As they had walked out of the elevator that was surprisingly quite, the first thing Yasaka noticed was that the smell of blood had vanished, and there was no indication that there was any amount of blood shed within the room they had stepped into. And not only that… it was empty. But there was more to the room than she could see, and she knew that as she could feel easily hundreds of people across the room, hidden from her view by some wall. She couldn't see a way behind the wall, but she knew people were there, and they were all panicking as if trapped.

And then she sensed it. The power that had been so much vastly larger than any and everyone else's in that entrapped room. It was the power that reminded her of the night Issei was in Juggernaut drive and she had burned him with her flames. That horrible night when she experienced the power of Ddraig up close, and far closer than she ever wanted to experience. A chill ran down her spine as she turned and look at the devils beside her. And for some reason, they hadn't had any reaction that she could see.

Why was she the only one that sensed it? Was it because of her mark on him? Her head moved as many thoughts as it could crossing out the less likely possibilities and struggling to make sense of the likely one as her thoughts were pulled to the horrible powerful that was trying to suffocate her. She looked around as she began to feel dizzy and her thoughts moved to her surroundings…

'Where did the smell of blood come from?' she thought, not seeing any sight that could possibly cause the stench of blood to fill her nose, and soon enough that was what her thoughts focused on more than the impending sense of doom she had felt as a repercussion of Issei insane amount of power. She needed to get through the door. She needed to see what awaited behind it.

She needed to see Issei. She wanted to be with him. She wanted to hold him close to her and make sure he was alright, and something about the power she was feeling from behind the wall made her heart skip beats. She knew it wasn't good, she just hoped it wasn't as bad as her thoughts made it out to be.

The group approached the wall, and Yasaka's first reaction was to touch the wall, and instead of receiving a shock or jolt of energy through her body to ward her away, she was instead drawn in almost like it was absorbing her magic. And soon, it was like the wall began to open. Where there once was only perfectly flush walls with no creases, had began to form an opening that previously wasn't there. It was like the whole section of wall began to vanish like it was just an illusion. But just as she thought the wall to be an illusion, she was proven incorrect as she felt the gravity of Issei's power whip itself to new heights, which meant the wall had some sort of suppressing physical properties. She felt her legs start to shake as the energy surrounded her, and she moved her head to look at the surrounding devils who had just started to feel the power. They were froze in place, their expressions reflecting a multitude of emotions from shock to horror.

Before them all, Issei stood on a podium, covered in blood that was far to much to be his. And they all stared at him in amazement… but Yasaka felt something strange as she looked at him. His right eye glowing with slits, and the smile that adorned his face was curled wickedly. Above him a man was that was suspended by magic, covered in blood with a missing arm, but perhaps the more intimidating thing was that Issei was holding the arm in question as though it were a weapon, moving around coyly. Issei began to laugh, and as he did she felt her heart sink.

How could a boy so young… have such a deranged laugh, yet look so calm and composed? It wasn't like him either, she hadn't ever heard anything like it… just what exactly had they done to him?

"I'm giving the innocent here a chance to live. You all have been lied to, and because of that simple lie about me, I have suffered." Issei began, swinging the arm around as if he was trying to practice baseball. "You all blindly follow a leader who isn't even capable of handling his position, so in order to keep his position he built an order from deceit. I want you all to hear what he has to say, and if you still insist on standing in my way, you can all send Hell my regards."

Yasaka wanted to move towards him, but she couldn't bring herself to move. She didn't know if it was from the power he had, or if it was from something else entirely, but she knew everyone else was in the same situation. She took a deep breath and recovered, looking into his eyes just as his eyes meet hers.

"Oh… I have visitors." He said with a bright smile, turning and looking at the man who hung by magic. "Should I tell them, or should you?"

"I… have lied to you all. Issei… meant no harm to us, but following the teachings of my father... I sought him out. I've killed his parents, I've tortured him relentlessly and have forged an army against him… and he is innocent of everything I accused him against…" he was going to continue, but Issei started laughing hysterically.

