Chapter 28: But It Was Supposed To Be Just A Birthday Party

It was the dead of night in a far-away land, with even the moon gone from the sky. A dark forest whispered eerily at the base of a large mountain. No, not a mountain. A castle. One carved from stone as if a giant had shaped it like a clay sculpture. Most of the windows were dark, and only a few torches dotted the outside with guards struggling to stay awake under their glow. For the most part, the entire area was completely silent.

So therefore, no one noticed the seven men running from the edge of the forest below.

They moved with nary a whisper, as if they were gliding over the grass instead of running through it. When they reached the castle walls, they did not slow down. Instead, they simply placed their feet against the wall, and continued running up the side as glowing runes appeared on their boots. Their momentum allowed them to jump incredibly high once they reached the edge, passing over a guard and reaching an open window. Inside of the hall were two more guards, both nodding off at their stations.

They didn't have time to even react before their throats were sliced. The assassins (for who else could they be?) pushed the men into their alcoves and erected glamours of the men, standing completely still. It wouldn't fool a close inspection. But from a distance, nothing appeared wrong. With the inner guards dealt with, one of the men held his hand over the sturdy lock on the doors. A rune appeared over it, and the inner workings clicked away.

It had only taken the a few minutes. And yet they were now standing in one of the most important places in the whole palace.

They all stood waiting by the door they had entered, their movements still silent as night. One of them, the leader, reached into his cloak and pulled out pebbles. He flicked them at random parts of the room, and they struck large white runes hovering in the air. The edges moved seemingly erratically, making it difficult to sneak through. But they knew better. What appeared to be random was actually perfectly coordinated. The seven of them snuck through the runes, dodging the edges with utmost ease even if it was with bare inches. They reached out to the jewels decorating the walls, and deactivated them with ease. In short order, they were all gone. And the assassins were standing over the bed in the center of the room. A slim, sleeping form was curled up under the covers, dead to the world. It was their job to make her even deader. The leader of their group pulled out a dagger from his cloak, the point aimed right for where he judged her jugular to be. In over a hundred assassinations, he has never missed.

But then a loud bang filled the air, and part of his shoulder vanished. As he stumbled from pain, the woman in the bed reached out from under the covers, her arm covered in white runes like a gauntlet. She grabbed his face, and the runes glowed blood-red. Cracking sounds filled the room, and the leader fell over dead. The woman tossed the sheet at the other assassins, who neatly sliced it apart as they tossed daggers at her. There were multiple sounds of metal clanging against metal, and the daggers fell in dented and shatter pieces. When the tattered sheets fell, the assassins realised that this was not their target.

The woman before them was obviously an adult, dressed in a fine suit that seemed to strain at her abundant chest. Her spiked blond hair was short, save for a long braided ponytail that had a sharp adornment at the end of it. Her arms and legs were covered in runes, giving her the appearance of claws and talons. Behind her, the wall shimmered as a man stepped out of the hidden area. He too wore a fine suit, though he also had a long trenchcoat over the top of it that blended with his black hair. In his hands was a sniper rifle, adorned with gold and silver.

Neither side made any sound. They did not bargain, they did not boast or plead of threaten. They merely sized each other up before charging at each other.

Two of the assassins moved for the woman, their daggers blocked by her gauntlets as they slashed at each other. She moved like an animal, jumping over them and lashing out for their throats. A third quickly joined in to blindside her, only for her clawed foot to find his chest. Blood flowed freely as she sliced him open, splattering on the walls as he fell. The other free charged for the man, jumping from wall to wall so that he couldn't kill them. The man dropped his rifle, only to grab two pistols forming from the air. They too were decorated with gold and silver, their large calibre bullets firing at incredible speed. He managed to wound two of his attackers, but the third made it within range before he could finish them off. He blocked the assassin's strike with the slide of his gun, aiming the free weapon directly at his face. The assassin sailed backwards as he fired, head almost snapping clean off from the force. The other two were now too close, daggers ready to take his life. He threw his pistols at them, which they parried with casual ease. But it was all just a distraction. While they wasted precious time blocking them, he had grabbed onto a shotgun.

At this range, one shot was enough to mortally wound them both. As they dropped to the ground, he summoned pistols again, and fired two shots into their heads. The room was silent again, the woman's attackers now lying dead at her feet. Their blood dotted her clothes.

Beside the hidden section the man had been hiding, another section of wall opened. From behind it stepped out a young girl, just on the cusp of womanhood. Her long, brunet hair framed a slim face and two vibrant blue eyes, while her nightwear rested against a small bust. Her lips pressed together as she took in the corpses dotting her bedroom floor.

"Apologies Princess." The man said as he bowed to her. "We will have this mess cleaned up by the morning. We regret the discomfort we have caused you."

The princess shook her head, her face now wearing a tired smile. "You don't have to apologise Fitzgerald." She said, her voice oddly familiar. "It's not your fault that the attack was true." She looked down sadly at the death tonight had caused. "Prepare another room for me. This one is compromised."

"Agreed Princess Mellissa." The woman said, using one of the assassin's cloaks to clean the blood off her. "Tomorrow, I will see to the records and find out who could be aware of the locations of the warding runes. Anyone suspicious will be made to answer." Her green eyes, slit like a cat's, would strike fear into a man's heart at this moment.

"At least the plans didn't mention the secret hole in this room." Fitzgerald said, tapping a panel next to his hidey-hole. The real wall moved forward to fill in the space, until there was no sign it had been there.

Melissa nodded. "Of course. I would expect no less from you Bellamy." Her eyes fluttered, as she had to take a deep, calming breath. "Now, if you could escort me to my new quarters. Fitz, have this mess cleaned up please."

Both bodyguards nodded, Bellamy tapping at a hidden passageway leading deeper into the castle. The path took many twists and turns, but they both knew the way to their destination. Bellamy tapped at a dead end, the wall sliding open to reveal another room, already made up like a bedroom. The only sign that this room was secret was the lack of a proper door and windows. Princess Melissa climbed into bed as Bellamy activated the warding runes. Only once she was certain that they were all in perfect condition did she leave, the light runes turning off as she exited. She found her way back to the original room again in time to see Fitz piling up bodies by the skirting board. Without a word, she moved to help him clean up.

"You broke our agreement." She said as she worked, obviously speaking to Fitz. The man looked up from his work, but didn't react. "I told you that the leader was mine to kill."

"And he was. I merely surprised him." Fitz replied.

"I didn't need him to be surprised. He was right where I wanted him. But you had to be a 'gentleman' and shoot him for me. You could've focused on killing another assassin before they even realised what happened."

Fitz smirked. "Admit it. You're just annoyed because you had to spend four hours lying in that bed. I saw how slowly you moved tonight. You had a cramp, I'll bet."

Bellamy rubbed her leg, easing her muscles back to normal. "It had to be me under the sheets. It would be too obvious it was a trap if a man was hiding there. And besides, you're terrible at close range."

"Only in comparison to you, Bell." His smirk faded. "Do you really think it's a good idea for her to leave the safety of the castle right now? She'll be vulnerable out there."

Bell rolled her eyes. "As opposed to in here? She'll be of age in three weeks. This will be her last chance to see the outside world as a normal girl. As long as we're with her, nothing will go wrong."

"You do realise that if this were a story, everything's going to go horribly wrong now that you've said that, right?"

"Shut up."

(**/*\**)

Sakura smiled as she rested comfortably in her bed. Today had the hallmarks of a wonderful day. No school, no early morning practice, and the sun was shining beautifully behind her curtains. Her parents had already gone out, and there was nothing that could get her out of bed.

