Heroic Straight Flush
Chapter 10: Why you should never mess with Zelretch
Author notes: Did anyone play the music I recommended for the fight? I hope you did… if not…. Do it you will not be disappointed
Chapter start
"So Medusa... was it? Congratulations on the victory, it was a good fight," commented Lord Phenex as he approached Issei.
'He seems oddly happy that he son lost,' frowned the former human in suspicion.
[He could be just putting up a façade, remember partner he is a Devil.]
{I agree with the dragon, you best stay alert.}
Issei nodded as he regained his façade, "Your kind words are appreciated but not necessary. Save them for Riser, not many can hold out against my Gorgon Form for that long, let alone come alive"
The smile from the head of the Phenex family's face simply grew at this response, "it brings me great joy to hear praise like that from a fighter such as yourself, thank you. I'm sure my son would be pleased to hear it as well."
Issei just shrugged his shoulders "the thanks are not needed. It is simply the truth Lord Phenex, if I did not think your son deserving of such praise then I would not have said it."
The members of the Phenex family present just blinked in surprise before Lady Phenex starting laughing softly, "you are brutally honest, aren't you?"
Lord Phenex then gave the human turned Gorgon a deep bow, shocking everyone in the room into silence as they stared at the two of them. "Thank you for teaching my son some form of humility, you've taught him a valuable lesson that might one day save his life," said the grateful father.
{That Devil would put many performers to shame, for being able to pull off such a convincing act.}
The teen watched the face of the Phenex member closely and for a brief moment he saw his own father's grateful face superimposed over the Devil's. 'I guess humans and Devils aren't that different after all,' he thought in amusement.
{Don't be swayed boy, I doubt that the Devil is sincere. Especially considering how much of a disgrace his son is.}
'Medusa I know you've had bad experiences with men but not all of them are like that, believe me this is no act,' replied Issei with a smile as Lord Phenex lifted his head.
{Very well, if you believe that I will follow.}
[Partner, your trusting nature is going to get you killed someday.]
'That's why you're here Ddraig, I doubt many would be able to take on the fearsome Welsh Dragon,' smirked Issei as he offered another smile to the Phenex member in front of him.
[True, but just be careful partner. Thinking like that will only cause more problems down the line, especially once we meet the White One.]
The teen frowned at this but before he could question the dragon, the human turned Earth Goddess was brought back to the present as he heard Lord Phenex start speaking again. "To think that a earth goddess would be the one to beat my son, hah I never would have believed it, your kind are rather rare" he laughed, making Issei blink in confusion.
[Interesting so they think you're a earth goddess. This is good, we can use this to our advantage.]
'Ddraig what's a earth goddess?' he asked, in confusion.
[Basically they would be like tulpas, an amalgamation of thoughts shaped into the belief of what an ideal deity should be, or in other words they are gods/goddesses made from human imagination and power.]
A frown slowly reappeared on his face as Scáthach and the others approached him, 'Ddraig how do you know about all this?'
[I've had many wielders in my time partner, you'd be surprised with the amount of things I've seen since being locked up in the Sacred Gear.]
"Medusa, you are aware of the conditions that were made on this Rating Game?" asked Sirzechs, drawing everyone's attention.
"I am," nodded Issei.
"Then what would you demand? I can assure you that if it is in my power I will see it done," stated Lord Phenex with a curious expression.
"That the marriage contract between the Devil known as Rias Gremory and Riser Phenex be voided, I want her to have the freedom to seek her own destiny and happiness," replied the former human.
"It seems our greed was too great isn't it old friend?" a red haired Devil asked to patriarch of the Phenex clan
"Indeed… it took an outsider to put our house back in order Lord Gremory " Lord Phenex replied.
The members of the Phenex Clan had shocked expressions on their faces before they all gained an amused smile, "consider it done. Somehow I don't think my son will complain about that after this, however if it's not too much to ask might we have a way to contact you after this?" requested the Head of the Phenex Clan.
Issei thought it over for a couple of seconds before he shrugged, not seeing any problems with the information. "if needed, to contact me, then send the messages to Issei's house," he replied.
{Oh no…}
[Don't tell him Medusa, he dug this grave himself and now he will have to get himself out of it. It's the only way he's going to learn.]
{Throwing the chick out of the nest to teach them to fly? Very well, it will be fun to watch.}
'What? What did I do?' asked Issei, frantically, only to get no response from either of them.
"Not that I'm ungrateful for the help Medusa, but why did you chose to help my sister? As far as I know the two of you have never met," interrogated Sirzechs, as Scáthach subtly pushed Issei behind her.
Frowning at the witch's strange behavior Issei shrugged, "I overheard Issei speaking of this event and decided to honor my role by intervening on my friend's behalf."
Medusa was, is in essence, one who protects.
Lord Phenex had a frown form on his face, "you are close to Cu Chulainn's descendant?"
"In a manner of speaking," replied the former human as a knowing smirk appeared on his female face. "Along with Scáthach, I was put in charge of training him. He truly impressed me with his abilities."
{What performance}
[Modesty is a virtue partner.]
"I see, but I'm afraid I must ask. That power you used, Gorgon form. What is it? And how did you obtain it?" questioned the Maou, making Scathach's body tense as he approached them.
'I got nothing, what about you guys?' asked Issei, his mind drawing up blanks for a likely excuse.
{The truth is out of the question, Gorgon Form's power would explain the dragon's influence over that form.}
[Hmm…they think you're a earth goddess, right?. Don't worry partner I've got an idea.]
"It was a unique form of Senjutsu that I developed over the years, I don't use it often since it's quite easy to lose one's mind to its influence," lied Issei, feeling very smug until he heard Ajuka speak up.
"You're lying," accused Beelzebub as he walked up to Issei. "I studied many things in my lifetime including the use of Senjutsu, it was one of the reasons I was chosen to deal with the Nekoshou. That power was nothing like one of your kind losing itself to Senjutsu."
[Sorry partner, it looks like my plan backfired on us.]
'Don't worry Ddraig, besides I think it's time we gave that old troll a taste of his own medicine,' replied Issei with a smirk.
"That a good point and you would normally be right but I'm afraid I can't explain it very well. However, our faction's lead researcher and inventor of that power is currently here to explain it for us. Right Zelretch?" asked Issei, an evil cat like grin spreading across his female face as everyone turned to the magician.
