Hey there!
Damn, this was set to slow roast, wasn't it? Details of the delay are in the bottom AN.
In response to guest reviews:
1): I've thought about doing in the past, but taking money for this story would just make it seem more like a job than a creative outlet, and I don't want that. I'd rather enjoy writing this as much as people enjoy reading it. I did reopen the Discord server, though, since it wouldn't hurt to just have on hand.
2:) While I loved Avalon la Fae's story as much as anyone, Tonelico/Aesc/Morgan was never intended to appear here. Sorry.
3): A connection to the McRemitz is not as simple as being of Irish descent or summoning a certain Servant, but Connor had alluded to his grandfather learning magecraft from 'distant relatives' in Chapter 3, so interpret that how you may.
Alright, let's do this.
Disclaimer: I do not own High School DxD, nor do I own Type Moon, any of its intellectual properties, or any other property used in this work.
Published: July 28, 2024
Updated: TBD
…
Chapter 21 – Spring the Trap
Connor had reached the top of the stairs on the apartment building's breezeway when he felt the familiar nudge of the telepathic Master-Servant link being opened.
'Master, the messages have been delivered,' Assassin reported.
He paused to take a cautionary glance around before replying.
'Any need for intervention?'
'No. The familiar acted as per your instructions.'
'Good, then Kiba's on board. Maintain your position, and let me know of any surprise visits.'
'As you wish.'
One of Caster's main points of contention with Connor's plan boiled down to three simple words: 'trust but verify.' A magus could recruit all the help he wanted for whatever schemes he was planning, but if he had no way of knowing that the help followed his directions, it could compromise all the work he put into his arrangements.
That was at least partly the reason for Assassin to be stationed at the academy. If the familiar deviated from the path Connor had instructed for Kiba, her job was to intercept and incapacitate the winged beast, then deliver the messages herself using a puppet that she could disguise as the bird.
Luckily, it didn't come to that, as it seemed Kiba was willing to work with yet another outside entity. At this point, it hardly mattered what he told Rias in his note. Sona getting her message from Connor was enough for her to act with all speed, and she would talk enough sense into Rias and push the redhead into action if she wasn't already moving.
Kokabiel was now the Devils' part of the problem to handle, which left Sellzen and Galilei for Connor and his 'associates' to deal with.
On that subject, Connor opened the mental link to his first Servant.
'Any luck on your end, Caster?'
'You know better than to bring up luck with me, kid,' the spirit chided.
Connor rolled his eyes. 'Sorry, how goes the search?'
'No sign of the crow, but I've got a visual on the other two. They've been going from spot to spot in town, looking around every corner. No bombs or poisons or anything like that being left behind, though. Assassin must've really rattled Happy Slasher's cage; now that Plan A's down a hole, he and Fat Man are paranoid.'
'Either that, or they're trying their own measure of divide and conquer,' Connor hypothesized, smiling slightly at Caster's codenames.
'I doubt it, but I'll keep an eye on them just in case Plan B involves some wanton slaughter before Featherhead makes the scene.'
'Okay, good. Keep me apprised if they suddenly change course.'
'Gotcha.'
Closing the link once more, Connor sighed. He felt like a switchboard operator, changing gears and swapping out lines of communication one after the other, all while trying to juggle multiple conversations at once.
At least his last discussion with Tobio had been pretty cut and dry.
–––––
His debriefing of the wayward pair of warriors complete, Connor proceeded back to the cemetery to check up on his own cohort. Tobio was standing at the torii gate that marked the entrance, one hand in a pocket while the other held onto the jacket that he had slung over his shoulder. Hearing Connor approach, he looked up and locked eyes with the magus.
The two humans stared at one another in silence until an impish smile appeared on Connor's face.
"What seems to be the trouble, officer?"
Tobio shook his head and withdrew a slip of paper bearing a pair of lightly glowing runes from his pocket.
"Just you being a sneaky little rat. I was confused as all hell when I started hearing voices coming from behind me with no one there. After a minute, though, I pulled this off my back and put two and two together: You bugged yourself so that I could listen in on your sales pitch to those two."
"Turned it on right before I called Asia." Connor flipped the neckline of his t-shirt to reveal the business end of the Listening Device array. "So now you're in on the tentative plan, and I don't have to waste time explaining everything again. Works better that way, I think."
The agent huffed. "Right, other than my needing to find a new cover after this. So, with your plan in mind, I guess I'm the one that's dealing with Sellzen?"
"Oh yeah, like you weren't already gonna volunteer, knowing that he's back," the magus flatly answered, earning a shrug in reply.
"Fine, but shouldn't I just go for Galilei while I'm at it? I could just as easily kill them both."
"I'd rather you prioritize the psychopath, so if you make them both think you're too preoccupied with him, it would give Galilei an 'opportunity' to escape," Connor explained, using air quotes for emphasis. "He'll run for Kokabiel and be vulnerable once he's too far away for his bodyguard to protect him, and then Xenovia and Kiba can do their thing."
Tobio nodded skeptically. "And you're certain that Galilei won't realize he's heading into a trap?"
"Even if he figures it out, there won't be anything he can do about it. One way or another, he's not leaving Kuoh alive."
Connor turned his body to walk around the agent, heading back down the trail leading to town.
"Anyway, that's the skinny," he threw over his shoulder. "I'll let you know when I get a lead on someone, so call your boss and tell him that things'll be coming to a head here soon."
Without waiting for a reply, the magus began descending the hill, sending his next orders to his Servants along the way.
–––––
With Caster and Assassin providing updates in real-time, and their spirit forms confirmed to be undetectable by outside measures, he could react accordingly to whoever moved where on any part of the field. The advantage was his.
Upon passing his front door, Connor's attention drifted to the bedroom. Based on the animated chatter that he could hear coming from inside, it seemed Asia had already worked her magic and made another friend.
Putting on his most congenial smile, he opened the bedroom door and peeked his head through.
"Knock knock," he greeted.
"Hi, Connor," Asia smiled back, radiantly as always.
"How are they? Did everything go okay?" Irina immediately asked him as he came in and took a seat beside Asia.
"They're fine, just run a bit ragged. I filled them in on my plan, and Kiba sent word to the Kings, so now everyone's on the same page. And by the way, Asia," he turned his gaze to the blonde nun and smiled, "good job on letting Irina check Nightmare. That helped a lot with convincing Xenovia."
"Oh… thank you." Asia looked down at her legs as her hands fiddled with the hem of her shirt. Step by step, she was getting better about taking compliments.
"Now, Ms. Shidō. Can I call you Irina?" She nodded. "Alright, we've got some time on our hands, and there's some things I need clarified about the Excaliburs."
"Okay… But, before we get into that, can I… ask you something first?"
He arched an eyebrow, then nodded.
"Last night… Did, uh…" she fidgeted, as if summoning the courage to speak. "Did you see my… my-"
"Your breasts? Yeah, I saw them."
Dropped with all the subtlety of an untied bag of rocks, his interception achieved its desired effect. The girl's face turned a hot red, just as it had on the day they met, before she pulled the blanket over herself to hide her shame. A scandalized Asia turned to him with her own blush coloring her cheeks as well.
"Had to get you out of the suit, couldn't be helped. Saving your life and all that. But if it's any consolation…" he paused to make sure she was watching, then gave a teasing, sage-like nod with a completely straight face. "they are very nice."
"PERVERT!" the exorcist shrieked, her voice cracking until she coughed.
"Connor, stop that!" Asia scolded, lips turning upside-down. She was probably trying to give him a disapproving frown, but it just came off as a cute pout. It didn't help that she was turning an even brighter pink that spread to most of her face, including her ears.
"Okay, okay, I'm sorry, that was too much." He held up his hands in surrender, but the grin on his face made it clear that he was not at all remorseful. He meant what he'd said, and the reactions were just too funny. "No more, I'm done."
In the back of his mind, he idly wondered how much of an influence Caster truly had on him.
Issei took another deep breath, watching the sun fall over the horizon. A tug on his sleeve drew him to look down and to his left.
"You good?" Koneko asked, staring up at him curiously.
He nodded. "Yeah, I'm okay. Just not sure how I feel about… sitting and waiting."
