3rd Person
Akeno, Koneko, and Kiba were mingling in the ballroom, listening to Ravel Phoenix brag on and on about how Riser won the Rating Game and how Rias was now going to be his bride.
"Listen to her go on." Kiba said.
Then a Devil guest walked up to them.
"Yeah. I've always considered people like her the worst." He said.
"Is that so?" Akeno asked.
"Yeah. I've always hated the thought of coming to one of these parties. And now that I'm here, I gotta say, I hate it even more." The guest said with a smile.
"Is there something you wanted?" Koneko asked bluntly.
"Why yes, actually. I wanted to make you three an offer..." The guest said.
He then looked around at the other guests, then back to the three.
"Privately, if that's alright." The guest said.
The three nodded, then followed the guest to the back of the ballroom. There, he led them into a door, which led to an empty room. Before he closed the door, the guest checked to see if anyone was watching them. When he saw that the coast was clear, he closed the door.
Now that it was just them, the four dropped the act.
"Are you ready yet?" Koneko asked.
The guest was then enveloped in smoke. When it dissipated, it was revealed to actually be Nate.
"Almost. Paul's still setting up the bombs on the door." Nate said.
Just then, Paul walked in from a door adjacent to the one the other four came in, wearing a black hoodie and black jeans and had a backpack strapped to his back to help further conceal his Fallen Angel wings. Kiba, Akeno, and Koneko obviously didn't know that Paul was a Fallen Angel, otherwise they never would have let him help. Also, a Fallen Angel in a party comprised entirely of Devils? That doesn't sound like it would end well.
"Everything ready?" Nate asked Paul.
"Bombs are set. Let's make an entrance." Paul said excitedly.
"Right then." Nate said.
Nate then turned back to Kiba, Koneko, and Akeno.
"Now all that's left is to wait until the opportune moment." Nate said.
"What do we do until then?" Koneko asked.
"It's a party, ain't it? Have some fun." Nate said with a wink.
He then followed Paul to the exterior of the building.
Meanwhile, the Devils went back into a ballroom to wait. After a few moments, Riser appeared and began making his speech. The Devils of the Gremory Peerage weren't really paying attention to it. They were too anxious about what was about to happen.
Ten it happened. Riser had finished his speech.
"Now, I present to you... Rias Gremory!" Riser announced.
Then Rias appeared in front of the crowd, wearing what looked almost like a wedding dress.
And that was the opportune moment.
The moment Rias appeared, an explosion blew the huge ballroom doors off their hinges.
Rias and the guests were understandably shocked about this.
When the smoke cleared, it revealed Nate, Paul, and Issei. What no one was expecting, not even Kiba, Akeno, and Koneko, was the two robots flanking them.
Nate then walked to the front of their little group.
A few hours earlier....
Issei ran up to Nate and Asia's door and knocked on it. Nate opened it and saw Issei. Issei was about to say something, but Nate interrupted him.
"Ah, Issei, good. I was just about come and get you." Nate said.
"Wait, really?" Issei asked.
"Yeah, come in." Nate said.
Issei then noticed Paul hauling weapons back and forth from the house to the garage.
"Is that the Fallen Angel from when you trained us?" Issei asked.
"Yeah, he's helping out." Nate said.
Issei then followed Nate inside.
"I'm guessing by the magic circle in your hand, Grayfia saw you as well?" Nate asked.
"Yeah... wait, 'as well'?" Issei asked.
Nate then held up a paper with a magic circle drawn on it.
"I see. So she came to you too." Issei said.
"Sí. Looks like we're both going to rescue our favorite Red-head Princess." Nate said.
"Right... Nate, I'm glad that you're helping and all, but I have to ask... why? You've never cared about our causes before... so why now?" Issei asked.
"I checked the contract I signed after Rias inducted me as a Temporary Piece. I also read the Terms of Payment. If that Chicken Pedophile marries her, she loses all rights to pay me. And I'll be fucked if I'm losing my only source of income here." Nate explained.
"I see... so you're only doing because you have something to gain." Issei said, a little disgusted.