'Ha! Let's see how he likes being thrown under a bus for a change!' cheered Issei, relishing in the brief bit of surprise that appeared on Zelretch's face.
Zelretch just had his eyes widen as he stared at the smirking Issei before an approving smile spread across his face, instantly making Issei regret his decision. "Of course Medusa, unfortunately I can't go into much detail as it is understandably classified," said the magician, making Issei's worry grow tenfold as he saw Zelretch's smile widen.
"You have a point, I suppose it was foolish of me to even suggest it. Let us just move on to the next topic, shall we?" begged Issei as he saw the magician turn to him with a fake look of hurt on his face.
"But Medusa, after that kind praise you gave me I can't just say nothing. Rest assured I'm sure our leader will be fine with it," smirked Zelretch.
"No, I really don't think they would," hissed Issei, only for Zelretch to give him a dismissive wave of his hand as he approached the spectating Devils.
[You brought this on yourself partner.]
'Shut up Ddraig!' he snarled, as he started backing away to the door, Scáthach and Asia sharing a quick glance before following his example.
Unfortunately, it seemed the magician had other ideas as he waved at them and everyone turned back to face the trio, "come now Medusa, I know this kind of stuff bores you but you shouldn't leave. After all, this is your power we're talking about. Now come on up, you're the star of the show remember?"
Issei tried to keep a smile on his face as everyone stared at the three of them, his temper struggling to be contained as Zelretch gestured for him to stand next to the magician. 'I'm going to kill him,' decided Issei as he was once again placed in full view of the observing Devils, Scáthach and Asia shooting him pitying looks.
"Now in order to explain what Gorgon Form is, you first need to know about our leader," started Zelretch, drawing confused looks from everyone.
"Your leader? Who are they? And what does that have to do with this 'Gorgon Form'?" asked Sirzechs, breaking the silence.
Zelretch just smiled, "as Ajuka over there just said. Gorgon Form didn't feel like Senjutsu and that's because it's not…or at least not completely."
"What do you mean?" asked Ajuka, storing this information away for later use.
"The Gorgon Form is the result of a special type of Senjutsu mixing in with a fraction of our leader's power. You see each member of our faction is granted a piece of this power upon joining, improving our own abilities," replied the magician.
Scáthach and Issei tried to keep the surprise off their faces but sadly Asia gave a low gasp that all the Devil's quickly caught onto. "Scáthach, maybe you best take Asia back home, I'm sure Issei is wanting some company," suggested Issei.
"You sure Medusa?" asked Scáthach, playing along as her eyes sent unspoken messages to his own.
Issei nodded, "I'm sure, the troll and I can handle it from here."
The witch was silent for a few minutes as she stared at Issei before finally nodding her head and dragging Asia away from the observation room, there was silence as everyone watched the two leave before turning back to Issei and Zelretch.
"So where was I?" asked the magician, cheerfully.
"You were about to say farewell to the Devils," lied Issei with a blank expression on his face.
"Oh Medusa, you're such a joker," laughed Zelretch, making Issei's long gone eye twitch return with a vengeance from from within from within the blindfold.
"Die in a fire," he snarled, the Devils just watching their interactions in confusion.
Zelretch sent him a hurtful look, "Medusa I am shocked and appalled that you think so low of me, now behave yourself unless you want to be put into a maid costume."
'I wonder if he would die if we threw him off the platform's edge? Nah that'd never work, he'd just teleport away. Fucking Kaleidoscope, stupid hack like ability, why can't it be nerfed already? You hear me God, hurry up and balance it!' raged Issei, as he continued trying to think of creative ways to kill his companion.
[Partner, God's dead remember?]
'Shit, you're right,' growled Issei.
{We could always try to poison that vampire. Or throw him into Tartarus.}
Issei just nodded before his eyes widened, 'yeah that's an op- wait he's a Vampire?!'
{You didn't know? How did you not know!? His scent is completely different from a human's!}
'Oh, you're right it is,' realized Issei as he took note of Zelretch's odd scent, only to flinch as Medusa's laughter echoed on.
{You had my enhanced senses for hours and yet only notices that now! There is a limit to how careless you can be}
'Hey in my defense, I don't exactly go around smelling people often,' argued Issei, only for his inner debate to come to an end as he heard Zelretch speak up again.
"Now as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted…" started the magician, ignoring the death glare being burned into the back of his head by Issei.
"Bite me," muttered Issei, planning on how to get his hands on some more Holy Water and making a special note to never invite Zelretch into his house.
The magician just continued on as if the interruption hadn't happened, "I'm sure you all noticed the similarities between Gorgon Form and another power, didn't you Ajuka?"
The Devil nodded with a frown, "it felt like Juggernaut Drive…only far darker, I've never felt a curse like that."
Zelretch nodded, "yes Mad Enhancement is much more potent than Juggernaut Drive in terms of insanity and yet at the same time much easier to control. Now I'm sure you can guess after what I've said, why they are so similar?"
Ajuka's eyes widened, "you mean that your leader is…"
The magician nodded as he was about to reply before Issei quickly covered Zelretch's mouth with his hand. "Just what the hell are you doing? You damned troll," hissed the teen turned Gorgon..
Unfortunately, Zelretch just winked at him before snapping his fingers and Issei instantly found himself upside down in the air before he was sent crashing back to the earth. "Bad snake, you know better than to interfere with my entertainment," smirked the magician, watching as Issei picked himself up from the ground with green glowing eyes.
{If I ever get out of here, I'm killing him.}
[Get in line.]
Issei took a deep breath as he tried to calm his rising temper as well as the tempers of Ddraig and Medusa, his eyes losing their green glow as the three of them finally calmed down. "And that concludes my explanation of Gorgon Form, I hope you found it very informative but alas we must depart. After all the Sekiryuutei is waiting for us," announced the magician and there was simply silence from the Devils as Zelretch teleported the two of them away.
That was the day that Issei learnt that you never try to beat Zelretch at his own game…he would make you regret it.
Elsewhere
Amaterasu sighed as she left the debating Greeks and prepared to head back to her home, having seen all of the fight with the Greeks. While it might have been beneficial for her to stay and talk with them about what they'd just seen, she knew that it would not be welcomed by the Greeks. Hades had made that abundantly clear.
"Amaterasu! Wait!" called a familiar voice as the Shinto Goddess turned to see Athena and Artemis rushing over to her.
