Highschool DxD: The Prime Evil

by TalonAlpha3

"And the Evil that was once vanquished shall rise anew. Wrapped in the guise of man shall he walk amongst the innocent. And Terror shall consume they that dwell upon the Earth." Aidan Kain was just living a normal school life as a human with nightmares before being sucked into the Devil world as a pawn of Rias Gremory. What further adventures await for this Kuoh Academy student?

17. Chapter 17: We Don't Get to Hide

I do not own Highschool DxD nor do I own Diablo. All rights respectively go to Ichiei Ishibumi, the series' creator, and Blizzard Entertainment, the company who made Diablo.

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ENTSTEIG…

Entsteig. It is a country filled with thick, mountainous forests, though it has some open fields. Mountains are located in the kingdom's north. A number of main roads cross the country, like the King's Road and Queen's Road, and during times of harvest, multiple people can be seen travelling them. Entsteig has a number of towns, but they are dwarfed by their counterparts in Kehjistan. Also, unlike Kehjistan, these towns are not planned; most villages in Entsteig simply grow as people congregate in a given area.

It is a proud kingdom that has pledged its loyalties to the Zakarum faith. However, faith in the Light is mixed with paganistic beliefs and its people believe the Sharval Wilds to be an enchanted place of fey spirits. But more astonishing is that throughout its history, the people of Entsteig have always believed in Heaven and Hell, perhaps even before any other culture on Sanctuary. They have traditionally been ruled by various kings and queens in the past.

A lone Aidan just recently came back from a hunting trip within the forest. He was holding in his right hand a few hares he had caught with just a simple bow and arrow. But his real catch in his net that he dragged was a local white deer used for good venison meals. Its meat would sustain him for weeks and the leather skin would make fine clothing.

As for his house, it was something his Uncle had kept for a very long time. Or rather, it was a farm owned by Uncle Deckard's family and passed down from generation to generation. The pair would sometimes come back to this farm either to harvest the wheat or to clean it up and make it nice and tidy.

Aidan's appearance meanwhile had changed a bit. His hair grew longer for one thing and he sported some facial hair, mainly a small mustache and goatee. He was also more muscular, like that of an Olympian swimmer. Once he settles down and takes off his shirt because it was hot, he was shown to be covered in some fading scars on his body. This all resulted from his comatose state as a result of the horrific symptoms his body was receiving during treatment. One can only wonder why a healthy, young, if not handsome man would be doing out here on a farm in the middle of Entsteig.

That was because he had been living at the farm for two months.

Two months. Two months ago, Aidan had woken up in the hospital. As he did, he was greeted by a crying Rias, whom he had hesitantly held in his arms. He did not understand what was going on, having woken up from a one to two-week coma. When Sirzechs heard the news, he decided to tell Aidan everything, thus he had everyone leave the room. Rias did not want to and clung to him but was forced out by her friends as Sirzechs began to recount the horrific tale of the Terror Unleashed followed by the ORC and the Student Council's descent into Tristram Cathedral.

But when Sirzechs told Aidan everything that had happened beginning with the Rating Game against Riser Phenex, a dark change occurred in Aidan. For one thing, he became silent and did not bother to look nor speak to anyone. He only shook or nod is head but did not speak another word. But this was not because of the truth of events that Aidan was told.

This was because he knew it all. He saw what had happened. And he had no control over it. What Diablo did to his body and how he was forced to watch it all from within. How he was forced to watch as Ravel died with a snapped neck, how Riser was nearly killed, Rias and Sirzechs wounded, Rias battling Diablo in the Burning Hells, and of her rescuing his soul from within the soulstone. She had endured and suffered so much, seeing what he did not want her to see. And it left her changed in more ways than one.

After being rescued from the soulstone, Aidan's health recovered on a much quicker pace. For his health and safety, the doctors forbid visits and focused on Aidan's rehabilitation, getting to feel back into his body and testing the nerve reflexes to see if he was responding well. All tests so far produced good results and in no time, Aidan was ready to leave the hospital and return home.

But once he was discharged from the hospital, he did not return as everyone would have expected. Rather he did the unexpected, which was to disappear. Again.

This shocked everyone back at home. Sirzechs and the doctors thought everyone rejoiced that Aidan returned but when the Maou had heard the news that Aidan never came back; he was surprised yet also had a small feeling this would happen. He had tried to search for Aidan everywhere in the Underworld and on Earth but found no trace of him, leaving him to conclude Aidan covered or erased his tracks to ensure he did not want to be followed just like before.

Akeno was left depressed that Aidan was gone once more, seeing her best friend suffer after hearing the news. She had to keep everyone together like before yet was so tired of it and wished for Aidan back. After all, Aidan was the moral pillar to keep everyone's heads high, but that pillar was once again gone to an unknown location no one knows of. It broke Akeno's heart as her mind races back in time to their flirty conversations with one another behind the scenes at school.

Kiba on one hand grew frustrated once more, seeing Aidan's selfish act. While not too different from what Kiba once did before, it was also unwise for Aidan to do such a thing. Exile may have been the right choice in Aidan's mind, but Kiba would call him out for being a selfish coward. Kiba kept such criticism to himself though, burying it in the back of his mind as emotion will not bring Aidan back. Still, he could not deny what he and everyone else were feeling and of how they want him to come back.

Koneko was also surprised. Her snacks tasted bitter, as if Aidan's presence added a flavor she liked. Even the cookies she tried to replicate failed to yield the same taste as before. She had also missed his patting of the head. Asia was left weeping in Uncle Deckard's arms like a child to a grandparent, wanting Aidan back. She felt despair once again, wondering where Aidan was gone.

But as for Rias, she felt heartbroken once more that the man she loves most has once again slipped away from her grasp. Only this time he was not in possession but rather in self-imposed exile, hiding away from her not out of fear of punishment, but rather out of fear that if he lost control, Diablo would come to harm her.

It was a logical conclusion Rias had to bitterly swallow. She had wept and cried alone for a few days, wanting Aidan back and once again needing her family to comfort her. She desperately wanted to know where Aidan was and wanted to see him yet has been unable to for the past two months, leaving her bitter and a little bit angry at him for doing such a selfish thing.

Aidan knew at this point, he had incurred Rias' wrath for his selfish decisions, but it was the only choice that was right and logical to do. If he stayed, Diablo could influence the bond between them now that they have had a taste of what power Terror can unleash. He never even left a message of how long he will be gone yet his heart was too wracked with guilt to even inform anyone.

As Aidan emerged from the shower and donned new clothing in white, he was about to start tearing the skin and gutting his catch that was hanging from a rack. Suddenly, he felt a familiar presence to his right. He did not bother to look as he knew who it was that came by, instantly recognizing it as the figure showed itself in plain sight.

"Your Uncle told me I'd find you here," Sirzechs calmly greeted.

Aidan kept his indifferent look as he continued working on his catch. "You and Uncle Deckard have a nice chat?"

"Always," Sirzechs smiled before he walked over, intrigued at what Aidan had caught in the forests of Entsteig. "Is that a white deer? I've heard the humans regard them highly in their folklore—"

"You didn't come here to discuss hunting implements," Aidan interrupted as he gets a new carving knife and returns to his deer.

Sirzechs sighed, knowing that Aidan was in no mood for a nice chat. "Alright. I'll cut to the chase." Sirzechs then walked up to the still-working Aidan. "I want you to come back."

"Come back?" asked Aidan as if insulted.

"I know," Sirzechs tries not to overstep himself. "I don't have any right to—"

"You knew what I wanted," Aidan vehemently said.

"I didn't have a choice," Sirzechs countered back. "Rias sent me because she is so desperate to see you again. What you are doing here, hiding away? It's no more than selfishness on your behalf."

Aidan sighed. "I know."

Sirzechs wasn't wrong. Indeed, Aidan had been proactively avoiding Rias by hiding away in Entsteig, covering his tracks so that no one other than his Uncle would know where he is at. He hadn't exactly been helping anyone to be honest. But still, the nightmares of such events lingered heavily on his mind. He didn't expect anyone to understand why he ran and hid away like before. But this time was different.

Aidan felt that, to himself alone, he has been diagnosed with PTSD. If he had stayed with the ORC or anyone else, he may lash out and cause irreparable harm, precisely of what Diablo wants him to do given that the Demon's taint still lives inside of him. What he was doing now was selfish, yet some may call it the right thing to do, living in exile.

"Listen, I get why you didn't want to return to Rias. Why you chose to exile yourself," Sirzechs said as he crosses his arms. "I mean, if I had to live with memories of being Diablo's host... I would've killed myself a long time ago."

"Well you know Rias," Aidan said as he turned to him. "She never would've allowed that. Neither would Grayfia."

Sirzechs would not deny that. After the Second Dark Exile, Sirzechs had nightmares of the journey. Mainly it was losing his friends over to the Prime Evils. Some of those friends he had made were Angels and Fallen Angels that he made during the Hunt. Yet even so, they had fallen one by one to the Brothers' power in each confrontation.

Sometimes Sirzechs would go to the memorial wall in the Underworld, the Wall of the Loss, just to pay homage and respect to his fallen friends. It was tough at first for Sirzechs, commissioning a memorial for the lives lost. But Grayfia helped him out of his nightmare, calming him and sleeping with him every night to ensure he would not let their sacrifices be in vain.

Diablo, during his imprisonment, may have fed on those fears and nightmares. But Sirzechs had dreaded to know such a thing. In fact, he would not want to know if he did or not.

"I take it you don't just want me to return for the sake of Rias though?" Aidan deduced as he turned to him.

Sirzechs shook his head in agreement, impressed of Aidan's intelligence. "No. The nobles of the Underworld are in uproar over what has happened. Even after explaining everything about the event and of the history the Maous have kept, they still hold you responsible for killing a noble and incapacitating another."

"As expected," Aidan was not surprised.

"They have all decided on a unanimous vote that you should be judged and executed for your crimes," Sirzechs added. "Only the three great noble families, the Bael clan, and the Astaroth clan are against it."

"What about the Four Great Satans?" asked Aidan.

"We're doing everything we can to not make the vote pass through, but the nobles are adamant on it. They wish to see your head on a platter."