"Don't we all in this situation? Besides... if it makes you feel better, I do have a moral reason for doing this, but I'd like to keep that to myself." Nate said.
Knowing that there was even the slightest aspect of morality that was driving Nate to do this did actually make Issei feel considerably better.
"Right. Well, now I know why you're doing this... but, what about the Fallen Angel? Why is he helping Devils?" Issei asked.
"I told you before, Paul's always been somewhat sympathetic towards Devils. Plus, he feels like he owes me. I don't know why, but it's good to have more manpower." Nate explained.
"He owes you?" Issei asked
"Long story. I'm guessing you sent Asia to tell the others that we're coming?" Nate asked.
"Yeah." Issei replied.
"Good. Give me a few more moments." Nate said.
Nate then went down to the basement, and Issei followed. To his surprise, Nate had somehow expanded the basement since last Issei was in it, which was two days ago.
Nate then went over to a tarp in the back of the basement. When he pulled the tarp away, it revealed two robots. One looked like a construction worker, and the other looked like an old American soldier.
Issei had no idea what they were.
Nate then walked over to a safe he had hidden in the wall.
"Nate, what are these?" Issei asked.
"Old friends." Nate said as he entered the combination into the safe.
After the safe clicked, Nate then opened it and took out thousands of US Dollars. He then walked over to the robots. He then opened a small hatch on both of them.
"I'd stand back a little." Nate said, and Issei obeyed.
Nate then slipped a few thousand dollars into the Soldier-bot. Almost immediately, the robot started shaking. The red lights under it's helmet started glowing. It then let out a scream, then punched Nate in the face, breaking his nose. The robot then got up to it's feet.
"Sorry about that. Basic servo diagnostic. You know how it is." It said.
"When have you ever done that?!" Nate exclaimed, not happy that his nose was broken.
"Well, it's basic if you just came out of a DigiCrack coma." The robot replied.
"Dammit, Fender, what did I tell you about doing that shit?!" Nate exclaimed.
"Oh I'm sorry if I was feeling down and needed a pick-me-up." The robot, who Issei now knew as Fender, retorted.
"Whatever. I guess it's better than DigiHeroine." Nate said.
"Oh, you know I gave that shit up a long time ago." Fender replied.
Nate then fixed his nose with a loud crack, which made Issei flinch.
"Fender, if you'd please wake up Rick?" Nate asked as he gave Fender a few thousand dollars.
Fender took the money, then slipped it inside of the construction worker robot, who Issei assumed was Rick.
Like Fender, Rick immediately started shaking, and his eyes lit up, however this time there was no screaming or punching.
"Levántate y brilla, Rick. How you feelin'?" Nate asks.
"Well, my knees feel like they could use a little bit of oil. Other than that, I'm fine." Rick said.
He then got up to his feet.
"Hey, Nate? I just realized something. We've been out for two months. Is there anything we need to be caught up on?" Fender asked.
"Yes, but not right now. Right now we got a job to do." Nate explained.
"What do you mean?" Rick asked.
"We've got an arranged engagement party to crash. The bride is friend who despises the groom." Nate explains.
"Eh, wouldn't be the first time we've ruined a wedding." Fender said.
"Not a wedding this time, but I see your point." Rick said.
Paul then came down to the basement.
"Almost got everything ready." Paul said.
"Good. I'll be up in minute." Nate said.
Paul nodded. Then he looked at Rick and Fender.
"Fender, Rick." Paul greeted.
"Hey Paul." Rick said.
Paul then went back upstairs.
Nate looked back to Fender and Rick.
"Right. Anyways, I need you guys to go with Issei here. Once you get to where you're going, just wait for me and Paul." Nate instructed.
"Got it." Rick said.
Issei then walked over to Rick and Fender and used the magic circle to teleport to the engagement party.
Nate then hurried upstairs and helped Paul carry weapons to the truck. Once said truck was loaded, they pushed it out of the garage.
"Y'know, thinking about it now... why did we need to load everything into the truck again?" Paul asked.
"I... don't know... fuck it, we already loaded everything anyway." Nate said.
He then activated the magic circle.
We're all caught up now...
