Though she prided herself on being a patient and level headed Devil, something that was a valuable trait to have when one's servants were excitable in nature, Rias had to admit that she was reaching her limit thanks to her newest servant's continued inability to face reality.
"How many times to I have to tell you this Issei? You and the nun are on opposite sides. Why don't you understand this? If you were to mount some sort of rescue, you'll die for sure. And since I have no desire to see one of my servants get killed because of some ridiculous display of heroism, I won't let you do this".
Having held on to the hope that Issei would change his mind after she had taken the effort to explain the reasons for her decision, the crimson haired Devil could only watch with mounting frustration as her one and only pawn continued to defy her wishes.
"But Asia might die during this ritual. And since I'm the only friend she's got, I have to help her".
Pleased though she was at Issei's current display of loyalty, misdirected though it might have been, Rias had to resist the urge to violently vent her frustration at the brunette's persistent defiance.
Why couldn't he see that she only had his best interests at heart? Even if his habit wearing friend was herself harmless, the fact remained that she was part of an opposing faction that had clearly showed that they would gladly kill her servants if they felt they could get away with it. And unlike Dante, whose current absence was only adding to her mounting frustration, Issei possessed neither the skills to defend himself from harm, nor the ability to recognize when it was wiser to retreat rather than continue on for a hopeless cause.
However, at least her pawn recognized the fact that it would be easier to achieve his goal by asking for help rather than relying on his own talents to accomplish whatever it was he desired. Another character trait that was different from that usually shown by her anti-social rook, who as she knew would prefer to do things his own way rather than rely on the aid of others.
Still, though she was annoyed by the amount of defiance that was currently being shown to her by her newest servants, the heiress of the Gremory Clan came to the conclusion that perhaps she was looking at this the wrong way.
Since Issei had made it clear that Asia was an unwilling participant in whatever scheme those Fallen Angels were planning, then perhaps it would be possible to not only bring an end to her brunette servant's worrying, but also managing to add another potentially powerful member to her peerage.
There were only 2 potential problems with the buxom Devil's plan. The first one being that Asia Argento, being a truly devout follower of God, would reject her offer to turn her into a Devil, even if it meant being closer to the first true friend she had ever made. Of course such a thing was easy to get around with a little bit of hypnosis, but frankly such an underhanded tactic repulsed her, and she was sure that Issei would prefer to have a friend who was free to make her own decisions, even if some of them might not be to his liking.
The second problem that she could foresee, and the one she most feared, was that the already tense relationship between Dante and Issei would in fact grow more troublesome if she was to add the blonde nun into her peerage. The two Devils were already at each other's throats on a constant basis, with Issei mostly coming off the worst of it since Dante was more skilful in both verbal and physical forms of attack. But for the most part, their bickering reminded her of a pair of quarrelsome brothers, albeit ones that hardly, if ever got along. However, if she was to add to her peerage the cause of their current disagreement, then she was almost certain that she would never again experience the simple joy of a, mostly, harmonious peerage.
Speaking of harmony, or lack thereof, while her sole knight and less talkative rook were trying to talk some sense into their more…rambunctious teammate, Rias couldn't help but wonder what was taking her more sadistic servants so long to show up. For even if Dante was feeling a tad more insolent than usual, the Gremory heiress would have expected her loyal queen to be more than capable of quickly forcing her moody rook into submission, even with his unique ability.
However her concern quickly evaporated as she heard the telltale sound of her queen hurrying through the empty hallways of their headquarters. And though she was slightly annoyed by the lateness of her black haired servants, the seriousness of the situation meant that she was willing to overlook their tardiness.
But as Akeno finally entered the room, the crimson haired heiress of the Gremory Clan could see that not only was she alone, but that her queen's normally serene expression had been replaced with a look that could only be described as worry.
