Disclaimer: I do not own Overlord or any other intellectual property used in this story and would like it if none of you clamed I did.

Note: Carful, more shameless crossovers ahead. You've been warned.

(Sounds)

"Talking"

'Thinking'

-Messages

Special Item Name

"Special voice"

[Spoken Spell/Ability]

{Wordless Spell/Ability}

'Ah, the Summoner's pit, rather morbid name if you ask me. I have to wonder if old me trying to be edgy or did he just like the name, eh, who knows.' I thought as I admired the seemingly boundless sky above. In the game the skybox had been one filled with stagnate overlapping clouds and an endless night sky, but now it was as if it was truly endless, the galaxy in the distance doing nothing to challenge that.

In contras the structure itself was rather lackluster in comparison. It was that of an old roman colosseum mixed with Stonehenge, whose walls and stands were made of a semi black stone. The floor was covered in a simple dirt and sand composite. A rather standard layout, but one that held a lot of significance in my head.

'Why would anyone ever make a boss with that many hit points anyway?' I internally whined to myself.

"Are you waiting for something my lord?" Asked a voice behind me.

"No, I was just admiring the arena. Good job maintaining this place so well." I praised Kall.

"Your words are too kind my lord. I was simply doing as I was made to." Replied the Knight.

'Do they have to be so uptight with me all the time? Sigh, maybe given enough time he'll loosen up… hopefully.'

"Kall. Barthandelus." I called out to the two. "Be ready to kill me if anything goes wrong. If this fails or worse, I'm unable to control it, do not hesitate to eliminate me. I would rather not be responsible for anyone's death. Am I understood?" Even as my face stayed stock and even, I was terrified at how wrong this could go.

"Surely the situation wouldn't warrant such drastic measures my lord?" Kall warily asked.

"Ideally not, but It is my job as the leader to consider and plan for such possibilities." I began my walk to the center of the arena.

"Bu-" Kall reached for his creator, but was stopped by an ornate staff in front his face.

"Stay your actions Kall. Listen to your orders and follow them." It was Barthandelus.

"Barthandelus you cannot be truly okay with such an order!?"

"No, I am not, but I suggest you have a faith in the actions of our creator. Unless you feel your judgment is above his?" The word were smooth, but firm in there accusation.

Kall recoiled slightly at the remark, his mind now flashing back to an earlier conversation. "I…understand, but be that as it may I will endeavor to protect my king to the best of my abilities." He proclaimed.

The elder looking man did not waver, but rather gave a smirk. "I would expect nothing less." With that the older man's visage changed and morphed to his fighting form. In seconds the man's body grew and formed the pearl white body he had before. This time however he sported multiple moving faces, each lined with Latin scriptures running down their sides. All chanting yet none made a sound. With the transformation he was ready to comply with his masters wishes.

'Alright I'm finally at the perfect distance, I swear this place is like a mile long. Why did I originally make it so big?' I shook my head to rid it of useless thoughts. I would need my full concentration for this next part.

(Inhale/Exhale)

"Alright, are you two ready?! I'm about to begin!" I shouted across the field.

"Yes my king, do not worry. We shall protect you." replied Kall. Barthandelus only gave a nod.

'I wish I was that confident as them, but if this ends up going wrong then they might actually just need to kill me. So I suppose a bit of hesitation is natural.' I began by pulling out two basic looking staffs out of my inventory.

The first, being the one on my left was entirely made of gray stone and sat balanced on its flat bottom, it rose a single inch above my head ending on a T-shaped stone top.

The second, being the one on the right, was a stick that stood three inches over me who's exterior resembled that of an old tree, bark and all. The only difference being in that at the top it split into seven branching paths, each of which's ended in a point with a single leaf hanging at their ends.

I gave a look to my left. 'Ah, Cronus's staff one of my favorites. Although I do normally prefer the others, this suite the situation well.' The thing that made Cronus's staff so useful now, was because not only did it add a collection of time spells to my capabilities, but it also increased the effectiveness of my status effects. Not just debuffs, but also regular effect spells were given the increase. While wielding the weapon both my supportive and de-protective spells would be cast at significantly higher levels than normal.

