Finally back with Sonic DxD, ladies and gentlemen. Before we start this next chapter, remember to vote on the poll. Also, all the pervious chapters have been revamped. Nothing changed plot-wise, just a few extra sentences, as well as fixing the dialog. I had plenty of time to do this since catching the beer-bug myself... don't worry, I'm fine. I don't feel any different, not sore or achy, and my sense of smell is still intact. Do I know how I caught it? No. I didn't throw any "Covid-Awareness" parties...
So now I'm confided to my living quarters for a few weeks, but the good news is that's plenty more time to edit the backlog of chapters and post them once those chapters are shipshape. I was also watching Uzaki-Chan and got a story idea about Sonic accidently going into her world while watching it, but I'm not sure if I'm gonna act on this. The style of Uzaki-Chan and Sonic are conflicting, unlike Sonic and DxD which have similar tones that allows their universes to crossover easier. Let me explain:
Uzaki-Chan is a Shōnen, which the target audience is teens to adults, something Sonic can in fact be. However, she is mainly school/slice-of-life with no supernatural elements (at least, what I've seen from her so far). High School DxD DOES include the supernatural aspect, which Sonic also has, making them more plausible to co-exist. See my logic there?
But, if the above idea is something you guys want me to try, let me know and I'll consider it.
From Guest:
Even though the schedule is a bit "skewered", the summary you gave to the other arcs are getting me even more excited and invested.
I hope you get the devils to go on a tour of Sonic's World at one point (it would lead to some very interesting things at the very least, like a clichéd, but well-used, swimsuit chapter at Emerald Coast).
But honestly, I just want to see Asia end up in a Chao Garden.
Bakuganman: A tour, eh?... Something like that will happen. The group will actually be going to that private island from the DxD specials, so there's your swimsuit chapter right there. Now to be honest, the only Chao planned to be in this story was Cheese, and I'm not sure I'll be able to add one in without making it come out of nowhere.
From spacerswap (Chapter 11):
Is the OK KO Crossover canon to this?
From spacerswap (Chapter 12):
two echidna tribes
I'm sorry wasn't there just the Nocturnus clan? Ken Penders isn't real.
Bakuganman: Lol! He isn't? Then who was that guy who cringingly added his grandkids out of nowhere? XD! In all seriousness, you caught the reference, I see. Looking back, while Ken did mange to make amazing stories, he also damaged the brand with that BS lawsuit. By his logic, that would mean Dragon Ball can sue Sonic for the Chaos Emeralds. There is a reason why I mentioned those 3 tribes, however; but you'll find out soon enough. And yes, OK-KO is canon to this. In fact, it gets a small reference here. One thing, I felt Tails and Sonic were out-of-character in that episode. The sly references to Sonic media were enjoyable, and I get that 'find a new buddy thing' was just a joke; but it went completely against Sonic and Tails' brotherly bond even though it lasted less than a minute. At least it wasn't a sudden 'you trust Eggman more than me' out of nowhere...
Chapter 13: Night of the Stray Devil
Rias was in her office, as usual, going through papers and scrolls again. They were the same documents from last chapter about other worlds. She figured she'd go through them again... maybe she missed something. As she was working, a glyph appeared on her ear. Someone was calling her. "Hello?" She answered.
"That was quite the show you put on... you almost had me convinced" answered the voice on the other end of the call.
"Hey Zechs," said Rias with a smile, happy to hear her brothers voice. "How long have you knew?" She asked her brother, wanting to know how he knew about their special guest.
"Well, its not everyday an alien falls from the sky, darts around fathers school, and gets acquainted with my dear sister..." Sirzechs answered, hinting he had known at least since they very beginning and about their first official meeting. Then again, this shouldn't be a surprise to her. The Gremory family had ties to Kuoh Academy, so it only made sense. "How's he doing by the way? He adjusting well?" He slyly added.
"He is. In fact, he's quite fast at it," Rias responded, matching her brothers tone. "Is that it? Or is there a REAL reason your calling?" She 'asked', figuring her brother had an underlying motive for reaching out to her again.
Sirzechs smiled. "You know me too well," he said. "It's that Stray Devil..."
"What about it?" Asked Rias.
"It was taken care of..." said Sirzechs. "Ok, then what's the probl...?" Rias began to ask, when her brother then added: "By something else."
Rias' eyes widened a bit, not expecting that. "What do you mean? Who eradicated that filthy creature?" She asked, not because the Stray was destroyed. As far as she was concerned, those things were no longer Devils, but its strange to hear that someone or something had taken care of the job already.
"When we got there, there were robot parts scattered everywhere... quite the fight had taken place" said Sirzechs.
"The human military, perhaps?" Asked Rias, which seemed plausible. It was a VERY rare occurrence, but sometimes the human public would become aware of a 'disturbance' before the Devils could act, which would lead to the clueless humans fighting a power they couldn't possibly comprehend... no survivors would ever be recovered.
"That's the thing. The technology was... something else," Sirzechs revealed.
-FLASHBACK-
Sirzechs: When the scouts approached to investigate, they took some samples back to examine them.
A large group of 20 Devils were dispatched to the location of the Stray Devil, only to find his serpent-like body was already in a bloody mess. The only clues left behind were the battle marks along the ground, the body of the deceased Stray, shrapnel almost everywhere, and the destroyed robots that came in all shapes and sizes. One piece looked like a crab claw, another was the bottom of a bee, quite a few were humanoid yet very futuristic, and there was one giant one that appeared able to fire it hands and also have laser cannons in its arms. Curious, some Devils gathered a few scrapes to return to HQ with.
Sirzechs: Even our scientists were baffled a the complex programming and weaponry these robots possessed... its like nothing we've ever seen before. They appear to be as advanced as Sacred Gears, if not more.
In a laboratory with 3 Devil scientists, one of the robots' arms were placed on a table for examination. This arm was yellow and looked like some kind of launcher. 2 of the scientists were reading the readings, and they were off the charts with the amount of codes and commands built into whatever system this thing ran on! It was kind of fascinating. The origins off this enginery were not Devil, and most certainly not human. Whoever built this thing clearly knew a thing or two about technology.
