Heart of a Butterfly (Persona 3 X DxD)

"The wind feels so nice..."

I couldn't describe this feeling well, because it was my first time experiencing such a feeling. Before that particular incident at the bridge, I was just a machine, a tool to be used against Shadows, a weapon to be wielded in the battles. The old me would never experience such a feeling.

"This is my first time experiencing spring."

I looked down, and my eyes met a pair of steely grey pupils, which belonged to a blue-haired boy, whose head was resting on my lap. Those eyes of his seemed tired, and yet I could see that he was in peace. I was a little concerned and a little anxious because considering that I was not a human being, my thighs were too hard to be comfortable for him to put his head on. But from his peaceful expression, I could see that he didn't mind at all.

I looked up again and saw flower petals fluttering in the air. The warmth in the air brought comfort into me, and I closed my eyes, enjoying this sensation.

"But, this season will eventually pass..." I said. Then, I looked down again, and once again, our eyes met. "After fighting alongside you, and facing the world's end, I finally began to understand what it means to live." I smiled as I brought my hand to his face, brushing his blue hair aside. In return, he gave me a tired smile.

His face seemed awfully pale and was very tired. It was probably due to the fact that he managed to save the world with that mysterious power of his. After everything that he had done, he deserved a well-earned rest.

"Thinking for yourself, not running away..." I remembered the time when I fought alongside him, facing overwhelming odds and ultimately winning. Not once did I see him turning his back against our opponents, unless for the sake of our teammates. Not once did he show any signs of cowardice, as we faced the manifestations of humanity's darkest thoughts. "Accepting the inevitable..." As we were presented with the impossibility of resisting against Death, we saw him standing up against it. "All things eventually come to an end..."

It was an undeniable truth. No matter how we live our lives, in the end, only Death matters.

"Every living thing will one day disappear. Only by accepting this can one discover what they truly want, what the meaning of their life will be..."

I shut my eyes, feeling something surging within me. Was this because of my realization I was feeling such thing?

"I understand now why I was so tormented by my lack of strength," I noticed the crack in my voice as I said that. "Protecting others became more than just an order I had to obey." I could see my hand tremble as I brushed aside his blue locks. "I wanted to do it for my own reasons. I realized this once I decided to try and prevent the Fall. When I thought I might never see you again, something else became clear to me – what I wanted most."

And at that moment, I realized something fell onto the back of my hand, something wet and warm. At first, I thought it was raining, but soon I realized that it was something else entirely.

Trying to ignore the sensation I felt in my chest, I continued. "And so, I made up my mind." More of it fell onto my hand, and then onto his face. I also felt it in my eyes, and it refused to stop. "I decided that I would continue to protect you. I want to be your strength. I know I'm not the only one who can do this... but that's okay. My life will be worth living if it's for this reason..."

Tears unbidden, as our eyes met again, I smiled as I choked back a sob.

"Thank you..."

It was strange. I knew that I was designed to have this one particular function, but it was to clean my optic lenses, which were my eyes. Even so, the tears refused to stop as I felt a feeling very strange to me, but never unpleasant.

And then, he brought up his hand, wiping away my tears with his fingers. Those steely, grey eyes were filled with concern. With a soft voice, he spoke to me as he swept away my tears.

"It'll be okay..."

From his voice alone, I knew that he was very tired. Even so, he was more concerned about me than himself.

"You're right. What am I doing?" I said, holding his hand that tenderly touched my face as he wiped away my tears. "I understand now, so I should be happy..." I was grateful and happy that it was him who saw me like this.

As he comforted me while I was crying, we heard a familiar voice, and then footsteps. It appeared that others might have regained their memories of what we had gone through together. Soon, we would be surrounded by everyone, and I wanted him to see their smiles. I wanted him to know that we were never alone.

"I realize now that I have friends as well." I stroked his face as I said that. "You don't have to save the world to find meaning in life. Sometimes, all you need is something simple, like someone to take care of." With renewed conviction and determination, I continued. "I'll keep on living no matter what, so that I can protect you."

The sounds of footsteps became closer.

"Thank you for everything..."

Heart of a Butterfly​

Persona 3 and High School DxD Crossover

Chapter 01: Electric Dream​

Slowly, she opened her eyes. A couple of wires were connected to her body as she sat on her capsule seat, which she used whenever she wanted to recharge herself or to sleep. Soft humming sounds could be heard from the machineries around her. She looked left and right. There was no one around her in this place, which was a laboratory that was used as her maintenance room.

"A dream..." she spoke softly before she moved her hands and disconnected herself from the wires attached on her body. It was strange, she thought to herself. Whenever she was sleeping, she would be put into 'sleep-mode', in which she was disabled from every one of her functions, so it should be impossible for her to experience dreams. There were times when such things brought confusion to her, as well as a couple of scientists monitoring her, but now she decided that she wouldn't have to make a big deal out of it.

Getting up from her capsule seat, she walked towards a mirror placed on the wall not too far from her. She blinked several times as she looked into her reflection. Besides a few minor changes, her appearance was still the same as how she looked a few years ago. As she examined her face, she noticed something on her cheek.

"Hmm?" She brought her hand to her cheek, and from her sense of touch, she learned that it was some kind of liquid that came from her right eye. It was probably when she was sleeping when the liquid that was usually used to clean her optic lenses leaked out. "Did I cry when I was sleeping?" The mechanical maiden muttered to herself as she continued examining her feature.

Then, she remembered the dream she was experiencing a while ago. It's been a while since the last time she experienced such a dream. Just remembering that dream brought some kind of nostalgic feeling into her.

Shaking off the feeling, she turned around and went to her wardrobe, opening it to reveal dozens of similar-looking clothing. She recalled the time when she was together with everyone in SEES, in which she had no other clothing other than her school uniform. It seemed that she was more comfortable wearing her black suit, the one provided to her by one of her friends. Taking one of the suits, she put it on herself. Then she put on a pair of specialized shoes for her fake feet. She needed to put on those shoes so that she could appear as a normal person instead of being an Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon.

The battle maiden sighed. She had already accepted the fact that she wasn't human, so she had to make the best out of it. Considering that she was, in fact, a machine that was incapable of dying, she would be able to live forever. With that, she would be able to use her powers to make this world, the world that he had saved, into a much better place.

After making sure that she was well-dressed, she stepped out of the laboratory, only to be greeted by the sight of a red-haired woman. "Ah..." she stepped back and bowed to the red-haired woman. "Good morning, Mitsuru-san."

The woman, Mitsuru smiled. "Good morning, Aigis. Though I should mention it's now 1 p.m."

"1 p.m.?" Aigis blinked a few times before she checked her database. As a battle gynoid, she had many features built within her, including clock and timer. "Ah. I overslept."

Mitsuru nodded as she folded her arms under her chest. "Yes. Even so, it has to be expected, considering that you were badly damaged at that time, back at Inaba. It took two days for you to be completely repaired."

"Oh." Aigis said, looking at the leader of the Shadow Operatives. Unlike before, the Kirijo wasn't wearing her tight catsuit and thick coat combo which made her stick out like a sore thumb, but instead, she was attired in a rather relatively normal clothing; a black jacket with double breast pockets and a pair of white riding pants, as well as a pair of boots. The key word here was 'relatively' because even though those articles of clothing were usually normal, when Mitsuru was wearing them, she still stood out.

Mitsuru eyed the mechanical maiden suspiciously. "Do you have anything to say, Aigis?"

"Am I allowed to give you my honest opinion regarding your choice in clothing, Mitsuru-san?" Aigis spoke, this time in her robotic tone. The red-haired woman frowned.

"No, you may not…" Mitsuru responded. She already knew Aigis very well to notice the time when she, by the words of other members of the Shadow Operatives, started acting like a smartass.

"Understood," Aigis nodded. "What did I miss when I was sleeping?" Her tone reverted back into her natural one, indicating that she had stopped, as one Junpei Iori would put very well, snarking.

"Well, you didn't miss much. Yukari and Amada went back to study at college and school respectively. Akihiko somehow disappeared, probably going to continue his training regiment. Iori returned to his work as a coach, and Labrys was sent to one of our labs for further tuning." Mitsuru explained to Aigis.

"How about Fuuka-san?" Aigis asked.

"Ah, about her, she volunteered to be your part-time handler. Yamagishi was concerned about your condition, so she offered to be the one to fix your damaged parts." Mitsuru said.

"I see. I should thank her once I meet her again, I suppose," Aigis said. "By the way, Mitsuru-san, what brought you here?" She asked. "Do you need something from me?"

"About that…"

---

"Shadow activity?" Aigis' brow furrowed into a frown after listening to what Mitsuru had said. "After everything that happened during Golden Week., are you sure?" Both Aigis and Mitsuru were currently in Mitsuru's office.

"Yes." Mitsuru nodded. "Our detector picked up the signal, and the reading was abnormally high. So much that it couldn't be considered a minor activity. I even asked Yamagishi to use her Persona to double-check to confirm it, and we were not mistaken. Without a doubt, there is Shadow activity out there, and I want you to observe it."

"Observe?" Aigis tilted her head.

"Yes, observe," Mitsuru said. "Considering that we still don't know anything about this place, I just want you to observe, or rather, to investigate this matter." Then, the red-haired woman sighed as she pinched the bridge of her nose. "And we are terribly undermanned at the moment. Akihiko somehow disappeared, and we can't just ask Yukari or Amada to suddenly show up to assist you, and Labrys is still undergoing tests. I also have a lot of things to deal with here," she gestured at the stack of papers on her desk, "so I'm afraid that you have to go alone for the time being, and you have to do a little reconnaissance work. Of course, you will be equipped with your weaponry in case you're faced with a worst-case scenario, but unless you can't avoid it, a direct confrontation is discouraged."

"So, you want me to investigate this Shadow activity?" Aigis asked.

"Correct. So, because this is a reconnaissance mission, you have to blend into the community over there, so you have to pose as a transfer student at Kuoh Academy - the closest learning institution to the place where the Shadow activity was detected." Mitsuru said. "Ah, if you're worried about your background, we already have it covered for you. While you were sleeping, I took the liberty to submitting your enrollment form." She took out a card from her breast pocket. "And this is your student ID."

Aigis took the student ID as Mitsuru handed it to her. There was a picture of her, wearing her black suit with red necktie. Then she looked at her name and frowned.

Ai Kirijo

"Ah, if you're wondering about the name, since they may run a background check on you, I took the liberty to make forged documents of your birth certificate, indicating that you are my long lost half-sister." Mitsuru continued. "And I have to act as your relative so that you will be able to be enrolled into Kuoh Academy without problems."

"Making forged documents does not sound very lawful of you, Mitsuru-san," Aigis commented in robotic tone. Well, she already did the same back then, when they were at Gekkoukan High School before.

"I don't want to hear that little comment from you, Aigis," Mitsuru remarked before she sighed. "And I want you to investigate this matter thoroughly. Also, I expect a report for every significant finding."

"Understood," Aigis responded.

"And..." Mitsuru smiled. "I want you to enjoy yourself, too. You don't have to rush it, so you should enjoy a high school life at Kuoh Academy. From what I have heard, it is quite a prestigious learning institution. It used to be an all-girl school, but recently, it was changed into a co-ed school. Even if you have completed your investigation, you may continue going to that school for a year."

"Huh? Do you want me to go to high school all over again?" Aigis asked, confused.

"Let's just say that this is your chance to experience a relatively normal high school life for once. The time at Gekkoukan doesn't count, of course." Mitsuru smiled kindly at the battle maiden. "And you've been working very hard these last few months. A nice change of pace won't hurt you, right?"

For a while, Aigis was silent, seemingly pondering about this. And then, she looked at Mitsuru. "Very well. If you insist that this is the best for me, then I shall follow."

"Thank you," Mitsuru said. "So, do you have any questions?"

"When do I start?" Aigis asked.

"You're going to be officially enrolled into Kuoh Academy next week. All you have to do is to mentally prepare yourself. If you need anything, feel free to tell me. Any other questions?"

"Am I allowed to give my honest opinion regarding you making a decision behind my back, Mitsuru-san?" Aigis asked, once again in robotic tone.

Mitsuru frowned. Aigis was being a smartass again. "No, you may not."

"Understood."

---

"My name is Ai Kirijo. I will be in your care for the time being."

Aigis, or Ai Kirijo introduced herself to her new classmates. Like most female students of the school, she was wearing white long-sleeved, button-down shirt with vertical linings, a black shoulder cape and a matching button-down corset, as well as a magenta skirt with white accent. Unlike others, however, she was wearing a red ribbon instead of a black one. It seemed that she was rather attached to this particular color. And in order to hide her mechanical parts, she wore white gloves and black pantyhose.

She was greeted warmly by her new classmates, though there were a few male students who seemed to be overly ecstatic about her being in their class. These particular male students, three in number, were infamously known among the student body as the Perverted Trio, as a few of her new female friends in class had helpfully explained it to her. She was advised to not get associated with these three due to their chronic perversity and their obsessions toward two particular parts of female anatomy - as well as obsession towards one particular article of undergarment worn underneath a female's skirt.

"Ah, I'm wearing pantyhose, so there's nothing to worry here. And there is nothing to see underneath my skirt, after all..." Aigis said innocently to her classmates.

"Well, if you say s- wait, nothing?!" One of her classmates said. "Umm... Kirijo-san, what did you say?"

"What did I say?" Aigis asked in bewilderment.

"Umm..." another classmate spoke. "W-well, umm... did you just say that you don't wear panties?"

Aigis blinked several times. She was a battle android, so wearing a pair of panties would be unnecessary. "No. I don't wear panties." After a pause she added, "And don't worry, I put on my pantyhose."

Several gasps chorused within the classroom. And to make it even worse, one of the Perverted Trio overheard the part about their new classmate not wearing panties. And naturally, he went to tell the other two within the trio about this fact. They seemed overjoyed.

In the end, all the female students in that particular class became rather protective of their new classmate, in order to protect her innocence from being stained by the filth of the Perverted Trio.

---

"So, how's the school?" Mitsuru asked Aigis via a phone call after school. The battle android was currently in her apartment, waiting orders from the leader of the Shadow Operatives.

"To be honest, I didn't expect it to be like this. It was different compared to Gekkoukan," Aigis admitted. "Everyone is friendly and very supportive. Even though there were a few odd ones in the class, I suppose everyone is a decent person."

"I see. Hmm... what do you mean by 'odd ones'?" Mitsuru asked, curious.

"There are-" Aigis immediately and abruptly stopped herself. She knew Mitsuru very well to expect her reaction if she told her about the Perverted Trio and their incorrigible perversity. After all, Mitsuru wasn't nicknamed 'Queen of Execution' for no reason. "Well, there are a few eccentric ones in the classroom, but there are none of them who are worth mentioning or worth being executed."

"I... see..." Mitsuru said with an uncertain tone. "So, how will you proceed?"

"The same as you suggested." Aigis answered. "I will go to the area where the activity was detected. Because this is just a reconnaissance mission, I am only required to survey the area and then report any finding to you. Direct confrontation is not advised."

"Good. We'll be counting on you, Aigis. And please be safe," Mitsuru told the battle android. Aigis smiled, noticing the concern in Mitsuru's voice. Despite their relationship being a leader-subordinate one, the fact that both of them were friends was undeniable.

"Understood. Please expect good news from me, Mitsuru-san."

Aigis put down her phone on the table once the conversation ended. She had to be prepared for this mission. She looked at herself and she was still attired in her school uniform. First, she unbuttoned her corset-like vest and took off the shoulder cape. Then she took off the rest. She put her clothes on the table neatly before she reached for her black suit. And of course, she wouldn't forget to put on her red necktie. It was clear as day that she had some sort of attachment to this particular color.

Next, she checked her equipment. She had two combat knives, designed by Kirijo Group. The knives were designed to combat human opponents instead of Shadows because they had some kind of function that can stun humans. They wouldn't be effective against Shadows, however, and she had to use her heavy firearms in order to eliminate them. She put the knives into her jacket.

There was also a briefcase on the table. Aigis reached out to open the briefcase, revealing some kind of metallic device in it. Shaped like a gun, it was a device specifically designed to shoot some kind of pseudo-trauma, which allowed someone to summon a Persona: an Evoker. Aigis had no need for such thing, however, because as an Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon, she had a built-in Evoker within her. It just happened that she kept it after the death of its previous owner. Aigis reached to it and gingerly held the device with her hands.

"Minato-san..." Aigis muttered, saying the name of its previous owner. The Evoker was still in a good condition because she had been taking good care of it. It was one of a few mementos of him that she had in her possession, the other ones being his earphones and MP3 player. "Please hang in there."

Years ago, when she finally saw the miracle performed by him, she finally realized the reason behind his death. In order to prevent the darkness within the hearts of men, Erebus, from reaching Nyx, he sacrificed himself to become the Great Seal. Unless humanity became enlightened so that it would never wish for death anymore, he would remain there, stuck within the Collective Unconscious forever to be a barrier between Erebus and Nyx. It was a sad fate for a savior of humanity like him, but Aigis knew that the sacrifice was necessary for the survival of mankind.

"I will make sure that the world you have saved, the world that you have protected, will be a place where everyone can be happy..." Aigis muttered, clutching the device against her chest. "This is the least I can do to ease your burden." She could faintly hear a soft hum inside her chest, and she knew that it was her Plume of Dusk reacting to the memories of him. Her Plume of Dusk, aptly named the Papillon Heart because it was shaped like a butterfly, was an essential item within her that granted her a personality, which allowed her to summon her Persona.

And she still could recall the time when she exposed her heart for him to see, and asked him to touch it - so that his genetic information would be permanently burned into her. A Plume of Dusk was an extremely delicate thing, akin to a human's heart. And yet, she trusted him to touch hers. Of course, he expressed his concern over the fact that he might end up damaging it. And yet he still did it, reaching into her heart by touching it tenderly and gently, and at that time, both of them became one.

Just recalling that time made the android's cheeks to heat up. It was probably due to her CPU or something overworking itself, but was making her cheeks red necessary to show it? After calming herself down, she put down the Evoker into the briefcase and then closed it.

"I'll be going now, Minato-san." Aigis said. "Please wish me luck."

Aigis stepped out of her apartment to go to the area where the Shadow activity was detected.

---

"Judging from the reading, the activity should be here..." Aigis muttered as she stood before an old, abandoned warehouse at the outskirts of the town. Nobody was there, much to her relief. In case if she was forced to fight, she wouldn't have to worry about getting innocent people involved into this.

When she scanned the area, she found out that there was some kind of residue of Shadow activity. It was faint, but it was still there.

"A Shadow shouldn't be able to manifest in the real world. So, unless if there is some kind of phenomenon such as a miniaturized Dark Hour happening here, Shadow activity is unlikely..." Aigis spoke to herself. "Perhaps I should investigate what is inside this warehouse." She walked towards the entrance of the warehouse, but when she tried to open it, she found out it was locked.

Aigis blinked several times. While it wasn't that strange to have an abandoned warehouse to be locked, Aigis had a hunch that there was something being kept inside this warehouse.

"Then, I suppose there is no other choice." Aigis took off the glove of her right hand, revealing the blackened tips of her fingers. "Ready to fire."

She aimed her fingers at the locked door before her.

"Fire!"

Without reservation, she released a barrage of bullets at the locked door from her fingers. She folded the sleeve of her right hand to allow the bullet shells to be ejected out. The empty bullet shells clattered onto the pavement as she ejected them.

After she was done firing, she moved her fingers before clenching her right hand into a fist as she observed what happened to the door. Sure enough, it was demolished thanks to her firing at it. "Ah, I overdid." Well, at least she was able to accomplish her goal of unlocking the door. She put on the glove back and pushed the door open.

And she wasn't prepared to see what awaited her inside the warehouse.

"W-what in the world is this?!" Aigis gasped. Inside the warehouse, she saw a dozen of people, most of them schoolchildren, slumped against the floor and the wall, unresponsive and pale-skinned. She was familiar enough with these signs to recognize what was happening to these people.

There was no doubt about it.

"Apathy Syndrome..." Aigis could feel her rage starting to build up within her. Whatever happened to these people, there had to be someone behind it. Back then, at Tatsumi Port Island, there was some kind of outbreak of this condition, which was caused by the Shadows. It was a result of having one's psyche eaten by Shadows, reducing the victims into a vegetative state.

She went closer to these people, noticing that some of them were wearing the school uniforms of Kuoh Academy. There were no signs of injury on them, but judging from how they were placed, she had a feeling that they might have gone through some kind of experimentation which caused them to turn into the Lost, or people inflicted by Apathy Syndrome.

"I have to report this to Mitsuru-san immediately," Aigis spoke to herself. She was about to take out her phone from her pocket, but then, she sensed something. Immediately, she jumped back, barely avoiding an energy beam that was hurled out of nowhere. "An enemy?!" She quickly took out one of her combat knives from her jacket and crouched, placing one hand on the floor while the other was holding the combat knife. She scanned her surroundings to see the source of the energy beam that was hurled towards her.

"My, my, it seems that you do know how to fight..." a voice was heard from above. "Well, I probably shouldn't miss my next attack..."

"Who's there?!" Aigis looked up, and much to her surprise, she saw a purple-haired woman, clad in a rather scandalous outfit that shouldn't be considered legal, with a miniskirt that displayed her shapely legs and a shirt that couldn't only be considered impractical, but also showed a massive amount of cleavage. But all those details were nothing compared to a pair of leathery wings behind her, which seemed to allow her to hover in the air like that. "Who are you?!" Aigis held her combat knife in a reverse-grip.

"Me? Oh, you don't have to know about that, dear..." the winged woman cooed as she slowly descended to the floor and landed gracefully in front of Aigis. There were a few markings on her face and body, and Aigis could see that these markings seemed to be glowing. "Even so, this is quite a surprise, don't you think? I never thought that anyone would ever come here."

"What are you? What have you done to these people?" Aigis asked, cautiously looking at this woman. In response, the woman chuckled.

"You sound like you seem to have a good idea about what was happening to these poor souls..." The woman smirked. "Well, all I did was harvest their psyches for my grand plan. Convincing them to come here was just a piece of cake, and they didn't have any slight idea of what was happening to them as I turned them into these..." She gestured at the people inflicted by Apathy Syndrome near them. "Even so, they should be proud that they played quite an essential role in order for my grand plan to be realized."

"You did... what to them?!" Aigis glared at the woman. She caused this to them?!

"Calm down, dear. All they did in their life was wasting their time in everything, so it should be beneficial for them to play such a role in my plan. All they did in life was fool around, making no contribution to the world. They were simply a waste of time for everyone. So, is it wrong for me to correct such a thing?" The woman said, feigning innocence. She flapped her leathery wings behind her slightly as she spoke, folding her arms under her chest.

"Even so, you have no right to decide what people should do!" Aigis exclaimed. "And here, you stripped them of their will to live, turning them into these... these empty shells of men!" She pointed at the Lost.

"Ah, it seems that I shouldn't waste my time arguing with you..." the woman held one of her hands up before she snapped her fingers. Suddenly, Aigis could feel something changing around them. From the windows of the warehouse, she was able to see the sky turning green and everything around them became silent. There was no sound of birds or any animals. "You have seen what I had done to them, so I will not let you out of this place alive, dear. No hard feelings, though."

"T-this..." Aigis recognized the phenomenon that was happening around her. "A miniaturized Dark Hour. I-it can't be..." Then, she heard sounds that seemed familiar to her before a few masked creatures emerged out of nowhere. She recognized these creatures because she was specifically designed to destroy them. "Shadows…"

Chuckling, the woman approached one of the Shadows and stroked it like a mother would to her child. "Now... let's see how well you can keep my children entertained. Please don't disappoint them, m'kay?"

TO BE CONTINUED​

 

Aigis jumped out of the warehouse, barely avoiding the attacks from the Shadows that somehow were tamed and controlled by the winged lady with purple hair. As soon as she reached the outside of the warehouse, she regained her footing and took a good look at her surroundings. She was able to properly see the sickly green sky and feel the damp air around her. Water seemed to have turned into blood, like how she used to remember this phenomenon.

The Dark Hour, a time which was supposedly hidden from normal humans. A separate dimension, a phantom zone in which the Shadows, the manifestations of humanity's dark thoughts, roamed around. And that woman not only invoked such a phenomenon, creating a miniaturized version of the Dark Hour, she was also capable of controlling the Shadows to do her bidding.

"You're fast, but you should just stay still so my children can kill you." The woman spoke as she walked out of the warehouse in a dainty fashion, followed by the Shadows. She then stroked one of the Shadows that was following her, a Shadow that took the shape of a white tiger chained to a massive metal ball. Aigis could hear the feline-shaped Shadow purr as the woman petted it like a person would do to pet a cat. "Even so, it makes me wonder. You're not a Devil, and yet you moved too fast to be a normal human being. What are you, exactly?"

Aigis didn't answer the woman's question as she warily looked at her and the Shadows that were surrounding her. Because she was sent for a reconnaissance mission, she was not equipped with her heavy weapons, which included rocket launchers or Gatling guns, instead only having mere combat knives and firearms. She believed that with her current equipment, she would be able to exterminate a Shadow or two without much trouble, but from what she could see, the number of the Shadows was very overwhelming for her to deal alone, and this mysterious woman seemed to possess some sort of unique power. She was the one who hurled the energy beam before.

And to make matters even worse, Aigis was unable to summon her Persona due to the fact that she had gotten some hardware replaced just a day before she departed from the Shadow Operative's headquarter. Due to the replacement, her ability to summon her Persona was 'locked' for a brief period of time in order for her to familiarize herself with the new hardware and for her system to run smoothly. While she could terminate the 'lock-down' mode to enable her to summon her Persona, it would take time, and these Shadows and the woman with them would not give her the luxury to do such thing.

Because the initial reading of the Shadow activity of the area wasn't shown to be particularly high that would warrant the usage of a Persona, she had come to this area, thinking that she wouldn't have to use her Persona since she still had her weapons in her disposal. Quietly, she chastised herself over her honest mistake.

Three minutes. That's all she needed to complete the termination sequence, but in the meantime, she had to deal with all these Shadows, as well as this mysterious woman.

"How did you do this?" Aigis tried this particular approach. As soon as she started the termination sequence, she tried to distract the woman by talking to her. She didn't drop her guard as she warily looked at her, holding her combat knife in one hand. "How did you manage to control all these Shadows?"

The mysterious winged lady raised her eyebrow as she placed one of her hands on her hip before she chuckled. "Oh? So you know what these creatures are, dear? Well, that does save us a little bit of time, don't you think?"

Aigis frowned. "My true purpose is to destroy these wretched, vile creatures." She took off her white gloves and tossed them to the ground. Each of her fingers functioned as firearms, which could release high-caliber bullets that were specifically designed to destroy Shadows.

"Ah… well, you're alone, against me and my beloved crew of Shadows." The winged lady spread her arms, grinning. "What can you do against us? You might be strong, but I'm sure you won't be able to handle all of us by yourself. Am I wrong?" The Shadows around her hissed and growled, as if agreeing with her.

'Good,' Aigis thought to herself. They didn't immediately attack, which allowed her to go on with her termination sequence without disturbance. She was glad that she was an android, which enabled her to make separate partitions within her system. This allowed her to run her termination sequence while at the same time, allowing herself to talk to this woman in order to distract her. "How did you manage to invoke this phenomenon?" Aigis was referring to the Dark Hour. "Unless if certain requirements are met, the manifestation of even a miniaturized version of it is impossible."

