The Holy Man of The Church Creek

8

Stepping down his feet once again on Japanese soil felt like a novelty experience after being away from the country for so long, but it paled in comparison to the shock of seeing the figures in front of him.

Griselda had told him that upon his arrival, she had arranged for trusted individuals to guide him towards his lodging where he would stay for the completion of the mission. Of course, said mission was not something that he was obligated to fulfill, yet he was also grateful for all the efforts Griselda had done on his behalf, and so followed though with it. And even if he thought more on the matter, there really wasn't anything else he could do at the moment. With the voice in the necklace still silent, he was at a loss as to what to do next. It was unquestionable that one of his main objectives was to find a way back to his world, but at this point, he no leads aside from the fact that he and the necklace were both transported by the creek of the old Church. From there, it wasn't difficult to gather that there was a purpose in his close arrival near the Church. Even more so when he recalled that the necklace had prompted him to seek refuge in the Church in the first place. As such, until the necklace spoke out once more, he was resigned to working along with the Church so long as their principles don't stray too far from his. It was a win-win sort of situation. Where he would be running errands for the Church while at the same time, relieving himself of the debt over his shoulders and his decision in regards to Excalibur. For the sake of the memories he had with Saber, he felt that he owed it to her to see the blade to completion.
In that way, at least he would have no regrets should he somehow return back to Fuyuki.
Yet back to present matters, the so called 'individuals' Griselda had informed him of before hand were truly too eye-catching. In fact, apart from the wryly smiling man standing a distance at their side, the rest were entirely dressed up in the white exorcist cloaks that Xenovia insisted was appropriate combat gear after the experience in the Dimensional Cross. After all, the long cloaks had minor enchantments that provided some deal of protections without sacrificing too much versatility. Besides, knowing Xenovia, she was a practical sort of woman despite her questionable common sense. For example, she didn't even react to the numerous stares on her person whenever she travelled out, and that was in Italy. In Japan, the streets were far more crowded and as such, the stares could only be more piercing from a larger audience. Yet Xenovia, that thick-skinned woman, probably wouldn't even have had noticed a difference.
However, it was true that Xenovia was unique. In fact, the majority of the cloaked individuals appeared quite flustered being at the center of attention.
Inwardly, he couldn't help but try to understand why they would wear such clothing if they themselves were too embarrassed to wear it? And hadn't Griselda advised him not to wear anything related to the Church? Then why would they, but not him?
"I apologize," the man standing a distance away from the cloaked individuals stepped forward while pushing the glasses further up the bridge of his nose. "Would you accept it if I said we were short on time?"
As soon as the man finished speaking, it was clear that a strange tension filled the air as the cloaked individuals stared at the man in disbelief.
"T-Teacher, how could you say that, this was all your fault!" One of the cloaked figures accused while pointing a finger. Clearly, she had her grievances with the situation.
The man straightened out his sleek dark-blue coloured tailored suit, and acted as if he had heard nothing, replying back absently that it was only a matter of perception and that the man could not be blamed for the circumstance.
Hearing this, the girl who had pointed a finger in accusation almost seemed to burst a vein, and looked as if she wanted nothing more than to pound the man's handsome face in with her fists. Obviously, she wasn't the only one.
Many of the other cloaked individuals seemed to be harbouring such thoughts based on their expressions and body language alone.
In fact, many of the boys in the group appeared eager to volunteer to 'mess with a pretty boy,' as they all individually put it.
They muttered the phrase in small voices and even subtly glanced at each other, but none of this was able to escape his keen sight and hearing. Truly, this man with the wavy brown-hair parted down the center and roguish features was quite hated at the moment.
However, the man seemed to share a common trait with Xenovia, and perhaps even to a higher degree. The man just didn't appear to care at all, standing relaxed under the ill-concealed glances of the cloaked group.
"Shirou Emiya. Correct?" The man asked, placing a hand in a pant-pocket and retrieving a small leather wallet with a note inside. "No doubt about it," the man ascertained quickly.
