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"Rias" - Speech

'Issei' - Thought

[BOOST!] - Sacred Gear Ability/ Ddraig and Albion Speech

Beta'd by BigCC

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Balance Breakers are the bugs in the Sacred Gear System created by the Christian God of the Bible. Their very existence proves that the God of the Bible is dead, as he never removed them. Created by emotions running high, as well as a change in the heart or spirit of the wielder, the Balance Breakers live up to their name by breaking the balance of the System created by the God of the Bible.

It is said that there are three types of Balance Breakers:

Crest-side, the so-called 'regular' (if such a word can apply to Balance Breakers) form of a Sacred Gear's Balance Breaker, which is strengthening the traits of the Sacred Gear even further. Regular Subspecies Balance Breakers are also Crest-types.

Abyss-side, the 'Evolved Balance Breaker'. By continuing to improve themselves after achieving Balance Breaker, the wielder of a 'Crest' type Balance Breaker can evolve it into an 'Abyss' type Balance Breaker, which further improves the abilities of the Sacred Gear, changing its form and possibly removing weaknesses of the Balance Breaker/Sacred Gear as well.

Finally, there is the Ex-side, the 'Unclassifiable Balance Breakers'. Any Balance Breaker that is not either Crest-side or Abyss-side falls into this category. They are also known as the 'Irregular' Balance Breakers, as they come about through sudden change or combining the known categories. Hyōdō Issei's [Illegal Move: Tríaina] and [Cardinal Crimson Drive] are examples, as they are the manifestations of the other pieces that a [Pawn] can Promote to.

- A Short Introduction to the Balance Breaker Phenomenon, by Azazel the Scapegoat.

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The Sixteenth Move: Scholar's Mate

Throne Room, Mei's Tower

"Wha-…! That looks like Cao-Cao's Balance Breaker, [Polar Night Longinus Chakravartin]!" Issei exclaimed in shock at Amakusa Chiaki's Balance Breaker. The white lights that had just entered Mei were concerning, but the fact that his friends and girlfriend were facing a completely unknown and unforeseen Balance Breaker was of more import at the moment.

"Oh Chiaki-chan…I knew you had it in you." The Queen of Blood and Betrayal said joyfully. "You've awoken the power of your sisters!"

"Of her sisters?" the Sekiryūtei parroted in confusion.

"Your friend Kiba Yuuto acquired his [Sword of the Betrayer] after the spirits of his friends from the Holy Sword Project aided him as he held the light-attribute crystal that was formed from them, responding to his feelings." Mei stated. "In the same way, the fragments of the personalities of my sisters within their Sacred Gears, the ones I have in my body right now, responded to Chiaki-chan's will to protect me; it called out to them, resonating with their own desires. Now then…I wonder what [Armed Asura of Vātāvaran] can do…?"

With Rias

The glowing power of the new Balance Breaker filled the room, pressing down on the Devils of the Gremory Group. Each of the artificial arms flexed and shifted as Chiaki tested them out.

"This…might not be good." Asia whimpered.

"My sisters…I will carry on your will." Chiaki declared as she straightened up and glared at Kiba, Xenovia and Koneko. "I shall use the power you have granted to me for the sake of our beloved sister and her goals. I shall not falter again!"

"Big words." Xenovia said, levelling EX-Durandal at the Stray Devil. "Care to back them up?"

"Certainly." The former Bael Pawn replied with a wide smile. The arm carrying the gazelle statuette started to glow, drawing it from the other arms. "Spirit of the Gazelle, in the name of Vāyu, lend me the speed of the winds as a Knight! [Avatar: Tanun]!"

In a swirl of wind, Chiaki vanished. The bluenette Knight blinked, looking around for a moment before something strong struck her right in her stomach and sent her flying back, striking the wall strongly enough to make a large crater in it. Her eyes bugged out as saliva and flecks of blood sailed from her gaping mouth.