This time, the woman laughed. "My, aren't you a curious girl? Well, since you're going to die anyway, I shall entertain you." She touched her lips with her slender finger as she tilted her head. Her leathery wings flapped slightly as she moved her body in a rather sensual manner. "I've spent nearly two decades of researching this phenomenon, this Dark Hour. To be honest, it was quite an arduous task for me, and there was one time when I thought that it was impossible. And yet I persevered, and this is the fruit of my research! And all those poor souls are necessary for me to reach my goal. Can you imagine how many times I had to go through some trials-and-errors just to harvest all these Shadows from humans' psyche? Yes, I had been wasting a lot of time just to find an effective method to harvest the Shadows, but now, here they are! My beloved children! With the combination of magic and science and after going through countless processes of purification, I am able to create my own army of Shadows! And with them, I will be able to reach my ultimate goal!" Her sensual smile turned into a twisted grin, which somehow reminded Aigis of someone she was truly familiar with.

"Ultimate goal?" Aigis spoke before a realization hit her. "Don't tell me... you were trying to fulfill the prophecy of the Fall?!"

The woman gave Aigis a curious look. "Ah, so you know about the prophecy, huh? I'm surprised. How did you know about it?"

Aigis' expression turned grimmer as she recalled about the prophecy of the Fall, which foretold the arrival of Nyx to deliver humanity its supposed salvation. She still could remember that expression from the bespectacled madman who called himself Shuji Ikutsuki, who proudly declared his intention to welcome Nyx and fulfill the prophecy, even though she was remote-controlled at that time.

"I should be the one to ask you such question," Aigis said.

"Well, it was that during that one time when I disguised myself as a human, when I encountered this particular human. He seemed quite absentminded and had the tendency to make some quite cringe-worthy jokes that almost made me atomize him into nothingness," the woman said, leaning against one of the Shadows, the tiger-shaped one. "The reason why I didn't do so was because of one thing he told me that caught my interest." Her grin widened. "He told me about the prophecy. He told me about the eventual arrival of Nyx, a maternal being that will revert the world to its original state."

It seemed that she had just confirmed it. It had to be someone who told her about the prophecy, and who else besides that one particular madman? "Shuji Ikutsuki..." Aigis spat the name in distaste. It was always him. It was somehow always him that was the one responsible for all the bad things that happened in the past. He had caused suffering to so many people, herself included. The creation of Strega, the death of Takeharu Kirijo, the sad fate of a lonely boy named Sho Minazuki and even the existence of Ryoji Mochizuki himself, and by extension, the ultimate fate and sacrifice of Minato Arisato. Hell, even the creation of Labrys and her breakdown could be considered his fault too. "Why does it have to be always him?" Aigis muttered. If she didn't hate that man before, she did now.

"So, you know that man?" The woman gave Aigis a curious look. "Do you perhaps know what happened to him as well?"

"He's dead. He hurt my friends, and he paid with his life." Aigis spoke in a dangerously low tone. "Why do you want to fulfill the prophecy? Aren't you well aware that with Nyx's arrival, it will mark the end of the world?"

"Of course I'm aware of it. But isn't it something that everyone truly yearns for?" The woman responded to Aigis' question with another question. "Humanity yearns for the end of all things, and what is the grandest of all ends other than Death itself? And here I am, a Devil who wants to help all these unintelligent apes achieve this ultimate end they truly yearn for. Is there anything wrong with me trying to give them something they truly want?"

Aigis' expression remained calm. "Not everyone wishes for such a thing. Death is but a part of life. Life is nothing without Death." The battle maiden closed her eyes. "If you think that everyone yearns for such a thing, then you're quite mistaken." She recalled the lone soul that stood between the malice of humanity and Death, forever bound as a barrier to prevent these two from reaching each other. From what she had witnessed at that time, she knew that Death was nothing but a natural part of life. Death might be an end for the living, but it was never an ultimate end. She reopened her eyes and looked at the woman before her with eyes filled with determination. "And I will stop you. You will not achieve your goal. I have a friend who sacrificed himself to stop such a thing, and I will never allow you to make his sacrifice be in vain!"

The woman sighed. "Well, it's not like I expected you to understand. Now, my children..." She looked at the Shadows around her. "Destroy her."

Responding to her call, all the Shadows simultaneously attacked Aigis.

"Termination sequence, completed."

And the battle maiden smiled.

01110000 01100001 01101100 01101100 01100001 01110011 00100000 01100001 01110100 01101000 01100101 01101110 01100001

"Persona unlocked..." Aigis muttered. She could feel a familiar surge of power rushing through every fiber of her being. "Activating summoning sequence…" As the creatures of darkness drew nearer, she reached deep into her psyche, and called forth her other self. "Athena!"

The sound of breaking glass resonated in the air.

Heart of a Butterfly

Persona 3 and High School DxD crossover

Chapter 02: Night Queen​

The stray Devil's eyes widened as the Shadows were thrown back by some kind of force, and the blonde girl was somehow wreathed in a brilliant, azure light. As the light faded, she was greeted by the frowning visage of a Gorgon on a round shield. Then, she realized that the shield was being held by a majestic-looking woman, clad in a flowing robe and a Greek helmet, who was bearing a barbed spear alongside the shield.

"N-no way..." The woman was stunned to see this woman, whose appearance and presence radiated power and authority. From the shield she wielded, she was able to recognize the figure that had protected the blonde girl. "It can't be! This is impossible!" She almost screamed.

Aigis stepped away from the shield-bearing woman and looked at the stray Devil before her with piercing blue eyes.

"Aegis... a shield bearing the face of Gorgon.." The woman muttered. "There is no mistaking it. B-but how... how can an ancient goddess manifest herself here?! This doesn't make any sense!" Her voice sounded almost hysterical.

It seemed that the stray Devil was experiencing a breakdown upon seeing the Greek goddess of wisdom, the patron goddess of Athens: Pallas Athena, in all her shining glory. Her eyes were shadowed by the war helmet she wore, but it didn't degrade the beauty and aura she radiated. As she stared at the goddess of wisdom, she could faintly hear something, akin to a hymn, being softly spoken by the goddess herself. Her presence within the Dark Hour had illuminated the darkness around them.

"Tch, no matter!" The stray Devil spat. "I don't know what kind of Sacred Gear you used to invoke an ancient goddess like Pallas Athena, but don't ever think you're going to win against me!" She bellowed, the markings on her body glowing menacingly. The Shadows around her responded to her by howling and screeching. "Come, my children! Go and crush that brat to pieces!" She grinned madly after saying that. "But don't outright kill her. I'm going to teach her a lesson she won't ever forget for standing against someone like me." She licked her lips as she looked at Aigis in such a predatory manner.

The Shadows rushed over to the battle maiden, aiming to maul her with their paws. But before they could even reach her, they were blocked by the shield of Athena that bore the frowning visage of Medusa. Then, the goddess of wisdom slammed the round shield against the Shadows, stunning them. Aigis took her chance to charge forward, shoving her hands into the mouths of two of those Shadows before releasing a barrage of high-caliber bullets right into them. The result was not pretty, as the Shadows pretty much exploded from within. Despite the savage display of power from the mechanical maiden, she gracefully retracted her hands and ejected the empty bullet shells from her arms, and the shells clattered onto the pavement.

"Two enemies eliminated..." Aigis spoke monotonously and in a robotic manner, her electric blue eyes seemingly glowing as she glared at her enemies. "Now, come and be killed. My bullets show no mercy to the wicked. Don't say I didn't warn you."

---

"My, this is quite interesting. Don't you think so, Rias?"

"..."

While the battle android was preoccupied with fighting and slaying enemies, she was unaware that she was being observed by a group of people from above. Four people, which each of them seemed capable of staying airborne with the help of their wings, were observing the battle that was occurring below them.

"Even so, this is a very strange phenomenon..." The only male in the group, a teenage boy with short blonde hair and a slender physique spoke as he looked up to see the green sky. Beside him was a white-haired petite girl, who was busy observing the battle below them. "The atmosphere is somehow pressuring, and the air is suffocating, making it hard for me to breathe. Not even birds or small animals can be seen around here." He looked at a crimson-haired girl in the group, who was hovering beside a black-haired girl. "Do you know anything about this, Buchou?"

"Honestly, I don't know..." The girl, who was addressed by the blonde boy as Buchou, shook her head. "It has to be some kind of lost magic or a Sacred Gear of some sorts that would allow something like this phenomenon to manifest." Her brow creased up into a frown. "And you are right, Yuuto. This strange phenomenon is quite suffocating..."

"So, what do you want us to do?" The other girl, the black-haired one, whose appearance was just as attractive as the crimson-haired one, spoke. "Would you want us to jump in and assist that girl?" She pointed at the blonde girl who was battling the monsters below them. "She's facing against our target, after all."

The Buchou thought about it for a moment before she shook her head.

"No. Let us observe them for the time being. This mysterious blonde girl doesn't seem to be having any problems facing all the monsters..." the crimson-haired girl said. "We'll only jump in once the situation becomes too much for her to handle alone."

The rest of the group nodded before they continued watching the battle. They were curious about this whole situation, after all. So, they decided to observe the battle for the time being.

---

"Why...can't...you...STAY STILL?!" The stray Devil shrieked, hurling an energy beam towards Aigis. The battle maiden nimbly avoided the attack. When the Shadows tried to attack her, Athena manifested herself and blocked their attacks with her grand shield. The image of the frowning face of Medusa on the shield was enough to make the enemies recoil in terror, and the goddess of wisdom took her chance to skewer one of them with her barbed spear.

The Shadow let out a gurgled noise before it melted into black mud and dissipated into nothingness. Athena retracted the spear, spinning it a bit before pointing it at the stray Devil.

"Just give up..." Aigis said, ejecting a dozen empty bullet shells from her arms as she looked at the stray Devil in disdain. "I am specifically designed to destroy the Shadows, as I am an Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon. I know how to effectively destroy each and every one of them. I suggest you to stand down." A click was heard as she aimed her firearms at the stray Devil. "If you refuse, then I have no choice but to eliminate you as well."

While she knew that it was not her only purpose, she knew that she was designed for this. She was a weapon, and thus, had to be used as such.

"Heh... you really know how to boast, don't you, little brat?" The stray Devil sneered. "Eliminate me? Try and do that! Come forth, my children!"

She bellowed, and dozens of magic circles appeared around her before more Shadows manifested themselves from the circles. Aigis' eyes widened in surprise after seeing such an overwhelming number of Shadows appearing before her.

"Now... let's see if you can boast like that while facing all of them!" The stray Devil shouted before two minotaur-shaped Shadows rushed towards the battle android, aiming to pummel her with double strikes.

"Athena!" Aigis shouted, and the goddess of wisdom appeared in front of her, readying her shield to block the blows. As the blows connected, Aigis could feel some kind of shockwave being generated as Athena blocked the attack. She was preoccupied with these two Shadows, not realizing that another Shadow, a lion-shaped one, pounced towards her and slammed its body against the goddess'.

The blow was enough to push Athena back, causing her war helmet to fall off her head, revealing the beautiful visage of the goddess. She seemed to be grimacing as she took the blow from the Shadow, before she disappeared into motes of azure light.

Distracted as she saw her Persona dissipating, Aigis was unable to see another Shadow approaching, a minotaur-shaped one that seemed to be wielding a great ax. She could barely react to the Shadow attacking her using the great weapon. While she was able to react to it in the nick of time, by bringing up her left arm to block the attack, the sheer force of the attack was enough to send her flying towards one of the trees nearby. She let out a pained cry as her body slammed against the tree trunk before sliding down.

Seeing that the battle maiden was incapacitated by the attack, the stray Devil smugly grinned as she approached her, followed by the Shadows. "Now, where's that boast of yours, huh?"

"Ergh..." As she received damages from that attack, her system started to automatically run a diagnostic test on her body to see the extent of the damages she sustained. Luckily for her, she only got a few minor damages, but even the minor damages could affect her performance as an Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon.

"Now, my children... kill her..."

---

Aigis blinked. A while ago, she was cornered by dozens of Shadows that were controlled by that mysterious winged lady, but somehow, she found herself in an unfamiliar place. The floor seemed to be made of mirror, or was it water? The blue, cloudless sky seemed to be stretching to the endless horizon, and in this place, she found out that she was not alone.

There was a familiar figure, attired in a familiar black school uniform, using a familiar slouching posture with his hands in his pockets while also having a familiar mop of blue hair.

The familiar figure glanced behind, and she saw a pair of familiar, steely grey eyes. And from those eyes, she could see kindness and concern radiating from them.

"Y-you..." Aigis was astonished. After all these years, she was able to see him again. She wanted to say his name and rush over to embrace him, but somehow, she was unable to do so.

Then, the figure started walking away.

"W-wait! Don't go!" Aigis cried, trying to pursue him, but as she tried to chase after him, the gap between both of them grew wider. "Don't leave me again!"

And the figure stopped.

"Not now..."

She heard the figure spoke. A familiar soft, soothing voice, just like how it sounded like that one time.

"Not now?"

The figure nodded. His back was facing Aigis. Then, he brought up his right hand and touched the side of his head with his finger, as if mimicking an act of shooting himself with an Evoker.

"You still have an important battle to fight, remember?"

Before she could react to it, Aigis found herself being cornered by a dozen Shadows. They were trying to attack her simultaneously. Somehow, due to some reasons she couldn't comprehend, all the Shadows were moving in slow motion, much to her confusion.

But, she shrugged off the confusion for the time being, as she renewed her resolve.

"You're right, Minato-san..." Aigis muttered, closing her eyes. "I still have an important battle to fight!" She reopened her eyes, revealing a pair of glowing blue eyes filled with resolve and determination. "There's no way I can fall here! Activating Orgia Mode!"

One could hear the loud sounds of machineries within Aigis whirring to their full performance as she activated Orgia Mode. Steam started to come out of her joints and headband, and her clothes were damaged by the steam pouring out of her body. Her entire body was wreathed in a majestic blue light. Her system was forced to work to its full capacity, and the sheer intensity of it managed to heat up the air around her.

"Changing Persona..." Aigis muttered.

01101111 01110010 01110000 01101000 01100101 01110101 01110011

Her jacket was ripped apart by the heat generated from the Orgia Mode. Then, she shouted, "Orpheus!"

And then, a humanoid creature, white-haired and dark-skinned, with a body made entirely of mechanical parts, manifested itself. The creature's eyes were red in color, and they flashed as the Shadows that were trying to attack the battle maiden were suddenly set on fire.

"What the?!" The stray Devil gasped as she saw the manifestation of the creature, which was totally different compared to the goddess of wisdom the blonde girl had summoned earlier. Along with the appearance of the creature, she could faintly hear something, similar to when Pallas Athena had appeared earlier.

Νύκτα θεῶν γενέτειραν ἀείσομαι ἠδὲ καὶ ἀνδρῶν.
Νὺξ γένεσις πάντων, ἣν καὶ Κύπριν καλέσωμεν
κλῦθι, μάκαιρα θεά, κυαναυγής, ἀστεροφεγγής,
ἡσυχίῃι χαίρουσα καὶ ἠρεμίῃι πολυύπνωι,
εὐφροσύνη, τερπνή, φιλοπάννυχε, μῆτερ ὀνείρων,
ληθομέριμν' ἀγαθή τε πόνων ἀνάπαυσιν ἔχουσα,
ὑπνοδότειρα, φίλη πάντων, ἐλάσιππε, νυχαυγής,
ἡμιτελής, χθονία ἠδ' οὐρανία πάλιν αὐτή,
ἐγκυκλία, παίκτειρα διώγμασιν ἠεροφοίτοις,
ἣ φάος ἐκπέμπεις ὑπὸ νέρτερα καὶ πάλι φεύγεις
εἰς Ἀίδην δεινὴ γὰρ ἀνάγκη πάντα κρατύνει.
νῦν δε, μάκαιρα, (καλ)ῶ, πολυόλβιε, πᾶσι ποθεινή,
εὐάντητε, κλύουσα ἱκετηρίδα φωνὴν
ἔλθοις εὐμενέουσα, φόβους δ' ἀπόπεμπε νυχαυγεῖς.​

"No... way..." The stray Devil could barely contain her disbelief as she heard the faint voice that somehow originated from the mechanical creature floating above Aigis. She had been spending nearly two decades studying the prophecy of the Fall and Nyx, which included her studying the ancient manuscripts regarding the ancient deities. And it happened that the hymn that came from that creature was a Hymn of Orpheus about Nyx. "I-is that thing... Orpheus?"

Orpheus took the lyre that was strapped on his back and plucked the strings, causing flames to emerge from the ground, burning the Shadows to dust. As for Aigis, she walked through the inferno without showing any hint of concern to the heat as she tore away what remained of her clothes, revealing an armored bodice and her robotic parts.

"Eliminating targets," Aigis muttered in a robotic tone before she went to attack the closest Shadow nearest to her, pumping bullets into its body. Then she moved on to the next, systematically destroying the Shadows one by one. As Orpheus continued his fiery assault, Aigis efficiently eliminated the Shadows without wasting any movement, and in less than one minute, all the Shadows were reduced to black mud that subsequently dissipated into black particles.

"T-this is impossible..." the stray Devil muttered. "H-how can she defeat all my Shadows?! Preposterous!" She screamed.

As soon as she eliminated the last Shadow, Aigis fell to her knees, deactivating Orgia Mode, undergoing the process of cooling down. Steam could be seen coming out of her joints and robotic parts, and while she was cooling down, she was immobilized. Orpheus, the Persona she had summoned, then dissipated, returning to the Sea of Souls where he belonged.

As she saw the battle maiden being incapacitated, the stray Devil's expression shifted from a terrorized one into a diabolical smile. She chuckled as she slowly approached the downed battle android as prepared to launch an attack on her. "Oh, so you're running out of juice, aren't you?" She licked her lips as she held out her hand, preparing to fire an energy beam right at Aigis' head. "Well, you did surprise me with everything you did to all my children, but I suppose this is the end of the line, dear. You did well, but I suppose I have no choice but to eliminate you..." Aigis could feel power coalescing from the woman's palm, and she was unsure whether she could survive taking the blast head-on or not.

Aigis was unable to move, and the stray Devil's hand started to glow. She closed her eyes, accepting her fate.

'I guess this is the end for me. I'm sorry, Mitsuru-san. I failed.'

Then, she heard the sound of something cutting through the air before a sword seemingly appeared out of nowhere, spinning in such an impossibly high-speed before it cut the woman's hand through the wrist. The glow on the hand abruptly faded as the limb was severed by the thrown sword, which embedded itself into the wall of the warehouse.

"Gah!" The stray Devil screamed in pain as her hand was severed by the thrown sword. "W-what… t-this…" She saw the bloody stump of her severed limb before she screamed again. "My hand!" She gritted her teeth before she glared at Aigis with bloodshot eyes. "You!"

Before she could do anything, however, she was shot by a lightning strike from above, but she barely avoided it.

Aigis was confused by this sudden turn of events, but before she could do anything about it, a boy clad in Kuoh Academy's school uniform landed right in front of her, his back facing her. In his hands were swords with intricate designs. It seemed that he came from above. Then, he glanced behind him, displaying his rather handsome features and a kind smile. "Mind me lending a hand for a bit?" The boy asked in a casual tone. It looked like he was the one who threw the sword to cut off the woman's hand earlier.

Aigis was speechless for a bit before she heard a beeping sound inside her head. The cooling down process had ended, and she regained her ability to move. Then, she nodded and got up on her feet. "Appreciated."

"Grr..." Sufficiently enraged, the stray Devil, whose hand was sliced off by the boy, growled before she raised her other hand. "You'll pay for this! Rise, my children! Go and destroy them all!"

More magic circles appeared on the ground before more Shadows manifested themselves. Then, both Aigis and the sword-wielding boy found themselves surrounded by these creatures of darkness.

"Please be careful. Normal attacks won't work against them!" Aigis told the boy.

"Is that so?" The boy raised his eyebrow before he smiled. "Well, I won't say these swords are normal either." As he said that, a minotaur-shaped Shadow went to attack him, attempting to maul him with a heavy weapon, but the boy dodged the attack with ease.

With a few masterful strokes, the boy struck the monster with his swords, and the attacks were enough to sever its limbs and head. He was very fast, and Aigis could barely follow his movements.

"So fast..." Aigis muttered before she saw another Shadow trying to attack the boy from behind. "Look out!"

Before the Shadow could land a hit, Aigis saw a figure zooming from above, slamming the Shadow against the ground. When she was finally able to take a good look at the figure, she found out that it was a petite girl, also dressed in Kuoh Academy's school uniform, whose hair was white as snow. She managed to pin the Shadow to the ground by just using her fist. Then, she stomped on the Shadow's head, crushing it under her foot, killing it.

"Ah, thanks, Koneko-chan," the boy thanked the petite girl as he looked at the monster she slew, which started to melt into black mud. The short girl then stepped away from the mud, making a disgusted face.

Aigis also noticed another girl, a black-haired one, hurling lightning bolts toward the Shadows, incinerating them into nothingness. Standing beside her was a crimson-haired girl who somehow reminded her of Mitsuru. One thing that Aigis could say about these two girls was that they were very beautiful.

"Die!" A shout made Aigis shift her attention to the stray Devil. She was charging towards her, with her one remaining hand glowing. The sword-wielding boy immediately stood in her path and swung his sword, cutting off the remaining hand. "Argh!" She screamed in pain as her remaining hand was severed. Aigis took her chance to grab the stray Devil's face and activated her rocket propellers, sending herself flying forward while gripping the stray Devil's face before slamming it against the wall of the warehouse. The slam was enough to make a medium-sized crater in the wall.

Aigis released her grip on the woman's face and let her fall. Her hand was bloodied thanks to her slamming the stray Devil's head against the wall. And it seemed that those who came to assist her had eliminated all the Shadows. It was clear that each and every one of them was strong.

"Now..." Looking down on the downed enemy, Aigis spoke softly. "Do you have anything left to say?"

At first, the woman was silent, but then, she opened her mouth and spoke weakly, "Nyx-sama... Hail... Nyx-sama..."

Aigis closed her eyes, suppressing the urge to sigh. "I see." She turned back. "Orpheus."

Once again, the master of string, the ultimate poet and musician manifested himself in a glorious azure light. With his white gauntleted hand, he grabbed the woman's head.

"Do it..."

Nodding upon hearing the command, Orpheus' ruby eyes glowed, and the downed stray Devil combusted. In just a few seconds, she was reduced into a charred skeleton, which then crumbled down into dust.

Aigis sighed. She didn't like killing anyone besides Shadows, but she knew that it had to be done in order to accomplish her objective. Sure enough, after the stray Devil was reduced to dust, the surroundings reverted back to normal, with the sickly green sky being replaced by the blue, bright sky. The sounds of birds chirping could be heard as the Dark Hour ended.

She looked at her bloodied hand. 'What a waste of life,' the battle android thought to herself. 'This wasn't what he sacrificed his life for,' she thought to herself. She clenched her fist before she turned to look at the group who showed up and assisted her in the battle.

"Thank you for helping me." Aigis expressed her gratitude to these group of people, who were students, judging from the Kuoh Academy uniforms they wore. "If you four did not show up, then I might have died already."

The one with red hair stepped forward and smiled at Aigis. "Ah, please don't mention it. Actually, we have been hunting that stray Devil for quite some time. She had been kidnapping the students of Kuoh Academy these last few weeks, and we should thank you for assisting us in eliminating her."

Then, the black-haired girl beside the redhead whispered something to her, and she nodded.

"And before I forget, I shall introduce myself first," the crimson-haired girl said before she bowed. "My name is Rias Gremory." Then, a pair of leathery wings emerged from her back, followed by the others. Even the sword-wielding boy had those wings on his back. "And I am a Devil."

Aigis blinked and tilted her head in confusion.

TO BE CONTINUED​

 

The battle android stared at the back of the blonde boy she had been following. A while ago, after school, the boy showed up at her class and asked her to follow him, telling her that Buchou wanted to meet her. And by Buchou, he meant Rias Gremory, the red-haired girl who called herself a Devil.

"Sorry about yesterday," the boy said to Aigis as he led her down the hallway of the school. "You see, we didn't have much of a chance to explain everything to you, Kirijo-san, so I hope you don't mind me dragging you out of your class like this." He looked over his shoulder to see Aigis, giving her an apologetic smile.

"I do not mind, Kiba-san," Aigis replied to the boy. "And I do wish to know more about yesterday."

Despite being relatively new to this school, Kuoh Academy, she knew who this boy was. In fact, she had heard his name many times before from her female classmates. Yuuto Kiba: a second-year student, super popular among the female population of the school. Handsome, polite, soft-spoken and courteous, he basically had most positive traits that could be found in a gentleman. 'A truly rare breed indeed,' Aigis thought to herself. He even had a legion of fangirls following him around.

Aigis didn't realize that some of her female classmates were giving her evil eyes when Kiba showed up to see her back then.

Back then, right after Rias Gremory introduced herself and the rest of her group as Devils, Aigis gave them suspicious look. After all, the woman who invoked the Dark Hour in an attempt to fulfill the prophecy of Nyx also called herself a Devil. Seeing that it wasn't the right time to do any explanation, Kiba stepped forward and suggested that they should do it tomorrow at school, diffusing the tension that started to build up.

Aigis looked at Kiba, who was leading her to meet Rias. Like Rias, he was also a Devil, but he looked and acted like a normal boy. As a matter of fact, Rias and her group seemed like a bunch of normal teenagers.

Aigis sighed. She didn't expect this kind of development. It's supposed to be a simple reconnaissance mission, in which she only had to observe the area to see any sign of Shadow activity, but now, she seemed to be involved in some kind of situation she couldn't quite comprehend.

"What's the matter, Kirijo-san?" Kiba asked, noticing the sigh. "Is something bothering you?" He was leading her to an old schoolhouse somewhere around the school area.

"No, there is nothing that is bothering me," Aigis answered.

"I see…"

Both Aigis and Kiba continued walking silently. Yesterday, right after she returned from her mission, she immediately put herself in sleep mode. The fact that she had activated Orgia Mode and summoned two different Personas had put a strain on the battle android. She had received minor damages from the battle against that Devil lady and the Shadows, and while she could function just fine despite the damages, she still needed to get herself repaired by the technician. She hadn't reported back to Mitsuru regarding this mission, and she wanted to focus on her recovery first. She also wanted to learn more about Rias Gremory and her group, especially about her self-proclamation of her being a Devil, as well as her connection with the woman Aigis defeated and killed yesterday.

When they finally arrived at their destination, Aigis took a good look at the old schoolhouse. It was a three-story building that was apparently in quite a good condition despite the vines creeping up to the second story. Kiba, who was leading her, stopped and turned around, smiling politely at her.

"Welcome to the Occult Research Club, Kirijo-san," Kiba said in a welcoming tone.

And so, the boy led Aigis into the building, which was supposedly the meeting place for the Occult Research Club. Inside, Aigis was able to take a look at the clubroom, which was a wood-paneled room with Victorian-styled coaches and chairs along the walls. She also saw Rias and two other girls who were with her yesterday.

The black-haired one, the one who was constantly smiling while sitting beside Rias, was known as Akeno Himejima, one of Kuoh Academy's Two Great Ladies, with the other one being Rias Gremory. Aigis had heard their names a few times on her first day at school, so she recognized them right away after seeing them. It seemed that these Two Great Ladies were enjoying their cups of tea when Aigis showed herself.