"Wow! I'm innocent of all accused against me?" Issei began to float where he stood from a whistle of wind, the people backed away further as electricity began to zip around him uncontrollably, giving his body a strange glow that wasn't the same as magic alone. "Let me put this into a picture you all can understand…"

The electricity arced off him and zipped between the crowd, connecting with only a select few of them and rendering their bodies to the ground in a spasming mess that only the adults in the room could see. Kunou could only hear the thuds of bodies hitting the concrete, but she was smart enough to know what the noise was from.

"There we go… now all the snakes in the room but one has been exterminated. Do you all understand the situation you're in now? I'm very angry, extremely so. Here I am, in a building filled with members of the organization who took my parents from me and threaten my new one… and I start it off by being tortured. Here I am, and I still show mercy by giving the innocent a chance to walk away." The uncontrollable energy began to form around his body even stronger this time, and none of the devils of Yasaka dared move towards him. The feelings they felt were pure, unaltered rage, but it was so much more than any of them had ever felt before. A red glow began to form around Issei, and Rias' eyes widened in shock as she looked at the familiar magic with complete horror and amazement.

"You see… this is my revenge. So… if you are smart, if you value your continued existence, if you have any plans of seeing tomorrow, the one thing I will tell you to do… is run." Issei said, letting his electricity grow rapidly, and without a word more, the magicians began to panic and rush toward the entryway that Yasaka and the group of devils blocked off, but the quickly moved out of the way, allowing the magicians to flood through and begin their struggle into the elevator they had come in through.

In the panic, Ddraig used the uproar to speak to Issei and give him his control back. He knew he could probably continue on for a good while longer, but there was no need to prolong the inevitable, and since the leader of the youkai faction had made her appearance, there was no reason to risk her discovering what had transpired between himself and Issei.

'Issei, I've done as you wished, and now I will return.'

There wasn't a single indication that the two had switched places, but the magic that kept Issei afloat began to disperse and gently set him on the ground as Yasaka ran to him. He stared blankly ahead of him, watching her as she ran with Irina, her daughter and Xenovia to embrace him. But his blank expression as he saw the look in Yasaka's eyes. She was worried, scared and sad. It wasn't the kind of sadness that came and went easily though, it was the kind of sadness that came with the loss of a loved one. And it made his heart feel like it was squeezing.

Yasaka crashed into him, pulling him in as close to her as she could, and burying her head into his neck as if to cover her face. He felt her tears land on him in an instant, and he pulled his arm arms to match hers to embrace her in a hug. He rested a hand on her head to pull her in closer, and used his other to pull her in. As soon as he did this, the others joined, and his eyes met with the group behind them, who he recognized almost immediately from his old school.

He couldn't bring himself to think to much, nor did he really care. What mattered to him most now was the people who were hugging him, and he closed his eyes to enjoy her presence, which felt so much more heavenly than his words could possibly explain. The pain he had experienced in that room while he was on the bed was enough to make him realize how much he clung to his life, and how far he would go to ensure his own chance to live. He caressed her head with his hand, petting her soft hair as she did her best to stifle her emotions.

She pushed herself back, looking him in the eyes and bringing a hand to his cheek. Her eyes were bloodshot, and her face was flushed, she looked at him, moving her shoulder into the elbow joint of his arm, which caused him to winch slightly. She grabbed onto his right arm as she saw him winch and looked at it closely, only to stare at what awaited her in more fear. He looked at his arm as well and was shocked at what he saw.

Three holes were in his arm, each in a slightly different place, clotted over in his blood and large enough to notice they weren't from a normal butterfly needle. Since when had the other two pricks come? He remembered the first time the needle plunged into his arm and gushed the liquids from a fiery hell into his arm that turned his blood into hyperactive magma. He shivered at the memory, and Yasaka mistook it as him shaking, so she hugged him again, this time letting her own tears flow more than previously.

