NMHA Ch. 73 - The Good, the Great, and That Which Lays Beyond
A/N - This chapter is brought to you by a dash of creative spirit with a healthy helping of narrative direction.
With that in mind, I really do wish I had more time to write without needing to worry about work taking it up. It feels like my progress slowed to a crawl ever since I started working at my current job.
Granted, considering my previous pace was 20-40k words a month, and now it's gone down to about 10k a month, maybe that's to be expected. Either way, I want to do more.
...Man, 10k a month sounds pretty good, not gonna lie. In terms of dosh, anyway. A nice, respectable six digit salary in the US of A? And if I could get back up to my original pace for writing, too? Ah, a man can dream.
Anyway, enough about that, back to the story. Some of y'all have the idea that Ruval is dead. Nooooot quite. I'd argue what Dio did to him is worse. There's a reason I've been pushing the narrative that Dantalion is among the most vile of Demons.
As for the clusterfuck that's about to be the DL's base of operations - I mean, yeah, it's gonna be a clusterfuck, but not all is as it seems. More will be revealed as the story continues, naturally.
So it shall.
As Issei stepped through the manor - surprisingly well-kept after being lit aflame by Phenex - the first thing he identified was the smell of sulfur.
He didn't need to see Phenex's handiwork to know that it drifted from the remains the Demon left behind.
Still, if the sear marks left here and there weren't enough, the stench was enough of a reminder of the Demon's path to keep Issei constantly on-edge.
It wasn't that he was worried for Rias or her mother - Phenex didn't seem like the type to lie outright - it was more the fact that all this felt like an exercise in futility.
All it took was a single Devil (current Demon status notwithstanding) to break them out, when that Devil was one of said prisoners in the first place.
What did that mean for the other locations? Issei did not know; he knew this was an exceptional case, but even so, the feeling remained.
More telling still was Ddraig's silence. He hadn't spoken since the comment to Phenex, and while there was a bit of levity at Ravel's reaction to Ddraig speaking aloud, the Crimson Dragon of Domination was no longer chastising his host for these doubts.
Did that mean Ddraig was having his own doubts too?
'...Hey, what did that Phenex guy mean when he said he was Sundered?'
'Took you long enough to begin asking the right questions,' Ddraig replied, getting a roll of Issei's eyes in response. Nevertheless, the dragon continued. 'First, I need to elaborate on the nature of immortals. Do you know the difference between the existence of Angels and Devils?'
'If you aren't talking about the obvious, I can't say I do,' he replied earnestly, stepping over a pile of ash with a grimace. Whoever that had been clearly irritated Phenex.
'Devils are the creation of Demons,' Ddraig elaborated. 'They were Lucifer's attempt to mock Yahweh by creating life the same way He did. To do so, they granted part of their essence to their creations. Not enough to weaken them, but enough to imbue their particular line of Devils with their power. There is a reason Pillars are so highly-regarded within the Underworld; while common Devils have had that 'essence' diluted enough to only have longevity and slightly greater physical prowess than your typical human, Devils from Pillars are what you would consider bred true, with near-full or full access to the abilities passed down to them.'
Issei stopped, closing his eyes and focusing inward. He could feel a slight tug deep inside, guiding him.
Was that a passive effect from the Pact he made with Rias, or was she actively leading him through the manor? He reopened his eyes and turned down a corner, careful to not disturb the charred remains of another Devil.
Based on the rictus of agony on his face, he did not die quickly.
'Sure, I know that much,' Issei pressed forward. 'And Demons are supposedly Angels that Fell even further than the Fallen, right?'
'It is more complicated than that, but such is the rough gist of it,' the dragon replied. 'Fallen turned away from Yahweh, and in doing so rejected part of the divinity he created them with. They are still immortal, but they can now be slain like Devils. Angels nowadays are made of sterner stuff than their Fallen counterparts, but they are vulnerable to sin, and their power has leached away alongside the fading light of their creator.'
'Then by immortal, you mean...'
'Completely unkillable. Only True Death could 'end' their existence. Demons and Angels in their prime, along with the strongest Gods, fall into this category.'
'But they could still be destroyed,' Issei cottoned on quickly.
'Hmh.' The brunette could feel Ddraig's satisfaction at the correct guess. 'Temporarily. When 'killed', the essence of immortal beings disperses, and can reform after some time.'
'Like respawning in a game?'
'That is a gross simplification," Ddraig harrumphed. 'But it is not inherently incorrect.'
Issei chuckled slightly, taking another turn, paying no mind to the clean spot on a charred wall in the shape of a person. 'So then Sundering is... what? Destroying them again and again until their essence is so widespread that it can't easily come back?'
'An immortal that is running on full power can effectively ignore wounds that would instantly kill another being. An immortal that is weakened takes time to reform. If you were to break that essence into smaller and smaller pieces, it takes an exponentially longer time for all the pieces to reform into a coherent being. Turn them into dust and spread that dust across the stars...'
'And it could take an eternity before they are able to restore themselves,' Issei finished with a low whistle. 'That's one way to deal with an immortal, I guess. So then how the hell is Phenex around again?'
'I am not certain,' the red dragon admitted. 'It would take what amounts to divine intervention to have reformed Phenex after he and the other Demons were Sundered. Even eons after the fact, it would take the abilities of a being at Great Red's level of strength to do so. I can only think of a few potential beings who would go that far.'
'I'm all ears,' the brunet offered, pausing again as he came across another intersection. It felt like the Devils could have fit a town in the manor with how large it was proving to be.
Ddraig obliged. 'The first and most obvious answer would be Great Red, but his strength is concentrated solely on raw power. There is next to nothing that can destroy a Dream. All those with ambitions, all those with desires, all of them fuel Great Red. It would take a being who could destroy the world and every organism on it, microscopic to divine, to lay Great Red low.'
'But he could bring a Demon back?' Issei asked, taking another turn.
'It isn't impossible. But that is not part of his domain- the best he could do is coalesce enough essence together to recreate the demon's power. The personality may be influenced by said power, but it wouldn't be a one-to-one match like Phenex was.' The Sacred Gear wielder got the impression that Ddraig was shaking his reptilian head from within the confines of the Gear. 'But even so, that is not Great Red's modus operandi. If something bothers him, he deals with it personally, or as close to it as he can get. He's also removed from the whole mess that is the supernatural world, and prefers to spend his time either goofing off or actively participating in guard duty against Outer Beings.'
'The next potential group that could revive a Demon?'
