The Behemoth Stray

Alistor, Duscae

3rd Pearson POV

"Rias, this stray...How much detail were you given in relation to it and this mission?" (Y/N) questioned through his phone.

"Not much I'm afraid." She admitted. "We were handed the mission down from the archduke, and not even he was able to get much information from the client." She added. "All he was told that it was a giant monster that's been tearing and decimating the town, killing anyone that it saw. It appeared to be feeding and would leave after awhile. Apparently this has been happening for the past week."

This sudden news shocked (Y/N). He sighed and rubbed his hand against his face. "And they didn't report this earlier why?" He asked.

"Chances are they were too traumatized from the first encounter to even think of anyone being able to help." Rias replied. "(Y/N)...are you sure you can handle this?" She asked with worry.

(Y/N) remained silent, looking back at the bloodied and broken gate. "Looking around, there's a lot of carnage here. And I've faced things much worse that what we've seen so far. But for now, we don't know what we're going up against." He admitted, his eyes growing determined. "If anything, we can try and do some recon. The least we can do is try and gauge it and try and weaken it. If things look bad we'll pull back, try and contain it if it tries to follow. Hopefully we can find the source of the magical energy disappearance at the same time."

"Okay..." Rias sounded reluctant. "Please, be careful." She pleaded. "You make sure every single one of you comes home. Understood?"

(Y/N) smirked. "Understood my Master!"

Rias sighed in relief. "Okay, good luck dear." She said before ending the call.

(Y/N) put his phone on silent before putting it back into his pocket as he approached the group. "Okay everyone, listen up!" He gained the attention of his fellow devils. "We're going into this fairly blind. We don't know what to expect so stay on your guard at all costs. Our objective for now it to find the stray and follow it back to its nest. We'll try an gauge it's capabilities if a fight is unavoidable. At the same time, we'll be looking for the source of magical energy that disappeared. But above all , if we have to retreat, we can not allow this thing to follow us back to the town and put more people at risk. We'll find a way to contain it if that happens. Understood?"

"Right!" Everyone replied.

"Okay then, let's set up communication and head in." Kiba advised, conjuring communication orbs within his hand, having each one float to everyone.

"Oh hey, communication things from the Rating Game. These'll make contact easier if we end up getting separated." (Y/N) smiled as the red orb floated into his ear.

As the devils prepared to enter the forest, a loud, powerful blood thirsty roar erupted from deep within the forestry, shaking everything like a disastrous earthquake.

As everyone continued to panic and scream from the terrifying earth shaking the devils stared into the forest with determined gazes.

All but one...

"Welp, I'm out!" Issei blurted, turning around and attempting to head back into town.

(Y/N) quickly grabbed the brunette by the collar of his shirt, holding him back and preventing him from running away. "Come on."

"No way man! You know the second I see that thing I'm gonna scream like a girl and you won't let me live it down!" Issei replied as he flailed around in attempt to break free.

"One: no you won't. Two: no I won't." (Y/N) replied.

"I will." Koneko said with her hand raised.

"SEE?!" Issei waved his flat hand at Koneko to emphasize his point.

"Issei, we've faced strays and most likely worse things before, why're you freaking out now?" (Y/N) questioned with a confused gaze.

"Oh I don't know...Maybe because of that roar just now! If this thing can cause an earthquake just by roaring, who knows how strong it really is up close!!"

The young devil stared at the cowering brunette with a stern gaze. "Issei...it's because this thing so dangerous is why we're here. We have to take it out before it hurts anymore people." (Y/N) explained. "Issei, look around." He prompted.

The brunette did so, looking at Art the destroyed and rundown buildings, the terrified people, feeling the despair, hopelessness and dread in the air, along the rusty stinging scent of blood. He looked down, unsure of how to respond.

"These people have lost so much, so many of their friends and family lost to this monster. We have to prevent anymore deaths. Prevent anymore losses for them. Anymore destruction. And I know you're strong enough. So get up. Stand on your feet and be ready to fight." He extended his hand to his childhood friend. "Let's help these people like you helped me all those years ago."

Issei stared at his friend. He smiled, feeling his confidence and pride returning to him. He took the offered hand up and rose up off the ground. "Alright...Let's do this!!" He cheered.

(Y/N) smiled before turning back to the forest. "Okay. Let's go." He said as he walked through the smashed gate with his fellow devil behind him.

Time Skip

As the devils continued their search for the stray the forest around them began to look less and less destroyed compared to how it was previous. It appeared the destruction was closer to the town than anywhere else.

The deeper into the woods they traveled, the darker it slowly became. The sunlight that had managed to break through some of the grey clouds began to vanish, coating the entire sky in a grey blanket or clouds. Soon enough, rain began to sprinkle down, slowly turning into a light pour.

After passing through the large forest, they came across another clear path, surrounded by stone and hillsides. Following it downwards, a sudden loud cracking echoed through the air.

