Blood. Death. Vomit. Urine.

That's what a boy smelled as he stared into the abyss. How long has it been? Days, weeks, years? It didn't matter. All he knew was pain. If the kid was any older, he would have laughed and called the despair now as karma. Karma for being a bad boy. For destroying his father's fishing rod… For making his mother cry… For failing to be an obedient son.

The boy named Hyoudou Issei sniffed away the tears as he was prodded with a stick, thrown into a room pitch black. A room where the warm light of day was hidden away– never to touch the room.

Issei heard the door shut as he got onto his dirty hands and knees. He felt the slimy flesh under his limbs squirm, as if it were alive. He was already used to this.

He saw nothing. He heard nothing. Issei was also already used to this. Not a speck of light could be seen. The wind too was dead, not even making the faintest whisper.

Issei felt pain. Pain. Pain. Pain.

He opened his eyes and saw everything. He opened them and saw nothing. He closed them and saw nothing. He closed them and saw everything.

It was sheer madness.

Issei was. He wasn't Issei. He was human. But could you call this monstrosity a human?

Teeth on his backside, creating wounds that didn't bleed. No, that was wrong. They bled. But it wasn't blood that ran down Issei's body.

Eyes in his ears. Seeing things that echoed off of sound. Corpses. He saw corpses. Dismantled. Mangled. Half-decaying. Non-decaying. Radioactive cadavers.

He smelled fear. Fear. Fear everywhere. The sheer revulsion he smelled nearly made him puke.

But…

He was used to this.

Yes. This was just another day in Issei's life now.

Was this thing he had become even identifiable as the innocent, spoiled brat named "Hyoudou Issei?"

The door opened.

Voices drifted into the room.

"He has been stabilized…"

"...It looks as if all the genes in him are mixing into harmony…!"

"...I have never seen a nice specimen of a child."

Chatter rang in Issei's ears. They spoke in whispers. But it was as if they were using a megaphone right beside Issei's eyes.

He heard the sleeves of one of the scientists flutter in the dead wind. The chatter of the scientists died quickly.

"Shall we commence to phase two?"

Summer vacation has started. That meant beaches! Swimsuits! Beauties in swimsuits! His wives in their swimsuits! Going karaoke until late at night while drinking beer, taking them to bed and taking them in the bed later until early the next morning. Ice cream on cones or on sticks as you walk the deserted night beach; watching as the cream melted and dripped between their open hoodie and bikini bra. Issei would lick the cream off their cleavage. Things escalate then they would hide behind some rocks and hope nobody sees them as he gropes their–

"We're here!" Issei's daydreams were broken by the excited and beautiful voice of his first beautiful wife, Rias Hyoudou, formerly Gremory. They had taken a van, driven by the ever loyal maid Elmen– ehem, Ela.

Issei groaned and stretched as he watched all his companions get off the van. He would have liked to just teleport over to the beach but the Fallen and the Christians wouldn't feel comfortable with that. So, the van it was. A whole eight hours travel to this private beach that the Gremory owned.

Issei came out of the van and, like the gentleman he was forced to be– Thanks Mother Gremory–, offered his hands to both his wives. Issei kissed them as they linked their arms with him, savoring their soft lips.

Issei observed the beach they arrived at as his tentacles deftly pulled their luggage out of the van and carried them along. The blinding sun on the golden sand nearly blinded his human pair of eyes.

While Issei observed the beach, most of the younger girls gasped in awe and started running to the waves. Asia especially hurriedly took off her sandals and splashed into the water, not even bothering to change into her swimsuit first. Irina followed after, quickly stripping into her swimsuit which she wore underneath her hoodie and skirt.

As Asia and Irina splashed each other with the salty water, the rest of the group headed to the cottage that they were going to use while Ela stayed in the van. As an introvert, she disagreed heavily with the sun. Yuuma looked like she wanted to join her two friends already but didn't have the foresight to wear her swimsuit under her overwear.

Rias was on the phone, "Yes, Mother, we're here at the beach already… You take care too… Ah, Issei says 'Hi…' Love you too. I'll be sure to visit soon… Bye bye." She fished the keys out of her purse and unlocked the door to the house. "Come in, come in," she opened the door and allowed the group inside the large cottage. She turned on the lights and walked up the stairs. "I'll be resting for a bit, feel free to make yourselves at home," she waved before she disappeared up the second floor.

"Devil work must be tough," Xenovia observed.

"Sometimes," Issei shrugged as he carefully set the bags down. "She didn't have any work last night though."

"What did she do then?"

Issei grinned. "Want to find out?"

"The grin on your face says everything I need to know, thank you," Griselda interrupted and covered Xenovia's innocent ears. She gave Issei a firm glare.

"Unfortunate. Would you like–"

"I decline," Griselda said firmly. "Thank you for carrying our bags."

"I tried," Issei said to himself as Griselda dragged Xenovia away to change. Raynare and Yuuma took their bags and followed the Christians to the dressing room. Kalawarner was nowhere to be seen and Koneko and Ravel just came out of the dressing room in their bikinis.

"How does it look?" Koneko asked expectantly.

"O-Of course it looks great on us. Right, Issei-senpai?" Ravel, ever pompous and grand, pumped her plump chest out.

"Hmmm, I approve," Issei gave them a thumbs-up. Koneko was wearing a swimsuit that complimented her quite well while Ravel wore something more revealing and vibrant. He gave them both head pats, which both took with glee. "I'll join you later, you can go ahead," he said.

"Okay nya~"

"You better!"

Both of the younger girls left the cottage to swim at the beach, leaving Issei left in the living room. Issei silently moved about the villa, checking all the supplies and switches, making sure that everything was in place and safe.

"Paranoid much?"

"Hmm?" Issei looked up as he was checking the pantry. He saw Yuuma clad in her swimsuit. "Ah, mind if you come a little closer?"

"Why?" Yuuma asked as she walked near Issei.

"That's some nice underboob. I just wanted to take a closer look."

"Pervert."

"Yes, I am."

"You haven't answered my question yet."

"Was that a question?" Issei asked. He stood and closed the door to the pantry. He easily towered over Yuuma.

"Most people would assume so. Let me rephrase it then. Why are you checking the place? Wasn't it newly cleaned by the Gremory servants?"

"You can never be too careful. There was that one time that I got skewered by a crow that I thought was harmless."

"That was a knee-jerk reaction," Yuuma sighed. "You're never gonna forgive me for that, are you?"

"You never asked for forgiveness."