Marinus P.O.V
All things considered the familiar forest is not as creepy as you would expect. Sure the sky is a deep blood red and the forest itself looks dead and decaying, but overall not that intimidating. Then again it could just be that we teleported into one of the safer areas of the forest.
"This is really freaky." Asia said as she shifted closer to me.
Okay so not everyone was as I disturbed as I was. Asia and Issei were both a bit out off as the looked around in apprehension. If I didn't know any better I would think they were expecting a horror movie villain to jump out at any second.
"It's okay this is we're we came to get our familiars too." Kiba replied with a smile.
"Mhm." Koneko hummed in agreement.
"Who wants me!" A voiced yelled out above us. Looking up we saw an older man wearing an Ash Ketchum cosplay standing in a tree.
"Who's there!" Issei called back.
"The master of the familiar aka the Touji!" The man replied.
"That's the guy?" Issei asked.
"If your goal is to find familiars galore you've come at the right time that's for sure. The full moon is out to help you decide and I'll be the one to act as your guide." He rhymed.
"If you can't tell the touji is way obsessed with making things rhyme." Akeno whispered.
"Now how can I help you? Tell me all your wants and desires. A strong one, a fast one, one that likes to set fires?" The touji asked with a smile.
"Uh yeah, do you have ones with big tits that like ne-" Issei started to ask with a perverted grin before I cuffed him over the back of the head.
"Can you take anything seriously?" I asked with an annoyed sigh.
"I would like one that's cute and fun to be around." Asia stated hopefully.
"Fun? Done and done!" The touji replied with a smile and double thumbs up.
"Quick question." I interrupted getting the touji's attention. "Which direction is west?" I asked.
"West would be that way." He replied before looking at me curiously. "Is it possible you already know what familiar suits you best?" Be asked.
I gave him a deadpanned look in return before I started walking off in the direction he pointed out. I swear I need to get out of here before his rhymes drive me crazy.
"Rias I know where I'm going. I'm going to leave Asia with you guys for a bit, make sure nothing happens to her." I told the Gremory heiress before taking off in a flash step.
As I traveled using flash step I stopped every so often to check the map Azazel had given me. It was a topographical map with all sorts of points of interest labeled ranging from regions of the forest to rare familiar locations.
The prey I was after however was located on the far side of the forest a very good distance from any other familiars. Just looking at the map it was almost as if they were afraid to go near that area. Not that you could really blame any of them when you remembered this was the lair of the chaos karma dragon king Tiamat.
As I got closer to my destination I could definitely tell just why familiars avoided this area. It wasn't for the appearance, especially considering nothing really changed. No, it was in the air, a sort of...charge..I guess is the best way to describe it.
Continuing through the forest the feeling grows stronger and stronger until finally I arrive at its epicenter, a cave dug right into the side of a hill. Just as I'm about to enter in search of Tiamat I flash step backwards avoiding a pillar of blue flames that struck where I had been standing only moments ago. Looking up I draw Kyōka Suigetsu before I see exactly who I had come for.
Tiamat in her human form is easily one of the most breathtaking women I had ever seen. She was fair skinned with her hands and feet looking as if she had dipped them into blue paint. Her long light blue hair a beautiful compliment to the piercing cold gaze of her dark blue eyes. Her generous cleavage was held back only by a blue cloth top that matched the blue skirt she wore as her bottom.
"Well you must be Tiamat." I stated aloud receiving a glare in return.
"What are you doing in my home devil?" She growled out.
Ah yeah, forgot dragons are a bit territorial. That would certainly explain nearly getting roasted alive.
"I was looking for you." I replied with a shrug.
"And what pray tell could you want with me?" She asked as she dropped to the ground in front of her lair entrance. Her arms were crossed as she gave me an annoyed look.
"I suppose I should introduce myself first." I stated with a smile. "Marinus Leviathan, first grandson of the original Leviathan."
There was just the smallest hint of surprise in her eyes before she settled back into a look of annoyance. "Why should I care, you still haven't answered my question." She replied.