He couldn't even answer, and was left quite speechless with the man's next actions.
The man flippantly shooed away the group of cloaked individuals under the watchful eyes of the crowd and acted as if he didn't even know them.
This behaviour was just too horrendous for words, and if even he felt it was inappropriate, he couldn't even begin to imagine the kind of anger the cloaked individuals were feeling.
Was this man truly a member of the Church? From what he'd seen and heard, most members of the Church were thoughtful to each other, supportive when needed, and amicable when speaking.
Yet this man, how could he possibly be someone an upright woman like Griselda trusted?
His thoughts were proven wrong in the next moment when the man suddenly adopted a serious look as all of the crowd's eyes were drawn to the leaving cloaked-group of frustrated individuals.
"One can only hide the best in the shadows when light shines at its brightest," the man whispered quietly before performing a quick gesture to follow.
The contrast in how the man was acting before and now, was simply to mind blowing that he immediately began to reassess the man. If what he had seen before was not just made up in the moment, but calculated, it was clear for him to understand how meticulous, shrewd, and calculating this man was. The man had willing placed those under him in an awkward and uncomfortable situation, and had then played with their frustration without hesitation just to avert the attention of others away. It was formidable to the extent that he could not doubt this man's capabilities.
Maneuvering smoothly through the crowd at the airport, the man escorted him into a car set up beforehand before then entering on the driver's seat.
"So," the man began in the silence of the drive. The bustling and lively streets of Japan could be seen from out the tinted and shut windows. "You can call me Ayakoji Esposito. I've heard a lot about you from Griselda, and since she has called in this favour, I can only do my best to please and hope for a reward. Preferably the 'Adult kind.' For a woman of her stature and particular assets, truly me efforts will exceed the thresholds of a mere favour."
It was only now that he understood why Griselda had broken character and had written such a note only to be read after meeting Ayakoji Esposito.
Fumbling with his hands, he soon pulled out said note, and didn't hesitate to speak the message Griselda had written.
"Go. Fuck. Yourself."
They were only three words but it was enough to temporarily shatter the image he had built of her.
Ayakoji laughed raucously before seeming to reminisce about old times. "She knows she loves me, she just doesn't know it yet." Ayakoji said, mirth clearly present in his tone.
He was perplexed for a moment, and felt oddly uncomfortable, but still asked anyway. "How would she know if she doesn't know?" He asked.
Ayakoji didn't answer, after all, it was an inside joke.
"If you look to the left compartment by your side, the mission details are stored within there inside a small envelope," Ayakoji spoke next after a brief period of silent driving. Ayakoji's tone had become considerably more serious as the topic of the mission took precedence. "You'll have to dispose of it after reading through its contents as you will be entering Devil Territory. Land controlled by the Gremory and Sitri if my memory serves me well. As such, contact with devils will be unavoidable, making it in your best interests not to stir a hornet's nest. The context of this mission is just a simple investigation into the matters of the Holy Maiden issued by Griselda before making a quiet exit from Devil territory. Should the Devils learn of your ties to the Church, it wouldn't be detrimental due to the current treaty between the Factions, but it may affect the results of the investigation. Remember, it was because of a Devil that the Holy Maiden had fallen from grace in the first place. Who's to say that the true culprit is not watching from the shadows eh?"
Ayakoji's words were a lot to take in, but after supplementing Ayakoji's words with what he was reading in the envelope, a picture was steadily forming in his mind based off the current situation. The situation really was quite precarious where even the slightest mistake could offset something far larger. This being the case, why had Griselda still sent him towards such a politically dangerous area knowing the possible consequences?
At that moment, he couldn't help but glance down at the black suitcase positioned just on top of his lap, knowing what exactly it contained within it. No other thoughts were necessary.
