Chapter Nine - Boot camp
* Gravity chamber, Peerage Clubhouse *
Grayfia had left less than two hours ago. In that time Rias had begun coming up with a strategy for how to deal with the impending rating game. She knew Riser's record. Nine wins and two losses. Those losses were both against high class heirs to lineage families. It was well known that the only reason Riser lost to them was to curry favour and set himself up to make demands at a later date. When politics didn't play a factor the man was known to be highly aggressive and ruthless in achieving his victory.
Rias wasn't sure how the match would be held. Rating games were known to be hosted in unique locations and it was rare that two matches would use the same venue. While Rias thought through her plans, Akeno was trying to keep Issei in the club room. The Saiyan was single minded in his desire to test out the gravity room. The busty beauty pouted at the warrior with as innocent an expression as possible.
"Just wait please." she said accentuating the final word, "I know you want to train but we need to plan and train the right things."
Akeno's reasoning was pertinent for Rias, herself and their fellow devils. But for the Saiyan it didn't matter. He knew what he would train. He would increase his power, his depth and control of all the aspects of his Ki. He would try to master the amplification technique he had seen in the most recent memory and as always find new ways to push and shatter his very limits to drive himself toward new found levels of strength.
Still he acquiesced to his girlfriend's request and sat patiently on the couch while the devils had their discussion.
Asia would focus on amplifying her magic ability and reserves. This would allow her to heal people quicker and more efficiently. She would also learn some simple self defence manoeuvres from Koneko and shielding spells from Akeno to allow her to be able to last longer in a fight.
Kiba it was decided would focus on engaging and confounding multiple opponents. His ability to summon multiple aerial swords gave him the ability to engage and delay groups of enemies effectively. This could be strategically important against Riser's numerically superior force. Koneko's training was in more of a practical, straight forward nature. The rook would engage single or paired opponents and seek to overwhelm them with sheer force and speed. To that effect she would achieve this by joining Issei in his gravity enhanced training, have her clothing weighted in a manner similar to his and seek to amplify her power to such a point that Riser's peerage would underestimate her.
Finally Akeno and Rias would train in a similar manner to how they had previously. Focusing on amplifying their magical abilities so that they would be able to support their fellow peerage and eliminate targets of opportunity.
The group finished their discussion and prepared to begin their training regimes when a soft blue light filled the room. A new teleportation symbol appeared in the far end of the room that Issei didn't recognize. This one also contained the two concentric rings but included a long twisted serpent in the centre. The whole symbol was a deep ocean blue.
Two people materialised from this new portal. The first was a girl, shorter then Rias and Akeno but taller then Koneko. Issei recognized her immediately as the student council president, Souna Shitori. She had short black hair with yellow clips and pink eyes behind a pair of reading glasses.
To her side was a handsome boy. He stood as tall as Kiba and less then a head shorter then Issei. He had wavy blond hair that almost concealed his soft grey eyes.
Both new arrivals wore the Kuoh academy uniform.
Souna approached Rias and the two girls hugged in an affectionate manner common of teen girls and young women.
"I've heard the news already." The president said softly, "Are you feeling confident?"
Her follow up question was asked with concern heavy in her voice.
Rias let a soft smile play on her lips. Her voice was almost a whisper when she spoke, something she hadn't learnt yet was just how fine Saiyan hearing could be.
"I have a how to describe him, hmm, not so secret weapon." Her eyes flashed to Issei as she spoke.
The man in question kept an air of not having heard his girlfriend. He couldn't let either of his better halves, or thirds, know of his ability to hear their subtle comments.
Souna turned to look Issei over. She kept her face neutral while judging the Saiyan. She had heard that Rias had a unique member but this was the first time she had assessed the Saiyan up close. Her partner looked at the Saiyan with far less concealed opinions. His face said that he wasn't impressed and he approached Issei with his hands hanging by his side.
"So you're big and buff huh. So what?" He said in a challenging tone.
Rias and Akeno barely suppressed their groans. Someone else had foolishly antagonized Issei's Saiyan pride. They knew their boyfriend wouldn't let such a challenge pass him by. Issei's reply was simple yet in a very dismissive tone.
"Well how about you have a go then." His words weren't harsh but spoke volumes that he thought this new arrival was barely a threat.
The blonde boy raised his hand and black flames appeared. Souna moved to stop her pawn but Rias held her shoulder. The girl's eyes met and Souna backed down. Now she was curious to see why Rias has so much faith in her member. Asia and Kiba began chatting among each other. They knew how this would play out. Koneko however watched the new boy intently. An expression across her face that rarely could be seen on hers. The only hint being the slightly rosy complexion.
The boy thrust his fist forward at blistering speed. The fist flew toward Issei when it stopped. Both his and Souna's eyes widened. Issei had stopped the strike with a single hand. The black flames licked at the Saiyan's skin but if it caused pain he didn't show it.
Issei lifted his hand and flicked his wrist. The boy was tossed back a few feet but managed to remain on his feet only stumbling back for less then six steps. Issei let his smirk play across his lips. The boy became angered by this and rushed at Issei. Flames flicked across both his hands and he launched multiple combinations at Issei. Left cross with a right hook. Right backward elbow strike and a left knee. Right straight kick followed by a flurry of increasing wild punches. Not matter how he attacked though, none of the strikes connected. Issei twisted and turned. Stepped and shuffled. He dodged and avoided each attack with simple precision. The blonde jumped back and yelled as he charged fire in his hands.
"STOP!" Souna commanded in a voice that left little room for argument. The blonde boy paused before lowering his arms and extinguishing the flames.
"That is enough Genshirou."
The boy nodded and moved back to the side of his friend and leader.
"I see now why you have so much confidence in him." she said to Rias. Rias smirked in a way that was reminiscent of Issei.
"Oh you haven't seen anything. Wait until you see him actually fight." she said trying hard to contain the pride that entered her voice when speaking about her boyfriend.
The devils continued to chat as Issei took his chance to slip away and make haste directly to the gravity chamber. He was curious to find out about the student council president being a devil but was far more excited to test of the gravity knew Akeno and Rias would explain it all to him later anyway and while they were likely to scold him for sneaking away, he also was positive they would forgive him easily enough.
He entered the chamber and found that it was split into four equally sized large rooms. The rooms were spread out in a box fashion and could easily accommodate six or seven people each. All the rooms contained an abundance of workout equipment. Bench press, free weights, rowing machines, treadmills, lateral pull downs. In the centre of each room was a console. The console was simple with an on/off switch and a dial that ranged from one to five hundred. Issei felt almost giddy with the idea of five hundred times gravity but even he knew that to go straight to five hundred times the pressure of Earth would kill him instantaneously.
The only difference between the four rooms was the colour scheme. The first room that contained the main entrance had white walls with red floor tiles. Moving in a clock wise fashion, the next had white walls with yellow tiles. The third had silver walls with green tiles and the last had blue walls with black tiles. Issei chose the green and silver room. It was the room furthest from the main entrance and would give him the most privacy to begin training. He did a few quick lunges and push ups to warm up before approaching the control console and powered it up.
