Capítulo 65: Survivors
ZOOM ZOOM IYAAN!
Those were the first words Issei Hyoudou heard.
Well...Not 'heard' so much as 'experienced.'
[...They have that song in the afterlife?]
He wasn't speaking, not really.
To speak, you need a mouth. Air and lungs. You required the concept of sound.
Issei felt nothing. Saw nothing.
Was nothing.
There wasn't even darkness.
There was just Issei.
Alone.
With his thoughts.
His regrets.
And that song.
HE HAS SEEN LOTS OF OPPAI, BUT HE LIKES BIG ONES THE BEST!
[Why?]
The question, more of a plea, cut through the nothingness.
[Ddraig!?]
[Why is he singing that?]
OPPAI-DRAGON ALSO PUSHES TODAY
Issei wasn't hearing things, for he had no ears. It was more like 'communication' was being transmitted to Issei directly.
But he'd recognize his partner anywhere.
[Is it because he's made of Dreams? That has to be it, right? It's popular and kids dream, right? They'll grow out of it, right?... Please?]
[There, there,] Issei tried to console his friend, unsure if the dragon could hear him. [It's not so bad. It means you're popular. So many are looking up to you now. You're the coolest dragon.]
[Sob.]
ON THE EDGE OF A CERTAIN SEA, THE OPPAI DRAGON WAS FLYING
[Uh... I know you're, um, sad, but... am I dead? Can you hear me?]
There was a moment of silence, and Issei feared his words would go unheard.
Maybe this was what death was like, a void of nothing where you heard things but were unable to affect anything?
[...You died, partner.] Ddraig said with a sad sigh. [Samael's poison is deadly to dragons. Extremely so. Even I, at my peak, would have died if subjected to what Ophis went through.]
IN THE SUMMER SEAS, THE OPPAI IS FULL OF DREAMS!
[...ah...]
That...
Issei didn't know how to feel about that.
Sad?
Of course, he was sad! He didn't want to die, damnit!
Issei had just lost his virginity! He only had two girlfriends! He'd barely had time to get used to being a devil and Ddraig's partner!
He wouldn't be there for the season 2 premiere! The kids would be disappointed!
His parents would be devastated! They had tried so hard to have a kid, and then he went and died. This would destroy them.
And his friends?
Issei... didn't know. They were strong. Stronger than him, but at the same time, they had dealt with a lot of stuff in their past.
He didn't want his recklessness to be the reason they were hurt again.
Asia and Xenovia...
Satans damnit! Issei didn't know what to feel. Of course, He'd miss them and wanted them to be happy, but...
AGH! SOMEONE ELSE WOULD GET TO TOUCH THEIR OPPAI! ARRRRGGGGGG! HE WAS SO JEALOUS!
And mad.
Issei found himself almost angrier than ever before.
At Eren.
What right did he have to kill Issei? Was it because of the Crimson World Wall? Issei remembered vividly the rage, pain, and disgust on Eren's face when he talked about Walls.
Had Issei's choice of power been wrong? Or did it not matter, and Eren would have killed him anyway for Ddraig?
Why did he get to kill someone just because he needed Boosted Gear?
Rage, grief, regret and confusion swirled around the disembodied consciousness that was now 'Issei Hyoudou.'
Ddraig knew the risks of leaving him like that, but some things needed to be said.
[Your soul should have been destroyed. The only reason it wasn't was because the Boosted Gear, the source of draconic traits, was taken out of your body before it was.]
[...So I'm in the Gear now? Like the Senpais? Can I talk to them?]
If this was what life, or unlife, was like for them, Issei felt bad for not being kinder to them. This was going to get boring really fast.
This seriously sucked.
[You are but...]
There was a feeling of foreboding as Ddraig trailed off softly.
[Ddraig?]
[I'm sorry, Parnter.] Ddraig said sombrely. [The Gear extraction killed you, but your soul wouldn't have come along. It would have been left in the body with the poison.]
[But I'm here. You saved me?]
[I didn't. My former weilders... they initiated Juggernaught Drive at the last second.] Issei could hear the grief in Ddraig's voice. [They switched places with you.]
Ah...
Ahhh...
[Belzard-senpai? Elsha-senpai? Everyone?]
[...Everyone. To make room for you. Juggernaut Drive is all or nothing. They told me to pass on a message when you woke up.]
[...What is it?]