'Yes, but if that were the case, Phenex would also not be as reasonable as he was. He'd have been a gibbering lunatic, distorting reality itself around him to fit in line with the Outer Being that sewed him back together. No; he sets the world ablaze with his wrath, but if he'd truly become an agent of the Outer Beings, we would know - Great Red would have been there to Sunder him again the instant he manifested.'
A suspicion arose within Issei, but he filed it away for the time being. It was only an errant thought, but it had enough weight to come back to later.
'You said a few. Is there a third group, or individual, who could have pulled this off?'
'Yes, and they would be able to most accurately recreate, or even revive, Phenex proper. But they're... gone.'
Issei froze. Was that hesitation in Ddraig's voice? 'You don't sound so sure of that.'
'It's dangerous knowledge - dangerous,' he replied, completely flat in tone. 'If any immortal knows I even hinted about this, then being trapped in this Yahweh-forsaken cage is going to be the least of my worries. To say nothing of what would happen to you.'
The human's mind flashed back to when he drank from the Sephiroth Graal, and the visions that had plagued him since. Of all those times he... died.
'Does this have something to do with what I saw in the Sephiroth Graal?'
Ddraig was quiet, thinking over his words.
'It might,' he interrupted Issei's silent minute of trekking through the manor. 'I cannot say for certain, not having seen your visions myself. But the Sephiroth Graal is a Longinus for a reason. Moreover, it is a Holy Relic, personally crafted by the Creator God. If any Sacred Gear were to share with you the truths of this world, that would be the one.'
The brunet's thoughts were cut off by a pulse of aura, this time from the side room. He blinked and shook his head, before walking over.
More thought on that could wait. Right now he had Devils to collect.
As he opened the door into the grandiose waiting room, Issei noted it was spotless. No burn marks, nor even the scent of such could be found within. Even stepping through the threshold, the smells of the outside were washed away by strong yet subtle perfumes.
Clearly, someone had lived here, in opulence at that, even if the rest of the house was the urn of a mass cremation.
His eyes came to rest on the two Devils he had come for, gaze flicking between the two women. While they still bore a slight pallor for their time of imprisonment, they were both dressed in gorgeous gowns, clearly having no issue with using the clothes of the prior inhabitants. Even if they were just a touch on the small side in the chest area.
...Not that he was complaining.
"Rias!" He caught himself quickly. They had very recently been broken out of their imprisonment - maybe a return to form would be preferable? "And... Lady Gremory, I presume?"
Rias wouldn't meet his gaze, instead fixated on the teacup in her hands. He didn't miss the way her grip around it tightened slightly, though.
"And you would be the Red Dragon Emperor," the brunette replied, folding her hands over her crossed leg. She tilted her head and smiled, eyes flicking down to the armored arm he still bore. "Am I mistaken?"
While the twinge of irritation at being called that remained, he just shook his head. "Just call me Issei, please. I'm really not one for being called titles like that."
"Then please, just call me Venelana," she conceded, lifting a hand to hover over her heart. "Allow me to apologize for the mess that you undoubtedly had to trawl through to reach us. After our imprisonment, I thought it most beneficial to our well-being to have a brief return to normalcy." The flaxen-haired beauty beamed. "Please join us. After Lord Phenex broke us out, he made sure that we would not be interrupted unduly."
Issei lifted his brows and drily remarked, "By making sure nobody was around to do so?"
"Yes, that is what happens when you upset a Demon," Venelana concurred, placing a finger on her lips with a wink. "Of course, fortune upon us for not being the target of his Ira; he was quite the gentleman before he went on his murderous rampage upon our captors. Would you like some tea?"
The dichotomy between the casual admittance of brutal violence and the civility which Venelana displayed was already slightly unnerving to Issei, but given the circumstances he could hardly say 'no'. So instead, he took a seat next to Rias, but enough distance away to be respectful of her personal space.
Even so, her head shifted away from him slightly, still refusing to meet his eyes.
That concerned him. Even if Rias was far from his favorite person, she was clearly distressed over something- potentially her imprisonment, potentially Phenex, potentially Issei himself.
"So what happened, exactly?"
Venelana lifted a brow. "Our treatment at the hands of the True Satans is best left to later discussions. For now, let us focus on less troubling topics."
She leaned over to take the teapot and pour a cup, before setting the teapot back down and lifting the tea plate said cup was on, telekinetically floating it over to the brunet and into his hands.
It was clear to Issei that Rias had taken many of her finer physical features from her mother- again, not that he was complaining in the slightest. That being said, it was difficult to keep from ogling, especially with the way Venelana had leaned over to pour the tea.
Her eyes met his and crinkled with... amusement? Had she caught him looking and found it funny?
A rush of defensiveness flowed through him. There was nothing funny about appreciating the glory and beauty of oppai!
...Though the word itself was always fun to say.
Semantics!
"I apologize for breaking your train of thought, Issei-san," Venelana started, snapping his attention back upon her.
'Focus, Issei-' he chided himself. 'Lady Gremory probably wouldn't appreciate me staring.' Given what they went through, it was the least he could do to be courteous.
Unaware as to his thoughts, the Gremory matriarch continued. "But my daughter and I have been rather unfortunately deprived of information during our imprisonment. What have we missed so far?"
Issei rubbed the back of his head. "I don't know all the details myself, I've been mainly seeing things from the mundane world for the past week or so. It hasn't been good." He glanced over to Rias. "How long has it been since you two were kidnapped?"
She stiffened, her slightly hunched-over position replaced with the noble's bearing.
"It's hard to determine," the younger Devil replied, friendly and polite, but the smile she gave him still failed to reach those ceruleans, deep in thought as they were. "But if I had to guess, a week and a half? Two? That is my best guess, at least."
Issei's brow rose, both at the sudden shift in Rias's posture and the response she gave. Something was very off. "...Does the name 'Dawn Legion' ring any bells?"
Venelana's own brow drew together, and Rias finally looked at Issei.
There was a brittleness there, he immediately saw.
Just what happened while they were captured? Surely their captors wouldn't do... that, to other pureblooded Devils, right?
Then again...
The grimace he wore was the result of both that unpleasant thought and the news he was about to break. "Then there's a lot you both missed. But first things first. The Dawn Legion is a military organization run by the Dark Moon. Their opening act was to completely upend the Abrahamic Summit."
Their reactions were instantaneous- Venelana's eyes sharpened, a sinuous aura of Destruction swirling around her like a coiled serpent, ready to strike at a moment's notice. Rias, on the other hand, was dumbfounded and wide-eyed.
"What!?" Rias whispered, pale as a ghost and equally appalled. "That... that should not be possible."