"XENOVIA!" Irina yelled, concerned about her former partner.

Koneko leapt towards Chiaki with a snarl, fist drawn back to punch her out.

"Spirit of the Mace, in the name of Vāyu, lend me the towering strength of ten-thousand elephants as a Rook! [Avatar: Gadadhara]!" The [Pawn] chanted, making the club arm glow. It swung back and then attacked the incoming Nekoshō [Rook] with the weapon it wielded. The clash was loud, but brief, with the result ending in Koneko being flung back, although unlike Xenovia, she flipped a somersault and landed on her feet with catlike reflexes.

"How?" the white Nekoshō demanded.

"Like Cao-Cao, my Balance Breaker has many different abilities." Chiaki replied with a smirk. "Unlike him, I only have six though, and I can only use one at a time. And it is very draining for me to use, especially with how much power I've used up until now. Also, its six abilities only affect my body, unlike his, which was practically a cheat code."

Gesturing at the still glowing club, she continued. "Each arm has a weapon or other object on it, an Avatar of power. By channelling my Demonic Power into a specific arm, I get to use that arm's power, which I cannot choose myself; it is the same power no matter how many times I use it and I cannot switch them out like Cao-Cao seemingly could. The Avatar of the Mace, Gadadhara, grants me strength, more than enough to overwhelm a [Rook], even one using Demonic Energy and Senjutsu to enhance their strength and toughness."

"How about speed then?!" Kiba sped over to try to cut Chiaki with his sword.

"[Tanun]." Chiaki said simply before vanishing in a gust of wind, reappearing several meters away. "The Avatar of the Gazelle, Tanun, grands me swiftness enough to outpace an experienced [Knight] such as yourself, swordsman. Additionally, once I invoke one of my Avatars, I do not need to chant the activation aria. Shall we dance with swords, Knight of Gremory?"

Kiba turned to face her and stood ready.

The [Pawn] smirked again. "Spirit of the Sword, in the name of Vāyu, grant me the cutting power of the winds as a Knight! [Avatar: Jihmayodhin]!"

The sword held in one of her arms, a ten-inch-long patta, glowed and extended to the length of a katana, with the arm growing larger and longer as well. The other arms folded down to make room for it.

The next second, there was an explosion of power as the [Pawn] of Mei and the [Knight] of Rias met blade to blade before the two engaged in a rapid series of parries, thrusts, slices and other tricks of swordplay. Kiba was clearly the more experienced swordsman, but the fact that Chiaki's sword was able to change its length, breadth, width and weight seemingly at less than a second's notice made it very much more difficult for him.

'I won't allow Issei-kun to die!' the blond boy thought determinedly. 'I won't let Buchou and the others cry like that again! I won't permit it!'

While the girls among the Peerage had been the hardest hit by Issei's death against Shalba, Kiba and Gasper had also been affected. The Dhampir admired Issei and held him in high regard, making him snap when Georg of the Hero's Faction taunted them regarding Issei's death against Shalba.

Kiba, on the other hand, respected the lengths Issei would go to in order to protect their Master. That Issei had died alone, without Kiba there to back him up, was an affront to the honour of the Survivor of the Holy Sword Project. It had eaten at him, exploding out when facing Siegfried of the Hero Faction. Fortunately, Issei's spirit had resonated through his Evil Pieces and leant him Ascalon, as well as bolstering the moral of the rest of the Peerage.

Unlike last time though, Kiba was able to actually prevent Issei's death from happening. So long as they made it to the pinnacle of the tower in time, Issei would be saved and the one who had captured him would be within his sword's reach.

Grimly, Kiba continued to fight on for the sake of his comrade and friend.

Elsewhere

With Arbitrage Asmodeus

The last of the living descendants of the Original (True, in his opinion) Maō, Arbitrage Asmodeus, glared at the screen before him. He despised the fact that he was using a creation of the Fake Beelzebub, but it was what he had to do in order to gain a measure of revenge on that uppity bitch Mei Schwarzwald.