"Well to put it simply, I'm here for you. I want you to be my familiar." I explained.
Silence reigned for several moments before it was broken by a snort. Soon after a howl of laughter followed as Tiamat threw her head back practically bellowing out her amusement. She continued laughing like that for several minutes until he laughter died down to a few boisterous chuckles.
"That...that was a good one. Me be your familiar...I haven't laughed like that in ages." She stated with a massive grin showing of her sharp teeth.
I wasn't deterred however as I simply stood there with a small smile plastered on my face. Upon see my reaction Tiamat slowly lost her smile as she realized I was completely serious.
"You're serious?" She asked incredulously.
"I am." I replied simply.
"I thought you Old Satan bastards learned to leave me be the last time I dealt with you?" She snarled as she raised her hand summoning a ball of fire.
"I'm not with them." I say calmly as I raise my hands in surrender. "I've been in stasis since the Great War, until recently that is." I explain.
Tiamat stares intently for a a minute or two looking for any sign that I'm lying until finally she dismisses the fireball. She once again crosses her arms, but this time she looks far more curious than she allowed previously.
"Alright, I believe you. Now why on earth would I agree to be your familiar?" She asked.
"Because I can offer you benefits other devils can't." I state with a smile as I count down the reasons. "One, unlike other houses there's no worry about the Satans or council trying to order you around. You would be a familiar not a member of my peerage so you're outside their jurisdiction. Even if you weren't none of them would risk fucking with my house." I explained.
"That doesn't change anything, the devils wouldn't try pissing me off as things stand. I'm one of the five dragon kings who stand in the realm of ultimate class." She replied with a smirk.
I nodded already having expected that to be her response. "I figured you would say that, but tell me how often do you actually get to use that power?" I asked causing her to raise an eyebrow.
"What do you mean?" She questioned curiously.
"In this day and age battles between powerful members of the the supernatural are rare. Most factions have little reason to engage with one another and each pantheon keeps their problems internal for the most part." I explained.
"True, I don't get to stretch my legs very often, so to speak." She begrudgingly agreed. "But how could you solve that, are you looking to start a war?" She asked.
"War is unnecessary, not when the rating games are a thing." I stated causing her eyes to widen a bit as a feral smile started to form.
"True, Tannin has often told me of his time in those games your race enjoys." She affirmed. "But how would I participate?"
"The rules of the rating games allow for the use of familiars equal to the number of active pieces in a peerage." I replied with a smirk. "So if I had a full peerage participating I could include up to sixteen familiars." I explained.
"Hmm, if that's the case why haven't others abused this loophole before?" She asked curiously.
"Can you name on more than one hand the number of devils, that can participate in the games, that are strong enough to actually tame familiars strong enough to make a difference?" I asked receiving a slow shake of the head.
Even to me the only ones that came to mind were those in the top ten rankings. Only most of those wouldn't even bother wasting time trying this as most familiars lacked suitable combat power to match even a pawn. It's mainly the reason why familiars are used for scouting or chores, most just don't have the power or ability needed.
Thankfully the definition of a familiar in the rating game rule book is 'a supernatural creature or being bound to a devil as a servant or ally'. That means beings like dragons technically qualify as familiars as most aren't humanoid or in possession of human forms like Tiamat. Of course there is also the rule of the use of contracted magicians, but I'll get into that later down the line.
"You have a point, but it's still not enough to convince me." She replied.
I smirked as I had figured it would take more than that alone to convince her. It was a good thing I had gotten a lot of information about her from Azazel. Opening my hand I summon two items from my pocket space, the first of which causes her breath to hitch as she lays eyes on it.
The first was an ornate golden crown, the band of which was covered in engravings depicting flying dragons. This wasn't just any crown however, this was Tiamat's sacred treasure, the very same treasure that was taken and lost by Ddraig. It was the very reason that she hated his guts and had made a point of tracking down and killing his hosts.
"How...how did you get that?" She asked shakily, her eyes never leaving the crown.
