I don't own anything. All characters and all rights belong to Ichiei Ishibumi*
M for mature topics. No children allowed. *
The Broken Boosted Gear
By Try Another Time
"Issei."
Someone was calling his name. "Not now. Let me sleep."
"Issei."
He knew that voice but he felt too tired to get up. "Come on. Let me rest."
"Issei!"
The voice was becoming louder with each second that went by. The boy felt tired but due to the continuous calling, he was forced to wake up. "Dammit."
His eyes began to open up and then he saw the many faces of the girls around him.
He was in the living room and he was unsure of how he came back.
"He is awake!" Kuroka screamed with excitement. "We were so worried about you when that girl showed up with your unconscious body in her arms."
Issei begins to sit up before he notices a few bandages around some parts of his body. "A girl? Did she have black hair and unusual sharp ears?" He asks.
"Yep. She had a weird aura around her as well." Kuroka replies.
"It had to be Ophis. How long has it been since I was brought back?" Issei asks.
"At least an hour, master Welsh. Asia and Kuroka have been healing you since you came back. We were surprised when you showed up in that state. I'm sorry for not being of any help when Shiva showed up. He was too fast for me." Raynare lowers her head towards him as a sign of her shame.
Issei shakes his head. "It is alright. Shiva is an opponent that none of us could face that easily. All of these injuries are due to him after all." He touches one of his arm injuries and flinches back after feeling pain. "He got me good this time."
"He did indeed. I have to admit that he took all of us by surprise. Lord Shiva showing up is not something we were ready for. We need to be more careful in case another situation like that happens again." Rael wasn't one to be proud of her strength. She was a seraph, one of the strongest beings around but she knew that there's always a bigger fish when it comes to power. She didn't feel ashamed about losing to Shiva. It was a reminder of her own weaknesses.
"I never dreamed about meeting a god in the flesh any time soon. It wasn't an experience that I enjoyed. I can still feel the place in which he hit me to knock me out." Kuroka puts her hand around the back of her neck. "He knew what he was doing when he hit me here."
"It is Shiva. You don't get the title of strongest god by just being strong. Shiva has been alive for much longer than me and he has fought more enemies than any of us together." Tiamat then put her right hand on Issei's right cheek. "Look at what he did to you. I didn't expect so many injuries." Her face looked worried. She wanted to stay calm through the whole 16 hours but she couldn't. "I don't want you to die again. I won't be able to endure it again."
"I'm okay Tiamat. He didn't pull any punches but none of his attacks were meant to kill me. He fought with all of his power to push me beyond my current state or that is what I want to believe." Issei turns his sight towards Asia and Kuroka for just a second. "Thank you for healing me."
Asia shook her head. "I told you. I was waiting to cure you. As soon as Lord Shiva said that he was going to test your limits I began to imagine so many injuries. I'm just grateful that none of them were lethal."
"Right. By the way, how was the fight? Did you enjoy it?" Kuroka asks while looking excited.
Issei nodded. "I admit that it was one of the hardest fights I ever had. He threw me into a few stars and planets but I also did the same to him. I went all out but I'm far from being able to defeat him that easily. He is not an adversary that can underestimate. His attacks are fast and powerful, but he has a few tricks behind his sleeves as well. He is not a one-trick pony."
"And he wants to repeat it for the next 9 years if what Michael said is true. It seems that we got involved in more problems." Rael looks stressed out. "Trihexa coming back is the worst possible scenario. Chaos attracts it and the human world may draw its attention once it comes out from its prison. We're in serious problems and if Shiva's information is accurate, we need to start acting now."
"I know. It seems that more problems are coming our way." Issei gets up. "I talked to Ophis before I fell unconscious. I learned a lot from our talk."
Tiamat was quick to react to the mention of Ophis. "You need to explain to us how she ended up meeting with you. She brought you home but she disappeared right after dropping you off." Tiamat had a bad past with Ophis and the fact that she had shown up with Issei in her arms didn't make it any better.