The Shinto Goddess just frowned, "Athena, Artemis, is there something wrong?"
The sisters shared a quick glance before Artemis spoke up, "we wanted to know if you're going to investigate this new faction."
"Of course, it would be foolish not to," replied Amaterasu in confusion, getting smiles from the two.
"Would you let us assist you in your investigation?" asked Athena with a hopeful expression.
The Shinto Goddess just frowned, "I thought Zeus forbade you from investigating?"
Both the sisters had small smirks form on their faces, "technically father said not to interfere with Hades' investigation. But he never said we couldn't forge stronger ties to the Shinto faction," grinned Athena.
Artemis then took over, "and what better way to do so then to assist you with your investigation?"
Amaterasu sighed in exasperation as she shook her head at the younger Gods, "you two both know that your father will not be pleased if I did that."
"He doesn't need to know, and besides don't you want to get an answer to this mystery to?" argued Athena, getting a nod of agreement from her sister.
The Shinto Goddess was silent as she evaluated the pros and cons of each choice, 'I could use some help now that I have Tsukuyomi limiting my investigation. Plus it would be good to have someone visit the mortal world and investigate it personally instead of relying on my followers to do it for me.'
"Very well, I suppose I could use some help, but you realize that the chances of meeting the imposter of that earth goddess and you father's grandson is slim?" pointed out Amaterasu.
The two Greeks nodded grimly as Athena replied, "We know but at least this will help set us on the right path to find them."
"So where do we start?" asked Artemis, eagerly.
"The descendant of Cu Chulainn, everything started with him. I want to question him but Tsukuyomi refuses to let me do so as long as he is in the Devil's territory," informed Amaterasu.
"We can get him," assured Athena, only for the Shinto Goddess to frown at him.
"Don't be so eager Athena, that boy is under the Godslayer's protection and I don't want to have to explain to Zeus how two of his children were killed," scolded the Shinto Goddess.
"Then we'll take her out first, after all she can't beat the both of us if we work together," argued Artemis, a bow forming in her hand as her sister nodded.
"Did you not hear what I said?" sighed Amaterasu. "There is a reason she is called the Godslayer, Artemis. You must not underestimate Scáthach under any circumstances."
"We will be careful Amaterasu, trust me. No one knows better than us Greeks that Gods are not invincible," reassured Athena.
The Shinto Goddess frowned before she shook her head again, "if you two are so set on this course of action then very well. I shall keep my brothers distracted from your activities, just promise me one thing."
"And what's that?" asked Artemis.
Amaterasu sent them a worried look, "if the Godslayer proves to be too tough a challenge…then promise me you will run. We can always restart this investigation afterwards but we cannot replace your lives. Do you understand?"
The two sisters glanced at each other before nodding, "don't worry Amaterasu, we're not suicidal," stated Artemis.
"Besides the previous times she had been hunting us Gods. It's time for Scáthach to find out what happens when she's the one being hunted instead, the Goddess of hunters and the Goddess of wisdom together… would that not make a formidable team?" grinned Athena as canine teeth briefly appeared in her mouth.
In Kuoh city, later on
Le Fay looked down at the city registry in front of her, trying to find everything she could on the Hyoudou family, when she heard a sound behind her. Quickly closing the book she spun around to see her brother emerging from a portal as he walked over to her, the portal closing behind him. Arthur frowned as he handed the two books he was holding over to her and took note of the already closed book on the desk.
"Le Fay is there something wrong? You've been acting odd for a couple of days now," he asked, in concern for his sister.
"Don't worry brother I'm fine, just trying to find out who the descendant of Cu Chulainn is, there can't be many families here with a teen named Issei after all," lied Le Fay as she grabbed the books from him.
Arthur's frown only deepened, "while I appreciate you helping out Le Fay, you've been in here for days, in fact you only come out for food and to ask me to collect books for you. Don't you think it's time you have a break?"
"Don't worry I'm nearly done with my research, thanks for collecting me some more reading material," replied Le Fay with a smile.
"The original, unedited copy of the Pendragon family tree, as well as the complete history of Morgan Lefay and Mordred. Not exactly your usual reading material, Le Fay. Why did you want me to steal this from the manor?" asked Arthur, raising his eyebrows in expectation.
Le Fay just laughed, "I decided to learn a bit more about my ancestor, I'm a bit curious about her and you know that I can't exactly stroll in and take it."
"I see," mused Arthur before he gave her another concerned look. "Just promise me that if something's bothering you, you'll tell me. I'm your brother after all."
She gave him a smile and nodded, "I promise."
Arthur gained a relieved expression before he exited the room, leaving Le Fay to sit there in silence, "sorry brother…but I can't get you involved this time… blot if my fears are true"
Le Fay then opened the book on Mordred and Morgan and skipped to the section on the Knight of Treachery. She was then greeted to the sight of a scarily familiar helm on the opening chapter and her heart starting beating faster. Le Fay felt her throat go dry as she thought back to when had first seen pictures of Mordred, the mural of the Battle of Camlann painted in all its horrifying glory.
The mountain of corpses that the two Pendragon members fought on, the blood soaked burning fields, the smoke filled sky, but the thing that had burned itself into her mind back then…was the face of the treacherous knight. She thought that she had made a mistake before with Issei but this book proved it that was definitely the visage he had… the powerful green eyes and the blonde streaks that appeared on him…
He looked like her brother.
"The Knight of Treachery it's mother being the witch Morgan Le Fay," she read in a soft voice.
How was this possible? Wasn't he supposed to be Cu Chulainn's descendant? How could he have…unless he was both? After all, he had to have two parents didn't he? Who's to say he wasn't a descendant of both? The chances were slim but not impossible, and thankfully she had all the tools she needed to find out.
Continuing to flip through the book she growled as it made no mention of Mordred siring any heirs, in fact the entire book didn't even have much information on the Knight's personal life. Growling in frustration Le Fay threw the book across the room before taking out the original family tree, tracing it all the way back to the King of Knights himself.
However, she was surprised when she followed the link to Mordred and found that after the Knight of Treachery, there was simply a couple of words written on the next page. 'Family trees uncertain, evidence of heirs can be neither confirmed nor denied.'
"So it's possible that he had an heir? But I need to be sure, it's too big of a risk otherwise," she decided before closing the book and reopening the city registry to reveal the Hyoudou family record.
