Been a long while, eh guys? Sorry for the wait, but now the Rating Game between Rias and Riser can continue! I'm also quite surprised, we got 40 follows/favs now. So as promised, a sequel MAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY be closer to being released. But let's not get ahead of ourselves, let's just start the shout-outs then enjoy the chapter. Your gonna love it, I promise!
1A) Thomassmith69: I see your point, I didn't take into consideration that someone would listen to the fic rather than read it. To compromise, I will cut back on Italian speech just a little bit. However, Anthony is a stereotypical Italian, and they start balling out random shit in said language when they get annoyed/angry/etc. (I am guilty of this crime on multiple counts) Plus, it's part of Anthony's character and one of his natural charms; and it teaches my readers a new language, so it's a win-win scenario. An original idea that people can learn from.
1B) Thomassmith69: Anthony is not a Devil, just a reincarnated human. He has gotten stronger and sure he can promote himself, but since he didn't reincarnate properly he has a few weaknesses, one of which will be revealed this chapter... best part, it's an original weakness that not a single writer on this site has done yet (according to my research, that is)!
2) 54godmora: HA! Nice reference to Frieza's Death Ball that lasted WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY too long. It won't be that long, I promise. Just this chapter and the next one, which will be the one-on-one between Riser and Anthony.
3) Rmarcano321: "How much will the characters get?"... I don't exactly understand this question. What do you mean? More powers? More problems? More relationships? Ya gotta be a little more specific, bud.
Chapter 15: It's All Fun and Games, Until a Dragon Gets Heated - Part 4
While Anthony and Koneko were trying to take control of the gym, 3 more of Risers Pawns' headed for the Gremory home base. The odd thing about this was there was fog for some reason...
BLAM!
A magic circle shot a spear of demonic power straight for the 3 Pawns, but it missed them due to their speed. "What a lame trap, did they really think that would work against seasoned players like us?" Asked one of the Pawns. "As to be expected from Rating Game Virgins" said another Pawn as they continued through the fog, avoiding more spears of energy all the way.
Back at the gym...
Anthony: (flinches for an unknown reason) Ugh...
Ddraig: [What's wrong?]
Anthony: (looks at Ddraig's gem for a quick second) Nothing, I just got a little ch... FUCK!
Anthony had to avoid a wooden staff from being shoved through his head. He normally would have tried to grab it, but the sudden chill threw him off his game. Meanwhile, Koneko was fighting her hardest against Risers powerful Rook. For a Rook, she was quite fast... not as fast as a Knight, but faster in terms of Koneko's speed. Her attack patterns involved allot of fiery punches and burning kicks in rapid succession. However, Koneko managed to catch her leg when Xeulean tried roundhouse kicking her, countering with a punch right to her cheek... it sent her 5 feet backward, and it took all the strength in her legs to stabilize herself. Koneko was far from done however, and rammed into the older woman, knocking her down and she struggled to stand back up.
Anthony punched Mira down with his Boosted Gear, when he heard the commotion between the 2 Rooks and saw the end result. "WOOOOOT! Go, Hello Kit... GAH!" Cheered Anthony, but didn't count on Mira getting back up as quickly as she did. Due to Anthony's distraction, she jabbed him right in the gut as hard as she could. Anthony ended up skidding into a wall, cracking it in impact. The poor Italian held his aching stomach area... damn, and he just had breakfast too.
[Just like chess, you have to pay attention in Rating Games] Ddraig said. "Kinda hard to do that... when I'm an pezzo reale" Anthony, slowly recovering. He then heard the sound of motors some reason. Turning to his right, he saw the twins with devilish smiles on their faces...
...
...
...
"GAAAAAAAAAAH-HAHAHAAAAAAAAA!" Anthony screamed like a girl, running away from the twins who were reeving chainsaws and running at him, giggling! Fighting fists and staffs were one thing, but this...
"What are you running from, pretty boy?" Asked Nel.
"We only wanna CHAINSAW you a question" said Ile.
"Unless you have an AXE to grind with me, that made no sense!" Yelled Anthony, still running from the deadly duo. While Anthony was running away, Mira had circled around and gotten in front of Anthony, ready to jab him again! The Italian had to jump and do a split in midair to avoid the attack. "Phew... Pesca's yoga paid off" said Anthony, as he once did yoga with Pesca (against his will) before meeting the ORC... pure torture... that's all he could describe it as, but it seems to have some advantages.
"SLICE AND DICE, SLICE AND DICE, SLICE AND DICE!" Cheered the twins, running at Anthony again, this time with FLAMING chainsaws! Both swung their motorized tools, and Anthony had to strike several different poses to avoid the attacks. First, he posed like an Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphic of a Pharaoh to avoid diagonal slices; then, he did a swan ballet move to dodge frontal and side swipes; finally, he a tree pose from yoga to evade another side swipe alone with one from behind.
"Stop moving, asshole!" said Ile.
"We only wanna cut you" said Nel.
"No grazie, Phil and Lil; I like my head where it is!" Said Anthony, as he landed. Despite increasing his power, this wasn't working... Anthony had to think of a different play, but what? Playing a board game and BEING the game piece itself were two different things, and these 3 he was dealing with had much more experience than he did. He looked over at Koneko, she was evenly matched up with the Rook, but who knew how long that would last? The fight between them cold go either way.
[Anthony, try this. It should help] said Ddraig and somehow, a magic circle appeared on Anthony's left palm.
"A spell? W-What's it do?" He asked his dragon, while looking at the spell circle.
