Written by Honore/Merlin

"Flesh puppets are amazing aren't they?"

My quarry stopped in his tracks. He glared, recognizing me. "...The hell? Don't you have better things to do, you little shit?"

Ignoring him, my eyes to the sky, I continued my soliloquy. "They're damned useful for any sort of situation. Admittedly, they're really tricky to produce, and if you lose one that's a big investment down the drain. But when placed well, they mean a whole world's difference between success and failure."

"Hey. I'm just going to beat the crap out of you so you'll stop following me you creep. I do not have time to play around, and now, you've just about exhausted all my patience."

I finally glanced at him. His hands balled into fists, his shoulders stiff with tension, his jaw set in determination. Everything about him—this quarry of mine—indicated he'd follow through on his words.

"My good sir, this is important! You never know when a flesh puppet could save your life. Their variety of functions are critical to any Devil worth their salt." I stepped closer to him, slowly, with hands wide open, with a calm, relaxed stride. "A flesh puppet can fool friends, lovers, enemies—can fool humans, angels, Devils..." I glanced to the sky, from where thundered the sounds of battle. "... Valkyries... Fallen...

"And even dragons," I said, quirking a brow suggestively at him. His eyes became black pools.

"What?" he said, with a barely concealed snarl. He looked ready to strike.

In response, I raised my hand and blew onto my palm. A cloud of dust plumed onto his face. He recoiled, choking, warding off the dust with his arms.

Draconic fire surging through my arm, I took hold of his face and slammed him backwards into a wall. He lashed out with a kick, catching me painfully in the gut. I tasted blood in my mouth; yet smiling, I pinned him to the wall and struck him with the other arm. Again. And again.

A wave of magic sent me hurtling back, though I had good sense to land squarely on my feet. My quarry's face was a bloody mess.

"Who... are you...? What...? Did you do to me...?" The dust had temporarily made him unable to transform into his real form.

"Why do I have to answer that?" I lunged forward and went on the assault, punching and kicking. He had some dragon in him still, for he warded some of my blows with his own limbs, and striking them felt like I was punching through the toughest still. And yet I landed most of my blows, each of them doubtlessly feeling like a bullet train to his face.

He tried another of his magic, a wave of force. But I anticipated it, and though I was blown away, I'd latched my hand on his neck. With the momentum I dragged his face against the floor, before smashing his head with an earth-shattering stomp, like a hammer driving in a nail.

He didn't get up after that.

Not losing time, I set about layering his body with the transportation and containment spells.

In the end, the experimental powder I'd acquired through Raynare's contacts some time ago had worked. He never did get to transform back into his dragon form. And while I could manage a dragon myself, it'd make him harder to catch and further still would require a boatload of spells just to take him back to my chambers. And that was not to mention every other supernatural being in the city getting alerted to a dragon sighting.

When it was all done, I stood back to admire my handiwork. All the rest of my adrenaline had cooled off by then, the hot fury of battle fading into a cold memory.

Though it felt good to finally acquire another dragon, it was still balanced by the thought that this one was small fry in the overall hierarchy of power. Still, a Devil has needs, and food is food.

Only now did I deign to listen to the clash of battle nearby. I sighed wearily at the farce playing out. I knew I had to stop it, before anyone got really hurt; before my precious harem would implode on itself.

Interlude Raynare

She's never fought a Valkyrie before. There was never any real quarrel with that particular pantheon, and each of their respective affairs were deemed too distant to matter.

Rossweisse's eyes are glazed over, her expression almost robotic as she bats back her every blow, and Raynare can only duck or dive before she's driven back again, her feathers flying everywhere, unable to even launch a counter-attack.

It rankles her mind that not only is Rossweisse matching her skill, she's actually being beaten. It is a humiliating state of affairs, particularly after the many nights she's dominated the Valkyrie at her master's bed.

Master. Truly, she had no idea what came over her, what urged her to strike him so suddenly. The bolt was in his heart before she'd known it.

"I've no quarrel with you, heathen!" cried Raynare. She has to retreat. She realizes she cannot survive here. "Leave me be, and we shall never see each other again!"

"Silence."

"Are you so blind?" she shouts. "Do you not see that you've sworn fealty to a Devil what does not deserve it? He is nothing, Vakyrie!"