"You best be careful," Ayakoji warned. "I run a branch of the Church a distance away from the Gremory and Sitri's territory, but I can in no way successfully aid you in your troubles without risking a recommencement of the war between Factions. You will only have your own strength to rely on once inside."
He nodded to show that he understood Ayakoji's warning.
Eventually, after around an hour or two of driving, Ayakoji led him into a large and furnished condo suite near Kuoh Acadamy, the school he would be attending for the time being as it was arguably the most suitable cover for someone of his age.
Inside the furnished combo, an old butler and maid stood standing at attention. It was clear to see that they had been the ones to maintain the cleanliness and appeal of the living space. However, seeing them, he knew he was going to have problem with having others take care of him when he had the ability to do so himself. Even more so when he took into account the age of his caretakers. Surely, it should have had been the other way around with him taking care of the old individuals instead.
As soon as he tried to voice this, he was immediately met with opposition as the old individuals carried pride in their work.
"Such matters as keeping the place clean and attending to your meals will not bother us. In fact, we find it a privilege to aid someone little Griselda spoke so highly of."
Little Griselda? He supposed it was an appropriate title based on the age of the old caretakers.
Matters reluctantly settled on his part, Ayakoji settled motioned for everyone to take a seat. The interior of the room was large, so even though everyone had taken a seat, the room was far from anywhere near full.
"Well, my purpose in bringing you here is done. All that's left is everything on your end of the investigation," Ayakoji spoke, relaxing into a recliner. "I'm sure we all know of the incident with the Devil that caused her excommunication, and I'm fairly sure of a hunch I have in regards to this matter."
"And that would be?" He asked, mulling over a few things in his mind.
"Just by the rumours floating around Italy alone, it's not difficult to find word of the Holy Maidens disposition and personality towards others in need," Ayakoji began.
"Of course, she wouldn't have been so idolized within the Church had it not been for her earnest actions and overflowing compassion," the Old butler commented.
"Yet we all know how much that reputation got her," Ayakoji rebutted, placing a sour look over the Old Butler's face. "Her reputation and actions sum up to nothing more than a fart in the eyes of the higher-ranking Church members. In fact, the process was too smooth."
"Your hinting that the Church wishes to cover something up?" He asked uncertainly.
"Isn't it obvious?" Ayakoji spoke. "Not all Church officials are uncorrupted, look at Valper Galilei and what he had done."
He was unfamiliar with the name Valper Galilei, but based on the context, he was sure that Valper Galilei had done something notably sinister within the Church. And based off the distasteful expressions on the old maid and butler's faces, it was something that was widely known yet only he was un-privy too.
He put the matter aside for now, it wasn't like he could change a situation that's already happened.
"Even if they wanted to cover something up, the process was too damn quick," Ayakoji snorted. "They must have had help of some kind. Otherwise, how could there be no interference in the Holy Maiden's excommunication after all her actions and contributions? A severe reprimand would have had been acceptable, but a excommunication? It's absurd unless,"
Ayakoji crossed his arms and wet his lips before continuing to the main argument of his hunch.
"Unless the object a third party would be interested in was her Sacred Gear, Twilight Healing," Ayakoji proposed. "It wouldn't only become easier to possess once the Holy Maiden had lost the Church's protection."
He remained silent momentarily to gather his thoughts after Ayekoji finished speaking.
From the information, he had read up on regarding the Holy Maiden, Asia Argento, her Sacred Gear Twilight Healing allowed her to heal almost any injury to perfection. However, it cannot regenerate limbs nor restore exhaustion or cure illness. Although there was more than one Twilight Healing in the world, it was still a rare Sacred Gear with many positive uses.
"Then the reason this investigation is occurring is to determine who that third party is and clear the Holy Maiden's name?" He asked.
"Naturally," Ayekoji responded with too quickly.
He furrowed his brows, but didn't think to much on the matter in favour of asking his own question.
"Where is Asia Argento now?" He asked.
Ayekoji placed a hand under his chin while the old maid and butler stood silently at the side.
