Alright, so a few of you (most of you) didn't like how chapter 12 turned out. That's fine. In response, I wrote THREE DRAFTS of this chapter, trying to make it as awesome as possible, so I hope you all like it. This is definitely the best draft I wrote, in my opinion. Also, It's the longest chapter yet, with 8,500 words before my AN's.

Now, the only thing is, I wrote it on a mobile app because I'm on vacation. That means that it will probably be filled with plot holes and typos galore. My only request is, if you spot something wrong, please, PLEASE send me a PM instead of leaving a nasty review. Not only will I reply to you, I'll go back and fix the problem. I've done it a few times already. Thanks in advance.

HUGE shout out to "54M43L" (Guest) for writing basically an essay as a review. He/She made some awesome suggestions, and I can't think her/him enough. I actually, out of curiosity, plugged their review into a word counter, and it ended up being 901 words. That's like, a page and a half on google docs. Thank you soo much for taking the time to write that!

Okay then, that's all for now. On with the show!

When Kalawarner opened her eyes, all she could see was darkness. Slowly, as her vision swam, the world came into focus. She was in a dark room, entirely concrete, dangling from the ceiling via chains wrapped tight around her ankles. Her arms were chained to the floor in a similar fashion, leaving no room for her to even struggle, much less escape. She tried to call out, only to realize her mouth was taped shut.

Kalawarner didn't understand what was happening. She knew she died; no questions there. You don't just walk away from having your throat crushed, supernatural being or not. What she didn't know is how she was now alive, or why she was in chains.

A crack of light illuminated the dark room. The sharp contrast between the bright light and the bleak darkness hurt her eyes, but she looked on anyway, trying to get a glimpse of who was approaching.

"Awake, are we? Good…" The newcomer said, slowly. She didn't recognize the person's voice, not at first. When she did, she had to struggle to stay calm.

Freed Sellzen, exiled exorcist and torturer extraordinaire, stood in front of her dressed in his long black coat and holding a large dagger. Kalawarner's eyes went wide and she struggled violently against her restraints.

"No, no, no. You're not going anywhere, not yet. We've gotta have some fun, first. Asia didn't go through all the trouble of healing you just for us to let you go again. See, Kokabiel wasn't happy about what you tried to do, but he's decided to forgive you. That being sa~id, he still wants to make sure you don't decide to run off again. So! Just a little round of conditioning with yours truly and you'll be back on the winning team, mkay?" Freed exclaimed.

On the last word of his sentence, he drove the dagger into her leg, making her scream and flail about. Tears poured down from the upside-down Fallen's eyes, blinding her.

"Oh Asia, wouldn't you come patch up our friend? She seems to be in a bit of a rough patch." Freed said in a sing-song voice, laughing maniacally as he ripped the dagger from Kalawarner's leg. A terrified looking blonde girl in a nun's habit approached the writhing Fallen, looking apprehensively at Freed. The girl, Asia, put her hands up to the Fallen's heavily bleeding leg, and two rings appeared on both her middle fingers and began to shine with a bright green light. The gouge in Kalawarner's leg started to rapidly close, healing quickly.

If Kalawarner was capable of coherent thought at this point, she'd be surprised at the fact that the blonde girl was actually healing her. Once she realized that, she would've been terrified by the revelation that Asia was only healing her so Freed could hurt her more.

Once finished healing Kalawarner's leg, Asia stepped back. She herself was crying, and tears flowed freely down her face. The timid girl wanted no part in what Freed was doing, but if she could use her power to grant the chained Fallen even a small bit of relief, she'd do it. Even if the Fallen had been planning to kill her for that same power.

Kalawarner calmed down enough to think rationally, assisted by the numbing effect of Asia's healing abilities. She was just coherent enough to register what was happening as Freed's dagger ripped into her again, this time in her stomach. Freed cackled as the Fallen's blood poured over his hands, and Asia screamed while Kalawarner thrashed against her chains.

Asia began to frantically heal her while Freed leaned in close to her face. "Oh, Kalawarner. We are going to have such fun, you and I…" Freed whispered in her ear, before taking a syringe out of his coat pocket. He wiped her eyes clear, so she could see what he was doing. Kalawarner recoiled at his touch, but was filled with even more dread at the sight of a filled needle in the exorcists' hand. She tried to her hardest to scream as Freed pushed the needle into her neck, not being careful or gentle in the slightest. Kalawarner finally managed to get the tape off her mouth just as Freed took the needle out.

She screamed louder than she ever had in her life.

Freed laughed.

"What did you do to me you bastard?! What the hell was in that needle?!" Kalawarner screamed, struggling against the chains.

"Just something to make you a little more...interesting. Be lucky that this was all Kokabiel told me to put in you. You're just my type." Freed said, running his fingers down Kalawarner's chest.

"Father Freed, this is wrong! You shouldn't be doing this!" Asia exclaimed, finally working up the nerve to speak out against the horrible man. She was rewarded for her bravery with a hard backhanded slap to the face, sending her sprawling on the hard stone floor.

"Shut up! Unless you want to be next, keep your trap shut and do as I say!" Freed growled, glaring at the girl. He turned back to Kalawarner, who had begun twitching violently. "Oh, yes...I can see you're about to ready to cause mayhem...well, let's have a little more fun before that, okay?" Freed cooed, whispering directly into Kalawarner's ear. She tried to scream, but she suddenly couldn't even manage so much as a groan.

"Now, let's get back to it."

Issei checked the time on his phone, biting the fingernails on his other hand.

Kalawarner had been gone for almost nine hours. It was already dusk, and they hadn't seen or heard from her other than when she came to their house.

