Ur mum gay
update: now betaed. don't blame me for misteaks
Refugees
[Chapter V-Extra]
||Interlude||
Roygun was alone.
Being alone was when she started to hear those voices again. When nobody was around to distract her mind from wandering to the past that had been stubbornly haunting her. Difficult to get used to, she had found, when those voices once belonged to her men. Men who valiantly fought for her, and died fulfilling their oaths to her family.
She let out a long draw out sigh, and rested her eyes. Perhaps she should have bribed either of the two little monsters to accompany her in her bath. Ah yes… the 'should have' and the 'shouldn't have' of life. The two best concoctions to fuel regret. Roygun smirked. Another pointless pondering. The past cannot be changed, she'd told herself. Sadly it didn't mean the things she wished she didn't do or do would stop trying to tear away her sanity.
Warm water tickled her chin as it rose to her lips, her cheeks, then the entirety of her head. She submerged herself in the bathtub and yet still those voices rang as clear as though they were breathing down her neck. Not even water could muffle them. Idly, she wondered, should she drown herself, would the voices disappear? Or would they follow her even in the afterlife-wherever that place might be.
Being underwater didn't help. Not at all surprising as they were voices inside her head. Though it would be funny if they started to gurgle instead of whispering. Many things she had tried, and none of those worked. Pills helped, for a bit, until it started all over again. She out of all people understood the dangers of addiction and had long since forsaken sertraline. Human made drugs weren't as effective for her, unfortunately.
Nonetheless, those were worth a shot. She was not a Devil known to give up. A stubborn trait of her bloodline, perhaps. Failures didn't mean success was beyond her reach.
She just didn't know when it would be within her reach.
The water nipped at her skin, their warmth amenable. She would be more appreciative of this comforting bath if her mind wasn't at war.
Shouting. Flames. Screaming. Terror. Blood. Mud. Blood. Death. Wailing. Silence.
Out of all things, the silence was the worst.
Like peace, silence never lasted long. Not in Hell. Never in Hell. As though it was cursed by a greater being. God, most likely. But she knew better than to lump all part of the blame on the Old Man. All the Noble Houses had become part of the curse, and the only thing that could have ended it. Unfortunately they were too busy clawing each other or planning to claw each other behind their back to even consider the prospect of peace and quiet.
They'd die first, as many have.
And then Hell would become the bleak desolate land it was meant to be, with ungodly Demons hunting for tormented souls failing to escape Hell's grip. A permanent tomb for the fools who would take hollow victories. A giant scrapyard for every tall and proud castle reduced to ruins.
One of such was the Ruins of Gremory Castle.
Venelana Gremory flew through the smoldering smoke, desperate for any signs of life. Her white dress had been marred by ashes and dirt, but clothing could always be replaced. Her family? Not so much.
Clinging to a stubborn hope, she scanned the wreckage of her old home for survivors. For her family. She should have died together with her beloved, yet at the very last second before their enemies stormed their castle, a pentagram bearing the Black Rose; symbol of House Bael, emerged beneath her. Worse, Zeoticus Gremory had no traces of surprise on his face as he held her for their last time.
It was planned all along. Her half-brother, now the head of the Bael clan as well as the self-proclaimed King of Hell, had ripped her away from her family with the acknowledgement of her husband. And as the battle raged, all she could do was watch helplessly in her containment; a prison cell held up above the battlefield that nullified all of her Demonic Power.
Diehauser Belial was the most unexpected presence, but knowing the pragmatic cunningness of her half-brother, perhaps she should have expected this outcome.
No matter. They didn't matter. The moment the scream of the one-sided battle died down, her confinement faded away, and she immediately headed straight for her children and husband.
And then, buried among the dilapidated ruins, strewn a patch of crimson red.
Those locks of hair could only belong to a member of her own.
She dived down, landing before the large piece of fallen down ceiling, and disintegrated it with an expert control of Power of Destruction. What lied beneath, or rather, who lied beneath… was the bloodied body of her daughter. Another shade of red colored her forehead, and it wasn't her hair.
Her breath hitched.
"Rias!" She knelt and sat beside her daughter, carefully laying her head on her lap and checked her pulses. It wasn't faint. She was alive through her ragged breathing. A sob punched her throat. "My baby girl… look at what they have done to you…"
In her arms, Rias stirred. "...Nnh…"
"Rias!" Her eyes widened with hope; a dangerous thing. "Rias, if you can hear me, please open your eyes!"
