Sleep did not come easy for Chris that night. His mind racing from the information that was given to him by Michael. Chris rolls over, looks up at the ceiling and put his hands behind his head, "Well... I'm not sure what I'm going to do. I guess I either accept what this is and what I am now or I keep this self-loathing crap up. Find some silver linings, I'm ridiculously strong! Maybe I've been possessed by one of the cool paladins? And I had a lot of fun with Akeno yesterday. I hope she did too..." Chris said to himself out loud.
"Mmmm... I did, it was a lot of fun." Akeno stretched out near Chris in her very short robe.
Chris yelled and slid to the other side of the bed, "Shit! What are you doing here, Akeno!?"
"I came to check on you last night and decided just to lay down next to you. You slept pretty soundly!"
"Yeah, I wish it was longer! I didn't sleep too well last night."
"You were tossing and turning a lot. Were you having bad dreams or something?" Akeno motioned for Chris to come back to where he was. He slowly lays back down and faces Akeno, "I don't really remember. I'm just tired is all."
Chris's bedroom door swings open, "Akeno! This is where you are hiding! What are you doing bothering Chris like this?" Rias stands at the doorway with her arms crossed in her similarly short robe.
"Yes, Rias. I'm here, but I was just leaving." Akeno looks at Chris and smiles. She moves off the bed and walks with Rias out of the room.
Koneko walks in shortly after Rias and Akeno depart, "Sup douche-canoe. Get ready, we're heading to go see you get your ass get kicked in a little while."
Chris gets an annoyed look on his face and gives Koneko a thumbs up, "Good talk as always, Koneko."
Chris gets out of bed, changes into some street clothes and heads down to the dining room. He finds nearly everyone down at the table including Michael and another new, gorgeous girl that he had never seen before. She was sitting next to Xenovia and Asia as they ate their breakfast. Chris walks over to the table and the new girl stands up and runs over to Chris. He leans back as the girl leans in to get a look at him, "Can I help you, miss?"
"Hmmm... are you sure Lord Michael? He doesn't look like a paladin."
"Well It's nice to meet you too! I'm Chris De Santis."
"I'm so sorry, where are my manners! I'm Irina Shido, I'm an old friend of Issei's!"
Chris, unsurprised, said, "Of course you are. Why else would you be here? Are you a devil as well?"
"Oh goodness no, I'm an Angel! Lord Michael accepted me as one of his Aces actually."
"So, Heaven has a similar setup like the underworld, only you use playing cards instead of chess pieces?"
"Yeah pretty much!" Irina smiled at Chris.
"Everyone, sit back down so we can finish breakfast!" Venelana said sternly.
As Irina returns to her seat, Chris also finds a seat at the far end of the table. The wait staff continue to bring out plate after plate of breakfast items for everyone to enjoy. After a fantastic breakfast, Chris went back to his room and packed a bag. The group gathered in the garage area and entered a couple of large SUVs.
"Why aren't we doing the whole teleporting thing?" Chris asked everyone in the vehicle.
"This will give you a chance to see all the sites of the Underworld. It's quite beautiful this time of year!" Rias exclaimed proudly.
Chris sighed, "Yeah, ok."
Chris was surprised at all the architectural marvels in the Underworld. Some of the largest skyscrapers that he had ever seen. The homes reminded him of a style he had seen in Europe. Exposed wooden beams, white stucco walls, and dark brown shingles on the roof. Once they entered the countryside, Chris enjoyed the rolling hills and forests. The Underworld really was a beautiful place.
After what seemed like an eternity, the vehicles pull up to a large home off the main road. As they approach, three people are standing outside of the home, one being tall and extremely burly. Holy shit, I wonder which one is Sairaorg? I'm so fucked. How does one say royally fucked in devil down here? Chris thought to himself. The vehicles came to a stop and everyone began to disembark. Chris stepped out of the vehicle with his bag and came around from the back side of the SUV he was in. Sairaorg was there to meet him, "You must be the one Zeoticus and Azazel were talking about. I'm Sairaorg Bael. Behind me is my mother, Misla, and our family butler." Sairaorg extends his hand out.
"Nice to meet you, Lord Bael. I'm Chris De Santis." Chris shakes his hand.
"Everyone, come in and make yourselves at home. We have rooms for all of you." Misla motions for everyone to come into her large country home.
"Thank you so much, Lady Bael, for your hospitality and opening your family up to help ours. We are truly in your debt." Rias bowed to Misla as everyone walked into the Bael home.
"Dude, are we supposed to stay here the whole time?" Chris said as he looked around the main floor of the house, "Shit, that sounded really bad. What I mean is our training is not happening here, is it?"
