation. "Now hurry up and flip me over already!"
"An excellent idea!"
"Wait- No! Stop! Kuroka! Get the tear! Get the te-!"
Kuroka continued to tease Ravel in the most unsuitable place and ignored her pleas to retrieve the Phoenix Tear inside her school jacket, Danette had managed to get close enough to the box that with the little amount of strength she had, slicing the air in front of her. Instantly, with the power of the blade, the flames burnt out. But it mattered little, as the prize inside, the Freybug dog, having already rotted for four hundred years, was already unrecognizable as it sat on a bed of straw now turned to ash, having been engulfed in the same flames that had destroyed the box in the first place.
Perhaps though, just perhaps, it could still be of use, Danette thought as she finished collapsing forward. Her body refused to move, succumbing to the wounds she had received. If she were to die though, she would die knowing she did her best in protecting the precious treasure.
But for the moment in question, it seemed that the battle between Issei and Ferdinand had finished far more quickly than anyone had expected. Or so everyone thought.
Having sent a barrage of punches towards Ferdinand, Issei quickly got on the offensive, pounding away at the Templar with the enhancement of a few [Boosts]. Ferdinand had tried to block the attacks, but as expected, not even he could keep up with the Crimson Dragon. Dents began appearing in his armor, only to smooth out a moment later, and be bent again soon after.
Knowing that he couldn't be on the defensive forever, Ferdinand tried to swing his two-handed sword into Issei's abdomen. The blade, unfortunately, was easily stopped, caught with a single hand. It was thought to be the final attack.
With his left hand occupied with blocking the enemy's blade, Issei gathered strength in his right one, hoping to end it once and for all.
With a solid motion, Issei sent a hooked punch right into the Templar's head in hopes of knocking his opponent out. What he didn't expect to happen was for the entire head, helmet and all, to come flying off.
"…Eh? EHHHHH?!"
Issei instinctively let go of the blade in his left hand and took a step back as he continued to be shocked at the headless knight in front of him. He had never wanted this, only wishing to knock the opponent out in attempt to bring him home and interrogate him, but it seemed that such things were impossible now.
Turning his head towards the other people in the room, Issei tried opening his mouth in attempt to explain, but no words wished to come out. Everyone seemed to be staring at him at that moment, wide-eyed at the fatal blow he made. Eventually, he could feel his throat tingle as he tried to speak.
"I-I can explain! I can!"
But it seemed to matter little.
"Master!"
"Lord Issei!"
Before he could understand what Kuroka and Ravel were suddenly warning him about, Issei felt a massive blow to his stomach, sending him flying into the nearby wall. How was this possible? The Templar girl was laying on the floor, and the knight was now…
Issei looked up and became horrified but for a moment.
Having followed through with the attack, the knight Ferdinand stood there, readying himself back into a fighting position as if nothing was wrong, all while his head still missing. The entire room had been quiet up until this moment, still shocked at what they were looking at.
Eventually, the silence broke.
"Impossible…" Ravel muttered, still not believing her eyes. Kuroka, having stopped her playing moments ago, helped the Phoenix girl up and retrieved a Phoenix Tear from Ravel's jacket, giving it to her.
"No, it's entirely possible if he's a spirit." She explained, her eyes narrowing at the newest threat.
And a spirit he was.
Dullahan.
A creature of nightmares. Something that most mortals had thought to be mythical, only known to the supernatural. Hailing from Celtic origins, this creature was thought to represent Death itself. Animated headless armor, given its form due to an unjust death. There were many origins for the creature, but one thing was for certain. A soul, bound to armor, and immortal.
Still, it begged the question as Kuroka nervously thought about it, watching the Dullahan for any sudden moves. Why didn't she sense something was amiss? To not know that such a creature was among them- And why was he so powerful? Far more powerful than a regular Dullahan? There were too many questions, and sadly, not enough answers.
Meanwhile, Ferdinand walked nonchalantly over to his head as Issei climbed out of his hole once again, kicking off and getting ready to slam his fist into the Dullahan once more. But his fist met resistance.
The moment he tried to punch, Ferdinand's blade blocked the way. "A worthy effort, Crimson Dragon," he stated, putting his helmet back on as it faced Issei, "But not good enough!"
Issei immediately backed off as Ferdinand tried swinging his sword once more, escaping the attack before it could land.
"It's a shame, really, having my secret exposed so soon like this."
"Well sorry to interfere with your plans." Issei quipped. Once again, Issei raised his arm after making sure the enemy was unable to reach him, and fired off several Dragon Shots towards the Dullahan. Each shot was immediately cut down or blocked by him, showing no fear or effort on his part. "But it's not like you and your secrets haven't screwed with me, either!"