The descendant spent the next few hours tracking the family line back as far as she could and compared it to the Pendragon family record, only to growl in frustration as she threw both the records away. Nothing! Absolutely nothing to link him towards the Pendragon family in any shape or form whatsoever! Could she had been wrong?
"I know what I saw though…that was definitely Mordred, it had to be!" she muttered, before her eyes widened. "Of course, why didn't I realize it before?!"
After all no rogue branches from the Pendragon family, let alone one sired by the Knight of Treachery themselves, would use their real family history! The registry must be faked! After all, not only had there been no mention of anything related to the Pendragon family but also no mention of anything related to the Celts, despite Issei being acknowledged by the Sun God as his son's descendant.
"There's only one way to be sure," muttered Le Fay as she returned her attention to the history of Mordred, memorizing anything that seemed remotely helpful for her investigation.
Elsewhere
Vali was silent as he approached Bikou and Kuroka with an expression of deep thought on his face, drawing the attention of his two companions as they exchanged glances with each other. "Vali? What's wrong?" asked Bikou, after breaking the staring contest with Kuroka.
The Hakuryuukou was silent before he sighed and turned to face them, "did either of you watch Riser Phenex's latest Rating Game?"
The two of them merely shook their heads in response as Vali continued, "Azazel invited me to watch since rumors said that a member of the newly opened up Celts was going to be fighting him."
"Cu Chulainn's descendant?" guessed Bikou, remembering how the descendant had been forming close ties to the Gremory and Sitri heiresses.
Vali just frowned, "that's what I thought as well…but we were mistaken. The one he fought was none other than than Medusa."
"The Heretical Goddess? But I thought the Celts were fighting? Why was a demi goddess of the Greek doing there? Are they forming an alliance?" asked Bikou, meanwhile Kuroka shrugged as she continued drinking her sake.
The Hakuryuukou just shook his head, "no, apparently it wasn't even the Celtic faction that was fighting. There's been a new faction created and somehow they have the Godslayer, the descendant of Cu Chulainn, the Heretic Witch wielding Twilight Healing and a so called Medusa on their side."
Bikou and Kuroka exchanged another confused look between them as the Nekoshou replied, "Vali what do you mean, 'so called'?"
"I mean that it doesn't add up. Every story, everything ever written about her indicates she was killed by Perseus by decapitation using a weapon called Harpe that rendered her immortality a moot point" replied Vali, making Kuroka spit out her sake in shock and drench Bikou in the alcohol.
"WHAT?! A Earth Goddess?!" she cried, spinning to face Vali.
The Hakuryuukou nodded, "that's what they said. But, that's not the most troubling thing about this. It was her power known as 'Gorgon Form'."
Seeing that he now had both their undivided attention he turned to their resident Senjutsu expert Kuroka with a frown, "they said it was a result of Senjutsu fusing with the power of their leader, the result of which reduced her to an incredibly powerful yet berserker like state, is that possible?"
Kuroka frowned as an uncharacteristic expression of deep thought appeared on her face before she slowly nodded, "it is possible but unlikely. Senjutsu is the channeling of life force so it could theoretically be able to absorb and adapt to this 'power'. But to reach the state you're talking about…it would require a massive amount of energy and negative emotions. I doubt that there is that much of either residing in this 'power' she was given, let alone the damage it would have on her psyche."
"What about Juggernaut Drive? Would that work as a power source?" asked Vali, as both Kuroka and Bikou just had their jaws drop.
"Vali…what are you saying? Wasn't the Boosted Gear wielder…" trailed off Bikou.
"The descendant of Cu Chulainn? Yes, I know but apparently she was given a portion of the Welsh Dragon's power from their leader," informed Vali, getting a deep silence in response as understanding dawned in the eyes of his companions.
"Vali, what you're suggesting…it's just not possible," replied Bikou.
"No Bikou, I talked it over with Albion and we both agreed that this power was far too similar to that of our rival," replied the Hakuryuukou as white wings sprouted from his back.
[Indeed the resemblance to the Red One's power was uncanny, in fact it felt like an even darker madness than Juggernaut Drive.]
"Could it be similar to Ophis' snakes?" questioned Kuroka, her bottle of sake now being completely ignored as she stared at Vali whom nodded his head.
"That's what we thought but that brings up another question. Was the descendant of Cu Chulainn really the wielder of Boosted Gear? Either he simply got the power like Medusa did…or he is the leader of a powerful new faction," he muttered in a worried voice.
Bikou just frowned, "maybe we should call Arthur and Le Fay back? The situation has changed and if this Issei really is the leader of this new faction then the two of them may be in over their heads."
Vali shook his head with a sigh, "I would love to Bikou…but they were instructed not to contact us for anything to lower Kokabiel's suspicions and every attempt I've made to try and contact them has been stopped by other members of Khaos Brigade."
Kuroka just frowned, "why? Weren't they against this whole idea in the first place?"
"They want to know more about this new faction, after all it seemed to have formed out of nowhere and has been drawing unwanted attention to us. It's entirely possible that they know about us and are trying to hinder our progress," replied Vali.
"And the only known members are all found in Kuoh, Vali this plan has backfired on us rather horribly," sighed Bikou.
"I know Bikou, but there's nothing we can do until Kokabiel reveals himself," answered the Hakuryuukou with a uncharacteristically sight.
There was a deep silence from everyone until Bikou sighed and poured himself another drink, "so both the Red and White Dragon Emperor's' factions have a Senjutsu user in it. Is anyone else spotting a pattern forming here?"
Kuroka gained a small smile as she tried to lighten the depressed mood, "come now Bikou, we have a descendant from the Pendragon family itself, let's see them try to top that."
That got a brief smirk from Bikou but unfortunately the worried atmosphere refused to dissipate as each of them thought back to their two comrades. For some reason none of them could escape the cold sense of foreboding that had surrounded them, even Kuroka had lost her cheerful smile as she stared off into the distance.
"I'm going to keep trying to contact them, there's a chance one of my messages might get through," said Vali as he walked off, leaving the two drinkers to stare at their glasses in silence.
3 days later
It had been three days since the Riser fiasco and he had just realized how big of a mistake he had made, and he wasn't talking about the 'mysterious Sekiryuutei' that was apparently their leader. No, he was talking about something infinitely worse, the little letter that had been left on the doorway for him when he woke up.