"There's no need to worry, Ise," Rias assured, giving that amazing smile of hers. "Kokabiel may think he can catch us off guard, but we're the ones with the element of surprise here."
"And I cannot wait to see the look on his face once he realizes it." With her half-lidded eyes and sultry smile, Akeno's longing comment was downright provocative.
He fought the urge to shiver and instead tapped his foot on the track field.
Since the emergency meeting in the Student Council room that morning, it had been an all-hands-on-deck situation. Afternoon classes and events were dismissed early, and the school was completely vacated by 5:00 P.M. All that remained on campus now were Rias, Sona and their respective servants.
Kiba had finally gotten a message to Rias and, from how she and Sona explained it to everyone, he had acquired valuable intel thanks to Connor Lochlainn of all people. It seemed that the high-ranking Fallen Angel that Freed and Valper were in cahoots with had decided to go his own way and invoke a war. Why? Who knew, and who cared? Issei certainly didn't. The only thing that mattered to him was stopping them, especially after what Valper had done to Kiba in the past.
To be certain, this Kokabiel guy was confident, but Rias hoped to use his overconfidence to their advantage. By presenting him with one of his primary targets in a manner he couldn't resist, he would walk himself right into an ambush. While this happened, Sona and her peerage would stay back and erect a barrier around the campus. The Sitri heiress held no illusion about being able to contain the Fallen Angel with it, but if nothing else, the damage would be kept to a minimum.
This plan was initially met with protest by most of the Devils until Sona backed it up with a message sent by Connor. According to her, the magus was convinced that Kokabiel wouldn't wait for long to find the missing Excalibur fragments. His overall plan having been stalled, the possibility now existed that he may simply forgo his accomplices and just do the job himself.
The risk was still tremendous, and everyone understood that. However, both Sona and Rias hinted that there was a way to ensure taking the risk would pay off.
So here they stood, Issei and the rest of Rias' peerage sans Kiba, waiting at the threshold of the academy's larger athletic grounds in anticipation.
As the sun dipped out from view and its last rays dimmed, something else lit up the sky in its place. A huge teal-green magic circle as large as the the ORC club house suddenly appeared directly over the baseball field. From the epicenter, an ornate stone construct taller than any building in Kuoh Town slowly descended.
Seated with legs crossed on a throne atop the construct, a man stared down amusedly at the Devils with malevolent gold eyes surrounded by vivid red sclera. His mouth was set into a saw-toothed smile equally as intimidating as a scowl would have been. These features, in conjunction with his long, black hair, pale complexion and pointed ears, made him seem more of a dark elf than anything else.
He had come dressed for the occasion, adorned in elaborate purple and deep black robes. A pair of golden pauldrons festooning his shoulders gave a sharp, authoritative contrast to his foreboding color scheme.
When his eyes met those of Rias, his already wide smile stretched further.
"Good evening, Rias Gremory. It's a pleasure to finally meet the younger sister of Sirzechs in person." He spoke with a powerful air that meshed very well with his expression.
"The pleasure is all mine, Lord Kokabiel," Rias cordially replied, running a hand through her hair. "I must admit, though, that your arrival is a tad… worrisome. If you wished to speak with either myself or Sona Sitri on official business, it would be more convenient to do so at daybreak."
"Yes, about that. I meant to introduce myself sooner, but there was a minor setback in my schedule, so my apologies for the delay."
"That's quite understandable. Life has a way of upending carefully laid plans. Like say, starting a war?"
At that moment, Sona's barrier activated. A glimmering wall of blue arose and formed a dome that encompassed the school and its adjacent facilities, turning the skyline a deep red in the process.
Kokabiel looked around, completely untroubled, then stared silently at Rias before his smile flattened.
"I see. So you've gone and spoiled the surprise I had in store for you." The Cadre let out an irritated sigh. "Children; always skipping the buildup, no desire to see good stage play in its entirety. Is it any wonder, then, that entertainment has fallen so far in these times?"
"I'm all for good buildup and payoff, but when you're trying to create a war just to say that you can, I tend not to stand on ceremony," Rias proclaimed.
"Such confidence!" A mocking grin threatened to split Kokabiel's face in two. "You truly do take after your brother, believing you've already won before anything has even happened. I mean, really, is this barrier supposed to do anything other than trap you here with me?"
Rias just returned his grin with one of her own.
"No, it's there for my sake."
The cheery voice coming from his immediate right caused Kokabiel's smile to instantly vanish. Turning in that direction, he came face-to-face with a smirking young woman in a pink and white magical girl costume. She held a star-tipped wand with both hands behind her back while she cheekily leaned toward him.
"My So-tan doesn't want the whole town frozen over."
Kokabiel blinked, then clicked his tongue.
"Ah… I'd forgotten about your strange little penchant for popping out of nowhere. Not that I'm complaining about the early arrival."
"Au contraire, Kokky-kun, it's you who is late," the magical girl playfully rebutted, pointing her wand at his face. "I was here hours ago for an anime-themed photo shoot event. I even brought Miracle Levia-tan's season three costume, my personal favorite!" For emphasis, she curled one leg and struck a silly pose while throwing a peace sign and a wink at Kokabiel.
"Is that right?" The Cadre's eyebrows twitched.
"Yep!" the woman chirped, before her expression dramatically darkened and her posture straightened. "But what's this I hear about you trying to start another war? About your intention to murder my little sister, and use her body like a stepping stone?!"
A bone-chilling wind blew across the area, sending Rias and her servants into shivering fits as their summer uniforms did nothing to protect against the sudden temperature swing. Kokabiel, meanwhile, remained unbothered, his smile once more returning as if he was recalling a fond memory.
The Fallen Angel stood from his seat and turned to address the far shorter Devil directly.
"We all do what we must, Serafall, and I simply must see an actual resolution to the Great War, not settle for some farcical agreement made between weak-willed fools with no sense of purpose."
The Fallen Star of God lifted his left hand and manifested a light spear, willing it to an enormous size before casually flicking his wrist. Quick as a gunshot, the spear launched itself toward the academy's gymnasium, but a bright blue magic circle appeared in its path and fired an equally huge lance of ice right back.
The opposing destructive forces collided and detonated, releasing a blast wave that knocked everyone previously standing down to the ground. Despite being saved from a direct hit, the gym still suffered damage, outer panels and some roofing almost leaped off the building, while nearby trees lost healthy branches from the sudden shock.
Rias grasped Akeno's forearm, the King and Queen slowly leveraging each other back to their feet. Issei reached out and lifted Koneko, pulling her up without resistance since her hands were covering her ears in pain.
"Too long have our factions gone without a good, healthy conflict," Kokabiel continued from up high, having taken to the air with ten jet-black avian wings spread out behind him. "It falls to me to change that, since no one else will. While I would prefer to face both you and Sirzechs at once, if he's decided not to attend, then I suppose it's out of my hands. So, on that note, let's you and I pick up where we left off centuries ago."
His challenge declared, the Cadre summoned a pair of longswords made entirely of congealed light into his hands. He then glanced down at Rias and grinned again.
"And as for you, Rias Gremory, shall I bring some of my pets to play with you and your chattel?"
An orb of light gathered at the bottom of the levitating construct, building in size and then firing like a cannon straight into the ground below. The baseball infield then collapsed as a massive sinkhole opened beneath it, and a smokeless green fire burst to the sky with the power of an erupting volcano.
Issei then witnessed something crawling out of the burning pit that he could not imagine ever existing.
At almost two meters tall, its massive body resembled that of a large dog completely void of hair, revealing every powerful muscle that lay beneath its dark red skin. The head featured pointed ears that stood straight up, two skeletal cavities in the place of a snout, and the smooth surface along its length indicated that this creature was, by some diabolical design, meant to have no eyes.
Not withstanding its lack of sight, it still sensed their presence and let out a snarl fit for something that would call hell its home. An eerie, toxic green glow emanated from its throat, effectively shining a light on the rows of knife-like fangs in its wide mouth and casting their shadows on the ground. (1)
The beast took several steps forward just as another one climbed up from the pit. And another, and another, and then a simultaneous three, and a further five!