[It's a Special Move. Just lock onto your targets by physically tapping them. Once you've made your selection, snap your fingers and they'll stop dead in their tracks] Ddraig explained.
"Ooooooooh... so this will paralyze them?" Asked Anthony, both amazed and intrigued. He didn't realize his dragon had access to magic spells as well. And since he's none other than Ddraig, the Heavenly Dragon who could harm even Gods... it HAD to be good.
[... something like that] Ddraig stated.
"HA! CALCI NEL SEDERE!" Anthony said, regaining his confidence and turning around quickly; running towards the twins without hesitation, surprising them. "Your first, Rugrats!" Said Anthony. Taking a leap, he grabbed both twins' shoulders and pushed down as hard as he could. Due to the boosts from earlier, this caused them to hurtle to the ground quickly and make a dent in the court.
As they began to get up, they didn't notice a tiny magic circle on their shoulders that slowly began to fade away...
Mira was about to attack him again, yelling as she struck. Anthony caught the wooden stick with the Boosted Gear, a mere inch before it made contact with his face. "Oooh, someone's got some morning wood" said Anthony before he snapped the stick in half by clutching it even harder. Mira's eyes widened in shock.
"It... it broke?" She stuttered. Her staff was made with Australian Buloke... the HARDEST wood to break! Heck, it's used in baseball bats for this reason alone! But yet this human was about to snap it in half like drywall! She had no time to react when Anthony shot past her and clutched her shoulder, the same magic mark slowly fading.
"3 down... one to go..." said Anthony, his eyes now set on the 2 Rooks still duking it out.
Despite Koneko's best attempts to overpower the opposing Rook, she and her were evenly matched. This could be over if she... no, she can't. She already lost someone for that. While she was thinking this, this moment of distraction was enough for Xeulean to exploit, sending a upwards kick that Koneko barely dodged. The freshmen's uniform was sliced clean down the middle, one half now incinerated and leaving her half-exposed.
"Your done!" Said Xeulean, rushing forward to finish the job.
...
...
...
"No penso così!" Anthony had rushed in front of Koneko and held the Rook back... damn, she was like a wall. Koneko of course, was surprised at this. He rushed over to protect her, despite all the crap she gave him ever since he started.
"Not bad... for a Pawn... what the...?" Said Xeulean. She was held back Anthony and she was about to throw him across the room (and possibly knock him out due to her Queen-Level strength), but she noticed a tiny glow on one of her arms as the human stopped her.
Anthony: NOW, DDRAIG!
[EXPLOSION!]
Unleashing all the power he stored at once, Anthony managed to shove Xeulean off him, allot stronger than Koneko did to her earlier due to his Boosting. So much so, she began rolling on the floor and hit the basketball pole on the opposite side of the court, bending it upon impact. Anthony turned his neck to Koneko, ignoring the ripped shirt. Didn't mean he didn't notice and... appreciate the view, she was a cute girl.
"You ok?" He asked. Koneko was still stunned by his act of bravery and kindness, she didn't respond right away.
"I could've handled it... but thanks" she thanked.
Anthony then gave her a wink and a thumbs up. "And I got to smash the Rook after all."
All 4 of Risers pieces began to get back up, not wanting to quit. There was no way they'd lose to newbies! "We can't lose... to a mere human..." said Ile.
"Yeah... Riser'll be really pissed... then he won't cuddle with anyone tonight!" Said Nel.
"*snort* And that's a punishment?" Anthony sarcastically remarked. That was the last insult Riser's harem would take from the Italian. They all mentally agreed they'd kill him first, THEN the kid.
"BASTARD!" They all yelled at Anthony, running toward him and Koneko. Motors revving, palms flaming and a half of a staff glowing; the enraged females charged.
Koneko was about to take a battle stance, but Anthony waved her off. "Ddraig has a Special Move that'll paralyze them. Remember the recipe: I marinate..." said Anthony, his Gear glowing with power. At the same time, so did the afflicted targets he tagged with magic circles, making them look at their glowing bodies in confusion. "Now to peel back the skin, and beat some meat!" Said Anthony, snapping his fingers and...
RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRIP!
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" (4x)
POV Swap: Sona
Sona was unamused at what she was seeing... and quite honestly, didn't expect Anthony to do something so... drastic. He didn't seem like the type of guy... guess you never really know a person. "What a freak... that's just crude" was all the council member sitting next to Sona had to say.
"Crude, but effective. Nothing'll paralyze a girl quicker than her clothes magically ripping off..." said Sona. That... and there was currently no rule against it, so it's not like she could disqualify him on any legal grounds.
Main POV:
...
...
...
Standing in silence at what just happened, Anthony had no words, nor a comeback ready for what he was seeing. He just stood there, mouth agape... he didn't mean peel the skin back, LITERALLY! Koneko normally would have knocked him into next week, but due to the surprise on his face, it was clear even to her that Anthony had no idea this would happen.
"... what... the hell... WAS THAT?!" Roared Anthony, his face partially inches from the gem on his Gear upon yelling at Ddraig.
[What? It paralyzed them, didn't it?] Asked Ddraig.
"Um, NO! THAT! Is NOT! PARALYSIS!" Anthony screamed while pointing to the affected girls, his voice cracking due to the volume he was using.
[What did you expect me to do? A bolt of lightning? I'm a dragon; not a striped, yellow rat!] said Ddraig.
Mira: Dirtbag!
Ile: Cock-Muppet!
Nel: How could you!
Xeulean: Your sick!
