Chapter Sixteen - Loss and Consequences
* Gremory Mansion, Hell *
A flash of bright crimson light flooded the room moments before blood began to pool on the opulent marbled floors of the Gremory mansion foyer. Rias stood in the centre of the slowly expanding and congealing pool of copper smelling liquid, holding the thrashed and unconscious body of the boy she loved. As if in a state of autonomy she began to walk, carrying him toward the east wing where the family infirmary had been established and maintained since the devil civil war. The conflict had torn hell apart and even now remnants of the conflict remained in the interactions of the devil society.
Oblivious to all but the task at hand, Rias didn't register any of the distressed staff that frantically offered assistance to the young heiress. Their movements were as if invisible to her as they quickly called for the house doctor and began collecting sheets, bandages and other accouterments that would be needed to treat the Saiyan warrior. Only when she lay Issei down on the satin sheets did reality harshly come back to her as a pair of hands pulled her back and away from his brutalized body.
She turned in a fury yet stopped at the calming sight of her father's face. She collapsed forward into his embrace, suppressing any sound that tried to escape her lips before gazing back to the bed. Two nurses attended to Issei's injuries while a doctor conducted a far greater analysis of the damage that the young warrior's body had sustained. Minutes passed slowly and more concerned observers joined the pair watching the medical team. First Rias' mother, Venelana, then two others of the family staff. Many within the staff had always been fond of their young ward and now felt the same way of her brash yet endearingly bold boyfriend.
The doctor finished his primary survey of the unconscious warrior, his expression somber and keeping any emotion from being present and wholly concerned with the task at hand. Behind him, the nurses finalized the dressing of wounds while various machines hummed along, a clear sign of monitoring Issei's vital signs. The doctor gave his orders and instruments were passed around as two more attendees arrived. Both magical and mundane means were used in an effort to save the Saiyan's life. A quick pulse of cleansing magic covered the room, released by a newly arrived nurse, neutralizing any harmful bacteria that may be present. Infection a prominent killer with injuries this severe.
Forceps opened gory apertures to allow sutures to be stitched into place, closing vicious openings in organs, muscles and sinews alike. Magic keeping the remainder of Issei's blood from leaving his body. With needles unable to pierce his powerful skin, magic was utilized to allow intravenous bags to feed him blood. Rias and her family watched in absolute silence as time passed and the medical team used everything at their disposal to move from injury to injury, following the flow of severity and constantly triage further to avoid missing anything that may overwhelm his critically fragile constitution.
Rias' tears dried on her face as she watched every action. She refused to leave the room despite her parents attempts to softly move her and rooted herself to the ground, hope welled slightly with her chest as time allowed for Issei to be stitched back up and a modicum of colour returned to his pale body.
At long last the emergency surgery was complete. Rias could not comprehend how long it had been, she had lost all track of time as she single mindedly watched the team work to save her boyfriend. She vaguely registered the words as the doctor spoke to her mother beside her.
"Seven hours of surgery my lady and he was in such a fragile state, on the very precipice of death. I hazard that even with his amazing regenerative abilities, it will be days at the least before he regains consciousness."
Moving forward Rias approached his bedside while dragging over a chair from the far side of the room. She positioned it close to his right side. Her eyes looked over his body. He was covered almost head to toe in bandages, layers of thin translucent second skin dressing and wires tracking the electronic pulses of his bodily functions covered him. So much so that barely any of Issei's skin was shown. A small portion of exposed skin showed through above his left eye, the eye itself still purple and black, swollen beyond easy recognition.
Rias reached out and lightly grazed her hand onto this small amount of his exposed flesh while closing her eyes. She concentrated and willed herself to make contact with Issei's subconscious or Ddraig. Minutes dragged on as she continued to attempt to open a line of communication with either of them. The silence that came back to her was absolute and although she tried harder and harder, Rias realized that she couldn't feel Issei's Ki. Normally the warmth of the power that emanated from the boy was almost overwhelming when she touched him but now it was absent, his touch cold, almost barren. Withdrawing her hand she felt a hand clench on her shoulder. She knew who it was before she turned, her mother stood behind her.
"I can't feel his Ki or speak with Ddraig." She stated, trying her utmost to avoid letting worry fill her voice yet it crept in.
Her mother smiled at her softly, sympathy in her eyes as her father spoke.
"He has been through a lot, he needs to recover. I am sure the pair are recovering and you will see. All will be well." His kind words gave her hope and yet still she worried.
She knew that Issei has expelled gargantuan amounts of Ki in his fight with Bikou and that brought forward a fear of something that Ddraig had told both her and Akeno during one of their first encounters when he had been explaining the nature of Issei's immense power. His pure Ki was linked to the very facets of his life force. That was what made it both so potent and so dangerous. If Issei had expelled it all, then he could very well have killed himself. Suicide through exertion as it would be. She steadied herself with a deep breath and embraced her mother, a hug that only a parent could give to comfort. Her father joined her for a few brief moments before pulling away. His often jovial features taking on a serious expression. It was something that didn't happen often but when it did, it meant that business was a foot.
"I know now will be difficult," he began, serious yet compassionate, "but we, your bother and Grayfia, all need to know what happened. What it was that has put Issei in this state, we need to know the enemy we face." Rias went to speak and he shook his head slightly,
"We will all hear you together. The upstairs parlour is where they are, come with us. Leave Issei to his rest, it will do you no good to stay floating over him constantly."
Rias wanted to protest against his words but found that she couldn't and so allowed her parents to escort her out and through the home that she had grown up in.
The top floor parlour room, often the realm of her father, where he would read and spend his time, was an opulent room. It stood decorated even more regally then the rest of the estate, containing many of the spoils and treasures that the Gremory family had won during various conquests throughout the millennia including the devil civil war. Entering, Rias swept her eyes through the room. She hadn't been in here often.
Both her brother and his wife sat on an exquisite cashmere long length love seat facing toward a large flat screen television that was displaying images that Rias immediately recognized as the shaky footage of Bikou and Issei's fight. The golden Saiyan striking into the red clad Issei. Around them was various suits of armour, tapestries, books, weapons mounted to frames and a further wide assortment of valuables that didn't interest her at all in this moment.
Still being guided she crossed the comfortable room toward the pair. Grayfia rose from her seat and embraced her as came close. It was a hug that conveyed enough without words, through the action it let her know that they were both just as concerned for a brazen warrior laying in the bed below them. As she was released, Sirzechs motioned for her to sit across from the screen which Rias promptly did.
Now that she was able to focus properly on the images, she realized that they were a recording of footage that had been played on Sky news. Human news media had footage of Issei's fight. Even among her torrent of emotions, Rias' analytical brain still flagged the warning of what this would mean. Nothing good. It was clear that Sirzechs and Grayfia had watched through all the footage multiple times, one hour and twenty two minutes. A sky news special. Internally Rias felt her stomach drop further, they would not have cut a single second of the footage, how could they, it was like a perfect pay day for the human company.