Seeing that the rest of her peerage had failed to notice the sudden entrance of their buxom teammate, let alone noticing her look of distress of their buxom teammate, Rias wordlessly gestured her most trusted friend to keep her voice down as she proceeded to explain the cause for her current state.
"It's Dante. After his meeting with the Sitri group, he managed to disappear without my knowledge, and I can't find him anywhere. He's not responding to his cell, and something's interfering with that handy little tracking spell you had me put on him".
Eye's narrowing as she thought of all the various reasons of how her most defiant servant was able to escape detection from the safety measures she had put in place after his reincarnation, the crimson haired Devil experienced a understandable feeling of apprehension as Akeno gave voice to her greatest fear.
"You…you don't think he might have been captured by the Fallen Angels do you? He certainly has done a lot to make them wish he was dead, and since they have the power of Twilight Healing on their side, it's possible that they sent that white haired exorcist to finish what he failed to do last evening".
Though she agreed with her queen's suspicions, a small niggle of doubt had entered the Gremory heiress as she considered that perhaps their might be another reason for her rook's disappearance. Unlike the rest of her peerage, with perhaps her blonde knight being the small exception, Dante had greeted the news about his new status with violent hostility, and his following interactions with his new teammates varied from either neutral indifference or outright aggression. And though he recognized that his current position was much better than enjoying the life of a hunted stray, their remained a possibility, however remote, that he could seek refuge with the Fallen.
However, before she could completely dismiss the disquieting feeling over her servant's potential treachery, her raven haired queen interrupted her thoughts by reminding her of another pressing problem.
"What do you want to do about Issei? Cause from what I'm seeing, that boy is likely going to run off to the church as soon as your back is turned".
Having come to the same conclusion herself, and trusting that her remaining servants would do their utmost to ensure that Issei's admirable, if somewhat misguided display of heroics did not result in the loss of her newest servant, Rias turned her attention away from her trusted queen and directed it towards the younger members of her peerage.
"Everyone, Akeno and I have some unexpected business to attend to, so I trust all 3 of you will act responsible during our absence".
Receiving nods of acceptance from the younger Devils, though she could easily tell that Issei had only done so grudgingly, the crimson haired heiress of the Gremory clan turned to follow her departing queen, only to stop and flash her depressed pawn a look of mild appraisal.
"Issei, you think that the pawn is the weakest piece there is right"?
Receiving a slightly resentful nod from her less than cheerful servant, and knowing that both Kiba and Koneko would pick up on the hidden message in her explanation, Rias proceeded to give Issei a quick briefing before she went on her own desperate mission.
'Well your wrong. For you see, just like in real chess, the evil piece grants the Devil who carries it the ability, if certain conditions are met, to temporarily transform into any of the other pieces, apart from the king of course. Which means Issei, if I was to give you permission to transform, or you stepped into an area that I have already declared to be enemy territory, you could use your ability to gain the skills of your comrades. Though I hasten to add that at this point in time your body could only handle powers of the specialized pieces, so ensure that you think very carefully on which fighting style suits you".
And with one last stern, yet supportive glance at the moody pervert, Rias had vanished out the door. Leaving a determined pervert, a supportive knight, and a bored looking loli to begin the process of coming up with a plan that would not only allow Issei to achieve his goal, but would do so in a way that wouldn't result in their master's peerage from becoming one member short.
….
Despite the fact that his body felt like it was being roasted from the inside, Dante had no trouble admitting that the worst part of his current circumstances wasn't the intense physical pain he was being subjected to, it was the fact that his most enthusiastic torturer never stopped talking for more than 10 seconds.
"You know Inumbro, have you ever considered that the nature of our relationship is like something straight out of a comic book? I mean, there's you, the violent brooding orphan, and then there's me, the eccentric serial killer with a taste for theatricality. Only difference that I can see is that unlike the caped crusader and the clown prince of crime, you have no qualms about killing people, while I don't need to be dipped into a vat of chemicals to get a thrill out of maiming people".