"I-I-It's not my fault! HE did it!" Defended Anthony, pointing to his gauntlet.
"Yeah, real funny, asshole!" Said Mira.
"And you call yourself a man?" Said Xeulean. It seemed none of Riser's pieces believed him... frankly, Anthony couldn't blame them. Blaming his arm wasn't exactly his most proudest moment.
"NON SONO STATO IO! Ugh, Ddraig? What the fuck was that anyway?" Asked Anthony, defending himself again before asking Ddraig what was going on.
[It's called Dress Break... for obvious reasons. My former master created it] explained Ddraig.
Anthony was not amused with this information. "*Sigh*... now I know your making him up" he said.
[What?... No! NOOOOOOO! I SWEAR! I had nothing to do with its creation!] Said Ddraig.
"Then why did you ACTIVATE IT?!"
[I thought it would help!]
"Help who? YOU?!"
[NO! Since it's your first game, I thought I'd make it easier!]
"BY TEARING CLOTHES OFF?!
[NO! TO SAVE YOUR STRENGTH FOR RISER!]
"What are you both yelling about?" Asked the voice of Rias in Anthony's ear, specifically a magic circle that formed around his ear. It freaked him out for a second until he realized how he was able to hear his King.
"Ugh, niente. Niente affato. Gym's secured. Is Akeno in position yet?" Said Anthony, while pinching the bridge of his nose.
"AND HE TORE OUR CLOTHES OFF!" Said Mira, seeing the magic circle and deducing it was his master Anthony was speaking too.
"JUST WAIT TILL THE HIGHER UPS HEAR ABOUT THIS!" Yelled Xeulean.
"Aw, you ripped their clothes? Such a naughty boy" Rias joked.
"Is she in position or not?" Anthony repeated while groaning, not wanting to deal with this right now.
"Yes, she's just outside. Good work, by the way... maybe I'll reward you after the game" Rias slyly said, much to Asia's chagrin. Anthony was tempted to playfully flirt back, but seeing as he just got a taste of Perv Power and he knew Asia was in the same room...
He and Koneko left the building quickly, and it exploded seconds later. "3 of Riser's Pawns, and 1 of Riser's Rooks... Retired" came the voice of Sona.
"Boom. Hehe" said Akeno, who had struck the gym with a large bolt of lightning... and was blushing about it.
"Damn, she's badass... wait, Retired?" Asked Anthony, unfamiliar and confused with the term.
"It means their dead" Koneko simply stated. It bothered Anthony that she was so calm about it.
"WAIT?... DEAD?! LIKE REALLY DEAD?! WHAT THE FUCK! I DON'T WANNA DIE FOR SOMEONE'S ENTERTAINMENT! I'M A HIGH SCHOOLER, NOT A FUCKING GLADIATORE!" Cried Anthony. This was NOT what he signed up for! Why would Rias, let alone Devils, be ok with killing each other like this?
[Calm down. Being Retired just means their removed from the gaming field. They're transported out of this dimension and treated appro...] Ddraig explained, stopping mid-sentence, confusing the Pawn and Rook.
"Ddraig? What's...?" Anthony began to ask, but Ddraig cut him off with: [GET BACK!]
BOOOOOOOOOOOM!
The warning came too late. Anthony was knocked back due to the force of the blast... because he wasn't the target. "KONEKO!" He shouted as fire blocked his vision of the first-year.
"ANTHONY! ANTHONY, TALK TO ME! WHAT HAPPENED TO KONEKO?" Asked Rias, having heard (and felt the aftershock of) the explosion from home base. Asia was now a wreck, she could only stare blankly into space at what just occurred. Once the fire cleared, Koneko was limp on the ground. Anthony heard some laughing above and looking, saw the same woman Riser was making out with the day he introduced himself. It was his Queen.
"Heh... that's one" she said, heartlessly.
Anthony immediately ran to Koneko, picking her up and promising to get her to Asia to heal her... but she faded away in a sea of sparkles, slipping through Anthony's fingers. All he could do was stare in shock at where the young girl was not even half a second ago.
"1 of Rias' Rooks... Retired" said Sona's voice. Although Anthony was just told Koneko wasn't dead, seeing her being engulfed in flames reminded him... of her, and what she did to him.
"You... you bitch. You killed her!" Anthony said to Riser's Queen. "Hmhm, yes. That was the point. And here I thought you knew how to play chess" said the woman.
"Oh-ho, I KNOW how to play. Come down here and find out!" Anthony threatened.
"Anthony. Yubelluna is too powerful, she's Riser's Queen, get out of there and..." Rias said, but Anthony didn't want to hear it.
"Yeah... and his puttana" he growled.
[Miss Gremory is right, Anthony. Even with the Red Dragon Emperor, your current abilities are not even close to her own power. You need to run] Ddraig warned.
"You should listen to your pet, little boy. If you play with fire, you get burned!" Said Yubelluna, forming a ball of fire in her hand. Seeing it, Anthony froze. The color reminded him so much of the one that robbed him of his childhood. The Queen threw it at him, only for it to be fizzled out by a lightning bolt.
"Well that's not very nice, messing around with my cute Kohai. Anthony; I'll take care of the trash, you met up with Kiba" said Akeno, floating down from above. Anthony wanted to stay and help, but Rias repeated herself to go met with Kiba... and that was an order. Having no choice, Anthony complied. He prayed to God that Akeno would be ok... or should he pray to Satan? He forgot this as quickly as he thought about it.