"Oh this, just a lot of looking and scavenging. Honestly took even longer to repair it than it did to find its pieces." I explained nonchalantly.
I was lying through my teeth of course. In reality it was one of the items I bought while in the green orb market. Five million dollars, that was the exact price of this thing and I have to admit I don't get what's so special about it. As far as I could tell it was and is just a magically enhanced crown, of course it could probably have a special connection to Tiamat.
"Give it to me." She ordered more than asked holding out her hand.
With a smirk I sent it back to my pocket space where it was safely out of her reach. "Now that's a rather rude thing to say to someone offering you your precious treasure." I replied. Tiamat looked ready to attack, but held herself back knowing if she killed me the odds of getting her crown back disappeared entirely. "Do we have a deal?" I asked.
"What's the other thing?" She asked nodding to the ring containing a sapphire in my hand.
"So glad you asked." I smiled. "I happened to learn the one thing you want almost as badly as your crown are children." I explained.
"A child would be nice, but what makes you think I would sully myself with you?" She asked though not disdainfully.
"Because I know you can't have children easily." I stated causing her to scowl. "It was Quetzalcoatl right? You fought her for the position of dragon king and in the process severely damaged your ability to have children."
"It was." She replied tersely. "The bitch got a lucky shot in and damaged my reproductive organs. Even phenex tears haven't been able to heal the damage fully." She explained.
"This ring is special, put it on and it will slowly repair your body. The longest it takes is a week, after that you'll be back in top form." I explained causing her to eye the ring wearily.
"What's the catch? I've never heard of such a thing." She asked skeptically.
"No catch, you've never heard of it because it hasn't existed before. It's only thanks to my connections that it even exists now and if I die...well good luck finding another one." I stated.
There was a long silence as she seriously considered my offer. What I didn't bother stating was that the only children she would be having were mine. Of course there's also the little fact the ring only has a minor passive regeneration spell so that she believes its working while I wait for her to be captured. Not to mention the little incentive of keeping me alive for her own personal benefit.
"What are your terms?" She asked with a smirk.
"Simple enough I suppose, you come when I summon you. I'll try to make sure it's not a waist of your time outside rating games." I stated to which she nodded while giving me a look that screamed 'no shit'.
"That's all? No demands I lay with you? You don't want me to jump from familiar to peerage?" She asked skepticism clear in her voice.
"I have no desire to add you to my peerage when I can have you at the expense of a familiar contract." I replied. "As for sleeping with me, I'll not force you, but I won't say no either." I stated as I walked forward until we stood only a few feet apart. "The Leviathan line could certainly benefit from a child from the two of us." I state returning her smirk.
After a moment she chuckles before descending into full on laughter. Unlike last time however, it's not abrasive nor mocking. No, this time her laughter is melodious, as if having been told a particularly funny joke.
"Deal." She finally stated after getting her laughter under control. "You're an interesting one Leviathan, I've yet to meet a devil that didn't think they could force me to bend to their will."
"Oh make no mistake, I have no problem using heavy handed methods. I just know better than to try those against someone stronger than myself." I reply with a shrug. As I am now I could certainly take on Tiamat, but if I could win would be up in the air.
Tiamat smirked as she held out her had. "Very well, we have a deal, now if you would hand over my crown and the ring." She asked politely for once.
"Allow me to do the honors." I replied as I took the ring in hand and placed it on her right ring finger. I then retrieved the crown from my pocket space once again and held it out for her.
Tiamat gingerly took the crown from my grasp and placed it atop her head. The effects were immediate as the crown glowed an ethereal blue causing the engravings to come to life. The ground shook as Tiamat rose and suddenly three large serpent-like dragon heads manifested.
If I was unsure about beating Tiamat before I definitely wouldn't be able to take her now. When I arrived she was already strong, I knew as much since she was listed as a tier seven. Now though, now her power had skyrocketed through the roof. No wonder she had hated Ddraig's guts for losing her treasure, it held part of her power!