She couldn't quite recognize the other girl, the one with the petite body and white hair. She seemed to be wearing a cat-shaped hairpin. When Aigis entered the clubroom, the girl was eating yokan, which was some kind of Japanese dessert.

"Buchou, here she is," Kiba said to Rias. The Buchou placed her cup of tea on the saucer before she looked at Aigis, giving her a curious look.

"Ah, please take a seat, Kirijo-san." Rias spoke to Aigis, gesturing to the couch opposite her. "And I'm sorry about yesterday. We haven't had the chance to explain ourselves, have we?"

Aigis shook her head. "That is alright. Please, excuse me." She took her seat.

"Would you like some tea?" Kiba asked. A courteous person, indeed.

"Thank you, but it shouldn't be necessary," Aigis replied, shaking her head. As a battle android and an Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon, she wasn't built with a function to eat or drink.

"I see…"

And so, all of them took their seats. Even the petite girl, who was still nibbling her yokan.

"So…" Clasping her hands together, Rias looked at Aigis, her expression neutral. "I'm sure you have many things to ask, Kirijo-san."

Aigis nodded. That was an understatement, considering what happened yesterday. "Yes. You told me yesterday that you and the rest of your group are Devils." After a pause, she continued. "I would like some elaboration."

Rias smiled. "Ah, yes, yes…" She nodded. "But, before that, I suppose a proper introduction is in order. Please allow me to introduce myself again. My name is Rias Gremory, and I am the President of the Occult Research Club." She paused. "I'm sure Yuuto had told you about this club, right? Pleased to meet you."

Then, she gestured to Akeno beside her.

"And this is Akeno Himejima, the Vice-President of the Occult Research Club." Rias introduced the girl on her behalf.

"It's so nice to meet you, Kirijo-san," Akeno said to Aigis, smiling.

After that, their attentions were focused on the petite girl, who was helping herself with a third serving of yokan. "And this is Koneko Toujou. She doesn't talk much, so please excuse her for that…" Rias introduced the white-haired petite girl. The girl, Koneko, stopped eating her yokan for a while to give Aigis a nod of acknowledgement before she continued having her meal.

Rias took a sip of her tea before she put the empty cup down. Kiba picked up the teapot and poured some tea into the cup.

"Ah, thank you, Yuuto…" Rias nodded to the boy. "And he probably had introduced himself earlier, but this is Yuuto Kiba." She gestured at the boy, introducing the boy to Aigis.

"Let's get along well, Kirijo-san." Kiba showed an award-winning smile to the battle android.

"Pleased to meet you all," Aigis responded to everyone.

"Now that we're done with introductions, let us start with the main event…" Rias said, setting down her cup of tea, giving a mysterious smile to Aigis. "Tell us, Kirijo-san, what do you understand about devils?"

Aigis blinked. She wasn't sure whether it's meant to be a trick question or not, but since she's asking her that question, it would be proper to answer the question accordingly. "Devil: taken from the Greek word 'diabolos', which means slanderer or accuser. They're believed to be the personification of evil and the enemy of God in many religions, myths and cultures, particularly in Judeo-Christian traditions. Traditionally, the devils are often depicted as demonic figures, and it seems that the imagery of a red-skinned, horned demon with a pitchfork is the most popular one." She eyed the self-proclaimed Devils before her. "But judging from how you look, it looks like the imagery is a bit off."

Rias was silent for a few moments before she chuckled. "Well, that's not how we expected you to react, Kirijo-san. And yes, you are mostly right… except about the red-skinned demon with a pitchfork." She tapped her cheek as she looked at Aigis. "Now, let me explain to you about everything, about us Devils, as well as some other things…"

Heart of a Butterfly

Persona 3 and High School DxD Crossover

Chapter 03: Devil's Advocate​

Aigis was given the explanations about the Devils, including the fact that the Devils here were the ones mentioned in the Bible. Rias also gave the battle maiden a detailed explanation about Devil society and culture, as well as information about the reincarnated Devils, individuals that used to be humans, other living beings, or creatures that were changed into Devils with the help of some sort of artifact called Evil Pieces. She also told Aigis that Kiba, Akeno, and Koneko were reincarnated Devils instead of pure-blooded ones. Not only that, Rias also told her about the existence of Angels and Fallen Angels, natural enemies of the Devils. These three biblical factions had been at war against one another since ancient times, and while outright battles among the three factions did not occur anymore, there was no peace between the factions, with occasional fights and conflicts happening over the years. The Great War had left the factions in a state of conflict, which continued for many centuries.

"So, that's the gist of it, I suppose," Rias said, leaning back after she was done giving the explanations to Aigis.

"I see," Aigis said.

Several eyebrows raised as the Devils heard Aigis' response.

"You seem to be taking everything we told you rather well, Kirijo-san," Akeno said as she tilted her head, crossing her arms under her rather ample bosom.

"Let's just say I have encountered a couple of supernatural-related events in the past…" Aigis responded. After encountering Nyx, Erebus and Hi-no-Kagutsuchi, nothing seemed to faze or disturb her anymore.

"That explains why you were there yesterday," Kiba spoke. "The phenomenon that happened yesterday, it was our first time seeing it." He was referring to the Dark Hour, the miniaturized version which was invoked by the stray Devil who was defeated by Aigis. "And you seem more familiar with that phenomenon compared to us."

"So, do you have any questions?" Rias asked.

"For now, none," Aigis responded.

"I see…" Rias eyed the battle maiden carefully. "Well, then. Now, it's your turn, Kirijo-san. We'd like to ask you a few questions regarding yesterday's event."

It seemed that she wanted to know about the phenomenon that had occurred at that time. Considering how much they had revealed to her, there was no reason for her to withhold information from them.

"First, what are you?" Rias asked, and Aigis raised an eyebrow. Well, it wasn't a question she had been expecting from her, at least not the first one to be asked. "We saw your battle yesterday. You seem human, and yet the way you moved told us otherwise." When they watched her battling the stray Devil, they noticed how strange the way she moved was. It was too mechanical, and it seemed to be extremely programmed.

At first, Aigis considered not telling the truth, but after thinking that it wouldn't be fair for them because they had told her the truth, she decided to tell them about her true nature. "Very well." She nodded. "I am Aigis, the 7th Generation Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon, specifically designed and created to battle Shadows."

Rias, Akeno and Kiba blinked a few times after Aigis told them about herself.

"Umm… what?" Rias said, confused.

"She's a robot," one voice supplied, and the voice came from the petite girl who was busy enjoying herself with her dessert.

All eyes were on Koneko, whose expression seemed calm. She was looking at Aigis, carefully assessing her, while at the same time, having her fifth serving of yokan.

"Oh," Kiba responded to that.

"A robot?" Akeno frowned, her smile started to waver for the first time before she looked at Aigis and blinked.

Aigis looked at Koneko before she nodded. "That is an oversimplification, but it's also essentially correct." She folded her sleeve, revealing her mechanical part and metal armguard. "The development of the Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapons had started since the eighties, and I am the 7th Generation to be developed." After a pause, she added, "Let's just say that I am designed to do work that normal humans are unwilling to do, such as doing menial tasks or destroying monstrous threats. I am normally equipped with firearms in case for the latter."

"Oh, do you mean like a Gundam?" Akeno asked.

This time, all eyes were on the Vice-President, staring at her.

"No, there is a distinction between an Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon and a Gundam. We, the ASWs, are considered to be androids, while a Gundam is some kind of vehicle or mobile suit, or in other words, a mecha. A Gundam also requires a pilot in order to move, while an android does not require one," Aigis explained.

"That's not really the main issue here, Kirijo-san…" Kiba quipped.

"Right. Okay." Regaining her composure, Rias straightened her posture. "A robot. Right." In normal circumstances, she would say that she wouldn't believe what Aigis had said, but after seeing what Aigis was capable of, she decided to accept it as a fact. "So, you are a robot…"

"An Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon," Aigis amended.

"Right, an Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon, or whatever you are…" Rias pinched the bridge of her nose, starting to feel a headache. "Let us move on to the next issue. Oh!" Then, she remembered something. "You said that your name is Aigis, right? Is Ai Kirijo not your real name, perchance?"

Aigis saw no real harm from telling her the truth. "That is correct. Ai Kirijo is just a pseudonym. I do not mind if you keep calling me Kirijo, but Aigis is my real name."

"I see…" Rias mused. "You don't mind me calling you Aigis-san, then?"

"I see no problem with that, Gremory-san."

Rias nodded. "So, second question: What are you doing here, in my territory?" The crimson-haired Devil asked. Her expression turned serious. "While we are very thankful for your assistance in eliminating the stray Devil we have been hunting since months ago, we still need to know the reason of you being here. Which organization or faction do you belong to?"

For a few seconds, Aigis was pondering to herself. Should she reveal the existence of the Shadow Operatives to them? They had revealed the existence of the Devil's society to her, so it was expected of her to return the gesture.

"I was sent to observe this area and investigate the phenomenon that occurred here," Aigis started. "The phenomenon is known as the Dark Hour, a phantom zone that is supposedly hidden from normal humans, and within this phantom zone, there are monstrous creatures roaming around. These monsters are called Shadows." She placed her hand on her chest. "I am specifically created to destroy those monsters."

"'Shadows'? Do you mean the monsters summoned by Gremda?" Rias asked, curious about these creatures called Shadows.

"'Gremda'? Who?" Aigis inquired.

"Oh, we haven't told you yet, have we?" Rias remembered that they hadn't told her about the stray Devil's name. "That's the name of the stray Devil. She used to be a middle-ranked Devil who belonged to a rather famous peerage in the Underworld, but two years ago, she somehow went rogue. And a few months ago, there were some rumors about her showing up in certain places before some of Kuoh Academy's students started to disappear." She leaned forward, her eyes focused on Aigis. "Don't tell me the conditions of the kidnapped students had something to do with that phenomenon…"

Aigis recalled seeing the people the stray Devil, Gremda, had kidnapped. They had showed the symptoms of Apathy Syndrome, and she had explicitly said that she had used some methods which allowed her to harvest the Shadows out of them, creating her own legion of Shadows.

"Through certain means, she managed to create her own army of Shadows and invoke the Dark Hour," Aigis said. "I was sent here to investigate the Shadow activity that we had detected around the area, but I did not expect that someone like her was responsible for that."

Somehow, the atmosphere had turned heavy. Even Koneko had stopped eating as she listened to what the battle android had said.

"So, why did she do that?" This time, Akeno asked. "What's the reason behind her invoking this Dark Hour?"

"The end of the world," Aigis answered, her expression turned grim. "She wanted to fulfill the prophecy of the Fall, calling forth a maternal being called Nyx that will end all lives on Earth. And by harvesting the Shadows, she would try to summon the Appraiser of Nyx, a herald whose sole objective is to call forth Nyx." Back at 1999, Mitsuru's grandfather, Kouetsu Kirijo, had started some experimentations on Shadows in order to create the ultimate Shadow, the one with thirteenth Arcana that would eventually become Death and the Nyx Avatar. And this Gremda had tried to do the same through magical means in order to bring forth the Fall. "When Nyx descends upon the world, all living things will turn into the Lost, those who have lost any semblance of self, just like the students that stray Devil had kidnapped. Imagine, a world where all people become unresponsive, unaware of things around them as they slowly rot away. That's the end of the world that Nyx would bring forth."

After Aigis was finished with her explanation, Rias cleared her throat before she spoke. "So… are you saying that a stray Devil was trying to end the world?"

"That's what I said." Aigis nodded.

"Honestly, this is not what I expected to hear…" Rias admitted. "Though, I suppose it's certainly a good thing she's been eliminated."

Aigis shook her head. "No. Even if she was left alone, she won't succeed."

Rias frowned. "Why? You did say that she was trying to do something that will cause the end of the world."

Aigis closed her eyes. She considered telling them everything, telling them about the ultimate sacrifice of one particular boy who now stood between Nyx and the darkness within human's hearts.

"A similar situation almost happened before, and something had been done to make sure that it won't happen again." At last, Aigis decided to be vague about it. They had no need to know about what occurred back in 2010. She had told them more than what was necessary, and she would rather avoid burdening them with more unnecessary knowledge.

"I see…" At first, the red-haired Devil looked like she was about to ask her a question, but then she just sighed. "Well, if you say so, then I suppose we should be relieved, then. The world's not ending, a dangerous stray Devil was eliminated, and no one was hurt…" She smiled at Aigis. "I guess everything turned out okay in the end." Then, she remembered something. "And if you're wondering about the people kidnapped by her, don't worry. They're starting to recover and they seem to have no lasting injuries to speak of."

"That's quite a relief," Aigis said. Back then, whenever a Full-Moon Shadow was defeated, those who were inflicted by Apathy Syndrome would start to recover. It could be said that the same was happening to these kidnapped students. "So, is that all?"

Rias and Akeno were looking at each other for the time being before the red-haired girl looked back at Aigis. "That should be all for the time being. In any case, we'll come to you if something like this is happening again. You're free to go."

---

"I have to admit, that was quite a new experience for me…" Rias spoke after taking a sip of her tea. Aigis had left the clubroom, accompanied by Kiba who offered to walk her out of the clubroom. A quintessential gentleman, indeed. "I mean, there were a lot of things to take in!" She complained.

Rias, Akeno and Koneko remained in the clubroom. This time, the petite girl was helping herself to a plate of strawberry shortcake.

"So, what do you think about this… Aigis?" Rias asked Akeno.

"Well, for certain, she's an interesting person…" Akeno answered, tapping her chin as she spoke. "And she has this… unique aura around her, that's for sure."

Rias thought that for a robot, she was quite personable. Shouldn't a robot act like, well, a robot?

"Her scent."

Both Great Ladies of the Kuoh Academy looked at Koneko, who was holding her fork between her fingers.

"From her scent, I could sense something in her…" Koneko spoke. "Something that somehow makes her a living being instead of just a mere machine."

Rias looked at Koneko for a while before she nodded. "Now that you mention it, I also felt something…" She folded her arms. "It felt like there was something embedded in her that turned her into something that's almost unmistakably human. It's similar to an Evil Piece, yet different…"

"So, you're saying that she's acting like a human because of some supernatural elements?" Akeno asked. "I suppose that makes sense. I mean, even with the current technology and science, it should be impossible to create something that is so unmistakably… human." Then, she chuckled. "My, this is quite interesting, don't you think, Rias? I almost thought our genre is going to shift from supernatural fantasy into science fiction, fufufu…"

Rias cleared her throat after giving Akeno a strange look. "Even so, we still have to monitor her and her movement. After all, she hasn't told us what organization or faction she belongs to. It was clear as day that she was coming here under someone's order, and judging from her knowledge about this phenomenon and also this prophecy, the organization she belongs to may have something to do with the supernatural world. We still need to know their motives and everything about them, and if everything goes well, both her and the organization she belongs to may become an important asset for us."

Akeno tilted her head, looking amused. "My, how devious of you, Rias." Then she hit her palm with her fist, as if something suddenly came to her mind. "Ah, don't tell me you're planning to offer her a place in your peerage and turn her into a Devil."

Rias coughed. "W-well, after all, she did show us her strength in battle, and I'm sure her power can be quite a useful asset for us." She saw the battle android fighting all the Shadows all by herself, and there was also that woman bearing the shield and spear, as well as that mechanical creature that conjured fire. "Though I'm not sure whether an Evil Piece can work on a robot or not." Then again, there was also something within Aigis that was similar to an Evil Piece, yet at the same time, different. If something like that could affect a machine like her, an Evil Piece could probably work too. Perhaps she needed to ask her brother, Sirzechs Lucifer, as well as his fellow Satan, the creator of the Evil Pieces system, Ajuka Beelzebub, about this. They seemed far more knowledgeable about this matter, after all.

"Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon, Rias. Use the correct term," Akeno said, smiling teasingly.

"Hush, you."

While Akeno was teasing her Buchou, Koneko was busy enjoying her strawberry shortcake. It was delicious.

---

Right after having quite an enlightening conversation with Rias and her group, Aigis immediately walked home, which was an apartment. Certain adjustments had been made to the interior of the apartment in order to accommodate her, a battle android. She immediately made a phone call in order to report to Mitsuru.

"Hello, Mitsuru-san."

"Hello, Aigis. I suppose there is something important that you're going to report." Mitsuru's tone sounded neutral.

"About that…"

Aigis then told her everything that she knew, about the Dark Hour and the attempt to fulfill the prophecy of the Fall, as well as the existence of the biblical factions and their conflicts over the centuries. She even told her about Rias and her group.

"And that concludes my report," Aigis said.

Aigis could tell that Mitsuru was astonished by this sudden turn of events, judging from the silence that went on for almost a minute. Then, Mitsuru cleared her throat and spoke, "Well, I did expect something is going to happen, but I didn't expect this of all things. Are you sure that you are not joking, Aigis?"

"A hundred percent sure, Mitsuru-san. I see no point in joking regarding this matter," Aigis clarified. She could hear the leader of the Shadow Operatives sighing.

"This is going to be one of those days, isn't it?" Mitsuru said, and by 'one of those days', she meant like the event in which they encountered Hi-no-Kagutsuchi during Golden Week. "Putting that aside, you said that someone had tried to fulfill the prophecy of the Fall."

"Yes. A stray Devil named Gremda tried to fulfill the prophecy, and she managed to harvest the Shadows from the innocents and invoke a miniaturized Dark Hour. I believe she tried to summon the Shadow of the thirteenth Arcana that would eventually herald the arrival of Nyx to descend upon Earth," Aigis said. "And from what she had told me during our encounter, it seems that she gained the knowledge about the prophecy from Shuji Ikutsuki himself…"

"Shuji Ikutsuki…" Aigis didn't miss the contempt in Mitsuru's tone. It was already expected of her, considering that he was the one who murdered Mitsuru's father, Takeharu Kirijo, after betraying them. "Even in death, his ghost continues to haunt us." That madman was essentially responsible for almost every bad thing that happened to them, including the existence of the Dark Hour, which he shared with Mitsuru's grandfather, Kouetsu Kirijo.

"It appears that we have to clean up for all the mess that he left behind." It was a cumbersome task, yet it had to be done. Many had suffered due to that madman's diabolical machination, and Aigis wanted to prevent such a thing from happening again.

After all, he would do the same too, right?

"What's your next order?" Aigis queried. "Shall I remain on standby?"

"Aigis, I want you to monitor this Rias Gremory and her group. Report to me once you gain something new," Mitsuru ordered. "And would you like some reinforcement? I mean, you might be feeling lonely over there, and Labrys has finished all her tests. Would you like me to send her over to accompany you?"

Aigis blinked. Like her, Labrys was also an Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon, and she was her sister. Chronologically speaking, due to the fact that she was one of the 5th Generation of ASWs that was developed by Kirijo Group, she could be considered to be Aigis' older sister. Mitsuru had asked her if she wanted to have Labrys to accompany her in this mission, which was rather thoughtful of her. Having Labrys around would be the best thing ever for someone like Aigis, but she'd rather have the ruby-eyed mechanical maiden come over on her own accord.

"That would be nice, but she still has a say in this. It would not be right if you send her here without her consent," Aigis reasoned. Unlike Aigis, Labrys still had many things to learn about the real world.

"Ah, yes. I suppose you are right, Aigis. I apologize." Despite Aigis had just blatantly questioned her authority, Mitsuru didn't sound to be offended in the slightest. That was just the nature of their relationship. One of them might consider herself to be a subordinate, but she wouldn't hesitate to criticize the leader if the situation demanded it. "I will tell her about this and ask her whether she wants to come over or not. But considering who she is, I bet she's going to be quite ecstatic about spending time with her sister."

Aigis smiled. From her tone alone, it was clear that Mitsuru was really concerned about her and Labrys. "Yes, please do, Mitsuru-san. Thank you very much."

"Please, don't mention it," Mitsuru said. "Is there anything else?"

"It looks like I need some proper maintenance." During the battle against Gremda and her crew of Shadows, Aigis had sustained minor damages. While she still could function well even with the damages, they would affect her performance and she still needed her damaged parts to be repaired. She could just repair all the damaged parts by herself, but having a technician do the work would be better.

"I see. Very well, I'll send you one of our technicians to fix you this weekend. Anything else?"

"That would be all, unless if you allow me to say something about your decision of replacing some of my hardware a day before I went for the mission, which automatically locked my ability to summon my Persona." Mitsuru could almost hear indignation in Aigis' tone when she mentioned about the replacement. Due to that, she was unable to use her Persona at the beginning of her encounter against Gremda and the Shadows, wasting three precious minutes, which otherwise would bring a more favorable outcome if her Persona wasn't locked in the first place.

"Ah, I'm sorry about that, and no, you may not."

"Understood." It happened that Aigis was quite forgiving, so she let it slide for the time being. "Talk to you again soon."

Aigis sighed before she put the phone on the desk after the end of her conversation with Mitsuru. It shouldn't be possible, but these recent events had been quite mentally draining for her. She decided that it would be the best of her to sleep. She removed her clothing, folding them neatly and putting them on the table before she went to her capsule seat. She connected herself with the wires on the seat after sitting before she disabled her motor function. Then she set the time for her to wake up before she shut her eyes and put herself in sleep mode.

And the last thing she saw before falling asleep was a blue butterfly.

---

In a place between dream and reality, mind and matter, she found herself sitting on a seat in a place which felt familiar to her. Yes, she remembered this place. There's no way she could forget this place.

But something was different. Unlike before, this place wasn't shaped like the interior of an elevator, but instead, it was shaped like the interior of a train. There were several empty seats around her, and there were three people besides her in this place.
http://forum.questionablequesting.com/index.php?threads/heart-of-a-butterfly-persona-3-x-dxd.837/
One of them was an elegant-looking woman with platinum blond hair adorned with a blue hairband, attired in a blue dress. Her shapely legs were covered by the black pantyhose she wore. In her hands was a thick-covered tome, which was titled 'Le Grimoire de Coeur', from what she was able to see. When the woman looked at her, her rouged lips curled up into a small smile.

The other one was a tall, handsome man in a suit with similar color as the woman's dress. In his hands was also a tome which seemed to bear the same title as the one held by the woman. Unlike the woman, though, he curiously looked at her with his strikingly golden eyes. It happened that the woman also had a pair of golden eyes, and she was assessing her with those golden eyes while smiling.

And the third person, the one she was most familiar with, even after all these years since the last time she was in this room, was a bizarre-looking old man in a posh black suit. And of course, the most memorable things about this old man were his bizarre-looking long nose and bloodshot eyes, and a grin that made him look rather imp-like. When he looked at her, his imp-like grin widened before he held out his gloved hand and drummed his fingers against the small table in front of him.

"Welcome to the Velvet Room, my dear lady…"

TO BE CONTINUED​

 

A maternal being? Did you mean a primordial being? Maternal doesn't really make sense, since she's the personification of death, in the Persona universe, which isn't very motherly.

 

That what they say actually, in the game. Ryoji explicitly called Nyx a 'maternal being' because she gave birth to Death, or at least that's what I understand about the term 'maternal being'.

 

"Igor…"

The bizarre-looking old gentleman with an imp-like appearance chuckled, seemingly pleased. "Ah, it seems that you still haven't forgotten about me, my lady." He touched his chin as he looked at the guest of the Velvet Room. "It's been so quite a long time since the last time we met, at least in your world. Would you like to enlighten me by answering my question?" He studied the battle maiden seated in front of him. "How are you? Have all these years been so kind to you?"

Aigis blinked. "I won't exactly call all those years to be 'kind' to me, but I suppose they were quite enlightening." She brought her hand to her chest, right on the place where the Papillon Heart was located. "All these years had taught me many valuable lessons and had given me priceless experiences."

The proprietor of the Velvet Room quirked his eyebrow, evidently amused. "Ah, valuable lessons and priceless experiences…" He clasped his hands, hiding his grin. "It is such a miracle to see a machine grow a heart and see the wonders of the world through the eyes of a human being. The world is truly a fascinating place indeed. Now then, let's continue to our business." His bloodshot eyes focused on Aigis. "This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter. It is a room that only those who are bound by a 'contract' may enter. It may be that such a fate awaits you in the near future."

Aigis was a little confused. "A contract?" She parroted Igor's word. "Shouldn't my journey have ended that one time?" She was referring to that one particular incident, that time when she and the rest of SEES were grieving over their leader's death. Conflicts arose, and they were forced to battle one another due to their clashing opinions and goals. Some wanted to honor his sacrifice, some wanted to bring him back, and some wanted to learn the truth behind his death.

This time, the woman with platinum blond hair attired in elegant blue dress spoke, "Life is but a continuous journey an individual has to undertake." Her golden eyes were focused on the mechanical maiden as she smiled kindly. "When a journey seemingly ends, another one awaits, offering new lessons an individual can learn in order to grow." Then, she glanced at the tall man who was standing beside the master of the Velvet Room, seemingly giving him a signal to continue.

"Oh, umm…" The man clumsily stumbled over his words before he cleared his throat and spoke, "There are many things an individual can learn throughout the journey of his or her life, discovering new potentials and unlimited possibilities that life can offer." The man smiled. "And, my lady, this is your chance to discover all those potentials and possibilities."

Aigis blinked again. These people reminded her of Elizabeth. Speaking of which, she currently didn't see her in the Velvet Room.

Igor chuckled. "Indeed. Remember that time when you were granted the power of your predecessor?" He asked. "A power that symbolizes the unlimited potentials within the souls of man, the power that can call forth infinite possibilities, and also a power used by your predecessor to perform a miracle that was deemed impossible to achieve, bringing salvation to mankind." He looked at Aigis expectantly, knowing that she knew what he was talking about.

"Wild Card…" Aigis said. It was the power wielded by her predecessor and also her successor. "The power that allows a Persona-user to use multiple Personas, not limited by only one." She knew that ever since that incident, she retained this power, allowing her to use more than one Persona. Though after a while, they seemed to lay dormant, only with Pallas Athena and Palladion still stirring within the sea of her soul. And recently, during the fight against Gremda and her army of Shadows, she managed to reawaken Orpheus, the first Persona ever used by him. She still could feel the others, all the legendary figures from myths and legends, from warrior gods to the morning star himself, yet they seemed to be blocked by an invisible wall that prevented her from reaching out to them.

Igor chuckled again. "That is correct. And now, it is your time to discover the true potentials of your power that were left untapped during your last journey." He swayed his hand, and three cards appeared, all floating in front of him. "The Master of Strings, the Goddess of Wisdom, and the Protector of Troy…" With another swipe of his hand, the cards were crushed, and the sound of glass breaking resonated within the Velvet Room. Three figures started to materialize on the unoccupied seats around Aigis, taking the forms of the Personas within her. "These are the manifestations of your other self that reside within the sea of your soul. There are more, but they are still locked within your psyche, waiting in anticipation for your call so they can show themselves for the world to see."

The first to materialize was Pallas Athena, her posture radiated confidence and authority. This time, the large, round shield that bore the frowning visage of Gorgon, the namesake of Aigis' name, the Aegis, was nowhere to be seen. Her barbed spear was also absent as she was seated on the previously empty seat. Attired in white robe trimmed with golden, her body was adorned with golden armor-like accessories. Her plumed war helmet was placed on her lap, and her head and face were fully revealed for all to see. The beautiful visage of the virgin goddess of Athens was a sight to behold, and as her grey eyes shifted to focus on the mechanical maiden, her lips curled up into a warm smile. From the look that was given to the one who had given birth to her from the sea of her soul, it was clear that she was very proud of her.