"So all the nobles in the Underworld decide to have me executed… just as soon as I recover from my coma. That's not a coincidence."

"That's why I need you back," Sirzechs pleaded. "Only you can quell this chaos and explain your actions. Of why you sought to save Rias from her marriage to Riser. Of why you were forced to answer Diablo's call."

Aidan was not so sure as he looked down in doubt, but Sirzechs knew this was bound to happen.

"I'm not expecting an answer right away," Sirzechs gently said. "But each day, the price on your head grows and soon, darker threats will be looking for you. But if you return home, I will ensure you are well protected from those that would want you dead."

Aidan looked a little surprised. "Why would you go so far for that?"

"Because we're family," Sirzechs simply said with a small smile. "And you are just as much a part of it just as you are to Rias."

*STEP STEP*

Footsteps were then heard behind Sirzechs, making Aidan look up and the Maou looking behind to see a surprising guest.

"Grayfia," Aidan was surprised.

"Aidan," The maid and Queen to Sirzechs greeted as she walked over to join the two.

"You came, my lovely wife?" asked Sirzechs.

"I just wanted to see if maybe—"

"You can give an apology to me about the soulstone?" interrupted Aidan, whom Grayfia was surprised considering that was exactly why she came. Though truth be told, she came because her husband asked her to and not just for an apology but also as leverage for Aidan to come back. "Saying sorry will not be enough to bring me back, Grayfia. And it was never your fault. No offense intended."

"None taken," Grayfia thanked. "But I still feel responsible for all of it, even if Diablo pulled my strings. Hence why I came along."

"We need you, Aidan," Sirzechs again pleaded as he turned to his little sister's Pawn. "Come back to the Underworld. The longer you stay here, the more endangered you will be from the Demons and possibly other people who would want you dead."

Aidan was not so sure about all of this. Though believing in what Sirzechs told him, he still didn't want to get caught in all the loopholes and politics of the Underworld. What he did was unforgivable, and he would expect execution, even if what some would say what he did was noble and righteous. But the consequence of unleashing an evil unto all of creation is not something one can be pardone of so easily.

"So where's Rias in all of this?" Aidan asked.

"She's back at Kuoh Academy," Sirzechs said, making Aidan sigh a bit in relief. "I've kept her out of all the politics. Activities from her Peerage have resumed normally, and your missing presence is officially being on sick leave. But Rias' behavior has been of odd lately."

"What do you mean?" asked a concerned Aidan.

"She's been reading more and more of our Devil Mythology books," Grayfia interjected. "And she's also been studying your Uncle's Horadric texts. It's as if she's been trying to find answers to find a way to destroy the Demons. I fear Tristram Cathedral had changed her a bit."

"I doubt this is just a simple research assignment to her though," Aidan deduced.

"You are correct," Sirzechs confirmed. "She's been avoiding her friends lately, giving excuses of school assignments and club activities. On the surface, she's just trying to keep herself busy while you are away. But I think she is losing her mind because of your missing presence."

"How so?" asked Aidan.

"She has a shard of Diablo's soulstone," Sirzechs revealed. "And almost every night she studies it, as if trying to understand its nature and power. But given of its corruption, what she is doing is way too dangerous. I've tried to call her out on it, but she won't listen. And I'm afraid Diablo is reaching out to her from it."

Sirzechs' theory felt logical. If Diablo had begun to change his targets to Rias instead of Aidan, it would make some sort of sense. Diablo did taunt Rias throughout the ordeal and throughout their fight in the Chaos Sanctuary. He was trying to manipulate and prey on her fears and anxiety and despite her best efforts, Rias was pushed to it.

Now Rias being kept watch by her friends and her Peerage, concerned for her health and well-being. So far nothing drastic and bad has happened but everyone is keeping an eye on her every move and action, preparing themselves for the worst to come whenever that is. It is only a matter of time before Diablo makes another move that no one will notice.

"I have to get back to the Underworld, Aidan," Sirzechs said. "But before I go, there's something I want you to do."

"I'm listening," Aidan responded, knowing it is not about returning to Rias just yet.

"I have a contract I need you to attend to," Sirzechs said. "A friend of mine wants your help at his restaurant in America."

"America?" asked Aidan. "Why there?"

"Says he needs help cleaning his restaurant for a big party he is hosting soon. That's about all the details I got."

"I understand," Aidan acknowledged, willing to take up the contract. Sirzechs then hands him the pamphlet of which to follow.

"This will take you to his restaurant. And one more thing…"

Aidan listens in as he comes face to face with both the Maou and his Queen.

"Neither Grayfia nor I blame you for what you did that day," Sirzechs said. "To do so right now would go against what our teacher, your mother, taught us. We just wish for you to be well and recover from your exile. Anything for Aurelia-sensei's child. It's what she would have wanted."

Aidan was about to say something before Grayfia intervened.

"As her students, we are blessed to have you in our lives," She said. "You may have been cursed by Terror, but you are without a doubt Aurelia-sensei's child."

Aidan remembers when he met Grayfia the first time that he had his mother's eyes according to her. At the time, Aidan did not know what she had meant. But once she said those similar words of how he is a child of their teacher's curiosity ran through his mind.

"Is my mother alive?" Aidan asked. "Does she know about me? Where I am, where I am going? Does she care?"

Sirzechs then made a promise. "The next time we see each other, we'll talk about your mother. I promise."

Sirzechs and Grayfia then take their leave, disappearing in a magic circle the former had conjured up, leaving Aidan alone as he watched the two disappear from sight. He had a lot to think about and knew that with this meeting, Sirzechs will likely tell the others where he is. Aidan will have to be ready, lest they come take him away by force.

He wasn't ready to return from his self-exile yet, but he was ready to welcome them after not seeing them for so long.

---

THREE DAYS LATER…

It was a bright and sunny day within the fields of Entsteig. The harvest for the grain was ready and every farmer across the country got their tools out to gather the wheat. Aidan happened to be one of those farmers, yet he waited for a bit for the crops to grow a bit more, so as to produce the best quality wheat.

In his fields though, Kiba stood and caressed one of the wheat granaries. But as he reaches his right hand out to caress one of the grains, it begins to crumble in his hands. This wheat must have been some sort of special type, as if it needed to be harvested properly before all of its grains crumble away into the wind.

Kiba continues to move forward, seeing the farmhouse not too far away and the path easy to follow that leads to it. He had only a brief time to take in the view of Entsteig and he saw that it was beautiful. He understood why Aidan resided here: it was peaceful and quiet. And it would keep him busy.

But Kiba noted that it was also…lonely. Despite the presence of other farms, each farmer was basically an animal with a territory. Their farmlands produced their own crop and they sell that crop just for a living and for survival. Kiba wondered how Aidan has lived a life like this before with his Uncle.

As Kiba walks towards the house, he spots Aidan, with only a black tank top, gray jeans, and roman sandals on as he sits by the steps of his house sharpening what appears to be an axe for cutting wood with a smooth stone.

Sensing his presence, Aidan looks up to his left to see Kiba casually approach him. He should have known that eventually, someone from Rias' Peerage would come looking for him. They must have been tipped off by either Uncle Deckard or Sirzechs. At any time, they could have come to Aidan altogether, trying to convince him to come back home. But they knew that in his mental state, he was in no shape to return. He needed time to think and reflect.

Aidan did not like it when Kiba was approaching his house. He thought that Rias was going to try again to send him back albeit forcefully. He did not like this side of Rias that has changed since Tristram, having been informed by Sirzechs of his sister's activities.

But Aidan trusted Kiba, his good friend. If anything, he seemed to be the one a bit more laid back and accepting of Aidan's circumstances, or perhaps forced to. Aidan knew that Rias would have sent him to keep an eye on him and, if possible, return back home lest he be labeled a Stray Devil and hunted. But this was Kiba's first time coming to his farm so he felt that he should at least greet him warmly with some hospitality if at all possible.

Setting aside his axe, Aidan walks over to the Knight. The two Princes of Kuoh meet, having not seen each other in a couple months.

"So…" Kiba spoke up as he stopped. "This is home now?"

"Home…" Aidan confirmed. "And isolation."

Kiba curiously asked, "And the nearest town?"

"Not far," Aidan answered.

Kiba takes a look around the small household and the farm area surrounding it. He cannot help but acknowledge why Aidan chose a place like this. It was peaceful and quiet. He kept himself busy with the farm life and had weapons at the ready in case danger arose.

But as Kiba looked closer, he saw that the surrounding land was dying despite the abundant farm life. And the house Aidan was in needed some tending to in terms of damage, which could take months to repair.

"This world…" Kiba said. "It looks good…" Kiba then faces his friend. "But it's…wrong. Broken. Falling apart. Just like everyone back home."

He then approached his friend and asked in an almost stern tone. "Do you know… do you know what she's done while you've been hiding?"

Aidan can clearly remember who he is talking about. Indeed, he and Rias have not spoken to one another ever since he woke up from his coma and was saved by her. Recovery and rehabilitation aside, the two have been busy with their respective roles and didn't have a lot of time to talk in private.

But for Aidan, he was simply running away. And he acknowledged that as he looked a bit down in shame while noting Kiba's Academy uniform.

"I left that life behind," Aidan said with melancholy. "I'm a failure to her, both as Pawn and servant. I nearly destroyed two great noble families and harmed all of you. Staying with you all will only put you in danger from who I am."

He then looked at Kiba in the eye and said firmly, "I will not return to her."

Kiba did not want to argue back and calmly replied, "I didn't ask. But I hoped you would at least fight for her."

Aidan had no words to say from that. He knew Kiba was right. But his heart still throbbed with pain and regret for what he had done. Truth be told, he watched as Diablo used his body to incapacitate Riser, kill Ravel, battle Sirzechs, and even fight Rias. He saw it all. And he could not bear the thought of doing such a thing again.

Aidan turns around and heads back to his axe, looking in contemplation as his mind rewinds back to those pleasant times he had spent with everyone. Whether it was with Asia strolling through town, flirting with Akeno in the bathroom, sharing lunch with Koneko, or even hanging out with Kiba on the roof of the school, they were indeed good memories. Hell, eve he had some good memories with Sona Sitri, playing a game of chess. Aidan lost most of the time yet decided he would play the game of RISK with Tsubaki included, a game he was most expert at.