"The hell?" Issei asked, followed up by a loud roar in the distance.

They all turned, watching as a pair of trees slowly came falling and crashing down.

"Well, found our target." Kiba claimed.

"Come on." (Y/N) prompted as he began making his way towards where the trees fell.

The closer he grew, the more destruction appeared prominent. Numerous broken trees and shattered stones covered the area, even deep claw marks were plastered on the stone hillsides.

They traveled through the opening and continued following the path, only to be met with a light fog as they went deeper up into the hills.

As the fog got thicker, it began to get more difficult for the devil to keep track of their way. Even with their devil traits, they could hardly see.

"I though devils could see through this bs. Why can I hardly see anything?" Issei questioned as he tripped over a root in the ground.

"Chances are this fog isn't normal. Their must be some kind of enchantment added to it. Someone or something may have conjured it to keep people out." Kiba explained.

"Think it was the stray?" Koneko asked.

"It's possible. But we don't know anything about this thing. We'll figure it out later." (Y/N) advised. "Hang on." He said, channelling the ability of his Dragon Eye. In tandem with his devil's sight, he began to see the path a bit more clearly. "This way." He guided.

As the others followed the team leader, they came across a small opening through a stone wall.

(Y/N) looked inside before a light growl mixed with a hissing sound. He held up his hand and halted everyone behind him, prompting them to back up. "Wait!" He said. He lowered his hand, signaling everyone to duck down as to proceeded through the hole.

Issei looked hesitant to enter, but Koneko kicked him inside.

"Move it Numb Nuts!" She ordered before entering herself with Kiba following close behind.

The devils crawled through the hole, using the walls to pull them forward. The deeper they went the more metal they came across. Plastered all over the sides and above them.

Powerful stomps approached them from outside, eventually stopping at the opening on the tunnel.

"Hold up!" (Y/N) advised, looking back at the thing making all the noise.

The beast was massive. Overtaking a large amount of the clearing in the other side. Almost passing over the hillside the devils were hiding in. The beast looked around, unable to see out of its blind right eye, which appeared to be from battle due to the wound on is face, as well as the cracked horn on its head.

"It's missing and eye and it's horn on the right. We might be able to use that." (Y/N) mumbled. He suddenly began hearing the sound of chattering teeth. Almost like quivering bones. He turned around and saw Issei looking at the giant monster in utter fear. "...Issei?...You good?" He asked.

"What..." He manages to speak. "What the hell is that thing?!"

(Y/N) looked back at the beast, identifying its appearance. "Looks like the stray devil turned into a Behemoth. These fuckers are strong as shit." He commented, causing the brunette to grow pale. "Like I thought; we have our word cut out for us on this one. This is gonna be tough." He commented, watching the Behemoth bend down.

The sound of ripping meaty flesh began to make some of the devil queasy, doing their best to shake it off as the beast continued to feed.

"Let's move. We're sitting ducks if we just stay here." He prompted, leading the others slowly and quietly through the small tunnel.

Making their way through some distance, (Y/N) leaped ahead as far as he could before turning around and signaling the others to stop, only to watch as the Behemoth stuck its head into the crack in the wall.

Issei, shocked from the sudden appearance of the beast getting so close, immediately screamed like a little girl, prompting the beast to roar.

"KONEKO!!!" (Y/N) prompted her into elbowing Issei in the gut as she covered his mouth as he continued to cry in fear.

The Behemoth's lion-like roar died down, it turned the other way and began stomping away.

"Okay, looks like it's heading back the same direction we're going. We'll follow it, wait for it to fall asleep, then take it out. Got it?" Questioned the Azure Dragon Emperor.

Everyone nodded in agreement, including Issei.

Koneko released him from her hold and proceeded onward past him.

Issei shuttered at the feeling of what just happened passing. "I think I just peed myself." Issei croaked.

"Oh my God! GET IT TOGETHER!!!" A deep and unknown voice ordered irritably.

Issei jumped at the sudden voice, looking around frantically to find the source. "There's that voice again!" He said before refocusing and followed after his allies.

As the devils exited the small tunnel, they returned to an open patch within the forest, covered in thick fog once again.

"Shit, this fog again?" (Y/N) cursed. He looked around and quickly spotted a swaying tail above a nearby mound. "There it is. Come on. Stay close together and stay on guard." He advised as the devils began to tail after the massive stray.

Following the faint silhouette of the beast the devils followed it through the fog, hiding behind and suitable rocks or trees to avoid visible detection while lowering their magical energies to hide their presence.

Time Skip

"This is soooooo boring..." Issei groaned.

"Boring? This is starting to piss me off!" (Y/N) growled quietly. "We've been following this Behemoth for almost an hour! How fucking far is this things' nest?!" He bickered.

