Author's Notes:

Firstly, as always, I would like thank all those who favorite, followed or reviewed my story. Your support is really appreciated and pushes me to try harder.

Secondly, I would like to apologize for the delayed update. I could give dozens of excuses for the delay, but the truth is that I had my first brush with the infamous writer's block.

I knew how I wanted this chapter to go, I had the core scenes of the chapter clear in my mind, and I knew how I wanted to develop it. But despite all that, every single time I tried to type it up, to translate my ideas into words, the words simply refused to flow, it was a truly infuriating feeling.

In the end following a friend's advice I took a step back and focused in order things for awhile, allowing the dust to settle in a manner of speaking, until the block went away and I could put my ideas back into writing.

But while it did indeed work, in the end it meant quite a delay for the story, so, sorry about that.

Lastly: I do not own either "HighSchool DxD" or "SwordArtOnline"

The Hunt Begins

Looking around the table in the nice little diner Issei had asked Kiba to meet him Kirito idly wondered if this was how Asuna usually felt when he appeared out of nowhere with one of his plans already in motion and halfway done.

Because if that was so he definitely owed her some apologies, being on the receiving end of someone else's crazy ideas while not having time to mentally prepare oneself for it was quite a bit more than just a little disturbing.

Somehow, and he wasn't really sure he truly wanted to have that question answered, Issei had managed to convince the two deadly sword users who had all but threatened their entire Peerage with execution by holy fire yesterday into peacefully working alongside them in retrieving the Excalibur Fragments.

All for the nearly insignificant modicum price of allowing Kiba to destroy one of the unique and utterly priceless fragments of the most famous blade to ever grace the world with its existence.

'Yes, if this is how Asuna usually feels I definitely owe her an apology.' He though while releasing a sigh, gaining an enquiring look from the petit [Rook] sitting by his side.

Giving a small smile and a barely perceptible shake of his head he conveyed that everything was alright, receiving a small nod in kind as an answer.

Holding back a small smile he kept his attention on the situation at hand, even if it still slightly surprised him how much he and Koneko could talk and convey to one another without ever even opening their mouths.

For instance when he and Kiba had reached the dinner to the unique sight of two exorcists and three Devils of two different Peerages sharing a table while having lunch, he merely looked at Koneko for an explanation and immediately received an two word answer that still managed to perfectly explain to him everything that was happening and why the little white haired girl was there.

"…Helping Kiba."

Fighting down a small burst of amusement upon remembering Asuna joking that he and Koneko were kindred spirits he refocused on what was happening around him.

Kiba had just told the others his story, and the reactions of the group were something quite telling, allowing him to gauge the readiness of his future party members in the quest to come.

Irina had a downtrodden expression on her face, as if she desired she could somehow correct the wrongdoings of the past, but there was also steel in her eyes. She would not falter in the fight to come, of that he was sure.

Xenovia was keeping a nearly unreadable mask over her emotions, her face appearing as if it was chiseled from stone, but her eyes were simmering with a controlled fury that spoke of her desire to deliver judgment upon those responsible.

And that had been a welcomed surprise. Both exorcists had known about Kiba's past, and more importantly they knew the name of the one responsible for it, Galilei Balba the 'Genocide Archbishop', an excommunicated former high ranked member of the Church who was obsessed with holy weapons, stopping at nothing in his quest to understand them.

It had been his forbidden research in regards to the Excalibur Fragments and the subsequent extermination of the children he had illegally experimented upon that had led him to flee the Church before he could be brought to justice.

And this same man was suspected of being allied with Kokabiel, the same Fallen that had stolen three of the Excalibur Fragments and was hiding in this very city.

If there was one thing Kirito had learned to be wary about during a quest was an apparent coincidence, for more often than not they had far more importance than one would ever suspect, not to mention the uncomfortable habit of springing up trouble when one least expected it.

Kiba's barely constrained rage upon hearing the name and the fire that it lit in his eyes told Kirito that the [Knight] agreed with his intuition, that Balba was probably deep into this situation as well.