Grinning with sadistic joy as he brought down his specially modified weapon behind his chained adversary's knee, Freed adopted a fake expression of consideration as he took note of the black haired Devil's response.
"Or perhaps you're more like Batman's side kick. That glaring expression of yours, while possessing all of your usual killing intent, reminds me ever so much of how the second Robin looked before the Joker killed him for the first time. Regardless, I must say that I'm enjoying our little bonding session a lot more than our previous encounter. And it was so nice of my superior to give me this little tool to play with, because it means I can pay you back for those bullet holes you filled me with".
Smashing his crowbar into Dante's stomach, the white haired exorcist's expression took on a slightly apologetic look as he proceeded to trace his rune covered weapon across his glaring captive's arm.
"I am sorry that you had to wait so long for the chance for us to play together. But you know how it is. The sadistic needs of a lowly human like myself are nothing compared to the violent desires of a pissed off Fallen Angel. But I believe you and I share a far deeper bond than Dohnaseek could ever hope to match. I mean yes it's because of him that you've become a scum sucking Devil, and yes he's the reason why your body is currently infused with light magic, but I like to think that I can make your final hours far more meaningful than that fedora wearing prick could ever hope to do".
Allowing only a small grunt of pain to pass his lips as he felt the bones in his arm brake under the weight of Freed's latest attack, Dante waited for the next series of blow's to descend upon his heavily beaten body, only to be saved from further harm by the most likely of individuals.
"Freed that's enough. While I can appreciate the fact that you wish to punish our…guest for the injuries he inflicted on you, please remember that we need him whole if he is to survive the upcoming ritual".
Briefly frowning in annoyance before morphing his features into what passed for an expression of near perfect submissiveness, the white haired exorcist graced his winged superior with a deferential nod while doing his best to not smirk at the timidity of her fearful looking companion.
"My apologises boss lady. But I thought that since we finally have our miracle girl back where she belongs, any damage that my favorite sparring partner might receive during the course of our reunion would be able to be healed after a quick session with Dr. Blondie over their".
Blocking out the pain that stemmed from turning his head so he could get use out of his sole working eye, Dante could see that his torturer's comment had caused his newly arrived jailer to narrow her eyes in angered annoyance, while the shaking nun fearfully hid behind her captor's folded wings.
"Let me put this in a way that your violence loving mind can understand Freed. The ceremony is a delicate procedure, one that requires its…subjects to be strong enough to survive the ordeal until that final moment where their Sacred Gears are ripped out of their bodies. And since we're already tempting fate by going through with this while his body is being poisoned by the effects of light magic, I would prefer the rest of him to remain relatively undamaged".
Nodding his head in compliance so that his skimpily clad superior could not see the brief flash of annoyance that passed over his face, Freed reluctantly pulled away from the heavily bleeding Devil as he made his way to the cell's exit.
However before he crossed the threshold, he couldn't resist one last bit of sadistic indulgence, and casually turned towards the still frightened nun with a smile that almost made her believe that God had truly forsaken her.
"You shouldn't be so glum little sister. Yes I know that your end is nigh, and we still haven't consummated that beautiful burning love that exists between us, but look on the bright side. You get to use your powers to heal a heavily broken Devil before we decide to rip them from your soul. Kind of ironic really considering you're in this mess because you felt pity for a scum sucking Devil in the first place, but hey, at least you're consistent".
Smirking as his word's managed to send the disgraced nun into another torrent of tears, Freed quickly exited the room before he could be chastised for his mockery by the glaring Fallen Angel.
Sighing in annoyance at the troublesome nature of her most bloodthirsty subordinate, Raynare cast a brief look at the silently watching Devil before turning her attention towards her understandably nervous companion.
"Go on Asia. I know that you don't want to have anything to do with our… guest, but I need you to use the power of Twilight Healing to cure him of his injuries. I promise you that he can do nothing to harm you".
