(SHIRO'S POV)

The big bastard swung at me twice only for me to effortlessly dodge him both times.

"Wow you are a complete loser! You're all big but you damn sure aren't tough!"

"STAY STILL!"

He attempted another large swing that I front flipped right over. "Sorry dude but that ain't gonna work on me." He swung again. "WOW YOU ARE SUCH A COMPLETE BITCH!" I yelled before blowing out a stream of purple flames. He fanned them away with ease and stomped towards me with bloodlust in his eyes.

"I will crush you to dust!" He slammed his hand down on me with a ferocious snarl. "Die puny fool!"

"Useless ass dracomany!" I lifted myself up and charged up some good old fashioned soul energy and pushed his beefy hand off of me.

"You won't stop me! I am Gorr!"

"You are a big fat pain in the ass! Now do me a solid and die already!" I yelled.

He grabbed me and lifted me to his large red face. "You are nothing to me. After I kill you, I'll rip your skin off and present it to Lady Kyra as a parting gift." He applied more pressure to his iron grip on me, slowly crushing my ribcage.

"Wow your breath stinks! Do they not have mouthwash in hell?! I guess bad breath is what make it hell…" He squeezed tighter. "GAH! Bad touch!"

"I wonder where your guts will spill out from." He smirked.

"Bastard! I'll send your ass straight to limbo!" I forced one of my hands out from his grasp and lifted it up above me. "FANNY PACK STYLE!" One of my trusty old daggers appeared from a portal and fell into my opened hand. I flung the sharp blade right in his large demonic eye. He dropped me and held his gushing wound while howling with pain.

"MY EYE! YOU STRUCK MY EYE!"

"Yep! I'll even do you a favor and stab the other one. Even you out a little bit. Free of charge!"

"DAMN YOU! I SWEAR TO LUCIFER YOU WILL NOT SURVIVE YOU FOOLISH LITTLE WORM!" He thrusted his hand at me only to miss completely.

"HOW'S ABOUT YOU SHUT THE FUCK UP!" I shouted at the large demon before me.

"You insignificant brat! You know not of who you are speaking to!" The one eyed demon swung his huge mallet down on me.

I lifted up my still sheathed blade and blocked the hit. "Heh, that all you got? If so then you're in big trouble my good sir." I pushed his attack back and grabbed the handle of my legendary sword. "Time to unleash the power once belonging to the legendary hero Haruka Blade! GO HANZUNAME DRAGON BLADE!"

"WHAT?!" He stood there as I attempted to pull out the blade.

"...C'mon goddamnit!" I tugged harder and harder. "GO HANZUNAME DRAGON BLADE!"

"Son of a bitch! Why won't you let me use you?!"

"Heh...Heheheheh! You will die even with that all powerful sword!" He chuckled.

"I said, GO HANZU MOTHERFUCKING DRAGON PIECE OF SHIT BLADE!"

"DIE!" He took another swing at me only to stop and drop to the floor with his head separated from his body.

Kyra landed next to me with a blood soaked hand and a disappointed look. "Geez Shiro! You can't keep trying to use that thing in the middle of a battle!"

"Yeah dipshit. You're gonna end up dead long before your tiny little mind can even process how to work it." Helena scoffed with her arms crossed.

"Aw gimme a break you guys! I really wanna get this to work. I can't fall behind Clyde or the cold asshole that put me down here!"

Naomi smiled and hugged me from behind. "It's not all bad. You've still got all of us down here with you."

"Yeah dude! You'll totally get it down. Just give it some time." Gracia smiled.

Nyne crouched down and observed me from head to toe. "You physique has in fact been enhanced since your last battle. You are in fact growing quite a bit."

"Sorry guys but I don't have much time to just take it easy. You guys don't know Clyde. The douchebag won't stop something when he really puts his mind to it."

Viz stood next to me and sighed. "Look man, it's time for you to just take things in a more meaningful stride. You gotta focus on one thing at a time."

"Like what exactly?"