"What in the hell?" Issei shuddered at the dozen eyeless faces fixed toward them in bloodlust.
"Haven't seen these things in a long time," Ddraig announced, independently summoning the Boosted Gear into physical form. "They're a breed of demonic beast that stalks the English countryside in the dead of night. Barghests, they're called. Just seeing one is considered an ill omen, but a whole pack like this spells certain death for anyone they catch alone."
Rias looked back up to the smirking Fallen. "You must have invested quite some time in rounding up all these mongrels, Kokabiel."
"That I did," he answered gleefully. "I was originally going to bring some of the Cerberus' whelps, but when I came across these wonderful specimens after the war, I thought to myself, 'In the debate of quantity versus quality, why settle for just one or the other?'"
The pack of hounds split into groups of two or three, spreading out to encircle the Devils and keeping a distance of five or six meters. The guttural snarls they produced were a grisly symphony, almost drowning out the rest of the world.
"I'm very eager to see how well they perform in this setting," the Cadre cackled, "so by all means, kick and scream as they tear you to pieces!"
"Ise, stick to the plan," Rias commanded. "Start boosting for transfers, we'll cover you."
"Got it! Let's do this, Ddraig!" Issei clenched his left hand.
"Boost!"
Kokabiel scoffed. "Hmph, for what good that will do you now."
Serafall spread her wings and leaped away from the throne, coming to a level height with Kokabiel. Beneath her feet, her blue magic circle appeared, and a clear sheet of ice began to form. The air itself seemed to freeze at her bidding, spreading out until it reached the boundaries of Sona's own barrier. A massive platform of ice now lay suspended in the air between Kokabiel and the Devils on the ground, shielding them from him.
"Rias, kill every one of his mutts! Don't let any of them escape!" she ordered as a wall of magic circles spawned behind her and aimed directly at Kokabiel.
The Cadre simply smiled, his teeth almost glistening. Even where the Satan's circles opened fire in deafening unison, he met the blasts head on with a menacing laugh.
Rias made the first move, sweeping her hands and creating a row of Destruction orbs in front of her. These orbs in turn fired large spreads of energy in the form of needles toward the part of the pack facing her. The beasts in her line of fire broke formation and scattered, putting distance between them and her while deftly avoiding the barrage.
A group of three suddenly charged from the left, closer to Akeno. The Queen launched a fork of lightning at the trio, but the leader spat a fireball in response, intercepting the attack. The two followers then burst through the resulting smoke cloud, their bodies alight with the same green fire and moving even faster.
One stayed on course for Akeno, while the second headed straight for Koneko. Both leaped for their targets, their true bodies returning in the process fangs first. Canine jaws snapped for the Devils' necks, coming within centimeters of meeting flesh. Akeno let out a pulse of lightning that threw back her attacker, and Koneko ducked down to allow the other to overshoot.
Instead of continuing their assault, the two hounds then ran away to the ring of circling beasts, melding back with their numbers.
Another pair sprinted at Rias next, this time in a staggered formation. The Gremory heiress fired her Power of Destruction in a constant stream right in their path, like a flamethrower. The hounds split up to evade, but Rias was prepared. Dispelling the stream, she then released a black and red wave in a much wider cone, hoping to destroy them in the follow-up.
To Issei's shock, this was countered, too. Both beasts fired back with a gout of flame that met the wave halfway, sparing themselves from annihilation. Much like the one before, this pair then turned and retreated to the safety of the pack.
What was going on? What were they trying to do? Were they more afraid of Rias' power than Akeno's? Or was it just…
'They're probing us,' Issei realized, 'checking for weaknesses!'
No wonder Kokabiel wanted to watch them work; this wasn't just some swarm of mindless predators, these things were intelligent!
"Boost!"
"Buchō! I don't think our magic will be of much use like this!" Akeno alerted.
"I agree. It looks like we'll have to kill them from close range. Defend each other, don't let them separate you!"
The three girls formed a triangle with Issei in the center. As this happened, the circle of beasts around them began to tighten.
'They're not as fast as Kiba, but still, at this range they can…'
Looking to his left, he saw another pair break off and run to attack Koneko.
The tiny Rook turned just in time to meet the incoming pair, ducking under one and batting it away, then grabbing hold of the other's snout and one ear before twisting. The resulting *CRACK* was like a snapping whip against the surrounding chorus of snarls. She let the animal fall to the ground in a lifeless heap, its neck cleanly broken. Within seconds, the body started to disintegrate and drift with the wind, as if the very fire in its guts consumed it.
"Fragile."
"So they're like Knights, huh? Good to know!" Issei opted to disregard their difference of opinions to the word 'fragile.'
"Are you alright?" Rias checked.
"Mm." Koneko nodded, her nose wrinkling at the smell of burning flesh.
"Boost!"
From the corner of his vision, Issei could see another four beasts climb out of the pit. Those already circling the group paid no heed as the new additions simply fell into formation.
Worry began to bubble in his stomach again. How long could they hold out like this?
Tobio nonchalantly flipped through the pages of a magazine at a corner stand, or so it seemed. In truth, the agent was masking his presence while watching Freed and Galilei, both of whom were moving east on the opposite side of the street.
By dusk, most shops and businesses in Kuoh closed for the day and workers were allowed to go home. The downtown crowds were always quick to diminish then, and very few people, if any, were still out walking around. It would be an ideal time for the two co-conspirators to move more freely, but the same was true for their shadow.
Setting the magazine back, the agent adjusted his jacket and crossed the empty road to more directly follow the pair. He kept a safe distance, staying out of immediate sight while surveying the surroundings. As potential witnesses dwindled by the minute, he stuck closer to the shadows of structures and mapped out potential strike points.
No sooner had the sun fallen and given way for the man-made lights around them, than a spike of magic drew his attention, and that of his targets, toward the academy. The agent made out a large magic circle in the sky above with something emerging from it, and he clearly recognized who was using it.
'Well, I'll be damned,' he thought.
"The hell?" Freed blurted, turning to Galilei. "You don't think he–"
"I'm afraid he must have," the bishop worriedly replied.
"Sonuvabitch! Let's go!"
The two began running for the academy, with Tobio not far behind. They hadn't gone more than a hundred meters before the agent made his first move. Focusing on the shadows cast by a street lamp his targets passed, he raised his arm and flicked his wrist.
Shadowy blades surfaced from the ground and launched in an arc toward the men's necks. Freed, however, drew Excalibur Rapidly from his coat and instantly surged forward to fend off the surprise attack on both himself and Galilei.
"Bwah!" The priest yelped and stumbled back, while the mad exorcist withdrew Excalibur Mimic and looked around wildly. "What was that?!"
Freed didn't answer; he just continued his watch of the area, eyes occasionally drifting down to the shadows on the ground.
During one such glance, Tobio appeared from the shadow of a nearby building and lunged for Freed's neck. The newly-formed twin sickles of black flame in his hands were met by Mimic catching them at the crossing point of their blades.
"How did I fucking know?!" Freed seethed, glaring at Tobio from the corner of his eye.
Mimic twisted and flexed in mid lock, its tip taking a sharp turn and aiming for Tobio's face. The agent disengaged and warded off three rapid snake-like jabs from the Excalibur fragment, taking two steps back. The weapon then coiled back and snapped into a straight sword as 'the one that got away' turned to face him.
"First, that cock-blocking ninja runs off with Nightmare, and now you're back?! This is really a not a good time, so if you could kindly fuck off, that would be fantastic!"
The madman vanished in the blink of an eye, only to reappear directly beside Tobio. He swung Rapidly in a long arc while Mimic twisted down to coil around and shred the agent's legs. Tobio blocked the two-pronged attack, unconcerned with the exorcist's new gimmicks, then retaliated with a crossing slash that forced Freed to defend lest he lose an arm.
The two continued trading blows in a deadly dance set to the sound of ringing metal, until the exiled bishop made his presence known again.
"Freed, we don't have time for this!"
"I know, dammit!" the exorcist shouted back, striking at Tobio's left side before ducking under a right-handed counter.