And she did, slowly. Her eyes fluttered as did the heart of a worried mother. Rias looked up to her, and saw nothing.
"...M-mother…" She croaked. Her voice hoarse after inhaling all the smoke and dust. "...is that… you?"
Venelana fought hard not to cry further. "Yes, my dear…" she clutched Rias' searching hand, gripping it tight and afraid to let go. "I'm here… I'm here with you…"
"M-mother…?" Panic arose in her voice and face. "I... I can't see…? Wh-why can't I see?"
'No…' The word was stuck in her throat. As Rias cried for her, Venelana remained in stunned silence.
A shadow darkened the ruins. King Bael arrived with his battle-hardened officers following behind. Neither of them had speckless armor. All were splattered with blood, as they fought alongside their own men to pummel any enemy officer into submission or death.
"And here we find the last Gremory." His voice was like tempered steel; hard and powerful. He turned to one of his officers; a Lord from a House defeated by Lucifer. "Lord Berith, order the men to end the search and set up camp. Let the Demons feast on the dead. We rest here."
"At once, Your Grace." A brief nod of respect and Lord Berith's six bat-like wings took him away.
"You gave your word!" Venelana shouted between her tears. "You promised to spare the children!"
"And I remain true to my word." King Bael approached his half-sister, his shadow draping over the two. "Father's last words are to spare his children. As far as I am concerned, you and I are his only children."
"You… you twisted father's words! You heartless monster, father loved my children!" Venelana clutched Rias tightly. Rias was quiet, shocked by her being unable to see anymore to process anything else other than the vast sea of blackness surrounding her and the warmth of her mother's embrace.
King Bael clammed his jaw and gritted his teeth. A bad habit he had developed due to the constant incompetence shown by Lords of other Houses and now this.
"That son of yours murdered our father. I did not agree to your marriage so you can breed schemers and assassins."
"Sirzechs? Nonsense—"
"He poisoned him. There is only one other Devil I know who would make a deal with the Poison of God and that is your son. How he managed to get Samael to agree I do not yet know, nor do I care. Father is dead. So is he. A debt paid in blood." King Bael stepped forward, and Venelana remained there, being the only wall for her last surviving child and her family's butcher.
"You have no proof it was him. I don't believe you. My son is not a schemer."
"Then you don't know your own son." His stern eyes always had a chilling gaze, and it pierced her skin the same way a spear had pierced through her husband's heart. "He sowed the seed of rebellion and he ignored my call to arms. A breaking of faith between our families so he can lead a band of lowborn peasants into a war with a lost cause."
"...You're lying… Sirzechs would never..."
"It doesn't matter what you believe in. What's done is done. Were it up to me, I'd have your head mounted on a spike as I have done to your husband and son. And that daughter of yours soon." Rias winced, shaking. To say her head was a mess would be an understatement. "I don't know what reason beyond emotional attachment father has in keeping you alive... but he has provided guidance to me. I won't sully his last wish by what I think must be done. However, his last desire was to see a united Hell. I intend to hold his ambition as though it is mine and I suggest you do the same, half-sister. Surrender the girl. Her death will be swift."
"No… no please." Venelana wept. But King Bael had been desensitized to let mere tears penetrate his strong sense of duty. "You've taken… everything I have… Let her live… she won't raise a hand against you. I swear on my name."
"Your name holds no weight anymore." He told her harshly. He was unsentimental, and King Bael never avoided telling the cold hard truths. "Tarnished by the Gremory for far too long. However, renounce your family name and embrace the true one. Swear on your true name neither you nor your offsprings will seek revenge for the dead House. And that you will do your duty as a woman of House Bael; to ensure your family line does not end in your death. Swear it, and I may yet spare the orphan."
"...Mother…?"
"I…" Venelana blinked back the tears, and asked Zeoticus for forgiveness. He would have done the same to protect their dearest cubs. "...renounce the Gremory's name… as the daughter of Zekram Bael..."
"Good." King Bael nodded once. Though it grieved him to have useless sons, the children bore by his half-sister were all adept in handling the Power of Destruction. Maybe he had a curse upon his lineage, but no matter. The Bael line should prevail. Its legacy was all that mattered to him. "Lord Belial," he motioned toward Diehauser Belial; the current head of House Belial who had served under House Bael since Rizevim Lucifer's death.
"Yes, Your Grace?"
"We came here to rid the Gremory off the face of Hell. I see only one. Ensure that it is done. You will strip her from her Demonic Powers. You will conjure a Gate, and you will cast the girl to an ocean on Earth."