Her hand scrabbled at the sheets as she finally noticed that a certain someone was missing. At the same time, a lovely smell wafted from under her door. There was a clinking of cutlery and glasses as the person on the other side struggled to turn the knob. But it finally opened to reveal a blushing Bri…

Wearing nothing but an apron.

"Surprise." Bri said softly, walking carefully into her bedroom while carrying a large tray piled with breakfast. She took small steps, and the tray clinked in time. Sakura spent that time practically drooling over how sexy Bri looked. The apron, one her Mom used a lot, was literally straining against Bri's breasts, her hips poking slightly past the edge of the apron. She couldn't believe it. She had introduced Bri to the concept of a Hadaka Apron (or it could've been hanging out at Issei's place that showed her it) and had been secretly wishing that she'd pluck up the courage to wear it. And now she was, after all this time. Bri finally made it to the bed, flipping out the legs and laying it over Sakura's waist, before leaning in and kissing her on the cheek. "Happy birthday."

Sakura squealed. "You remembered. And you got me something I've always wanted."

Bri looked at her in confusion. "You've always wanted breakfast in bed?"

"No, silly. You in an apron." She leaned over and hugged Bri round the midriff, her hands moving down lower. She paused as she felt smooth fabric under her hands, and Bri looked away in embarrassment. She pried herself free.

"I… I still wasn't all that… comfortable with just the apron." She said nervously. "So I packed something else too." She turned around, revealing that under the apron she was wearing a bikini. Bri looked away. "Sorry for messing it up for you." She yelped as Sakura hugged her from behind.

"I don't care about that, Bri." Sakura said. "It's still so sexy. And I know it's outside your comfort zone. Thank you for at least trying it." She pulled away and started digging into her breakfast. Man, Bri was actually a pretty good cook. So much for boys (or even former boys) being bad at housekeeping. "So, what did you get me?"

Bri smiled, and pulled out a few wrapped presents from under the bed. When did she sneak those in?" I got you a few things I thought you'd like. But I'd recommend opening that one there first." She pointed to a soft present that shifted under her hands. Sakura eagerly tore the present open, excited as to what it was. When she reached into the wreckage, she was surprised to see that it was…

"A sexy bikini. Rowr." She replied. It wasn't entirely her style, but after getting Bri into sexy bikinis it would be rude if she didn't do the same. A piece of paper fluttered out from it. She gasped as she saw what it was. "And a VIP ticket to Wet and Wild? But I thought these were for sports stars, actors and millionaires."

Bri winked. "Well, it's a good thing I know someone who's rich enough. Rias and the others are going to meet us there."

Sakura stared at her for several seconds before squealing with excitement, almost upsetting her breakfast in her rush to hug Bri again. "Thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Oh, the other girls are going to be sooo jealous when they hear about this."

"Glad you like it." Bri said. "Now, you'd better eat up your breakfast before we both end up wearing it instead."

(**/*\**)

The car that drove through the city was both sleek and yet used. Expensive enough to be considered a millionaire's car, yet poor enough to fit in. It stood as an example of how a wealthy person thought they could blend in, and did it just as easily.

That is to say, it drew the eye of almost everyone that passed it by.

"Understood. We are on route to our destination as we speak. Keep an eye out for any suspicious activity." Bell said into her cellphone. She was sitting in the back with the princess, who was mostly fidgeting in nervousness. They jumped as the limo had to break suddenly, a surprised grunt coming from Fitz in the driver's seat. Bell instantly leaned forward, only to see the rear of a car moving out of sight.

"Idiot ran took the turn before he was meant to." Fitz explained, getting the limo going again. Nothing untoward." Bell sighed and sat back in her seat, turning to watch out the window. Walking the streets were perfectly normal people. People who had no clue as to the existence of magic. None of them seemed like assassin material. But then again, they wouldn't be very good at their job if you could identify them on sight, now would they? Her concentration was distracted by the princesses constant fidgeting.

She turned to look at the princess closely. "Melissa, you need to sit still." She said, quietly but pointedly. Princess Melissa blushed and pressed her hands against her legs. Within seconds one hand started moving to her hair again.

"Sorry Bellamy." She apologised. "I'm just…" She sighed. "I feel like people are staring at us."

"Apologies about that." Fitz said. "But this was the most covert car the royal family has in America. Your family's never really been big on hiding their wealth."

Melissa shifted nervously in her seat. "But what about when we're not in the car? People are still going to stare."

Bell looked at her from the corner of her eyes. "If I may speak freely, if you were so worried about people staring at you, then you wouldn't have gotten yourself such… ample enhancements." Melissa looked away in embarrassment. As she did so, her arms pressed against her large fake breasts, squeezing them tightly. Her free hand ran its fingers through her shorter hair, having chopped off quite a bit before this trip. The green watch she was wearing, fitted with a tracker and an alarm.

She took a deep breath. "Will it make me harder to recognise?"

Fitz glanced back at her. "If it makes you feel any better, I wouldn't know it was you if we passed in the street."

"Then it'll do." She looked out the window, watching as the people passed by. By now, most weren't staring anymore. To them, they were just one more car in traffic. Just another normal family. She felt Bell place a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"Just relax." She said softly. "Enjoy yourself. Nothing bad is going to happen. No one outside of the Royal Family even knows that you're here."

"I hope so." Melissa said softly. The car slowed to a stop as Ritz pulled into the carpark. He then turned to look at her properly, giving her a warm smile.

"Well Miss Crowley, welcome to Wet and Wild Water Park."

(**/*\**)

"Wahoo!" Sakura shouted, raising her fist into the air. "A whole day of extreme wet and wild fun! Now this is an awesome present!"

"Yeah." Issei said, standing with the others not far from her. "And check out all the hot chicks in bikinis." He started drooling as he ogled a gaggle of girls not too far away, all of them wearing swimsuits that drew plenty of attention to their assets. "This is booby heaven."

"Just be sure that you don't forget about us Issei." Rias said coyly, pulling on her own bikini. "Wouldn't want to think that you've gotten used to seeing our own figures now, would we?" She waved a hand at the others, all standing right behind Sakura. She, Akeno and Xenovia were all wearing swimsuits so skimpy that their bodies were actually straining to be covered, and their breasts were halfway free of the fabric.

"Oh don't worry Prez. There's no way I'd forget about your figures."

"Suck it." Koneko muttered angrily, arms wrapped around her chest. She was wearing a white one-piece swimsuit, similar in appearance to a school swimsuit. Ben sighed and shook his head ruefully. At least he managed to convince Sakura to let her wear a more modest bikini here. It covered her breasts and ass completely, unlike the one he picked out for Sakura. He still wondered what he was thinking getting it for her. Sure, she liked it well enough. But he felt like that was mostly because it would be hypocritical for her to dislike skimpy clothes when she enjoyed seeing him in them. The bikini he got her was basically made up of belts. Four belts crossing each other for the bottom, and two wrapped around her breasts. She was practically one good bounce away from a wardrobe malfunction.

Ben was starting to get worried that this world's laisse faire attitude to sexy women and nudity was starting to rub off on him.

He felt Sakura grab him by the hand and drag him towards the slides. "Come on, Bri. The Lover's Embrace has our name written all over it." She said excitedly.

"Wait. The what?"

"Oh, I've heard of that." Issei said. "It's this really huge waterslide that can have two people going at the same time. Couples usually go together to affirm their love for each other. And because they have to hold on really tight on the way down."

"Really? Doesn't that seem a little dangerous?"

"Nah. It's romantic." She gave him a puppy dog look. "Don't you want to go down the slide with me?" Her lip trembled.

Oh hell. He shook his head ruefully. "Alright, alright. But if one of us gets hurt, I get to say I told you so."