The 3rd and more curious scientist tried picking it up with a tool for a closer look, and this somehow triggered a reaction from it! The arm began moving, the gears inside making loud noises as they heard a cocking sound. Backing off quickly, the Devil got away just in time to avoid a missile that launched out from the arm. While it was small, the size of a 16oz. bottle of water, it ended up destroying the wall it impacted with a large explosion they had to reel back from!
Once the dust settled, all 3 of the scientists looked out through the new hole in shock, as well as the other Gremory Devils on the other side.
-END FLASHBACK-
"This kind of machinery is far too advanced for something we could come up with, let alone humans. The amount of firepower they had was... incredible" Sirzechs concluded.
Rias was silent. This WAS troubling news. Even Sacred Gears, depending on its level of course, weren't an instant kill for a Stray. When a Devil turns into a Stray, either by leaving the house or killing their master in extreme cases, their power slowly consumes them with no guidance from their master. As a result, they go insane and lose all sense of logic and reason, going as far as consuming other life forms to further their own power. To hear it was taken care of, while the problem was no longer there, was still concerning; especially since whoever was behind it had unfathomable technology at their disposal.
"Do you have any leads?" She asked.
"Unfortunately no," Sirzechs admitted. "And to make matters worse, Vice has also been spotted in your area. The higher ups want you to take care of it."
Rias sighed. Another Stray Devil in her territory. She can never catch a break, can she? "Alright. I'll handle it" she said. Despite all the help Sonic provided her, there was still more work to be done.
"Good luck, Rias... and be careful" said Sirzechs. He didn't doubt his sisters power, but that didn't mean he couldn't worry about her. They both hung up, going back to their own separate duties.
XXX
Once again, Sonic ran through the streets of Kuoh Town. Only this time, it wasn't for fun. It was for looking for a training spot so he and Issei could figure out how to test and learn to control the humans new powers. His house obviously wasn't an option. Last thing they needed was an explosion right on his front porch, to say nothing of what the neighbors would think. The park where they first met wasn't a good choice either. Despite the large amount of space it provided, that would be the first place the Fallen Angels would think to look for them. Plus it was a public area, and innocent people could very well get caught in the crossfire should the Fallen decide to NOT take them to a dimensional space.
Even worse, what if the Chaos Emeralds were somewhere in this dimension?! If those Fallen got ahold of one, Sonic and the ORC would be in deep trouble. But he couldn't think of that right now, he had to stay positive. Even if it took him all day, he was going to find somewhere safe for Issei to practice. Speaking of Issei; he was at school, and Kuoh Academy could be a possibility, seeing as there was an entire club of supernaturals' that dealt with this kind of stuff daily. But at the same time, that was also the problem. It was a school... with a insanely high female count. So getting Issei to remain focused and NOT cause an explosion, was easier said than done.
Sonic then sped off in a sonic boom down the left side of a fork in the road, continuing his search at a faster pace (thankfully there weren't any people down this particular street). As he ran past cars parked on the sides of the street, the camera shows him blurring past from the inside of some buildings he passes by. A corporate office; a grocery store; an auto shop; a small café; a large, empty, unfinished construction site...
Sonic returned to the site he just passed, though appeared from a blur while still facing forward. Having noticed it out of the corner of his eye, he then turned his head towards it to confirm what he just saw. The tall fencing around it was covered by dark fabric, preventing him from seeing inside clearly. Posted on the fence was a sign that of course said: "under construction", but in Japanese characters. It also had the top half of an anime girl posing with an open-mouth smile and a peace sign while wearing a hard hat, smiling at Sonic as she hung her arm outside of the No Symbol, holding a clipboard in her other hand which was drawn behind the No Symbol.
Curious, Sonic hopped the fence with a simple jump and stood on top of it, looking around. Doesn't look like anyone has been here for a while. Trucks were present (some of them still having support beams in them), a few bulldozers and backhoe loaders were parked, no construction trailers... the "building" itself was not even half done, only about a few floors compared to the surrounding buildings. The only thing done was the concrete. No walls or windows.
Either the company involved couldn't pay anymore, or the workers decided to turn tail and run. Just to be safe, Sonic did a quick sweep of the closed-off area, not taking even a fraction of a second. No one was here, and it didn't look like there would be anytime soon.
Sonic smirked. This was perfect!
XXX
Issei had no idea where Sonic was taking him, for they were going too fast for the humans eyes to register anything. All he saw was blurs of clashing colors as Sonic carried him. It was beautiful sight to see, Issei had to admit. This must be how Sonic saw the world.
They eventually stopped at the abandoned site Sonic had found after he hopped the fence. The Hedgehog released his grip, allowing Issei to get to his feet and look around. Why'd Sonic bring him here? When he was picked up from school, Sonic told him he found something important. Issei thought wow, maybe Sonic found one of his Chaos Emeralds he kept talking about. Is that why they came to an abandoned construction site halfway across town?
Actually, Sonic mentioned a place like this was where he's found an Emerald on quite a few occasions...
"So... why'd you take me to the middle of nowhere?" Issei asked. Part of him was hoping he could see one of the Emeralds. The idea of these Emeralds fascinated him, and hoped he'd be able to get the chance to hold one before Sonic returned home.
"Nowhere? Buddy, this is our own personal dojo!" Said Sonic, outstretching his arms wide. "This place is perfect! It's open, closed off; the ideal place for us to train with your new powers!" The Hedgehog continued.
Issei blinked. That's what this was about?... It's not that Issei didn't appreciate Sonic finding this place for him; but the problem was, they were still in the city. City means people, and people meaning wandering eyes.
"You sure this is a good idea? What if someone sees?" He asked the Hedgehog. That's not even mentioning what will happen when or if they spar each other. Issei can already imagine a giant tornado generated by Sonic's speed, taking the trucks and building equipment with it. And if not that, he himself screwing up and causing an explosion of green energy, making all HUGE crater. All of which attracting the attention of anyone that happens to pass by.
"I've been down here all day! Up and down, top to bottom. Barely comes down this way and if they do, they'll think people are working" said Sonic. Even if this was a new dimensional version of Japan, it still had one thing in common: It was a working environment. Whether it be making entertainment or technology for the entire world, everyone everywhere worked long and hard hours around the clock. "Plus, if you blow up, no one'll get hurt" he added.