-TIME BREAK-
Kiba had already taken out 3 more of Riser's Pawns. That made the total number of his remaining pieces 9, yet Rias still had 5. Rias' next plan of attack was nuts and Anthony/Ddraig didn't think it was a wise play, but since the original plan was to have Akeno take out multiple pieces, now Riser had sent out his own Queen so she was needed there. Instead, Rias would launch a sneak attack on Riser himself and hope she could take him out. Just like with regular chess, if the King falls... Game Over. So it was Kiba's and Anthony's job to lure as many of Riser's remaining soldier's as possible away from their home base.
"Alright, let's show this Whoremonger what the Occult Research Club can really do" said Anthony.
"Balls to the wall" agreed Kiba.
[Heh, and you said Freed had a mouth] joked Ddraig.
"Even a Knight has his moments" said Kiba, smiling. He and Anthony went outside to look for more of Riser's pieces and sure enough, all of them where currently in front of the ORC's home base. One of them, a Knight, had charged at Kiba, claiming she had gotten bored of sitting around.
"Swords, swords, swords... that's the only thing on Karlamine's head, its freaking ridiculous" said a girl with swirly pigtails. Anthony recognized her immediately.
"Hey! Tweety, how ya doing?" Anthony 'said', making conversation.
"Oh, its you... Anthony, was it?... Why Rias didn't just discard you after you failed to reincarnate is beyond me" said the girl.
"You were there when I told him, she and me had AMAZING times together" Anthony joked, bringing up the 'affair' he had with her.
"Yeah... sure you did... What am I even looking at? She has the worst taste in boys" said the girl, looking up and down at Anthony. Honestly, she saw no reason how Rias would even CONSIDER sleeping with this guy, even IF it was true. He was cute, sure; but not hide the cucumber material either.
"Of course you'd think that. My heart bleeds out to you and the rest of your sisters, Tweety; Riser really screwed up your brain screwing you" Anthony said, holding his 'bleeding' heart. The girl was now getting a little annoyed, this guy was worse than her brothers ego.
"For your information, I have a name. It's Ravel" said Tweety, revealing herself to be Ravel. Looking around, Anthony was surrounded by the remaining members of Riser's team... he had a few words for them.
"... ok. Did Jason give you that hockey mask, because it looks so stupid without the other half. Did my favorite Fire Emblem character Ike go through a sex change?... And who ordered the Catwoman/Sailor Moon combo?... Riser's got some weird fetishes" Anthony said, pointing at each girl.
No sooner did he say that, the woman with the half mask took him on. Anthony dodged, but got punched in the shoulder... the power behind it told Anthony she was Riser's second Rook. She went about him again, but she wasn't as fast as the first Rook so he was about to dodge easily.
[BOOST!]
The Rook threw another punch, but Anthony blocked it with his arm. She tried again with her other arm as she back up and tried again, but got the same result.
[BOOST!]
Anthony ended up punching her back. It wasn't too strong with only 2 Boosts, but it was enough to catch the Rook off guard. She wiped her face. "Not bad. Rias trained her human pet well" said the Rook.
"Trust me, your punches don't tickle either. But I've worked too long and too hard to lose" said Anthony.
[BOOST!]
"Nothing gonna stop me from winning this game! Not even Jason's mommy!" Anthony said.
"How noble, you make me want to cry" the Rook said, rushing to Anthony again. That was a mistake on her part, because Anthony unleashed a Dragon Shot... at point blank range. The Rook was engulfed by the beam of dragon energy, and disappeared in a flash of sparkles.
"Isabela!" Ravel called out. "1 of Risers Rooks... Retired" said Sona.
Out of the corner of Anthony's eye he saw Kiba fight Karlamine. His sword got sliced off by Karlamine's fire sword. In response, the hilt of Kabia's sword grew into a sword of ice to freeze Karlamine's flame sword. After her sword was rendered powerless, she pulled out a dagger of fire to melt the ice sword; which Kiba countered by the hilt becoming a sword that sucked in air to nullify the burning dagger.
"You've got to be kidding! How could you have 3 Sacred Gears?" Asked Karlamine.
"Oh, its not that. I simply make them at my will" said Kiba, touching the ground, summoning 10 swords underneath Karlamine that she only had a mere second to evade. Any slower, she would have Retired.
"Shit. Now that's a Blacksmith perk I need" said Anthony.
[How interesting. He possesses Sword Birth, a Gear that can create an almost unlimited number of Demonic swords] said Ddraig, impressed.
"Well, that's fair. He gets to make as many toys as his heart desires, and I get a horny reptile as a pet" Anthony joked. Ddraig then became emotional. [I'm sorry, its not my fault! I'm so ashamed!] The dragon cried.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
That explosion felt close... too close to be the fighting Queens'. Looking toward the direction of the sound and aftershock, he saw on the school roof...
"Rias? Asia? Riser?" Anthony asked. "He must have anticipated our move" said Kiba.
"Crimson Princess... Twilight Healing... Priestess of Thunder... Sword Birth... and now, Boosted Gear. Grand names, sure. But we are Phenexs'... immortal birds that rise from our ashes. You never had a chance at beating us, and never will!" said Ravel. As soon as Ravel finished her speech, Anthony was attacked nimbly by the 2 cat girls.
[BOOST!]
Anthony tried to counter, but one of the twins jumped on his head. The other started punching his gut rapidly. "A human like you can't defeat Phenexs' like us" said one of the twins.