"Easy there leader." Koneko tried to calm, quickly looking closer at the beast, who had suddenly come to a stop. "Hold on. It stopped."

The devils quickly took to a nearby hiding spot, watching the Behemoth jump up and over a cracked plateau.

"Think that might be where the nest is?" Issei asked.

"Hope so." (Y/N) replied. "Let's move." He said, walking to the crevasse in the stone wall and entering. He slowly made his way through to the other side, seeing a broken fence upon exiting.

He looked over as far as he could manage and watched as the Behemoth stomped around in a single spot, almost like a dog before laying down.

As Koneko emerged from the gap, she approached her leader and looked to where he was as well. "How's it look?" She asked.

"Looks like an oil refinery. Must've made its nest here. It's falling asleep so this may be our chance to take it out with ease." (Y/N) turned to the teammates as they readied themselves for the inevitable encounter. "Alright, this is it. Stay low, stay quite. When we get close enough, we'll strike it with everything we've got. Ready?"

Koneko and Kiba nodded with confidence.

Issei gulped loudly with nervousness.

The devils followed along the wall of the stone wall on their side, slowly approaching the Behemoth stray.

One foot after the other. Gently moving on the rugged and broken pathway along the wall. Some devils moves their hand across the wall to maintain balance as they walked.

They all had done exceptionally well at avoiding making any noice that would be too noticeable. Finally getting close enough to attack the unsuspecting beast.

However, the ground beneath Issei gave way. He screamed as he fell down to the ground, and the sounds of stone clashing echoed through the nest.

The Behemoth's eyes opened and it slowly rose up. Instantly spotting the intruders, it unleashed a violent and bloodthirsty roar, seeping with intent to kill.

"DAMN IT!!!" (Y/N) cursed, summoning his Blades of Order. 'Looks like we're not getting out of this one easily.' He thought. "KONEKO GET ISSEI!!!" He ordered. "STRIKE RAID!!!" He yelled as he threw his swords at the beast.

The blades pierced the stray's body. (Y/N) teleported and grabbed them, vanishing again to deliver a crossing slash on the creatures back before vanishing again appearing before the angered Behemoth.

The beast roared and charged at the young devil, horn ready to impale.

The dual-wielding sword user jumped backwards can delivering two perfectly timed kicks to the monster's jaw. He jumped back to the high point with Kiba, who was weighing a fire sword. "KONEKO, GET IT FROM ABOVE!!!" (Y/N) called.

"ROGER!!!" She said, falling from the sky as she unleashed an aggressive battle cry, slamming her fist into the beast's head, slamming it to the ground.

(Y/N) noticed the oil drum by the stray's side, instantly prompting an idea. "KIBA!!! ISSEI!!! AIM FOR THAT OIL DRUM!!!"

WELSH DRAGON! OVER BOOSTER!

Issei ran out and donned his Scale Mail, immediately charging for an attack.

BOOST!

"Ready!" The red armored devil cheered, launching his Dragon Shot.

"Take this!" Kiba swing his fire sword, sending a wave of fire hurling towards the oil drum.

The two blasts fused together, crashing into the oil drum, resulting in a massive explosion that brought the Behemoth to its knees.

(Y/N) teleported above the stray, his Oblivion coasted in black and purple lightning. "BLACK LIGHTNING KING IRON HAMMER!!!" He roared shot a massive bolt of black lightning from above, blasting it and burning it severely before stabbing it upon his decent.

"Did we get it?" Issei asked with hopeful optimism.

(Y/N) jumped off as soon as he felt the beast move, landing by the others. "We can see it breathing Issei. Why bother asking?" He said as he readied his sword.

"I'm an optimist." Issei croaked.

"You're and idiot." Koneko jeered.

The Behemoth rose up and charged at the devils once more.

"MOVE!!!" (Y/N) roared, prompting everyone to sprout their devil wings and fly back to the higher vantage point with Kiba. "Alright, we should be okay now. We have the high ground!"

The beast easily hopped up onto the mound with them.

"Aw shit, we lost the high ground!" (Y/N) yelled.

The Behemoth swung it's massive claw at the devils, only to miss, destroying the stone wall at its side.

As the devil's regrouped, hastefully catching their breaths.

"This is one tough bastard!" Issie groaned.

"How're you guys holding up?" Kiba asked.

"Still alive." Koneko panted. "Somehow..." She added

The massive stray turned to face the group once more, quickly pouncing at the devils.

As the devils evaded, Issei charged in to deliver a blow, only to be smacked down by the monster's tail.

The Behemoth readied it's vicious claws and swung them down on the downed Dragon Emperor.

(Y/N) summoned his Oath Maker, bringing it to his sind as he ran to his friend's aide. "I don't think so!" He said, swinging his sword and conjuring a pale and cold circle to appear below the Behemoth's claw. "WHITE MOON!!!" He chanted, a massive pillar of ice pierced through the monster's claw, proceeding to freeze the rest of the limb. "Issei move!" He shouted, jumping back with the armored Dragon Emperor. "You okay?" He asked.