He clenched his teeth at the memory of the ease with which she had dispatched a third of his remaining forces singlehandedly. To have also called him a coward when it was simple prudence to have taken shelter elsewhere until this point was the final straw!

On the screen, he gazed contemptuously at the fighting going on between the filthy Reincarnated Devils. Rias Gremory's servant was reasonably skilled, but the fact that the other one, the last living member of that bitch Mei's Peerage, was giving him some trouble irked him severely.

Given that he despised both sides in this little fight, the fact that he was personally cheering on the Gremory wench was solely because she was a Pureblooded High-Class Devil.

"My Lord." a servant entered the room and knelt.

"Have you deciphered the bitch's coordinates yet?" he demanded.

"The team responsible has not been able to do so, my Lord." The servant said hesitantly. "The encryption that the Stray Devil placed around the transportation circle, combined with the interference from the barrier cast around Kuō Academy, is simply too hard to crack from this location."

"Tch." Arbitrage clicked his tongue in frustration. Although he was arrogant and prideful, he was not stupid. Denying that the lowly former human witch was talented would be foolish in the extreme; the fact was that she had been a rising genius before she had murdered her Master, one that would have worked well in collaboration with the Fake Beelzebub. She was smart, savvy and no one's fool; obviously she would place a complex encryption on the coordinates embedded in the transportation circle that led to her hidden base.

Just as obviously though, there was no way that even the most heavily encrypted protection would hold up against the combined might of the Fake Beelzebub's subordinates, who were currently working almost all-out at Kuō Academy.

"Fine." The last member of the True Asmodeus bloodline snapped. "Have those useless idiots monitor the situation closely. As soon as the Fake Beelzebub's minions break the protection and open the teleportal, have them acquire the coordinates…or else."

"By your Will, My Lord." The servant hastily withdrew to carry his master's message.

Disgusted with the quality of servants he now forced to make use of, rather than ruling over the true Pure-Blooded Devils as was his birthright, Arbitrage returned his gaze to the screen before him. He had to give Mei credit; she was steadily torturing Rias Gremory and her Peerage with a level of precision and delicious slowness that would have warmed his heart had the bitch been a true devil. The younger sister of the Fake Lucifer, who cared so much for her disgusting Reincarnated Servants, was forced to watch them being harmed in order to save the Sekiryūtei, her lover.

How deliciously ironic. She was choosing to save one over the many, harming the many in the process.

Whether that would be enough to throw a spanner in their team dynamics immediately or over time was a coin-toss, as he had heard that all of the female members of Rias Gremory's Peerage, plus the accursed Reincarnated Angel, plus the Phenex bint, were in love with the current wielder of the [Boosted Gear] as well, so they possibly agreed with their master's idiotic plan of attack.

To the Old (True) Maō Faction, a servant was a tool. And a tool, no matter how powerful and useful, was to be discarded the moment that it became a burden for their master. As such, the possibility of actual loyalty binding him to save a subordinate was beyond Arbitrage's ken.

'Just you wait, you Reincarnated bitch.' He thought coldly as he poured himself a goblet of wine. 'Nobody acts as you have towards a True Maō and gets away with it. I'll wring the life from your neck; just you mark my words…!'

Back With Chiaki

Leaping back with a gasp, the newest Stray Devil from the Bael Family cursed as she felt her reserves of Demonic Energy dwindle further. Her new Balance Breaker was immensely powerful, no questions about that, but she had already been almost tapped out when she had activated it. Now she was running on fumes.

She had no choice…she had to…!

Kiba Yuuto advanced on her, sword raised as he went for the final blow. Then…

"Spirit of the Banner, hear my command! Let your light shine and your flag fly high to let me stand as a Queen! [Avatar: Prāṇa]!"

The banner-arm of the Balance Breaker flared with light and then vanished, the arm vanishing from sight, even as Chiaki, previously slumped with exhaustion, straightened up once again.