"And now you dare justify yourself? Not only did I swear an oath to guard him, traitor, but I loved him!" Rossweisse grunts, and breaks her light spear. Before she can react, she feels a sharp pain in her wing.

Raynare howls, the pain sending her hurtling back to earth. As debris rains about her, she opens her eyes to see the speartip mere inches from her throat.

Rossweisse looms above, cold fury written on her face.

"Kill me then," she spits. Blood, divine blood, streams from the stump that had been her wing.

"I can't believe I ever liked you, traitor," Rossweisse says. "And I can't believe I ever deluded myself that you liked him. Perhaps not in the way I love him, but certainly enough not to ever dare to kill him. I see now—everything was but a ploy, to get close enough to... to..." Her lips quiver. A lone tear falls down her cheek.

In all truth, she prefers not to die. Even now, she seeks to escape, but failing that she wants to beg, to scrape the mud from the Valkyrie's boots, if it could spare her life. She fears the oblivion waiting on the other side.

"That's enough of that," says a familiar voice. Her eyes widen.

"Ise?" Rossweisse says in a hush whisper.

There stands, miraculously enough, the Master she thought she'd killed. For a moment she thinks her eyes deceive her; but no, even the draw of death could not fabricate this vision she sees.

"Impossible..."

"Ise!"

"What are you doing here, Rossweisse?" he says, throwing out a hand to keep the Valkyrie at a distance. "I thought I told you to..."

"How did—I thought you—but I saw—"

She can no longer hear their conversation. Her vision dims, the light giving way to dark. Is she dying? She falls, her strength spent.

She is in a prison. It glows bright-red, giving off just enough light to ward off the oppressing darkness. She recognizes the design—she's liberated enough of her fellows in the Great War from similar spells. The only way to break it is from the outside.

She finds her wing has been healed, to a state like it has never been severed. Asia's handiwork, surely. She feels groggy, like a spell is weighing down her whole body. No chains on her, at least not anything visible.

A door opens. The bit of light illuminates her surroundings for a second—for a second she sees another prison, before she is thrown back into darkness.

Footsteps. She can sense him before his face appears into the circle of light. Her Master appears happy. Well, he's always been a sadist. Like attracts like, and in their case, it was the best example of a carnal link.

"I assure you, I have no intention of punishing you. Yet. And you are only there inside as a precaution while we talk. Do you understand?"

She nods, warily.

His smile widens. "D'you know, you did catch me completely off-guard. I can surmise that something about the flesh puppet felt wrong to you. Just shows what I know about the art; it's still far from flawless. Though it did manage to trick Rossweisse—which reminds me that she's finally caught on to our little scheme, and now she intends to test every version of me she sleeps with to make sure it isn't a puppet.

"Still, you didn't have to kill the poor thing. It was quite expensive to create."

Yes. A flesh puppet made sense. She should've seen it coming; after all, she knew he had those—and just yesterday he'd fooled the Valkyrie with one. Had her emotions blinded her that much?

"He was insurance against our target," he continues to explain. "We were up against an actual dragon. We could not know his power. If he were to strike at me—at him—then at least I'd know what kind of power he's got. I thought you'd avenge me then. Certainly didn't expect you to stab him instead."

"I'm sorry..."

"No you're not," he responds quickly. "I know you're not. You know you're not, Raynare. Why don't we talk frankly to each other? It would help with our reaching an agreement."

Something cold and dangerous slides into her mind. Her face smooths over, all her pretense disappearing. She wonders if she is brave, to be so defiant; or if this is just resignation. "Agreement? Forgive me, master, but it is laughable for us to reach an agreement in this situation. This is imposition. You demand, I humbly submit."

"If you know your place so much, then why do you continue to talk around me?" he says. "You know me, Raynare. We understand each other. You know I like to go straight to business."

She stares at him in silence, finding that she no longer fears what will happen to her. "Fine. Let us not dissemble. I betrayed you. Because you—and not just your puppet—sicken me. You're a Devil. I was to kill you. I find you repugnant. In fact, why are we even talking like this? My punishment is all in your hands. You don't need to play these games."