Issei knew that she was probably in trouble. This Kokabiel seemed like bad business, and if he'd discovered that Kalawaner was also planning on betraying him, he would be none too happy. She'd said that he wasn't supposed to be at their Kuoh base, but it was always possible that he had shown up.

Issei put his phone away, and looked at the hand he'd been chewing on. His nails were gnawed past his fingertips. He barely even knew Kalawarner, but he was beyond worried she'd gotten herself hurt.

"We've gotta help her, right? I mean, she's your friend…" Issei said, pacing around the living room in circles.

"She is, but if there's even a one percent chance that Kokabiel's at that church, we're not going anywhere near it. I won't let you. I value your life far more than hers, Issei." Raynare said, walking to her nervous boyfriend, who was wearing a path into the floor of the penthouse by this point. She hugged Issei, trying to calm him down. "Besides, she made her choice. How important could a suitcase have been, anyway, to risk being captured or killed? She should've just stayed here." Raynare said, stroking his hair.

"I know, but still…" Issei said, letting his girlfriend console him. She pulled away from him, and took his hands in hers. He wouldn't meet her gaze, and stared at the floor.

"Hey. Look." Raynare said, tilting her head to look Issei in the eyes. "She doesn't matter anyway. I made the choice to abandon the other fallen and everyone else when I decided to be with you. What they do, that's up to them. All that I'm worried about is you. Got it?" Raynare said, pulling issei close.

Issei buried his head in Raynare's shoulder. As strange as it sounded, the smell of Raynare's raven hair comforted him greatly, and as he breathed in her scent, he calmed down.

"You're right. Of course, you're right." Issei pulled away from Raynare and sat down on their couch, Raynare sitting down beside him.

"Why do you even want to save Kalawarner so bad? You've known her for less than an hour." Raynare asked.

"We offered her protection, and now she's probably been captured or worse. It just doesn't sit right with me, that's all. Imagine what she must be going through." Issei replied. He idly rubbed circles into the back of Raynare's hand.

"You're not wrong, she probably isn't having a blast. Especially if the exorcist Freed Sellzen is still there. But, there's not much we can do, so there's no point in tearing yourself up over it. Kokabiel is way out of our league. We're nowhere near powerful enough to take down someone on his level."

"Yeah. I've only got the gauntlet, after all." Issei agreed. They'd stand a snowball's chance in Hell against such a powerful foe.

['Only' got the gauntlet? Yeah, you've 'only' got a God-Killing Dragon Arm, you poor thing.]

"Ddraig's right. That gauntlet isn't something to be laughed at." Raynare said. The last thing she wanted was for Issei to underestimate himself.

[Damn straight. We'll be a regular powerhouse once you get off your ass and start training.] Ddraig said.

"You could probably handle everyone in the church except Kokabiel on your own. Not to mention…" Raynare started. She sat up straight on the couch, and six black feathered wings sprouted out of her back, surprising Issei. "I'm not exactly weak myself. When you've been alive for as long as I have, you tend to end up a little strong. " Raynare said, shuffling her wings. She stretched her rightmost wings out and covered Issei with them, making him laugh and push them away.

"I thought you only had two wings, not six?" Issei remarked, holding two of her right wings out of the way of his face but not having enough arms to keep the third from repeatedly poking him in the nose.

"I'm insulted. Only the weakest Fallen have two wings. One pair is a low tier Fallen, two is mid tier, three is high tier, four is an ultra tier, five is Cadre tier, and Six is Seraph tier. Azazel is the only six winged Fallen I know of." Raynare explained, continually nudging Issei with her middle right wing and trying not to laugh.

"Oh. Cool." Issei said, focusing on her intrusive wing. She giggled at him as he tried to keep hands on her top and bottom wings while the middle one danced around his face, tickling his nose and almost making him sneeze. Finally, Issei decided to play his trump card, and grabbed her meddling wing with his mouth, careful to keep his teeth back so as not to bite her.

"Oh~!" Raynare moaned out, not expecting the fantastic sensation. "I-Issei, an Angel's wings are very s-sensitive, just so you k-know…" She breathed out, trying to keep her cool and not pounce him as a thick blush graced her face.

A matching blush appeared on Issei's face as her realized what she meant, and he quickly let go of the three of her wings and scooted to the edge of the couch.

"Phew...as much as I'd love to continue that, we do have problems right now. Though, if you want to keep going, we could put them off for a bit~." Raynare cooed, her face red and her breathing heavy.

"P-pass. Okay, okay. Let's focus. There's got to be something we can do, right?" Issei said, trying to turn the subject back to the elephant in the room.

Raynare breathed heavily for a moment, collecting herself. "I can't think of anything. Azazel probably wouldn't come here to fight Kokabiel himself, the battle would be too catastrophic and he wouldn't risk that for a two-winged fallen like Kalawarner. If we tried to get Sona or Rias' group to attack the church, not only would they not have any real reason to help, we'd probably be sending them to their deaths. I think we should have them come here, and help us prepare for an attack. Or, maybe not, since it's only two of them attacking, at most..." Raynare said, thinking. Her natural skill with tactics and planning came out in force.

"...I think you're right. But would they really come? We didn't exactly leave on the best page."

"I think they would if we made it worth their while."

"How's that? I don't think money would matter, Rias seems pretty rich…"

"A favor."

"That's it?"

"A favor from the Red Dragon is worth more than gold, Issei. You're literally a one man army, or you will be, at least."

"I don't feel like a one man army."

"Well not now, of course. We're just sitting on the couch. But I've come into contact with full-fledged Red Dragon Emperors in the heat of their battles, and it's a sight to see. Not to mention, I had the displeasure of seeing Ddraig himself in all his fury during the Great War. Talk about terrifying." Raynare said with a shudder. Ddraig chuckled from within Issei's gauntlet.

