Ride 8: Re:Member
29th of March, 2019 AD
Koneko stirred herself awake. Her eyes flickered open to an underground cavern with numerous candles lit around her.
She tried to move, but felt nothing from the neck down as if she were somehow still alive after being decapitated.
She then tried to breathe, but found that her mouth was taped shut by something. Her eyes pivot down, and faintly spots lengths of black-iron chains tying her down onto whatever her back was laying on.
"Good morning," an old man's voice was heard before he revealed himself to the bound and gagged Koneko. "... You must be quite shocked to find yourself in such a predicament, aren't you?"
Her eyes widened upon thinking back what had happened.
An Oni named Kataki had somehow, using Advanced Genjutsu, turned into a fifty-feet tall giant version of himself before his sword swing caused the whole earth that she and everyone else were on to just explode like a nuclear bomb.
Everything was completely blank after the fact.
"Now you may be asking: are your companions okay?" the old man asked on the girl's behalf. "... Honestly, it's a hit or miss whether any of them died or not, but I suppose it won't matter given that we're now at the climax."
Then another set of footsteps were heard coming from afar, approaching the stone altar where Koneko found herself on.
"... So, our guest of honor is finally awake, Ashiya-san," the voice spoke out, revealing himself to be the traitor Oni, Hisaya. "... Ugh, my ears are still ringing because of your pet's stunt."
"Eh, no harm, no foul," shrugged the old man before he and his contemporary turned towards the bound Koneko laid before them. "... Shall we get started?"
Hisaya smirks wickedly as his hand then begins radiating with a reddish-black miasma. "... Yes."
*SPLURCH*
The Oni's hand then breaches into her chest, pumping Koneko's body with a pure concentration of kegare.
"Now you may be thinking: 'Why am I being subjected to this'?" Dōman spoke on the girl's behalf, much to the latter's anguish of being unable to feel or express anything outwards right now. "... Well, it's simple. We were after you this whole time."
Her eyes widened upon learning why the Yomi Faction made their way towards Kuoh Town in the first place during their flight after Hakone Shrine's raid.
"Now as for why we were after you... it's also quite simple," Dōman continued as if he were lecturing a student. "... You're Kuroka's younger sister, aren't you?"
If Koneko could even move her body right now, she would've flipped out majorly. Otherwise, all she could do to express her shock was to widen her eyes.
"Ah, it appears that the resemblance doesn't fall far from the tree then," the old man smirked. "... Regardless, I suppose he'll get to why you're chosen."
"Simply put, you're a rare breed, Toujou-san," Hisaya hissed with malicious glee. "... No point hiding it anymore. Show us your true form!"
With a surge of magic inserted with the flow of kegare, Koneko's body was then shocked back to life, her nerves screaming in agony as her facade of normalcy was stripped away involuntarily, her body thrashing in its chains like a fish out of water, and her screams muffled beneath the ofuda taping her mouth shut like a length of duct tape.
On top of her head were a pair of white-furred cat ears. Sprouting from her lower back emerged a length of a forked cat's tail. Regardless of how minor those changes appeared, it didn't change the fact that Koneko was visibly distressed from being exposed like this.
Toujou Koneko wasn't a former human. She was now revealed to be a former Yōkai. Specifically, a Nekomata.
"... But given how you're still alive even after being stabbed and pumped with enough kegare to kill even a reincarnated Devil... I guess the cat's out of the bag," joked Dōman. "... You're no mere Nekomata, but a Nekoshō, just like your dear sister."
Koneko could only panic in silence as her captors glowered over her like a frog on a dissection plate.
"With your resilience to the chthonic elements properly gauged, you will become our 'key'..." Hisaya explained. "Specifically, the 'key' to release Izanami-sama from her resting place."
"Initially, we were after your sister to take your place that you're currently occupying," Dōman pointed out. "Unfortunately, Kuroka had proven herself especially elusive, so we had to find a workaround to act as our 'key'."
"We were planning to kidnap exactly one thousand humans and then expose them to ample amounts of kegare to act as a mass sacrifice for our patron... until your existence came to light just a mere week after Hakone Shrine burned to the ground," revealed Hisaya as he kept pumping more kegare into Koneko's body. "An anonymous tip coming from an unknown source, with your Student ID and name, along with a picture of you fighting a Centaur."
Koneko's gasp was muffled upon the realization that someone had planned for the Cluster to come to Kuoh on purpose.
"Where it came from or whoever it was, I care not," the Oni continued as his hand remained stuck inside her chest cavity. "There is no way I was passing up a golden opportunity to get my hands on you. If you want to blame anyone for your fate, blame your sister for leaving you out in the cold in the first place. At least your friends tried, for what it's worth."
Upon the mention of that latter statement, Koneko's mind flashes back to a time before she joined the peerage.
Forced to leave her birth home after her parents have died while she was still young.
Staring at her sister's back as she and herself were caked in the blood of their former King Piece Holder.
Rotting away behind bars for being caught in the wrong place at the wrong time.
All of it, the memories that she never wanted to relive again, came flooding back into her consciousness like a burst dam.
"Rejoice, Toujou Koneko!" Hisaya then began to laugh as he then poured more kegare into her body. "Your life shall be the sacrifice that shall usher Yomi onto this broken world!"
The candlelight around them began to flicker and peter out from the generated gust from the ritual. All Koneko could feel and perceive was death slowly luring her to oblivion.
... No, her thoughts feebly cried out as her soul was washed with the Yomi's miasma. No... I don't want this!
Fear. Despair. Anger. Anguish. Malice. And smallness. All of those emotions within her soul were amplified by the kegare pumped into her body.
"It'll be over soon, Toujou-san," the Oni falsely reassured his sacrifice. "Just lie down... and think about Kuoh."
Koneko was now merely a doll before the heralds of Yomi.
... President... everyone...! the last embers of her consciousness flickered like a candle in the wind. ... HELP ME!
Back at ORC...
*BEEP*
*BEEP*
*BEEP*
*SHOOOH*
In one of the rooms within the ORC building was Chiharu, lying on a bed, connected to a life support machine consisting of a thick breathing tube crammed into her throat, an IV drip connected to her arm, and a heartbeat monitor to keep track of her survival. As for the rest of the bedridden Oni, her remaining limbs were bound in several metal loops keeping the fractured bones and torn muscles in place to let them heal properly, her face and left eye were covered in thick bandages, and only her twisted and horn akin to a tree branch remained attached.
Coming out of the room where the reckless Oni was in, Rias, Kumowatari, Sona, and an unfamiliar pair consisting of a man and a woman, all five of them dressed in hospital scrubs and taking off their masks.
"... Give it to me straight," requested Suguru, still visibly shaken after what had happened last night. "How is Chiharu?"
"She'll live," sighed Rias. "... Unfortunately, we couldn't save all of her."
"Her left arm and eye were both destroyed beyond repair," spoke the man, revealing himself as a hard-boiled yet boyish-looking professional male in his early-thirties, with the most distinguishing feature being the single scar that ran down from his left lower cheek to his upper chest as if someone had tried to slash him in the past. "... Had to amputate the former."
"I would ask what the Hell happened to her, but that'd be violating patient confidentiality," sighed the woman who revealed herself to be a young woman in her early-twenties with a pair of ample bosoms contained within her scrubs. "... Although, this was the first time I participated in an open-heart surgery... I think a few years of my life were shaved off from that experience alone."
The Nukekubi slumped back onto his seat in despondency. "... It's all my fault," he whimpered as tears dripped onto his lap. "... Why? Why did it have to be this way?!"
The old Raiju sighs. "... I'm partially to blame too," he confessed. "... I failed as a mentor by being unable to help him out of his inner darkness, solely because I was blinded by the light of hope. Twice I have sent the young to die."
"No time for the blame-game, Kumowatari-san," sighed Sona before yawning. "... Now if you excuse me, I have several phone calls to make... memories to erase... and footage to review... Satans below, I need a six-pack of Red Bull..."
"Gonna go take a drag outside before I get paid," the man remarked as he took out a pack of cigarettes and a Zippo lighter from his pocket. "Maria-chan, make sure we get the money."
"R-right!" the busty woman replied before she followed Rias back to the main office, leaving the Nukekubi alone to sit before the door where his friend was being held inside.
The old Raiju stayed with his younger charge as emotional support for the former's emotional turmoil.
"... I'm sorry if I didn't tell you sooner," sobbed the Nukekubi.
Kumowatari sighed before sitting next to Suguru. "... Can... I ask you why you didn't tell anyone in the first place?"
The Nukekubi choked on his tears before answering. "... I... I was the weakest of all the initiates at Hakone Shrine," he pointed out. "... No one took me seriously to begin with... and Chiharu was my only friend... and she looked up to Hisaya-nii as much as I did..."