Their duel carried them from the sidewalk into the center street, and with it came some collateral damage. Two street lamps and a tree were decapitated, while several nearby sidewalk rails ended up in pieces. Freed had even cleaved a parked car in two with Rapidly.
Tobio hopped over a low sweep from Mimic and closed in on the follow-up, forcing Freed to abandon his next attack. Blades clashed and locked together, leaving the two glaring at one another mere centimeters apart.
"Fucking shit!" the exorcist spat. "Get outta here, old man! I'll be with you in a minute, just as soon as I'm finished with this bastard! MOVE!"
Galilei hesitated only for a moment, before turning and running to the east, straight for the academy. Tobio watched him leave but made no move to give chase.
With his charge safely away, Freed broke the lock and jumped back. His expression relaxed slightly as he repositioned himself and assumed a guarding stance.
"This won't go down like last time, pal."
He was in no mood to crack jokes anymore. Tobio, on the other hand, never was to begin with.
"No… It really won't."
The shadows beneath the agent's feet deepened, then swelled and began crawling up his legs, covering his body in a wave of deep black and crimson flames. As his face disappeared into the featureless void, he began chanting.
"Behowlest the slaying of one thousand mortals, besignest the slaying of ten thousand goblins. Mine name, which tis immersed in deepest darkness, tis the Imitation God traversing the Polar Night."
Recognizing what was happening, Freed moved to attack, only to be driven away by the flames consuming Tobio's form.
"Ack!"
"O ye, perishest by mine own blade. Fools ye art, o deformed Creator Gods. BALANCE BREAK! NIGHT CELESTIAL SLASH DOGS!"
The twisting darkness around Tobio burst apart in a flare of heat and pressure, forcing Freed several steps back. In place of the human Grigori agent now stood a tall werewolf-like being with six tails hanging behind him down to the heels of his digitigrade feet. Menacing red eyes glared at the mad exorcist, who held his ground despite the bestial killing intent focused directly on him.
Lifting his clawed hands, Tobio drew from the shadows enveloping his body, forming a war scythe that dwarfed the pair he had used mere seconds ago.
"Aw, shit…"
The agent gave Freed no further chance to speak, charging forward in a monstrous burst of speed. The exorcist brought his weapons to stop the giant blade from taking off his head, but could do little to halt the power behind the charge that broke his contact with the ground. Sparks flew between their grinding blades as the two combatants remained locked for the entire one-way trip to the outer limits of the city.
At the academy, an intense, otherworldly pressure put a sudden stop to all activity within the barrier, including Kokabiel and Serafall. Even the hellhounds lost focus, perking their ears and turning their heads to the source in surprise.
"The hell was that?!" Issei exclaimed. "One of ours?"
"Came from outside," Koneko said. "Someone else is fighting."
"Oh my~ Must be the help Mr. Lochlainn mentioned," Akeno remarked.
Up in the air, Kokabiel clicked his tongue.
"So that was it, huh? The teacher's pet tipped you off to my movements? I'll be put sure to put him down like the craven dog he is after this!"
The Cadre renewed his assault on Serafall, bombarding her with blades of light both in his hands and spawned from the air beside him. As the hounds resumed their attack on Rias' peerage, another dozen hounds clambered out from the pit, further adding to the enemy force.
"Stay together! We can win this!" Rias shouted her reassurance, but Issei didn't miss the shift in her gaze to the battling superpowers above them.
Just a short distance shy of the town's central plaza, Connor ran another quick check of his surroundings. Still no witnesses and, low crime rate as Kuoh had, no street cameras were aimed his way, either.
Returning to his work, the magus finished setting the last of the three basic arrays that would do the work of catching his target, which were all interconnected by another array that allowed for remote activation. Simple but effective, and very easy for an unaware enemy to overlook.
Kokabiel's floating throne had blasted a literal hole straight to hell, and the monstrous hounds he had summoned would keep coming through without end until the hole was sealed. Based on Assassin's observation, sealing the breach would do no good unless the throne itself was inoperable; otherwise, it would just make an entirely new gateway. It had to be destroyed.
Luckily, he knew someone with just the tool for the job. He just had to get their attention.
Tobio's attack on Sellzen and Galilei was more than just him settling the score. It was also a signal to Connor that the weak link was on his way. Activating the other half of the Dagaz signal rune on his left hand, he the magus took cover behind a brick wall and waited for his target to appear.
Within ten seconds, he did. Galilei came around the corner, running as fast as his legs could carry him. He passed by Connor without ever noticing, but even if he had, it was too late.
The trap had already been sprung.
Walls of fire suddenly burst from the ground around the man, boxing him into an area no larger than an office cubicle. Withering under the heat, his only way out was to go back. As he turned, though, he came face to face with someone blocking his path and pointing a gun at him.
Connor had quietly stepped out with another keepsake in his hand –a gift from the exorcists that invaded his apartment: a six-shot revolver-style light gun, modified with a muzzle brake and synthetic grip. Finger on the trigger, Connor aimed the firearm to the cornered bishop's head.
The towering flames dimmed and receded but, if anything, the sweat pouring down the man's brow only intensified.
"W-w-wait! I– GAAUGH!"
Before Galilei could begin to beg for his life, Kiba suddenly appeared behind him. The Knight ensured that the target of his rage was denied the plea for his life, first stabbing the man through the back with a sword in his left hand, then slashing his throat with a smaller blade in his right. He then kicked the dying bishop's legs out from underneath him, allowing him to fall on the sword still impaling him.
In doing so, the man landed with the sword's pointed pommel wedging itself between two concrete tiles. The added weight of his fall plunged the blade further through his gut until his body came to a stop, splayed over the weapon's guard as if his spine had been broken across it. With a lurch and a gurgling exhale, he stopped moving, eyes fixed toward the sky as the life left them.
Kiba remained where he was, looming over the corpse and leering down with overwhelming hatred. While Connor suspected that Kiba wasn't one to wish a brutal death on somebody, he could safely say that Galilei deserved it.
'Fear the wrath of a gentle man, indeed.'
Xenovia appeared some seconds later, Excalibur Destruction in hand, though it was unnecessary now. She looked down to the body and shook her head before peering back up to Kiba, who remained motionless.
"Kiba?" She clasped his shoulder but got no response. "Kiba!"
Again, no answer. The Knight just continued to glower at Galilei's empty shell.
Connor glanced to the academy, taking note of the explosions that lit up the evening sky. There wasn't time for this. If it came to a war of attrition, Rias and her group would be first to fall.
Taking a page from Caster's book, Connor approached the pair while holstering his weapon and–
*POW*
–slapped Kiba across the back of his head, to the astonishment of Xenovia.
"OW!" Finally, Kiba came to his senses, his free hand lifting to shield his head.
"You awake in there?!" Connor asked.
"I-I…" The blonde Devil blinked owlishly and almost looked down again, but shook his head to stop himself. "Yes, I'm… I'm fine."
'Fine' would have to be enough; arguing the contrary would take too long.
"Good, now get back with your group and give them a hand, they're outnumbered and losing ground fast. We'll catch up, go!"
The sandy blonde hesitated for only a moment, then turned to the academy and almost flickered out of existence with how fast he moved. Connor then knelt down and began rummaging through the dead bishop's clothes.
"What are you doing?" Xenovia asked.
"Checking for something. Fusing those swords couldn't be an easy or a quick process, so Tons-of-Fun here had to have something special that would–" he stopped mid-explanation as he pulled something from Galilei's robe, holding it up. "–help him with that."
"That's… a Holy Element," she said, examining the oblong azure diamond in the magus' hand. "The Church uses those to implant the ability to wield holy swords into qualified exorcists."
"Yeah, I know that, but why does he–" A thought struck Connor, and he turned his head to look up at the girl. "Xenovia, how does the Church harvest these elements?"
She blinked at his change in tone.
"Um, genetic samples are taken from compatible people and crystallized by a special ritual. Why?"
Looking back to the gem in his hand, Connor conducted a Structural Grasp, and almost retched.
The process reminded him of a Flowing and Transferring of Power spell, dealing with the storage of another being's magical energy in particular, but a small 'sample' was not what he sensed inside this piece. Evidently, Valper had tacked on a spell that molded human souls into the power source instead, and crammed them all into a single container.
