The Finale of the Future Children story, reminder that this isn't canon to MessiahXDragon as it was written mostly for fun and because the ideas wouldn't get out my head otherwise.
Future Children Finale
Mere moments before the blades met a barrier was erected to keep the public safe and keep the time travelling children contained where they were, around the neck of one of the swordsmen a necklace shined with a powerful protection charm as it gave form to the barrier that now stood.
The process of it being so fast that the only one who noticed it at first was the lone child from another world, the children from another timeline only coming to notice the barrier when the two who could have been considered half brothers from different timelines lock blades once more.
"I've had enough of this charade" Issei's Zen said as he glared at Minato's Zen "The absurdity of all of this, Ddraig and Albion having children with one of them calling Vali 'mama', you went too far and out yourselves!"
Ex looked to his brother confused "Outed themselves?"
The brothers from different timelines broke apart. Minato's Zen holding up his sword in a defensive stance while Issei's Zen pointed his sword ready to attack.
Issei's Zen addressed his half siblings while his eyes never left his enemy "Yeah, this whole thing is just a trick by Loki and his invader allies. This whole thing is a trap, no doubt to distract us and prevent others from stopping them"
"This isn't the work of a wash up trickster god and the aliens they went running to when no one else would even look at them, your in the wrong timeline-" Minato's Zen tried to say but a blast from his alternate timeline self / half brother cut him off, annoying him mostly by how it was done "Do you seriously have a gun attachment on your sword, what are you a video game character?"
Airi looked to her brother uncertain "But, what if your wrong? What if this is an alternate timeline?"
"Even if it is an alternate timeline, it would be better off without some alien twisting it to his liking" Issei's Zen said as his face set into a determined look.
Minato's Zen tightened his grip on his sword "There it is, the look of someone willingly to spill the blood of the innocent for his own sense of justice" a look of sadness passed over his expression before readying his sword once more "I ask you this, put away your sword and think clearly. Clear your mind before-"
He was interrupted once more as they clashed blades anew, the two inches from one another as they met the other's eyes.
"Well then, seems we have passed the point where words alone would defuse the situation" Minato's Zen muttered before narrowing his eyes "Shall we introduce ourselves, not as children from different futures but as swordsmen?" he pushed Issei's Zen back, forcing the child of the steward of Ddraig's power to fall back "If we are doing this, I rather know the name of the man I'm about to knock unconscious"
Seeing chance to regain his foot the son of Issei took the invitation "I am the third son of the Red Dragon Emperor Issei Hyoudou and son of Xenovia Quarta, Zen Quarta"
Minato's Zen quirk his eyebrow 'Speaking of his parents before himself and nothing else, hmm' taking a moment to ensure his breathing control he answered in kind "I am Zen Quarta Arisato, Lord Commander of the European Chapter of the Messianic Order as well as the son of Minato Arisato and Xenovia Quarta" he shifted his stance slightly as he regarded his current opponent "While you walk with good intentions in your heart, I shall not let you march to the gates of Hell"
"Lord Commander?" Shin Shido, son of Irina and Issei, asked as he looked at the person his brother was fighting with a new sense of unease. While he wanted to think the title of Lord Commander was just an empty boast, or an undeserved title, the aura surrounding him hinted at that titled being earned.
Robertina gave her brother a worried look "Be careful Zen, we have no idea what this guy can do"
"Doesn't matter what he does, me and Durandal IV can take him on" Issei's Zen said as he loaded another cartridge into his weapon for another shot.
Minato's Zen blinked in confusion "I'm sorry-" in an instant he swung his sword just as his opponent fired his second shot, the attacked was sliced down the middle as Issei's Zen was thrown back with a slash mark on his torso "I think I misheard you, what did you call your sword?"
"Zen!" Robertina rushed to her brother's side, looking him over she saw he wasn't wounded too badly with all the damage being mostly on his clothes.
Ex give the supposed 'Lord Commander' a glare, even so he didn't pay Ex any mind as one Zen glared at the other.
Ernestine Karnstein, daughter of Issei and Elmenhilde Karnstein, took a step back as she shared with her siblings what she noticed "There wasn't an ounce of magic in that, he swung the sword in such a way he created a vacuum of air as an attack on skill alone"
"I asked you, what did you call your sword? Because what I heard was something stupid like Durandal IV" Minato's Zen asked again, frustration becoming apparent in his voice.
Issei's Zen looked at his opponent offended "It isn't stupid, it's the successor of the original Durandal"
"It sounds like your treating your sword, something that you should be taking care of, as a freaking phone that your planning to ditch the second the next model is out" Minato's Zen rubbed the bridge of his nose, painful memories of training the difficult new recruits when they first joined coming back to him "Seriously, even if it's a silly name give your sword some identity of it's own. And no, taking a pre-existing name and adding a number doesn't count"
Issei's Zen narrowed his eyes as he got back up, ripping off his now ruined shirt in the process "So what if I do get a new better one if it becomes available, anyone would do that. Do you want everyone to name their swords like Azazel?"
"Azazel may not be the greatest at picking names and the guy obviously started founding it difficult to come up with original names as time went on but the Fallen Angel tried, he showed he cared about the things he made even if they ended in failure or were useless, even passed on the names of old creations to new ones when he had to disassemble them for parts" Minato's Zen lost more and more respect for Issei's child the more he learnt about how he disregarded his own weapon "I'd rather wield a sword named ('The Dragon Slaying Blade of Light and Darkness') than something so creatively bankrupt as just adding a number to an already existing sword. What's next, Galatine III?"