"Y-Yeah, I'm alright." Issei assured, standing back up and ready to fight.

The Behemoth roared and broke the pillar of ice, only to reveal no wound had been made. It pounced once again, only to be intercepted by Koneko.

The Rook stood at the front and launched her fist into the monster's head, stopping it in its tracks, giving Issei enough time to unleash a counter attack.

Jumping up from behind, the Red Dragon Emperor held a concentration of dragonic energy in his claw. "DRAGON SHOT!!!" He cried, launching it point blank into the Behemoth's face.

Through the smoke, a massive tail swung through and struck Koneko, slamming her into a nearby wall.

She immediately felt the impact of the blow, feeling the air leave her lungs and blood spewing out as she coughed in pain.

"Koneko!" Kiba cired in worry.

"Kiba, Issei, fend that thing off! I'm gonna heal her!" (Y/N) declared as he dashed away to the injured Rook.

"Damn monster!" Kiba growled, summoning a sword of ice. Slashing the blade across the ground, a light veil of ice blades in front of him. Bringing his blade back as he readied to unleash his attack.

Issei landed right beside the blonde and readied his attack in tangen, concentrating his dragonic magic into his outstretched claw, making it grow larger by the second.

"NOW!!!" Kiba yelled.

The two boys unleashed their attacks, a wave of ice encased Issei's crimson Dragon Shot, blasting the Behemoth.

However, neither of the blasts connected as the stray unleashed a power roar, stopping the attack all together, proceeding to blast the devils back with sheer force of it's howling cry.

Both Kiba and Issei slid across the ground, landing by (Y/N) and a slowly recovering Koneko.

"Issei! Kiba!" (Y/N) looked to his beaten and battered friends. He looked back to the beast, who simply stared at them, only to growl in anger. "Alright you son of a bitch, no more fuckin' around!" He snarled, calling back his white sword. "Koneko, help them recover, I'll fend off the stray."

"Okay, be careful." She pleaded.

(Y/N) simply smirked. "Aren't I always?" He asked. He began to unleash his dark magical energy as much as he could, coating him in darkness before appearing in his Black Heart form. "Hope you're ready for a beating you mangy mutt!" He snarled, cracking his knuckles.

The Behemoth simply roared in response, summoning a pool of fire in it's mouth to unleash upon the shadow coated devil.

(Y/N) quickly formed his shadow axe and swiped it across the monster's face, causing the concentrated pool of fire to explode inside the monster's mouth.

The beast roared and lunged at the devil in a fit of rage, only to miss every at every attempt.

'I've got to draw it away from here, get the other a chance to recover without any distractions.' He thought, jumping back away from another one of the stray's swiping claws. "Come on, this way ugly!" He promoted, heading further into the woods and away from the others. "That's right, follow the shadow man!"

As the two continued the game of cat and mouse, the Behemoth swung it's claw down once more, only to be caught by a massive claw of darkness.

"Predictable." (Y/N) glared, slamming his other shadow claw into the Behemoth by it's head, sending it crashing down to the ground.

The Behemoth began to move around on the ground frantically eventually popping back up once again.

'This thing just doesn't quit.' (Y/N) stated to himself. 'How durable is that skin? We've burned, froze and cut that son of a bitch so many times already!'

The Behemoth lunged at the shadow covered devil, only to be blasted away by a crimson Dragon Shot.

(Y/N) turned to see Issei standing and with glowing orbs in his hands, his Scale Mail partially cracked.

"Time for some payback." Issei readied himself, pulling his arm back before unleashing another Dragon Shot at the Behemoth. He quickly unleashed another.

BOOST!

His power increased dramatically, throwing Dragon Shot after Dragon Shot repetitiously, only growing faster and faster with each one. "DRAGON SHOT!!! BOMBER BARRAGE!!!" He roared as he continued to unleash his blasts.

However, with the massive increase in power, Issei was unable to maintain his continued onslaught and maintain his Balance Breaker. His armor vanished and he collapsed to the ground.

(Y/N) looked to his friend and dash to recover him. "Issei!" He cried, only to get swatted away by the Behemoth.

The monster pinned the devil down onto the ground with its claw, applying pressure as it's head grew closer to it's now captured prey.

(Y/N) struggled to break free, only maganing to one of his arms free. He conjured fire in his pal and swung it at the Behemoth's face. "WOLKENPALM!!!" He yelled, blasting the beast with a heavy wave of black and green fire, releasing the hold on him and allowing the devil to escape. He conjured a wing onto his arm and flew to Issei, quickly grabbing him and flying back to the others. "Koneko, watch Issei!"

"Got it." Koneko grunted.

