Back with Kuroh
CLANG! CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-!
Many times their blades collided with one another with the force of tectonic plates, their wielders pumping much energy into every blow in their determination towards tearing one another a new one.
Kuroh's coat fluttered behind him while he sidestepped, swinging towards Talos' neck with the intent to decapitate him only for the larger man to parry him, the two rapidly trading such blows several times each second as they encircled one another. In contrast with their rapid slashes and exchanges, their encircling looked slow and methodical, like two apex predators gauging one another's potential threat to their lives and those of their underlings. Longsword duelled repeatedly against Katana while the two sword fighters tore away at one another.
Even with the apparent stalemate both fighters looked to be in, one could easily pick apart the fragile exterior to see how it was REALLY going… and it did not seem to be in Kuroh's favor.
'This isn't good, this guy's skill with a blade far surpasses my own…' the man thought with clenched teeth, holding his Katana's back edge with his free hand to help divert a slash away from him before striking with his weapon's hilt in a jabbing motion. His foe quickly stepped back, having tasted such a blow before and did not wish for a repeat of a Gravity enhanced strike that would have knocked him off balance had it connected.
Speaking of his gravity powers, one thing that served to sway things in his opponent's favor was that early into their sword exchange fest Kuroh had found it necessary to use his gravity manipulation to augment his Katana's speed and striking power to match the pure STRENGTH behind Talos' blows. Such manipulation on such a small scale wasn't too inonvinent for the samurai male, but it also proved to be somewhat straining to constantly maintain for extended time period. It didn't help that this was the ONLY way he could use his gravity powers effectively against Talos since the larger Night Lord seemed to ALWAYS be able to parry or block his blows whenever he tried other manoeuvres with them.
Thus, he'd been engaging with him in this sword fight… of which Kuroh could sense his impending defeat.
"For a mortal, you're well-versed with the sword…"
Briefly Talos made a comment acknowledging the man's skill with a blade after they broke away from one another. The way his eyes glinted however, spoke of a more mocking tone to him which indicated that he had been aware of what Kuroh had to do to match himself against his own blade.
However, the samurai male note of the way his hands kept on trembling violently from the residue vibrations from their previous clashes. 'Damnit… if I don't think of something soon…!' he thought, already sensing that the longer this fight went on the more likely that Issei would get himself killed by the various supernatural forces at play here. He was a normal civilian after al, with little to no formal training before they'd found him, not to mention that he doubted those 'Exorcists' would protect him since they're not obligated to. He didn't know how long he could last against this guy either, only adding yet another layer of stress to his mind.
No wonder people started getting grey hairs when involved in these situations for a long time.
Gritting his teeth, Kuroh snarled as he flexed his free hand which started glowing in a grey aura, a sign that his gravity powers were being activated. His opponent saw this and immediately rushed in, closing the distance nearly instantly with a diagonal slash being performed towards the arm that was manifesting the power in the first place. Fortunately Kuroh had anticipated this and quickly pulled the old 'bait and switch tactic. The grey aura vanished immediately from his hand as he pivoted himself out of the longsword's way and then injured the grey aura around his other hand. He then promptly threw it upwards and then dragged it downwards…
SCHWING!
… to then hop off the ground and allow the 'space' he had pulled in to launch him upwards into the air like a makeshift slingshot.
"I see, so you can apply that Gravity in additional ways…"
Talos narrowed his eyes at his opponent, readying his longsword for the next portion of the battle. From what he had observed his opponent relied on a hybrid of options for battle, such as a mix of swordsmanship and some sort of spatial manipulation magic, likely gravity due to the force he felt behind the strikes from his Katana. In that case, he had reason to believe that he wasn't capable of much else beyond those two due to his frame and seeming reliance on his Katana.
In that case, Talos knew what his next course of action was.
Up in the air Kuroh activated his Gravity powers to cloak his entire body in his silver aura to allow himself to levitate in the air. He then glowered down at his opponent, before he promptly threw his free hand forwards towards Talos down below, generating a silver hand shaped liike his own that he launched dowards him in a closed fist, intending to deliver an overhead bonking like he often did to Issei like some horny police.
Talos meanwhile, simply hopped to the side to dodge the fist, then promptly grabbed onto the offending limb to start pulling Kuroh down into sword striking range, succeeding in the following 2 seconds as Kuroh fell down towards him…
Although Talos glowered at the slight smirk forming on the samurai's face.
As for why Kuroh had started smirking all of a sudden, he enveloped his Katana in his gravity to enhance it as much as possible, raising it to the air for a downward slash while also increasing the 'pull' factor on his previously generated limb, resulting in him blurring downwards towards the armored Night Lord.
SWING!
CLANG!
In an instant, Talos swung his Longsword upwards to meet against Kuroh's Katana with the two colliding with enough force to cause a shockwave to ERUPT from their connection point like some kind of bomb going off. Anything that wasn't nailed down got blown away, including Kuroh and his Katana due to still being in the air. One could say that his strike had literally gotten bounced away like he'd hit a spring or something.
Upon his landing however, Kuroh slid to a halt using his Katana as a makeshift rod to stab into the ground and halt his motion till his form did so. Looking up allowed him to widen his eyes at the sight of his opponent already on him, longsword held like a golf club in a swing already in motion towards his face. Kuroh quickly got up and held his Katana at the ready while reinforcing himself with as much power as he could…
SCWING-CLANG!
