Outsider Chronicles: Demon Magus
Its one thing to discover that reincarnation is an actual thing, but its quite another to find out that Gods are very much real as well. It certainly doesn't help that I ended up getting dragged head first into a fight between two of them, found myself with a ridiculously hot stalker and labeled as a Demon King. Add in a Grail War and you have the makings of a truly humongous headache.
And we are back! Nothing to say, other than enjoy!
Chapter 7
It had been half an hour since I had Summoned Rider and I was currently pacing up and down in my living room, trying desperately to figure out how in the hell it had even happened and what I was going to do. My Campione side was practically drooling at the idea of fighting so many powerful opponents, but the rest of me was somewhere between annoyed and panaking. I had been hoping to avoid the headache, but now that Rider was here, that idea was right out the window.
"So, what are you planning to do?" asked Erica, who was sitting in an armchair across from an awkward looking Rider.
I had managed to explain everything to the Knight after she had come bursting in and nearly attacked the unfamiliar woman who had arrived in such a massive blaze of magic. Fortunately, I had been quick enough to stop her before Rider turned her inside out. Skilled and powerful she may be, but I strongly suspect that Erica would falter going up against a Servant without knowing everything about them.
"I have no idea," I said, "I kinda don't have a choice at this point since one way or another, the other Masters will be gunning for Rider."
I glanced at the Servant, who was sitting on the couch looking rather befuddled about something.
"Is something wrong Rider?" I asked.
The Heroic Spirit jumped and looked up.
"Oh, no, its nothing," she said, "I just feel...strange. As if something I have been missing is close."
I narrowed my eyes as a suspicion started taking root in my mind.
"Is that so?" I muttered, "Interesting…"
I reached into my pocket and pulled out the Gorgoneion.
"Do you recognize this?" I asked.
Medusa glanced at the metal medal and nodded.
"Yes, it was mine back when my sisters and I lived on the Shapeless Isle," she said, "Its what you used as the Catalyst, correct?"
I frowned.
"Yes, but what I don't understand is how you could have come to possess this," I said.
Medusa shrugged.
"I don't know myself," she said, "I simply always had it, ever since my birth."
"Really?" I muttered, "Thats interesting…"
Erica glanced between the two of us.
"Have you figured something out Kariya?" she asked.
I nodded and opened my mouth to respond, but before I could I felt a massive pulse of power and a faint voice echoed in my ear, calling out my name. My eyes widened and I surged to my feet.
"Whats wrong Master?" asked Rider, sensing my distress.
"Sakura's in trouble," I said, staring off into space, "She just called out to me. So much pain...I have to go!"
"Oh no you don't Mister!" said Erica, grabbing onto my hand, "If your going, I'm coming to."
I glanced down at her and raised an eyebrow.
"I thought you didn't like her?" I said.
Erica blushed.
"I didn't at first, but...shes grown on me," she said, "I don't want to see her get hurt."
I smiled and nodded.
"Alright then, I can take people with me," I said, "Rider, grab hold."
Medusa nodded and grabbed my hand, just in time for me to activate my Authority and vanish in a gust of wind.
Third Person POV, Matou compound basement
Sakura genuinely thought she was going to die. She was used to pain, her Grandfather and brother saw to that, but tonight it went far beyond mere 'training'. It was clear that Zouken was enraged about something, although what it was she had no idea. All she knew is that the old man had returned from an errand in a towering rage, grabbed her by the hair without warning and dragged her into the basement where he proceeded to use his worms to inflict enough pain that she was barely coherent anymore, all the while yelling about how she was useless, a disappointment and a disgrace to the name of Matou, all while inflicting pain beyond imagining on her body and soul.
Now, normally she would have just taken the pain and moved on, using the thought of Kariya as a guiding light, but a combination of the sheer agony that was quickly turning her mind to mush and the revelations the black haired Campione had revealed at school the other day meant that her mental defences were somewhat weakened. Eventually, she couldn't take it anymore and, just like Kariya had told her to do, she called out to him with all her heart. Well, as well as she could among the screaming and with her throat torn to shreds.
Zouken Matou could not remember the last time he had felt this much fury. Everything had been going so well. The fragments of the Grail implanted into Sakura had been maturing nicely thanks to her attraction to the Ishida brat and everything seemed perfect for him to make his attempt for the Grail. All he needed was for the girl to successfully summon a Servant and win the war. However, it didn't happen. Even after all this time when almost all the slots were filled, the Command Seals still did not appear on the girl. Eventually, the old worm was forced to approach the Overseer to find out what in the world was going on, only to discover that, somehow, the Matou slot was taken by an unknown individual! That should be impossible! The only ones who possessed the blood necessary for that were under this roof and the only one capable of being a Master was Sakura. The only explanation was that, despite all the training he had put her through, she was still too weak!
The old man took a deep breath as he wrenched his thoughts back to the present, smiling thinly as Sakura let out a particularly delightful scream. He knew she wouldn't be able to take much more without losing her mind, but he would enjoy these last few minutes of suffering like a fine wine before passing her over to Shinji. The brat might be useless, but he was handy for providing an extra level of punishment for the girl.
