Dimensional Gap
"You guys aren't making any sense," Saji began with a confused look on his face, "How did Newby become a part of Infinity? And if he did, does his whole personality or anything about him change at all?"
"No." Ophis said with an air of finality, "With the exception of his level of strength, my mate's personality or appearance will not change."
"So why can't we sense Ise-itoko's energy?" Leiko asked.
"Excluding Ophis and myself," Great Red started, "The power he possesses is too vast for you guys to sense. Right now, if the kid really wanted to, he would have to lower his power level in order for it to be tracked."
"...So my little Sun really has become powerful." Amaterasu commented.
"Just be lucky that the kid's not here right now." The Apocalypse Dragon said.
"Why?" Rias asked.
"Because his mere presence would destroy the souls that are weaker than him." Ophis answered.
Most of the supernatural beings paled at the remark, until Gaia turned her attention to Amaterasu.
"Ama-chan. Doesn't Ise-chan still have the ability to turn into a Super Solar God?"
Amaterasu blinked at the question.
"Well, yes. He should."
"Wait, he does?!" Saji exclaimed, "Is he in that form right now? It would explain why we can't sense him, right?"
"I...I'm not sure," Amaterasu answered, "I don't believe he is in the form right now. I would know, because he would have to absorb the full power of the Sun into himself. If he had done that, I would have felt it."
"Well, isn't there another way for Ise-chan to become a Super Solar God without using you?" Serafall asked.
"There is," Amaterasu began hesitantly, "Because the Sun is essentially a massive star, my little Sun should be able to absorb a massive star in Space and transform."
"And that would give Newby the ability to transform into a Super Solar God without the actual Sun?" Saji asked.
"Ophis," Gabriel began as she looked to the Ouroboros Dragon, "If Issei were to transform into the final evolution of his solar power, where would that place his strength level?"
"...It would not be exact, but it would be near the level of a vast source of godly solar cosmic power."
"Cosmic?" Serafall repeated in confusion.
"Well Indra's screwed anyway," Great Red deduced, "The only reason the kid would transform into a Super Solar God at all, would be to troll Indra for everything he's done."
Remains of Svargam
The remains of the Hindu incarnation of Heaven were shaking in tremors. The entire tournament was destroyed, with no traces left. The lobby, VIP Stateroom, bleachers, and food court were gone. Dust spiraled around everywhere, to the point that not even a tumbleweed could clear it out.
"G-g-guhhh..." A voice groaned out.
A hand shot out of the rubble, its structure covered in a deep black texture. The figure pulled itself forward, and successfully got himself out of his trapped closure. As the man pulled himself up, the black texture that covered his face removed itself, revealing the man as the Heavenly Emperor.
Indra looked around his surroundings, his disbelief and anger showing on his face. In spite of the destruction around him, Indra felt extreme relief course through him. He was still alive, as well as the suit that was made of the Leviathans from Purgatory.
Very slowly, Indra allowed himself a smile.
"HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA! That fool! He actually thought he could defeat me?! What a naïve child!"
His boisterous laughter echoed throughout the world of Svargam. Suddenly, the Leviathan suit screeched out in derision. Indra gritted his teeth as he spotted one of the black tendrils shooting out of the suit.
"Silence!" Indra bellowed, "You serve as MY power, and you will do what I say!"
RELEASE US THIS INSTANT!
The Leviathans continued to scream in insanity, their accumulated hatred of Indra causing the suit to spasm out of control. Narrowing his eyes, Indra willed himself to not lose control of his dominance.
"Cease this insubordination at once!" He roared, prompting the Leviathans to pause in their antics.
"They don't want you, Indra."
Indra widened his eyes and turned his head. His eyes widened into constricted pricks as he spotted the person who had called his name. Immediately, he was suddenly blasted away from the vast pressure of scorching flames sent his way. The Leviathans hissed in pain and slight fear from the powerful fire.
Recovering, Indra gathered his balance, and he held in a gasp.
Dimensional Gap
"Ugh..."
At the sound of the tired voice, the inhabitants of the Dimensional Gap turned to look at a conscious Vali Lucifer. During the entire conversation, Great Red resolved to free the others from the pods. Yoru, Sun Wukong, and the Alpha-Leviathan were still unconscious, with Vali being the exception.
"Vanishing Dragon," Great Red greeted, "It's about time you woke up."
"What the hell happened?" Vali muttered as he clutched his head.
"The Heavenly Emperor absorbed you into his essence, allowing him to use your power." Ophis explained.
