Chapter 3
First Day's Impressions part 2
Katase cockily smirked at the new student in front of her.
'Easy. Get in, then wack the shit out of him, then those pervs over there.'
She looked at him top to bottom, trying to size him up and strategize her strikes. Then she noticed his arms and neck.
A latticework of healed-over streaks across his exposed flesh, ranging from anything between insect and fighting in origin.
Long and deep lines that she hoped weren't from blades, bites from various animals and insects, the remnants of road rash, and strange healed spots. She prayed the spots were chickenpox and not gunshots or stab wounds.
'That's a helluva lot of scars. What is it that he does that gets him so cut up? Did he get caught up in gang fights? Was he abducted and tortured? Is he a street fighter?'
She squared her stance off and held the shinai with both hands; ready to dodge, strike, block, and parry. But she couldn't shake the notion that he might be what some might call an, "unsavory fellow."
Larlo sighed and held the shinai, walking up to the experienced swordswoman, who then launched a downwards diagonal swing to the right.
His concentration slowed the flow of time as he used the circular hand guard to guide the shaft away from his body. She retracted the missed swing and began to advance with a short burst of quick swings aimed for his arms and torso.
The rapid clacking of colliding bamboo swords filled the room. Larlo moved backwards while dodging and blocking her before parrying a vertical swing with shocking strength.
The counter-strike shot through her skin and bones, causing her to lose composure and go off balance.
'The hell?! How fast and hard can he hit?! The damn thing almost flew out of my hands!'
Larlo steadied his breathing and concentrated his sight on her posture and arms. 'She's gonna bring it back any moment… NOW!'
His quick thinking and prediction synchronized with the actions of Katase as she retracted her arms and elbows; lining up the shinai for a jab aimed at his core.
He tightened his grip on the shinai as he snapped it up; deflecting with such force that a small chunk flew off the top of her shinai.
She stood frozen in place as Larlo slowly tapped the top of her head with the tip of his shinai.
"Boop. I win." He announced, "And it looks like you all should get these sticks replaced. Look closely and you'll see the termites and usage had weakened the structure so much that I was able to break it."
He effortlessly snapped a thumb sized chunk off the tip of his shinai as he finished pointing it out. "I can pay for new ones if you guys want." He casually offered. "Technique doesn't mean a whole lot when faced against sufficient strength, speed, and vice versa. It's a little triangle of capability when it comes to sports and stuff; Technique, Strength, and Speed/Reflexes." He added.
Katase stood dumbfounded by her overwhelming loss. She slumped to her knees, acknowledging her defeat. A small crowd of students gathered around her to comfort and question her about what had just happened.
Off up in the bleachers, surrounded by a dozen girls, thoughts formed inside a blonde head.
'Holding back would be an understatement. He is well built, but he shouldn't've been able to snap the shinai. I should report this to Rias just in case. Just who exactly is he? Why is he here? What do we have on him?'
The blonde boy excused himself from the paparazzi and began to walk to the ORC office. The girls that formerly surrounded the blonde had begun to walk after him, hoping to stay around him.
A brown headed loudmouth began to jump off the bleachers with 2 people in his tow. "THAT WAS NICE!" He screamed in admiration.
The girl in glasses to his left, "New Kid's got moves. I like it."
"Nothing escapes my Divinely Powered Sight. I saw all the swings!" The boy with glasses said.
"Wouldn't start a fight I wouldn't finish. 'Always clean up your messes and fix your problems.' My dad says." Larlo feigned exhaustion before returning to the bleachers.
He put his uniform back on and checked time.
12:15
"Look at the time, it's already lunch." He said.
"My buddies and I have some dire business to attend to, so we'll be off now." Issei excused as he and his glasses friend took off in a dash towards the main building.
He opened his backpack and fished for his lunchbox, which had a piece of onigiri, 2 tempura, and some gyoza.
The 2 thirds of the Perv Trio were nowhere to be seen, "glasses girl", as they would have called her, was on her phone, sitting at the top of the bleachers.
He ate at the bottom tier as he pulled a Bible and opened up to a random page; waiting for the class to end so he could adjust to the new school.
Eventually, the bell rang, so he put away his empty lunch box and ran to the main building in hopes of reaching the second floor in time.
He performed astonishing feats of hallway parkour; jumping over sitting students, dodging incoming traffic, redirecting his path, and sliding through odd angles.