"Hmm...Well your sword clearly doesn't like you all that much so why not practice your boosted soul energy power junk. Or your necromancy which you for some odd reason never use! Your dracomancy needs a ton of work so that could be a good start. Or you could train your loveable talking contracted wolf familiar! I personally like the last option and would highly recommend it."

"Yeah! Maybe you're on to something you little shit flake! I'll master my dracomancy powers and use them to kick ass so that this sword will have no choice but to listen to me! Hell, I'm gonna go train up right now!"

Kyra grabbed my arm. "That'll have to wait Shiro. We are scheduled for a meeting with the other Devil factions."

"What?! But that sounds boring as hell!" I groaned.

Gracia laughed. "That's because it kind of is."

Kyra pressed her hand to the floor. A large red pentagram appeared below us. "Shiro, please be on your best behavior."

I glared. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Before I got an answer, we all vanished and appeared in a large room with a long table in the center. The room reminded me of my first meeting with the Aesma-Daeva group.

Many people there were faces that I had never seen before though some were familiar. It was still pretty nerve wracking to say the least.

"So it looks like you got dragged into this mess too." Dub said with a grin.

"Unfortunately. I didn't even have time to run off." I laughed.

"Yeah, Theta pretty much tied me up. I freaking hate these damn meetings."

"This is my first one…"

He snickered. "Give it time. You'll hate it as much as I do eventually."

"Kyra. It's so good of you to join us." An older man in black robes said with a smile.

"Greetings Urotok." She said back to him with a light bow.

Urotok seemed like a kind old man. That was pretty refreshing to see. His positive attitude made me crack a smile. The smile wouldn't last though.

"Why hello again my sweet! So good to see you again." Gideon said as he walked up and kissed her forehead. The disgust on Kyra face made me both amused and pissed off. My hatred instantly came back.

I took a step forward in order to deck his jaw in but Helena grabbed my sleeve and glared at me. "Don't even try it Romeo."

"What?! You actually support this shit?!"

"Of course not moron, but I've got no choice. Gideon could kill us all if he wanted to. No point in getting on his bad side. Kyra knows what she's doing."

"What a load of crap…" I grumbled.

Gideon walked around our little gang and smirked. "Ah, such a lovely sight. All of you understanding your place." He stopped and looked at me. I did my best to avoid eye contact knowing damn well the I still had a glimmer of hatred in them. "Well looky here. The weak bodyguard came along for the ride. How cute."

Vizeron snarled at him from the ground. I simply balled up my fists. "Hello again...Gideon."

"Fool!" He backhanded me across my face."That's Lord Gideon to you."

My eyes shifted colors for a brief moment. I really hated this guy. I wanted to slit his fucking throat for touching me like I was some bitch. "Lord...Gideon…"

He smirked. "Looks like you're somewhat smarter than when we last met. Good for you."

"Sure is…" I growled.

"...Kneel." He demanded.

"Excuse me?"

"Kneel before me pitiful welp. Now!" He said.

"Why should I?"

"Just do it Shiro." Helena muttered.

"Better do as she says. You'll regret it if you don't."

I got down and begrudgingly kneeled to him. "Happy now you spoiled prick?" I heard Gracia lightly giggle from my small insult.

His eye twitched. "Very much so." He slammed his fancy white shoe on top of my head and pressed my face into the ground. His haunting laughter filled my ears. "Head to the floor, bowing down like the absolute buffoon that you are. Filthy low-class."

"Gideon that's enough!" Kyra shouted as she pulled him back.

"Ah but the fun has just started my love!"

"Fuck you…" I growled.

"There you go! That same level of arrogance and incompetence. Here I oh so foolishly thought that you had learned your place. Apparently I misjudged." He smacked his foot across my face, easily breaking my nose.

"GIDEON!" Urotok snapped. "That is quite enough! You leave that boy alone this instant! We must begin the council!"

"Hmph...Looks like our little chat will have to continue another time I'm afraid. Shirley was it?" He spit on me and gave me a shit eating grin before walking towards his seat.

I stood back up and rubbed my bleeding nose. "Goddamn…"

Vuaz held out a handkerchief for me to use. "Take it Shiro."

