A/N: Not too much to say, other than I hope you enjoy.
How to Annoy an Angel
Method #1:
"TOSAKA, ILYASVIEL!" Gallium screamed from in front of the refrigerator. As the two girls started down the stairs, Gallium snatched up the object of his annoyance and turned to face both Rin and Ilya. He stared right into Rin's half lidded eyes, obviously having just woken up, and the innocent looking Ilya, "What is this?" He held up said object, his voice threatening.
Rin glanced between Gallium and the object, "You're referring to that in your hand right?" Her eyes snapped to Ilya when she saw the older bodied girl wave her arm frantically, 'I'm never going to get used to that.'
"I know, I know," She paused to put a wise look on her face, "that's a carton of Orange Juice."
Gallium's eye twitched, "Very good, now what do you notice about this particular carton?" He turned it upside down, cap off. Rin's eyebrow rose when nothing came out of it, not even a single drop.
"Um, it's Tropicana Orange Juice?" Rin answered. She fought to keep the smirk from surfacing when she saw the clueless look on Ilya's face, and the murder dripping from Gallium's glare.
"It's empty?" Ilya stated.
"That's right, it's empty," Gallium took a deep breath, "HOW DO YOU EXPECT ME TO LEAD THOUSANDS OF ANGELS INTO BATTLE AGAINST THE KING OF DEMONS when I can't get my daily dose of VITAMIN C!?" Rin and Ilya stared at Gallium, trying not to laugh as he continued his rant about how two people could guzzle down an entire carton of orange juice without so much as considering his health. However, when the proud angel reverted to crying over the empty carton, Rin couldn't hold it in any longer, "It's alright you poor little thing, the mean people won't hurt you ever again." Gallium rubbed the carton like a maniac. As for Ilya, well… Ilya took a picture and hid it for later use, snickering all the way.
Moral of the story: Don't mess with Gallium's vitamin intake, it really gets to him.
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Tebel, a world that holds many wanders, much of which have been the substance of legend and myth among the tongues of men. In this world, there are two forces that have turned Tebel into a battlefield. On the one hand, there are the angels. They are led by the Angelic Generals: Gallium Tenbatsu, Amadeus Fafnir, Sakura Einsmark, Omnus and Michael Arcs. Each general leads legions of angels into battle against the hordes of Hell.
On the other side, were the demons of Satan. These creatures of darkness are divided into groups, each one as dangerous as the next. There are the Hounds, the four-legged foot-soldiers of Satan's forces. Then there are…
The smell of battle filled the lungs of all who stood in the large gorge. Rain poured down and covered the grey and brown colored soil, mixing with the surface to form mud and muck. The sound of rain hitting metal echoed throughout the very silent gorge as two forces faced each other, lined up like the armies of old. On one side stood angels, the warriors in white armor mixing with the warriors draped in black and gold. Near the front of the angelic ranks stood a solid line of golden clad warriors, each baring a spear with a blade-like head, a short naginata; these angels stood like statues, unfazed by the towering demons that made their way to them. These demons dwarfed the growling Hounds, their towering bulk looming over the still angels.
One such giant bent down to face one of the golden clad angels eye-to-eye and roared in his face. Though the demon's breath smelled of death itself, the angel remained still, awaiting the order from his General.
… the Brutes, towering monsters of pure muscle and might. They stand at a gargantuan ten feet tall, their muscles making them broad and intimidating. It is said that the thick necks of a Brute are as hard to cut through as solid steel. The third, and perhaps more dangerous demon, is the Crimson, their bodies covered by a flowing crimson cloak. Then there was the Dark Angel, followers of Lucifer that number in the hundreds of thousands. These creatures are led by Generals of their own.
Out of the ranks of demons, a giant, dwarfing the roaring Brute, stepped up, "Where are you, Amadeus Fafnir, come so I may crush your skull into nothing." The creature flexed his huge muscles, showing off the white war-paint and various scars that littered his dark colored skin.
Answering the call, Fafnir removed his hood, exposing his face for the demons to see, "Welly welly well, if it ain't Kongol, too bad your mug hasn't gotten any less ugly." Fafnir snickered when the demon growled in anger.
There is Kongol, the General who leads the Brutes, Gomorrah the General of the Hounds, Slade who leads the Crimson, and finally Lucifer who leads the Dark Angels. These demons are equal in terms of power compared to the angelic generals, forcing this war into an even deeper stalemate.