"... I see," Kumowatari said. "... You valued your friendships so much that you weren't willing to rock the boat. ... It appears I have failed thrice."
Both Yōkai stew in their misery at the mistakes they've inadvertently made that led up to this very moment.
"... You can leave if you want, Suguru," the Raiju suggested. "... Go home if you think your heart is overburdened by this ordeal. I will not judge."
The Nukekubi wavered on making this decision, unwittingly finding himself stuck between another rock and a hard place.
He cursed his own weak heart internally, unable to make the decision that his heart wants.
Back at the ORC's main office, Rias and Maria were discussing their transactions on the fee for the services, the cost of buying all of that medical equipment, and the instructions for how Chiharu should be treated after the operation.
Unfortunately, Maria herself wasn't a licensed nurse, so all she could do was wait for her superior to come back from his smoke break.
"... Forgive me for putting you on the spot, Daigo-san," Rias apologized. "... So much shit has happened during this week alone that I've been kind of high-strung lately."
"Don't we all..." grumbled the (not) nurse before digging through her pocket for her smartphone. "... Shinjuku was already chaotic enough, but Date-sensei never mentioned that one of his clients literally happened to be from Hell."
"Life is strange like that," Rias shrugged. "... Just be sure to leave this little factoid out of your daily notes, okay?"
Maria nods. "... Just don't make 'house calls' while I'm in," she begged. "... I'm a police detective, not a licensed medical practitioner."
"Sorry for the holdup," Dr. Date then walked into the ORC's office. "... I've seen some shit in my line of work, but that one really took the proverbial cake."
"Well, I've known you as the 'Top Knife' of Shinjuku for five years, Date-sensei," Rias replied before pulling out a massive silver suitcase and placing it onto her desk. "... Here's your commission fee. Six hundred million yen, in cash."
Dr. Date then opens the case to check the contents before closing it upon confirming the cash's authenticity. "Pleasure doing business, Gremory-san," the underground doctor thanked Rias before he and his detective assistant "nurse" walked towards the magic circle glowing before them. "When you find yourself in Shinjuku, drop by my office for a chat. It's not like I get a lot of visits anyway!"
The doctor and detective pair then disappear upon entering the glyph, returning to Shinjuku right as Sona, Tsubaki, Akeno, and Yasuhiro all walk into the main office.
"Excuse the intrusion, but we would like to confirm some of our findings with you, Gremory-san," the kiko-ranked Kitsune spoke out in a hurry.
"Let's hear it," Rias spoke as she and everyone else took to their seats.
Everyone sighs before sharing their findings. "... First of all, we found where Koneko is being held," shared Akeno. "With the help of the Sitri Peerage, we've locked onto her signal at Mt. Hiba in Shimane Prefecture."
"Bad news, it's crawling with Yomi's ranks throughout every acre of the surrounding forest," Yasuhiro pointed out as Tsubaki then shared the tablet with Rias. "There are Hinoenma patrolling the air, Gaki perched upon every tree branch, and it's safe to assume that there are Oni within the inner sanctum of this veritable fortress."
"Given that Izanami-no-Mikoto was buried there, I suppose that's a given," Rias sighed. "... Any word on the other factions?"
"The Chūgoku and Shikoku Factions are still too few in number to mount a counteroffensive against the Yomi Faction occupying Mt. Hiba, the Five Principal Clans are still busy assisting the Tōhoku, Kanto, and Kyoto Factions repairing the destroyed seals, with most of the local Peerages aiding in the cleanup, and the Shinto Pantheon is still refusing to lend us direct assistance despite the direness of the whole situation," Tsubaki reported. "... In fact, they literally said to 'deal with it' on our own before hanging up."
That last statement almost pushed Rias over the edge. But she kept to her professional facade in this crisis, because someone had to be the rock in this shitstorm.
"... Them setting us all up for failure aside," sighed the President, "any leads of where and how the Yomi Faction ended up all the way at Shimane Prefecture from Nagano?"
"We found traces of kegare leading towards a certain direction, but we lost the trail halfway through," Sona grimaced at her lack of conclusive findings. "... We know where the enemy is, but where they are hiding the hypothetical backdoor is the real question that I've yet to find an answer to."
"Check every available ley line within Nagano Prefecture and isolate the ones where the Yomi Faction can easily congregate," Rias suggested. "They attacked Kuoh on the purpose of spiriting away Koneko from my watch. Their base camp must be within our Prefecture! The enemy may think that we're desperate enough to mount a frontal assault on Mt. Hiba, but we'll outmaneuver them once we catch them with their pants down!"
"I'll notify the available factions of this update," Yasuhiro spoke before standing up and bowing. "... Thank you for your time, Gremory-san. I pray for both our successes."
"And it shall," Rias nodded as the Kitsune left. "... Now with business out of the way... onto more... daily matters."
"Don't worry, I made the calls to the school staff that we're calling in sick for today," Sona pointed out. "And I also contacted Ryuugamine-kun's parents and told them he's in good hands with us."
"Thank you," Rias nodded. "... And speaking of Takeshi, has anyone seen him? I think he just vanished after this morning."
Akeno looks down in a forlorn expression. "... He hasn't left the guest room ever since," she pointed out. "... I think he's taking Koneko-chan's kidnapping especially hard."
At the ORC's Guest Room...
"I warned her, but she refused to listen," chortled Nidhogg as he was getting high from the ambient negativity coming from both his host and associates throughout the whole building. "... And lo and behold, she's now on death's door! Ain't that a fucking joke!"
Takeshi was balled up in the corner of the room, completely despondent to the outside world, trembling in regret and sorrow over his weakness.
"... I let them take her," he muttered to himself. "... I let them take her."
Nidhogg scoffs at his host's pathetic display, but at the same time, he was carefully choosing his next words to properly push his host over the edge rather than accidentally motivate him with an unintentional insult.
The Evil Dragon has enough prior experience with Nordic warriors to know that negativity can work as much as a motivator than it could as a detriment.
"... It must suck hanging out with people stronger than you," taunted Nidhogg. "Yet ironically, they're just as equally useless."
Takeshi shuts his eyes as tight as he could, trying to hold back his tears at his own feebleness.
"... You know, you're not the only one who's frustrated at their own cursed lot in life, whelp," he continued. "... Fate is cruel. I didn't ask to be born from Ymir's grudges and reside at the bottom of Yggdrasil's roots like a common wyrm. I didn't ask to be raised in a land where the sun's rays couldn't reach the peak of my scalp. I didn't ask for those so-called 'heroes' to come to me for the sake of their own glory. I asked for nothing, and yet both the gods and the fates handed me everything that defined me."
Takeshi slightly opens his eyes. "... What are you suggesting?"
Nidhogg huffs before answering. "... Relinquish your soul to me," he requested. "... The way my powers are being used by you right now... are merely a figment of my true prowess. Right now, you are weak. Too weak to even save one life. Too weak to save this damned world."
"... You're just trying to goad me into going into a rampage by proxy, aren't you?!" Takeshi gnashed his teeth. "... I won't let you...! I won't let you kill my-!"
"'Friends,' is it not?" Nidhogg interrupted his host's rebuke. "... What idealistic drivel. Since when were they your friends?"
Takeshi tried to answer, but his mind went blank upon attempting to do so.
"Since when did you have any of these so-called 'friends'?"
Instead, Takeshi's mind called back to his time during Junior High at Ishinomaki.
Back at 2015...
First year of Junior High, Ryuugamine Takeshi watched several of his classmates playing soccer at his school fields as he walked by.
One of them then kicked the ball too hard, causing it to roll towards his feet. Takeshi then picked the ball up as the student who'd kicked it out of bounds had run towards to retrieve it.
"... This is yours, right?" Takeshi then handed the ball. "... Can I play too-?"
"S-sorry! We're full right now!" The other boy then took the ball before running off like his life depended on it.
"Since when did you fancy yourself as a 'people person'?"
Back at 2016...
Walking back home from school, Ryuugamine Takeshi noticed that he was being followed.
At first, he'd assumed that it was nothing, but as he passed through the shopping arcade, the store owners began retreating into their stores as the customers began to clear out of his way.
Takeshi then looks back to find that several of the local thugs armed with pipes and baseball bats had been stalking him.
Wasting no time, he ran for his life, hoping that it would only be a one-time thing.
It kept happening.
Every, single, damn, day.
"... Admit it, you were so starved for company that you wanted people to have a reason to keep coming after you."
Back at 2017...
The doorbell rang, causing Takeshi to answer it after he'd finished dressing his most recent black eye.
"Excuse me," a woman in a suit flanked by two police officers dressed in blue then pulled out her police badge. "I'm Officer [REDACTED] from the Ishinomaki Police Department. Ryuugamine-san, we'd like you to come with us for questioning."