With this much of a power up it's entirely possible she's been elevated from a tier seven to a tier eight. Not only will that mean a huge boost in credits for her capture, but she'll also be in the same realm as Sirzechs in terms of power.
Slowly the aura of power that had exploded recedes and the dragon heads disappear as Tiamat lowers herself to the ground once again. Her presence still feels far more powerful, but she's managed to mask most of it.
"I haven't felt that in a very long time." She stated with a wide joyous smirk.
"I think you'd be able to take on a super devil with that level of power." I off handedly comment much to her amusement.
"Perhaps, I look forward to cutting loose when you summon me." She stated before frowning and looking towards the way I had come. Sniffing the air her frown becomes a scowl. "Those damned slimes...the group you arrived with have been attacked by those shitty perverted slimes." She stated causing me to sigh.
"Alright, better go deal with it." I said before smirking. "Want to come along?" I asked. She shrugged and I placed a hand on her arm before we disappeared in flash step.
Going at full speed it took us only a minute to reach the Gremory peerage and Asia. When we arrived the slime was just starting to eat through their underwear when Tiamat threw out a hand and a sea of blue fire followed. Seeing the fire hit I turned to Tiamat with a furious look in my eye, however before I could speak she beat me to it.
"Don't panic, the flames only burn who I want them to." She explained.
Turning my attention back to the group I see that, as she said, only the slimes are being destroyed. After a few moments Tiamat snaps her fingers and the flames disappear leaving no trace of the slimes. Everyone looks around in surprise with the exception of Issei who cries out in anguish.
"Nooooo! Slimtaro why!" He cried to the annoyance of Koneko who punched him.
"What happened?" Rias asked looking around. "Where did the slime go?"
"Marinus!?" Asia yells happily as she sees myself and Tiamat standing there. The little sprite dragon flying by her hides behind her upon seeing Tiamat.
"Yo, looks like you guys have seen better days." I state not at all ashamed I'm taking in the mostly underwear clad women.
"My I didn't know you were such a pyro Marinus~" Akeno said with a wink.
"Oh I didn't do anything but get us here." I stated. "The person you should be thanking is-"
"Tiamat!" The Touji screamed in shock.
"T-Tiamat?!" Rias asked seeing the dragon king standing by my side smirking.
"What's wrong little Gremory?" Tiamat asked.
"Rias, everyone, meet Tiamat the Chaos Karma Dragon and my familiar. Tiamat, meet Rias Gremory and her peerage, except the blonde who's with me." I introduced everyone.
Tiamat ignored everyone except for Asia as she gave the girl her undivided attention. Walking forward Tiamat bent over giving the girl a good look. Gently grabbing a lock of the nervous girls hair Tiamat sniffed taking in Asia's scent before she smirked. Not a moment later and Tiamat had Asia in a hug letting out a loud chuckle.
"To think I would meet a tamer after all this time." She bellowed I'm excitement until she looked down at the sprite dragon that had been hiding behind Asia. "Is this your Familiar?" She asked.
"N-not yet, I wanted Marinus to meet him first." Asia replied nervously.
"Don't worry about that, he's perfect for you." Tiamat said before looking back to the sprite dragon. "You'll be a perfect familiar for her won't you?" She asked, her eyes glowing making it clear she wasn't really negotiating with the little dragon.
It nodded rapidly causing Tiamat to laugh before setting Asia down. She then looked over the gathered group, her eyes landing on Issei, before she practically snarled.
"You." She growled causing my eyes to widen.
Oh this was bad, if Tiamat killed Issei I'd be dealing with a pissed off Rias. Normally not very scary, but if her brother got involved...
"Tiamat." I said as I flash stepped in front of her. "Calm down."
"Calm down? Calm down!?" She growled out. "That fucker stole my treasure and got it destroyed!" She yelled pointing at Issei.
"W-hey hold on a sec I didn't do anything lady!" Issei spoke hastily in his defense pissing Tiamat off even more.