Vali grimaced at the information and looked over to see Yoru, Sun Wukong, and some other creature that he wasn't even familiar with.
"I take it that Indra absorbed these three." The host of Albion began, before his eyes widened, "Wait. Where's Hyoudou?"
"My mate is currently at Svargam, fighting against Indra." The Ouroboros Dragon answered.
"What? Then I'll go help-"
"I wouldn't do that if I were you, Vali Lucifer," Gaia interrupted, "If you did that, then Issei saving you and the others would be all for naught."
Vali widened his eyes a little at Gaia's comment.
"Hyoudou saved me?"
"Yeah," Saji said, "Newby's the one that brought you guys here in the first place."
(...Does this mean I owe the host of Ddraig yet again?!)
"Ku ku ku ku. That's right, Vanishing Dragon." Great Red chuckled in amusement.
Remains of Svargam
"Son of Amaterasu!"
Issei stood far away from the Heavenly Emperor, dressed in a different attire than his normal clothing. He was now dressed in a long-sleeved, ankle-length black coat that closed at his chest and billowed out from behind him. There was also a deep black glove that covered Issei's right hand.
The Solar God's skin tone was darker; with his reddish-purple hair lifting up slightly. His eyes were sharper, and his blazing aura was more explosive.
Indra felt his throat constrict as he struggled to endure the blazing firestorm. He looked up to see the landscape scorching completely. The Heavenly Emperor grabbed his throat, trying to find the will to breathe. The moisture in Svargam was starting to deplete. He then covered his face with the Leviathan suit, allowing him the privilege of oxygen.
The Hindu God snarled as he deduced that the blazing firestorm had enveloped Issei entirely. The aura spread out ferociously, the sight of it enough to frighten the Leviathans and even Indra himself. He then widened his eyes further as he realized something strange.
'His energy! I can't sense it! How is this possible?!'
The Heavenly Emperor looked up and twitched as he spotted the gigantic halbard-like axe clasped in Issei's gloved hand. The axe was burning with intensity from the energies of the Welsh Dragon, the Vanishing Dragon, and the Yamata-no-Orochi. The Vanishing Kusanagi was covered in the blazing flames as well.
"How can you still be alive?!" Indra shouted, "You blew yourself up! I saw you! I know you did!"
"..."
Issei, in his Super Solar God transformation, lifted the Vanishing Kusanagi and lowered it in front of him. The energy around the axe swelled with tremendous ferocity, causing it to burst with force. Ten pillars of colossal flames surrounded around Issei and covered the Vanishing Kusanagi. Issei then positioned himself, and slammed the front of the axe into the ground, causing it to crack from beneath him.
"You fool! What are you doing?!" Indra screamed.
Issei didn't respond, choosing to remain quiet and let the flames surround his body. From above him, thousands of gigantic yellow-orange, sun-looking energy spheres manifested. Indra widened his eyes in horror as the size of the spheres increased. The radiation of solar energy started to irritate the Leviathans, who reacted by screeching.
"It can't be!" Indra exclaimed in disbelief, "You were dead!"
In an instant, the energy spheres combined and formed into a massive bomb of Solar Energy that brightened the sky of Svargam. The Vanishing Kusanagi dissolved into a pool of energy, allowing Issei to absorb it into his body. With a twitch of his finger, the vast Solar Bomb shot towards Indra rapidly.
"GAHHHHHHH!"
The Solar Bomb collided with the black-suited Heavenly Emperor. He screamed in intense pain as the pressure of the Leviathan suit peeled off him, causing him great agony. The Leviathans squealed in anguish and happiness. In a way, it was a bittersweet moment for them.
Although the lethal aura of Issei's combined Solar Energy was causing them discomfort, the fact that they were in the motion of finally separating from Indra, imbued an aching bliss within them.
In an attempt to regain his dominance, Indra moved his hands up to the Solar Bomb, ignoring the seething torture. The pieces of the Leviathan suit began to disintegrate, leaving an opening to attack the Hindu God Indra.
"NO! NO!"
As he watched Indra struggle, Issei levitated up into the air, and enclosed himself into an orange-yellow shield of solar energy. The transformed Solar God charged a large sphere of solar power that derived from his shield, and condensed it.
Svargam started to collapse around Indra and Issei. As the Solar Bomb enveloped the Hindu God, Issei thrust his arm forward, shooting the condensed energy sphere into the massive Solar Bomb.
"T-THIS CAN'T BE!" Indra shrieked.
The energy sphere came in contact with the bomb, causing it to expand in size. Indra felt himself drowning in the vast poisonous aura of solar energy. Without the Leviathan suit to protect him, Indra's skin burned with the caustic effect of the Solar Bomb.