"W-wait a minute!" he panicked as a pair of handcuffs were then placed onto his wrists. "WHAT I HAVE DONE-?!"
"You'll be notified of your situation at the station," one of the other officers replied as he and his partner dragged Takeshi into the car. "Don't make a fuss, you brat. You're gonna make things worse for yourself."
Takeshi's memories were then blocked off until he found himself sitting between his parents, helping him clear out his accused charges before the whole case was then dismissed after the real culprit behind the case was identified.
The pain he'd inflicted onto his parents for reasons beyond his control was unbearable for Takeshi.
And yet he struggled. Struggled to make things right by studying until he developed carpal tunnels in both of his hands. Studying through every waking moment. Studying to make sure that the future he wanted was there by the time he comes of age.
Then three months later, the entire family comes back to find their house vandalized and robbed.
"... I hate this," he sobbed into his knees. "... I hate this feeling of weakness in a world that doesn't make any sense!"
Nidhogg huffs again, refusing to admit that he could somewhat relate with his host, even though those happenings were an unintentional side effect of their dormancy.
"... Face it, whelp. We're alone," the Evil Dragon pointed out. "... Friendship is a mere fantasy for the weak in a world that despises the deviant. Your parents only put up with you because you three share the same blood. ORC put up with you because you somehow survived certain death because of my powers. Take all of that away, and what are you left with?"
Takeshi's teary eyes wetted his knees and arms upon realizing that he was just being delusional this whole time.
He was alone, and always has been.
"... You know, I can understand why you like watching those 'heroes'," Nidhogg explained. "They are loved unconditionally because of their strength, a fact that hasn't been contested since time immemorial. Then again, humans are no different from animals, in that they look towards the strong in order to survive. You love that Gremory stelpa and her pet of a Rook because they were strong. Stronger than you could ever dream of, but it is just as easy for that adoration to turn into envy."
"... No," he whimpered. "... I'm not... I'm not envious of the President... or anyone in ORC!"
The Evil Dragon sighs before committing to the final part of his plan.
"I'll tell you something about those 'heroes': they're all merely works of fiction," declared Nidhogg. "They're merely dreams conjured by the sick and weak in a world that demands them to be strong. They're nothing more than idealistic fantasy in a cold reality where dreams are nothing but air. Once their delusions come crashing down, then there's nothing left for them to hold onto sans oblivion. However, I offer a different, more realistic opportunity: submit to me, and I shall grant you the power you need to save that little friend of yours. All I ask for in return is your soul, but I can assure you, that once you consign your life to oblivion that it deserves, you can dream all the dreams of heroism from those television shows we watched together all you want."
Takeshi's sorrow then began to turn numb. His heart drowning in his tears was now cold as ice.
... He couldn't feel anything anymore. He couldn't feel anything worthy about himself anymore.
"... Numbness isn't a bad thing," commented the Evil Dragon. "Expect nothing good, and life's misfortunes sting a lot less. That's how I lived since I was born."
Takeshi was then willing to sign his soul over to Nidhogg, his phone began vibrating in his pocket, temporarily snapping him out of his funk.
Pulling it out, he then reads the following DM from an unknown number:
"Come outside. We need to talk."
At Zenkō Temple...
"Ugh... this is getting boring!" whined Rengokuki as he and Kataki were guarding the temple's teleportation array that leads them to Mt. Hiba as the sun began to set before where they were at. "What's taking Hisaya so long?! The whole world should be celebrating Izanami-sama advent by now!"
Kataki remains dispassionate of his partner's displeasure. "... Just keep doing your job," he said. "... Good things shall come to those who wait."
"Well I've been waiting too long for this shit!" the three-horned Oni grumbled before sitting back down on the shrine's stairs. "Me and the rest of the Yomi Faction didn't piss away our resources to undo all five seals just to keep waiting a lot longer than we already have been for the past millennia! I'm already sick of waiting for this rotten world to end! Just end already dammit!"
Kataki sighs. "... You do realize that yelling at the setting sun won't accomplish anything, right?"
"WELL IT BEATS DOING NOTHING!" Rengokuki pouted before pulling out a gourd of saruzake made from Yomi's own collection of its fermented kegare-laced fruits and then drinking straight from the bottleneck. "... Bro, gotta be real with you for a sec... but man, ever since my ma and pa got stuck in this world, we were... we were finding a way back home while the people above here... were giving us shit for not being from around here."
Kataki raises an eyebrow. "... So is that why you seek to raise Izanami-no-Mikoto from her earthbound prison?"
"The Yomi Faction... was originally founded... on the purpose... of us... coming back home..." the three-horned Oni's speech slurred from his drink. "... And the whole world and its people eating shit in the process...? Well fuck em! They killed us... for being from a land of filth... so it's their turn... to die like bitches...!"
"You're already inebriated after two sips, Rengokuki-san," commented the odd-horned Oni.
"Well... why don't you... have some...?" offered the three-horned Oni before hiccuping.
"Performers like me need to be focused for the upcoming act," Kataki rejected the offer. "... And besides, my kind of life led to a path where all pleasure is lost to me."
The three-horned Oni blinked upon hearing that statement come from the joyless Oni. "... Wow. That's rough, buddy."
Just as the conversation could continue, a winged silhouette then flies towards where the two were at right now.
"... Hold that thought," Kataki then extended his arm to let an Onmoraki perch onto it before taking the message tied around its talon and releasing the familiar.
"... Well? What does it say?" Rengokuki remarked before taking another sip of his saruzake.
The odd-horned Oni then unfurls the parchment, causing it to reveal itself to be covered in splotches of kegare-laced blood.
"... Mt. Chōkai's seal has been repaired."
Rengokuki then spits out his fruity booze in a messy spray upon hearing the news. "... I'm sorry. WHAT?!"
Outside the ORC Building...
Takeshi didn't have a reason to sneak out. Yet he did regardless.
What was preventing him from telling the others of what he's doing?
What was this feeling of cold nothingness that had burrowed in his heart?
He couldn't feel the need to do anything.
... It feels so comforting, he thought as the sun sunk entirely into the distant horizon upon reaching the doors leading outside of the club building. ... Why?
Too numb to think any further, he then turns the knob on the door before walking outside, facing the surrounding woods as its flora swayed in the evening wind.
"... Ha," Takeshi chuckled. "... I must be losing it already. Of course there's no one waiting for me-"
"Leaving so soon?"
Takeshi then turns around and looks up to find a cloaked figure standing atop of the ORC building before jumping down and landing in front of the Devil.
Upon rising up from his landing, the stranger towered over Takeshi, the latter's perception of the former being akin to how a young child sees an adult. He tried to squint into the figure's hood, but could not make out anything underneath the shade, as if they never had a head sans the darkness covering their face.
Takeshi instinctively took a step back from the figure, his instincts barely able to make out who they are anymore. "... Who are you?!" he asked. "And what do you want with me?!"
The hooded and cloaked figure remains still as a statue even when spoken to. "... I've been watching you, Ryuugamine Takeshi," they answered. "For who I am, I am the one who saved you and your companions' lives on that fateful dawn. As for why I am here..."
The figure then shifted their body, transitioning from a neutral pose to a combative stance.
"... I am your guide in this crossing of fate that stands before you," they answered. "So come. Show me that you have what it takes to proceed!"
Takeshi gnashed his teeth as he tapped into his [Cataclysm Zone], slowly amplifying his negativity throughout his own body and soul. "... If that's what you wish... THEN I'LL MAKE YOU EAT THOSE WORDS! HENSHIN!"
After transforming, Takeshi then swings his [Mayhem Striker] towards the cloaked stranger before the latter dodges his swing.
Takeshi kept swinging, letting his rage guide his actions against the stranger who dared to show himself before him in his darkest hour.
"... Is that all you can do?" taunted the figure. "Your threat display is a mere facade."
"SHUT UP!" tapping into [Mayhem Striker]'s inner powers, Takeshi then unleashes a tide of ashes unto the cloaked stranger. "I'LL SMOTHER YOU TO DEATH-!"
From the hood, the figure then bellowed out a roar akin to a point-blank sonic boom, dispersing the ashes encroaching them and shattering every window and pane of glass through the ORC building.
"... I have better chances dying drowning in a playground's sandbox than that poor excuse of an offense," the figure taunted again, spiking Takeshi's rage to its peak upon that provocation.
Abandoning all pretense for his own safety, Takeshi rushes towards the stranger with the intent to kill him, reasons be damned. Swinging his dane axe in reckless abandon, Takeshi's efforts turned into blind desperation.