"So," Sirzechs began and Rias turned her eyes to meet his gaze. A mixture of emotions evident within his eyes,
"We've seen the footage. The parts that were captured at least. I can see that you both found Vali and the other Saiyan. Can you elaborate on exactly what happened and how this was all caught by humans? It is all over their social media and news sites." Irritation was thick in his final statement but not blame.
Rias opened her mouth, she meant to structure it logically but all the events just tumbled out in a rush that she could barely contain. Each event just flowing out after the next. Finding the dance club, Vali and Issei antagonizing each other, Bikou's entrance, the first fight between the two Saiyans, his transformation into a Super Saiyan, Issei's desperate struggle to survive and finally his Ki snapping. Tears didn't fall, Rias had spent them all already. Now it was just giving facts that she couldn't control. A feather could have been heard dropping to the ground as she finished, the silence so thick within the air.
"Super Saiyan."
The words soft and clearly something of thought that was on the minds of everyone present. Grayfia repeated it and Sirzechs voiced his thoughts,
"Do we have any indicator of how powerful he is? Other then how badly Issei was harmed." It was a simple question but how would they identify Bikou's power, use some sort of metric to measure it perhaps.
Nodding to himself in thought, Sirzechs turned to his wife, "Can you please inform Ajuka, I have a request, a device that can track and read the level of power that an entity can display and produce. If it isn't possible then I understand but it might be something that we will need. We can't counter a foe who we can't measure and understand." His wife nodded at his analysis and left the room. She had already decided that she would help with the design and construct.
With his wife leaving Sirzechs continued his thoughts and questions,
"How is Issei's condition?" compassion clear in this question.
He clearly cared for the condition of the super powered fighter but also from a tactical point of view, Sirzechs was well aware that Issei was one of the most adept fighters that their forces could muster in this brewing conflict, despite his young age and relative new experience in growing as a combatant, his natural affinity for martial abilities, confidence in confronting a threat and general demeanour had already marked him as one of the most powerful agents of house Gremory. Furthermore Sirzechs had been able to leverage the stir that Issei raised in the rating games to sway other devil families during negotiations to see his side. At this point few wished to have the battle happy Saiyan deem them to be a worthy opponent even if they did claim through pride that they could take him on in a fight.
Rias informed him of what had happened when she tried to speak with him or Ddraig in his mindscape, her mother adding in the report of the medical prognoses that the Doctor had given them. He believed that such injuries would kill a Devil or Angel, but with Issei, he had been professionally unsure. Too little information was really known of Saiyans and it had already been shown that Issei could recover from tremendous injuries quickly and each time he always came back stronger.
Sirzechs nodded as he was given all that could be given of the state of Issei, he then came to his final point, with a sigh he began,
"Well now we need to discuss how we are going to deal with the fact that the cat is out of the bag so to speak. Both Saiyans, and two devils have been plastered all over human media and the internet. They have footage of your wings expanding and contracting. The two of them craving up the Moscow outskirts like it were made of paper and finally your use of magic." Sirzechs' voice coming out more exasperated then anything, clearly this was a situation that he wished very much never wanted to have to confront.
He continued, "I believe in this that you and Mother will be best able to act as emissaries so to speak," his words directed to his father.
In another time, before Issei, Rias may have insisted that she be involved in interacting with humanity or offended that her brother didn't ask her but now she didn't care. It was another layer of complexity to this situation they she just didn't want to have on her shoulders. She knew that it was probably selfish but right now all she could focus on was Issei. Selfish was something that devil's were known for. The thought of her nature justifying her thoughts to herself. It was with that thought that her eyes widened, Akeno. She had been so caught up in what had happened that she hadn't told their girlfriend, guilt immediately clawed at Rias as barbs pierced her heart over having forgotten her beautiful queen. Quietly she excused herself, her brother waving her off as he continued to discuss the strategy for creating relations with the human world to their parents.
Searching her clothes, Rias quickly realized that her phone was missing. She was paused momentarily in the hallway outside of the parlour as she tried to remember where she had last seen it. After a few moments she concluded that the lat place she knew she had it was on the couch with Issei before they left for the airport and she sighed as she came to the conclusion that she had left it there. In just this instance, that act of clumsiness may have helped in preventing the loss of her phone during the events of the previous night. She hoped that the other teams hadn't been trying to get in contact with her. They wouldn't have tried Issei, the Saiyan never kept track of his phone. Always, that boy was absent mindlessly leaving it behind. Gathering her thoughts, Rias summoned the Gremory sigil and in a flash of light she was gone.
* Team Kiba, Catacombs of the Basilica Cathedral de Lima, Peru *
The body of his fallen foe split apart as Kiba spun around to refocus on engaging the maniacal priest that he had specifically come here to find. His prey was easily identified, standing among crates of dark crystals, one in each of his hands, his swords discarded by his feet. "DAMN SHITTY DEVILS." The maniacal priest screamed. "YOU DIE DIE DIE DIE NOW!"
With that he squeezed down on the crystals, crushing the elements in his hands, In doing so, powdered swirls of red mist released instantly for their prisons and burrowed directly into the insane man's body. Immediately gusts of raw energy erupted from him, enough to prevent Kiba from being able to cross the distance between himself and the deranged priest. He positioned himself in front of the two holy warriors to protect them from the debris that was launched airborne by the swirling energy. Freed continued to scream insane profanities, his voice raising higher and higher but shifting, distorting. Losing any semblance of humanity. Becoming unrecognizable, inhuman and monstrous. At last the energy dissipated, the winds vanishing with them, corpses, crystals, and boxes clattered loudly to the ground. An unwitting groan escaped Kiba's lips at what stood before him.
Where the deranged priest had previously stood was now a monstrous beast of ten or eleven feet tall. Its limbs thick and covered in a mixture of human skin or what appeared to be a white chitinous or lizard like hide. A stunted tail protruding from the lower portion of its hips. The upper body was human like in nature with the skin mottled the most between skin and the white hide. Four arms came from the sides of the monster, the lower pair immediately reaching down to grasp the discarded blades, the other two upper pair, long deformed with white hide instead of skin and irregular purple spikes protruding through stretching out, clenching and unclenching the claws at the end of them.
The head of the beast pushed forward like that of a mantis and was grotesquely elongated, sharp teeth and fangs piercing through the flesh of the lips. The eyes had turned to solid black lidless orbs and a thick purple slab of chitinous armour covered the length of the long cranium.
Stepping forward the beastly Freed screamed out a demented roar that caused bile to burn in Kiba's throat. The creature was purely hideous and the sound it unleashed matched its appearance. The remains of the former priest's clothes fell away as the monstrosity darted forward, breaking into a run with a mixture of laughter and insectoid chattering leaving its lipless mouth as it charged at the Gremory knight.
Swallowing down the bile that threatened to throw up from the sight of the monster, Kiba raced forward to engage his foe. As he dashed toward it, he leapt up upon a few crates before jumping to close the distance with his wings unfurling to allow him to engage this foe from the advantage of an airborne position. His sword struck down and was instantly caught in the cross guard of the beasts two swords. The creature moved with tremendous speed for something of its size. Increased strength he has expected but the speed was an unpleasant shock to him.
