Game of Monsters - 184

You Were Always Hard To Hold

[Joshua Davis]

“Should I be concerned?” Joshua asked, looking at Morag.

Or, more specifically, the effect she had on Yasaka’s servants.

Something that hadn’t come to mind until that very day was that his arachnid familiar/daughter was now a youkai. As such, whatever change he felt had happened in their relationship with the latest evolution and how his familiars really saw him and behaved… It went all the more for other people looking from outside in. After all, for all the world around, he went from having monsters as his familiars to having something humanoid.

It made all the difference for some people, if the reactions he’d seen so far were anything to go by.

Furthermore, it wasn’t even just Morag. Cheshire was making and was going to be making waves all around. She was a byakko and that was not an insignificant matter. Byakko were rare, exceedingly so. Furthermore, there was a higher byakko, the Byakko, to take into account. Just like gorgons had the original three sisters, all byakko had the original White Tiger. A creature so strong that it was worshipped like a god. There was even a clan of people dedicated exclusively to him and managing to create such a connection that the Sacred Gear that was made from the original beast was passed through their clan instead of randomly.

The name of that clan was Shinra and Yasaka expected they could be a problem. It wasn’t guaranteed, but there was a non-zero chance that the Shinra Clan would take offense to Cheshire, no matter how he tried to explain it. That’d suck, because Joshua would rather not have to pull an Itachi and wipe out the entire clan.

Mostly because Tsubaki Shinra was Sona’s Queen.

That could make things awkward.

“Hm, not really,” Yasaka answered dismissively. “It’ll take people some time getting used to it. It’ll be a curiosity. But the same way your bond with your familiars spoke well for you with anyone that knows Senjutsu, it’ll work in your favor now. Morag won’t be the first humanoid being that becomes a familiar and she won’t be the last. It’s just that you’re a notorious figure and that’ll change things. It’ll make it more attention grabbing for people.”

“Sometimes I miss when I was a nobody,” Joshua replied, a weary, exasperated expression on his face. “You know? When I could do whatever and nobody would give a fuck? Good times,” he added, sighing and reminiscing about those times.

Then again, those times had their own problems. Mainly that he’d been too weak to really do whatever he wanted. With power had come notoriety and… Well, it was one or the other in the world they lived in, it seemed. Joshua didn’t regret becoming strong, but he did wish it didn’t come with so many strings attached.

Sometimes he did ponder on the merits of just fucking off and becoming a hermit, but his family wouldn’t be happy with that. So, he’d endure. Even with as much as he hated politics and dealing with people, he loved his family more. Nothing he could do about it, he supposed.

“I’ll take your word for it,” Yasaka commented and he wondered if she’d never known a moment in which she wasn’t in the middle of it all. She hadn’t always been the youkai leader that she was, of course, but what had she been before that? Before Joshua could ask about that though, she continued. “As for the Shinra. I can pull strings to make sure they aren’t a problem. They fall under the Shinto pantheon, after all. They’ll listen, if not to me, then to our shared higher ups.”

“What’s up with them anyway? I barely hear anything about them, which is kind of odd, considering…” he asked, trailing off at the end of his explanation, waving his hand vaguely in the air. The Shinto pantheon was mentioned here and there, but they never really did anything. Joshua wondered if they were kind of like shut-ins like the Egyptians, but since the Egyptian pantheon was considered an oddity, he guessed it was something else.

Also, his patrons didn’t seem to appreciate the – very accurate, in his opinion – shut-in comparison and they let him know through their connection.

“They tend to leave us, lesser branches to our devices unless they don’t think we can deal with something and that something involves other factions,” Yasaka explained, bringing her cup of tea to her lips for a sip before continuing. “For the most part, they keep the higher echelons of divinity, talking with other top tier pantheons like the Greek, the Norse and so on.”

