GBK 5
As promised, since I finished chapter 6 earlier today, here's the conclusion of the Rating Game! The next chapter's with my beta, so I'll be uploading it as soon as I get it back from him.
Disclaimer: I don't own DxD or SAO.
"Koneko!" Kirito shouted, running over to the crater just in time for him and Issei to watch Koneko vanish in a shower of golden light. Both of them looked up and saw the Phoenix queen floating down towards them.
"So many pests..." She sighed, "And I only got one too. How very shameful."
"Get down here, you bitch!" Issei shouted, his hand getting covered by the Boosted Gear, "I'll take revenge for Koneko!"
"Calm down, Issei." Kirito said, putting a hand on his shoulder to keep him from charging at her.
"Issei, Kazuto; Akeno and Kiba are on their way." Rias told them quickly, "Get out of there and we'll regroup afterwar-"
"Rias, how long would it take for Akeno, Issei and Kiba to take down all of them?" Kirito asked, cutting her off.
"Kazuto, you can't be seriou-" She started, but he just shook his head.
"It was my job originally, so I'll take care of it." he replied, "Even with Kiba and Akeno, the four of us are at a disadvantage here. I'll keep her busy while the rest can deal with them. It's too risky to let them keep the advantage like this."
"It's still reckless." She replied, and he shrugged.
"Well, what's the worst that happens? I lose and you guys have to make do without me for the rest of the game? You've just gotta make sure that you take care of my share for me." He said, lowering both of his swords, He took a step towards the queen, "Yubelluna! Fight me!"
The queen giggled softly, "Now what makes you think that you're worth my time, little boy? Don't think that just because you can hold your own against these little girls that you can take on someone of my caliber."
"I can't force you to fight me." Kirito admitted with a fearless smile, "But is the queen of Riser Phoenix so weak that she can't even fight against a measly knight?" Chuckling, he added, "I mean, you couldn't even fight Koneko face to face. Are the Phoenix such cowards that you can only fight someone with their back turned?"
"You dare insult the house of Phoenix!?" One of the knights behind him shouted, charging at him, but Issei blocked her sword and knocked her back.
"Dress Break." He snapped, and her clothes were vaporized instantly. Before she could do more than gasp, Kiba came out of nowhere and slashed her across the chest. Before she hit the ground, she disappeared in a shower of light.
"One of Lord Riser's Knights, retired." Grayfia announced afterwards.
"I don't know what you're planning, but you aren't worth my ti-" Yubelluna started, but an orange circle appeared beside her head, and her expression turned to a scowl. Lowering her staff, she descended to the ground, "Very well, little boy." She smiled, "If you're so eager to meet oblivion, far be it for me to stand in your way."
"Gee, thanks." He said, raising his sword, "Shall we?"
"Come with me." She smiled, "After all, I wouldn't want our pieces to be caught in your defeat."
"I was going to say the same thing." he bluffed back, "After all, I can't very well fight at full strength this close to the others."
"Big talk." Yubelluna smirked before flying away again. Kirito gave a small wave to his friends before following after her.
"Kirito…" Asuna said worriedly, watching Kirito leave the battlefield with the enemy queen
"Mommy?" Yui asked, "What's happening?"
"Floor twenty-five…" She whispered.
"What?" Yui said in confusion.
"During the floor twenty-five boss battle, the entire raid was on the brink of failure." She answered, "The boss spawned minions and they flanked us from both sides. We didn't have the manpower to keep the boss preoccupied and fight the minions. It was a no win situation until a single party held the attention of the boss. Because of them, we were able to regroup and defeat the minions, and finally defeat the boss. The cost was high, though. The party that held the boss back for us was all but eradicated. There was only one survivor…"
"Daddy?" Yui guessed, and she nodded her head.
"This isn't any different." Asuna told her, "If they fight Yubelluna and the others at the same time, they don't have the strength to survive. But…"
"If a small party stops the queen, the main force can wipe out the rest with minimal interference." Yui smiled, "Daddy's amazing!"
"Yes, he is…" Asuna said softly, but she didn't have the heart to tell her that Kirito only survived floor twenty-five because the clearers had made it to him before he could be killed like the rest of the party.
"This should be far enough." Yubelluna said with a cruel smiled once they were near the ruins of the gymnasium Akeno had destroyed.
"So, ready to fight?" he asked, taking his stance.
"Fight?" She smirked, "No, no. You see, I'm going to kill you."