Not that unusual except for when you consider who it was addressed to, Issei had been greatly surprised when he'd seen 'my lovely Medusa' written on the front. The teen had frowned, wondering who could have wanted to write to Medusa and what about. His curiosity getting the better of him the teen took the letter back in and opened it up.
He really should never spoke about contact info.
Scáthach shuffled in, exhausted after another long night of trying to kill Zelretch for what he said to the Devils, only to find Issei with his head buried into the kitchen desk. "Zelretch?" asked Issei, tiredly as the Godslayer joined him at the table.
The witch nodded with a growl, "I will kill him, I swear it. After what he did, now the Devils are looking for our 'mysterious Sekiryuutei.'"
"Just give up Scathach, if that damned trolling vampire was able to be killed then he would have died a long time ago," sighed the teen.
Issei then looked up from the table as a curious expression appeared on his face, "you know... I never did ask, what was with you and Sirzechs? I've never seen you act like that before."
Scathach just fixed him with an unblinking stare, "Issei stay away from that Devil, he is incredibly dangerous."
"Sirzechs? But he seems like such a nice guy, he clearly cares for his sister," replied the frowning teen.
"Everyone wears a mask, Devils are no exception to this. If you want to find out someone's true nature then look at the mask they wear. It is always the opposite of what they are trying to hide, whether they know it or not," answered the Godslayer, causing Issei to fall into a stunned silence.
Just what was hiding beneath Sirzech's cheerful smile that could cause someone like Scathach to be wary. 'No not worried, she's afraid,' he realized in shock as he stared at the stern expression on his companion's face.
"Alright Scathach I'll be careful," assured the teen, bringing a relieved smile to the witch's face.
Issei then looked down at his clenched fist and sighed, "I suppose that's another problem to add to the growing list."
The Godslayer then noticed the small letter that was clutched in his hand, and instantly a spike of anger rushed through her body as she stood up and quickly grabbed it from him. 'Who was it? The nun? She's far more bold then I gave her credit for if that's the case,' thought the witch as she kept the letter out of the teen's increasingly frantic struggles, only for her to blink as an amused smile across her face as she read it.
"Well, it looks like someone has an admirer," she stated, through barely contained laughter.
"He probably just wants to be friendly," argued Issei, weakly.
Scáthach just shot him another amused glance before she read a verse from the love poem,
"If I could have just one wish,
I would wish to wake up every day
to the sound of your breath on my neck,
the warmth of your lips on my cheek,
the touch of your fingers on my skin,
and the feel of your heart beating with mine...
Knowing that I could never find that feeling
with anyone other than you.
Sincerely, Riser Phenex."
"Yep he wants to be friendly alright, tell him to send a ring next time. I could use some more for my collection," laughed Scáthach as she held up the jeweled moon bracelet that had come with the letter.
The witch just looked up and shook her head, "and to think I was worried for a second there."
"Worried? About what?" asked Issei, as Asia walked into the room with freshly cooked eggs and bacon.
"Issei, I brought you breakfast," she announced, before placing the food in front of him.
Issei smiled up at her, "you remembered my favourite way to cook eggs, thank you Asia. I'm sure you will make a great wife."
The nun just gained an embarrassed blush as a bright smile appeared on her face, "thank you Issei."
'For a nun she's far craftier than I gave her credit for, I'll have to start taking her seriously,' realized Scáthach as she watched the couple eat together. Not realizing that a certain spirit of what was the lesser Grail was thinking the possible ways to play matchmaker.
*yiiiing* a sudden sharp pain
"Another headache," groaned the teen in pain, only to see a bright green glow as the pain disappeared.
"Don't worry Issei, there is everything better now?" asked Asia as Twilight Healing's glow disappeared.
The teen smiled at her, "much better Asia, thank you."
"Of course Issei, I'm happy to help," replied the nun, happily.
Scáthach felt another brief spike of anger before she suppressed it and sat back down at the table with them, snapping the two out of their daze as he turned to face her. "Scáthach, I know this is short notice but I need a favour. The school's holding a festival before the parent's day in a couple of days' time and I was wondering if you could help the ORC with our stall," informed Issei.
"Why not just asked Asia to help you? The two of you are clearly close enough," scoffed Scáthach as the witch crossed her arms over her chest.
The witch immediately had a faint blush appear on her cheeks as Issei grasped her hands with his own and looked her in the eye, "Scáthach, this is something that only you can do…no one else. I promise you'll be rewarded afterwards."
"R-rewarded?" gasped the witch as numerous dirty thoughts ran through her head and she turned away from the teen. "Well if you need my help that badly then fine, I suppose I can deign you with my assistance."
Kuoh city
Le Fay cautiously approached the fairgrounds of Kuoh Academy, taking note of all the stalls the students had set up as she searched for the boy she had met earlier. 'I need to know for sure, if he really is who I think he is, I can't let him and Arthur meet,' she thought with worry.
The descendant searched for what seemed like an eternity before she heard a familiar male voice calling out, "come and have your future told by ORC's one and only witch! We promise her predictions are 100% accurate!"
Le Fay spun around and saw Issei standing outside a purple tent with an eager smile on his face while one of the Devils continued handing out flyers to the other students. The descendant frowned as she slowly snuck over to them, trying to eavesdrop on their conversation.
"I'm surprised you got her to agree to this Issei-kun," stated the Devil in amusement.
"She's pretty easy to convince if you know how Kiba, I just told her that half the money the club makes will go to her. Although she did seem slightly disappointed once I told her about her reward, I wonder why?" replied Issei.
"Buchou, won't happy about that," remarked Kiba with a frown.
Issei just shrugged, "if you want to tell her that she can't keep the money then by all means go right ahead, I'm not responsible for what happens next though."
Kiba glanced at the purple tent before he shuddered, smiling awkwardly he surrendered "I'm sure Buchou will understand."
"Smart man," laughed the teen as he turned away, and to Le Fay's horror began heading over to her hiding spot.
The descendant quickly searched for a new place to hide but only found the entrance to the purple tent within a close enough distance. Not giving it a second thought the blonde girl rushed into the tent and breathed a sigh of relief as she heard Issei walk past her, before immediately feeling a pair of eyes staring at her and looked up to see a girl with red eyes and purple hair grinning at her.