"(Y/N), I'm ready. Let's finish this thing off." Kiba said, managing to stand once again with sword in hand.

"Okay. Let's go get this monster-" (Y/N) said, only to be silenced by the Behemoth leaping out of the forest and roaring. "Or it can just come to us. That works too." He shrugged.

Both the Knight and Pawn charged at the beast with all their might, pushing it back into the forest and all the way to a nearby gorge, away from the recovering Koneko and unconscious Issei.

As those in combat crashed into a nearby wall, the Behemoth swung its claw at Kiba, who managed to evade, only to tail swipe (Y/N) and send him crashing into the ground. The Behemoth glared at Kiba and roared, only to be silenced by a boulder crashing into its head and breaking. The monster turned to see the devil in darkness holding a massive boulder in his shadow claw.

"Hey there Fido, wanna play?!" He asked, chucking another boulder at the beasts head, shattering it instantly upon impact.

The beast roared in anger and lunged at the living shadow, aiming to bite down only to miss. The monster continued this for many more attempts, all yielding the same result.

Kiba jumped into the sky and swung his sword down, only to be blocked by the Behemoth's tail.

The Behemoth looked back at the blonde for an instant, only to see him sporting a cocky grin. The beast suddenly roared in pain and stumbled back, limping and missing its right claw. It slowly turned to (Y/N), seeing him hold the decapitated limb in his hand, only to toss it aside.

"We've been aiming at the wrong spots the whole time. We should've been aiming at the joints, weakest parts of the body. Honestly I'm surprised we didn't do this sooner. Guess I was still pissed at Issei for blowing our COVER WHEN WE GOT HERE!!!" (Y/N)'s voice rose in anger.

"Should we end this?" Kiba asked. "I've got a new sword I've been wanting to try. Might make a good test subject." He added.

(Y/N) grew a devilish grin, conjuring his shadow axe onto his arm and black ice fog into his other hand. "By all means...Let's rip and tear!" He growled, vanishing along with Kiba before the stray's eyes.

Kiba appeared right below the monster, only for the beast to try and crush him with its stubbed limb, only to see him vanish and (Y/N) appear on top of its arm. He ran across and jumped, swinging his axe arm down right into the beast's head. Hopping up and over onto the Behemoth's back, he conjured a trail of black ice all across its back.

Reuniting with Kiba, the two boys lunged forward with terrifying speed, vanishing and reappearing all around the Behemoth as the slashed and cut into its joints to bring it down. With a well delivered double slash attack onto the tail, the beast had yet another body part removed.

The beast roared in violent rage, quickly turning to face the two and brought fire to its mouth one again.

Kiba readied his stance, summoning a katana into his hand. "Let's go." He prompted taking off at high speeds. "Sakura Saber!" He chanted, releasing the blade as it began to dissipate into a massive storm of cherry blossom petals, quickly surrounding him as his advanced. "(Y/N)! Get ready!" He called from behind and above the massive stray.

"Not sure what this is gonna do, but I hope you know what you're doing!" He replied, readying his axe.

Kiba waved his hilt and the petals blasted down onto the Behemoth and toward (Y/N), ready to deliver the final blow.

"FULL COUNTER!!!" The shadow devil roared, blasting the blossoms back at the Behemoth, sending it deep into the wave of sakura petals, launching the monster high into the air and over the canyon hilltop.

(Y/N) and Kiba both fell to the ground in exhaustion, breathing as heavily as one would after such an ordeal.

"Dude, I am so happy that worked as well as it did." (Y/N) said in relief as the darkness around his body slowly vanished.

"I know. I'm so glad it worked." Kiba smiled.

"I had no idea sakura petals could be so dangerous." (Y/N) said, lifting himself up off the ground.

"Well, they're not really sakura petals. They were pretty much tiny super sharp blades. They just kinda turned out to look like cherry blossom petals." Kiba explained.

"Well whatever the case, it worked." (Y/N) assured, extending his hand for Kiba. "C'mon let's head back to the others and get the hell out of here."

Kiba smiled and reached for his hand, only to realize everything around him and his ally grew darker by the second.

(Y/N) quickly took notice of this as well, turning to the sky and seeing a familiar adversary descending right above them. His eyes widened in shock. "OH YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!!!" He roared shielding himself and Kiba behind his Dragon Emperor barrier.

As the beast landed onto the barrier, the ground below erupted, forming a crater underneath its prey's feet.

(Y/N) struggled to stand against the Behemoth's weight, using all his magical energy to keep the barrier from breaking. "Of course it wouldn't be that fucking easy!" He hissed. The Dragon Emperor transformed into his Dragon Scale form and focused magic energy into his fist. He quickly dropped the barrier and pulled his fist back. "AZURE DRAGON CLAW BREAKER!!!" He cried, launching his fist into the monster's face, sending it flying back, only to watch it land on its feet.