I turned my gaze to the right. 'And one I haven't used in a long time. Gaia's Blessing.' The second staff was useful for keeping not only myself, but my companions alive. It, like my other staff, boosted my existing spells while giving me a few new ones. But rather than buffs Gaia's Blessingincreased my restorative capabilities, while lending me control over several AOE healing spells.

'Weird how useful two legacy-class pieces of equipment can be when upgraded.' True enough both staffs only fell into the 5th, out of seven, rank of equipment in the game, but through a lot of data crystal farming I had ascended the two into becoming Divine-class. The upgrades had given the weapons the effect of upping the level of whatever spell I cast that coincided with their effects, thus why I choose these two.

'If I'm still me after this then I should be fine. The only real threat is if they rebel. Well, enough stalling, time to get on with this test.' I began by slamming both staffs down and began my spell.

[Summon Rank 0: Fly]

A tiny ball of light formed in front of me before it dimed and showed a 5 millimeter small fly floating were the light had been. The creature floated stationary were it had been summoned.

'Well it worked, not that I expected it not to with a Rank 0, but still its strange feeling connected to a fly.' True enough I could feel a sort of metaphysical string connecting the two of us. It was odd to say the least, not intrusive, but rather forgettable if I'm not paying attention to it. 'Strange… now to see if it listens to me.' I mentally ordered the fly to on top of my hand and it did. Next I told it to do tricks in between the gaps in my wooden staff, which it performed flawlessly.

'Good, but I suppose a fly wouldn't be the hardest to control. On to the next test.'

[Return]

Just like that the fly seemed to fade out of existence and back to wherever it came from.

'Getting rid of them seems easy enough. Next comes what happens if I don't do that.'

[Summon Rank 0: Mosquito, level 5]

Like before the summon came in a ball of light, but unlike before this one it was about three feet across. Once the light faded the now giant mosquito hung in its place.

'Looks like level summoning is still in, but seems to change physical characteristics of it when done on lower level creatures.' I thought while gazing at the massive insect. 'Hmm… This is weird though, I know I should at least be a little creeped out by a giant insect, but it's like the mosquito couldn't possibly be a threat to me. Perhaps it's because I summoned it… regardless I need to continue with the experiment.' I looked over to the two standing at a distance.

"Kall, I require your assistance."

"Yes my lord." The knight quickly ran over. Once arrived I continued.

"I need you to kill this summon, but before you do clip its wing." I said stocky.

"As you command my king." Without hesitation Kall pulled out his double edged broadsword and readied it to strike.

'I need to see if it'll still obey me even when attacked. Also what happens to it if it's killed?' With his first wing Kall sliced through its wing like air. The Bug dropped to the ground as I felt the link in my head turn red. With a mental command I calmed the creature and ordered it to stay still. It did as it was told, even as Kall's sword rose to finish it off. With the second swing Kall cleaved the insect in half.

The insect's body fell to the ground, juices and organs spewed onto the ground. The body of the creature twitched lightly before stopping completely as I felt the link in my head sever.

'So the connection is only for commands and not an actual mental melding.' I secretly ordered the severed half of the creature's wing to [Return]. The detached half quickly faded out of existence.

'Looks like I can [Return] specific parts of a summon and not just the thing as a whole. Now to see how far I can stretch that return command.' I turned over to the third living entity in the room.

"Barthandelus would you kindly burn the remains." Kall had now moved back to his previous location. Barthandelus gave a nod and let loose the appropriate spell.

[Fire]

A single second passed as the spell flew to its intended target and incinerated the remains. The spell seemed to take care not to burn me as it charred what was left.

"Thank you Barthandelus." He gave a bow as I looked over to the ashes remaining.

[Return]

The ashes did not change.

'So completely destroying it changes its ability to [Return], but not if it's just dead. What else should I try? I know.'

[Revive]

For a second the spell had no effect and I thought it had failed, but before I could call it the ashes began to glow and clumped together. That continued for a bit before a regular sized version of the creature crawled its way out of the pile. Upon closer inspection I noticed it was still missing the part of the wing I had sent off.

'So at the very least summons can be revived if with a small penalty of lost levels, even still it will not return with everything that particular part has been [Returned], interesting.'

[Return]

"Now on to some bigger fish."

'Literally.'

"Barthandelus, can you levitate water?" he nodded.

"Good, I need you to make a sphere of water about ten feet in diameter in front of me." He did not question the order and began his work by casting [Water] spells and levitating them ahead of me.