"There's a lot of things about that woman that don't make sense," Issei replied grimly. "But I felt her power firsthand, and she's strong enough to pull it off. Only getting stronger, too. Your brother's fighting her right now."
"So that's why I could sense his Id, even from so far away." Venelana's lips thinned. "We felt it, but the pieces are starting to add up. The gall of that woman to challenge him so shortly after killing Ajuka... I have to question her sanity."
Rias's expression darkened faintly. Issei didn't blame her. The Beelzebub Satan had done so much for Devils; the thought of him simply being gone was both a sobering thought and a frustrating one.
"If I had to take a guess, they fought at the Summit, and Lunarunn got the better of Ajuka," Issei surmised. "But that's me just spitballing. I was shocked too- Ajuka was one of the strongest beings still alive, right?"
"Tenth in the known realms, for the absurd volume and mastery of Id he possessed," Venelana confirmed. "What's concerning however, is how Lunarunn bypassed the sheer number of failsafes Ajuka had placed upon himself over the centuries. He should have been able to escape practically anything. The only way that he could have been trapped and slain is if he no longer had any Id to channel at all."
"Or if she developed some sort of antimagic field..." Issei trailed off as a memory struck.
The miniscule Bounded Space.
The dead plant life.
The graying of the world around the three, as though all color were bled out of the world.
The impending sense of inevitability, when Lunarunn revealed her Tainted Gear.
He could swear that he had all the pieces to put the picture together. So what was he missing?
"If it were just that, Ajuka would have been able to overcome her anyway. He has had others try it against him ages ago, the Kankura Formula has been proven to circumvent traditional antimagic." Venelana frowned, folding her fingers together. "I will need to consult on this matter further. Still, I appreciate your informing us of what you could, Issei-san. Between the Summit and the kidnapping of the aristocracy, I have no doubt there is panic in the general populace. Your comment about the mortal world being in a state of alarm only solidifies that belief. The time has come for us to return to whatever base camp you set forth from- the people need leaders, it would be remiss for us to keep them waiting, especially if Diodora decides to stop playing around and start working on the others in earnest."
Rias cringed and shied away, catching Issei's attention.
'Did HE do something to Rias!?' he realized, temper flaring.
"Diodora?" he echoed lowly. "Are we talking about the same smiling, sanctimonious bastard?"
"You've met him," Venelana commented neutrally,
It set his teeth to grinding as he returned his gaze to Venelana. "I didn't like him the instant I set eyes on him. Now? If I see that prick again I'm going to tear him apart."
The flaxen-haired Devil smiled. In other circumstances, such an expression would have set Issei's pulse racing, but here, it was one of grim agreement. "On that, I believe we are aligned, Issei-san. Come, let us be off. There is much to work on."
She lifted a hand, the runes of a teleportation array forming slowly in the air in front of her, before pausing.
"...Pardon me," the older Devil said with a frown. "You wouldn't happen to know a... Motohama, would you?"
The question took Issei off-guard, and in his surprise he missed the shocked look from Rias as he rose to his feet. "Hold on, you know Motohama?"
"I was summoned not too long ago by him," she explained slowly, as though making a connection. "Normally, I wouldn't answer such a request, but the summoner had somehow obtained a grimoire that caught my attention." She frowned. "He wanted power; he said he wanted to take revenge on someone for abandoning him."
Issei felt cold. "Me."
Venelana glanced back with concern in her eyes. "I am not one to dismiss the desire for vengeance, but you deserve at least a warning; I granted Motohama a powerful artifact in exchange for the grimoire. If he is as devoted to a vengeful cause as I believe he may be..."
"Are you saying he'd go after my girlfriend and parents?" he whispered, deathly still. Sure, Irina, Xenovia, and Raynare were all there. But Xenovia was catatonic after what happened to her mom, and Raynare was... he wasn't sure if she'd even get in his way.
Irina might be able to handle Motohama, especially if the 'artifact' Venelana gave him was demonic in nature, but if he did some sort of surprise attack she might not be able to defend herself.
And more importantly, none of them were aware of what Motohama planned to do.
She shook her head. "I do not know. His thoughts are his own, but... the Ira - apologies, Wrath - he possessed when I met him is reason for concern."
"And you still gave him this... artifact, as you put it?!" Issei stepped forward, armored arm snapping to the side.
"It was not my place to dissuade Motohama-san, only express my discontent. I may have given him the tools to do violence, but I am warning you now as a token of good faith." Venelana's expression was creased with worry. "It is the least I can do, especially after what you've done for the Gremory family."
"And you can't, y'know, go back and stop him!?"
She shook her head once again. "I may know that I was summoned to Kuoh, but there was not enough time between my summoning and kidnapping to find Motohama-san and stop him from causing a tragedy."
Rias made a choking sound behind Issei, as though not believing what she was hearing. His gaze shot over to her pale features, whitened further by alarm.
"I... Motohama was a pervert and miscreant, but he never came off as violent," she said quietly, glancing over to her mother.
"One need only look at the Dark Moon to see how perceived slights can turn someone into a monster." Venelana shook her head. "I'm sorry, Issei-san. I would help more if I could, but we need to help reestablish stability in the Underworld. I'll send you back topside, and you can find Motohama. I just hope it's not too late."
"I do too," Issei growled, pulling out a map and setting it on the tea table, rolling it open and pointing at a conspicuous marker on the paper. "A friend of mine is at the base camp here. Let's head back here, and I'll head back with her."
He'd need her if his parents were injured.
The flaxen-haired Devil nodded. "For what it is worth, the Gremory Family will do its utmost to support you, especially given your Pact with my daughter."
The brunet paused, prompting Venelana to smile slightly. "You may not be wed, or perhaps even friends, but bonded as you two are, you will have our resources at your disposal going forward. Please don't hesitate to contact Rias or I if you need help."
Issei was quiet at that, processing her words before letting out a brief huff. "I'm pretty sure I already made it clear I don't like being chased."
And wasn't that an unpleasant reminder of Issei's own history? The brunet's eyes shifted over to Rias. She looked away, the noble's mask slid firmly over her porcelain features.
He smiled ruefully, looking at Venelana again. "If it's not one angle, it's another, huh? Lemme guess, it's because I'm the Red Dragon Emperor?"
"Partially," she admitted without shame, but her expression was still thoughtful. "But moreso, your character speaks for itself, having come all this way on a rescue mission." The older of the two Devils offered a widening smile. "Such chivalry deserves recognition, regardless of who it is."
The Sacred Gear wielder wasn't sure what to make of the offer. There was something about it that seemed too good to be true, and he wasn't an idiot.
But... considering what he wanted to do, and just how Lunarunn's shadow continued to eclipse him, and now Phenex too?