"Yeeeeeah, no one..." Issei groaned as Sonic either forgot or was ignorant that there was gonna be someone hurt if his power explodes... the person in the center. Sonic wasn't totally wrong though. If Issei DOES explode, this site was large enough to contain the explosion... he hoped.
"C'mon, pal! Pull out that shiny new toy and lets see what it can do!" Sonic said, playfully putting up his fists.
Issei thought on it for a moment. He DID ask for this after all, and Sonic DID spend all day looking for this location instead of running around for the fun of it like he usually does, so he might as well humor the blue rodent and give it a shot. "Ok..." Said Issei, putting his stuff down. "SACRED GEAR!" He then pumped his fist forward, summoning his Sacred Gear by thinking of it. Just like before, it appeared right on his left hand in a flash of light.
...
...
...
Nothing happened after that. Issei and Sonic were both confused. Last time, this Sacred Gear ripped Kalawarner's clothes apart with a flare of energy. Now?... It seemed unresponsive for some reason, which didn't make any sense. It was "turned on", so why wasn't anything happening? But even with this active, Issei didn't feel any different.
"... wwwwwwhat I am supposed to do with it?" The human asked, looking over the item in question by twisting it around. He knew to turn it on and off, but how does function? He then looked to Sonic for some advice.
"... I don't know, something Sacred-e" Sonic answered with a shrug and nervous grin, though it was more of a question to Issei's question.
Issei made a blank expression. "Ya don't say..." he sarcastically remarked.
"Look at me!" Sonic said, gesturing to himself with both hands. "I'm a Hedgehog! Not a rocket scientist!"
"You said you've flown in a bunch of rockets!" Issei argued, as Sonic mentioned the amount of times he flew in one.
"Yeah! Flown!" Sonic argued back. He's never built a rocket, only used them, mainly to get across bottomless pits and to higher areas. He wasn't much of an inventor, only the retriever of parts so someone smarter than him could build with them. "My buddy's good with this kinda stuff, but... eh, ya know" he continued, mentioning someone from his world who knew this stuff like the back of his twin tails. And since he was left behind on Mobius, there wasn't much way of acting him the know-how.
Issei could only facepalm, now realizing the truth. Sonic may have used rockets, but he's never actually built any. Maybe asking Sonic wasn't the best idea... Looking down at his Gear, Issei stared at it, puzzled. He had this amazing power, yet neither him nor his friend had any idea how to trigger it. What kind of "Big Deal" was he supposed to be if he couldn't figure out how this damn thing worked? These things looked so much easier in the movies...
"Now what are we gonna do?" Issei asked out loud to no one in particular.
"Hmmm," Sonic folded his arms and thought about the next course of action. Issei was right... what were they gonna do? They didn't have a clue on how these Sacred Gears operated and as said before, Sonic wasn't exactly a techy kind of guy. If Tails were here, he'd probably figure out how this thing ticked just by examining it for a few seconds! This was the same kit who built a TV of only paperclips, reconfigured the Extractor to return life to Mobius (something Eggman couldn't do... or at least wasn't willing to do); and even disarmed that missile in Station Square, THEN destroyed a giant mech by himself, while Sonic was busy going on a Temple Run.
'Think Sonic, THINK!' Sonic thought himself. There just had to be a solution to this problem, right? They couldn't just give up! They got the Gear activated, that was the first step done, NOW they just had to figure out how utilize its power. Were they missing something? Was there some kind of special mechanism? "So... how DID you turn it on the first time?" Sonic asked Issei. Since they couldn't figure out this Sacred Thingamajig at the moment, maybe they just had to retrace their steps.
Issei blinked. "The first time?" He repeated in confusion. Why would that be important right now? They already knew how to turn this thing off and on. What was Sonic thinking? "Um... I just... thought about Kalawarner attacking you, and..." Issei said, scratching the back of his head, still not understanding what was the point of bringing this up. "I'm sorry, is there a point your trying to make?"
"I'll let you know," Sonic answered. "What else?"
"I mean... that's pretty much it. Rias mentioned I had to focus and..." Issei said.
"Rias?" Sonic cut Issei off. Suddenly, he remembered something:
'Focus on your strongest point, then concentrate on drawing out that strength.' Those were Rias' words when she wanted Issei to summon the Gear for her initially. It figured that of course Rias would be the one to give Issei the final push to achieve this power, and don't think he didn't catch the look in Rias' eyes when Issei felt down in himself when he couldn't summon the Gear at first... even though it was partially her fault. Call it overreaching, but Sonic has seen similar looks from Amy...
Wait a second... Issei's strongest point?... Was Sonic taking that too literally, even if it was just a joke? Maybe it was a metaphor, much like how Chaos is Power enriched by the Heart. It didn't mean a literal heart, but how someone felt, and how the Chaos Emeralds reacted to that.
"That's it!" Sonic said, believing he just figured these doohickeys' out.
"What is?" Asked Issei.
"I think I just figured it out!" Sonic said.
"Really? You did?" Asked Issei, both surprised and grateful Sonic might have cracked the case.
"Issei, is there anything your good at? Anything at all?" Asked Sonic.
Now, Issei didn't know why Sonic asked this of him, but thought about it anyway. He wasn't a Pro Gamer per say, but was decent at video games; he did allot of 'reading'; and was good at spying on girls... until he was caught and beaten within an inch of his life. Because of that, he was good at running away, and was able to put exceptional distance between himself and a raging group of them... his friends weren't so lucky.
"I mean, I'm good at some anime and hentai trivia," said Issei.
Sonic blinked, unfamiliar with the term Issei just used. "... Hentai?"
"Er, nevermind," Issei brushed off. He then continued with his verbal list. "I'm also good at running away from pissed off girls, and..." he was saying, but then Sonic placed a finger quickly on his mouth, shutting him up. He then took his finger away and in a blur, he ran towards one of the trucks, and pulled out a cone in the trunk before zipping back to Issei. "Uh... why?" The human asked Sonic, unsure what that was about.
