It's been about 5 minutes since I accepted Rias's invitation to join the Occult Research Club, which as I've recently found out isn't actually a club. Rather, it's a cover up for these guys to use to blend in and hide the fact that they're actually devils. Now, everyone is sitting down on the couches except for Rias, who's leaning against the front of her desk. I'm sitting in the middle of the left couch with Koneko on my left and Akeno on my right, while Kiba and Issei sit together on the other couch.
Rias: Now that (y/n) is officially one of us, I think it's time we-
Issei: Hang on! We didn't have a say in this!
Koneko: Are you serious right now?
Kiba: Yeah Issei, that's in the past. Why are you making a big deal about it now?
Issei: Because we never voted on whether he could join or not!
Y/n: Umm... it wasn't your call anyway.
Issei: Shut up! I demand to enact my right to a proper vote.
Rias: Issei, while I appreciate your concern, as the President if I want to welcome someone into the club I can, without your permission. With that in mind, I wanted (y/n) to join so I invited him to. He nor we don't need to-
Y/n: (sighs) Just get it over with.
Rias, Akeno, Kiba, Issei: Huh?
Y/n: I said get it over with. Entertain the fool this once. It won't make a difference but at least he can't say he didn't try to get rid of me his way.
Everyone looks at me with a surprised look on my face as I'm seemingly ok with complying with Issei's request. In reality, I just wanted to see the look on his face when his plan to get rid of me would fail miserably.
Rias: Well, if (y/n) is ok with it, we'll take a vote. All in favor of (y/n) joining say "I".
Rias, Akeno, Koneko, Kiba: I!
Rias: All opposed?
Issei: Me!
Rias: Opposed overturned. By majority vote, (y/n) is formally, and officially a member of the Occult Research Club, through both my authority and the vote of the club.
Issei: That's not fair! This is corruption! This is anarchy! This is injustice! This is-
Koneko: A waste of time. You wanted democracy and got it.
Issei: Y-yeah, but still...
Y/n: Blame yourself for thinking democracy is the solution to all of man's problems dude. You've got no one to blame but yourself for believing in that crap.
Issei: Tsk.
Rias: Can we get back to the topic at hand now? Without any interruptions, Issei?
Issei: Hmph! (Turns head away)
Rias: Thank you. Now, (y/n), I want to thank you again for telling us your story and putting your trust in us. We all appreciate it!
Kiba: Yep!
Akeno: Absolutely. (Smiles)
Koneko: Word.
Issei: ...
Y/n: I'm putting a lot of faith in you guys, so you better not let me down.
Rias: Don't worry, we won't. Especially now that we can move on to the specifics of your new situation.
Y/n: Hmm, what do you mean?
Rias: Well, I only gave you a general understanding of your situation by confirming that everything that happened to you did happen and that there's more to this world than what meets the eye. So, I'm giving you the chance to ask any questions you may have regarding what I've told you so far.
Y/n: Oh ok. Well, let's see... I guess my first question would have to be, do people know that the mythologies exist?
Rias: Some, yes, but only a few. The majority of humans are still oblivious to our existence and we make sure to keep it that way.
Y/n: I see. My next question, what exactly are the origins of Devils? There are so many versions and beliefs out there that I don't know what to believe.
Kiba: Oof, that's gonna be a long one.
Rias: He's right. I'll try to simplify it as best I can, but if your confused about something let me know. And, everyone else, feel free to jump in if you wish to add something.
Everyone gives a nod of acknowledgement to Rias except Issei who still has his head turned away from everyone.
Rias: Ok, first, you have to understand that among all the mythologies, members of the Three Factions are the strongest. These are the Devils, Fallen Angels, and the Angels. I assume you have some knowledge of the basic beliefs behind the Christian faith?
Y/n: Mostly, yes.
Rias: Good. Then you know that, according to the Book of Genesis, God created the world we live on and everything on it. When he was done, he used the last bits of his power of creation to set up a kingdom where he and his Angels would reside. That kingdom is Heaven, although we just refer to it as the Kingdom.
Y/n: That makes sense. After all, God's power would be the power of creation, right?
Kiba: Yeah, but what you may not know is that there was a bit of a darker side to God's powers.
Y/n: What do you mean?