His instincts flaring, Kiba twisted to the right, a clawed appendage of the creature darting toward his body, passing mere millimetres from his shoulder and wings, unfortunately for Kiba the other claw dug painfully into the thigh of his right leg and the hand clamped down grasping onto him. The monster pulled him forward as its mouth opened. Clearly it intended to get a taste of him. He wasn't going to have any of that. Maintaining his right hand firmly on the pommel of his sword, the blade still caught in guard of Freed's twin blades, he slipped his left hand free instantly leaning forward toward the creature's mouth. At the last moment he jerked back and struck up with his elbow, the strong appendage striking firmly into right bulbous eye of the creature. As he drove in further with the elbow and applying greater pressure to the vulnerable socket, the beast howled with rage and dug its claw further into his flesh. Blood spurt from the wound on Kiba's leg and pain coursed through his body.
The beast wasn't going to allow Kiba such an easy victory though and the other appendage shot back down clamping firmly into his left hip. With blood now seeping at a more rapid pace from the expanded wound, the deformed monstrosity began to shake the devil knight violently, attempting to dislodge his blade from its own and his elbow from the overgrown eye.
Despite his valiant efforts to remain in control of the situation, Kiba was unable to and soon found himself being slammed into the ground repeatedly in harsh strikes that became more savage with each swing taken by his foe. All the while the knight focused on maintaining his fragile hold of his blade as he struck back in a defensive flurry against the constant bombardment of slashes and stabs from the monster's own blades. Pain erupted through his body as he continued to be shaken around like a rag doll, he knew his wings were broken from the continuous battering they had taken into the ground, the force of which had shattered the ancient slabs of stone making up the vault floor, his torso not faring much better and his shoulder joints screaming in agony as he continued to contort in odd directions to wield the weapon that had become his only grace in not being skewed so far.
Deflecting blow after blow of the continuous barrage of sword swings Kiba's mind raced, he needed to act, do something to change the tides of this fight. Very shortly he would be dead if he didn't. Nothing came to mind but the creature bellowed out in pain as it released him. Sprawling painfully down to the ground, he forced himself to roll back over, scrambling onto his feet, his wings retracting into himself as he took in what had caused the change in his fortune. Irina and Xenovia stood behind his foe, their holy blades buried into its flesh, each girl retracting the blades and driving them back in as quickly as they could. Each understanding that piercing deep into the flesh was far more valuable then slashing against the armoured white hide. The downside though was that strikes were much faster then the stabs being conducted, with a large effort being required by each girl as they drove the blades in which would get caught in the beasts flesh and require exertion to be withdrawn efficiently.
With great kicks the beast threw its legs back to rid itself of the human women that attacked it. Swinging all four arms at them as it turned around to engage them. Xenovia dodged under the attacks as her blade slipped free but saw that Irina's blade had become stuck keeping her in place as the mutated arm swung down and caught her in the side. The harsh blow propelled the brunette warrior through the air, her body crashing like a rag doll into a large stack of crates as it came to an abrupt stop. Her sword still protruding through the thigh of the beast. It turned fully to Xenovia. Raising its arms to attack down upon her when another roar of pain left its distorted mouth. Multiple abyssal blades dove down upon the creature, telekinetically attacking the creature. Xenovia saw Kiba on his feet, the devil concentrating heavily as he controlled the five blades that flitted around the beast.
The blade infuriated the monster as they slash, cut, stabbed and pierced any available soft flesh. Blood flowed and oozed freely from multiple lacerations all over the battered devil's body, especially the two serious wounds to his upper right thigh and left hip. It was clear that he was struggling to stay upright and that the effort to maintain the five blades was heavily taxing upon his magical stamina.
Taking advantage of his distraction, she ran over to Irina and checked the girls pulse. She was alive, just unconscious from her head first travel into the heavy crates and floor. It took her only a moment to place her partner into the recovery position, which was the extent of the aid she could provide to the girl at this moment and then turned back to face their overwhelming foe once more.
Blade firmly in her hands she sprinted to the space between Kiba and the beast. It was plain to see that the knight was unable to fight physically anymore however his magical blades were causing numerous deep wounds into the enemy and so she would engage it between him so as to keep it from closing with him. As she moved toward the monstrous giant with her blade held high in a guard, a torrent of wind debris battered it from behind, the beast stumbled from the sudden attack to its rear. The creatures stumble opened up its guard and Xenovia shot forward, Kiba's blades slashing down and burying into the soft exposed flash.
Inside its space, she sliced up with both hands, taking a large chunk of flesh from the creatures left forearm. The wound caused another bellow of pain as the sword was dropped from its left hand. Continuing through, she took a swiping blow at the exposed inner right thigh of the beast. Her blade dug in and foul black blood poured from the wound but Xenovia didn't escape unharmed. Spinning around to confront her, the monstrous beast that was previous Freed Sellzen body charged her on all fours and struck into her chest. The blunt strike throwing her back and she crashed, sprawled onto the ground over a dozen feet back from where she had been.
Another stack of heavy filled crates had prevented her rearward movement from continuing however looking up, Xenovia only had a moment to shield her head and neck as the piles of precariously stacked material that she had slammed into toppled over and down onto her. She groaned as she pushed the upper most contents away from her face. Another barrage of wind and debris slammed into the demented former priest as her vision became clear. Looking over to the overhead landing that they had assaulted down from, Xenovia's eyes rested on the partially recovered form of Asia launching spell after spell at their enemy. Hope welled up in her, Irina may be unconscious but now they had another Gremory devil in the fight. That hope was tested immediately though as the bulbous head and eyes of their opponent focused on her. With its sight set, it pushed itself upward and began to lumber forward, the two monstrous white appendages batting away the abyssal blades and flying debris that continued to harass it. Both human hands clenched onto the grip of its remaining sword.
Asia watched as the monstrous Freed maintained its movement toward the trapped Xenovia. Kiba's swords continuously assaulted the beast and yet despite each blow that he inflicted, no matter how critical, the creature was able to keep on moving. As it picked up speed, the trapped blade of Irina shattered within its thigh, both halves crashed down to the floor. Xenovia struggled to free herself from the pile of disheveled boxes and as the beast got within a few feet of her, she clearly began to panic. Unfurling her wings, Asia leapt through the opening and swooped down above the trapped girl.
"Cover your eyes." Asia commanded down at the girl. She didn't have time to see if she had complied and simply unleashed her spell.
Using the LEDs embedded within the walls, Asia amplified the light and tried to raise a barrier to protect Xenovia. With her magical reserves running extremely low she found the barrier impossible to generate. The blinding light pulsed out, filling the room with a dazzling white however the monster seemed to be immune to the blinding effect or simply didn't care.
"Move" Asia bellowed at the girl as the once human priest drove his blade down.
Irina felt as if a thick mist was raising from her vision as she groggily came back to consciousness. A flash of light seared across her vision as she attempted to climb to her feet and caused her to stumble back as she involuntarily covered her eyes, blinking rapidly to restore her vision from the large white spots that filled it. Voices were yelling however her mind couldn't comprehend them. The flash faded, her mind sharpened somewhat and she recognized the words of Asia screaming for someone to move. Looking up she saw the monster bury itself down into a mess of crates. The rear of the beast covered in wounds as telekinetic blades struck against it. A high pitched scream filled the air and Irina's blood ran cold as she heard the unmistakable sound of flesh being rendered.