"Rias said that the Sacred Gear is activated by your strongest point, right?" Sonic said. Issei nodded. "So maybe, seeing me run around awakened the same power within you!" Sonic said, then pointed to the truck he ran towards before. "Try running to that truck and back as fast as you can a few times. Maybe the power this thing gives you is speed" Sonic said, giving Issei an exercise to try. He then pulled out a bronze pocket watch out from his back with the words '20th Anniversary' written on it, along with his name in the middle inside a banner. He popped it open to show the inside had 2 Sonics' standing side-by-side in front of a giant gold ring, only one looked smaller and younger. The same banner was covering their legs, only this time it was in color.
Issei stared at this. "Where'd you get that?"
"It's from my 20th birthday" Sonic replied.
"Your 15!"
"Do I have to repeat why?"
"Eh, whatever" Issei said, choosing to forget it. There was no point in arguing with him. He then looked at his Gear, then the truck, then back to the Gear again before looking at Sonic. "Are you sure this is gonna work?" He asked.
Sonic shrugged. "I'm just spitballing, pal" he admitted. He only knew as much as Issei did.
Issei sighed to himself, but couldn't blame Sonic. Neither one of them fully understood the supernatural forces one of them now controlled. Besides, what did he have to lose by simply trying Sonic's suggestion? It wouldn't hurt. "Ok. But first," said Issei, putting his Sacred Gear away, confusing Sonic and making him cock an eyebrow. "We need a control test, THEN see how much it improves" Issei continued, which Sonic grinned at, now understanding Issei's point.
"Alright, buddy. On your mark..." said Sonic, as Issei prepared to run towards the truck. "Get set..." Sonic said. Issei's eyes narrowed, waiting for the signal to start running.
...
...
...
"GO!"
*CLICK!*
As Sonic pressed a button to make his pocket watch start timing, Issei took off running with a battle-like cry. He ran to the truck, then straight back to Sonic, repeating this action 3 times. Sonic kept his eyes on both the timer and Issei, keeping a mental note of the laps he took. As Issei finished his final lap, he panted a few times the moment he stopped. "Ha... ha... so... how'd I do?" He asked in-between breaths.
"Not bad. First was 2:20, second was 2:15, and your final one clocked in at 2:30" Sonic said, recounting the times of Issei's laps. That meant the total time was 7:05. By human standards, it wasn't too bad at all. Sonic couldn't help but feel a bit excited for the next part of the exercise. Being a speedster himself, he couldn't wait to see how low the numbers would get in Issei's next run. After resting for a bit, and also downing half a bottle of water Issei had gotten from his bookbag, they were ready to start again.
"Ready?" Asked Sonic, both he and Issei back in their positions.
Issei resummoned his Gear again, and got into position. "Let's do this" he said, his confidence growing along with his excitement. This was it. He was finally gonna use his new power. Sonic repeated the same actions and the second he pressed the button down, Issei was off running again. 'I can do this... I can do this!' Issei thought as he ran as fast as his human legs could carry him, back and forth from the truck and back to Sonic. Once again, Issei finished the final lap, putting both hands on his knees to hold himself up. He was tired, but felt good.
"Ha... ha... what's the final verdict?" Asked Issei.
Sonic looked back and forth between the times he had written down from the first run compared to the first run... this can't be right. "Uh..." he said, unsure what he should say. How was he gonna break this to Issei?
"Come on, bro! How was that?" Issei asked again.
...
...
...
Sonic: ... Its about the same.
"WHAT?!" Issei swiped the paper from Sonic, unable to believe what he just heard. He looked over the times several times. His second runtimes were 2:18, 2:21 and 2:29... It was practically identical! It barely even counted as a different score! "Are you freaking kidding me?! THIS WAS A COMPLETE WASTE OF TIME!" Issei yelled, annoyed. That was now 15 minutes of his life that he'd never get back!
Sonic shared some of Issei's aggravation. Looks like speed wasn't his new power after all. He didn't need the watch to tell Issei wasn't going any faster either. As he out away the watch behind his back, he looked at Issei's red Gear as another thought came to him while he put a hand under his chin. Specifically, he was thinking about floating screens he saw during a few adventures way back in the day. Maybe the color of the Gear meant something like that? Of course, this was something he experienced in his world, so he had no idea if it would apply here, but what else did they have to go on? Looking around, Sonic saw a unfinished column with wires sticking out from the top. The concrete wasn't too thick, so it should be easy enough to crack with increased power.
"If its not speed, maybe its strength" Sonic suggested, getting Issei's attention. Strength huh? But he wasn't that strong at all, and Rias said Gears react to the strongest point right? "Try hitting that post right there" said Sonic, pointing to the unfinished column.
"You can-not; be serious" said Issei.
"Ya got any better ideas?" Asked Sonic. No. Issei did not. Then again, who knows? Maybe THIS was its function. Getting ready, Issei put on a new face of determination, then charged at the pillar. Once he closed in, he pulled his Sacred Geared arm back and made a fist, thrusting it into the object with a battle cry... only for his face to twist in pain as a shiver traveled from the point of impact, all the way throughout his body, whining as he slowly fell to the ground.
Sonic scratched the side of his head with a finger as Issei sat on the floor while holding his cartoon-style pounding hand... this was harder than he thought. "You strong enough to endure light spears, but can't break a column?"
"You are not helping!" Issei yelled, his voice slightly pained.
"I guess we can stick to trying Spin Dashes" Sonic said, suggesting something he actually knew how to do.
Issei, hand pain be damned, slowly turned to look up at Sonic while still holding his injured arm thanks to said Hedgehog. He kept a stoic, emotionless expression. "... I can't... curl into... a goddamn ball" Issei said, using as much of his self-control as possible to stop himself from yelling. Its not that he couldn't curl in a ball but rather, he couldn't perform the other required actions.
"You can't?"
"NOOOOOO!"
"... Huh..." Sonic said, putting a hand under his chin again. "This one kid could. Blasted straight through a loop-de-loop..." Sonic said, waving out an arm to gesture what he meant. Issei just groaned. Despite all the hard work they did, they got nothing done. This was the worst day ever. Sonic was thinking and thinking, then snapped his fingers. "Hang on, I got an idea!"
XXX
Sonic and Issei arrived at the ORC clubhouse and made their way to the main office. Issei had to admit, this sounded like the best idea he heard all day. Since Rias knew what a Sacred Gear was, then it only made sense to ask her and see what she knows... if only they thought of that 20 minutes ago. Just when Sonic's knuckles were an inch away from making contact with the door...
