Upon entering the rift, all colour was sucked from their view. Surrounding them was a monotone grey expanse of never ending nothingness. Ophis wasn't affected but Haru and Issei were turned grey and black. The two looked over themselves in mild panic.
"Where'd my colour go!?" Issei yelled, patting his torso and arms. Haru didn't say anything, just observed his hand in front of his face. Ophis turned to them, her silence foreboding and her power rising.
"Your training starts now." She said, sending a volley of snakes forth, forcing the two to dodge. Issei stumbled and tripped, scrambling to his feet to run. Haru flew above Ophis and divided her power. However, his scale mail sparked with Ophis' energy and exploded. Haru crashed down with smoke trailing him.
What the hell was that!? Albion? Haru thought in shock. He staggered to his feet, never taking his eyes off of Ophis, who was currently sending a torrent of snakes after Issei, more out of amusement than anything else.
She completely nullified the division. Perhaps we could make some use of the stumbling wonder over there. Albion said, making Haru look towards Issei. A light bulb pinged to life in his head as an idea struck him.
Albion I could kiss you! We'll just divide his power every time he increases his. He replied with glee. Albion just chuckled.
Well I was getting at using him as a meat shield while we formulate a plan but your idea's good too I guess. She said with amusement. Haru flew over to Issei, lifting off of the ground and out of the way of the snakes.
"Issei, make use of that Sacred Gear. You need to power up. If you can do that while I keep Ophis distracted, we might have a chance of surviving." Haru said urgently.
Issei cast him a confused look. "What? Me? Dude, you're the Gundam here not me, can't you just divide her power?" he said, near freaking out.
"And get blown up again? Yes, why don't I." Haru said flatly. He dropped Issei, letting him roll to a stop.
"We're not meant to die here. Not like this. So don't let me down Issei, cos I'm counting on you." Haru said, a little disgusted with himself for the little emotional display but if it got the plan in motion, it would have to do. "Besides, if I survive and you die, I'm gonna have a harem for myself. Can't really do that when you're dead. Eh, Issei?" Haru said with an evil smirk.
Hook line and fucking sinker.
"Alright, I got ya. But there's no way in hell you're getting a harem as big as mine, you hear me!?" Issei declared proudly, doubling his power as he did so. A new fire of determination was blazing in his eyes.
Horny idiots, gotta love 'em. Haru thought, cackling sadistically in his head. He then sped off towards Ophis, calling upon his rusty magical abilities. Now despite being rusty, he possessed an impressive wealth of magical energy and abilities, ranging from bodily reinforcement, kinetic acceleration, gravity warping, time manipulation to a small degree, and finally a magic called Soul Saviour, alongside generic magician spells and abilities. He gathered his inherent magical prowess and abundance of body destroying magic styles came from his mother. Oh well, tale for another time.
Ophis took no surprise in Haru's charge at her, but was somewhat perturbed at the fact that when she unleashed another wave of snakes at him, he duped her. He did so by accelerating his own speed with the kinetic acceleration and then slowing her perception with his time bending. With this, he evaded her attack and landed a solid hit into her side with a mean right hook.
Ophis winced, but instead of recoiling with the pain, she ignored it and smacked his arm away while conjuring more snakes up. She then peppered him with a hail of magically charged exploding snakes at close range, sending purple and black arcs of energy and dust up into the air.
Rossweisse watched in awe as they traded attacks. Ophis didn't seem winded in the slightest at the heavy blow that she knew would wound a high class Devil. Haru seemed to be showing some of his hidden abilities, but holding back while he did. She wasn't sure why, but she was sure he had a strategy in place. She knew first hand how meticulous and callously decisive he could be, having beaten Ajuka in a game of chess during his time staying with the Gremory clan. However, his version of demonstrating his strategic might would be boasting about having beaten hardcore Korean StarCraft 2 players.
She'd watched him play his games, compete against others, and almost always come out on top by using logic and observation as key components to the strategic machine that was his mind. Woe to those who think him lax in mind as well as body. Then a frightening thought struck her.