But the most fondest memories he had were with Rias. The redhead had always been there for him just as he had been there for her. They slept together, ate together, walked to school together, and even comforted each other. Hell, they even kissed. He saved her from a life she had never wanted in her life.

It broke Aidan's heart that what he was doing right now was nothing more than selfish behavior inappropriate for someone like her. He didn't want this and neither did she. But Rias knew Aidan was the one more damaged than her. He had suffered physically, mentally, and spiritually on every level in the most horrendous way possible and unimaginable. It was also the reason why a part of his hair was white due to a small case of Marie Antoinette Syndrome.

Still, it broke each other's hearts to be apart from one another for so long.

As Aidan turns around and heads toward his axe laying by his anvil, Kiba noted something was off. Rather, he heard footsteps. Like someone was running.

Coming from behind them.

*SHING*

"HAAH!" Kiba summons his sword and does an upward slash behind him, only for that mysterious figure to reveal itself as an assassin. It wore dark clothing, covering it from top to bottom while also wearing some form of mask, an Oni mask to be exact. The assassin looked humanoid but was also very skinny.

Two demonic knives emerged from the assassin as it engages Kiba.

Aidan turned around in shock but then heard a noise to his left, sensing this assassin did not come alone. Grabbing a shovel in his right hand, Aidan tosses dirt to where the assassin was, revealing its disguise through the dust.

*CLING*

The second assassin knocks the shovel out of Aidan's hands and engages with him using its demonic knives.

Kiba and the first assassin tangle, the former dodging all them fancy moves the assassin offered. Both demonic knives clashed with his sword as Kiba was forced on the offensive against this agile foe.

Then, an opening presented itself as Kiba ducks and does one full rotation to his right to swing his sword horizontally.

"HAAH!" Kiba cried.

*SLING…CRASH*

The first assassin is sliced in half, its corpse crashing against a rock wall, crumbling a part of it.

Aidan kept dodging the second assassin before he grabs its left arm and its right arm in that sequence to halt its attacks. But the oni masked assassin crawls up and sneers at him.

*POOF*

The assassin soon kicks off of Aidan and flips backwards to land behind. But…

*STAB SGLISH*

Kiba thrusted his sword behind the assassin and takes it out, effectively killing it as it slumbers to the ground and its blood spills across the floor.

Once the fight was over and Kiba catches his breath, he bends the knee to examine the assassin behind the mask as he rips it off. Sure enough, it was a Demon, with red skin and orange eyes and two horns. Not to mention its blood was vile black and its hands and feet clawed.

"You were followed!" An angered Aidan retorted, in the belief his peace and quiet from the world was now interrupted thanks to Kiba.

But the Prince of Kuoh looked up calmly to his old friend and revealed, "I followed them."

Aidan began to calm down, trusting in Kiba's words yet realizing that as long as he is out here alone like this, the Demons and possible other dangers will come looking for him. But that did not mean he is willing to return home.

Kiba then stood up and calmly said, "You and I… We don't get to hide."

A few simple words but they were packed with meaning behind it. Aidan knew it and accepted it that so long as he stays in Entsteig, the Demons will keep coming for him. And possibly other threats as well, most likely from humans who just want to rob him. Or also Devils who seek to kill him for his crimes, calling it justice. Aidan, at this point, knew that not returning home was no longer an option.

But then, something from Sirzechs earlier came to his head.

'I have a contract I need you to attend to. A friend of mine wants your help at his restaurant in America.'

He knew then what to do.

"I won't return to Rias yet," Aidan said. "There is a contract Sirzechs wants me to complete. Then, I will come home."

"And what do you want me to tell her?" asked Kiba.

Aidan sighs, "Tell her… tell her I will be home soon."

Kiba gives a small smile, acknowledging that. He then holds out a hand to Aidan, as if waiting for a shake from it. Aidan hesitates for a few seconds before…

*CLASP*

The two grasp each other's arms and shake firmly before letting go as Kiba heads back. He turns to walk away and leaves Aidan alone, watching his good friend and brother in arms return to Rias with both good news and bad news.

---

LATER…

Back at the Johannus Crusade Sword Company, Rias stood alongside Johanna as she examines within a large perpendicular briefcase Dawnbreaker. But the sword had seen better days. For one thing, constant use of it has resulted in chipping and cracks forming in the blade.

Worst of all, it was shattered into several blade fragments. The possibility must have been from its continuous usage to the point the material became so fragile to have broken off.

"Can you remake this?" Rias asked as Johanna looks at Dawnbreaker.

Johanna nodded, "I could but I figured I should make something better out of it."

"Oh?" Rias' head perked up. "What do you mean?"

"Dawnbreaker here was just a prototype of a weapon I had been researching and trying to create," Johanna revealed as she picks up the broken handle of the blade. "I gave it to Aidan for him to test it out. It worked better than I feared but worse than I had hoped."

"And what exactly is this new weapon you are trying to create?" asked Rias.

Johanna confidently smirks as she puts the broken handle away and, in her barrel full of blueprint designs of weapons, unravels a thin sabre-like sword with a Devil wing ornament by the crimson hilt. But what was striking to Rias was that near the hilt of the blade was the Gremory symbol.

"A sabre?" asked Rias as she looked at the blueprint. "You're going to give that to Aidan as a replacement?"

"Actually it is for you," Johanna revealed, looking at the redhead with a smile.

Rias was confused when she pointed her finger to herself. "Me?"

"It was something your brother wanted you to have for your next birthday," Johanna said. "He wanted to train you in wielding a sword much like how I taught him how to wield a spear. It was done so in the case you would have to fight hand to hand against an enemy with weapons, as you no doubt have experienced firsthand in Tristram."

"…You…trained him?" Rias asked in surprise. "You taught him how to fight?"

"I sure did," Johanna revealed as memories came back. "Initially, I thought I found myself a worthy apprentice to carry on my name and continue the Crusade. But when I later found out his position, I decided to prepare him for his future battles. Not against Angels or Fallen Angels but against the true enemy."

"What made you train him?" asked Rias.

"I told him that he cannot stay behind shields forever and that at some point, if he wounds up fighting in close quarters, he is going to need to learn how to wield a weapon. So he wanted to know how to use a spear. I trained him and over the years, I kept his skills sharp, supplying him and his forces with weapons needed to fight the Demons. Simple, right?"

But Rias' head dips a bit, not so much of what Johanna said about firsthand sword experience in Tristram, but rather of what her brother did behind her back. She loves her brother, but she doesn't like things that involve her going behind her back. Well, aside birthday surprises in terms of parties.

As Johanna is at the forge, she takes the broken pieces of Dawnbreaker over, ready to melt them. But first, she had to remove the handle of the blade. So she takes the base portion of the broken sword, and with a hammer, removes the angelic wing, and separates the blade from its holder. She then tosses those pieces aside and into the garbage labeled Scrap, no longer seeing any use for them and mainly used to melt and form ingots.

With that, the remaining shards of Dawnbreaker are melted away in the forge, with temperatures rising to five hundred degrees and is blistering hot, like staring at lava. Once the shards have melted away, the molten metal is dripped into a crucible as Johanna starts preparing to pour that said crucible into a mold to forge the sabre.

While Rias watches her work, she leaned against a wall behind her and has her arms crossed over, as if she was in a reflective mood.

Questions had rung through her mind. Did Sirzechs know about all of this? That Diablo would eventually return and possess Aidan? That she would venture into Tristram and confront the Lord of Terror within the Cathedral?

Johanna quickly noticed her odd change of behavior and spoke up, making the redhead look up at her once snapped out of her melancholic mood.

"Speak your mind," Johanna urged.

Rias did as requested. "You say that you are a Crusader of the Zakarum."

"Correct," Johanna nodded.

"And that you have been fighting alongside your friends for thousands of years."

"Correct."

"That includes the Great War, of which you did not fight on any side, and by extension, the Eternal Conflict. You know of my brother, whom your trained. You also know the rest of the Satans, and even the existence of the Burning Hells."

"Correct."

Rias then asked this one question.

"So… how are you still alive if you are human?" She asked.

Johanna smiles calmly and replies, "My dear Devil, I have been around since even before your Three Factions came into existence."

*PSSHH*

Johanna pulls onto a rope and pours the molten metal from the crucible onto the mold of the sabre and watches as the very hot and heavy liquid travels along the mold's design. She watches the mold unfold as memories flash back to her, bringing back good times.

"After the destruction of the Worldstone, the world had undergone a great change. Demons and Angels from the High Heavens had now gained access into Sanctuary and humanity was left to its own devices. A few decades afterwards, my friends and I were approached by the Archangel Tyrael, who decided to entrust the world to us. To that end, he made us immortal and tasked us with the duty to keep watch and protect humanity from whatever dangers lurk about."

"Immortal?" asked Rias. "But what did you have to do to earn such a duty?"

"Simple really: surpass the Angels and Demons, but I've done so since I was already born."

Once the mold had cooled enough to take a solid shape, Johanna picks it up with her large pliers and brings it over to the anvil, hammering away with her hammer to smoothen the texture of the blade.

Rias was not convinced of the answer. If Johanna could surpass Angels and Demons since she was born, what big thing did she have to do to earn such a sacred duty as a Crusader of the Zakarum? Was there more to her than one would think?

"What's it like, living with this immortality?" asked Rias.

"Everything you could imagine for the most part," Johanna said as she went to work on the anvil, hammering away. "Wars are fought over, governments change, the environment decays and regrows, everything you could possibly imagine happening does happen."

"Doesn't it exhaust you?" asked Rias.

"A Crusader is never exhausted," Johanna proudly said as she dips the hot blade into the water to cool it. "The Crusade never ends so long as the Zakarum faith is corrupted. Once cleansed, then perhaps it ends but until then, we fight to our dying breaths and passing on our name and shield to a worthy apprentice. Although I have yet to choose one."

"You've never had an apprentice?" asked Rias.

"I have," Johanna confessed as she dips the blade in some oil before putting it back into the forge. "Though they had all died too quickly either from ill equipped preparation or illness took over. So I have yet to find another to carry on my name."