Rias: You see (y/n), God possessed not only the power of creation, but also the power of destruction. When God was done creating the Earth and the Kingdom, he saw that everything was right and had no need for the rest of his power of destruction. So, he essentially threw it away.
Y/n: Like, throwing away trash?
Koneko: Think more like throwing away leftover food that you don't plan to eat.
Y/n: Ahh, I see.
Rias: Thank you Koneko. To hold it, God create a separate, wide open and barren realm to hold the destructive energy. That energy sat there for hundreds of thousands of years, seemingly untouched and not harmful, but in truth was dangerous and would have disastrous consequences. Unbeknownst to God and his Angels who were dealing with the division among their ranks thanks to the rise of rebellious Angels who fell out of God's favor and established the Fallen Angel faction, the destructive energy turned into something on a grand scale.
Y/n: What?
Rias: The energy accumulated itself into a physical being with it's sole will and purpose being to destroy anything and everything in it's path. This being was known as Abaddon the Destroyer.
Abaddon the Destroyer
Rias: Abaddon, thanks it's destructive power, broke through barriers God had placed within the barren realm, emerged on the Earth and started laying waste to the lands, people, and beings on it. It admittedly made it very far and was close to complete destruction of the Earth if it wasn't for the quick and unsteady alliance between the Fallen Angels and God's Angels led by his two eldest children, Michael and Gabriel. Those two, along with their sibling turned traitor Mastema, leader of the Fallen Angels at the time, led their forces on a massive attack on Abaddon and succeeded in defeating it to a weakened state.
Y/n: Why did you say 'defeated' instead of 'destroyed'? Did Michael, Gabriel, Mastema, and the Angel and Fallen Angel forces not have enough strength to eliminate Abaddon?
Akeno: Not exactly. Remember, Abaddon was an accumulation of God's destructive power. He was that raw energy incarnated. When a strong energy is able to develop into a being like that, it can't be fully destroyed but can be weakened to a state where it struggles to maintain it's physical form.
Rias: She's right. Abaddon, wounded and weak, managed to retreat to it's barren realm before God could get back the power within it. To ensure it wouldn't come back, God put more barriers on the realm and created the Dimensional Gap, a special "void world" or series of gateways, as a way to divide his Kingdom, Abaddon's realm, and the human world. But in doing so, God prevented a more direct means of connecting the Kingdom to the Earth and therefore made the Earth the realm of the humans to rule. At that point, it becomes a bit unclear as to what exactly happened to Abaddon. Though we do know Abaddon was beaten to a state where it could not maintain it's physical form and risked it becoming raw destructive energy again. Somehow, Abaddon managed to split itself into 6 independent beings. It's unknown exactly how it was able to do so, but it managed to imbue each with a portion of it's power. Those 6 were known as the Progenitor Devils, our ancestors. Though, they were very different to how devils are today.
Y/n: How so?
Akeno: The Progenitor Devils were giants, standing over a hundred feet tall, of course not as giant as Abaddon; though they often stayed at a normal height of 10-20 feet. What's more, they had humanoid appearances, but it's said their bodies were made of dark matter but were still solid and could morph different parts of their body to whatever they wanted. While that's what there base form was like, when they used their full primal destructive power, they were able to form themselves into demonic beasts of giant size.
Kiba: That's not to say they weren't powerful enough in their base states already. In fact, it's said that one base state Progenitor Devil could take on 10 Michaels at once. So, you can see why the Angels and Fallen Angels were less than pleased.
Y/n: Yeah, no kidding. How did it all come to this though? Like, how are the factions not at war now and why are devils different compared to how they were before?
Kiba: To explain why we're not at war right now is a story for another day. But, Rias can answer why devils are different from back then compared to how they are now.
Rias: Right. Like I said before, the Progenitor Devils each inherited fragments of Abaddon's destructive power, with each inheriting a slight diversion of it. However, these beings were more advance than what they at first appeared. While they did inherit Abaddon's power, they didn't inherit it's will to destroy everything. Rather, they developed a desire to rule and resolved to destroy God, the Angels and the Fallen Angels in order to conquer and rule over every realm. Eventually, they succeeded in breaking the barrier between their realm and the human realm and proceeded to slowly take over parts of it. Of course, God's Angels and the Fallen Angels reluctantly allied together once again to defeat this new force. This time however, the war was much more devastating for the Angels and Fallen Angels, who both took heavy losses. The war dragged on for several years until finally they managed to defeat the Progenitor Devils, stop their conquest, and cause them to retreat back to their realm. At this point, the Progenitor Devils had dubbed their realm the Underworld and officially established it as their center domain to rule. After their defeat, the Progenitor Devils committed a serious taboo that still serves as a constant reminder today of how grotesque our ancestors unfortunately were.