"Interesting, you're no usual customer," smirked the purple haired girl.
Le Fay just frowned, "what do you mean by that?"
"It doesn't matter. So child would you like to have your fortune told?" asked the purple girl with a curious expression.
"Hey I'm no child! And you're not much older than me anyway!" cried the blonde witch as she sat down on the chair opposite to her companion.
The girl laughed at Le Fay's outburst, "oh if only you knew child."
The descendant just growled, "Fine! If you're so good at seeing the future than let's put it to the test! How much?!"
"This one will be free of charge," replied her smirking companion.
Le Fay blinked in surprise, "why?"
"Let's just say you've gained my curiosity, mage," answered the purple girl, making Le Fay's eyes widen in surprise.
'Is this just part of her script…or does she know?' thought the descendant with a hint of worry as the purple girl gestured for her to place her hands on the table. Frowning, Le Fay did as she was instructed and the purple girl seemed to flinch as a strange atmosphere descended on the two of them.
"A sword of brilliant light made by a now fallen God in his attempt to garner believers to him, a pale shadow of what it once was, and ever further of what it was suppose to rival now split into seven fragments, only to be remade by tainted hands. Once used by the so called King of Knights to keep the peace, now twisted into a dark weapon of war, it still remembers its hated foe, and wishes revenge against the one who planned the coup" started the purple girl and Le Fay felt her heart beginning to kick into overdrive.
"A sword made by the fey holding the prayer of victory and trained by the earth… a crystallization of the prayer of 'glory' etched in the hearts of men, its holy light now awoken once more. It rejects its shameful form wielded by a pretender carrying the fake ancestry and title unearned, creating a cycle of madness once the trickery is revealed, the earth shall know it's holy rage" she continued, and the descendant found herself captivated by the speech.
"Should pretender and rightful king clash, then history will be re-written, secrets long buried shall come alight for nothing can remain hidden for long under the sun" spoke the older girl sadly, as she closed her eyes.
"Should the shadow of the king and the true monarch accept what is and what has been, only then can he right the errors of their ways,should they not, the dark light from the tainted sword shall never reach the true king and will suffer for it with a heart wrenching loss" she concluded, opening her eyes and placing a hand on Le Fay's shoulder.
"I see…pain, sadness and rage in your future, child. Beware, for if you do make peace with each other, or with the mistakes of your pasts…they will soon become your future" warned the purple haired girl, staring off into the distance behind Le Fay with sad eyes.
The blonde girl just snarled as she slapped the 'fortuneteller's' hand off her shoulder, "you know nothing about me charlatan and don't pretend to! I will never accept them! All those people they killed…simply because their 'loving mother' told them to. They are a disgrace to the name Pendragon…just like I am."
"Do you truly believe that child?" asked the 'charlatan.'
"Shut up," hissed Le Fay as she stood up from her chair, ready to walk out, only to freeze at her companion's the next words.
"Your sins won't go away simply because you wish for it Morgan Le Fay, do you really think that by protecting your brother you will gain some form of redemption? The good and evil actions will come full circle… what one does in life is returned 3 fold or have you not read upon the law of 3? Even if it's not this incarnation, the sins do not diminish with time… they only accrue" growled the purple haired girl as she stood up from her chair.
"That's not my name! I'm not her!" screamed the descendant in rage holding her hat down to cover her ears and eyes.
The purple girl just sighed, "maybe so, but take great care child. This prediction is not meant as punishment to you, but a warning of what's to come…and you would do well to heed it."
"W-who are you?" stuttered Le Fay, fearful at how much this supposed charlatan knew before her mind pieced together her features.
'Red eyes, purple hair…it can't be her can it? The Immortal Witch?' she thought, fearfully.
The purple haired girl frowned as she continued, "you cannot run away from your mistakes much longer, they will find you. But, you already knew that... didn't you?"
The blonde witch then gave another depressed sigh, "I'm through with the past. Mordred…can go rot for all I care."
With her piece said Le Fay walked out, only to stop at the door as she heard the purple girl speak up for one last time. "Be careful child, just because you are through with the past does not mean the past is through with you. I don't need Clairvoyance to tell you that if you refuse to accept and learn from your past mistakes, then you will be doomed to repeat them…and your brother will pay for it."
Le Fay said nothing as she walked out, leaving Scáthach to sigh tiredly as she rubbed her head and pondered on the vision she had received. Out of the few things she could glean from her Clairvoyance one thing stuck out in particular, why did the knight feel so familiar?
"Looks like Kuoh is about to become quite the battlefield," she frowned, trying to put the bad feeling she had been getting away.
"Hey Scáthach, are you okay?" asked Issei, as the teen walked into the tent they'd set up and saw the worried witch.
Scáthach shook her head, "don't worry Issei, it's just an unusual customer."
Elsewhere
"Kokabiel is aware that even with the blade you're reforging for me, the chances of myself being able to defeat the Godslayer is slim, is he not? What will he do if she decides to interfere?" asked Arthur, curiously.
"Rest assured milord, the Celts will not be a problem," answered Valper Galilei with a bow.
Arthur tried to keep the disdain he felt for the man off his face as he replied, "how so? I doubt they will just sit idly by, the descendant has his home here after all."
The disgraced bishop simply smiled at him, "milord, have you forgotten what time of the year it is?"
Arthur briefly gained a confused expression before his eyes widened and he sighed, "You're waiting until the Samhain feis, aren't you? Isn't that a long time to wait? And how are you so sure that they will participate in it?"
"The boy is a recently rediscovered descendant of Lugh's son, there is no chance the other Celtic deities won't use this as an opportunity to meet him, and where he goes the witch will follow him," replied a familiar male voice.
"That still only leaves us one day complete the operation, no small task, especially since we will need to reveal ourselves to the Devils. It would be relatively easy for them to buy enough time until the Celts get back," argued Arthur, not bother to look behind him as he examined the six swords on the table.
"The Gremory heiress and her pets are nowhere near the threat her brother is, I'll deal with them. You focus on the exorcists, but even if the Celts do come back it will be too late to stop us," replied the Fallen Angel.
Arthur turned and saw Kokabiel walking out of the shadows and frowned as he considered the Fallen Angel's reasoning, 'he has a point, I'll only have one day to find and fight the descendant. Vali won't be happy with this, I don't think I'll get to fight the descendant.'