He only hoped that Kiba would not allow his emotions to blind him and do something stupid in order to get his vengeance.

Koneko was radiating a silent determination, showing that like he himself, she was more than ready to aid Kiba in the trial's to come.

Saji and Issei's reaction was… unique to say the least.

Issei had been enthusiastic at first, while Saji was clearly showing signs that he didn't want to be here and was silently wondering what exactly had gone wrong with his day for him to end in this particular situation.

But after hearing Kiba's tale it was like he had become a completely different person, Issei following along on his fellow [Pawn] newborn determination.

"Kiba! It must have been horrible! It must have been painful! Damn it! I understand why you hold a grudge against those people from the Church for what has happened!" Saji said in a passionate tone, tears freely falling from his eyes as he raised his clenched fist to his chest.

"To tell you the truth, I didn't like you before because you were a good looking guy. You effortlessly had the interest of nearly the entire female population of our school and that just made me want to curse you or something!" He said as Issei solemnly nodded from his side.

"But it's different now! I will also help! Even if that means latter being punished by Kaichou! Together we will destroy Excalibur and avenge your friends! You also have to live on! Don't ever betray Rias-senpai who saved you!"

"Yes! Even if you are a damnable pretty boy, we will aid you! Rias-Buchou would be sad if you were gone so make sure you live on!" Issei interjected a fire on his eyes.

"Okay! It's a good time! I want you guys to hear my story! You guys should know about me if we are working together!" Saji suddenly said, his eyes glistering with determination.

"Kaichou is my entire world; she helped me and gave me purpose so I try to live up to her standards! But my dream, my ultimate goal, that which I aspire to accomplish is… to make her pregnant and marry her!"

A sudden silence filled their table after Saji proud declaration, a silence that was quickly broken by a completely unperturbed Issei, who had risen from his chair, eyes glistering just like his fellow [Pawn].

"Saji, I knew there was a reason why I asked you to come!" Issei passionately declared. "You understand the true beauty of the world! Listen! My dream is to grope Buchou's oppai, and to suckle them!"

"Hyoudouuuu! Do you know what you are saying? Do you understand how hard that dream is, to touch the oppai of your master?" He asked in incredulity

"Saji. You can touch it. You can touch your master's oppai! I actually groped Buchou's oppai with this very hand!" He proudly declared raising his fist as it was a priceless treasure. "It may be a distant dream, reaching our Master's oppai may be a far away goal. But it's not like you can't reach it."

"Saji! We may be useless [Pawn's] if we are just by ourselves. But it's different if it's the two of us. We can fly if it's the two of us! We can fight if it's the two of us! We can do it if it's the two of us! We can make them pregnant and marry them if it's the two of us! Let's have sex with our masters!" Issei proudly declared, grabbing Saji's hand's as he conveyed the seriousness of his words.

"Yes! Together we shall achieve our dreams!" Saji shouted in agreement.

Kirito simply stared as some kind of morbid fascination kept him silent as the two [Pawns] formed a bound trough their truly fractured view of reality and perverted dreams, completely uncaring of the stares they were receiving from every single person inside the diner and the deep silence from all around them.

"…The worst." Koneko simply declared, breaking the spell the two perverts action's had created.

"…Ahaha… Please forgive them their enthusiasm…" Kiba sheepishly said to the two wide eyed exorcists', apparently forgetting his rage for a moment due to the strangeness of the situation and the need to salvage some of their race's reputation. "They mean well but… please don't judge the rest of Devil-kind by their actions…"

Closing his eyes Kirito let out a near silent breath while discreetly moving his chair so he could interpose himself between Koneko and the still celebrating pair of [Pawn's] if necessary, just in case.

Shaking his head he started to focus on the task at hand and how best to proceed about completing it, after all this wasn't the weirdest party he had been a part of, even if he was fairly certain it was easily amidst the top five at the very least.