"Yeah, I need to thank her for that. Please pay attention to what I'm about to tell you. First, she is around me all of the time even if we don't see her. Based on what she said, she is always close by but we can't notice her due to her powers. I don't know how but she is capable of staying hidden and keeping an eye on me so I need to be careful with what I say. When she appeared in the middle of the fight, Shiva tried to stay but he was forced to run away after she showed her power to him. He wasn't in the greatest shape either and he must have realized that he couldn't go against her. Now when it comes to why she did that I can only think that she did it to make sure that I don't get killed before I make her dream into a reality." Issei thinks about his conversation with her. "She wants to go home and to achieve that she asked me to kill Great Red. That is why she gave some of her power or at least that is what I want to believe. She is like a child that lacks any sort of connection. She is filled with doubts and her biggest desire is becoming a blank version of herself."
"A blank version? What do you mean by that?" Raynare asks.
"An Ophis that lacks emotions. She wants to be a being that doesn't feel anything. She said that she hated the feelings she had developed. Hate, anger, sadness, all of those and more seemed to scare her. She is incapable of accepting herself as a being that is capable of having emotions and connections. She wants to return to the void of the dimensional gap and stay isolated from the rest of the realms." Issei looks at the girls. "Shiva said that she was my responsibility and if I leave her alone, we don't know what could happen so I chose to make her dream into a reality. I'm going to help her get home."
"What?" All of the girls except for Asia react this way.
"Dear look at me. Trying to kill Great Red is the same as trying to commit suicide. Are you also forgetting the fact that you owe a debt to him?" Tiamat grabs his face and forces him to look at her. "Please tell me that you're joking."
Issei shakes his head. "I repeat what I said. Her dream is to return home and I'm going to make sure that it becomes a reality. Just believe in me and don't lose hope. It's going to be a long process but I'm going to make her dream a reality. Just trust me on this one."
He smiles but most of the girls don't look confident. Asia on the other hand decides to approach him and confirm her own suspicion.
"Issei, when you say home, you mean 'home' as in the physical or the emotional sense?" Asia looks at him with curiosity regarding his answer.
"I mean both. Just let me take care of this in my own way." He had confidence in his actions although he knew that he was going to get hurt at some point.
Asia stood in silence for a few moments. "Just be careful, you're putting yourself in danger by accepting to help her. I don't even know if you can achieve this but if Lord Shiva is right about this, only you can guide her."
"Asia we are talking about Ophis. She is dangerous and unstable. One moment she can be a calm child and the next one she could send you into the next life." Tiamat wasn't that happy about this whole situation.
"Maybe that's why Lord Shiva told him to take care of her. There's no other being that can approach her that easily and now we can't let her fall into the hands of the enemy. I don't know what you're planning to do but you have to make sure that it works or we're going to have a massive problem in our hands." Rael was worried about this whole thing but she couldn't do anything to stop it. "We have no way of sealing her or a way to kill her. Father, please let this work, or we're going to have an angry beast running rampant within the realm of the living."
"I know. Now if you excuse me for a few moments I need to try something." Issei starts to walk away from the group of girls.
"Where are you going? You're still injured." Kuroka asks.
"I know but I need to get something from the kitchen. She has to be hungry." Issei continues to walk until he reaches the fridge. He picks up a few items from the fridge and walks away with his arms full of them. "Stay here and don't follow me. I don't want anyone to approach her until I know it is safe. I need to do this alone. Also, don't open that door at all costs."
The girls say nothing and just watch as he continues to walk until he enters one of the empty rooms on the floor. He shuts the door behind him and locks it up.
"He is insane." Raynare is the first one to open her mouth.
Tiamat grabs the sides of her head. "I know and the problem is that we can't stop him from doing all of this. Since Ophis appeared when he was inside the egg, I knew that she was going to be around his life. She wants him as a weapon to kill Great Red and she's closer to getting it. I don't like any of this."
"He is not going to do it. I can see it in his eyes. He is not one to kill another being without a reason he can support." Asia began to walk towards her room. "I'm tired. We all are. We should go to sleep and continue to talk about this at another time."
The other girls looked at each other.
"You three can go ahead with Asia. I'm going to wait for him." Tiamat sat down on the couch.
The three girls think about their options and after a few moments, only Raynare and Kuroka choose to go back to their rooms alongside Asia.
Once they are left alone, Rael decides to approach her with a worried look on her face. "Tiamat you need to trust him, we all do. I doubt that he is going to challenge Great Red to a deathmatch. He is not the same hot-headed dragon that we knew back then."