Why?! Why aren't my attacks landing?! he thought as the figure dodged every last of his swings as if they could read their thoughts like an open book. ... Why... Why isn't-?!
"Why isn't anything working, indeed," the figure then spoke out Takeshi's thoughts, much to the latter's shock. "... No powers involved. You're just that predictable."
"PREDICT THIS!" tapping into the deeper recesses of both his Sacred Gears, Takeshi then unleashes a mixture of Nidhogg's ash and the collected kegare into an infernal cocktail of destruction all concentrating into the head of his [Mayhem Striker] into a honed edge radiating with the purest malicious intent.
Takeshi then leaps towards the hooded figure for the killing blow...
"... Weak."
The [Mayhem Striker] connects, but the hooded figure's cloak wasn't even frayed, let alone what's underneath it to cave in from the sharp impact.
It was as if Takeshi was wielding a pair of disposable chopsticks and expected to slay a veritable titan from myth.
"Here's true power."
Whipping out from the cloaked figure, a thick silver gauntlet then jabbed into Takeshi's armored chest, cracking the armor, and sending him flying as his transformation was undone in a single blow.
Takeshi's back then collides into the barrier that was secretly erected around the pair, the edifice revealing himself upon impact before he lands face-first into the dirt.
"Is that all you got?" spoke the figure. "... Get up."
Takeshi's body trembled as he tried to get back onto his feet, but he stumbled in his attempt, slipping onto the earth once more.
"... Just finish me off already," sobbed Takeshi. "... I get it. I'm too weak to save her!"
"Yes," they replied without hesitation. "... But do you want to end it this way?"
"... Huh?" he muttered.
"You're weak, Ryuugamine, but you're capable of doing so much more," they pointed out. "Remember. Remember why you chose this path in the first place."
"... I chose this path... because I wanted power-"
"No," they rebuked. "If that were the case, then I wouldn't have chosen you as the next wielder of that Sacred Gear."
Takeshi's eyes widened upon hearing their proclamation.
"Remember, Ryuugamine Takeshi," they said. "Remember why you exist here and now."
Takeshi then tried to push through the fog on why he chose this path for himself. On why he chose to take the Evil Dragons in the first place. On why he joined ORC.
... Was it really my choice? he asked himself. ... Did I just go with it because some bullshit fate-?!
*FWHOOM*
Then a sickening sensation of the purest malice welled up inside of his chest, clutching onto it as if it were a tumor siphoning his vitality.
"TAKESHI!" Rias then slammed the front door open just in time to witness what was happening. "WHAT'S GOING ON HERE-?!"
She then accidentally hits the barrier before she could intervene.
"Do not interfere," the cloaked figure warned. "... This is his trial."
"What trial?!" Rias barked back as the cloaked figure looked away from her.
"... To determine if he's worthy of saving that girl himself."
Within [Cataclysm Zone], [Section Náströnd]...
After the surge of agony that dragged Takeshi's mind out of reality, he then finds himself facing Nidhogg, the latter leering at him in displeasure.
"I was more than content sitting back and letting you fall to despair on your own, but that was crossing the line that you shouldn't have, whelp," growled the Evil Dragon.
However, in the face of death, Takeshi's numbness crumbled away to discontent. "... Get out of my way, corpse-breath," he snarled. "... I need... I need to remember."
"Remember what, exactly?" snarled Nidhogg. "... Face it, whelp. Hindsight or foresight, there's nothing waiting for us in either direction. Just accept your damnation and dream all the dreams of idealism you want."
Takeshi's answer shook his head. "... No."
Nidhogg's eyes widened. "... Are my ears playing tricks on me?!"
"... I have a life before this, Nidhogg," growled Takeshi, his discontent turning into resolve. "... I... I can't give it up. I have to remember why I chose this! I have to remember... remember why I accepted this!"
The Evil Dragon gnashed his teeth in rising anger at his host's defiance.
"... So this how we're going about this, then?" he hissed. "No witty one-liners? No proclamations of your bullshit resolve? Just straight to demands without even so much as offering terms and conditions?"
Takeshi elects to remain silent.
"... Die then."
The Evil Dragon then lunges towards Takeshi's soul, but the latter then manifests [Mayhem Striker] inside the mindscape to defend himself.
"THAT PUNY TOY WON'T BE ENOUGH TO SAVE YOU, WHELP!" roared Nidhogg as his claws pressed down onto his host. "YOU WILL RUE THE MOMENT YOU CHOSE TO DEFY YOUR DESTINY!"
"WHAT 'DESTINY'?!" Takeshi roared back as he then pushed his guest back with a burst of his demonic strength that was no longer paired with the draconic energy, letting him use it freely. "WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT DESTINY WHEN ALL YOU DID WAS ROT AWAY IN THAT HOME OF YOURS?!"
"I NEVER ASKED FOR ANY OF THIS!" Nidhogg barked back before unleashing a breath of corrosive ash.
"SO WHY DIDN'T YOU?!" Takeshi then jumped out of the dark ashen tide before he was then grabbed by the Evil Dragon's prehensile tail-claw before he was slammed down.
"That self-righteous bastard Odin would never give me the time of day of revealing the reason why I exist," Nidhogg pointed out. "... My place in the world is not to be questioned. I'm an Evil Dragon, and nothing will change that."
Takeshi scoffed. "... So that's your real beef with the world," he smirked. "... You're just a lapdog."
In frustration, Nidhogg then throws his host aside and across the corpse-strewn land. "WHO ARE YOU CALLING LAPDOG, WHELP?!"
Broken and battered as he was, Takeshi gets up using the dane axe as support.
"... Everything... I learned about you... that's what," he answered. "... You questioned nothing and received everything. Your reputation as a bringer of evil and yet you never did anything to earn it... besides letting the others point fingers at you... calling you 'evil'... not as a great villain... but a convenient scapegoat."
"And your point being?" snarled the Evil Dragon as his blood-red pits glared into the host's own pair.
Takeshi then spits onto the Evil Dragon's face.
"... You're the weak one, Nidhogg," Takeshi pointed out. "All you've ever done in your whole life was look upon those standing above you and stewing in your bitterness."
Losing what little remained of his patience, Nidhogg opened his mouth to snap his maw upon his host, the latter blocking the jaws from closing into him with the length of his Sacred Gear.
"Those who you've dismissed as 'fools'... you were envious of them," Takeshi pointed out as his whole body was pressed down by Nidhogg. "You were envious... of them having a life without regrets... while you never made a single choice on your own behalf save for what was expected of you... Hisaya may have offered us a way out, but I also have an offer to make."
"AND WHAT CAN YOU POSSIBLY OFFER ME, WHELP?!" roared the Evil Dragon.
"... Satisfaction," he answered as he struggled under his guest's oppressive weight. "Not as some slave to the bullshit you claim as 'fate,' but a future where you can be more than just an overglorified trash can of the gods. A true Evil Dragon... where you'll destroy those claiming to be more evil than you... and who knows, my anguish may be delicious, but I can wager that their despair upon their defeat... will be divine."
"Beguiling me by offering to feed me better morsels?!" growled Nidhogg.
"Nah," Takeshi shook his head. "... I'm gonna be your first friend in a long time, so that way, your claims of solitude will be dead in the water!"
Then, in a shocking reversal, Takeshi then begins pushing up against the Evil Dragon.
"... I had a life before this, Nidhogg," Takeshi pointed out. "I had friends before they left my life. I had goals before you guys showed up. But now that I have to accept that you guys are now a part of my life that I chose to get further involved... I will not reject you... but I will never submit to you!"
With one last yell, Takeshi then shoves Nidhogg off before slashing the Evil Dragon across its chest.
"... You confound me, whelp," the Evil Dragon snarled as he clutched onto his gash. "... Why don't you hate me?"
"I would," Takeshi replied. "But after that guy's punch shattered our combined power in an instant, I realized... I realized that anger isn't enough. Hating you isn't enough. The way we are right now isn't enough. And if we go on like this... nothing will change."
"And you propose you can do better?!" Nidhogg growled. "Many tried and failed, whelp. Don't get ahead of yourself."
"So what? Bowing down to that Oni is any better?" Takeshi shot back. "Admit it, you don't even like him! You're just using him like everyone else!"
Nidhogg was at a loss for words upon realizing that his host caught onto his ploy.
"... Kiba-kun said that you Evil Dragons don't submit to just about anyone," Takeshi pointed out. "... Time to prove yourself, Nidhogg. I won't ask for your submission. I ask for you entirely."
Takeshi then extends his hand towards the Evil Dragon.
"... You're leaving yourself open," growled Nidhogg.
"I'm done running away from myself," Takeshi replied as he now realized he found himself in a similar situation to those he'd driven away. "Come with me, Nidhogg. Time to show this world who the real villain is than that jumped-up traitor."