'This is going to be an interesting day, I just know it.' He though in resignation, idly typing a message on his cell phone and sending it while ignoring the antics that were happening around him.

Calmly sitting in a comfortable chair in a the shaded spot of an outdoor café near Kuoh's academy, Suguha couldn't help but feel bemused and slightly frustrated by the oddness that seemed to have become the norm of her life.

Looking upward towards the clouds for a moment in order to gather her thoughts she silently acknowledge the small part of her mind that was insisting that even for someone that had been reborn as a mythical species most of humanity didn't believe existed and was training to become a magical swordfighter this was most definitely an odd situation.

She knew that she really didn't have that much life experience to draw parallels from, but even so she was fairly certain that calmly sitting with her adoptive brother's, and secret love interest, sort of wife, his adoptive former AI daughter, his two other possible love interests, who were actually attempting to convince said sort of wife to share him with them in a polygamous relationship, and a calm minded sniper who had a serious case of hero worship for him, was very far from normal.

Adding in the fact they had been gathered by the sort of wife in order to prepare to help him in a struggle against Fallen Angels that had stolen fragments of a legendary blade turned the whole situation into such an oddity, into something so out of the ordinary, that it could probably set a record or something.

"Suguha Oba-chan, is there something wrong?" A small innocent voice called her from her side, ending her trance like state of mind.

"Is nothing Yui, I'm just trying to process it all. It's just that I simply can't believe that Kazuto-kun is already getting tangled with a new problem! I mean it has been little more than a month since the 'Death Gun' situation." She calmly replied with a resigned smile.

She still didn't like the suffix the adorable little girl insisted on calling her in the slightest, but she simply couldn't bear the thought of berating her for it, especially when she was under the gaze of those huge innocent doe-like eyes.

'It would be like kicking a puppy, an incredibly adorable puppy.' Her mind unhelpfully provided as she held back an annoyed sigh, knowing deep within her soul that she would never be able to make Yui stop calling her that.

"You shouldn't worry Suguha Oba-chan, as Mama always says, Papa is a trouble magnet. It's really rare for him to not get involved into weird situations." The black haired girl proudly declared, as if such a fact was actually something positive and worth of praise.

Giving the chestnut haired girl sitting across from her an enquiring look, Suguha wordless conveyed her confusion; after all it simply wasn't possible that her adopted brother could get into such situations that regularly, right?

"Unfortunately Yui is right. Back on Aincrad it was very unusual when a couple of weeks would pass without one thing or another happening around Kirito-kun, normally with him being right in the center of the whole mess." Asuna said with a bemused air, her tone simultaneously conveying both resignation and fondness. "The one time we had a relatively peaceful month ended with him uncovering that the leader of my guild was actually Kayaba in disguise and fighting him in a death duel for the freedom of all the SAO players."

Suguha simply blinked at those words, her mouth slightly open and her mind at a loss for words. At the very least she could take some solace that Asada-san, or as she had taken to being called within the Peerage Sinon-san, seemed to be as perplexed as she felt, while Lizbeth and Silica were simply trading slightly bemused looks with Asuna.

And that was one more thing that gave Suguha pause. She knew that Asuna was not happy with the duo's intentions towards Kazuto, a fact she had made perfectly clear in a very precise, if slightly intimidating, manner.

And yet despite that she could practically feel the bonds of trust and friendship between the three of them, a feeling that was only reinforced by the fact she had immediately called both girls for help, ready to trust them even through the troubles ahead.

It was almost as if their fallout regarding Kazuto-kun had been put on hold until after the problem was solved and they could confirm he was alright.

"I see, so I take that Kirito-kun helping me during the tournament wasn't exactly unexpected?" Sinon asked in a curious manner, already reigning in her surprise and confusion.

"Hardly, if anything it was the norm." Lizbeth huffed in amusement, setting down her now empty glass of juice.

"Our little black clad hero has the annoying tendency of rescuing damsels in distress. How do you think each one of us met him? Well with the possible exception of Suguha, but personally I wouldn't bet on that." The [Rook] teasingly said with a small grin.