"Kill the sky dwellers!" Kongol ordered the horde of demons forward. Fafnir stepped back and snapped his fingers, the angels pointing their spears forward. The Hounds, who led the charge, ran headfirst into the spears, dying instantly. As the Brutes approached, Fafnir ran out from behind the frontline, his men following closely. The hazel-eyed angel wrestled a Brute to the ground and snapped its thick neck, picking up the now limp body to use as a shield. It wasn't very long before Kongol and the remaining demons fled, leaving Fafnir and his men to their victory.
This world holds many secrets, many creatures, and many dangers. Be careful, for you never know when something might be stalking you.
CH.21: Into the Fire
The first thing Shirou noticed through the darkness that filled his eyes was pain. His arm and head felt like they'd break off at any moment, and he could feel himself seating in response to a drastic rise in normal temperature. Seeing how he couldn't open his eyes quite yet, Shirou tried to remember what happened before his vision went dark. He remembered escorting Arturia to the extraction point and he remembered actually going through the door of light, 'But what happened after that?' Shirou decided it would be better not to ask, instead he opened his eyes. His sight was met with a very dim cave of some sort, or underground passage. He looked up to see the ceiling of said "cave" was pretty high up, so he could easily stand up.
It took him two tries, but Shirou eventually stood up and looked around. His eyes were still not up to full seeing ability, so he stepped carefully through his dim surroundings, hoping to find the others. He glanced down to see a spot look strangely different from the surroundings ground, and he immediately knew who it was, "Arturia?" He knelt down beside her head, hoping he wouldn't step on her, "Arturia, wake up." He felt around for her shoulder and shook it when he found it.
"S-Shirou," Arturia's eyes slowly blinked open upon feeling someone shake her. She dragged herself to her knees, trying to ignore the booming pain in her right arm. She gently felt it and cursed when she felt something warm and wet drip from her injury, "Shirou, are you alright?"
Shirou nodded, "Yeah, a bit sore but fine. Is your arm bleeding?" Shirou tore a bit of his sleeve and tried to make some sort of bandage. Arturia, though angry at herself for getting hurt in the first place, thanked him and felt for his arm. She smiled slightly when Shirou took her hand and stood up, helping her do the same.
They were both about to start walking when a flash of light illuminated their surroundings, revealing the locations of their friends. The ball of light continued to light up everything as Kat walked over to Arturia to inspect her arm, the others exchanging looks.
"What took you guys so long?" Shirou asked in all seriousness. Hadn't they all stepped through around the same time?
Upon hearing the question, Gallium turned to glare at one Rider, "We got lost, something about knowing you were in the completely opposite direction." The lavender haired woman turned away indignantly and rolled her eyes.
"Fine, I was wrong, it's bad enough without you rubbing it in." She growled when a certain somebody held a hand up to her face.
Lancer grinned widely and shook said hand, "You said it Rider, not me. Now pay up, we had a deal." Rider sighed heavily and slapped two dollars into Lancer's palm, mumbling something about men before she fell silent. As for Lancer, he chuckled before placing the two dollars into his pocket, "Nice doing business with you miss, come again any time."
"If we're done making light of the situation," Arturia interrupted as she flexed her newly healed arm, "we should find our way out of here."
"Um," Everyone looked at Ilya as she looked around, "where exactly is 'here'?" She tilted her head to the side as everyone turned to look at Gallium, who was glaring into the darkness.
"I don't recognize this place at all." Heracles answered, his eyes shooting from left to right, something didn't smell right to him.
"It appears my subordinates completely effed up the teleportation, so we have to get out of this place… which I know not of." He looked around as everyone exchanged concerned looks.
"Wonderful," Rin shook her head, "we've only been in this world for a few minutes and we're already in hot water."
Gallium and Kat both stiffened upon hearing Rin's words, "Hot," they both said at the same time, "oh crud." Gallium and Kat scrambled forward, going in the direction that grew more scolding hot. In no less then a few seconds, they screeched to a halt, "Oh… crud!"
"What is it?" Bazett and the others eventually caught up to them. When they saw what Gallium and Kat were staring at, they felt their stomachs drop. There was a pool of molten lave down a large pit. Luckily, it was far enough away that it did nothing more than make their environment uncomfortably hot.
"So we're in a volcano, this could be worse you know." Bazett quickly slapped Lancer over the head, causing him to utter a small cry of pain and look at her.