['They were Oppai Dragon's biggest fans. They couldn't let the wielder who made Boosted Gear a symbol of hope disappear.'] Ddraig paused for a second, then let out a defeated sigh before continuing. [And... 'ZOOM ZOOM IYAAN.']
Ahhhhhhhhhhh.
Issei wished he could cry.
Wished he could scream.
Wished he could punch Eren in the face.
He couldn't.
All he could do was wallow in the pain, rage, and grief, plunging deeper and deeper into that pit of misery and loss.
[I'm sorry, partner.] Ddraig repeated, knowing this was the first time Issei had lost someone.
The closest was when Asia fell into the Gap; even then, Vali saved her.
[...Eren has the Gear now?]
[No.] Ddraig said bluntly. [Ophis recognized what happened and took it before he could.]
[Ophis?] Issei asked, the surprise giving him a brief respite from his loss.
"Yes. I, saved Issei."
[Gah!] Issei shouted in surprise at the... not the voice, but the fact that he was experiencing sound at all without a body or ears. [Ophis! What is going on?]
"Issei is being saved."
[She... um...] Ddraig's hesitation in explaining what happened did not fill Issei with confidence. [She brought you to someone that could help.]
"Look."
Suddenly, Issei had sight again.
Still no body, but he could perceive the world as if he were a camera floating over a scene in a movie.
A Kaiju movie, to be specific.
[Woah!] Issei exclaimed, for a second forgetting his grief as his awe overpowered everything else.
Enormous red scales larger than his body. Wings bigger than his house. A maw that could have swallowed his school.
It was freaking huge!
And Ophis was punching it.
This was a dragon.
THE Dragon.
Even Issei could guess who, and what, this was.
[Great Red?!] Issei, completely bamboozled at the sight of the gargantuan beast flying through the void of the Dimensional Gap, couldn't help the scream of surprise from leaving his voice.
Ophis kept hitting the scale she was on, a mask of concentration on her face as she pounded tiny fists into a scale with a miniature frown.
It had no effect, like a child trying to beat up a mountain, and the enormous beast kept flying, even doing a barrel roll in the sky that turned into a corkscrew dive.
[Ophis brought you to Great Red so he could give you another body.] Ddraig explained. [Look near that spike. To the left of Ophis.]
Issei didn't have eyes to look, but he could direct his attention to the spot.
It looked like a mound, vaguely human-shaped, leaning against the large spine of the dragon.
[Is that me?] Issei asked. [Am I not dead?]
[You are dead.] Ddraig corrected. [You just won't be for long.]
[Uwaaaaa!] Issei... well, bawled wouldn't be entirely correct, but it was the disembodied equivalent. [Thank you, Ophis-sama! Thank you, Great Red-sama!]
Wait.
[But Ophis? Don't you... hate Great Red?]
"Bake Red is loud. Annoying." For emphasis Ophis smacked the dragon with her palm.
Even in her weakened state, she was still twice as strong as Ddraig, and her blow could have destroyed the Himalayas.
Great Red didn't even feel it.
"But..." Ophis paused her 'beating' of her hated foe. Her frown deepened, and her brow furrowed. "Issei dying... hurt. Didn't want that. Even for Silence."
[Uwaaaaaaa! Ophis-chan! Thank you!]
Perhaps to stop his partner from spiritually crying like a baby, Ddraig hurried to speak.
[Great Red is a being of Dreams. Strong dreams or popular dreams are like... food or blood to him.] Ddraig said, then sighed, and the following words sounded as if they were coming through clenched teeth. [Oppai Dragon is very popular, so he's doing you this favour just this once.]
More than ever before, Issei felt those same dreams. Those expectations. Those hopes.
He had failed them.
In the worst possible way, he had failed everyone.
Issei Hyoudou had died a failure.
For a second time.
There would not be a third.
Not when this failure, this third chance, had been paid for by his Senpais souls.
[Thank you, Great Red.]
The enormous dragon didn't respond to Issei's thanks, just tucking its wings into a triple front flip that would have made Issei nauseous if he had a body.
Issei didn't know if that was in response to his words, but he decided to ask the question he feared answered most.
[How long has it been?]
[...Only a few hours. You woke up because your body's almost done.]
A few hours.
Not his worst fears of days lost, but still way longer than he had hopped.