As he did I looked through my internal summoning list of rank zero. It was comprised of simple creations like insects, plants or small objects like paper. 'For the most part it was a useless rank in the game, but now it seemed almost invaluable for things like food if we can't eat what's in this new world. That and insects make great spies, even back in Yggdrasil they were irreplaceable for such a purpose.' I smiled to myself, remembering how often I used flies to gather information.

"It is done my creator." Spoke the giant.

"I told you to stop calling me that. Erdrick is fine no need to call me as if I'm some sort of god." It had been a problem ever since we had left the throne room that Barthandelus had not stopped calling me as if I were some sort of deity. It was odd to hear to say the least.

"My apologies Dios." He replied.

'Oh come on, that's just Spanish for god! Sigh, whatever let's just get on with this.'

"Just keep up the water until I say otherwise Barthandelus."

[Summon Rank 1: Goldfish]

A flash of light later and the empty ball of water now held a three foot large orange fish waiting steadily for orders.

'That is one big goldfish, probably because rank one doesn't fall below level five. I am glad to see summons not specifically put into the game can be used if they fall within the prerequisite of the rank. Rank one was all about regular species found on earth after all.'

After a few commands to test its loyalty I decided to try issuing and order that creatures would not normally condone to.

'Jump.' Quickly as it was ordered the fish flew out of the sphere and began its desperate flop around as it tried to breath.

[Return]

After it vanished I began to think. 'So even though it knew it would die, the fish still jumped out. It seemed like my orders take higher priority that their own survival instincts.' A small chill went up my spine at the idea. 'That's pretty scary when you think about it.' I shake my head of the thought and move on.

'Now were getting into the real problem areas, ranks two and above. The problems didn't necessarily stem from the levels the summons had, but rather what was being summoned. Like with zero, rank one was just regular species of life found in nature. While things two and up began to have some real sentience to them, especially if that particular aspect of the game was still achievable.' As I gathered the resources necessary to bring in my next summon and went over the list of potential choices, I thought back to why this may be a problem.

To know exactly what made ranks 2 and up so dangerous one must first know what made my character, Erdrick, Yggdrasil's most fearsome, yet least known Summoner.

Back in the game the least picked class by far had been the Summoners. The reason being that out of all the other classes in the game, Summoners had the lowest stat growth. The initial summons of the class were just regular mobs that just about anyone could cut through with ease. Not to mention the experience cost and cooldown time to the bigger summons was monstrous. That added in with the fact that in Yggdrasil only one character could be tied to one account, so unless you wanted to undo hundreds of hours of work, not many people would waste levels on an almost useless class. Hence why the full potential of the class was a complete unknown to everyone. Everyone except me that is.

To clarify, the Summoners progression tree had several tiers to it and those tiers were broken up as such. Summoner, High Summoner, Grand Summoner and True Summoner, as listed in the games strategy guide. With the terrible stats and expensive mobs one gets from sinking over thirty points into the class, why would anyone spec into a full Summoner?

'Well let's just say I was too stubborn after using twenty points towards the class to stop, and boy am I glad I did.' The thing that isn't listed anywhere in the game or even the strategy guide is that there is a secret fifth Summoner rank. Once a player, namely me, reaches the end of the Summoner tree, another section opens up called Final Summoner. Once activated the class completely reworks how the summoning class works as a whole.

Were before EXP was required to summon things, now it was just MP like other spells. Normally a summon would end on a timer or when you zoned out of an area, but now it was until it was dismissed or killed. Before the summoning cost would be based on the level you made it, now the summons were split into specific ranks of 0-5 based on how lethal they were and how much they could grow given higher levels.

As impressive and as interesting as that all was, it was only when I received a message from the GM, explaining all the aspects of the skill that I realized just how unique it was. The thing that made Final Summoner so different, was the same reason it wasn't listed anywhere. The class violated several copyright rules.

The class had been conceived as a form of creative release for people in the development group. Truth being that the creations made as creative release were most of the time illegal. Not illegal in the sense that they broke the approved content rating of the game, but rather that the likenesses used were not owned by said developers. So because none of the developers wanted to just delete their creations they made a compromise. They created a secret fifth Summoner class were they secretly put all the models they had made.