She glanced about quickly, Kiba stood heavily wounded, clearly struggling to maintain the concentration on his magical swords. Asia was airborne above the creature, her wings beating as she unleashed a continuous barrage of wind spells into the fiend. But where was Xenovia? She couldn't see her partner but someone had just screamed. Her mind ran blank as she began to sprint toward the monster, she ignored the pain in her body, ignored the thick blood that poured from the open gash on her head and into her ears. Ignored all her body's pains and she screamed in fury, anguish and rage as charged toward the beast. As she neared, it reared back and took a long swing at Asia, the former nun screaming bloody murder at the beast as she maneuvered out of the way of its outstretched appendage. With the monstrous body shifted upright, Irina was able to see the bloody mess that occupied the disheveled boxes. A mass of torn flesh that had previously been human. Blue hair among the ample blood.
"RRAAAARRRRRR!" Irina screamed in animalistic rage, the sight of her partner in such a state driving her forward. A dozen feet split the distance between them, however something metallic gleamed on the ground, something she instantly recognized. The broken hilt of Galatine. Side stepping as she sprinted, her foot connected with the remnants of the weapon she knew so well and flicked it upward as her right hand shot out and caught the grip that was forged specifically for her. Moments later she leapt, the monster still focused on the aerial devil harassing it. A blood curdling scream of pain left its throat as Irina sank the broken blade deep into its back.
Hanging from the blade, she refused to drop back to the ground and reached with her left hand gripping the hilt of one of the abyssal blades that Kiba had formed. All worries of utilizing a weapon of hell having long vanished from her mind, yet no pain flowed through her as she would have expected upon its touch. Stabbing hard with the weapon, she drove it higher into the back of the creature that began to thrash in response to her assault. As she gained purchase and refused to be dislodged, she harshly removing her own broken blade and then repeated the action further up its back. The two blades had become her picks and the creature's massive size an ice wall that she would climb.
Kiba watched as the beast screamed and roared as it twisted in rage, attempting to grasp at the infuriated form of Irina climbing up its back like a woman possessed. Kiba understood her fury and motivation, he knew what lay within the collapsed boxes. Allowing the holy warrior to utilize the blade in her hand, he focused his energy and concentration on the two remaining airborne blades. His power was draining at a tremendous pace and so those two were all he could maintain, a quick decision drove him to focus on the elongated white appendages of its second set of arms. The limbs seemed a mix of gelatinous substance and multi jointed, posing the greatest threat to both Irina and Asia. Each of swords tracked and stalked, slashing and stabbing at the wild limbs. Focusing intently on his task, he still became acutely aware of Irina reaching the apex of the creature's monstrous form. She thrust down, burying the broken blade of her sword into the base of its neck, an anchor to hold onto.
Watching her cost Kiba a precious moment though as the slight distraction was all it took for his exhausted mind and body to lose control of the floating abyssal blades. With both airborne blades vanishing, the one in Irina's hand was only maintained in the mortal realm by the will of the girl wielding it. Darting his eyes around, Kiba tried to find a way to help but cursed when he saw a twisted white limb smack the blade from the Templar's hand. Instantly it dissipated to nothing. Still thrashing, both white appendages now focused on removing the angry warrior from its back, her left fist striking repeatedly against the monster to very little effect.
Kiba swept his sight once more around the room and his eyes rested on Durandel, laying close to the fight. Before thinking of the consequences he stumbled forward toward it. His limbs heavy. Injury, fatigue and blood loss affecting his every movement. The simple act of bending to grip the weapon caused tremendous pain from his ravaged back and hips. Blood oozing faster at the movement. His enemy's attention focused entirely on its single task of removing the cause of its pain. Asia continued to float in the air however her magic was greatly depleted, her spells causing barely a gust to emanate at the beast.
"Irina!" he shouted, his throat dry and painful, like internal sunburn from blood loss as the girl's eyes flicked to him briefly.
In the moment, Kiba tossed the blade with the remainder of his strength upward toward her. The blade spun through the air toward the Templar. The exertion of such a mundane task too much for his body, Kiba collapsed. His willpower finally unable to sustain himself and his multitude of injuries and final exertion overwhelming himself.
A white appendage struck out for the airborne blade yet Irina stretched out, her right hand being the only point of contact holding her in place as she desperately grasped for the approaching weapon. Swinging herself to gain moment, her fingers wrapped around the grip as the white claw grazed through the air above her. Twisting her body she pulled herself back feeling the sudden pain of her right shoulder dislocating at the exertion of the action. Her body slammed into the upper back of the creature and she grit her teeth. This monster would die by her hand. Forsaking all chances of protecting herself, she slammed her feet into the demented scapula of the former priest and launched herself up, her fingers leaving the grip of Galatine and her body launching upward for the brief moment required to position for her bold and reckless attack. The blade of her friend rising above her head, both hands firm around the grip, her focus cut away any thoughts of doubt.
"DIIIIIEEE FIEND!" Irina bellowed as she twisted and drove the blade of Durandel down into the creature's throat, both hands remained firm around the guard of the weapon. A sudden jolt shook her momentum as the blade slammed through to the spinal column. Fighting the pain in her body, Irina twisted herself around and threw her own momentum backward whilst gripping the weapon for all she was worth. With a sickening sound the blade flowed through the body with her, slicing the grotesque abominations head in half as it came out of the twisted flesh.
Moments later Irina tumbled to the ground behind the beast, rolled and came to a stop in a rudimentary sprawl. She instantly looked up, both hands still gripping the holy weapon of her friend. The large monsters head was completely severed, only slight sinews holding both halves to the trunk of the body. Bile, thick black blood and brain matter splattered around the ground adjacent to the beast. It stumbled for a moment before crashing backward to the ground. With a loud crash it stuck onto the hard vault floor. Only slight gurgles heard from its throat as the last twitches of any remaining death throws went through its mass. Irina stepped forward, not wishing to take a chance and swung the blade down, severing the remainder of its head from the abominations body. With a sigh and shudder of pain she turned and moved as swiftly as her battered body would allow over to where Xenovia lay.
As she approached, Kiba and Asia were already attempting to pull away boxes and crates full of the damned crystals from her friend, freeing her as best they could. Tears spilled from Irina's eyes as they lay on her long time partner, A large slice had broken through her friend's chest where the monsters blades had skewered her and gory gashes and torn flesh across her face and upper body showed where its teeth and maul had bitten into her flesh, her throat torn open with only a small amount of blood still leaking from the wound. Asia summoned as much of her healing magic as she could but with her exhaustion only a soft green moved onto the Templar's ravaged body and failed to close any of the crippling wounds. Her friend was dead.