Y/n: What did they do?
Kiba: During their conquest, the Progenitor Devils frequently took humans as slaves. These slaves were brought to the Underworld and used by the Progenitor Devils to use their knowledge of life from Earth to establish the first society of the Devils. Most were forced into hard labor and made some of the first architecture of the history of the Devils. Others were used to help establish order and some for of rule where the Progenitor Devils reigned as "gods" and made the humans serve them. However, the most disturbing part of their conquest and rule was that the they would, on occasion, take humans and... well... forcefully copulate them... both males and females.
Y/n: ...
Y/n: ... I-I'm sorry... I almost thought I heard you say that shadow-like demons managed to have sex, or more specifically rape, both male and female humans.
Kiba: I did.
Y/n: ... Ok... I don't know if I'm more confused at how they managed to rape humans, or if I'm more disturbed that they did it in the first place.
Koneko: Same here.
Akeno: Remember when I said that the Progenitor Devil's bodies could morph into anything they wanted? Well, it's important to remember that they didn't have a specific gender and, because of their body structure, could morph parts of their bodies to just about anything they wanted, such as-
Y/n: Ok, ok I get it Akeno! I don't need those sort of mental images in my head.
Rias: Regardless, this resulted in the next generation of devils being born with different features stemming from both sides of their families.
Rias: These second generation Devils, who were known as the Original Devils, inherited a relatively "human" appearance thanks to their human side, but were still largely inhuman thanks to their demonic side. These new devils came in a wide variety of shapes and sizes along with many developing inhuman and animalistic features such as horns, claws, tails, scaly wings, hooves, and even coming in odd colors. They were also able to live up to 100,000 years, some even longer. The Progenitor Devils planned to use these children of their's as an army to rise up and again try to take over the other realms. Unfortunately for them, they underestimated the true intentions and power of their offspring. These new devils were surprisingly very strong despite them being part human, and didn't desire or have the strong ambition to conquer the other realms. Instead, they rebelled and fought against their parents. This first revolution in the Devil's history became known as the Insurgence of the Six, with the goal of the Original Devils freeing themselves from being ruled by their power hungry demonic parents. After years of struggle, the Progenitor Devils were eventually defeated, their physical "bodies" destroyed, and their souls and power sealed away into 6 powerful magic circles. The location of these seals are still unknown to this day; not even the current rulers of the Underworld know where they are or what happened to them.
Rias: To show his appreciation for the action taken by the Original Devils, God removed the barrier he placed on the Underworld as a sign of trust in the children of the Progenitor Devils since they, as a whole, expressed no true desire to conquer the other realms. He also gave his word that neither he nor his Angels would have any interference with the Devils and the governance of their realm. Kasyade, the new leader of the Fallen Angels after Mastema, reciprocated the same on behalf of his faction.
Y/n: Sounds like progress in the right direction for everyone.
Akeno: (giggles) Trust me, you haven't heard the rest yet.
Y/n: Hmm, what do you mean?
Akeno: Let's just say there's a reason why the Original Devils are also known as the "Primal Devils". Go on Rias.
Rias: Yes, as Akeno inferred, these new devils, despite them defeating their parents and having no desire to conquer the other realms, were by no means more sane or morally competent compared to their parents. In fact, where the Progenitor Devils could be defined as cruel and power hungry, the Original Devils could be best described as savage and brutal. When they sealed away their parents, chaos immediately ensued. Though the fighting never left the Underworld, the results were still bloody.
Y/n: Why? What was the point behind defeating their parents and freeing themselves from being ruled by them if more chaos and violence would come from it?
Rias: Simple: ambition. Despite their unity in defeating their parents, the Original Devils, or Primal Devils, turned on each other. Each child of the Progenitor Devils who survived the Insurgence of the Six fought with the goal of gaining power, respect, and authority over the rest of the populace within the Underworld. At this point, their human parents had passed on, so many devils started having lots of children with each other or with the remaining human offspring that came from the humans who had children with one another. What's more, most of the humans back then were still kept in servitude to these new devils and many, like their ancestors, were used as slaves. Of course, today the population of humans in the Underworld is no more due to the ones in the past eventually dying out.