"So, we should call one of the devil's peerages here, then? And offer them a favor in return?"

"Or…" Raynare started, seemingly thinking something over.

"Or?"

"Or, we send them to the church, then send Azazel after them." Raynare said, grinning. "That way, any devils we send wouldn't be killed, and Azazel would have enough leverage to go after Kokabiel, under the guise of protecting the Devil King's sister."

"That's...devious."

"Isn't it?" Raynare said, smirking.

"It is devious, and I'm so glad I caught wind of it before you tried it." A voice said from behind the couch, startling Issei and Raynare. Both jumped up, readying their respective weapons, only to see Azazel grinning. "Yo." The Commander in Chief of the Fallen said, flashing a peace sign. A green teleportation sigil faded beneath him. Issei sighed, and fell back on the couch. Raynare sat beside him, grumbling.

"Does just anyone come here nowadays?" Issei asked, rubbing his forehead. His complaint went unheeded.

"So I guess that's a no-go?" Raynare asked the man, who sat down opposite them on the other couch.

"Oh yeah, definitely a no-go. You know very well if I engage Kokabiel, the fallout would be ridiculous. Everyone this side of Tokyo would know about it. I can't personally attack him, devils or no devils. Sorry. Why do you need to get inside that church, anyway?" Azazel asked. He'd dropped by to tell Issei something, but found them in the middle of a far more interesting conversation.

"One of our friends is captured inside." Issei explained.

"Oh, okay. That makes a solid amount of sense." Azazel said, nodding.

"So you can't personally help us?" Raynare asked.

"Not with Kokabiel. If a bunch of his lackeys were to show up here, I could totally destroy them without a fuss, but not a Cadre. The battle would be too much."

"Damn…" Raynare sighed. "Well then, I should tell you we're expecting an attack here. Unless we attack first, I guess."

"Really? Who's attacking? Not Kokabiel himself, surely?" Azazel asked, interested.

"I hope not. No, just Mittelt and possibly Kalawarner as far as we know."

"Both two winged angels?"

"Yeah."

"Just stomp them flat and move on." Azazel said dismissively, waving his hand.

"I guess that's probably what's going to happen."

"How'd you even get that information? How'd you find out they're going to attack, I mean." Azazel said. He still had several blanks about the whole situation.

"Kalawarner came here to warn us." Issei said.

"Alright, I'm officially confused. Is this Kalawarner on your side or not?" Azazel asked.

"Maybe. She came here, and we offered her asylum instead of playing pawn for Kokabiel. She accepted, and went back the church to get her things, but hasn't come back yet. It's been almost nine hours, already." Raynare explained.

"So she's the one that you're rescuing. Didn't you just say she was going to attack with Mittelt?" Azaze asked.

"She might. Still a bunch of unknowns here." Raynare said.

"Maybe she was just scouting you out, and she's actually fine." Azazel offered.

"I don't think so. That wasn't the vibe I got. I think she got back, and they discovered she was turning traitor, so they captured her." Issei said.

"So you don't know she's in a pinch. Okay, I think I understand the situation, but humor me. What's stopping you from knocking down the door of the church and going to get her, captured or not?" Azazel asked, rubbing his goatee.

"The only real problem is Kokabiel. Aside from him, no one in that church is really a threat. If we could get him away, it would be simple to get inside." Raynare explained.

"That is quite the predicament." Azazel said. He had a grin at the edges of his mouth, like he knew something they didn't. No one noticed.

"There's got be something we can do, right?" Issei asked. He already wasn't okay with letting Kalawarner be captured, but now that it was implied she was being tortured, the thought of just sitting around and waiting made him feel sick.

"Oh, don't worry. There's someone doing something...right...about…" Azazel checked his watch. "...Now." Raynare and Issei looked at each other, not really understanding.

"Who?" Raynare asked. "And what?"

"The White One is currently engaging Kokabiel." Raynare gaped, and Issei's eyes went wide. "I'd brought him with me exclusively for that, but I didn't have any idea it would help you too." Azazel said with a big smile.

"Seriously? If he's dealing with Kokabiel, there's nothing stopping us from going to save Kalawarner!" Issei said, standing up. He'd only known the blue-haired Fallen for all of about ten minutes, but if he had a chance to save someone from torture or death, he'd take it. Not to mention, she was Raynare's friend.

"Yup. Consider this my gift to you, for getting good with the devils. I owed you one." Azazel said, nodding to Issei. "I've got something else for you, too. Have Raynare teach you how to contact me, and when you've got a moment, give me a call. I came up with something you'd want to hear." Azazel said, giving Issei a thumbs up, which the boy returned.

"Thanks, Azazel." Raynare said. Issei echoed her.

"Well, I better get going. Shemhazai doesn't know I'm gone, and if I'm not back in time for his meeting, he'll blow a gasket. Peace out, and...be careful." Azazel said before standing and teleporting away.

"Okay, okay. New plan. While the White Dragon attacks Kokabiel, we'll get the with the devils and go to the church. We'll save Kalawarner and anyone else they have locked up, and get out. Sound good?" Raynare said, standing up and stretching her wings before retracting them. Issei nodded resolutely.

"Great. Okay, give Rias a call. Or Sona. Up to you really. I'd rather Sona, but Rias would be more likely to help us with the promise of a reward, I'd bet." Raynare said while Issei pulled out his phone.

"I think Rias would be better. We're already good with Sona, we need to get closer with Rias' peerage. Plus, I don't know about you, but I'd much rather risk someone from Rias' group than Sona's. Sona is actually pleasant to be around." Issei said. Raynare grinned at him.

"Getting a naughty streak, are we?" Raynare asked, liking the darker side of her normally kind boyfriend.