"It's open." Said Rias' voice from inside. Both boys were slightly started, wondering how she knew they were there, but then figured it must be her supernatural senses or something.
"Heeeeeeeeey, Fire Princess. How are you doing today on this lovely evening?" Sonic asked, overplaying it cool.
Rias didn't even look up from her desk, her eyes focused on whatever she was writing in her book. "What do you want?"
Sonic deflated. "Ok. So Issei came to me for help with his powers, and we were trying out his Magic Gear..."
"SACRED. Gear" Rias corrected him, still not looking up at them. Sonic found this ironic that she had a problem with him misnaming her worlds treasures, while she did the same thing to his. He wasn't gonna call her out on it though, now wasn't the time for that argument.
"Issei's Sacred Gear," Sonic corrected. "Trying to see what it can do, how it works but no matter what we try, we can't figure it out" he admitted. "So we figured: why not ask the biggest, baddest, smartest and most beautiful Devil in aaaaaaaaaall of Kuoh?" Sonic then added some kissing-up to Rias.
Rias listened to every word Sonic had said, but it took a few seconds before she closed up her book and looked up at them. "Flattered." She simply stated, unaffected by Sonic's tactic. She's gotten pretty much every compliment you could think of. From how gorgeous she looked, to how strong she was... she's heard it all.
"So? Will you help us?" Asked Sonic.
Rias stood up and sighed. "Listen, I've love to help you, I really would. But I have very important things to do by the end of the night, and don't have time to waste" she said. If she had the time, she could spare an hour on how to teach Issei how to use his new powers. Even though she didn't have a Sacred Gear herself, she knew enough about them to understand how a few of them work... that was also the problem here. While Issei's Gear had the aura of a Twice Critical and even looked like one... it felt like something more, leaving Rias unsure if teaching him how to wield it was a good idea in the long run. If she turned out to be wrong, that could but Issei in serious danger. He might have a supernatural weapon, but that was useless against beings such as herself if he didn't know how to use it properly.
"What? More flyers? Say no more, I'll..." Sonic offered, thinking that was the case.
"No," Rias stopped him. "Its not that. There's more important things than delivering pieces of paper" she continued. What can she say? She was stressed out. Her brother knew of Sonic's existence and wasn't sure what his motives were for the blue animal, the other 3 Great Satans were onto her and she could get in serious trouble if she got careless again, and her brother just told her some troubling news about advanced robotics. The poor girl.
"Please, Rias. There's gonna be something you can teach me about this stupid thing" said Issei, lifting up his hand with the still-active Gear on it.
"All I can tell you is every Sacred Gear is different. They're tied to your emotions so the stronger your feelings are, the more powerful it becomes. Now come on, I REALLY need to focus" said Rias, sitting back down but feeling bad about dismissing them like this. Issei wanted to learn, which she had to admit was admirable, but she just didn't have the time to spend.
"Fine! Be that way. We'll figure it out ourselves!" Sonic said, turning to leave. Issei, while he wasn't angry at Rias, saw no reason to stay here and began to follow Sonic out. Rias really wished she could assist them, but she had to worry about yet another trespasser, a new Stray Devil and...
Wait... maybe that could work! Two birds with one stone! "... Actually," she said, just as Sonic and Issei opened the door. Their attention caught, they both looked back to see Rias smile. Was she changing her mind? "There is one way I can teach you..."
XXX
"By taking us to a movie theater?!" Sonic said, looking at the location they ended up at after teleporting here. How would a movie help him and Issei? Also, this place looked abandoned just like the construction site, only this place was clearly unused for a much longer period of time. And why did they have to gather the rest of the ORC? An audience? More help? Rias neglected to tell them anything... what was she pulling now?!
"Tonight, we were assigned to track down a Stray Devil, and she's been hiding out here" said Rias.
Both Sonic and Issei looked at each other. That's it? What's the point of bringing them along, if they were just looking for a lost puppy? "So... she's lost or something?" Asked Issei.
"You can say that. She killed her master for freedom and her own selfish desires, and is now a on the loose as her power increases without a King to keep it in check" said Kiba, explaining a bit how a Stray Devil operates.
"The Stray Devil has been luring people to this abandoned theater and has them for dinner" said Akeno. Both Sonic and Issei looked a bit disgusted, catching into what Akeno was implying.
"I'm guessing its not for Chili dogs and hot wings" Sonic said.
"Her name is Vice. She had fled her master 3 days ago after slicing his throat, leaving him for dead" Rias explained.
"So THAT'S why you brought us along!" Sonic called Rias out. He had to admit, she was a clever girl. She dragged them out here just to do part of her job with the promise of training Issei.
"I brought you because we both get what the other wants. You want Issei to control his Scared Gear, and I want a demon destroyed by morning. Its a win-win" said Rias and frankly, Sonic couldn't argue with that logic. He does something for Rias, she'll do something for him. It was just like before. She helped revived Issei, he helped her with deliveries. This was apparently how Devils operated it seemed: scratch their back, they'll scratch yours. It sounded dangerous, but it was a good idea. With 4 Devils and himself, they could outnumber this one single Stray inside. And since Devils used magic, that could be a visual tutorial for Issei to learn how to use his new powers.
"Issei, you'll be coming inside with us. Stay behind me, and do exactly what I say, is that clear?" Rias ordered while walking up to Issei. He reeled back a bit, not expecting her to lean in close to him. Not only because she was beautiful, that was unquestionable, but she was also a bit intimidating when she spoke that way. It just caught Issei off guard.
"Uh, y-y-yes ma'am" he said.
"Kiba and Koneko, your both taking up the front. Akeno will take up the rear" Rias gave some more orders, treating this like some kind of game, which stumped Sonic and Issei but they didn't question it. All they needed was the job to be finished so Rias could assist them.
"You got it" said Kiba.
"How fun" said Akeno. Koneko was the only one who didn't answer, but she looked like she agreed (that, or didn't care either way).
"And me, highness?" Sonic asked, wanting part of this. With them all teaming up, whatever was in that theater didn't stand a chance! He had to admit, it was cool fighting alongside supernatural beings. Those were always his favorite adventures, and now he gets to do it again in this world.