"We won't get hurt." Sakura said, smiling again. As she pulled him along, Ben turned to see the girls all quietly arguing with each other. Probably trying to work out who was going down the Lover's Embrace with Issei. The man himself though was busy ogling other girls walking around, drooling in lust. For a guy obsessed with girls, he apparently didn't realise that he had at least three girls wanting to jump his bones already. Well, hopefully he'll figure things out quickly enough.

"Why hello there." A perky lady attendant said once they climbed up the stairs to the top. "Are you two love birds ready for an awesome ride?" She kept smiling, though the tips dipped a little as she realised it was two girls before her. But Sakura didn't seem to care.

"You bet we are. I've always wanted to go on this." She chirped, still pulling Ben along.

"Then why didn't you go on your own?" He asked, genuinely curious. "I know it's called Lover's Embrace and all, but there's nothing in the rules against going alone, right?"

"Well no." She admitted. "But it's pretty embarrassing going on this thing by yourself."

"Ok then." The attendant said, clapping her hands together. "Let's get you two all sorted out." She pointed at Ben. "If you could sit down first, that would be swell."

"Ok." Ben replied, stepping past Sakura and sitting down at the top of the slide. He placed his arms on the armrests next to him, legs together at the knees.

"Perfect. Now, if your girlfriend could sit down in front of you." She barely finished before Sakura practically jumped towards Ben, forcing his legs apart and plopping her butt between them. The attendant hemmed and hawed. "No, no. You two need to be closer than that. Shuffle back a bit." Sakura moved back, her body pressing against his legs. "Little more." She moved back even further, until her butt was pressed against his crotch and his breasts were getting squished against her back. He felt rather warm now, fully aware of her body against his. "Great. Now, wrap your arms around your girl." Ben leaned forward, grabbing his wrist as he held her by the waist. "Good, but it's safer to hold her up higher. And tighter. Don't want any accidents now." Rolling his eyes, Ben released his wrist and wrapped his arms under Sakura's breasts. He was practically squeezing her against him. "Perfect. Now you're both ready to go. Enjoy your ride." And she literally kicked Ben in the back, pushing them down into the slide. They started moving quickly, slipping and sliding up and down the tunnel as they went faster and faster. Sakura squealed in excitement, and Ben joined in the fun after a few seconds.

But then they went over a large bump in the tunnel, and he found his hands now firmly pressed against Sakura's breasts, caught under her top. How that happened he had no idea. At the same time, Sakura slipped down a bit so that her head was pressed right between his breasts. They both shouted in alarm and tried to correct themselves, but their movements caused them to twist and turn even more. Ben suddenly felt really hot, his cheeks likely on fire by now. But then they reached the end of the tunnel, flying out at impressive speed. Ben felt himself and Sakura separate, his hands and her head pulling away as they splashed into the pool. Ben swam to the surface, coughing up some excess water. Beside him, Sakura surfaced as well, hands wrapped around her chest. She was blushing slightly.

"Sorry." Ben apologised. "I didn't mean to grab you by your… it was just an…" His attempts were interrupted as he heard her start laughing. She smiled at him, a twinkle in her eyes.

"Oh man." She chortled. "No wonder my friends like that so much. That was so fast. It was like going in a rollercoaster or something.

"Wait. You're not upset?" He asked in perplexion.

"Upset?" She giggled again. "Bri, it's called the Lover's Embrace for a reason. Do you really think it's a safety thing that they have you grab me so high up?"

"Well now that you mention it, that does seem a little suspicious." He admitted.

"Duh. Of course it is. Let's go again."

Ben smiled. "Well if you liked it so much, I don't see why not." He swam to higher ground and moved to stand up, but was stopped as Sakura grabbed him by the shoulder. He turned to see her blushing again.

"Though uh, before we go again, we might need to swap some things first." She pulled one hand out of the water, his bikini top dangling from her fingers. Ben looked down to see that his breasts were hanging loose, thankfully hidden somewhat by the water. He yelped and ducked down while covering himself, only now noticing the feeling of fabric in his hand. He groaned as he understood what it was.

As he expected, he was holding onto Sakura's own top.

(**/*\**)

The water park was awhirl with excited and happy people, all enjoying a wonderful day in the sun and water. The men ogled the beautiful women in skimpy swimsuits; the women admired the well-built men in their speedos and togs; the children enjoyed the games they could play in the pools. There was nothing going on that could suggest that something strange or abnormal was likely to happen on this fine day.

Some distance away from a family of three, watching a stern-looking woman and her jovial husband following their excited daughter, were three pale-skinned women in black one-piece swimsuits. Those who noticed them sitting on the bench would've found them very peculiar and foreboding. Though they all wore sunglasses and sunhats (black, of course) and one was drinking from a juice box, they seemed all too focused on the family before them. Their skin was pale enough to appear grey, and they sat as though they had never relaxed in their lives. Two of them had a black band around a leg, small tubes strapped to it. As the family moved on, they all got up as one and started following them, at least one of them looking elsewhere as though they were merely browsing the crowd.

"I hate this place." The eldest woman, Griselda, said quietly. No one else could hear her in this crowd, but her sisters could understand every word she said. "Being surrounded by all these mundanes, laughing and smiling without a care. It's disgusting."

"And pathetic." The middle sister, Pricilla, agreed. "And we look positively ridiculous in these things." She pulled on the side of her swimsuit to emphasise her point. "There's nowhere to hide weapons on this damn thing."

"I know." Griselda said. "But we have to blend in. And given that this is a place is a den of flesh and stupid outfits, these swimsuits help us fit right in."

Beside them, the youngest sister, Charlotte, was approached by a well-built man. His eyes roamed up and down her nubile body, evidently liking everything he saw. He reached out towards her arm, mouth opening to say something suave…

He found himself thrown into the water, his whole arm broken. A jab to the throat stopped him from screaming in pain. As he struggled up for air, a bruised area of his skin turned black as it rotted away. He was bleeding out before anyone even knew what had happened. Charlotte shook out her hand, now covered in a faint film of darkness, and kept walking like nothing happened. "I feel as though we might have blended in too well." She said. "These peasants think they can procreate with us."

"Sex-crazed perverts." Griselda muttered, eyes trained on the back of Sir Fitzgerald's head. But when the crowd parted slightly, she immediately noticed that her target's hair had grown by at least another foot. "Dammit." She cursed. "They managed to give us the slip."

"You must be joking sister." Pricilla exclaimed, looking over the crowd with Charlotte. It was no surprise that they were so worried about losing them. Aside from their professional integrity, several of their brothers had been lost attempting an assassination mere nights ago. Already people were mocking them for losing their edge, for being weak and foolish. The honour of the entire order was resting on this hit. It would not do well to displease the Grandmaster. Besides, losing your target like this was a rookie mistake.

As she was just plotting on sneaking to higher ground, her phone started vibrating against her leg. Cursing to herself, she pulled it free.

"Everything going alright down there, girly?" The voice on the other end asked. She grinded her teeth together. Alfred Banshee. Despite his last name belonging to a female ghost, he believed that women should only be there for breeding and pawing. She despised him, and she despised that they had to work alongside him. "You haven't lost anything now, have you?"

"No, we have not." She said slowly. "We have the target right in front of us." And so she did. Though the princess had changed her appearance, they already knew exactly what she looked like. And here she was now, walking around with three strangers. A boy and two girls. The boy had short brown hair, and had one hand resting against the behind of one of the girls. The girl herself had long black hair, a large cumbersome chest, and was practically indecent. The other girl also had brown hair, though with a large yellow streak through it. They were laughing together, the girl with dyed hair sticking close to the princess.

Alfred grunted. "Good save. But my men saw you three twisting around in search of her. Maybe we should get a real tracker down there."