Y/n: First off, eww; why would a lot of them have kids with each other when many of them were no doubt distant relatives such as cousins or even siblings? And second, why so many children?
Akeno: So they could establish clans full of powerful individuals who could conquer other clans and take over more territory within the Underworld. Also, having children together produced strong pure-blood devils who retained the latent power they received from the Progenitor Devils. And, just like how the Progenitor Devils inherited variant powers from Abaddon, different clans of devils possessed different abilities that made each unique. So, the merging of different bloodlines that weren't the same but still related to one another resulted in even more unique and powerful individuals within different clans. These same powers were passed down to their descendants. The same applied to those who had children with the few humans that were still around which resulted in devil/human hybrids who were half human and half devil and often retained their demonic power. Believe it or not, the combination of pure-blood devils back then having children with each other, hybrids, and humans is what resulted in how most devils appear today: human in every aspect but still having the strong inherent powers of their ancestors; though there are some clans who's members have less than human-like appearances and features. Plus, different clans and bloodlines were made and eventually spread out to where the likelihood of incest being a negative factor on the health of a devil was very low and still is today.
Y/n: I-I guess that makes me feel a bit better, or at least makes it bearable to a certain degree. But not by a lot.
Koneko: Don't worry, I feel the same.
Y/n: Anyway, how did the fighting stop? Or rather, I'm assuming it stopped since you guys are here instead of being somewhere else fighting right?
Rias: Right. The conflict went on for hundreds of years and consisted of ruthless slaughters and numerous losses: architecture and knowledge from the time of the Progenitor Devils were destroyed, several clans and bloodlines were erased, innocent lives taken. This all came to a head however when one pure-blood devil, the head of a clan who's bloodline and power were claimed to be closest to that of the Primal Devils and even the Progenitor Devils due to them not interbreeding with humans or hybrids, managed to enforce his clan as the most powerful among all the other devil clans at the time. This happened when he and members of his clan managed to completely eradicate 10 other devil clans in one large scale battle. Many clans named themselves after their earliest ancestor, who were usually a child of one of the Progenitor Devils, but this clan boldly claimed and boasted the name of Abaddon as their clan name.
Abaddon Clan's Magic Circle
A/N (09-13-2022): Don't mind me lol, just making a few minor changes and updates such as replacing the old magic circle I originally made for the Abaddon clan with a newer, more D×D accurate one I made awhile ago. The same is true for the orange and pink magic circles near the end of the 6 previous ones.
Rias: The Abaddon clan head took for himself and his family the largest territory at the center of the Underworld, established a massive palace with towns, cities and other buildings within his new territory, and claimed the title of Great King of the Devils and the Underworld. He implemented a monarchy type government where the Abaddon clan was the royal family and he was the King with a queen and various consorts that were part of his Harem. Only a select few other clans, who survived the conflict and could prove that their pure-blood lineage to the Original Devils did not have a human or devil/human hybrid ancestor within the last 4 generations of their clan history could receive ranks and prestige of nobility along with reasonably sized territory to govern over within the Underworld. One of those pure-blood clans was mine, the Gremory clan.
Y/n: So... what you're saying is that going back hundreds of thousands, maybe been millions of years, you are technically a descendant of one of the Progenitor Devils and even Abaddon, who was literally a monster and incarnation of pure destruction?
Rias: Yep! (Smiles)
Y/n: (sarcastic) Oh great, that makes me feel completely safe and sound as well completely justifying why I should trust you. Not! So, is that it for the history of the Devils?
Rias: No, but that's enough for today, it's getting late. Plus, I still need to explain more about the current order of things. More specifically, how you're current situation is vastly different from your past one.
Y/n: Oh yeah. It's kinda sad to ask this now, but... how exactly did you bring me back to life? Or, as you said, give me a "new birth"?
Rias: We Devils have a system in place where we can reincarnate a being into a devil.
Reincarnation?
Rias: This is done by using these.