"Damn Chris, chill out bro! It's all good man, the Baels are awesome!" Issei smacked Chris in the back and gave him a huge smile.
Sairaorg laughs, "Issei humbles us! Our training will not be here, we have some large, open areas deeper in our domain that we'll be at for our training. I've also invited Tannin to join us as well."
"You got Tannin as well?! We're trying to train Chris, not kill him!" Issei said concerned, "I barely survived my training with Tannin!"
"This is true, but yet you did survive nonetheless!"
"Who is Tannin?" Chris looking at Sairaorg and Issei arguing with each other.
"Arrgghh... Tannin is a giant devil dragon. He trained me a while back before the rating games."
"That makes perfect fucking sense! Let's bring a dragon to train the guy that has some kind of power in him that was meant to kill said DRAGONS!"
"He will be training with Issei again, but he was more than excited to see a 'dragon slayer' down in hell."
"Everyone seems to be treating this power I have pretty damn nonchalantly! Am I the only one that is more than anxious about training?" Chris said looking around at everyone in the group.
"We've been through and seen a lot of 'ultimate powers', I mean we've beat gods before, dude!" Issei said confidently, "we can handle this!"
Chris shook his head, looking at the ground. He puts his hand on his head, "Yeah, if you say so." The group disperses to find rooms to setup for the time they are here. Chris happens to find a room near Akeno and as they walk into their rooms, they share a glance and a smile.
Later that day, Chris meets up with Sairaorg behind the Bael house, "Chris! Are you settling in alright? I've gotta tell you, I'm very excited to train with you. Your power is unknown and that's VERY exciting for those of us that enjoy the thrill of a good battle!"
"Well, glad that makes one of us. I'm not sure this is such a good idea. It kinda feels like we're provoking a tiger, a tiger that will literally eat your face off!"
"That is what excites me the most! As warriors, when we fight someone that is or could be stronger than ourselves, in those moments are when we find who and what we are truly made of. I found this out when I was fighting Issei; his love for Rias was the key to unlock his ability as her Queen. This pushed me beyond what I thought was my normal strength. It was exciting, however I'm sure they told you what the outcome of that was."
"Yeah, they said that you've been shunned since then by the higher devils. That's kinda bullshit man!"
"It's just how things are down here, it's nothing new. This is why I've gathered those in my family that were shunned by those same devil families. The Gremory's are the exception to that. Sirzechs does not care for the system either but understands the necessity of it. It ensures that the Underworld will always have a strong leader and protector. I say all this because during our training, I want you to push beyond your limits. I will not hold back on you and in those moments you will find out if that power controls you or if you are able to control that power."
Chris began to feel more confident as Sairaorg spoke. He continues to tell Chris stories of him growing up and the obstacles he and his mother had to overcome because of the circumstances of their situation. Chris was amazed that he was able to accomplish as much as he had without any kind of magical or demonic power. Man, I think I can do this. If he's able to fight devils that have magic and even fight Issei with Ddraig, he's gotta be able to teach me a thing or two! I can do this! Chris thought, becoming more and more confident in his will to control the power inside himself. That night, besides the usual arguing over Issei and the girls bickering with one another, Chris was able to sleep with a bit more peace in his mind.
When morning came, Chris awoke feeling well rested and he felt as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. The anxiety of an unknown power with him has subsided for now and he felt as though he could control this power! He gets up and heads to the showers. He pokes his head in and does not see anyone. The bathroom is setup far more differently than what he is used to, "This must be a thing in Japan or the Underworld or something. Why separate the shower part from the tub? Just put both in together!" Chris said quietly to himself. He sits down at a stool under a shower head and lets the hot water run down his head. The heat of the water continued to relax him. He hears the door open and Issei walks in, "What's up bro?"
"Dude, is privacy not a thing here? Whatever…"
"Don't get your balls in a twist man! This is the bathroom after all, there's plenty of room."
"Sorry, I shouldn't be rude like that. I'm just not used to this… way of life… yet."
"It's all good man!" Issei gives Chris a thumbs up as the door opens again.
"Man, there can't be any more of us in..." Chris turns to see Rias and Akeno naked standing at the doorway. Chris quickly turns back around, immediately blushing. Issei yells, "Rias, Akeno! What the hell!"
"Oh Issei, don't act like you don't like this and fantasize about this!" Rias said laughing and smiling, "It's so cute that you still act this way even when we've been in far worse… predicaments."
