"Careful there, or rather, should I say well done?"
Yuha's surroundings were hazy. He blinked with confusion wasn't he in a forest but a moment ago watching Big Sis put that meanie pretty lady in her place?
So how did he get here and who were the two older men but a few meters from him, and were those clouds off to the mountain side?
One of them, Yuha was pretty sure looked like depictions of Mr Zeus, big and tall, white toga, bulging muscles, flowing hair and beard and glowing eyes.
As for the other who still looked behind him for a moment longer at the thunderbolt speeding towards the blurry horizon, the sight of him filled Yuha with a nameless grief making him sniffle.
The smiling man garbed in plain white robes and with a face shrouded in shifting light faced Mr Zeus again.
"Yes, congratulations are in order, I think," he said with a nod and a clap as from afar the muted sounds of fighting could be heard. "I am not ashamed to admit that had it landed, it would have hurt."
"Hah! So much for the 'Almighty'!" Zeus said, another thunderbolt shrieking into being."You are fast, I'll grant you that. Faster than my son and yes, even my eyes. But how long can you keep evading my hits, 'Almighty'? The arrogance to claim such a name…"
Shrouded behind light or not, Yuha got the impression that the nice seeming man's eyes shone in secret mirth.
"Who said anything about speed. But, if it pleases my Honored Senior could this Junior humbly request another round of pointers?"
"…what are you mumbling about?"
"…its a bit early for you to get it, admittedly."
"Hah! I don't really care. If you want to test yourself against the Thunder by all means, partake of my hospitality!"
The image blurred just as the second thunderbolt left Mr Zeus hand and instead, the smiling old man appeared in front of Yuha, raising an arm and…
Ruffling his hair.
It felt good, closing his eyes, he leaned into the touch and—
"…look I can explain."
Coming awake, Yuha enjoyed the sensation of a hand gently combing through his hair while his head rested on soft thighs.
Ah, so Big Sis did win then, and her thighs felt so comfy as usual, perhaps he should go back to sleep.
"Oh really? And how do you plan to do that?" Big sis sa—that wasn't Big Sis voice! Or hand! Yuha's eyes flew open. "Rias, when I taciturnly gave my consent for you to experiment," Miss Sona said with a growl, pushing her glasses up her nose with her other arm. "I didn't expect for a good quarter of the forest to go up in fire in the process."
Sona snapped her arm forward, towards the room's wall, the figures kneeling next to it and Mister Dragon Man standing with his arms crossed looking cool.
"A pillar of Holy to slam down into Kuoh." The pretty blonde with her arm wrapped in bandages winced. "A2-san to throw down with an archangel." Big Sis merely glared at Gabriel. "And for the Governor of the Grigori to also make an appearance, did I forget something?"
"T-this…most of these weren't our fault!" Miss Rias protested, sitting up straight and causing her chest to jiggle, drawing his focus. "—and Issei…removed only a small part of the forest."
Yuha blinked, and caught sight of Big Sis and Gabriel's widening eyes as they stared his way before they glared at Miss Rias for some reason.
"Only a small part…" Miss Sona murmured before shaking her head. "I. Don't. Care. Rias," Miss Sona growled, eyes narrowing. "This has your fingerprints, or at least your kind of luck's fingerprints written all over it. Somehow, this is all your fault! Much as I'd like to blame it all on the shifty looking general. No offense."
"Some taken."
"No, ignore, him, feel free to blame him for everything," the mysterious and cool dragon man said with a smirk aimed at the blond gentleman.
"Vali…"
"Mouuu! Sona whyyyy…"
But the bulk of Yuha's attention remained on the flushed glaring woman with the soft thighs. "Awesome and pretty…" he murmured, and it was the truth for she wore the office attire both well and well. Sona tensed, her hand freezing as she glanced his way.
"Ah, you are awake then, Yuha-chan—w-what?" she squeaked, as his words registered and her flush changed to a different hue.
"Miss Sona should be stern more often, its awesome! And her thighs feel almost as good as Big Sis!" huh? Did the air grow colder? And why did Miss Sona shiver? "But…Miss, where are we? What happened? Is Miss Gabriel ok? Mister too looks hurt." Said blond sported a black eye and a lump for some reason.
Despite Miss Sona's mysterious shivering.
"Jiii"
"Jiii"
The woman seemed pleased for some reason.
"W-well, Yuha-chan, you see, after you…fell asleep." He did? How odd, Miss Sona started filling him in.
With but a glance she sent the irritating warning to the trash bin.
If A2 had her way, she'd have already grabbed Yuha and left this 'school' and the crazy people in it to their own devices as soon as the fight ended.
The faintest of activation signals summoned the status huds and gauges in the corners of her vision and with a glance she had her answer before dismissing them once more.
Palms that'd been laying flat on her thighs, jerked and turned into erratically twitching fists for a few moments.
The downsides of overusing [Berserk Mode].
It'd been all she could manage to drag herself after the others.
Her own inbuilt repair systems were busy repairing what she broken against the mutant.
And doing it at quite the fast pace too.
For her systems were aided by the power Yuha's blood had granted her.
Well, that, as well as the fact that the blood had awakened more than just this strange magic in her but had also imbued her with capacities a Yorha model. Prototype or not, was never supposed to have.
Part of her still rebelled at the idea of such heresy.
She canned the blinking red warning again.
But if her human decreed it be so, then who was she to judge.