*POOF*

Just then, Rias' bat Familiar showed up out of nowhere in front of her.

"Oh?" Rias asked as she caught her Familiar. "What's wrong?"

The Familiar bat whispers something into her ear, but Rias' eyes widen as saucers.

"I'm sorry, Johanna, but I have to return home. I have been summoned for an important meeting."

"It's alright," Johanna reassured. "It's probably important enough to get your attention. I'll let you know when your weapon is complete."

Rias steps out to an open area of the forge and uses her teleportation spell to dissipate away into red light particles, leaving Johanna alone in the forge. After hammering away, she takes the blade to a barrel of water to cool it down, the steam rising out of it.

However, because making sabres are so delicate a work, Johanna had to be careful as one wrong misstep in the design could prove disastrous and destroy the sword in making. She wipes her forehead and returns to the forge to grinder to smoothen the blade and take off any soot and rough surfaces.

*BZZZZT*

As Johanna grinds away and the sparks fly, she looks back over to the picture of her and her friends. Of all of them, only Kharazim was the one that was close by to her shop. Li-Ming was a teacher at Kuoh Academy in Chinese studies, yet the others he had not heard back from. Although, she had heard her Barbarian friend was out in America on its Eastern border and has opened a barbeque shop.

"I have yet to go see Alrik's barbeque," Johanna muttered. "Maybe when time permits, I'll fly over to America to try some."

LATER…

In front of the ORC clubhouse were Akeno and Sona walking towards the building. Sona had usually been visiting the clubhouse alone as of recently, leaving the Student Council work to the rest of her Peerage. The only reason she had been doing this as of late was out of concern for Rias, which was acceptable. Tsubaki can take over temporarily while Sona works with Akeno on keeping an eye out for Rias.

"Has Kiba returned to tell you about Aidan's condition?" Sona inquired.

"He has," Akeno confirmed. "He merely told us that Aidan was not ready to come back. That he has a contract to attend to given to him by Rias' brother."

"That doesn't sound like a coincidence," Sona speculated. "Why a contract now?"

"I do not know," The Priestess of Thunder answered as she looks at the Kuoh Academy Student Council President. "And I don't think it's a coincidence either. The timing seems a bit too on par. Have you visited him as of late?"

"No," answered Sona. "If we do not hear soon after his contract, I will go confront him myself in Entsteig."

Suddenly, a familiar fiery orange light shone in front of Akeno and Sona. A magic circle then appeared flowing on the floor, orange and with a very familiar symbol.

"The mark of the Phenex," Sona realized, making Akeno get into a defensive stance, thinking of it to be Riser.

But as the column of flames that stood up appeared and dispersed right afterwards, it took the form of a young man with blonde hair and dark blue eyes. Not to mention the proper noble clothing befitting that of a Devil noble from the Underworld.

"Ruval Phenex," Sona saw as she looks at Akeno. "This cannot be good."

"Alert Rias!" Akeno asked. "I will deal with this."

Sona did as asked as she left, leaving the Priestess of Thunder with the heir to the Phenex Family. Akeno prepared herself as she came face to face with Riser's older brother. Their confrontation with a Phenex member last time did not end so well on good terms and it was highly possible Ruval came seeking Rias or Aidan out of revenge or justice for his family. After all, he was present when Riser was critically injured by a possessed Aidan and Ravel killed by that same man.

But Ruval's face was not like of Riser's. Instead of arrogance, it was kind and gentle. He looked around his area, as if bewildered by the sight of everything around him in awe.

"So this is the human world?" Ruval asked to himself. "It's more beautiful than last time I was here."

"Why are you here, Ruval Phenex?" asked a detestable Akeno. "Did Riser send you?"

"Not directly," Ruval shook his head. "But I am not here to impose conflict."

"I find that hard to believe," Akeno stated, showing her anger.

Ruval could not blame her attitude. Indeed, Riser's insolence left a mark of irritation on everyone within Rias' Peerage, the King and Pawn most especially. He felt Riser got what he deserved in terms of his arrogance, yet also knew he was still family and did not deserve such brutal treatment by Aidan.

Still, Ruval did not come for revenge.

"I understand your mistrust, Akeno Himejima," Ruval stated. "But I am here to deliver a message!"

"A message?" asked Akeno. "Riser continues to send his servants to do his work without doing them himself for once. And now he sends you, his own family, after Rias?"

"You misunderstand my intentions," Ruval kept calm.

*HYU BON*

Ruval is suddenly hit by a blast from the Power of Destruction, caused by none other than Rias who arrived just in time. He was thrusted back, but the wound was not mortal, only enough to make him stand down. But as he looked into Rias' eyes, all he saw was an angered face, most likely from the fact that another member of the Phenex Family came to visit her considering her encounter with Riser.

He could not blame he for thinking like that of course. His little brother was always the most prideful, boasting about himself and not caring for others. But after the Terror Unleashed incident, perhaps he had learned his lesson but is now in a critical metal condition as a result of it.

"Who sent you here, Ruval?" Rias demanded as she powers down.

Ruval sits up on one knee and heals his wound. "I have been sent on orders from my family. To deliver an apology on my little brother's behalf."

"Riser Phenex sent you?" Akeno asked the same question as earlier, not wanting to believe that given of Riser's fragile state of mind.

"More like my little sister, Ravel," Ruval clarified as he stands up. "But she speaks on his behalf as his Bishop. I honor that request. Riser apologizes for what he has done to you and wishes to make amends."

"Do you have proof of Riser's apology?" asked Rias.

Ruval answered honestly, "Only my word."

This however did not convince Rias one bit.

"Your word is worthless, like your brother," Rias venomously said. "He intended to marry me out for his own gain, use me as his toy. I will not fall for whatever lies he told you."

"My little brother may have been prideful and foolish," Ruval agreed humbly. "But now I believe he seeks redemption. And my family wishes to see him again with a healthier mind than now."

"Lies, Ruval, you are manipulated by him," Rias denied as she turns around, ready to leave and be done with this charade. "And I will not abide with whatever he told you."

"Rias, please!" Ruval pleaded. "You must listen to me!"

"Spout your falsehoods elsewhere, Ruval!" Rias demanded as she faced him again. "Riser will not entrap us again."

"It is no trap!" Ruval spoke passionately. "I volunteered of my own free will on his behalf and on behalf of my family."

Akeno rushed up to her friend's right side, believing in the Phenex heir and tossing aside her initial hostile attitude earlier. "Rias! We should listen. He may be telling the truth."

Rias then irately said. "There is only one way to find out."

*ZEEBOOM*

Out of nowhere, Rias fires a red and white beam of energy from her left hand that held the red soulstone shard, shocking Akeno with horror. Ruval is propelled back onto the ground, skidding about ten feet away, and in pain with a black scorched mark on his side. Writhing in pain, he cannot get up as the wound from the blast burns his flesh. His Immortality powers were rendered useless as the wound burns like hot ash, carving into his flesh. Akeno wondered where Rias had retrieved a soulstone shard from Diablo and how she had kept one in her pocket all this time.

Rias slowly walks over to Ruval, rage overcoming her sense of reason.

"Now, Ruval. The truth!" Rias wrathfully demanded, the air quivering as her voice darkens.

Akeno did not like what she was seeing and has had enough of seeing Rias fall further. She steps between a down Ruval and her best friend.

"Rias, stop this!" Akeno pleaded.

"Step aside, Akeno," Rias commanded as she pushes Akeno aside to her right.

"Put down the shard! Its darkness is taking hold of you!"

Enraged and fed up with her friend's interference, Rias turns the shard onto her Queen.

*ZEEBOOM *

Akeno is thrusted away by the soulstone blast from Rias, but the blast did not leave a mark like it did to Ruval. While it still hurt, Rias had dialed down its power outage to merely push Akeno aside, not incapacitate her. Not yet anyway.

"Our time has run out," Rias said. "I do what I must to protect Aidan."

Akeno tries to get up as she is on one knee, but as she tries to…

*HYU BON*

Rias lets loose a warning shot from her Power of Destruction near Akeno's position.

"Stay down!" Rias commanded.

But Akeno stood up, trying to beg with her friend to calm down and listen to reason.

"This is not the way," Akeno pleaded. "Ruval Phenex is not the enemy. Neither is the rest of the Phenex Family, Riser included."

"Akeno, do not interfere!" Rias did not listen. "As your King, I command you to step aside. But if you intend to betray me for them, then I will not hesitate to destroy you if you force my hand."

Akeno was deeply shocked. The Priestess of Thunder had never seen Rias this angry, not since she had fought Diablo during the Terror Unleashed or when they ventured down into Tristram Cathedral. The anger at that time was justified on some part because of Aidan's manipulation and possession. This was different though, as if her heart in the aftermath had hardened and she adopted a new and darker persona, contrasting her kind and gentle demeanor.

And worst of all, she directed it towards her, her best friend who was trying to contain the situation and keep Rias calm. Akeno shook with fear yet continued to stand up in defiance against her King.

Her head dipped in sorrow as she asked, "…Why, Rias? Why would you do this to all of us?"

"Everything we hold dear hangs in the balance!" Rias exclaimed. "I would protect Aidan from all threats by any means necessary, even from you!"

Akeno, with tears forming in her eyes, raised her head, angered and once again disappointed in her best friend, having now become the very thing she once fought against.

"I thought it impossible," Akeno realized as she wipes her tears away. "But now I finally understand. You cannot be trusted."

"I do not need trust. I demand obedience!" Rias' power flares up as her eyes turn demonic red and her body filled with demonic energy like that of the Burning Hells. Her voice, for a brief moment, changed to be something more demonic, frightening everyone except Akeno. Her voice eerily sounded similar to Diablo's.

"Enough of your madness," Akeno vehemently proclaimed as her lightning empowers her. "If you must die, so be it."

That statement however made Rias pause for a moment, almost as if she was recalling something from the past. In the process, she powered herself down as her eyes returned to normal and her face was filled with confusion and realization.

"This-This has happened before," She said. But then suddenly…

*FWOOM*

Rias' head is suddenly overwhelmed by a phenomenon indescribable. Her mind went blank as pain enveloped her, like a massive migraine had just emerged from her brain.