Rias walked up behind Issei wrapped her arms around his chest. Akeno walked behind Chris and placed her hands on his shoulders. Chris's back immediately tightened up and he sat straight up. Akeno crouched down behind him, "You're so tense, just relax." Akeno pushed herself against Chris's back. Chris's eyes got big as he could feel her chest against his back. What the fuck is happening right now! Girls don't act like this in the real world! Chris's thoughts moved to panic, as his body reacted to Akeno against him.
"What are you girls doing! You can't do this without us!" A small voice came from the door again.
Asia, Xenovia, Koneko, and Irina came into the showers as well. Rias and Akeno stood up and started arguing with the girls about doing things with Issei, boob sizes, and other topics that Chris tuned out. He looked at Issei and said, "Dude, seriously why does this happen?"
Issei shrugs and gave him a corny smile with a thumbs up. Chris gives him a perturbed look and sighs. After several minutes of the girls fighting and arguing over Issei, Chris was able to sneak out without any more embarrassing moments. He gets back to his room and puts clothes on to begin training.
Everyone meets up behind the Bael house, "Everyone ready to head out today?" Irina said happily.
Rias glows red, as she does, and teleports the group to an area that looks like the Grand Canyon only the canyons are grey. Chris looks around, "So looks like we've got some room to train then!"
"Plenty of room to let loose and not worry about any innocent people getting hurt." Sairaorg said ominously.
"Well that's… neat." Chris said nervously.
"Chris follow me over here!" Sairaorg motions to Chris to follow him over to a particular area. It resembled a natural arena, tall boundaries and an extremely large area to move around in. Sairaorg turned to face Chris, "Are you ready to get started, Chris?"
"Well shit, yeah I gue…" Before Chris could even get the words out, Sairaorg's fist met Chris's stomach. A shock of energy shot through Chris's body, immediately blood came flying out of his mouth. He collapsed to the ground gripping his stomach, struggling to find his breath. With a gasp of air, Chris rolled over to his knees and stood up shakily, "What… the fuck… was that!"
"I told you, I'm not taking it easy on you! You'll need to fight me as if your life depends on it!" Sairaorg yelled, coming in for another attack. This time Chris was ready and was able to parry his punch with a shoulder to Sairaorg's chest, putting some distance between himself and his opponent. Chris charged Sairaorg with a flurry of punches and kicks, but he was extremely fast and able to block all the attacks. Chris moved further back and tripped on a rock. As he was falling back, Sairaorg seized the opportunity, moving next to Chris and kicking him in the rib cage, sending him to the far wall of the arena. Chris felt as if every rib had been shattered on his left side. Blood was dripping from his head and side. Sairaorg and Chris continued exchanges like this for several more minutes until Chris collapsed. Asia was on standby for this very moment; she rushed over to Chris and healed him up enough to continue training. This exchange happened for the next several hours, until training was complete and Sairaorg felt that Chris had had enough punishment for the day.
"Chris, I must say I'm unimpressed with this power so far. Your will, however, is on par with Issei's! You just don't know when to give up!"
Chris, feeling absolutely drained, battered and bruised, pushes out a forced laugh, "Yeah, well… fuck you too… buddy."
The group gathered around Chris, who was sitting on the ground, next to Asia kneeling. Asia put a hand on his shoulder, "You've done so well today, we're all proud of you!" Asia smiled at him. Chris half smiled and spat more blood out of his mouth, "We're heading home now, right?"
"Yes, I think everyone has put in a good days' work today!" Rias said happily to everyone. She once more glowed and teleported everyone back to the original location outside of the Bael house. Asia helped Chris up as Kiba came up behind him and swung Chris's arm around his shoulders for support, "Let's get you upstairs man. You kicked ass today!"
Chris did not say anything, just nodded and limped to the house with his support. Rias walked over to Sairaorg, "What are your thoughts on him?"
"What are my thoughts? Weak and pathetic, but he's got a lot of heart and he's tough. At least he's got that going for him." Sairaorg said discouraged, "I'm not sure what kind of paladin power he has, but if this keeps up, either he breaks or his spirit breaks. Either way, it's not good for Chris."
"That's very troubling. There must be something that will draw out his power. I'm just not sure what yet." Rias was puzzled.
"We'll keep working with him and see if something triggers it."
Kiba and Asia help Chris into his room and lay him on the bed as wait staff rush in with bandages and ointments to patch Chris up. He passes out shortly after lying down, but wakes up a few hours later, feeling a pressure on his arm. He slowly opens his eyes and sees Akeno wrapping up his left arm, her leg across his hips. He lifts the blanket and finds that he and her were naked! He poked her shoulder, "Hey… Hey Akeno… ummm…"
"Mmmm… What is it?" Akeno woke up and looked up at Chris in a daze.