"I'd rather nobody get hurt, but if I had to choose someone to sacrifice, it would definitely be Rias or that queen of hers, no doubt." Issei said, nodding. With that in mind, he dialed Rias' number.

(Hello?) Rias answered.

"Hey Gremory, it's Issei Hyoudou."

(Oh, hello Hyoudou. How are you?)

"I'm alright. Gremory, I need to ask a favor of you."

(What do you need? Also, could you just call me Rias? I'm not a particular fan of my family name.)

"Uh, sure thing. Call me Issei, I guess. Anyway, a comrade of ours has been captured by the Fallen in the church. We've got it from Azazel himself that Kokabiel is occupied somewhere else, so it's the perfect opportunity to rescue her, and we'd like your help."

(...I'd like to help you, Issei, but I'm afraid we can't do something like that for nothing in return…)

"Oh don't worry, it's not for nothing. I'll owe you a favor. I'm told a favor from the Red Dragon carries a lot of weight."

(...That it does. Okay, we'll help you. Who is this comrade, if you don't mind my asking?)

Issei's thoughts came to a screeching halt. He'd forgotten all about Kalawarner's interactions with the Gremory group. She'd straight up killed one of their members. Issei cursed silently, and mouthed the word 'shit' to Raynare, who made a 'what's the problem?' gesture. Issei put his finger up, and tried to think of a response.

(Issei, are you there?)

"I'm...I'm here. Rias, if I told you the comrade was the same angel who killed Matsuda, would you still help us?"

(...Issei, I don't think I can. She murdered him.)

"On Kokabiel's orders! Now she's being tortured by his lackeys!"

(That may be, but I can't just rescue my servant's killer like that. I just...I'll ask him what he thinks, hold on.)

Issei sighed, and pulled the phone from his face.

"What's the problem?" Raynare asked. She'd gotten a little bit from Issei's side of the conversation, but not all of it.

"We overlooked the minor fact that Kalawarner killed Matsuda."

"Oh. Oops."

"Yeah. Oops."

(Issei?) Issei raised the phone back to his face.

"I'm here."

(We'll help you, but you're going to have to make good on that favor. I've got a rating game coming up soon, and I'll need you and your girlfriend to be proxy pieces in my peerage.)

"I don't know what that means, but okay. Whatever it takes, as long as it doesn't mean we become devils ourselves."

(Then we're in agreement. We'll come to your place, send me an address.)

"Sure thing. I'll text it to you here in a second. Thanks, Rias."

(Of course.) The call ended, and Issei sent over the address.

"So we're good? What did she ask you for?" Raynare asked

"She wants us to be 'proxy pieces' in a 'rating game,' whatever that stuff means."

"Oh. That's not that bad, actually. We just have to fight on her team in what's essentially a gladiatorial deathmatch without the death bit."

"Oh. Fun."

"That's not as bad as it could've been. She could've asked us to join her peerage."

"I'm glad she didn't. I have zero interest in being one of her slaves."

"That makes two of us. So, did she say she was on her way, or what?" Raynare asked.

As if on cue, a bright red sigil started shining in the middle of the room, taking up a large amount of the floor. Issei and Raynare stepped back, both of them suddenly glad they'd gotten dressed earlier after Kalawarner left instead of staying in pajamas.

Five people came out of the magic circle. Rias, Akeno, and Matsuda, all of whom Issei recognized, but the last two, he didn't know. There was a pretty blonde boy, and a small white-haired girl. The circle faded away.

"So, we're rescuing the bitch that ganked me. You're lucky I'm in a forgiving mood, Hyoudou." Matsuda said.

"Thanks for coming. I know this will be hard for you." Issei said, nodding to the boy. Matsuda narrowed his eyes, not expecting the camaraderie.

"Yeah…" Matsuda replied, not expecting Issei to say anything other than 'go to hell.'

"Well, Issei. We're here. Allow me to formally introduce the rest of my peerage." Rias said, gesturing to the people beside her.

"This is Koneko Toujou, my Rook." The white haired girl gave a halfhearted wave, and didn't say anything.

"This is Kiba Yuuto, my Knight." The blonde boy waved also, though far more enthusiastic about it than the little girl.

"It's good to meet you both." Issei said, nodding to them.

"Hi, Issei." Akeno said, giving him a flirtatious wink. She liked him, she just didn't like his choice in company.

"I don't remember saying you could use my first name." Issei said, narrowing his eyes at her. He definitely wasn't over her comment about Raynare being a pet. Akeno pursed her lips, miffed her attempt at being nice was so offhandedly deflected.

Raynare was surprised at his comment. She was happy he'd said it, but she never expected him to openly berate her like that. Two weeks ago, he was afraid to even talk to women, and now he could sass one he barely knew without a second thought? 'He's making serious progress.' Raynare thought.

"Okay, so here's the situation. Kokabiel is being engaged by the White Dragon Emperor as we speak, so we literally could not have a better opportunity to rescue Kalawarner. I know you've got bad blood with her, but I promise you she was only acting under orders." Raynare explained.

"We understand. We're ready when you are." Rias said, crossing her arms and nodding.

Raynare glanced at Issei, asking him a nonverbal question. He nodded to her, a fire in his eyes like she'd only seen a couple of times.

"I'll teleport us, then." Raynare said, and moved close the peerage. Akeno visibly recoiled from her proximity, earning a glare from Issei, but she moved back into position swiftly. Issei moved next to Raynare, and Rias' peerage stood behind them both. Raynare let out her six wings, and a large green Fallen magic circle appeared beneath them all. Several moments later, and they were all outside an overgrown and abandoned church.

"I didn't know your girlfriend had six wings. That's quite impressive." Rias whispered to Issei, quietly enough so Raynare couldn't hear. He turned to her, a grin on his face.