Kokabiel then glanced at the six swords spread out on the table before them, "it would seem we are a sword short."
Arthur just frowned, "Mimic is proving harder to obtain than I previously thought. It was given to an exorcist for a mission just before I broke in, afterwards they moved it to an unknown location."
The Fallen Angel shrugged, "it doesn't matter, six fragments will be more than enough. Besides those fools in the Church will simply send Mimic over to try and reclaim their precious Excalibur's in a foolish attempt… it is also likely they will send disposable agents to keep the truth hidden for a while longer."
"I see," murmured Arthur as Kokabiel started heading towards the door.
"I am needed at the Grigori, I leave Mimic's retrieval to you human," informed the Fallen Angel as he left the two humans to their own devices.
"Milord, where is Lady Le Fay?" asked Valper, getting another sigh from the descendant.
"My sister is currently exploring the city, don't worry she knows to be careful of the Devils," replied Arthur.
Before any of them could respond, they felt a familiar presence across their hideout Boundary Field and turned to the door as it opened to reveal a deeply troubled looking Le Fay. Arthur frowned as he approached his sister and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder, only to frown as she still seemed consumed by her thoughts.
"Le Fay? What's wrong?" he asked, in concern for his strangely acting sister.
She kept on walking as she remembered many years ago… in the land of England near Cornwall.
Many years ago
"What's wrong?" asked the young blonde boy as he held a hand out to the girl sobbing in the beautiful garden.
Le Fay just looked up from her bloodied hands before a snarl grew on her face and she slapped his hand away from her, "I don't need your pity Arthur."
The boy looked at her in surprise, "you know who I am?"
Le Fay blinked in confusion, "I'm your sister Le Fay…didn't mother and father ever tell you about me?"
Arthur shook his head in confusion before a bright smile appeared on his face as he grabbed her hand, "I have a sister?, this is great! Come on let's play!"
Le Fay's eyes widened, "you mean…you don't hate me?"
"Why would I hate you?" questioned Arthur with a frown.
"Because I'm the descendant of Morgan Le Fay, the one responsible for the downfall of the original King Arthur! Doesn't that bother you?" she exclaimed, her tears still running down her face.
"Nope," relied the boy happily, causing Le Fay to freeze in shock.
"But…but…" she stuttered, only for Arthur to smile at her again.
"Le Fay, I promise that I won't hate you and that I'll take care of you. If you promise not to act like Morgan ok? We're our own person, no matter what mother and father say," said Arthur as he hugged his sister.
Le Fay was briefly stunned before she returned the embrace and softly cried into his shoulder, the emotions that had been bottled up for years suddenly pouring out of her. "You promise?" she asked, weakly.
"I promise," replied Arthur with another smile.
"Thank you brother," cried Le Fay, and the garden was silent save for the quiet sobbing as the two descendants broke a decades old tradition in the blink of an eye.
Present
Le Fay finally seemed to snap out of her daze as she turned to face Arthur, "brother do you remember when we first met? How they kept us separate from each other?"
"Of course," replied Arthur, thinking back to the time he had found the sobbing girl back at the Pendragon house, much to the annoyance of the family.
The young boy had been quite shocked to find he had a sister that his parents had hidden from him, but even more shocked to find how they treated her when they thought he wasn't looking. Immediately afterwards the two siblings had become near inseparable as he stopped them from hurting his little sister, causing their family no end of grief.
"Tell me, why didn't you treat me like the rest of the Pendragon family? You're the descendant of the King of Knights and I'm…her descendant, you should have hated me more than any other. Why didn't you?" she asked, bring Arthur's attention back to the present.
"This again? Le Fay I told you, even if we share their names doesn't me we are them. We are our own person, regardless of what they tried to shape us into. You aren't Morgan, you are Le Fay, and that's all that I care about," replied Arthur as he gave his sibling a bright and caring smile.
She just took a deep breath, "so…if there was another one. If there was a descendant from that time, you wouldn't care?"
"The past is exactly that Le Fay, the past. I would judge them on their own actions and not that of their ancestor's…why is it so hard for you to let the past go?" asked her brother with a sigh, causing the witch's ominous words echo across her mind.
"…if you refuse to accept and learn from your past mistakes, then you will be doomed to repeat them…and your brother will pay for it…"
Le Fay just starting trembling in fear before she threw her brother's hand off her shoulder and rushed off to her room, slamming the door behind her. Ignoring her brother's increasingly frantic banging on the door as Le Fay softly sobbed in the corner, long buried memories from her time in the Pendragon household resurfacing.
Many years ago
"See him Le Fay?" asked her mother as she pointed to the older blonde boy playing happily in the garden.
"Yes mother," replied the young girl with a blank expression that looked disturbingly out of place on her childish face.
Her mother gazed upon her son with a proud smile before the expression devolved to disgust as she turned to face her daughter, "you will be his protector, his servant. That will be your task, your atonement for the past, your only purpose in life, just as all Le Fay before you. Do you understand?"
"Yes mother," repeated the girl, robotically.
"Good now get back to work, I want you to have mastered this spell by the time I get back," snarled the adult as she left the room.
Le Fay heard the door slam shut as she stood watching the boy laughing in the garden below while she was confined to her small room, for a brief moment she felt a spike of anger and jealousy appear in her mind. Why did he get that treatment yet she was locked up in a room?!
A growl of anger slowly rumbled out of her throat as she returned to her work, they wanted her to learn spells? Fine! She'd be the best magician they'd ever seen! She'd even surpass her ancestor! And if they refused to acknowledge her after that…there were other ways to use those spells, much more violent ways…
'No that's not me anymore, I promised him! He's not like the others! My brother cares about me!' she thought, gripping her head as tear rolled down her face.
'Yes he does care about you, so are you just going to do nothing? Just let him die? You really are the descendant of Morgan aren't you?' whispered a soft voice at the back of her mind.
Her eyes widened as her mind began to unravel.
Present
"LE FAY OPEN THIS DOOR RIGHT NOW!" yelled Arthur, as she heard the banging on the door grow louder.
Le Fay just ignored him as she wiped the tears away from her eyes before stopping as her eyes widened and she quickly thought back to the Devils. Her brother had requested information on all the Devils when they'd arrived and a frown appeared on her face as she remembered one in particular. That knight of the Gremory heiress, Kiba Yuuto, a survivor of the Holy Sword Project who bore a deep hatred for Holy Swords. Especially anything related to the Arthurian lore…she could use him.