"Her Demonic Power is back to normal levels!" Rias exclaimed, wide-eyed.

"That is what the Avatar of the Banner does." The former Bael [Pawn] said with a rueful smile. "Once per day, I can restore my physical, mental and Demonic abilities to the same level as it is when I am fresh and untired. It is rather irritating, to use the second most powerful of my Avatars here, but I cannot fall, not here."

The Crimson-Haired Ruin Princess stifled a groan. Amakusa Chiaki's loyalty to Mei Schwarzwald bordered on the fanatical and she was absolutely determined to halt their advance, no matter the cost to herself. That had been absolutely clear when she had willingly and recklessly charged at the attack of the Peerless Holy Sword, an attack that Rias was certain that Xenovia, who was not known for her ability to hold back to any large degree, had given her all.

And the Awakening of Chiaki's Balance Breaker had absorbed EX-Durandal's attack as if it had merely been sunlight! A Sacred Gear, held by a Stray Devil, which had absorbed Light during its awakening! It was unheard of for a Sacred Gear wielded by a Devil to have any effect on Light…aside from [Holy Eraser], one of Kiba's Demonic Sword he made with [Sword Birth]. And [Holy Eraser] wasn't especially powerful, just barely enough to counter an exorcist's mass-produced Light sword.

The [Katars of Vāyu] were a wind-attributed Sacred Gear, but Vāyu was the Hindu Deity of Wind, often associated with life, so they held that potential within them as well, which had probably been what had absorbed EX-Durandal's attack. The Balance Breaker, [Armed Asura of Vātāvaran], was associated with three elements that she had seen thus far: Metal, Wind and Light, with two more arms still to go. Such a powerful Balance Breaker from such a weak Sacred Gear…honestly, she was less surprised about this than she would have been when she had first brought Issei into her peerage.

Being around a dragon had warped her sense of the strange and awesome, it would seem.

A red magic circle flashed into existence around Chiaki just then. "Wha-?"

"Fall back, Chiaki-chan." Mei appeared on a small screen near to her. "You have bought me all the time I need. Let the Gremory Group advance, for all the good it will do them."

"But Nee-sama!" Chiaki protested.

"Trust me, Chiaki-chan. I have as much chance at failing here as you do at failing to impress me." The voice of the Queen of Blood and Betrayal softened. "Congratulations on your Balance Breaker, little sister. I am very proud of you."

"Onee-sama…" the girl actually pouted. "OK. I'll fall back. But as soon as they get to you, I'll be by your side! That's a promise!"

Activating the transport circle beneath her, the Stray Devil vanished in a flash of light.

"My apologies, Rias-sama." Mei said with a sigh. "My younger sister is very enthusiastic and stubborn."

"Was your aim here to have Akeno removed?" the redheaded Devil asked with narrowed eyes.

"Just to teach her a lesson." The casual admittance made the Gremory Group almost snarl. "She has to stop over-relying on her [Bishop] attributes and focus more on her [Knight] and [Rook] attributes. Some things require speed and brute force to break through rather than magical power. The fact that she was defeated during your Rating Game with Raiser Phenex precisely because of this dependence on the [Bishop] attribute should have been a wake-up call for her. Why she has not realised this herself is frankly a mystery, but I believe that this defeat Chiaki-chan has handed her should bestow the proper realisation upon her. You may want to start moving Rias-sama…the clock is ticking, after all."

With that little taunt, the screen disappeared, leaving Rias to stew on her anger and confusion. It seemed as if Mei actually wanted them to reach Issei in time…but why?

'She not only eliminated my most powerful servant aside from Issei by defeating Akeno, but she also strengthened her own servant by engineering a situation to have Amakusa Chiaki awaken her Balance Breaker.' The Crimson-Haired Ruin Princess thought angrily. 'Just how many moves ahead has Mei planned? It's like I'm trying to face Ajuka-sama or Sona in a chess match right now!'