"As you command, Your Grace."
A rift severing the gap between two worlds appeared like a tear in the fabric of reality, and from Diehauser's right gauntlet, a wispy white smoke shot through the air, enveloping Rias' body as she could feel her strength being sapped away drastically.
"...M-mom…?" She croaked more desperately this time.
"NO!" Venelana held Rias tighter. "You can't do this!" She attempted to cast a necrotic blast of her Power of Destruction, but Diehauser Belial swiftly snuffed it before it could form properly using his devastating family ability.
"I can and I must." King Bael responded in unkind. "If I allow mercy to a traitor then the faith from my subjects will be lost. I need them in order to end this pathetic squabble between Houses once and for all. This goes beyond mere desires and wants, sister. Big or small, we must do our duty. Perhaps one day you will understand."
Without her Demonic Power to enhance her physical strength, King Bael easily overpowered Venelana, tearing Rias off her grip as he motioned his officers to keep her still. As two officers gripped Venelana by her arms, King Bael dragged Rias over towards the Gate.
"Mother…?" Her strength already sapped away from her injuries, Rias could only reach out a hand towards her mother in despair. A mother she couldn't even see.
"Brother no! Please don't do this! Please! Have mercy! I will do anything you want from me!"
"Uncle… please..."
"You are my niece no longer as of this date. Our family has severed our last tie with yours. You're an orphan without a future in this place. Perhaps on Earth you may yet rebuild your life, but step a foot in Hell, and we will hunt you down."
"I'll find you my dear...! I will find you!"
Unceremoniously, King Bael threw Rias into the swirling Gate. Her scream was instantly shut out the moment the Gate collapsed, resealing the torn spatial rift. Venelana sank to her knees, emptily staring at the last place she had seen her daughter, and wept.
"...You're a cruel heartless monster. And I thought you've become a better man since the Lucifer war."
A spiteful glare. Nothing King Bael hadn't yet received. Normally, they wouldn't last that long to hold a stare.
"My sister is tired." He said to the officer standing next to her. "See her escorted to her chamber in my family's castle. See her life is protected from her enemies and herself. My family has been plagued by a flock of brainless fools and a magically inept son. You can bring so much more for the betterment of this Realm. I will allow you time to grieve, but I will not have you rot the remainder of your life."
Venelana clenched her fist.
"As you command, my King." The officer nodded, and a magical pentagram formed beneath her and her captor. With one blinding flash, the two disappeared from the wasteland that once held the Gremory Castle.
"What of her daughter, Your Grace? I meant not to question your decree, I was under the presumption killing her would rid you of any future nuances."
King Bael stared at his officer, almost glaring. A Lady from House Furcas. But this was simply the way he saw others, and those he trusted knew enough that he was not furious with them.
"The girl's blind and powerless." His voice did not command respect. It demanded it, and carried promises unkind to those that did not kneel. "Blind, crippled and powerless, she can't lead an army nor inspire her people. Kill her should she dare to return to this Realm."
A nod, and the officers refrained from further questions.
"Lord Belial. How does the army fare?"
"The men are exhausted, Your Grace." Diehauser stepped up to his side. "We lost a quarter of our men during the fighting. Most expectedly felled by Lord Sirzechs and Grayfia Lucifuge- whose body we have yet to find. Given his attachment to his servant, I suspect he has sent her somewhere either on Hell or Earth prior to his death in the throne room."
King Bael gave it a thought, weighing the possibilities and the answers. Grayfia Lucifuge was a dangerous Devil, but not undefeatable. If he could cut off Sirzechs' head with the aid of Diehauser Belial, doing the same to her wasn't nearly as hard.
"We've bested her once and we'll best her as many times it'll take. Send out news that any House who is fostering a fugitive and a traitor will be driven to the mud. If she escaped to Earth, then leave her. The Earth is of no interest to our cause for this moment."
"Of course, Your Grace." Diehauser bowed politely. Loyalty, though rare, was not entirely lost on the Devilkind. Diehauser happened to be fiercely loyal to the man who granted his family a chance to become part of the King's Council once King Bael conquered the rest of the Houses.
And his loyalty was not lost on King Bael. "You've served me well, through combat and counsel and you spoke with reason. Something I seem to have trouble finding after the dozen Houses we have trodden down. I don't want you to think once that your loyalty has gone unnoticed."