"Kill me?" He asked with a raised eyebrow, "How so?"
"Didn't you know?" She asked mockingly, "Even the retiring system of the Rating Game has its limits. If the damage is too severe, you can die the same as anyone. And for the insults you've uttered against my lord, I've no choice but to deliver the ultimate punishment."
"So, I'm fighting for my life again?" Kirito smiled, "This really is just like the old days. Well, in that case, I might as well go down fighting!"
Without another word, Kirito charged forward, swiping at where she'd been a split second before. Above him, Yubelluna's staff glowed with red fire and with a wave, the air around him exploded. A last second drop prevented any major damage, but he was still sent crashing to the ground. He could hear Rias screaming in his ear, but he tuned her out. Yubelluna launched several more explosive projectiles at him, and he knocked them away with his swords.
"I see you're not without some skill." She grinned, "In that case-"
The ground beneath his feet started to glow, and he jumped to the air just in time to avoid the explosion. Looking up, he found Yubelluna's staff an inch from his face. A small ball of black magic was focused at the tip.
"Bang." She grinned, and it exploded at point blank range. The skin on his face burned from the heat, and the force send him crashing into the ground. Both of his swords shattered from the force of the blast.
Still, to her surprise, he slowly got back to his feet. There hadn't been any announcement from the others, which meant that he couldn't let her leave yet. The diversion wouldn't mean anything if she made it back before they could finish.
"You should've stayed down." Yubelluna said, landing a few feet in front of him, "Grayfia might have retired you if you'd just stayed down. Now you've thrown away your last chance at survival."
"Listen to you." He replied, picking up the hilt of the elucidator, which at least had about a foot of the blade left, "If you've got time to talk, then shut up and fight."
"Lady Rias' servants really are suicidal fools." She said shaking her head, "As you wish, I'll end this now." A larger orb started to form at the tip of her staff, already five times larger than the one that had just hit him and still growing. "Farewell." She said, preparing to fire it.
"One of Lord Riser's Bishops, one of his knights, one of his rooks, and one of his pawns, retired." Grayfia announced, and Yubelluna's head snapped back to the direction where the others had been fighting.
"What!?" She growled, and Kirito saw his chance.
'Now!' He thought, charging forward. Her eyes looked back at him just before the blade hit her. The tip of her staff blocked the attack, incinerating the remains of the sword.
"I don't have time to deal with you!" she snarled, firing the blast of magic at him.
With the diversion successful, at least he could go down knowing he did his job. But going down quietly was never his specialty. The world seemed to slow down while the massive attack was moving towards him. Reaching out with the only weapon he had, he closed his eyes to try and bring out his magic. Maybe if he made it explode at the right moment, he could knock away the attack.
As he started feeling the heat of the incoming fireball, he felt something inside of him snap. The magic he'd been struggling to contain exploded out of his outstretched hand, and his eyes snapped open. The fireball was cut clean in half from the blade in his hand.
The Elucidator.
It wasn't like the one Kiba had created for him. This wasn't an imitation of his sword. He could feel it. This was the real deal. Extending the other hand, the second blade, Dark Repulser, appeared almost without him even being conscious of it.
"What is this?" She asked angrily, "I destroyed those swords!"
"Keep telling yourself that." He replied, taking his stance again while still trying to figure out what was going on.
"You insect!" She snarled, raising her staff again. This time, as though the staff was a lightning rod, she was blasted by a bolt of lightning.
"You can keep your grubby little hands off our Knight." Akeno said from the air above them.
"Akeno!" Kirito sighed in relief, and Kiba appeared just behind him.
"You did great, man." He said patting him on the back.
"I try." He said, wincing slightly from the pain in his back.
"Give up, Yubelluna." Akeno said, lightning crackling between her fingers, "Issei, Rias, and Asia are already on their way. You can't fight against all of us on your own, and I seriously doubt that Riser's going to come help you in time."
"I am a queen of the house of Phoenix." She scoffed, "I won't surrender to lowborn scum like you!"
"Too bad." Akeno sighed, before smiling, "Then I guess I'll have to make you. I hope you enjoy yourself, because I know that I will."
"You okay on your own?" Kiba asked him while Akeno's magic clashed with Yubelluna's.
"I'm fine." He answered, "Go give her a hand."
"Asia should be here soon." Kiba assured him, "she'll have you up and ready to get back into the fight before you know it." Smiling, he added, "I can't wait to see what that sacred gear of yours can do."