"No no no no." Irina repeated over and over as she tore at any remaining debris trapping her friend and dropped to her knees beside her. The weapon of her friend dropped at her feet. She couldn't die. They were partners, they went everywhere together. She sobbed as the devils did what they could to help her. She felt sorrow, anger, and guilt in equal parts. Xenovia had saved her multiple times and she had been unable to save her this time. Her hands clasped together as she began to pray.
"Mighty Lord, Father in heaven, hear my prayer. Please save Xenovia. Please save Xenovia. Please bring her back to me." She prayed over and over. Yet nothing happened, no flash of light, nothing. She tried and tried again as the minutes passed, tears falling constantly down her cheeks to pool on the stone below her knees and mix with her friend's blood.
Kiba could feel the dull headache caused by the holy prayer of the Templar beside him, both devils could but neither cared. They knew what their ally was doing and in her place they would both be doing everything they could to save Xenovia. Asia was spent, there was nothing her magic could do. Kiba was also acutely aware that even if Asia had all her energy, it was unlikely that she could do much. Her magic healed wounds on the living but it didn't revive the dead. Minutes passed and the devils both stood together silently until Irina turned to them.
"It's not working." Despair and sorrow clear in her words. Kiba could think of nothing until the answer flashed to his mind, it was simple really but also maybe not something that a holy warrior would feel comfortable with.
"Rias," He began, his voice as calm and soothing as he could muster considering that he was barely recovered from the fight himself, "she can help. I've seen her do it before."
He didn't elaborate further on the workings of the evil piece system but luckily the holy warrior didn't seem concerned about the specifics and simply nodded.
A quick check of his phone showed that they had no reception so far below the ground. Which was obvious and he was about to start moving to the surface when he noticed the wifi symbol flashing on his phone. An open wifi network, clearly the rogue Grigori didn't care much for cyber security. He may have to discard his phone after this but he didn't care, connecting to the network, he opened whatsapp and found Rias. The system began to ring before the call was picked up and the voice of his master filled the other end of the line.
* 19 Hyoto Lane, Kuoh Town *
A flash of crimson light was all the warning that announced Rias Gremory's arrival to the family home of her boyfriend. She had arrived in the living room and moved directly for the couch opposite the television that the both of them had snuggled on. Instantly she felt a twinge of annoyance, for of course there was not only her phone but also Issei's. Hers was a case of accidentally leaving it behind but his, she suspected, could have been deliberate. She huffed to herself as she gathered the pair up. She was about to open a message to Akeno when she noticed the blinking blue light on Issei's Galaxy S10. He had messages. She swiped on his phone and it opened straight to the app screen. Of course he didn't have a pass code. For someone so focused on combat he really didn't think about protecting his privacy or electronics very much. Opening his messenger revealed almost a dozen message streams however two caught her attention. Each was labelled with a three letter name. Mum and Dad.
Rias opened the chain from Issei's mother first. It had all been within the last eight hours. It started with five attempts to call that had gone unanswered. Then a message.
"Issei, its mum. Answer the phone. I saw the news. I know it is blurry footage but that red boy looks like you. I know my son when I see him. Answer the phone."
Rias could almost hear the worry in the text as she read it. She couldn't blame his mother at all. It was a completely normal reaction for a parent to have. She continued to read.
"ISSEI HYOUDOU. DO NOT ignore your mother. Answer me. Tell me that is not you. I don't understand what is going on. Where are you?"
And then the next message,
I am coming home. Getting on the next flight home. You had best have a good explanation for why you are not responding to me."
Guilt instantly gnawed at Rias, she had recognized Issei in the footage. His face did flash within it a few times, but Rias had hoped that with his increase in size and muscle mass, the tail and red aura as well as the strangeness of the whole scene that no one would recognize them. But she realized a parental instinct wasn't so easily deceived. Rias was caught by indecision, should she phone the upset woman and explain the situation. How exactly would that go?
"Hi Ma'am, I'm one of your son's girlfriends, also a devil that inadvertently helped to turn him into a Saiyan when he was mortally wounded by a fallen angel and now he has just been in a battle to the death with the only other Saiyan we have ever encountered."
No, Rias shook her head. That was probably the epitome of terrible ideas for this situation. She continued to ponder as she opened the message trail from Issei's father. It was shorter and started with only one attempt at calling. Three messages followed after the initial failed call.
"Hey bud, its Dad. Your mum is pretty worried. She is convinced that you are the boy on TV. If you are in trouble please let us know. I know you make good decisions. Anyway, give her a call to ease her mind."
His dad was far less worried, but she could still see the concern. His approach was less emotional and a bit more reserved. It did make her feel a little happier to know that Issei's parents were so loving. She continued to read on,
Your mum is stressing pretty hard now. Please call her. I've been watching the footage. I can see where she is coming from. It's pretty crazy. You aren't in trouble right?"
Another pang of guilt into Rias chest at that one.
"We are coming home. Your mum is a mix of worried and pissed off. I'm trying to calm her. Will see you soon. Dad"
So they were both on their way back. That would throw a spanner in the works but she could discuss with both of them at the same time. It would be more practical and a lot more daunting. But then again, she had to meet her in laws eventually. Why not when their son was in critical condition after fighting for his life. She sighed at that scenario, this was not working out for her at all. Her thoughts drifted for a few minutes as she tried to establish a plan for Issei's parents when she pushed it aside in favour of calling Akeno. She had to tell their girlfriend and would also be able to discuss it with her. The dark haired beauty was amazing with relationships and would have some insight that Rias was overlooking. Of that she was sure.
She put Issei's phone away in her pocket and opened up the contacts of her own yet as she went to choose Akeno an incoming whatsapp call filled the screen. Kiba Yuuto. She knew this would be important. Her knight didn't call for social chit chat. Swiping right on the green accept call icon the line connected as she brought the phone to her ear.
"Kiba, what do you need?" she asked to the point and with a voice that she tried to keep level. Her emotions continued to be a bit uneven after everything that had occurred.
Her knight's voice filled the receiver as he spoke to her. "Rias, we have a bit of a problem. We've killed quite a few Grigori and Freed Sellzen however Xenovia is," the boy paused for a second and Rias could hear the faint sound of sobbing in the background mixed with soft praying, when he spoke again his words were softer as if trying to avoid being heard.
"She's dead. Irina is distraught. Asia can't do anything and Irina's prayers aren't doing anything. They are getting through, my head hurts to let us know of that but nothing. I was wondering if you could come to us and revive her. There is also a lot of things here that you should see. The enemy has been busy."
Rias listened intently to everything Kiba said, she trusted the young man's judgement wholeheartedly. He had proved over and over to be a reliable combatant and tactician. It was why she was confident in having him as the leader for his squad. She swallowed before replying, "Alright. Turn your location services on so that I can get a pin drop of you and I will be there momentarily" she replied in an agreeable tone.
"Thanks, we are underground. I believe 350 metres deep of the location I just sent, the largest vault at the end of the catacombs within the Basilica Cathedral de Lima." Kiba explained allowing his king the time to receive the pin drop.
Looking at her maps, Rias hummed in positive response to the boy's comment. "Got it, see you shortly." She verbalized curtly before ending the call.