A light haze filled the room but nothing else changed as the dial was still set to regular gravity. Issei thought and then twisted it to thirty fives times the gravity of earth. The machine hummed and reality pushed down on him harshly causing groans to escape the Saiyan's lips. He began warming himself up further to acclimatize himself to the new pressure with the get up push up combinations he often did in his mindscape. Upon reaching two hundred repetitions he approached the bench press and loaded it up with eighty kilograms. Normally that would be something he could wrist curl but at thirty five times gravity and still in his weighted clothes it would prove a struggle.
Issei lay under the bar and pushed against the metal in his hands. With a monumental effort he lifted the bar above his prone body. He began to lower and raise the bar focusing on his technique as much as raw lifting power. Each lift taxed his muscles greatly. Issei moved between the equipment, working out each muscle group of his body. When he could no longer lift anything in the enhanced gravity he moved to an open area and began simple combinations of attacks. Lifting and throwing his arms for punches, strikes and blocks took a severe toll under the burden of his weighted garments coupled with the enhanced gravity. Hours ticked by in a happy blur for the young warrior as his clothes dampened and clung to his body with sweat. Dark patches ran down from his armpits into his waist and his tail was saturated with sweat.
"Are you trying to kill yourself again?" A female voice asked from the clockwise entrance to the room and Issei looked up to see Rias leaning against the outer portion of the door frame.
She had positioned herself in such a way as to be just outside the gravity field. Issei turned to her and looked at her sweet face with a mischievous smile on it. That wouldn't bode to well for him. He would have to pay the piper for having slipped out but couldn't help responding to her comment with an arrogant smirk crossing his lips.
"I'm too superior to be killed." he declared as it were pure fact.
"Oh is that so," Rias remarked with a slight roll of her eyes but the tone of her voice said she heard that teasing tone of Issei though,
"Well mister invincible I just wanted to let you know that because you skipped out on Akeno and I to feed your addiction for self imposed torture, we have come up with the payment that you owe us." A smile was playing across Rias' lips as she finished.
Issei simply raised an eyebrow in response.
"For the next two weeks the peerage will be spending every day here training. You owe each of us, myself and Akeno, a date, just two of us, before these two weeks are up." She watched Issei's confident demeanour shatter to be replaced by that of a teen boy that wasn't sure how he was going to organize two dates.
"Don't worry though, Akeno and I are going on one Tuesday so you don't have to plan it before then. We will try to make sure ours isn't too much fun without you."
She winked seductively at that last comment and left Issei to his training as his brain rebooted. It took Issei longer then he would like to have to admit for his mind to be ready to begin his training again. Once he did he though, he grit his teeth with a confident smirk and twisted the dial up to forty times the gravity of the earth, the further enhancement of near lethal pressure allowing him to work the nerves of taking each girl on a date out of his body.
Despite the rigorous training a small portion of his brain continued to think of the girls, not to mention the fact that they would be going on a date without him first. The idea of both of them in a romantic setting, close together, it was something he had to shake from his mind lest it distract him fully.
Issei returned home shortly before dinner and joined the two gorgeous young women at the table. They had prepared a large portion of pork rashers cooked in a variety of different sauces. Grayfia had mentioned that the grocery bill for feeding Issei was close to that of a small village. The truth wasn't too different. Before the meal was over, dozens of plates had been stacked up in front of the famished teen. That wasn't to say he had been unsociable over the meal. Rias and Akeno had reiterated their intent for a date with him each and Issei had agreed once again. They explained that as they had known each other longer that a date between themselves was appropriate to be first. It also gave Issei time to prepare.
He couldn't deny either of those arguments and neither was he concerned with the girls going on a date together. He was comfortable enough with their relationships as they were. After the details of their romantic rendezvous had been discussed, the issue of the student council president was elaborated on for his benefit.
Souna Shitori, or as Issei discovered Sona Sitri, for that was in fact her actual name, was another high class devil of the Leviathan tribe. She used an alias for reasons that neither Akeno nor Rias could fathom, especially one that was so close to her actual name. Issei laughed as the girls told him of her pawns insistence on dueling him again after he left to train. The girls had tried to tell him that it was a fool's errand but he had insisted. Issei could appreciate the desire to prove yourself and not give in to a seemingly stronger opponent. If Genshirou wanted a rematch, then he would definitely have to give it to him some time in the future.
After eating the trio cleaned up, showered and relaxed by playing monopoly. The game started off casually enough but after Akeno took her fifth complete set Rias and Issei silently teamed up against their flirtatious girlfriend. Their silent alliance was for nothing though as the gods of the dice favoured Akeno extremely and the game was hers within the hour. Issei grumbled about losing while Rias was surprised that a game of monopoly could end so quickly and definitively as she knew it to drag out for half an eternity.
The group made their way to bed shortly after. Despite the fact that they would be face to face in a matter of moments after closing their eyes they still kissed good night in a manner that was becoming more passionate then the last before Issei took them into his night time realm.
Tonight's training took place in the shopping centre that Issei had fought his lizard opponents in only recently. Issei had Ddraig enhance the gravity of each room differently so that he would be unsure of how the gravity would affect him as he trained. The rooms ranged from fives times to sixty times earth's gravity. His armour now weighed a grand total of close to five metric tonnes. With the rooms set, Ddraig continued by summoning a series of metal poles which struck at Issei while small wisps of energy fired Ki like blasts at him. Before he could begin the girls asked to join him.
Issei was unsure as he didn't want them to be hurt by the severe gravity of some of the rooms. Neither of the young women listened to him though and each moved toward the first room. Issei sighed slightly, shrugged and followed them in to find that it was a simple ten times the gravity that was found on Earth. He moved around the room as if it were no change to his body, even with the amplified weight of his armour he found it easy. Akeno and Rias found themselves suddenly struggling to move. Both were forced to utilise their magic to let themselves move as they normally would.
Ddraig allowed the girls a few minutes to adjust to moving under the enhanced weight of the gravity before he sent his assistants to attack the group. The constructs were unaffected by any gravitational changes due to their magical construction and attacked the group immediately. The majority of their attacks were directed against Issei but the girls received their share of strikes. Issei dodged a blast and overhead strike simultaneously before throwing himself between Rias and a blast, taking the attack head on.
The blast struck against his armour rattling him briefly before he went on the offensive once more. The wisps and metallic poles were highly resistant and nigh on indestructible which allowed Issei to be able to go all out against them. He found himself time and time again though having to pull or push the girls aside lest they take a severe hit. He also blocked quite a few simply with his body. As the training moved toward a thirty times room the girls lagged behind and soon dropped out all together. Issei was torn between his desire to spend time with them and relief that now he could fight with less restraints upon him. He chose the latter and continued to fight for several hours more.
Exhaustion was building in him as the time passed and his ability to avoid making mistakes started to waiver. He was sluggishly dodging a pair of poles that were hell bent on caving in his skull in a fifty times room when a Ki blast from a Wisp propelled him through a wall into another room and he was forced to the ground. His lungs felt as if they would pop from the very weight of their existence. His armour dug deeply into his flesh and instantly Issei knew he was in the heaviest gravity that Ddraig had created. His instincts flared at him and he groaned as he rolled away from a strike that would have crushed his collar bone. The next three subsequent strikes landed true though and Issei was battered around the room like a ricocheting football.