"Maybe this will help you think clearly!" Said the second twin, roundhouse kicking Anthony in the back of the head and making him fall flat on his stomach. He rolled over to try and fight back, but Riser's remaining Knight was about to slice him in two, so he rolled back over quickly. Kiba couldn't help because he was still busy with the Knight he was currently fighting.
[BOOST!]
KA-BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
An explosion of fire covered Anthony's view of the school roof, and he became concerned.
"RIAS! ASIA!" Cried Anthony, as he dodged a sword swipe from the Knight.
"We're fine, Anthony. I managed to block it. Just focus on your battle, I'll focus on mine" said Rias from the magical earpiece.
[I felt that blast from within the Gear, you may want to reconsider. Take Miss Argento and run] suggested Ddraig.
"We'll be fine, Ddraig. I assure you. As for you two, show them what you've showed me the last 10 days! Show them your real power! Your servants of Rias Gremory!" Said Rias, firing Destruction Magic at Riser, but he blocked it with his own power.
"This is the worst foreplay Riser's ever been involved in. It would be so much easier if you resign and be his wife!" Said Riser, launching his own attack, which Rias blocked again.
KA-BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
While Ddraig and Rias conversed, Anthony ran from flaming punches from punches from the cats. Hearing the conversation made him realize something... all his life, he ran away from one problem, but it would only be replaced by another. First Raynare's fire, then the church, then an orphanage, now this... every time he fled, something else would rear its ugly head. He thought at this hard as the Knight rushed forward to behead our favorite Italian.
[BOOST!]
Turning around quickly, Anthony stopped the deadly blade with his Sacred Geared arm. The wind generated form the blow was intense, but Anthony held his ground.
"No way! He blocked Siris!" Said Ravel, surprised at this, as well as everyone else. After a few more seconds, Anthony's Gear boosted again; and with newfound strength, the human knocked the giant blade away along with the woman attached to it
"...I'm done running..." Anthony began. What he didn't notice was as he spoke, his Sacred Gear began blinking again just like it did with Raynare.
"I've ran for so long... "
His gear blinks quickened.
"Problems always follow me..."
His gear blinks quickened again.
"They always punch me in the viso..."
His gear blinks quickened even faster.
"But no more! It's time I punched back! I'm a human Pawn of Rias Gremory, and I won't let her marry some self-absorbed, oven-gold turkey breast! I WON'T FAIL A FAMILY AGAIN!"
FLASH!
The light coming off of Anthony was blinding, that's to say nothing of the power he began to generate! In fact, Riser/Rias/Asia and even the Duo Queens' who were on the opposite side of the battlefield felt the change in Anthony's power; and looked in his direction. What was happening? They've never seen anything like this before!
"Come on, Ddraig! LET'S WIN THIS GAME, AND HER FREEDOM!" Shouted Anthony, and in response...
[DRAGON BOOSTER! LIBERATION!]
FLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASH!
A enormous beam of green, dragonic energy shot out of Anthony and into the air, blowing wind and dirt away form the source of the disturbance. Suddenly, Anthony saw his Gear morph into a brand new form! The most notable change was it extend more down his arm, and it grew a second jewel in the back. claw-like thorns also grew around the wrist area, and on the very back grew long spikes that resembled horns.
"It... transformed?" Asked Ravel, now starting to get nervous.
"That's not... a Balance Breaker, is it?" Asked Siris, shocked at what was going on.
"Whoa... it changed..." said Anthony, just as confused as everyone else.
[Congratulations, Anthony. Your pure heart and strength of will has activated the full power of the Boosted Gear. Now you have unlocked a new ability that can turn this battle around] said Ddraig. Now that Anthony thought about it, and really felt what was in his arm now, he DID feel stronger. But what was this new ability Ddraig spoke of?
"Its not Dress Break - Level 2, is it?" He asked, just to be sure. The dragon chuckled in response.
[No. Trust me, its not. I think you'll like this new Special Move. Have Mister Kiba attack you with everything he's got, you'll see what I mean] said Ddraig.
"Attack me?..." Anthony repeated, not sure if he heard correctly. But has the dragon ever steered him wrong before? Looking at Kiba... "You heard the lizard, let me have it!" Said Anthony, arms opened wide like he was waiting for a hug.
Kiba was confused at first, but Anthony was known for unorthodox strategies if his chess matches were anything to go by. Smiling, the Knight unleashed all his remaining power directly at Anthony. Riser's peerage couldn't due anything for 2 reasons:
1) They were still stunned at Anthony achieving a new level of power.
2) No one in their history of playing Rating Games has EVER attacked their own teammate, so it caught them off-guard.
Swords began shooting up from the group towards Anthony. [Hit the ground, and Boost it! NOW!] Ddraig ordered.
In response (and hoping Ddraig knew what he was doing), Anthony punched the ground just like Ddraig had instructed. "Here goes! BOOST!" Said Anthony, the gems on his newly evolved Sacred Gear glowing brightly as he did so.
[TRANSFER!] Said Ddraig. Just like with Explosion, Anthony felt the power leave his body, but was surprised when more swords... and larger ones... started popping out of the ground like daises, heading for the other team instead. Ravel flew away, just barely managing to avoid the giant sword from piercing her body... her teammates weren't as lucky.
"5 of Riser's Pieces; 2 Pawns, 2 Knights and 1 Bishop... Retired" said Sona's voice. Inside, she was impressed. But this was a Rating Game, so she had to stay professional. At least Anthony kept his promise and made this game entertaining.