This was a serious situation. One Templar dead and by the sounds of it the remainder of Kiba's team wouldn't be in a very good condition. She would have to call Akeno after dealing with this. Focusing on the location that Kiba had sent and the depth her described she summoned the Gremory sigil before vanishing in yet another flash of crimson light. Once again the house was empty with the neighbours completely oblivious to what had occurred.
* Main Vault, Catacombs of the Basilica Cathedral de Lima, Peru *
A flash lit up the room and Rias stepped from the sigil to take in her new surroundings. A stone vault at minimum over a century old. Cold stone walls, floors and roof. Artificial LED lighting that did nothing to improve the atmosphere of the room. But that was for nothing with the clear level of mayhem that had been undertaken here. Blood and gore splattered around the battleground. The bodies of multiple humans and Grigori, Most burnt to death but others sliced through by blades. The hideous corpse of a large beast took centre stage with countless boxes and crates strewn throughout the area. Dark crystals scattered across the grounds and in the boxes. A heavily mutilated body lay among a pile of collapsed boxes, some having been tossed away from the scene. Blue hair mattered and torn clothing mixed with the blood and gore of the desecrated body. Xenovia's body. Kiba and Asia stood back a few feet from the fallen Templar watching as Irina continued to kneel beside the remains of her friend trying her best to beseech the heavens to intervene in her partner's unfortunate fate.
Both devils looked to their mistress as she appeared and she nodded to them as she crossed the distance to the downed Templar. She stopped beside Irina and knelt down beside the girl putting on as best a look of compassion as she could. The girl was still caught up in her prayers. Like Kiba and Asia, Rias ignored the dull pain that the prayers caused her.
"Irina," she began with a soft voice. The girl jerked abruptly, evidently so caught up in her activity that she hadn't noticed the arrival of the devil heiress. "I can try to revive her with these," she said as she summoned her evil piece set to her hand. The box open revealing the remaining pieces.
The look on Irina's face said that she clearly knew what they were and her gaze stayed on them as she mumbled, "… evil pieces."
"What will they do?" Irina asked as the weight of what was about to occur dawned on her.
"Well, if they work, of which I am not sure. She is heavily injured and very much dead. If they do, they will revive her and consequently she will be changed as well." Rias tried to give the facts while being as sensitive and compassionate as she could.
"… Into a devil." Irina finished for her.
Rias nodded, no words being needed. She then waited. She would ultimately let it be Irina's choice. This was a giant fundamental leap for someone like her. In essence they were still enemies. To do this would instantly be seen as treason by heaven. Silence filled the vault as Irina pondered.
Minutes ticked away before she let out a long shuddering breathe. "No." She stated the word so much to herself as to the devils around her. She looked Rias in the eyes before she continued.
"Xenovia loved who she was, she loved heaven and the church. She fought for what she believed in. And to be frank, I appreciate what you have offered to do but I can't do it to her. I know she would feel the same. She fought for heaven and died for heaven. I just wish they would answer my prayer." Her words strong until the final sentence tapered away into sadness.
Rias accepted her answer, her resolve was steadfast and she accepted it.
"They won't, heaven doesn't revive the dead. It goes against their creed." She tried her best to keep any spite at the mention of heaven from her voice, reminding herself that they were now fighting alongside the forces of Michael.
"I'll give you a few minutes to do what you need to do." She stated as she stood up. Irina nodded before returning to pray. This prayer different, no longer a plea for the return of Xenovia and now a pray of her safe passage for her soul into heaven and for happiness in the afterlife.
Rias moved over to her knight and bishop. She didn't need to say anything as Kiba began giving a detailed account of everything that had occurred during their time in Peru. Asia interjected small additional information as he went through but by the time that the pair's report had finished Rias was confident that she understood fully what had occurred.
"How many more Grigori do you believe there is above us?" her question directed to the both of them.
"None if any." Kiba replied, he was certain that they had slain the large majority of them during their assault through to the vault and any that would remain would be absolutely no match for Rias.
"Well we best not linger here, lets take a crate of these crystals for Ajuka to analyse and get out of here. The enthralled people should return to themselves now." Rias was confident in that plan.
"What about the clean up? It's a crazy mess up there." Asia interjected.
Rias sighed whilst shaking her head.
"At the moment it doesn't matter, you will both understand when you see the human news, it's all over it and the internet at the moment." Both devils expressions changed to that of curiosity and uncertainty at her remark but she simply shook her head. She didn't have time to explain or the will to go through discussing Issei's condition right now.
She pivoted on her spot and moved back to Irina as Kiba collected the most filled box of crystals for transport to the Gremory mansion. As she moved to the holy warrior, the girl looked up. Having finished her prayers she was simply staying by the body of her friend, thinking on the many cherished memories that they shared together.
"We have to leave," Rias began yet Irina nodded lifting up Xenovia's mutilated body in her arms. Durandel resting atop her body.
"I understand. We can't linger in an enemy stronghold. Can I bring her back?" she wasn't sure if the noble devil would object.
Rias smiled softly at Irina's stoicism, "Of course, just move over to Asia."
With the group all together and the box of dark crystals in Kiba's arms the sigil of house Gremory appeared beneath them as Rias summoned upon her power of destruction. Orbs floating out around the room. At the moment that the group vanished, the orbs detonated, the vault roof collapsed, all the remaining crystals obliterated and another hindrance placed up the operations of their enemies.
* Team Akeno, Residence le Barton, France *
After only a few short hours sleep Akeno awoke to a soft pressure on her shoulder. Her eyes opened to the fluttering light breaching into the room she rested in from the open doorway that led to the hallway. As her eyes searched around and quickly adjusted to the dark, they fell to the figure of the Duc's daughter, Marie le Barton, standing beside her bed. The pressure she felt being the noble devil waking her with a soft nudge.
"I'm sorry to wake you," the young beautiful devil began, "But there are things that my father needs to discuss with you."
Despite her tiredness Akeno was immediately alert, she could tell that not too much time had passed since she had laid her head down to rest. Swinging her legs free of the bed, the door clicked as the French noblewoman gave her privacy to change. She dropped the night robe that had been provided for her and pulled on her own clothes as best as possible. A quick splash from the en-suite wash basin refreshed the last of the sleep from her face before she left the room into the hallway where Marie waited.
"Have my team been awoken?" Akeno asked quietly as she left the room.
"No, not yet." The French devil replied.
Akeno nodded and smiled softly, "Please allow them to rest. I would like them to get as much as they can." She knew that if the Duc had seen need to discuss things with her through the night and not wait until morning then the situation would be serious and most likely require them to commit to some form of decisive action. Rias had always stressed to her the importance of sufficient rest before such an activity was undertaken, Akeno would not betray that lesson.
The young women made pleasant conversation with each other as they walked the halls of the noble estate. Each feeling comfortable in the light and inconsequential conversation, much like friends who had known each other for years. It was with this that Akeno felt comfortable to ask one of the questions that had been buzzing around her mind as they neared the parlour that the previous meeting had occurred in.
"My lady," she began feeling slightly unsure of how to word her question but hoping that her tone would show that it was meant with all respect, "I was just wondering, because your father has been involved in so much, and you are so youthful and beautiful that er …"she trailed off as she caught the amused look upon Marie's face.