‘Hm, something to keep in mind,’ Joshua mused to himself as he nodded, glancing towards Morag again. She was still growing used to her new self, but she seemed a fair bit more chipper than she’d been before. Kind of like Margalo, he supposed. There was no doubt that it was because of the change, but he wondered if it was a physical thing, affecting how she perceived the world, or a change in what she could do now.

“Good to know, I guess,” he commented out loud after a moment. He knew the Norse and Greek were kind of important in canon DxD, but he couldn’t find a good excuse to meet with them just yet. He could make up something, of course, but… He didn’t really see the point. He could try to convince them to join their little alliance, but he didn’t know if he had enough to offer them so as to not end up under their thumb in some way.

He’d take a wait and see approach in that regard, for the moment.

Maybe that’d change eventually, but Joshua had enough on his plate as it was. He could try to add new things once he’d cleared a thing or two from his to-do list. As it was, he really didn’t need to make his schedule even more of a mess.

[}-o-{]

[Karin]

“I like you,” the arachnid little girl said, beaming up at her like she couldn’t be happier to see her. “You’re never scared,” who was now Morag added, like it was a very important detail.

Karin supposed it was, but she’d never… Well, she’d never thought much about it. The spider had always liked poking at them and Karin had guessed she was looking for a reaction. A Nature magician as she was though, she’d never been scared of creatures nor plants. She could respect them, be surprised by them, be wary of them, but never fear them, and that’s exactly what she’d done with Morag and any of Professor Davis’ familiars.

“I like you too,” she replied hesitantly, unsure of how to approach this new situation. Her teacher's amused but otherwise mysterious gaze wasn’t helping her figure out much of anything either and she didn’t appreciate that. “I like your dress too,” she added, grasping for something to say. “It’s beautiful.”

“You think so?!” Morag exclaimed, beaming even harder at her. She was entirely too adorable for someone that was part spider, Karin thought to herself. She wondered if those students that had been scared of her would change their minds and regret the error of their ways whenever it was that they saw her for the first time after her change. “I made it myself,” the human-spider hybrid said, proudly raising her arms and rotating on her eight legs to show off. “I can make you one, if you want,” she offered then and Karin blinked.

She looked at the dress again. It hadn’t been a lie that it was beautiful. It was simple in coloration, being pure silk white, but it was far from simple in any other regard. Every thread that made it seemed to have been carefully woven in patterns that ranged from simple to complex all over the entire piece. It looked like it’d cost her all the money she had, and she had plenty after all the work requests she’d received thanks to being one of Professor Davis’ Stars.

Karin had a rejection at the tip of her tongue already, if only because she felt like that’d be too much of a gift. However, she stopped immediately when she saw those black, beady and somehow still incredibly adorable eyes looking up at her. It was unfair, so unfair.

“That’d be lovely,” she mumbled and Morag let out the cutest cheer ever. At least that seemed to be a good answer as far as her teacher was concerned, considering the pleased smile he was sending her way. As if it’d been a favor that she accepted the likely extremely expensive gift. How would one even go about putting a price on that? Just going by who was making it, the piece of clothing would be laughably out of her budget. And that was without taking into account any special properties the dress might have.

“Thanks,” Professor Davis said, and it baffled her to no end. “She’s kind of… more childish than she was before,” he added, glancing towards Morag, who had apparently moved on and was chattering away at Nagini in a corner of the classroom. Karin caught some bits and pieces that made her think she was discussing ideas for her dress. “I’d appreciate it if you could help her along as she adapts to her new… self.”

“Of course, Professor Davis,” Meredith said, dutiful apprentice that she was. Although, they were all apprentices now, Karin guessed. She had a hard time wrapping her head around that, actually.

It was one thing to be favored by a magician of Professor Davis’ station, but to be his apprentice? That was like… a fantasy, an impossibility, a dream from a world that couldn’t be. Yet there they all were, very much living in that irrational reality. The world was crazier than one would think, evidently.

“Great, now, I know the holidays are over, but I didn’t see you during them, so…” Professor Davis commented, turning towards his devil secretary and nodding towards them. Did he have some kind of mission for them? What’d that have to do with the holidays though?