Kiba stood back up, using a sword to prop himself up properly. "For such a massive monster, it's got incredible reflexes."

"It's a giant cat-dog thing with massive horns, it's a pain in the ass." (Y/N) replied, quickly noticing something odd about the Behemoth in front of them. 'Is that thing, smoking?' He thought, observing the steam and heat lines radiating off the monster.

The beast took the opportunity to pounce, only to be blasted away by a pair of fists, crashing into a wall and buried in the rubble.

The young devils turned and saw Koneko and Issei standing on their feet. Yet their injuries remained.

"Koneko! Issei! You guys okay?" Kiba asked.

"More or less." Koneko replied.

"I'm fuckin' exhausted. How much longer 'til this thing's dead?" Issei groaned.

"No idea." (Y/N) replied, his dragonic features disappeared, only for him to summon his Oath Maker. "Well just have to keep at it 'til it finally goes down." He claimed, raising his sword into the air. "HEAL!!!" He cried, surrounding himself and his friends in a warm veil of green light, healing some of their injuries. "Sorry, but that's about as much as I can do right now. I don't have much magical energy left in me." He apologized.

"Don't sweat it. Now that we're all here, we can put this feral thing down together!" Issei cheered.

The makeshift tomb of boulders erupted apart as the Behemoth charged at the group of devils at breakneck speed.

"Everyone get ready!" (Y/N) prompted.

However, the Behemoth stopped in its tracks, unable to move and break free.

Everyone stared at the bindings around the beast, entrapping it in a web like trap.

"Kiba, what is this?" (Y/N) asked, looking down to the blonde who held a pierced orange glowing sword into the ground, multiple streams branching out across the blade.

"A new magical sword I've been wanting to try out. Entraps anyone and anything within a web of fire." Kiba rose his finger to one of the extended streams. "With just a little outside contact..." He strung the string and the entire web erupted into a massive explosion. "And the whole thing explodes. I'm thinking of calling it my Ambush Flare Blade." He claimed, only to look down in ponder. "Maybe I should rethink the name a bit. Seems like a mouthful." He thought.

"Whatever it's called doesn't matter..." (Y/N) said, summoning his Oblivion and conjuring black and purple flames on the blade. "All that matters is the effectiveness." He claimed, raising his sword to attack. "1000 DIVINE CUTS!!!" He roared, sending a massive wave of black fire at the beast within the smoke.

However, as the smoke began to fade, a concentrated red light shined through and the heat began to radiate from inside harsher and harsher by the second. The light blew out of the smoke and was sent hurling towards the devils, burning everything nearby into nothing.

(Y/N)'s eyes widened in horror. "MOVE!!!" He ordered, causing everyone to move out of the way of the oncoming projectile.

The red ball flew past them all and continued onward, scorching and incinerating everything in its path before fading into the distance. A large explosion erupted from a mountain in the far off distance, reducing it to a smoldering crater.

All the devils stared in horror at this shocking feat, unable to comprehend what they had just seen. Yet slowly but surely, they began to come to acceptance.

"That...That blast was as strong as a full powered Dragon Shot!!" (Y/N) turned to face the beast, but was shocked to see that the stray had undergone a transformation.

The beast now stood on its hind legs, standing more human-like, it's claws bigger and covered in fire, as was the rest of the beasts body. It's complexion had turned from dark grey to a reddish brown with light red hair, and a more muscular build.

"Oh you've got to be fucking kidding me!" (Y/N) cursed. "This thing isn't even a Behemoth anymore, IT'S AN IFRIT!!!

The monster of flames vanished, only to appear in front of Koneko as it rammed its fist into Koneko, blasting her back into a gorge and rendering her unconscious and bloody.

Issei looked back and saw his beaten ally. "KONEKO!!!" He cried, only to be met with the Ifrit stray's flaming fist, shattering the remains of his armor and blasting him back into a nearby wall, rendering him unconscious.

"ISSEI!!! KONEKO!!!" (Y/N) cursed, feeling his power rising alongside his anger. "DAMN YOU!!!" He roared as he changed to his Black Heart from.

He jumped up high quickly conjuring a collection of black and green colored portals around him. "Try this on for size you fire-breathing shittard! OUROBOROS!!!" Metallic snake shaped heads appeared from the portals as they quickly launched to the beast, wrapping around it tightly with it's black and green chains.

The beast was unable to move.

"There's more where that came from!" (Y/N) declared, grasping the one of the chains tightly as his hand began to spark with green and black lightning. "CALAMITY BOLT!!!"

The surge of powerful electricity streamed across the metallic chains and shocked the Ifrit, causing it to roar in agony as it fell to one knee.