"I am twenty nine, don't worry I am in no way offended. We are all so hard to place at times. But this does leave the imbalance of how old you are?" Marie commented in a manner that was both friendly and offhand. Her tone showed Akeno that she really hadn't been offended at all.
"I'm seventeen." The Gremory Queen remarked.
"So much responsibility at an age when so many would deny that you are even an adult yet." Marie's comment being the final between the two as the door to the parlour swung open revealing Sebastian holding it so for both to enter.
Akeno was not surprised to find that Duc le Barton already occupied the room as she entered. He sat at the head of his oaken conference table. The old chair that was evidently his favorite moved into position for him to sit in. Various electronic devices, tablets and laptops littered the desk. Akeno curtseyed deeply to the noble devil who ushered for her to move over to the desk swiftly. Doing so she went to sit away from him, a sign of respect for his personal space and authority however he motioned with his hand for her to take the seat beside him.
"Time is more crucial here then etiquette my dear." The noble devil stated simply as Akeno took the comfortable seat beside him. He then continued to her, his voice a tone that lay out clearly that he took what he intended to discuss seriously, "There has been a few events occur tonight that I believe tie in with your arrival at my home and as such I believe firmly that you should be made of them."
With that said he turned the first device, a tablet to her. On the screen was a video that seemed to have been taken by a smart phone of some variety. Before she could press play the Duc continued, "We have searched for as much information on these recordings as we could in the short time since their surfacing on the human media. As such they may not quite paint the full picture."
Akeno nodded slowly as she lifted up the tablet and pressed play. A male voice began speaking over a still image of some sort of club, his voice and accent identifying him as German. With Akeno's devil magic instantaneously translating the language there was no way for her tell by the actual words and as such it was accent and inflections that informed her of the language that someone spoke.
"The following series of separately recorded footage has been uploaded to various websites from patrons of an industrial punk club in the outskirts of Moscow. The footage shows a scene beyond imagining of some kind of people displaying an array of destructive power that are beyond anything ever encountered or recorded before. Already many are speculating the legitimacy however reporters to the site can confirm the severe damage caused to the surrounding district by the actions of these individuals."
A sinking feeling filled Akeno's chest and stomach as she listened to the words. Her boyfriend and girlfriend were in Moscow. Rias she could easily expect to not draw attention to themselves but Issei. She loved that boy but he could be an absolute idiot when it came to rushing in to fight against strong opponents.
The recorded image then began playing the footage. Heavy punk music playing as the person recording pushed the camera through the crowd to view an impromptu ring. Two figures stood within it. The first was Issei, no matter the quality of the image she could always tell her boyfriend. That fact that his tail swished casually behind him made it all the more obvious. Opposite him stood a figure clad in armour that was reminiscent of the armour Issei wore whilst training in his mindscape with Ddraig. This armour however was white and blue.
The armoured figure shot forward and the sound of metal striking flesh resonated above the music. Many of the crowd were shocked to find the armoured man easily losing but Akeno could tell that Issei was barely trying as he battered the man around. Dents and cracks formed in the armoured plating. After a few quick minutes of fighting the armoured individual managed to slip a kick through into Issei's head stunning him only momentarily and allowing the losing foe to disengage. However it was clear that despite his successful disengagement, he was exhausted as he dropped to one knee. His helmet dropped from his head as he undid a buckle and Akeno could see as the person filming zoomed in on the man's face, blood dripped from his mouth as he coughed up a large splattering. Issei approached him and stood before him, drawing his fist back as he spoke.
"You fought well I guess." Akeno could hear the Saiyan's animalistic thrill of a fight and his disappointment at it ending lacing his every word.
As Issei went to strike the sound of concrete bursting apart filled the air and a moment later Issei had been propelled through the adjacent wall by a figure wrapped in a bright white aura of Ki. At seeing this figure arrive Akeno felt the weight in her stomach grow heavier. She didn't need to see this figures face or words to know who it was. The Ki aura was as big a qualifier for her as the tail that she knew he had. It was the other Saiyan. As the camera was behind this figure, it was only the glimpses of another white aura that informed her of Issei's return. Words were spoken that she couldn't make out, something akin to the camera man's own speculations of what was happening. Then the tail of this second Saiyan rolled out from around his waist and Akeno's assumption was confirmed. The person filming was then bumped by another spectator which caused their phone to fall to the ground and the image going black.
The video didn't stop there. It appeared to only be half complete after a few seconds of black a new clip began playing. This second one began with a group of individuals in a car. Five people packed into the seats as the driver sped through the streets. Flashes of light sparked in the air ahead of them above buildings as they all spoke excitedly. They raved about the fight they had seen. It was clear that the action had moved to a new location and they were pursuing to see more of it. The group speculating over which person would win. None of them knew the either of the fighters and simply named them by the clothes they had worn.
A beam of green light filled the sky in front of them barreling downward toward something that was obscured by the many buildings between the car and its intended destination. However the beam stopped when another of purple light crashed into it and the two mountains of energy clashed against each other, sparks and flares firing out from the point where the two collided. Akeno knew that beam, she would know Issei's galick gun anywhere. The beams stood at a stalemate for a moment. The noise created by the clashing energy loud despite the distance of the approaching vehicle. A further torrent of purple energy reinforced the beam and in an instant the green was overtaken, an explosion filling the point of its origin. The night sky became eerily quiet as the car continued toward its location. A moment passed and then the occupants began excitedly discussing what they had just witnessed.
One of the occupants started speculating how the fighters were forming the energy waves when his voice dropped and a dazzling spire of golden light filled the sky. The spire existed for little over five seconds before vanishing. For the next eight minutes the footage was filled with views of the sky above buildings as the car approached. No more visuals were seen however as the car got closer and closer, the sound of impacts from the two fighting Saiyans growing louder and louder in the audio. The destruction of buildings easily heard through the camera and cracks in soviet style buildings appearing on those within view from the concussive force of the warrior's blows.
As the vehicle round a sharp bend the scene became instantly clear for those in the vehicle to see. Two figures stood beside a crater. A girl with vibrant red flowing hair and a man with brown hair, fair complexion and who looked like he had taken a bit of a beating. Rias and the guy who Issei had easily thrashed that Akeno now realized was Vali. The vehicle stopped twenty or so metres away from the pair with the occupants exiting as quickly as they could. Akeno pondered why Rias would be standing beside Vali so calmly but the answer was granted as the camera came back out to show the pair looking skyward and the camera panning upward as the person filming searched for what the two were watching.
It was an easy find, two figures floated opposite each other over the crater. Issei closest to the camera wreathed in his red aura of the Kaio ken, the energy sparking upward as it flowed around his body. Even from such a distance it was obvious that he had taken an absolute beating. Blood poured freely from innumerable lacerations and grazes all over his body. Swelling displayed breaks and contusions. The other figure floated in a aura of pure gold that Akeno had never seen before, golden hair flowing upward like fire, a tail of the same golden colour and piercing blue eyes. It took Akeno a moment but then she realized that this was the same Saiyan that they had all be pursuing. The memory of the photos shown by Grayfia during the intelligence briefly flashed to her mind. Most had shown a normal Saiyan yet one had shown one in the golden form that this man now possessed. Was it a technique like Issei's Kaio ken? She just didn't have an answer for it.