His muscles cried out in fatigue as his body flared in pain. Issei let out a cry and flared his aura letting his power fully flow through himself. He felt the burden of his world lift at the same time as the surge of Ki flowed through him and he tumbled up onto his feet. A pole speared toward him and he met it head on with a right straight punch. His fist collided with the animated metal and neither budged. Issei let out another shout and willed his Ki to go higher. The pole flew back but in moments had collected back with the rest of Issei's assailants. Five metal poles and four wisps.
The groups of animated training aids floated ominously in front of him before all surging forward in unison. The poles flew in a wedge fashion like a formation of aircraft attacking while the wisps fired blasts between them. Issei stabilized himself and took in a breath as his hands cupped to his side. He was exhausted and it was time he won this match. He focused everything he had left as he screamed the phonetics of his greatest attacks.
"Gaaaa Liiiick Guuuuun. FIRE!" the final word tore from his lips as his purple aura exploded forward along his beam and engulfed his assailants. The animated objects lasted mere seconds before disintegrating along with most of the building in front of him as the beam crashed through it. As the beam vanished Issei collapsed onto his left knee. He was truly and completely spent and exhausted. He felt the gravity vanish and slowly hauled himself onto his feet. Leaving the shopping centre he came to the sight of the girls dueling under Ddraig's tutelage. The senior devils had rested before deciding to make use of the time rather then simply waiting for their stubborn boyfriend to finish his own training.
"Your attacks are becoming incredibly powerful." Ddraig stated as Issei approached. This earned a smile from the Saiyan.
"Not strong enough though. I know I can go so much further."
Ddraig nodded his mighty head as he turned to watch the two girls continue to weave through the sky while firing destruction and lighting magic at each other.
"I was thinking about your power actually. I think we should aim to learn to control your inner beast sooner rather then later." Ddraig said simply.
Before Issei could respond he continued,
"I've done the calculations on it and unless I am very much mistaken, to which I know I am not, then the next full moon is due around the time of this rating game that you will be attending. It wouldn't do very well for anyone, including Rias, for you to lose control then."
Issei listened and nodded at the reasoning of his partner. It would make sense that the stronger he became, the stronger his bestial side became as well. If it awoke while he was in the rating game then that would prove disastrous. Heck any time it awoke would prove to be a terrible situation for everyone involved.
"How do you think I could learn to control it?" Issei asked slowly. He had already put a bit of thought into it himself but everything he considered always came back to the simple fact that he wasn't aware of anything he did when he had transformed. If he had no personal control then how could he learn to master it?
"Well I believe it is fair to assume that as you are in a somewhat committed relationship with Miss Rias and Miss Akeno, that you would never voluntarily harm or allow either of them to come into harm. Am I correct?" Ddraig stated somewhat slyly, finishing with his question only for polite clarification.
"Yes." Issei replied simply. He wasn't sure that he felt too comfortable about where he thought this line of reasoning was travelling.
"So I was thinking." Ddraig continued. "That if I was to materialize a full moon while the girls were present you could transform and then they would help you retain control. If you lost it I would just knock you out again."
Yep it had gone precisely where Issei didn't want it to go. The idea of the girls around his monstrous side was something he was not comfortable with. Especially after he found out how much trouble Ddraig had gone through the last time they'd fought.
"Are you sure you can even beat my beast side this time?" Issei asked with a smirk knowing it would annoy the dragon greatly. The result was instantaneous.
"Of course I can. I will have you know that last time I was caught off guard and completely unprepared. Don't presume to think that you have become powerful enough to challenge me even as a great hairy ape." the dragon spat back at his partner.
Both males continued to banter back and forth unaware of the girls approaching them.
"What are you too arguing about?" Akeno asked as she and Rias landed down beside them both.
Akeno stood while Rias leaned against her in a mixture of affection and laziness.
"I was simply suggesting a manner in which Issei might learn to control his bestial side." Ddraig stated as if it were the most straight forward endeavour in history.
"Don't mislead them." Issei replied before explaining everything to the two girls.
Once he was done both beauties looked at each other before nodding simultaneously. "We're in." they both stated.
Issei groaned at the idea of either of them being in harms way but he knew that now that they had made up their minds there was absolutely nothing he could do about it. Both could be almost painfully stubborn at time. Ddraig mentioned that they would try this once Issei had exhausted himself with training but not tonight as he wanted to teach the girls some magic that would help if things went awry. With that Issei resumed his gravity training at time fifty the gravity of earth and the two girls joined Ddraig for his lesson.
"What are you going to teach us?" Rias asked politely. It wasn't ever heard of for the Red Dragon Emperor himself to teach someone. Let alone someone who wasn't his partner. This, as well as the respect that both girls had for the great dragon, caused both girl's to take his interest in them as quite the compliment.
"Well during a run in that Issei had with Raynare she enhanced the sunlight momentarily to such an extent that it blinded Issei and allowed her to escape. I have been thinking on this for quite some time and believe I have developed a spell that will allow both of you to create a flash of light so bright as to stun and blind an opponent momentarily." Ddraig explained happily to the two devils.
The girls thought on his words and both saw how not only could this help with dealing with Issei as a giant raging ape but also in the upcoming rating game. Both agreed eagerly and began learning the new spell for the remainder of the night's training session while Issei continued to push himself relentlessly toward his current goal of learning the red Ki aura that the Saiyan in the memory had wielded.
Sunday was the beginning of the peerage's official training. With Asia, Kiba and Koneko living so close by to them, the entire peerage met at the Hyoudou residence for breakfast before heading to the academy for the days training. Rias spoke frantically about how the next two weeks would be their 'Boot camp' as she called it and reiterated how each member would train to prepare for the rating game. By the time they all arrived at the clubhouse each member including Akeno and Issei were happy to just begin their training and move away from the slightly neurotic and fretting Rias.
Asia and Koneko moved away together pairing up to begin the newest devil's lessons in the martial arts of self defence. She would spend this first week learning physical techniques and for the second she would pair up with Akeno and Rias to learn defensive magic and enhance her healing spells.
Unlike her initial instruction of Issei, Koneko took a much slower and more passive approach with Asia. Koneko viewed the young nun as a pupil in need of good and precise instruction rather then a rival to combat against. Having never fought before, Asia was rather uncomfortable with the idea of striking someone and directly inflicting pain or injury. She much preferred techniques that put her opponent off balance or produced distance between them. Fortunately Koneko's fighting style was easily able to accommodate and she began to pick up the blocks, redirects and throws that were taught to her.
Kiba took to the blue gravity room where he trained in ten times the gravity of Earth whilst focusing on summoning and manipulating multiple demon swords at once. He would strike and thrust, parry and block with one while consciously controlling the summoned swords to perform combat flurries of their own. The goal, which was rather ambitious, was for Kiba to be able to control the demonic swords without any conscious effort. This would allow him in theory to be able to engage large swathes of enemies at once and only the power of his summoned weapons and number of swords would limit his potential.
The young knight relished the opportunity to achieve something unheard of though. If he could achieve this feat then he would be the first summoned weapon wielder to have ever done so. The enhanced gravity placed such a burden on his body that it affected his mental ability to concentrate on what each of his floating constructs was doing, as he fatigued the blades would falter and stumble in their manoeuvres. Perfecting this training and the environmental burden was his first true hurdle toward his illustrious goal.