He eventually made it to the right room, bursting through the door and spotting an empty seat near the wall to his left.
He casually walked through the room to reach his seat and noticed that there was a large number of males in this period.
But of the 10 females in the class of 35, he recognized 2; recalling that he had met them earlier that day.
The short white-haired mascot, Koneko, and the busty black-haired Queen, Akeno.
Yet again, those he was somewhat familiar with were sitting near him. In th arrangement, he was in the 3rd row of the 2nd column.
Akeno to his left, smiling at him with her eyes closed; Koneko to his right, facing him with a reversed chair.
He'd have to give Akeno props on her smile. He could see the stress lines in her cheeks and eyes, proof that she was forcing herself to put on a painstakingly made lie.
Koneko stared blankly at him, showing no sign of right or wrong. He remembered that in exchange for stopping one of her infamous rampages, he owed her a grandiose debt of a lot of Tootsies.
The late bell rang, the teacher still unaccounted for. The students began to talk amongst themselves in the meantime.
He turned to Akeno, wanting to have answers for his confusion. "What is it that you ORC members want with me? Do you get off to stalking people or am I a special case? Someone from the Student Council or your club has been in the same class as I. What's the deal? Is it that you're scared of the 'Big Bad Scawy New Kid'?"
"The fact of the matter is that we had no partaking in the schedules of the student body. I must say, it is a strange coincidence that our colleagues were in the same classes as you. And I do remember that you said some peculiar things this morning, did you not?" Akeno half-heartedly answered.
"Yo, Tex, you owe me those goods." Koneko blandly said.
"Y'better watch your tongue, New Kid. My dad works with the Immigration Office, so he can have you deported back to America by tomorrow if I asked." One male piped from the opposite side of the room.
'Can't get deported if you're a dual-citizen. Bakayaro.'
He could hear the conspiratorial whispers of a male student in the front row. "How 'bout I get my older sister and her boys to teach him a lesson."
"I must warn you to refrain from using vulgar language on campus." Akeno vaguely threatened.
If she had an aura to speak of, it would be flaring. He could feel his hairs shoot up as people were shrinking away from their vicinity, likely feeling similar to cornered prey.
"We would just like for you to get accustomed to Kuoh. We, the Occult Research Club, would like to meet the new student in person. We would want to become acquaint- "
The ringing of a phone interrupted Akeno from explaining. The tension felt by the students was relieved as the 6th sense said that there was no more threat.
The source of the ringing was Akeno's phone, as someone was calling her. She pulled her phone from her bag and answered.
"Moshi moshi, Akeno speaking…. Mmmmmhmmm… understood…. Oh…. just a misunderstanding from earlier…. yes President… yes Ma'am… goodbye." The caller hung up and Akeno put her phone away.
"I'm very sorry, Deloniy. It appears we must reschedule your meeting for a later date, as the Club President has accidentally overlapped a meeting. Are you available on the Tuesday after next?" She apologized.
"Hope that meeting goes well for you guys. And yeah, I'll let you know if I'm free for Tuesday." He answered in annoyance.
He pulled his phone out and scrolled through Reddit. r/Araragi received various theories and arguments by the lighting fingers of Laplace_667. (Sarcastically) "Gee golly, would you look at the time, which sure does fly when you're having fun. 3:29. Anyone know what class Momo's in?"
Koneko broke her static silence with a simple answer, "So you're the one helping her out today. She's in the gym. And don't forget, you owe me."
"Priority made: Pay you back. And thanks for letting me know." He said. The period end bell rang as students began to rise from their seats and exit the room.
Larlo stretched his arms and legs, causing multiple loud pops and cracks that relieved stress. He grabbed his phone and opened the camera. He swiped for the selfie function and immediately felt goosebumps form on his right side.
His eyes widened in worry and he began to breathe slightly heavier as his heartbeat jumped a few levels. To the people he explained to, it wasn't a big deal that his hair changed color.
In reality, it meant the difference between his attendance and disappearance. 'No, no, no, no no no no. Stay calm, stay calm, stay calm. Don't let her get to you. Yeah, she might reek of fresh shit and daddy issues, but she's probably got an army of soy-boys ready to gang up. It would suck for them if they tried, but then you'd have to disappear for good.'