As to whose souls these were, it wasn't hard to guess.
"What is it?"
"Never mind, something for later." Shaking his head, he stood up and pocketed the crystal, then turned around and pointed to the throne, still hovering where its owner had left it. "Okay, so, you see that thing up there?"
Following his direction, she nodded. "Yes?"
"Kokabiel's summoning a pack of hellhounds to fight the Devils, and he's using that to open a passageway here for them. Serafall Leviathan has already engaged him, so he's busy with her and not guarding his asset. It has got to go down if we want the reinforcements to stop."
"And you want me to destroy it?" she asked in summary.
"Can you?"
"If I could reach it, certainly."
"Then follow me, I've got a way to get you up there." Connor took off, prompting Xenovia to catch up and fall in behind him.
"And the others?"
"They'll have to do without you for just a little longer! You can join the fight afterward!"
The newly formed duo arrived without delay and swung around the west side of the campus grounds, weaving between the trees in the surrounding forest. In cover as they were, they managed to avoid encountering any of Sona's peerage upon passing the barrier.
'Assassin, cover us. Caster, seal off the portal when that thing comes down. Don't expose yourselves unless there's no other option.'
'Understood.'
'You've only got so much energy to spare for all three of us, kid! Don't overdo it!'
'Don't worry, I won't!'
He was careful to lead them away from most of the action and, more importantly, away from the notice of everyone and everything currently fighting. Kiba proved helpful on that front by drawing most of the horde into chasing him across the athletic fields, staying just outside of their range but close enough to strike some of them down and keep moving.
Connor and Xenovia continued until they came to the edge of the tree line near the throne's base, or where it would be if it wasn't levitating. Giving a quick double-check to make sure he could work without interruption, Connor then turned to Xenovia and pointed at the ground beneath his feet.
"Okay, now stand right here and I'll give you a boost up. Be ready to jump."
Doing as instructed despite her uncertainty, the exorcist took her position and held her weapon tightly. Connor then stepped back and began to inscribe the proper array into the dirt beside the circle.
'Ingwaz, Ehwaz, Thurisaz!'
Upon completion, he took a deep breath and exhaled, simultaneously sending a burst of Od from his palms into the array. Tapping into the leyline below, he willed it to open a vein and eject the ground beneath Xenovia.
In an instant, a column of dirt and rock shot upward at a steep angle, taking a shocked exorcist along for a very unconventional ride. The jolt nearly caused her to fall on her backside, but she grabbed the ledge of the makeshift platform and managed to maintain her footing. She continued to rise until the pillar slowed and came to a stop with its passenger left several meters above the throne.
Connor looked up to see her glance toward the dueling superpowers, then hoist Destruction over her head and leap from her perch. With one monstrous swing, she brought her blade down on the stone construct, almost cleaving it in two before it exploded in mid-air.
Shattered rock and pulverized mortar rained to the ground in all directions. Larger chunks fell both into the pit and around its diameter, forcing some hounds to evade or risk getting crushed. Through the dust, Connor saw Xenovia successfully touch down and rejoin the others.
A gust of wind then blew in from behind Connor, which he recognized as Caster using a runic spell that was good for putting up a short-lived smokescreen. With so much airborne debris, however, it instead spawned a vortex of fine dust and sand that enshrouded the sinkhole. The bright green blaze that once lit the battlefield like a bonfire turned opaque within the cloud.
Connor then saw the silhouette of a man forming beside the pit, with a familiar staff pointing into it.
On the other side of Kuoh, Tobio pressed his attack.
Back and forth, his great scythe swung, leaving no room for Freed to counter. At the same time, spectral clones of Jin leapt off from his form and harassed the exorcist at multiple angles, nipping away at him and cutting off any chance of escape. Likewise, small blades reached up from nearby shadows and sliced at Freed in random intervals.
Having brought his Balance Breaker to bear from the start this time, it wasn't even much work for the Grigori agent. Within the first minute, he had picked apart Freed's newfound style centered around the Excalibur fragments and rendered it near worthless. The mad exorcist's right hand, still clutching Transparency, lay on the ground long forgotten by both combatants as they continued to clash.
Even so, despite his newfound disadvantage, Freed continued to fight with feral tenacity. Excalibur Rapidly's augmenting of his movement speed managed to help him stay ahead of Tobio's attacks, but only just, while his experience did the rest of the work. He had even taken to clutching the hilt of Mimic in his teeth, using it to coil the blade around himself and lash out at the clones.
This desperate combat method only did so much, though, as more holes in his defense gradually opened. Freed was swiftly reaching his limit; the strength behind his guards was falling, his breathing labored, and his eyes lost their focus.
Then, he made a fatal mistake.
He swung Rapidly horizontally, trying to cut Tobio across the hip, but the agent beat him to it. Almost surgically, the scythe removed two of the exorcist's remaining fingers and the lower half of his hand before he could react. With his grip on the sword rendered ineffective, the Excalibur fragment flew out of his grasp in the follow-through. Tobio sent a violent kick to Freed's jaw that snapped his head back and sent Mimic flying as well. Now disarmed, the homonculus had no way to stop his opponent's giant blade from next severing his right leg at the knee.
The exorcist fell onto his back in stunned agony, and Tobio's canine foot stomped the center of his chest. Freed let out a groan as he felt something in his rib cage violently crack; a set of claws poised to pierce his torso. A coagulated glob of blood rolled up his throat, prompting him to turn aside and hack it out. In doing so, he came face to face with the pitch-black scythe, positioned to take off his head.
The exorcist lay in silence, staring at the blade, then he started laughing.
"Heh… Heh-heh-heh-hehehehahahahahaha-gagh-aagh!"
He only stopped when Tobio applied pressure with his foot, pushing the claws in until they broke the skin.
Freed looked up to his vanquisher and gave a resigned, lopsided grin. The pain in his eyes and blood running from his mouth and down his chin made his smile more piteous than sinister.
"Y'know… jus' now, I… had an epiphany…" he began, his words slurring. "This town, this whole damn place… maybe this is jus' where… bad ideas 'nd the sad saps who have 'em all jus' come to die… like me, agh…" he paused to grimace and spit out more blood. "Ugh, fuck… I shoulda bailed after that ninja fucked everything up last night…"
Tobio inclined his head, recalling the earlier mentioning of that word.
"What 'ninja?'" he questioned.
His crippled adversary cocked an eyebrow, studying the humanoid wolf's visage.
"Ya' don' know? … Not familiar with anyone that… can make a whole forest go dead silent, throws sharp, pointy things from long range and… and follows it up with high-explosive rockets?"
Tobio remained silent. Tempting as it was to pass this off as more rabbit-from-a-hat nonsense by a delirious Freed, the man's expression of genuine curiosity sparked the agent's interest. He had thought he'd never hear any actual details about how Lochlainn managed to acquired Nightmare, and it irritated him because he couldn't make an accurate report with such indistinct terms as 'putting dirt in his eye.'
Even from the mouth of an enemy, a clue was a clue.
Meanwhile, the lack of a reply from his executioner was answer enough for Freed's question. He chuckled and spat another wad of blood onto the ground.
"Heh… might wanna look into that."
Hoping to land a final defiant strike at his enemy, Freed drew his pistol and leaned up to shoot Tobio at point blank range. But it wasn't to be.
Tobio's blade sliced through the exorcist's neck, sending his head rolling from his shoulders. As the body went limp under him, the agent then grabbed the newly liberated head by the hair and brought it up to eye level, disengaging his Balance Breaker to face the man one last time.
"Do me a favor first," he calmly bid the rogue, "If you find Hanezu Himejima down in hell, tell him Tobio Ikuse sends his regards."
Freed's jaw fluttered slightly, before it went slack and his eyes rolled up and disappeared under his eyelids.
With his target now eliminated, Tobio could start with his next objective. He dropped the head, letting it fall into his shadow pocket as proof of the kill, then knelt to begin searching the body.