Akeno and Rias conducted their training inside the darkened clubhouse. They continued to attempt to master the flash spell that Ddraig had taught to them. The spell allowed them to enhance any light source to over billions of times it's brightness instantaneously. As such it would blind and disorientate any unsuspecting opponent. They were unable to gain the effect if there was no light source to amplify though. So far both girls were struggling to get the magic to perform as required. The flashes that they were creating could be described as inconsistent at best. Some would be delayed or at other times flash repeatedly but only give off a weak glow. Neither girl complained though as they focused on the precise technique the great dragon had shown them.
As for Issei himself, he continued his training as he always did by pushing himself to the point of nearing unconsciousness and only giving his body enough rest to avoid completely losing conscious control before continuing once again. The morning passed and began to approach lunch, occasionally Kiba would look over toward Issei training and watch him as if looking for inspiration or ideas in his regime. The knight did make the mistake of entering the green room that Issei had chosen to occupy and was promptly flattened into the ground by the sudden and drastic increase in gravitational effects. Issei had merely shoved his friend out of the room with his foot before continuing as if his training hadn't even been interrupted.
Lunch time finally arrived and Issei ceased his continuous workout as his enhanced sense of smell detected the wafts of cooked food in the air. He shut off the gravitation machine and left the chamber with Kiba following him. The two boys were the last to arrive at the lunch table and were pleasantly surprised to find that Sirzechs and Grayfia had joined them. The group dished up their food with Asia giving herself a headache once again by saying grace. Sirzechs tried to dissuade the young girl from hurting herself but she simply told the Lord of Hell that nothing could destroy her faith regardless of which side of the religious political fence she was sat upon. In true Gremory fashion, the great Satan simply shrugged with a bemused expression at her dedication as everyone began eating.
"As enjoyable as this is, this isn't just a social call, we've brought a bit of news regarding the upcoming match." Sirzechs stated loudly yet in a friendly manner to the group. All eyes fell on him as they continued to eat while he spoke.
"Grayfia will be adjudicating the match and the arena will be held in a Gremory owned locale so we know it won't be tampered with."
The group all nodded happily at this fact. "Now unfortunately there is a also a slight hiccup."
At this Rias looked concerned and Akeno and Issei scowled to which Sirzechs largely ignored before continuing.
"As Issei isn't a devil or a member of your evil piece peerage he won't be able to initially participate." Sirzechs finalised to the rather shocked faces of the group other then his wife who was already aware of the topics he would speak of.
"What?" the group protested.
"I hab toob fibt." the Saiyan in question said around a mouthful of food.
Neither of his girlfriends corrected his manners while Grayfia gave him a playful tap on the head like a misbehaving child and he swallowed his food in anticipation of the Lord of Hell's response.
"You will be able to fight." Sirzechs replied choosing to ignore being spoken to in such a manner once again by the Saiyan.
Sirzechs was becoming quite fond of Issei despite his rather unrefined and direct nature or perhaps because of it.
"You simply will have to wait for the members of Rias' peerage to be knocked out first."
Everyone present looked at Sirzechs quizzically and waited for him to continue.
"The council really was not all that happy about the idea of a non-devil participating, especially one that is not even a part of a peerage officially. But due to the fact that Riser has a full fifteen person peerage and Rias' set is only four others excluding Issei they agreed that he would be allowed to participate if her original peerage had fallen." Sirzechs finished explaining.
Everyone accepted what had been said as it was something they were unable to change. It put a bit of a spanner in the works of their plan but not irredeemably so. Issei was definitely keen to participate but at the same time he wanted his friends to win without needing to rely on his strength and so he was caught in a bit of a catch twenty two.
Conversation around the table became lighter as the group continued to eat lunch. Rias was keeping the worry from her voice that she wouldn't have Issei initially in the fight to determine her fate but she wouldn't allow the part of her mind that screamed worry to show and affect her team, so kept up a relaxed composure. With the food finished everyone began to make their way back to continue with their training when a hand landed on Issei's shoulder stopping him. He turned to find Grayfia and Sirzechs standing behind him. The two noble devils waited for the rest of the group to be well outside of earshot before speaking.
"How confident are you in defeating Riser?" Sirzechs asked directly.
"Could there be any other outcome." Issei replied immediately and with absolute confidence.
"Good." The king of Hell replied with a sincere smile. "Because the fate of my sister is likely to fall on your shoulders."
"If you are so opposed to it then why the bloody hell did you agree to let this happen?" Issei asked directly of Sirzechs.
Issei had been keeping his opinion on Rias' arranged marriage relatively private up until now but here he had the opportunity that he had wanted, to hear the answers directly from the man who had put her in the situation.
Sirzechs took a moment to speak as if considering his answer.
"I had no option. I had to sacrifice her to ensure peace."
As soon as the words left his lips Sirzechs realised they had been a mistake. Grayfia realised it too but neither were quick enough to prevent the fist that implanted itself into the king of hells stomach from the angered Saiyan.
"Sacrificed." Issei spat back as both a clarification and a question.
The idea that anyone could sacrifice someone he loved so blatantly had caused him to see red and while he did usually like Sirzechs, that hadn't saved the older man from the strike. To Sirzechs credit he took the sudden blow well, being able to maintain his composure and breathe despite the pain radiating through his abdomen and torso.
"What my husband meant to say," Grayfia began stepping in as she realised Sirzechs was only able to maintain his stoic posture by not speaking.
She suspected if he spoke he may be over come by the pain of Issei's strike,
"Is that we were forced into this position due to the unfortunate circumstances of trying to create and maintain a lasting peace, which resulted in us having to make undesirable concessions with powerful families that we would never have imagined any chance of doing in any other situation."
Her answer was far more eloquent and Issei paused to think on her words. His eyes drifted off to the wall to which Rias and Akeno were on the other side of as if looking through it to the two girls he was quickly falling in love with. While he was spaced out, Sirzechs took the opportunity to slightly bend forward and release his held breath. His eyes bulged slightly as he silently screamed out the pain before recomposing himself and straightening up. He stepped forward to the Saiyan that had just struck him for the sake of his sister.
"If I had known any other option then I would have taken it. Rias is precious beyond words to me but as a leader I had to weigh up the fate of my sister against the fate of the millions of citizens who our peace accords effected. I hate to say it but the deal was for the greater good with the peace it bought."
Sirzechs spoke the words sincerely as he knew the Saiyan was judging heavily what he said.
Issei thought on what had been told to him before turning back to the pair and nodding.
"Alright. I accept the reasons behind it." He said sincerely. "I guess I will just have to save her then."
This statement was said with his arrogant tone and he allowed his cocky smile to take his lips. Issei turned and began to leave before turning back to the two devils.
"Oh and make sure the arena has a roof. I looked it up and it should be a full moon that night. We don't want any ah issues." he said still smirking before leaving.
Once he had left Grayfia turned to her husband and rested her head on his shoulder.
"I guess we will have to modify the arena." She said thoughtfully before playfully jabbing her husband.
"I didn't expect him to so easily defeat the great and mighty Sirzechs Lucifer." Her voice taking on a teasing tone as she spoke.
