Chapter 3

It hadn't been very long since Issei had woken up. Yet before even the sun could reach the top of the sky, he had already seen multiple impossible things. Now, he found himself where he'd never been before.

"This is the Occult Research Club's room huh? Doesn't really have that feel to it."

Issei was inside of the old school building, sitting in the middle of a luxurious room. It was dimly lit by a few small lights. The windows were concealed behind curtains, blocking out the natural light of the sun. Issei and Saber sat on a couch in the middle of the room. Across from them was Koneko alone, slouched forward and hugging her legs. Kiba had left not long ago, and since his departure, not even a single word was spoken.

"Should I say something?" Issei turned his head to Saber, as if trying to ask him telepathically.

Saber didn't seem to notice. For some reason, he and Koneko had locked eyes, like they were having a staring contest.

Issei frowned dejectedly, turning his head to look at the door behind him. "Now I actually want Kiba to come back. No, anybody at all would be just fine."

Practically on cue, the door suddenly opened. In walked Rias, Kiba, and a black haired girl. Not just Issei, but all three people in the room stopped staring at each other and instead turned focus to the three. Rias sat on the couch beside Koneko, while the other two stood behind and at attention. She looked relaxed, with her legs crossed and hands resting, but also had an air of authority floating around her.

"Thank you for coming." Rias said with a calm tone. "I'm Rias Gremory. You've already met Koneko and Kiba. This is Akeno, my right hand," The black haired girl bowed politely. "I know who Issei is, somewhat, but who are you?" She turned towards Saber.

"Call me Saber."

"Saber as in a swordsman? If that's the case, where is your sword?"

Issei looked down at the sheath on Saber's hip. Just like when they first met, it was empty. Issei tilted his head at the discovery, raising an eyebrow.

Saber shook his head at Rias. "That's a secret. Sorry, but I can't tell you that either."

Rias was unimpressed by the answer, looking as if she hadn't even heard him. Her eyes wandered, scanning the two up and down. She sighed disappointedly. "Alright then. How about this..." She repositioned herself, leaning forward with arms on legs. "I've been told that you have some prejudice against us because we're not human. More specifically, because we're Devils. So, how do we gain your trust?"

"I don't like you, but that's not the reason we need to keep private. In fact, I think It'd be better if we didn't involve ourselves with each other."

"That's not an option." Rias' smile dropped instantly and her eyes narrowed. "This entire town is my territory. Everything that happens here is my business. If there is something going on that I don't know about, then I need to find out. Despite what you might think, we don't want to be your enemy. Remember that you are the one who tried to start a fight. But even now, we don't want any trouble between us."

Saber's eyes softened slightly as he leaned back. He turned to face Issei. "It's up to you, Master."

Issei hesitated to answer, looking between his servant and the woman in front of him. He oddly felt inclined to accept. "W-well, let's try to get along. Even if you guys aren't human, I don't think we should fight if we don't have to."

"Good, then it's settled." Rias smiled again, her voice no longer carrying the same weight in it from a moment ago. "That's all I wanted to discuss. You can leave if you want."

On her offer, Saber stood up from his seat. Issei did the same, albeit reluctantly, and followed his servant out the door. As the door shut behind them, Rias let out a breath of relief and leaned back on the couch. "You all felt that, right? The Holy Power coming from him?" She asked

"He's beyond human-levels, and I think he was holding back too. He didn't have a sacred gear, not that I could sense. But I think he had a… a True Holy Sword." Kiba said, his fists clenching unintentionally.

"Which one though?" Akeno asked, tilting her head with a troubled look. "Could it have been an-"

"Enough, Akeno." Rias commanded. "Whichever sword it is isn't important right now. We shouldn't have to worry about that for awhile. What's important is figuring out who he really is and why he called Issei 'Master'. Did Issei give off any magical power?"

"Not even a little bit. He has a sacred gear, but it hasn't been awakened yet."

"Hmm…" Rias cupped her chin, whispering to herself. She looked back up to her colleagues. "Kiba, I want you and Koneko to keep an eye on them. If another Fallen Angel comes near them, don't interfere unless absolutely necessary."

"Yes." the two said in unison before leaving the room.

"What will we do?" Akeno asked, tilting her head curiously.