Up until the Twilight Healing debacle, Freed had been employed as one of many rogue exorcists on the Grigori's payroll. After escaping the purge, though, he had vanished, yet somehow maintained contact with Kokabiel in order to get involved in this little scheme. So where had he gone in that time? How had he avoided detection or even being sold out by someone around him in fear for their own life?
Searching through the inside coat pockets, Tobio found his answer. Tucked inside the left breast was a single silver medallion, no bigger than one's thumbnail. The amulet was ice cold to the touch, smooth on one side while a coiling serpent lay embossed on the other and oozed with a power that only one creature in the world could possess.
This was troubling; evidently, the Khaos Brigade was becoming far more lenient in its recruitment policies.
Standing up again, he gathered the exorcist's weapons and set the body ablaze with a fire spell, then turned to look in the direction of the main battle. For a moment, he wondered what his next course of action should be, until he noticed something in the sky directly above the academy and smiled.
"Oh, so he sent you, huh?"
Another pair of hounds strafed to get behind Issei and charged.
Just as he prepared to take them, Koneko intercepted with an empowered right hook that sent one beast into the other, and launched them both into a soccer goal.
"Mm," she intoned, quite pleased despite her stoic expression.
"Boost!" Ddraig's voice resounded from the Boosted Gear again, signaling that the reset was complete.
Kiba's sudden reappearance had been enough to put the pack on the defensive and give everyone the chance to regroup. He had immediately apologized to his King for his desertion, declaring that he would accept any punishment she may deliver without any complaint once the battle was finished.
The reunion was short-lived, though, as the beasts were quick to reorganize and reengage.
Kiba once more took the initiative, recreating his rating game performance and drawing a large part of the horde across the school's fields. For a while, it had worked beautifully. Just when it seemed as if he was boxed in, he would slip away and strike another hound to renew the chase. And when some would break away from the pursuit to go after Sona's group, he would change course and attack the deserters, keeping the focus on him.
The rest of the peerage was still under assault by several smaller groups, but they had some breathing room now thanks to their Knight. Sadly, that didn't last long, either. For every single hound someone managed to kill, even more would come crawling out of that massive pit; they just continually replaced their losses in steady increments.
Soon enough, the numbers would be too much for anyone to handle; it was an endless, uphill battle!
"What in the world?!" Rias suddenly exclaimed.
Turning to look in her direction, Issei's eyes widened when he saw what she did; a pillar had shot out of the ground right next to the floating throne. And someone he recognized was on top of it!
"That's–"
Before Issei could finish, the figure in question jumped from the pillar and dropped downward toward the throne. The massive sword in her hands tore through the floating structure like it was made from matchsticks; the ensuing explosion threw up clouds of white dust as huge chunks of marble crashed to Earth.
Xenovia tucked and rolled as she hit the ground, breaking into a run the moment she stopped rolling. Two broads swings of Excalibur Destruction cut down another three beasts and opened a path for her to join the group.
"Sorry I'm late," she said. "I had to deal with something."
"I'd say that something has been dealt with," Issei commented, with Koneko adding a thumbs-up.
"Boost!"
Issei glanced back to the portal, or where it was supposed to be. The cloud of dust resulting from Xenovia's attack had completely engulfed the area as it drifted down. He could still see the glowing green of the hellhounds that continued climbing out of the pit, but it was difficult to make out their shapes.
Suddenly, the dust around the portal began to turn and swirl, forming a miniature tornado that pulled every fine particle in the air toward it. The vortex then climbed up until hit the ice barrier, blasting dirt and sand every which way to create an overcast of grime and grit that drifted into the woods.
'What now?'
When the whirlwind dissipated, the pit –and what was happening inside– became visible. From the outer edges of the sinkhole, tree saplings had sprouted horizontally, growing at an alarming rate and crossing the hole's diameter in a matter of seconds. At the same time, they twisted around one another, forming chains and then spreading out to create spindly nets covered in thorns. And through all this, despite being engulfed by fire, the branches weren't burning!
More beasts tried to climb through the entwining trees, but only ended up trapped and pierced in the tangle of thorns. Even their breaths did nothing to free them or halt their impending demise. In a cacophony of groaning wood and crunching bones, the hole was filled with an almost woven network of briar and timber. The rapid growth came to a stop as the last of the green flames were snuffed out.
"Whoa… Did Connor do that?" Issei wondered aloud.
"Probably, let's just finish this!" Rias was quick to shut down any discussion.
"Boost!"
The tide of battle had suddenly turned, and the beasts realized that, too. There was a newfound sense of panic in their movements, they were hesitating. Heads snapped from side to side, as if searching for an escape, only to find none.
"Allow me."
Shifting Excalibur Destruction solely into her left hand, Xenovia closed her eyes and stood up straight, holding out her now empty right hand evenly with shoulders.
"Saint Peter, Saint Basil the Great, Saint Denis, and Blessed Virgin Mary, hear my prayer," she chanted.
In front of her hand, a pale gold magic appeared, shimmering and rippling like water as the hilt of a sword bound in chains emerged from its center.
Something about this set off the pack; the roughly three dozen beasts snarled in unison and charged the team from all sides in a panicked rush.
"Hold them off!" Akeno shouted.
Slamming her hands into the ground, she unleashed a wave of Destruction that collapsed the earth around the team, forcing some of the beasts to break off their attack. Those that managed to slip through were beaten back, thrown aside and blasted away by Issei, Koneko and Akeno respectively.
"I beseech in thy names: release the indomitable blade."
Xenovia took hold of the hilt and tugged, shattering the chains and setting their captive free. With a flourish, she drew her new weapon fully from the circle, revealing a huge, blue-bladed sword bearing a single golden edge and a semicircular guard over the hilt. In its entirety, the colossal sword looked to be longer than its wielder was tall, and the holy power that seemed to radiate from it made Issei sweat.
Even so, he couldn't stop himself from gawking. He knew Xenovia was strong, but to be able to dual wield such heavy weapons was just ridiculous. What the hell was the Church feeding her?!
Twisting her wrist, the girl then chambered the blade to her left side and slid into a wide stance while pulling Destruction over her left shoulder. She opened her golden eyes to glare at the monstrous beasts surrounding her, gripping the hilt even tighter.
"Boost!"
Issei hissed as the incredible vibration of nearing his physical limit returned with a vengeance. He had already boosted and transferred his Gear's power to the others several times, and now being able to consistently hit a fourth boost had made a world of difference, but he was getting tired.
In a spur-of-the-moment decision, he hoped that this next one would be the last time.
"Xenovia, here!"
"Transfer!"
Aiming the Boosted Gear toward the exorcist, a beam of green light shot from the gauntlet and encased the greatsword in her right hand. The bluenette's eyes widened at the sudden power-up, but she maintained her stance as the light shifted and the blade turned from striking blue to a blinding white.
"Destroy them, Durandal!" (2)
"EVERYBODY UP!" Rias yelled while deploying her wings and taking to the sky, followed quickly by her fellow Devils.
No sooner was her line of sight clear, Xenovia spun in place and swung the sword from left to right, sweeping the entire field around her. An arc of light flashed from the blade's edge and, in the next instant, everything exploded. A calamitous chain of blasts eclipsed Kokabiel's first light spear in intensity, and forced Issei to cover his face, both from the light and the deafening bursts of sound.
When Issei's hearing finally returned and he pried his eyes open, he stared in awe at the devastation. Trees were reduced to splinters, and large sections of the ground lay in chunks as if they had been carpet bombed. The huge pillar had also collapsed and crumbled, its remnants adding to the piles of rubble that lay beside the sealed pit. Similarly, parts of nearby buildings had been badly damaged, torn into shreds like one would expect to see in the wake of a natural disaster.
Amidst the debris, hounds lay where they fell in various states of mutilation; dismembered, bisected, beheaded, but in all, not one was left alive. Their bodies decomposed and burned away, briefly painting the athletic grounds in green before vanishing in a flurry of gray.
A dead silence fell over the once chaotic battlefield. One by one, the Gremory peerage returned to (somewhat) solid ground beside the now kneeling exorcist, Kiba being the last.
"Durandal…" the Knight exhaled, "the treasured holy sword of Roland."
"You had that in your pocket the whole time?!" Issei exclaimed.
