Good Evening All,
Not much to say up here, please read the end of the chapter notes if you have any concerns regarding the chapter.
Also, here is a link to the official Rizevim page if you would like to double check his abilities:
wiki/Rizevim_Livan_Lucifer#Powers_.26_Abilities
Thank you for reading and as always please do enjoy yourself.
Rizevim lazily smirked at the white faced Vali as he sauntered close and whispered something into his ear tauntingly. Vali's face slowly transformed into something carved out of stone as his relative continued to bait him.
Sasuke began to step forward before he caught the warning look from Beelzebub.
"I wouldn't interfere Sasuke-san; I realize that Vali is part of your peerage but this is something he will need to face on his own."
Sasuke leveled a glare at the devil leader.
"I am curious as to how this battle will aid our supposed joint efforts; it seems more like you are sacrificing one of my subordinates due to poor planning and lack of oversight on your part."
Beelzebub sighed and looked around; luckily the crowd was all focused on the scene playing out between the two infamous relatives. Lowering his voice, the devil stepped closer to Sasuke.
"You must understand Sasuke-san, a simple victory here would have accomplished little. While it was impressive that your Queen's mere presence caused your naysayers to flee the field, the crowd would have been even more poorly inclined towards you if I had not redirected this farce."
Sasuke grunted in acknowledgment.
"Perhaps so, but even I can tell this is a bad idea. I haven't seen that boy scared of anyone or anything, but this relative of his seems to have him on edge. I take it there is some bad blood between the two?"
Beelzebub chuckled grimly.
"That would be...putting it lightly as they say. Rizevim-san is Vali's grandfather, yet he is also the murderer of his father. There have also been whispered allegations of abuse over the years, though nothing was ever proven."
Sasuke scowled.
"Then why did you set up this battle when Vali is at such an obvious disadvantage?"
Beelzebub frowned lightly.
"I admit, I miscalculated. When the Lords withdrew their grievances, I may have slightly panicked considering the amount of money and time has gone into this venture. I had heard rumors over the years regarding Rizevim's treatment of his family, but I assumed they were mostly fiction. It was only after I heard mutterings regarding the upcoming match that I dug deeper into the matter and unearthed the full sordid history. By that point, unfortunately, it was too late to withdraw from the match. We can only hope that young Vali is up to the task."
Seeing that the crowd was starting to get restless, Beelzebub gave Sasuke a meaningful look and proceeded to address the crowd once more.
"Good people! As per our standard arena rules, this will be a fight until one of the combatants can no longer continue, at which point the crowd will determine the loser's fate!"
The crowd roared in their typical bloodthirsty fashion, obviously indicating which option they would be advocating if it came to that.
"Combatants! You now have sixty seconds to prepare before the fight begins!"
A digital timer appeared in the air and began counting down as the two Lucifers separated and walked to their respective sides of the arena.
Sasuke raised an eyebrow at Vali's unusually sober demeanor as he approached.
"King, I'm afraid that this foe is beyond me."
Sasuke sighed gustily.
"As I told you before this fight, I cannot interfere. Are there any other loopholes you can think of that might spare you this fight?"
Vali calmly shook his head.
"I have never been one to study rules and regulations, as you well know King. Should I fall, all that I ask is that you immediately reap that bastard's head for me."
Sasuke looked him in the eye and gave him a firm nod. While it was forbidden to interfere in your subordinates duel, it was another matter if you wanted to raise issue with the victor after the original fight's conclusion.
There was a loud buzzer as the timer counted down to zero.
"Are the two combatants ready?"
Rizevim smirked and nodded confidently, even as Vali gave a terse nod of his head.
"BEGIN!"
The crowd roared as the two devil's blurred from view, Vali immediately summoning Albion's armor as he rushed to Rizevim.
"Divid-"
"Sacred Gear: Canceller!"
Vali grimaced as Albion's armor flickered before disappearing completely, leaving him open to the elder Lucifer's attacks.
Rizevim circled the weakened Vali slowly, as if relishing every second.
"That was pathetic boy; even your weakling father put up more of a fight before I put him in the ground."
Vali's face became ugly as he began to attack Rizevim with his bare fists, his enraged swings creating large air gusts that the amused Rizevim effortlessly dodged.
"Your problem boy..."
Rizevim punctuated his sentence with a punishing blow to Vali's unarmored stomach that doubled him over.
"Is that you've gotten too used..."
A punishing uppercut sent Vali flying in a daze.
"To weak opponents..."
Rizevim channeled gravity magic to his right foot as he brought it down on Vali's prone form punishingly.
"That your gear defeats for you."
Rizevim grabbed Vali by the throat and held him up effortlessly.
"I see now why your mother never wanted you, why she abandoned you at the first opportunity."
A single tear went down the shocked Vali's face before he caught himself and snarled in rage, swinging a haymaker at his grandfather.
SMASH!
Rizevim dispassionately looked down at Vali's stunned form cratered into the arena floor.
"Had I not killed your father, he likely would have died from the shame of having you as his son."