He barks a short laugh. "And I, in turn, was aware that you hadn't really sworn yourself to me all those years before. I was always waiting for you to snap, to finally complete what you'd been commissioned to do by your Lord Kokabiel. I just didn't realize it'd be today, of all days. You got one over me, much as I hate to admit it."

"And only the sex was good."

"Well, yes, the sex was good, but it's largely irrelevant now."

Then again, she'd always had second thoughts about killing "him". Not that she'd mention that. Instead, she says, "Well, if we understand each other so much, then we can move on to: what are you going to do?"

"No, no," he says, shaking his finger. "It's more appropriate to ask that of you, Raynare."

"What do you mean?"

He steps fully into the light of the prison. "What are you going to do? Will you languish here in this prison, awaiting the distant day someone from your group comes to liberate you? Or will you follow me, to ruin and power, fully aware that at any time I could end you with but a stroke of my hand?"

"You're going to let a traitor roam free? I assume, with a bunch of cautionary spells rigged to explode the moment I step out of line."

He chuckles again, that same arrogant, self-assured laugh that makes her want to— "No... No, none of that, I assure you. Nothing shall be imposed on you; you shall walk completely free. You will chain yourself to me of your own decision."

"Why would I ever do that?"

"Because, as we just agreed, we know each other too well, Raynare. And in you I see a dim reflection of what I was, long ago." He claps his hands once. Light suddenly blazes in her surroundings, flooding her eyes to blindness. She can hear his foosteps walk away. "One with boundless greed. One who hungers for more, endlessly dissatisfied. One who strives to climb that endless mountain, heedless of the corpses they step on along the way."

Her vision clears, and she sees that they are in a set of chambers she's not been to. There is someone inside that other prison he's walking to. She squints, and realizes it's the man they met before.

"Come here, Raynare." He claps, and she feels something akin to a weight lifting from her body. The prison about her disappears. She stands, flexing her limbs, her wings.

There is nothing stopping her from flying for the door.

There is nothing stopping her from flying to her death with one last, desperate attack.

But she stays her hand. His words have made her curious.

"Here is a dragon. This is the culmination of months of work, but he is hardly the ultimate goal. There shall be more like him, and I will continue to capture them, until there are no more."

"What do you need with them?"

He turns, making a shooing sound. "I'd prefer if you stay back a bit. Just a few yards there. A little more—perfect. This is going to be messy, and I don't want you to get caught in it."

"Caught in what?" she asks, her eyes on the unconscious "dragon".

He showed her.

Interlude END

Interlude [?]

Somewhere in time, something breaks.

Somewhere in space, something breaks.

A Gate opens, and it is remarkably unlike any other Gate that has ever, or will ever exist.

Inside the Gate one sees a mouth: infinite in size and shape. It is like staring into the gullet of the abyss, into the depths where light and dark are irrational concepts.

Down in the chambers of a certain Devil, the Gate opens.

Something breaks.

Innumerable shapes (like arms, like waves) emerge like a spillage of black ink.

They scramble and grab, like the hands of curious babes, at the space Beyond.

They find purchase in an anchor that draws them like fillings to a magnet.

All converge on the Anchor.

The Anchor breaks.

The mindless shapes retreat, repulsed, dragging the Anchor's pieces with them.

Right through the mouth.

Down through the gullet.

The center folds inward. The mouth clamps shut.

The Gate closes.

The thread breaks, and all is still.

Interlude END

Interlude Raynare

She'd flattened herself against the door, long before the things had surrounded the hapless person.

It was then she realized that the door was locked, and there was nowhere else for her to go.

She was unable to tear her eyes from the awful sight, to see the "dragon" wake and scream at the sight before it; before it was silenced, before its whole mass disappeared into his body.

"What in blessed Creation are you?"

Ise turns around, making her flinch and look away. Then she looks again, and sees that he looks completely normal, no longer a horrific mind-numbing visage.

His eyes seem to be looking at something far away. The front of his body ripples, like a mirage, she thinks. But she blinks, and that disappears.

Then his gaze sharpens, zeroing in on her. A manic smile twists his features.

"Through hallowed ritual and desperation, I have made it so I can Devour a Dragon, and thereby gain all its powers."