"Yes. I would have brought it up sooner, but I haven't mastered using it yet, so it's hard to control for–." The huge sword began shaking, causing her to drop Destruction and use both hands to wrangle the unruly weapon like it was a wild animal. "Longer than a… few minutes… nnggh, stop it!… You've done your job!"
Issei took a few cautious steps away, as did several others, in the event her grip faltered.
While backing up, he noticed that the sounds of combat in the air above them had stopped as well. He glanced up and saw Kokabiel glaring down at them, or more accurately, at the sword Xenovia was fighting to hold. His eyes were wide with anger, and his breathing was hoarse, as if he was trying to glare Durandal into nonexistence.
Serafall, meanwhile, looked none the worse for wear. It seemed to Issei that the skirmish overhead did little more to either combatant than dirty their clothing, despite the explosions and magic being fired between the two sounding like a full-scale war. Furthermore, she had been in complete control of their battle, the ice barrier having held fast against every light weapon brand of magic he'd thrown at it.
A chuckle from Serafall broke Kokabiel from his furious reverie.
"Life comes at you fast, eh, Kokky-kun?"
The contemptuous smile she wore drove the Cadre to grind his teeth in fury. But before he could venomously spit back at her, a new voice came from above them.
"Couldn't agree more."
All eyes turned up just in time to see Sona's barrier begin collapsing, starting from the summit and crumbling apart like flakes of glass. As it did, something flew down from the normalizing night sky at high speed and slammed into Kokabiel. The Cadre's body hit Serafall's barrier with such force that he smashed right through it and continued into the ground, fracturing the site of impact into an enormous crater.
Seconds later, Kokabiel flew out of the crater, though not of his own volition. He rolled and tumbled several times, then slid to a stop face-down in the dirt. Only after he regained some control of his movements did the Cadre let out an agonized scream.
"AAAAAAAAAAGH!"
Looking closer, Issei realized with slight horror that two of Kokabiel's wings were missing. Quite violently ripped from his back, if the visibly torn skin and large quantity of blood was any clue.
Following the blotches of red that dotted the ground along Kokabiel's trajectory, he saw a series of interconnected blue lights illuminating the dust cloud from within and moving slowly forward. A figure took shape as they exited the cloud, the lights that followed drawing all attention to it.
It was a man covered from head to toe in pure white armor, which bore deep blue orbs on his chest, shoulders, arms and kneecaps. Skeletal white limbs jutted from his back, and sharp plumes of blue light resembling feathers hung down from these limbs to give the shape of dragon-like wings. In addition, a long tail –or what Issei guessed was a tail– was connected to the center of the spine, right between the junction of his wings.
Flicking his wrists, the man casually tossed aside something he had been holding in his clawed gauntlets: Kokabiel's missing, bloodied wings. He then turned his head to look up at Serafall, regarding her for a moment.
"Apologies, Lady Leviathan, but I'm afraid that I can't let you bully this idiot any further," he crisply stated. "There are some important parties that want a word with him."
Nobody said anything, too taken aback by the sudden appearance of this new element to impede his march. His clattering armor, accompanied by the crackle of Serafall's ice barrier breaking down, echoed in Issei's ears.
Kokabiel pushed himself back to his feet, wracked with pain as blood flowed from the bases of his amputated wings. Looking up to the armored figure, his visage turned into a demonic sneer.
"Vanishing Dragon?! Are you getting in my way now as well?!" the Cadre yelled.
"Is that a trick question?" The 'Vanishing Dragon' replied, stopping and derisively tilting his head. "How could I get any more in your way than you've already gotten in your own?"
"RAAAAAAAGH!"
The irate Fallen Angel manifested another spear in his hands and charged the white-clad man at full speed. His new target, however, remained where he stood, making no move to defend against the attack except to raise an arm and point at Kokabiel.
"DIVIDE!" a loud, booming voice suddenly echoed across the battlefield.
As if he'd been shot, Kokabiel's charge faltered. He swayed in the air and fought to maintain balance, leaving an opening that his new adversary was quick to exploit. In a burst of speed that Issei couldn't follow, the man closed the distance to his target and drove his armored right knee into the Cadre's gut, practically stabbing him with the sharpened tip. Spittle and blood flew from Kokabiel's mouth as the air left his lungs.
It didn't end there, though. Grabbing Kokabiel by the jaw, the 'Dragon' turned around and tossed him back into the air, then shot up to meet him at the highest point of his unwilling flight. Taking hold of Kokabiel's neck, the pair pitched downward and slammed into the ground again, once more fracturing the earth and sending a geyser of dust and debris skyward.
"Azazel was right," the 'Dragon' commented, standing up straight with Kokabiel still in his grasp. "You're at the end of your pitiful rope, which is a damn shame, really. If you had put just a little bit more planning into it, you might have actually pulled this off."
"DIVIDE!" the bodiless voice bellowed again.
The Cadre gasped and choked against the grip on his neck, the enormous power he had previously displayed against Serafall now gone; reduced to frail struggling.
"But I suppose even the best warriors can make stupid decisions in desperation."
"Damn you!" he managed to spit, glaring with all the hate he could muster at his vanquisher. "A filthy half-breed like you could never understand!"
"No, and I don't care to understand. It's not in my job description."
"DIVIDE!"
The figure clenched his open hand and threw it into Kokabiel's chest with the concussive force of a pile driver, finally knocking the warmongering Fallen out cold. The Cadre slumped lifelessly, only to be slung over the man's shoulder as if he were truly just a corpse.
"Cleanup duty is usually beneath me as well but, every now and then, I'll make an exception." The armored man then turned, sweeping through the crowd of onlookers until his gaze landed on Issei. "Besides, I had to see for myself if it was true. The Boosted Gear has finally manifested again, yet it's in the hands of a newbie Devil? I was prepared for the worst, but I really shouldn't have bothered hoping for the best."
"Hey, what the hell's that supposed to mean?" Issei demanded, already sick of this guy's dismissive attitude.
A deep growl emanated from the Boosted Gear as its emerald orb lit up.
"It means that Albion has groomed himself yet another battle junkie to perfectly match his pasty, arrogant ass!" Ddraig exclaimed.
The cobalt orbs on the man's armor began to pulse and glow in a similar fashion.
"That's rich, coming from you, Ddraig," the booming voice from earlier snapped. "I may be arrogant, but I've earned that right by staying at the top all these years. How many weaklings have you gone through just to satisfy your criteria for the 'ultimate underdog?' How many more before you finally find 'the One?'"
"At least I've come to enjoy trying new things, unlike you, who can't stand the thought of change," Ddraig fired back, "How have you not lost your mind with running the exact same gimmick for century after century?"
"As a wise human once said: 'If it ain't broke, don't fix it.'"
"Oh, well, I suppose that works for one so limited in scope as you, you uninspired windbag!"
"Name-calling will get you nowhere, just like the jack-of-all-trades approach has gotten you no closer to true domination! If I'm sick of anything, Ddraig, it's waiting on you to pick a damned lane!"
The two voices went back and forth for another whole minute, trading insults and mocking one another for mistakes and faults that grossly downplayed the scale of the events mentioned. Killing thousands, burning down entire towns, stealing from someone named 'Tiamat' – the list went on and steadily got worse. By the time they stopped arguing for longer that ten seconds, Issei finally mustered the courage to break the tension while Serafall touched down beside Rias.
"Uhh… I take it you two know each other?"
"Issei, to know Albion is to both love and hate Albion," Ddraig answered. "He's my eternal rival, and the being known as the Vanishing Dragon or White Dragon Emperor of Supremacy. The man you see before you is the wielder of Divine Dividing, the polar opposite of the Boosted Gear in almost every way. Much like with me, Albion was sealed into that thing after one of our more exciting battles got out of hand."
Issei's eyes widened. "Wait, so… that guy you've been dropping hints about all the time? This is him?"
"In the flesh, or rather, that of his newest host."
A contemplative hum reverberated from the white-clad Sacred Gear user.
"I'm surprised at you, Ddraig. You haven't told your new 'partner' about me?"
"I wanted to spare him the headache," Ddraig deflected, "since the very mention of your name has that profound ability."