Left unsaid was the fact that this would probably be the last time the blonde haired nun would be able to use her gifts to cure anything living soul, but since she had no intention of making the ordeal more unpleasant than it could have, Raynare held her tongue as Asia made her way to the still watching Devil.
"I…I'm sorry if this causes you any distress Mr. Dante. I..I'm not sure if I can heal your body without causing you more pain".
Remaining silent as Asia proceeded to cure the worst of his injuries, though he was disappointed at the discovery that her powers only temporarily alleviated him of the pain caused by Dohanseek's restraining method, Dante managed to keep his face blank as his newest visitor began to lecture him for his actions.
"You know, Freed told me what happened last night, and truth be told I'm having a little difficulty in deciding whether I should be upset that you nearly killed my current meal ticket, or impressed that you managed to subdue my most skilled subordinate. Frankly I'm inclined to be a bit generous considering the nature of our current positions. What do you think"?
His eye no longer swollen thanks to the abilities of his nervous looking healer, and seeing as his situation couldn't get any worse than it already was, Dante offered the scantily clad Fallen Angel a sardonic grin before he managed to rasp out an answer.
"Well that depends. Considering that my actions were largely in self-defence, I can't really be held responsible for trying to put down your rabid attack dog. And since I was far gentler during our last little hostage situation, I would appreciate it if you would extend me the same courtesy that I extended you".
Fighting the urge to laugh at the scowling expression that came over his jailor's face as he proceeded to play the part of a mocking prisoner, the black haired Devil maintained his slightly taunting grin as the leather wearing woman began to steadily lose her composure.
"Do you have any idea of the shame I felt at being caught off guard by a lowly human? It's bad enough that you managed to ambush me, but to play the part of a helpless victim? You should be grateful that I'm not the type to play with my food before I eat it, otherwise I would make you beg for me to finish what Dohaneseek started".
His eye's narrowing in barely restrained anger as Raynare mentioned the one responsible for not only his current imprisonment, but also for his current status as the servant of a spoiled rich girl, Dante somehow managed to keep his town civil as he fanned the flames of the Fallen Angel's anger.
"Forgive me if I don't tremble in fear at your largely empty threat. You wouldn't go to all this trouble to heal me if you didn't require me to be more or less in one piece. And since you don't seem to lack the patience of your more sanctimonious brethren, I sincerely doubt you'll wait for me to get better before you use me for whatever nefarious scheme you have in store".
Gritting her teeth in frustration as the insolent Devil called her bluff, Raynare took a moment to get her violent feelings under control before she flashed a smirk at her currently bound captive.
"All right you got me. But I must say, it's a shame really that you found wound up on the side of those low life Devils. If you hadn't I might have offered you a valued position within our ranks. You're clearly more balanced than Sellzen, though that's not exactly hard to do, and you clearly know how to use that Sacred Gear of yours, so I could have seen you making a name for yourself. But since you had to stick your nose in where it doesn't belong, I'm afraid that option is no longer on the table. Though I suppose if you asked really nicely, I could find it in my heart to keep you as pet".
Having expected to be the target of yet another poisonous glare from the imprisoned Devil, Raynare was caught off guard by the somewhat disturbing cackling that was now coming from her black haired captive.
"As tempting as that sounds, I'm afraid I'll have to decline your generous offer. Though my current circumstances are more irritating than I would have preferred, they are far preferable to being the plaything of some pathetic crow who's forced to rely on the help of escaped mental patients and sheltered nuns just so she can have a chance to impress her superiors".
Gritting her teeth in anger as she was forced to listen to the somewhat truthful mockery of the black haired Devil, Raynare didn't even bother to keep her tone civil as she sneered at her slow recovering captive.
"You'll pay for that. And let me assure you, by the time we're done extracting your Sacred Gear, you're going to be begging for the chance to become my 'pet'".