Nidhogg snickers before cackling into a bellicose laughter.
"I admit! You got me right there," he jeered before placing his tail-claw onto Takeshi's hand. "But mark my words, whelp. Show me any weakness... and I will devour your soul."
Takeshi smirks back as the two formed a rapport.
"Let's see what the future holds for us, then."
Back at Reality...
"... Ugh," groaned Takeshi as he felt something soft underneath his head. "... Where... am I?"
"You're awake!" Rias' voice called out as she looked down upon him, resting his head on her lap. "... I'm so glad!"
"... Hey President," Takeshi then gets up, groggily reorienting himself back to the waking world. "... Why are the windows broken?"
"Normally, I'd give you an earful..." Sona's voice spoke out as she and Tsubaki approached the Gremory Peerage pair, "... but our cloaked stranger gave us the DL and apologized for his mishap."
Takeshi then looked around to spot the cloaked stranger standing before the four. "So you've done it," they remarked. "... You've accomplished what the previous forty-nine bearers of [Cataclysm Zone] had not done."
Takeshi then looks down upon his Sacred Gear, now no longer feeling as oppressive as before, but slowly becoming more of a natural part of himself.
"You've now perfectly synchronized with Nidhogg," they pointed out. "Rather than tame, you chose to accept him and reach a mutual understanding."
Tsubaki's eyes widened. "... Impossible!" she pointed out. "No mention in recorded history has ever the Evil Dragon been able to be understood to that intimate of a level!"
"Then consider this history in the making, Shinra-san," the stranger replied before they pulled out their phone. "... Your reward."
Takeshi's phone then vibrates, receiving another DM from the unknown number, now showing a picture of a dilapidated shrine that knew by heart.
"... That's Zenkō Temple!" he pointed out before looking at the stranger. "... That must be where the Yomi Faction might be hiding!"
"Good. That saves me having to explain it myself," they replied. "... Do you finally remember why you are here right now, Ryuugamine Takeshi?"
Takeshi nods.
"... Show me," they ordered.
Takeshi then turns towards Rias with a genuine look of openness. "... President. Answer me honestly and without deceit," he requested. "... Do you accept me as one of your own? Do you accept me even as I hold this burden in my soul?"
Rias understood the intent behind her Pawn's question before pulling him in for a hug.
"... Your isolation must've been eating you inside and out more than I thought," she answered. "... I'm so sorry for not noticing it sooner, Takeshi. Even if you lose your soul, even if the rest of the world turns against you, even if I have to fight alone... I will never abandon you."
Those words were genuine, from the Devil's heart to another.
For the first time in his life, Ryuugamine Takeshi didn't feel alone.
"... Those three years back at Ishinomaki feel like a distant memory, President," Takeshi began to sob, feeling a catharsis akin to the ending of The Shawshank Redemption. "... I pushed people away because I didn't come to them! I gave up on having a meaningful future because they saw me as evil! I hated it! I HATED EVERY MOMENT OF IT!"
The sobs turned to heartwrenching wails, releasing all the pain and sorrow he'd endured in silence unto Rias Gremory.
"I DON'T WANT TO BE ALONE EVER AGAIN!" bawled Takeshi, tears and snot cascading from his face into a messy waterfall. "I WANT TO BE WITH YOU, PRESIDENT! I WANT YOU AND ORC TO BE A PART OF MY LIFE THAT I CAN HOLD ONTO AND BE PROUD OF! I... I WANT TO SAVE KONEKO! I WANT TO SAVE HER AFTER I FUCKED UP! I... I want to save her... because I don't want to lose her."
Rias' bosom felt the moistness of Takeshi's sorrow and shame expressed fully.
"... Nor do I, Takeshi," Rias acknowledged. "We'll save her or die trying. No in-between."
"Then choose your next course of action carefully," the figure ordered as everyone else from the ORC building came out to witness them.
"Who are you?!" Yasuhiro barked out as he drew his katana as everyone else readied to fight.
"I am an ally," they confirmed as a panel of space then began to distort and warp like water before them. "... And the one who saved your lives."
Before any further questions could be asked, the figure then walks into the spatial distortion before disappearing entirely.
"... Was that the freaking Aurora Curtain?" Takeshi pointed out.
Rias chuckles. "Glad to see that you're back."
"What happened here?!" Suguru cried out as he and Kumowatari came out of the building last.
Takeshi gives a small, yet heartfelt smile. "... Well," he began. "It's a long story."
Back Inside ORC...
"So that stranger gave us the enemy's hidden location," Yasuhiro remarked as he and everyone else attending the meeting looked over at Takeshi's phone showing Zenkō Temple. "... I'm still skeptical."
"I double-checked and confirmed that there are enough ley lines to power a long-distance teleportation array into a heavily-guarded location," Sona pointed out. "... Given that they have a master Genjutsu user in their ranks, we really can't afford to look the gift horse at the mouth."
"So we finally have a lead, then," Kumowatari remarked. "... To think that such fortuitous tidings could come from an enigmatic stranger."
Everyone gathered at the ORC's main office then begins to mull over on what to do next with this valuable intel.
"... Should we go in and attack them now?" asked Kambei.
"Remember what happened the last time someone pulled that kind of shit?" Rias pointed out, immediately vetoing the suggestion of a frontal assault. "... They said to choose our next action carefully."
"Agreed," Akeno nodded. "A trump card alone won't be sufficient enough to turn this whole situation around. We have to take them by surprise."
"But how do we take them by surprise when they have the master of illusory arts on their side?" Yasuhiro pointed out. "... I hate to admit it, but the sheer scale of his mastery of Genjutsu puts our combined Yōjutsu prowess to shame. As long as he's aware of our existence, our perceptions are just mere putty in his wicked hands."
Everyone begins to ruminate over what to do next in this precarious situation. Normally, everyone present was capable of coming up with a feasible plan of action on their own, but the combined pressure of time running short and the temptation to gamble everything in one desperate move to end it all as soon as possible.
However, Takeshi, after his long-needed emotional recovery, saw things differently.
The scenarios offered to him all seamlessly connected together like a perfect spiderweb. The clues of the enemy's weakness, and the unintentional irony behind all of it. Everything made sense in Takeshi's mind.
... Mind if I take a page out of your playbook? thought Takeshi. ... Not gonna lie, your emotional manipulation is quite masterful.
Anyone could do it if they commit to it long enough, Nidhogg replied mentally. ... By all means, go ahead.
Thank you, Takeshi then stands up from his seat. "... I think we're going about this the wrong way."
Everyone present then looks at him as if he'd grown an additional head on his shoulder.
"... In what regard?" asked Yuuto.
"The enemy expects us to fight smart," Takeshi pointed out. "In fact, it's because they've adapted to our technique that they were able to get the drop on us at a pivotal moment."
Rias ruminates on his statement before agreeing. "... Fair point, but we really can't throw caution into the wind."
"I'm not suggesting that we either outwit them or outmuscle them," Takeshi replied. "... In fact, I propose that we do both."
The Kitsune then glowered. "... What are you suggesting?"
Takeshi then smirks with the utmost confidence. "... How good are you guys at acting?"
30th of March, 2019 AD
"Man, I can't believe Mr. Perfect Attendance actually missed a whole school day yesterday," Issei remarked as he, Eiji, and Naoto sat across Takeshi at one of the canteen tables.
"And now he's eating lunch with the rest of the student body," Eiji chuckled as he and the rest of the trio watched Takeshi devour a large plate of tonkatsu curry rice served with milk, salad, and a black plum (the latter half already finished).
"Surely, the end is nigh if Ryuugamine-san is acting this out of character," Naoto commented as he and his friend group saw Takeshi gulp down the curry soup directly from the plate before it was cleaned empty.
"Thanks for the meal," Takeshi then takes his tray to the counter before walking out of the canteen and into the hallway. ... They have no idea how accurate they are with their statements.
I'll say, snickered Nidhogg as his host washed his face and brushed up his hair at the restroom's sink. ... Your plan is nothing short of evil, whelp. To inflict a greater evil upon a lesser evil... now that's something worth trying.
... You know, sadism and you trying to break my spirit aside, you make a decent teacher, Takeshi complimented in a bemused manner as he went about his day during class until the final bell rang.
Don't get used to it, the Evil Dragon rebuffed. Either way, I will be waiting with my mouth open. Pray you're not the one falling in.
Takeshi smirked as he made his way towards ORC, where everyone was waiting for him.
"There you are, Takeshi," Rias smiled.
"The Yomi Faction's been a real roll, haven't they?" Sona remarked.
"It's time," Kumowatari said as lightning crackled around his mane.
Takeshi nods as he manifests [Cataclysm Zone] around his waist. "Let's go," he declared. "We're taking back Toujou-san and all of Japan from their hands!"