"AH AHH AAAAAHHHHH!" She screams as she holds her head in her hands, her eyes shut before they opened immediately afterwards as wide as saucers.

Nobody could tell what was happening but for Rias, images flashed before her filled with Terror.

---

In one vision, she saw Akeno, garbed in light armor confronting a figure on a throne in some sort of room that overlooked the Underworld, which looked like a hellish landscape. Volcanoes erupted, spewing lava and ash. The terrain was all barren and dry, filled with hard magma and obsidian rock.

Worst of all, Demons now inhabited the Underworld, as if they took over the entire realm.

Rias looked back at Akeno staring at the figure on the throne. When the light emerged to reveal its ruler, she was shocked to find herself on it. However, her form looked nearly identical to Diablo, specifically when she beheld him in the vision of Aidan's death. She saw her form as both Devilishly beautiful but grotesque as a Demon. Though her trademark red hair was present, Rias' eyes were of red and not the usual blue. Rias had demonic feet that showed three large toenails. The armor on her legs went up to her knees and showed black veins on parts of her thighs. Her shoulders were covered in demonic skin that acted as pauldrons. Her back had two large and chaotic spikes growing out of it that were covered by her red hair. She also had one spiky long demonic lizard-like tail. On her head were two large horns that looked demonic, followed by four smaller ones behind them. Her eyes were filled with red hate directed at Riser. But the most intriguing thing was the red soulstone within her forehead, as if it acted as her crown.

"You could not live with your own failure, Akeno," The demonic Rias spoke as she rose from her throne and approaches Akeno. "Once more, it led you back to me."

Akeno remains silent, glaring at her foe as blue lightning instead of yellow, likely because of her heightened powers over the centuries, encompasses her form. The demonic Rias then stood up from her throne and comes down towards Akeno's level.

"But you are too late, just as you always have been. The Seven Evils are one within me! I am legion!"

"Enough of your madness, Rias!" Akeno retorted. "If you must die, so be it!"

Akeno, charged with lightning, flies up high and strikes Rias, only for the demonic redhead to simply hold her fiery hand up to block the attack. She then overcomes Akeno with the fires of Hell, burning her and thrusting her backwards.

Akeno crashes through the wall of what appears to be some sort of sewer line. She lands perfectly and prepares herself as she faces an incoming Rias, charging at her with a punch that Akeno blocks. After that, she grabs Rias by the tail, spins, and launches her away.

In another plane of existence, within the realm of what appears to be Pandemonium with its chaotic environment and crumbling structures due to the Eternal Conflict, Rias is slammed to a ruined pillar and slumps to the floor. Akeno rushes in and unleashes her lightning at Rias, trying to incinerate her.

*PSSHHING*

The lightning, though it wounds Rias, did not deter her as she counters with her Power of Destruction, sending a blast at Akeno, and thrusting her away.

*HYU BOOSH*

Still, Akeno shook it off and stood up, drawing out her katana sword on her left hip as Rias summons her demonic sword, engaging each other in melee combat, blades clashing and ringing against one another. After a few repeated clatters, Rias uses her tail to wrap Akeno by the ankle, hold her up, and fling her away.

Back on Sanctuary, in what appears to be the subway station in Kyoto, Akeno crashes to the ground, bruised and wounded. Rias slowly walks towards her yet charges as soon as Akeno gets up. Rias attempts to strike her head on with a claw, only for Akeno to block it once again with her magic, grab Rias' arm, and flings her away.

As the vision becomes more and more unbearable to watch, Rias watches on as the conflict drags. The duel between her and Akeno rages on in between realms, ranging from the Underworld, to Heaven, to Sanctuary, to the Burning Hells, and even to Pandemonium itself. It felt as if she was viewing something that was not meant to come to pass, an alternate timeline of sorts. But in this timeline that she had witnessed, there was one key person that was missing.

Aidan was not there. He was not present in this timeline. And Rias understood why.

In this timeline of events, Aidan was dead. Without him, the Demons had begun their invasion of the Underworld, reclaiming their former slaves. But worst of all, Diablo was in possession of Rias via the soulstone in her demonic counterpart's forehead. The sight of it had left her with dread, seeing her fears manifested before her in her own corrupted body.

Rias' heart and mind shook with intense fury the more she saw of her fight with Akeno. It was almost too much to bear. And each image and time event became faster and faster, showcasing brief images of the future.

Of a future that was meant to come to pass.

---

Back to the present, Rias collapses to the ground and onto her knees as the visions suddenly end. She quickly sits up, only to look down at something that fell out of her breast pocket. Akeno merely stood by in front of her, watching what was unfolding. Her best friend must have regained her senses and converted back to reality, but that did not mean she was not out of the woods yet.

As the rest of the ORC and Sona rally around Rias after seeing her fall to the ground, she slowly picks up the Red Soulstone shard in her right hand. She could hear the dark power ringing through her ear, the whispers of temptation for her to take the soulstone's power for her own. Diablo's influence was working its way into the redhead as she fights against it mentally like trying to resist the call of a siren. She stares at it for about ten seconds, tempted to take the power within for herself.

All she wanted was to protect Aidan from anyone who would dare try to harm him. He had protected her before in the past and now she wants to repay it fully. And the Red Soulstone shard was the perfect weapon for her to use. But would she thrust it into herself like Aidan before? Would she become Diablo's next host? All of it just to save and protect her favored and loving Pawn?

It was one of the most toughest decisions of her life. The temptation was indeed strong, and she could not deny wanting that power.

Once that mental conflict reaches to its peak, Rias knew what she had to do. For once in her life, she does the right thing.

*PAANNNG*

Rias slams the soulstone shard onto the ground in front of her with a loud thud, discarding it away and finally be ridding herself of the dark and poisonous influence emanating from the stone. Her face was briefly covered by her front hair bangs before she slowly lifted her head up to show guilt. A realization that dawned upon her of what she had nearly become. Fresh tears poured out of her as the rageful feelings had subsided, now filling her with emptiness and sorrow.

And she knew the reason as to why thanks to what had happened to her.

Standing up, humbled and with remorse, she stands up and looks towards her best friend who watched her in concern.

"I have been a fool, Akeno," Rias expresses regret. "Diablo's puppet. We only battle because he and his brothers demand it."

Rias then turns her attention to a still injured Ruval.

"I must help him," Rias said as she walks over, kneels, and heals Ruval's injury with some healing magic of her own.

*SHIING*

Once that was done, she offers a helping hand of which the Phenex heir accepts as Rias pulls him up to stand on his own feet.

"I am so sorry, Ruval," Rias humbly apologized. "I was wrong to doubt you. All this time, I had been a slave to my own anger."

Ruval replied kindly, "It's alright. I forgive you. You have been through a lot and I don't blame you for your initial impressions."

But Akeno was confused. "I do not understand, Rias. Your wrath was caused by Diablo?"

"Yes," A chastened Rias answered as she walked towards her best friend. "I succumbed to his influence, even before he possessed Aidan. But then, our confrontation… it unlocked visions. Visions of a future that was meant to come to pass yet did not thanks to Aidan."

"What do you mean?" asked Asia as Rias turns her head towards her.

"The vision showed me of a potential future if Aidan had died on that night the Fallen Angels came. We lost the Rating Game and I was forcibly married to Riser. After two months of such hell, I ventured into my family's treasury vault and took the Red Soulstone. I had heeded Diablo's call and became his host, conquering most of the Underworld under my rule and eliminating the House of Phenex, except for Ravel and Riser. The former I kept a slave and the latter tortured for all eternity as punishment for his defiance."

"I don't get it," Koneko said. "Why do all that?"

"It was a part of the Prime Evils' plan to return and subjugate the Devils, returning them as their slaves. All part of a plan to topple the Three Factions and conquer Sanctuary, one that was designed since the end of Lucifer's Revolution. The Second Dark Exile was all but a ruse for the Brothers. They allowed themselves to be captured so they could divide and conquer all of us."

"…It makes sense now," Kiba understood. "The constant infighting between the Devils, the Great War, the Exile… All part of a plan for the Prime Evils to bring the rest of Devilkind back into their shackles. But where were we?"

Rias revealed, "I subjugated and turned you all, my own Peerage, into Demons. Taking command of the Demonic Legions, you swept across the Underworld and conquered it in my name, leaving no trace of resistance. From there, we exterminated the Fallen Angels, conquered the earth and enslaved humanity, and brought war to Heaven and beyond."

Everyone did not know what to say. Believing Rias, they all had a look of reflection, as if they saw a glimpse of that dark and terrible future for a brief split-second before looking back to reality.

"But the only one who had resisted me…was you, Akeno," Rias turned to her best friend, shocking the rest. "You and Sona were the only ones who defied me, rallied the survivors under your banner, and fought against me evenly, even as the end drew near. It was what Diablo had intended for me to do: to fight against my best friends."

Akeno did not know what to say, but she took it with a grain of truth. Indeed, had Rias not seen the visions of a future that could have happened, things may have taken a turn for the worse. Akeno would have been the only member of Rias' Peerage to resist and fight her in defiance, seeing what has become of her unlike everyone else. After all, she did chastise her once for her cowardice and kept in check of her health and wellbeing while in Tristram Cathedral.

Rias soon lowered her head with shame. "All this time, like Aidan, I had been influenced by Diablo since the beginning. He knew where to hurt me by using Aidan, played with my emotions. If he had gone further, I would have become the very thing he wanted me to be… A Demon of the Burning Hells."

Rias grips her hands into fists as they began to shake, her tears choking her. "Once more… I failed all of you. And I'm… ashamed of it."

Akeno approaches Rias, yet as the redhead looks on, she felt as if she was going to get another slap from her due to her own cowardice like last time. However, Akeno suddenly wraps her arms around Rias in a tight hug. The redhead was briefly confused.

"Akeno…?" Rias asked.

"You didn't fail us," Akeno reassured. "You're still just learning what it means to be a King of a Peerage. Even good leaders make poor decisions, but the best take responsibility. And you have clearly shown both."