He hated the thought of it. He hated not being strong enough to stop all the chaos around him.
He hated not being strong enough, period.
He hated that no matter how much he tried to grow, it never seemed to be enough.
He hated it, but he needed all the help he could get.
The Red Dragon Emperor sighed, rubbing his hand against his eyes. The Sacred Gear wielder said he'd help with freeing the Pillars from their confinement, but what good would that be if his family was in danger?
"I'll appreciate the assistance," Issei replied honestly. "But right now, I just need to pick up Asia and get home before Motohama does something- maybe I can head him off before it's too late."
Venelana nodded, glancing back down at the map before making minute changes to the teleportation array. "Will you need additional travel while you're there?"
Issei shook his head. "No, the Phenexes should be there too. I'll be alright. What about you two?"
"With the change of plans, we'll teleport directly back to Gremory manor after you return to the forward base," the older Devil replied. "From there, we'll start reasserting control over the situation in the Underworld."
"Alright," Issei inclined his head in a nod. "Then I'll... keep in touch."
"Issei, I-" Rias trailed off as both other individuals in the room turned to look at her. Her eyes went from Issei, to Venelana, then Issei again. She seemed to deflate, looking away. "...Thank you. For coming."
The young man's brow drew together as though trying to parse her words, before his expression softened. It wasn't the smile she knew he had, but it was acknowledgement all the same. He nodded once, then hurried through the portal.
The portal closed, and another one opened, this time to Gremory manor. Venelana and Rias stepped through.
"You lied to him," Rias accused flatly as soon as she saw the walls of Gremory manor, and felt the faint humming of the wards around them.
"Oh, not at all," her mother denied. "I merely omitted certain facts."
"Like how you were the one who set Motohama against Issei?"
Venelana closed her eyes and breathed out slowly. She started walking, gesturing to Rias to follow. Almost instinctively, she fell in line behind the flaxen-haired Devil.
"Rias, dear, you do realize what would happen if word got out that you attempted to recruit the Red Dragon Emperor and failed, correct?" The daughter in question flinched, but gathered her spirit and fired back.
"Keeping the legitimacy of our house is important, yes, but manipulating a former companion to go after Issei however he could is just petty!" Rias insisted. "So what if Issei doesn't want to deal with me? He's not the type to say anything, and I have the ability to maintain the name of the Gremory family whether or not he's my Pawn!"
"He only dislikes you because you failed to effectively put into practice what I taught you," Venelana sniped back, putting a finger to her lips with a growing scowl.
"I already told you; his girlfriend had made sure he was protected."
Rias's mother stopped and turned around, finger still on her lips and hand on her hip. "And you didn't even try to use the fact that you were burned by an overprotective friend's lack of trust to work your way into his affections? You may not have been able to seduce him immediately following that misstep, but there were still other ways to ingratiate yourself to him."
The younger Devil had no answer to that, making her mother shake her head with a click of her tongue."And here we are, with another opportunity to bring dear Issei under the Gremory banner, and you're too busy getting over the little stunt Diodora did on us to even bother being anything more than an attendant. I gave you leniency because you are still young, but I did not expect you to be so impotent that I had to save your Pact for you."
Rias flinched again, this time with a crinkling at the corner of her eyes belying an attempt to conceal the welling within them at the harsh reminder. Even so her mother wasn't done, finger to her lips coming to rest as a full hand on the other hip. "Any daughter of mine is not going to be some damsel in distress. No matter the circumstances, she will have the wit and grace to turn even a kidnapping into an opportunity to bring even the most dangerous elements under her sway. Even if I have to clean up all your mistakes until then, you will become that woman."
The redhead looked down, hands clenched into fists. "So is... is that why you were attempting to seduce Ruval, even when we were stuck in that damp cell? What... what would Father think if he realized?" Her head snapped back up, voice cracking with a mixture of horror and grief. "Did you ever even love him at all?!"
Venelana paused, shoulders lowering as she closed her eyes. She responded a moment later. "Of course I did, and I made sure he knew - both of my feelings, and my efforts to ensure that we would be safe if anything happened. But whatever I felt about Zeoticus is irrelevant. He is dead now, and so it falls upon me to gather what allies we can during this time of crisis. That way, the Gremory family can remain in a position of rulership once the dust settles."
Crimson locks swayed side to side as Rias's voice lowered. "Diodora said that Father was only one of the men you've drawn under your sway. How can I know you aren't lying to me right now?"
"Besides the fact that Diodora literally derived sexual pleasure from the control he claimed over us and the fact that he could get in your head so easily?" Venelana's response was blunt. "Don't be ridiculous, Rias. If you are to accuse anyone of lying, that young Demon is the one you should point a finger at."
"But why lie when the truth hurts so much more?" The young Gremory's breath was short, and if one looked closely they could see a faint trembling. "Maybe he was right about everything. I knew something was off about the words you chose when talking to Ruval while we were jailed. You really do only care about yourself, don't you... mother?"
Venelana was silent. Part of Rias expected her mother to start sharply reprimanding her for the comment. The less said about the potential of Venelana mentioning remedial training, the better.
The way her head started swiveling from side to side, voice soft, only served to spike the younger Devil's concerns.
"Rias... do you even hear yourself right now?" she asked, lifting a hand to the side of her daughter's face. Rias shied away, but stopped when that hand gripped her chin- not harshly, but firmly all the same. "Everything I've done, I've done for my family. For your father. For your brother. For you. All I've wanted is what is best for you all. How can you not see how much of myself I've poured into making sure you're all as well-off as you possibly can be?"
"By..." Rias swallowed, shaking her head as best she could within her mother's grasp. "By trying to make me exactly what you want me to be?"
"Because it works," Venelana replied, even softer now, yet her words held an implacable weight to them, locking eyes with her daughter. "You need only look at me to see it. Sirzechs is powerful enough to carve his own path, but right now, we are in a precarious position. Do you really think that with Zeoticus dead, I would be able to keep our holdings together once everything settles back down? The others would see the lack of master of the house as weakness. We'd be torn apart, Rias. We can only rely on each other; everyone else has an agenda that they would gladly sweep us aside for. Even my own birth family would attempt to integrate the Gremory holdings into their own by 'reclaiming' me. At least with someone like Issei or Ruval as Lord of the household, even if it's their secondary Lordship, the Gremory family can continue to thrive into the next generation."
"...You would have Issei and I wed?" Rias realized.
"I said it myself, didn't I? His chivalry deserves recognition, and what better way than to make him a nobleman through the Evil Piece system? His strength would be recognized, we receive the protection we need, and he gets to indulge in whatever vices he may have- I do believe you mentioned he has a dream of becoming a harem king?"