Knowing that she would be unable to restrain her more violent tendencies if she stayed in in Dante's prison cell for much longer, the scantily clad Fallen Angel shouted an anger filled order at her more compliant victim before turning her back on the heavily mismatched pair.
"Asia, stay here and finish up healing this pathetic excuse for a Devil. I have no desire to waste any more of my time trying to convince him of the worthiness of my cause. I trust that you can perform your task without my supervision"?
Not bothering to wait for a reply from the clearly terrified blonde, and doing her best to keep her temper under control as she sensed her captive's amusement, Raynare swiftly exited the room before she did something that would make all her efforts pointless.
Flinching as the sound of the slamming cell door echoed throughout the underground chamber, and unsure if she should be relieved at the departure of her mood swinging guardian, or terrified at being in all alone with someone who had previously tried to kill her for no reason at all, the former nun continued her appointed task of healing the restrained Devil.
Finding himself mildly annoyed with the submissiveness of the girl who was more or less responsible for the escalated tensions between himself and his perverted teammate, but also somewhat grateful for the fact that she was healing the worst of his injuries, Dante decided to remain silent since he believed that anything he could say would only serve to frighten the girl more than she already was.
However to the Devil's great surprise, his clearly devout medic proceeded to break the strained silence with a softly spoken question.
"I…is Issei ok"?
Though somewhat shocked at the girl's sudden attempt at bravery, and seeing that he had nothing to lose by talking with his blonde healer, Dante did his best to keep his voice bare of emotion, something that was rather difficult due to the pain that wracked his body, as he proceeded to answer her question.
"As far as I know. You'll understand if I'm not exactly on the best of terms with my fellow Devil. He is far to irritating to put up with in large doses".
Frowning as she proceeded to heal the broken bones in his arm, Asia managed to somehow overcome her earlier display of timidness as she berated the black haired Devil for his dismissive attitude.
"How can you say that? Issei is not only the kindest person I've ever met, but he's also the only one who hasn't treated me like an object that can be used and then easily discarded".
Snorting in amusement at the nun's rather naïve description of his perverted teammate, and somewhat impressed by her sudden display of defiance, Dante nevertheless decided to indulge his blonde healer by answering her question.
"How can I not? His stupidity is only rivalled by his perversity. And I assure you that if you were a member of the male persuasion, he probably wouldn't have spared you a second glance".
Though her upset expression conveyed just how much she appreciated Dante's description of his fellow Devil, Asia managed to surprise her slowly healing patient by once again summoning the necessary willpower to confidently stand up for her one and only friend.
"That's not true. Even if he is a Devil, I can tell that Issei's soul is as pure as a saint. Which is a lot more than I can say about you".
Stunned by the nun's sudden display of fierceness, and more than a bit amused by her reaction as she realised what she had just said, Dante managed to surprise the embarrassed looking blonde by reacting in manner that she had not expected.
"Though I believe you are mistaken when it comes to my perverted colleague, I have to admit that their might be some truth to your words regarding the state of my own soul. You don't survive what I have gone through without getting your soul a little dirty. But unlike Freed, who is no longer capable of caring whether his actions bring untold misery to others, I possess enough control over my mental facilities to recognize the difference between pointless bloodshed and committing a necessary evil".
Frowning as she considered Dante's reply to her uncharacteristically brazen comment, and having detected the barest traces of resentment in the black haired Devil's tone as he described the state of his soul, Asia decided to see if she could satisfy her own curiosity by softly asking a question that had been on her mind ever since she learned that she was no longer the only prisoner being held against their will.
"Last night, why did you try and kill me? I was no threat to you, and you could see that I wasn't on Freed's side. So why did you do it"?
Receiving nothing but silence from the impassive looking Devil, Asia resigned herself to continuing her work. But just as she was finishing healing the last of his injuries, this one being a particularly nasty one involving protruding bones, the nun got her answer.