Fighting down the incoming blush she could feel trying to creep up to her checks, Suguha pretended not to notice all the eyes looking her way, while fruitlessly trying not to think about a certain afternoon so long ago when Kazuto had saved her from drowning.

"Anyway, so things will likely get serious pretty soon, what can you tell us about our opponent's capabilities?" Sinon asked with a glint in her eyes, a glint that reminded Suguha of a predator eyeing a particular tasty prey.

Deciding to banish her confused thoughts about her adoptive brother, and the even more confusing truth of his possible love life for later, and focus on the situation at hand, Suguha acknowledge the sniper's question.

After all, if conflict was as unavoidable as the others were saying, it was best to be prepared rather than be caught unaware.

The fact she was fairly certain Sinon wasn't interested in her brother in a romantic manner having nothing to do with her acknowledging the truth of the [Bishop's] words.

"Unfortunately there isn't much information about our opponent's, only that they are lead by Kokabiel, an extremely powerful Fallen. But it's very likely that we shall face both other lesser Fallen and Stray Exorcists, so caution will be extremely necessary." Asuna immediately replied, steel entering her eyes with every word she spoke.

"All of you must have heard about the dangers of light magic and Holy Swords, the warning's Argo most likely gave about them, so let me tell you from firsthand experience, if anything those warnings don't do the danger of it enough justice."

"A single cut from one of the Excaliburs will give you a nearly crippling amount of pain, not only that but the light infused in the blade will drain your demonic power at an alarming rate. The fact that the Excaliburs are amidst the strongest holy weapons probably means that the other weapons of our enemies will have a far lesser effect, but avoidance and evasion will still be paramount in the battle to come."

"So in a nutshell, treat them like those annoying mobs that can cause serious status effects with a single hit?" Lizbeth cautiously asked, a hint of annoyance in her voice. "That sucks, but is not something we haven't dealt with before."

Shaking her head slightly Suguha wondered if some day she would start acting so casually about such situations. She could tell that despite the levity of her words the [Rook] wasn't joking about the matter, in her eyes it was simply one more battle.

'What exactly happened inside that game?' She thought not for the first time, wondering how much a person could change due to outside circumstances.

"This is it."Asuna suddenly said looking to the cell phone in her hand, bringing their attention back to the matter at hand. "Kirito and the others are moving, he linked up with Koneko, Kiba, Issei and somehow Saji and the two Exorcists."

"…What?" Lizbeth asked, succinctly summarizing Suguha's own thought in the matter.

"It's Kirito-kun." Silica jokingly answered, as if that was by itself all the answer needed.

'Then again, if this really is the norm, maybe it is.' She thought in bemusement, a hint of a smile appearing on her face.

"So where are they going?" Sinon calmly asked, even as her own amusement leaked into her voice.

"He didn't say, all I know is that they are moving towards the northern part of the city." Asuna replied with a hint of annoyance.

"Papa is currently traversing between blocks twelve and fourteen of the northwest part of town, analyzing his movements they appear to be heading towards the industrial sector locate near block nineteen." Yui calmly replied, a smile on her face.

"Yui… how do you know that?" Asuna asked amidst the curious looks directed towards the little black haired former AI.

"I'm tracking Papa's cell phone!" Yui proudly answered, causing a moment of stunned silence all around.

"Good work Yui." Asuna replied after a moment, an amused smile on her face. "So girls, let's move out."

Giving up on fighting down her own smirk Suguha rose from her seat, following the others as they left the café.

'It's time to see things from your side of the mirror, Kazuto-kun.' She idly thought, already analyzing how to tackle the problem at hand. 'And besides, normalcy is overrated anyway.'

Looking around the slightly rundown industrial neighborhood they were entering, the rows of apparently closed down warehouses and buildings, Kirito idly wondered if the game rule that all Boss battles had to happen on topical backgrounds was translated to the real world.