The purple-haired woman glared at him, "You know things always get worse when people say that, it's a jinx." Everyone stopped whatever they were doing, whether it be thinking about where they were or scolding another, when an all too familiar roar echoed from above.
Shirou's throat suddenly went dry when a Demon Dragon swooped down and started stretching its wings as it flew through the air. However, everyone's misfortune didn't end there, as three more swooped down to join their sibling in his aerial frolicking, "Gallium, where exactly are we?" Shirou asked the question on everyone's mind as four more dragons became visible, followed by more. In no time, the entire chamber in front of them was full of healthy Demon Dragons, noting how they resembled bees flying around their hive.
"The Dark Mountains, one of the three nests of the Demon Dragons." Gallium motioned for everyone to remain quiet, glad that none of the dragons seemed to notice their presence.
"Everyone move back slowly and quietly, they won't notice if we make no noise." Kat gently pushed Ilya back, her eyes focused on the dragons as they continued flying around the chamber, obviously enjoying the searing heat. However, Arturia and Lancer froze when they heard Rider take a deep breath. The looked over in horror to see her trying to hold in a sneeze.
"Oh crap," Archer watched as everything seemed to happen in slow motion. Arturia and Lancer both tried to get to Rider so they could attempt to silence her, but it was way too late.
"Achoo," Rider sneezed loudly, the sound echoing through the chamber ahead of them. The Demon Dragons stopped to look at the source, hundreds of eyes staring in surprise of their unexpected guests.
"Today is just not your day is it Rider?" The blue-haired warrior stared at the blushing woman in pity, amusement and… well more amusement.
"Everybody run!" Shirou and the others responded immediately, sprinting as fast as they could in the opposite direction. The Demon Dragons all looked at each other before the shock wore off, the oldest one roaring in anger. The swarm of powerful creatures flew through various holes and tunnels, some going directly after the escaping warriors.
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"Where are we going!?" Rin asked suddenly, noticing that they seemed to be going in random directions. Not to mention that it seemed to be getting hotter again.
"Rin, perhaps it would be best to just focus on running for now." Archer glanced behind him, only to see the anxious flames of their pursuers illuminate the tunnel. They were still quite a ways ahead, but it was still too close for anyone's comfort.
"Take a left," Gallium yelled back as he dove in said direction. The others followed promptly, breathing a sigh of relief when they saw two Demon Dragons shoot past the hole they jumped through. However, they now found themselves in an identical tunnel with no signs of nearing the surface.
Ilya huffed in frustration, "This sucks, how are we supposed to navigate through this place while running from those dragons?" She stood up and brushed herself off, still a bit miffed by the entire situation. She let out a growl and stomped her foot in frustration. Everyone stopped when they heard a cracking sound and immediately looked at the spot where Ilya had let out her ill feelings. It was like someone fast forwarded a tape as Ilya fell through the ground, letting out a scream of surprise.
"Ilya," Shirou went to try and do something, but Arturia quickly stopped him. He was about to say something to her, but a flash of white passed him and jumped down the hole after the plummeting girl.
"Gallium," Kat held herself from going after them, instead doing what she knew Gallium would order, "Come on, they'll be fine." She urged everyone to continue forward, keeping alert for any signs of Demon Dragons.
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Gallium cursed as he jumped down the hole Ilya had made and fallen through. It took only a second for him to spot her falling form and extended his wings. He flapped his wings once, rocketing forward and approaching Ilya. He reached out for her extended hand, surprised that she wasn't screaming or anything. When he felt her hand was in reach, he grasped it and yanked her into his arms. However, doing this completely disrupted what little wind he had under his wings, making him lose control.
"Hang on Ilya," He pressed her closer to him as he slammed into the rocks, swearing he heard his shoulder pop. He could see sparks fly from the impact of the rocks and his armor as he bounced from side to side, slamming into the walls until he neared a tunnel. He gathered all he had and delivered a strong beat of his wings, forcing them into the tunnel. Upon hitting the ground, Gallium's hold on Ilya slipped, sending the crimson-eyed girl deeper into the tunnel.
Ilya hissed as she finished skidding to a stop, rolling onto her knees so she could get up, "Thanks Gallium, though the landing could've been softer." She was about to smile until she noticed Gallium hadn't responded. She looked at his limp form and slowly made her way over to him, "Gallium?" There was still no reply. She knelt down beside him and turned him onto his back, gasping when she did. Gallium had somehow hit his head against something, blood oozing out from a gash on his head. His white hair was already being stained crimson as Ilya tried to think of what to do.