As he was watching things from the sidelines with Vali, Azazel decided he liked Minato's Zen the most out of all the future children. Meanwhile some of Issei's children glanced at Ex's sword as it was called Galatine III.
"Sword Elitist" Issei's Zen said as he flared his power, deciding to end this fight in one blow.
Minato's Zen loosened the hold on his power as his own Persona power began to wash over him, sheathing his sword 'Inner Vow' he rushed forward to met his opponent's charge In his mind he uttered a prayer to help him focus 'Come forth now, oh Inner god of Possibility and manifest before me. Per-So-Na-'
Their battle ended the next moment, with neither the winner as a foe they could never defeat arrived.
Slamming down into the ground between them from above the sudden arrival grabbed the heads of the two battling swordsmen and bumped them together.
""Ow!""
Their cries of pain continued on as both had their ears twisted as the new arrival kept them in place.
"And what exactly are you two doing?" Xenovia said as she glared down at her two sons.
""Mum!""
"Seriously, I take my eyes off you for a few minutes and I find you both fighting in the middle of town in a back alley" Xenovia shook her head "If you wanted a proper duel there are better ways to do, unless you specifically wanted to fight in an urban area but even than there's better ways to go about"
"I just wanted to protect Aunty Kanna from them, if I wasn't here then he would have killed her" Minato's Zen said as he pointed to Xenovia's other Zen.
"Oi, I wasn't going to kill anyone!" Issei's Zen denied the accusation, the two brothers glaring at one another and earning even more twisting of the ear by their mother.
A burst of draconic power drew everyone's attention to the side of the barrier where Vali in full Balance Breaker stood with the Dragon Maid and little girl from earlier, Azazel stood between the groups seemingly trying to calm Vali and Albion down.
"Aunty?" Kanna asked, utterly confused at what was happening.
"Azazel, what is going on here?" Albion and Vali spoke in unison, their voices overlapping as they kept their gaze on everyone in the barrier as they put themselves between Kanna and the group of people in the alleyway.
Azazel considered how he should explain things, before realizing he had no idea where to even begin. Letting out a sigh he slide his hand through his hair "This, is a complicated one. Sit down Vali, this involves Time Travel"
"And what do you mean exactly by-"
"Those guys Xenovia is manhandling are her sons, each from a different timeline and from different fathers"
Vali and looked to his foster father shocked "Wait, so this is full blown time travel!?"
"Wait a minute, if their from the future than why would he want to hurt Kanna?" Tohru asked as she kept Kanna close to her.
-=-][-=-
"I can't thank you enough for watching over my sister Miss Kobayashi" Aoi said as she bowed her head to Miss Kobayashi, who waved off the thanks.
"It's fine, Kanna's family as far as I'm concern. Though, I didn't know Kanna had any sisters" Kobayashi looked to the side to see Kanna playing with two baby dragons while being watched over a pair of twin dragons "Kanna didn't mention of any family other than her father and a mother that was never around"
Aoi scratched her cheek "Well, the truth is our shared parent wasn't in a position to raise us nor did they know we existed due to various circumstances" she looked over to Minato, who was helping Ophis clear up a misunderstanding between her and the other local dragons she met before with Great Red rubbing the smaller Dragon God's head much to her annoyance. [1]
It did help in clear things up a little it seemed, though Tohru seemed to be looking at Minato as if he was more of a threat than the actual Draconic Gods beside him.
"Truth is, I only learned of my biological parents through happenstance when I met Minato" she looked outside to where Vali and Xenovia were keeping an eye on the future children "Though they ended up in strange places"
Miss Kobayashi nodded "Right, these Sacred Gear things" she sighed "This, is a lot to take in. It almost feels like I've been dropped head first into an anime series that's been going on for years, one that apparently jumped the shark since time travel came out of nowhere"
Aoi laughed a little at Kobayashi's comment "Well, I can't argue against that. My life has felt like something out of an anime since I met everyone, but I wouldn't have it any other way" she smiled as she got up "I'd love to talk more Miss Kobayashi, but with everything going on now I think it may be best if we do it later"
"Feel free to drop by anytime, I'm sure Kanna would love seeing her sister and nieces"
The two groups waved goodbye, as Aoi's group went out to regroup with the time travelling children Kobayashi held a thoughtful expression as she and her group of dragons sat down in her apartment.
"I wonder, would we have gotten involved in all that crazy stuff if he picked an apartment here" Kobayashi muttered to herself before turning her attention to the others, she looked at them worried as she notice hos shaken up they were with the exception of Kanna "Hey, are you guys okay?"
Fafnir, currently in the form of a man with long hair wearing glasses, looked to Kobayashi as he had broke out in a cold sweat "We just met two of the strongest Dragons to ever exist, it felt like I was going to die on m feet"
"Their dangerous, but so is that Minato. There's no doubt about" Tohru said with a grim tone, her expression devoid of any humor "He's a harem protagonist, and a powerful one at that"
While her tone was grave, the words she actually used distracted the others from what they just experienced.
"Tohru, you can't just called people harem protagonists willy nilly" Kobayashi said, moments before Tohru jumped towards her and enveloped Kobayashi in a big hug.
"Don't worry Kobayashi, I'll protect you from the advances of that womanizer" Tohru declared with resolved in her voice.
Kobayashi sighed "He won't steal me away from you, I promise"
"Good, and even if he did we're a package deal" Tohru said, in her mind hoping for the best but preparing for the worst.
"Oi, Tohru!"
-=-][-=-
Heading to a secluded area of the park Minato's group stood between the two groups of children from the future, Ex with half of his siblings on one side and Minato's children on the other, to get an explanation on what happened.