"Ah whatever. I just didn't want to antagonize him further." Sirzechs replied with fake indignation while silently thanking that Issei had so much power. Riser didn't stand a chance.
That afternoon progressed as the morning had with each member continuing to work diligently. Issei felt more determined then ever to save Rias from the fate that had befallen her and trained more intensely. He didn't increase the gravity as he knew he wasn't ready but thrashed himself more thoroughly in each drill and exercise he conducted. By the time they all returned home he was truly exhausted.
That night passed as many others had for him with him training while Akeno and Rias gained leaps and bounds in their mastery of the new spell under Ddraig's tutelage. By the end of the night and their awakening on Monday morning both girls could easily amplify and control the light output of any source of light. Akeno went one step closer by utilising a tiny burst of her lightning magic as the source to be amplified which simply negated the limit of having to find a light source to enhance and giving the busty seductress a wonderful ace in the hole to use on any opponent.
Monday the group continued where they had left off Sunday afternoon with Rias and Akeno practicing their magic in the white and yellow room of the gravitation chamber. They set the gravity to twelve times that of earth, the same as Kiba was utilising this day and fought against each other with not just magic but also hand to hand combat. Neither girl was tremendously skilled in close quarter fighting but they knew it was a skill that they would need to improve lest it become a liability. They used their new blinding spell against each other as well to test it out in a combat sense. Asia and Koneko had migrated into the red entrance room of the chamber but left the gravity at that of earth's as Asia was not at a stage yet where she could handle any increase in gravity. They were both however wearing weighted clothing provided by Rias to increase their training and help strengthen Asia in both terms of raw strength and endurance.
During lunch Issei overheard Asia probing Akeno and Rias for as many details of their upcoming date as she could get. The pair has intended to keep the date quiet but accidentally, or perhaps deliberately on Akeno's part, they had let it slip to the younger blonde while talking to her. Issei tried to avoid eavesdropping on the details they mentioned but did listen when Asia talked about dates that Kiba had taken her on. Issei had been unable to think of any suitable places to take either of his girlfriends so far. With Yuuma he had kept it simple and generic, a way to simply get to know her at the time with the added guise of touring the girl around town.
With his two beautiful girlfriends however he wanted to make it something completely special that both girls would cherish as he knew that their date together would most likely be. As he listened he realised that Kiba must be a bit of a hidden Casanova and resounded himself to probe Kiba for advice on dating. After eating the group returned to their training and Issei waited until everyone was busy with their own routines before moving into Kiba's room and approaching the knight.
"Sup man. How's it going?" He began nonchalantly.
Kiba stopped his workout and wiped the thick sweat from his eyes.
"It's alright. Great actually. This gravity training is amazing. What do you need?" He replied happily.
Issei shifted nervously while scratching the back of his head.
"Well as you may or may not know I will be taking both Rias and Akeno on dates over the next two weeks and I couldn't help but hear over lunch that you are pretty good at planning them. So ah could you give me some pointers?" Issei asked feeling like an idiot for doing so.
Kiba looked at him for a minute before chuckling with a broad smile.
"So the mighty Saiyan does have flaws and weaknesses huh." His voice was light as he poked fun at Issei, who replied with a lifted eyebrow and sarcastic head nod.
"Don't worry man. I'll help ya." Kiba said to which Issei thanked him and the two began discussing the intricacies of a good date.
Issei soon realised that where he seemed to naturally understand martial arts and fighting, Kiba naturally understood women. The blonde boy could easily read what sort of activities and places would appeal to different girls and how different approaches would make both Rias and Akeno happy. Issei took note of everything he said. When they were done the pair fist bumped and went back on their own way to continue training.
That night while the girls were doing whatever it is exactly that young women do for large portions of time after finishing a shower involving hair and beauty products, Issei surfed the internet on his laptop planning the dates he would take each of the senior beauties on. He assessed each option against the advice Kiba had given him and soon he was confident that he had set out a night that both Rias and Akeno would be delighted to be a part of. He heard the sound of them giggling and laughing as they left the bathroom.
Quickly so as to avoid their curiosity he tabbed out of the Firefox browser and into an episode of Naruto as the girls sat either side of him, both moving in close so as to cuddle into his warmth. He was determined that the dates would be a surprise. The trio remained that way watching various episodes of different shows until they all agreed to head to bed for the night. Issei smirked as an idea struck him and as they attempted to stand up he acted.
In a brief flash of speed he merely lifted both Akeno and Rias over his shoulder ignoring any protesting whilst carrying both to the bedroom, cave man style. Protesting changed into laughter and merry squeals whilst they continued attempt to escape his grasp and to lightly thump on his back. Issei dumped the pair unceremoniously onto the bed before flopping down over them and tickling the pair into submission. It became highly evident that both girls were highly ticklish which Issei exploited with using the soft fur of his tail as an additional weapon.
Both girls laughed and begged for mercy before Issei finally sat upright and beat his check like King Kong in victory with a broad smile. His victory was short lived though as both girls acted, Akeno wrenching his legs out from under him as Rias pounced on his torso, the result was the Saiyan dropping backward like a felled tree with both girls above him. He struggled back lightly as the pair now proclaimed their victory over him. Quickly Issei was distracted though as he realised that with them leaning forward over him beside each other, the light material of the night clothes fell forward presenting the fact that neither wore underwear underneath very clearly to the younger male.
In previous situations Issei had forced his eyes to remain on their faces and away from places he shouldn't look but with the increased intimacy and expressions of affection, he felt his glance drop down past their gorgeous faces and his eyes took in the soft flesh and outline of pink nipples, the immediate affect of which was a stiffening in his pelvis, heavy blush to his cheeks and mouth drying.
Issei's eyes tore back up as he felt a leg brush against his crotch through his pajamas and his eyes locked with Akeno's, the dark haired girl wearing a blush as thick as him as her leg was joined by Rias' who ground against him as well. Issei found himself unable to respond and wished immensely that this was not a dream. Both girls snuggled down onto him, their hands sliding down his body and Issei's ran over the soft fabric of their clothes and exposed flesh, he felt his hand trail up their thighs and theirs wandered down to his hip.
Each seemed to pause and look at each other, all three wore heavy blushes, lidded eyes and were clearly giddy with anticipation but none moved further. Issei seized the initiative and brought his hands up to gently grasp each girl's head bringing them into his, his mouth embracing each and kissing them deeply, back and forth between each with almost no time between separating his lips from one before taking the other.
As he finally pulled apart the girl's lips locked together as they settled down on his chest, tongues meeting and exploring each other with eyes closing before breaking apart at last and whilst curled together romantically being shifted into Issei's mind.
* Grassy plain, Issei's mindscape *
Issei had thrashed himself for hours in seventy times the gravity of earth. His body roared in pain and exhaustion as a result. Ddraig had thrown boulders at him whilst Rias and Akeno fired spells at him from outside the field of gravity. Outside of Issei's bubble of self imposed torture, the gravity sat at fifteen times that of the Earth, thus all three achieved an effective progression without the two women being squashed into a pancake. Eventually Issei collapsed into sweaty metal heap on the ground. His armoured plates were slippery on both the inside and outside from his sweat. Ddraig removed all the gravity fields and approached the group.