All she had to do was point him at a different descendant and the two of them might even kill each other. Yes, she would protect her brother…even if she had to break that promise she'd made to him all those years ago.
"I'm the descendant of Morgan Le Fay, it's time I start acting like it," she muttered, a plan slowly coming together in her mind as she placed her childish witch's hat in the corner and slipped out an open window, leaving her fellow conspirators behind as she disappeared into the night.
Her face was hardened into a cruel and calculate smirk.
By the time Arthur finally kicked down the door, there was no sign of his sister and the descendant started panicking as he rushed over to the open window, only to see darkness. "LE FAY!" yelled Arthur at the top of his lungs into the darkened night.
"Milord please, you're drawing too much attention," hushed Valper in a respectful tone.
The descendant just rounded on the disgraced bishop before grabbing his collar and lifting him up off his feet, "my sister is missing and you're worried about drawing attention?!"
Valper struggled in Arthur's grip as he replied, "please Milord, calm yourself. I am sure Lady Le Fay will return here in the morning."
Arthur growled as he dropped the bishop and headed towards the exit when his eyes caught something in the corner of his vision, it was the books he gave to his sister along with her witch's hat. All of them had been thrown to the ground as if their owner had been angered by them.
Frowning Arthur walked over to them and gently picked up the discarded hat before his eyes narrowed as he saw the pages that the books had been opened on, noting the one common theme shared between them. Mordred, the Knight of Treachery.
"So…if there was another one. If there was a descendant from that time, you wouldn't care?"
"Oh no," gasped Arthur as he rushed over to the Pendragon family record and sure enough found it open on the Knight of Treachery itself.
Suddenly his sister's behavior of the past few days made a horrible amount of sense, but why didn't she tell him? Did she want to run off and join them? Heaven knows that the main family had treated her badly enough that it wasn't an impossibility.
"No, she promised me…there has to be another reason," he muttered, before his eyes widened.
If the descendant of Mordred was treated the same way Le Fay had been before he had found her…then it was clear that he would harbor no small amount of hatred for the descendant of the King of Knights. With a grim expression on his face Arthur gripped Caliburn tightly and headed towards the door, if this descendant wanted to use his sister to get to him then so be it.
"Milord where are you going?" asked Valper in concern.
"To find my sister and then Mimic, and once I do Valper, you will reforge Excalibur for me. Do you understand?" growled Arthur as Caliburn began glowing with barely restrained power,
"B-but Kokabiel said to wait for the Samhain feis before I do tha-" stuttered Valper fearfully, only to cut himself off as a glowing Caliburn was shoved against his neck.
The ex-bishop swallowed fearfully before he slowly nodded his head, "of course Milord, I shall begin my preparations."
Arthur then removed his sword from the bishop's neck, causing Valper to breathe a sigh of relief as the descendant left the room. Arthur just growled, if the descendant of Mordred was so intent on repeating the Battle of Camlann that they would stoop so low as to use his sister…then he would be happy to oblige them.
Kuoh international airport
"So Irina, how does it feel to be back here after all these years?" asked Xenovia as they left the airport.
"It's great, I can't wait to see Issei again," replied Mimic's wielder with a happy smile.
Chapter end
Preview of next chapter:
"I am the wielder of Mimic… a fragment of Excalibur "
"wait… hold on… you were a girl?"
"DIE DOG OF THE PENDRAGON HOUSE!"
"HAMMER OF THE WIND KING!"
"You are not The king… you are only the shadow of him…"
"I AM THE KING… DIE YOU PRETENDER!"
"King Arthur could never sire any heirs… as he was a woman"
"B….brother?"
"it seems time has done well for your soul sister… but you still have not changed the ways you go about doing things"
"no… not Mordred… sister… are you?"
{Listen kid… I will lend you my strength… but I will have to take over… your way of thinking is naive and will kill us… I will guide your body and maximize results… I will show you why you should never disregard assassin class servants}
"What...what kind of human are you?!"
"is because Gods like you two that humanity had always bow for scrapes off the table… you Gods created heroes who perpetuated the glory of slaughter and spilling of blood… I will show you that even men can kill gods, I will show you the true hell where despair so profound that naught compares… welcome to the hell called war"
"you just can't kill them… it will create problems for the other Pantheon's and for the Devils as well"
{Collateral damage is to be expected}
"It seems Zelretch is at it again… welcome… I am here to help reach the potential of the Heroic Spirits… I shall do a alteration of the soul so that your potential can increase and use the abilities more smoothly and without wearing yourself out"
Okay after this chapter it will divert a lot… it seems Lefay has misinterpreted the prediction and many will not get why I changed to prediction… why? I will give you a hint… it has to do with Avalon and a promise (not necessarily the FSN with Shirou but the actual promise about England needing the once and future King)... you people need to read other stuff besides fanfiction XD. It also explains why who a certain descendant is not really a descendant of said king.
I am also taking some liberties that may change some canon DxD things but that's okay… if anyone doesn't like how things are going or found an error with the reasoning behind certain things let me know… also I need to know… how do you call that antenna hair thing that Saber has? I keep forgetting.
Also… ah yes… Medusa and her sister's could be argued to be a superior form of a tulpa… they are beings created by the collective power of the humans desiring better Gods… if anyone wishes to know more look it up on Google…. It is a hindu practice but it would not be strange to have something similar on another culture and thus settled on the tulpa theory since it reflects it best and explains why Medusa become a monster later on… as the Gods spread the rumor of her being a monster and thus changing her nature... Also someone was mad about the Gorgon Form not being canon and giving me grief for that… Gorgon Form IS accessible if she uses "Monstrous Strength" but using the Boosted Gear to create the necessary power needed to supercede the requirements would also work by using a pseudo Juggernaut Drive effect… Archer will be giving a lot of grief to Issei due to the liberal uses of Noble Phantasms.. though he still cannot hear the names of them as his connection with him is not so strong yet.
I will be making a chart that explains the closeness of bonds Issei has with the servants.
Also be ready as a certain red haired magus will make an appearance next chapter and REALLY make the story shape on its own and become more dissimilar
Also, this Saturday 16th is my bday... if anyone wants to please donate to my campaign to help me get a laptop... or wish me a happy bday... I am in a country with no friends.