"Then perhaps you should acquire one first." She replied, hanging up on him. They quickly followed the group, always making sure to keep one eye on them at all times. They couldn't afford to slip up again.

Charlotte pulled up next to her. "And where do you suppose her bodyguards are right now? It seems foolish to lose them like this."

"Perhaps they are acting as a distraction. Trying to draw us off by separating. Fortunately for us, it didn't work."

"Shall we kill them now?" Pricilla asked.

"No. Too many witnesses. We'll wait for them to get away from the crowd before we attack. Hit the princess first. She's our top priority.

And so they followed and waited.

Luckily, it wasn't difficult for them to blend in amongst the crowds. By selecting three loungers not too far from them and lying back, they appeared busy relaxing while still being ready to attack. All save Charlotte, who decided to try and blend in further so as to sneak closer. She had taken a lounger right next to them, and mimicked other girls not far away from her. She had pulled away at the top of her swimsuit, pulling it down to her hips before lying on her chest. The only problem with this technique was that she was drawing more attention than they needed. Many of the men around them paid close attention to her exposed figure. Griselda didn't like it. Not only did she have to waste time pulling her clothes back on, but if people starting approaching her it would blow their cover. She was contemplating ordering Charlotte to get dressed again when her phone rang a second time. Alfred again.

"Change of plans ladies." He said as soon as she answered. "My boys just spotted the bodyguards running around like headless chickens. Guess the princess gave them the slip. You three go and end them, while my men deal with the princess."

She sat upright, furious. "The princess is right in front of us. If we could lure her away, we could finish her right here and now."

"Well unless the princess loves your clams, I think my boys will have better luck in getting her to a quiet spot. And you do recall that the boss hired me before you girls. Or do you not want to redeem your order for the fuckup your brothers did?" She audibly grinded her teeth together, but said nothing. "Thought so. Head over to the ice cream parlour. That's where you'll find them. Now get moving, bitches." He hung on her, leaving her clutching it hard enough to break. Charlotte and Pricilla were watching her closely, and she was forced to tilt her head away from the princess. Nearly grumbling the two of them sorted themselves out and joined her as she left.

"What is that fool doing?" Pricilla asked angrily. "She's waiting for us there. Why are we walking…?"

"He wants the glory of killing her himself." She explained. "We are to deal with her guards instead."

"You jest." Pricilla said, frowning deeply. "He is leaving the assassination of the princess to one of his scoundrels and fools?"

"Take heart sister. The bodyguards are much more difficult prey. We can get revenge for our brothers. And once this hit is finished, we have no more use for Banshee and his men. We can show them how weak they truly are." She gave a sadistic grin that frightened several people watching them go past. "Now onwards. The sooner we deal with them, the quicker we can get our revenge." They hurried towards the ice cream parlour, minds whirring as they came up with ideas on how to lure them away. Perhaps imply that they had the princess. Or that they at least knew where she was. Or simply attack them and let them pull the fight away to safer places. It would give them time to inflict a lethal blow before they could fully retaliate. But when they arrived at the parlour, they grinded to a halt in shock.

The bodyguards weren't there.

"That… That… That bastard tricked us!" Griselda shouted angrily.

(**/*\**)

Ben dried his hair with a towel before wrapping it around his shoulders, still slightly panting from the water fight they just had. That had been some good childish fun. He knew that some people feel he should act his age, but sometimes acting like a kid made everything he did seem so much less intimidating. Sure, using the Omnitrix to be a hero seemed awesome when he was younger. It was mainly him versus crooks, and they hardly could put up a fight against his alien forms. But now that he was older, most of the weaker enemies had gone into hiding. And the stronger ones had personal reasons to come after him. And his problems had gotten bigger now. When he was ten, the biggest thing he had to deal with was stopping Vilgax's dreams of an army of Omnitrixes. Now that he was practically an adult though, interplanetary war was pretty much a Tuesday event.

He shook the thoughts out of his head. This wasn't some big world-shattering event. It was just a bunch of friends goofing off for a birthday trip. He took a deep breath and hurried off to the ice cream bar.

"Ok, so Issei wants a triple-choc deluxe." He said to himself, remembering the order. "Akeno was after some French vanilla with sprinkles. And Sakura was after a…"

"There you are." A female voice interrupted him, a hand grabbing him by the arm. He reacted instantly, twisting free and breaking out of the grip. A well-proportioned woman with blond hair and a red sports bikini was looking reproachfully at him. Behind her was a taller man with curled black hair was watching the crowd carefully. Ben could almost smell the military training on them.

Whoever these two were, they weren't just guests.

"I know that the crowds are scary, but you shouldn't have disappeared like you did." The woman admonished him. "Just because this is a holiday doesn't mean that you're not still in danger."

"Danger?" Ben asked in surprise. "Wha… What are you even…?"

"No time." The man said in an accent, eyes locked on something high up. "Drone is watching us. Must belong to Banshee. We need to move." They both grabbed Ben by the arm, dragging him away against his will.

"Hey, hold on." He said, struggling. "What's going on? Where are you taking me?" They didn't answer, but he saw the woman give him a funny look. They just kept moving until they were standing between two buildings. Ben grimaced as he felt something squish under his foot. He managed to pull free – or more likely, they finally decided to let him go. "Ok, seriously. Who are you people and what exactly is 'Banshee'?"

"Are… Are you playing games with us?" The woman asked in confusion. "Because this is not funny young lady." The man leaned in closer, observing Ben from behind his sunglasses. He started feeling uncomfortable under his gaze.

"Hey pal, ever heard of personal space?"

"Hmm." The man said. "Voice is slightly different. More sharp, less worried and nervous. Hair hasn't been cut for quite a while. Eyes are the wrong colour." He started poking Ben in the breast until Ben slapped his hand away. "Breasts seem to be all natural. No padding."

The woman seemed to be seething. "Fitz, are you telling me that we grabbed the wrong girl? What are the fucking odds that we'd find someone who looks exactly like her?"

"Highly improbable, but not impossible." Fitz replied, pushing his sunglasses up. He turned to Ben and gave him a formal bow. "Forgive us for the intrusion ma'am. We mistook you for our daughter. We were separated from each other by the crowd, and we're worried about her safety."

Ben raised an eyebrow at him. "Are you really trying to pull that over me? There's something fishy going on here. Who are you people and why do you think you're in…?"

"That's none of your concern." The woman said sharply. "Do us all a favour and forget you ever saw us. Forget everything we said, and get back to your… whatever you were doing." She looked at Fitz, ignoring Ben's protests. "We need to hurry and find her before Banshee's men do."

"Too late." A raspy voice said. The three of them turned to see several men blocking off the entrance, most smirking and holding onto weapons. Chains, blades, pistols… Ben was amazed at how much these guys had snuck into the park. Must be mercenaries or something similar. He heard the thrum of magic as the two adults pulled out weapons of their own, but the lead man simply pulled out a scroll and let it catch fire. They hissed in pain as their magic was dispersed, leaving them unarmed. The mercenaries' smirks grew bigger. "Disruption scroll." Their leader explained. "One use only, but it lasts long enough to finish all three of you off." Still cursing, the woman moved in front of Ben, Fitz right next to her.

"Start running." She said to him. "With any luck, we should be able to hold them off long enough for you to get away. Consider it an apology for what happened."

"Screw that." Ben pushed past them, one hand flipping through the Omnitrix for something fitting. "Watching people being threatened and murdered by lowlife mercs has always been a pet peeve of mine."