The Exorcist were able to track down the stolen blades to somewhere in the northern part of the city, but the tracking spells weaved into the very forging of the swords was apparently being blocked, rendering a more precise lock of their target impossible.

Had them been by themselves that would mean a painstakingly slow process of elimination, as they searched building by building for the presence of the thieves. But with the aid of the Devils in the party, the point became an obvious non issue.

'I wonder if this lack of shielding is intentional or a mere lack of knowledge from the Church?' He silently pondered while following the unnerving feeling of the stolen holy weapons. 'I mean, I doubt there were many Devils that would willingly tell them how easy it's to feel the power of those blades, but at the same time leaving them unshielded could be a strong psychological weapon.'

After narrowing down the location where the Excalibur Fragment's could be, it had been quite trivial to find the right place, all they had to do was to go towards the ever increasing holy power the blades seemed to radiate constantly.

For just like Xenovia and Irina's blades radiated holy power even while sealed, the same was true about the stolen swords.

Looking at the large warehouse that was their apparent destination he couldn't help but compare it with a Boss room. It was an old and dilapidated nearly two stories tall building, the small windows that lined the sides near the roof covered in dirt or broken giving it a slightly ominous appearance.

"So what exactly is the plan?" Saji asked in a worried tone, warily eyeing the large double doors they were approaching.

"Let's just go in there and deal with this." Kiba nearly spat out, clenching his fists in anger and ready to barge into the building if not for Kirito resting a hand on his shoulder.

"When we reach the enemy it will be best to allow me and Koneko to strike first, we being [Rook's] allowing us to weather the first strike if necessary, Irina and Kiba are the fastest among us so they should try and flank the enemy, Xenovia, you and Issei them should pick targets and finish them off, Saji try and support those who appear to need it most." He calmly stated, once again thinking about the parallels between the current situation and a Boss raid.

"Stay together and on alert, and Issei, now would be a good moment for you to start [Boosting]."

Receiving a series of nods, some enthusiastic, some grudgingly given, he walked towards the doors; the faint [Boost] sounding from behind him showing Issei had activated his [Boosted Gear].

The inside of the warehouse was extremely large, containers and crates littering the space turning the empty area into a labyrinthine mess, catwalks littering the walls and crisscrossing above them, the few sunrays that filtered through the scarcely placed transparent tiles on the roof giving enough light to see while shrouding entire areas of the room in darkness.

As they walked through a large corridor formed by old containers towards the far end of the warehouse where the holy aura was strongest, Kirito couldn't help but feel that the building was an excellent ambush point.

"Stay alert, the positioning of those containers is far too convenient to be coincidence." Xenovia quietly whispered unknowingly confirming Kirito's own suspicions, eyes darting around from shadow to shadow as she searched for any sign of an ambush. "Irina, move out towa…"

But her words were cut short when Kirito burst forward into a blur of movement, blades encased in demonic energy and already swinging with unnatural speed as he placed himself before a surprised looking Issei.

The sound of steel meeting steel resounded trough the building as a white clad figure clashed with the black-clad [Rook] with incredible speed, materializing as if out of thin air, a manic grin on his face as he pushed his holy blade against Kirito's awaiting swords.

"Ahhhh! No fair! You can't just barge in into a reunion between old friends like this you know! I was looking forward to killing Issei-kun after-all!" Complained the white haired red eyed man as he kept pushing against Kirito's crossed blades.

"Freed!" Issei shouted out in surprise while Kiba rushed forward, a flaming sword materializing on his hand as he lunged towards the demented stray exorcist.

"Yahooo. It's been a while you shity Devils." Freed cheerfully exclaimed even as he blurred away in a burst of speed as Kiba's blade passed through the exact point his head had been resting less than a second before.

"Oh I could feel the killing intent in that strike! That makes me all tingly inside!" He exclaimed in apparent ecstasy from the middle of an open area further into the building. "To think I'll have a new chance to kill you all! Isn't it exciting Issei-kun!"