With that, Kiba's wings grew from his back and he took to the air, narrowly missing Yubelluna's leg with his first slash. She spun around to blast him, but Akeno's bolt hit her in the back and threw off her attack. The two of them worked perfectly in sync, stopping any attacks at the other with an attack from her blind spot. The arrogant smirk on Yubelluna's face had disappeared, replaced with a pained grimace. It didn't take more than a minute for her to fall to the ground.
"It's over." Kiba said, standing over her while she struggled back to her knees.
"Too bad." Akeno sighed, landing beside him, "I was really hoping to enjoy myself a bit longer."
"Oh?" Yubelluna chuckled, and Kirito saw her swallow something from a tiny glass vial. The wounds all over her body disappeared almost immediately, and she started charging another attack.
"Get out of there!" Kirito shouted, charging forward. The Elucidator glowed blue and he realized that without even thinking, he'd preformed Sonic Leap. His blade slashed her across the chest, and she was covered in golden light.
"Damn you-!" She cursed, and with the last of her strength, she redirected her attack and blasted him at point blank range.
"Lord Riser's Queen, retired." Grayfia announced, and Kirito's vision was filled with black smoke and golden light, "One of Lady Rias' Knights retired."
"Kirito!" Asuna shouted, and Yui let out a small scream at the moment that he was hit. Tsubaki placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"It's okay." She assured her, "He's already being treated. The wounds aren't severe."
"C-Can I see him?" She asked worriedly.
Tsubaki opened her mouth to respond, but the floor beneath her started to grow in silver light.
"Lady Grayfia?" Sona asked, looking to the arbiter overseeing the closing stages of the battle.
"She is travelling under my authority." Grayfia replied, "There's no cause for alarm."
"Thank you." Asuna said honestly, and she disappeared.
"Kazuto!" Kiba shouted, but it was already too late. His fellow knight was already being retired from the final attack.
"Phoenix tears." Akeno growled, "That bishop had them too."
"What's going on?" Rias asked them immediately after Kirito was retired, "What happened?"
"Kazuto took down Yubelluna." Kiba reported, "But her last attack took him out as well."
"Kazuto…" She sighed, "Well, we'll regroup and make the final push. Issei's already here. You two, get back to the Club house. We leave as soon as Asia's seen to our wounds."
"Understood!" They both answer, flying straight towards the clubhouse. On the other side of the map, Riser clearly wasn't pleased, as the new school building was burning to the ground.
Kirito slowly opened his eyes, and next to him, Asuna was smiling down at him.
"How are you feeling?" She asked him.
"Like I just got hit by a truck." He groaned, sitting up, "What happened with the game?"
"They're still fighting." A familiar voice said from next to him.
Koneko was sitting up in a bed, pointing at the other side of the room. Kirito followed her finger and saw a large television displaying a Riser facing against the rest of the occult research club.
"So, my pretty little bride doesn't know when to give up?" Riser chuckled, stepping out of the ashes of the old school building, "You should already know that you can't win. If you strike Riser down, he'll simply rise until you fall. The result was always set in stone. Why make this harder than it has to be?"
"You're all talk, Riser." Rias replied, the black power of destruction forming over her hands, "Even you have a limit. We need only to kill you until you've reached it!"
The two blasts tore Riser apart, but his body simply reformed from the flames, "Much easier said than done. But if that's your decision, I'll humor you and your pathetic servan-"
"You will not badmouth my servants!" Rias snarled, blasting him again without result.
Riser chuckled and raised a hand. Huge amounts of fires appeared in his hand and with a wave, it was blown towards them. Before it reached them, a bolt of lightning blasted it from the sky, dispersing it harmlessly.
"Don't forget, Lord Riser." Akeno giggled from the sky, "Rias isn't alone in this fight."
"Keep calm." Kiba cautioned, creating a sword made entirely out of ice, "If you are defeated, we lose. Stay back with Asia and Issei. Akeno and I will take the fight to him."
"Kiba…" She sighed, taking a step back, "Very well."
"Thank you ma'am." He said, dashing forward. Riser recoiled slightly when he seemingly appeared right in front of him, but he managed to jump out of the way before Kiba could slash him. Above their head, Akeno was chanting softly. The clouds in the sky darkened, and you could hear the sounds of thunder rumbling just out of sight.
"Numbers are meaningless when you're utterly outclassed." Riser said, and his entire body started to glow, "Allow me to provide you with a taste of my power!"