'Think Ilya think,' She quickly held her ear to his mouth, sighing in relief when she felt him breath, 'Alright, he's still alive, just unconscious.' Ilya looked around for anything useful, but pouted when she saw nothing that wasn't hard. Her eyes turned to the cloth that hung from Gallium's waist and immediately took it up, tearing it into strips to use as gauze. Her movements were clumsy, having only the memories of Leysritt and Sella bandaging her few scrapes and cuts. She prayed she was doing the right things and positioned Gallium's head on her lap, 'Alright, now what?'
The angelic girl was truly stumped now. It wouldn't be a good idea to sit around for something to happen, seeing how Demon Dragons infested this place. It also wasn't too smart to simply leave Gallium and look for help either, 'No doubt the scent of blood won't go unnoticed too.' Ilya thought solemnly. She took a deep breath and hoisted Gallium up, surprised by how light he was, 'I guess moving is the best option.'
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"What are we going to do about Ilya and Gallium?" Shirou asked as they all rounded a corner. They had been moving at a brisk pace for a while now, finding confidence in the drop in temperatures. He looked down slightly when he saw the concern flash through Kat's eyes.
"They'll be fine," She glanced around quickly, "Gallium knows what he's doing."
"We have our own problems," Archer caught everyone's attention, "there's a dragon ahead and behind us." The others held in a curse, they were trapped.
"Which one's closer?" Lancer held his legendary weapon tightly; he wasn't going down without a fight. He instinctually stepped in front of Bazett defensively, the ladder baring down for any sort of attack. Shirou and Arturia did the same, standing back-to-back at the ready. Heracles, angered by the absence of Ilya, was ready to rip anything that came from either side. Rider and Kat smoothly turned from front to back, awaiting Archer's reply. He had been calculating the entire time, as well as figuring how he could best protect Rin.
"The back, he's making a move!" Archer traced a strange javelin that had a cone like head. Its staff was sleek and solid, while the spearhead was blood red at the base and faded to a fierce orange. He spun the javelin and threw it with all his strength. The javelin cut through the air and towards the charging Demon Dragon. It skillfully avoided a direct hit, but when the point of the spear dug into the wall, it began to glow. If the dragon spoke in human tongue, it would've let out a loud curse as the javelin exploded, sending shrapnel into the dragon's face.
"Here it comes!" Arturia raised Caliburn defensively, but her hand was ready to whip out Excalibur at any and all times.
Rin gazed into the dim distance, noticing a glow that looked familiar to her. She'd only seen a glimpse of it before, but it still stuck in her mind what it was, "It's going to blow its fire, do something!"
Archer gritted his teeth in annoyance. In an open area, Demon Dragons weren't as dangerous, but in closed places, it need only to fill the place with its fire and the deed is done, "Get down!"
The flood of fire stampeded towards them, filling the tunnel with intense flames. However, just before Lancer and Bazett were engulfed, a blue shield of mana blocked the flames completely. As everyone marveled at the extraordinary sight, Archer was busy looking towards where the other dragon was, "No way."
"The other dragon, it's here." Heracles felt at ease despite how true his statement was. That's when a dragon with white colored scales came out of the darkness, its eyes glowing a bright blue. It let out a loud roar of supremacy as the Demon Dragon hissed in anger. Puffing out its chest, the new dragon exposed the swelling sacks on its chest as sparks of energy gathered inside it. The Demon Dragon, knowing what was coming, tried to turn and escape, but it was too late. The white dragon let out a beam of intense mana, blowing its opponent into nothing but ashes and dust.
"Uh, wow?" Lancer wasn't sure what to say. He stiffened when the dragon knelt down on all fours. He soon calmed down when Archer hopped onto its large back, showing just how big the dragon was. It easily held the majority of the escaping warriors, Heracles and Rider choosing to just follow.
The dragon roared and barreled forward, making sure to go slow enough for Heracles to keep up, Rider deciding to sit on the giant's shoulder. After a few twists and turns, the warriors came to another hot chamber. However, they all sighed in relief when they saw another white dragon waiting for them. Heracles and Rider mounted the beast, gladly adding another allie to their escape party.
'Please hurry Gallium, this place isn't safe.' Kat glanced back into the dark tunnels as the two dragons took flight, whipping through the remaining channels and holes skillfully.