"Gah!"
… That turned out to not be enough unfortunately for the swing Talos generated proved too great, and Kuroh got sent crashing into a nearby wall. The sheer impact created a huge dust cloud that covered his form from view, and by large that meant enough to cover a portion of the entire room.
STOMP, STOMP, STOMP, STOMP!
After a few slow yet calculated stomps, Talos stood before the smoke, silent as a statue as he surveyed it intently like he were searching for something. Apparently he found whatever it was he was looking for a couple moments later, because he promptly raised his Longsword for a reverse horizontal swing that dispersed the smoke…
Revealing a kneeling Kuroh who knelt on one leg, heaving and gasping for breath after that last blow but alive. Although, to say he had gotten off unscathed would have been a downright lie for several reasons, one of them being that he looked to be bruised all over, as nearly every patch of skin he had looked to have cuts and bruising of varying severity levels. One could see multiple blood trails rolling down both sides of his head and connecting down to his chin, blood droplets slowly cascading down to the ground beneath him with those droplets already having created a foot-sized puzzle next to his shoes.
But the biggest indicator of the horrific state Kuroh had been reduced to… was his Katana.
The whole thing stood in front of him, impaling the ground like a certain king's sword in a large stone. However, the weapon looked to have been severely damaged due to multiple cracks running along it's blade, its edge looking to have been forcibly turned to a serrated one resembling a weapon with a lack of maintenance that spanned years. Essentially, the weapon would be of no use to Kuroh now, not until he got it repaired.
Something which Talos also noted as he glowered at his opponent.
"You are but a fool into coming here and facing me alone boy. Hellsing must be quite desperate to recruit even a weak little human like you."
Several brows twitched on the samurai's face at the insults directed at him. "Grrr…!" Kuroh growled at Talos with the look of irritation and anger. His sword was damaged, nigh-destroyed at this point considering the damage it'd sustained, and he was currently wounded quite badly. Nevertheless, even with his vision starting to sway back and forth in terms of focus Kuroh refused to give in, not to this fuckwit.
As for said fuckwit, Talos pulled his arm back while lifting his sword in a forward position.
"Surrender now boy, and your death will be painless, I am less tolerable than my brothers."
Kuroh breathed for some while, catching some breath while calming his nerves before he replied to the Night Lord. "Never. I will never surrender to the likes of you." He declared with a strong convection.
"Hmmmmm, you are one of the bravest fools I have met in a while. Its a shame, a damn shame that you have to die here."
With that declaration, Talos sped towards Kuroh, jumping towards his opponent with his sword prepared to finally sever the samurai male's head from his shoulders with a loud roar escaping his lips.
Even when he tried to move, Kuroh's body fell limp onto all fours thanks to his lack of cohesion and his body's weakened state. He had to curse internally, his body hadn't gotten off freely from that last blow and he could hardly defend himself against his adversary at this point. If he didn't figure something out in the next 2 seconds, Kuroh feared the end would be next.
By the time he thought of this, Talos rapidly closed in on his prey, time itself seemingly moving in slow motion while he had his sword aimed at Kuroh's torso. The butler boy couldn't do anything except to close his eyes, already accepting the eternal darkness that was coming for him.
SHHING!
The sword pierced Kuroh through his entire chest. Limping down to the ground while the blade was still attached to his body.
Talos stared at the now body of the dead Hellsing agent.
"You were foolish for thinking you could stand against me, mortal. Human arrogance digs them 6 foot deep when going against those of higher status than them. Blinded by their so-called 'invincible' magic, there is one thing which all humans have in common with each other: they all die in the end."
Kuroh lectured the dead Kuroh, explaining that human arrogance was their biggest downfall. Though one might argue that such actions served no purpose at this point, since it was useless talking to a recently deceased corpse.
"Hellsing is a dangerous faction, I'll acknowledge that. But its too bad they lost one of their precious agents. Shame, its only a matter of time until one day Hellsing shall fall, by their own actions."
Finished with his lecture, Talos began tugging at his weapon's hilt in an attempt to pull his blade out of Kuroh's body… that is, until he noticed something unusual. Usually whenever he stabbed someone through their body there was blood staining his blade around it. Its highly unlikely for a person to not bleed when he watched them bleed in front of his two own eyes.
What the hell was going on here?
Just when he went to inspect more of his blade, his whole body suddenly started feeling heavy.
"!?"
All around the Night Lord his center of gravity increased tenfold, straining his muscle and armor that started creaking from the sudden strain. He could hardly lift a freaking finger let alone move himself, causing the man to let out an angry howl mixed with his confusion about what was currency going on with him.
But then, his gaze fell upon the most likely subject before him: the supposed 'corpse' that he had previously impaled. Though soon enough, the 'corpse' raised its head to show that it wasn't exactly a corpse, but an injured yet still definitely LIVING Kuroh sporting a look of sheer rebellion.
In the next few seconds, the samurai pushed himself up to his feet and, using what little strength he could muster, lunged towards his opponent. He reached his arm out, and to Talos' shock it turned out he was aiming for something… something the Night Lord currently held in his possession. Before he could react to what had happened, Kuroh had managed to dash right past him and fall to the ground, a certain Longsword of his now wrapped entirely in his arms.