"I know but you don't understand my situation. Ophis almost killed me once and Great Red was the one that saved me. Great Red has been a father to me since the very beginning. Just hearing the fact that she is trying to use my mate, the dragon that I choose as my partner for the rest of my life, as a weapon to kill my father is making my blood boil like hot lava. Even if she is this broken child that needs guidance, she still is the being that is trying to kill my father by using my mate against him. I can barely control the anger that I'm feeling at this moment." Tiamat's eyes burned with pure rage while she talked to Rael.
Rael sighed and grabbed the hands of Tiamat. "You need to have hope, all of us need that. The situation is not an easy one and if things turn the wrong way, we're going to end up in a position in which we can all die either at the hands of Trihexa or our enemies. I understand your feelings towards Ophis. I don't have the best opinion when it comes to her but I can't totally blame her for her actions. She has been wandering around for a long time and the actions of the gods have been a major influence on her current self. We need to put our trust in his plan. Have hope in him and maybe one day your relationship with Ophis can take a turn for the best."
"I doubt that" Tiamat argues back.
"We don't know what the future has on hold for us." Rael then transforms back into her real form. "I'm going back to heaven. I need to discuss a few things with my siblings and see where things are going. I expect more troubles for us."
"With our luck, I expect at least two missions and at least another war coming our way," Tiamat says. "Good luck Gabriel."
"Thanks. See you later and please have hope in him." Gabriel stood up and disappeared into a beam of light.
"… Hope…" Tiamat started to reflect while she waited for her mate to come back to her.
Meanwhile, Issei and Ophis.
The boy sat the items down onto the bed before he looked around. It was an empty room that nobody was using at the moment. It had a TV, a bed and even a desk for someone to study.
"I think that it looks good. Let's just hope that she accepts and doesn't think that I'm trying to trap her inside this room." The boy takes a few deep breaths before he calls her. "Ophis, can you come out?"
Issei started to look around the room but he found no signs of Ophis.
"Ophis, I know that you can hear my voice. Don't tell me that the barrier around the house is preventing you from coming inside," Issei says.
A shiver ran down his spine at that moment. He turned around and Ophis was standing behind him.
"Are you calling me weak?" The small lolita looks angry.
"Never. Thanks for coming. Do you want to take a seat?" He offered her a seat near the food on the bed.
Ophis's eyes focused on him for a second before her eyes were drawn towards the food. "That voice you have right now is different from the one before."
"Oh, you do know that I'm two souls in one body at the moment, right?" Issei asks.
"I can see it but I don't care. You're the Welsh Dragon and not a human. No human can have that smell or that kind of power. Either voice is fine. I can take any shape and my voice changes along with it so it is not new to me." Ophis sits down in the bed and looks at the food. "What is all of this?"
"Food for you," Issei replies.
"For me?"
"You told me that you don't eat that regularly. So, I decided to bring you some food."
Before Ophis can say anything her stomach reacts to the scent of the fruit and the different items that were around her. "No, you don't govern this body." The rumbling of her stomach says otherwise. Ophis tries to fight back but her body starts to betray her.
Issei watches as Ophis takes an apple before she takes a bite out of it.
Her eyes shine for a second but after she notices Issei's eyes on her she tries to hide her enjoyment.
"Don't worry about me. I won't judge you. I want you to eat and fill your hunger." Issei says.
Ophis tries to find his intentions. "Why do you care if I'm hungry or not?"
"Why shouldn't I? I told you, I'm going to make your dream a reality. Your life is my responsibility until I achieve that. So, I want you to hear me out for what I'm about to say."
Ophis takes another bite of the apple. "Go ahead."
"Until I make that dream into a reality, I want you to use this room as your place of rest. I want you to use it as a place in which you can sleep, eat, and relax whenever you feel like it. Call it a base of operations until your dream is achieved but there are a few conditions."
"What?" Ophis shows a bit of her anger
"Stay calm and hear me out. A dragon doesn't fight in his nest and the human world has been our nest for a long time. If we want to fight, we do it in other places like Albion and I did in the past. You are a dragon in someone else's nest so be mindful of that. This building, this city, all of it is part of my and Tiamat's nest. I don't want my nest to be damaged by someone else. Can you understand that?"
Ophis stayed quiet and reflected on the scenario that was being presented to her. "I think I do. This is your home and you want to keep it safe."
"Exactly. My conditions are simple and are not hard to follow. First, no attacking the other inhabitants of this building or the inhabitants of the city. I like a peaceful home and it would be troublesome for me if you started to attack everyone that came into contact with you. The other girls won't come inside this room as a way of keeping this room as your private area. You can also use the rest of the house but you can't destroy anything and you have to respect the rest of its inhabitants."