The old man raised a hand and clenched his fist, causing the worms in Sakura's body to intensify their attack on their host, drawing another scream from the girl. However, this one seemed to carry a word, although it was nearly incomprehensible. However, Zouken heard it and raised an eyebrow. Why would she be calling out to her deceased Uncle? Had he misjudged the girls strength? His lip curled up in a sneer. It wouldn't surprise him considering…
His thoughts were cut off as a massive gust of wind suddenly erupted, filling the small chamber with blinding dust and a frankly huge amount of Magical Power that forced the two male Matou's to cover their faces or be blinded.
"Well, this is certainly interesting," said a voice from the dust cloud, "I knew you were twisted old man, but I never thought you would go this far."
"Whos there?!" growled Zouken.
In response, the dust was swept aside to reveal a small group led by a boy about Sakura's age, accompanied by two women who had taken Sakura down from the board she was strapped to.
"Kariya, shes badly hurt," said one of them, a blonde foreign girl, "Something seems to be eating her from the inside out and causing damage to her body."
"Can you heal her?" asked the boy.
"Not here," said the blonde.
"In that case, take her back home," said Kariya, "I'll join you as soon as I'm done here."
Zouken shook off his shock at the sudden arrival of the newcomers and scowled.
"I don't know who you think you are, but you will not be leaving this place," he said, "You have trespassed on my land and I am intrigued by this power of yours. You will make an excellent research subject. Also…"
His eyes shifted to the older, purple haired woman who was lifting Sakura into her arms.
"You are a Master and I am in need of a Servant. Apparently this day won't end as badly as I thought."
Kariya raised an eyebrow.
"You don't honestly think I'd have come here without planning an escape route, did you?" he asked, "Besides, even if I didn't, I highly doubt you could hurt me."
Zouken scowled again.
"You arrogant brat!" he snarled, swinging his arm and firing a bolt of Mana at Kariya.
Kariya just scoffed and backhanded the bolt, sending it flying straight up, blasting a hole in the ceiling, revealing the full moon and the starry night's sky above.
"Heh, and that would be our way out," said Kariya with a smirk, "Ladies?"
"Yes my Lord," said both women and shot up out the hole in a flash of red light.
"NO!" roared Zouken, surging forwards, "YOU WILL NOT TAKE WHATS MINE!"
Kariya twitched and turned from the hole to glare at Zouken. Instantly, the old man froze, a flicker of fear appearing in his breast for the first time in well over two hundred years.
"I'm sorry, what was that?" said Kariya in a low voice as a faint, golden aura began to leak off him and his hair began to shift in an unfelt breeze, "I could have sworn you just said that Sakura was your property? Like she was some doll?"
Zouken swallowed and took a step back without meaning to. That aura...he had definitely seen that before. Two centuries prior during a trip to China for research into new Magecraft, he had encountered a woman who had used strange powers and looked at him like that when he had attempted to take those powers for himself. It was a look that said that he was so far below them that he didn't even register as a threat. Hell, if this Kariya boy was anything like the woman, he probably didn't. The ONLY reason he had survived that encounter was because of his Worms and even then he had lost nearly three quarters of his body. To make matters worse, for some reason his instincts were screaming at him that this boy was much, MUCH more dangerous than that woman ever could be.
However, despite the oppressive aura, Zouken couldn't help but feel that the boy seemed familiar. His hair, the shape of his face, the way he held himself, even the tone of his voice, they all seemed familiar to the old man.
"Who are you boy?" he demanded.
Kariya narrowed his eyes slightly.
"I am Kariya Ishida, the Seventh Campione," he said.
Zouken's eyes widened and a sense of surprised glee began to well up in his chest, washing away the fear he felt towards the young man. Now he knew why the boy looked so familiar! He had no idea what the last bit meant, but Ishida was the name of a girl his idiot 'son' had had a one nights stand with after she got married. The old worm had made sure to keep an eye on all of the boys relationships, just in case a child ever came from any of the unions. However, it seemed that this one had somehow slipped under his gaze. How that was possible considering his power Zouken had no idea but this truly was an excellent find. The power Kariya had at his fingertips was frankly massive and he was a Master at that! Perhaps tonight wouldn't be so bad after all. All he had to do now was implant some worms and the boy would be his.
"I see," said the old man with a dark grin, "So thats why you seem so familiar! You really are my Grandson, aren't you? A Matou by blood with more power than I have ever seen in a Human! Yes, you will make a great addition to my house."
Kariya raised an eyebrow.
"And what makes you think I would ever bow to you?" he asked.
"What makes you think you'll have a choice?" sneered Zouken, "You may have taken her from here, but my worms are still within Sakura. I could easily kill her in an instant if you don't…"
He was cut off as the oppressive aura suddenly cranked up to eleven and the ground under Kariya began to crack under the sheer pressure of power he was putting out.