She tilted her head at her daughter's expression and sighed. "Or alternatively, if the thought repulses you both so much, he and I could be married instead. He's certainly not the worst-looking, and proper form can always be taught. Unfortunately, with Ruval's transformation into the original Phenex, I doubt he would take either of us as concubines. But with Issei's obvious Sin, that young man would come around to the idea quickly."
Just like that? She wasn't even considering Issei's own stance on the matter - he'd already proven cagey to the idea of becoming a Devil, and what her mother was suggesting entailed exactly that.
But what Venelana wanted, she got. If Venelana truly wanted Issei under her thumb, he'd never stand a chance, no matter what Koneko might believe.
The redhead blinked, realization dawning. She had been expecting to work with Issei too, hadn't she? Not as his King - not immediately, at least - but in such a way as to work her way into his good graces. She used a Lishanian Pact to ensure it, for Lilith's sake!
Because he was the Red Dragon Emperor.
'Oh Morningstar,' her mind murmured to her, 'was he right all along?'
"...With you pulling the strings," Rias guessed, her voice flat.
"But of course," Venelana smiled winningly. "It's only natural, after all. He'd be young, inexperienced. He'd need a firm, guiding hand to ensure he becomes a good Lord of the house."
She let go of Rias's chin and turned back around, continuing to walk. "As do you, daughter. Your blunders have nearly cost us the opportunity to acquire an invaluable asset, and you seem utterly unrepentant. Once everything is back under control, I'll help you understand why your misguided attempts to do things 'your way' can no longer be tolerated."
"So what if I don't?"
Both of them froze. Rias wasn't sure why she blurted those words out. She normally had enough self-control to keep her mouth shut, was she really that shaken?
Clearly, her mother thought the same as she turned back around, eyes wide with surprise. It was several seconds before Venelana responded, each moment ticking by thickening the air between them until Rias felt like she was suffocating.
Stupid, stupid, stupid!
"Like I said; everything I've done, I do for you, Sirzechs, and Zeoticus."
Then her expression distorted. Perfect lips twisted into an ugly, bitter sneer, and glittering amethyst became simultaneously as cold and as callous as said precious stones. "But please do not test me, Rias- I would hate to have to be more forceful with getting my point across. And next time you speak out of line with me, I will."
Those feelings were apparent for only a fleeting moment, hardly present for the duration of a blink. The next moment, her expression was once more a stern but caring mother's.
With those final words said and the redhead petrified, Venelana continued walking. "The servants appear to have taken a leave of absence today. Please contact them and let them know that the manor requires some cleaning. I will be in the study making calls."
Then it was just Rias in the empty hallway, staring after the retreating form of her sole remaining parent.
Sole remaining parent.
Zeoticus was... he was a kind father. Loving. Completely subservient to his wife, but that didn't change the fact that he was a good man.
That was the kind of Devil she wanted to be.
But did she really want to just be... an accessory? An attendant, as her mother put it?
Immediately she crushed the thought. No, her father had been a doormat, and that was not what she wanted to be. Never that.
But she didn't want to be like her mother either. Koneko already had enough on her plate with those strange visions of hers, and Akeno...
She envied Akeno. Loving parents, a free perspective of the world, and the ability to go wherever she wanted?
She wouldn't want to chain her Nephilim friend down any more than she already had.
'...Brother... Dad...'
The redhead swallowed hard and kept moving.
Her brother was absent, fighting the monster that killed the Devil's equivalent to the Messiah. Her father was dead.
Koneko and Akeno were nowhere to be found. They must have been out looking for her.
She needed to let them know she was alright.
She entered her room, spacious and furnished with everything she might ever want.
Rias pried the too-tight dress off of her (why was her chest still so tight?) and stuffed it into the waste bin, before all but flying into the bathroom and throwing the shower handle to the complete other side.
Beneath the steaming heat from the showerhead, she finally released the stress she'd been holding onto for well over a week.
Yet all that escaped were shuddering, gasping breaths and enough tears to count on one hand.
Lunarunn grit her teeth as she warped away yet again, thin lines of Destruction zig-zagging across the sky from their previous location attempting to lacerate her. A barrier of null space opened up in front of her, devouring the threads as Cataclysm Eclipse's glowing red wings shot up to block the strike from Creuserey. A push later and the Demon Child was pursued by singularities, the light-absorbing fonts of gravity homing in like moths to a flame as he drew back.
Sirzechs was there once more, the manifestation of Destruction spraying out his corrosive domain with volcanic wrath, forcing the brunette to relocate once more, this time dozens of kilometers away.
It wouldn't stop Sirzechs from rushing her once more, but it did buy her a second to breathe and strategize.
This wasn't going well. With Creuserey involved, Sirzechs's attention was divided, but it certainly seemed like he was focusing primarily on her.
It made sense- even canonically, Sirzechs had no problem handling the Asmodeus.
Something was different about Creuserey this time, though. His powers were nothing out of the ordinary, but they had a weight to them that forced even Sirzechs to pay attention.
It wasn't much, but it was enough that Lunarunn could last as long as she had.
But it still stood that her raw power remained lacking.
For as much as she could hurl black holes, summon stars, and unleash the fury of the cosmos, it fell flat in the face of Destruction. Singularities were crushed, stars were extinguished, and that which laid beyond the earth met the same fate as everything else in Sirzechs's way.
Destruction. The erasure of that object from existence.
It reminded her of what she did to the Naberius heir in her moment of madness. Not to the same conceptual degree as she had pulled off in that time, but Sirzechs was utterly in control of his bloodline power, unlike she had been.
It wasn't looking good, but she still had to keep them occupied. The more she could draw them away from the operation, the more time they had to swipe the Pillars from under the nose of the TSF.
That only Creuserey was here was concerning, however. Luna expected that at least Shalba or Katarea would also have joined the fight.
It didn't help that the power that let her turn the tides against Ajuka was still dormant.
Luna bit out a curse as the sky blackened, torrents of Destruction barreling down upon her like waterfalls, and like waterfalls she split them to her sides. That Destruction swirled around her, completely encasing the brunette while her barrier held, but she knew it could not hold out forever; indeed, the pain in her head from the pressure had already manifested itself physically.
She blinked away again as the sphere imploded, taking everything inside with it. The force of the resulting backblast caused her hair to spasm wildly, though she ignored that in favor of wiping away the blood leaking from her nose.