"Oh, you've got the most important job of all, my blue friend," said Rias, smiling down at him. "YOU... are going to keep watch."
...
...
...
"... KEEP WATCH?!" Sonic asked. "Do I look like an owl to you?!"
"I seem to remember you being raised by one..." Rias mentioned.
"That's completely different!" Sonic said.
"With all the racket were gonna cause, we need someone to keep a sharp eye out. Your perfect for the job" Rias said, knowing full well this isn't what Sonic wanted, but wanted to do this to mess with him a bit. Just because she's allowing him in her territory doesn't mean she can't poke fun at him once in a while. Besides, he does that to her all the time. If he can dish it out, he better be able to take it too.
"Ya see these feet?" Sonic said, gesturing downward with both hands, then started running in place to show what he was taking about. He was doing a Super Peel Out, and his legs were moving so fast, they were blurring into each other and making them very difficult to focus on, mainly due to the figure 8 they were generating. It made everyones' eyes widen for a moment. How was that even possible? "They were made to run, not to stand" Sonic continued.
"This won't take long! Just keep watch!" Rias ordered, getting a bit annoyed. She wasn't used to people questioning her to this degree, and it aggravated her that Sonic wasn't giving into her demands. Then again, this shouldn't be a surprise. This was Sonic she was talking too, and in his own words: I go where the wind takes me.
"Its all about control with you, isn't it?" Sonic asked.
"Excuse me?" Rias asked Sonic, starting to get ticked off.
"Maybe if you were a little lenient, you wouldn't have Strays' to deal with" Sonic shrugged with closed eyes.
Rias felt a bit insulted, especially since her family was not as demanding as other houses. Was he not listening? Strays' were dangerous creatures that abandon their masters and go solo, what was so hard for him to grasp? "And if we're too lenient, they'll end up running off anyway!" Rias argued.
"And freedom is a crime, because?" Sonic continued. Don't get him wrong, he understood that Devils made pacts and all, but what was the problem with loosening the leash a bit every now and then? Give the new recruits SOME form of individualism? Knuckles has been slowly doing that, mainly because others in his circle of friends would offer to take up guarding the Master Emerald for him, but it gave the normally stoic and serious Echidna some down time before heading back to his destined duty.
Took awhile for Knuckles to admit that, AND appreciate it, but still...
Rias growled, with Sonic staring right back at her. You could see electricity flowing between their foreheads. Why couldn't this Hedgehog make things easy and just LISTEN to her? She didn't understand him at times. Living his own way? Fine. Whatever. But now when it came to authority and needing to listen, he'd talk back. How did this Hedgehog have friends anyway? And what backwards world did he come from? Seeing both of their ideals clash and them on the verge of physically fighting, Issei got in-between the Devil and alien Hedgehog.
"Uh, how about we save this for AFTER we destroy the monster in the closet, K? Heheheh..." Issei suggested, nervously chuckling as both parties eyes were on him now. Looking back towards each other once more, both Sonic and Rias silently and reluctantly agreed to put aside their differing opinions for the task at hand.
XXX
With Sonic grudgingly guarding outside, the ORC themselves went into the theater to search for the Stray Devil that made its home here. "Issei," Rias suddenly called the human, getting his attention. "Are you familiar with the game of chess?" She asked him.
"Aside from 7 pieces lodged in my chest? I've played it a few times, but suck balls at it" Issei said.
"As Master of this household, I am King. Then of course, you have the Queen, the Knights, the Rooks, the Bishops and finally, the Pawns. By using Evil Pieces, I can grant one of these characteristics to any of my servants. I want to watch carefully how my Devils fight, pay close attention to each one as they do battle tonight. And in turn, you might learn something" said Rias, explaining more about the Evil Pieces and telling Issei to stand back and observe.
"Okay, but why can't Sonic be here t...?" Issei began, wondering why couldn't Sonic come inside with them, but he was cut off by Koneko before he could finish the question.
"Its here" was all Koneko said, looking to a dark corner of the room. Rias' eyes narrowed, noticing it too.
"Such a foul stench... but wait... Something else smells delicious," said a highly demonic voice. "I wonder if it's sweet... or bitter?" A form came out of the shadows to reveal a naked female with long black hair who was very tall, almost reaching the ceiling. Her bottom half couldn't be seen due to the darkness however.
"I see boobies!" Said Issei with a silly smile, enjoying the sight of this persons rack. Hanging around with Devils wasn't so bad!
"Vice... you have betrayed your master and let your power run rampant. Such a sin is worthy of a thousand hells," said Rias. "In the name of the Nobility of Gremory, you shall be punished with your destruction!"
"What a spoiled, little brat you are. Shall I dye you all in bright red, like the color of your hair?" Asked Vice but for some reason, started playing with her nipples and breasts. They were quite large, similar in size to Rias'.
"So, this a Stray Devil?" Asked Issei. "She looks like a hot exhibitionist on late night cable!" He added, liking what he was seeing.
Vice walked forward out of the darkness to reveal she was not what she appeared to be. The top half of her may appeared humanoid... but the bottom was another story! Below her was another body that looked like a Centaur or Minotaur, having a diamond in the dead center of the chest area, and large arms with sharp nails on them. She even had a snake for a tail! Then in 2 glyphs of magic, formed 2 huge spears for her larger arms to use, while her top half kept playing with herself. Two more glyphs formed on her nipples as well...
ZAP!
With maniacal laughter, Vice shot beams out of those nipples. The ORC moved to avoid the sudden 'gunfire', with Rias grabbing Issei since he was frozen with shock. While they avoided the attack, when the shots hit the walls behind them, they melted as if those beam had acidic properties. "Ok... this is a porno I don't wanna be in!" Said Issei.
"KIBA!" Rias ordered, and he immediately reacted by vanishing from sight, already knowing what to do.
"WHOA! He's fast!" Said Issei, surprised to see something like that. He thought only Sonic could move that fast, and he couldn't help but wonder if the 2 of them went head-to-head.