Vali gave his grandfather a look of pure hatred as the older devil chuckled.
"Ah, there's your hate, your anger. Unfortunately it will not avail you today."
Vali managed to stand as Rizevim looked on with amusement.
"Well, you can take more punishment then I expected; I suppose we have your new King to thank for that."
The older devil's eyes flicked to Sasuke briefly before going back to his grandson.
"I will have to thank him personally after this little farce is over. After all, the longer you fight the more you can suffer before I end you."
The two Lucifers began casting spells in a blur, elemental magics swirling around them as the crowd cheered in excitement and anticipation.
Vali snarled and threw a concentrated wave of fire at Rizevim, only for the older devil to calmly dodge and send a lance of ice at Vali. As the lance approached it split into hundreds of tiny shards that Vali melted with his summoned fire spell.
Rizevim chuckled.
"You always had some talent with these parlor tricks and cheap magics, I'll give you that."
Rizevim calmly gestured as hundreds of light lances appeared out of nowhere, all aimed at Vali.
Vali desperately summoned a globe of darkness around himself as Rizevim twitched his hand forward lazily, countless light lances zooming forward towards their target.
The clash between the two elemental forces boomed out across the arena as the dome miraculously held against the relentless assault of light lances.
As the lances tapered off, a panting Vali dropped his shield and turned a defiant gaze at his grandfather.
Rizevim chuckled and pointed his finger downwards with a sickening smile.
Vali's eyes widened as he tried to summon his shield in vain, the lances of light taking a millisecond to pierce the few feet of earth and impale him.
Rizevim moved his hands in an extremely complex pattern, sweat beading as he roared and made a rising gesture with both hands.
Thick, barbed chains of light rose from the ground and wrapped around the panting Vali, sizzling his flesh as he grimaced in pain.
Rizevim smirked as he ground his foot into Vali's chest.
"I realize these won't hurt you as badly as they would a true devil, but I have no doubt they will keep you subdued long enough to end this."
Holding out his hand, Rizevim summoned a large black axe that immediately had Vali thrashing in his bonds furiously.
"Yes, I'm sure you recognize this ax; it's the same executioner's weapon I used on your father all those years ago. I believe it has gotten a taste for our family's blood over the years, considering how many of our family have fallen to it."
"Lord Rizevim! Please wait until we have polled the crowd before proceeding with any executions!"
Rizevim spat into the sand of the arena before resting on his ax lazily.
"I came here to put the boy down; If you need to poll the audience before that happens, be my guest. Just know though that he is losing his head either way."
Beelzebub and Rizevim shared a hard look as the arena seemed to darken, devils gasping in their seats as the two Super class Devils clashed wills briefly.
"Cross me at your own peril Rizevim; you may be a Super, but you never could hold a candle to either myself or Sirzechs."
Rizevim gave the younger devil a poisonous glare before plastering an overly fake smile on his face and giving a brief bow of his head.
The two super class devils broke off the staredown as if it had never happened, the assembled devils breathing a sigh of relief as the air turned back to normal and they could breathe once more.
"Audience members! If you will please indicate a simple live or die on the digital pads you were each given as you entered the arena, we can determine the fate of our young Champion Vali Lucifer!"
A simple bar graph appeared hovering over the arena sands, with one green column for "Live" and a red column for "Die". Sasuke watched as the red bar began to rise very quickly, soon towering over the miniscule green bar.
Beelzebub looked slightly shocked as Sasuke shook his head; that was the problem with all these scientist types. Brilliant and often times very powerful, but they knew nothing about the nature of their fellow people, whether that be humans or devils. Beelzebub briefly flashed Sasuke a regretful look as the final tallies came in.
Rizevim's smile was all teeth as the red bar stood out like a skyscraper over the diminutive green bar.
"The people have spoken: Lord Rizevim, please proceed with the execution."
"Hold."
There were gasps and mutters from among the audience as Sasuke appeared next to Rizevim in a shunshin.
"Lord Sasuke, you must not interfere with a sanctioned match-"
Rizevim held up a hand.
"No, it's fine. It wouldn't be the first time someone bargained for my useless grandson's life, though I promise it will cost you dearly."
The crowd began booing deafeningly as they rose from their seats, outraged that they might be denied the blood they were promised.
Rizevim carelessly released a howling air current into the crowd that bisected a row of devils standing in the front row, messily killing all of them.
The crowd instantly went dead silent.
"There's your blood you mangy dogs; unless you take your seats and shut up I will gladly drown you in it."
In the silence, Beelzebub cleared his throat.
"Lord Rizevim, please refrain from killing members of the audience unless they directly assault you."
Rizevim snorted in amusement at the obvious half hearted rebuke before saluting lazily and turning back to Sasuke.
"So human, what do you offer for the life of my Grandson? Worthless as he is, it would bring me great satisfaction to end him once and for all. Denying my own satisfaction comes at a high price."
Sasuke glanced at the Super Devil in a nonplussed fashion.