Starting with why Minato's Zen was following Ex's group and what he meant by Issei's children killing their recently encounter aunt.
[2] "I wasn't following them, per say. Rather, we had a rough idea of where they were going" M!Zen said as he began his explanation "Due to the Space-time manipulation aspect of Persona we were able to fight off the damage to our timeline and dad was able to use the Power of Observation to stabilize things long enough for us to figure out what was unmaking our world, but" Minato's Zen tightened his fists as the rest of Minato's children winced "Those who died in the past, faded right before our eyes"
"Aunty Kanna fell and wouldn't get back up" Shio muttered as everyone's attention turned to her she looked to her brother Zen for advice on what to do, he gestured for her to go on "We, we tried to help her. But we couldn't do anything, all we could do was listen as she described how her memories were changing. Before-" Shio shut her eyes tightly to fight off the tears in her eyes, Satou embraced her daughter tightly to comfort the youngest of Minato's children present.
"It took a while to figure out someone was altering the past, we had to rely on everyone's changing memories to get to the truth as the methods we had in our time were focused on locating who travelled from our future into the past and not those from different timelines" Makoto said, outstretching his hand the son of Great Red and Minato used the power of Dreams to show various windows playing the memories of multiple different people.
All showing the highs and lows of lives of the people who lived in the world that came about due to Minato being a part of it, before the windows cracked with each shards of the windows showed people living different lives with many outright dead.
Ex and his siblings winced as they looked at what they were being shown, if not due to the idea of them doing harm to innocent people due to their action than by the idea the same thing was happening to their world the longer Loki was running amok.
"We were running out of time, we had to work fast to correct this distortion of the past to save our world. Though, we had less time than even our more grim estimates could have predicted" Yuuki continued on for his brother when he had fallen silent, looking at his father and mothers he tried to continue on but found the words being caught in his throat.
Woz closed his eyes as he solemnly explained what happened "You were being affected by the changes in the past too, Minato" Woz said as he opened his tome to look for a specific page in it "These, misguided vagabonds, directly targeted you in the past with a device left behind by a certain Devil. You too were fading from the world, and without your Power of Observation the world's decline accelerated faster"
"A certain Devil?" Kiyome asked before a horrifying thought struck her "No, we made sure all his works were destroyed. Ajuka led the operation to ensure nothing of his was left unaccounted for"
"Mother, while he does have a brilliant mind Ajuka remains a Devil ruled by the sin of Sloth" Raidou explained to his mother, pointing out an overlooked detail that came to bite them in the rear.
Ryuji nodded "Yeah. I'm all for the work smarter not harder method, but Ajuka was not the right person to put in charge of that operation. Certainly not when Euclid had the most experiencing of hiding his junk from Ajuka"
Bennia groaned into her hands "It was a nightmare putting that guy down, even after he's dead he still manages to wreck things" she looked to Woz with an annoyed look "What did he even leave behind?"
"Euclid's dark legacy was the prototype of 'That Device' he had used on Minato" Woz answered, as everyone from the present day stiffened he raised his hand immediately to ease their worries "We made sure to go to the place they found it" Woz glanced over to Ex and his siblings "And made sure to destroy any remnants of Euclid's work and the prototype of 'That Device', we won't have a repeat of that event"
Ophis and Great Red shared a look between them, something that was becoming more and more common was the two coming to an agreement as they worked together to create something, the two combining their power to create a sort of rope.
Something to have on hand, to be on the safe side.
"What are you people talking about?" Shin asked, utterly lost on what was happening.
"Don't worry~"
"Just hinting at third arc story events~"
"Like a Light Novel writer ripping off a more successful non-Light Novel series in a non-canon chapter only to have those elements end up the main series when his series has been dragged out for financial gain at the expense of the story, characters and world building, Nya" the triplets of Kuroka said, the last one having to take a breath after her bit.
Ex blinked his eyes "That, last bit sounded way too specific"
"My favorite Light Novel jumped the shark trying to copy Z" Chika said as her cat ears flatten against her head, her sisters Kurobara and Ai rubbing her back as they shrugged at how their sister described events in their timeline.
Issei's Zen looked to Minato's Zen, hesitating for a moment before asking "Did, I really kill that kid in your altered future?
Minato's Zen was silent for a moment before he answered "We aren't clear on the details, but we do know your intervention of when Aunt Kanna first met Uncle Vali was the cause of her death. Not to say you plunged you blade through her chest, but you being there led directly to her death like a series of falling dominoes"
"Meaning my daughter's death could have been circumstantial, rather than malicious" Albion said, he and Vali were standing a bit off to the side putting him in a position to cut of the children of Issei if they tried to run away.
Ex closed his eyes "Seeing as we're creating more problems the longer we stay here, let's focus our efforts on dealing with Loki. Since this isn't our world we don't need to worry about anything affecting our own"
"Ex" Airi said, alarmed at her brother's callous disregard of this other world they have found themselves in. While they needed to save their home it didn't mean possibly damning another.
Minato frowned at Ex's words, concern growing he and Ex walked away from the others to get a little privacy
"So, what did you want to talk about?" Ex asked, he already had several boosts from his artificial Sacred Gear 'Boosted Gear Diabolos' stored and ready to use along with Galatine III at his side with his Power of Destruction prepared to be channelled through the blade.
Looking around awkwardly for a moment, making sure no one was listening in, Minato took in a deep breath before looking Ex in the eyes "I have no business getting involved in this, much less saying this, but with recent events I feel like I need to say this. You don't have to like or agree with what I have to say, all I ask is to let me say my piece"
Ex nodded, not sure where the alien from another world in front of him was going with this.