“Right,” the Phenex said, coughing behind her fist as she stood up and straightened her back to face them. Reflexively, they did the same back to her. She was the one that pulled the strings Professor Davis got his hands on, after all. Everyone knew better than to defy her, since what she said was almost what he said. “Mr. Davis, in all his generosity-,” she started, earning an eye roll from the man she spoke for. “-has decided to procure gifts for you, his most impressive and distinguished students, his apprentices,” she continued and their eyes widened, looking at each other and then back at Phenex.

Was it possible to kill someone with kindness?

Was this one of Professor Davis’ experiments?

Were they all guinea pigs to test if that was possible?

“One item, fit specifically for each of you,” Phenex continued and Karin felt a little faint. Was Professor Davis preparing to ask them to sell their souls and give their lives for him? Was that what was going on? Was it all some kind of exceedingly elaborate trap?

Somehow, Karin doubted that and that just made it all the more unnerving.

So, in a bit of a daze, each of them stepped forward when they were called. Artifacts were what they got, a necklace for Meredith, a bracelet for Karin herself, Dion got an earring, George a dagger, Levi a book. All of them were magical, all of them expensive beyond belief. All of them especially so for them, so fitting to their styles, their magics, their preferences.

“You all have made my teaching career much better than it’d likely have been otherwise. These are tokens of my appreciation, nothing more,” Professor Davis told them, smiling softly at them as if he were the one that should be grateful. “So, don’t try to repay them or anything. These are given with no strings and no expectations. I hope you like them.”

If he really meant that, then he was delusional.

How could they accept any of those things and not try to pay him back at least some of it?

Karin shared a look with her fellow students, Stars.

Yes, they were all of the same mind in the matter.

[}-o-{]

[Raynare]

How unfair.

Raynare had never quite come within Nagini’s league, but she had started to feel like she was catching up. Her extra set of wings had worked wonders together with Incinerate Anthem and her work ethic. Her power grew steadily and she couldn’t be more pleased.

And then Davis’ familiars had evolved and Nagini had gotten away from her again.

She hated that.

As she sparred with the gigantic snake, she felt the difference all the more. It wasn’t that they didn’t train for it. The familiars worked plenty for their strength and skills, not as much as Raynare but they did. It was entirely too unfair for them to make a jump in strength they had though. She didn’t get a powerup like that when she got her extra set of wings.

It wasn’t even how much faster and stronger and resistant Nagini had gotten though, it was…

‘Fuck,’ Raynare cursed in her mind, stopping mid air when the serpent’s eyes found her. Golden eyes that had once been a nightmare to go against now were just… impossible to fight against. One glance was all it took to take her out, or almost do so, and it wasn’t even at its strongest. Nagini was, after all, pulling her punches so that she wouldn’t accidentally kill her with the power of her gaze.

A basilisk, the king of all snakes – queen, in that case, she supposed – and a creature with the power to kill with a look. That power wasn’t quite literal, but it was close enough. One look would be enough for most lesser beings. Those that could survive, however, would have to fight tooth and nail, burning through their energy and their life in order to resist the ability.

Raynare herself could resist it, but only just.

On the other hand, she was also pulling her punches, she supposed. She couldn’t very well freely use Incinerate Anthem on Davis’ familiars. She wasn’t that suicidal, after all. Besides, the last thing she wanted to do was risk angering or otherwise displeasing the man that could give her all that she’d ever wanted. No, she needed him happy with her, so that meant looking out for those he loved.

Annoying, but it was what it was.

“You’ve gotten a lot stronger, huh?” Davis commented, apparently pulling his nose out of his notebooks in this instance. Understandable, since they were still testing what the evolution had done to his familiars, Raynare supposed. Still, she couldn’t help but feel envious of that attention. Would she get stronger faster if he were to really focus on her?