Talos couldn't believe what his eyes had just witnessed nor did he fully comprehend the suddenly empty feeling within his usual sword arm that once held his weapon. To him, bafflement could barely describe the level of sheer emotion flooding his brain at what had just transpired… although soon enough his bran rebooted when he heard the sound armor being punctured followed by that of flesh following suit.
SCHUNK!
"How did you-?!"
In an instant, Kuroh had managed to lunge forwards once more with Talos' own Longsword being thrust towards him, the blade glistening in the hands of its new wielder.
At that moment, he suddenly remembered Kuroh's ability to manipulate gravity which made his brain work overdrive to decipher what had happened just now. It didn't take him long to figure out the likely strategy Kuroh had employed against him. He must've misdirected the stab wound to an area which would make him LOOK like a corpse and that would give off the sight that he'd dealt a fatal blow to him, then he must've played 'dead' in order to get him to lower his guard before launching his counterattack.
A cowardly tactic…
A NIGHT LORD tactic.
"You clever fool."
As Talos muttered under his breath, Kuroh raised the stolen blade while gritting his teeth and muster all of what remained his strength to deliver a vicious wound to Talos shoulder.
SHHIINNG!
"AHHHHH!"
Talos screamed in pain from the fatal slash wound delivered to him, feeling his sword arm go slack in response. Thanks to his blade being made from materials similar to his Armor, it had a much easier time piercing through it compared to the damaged Katana, but nevertheless thanks to those actions blood began spewing out of the wound like a waterfall.
Acting on his instincts he quickly threw his sole functioning arm out in the form of a backhand, thwacking Kuroh's chest.
BAM!
"BLARGH!"
Kuroh hands and feet were stretched out and his face showed a painful expression while spitting out his spit and blood from the force of the pressure Talos had inflicted upon him via that backhand. He got launched like a missile away from Talos, skidding through the floor before slamming himself into another section of the flesh wall. Fortunately, the flesh wall didn't hurt as much as an earthen or concrete wall would have, in those cases Kuroh bet he wouldn't have been able to escape with as few injuries as he did.
Meanwhile, Talos panted heavily in the same manner as his opponent in front of him while staring down at the blood on his hand, feeling the vicious wound on his body before glancing back to Kuroh struggling form.
"(PANT) I will admit that was a cowardly move you made there boy, but that was a clever idea you just thought of. If you weren't against us you would've been a fine night lord like us. But as unfortunate I know when I am defeated."
That bastard samurai may not have realized it, but the injury he'd dealt to his person had done more damage than what was visible on the surface. Ordinarily Talos would have punished the bastard by shredding him to pieces before retreating to heal from this injury, however Kuroh now held the one weapon that could be used to harm him, and combined with that gravity ability of his Talos didn't fancy fighting him when in his currently injured state. As much as he hated the thought of running away from this mortal, there would come a time when he could reclaim his rightful sword from him in the future, so he would simply bide his time until then.
Turning around while holding on his wound and limping around. He stops for a moment before he turns around and glance at Kuroh as he struggles to stand up with his stolen blade.
"We may meet again boy and when we do, we shall see who comes out alive. I'll be waiting by then."
After Talos declared his retreat, he once again turned around and limped toward the church basement door.
Seeing this and realizing that his foe was trying to get away, Kuroh immediately struggled to stand upright and chase after him. Yet the moment he tried to get up, his legs violently trembled and he couldn't last a couple steps before nearly falling over, had he not stabbed the Longsword into the ground for support. Try as he might, Kuroh had to admit to himself that he was forcing his body to go over his limit, something he'd done since he couldn't allow that bastard Night Lord to escape his grasp.
Howeve, his human body's limits had been reached already, in fact one could say that his limits had been reached the moment he had started playing dead after getting that blow to his form. Even now he could feel a slight chill coming on from the amount of blood he'd lost already. There would be no more strenuous activity for him throughout the night until he got back home for treatment.
Therefore, it was only natural that instead of complying with Kuroh's mental order, he felt a heavyweight over his own body and lost what remaining feeling he had in his legs. Dropping down the ground, he just barely avoided crashing on all fours by stabbing the Longsword's blade just in time for support.
Kuroh panted for a while before he spoke while thinking about the companion he had brought with him, a bitter chuckle escaping his lips at his predicament. "I'm sorry Issei, looks like you're on your own." He muttered, even though the male knew that Issei could not hear him. Nevertheless, he could tell he was on his way up toward the stairs and would likely be reaching their rescue target soon enough. Coughing out a mouthful of blood to the ground, the man made one last comment before his consciousness gave way. "Save her Issei… save… Asia….."
To Issei just before the starting fight with Talos and Freed.
"ASIA!" Issei screamed the name of the captured nun while running up the stairs towards her. He was hoping to reach her in time before it's too late when the bastards started tormenting her to death or something.
"AAAAAAHHHHH!"
The blond hair girl had already started screaming out in pain by the time he had reached the halfway point, to which Issei's chest began to hurt incessantly as a result which only further fuelled the adrenaline coursing through his system. His heart pounded like a jackhammer within his chest at such high volumes he swore he could hear it like it was happening next to his ears.