"Issei shut up! She means the dragon that's sealed in the booster gear!" I replied as I tried to calm Tiamat down.
"I can't kill that idiot because he got himself sealed, but I can kill his host." Tiamat growled out causing the Gremory peerage to stand between her and Issei.
"Dragon king or not, I will not allow you to harm my precious servant." Rias stated seriously.
"She's not hurting anyone." I said while staring down Tiamat. "You have your treasure back, let's not make this more troublesome." I stated.
Tiamat calmed down slightly at the reminder she had her treasure once again, but still looked angry. Seeing the look in my eye told her that I wasn't willing to back down on this however. With a reluctant nod she stepped back and walked a short distance away.
"Rias, I'll calm her down, years of resentment aren't going to disappear in a day. Why don't you guys head back without us." I offered.
"Very well, I'm glad that you were able to calm her down." Rias admitted. Now that I could actually focus on her she looked to be shaking a bit.
"Standing up to a dragon king was pretty ballsy." I admitted with a smirk. Hey I'll admit it that elevated my opinion of Rias a bit. "I'll see you guys in a few days, let me know if something comes up before then." I told her and she nodded.
As the Gremory peerage started to leave I walked over to Tiamat who was still a bit angry. "You should have let me kill him." She spit out spitefully.
"You killing him would have been pointless and caused a headache for me." I shot back to which she grunted. "Look, Issei serves a purpose and as long as he keeps doing that he gets to live. When his purpose is served I'll gladly let you off him, but it will be at my discretion." I told her to which she grinned dangerously.
Truthfully I've been trying to find a reason to keep Issei around, but I've been falling short each time. It seems that as soon as Issei isn't the main character of our little story he loses all relevance. Even the little character progression he has before the Riser arc hasn't taken place because the events of Asia befriending him never happened.
The only reason I've not killed him and taken the boosted gear for myself at this point is because my mission conditions prohibit me from binding a sacred gear to myself. With that in mind I have to bide my time carefully until at least Riser appears, then I can set some plans into motion.
Later, after a very long talk with Tiamat, I'm finally walking inside the mansion with Asia. Asia was also now wearing a spare Kuoh winter gym tracksuit since her clothes from before were destroyed by the slime. With us was also the small sprite dragon that Asia had made her familiar and named Rassei.
As we entered we were once again greeted by Raynare and Kalawarner like usual. This time however they were joined by Celeste who, despite the smile she gave, was watching the pair like a hawk.
"Welcome home master." The three chorused. Notably the two fallen were much more sincere than the last time he had heard them. Going by the way Celeste was smirking she was finally breaking the two in.
"Lord Marinus, dinner has been prepared, though most of the house has already eaten." Celeste informed him with a smile.
"Good to hear, Raynare, Kalwarner, see to it that Asia and her new familiar eat dinner. Celeste come with me I have something to discuss with you." I stated simply and the pair bowed if fallen bowed while following Asia to the dining room.
As Celeste and I walked through the mansion towards my room I couldn't help the smirk I had. "You've trained those two well." I complimented.
"Thank you my Lord, it's only right maids receive proper instruction." She replied with a smile. "Might I ask what you wish to discuss?" She asked curiously.
"The time for me to reveal myself is drawing closer." I replied simply causing her to turn serious. "I want to know more about the world I'll be stepping into when that time comes. Have you any news on the state of affairs in the underworld?" I asked.
Celeste had made it a point to discreetly keep her eyes and ears open when it came to the underworld. Especially since I had always planned on returning and reestablishing my house. For that purpose she kept close tabs on anything of political interest such as Rias' wedding.
"Riser Phenex has been pushing for his marriage to Rias Gremory be moved up. House Gremory have agreed and it's very likely they will inform their heiress soon." She explained causing me to nod. I already knew as much thanks to canon, but it's still nice to have confirmation.
"Anything else?" I asked.
"Diodora Astaroth has been noted to making more trips to the human world recently. The few witnesses have stated he seems to be searching for something or someone. As far as I've been able to gather he has not been made aware that Asia is in our care." She explained.