"Last we've heard, she had gotten involved with a faction of Fallen Angels," Ayekoji hummed. "Perhaps you can start from there? But for now," Ayekoji stood up and moved towards the clothes rack, grabbing a thin jacket from it. "I will have to go before those under me die of embarrassment, or God forbid, plot against me. Needless to say, be careful."
With that said, Ayekoji left the condo in a stealthy manor, and soon left the borders of the Gremory and Sitri territory.
He sighed, mulling over the information he was provided, before giving up, unable to decide how he could even begin to start his investigation.
However, there was one thing he knew though based on Ayekoji's conjecture.
There was a person to be saved.
And in the end, for someone like him.
That was all that mattered.
The Area around Kuoh Academy was interesting if anything. It was normal in the sense that everything was ordinary, but what truly caught his attention and gave him a feeling of foreboding was the ratio of male to female moving in the direction of Kuoh Academy.
What Griselda had neglected to inform him of was that Kuoh Academy had once been an all girls Academy before just recently becoming coed. As such, the number of young women in Kuoh Academy uniforms far outnumbered those of the men. He was getting a bad feeling about attending this school, a really bad one, and that was after he had met some spectacled girl attending the Academy. She had brown hair tied up in twin-tails, and her face neither sleek nor narrow, giving her an average sort of look that was still eye catching to most men, but not too enticing.
He didn't know it at the time, but this girl was named Aika Kiryuu, and something about her just caused him to shiver. Even more so when her eyes drifted to land in-between his legs.
From there, he had high-tailed it out of there.
He was never one to pick his battles, nor shy away from danger.
But somehow, he felt that the danger he would be facing was a very different kind of danger. One he was not willing to find out.
As such, he had eventually ended up just wandering the streets, all further thoughts of visiting Kuoh Academy temporarily put aside until he would eventually have to go there. For now, he still had a day or two before he was required to go in for a meeting with the faculty and staff who would assign him his homeroom and class.
With his previous experience with just the students attending, the foreboding and uneasy feeling he felt towards the place only further increased.
He had to think.
That was all he had to do at the moment.
Use what he knew, and try to come up with an appropriate guess to the location of the Holy Maiden.
He ended up scratching his head. This sort of task what not something he would normally handle. It was more in line with something his friend Issei from Homurahara would be able to tackle, and better yet, Rin Tohsaka.
He had been called the Brownie of Homurahara due to his efforts in aiding others without much thought of others personal view of him. In a way, his insistence to help others while disregarding what others thought of him was comparable to Xenovia's uncaring attitude. Yet, they were still not the same. Sometimes, he just gets caught up in the moment.
His musing eventually lead him to take a break on a park bench and reconsider the angle he was thinking from. He shouldn't think of what he would do should he get excommunicated, but what a holy Maiden like Asia would have had done.
Asia Argento was loved by many that knew her, yet that was only for her healing abilities. Subsequently, her combat strength was nowhere near enough to protect herself. This was probably why she had allowed herself to be taken under a group of Fallen Angels like Ayakoji had spoken off. That being the case, where would a group of Fallen Angels reside within a territory under the jurisdiction of Devils?
The answer was definitely hard to come by as he did not have the geographical advantage of knowing the area yet. Perhaps if he had been able to explore the surroundings more he could have had hopefully come up with something plausible. Yet right now, all he was doing was aimlessly wandering.
Thinking back to the question of where a group of Fallen Angels would hide within an area under Devil rule, he eventually came up with an answer. A place where Devils would naturally not go. A Church.
Yet from the knowledge he had obtained through further discussion with Ayakjoji, the last of the Church's influence in the area had already been withdrawn in regards to the treaty between the Factions. As such, there was no actual active Church in the entire area. This presented his idea with a problem, however, upon returning and speaking with the old maid at his lodgings, he came to know of a particular church in the area.