"I think now is a perfect time to work on your control." The great dragon said while looking toward the girls.
"Both of you stand where Issei can see you and speak to him. If this works he should be able to retain control."
If any of the trio had wanted to object they had no chance as the dragon changed the environment to midnight with a giant full moon above them. Issei resisted the urge to look at it for a moment but the pull of it was such that without meaning to he found himself staring up at the glowing orb. Both girls spoke to him and encouraged him to be himself as he looked. He felt something build in himself. It was raw, unrefined. It resisted all control. It resisted him. It wanted something. It wouldn't be denied.
Rias watched as the armoured figure of Issei rose to his feet and stared at the moon. Both Rias and Akeno continued to speak to their boyfriend but if it was helping they couldn't tell. They spoke of anything, Ddraig had assured them that merely hearing their voices was what would be the most help in preventing Issei from losing control. Minutes passed as Issei stared entranced at the floating orb above him when Rias felt a presence all around her. She turned and saw that both Akeno and Ddraig could feel it too. Akeno looked unsure while the dragon looked on edge. The presence was archaic and primeval. Rias then noticed the still silence in the air. An almost unnatural and deathly quiet.
She realised all too late that both her and Akeno had stopped speaking in their shock at the presence. She turned back and was greeted by the half transformed sight of her boyfriend. Issei had grown over three times his height and thick fur was bursting from his flesh. His armour had been shattered at the seams and lay in the craters around himself. As their boyfriend finished transforming Rias turned to Akeno.
"Do you think he is aware this time?" She asked with uncertainty in her voice.
As if in reply to her question the great ape opened its mouth and roared viciously at the dragon before it. The monster had no interest in the small devils around it when one of its size was in its sight.
Ddraig replied with a roar of his own and shielded the girls as the ape launched forward. Ddraig swiped his tail and knocked the beast Issei aside. Issei crashed into the field below his feet. As his monstrous body hit the ground it tore great chunks of dirt, rock and grass up in a shower of debris.
"Doesn't look like it worked." Akeno said with a voice that didn't hide all her fear.
Ddraig took the offensive not giving the beast a moment's breather. He knew from last time that this side of Issei would happily kill him. It seemed his bestial side took offence to another of its side residing in here as well. Claws and limbs flew as the two great monsters tussled. They snarled and lunged at each other. Ddraig unleashed torrents of flame over the hide of the ape the burnt at exposed skin but failed to slow the beast.
It was lucky that the beast didn't possess Issei's fighting skills as it merely assaulted with brute force and animalistic rage. If it fought intelligently then Ddraig would have been severely outclassed.
As the pair tussled back and forth Akeno grabbed Rias' hand and the pair took to the sky. They readied themselves to fire their blinding light at the monstrous form of Issei. Both knew it would be foolish to try and speak with him at the moment and that they would need to blind him first but if they unleashed the magic now then Ddraig would be affected as well.
As the dragon in question swiped a mighty claw at his partner he continued to speak to him, urging him on to control and fight the base instincts that were driving him into his rage. Issei replied by bellowing and pounding his fists against his chest in a show of dominance that despite the seriousness of the situation caused Rias' mind to wander back to his display of victory over them before their romantic encounter, she had to force the blush from her face whilst watching Issei charging back into Ddraig.
The dragon swung his tail in a wide sweep to once again knock the ape to the ground but Issei had more cunning then he had been letting on. At the last safe moment the ape stepped aside and caught the tail in his mighty paws. He lifted and swung the dragon into the ground, stunning the mighty emperor. His daze was only momentary but it allowed the enraged ape to close the distance once again and began beating down on the armoured hide of the dragon.
With Ddraig under Issei his face was covered by the furry mass of the ape and so Akeno and Rias dived down to in line with the ape's eyes. The instant the red eyes of the beast locked onto the girls they unleashed their blinding magic and turned away while shielding their own eyes so as to not blind themselves as well.
The ape roared and stumbled backward swatting at nothing as its entire world was a stinging white blur. The devils flew in close to his head and began talking to him soothingly while he stumbled aimlessly. Ddraig climbed back to his feet and stalked forward, he was ready to pounce if the ape attacked the girls. Issei's vision returned and he was looking out over the grass at nothing while noises were speaking into his ears. They irritated him but less then other noises did. Something about them was calming, soothing. The ape stopped thrashing and stood listening to the voices. They slowly changed from irritating to pleasant.
The ape turned slowly and his eyes lay on the dragon before him. All thoughts of the voices left his mind as rage once again took over and he bellowed while charging the great red lizard which pounced at him in reply. Akeno and Rias backed away again while the titans resumed their struggle for dominance.
"I think it was working." Akeno stated and Rias nodded in agreement.
"Yeah but when he saw Ddraig he just went back to being angry."
Both Akeno and Rias watched as the pair of giant warriors struck and blocked blows from the other. Their strikes were becoming progressively more powerful and vicious the longer they fought. It seemed that the ape was hell bent on rending apart the dragon before him while Ddraig was unable to hold back any strength if he wanted to avoid losing to this adversary. The fact that the bestial Issei was fighting to kill whilst Ddraig clearly didn't want to cause any permanent harm to his favoured host was clearly hampering the dragon's ability to fight effectively.
"We need to help him again." Rias said firmly while watching the dragon slowly lose any advantage that he could gain and be put on the back foot.
Akeno agreed but was unsure how they could. The girls floated watching the fight as Rias drifted forward and turned back to her friend. Akeno was silhouetted in the moonlight.
"The moon." She said slowly. "If we get rid of it then that should work right?" Her voice a half statement and half question.
"How?" Akeno asked.
"Simple, ask Ddraig to get rid of it. He made it, he can remove it. You speak to him, I will distract Issei."
With that said she turned and sped toward the great ape of her boyfriend before her girlfriend could object. Akeno yelled after Rias to stop but followed her down regardless.
Rias reached Issei as the beast was striking his closed fist against Ddraig's face. She ducked in close and then unleashed a massive orb of destruction energy against her boyfriends head. The ape was rocked back off balance and crashed to the ground while howling in pain. Akeno shot down and began speaking to Ddraig explaining the plan while Rias dodged a swipe from the enraged monster as he returned to his feet. She spoke soothingly and apologetically to the boy who had captured her heart while she ducked and weaved through his attempts to grab her and peppered him with blasts of magic.
Ddraig agreed with the plan and instantly erased the moon bringing daytime back to the mindscape. The effects were instantaneous as the beast of Issei began to falter and stumble before rapidly shrinking. The whole time he continued to thrash at Rias who simply flew out of arms reach. She watched as the Issei she knew and cherished reappeared before her.
Issei wore an expression of utter confusion when at last his mind returned to him. He was standing naked as the day he was born in the field he had been training in. His armour was littered in craters and great rifts had been carved from the ground around him. The two devils landed in front of him and Issei looked at them before noticing their gazes that began at his chest, then lowered and fixated on his now exposed body drawing burning blushing to their cheeks. He looked down at his body and his hands darted to cover himself up. His own face took a deep red as Rias stared in simple desire while Akeno gave him a deep lustful stare. Issei looked at Ddraig for help and the dragon laughed while clothes materialized in a pile in front of Issei. The Saiyan grabbed the clothes and turned away while dressing.