And soon after...
What remained of Indra, was complete nothingness. Not even ashes...remained.
The thousands of Leviathans that had once formed the suit, slithered all around the remains of Svargam. The Leviathans shared a mutual happiness of being separated from the Heavenly Emperor, but that happiness soon dissolved into fear.
Without their leader to guide them, their sanity was slowing starting to fade. All this time, the Alpha-Leviathan had watched over them, but now they had no idea where their leader was.
They had been tricked into following the humans from the Hero Faction, and then drained of their power by Indra. As a result, they were left extremely weakened. To the point that a portion of them were beginning to grow hungry.
One Leviathan opened its mouth, revealing sharp and powerful jaws. The Leviathan next to it shrieked as it was consumed by the other. Moments later, the number of Leviathans decreased as they swallowed each other whole.
One by one, each Leviathan devoured the other, eventually leaving only one member left to live.
"Hey look, there's one left!" A voice rang out.
The remaining Leviathan turned to see the members of the Hero Faction; Cao Cao, Jeanne, Georg, Heracles, and Leonardo. Cao Cao, holding the powerful True Longinus, looked around the empty surroundings.
"It's a good thing we arrived here just on time. If we had stayed here, then Issei Hyoudou's attack would have destroyed all of us."
"So that weak God did all of this, huh?" Heracles commented.
"He's more than just a God, Heracles," Georg explained, "He's something entirely different now."
"Hmm..." Jeanne hummed, "So Lord Indra is gone now?"
"Good riddance," Cao Cao cursed the Hindu God, "I was starting to think he was growing insane from his obsession with Shiva."
"Let's just get this Leviathan before something else happens." Georg muttered.
"Leonardo," Heracles began, "Go ahead and summon a Jabberwocky."
Leonardo gave no facial reaction, but complied as a large Jabberwocky manifested behind him. In front of the Jabberwocky, were several small copies of itself.
The Leviathan slithered back in fear and anger of the monster who had tricked it and its former members. Due to its weakened state and lack of leadership, the Leviathan knew that it stood no chance against the Jabberwocky.
"Come on already!" Heracles ordered.
Suddenly, there was a flash of lightning, bringing forth a blinding light. The Hero Faction covered their eyes to shield their sight. Seconds later, Cao Cao uncovered his eyes, and then he widened them.
"What on Earth..."
The collection of Jabberwocky that Leonardo had summoned, were now cut in half. Their upper halves slid onto the ground, which cracked underneath. Jeanna, Heracles, and Georg gasped in surprise.
"Who did that?!" Jeanne exclaimed.
"Cao Cao...it's been a while."
Hearing his name, Cao Cao looked up, and his eyes widened further in response. In his Super Solar God transformation, floated Issei, with the Vanishing Kusanagi axe clasped in his gloved right hand. The wielder of the True Longinus was struggling to understand something.
'Issei Hyoudou. Why can't I sense your energy?'
Issei lowered down to the ground in front of the Leviathan, who was shaking until it recognized the young man.
It took sight of his determined and calm facial features. As the Leviathan stared at Issei, a surge in its genetic memory began to spiral.
Its leader had mentioned something about the God who possessed solar energy. Was this the boy? Was he the reason why the Alpha-Leviathan had taken on a female form on its own accord? All in all, the Leviathan was starting to feel strange.
The Solar God had saved the rest of the Leviathans from Indra's wrath. The Heavenly Emperor abused their immense power, using it for his selfish purposes. However, Issei Hyoudou had separated the 'black costume' from the Hindu God, granting the Leviathans freedom.
The remaining Leviathan, in the midst of its trailing thoughts, began to slither towards Issei.
'He...is protecting me. Why does he choose to do this? Has he not witnessed me consuming the other Leviathans?'
The creature didn't know what it was feeling at the moment. It still didn't even know if the boy was the ticket to its safety.
Raising an eyebrow, Cao Cao placed the True Longinus on his shoulder.
"It has been a long time, Issei Hyoudou. I thought you wanted to get away from the supernatural."
"...Are you calling me a liar, Cao Cao?" Issei asked, prompting Cao Cao to smile slightly.
"I ain't calling you a truther."
Issei lifted his axe up in the air, and set his sights to Heracles, who struggled to keep his composure. The descendant of Hercules was trying to ignore the flow of Issei's immense power. He felt that if he went any closer, his life would have come to an end.