I smirk, Diodora has very little patience when things don't go his way it seems. Oh well, I have plans for the little urchin so he can search all he likes for now.
"I have also heard rumors that Gragg Forneus, heir to house Forneus, has been searching the seas of his houses territory in the human world for a mermaid." She stated causing me to look at her with a raised eyebrow.
"How exactly is that relevant?" I asked.
"I looked into it a bit further. The mermaid in question is actually one of the few remaining members of house Vepar." She explained causing my eyes to widen.
House Vepar is one of several pillar houses currently claimed as extinct. Most extinct houses are declared as much because they either died out or only have one member left. Of course the point could be made that if they have living members the house isn't extinct, but in reality they are still considered as much because they are destitute.
House Vepar in particular was one of several houses that directly served house Leviathan during the Great War. Hearing that the house has a living member is huge, not just because they can be brought back, but for the image of house Leviathan.
"Celeste I want you to find this member of house Vepar and bring them to me. Take Momo with you and make whatever offer is necessary, barring yourselves, for them to come willingly." I ordered.
"Should they not accept your generosity?" She asked. "And what should be done if house Forneus interferes?"
"If Vepar refuses to come willingly...drag them before me kicking and screaming if necessary. As for Forneus, if they interfere erase any evidence of your presence." I ordered before looking her in the eyes seriously. "Including witnesses."
House Forneus may still be prosperous enough to replace their heir if he gets in the way, but they also used to serve house Leviathan. It wouldn't do well to have the public learn I was helping revive an extinct house only for them to learn I harmed another one in the process. Building the image of a generous and merciful clan head will be key to the revival of house Leviathan, especially under the rule of the new Satans.
"It will be done my lord." She gave a deep bow before we resumed our walk. "The last bit of news is not in relation to the underworld, but the assignment you gave me some time ago." She stated.
"I see, has there been any developments?" I asked a bit hopefully.
"There have, unfortunately it was given to us courtesy of Azazel." She replied unhappily. "A group of former noble devils have kept a half pure-blooded devil named Ingvild Leviathan in hiding for over a hundred years. She contracted devils sleeping disease and has been asleep for that long." Celeste explained.
"Hmm, what's changed if they've kept her in hiding?" I asked.
"She momentarily woke up due to the activation of a sacred gear. Azazel contacted us while you were away, because the former supporters wanted to give her to the Grigori." She explained.
"I see." I stated with an eerily calm tone as my power slowly leaked out. "So those...rats...want to hand over my relative because she awoke a sacred gear? After decades of watching over her?" I asked rhetorically as the pressure slowly built.
"Y-yes." Celeste replied shakily.
Taking a few deep breaths I smiled, it was not a kind smile. "Tell Azazel to give us their location, I'll deal with this personally." I order leaving no room for argument. "Speaking of the Governor General, what did he want in return for this information?"
"Azazel would like to have the next installment of the sacred gear compendium." She replied.
"I'll have it ready for him." I replied as we resumed our walk. "It's unfortunate you have to leave for your assignment tomorrow." I stated after a few minutes of silence.
"Why is that my lord?" Celeste asked.
"Because this news has given a bit of...stress..that I would have liked to work off with you." I replied causing her to smile widely at the thought.
As we stopped at my door I gave her a chaste kiss before walking into my room. "Unfortunately I want you perfectly ready for tomorrow, so we will have to wait until your return." I stated as I shut the door.
"Fuck." Was the only thing I heard before Celeste walked away from the door.
A/n: So I put this down here so there were no spoilers. Some may be wondering why I've changed my mind on keeping Issei around and truthfully...I misremembered my own mission. Extra devilish Leviathan is a combination of two missions that I found on WC. One of those missions had the condition of not killing Rias or her peerage and for some reason I thought I had included it.
So yeah, some of you were asking why I had him still around and that's the main reason why. Issei may or may not be getting killed of soon so we'll just have to wait and see.