Everyone else nods as they all move out towards their operation.
"Wait a moment!" Sona remarked, causing everyone to stop. "... You guys go on ahead. I need to go get a few things."
"Quickly now," Yasuhiro remarked. "War waits for no one."
"We'll save some for you and your Peerage, promise!" Kambei beatifically said as Sona separated from the group for last minute preparations.
As Sona makes her way back inside ORC (she has a room spared for her so that she doesn't have to teleport back and forth between here and the Student Council Office for this mission), she then picks up a recording device before turning it on.
"... You know, President, I kinda assumed Ryuugamine-kun to be the kind of a guy who'd only get dirty in a fight."
A tall girl with blue, shoulder-length hair and matching eyes came into the room Sona was in.
"Yura Tsubasa," Sona replied as she turned back to her Rook. "... Your point being?"
"I never thought he'd be the kind of a guy who'd also play dirty," she smirked. "To come up with such a devious plan to use the enemy's infatuation on his Evil Dragons to his advantage after synchronizing with them? ... Not gonna lie, I wanna see it happen up close!"
Sona shook her head. "... Unfortunately, we're not privy to witness him," she pointed out. "... I have to be honest, Yura-san. I'm still antsy if this kind of plan is actually going to work."
"Oh?" a peppy voice spoke out from behind Tsubasa, revealing herself as an energetic girl with fluffy, reddish-brown hair tied up in pigtails. "... Is someone jealous?"
"No, I am not jealous, Meguri Tomoe," sighed Sona as she then saw her Knight gathered with the rest of her Peerage. "... Also, what are you all standing outside of the door for?"
"We were just waiting for you, President," a slim, but well-endowed girl with long brown hair that were tied up in twin braids. "Ignoring what Meguri-san said, we understand your caution. After all, our prior knowledge about Evil Dragons is about to be challenged for the better or for worse."
"Hey! Why are you ignoring me, Kusaka-san?!" Tomoe whined, the Knight pouting at the Bishop.
"Enough, you two," Sona interjected as she tucked her recording device into her uniform's dress pocket. "... You're right, Kusaka Reya. I am skeptical to begin with since we're about to see history in the making. Given what's at stake, I'm both looking forward to it, and not at all given what kind of pandemonium it would stir within the Underworld's Noble Houses.
"... I believe in Ryuugamine-kun," a noble-looking white-haired girl with blue-green eyes advocated. "... He made his choice. He's not the kind of person who'd run away after risking life and limb for Gremory-san before he became a Devil."
Sona sighs before nodding. "Right," she agreed. "Thank you, Hanakai Momo."
She then turns the recording device off before putting it back on the table.
"No time to waste, then," she then walked out of the room as her Peerage followed. "We got a war to win, so no holds barred!"
"Yes President!"
The Sitri Peerage joins the battle.
At Zenkō Temple...
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN WE CAN'T TAKE BACK MT. CHŌKAI?!" Rengokuki cried out into his communication circle. "WHAT?! YOU MEAN TO SAY ONE OF THOSE KAMI FROM TAKAMAGAHARA GOT OFF THEIR ASSES AND ARE NOW SENTRY TO THE REPAIRED SEAL?!"
Kataki raised an eyebrow upon hearing the latter part of the communications. "... Pray tell, who might it be?"
"THEY SENT TAKEMIKAZUCHI TO ASSIST OMONOIMI-NO-KAMI?!" the three-horned Oni panicked out loud upon realizing that their sole advantage was now lost. "FUCK! THIS CANNOT BE HAPPENING! MAKE SURE WE DON'T LOSE ANY MORE GROUND-!"
Another communication line then appears adjacent to the one Rengokuki already has on.
"HELLO?!" the Oni barked into the circle. "OUR STRONGHOLD AT MT. KURAMA IS UNDER ATTACK?! HOW?! I THOUGHT THE KEGARE WOULD'VE BEEN ENOUGH TO REPEL THEM-WHAT DO YOU MEAN THE SEAL WAS REPAIRED WHILE YOU GUYS WERE IN PATROL-ARE YOU ALL SHITTING ME?! TSUKUYOMI IS LEADING THE COUNTEROFFENSIVE?!"
"Should we inform Hisaya of this turning?" Kataki suggested.
"I'M WORKING ON IT!" Rengokuki then grabs an Onmoraki by its chicken-neck before attaching a message to its leg.
Normally, he'd use the same communication magic to call his turncoat companion, but the ritual taking place at the captured Mt. Hiba was emanating so much ambient kegare that all forms of long-distance communication magic were impossible.
With that said, he then sent the bird Yōkai away by hurling it into the teleportation array, sending it to Shimane Prefecture as the only way in.
"Calm down, Rengokuki-san," the odd-horned Oni pleaded. "The enemy still aren't aware of us, so we still hold the element of surprise."
The three-horned Oni sighs before picking up his club. "Welp, you have a point," he remarked as he went out of the temple grounds. "... Gonna go patrol the surrounding perimeters. Maybe it'll get my mind off the shit that's happening."
Kataki nods as Rengokuki and a contingent of Yomi-aligned Oni then head into the woods for their nightly patrol.
It was routine, monotonous, and quite frankly, not as exciting as raiding enemy territory, but if it contributed to the success of their plans, then he'll bear with it.
Then suddenly, he spotted movement in the woods.
"Show yourself!" barked Rengokuki.
Coming out of the bushes was none other than Ryuugamine Takeshi, both his hands up in surrender.
"What are you doing out here?" asked the three-horned Oni.
"I'm switching sides," he said matter-of-factly. "... Doing the smart thing given that I have an Evil Dragon on me."
Rengokuki, admittedly a little rattled from the stream of bad news he'd received earlier on, was more than receptive to any good news that came his way.
"... You made sure no one's following you?" asked the three-horned Oni.
"Snuck out while no one was looking," Takeshi answered with a smirk that advertised him as evil.
"Yes!" Rengokuki pumped his fist in victory. "In that case, let's get you to Hisaya, pronto!"
The Oni then all lift him up in celebration as they all march him towards Zenkō Temple's shrine.
"... What is he doing here?" asked Kataki.
"He jumped ship and joined our side!" beamed the three-horned Oni. "Hisaya's plan worked!"
"... Is that so?" the odd-horned Oni remarked. "... I see."
"Hey, before I make my way to Hisaya, mind if I do something for the occasion?" requested Takeshi.
"Sure, go ahead!" Rengokuki grinned as Takeshi then took out his phone before taking a selfie with him, Rengokuki, Kataki, and the teleportation array before the Buddha statue within the shrine that left its doors open.
"Just a memento of mine," Takeshi shrugged as he put his phone away back into his pocket. "... Now then, can you take me to where Hisaya is?"
"Sure! This way, buddy!" The three-horned Oni then led Takeshi into the shrine before activating the array to send their supposed new recruit off to sign in with their leader. "Have a nice trip!"
Takeshi smiles before disappearing, DMing the picture while the Oni weren't looking.
Kataki was aware that he'd done something, but couldn't fathom what it was save for playing with his device as if it were a toy.
At Nagano City's Borders...
"... I cannot believe that the plan actually worked," Yasuhiro flatly remarked as he and the rest of the Yōkai looked bewilderingly at Rias' phone's screen revealing everything about their enemy's location and confirming the existence of their "backdoor" leading into Shimane Prefecture. "... And Rengokuki looks so... happy in it too."
"Then it's our job to keep up the act, then," Rias smirked as she put her phone away before turning back to the gathered coalition of Devils and Yōkai.
"Everyone's here, President," Akeno confirmed. "We're ready to move out when you're ready-"
"WAIT!"
A voice cried out before a ninja ran up towards them, revealing it to be from Suguru.
"Suguru-san?!" Yuuto remarked. "What are you doing here?! Aren't you supposed to be watching Chiharu-san?!"
"... I... I...! I WANT TO FIGHT!" the Nukekubi cried out, tears cascading from his eyes. "... I WANT TO ATONE FOR MY FRIEND'S MISTAKES! I'M SICK OF RUNNING AWAY FROM THIS MESS THAT I CAUSED! I... I REFUSE TO STAND BY WHEN RYUUGAMINE-SAN IS RISKING EVERYTHING FOR THE WORLD THAT STILL SEES HIM AS A CALAMITY! I WANT TO BREAK THE CYCLE OF HATE FOR PEOPLE LIKE RYUUGAMINE AND HISAYA-NII!"
Kumowatari approaches his younger charge before placing his hand onto his head. "... I didn't want to force you into a conflict that might break your soul even further," the Raiju pointed out. "... Once we enter, there will be no tolerance for retreat. Are you sure you're up for this to the bitter end, Suguru?"