Issei remembered Le Fay's warning. Without Boosted Gear to prolong the time he could hold onto Ophis' power, Eren would only have hours before it dissipated.
Ophis, in saving Issei, had forced Eren into a very tight schedule.
A few hours might as well have been an eternity when Issei considered what he might find when he returned.
[How much longer?]
[Not long. Less than an hour. Great Red can do pretty much anything. It just copied your impression of yourself and used it as a base. It probably could have done it in an hour if it was a blank template body.]
[I'll be the same?] Issei asked, a bit surprised. He had been afraid he'd become some sort of dragon/human hybrid with scales, claws and a snout.
Which would be awesome, but he was worried that Great Red wouldn't consider the important parts.
Like the ability to have sex.
Wait! This was a new body. Did that mean he was a virgin again!?
Damnit! He just lost it!!!
[You'll look the same, but you won't be human. Or a devil. Your body is made from Great Red's flesh. It will be stronger. Tougher. If nothing else, you'll be able to Boost more without as much strain.]
[Awesome! Can I use magic now?]
[No. Magic is soul-based. Your reserves are still as pitiful as ever.]
Issei felt like crying.
He wanted to be able to teleport by himself, but it looked like the days of going to clients' houses on a bicycle were not over just yet.
[Partner...] Ddraig paused as if unsure how to say something. In the end, he decided to be blunt. [Your Evil Piece was left in your old body. You are no longer a member of a Peerage. And you don't have to become one. You don't have to become a devil again.]
[I will be.] Issei said instantly. [I am Rias Gremory's Rook.]
[If it's about your dream, you'll be stronger than ever. Your girlfriends won't leave you, and I'm sure you can still become a Harem King without the Peerage system. Plenty of my former hosts had harems without it.]
[I know. It's not about that.] Issei said seriously, resolution filling his voice. [I don't care if I'm human, a devil, or a dragon. Gods, fallen angels, angels, Yokai... I've met them all. None of that crap matters to me. I'm Rias Gremory's Rook because that's who I want to be. I want to defend my friends and family. That's it.]
[And it has nothing to do with Yeager?]
[...I am going to show Senpai that race doesn't matter. That he was wrong thinking I broke my promise. I can be a Wall to protect everyone, not just devils. He wasn't wrong to trust me. Even if he poisons me with Samael again, I'll be tough enough to endure even that! The Wall he hates so much will be the hero he never could be!]
[...So long as you are sure this is what you want, I'll be with you to the end, Partner.]
[Thank you, Partner.]
The pair lapsed into silence.
Issei tried to distract himself with everything he could so as not to think about the loss of his Senpais or what might have happened while he was gone.
Or what could be happening at this very moment.
Great Red was a good source of distraction, the titanic dragon seeming to have an inexhaustible source of tricks to perform in the void.
If anything, having an audience spurred it on further, and it occasionally used its power to add special effects to flips, dives, rolls, or maneuvers Issei didn't know the names of.
Ophis continued to (ineffectively) try and beat up Great Red, seeming to not tire of her failed attempts.
Eventually, something changed.
Great Red, mid-triple-axel, paused.
Then he took a sharp turn, flying in a seemingly random direction in the Dimensional Gap.
[What's going on?] Issei asked. There was no way to orient oneself in this place, so he didn't know if they were going somewhere specific.
[Great Red sensed something.] Ddraig said simply, unsure himself. [Said he knows where to send you back. People are calling out to you.]
[Really!?] Issei asked, excitement and fear warring in his heart. He hadn't been looking forward to popping up somewhere randomly on Earth or the Underworld and trying to find his way home. But if people needed saving, that meant they were in danger. [Where?]
"Lot of people are crying out for Oppai Dragon," Ophis said, pausing in her tiny barrage to look at the mound of Issei's still-growing body. "Issei is still growing. Needs more time."
[How long?]
"Mmmm. Half a cookie? Less?"
[Eat or cook?]
"Cook. Seventeen cookies if eating.]
It took Issei a second to translate that into non-Ophis units of time.
A bit over five minutes, then.
It took a little over one minute for Great Red to reach the destination, a part of the Gap that looked the same to Issei as every other.
The enormous dragon hovered in the air for a moment before the space in front of it seemed to ripple, and Issei could see what had attracted Great Red.
It was chaos.
White Titans were everywhere, attacking everyone. Issei recognized Sairaorg and his Peerage, Sona's Peerage, and even a few devils here and there.
