A/N: Okay, just to make things clear. I've started to play Disgaea 3 again! With that said, I've also began to write my fanfiction once more! It's all good news ya know! Sorry for the long delay, I'm not even going to blame school or life (even though i should). With that said, enjoy the chapter!
Disclaimer: I do not own any of NIS America's Characters.
Chapter Eight: Battle to Reclaim Evil Academy
[Embraced by Darkness plays]
Emerging from the Dimensional Gate, Asagi and crew find themselves in a familiar, but unknown area… well, an expansive white room. The only features that stood out other than the whiteness, were the six doors that were on the opposite side of the room.
After standing there for a while, Reio yelled out, "What the hell! I ain't ever seen a place like this! Vurt friggin' lied!" He pulled out his sword, and continued "If I see him again I'll—"
"Hmhmhm, I thought this might happen, so I took the liberty of 'rearranging' the place," said a voice that made everyone get defensive.
"Who's there?" yelled Asagi, pistols at the ready.
"Sounds like an old man," said Celeste as she looked around. "And a quite knowledgeable one at that…"
"Maybe," said Yui in a way that made everyone look toward her. "Maybe… it's a… gho—"
"It's Geoffrey," interrupted Ryuki. "Yeah, I'd remember that tone… and that saying anywhere. It's him."
"Hmmm. I see the young warrior hasn't lost his touch. Well neither have I." The former Superhero paused for a few moments. "The rooms before you, each lead to the same place. However, only one person may pass through a single door. Though there is nothing stopping you all from going through the same door, I would heavily advise against it."
"I take it that Mao's running a little low on vassals," said Asagi confidently as she headed for the left most door. "Well for all of this… the bastard betta put on a helluva fight! Else Imma have ta unleash all Disgaea on him—"
"Ah I almost forgot," said Geoffrey quickly. "Miss Asagi, the way this works is that you must choose a champion. He or she will enter a door, and then proceed through. Whether your champion makes it or not, you will then choose a second champion, and continue the process. It is kind of like a best two out of three."
"So what happens if my side wins," asked Asagi.
"I was just getting to that part," said Geoffrey. "If two of your champions lose then, the losers will be forced to join the young Master's side and you may only bring one vassal with you to face him. If you win however, then you all may come and fight Mao."
"Hmmm, interesting…" Asagi thought aloud.
"That's all?" Reio said heading towards the rightmost door. "Then I'll just go and get it over with, and Ryuki can follow. No use wasting time here for nothing."
"Stop being so rash youngling," Aramith said. "You needn't waste energy on underlings. You need to learn how to conserve energy. Otherwise it will be your downfall."
Reio turned around and up to Aramith. The Marauder had and extremely pissed off look on his face and had a vein bulging from his forehead. "You trying to trash me old fart? Huh? Are you trying to denounce my ability?"
Before the prophet could say a word, a voice from behind him said, "Don't start fights you can't finish Reio." Aramith turned around and saw that it was Celeste who had warned the Marauder. The Force Knight looked at her master and continued, "Besides, Mistress Asagi is the one who calls the shots. Stop being an idiot and show some respect."
"Tck…" Reio said in disdain, and he slumped down on the ground. "Screw it, let the human decide then."
"Hmmm…" Asagi examined each of her vassals until her eyes finally stopped. "If I were to test this out… I'd go with, Yui."
"Huh?" Yui said.
"Yeah not a bad choice," Ryuki agreed.
"Hey what the!"
"Just go dammit! Get it over with," Reio said in a pissed off way. Defeated, Yui went through the rightmost door and it closed behind her. "So what now Geoffrey?"
"May I direct your attention to your rear." Everyone turned around and saw a huge television that was tracking Yui. "From this you will be able to see how you champions are doing, Miss Asagi. And now let the contest begin."
-Beyond the Rightmost Door-
[Chinese Sword plays]
Yui headed down a dark narrow path that stretched on for a while until she came to an opening where she caught sight of a lone man dressed in red standing on a large platform in the center of the room. As she approached the man, she thought to herself (This looks like the room where we fought the P.T.A.) Reaching the stage, the thief felt feverish. "Okay, you can turn off the sauna," Yui said as she wiped her forehead.
The man in red suddenly cried out, "Hyahyahyahyahyahyaa!" before turning around and facing Yui. "You know what they say, 'if you can't take the heat, why are you cooking?'"
Yui comically sweatdropped. "I thought I was get out of the kitchen mister…! Master Champloo!" The thief cried out finally recognizing the man in front of her. "So you're my opponent?"
"Hmph. Let's put your cooking skills to the test. Boom!" Champloo said while motioning Yui to charge at him, and Yui complies.
With her Red Shooter in tow, Yui makes a mad dash towards Champloo, but is swiftly disarmed before she can get a shot off. Then while Yui was off-balance, Champloo unleashed a devastating right punch. Yui brought her arms up to defend herself, however Champloo still was able to break the bone in her right forearm causing Yui to cry out in pain.
"I thought I told you, trying to cook a five course meal with halfheartedly chosen ingredients will only result in slop and upturned stomachs. Boom!" Champloo told his pupil. "There was no passion, no intensity! I saw it, and knew immediately that I wouldn't even feed it to pigs. Boom!"