Rias stood up from her seat, gesturing for Akeno to follow. "I've been told that another Stray Devil has wandered into our town, which means you and I will be going hunting."

Magical energy started leaking from Rias' body and into the room, manifesting as a large red circle appeared beneath their feet, glowing with a crimson light. The glow became brighter and brighter. In a sudden flash, the two were gone and the room was completely empty.

Saber and Issei made their way off of school grounds. The day was still fairly young, yet also fairly quiet. Across the street from them was a kids playground, with maybe a handful of children using it. There weren't any adults around though, nor any cars.

Abruptly, Issei stopped walking and turned to his servant. "Saber, I've got a question." he said, looking again at the empty scabbard.

Saber stopped as well, looking at Issei. "Is it about my sword?" he asked

Issei nodded his head eagerly. "You're a saber right? But all I've seen are those weird spear things. Are you sure you're not a Lancer?"

Saber scratched the back of his head, looking away from Issei as if embarrassed. "I'm positive, since I can't actually be summoned as any other class. I do have a sword but, well, it's not safe to talk about it in public. So it'd be better to wait until we're in private again."

"Oh, okay then… So what should we do now then? Go home?" Issei suggested.

"Before that, if there's a church nearby, I'd like to visit it." Saber asked with an almost hopeful look.

"A church huh? I didn't know you were a religious man." Issei said with a surprised look.

"Well, back when I was alive, God was pretty much everything to both me and my people. So many fights and parties just over his name." Saber answered, before shaking his head. "What about you? Do you believe in God?"

"I sorta do, but I haven't gone to church in a long time. The only one in town closed down when I was a kid. I don't know why it did though." Issei paused briefly, but shrugged it off. "Anyways, it's all the way up there."

Issei pointed up towards a building a long distance away. It was larger than the trees and stood alone, above all of the other buildings. It was almost completely white, with a cross sitting at the top. Despite supposedly being unused, it looked well maintained, as if it was still being cared for. Saber smiled at the sight of it. After a moment, he finally averted his gaze.

"Well, let's get a move on. We have a long walk ahead of us." Saber confidently declared.

The two continued to walk, but with an actual destination in mind. Yet, they didn't manage to get very far. After a few minutes, as they neared a crossroad, something collided with Issei, causing him to gasp and his assailant to yelp. He was thankfully kept from falling by Saber, but the other wasn't so lucky.

Issei quickly recollected himself and realized what he ran into. On the ground in front of him was a young girl about his age. She wore a dark teal dress and had a white veil over her head. She resembled a nun, especially considering the silver cross around her neck.

Issei stared puzzled for a moment. "Huh, a nun around here?" he thought as he crouched down and offered his hand.

The girl took it, and as she stood up, Issei noticed her features. She had long blonde hair, that looked like it was made of actual gold, and bright green eyes.

"I'm sorry. I wasn't paying attention." the girl said, bowing her head to Issei.

"Oh no, it was my fault." Issei quickly replied, waving his hands dismissively. "Wow, she's really cute! She's just my type too… but what is she doing here?"

"It's nice to meet you. My name is Asia Argento. Please, call me Asia." The girl said with a smile.

"I-Issei- my name's Issei Hyoudo." He replied sheepishly. He scratched his head, unsure of what to say. With hope in his eyes, he briefly glanced at Saber. Luckily for the three of them, he didn't seem to show any of the hostility he had earlier. In fact, he actually looked relaxed, for the first time Issei had ever seen.

"Um, Asia, are you new to town?" Saber asked, trying to break the ice.

Asia nodded her head. "I'm supposed to transfer to this town's church and arrived today. Although I got sidetracked and now I'm lost."

"How about joining us? We're on our way to the church as well."

She answered without hesitation. "Thank you so much!" She said cheerfully.

Together the three resumed their travel towards the church. At the speed they walked, it would only take a half hour. As they walked, Issei was quiet. Normally, he would be focused on the girl, making a note of her features. However, whenever he did, it would always lead to her smile. It was radiant, like she herself glowed. Every time he thought about it, about her, his left arm felt like it was burning. It wasn't enough to be painful, it was just an unusual feeling.

"S-so Asia, where are you from?" Issei asked.

"Oh, I used to live in Italy. Today is my first day in Japan." Asia replied.