(Y/N) conjured a massive shadow claw and rose it high to increase its size. Once big enough, he unleashed it onto beast, slamming into the ground with a massive crater forming underneath it. He quickly formed a shadow axe and descended down to attack once more. Before he could unleash his axe, the beast rose its arm up, causing (Y/N) to evade back.

The stray simply stood back up, its wounds steamed, healing rather quickly.

'You've got to be kidding me. How much more punishment can this thing take before it goes down?!' (Y/N) thought.

The Ifrit grabbed a small handful of the chains around its body, only to rip them off with relative ease.

"No way..." (Y/N) stood in disbelief and horror. 'Is this thing getting stronger with the damage it takes?!' He thought, only to watch the horned beast vanish before his very eyes.

In an instant, the stray of flame appeared before the shadow coated devil and rammed him with his head at supersonic speed.

Unable to counter the sudden blow, (Y/N) took the damage head on and spewed up blood as he screamed in pain. As he flew back, the beast grabbed him within its claws and held him tightly.

The beast simply watched as the young devil continued to struggle to break free, only to proceed and squeeze him tightly in its hands causing him to scream bloody murder.

Kiba appeared from behind above and readied his sword.

The Ifrit's tail rose up and smacked the blonde swordsmen away and back onto the ground unconscious.

The stray continued to crush (Y/N), watching as his shadows faded away and cough up blood as it continued. It slammed him against the hillside and watched him cough up more blood.

"For crying out loud, can't a man take a nap in peace anymore?"

The beast turned to the direction of the new and unfamiliar voice, only to see nothing. Feeling a sudden pain in its hand, it looked down to see its hand had been cut clean off. By the time the stray realized this, it roared viciously in pain, gripping it as tightly as it could.

(Y/N) slowly opened his eyes, quickly realizing he was back in the ground and out of the Ifrit's clutches. "How the hell?!"

"Still alive huh? You're tough kid."

The weakened devil looked up, seeing a horned white haired man, a massive bastard sword strapped to his back. 'A-Are those...horns?' He thought.

"How about I finish things off here? And in return, you can answer some questions for me." Bustra turned and stared at the boy, awaiting his response.

"W-What?" (Y/N) looked absolutely confused.

He simply chuckled at the young devil's reaction only to stare back at the writhing beast. "So, how about we finish things here ugly?!" He questioned aggressively as he ascended slowly into the air. "Come on, you still got one hand left. I suggest you use it or else this won't be fun for me." He prompted.

The beast stray roared maliciously. Fire erupted from below and engulfed its remaining hand in a brilliant flame, swinging its inflamed fist into the horned stranger chasing into the gorge walls in front of it as well.

"You call that a punch?" The horned man asked.

The beast turned its head and saw him holding its arm with ease.

"That was the slowest shit I've ever seen." He tightened his hold on the Ifirit's arm and he proceeded to reel back his, tightening his fist. "This is a real punch!!" He launched his fist at the stray, blowing the other side of it in half into oblivion.

The beast stumbled back and fell to its knees, hunching the remainder of its body as the blood leaked from its body.

(Y/N) watched in astonishment. The unknown horned man in white who had appeared out of nowhere finished the stray off with a single blow, while it gave him and his friends so much trouble.

Bustra landed in front of the wounded devil gently, only giving him a cocky smile. "And THAT...Is how you deal with an Ifirit." He said, only for a shadow to loom over him.

(Y/N)'s eyes widened in horror at the sight of the Ifirit stray still alive.

The beast lunged at the white-haired man with a mighty, bloodthirsty roar.

"Behind you!" (Y/N) warned.

The horned man in white simply smiled, slowly reaching for the handle of the sword on his back. "It's you I sever..." He said, his bastard sword glowed white as he pulled it out, swinging it with ease at the oncoming threat. "RIPPER AXEL!!!" He roared, blasting the stray with a spiraling wave of light magic, proceeding to rip the beast into shreds as it faded into the spiraling white vortex.

As the violent wave of light vanished, the horned man turned to the young devil who continued to stare is shock

"Go." Bustra nodded his head in the direction of (Y/N) beaten comrades. "You're friends need some healing, I suggest you get on it."

(Y/N)'s eyes widened. He struggled to stand back up and summoned Oath Maker. "Th-Thanks!" He said before limping over to his friends in hopes of healing them. "Guys!"

Time Skip

After collecting Kiba and Koneko, (Y/N) laid them down gently to avoid causing anymore pain.

"There you go." He whispered. "Just hang on guys,

"Hey!" The bastard sword wielding horned man in white walked towards the worried devil with something hanging from under his arm. "This one of yours?" He asked, looking down to Issei, who appeared to be unconscious but had foamed at the mouth from shock.

(Y/N) stared in silence at the seemingly lifeless body, blinking a few times before responding. "...Yes, yes he is."

The man said nothing and tossed the brunette to the young devil.