It was abandoned long ago, but its structure was still maintained by the local residents who didn't wish to see a Church look like it had been over grown by forestation. Thus, weeds were pulled, and vines were cut to maintain the general appearance of a Church despite there no longer being any Clergy members within it.
In other words, it was simply a decoration. Something one could look at and be able to appreciate from a distance.
However, to Devils, the structure of the Church itself was damaging. As beings naturally opposed to God's light, they had a natural aversion to such places and could in fact even be pained by just entering. It was similar to how a Devil could not pray to God in fear of undergoing a sudden excruciating torment.
Thinking along those lines, he finally had a lead into the investigation.
Speaking of which, he finally realized something trivial, but by no means was it significant. He had been speaking in Italian since the very moment he had arrived in this new world similar to his own. It was only made apparent to him after noticing the difference when he saw the contrast to the way he spoke to the old maid and butler who spoke in Italian, and the Japanese people in the street.
He didn't know how it was possible at the moment, but again, he didn't place as much importance on it when compared to the current objective.
With a task at hand, he didn't waste anymore time and immediately set off towards the direction of the Church after asking the old maid and butler of its specific location.
It didn't take him long to arrive just as the sky began to darken in the evening hours.
He could see the Church in the distance. Like he had heard, it was well maintained, but somehow, in the shadows of the descending night, it seemed to give off an ominous sort of feeling.
There were no signs of people around him, even when the streets had once been bustling in the earlier hours. Everyone seemed to have had just disappeared, leaving behind only the abandoned Church before him.
Streets that should have had been filled were empty.
The night life that was even apparent in Fuyuki was no where to be found.
It was too abnormal.
His pace immediately quickened, his eyes narrowing as a gentle thrum reverberated from the necklace around his neck as he approached the abandoned Church.
A contemplative look flashed across his face, was the voice finally returning? Contrary to his hopes, no voice came from the necklace, and instead it just continued to thrum gently.
Even then, it was probably a sign of something supernatural occurring. It was the same during the Holy Sword Trials, and it should be the same now.
With further vigilance, he approached the Church cautiously.
Somehow, in doing so, he was reminded of a scene that had occurred during the Fifth Holy Grail War located in Fuyuki. He was uninvolved with the battle at the time, but the situation was one where he was helpless to do anything in the battle between Gilgamesh and Berserker, and the subsequent results.
Again, it was just a feeling, but this time Rin wasn't present to stop him.
Releasing a breath, he noticed a particular scent in the distance: Ash, ozone, and feathers. He knew then that something was indeed occurring within the Church at this very moment, and he would likely be involved in the middle of it. He was sure of this since his nose was something like a magical tracker, able to pinpoint the use of magic anywhere near his approximate area.
Light flashed in the distance, accompanied by streaking strikes of thunder that crackled and echoed out across the Church ground.
Zooming in on the location, it didn't take long before he arrived to see a broken battlefield. Pot holes filled the ground, and at times, massive craters completely altered the layout of the grounds. The trees growing in the distance were chipped and pierced in several locations that left them in a miserable sight.
The moon loomed in the sky, a cold wind blowing creating a draft and picking up something peculiar along with it.
"Hmm," he hummed in thought. Afterwards, he knelt down and picked up the damaged black feather blown into view by the wind.
At this point, he was familiar with what this black feather entailed.
Fallen Angels.
Yet from the looks of it, they had encountered trouble, and one with power that far outstripped theirs. In fact, when he looked at the feather, nothing seemed off about it aside from the damage near the base, but when looking at it with his enhanced eyes, he could see something peculiar. A destructive energy still lingering over the feather, eating away at it and leaving nothing behind.
It was truly a dangerous power or phenomenon.
He placed the feather down and watched it fade away after once again being picked up by the wind.
"You're late if you were trying to make the battle," a tired voice echoed out across the recently made clearing.
He turned his gaze in the voice's direction.