"You...you have a lot of nerve old man!" snarled the teen, "Not only have you hurt Sakura, but you have the nerve to believe that vermin like you can even dream of commanding a King!"
He held up a hand to the sky and even more power began to pour off him.
"Let me show you the distance between us, worm," hissed the Campione, "Come to me, for the victory!"
In response, Zouken was forced to cover his eyes as a brilliant glow lit up the night. Once his eyes had adjusted, he looked and his jaw dropped in utter disbelief as he beheld what looked like the noonday sun sitting in a sky that had previously held the moon.
"Immortal Sun, lend me a quick, shining steed!" continued Kariya, "Fire of the Sun that dispels the dark, may it engulf you!"
He brought down his arm and pointed at Zouken. The sun flashed and surged forwards, the white and gold flames quickly forming into the shape of a massive horse.
"Disappear," snarled Kariya an instant before the horse hit and Zoukens world was consumed in pure fire and agony as his very essence was burnt away.
Outside the compound, a smug looking Shinji Matou was returning home from a date with one of his many girlfriends. The bitch hadn't put out, despite his best efforts, but that didn't matter. Once he got home, he'd be able to satisfy himself with Sakura, so long as his Grandfather had finished. He could hardly wait!
However, any ideas of some 'fun' with his sister were put on permanent hold as a brilliant, golden light suddenly appeared in the sky and shot down like a rocket to slam into his house, completely consuming it in a massive blast of fire that could probably be seen from the other side of the city. The shock wave from the blast blew the gates off their hinges and knocked him off his feet. However, Shinji barely noticed the pain as he stared in shock and horror at the burning ruins that were once his home. He was so stupefied, he didn't even notice the figure leaving the ruins and stalking off down the street, golden light still leaking off him.
Back to Kariya's POV
Well, that had been interesting. I never imagined that Zouken could set me off so well, although I probably should have seen it coming. Still, the sheer amount of rage that had flowed through me when he had attempted to threaten Sakura's life to make me obey had me rather taken aback. I'm not sure whether it was my instincts as a Campione or something else, but the very idea of someone controlling me in any way enraged me even more so than the fact he was threatening the life of my oldest and closest friend.
I sighed and shook myself out of my thoughts. I wasn't done yet tonight, I still had one last thing to deal with. With that in mind, I hurried home.
When I opened my front door, I was greeted by screams of agony and the sound of someone struggling against restraints. I quickly moved to the living room where I found Rider and Erica struggling to hold down a screaming Sakura as her skin boiled and writhed grotesquely, no doubt thanks to the worms making her body home.
"Kariya, we have to do something!" shouted Erica when she saw me, "At this rate, whatever's causing this will kill her! I'm not skilled enough at healing magic to do anything to help!"
I hurried over to the ladies, pushing aside Erica and Rider and taking there place, my Campione strength more than enough to prevent the girl from moving around too much.
"Sakura, can you hear me?" I asked.
Sakura opened one eye and looked up at me. Her eyes were clouded in pain, but I could see recognition there.
"K-kariya," she gasped between gritted teeth, "P-please…"
"Sakura, I think I have something that can help you," I said, "But I need you to do something for me, do you understand?"
Sakura nodded jerkily. I took a deep breath and focused, calling on the power that lay within my Soul.
"Hurry up and swear!" I said, "Stay by my side no matter what... Even if life is coming to an end, even if the world itself is coming to an end, even if it means battling all the gods, stay by my side forever!"
Sakura couldn't speak through the pain, but she nodded again none the less. Apparently, that was enough as I felt the Youth Authority activate.
"Sorry about this," I said, before I dipped my head and kissed Sakura full on the lips.
And done. Well, that was certainly...interesting to write. I hope it was as good to read, even if it is a tad darker than the rest of the story. Then again, what did you expect when dealing with saving Sakura?
So, Rider apparently owned the Gorgoneion. What does that mean? Just what is her connection to Athena? This could be interesting, no?
I'm not 100% sure I got Zoukens characterization right, but frankly, I don't care. Hes now so much ash on the wind thanks to the White Horse.
Also, Zouken apparently had a run in with Luo Hao at some point in the past...I bet that went well. I originally planned to use Voban instead, but I figured that the Balkans would be a tad to far for the old man to travel and Voban isn't quite old enough to have been operating while the Matou's were in Russia.
Let that be a lesson folks, never attempt to control a Campione! I think that goes without saying, but it still needs to be said. Still, at least we got confirmation that Kariya is technically a Matou, even if he has none of their Magecraft and is now rather unlikely to learn any since its all so much ash on the wind.
Shinji's a git. I think that goes without saying. He'll get his, don't worry. Probably at the hands of Athena.
Well, it looks like Sakura now has the POWER OF YOUTH flowing through her. Hopefully that doesn't come with green spandex, eyebrows and a sunset illusion. Shes suffered enough, poor girl.
And with that, I'm done. Don't forget to leave a review on the way out!