She had in fact done that once; she hadn't stood a chance. The same thing applied to whenever she faced Sona. Rias was good at chess certainly, and she and Sona often played, but Rias was always a reactive player, while Sona was a master of thinking three moves ahead. Her own planning skills were above average, but both Sona and Ajuka, who were geniuses at thinking ahead and predicting their opponent's moves, made her look like a simpleton by comparison. She was getting the same feeling of being led down a path that someone else had laid down for her, with nothing she could do to but stop playing the game to counter it.

A choice that was absolutely not possible for her to make in this situation.

"Okay." Rias breathed out. "Let's head up to the next floor. Given the height of all of the rooms we've seen on this floor, there should only be two or three floors above us."

"Sorry, Buchou." Kiba apologised. "I couldn't finish her."

"Nonsense." Rias denied. "A Balance Breaker, especially one with such varied abilities as the one that Chiaki developed, is no laughing matter. Considering it came completely out of nowhere like it did, it was very well done to counter her as well as you, Xenovia and Koneko did."

Chiding and hurrying her peerage into the Elevator, she had Asia heal the three who had been in combat as the elevator rose to the next floor. Considering how many powerful enemies that her beloved servants had fought and defeated, she could understand the chagrin and frustration on all of their faces, but also exactly why they had been stymied so well.

For the first time, they were facing enemies who, while clearly acting against Rias and her Peerage, had love and loyalty towards each other that reminded her servants eerily of their own camaraderie. Mei and Chiaki were not like Raiser and his Peerage had been, driven by the [King's] baser desires. They weren't like Vali's Team, driven by the bloodlust of their leader. They weren't like the Old Maō Faction, driven by all sorts of negative emotions and desires. And they were not like the Hero Faction, driven by pride and a desire to prove human superiority over the supernatural races.

Chiaki's drive was obvious; she wished to protect her sister above all else. The desperate fanaticism in her eyes actually made Rias' heart ache. The former Bael [Pawn] had lost everything three years previously and didn't want to lose anything else.

Mei, on the other hand, was a different kettle of fish. Precisely what her plan and desires could be were total unknowns, aside from desiring to protect Chiaki. The obvious affection that the Queen of Blood and Betrayal lavished on the girl with every word she spoke to her made that obvious.

Shaking her head slightly, Rias put it from her mind. What the two Stray Devils wanted was irrelevant; she would not permit her beloved to have his Sacred Gear ripped from him, killing him again. She doubted that Ddraig would permit his host's killer to use any part of the [Boosted Gear's] abilities in any case, but that was secondary to her mind; all she wanted was to have Ise holding her in his arms again.

As the elevator clanked to a halt, the Gremory Heiress pooled Power of Destruction in her hands and glared at the doors as they opened, revealing a host of gargoyle golems.

"Stand aside!" she roared and, once her Peerage scrambled to one side, she unleashed an enormous blast that engulfed the entire room beyond the doors of the elevator, reducing every gargoyle into nothing.

Feeling much better after venting, Rias led the way out and towards the next area in the tower at a run.

Unknown Location

Time slid by, utterly irrelevant to the being. He/she/it didn't know when or how it had come to be here, just that he/she/it now was here. 'Here' was some sort of glass or crystal prison, with others located around his/her/its own, all floating in a black void.

Suddenly struck by an influx of power, a new sense of self flooded into the being…no, into him.

'I…remember…! I…am…!'

Flashes of memory flashed past his mind, until seeing one particular image, the last he could remember, made his rage, an emotion that he was very familiar with for some reason, flare up.

'You…!'He thought furiously. 'I…know…you…!'

He didn't know why, but he knew that it wouldn't be long before 'something' happened. When that 'something' happened, he would have his revenge on the woman in his mind's eye.

Until then, he would wait patiently. It was all he could do, after all.

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Next Chapter: The Seventeenth Move: Prophylaxis

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