They were all fighting with everything they had, trying to survive under an onslaught of the giants.
As Issei watched, a devil in some official-looking uniform was separated from the others and impaled on a pitchfork of white bone. Another Titan lashed out with an armoured fist, splattering the screaming devil in a shower of gore.
It wasn't hard to find his friends amidst the chaos. Most were orbiting around an amorphous blob of blood-red eyes and shadows.
Issei's relief at seeing them mostly intact was overwhelmed by his worry when he saw Titans being frozen in time by the creature's gaze.
That was Gasper! What had happened to the shut-in dhampir to turn him into... that?!
Rias and Akeno were simultaneously trying to dodge the random outbursts of Gasper's Gear while still trying to stem the seemingly inexhaustible tide of white Titans.
The others were also doing their best but were nowhere near their leaders in kill count.
And it was showing.
Already, dozens of Titans had scaled the city walls and entered it while the defenders fought for their lives. They rampaged, destroying buildings as they chased fleeing civilians.
Beyond the field of devils fighting was a battle that eclipsed any Issei had ever witnessed before.
An enormous Titan of muscle and bone battled with an equally large white armoured figure.
Issei recognized Vali's Balance Breaker Mail, though he had no idea how it had gotten so large. Similarly, he noticed the slightly smaller (in comparison only) Fenrir and Gogmagog doing their best to hinder Eren whenever they got the chance.
Issei looked at this battle of giants, comparable or equal to Great Red in size, and felt...
Helpless.
Angry.
So angry.
Was Eren fighting his friends and team just so he could kill all these people?
Every second that passed, Eren pushed Vali back further, drawing nearer to recreating the Rumbling.
What happened to not wanting to repeat mistakes?
Eren was going to commit genocide. Again.
Unless he was stopped.
[How long?] Issei asked, fury stoked in his chest.
[Another minute.] Ddraig answered instantly. Then paused as if listening to something. [Great Red said he'll help if you can wait till your body's done.]
[Really? That'd be great!] Eren had Ophis' power, and, as angry as he was, Issei was aware that he might not be able to help more than simply erect the Crimson World Wall to help stem the tide of smaller Titans. [Is it because of the Dream thing? He doesn't want a bunch of people who can dream to die?]
[...No,] Ddraig said, sounding exasperated. [Great Red doesn't really care if most people live or die. He's killed more people on accident than those that are here. It's just... He thinks the fight looks awesome. He doesn't want to be left out.]
Right. Powerful dragons just did whatever they felt like whenever they felt like.
It was a good reminder that Great Red wasn't his friend or ally, no matter how thankful Issei was to him.
Once again, Issei was reminded that for every dozen devils or dragons that was reasonable there was one that was a battle maniac like Vali or as vile as Diodora.
... Then again, humans like Freed existed too.
Or Eren.
The thought was enough to sober Issei up, and he watched, helpless to do anything, as his friends struggled to stay alive under the relentless attack of his Senpai.
Every second that passed, he saw the destruction Eren was bringing to the world.
A world Issei wanted to protect.
The loss of his Senpais. The sting of Eren's betrayal. The fear of death. The helplessness. The weight of his failure.
It piled up and up and up, swelling, growing, ready to be unleashed.
As a new arrival in the fight, an enormous black cat with seven tails launched itself at Eren's back, Issei received the message he had been waiting for.
[Brace yourself.]
The first second was increadibly disorienting as sensation, actual feeling, rushed back.
Issei was overwhelmed by the sound of his own heartbeat, the smell of the dragon, and the pressure of Great Red's flesh around him.
For a second, Issei experienced seeing things from the disembodied position while simultaneously perceiving the darkness of the... sack in which his new body was formed.
Then he was bursting free, the pouch opening to expel him into the chaotic swirl of colours of the Dimensional Gap.
Issei didn't even take a moment to luxuriate in the feeling of being alive again, didn't even notice his own nudity, or that Ophis had stopped hitting Great Red again to float away.
Issei didn't dare hesitate for even a second longer.
Already, he feared he was too late.
The pressure in his heart doubled and doubled every moment that passed as he looked out at the enormous form of the Founding Titan.
Boosted Gear appeared on his wrist.
Scale mail-clad his form.
And, when Issei felt a pressure, a foreign yet familiar presence, he let it seep into him.