"Akeno…"

"She's right," Kiba agreed as Rias turns to face him. "If you didn't know about this future, we would all have been Diablo's slaves in the end. And I'd rather die a free Devil than be Diablo's servant."

"Kiba…"

"Even I had made decisions based on poor judgment, Rias," Sona added. "It isn't easy to admit it because of my status. But the real challenge is accepting them and forgiving yourself for it."

"Yeah," Asia said. "I-I am still learning the ways of being a Devil, but even so, I have made mistakes too. You showed me that there is still hope."

"Sona… Asia…"

Koneko simply stated "I'd rather be with you than be with Diablo. If anything, I would kill him a thousand times over and over just for screwing us up."

"Koneko… Everyone."

Rias lets go of her hug with Akeno as she turns to face her friends. They have been with her, supporting her on every step of this hellish journey. Though they still have a long ways to go, it was a good start. This had been one hell of a bump in the road, but they will face it together. And Aidan will be a part of that, much to a reinvigorated Rias' delight. Having now cast aside her darker self, she now intends to look towards the future with everyone together.

*SHIING*

A red seal portal appears all of a sudden underneath the party and emerging from it was Sirzechs and his Vecin Mystic friend, Myriam Jahzia, dabbed in her Vecin garbs.

"Onii-sama?" Rias was surprised. "And Miss Myriam?"

"At last, little sis…" Sirzechs exclaimed. "You finally see the truth."

Rias did not deny. "The truth, but not the reason. Why would Diablo want to possess me?"

"That much is obvious, little Rias," Myriam explained. "Of all the Devils, Diablo sees you as his greatest threat. You and your entire family specifically, along with the clan your mother came from, the Bael Clan. Your power in the future would have not only trumped over your older brother, Sirzechs, but also of the Lord of Terror. It was for that reason why he sought to break you mentally and spiritually before possessing you physically."

"You mean Diablo knew and preyed upon my weakness?" Rias clarified.

Myriam nods, "He not only wanted you to suffer and become his, but also make your brother suffer for the role he played in the Exile. What better way than to possess you directly and complete the Prime Evils' plans to subjugate the Devil species once more?"

Rias then turns to her brother. "Onii-sama, what do you say about this?"

Sirzechs crossed his arms and lowered his head, giving out a reluctant sigh. This meant that he had a confession to make. He looks briefly at Myriam, who nods to tell him to go ahead.

"Rias, on the day you were born, Myriam showed me a vision. One of the future where Diablo would be released and possessed you. With that knowledge in hand, I sought to undo that terrible fate but nothing I did came about. I kept watch and became overprotective of you because I was afraid to lose you to Diablo's influence. But when you brought Aidan into the picture, Myriam told me she could not see the vision anymore, as if she was staring into the void."

It did not take long for Rias to deduce this. "Because Diablo changed his target to Aidan instead of me."

"Correct," Sirzechs confirmed. "I knew that because you were inexperience with the Rating Game, you would lose to Riser. Thus I sent Grayfia over to retrieve Aidan and save you from the marriage by having a one on one duel with Riser. But I did not imagine Diablo's influence had reached to the point where he gained full control over him, enough for him to convince Grayfia to open our family's treasury and retrieve the soulstone. But in the aftermath of the incident, I was stunned to realize the truth."

"What truth?" Rias asked.

"That Diablo's goal of possessing you had not changed," Sirzechs revealed. "That Aidan was the perfect tool he needed to corrupt you. That was why your Pawn had the Al'Diabolos Terror Claws, why he suffered from its corruptive influence, and why he had taken the soulstone. He needed to use Aidan as a means to break you physically, mentally, and spiritually, up to the point where you would complete his plan and make him possess you. Tristram Cathedral was the perfect place to test your mettle and by his account, it was a success. For it was when you cut him down and pulled the shard out of Aidan's body did Diablo finally gain a foothold in your mind, manipulating it ever slowly."

Everything had now come full circle as it all came crashing down. Rias could not believe it and neither could anyone else. Who could blame either of them though? If Diablo had planned so many years back and manipulated events to play in motion like this, then it further stands as his testament as a Prime Evil. He and his brothers have had many, many, many millennia of doing the same exact thing to each other and to the mortals.

Long before his imprisonment, Diablo had planned to be released thanks to Rias Gremory. He would then subjugate the Devils under his rule and return them as slaves to complete his brothers' plans.

If Diablo and the Seven Evils were capable of manipulation, it could possibly mean they have a power of foresight.

But still it begged one question in her mind. Why Aidan? Why target him of all people? What was so special about him aside from the fact that he knew that all of Devil Mythology is in fact real and not folklore? To Rias, he was just an ordinary human living with a magically talent elderly man before being turned into a Devil. Sure he knows combat but little to no magic prior. So why would Diablo go after him in the first place and modify his plan to complete his original objective?

These were questions that were about to be answered.

"So, how was Aidan the key to prevent such a future?" Koneko asked. "What role does he play to prevent all that?"

"A fair question," Sirzechs said. "And yet, one not easily answered."

"What do you mean?" asked Asia.

"I asked Myriam here if she knew of Aidan's fate, but then she told me something I thought was impossible."

All eyes turned to Myriam as the Vecin Mystic gives a small smile.

"Celsa…" Myriam sighed. "You know I cannot just give away the future so easily, Sirzechs dear."

"I know, but they have the right to know," Sirzechs vouched for it. "They need to know."

"Very well," Myriam turns her attention over to the group. "Your friend Aidan… his future I cannot see."

But everyone did not get that statement and were confused.

"What do you mean?" asked Akeno.

Myriam explains, "As you are told before, the future that was meant to come to pass was of Diablo enslaving the Devils by possessing Rias Gremory, who proceeded to dominate the rest of the Underworld. But as soon as Aidan became a part of her life, that fate had changed. Slightly."

"Slightly?" asked Sona.

"Aidan's future was of unknown," Myriam explained. "Like a book that was yet to be written, even on its front cover. And no matter how hard I had looked, there was simply no vision of him. No future that would let me see how things would play out."

"That led me to believe that he was someone not out of the ordinary," Sirzechs spoke. "That he was an individual who would carve out his own fate and defy futures that are meant to come to pass yet do not because of him."

"But how can one Devil defy fate so easily if we have avoided such a dark future that was meant to come to pass?" asked Kiba.

"I think that is the reason why," Sirzechs said before he turned his attention over to Rias. "You brought Aidan back as a Devil using all eight of your Pawn pieces, right Rias?"

"Yes…" Rias confirmed.

"I had analyzed the Pawn pieces within him and discovered something disturbing."

But Rias was confused. "What do you mean?"

"Evil Pieces function to reincarnate humans into Devils as part of the process. It can even reincarnate those still alive who are willing to join. But when Ajuka and I analyzed Aidan's Pawn pieces inside him during his comatose, we discovered a slight altercation in the pieces. Something that should not be possible at all."

"What are you saying, Onii-sama?" asked Rias.

"I am saying that when you resurrected Aidan, it required all eight of your Pawn Pieces to become Mutation Pieces just to bring him back to life. But when you were in the process of turning him into a Devil, something went awry. Enough for it to be easily overlooked."

"Awry?" asked Rias. "Easily overlooked?"

"Half of the ritual succeeded in bringing Aidan back to the world of the living. But the other half to turn him into a Devil did not."

"Are you saying that-?" Akeno asked before Sirzechs answered.

"Aidan is not who we thought he was. Simply put, he is not a reincarnated Devil. And that someone had intervened in the reincarnation process."

It was a truth no one wanted to believe. And it was the first time they had heard of it. That Aidan's reincarnation was interrupted by someone of great power, enough to directly intervene in the ritual. But who, what, how, or why this had happened, nobody could understand. Ajuka Beelzebub, the creator of the Evil Pieces, was even baffled of such a finding that should not even be possible to find given that the Evil Pieces are meant to remain concealed inside the host and act as a lifeforce.

But to intervene in the ritual would take a being of greater powers, someone that is more powerful than Devils or Angels. Powerful enough to manipulate the Evil Pieces to the point where the host retains their original genes and species identity.

Confusion spread to the minds of all present save for Sirzechs and Myriam.

"But…" Rias spoke up. "But Onii-sama! There was no one else there that night! Asides Akeno repairing the damage at the scene, it was just me and Aidan's corpse."

"I fear someone may have concealed their presence that night, enough for them to remain hidden so that you would not know and be able to alter the Pawn pieces."

"Do you think Diablo had something to do with it?" asked Kiba.

"Doubtful," Sirzechs shook his head. "Diablo may have had a strong influence from within the soulstone, but I don't think he had enough power to influence Evil Pieces. Plus, that's not in his nature. In order to intervene, he would have placed his Sacred Gear onto his host which occurred much later."

"Then who would do that?" asked Rias. "Who could have enough power to interrupt the ritual without me knowing? And why would they do such a thing?"

Again, Sirzechs shook his head. "I do not know. All I know is that someone did not want Aidan to be reincarnated into a Devil. Whether they also did not want him to be your Pawn, I do not know either. What I do know is this: Aidan is not a Devil, nor an Angel, nor even a Fallen Angel. He is not even truly human either."

Not human. Not Angel. Not Devil. Not Fallen Angel. This was very disturbing to everyone. If anything, it could be deduced that Aidan is some sort of deity but that is a very far-fetched claim. Whatever he was, it was clear that, as Sirzechs said, he was not an ordinary person.

"Is that why you could not see his future, Miss Myriam?" asked Sona. "Because he is not a reincarnated Devil?"

"My dear Celsa, I can see almost everyone's save for one species that were not meant to exist in the first place. And I believe your friend Aidan is a part of that unknown destiny."

"What do you mean?" asked Asia.

Sirzechs interjected next to explain.

"During his comatose recovery, I took a sample of Aidan's blood and had it analyzed, wondering why Diablo wanted to possess him in the first place. Why the Lord of Terror gave him his Sacred Gear? And what I had found shook me, almost drained the life out of me as if I saw a revelation before my eyes."

"What?" asked Rias. "What did you find, Onii-sama?"

Sirzechs paused briefly to give a small and quiet sigh, ready to reveal the truth as all eyes and ears listened on.