The merc kept smirking. "Well then. Thanks for making our job so much simpler." He raised his pistol and fired right for Ben's head, the other mercs joining in. But Ben had already pressed down on the dial. Every bullet fired came to a dead stop, suspended before a two-clawed hand. Everyone stared as Ben became one of his more useful aliens, Lodestar.

"I think it's time to level the playing field." Ben said, before increasing the magnetic pull. The mercs yelled in alarm as everything metal on their persons was ripped away from them, the air before Ben filling with knives and chains and guns and belt buckles. Then he squeezed the forces to a singular point, and everything before him condensed into a crushed ball of metal. The guards behind him jumped overhead, landing on the other side of the mercs and cutting them off. They didn't seem as overconfident as before.

"Let's see how well you guys fight when everyone's on the same level." The woman said, before charging into them. Her punches and kicks floored the men as she aimed for their weak points, Fitz joining in with more straightforward attacks. Ben knocked out the mercs that rushed him with ease, slamming them upside the head with the ball of metal. But a few got past it and started pummelling his chest, their fists clanging against his metal skin. Ben slammed a hand onto the Omnitrix, his metal skin turning into feather-covered flesh. The next merc's attack was blocked by a bladed arm, before Ben slammed him into the wall. Then he kicked his fellow into the air, knocking down the other two before spin-kicking the last merc against the wall as he came back down. He looked up to see that the agents – or whatever they really were – had dealt with their allies. Now they were looking at him in wariness.

"Hmm." Fitz went. "Unusual magic you have there. Surprised it wasn't disrupted along with ours."

"That's because it's not magic. It's technology." He changed back to normal, stepping over the unconscious mercs. "And I want some answers about what's going on here."

"No." The woman said. "While we appreciate the help, this doesn't concern you."

"Actually, it somewhat does Bell." The lady looked at him in surprise. "We ourselves mistook this young lady for the princess. It is highly likely that our enemies will do the exact same. Her life is in danger." He glanced at the Omnitrix. "Somewhat possible danger."

Bell sighed and closed her eyes, before looking Ben in the eye. "Alright. I suppose Fitz has a point."

"Great." Ben replied. "So who are you guys, who are these guys, and what's this about a princess?"

"My name is Bellamy, and this is Fitzgerald." The lady explained. "We are the personal bodyguards of Princess Melissa, next in line to the Morgana Throne of the Thessian Kingdom."

"Never heard of them."

"Not surprising. We're a kingdom of mages. A safe haven for any human with access to magical arts." She pointed at the mercs. "These men belong to a mortal mercenary by the name of Alfred Banshee. We're certain that he's working for someone to assassinate the princess."

"Well obviously. Any close family that might benefit from her ending up dead?"

"Not anyone in particular." Fitz said. "Her older brother could be a possibility, but he's languishing in a prison right now. He's always been a magical non-entity."

"So a mundane in a family of mages."

"Basically."

"We also believe that whoever hired Banshee has also hired the services of the Thanatos Guild, a group of assassins well known in the magical community for utilising magic during their attacks. We dealt with several of them not too long ago." Bell explained some more.

"Right. So we've got mercs and assassins running around out there. Typical." Ben said to himself. "Is there anything big happening soon that makes killing the princess a priority?"

"Besides her being vulnerable out here in the mortal world? In a few days, she will ascend and take the Morgana Throne, granting her access to the combined magical energies of all previous kings and queens. Once that happens, for all intents and purposes she will be untouchable."

"So we keep her safe until you get her back home. Should be easy enough. I've got some friends who can help out."

"And are you sure you can trust these friends of yours to survive against our foes?"

"Depends. Do you think that Rias Gremory and her Peerage could take them on?"

"Gremory? One of the Great Devil Houses is here?" Fitz said in surprise. "Well, if she is willing to aid us, then this should make things far easier."

Bell nodded. "So we're in agreement then. They won't make any overt attacks on us in public unless they become truly desperate. Use that against them and find the princess as soon as possible." She snapped her fingers until a spark of magic formed, and placed it against Ben's ear. "You should be able to communicate to us through that. Inform us if or when you find her."

"Got it." Ben nodded, pushing past them and moving quickly back the way he came. Hopefully the others will still be at the pool, waiting for their ice cream. Still, it was just his kind of luck that they'd go to the water park the same day a wizard princess does. It always seemed that trouble and villains followed him wherever he went. Go to Washington? A mad scientist starts up his mutant animal rampage. Arrive at New Mexico? A wolf man alien is stealing satellite dishes. Head off on a pleasure cruise? Run into the lost city of Atlantis and help save it from Serpent. Guess now they can add 'stop an assassination attempt in a water park' to the list.

Still, a part of him wondered what this princess was doing right now.

(**/*\**)

Melissa knew that she should be frightened right now. She had been separated from her bodyguards, alone in a strange land with nothing but her wits. Out there were likely many people willing to end her life in an instant. She was vulnerable here, with many men giving her lustful looks. But she found that she didn't truly care. She was too busy being excited by all the things around her. Things that people had developed without any magic. She actually stopped at a little building where a machine was churning away, rumbling and shaking. One little boy came forward with some coins, and the kindly old man at the counter grabbed a wafer cone and pulled on a lever. A white substance dripped out of the machine, filling up the cone in a spiral shape, before the man sprinkled some flakes on it. She finally realised what it was when the boy started licking it greedily. Ice cream. Instead of cold spells and enchanted chests, these common folk had machines that produced ice cream. And it looked so much gooier than the ones they had back home.

As she considered going up and getting some for herself – Bell and Fitz had given her some spending money – she was grabbed by someone from behind. She yelped as their hands wrapped around her midsections, something small and soft pressed against her back. Was this some strange assassination technique? But then a voice sounded somewhere between her shoulder blades.

"There you are." The voice said, still hugging her. "We were wondering what took you so long." Melissa pulled free and twisted round. There was a small group of teenagers – likely around her own age – smiling at her. Obviously they've mistaken her for someone else. The lead girl, a petite thing with multi-coloured hair, moved towards her again, pressing herself against her chest. Melissa squeaked. "Please tell me you still remember my order. I'm dying for some minty goodness." She pressed a hand against Melissa's breast and gave it a gentle squeeze…

And frowned. She squeezed it again. And two more times. After that, she stood upright and looked her in the eye.

"Wait a minute." She said suspiciously. "You're not Bri. Who are you?"

"I am…" She floundered. They never came up with a fake name for her. Or was she meant to just use her first name? Was Melissa a common first name? "…Melissa. And… And I demand an apology for the harassment you just put me through. Where I come from we're taught to respect people's personal space."

"…Well, she definitely doesn't talk like Bri." The boy with the spiky brown hair remarked. The leader of their group fidgeted nervously, blushing in embarrassment. "Sorry about Sakura here. We kinda mistook you for her girlfriend. It's just that you look so much like her."

Melissa looked down at herself, taking in her fake breasts mostly. "You must be joking." She said. Or then again, perhaps they aren't. The girl with him, a girl with long black hair, had breasts just as big as her fake ones. And they seemed perfectly natural too. Perhaps this 'Bri' was simply well developed too. "Well, in any case I apologise for causing a misunderstanding." She turned round to try and get some ice cream again when she spotted several other people marching straight for them. At the head of the group was a young lady with vibrant red hair, reaching down to her ankles. She of course knew her on sight. Rias Gremory, the heir to the House of Gremory. What was a Devil doing here? Was it sheer coincidence? Or was she seeking her out? But she hasn't made a contract yet. That wasn't supposed to happen until she took the throne. And even then she doubted she could ever consider the Gremorys. Their eldest was Sirzechs Lucifer, one of the four Great Satans.