"Not that I'm complaining, but why are you here and why are we… naked?" Chris swallowed hard as Akeno moved her head to be more on his shoulder.
"Skin to skin contact was needed to heal you. Rias does this with Issei often. After your day, I figured you needed this as well. You were in bad shape."
"Thanks, I guess." Chris readjusted to get comfortable and Akeno followed suit. She did not want to leave his side. When morning came, he awoke feeling better than ever before. Akeno must have left sometime in the night, so he jumped out of bed and rushed out of his room to be met with the group heading downstairs, "Holy shit, I feel fantastic!"
Koneko looks up and down at Chris, "Wow… Issei's pervertedness is rubbing off on you."
Chris looks down and, in his haste, had not put any underwear on. Embarrassed, he rushed back into his room, got dressed and met everyone downstairs. After breakfast, everyone was ready to head back out to the training grounds for the same regiment of conditioning and fighting.
As the week progressed and finally ended, Chris was feeling less and less confident in his abilities. He was gradually getting stronger and able to hold his own better against Sairaorg, however the bouts nearly always ended the same: Chris beaten, battered and bruised. When the second week started, Chris had just about had enough of Sairaorg's punishment, "Fuck man, this isn't working. I'm getting stronger and faster, but nothing for this power. I don't understand!"
"Keep pushing, Chris!" Sairaorg's attacks began to get more deliberate and more dangerous. Chris can evade and parry some of the attacks, but Sairaorg seems to be more determined to hurt or maim him, rather than help and train. His attacks continued to grow stronger until even blocking the attacks were hurting Chris. Sairaorg throws a fast punch, connecting to Chris's rib cage, dropping his guard for only a moment. That was all that Sairaorg needed as he pummeled his opponent with punches, elbows, and kicks. He grabs Chris's arm and flings him against the wall of the arena, knocking the wind out of him. Sairaorg immediately grabs his head and drags him along the wall, then throwing him into the opposite side of the arena. The group watches Sairaorg continue to become more aggressive in his attacks and Issei yells down to Sairaorg, "Fucking stop man! He's down, he needs time to heal and rest!"
"NO! He's had time, it's time to fight! His life is on the line!" Sairaorg charges toward the rubble where Chris was laying. Sairaorg jumps into the air and as he descends onto the pile of rocks and debris with his foot the area explodes sending everything loose in all directions, including Sairaorg whom hits the ground and slides away from the explosion. From the newly formed crater, Chris walks out. His eyes glowing that deep red as before and spires of light were circling around him. Sairaorg stood up as Chris approaches him. Sairaorg throws a punch and it is stopped by Chris's energy. He follows up with a flurry of kicks and punches, all stopped short of their intended mark. He backs up, "This is the paladin power I was hoping for. Now! To really let loose!" Sairaorg's punches break through Chris's energy field, however he easily bats them away. Chris moves forward, directly in front of his opponent, punching at his chest. Sairaorg flies back and is engulfed in rock and debris from the arena wall. Sairaorg pulls himself out of the rock and debris, his clothes showing signs of significant wear and tear. He grabs the remaining bit of his shirt and rips it off his body.
"Holy shit, Chris is… is incredible. His power… I can feel it from up here!" Issei said shocked and awed.
"He's emitting both holy and demonic power. This is the power of the Paladins." Michael said somberly.
"It's similar to my Sword of Betrayer. Two opposing powers that are wielded by the user at will. Except instead of a sword, it's Chris's own body." Kiba said seriously.
"That's correct Kiba, the Paladins were made from both holy and demonic power in order to increase their raw power against the Dragon Kings." Michael stated.
Chris floats above the ground as it begins to quake under everyone's feet. He yells loudly as his energy skyrockets. His elevation increases, he extends his arms and legs out to the side, his palms facing away from him.
A booming voice arises, "I am the monster among dragons for I am the fallen Paladin, Oathbreaker! My power shatters skies and splits the heavens! You will know and fear my power, SKYBREAKER!"
With a thunderous roar, Chris's body glows brightly and energy balls form at his palms. He brings the ends of his palms together as a massive energy wave blasts from his hands, heading directly for Sairaorg. The massive dragon, Tannin, hits the blast before it could come close to Sairaorg, burning his forearms and sending him into the arenas' walls.
"Uhh… damn! Sorry I made it so late. I should have been here sooner. Forgive me Sairaorg."
"Damn it, Tannin! What are you doing!"
"That was holy energy Sairaorg. You would have been annihilated!"
Chris's glowing light faded as he returned to the ground, his eyes were still glowing red. Tannin stood up and walked toward Chris, towering over him. The booming voice returned, "Do you wish to fight me dragon? I have no quarrels with you."