Is he planning to use the other boy as a living power supply? By psyching him up and pushing his buttons, he's made him fall for one of his simplest traps. Damn, you just never stop, do you Haru? Always scheming. Always watching. That boy doesn't know who his enemy really is in the grand scheme of things. I pity him. I really do. Rossweisse thought sadly. Unless the Hyoudou boy sharpened up and got strong, Haru would crush him. No ifs or buts, he'd simply crush the poor boy.
The combat intensified between the Ouroboros and the Hakuryuukou as rapid fire spells and earth shaking strikes were traded between the two, however unlike Ophis, Haru was really feeling his mortality. His body, or anyone's body really, wasn't made to continuously use the rare physics bending magics he wielded.
Please Haru, you're tearing yourself apart. Stop this! You're literally breaking yourself down from the inside out! Albion warned frantically. She was right and Haru knew this, however he knew he didn't have it in him to just give in. He'd calculated through the amount of time that had passed and the time slows he'd used that about seven minutes had passed, and Issei would be at full power at any second. He'd immediately seize his chance to yoink some of Issei's power when he could.
He was panting heavily and drenched in sweat. His mouth was filled with the metallic tang of blood as he over exerted himself. He slowed time once more to put some distance between him and Ophis and bolted towards Issei, roughly grabbing him by the shoulder.
"Divine Dividing!" Haru yelled, feeling the sudden rush of Issei's energy flooding his own reserves with renewed vigour. Issei, while having half of his reserves, physically shook as he felt a lot of his power leave him.
Was this his plan? Milk me for power!? Bastard! Issei though. The idea of someone he considered a friend using him angered him to no end.
Did you honestly think he was keeping you out of the fight to help you? Naive boy. His power centres around absorbing the power of others, and since he can't take power from the Ouroboros, that only leaves you, the only one of the two of you capable of generating your own power. Ddraig scolded harshly. He's clearly a strategist, a tactical fighter. Take everything he does with a grain of salt, especially in combat. In future, try to predict his movements and the results of his strategies through the means he uses. She advised.
Issei's anger wouldn't cool, and his power began to multiply rapidly. The Boosted Gear began to change shape, becoming larger and gaining more golden spikes. The gem in the back of the gauntlet glowed furiously with green light.
"Hey, Issei." He looked up to see Haru smirking at him, his helmet shattered and his face bleeding. "If you drop the ball here and don't get your Scale Mail within the next five minutes, I'm gonna start shrinking things. Wanna know what things?" Haru's smirk grew cruel as his eyes twinkled with sadistic mirth.
"W-what?" Issei asked, growing increasingly nervous.
"I'm gonna shrink the tits of every girl in school using my Half Dimension ability. I won't get into the specifics of it but basically everything around me of my choosing gets smaller. And you know what that would mean for dear Rias and Akeno. Oh, and what about poor Koneko, not much to speak of in the first place and it'd be such a—" Haru stopped as he heard Issei growling with his head down, hair covering his darkened eyes. He grinned triumphantly as his calculations were spot on.
"You son of a bitch!" Issei snarled, his eyes glowing with power as his Boosted Gear multiplied his power to new heights. "You really think I'm gonna let you get away with that!? Well guess again shit for brains, cos I'm gonna build a harem some day, and no girl in it is gonna suffer at your hands! So fuck you!" With a roar of pure rage and hormone induced passion for his ambitious perversions, Boosted Gear awoke to its next stage.
BALANCE BREAKER! Came the voice of Ddraig as crimson plates of armour engulfed Issei's body. Verdant green eyes sparked to life as the armour completed its formation. It was very different in design to the White Dragon Scale Mail, as it had a long fully functional plated tail rather than wings.
Wonderful! Issei you wonderfully dull witted beauty, you made my job so much easier! Now I don't have to go through an entire fucking coaching programme for your dumb ass! Haru thought with barely contained triumphant glee.