"Isn't she great?" He asked, before looking back to the church. Raynare walked in front, the others all following behind her.

They all approached the large doors of the church, and everyone shared a glance before the small girl, Koneko, walked up and kicked the doors off their hinges. Issei marveled at her strength, as no one had actually told him what it meant when Rias said she was a rook.

Inside the church, was a large room with ruined pews, statues, and art. Several of the stone statues were slashed in half, and all of the furniture around the room were in various states of disrepair. At the far end of the room, near the mostly-destroyed altar, was a girl in a black dress and a tall guy in priestly robes. They turned to look at the intruders.

"Ah! I was wondering if you'd come! If you didn't show up within the hour, little Mittelt here was going to go kill you and little shit boyfriend, so I'm glad you saved her the trouble!" The priest yelled, taking a gun and sword hilt out of his robes. He pressed a button on the hilt, and a light-blade appeared.

"Freed! You know you can't beat us all, so just get out of the way!" Raynare yelled, spinning up magic circles in her hands.

"Like hell! This angel and I have more than enough firepower between the two of us to kill you, your stud, and your filthy devil friends!" Freed yelled. Mittelt, the small Fallen in the gothic dress, looked hesitant, but when she remembered what happened to Kalawarner, she knew she didn't have a choice. Mittelt summoned her light spear, and set into a fighting stance.

"We'll handle these two. Go on ahead, you guys." Kiba said, Akeno and Koneko flanking him.

"Ooh, three devils? And one bombshell! I think we'll have some extra fun, mmkay?!" Freed yelled, rushing Akeno. She threw her hands up, and formed a barrier to block his attack. At the same time, a light spear slammed into her barrier. Between Freed's attack and Mittelt's, the barrier almost broke, but Kiba quickly attacked Freed, pushing him away from the barrier and giving Koneko and Akeno an opportunity to attack Mittelt.

Attack her they did. Akeno fired a blast of lighting at the Fallen, and Koneko threw a statue at her. Mittelt dodged the statue, but took the bolt of lighting head-on, causing major damage. Akeno laughed as Mittelt screamed in pain.

The statue Koneko had thrown smashed into the altar, destroying it completely and revealing a staircase down. Rias, Matsuda, Raynare and Issei ran past the fight, rushing to the basement of the church.

While the fight raged above, a sinister ritual was enacted below.

The four rushed into the church's massive basement, and were greeted with a horrid sight: a small blonde girl, completely nude, was strung up on a large metal cross. She screamed and writhed, but couldn't get free. In front of the cross, watching with her glee, was a tall man in a fedora and trench coat. Below the cross, down a tall staircase, was an small army of exiled priests, all standing between the group of heroes and the tall man. As the group ran into the room, the tall man saw them, and yelled for the priests to attack. What had to be fifty or more priests surrounded the group, and Rias and Raynare readied magic circles in each hand while Issei and Matsuda summoned their gears.

The noise in the room was intense, with the priests chanting in the ritual and several of them yelling orders and scrambling around to engage the group.

"Asia?! What the hell is that bastard doing?! She's screaming!" Matsuda yelled. He apparently recognized the girl on the cross.

"They're taking her sacred gear!" The ritual will kill her!" Raynare yelled back. She had no idea where all the priests had come from, but she knew what they were doing.

"We've got to help her!" Issei yelled. [Boost!]

"We've got this! These ones are no match for us, you two find your friend! Go!" Rias said, yelling. With one twist of her arms, Rias launched a vicious red and black attack that disintegrated a large portion of the priests. Matsuda's dog appeared from out of his own shadow, and wrapped around his arm, forming a longsword.

They all began to cut through the priests, Rias and Matsuda fighting toward the ritual while Raynare and Issei tore a path out behind them so the two of them could get back up the stairs. Issei was up to six boosts by the time they finally got to the stairs again, almost at his limit.

Issei and Raynare ran back up the stairs, Raynare grumbling to herself about how they just came down those stairs. Once they reached the top of the large staircase, several moments later, they saw Akeno using small barriers to deflect swing after swing of Freed's light blade, with Kiba and Koneko on the ground nursing large wounds. Mittelt was nowhere to be seen, but there was a large pile of feathers in one corner of the room.

Akeno was clearly on the losing side of the fight. Her clothes were tattered, and Freed wasn't showing any signs of slowing down as he broke barrier after barrier. He let out a yell, and hit her with a strong enough attack that he knocked Akeno to the ground, and moved in to kill her.

"Get away from her!" Raynare yelled, and flew at Freed from behind. He'd been so focused on attacking the Gremory Queen, he had no idea there was someone behind him. When a light spear ripped through his shoulder and tore off his left arm, he screamed and jumped away. He yelled angrily.

"Fuck! Damn IT! I NEEDED THAT ARM TO KILL DEVILS!" Freed yelled, cursing violently. Raynare pulled Akeno up off the ground. Akeno uttered a quick thanks, and went to check on Kiba and Koneko.

"Shit! Shit! Shitty shit shit!" Freed yelled. He reached into his coat as Raynare readied to attack him again. Issei was set to charge the man with his gauntlet, ready to assist Raynare. He never got the chance, as Freed pulled an orb out of his coat and hurled it at the ground. It exploded in a flash of light, and when it cleared, Freed was gone. Raynare cursed, and dispersed her spear. Issei lowered his gauntlet, but didn't unsummon it or reset the counter.

Issei and Raynare shared a glance, and then went into the back rooms of the church. There were iron cells placed frequently in a very long hallway, suggesting the place was used for a bit more than casual worship. Raynare had never actually been into the rear of the church, and she didn't know where to even begin looking for Kalawarner. All the cells were empty, but as the neared the end of the hallway, they came to a closed door made of heavy iron with no windows. The door was cracked, and faint groaning was heard from inside.