He felt his blood pressure and heart-rate decrease to normal levels as he controlled his breathing. This tried-and-true tactic was guaranteed to change his hair back to its stable silver within a few hours.
He exhaled in relief as he headed to the gym to let Momo know he'll be able to escort her safely.
[5 minutes later]
Half-way through the progressive trudging of students and staff, he felt a stiff hand grip his shoulder and an uninvited stale smell.
He immediately stopped in his tracks, exhaling in mental exhaustion, wondering who had the nerve to stop someone like him; a man on a mission, walking with a purpose.
A female authoritative voice spoke from behind him, probably the girl that's trying to put his shoulder in an iron grip.
"New 2nd year, Larlo Deloniy. Would you kindly and immediately explain the multiple reports of the sudden outbursts of profanity and numerous death threats we've been receiving all day?"
'Mere. What is it this time? A nosy Mary Sue or glorified hall monitor? Maybe even the Student Counc-'
As he turned around, the grip on his shoulder loosened, then eventually vanished as he completed his 180.
Passing students quickly glanced at the mid-hall debacle, then immediately sped away, not wanting to be at the mercy of –
"Souna Shitori, StuCo President. Speak of The Devil and she appears. Did some students act on the random rumors based on stereotypes? What did they say? I'm packing heat and asking for a forgivable loan? I'm mentally unstable and ready to make Columbine look like ants and magnifying glass?"
"While I am aware that you are a US citizen, it is against the Student Code of Conduct that you use the stereotypes of America to exploit the students of this fine establishment in any way, shape, and form. The consequences off your repeated infractions will lead to your expulsion and possibly intervention from proper authorities." She ordered.
"Miss Shitori, whatever rumors that you've heard about me packing a sawed-off or extorting the students are just that: rumors. You can watch the camera feed all day, and you'll see that I like to keep to myself so I can avoid this exact mishap. The closest thing to an outburst was a little sparring match in my gym period because the Coach never showed up. I won't cause any problems for you, the Student Council, or anyone else of Kuoh. But speaking of problems, a member of your club, Momo, is having trouble walking home safely. So I've taken it upon myself to escort her safely so she doesn't get robbed, raped, and abducted by a gang of Uni students." He explained.
He adjusted his backpack and straightened his uniform before turning around. Souna stared down at him with the same stern face before relaxing slightly, satisfied with his response.
"See to it that this doesn't happen again." She warned.
"Now if you'll excuse me, I have a ride that needs preparing." He continued. Unknowingly, his hair darkened even more. Overall, his hair changed from natural bright greyish-silver to dark skies.
'So the rumors and information were right. But could he really be the…
[Occult Research Club building; 10 minutes later]
A silhouette of a very well-endowed teenage woman could be seen through a curtain. A mahogany wood desk against the wall faced the luxury leather sofas in the center of the room.
The wall behind the desk was built to house one extra room: the bath and shower room. The sound of running water hitting the floor emanated from the shower room. The only occupant sealed in the privacy of the shower donned a head on long silk-like hair.
Long hair that bore a hypnotic shade of red. A shade of red that could only come from the ripest of strawberries. A shade of red that mimicked the color of blood; a rich, almost glossy, shade of crimson - crimson trapped in thousands of silky threads.
On the desk was an iPhone SE, which happened to be ringing and vibrating frantically. On the screen read, Souna is calling.
For a few minutes, the phone kept going off, alerting anybody nearby that someone had been calling. The water pressure to the shower suddenly cut off, and the figure inside dressed and dried herself.
A few minutes later, she, the owner of the phone, picked it up. She was too late, as 5 voicemails, all from Souna, stood in her notifications. She clicked on the most recent voicemail and listened for its message.
"Rias, we need to talk."
Rias swept her long hair out of her face and bosom as she sat down at the desk. She cleared her notifications and inbox before putting her phone away to start shortening the mountain of paperwork on her desk.
The door across the room suddenly clicked open, letting Koneko walk in. "Hey Boss. New Kid knows that we're watching him. He is pretty sharp."
Akeno walked in behind Koneko a few moments later, carrying an open laptop with one hand while typing away with the other. They walked in and sat on opposite couches, facing each other while having clear view of Rias.
"Good evening, President. I trust that Kiba already gave his report earlier." A confident and commanding feminine voice came from the desk, delighted with the news.