(So my charge was that sloppy) Yui thought as she temporarily healed her forearm. After testing it out, she stood in a southpaw stance and gazed at her master. "This time I won't be beaten."
"HA!" laughed Champloo. He then charged at his pupil and they exchanged fists. Though it was completely one-sided, the Home Ec. Teacher was still surprised that Yui was able to hit him as many times as she did. After a couple of minutes of this, Champloo decided to definitively finish the bout by executing his Blazing Palm attack which left Yui unconscious covered in burn marks. "The passion was there," Champloo sighed as he stood over his fallen pupil. "But I was cooking for someone other than myself. Next time, show me the true spirit behind your cooking. Boom." Suddenly a red light surrounded Champloo and a blue light surrounded Yui, and the two vanished.
-Back in the room with all the doors-
[DEAD END plays]
The words "Winner: Mr. Champloo" ran across the screen, as the group witnessed the conclusion of the bout and the mood went somber. Ryuki tries to get the group back on task. He says, "Well, I guess we need to focus on-"
"Screw this!" Reio interrupted. He looked at each of his comrades with anger filled eyes. "Yui freaking lost! You!" He pointed fiercely at Asagi. "You used her as a test dummy! And the rest of you just agreed with her! She got screwed over! Don't try to rationalize this Ryuki like you always do." the Marauder glared at him. "I should have been the one to fight… Not Yui!"
"Calm down," Celeste said calmly. "You're not helping the situation any so you should just-"
"Shut it Celestia," Reio interjected while pointing his sword at her neck. "Don't get so damn cocky. If you weren't Ryuki's girl, you'd be dead already."
"Calm down young Marauder," Aramith said peacefully trying to mellow out the situation. "We need to keep our cool. Rushing or going into this without careful planning-"
"Shut up, you old piece of crap," snapped Reio. "You come into the group and start to think that you're… wait a sec! What the heck are you doing here in the first place? We don't need you, you fossilized relic. Go back and sit on the shelf before I-"
"Everyone shut up!" Asagi and Ryuki said at the same time. The two of them looked at each other and Ryuki nodded his head. Asagi then looked at her vassals and said, "Listen, I'm in charge, no, I'm the Overlord of you all AND the Main Character, so whatever I say goes." Asagi sighed inwardly. "I mean I know I'm supposed to be the main character and all, but I feel like a supporting character… but nonetheless! Aramith, Ryuki," she said pointing at each demon in turn. "You two will be our remaining 'champions'."
"Not a problem," Ryuki complied after receiving acknowledgment from Aramith. He then continued, "Going off our strengths, I'll be the anchor."
"Ha! You're relying on these old bones a tad too much, youngling," replied Aramith. The old Prophet looked in the direction of the big television and muttered something inaudible to the others before going through the center-most door.
As soon as the door closed behind Aramith, Reio hit Ryuki with a swift jab to his jaw causing the Gladiator to fall to the floor stunned. Celeste then got into a position to strike down Reio, but Ryuki put his hand up to stop her. "Dang that hurt," Ryuki said laughing off the hit and getting to his feet. "Seems like your fists could be your third 'Weapon Forte'."
Reio looked at Ryuki, then Asagi, and lastly Celeste. "Screw you guys," he manages to say without blowing up. He started walking toward the Dimensional Gate. "I hope Mao turns you all into Prinnies!"
Right before the Reio is able to go through the gate, Ryuki yelled, "Seems like you're making a big fuss over someone that you consider an enormous pest." Suddenly everyone present felt a surge of evil Mana come from Reio, however before they could say anything about it, the Marauder left.
Asagi and Celeste looked at Ryuki in surprise, but he just shrugged his shoulders and looked at the television only to see Aramith, who looked as though he went untouched, standing over a lifeless and severely beat up Sapphire. The same red light that surrounded Champloo engulfed Aramith, and a similar blue light engulfed Sapphire, and they both vanished.
With a huge grin on his face, Ryuki immediately rushed through the leftmost door letting it slam behind him forcefully.
Asagi deeply sighed at the situation and then turned to Celeste. "What exactly is Ryuki to you?" she asked her. "I mean, I know that the two of you like each other, but when I look at how you act around him, you're… different." She finished up not having a better way to explain what she felt.
Celeste glared coolly at her master and said, "I'm not different Master Asagi." The Force Knight then gives Asagi a bright smile. "But… I'll do just about anything for him. That's all!"
Asagi sighed again and simply looked at the television. (This group is a lot shakier than I previously thought) she said inwardly as she tracked Ryuki's progress on the screen. (Seems like you're the glue that keeps them together Ryuki… Don't screw this up.)
-Beyond the Leftmost Door-
[Orange Runner plays]
As Ryuki walked along the crystal-laden path stretched out before him, he kept thinking to himself, (Is following Asagi around on this ridiculous 'Adventure' going to be beneficial to me?) Before he knew it, the Gladiator had arrived at a ginormous1 door. Without a wasted motion, Ryuki effortlessly burst through the it and found himself in a field of crystals with a figure in the middle of it. Shielding his eyes from the blinding sight, Ryuki thought to himself, (Crap! Reio was right, Vurt's a danged liar. There isn't a place like this at or near the Academy!)