"Heh, so says the pot to the kettle," 'Albion' snorted with what sounded like playful contempt. "Now look, while I would love to catch up with an old friend, my partner's schedule is unfortunately short on free time, so we'll have to hold off on fighting for a while."
"Yeah, yeah, we can kill each other again later. If you've got nothing else to say, then just go on and git! Shoo, shoo!"
The White Dragon chortled, and the lights shining from the armor dimmed, putting an end to their banter. The lighter voice of the wielder returned with a chuckle.
"Well, that was interesting," he said mirthfully. "I have never heard Albion talk that way before! I guess if he and Ddraig can't fight physically, they resort to verbal boxing."
"Er… sure, I suppo–" Issei awkwardly began, but the man cut him off.
"They are correct, though; our paths will cross again, by their prompting or otherwise. When that happens, I hope you'll put up a much better fight than Kokabiel did. This was just boring."
Issei couldn't stop himself from flinching at the poorly veiled threat.
"If your business here is concluded, Vanishing Dragon, I suggest you be on your way," Serafall urged in a humorless tone that did not at all fit her current state of dress. "We have your runaway's mess to clean up."
Albion's host bowed his head to her in respect.
"Of course, Lady Leviathan. Once more, the Grigori offers its sincerest apologies for the trouble."
If the Grigori was truly sincere about the apology, Issei couldn't tell; just the way the guy had said that made it come off as a scripted line.
The armored man regarded Issei one last time, then took to the sky with Kokabiel in tow.
Nobody said anything for another five seconds, until Sona and all the members of her peerage arrived on the scene. While the majority went to the aid of Rias' team, Sona and Tsubaki approached Serafall.
"Sister, who was that?" she asked.
Serafall did not respond, other than to pensively lower her head.
"Sister?"
Sona was about to try a third time, only to recoil when a beaming Serafall suddenly threw her hands into the air and cheered.
"Yaaayy, we won!" Then in a flash, she swept up Sona into her arms and started bouncing around while spinning. "We won, So-tan, we won! We won!"
"S–sister! Let go of me!" Sona complained as her legs flailed about. It was a comical sight for the ages, especially considering who was the taller of the two.
"Nuh-uh! We're gonna celebrate!" The Satan stopped jumping and held her sister at arms length, stars in her eyes. "Let's throw a dance-your-pants-off party in the gym after the photo shoot! Then after that, we can all play games, snuggle and make out until the break of dawn!"
Saji's own eyes almost bugged out of his head. "Wait, what?"
"SERA!"
The Satan just laughed and resuming spinning once more, heedless of the Sitri heiress' distress and her Queen's attempts to pacify the interaction.
Smiles of pity, amusement, relief and joy began to bloom across everyone's faces, except for Issei's.
The battle had been won, and in probably the best way possible –with no casualties– but it didn't feel like a total victory to Issei. At the forefront of his mind, all he could feel was… disappointment. And dread.
He and the others had only been spared facing Kokabiel themselves due to Serafall, and while she hadn't given him the battle he wanted, that was not to say that the Cadre was weak. His first shot at the gym was proof that anyone less powerful than Serafall stood no chance against him; he could have obliterated them all as an afterthought.
So for this 'white knight' to just come out of nowhere and kick Kokabiel's ass, then challenge Issei like he was on the same level was just frustrating.
"Hey, Ddraig."
"Yeah?"
"…I'm really gonna have to fight him, aren't I?"
"Yes, you will, and don't put it past him to find a way to force your hand if you refuse," the Red Dragon warned. "Thanks to these Gears, Albion and I can't die, even though our real bodies are long gone. We're destined to fight forever, along with our hosts."
"Now, so am I, huh?" the Pawn quietly lamented, unaware of the conversation catching Kiba's attention. "So what do I do?"
"All you can do is prepare, and if today is any indicator, we've got a lot of work ahead of us."
"Obviously…"
Connor hadn't stuck around for any sort of celebration.
After Caster had done his work on the pit and vanished once again, he had ducked back into the woods to avoid being spotted by Kokabiel. In doing so, he had also saved himself from getting caught in the crossfire of Xenovia's final attack.
With the arrival of the man in white and his beat down of Kokabiel, the situation was well and truly contained. At that point, he and Caster left before anyone could take further notice of the magus' presence. Assassin volunteered to stay behind and continue monitoring the situation, with the intent of giving a full report later.
In a text discussion prior to nightfall, he and Tobio agreed to meet up halfway between his apartment and the north part of town. Ironically, it was at the same spot they had originally met; the park fountain where Connor first became involved in the supernatural events in Kuoh. At that late hour, absolutely no one else would be around, especially not the Devils since they were busy with damage control.
As he'd come to expect by that point, Tobio was already there by the time he arrived, albeit dressed in a casual attire the magus had yet to see prior. The black hoodie coupled with dark gray pants and shoes allowed him to blend into his current environment with hardly any effort.
"Has the loose end been tied up?" Connor asked.
Tobio nodded. "Yeah, and Galilei?"
"He went to his reward. The body's still where Kiba left it a little ways from the academy. Wasn't sure if you wanted to handle cleanup there or not."
"I decided to let the Devils have it. They've got a big enough case against the Grigori; if their kill suddenly vanishes without a trace, it would give them reason to suspect we were hiding something worse."
"Hmm." One could make a similar argument about Sellzen, but since he was the more dangerous of Kokabiel's followers, it was likely more prudent to dispose of him quickly.
"And the swords?"
Wordlessly, Tobio looked to his right as his shadow pocket opened up. He reached in and rummaged for a bit before pulling out a long bundle wrapped in a dark green piece of canvas. The agent then laid it down on the grass and unfurled the tarp, revealing its contents.
Connor shook his head. He would never have guessed that these things were crafted from the same source material, since none of them looked alike in any way. From left to right was a gigantic misshapen kris dagger, a broadsword with way too big of a handle, and what seemed like a metal-coated party streamer fixed to a scimitar hilt.
"Damn, these things are ugly."
"Well, what can you do?" Tobio shrugged, then rolled up the swords. "You got it from here?"
"Yeah, I think I can manage," the magus deadpanned, taking the load under one arm.
"Great, then I'll just vanish before the smoke clears."
Instead of making use of his shadow portal like before, Tobio simply turned and walked back toward town. He hadn't gone more than a few meters before he seemed to vanish into the darkness.
Connor stood in place for several seconds, before Caster exited spirit form beside him.
"Everything alright?" the spirit inquired.
The magus' free hand found its way into his pocket, the fingers idly brushing the confiscated Holy Element.
"Yeah, just thinking. Other than a couple of things to do as follow-up…" he looked to Caster and smiled. "I'd say it's mission accomplished."
'Grímnir' smirked. "Feels good to say out loud, doesn't it?"
It really did.
…
(1): In the spirit of going off the beaten path, I opted for a kind of monster that's larger in number and just as malevolent to the living. Those who have played The Witcher III's Blood and Wine expansion might recognize them by the description.
(2): I reworked her chant to sound more like that of a Noble Phantasm, because why the hell not?
…
Done.
Ugh… from a writing perspective, this was brutal. Some chapters leave you feeling accomplished in their execution, while others seem like more hassle than they have any right to be. For months, this was one of the latter. That's the downside of planning too far ahead in a story; if something happens in between then and now that drastically mixes things up, your future plans require reworking, and that takes as much time as writing them out in the first place. Worse still if you have to rework things several times.
Much like most of my fight scenes, I opted to get this all in one entry instead of spreading it out. Don't know if I've said this previously to someone in a PM or not, but action and combat scenes –from my point of view– should be fast-paced and leave little time for characters to speak, or even think in some cases. Kind of hard to accomplish when you're writing multiple converging points of view while trying to make the pace of the whole scene fluid, especially with all the different personas that can play into the drama.
But anyway, I'm satisfied that this turned out the way it did, as far as the differences to canon. It leaves some room for the next chapter to put a nice, little bow on this arc.
If you enjoyed what you read, leave a favorite, a follow or a review to let me know. Any advice, support or simple good wishes that you feel like giving would be greatly appreciated.
As always, thank you for reading!