But Gremory walked right past her, approaching the group behind her. From the sounds of it, she wasn't happy that the raven woman had 'stolen' her boyfriend. What madness would cause anyone to steal from a Devil was beyond her. So she ignored it and sought out something on the menu she might enjoy.

She was so engrossed that she didn't notice the red dot travelling up her body, centring itself on the side of her head. Indeed, the only sign she had that something was going on was when a great wind buffeted her and she was partially blinded by a green flash. There was a deep grunt beside her as something large loomed over her, causing her to stumble away and fall over. Panicking, she quickly tapped away at her watch, hoping that the beacon was still enchanted. The ice cream man yelled in fright and jumped the counter, running away. The shape turned around, allowing her to take it in. It was definitely female, with bright red skin and wearing a golden bikini and loincloth. Four arms were outstretched, ready to grab her.

"Bri!" Sakura exclaimed, approaching the monster. "What's going on? Why are you going hero?" This? This was the Bri that she had been confused with? They look nothing alike.

"No time to explain." Bri said gruffly, before grunting again. "Everyone start moving. There's a sniper out there." She quickly grabbed Melissa and ran, ignoring her muffled screams for help. She was taking quick steps side to side, as though making it difficult to be hit by something. Gremory and her allies were right behind them, most keeping an eye out for trouble. It wasn't until they had hidden themselves near the changing rooms that Bri finally dropped her. As she felt the ground beneath her feet, she quickly pressed herself against the wall, away from the monster before her. Her mouth was very dry.

"I…I don't know w-w-what your plan for me is… But I am capable of using world breaking classed spells at will." She said, trying to scare her off. "Release me at once, o-or I will destroy you immediately."

Bri gave her a look before being consumed in a green flash. Where the monster stood was now a human female. This… This must be her true form. She blushed as she realised that she had indeed somehow copied her look completely. On her chest right above her breasts was a red welt. As she watched, it faded away.

"Easy there princess. I was rescuing you." Bri told her. "Fitz and Bell sent me to look for you, since some assassins are after you."

"Princess?" The others asked in confusion.

"How do I know that you're telling the truth? That this isn't some grand plan to kill… me?" She petered out, realising that if she really wanted her dead all Bri would have to do is leave her be. If there were other assassins in this park (and she felt that there likely were) then she'd be dead soon without help.

Bri smiled at her. "I'm a hero, lady. Saving people is what I do. Especially when they're being attacked by their evil brother in an attempt to gain the throne."

"Can we go back to the part where she's royalty?" The brown-haired boy interrupted.

"Oh yeah. She's a princess of a mage kingdom, and she's going to ascend the…"

"Morgana Throne." Gremory interrupted. "So then this must be Princess Melissa of the Thessian Empire." She bowed. "It's an honour to meet you."

"Thank you, Dame Gremory." Melissa said politely. "But I'm afraid that we have more pressing matters. Among them is this foolish notion that my brother Mordred is behind these attacks on me."

Bri made a face. "Seriously? Your folks named him Mordred? What, was Cain too obvious?"

"He has no magic. You cannot use the throne without it."

Bri raised her hands. "Ok, ok. But I'm just saying, in royal stuff it's either the sibling or the uncle. Or the uncle's kid." She mulled it over for a second. "Hey, you don't have an uncle…?"

"No. It's just me and Mordred." Now Melissa was getting annoyed at Bri's determination to blame her family.

"If I could interject, don't we have more important matters do deal with?" Gremory said, standing between them.

Bri nodded. "Right. Our original plan was to just stay near her while she was here and keep away from secluded areas, along with staying with the crowds. But if they're attempting to kill her out in public, then that plan goes out the window. I'm not going to let people get hurt by these guys while they're trying to get to us.

"Just what I was thinking. Our best bet is to lure them out into the open, where we can hit them with everything we've got. But how to do so…"

"We could hit a fire alarm. Get everyone else out here, and then we don't need to worry about collateral damage." The brown-haired boy offered. Melissa smiled. That actually sounded like an honest plan. The only flaw was that the assassins could sneak out with everyone else. But so what? She was only vulnerable until she took the throne. Then they couldn't do anything to her.

Bri nodded. "Great idea. There's got to be a fire alarm somewhere close." She turned to Sakura, offering her a forlorn smile. The girl was pouting, looking angry. "Sakura, I'm so sorry about this. This was supposed to be your special day, and it ends up becoming another adventure."

Sakura shrugged. "A hero's job is never done, right? I'm sure we can come another day. Just bash one of these bastards for me, ok?"

"I will." They all jolted as they heard gunfire, several of them reaching for magic and weapons. As they watched the entrance, two shapes flitted in. The blonde boy and the blue-haired girl had their swords ready when Melissa recognised them.

"Fitz. Bell." She said in relief. "You're ok."

Fitz smiled at her. "Princess. Apologies for the delay. We had to navigate the park and avoid people who took offence to our running."

"What was that noise out there?" Bri said, all business. "It sounded like gunfire."

"It is gunfire." Bell replied. "Banshee and his men have taken the park hostage. Probably trying to find the princess that way."

"Hey, you said you're a magic princess, right?" Sakura asked Melissa. "So why don't you just hit them with some big spell or something."

"It's not that simple." She admitted. "While I know several incredibly powerful spells, I don't have enough energy to cast them. It'll only be once I'm sitting on the throne that I will have enough power to utilise all my spells. But right now, I've only got one shot before I pass out." There was a squeal from the speakers around the park, and a familiar voice echoed from them.

"Princess Melissa." Banshee's slimy voice filled the park. "I am not a patient man at the best of times. But I am a reasonable one. If you do not surrender yourself to my men at the lunch bay in fifteen minutes, then I will start killing these people. How does five every minute you're overdue sound to you?" He chuckled to himself, a twisted evil laugh.

Bri glared at the nearest speaker in anger. "God, what an ass. No one threatens people on my watch. He's not leaving here without a good bruise on his face."

"Agreed. But it's gonna be tricky." Bell said. "Knowing Banshee, he's not bluffing. And he'll have brought enough men with him to wipe out this park in a matter of minutes."

"We can work around that." Gremory replied. "And if what I've heard about Banshee is true, then this is a beating long overdue."

"Is he gonna have any tricks up his sleeve?" Issei asked.

"Well, his men used some kind of nullifying scroll against these two when they found us." Bri said.

"In that case, I've got a great plan."

(**/*\**)

Alfred Banshee has always been a psychopath from the moment he came into the world. When he was four, he strangled the local rabbit for a bit of giggle. When he was seven, little Timmy had a tumble down a well. His body was found a week later, neck clearly snapped. When he turned seventeen, he didn't so much as ask a girl out as threaten her family and rape her, right before ending their lives on the spot. When he finally turned of age, he had over a dozen murders under his belt, and already knew what business he wanted to join.

Another thing that became obvious was that when threatening people, he was a man of his word. Meaning that he hadn't touched a single person since he and his men had taken control of the park. Meaning that unless the princess showed up on time, he was going to start thinning the herd.

Meaning that as soon as she was dead, he had no reason to not kill everyone anyway.

But right now, his patience was being sorely tested by a crying baby not too far from him. It kept on going and going and going like some damn siren. The mother kept trying to shush it, to calm it down, it just refused to stop. So he walked over to the mother, and looked at her with a serene smile. Or his best attempt at any rate.

"Ma'am." He said politely. "Have you ever been drunk before? Do you recall what it felt like when your alarm went off the next day, right in the middle of your hangover?" He crouched down, gesturing with his pistol, and the lady shivered. "If so, then you would know exactly how it feels right now with your little hellspawn crying. Now, do you know what I do when my alarm keeps going and I'm trying to sleep?" His grin grew wider. "I smash it. I throw it out the window. I put a bullet through it. I crush it underneath my weights. So if you don't get that piece of shit you call a kid to shut the hell up, well I am perfectly willing to do it for you." The woman, the disgusting weak woman, squeaked in terror, clutching her baby close to her.