She could do more than just eat and drink and although not truly human, if the trend continued as her power grew, then, perhaps 'cyborg' would fit her best one day rather than android.
The unconscious attempt to touch her belly and what might one day hide behind it was aborted by her hands refusing to cooperate.
She'd have to…hope.
Despite how nauseating and terrifying she found the idea.
Besides her, Gabriel's nostrils flared as she took the scene in and A2's own eyes narrowed.
Sona paid neither of them any attention.
"Truce?" Gabriel whispered.
"Truce." She nodded despite the protest of some of her nerve circuits at her interruption of the repair work.
After all with her victory, aided by her human's new power no less there could no longer be any doubt.
She was the Big Sister.
But given how much this mutant, this 'Gabriel' seemed to care for Yuha, the few words they'd exchanged on their way here, coupled with the murmurings of the rest of the crazies and, to A2's private worry the searches over the data streams, painted a confusing image.
Worrying too.
Nevertheless, that could wait, what was important is that although strange, and in A2's belief, quite loony, Gabriel seemed to have the right mindset regarding her human.
So, perhaps she could be somewhat trusted and become a sister too. A big sister even.
Eventually.
Maybe.
A2 was the Big Sister.
Nonetheless, more people protecting Yuha would never be a bad thing in her grimoire.
Especially when taking into account Gabriel's strength and judging by their luck so far? A2 suspected there were a lot more crazy strong people lurking in the woods ready to make a move against her human.
And as her victory and failure both today showed, A2 could not defeat every potential threat by herself.
Supposing even that Gabriel was in fact the very, very strongest for a moment, there no doubt were people close enough to the mutant's level of strength as the flying mutant the other day showed that were they to gank up on A2, while victory might be possible.
She would still fail to protect her human at the same time.
Which, suffice to say, was completely unacceptable.
Allies it would have to be then—
Oh.
How dare she.
This haughty brat, this 'Sona' had the temerity to giggle and blush at Yuha's words, but what was worse than that was the fact that her sensors, despite not being calibrated for mutants per say, still indicated a spike of hormones from Sona…
But more worryingly a far more intense spike profile from her human.
Similar if far less potent to what he indicated when cuddling with her, arms tentatively going further up and down over time.
Something which confused, why hesitate? She didn't mind. The feeling pleasant.
But this?
She didn't like it.
The sensation within her ugly.
Similar yet different to when some machines got uppity back home? The future? Differing axis? Whatever.
Judging by the sound of flaring nostrils someone agreed, her eyes met Gabriel's and they nodded.
Truce indeed.
And speaking of machines—
"Dad's soggy beard, it truly is him," the blond newcomer murmured in awe and a hint of jealousy if her sensors weren't malfunctioning. "The more things change the more they stay the same, eh." He snorted, before leaning forward some and smiling. "Hey kid, why don't you come say hi to your big brother?"
The weapon materials snorted.
A2 debated whether re-activating her Berserk state would be worth it for a few moments.
Gabriel smiled, reached over Rias shoulder with her hale arm, grabbing the blond's own and designation 'Azazel' froze, turning towards them—
"Brother~?"
A sweat trickled down the man's brow.
"Y-yes?"
"Mace~"
A weezing sound escaped the paling man's lips. "Not the mace, not again!" a full body shudder wracked his finely dressed form. ""I'll be good!" he said in a squeaky high pitched voice, seeming to clench his lower body, nodding fast.
Managing to stare Gabriel in the eye as well, a surprising feat from what A2 noted of the General so far, even Gabriel's administration of percussive maintenance, as attested by the current state of the man failing to make him behave.
"Well I'll be…" the materials said, awed. "Lady Gabriel!"
"Yes?"
He bowed to the waist. "Please teach me your ways."
"Oi! Whose side are you on brat?!"
Yes, the tentative alliance was already proving useful.
A2 glared, huffing as the blinking warning about her, every Yorha's really, shame poped back up again.
Clearly the subroutine needed a thorough debugging, for A2 felt fine, aches and squeaky motors aside.
Annoying but she'd have just to wait for the system to reset it would seem.
Same way it did everytime she fought somewhat seriously these last few weeks.
Everytime she used this new power that is.
The door opened and figures that looked about as exhausted as she felt shambled in.
A single twitch of his finger and compliance followed.
The ceaseless incessant prattling of the ants fading as he leaned to the left of his throne, gloved fist digging into his cheek.
"What do you make of it, then?" he asked and Euclid dropped to one knee, one arm over his heart, with only the faintest glimmer on the tips of the man's gloved fingers as a sign of the still active spell, the bubble of blessed silence, and probably an illusion or too if his knowledge of the silver-haired man could be trusted. And after so many years, he supposed it could to some extent.
Not that he cares what the ants see, hear, and think.
"Nothing deserving my attention, my lord, and not even close to being worthy of daring to demand yours," the man said and he nodded, his own thoughts similar.
All this mess over an infant with a slightly interesting power.
Or the rumors of.
And a human at that.
And these…vermin posturing around the oversized table thought themselves his equal.
Their and his ancestors equal.
Still, he supposed he could indulge them.
Amusing pets that they where.
It would alleviate his boredom some.
If they so wished for his support and favor, they'd have it.
One of the lowly dregs presuming to serve him should do, no?
And who knows, this human could prove interesting. Stranger things have happened after all.