Instantly the two fighters clashed in a flurry of blows. The exact composure of the fight was unable to be caught on the camera, it was simply too fast, and yet at each decisive blow that indicated a potent strike, the fighters slowed enough for the camera to show the other Saiyan striking down Issei as if he were nothing. The sound of the fight though was caught, to describe it as explosions of artillery detonating would be a close analogy and the structures around took the brunt of the confrontation. Repeatedly Issei's body was used as a wrecking ball onto another structure care of the opposing Saiyan. Akeno realized that she had brought the footage right up to her nose and was gripping the tablet intently. She released a breath that she didn't realize she was holding as she moved the screen further away.
Issei came back into view opposite his opponent and bellowed two words. "MULTIPLY NINE!" Akeno couldn't stop the shock and concern flashing across her face at that and it was caught by all three sat around her. He had pushed the Kaio ken to nine times its normal usage. That was the furthest he had ever gone and yet he continued to struggle against this opponent. Just how powerful was this golden Saiyan? Once again Issei shot forward to initiate the melee anew. A flurry later and Akeno couldn't stop herself from cheering excitedly as it was the golden fighter who soared back from a strike of Issei's. Clearly her boyfriend intended to capitalize on his success as she watched his most powerful technique form. The words chanted so loudly that they were clearly audible through the other sounds of the footage. A monstrous galick gun fired at the golden fighter. As it struck a battle of wills unfolded, the golden warrior holding off the attack with his hands as it drove him back over fifty metres before he steadied.
Then as fast as it had begun, it ended. Issei's aura simply vanished and he dropped from the sky crashing with a loud crunch. The camera watched his fall and before it could return to the golden fighter a bright flash of purple illuminated the sky. Movement caught the bystander's attention and the camera followed Rias sprinting to Issei. She wasn't fast enough though as the golden Saiyan landed first. An orb of green energy filled his hand directed toward Issei. The scene caused pure dread to fill Akeno. Was her boyfriend dead? Orbs of destruction magic materialized around Rias that she fired at the foe. They were for nothing though as they merely popped on his aura, lacking any ability to penetrate. Once again Akeno was left to ponder how powerful was this foe.
Rias threw herself between the two Saiyans. Clearly shielding Issei and prepared to die, even from the distance Akeno could tell the look on her girlfriend's face. It was the same look that she would have if their positions were reversed. Vali strode over toward the group on the far side of the crater and the citizens from the car began talking among themselves. Akeno wished they would shut up as she couldn't hear any of what was occurring with the two people she loved. Yet the green orb vanished and the Saiyan returned to his normal appearance, the golden aura vanishing as if it had never been there. He then took to the sky and flew away into the darkness. Akeno watched as Vali's wings unfurled, he floated up and paused, likely saying something before taking flight after his friend. The group began moving closer as the camera stayed focused on Rias. The Gremory heiress picked up the boy that they both loved and looked toward the camera before a red flash signified her vanishing from the scene.
For the remaining eight minutes of the footage, the group explored the ruined industrial complexes and talked about the insanity of what they had watched. Akeno didn't care though and dropped the tablet. Issei had been defeated. He looked dead. She needed to find out. Why hadn't Rias phoned her yet?
Looking up her eyes met with Duc le Barton's and his expression changed from a neutral one to that of concern and then sympathy.
"They both mean quite a bit to you." He stated rather then asking.
Akeno nodded, the words leaving her lips before she could stop them, "I love them both."
She realized what she said and although her emotions were running a riot, she hoped that they would assume she meant something platonic. Looking at the Duc once more she didn't see judgement and so pushed the worries aside.
"How long has it been since this was put up?" she asked both hopeful and scared. She wasn't sure what she wanted to know.
"Seven hours or so." Sebastian answered from opposite her.
The Duc then continued bringing Akeno's attention back to him, "Those two men with tails in red and gold were Issei and the other Saiyan."
Akeno simply nodded and he pressed on, "I take it by the actions of Lady Gremory that Issei was the one in red."
Again Akeno nodded, "That is what I feared." The Duc stated and Akeno waited for him to continue,
"The power that Issei showed to wield during the Gremory and Phenex rating game could easily be comparative with a Satan and yet he was so easily overpowered in that fight we have just witnessed. Furthermore the destruction magic of house Gremory is one of the most potent direct magical forces known. Lady Gremory has an excellent grasp of the power and yet her orbs failed to even penetrate the opponent's aura. If this opponent is an enemy that we all face then I am very concerned by just how powerful he is."
Akeno understood the logic. She was worried by it too and yet she just couldn't focus on the logic. She was too worried about Issei. Her worry must have been plain across her face as the Duc reached out to hold her hand.
"I understand that you are worried, however I have another set of footage that I need you to see. This time from Lima, the Capital of Peru."
Akeno nodded and wiped her eyes, Peru, Kiba's team had gone there. She was concerned now by what she would see next.
A laptop was turned to face her by Sebastian, Marie moved in closer to view it as well, at the same time placing a comforting hand on Akeno's shoulder. The act offered more comfort to Akeno then the French devil could know. Pressing the play button Akeno watched as the footage began.
This was a more professional display, recorded images from a state news crew. The anchor talking about hundreds of people all claiming to be waking up all over the city without understanding what had happened to them. As the reporter continued she spoke of the desecration of the local Cathedral and how many were reporting the corpses of individuals, notably individuals with black feathery wings. All killed by fire or sliced through. The report ended with various people mentioning a loud explosion that had shaken the city, many residents believing it to have been an earthquake. The news crew attempted to gain footage of the Cathedral however were stopped by local authorities who refused them access to within the cordoned perimeter that had been established around the building and wouldn't answer any questions. The final images showed what the camera could see of a few snippet within the front doors. What Akeno saw looked in line with the aftermath of a battle had raged inside the building. Before the report ended, the anchor gave her own opinion and speculated about the strange occurrences, how they appeared to be linked to inhuman people and their potential connection to the events in Moscow.
With that report ending Sebastian answered Akeno before she even needed to ask, "That went up less then twenty minutes ago."
"I see," Akeno responded. She wasn't sure what to make of it. Clearly Kiba's team had fought through the large Cathedral but for what purpose and more importantly were they safe Akeno was about to ask if there was any mention of devils in Peru when her phone began to ring. The ringtone, 'I kissed a girl by Katy Perry' filled the air, Akeno's personalized ring tone for Rias.
Quickly she pulled out her phone, slightly embarrassed by the music playing in such a location, and held the phone in such a way as the Duc could see the photo of Rias on the phone. A classy photo of her in the elegant dress that she had worn to the races the night that they took their relationship further. The Duc nodded eagerly, evidently interested in hearing what the Gremory heiress had to say.
Swiping to accept the call, Akeno raised the phone to her ear and answered, "Hello."
Edited on 11 July 2021