"The church transferred you here without a guide or escort?" Saber asked, looking sincerely concerned.

Asia flinched, looking away nervously. "W-well, some things came up and nobody was able to come with. I didn't want to make them wait either."

"That's messed up." Issei commented, frowning at her explanation. "What was so important that they just let you go alone?" While he let out his outcry, both Asia and Saber looked away, laughing dryly.

"Well, it hasn't all been bad." Asia smiled, reassuring Issei. "I got to meet you two, and this one orange haired girl."

Saber's head snapped towards Asia. Instead of concern or worry, he looked almost frightened, yet in a disbelieving kind of way. "Orange haired girl?"

"Yes! She told me to walk in this direction, and that's when I bumped into Issei… sorry again about that."

"You don't have to apologize, Asia…but hey Saber, do you know someone with orange hair?" Issei tilted his head.

"I… think I do? I have no clue why, but I think I had some kind of history with a person like that. Who were they?" Saber started to trail off, muttering to himself incoherently.

Issei looked ahead of them, grunting with surprise. "Oh, we're already here."

The two looked forward as well, and saw the church ahead of them. It looked as good as it did at a distance, if not better. The Chapel had two large wooden doors on its front, with two tall window panes on both sides. There was no sign prohibiting entry, nothing that said the building was closed down.

Everybody continued to approach the church. However, Issei stopped in his tracks. He blinked rapidly and in disbelief, as he felt a familiar chill run through his body. His legs, his arms, even his mouth refused to move, like he was paralyzed.

"I knew it. Something's wrong with the church." He grit his teeth, commanding himself to move forward despite everything telling him to run. "Saber! Get Asia away from the door!" he abruptly shouted, catching the two's attention.

Saber didn't even hesitate as he acknowledged his master's command. In one fluid motion, Saber swept Asia off of her feet and jumped away to Issei's side. No sooner had two flying spears ripped their way through the doors. They looked like the one Yuuma used, albeit of different colors. One was blue, the other was yellow. After hitting the ground, they quickly disintegrated.

"W-w-what's going?!" Asia exclaimed, looking terrified at Issei.

Saber put Asia back on the ground, keeping his eyes focused on the church. What was left of the doors were ripped from their hinges, and out walked a pair of human-looking individuals. One was a male, wearing a gray trench coat and a hat. The other was a woman wearing dark red clothes.

"Master, those weapons. It's just like what that strange angel used. Which means that they are also probably angels."

"I-I know." Issei said, trying to stop the shaking in his hands.

"Your orders?"

"What are you two doing here?" Asia demanded. "No, someone should have been here. What did you do with them?"

"Well, nobody needed to die, but you forced our hand. Now, two more will have to go." The man said, summoning another blue spear in his hand.

Asia was trembling, holding tightly onto Issei's arm. The burning Issei felt grew slightly more intense, but he didn't even notice.

The man threw his spear towards Saber, expecting it to skewer him. The moment it touched his shirt, however, it shattered into light, leaving him completely unharmed.

"T-that must have been a fluke!" The woman shrieked, throwing her own spear to much of the same effect.

"This isn't possible. Who are you!?" The man shouted.

"Sorry, looks like your attacks aren't good on me." Saber smirked, holding a hand out to his side. Four of his floating lances appeared, two on each side, and all blades pointed at the pair. In a flash, a double edged sword with a golden handle appeared in his hand. He glanced back towards Issei.

"T-that sword… there's no way." Asia muttered, looking at the blade with a glimmer of hope. "Durandal."

"Master, your orders?" Saber asked again.

"Isn't that obvious?" Issei asked, smiling wryly. "Kick their asses."

"Understood." Saber replied, gripping the sword with both hands.

"Don't worry Asia. we'll protect you." Issei said, keeping the girl close to him.

"I-Issei, you two should run. They only care about me." Asia said, looking pleadingly into Issei's eyes.

"There's no way we're gonna let them take you, not while we're alive. Just you watch." Issei replied, smiling confidently. "This isn't the first time he's dealt with these black angel guys."

END

Sorry that this chapter is a little shorter than the others. I'll try to make sure the next is longer. In any case, I hope you all are enjoying the story up to this point. I have a few ideas I'm excited to try and see how they work out. Everyone's seen Saber, a little of Archer, but there's still plenty left.