"Please, take it easy on Issei" Minato said, his words causing Ex to frown deeply at those words "I'm not talking about the Issei from your timeline, that is something for you and him to work through, but I am talking about the Issei from this timeline as he's-"
"Not my father, same as the one from my timeline apparently" Ex said, not fully realizing he said that out loud.
Continuing on Minato explained himself "This Issei will not become like the one in your timeline as too much has changed, we are made up of our experiences and choices and the one's these two versions of Issei have made will make them into different people despite starting out the same"
'Even the damn alien is taking his side on this' Ex thought to himself as he crossed his arms "I suppose you think I was out of line with what I said"
"It depends, were you being honest?" Minato asked, seeing Ex look at him with a slight surprise he explained further "I mean, were you being truthful with your feelings and not changing details just to hurt him?"
Ex stopped for a moment as he thought over the question, the revelation that Issei wasn't his real father had been more of a blow to him than he wanted to admit and as such made him more emotional than usual.
"No, everything I said was true. But, I could maybe have said it better" Ex admitted, uncrossing his arms and letting them hang at his side "What do you think I should do next then?"
Minato scratched his cheek "Well, I can't really say anything about the Issei from your timeline. But for here, maybe give him tips on how to be a better father? If not for yourself than for the Ex that will be born in this timeline"
"Fine, I'll consider it" Ex answered with a sigh, knowing he had to do something but wasn't looking forward to facing the man his mother ended up with in two timelines "Thanks for the advice, it's more than my 'dad' gave me" Ex blinked for a moment as a thought struck him "Now that I'm thinking about it, since your with Great Red that means while Issei is sleeping with my mum you're sleeping with my 'dad'"
"Well…" Minato trailed off, not knowing how to respond to that.
Ex pointed to Minato "Meaning, you'd be our step dad"
Minato was beginning to feel overwhelmed by everything going on, he was still getting a handle on things when his children from the future came to him and having another group of children from another timeline calling him their step father was becoming a bit too much for at the moment.
Speaking of Ex siblings, since things have cooled down somewhat they could try getting together to deal with the issue of Loki, he hoped the other half of Issei's children were staying out of trouble.
-=-][-=-
"And that's pretty much all the breast related things from our timeline" Older Gasper said as he scratched his chin "I never really thought much about, at one point I must have just started accepting all of it before it began melting together"
Issei and the rest of his group was a blushing mess with some among them having their jaws hanging open.
"Well, that all sounded like a pervy fantasy Issei would have" Kiba said, not really sure how to respond to what he just learnt about the future that awaited them had Minato not arrived to act as a wild card for things.
"I BECAME HIS GO TO BREAST POWER UP! WHAT THE HELL!?" Rias exclaimed, louder than she thought she was, as she was processing everything that she was just told. Even the future Gasper looked shocked, rarely seeing this side of his King.
"Yeah, fantasy perv" The only one not reacting to Rias shout was Azazel as he looked over the notes he was taking and sharing them with Michael in Heaven, going there to seek their Father's wisdom regarding the System HE created.
"Wait, wait, wait! They added THAT into a show aimed towards children!?" Irina asked, wanting to make sure she hadn't misunderstood things with how Issei's children show turned out in the other timeline.
"Well, Grabbing Dragon was popular enough in the Underworld to get exported out" Mordred, son of Issei and Le Fay Pendragon, answered.
Rias held her head in her hands "How could my family let such a thing air, WHY did my other self give up her position of the next head of the family?" Rias asked herself mostly, wondering what the exact thought process her alternate self had to lead into that.
Akeno patted Rias back, offering her friend and King what support she could muster "I'm sure they didn't have a choice, I imagine Devils like Zekram had a hand in it so in all likelihood they couldn't do anything"
Helmwige, daughter of Issei and the Valkyrie Rossweisse, looked to Rias as something stood out to her "Wait, are you saying your still the heir to House Gremory?"
"Of course I am, I'm not abandoning my family when they need me to step up" Rias replied. She narrowed her eyes "Considering the Bael's tried to absorb House Gremory into them before, it's not entirely out of the question they would try again" rubbing her chin for a moment she thought over the set up, the longer she looked the more threads she could picture connecting them "This show, not only would it act as a way of loudly declaring the Devils had one of the thirteen Longinus Sacred Gears without directly raising tensions but if the other me got roped in before knowing what she would be doing exactly" a dark smile appeared on Rias's lips "Zekram, so this is what you meant by sly Devils playing long games"
"Um, I'm kind of scared to learn anymore about this other future" Asia said, she looked to the future children with a tense look as she did not want to offend them regarding their home "Sorry, but the more I learn the more the picture of it inside my head comes off as something from a fun house mirror"
"We can't exactly refute that statement" Shirayuki, daughter of Issei and Koneko said, scratching her cheek as she looked around the room "I mean, it's similar on our end"
Shirayuki's sister / cousin, Issei's Kurobara, put a hand to her forehead "I'm still trying to get to grips with my mother ending up with someone else, and the fact the other me is a part of a set of triplets who cutely finish each other's sentences!"
A series of knocks could be heard on the wall, looking over they saw the mysterious Woz "I hope I'm not interrupting anything important?" looking around Woz could feel the awkward atmosphere and wasn't sure how to continue, with a wordless gesture to continue Woz cleared his throat "I've been sent ahead to let you all know that Ex and those that went with him will be returning soon along with Lord Minato and his, they had something of an encounter that has left all involved in a better head space to deal with the real threat of Loki"
"And how would you describe this 'encounter' exactly?" Future Gasper asked as he focus his gaze on Woz, in the back of Gasper's mind he could feel how the mysterious human was suppressing his power and that put the Dhampir turned Devil on edge.