I follow Rias's hand as she gestures to an interesting looking chess set on the coffee table in between the couches that I hadn't noticed before. She moves from leaning against the front of her desk and goes to sit in the middle of the couch directly across from me with her legs crossed.
The pieces on the board look very beautiful, are uniquely designed, and look like they're made out of some special and possibly very expensive material. Are they made out of marble? Or maybe glass? The oddest part of the pieces though is that while some are your usual black or white color, others are glowing a bright red color, similar to Rias's hair color. What's with these pieces? Hmm, there's the usual set up of 1 king, 1 queen, a pair of rooks, knights, and bishops, and 8 pawns for both sides on the table. That means that each side has 16 pieces for a grand total of 32 pieces in all. But, I've never seen a chess set where some of those pieces are colored red. What's going on? She then picks up a white colored pawn piece and looks at it but still continues to address me.
Rias: Interested much?
Y/n: Very. But, why are some of these pieces glowing red while the rest are your normal black or white color?
Rias: Remember when I said that we devils use a system of reincarnation? That system is called the Evil Piece system.
Y/n: Sounds boring and unoriginal but please continue.
Akeno: (giggles)
Rias: Well, you see (y/n), devils who are heirs to powerful clans or one's who manage to reach the rank of a High-Class Devil are often presented with an opportunity to gain servants of their own and build a peerage. These pieces you see are used to establish what position each servant has within their King's peerage. The position of King within a peerage is held by the devil who's given permission to have their own servants.
Y/n: So, I'm gonna assume that while it's true that the ORC is meant to hide the truth that you guys are devils, it also functions as way of maintaining order among the group. Since, just like in an actual club, different members have different positions. And, since you're the "President" of the ORC and come from a pure-blood Devil clan, I'm gonna guess that within your peerage you're the King.
Rias: (grins) As astute as ever I see. Another key thing to point out is that whenever a person gets reincarnated as a devil in a peerage, as their King's new servant, they must always stay by their master's side. To disobey their King's direct orders and act out of turn or on their own desires without permission from their King would require that the King punish them. Or, in the worse case scenarios, if a servant completely abandons or even kills their King for a selfish reason to be free, they will be marked as a Stray Devil.
Y/n: What happens then?
Koneko: You'll be hunted down and taken out.
Koneko says it without any emotion on her face and when she's done, she goes back to munching on another donut. This causes me to shiver a bit and hold my neck out of a bit of fear.
Akeno: Basically, it's exactly like Koneko said.
Y/n: But, why to such extreme measures?
Akeno: For a servant to go against their master's orders and wishes breaks their responsibility to stand by their master's side, protect them, and to always follow their orders without question. Think about like this: if a servant goes and commits a crime, such as killing a member of another faction, who does the burden, fault, and responsibility fall on?
Y/n: ... the master.
Kiba: Right. In that scenario, the master has no choice but to either handle their servant themselves, let other members of their faction do it, or have members of the victim's faction hunt down the servant. It's not the best way, but it is the fairest way of doing things.
Y/n: No you're right. Thinking more on it now, it does make sense. To become a servant of a master means you should promise to dedicate your life to them and become that person's protector. And no matter what, you should always standby your promises.
Rias: (y/n), have you made any promises like that before?
Y/n: I've made lots of promises sure, in fact, I still have a lot of promises I need to stick by right now. But, one's to that great degree, I can't say I have.
Rias looks away from, trying to avert her gaze from meeting mine. Dang it, what did I do now? Did I say something wrong? Or, is she mad that I'm putting a lot of pressure on myself right after I've just woken up from my coma? Or maybe she's jealous? Gah, I'll never understand girls. Before I can respond back, Rias recovers and addresses me.
Rias: Well, I think that just about covers mostly everything. Any other questions for me (y/n)?
Y/n: Yeah, so even though I didn't have a say in being reincarnated but am now and am also a servant of your's now, I'm guessing I don't have much of a choice in whether I get to serve you or not, right?
Rias: Pretty much. (Smiles)
Y/n: (twitches eyebrow) Then what was the point of offering me a choice to join the ORC if I wouldn't be able to just simply get up and leave like you said?!
Akeno: (smiles) To be considerate of course!
Y/n: (annoyed) Uhuh.
Rias: Anymore questions (y/n)?
Y/n: Just one: you said that whenever a King reincarnates someone into their peerage, they use an Evil Piece which dictates their role and position within it, correct?