Thus when I achieved the secret rank I got access to all their creations. The pool of summons I was given ranged from all video game media, whenever someone just felt like recreating an iconic monster or creature from another game or simply wanted to test their abilities at working the engine, regardless it would end up in my summoning pool.

After getting the ability I was congratulated and warned by the developers to keep my capabilities secret, for fear of getting the company sued. I was still allowed to use the regular summons, but apparently they never accounted for someone actually reaching the class, so when I threatened to tell we struck a deal.

The deal was that I would play solo and never post anything about the class having existed, even to my friends. In exchange I could request a summon to be made and added into summoning list once a month. They agreed right away not wanting to take their chances of me changing my mind. Had they done their research they would have known I don't have friends or party up with anyone anyways and that I didn't care for social media all that much. It was essentially a win-win for me.

After that I became even more secluded and spent most of my time admiring the ridiculous amount of effort they spent on the models they had created. They even took the time to optimize stats to mimic what they might be if they were implemented. It truly made the experience much more enjoyable. I even started to create fun little crossover battles whenever I got bored.

Unfortunately the fact that they are just skins may not be so true anymore. If they all become what they were modeled after, then things may just go awry real quick.

The process of remembering why I had to be careful took but a moment while I let the spell charged up and I picked my choice. 'No more time to be scared over what if's, it's time to take action.'

[Summon Rank 2: Deathclaw]

In contrast to the previous attempts, the summon did not appear in a flash of light, but rather it began by molding the dirt and sand in front of me into the shape of the creature. Once within the general shape of the beast was complete it began to shake itself clean of the clay like dirt that covered its body.

'Deathclaws, notoriously hard to control even by their creators. A good test-bed to see how far my control stretches.'

Having finished I could now see the monster in its entirety. The Deathclaw stood at an impressive nine feet tall on two feet and sported a dark, scale like, leather skin. Its head had horns twice the size to that of a ram and teeth capable of ripping flesh to shreds. Its form was rippling with muscle that it used to swing its powerful limbs. Each of its main appendages had claws that seemed straight out of a monster movie and a tail that looked strong enough to sever a tree from its trunk. Its eyes held a primal, yet intelligent look to them. This was the definition of an alpha predator.

'Man, this thing looks way more terrifying in real life. Even so I don't feel that fear. I know I should, standing a few feet from it and all, but the sense of wanting to run away just isn't there. What the hell, why aren't I scared?' I was cut off by the beast making a snorting sound.

"You wouldn't happen to know English would you?" I asked jokingly

(Snort)

"Huh, can you actually understand me?"

(Snort)

"Well that's neat, but do you know why you're here?"

(Snort)(Snort)

"No, huh… well, will you listen to my orders?"

(Snort)

"Really? Why so willing?"

(Snort)(Snort)(Snort)

"Right no ability to talk, only a simple conversations are possible, sorry. Well let's see how well you can listen to commands." Thinking it over for a second I spoke up.

"Go drown in that water." The creature did not reply and simply trekked over to the sphere I was pointing at.

'Wow, talk about complete control.'

"Okay you can stop and [Return] to your… dimension?' The pounding feet of the beast slowly vanished as its body returned to the earth as if it had never left.

'Well, that was an experience, but it seems like my control over them is absolute. Since that worked it's probably for the best if I just move on to rank five. Now that's going to be a whole new ballgame.'

"My king, what was that creature? It looked fearsome enough to take down a dozen men, yet you stood as if the creature was but, a pet. Do you really have sway over such beast?" Kall asked.

'Right, I almost never used them in regular battle so he's never seen any of my more robust summons.'

"Yes, it appears, at least for now, I have not been weakened by the event. Also for future reference that beast was called a Deathclaw, a form of alpha predator where it comes from. But something I can easily handle if the need had arisen." He seemed impressed.

"To have such authority over a fearsome beast like that, truly you are meant to rule."

'It was just a level 20, no need to be so critical. Had that rampaged even my magic could deal with it.' I internally sweat drop.

I cough into my hand to break the strange atmosphere. "Regardless you'd best be ready Kall. This next one may not be as willing to listen as the last." Realizing he had acted prematurely Kall returned to his battle ready stance.

'Alright now for the final test. Rank five are at least equal to a boss battle so this will truly test how much power I have in this new world.'

"Summon Rank five, Grigori…" A moment passed and… no reaction.