"HOLD ON! I'M COMING ASIA!" Issei declared to Asia while increasing his speed through the stairs. Gritting his teeth, Issei frantically bulldozed his way up the stairs like a madman possessed by the devil. When he sees he's close to the top he yelled out another bout of encouragement to the blonde. "I'M ALMOST THERE ASIA! JUST HANG ON!"
Just as he about to reach the top of the staircase...
"Your too late!" Issei's worst fear has come true when he finally reached the stop of the staircase platform, allowing his eyes to shrink in horror when he saw something coming out of Asia's body.
There was a green orb slowly coming out of her chest as she screamed in pain and agony, all the way until it completely exited out of her chest. It floated there for a few seconds, her eyes going blank and dull like a lifeless doll and it was floating towards Raynare.
The fallen angel smiled cruelly as she downright SNATCHED the orb from the air like a beggar seeing some cash after a long time, before it transformed into a pair of rings that placed themselves on her index fingers. "Finally! I have it! "Ufufu. Ahahahahahaha! I finally have it! The supreme power! With this, I can become a supreme Fallen Angel! With this I can pay back all those who were looking down on me! I can finally be admired by Azazel!"
"No." In sheer contrast to the positively delighted Fallen, Issei whispered brokenly in despair at the feeling of failure that swept overhim. Looking almost broken, he saw that Asia was still attached to the cross, looking lifeless. Quickly, or rather maybe desperately would have been a better adjective here, Issei rushed towards her pinned form while ignoring the giggling Raynare, untying her binds.
(Play OST: Sadness and Sorrow)
Thanks to this, the blonde girl's form collapsed on top of him like a helpless sack of potatoes, the brunette male quickly placing his feet wide to try and maintain his balance with his arms securing themselves around her frail-looking body.
Apparently these actions were enough to rouse her, for Asia weakly fluttered her eyes open, her pupils looking lifeless and hollow before she laid those eyes on her savior Issei. "...I-Issei..."
"Don't worry Asia. it'll be alright. I've come to take you home." Issei desperately uttered to Asia while trying to encourage her to cling on to her life.
Asia smiled at Issei before weakly lifted her had at the brunette teary face. "I'm….so glad….to see you again…I…..had a wonderful time with you…..and the rest…." her voice gradually got weaker each minute whilst her breath started slowing down.
As for why that was, the brunette had a pretty good idea though he desperately refused to believe it. Issei didn't want to believe what Kuroh said to him back when he first found out about the supernatural, regarding Sacred Gears.
Any attempt to extract them winds up killing the user… I've seen that happen before.
He refused to believe the echo of Kuroh telling him the consequences of extracting the sacred gear from the user
"Please hang on Asia. You're going to be fine, you'll see Meredith, Theseus, Kuroh, Michel, Kuroka, and Vali. They're waiting for you back home. You'll have ice cream, play at a carnival, and most of all you'll have a great time."
"I am so glad and wish…I could spend…more time…with them." Asia breath was slowing down before slowly closing her eyes. "My final moments…my happy memories….I can now know…you and the others….care for me….now my time….is coming to an end."
Isse's tears streamed down his face like waterfalls, sorrow stabbing at him like a dagger alongside helplessness and frustration. He cannot do anything to save Asia now, he failed to save her despite trying to keep his promise.
Asia's hand slowly run down from Issei's chest, the loss of her strength rendering it unable to remain where it had been previously. However, in a bid to use what little strength she still possessed, Asia reached out towards the air above them as if attempting to reach the heavens themselves. "Oh Lord…..I thank you…..for allowing me…..to spend and have….such happy memories…I finally have friends….Thank you God….I'm coming my lord….I'm coming to be at…your side."
Her last few words released with naught but a whisper, cracking like glass breaking apart, Asia's hand finally fell limp as all motion ceased, cementing her passing from this world. Her face left behind a soft serene expression, gentle like a calm ocean surface with a pleasant smile on her lips, as if Asia had gone away with practically no regrets in her life. Like she'd reached the ending she had hoped for all these years.
On the other hand, compared to her nigh angelic expression Issei looked to be absolutely MISERABLE, his eyes almost black with the despair and sadness coursing through him at the moment. He closed his tear spewing eyes while still holding onto Asia's limp form that already started to feel cold, a further indication of his failure, as his tears streamed like a pair of waterfalls. Choked sobs ripped free from his throat, yet they did little to promote the huge feeling of frustration and injustice that bubbled furiously within his chest.
Never before had he felt like a shitter human being than in this moment, his arms wrapped around a life that never got the chance that it deserved. Not only did he fail the promise he had made with Asia, to bring her home and spend some more time together, but he'd been unable to prevent these ASSHOLES from taking away a life that did not do anything to warrant such treatment. He truly really wished that God would come down and help Asia from the torment and suffering she had to deal with, and yet the fact that he didn't only made the seed of resentment plant itself inside of him.
Nevertheless, against every convention of human nature and against his own surging feelings at this time, Issei purged that seed from his being with nothing but his sheer will, his teeth gnashed so tightly that they could have cracked under the strain. Even under the heavy miasma that was his despair at losing her, Issei knew blaming God would not bring Asia back from the dead not to mention that in the short time he'd known her, he knew Asia would not like Issei blaming the God of the bible that she worshipped so much.