He truly is a wonder isn't he. I don't believe I've ever seen a person with such passion for one's own lewd dreams. Honestly, you have the most amusing rival. Albion said with a small laugh.
Ophis watched quietly, knowing that for now, her job was done. It was a pleasant surprise for her that the pervert had unlocked his Balance Breaker in one session, all because of the size of a collective of girl's breasts was under threat. She came to the conclusion that her two would-be assistants were a sociopathic master tactician and a pervert of raw monstrous power. Worse help could be asked for.
However, Haru was not getting off the hook easily with Issei. In fact, no matter how ridiculous it seemed, Issei looked like he genuinely wanted to kill his rival for his comments. He struck out, surprising Haru as his fist collided with the white Scale Male chest plate. Haru was rattled by the force of the blow as he slid backwards. Haru grinned savagely.
"You wanna do this Issei? I'm warning you once we start, we're not stopping til one of us drops." He said, barely containing his excitement. Issei said nothing and rushed with another strike. Haru was ready and blocked the strike, bombarding his less experienced rival with a flurry of quick blows and a final straight kick to the chest. Issei stumbled back, but was ready to strike again.
"Okay then. If that's how you want it." Haru growled, clicking his armoured fingers. With the snap of his finger tips, the exact points in which Haru struck Issei with his light attacks glowed with small orange magic circles, Issei noticed the glow all too late as they lifted from his armour, expanded and slammed back into it, detonating and causing a huge explosion of white fire.
The entire rift shook from the blast but seemed to still be stable. Issei charged from the flames, his armour slightly charred and dented but otherwise fine. Issei threw several high punches that Haru dodged. He ducked under a hay maker and hit with an uppercut to the ribs which hurt even under the armour. He then grabbed Issei's faceplate. "Divide!" He shouted, absorbing more of Issei's power.
With the fresh power rush flowing through him, he pounded away at Issei's helmet and face plate, cracking them as the metal groaned from the strain of the blows. Issei hadn't given up. As the eight blow threatened to rain down, he grabbed Haru's fist and head butted his exposed head, dizzying him. Issei wrapped his armour's tail around one of Haru's left leg and swung him off of his feet, but had missed one minor detail.
"Heh, I have wings idiot." Haru said evilly. He flapped his bright blue translucent wings and took off, leaving Issei hanging off of his leg by his tail. He flew up high and violently set into a dive bomb straight towards the shifting, colourless ground of the rift. At just a scant metre and a half above the ground, Haru somersaulted forward, swinging Issei with him, driving Issei viscously into the ground on his back, shattering the back of his armour and helmet. Haru heard Issei retch as he coughed up blood from the sheer force of the impact.
He lay there panting and beaten after being used as a human flail. Well, Devil but meh, technicalities. Haru, once realising Issei wasn't getting up just yet, calmed himself down, pushing out the rush of battle he felt.
"You're too inexperienced to even dream of beating me at this point. But I'll tell ya, that head butt hurt like a bitch." He said jovially. "But honestly, you've got some serious potential. Keep going like that and you'll have a harem in no time." He complimented, offering Issei a hand. The downed Sekiryuutei laughed painfully and took his frienemy's hand, letting himself be pulled up.
Well would you look at that, the author actually got her lazy ass working and got some action in this story.
Oh yeah. Well, it was bound to happen at some point. But right now I just wanna keel over and sleep. Haru thought tiredly.
Just like you, you go from sociopathic battle maniac to tired teenager in the space of a minute. It seems like I truly do have an interesting partner. Albion said with a laugh.
You're damn right you do.
Rossweisse rushed over to Haru, seeing him bleeding from a wound inflicted by a dragon powered head butt.
"Hey, are you gonna be alright?" She asked, her voice full of concern. Haru grinned good naturedly and waved it off.
"I'd like to say I'll be fine, but this really, really fucking hurts." he said with a grimace as his entire head throbbed. "Hey Ophis, do us a solid and open the rift please." The Ouroboros nodded and swiped her index finger through the air, opening the way to Haru's living room. They stepped through and were glad to regain their colour while Ophis closed the rift.