"Leave her alone Banshee." A familiar voice called out nervously. He chuckled as he stood back up, turning around. There, at the very edge of the court, was Princess Melissa. At least, her disguised self. "It's me that you want. Leave everyone else alone."

"Well, well. Looks like I win our bet. Some of the others were sure that you weren't going to show." His eyes roamed her up and down. "Nice fake tits by the way. It looks more natural on you than those clothes you normally wear." He felt something tugging at his back pocket, and quickly reached round. He grabbed the scroll he had, felt it catch on something before being released, and he activated the spell. A circle of magic formed around him, spreading outwards as it consumed the local magic. The princess shuddered at it went through her, robbing her of her strength. Alfred turned around slowly, looking for anything out of the ordinary. Seeing nothing, he turned back to her. "And it looks like your ally's gone off running. So much for loyalty."

The Princess glared at him, a fire burning within her. "Enough Banshee. Let these people go. I'm the one you want."

"Tempting. But here's a better offer. You stand still while my men gun you down, and I won't hurt any of these fine people."

"And if I don't agree with your terms?" He fired a bullet into the shoulder of the nearest woman, leaving her screaming on the ground and clutching her wound. The princess flinched. "Alright, alright. I agree then."

He smiled again. "Excellent. Men, prepare to fire." His mercs all raised their guns, bullets already flying. The princess was a dead bitch. There's gonna be nothing but holes in her now…

But even as they raised the guns, a green flash illuminated behind him. He turned to see a woman in a priestess-like outfit floating near him, hands raised towards the princess. He turned back to see all the bullets stopped by a barrier, dropping to the floor in a shower of lead. He twisted back to put a round through this strange lady, but she was already slamming her hand against the symbol on her chest. A wave of energy flowed over her, and she was now dressed in armour. His bullets bounced off of her.

"Kill them all!" He shouted, his men scrambling to obey. The woman threw her arms out, and everyone was covered by more barriers. One of his men screamed as his arm was sliced off by a passing barrier. As they all looked at each other in surprise, more people came running out from the edge of the court. A blond man and a blue-haired girl with swords; a silvery-haired sprite wearing gloves; a boy with a red gauntlet; a raven woman flying above and wearing another priestess outfit; and a girl with red hair, hands crackling with magic. "Use your scrolls." He ordered, annoyed that he had already used up his. But instead of magic happening, his men were cursing in confusion. He turned in surprise. They were all reaching for where they stashed their scrolls, finding nothing.

"Looking for something?" The armoured woman asked, strips of fabric dangling from her fingers. He only had to see a few of the scribblings on them to realise what they were. "Looks like you're all out of options now, asshole." And she moved to deck him in the face. But Alfred had always been a soldier. And no amount of armour or skill or surprise was going to knock him down. He ducked under the blow, grabbing his magical hammer as he dodged. When he moved in close, he managed to smack her in the stomach with it. The lady grunted and stepped back, her protection less useful against his weapon now. Grinning, he kept moving in to attack her. She used her staff to knock his blow aside, but it was too long to be useful at such close range. He ducked under it and slammed himself into her, jabbing his hammer into her side. It glowed red from heat, and the heat transferred into her armour. She yelled in pain, and then he was spinning her over his hip. As she crashed down to the ground, he grabbed her staff and slammed it against her neck, straddling her as he did so. He couldn't wait to crush the life out of her. As she struggled against his superior might, he looked up to see how the rest of his men were doing…

He was somewhat (but not completely) surprised to see that most of them were down for the count, sporting a myriad of injuries. He also wasn't too surprised to see the hooker assassins busy fighting with the bodyguards Fitzgerald and Bellamy. After all, he did give them false information to lure them away from his kill. What did surprise him though was to see the hostages running away. An opening took up on side of the barrier, funnelling them away. When the last hostage ran, the barrier vanished. And the his hands jarred as he was forced away by another barrier. The woman got back up and smacked her head into his. He was turned around just in time for the boy with the gauntlet to punch him in the face, sending him flying. But He would be damned before he let these two beat him. His hammer was summoned to his hand, and he ignited the full power of it. Things around him started bursting into flames, including some of his men. He ignored their screams of pain and terror. Soon this whole park will burn.

So why the hell was the boy smirking?

"Bri, you said you wanted this bastard?" He said, looking at the armoured woman.

"Sure did. And now I know exactly what to go with." She replied, smashing the symbol on her chest again. Her body was consumed by green light, and standing before him was now a crab woman of some kind, with red chitin. He charged towards her, but she blasted him with water from her hands. His hammer sizzled as it was drenched, but he ignited the flames quickly again. The boy moved in again, aiming for his side, but Alfred forced him away with a blast from his hammer. Bri jumped high above him, blasting him again. He just kept igniting his hammer every time it went out. If this was their idea of a plan, then it was a poor one."

"Boost." The boy's gauntlet called out, glowing brightly. The boy smirked at him, and moved in again. Fine. He wanted to be a roast, then it was his funeral. But once again, Bri moved in close and blasted him with water, keeping it going and distracting him. He went to ignite his hammer yet again, but then a great pain in his midsection stopped him. The boy had managed to get to him while he was distracted. His spell was stopped, for the moment.

But that was all they needed.

The woman raised her hands and opened holes in them, the water around them being drawn into them. What the hell was this in aid of? How would it beat him? The answer became clear though, when his hammer started cracking in his hand. She was drawing the moisture from it, and it had plenty of that now, thanks to these two. As it crumbled to dust in his grip, she moved in and nutted him once again, this time knocking him to the ground. He opened her eyes to find everyone standing over him. He snarled. Being beaten by a woman and a school kid… This was beyond humiliating. He could see the assassins lying dead on the ground, cuts and bullet holes covering them. Well, he knew they'd fail in the end. They were just pathetic women anyway.

"Talk pal." The redhead said. "Who ordered you to kill the Princess?"

He opened his mouth – whether to answer or to curse her, we won't know – when he ended up coughing up blood. A giant rock spike jutted out of his chest, coated in his blood. As he faded away, he heard the voice of his employer, a cruel and twisted man almost as bad as him.

"That would be me, dear sister."

(**/*\**)

Even with all the villains and adventures Ben had been on, death was still a rare thing. At the most the villain would end up beaten but alive, or killed themselves through their own actions at the worst. But this was a dead man barely a foot away from him. He may have been scum, but Ben didn't want him dead. He felt like he'd freeze up from the shock, so he did the only thing he could to keep himself going.

He started joking around.

"See? What did I tell you? It's always the sibling or the uncle." He said, even as they got ready to fight again. But this guy didn't seem all that concerned with the lot of them. And his flying meant that he had to have some serious magic.

Whoever did this guy's laundry obviously shopped at 'Overlords for Men' chain of fashion. His outfit was so obviously evil it was actually a little embarrassing. He was dressed in a long black blue cloak with red accents, two large spikes curving around behind him like a halo. He had long sleeves that were lined red to appear to be on fire or something, and a dark orb hovered behind his head. His hair was covered by a spike helmet, a large ruby in the very centre. And his wide grin only heightened the effect. Ben shook his head. Someone should tell this guy that Sauron wanted his clothes back.

Princess Melissa stared up at him in agape. "M…Mordred?" She said in shock. "But… But… How? You can't use magic."

"That is where you're wrong. I can use magic. I've always been able to use it. But Mother and Father found my powers worrying, and sealed them away when I was young. They sought to rob me of my rightful throne." He snarled at that last part.