"What… did they do to you?" Yasaka asked, let her head fall back into his shoulder, and as she asked, the other three that hugged him listened closely for his response, and with a heavy sigh, he began to tell his tale of occurrences that had happened to him.

"I was… thinking about the book I was told about, and suddenly I was just here. But I was tricked and captured in the process." Issei explained, but he knew that wasn't the information she asked for, but it was a good place to start. He continued, breathing in one more time to prepare himself. "I was knocked out by a dragon, and when I awoke… I was strapped down to a bed and tortured. I… I was…"

"Please tell me Issei… I want to help." Yasaka said, pulling him in closer once again. Perhaps it didn't matter how he was tortured, she knew what really mattered was that he was with her now, with his family, and he looked alright. But… she also knew that some of the worst torture methods weren't meant to be physical… they were meant to be mental. And if she knew what had been done to him, she would know how to approach it.

"There was… a serum. It glowed blue… and he injected into my arm. It made me feel powerless, like my magic was gone, and it burned. It was… the worst feeling of pain I have experienced. Like I was being burned alive… I just… I don't remember how long it was. I only remember the pains…" Issei explained, beginning to feel his own emotions swell as he began to remember how desperately he wanted the pain to stop and how he thought he would never see them again. "I thought… I would never… see you all again."

There wasn't any more word spoke between the group, but Issei continued, explaining to them what had transpired. Of course, he spoke as if he was the one who had done everything, though he knew the reality was that he hadn't and instead it was the bloodlust of the Dragon inside him that had been unleashed from its cage. He wasn't upset though, the dragon had done as Issei wanted, he gave him power, had saved him from a pinch that could have led to his death.

"And… I broke free. I just wanted to live, I wanted to escape, and anyone who stood in my way… I killed them. It was strange… it was like I could feel the innocent from the ones who played roles in killing my parents. So, I weeded them out and slashed them down." He continued, his sadness fading away as he spoke what he saw. He didn't feel bad for those that Ddraig had disposed of, instead he felt relief.

He felt like the winner. He felt victorious. He smiled, but it wasn't one in happiness, it was one of twisted enjoyment, and no one around him saw… but the devils did. His eyes made contact with them and they all felt a shiver move down their backs as his right eye flashed green from magic that bled into them from the corners. His smile grew larger, but he never dared bare his teeth. None of them dared say a word to him, and that sent a feeling inside of him that he was beginning to enjoy too much.

He felt powerful.

"You don't have to be sacred Issei, we are here now." Irina said, pulling herself closer to him as well.

She had no idea how he was actually feeling… it was the complete opposite of fear. He was scared. He felt alive. Even though he wasn't the one that had did it, he felt all of it, saw all of it, and it felt… so very good. He knew it wasn't a good feeling to have, but it was a drug laced with ecstasy. Being victorious… he never wanted to feel anything else. And why shouldn't he be victorious?

He remembered the night he went home, walked into his door and saw his parents hanging, exposed and cracked rib cages as if they were nothing more than animals sent to be butchered. He remembered the life-like blade of strange creation that bit into his arm, and he remembered slipping on the blood smeared floor.

He recalled vividly the exact moment he breathed his own life anew. When the footsteps of his killer sounded over him. He was told to rest in peace. The rage, hatred, the vanity and the vile that had been forced into him in a single night was beginning to bleed to the surface of Issei now, as though the bottled up emotions had festered to the point of explosion, he tried his best not to laugh at the situation he found himself in, but with a single scoff, he was beginning to fail at even that. He swore he wouldn't rest until he had his revenge.

He began his laugh, causing his huggers to backpedal away form him. He remembered his exact connection to the dragon then. The only agreement he had was to achieve his revenge. And now that he had it… what next? He knew what he wanted now, only after he saw the reaction of his former students.