'What? That's not right, I didn't even feel a spell activate there. Do I not have access to Rank five summons?' As I began to contemplate my dilemma Barthandelus' booming voice pulled be back.

"Elohim, perhaps such powerful summons require an incantation? A way to lure in the creature to you from wherever it resides." I looked up and thought back.

'That one was Hebrew. He could be right though, in game I never needed anything like that, but then again that was just me pulling textures from a file onto a digital module. Perhaps I do need a mantra, but It's not like I know any incantations…ah fuck it, I'll just wing it and hope it works.' I raised my staff to the sky and began my chant.

[Break from your endless chain to serve a new fate, Grigori!]

For a while nothing happened and I began to beret myself for my actions.

'Ahh, that was so embarrassing and it didn't even do shit. It could have at least-'I was stopped by a powerful force that seemed pulled at the very air. Both Guardians were immediately on guard at the pressure.

'Why does the air feel so thick? It's not aggravating, but it sure as hell isn't pleasant. Is this what a rank five feels like?' My thoughts were correct as the clouds in the sky coiled together and turned a tainted red. They swirled for a moment before exploding outwards and reveling a colossal red dragon falling towards the arena.

'It worked? How is that possible though? All I did was just say what came to mind when I think of Grigori. Mabey that's all I need, just a form of beacon to me through my words.' With that final thought Grigori made his touchdown within the arena.

Now that the giant had landed its full size was far beyond any that came before it. Standing well over Barthandelus and even the colosseum its self, Grigori was the definition of huge. Even as it occupied most of the arena I could tell it still had its wings detracted so as not to damage the structure. A truly imposing figure.

The beast's body was that of a quadruped and covered in blood red scales. Its face akin to that of a dragon and eyes filled with a burning fire that would strike fear into any pray.

"I have come as you have requested Seneschal, what need do you have for me?" The massive creature asked while lowering its head to meet my eyes.

'Seneschal? Why call me that? Unless, Are its memories changed so it would obey me? Do creatures I summon have their thoughts altered to prevent them from disobeying be… no time for that Erdrick, back to reality. If he really thinks I'm the Seneschal then I have nothing to fear.'

"I ask you Grigori, who is your master?" I asked the dragon.

"Who else, but you Seneschal, governor of my will is you." Bellowed the titan.

"Excellent, now [Return], I shall call upon you when I have need."

"As you command my master, I shall await your call." The dragon leapt back and spread its wings wide, catching the air under them, as it began to soar back to where it came from.

'So even rank fives are incapable of disobeying be… talk about overpowered.' As I began to ponder the implications of such a power, Kall decided to speak up.

"W-What manner of beast was that Erdrick-sama? Its presence was that of a divine being and still you stood unaffected by it. Its origins were that of divinity and still it bowed its head to you. Does your power truly transcend the realm of gods?" Kall's words became more and more in disbelief as he went on.

'I hate to lie to him, but if such a show of power is what I need to keep them from questioning my strength, then…' Straightening my back I let my voice ring out.

"Yes, I have reached beyond the realm of gods and tamed creations mightier than even that. I have ascended past the scope of man and returned with them to defend my Kingdome." The speech was short, but accentuated the grandeur of my words.

Kall seemed stunned for a second before he began to kneel in respect. "Truly you are the greatest of all Kings my master."

'God acting is hard, but it has to be done. I can afford some sort of rebellion simply because I'm not perceived as strong enough.'

"What is a Seneschal Astavats?" questioned the non-human.

'Armenian.'

"Oh nothing, it just means god." I said offhandedly as I continued to question myself internally. Unfortunately I failed to notice the wide eyed expression on Barthandelus' face at the words.

"So even beings of such a level call him God, he is truly deserving of his title." Barthandelus whispering to himself as he returned to his human form.

"Although I must ask Seneschal, why not have Anima here with us. Had we needed to face such a foe, would it not have been best to have all the Guardians here?" Questioned the elder looking man.

'I guess Seneschal is better than some form of the word god.'

"For the most part Anima didn't come because she had other matters to attend to." I motioned for them to follow me down the hallway.

"Does it have to do with the L'Cie you plan on adding to our ranks?" Asked Barthandelus as he and Kall fell in behind me.

"Yes, she requested to be the one to take care of them while they rested. It's her way of apologizing for what she did, not that she won't take whatever punishment they give her, but it's something she choose to do." We continued down the corridor.