"Have you ever considered that they felt you were batshit insane?" Ben called out, right alongside Issei. Huh. Guess they think a lot alike now.

"Insane?" He glared at them. "Is it insanity to want your vast power back? Is it insanity to commit murder to try and obtain it? Is it insanity to want to burn away the magicless wretches until there is only power and might?"

"Yes." They all answered.

He smirked. "Thought so. But it changes nothing. While you were busy pretending to be one of the common folk, I was hatching plans to free myself from my prison. Both physical and spiritual. Now the rightful prince has returned, and with the key to obtaining ultimate power. All I need now is to be the last of my bloodline. You see, there has to be someone sitting on the throne, or else it will consume our lands in a maelstrom of power. If I am the only one left, then they will have to accept me." He raised a hand, and a black spike staff appeared in it. "Now sister, do me a favour and die." Fire shot out of it, heading straight for them. Ben fired a stream of water, but it was evaporating away from the heat. Nevertheless, it gained them enough time to run. The fireball hit empty ground.

"Issei." Ben called out as he started blasting Mordred with water. "I left an intact scroll over by the changing rooms. Grab it and bring it back immediately."

"Got it. What about you guys?" Issei replied.

Ben smirked, even though it couldn't be seen of his physiology. "Here's hoping that an ultimate form could do something with all this water." He smirked back before running off, as Ben slammed down on the faceplate. A wave of energy flowed over him, making him bigger than before. His backside grew in length as multiple legs formed, while jagged barbs grew from his frame. Mordred frowned as he took in Ben's new form.

"What in the Hells is that thing supposed to be?" He asked. Ben smirked again, his new jaw more suited for it.

"Just a good way to keep you busy." He replied, holding his hands out. Please oh please work. He thought as he willed the water to move. To his immediate and joyous surprise, the water around them started flowing into the air around him. Mordred glared at him in contempt, before throwing another fireball. Ben pointed at it, and the water slammed and consumed it. While that happened, his magical barrier (because of course this guy would have a barrier) sparked as Xenovia and Kiba slammed into it, followed by Koneko and Bell. He swatted them away.

"Clever. But let's see how you handle my true power." Shadowy tentacles billowed from the orb, the tips jagged and sharp. They moved quickly down to run him through. At a loss, and far too slow to run, Ben waved a hand at it.

Tendrils of water severed the tentacles, letting them fade away. Mordred was now snarling, and he fired more and more tentacles. Ben deflected most of them, and the few that got through bounced off of him. Made sense really. Ultimate forms were if the species had been through millions of years of the worst-case scenario. If it was too slow to move, then it had to be well armoured to compensate. Ben nodded to Akeno, already coming up with a good idea. He gathered up a lot of water and surrounded Mordred with it, sealing him inside a bubble. Akeno fired off a bolt of lightning, the arcing tendrils spearing through Mordred repeatedly.

"Excuse me!" Melissa shouted. They turned to see her surrounded by a glowing magical field. She was struggling to contain it. "Please move out of the way thank you!"

"You heard her guys. Move." Rias shouted out as she flew away. Ben changed into Big Chill and flew away, just as a beam of light blasted upwards from Melissa and speared back down. Mordred only had time to shout before it engulfed him, blinding them. When it faded and they could see again, he was crumpled on the ground. And so was Melissa.

"Guess Mordred here wasn't as tough as he thought he was." Ben remarked.

"I think it's a combination of being too assured of his power, and not having anyone to challenge him." Rias noted. Issei came back with the surviving scroll, annoyed that the fight was over without him. But they all tensed as Mordred got to his feet. His eyes were bloodshot now.

"You… You… You…" He muttered over and over again. "You think… you've won? You think you can beat me? I am power itself! I am the future of magic! I. Am…" A white ball came flying towards him, slamming him right between the legs with enough force to throw him into the nearby fountain. He floated there, foaming at the mouth.

Sakura glared at him. "That's for ruining my birthday." She said. Ben started laughing as he froze the water around Mordred. He resisted the urge to say that it'll give him time to 'cool off'. As he turned back to normal, he smiled at the others.

"So, who still wants ice cream?" He asked.

(**/*\**)

They were now outside the port, where a private boat of the Thessian Empire was waiting to take the Princess back home. She herself had changed her appearance, now standing before them in an ornate white dress, the chest area much smaller than Ben's. Behind them, they were loading up Mordred in the cargo hold.

"Fitz is going to keep a close eye on him during the whole trip home." She explained. "And he's keeping hold of that scroll you saved just in case he breaks free. Bell's almost certain that there are no other assassins waiting for me. Not if he had to come personally to deal with me. All the same though, she's going to keep a close eye on me until – and I quote – 'my rump is firmly placed on that throne'."

"We're happy to have helped." Rias replied. "I just hope that Thessia remembers the Gremory's contributions to protecting you."

"Of course. In fact, I feel as though your family might be the best starting point for getting involved in the Underworld."

"Sorry that your holiday ended up in disaster." Sakura said.

Melissa shrugged. "I got to see plenty before we were attacked. "I'm just sorry that your birthday was ruined because of me."

"I'm dating a superhero and I'm friends with devils. It comes with the territory." A shout behind Melissa. They all turned to see Bell standing at the ramp, waiting for her. "Anyway, you should probably get going. Don't want your brother to thaw out too soon."

"No, I don't." She looked at Ben. "You were right of course. About it being my brother. I'm sorry I doubted you."

"Don't worry about it. I only knew because I've been in this work for a while now. You start learning all the tricks and clichés out there quickly enough." He rubbed the back of his head. "And… I suppose I should say sorry for grabbing you before as Four Arms."

"In that case, I apologise for accidently looking like you." She curtsied to them, before walking onto the ship. The ramp was pulled away, and it pulled out with a loud horn. Melissa stood at the railing, waving to them as they went. Ben and his friends did the same until they had pulled away. And then they turned and walked away.

"Well, today was… interesting." Sakura said.

"I'm really sorry about the park." Ben replied.

"Eh. I still got to see an awesome fight. And I landed the finishing blow on him. No royal lineage from him anymore." She pouted. "Still, sucks that they completely closed the park. So much for my birthday party."

"Who said we were having the party at Wet and Wild?" Rias asked. "Ben had planned on having it at The Know."

Sakura stared at them in shock before squealing. "The Know? The hippest restaurant in the city? That's where we're going for dinner?" She hugged Ben tightly. "I love you. I love you, I love you, I love you."

Ben smiled. "And if we hurry, we can still make it in time."

Phew. This went on way longer than I had originally anticipated. Amazing how much action you can fit into a simple birthday-gone-wrong scenario.

So when I told Blazorna that I was going to get stuck in on this again, he recommended that I go with some filler just to get back into the groove of things. I'm happy to say that it seems I have done abundance of that in this chapter. And of course it wouldn't be Highschool DxD without hot chicks in bikinis (and fighting in the too). Thessia and everyone associated with it are all original characters I made up. Didn't get to use them that much, but that's mainly because I felt like this had gone on long enough already. But who knows? Maybe I can use them in the sequel to this, assuming I ever can get round to it.

For those wondering about Ultimate Water Hazard, he's basically a giant crustacean/hermit crab combo. With the shell replaced by a large abdomen. And lots of legs. He's tougher than regular Water Hazard but slower, and can control all water around him (something I'm not sure regular Water Hazard could do. I think he could only produce it and drain it away). And he can also withstand a lot of pressure. Like, if Gravattack was weighing him down, he wouldn't implode or anything.

And yeah, the odds that a princess targeted for assassination would disguise herself in a way that looks exactly like Bri is highly unlikely. But that's never stopped anyone before.