"Right. Kiba is my Knight, and his specialty is speed" Rias said. As she said this, Kiba was engaging Vice. She pulled back one of her spears and tried to stab Kiba from the top of his head, but he avoided this with no trouble. If this DID make contact, Kiba would've become a Kiba-bab. Vice even tried stepping on him when he reappeared, but this didn't work either. He was just too fast. Seeing an opening, Kiba leaped up, and putted a sword from seemingly out of nowhere, using it to slice off both of Vice's large arms. She gave a roar of pain mixed with a feminine cry as blood began coming out of the stumps.
However, something unexpected happened...
POP! SNAP! CRUNCH! (2x)
"WHAT THE HELL?!" Shouted Issei. Those 2 severed arms somehow grew back! Only... they didn't appear organic this time around. While they were still as large as the 2 arms from before, they were slightly more bulky yet completely metallic. They had claws on the ends, looking more sharp than the organic ones. Her face also elongated a bit along with her nose, her ears stretching out like elf ears, her eyes became all black with tiny blue pupils, and she grew a mouthful of fangs inside her mouth. She roared upon completing her startling transformation.
Issei was gonna ask if they had a plan of attack, seeing as they dealt with this stuff often... much to his surprise, the Devils looked just as gobsmacked as he did! They all scowled at the Stray Devil, having not seen something like this before. Vice looked like she was gonna be a bigger challenge than they thought.
Rias stared at Vice with her eyes narrowed to the maximum, since when did Strays' use cybernetics? That's not to say Devils didn't, of course. They had their own technology like the Evil Pieces, and these Pieces don't work on non-living things. And as said before, Strays' lose all sense of reason so unless Vice had that equipment prior to fleeing, there was no explanation for this. Perhaps her now murdered master provided this for her?
Vice held out these 2 new arms, and the palms had 2 orbs in them, which attracted her spears back to her like a magnetic force. As she gripped them tightly, she then asked with an evil smirk and even deeper demonic voice: "Ready for Round 2?"
XXX
Outside, Sonic continued facing forward to keep watch, his foot started impatiently tapping. He looked back at the building, then back out into the distance... then back to the building again with a small moan, then back out... he repeated this pattern once more, before groaning and facing the building itself, staring at the door. What is taking them so long? Rias said this would be a done deal, an in-and-out type of job! He checked his invisible watch on his left arm.
How long has it been?... TOO LONG! Sonic dashed inside to check on them...
...
...
...
"GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" He and Issei, side-by-side, ran out for dear life with freaked out expressions as Vice stomped after them, her height breaking though the door as well as part of the building itself! She roared after them.
Rias was the first one to fly out of the theater, looking annoyed that Sonic didn't listen to her. The second he ran in, Vice's attention was all on the Hedgehog, saying how tasty he looked... now this. "SONIC! I TOLD YOU TO KEEP WATCH!" She yelled as she landed.
"I AM WATCHIIIING!" Sonic's voice cracked as he ran away from the crazy centaur lady. Vice then tries cutting the fleeing boys with her spears, but they comically evaded her swipes in cartoonish and anime-like styles with widen eyes. This is NOT what either of them signed up for! They both kept dodging, but it looked like Issei was about to get swallowed by a mouth on Vice's centaur-like chest. Issei's eyes widened even more, screaming in absolute terror.
Sonic pushed him aside...
CHOMP! GULP!
"SONIIIIIIIIIIIIC!" Cried Issei. The other Devils were shocked at this too. That was a very selfless thing the Hedgehog did, but now he was... hold on, why was Vice's face slowly changing from a evil grin from that snack, to looking down in question, then somewhat pained. And was it just them, or was something moving in her closed jaws?
Bang.
Bang.
Bang, Bang.
Bang, Bang, Bang.
Bang, Bang, Bang.
Bang, Bang, Bang! Bang, Bang, Bang!
BANG, BANG, BANG! BANG, BANG, BANG!
Whatever was going on inside Vice was visibly paining her, to the point that her large hands were grabbing her centaur chest, and her normal hands were grabbing her head as she roared in pain. Its volume slowly increased the quicker the bangs got until the banging was constantly going without stopping!
BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG!
BANG! ZWHEEEE-SPLAT!
Releasing a large groan as her jaws gave away, Vice couldn't contain the Hedgehog inside her anymore. He was zooming all over the inside of her in a ball until he decided enough was enough and burst out of her jaws in a Spin Dash, landing near the group face-down due it his own velocity... covered in saliva that ate though portions of his gloves and shoes, but thankfully not his skin.
Sonic pushed himself up by his hands and sat up, looking over himself. He got some of the thick saliva off the top of his forehead and flicked his hands downward to get it off. "... ewww" he said, disgusted. Damn. Now he was gonna need new gloves, new shoes, and a REEEEEEEALLY long bath. This was worse than all the times he had to go through sewer pipes...
Now recovered, and a little pissed her prey had escaped, Vice charged toward the group again with a roar. Koneko just happened to be the one in the front, and closest to the incoming Stray. Koneko however, didn't move a muscle, just stood there while staring blankly at the enraged demon coming her way. Before either Sonic or Issei could tell her to move, Vice brought one of her spear on her... only for them to not penetrate her at all.
"She's fine. In this game, she's my Rook. While Kiba has the speed, Koneko has the strength. A simple Stray like Vice won't put a dent in her" Rias said with a confident smile, explaining how Koneko resisted such an attack. Sonic blinked, impressed. So that's why his Spin Dash didn't work on her initially, because she had highly superior defensive stats, and power to back it up.
Koneko grabbed the other spear when Vice brought it down, stopping it cold in its tracks. She had to admit though, either Vice was strong, or these robotic arms increased her power somewhat; but the difference was minuscule. Shoving it away, this caused Vice to lose her balance, giving Koneko the chance to leap up towards her. "Strike. Your out" said Koneko, and with a single punch, she sent Vice across the field as she roared in pain as she crashed through several trees. Sonic couldn't help but gulp, remembering those were the very same punches he had to avoid from her on day one.
He thought Knuckles and Shadow hit hard, and even Amy at times when she goes hammer crazy... but if THAT connected with him...
"Note to self, don't piss her off" Issei said, making a mental note about Koneko. She was cute, sure; but he'd better tread carefully around her. His life could very well be on the line if he doesn't.
"Akeno," said Rias.
"Oh my, it's finally my turn!" Said Akeno, cheerfully. As she strolled towards the downed Stray, one of the robotic arms quickly reacted and did something none of them could have predicted! The hand opened up, and the wrist launched off of the arm itself by a small propulsion system that was built-in, heading right for Sonic and Rias!