"Ah, so it's Mister Ryuki," said a familiar voice to Ryuki's ears. "Sorry about the scenery, but Mao said that this might be a good idea. I mean, normally I would be against his advice, but… I don't want Vurt's prediction to come true. And I don't think that whole resurrection thing will happen again…"
(Almaz?) Ryuki tried to get a look at the Human Hero, but couldn't due to the light. Not caring that he was blind, which would be a major setback against someone like Almaz, Ryuki got into his fighting stance. "I'm sorry about this seeing as though you're a newlywed and FINALLY a hero Almaz, but I've got to do this."
Hearing this Almaz sighed. "Other than Master and Miss Beryl, you were always someone I respected. Even though the latter is sometimes scarier than Mao…" He added slyly. "Anyway, let's go!"
Almaz rushed at Ryuki and began slashing at him with very precise strikes to the demon's arms and torso. Even with Ryuki's handicap, the Gladiator was able to guard against the majority of Almaz's attacks. However, Ryuki still took a few nicks to his arms and legs, and a gash to his stomach that caused him to stagger back, drop his scythe and hold his stomach in pain.
"I'm really sorry about this Ryuki," Almaz said stopping his attack momentarily. "It doesn't feel right, tricking you. Me being a hero and all… I should have-"
[Rock Crystal plays]
"Shut it Almaz!" Ryuki yelled causing Almaz to jump a little. It was more forceful than he was going for, but he didn't care at the moment. Though the pain coursed through his body, Ryuki said with a straight face, "Listen, you being a hero me being a demon, just think of it like that! It's your job to kill me. Besides…" He paused because of the pain in his stomach. Once he got his composure back, he blinked his eyes and tested them a bit to find out that his eyes were getting more accustomed to the light, causing Ryuki to grin devilishly. "… Besides, don't go easy on me. Because I'm not going easy on you." He then picked up his scythe, raised it to his side, and made a gesture in the direction Almaz's voice came from that said "bring it".
(I guess this is unavoidable) Almaz thought before rushing at Ryuki once more. Just before Almaz could get close enough to begin attacking again, Ryuki swung his scythe hard ultimately throwing it at Almaz, who was able to easily dodge it. Almaz then began his assault again. This time, without the aid of his scythe, Ryuki was getting cut up by Almaz's onslaught; however, since his vision was clearing up slowly he was not, to Almaz's surprise, getting as damaged as one might imagine. It was as though at the last minute Ryuki would move just far enough to only get nicked by Almaz's Demolition Sword. After this kept up for a while, Ryuki found an opening and hit Almaz with an uppercut to the jaw that sent him flying. Meanwhile, Ryuki's Death Scythe, which was spiraling fast, was on a set course to return to him as though it were a boomerang and Almaz was directly in its path of travel. Seconds later the scythe hit Almaz in the back and continued to spin, slashing up his back in the process, as it ram him toward the ground. Unable to counter this move in anyway, Almaz crashed face first to the ground with the scythe set in his back.
Ryuki waited a few moments to see if Almaz was going to be able to strike back, but the Newly Wed Hero was down for the count. Getting somewhat relaxed, Ryuki went over to Almaz and retrieved his scythe. (Not bad on all accounts) he thought to himself. (Especially with his offense. However, you could have picked a better song Vurt… But, I'll let it slide.) Just as he completed his thought, a red light began to encircle him. It had a pleasant, calming feeling to it that made Ryuki feel drowsy. (Guess this makes it official…) he said to himself while positioning himself on the ground in a comfortable position. His eyes got heavy and immediately Ryuki knew that he was done fighting for the day. (Sorry but, Celeste, Asagi… It's up to you two now…) He was then teleported off to join Yui and the others.
Chapter Eight: END
-Chapter Nine Preview-
[Departure to Glory plays]
Asagi: Phew! Ryuki, don't worry me like that!
Celeste: I Tried to tell you that he was going to win. You should have believed in-
Asagi: Anyway with this we've won! Now all that's left is Mao… maybe Geoffrey.
Celeste: With how things unraveled though, it may just be me and you who take him on though. Considering that Yui's down, Ryuki's fatigued, we don't really know if Aramith is okay or not, and Reio… you know what, never mind him.
Asagi: Aggravated much toots? Well just cause you're the Mistress, I'll blow a hole through the bastard's chest when we return. How's it sound?
Celeste: Master, you're doing the voice again!
Asagi: Anyway listen here bub, next time on The Queen of Games: Ultimate Plot for Revenge, Episode 9: Light's out MAO!. None can stand up to me! Ahahaha!
Vurt: I'm just amazed that I was wrong… Almaz lives… T_T
A/N: Okay so to me, I felt like this chapter was lacking in the fight scenes. I can't portray them right in my opinion, but i will try my best! Also for those reading this the day that I post, don't fret! The next chapter will be up in a matter of minutes. It's so you all will pardon me for my long hiatus. Anyway comment if you feel like it (but they are seriously appreciated) and yeah... Laterz.