"Obviously you have something in mind, otherwise you would have already attacked me for interrupting your amusements."
Rizevim threw back his head and laughed.
"I see you are familiar dealing with those of us that enjoy feeding our sick appetites."
Sasuke gave the ghost of a smirk.
"Let's just say that I am well versed in dealing with monsters, whether that be slaying them or having to negotiate."
Rizevim mock bowed.
"Such high praise, and from a Pillar Lord! Truly I feel honored to have such praise heaped on me by a filthy human."
Onyx eyes met Hazel and two wills clashed.
Many devils passed out as a massive confluence of power and killing intent erupted from the two figures, engulfing the arena in a miasma of bloodshed.
Neither Sasuke or Rizevim flinched as they took measure of one another.
Finally, Rizevim winced and released his power before laughing ruefully.
"And to think, you called me a monster boy. I suppose I can lower the asking price a bit since I have no intention of fighting you anytime soon."
Sasuke smirked as he stared Rizevim down for another full second before releasing his Dojutsu.
"Smart."
Pacing beside the subdued Vali, Rizevim took his time considering the matter as he gleefully tightened the chains around Vali every few seconds, causing the weakened half devil to groan in pain. Finally, Rizevim whirled in place and turned towards Sasuke with intent.
"You can take my Grandson with you, free of charge."
The crowd gasped before forcibly shutting themselves up at a glare from both Rizevim and Sasuke.
"Of course, I do require one small thing from you in exchange... a soul oath."
Excited whispers broke out among the devils as Beelzebub frowned heavily.
"Lord Rizevim, a soul oath has been outlawed for centuries now, and for good reason."
Sasuke raised an eyebrow in Beelzebub's direction as he explained.
"A soul oath is completely binding, in this life and the next. It is a brand upon your very soul that only leaves once the agreed upon oath has been fulfilled. As you can imagine, abuses of this were very common and incredibly cruel, since not even death would release the indebted from the agreed upon payment."
Sasuke blinked before turning to Rizevim with a completely unchanged expression.
"Very well, what sort of oath payment did you have in mind?"
Beelzebub rolled his eyes in frustration but was quick to move to Sasuke's side.
"Keep in mind Rizevim, the deal must be fair. I won't have you binding one of our very few Pillar Lord's to your service over something as inconsequential as one life."
Rizevim waved Beelzebub away as if he was a fly to be shooed.
"Yes yes I am aware of how this works, and have come up with a fair price."
The entire arena crouched forward eagerly at the unfolding drama as Rizevim paused.
"There will come a time when I will ask you for a single favor. Upon your soul, you cannot refuse this favor."
Rizevim rolled his eyes as he saw Beelzebub about to object.
"The favor's completion will end the oath and you will be released; I will even be generous and state that the oath must be within your power to accomplish to qualify."
Sasuke considered Rizevim thoughtfully.
"That seems like a high price to pay for a life you consider worthless in the first place. What am I getting out of this arrangement?"
Rizevim chuckled gleefully and walked over to a glowering Vali.
"You see Useless? Not even your King wants to bargain for your worthless hide."
Rizevim turned back to Sasuke.
"To repeat your own words from earlier, I assume you have something in mind?"
"The executioner ax."
Rizevim looked at Sasuke like he was crazy.
"That old thing? Its not even a legendary weapon, nor particularly powerful. If that is your price though, easily done."
Rizevim effortlessly tossed the Dark axe to Sasuke, who caught it with equally little effort.
"We are agreed then?"
"Yes."
Rizevim smirked and looked to Beelzebub.
"I trust you know how to stand witness to one of these?"
Beelzebub grimaced and nodded.
"Unfortunately yes, vile practice that it is. Let's get this over with if you are certain this is the correct path Sasuke-san."
The crowd eagerly watched as the forbidden magical ritual was enacted. After a full minute of complex chanting, Rizevim made a pushing motion as a flashing kanji character drifted through the air before hovering before Sasuke.
"You must accept this binding of your own free will Sasuke-san; once again I urge you to reconsider."
Grimacing, Sasuke touched the Kanji character in assent as it seared into him through his clothes.
Rizevim smirked in triumph as he immediately released the chains holding Vali in place, causing the battered half devil to slump over in a pool of his own blood.
"Winner: Rizevim Livan Lucifer!"
Author Notes:
As you may have noticed, Vali got his ass handed to him none too gently. A few things to keep in mind though:
First, Vali is only slightly more powerful then when the show first started.
Secondly, Rizevim is essentially Vali's Kryptonite; he can nullify his most powerful technique that he frankly relies upon way too much.
Finally, Vali was completely off balance this whole fight. His hated grandfather shows up out of thin air and proceeds to lock down his main power source and bludgeon his emotional wounds that have never healed; poor guy never had a chance. If he was planning to fight his grandfather, rest assured that he would have put up a much better fight. But that is the true nature of battle no? Often times one has to fight against a stronger opponent, sometimes even when you are completely unprepared and off balance. Vali is not used to being off balance, especially without Albion to back him up.