"Both Zens began a duel that was interrupted by their mother, and after an encounter with Lady Kanna and Sir Vali they cooled their heads after the most recent" Woz stopped for a moment to choice his words carefully as the awkward atmosphere fell on his shoulders "revealed information"
"Alright then, if nothing else comes up we can deal with Loki and return to our own timelines"
"Let's hold off on that for a few hours, maybe a day or two" Azazel interrupted Kurenai, a paper thin cheer in his voice, he closed his notebook causing it to disappear into light "This is a real chance for a cultural exchange between diverging timelines as well as looking at how things could have been different had certain factors-"
Looking around, it was painfully obvious to him that his words were not swaying anyone present. Seeing the looks everyone was giving him Azazel let the false cheer fall away as he rubbed his temple.
Looking to Kurenai, his supposed successor in Grigori research if what he has been told is true, Azazel spoke plainly to the [3] Elioud before him "I'll be frank, you and your world may have a much bigger problem than a time travelling trickster god and a company of aliens"
It was only after everyone had gather together and Michael returned from Heaven with a sealed box did Azazel explain what he meant.
"Okay, how best to explain this to everyone" Azazel asked himself, buying himself to time to think it over further "Who here is familiar with computers, even just a general knowledge of hardware and software?"
Everyone put their hands up, many either growing up with computers or having learnt about them recently due to circumstances.
"Alright, than when we think of Heaven's System think of it like a great big computer complete with software and hardware" Azazel explained taking out one of his artificial Sacred Gears as an example "The software would be the power and various functions the System can perform"
Azazel gestured to Michael, catching the Archangel off guard for a moment before he answered while making sure the package God had entrusted to him was safe "While the hardware would be the main infrastructure for the System within Heaven and the Sacred Gears themselves"
"Okay, but what does this have anything to do with this unknown threat facing our timeline?" Ex asked.
"That's the thing. It's not an unknown threat. Some of you I'm sure already know about it, the question is do you understand the scale of the issue" Azazel said grimly as he locked eyes with Kurenai "Tell me, what happens to a system that is at most still in the beta phase of development and being assaulted by errors and at least one virus designed to either subvert or destroy it?"
Kurenai's eyes widened as he understood the threat Azazel was taking about "Your talking about Heaven's system failing" with a nod from the Fallen Angel Kurenai furrowed his brow "But, wait. Are you saying Heaven's System is in incomplete?"
"Not all of it, most if finished with the exception of the Sacred Gear system" Azazel tossed up his Artificial Sacred Gear before catching it "In the grand scheme of things The Sacred Gear System is a rather recent add on to the system, Father created it to help humans survive… well"
"Everything supernatural, including everything from beasts, to Devils, gods and even Angels" Michael answered, the memory of their father working tirelessly to refine what would become the Sacred Gear System even as the people were at the mercy of those stronger than them.
"But that brings us to the first problem. The system was designed for Humans to better survive, not for other species and certainly not for a Nascent Devil Dragon god that could be called the child of Ophis and Great Red" Azazel said, his eyes momentarily landing on Issei when he spoke the words 'Devil Dragon god' before the Sacred Gear in his hand transformed into a floating chalk board.
'I just became a mother today, I'm not ready to be a grandmother!' Great Red thought to herself, realizing that even if Issei's future children weren't hers they'd still be the grandchildren of both Great Red and Ophis. Neither dragon gods were ready for that yet.
Kurenai nodded "Okay, I can see your logic. That is were at least some of the errors you mentioned are coming from. And I imagine having Sacred Gears users reincarnating to another species such as Devil or Angel would account for others, along with hybrids like Gasper or Vali"
Azazel nodded "Absolutely, though it's especially bad when Sacred Gear users reincarnate into Devils or when half human half Devil children receive Sacred Gears as it feeds into the virus mentioned earlier" Azazel winced as he turned to the gathered Devils, including the young man who Azazel had come to see as his own son "No offence intended"
"None taken, especially if your going where I think your going with the Original Lucifer's last F you to God" Vali waved off his father figure's concern.
Meanwhile, Ex and his siblings were completely lost.
Ex raised his hand "I'm sorry, but what do you mean by one last F you to God?"
"The Original Lucifer planned to either take over or destroy Heaven's System as part of their plan to take over the world, Rizevim's Sacred Gear Canceller was either the prototype of his ultimate weapon or a scaled down version of what he planned to use to strike at Heaven with. We're not sure which one it was" Issei explained, clenching his fists as he still had fresh memories of facing off against that monster.
Michael nodded solemnly "We only learnt about it once Father returned to us, the power of Heaven's System can not be understated nor it's adaptability. In many ways, one could call it THE Sacred Gear from which all original Sacred Gears came from, are connected to and should naturally return to. However" Michael's eyes hardened "Lucifer's virus was an insidious thing that was designed to spread throughout the system to weaken it from within, only growing stronger as Sacred Gears connected to Heaven's System fell into the hands of Devils"
Shin paled considerably at the information being given to them "Is that why Heaven's System is failing? A poison left behind by the Original Lucifer that Devilkind have unknowingly made worse over the years"
"Wait, if Devils just taking Sacred Gears did all that than-" Rias looked to Issei with a worried expression "What about, what Issei became in the other timeline?"