"Hahahahahaha why are you grieving over the dead corpse of a stray nun? She should be glad and honored that her sacred gear now belongs to someone more worthy! You couldn't protect her because no matter what humans will always be at the bottom of the food chain!"
(OST ends)
Sounds of disks screeching resonated within his head when Issei heard Raynare's ranting and mockery aimed toward him. As if a switch had been flipped, the male remained silent as his lips pushed themselves into a neutral line. He ignored the fallen angel while slowly putting Asia down to the ground while putting her hands together in a praying position.
"That girl is dead ya'know? You failed to protect her when even the Hellsing couldn't even kept a closer eye to her! Its like what they all say humans are nothing no than just whiny little bitches."
THUMP-THUMP!
THUMP-THUMP!
THUMP-THUMP!
Even as Raynare's increasingly maniacal ranting continued, Issei ignored her while hearing his heartbeat growing louder and louder. His hair bangs over his eyes while keeping still. Red aura begins to appear and surround him, winds blowing through his rustling hair.
"You know the reason why I choose the name Yuuma? Because I was literally hoping to kill you over dawn, but you were only lucky that fucking Hellsing intervened. I was really hoping REALLY hoping that a worthless human like you could die so you would not possess a powerful sacred gear. I never even loved you in the first place. Who would ever love a pervert and piece of shit ass human like you."
(Play OST: Devil Trigger)
Issei gripped his hands tightly, his bones cracking from the pressure while they violently trembled like they were experiencing their own high-tier earthquake. Veins began to appear over his hands and arms, the amount of anger the former pervert boy was almost at his limit, bolstered by the mockery that now forced its way into his ears and very being. Combined with Asia's demise, Issei thought about the times that he had spent with Raynare on their date which would have been a source of joy for any normal guy… but with his current knowledge and emotional damage, Issei could feel nothing but sick revulsion.
He wished that it had been Asia he'd met first instead.
He wished Raynare had taken Asia's place at this moment.
That woman…
That BITCH…
She had to pay… she must pay… she must fucking PAY!
While under this state, Issei nearly exploded with his fury towards the Fallen Angel, fully intent on pounding her face in for the insults towards the Nun whom he held dear. Arguably more so than he ever did Raynare with how pure she was.
But before he could do so, Issei began to hear someone speaking to him in a deep voice in his mind.
'Well well, it appears the black-winged bitch has taken something precious away from you. She has dared mock you, insulted your pride and stolen a pure hearted girl away from your grasp.'
'...who are you?'
'My name is not important, what is more important is this: are you going let this fallen angel get away with not only stealing the sacred gear she has taken from the fallen nun, but also shaming her? Something you swore and promised her to take her home?'
'...no. I won't let her get away from this. Those night lords, Raynare, they'll pay. They will all PAY for killing Asia!'
'Unfortunately you're too weak, far too powerless to ever achieve your revenge. You cannot lay a single wound against the fallen angel and those night lords.'
Issei gnashed his teeth tight at that statement from the voice, knowing that it was true much to his frustration. All of this had happened, or rather had been ALLOWED to happen because he had been unable to influence the outcome due to a lack of strength. It was like what Kuroh and later Theseus had been telling him: this world was one where 'power' and 'strength' mattered most, more so than ever in the human world. Therefore, someone like him who would be seen as a 'wimp' would be unable to change anything no matter how much he wanted to.
However, it was mollified somewhat by the answer he came up with on the spot. 'I don't care about that. I don't care if I lose my hand, my legs, my heart, my soul I will have my revenge no matter the consequences.'
'...Are you willing to pay the ultimate price? Like, as the following would say would you trade your own soul to a devil to gain more power?'
'...Whatever means is necessary. I don't fucking care what price I have to pay.'
'... Pft, haahahah Ahahahaha! Then, go forth my host! Show that fallen angel what it means by upsetting and angering a dragon! Unleash it! All of that rage inside of you! SHOW HER THE POWER OF THIS GENERATION'S RED DRAGON EMPEROR!'
"RRRRRAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" Issei screamed out loud towards the ceiling above, his roar reverberating across the entire scene.
The force of his scream and the shock wave almost made Raynare fly backward from both the force and pressure. "What the?!" She shouted in startled surprise, mixed in with a bit of indignant anger at being interrupted during her reverie, before looking towards the source. There, she saw the brunette who she had previously been mocking before being engulfed in crimson-colored flames that spread forth from his head down to the rest of his entire body, flames that blazed throughout the area and almost illuminated everything with it's bright glow. They moved and swayed over Issei's form, concealing him entirely from view while the male roared out towards the heavens, it resembling a furious war cry. Their sheer blazing heat and intensity resembled a concentrated forest fire lighting up the darkness of the entire world.
What stunned the Fallen Angel even more whilst she took to the skies to try and get away from the heat (to her dismay, it seemed that even up above the platform she could still feel the heat as if she were next to it's source) was that the flame wasn't burning the fallen Nun beneath Issei's feet. This was despite the heat visibly melting numerous cables connected to the cross with the said object being melted till it resembled nothing but a pile of molten mush, throwing away ANY hopes for repairing it forever.
Alongside this, was the energy rolling off the brunette in waves that Raynare's senses picked up, energy which caused not only a wave of shock but also a follow-up wave of sheer TERROR at the size of it. It already felt big enough to compress around this entire underground chamber, but it still felt like it was growing! It could potentially cover the entire Abandoned Church at this rate!