"Nice arse." He heard Akeno tease and the blush deepened as he quickly whipped on the underwear and other clothes. After regaining some dignity he turned back to the group and approached while his tail swung freely in the air behind him.
"So er," He began still feeling rather self conscious in the gazes of the two women, "How did it go?"
Both girls dropped their desire filled expressions to be replaced with concern as they told him what had happened. They mentioned how he had become far more placid while they spoke but then became aggressive again when he saw Ddraig.
"I believe your primitive side sees me as a rival. Controlling that form while I am around will be difficult." The dragon hypothesized.
The group agreed. They all discussed ways in which they could move forward for the remainder of their time before the trio returned to the physical world.
* Down town Kuoh, Tuesday night *
Rias and Akeno walked hand in hand through the centre of Kuoh to their destination for the night. They had left Issei at home and knew perfectly well that the Saiyan would be fighting and training for the whole night. Rias had taken the lead on the date which was something that had pleasantly surprised Akeno. Both girls wore tight fitting dresses under loose light jackets and wore high heeled elegant shoes. Each girl had applied just enough make up that their natural beauty was enhanced without being overly done. Rias led her girlfriend to an upbeat building with neon lights and a throng of people inside and out. Akeno giggled as they approached the night club.
"I never thought you would be the clubbing type Rias." She said with another giggle.
"Why? I enjoy dancing." She said seriously before taking on a smirk very much reminiscent of Akeno herself,
"Besides I get to dance sexy with you here."
Akeno stopped giggling and paused at what her girlfriend had just said but didn't stop letting Rias pull her along.
Rias led the way, directing them both to approach the line of people but didn't queue up. Instead the pair walked to the front and approached the bouncer. Akeno slipped in front of Rias with a wink to her girlfriend and allowed magic to flow through her veins. The large man stopped the girls but as Akeno touched his forearm, a glazed over expression came to his eyes and he waved both girls in to the protests of a few other patrons that had been waiting in line.
The music blared loudly through the club and the dark spaces contrasting with the bright lighting of the dance floor and bar gave the whole building an energetic vibe. The pair made their way to the bar and ordered drinks. Both girls were under age but had no qualms with consuming alcohol on occasion and having made it inside the staff assumed the pair were of age, or didn't care to find out. Rias ordered a tequila sunrise while Akeno opted for vodka red bull. As they waited for their drinks to be made Akeno picked up the shot menu and gave it a quick peruse. One drink stood out and Akeno knew it was her chance to get Rias back for teasing her. She showed the menu to Rias and pointed out the item.
"Look, they have a shot called wet pussy. I'm gonna have to taste one later."
She said the last sentence as a clear double entendre which caused Rias' beautiful face to brighten and look away from her while she giggled at her girlfriend's sudden embarrassment. Akeno smirked at Rias inability to form words but their moment ended when the bartender brought their drinks to them. The two girls drank their drinks while moving away from the bar and toward the dance floor. The warm feeling of the alcohol spread through them as they swayed side by side on the edge of the dance floor to the beat of the song that was playing.
Once they had finished and disposed of their glasses on a nearby table, Akeno took Rias by the hand and led her into the crowd of dancing people. The two girls found a spot and began dancing together to the increasing beat of the electronic music. The music was so loud that they would have to shout to hear each other and so each let their body do the talking for them as they slowly closed the distance between each other as they danced. Before long their skin was touching in places as their hips rubbed against each other to the sway of the music. The two girls smiled flirtatiously at each other and soon found themselves completely ignoring the people around them.
The music took a slower pace and Akeno placed her hands on Rias hips as she did the same. The pair danced together as their lips connected. After a long minute they broke their embrace and left the dance floor hand in hand back to the bar where they ordered another round of drinks. They chatted close to each other and spoke seductively into their ears as they waited. Their fingers intertwined.
With the drinks placed before them, each drank before a smile that could only ever be described as devilish filled Akeno's face moments before she swiped Rias' drink and upended the entire thing into her own mouth. Rias made to protest, noticing that her girlfriend had already finished her own drink but was unable as said girlfriend locked lips with her, opening their mouths in a deep kiss that allowed her to return the drink from her own mouth back to Rias'. The Gremory heiress' eyes closed as she deepened the kiss further whilst swallowing the drink returned to her by the girl in her arms.
The night progressed on and both girls enjoyed each others closeness and touch with seductive looks and continued kisses. A few times different guys attempted to pick up either girl or make lewd comments to them but they simply brushed them off and focused on enjoying their time together. Multiple times they found themselves on the dance floor with their hands behind the others back making out in a way that was probably more public then they would have if they had been completely sober.
It was well past three in the morning when the girls stumbled out of the night club. The cool night air tickled across their warm rosy skin. They were hand in hand and swayed slightly as they made their way home. Neither planned to walk far and the pair noticed and made for an alley that they could teleport from without causing mass hysteria.
Rias led the way as they moved into a suitably discrete location. It was between two shops that were closed up for the night and had only one entrance. As they walked in a hand grabbed Akeno's shoulder and stopped the pair. The girls turned around to be face to face with a man who had attempted to chat them up in the night club. He was tall, over six feet and probably close to Issei's size in terms of muscle mass but less defined. He had slick brown hair that was styled to the side and light brown eyes that leered at the two smaller girls. His appear was of average attraction and he was well dressed in a white collared shirt and dark chino pants.
"Where are you two going? Come have some fun with me." The man said lecherously to the pair.
"Nah we are happy with each other thanks." Akeno replied casually and tugged her shoulder from the man's grip.
The man's face split into a crude smile.
"Oh I think you're mistaken. I wasn't asking. You will have fun with me." He said in a demanding tone as if he thought it was a sure thing.
"My girlfriend and I said no, now buzz off jerk." Rias shot back to him in a tone that was more forceful then she would usually use with a human.
The man's face twisted in rage and his hand shot out toward the girls again.
"You will do as I want, you stupid little dyke whores." He snarled.
Before his hand could reach them though he crumbled to the ground clutching his stomach. Akeno had hit him with a tiny burst of electricity. Her eyes shone with anger as she used her foot to roll him onto his back and stepped on his chest. The man's eyes bulged at the amount of force the small beautiful girl produced.
"How dare you speak to my Rias like that, you asshole." She spat at him in anger.
The man's expression turned from pain to horror as large black bat like wings folded out from Akeno's back and bright lightning sparked to life in her hands, dancing around her palm and climbing up her fingers. The girl looked down on him with absolute contempt and disgust before she turned and left. There was a flash of dazzling red light and then nothing. Minutes passed and the scared man slowly sat up with his abdominal muscles screaming in pain. The girls had vanished into thin air and he realised that he had defecated himself.
* Kuoh Academy, Kuoh Town *
It was now Thursday morning and the peerage was training once again. When Akeno and Rias had relayed their encounter the day before Issei had burst into laughter at the idea that they had caused a man to soil himself. He did know though that if he had been there, then the outcome for the man would have been much worse.