Azazel rubbed his head "That's why I was asking so many questions with the other, more manly, Gasper here. I needed some information to get an idea of what shape the system would be in their timeline" he took a deep breath before continuing "In short, forget about Loki because you timeline is messed up so much that you'd need more than a paddle to correct course"
"Was that why you were asking me about the, admittedly large amount, of time breasts were involved in our timeline?" Future Gasper asked, actually thinking about the amount of times his Issei got breast based power ups.
Michael nodded "Simply put, the stronger and more famous someone is the more affect a person can have on the Sacred Gear system. Normally this wouldn't be anything to worry about, but as far as we can surmise the more powerful and well known the other Issei became the more people became accepting of his obsession with breasts" The Archangel tapped the side of his head "That kind of alteration in the perception of so many others only accelerated things, possibly even affecting the virus Lucifer left behind as Father has said such a thing isn't impossible"
[4] Great Red's expression tensed, even as she tried to act calm "And the other us stepping in to give Issei extra power only made things far worst"
Minato took a hand from both Great Red and Ophis, giving the two a reassuring squeeze as from what little they knew is seems that those in the other timeline had reached a sort of Godzilla threshold of a threat or something close to it before Trihexa was released.
"Yeah, I'm going to be straight with you all. After that point Issei went from nudging reality to warping it on a subconscious level, heck I wouldn't be surprised if this Breast Goddess figured it out and took the form she did to get a power boost from this world as it apparently became a world where a women breasts are the secret to ultimate power" Azazel said, the chalk board disappearing into the item it was previously, before stepping back to give Michael room to hand over the package to Shin.
Shin tentatively took the package, as soon as he touched it he could feel immense power within it slumbering "What is this?"
"A gift from God, in the event He isn't able to fix your system from our timeline that item will repair most of the system and give it vital updates. To borrow my brother's analogy, it will repair both the hardware and software" Michael explained, a smile coming naturally to him "Meaning, my brothers and sisters burden will be lifted just a bit in your world and give your own mother more free time"
Shin's shoulders shook for a moment before he lowered his head with misty eyes "Thank you, thank you. I last time I saw my mum in person was nearly two years ago when she was recovering from the burns she sustained from Heaven's Power room"
Irina winced at her future son's words, learning that you were so busy with work you aren't able to see you own children for years was a pleasant thought in slightest.
Meanwhile, Michael's smile became brittle at Shin's words "I'm sorry, could you repeat that? What do you mean by Heaven's Power room or why it's on fire?"
Shin blinked "Uh, you the know the place where a lot of power is stored. Gabriel said it was the physical heart of the system and burned with the intensity of the sun's core"
"Ah yes, I know what your talking about now. That's not meant to be on fire" Michael said, his smile becoming extremely strained "When Our Father looked over what you call 'Heaven's Power room' it was merely emitting a lot of smoke and heat but no actual flames, He looked at it and merely answered with NO when asked if everything was alright before springing into action to save the part of the system ready to explode"
"So, it's not meant to be on fire?" Shin weakly asked, Michael shook his head "Oh" Shin looked at the package in his hands "Oh" after a few moments the gravity of Michael's words finally began to sink in as a massive pit formed in Shin's stomach "Oh no"
Adult Gasper looked at the with worry "What if it doesn't work on the system in our world?"
"Then you pray the recovery system is still operational, it'll reset everything back to a certain point in time but unless there's people with memories from the future that no longer was we risk getting stuck in a time loop" Michael explained, he himself not even knowing such a function existed in Heaven's System until God showed it to him. He clapped his hands "Now then, to change the subject let's talk about dealing with Loki"
-=-][-=-
Loki observed from afar, waiting in anticipation for his plans to go into action. Once Issei Hyoudou entered his Juggernaut Drive it would be a simple matter to remove him from the picture, especially once his alien allies have confirmed the death of that little nun.
The Red Dragon Emperor had just finished defeating that brat Diodora and the little nun was moments away from being tossed into the Dimensional Gap where she will die this time, Loki checked the placement of his forces to ensure they were ready to kill the-
"Surprise bitches!" Freed exclaimed as he came crashing through the roof with a team of others behind him, he shot Diodora's kneecaps as the rest of the team freed Asia from her bindings.
Diodora let out a roar of pain as he looked over to the new arrivals "Wha, I saw you die. Gremory's blond Knight killed you" looking over he saw his own Peerage, only more alive both metaphorically and literally in regards to his two Knights "I saw Freed eat you both, how are you here?"
""Multiverse Theory's a bitch, bitch"" The two former Knights of Diodora said, not giving the Devil any more attention beyond that.
"So, you killed me" Freed said as he looked to the confused but battle ready Kiba "At least tell me it was an epic send off"
Kiba tensed, not sure what was happening "No, all it took was one hit to end you"
"Seriously? I went down like cannon fodder" Freed asked, looking hurt at what he was being told "I thought we had something special pretty boy, like two choir boys you and I got screwed over by-"
Flipa, one of the former Knights, turned to the gathered Gremory Peerage as they stood protectively around Asia "Just to check, when he said Freed ate me and Regula was it metaphorical for-"
Loki felt himself being blown back, his attention so transfixed by the train-wreck his ambitions were becoming he never noticed the approaching figures. Looking up he saw Ex standing alongside Gasper and two others he didn't recognize.