"To tell you the truth, Aidan is—"

---

GEORGIA, USA…

Somewhere between Milledgeville and Macon, about an hour and a half south of Atlanta in Georgia, lies the town of Gray. Aidan stood in Gray, more like on the side of a road to be exact. It was one of those towns where one can probably drive right through and not even really know they were here.

Unless of course one would stop at a restaurant called ANDERS BBQ, which is where Aidan was in front of. And many in the town of Gray claim that ANDERS BBQ was the best barbeque in Georgia. It also meant that some things in Gray are…black and white. And pink.

For nearly fifty years, people have been driving all over the state to come here. For some mouth-watering barbeque. But behind every delicious bite is one of the world's dirtiest smokers. And it needs cleaning.

Aidan heads on in to meet the restaurants owner, Anders O'Conner, who founded the restaurant about thirty years ago. Aidan was going to shed some light on Anders' dirty little secret, as soon as he turns the lights on in the back part of the restaurant to go find the smoker.

As Aidan looks inside to find his contact by Sirzechs, he sees a strong, large, and muscular man full of white hair and beard. He didn't look American, but he certainly didn't look European either. Some could say this guy looked like a monster just by the sheer weight and size of him. But everyone knows that this strong man of a giant actually has a gentle heart. He wore a white T-shirt with his restaurant's logo on it, and his muscles were shown through the shirt itself. He looked like he was in his mid-fifties despite the whiteness of his hair. On his face he had a few scars, like they were from a battle.

The owner turns to his right to see Aidan, just as he unlocks the grill.

"Are you Anders O'Conner?" asked Aidan.

"I am," The gruff voice of the man spoke, almost like that of an elderly chieftain of a tribe. "And you must be the Devil I contacted for help."

"Aidan Kain," Aidan introduced himself. "Best barbeque in Georgia, huh?"

"That's what the folks tell me anyway," Anders replied.

"Well the sign is a bold claim; I will tell you that."

"Mostly customer endorsed," Anders revealed. "I don't usually deal with what customers say about my food. If they like it, they come back. If they don't, then they can leave. But they don't have to complain and write a note to sue me."

Aidan then took a look at Anders' smoker, which was pretty big for a smoker.

"This is where the action happens," Aidan deduced. "And there is meat inside being cooked."

"Yes, there is," Anders confirmed. "We serve primarily pork, chicken, and sometimes turkey."

"Sometimes?" asked a confused Aidan.

"Around the holidays we do mostly. People love the turkey made here for Thanksgiving and Christmas."

"So we are here early in the day. What's the first thing you start to do in the day here at the barbeque?"

"Alright, first thing we are going to do is unload the cooker and clean it."

Anders then opens up the smoker and sure enough, eight large racks full of pork meat were inside, all of them on a slow rail cycle to allow thorough and evenly cooking.. The smell of pork rang heavily in the air, but it was delicious.

But pork was not the only thing that gave off that wonderful smell.

"It appears to be dirty," Aidan commented as he looks inside.

"It's actually a week overdo," Anders revealed. "Go ahead and start taking the meat out and put it in these trays."

With some gloves on for protection, Aidan begins to bring out the meats. But as soon as he grabs the first piece, some parts of it were stuck to the rack.

"Oops, sorry about that," apologized Aidan, but Anders was surprisingly okay with that.

"It tends to fall apart," Anders said. "No need to worry."

Contrary to popular belief, smoked pork is not really fast food. Since it takes about ten and a half hours to cook properly. Anders had gotten a batch started long before Aidan had shown up. However, if one would think to know which part of the pig is which, the lingo of barbeque may thrown one off a bit.

"The ham is what part of the pig again?" asked Aidan as he holds up the ham.

"That would be the rear," Anders said, but that answer surprised Aidan.

"The ham is the butt, essentially," Aidan said surprisingly. Yeah, no shit Sherlock.

"Correct," nodded Anders.

"So when you say butt you mean shoulder. And when you say ham you mean the butt."

"That's right, basically," Anders said, making Aidan look back at the butt, which was the shoulder he was holding.

'The pig is an animal of great mystery in the world of meat.'

Since the smoker was a self-basing type, it meant all the drippings of grease are collected on the bottom. With the smoker being 120 degrees Fahrenheit inside, it needed to cool a bit before the real work can begin.

And the bottom needed to be drained out before the grease congeals. With buckets underneath the pipe where the grease is drained, Aidan opens up the valve to drain the bottom.

"What are you going to do with all this pure grease?" asked Aidan as he closes the valve, ready for the next bucket.

"A truck will come by to pick it up and ship it off, "Anders answered. "What they do is they actually take that grease and use it for cosmetics and makeup once it is purified."

"Really now?" A surprised Aidan asked. "I bet a lot of women out there would be stunned to realize that their makeup is essentially made and held together by pig fat."

"It's the same thing with charcoal as well," Anders mentioned. "Once purified, it's used for cosmetics and deodorants to give healthier skin quality."

At this point in the day, Aidan learned about one important thing about barbeque. The more you pull the pork, the better it tastes. And no matter which way it is cooked, pulled, or trimmed; barbeque cooks are going to get dirty making it.

Once the racks were cooled, Anders and Aidan brought them outside to be cleaned off with a special degreaser water concoction. But then Aidan noticed something in Ander's backyard.

"What is with the goats?" Aidan asked as he spotted three of them eating the grass.

"They cut the grass for me so that I don't have to," answered Anders. "They don't come near the cooker."

"Well, looks like the cooker is going to be near them," Aidan quipped.

Barbequing is more than just a meal, but an event. Especially when one is cleaning the smoker which happens once every two months. But in that time, six tons of raw meat have left their residue everywhere. And I mean everywhere.

With the high-pressured water hose filled with degreaser solutions, Aidan gets to work spraying on the racks. But the stuff doesn't exactly fly off immediately from the steel.

Anders shows one of the clean racks, shiny and new once cleaned.

"That's what it's suppose to look like," Anders said.

Aidan stops hosing as he looks at one of the dirty racks. It looked like most of the grease and grime was off but… "I mean it looks cleaner but that's not clean, is it? And it just gets worse."

Aidan gets back on it, trying to double the pressure to get every single piece of grease out of there.

'You know years from now, when they finish the autopsy, they're gonna be baffled. As to what it was that ultimately did them in the end. Probably trace it back to this stuff.'

When a smoker is dishing out the best barbeque in the state of Georgia, six hours cleaning the smoker might seem like hell. But it's all worth it in the end. Just ask the customers.

Besides, Aidan had just finished with all of the racks now that the grease is off.

"Alright the racks are now cleaned off," Anders said as Aidan turns off the hose. "We'll let them dry for a bit while we take the grease out to the grease tank I have in the back."

Riding on a minitruck full of buckets of grease, Aidan and Anders drove off to a large propane-like tank that was full of grease. This was the same tank the truck comes by to empty that grease for cosmetics. Oh and just in case there was any confusion, the sign read Inedible. After all, nobody loves to drink raw and disgusting grease, especially when mixed with other sorts.

Just like how the fat in gravy chunks up over time, picture five gallons of it going into the tank. That was exactly what Aidan was dealing with as he empties all the buckets. While the stuff may look delicious to the naked eye, it really isn't, hence the sign inedible. And also why this bubbly hunk of pussy contagion goes for cosmetics.

"All the barrels are emptied," Aidan said as he closes and locks the lid to the tank. "What next?"

"Let's head on back inside and start cleaning the cooker," Anders mentioned. Oh right, the real deal had yet to be cleaned and there was only one way to clean it.

"Here are your tools," Anders hands a shovel, a bucket, and a metal scraper. "Scrape all the stuff on the walls and racks and pick them up with the shovel to dump into the bucket."

The smoker's temperature has cooled down to ninety-eight degrees Fahrenheit and all that grease on the bottom is something no one can make a hot dog out of. Aidan soon climbs in with the tools before he gets into position, facing the restaurant's owner. And man was the place sticky as grease was stuck to the bottom of his shoe.

"How clean does it need to be?" asked Aidan inside the smoker.

Anders pointed, "The stainless steel that's on the outside is the same that's on the inside."

Aidan soon gets to work, using the shovel to pick up remnants of the charred grease on the floor whilst using a metal scraper to get the grease sticking onto the walls and the grill holders off so that he can scoop them up and dump it in the bucket. While the task was simple enough, doing it in a cramped smoker with limited room that was near one hundred degrees Fahrenheit was starting to take its toll. Charred remnants of it covered this eight by ten smoker, and boy was it a hassle to get it all off.

If this were a television show, he would get it done in about five minutes or so. But in reality, he had to clean everywhere. And boy was this task harder than it looks. Aidan was dirtied from the grease that fell on him but also hot and sweaty, drinking water just to keep cool and popping his head out for cool air just to not breathe in the hot air of the smoker.

An hour and a half into this cooker clean up and Aidan had only one thing to say about this immense task.

"It's a bad job…" Aidan muttered as he looked around. "Bad job… bad job."

He was already dirty and sweaty from the cleaning, with some of the grease splattered all over him. Not that he didn't mind, and he didn't mind immense tasks like this. But cleaning in a hundred-degree smoker like this was just unbearable.

As Aidan continues cleaning, he then notices another section of the smoked grill that was much farther back, apparently deeper.

"What about all the way back there?" Aidan pointed and asked as he turns around to Anders.

"It's next," Anders revealed, to a shocked Aidan.

"Oh no…" He muttered as he soon crawled over to see what was behind. Sure enough, it was filthy as hell. "Great…"

Aidan soon climbs on back as he gets back to scraping and cleaning up the grease. In his mind, this was worse than that time with Uncle Deckard when he had to gut open a hog for the first time as a child. Sure enough, it made him throw up a few times just from taking out the guts and bones of the animal, but he slowly got use to it over time as a homemade butcher.

Aidan was busy scraping off the soot from a metal fan. Apparently, too much of it being built up causes metal fatigue like bending a credit card multiple times. At a fast speed, the metal on the blades could break and cause catastrophic failure.

At least that is what Anders told Aidan earlier which is why he is at the back of the smoker with a metal scraper cleaning up.