Haru shuffled towards his personal favourite chair and looked at the clock in the hallway.
Only 05:28? It felt like we were in there for way longer. Is that rift basically a Hyperbolic Time Chamber? he thought. Ophis had done what she usually did, disappeared to her room like Haru would if he could actually move. Issei was struggling to stay awake and Rossweisse was busy treating the wound on Haru's forehead. He wasn't sure why she was so concerned about him, but he guessed it had something to do with being grateful for offering her a place to stay. Yes "offering".
Both Emperors allowed their armour to fade and were finally able to relax, with Issei casting Haru jealous looks at Rossweisse's treatment of him. Haru just gave him a smug look that simply said "Suck it."
That night was peaceful as there was nothing left to do. Issei left, despite Haru's offer to let him stay for the night. Oddly enough, Rossweisse had a strange reaction to that. Strange as in she was a little more cheerful once he was gone. Haru wasn't what one would call dense, but he wouldn't go assuming things right off the bat without any substantial proof of his suspicion.
Haru left his house to begin the brutal slog to school. It was a task he equated with eating his own hands. Technically it served a good purpose but it was still fucking painful. Cheerful girls and generic perverted boys passed him on the way as he wandered to school, halfway between harsh reality and the bliss of dreams. The day before had taken its toll on him, his body had taken unreasonably long to recover from the mana burn damage, simply the damage inflicted upon a magician when the magic they use begins to convert the user's body into mana, causing damage to the body's internal systems. It was mainly an issue with rare and extremely powerful magics.
He entered the main lobby in which students chatted with each other before their lessons began. Standing in the shadows, leaning against a pillar was the President of the Student Council. She was a stern and disciplined girl with a good head on her shoulders. Her name was Souna Shitori, or as anyone with any clue about the 72 pillars and the three factions would know her, she was Sona Sitri, heiress to the house of Sitri.
She watched as Haru tiredly lumbered his way in, looking as unkempt and roguish as always. Her analytical gaze had swept over him several times during his time at Kuoh. From what she observed, he was a person that liked things in his set out way, organised chaos. Where others see fault, he sees utility. He was careful in his actions and had a keen intellect that was nearly at the very top of the boards. But he was a slacker, and generally tried to remain under the radar and away from crowds. He didn't have any friends at the school, preferring to spend his time alone doing… whatever it is he does. In short, he was a puzzle box to her that needed to be solved.
Rias had informed her of his power. She could sense it a mile away. She decided that the best way to approach this particular puzzle was to get familiar with it, then crack it open when she'd found an opening. With a deep breath, she started her personal mission to crack him open for all his little secrets.
Haru sat on a small marble bench leaning against a wall. His body and mind were completely shot. It briefly made him wonder how Issei must feel, being new to his Balance Breaker and getting grand slammed from roughly 1500 feet.
He was about to doze off again until a voice interrupted him.
"Excuse me, are you feeling alright?" Haru looked at the sleep stealing fiend to see what he could say was one of the most beautiful girls in Kuoh. She had bespectacled magenta eyes that almost seemed to glow, raven black hair in a bob cut. She had flawless pale skin and radiated an aura of stern resolve and firmness. Of course, Sona Sitri.
"Which answer out of yes or no do you think sounds more like a lie?" Haru replied. Sona raised an eyebrow at him.
"You need something?" Haru asked, knowing her no nonsense attitude.
She nodded."Yes. I'd like you to accompany me to the student council room. I have some matters to discuss with you." She said crisply, turning and walking in a brisk pace. Haru's interest was piqued, but he was prepared for bullshit about "stuff he shouldn't have done but the bastard deserved it".
Upon arrival to the student council rooms, all of its members were present, including the vice president, Tsubaki Shinra. In the centre of the room was a table with two opposing chairs either side. On the table was something that made Haru grin. It was a chessboard with the pieces already set out.
"So." Sona said, turning to him with a small challenging smile. "Care for a game?"