"That reminds me Barthandelus, don't think I've forgotten about you punishment ether. If they decide they want a fight you to the death, after they become guardians, then you best prepare yourself because I doubt you'll leave unscathed." The strange pressure retuned in a restricted form.

The power seemed to shut the elder's mouth, but Kall decided to pick up where he had left off. "If it is not rude to ask my lord, what of that other girl, the one you spoke to at the throne room? The conversation between the two of you was rather… heated, was there some form of dispute the two of you had before we arrived? And what of the promise you spoke of?" The force surrounding me now disappeared.

"Ah yes, Vanille, the thing with that conversation is…"

/Flashback/

"You want to fight me?"

"Yes, you heard me. I want a real chance to fight you, and this time it won't end like last time!" Yelled a defiant Vanille.

"You mean you'll actually leave a scratch this time?" I taunted with a raised eyebrow.

"I-I-I just made a mistake last time. I won't be wasting my strength like I did before!" Her face was flushed red with embarrassment at my taunting.

'I may not be into mocking people, but she seemed pretty riled up from before and needs an outlet. So may as well play the part for now.' I raised my hands up to my chin in a thinking matter.

"And what makes you think you last any longer against me this time? You don't even have access to your Eidolon for another three days. What could you possibly do to me without it?" I continued to mock her.

"W-what if I can't use Hecatoncheir, I still want to try. I have to get revenge for what you did." She was now seething at me.

'Hm, maybe is should try something else.' I let my hand drop to my side and the mocking smile return to a serious frown.

"Stop this Vanille, I can tell your forcing yourself to stand up to me." She took a step back in recourse. She was about to deny it, but I continued.

"I can see your legs are shaking. That nap you got has been the only real rest you've gotten in who knows how long. If you want to fight me then I suggest you do so in a few days once all of you have recovered." I was trying to both firm and reassuring with the words I used on the girl.

"NO, I have to fight you now! If I don't then I won't be able to look them after what I did! After I almost…" The girl's words fell off into a whisper at the end as she shut her eyes when they threatened to start leaking.

'I see, after waking up she realized I wasn't an enemy. She realized she was wrong and feels personally responsible for almost destroying the group's one chance of escaping. She also seems mad at herself for letting her emotions nearly ruin everything they had achieved, namely their friendship.' My eyes softened and I placed my hand on her head.

"I get it, you want redemption after what you did. You think that by throwing yourself at me in some half-hearted revenge that you'll get that punishment you feel you deserve." He head looked up pleadingly, eyes red and watery from her tears.

'Still it's for the best not to let her fallow such a pointless endeavor less it destroy her.' I reasoned.

"But even so, don't you think your being selfish? I mean you go off and get yourself killed repeatedly at my hands, what do you think your friends will go and do? Probably deny the offer I've given them and then speed off to fight me. Then what? They go back to how they were before and neither of us want that do we?" The girl lightly shook her head under my hand.

"Then what I suggest is you go with your friends for now and get some rest. Recover then come and face me together, this way everyone gets a shot at me and you still get to be free." The girl looked up to me, eyes glistening with hope.

"OKAY, what the hell is going on?!" Cried Anima after being on the sidelines of the conversation for so long.

'Oh right, she's here too.' I removed my hand and turned to the Guardian in hopes of explaining the situation. Anima simply dashed passed me and place herself into Vanille's Personal space.

"Who are you? What are you doing speaking to Erdrick-sama so forcefully? What's this about you two fighting? And why the hell is he treating you so caringly?! I should be the only one he treats like that. I deserve those Head pat-" I quick strike to the back of the head seemed to silence the banshee.

"Enough Anima, she's a member of the L'Cie group. You know the same group that you nearly scared to death a few moments ago, ring any bells?" She ducked her head at the statement.

"Now if you would please stop assaulting Vanille's personal space, you can start amending for that blunder by helping her out in carrying her party members." I decide now was a good time to signal over the Guardians on the other side of the room to head over.

"What about the pi-" I made a stopping motion.

"The guys and I will be just fine, but you need to start making up for you actions as soon as possible and what better way to start than helping one bring the rest to their new home. Also don't forget, you still owe them a favor for what you did so don't forget to care for them until they cash that in okay." She gave a downcast look and began levitating the team onto a summoned platform not unlike my own.