Ophis thinks about the first condition. "What about if someone else attacks me first? Tiamat doesn't like me. We have history between us."
"I'm going to talk to her about it. If someone else attacks you just knock them out and don't make a mess out of it. A quick hit to the neck that is not too strong should be enough." Issei makes the motion for Ophis to see it.
"So just one quick hit and not too much strength. I think I can do it. I don't like to be seen by others so I'm going to stay hidden most of the time. Are you sure that nobody else is going to enter this room?"
"Except for me and you, nobody else will. I'm even going to clean it for you but I recommend that you try to keep trash outside. I can show you how to do it at another time if you don't know. The second condition is that you don't bring outsiders into this city or building. That devil that approached you before, do you remember his name?"
Ophis thinks for a second. "His name was Rizevim Lucifer if I remember it well. He said that he needed me and in exchange, he was going to give me what I wanted."
"Don't believe anything he says. If he comes close to you again, just disappear from his sight."
"You don't want me to kill him?"
Issei shakes his head. "I don't want you to fight anyone if you don't want to. Shiva told me something regarding Rizevim and because of that, I see him as an enemy. Please, do not engage him and don't trust his words."
"I won't." Ophis finished eating her apple in one single bite. She got up and approached Issei. Her hand pinches his cheek. "I choose you to be my sword and nobody else is going to take that place. Until I return to my home, you're stuck with me." Her other hand touches his chest. "The power that I gave you is proof enough of that so rest assured that nobody else is getting this close to me. I accept both of your conditions. Is there another one or are we done?"
"Yes, there is one last one. If you want to talk about anything, don't wait and come to me. I'm here for you." Issei showed her a sincere smile.
Ophis looks into his eyes. "Sharp and yet so calm. Your eyes have changed a lot since then." Ophis released him and goes back to the food. "Is there anything else you want to say?"
Issei turns around. "I will bring you a few items to decorate the room and clothes for you to change at another date. You can tell me what you like and what you don't." He stops walking and looks at her one last time. "Thanks for trusting me."
"I'm just hearing the advice of my sword. Keep getting stronger Ddraig. I'm going to be watching your every move." Ophis replies.
"I know." Issei opens the door and exits the room. "Thank you, Ophis, and welcome to our home." The boy relaxes for a second before he starts to walk into the living room.
"How was it?" Tiamat asks after she sees him.
"It went well at least for now. She accepted my conditions but she is going to be watching each of my movements from now on." He begins to approach her. "I'm sorry for doing this without your opinion."
Tiamat shakes her head. "I don't like it at all but it's something that I can't stop. She was going to appear in your life at some point and I don't have the power to stop her."
Issei places his hands around her body. "Is ok. I'm going to try my best to make this work. It's going to take time but I'm going to make that dream a reality in my own way.
Tiamat smiles before she bites his neck. "I hope that it works the way you're planning but now I think you and I need to have some time for ourselves."
"Bath?"
"A long and hot one. I don't want to do anything else for today except for staying with you."
Issei lifts her bridal style. He ignores the pain his injuries were caused to him. "If that's what you want, that's what you're getting."
She smiles and puts her arms around his neck. "Let's go then."
After that, the couple disappeared into their chambers for the rest of the day. He was injured and she wanted to have some alone time with him.
The rest of the inhabitants of the house also needed a break, so for the rest of the day, the house felt empty even with the inclusion of its newest resident.
During the night.
He was dreaming. He was sure of it but he couldn't understand why he was here. He was inside the dimensional gap and right in front of him was Great Red.
"How are you doing, Ddraig?" The massive dragon asked.
"I should be the one asking the question, Old man." Ddraig takes over. He looks around and notices something weird with his body. "This doesn't feel like my real body."
"No, you're still dreaming as we speak. I am just using my powers to connect your dreams to me. I'm a being born out of dreams and illusions after all, so this is nothing for me. Now tell me how are you doing? Shiva did meet with you if he followed my instructions."
"He did and I was injured like never before. I'm still not there yet in terms of power."
"I imagine that it was going to be like that. You're going to get there one day so take your time and train hard. Did he tell you about his visions?"
"He did. Did you know about all of this before him?"