Great Red was... Power. So much power.
It was easy to say he was made of Dreams and could do whatever he wanted, but feeling it seep into his soul was a humbling experience for Issei.
Issei should have exploded from being stuffed full of the Dragon of Dragon's might.
He didn't.
Great Red simply didn't allow him to. For all intents and purposes, Issei was a part of the enormous beast, both contained together in the shell of the Boosted Gear's Scail Mail.
Instead of popping like a particularly disgusting grape, like air being blown into a balloon, Great Red disappeared as Issei inflated.
Great Red was Issei Hyoudou, the wielder of the Boosted Gear and a hero the masses cried out to for salvation.
In that heartbeat of a moment, as his Scail Mail grew to match Vali's in size, Issei somewhat understood Eren.
This must be what he felt as he absorbed Ophis' power.
This heady feeling, this unending well of potential, could be used to shape the world however he wanted.
And Eren used that power, power gained from Ophis' torment and Issei's death, to destroy and terrorize.
Space tore.
A red gauntlet formed a fist.
The pressure in Issei's heart erupted with a yell.
[EEEEEERRRRRRREEEEEEENNNNN!]
And Issei punched Eren in the face.
********
Words... couldn't describe it.
Ever since Issei's death, there had been a weight in the air. An unspoken promise of death, doom, and destruction.
How could they stand up against Ophis' power? When faced with the power of the Infinite, what could they do but try and survive?
They were but tiny birds flying amidst a storm at sea, knowing they could die at any time yet still desperately searching for land. For a way to survive.
And that was only for those who knew of Eren's plan or Issei's death.
It must have seemed like a terrifying, confusing mess to everyone else.
The Satans were gone.
The army was gone.
Agreas and all its defenders were destroyed.
A giant so large as to tower over mountains stomping toward them as an army of white Titans tore through a refugee camp and its few remaining combatants.
Even if they did not know of Ophis' power, the devils of the Underworld could sense the despair, the fear, and the helplessness as they fled for their lives.
What initially hope there was, from the arrival of the White Dragon Emperor and his team to delay the monster, was fleeting as the situation continued to change, evolve, and deteriorate.
Every ray of hope seemed to appear only to die a cruel death.
Even the arrival of a new monster, the seven-tailed cat, seemed unable to put this nightmare to rest.
Devils were not known for being creatures of prayer, but they still hope. Wishes. Dreams.
They, like everyone else in the world, didn't want to die. Didn't want their friends and family to die. They wanted to keep living.
The single wish of all beings born, no matter race or creed, to be able to live.
Yet, it seemed like these giants, these Titans, had been created specifically to snuff out that wish.
It was the Underworld's darkest hour.
If there was ever a moment for a hero to appear, this was it.
And, like a miracle from a god they once fought against, one appeared.
Words could not describe what everyone felt as they saw the red armoured form deliver a clear blow to the Titan.
To many, the Red Dragon Emperor was a figure of legend, a being of almost unsurpassed power that was as much a part of mythology as it was a real figure of terror and awe.
Every few decades, there'd be a new story about one of the Heavenly Dragons destroying or killing something, a country, a prominent figure, or just taking control of an area. They were natural disasters more than people.
Until the most recent wielder of the Boosted Gear changed all that.
To the children of the Underworld, Oppai Dragon was a hero. Plain and simple. Many, seeing their hero arrive in the knick of time, cheered. Some clapped. A few started to sing the theme song they knew so well.
To those who knew him best, Issei Hyoudou's arrival wasn't just a joyous occasion.
It was a miracle.
Issei Hyoudou was dead.
His body rested in a protected room in the Hyoudou Residence.
His Evil Piece sat on a nightstand in the Gremory Estate.
He had died, betrayed, poisoned, and alone.
To see the Boosted Gear Scale Mail. To hear his voice. To realize that he was alive...
It was like there was happiness in the world again. Joy. Hope.
Smiles were the least of their reactions.
Tears of joy were also common.
Asia Argento openly wept as her Sacred Gear underwent a fundamental shift at seeing the man she loved again.
And, in the mind of one young woman, the pieces fell into place.
Why Eren could smile after killing his friend.
And how they could win.
Without Boosted Gear, Eren's power was on a time limit. One that would come into effect any second. If they could hold out just a bit longer, they'd beat Eren.
...He'd die, making them all heroes after having achieved his aim.