Raynare nodded to Issei, and he slowly pushed open the massive door. It would've been heavy, had he not been up to six boosts.

Inside the room, they found Kalawarner dangling from the ceiling and wrapped in chains, with blood all over her. She shivered and groaned, her eyes closed. Raynare gasped, and Issei wanted to throw up.

They ran to her side, Issei grabbing and breaking the chains binding her. As dark as the situation was, he couldn't help but feel awesome at his boosted strength, powerful enough to pull apart chains with his bare hands.

Raynare caught Kalawarner before she fell to the floor, and quickly inspected the groaning girl for any life-threatening wounds.

"This...this doesn't make any sense." Raynare said.

"What doesn't? Is she okay?"

"She's fine! That's what doesn't make sense. There's not a single cut on her. I don't have any idea where all this blood came from." Raynare said, checking the Fallen thoroughly.

Kalawarner coughed. Her eyes opened, slowly. Issei and Raynare both looked at her with anticipation. As she saw the two of them , her eyes went wide. She screamed violently, startling the two of them, and quickly stood up. She screamed at them, and backed away.

"Kalawarner? What the hell is wrong with you?" Raynare asked, confused.

Issei didn't understand what was happening. What had they done to her? "Are you alright? Calm down." Issei said, slowly edging towards her. As he came within a couple feet of the seemingly feral angel, she lunged at him, forming a spear of light in her hands.

"No!" Raynare yelled, jumping at the two of them. Issei dodged aside just in time to prevent the spear hitting his chest, but couldn't avoid damage completely. Kalawarner's spear lacerated his arm, and he started to bleed profusely. Raynare pulled Issei away as soon as she reached him, and sent a swift punch into Kalawarner's face, knocking her into the concrete wall and giving them plenty of time to flee the room.

Issei and Raynare rushed out of the room, slammed the door behind them, and ran down the hallway. They stopped after putting some distance between themselves in the room, Raynare looking Issei's wound over, and quickly used a healing spell to stop the bleeding. He thanked her.

Kalawarner was trying her hardest to open the door. They could hear her running it to it and scratching it, but nothing she did managed to open it.

"What's wrong with her?" Issei asked, panting.

"She's gotta be drugged. She's acting like a beast, and that spear was more powerful than it should've been." Raynare said. They could her growling from the room now, and there was scratching on the door. "That bastard Freed must've done this. There's no telling what all he used on her." Raynare said, gritting her teeth.

"Can we save her?" Issei asked.

"I...I don't know. It would be safer to just kill her." Raynare said, forming a spear in her hands. Even as Raynare said the words, she knew she didn't want to do it. She didn't want to kill her friend, and Issei knew it too.

"You don't really want to do that, though. Do you? I know you want to protect me, but I can tell you don't really want to kill your friend. We'll fix her, and you won't have to kill anyone." Issei said, taking Raynare's hand. He pushed her spear out of her hand with his, dropping it to the floor. Tears welled up in her eyes. He knew more about her feelings than she did, at this point. Raynare wrapped her boyfriend in a tight hug.

[Reset!] Suddenly it was a much looser hug, as Issei fell onto his knees. She laughed, despite the situation, and brought him to his feet. Issei threw his hand over her shoulder with his good arm, his right, and they walked back into the room with the destroyed altar.

"You damn devils! I'll kill you all!" They walked into the main room of the church just in time to see the last Fallen, the tall man that was conducting the ritual, take a direct hit in the chest from Rias Gremory's red and black magic. It tore a hole clean through his torso, and the Fallen exploded into black feathers.

Rias sighed, and stood down. Upon seeing Issei and Raynare, she ran over to them. Behind her, Akeno, Kiba, Koneko, and Matsuda stood around the blonde girl from the ritual lying with her eyes closed on what remained of a pew. They all sported various wounds, though none were even almost fatal.

"Are you both all right?" Rias asked, looking them over.

"We're...fine. Kalawarner...drugged…" Issei said, panting. He was exhausted, and could barely handle his words.

"Kalawarner is in there, in a cell. She was drugged by Freed, and she's absolutely feral. We've gotta find some way to calm her down." Raynare said, pointing to where they'd just come from.

"...Alright. If you can get her to stay still long enough, I have a spell to clear someone's system of any drug." Rias said.

Issei, as worn out as he was, had enough energy to give Rias a 'what the hell for?' look.

Rias noticed. "We're sometimes called to get rid of someone's addiction. It's an entirely wholesome spell." She said to him. "The only thing is, it takes a minute. You'll have to restrain her, and it doesn't feel great. She won't lie down and take it." Rias explained. Raynare nodded. She looked to Issei, who was basically riding on her shoulder at this point.

"Can you keep going?" Raynare asked. She didn't want to push him, but she needed his help. From the looks of the devils, they wouldn't be able to handle keeping Kalawarner at bay.

[Boost!] Ddraig called out. Issei had been about to say 'no' but Ddraig boosted him again, against his will. Suddenly, he could stand again, though his muscles still felt more sore than they ever had.

"I guess so." Issei said, groaning and flexing his hands.

"Koneko, can you come with us? Akeno, stay here and wait for the girl to wake up." Rias asked and ordered. Koneko walked over to the three of them, and they all started back down the hallway.

"Okay, so we've got to beat her up a little bit and keep her down while Rias casts her spell. Simple enough." Raynare said.

The door was still closed, and they could still hear the poor woman behind it. She was groaning and scratching at the door, trying her hardest to get out. Issei, who was now back up to three boosts, walked to the door, and pushed it open quickly, hitting Kalawarner with it and sending her sprawling backwards.