"Who do you think you are?!" Riser shouts.
"We're just a couple of bastards who have nothing better to do." Paul replied.
Riser growls in frustration.
"Seize them!" Riser ordered.
Then guards in black and yellow armor appeared in front of the group.
"Wow. You weren't kidding... these people love to overcompensate." Fender said, looking around the ballroom.
"Posh bitches, every one of 'em... well, except for three." Nate said.
Just then, Kiba, Koneko, and Akeno attacked the guards from behind.
"Oh thank god you were being serious about the inside people." Fender said.
"Why wouldn't he be?" Paul asked.
"I thought he was making stuff up to get me to do shit I didn't want to do again." Fender explained.
A guard tried to attack Fender, but he just shot the guard with a shotgun.
"Are you sure it's a good idea to be shooting these guys?" Issei asked.
"Ah, it's fine. We're using rubber bullets." Nate said as he and Rick shot two more guards.
"Lady Rias, what is this?" A bystander asked.
"Just the entertainment I had planned." Said a tall red-head man.
"Who's that?" Issei asked.
"Oh come on. With hair like that? Who do you think it is?" Paul replied.
"Brother?!" Rias exclaimed.
"Wait, 'brother'? But that would mean..." Issei began.
"Sir Zechs Lucifer!" A bystander said.
"Huh... so that's Satan?" Nate said.
Nate had to be honest... he was not impressed.
"Wait, what?" Rick asked.
"Later." Nate replied.
"Are you sure you're not Medic right now?" Fender asked.
"Do I sound like a mad German Doctor at the moment?" Nate asked.
Nate then looked over to Paul and saw that he was trembling slightly. Nate put a hand on his shoulder.
"Breath... they don't know, and they're not going to." Nate whispered.
Paul nodded.
"Sir Zechs, what do you mean 'entertainment'?" Riser asked.
"He was kind of disappointed after the battle, chicken-shit." Nate said bluntly.
"You're discontent with the battle?" Riser asked.
"No, no. If I can interject, the Rating Game itself has lost some of its significance. Especially this time, circumstances being what they are. The old family is losing face, is it not?" Zechs explained.
Once again, Nate lost all interest. And so did Rick and Fender.
"So, when do we get to kick some ass?" Fender asked.
"Give 'im a minute. These people like to talk about their customs just before the ass-whooping." Nate explained.
"That doesn't really seem like the smartest idea." Rick said.
"It definitely distracts the enemy long enough to form a plan." Nate said.
"Since when do you plan attacks?" Fender asked.
"Oh, didn't say I was. I just said it distracts them long enough." Nate said.
"Well, lucky you, Fender. This time it won't last too long." Paul said.
"How so?" Fender asked.
"'Cause he asked Issei what he'd wish for." Paul said.
Timeskip
Nate, Paul, Fender, Rick, and Issei all stood in a colosseum with chess-like statues.
"So, I get having you and Issei fight him, since your Devils-" Paul began.
"Temporary." Nate interjected.
"Still a Devil. But why us?" Paul asked, gesturing to himself, Fender, and Rick.
"Well, you and Rick, I don't know. Fender, however, will go insane if he doesn't kick somebody's ass within the next five minutes." Nate explained.
"Isn't he already insane?" Paul asked.
"Yeah, but more than usual." Nate elaborated.
"The dogs go feral if their thirst for blood is not quenched." Fender said deadpan.
"Right. Onto the fight we go." Paul said, slightly disturbed.
"Not just yet." Nate said.
"Wait, what?" Rick asked.
"Yeah, while the kid's fighting, I might as well catch you up on what's going on." Nate said.
"BALANCE BREAKER SACRED GEAR, SCALE MAIL!!!" Issei shouted in the background.
"Basically, Merasmus sent us to a place where there's Angels, Fallen Angels and Devils." Nate explained nonchalantly.
*BOOM*
"And I'm guessing these guys are the Devils?" Rick asked.
"Yes. That Red-Head chick in the wedding dress you saw? She hired me a little while back, so now we work for her." Nate explained.
*BOOM*
"Got it." Fender said nonchalantly.