Watching the clearly crazy man in front of him all but wriggling in anticipation with the mere thought of killing them, Kirito finally recognized the man from the stories the others had told him from before he had joined the Peerage.

Freed Sellzen, a stray exorcist and skillful swordsman, who cared for nothing but the thrill of combat and slaughtering his enemies, regardless of who said enemies were or what they had done.

Ignoring the man's rambling Kiba once again darted forth, his blade a crimson streak as he clashed with Freed's blade.

"Ohoh! So it wasn't only that light erasing sword, you got a flame sword as well!" He asked in glee before blurring into place, his holy sword nothing but a flash of light, throwing Kiba back as his flaming sword shattered upon contact with the holy weapon. "But it seems your blades aren't a match for my Excalibur-chan!"

Reading himself to charge at the first opportunity, Kirito watched from the corner of his eyes that the others were slowly encircling the still rambling exorcist, who was completely focused on the enraged [Knight] that was getting back on his feet.

"Hahaha! The way you look at my Excalibur-chan is scary! Do you perhaps hold a grudge against it? Well I don't know what happened to you! But if you get cut by this, you can't avoid being eliminated without a trace you know?! You will die, you know! You are going to die! Just die already!" He shouted in a frenzy.

"You always lacked patience Freed." A calm serene voice said from above, immediately acquiring the focus of all those present bellow.

And old man with grey hair and wearing clerical robes stood in one of the catwalks near the end of the warehouse, calmly looking trough a small pair of spectacles at the situation bellow.

"But to think I would once again meet the holder of [Sword Birth] at the verge of completing my work, how fortunate."

"Galilei Balba!" Xenovia all but spat out the name, pointing her Excalibur towards him threateningly. "For crimes against the Holy Church and the Almighty, you have been sentence to death, surrender now and your end shall be merciful."

Ignoring the threats from the Exorcists, the excommunicated archbishop simply took in all of them, a small smile appearing on his face.

"Two more Excallibur Fragments and several Sacred Gear users, including one of the Sacred Gear's which started it all, truly a princely gift. Your aid to my research is greatly appreciated."

The way he was speaking, as if he had already all but won, sent alarm bells ringing down Kirito's mind, immediately pushing him to scan his surroundings, searching for what his gut already knew was about to happen.

"You think you and that crazy bastard can take us down all by yourselves?" Issei taunted, his [Boosted Gear] choosing that moment to announce his second [Boost] as if to punctuate his words.

"Please, as if I would lower myself to such meaningless tasks. I'm a researcher, not a fighter." The old archbishop calmly said as his serene smile slowly morphed into a condescending smirk. "And as for doing this by ourselves, I most certainly assure you that such thoughts never even crossed my mind."

And as if his words were a signal, the sound of dozens of heavy footsteps from all around them resounded through the warehouse, as Kirito spun around in order to look at the heavily armored men that had appeared from the countless small corridors created by the containers and crates that littered the building.

Taking in the several score of heavily armored men that were slowly surrounding them, the large halberds they were wielding with an ease that denoted their experience and the countless symbols that seemed to pulse with holy power and littered both their weapons and the plate mail they were wearing, Kirito couldn't help but form a single thought as he lowered his center of gravity and brought his swords to bear while the others also took position besides him in a rough circle.

'I knew this was going to be one of those days…'

A frown marring her features as she walked through the large manor the Dantalion's had acquired for their stay in the city, Megumi Hikari couldn't help but wonder exactly what her master was up to.

She knew with absolute certainty that Tsukino-sama, or as she had taken a liking to being called recently Argo-sama, was planning something. The signs had been clear as day that something was afoot fron the moment they had first acquired the information about the Excaliburs theft days ago.

Normally that wouldn't be a problem, after all scheming and working from behind the scenes was practically a tradition for a Dantalion. So the fact that Argo was up to something was hardly surprising, point in fact it was the norm, not the exception.