Issei and Koneko rushed in, trying to grab the flailing Kalawarner, but she kicked Issei in the stomach and threw Koneko across the room. Kalawarner jumped to her feet, charging at Issei with a light spear in hand. Raynare was the in a flash, crossing her own spear with Kalawarners.

"Kalawarner- calm down! We're trying to help you!" Raynare yelled. Kalawarner stopped snarling for a second and stalled, pausing her attack for long enough that Raynare disarmed her and sent a swift kick to her midriff, making her double over. Raynare grabbed her hair and forced her to the ground, putting her knee on Kalawarner's back to stop her from getting up. The woman writhed and thrashed. Issei and Koneko ran over to help.

"It hurts... it hurts...help me, HELP ME!" Kalawarner started frantically yelling while Raynare fought to keep her on the floor. Koneko grabbed her legs, and Issei tried to keep her arms contained. Even at four boosts, it was quite the challenge, and he had no idea how Koneko was managing both legs with no problems.

"Rias, do it!" Raynare yelled. Rias quickly kneeled down by Kalawarner, initiating her spell. Kalawarner starting struggling even harder than before as Rias' spell began to purge her body. She screamed and flailed about, striking Issei and Koneko several times in her fit.

Several intense moments later, Kalawarner let out one final yell, and stopping moving.

"It's done. She should be fine now, I think." Rias said, finishing the spell.

Kalawarner lay flat against the ground, breathing heavily. Issei and Koneko let go of her, and Raynare got off her back. Raynare kneeled beside the blue haired woman.

"Kalawarner? Can you hear me?" Raynare asked, looking down at her.

Kalawarner groaned, and turned her head up so she could see who was speaking. "R...Raynare? Is that you?" She asked, scared.

Raynare laughed in relief. "Yeah, it's me." She said. Issei came over, and kneeled beside Raynare.

"You both...came to save me?" Kalawarner asked, looking up at them.

"Sure did." Issei said, smiling.

"T...thank you!" Kalawarner yelled, bursting into tears. She threw her arms around Issei's leg, much to his surprise.

"We'll be waiting in there." Rias said, smiling. She and Koneko left, going back into the main room.

"Okay, okay. Can you stand?" Issei asked. Kalawarner tried to stand on her shaking legs, only to fall back down. Issei caught her before she hit the ground, then had to be caught himself as Ddraig once again announced [Reset!]

Raynare laughed at the two of them in a heap on the ground. She stood up, then bent down to help the two of them up. They both took one of her hands. The three of them walked out, Raynare at the center while Issei and Kalawarner both had an arm over her.

"You are so going to feel this tomorrow, Issei. Most of the time, an untrained Red Dragon can only reset once before needing to rest. Tomorrow definitely won't be fun for you." Raynare said.

Issei halfheartedly laughed, but didn't have enough gas left in him to respond. Raynare was more dragging him than she was helping him walk, but she didn't mind.

Back in the main room, Rias Gremory was assembled with her entire peerage, as well as the blonde girl who had been the target of the ritual. She was now standing, and healing the members of Rias' group. Thankfully, she also was now wearing a nun's outfit instead of being naked.

"Are we all good here?" Raynare asked. "These two can't even stand on their own, so I want to hurry and get them home."

"I think so, but first, let the newest member of my peerage heal you. Asia, if you wouldn't mind?" Rias said, gesturing towards Issei and Kalawarner.

"O-of course, um, master…" Asia said, unsure of quite how to refer to Rias.

"Just call me Rias, Asia. I don't mind." Rias said assuringly. Asia nodded, smiling, and moved to heal Issei's arm. He would've thanked her, if he could work up the strength to move his face. While she healed him, Rias told them where she'd come from. According to her, Asia had met Matsuda walking around town, and he'd helped her find this church, though at the time neither of them knew she was only being summoned here to be killed.

After finishing up with Issei's arm, Asia moved to start healing Kalawarner. Kalawarner saw the girl, and recoiled in terror, almost dragging both Issei and Raynare to the ground.

"Whoa, okay, what's the problem? It's already hard enough to hold the both of you up, I don't need you yanking us around." Raynare grumbled.

"W-when F-F-Freed was hurting me, she kept h-he-healing me! She wouldn't let me die or even pass out!" Kalawarner said, horrified by the small girl's very presence.

"Sounds like you owe her your life. I'd thank her, if I was you." Raynare said.

Kalawarner didn't say anything, but let the girl approach to heal her. Kalawarner's face was lined with fear as Asia did so, and it took everything she had to not flee. What Freed had done to her would leave lasting mental scars, and one of them was apparently being terrified of the harmless nun.

"Sorry, Asia. It'll take a bit for her to get over all this." Raynare said after the girl finished healing Kalawarner.

"N-no, it's fine. Um, Ms. Kalawarner, I-I'm really sorry I couldn't help you…" Asia said, before backing away and returning to Rias' side.

"So, is that it?" Raynare asked. No one replied for a second, but as the green circle of the Fallen Angels appeared underneath them, Akeno called out.

"Wait a second, please!" Akeno yelled. Raynare huffed, and she canceled the spell.

"Fine. Hold on." Raynare set Issei and Kalawarner on a pew. She'd grown tired of carrying them, and if his soft breathing was any indication, Issei had literally fallen asleep, so it's not like he would care. Kalawarner groaned as Raynare laid her down. She was no longer visibly injured, but she was definitely still both in pain and exhausted.

"What is it?" Raynare asked.

"Why did you save me?" Akeno replied frantically. "You could've just let Freed kill me. I was so mean to you, and you had no reason to, so why did you save me?" The devil asked. The question seemed to be driving her insane.

Raynare didn't say anything, but she looked to Issei, sleeping on the pew. A look of comprehension passed over Akeno's face, and she calmed down.