In the end, what he saw was a man just barely keeping himself and the two others with him together. Yet even he could tell from just a glance that they wouldn't survive. Not only did small crackles of electricity dance across their bodies, but even remnants of the same destructive power he detected within the Fallen's feather was present on them to a degree.
From what he could tell, the enemy had had the strength to permit a quick death, but the crackles of electricity still clinging to the body of the three spoke volumes of the attacker's temperament towards enemies. Furthermore, he could tell that the lightning user was probably the main attacker of the three, evident by the harsh burns scattered across the three's bodies.
This was probably due to the final attack the lightning user must have had used to finish them off, but perhaps the person may have underestimated the will power of the three-presumed dead. Well, technically they weregoing to die with their injuries anyway.
Yet, what gave him pause was the distinct black wings that they had on their backs.
They were Fallen Angels.
"What happened here?" He asked.
The man glanced at him from beneath the tattered fedora he was wearing, and answered thusly. "Devils," the man lamented. "They were too strong as you can see."
He furrowed his brows after the man's answer. "They wouldn't attack you for no reason. Not with the treaty between Factions." This was a point repeated to him over and over again, and the sole reason Ayakoji and Griselda had continued to remind him to be careful.
The man didn't utter a word before he laughed hoarsely. "Can you blame us? Wanting to achieve higher heights with the meager strength we have."
A light still seemed to burn strongly from within the man's eyes. "Tonight, we have been defeated, but that doesn't mean everything's over." The man coughed out a mouthful of blood. "By now the ritual should have been completed."
He filed away what the man said at the moment, and instead decided to follow in his own ideals. "Yet what does that have to do with you?" He asked. "You and the others beside you are going to die."
His words gave the man pause, an undiscernible look flashing across his face.
At that point, no words were spoken any longer, and instead, all that was left was the silence, and the sound of three rasped breaths.
Suddenly, the man's eyes widened. "What are you doing?" The man asked in confusion.
It was understandable.
After all, he was currently propping up one of the man's two companions by a tree and attempting to staunch the bleeding.
He didn't answer back. He knew just from the conversation with the man that the man would not understand his reason to help others. In a way, he was similar to the Holy Maiden, Asia Argento for choosing to help others that he shouldn't. Even still, it was who he was.
Unexpectedly, his actions lead to a severe reaction from the necklace around his neck, and suddenly, he was no longer within the recently made clearing attending to the fallen. Instead, he appeared within a white room, in which stood a man in white robes who's features could not be distinguished.
"You are worthy," the man's voice was tranquil, like moving water, and it had a tone to it that would leave others with a pleasant feeling. He was no different despite how difficult it was to affect him if at all.
The voice then continued. "Speak of a wish, and I shall grant it upon you. Riches, beauties, entertainment," the voice paused for a moment before delivering an offer that visibly shook him. "A way back to the world in which you came?"
He stood rooted, his heart clenching as he thought about returning to the embrace of the two he left behind. It was enticing, truly. In the timespan of the Fifth Holy Grail War, his relationship with both Rin Tohsaka and Saber weren't as distant as to be called acquaintances, but was actually close enough to be more than friends. He missed them, he truly did.
And then he thought back to the form of the dying Fallen he had been attempting to save, and every thought he had of returning just fell completely apart. He couldn't abandon them. Not in their situation in desperate need of saving. Rin and Saber, he could understand just from his presence in this world, that the possibility of the two being safe was extremely high. Gilgamesh was defeated and the Tainted Grail destroyed. Nothing was left to jeopardize their lives. The Fallen on the other hand, they would die without help.
"I do not need anything," he spoke.
The figure of the man seemed to grow brighter after his words. He didn't pay attention to this though, and continued to say what he had in mind.
"Instead, I would rather have the strength to be able to be of help to those around me, and save those who can't save themselves," he concluded without much thought. He had solidified this way of thinking after his confrontation with Archer.
The figure of the man was no longer able to be seen, in its place was a bright light that truly blinding.
In that light, the voice spoke.