A recreation of how he had gone out in the last life...
As grief warred with pain and finally settled into resolution in Sona Sitri's heart, she quickly set up a plan to see them through this terrible storm and into tomorrow.
...Sona failed to take into account one crucial aspect.
One nobody could understand because they didn't know how the Path ended.
To Eren Yeager, everything that was happening now, this attack, terror, and destruction... It occurred before he ever arrived in Kuoh.
He had seen, experienced, and lived all this the moment he accessed the power of the Founder.
To everyone else, this was the present and the future.
To Eren, it was the past.
And that was where Sona's one flaw in her understanding, through no fault of her own, prevented her and everyone else from understanding Eren Yeager.
It was the same mistake Mikasa had made, the same error everyone who knew him was making.
It wasn't their fault. They simply didn't have all the pieces. Nobody did.
Without them, they could not realize a straightforward truth.
The Eren Yeager who had crushed his world flat, killing eighty percent of the population...
The Eren Yeager who awoke in another world with no explanation but a Path to follow, one so similar yet different to his first life...
The Eren Yeager who ran away from it all, who sought out an answer as to why he'd do the terrible things he did...
That Eren Yeager was not who they were dealing with.
The Eren Yeager who arrived at the bench differed from the Eren Yeager who left it.
And nobody yet knew the world he'd build.
But they would.
********
"Hahahahahaha," Rizevim Lucifer laughed and clapped as he watched the Red Dragon Emperor punch Eren Yeager in the face.
He could see the shock in people's faces, see how the battle seemed to pause with the sudden new arrival, and the realization set in as the Titan was sent flying, jaw wholly torn off from the strength of the blow.
Yeager's fall carved a canyon into the ground as he skidded to a stop.
Rizevim hoped it hurt.
The only way this could be better would be if he could see the disbelief on his disappointment of a grandson's face, but he'd have to settle for the body language that shone through the white armour.
It was easy to read.
Everyone had completely frozen at the suddenly resurrected Red Dragon Emperor, from the disappointment of a Lucifer to Eren's pet to the God Killer and the automaton. His enormous size helped.
They got over it quickly, joining the attack on the Titan.
Eren got to his feet as the Red Dragon Emperor bore down on him, every step a tremor. He raised a forearm to block a punch, his arm shimmering in a crystalline hue as the red gauntlet crashed into it with a cacophonous din and retaliated a punch of his own.
The White Dragon Emperor got to him first, ducking low, getting in close, and unleashing a flurry of blows on Eren's chest. Blue wings continued to vent power Vali couldn't absorb, but the punches themselves impacted with the force of meteors. Bone snapped. Muscles tore. Eren's rib cage dented.
Fenrir was there, tearing a chunk as big as a building from the Titan's thigh.
The cat Youkai was on Eren's feet, holding him down, with Kasha nailing his feet to the ground.
Hyoudou, with the openings provided, couldn't miss. Like Eren, he raised his forearm but deflected the blow to the side rather than block, letting his left hook crash into Eren's face once more.
The enormous skull shattered. Eyeballs pulped. Teeth rained like immense hail.
Rizevim continued to smile and laugh as he watched his 'partner' take the beating of a lifetime.
He could see how it would play out in their mind now.
The Red Dragon Emperor was not used to working with this team and only had passable fighting skills. He made up for it by being the strongest there, every second growing stronger.
His allies made up for his weaknesses.
Rizevim could say many negative things about his grandson, and he did, but there was no denying that Vali Lucifer was a genius on the battlefield.
It barely took him seconds to adapt to the Red Dragon Emperor's presence, changing his style to one that focused on exploiting weak points and openings instead of being the lead combatant. And every blow weakened Eren further.
His team followed suit, taking their leader's cues and shifting to a more supportive role to give the Red Dragon Emperor the openings he needed against a more experienced opponent.
Rizevim could almost imagine the hope growing in them as they fought, growing stronger as Eren weakened.
They weren't just holding out anymore.
They were winning.
Had the holy sword user still been here, they may have already carved the Titan free of his body.
Even without Arthur Pendragon, if this continued, then Eren would lose.
Rizevim could see that realization in everyone in Lilith, the hope, the excitement.
He allowed it to grow and allowed Eren to keep losing.
Every moment, Eren was pushed further and further away from the Underworld capital by the unified might of the two Heavenly Dragons.