Issei continued to focus all his attacks on Ferdinand, constantly [Boost]ing as he did so in hopes of getting the upper hand. He had underestimated his enemy, thinking he was nothing more than a simple human. Now he was paying the price of not finishing this sooner. Little did he know that as they fought, they began to get closer; closer to the burnt Freybug, and closer to Danette, still collapsed on the floor.
Out of the corner of his eye, Issei could see that Ravel was getting back up from the floor thanks to the Phoenix Tear that Kuroka had finally given her. Breaking off and distancing himself once more, Issei flew and landed next to his Queen and Bishop, ready to continue the fight.
"Ravel, are you okay?"
"Yes Lord, Issei, you don't need to concern yourself with me."
Issei couldn't help but smile underneath his helmet at the tenacity of the young Phoenix. "I can't do that, Ravel. After all, I promised to protect you, didn't I?"
Ravel's cheeks had become red with embarrassment from the sudden confession. Well, reminded confession. Looking away, she tried to act as though she hadn't become infatuated all over again with what Issei had said, putting on a poor act in the process. "Y-Yes, well, I suppose the King should help his pieces and fight on the frontlines once in a while, shouldn't he?"
"Kuroka, are you able to continue?"
"Of course I can. Who do you think I am?" The Nekomata replied cheerfully. "If you want, I can show you how long I can last in bed as well after this is done, nya."
"N-No, I think I'll have to pass for now." Issei said while chuckling nervously, waving his hand in dismissal at the suggestion. Truth was, if they hadn't been on such an important mission, and knowing that he hadn't gotten enough sleep the night before, he would have tried to finish the mission as soon as possible just to take her up on her offer. He was glad though that his armor had enough space in it to allow Little Issei to grow without being noticed.
"Good. Girls, get ready, because-"
But Issei stopped.
Not because he had been attacked, or even the girls been attacked, but because of what had happened in the few seconds that they had been off to the side readying themselves. A quick and subtle noise of someone being stabbed, the metal blade piercing their soft skin, followed by the quiet yet noticeable gurgling sound of someone doing their best to gasp for their last breaths.
Issei turned his attention immediately back to the enemy, where he saw Ferdinand, lingering over the damaged frame of his comrade, and his blade embedded in her back.
Only moments ago, Ferdinand had managed to pour salt into the gaping wound that had crushed Danette's spirits. Having known she had been helping, fighting along, living with a spirit like he, it went against her very core as someone of the Church.
Walking almost casually towards the Freybug's corpse as Issei had reached his precious comrades, Ferdinand spoke to the dying girl as he took his sword and sliced the head of the Freybug off. "It is a shame," he muttered, examining the dead dog's head, "that you had found out about this so soon, Danette."
"… Why…?" She managed to only whisper, her voice too weak from the burns covering her body, and the agonizing pain it brought. Her once-lifeless eyes only seemed to widen as she saw him the Freybug's head, and began ripping the ears off it. "… You…!"
Without a hint of remorse, Ferdinand nodded and confirmed her suspicions. "Yes, it's as you think," He told her, now placing the ears to his chest, where they slowly began to melt into his metal and empty shell of a body. "The spell is meant for this body; for me! Truly, to what purpose would a seven hundred year old man who brought the Templar Order to its knees be of any use to us? This way, I can at least do what I have been searching for for four hundred years. I will return to this world, as flesh and blood once more. That is the purpose of the Black Templars."
As if he hadn't left the poor girl speechless enough, the moment the Freybug's ears had been absorbed inside of him, he began to walk up to her. He spoke as he did so, the sound of dread in her ears as his voice seemed to become something more sinister than she had heard before. "Now, because you know all of this, I shall tell you a little secret. This is one I've found out as my time as a Dullahan," he spoke, raising his blade and hovering it above her lightly-armored spine. "In Ireland, we are considered to be the reapers of the next world; the ones who guide souls into the underworld. They think that, because those souls are what help us gain strength. Thus, with enough souls, we are capable of fighting even the strongest of devils, like the Crimson Dragon over there."
The moment the blade pierced her back, Danette wanted to scream out in pain. But her voice, filled with fear, agony, and suffering already, did not have the power she wanted it to. Only forced to write around with little energy she had, to try to crawl away from the pain.
After moments of that excruciating pain, the life in Danette's eyes finally faded away.
"And yours shall serve me well in doing just that."
~~*Oppai-Dragon*~~
And that's Life 5 of Volume 2. I hope you guys and gals had just as much fun reading it as I did writing it (when I did). Yes, I'll admit, more WarCraft references, much due to lack of creativity, so sue me :P And honestly this should be the end of it.
Until Next Time, Poodicus Out.