Wednesday had passed without any charge to routine and it seemed today would be much more of the same. Kiba and Koneko however swapped roles with the knight taking over the instruction of his girlfriend and the young nekomata girl training by herself in the enhanced gravity. She had trained Asia for fours days and now Kiba would take her for the next four before Akeno and Rias instructed her for the last six.
Koneko had been itching to try out the enhanced gravity and began at twenty times that of the earth. Her enhanced strength, speed and endurance as a rook helped her gain leaps and bounds with her training in the gravity. She was determined to catch up to Issei who was toiling away under eighty two times the gravity of the earth. As the group finished lunch Issei nudged Akeno and the beautiful girl gave him her full attention.
"Once we finish and clean up this afternoon, put on something light and airy for our date." he informed her in an instructive manner.
"Oh not giving me much notice huh." She replied but inside was screaming with excitement to see if her date with the Saiyan would be as wonderful as the one with Rias.
"Nope. That's the plan." Issei replied and left Akeno behind with Rias as the two girls began gossiping and speculating about where he would be taking her that afternoon.
Issei trained more intensely that afternoon as he fought hard against his internal flutters, trying to ward off the nerves of his impending date with Akeno. He felt confident in taking the older girl out and yet the butterflies continued to assault his stomach. He focused on driving his body on more in the artificial gravity. He had made himself a promise that once he was able to train at full capacity in eighty five times the gravity of earth that he would then shift his focus to learning the Ki aura amplification technique he had witnessed in the memory.
The day came to an end and the group returned to the Hyoudou residence for dinner after which Issei and Akeno showered and changed for their date. Issei wore a pair of dark pants, a yellow collared shirt over a white singlet. His tail tucked around his waist under the open shirt as usual. Akeno came out wearing a light green summer dress, sunglasses and a white summer hat.
"Is this appropriate?" She asked the Saiyan.
"Perfect." He said while swallowing the lump that had formed in his throat.
Rias felt the same lump as she looked on her partners dressed up for their date. "You both look great."
The dating duo left the house and Issei led her to a secluded spot out of view before lifting her bridle style and propelling himself into the air. They quickly ascended to an altitude that made them invisible from the ground below and Issei took off with his white aura blaring around them. Despite the height both were warm in the afternoon light the suns rays gave off amplified by the heat of the powerful boy's Ki around them.
The country below them changed rapidly and soon they found themselves at a secluded woodland lake hundreds of miles from Kuoh town. Issei lowered them to the ground and led Akeno to a blanket and basket that was already laid out.
She smiled as she saw the date laid out before them. They were on the bank of a river with perfectly clear waters. Serene and peaceful were ideal words to describe the luscious location.
"When did you set all this up?" She asked inquisitively.
"While you were in the shower. I had to go at my fastest to make it here and back in time." Issei replied laughing lightly.
The pair sat on the blanket and chatted about all different topics of things they enjoyed while eating strawberries that were packing in the basket. Akeno was pleased to see that Issei controlled his desire to consume all the food while with her on the date and left the majority of things for her. He pulled out chocolate dipping sauce that Akeno enjoyed. Teasingly she ate the food as slowly and with as much emphasis to her lips as she could and was pleased to see the touch of crimson to his face as he watched her lips pucker around the food.
Issei fought against his embarrassment and growing arousal by striking up swift conversation, which despite how much the pair had chatted they found that there was no shortage of topics to discuss while they spent the time together. After a while, with his hormones once again subdued, Issei invited Akeno into the lake with him and she agreed happily. He reached into the basket and grabbed out one of her bikinis that he had snuck in for the date but as he turned to her, he found that she was already ankle deep in the water in just her lingerie. The dress, hat and glasses discarded on the river bank.
Issei felt his hormones rage again, the blush returning at her perfect visage in the lacy material and then dropped his own clothes entering in just his briefs. His tail swished happily from side to side as he made his way to the rivers edge. The water was cool but held some of the heat of the day so that it was pleasant and not a shock to the system.
Together they swam out until the riverbed was well below their feet and tread water close to each other. Issei swam closer to Akeno and as he leant in to kiss her she splashed him in the face with a burst of laughter. Issei responded with a strong splash and the game was on. Each swimming away and then splashing the other while trying to avoid being splashed in turn. They laughed and splashed each other for a time until Issei ducked deep under the water and vanished. Akeno looked around waiting for him to reappear when she was yanked under the water. She twisted and found Issei pulling her down to him by her ankles. The pair tussled playfully under the water but Akeno's lung capacity while impressive was nothing compared to Issei's and she was finding herself in need of air.
She went to pull free to the surface but Issei pulled her into his embrace and kissed her deeply. As he did he pushed air into her lungs. With her need to breathe alleviated Akeno relaxed into the kiss and returned it as passionately as Issei did. They remained intertwined under the water, turning and twisted as the current swayed them along, until neither could remain and Issei launched them up out of the water where they took deep breaths and floated in the air above the remaining ripples caused by their sudden exit.
They leaned in close to each other again and resumed making out. Their wet bodies pushed close together with Issei's left hand wrapped around Akeno's back and rested on her buttocks. She wrapped her legs around him and pushed her chest into his. The wet material of her thin bra barely separating their flesh. Issei floated them over to the blanket and they lay down together with their hands exploring each other's bodies as they did so. Issei found his hand close to the side of Akeno's bra cup and slid it in. The girls' eyes opened wide at the feeling of a firm palm on her left breast.
She kissed deep, her tongue shooting into his mouth and moaned as he lightly massaged the sensitive flesh. Her nipples hardened and Akeno broke the kiss to catch her breath. She pulled away from Issei and his hand slid from behind her lingerie. She felt as if she would pine for his touch again as it left but rolled him onto his back and straddled him. She leaned forward and the pair resumed kissing. Akeno's hands pushed down on the ground either side of Issei with her wet hair falling around their heads like a curtain creating their own world as his hands ran up and down the sides of body, tickling her skin. The touch was soothing and calming while also arousing to her.
Akeno felt herself becoming enthralled with Issei but knew inside that she wasn't ready to take things further. She broke apart from him again and moved back. The wind blew through and a chill ran down her back. She shivered instinctively and Issei grabbed their clothes. Akeno accepted her dress from him but didn't put it on. She stood before him and placed a hand on his chest leaning close in and up on her tip toes to speak equally with him.
"I want to go further with you. I really do but I'm not quite ready yet." She said sweetly to him whilst locking eyes and then biting her lower lip.
Issei smiled to her. "I know. I feel the same way. I don't want to rush anything or have you regret anything though so please don't feel rushed." He spoke sincerely and honestly to her.
She replied with a kiss to his lips and a smile before putting her dress back on. Issei dressed and the pair ate a bit more before he swooped Akeno up and floated into the air. They sat just above the tree line and watched the sun set. The colours played across the sky while the pair sat curdled up together.
After the sun had set and the moon had well and truly rose, the pair packed their belonging into the basket and Issei raised into the sky, his warm aura flaring to dry them off fully and keep them warm as flew home. Akeno lay her head against his chest as they traveled through the cool night sky with a soft content smile on her face.
Arriving home they found Rias asleep on the couch watching Frozen. Issei lift her up into his arms, the Gremory heiress only mumbling slightly and curling into his chest while Akeno turned off the television and followed her boyfriend and girlfriend to bed.
Edited on 29 December 2020