"Wait, when you say Devils-" Fender began.
"Yes, that is referring to Satan and stuff like that. Though not the kind you may know about." Paul explained.
*GIANT BOOM*
"And how long have you known about this?" Fender asked Paul.
"I live in this version of earth, dude. I've known about this shit my whole life." Paul replied.
"So, is this common knowledge?" Rick asked.
*BOOM*
"Uhh... no. But I can't really talk about how I know this stuff here." Paul said.
"Right." Fender said.
The four then turned around and saw Issei fall to the ground.
"Right then. Looks like we're up. Paul, get in the truck." Nate instructed.
"Oh, yes!" Paul exclaimed excitedly.
He then ran off to get the Red Bread Truck.
"You two, stay here for just a bit longer." Nate said to Fender and Rick.
"Make it quick. I'm startin' to get antsy." Fender said.
Nate then turned around and walked towards Riser, casually picking up Asia's Crucifix on the way.
"Alright, Hyoudou. You had your fun. Our turn now." Nate said.
"Please! Even with a Balance Breaker, he couldn't defeat me! What makes you think that you can do any better?!" Riser exclaims.
"Need I remind you of the multiple times I nearly kicked your ass in the Rating Game?" Nate asked.
"Yes, I suppose you did come close to being an equal in hand-to-hand combat. But it will be hard to hit me when you're miles away!" Riser exclaimed.
He then shot a giant fireball at Nate's feet, which sent him flying miles into the air.
"I DIDN'T PLAN FOR THAAAAT!!!" Nate exclaimed as he was blasted off into the air, Team Rocket style.
Rias stared in shock. The man who nearly came close to beating Riser in the Rating Game multiple times was defeated in just one move. Fender and Rick just stared up at the sky as their friend and coworker was no longer seen.
"Uh... I think we just lost the signal for the truck." Fender said.
Riser raised an eyebrow.
"Truck? What truck?" Riser asked.
*HONK-HOOONK*
The Red Bread Truck then smashed through the wall of the colosseum and rammed into Riser, who slowly looked up and saw Paul in the driver's seat.
"BEEP BEEP, MOTHERFUCKEEERRR!!!" Paul shouted maniacally, with a giant grin to match.
Riser prepared a fireball to destroy the truck. The moment Paul noticed said fireball, he immediately slammed the brakes, causing Riser to go flying a few feet. Riser's face was then clotheslined by Fender's arm.
Riser got back up to face Fender.
"Wow, the kid was right. One look at your face, and I already wanna give you the most painful death imaginable." Fender said.
Riser then lit his fist on fire and punched Fender in the face as hard as he could. Unfortunately for Riser, it didn't have the intended effect. Fenders head moved only slightly.
"W-what?!" Riser exclaimed.
"You're a meatsack that just tried to punch a metal robot. What did you think was gonna happen?" Fender asked.
Fender then grabbed Riser's shoulders, the headbutted him... hard. Riser was actually stunned for a bit. Just long enough for the side of the Red Bread Truck to slam into him. Once again, Riser was sent flying. When he landed, he landed at the feet of Rick.
Rick let Riser get up to his feet. Riser then launched a fireball at Rick, who ducked under it, then managed to slam The Jag into Riser's face twice. The Red Bread Truck then slammed into Riser again.
Riser growled in frustration.
"I've had enough of this!" He shouted.
He then launched large fireball at Fender and Rick, which destroyed Rick's legs and left Fender as a disembodied head.
"Well, that's unfortunate." Rick said casually.
"Oh, come on! Again?! Do you have any idea how hard it is to build a new body?!" Fender shouted.
Riser heard the Truck speeding toward him again. He quickly fired a fireball at it, causing it to flip three times. After it landed on it's wheels, a very dizzy Paul fell out of the driver's side door and onto the ground.
Coincidentally, they all fell to the ground around Issei, grouping them together. That meant that Riser only needed a single blast to take them all out.
"This ends now... hehehe... HAHAHA!!! Did you really think that the four of you could beat me?!" Riser taunted.
He then prepared the biggest fireball he could summon.
"Ugh... five..." Issei groaned.