Rias: Yes, each role within a peerage is specifically related to the abilities of that person.
Y/n: Right. So, if Akeno, Kiba, Koneko, and Perverssei all have roles within your peerage, what's mine? What piece did you use to reincarnate me with?
Rias grows a small signature grin on her face. I look at the others and even they are looking at Rias a bit questionably, even Akeno is looking a bit serious for once instead of giving her usual smile. This clearly shows that for once, everyone within the peerage is being kept out of the loop.
Akeno: You never did tell us what piece you used to reincarnate him Rias, or even me for that matter.
Issei: You didn't give him one of my pieces did you?!
Rias: Calm down Issei, I didn't use a Pawn on him.
Kiba: Then, what did you use?
Rias: Let's just say (y/n) here is a very special and rare case. I could explain everything to you all here and now, but I think it'd be more beneficial and effective for everyone, especially you (y/n), to see firsthand what our peerage can do.
Kiba: We've got a contract?
Akeno: That's right: a request from the Archduke. They want us to hunt down and eliminate a Stray Devil who killed their master.
Rias: I think this would be a good opportunity for everyone, or more specifically, for Issei to gain more battle experience, and for (y/n) to understand how we work and what his role is.
Koneko: Is that a good idea? For (y/n)'s safety, I mean.
Issei: Hey, what about me?!
Kiba: I agree: I'm not against it, but do you really think its wise to bring (y/n) so soon? Especially since we don't know his piece or what his abilities and skills are or if he even has any. There's also the matter of whether or not he possesses a Sacred Gear or not.
Y/n: I just went from mildly confused to full on bewildered. What is my piece in your peerage Rias? Since this contract involves combat with a devil who's no doubt physically superior to me and has supernatural powers, how will I even be able to stand a chance in fighting it, even less defend myself? And, what's a Sacred Gear?
Rias: Don't you worry (y/n), I'll explain all of that after school tomorrow. So make sure to come here once school gets out. Any more questions?
Honestly, I'm tempted to dispute this whole contract thing all together but I will admit that I'm a bit curious. Plus, I am a part of the group now so they are an obligation to me.
Y/n: (sighs) Fine, I'll be here.
Rias: Excellent! Now, if there are no further questions, this meeting is adjourned.
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Shenkaze: Have to say, I'm pretty proud of myself with how this chapter turned out.
Coatl: (sarcastic) Oh PHENOMENAL work Shenkaze! The effort you put into this chapter turned out SO well, it's essentially a masterpiece.
Shenkaze: Aww, thanks Coa! I guess spending the last 2 weeks along with Sunday and Monday to finalize and revise everything worked out in the end huh?
Coatl: Oh yes! But I still gotta know...
Shenkaze: Hmm? Know what?
Coatl: Oh nothing really, it's just the fact that it's been over 5 CHAPTERS since I was first introduced and I STILL HAVEN'T EVEN BEEN MENTIONED SINCE!!!
Shenkaze: ... I know.
Coatl: THEN WHY?! Why haven't I been even thought of in the story since "New Birth"?!
Shenkaze: Plot reasons, you understand.
Coatl: No, I don't! Jeez, for an author who came out of nowhere, you can be a real asshole sometimes y'know that?
Shenkaze: Meh, I guess so. But, are you so different: how can you go between acting all proper when talking to (y/n), but with me your not afraid to speak out of turn more? However, I do agree that it's been a good while since you have had any involvement in the story...
Coatl: Yes...
Shenkaze: And, you have been very patient up until now...
Coatl: Keep going...
Shenkaze: ... but now still isn't the time for you to be put back into the story. I'm sorry Coa.
Coatl: ...
Shenkaze: But, I can promise you that until you're given a more active role in the story again, you will be referenced a bit till then. Is that fine?
Coatl: YES! And, the readers better stick around till then to witness my magnificent resurgence.
Shenkaze: I wouldn't exactly call it a resurgence for what I have planned, but I will say that it'll be epic. Till then, the readers will have to keep coming back for more. More specifically, come back for the next chapter, "Kiba, my Savior".
Coatl: Ooh, so we'll see a bit of Kiba next time right? But, is that all the chapter will be about?
Shenkaze: Somewhat. But, like I said, you and the readers will have to wait to find out. See y'all till then.