The Nukekubi would've initially said "no," aware of his own weakness of heart and body.
However, upon listening to Takeshi's conflict with the stranger while watching the bedridden Chiharu, something began to stir within his own heart as well.
Hatred. A sense of loathing for his own passivity while the others were fighting tooth and nail for this country, simply because he excused himself as the "weakest."
A sense of shame sprouted in his own inability to define himself and let the others put the labels of "coward" and "weakest" upon him without resistance.
But upon seeing Takeshi accept his own shortcomings and bond with Nidhogg without compromising himself, inspiration struck his soul like a hammer onto an anvil.
"... I have to do this," Suguru gritted his teeth, further hardening his resolve in the face of his upcoming carnage. "... Otherwise, I won't be able to face Chiharu ever again."
The old Raiju nodded in approval. "Now commit, Suguru," he instructed. "I will watch your back through the end!"
"Yes sir!" the Nukekubi nodded back as he joined the ranks.
"Alright, guess that's everyone," Sona nodded as she looked back at her gathered Peerage. "... My final orders, don't die at the hands of the enemy. Destroy them before they can do the same to you."
"No objections here, President," Tsubaki agreed.
"On your word, President," Yuuto then bowed back to let Rias step forth.
Channeling her inner Akechi Mitsuhide by tying up her hair into a high ponytail, she then bellows the following order.
"THE ENEMY AWAITS AT ZENKŌ TEMPLE!"
At Mt. Hiba's Secret Shrine...
"So the Shinto Pantheon has begun their counteroffensive?" Hisaya remarked as he continued pumping Koneko full of kegare.
"It appears that a third party has intervened by fixing up one of the breached seals at the mountains we've raided," Dōman pointed out. "... In all fairness, our 'smash and grab' approach to our prior raids wasn't optimal enough to sustain our advantage, but I suppose it cannot be helped due to how much this unknown of a third party is right now."
"I don't care who the third party is," growled the traitor Oni. "Say that you have a contingency in the works!"
"Indeed! Of course!" the old Onmyōji then pulls out a fan of ofuda before setting it into a formation that forms a magic circle. "... Our attrition rate may be an issue... but perhaps we can change it to our advantage."
Hisaya's eyes widened slightly upon hearing what he was suggesting. "... Are you suggesting necromancy?"
"A tad unstable, but will serve as our ace in the hole should the enemy get too close," snickered the old man. "Now, if you excuse me, I have to lay out the welcome mat."
"Do what needs to be done," the Oni ordered as he continued his work.
As he was continuing his duty, a sudden shift of ambience then catches the Oni's attention.
"... So you've finally come," grinned Hisaya as Takeshi walked up towards the Oni from behind.
... Senpai...? thought Koneko as she also felt the presence, her consciousness barely holding on after 24 hours worth of kegare pumped into her soul.
"So, this is where the magic happens..." the Evil Dragon User remarked with a slight huff. "... Nice place you got here, Hisaya. A tad dim for my tastes, but I suppose it's your choice of aesthetic."
"Oh, don't mind yourself with our surroundings," Hisaya remarked as he then turned to face him. "... It's all fleeting in the end, after all."
"Good to know," Takeshi replied. "So uh, now that I'm on your side, what do you want me to do?"
Koneko's eyes widened upon hearing that from him of all people.
"Oh quite simple, actually," the traitor Oni remarked. "... You see, the other seals we've captured prior to this week are under attack. If possible, can you help our defenders stationed at Mt. Kurama repel the assault led by Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto?"
"Sure, I'm game," Takeshi and Hisaya then turned their backs towards each other. "... Say, before I go, mind if I ask a few things?"
"I'll allow three," Hisaya replied.
"First... what is going to happen if Yomi is unleashed upon this world?" asked Takeshi. "I mean, I guess that its gonna rip this whole country a new one, but I wanna know the specifics. That and I think the Shinto Pantheon isn't going to take all of this lying down."
"True, were if that were the only thing that happened," replied Hisaya. "... What's actually going to happen in this ritual is rather than unleash Yomi onto this world with a mere breach, it'll instead... fuse both planes of existence into one, depriving the denizens of Takamagahara of their power and I suppose that you don't need to know what happens if the denizens of Yomi are unleashed upon the populace?"
"Noted," Takeshi remarked. "... Second, you only implied that you were basically treated like how I was during your time at Hakone Shrine. Mind telling me the full story? Can't exactly fight well if I have this question gnawing at my head."
Hisaya then sighed. "... I apologize. That was unintentional of me," he confessed. "But given that you were willing to come this far, I suppose you deserve to know the full story, one persecuted being to another."
Hisaya clears his throat before sharing his story.
"Once, my ancestors were part of the dissident faction of Yōkai during Abe no Seimei's reforms between the human-Yōkai relations were put in place," he began. "As you could already tell, we lost the conflict. Those of us who didn't meet our end at the sharp end of a tachi were exiled from our homes and forced to wander the wilderness as Strays. Sound familiar?"
"Sadly so," Takeshi agreed. "... Guess every walk of life has its own outliers."
Hisaya slightly smiled in understanding. "... As you can tell, life for us Stray Yōkai wasn't easy," he continued. "Hunted down by our former kin allying themselves with those who were once our foodstuff, the humans, forced to move from forest to forest, mountain to mountain, cavern to cavern, the life of a nomad took a toll on our bodies and our collective sanity."
Koneko was also hearing of this as well, much more clearly since she didn't have kegare being constantly pumped into her.
"My own parents died before I could even learn how to walk," Hisaya remarked. "The rest of my fellow Strays died soon after from either starvation or cut down like mongrels, and it was only through the mercy of those gods that have condemned us to die that I was able to live long enough through my infancy that I was taken in by a small clan of Ōgama residing in Yamaguchi Prefecture. ... Cruel, I know. But they're gods. What they say is their divine decree, so what was a hateful, orphaned Oni like me supposed to do in the face of great powers that dictate who is good or evil?"
... So much for him fancying himself as a villain, scoffed Nidhogg. ... To think he and I share the same lot in life... how insulting.
"... I held it in," the traitor Oni answered. "I held it in even as those toads raised me as one of their own. I held it in even as they inadvertently sent me back to the Kanto Region, the very same place where my ancestors were driven out from as losers of the course of history. I held onto that one-thousand year-long grudge... even after that dumb bitch Azusa loved me unconditionally, because if no one was willing to look at me as anything but a descendent of filthy traitors behind my back, then I have no reason to change their perceptions."
Takeshi sighs upon hearing that heavy load of a backstory. Admittedly, he felt a bit bad for what he'd gone through. Even Koneko, the hostage, could understand to a degree on why Hisaya did what he'd done up to this point. He had no reason to be loyal to those who see him as nothing more than a monster.
"... Well shit," he remarked. "... You almost make it sound as if nothing's going to change unless drastic measures are taken."
"I'm glad you can understand to an extent," the traitor Oni remarked. "... I'll humor you by answering one more question from you before I send you on your way."
"Cool," Takeshi shrugged before asking his final question. "... If Yomi wins, will there be Tokusatsu airing every Sunday, starting at 9 AM?"
Both Hisaya and Koneko blinked upon hearing that asinine question.
... Really senpai? the cat-girl Devil mentally sweatdropped.
"The fuck's 'Tokusatsu'?" the traitor Oni puzzledly asked.
"And like that, the deal is off."
*FWHOOMP*
With a sudden burst of ashen cloud that then choked the whole cavern that they were in, the smokescreen extinguishes every lit candle as Hisaya scrambled in complete darkness as Takeshi, using Nidhogg's own shared senses, weaves through the black curtain and beelines towards where he last saw Koneko.
*TWUCK*
Snapping the chains free from her, Takeshi then takes her before carrying her out of the smoke-filled room and quickly finds a way out via his [Mayhem Striker] cutting through the stone walls and towards the outside.
"Here's one more for the road, free of charge!" declared Nidhogg as the ashes in the cavern then all detonated with his own draconic energy.
*KABOOM*
Takeshi and Koneko both come flying out of the exploding cave and into open wilderness.
"FRESH AIR!" cackled Takeshi before he noticed that Koneko was gagged. "One second."
*RIP*
Takeshi then takes off the ofuda like a strip of duct tape out of Koneko's mouth, letting her cough as she now finally breathed fresh oxygen.
"She's full of that sweet anathema like the world's ugliest turducken," Nidhogg commented.
"Well, nothing more needs to be said!"
*SMOOCH*
In a shocking maneuver, Takeshi locks lips with Koneko before sucking out all of the kegare infesting within her, letting Nidhogg digest the spiritual pollution within Takeshi's body.
After a full minute of sucking face, Takeshi successfully detoxes Koneko of all of her kegare... at the cost of taking her first kiss without her consent.