The second one was a woman clad in turquoise dress, and like Pallas Athena, she was also wearing a plumed war helmet, but unlike the goddess of wisdom, the protector of Troy seemed more like a statue, with a pure white mask-like face and a rigid posture. Then the woman, Palladion, turned her head to look at the battle maiden before she gave her a nod of acknowledgement. She somehow reminded Aigis of her old self; an unfeeling machine that only thought of itself as a weapon. Seeing this Persona gave her some kind of bittersweet feeling which reminded her of her past.

And the last one to fully manifest was a white-haired man with a mechanical body, seated on the seat with a posture that seemed awfully familiar, which reminded Aigis of the one who first summoned him. Strapped on his back was a magical lyre crafted by the god of travelers, Hermes, indicating his identity as the father of songs and the ultimate musician and poet. The master of strings, Orpheus, then looked at Aigis with his glowing ruby eyes before he tipped his head, acknowledging her as the one who gave birth to him from the sea of her soul. Seeing him brought a pang of sadness into the battle android's heart as his appearance reminded her of one who had been long gone, the one who had saved the world and mankind with the price of his life, the one who had performed an ultimate sacrifice that only a few knew of.

"Ah!" Then, Igor seemed to remember something. "I have neglected to introduce my assistants to you." Aigis looked at both the golden-eyed woman and man, who were standing by Igor's sides. "Do you remember Elizabeth? At the moment, she is on her own journey, and thus unavailable to provide her service to guests of this room. Allow me to introduce Margaret." He gestured at the woman, who smiled and nodded to Aigis. "And Theodore." The man bowed courteously to Aigis.

"My name is Margaret. Elizabeth is my younger sister," Margaret spoke. "I am here to accompany you through your journey."

"I am Theodore and Elizabeth's younger brother," Theodore said. "I shall be at your service, my lady."

"Both Margaret and Theodore are the residents of the Velvet Room, like Elizabeth and myself," Igor spoke. "Or in Elizabeth's case, she used to be a resident of the Velvet Room before setting out on her own journey." Igor clasped his hands together again. "Now, let us talk about the nature of your power, the nature of the Wild Card, shall we?" He hid his grin behind his clasped hands. "It is a power that grows over time through nurturing your understanding of the world and those around you. Only by nurturing your bonds with others will the power of the Wild Card be brought to its fullest potential. Those who bore the power of the Wild Card have achieved such a thing through nurturing their bonds with those around them. Your predecessor managed to achieve an impossible feat while your successor managed to take down deities, twice even. What will the power of Wild Card bring you, my esteemed lady?" The master of the Velvet Room chuckled. "Such thoughts has filled me with quite a vast amount of anticipation. This will surely be something to look forward to in the near future."

"The power of the Wild Card does not stem from one's skills alone. The strength comes from acknowledging the fact that one cannot avoid a battle or conflict to gain his or her desire, and that strength happens to manifest itself as power in battle," Margaret explained.

Then, Theodore added, "Besides nurturing the bonds with others through understanding them and acknowledging the inevitability of facing an obstacle in order to achieve a goal, one important element of the Wild Card is understanding oneself and one's place in the world. Only by understanding what you truly are you can you realize your heart's true desire, thus allowing you to grasp one particular possibility that you try to achieve."

Margaret looked at Theodore, seemingly amused. "Theo, your explanation is longer than mine," she said teasingly.

"I-I apologize, sister," Theodore stuttered, his cheeks flushed slightly.

"My heart's… true desire?" Aigis mused. "My true desire is…"

...Almost impossible to achieve. Yet, Minato managed to achieve something that was thought to be impossible.

Aigis closed her eyes and shook her head. No, it was still too early to decide what her true desire was. Then, she reopened her eyes to look at the residents of the Velvet Room before her.

"Now then, time marches on in your world," Igor stated. "The next time we meet, your visit shall be of your own accord. Please hold on to this."

Aigis could feel something forming in her closed fist. She opened her fist and found a metallic object with a serrated edge, colored in soft blue. 'The Velvet Key,' the battle android recognized the object. She clenched her fist again, allowing the object to dissolve into her mind. With this key, she would gain access into the Velvet Room once more, allowing her to enter this room wherever she saw the entrances that somehow were invisible to others.

"Till we meet again..."

Her Personas dissolved into motes of blue particles before everything started to fade to black.

Heart of a Butterfly

Persona 3 and High School DxD Crossover

Chapter 04: Wild Card​

Dressed in Kuoh Academy's school uniform, sans the shoulder cape, Aigis was walking alone to school. It took twenty minutes for her to walk from her apartment to the school, and considering that she still had much time left, she decided to walk to school without running. If anything, she would like to avoid running because she would end up getting back into her old habit of running inhumanly fast (she's a robot, after all), and she didn't want her secret to be found out by her schoolmates anytime soon.

As she walked, she recalled Igor's words when he brought her into the Velvet Room. The proprietor of the Velvet Room, along with his assistants, had explained to her the true nature of her power, the Wild Card. During the time when she awakened to this power, she hadn't utilized the true potential of this ability due to the situation that occurred at that time. Now, she had been called back to the Velvet Room once again and was given the opportunity to explore more about this mysterious power that was granted to her.

As for her Personas, she could feel all of them, but only three of them were currently active within her psyche. Currently, the one that was most active was Pallas Athena, who sometimes whispered words of wisdom and advice (like what the right thing to say to others was, or how to be more subtle while snarking at Mitsuru), which was already expected from the goddess of wisdom herself. The other two, Orpheus and Palladion, remained on the backseats, with Orpheus occasionally slipping into her mind to provide a little static noise that could be distracting sometimes while Palladion was just there, being a statue that she actually was.

"Hey, Ai-chan!"

Aigis stopped and glanced over her shoulder before she saw that she was approached by two busty forms of females, whom she recognized as her classmates.

"Ah." Aigis turned to face the girls who approached her. "Good morning, Murayama-san, Katase-san." She greeted the girls politely as she smiled at them. If she were her old self, she would never be able to smile like that. These two girls, Murayama and Katase, were members of the Kendo Club at Kuoh.

"Good morning!" One of the girls, Murayama, whose strawberry brown hair was tied up into a ponytail, returned the greeting energetically. As she happily approached the battle maiden, her bountiful assets were bouncing up and down in tandem with her movements.

"Good morning to you too, Ai-chan." The other girl, who was named Katase, who seemed to be much calmer than Murayama but still displayed a cheerful smile on her face, followed after the ponytailed girl. Her shoulder-length hair was light pink in color, and she also wore a hairband which exposed her forehead. While the color of her hair was unusual, Aigis had seen weirder when it came hair colors. And like Murayama, as she jogged towards the battle maiden, the healthy assets of hers were bouncing rhythmically in tandem with her movements.

Aigis blinked. Now that she thought about it, she realized that most girls in this school seemed to have, as an old movie that she recently watched would put perfectly, 'huge tracts of land'. Mitsuru said the movie was ridiculous (rabbits killing knights? Seriously?), but Aigis thought it was quite enjoyable. Back to the issue about breasts, those who had less than enormous bust sizes could be counted with one hand. Then, she recalled that the Devils, Rias and Akeno, the Two Great Ladies of Kuoh Academy, also seemed to have enormous size of breasts.

Seriously, what were all the parents feeding their daughters? That was a question that started to form inside her head. Aigis looked down to look at her own chest. While she wouldn't exactly call herself small in terms of bust size, they weren't that big either. And she was already designed this way because she was an android. Was there some kind of factor such as a force field around the area that could trigger the hormones inside adolescent girls, which resulted in the growth of breasts? Or was it a plot by some malevolent entities to destroy the world by drowning its population in the sea of breasts? Or was it a result from an experiment made by either the Devils or the Fallen Angels which involved breasts expansion among the female population of the school? Now her head was flooded by many questions regarding this matter.

…

Was it just her imagination, or did she just hear Athena laughing inside her head?

"What's the matter, Ai-chan?" Murayama asked her suddenly, tapping her shoulder. She seemed to be concerned. "Is something bothering you?"

"Huh?" Aigis blinked. "What do you mean, Murayama-san?"

"You looked like you were deep in thought, so we thought that there's something bothering you," Katase said, looking a little worried.

"Ah." Aigis realized what they meant. She probably showed it on her face that she was thinking about something. At first, she wanted to tell them that she was thinking about breasts, but before she could even start saying it, Pallas Athena coughed and told her to keep quiet, telling her that her reputation would be in grave danger if she said it. "It's nothing. There is nothing bothering me. I am not thinking about any force field that can trigger the hormones in adolescent girls. Nothing at all," she spoke in a monotone voice as she told the girls who were with her.

Both Katase and Murayama were looking at each other in confusion before one of them, Katase, looked back at Aigis, and in an uncertain tone, spoke, "I… see…"

"Now, let us hurry to school. We still can make it if we start walking now," Aigis said.

"Ah, you're right." Murayama nodded. "Let's go."

And so, the three of them walked to school together. Aigis decided to think about breasts some other time.

…

Was it just her imagination, or did Palladion start laughing too? How can a statue manage to do that, she absolutely had no idea.

---

The class sessions went smoothly and without problems, and Aigis enjoyed them as she listened to the teachers, who were teaching their students things that she had already learned back at Gekkoukan. While she might have already gone through this sort of thing back then, she wasn't fully developed as a human and was lacking in certain areas at that time. Now that she had matured considerably, she found all these things that she had undergone to be quite enjoyable.

As she was seated at her desk, the battle maiden was mulling over Igor's words regarding her power as a Wild Card. He said that the power could be nurtured through creating bonds with others. While the thought about strengthening oneself by making bonds with other people was quite appealing, she figured that it sounded like she was taking advantage of others for the sake of power. Such a thought slightly horrified her because that would mean the bonds forged with others were not genuine because they were made for personal, selfish reasons.

Aigis realized how terrifying this power, this Wild Card, because it was so easily misused or abused by those who wielded it.

Then, another horrifying thought came into her mind.

'Was my bond… the bond between me and Minato-san… genuine?'

If that was really the case, if the bond between them was just a way for him to strengthen his Wild Card ability, then he might have just used her for his personal, selfish gain. Everything that she had stood for would crumble down into nothingness if that was really the case.

[Foolish girl. Do you truly believe the bond between you two was that shallow? Do you truly believe all the words he spoke to you were nothing but honeyed lies? Are those the seeds of doubt I see, after everything he had done for you and the rest of mankind?]

Aigis winced when she heard the harsh voice ringing inside her head.

'Athena…'

Somehow, Pallas Athena's chastisement brought her back to her senses. Athena was right. If he really did just use her for personal gain, then he would never look at her with his steely grey eyes that were filled with concern. If he really did make a bond with her out of selfishness, he would have never reached out to touch her Papillon Heart with such care and gentleness. If he really did just see her as an asset instead of a genuine subject of affection, he would have never wiped away her tears, telling her not to worry, telling her that everything would be alright, even as his soul started to slip away, spending his last day on the world that he had saved before becoming a guardian of all mankind to protect itself from its folly.

If he really was that selfish of a person, he would have never performed the miracle, the ultimate sacrifice to become the Great Seal in the first place, selflessly protecting all mankind with his life as a price, smiling as he did so.

Aigis knew that even though this power could be abused so easily, there had to be a reason why there were people granted with this power. She remembered the contract she was bound to: 'I chooseth this fate of mine own free will.' When granted this power, one would be held responsible for his or her actions as he or she held this power over unlimited possibilities. If there were people given this power but not held responsible for their actions, then this power was meaningless, if what Igor and both his assistants had said was right.

Only by realizing and understanding the true nature of bonds with others, the Wild Cards could utilize the true potentials of their powers. True potentials could not be achieved if it was for personal gain alone. Aigis realized that, so there's no way her predecessor could use his power for a selfish goal. She really felt bad for thinking about such a thing.

"Kirijo-san, will you please read the next paragraph?"

Aigis blinked. Somehow, she kind of spaced out while the teacher was giving his lecture. When the teacher asked her to read the textbook out loud, she stood up, opened her textbook to see which paragraph she was asked to read.

[Page 39, paragraph 5.]

'Thanks, Athena.'

[Pay attention next time. Just because you're a robot doesn't mean you don't have to pay attention.]

Due to some reasons, Athena had been giving her stern lectures about the necessity of paying attention to her surroundings. Failure to do so would result in a messy, gory death, the goddess of wisdom strictly told her.

---

After school, Aigis decided to linger around the school area for a while. She hadn't joined any clubs yet (she was still an undercover agent, so joining clubs would hinder her mission), but it's not like she had anything better to do. And Mitsuru said that the technician would come this weekend.

As she walked down the school yard, she noticed some kind of commotion going on. Blinking, she walked over to the location where the commotion was happening and saw a group of girls from the Kendo Club, judging from the clothes they wore and the shinai they held in their hands, chasing after a boy who seemed familiar to her, while screaming and shouting bloody murder to him.

"Get over here, you pervert!"

"Don't let him get away!"

"Catch him!"

And as for the boy…

"Oh crap, oh crap, oh CRAP!"

Both the boy and the seemingly slighted group of girls were running towards her direction. Then she recognized him. "Ah." She hit her palm with her fist upon recognizing the boy.
That boy was of the members of the infamous Perverted Trio of Kuoh Academy. The boy, whose hair was brown in color and spiky in style, attired in Kuoh Academy's male school uniform, wearing his jacket open, revealing a red shirt underneath, was running towards her direction without any hint of slowing down. The distance between him and the girls chasing after his sorry butt was getting shorter and shorter with each passing second.

As the boy ran, he didn't realize that Aigis was standing in his way, and when he finally realized it, it was already too late. He was about to bump into her, and a rather cliché scene where a boy bumps into a girl was going to happen, which would end up with both of them being in rather compromising positions, either with the boy on the top and the girl on the bottom, or vice versa. Bonus points if the boy's hand ended up grabbing the girl's mammary area, like what would always happen in most romantic comedy anime you nerds always watch.

Alas, fate seemed to decide otherwise as Aigis unceremoniously shoved the incoming boy aside, pushing him into a nearby bush, effectively hiding him from view. Thanks to her impressive reflexes, being a robot and all, she was able to push him aside into a nearby bush a few milliseconds right before the boy could crash into her. When the girls finally arrived to Aigis' location, they realized that the boy they were chasing after and planning to lynch later had completely disappeared from their view.

Aigis looked at the group of girls, and she saw both her classmates, Katase and Murayama, among the group. Panting, one of the girls spoke to Aigis, "Kirijo-san… hah…" Trying to catch her breath, she paused before she continued, "…did you… hah… see where… hah… that pervert… hah… ran to?"

"Pervert? Who?" Aigis asked innocently.

"W-who else? Hah… It's that… hah… Issei Hyoudou… hah…" another girl said, panting heavily.

Ah, so that was his name: Issei Hyoudou. Aigis finally remembered that name. A member of the infamous Perverted Trio, Issei Hyoudou was quite memorable among them in her opinion due to his bold proclamation to pursue the path of a Harem King as well as his obsession over breasts. It's not like the other two members of the group were less significant (a few even agreed that Issei was the tamest among the three but was still extremely perverted), it's just that this boy seemed to leave a lasting impression because her desk was located right behind his, and it happened that Aigis could hear whenever that boy made his bold exclamation known for the world to hear. The reason why she didn't recognize him right away earlier was beyond her.

…

Now she could hear Pallas Athena's voice again, nagging her to be aware of her surroundings.

"S-so… hah… did you… hah… see him?" One of the girls repeated the question of where Issei had gone to.

Aigis held out one hand, pointing at one direction.

"He went that way."

The delivery was deadpanned as she pointed at a random direction, which was not the direction that Issei had taken because he was pushed into the bush, probably scraped and bruised, but completely protected from being lynched by the slighted maidens. And so, the girls of the Kendo Club dashed toward the direction where Aigis had pointed to. After they had disappeared from her view, she looked at the bush where she had pushed Issei into.

"They're gone. You're safe now."

She could hear Issei groaning from inside the bush. Then the boy got out from the bush, slightly scraped but had no visible lasting injuries to speak of, with twigs and dried leaves tangled in his brown hair. He rubbed the back of his head as he stepped away from the bush before he looked at his unexpected savior.

"Urgh, it hurts…" Still rubbing at the sore spot on the back of his head, he then spoke to Aigis, "Hey, thanks for the save. I thought I was gonna get lynched back then." He laughed before he winced. "Ow!"

The boy clutched the left side of his torso, and from the looks of it, he might have broken something when she pushed him into the bush. Thinking that it was somehow her fault, Aigis sighed before she closed her eyes. Then she brought up her left hand, poking at Issei's side with her index.

'Diarama…'

The result was almost instantaneous, and Issei's eyes widened in surprise as the pain immediately vanished and was replaced by a pleasant sensation. For him, it was like being surrounded and smothered by a bunch of scantily clad ladies with big breasts. Aigis decided to ignore the expression he made when he felt the sensation as she focused her healing spell on the boy.

"It is done…" Aigis said, lowering her hand. "Does it hurt anymore?" She asked, scanning the boy to see if she missed a spot or two.

"I-it's…" Issei found out that not only his ribs were healed, the small injuries he got earlier had also vanished. "It's gone!" He immediately looked at Aigis in amazement. "That was awesome! Was it magic?" He asked excitedly.

"No, but it is close enough…" Aigis replied vaguely, smiling at the boy. It was her first time seeing the boy doing something that was remotely not perverted. His excitement over her small display of 'magic' somehow reminded her of that one time during Golden Week after she saved Teddie from the fake Labrys with her power. The look of admiration he had given her was similar to the one that Issei was giving her now after healing his injuries. "Though I have to ask you something." She looked at Issei. "Why did they chase after you?"

The excited look on the boy's face turned into a nervous one before it shifted into a sheepish one. "W-well…" he hesitated. He didn't act like his usual perverted self, probably due to the fact that Aigis had apparently saved him from being caught by the girls. "Y-you see… actually, when me, Matsuda, and Motohama were searching for a hole to take a look into the changing room, they found us and started chasing after us." He looked away sheepishly, scratching the back of his head.

"You were trying to take a peek?" Aigis frowned.

"W-wait, no! D-don't get it all wrong! I-" Issei stopped, words stuck in his throat before he dropped his head into his hands and sighed in defeat. "Yes..." That answer came out as a pathetic squeak. Then, he raised his head and tried to look determined, with minimal result. "But it is something that I must do! Or else I will lose my pride as a pervert!"

Aigis blinked. How could someone be proud of his perverseness? Aigis wanted to say that out loud, but she thought it might end up offending him, so she decided against it. "You do realize what you did to them was wrong, don't you?"

"Uh…" The sheepish look returned on Issei's face as he looked aside. He wanted to say something, but somehow couldn't.

Noticing his uneasiness, Aigis decided to change the topic. "So… they ended up chasing after you three…" Aigis said, looking at Issei's face. "Where are the other two? You told me that you three were trying to find a hole to take a peek into the changing room, but how come they only chased after you? Unless if they were already caught."

"They found us, and we started panicking," Issei began. "I dunno what I was thinking at that time, but when we ran away from them, I told them to run separately for me to be a decoy so they didn't chase after Matsuda and Motohama." He looked towards a direction with a worried expression. "I hope they didn't get caught, or else my sacrifice here will be in vain." He let out a sigh.

Aigis raised her eyebrow. "You acted as a decoy so that your two friends could escape?" It was a viable tactic to escape the pursuing enemies when you were a in group. By acting as a decoy, the rest would be able to escape the enemies with the decoy as an acceptable sacrifice. The fate of the decoy depended on whether he could outrun the enemies or not. Issei had just sacrificed himself for the sake of his fellow perverts, it seemed. "That was… surprisingly noble of you." Aigis knew that there was nothing noble in perversity, hence the pause, but Issei had willingly put himself in harm's way so that his friends could get away safely. Praising his bravery would be in order.

Issei sheepishly scratched the back of his head again. "Hehe, if they were caught, then who else are going to walk down the path of perverts with me?" Aigis blinked. It seemed that it was too early for her to give him something like a praise. "So, uh… you're sitting at the desk behind mine in class, right?" After a pause, he said, "Ai Kirijo, right?"

"Yes." Aigis nodded. "It is nice to meet you, Hyoudou-san."

"Umm… w-well, nice to meet you too," Issei responded. He looked like he's not used to being treated like that by a female. Most of the time, most females would react to his perverted antics with disdain at best, with utter contempt at worst. "So, uh… I gotta go now! Gotta see if both Matsuda and Motohama escaped or not! Thanks for the help!" He spun on his heel and was about to walk away before he stopped himself. He glanced over his shoulder and grinned. "And don't worry about your magic stuff! I'm not gonna tell anyone about it!"

And so, he left, running away so that he could check on his fellow perverts.

"I see…" Aigis mused. "Behind his apparent perverseness, there are some noble qualities to be found." She nodded to herself. "Is this what they mean when they say 'more than meets the eye'?"

[An individual can have many sides of his self that are shown according to the situations he is in. From the meeting with the boy, we have seen that he is more than just a boisterous, hormonal teenager. Consider this as a reminder of what your power truly entails, little girl. In order to understand people better, always remember: there are more than just one side.]

Aigis smiled. Pallas Athena's strict voice echoed within her mind, but she could sense warmth in her tone as she reminded her of her power as a Wild Card. "Thank you, Athena." She could feel that Pallas Athena was turning around, crossing her arms across her chest while hiding her embarrassment and slightly reddened cheeks.

Who could have thought that the goddess of wisdom was a tsundere?

"Ah." Aigis noticed that the sun was almost down. Apparently, the conversation with one of the members of the Perverted Trio had caused her to lose track of time. So, she decided to return home.

---

Issei Hyoudou was on his way to home, a grin plastered on his face. In the end, he couldn't find his fellow perverts, Matsuda and Motohama, but then, he received some text messages from them that they were already at home. So, they managed to escape the wrath of the girls they were trying to peek at, much to his relief. He was worried that he would have to pursue the dream of a real-life harem alone, a thought that somehow depressed him. He shrugged off the thought because he was in a good mood, so why would he ruin it?

He was in a good mood because of the conversation he had with the transfer student with blond hair, Ai Kirijo, whose desk was behind his in their class. So far, she was one of few females who didn't give him a disgusted look at his perverted antics, and the way she spoke to him made him feel like he was treated like an equal. Well, it was something that he truly wanted despite his perversity, but from that conversation alone, he could feel some kind of elation and fulfillment.

Speaking of Kirijo, she was awesome! Not only did she treat him as an equal, but she also knew magic! But he would remember that he needed to keep it a secret. After all, it was common for a wizard or a witch to be hidden from normal people, right?

"I still have a long way to go to realize my dream…" Issei said to himself. Being treated as an equal would be the first step in achieving such a dream, the dream of being the Harem King. It was a path filled with thorns and perils, but he knew there would be a reward waiting for him at the end of the line, and the reward, of course, would be the countless pairs of boobs to fondle. He tried to imagine the feeling of softness and squishiness with his hands, and the sweet voice that came out when he fondled the girl.

"Kyah!"

Yeah, just like that. Just thinking about that made him feel arou- wait, what?

Issei snapped out of his reverie to realize that both his hands were on a pair of breasts, which belonged to a girl who was right in front of him, her cheeks reddened. The cute girl shyly looked away, but she didn't show any sign of protest, like, at all. The pervert froze, his hands still remained on the girl's impressive rack. Then he squeezed again, and the feeling of squishiness returned.

Squish.

"Ah!"

The girl yelped, and Issei immediately backed away, eyes widened. The girl looked at Issei with cute-looking eyes with a little trace of tears in them. Issei's mouth was wide open upon seeing such cuteness. The girl brought her hand to her chin, with her arm pressed against her chest, emphasizing how large those boingy bits behind the school uniform she wore were. How Issei's hands ended up clamping on those hidden, forbidden fruits, nobody had any idea. He was probably trying to imagine groping breasts by grabbing the empty air in front of him when he accidentally grabbed the girl's breasts, who somehow were walking towards his direction. How it could be accidental, your guess is as good as mine.

"Umm… Umm…" The girl seemed to be struggling for words before she suddenly dipped into a deep bow. "I-Issei-san, would you please go out with me?!"

"...Eh?"

TO BE CONTINUED​

 

The first thing Aigis noticed when she entered the classroom was that Issei Hyoudou, whose desk was located in front of hers, seemed to be in a very good mood. One could even see glitters and sparkles around him as a goofy smile was displayed on that mug of his. Some other details that the battle android could see were that his fellow perverts, Motohama and Matsuda, whose eyes were seething with jealousy, glared at the brown-haired pervert who looked like he was on cloud nine.

Curious, Aigis blinked several times before she approached the boy. "Good morning, Hyoudou-san," she greeted the perverted boy in a polite tone.

Still having that goofy grin on his face, Issei turned to look at battle maiden. "Good morning, Kirijo-san!" One could feel excitement and jubilation in his voice as he returned the greeting.

"You seem to be in a great mood," Aigis observed.

"You bet'cha!" Issei replied excitedly. "Kirijo-san, listen to this! I finally got myself a girlfriend!"

Aigis blinked. There was one proper response to this new piece of information. "Congratulations."

Then, she noticed the hissing sounds from somewhere before she looked aside, seeing the source of the sounds coming from the other members of the Perverted Trio. From their expressions alone, the mechanical maiden could tell that they were, as most people would say, pissed off.

"Traitor…"

"Damn you, Issei!"

And the accused one, Issei, ignored the accusations from his fellow perverts as he continued basking in his delight over the fact that he finally got himself a girlfriend.

"Hehe, you see, when I was walking home yesterday after talking to you, there was this cute girl who suddenly showed up and asked me to go out with her," Issei explained to his neighbor about his girlfriend. "She's from a different school, and she's got a nice body!" He looked quite enthusiastic while mentioning about that part. "I also got to squeeze her boobs! A real girl's breasts, in flesh! Man, real-life breasts are so awesome! Viva la Oppai!" He made a groping motion as he recalled the feeling of softness and squishiness of the girl's breasts he somehow accidentally grabbed and groped.

Not too far from them, Matsuda and Motohama were pressing their hands on the sides of their heads in frustration.

"Y-you bastard! We're supposed to be friends, Issei!"

"Gah! I can't believe it! I totally can't believe it! There is no God in this world! God is dead! God is dead, I tell you!"

Meanwhile, other girls were looking at Issei in disgust.

"Urgh, what a pervert…"

"Disgusting…"

"Shouldn't that count as sexual harassment?"

Ignoring what some of the girls said, Issei's expression turned sheepish. "That last part was accidental, though," Issei said, scratching the back of his head in slight embarrassment. "I was so wrapped up in my thought about having a harem and becoming a Harem King, I didn't realize she was in front of me and my hands ended up grabbing her breasts." Then, the sheepishness turned into anxiousness as he looked at Aigis. "Umm… Kirijo-san, if you don't mind, can I ask you something?"

"What is it?" Aigis asked.

Averting his eyes while scratching the back of his head, Issei spoke. "W-well, you see… it was actually my first time having a girl asking me out. Honestly, I'm kinda nervous," he admitted, worry leaking in his tone. "We're going to go out for a date this weekend, so… do you have, well… some tips to share or something?"

"Tips?" Aigis blinked her eyes a few times.