But when the situation involved an enemy of Kokabiel's caliber, someone who had survived the Great War itself, she couldn't help but question her master's wisdom in allowing nearly her entire Peerage to act unsupervised and rush headlong into the mess.

She knew Argo cared about the Peerage, she had seen firsthand the bonds she had formed with those whom she had chosen to lead, the trust she gave them that before had been limited to only her immediate family and Megumi herself.

And she knew that she had a convoluted plan, probably backed by the clan itself, in order to avoid the worst case scenario from happening.

But the problem remained that her fellow Peerage members were still going against a half mad high ranking Fallen while she and her [King] stayed behind, and that irked her profoundly.

Fighting back an aggravated sigh she entered the large library that her [King] had all but repurposed into a command center during the last few days, looking through the array's and images that were littering the vast space in the center of the room she searched for her oldest friend mischievous form, her eyes immediately narrowing upon seeing the brown haired girl looking upon a diagram placed upon the table on the far side of the room, a large smirk discernible on her face even with the distance.

"You really should lighten up a bit Megumi, your face is far prettier when you smile." Argo chirped happily without even looking up.

"Tsukino-sama, I've just received confirmation that members of Gremory-sama and Sitri-sama's Peerages have come into conflict with Kokabiel's underlings and believe that some members of our own Peerage shall join the conflict shortly." She relayed in a flat tone of voice, not even trying to disguise her displeasure at the situation.

"You are pissed." Argo calmly stated with a small smirk on her face as she looked at her [Queen]. "You only talk to me that formally when you are pissed. So what's the problem?"

"What's the problem?"Megumi asked incredulously. "The girl's are heading straight into a fight with the underlings of a mad Fallen at this very moment and you ask me what's the problem?!"

"Steps were taken to minimize the risks should the worse happen and you know it, and it's time for them to have a taste of what awaits in the darkness of our world anyway. Besides such actions are necessary if things are to proceed according to the plan." Argo replied in a calm tone of voice, her eyes shining with an inner light as she held Megumi's gazed locked on her own. "You know I wouldn't allow such actions to occur frivolously Megumi."

"I know that…" She said in a frustrated murmur, averting her eyes. "But that doesn't mean I have to like it."

"What makes you think that I like it any more than you do?" Argo flippantly replied, rising from her seat and walking towards Megumi's distressed form. "But that doesn't mean it's not necessary."

"All we can do is guarantee that everything is ready and that all safety nets are in place should the worst happen." She stated while a far more predatory smile entered her face as she rested a hand on Megumi's shoulder.

"And prepare so that when everything is said and done our dear little interlopers can fully understand what it really means messing with our little family." She proclaimed with dead seriousness, her ever present smile disappearing for a single moment.

"So no more mopping around, we have finishing touches to complete after all." She joyfully said proceeding to the door, the sudden flash of seriousness disappearing as if it had never been there.

Letting out a long sigh Megumi followed after, knowing that at this point there was nothing she could do but proceed as planned and trust that Argo knew what she was doing.

"Things can never be simple can they? Everything always has to be complicated with you around." She stated in a matter of fact tone, a hint of warmth entering her words despite everything.

"Don't think about it as complicated, think about it as interesting!" Argo proudly declared, a fanged smile stretching her face from cheek to cheek.

Author's Notes:

Now let me tell just one thing that always irked me about Kokabiel's arc: and that fact is that he had only two Stray Exorcists as his minions.

I mean, Raynare, a no name fallen with a single pair of wings, had dozens of Stray Exorcists and three other Fallen as her lackeys; while Kokabiel, one of the Watchers, the Angel of the Stars, one of the leaders of the Grigori, an extremely powerful Fallen with five pairs of wings, only had two Stray Exorcists at his back and call? I mean seriously!?

And there isn't even the flimsy excuse of him trying to go under the radar with a small force to explain it, since his plans was to be found out from the beginning in order to restart the Great War.

That always bothered me a lot, so that's why in my story he is going to have some subordinates with him like a proper antagonist should.

Hope you enjoyed the chapter, please review before leaving.