I nodded and grabbed the white cloth. "Thanks man."

"Ahem!" Urotok cleared his throat. "We will now begin the discussion. Lord Sunnokur you may speak when ready."

The demon was standing with a large set of black, spiky, worn down battle armor. His helmet giving off an intimidating presence.

"Today we must discuss the looming threat of the Holy Alliance. My scouts have reported several Unknown entities lurking by the Netherrealm barrier. Upon further inspection, I had discovered slight damage on multiple sections. I believe this is the result of the angles wishing to wipe us out for good."

Another demon interjected. This demon was none other than Theta who had slammed her hand against the large table. "This is ridiculous! How much more of this are we gonna take?! Demons have done nothing but abide by the treaty between the Nether and Aether realms. They are goading us into war!"

A large man draped in black robes lifted his hand towards the girl that sat beside him. "Hush now Theta. We have no need to make hostile judgment." I noticed his bright orange hair swaying upwards as if it were a dancing flame. His voice was deep and held authority.

"Hades, do you have a suggestion to make?"

"If the angels are feeling confident in their ability to wage war with the demons then that must mean that they have bolstered a higher degree of confidence since our previous battle. This may be due to the aid of my prideful brother Zeus." He said his brother's name with full hatred and resentment.

"Unfortunately for us, my father isn't here to aid us in battle. Not until he returns, and who knows when that'll happen." Kyra said softly.

Gideon let out chuckled. "Why don't we just ask them. Issue a meeting with the All Father and his Holy Trinity. See if we can get answers."

"Who'll be willing to traverse the Death Scape and cross the barrier to the Aether just to deliver the request to those arrogant light wielders?"

"It is a most difficult task that will most likely result in a casualty." Urotok sighed.

I clenched my fist. "I thought that demons couldn't cross into the Aether." I spoke.

"We can't...by any normal means. However, there is an ancient artifact that can allow the wearer to temporarily pass through unharmed." Theta responded.

"Seems simple enough."

Hades smirked. "A confident one. You think it to be a simple task going into the gates of Heaven as a singular demon. You'd be killed on the spot."

I paused and thought about it for a moment. Haruka's father told me that there is someone in the Aether that can help me understand my dracomancy. This could be my chance to step ahead of the game!

"I'll do it."

"Shiro! Absolutely not!" Kyra shouted with disapproval.

"I can do this Kyra. Trust me on this one."

"No Shiro! You are MY bodyguard and therefore you are to do as I say! You're staying away from the angels!"

Gideon smirked. "I say let him do as he pleases Kyra. If he wants to do it than who are we to stop him?"

"Be silent Gideon!" She yelled harshly, catching him off guard. She stood up and jabbed her finger at my chest. "You have no idea what you're getting yourself into Shiro! This isn't your job nor is it your concern!"

I put my hands on her shoulders and grinned. "Kyra it'll be okay. I got somethings I need to learn anyway. This just seems like the best option. I'll be fine. You gotta let me go."

I could see the tears welling up in her eye and a wave of guilt hit me down deep. She shoved me back and turned her head away from me. "Fine! Go out there and die all over again! If that's really what you want."

Naomi held her closely. "Kyra settle down. I think he can do it."

"Damn right he can, because I'M going with him!" Viz shouted from the ground.

Everyone looked at the talking wolf. "What?! No way Viz! I got this one on my own."

"Nice try beta male! I'm sick of you treating me like an afterthought! You aren't the only one trying to get back at someone! I need to toughen up too!"

"By all means! Bring the mutt. You'll need some form of company." Gideon laughed.

I rolled my eyes and knelt down. "Are you sure about this?"

"I can handle myself! Plus, who's gonna save YOUR ass?"

I looked down at him. "Don't get all cocky on me now!" I smirked.

He gave me a toothy grin. "Yeah whatever…"

"Well I suppose that it's settled then. The boy will be going to the Aether Realm to deliver the request." Hades spoke with an amused tone.

I narrowed my eyes at him. "The name is Shiro Tatsugami and don't you forget it!"

