04/10/2012, Kuoh Town, Evening
Irumi Ito hummed softly to herself, the warmth of a good day lingering despite the setting sun.
The relief that Senpai Yuki was alright after his mysterious absence, the vague answers from the Student Council dissolving into the background noise of her contentment, had lightened her steps.
She savored the simple joy of a meal shared and the promise of club activities resuming. As she strolled through Kuoh's newer residential district, a neighborhood of sleek, modern houses replacing traditional styles to accommodate the town's growth, her thoughts were pleasantly mundane.
Her peaceful walk was interrupted by an unexpected figure. A woman with messy brown hair, clad in an ill-fitting bat costume resembling cheap cosplay, stepped into her path. Without a word, the woman thrust a red leaflet into Irumi's hand before melting back into the shadows as quickly as she appeared.
"Ehm... thanks?" Irumi murmured, bewildered, glancing at the unfamiliar symbol on the paper before stuffing it into her pocket with a shrug. 'Weird, but okay.'
Unbeknownst to her, she crossed an invisible threshold. A subtle wrongness prickled at her senses as she entered her neighborhood. An unnatural silence blanketed the usually vibrant street.
No distant TVs, no children playing, not even the rustle of leaves in the evening breeze. The feeling of unease, cold and sharp, intensified with every step closer to her home.
"Mom! I'm home!" Irumi called out, pushing the front door open. Only oppressive silence answered. Flicking on the lights revealed the familiar entryway, yet the air felt thick and wrong. A harsh, guttural breathing, rough and animalistic, echoed from the living room.
"Mom? Dad? Are you there?" Her voice trembled, anxiety tightening her chest.
Heart hammering against her ribs, she approached the living room door. She pushed it open, and a scream ripped from her throat, raw and primal.
Chaos reigned. The room was a storm-wrecked ruin. The coffee table lay splintered in two. Deep gouges marred the walls and ceiling. Shards of glass from shattered windows littered the floor like treacherous ice.
And amidst the devastation, the bodies of her parents laid contorted, horrifically disfigured, their heads severed. Perched grotesquely on a bloodstained cushion sat a nightmare made flesh.
A hulking, red-skinned monster clad in samurai armor slick with gore. White, matted hair framed a face dominated by a third, lidless black eye set in his forehead. In one massive claw, he held her mother's head, admiring it with a predator's cruel satisfaction.
A massive dark metal tetsubo rested beside him.
"Yomi, take the souls of these cleansed traitors of Japan," the monster rumbled, his voice like grinding stones. "May the dark Mother forgive them and use their souls for her revenge."
A feral grin split his face as Irumi's scream drew his burning red gaze. "Another traitor! Another sacrifice!"
He surged to his feet, his immense height forcing him to hunch under the ceiling. His predatory stare pinned Irumi like a gazelle facing a lion. Paralysis born of primal terror seized her. The monster lumbered forward, each step shaking the floorboards.
Desperation finally shattered her freeze. She scrambled backwards, screaming wordlessly for help, her voice choked by terror. She burst out the front door, stumbling onto the silent street, the cool evening air doing nothing to dispel the horror clinging to her.
Behind her, the monster laughed, a deep, chilling sound that promised agony. "Run, little traitor, run!"
He swung his tetsubo with terrifying force, obliterating the living room doorway and part of the wall in a shower of splinters and plaster. Irumi fled, her legs pumping, fueled by adrenaline and blind panic.
Agony exploded in her ankle. She cried out, crashing to the pavement. A common kitchen knife protruded from her flesh.
Twisting, she saw the monster standing in her ruined doorway, his grin widening as he slowly advanced, savoring her terror. She tried to scream again, to crawl away, but only ragged gasps escaped. Her strength bled out with her hope.
"You think you can escape, little traitor?" he mocked, his voice dripping with contempt. "I took care to place a ward to prevent any cowards from fleeing their judgment." He hefted his tetsubo.
"Die by my hands and cleanse your traitor blood. I am the judge of you humans who dared turn your backs on Japan. You, who were the blessed children of our mighty gods, are now nothing more than treacherous rats!"
He slammed the tetsubo down beside her head, the impact cracking the pavement, showering her face with grit. Irumi squeezed her eyes shut, silent tears carving paths through the dust. It was over.
'Are you giving up?' A deep, resonant voice echoed within the confines of her terrified mind.