"Y-yeah…" Issei nodded. "This is important for me, see? This is our first date, so I don't wanna mess it up." Aigis could see fear in Issei's eyes. "I wanna make this date to be the best day ever for both of us, and I don't want to disappoint Yuuma-chan." When Aigis gave him a questioning look, Issei noticed that he hadn't told her the name of the girl who asked him out. "Ah, forgot to mention this earlier, but her name is Yuuma Amano. She's such a cutie, you know?" The grin returned on his face before it immediately faltered. "S-so… you got some tips, Kirijo-san? Since you're a girl, I thought you probably know what a girl likes, right?"

Aigis thought about it for a moment. All these years, she had grown up considerably in terms of maturity and understanding on how to be a human, so it could be said that she had learned a few things that could not only be used for herself, but also to help others. Unfortunately, giving advices and tips about romance was not one of them. Still, the anxious look on the brown-haired boy's face compelled her to help him, so it would be a good thing for her to give him what he wanted. Due to the lack of knowledge about this particular subject, however, she decided to use what she had learned back then instead, when she fell in love with a certain blue-haired boy and started going out with him, at least from the short time they had before facing Nyx.

Well, their relationship was a little complicated, with her being a robot and all. Not that he really minded, though.

"Let's see…"Aigis started. "If you're going out with her, don't try to impress her. Just act naturally. Listen to her words and look at her, preferably in her eyes when she talks to you." She remembered the time when that certain blue-haired boy listened to what she said calmly and without interrupting her as he looked at her. "Complimenting her looks is advised, but don't overdo it." She was often caught off guard when the blue-haired boy complimented her, citing that her blue eyes were pretty. He didn't do that often, so whenever he did do that, she couldn't help but blush.

Again, was it necessary to make her cheeks red to show that her system was heating up?

"I-is that so?" Issei listened to Aigis intently before he frantically dug into his pockets. "Hang on, I'm gonna write them down!" He fished out a card from his pocket. Aigis couldn't help but notice a symbol drawn on the card which resembled a pentagram. Issei took out his pen and wrote on the blank side of the card. "Okay, here we go. Anything else?" Issei looked at Aigis. It looked like he had written the tips that Aigis had told him on the card.

Aigis then continued telling him more tips, and Issei diligently wrote them down.

"Make sure to make her happy…" Aigis said, smiling as she reminded herself of how happy she was when her Papillon Heart was touched directly by him. She still could remember the warmth of his touch as his genetic code was permanently burned into her database, effectively giving him the highest priority above all else. "Make her feel like she's the happiest girl ever alive in the world. If you do that, then I'm sure your date will be going smoothly."

"Make her happy…" Issei wrote the tips before he smiled at Aigis. "Yes, I'm gonna remember that. Thanks, Kirijo-san! I really owe you for this one!" He seemed to be genuinely happy about being given the tips.
"You are welcome, Hyoudou-san," Aigis responded.

"Man, I can't wait for this weekend! It's gonna be a blast!" Issei said giddily, pumping his fists in excitement. "This is my first true step on my path on becoming the Harem King, hehehe…" He laughed as he imagined something, probably lewd things, as expected from a pervert like him. "Yuuma-chan's boobs, hehehe…" He was starting to drool as he imagined the softness and pertness of his girlfriend's ample bust.
Of course, the perverted look on his face didn't go unnoticed by the other students, and they reacted accordingly to it.

"Gross…"

"He's the worst…"

"Pervert…"

"Someone seriously needs to call 110. His entire existence is a sexual harassment in and of itself."

Issei deliberately ignored all those harsh words as he indulged himself in his little fantasy world. Aigis blinked a few times.

'Let's hope he won't say those perverted things to his girlfriend,' Aigis thought to herself. 'Even so, he looks so happy. Yes, Athena is right. There's more than just one side of a person. Issei Hyoudou is more than just a pervert. It's unfair to label him with that one label alone because he can be much more besides being a pervert.' Aigis nodded to herself.

Though, she could feel a strange sensation inside her. She could feel something akin to a tug within her, and she could tell it wasn't part of the machination of her body as a battle android. It came from something much deeper within her, something that came from the sea of her soul.

The Magician.

She placed her hand on her chest, feeling the presence of this… new thing inside her. What was this feeling she was currently experiencing? As she thought about it, she recalled what Igor had told her days ago about her power as a Wild Card.

'It is a power that grows over time through nurturing your understanding of the world and those around you. Only by nurturing your bonds with others will the power of the Wild Card be brought to its fullest potential.'
The Wild Cards grew their powers by understanding the bonds they made with others, and by nurturing those bonds, their powers would grow stronger. That was what Aigis understood about the nature of her power, the power of the Wild Card. As she allowed her consciousness to dive into the vast sea of her soul, she could 'see' the thing she was feeling, the manifestation of her understanding in a person named Issei Hyoudou.

She could see her Personas, all three of them, surrounding this new presence which took the form of a glowing blue, empty card. Pallas Athena was looking at this new object with academic curiosity, fitting for her title as the goddess of wisdom. Palladion, being the statue she actually was, just threw an empty stare at this new object with her milky white eyes. As for Orpheus, due to some reasons that somehow escaped the battle android, he was playing his lyre, playing a rather jubilant tune.

Aigis did not understand the significance of the last part, thus in the real world, she scrunched up her brow as if in deep thought as she tried to figure out the meaning of it. A few students, as well as the homeroom teacher who was taking attendance, had noticed the strange look she made, but they didn't make any comment about it. They probably thought that she was having that time of the month.

Heart of a Butterfly

Persona 3 and High School DxD Crossover

Chapter 05: Sacred Gear​

The ringing of the bell signified the end of school sessions. Some students went to club activities while the others went straight home. There were also a few of them doing activities not related to the clubs, such as chatting with friends and some other things.

Having nothing better to do, Aigis decided to walk around the school area, observing the facilities and the students. Being quite a prestigious learning institute, Kuoh Academy was almost comparable with her previous school, Gekkoukan High School. As the mechanical maiden walked down the school yard, she saw the members of Track Club doing their laps around the school area. She also saw a few female students, probably from Volleyball Club walking around in their PE uniforms, which consisted of plain white shirts and maroon sport bloomers.

She couldn't help but notice their rather well-endowed breasts bouncing up and down as they moved. Her thought about the breast conspiracy returned to her mind. Was there something that had been polluting the water source around the area which caused the mutation within the female population that resulted in the enlargement of breasts among adolescent girls? Or was this the effect of a new drug being secretly developed by Japanese government, with the drug being mixed into the foods that these girls ate? Or was her theory about some kind of malevolent entities trying to destroy the world by drowning its entire population in the sea of breasts right all along?

The battle maiden shook her head as she continued walking. She had been thinking about breasts lately, due to some odd reasons. Katase and Murayama had been giving her weird looks when she mentioned this to them. Fortunately, they had discussed among themselves that it was still too early to decide that the Perverted Trio of Kuoh Academy had turned into the Perverted Quartet. After all, 'Ai Kirijo' didn't seem to be the kind of person who would act like the members of the trio.

"Ah." Aigis stopped as she noticed the structure right in front of her. It was an old schoolhouse, the clubhouse of sort for the Occult Research Club, with Rias Gremory being the President of the club. And Aigis had been well-informed by Rias Gremory herself that the members of the club consisted of Devils, the creatures of darkness and the ones mentioned in the Bible itself. Even so, Aigis accepted the fact of their existence quite easily due to her past experiences with Shadows and some antagonistic deities like Nyx and Hi-no-Kagutsuchi. Those things existed, so why not the Devils?

Aigis blinked a few times. She somehow ended up being in front of this place. Then, she remembered Mitsuru's order that she had given to her after the accomplishment of her mission a few days ago.

"Observe Rias Gremory and her group," Aigis muttered. Mitsuru had issued this order to the mechanical maiden upon learning their involvement and assistance in Aigis' mission. The revelation of the existence of these creatures had brought a few implications, and being an ever cautious person, Mitsuru had ordered Aigis to see whether these Devils posed a threat to the world or not.

Even so, there was no reason for her to stalk them, so Aigis decided to walk away before she noticed a presence. She turned around and saw a male student with blond hair, carrying a few books in his hands. The male student, whom she recognized as Yuuto Kiba, was a member of the Occult Research Club, and like Rias Gremory, he was also a Devil. He seemed to possess some kind of power and from the battle the other day, Aigis noticed that he was quite skillful in swordsmanship. He even cut both of Gremda's hands, which allowed the mechanical maiden to decisively defeat the stray Devil before finally obliterating her with her flame.

"Ah, it's you, Kirijo-san," the boy, Kiba spoke to Aigis. He smiled at her as he continued speaking. "Good afternoon to you. Hmm… should I call you Aigis-san instead?"

Looking at the blond boy, Aigis returned the greeting. "Good afternoon to you too, Kiba-san. I do not mind if you call me Kirijo or Aigis, but Aigis is my real name."

Kiba nodded. "Aigis-san, then…" He glanced at the clubhouse of the Occult Research Club. "Is there anything you need from us? You're here, so I thought that might be the case."

Aigis thought about it for a moment. She couldn't exactly tell the boy that she had been ordered by her superior to observe them. "I was just walking around. I am new here, so I would like to learn more about this school. Even though I am not a human, I am interested in interacting with others, as well as learning more things. Do you see any problem with that, Kiba-san?" She asked.

"I see, and no, I don't see any problem with that," Kiba replied.

Aigis nodded. "Well then, I shall be on my way. I apologize if I ended up getting in your way, Kiba-san."

"Nah, no worries." After a pause, he spoke, "Say, if you don't mind, would you like to join me for some tea?" He asked, smiling. "Buchou and the rest are busy, so it'll be just me in the club for today. Unless if you have something important to do, that is."

Aigis pondered about it for a moment. She looked at the boy before her. Perhaps she could learn more about Rias Gremory and her group by talking to this boy. "Very well. It's not like I have anything better to do. I shall join you for some tea, Kiba-san." She wasn't designed with the function to eat or drink, but she thought that this was her chance to learn more about these Devils.

Kiba nodded before he went to open the door. "Please, Aigis-san. Right this way." Opening the door, he asked the battle maiden to enter the old schoolhouse first. Aigis nodded and stepped into the schoolhouse before the boy followed after her. They went to the meeting room. "Please have a seat, Aigis-san."

Aigis took a seat. "Please excuse me," she said. Kiba went to make the tea, leaving Aigis alone for a while. Then, Aigis noticed some sort of marking on the floor. The marking seemed strange, but apart from that, there was nothing extraordinary about that marking. The mechanical maiden decided to ignore the marking for the time being.

After Kiba was done preparing the tea, he brought a teapot and two teacups and saucers. He poured the tea into the teacups and placed one of the teacups in front of Aigis. "Here you go."

"Thank you," Aigis said.

As Kiba took a seat opposite to her, Aigis looked into the tea that was served to her. She had this inability to consume drinks due to her design, and she didn't want to risk causing system malfunction by sloshing her internal, robotic parts with hot tea. Mitsuru had been telling her lately that her group of scientists had been developing something which allowed the Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapons like Aigis and Labrys to consume foods without harming themselves, but it would be long before it could even be completed.

Kiba raised an eyebrow when Aigis didn't touch her teacup.

"Are you not going to drink?" Kiba asked, placing the teacup on a saucer after taking a sip of the tea.

"As an Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon, I am not equipped with the ability to eat or drink. My purpose in life is to eliminate Shadows and any threats that may endanger the world, so the act of consuming foods is irrelevant to us," Aigis explained honestly. "Doing so may end up damaging my insides, which will affect my performance greatly."

Kiba gave the battle maiden a curious look. "So, why did you accept my offer, then?" He asked.

Aigis nodded to herself before she answered, "Because doing otherwise would be rude. And even without having the need to drink, I still can talk to you." She smiled. "And the aromatic scent of this tea is pleasing to my senses, to say the least. I suppose having the scent lingering in the air makes it easier for both of us to converse."

"I see…" Kiba mused. "That was rather… thoughtful of you, Aigis-san." Then, he smiled. "Since you seem to enjoy the scent of tea more than its taste, I suppose you don't want me to take the teacup away, do you?"

"I also enjoy seeing my reflection on the surface of the tea, so please do not take it away," Aigis said.

Kiba chuckled. "You're an interesting person, Aigis-san, I'll tell you that."

"Does my preference in savoring the scent of the tea over the taste of the tea itself seem that interesting to you, Kiba-san?" Aigis asked, blinking a few times.

"Well, it's not just that." Kiba shrugged before he leaned forward, placing his hand on his chin as he studied the mechanical maiden's features. "Speaking of interesting, that day…" he began. "When you fought Gremda and her monsters, you used some kind of power that I never saw before? Is it a Sacred Gear that you used at that time, perhaps?" Normally, only humans were granted with Sacred Gears, so he might be wrong in this. Still, it made him curious.

When Aigis battled Gremda and the monsters called Shadows, Kiba recalled seeing something showing up to aid the battle maiden in battle after some sort of invocation done by her. The first one was that woman in a flowing white dress with golden trims, armed with a large shield and a barbed spear. Her presence radiated power and authority, and her regal appearance seemed to illuminate the area affected by the miniaturized Dark Hour with her presence alone. The second one was a… person? Construct? Kiba couldn't really tell. Its presence was different compared to the first one. It appeared to be humanoid, but it seemed to be lacking something that made any human-like creatures, well, humans. It also wielded some kind of strange-looking weapon, which resembled a musical instrument. It was also the one that set Gremda aflame, burning her down to her skeleton before turning her into fine, blackened dust.

"Sacred Gear?" Aigis blinked. "What is this Sacred Gear?"

Kiba raised his eyebrow. "So it wasn't a Sacred Gear you used?"

Aigis shook her head. "I do not know what this Sacred Gear refers to, but my power is called Persona. It allows me to summon the manifestations of my thought that take the form of many shapes. It is also something that allows me to battle the Shadows in the first place."

Kiba seemed curious. "So, is it a power exclusive to you as a rob- I mean, an Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon?" He asked.

"No. If anything, I am one of the special cases. This power is specifically granted for human beings to use. This power allows humans to conjure the manifestations of their thoughts, or in some cases, the idealized version of themselves to use in battle," Aigis explained. Then, Kiba could hear a humming sound from Aigis before the battle android was surrounded by azure light. "And it is called a Persona." The sound of breaking glass resonated within the clubroom. A figure started to materialize itself, and the figure took the shape of a woman in a turquoise dress trimmed with golden. She wore a Greek war helmet with a crimson plume and a white mask. The protector of Troy hovered in the air for a few seconds before she descended slowly, landing beside Aigis, and sitting on the couch where the battle maiden was sitting on.
Kiba could barely contain his surprise when he saw the woman. Her expressionless white mask turned to look at Kiba, and the boy could feel a chill from seeing the woman's empty, white-eyed gaze.

"Allow me to introduce one of my Personas, Palladion…" Aigis gestured at the Persona seated beside her. "She is the statue of Pallas Athena that protected the city of Troy." After a pause, she added, "And please excuse her blank look. She is, after all, just a mere statue of a goddess."

Kiba stared at the woman before she dissipated into motes of blue particles as she returned to the sea of souls from where she was born.

"That's… the manifestation of your thoughts?" Kiba asked, eyes widened.

"The correct term should be the 'manifestation of what your soul actually represents', but manifestation of thoughts is much easier to understand," Aigis clarified. "You do know what differentiates the human race from other creatures, right?" Then, she added, "Ah, rather than other creatures, let's just say 'animals', since you Devils seem to be more advanced than humans in terms of most subjects. If you compare a human to a monkey or a dog, you may say that the difference between humans and animals is their intelligence. But, the real difference here is their capability to imagine. The Personas take their shapes based on the imagination of human beings. And also their beliefs, but mostly their imaginations." Then, she remembered Koromaru, one of her trusted comrades, was also a Persona-user, despite being a dog. Then again, just like her, Koromaru was also a special case.

The power stemmed from one's thoughts and imagination? If that was truly the case, it would make such a terrifying power, even rivaling the power of Longinus, the high-leveled Sacred Gears that could even kill gods and bodhisattvas.

Even before Kiba could ask Aigis any further regarding her power, the battle maiden decided to ask him a question. "Back to my question. What is a Sacred Gear?"

"Well, I'm not really the right person to say this since Buchou and Akeno-san are more knowledgeable in this kind of thing than me, but I'll try my best to explain," Kiba began. "The Sacred Gears are some kind of items or artifacts bestowed upon humans by God." Aigis noticed the slight twitch on the edge of the boy's lips as he spoke. "And when I say God, I mean the God in the Bible. He created these Sacred Gears as parts of His system to enact miracles on Earth. All these Sacred Gears have a variety of effects, like instantaneously healing severe wounds or creating weapons or constructs out of empty air to aid the user in combat." He put his hand on his chin. "Due to some reasons, only humans are granted the Sacred Gears, so Devils, Fallen Angels and Angels don't have them. But reincarnated Devils who are reincarnated from humans can use the power of their Sacred Gears even after becoming Devils."

Aigis nodded, digesting the new information. So it was some kind of power granted by a high-leveled entity in order to enact the acts of miracle. "One question, Kiba-san. Do you have a Sacred Gear?"

Kiba's eyes widened slightly upon hearing the question. After a pause, he nodded. "Yes. You saw it at that time, right? It was my Sacred Gear, Sword Birth. It allows me to create demonic swords in battle." Aigis remembered seeing the thrown sword that cut Gremda's hand at that time, saving her from being obliterated by the stray Devil's energy beam.

"So, you gained this Sacred Gear, Sword Birth, when you were a human, correct?" Aigis asked.

This time, the boy's demeanor changed. He was no longer smiling, and he looked aside to avoid looking into the battle maiden's eyes. Aigis raised one eyebrow in confusion upon seeing the change, before she realized that she might have triggered some bad memories. From what Rias had told her before, most reincarnated Devils were humans who were dying before being reincarnated.

"…Yes," Kiba answered, his tone low. It felt like seeing an entirely different person. No, it was still the same Yuuto Kiba, but like Issei, this was a different side of him.

'There is more than one side, indeed.'

"I see…" Aigis mused. Deciding to change the topic, Aigis spoke, "Thank you for explaining to me about the Sacred Gears, Kiba-san. It was rather enlightening to learn something new," she admitted.
Kiba looked at Aigis, and the dark look he wore a while ago slowly vanished as he smiled. "Anytime, Aigis-san. Feel free to ask more, and I'll try my best to answer them." The gentle smile on his face made all traces of his earlier expression fade away. "To tell you the truth, this is quite enjoyable. Our conversation, that is."

"That, I have to agree…" Aigis nodded. Then, she felt a tug deep inside her, like the one that she felt after speaking with Issei earlier that day. She closed her eyes, and she could feel another presence besides The Magician.

The Star.

She could feel it, the presences of both The Star and The Magician deep within her. Somehow, from what she had understood about a person named Yuuto Kiba had given her this new thing within her: infinite possibilities.

"I guess I shall call it a day," Aigis said, getting up from her seat. "I'm sorry about the tea, but I really enjoy the scent."

Kiba nodded and got up. "That's okay. I'm glad you like it, Aigis-san. Would you like me to accompany you to go outside?" He offered.

"Thank you, but I'll be fine. Let's talk again some other time."

"Yes. Let's."

---

Aigis continued thinking about the new presences within her, these things that took the shape of blue, empty cards.

"So, are these what Igor said? The culmination of bonds I made with others?" Aigis muttered to herself. Within the sea of her soul, both cards were circling around each other, waiting to be unleashed in order to take more solid, meaningful forms.

As she walked towards the direction of her apartment, suddenly there was a flash of light from beside her. She stopped and saw a rather familiar thing. It was a door, blue in color, and if it was the same thing as before, as the one who held the key to the room, she would be the only one who could see the door.

Nodding to herself, she held up one hand and opened it. An object materialized itself, hovering above her hand for a few seconds before it landed on her palm. The Velvet Key, an item that gave her access to the Velvet Room. She closed her eyes and her fist, and the key glowed.

When she reopened her eyes, she found herself seated on a chair in the Velvet Room. Inside, the residents of the room were looking at her with anticipation.

"Welcome to the Velvet Room, my dear lady," the proprietor of the Velvet Room, Igor, welcomed the mechanical maiden. "How may we serve you today?"

Wordlessly, Aigis held out her hands, and two blue, blank cards appeared on her palms. The imp-like old gentleman raised an eyebrow, seemingly amused and curious.

"Ah, it seems that you have made yourself two bonds. I can feel the strength and power these two radiate," Igor spoke. "Come. Please allow us to see them."

Aigis nodded. The cards flew toward Igor before they diverted their paths, going to both Margaret and Theodore respectively. Each of them held out one hand, and each card landed on their hands before it hovered an inch away from the palm.

"Ah… this is fascinating…" Margaret spoke. "Such a free-spirited soul, not bound by the rules of your world. Even so, I can feel some kind of warmth in which it's radiating." The woman in velvet closed her golden eyes. "Despite its desire for worldly and carnal pleasure, this warmth is clearly unmistakable. How can such a contradiction exist? How could this soul desire such impure pleasure while the pureness within remains untainted? Such a contradiction, indeed." She chuckled. "I look forward to see the reason of this contradictory existence. How wonderful." She reopened her eyes, her golden eyes flashing with curiosity which reminded the android of Elizabeth. Just from this, Aigis could tell that both Elizabeth and Margaret were truly sisters.

As for Theodore, he looked at the card hovering above his palm with his golden eyes shining in melancholy. "Such sadness… such moroseness…" he spoke, sorrow leaking in his tone. "How can such a soul still find any semblance of happiness despite having gone through such austerity? I cannot help but wonder whether this display of joviality and exuberance is nothing but a mere façade to mask the pain in its heart or not." He touched the card with his gloved fingers, stroking it tenderly. "Will I still be able to smile if I have gone through the same trials as this soul had endured?" He closed his golden eyes and shook his head. "Such a thought terrifies me greatly. Even so, I wish to know more about what else this inquisitive soul has to offer." He reopened his eyes and looked at Aigis.

"How melancholic. Drama is truly your forte, Theo…" Margaret teased her little brother.

"W-well… I-I couldn't help myself, sister. This feeling of sadness truly touches my heart," Theodore stammered.

Igor, who was silent while his assistants were speaking earlier, raised his hands, and both cards flew from their palms. The cards then landed on the table in front of him.

"Now… let's see what shapes these manifestations of your bonds will take," Igor said, and both cards glowed brighter. Aigis was familiar with this process because she had seen Igor performing it back in 2010. But now, with the understanding she had gained by knowing these two boys, Issei Hyoudou and Yuuto Kiba, she would be able to witness the unexplored part of the Wild Card that she had gained years ago.

Aigis could see some sort of symbols starting to form below the cards before they broke into pieces. Igor grinned, and both Margaret and Theodore opened their compendiums.

One figure started to materialize itself on one unoccupied seat before taking the form of a beautiful man with shining black, long hair. In his hand was a spear not unlike the one that Pallas Athena wielded. The armor he wore was silver in color, shining majestically under the light of the Velvet Room. Then, the man focused his piercing red eyes on Aigis before he displayed a devious smirk.

Margaret was the first to speak after the appearance of this man. "Ah, how fascinating. From The Magician, the one who comes from the sea of your soul is him, the Victorious Child of Ulaidh, Conall Cernach." The Persona tipped his head upon hearing the introduction that was made on his behalf. "It seems that we have another interesting Persona to be recorded into our compendium. Though the detail about him sleeping with a severed head of his enemy under his knee sounds rather morbid."

Aigis looked at Conall Cernach. "Pleased to meet you."

Still displaying that devious smirk, Conall Cernach bowed his head in recognition of the one who gave birth to him from the sea of her soul before dissolving into blue particles.

The second figure that appeared was a man with quite a youthful appearance, clad in shining armor of a knight, with a stallion accompanying him by his side. Hanging on his waist was a sword with a hilt wrapped in leather. His entire back was covered by the crimson cape he wore which seemed to bear an emblem of sorts, with the image of a lion being prominently displayed on the emblem. His presence radiated an aura of calmness and when he saw Aigis, his lips curled up into a gentle smile.

"From The Star, the one who came forth to emerge from the sea of your soul is the God's Knight on Earth himself…" Theodore spoke as the knightly figure showed himself. "Galahad of the Round Table. Pureness personified." The golden-eyed man's eyebrow raised as he read the page of his compendium. "Fascinating though, he was conceived due to an illegitimate affair between his father, Lancelot of the Lake and Elaine of Corbenic. Quite interesting that the God's Knight was a child born out of wedlock."

Galahad, the Persona that was born from the bond between Aigis and Yuuto Kiba, bowed courteously to the battle maiden before he dissipated into motes of blue particles alongside the stallion that accompanied him.

Aigis could feel the presence of her two new Personas joining the others within the sea of her soul. She nodded to herself before she looked at Igor and his assistants.

"Thank you for your assistance, Igor," Aigis spoke before she focused to golden-eyed siblings. "Theodore, Margaret."

"It is our pleasure in assisting you to realize your true potential, my esteemed lady," Igor said. "I look forward to see what else the power of Wild Card will deliver in the near future. Till we meet again…"

---

Aigis was seated on her capsule seat, closing her eyes as dozens of wires were attached to her body. Despite that, she was not in 'sleep mode' and was just merely mimicking the act of sleeping that normal humans always did.

Then, she reopened her eyes. It was the weekend, and she remembered that her neighbor at school, Issei Hyoudou, was probably on his date with his girlfriend. She could only hope that the tips that she had given to him could help him out while both he and his girlfriend were dating.

The battle maiden sighed softly before she disconnected herself from the wires and got up from the seat. Mitsuru had told her that the technician would arrive soon in order to repair the minor damages that Aigis had sustained during the battle against Gremda and her army of Shadows. Mitsuru might send her one of the scientists from the research team of the Kirijo Group.

Aigis walked to the table and opened the briefcase that was on it. The metallic object which took the shape of a gun was taken out by the android. She held the Evoker against her chest, closing her eyes. Her Plume of Dusk reacted to the gesture, causing a soft hum coming from within her.

"I will try my best, Minato-san. Please watch over me," Aigis spoke softly as she stared into the reflective surface of the device. Then, she heard the sound of the doorbell. "Ah, that is probably the technician…" she said before she placed the Evoker back into the briefcase and closed it again. She turned on the heel of her false foot before she went towards the door.

"Hello? Aigis, are you in there?"

Eyes widened as she recognized the gentle voice that came from behind the door, Aigis hastened her steps and placed her hand on the knob. She twisted it to open the door, revealing a short young woman attired in a white, long-sleeved sundress. She tilted her head when Aigis opened the door, the fringe of her teal-blue hair fell over her teal green eyes. She brushed the hair aside with her fingers and smiled at Aigis.

"Ah," Aigis reacted to the appearance of the young woman.

"It's been a while, hasn't it?" The woman spoke, still smiling. Her teal-blue hair was braided to the front, making her seem more mature and more confident.

Aigis smiled as well. "It is nice to see you, Fuuka-san."

---

Lying on a pool of his own blood, the boy let out weakened gasps and strangled noises. There was a large hole located in the middle of his chest.

There was a girl standing over the boy's broken body, a pair of obsidian wings seen on her back. There was a sneer on the girl's face as she looked at the dying boy in contempt.

Losing blood and clearly dying, the boy coughed up blood.

'T-this can't be happening! W-why this is h-happening?! I can't understand… This is supposed to be the best day of our lives… H-how…?'