Riser looked down at the field in absolute bewilderment. A mere human, took out 5 of his pieces... IN ONE BLOW?! This couldn't be! "Well, this must be embarrassing for you, isn't it? A dirty human, taking on 5 pieces at once?... Must be losing your touch" said Rias, her confidence now restored. Thanks to Anthony and Ddraig, Riser was dealt a mighty blow! He only had one Bishop and his Queen along with himself remaining on the field. Rias was in the lead!
KA-BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
That scream was so loud, Anthony could hear it. He recognized the voice, and Sona's only made it worse: "Rias Gremory's Queen... Retired" said the Council head, and even she wasn't able to hold the sadness in her voice. Just when Rias' newest member turned the table, Riser turned it right back around. Now Rias lost her most powerful game piece.
"I will admit, you've gotten far my dear. But Riser think it'll be best of you just resign" said Riser.
"Resign THIS!" Yelled Rias, firing another beam of Destruction Magic, and it was faster this time.
"ARGH!" It ended up scorching Riser's face off... until his flames surrounded Rias', he was regenerating from the wound! "Heheheh, you don't get it, do you?" He said, standing back up from the blow. Asia look on in fear. She's never seen the bones in someone's face before, but it was even more scary when he healed himself in seconds flat... even her Twilight Healing couldn't do that!
"Riser ALWAYS wins! And Riser gets ANYTHING he wants! You were destined to lose this game, just as you were to be my wife!" He said, the flames healing him had finished and he wore that egotistic smirk on his face again. He fired an even stronger blast of fire that Rias almost couldn't block, but she stood her ground and held on.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
Back on the ground...
"GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
"KIBA!"
Kiba was next. Riser's Queen flew from the other side of the field and fire bombed both boys. Anthony survived... Kiba didn't. Sona didn't announce it this time, she was a whirlpool of emotions. Rias had worked so hard, tried EVERYTHING to get away from Riser, and Anthony did EVERYTHING in his human power to set the poor girl free... it made the Council head tear up a little.
"Took you long enough, Yubelluna" said Ravel.
"Believe or not, the Gremory Queen was as strong as she's rumored to be... had no choice but to use these" said Yubelluna, holding out an empty bottle.
"What's she talking about? What's that bottle do?" Anthony asked.
[That's a bottle of Phoenix Tears... pretty sure you can figure out the rest] said Ddraig and he was right. Anthony had heard multiple times in mythology that the tears of a Phoenix have incredible healing powers. Technically, he first heard it in a wizard movie, but still...
"How's that fair?" Asked the Italian.
"Aw, quit whining. You have the Sacred Gear Twilight Healing on your side" said Ravel.
"That's different! All you gotta do is cry when Riser sleeps with another girl, Asia works hard!" Anthony shot back.
"Regardless; with our tears, natural ability to heal and immortality; we were destined to win every single Rating Game we complete in! Not even Queens of other families can match our power" Bragged Ravel. This caused Anthony to look down and get angry... very angry... and VERY quickly. He began to feel guilty, if only he stayed with Akeno, maybe she would've had a chance.
"Well, if we don't have a Queen..." he said in a dark tone, scaring both women a little. Then he lifted up his head, his eyes green with rage. He ran atop of one of the giant swords and jumped off of it, reaching a hand out, and grabbed Yubelluna's leg. "THEN YOU DON'T EITHER!" He roared, pulling down and with surprising strength, sent her to the ground. He had his fist ready punch the Queen's face in, but she flew up using her Devil wings and avoided the strike.
"How dare you touch me? I'm going to rip you apart!" Said Yubelluna, preparing a powerful fire spell on her staff. Anthony then smirked evilly. "Not if I rip you first..." he said, snapping his fingers. Where was that sudden glow coming from? Her leg? She looked down just in time to see a small magic circle...
RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRIP!
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" Yubelluna was forced to land and cover herself due to her outfit bursting apart. "HEY! WHAT THE HELL'S WRONG WITH Y-...?" Said Yubelluna, looking up at the human who dared attack her. She froze up. All she saw were green eyes, and Anthony's outstretched palm right in her face... with a ball of energy in it.
"Resquieta in pace, volpe." Anthony growled. With that, he unleashed a Dragon Shot that was even more powerful due to the Gear evolving... literally an inch from her face. She cried in agony as the dragonic energy blasted her, her voice fading as she disappeared in sparkles.
"... Riser's Queen... Retired" said Sona, she was both amazed at how quickly Anthony took out the Queen... but also fearful as he was able to Retire her in one shot. She wasn't the only one, Ravel was shaking at what she saw take place.
"He... defeated her... in one shot?" She said, struggling to grasp the reality. No one has ever defeated their Queen before! Anthony's eyes now shot at Ravel, she froze with fear.
"... I don't have time for you now" Anthony said, running towards the school. He had to get to Rias and Asia, and fast!
As the sound of Sona's announcement filled the air, Riser hardened his gaze and looked down towards the field. He saw the sparkles, but couldn't believe it. "WHAT?!" He said, angrily. This made no sense, how could a measly human not only take out several pieces at once... but a QUEEN to boot?!
"I may have lost Akeno, Koneko and Kiba... but I still have Anthony and Ddraig! Your gonna be sorry once he gets here, he's gonna serve you for dinner at the Gremory house!" Said Rias, her morale rising. She had to admit, she was also surprised Anthony was able to destroy a Queen on his own. Maybe she should have let him help Akeno after all, but what's done is done. Sure they lost most of her team, but they could avenge them... they could still win this!