"I see, the spawns of the Red Dragon Emperor followed me back in time. Am I right in assuming this lot is with the apparent Multiverse Freed with Diodoria's playthings" Loki tried to get to his feet and ready his personally made Sacred Gear "Do you really think you can stop us, after all your parents aren't here you save you"
Ex readied his sword with an aura of the power of Destruction coating the edge of the blade "We're more than enough to stop you and your handful of invaders"
Loki let out a low chuckle "Who said I only brought a handful" summoning magic circles to show the happenings across the battlefield, all showing vast amount of invaders from ExE joining the battle between the Three Factions Alliance and the Khaos Brigade, to buy he himself some time.
"It appears it was wise of you to call in the Boys, my lord" Woz said with a knowing smile, just as the ExE forces began to be pushed back and destroyed. Minato and Issei's children from the future working together alongside a small army of Personas, former Hero Faction forces and empower exorcists.
Minato spotted the Ophis of this world in one of the magic circles, he couldn't help but smile at her confused expression as she saw Makoto and Yuuki fighting together back to back as they joined their power to cut through the enemy as if they were nothing.
Looking at the scenes before him, Loki's knees began to shake "What is the meaning of this?"
"Come at us, we're ready for you invaders from another world! Humanity not only got it's OG sugar daddy but we got a second one now!" Lint said as she beheaded one of the ExE enemies as they appeared from the Dimensional Gap and Shalba Beelzebub began fighting everyone as he tried and failed to get away from the mess things had turned into.
"I am not a Sugar Daddy" Minato exclaimed into the magic circle, his words being carried through it.
Everything began to shake a something large began approaching their reality, Woz took out a small pocket watch that had a digital screen that showed a screen filled with information "Seems one of the ExE Gods is here as well, it's on the verge of reaching a higher dimension of existence"
"I'll handle, or at the very least keep it busy, I'll stay in contact and let you know if anything changes" Minato said as he turned to leave, stopping only for a moment to look over his shoulder to the others "Come back alive"
"Don't worry dad, death and time on our side" Ryuji said as he readied his scythe for battle just as Woz transformed, now wearing silver and green armour that radiated power.
Loki was frozen in place, his eyes locked onto the unknown being before him. The only thing he knew for certain was that he far outstripped him in power.
Seeing how Loki's eyes were transfixed on him Woz decided to open with a little flourish "In my time, I have earned the title of Hero as Kamen Rider Woz. Through a miracle only possible due to my lord I have become a Nahobino, a human with the power of a primordial god, a Unifed God"
Loki finally realized that he had made a terrible, terrible mistake. The fact he saw one of the mechanical gods crying out in pain as it fell from the sky with what felt like Baldr attacking it only compounded that fact.
-=-][-=-
After defeating Loki and his alien allies they were all rounded up and captured, though they had some trouble returning to the present day as everyone in the past wanted to know what was going on.
Thankfully, Woz time powers allowed him to reset the timeline back to before Loki and the aliens arrived from the future effectively undoing all their work. This ability "Return to the Past" was an ability Woz could only perform once per week, though it drained his strength greatly it was well worth the price in their current circumstances.
It was even powerful enough to affect the other version of Ophis, who refused to let either Makoto or Yuuki leave without a word as she felt a bit of her own power in one brother and Great Red's power in the other.
With the time travelling trouble makers captured it was time to say farewell, the children from two different futures saying their farewells to each other and their parents.
Ex hugged Issei "Remember, you can be a better father than what we ended up getting"
"I'll be sure to improve my time management skills" Issei said as he tightened the hug for a moment before the two parted "Good luck, in your future"
"Good luck with yours" Ex replied before turning to Great Red as she was hugging her son goodbye for the time being, he gave the Dragon of Dragons a polite nod before joining up with his siblings.
Issei's children entered the Dimensional Gap to replicate their method of time travel to return home while Minato's children went with a more direct method with Woz's time powers, leaving all those of the present day behind.
They stood there in silence for what seemed like hours before the silence was finally broken "I miss them" Ophis said.
"They mentioned the timelines will correct themselves, so hopefully we won't have to wait long before we can see them again" Kiyome said, saying it to comfort herself as well as Ophis.
Great Red furrowed her brow "Question is, how long?"
Feeling the focus gaze of Great Red Minato could feel a form of danger he has rarely experienced and even less escaping from "Well, I still have university to worry about so maybe-"
"What about that power they mentioned, the one from Krishna that would let you create clones of yourself?" Kosho asked, bringing up the offhanded comment their future children made.
"I, well-"
Satou stepped forward "That's right, it would simplify a lot of things. Like say, going to work while another you goes to university or something more private"
"Senpai, please!" without warning Issei leapt forward and grasped Minato's hands "Is it possible to learn this power, the one to make copies of yourself?" Issei's eyes burned with a determination "That power, I know it's the answer to me being a good father and a Harem King"
Minato let out a sigh of defeat, children from the future appearing was an interesting way to start a new year and something in him told him more was to come.
And he wouldn't have it any other way.
Author's Notes:
Originally planned for this to be released around Christmas or New Years but things got so busy around my end I couldn't get done. So sorry for the delay and I hope everyone enjoyed the holidays.
[1] Reference to the Apartment Hunting Omake at the end of chapter 9
[2] Power of Observation is an ability all SMT Humans, which include those from the Persona games, have. Please go to the wiki to learn more about this ability.
[3] Elioud, or grandchildren of Heaven, is the name given to the hybrids born of Nephilim (half Angel half Humans such as Akeno before she was reincarnated into a Devil) and another species mainly humans.
[4] TL;DR Issei manipulated the world around him like the Monarchs with their Palaces and Jails in Persona 5. Drawing in more people over time as he grew in power and fame, his distortion being responsible for his plot armour [Heaven: Okay, what should we give the Red Dragon Emperor to grease the wheels, why not one of the legendary weapons we know we can use against him] and why he got so many breast based power ups as they were the core of his distortion. That same distortion growing larger with the power of Infinity and Dreams making things so much worse.