A lot of questions had started to form in the dying boy's head, despite the fact that his time among the living would be ending anytime soon. The girl seemed to have left him to die on the pool of his own blood.

Cold.

It was cold.

Was dying always this cold?

In the dying boy's hand, there was a card with something written on it. His blood seemingly blotted out almost all the words written, making them unreadable.

Almost.

Make her feel like the happiest girl alive in the world.

TO BE CONTINUED​

 

Good that you put it down in more places friend. I do enjoy this story ever so much.

 

I'm glad you enjoy it.

 

I like it too.

 

Thanks~

 

So, are you editing this, before posting it here? I just can't help but notice that your FF account has five more chapters than this version.

 

Just some minor edits, but most contents are mostly unchanged.

 

It was supposed to be the best day of our lives.

Both Yuuma-chan and I went out for our date in the town, and I had put my best clothes on. Kirijo-san told me to not try to impress Yuuma-chan, but she also told me that I should wear something good so that our date could go smoothly. So, instead of wearing my usual attire, I decided to wear something different. I bought the clothes that those bishounen always wore in the fashion magazines (damn those bishounen, by the way). They were expensive, but for Yuuma-chan's sake, I didn't mind.

When we met at the park, I was caught off-guard by Yuuma-chan's appearance. She was gorgeous! I mean, look at her breasts! Perfect Oppai, I'd say! When I approached her, she looked at me and smiled cutely as she brushed her dark hair behind her ear, and I almost got myself a heart attack. That perfect smile of hers made her look one hundred times cuter than she already was. She was also wearing a light violet blouse, accentuating her womanly figure and a black miniskirt, revealing her shapely, beautiful legs.

I thought I could die from this and be content with it.

So, both of us went throughout the town together, doing a lot of things a couple would always do while dating. First, we went to watch a movie. A horror movie, to be exact. Yuuma-chan seemed to be scared while both of us were watching the movie, and she ended up latching herself on my arm as we continued watching it. Once again, I could feel the softness of her boobs, and I could barely stop myself from experiencing a fatal nosebleed. She looked at me with teary, violet eyes, showing me her quivering lips, which made her a lot cuter. So, for the entirety of the movie, she had been latching herself on my arm the whole time. Naturally, I didn't complain about it. If anything, it was a blessing for me to have a cute bishoujo like her to shove my arm between her breasts.

After that, we went to the shopping mall, and we spent much of our time shopping for clothes. She asked me to comment on her looks when she put on a lot of cute dresses. All of them were perfect, I told her. Kirijo-san had told me to give her compliments sparingly, but I couldn't help it because Yuuma-chan was too beautiful. When I told Yuuma-chan that she was cute in all those dresses, she blushed and smiled shyly. I also got myself putting on some new clothes. Normally, I didn't really care about which clothes should I buy and wear, but with Yuuma-chan with me, I really enjoyed shopping with her.

Then, we went to a restaurant to enjoy our lunch. Yuuma-chan seemed to like her parfait and shared it with me. Since we were using the same spoon at that time, it could be said that both of us indirectly kissing each other.

I enjoyed seeing her smile. I had promised to myself that I would make this date the best day of our lives, and I would make her the happiest girl ever alive in this world. If I could make her happy, then I would be happy too.

And so, we enjoyed ourselves by doing a lot of things. Then, we decided to call it a day when it was the time for both of us to depart. We stood before each other, staring into each other's eyes. Yuuma-chan was so beautiful, and with the sun setting right behind her, she looked absolutely heavenly. It felt like she was an angel who had fallen from the heavens in order to stay by my side. Forever.

With both her hands behind her back, Yuuma-chan looked at me with her gorgeous violet eyes. She smiled and tilted her head before she spoke, "It sure was fun today."

I was glad she was having fun. I couldn't ask for more than that! W-well, at least I wanted to grope her breasts again, but that's beside the point. If Yuuma-chan said she was having fun, then I was happy for her.

"Hey, Issei-kun…"

"What is it, Yuuma-chan?"

Yuuma-chan put her finger on her cheek. "There is something I want to do to celebrate our first date. Will you listen to my wish?"

That would be it. This was something I had been waiting for! My first, real kiss with a girl! I felt like my dream that I previously thought not to be realized would come true! I looked at her lips. I couldn't imagine the feeling of having a girl's lips being pressed against mine. Such thought made me feel self-conscious. I made sure that I had checked the smell of my breath. The mental image of myself kissing Yuuma-chan made my heart bump faster. It felt like my heart might end up bursting out of my chest at this rate.

"W-well, w-what is the w-wish you want?" In the end, I made a fool out of myself by stuttering like that. The thought about myself kissing Yuuma-chan and my nervousness caused my speech to be impeded. I silently cursed myself for doing such a careless thing.

Still smiling sweetly, Yuuma-chan said something that I had not truly expected.

"Issei-kun… will you die for me?"

"Huh?"

At first, I thought Yuuma-chan was just joking, but then, before I could even say anything about that wish of hers which I thought was just a joke, something emerged from her back. A pair of obsidian, feathered wings expanded to their full lengths, scattering countless feathers around the area. I blinked several times, stunned by this unexpected turn of event.

Then, her cute smile twisted into something else, something sinister. Those violet eyes of hers narrowed, and when I looked at those eyes, I froze. I was unable to move as those eyes of hers sent shivers down my spine. Yuuma-chan flapped those raven-like wings of hers, sending more feathers to scatter in the air before she spoke again, "It was fun. The short time I spent with you, I mean. It felt like playing house with a child."

Her tone was cold and merciless, unlike before. She looked at me with a sneer as she placed one hand on her waist while holding out the other. Then, something started to form in her held out hand, something glowing, buzzing with power. When it finished forming, I managed to take a good look at it, which was a spear made of violet light.

I could feel it with my skin. The power it radiated, it suffocated me.

Then, Yuuma-chan hurled the spear towards me, and I was unable to do anything as it pierced through my chest. My eyes widened when the spear of light stabbed me right through my heart.
It hurt. It hurt like hell.

My vision blurred. The world around me started to turn hazy. Before I could even realize it, my back was already on the ground, and Yuuma-chan approached me, holding out her hand to touch the spear of light that stuck on my body before she pulled it out without any hint of care towards my whole being.

Even with my vision blurred, I could see a fountain of blood, spurting out from the wound on my chest. I coughed up blood as the spear of light in Yuuma-chan's hand disappeared.

"Sorry." I heard Yuuma-chan's voice, and the tone she made while uttering the word didn't sound apologetic at all. "You were a threat to us, so we decided to get rid of you early. If you want to hold a grudge, then hate the God who put the Sacred Gear inside you."

I didn't get what she said. I was too busy dying to make any sense from her words. Then, she said no more. I could tell that she might have already left. I could feel a pool of my own blood starting to form below me, and everything started to become darker. Coldness started to envelop my whole body.

Was death always this cold? I couldn't feel my limbs at all. The pain that I had experienced earlier was replaced by the utter coldness.

Damn it. I was too young to die. There's still a dream that I had yet to achieve.

My consciousness started to fade. I was really dying. Briefly, I thought about my parents back home. I had yet to make anything that could make them proud. I might be a problematic child for them, but I was sure that they might be saddened with my death. Well, if there was one thing that worried me, it would be the collection of those porno magazines that I kept under my bed. It wouldn't be funny if they found those things while grieving for the death of their only son.

I tried to move my hand, and with the little energy that I had left, I could feel something in my hand. Ah, that would be the card that I used to write all those tips that Kirijo-san had told me before. All those tips sort of worked, but considering all the things that happened to me, I wasn't sure what to think anymore. If anything, I regretted that I would no longer be able to speak with her, the one who treated me like an equal.
Argh, I didn't want this. I didn't want to die. If only I could something. If only there was something I could do.

If only I could be reborn…
…
"So, you were the one who called for me."

There was a voice, filled with warmth that somehow alleviated the coldness I was experiencing. I could tell there was someone here besides me, but with my vision blurred, I was unable to see this someone.

"Looks like you are dying. Your wounds…" the voice, which sounded unmistakably female, spoke. "Oh my, looks like something interesting is happening to you. So it's you…" Then, she chuckled, as if finding this whole situation amusing. What was so funny about me dying, anyways? "This truly is interesting…"

I didn't know what to think anymore. I was tired and dying, and my consciousness would be lost anytime soon. Even so, I enjoyed the warmth this voice radiated. If only I could be alive, then…
I…

"If you're dying, then I'll pick it up. Your life, that is. From now, you will live for me."

Before I fully lost consciousness, I saw a glimpse of a beautiful visage of a girl with long, crimson hair.

Heart of a Butterfly

Persona 3 and High School DxD Crossover

Chapter 06: Fallen Angel​

"I apologize for the lack of chairs, Fuuka-san. I never thought about having chairs for my guests before," Aigis apologized to the cute young woman with braided, teal-blue hair who was seated on the floor. Positioning herself in a seiza, the young woman just shook her head.

"It's alright, Aigis. I don't really mind," the young woman, Fuuka spoke softly. "So, how are you? How's the school you're attending at?" The scanner-type Persona-user asked.
"I'm doing fine. Thank you for asking," Aigis replied, smiling before she handed Fuuka a can of fruit juice. "This is the only thing I have in preparation to welcome the technician who will repair me. But I never thought it would be you, Fuuka-san."

Fuuka shook her head. "It's okay, really." She accepted the fruit juice from the battle maiden and popped it open. "Mitsuru-senpai told me that you were injured in a battle, so I was very worried. When she said that she would send you one of the technicians to repair you, I volunteered to come." She scratched her cheek in embarrassment. "I also volunteered to be your handler, so I will be staying here, in this town, for the time being."

Aigis blinked. "You're staying here?" She asked.

"Well, I'll be living at a nearby apartment, but yes, I'll be staying here to watch over you to be your handler and technician." Fuuka smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry. I've been studying your schematic modules these last few weeks, so fixing you will be much easier for me."

"But how about your studies? Don't you still have classes to attend at the college you're currently in?" Aigis asked, seemingly concerned.

"Ah, don't worry about that. Mitsuru-senpai did something for me, so starting tomorrow, I would be attending the college department of Kuoh Academy. That way, I'll be able to stay here and provide with you any support you may need in your current mission," Fuuka helpfully explained to Aigis about the situation. "By the way, Mitsuru-senpai had already told me everything about your mission."

Aigis eyed the young woman curiously. "So, you already know about the Devils and Rias Gremory?"

Fuuka nodded. "Yes."

"Are you not surprised about this?" Aigis asked.

Fuuka thought about it for a few seconds before she shook her head. "Hmm… I don't think so, or rather, not really. I mean, yes, it's rather new and I never expected that all these Devils and Fallen Angels really exist, but considering what we had seen and faced before, I don't think I should be surprised anymore."

"I see…" Aigis mused.

Then, after taking a sip of her fruit juice, Fuuka immediately put the can down and hit her palm with her fist. "Ah! I almost forgot!" She got up and went out of the apartment. Aigis could hear the sound of something being dragged. "Urgh… s-so heavy…" Apparently, Fuuka was dragging something from outside the apartment before she came back inside, dragging a case which was half of her body in size.
Aigis blinked. "Did you drag that thing to my apartment?"

Fuuka smiled sheepishly, her cheeks turned rosy. "W-well, I asked for the cab driver to bring this here, but he just put this thing downstairs," she continued dragging the large case into the apartment. "Mitsuru-senpai told me to give this to you."

Aigis looked at the case, which was then unlocked and opened by Fuuka, revealing a few metallic objects which seemed to be the disassembled parts of a kind of long-barreled weapon of sorts. "Ah." She kneeled and checked the items in the case, carefully assessing all the components. "I see…" She picked one of the items before she started assembling all the parts. Due to her knowledge in weaponry, assembling all the parts took less than fifteen minutes. When she was done, Fuuka could only stare in amazement as Aigis held a long-barreled gun with a rectangular casing around the barrel that was mounted under her right forearm. There was a handle with a red button near the upper end of the barrel. The way she held the new weapon looked like she was holding an oversized tonfa. "A railgun…" Aigis muttered, checking the weight of the weapon in her right hand. Despite its size, the battle android was able to hold it without any problem. "I see that the research team of the Kirijo Group has finished their test on this high-powered handheld weapon."

Fuuka looked at the railgun that was mounted under Aigis' forearm curiously and in astonishment. "Wow… I'm surprised they are capable of developing a handheld railgun like this. Not only is it powered by electromagnetism, but it also possesses quite a destructive power that should be handled by a group of people rather than one person."

"This weapon is specifically designed to be used by an Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon like me," Aigis said. "An ordinary person is incapable of handling this kind of weapon because the power it generates is enough to rip one's hand upon firing." She looked at the label on the rectangular casing of the railgun. "HARPE-02…" she read the label. "I see. I suppose this is quite an outstanding gift from Mitsuru-san."
Fuuka smiled. "I'm glad you like it."

Then, Aigis held up the railgun before her arm glowed. Much to Fuuka's surprise, the railgun vanished, dissolving into motes of blue particles.

"I-it's gone!" Fuuka gasped.

"It is my special power…" Aigis told the agitated young woman. "I learned this trick some time ago. This is how I store all my heavy weapons…" Mitsuru also expressed surprise upon seeing this ability for the first time, and the battle maiden told her that it was a power that she gained from the ability to summon multiple Personas. In reality, she willed the weapons to dematerialize and be stored inside her psyche, the sea of her soul where her Personas resided. She could recall all these weapons to be used at any moment. Any Persona-user could use this power if they practiced hard enough. It's just that as a Wild Card, Aigis could use this ability much easier than other Persona-users. The utilization of this ability also allowed her to use Heritage Liberator Palladion, by merging her Persona, Palladion, with her weapon to be used as her ultimate attack.

"I-I see…" Fuuka looked at Aigis in amazement. "Ah, would you like to start the repair?"

"Yes, I'm ready." Aigis nodded.

"Good. Well, let's get started, then. Will you please get undressed?"

"Okay."

Fuuka took out her equipment while Aigis undressed herself, shedding off her armored bodices so that Fuuka could start her check-up and repair.

As Fuuka started checking her robotic body, the mechanical maiden could feel The Priestess within her, pulsating with warmth.

---

Aigis arrived at school a little later than usual. After the check-up and repair by Fuuka, she immediately put herself in 'sleep-mode' without setting the alarm. As a result, she woke up late. She barely made it to the school ground as the first bell rang.

At first glance, there was nothing out of ordinary when she entered the classroom. She exchanged greetings with Katase and Murayama, as well as a few others. When she took her seat, she noticed that the student in front of her, Issei Hyoudou, was also seated instead of joining his fellow perverts.

After homeroom session, Aigis noticed that Issei seemed to be more withdrawn and quiet. He looked like he was brooding over something. When he looked behind to see her, he immediately averted his gaze. There was a troubled expression on the boy's face.

'Does it have something to do with his date yesterday?'

Aigis couldn't help but ponder over this change in demeanor in the usually perverted boy. He did make a few perverted remarks alongside his perverted friends, Matsuda and Motohama, but they sounded rather forced and hollow. Raising her eyebrow, the battle maiden decided to ask him about it during lunch break.

During lunch break, Aigis approached Issei, who was still sitting at his seat. "Hello, Hyoudou-san," she greeted the brown-haired boy. "How are you?" She asked.

Issei looked at his neighbor before he smiled, or tried to. His smile seemed forced. "Ah, h-hello, Kirijo-san. I-I'm fine." Aigis frowned. The boy seemed anxious over something. Perhaps something did happen during his date the day before.

"So… how was your date yesterday?" Aigis asked.

Issei looked at Aigis with widened eyes, as if he were seeing a ghost in daylight. Aigis blinked, thinking that she might have said something wrong to the perverted boy.

"Y-you remember?!" Issei asked, getting up from his seat.

Aigis nodded. "Yes?" She replied. "You said last week that you would be going out on a date with a girl named Yuuma Amano. Is that not correct?"

"Y-you remember Yuuma-chan?! I mean, you really did remember when I said her name?!" Issei asked desperately.

"Yes." Aigis nodded again. "Is there something wrong?" She was confused. What really happened during their date?

Instead of answering, Issei plopped himself onto his seat, eyes still widened. Then, he brought his hand to his face before he pinched the bridge of his nose. He then looked back at Aigis, showing his troubled expression.

"K-Kirijo-san…" Issei began. "If you don't mind, can we speak about this in private somewhere?" He asked. "Things are getting more and more confusing by each minute, I dunno where to start…" he admitted.

Aigis blinked and thought about it for a moment before she nodded. "Very well. Let us go to the rooftop, then," she suggested. "There are still a few spots up there where we can talk without someone interfering." A lot of students would use the rooftop to have lunches or converse with each other, and considering the size of the school, the rooftop would be large enough for both Aigis and Issei to talk without other students interfering.

"Y-yeah, let's go, then…" Issei nodded, getting up again before he followed Aigis, walking out of the classroom towards the stairway. After a few minutes, they reached the rooftop. They still could see a few students doing their things, and they went to a spot where they could talk without any interference. And considering that there were a few students conversing with each other at the rooftop, they wouldn't have to worry about being eavesdropped by people. If anything, they seemed to look like other students who were chatting with each other.

"So, what really happened yesterday?" Aigis asked.

"Umm…" Averting his gaze, Issei hesitated. "W-well, it's like this…"

Issei told her about his date. Thanks to the tips she had given to him, the date seemed to be going pretty smoothly without problem. Then, he told her about Yuuma suddenly asking him to die for her before a pair of black wings sprouted out from her back. She then stabbed him right in his chest before leaving him to die on the pool of his own blood. He told Aigis that he sort of heard a voice before he lost consciousness. Then, he woke up the next morning on his bed, his chest still intact. He didn't know what happened to him, and when he checked his phone to see the pictures he took with Yuuma during their date, he found out that there were none. More precisely, the pictures were still there, but there were no traces of Yuuma to be found in the pictures. She just somehow got erased from those pictures, leaving only the image of Issei, grinning like an idiot in those pictures he took.

When he came to school at the morning, he went to ask his fellow perverts, Motohama and Matsuda, as well as a few others, about him having a girlfriend. They told him that there's no way he could have a girlfriend. It confused him since he told them last week that there was a girl from another school asking him out on a date. It felt as if the girl named Yuuma Amano never existed.

When Issei was done, he fell silent, putting his hands on his lap as he dropped his head in dejection and confusion. Aigis, who was sitting beside the perverted boy, just looked at him.

"I'm sorry to hear that…" Aigis apologized, feeling saddened after hearing Issei explain what transpired.

Issei looked up to see Aigis' face before he smiled weakly. "T-thanks, Kirijo-san…" From his voice alone, the mechanical maiden could tell that Issei was depressed over this. Not only was he attacked and left to die by his girlfriend, there weren't even any signs of her existence. "I guess you're the only one who remembers her, at this rate. Man, this is so lame…" he grumbled. "I thought everything would be going pretty smoothly, but I got killed instead. Though, I dunno if that was real or not since I'm still pretty much alive. Nobody remembers Yuuma-chan at all." He placed his palm on his face. "Well, except you, Kirijo-san. This is getting too confusing for me to handle."

Seeing Issei's distress, Aigis smiled and placed her hand on the boy's shoulder. "Please do not worry, Hyoudou-san. I'll help you sort everything out. You can count on me."

"K-Kirijo-san…" Issei looked at Aigis beside him, seeing her concerned eyes. "T-thanks… I-I really appreciate it. As a matter of fact, I really needed someone to talk to about this stuff."

"Just tell me if you have something to talk about, Hyoudou-san. I probably can help you somehow…" Aigis said.

"…Call me Issei," the perverted boy said. "My friends call me that."

"Ah." Aigis then nodded. "Very well. From now on, I shall call you Issei-san. In return, please call me Ai," she said.

Issei smiled slightly as he nodded.

"Yeah. Thanks, Ai-chan."

Deep within the sea of her soul, Aigis could feel The Magician stirring. The more she understood the boy named Issei Hyoudou, the stronger the Arcana became. She could see the Persona that was born from the bond, Conall Cernach, smirking in anticipation as the bond between Aigis and Issei became strengthened.

"Well, let's get back to our class, Issei-san," Aigis said, standing up. "Lunchtime is almost over. Tardiness is something that we must avoid at all costs."

"Y-yeah, I guess you're right, Ai-chan." Issei stood up as well. "Let's go now."

And so, both Issei and Aigis walked alongside each other to the classroom. The perverted boy's mood seemed to be improving, thanks to the talk between both of them. While he was still distressed by the matter regarding his girlfriend, at least he had someone who was willing to hear him out.

Unnoticed by Issei, however, Aigis had been trying her best to keep her poker face on so that Issei wouldn't see the grimness of her expression upon hearing him being attacked and left to die by his girlfriend. Thanks to the information given by Rias Gremory days ago, she managed to get some idea about what had happened to Issei.

[The boy was attacked by a girl with a pair of black wings and stabbed by a spear made of light. There is no mistake about it. He was attacked by a Fallen Angel.]

'But how come he's still alive?'

[The boy told you that he heard a voice before he blacked out. It's likely that the boy was reincarnated to become a Devil by Rias Gremory. There might be some spells of sorts that erased all traces of Yuuma Amano from everyone's memories. Either by Rias Gremory herself or this 'Yuuma Amano'.]

'I still remember about all the things he told me about his girlfriend, though.'

[Do you not remember, foolish girl? You are immune to any kind of memory manipulation. Remember that time, the promised day. You were the only who remembered all that happened, the fight against Nyx and the sacrifice he made for the sake of all mankind. And you are unlike others, as you are made of steel and wires in place of flesh and blood.]

Aigis bit her lower lip upon hearing Pallas Athena's brutal honesty. Despite how brutal it was, the goddess of wisdom was right. So, Issei Hyoudou really was killed by his girlfriend, Yuuma Amano, who happened to be a Fallen Angel. For what purpose she did so, the mechanical maiden could only speculate. And when Issei was dying, he somehow was found by Rias Gremory, who then resurrected him, reincarnating him into a Devil.

[Watch over the boy, little girl. He was meant to die when the Fallen Angel attacked him. If she finds out the boy she supposedly killed is still pretty much alive…]

'…Then she will show up to finish the job.'

[Good. As expected from my other self.]

Nodding upon hearing the goddess of wisdom's suggestion, she looked at Issei and spoke, "Issei-san, would you mind if we walk together on our way home once the school day is over?"

Issei looked Aigis, a little bewildered. "Huh? Umm… w-well, I don't mind at all."

It would be preferable if Issei wouldn't be immediately attacked, but it wouldn't hurt to be careful about it. If Issei was still alive, then the Fallen Angel would come to finish the job.

And Aigis would deal with her, preferably in the most painful way possible for hurting her friend.

---

After the end of today's school session, both Issei and Aigis walked home. Issei was still distressed about everything that happened to him, while Aigis carefully studied their surroundings. If her calculations were right, then the Fallen Angel might show up anytime soon.

"My house is that way. It's not really that far," Issei said. "How about yours, Ai-chan?"

"Mine? Well, my apartment is over there." She pointed in a different direction.

As they continued walking, Aigis heard Pallas Athena's warning.

[She is nearby. Brace yourself.]

She stopped and held out her hand, stopping Issei from walking. The boy looked at her, confused.

"I know you are there," Aigis spoke, her voice loud and clear. "Show yourself."

For a while, nothing happened. Then, both Aigis and Issei heard the sound of someone chuckling before a raven-haired girl in a violet blouse and black miniskirt stepped out from her hiding spot, sporting an innocent smile. Aigis readied herself as the girl made her presence known to both of them. She also noticed that there was no one else besides them in the area.

"Y-Yuuma-chan?!" Issei gasped.

The girl, Yuuma giggled cutely when Issei spoke her name. "My, my… isn't that Issei-kun? How do you do?" She asked with faked pleasantry.

"H-how…? Y-you… what…?" Issei was too stunned to say anything coherent.

"What? Has the cat got your tongue, Issei-kun?" Yuuma tilted her head, a pose that Issei would consider cute if not due to the fact that her whole being seemed to radiate pure malice. "Well, if I have to be honest, I was kind of surprised, you see? You should have died for me yesterday. I don't know what happened to you, but you just made my job even harder because of it. You're really a pain in the ass, you know?" Then, her cute-looking smile morphed into something malicious, her voice turned dangerously low. "To be honest, you bored me. You were nothing but a child, a spoiled child. It vexed me when I had to put up with you." She seemed to be savoring the look on Issei's face when she said those words to him.

"T-then… everything that we…" Issei said, his legs trembling.

"Duh, of course everything was a fake!" Yuuma exclaimed. "What else? Do you think anyone with a sensible mind will go and ask you out on a date? You? Making me the happiest girl ever alive? Pah, give me a fucking break!"

"N-no way…" Utterly devastated, Issei fell on his knees, his strength escaping his legs.

"Issei-san." Aigis went to Issei's side.

Yuuma chuckled upon seeing the look of despair on Issei's face before her violet eyes flashed. "Well, no matter. You're going to die either way, Issei-kun. And you too, little girl. If you want to curse someone, curse him for associating himself with you." Her eyes focused on Aigis. Then, Stygian pinions emerged from her back, scattering countless feathers around her. Her clothes then ripped apart, exposing her naked flesh for the world to see before some kind of shadowy substance wrapped around her body, covering only the little bits of her body. She flapped her wings as she flaunted her almost naked body, with the shadowy substance covering only the small parts of her breasts and her crotch as well as her backside. "Now, die."

A pair of violet spears of light came into existence in her hands. She threw the spears toward both Aigis and Issei like javelins. The spears would skewer both the boy and the girl, killing them instantly.
But before the spears could even reach them, Aigis picked up the prone body of Issei before she propelled herself backward, avoiding the spears. She held Issei with both hands before she landed back on the ground and put Issei down. Issei seemed to snap out of his daze when he realized what had happened.

"Oh? So you're not an ordinary girl after all, huh? You seem to know how to fight, at least." Yuuma raised one eyebrow in fascination. "Haha, this is interesting. But, will you be able to fight all of us?" She raised one hand, as if making a signal before a few figures showed themselves to surround both Aigis and Issei.

The first one was a tall, voluptuous woman clad in a rather provocative dress, though it was nothing compared to what Yuuma was currently wearing. The way her navy-blue hair was styled seemed to obscure one of her eyes. The second one was a smaller girl with blond hair, grinning deviously as she made her presence known. Attired in a black Gothic Lolita dress that covered her whole body, her appearance seemed to be in deep contrast with the woman. And the third one was a middle-aged man, dressed in a violet trench coat over a white dress shirt. His head was covered by a black fedora, which made his eyes obscured. But his piercing dark blue eyes could still be seen as he looked at both Issei and Aigis in disdain.

Three of them also had black wings on their backs. Yuuma raised both her hands as she conjured a pair of light spears, grinning madly.

"Kalawarner, Mittelt, Dohnaseek," the scantily-clad Fallen Angel addressed her brethren. "Kill them all. Do not show them mercy." Her eyes focused on both the girl and the boy they surrounded. "If you wish to curse something, curse your fate, as I, Raynare, shall destroy you!"

"Tch!" Clicking her tongue, Aigis aimed both her hands at the Fallen Angels before she unleashed barrage of high-caliber bullets from her fingers towards them. Issei immediately crouched, lowering himself as the sounds of gunshots resonated in the air. The discharge of the bullets destroyed the white gloves Aigis was wearing.