"Oh. I get he would want you to. You've got yourself a catch, Raynare." Akeno said, grinning.

Raynare looked surprised. "How did you know my real name?" She asked.

Rias answered. "I told them. That's what Kalawarner called you when you woke up, so I just assumed it was your real name. Don't feel bad, Sona and I use aliases all the time." Rias said with a grin.

"Well, Rias. Akeno. Kiba, Koneko, Matsuda. Asia. Thanks for all your help tonight. I don't think we could've done it without you." Raynare said, nodding to them.

"Of course." Rias said.

"No problem. Thanks for saving me." Akeno said.

"Yup." Koneko said. Coincidentally, this was the first time Raynare had heard the girl talk, and she'd honestly thought Koneko was mute.

"Sure thing." Kiba said.

Asia nodded.

"You're welcome. And, uh, Raynare? Could you do me a, um, favor? Please?" Matsuda asked. He seemed uncomfortable, and not used to the words he was using.

"What is it?" Raynare asked. She didn't like the boy, not after all the things he'd done, but she was willing to hear him out.

"Could you, uh, could you tell Hyoudou...I'm sorry? For what I've done, and...said. I know I said it myself, but...for real this time." Matsuda replied. He looked down, and wouldn't meet anyone's gaze.

Raynare smiled. She hadn't expected that, but she'd take it. "Sure." With that out of the way, she took Issei and Kalawarner's hands, and teleported them back home.

Vali, the White Dragon Emperor, watched the church from afar. He had Kokabiel unconscious and broken, lying at his feet, while Vali himself had not even a scratch. His counterpart had been there, fighting, at the church. He'd hoped to see some of his rival's power, and he had.

But, he'd been disappointed. So, so disappointed.

Issei Hyoudou hadn't even reached the second liberation of the Boosted Gear, much less Balance Breaker. How long would it take? How long would the Juggernaut take? Vali wasn't a patient man.

"I'll wait for now, Hyoudou. But if you make me wait too long...I'll have to speed you up."

Issei opened his eyes, but he didn't move. He couldn't move. His muscles felt like lead, and everytime he tried to so much as twitch, his body flared with agony.

[Welcome to hell.]

"Ddraig? Is this because I boosted after resetting at the church? Because that was, like, one thousand percent your fault." Issei said. He could talk fine.

"Not even going to say good morning, Issei?" Issei heard Raynare's gorgeous voice, but he couldn't look at her. His neck refused to turn, no matter how hard he tried. The most he could manage was wiggling his fingertips without sending jolts of pain all throughout his body.

"Ah...good morning. I can't turn my head." Issei grounded, laughing painfully.

"Yeah, I guessed you wouldn't be able to. You boosted way more than you ever have before, and you fought hard. You fought amazingly, really, for your first time in a battle. So, that's why I decided to reward you today." Raynare said. She slowly moved into Issei's view, and what she was wearing almost destroyed his mind.

Raynare had on a french maid outfit. The black lace complimented her in every way possible, and the white brought out her fair and flawless skin. The frilly short skirt and long black stockings were every man's dream, and that includes Issei.

The boy's eyes nearly popped out of his head. "R-R-Raynare?! Why are you wearing that?!" Issei yelled, frantic.

Raynare feigned sadness. "Aw, master doesn't like my outfit?" She said, putting on the face of a hurt puppy.

"That's not...I...you look breathtaking, but that's not the point! Why are you wearing that?!" Issei repeated.

"Because, you're going to be bedridden for the next day or so, and I want to make sure you've got something to look at during that time." Raynare said, standing with her waist cocked to the side and her hands on her hips. A heavenly smile graced her face, so perfect that Issei's heart couldn't help but pound.

"But, we're not...we aren't going to…" Issei was trying to say something, but he couldn't seem to get it out. Raynare picked up on what he meant almost instantly.

"We won't have sex until you're ready, Issei. I promise you that. I'll wait however long it takes. That being said…" Raynare said in a sultry voice, and sashayed towards Issei. She got on the bed, and crawled forward until she was directly over him, facing down. She leaned close to his ear.

"I'm ready when you are." Raynare said in the most seductive voice Issei'd ever heard in his life. Not only that, but to add insult to injury, she licked the edge of his ear. Before the tomato red Issei could even croak out a response, she jumped off the bed, and went back to standing.

"Raynare…" He managed to say.

"Yes?" Raynare said sweetly.

"I love you."

Okay, that's a wrap. I hope you all liked chapter 13! I know I did. It wrapped up the Fallen Angel arc spectacularly, and set up for quite a bit of other plot. I've got a bit more to say, though.

As some of you may have noticed, I am not the best at writing combat. I would LOVE if someone with experience would send me some pointers for writing combat scenes. As I move into more action-packed parts of the story, I'd love to have some tips.

I received a complaint that I actually had too much fluff in this story. That's GOOD. I want there to waaay too much fluff. I want you to choke on it. That's the whole point of His Angel, after all.

I made Raynare a six winged angel. I do have reasons for this. In the canon, other than stealing a sacred gear or undertaking ridiculous training, there's really no way for a Fallen to get stronger. Raynare in this story, is over four thousand years old. It only makes sense she'd be stronger than the average bear, right? Right.

Well, that's all I've got for now. Till next time!

WAAAIIT. THAT'S NOT IT, ACTUALLY. DID ANYONE WATCH E3? If you did, you might have seen Bungie's trailer for Destiny 2: Forsaken.

(Spoilers ahead.)

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Cayde-6 is dead. The best character in Destiny is dead, killed by Prince Douche himself. That isn't relevant at all to His Angel, but man, am I mad. I needed to talk about it. Anyway, bye!