He wanted power. The kind of absolute power that no one would even dare try to challenge. And he didn't care what he had to do to get that power, he would have it. His attention shifted to the man who hung behind him. Issei turned, searching for the words to use.

"Look at me. Look what you've created." Issei said, holding his arms out to his side. The man moved his clouded eyes to look at Issei, but a smile curled onto his lips as he looked at him. There was no need for the man to say anything to him. Issei knew what the smile endowed, and he held his arm up in response, letting his magic surround his body and letting the electricity arc between his fingertips. He wanted to feel the same feelings he had before, he wanted to know in curiosity if the feeling would change. He wanted to know if he would still feel powerful, even after his goal had been reached.

But before he could deliver the killing blow, Yasaka placed a hand on his arm, and lowered it to his side. She rested her head on his back and wrapped a hand around his stomach, hugging him from behind.

"Please don't Issei… I know how you are feeling. But please… don't go down this path. I love you too much to let you walk the same path as the other Red Dragon Emperor's before you… I want you to be happier… so please, just come home with us now, we have missed you dearly, and seeing you like this hurts us." She whispered, gently swaying her body with his in a comforting manner. Nobody had heard what she had said except Issei, and as her words hit him he felt his heart squeeze. He turned his head and looked at the people who had become his family, and the expressions he saw on them were of worry, they were scared. He looked at Kunou, who looked at him with tear-filled eyes.

He didn't want the girl, who he considered his own, to be afraid of him. It wasn't something he had wanted, and there was a feeling of clarity that came over him. He moved his body so that they were hugging again and whispered in her ear again, causing the group to wonder what they were exchanging words about.

"You're right, Yasaka… I'm sorry. I'm sorry I let my power take over my rational thought. I didn't mean to scare you." Issei said. The two pulled apart, and Issei knew one thing as a certain. He wanted to get away from this place. He wanted to go home.

"Yasaka… can we go home? I… don't want to stay here anymore." He said, moving towards the group with Yasaka beside him. Irina had tears falling down the sides of her face, and Xenovia looked relieved. Kunou ran and hugged his knees, and Issei crouched down to meet her.

"I'm sorry Kunou. I didn't mean to scare you… let's go home now, does that sound good?" he said, and the small girl inky nodded her head in response, not being able to respond as she rubbed her face into his left leg. He runes the girls head and stood up. Irina moved next, and wrapped her arms around him, unlike Yasaka, who did her best to stifle her tears and save then for later, Irina was a lose canon.

As soon as her arms wrapped around him and his arms wrapped around her, she bawled into the hem of his shirts letting her tears get soaked up by the fabric of his shirt as he started patting her back in an attempt to calm her.

"Wahh! Issei, I was afraid of losing you again!" she bawled, letting her emotion flow more freely than anyone else did. She continued to squeeze him more and more until he thought she was probably going to break him in half. "I don't want to let you go again! Promise me you aren't going anywhere! Promise you won't leave us again!"

"I promise, Irina. I won't leave you again. You're my family, my home." Issei said, hugging the girl closer, feeling her soft, slender body press against him and he relished the feeling. It was nice. She felt pleasant. Maybe not as comforting as Yasaka, but he loved the feeling all the same.

She pulled away, wiping the rest of her tears away as she looked at Issei with a bright smile. He looked towards the devils that watched the contact with smiles. Yasaka caught his attention by grabbing onto his hand, and guiding him towards the entrance that he saw them in. Everyone else followed pursuit, but Yasaka stopped as she walked past Rias and whispered something into her ear. Of course, Issei had heard the general topic, and it was about the man who was still hanging afloat in the air. Rias was going to execute him for him. It was bad that he still wanted to watch, but ultimately Yasaka just wanted him out of the building. And he followed her blindly, thought mainly because she held onto him with the grip of a hawk.