"... Sorry about that, Toujou-san," he apologized. "But as you can tell, I had to act fast."
Koneko then pouted as she turned her head away from him. "... Jerk," she then hugs him. "... You had me worried there for a second."
"Hey," Takeshi then hugged her back, "I promised, didn't I? That I'd watch your back-?"
Then a scream of pure rage was heard from within before Hisaya himself had jumped out of the smoke, his clothes slightly burnt from the blast as he then landed before Takeshi and Koneko.
"... Is this some kind of sick joke?!" the traitor Oni snarled. "If it is, then it's not funny!"
Takeshi smirks. "Not my fault that you fell for the oldest trick in the book, buddy," he said as he tapped into his own smarmy voice of Lock Dealer Sid from Kamen Rider Gaim. "... And frankly, it's all your fault for assuming that I'd join you because we're not so different."
"... What?!" snarled Hisaya.
"Look, I can go on and on of how you and I aren't so different, yet I chose to take a different course of action, or the fact that I have my own set of rules that I abide by that won't let me compromise on your bullshit... but really, the reason is so painfully simple, that I can say it in one breath," Takeshi said with his voice dripping in venom akin to Nidhogg's."... I don't like you. Period."
"... Do you realize what you're saying?!" the traitor Oni pointed out. "Even if you make it through this, you're still resigning to a life where the gods will curse you at every step! They will ensure that your life will be nothing but pain and death!"
"... Bro, Japan's gone through two nukes, an economic recession that we're still trying to dig ourselves out of, and you still have the balls to call me cursed?" Takeshi smirked as Nidhogg continued feeding off of Hisaya's growing dismay. "... And there's your problem, Hisaya-chan. You always assume everything, never bothering to ask if your assumptions are true. The gods only ruined 75% of your life. The remaining 25% that you pissed on was your doing entirely. So if I'm gonna live through Hell, then it's a good thing I chose to be a Devil, because they sure make better company than your sorry, sad-sack ass!"
Hisaya's rage then peaks to its limit. "... Then you'll die with your beloved," he hissed. "KILL HIM!"
But no one answers save for crickets.
"... Uh, was there supposed to be an enemy gauntlet?" asked Takeshi as the traitor Oni looked around frantically.
"WHERE IS EVERYONE?!" he cried out in panic as he was left without an army.
Within Hiba-Dogo-Taishaku Quasi-National Park's Beech Forest...
Under the moonlight was a pile of bodies consisting of slain Oni, Gaki, Wanyūdō, Hinoenma, and Gyuki, its height reaching the starry heavens like a divine monument of death.
Sitting atop of its apex was the cloaked stranger, holding a tally counter in their gauntleted hand as it was then clicked to "008."
"Amateurs."
Back at Mt. Hiba...
"Well, there goes your entire home field advantage," snarked Takeshi. "... But damn, it was a good thing you're as gullible as Chiharu-san, otherwise, my plan wouldn't have worked."
The traitor Oni snarled in rage. "Don't get cocky, child," he rebuked. "You may have outwitted me, but you shall not advance any further! Once I slay you and your friends, I will resume the ritual to usher Yomi upon this accursed world!"
Takeshi smirks as he then tosses his smartphone towards Koneko, the latter catching it. "... Don't count on it, buddy," he smirked. "... What do you say, Nidhogg? Ready to really ruin his day?"
From the ashen-gray gem, a malicious cackle was sounded from the flashing orb from the belt's buckle. "Fuck him up."
Before the battle could begin, Takeshi then turned his head towards Koneko standing behind him. "... Toujou-san, record everything," he requested with a wink. "And make sure to get my good side."
Koneko rolled her eyes before she began recording with her senpai's phone, which was already on recording function, implying that he was also collecting evidence during his plan's execution.
"... Kick his ass for me, senpai."
Takeshi then presses the button on his [Cataclysm Zone], instinctively knowing which one to press now that he and Nidhogg were in perfect sync.
No longer one was trying to overpower the other. Rather, both of them were now each others' natural extensions.
It now felt natural, this coalescence of draconic malice and chthonic resolve, now used like a limb.
"... Henshin."
"[Malice Rise]!" announced the Sacred Gear as soon as its user gave the command. "[Abyss Rage Awakening]!"
An explosive Dragon's roar then blasts back both Hisaya and Koneko as Takeshi was engulfed in a pillar of ash-black flames.
To Be Continued...
And there we have the end of the reboot's "Chapter 8." And oh boy, a lot of things were on my mind when making this, so I'll try and cover them in sequence as best as I can.
First, Dr. Date Inui and Detective Daigo Maria from Shinjuku DxD make a crossover cameo. Go read it, it's a pretty great mystery manga, and I just included this crossover because both the manga and this fic's source material share a "DxD." As for who's voicing them, he's my quick fancast:
- Dr. Date Inui: Jun'ichi Suwabe (JPN), Matthew Mercer (ENG)
- Detective Daigo Maria: Lynn (JPN), Amanda Lee (ENG)
I couldn't resist.
Second, regarding the shift in the dynamics between Takeshi and Nidhogg (and to an extent, the rest of the Evil Dragons), there's a lot:
- One, I sort of expanded upon Nidhogg's sin of Envy, inadvertently making him an "Adaptational Nice Guy," but at the same time, he's more dangerous due to his increased cunning and actually taking time to learn about his host's strengths and weaknesses, and actually utilizing the carrot (by actually enjoying the same hobbies as his host) and the stick (the emotional manipulation that he both conjures and encouraged), all to put Takeshi in a more vulnerable state of mind to make him more willing to hand his body over to him. And given that the original fic's first two Evil Dragons sort of utilize the same method, I had to differentiate the methodologies.
- Two, regarding Nidhogg's "Adaptational Nice Guy," I mean to clarify that he's still evil and will remain as such, but he's the kind of evil who enjoys the small things in life, such as secondhand negative emotions and the aforementioned hobby. I also incorporated some elements of the "Tragic Villain" trope into his backstory, but the main crux of this arc's theme of miscommunication (Toshiki Inoue-style) is the point of Nidhogg's "evil." Ultimately, Nidhogg literally accomplished nothing save for standing in Náströnd menacingly, and the Norse Pantheon just encouraged this perception since Nidhogg didn't bother protesting against it. This is his hidden flaw; Nidhogg is the definition of a "Donner-Kruger Syndrome" when it comes to doing evil, only beating out the canonical Vritra as an Evil Dragon because of better propaganda that Nidhogg played along with (how willing is up for debate).
- And three, Nidhogg's reboot-exclusive powers to "absorb" foreign harmful elements like Yomi's kegare and use it for himself through [Mayhem Striker] better fits the whole sin of Envy ala temporary power-copying. More will be further explained after the end of the next chapter.
Third, the stranger's intervention. Admittedly, they were a bit of a Deus Ex Machina, but given that Kataki is involved, and the fact that they knew all along where they were operating from, I thought it was a bit of a good idea to incorporate Takeshi's "Hidden Test of Character" by utterly destroying him with a single punch. And because of that, [Cataclysm Zone] now has a new function besides subjugation of the Evil Dragons: synchronization with both Evil Dragon and host.
More on that in the next chapter.
Fourth, the small running gag of Yōkai being tech-blind (or on any modern day conveniences) is used as a pivotal juncture for the alliance's plan to get the drop on the Yomi Faction. Even the ever-elusive Kataki has no clue how a smartphone works, and Rengokuki just thought it was harmless fun.
And finally, Hisaya. I sort of changed his backstory a bit, but the effects were the same. However, his expanded backstory is meant to highlight his (and inadvertently Rengokuki's) major flaw: he assumes too much, and his emotional manipulation may have worked on Chiharu and Suguru (the latter is an accidental case), and it would've worked for Takeshi if not for him getting his crap back together.
Really, Hisaya has every right to be angry, but the fact that he didn't confide in other people to it (but given how traditional Japanese social culture works, he was kinda strapped for options to begin with) sort of ruined his chances of redeeming himself. If anything, Azusa's unconditional affections kinda made him worse and Suguru's initial cowardice was a massive confirmation bias for the traitor Oni. He's a Tragic Villain played straight, only because, to put it in his own words, "an architect of his own demise."
The moral of this arc; sometimes, it's just worth asking someone else for confirmation when you are assuming something, even if it means getting burned later on. Otherwise, as mentioned prior, it's gonna be another Toshiki Inoue-story.
I wrote this whole chapter to be less loaded as the last one. The restriction is coming off in the next chapter.
With that, see you all in Arc 2's Finale.
Toku References:
- The lead up to the final operation to save Koneko from the Yomi Faction is based on the scene from Kamen Rider Fourze's final episode.