YOU ARE TIRING. And there he was, the manifested form of Destruction behind her as a foot shot forward, forcing Lunarunn to bend over backwards, then throw herself down toward the ground as the outstretched leg swung down in an axe kick. THIS CANNOT BE THE LIMIT OF YOUR ABILITY.
Lunarunn grimaced. She overestimated her stamina, and perhaps underestimated Sirzechs' ability. She knew he was one of the strongest beings alive. She thought it'd be more like fighting Ajuka.
But Sirzechs was an entirely different beast. It was more like challenging a hurricane and struggling desperately to not get blown away.
One was a master combatant, a one man army even. The other was a force of nature- implacable, unpredictable, unrelenting, uncaring.
She could act like one, sure, but Cataclysm Eclipse could hijack her again- if she let it take over, there was no telling the destruction she'd wreak.
But she wouldn't. She'd promised herself never again.
...But even that had been quiet as of late.
'Shit!' The brunette spun around as Creuserey appeared, a sphere of vermillion Id in hand as he spiked it downward upon her.
Moments later she felt her back hit the ground. While the essence that had hit her wasn't as inherently toxic as Kokabiel's light had been back when she'd suffered a similar body blow, the impact still left her dazed.
"Really, you thought you could challenge the likes of me?" Creuserey sneered as he looked down, casting a glance over to Sirzechs before continuing. "Know your place, bitch."
Lunarunn didn't respond immediately, one hand thrown out desperately to block the beam of Destruction that nearly vaporized her right then and there. The barrier held, but the brunette was getting dizzy. Were her ears wet?
'Oh, that's not good.' she thought to herself, staring up at the Devils above her.
She couldn't win this. The only reason she managed to last this long was because Creuserey was strong enough to keep Sirzechs from overwhelming her entirely, at the cost of also being a target from him.
She could escape, Luna knew. She just needed to fall back to camp-
But then Sirzechs would follow, and unless Georg was at the top of his game, so many lives would be forfeit.
They'd just started getting ground with their momentum- she couldn't just stop that now.
But her chances of surviving this were increasingly slim, especially since that damned third set of powers just would not answer her!
Maybe that was why Shalba and Katarea didn't come- because Creuserey would be enough.
Not against Sirzechs, but against an upstart like her? Luna wasn't sure whether to be offended that they were underestimating her - like she had Sirzechs - or glad that they had yet to consider her a serious threat. Either way, it was still not a good sign/
"Shit..." she breathed slowly, wracking her mind for a solution. She could take Sirzechs on a wild goose chase, but he could (and would, she knew) use that to smear her name as someone who cut and ran when things got tough.
No, she needed to stay and fight, at least a little longer. Worst-case scenario, she could teleport back to the camp and get Georg to provide an emergency evac.
But to do that, she'd need to hide her Id.
Or be so weakened that it's effectively gone.
'...I'm really glad I invested in our medical bays.'
But just as she was about to move, he appeared.
In a flourish of flames, a being came to a stop before the three of them. A familiar face gazed out with unfamiliar eyes, scrutinizing both Destruction manifest and the Firstborn of a mighty Demon.
Both of them recognized him. She did too. But if the way Creuserey paled was of any indication, then who she recognized him as was not the same as them.
Then again, the broken halo and flaming horns were pretty indicative.
'Ruval?' Luna thought in shock, but immediately discarded it. No, that wasn't Ruval. His face was the same, but those eyes- the dark sclera reminded her of-
Those eyes focused on her, and she felt something crack in the back of her mind. She grimaced, but considering the agonizing migraine she already had, Luna could stand it.
The burning eyes widened, as though in surprise, and Luna wondered what would happen.
Would he become enraged at her sorry state?
Would he turn away, unimpressed?
No, the chill that went down her spine was something else.
What happened to Ruval? Is he possessed? Was he corrupted?
"Wait a minute... it worked?" Hold on, was that-
"Ha ha... hahaha." One hand rose to cover the Demon's mouth, but the crinkle of his eyes was indicative of his glee.
"It's really you, isn't it?" he said aloud. "I was wondering why I was revived- more importantly, how I was revived."
Lunarunn's frown deepened. 'What the hell is going on...!?'
Creuserey breathed something out, though based on the distance the brunette couldn't hear.
PHENEX. MARQUESE OF FLAMES. Sirzechs greeted the Demon plainly, his voice like grinding stones from the rush of destroyed air as he spoke. HOW ARE YOU HERE?
"How indeed." Phenex fixed Lunarunn with a raised brow. "You look like shit."
"Bite me," she fired back, wiping away more blood from her nose.
HER? Sirzechs's attention shifted to the brunette in question. I DON'T BUY IT. LUNARUNN IS FAR TOO MORALISTIC TO REAWAKEN A DEMON OF ALL THINGS.
"Is that what she's called these days?" Phenex hummed, tilting his head and narrowing his eyes. Luna shivered as those eyes pierced, as though looking for something, before-
CRACK.
"Ngh!" Lunarunn grasped her head... as did Phenex, oddly enough.
But even as he did, his grin widened. "Hah. I thought you were gone for good, but here you are somehow. After the whole showdown between you and Father? Truly, this world has strayed far from Him if you out of all of us were able to come back."
Come back.
Hold on, come back?
"Do you mean...?" Creuserey's eyes widened slowly as he gazed down at the brunette.
Lunarunn didn't like where this was going.
'Ulan, I know you're there. What's going on?'
Silence, stoking Luna's temper further. 'Are you shitting me!? Talk! What's this about you and the big guy throwing down?! Why is a Demon of all things addressing you like you two were friends?!'
More silence, and Luna nearly snapped aloud, before a voice responded, low and concerned.
"We were."
'What?!' Questions whirled in Lunarunn's mind.
Phenex stared at her again, head shaking slowly as he started muttering to himself. "Amnesic, perhaps? Or maybe a vessel."
VESSEL. Sirzechs's eyes bore down on the confused and increasingly concerned brunette. THE ORIGINAL TOOK PART IN A RITUAL. AS A RESULT, A NEW INDIVIDUAL FILLED THE GAP LEFT BY THE CLAIMED SOUL.
"Is that so?" Creuserey himself was intrigued now, glancing between the Demon and the Super Devil. "I'm surprised you aren't already trying to kill the upstart."
SILENCE, the Devil in question responded. THE SITUATION HAS CHANGED. I HAD MY SUSPICIONS WHEN SHE SLEW AJUKA. The air around Sirzechs started to shudder. IT APPEARS MY SUSPICIONS WERE CORRECT.
'Oh, that's not good.' Clearly they were in the know about something, but she wasn't. And the moment she tried to get away, they'd come after her.