"How is this possible?! Your Sacred Gear shouldn't have this type of power!" Raynare shouted at the red fire that was threatening to burn her, despite being far from it's source. The fallen angel had a face of fury and denial despite witnessing it in front of her two own eyes. Even as the flames spread forth from Issei's body and completely enveloped the space atop the platform, concealing those who still occupied it from view. The whole thing looked like a massive, pyramid-shaped torch, its blazing light illuminating the entire underground chamber in a bloody crimson hue.
Slowly, a black shadowy figure started to emerge within the flames, standing in their centre as if seemingly being BIRTHED by them. The sight of this shadowy figure brought Raynare the chills despite her holding the high ground while conjuring a red light spear in her right hand.
Then, as if having picked up this sign of aggression from within it's infernal domain the figure started making their way out of the flames and towards the platform's edge, allowing their true identity to be revealed. It was a muscular-looking masculine figure that came out of the red fire bellowing behind him, crimson red flames covering his arms to their elbows with massive hands made from those flames whilst being shaped like a dragon's. From behind the figure, two draconic wings of red fire could be seen protruding forth, likely connected to his back alongside the crimson tail protruding from his lower waist, the said appendage simply swinging around lazily to showcase it's considerable length and it's almost trident-like tip. His face, covered in red fire that glints with intense fury and destruction, bore much DARKER red lenses that bore their wrathful glare up towards the quivering Fallen Angel.
After he stopped at the platform's edge just in front of the steps, the red fire behind him died down slowly to reveal a scorched ground and ceiling. The only thing that did NOT looked charred to a crisp like the interior of a volcano was Asia's peaceful-looking body. The figure opened its mouth, revealing a pointed and sharp fire like teeth, before speaking in a deep, powerful and angry tone that shivers Raynare back like a chill.
"RAYNAAAAAAARRRREEEEEEEEE..."
The fallen angel heard her name and instantly recognized who the figure was which prompted her to widen her eyes before showing an angry expression as she pointed at Issei. "How…..just HOW do you have this such power!? No humans should've ever have this type of power! How did you achieve it, where did you get it?! Your not a hero's descendant! TELL ME!" She demanded that Issei not respond to her anger, which prompted Issei's primal fury to reach to the maximum.
Instead of just answering however, Issei opted for a much more satisfying approach: spread his new wings and take flight towards her, immediately closing the distance between them. Raynare gasped at the speed she had just witnessed, which gave Issei the chance he needed to grab her by the head and start racing towards a nearby fleshy wall.
SLAM!
"Grk!"
The Fallen Angel gasped, unable to scream in pain when she felt his flames start charring her flesh and hair like many hungry tongues lavishing her. Even so, what little did escape was muffled by Issei's fiery Dragon claw as he then started flying a full 360 degrees around the room, dragging Raynare face-first through it. The woman struggled, screeched and howled as much as she coud during the whole thing, but Issei's claw both muffled and kept her under it's grasp.
Eventually once he completed his journey, Issei ripped Raynare free from the fleshy wall (her face covered in blood from the whole experience), before throwing her down towards the ground below. He then pointed his right hand towards her, at which flames started gathering together from those that made up the fiery armaments he now possessed. Those flames then spiralled into a solidified form, a pure sphere made from those draconic flames before Issei thrusted his hand forwards in the imitation of a palm thrust.
She would have crashed onto the ground then got hit by the massive sphere of flames under ordinary circumstances, but Raynare howled and halted her movement right before her impact. She then righted herself upright, looking towards her foe only to see the fiery sphere racing towards her like a bullet, to which she swore she could see a fire-clad grim reaper reaching out to try and snag her soul for the inferno.
Not on her watch it wouldn't though!
Raynare quickly spread her wings and, with a single strong downward thrust she took to the skies again. She ascended upwards just seconds before the fiery strike could have landed, resulting in her evading the blow and getting the chance to rear her light spear (part of her felt surprised she'd managed to hang onto that weapon during this whole thing), backwards. She then threw her arm forwards with the same posture of a professional javelin thrower, pumping it with as much energy as she could to enhance the force applied to the spear. All the while she placed one hand on her face where the most of her injuries had been amassed.
The Light Spear sailed through the air with similar speeds to Issei's fire Sphere, headed straight for it's target's torso to which Issei, the said target, roared and pointed his left infernal claw towards it. The moment he did, the furious brunette berserker blew from his claw's palm a TORRENT of flame akin to a flamethrower at it. The fire stream raced through the air at similar speeds to the light spear, enveloping it right after… and thus quickly extinguished it from existence after a few seconds, right before it could impale it's target like originally intended.
Cutting the power, Issei glowered at Raynare, who glared in turn with the two supernatural forces floating opposite each other at the same feet: 60 meters from the ground.
Although, one difference between them was that while Issei's body had those fire-made augments on it, Raynare's face… had lost all it's previous injuries. A fact which she made to laud over him for with a maniacal grin forming on her scummy face. "Hahahahahaha! Its useless boy! No matter how many wounds you try to inflict me i will always heal no matter how much you throw at me! I'll just keep on healing, we can do this for a long time Issei!" She cackled in maniac while showing him the stolen sacred gear on her index finger.