Omake: Alternate Downer Ending.
Aka, a possible story element that could be used to bring the EX children [either all or a select few] into the current day without having to worry about a time paradox or anyone being erased. No chicken or egg paradox, you don't have to choice one when you could have both at once.
When the time came to look for Loki, to defeat the time travelling trickster god and his alien cohorts, something became very apparent as they weren't able to go further back in time with the method Future!Gasper used to time travel.
"Is this what you used to travel back in time?" Woz asked as he looked over Adult!Gasper's explanation on the method he used, drawing a diagram to try and figure out what was wrong.
Adult!Gasper combed his hair back in frustration, everything seemed to be right but for whatever reason they couldn't replicate their method of time travel "Yeah, I was hoping you could chime in since your the only other one here familiar with the mechanics of time travel"
"You can't time travel with this, at least not with travelling to the past" Woz said, grabbing a marker to write down some calculations "What your talking about doing is like going to space to time travel, time will slow down for those with you while time continues on normally for those in one of the worlds"
Adult!Gasper blinked "What, no we were able to travel back in time with this. We followed Loki and saw when he would have landed. If we can't travel back in time with this method how can you explain use being here?"
Woz frowned as he looked over the information "I can't say for certain, the only thing that comes to mind is that you travelled forward in time but the world itself reverted-" his eyes widened "No, reset"
"Wait, are you suggesting that we aren't from another timeline but rather a previous time loop of this world" Kurenai said as he looked over everything, trying to find a fault with Woz's observation "How would you even begin to prove it if it was true?"
Azazel rubbed his chin as he thought it over, his eyes drifting over to both versions of Gasper as an idea began forming in his head.
Talking it over they realized they could use both versions of Gasper as a way to test it out, Sacred Gears held basic information that is added in when their given out and taken back into the system. The main thing being environmental data, used mainly to determine how thorough a cleaning a Sacred Gear may need or which Sacred Gears would have the most beneficial effects, which should at least give them clues to determine if the two Sacred Gears are from different timelines or time loops.
In the Environmental data was an entry regarding the number of times the world has been reset by Heaven's System when either the System itself was beyond of the point of repair or when the world had ended.
The two numbers didn't match up, the present day Gasper told them the world was currently on it's 12.313 loop while Adult!Gasper was from the 8.085 Loop. However none wanted to believe that was true, so they tried other means of figuring out what happened before finding a means to view the current state of the future Ex and his siblings came from.
The sight of the world crumbling before resetting back decades before Ex and his siblings were even born, and it repeating the process again and again with it being reset to different points in time or elements of the world itself changing, it all become unbearable for those present to watch.
Using Woz's more refined control of time they were able to track down where Loki and his alien allies, who they suspected knew about the world resetting and used the method that they did to come out victorious in the next world, all they found were Loki's remains surrounded by the broken bodies of the ExE invaders.
They didn't survive the trip through time like Ex and his group did,
Woz did a test and ensure he and Minato's children could return to their time, even going back to the future and returning to prove that it was possible. Once he returned he delivered the news that everything seemed to have worked itself out, them preventing needless deaths like Kanna's had returned stability to their future.
There were no clear answers on what to do, no big bad to defeat or way to restore the now overwritten world, Ex and his siblings were stranded in a version of their world they did not know with the knowledge their home and family were long gone.
Adult Gasper and Issei's children spent almost a week at the Hyoudou Residence before leaving to travel the world to find a place for themselves in a world that they had little other choice other than making their new home.
Once Issei's children went out into the world Minato's own made their way back to their time, but before they left Minato had a private conversation. Asking Woz if he knew that Ex and his siblings came from an overwritten timeline.
Woz looked up at the sky as he answered "Time loops can be very cruel, my lord. Be they those that reset the world or having the future interact with the past to ensure a stable time loop to prevent tragedies" a mournful Woz bowed his head "I beg forgiveness my lord, but we had no other options"
"Will they be okay?" Minato asked.
"That depends solely on the children from a past future but. considering what we've seen, they'll be fine" Woz answered. The two looking out wishing the best for the displaced children and their guardian.
Author's Note:
In this ending, Ex and his siblings are like the Future Children from Fire Emblem Awakening. Unable to return to their time and living in the same world as another version of their parents raise another version of the time displaced child.
Only instead of being children from a ruined future their from an overwritten world that imploded in on itself causing the world to reset which each iteration of the world being a bit different from the others, in one the DxD Light Novels all took place without issue while in another the anime original ending happened.
Perhaps in others elements from other worlds were added in, such as Senran Kagura, To Love Ru, UFO Princess Valkyrie, Maken-Ki, Testament New Sister Devil or the combined fanfic worlds of RoxasHyuuga and dad90.
Heck, Fantasia Re:Build [the FGO inspired game with Fantasia Bunko characters instead of Type Moon characters] could have taken place in one of these previous loops.
Anyway. Figure I'd add in this more downer ending to bring up a reason how the EX children could appear in the present especially if an OC has replaced Issei or Issei is a Cybertronian from Transformers on a mission from Primus to heal / bring God of the Bible back to the stage.
It could be all of them or select few, they couldn't return home or the path they followed Loki led to disaster, that got separated from the others or their the only survivors as the others perished mid travel. Feel free to come up with your own explainations whatever they may be, chances are your own explaination would work better in your story than the options I have laid out.