'Maybe I was a bit harsh, but she needs to learn that her actions carry consequences. A lesson that will serve all of us well in this new world.' A tug at my outfit refocused my thoughts on reality.

"You promise?" It was Vanille that had decided to pull on my robes.

"Huh?" I asked dumbly.

"You promise I-no, get to stay free, even if we choose to fight you?" Her face was now pleading with me not to say no.

'Like I could say no after what I put you all though.' I quietly thought. Just as Kall and Barthandelus came within ear shot.

"Of course I promise, but you'd better be ready because I'm not going to go easy on you guys. If the fight is going to mean anything then it has to be a real fight on both our parts, right?" I smiled at her.

She seemed taken back for a second before she wiped away her tears and gave me a beaming smile I knew her for as she happily called out. "Right!"

"Good, now follow Anima to your new living quarters and get some sleep. It's going to be a long few days of recovery for all of you, best to get started on it. Oh, also if you need anything just ask Anima, she'll be stationed outside your rooms in case you need her. Isn't that right Anima?" She did not reply, but rather grumbled about head pats, or something like that under her breath. Vanille followed behind her looking happier than I'd seen her since I'd gotten here.

'Glad to see I've done at least a little to repair the damage I've done, every step counts. Now onto the next problem, do my summons still work? It's going to really suck if I can't keep my promise because I died to my own creations. Best take every precaution I can, now more than ever.' Now both Barthandelus and Kall were standing behind me.

"Both of you, follow me, were heading to the pit and I'll need both of you to protect me if things go wrong." They gave a nod as I raised my guild ring into the air and called teleported to the colosseum.

/End Flashback/

"… and you know the rest." The story had taken long enough to reach my room.

"Do you truly intend to fight them my lord?" Asked Kall.

"Yes and that point is none-negotiable, I intend to keep my promise regardless of what you two say. A king's word is sacred after all." I was set on my promise to Vanille.

Kall looked like he wanted to argue, but let it go before answering. "As you wish may lord, but do be careful during the fight. It would be devastating to the rest of us if our only king died to his own people." Kall seemed worried about the outcome.

I gave him a warm smile. "Don't worry Kall. I'm not going to die until I can assure the safety of my Kingdome. Now, on to what I want you two to be doing while I'm asleep." They both stood straight now.

"First Kall, I want you to defend my door for the next hour in case anyone is hoping to kill be in my sleep. Then after that I what you to make sure nobody made it within the guilds walls, wouldn't want a surprise attack to happen from within now would we. So make sure you make a thorough investigation of all seven floors." I was now standing in the open doorway of the admittedly large room.

"But, what of you my liege? Surly you can't expect me to leave you unguarded while you rest." Rebutted Kall.

'I can already tell that this whole overprotective thing is going to be a problem later.'

"It won't be a problem Kall, I just need you to watch the room until I can set up a few defensive wards for the night, I'll be in no danger I can't simply escape from, got it?" He simply bowed in apology.

"Good, now on to you Barthandelus." The elder walked forward.

"What would you need of me Debata?" He give a slight bow.

'Bangla.'

"First, I want you to release the ARK creations and have them occupy the halls of the guild. They will be our sentries and provide an early warning system in case of intruders. Make sure you only use the automatons, I don't want the bio-weapons getting rowdy over not eating because right now we can't afford to blow though our food stocks. We are still unsure if we can eat what's in this new world." The ARK creations were a stockpile of living weapons, biological or not, that I had created, in the likeness to those in a game, to defend the guild in case of invasion. I believed the current situation warranted there use.

"Second, you're going to be on scouting duty. Use your owl form and search the surrounding area for anything resembling civilization. Once you have or if it's reached morning, then return to base and report your findings to me if I'm awake or to the other guardians if I'm not." As he was about to reply, I remembered something about Barthandelus.

"Also, do not, and I repeat, do not engage any threats you see out there. Return immediately if attacked. Also, unless the person is on their deathbed I don't want to hear anything about you turn someone into L'Cie. We can't offered to be drawing attention to ourselves just yet, we need to know what were up against first." I added a glare, and unknowingly a bit of that strange force, into my voice to drive my point home.