"Akeno, Kiba!" Rias shouted, remembering one of Riser's previous rating games, "Get out of there!"
Akeno was able to raise a barrier between her and Riser, but Kiba didn't have time to escape before Riser exploded, bathing the area in fire.
"Lady Rias' Knight, retired." Grayfia announced.
Across the room, one of the beds started to glow gold, and several unfamiliar devils ran into the room. Kirito only had a brief glimpse of Kiba before he was being tended to by the group, talking too quickly for him to keep track of what was going on.
"Kiba will be fine." Asuna said, holding her hand with a smile, "You were much worse before they got to you."
"Yeah, I remember." He winced, feeling the skin on his face. There wasn't any trace of the burns from Yubelluna's attacks.
"Kiba!" Rias shouted once the flames had cleared, "Damnit, Riser! I've had enough of you! This ends now!"
"You still don't get it, do you?" Riser asked with a soft chuckle, "Very well. Riser will entertain your rebellious streak as long as you wish. After all, once this is over, you'll be Riser's."
"Akeno, Rain!" Rias ordered, and the thunderclouds in the sky started to drizzle. in mere moments, it grew into a steady rainfall, and then to a full downpour.
"Countering fire with water." Riser shook his head, "Typical strategy for a virgin such as yourself."
"Riser, even you can't escape being caught in this downpour." Rias smiled, wrapping her arms around Issei and Asia and floating into the air, "Your body might be able to recover from the wounds, but the water on your skin will still conduct electricity."
"This is going to be fun." Akeno giggled, and a colossal bolt dropped out of the sky above Riser. Raising a hand, he tried to force it back with a blast of wind, but Rias' power of destruction disintegrated the arm before he could defend himself. Once the lightning struck him, Riser screamed in agony from the continuous damage.
"Akeno, keep it going!" Rias shouted over the deafening sustained thunder.
"I'll try!" She called back, "But I'm not exactly full power at the moment. I'll only have enough for another minute or two."
"That'll be enough." Rias said, turning to Issei, "Can you do it, Issei?"
"Of course!" He responded enthusiastically, "Leave it to me!"
"You have no play, Rias." Riser whispered through the pain, "This battle's over the moment your queen run out of magic. Surrender, and Riser will allow you to keep your ragtag group of servants. Refuse my generous offer and I won't settle for just retiring them. You'll be forced to watch as I kill each and every one of your servants."
Rias gulped nervously, but she shook her head, "Riser, this battle is OURS!"
"So be it." Riser answered, and he started to struggle against the lightning prison. Up in the sky, Akeno was visibly distressed, but she didn't say anything. Whether because she didn't trust herself to keep the lightning going while talking or just because she was determined to hold on until the end, they couldn't say.
"Boost!" The boosted gear announced.
"Rias!" Issei said, and Rias breathed a sigh of relief.
"Akeno, ten seconds!" She shouted, gripping Issei's sacred gear tightly.
"Transfer!" The boosted Gear roared, and Rias' aura exploded. A massive ball of her magic appeared above her head.
"Game over, Riser!" She shouted, "Even you can't withstand this attack."
"I-I Can!" He groaned, but he still couldn't move to avoid it.
"Brother!" A voice shouted from the other side of the field, and Akeno's eyes snapped over to the source. Riser's sister, his bishop, flew in between the two sides, "Stay away from my brother!"
"Get out of the way, Ravel!" Riser roared.
"Surrender, Riser!" Rias ordered, "Before your sister gets hurt!"
"Shut up!" Ravel interrupted, "Brother, I'll stop her attack. You need to escape from that and recover!"
"Ravel!" Riser shouted, but she didn't listen and charged at Rias. On instinct more than intention, Rias tossed the massive ball of magic at her. Riser screamed, trying desperately to make his body move, but he wasn't going to make it in time. 'I forfeit!" He shouted a split second before the attack hit her.
The attack was blasted aside by a single hand.
"Forfeit acknowledged." Grayfia announced from right beside the pale Ravel, "The winner of the match is Rias Gremory."
I'd originally planned for the game to be a lot longer, but it ended up being next to impossible to get it right. So sadly, you'll have to make do with this. I'll try and make the next fight longer. Anyway, next chapter is mostly setting the stage for future arcs, with some tidying up of the SAO parts of the story that have been neglected up until now. Again, it'll be out as soon as my beta goes through it.
As always, reviews are welcome. I always make an effort to respond to as many reviews as possible.