"Not at all, Your Grace. You have given me an opportunity to raise my House's status. I'm afraid our loyalty won't be enough to ever repay your trust. I never once ask for a reward."
"And loyalty without reward is mere slavery." King Bael spoke. "Once I sit on the Throne we built you will be my Hand."
Once Diehauser stopped broadening his eyes in awe, he knelt down to his knees and bowed his head. No more exchange of words, as all that was needed to be said had been said. After receiving a gesture with his hand, Diehauser Belial arose no longer as a vanguard general or the officer of the King's Army.
He stood in time for another arrival of another Bael. The youngest son of King Bael himself; Sairaorg Bael. A 'cursed' Devil for his inability to utilize a single spark of Demonic Power, and had long since been labelled as a failure by his father. The fact that King Bael sent him to lead the first charge to the front gate was not given as an honor or a careless suicidal attempt to break the defender's morale, but as a test if he could be a part of something and not put the Bael name to shame like the rest of his brothers did.
Sairaorg huffed. His black armor was dented and splattered with gore and blood, but the Devil himself was mostly unharmed. Diehauser saw him during the fight, and he fought like five lions. Since Demonic Power was hardly utilized during close-quarters out of the consideration of hitting their own men, Sairaorg had proven to be an indispensable presence given his natural might.
"Your Grace." The young Bael knelt before his King father. "We've secured the cellar. There's not a single soul left there as you've commanded and we've taken the women and the children found as prisoners."
Diehauser Belial studied King Bael's unmoving face. He didn't look proud. But he didn't look disappointed either. An odd feeling he wondered if it would last past this battle.
Then he gave a nod. "Those women and children will soon be under our rule. Have them sent to one of our empty lands. They will begin their lives anew while we reclaim this… presently useless patch of dirt." Sairaorg dipped his head, but before he could excuse himself, King Bael continued, "Lord Belial told me your fervor inspired the men under your command. I expect to see nothing less of the same you showed in your first real combat in future battles."
"Never less, Your Grace." Sairaorg didn't raise his head yet, remaining careful not to lose his head over the first time his father made an acknowledgment of his accomplishment. He knew his place as the unfavored son and knew the rarity of this chance to finally prove he wasn't just a useless dumb muscle. That he could take part in forging the future of Hell itself. "Your praise honors me, Lord Belial."
All he wanted was a chance, and his father finally granted it by sending him to lead the vanguard. Half expecting him to die.
"Good. That is expected of you." King Bael spoke, and Sairaorg's chest grew tight with expectations. "Return to your tent and rest. Same for the rest of you except you, Lord Belial. You stay."
"Thank you, Your Grace." Nothing could describe his relief knowing he would fight another day for his House. At last. Sairaorg left the smoldering earth along with the rest of his father's generals, leaving the King and his Hand alone.
Diehauser waited in the uncomfortable silence. King Bael spoke and ended the conversation by his own terms. Anyone unwise enough to start a conversation with him without his permission might as well sign their death sentence.
After a long silence, King Bael veered his sight from the castle that was nothing more than a pile of rubble towards Diehauser.
"With Gremory trampled to dust, the East is nearly ours. What do you propose on doing first, Lord Belial?"
Belial had seen this coming. "We've razed the Gremory, yes, but their allies have yet to show their faces, Your Grace. It's possible they will bend their knees to you after refusing the Gremory's call to help. We can secure the East without spilling more blood."
"They've betrayed the Gremory. I will not have betrayers as allies." King Bael seethed. "Blood will be spilled regardless, the only difference is time. Either we break them now or they will attempt to break us in the future should they be given the chance."
"In which case, I propose we strike the Phoenix first." Diehauser said pointedly. "They provide Phoenix Tears to their allies, and they do amass the most wealth out of all the other Houses. If possible, we secure one or two as prisoners and grant us our own Phoenix Tears. Or we can weed them out one by one. Small to big."
King Bael's rugged face rarely showed a smile. A tiny smirk at best. One he was doing then upon hearing the suggestion.
"We've snuffed the rebellion and our largest threat. The men are inspired enough to believe they can take down the Immortal Bird. Once they are well rested, we will march to Flemeth and lay siege to House Phenex. Destroy the bird and keep it grounded."
.
The first thing she felt after she was thrown into the Gate was cold wind shattering her body, before the cold saltwater of the Pacific Ocean crashed into her. Her wounds screamed in pain that she couldn't even scream out of agony. Rias Gremory had never once given up hope, but this time, it might be the first. In the midst of her panic and pain, unable to see and now surrounded by seemingly unending depth of the ocean, Rias Gremory managed to reiorrent her sense of direction, and climbed her way up to the surface.