"You have hurt my friends and for this you must pay! My name is Tannin, the Blaze Meteor Devil Dragon!" Tannin shoots a sustained blast of fire breath down onto Chris. The group on the ridge shouted at Chris's impending doom. However, Tannin's fire breath was stopped short by Chris's energy field, which continues to grow and pushes the great dragons fire back. Tannin stops his inferno and slams his massive claw down on top of Chris. Tannin pushes his claw into the ground as it splits open around the dragon's claw outline. He lifts his hand and sees Chris with his arms up, having blocked his punishing blow. Tannin let out a massive roar and continues his onslaught of fists onto Chris's position. Chris was able to run out from under the barrage and get some space between himself and Tannin. The dragon saw him standing in a different location and roars, "You will not escape me!"
Chris's power begins to skyrocket once again and his body increases in size. During the fray, Sairaorg was able to regain some strength and moves to the offensive against Chris. He attacks Chris with a flurry of punches, kicks, and elbows, but nothing connecting. As the fight continues, Chris's movement and speed become more precise and calculated. Sairaorg notices this, "He's learning while fighting! This is unlike any power I've ever seen!" Chris grabs his arm and slams him to the ground, connecting several punches as Sairaorg lays on his back. As Chris stands over Sairaorg, his punches were connecting directly to their intended targets, picking up speed and strength until the ground around his opponent began to give way. Chris was literally burying Sairaorg after each punch. Tannin's tail connected to Chris's side, sending his body skidding across the ground. Tannin continued his pursuit as Chris regained control of his slide and pushed off the ground in Tannin's direction. He connects under Tannin's jaw, sending the massive dragon into the air. Chris appears above Tannin and sends another massive energy wave. It connects with the dragons' chest and drives him to the ground, detonating in a massive explosion on impact.
"Issei, you have to help them! Chris has lost control!" Rias pleads.
"Ahhh shit! I don't want to hurt this guy… fuck it, he's hurting my friends! It's time to put an end to this bullshit!" Issei transforms and goes on the offensive against Chris. At first, they match each other, blow for blow. Their flurries were blocked by the others'. Issei shouts, "Promotion to queen!" A different booming voice arises, "Welsh Dragon, Balance Breaker!"
Issei's aura changes to red as he charges at Chris. "Sonic Impact Booster!" Issei's left arm changes to have a massive, fortified structure and it connects to Chris's chest, sending him across the arena. Chris stands up as blood comes out of his mouth and he begins to shout once more. His power continues to grow as he moves toward Issei, "I am the Oathbreaker! Fear my power, dragon!" Chris charged Issei and connects his fist into Issei's chest plate shattering it. He barrages the armor with more devastating punches, each chipping away at the armor plating. Issei pushes Chris away to make some distance, "What the actual fuck is with this power!" Issei shouts at Chris, "Chris, I know you can hear me! Don't lose yourself in that power! Get control, man!"
Uhhh… oh man… What the hell is going on? Chris thought to himself as he sees his body fighting Issei. Hey, what the hell why am I fighting Issei. He's good people, this isn't right! The booming voice resonated in Chris's head, I am the Paladin, Oathbreaker, I fight whom I wish! I fight as I see fit! No longer does my power belong to anyone but myself!
No, I don't want this! These are my friends, stop hurting my friends! Chris's eyes begin to flicker. He struggles to regain control of his body. Akeno shouts, "Please Chris, you can keep control of this power!" She flies down near him as he continues to struggle with himself, his eyes continue to flicker from normal to the deep red color. She wraps herself around him and looks up at him. He looks down and starts to sob, "Get away from me, Akeno! I don't want to hurt you!"
"I believe you won't. Please Chris, come back to us." Akeno pleaded.
"Stop it… stop it… STOP IT!" Chris screams as energy expels from his body sending Akeno across the ground. Chris's eyes return to normal as the massive power surge subsides. He looks around at all the destruction and mayhem that had ensued while he had lost control. Chris dropped to his knees, "I'm… sorry. I'm so… sorry. I didn't want any of this, to hurt… any of you," he said through tears.
Akeno gets up and walks over to Chris as the remaining members meet up with her, "It's ok, Chris, you've won. You overcame that power."
"No… no, I haven't. I've only temporarily stopped it from returning. One more incident like that and… I'm not sure what will happen. I can't hurt you… any of you." Chris sobs more holding onto Akeno's hand.
A loud voice came from the ridge line, "I finally found you Oathbreaker! I am Ridem Sezrit and I am the Paladin of Glory. I will vanquish you and your treacherous ways!"