"Well Shiro, if you do in fact somehow make it back alive, I will very much acknowledge your presence."

"Challenge accepted!" I nodded.

"Well it's settled then. Shiro Tatsugami and his wolf of the Aesma-Daeva branch will be handling the delivery." Urotok spoke. Everyone except for Kyra and Dub nodded. "Then this discussion is adjourned. Everyone is dismissed. Shiro, you're trip will begin tomorrow so be prepared."

I nodded my head. "Got it."

After all that, we all disappeared and made it back to our own house. Kyra wasted no time storming off inside. Her fists were balled up and I could see a stray tear fall from her face.

"Dude! You probably should go talk to her. She seems real upset." Viz muttered.

"Yeah you're probably right. I'll go see what's up. You go get some sleep." I told him.

"Alright beta male. Good luck."

I wasted no time and quickly walked down to Kyra's room. I knocked a couple of times but got no answer.

"Kyra it's me Shiro! Can you please just open the door?"

"Leave me alone Shiro!" She shouted.

"Kyra please! Just let me talk to you."

"..." She said nothing but still ended up opening the door. Her bright red eyes looked right into mine. I felt a little bad about making her cry like that. I wasn't an asshole, but I guess she thought otherwise.

"Can I please come in Lady Kyra?"

"..." She still said nothing but did incline to step aside, letting me in.

I sat down on her large bed while she folded her arms and leaned against the wall. I thought about what I would say before ultimately deciding just to wing it.

"Kyra you gotta understand that I'm not leaving you for good nor do I really want to. I'm doing this for three different reasons. The first is so that I can learn a technique that I have yet to perfect.

"Then just let us help you Shiro!"

I shook my head. "You can't. This isn't something that I can just practice and then be good at. I have to learn the power of dracomancy from an actual Dragon and to even find this Yul place that they live, I have to speak to another dracomancer. One of which is in the Aether. Apparently her name is Dominique Gliss."

Kyra's eyes widened. "The server of St. Joseph?! Have you completely lost your mind?!"

"What?"

"She's a Saint's angel! That means that she is apart of the All Father's Holy Knights!"

"So?"

She glare at me. "You're a demon now! She kills demons! It's her job!"

"...Oh, so that is pretty bad."

She deadpanned. "Yes Shiro. It is pretty bad."

"Well I still gotta try. She's one of three options that I have and actually know about."

She sighed. "I still don't approve of that but go on. You said you had three reasons."

"The second is because of what Hades was talking about. You guys may in fact be going to war. My future self told me about this. Apparently I'm supposed to fix it. I'm not too sure how though."

"Wait, slow down. Your future self? How did that even happen?"

I shrugged. "My future evil half tried to kill him so he used time magic to escape back here."

"Oh...Well that's definitely...something."

"My third and final reason for going is kind of a personal one. I'm honestly hoping to find my father or my little sister. If my father isn't in Heaven then I know for a fact that Maddie is. She was the sweetest little girl in the world. She just has to be there."

"Shiro...The odds of her still being there are quite slim. Heaven has changed a lot in recent times. Angels aren't the same symbols of good. It might not be what you were expecting."

"Even so, I'm still going."

She sat next to me and grab my hand. "If you really do feel this strongly about it then I guess I really can't stop you."

"You're worrying too much about me. I can handle this."

"..." She went silent for a moment. I looked down at her and saw the shade of red on her cheeks.

"Hey are you okay?" I asked.

"I'm fine Shiro." She laid down on the bed and tugged me down with her.

"What's happening?" I asked her.

She took my arm and draped it over her waist. "Nothing. I'm tired."

"B-but why am I-"

"Hush now Shiro." She said softly.

She backex up against me and sighed with content. My hand rested on top of hers as she dozed off. He smooth black hair was right in my face.

I couldn't help the smile that made its way onto my face as I too fell asleep.

(CLYDE'S POV)

"I believe that you have finally done it Clyde. I'm impressed by how fast you were able to learn that technique. Even I took about a week to perfect that one."