Riser glared at his bride-to-be. Now the only pieces he had left were himself and Ravel, all thanks to some human. A HUMAN! It really ruffled his feathers, he can't lose... not to him... not to a bunch of Rating Game Virgins! With an evil smile, he prepared a ball of fire. "Not if Riser Retires you first!"
FLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH!
Back on the ground floor, Anthony heard the explosion from above. He wasted enough time, he needed to get to Rias and Asia, NOW! 'You never had a chance at beating us, and never will!' Ravel's words echoed in Anthony's head. "I still have to try... Promotion - Queen!" he said aloud. The symbol of the Queen Piece surrounded him...
...
...
...
Nothing happened. Unlike when he promoted to a Knight once before, he didn't become a Queen... but why? "Uh, I said: Promotion - Queen!" He repeated, the same thing occurred... still nothing. "The hell? Why isn't it working?" He questioned while looking down at himself. He was in the enemies home base, right? So by chess/Rating Game rules, shouldn't he be promoted to whatever he wanted?
[No idea. But I do feel the Evil Piece inside you resonating to your call, so it IS working] said Ddraig.
"Then why am I not becoming the next boss bitch?" Anthony asked.
[Good question] said Ddraig, then another explosion rang out, vibrating the building. [But if your going to promote, do it quickly] the dragon finished.
Since Queen wasn't working for some reason, Anthony had to think. 'Ok Antonio, think! If you can't become a Queen, what's your next best move?... Riser has a huge amount of demonic power and the ability to heal almost instantaneously. Close quarters combat doesn't sound like the best option when fighting a fire, so Rook and Knight are out of the question. That just leaves...' He thought, then mad his decision. "Promotion - Bishop!" He said, thinking that he could counter fire with fire; or in this case, demonic power with demonic power. Sure enough, this time his promotion was successful.
Running as quickly as he possibly could, Anthony headed for the roof.
-TIME BREAK-
FLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH! BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
Rias was still blocking Riser's attacks, but she was starting to lose power. Asia was behind her, trying her best to keep the Gremory King at full strength. "Just give up, my Beloved. Riser won't think any less of you" taunted the Phenex King.
BANG!
"RIAS! PAWN MESSURI, REPORTING FOR KITCHEN DUTY!" Yelled Anthony, climbing out of window and climbed up to join Rias. Both Rias and Asia were ecstatic to see him.
"Oh, perfect. The human lapdog has arrived to lick his masters wounds... how cute" said Riser. Ravel then appeared by flying over next to her brother. As scared as she was seeing Anthony's strength, she was still a member of her brothers team.
"I could throw him off the roof if you want" said Ravel.
"Heh, no need, dear sister. Riser prefers to be as thorough as possible" said Riser.
"He might be human, but he took out Yubelluna. Please be careful" said Ravel. Riser understood this, but he kept his cool.
"Riser must admit, little human. Your quite the man you said you'd be" Riser 'complimented'.
[BOOST!]
"Flattered. And your still the tool you showed yourself to be" said Anthony.
"Heheheheh. Perhaps Riser misjudged you. Tell you what, convince your King to resign, and he'll let you be Best Man" Riser said.
"No thanks, I'm Sias' ONLY man, thank you very much" Anthony snapped.
"What a pity, guess I'll have to roast you alive and serve you at the buffet" Riser taunted again.
"You'll have to go through me before you lay a hand on him! HYAH!" Said Rias, launching 2 waves of Destruction Magic that cut off Risers' arms. He merely laughed at this; as his bones, muscles and skin grew back in flames.
"Heheh, this is child's play, Rias. Resign, you barely have any power left. Besides, were about to be mated, and Riser hates to ruin his wife before bed" said Riser.
[BOOST!]
"Then let me offer you some protezione!" Said Anthony, firing a Dragon Shot using a single boost... at Riser's groin. There was a gasping hole where Riser holds his eggs... until he healed that too... yuck, Anthony should've looked away.
"That's it? Riser barely felt that. Where's all that power you Retired Yubelluna with, hmm? Even your Pawn has exhausted himself it seems, Rias. Looks like its Checkmate" Riser ragged.
"If Anthony taught me anything, its Checkmate is NOT Game Over! You will not intimate me, Riser!" Said Rias.
[BOOST!]
While Rias and Riser talked, Asia used this time to start healing Anthony. Seeing all the bruises and scratches on him surprised her... he truly was amazing.
"Oh... thanks, Asia" said Anthony, feeling the warmth of the Twilight Healing and turned his neck to thank Asia.
"Your so brave, Anthony. Just like when we were attacked when we were little, you pushed back and never gave up" said Asia.
"Hey, Prez? Permission to pluck out his tail feathers now? As long as I can stand, I'll fight!" Said Anthony, then Ddraig joined in. [Spoken like a true dragon! This fight isn't over until one stop breathing!] Said the Red Dragon.
"I couldn't agree more... we'll win this together" agreed Rias.
[BOOST!]
Anthony and Rias stood together, she prepared a Destruction Spell while Anthony held out his hand for another Dragon Shot. "DRAGON SH-...!" Anthony said, but stopped and choked on his words, shocking Asia and Rias.
"Anthony?!" Asked Rias, her voice cracking in concern.
[Buuuuuuuurst...] Ddraig, sounding as drained as Anthony looked. The Italian's face went pale and he lost his balance, rolling down the roof. Sona and her council member also looked concerned from the camera room, what was wrong with Anthony?
"Ugh... Ddraig... what... the hell?" He moaned, feeling like he got rammed by a bus like Looney Tune.