"But that's impossible! That would require—"

"Yes. The price for such a power is steep." He balls his hand into a fist. "Humiliating, of course, for a Devil to have to bargain to attain such heights. But such is the price we pay for our ambitions, eh, Raynare?" He winks.

She stiffens. "I fail to see how it relates to me."

"Well, now that you know why I spend months moving everywhere, doing various things that may seem frivolous to an observer; now that you know my ultimate goal, the purpose for all my designs; I return to my previous question: what are you going to do now?"

"A threat, is it?"

"No. An invitation." He raises his arm, from where erupts a crimson arc that connects itself to her body. She gasps and reels back, as something akin to electricity courses through her body. The jolts aren't painful; instead feeling oddly pleasant.

When it ends, she feels warm, as if her body has turned into a small sun. She feels lighter than ever, feeling like all the centuries of hurt and weariness has been scrubbed clean from her body.

"Just as I can take a dragon's power for my own, so too can I grant it to anyone I deem fit. Do you feel that dragon's rage boiling through your veins? Do you feel as if you could sweep aside a mountain if you willed it? That is his power. It is mine now—and it can also be yours.

"This, then is my offer, Fallen: remain at my side, and be loyal to me and mine. Walk with me, and together we shall stand at that peak. And when that time comes, who knows? Maybe you can push me off, and become the sole keeper of that height."

"The Devil is ever so tempting," she says, sneering. "What makes you so sure I only seek power for my own sake? I could be trying to gain dominance for my brethren, that the Fallen become the sole arbiters for all of Creation."

He scoffs. "You may do that now, if you wish. If you choose to leave, I will sign a contract to the effect of non-interference in your affairs from me or any of my allies-provided, of course, that you do not overtly or covertly interfere in mine.

"Your plan does not necessarily interfere with my goal. Unlike the others of Hell, I have no wish to be accorded laurels, I've no... patriotism for their cause. Should you cause another Great War occur, I shall not care—unless certain dragons emerge in the fighting."

"And what if they do?"

"Then hope that all of Creation protect you from my wrath if you hinder me."

She crosses her arms. "An equal partner?"

"Co-conspirator," he says.

She thinks on it some more. By then, her answer is clear.

Interlude END

"Rias-san~~!"

I barged in through the clubroom. I took a glance around. "Wait—is Akeno-senpai not here?" And Koneko wasn't around too.

Rias sat by the window, holding a sheaf of papers in one hand. "No, she's out... did you need something, Ise-san?"

"Amano-san broke up with me!" I wailed, sinking to my knees. Yuuto and Rias glanced at each other. "She said she was so weirded out by the mess yesterday, she's moving to another city!"

"Wow. That's—I'm really sorry about that, Ise-san."

I sighed. "That's alright. I think Akeno-senpai's better anyway."

"Buh...what?"

I beamed. "That's why I came here! I wanted to drown my sorrows in her glorious presence. Then maybe ask her on that date, so I can show off this neat new hand." I raised the hand that was supposed to be a stump.

"Oh, did they really fix it?" Yuuto said, sidling over for a look. I showed off my "new" hand, even wiggling my fingers.

"Yep! They were really angry at me, though, because I wasn't supposed to go haring off after those kinds of things. Typically, the usual protocol would have been to leave those to the elite, of which I'm not."

"It's good that they allowed you that, at least," Rias said. "If not, I would've insisted on it myself. You've more than saved us by saving Akeno. It's the least I could do."

I blinked. "Thank you, Rias-san. I appreciate the thought. Then again, I couldn't save everyone."

The sunny atmosphere in the room cooled a tad. I knew my sister and Sitri were still going over the arrangements to keep yesterday's fiasco under wraps. I suspect they'd bribe the parents of those we couldn't save. Failing that, they'd change their memories, scrubbing clean the knowledge that they'd ever had a son or daughter. (or a father in the case of one unfortunate teacher)

I pretended not to notice the gloom, and as they made no move to continue the conversation, I turned for the door. "Well, thank you again, Rias-san, Yuuto-san. Should you need my help, you know where to find me." I hesitated, before doing a complete 180 and bowing. "You know, for Devils, you folks seem pretty decent. I almost feel like you aren't Devils at all."