"Yes, Seneschal, I shall endeavor to fulfill your command to the best of my abilities." With that the elder vanished into a flash of light. Most likely teleporting to the first floor so he can begin his journey.

'I wish he'd just start calling me by my name. I can't deal with any more people calling me king, lord or some shit.' I now began to close the door to my room, giving Kall one last look before I did so.

Once the door closed behind me I began to place a host of odd looking items throughout the royal worthy room. They were all items meant to deny access, silence sound and even nullify the spells of anyone not allowed in. With the final one placed I went about testing there capabilities in the best way I could think of.

"Kall I require your assistance immediately!" I called out.

When he didn't show I decided I was safe to let my persona drop.

"Oh god this has been the longest day of my life." I trudged over to the queen-sized bed while removing the more cumbersome pieces of my equipment.

While I did so I caught a glimpse of myself in the nearby mirror and couldn't help, but stop to stare.

Up to now I hadn't had the chance, but now it was starting to sink in. I was here, I was this now. I was far away from home. A home I had lived in for nearly twenty years. I should have felt devastated. I should be freaking out, I should be feeling something, yet it was hallow.

I clenched the area around my heart. "Why don't I care?" My hand coiled unto a fist.

"I'm not a sociopath, damnit!" I yelled at nobody, but myself.

"I'm not. I care for people. I care what happens to them… but then why don't I care that that I can't go back?!" I lashed out towards the mirror which shattered under the strike only to reform once I retracted the fist.

(Exhale)

"Looks like it doesn't matter what body I'm in, it's still me regardless. Can't answer my own questions." I told myself solemnly.

Shaking my head of the somber thought I resumed to dis-equip myself and climbed into bed.

"I can at least take solace in the fact that I'm not doing this alone. I have people I can count on to help me. And at the same time I have people that depend on me as well. You know it's odd, it feels kind of nice to know that. Heck, who knows, maybe in time I'll get an answer to my question." I gave a loud yawn and drifted off to sleep.

On the other side of my door a conversation between Kall and Barthandelus was happening. One that did not transfer through the silencing spell that separated us.

"~"

"Yes I understand."

"~"

"No you heard your orders, do not engage."

"~"

"Even so you were given express orders not to interfere."

"~"

"Fine, you may observe, but stay out of sight."

"~" And with that the spell cut off.

"This could be problematic for the entire guild if it's as bad as Barthandelus says. Let us just hope this world doesn't harbor too many monsters like that…" Kall thought as he began his petrol through the guild.

A/N: For those who didn't get what I was going for with the summons back there I'll just explain it here.

First, the summons I use do not cost me anything, but time and MP. Just like any regular spells in an RPG.

Second, yes summons after rank 2 are capable of being from videogames. Why? Well because I thought it would be fun and interesting, same reason I'm writing this story, but I digress. I do have a list of possible summons to use at the moment, but that's not to say I have all videogame monsters on hand. I just don't have that kind of time.

Third, the ranks are from 0-5 and are slit up as such.

Rank 0: Basic Creations (1-5)

-Plants

-Clothing

-Objects

-etc*

Rank 1: Regular Creatures (5-15)

-Bear

-Fish

-etc*

Rank 2: Monsters (15-40)

-Deathclaw

Rank 3: Special entities (40-80)

Rank 4: Mini Bosses (80-100)

Rank 5: Main Bosses (100~)

-Grigori

Bonus tip: if you want you can submit an entry to be placed on the list. I won't promise I'll use it, but the chance of me doing so is still there so if you want you can try. There are a few rules though.

You must give me a name and from what game. Also say what rank they fall under and if it's 3 or above, you must explain why they deserve the rank.

I will contact you if the position of your submission gets bumped down or up. If that requires a discussion I shall try to apply myself to it.

No I am not taking anime pro/antagonist as submissions. Even if they appear in games. Why? Well because anime power levels are skewed at best, complete horse shit at worst. It would be too hard to do anime characters properly while staying true to their world's limits.

Well that's my rant for the day, so let me just close of this with a future chapter discussion. Next chapter will be a semi-Filler. It is not shouldn't be necessary to read it, if I did it right, but it adds a little background to things. Also I felt like writing it so I did, no you can't stop me because… well its already written, I'm just editing. For those who are worried, don't be, both it and the real next chapter will be posted on the same day. Sorry if it takes a little longer because of this.

Till next time Readers.