Great Red nods. "I know many things, child. History is bound to repeat itself if life is unable to force itself to change and choose a different path. Look at yourself as an example, I never expected you to get out of the boosted gear but you did and now we find ourselves here. I want to see how many more surprises I can see before the time comes."
"You're keeping a secret from me? Old man, I'm not one to ask questions when it is not necessary but I want to make sure about one thing. Are you dying from old age?"
Great Red laughs. "No, you idiot. I can live for as long as I want but that doesn't mean I can't be killed. Ddraig, one day a man will come with an army from a place beyond the dimensional gap. If I face him on my own, I'm going to die but if you become stronger, we can overcome that calamity. That is why I did what I did. I need you to be ready by the time he arrives. So, keep fighting until you're ready."
Ddraig stood in silence while he reflected after hearing Great Red's words. "He can't be joking about this but what about Ophis then?" He decides to discuss it with him. "I will pay my debt to you when the time comes but I have to know if Ophis knows about this. She wants to return to this place and asked me to kill you. I need to know what sort of things she knows."
"So, she has finally approached you. I already knew that she was planning this sort of thing and no she knows nothing about this. She hasn't even realized the truth about her situation."
"What sort of truth?"
"She won't be able to go back to what she was. Even if I die, even if she gets back here, she can't return to her former self. The moment she left this place she sealed her fate. Only a being that is void of emotions, attachments, and desires can become one with the dimensional gap. She is no longer a doll that lacks emotions so she can't become its guardian like she was at the beginning. She lost that ability."
Ddraig was surprised at the revelation. It was more than what he was expecting. "Then why don't you tell her?"
"What do you think she is going to do if I let her try to come back now? She is going to blame me and then she is going to blame everyone else for it. Just imagine her anger and the things she can do if she realizes the truth right now. She needs to grow up and accept herself as she is now before she can learn the truth. I won't let her know the truth and you shouldn't either until the time is right. She is not ready for it."
"So, my plan is the only way then. I need to make her connect with us and help her to accept her emotions. I need to create a new home for her. It's going to be a long one isn't it."
"Is up to you to stop her. I won't interfere unless it is necessary. I know that you didn't ask for this but someone needs to guide her and she chose you. I don't know what is going to happen but I pray that you can make it work. If you ever need to talk again, I'm always a dream away. Now go back to your own dream, I need to talk to Tiamat now."
"Eh? Wait, you have done this with Tiamat in the past? Why didn't I know about this?"
"She has always been close to me and my favorite child amongst all of you. It's time for you to go. Take care Ddraig."
"Old man! You bastard!" He screams as he is pushed away.
And with that last sentence, Ddraig was sent back to his own dreams. He knew more now but that didn't mean that he was out of the mud yet.
The next day.
After a day that felt very stressful for everyone, the next day brought more problems for them.
"Shemhazai, why is this happening to me? Is this ever going to end?" Issei asks.
"I'm sorry Welsh Dragon. Your luck is just bad." Shemhazai replies with an apologetic expression.
"Come on. Only you can do this. We believe in you." Serafall says.
Sitting in front of him were Shemhazai and Serafall while Gabriel was sitting next to him. The rest of his group were sitting down on the couch while they listened to the conversation except for Ophis for obvious reasons.
"Lift your head, Issei. You helped to create this alliance and you need to be ready to act whenever it is needed." She feels sorry for him but the situation asks for his intervention. "Michael and the others said that the rest of the Longinus users were going to be taken care of by the rest of the factions. You only need to take care of this one. The equipment and crew are being prepared by Azazel so you only need to take care of the mission."
"Gabriel, they are asking me to go into a vampire faction to steal some kids. I understand the situation but I need a break. Can I at least get 2 weeks of rest?" Issei asks.
"We can wait but you need to remember that time is against us and the longer we wait the worse it can get. Please look at this document and read its contents. This is the crew that is being prepared for the mission. We are also taking a few of your team members into consideration." Shemhazai slides the document towards Issei.
The boy grabs it and begins to read. "10 fallen angels which include Raynare and Baraqiel. You also want Asia and Kuroka to participate in the mission?"
Asia and Kuroka look at each other before they nod. "We can do it."
"Her sacred gear can be useful in case of injuries and Kuroka's abilities seem perfect for the mission," Shemhazai explains. "We're still discussing Baraqiel's participation. He lives in Japan with his wife and child at the moment. He has been inactive due to his family situation for at least 9 years."