"I blasted the Rook so far, he probably can't even see the colosseum." Riser said.
"Nate's capable of more things than any Rook could possibly imagine. He even has abilities that not even The Great Devil Lucifer has." Issei said.
Riser was shocked that someone would make such a statement about a simple Rook.
"What?! How is that possible?!" He asked.
Issei then got back to his feet.
"Nathaniel Garcia Navarez lll... Temporary Rook." Issei said.
Riser didn't think it possible to be more shocked than he already is. But somehow Issei managed to do it. The mere fact that a Temporary Piece almost managed to beat him multiple times was shocking enough. But hearing that he had more power than the Great Devil Lucifer...
"But if he's a Temporary Piece, that should mean he has less power than a Pawn!" Riser exclaimed.
"We thought the same thing... but then he showed us what magic he's capable of... a magic that he and he alone is a master of." Issei said.
"And what magic would that be?" Riser asked.
Issei then smirked.
"His uncanny ability to give a giant middle finger to every known law of physics and logic!" Issei exclaimed with a confident smile.
"What?!" Riser exclaimed, very confused as to what Issei was talking about.
"YYYEEEAAAHHH-HA-HAAA!!!"
Riser then looked to the sky above him. And he did so just in time for Nate to smash his face with a Crucifix wrapped Market Gardner. Nate then landed on his feet. Incidentally, he showed no signs of injury... or any signs of being tossed miles into the air for that matter.
Riser, having been smacked with The Market Gardner, which was also wrapped in Asia's Crucifix, was understandably thrown for a very big loop. Nate used the time he gave himself to unwrap the Crucifix from the Market Gardner and wrap it around his hand.
Nate then punched Riser in the face twice. Riser swung his fist to counter attack, but Nate ducked under it and socked Riser in the stomach. Riser swung his fist at Nate again, but Nate caught it and kneed Riser in the stomach.
Riser blasted Nate with a fireball, which sent Nate flying. But when Nate landed, he immediately got back up and charged at Riser. Riser launched another fireball at Nate, but Nate slid under it like a badass. As he slid, he grabbed Riser's legs and pulled them out from under him, knocking Riser to the ground.
Nate then jumped on top of Riser and reeled his fist back to punch him, but Riser managed to flip over, and he was on top of Nate. Riser then punched Nate repeatedly with flaming fists, until Nate grabbed The Scottish Handshake, which had fell off his person, and smashed it against Riser's face, knocking him off of Nate.
Nate then got up and tried to use the broken Rum bottle to stab Riser, but the latter managed to redirect the attack, and Nate ends up stabbing himself in his side with the bottle. Riser then shoves the bottle deeper into Nate's body. Riser then blasts Nate a few feet away.
"NATE!!!" He heard Rias shout in concern.
Nate simply ignored it. He pulled the bottle out of his body and tossed it aside. He then took out The Ambassador and shot a bullet at Riser's head. Riser narrowly dodged the bullet, which ricocheted off the Red Bread Truck and hit Nate's hand, knocking the gun away.
Nate looked at the hole the bullet made in his hand, but didn't have time to tend to it. Riser prepared another fireball. Thinking quickly, Nate kicked Fender's head to Riser as a distraction.
"OW!" Fender exclaimed.
Fender's head then bounced off of Riser's. Nate then charged at Riser. Unfortunately, Riser recovered quicker than Nate had anticipated, and shot a fireball at Nate, sending him flying a few feet.
Riser then decided that he would taunt Nate a little. Riser picked up Fender's head, then launched it at Nate using a fire blast.
"OW!" Fender exclaimed.
Nate quickly kicked Fender's head out of the colosseum.
"FUCK YOU, NATE!!!" Fender shouted as his head flew through the air.
It then bounced off the ground once, and landed in the arms of Rias. Kiba, Koneko, and Akeno were standing with her watching the fight.
Fender took a second, as he was understandably dizzy. Then he finally looked at the person who was holding his head.
"Uh... hi." Rias said with a small smile.
"Wait... you're the one we're helping?" Fender asked.
"Yes. That's correct." Koneko replied.