Rias bowed her head. "It would be my honor to assist both you and Issei." She said, moving towards the man who now fell to the ground. As Yasaka and the others passed through the entryway that led to an elevator, Issei lost sight of the crimson-haired devil that he hadn't seen in an incredibly long time. And though he couldn't see what exactly it was the girl was doing, her words gave him a good mental image of what had transpired.

"You've destroyed the life of an innocent boy, lied to a mass group of people and attempted to murder. I would ask for you last words, but seeing as you don't deserve to have any… perish." He heard the girl say, and just as she did, he felt a power that he hasn't felt before. It was different from the magic he had grown accustom to using and tuning, and it intrigued him. He wanted to see the magic she used, he wanted to know why it wasn't like anything he had felt before, he had so many questions that he wanted answers to, but no answers ever came.

They waited as the elevator descended downward without any sounds or lurches in another direction. Once Yasaka guided him and everyone in the elevator, she pulled him in close to her and held him close while they waited on the others to join them. After a few minutes of waiting, they came into view and moved towards the elevator.

Once they were piled in, they began to ascend. Rias was the one that broke the silence that surrounded them.

"Issei, it is good to see that you have made a new family in Kyoto. I am happy for you. Do you plan to come back to Kuoh? There are plenty of people who miss you." She asked, looking at him with a bright smile.

"Yeah, I did plan on returning to Kuoh. And I'm thankful to have a new family, I'm thankful to have met Yasaka. I owe her so much more than I could ever give back to her…" Issei said, causing Yasaka to tighten her hold on him. Rias smiled at the connection the two of them shared.

The elevator came to a silent halt, and the perfectly flush walls broke apart. The group stepped out as they conversed between themselves, some talking to Issei as they moved into the hallway. But Issei fell distracted almost immediately as he felt a power that he recognized almost immediately… and then another power that was the reason he was entrapped to begin with. Almost immediately after stepping out, issei stopped walking and looked at the garage door to his left. The number '1' was written in bold italics. He recognized the power that flowed through it almost immediately to be the book he had obtained when he arrived here.

He turned his head to the second colliding power he felt to his right, and the garage door was labeled with number '2' in bold italics as well. He knew that power was the weapon he had used. He moved towards the second one and placed his hands on the metal sliding door and summoned his magic melt it down. His fire made short work of the thin metal, and almost immediately, he saw his sword standing up on display, waiting for him. He held his right hand out, all eyes on him, and the sword moved through the air and gracefully landed into his hands. He move towards the other garage sheet metal door and sliced it with the sword, letting the pieces fall to the ground around him. The book floated out from the container and floated beside Issei, unopened.

"That's better." They all watched him in amazement, not expecting Issei to use a weapon such as a sword.

But Issei felt the final presence come from halfway down the hall. They would be forced to go through it, but Issei wondered if they could all avoid the conflict. But he felt a pulling inside him. Telling him to push forward into the impending darkness. He looked at the group around him and decided he wanted to protect them. He didn't want to allow any of them to get hurt while he was around.

So he began to move. Stepping ahead of them and taking the lead. And soon, the darkness began to surround all of them before any of them could react. There was a laugh that followed.

"The red dragon… found its way it my trap once more. How interesting."

"I've come for my payback, and I won't let you harm anyone with me!" Issei said, electricity beginning to arc around the sword.

End of Chapter 17: Red Dragon Victorious

Guys… I'm so sorry I didn't get another chapter out. I leave tomorrow, and this is the best thing I can do. I'm sorry. I've had struggle after struggle this past week, and I've been down.

I'm sorry I left you all on a cliffhanger. I'm sorry it wasn't longer and it I didn't get to the fight I promised a few people.

All of your support has been amazing, and it means so much to me, so yeah. I will be picking up the next chapter as soon as I am out of Basic Training. And even on the plane ride tomorrow, I will be thinking.

All of you, take care, stay awesome. And thank you for making my time with this story and amazing journey I wouldn't change for anything.