"YOU DO NOT HAVE PERMISSION TO SAY MY NAME, YOU LOST THE RIGHT THE MOMENT YOU STOLE THAT GEAR FROM ASIA. I DON'T CARE IF YOU KEEP ON HEALING YOUR UGLY AND DISGUSTING FACE, I'LL JUST KEEP BURN AND BURN UNTIL YOUR ASHES NO LONGER EXIST!" Issei declared at Raynare, insulting her beauty.
Raynare snarled at Issei's mockery of her flawless skin and beautiful face. "How dare you insult my beauty! You should've been glad to even gaze upon it with your filthy eyes! I'll tear yours apart so you can no longer insult me any further!" she shouted at Issei before she speed towards, conjuring yet a light spear with the intent to butcher him.
Issei responded in the same manner, flexing out his right hand as he made the red flames circle around his palm. He then briefly adjusted his wings before he too flew towards Raynare with both her light spear and Issei red fire orb clashing. Making a shockwave between them.
Somewhere in darkness
'Where am I? It looks so dark all around me. I can't find anything around here, its too dark for me to see.' Asia mentally whispered to herself, the said Nun floating around what could only be described as a sea of darkness, having somehow sunken to it's depths so that no light could reach her. She kept her eyes closed, but somehow she could feel the darkness around her like she had some 360 degree vision or something.
Even if she were to open her eyes it would be the same as her own light source is herself. Floating around what it looks like to be purgatory.
'Is this where I will be? For eternity?' Asia whispered to herself while wondering if this is her very own afterlife.
'My lord, is this my punishment for commiting a sin against humanity? Have I angered you almighty God?' she kept her fingers interlocked while what it looks like to be in a prayer position.
Despite this watery void, Asia still let out a single tear from her eye which rose upwards to the space above, furthering her view of this as like the underwater depths. 'The church must have been… right about me, then. I am a witch, I committed the ultimate act of heresy against you my lord. I have been absolved from my sins...' even when she thought this, Asia felt plagued by the feeling of shame that spiraled within her gut. The lord must think she deserved to be in thisblack abyss instead of by his side due to she committing a trecherous ultimate act against God's teachings. It must be from his judgment that he decreed Asia should be punished.
'If it's what you decree…Then I shall accept your punishment, my lord. This is my sin and my own hell I have to suffer. But if you could hear me.' she lets out a grateful smile on her face. 'Thank you for at least allowing me to spend my final moments… with the few people that cared about me.'
She began to reminisce the last few truly precious memories she had of her life… all of them of the time she had spent with the first person who cared about her, Issei. Despite the rocky first start when she had been introduced by him to Hellsing where he took her there. Even after that, the brunette became the first person to ever hold out his hand to offer her assistance, something that she had never experienced in a long time. To the point where she even forgot what such an act invoked within someone like her.
From there, she went on to meet many people who acknowledged her as a normal person, ust like Issei.
Meredith, who taught her so much when she had trouble speaking the local language, whose poise and stature rivalled that of the many influential figures she had met back during her time as the holy maiden. Yet unlike them, Asia felt nothing but gravitation towards Meredith, for she felt like SHE resembled what such figures should act like, which made her sometimes wonder who could have installed such a powerful presence in her.
Michel, the kind doctor who has given her some insight about medicine and some tips about her Sacred Gear. Out of everyone who she had met at Hellsing, few of them could compare to the mature feelings he gavw off. While Meredith gave the strong confident vibes resembling the ancient heroic kings and queens of old, Michael reminded her of a soft, firm but understanding mentor who made it his mission to guide her through life. Teaching her many important lessons and shaping her philosophies to the healthiest degree possible. He actually reminded her of what she thought God would have been like had he graced her with his presence.
Kuroh, a kind man who taught her cooking, how to be an efficient cook if she ever wanted to cook something for herself or others if she wanted to. He helped her open up to the others in hellsing yet that was only one side to him she had seen. There was the more warrior-like side to him she'd noticed during his training of Issei, the proud strong samurai that he was often called by his comrades did not seem out of place, she had realized. For the way he often looked at his comrades and Meredith reminded her of how such a warrior would see both his lord and his brothers in arms.
Theseus, an older brother-like figure who couldn't be further from her in terms of personality. It was like he was her complete opposite, a shadow to her light. Where she would be kind, merciful and follow the lord's teachings as much as humanly possible, Theseus would be the dark, cynical and atheist brother who cared more for his family than any so-called God. In fact, she could very well imagine him being a hidden softie inside judging from how he secretly gazed fondly at her like a brother would to his little sister when he made her smile.
And last of all, and also the one who gave her the most precious gifts, Issei. The one she was very glad and happy to spend her last moments with. She had never thought in her years of travelling the world that someone would ever weep for her if she died, she had been in the belieg that nobody would bat an eyelash once she passed into God's embrace, that nobody would care about Asia Argento for the rest of her days. Yet, the sight of Issei's tears as he held her in his arms like he wanted to shield her from the rest of the world, to push away the pain she felt inside, filled her with a warmth and a joy she could never truly put into words.