"9 years? Azazel is really lenient if he's allowing this for this long." Issei says.
"Is a delicate situation. His wife is human and she is part of a clan of Shinto mystics. They have a bad relationship with him." Shemhazai explains.
"Wait, he married her even after learning that fact? Love really breaks through barriers." Issei puts the document down. "I'm okay with the team but I want you to include Rias Gremory."
"Rias? Why would you want her on the team?" Serafall asks.
"Remember the children in the holy sword project? I won't go into missions that involve rescue if I don't have a devil with the ability to use an evil piece ever again. We don't know what can happen during the mission and I prefer having her along just in case something goes wrong. Talk to Sirzechs about that." Issei notices how Kuroka lifts her thumb as a sign of support.
They had a few close calls and it would be insane if they tried to do it again without such a helpful item.
"Does it have to be her?" Serafall asks.
"Do you have any evil pieces left?" Issei asks back.
"No," Serafall replies with visible regret.
"If Ajuka, Sirzechs, and Falbium don't have any pieces left, then Rias is the only devil I can bring along. I won't bring someone I can't trust into the mission." Issei explains. "If I need to use a piece in one of those children, I need to be sure that the child is going to end up in a peerage which I can trust."
Shemhazai and Gabriel nod.
"He does have a point, Serafall. Rias Gremory has gained two peerage members due to her interactions with him and it has worked well until now. We can let her join in if Sirzechs and her parents allow it." Shemhazai says.
Serafall sighs. "I need to discuss it with Sirzechs. I'll let you know as soon as I get an answer."
"Good, was this all you came for?" Issei asks.
"No, yet Issei. We have a few questions regarding Ophis. You sent us a message yesterday saying that she was under your care but you didn't say anything else." Serafall gets serious. "Give us the details."
"It is just what I said. She is under my care, that's all you need to know." Issei tries to end the conversation right there.
"Welsh Dragon, we are talking about Ophis. We need to know all of the details." Shemhazai argued.
Issei sighed. "What I know is just this. Rizevim seems to be interested in her but she didn't accept his proposal. She also wants to go home so for that to happen I need to kill Great Red for her. Happy?"
Both visitors grow pale for a second. They do their hardest to stay calm after hearing that last phrase.
"You can't do that. Is suicide." Serafall argues.
"Serafall, I know but I'm going to get her home. Just leave Ophis to me and worry about Rizevim. As long as I make her wish a reality, we don't need to worry about her becoming involved with our enemies." The boy waits for the replies of his allies.
"You're insane but it was to be expected from you. I'm going to tell Azazel about it. We're leaving her to you." Shemhazai decides to not interfere in this situation.
"Are you sure about this Issei?" Serafall on the other hand can't let it go that easily.
"Don't worry about me. I know what I'm doing. Ophis is my responsibility and I will take care of it." Issei replies.
Serafall gives in. "We'll leave her to you. I imagine you angels already decided as well."
Gabriel nods. "We did and chose to leave the issue to him. This is a matter of dragons and I doubt that any of us can interfere on it."
Issei relaxes after hearing the positions of the rest of the alliance. "Thank you for trusting me."
"You have gained that right but be careful. Ophis is not a child, she is capable of destroying anything in her path." Serafall says.
Issei touches his chest. "I know and that's why I'm going to give her exactly what she wants one day. Is going to take time but I will make sure of it."
He was determined to prevent the worst-case scenario even if it meant facing the anger of Ophis all on his own.
Meanwhile, in another place in Japan.
Azazel continues to walk through the streets of a small neighborhood while holding Vali's hand.
"Are you sure that he is going to say yes?" Vali asks.
"He will. It's time for him to come back to us. His family is not safe in this place." Azazel stops right in front of a small house. "Here we are. Baraqiel's home, it has been a long time since we saw each other. Is also the first time you're meeting him but rest assured he is a very likable guy. Now let's see if he's home."
The time for Baraqiel to return had come after a long time of being away from his faction.
*Author's note: And we're running close to the end of the first arc. We are almost done with practically all characters' introductions and backstories. Just a few notes regarding the Khaos Brigade and other enemies. Even if Ophis is not within their ranks at the moment that doesn't mean they won't be a dangerous organization. Strong protagonists lead to strong villains and many gods are yet to be seen. Humans are dangerous but gods are much worse. *