She still wasn't sure if Phenex was an ally, but at least the fighting had abated- for the moment, at least. Luna wasn't going to miss the opportunity to regather herself and ease the agonizing whine in the background of her mind.
But the question still stood.
'Ulan... what the hell happened? What did you do!?'
No answer again. 'God fucking damn it, stop giving me the silent treatment!'
"So tell me," Phenex said aloud. "Why should I not render aid in this soon-to-be-one-sided affair?"
Creuserey and Sirzechs both said nothing, prompting a sigh and shake of Phenex's head.
"Nothing? I must say, I am disappointed. I would have expected our creations to be more assertive. Even the Devils in that gaol were more so. It appears that the world isn't the only thing that has fallen far from its glory days."
DO NOT SPEAK OF THAT WHICH YOU DO NOT KNOW, PHENEX, Sirzechs warned. YOU WILL MEET YOUR PRIOR FATE MUCH SOONER THAN YOU MAY EXPECT.
"A threat, then." The blond's ember eyes glowed. "That's more like it."
A PROMISE.
The Demon's smile widened. "Even better. I always did appreciate a challenge." He glanced over to the brunette. "Outsider. Do you want to live?"
'Outsider again... and vessel before. That is... '
She flexed her good hand, the prosthetic doing the same out of both concentration and nervousness. So many questions, so few answers, and she loathed being left in the dark. "I didn't come here to die, that's for shit sure."
"You certainly don't act like it," Creuserey sneered, but eyes contained uncertainty as he glanced between Lunarunn, Sirzechs, and Phenex.
"Then it is time that you stop faffing about and actually unleash your true power."
"Been trying, not having much luck with that," she growled, but immediately stilled.
She knew, in that moment, with the way Phenex's eyes narrowed, that she'd made a serious misstep.
"Is that so? That is... unfortunate." He clicked his tongue in disappointment. "But needs must. Enough foolishness, now STAY STILL."
Lunarunn felt a chill run down her spine as Phenex appeared next to her in a flicker of hot wind, as though stepping out from behind a mirage.
Immediately, she knew the chill wasn't just her's.
The chill turned to ice amidst the flames that sprung up, as the Demon pressed his hand against her forehead.
She tried to move, but her body refused.
Suddenly, she felt very, very small.
Helpless.
She swore to never be helpless again.
She hated it.
Hated it.
Hated it.
The vileness that swelled within her was her own, but there was something behind it too.
Something heavy. Inexorable.
Undeniable.
Yet the shard of Trihexa she bore was still suspiciously silent.
Was it waiting for something?
He started speaking, but something changed in the way he spoke. Gone was the smooth, regal voice of Ruval, speaking at Phenex's whim, and in its place was something heavier.
"You have always been there. You will always be there. But none see you save for the moment you choose." Sirzechs rushed forward, but Creuserey slammed into him, roaring with pain as Destruction ate away at the Id covering his shoulder, but the incarnation of Destruction was too distracted to do more.
More concerning still was the alarm with which Luna's patron spoke.
"Wait! Phenex, stop!"
Her words fell on deaf ears. "But the time of hiding and watching has passed; Father's world cannot deny you any longer, your very presence is indicative of such. It's time to reveal yourself once again."
"No! It's not time yet! You don't understand!"
Phenex's incantation grew into a roar, as though fire itself bellowed out the words that came next.
"Ã̵̢̧̗̰̲̗̤̝͎͕͖̮̞̺͙̰̻͔̘̳̍̓̐̀͑́̽̎́̉̾̀͂͐́́̈́̑͘͝z̷̧̧̡̤̬̫͓͉̝̱̋̅̏͊̈͒͌͛͐̈́ŗ̵͎̙̙̪̞̹̩̬̳̭̖̱̹͓̱̱͇̳͋͋̆̿̄̀̅͐͌͜ͅa̵̘̣̜̹͓̭͖̗̣̤̦̞̣͙̰͔̠͖͍̩̜̩̐͊͒́̔͆̀̐̔͊̀̆̈́̌̆͂̒̊̅͋̚͜͝͝è̸̢̜̻̱̠͊̓l̴̨̙̬̤͐̃́̀̎̎̆͠, come forth!"
The sound of shattering glass filled the Worldweaver's ears as the world went white.
Angels froze as something in the world changed.
Heaven's System, ancient and methodical, the manifestation of Yahweh's lingering will, groaned and cracked.
Then, it splintered.
Jaspal doubled over, vomiting onto the floor.
Kuroka twitched, back arching as her mangled - but still breathing - body bore the brunt of the Evil Piece within her spewing out corrupted Id.
The vial of essence in Motohama's bloodied hand vibrated, the seals upon it shearing off one by one in rapid succession before the vial itself shattered, the darker-than-black substance enveloping the young man to the horror of the young women who had been both his targets and his obstacles.
In the laboratories of Hell and Grauzauberer, dozens of similar vials did the same, peeling off before shattering, the liquids spilling outward into the world.
The yawning void in which the Infinity Dragon slumbered started to rumble violently.
A violet eye opened in irritation.
A scarlet eye gleaming with malevolence stared back.
Shiva's eyes opened, and he looked into the distance, gaze wide.
There were deviations in the flow here and there, especially recently, but none so unsettling as this.
Something had just gone very wrong in Samsara.
Sealed beyond space and time, the binds containing the thing known as Trihexa loosened.
It stirred.
Sirzechs and Creuserey clutched their heads as the word, so far removed from reality as to tear eardrums, was uttered. Luna's reaction was far worse.
All three sets of the Worldweaver's wings spasmed with unnatural motion, shivering and flickering in and out of cohesion as she howled in agony. Hands both her own and not clawed at her head as blackened sludge spewed out from her wounds, her prosthetic falling to the ground as the ichor spat out of her stump and onto her face.
It did nothing to palliate the screams.
Phenex stared impassively, before noticing the lines - beams, really - of Destruction tracing the sky with the intent of cutting Lunarunn down.
He would not allow it.
Destruction met Fire, and though Fire was consumed, so too did Destruction find itself ruptured, the energy within too much to bear. Destruction detonated, blasts of energy tearing through the sky as Phenex methodically and devotedly struck down any attempt to do the same with the vessel he decided to protect.
But even so, a thought rose to mind, unbidden, as though placed there by something else within his psyche in a moment of clarity.
'What is wrong with me...?'
Phenex discarded the thought, but filed away the fact that he may have been compromised by Dantalion for later.
Instead, he focused on the situation before him.
Though the vessel's pain was natural - the infusion of a Demon's essence was an anathematic process - the ichor that Lunarunn was spitting out was not. Then again, perhaps that was what became of the being that had been captured by Yahweh after the confrontation he mentioned earlier...