Not expecting this, all the Fallen Angels deflected all the bullets with their spears of light. While they might be low-ranked Fallen Angels based on the number of wings they had on their backs, their reflexes far exceeded than those of normal humans. As Aigis ended her assault, she ejected the blank bullet shells from her arms, dropping them to the ground.

"W-what… what are…" The Fallen Angel who called herself Raynare looked at Aigis with widened eyes. Despite her successfully deflecting all the bullets, she was caught off guard by the assault. "What are you?!"
Wordlessly, Aigis pulled out a knife from her jacket, twirling it before holding it in a reverse grip position. With the help of her rocket propeller, she propelled herself towards Raynare, attacking her with a diagonal slash of her knife. Raynare swung her spear to block the attack, but the moment when both the knife and the spear of light met, Aigis already changed her trajectory, quickly shifting her position to attack the Fallen Angel from another direction. With inhuman speed, Aigis circled around Raynare, attacking her from all directions as Raynare frantically blocked all the attacks from the battle maiden.

"What are you all waiting for?! Help me!" Raynare screamed to her fellow Fallen Angels. Three of them, Dohnaseek, Mittelt and Kalawarner tried to surround the battle android, intending to overpower her with their number. But before they could even bring down their weapons on her, Aigis released some kind of hot steam from her body, distracting them and blinding their vision. Aigis took her chance to use her backhand to push the Fallen Angels away. She managed to send both the busty woman, Kalawarner, and the middle-aged man, Dohnaseek, flying with a swing of her backhand. Due to her short stature, Mittelt didn't get hit by the android's fist as it just passed over her head, so Aigis grabbed the collar of her dress, much to the petite Fallen Angel's surprise before the battle maiden hurled her towards Raynare, sending both of them away from her.

Issei, who was watching the battle unfolding before his eyes, was stunned and amazed. He didn't know what happened, but it seemed that Aigis managed to overpower these four people all by herself.

"Don't let this get to your head, you bitch!" Raynare screamed madly before she spotted Issei. Apparently, when Aigis was battling four of them, the boy was left unprotected. Her lips curled up into a mad grin before she bellowed, "Now, let's see what will happen if I kill him!" Forming another spear of light, she hurled it towards Issei, who was too stunned and too terrified to move his body. From her position, there was no way Aigis could move to protect the boy.

Before the spear could reach him, however, a great shield bearing the frowning visage of Gorgon materialized just in front of Issei, blocking the spear. Then, a woman clad in a flowing white dress and golden accessories materialized herself just beside Issei. In her hand was a barbed spear that could not only be used to stab, but also to slice and cut.

"Hold on tight, child. Don't say a word, or else you may end up biting your tongue." The woman spoke to Issei with a voice filled with authority before she scooped him up under her arm and leaped backwards just by kicking the ground, distancing themselves away from the Fallen Angels. Grinding her teeth, Raynare pursued after her with two light spears in both hands, intending to attack both the woman and Issei. Gently, the woman put Issei down. "Stay there. Do not move if you value your life."

Absentmindedly, Issei nodded. Calmly, the woman, the patron goddess of Athens, Pallas Athena, stepped forward as she looked at the approaching Raynare.
"Don't get in my way!" Raynare bellowed. "I don't care what you are! I'm going to destroy you!"

Removing her helmet to expose her full head, Pallas Athena's grey eyes focused on the approaching Fallen Angel. She dropped her plumed war helmet to the ground. Letting her great shield, the Aegis, orbit around her, she held her barbed spear with both hands as she assumed a fighting stance.

"I shall see you try, you little rebel," Pallas Athena replied calmly. "Let us see whether you can even put a scratch on me with those spears of yours or not."

---

While Raynare was busy engaging in combat against the shield-bearing woman who suddenly showed herself, Kalawarner and Mittelt were trying their hardest to hit Aigis, to no avail. Dohnaseek went to assist the scantily-clad Fallen Angel as he realized that the woman might be too much for their leader to handle alone.

"It is time to end this," Aigis muttered. "Initiating weapon change. Harpe, stand ready." Her right arm glowed before her new weapon, a railgun that was specifically designed to be used by an Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon like her appeared, mounted underneath her right forearm. She fired a few rounds of her bullets at both the Fallen Angels and leaped backwards to open a distance between her and them. "Take aim." She aimed to shoot at both the Fallen Angels, standing with both legs opened so that she could withstand the shockwave and the recoil generated from the shot before she pressed the red button on the handle. "Fire!"

A buzzing sound was heard when Aigis pressed the button before the shot was released. The bullet that was shot was an electrically powered electromagnetic projectile which was accelerated by the electromagnetic effect generated from the barrel of the railgun. The result was an explosion from the tip of the barrel with the bullet ejected, flying towards the intended target. Realizing the strength from the shot, both Mittelt and Kalawarner immediately jumped aside to avoid the shot, and the bullet ended up hitting a tree instead. The sheer power of the shot was enough to decimate the whole tree, leaving behind nothing but charred remains of the tree.

The shockwave from the shot was enough to rip apart the sleeve of Aigis' uniform, revealing her robotic arm and metal arm bracer. "Ah." Aigis lowered her arm. "It seems I need to calibrate this gun in order to aim properly. This is something that needs to be done in the future," she made a mental note to herself regarding her new weapon as she nodded to herself.

Both Kalawarner and Mittelt were stunned as they looked at what remained of the tree that was shot earlier. They didn't dare to imagine what would happen if they were hit by the bullet. Fallen Angels or not, being obliterated by a single bullet wasn't an enticing idea to be had in their heads. When they looked back at the one who released the shot, they immediately snapped themselves out of their daze before they charged forward in order to attack the mechanical maiden.

"Ah, it seems that I still have a battle to finish," Aigis spoke before she blocked two incoming light spears with her new weapon. She then stepped forward, propelling herself with her rocket propellers and closing the distance between her and both Fallen Angels before she swung down her new weapon like an over-sized tonfa. The Fallen Angels managed to avoid the attack, but the impact of the weapon the battle maiden wielded was enough to leave a crater in the ground. Eyes widened in astonishment, Kalawarner and Mittelt looked at the crater that was formed from the impact.

Seeing that her enemies were distracted, Aigis moved forward, still wielding her railgun like a tonfa before she swung it towards the closest one, Mittelt. The diminutive Fallen Angel was too stunned to even move, and when the attack was about to connect, she could barely brace herself as she was hit by the over-sized, improvised tonfa, sending her flying.

After sending Mittelt away with a powerful blow of her tonfa, Aigis turned to look at Kalawarner, whose visible eye was still widened in shock. She had already formed her light spear, but she had yet to hurl it at the battle android.

"W-what are you?" Kalawarner asked in exasperation while studying her opponent.

"I am Aigis…" Aigis replied. "I am an Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon, designed specifically to fight all oppositions, whether they be Shadows, monsters, humans, or even Fallen Angels like you. You have yet to land a hit on me, even though you are Fallen Angels." Her glowing blue eyes looked at the busty form of the Fallen Angel who stood before her, sending chills down the Fallen Angel's spine. "Now, allow me to fulfill my true purpose." She aimed her railgun at Kalawarner. "My true purpose is to destroy my enemies. Thus, I shall destroy you."

---

"Damn you!" Raynare snarled as her opponent wounded her yet again. Despite the fact that she was assisted by Dohnaseek, this woman not only fought them evenly, she also overpowered them. Whenever they tried to attack her by hurling their spears, her shield would block all of them. Whenever they tried to attack them in melee combat, she would effortlessly deflect and block all their attacks before inflicting more damage on their bodies.

"Now, where is that boastful claim of yours earlier, you roguish brat?" Pallas Athena asked, twirling her barbed spear before she pointed it at Raynare. "I have landed approximately forty-six wounds on that whorish body of yours, and you have yet to land even one on mine. Are you really that weak? It seems that you are only capable of wounding a helpless, unarmed boy like the one whose heart you just broke, Raynare…" the goddess of wisdom spat the name of the scantily clad Fallen Angel in distaste.

In response, Raynare cackled despite her injuries. "So what?! So what if I hurt Issei?! He's pathetic! He's a worm! He's nothing but a smudge of dirt just below my shoe! So what if I kill him?!"

Pallas Athena shook her head in disappointment. "Heh… Fallen Angels, even after falling down from the grace of their creator, still have the gall to act high and mighty. You fell because you are no longer under your God's blessing. You fell because you are no longer the one who basks under your God's glory. You fell because you are nothing but a smudge of dirt just below your God's shoe, Fallen Angel. You are nothing but a disgrace, an unwanted child whose role is to be thrown away. The black wings that you wear on your back with pride, they are nothing but the symbols of your disgrace."

"S-shut up! Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!" Raynare conjured dozens of light spears around her before she willed them to zoom towards Pallas Athena. Effortlessly, the goddess of wisdom just deflected all the spears with the help of her spear and shield. When Dohnaseek tried to attack her from behind, Pallas Athena spun and slammed her spear onto the male Fallen Angel's head, knocking him out cold. "Grr… who are you?! WHAT ARE YOU?!" Raynare screamed, conjuring two more light spears.

In an instant, Pallas Athena closed the distance between her and the Fallen Angel. Before Raynare could even react to it, Pallas Athena swung her barbed spear towards her right hand, cutting through the limb like a butter. Then, the goddess of wisdom smashed her shield against Raynare's face, knocking her down to the ground.

"MY ARM!" Raynare screamed in agony when she saw the bloody stump of her arm. Pallas Athena stabbed the severed hand of the Fallen Angel with her spear and lifted it. It twitched and shivered as blood leaked out from the stump. With Raynare's back on the ground, she tried to pick herself up, but Pallas Athena pressed her sandaled foot on her chest, pushing her down. The Fallen Angel could only look in horror as her severed hand disintegrated into ashes from the tip of Athena's spear.

"Do you wish to know what I am, little girl?" Pallas Athena asked. "I am Pallas Athena! The divine child of Zeus and Mother Metis! Patron goddess of Athens, the goddess of wisdom…" She pointed her barbed spear at Raynare's throat. "…And the one who will deliver a swift judgment on you, little fallen. A judgment that your creator had failed to deliver. Brace yourself, and remember my name as you fall even further into the realm of the dead." She raised her spear, preparing to stab the downed Fallen Angel through her skull between her eyes.

But before she could even do so, a few light spears flew towards the goddess of wisdom, causing her to shift her attention to her back, moving her Aegis to block the attack. Raynare took her chance to scamper away from the goddess' foot. The one who threw the spears was Dohnaseek, who regained consciousness just a while ago. His fedora was nowhere to be seen. He might have lost it sometime when Pallas Athena knocked him out earlier.

"Kalawarner! Mittelt! We're leaving!" Dohnaseek shouted to his fellow Fallen Angels as he continued to distract the goddess before he went to scoop up the horribly injured Raynare with both arms. His black wings expanded before he flapped them, propelling himself upwards as he carried the barely conscious Raynare in his arms.

"R-right!" Kalawarner responded, also expanding her wings as she held the unconscious Mittelt under her arm. Judging from her battered and bruised look, it was clear that she was soundly defeated by the battle android earlier.

And so, all the Fallen Angels escaped, barely with their lives. Both Aigis and Pallas Athena seemed to be unharmed from the battle earlier.

"Tch, cowards…" Pallas Athena hissed in disdain as she looked at those Fallen Angels that had become dots in the sky.

Dematerializing her railgun, Aigis immediately approached Issei, who was unharmed. "Issei-san, are you alright?"

"W-what… whuh…?" Issei was too shell-shocked to make any sense out of what he had seen earlier. Then, his eyes rolled back in his head before he fell to the ground, unconscious.

"Issei-san! What happened, Issei-san?!" Aigis shook Issei's prone body. "Did they somehow hurt you somewhere?" She was starting to panic over the thought that those Fallen Angels might have left some sort of curse on the poor boy's body. "Issei-san, answer me!"

"Little girl, he is unharmed…" Pallas Athena spoke. "Everything that happened to him was too much for his poor mind to handle. Please, let him rest."

A while later, they heard the sounds of wings flapping in the air before several figures landed right in front of them. They seemed to come from above.

"D-did we… did we make it?" One of them, the one with long, crimson hair panted. She saw the unconscious Issei who was being cradled by Aigis. "Aigis-san, w-what happened?"

Aigis looked at Rias Gremory and her group.

"You people are late. We already beat all those Fallen Angels," Aigis spoke, still holding the unconscious Issei.

Rias, alongside the members of her group, could only blink in confusion.

---

Meanwhile, somewhere outside the realm of mortals, at the top of Mount Olympus…

"Are you sure? Please, let not it be another false alarm. We've had enough of them for a millennia."

An elderly man with a white, long beard, dressed in a bluish-white toga was seen reclining on a throne made of diamonds. Before him was a man, clad in a rather luxurious pinstripe suit. Upon closer inspection, the man was hovering a few inches above the ground, and the posh leather shoes he was currently wearing seemed to have metallic wings on them.

"I am sure, Lord Zeus. It has been more than three thousand years already since that time…" the man in the pinstripe suit spoke to the elderly man on the throne.

Stroking his beard, the man, the ruler of Olympus, Zeus, nodded to himself. "Very well. Hermes, go and inform the rest of the Olympians regarding this matter."

"Your wish is my command, Lord Zeus," the man in the pinstripe suit, Hermes, spoke, bowing to the elderly man.

"Tell them, the lost daughter of Olympus has returned."

TO BE CONTINUED​

 

"Please allow me to get this straight," the mechanical maiden spoke, focusing her blue eyes on the red-haired girl in front of her. "The reason why you were unable to reach Issei-san in time, in order to protect him from the Fallen Angels, is that they had somehow conjured a barrier of sort, which cannot be bypassed by normal means. And by the time you managed to break through the barrier, the Fallen Angels had already escaped. Am I wrong?"

The red-haired girl, Rias Gremory just sighed as she pinched the bridge of her nose. "Well, when you phrased it that way, it makes us seem pretty incompetent. Even so, the barrier was quite a complicated one, and Akeno took at least ten minutes to undo the barrier just so we could reach both of you." She shook her head and looked at Aigis apologetically. "And when we finally managed to reach you, the battle had already ended. It is my responsibility to keep Issei away from harm, and yet I failed to do so. I have to apologize to you that you had to clean up for the mistakes I made. I resurrected him to become a Devil, and yet I was unable to protect him from those Fallen Angels."

From the look on Rias' face, it looked like she felt responsible for the attack on Issei Hyoudou from those Fallen Angels.

"Ara, don't be so hard on yourself, Buchou..." the raven-haired, busty form of female who was seated beside Rias spoke to her. "At least we can be thankful that Issei-kun is safe, thanks to Aigis-san, of course. If Aigis-san weren't there, something worse probably would happen to Issei-kun."

Rias looked at the girl, Akeno before she smiled. "Well, I suppose you're right, Akeno."

All of them, including both Aigis and Issei, were in the clubroom of the Occult Research Club. After Raynare and her lackeys escaped barely with their lives, they went back to school, bringing the unconscious Issei along with them. When the perverted boy regained his consciousness, Rias started telling him the truth regarding his new status as a Devil, and the reason why the Fallen Angels went to attack him. Apparently, he possessed some kind of tool that made him a target of those Fallen Angels. And the tool in question was, of course, a Sacred Gear. Issei's eyes widened in amazement as his left arm was covered in a red gauntlet with an emerald jewel embedded on the back of his hand. When Aigis eyed the gauntleted arm of the newly-reincarnated Devil, she could feel power radiating from it. Rias told them that the name of the Sacred Gear is Twice Critical, a common type of Sacred Gear that took the form of a gauntlet.

Aigis somehow noticed that the Persona that was born from her bond with Issei Hyoudou, Conell Cernach, was grinning madly upon detecting the enormous presence from the red gauntlet the boy wore. When Aigis asked the Irish warrior about it, he just chuckled mysteriously.

Then, Rias also explained all the perks of being a Devil serving under her, including the possibility for him to make a harem for himself. The boy perked his head in excitement over learning the fact that the path of becoming a Harem King was no longer impossible for him. Apparently, he took the fact about him being no longer a human rather well.

"Now, putting all those aside," Rias said, before her eyes shifted to look at one particular woman who was elegantly sipping her tea while seated beside Aigis. She was with both Aigis and Issei when Rias and her group found them. Her curly, strawberry brown hair was styled into elegant ringlets, giving her an aura of regality that compelled those around her to fall on their knees in reverence. The golden accessories she wore, especially the golden shoulder guards and the way she carried herself made everything around her to be completely dwarfed by her sheer presence. A Greek war helmet with crimson plume was rested on her lap as she enjoying her cup of tea. The look she made while tasting the beverage seemed to tell everyone within the vicinity that the tea was passable enough to be palatable. "I do not wish to be rude, but I also want to know who you are and the reason you were there when we arrived at the scene."

The woman looked at Rias with her grey eyes, and Rias could barely stop herself from flinching upon seeing such eyes. Those eyes seemed to be studying her, scanning her, as if trying to discern her weakest points. It felt like the moment their eyes met, the woman had already come up with a hundred ways of defeating her without even lifting her finger. The woman sighed before she put down her teacup and spoke. "Very well, little Devil. Since you already asked nicely, I see no reason to refuse. You can say that I have many names. Some called me The Mentor, some others called me The Protector. Those accursed Romans called me Minerva. But I suppose you can call me Pallas Athena, or Athena. I am an Olympian, the goddess of wisdom and strategic warfare. Pleased to make your acquaintance, Rias Gremory. And for you all as well, little Devils."

Rias blinked a few times. The others in her group also did the same.

"You broke them, Athena." Aigis commented.

"Quiet, you..." Athena hushed. She seemed to be savoring the looks the Devils made upon learning her true identity. "It is not always a goddess such as me can reveal myself to the mortals. It reminds me of the time when I dealt with that intriguing mortal named Odysseus, while disguising myself as an old man."

"So, that was how the word 'mentor' came into being." Aigis deadpanned in robotic tone. "Still, could you not at least disguise yourself as a female instead? The mental image of a beautiful woman like you turning into a decrepit old man with scraggly beard is so hard to get rid of. And I am an android, which is saying something."

Athena raised one eyebrow upon hearing Aigis' statement. "Getting sassy, are you not, little girl? Well, heroic and righteous as he might be, but of all positive qualities that could be found in Odysseus, fidelity is not one of them. Well, scratch that. Out of all Greek heroes, Perseus was the only one who tried to at least be faithful to his wife. Try to imagine what kind of situation that might happen if I appeared before him as a female. There is a reason why there are goddesses such as me, Hestia and Artemis who swore off men. As you can see, men are such lustful creatures, they will rather think using their loins instead of brains, once they are overcome by their libido." She pointedly looked at one particular pervert in the room. "Like this child, for example. I suppose we can say that his head is filled with all erotic things which can even make Greeks blush."

Upon hearing that, Issei scratched the back of his head sheepishly. One particular girl in the group, Koneko, crossed her arms over her chest as she nodded a few times, as if in agreement with the goddess.

"If that what you insist, Mentor..." Aigis shrugged, speaking in her monotonous, robotic tone.

"You know what? If there is one thing I regret, it is the fact that I taught you how to do sarcasm." Athena said dryly. "You are so insufferable when you are being sarcastic, little girl."

The banter between the android and the goddess of wisdom was abruptly interrupted by the cough from the red-haired Devil. "Yes, both of you are very pretty, so can we please return to the subject at hand?" Both Aigis and Athena looked at Rias, focusing their attentions at her. "Thank you. So..." she looked at Athena. "A goddess. An Olympian, to be exact. Okay." She pinched the bridge of her nose. It was just like the day when she learned the existence of a robot like Aigis all over again. "So...Lady Athena, for what reason did you come here in the first place? Are the Olympians starting to gain their interests regarding the issues between the Devils and the Fallen Angels?" Rias asked.

Pallas Athena smiled. "Well, I suppose you do know how to use that pretty head of yours, Rias Gremory. Regarding your question, however, I think I phrased my words poorly when I introduced myself earlier. It is true that I am Pallas Athena, with all her powers and her memories, but at the same time, I am not really Pallas Athena, at least not the one residing at the top of Mount Olympus."

Rias and her group blinked in confusion.

"Ah," then, one of the Devils serving under Rias, Yuuto Kiba managed to connect all the dots after listening to what Athena had told them. "So, you are a Persona, then?" He remembered the conversation that he had with Aigis some days ago.

"Yuuto?" Rias glanced at her Knight, frowning. It seemed that he knew more about this than her.

Kiba looked at Aigis. "Aigis-san, you said that a Persona is a manifestation of one's thought which is shaped from one's imaginations and beliefs. If that is really the case, then Lady Athena here is shaped from the people's beliefs based on their understanding about Olympians and Greek mythology." When the rest of the Devils gave the blond boy a bewildered look, he continued, "In other words, you are a copy of the original Athena herself, who is currently at the top of Mount Olympus, yet is perfectly undistinguishable from the original herself, because you retain all her memories and her powers."

Pallas Athena looked pleased. "Ah, splendid. It's been a while since someone managed to piece together all the small details, and came up with something completely precise. Will you enlighten me by telling me your name, child?" Athena asked the boy.

"Yuuto Kiba, ma'am. I am Rias Gremory's Knight. I am pleased to make your acquaintance." Kiba introduced himself to the goddess.

Meanwhile, Aigis deadpanned, again in her robotic tone, "That was completely and utterly unnecessary, Athena. You already know his name. You just want to act all mysterious again, do you not?"

Athena threw Aigis a dirty look. "Now you're just being rude, little girl. I did not teach you rudeness, did I?"

While both Athena and Aigis started bantering yet again, Athena with her prideful remarks and Aigis with her deadpan and robotic statements, Rias looked at Kiba. "How did you manage to learn all these? Did you forget to mention this to me?" Rias asked with hushed tone.

"Well, I thought it wasn't an important matter to be brought up, I didn't tell you about this." Kiba admitted. "I'm sorry about that, Buchou."

Rias sighed. Things had become a tad complicated lately since the appearance of this android girl. She looked at both Aigis and Pallas Athena, who were still exchanging banters. It seemed like they had done the same thing many times before.

"Ara, I guess they'll be bickering for quite a while, Rias." Akeno commented, seemingly amused by the situation before their eyes. After all, it's not like they could always see something like this.

As for Issei, he could only blink in confusion as both Aigis and the goddess continued bickering with each other.

Heart of a Butterfly

Persona 3 and High School DxD Crossover

Chapter 07: Silver Popess​

After both Aigis and Pallas Athena seemed to be done with their bantering, the android girl finally dismissed the goddess of wisdom, allowing her to return into the sea of her soul, the place where she was born from.

Rias sighed, still trying to alleviate the headache she was currently experiencing. "That was too much for me to handle," she admitted. Then, she looked at Aigis. "Even so, you have our gratitude, Aigis-san, for saving one of the members of my peerage. Granted, he's still new and he didn't even know about this at that time. But still, you really helped us out again. We owe you one on this."

Aigis smiled as she shook her head. "Please do not mention it, Gremory-san. I just did what I thought was right. After all, the thought about a friend of mine being hurt does not sit well with me. Helping him out is something natural to be done." She nodded to herself after saying that.

"Ara, that was so nice of you, Aigis-san," the Vice-President of the Occult Research Club, Akeno spoke, smiling at the android with an amused smile. "We're glad that Issei-kun has such a nice friend as you."
Then, Aigis noticed that Issei was staring at her. Blinking a few times, she decided to ask him about it.

"What is the matter, Issei-san?" Aigis asked the pervert. "Is something on your mind?"

"W-well… yeah." the newly-reincarnated Devil answered. "So, umm… you're a robot, right?"

"An Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon, to be exact. But if you wish to oversimplify things, then yes. I am a robot," Aigis answered, nodding.

"And you can use magic too, and get that gorgeous lady to aid you by your side," Issei continued.

"Persona, to be precise, and that gorgeous lady you spoke of is Pallas Athena. Why do you ask?" Aigis inquired.

"Well... I dunno where to start, to be honest. Things have gotten pretty hectic since yesterday. So, I'm a Devil now, and my neighbor in classroom is a robot who can use magic. That's a major turn of event for a previously ordinary high-school boy like me, you see?" Issei said.

"So? Does it bother you that I am secretly a robot?" Aigis asked, studying the boy.

"No, I won't say I'm bothered. If anything..." the boy's lips curled up into a smile. "It's cool, you know? I mean, holy crap, my classmate's a robot! It feels like something that comes out straight from an anime! And she can use magic too!" He sounded enthusiastic. "Tell me if that doesn't sound awesome!"

"I suppose if you put it that way, there's some kind of romanticism in that," Akeno nodded.

"I see..." Aigis was glad when Issei said that. Then she became slightly worried as another question came up into her mind. "T-then... do you still consider me a friend, Issei-san?"

Issei gave Aigis a funny look, as if she had asked him a stupid question. "What are you saying, Ai-chan? Of course you're my friend! I mean, someone who saved me from being killed by those mean Fallen Angels has to be my friend! There's also the time when you saved me from getting caught by those girls when they found out that I was peeking on them. Thanks to you, I still can pursue the path of being a Harem King, and with that, my dream of having countless pairs of Oppai to grope will be realized!" He made groping motion as he exclaimed his desire with such zeal.

Rias and Akeno reacted to this by smiling, as if in amusement. The same could be said for Kiba, who then mentioned that Issei was a funny guy. As for Koneko, however, she scowled as she looked at the pervert in disgust.

"You should have left him to those girls instead." Koneko said to Aigis. It seemed that she was the only one who was unhappy with Issei's perverted tendency.

After noticing that it was already late, Aigis stood up from her seat. "I shall take my leave now, then. And thank you for this spare uniform you lent to me, Himejima-san. The one that I wore was damaged when I fought the Fallen Angels." Due to her using Harpe, the new weapon that she got from Mitsuru, the shockwave generated from the high-powered railgun destroyed the right sleeve of the uniform, and left the rest in tatters. So, she ended up borrowing a spare uniform from the raven-haired busty girl.

"Ara, please don't mention it, Aigis-san." Akeno replied.

Then, Aigis looked at Rias. "Since Issei-san will be under your care from now on, please watch over him for me, Gremory-san. And please tell me immediately if there is something that needs my attention."

Rias nodded. "I'll see what I can do about that, Aigis-san. And you too. Feel free to ask our help," she smiled at the blond battle android.

"Yes." Aigis said. "I'll see you tomorrow at class, Issei-san. Good day." and so, she left the old schoolhouse.

After the battle maiden left, Kiba went to explain some other details regarding the contracting and some other things to Issei, and the boy seemed to not like it since he would prefer either Rias or Akeno to do the explanation. The fact that Kiba was quite a bishounen also didn't help either. As for the President of the club, Rias, she was sitting on the couch, her brow furrowed as if deep in thought.

Noticing this, Akeno went to Rias' side, sitting beside her on the couch. "Penny for your thoughts, Rias?"

Rias glanced at Akeno, the Vice-President of the club, as well as her Queen in the peerage before she sighed. "I've been thinking, Akeno."

"I can perfectly see that," Akeno said. "Let me guess. It has something to do with our resident robot girl, hasn't it?" She smiled teasingly at her Buchou. "What, are you considering recruiting her into your peerage?" She asked.

"Well, that's a thing too." Rias said. "We have seen her in battle, right? She fought all those Fallen Angels without trouble, and from what both Aigis and Issei had told us, she managed to overpower all four of them without problem. And there's also this power of hers to consider..." she recalled her meeting with the goddess of wisdom earlier.