[It's my fault. I wasn't paying attention to your body's physical limits. We've gone far beyond what your body can handle, and the Boosted Gear drained us as a result. It's a defense mechanism, to protect both itself and its wielder from an overload] said Ddraig.
"Ugh... would've been... nice to know... earlier" Anthony groaned, then he coughed up blood.
"Awwww... looks like the dragon belched his last flame. This Rating Game is over, Rias... resign and save yourself more embarrassment" said Riser, making fun of Anthony's condition.
Rias' heart bled out for Anthony, but she refused to give up. "NEVER!"
FLOOSH! FLOOSH! FLOOSH!
3 Destruction Spells, each taking a limb from Riser. First his Left arm, then his right, and one of his legs... but they healed right back.
"Admit it! All you have left is a Support-Type Bishop at this point, the only attacking piece you have is yourself, and who knows how much longer she'll be able to heal you before she exhausts her power as well? Do yourself, and your peerage a favor... and give up" said Riser.
Hearing this, Rias began to think... Riser was right. Anthony was about to Retire, and who knew how long Asia had until her strength was drained from all that healing? Riser had a natural fast-healing ability... Rias did not... was this it? After all she's done... after EVERYTHING she's sacrificed... was this her fate? Was she destined to lose to Riser from the start, and give in to the political bullshit her family dragged her into?
She was about to answer when...
"... wait..." croaked a voice. Looking down, everyone say Anthony was still alive! He didn't Retire... but he looked like shit. "I can... still... fight..." Anthony said.
"Do you not know when to shut up?" Asked Riser, shooting fire magic at Anthony.
"ANTHONY, NO!" Cried Rias. Asia held hands on her face, she couldn't watch. "He's done... resign" ordered Riser. Rias was about to try and answer again but...
"... I... promised... I promised... I'd win..." said Anthony, still standing when the smoke cleared, though it was clear he was in a immense amount of pain; from both the attack and the draining effect of his Gear.
"WHAT?! HOW ARE YOU STILL STANDING?!" Shouted Riser, now getting ticked off. No one survives Riser's flames! Especially not a pathetic, little human boy! This was an outrage! Having enough of the Italian, Riser flew down from the roof and attacked Anthony.
"STOP IT, STOP IT NOW!" Cried Rias, but Riser kept attacking. He kneed Anthony in the gut, punched the side of his face, and kicked him in the chest... but Anthony kept standing back up, he won't be moved, which just pissed off Riser even more.
"I won't run... won't back away... I'll fight... fight for Rias..." said Anthony, which made Rias think back to the day they first met, the hug and promise he gave her... she couldn't stop the tears from streaming down her face. Even Ravel, Riser's own sister started crying. She's never seen this side of her brother, ruthlessly attacking a helpless foot soldier when he had no way of defending himself.
Anthony finally stopped moving and talking, and Riser picked up the boy by the hair. "What a waste. The Red Dragon in the body of a lowly servant, Riser'll put him out of his misery" said Riser, generating a ball of fire in his free hand.
"Riser! What are you doing to him?" Asked Rias.
"Sending him to hell where he belongs... not even Phoenix Tears will help when Riser's done with him" Riser announced, evil intent in his eyes.
"BIG BROTHER! THAT'LL KILL HIM!" Shouted Ravel... wait, why does she care? Maybe because her brothers going too far... yeah, that was it.
"Heheheh, don't worry, dear sister... legally, any death in a Rating Game is considered an accident anyway!" Riser said with an evil grin. Before Riser could make due on this threat... Anthony opened his eyes, stunning Riser. HOW? How in the Four Great Satans names... was this mortal still breathing?! Anthony's cheeks puffed up and...
"Argh!" Riser said, then froze momentarily. Did this little pissant... just do... what he think he did? Deactivating the fireball, Riser felt under an eye with 2 fingers and when he pulled them back... bloody saliva.
"Succhiare... mio... pene..." said Anthony, with a smile.
"YOU...!" Riser Roared, losing his sanity and made a second ball... 5 times the size of school bus! "YOUR NOT GOING TO HELL! RISER'S GOING TO BURN ALIVE!" Riser roared again, spit coming out of his mouth.
"ANTHONY!" Rias screamed, flying down quickly and hugged Riser's back. "RISER, STOP! I'LL RESIGN, I'LL RESIGN, OK? JUST DON'T HURT HIM, AND I'LL MARRY YOU, UNDERSTAND?! PLEASE, JUST LEAVE HIM ALONE!" Rias cried.
Smirking evilly, Riser let go of Anthony. "Game. Set. Match. Riser wins again" he said. Anthony was shocked, he couldn't believe Rias gave up. It wasn't fair! Riser used him as a bargaining chip, and the overgrown chicken knew it! Sona's voice rang out, though clearly saddened at the outcome, "Resignation, recognized... Riser wins the game..."
Anthony: *Rias... no...*
Anthony's Italian Dictionary:
1) Pezzo Reale: means "actual piece"
2) Calci Nel Sedere: means "kickass"
3) No Penso Così: means "don't think so"
4) Non Sono Stato Io: means "it wasn't me"
5) Niente. Niente Affato: means "nothing. Nothing at all"
6) Gladiatore: means "gladiator"
7) Viso: means "face"
8) Volpe: another, and more insulting way, to say "bitch". Can also mean "fox". (AN: Will be used on a certain Yokai when she appears in the story)
9) Protezione: means "protection"
10) Succhiare Mio Pene: means "suck my dick"