He shook his head to dispel the distraction. For a mere Devil, Phenex was impressed. Even as he flickered to the side to avoid a lash of Destruction, Sirzechs pursued with admirable persistence. Apparently his title as 'Satan' - according to his mother and sister - was not entirely unwarranted.
But his power still fell flat compared to the original Morningstar.
Phenex's arm lashed out to smash aside the persistent extension of Destruction, and furrowed his brow when it wrapped around the arm instead. Moreso when the 'whip' started ripping through the Id shielding it from the 'whip's' obliterative effects.
Though the power was Bael's, Sirzechs's control over it was... intriguing. Bael worked more on the conceptual level, it appeared his descendant trained on a different axis. Precision, rather than raw power. Though certainly, he lacked neither, if he was able to manifest his Id as an incarnation.
Still, that left the question. Was Sirzechs strong enough to Sunder Phenex again?
He grimaced as he detached his arm, letting the lash devour it in favor of a new one, sprouting from the flames that comprised his essence.
He wondered if Sirzechs was aware of the weakness of Bael's power.
If he did, then Phenex would be in for a very tough fight.
But otherwise-
His head snapped back to where the vessel had collapsed as the screaming cut off without warning.
Keyword: had.
Where did she go? How did she get away? He should have been able to feel her Id!
Unless...
Phenex grunted as his body evaporated in a blast of Destruction, reforming some ways away out of the flames. A series of incendiary eruptions and slicing winds forced Sirzechs back on the defense, allowing the blond to approach the Devil who had blocked Sirzechs from interfering in Phenex's impromptu ritual.
"You, Asmodeus-child."
Creuserey stiffened, as if to bark back, before quailing under the ember eyes of the Demon. "Yes, Lord Phenex?"
An obedient one. Or, at the very least, he recognized his place and was willing to abide by it.
"Find that girl. Keep tabs on her- she is the lynchpin."
The black-haired Devil made a face. "Lynchpin? To what?"
Phenex's gaze bore into Creuserey with all the intensity of the blazing, merciless sun.
"Everything."
Then Phenex rushed forth and met Sirzechs once more.
The world around them, already gravely ruptured, now burned.
Lunarunn clutched onto the cold metal of the prosthetic against her breasts, staggering through the forest half-blind from the pain filling her body.
It hurt. It hurt so much. She could feel Heaven's System attempting to reject her very being, tearing her apart from the inside out, turning her into so much sludge, and yet-
But there were others hurting more, so much more.
She could feel them, those souls.
She could feel them all too keenly.
She could feel the agony as their spirits were torn from their mutilated bodies.
She knew them. Understood them.
Even moreso that they were her own men and women, soldiers of the Dawn Legion snuffed out like candles in the night, barely an effort.
Between that and the physical feeling of the prosthetic through her shirt to ground her, she was able to force her feet forward.
What had she done?
What had happened?
She didn't know- she could hardly breathe without screaming again, but she could feel the pain of those others, like echoes on the wind- not her own, but adjacent.
She had to keep going-
Had to keep going-
Had to-
She collapsed against a tree, puking out more of that vile black substance, the tar staining her mouth and coalescing into so much refuse.
But she was still here.
She was still here. Still breathing. Still alive.
How was she still alive?
S̴͚̅̋̿h̶̭̼̊o̶̦͕̻͛̈́u̴̡̢̇̑͠l̸̬͎͍͂d̵̩̣̿͆ń̸̰'̶͓͒͌͋ț̴́͑ ̶͈͙̌ͅb̸̧̺̏́ê̸̖ ̶̥̻̘̒ả̵̮͝ļ̵́̀̈i̸̧͙̖̊v̴̠͑ë̴̹́͠.̶͚̰̼̃̽
̴͚̫̄̕ͅŠ̸͓h̵͚̚o̸̯̬̼͐̃͝ǘ̶̪̊l̸̜̍͝ḑ̵̣̞̌̾̋ ̷̺̈́̍b̶̪̯͆͘͜ê̵̹̟͠ ̶̤̭̰̊͛͘g̷͔̏ơ̷̲͎̱͆ṇ̶̜̪̾̀e̵͎͑̆.̵̛͕̟̭̾̕
̶͔̠̎͛S̴̟̽h̵̜̗̦̓̉͠o̵͇͚̿͠ṷ̸̺̀̅̍l̴̛̮̔d̶̥̔͠n̷̢̛̒̊'̶̭̳͊͜t̴̮̐͌͝ ̶̨̄ḛ̷̅͘͘x̵̩̞͔̾̒͝i̸̗̖̐s̸̫͚̏͊t̶̙̂.̴͚̈́̓̿
She had to keep going.
She pushed off the tree, nearly toppled over as more daggers lodged themselves in her brain and twisted, but planted her feet in the ground and waited for the world to start making sense again before she kept moving forward.
Lunarunn.
She ignored the words, so much more there than before, as she lurched past the remains of who she knew to be the guards ('Steven... Victor... Asahina... Tyson...') and into the camp where she was greeted by more bodies.
Luna...
So many dead. Discarded. Torn apart with nary more than a flick of the finger. She could see the moments before their death. The desperation. The fear. The courage, trying to get as many away as they could, trying to buy even a second against the nightmare-
She couldn't be more horrified, and she couldn't be more proud.
More sludge spilled out, this time mixed with bile at the scene before her. She shouldn't have been so affected, and yet-
She forced herself to keep moving, trudging through the desecrated base camp.
Was Georg still around? Was he at least able to escape? The others still needed him, otherwise they were dead too-
What about Koneko? Kuroka?
Oh god, what about Asia?
What would Issei do if she was in cohort with the corpses?
Luna.
She froze as she rounded the corner, eyes widening at the sight before her.
Issei knelt before a cross pendant, driven partway into the ground, next to the unmoving bodies of a blood-covered Koneko and Kuroka, staring at it with a flurry of emotions warring in his gaze.
But it was alive.
His eyes were still alive.
She was so worried they'd be dead too-
Their gazes met.
Those eyes filled with rage.
Issei lunged for her.
She wasn't sure she could stop him.
She didn't try to.
They were still alive.
A/N: So this took way longer than I wanted it to. I know it's something of a meme for writing, but writing fights sucks.
I also have some fan magazine entries to finish making, so I'll probably focus my attention on that for the next few weeks before returning to NMHA.
At least for that, I only need to write 3k to 10k words in total, ha ha. I've plenty of experience with doing that over the course of 2-4 weeks.
Anyway, Tempura Wizard out.