.
Roygun gasped for breath as she resurfaced, spewing out water as she frantically looked around. She realized she was still in her bath. That was dangerous, she thought. Falling asleep in the bath was not the brightest idea she had. By Lilith... she might just get one of those gremlins to her bathroom just so she didn't die a stupid death.
Losing the mood to stay any longer, the Devil exited the bathtub, dried herself with a towel, put on her comfortable cotton boxer briefs, and sauntered outside her bathroom, then her bedroom. Raynare was the first to take notice of the Devil's re-arrival to the living room, as well as her hardly-clothed state of being. White towel draped around her neck and loosely hanging over her well-shaped breasts atop of one piece of underwear was not a complete set of outfit in her eyes.
Issei mistook her sudden silence as a sign of her spirit wavering and nabbed the last piece of the sushi they had been fighting over for the last couple of seconds.
The Fallen Angel and the Devil exchanged an equally confused stare, in the meantime, blinking two times without breaking eye contact.
Then Roygun figured out why. "Oh, right... I don't live by myself anymore. For a second I was surprised to see you two in my house."
Issei turned around. As he was in the process of shoveling another piece of sushi into his mouth, his lips were parted and naturally ajar. Raynare peered over to him, curious to how he would react, expecting him to be blown away by a pair of shapely lump of meat with a nipple on each of them. Roygun even waited along, saying nothing, equally curious.
He closed his mouth. With unnatural calmness, almost at peace, he settled the piece of sushi held by his chopstick back down to his plate. With sincerity, he pursed his lips, and nodded with full-approval.
"Ma'am," he began, still nodding, earning their full undivided attention, "although it wounds my limited honor as a law-abiding citizen, I will gladly accept your effort to literally prostitute yourself to me."
Both Roygun and Raynare threw her head back and clapped their hands once, twice, shaking their head and failing miserably in containing their laughter. Sushi was nice. Boobs were nice. Sushi and boobies must be pretty close to heaven, he thought, as he continued his feast with both his taste buds and eyes.
To be continued...
So far you've only heard of Hell's shithole situation from a third person aside from Roygun's brief flashback, so in this side chapter I wanna just show another snippet of its current situation and the drastic difference and the whiplash in mood between Hell and the House. Grim and dark compared to the two goblins fighting over a filleted fish on top of a ball of rice
King Bael (might need a name soon. Suggest away if you want)
Just so you won't confuse the order of things, this event happened not long before Grayfia got into the story, so it was indeed an event from the past
Side chapters like this won't appear often, really. This is kinda an… an interim chapter between the completion of the last arc and the beginning of the next one, hence the 'Interlude'. If you like it, then I'll write some stuff about King Bael's progress in his journey of yeeting the entire hell between arcs (4~6 chapters per arc).
No, Rias won't ever amass an army of her own. This isn't the kind of story to have bullcrap asspull heroics in it where the good guys somehow always win. She might even just drown without ever making another appearance. You'll never know until i let you ( ͡ʘ ͜ʖ ͡ʘ)
"...M-mother…" She croaked. Her voice hoarse after inhaling all the smoke and dust. "...is that… you?"
Venelana fought hard not to cry further. "Yes, my dear…" she clutched Rias' searching hand, gripping it tight and afraid to let go. "I'm here… I'm here with you…"
"M-mother…?" Panic arose in her voice and face. "I... I can't see…? Wh-why can't I see— oh god it's in my eye… It's in my eyes!"
Venelana paused before realizing this was out of script. "The fake blood?! Someone fetch her water and towel!"
King Bael scrambled away off the set in search of water and towel, yelling "My niece requires immediate aid for her eyes!"
"Well that ruined the moment." Issei muttered loud enough in his actor chair to cause Sairaorg, the person sitting next to him, to chuckle. "Hey Sai, when do you think we're doing the next shoot for Academy?"
"What? The one where you lie in bed all episode?" Sairaorg asked amidst the chaos running in the background, with a Rias possibly going blind from red food coloring.
"Yeah. I'm really looking forward to that. I'll double my effort in lying down, doing nothing while you do all the plot-related stuff. Bribing Jeanne and all that. "
"Sure you would buddy. I'm sure you would." Sairaorg rolled his eyes. In and out of character, Issei was a snarky prick.