"SHIT! GET DOWN!" Said Issei. Without thinking, he rushed to their aid, his Sacred Gear also coming out, but whether he summoned it or it reacted to his emotions was unclear. Even if he as a human couldn't stop the hand from attacking them, Issei would just use his body as a shield. Just before the hand grabbed them both, the gem on Issei's Gear glowed.
[BOOST!]
POW!
And somehow, shocking Rias and Sonic, Issei actually managed to not just punch the robotic hand... but punch THROUGH it! Sending bits of gears and metal spreading out in front of them. The hands fingers twitched a few times, as if trying to grab Issei, before it inevitably stopped moving altogether and hung limp. Shut down. Issei shook his hand a bit, getting the giant hand off his arm. Because of the shock, both Sonic and Rias fell over, blinking a few times to register what had just happened.
"... You did it, pal! You used your power!" Sonic said as he stood up and brushed himself off, realizing Issei had just saved both of them using his Sacred Gear, for there was no way a human could punch through metal with their bare hands.
"... Yes. Thanks for that, Issei" said a still-sitting Rias, caught a bit off guard not just from Vice's sudden attack, but also from a human saving her without a moment of hesitation. Sure his Twice Critical boosted his power and allowed this, but he still took the initiative to go through with it while not knowing how to or if it would work.
"Yeah! I finally did it," Issei answered, realized he did in fact use his power on his own. So it was true. This thing was apart of him, and he did have this power. Now that he thought about it, he DID felt stronger. "My body just sorta acted on its own, I guess" he added somewhat bashfully, but then looked at his Gear with a happy chuckle. He finally did it... guess he just needed a reason to use it.
Rias at this point now got back up herself. "Akeno. Finish her off, please" she ordered.
"You like it rough, Vice?" Said Akeno, as sparks danced in her fingers from one hand to another.
"Finally, Akeno is my Queen, and my most powerful game piece; having all 3 attributes of the other pieces and none of their weaknesses" Rias explained.
Vice was looking right at Akeno, knowing what that lighting was. That wasn't just lightning magic, that was...! "Tough girl, aren't you... good. We get to play some more!" Said Akeno, who then raised her hands to unleash her lighting from above as it struck the monstrous form of Vice. She of course, roared in pain, but much deeper than when anyone else attacked her. In fact, the electricity also overloaded the cyber-arms and caused them to explode, adding more to her pain.
Sonic was watching with a smile and his arms folded, wearing a pair of dark shades since Akeno's lighting was so bright. "Hmm. She's enjoying herself."
"You like that? Does it feel good for you as it does for me?" Asked Akeno, licking her lips and giggling as she continued to electrocute the defenseless Stray.
Both Sonic and Issei stared now. "Uh, why isn't she stopping?" The Hedgehog asked. Defeating someone was one thing, and you can have fun with it. He does that all the time when dealing with Eggman's various schemes. But to him... it looked like Akeno was enjoying this a liiiiiiiiiittle too much.
"IIIIIIIs she getting off on this?" Asked Issei. Though by the sound of Akeno's voice, he didn't need a verbal answer.
"Ok, Akeno; that's enough" said Rias, which Akeno stopped right away. Vice fell over with a loud thud and beastly groan.
"Awww, its over already?" Akeno asked, then turned around to show she was blushing. "What a pity, I was having so much fun" she added.
Rias walked over to the downed Vice, who had no strength left to even move an inch. "Any final words?" She asked.
"Go to hell..." Vice moaned out, looked up at Rias with hatred. In response to that, Rias summoned a large glyph in front of her, her Power of Destruction. It began to glow, the crimson flames were prepared to fire. All she said was:
"... checkmate."
FLASH! FLOOSH!
With a final cry of pain, Vice was engulfed in Rias' flames at they ate her alive. When they vanished, Vice was gone. The Stray had been slain. Sonic and Issei were perplexed by Rias' display of power, even though the Hedgehog had already experienced it for himself. He was glad to not be on the receiving end of such a blast, and that Rias was on his side, even if they don't exactly see eye-to-eye as of yet. "We're done here. Time to go home" said Rias after turning around to face everyone.
"Yes, Madame President" said Akeno, Kiba and Koneko in perfect unison.
"So Issei, did you learn anything?" Asked Rias, approaching the human.
"Uh, yeah. I did. Thank you" said Issei. He and Sonic had learned quite a few things tonight, and were grateful for this opportunity. A) That his Sacred Gear does in fact work. B) Being a Devil looked to be totally badass. And D) Don't piss any of them off. Especially Koneko.
...
...
...
Especially Koneko.
XXX
Much later that night, Rias had sent the rest of her club home, staying behind to finish up on her own. But as she was closing up shop, she looked out the window... tonight was a crazy one, even for her. They took out the Stray and Issei finally achieved the ability to use his Gear. Then again, that also why she sent everyone home so she could think. The fact that Vice used some kind of robotics still bothered her even if the Stray was nothing but a memory at this point. She flashed back to what her brother said:
'The technology was... something else. Even our scientists were baffled a the complex programming and weaponry these robots possessed... its like nothing we've ever seen before. The amount of firepower they had was... incredible.'
It was convenient... too convenient. A Stray was killed by advanced technology, only for one to then USE that same technology? It didn't add up. Either there was something Rias was missing, or she was simply overthinking it. How on earth did Vice did ahold of that kind of weaponry? Rias followed up with a bit of research about the Strays master, but he wasn't involved with that kind of stuff at all; in the Underworld, human world, or any realm she could think of.
As she put out the candles and began heading out via a teleportation circle, she couldn't help but wonder: were the machines her brother told her about... along the ones Vice had used tonight... somehow related?
Now I know what your probably thinking: Awww, there's no Boss Battle with Vice/Viser, what the hell Bakuganman?! Well, as I wrote the chapter, I DID have a Boss Battle in mind for her. But as the chapter continued, it took focus off of Issei and others, for this is where Issei learns how to start using his powers, while also introducing us to the rest of the ORC members. Besides, Vice/Viser isn't the biggest threat out there right now; a group of Fallen Angels, and a certain scientist is.