"There's no point in using the last Leviathan," Issei said as he looked back to Cao Cao, "I know that you guys don't have any vendetta against Shiva."
"That's true." Georg agreed.
The ground of Svargam shook as though it were shivering, prompting the Hero Faction to look down in surprise.
"This place is about to blow," Issei began, "So I suggest you guys get out of here before you get caught up in the mess."
"T-That sounds like a good idea," Jeanne stuttered, "But what about you?"
"...I'll be just fine."
Cao Cao nodded and motioned to Georg, who used his magic to manifest a teleporting circle. The wielder of the True Longinus walked onto the circle, and looked over to Issei.
"We'll see each other again, Issei Hyoudou."
Issei made no movement as he looked at the Hero Faction, standing still with his explosive aura. As he watched them disappear, Issei looked up at the sky, and his eyes softened at the image of his grandmother.
Izanami-no-Mikoto gazed at Issei with an unreadable look on her face. Her eyes no longer shed tears, but they said it all.
No words were exchanged between the Goddess and Issei, the looks on their faces enough for them to communicate.
Very slowly, Izanami's eyes wetted with tears, but no sounds uttered out of her mouth. She reached her arms out and placed her hands on Issei's cheeks, caressing his skin. Her eyes seemed to soften considerably.
...I'm sorry.
Issei blinked several times at his grandmother's words. The tears flowed down from Izanami's face, but her expression never changed.
I'm so sorry. My little grandson.
And then...the image of Izanami-no-Mikoto faded away. Issei inwardly sighed as he lost the feeling of his grandmother's caresses.
"You...are the kind one." A distorted voice from behind him commented.
Issei turned around to find the source of the voice, and he ignored the urge to palm his face.
{...Partner, are you really surprised that this is happening? You did save those Leviathans.}
'...'
Similar to its leader's choice, the remaining Leviathan had taken on a female form, acquiring rising feelings for the Solar God. Like its leader, it had taken the form of a tall curvaceous woman with long black hair, long legs, wide hips, and a narrow waist. The noticeable difference the Leviathan carried, aside from the lack of horns, was that its eyes were a dark burgundy red, and that it possessed long, pronounced tear-troughs under its eyes.
All in all, it had the appearance of a normal tall and well-endowed young woman, ignoring the tear-troughs under its eyes.
{Man, partner. How many beings do you have in your 'Unwanted' Harem now?}
Issei ignored the Welsh Dragon's question, holding back the urge to tell him that he didn't want to think about it. As he stood where he was, he watched the Leviathan walk towards him. He then rose an eyebrow as he noticed something strange.
"Where are the other Leviathans?" He asked curiously, "I could have sworn there was more than one."
The Leviathan stopped in its walk and avoided looking at Issei. The Solar God blinked in confusion as he noticed that the transformed creature appeared as though 'she' was ashamed of something.
"Our strength was drained from Indra. And we Leviathans suffer with constant hunger. So...when we were released from the Hindu Deity's rule...we gave in to our cannibalistic urges."
{...Damn.}
((Even I can't make light of that.))
Issei ignored Ddraig's and the clone of Albion's comments, and looked up at the Leviathan, noticing that she was taller than him.
"So aside from your leader," Issei began, "You're the only one left?"
"Yes." She replied.
'Perfect...'
Issei resisted the urge to sigh and palm his face, until the Leviathan walked closer.
"You...are a kind one." She repeated, prompting Issei to raise an eyebrow.
"The kind one?"
"Yes," She said as she drew closer to him, "You released Indra's control on us. You freed us from his rule. We suffered as he exploited our power, but you stopped him."
Issei crossed his arms as he listened to the Leviathan's words. The shaking of Svargam brought him out of his musings, and he looked around his surroundings. Narrowing his eyes, Issei locked eyes with the Leviathans and nodded to her.
"Grab onto my shoulder. The place we're going to is where your leader is."
The Leviathan widened its burgundy eyes in response. Before it could move however, a massive surge of energy brought it out of its surprise. Issei noticed the energy signature, and turned to look at the source. He blinked at the mysterious being in front of him.
It was a three-eyed man with a crescent moon symbol on his forehead. Serpents crawled around his neck as an ornament, and a skull necklace glowed on his chest. The man was clad in tiger skin, with a scepter behind.
"It would seem that Indra's eagerness to fight me...might have cost him his life." The man deduced.
Issei widened his eyes at the man's voice.
'He mentioned Indra! So this must be-'
"I can honestly say it's nice to finally meet you, Issei Hyoudou," The man greeted in a proud yet formal voice, "I am Shiva, the God of Destruction."