(Y/N) caught his fellow devil, laying him on the ground gently before stepping back. He conjured Oath Maker and rose it high, the blade glowed green as a warm veil encompassed those of unconscious mind. "Heal!" He chanted, pouring every drop of what little magical energy he had left to spare into healing his friends. 'I don't have much magical energy left. Come on guys! Wake up! Please!' He begged as he focused more of his energy into the healing process, eventually collapsing in exhaustion. "Shit!" He grunted weakly.

However, despite (Y/N) seemingly failed attempt, the others slowly began to open their eyes.

Kiba groaned as he slowly rose up, rubbing his sore and tired eyes. "Ugh...anyone get the number of that bus that ran us over over and over again?" He groaned.

"Guh..." Issei groaned in pain. "I feel like a got crushed by a steam roller, that was punched repeatedly until it exploded."

"That's...oddly specific." Koneko strained.

"GUYS!!!" (Y/N) leaped forward, giving his group of friends a hearty bear hug. "Thank God..." He cried happily. "Thank God you're all okay."

Koneko looked at her crying upperclassmen with speculation and unamusement. "You're joking right?"

"It's a common phrase Koneko. Just let me have this!!" He bickered as he continued to cry.

"Fine." The Rook rolled her eyes and hugged her upperclassmen, an accepting smirk on her face.

"Aw, ain't that sweet." The horned man said.

The devils turned to Bustra.

(Y/N) struggled to stand. Quickly falling before being caught by Koneko and Issei, helping him back up. "Thank you so much for you help. I really appreciate the save sir!" He bowed.

"Don't flatter yourself kid." The horned man in white replied bluntly. "I didn't step in to save you or your friends." He added. "I was taking a nap and felt this massive surge of demonic magic energy."

(Y/N) looked at the man in confusion. 'Demonic?'

"After that, nonstop shaking and roaring. That got my ass up and I decided to take it out myself." The man explained as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Look, if you can't face something like that, then you shouldn't have fought it to begin with." He scolded.

"We didn't exactly have a choice. This was a request from a client so we had to get it done one way or the other." Kiba explained. "We truly appreciate your assistance sir." The blonde Knight bowed.

"For real, thanks for the save." Koneko bowed.

"Is there anything we can do to repay the favor?" The injured devil asked.

The man went silent, rubbing his thin-cut beard in thought. His eyes went wide at a sudden thought. "Actually, there might be." He leaned closer. "Did any of you happen to see where the source of that evil energy went?"

The devils looked at each other confused. "Evil energy?"

"Yeah...hard to miss. Dark, suffocating, demonic magical energy."

"May I ask why?" (Y/N) questioned.

The horned man stared at him with his cold grey eyes. "Well...if you really wanna know...It's because the thing might be the monster I'm looking for." He said. "That monster is a danger to everything that exists."

(Y/N) tensed up, unsure of how to response.

"You see, this "thing" has the guts to try and step in and help other people without nothing in return. It's been doing this for years, causing humanity's survival instincts to weaken. Making them stagnant and lazy, having to rely on others to get by and live."

The devils began to slowly grow uncontrollable. The pressure in the air began to thicken. The air filled with rage, anger, hatred and spite.

"EVERYONE NEEDS TO FEND FOR THEMSELVES!!! IF THE WEAK HAPPEN TO DIE THEN SO BE IT!!! I WILL HUNT DOWN THE ONE KNOWN AS (Y/N) (L/N) AND WIPE HIM OFF THE FACE OF THIS REALITY!!! WE WILL LEAD THE PEOPLE TO SALVATION AND SHOW THEM THAT THE WEAK DIE AND THE STRONG LIVE!!! THE VERY REALITY SHALL RETURN TO HOW THINGS WERE!!!" Bustra roared viciously, panting heavily as he finishing his declaration.

The devils slowly turned to the supposed target with fear.

"W-Well..." (Y/N) gulped nervously. "Sorry to say sir, we can't help. We were kinda to busy fighting for our lives to notice any "evil" energies."

The horned man groaned. "Seriously?!"

"Sorry we couldn't be of much help." (Y/N) apologized.

Bustra turned around and began walking away. "Whatever. See you around I guess." He said as he took his leave.

The group of devils began to head back. Unsure of how to process what had just happened.

"What the hell was that?" Kiba questioned with terror in his voice.

"Some psycho who wants to kill our friend because he think it'll apparently fix the world?" Koneko replied. "How the hell should I know? It was hard enough trying to resist how much power he was releasing just by screaming his head off."

"Seriously..." Issei groaned. "What the hell was that all about? Do you know that guy (Y/N)?"

The air suddenly went cold. A violent presence appeared behind the devils. Bloodlust and intent to kill enveloped them all.

"I see...So you're (Y/N)..." Bustra said, appearing right behind the group, his hand on his sword's handle. "You're the one I've been looking for." He said with malicious intent. "You're the one we're supposed to kill..."