I panted heavily while still on my knees. "Thanks...master…"

"You have far exceeded my expectations Clyde. Never in my entire existence have I seen such raw potential. The closest being my previous disciple. I fully understand why Xeno praises you so heavily."

I nodded. "Thank you master."

He smiled at me which took me by surprise. "Clyde, I have no more techniques to show you. The rest is up to you now. You will have to grow on your own. As you know, cryomancy is a very versatile form of magic. While it lacks the intense power of pyromancy, it more than makes up for it with its utilities. You can now wield both."

"I still need more practice though. I still can't regulate my mana to accommodate for the shift in balance. It's too much strain on my body." I told him.

He nodded. "I remember my father telling me about him dealing with a similar issue when mastering his abilities. You will learn how to tame your mana in time. For now, let us relax and enjoy a bit of rest. Your companion is waiting inside for you from what I can tell."

"My companion? Oh you mean Isabel?"

"Yeah that's it. I can tell that you two are quite close to one another."

"Well we've been friends for years now so I guess you could say that." I shrugged.

"Do not become blind to your own desires Yukio. Let her know."

I shook my head in denial. "I can't. Not until I'm sure about a few things first."

"So long as you do not wait too long. You'll be fine."

"If you say so master."

"Well then, shall we head inside?" Xeto asked before walking towards his home.

I looked up and noticed a large beast flying up high above the clouds. I was able to sense two beings.

"...Where are they going?" I wondered as both Gabby and Zero flew past.

(TATSU'S POV)

"Goddamn those sneaky sons of bitches!" I growled.

"Now do you see why this needed to be done. They were horrible people." Eliza said back.

I looked at the hundreds of bodies that piled up all around us. "Holy shit we went overboard…"

"Relax! This was very much necessary. Now my people have food for the next couple of weeks! That and all this new territory!"

"Yeah, I can't really feel all that good about feeding a city of thieves after slaughtering an entire civilization."

"Well too bad. What's done is done. Now we can head back and give my father the good news."

"Good isn't exactly what I'd call-" A sudden jolt of pain shot through my body. My head pounded aggressively.

"Hey what's the matter?" She asked.

I pushed her back and fell to my knees. "Damn! Something's wrong. I can't shake this odd feeling from inside of me!"

"The hell are you talking about?"

I slammed my fist into the ground. "It's Mutagenesis. I know it! He's trying to pull me back into my real timeline." My body started to fade in and out of reality.

"What do we do then?!"

I summoned my scythe and handed it to her. "Hold onto that for a moment."

"Yeah sure, but why?"

"Just wait…When I cast my spell you need to slice off my head." I snatched the long and sharp dagger from the holster on her thigh and stabbed myself in the chest.

"TATSU!"

"Don't worry. Just be ready!" I coughed a bit before muttering a few words. "Ward of Time: Clockwork Rewind!"

She swung the scythe down and instantly decapitated me. Right as my head hit the floor time went backwards and stalled when it hit five minutes into the past.

Eliza stood there, partially disturbed by what had just happened. "What the actual fuck?!"

"He had me. He found me and tried to drag my soul back to that world. I had to stab myself in order to spill my blood in this world. You cutting off my head broke me from his grasp. All I had to do was go back a few minutes to undo it all."

"That's so fucked up."

"This coming from the one that didn't just die."

She rolled her eyes at me. "How did he get a hold of you anyway?!"

"He has the soul weaving abilities. With how strong he's gotten over the last few years, I'm not surprised that he'd be able to reach across different dimensions just to get me."

"Around what time did you two split?"

"After the whole war between Heaven and Hell."

She frowned. "And where is present Shiro now?"

"He's in Hell...Oh shit!"

"You don't think evil you is tryna recreate what happened do you?"

"Not sure. It's still to early to tell but I wouldn't put it past him. This was a difficult time for me. Shiro's gonna have to find away to rewrite these events or things might end up spiraling downward for everyone."

"What a goddamn mess."

This was all starting to look grimmer with each passing second. If Metagenesis wants me outta the picture then he's definitely up to something. I just wish I knew what it was.