Done with the scraping, Aidan is led out by Anders as he brings out the degreaser. Since elbow grease wasn't going to cut it fully, they had to wash it now. Anders was rigging up a pipe connected to the smoker to drain the grease outside in a grease trap.

Once covered in the degreaser formula, Aidan uses a high-pressured water hose to rinse off the smoker, getting every nook and cranny to make sure it was clean.

Once finished, it looked shiny and new. But the job was not over yet.

"How long do you let it sit?" asked Aidan.

"Five minutes with the exhaust fan going to dry it out," Anders answered. "In the meantime, I brought you some lunch."

Anders comes in with a late full of ribs. Aidan then stands outside the restaurant, eating the ribs and enjoying the rain. As he did, he had a lot to think about lately. Today has just been a dreadful day on the job as a Devil contractor.

5 MINUTES LATER…

Back inside the smoker, Aidan had a cloth filled with more degreaser solution to wipe down the walls. Getting every nook and cranny inside the cramped smoker, he fills the whole place up with the formula before stepping outside with the high-pressured water hose and rinses it all down.

To him, chipping hardened concrete in a cement mixer truck would be easier than what he was doing right now. And believe him for he has done both before in the past. And never does he want to do so again.

Once finished, Aidan sets the hose down as the hot steam overwhelms him from the now clean smoker. Once again had something to say about this contract Sirzechs had given to him.

"Dreadful… dreadful job." Aidan muttered.

He then turns to Anders, who saw how impressed he was at cleaning.

"I'm sure I did not do the best job here," Aidan said. "This is maybe 75 to 80% clean. This is your shop, of course and I hate to say that we are done. But I feel fairly confident in telling you that I am not going to do anymore."

"You did a good job on it. But you actually don't want to clean the smoker too good," Anders suddenly revealed, shocking Aidan a bit as he turns to him.

"Why's that?" He asked.

"Because it takes away the flavor of the smoker itself."

What a shocker. All that hard work in a day's work and he suddenly gets told of something at the last minute just as he finished. Aidan looks back at the grill to see that despite being shiny and new, it looked maybe a tad bit too clean. Once again, he felt like he had failed.

"It doesn't matter though," Anders said. "It's clean enough as it is. Head on into the shower in my small villa in the back and clean yourself up."

About fifteen minutes later, after Aidan had finished his shower, he came out with new clothes yet saw Anders right by the door, garbed in different clothes. For one thing, he was armored up but without the helmet, leather and metal. There was also some patches of fur decorated underneath the armor, as if a great beast's skin acted as the first layer. It looked all mystical and terrifying. On his back he carried two large axes.

"Anders?" asked Aidan. "What is this?"

"The real reason why Sirzechs sent you to me," Anders revealed. "To help you out of that long depression that you've drowned yourself in for all your mistakes."

Aidan's mood immediately went down as his front bangs covered his eyes, his mind flashing back to the beginning, when he took Diablo's soulstone into himself. What followed afterwards was the stuff of nightmares.

"They're not mistakes," Aidan justified. "They're proof of my failure. And of how I am forever cursed by what I have done, foolishly or not."

"Which is why you must learn to overcome your fears and strive to be a better person."

"Easier said than done," A doubtful Aidan said. "How can one person such as I get over this curse? I am damned forever."

"That is the talk of cowardice," Anders sternly said.

"…Then who are you? Why the armor?" asked Aidan as he looks up.

Anders explains, "Once, long ago, I was born within the northern tribes, tasked with guarding the sacred Worldstone. It was just me and my sister, Sonya."

Memories of those good days emerged from Anders' mind as it flashes to his sister. It was just the two of them in their younger days, even before when Mount Arreat was still intact.

"But when the Worldstone was destroyed, my sister and I wandered, looking for a way to survive and destroy the Demons that corrupted it. As far as I know, the Barbarians fell into recession, and our kind have gone extinct ever since."

"Then… you are—" Aidan asked but Anders cut him off.

"I am Alrik, last of the Children of Bul-Kathos."

The aura of fury enveloped Alrik/Anders as Aidan looks in shock. Now he understood why Anders had such a terrifying presence about him when he first saw him. What Aidan saw was a Barbarian, the last one at that. He can remember reading about the Barbarians' history within his Uncle's books and even they were accounted in Devil Mythology.

The Barbarian tribes' origins lie in a time before recorded history. It is written in legend that it was Bul-Kathos and Fiacla-Géar, one of the first nephalem, agreed that in order to safeguard the Worldstone, their people would have to devote the entirety of their lives to the task. Their ideas on how to best approach the task differed however, and while Géar took his followers to Scosglen, Bul-Kathos gathered the Barbarian tribes of the Northern Steppes.

Even after his death, the Children of Bul-Kathos kept themselves isolated from the rest of Sanctuary, and while they would permit some trade with the outside world, this would only occur at the border of their territory. All intrusions into the territory surrounding Mount Arreat were forbidden, and warriors from the northern tribes were quick to thwart any incursions from foes.

Because of their savagery in battle, the people of the Western Kingdoms frequently called them "barbarians," and regarded them as bloodthirsty invaders. Regardless, the Barbarians stood ready, as their ancient prophecies declared that a time would come when the Burning Hells would surge forward, seeking to undo the works of the Ancients in a final conflict.

Tasked with defending the Worldstone, Barbarian culture was built around its defense. To better protect their lands, they adopted a nomadic lifestyle constantly moving around the Northern Steppes and possessing few permanent settlements.

But soon the time of the Barbarians' defenses against the Burning Hells had emerged. Baal, the Lord of Destruction, headed north, building an army as he did so, intent on corrupting the Worldstone. The Barbarians fortified their defenses, intent to defend the sacred Worldstone from the Demon Lord at all costs.

By all accounts, the Barbarians fought ferociously, living up to their reputation as Sanctuary's hardiest warriors. Yet it was not enough. At Daken-Shar, the Barbarian defenders were eradicated almost to the last man. Sescheron, their capital, was sacked. Eventually, all that stood between Baal and the Arreat Summit was Harrogath and its defenders. In desperation, the town's elders sacrificed themselves as part of a warding spell to create a protective barrier around the settlement.

Baal's forces lay siege, and Barbarian defenders suffered for it. However, their efforts were overshadowed by one of their leader's traitorous actions, who had bartered the Relic of the Ancients to Baal in exchange for Harrogath being spared. With the relic, Baal could scale Mount Arreat unopposed by its guardians.

Both the traitorous elder and Baal met their end at the hands of heroes, but Baal had already corrupted the Worldstone. To save humanity, the archangel Tyrael was forced to destroy it. Through his actions, humanity was spared damnation, and Baal's army destroyed, but the cost to the Barbarian tribes was horrific. The resulting explosion leveled Mount Arreat and devastated the surrounding area. Toxic clouds of ash and arcane dust fell over the Steppes, the damage so horrific that it became known as the Dreadlands.

In the years following Arreat's destruction, the peoples of Sanctuary began to understand the long and noble history the Barbarian culture once possessed and became acknowledged. But with the destruction of the Worldstone and devastation of their homeland, many Barbarians lost faith. Some became aimless, haunted by their past, traveling from place to place without honor or direction. Some Barbarians left Arreat and struck out to battle evil, in atonement for their failed stewardship. Other tribes fell into regression, becoming akin to unreasoning beasts and, in some cases, even cannibals. Some, however, still honor the harsh snows of Arreat's summit and prowl the outskirts of its crater, maintaining enclaves. They recall being handed axes and spears at an age when city children were clinging to their toys…and they burn with shame at the failure of their people. These Barbarians strive to find a new purpose for themselves in a changed world, and they will crush any who stand in their way.

By Alrik's account, he and his elder sister Sonya wandered all over Sanctuary, eradicating Demons wherever they went.

"But…I haven't seen your sister," Aidan mentioned.

"My sister is dead," Alrik revealed. "Ambushed and slain by a Demon as she and I fought them. I held her in my arms and buried her on Arreat's slopes."

"I'm sorry," Aidan apologized. "I had no idea."

Alrik though shook his head. "It's alright. I have already shed tears for my brothers and sisters. But now is no time to mourn. Be ready to gather your belongings. You and I have an expedition to get to."

"Expedition?" asked a confused Aidan.

Alrik then takes out a map of Sanctuary, laying it out on the table for him and Aidan to see.

"There is a hidden cavern in the north that supposedly held the remnants of the Ancients. Asides the Worldstone, it was the only place we had kept hidden from the world for it is only a place for one to take a trial to prove themselves worthy and emerge something new. Not even the Demons can come near this place for fear of its power."

"Where are we headed?" asked Aidan. "This cave of yours?"

Alrik then pointed on the map north to a series of islands that looked like they were blasted apart.

"To the Dreadlands. To Mount Arreat, where the Worldstone once laid."

---

Entsteig. What better place to hide than in the countryside of such a hidden nation. And for two months at that. Aidan was chatted by Sirzechs and Kiba separately, trying to get him to come home. Except for the latter it was an ambush by Demons. And not only that, but the Devil nobles want Aidan's head on a pike for his crimes. I suppose that is nothing new to him considering if you unleashed the Lord of Terror and killed some very important nobles.

Johanna working on a new weapon for Rias, reforging the broken Dawnbreaker into a new weapon for her of all people. As for how Dawnbreaker broke behind the scenes, well if swords are not treated with care, they can brittle and crack and ultimately shatter. That last use of killing Diablo may have sealed the deal.

So...Rias' future as Diablo's host? Well, surely no one could see this coming? And by no one I meant you readers. But this also just plays into how Diablo is manipulative in nature, of how he always plans ahead like he did in Diablo III by taking in the souls of the Evils into himself to become the Prime Evil, a plan made before the events of Diablo II. But now Rias is no longer bound to the influence thanks to discarding the soulstone but it doesn't mean she has not heard the last from the one Prime Evil she despises the most.

Word of advice: don't work in a smoker. It can be a terrible job. If you want to go to a BBQ joint, just order the pork and don't work. Not to say that I hate smokers but I cannot imagine the job to be that amazing considering cleanup.

Next chapter will be of a revelation and will regard Aidan's depression, mainly of how he overcomes it. All it will take is three trials in one trial. So be ready for some nasty fight scenes up ahead.

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