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Ilya stopped walking when she felt the ground rumble. She tried not to fall as the tunnel shifted beneath her, bur she soon dropped to her knees. The now even more frustrated Ilyasviel growled and stood up. She kept walking forward with a determined look on her face; she would not die here after all this!
"Grr," Ilya stopped suddenly when she heard a squeaky roar. She whipped around to glare at whatever it was, but her gaze immediately softened. She stared at a baby Demon Dragon as it tried its hardest to roar at her again. Ilya giggled when the roar came out as a hiccup, it tiny form flying up and falling by the hiccup's force. Ilya giggled gain, but it soon stopped as the tunnel shook again, causing her to wobble in surprise. She glanced down at the little dragon as it tripped over its own feet, trying to stand up through the quake.
Crack
The dragon and Ilya looked up as the ceiling cracked, a chunk of it falling towards the both of them. Ilya yelped and instinctively held up a hand, not expecting what would happen next. After nothing happened, Ilya cracked open one of her tightly shut eyes, only to see that she was holding the boulder-sized chunk of rock with one hand, "How the heck," Her question was silenced as the tunnel quaked again. She swiftly tossed the heavy boulder aside and scooped up the baby dragon without thinking, dashing out of the tunnel as fast as her feet would take her.
Ilya noticed an approaching figure, but she really didn't care at the moment, seeing how the tunnel was collapsing just behind her and everything. She shot past some strange white dragon, its eyes nearly popping out of its head when it saw her. The white dragon looked from Ilya to the collapsing tunnel and let out a strange choking sound. In no time, the dragon was running just beside Ilya, not caring that it was there to give her a ride.
'Oh crud!' Ilya tried to stop as she approached a drop off that led straight down into a channel of magma, but it wasn't working. The young dragon, which had somehow snaked its way to her shoulder, let out a croaking scream as it saw their approaching doom's edge. However, the dragon beside them smoothly scooped them onto its back with its mighty tail and extended its wings. Ilya smiled and patted the dragon in thanks, setting Gallium's limp body down in a secure position for the moment. Ilya watched in amazement as the dragon barrel-rolled and banked its way to the upper levels of the inner mountains, its white, feathery wings resisting the fiery mountain's influence.
"Ilya!" Said girl looked behind her as they entered another magma chamber. Rin was the one who called her from the back another white dragon. Ilya's eyes widened as she looked at everyone on the backs of two other dragons. All three dragons went into a triangular formation, focusing on their task as everyone spoke around them.
"Kat, what are these?" Lancer looked at the smiling angel.
She placed a strand of hair back behind her ear and answered, "They're Behemoths, the dragons we use." Lancer didn't get a chance to reply before the dragons broke formation, something massive springing out from the magma below. Everyone looked up in amazement as the creature emerged from the magma's depths.
Unfortunately, a certain angel was greeted back to consciousness with the sight of the biggest Demon Dragon he'd ever seen. Unlike the others they've encountered, this Demon Dragon had four wings and its back was covered in spikes. Its eyes were about as big as Lancer's body, hinting at just how big the dragon was when it wasn't half submerged in magma, "WHAT THE HECK DID YOU DO TO WAKE UP BETHSHEBA!?"
Ilya looked back at the newly awake Gallium, "Oh, hiyah, glad you're awake."
"Screw that, get us out of here!" Gallium kicked the dragon into overdrive, weaving between Bethsheba's attempted to grab them with one of her arms. It took two close calls before the warriors were out of arm's reach, but the mother of all Demon Dragons wouldn't be denied so easily. She let out a thunderous roar, shooting beams of orange mana in rapid succession. The dragons barrel-rolled threw a hole that had light at the end, dodging the deadly shots of power by a hair's length.
Gallium, and everyone else whose hearts were in their throats, leaned back and let out a heavy sigh of relief. True, they weren't home free yet, but they were definitely out of the belly of the beast, "Well ladies and gentlemen," Everyone wearily looked at the relieved General, "welcome to Tebel, world of angels."
"So that huge thing… I'm guessing it was the mother of those other Demon Dragons?" Arturia glanced back, quickly regretting doing so. She'd have trouble sleeping tonight.
Kat just shook her head, "Trust me Arturia; you haven't seen half of the stuff that lives in this world." This didn't make anybody feel any better. However, at least they were on their way to their intended destination and some well deserved sleep.
A/N: Well, that's some welcoming party. I know, lots of information and names, but don't worry; some of them won't stick around for long. What did Kat mean by what she said? Answers and some more fun next chapter. Please read and review!