"You better be fucking worth it." Fender said bluntly.
The Devils were kind of shocked at the sudden statement.
"Do you have any idea how hard it is to build a new body? Or how expensive it is?" Fender asked.
"Fender, don't be a dick!" Nate shouted.
"Oh, bite my shiny metal-... FUCK!" Fender exclaimed, just now remembering his situation.
Back to the fight...
Nate tried to tackle Riser, but Riser managed to get his feet under Nate, then pushed him off, sending him flying next to the Red Bread Truck. Riser then saw The Ambassador, picked it up, aimed at Nate, then fired. Nate dodged the shot by jumping into the passenger seat of the truck.
Riser prepared a fireball to destroy the truck, and Nate with it. But Nate flashed the headlights, blinding Riser for a moment. It was just long enough for Nate to pop out of the driver's side and shoot The Ambassador out of Riser's hand.
Riser then hit Nate with another fireball.
With Fender...
"Just how strong is Nate?! Even Akeno would be defeated by now with how many times Lord Riser has hit him!" Kiba explained.
"I know he's a mercenary who's probably been through some intense battlefields, but this..." Koneko said.
"Yeah... Nate's always been able to take ass loads of abuse." Fender said.
Unfortunately, the battle took a turn for the worse.
It turns out that Riser had a trick up his sleeve that Nate was all to familiar with, but still wasn't expecting.
Back to the fight...
Nate elbowed Riser's face, then hit him with a bomb from The Loch-N-Load, which sent Riser flying a few feet. Riser growled in frustration and fired another fireball at Nate. Nate narrowly dodged the fireball.
However, the fireball nicked the bottom of Nate's vest, causing it to catch fire. And when his vest caught fire, it immediately sparked an effect that Nate hated so much when he fought RED Team.
Nate's entire body suddenly combusted.
"AH! FIRE! OH, IT'S HOT!!!" Nate shouted.
Nate was too busy trying to put himself out that he didn't notice Riser launch another fireball at him. The fireball hit Nate, and he was sent flying. He landed on his stomach and slid to a stop, which thankfully put out the fire.
Nate managed to get back up, but it was slow. Meanwhile, Riser was curious about what just happened. Nothing like that has ever happened before, and he wanted to see if he could do it again.
So, Riser shot another fireball at Nate, who dodged again. But the same thing happened. The fireball nicked the collar of Nate's vest, and Nate's body combusted.
"AH, ESTOY PRENDIDO!!!" Nate shouted.
Riser then shot Nate with a fireball while the latter tried to put himself out.
With Fender and the Peerage...
"Nate..." Rias said, concerned.
"I've never seen an fire magic have an effect like that before." Akeno said.
"Yeah, that's because it may be exclusive to Me, Rick, and Nate." Fender said.
"Huh?" The peerage asked.
"We gave it an accurate name. Afterburn. If we're touched by fire for even a fraction of a second, the effect lingers for ten seconds. The thing is, it has to be fire alone. Those fireballs exploded, and the flaming punches had a fist involved. That's why it didn't happen until now." Fender explained
"That doesn't sound good. Especially now that you said it so close to the broadcasting." Kiba said.
"Wait, what?" Fender asked.
"This is a two-way broadcast. They can hear us just as well as we can hear them." Koneko explained.
"Well why the hell didn't you tell me earlier?!" Fender shouted.
Back to the fight...
"Thanks for telling the enemy one of our weaknesses, you imbecile!" Nate shouted at Fender.
"Oh, suck a dick! How was I supposed to know this was two-way?!" Fender retorted.
Nate could hear Sir Zechs chuckle. Suddenly, the astral projections showing the faces of the spectators disappeared.
"There. That should prevent any more slip ups that might give one side an unfair advantage." Sir Zechs announced.
"Gracias- GAH!" Nate groaned as he was hit by another fireball.
Riser then fired another fireball, which missed Nate, but triggered Afterburn again.
Rick, who could only watch the fight now that his legs were destroyed, looked over and saw a black object lying a few feet away from him. He looked closer and saw that it was a mask.
A very familiar mask.