"Ah, do you mean Persona?" Akeno asked.

"Yes. It is my first time hearing such a thing. From what Yuuto had told us, Persona is the manifestation of one's thought, which takes the shapes of legendary and mythological figures based from one's imaginations and beliefs." Rias recalled the explanation regarding Aigis' mysterious power. "Such explanation is just too good to be true. The power of imagination." She looked at Akeno. "Do you know what that would mean, Akeno?"

"All sentient beings, be they humans or Devils, are capable of imagining things. It is just their nature to be creative..." Akeno said. "Imagine what can happen if one's thought or imagination being turned into reality. It can be quite a fearsome power to be had." They had seen it beforehand, when Aigis conjured a godly being merely by using the power of her thought. As far as they were concerned, Pallas Athena was one of the high-ranked deities of Greek pantheon, and also one of the Olympians. Not only that, she was also known as the goddess of wisdom and strategic warfare, making her a terrifying opponent that one could face in battle. The idea of someone being able to order such a powerful existence around to do their bidding was quite frightening.

"Yes, you are right." Rias nodded. "So, with all the powers she has, she can become a powerful Bishop. And from what we saw the other day, judging from her speed while battling Gremda and the monsters, she can be a Knight too."

"Yet you didn't make the offer," Akeno stated. "Why is that?"

"Because we still don't know whether an Evil Piece can work on someone like her or not. And there's also the fact that we still don't know for sure which faction she belongs to. She has hinted that she was sent here under someone's order," Rias reasoned. "For all we know, she might be lying through her teeth about the nature of her power. She might belong to the Olympians as a spy to observe us, the Devils. Or she might belong to a cabal of magicians, with her as some kind of familiar or automaton golem to be sent here to spy on us."

"That was surprisingly negative of you, Buchou." Akeno said, raising one eyebrow. "Even so, do you believe she's been lying to us?"

With a sigh, Rias replied, "Honestly, no. The way she speaks sounds so earnest, and you can't help yourself but to believe what she says to you. And she has been helping us twice, first by helping us to eliminate the stray Devil Gremda, and second by helping and saving the new member of my peerage from being killed by Fallen Angels. She has no gain by doing the latter, besides helping a friend in need." She glanced at Issei, who was getting annoyed by Kiba's 'nice guy' demeanor. "So, I don't believe she can be a bad person, at least from what we have seen."

Akeno frowned. "And yet you still suspect her for being a spy?"

"Well, it won't hurt to be cautious. We have yet to prove where her true allegiance lies, and the only thing that we can do right now is to continue observing her and her movements. I should start sending out my familiar to observe her soon so that we can learn the true motive of her being here and also the faction she belongs to..." Rias said. "I can only hope any potential shenanigans because of her won't cause an all-out conflict between all three factions."

Akeno nodded in agreement. "Yes. Just think of all the collateral damages if that thing really happens."

Both Great Ladies of Kuoh Academy sighed in unison as each of them pinched the bridge of her nose. They had a feeling that they might have gotten themselves into a kind of troublesome situation that they would rather avoid at all costs, and they could tell that it would involve something that might cause massive headache for both of them.

In the meantime, Issei was knocked out cold by Koneko with an uppercut under his chin. It seemed that she already had enough of all the perverted things he said.

---

The next day, after the end of school session, Aigis immediately returned home to make a phone call in order to contact her superior, Mitsuru Kirijo. When her call finally reached her, she could hear the voice of the CEO of the global conglomerate.

"Hello, Aigis. Do you have something to report?" Mitsuru's voice sounded like usual; firm and unyielding, as expected from the ice empress herself.

"About that..." Aigis began, and it seemed that Mitsuru was expecting a headache incoming. "I got myself involved in some sort of conflict between two of the three factions I had mentioned to you days ago. There was a boy, who happened to be a classmate of mine, who was targeted by the faction of Fallen Angels. He was killed due to some reasons, probably due to the fact that he has something in his possession which is called a Sacred Gear, and as a result, was resurrected as a Devil by Rias Gremory. When the Fallen Angels found out that the boy who was supposedly killed was still alive, they went after him to finish the job. I couldn't stand the idea of one of the people whom I considered as a friend to be killed and die meaninglessly. So I ended up getting in their way and defeated them. I managed to incapacitate their leader, knocking one of them out cold and leaving the rest injured. And that concludes my report, Mitsuru-san." Aigis ended her report.

Judging from the silence, it was clear that Mitsuru was having trouble digesting all the new information from the battle maiden. Aigis could tell that the red-haired heiress was pinching the bridge of her nose already. After a while, she heard Mitsuru letting out a heavy sigh.

"The reason why I don't keep an aspirin handy while listening to your report is beyond me, to be honest." Mitsuru began. "But, I see. Did Yamagishi get herself involved too?" Aigis could detect worry in Mitsuru's tone. She might be worried that Fuuka, a noncombatant among the Persona-users might be involved in the conflict as well.

"No, she did not. Though she almost cried when I told her about this encounter. She was concerned that I might be hurt while fighting the Fallen Angels." Aigis informed her superior. She had spent almost half an hour to comfort the young woman, telling her that she was alright and she wasn't hurt in the slightest.

"I see. So, has Rias Gremory come to know your involvement in this conflict?" Mitsuru asked.

"Affirmative. Due to the fact that the boy I rescued is a Devil who served under her, my involvement has become a common knowledge for Rias Gremory and her group." Aigis said. "Is there something wrong I did, Mitsuru-san? Did I jeopardize my mission?"

Mitsuru seemed to be thinking about it for a while before answering, "No, you did not. I believe what you did for the boy who is your classmate and friend is a right decision to make. You did a right choice to save him from being killed. Even though we still don't know what the Devils are up to, there is nothing wrong in helping someone in need. As your superior and your friend, I am proud of you." Aigis could hear approval in Mitsuru's tone, suggesting that she agreed with the actions Aigis had made.

"I see. Thank you, Mitsuru-san." Aigis smiled.

"Is there anything else you wish to report?" Mitsuru asked.

"None, so far, but may I ask you something? How is my sister doing? Is she doing fine?" The battle android asked about her sister's wellbeing.

"Ah, Labrys. She's doing fine, do not worry about it. I had told her about sending her to be enrolled into Kuoh Academy to accompany you, and she seemed to be rather ecstatic about it. She seemed to miss you too, Aigis." Mitsuru said. Aigis smiled, feeling relieved that Labrys was doing fine over there.

"I'm glad. Please send my regards to her, Mitsuru-san. Please tell her that I miss her too." Aigis said.

"Yes, I shall do that. Is that all?"

"Yes. I will call you next time." And the phone call ended. Aigis put her phone on the table before she looked at her capsule seat. At first, she thought about putting herself into 'sleep-mode', but then, she decided that she could do something better than sleeping.

She decided to go to town. She removed her school uniform, folding the clothes neatly before putting on her black suit and black shoes. She had no other clothes besides the suits and her school uniform, so she would be wearing a suit while going to town. It was uncommon for a girl like her to wear a suit while taking a walk around the town, but there was nothing wrong about it. After putting on her red necktie, she stepped out of her apartment, locking the door before she got on the bus to town.

When she arrived at the town and walked down the street, she noticed that some people were whispering to each other as they saw her, attired in formal suit with red necktie. With the suit on, she somehow looked like a secret government agent. But that's all. She had seen some people wearing something even weirder, like a massive, muscled man clad in magical girl cosplay walking around the town, waving a magical girl's wand as he walked down the street. Compared to that, her appearance was relatively normal.

As the mechanical maiden walked down the street, she couldn't help but to notice a few couples around the area, walking alongside each other while holding hands. A pang of nostalgia came over her - as she recalled the short time she had together with a certain boy, a boy who was currently out of her reach, standing between humanity's darkest desire and Death.

She closed her eyes, recalling the time when she finally confessed her feeling to him, despite the anguish she felt over the fact that she could never be the same like him - a human being who could enjoy the warmth of a loved one. She might have developed a human's heart, and yet her body was still made of steel and wires. She was still a machine. A maiden-shaped machine, yet a machine nonetheless.

That fact didn't stop him from wrapping his arms around her tenderly. The image of a blue-haired boy giving her a loving embrace as his strong arm stroked her back didn't fail to make her cheeks rosy red. The battle maiden immediately shook her head in frantic way, thinking that if she continued thinking about it, she might get herself short-circuited. Placing her hand on her chest, she took a deep breath. Despite the unnecessariness of such gesture, considering that she was a machine, doing so seemed to help the battle maiden to calm herself down.

Aigis stopped in front of a pet shop, and from outside the shop, she could see what was inside through the large glass window. She could see a little boy begging his mother to buy a rather cute little pooch, fluffy and white-furred. The mother just sighed in resignation before she nodded, smiling at her son. Overjoyed, the boy went to take the pooch and hugged it lovingly. Just seeing such thing was enough to make the battle android smile.

The joy that was displayed on the boy's innocent visage was something that she had sworn to protect. It was thanks to his sacrifice that the boy was still able to smile beautifully like that, and she would like to preserve it, honoring the selfless sacrifice that was made by the boy she loved the most. That would be the best course of action she could do in order to lessen the burden of being the one to stop Erebus from reaching Nyx.

After that, she continued walking. Thinking that she could use a seat, she went to search for a bench. It's not like she was tired. She was still a machine, after all. It's just that she wanted to stop and have a time to think about everything. As one would say, she would like to have an introspection over her life.

When she found a bench, she noticed that someone was already seated on it. A female, attired in a dark teal, long-skirted dress and a bluish-white veil over her head, was sitting on the bench, holding her hands together as if in prayer. Aigis looked down to look at the woman's feet, and found out that she was wearing a pair of brown boots. These shoes looked old enough to be displayed in a museum, instead of being worn by someone.

"Excuse me, but is the seat taken?" Aigis asked the female, and the female jerked her head slightly, her prayer interrupted. The veil she was wearing seemed to conceal the upper part of her head, covering her eyes. After a few seconds, the female looked at the empty spot beside her on the bench before she looked back at the battle maiden.

"...No." the female answered simply, her voice sounded soft, tone subdued.

"Would you mind if I sit beside you?" Aigis asked again. Then female answered by shaking her head. Smiling, Aigis spoke, "Thank you. Please excuse me, then." She moved to sit beside the female, who resumed her prayer.

For a while, there was silence, though the female seemed to be reciting something in low volume, probably a prayer of sort. Upon closer inspection, Aigis could see the female's blond hair that was covered under her veil, and also her face that was shadowed by the veil, youthful in appearance and quite pretty. The battle maiden deduced that she might be around fifteen or sixteen years old in age, and her slight European look indicated that she wasn't a Japanese in ethnicity.

The silence then was abruptly broken by a growling sound which came from the young, European female seated beside Aigis. The mechanical maiden blinked several times after hearing the sound. The female also stopped praying, lowering her head as she pressed her hand on her stomach.

Aigis understood it right away. "Are you... by any chance, hungry?" The battle maiden asked.

The veiled female nodded weakly.

"And you don't have money with you, correct?" Aigis inquired.

For the second time, she nodded.

Thinking that there was only one proper course of action to be made, Aigis got up from the bench, holding out her gloved hand to the female as she stood in front of her, smiling gently. "Follow me, then. Let's get something for you to eat, shall we?"

The veiled female looked up at the battle android, her beautiful green eyes could be seen from under the veil she wore.

"Come on. Hunger is also an enemy that shall be defeated." Aigis added.

Finally smiling, the veiled female nodded and answered, "Yes!" The silver cross hanging on her neck moved as she nodded before she reached out to grab the nice, suit-clad lady's gloved hand.

---

Aigis brought the European young female to a nearby bakery shop, and they ended up buying a dozen of cinnamon buns for her. The battle maiden paid for the purchase as the female carried the paper bag which contained the buns while humming happily. She also had removed the veil that covered her head earlier, folding it neatly before putting it into her pocket. Without the veil on, her long, blond hair could be seen much clearer.

"Thank you for treating me, miss. May the God bless you..." the blonde girl said, as she walked alongside her before she took out one of the cinnamon buns and took a small bite. She seemed to enjoy the taste. "Would you like some too?" She asked.

Being an android that was made without the function to consume food, it was natural for Aigis to decline. "Thank you, but it shouldn't be necessary. After all, I bought all of them for you." Aigis smiled at the blonde girl beside her as they continued walking down the street, going back to the bench where they were seated earlier.

"Umm..." The young, blond girl fidgeted. "I'm sorry for imposing upon your kindness, m-miss." When they finally arrived at the bench, they took their seats beside each other. "My name is Asia, by the way."
"Asia?" Aigis blinked. "Do you mean, a continent?"

The girl, Asia giggled as she shook her head. "No, no. I mean, that's my name. My name is Asia Argento. I am pleased to meet you, miss."

"Asia... Argento," Aigis spoke the girl's name. "Yes, pleased to meet you too, Argento-san. Argento means 'silver', and the cross you are currently wearing is also silver. A fitting name," she nodded.

Asia blushed slightly. "T-thank you, but you can just call me Asia. Umm… how about you, miss? What is your name?"

At first, she thought about telling this Asia her real name, Aigis, but then, she decided to tell her the shortened version of her name instead. "You can call me Ai, then."

"Ai-san, then." Asia nodded. "In this country, Ai means 'love'." Asia smiled brightly. "It's such a beautiful name, Ai-san. It's a very fitting name for someone beautiful like you."

"Love..." Aigis blinked. In a way, Asia was right. If her shortened name is transliterated into kanji, her name can be translated as 'love'. It was probably a coincidence, since she was named Aigis during her development as an Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon. Even so, it's her first time having someone telling her that her name was beautiful. "I see. Thank you, Asia-san." She smiled at the shorter girl.
Then, Asia somehow became anxious. "Umm... d-did I say something wrong, Ai-san?" The shorter girl asked nervously. "D-did you not like it when I said your name is beautiful?"

Noticing her worry, Aigis shook her head. "No, you said nothing wrong, Asia-san. As a matter of fact, I am happy. You're the first one to ever say my name is beautiful, Asia-san. I am touched." She smiled kindly at Asia, who also returned the gesture with a bashful smile.

"I'm glad..." Asia said, relief spreading over her face.

And so, Asia continued eating the cinnamon buns. Because she was eating the buns with small bites, it took a while before she finally finished all the buns. When she was done, Asia held her hands together, praying.

"We give thanks to Thee, O Almighty God, that Thou hast satisfied us with Thy earthly blessings; deprive us not also of Thy heavenly Kingdom." Asia recited her prayer in solemn tone as she held her hands together. "Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages and ages."

Then she gazed up to the sky and continued her prayer.

"Grant mercy upon us, O Lord. Grant mercy upon us, O Lord. Grant mercy upon us, O Lord," the blond girl was looking at the sky, as if hoping that the one above would listen to her solemn prayer. "Blessed is God, Who has fed and nourished us with His bountiful gifts by His grace and compassion always, now and ever and unto ages and ages." Then, she made the sign of a cross upon herself, first by touching her forehead, "in nomine Patris," to her chest, "et Filii," to across her shoulders, "et Spiritus Sancti," before holding her hands together again. "Amen."

Aigis, who was watching and listening Asia doing her prayer, blinked several times before she spoke, "Asia-san, are you, by any chance, a nun?" If that was the case, then it made sense that she wore a veil a while ago.

Lowering her hands, Asia looked at Aigis. "Ah," she thought about it for a moment. "Yes, I'm a nun," after a pause, she added as she lowered her head a bit. "Or at least, I was." She smiled weakly.

Aigis could see the sad look in Asia's green eyes, and she thought that it might be something that she would rather not talk about. "I see..." the battle android mused.

"So, umm... I guess I should take my leave now," Asia said before she stood up. "It is so nice talking with you, Ai-san. And thank you for the buns you bought for me. I will remember to repay for your kindness someday," she smiled sweetly at Aigis. Then, she bowed. "May the God watch over you, always..."

"For you too, Asia-san," Aigis returned the gesture. Being a machine, she was not a believer of God, as her existence was a work of men, and yet she did so anyway, returning the gesture that was made by Asia. "May the God bless you..."

And so, she left. Aigis closed her eyes, touching her chest with her gloved right hand. A while ago, she could feel a slight tug within the sea of her soul, telling her that her understanding in a girl named Asia Argento had granted her another boost of power that took the shape of an empty, blank card.

The Popess.

As always, her Personas surrounded this newly-formed card, with each of them responding to its formation in their own way.

Pallas Athena, as usual, was studying the card with academic curiosity.

Palladion, being a statue of the previously-mentioned goddess, threw an empty stare at the card.

Galahad was observing the card, smiling to himself as he cited the warmth the newly-forged bond radiated.

Conall Cernach complained that he wanted to have a bite of one of those cinnamon buns, earning him the blunt end of Athena's spear on his head.

As for Orpheus, he was playing the catchy tune of Yakety Sax using his lyre - which was quite a big accomplishment, considering that the song was commonly played with a variety of musical instruments, and the ultimate musician was just using his lyre. The significance of this, however, was lost to the mechanical maiden. Why would he play the tune, nobody had any idea.

The people who walked down the street would notice a young, beautiful lady with chin-length blond hair, clad in a rather posh black suit and red necktie, sitting on a bench, furrowing her brow as if deep in thought. Despite being such a curious sight to behold, they ultimately ignored her, thinking that she might be having a day of the month. They thought that it might be rude to poke into her business, especially when a young lady like her was experiencing such a day.

---

Near the outskirt of the town, there was a church, which seemed to have been abandoned. Upon quick glance, there was nothing out of ordinary regarding this structure, but when inspected even closer, one could see that all religious symbols such as crosses had been smashed down to pieces.

Then, there was a middle-aged man, clad in a trench coat which made him stick out like a sore thumb in broad daylight, hurriedly running towards the entrance of the church, carrying something in his hand.
As he entered the church, he saw a voluptuous woman, whose hair seemed to cover one of her eyes. He let out a grunt as he approached her.

"For us Fallen Angels to rely on human medications is just beyond embarrassing..." the middle-aged man said grumpily as he handed the woman the plastic bag he was carrying. "I mean, their painkiller can only barely stop the pain for a brief period of time, while their ointment is unable to regenerate the lost flesh. The reason why human race managed to survive to this era with this level of advancement in medicine is beyond me, to be honest."

The voluptuous woman, attired in a rather provocative outfit just shrugged. "Well, we are still unable to reach Azazel-sama and the Grigori Institute to ask for their help, and our Priestess is nowhere to be seen these last few days. So, all we can do right now is to rely on these human's medicines." She took out a bottle of antiseptic ointment from the plastic bag before she read the label. "They're probably not much, but considering our current situation, this is the only thing we can manage right now, Dohnaseek."

The middle-aged man, the Fallen Angel named Dohnaseek, sighed heavily. "I knew it." He grumbled. "I knew this mission is going to be a disaster. Azazel-sama ordered us to just observe the boy, then Raynare got a really brilliant idea to kill him instead. And it the fact that Raynare is a lunatic little bitch didn't help either. It's like having to face three disasters at the same time, and it sucks," he sighed again. For the usually battle-hungry Fallen Angel like him to sigh like that, it sure felt rather surreal. "By the way, Kalawarner, where's Mittelt? Is she still unconscious?" Dohnaseek looked at the female Fallen Angel, Kalawarner.

"She woke up just a while ago, but from the look on her face, it is clear that she's so deeply traumatized by the encounter with that girl." Kalawarner answered. Then she looked at Dohnaseek. "That girl...she is not human, is she?"

Dohnaseek scrunched up his brow. He was recalling the encounter with that girl, during their attempt to kill Issei Hyoudou after finding out that he was still alive - which was met with a disastrous failure. "I saw her kind before, at the research laboratory of Grigori Institute." He looked at Kalawarner, his eyes serious. "She is what humans call a 'robot'. Or an android, an automaton which is humanoid in shape. I saw a few of them before." Then his expression turned grim. "But to see such an automaton that is capable of perfect, articulated speech and is capable of not only overpowering one, but four Fallen Angels all by herself..." the male Fallen Angel adjusted his fedora after sighing. "Honestly speaking, I don't know what to think of anymore. This whole thing is not only stupid, but also confusing beyond imagining."

Kalawarner nodded in agreement. "I suppose this is what we get by disobeying Azazel-sama's direct order to just observe the boy. And don't forget about that woman too. The one who claimed to be the goddess of wisdom of Greek pantheon."

When Kalawarner mentioned about that one particular woman, Dohnaseek shuddered. "Pallas Athena, one of the twelve Olympians, the goddess of wisdom and strategic warfare and also the patron goddess of Athens. It is said that those who face her in battle will surely be taken down. And she is also the bearer of the ultimate shield, the Aegis. At that time, she effortlessly took down Raynare without even breaking a sweat, before cutting off her arm with that spear of hers." The male Fallen Angel took a deep breath before he continued. "And it was clear that she was just holding back while facing us. If she went all out, we might have ended up as bloody smear on the ground already."

"That being said..." Kalawarner spoke. "What is a goddess of Greek pantheon doing here, in this land? Are the Olympians starting to gain interest in Sacred Gears, especially the one the boy currently has? And why would they send Pallas Athena, out of all people they could send? And for what reason she might have to assist that girl? Is she from their side too? Or are they accomplices or allied to each other?" Many questions were said about everything that had happened.

Then, both Fallen Angels fell silent.

"This is just too much..." Kalawarner grumbled, breaking the silence. "I never thought I might get myself involved in such a mess." The busty female Fallen Angel sighed in dejection. "If only I stayed behind at the Institute to help out Penemue-sama instead, these things might not happen to me."

"I concur," Dohnaseek nodded. "While I don't really mind fighting stronger opponents, I'm not really that thrilled with the idea of fighting a powerful deity like Pallas Athena anytime soon, especially after what she done to our dear leader. Raynare may be a lunatic little bitch, but she's still our leader, who is stronger than even three of us combined. If she could take her down without even breaking a sweat, I'm not really that thrilled to imagine what kind of thing she will do to me." Dohnaseek closed his eyes before he shook his head. "No, nope. Not going to imagine it. Not at all."

Suddenly, a door which would lead to the rooms where they used to sleep in was opened, revealing the disheveled figure of Raynare, dark rings could be seen below her eyes. From the mad look on her face alone, both Kalawarner and Dohnaseek could tell that she was totally not pleased by current events. The purple-eyed Fallen Angel wrapped her scantily-clad body with an old blanket, but it still didn't hide the severed stump of her right arm, which was wrapped in a gauze. A splotch of blood could be seen on the gauze.

"Ah," Kalawarner began. "She's awake." she observed before looking at the male Fallen Angel beside her.

"Yes." Dohnaseek nodded. "Here we go again..." he drawled lazily, as if the same thing had happened a few times before.

"Where is she?" Raynare began, her tone sounded dangerously low.

"Oh? Do you mean the Priestess?" Dohnaseek asked. "She somehow disappeared since a few days ago. And I don't think she can help you with your situation, Raynare. Her Sacred Gear can't regenerate lost limbs, don't you know that?"

"Not that brat, you blithering idiot!" Raynare bellowed, her violet eyes flashing with anger. "That bitch..." she growled. "That bitch who cut off my arm... where is she? WHERE IS SHE?!"

"Welp, it seems that the goddess of wisdom has left quite an impression on our esteemed leader, Dohnaseek..." Kalawarner commented, seemingly unfazed by their leader's outburst.

"Typically, a deity like her tends to leave an impression on all people involved, whether they like it or not," Dohnaseek shrugged before he looked at the sleep-deprived Fallen Angel. "Raynare, this is hopeless. All we can do right now is to call this mission a failure, go back home and genuflect in front of Azazel-sama for the failure we had committed. Seriously, with everything that had happened, I don't think it is wise to continue."
Raynare glared at Dohnaseek and Kalawarner. "Y-you... you cowards..." she gritted her teeth in fury. Both Dohnaseek and Kalawarner stiffened, knowing that despite her current state, Raynare's strength was still left undiminished. She could still defeat them both singlehandedly, literally speaking.

Then they heard the sound of laughter before someone entered the church. All three Fallen Angels in the church looked at this newcomer, who was laughing as he walked into the abandoned cathedral.
"Now, now, now..." spoke the newcomer - a young man with silver hair - in a voice that could be considered by all three Fallen Angels in the vicinity as 'absolutely unbearable'. "What is this~? Something interesting happened while I was away~?" In sing-song tone, he spoke gleefully before his red eyes were focused on Raynare. "What's the matter, Raynare~? You need a hand or something~?" Then he broke into manic laughter. "Pfft, I made a joke! Jesus fucking Christ! I made a fucking hand joke!" He looked at the Fallen Angels again after he was done laughing. "Was it funny?! Tell me it's funny! It's not funny?! Too bad! I wanna rape someone right now!"

Dohnaseek just sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose upon seeing the appearance of this young man while Kalawarner made a disgusted face over the vulgarity this young man displayed.
Raynare glared at the young man

"Freed Sellzen..." Raynare spat the name of the young man in repugnance. Needlessly cruel and sadistic as she was, she wouldn't compare herself with this young man in term of debauchery, as he was completely and utterly insane. Excommunicated by the Church due to his twisted personality and tendency to commit violence, he was formerly an exorcist serving under the Church, but with him being excommunicated, he was hunted by the Vatican as a wanted criminal. "What do you want?" She growled.

Still having the mad grin on his face, the young man, Freed, spoke, "Well, I heard you got yourselves in a pretty sticky situation, and I thought I wanna lend you a hand for a bit," then he cackled. "Geddit?! Lend you a hand?! C'mon now! At least laugh at my joke!"

Still glaring at the excommunicated exorcist, Raynare spoke, "What do you have on your mind, then?"

The mad exorcist shrugged. "I ain't called a genius while I was serving under the Church for nothing, ya know that?!" He slowly approached Raynare, his footsteps resonated within the cathedral. "I probably have some idea about what to do with that lost arm of yours, Raynare." He grinned as he stood in front of the Fallen Angel, his face drew closer to hers by several inches.

"And the catch?" Raynare knew that there would always be the catch while dealing with someone as insane as Freed.

"Ya catch on quick, ain'tcha?" Freed's grin grew wider. "You know how to pay me, right? Unless you don't want to get back your arm, that is..." Raynare didn't miss the debauched look on the excommunicated exorcist's face as he stuck out his tongue. She could feel his hand snaking up her body from beneath the blanket she was wearing, and she gritted her teeth in subdued anger.

As a Fallen Angel, Raynare wasn't a stranger to carnal desire and venereal acts, but to submit herself to this pathetic excuse of a man, it was beyond humiliating. Even so, she had no choice but to swallow her pride and accept his offer.

"Right, I'll do what you say, Freed..." Raynare said.

"Hallelujah! That is fucking awesome!" Freed exclaimed. "I'm gonna prepare for that, so get ready! It's gonna be a loooong night..." the exorcist's mad grin was still on his face before he laughed and left.

Meanwhile, both Kalawarner and Dohnaseek looked at the exchange between both Freed and Raynare before they looked at each other.

"It seems that we're going to get ourselves involved in another mess that sure will become a pain in the ass again, Kalawarner..." Dohnaseek said before he sighed.

"It sure is, Dohnaseek." Kalawarner nodded, sighing as well. "It sure is."

TO BE CONTINUED​

 

This story is great! Though to be honest when I saw the crossover I was hoping Issei would be a new Wild Card, or at least get awaken his Persona.