"Good afternoon Akeno, Koneko. And yes, Kiba did report earlier. Koneko, I thought you and Kiba were being careful and keeping your distance."
"Can't tell if he can read aura or something, but he's able to notice us. Should we start sending in our familiars? I don't wanna have any of us put up with the human police hassle, and he's always got 2 Amped Bibles on him, so we can't even be close for long. But there's something off about him. He's surprisingly good at concealing the fact that he has both Devil and Holy magic affinities. He's definitely not with any of The Churches, but he is Christian. He acts like a loner, but he's tolerable once he opens up. But what's bugging me is that he's way too calm for an untamed magic user."
"Thank you, Koneko." Rias said. "And yes, start sending in your familiars tomorrow. The Underworld is in a mess right now. The House Elders won't discuss anything, and all my contacts are staying quiet about it. Akeno, how are things on your end? Find anything else about him?"
Akeno continued to be immersed in her computer, deaf to Rias' asking.
"Akeno. Akeno. Akeno!" Rias shouted to get her attention.
"Sorry President. But there's no doubt about it now. He's the same survivor."
She turned the computer around and walked over to the desk, placing in front of Rias.
"Survivor?" Koneko asked.
"Of a Church Fire. In Human News, on August 18th, 2019, a mega church in Texas was burned to the ground, killing everyone inside. The only survivor was a lone boy, 15 at the time. He walked out the front doors carrying the body of a young blonde girl, 16. Both were miraculously untouched by the fires hot enough to melt concrete. Inside were the skeletal remains of at least 50 middle aged men, the meltings of a gun arsenal, and multiple tons of explosives. In the questioning, the boy said that he woke up in the basement while it was on fire. He found his friend next to him, dead by unknown means. He grabbed her body and he walked out." Rias explained.
"In Mytho News?" Koneko asked.
"A large beam of pure High-Quality Holy Magic struck the mega church. It was strong enough to be felt around the world and even in both Heaven and The Underworld. After a large-scale investigation, Heaven was cleared of suspicion. Traces of Fallen feathers and magic were found, but the Grigori Faction claimed no connection, so it's probably that supposed new radical splinter. The building burned for an entire month, so multiple illusion magics were layered to cover it up. The cops did find it weird that he was blaming himself for something while saying that it wasn't his fault."
Akeno chimed in, "The last time Holy magic of this quantity and quality was used, Sodom and Gamorah turned to salt. Even Heaven was surprised that no stray Angels or Church Mages were involved."
Rias clicked on the attached picture in the article to show Koneko. A single low resolution aerial photo of a burning 4-story building with a sign that read [1st Church of Christ].
At the ground level front entrance, a body attached to a head of pure white hair was walking away; a blonde corpse in his hands.
"And thanks to the expertise of a few members of House Gremory, we have an enhanced shot." Akeno exclaimed as she opened a png file.
The file opened, revealing the same photo, but with better resolution. After zooming in, they could see the full face of the person carrying the dead girl from the camera's perspective.
Japanese American male; lightly tanned; white left iris and a black right iris.
"Is that really him?" Koneko asked.
"There aren't any people with heterochromia like this, to my knowledge." Akeno answered.
"It's unlikely that Heaven has been experimenting in forbidden human alchemy, but there could be a chance that this is the result of a Church or a Fallen black-ops project." Rias grimaced at the mention of the latter Factions.
"Kiba will be especially affected if it's another Holy Sword project. He's still crying himself to sleep on some nights." Akeno regretfully added.
"Geez, 80 years and he's still needing me to wake him up from some nightmares. And we need to do something about all the bloody bandages he keeps leaving." Koneko said.
"It's a possibility that this is another off the books experiment gone bad by either the Church or Fallen, but we don't know enough." Rias continued. "But for now, let's try to give him some space. There's been a serial killer keeping the police busy, as of late, so we'll get stuck with the paperwork if we try to pull some strings."
"Understood." Akeno and Koneko said.
'His name though…. It's so bland and strange, almost like it was deliberately chosen to bully him. Is it just an alias?'
Thank you for reading this chapter. As always, editing is a PITA, and so is researching for later scenes. Feel free to comment any criticism and thought you have.
I don't claim to be a pro author, so of course I'm going to make a revolutionary story that changes the way we feel about fanfics.
Have a great rest of your day/night.
:)