"If you were still affiliated with the Church, I can assure you that I wouldn't have been so inclined to grant you a swift death. But since it was clearly obvious that you had been cast out, nobody would willingly work with Freed if they didn't have a choice, I decided that the kindest thing I could was put you out of your misery".
Eye's narrowing slightly as she tried to make sense of the reason behind the Devil's actions, Asia hesitantly voiced her confusion as she stared into the eyes of her watching patient.
"Yo…you mean that you only tried to kill me out of mercy"?
Nodding his head, and savoring the brief moment of painlessness that stemmed from his recently fixed leg, Dante proceeded to expand upon his answer.
"Mhmm. Considering that you wouldn't survive my preferred method of transportation, the fact that Freed would make you beg for death before he granted it, not to mention the whole plot to kill you just so some crow with delusions of grandeur can steal your ability, I think my methods, brutal though they may be, are in fact far kinder then whatever fate has in store for you".
Though she had to admit that there was some truth to the Devil's reasoning, for she herself had also begun to contemplate whether Death would have been a far kinder thing to experience than what she had been forced to endure, Asia was nevertheless unsatisfied with the answer she had received.
But before she could tell her now fully healed patient that his explanation was heavily flawed, for only a truly broken person could come up with such an answer, the door to the make shift prison cell swung open. Revealing a widely grinning Freed.
"Sorry to just burst in like this Inumbro, but the good sister has a schedule to keep, and since the boss lady is already in a bit of a foul mood, I wouldn't want to keep her waiting".
Glaring in contempt as the white haired exorcist rushed over to drag the terrified nun to whatever horrifying fate awaited her, Dante was rather surprised when he felt his healer grasp his wrist with a firm grip.
Seeing this momentarily show of defiance, Freed merely laughed as he tore the condemned nun away from her silently watching patient. And before he slammed the door to leave Dante once again alone with his thoughts, Freed flashed him an apologetic smile.
"Not to worry my friend. Your appointment with my superior's is right after this little slut's. So after I have some fun with her lifeless body, I'll return so we can enjoy one last moment together".
Not bothering to respond to the psychotic exorcist beyond a single disgusted glare, Dante allowed the echoes' of their departure to fade down the hallway as he once again did his best to endure the pain that wracked his body courtesy of the fedora wearing Fallen Angel.
But as he did his best to block out the intense feelings, the black haired Devil was struck by the oddest sensation that his body felt somewhat different from before.
And though it took him a moment to convince himself that what he was feeling wasn't a simple trick, Dante soon came to accept that while the rest of his body was coursing with the burning poison of light magic, one area in particular was oddly free from that pain. And as he slowly turned his head to better examine the unafflicted area, the barest traces of a smirk passed his face as he realized that he may have just been given the slimmest of chances to escape his torment.
…
And I think here is a good place to end the chapter :)
Hopefully you all enjoyed this...particularly happy with Dante and Freed's interaction.
Asia's role in this chapter, well got a lot of flak for having Dante pull a gun on her, but it all ties in with his backstory. Needed to set up a situation where Dante is more brutal than usual, then goes on to explain his actions in a manner that is at least somewhat plausible (i.e. Mercy Killing so Asia doesnt suffer at the hands of Freed). Logically I'm not going to kill Asia off, but needed to find a way that not only increases Issei's protectiveness, but also sets up a gradual thawing of Dante's coldness.
As you might have guessed by now from the story, Dante's issues are linked to what he went through as a child, and I promise I will expand on that later.
Not sure when the next update will be since I start school again next week, which means that the amount of time I can devote to fanfic is limited (espically since I have other stories on the go) But will start working on next chapter right away.
Always looking to get a Beta Reader, so those who are interested please apply.
Current pairings are:
Issei: Asia, Koneko, Xenovia, Irina, Female Gasper, Ravel, Rossseweisse.
Dante: Akeno, Rias, Serafall, Kuroka, Ophis, Sona, Female Vali (Raynare if she lives)
As always, thanks for reading, and REVIEWS are a must :)