And with that sting (though my dear sister doesn't realize it), I left.

Amano Yuma would withdraw from Kuoh, citing extraordinary events. No record of her would remain in the archives. Without the burden of remaining undercover at the school, Raynare was now free for other roles.

I almost feel sorry for the poor thing. Led to believe she could have a piece of the pie, when she's just a bolt to fit into the right slot. Oh yes, I did grant her the power of the dragon I'd just eaten, but I neglected to tell her the fine print.

The sharing of power is almost like what the Vampires do, only a little more subtle. Raynare will never know that she's become my thrall by accepting my power. She will always believe she's her own being, but her actions will forever be influenced by my will—and she won't ever realize it. In time, she may even interpret her feelings as a sort of "affection".

This precaution was necessary. It's not that I enjoy seeing people dangling from a spider's thread before I magnanimously rescue them. I had to ensure her absolute loyalty. I could not have her remain by my side while she nurses and sharpens the knife with which to stab my back; it is vital that there be no setbacks to any point of my campaign.

I could have destroyed her, but pity stayed my hand. And there is that wisdom, that I just might regret that later on-but if that ever happens then I'd be fit to call myself mad and undeserving of power.

Rossweisse was currently on leave from school. I'd sent her away to guard Asia when she returned to her mission, as a punishment for her disobedience.

The Hexennacht left Japan, but not without leaving certain enchantments at certain points in the city. Removing them at this point would be stupid, so I marked those areas as places to avoid instead.

Now at the end I can confidently say that phase three has been completed.

But I dare not rest from my triumphs. Onward and upward, as an optimist might say. Already, another dragon has entered my sights. A more powerful one, this time—an Evil Dragon hailing from this very nation. Before the next full moon I fully expect to have him in the bag.

Now to visit an important patron.

Interlude [?]

Where one once floats, adrift in the darkness, now there were two.

"So it's you. I sense you've consumed another."

"Yes."

They speak to each other across a vast divide of space. Each is careful not to come closer: one harbors a contagion dangerous to the other, and the other can crush the one with but a thought.

"Still too weak," the other whispers. "The new one is a whelp compared to your first."

"I know," he says, bowing his head.

"After two years, this is all you have? Is this all you can accomplish?"

"There's nothing to be worried about. I shall have another one within the month. A powerful one this time. All my plans have been accelerated. With time, I can snag them all with none the wiser."

"Time is not a luxury, Devil. The Devourer will begin to wrestle control from you if you let it fester too long. Then I shall be forced to destroy you."

"Don't worry. That is a scenario I shall always deny from happening."

"May your confidence match your results. I grow weary of waiting."

"Such haste! Are you truly so eager to be Devoured, Ophis?"

"As you are now, He-Who-Ate-Ddraig, you are naught but a tick in my eye. Go on then, and spin your webs. Return with substance to report, or return not at all."

Interlude END

I, Devourer: 1st Arc End

T.B.C.?

Honore says: Finally done! The whole thing was written for Shurpuff. Shurpuff wanted me to write something for this particular fandom, as a counter to his own story on this account. I'd initially refused-it's hard for me to write for something I have absolutely no interest in. (I'm sorry Highschool DxD fans, but I just can't stand the franchise.) And even if I had a passing interest, I could not imagine anything substantial I could write. An overpowered protagonist in a slice-of-life setting with chuuni battles coupled with sappy romance with a dash of smut and some cheeky real life references? It's not interesting, so it's out of the question. So I refused, point blank.

Then Shurpuff promises me that if I write something for this series-adding in my own "Honore/Merlin" flair-then he'll focus on his studies until the end of his school year. His marks had been lagging during 2015, for which I blame his many "projects" which never see publication here. I warned him that I'd be free to write anything under the sun, and he agreed, as long as it was fanfiction and had my unique flair. He gave me his notes containing the series' summary, characters, setting, etc.; and so I quickly wrote everything you've just read here.

Because there's a low chance of my continuing this story, I'll label it Complete. I give permission to Shurpuff to continue it if he likes-if he promises to do better. I know you're reading kid, so get back to your schoolwork.

And to you dear readers, I say :

Thanks for reading!

Honore/Merlin out.