For the first time in history, the Red Dragon Emperor and White Dragon Emperor fought together. And together, they undid all of Eren's progress, pushing him even further back than when he arrived with Agreas.
It was almost enough to bring a tear to the eye.
If nothing else, seeing the Titan like this was cathartic in the extreme.
And entertaining.
It was always important to take simple pleasures in life, or the ennui would kill you before any of your enemies could.
But, if Rizevim wanted his own goals to succeed, he couldn't allow Yeager to die.
Just yet, at least.
So, like Hyoudou, he'd appear just in time to save the day.
What was the term again?
Diabolus Ex Machina?
A perfect fit if Rizevim said so himself.
********
There are years where nothing happens and minutes where everything happens.
Undoubtedly, the last half hour was some of the most confusing, terrifying, and complex in the Underworld's history.
The situation had changed so much, so quickly, and so often that nobody was a hundred percent sure what was going on anymore. Enemies turned to allies. Success and failure vacillating every second.
Such was the nature of war.
It can change on a dime.
For better or worse.
It happened in the span of two seconds.
Most never even realized what went wrong.
One moment, the defenders of the Underworld were winning.
In a moment that would go down in history, the White Dragon Emperor and the Red Dragon Emperor had teamed up to defeat the attacking Titan.
The giant was on the ground, on his back, as most of his limbs were constrained by Kuroka, Fenrir, and Gogmagog, while Issei Hyoudou and Vali Lucifer did their best to destroy Eren's body faster than he could heal it.
The next moment, a devil appeared behind the pair.
In less than a second, he had flown from Vali's back to Issei's.
Perhaps, had Great Red enhanced the Boosted Gear instead of just increasing Issei's size, nothing would have happened when Rizevim touched him.
But, the world's first Super Devil's ability didn't care about the host, only the Sacred Gear.
Incredibly situational and even weak compared to Sirzechs' or Adjuka's abilities, Sacred Gear Canceller was the perfect counter for all who relied on God's system.
At that moment, when Rizevim touched both the White Dragon Emperor and the Red Dragon Emperor, their Sacred Gears reset.
Gargantuan armour disappeared as the Boosted Gear and Divine Dividing returned to the depths of their host's soul.
All the Boosts faded. All the Divides disappeared.
Their armours retracted, leaving two young men and a hundred-meter red dragon flying above the fallen Titan.
Rizevim Lucifer laughed as he watched hope turn to confusion, then despair, teleporting away.
He knew, as strong as he was, he wouldn't survive what came next if he stayed around.
But neither would they.
With all his power and size returned, Eren lunged for Great Red.
And he stopped holding back.
REFLEXIONES DE LOS CREADORES 
ReadingDangerously
ReadingDangerously And so begins what I think of as 'secret part 5.' It's not a separate part, just the beginning of chapters to the last, which will all be controversial in one way or another. From here on out, these chapters will make or break On The Bench for some people. Some may hate it. Some may love it. Either way, I am committed to walking the Path to the end.
Before anything else, I would like to thank everyone for their well wishes and concern last week. It means a lot to me. I know exactly how frustrating it can be to wait for another release of a story I love, and your patience is deeply appreciated.
About this chapter: I'll be honest, from a 'writer' point of view, I would have preferred Issei to stay dead. Death needs to have stakes. One of my biggest complaints about comics is their lack of commitment to keeping the dead dead. It ruins the impact when you know the character will just come back later.
That being said, fanfiction has its problems on the subject. If I was doing an AU, it wouldn't matter so much, but I decided at the beginning that I would remain as committed to canon's rules as I could be, both AOTs and DxDs.
More than that, I couldn't think of a reason Eren would choose a future where Issei stayed dead. Not if I wanted to stay true to my understanding of his character. Eren can and will kill for the future he wants. But he would never let his friends die if he could find a way around it.
In his world, he couldn't find a way to save Sasha, no matter how much he looked, and still get the ending he wanted. In this one, where resurrections in various forms are common, he'd use every one of them, no matter how dubious, if it meant saving the people he cared about.
I have so much more I want to say, but I've already deleted six paragraphs of this AN because of spoilers, so I'll stop here. I hope the wait was worth it, and I will meet you all again on Sunday on the bench.
PS: A shoutout to OrangeMaster on Spacebattles for their Omake. I enjoyed it and hope they continue it if the desire takes them.
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