Rick crawled over to it and picked it up. Conveniently, Nate then fell to the ground a few feet away from him.
"Nate!" Rick called.
Nate looked over to Rick, who threw the mask to Nate. Nate caught it and looked at it.
He too recognized the mask.
"Rick, are you sure this is a good idea?" Nate asked.
"You need the fire immunity, don't you?" Rick replied.
Nate then looked at the mask.
With Fender and the Peerage...
"What is that thing that your friend just gave Nate?" Kiba asked.
Fender looked closer at the object in Nate's hands.
And he did not like what he saw.
"Oh no..." Fender said.
"Is something wrong?" Koneko asked.
"What the hell is that idiot doing?!" Fender exclaimed, ignoring the question.
"What is it?" Akeno asked.
"Why is letting him possess him?!" Fender exclaimed.
The Peerage was shocked at what they just heard.
"D-did you just say 'possession'?!" Rias exclaimed.
"Yes! I-... wait, you don't know?" Fender asked.
"Know what?" Rias asked.
"About our team?" Fender said.
"Team?" Koneko asked.
"We're a team of twelve. About four months ago, nine of our friends got trapped in his head. Until they get out, they occasionally possess his body. He didn't tell you?" Fender explained/asked.
"No... he didn't say anything about a team. And while he did say he's dealt with the supernatural before, I can't believe he's had to deal with possession." Rias said.
"You never noticed him act out of character?" Fender asked.
"We have, actually. When he was training us for the Rating Game, we noticed that he acted like a different person each exercise. But we had just assumed he was schizophrenic." Koneko replied.
They then watched as Riser fired a huge fireball towards Nate. The explosion was almost blinding.
Back to the fight...
Riser stared at the huge explosion he had caused. When the smoke dissipated, all that was left was a huge bonfire.
Riser smiled, thinking he had won the fight.
"And that is why a lowly Temporary Piece should know their place." Riser said.
Then an object came screaming out of the fire and towards Riser. Given that Riser wasn't expecting it, he wasn't able to block it. It nailed him in the shoulder. Riser screamed in pain as it left a third degree burn mark the size of tennis ball on his shoulder.
"W-what?! That's impossible! I'm a Phoenix! We are the masters of fire! This shouldn't-"
Another object then hit Riser in his side, then a third grazed his face.
Riser looked at the inferno. And he watched in pure shock as... something walked out from the fire, completely unscathed.
Whatever it was, it dressed like Nate, but had two noticeable differences.
One was the black gas mask on it's head.
The other was the Flamethrower in it's hands.
Riser was at a loss for words. But he managed to pull himself together and fire another fireball.
However, this thing released a compressed air blast from the tip of the Flamethrower, which sent the fireball flying back towards Riser. This surprised Riser so much that he completely forgot to dodge the fireball. It slammed into him, and he was sent flying back.
Riser landed on his back.
He then looked up at the thing, and saw it walking menacingly towards him, holding a Fire Axe.
With Fender and the Peerage...
"Oh shit..." Fender said.
"Is that... Nate?" Rias asked, who couldn't believe what she was seeing.
"No. That... is Pyro. One of the team members trapped in Nate's head. And the fact that he has the wheel isn't good." Fender said.
"What do you mean?" Ravel Phoenix, who was in the stands with Rias and her Peerage, asked.
Ravel was paying attention to what Fender had been saying during the fight, but didn't respond to any of it until now, now that her brother seemed like he was in danger.
"The thing about Pyro is, he doesn't really know that he spreads fire and death. Without outside intervention, he has a tendency to take things too far." Fender explained.
Ravel then turned her attention back to the fight with a very concerned expression, which only grew when she saw Pyro standing over her brother with his axe in hand.
Taking Fender's advice, she decided to intervene.
Down in the colosseum...
Pyro stood over a beaten down Riser Phoenix, holding his Fire Axe.
Suddenly, Ravel teleported in front of Pyro with outstretched arms to try and stop him from taking things too far, like Fender occasionally said he did.
"STOP, PLEASE!!!" Ravel begged.
Pyro simply stared at her.
