32

Asia followed me like a love struck puppy all through the next day. It was adorable really, and Lavinia clearly took notice.

"Kukuku, operation Taytay's Harem is progressing according to plan," I heard her mutter under her breath. She was rubbing her hands together like an old-school cartoon villain and practically cackling. I just laughed at her antics and pulled her into my side. Asia looked left out, so I ended up pulling her into my other side.

Now, let me tell you, walking with your arms around two girls who are in love with you isn't something I ever thought would happen to me before I got kidnapped. Honestly, my opinion on the ROBs was starting to come around. Which was a good thing, since they were basically my employers now. I wonder if I'd ever get to watch any of my own porn.

Sona's presence knocked me out of my thoughts, "Taylor, a moment of your time, please."

Nodding at Asia and Lavinia, they went on ahead. Sona turned and walked away, obviously expecting me to follow. She led me to the student council room, and sat down behind her desk. We were the only two people in the room, and Sona had a cup of tea waiting for me.

I glanced at the chess board off to the side of Sona's desk. I knew the fastest way into her panties was an appeal to her intelligence, but I wasn't confident I could beat her even with all my essences. I absently made a mental note to develop a chess-winning spell.

"What's this about?" I asked.

"I have a problem that I would like you to look into. There have been rumors of strange events happening in the skies above Kuoh. Flashes of lightning on clear days, intense bouts of pressure that push people to the ground, things of that nature."

"Ok. I guess I can do that. Why me though?"

Sona sighed, "Honestly, I would go myself, but I am swamped trying to organize everything for a surprise visit from the Church. Rias is in the same boat as me, and you are the only High-class devil free at the moment."

"What's the Church coming to Kuoh for?" I asked.

"There seems to be a delicate situation developing within the Church. My sister says some relics have been stolen and tracked to Kuoh. That, and with the appearance of another Pure Blooded Devil in Kuoh, the Church probably wants to know more about you."

"Great, just what I needed," I said. "Exorcists playing secret agent."

Sona gave me a commiserating nod, "The Church won't try anything to break the peace, so please just put up with it until they leave."

"Any ideas what could be causing the phenomenon in the sky?"

"Considering that we are in Japan, it could be a rogue Youkai. An Akashita that is ignoring the truce we have with the Shinto faction, maybe?"

"Anything else?" I asked, already turning to leave.

"Yes, I would like to officially propose an alliance between our two families. Since you don't own any land in the Underworld, I was thinking it might be possible to gift you a small portion of the Sitri territory. This way you'll have some place to stay while in the Underworld. It won't be much, but it would be the start of a connection between our two clans."

"Right, uh, I'll think about it. I'm not opposed, but I'm going to have to talk to Rias about it, at the very least. This would be my first real step into devil politics after my debut."

Sona nodded, "Certainly. Take your time."

I dismissed myself, and walked to class, distracted by my thoughts. I knew the relics Sona had referred to were the holy swords. Which meant Irina and Xenovia should be showing up soon. It also meant I would have to find a way to distract or dissuade Kiba from running off after them. He had a legitimate grievance against the Church, but he was focusing his anger on the wrong subject.

With Valerie's help, we'd probably be able to revive his friends, which should pacify him somewhat. If I helped Kiba kill Valper Galilei, he'd be able to get revenge on the person actually responsible for his suffering.

I wasn't sure who Kokabiel would get to wield the Excalibur fragments this time around. I had changed some events by killing Freed, but it didn't seem like Kokabiel had changed his original plan.

Also the prospect of an alliance with the Sitri clan was appealing. If it went through, I would be connected to three of the four Satans. Ajuka through Bulma's internship. Sirzechs through my future marriage with Rias. And now Serafell through an alliance with her little sister. It would make me some enemies though. I was already the talk of devil society because of my Rating Game and having two Longinus in my peerage.

After school let out, I prepared myself to investigate the rumors. I was pretty sure this didn't happen in canon, so I didn't really know what to expect. Whatever was causing the phenomenon had to be a result of some butterfly my presence had set in motion.

It was an overcast day in Kuoh. A thick gray blanket of clouds covered the skies. Disillusioning myself, I let out my wings and flew upwards. Visibility was almost zero in the clouds. I had to use my Warp Observation like echolocation to see anything.

Nothing was immediately jumping out at me. Sure, the clouds seemed unnaturally thick, but I couldn't identify the source. As I flew further up though, I started to hear whispers coming from the clouds. It sounded like a constant droning chant in a language I couldn't place.

A colossal bird that I knew wasn't native to Japan flew past me in the cloud cover. It flew so fast that it was only in my sensory range for a second. The shadow it cast through the clouds seemed unnaturally dark and menacing. The shriek of an eagle pierced the noise of the wind.

I could feel the intense pressure that Sona had mentioned now. It was like the very sky was pressing on me from all angles. The air itself was telling me I wasn't welcome here.

The clouds started churning like the currents of a whirlpool. Winds battered me around so much that I had to use my magic to stay in one place. The sky darkened, until flashes of lightning were the only visible light. Thunder boomed constantly, not seeming to correlate with any of the lightning.

Strange creatures made of clouds appeared in each flash of light. They snarled and snapped impossible jaws in my direction. The droning chant was louder now, somehow able to be heard clearly over the roar of thunder and wind.

Suddenly, everything stopped. I was in the eye of the supernatural hurricane. I could see clouds surge like waves outside of the small area of calmness I was in. Lightning streaked through the dense clouds, but I couldn't hear the thunder that should have accompanied it.