'(SNIFF)! I do not blame nor resent your judgment, My Lord. Thank you for listening to my prayers and thank you…..Issei, for everything you have done for me. I can't watch you from above, but at least I can forever know that you were at my side. I will cherish this memory for all eternity.' she whispered as she sniffs before holding onto the golden cross necklace closer to herself. 'Psalm 62:1-2 Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from him, Amen.' she recited a bible verse before becoming silent.
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[Asia Argento]
[Status: deceased]
[Trial passed: The lords faith and Saints trial]
[Requirements: met]
[Purity level: 100%]
[Sacred gear: Twilight healing]
[Due to the soul in the process of judgment, the following has met the following requirements of becoming a saint.]
[Access code 98045]
[Accepted]
[Converting]
[Heaven system: Access code 56409]
[Accepted]
[%$*!&^#!#]
[ERROR! ERROR!]
[System compliances! Code error!]
[Scanning]
[Scanning]
[Scanning]
[System error found]
[Due to the heaven system being heavily damaged it cannot give the following requirement]
[Commence the following action]
[Emergency protocol activate]
Somewhere in heaven
A vast ocean of clouds dominated the vast skies that dominated the human world, glistening a mix of orange and red thanks to the glistening sun with some clouds actually resembling solid humanoid shapes.
In the middle of this ocean of clouds, sat a large glistening white palace, one resembling the one built in every disney fairy tale with its towers sporting golden tops. It was guarded by a single large, golden gate of sheer splendor alongside a white stone path and stone buildings, which appear to be floating around the palace itself.
Within the palace's interior, lay a large gate just a few feets away from a golden and giant magnificent throne full of both gold and ancient angelic language descriptions on the wrong side. It emitted powerful light energy and powerful holy light.
There in the middle of the aptly named 'Throne room' stood a handsome-looking man with long blond hair and green eyes. He had twelve wings growing from his back, colored gold and shining brightly as if they would illuminate all darkness that came across their master's path. He wore a red robe with a gold cross on the front. He sported golden shoulder plates with a white sash and a golden halo hovering above his head.
The man seemed to be staring sadly however, at the numerous magic circles in front of him which are spiraling with ancient angelic language. It resembled more of a computer but in a magic circle design if one wanted to be more modern.
As he stared at the one system which essentially kept their entire civilization alive, he could do little as such to control the system his father created. He was not like his father, unfortunately who could run such a complicated system. What was worse and a more compounding statement of this ugly truth was that under his management, the system remained vastly inferior to the days of old when its original creator dominated it.
All he could do little with the heaven system is supervise his fathers' creations.
When he was about to due something, The man suddenly heard the system speak all of a sudden.
[Code protocol]
[Access *&#&*!&#]
[ERROR!]
[System casualties: 67%]
"What…." His widened his eyes in total surprise. After so many millennia, the system suddenly started operating similarly back to how his father had done. Unimpeded by the man's shock, heaven system continues to speak.
[Protocol: Solving solution.]
[Scanning]
[Scanning]
"What is fathers system doing?" The man asked himself under his breath as she sees the heaven system operating for unknown reason. He has a good feeling about this as he observe the system.
[Solution; found]
[Accessing soul capacity]
[Selecting saints]
"A saint?" The man wondered, repeating what the system has said under his breath in contemplation. It only lasted a couple seconds before, like a spark suddenly igniting, the man widened his eyes and took a step back. "(GASP)! Could it be?!" He exclaimed in a hopeful tone.
Memories long since forgotten reared themselves once more within his mind, the man remembering them all with perfect clarity. As a being who had existed for thousands of years, the feeling of recalling something he'd forgotten had been a feeling he'd gotten used to. However, these particular memories had their own 'oomph' to them that left the man breathless. He remembered how in the past, his father the Biblical God had created special subsystem protocols which convert people of notable faith to an elevated station, granting them powers on par with his pure creations known as the Angels, of which that was his species. These beings had thus been coined 'Living saints' by the humans of previous eras, and to expand on this function It recognized those who were unique in their special faith to God alone.
One of the requirements was to have complete faith to his father and never give in to the temptations of the deadly sins.
Over the years since God's… disappearance (it still hurt to think of the truth of the matter even after all this time), there hadn't been any living saints the heaven system had recognized. This had largely due to his own lack of ability to manipulate this System to the point where he had simply forgotten about it in his desperate struggle to keep things from further falling into chaos, resulting in the stagnating society the Angels now were a part of.
Additionally, due to this decline the human world also got affected. Now that there were a decreasing amount of followers with fewer prayers being answered, there were hardly anybody amongst them who fit the criteria to become a Living Saint. He couldn't recall the last time he had last seen such a person come into being, which to him felt like a horrendous tragedy for their race as a whole for such people of faith would be recognized as a TRUE saint to the Angels, and would be recorded within a specific section of their archives for all of eternity.
Until now, that is. Right now, the man who bore the name 'Michael the Archangel' was personally witnessing the birth of an ultimate miracle, one which had not been utilized for millennia.
[Soul capacity: 100% match]
[Match: Saint Celestine]
[Due to the emergency protocol initiated, heaven system cannot convert !* &^#*^%& the system damaged]
[Forcibly convert initiate]
[Subject *&%&% ll be converted into 'living saint']
Michael watched in amazement as the heaven system began to spiral faster and faster by the second, emitting strong holy light as it got brighter and brighter.
[Starting convergence]
[3]
[2]
[1]
[Initiate convergence]
BOOM!