"You've won! There's no need to hurt my brother any further! Please, just let us go, and you'll never hear from us again!" Ravel said.
Pyro continued staring at Ravel.
Ravel was actually getting hopeful that she managed to get through to Pyro.
Unfortunately, she quickly found out she did not, and her eyes went wide as she watched Pyro raise the axe above his head.
Rias, Akeno, Kiba, Koneko, Issei, Fender, and Rick all watch in horror about what is about to happen.
"SHIT!" Fender exclaimed.
"PYRO, NO!!!" Rick shouted.
Thankfully, just as Pyro began to swing the axe, a lit Zippo lighter appeared in front of him. Pyro stared at the small flame in wonder. So much wonder that he thankfully dropped the axe.
Ravel looked and saw that the person holding the lighter was Paul.
"That's right. You see the pretty fire?" Paul said as if he were talking to a child.
Pyro stared at the small flame for a few more moments.
Then his head twitched, signifying that Nate had taken back control of his body. Nate's hands immediately shot up to the mask, which he very quickly pulled off. Once the mask was off, he pants as though he's out of breath.
"I hate when he doesn't listen." Nate said.
"Yeah, it definitely seems like something that's caused you guys some trouble in the past." Paul said.
Nate then looked to Ravel.
"Sorry about that. We acknowledge your surrender. Now take your chicken-shit brother and get the hell out of my sight." Nate said.
Ravel nodded, then she took her brother and flew away.
Nate and Paul simply sighed in relief. Nate went to the ruined Red Bread Truck, opened up the back, sat in the back, lit a cigarette, took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled. Paul placed Rick in the back of the Truck, helped Issei get to his feet, then smoked a cigarette while sitting in the passenger seat.
Suddenly, while still sitting in the truck, the four were teleported out of the colosseum. Nate, Paul, and Issei stepped out of the truck and found that they were in front of a giant palace.
"Good work."
The three turned and saw Akeno.
"Akeno!" Issei exclaimed.
"You guys did it!" Kiba cheered.
"Of course we did! We're a team of highly skilled and sexually attractive badasses!" Paul said.
Koneko then gave Fender's head to Paul, who placed it in the back of the truck.
"ISSEI!!!"
the group turned to see Rias hugging Issei.
When she let go, she looked to Nate and immediately hugged him.
"Oh, okay... I guess this is happening." Nate said as he reluctantly hugged back.
"Nate... thank you. I don't care why did it, just-... thank you." Rias said, almost crying.
"R-right." Nate said.
"This thing with you and kids, man." Fender said.
"Shut up." Nate said firmly, wanting to let Rias have this moment.
After a few more moments, Rias finally let go.
"I appreciate the thanks... but something about the looks on your face tells me that Fender explained some of my... predicament to you." Nate guessed.
"He did." Koneko said.
"Right. Before you say anything about it, I'm willing to explain everything... later. But right now, I'd like to go back to the house and take a nap." Nate said.
Rias nodded.
"Go home and get some rest, Nate. You've earned it." She said.
"You too, kid. We've both had one shitty week." Nate said.
"You've had a shitty week? Neither of you were reactivated only to become a severed head hours later." Fender complained.
"Quit your bitching, and I'll give you my latest issue of the WIRED magazine." Nate said.
"Shutting up." Fender said.
With that, Paul and Nate got back in the truck. A magic circle formed around it, and Nate gave the Peerage one last two-finger salute before teleporting to the house.
Meanwhile, a good distance away...
A Fallen Angel woman had observed everything from a safe distance away. Accompanying her was a human.
"Okay. I admit, you were right. This Nate character is probably the most formidable of the group. Which is why I must ask why you want him so bad?" The woman asked.
"He's only so dangerous because that team of his is trapped in his head, which allows for possession. The same team who killed most of mine. But, if you help us get his friends out of his head so that my people and I can kill them, we'll help you get the Gremory girl and her little k-bop band." The human explained.
The Fallen Angel Woman considered this. Help a group of humans kill another group of humans in exchange for help killing one of the most powerful Devil Peerages in existence...
"Alright, then. You got yourself a deal." The woman said.