"Then you best return."
In the instantaneous moment as he disappeared from the white realm, the figure of the man appeared again, a highly expectant expression over his face.
"I would have expected nothing less. You are different from him, but perhaps someone like you pursues a path that can not be perceived so easily," the voice finished.
Yet, he could no longer hear the words of the voice.
When he realized that he was back within the recently made clearing, the entire place was bathed in a resplendent white light that focused much of its intensity on the area around him.
"T-This light?!" The man's eyes seemed to bug out from his face, and even the man's injured partners woke up from their injuries to stare in disbelief and unconscious reverence.
The wounds on the Fallen Angel's bodies healed at a visible rate, the crackling of lightning extinguishing into nothing, and even the power of destruction eating away at them could do nothing more than fade as it took in more than it could consume.
Even he upon seeing such a seen shared a similar shock to the Fallen Angels.
What came off as even more of a shock was the symbol of a white cross that appeared at the back hand of each Fallen Angel.
After a few seconds, the light around him died down, returning everything to normal.
The Fallen Angels all became mute, staring at him as if what they were seeing could not possibly be real. Yet no matter how hard they tried, nothing they did could change what they were seeing.
The man stared at him, not saying anything, but it was clear that something had changed from within.
He couldn't understand why, but he just knew.
The man's companions staggered onto their feet despite no visible injuries on their bodies anymore.
"D-Dohnaseek t-this is?!" One of Dohnaseeks's comrades exclaimed.
It was a beautiful looking woman with a curvaceous figure, and long and silk-like hair that draped down her shoulders.
Before anymore questions could be asked, the man, Dohnaseek, raised a hand to silence them.
Dohnaseek stared at him, and in turn, he stared back without any changes in his expression.
"In the Church, there's one more," Dohnaseek spoke before he hesitated. "I-I did not think that you were still alive."
Dohnaseek's words confused him, but he had little time to think on the matter as an explosion bore a hole into the side of the distant Church.
"I-We, we will meet again," Dohnaseek said before pulling along his two stunned companions and taking to the air before disappearing.
He could only permit himself time to nod at Dohnaseek's words, before instantly moving in the direction of the Church.
Arriving at the entrance, he was met with the sight of numerous Exorcists strewn across the ground, many having succumbed to their injuries. It seemed as if a bomb had gone off within the room, nothing had been able to escape damage.
It was in this process of surveying the room that his eyes landed on an entrance that led to a basement beneath the Church's main floor where the sounds of fighting could still be heard.
Unhesitatingly, he made his way towards it, walking quickly down the small flight of stairs to witness the scene within.
There were numerous people in the room, but almost immediately he recognized the appearance of the Holy Maiden, Asia Argento from the profile he had seen of her, yet she lay still held in the arms of a brown-haired boy with a red gauntlet on his right arm.
Similar to the Holy Maiden, the form of another Fallen Angel lay sprawled on the ground under the mercy of a red-haired woman who was about to fire an orb of destruction.
Seeing such a scene, and still being unaware of the terms of the situation, he could only ask the only question on his mind.
"What is going on?" his voice was unintentionally imposing.
Unknowingly, an aura of suppression gushed from his body, a shimmering light emitting from the necklace around his neck, and a fleeting image of ten rings forming around his fingers before fading.
A single step forward, and it was like a flood had been released to the occupants of the room; greatly confusing him as power seemed to return to the Fallen Angel as she made a quick get away past the stiff bodies, blasting a hole through the building.
He blinked, and at that moment-
"You really were more a fool than what she told me,"
-A voice echoed beside his ears before the world around him spun into a blur.
Thanks for Reading!
P a treon. com (slash) Parcasious
Next update: The Vasto of White.
-Note: Started a Fiction Press account on the Fanfiction Sister site and published a story: The Lonely Peak for any interested. The Sister site is actually quite fun for those wanting to practice writing a completely original story. It will be a side hobby of sorts.