'Who are you?' Irumi thought desperately.
'Do you wish to survive?' The voice repeated, cutting through the haze of despair.
"Of course I want to live!" Irumi screamed aloud, defiance flaring in her terror.
As the words tore from her throat, blinding crimson light erupted from her right arm.
A complex, ornate red gauntlet materialized around her forearm, pulsing with inner fire, a jewel blazing like a captured star at its center.
04/10/2012, Kuoh Mall, Evening
Meanwhile, Makoto Yuki found himself browsing the bustling Kuoh mall, the mundane activity a stark contrast to the cosmic threats he usually faced. He paused before a butcher shop window.
'Universe, can we buy meeeat?' Fafnir screeched inside his mind, his metallic voice tinged with greedy anticipation.
'Control your stomach, greedy dragon,' Odin chastised, his regal tone laced with disdain.
'The All-Father counsels restraint, Hee-ho! How quaint, Hee-ho!'
'Universe needs to eeeeat properly, old man!' Fafnir cackled back, earning a mental grunt from Odin.
'Silence, both of you,' Kohryu rumbled, imposing calm. 'Cease your bickering.'
Makoto sighed internally. 'Actually... it's not a bad idea.'
The memory of cooking simple meals with Akihiko before Tartarus expeditions surfaced, a comforting ritual from another life. He entered the shop and bought minced pork and beef.
'Good choiiice Universe!' Fafnir praised, his voice hitting a high-pitched note of approval.
Exiting the shop, bag in hand, Makoto heard a familiar voice. "Yuki? Are you fine?" Rias Gremory approached, her own bag filled with manga volumes. Her expression was unusually conflicted.
"Hi, Gremory," Makoto greeted neutrally.
Rias stopped before him, her gaze searching his face. After a moment's hesitation, she spoke, her voice low. "Listen, Yuki... I'm sorry."
Makoto frowned slightly. "I don't think I understand why you are apologizing."
"For... for how we started," Rias said, looking down briefly before meeting his eyes again, a flush of shame coloring her cheeks. "Asking you to join my peerage like that... it was inappropriate. Especially now, after everything you've done... and what we've learned. I'm not usually like that."
She gave a small, almost imperceptible bow of her head.
"Ah, it was about that?" Makoto replied, his tone easing. "No problem. You probably had your reasons." His simple acceptance made Rias sigh in relief, though internally she cringed.
'Yes... reasons tied to Riser. Reasons I'm not proud of.'
"I hope we can begin anew," Rias said, offering a genuine, warm smile and extending her hand. "I am Rias. Just Rias."
Makoto took her hand, a firm but brief shake.
'I am Thou. Thou art I. Thou hast established a new bond. Thou shalt have the Universe blessing when choosing to create Personas of the Priestess Arcana.'
'This spoiled supposed devil is the Priestess, huh?' Lucifer commented, annoyed.
'She sought to amend her errors. A commendable quality!' Robin Hood declared solemnly.
'I like her too!' Apollo chimed in, his voice dripping with playful mischief, earning a collective mental sigh from the others.
Rias gestured to his bag. "I saw you bought something. What is that?"
'I don't like her sight on myy... I meeeean our meeeal!' Fafnir growled, the sound like grinding gears.
Makoto dismissed the dragon's possessiveness. "I wanted to cook something. Just bought the ingredients."
He nodded towards her manga bag. "You're clearly a fan."
Rias glanced down, a playful pout forming.
"Yes, but the shop here doesn't have all the series I follow!" They chatted amiably for a few minutes about mundane things before preparing to part ways near the mall exit.
As they raised their hands in farewell, both Rias and Makoto jolted simultaneously.
For Rias, it was the psychic cry transmitted through the flyer she'd had her familiar deliver:
'Mom... Dad... Please!' Irumi Ito's voice, laced with pure terror and despair, echoed in her mind. The flyer had been activated—a desperate call for the Gremory Clan's aid.
For Makoto, it was Messiah's urgent voice:
'Makoto, the bond with the Magician is in danger!'
'What do you mean?' Makoto thought back sharply.
'Her life is threatened. Imminently.'
Their eyes met for a fraction of a second. Rias masked her alarm with a forced smile.
"Thank you for everything, Yuki. I'm going home!" She turned and walked briskly away, determined not to involve him further.