‘Envy,’ she stressed in her own mind. ‘Not jealousy, envy.’ Not that the difference made it better, but it sounded so, at least to her. Then again… Maybe it didn’t, not really.

“Changes seem to follow the same pattern they have so far, from what I can see,” the man continued, looking over the length of the snake’s body as Nagini all but preened in front of him. “Overall increase of all your stats and a stage of development in your skills with some slight changes. Nothing too distinctive,-” ‘Unlike Morag,’ Raynare could almost hear, and hadn’t that been something. “-but all the same an improvement all around.”

‘You don’t say,’ the fallen grumbled in his own mind. How much would she have to train in order to start catching up again? Would the snake evolve again once she got there? It was annoying beyond belief.

“Same for you, Raynare,” he continued, catching her off guard.

She was useful, she knew that much. That was why he was open to helping her train, setting up spells and spars. She was a convenient sword to point towards his enemies, his targets. But she was also convenient in the sense that she didn’t ask for things. She took what he gave her and was happy with it.

Raynare knew all this, which was why she was surprised that he was looking at her. He’d been very hands off with her so far, after all. She wasn’t his friend, much less part of his family. She was his soldier at best and his tool at worst.

Why was he looking at her now?

“Your progress is slowing down though,” he pointed out and she felt her heart shrivel. That was all? That was as far as she could get with a new set of wings? She’d feared that might be happening, but she thought it was just her desperation to grow stronger playing tricks on her mind. Surely that wasn’t it, right? She’d barely had her wings for a while. Davis’ training spells and sparring and the battles couldn’t be enough to push her to the limits of her new self already, surely.

And yet, there they were.

“Not too much, not yet, but your limit is coming,” Davis continued, as if he weren’t driving a stake into her heart. “We have some time still, thankfully,” he continued, but he was talking to himself, she realized. He was thinking out loud. She could only hope that his brilliant, terrifying mind would find a solution.

Because he’d look for one, right? He… He didn’t need her, but surely she was convenient enough to bother helping. That was what Raynare was determined to make happen, but she wasn’t sure how successful she’d been. They’d had many talks about the matter, but none of them had truly reassured her.

“I guess I’ll have to take the next step with Project Ascension,” he commented and she tried not to look like the annoying youkai child when she was told she could spend more time with her father. “Annoying, but I guess needs must. I’ll contact Penemue,” he commented and this time his words confused Raynare. What did that mean? Surely he wasn’t going to look for someone else, ri- “I’m not risking you being the first subject of the next step. I’ll test it on someone else.”

‘Someone less useful,’ Raynare finished for him, barely able to hold back a grin.

Yes, she was going to go places, places where Davis would take her.

[}-o-{]

[Carmilla Karnstein]

She felt like she’d bargained with powers beyond her comprehension, every, single, time.

Devil’s deal didn’t even encompass what she considered the agreement she’d struck with Joshua Davis. Because a devil’s deal would have screwed her over, but at least she imagined it’d be a done thing once it happened. The kind of devils that made those agreements didn’t tend to wait long to show their true colors. More often than not, once the contract was signed, you’d know how badly they were going to ruin you.

Joshua Davis, however, filled Carmilla with the same foreboding feeling that knowing such a deal was struck would, but there was no end to it. Instead, she was left there, with spells that could destroy her faction hovering over her very home and a man coming every so often to strengthen them or place any number of other spells. Some of them were for defense purposes, some of them were… not. The Sword of Damocles hung over her head, set up by Carmilla herself, and she couldn’t know when or how it’d fall.

She could only wait and fear.

“Lord Davis says that he’ll be ready to strike in a few more visits,” the Phenex commented, snapping her out of her terrified state. Not that what she said helped overly much, truthfully. “You should start readying your faction, if you haven’t already.”

“I have,” she said, and she was surprised that she managed to say that without her voice cracking. She should be better than that. She shouldn’t be cowering before a human and some devil child. Yet there Carmilla was, trying to keep it together and unsure if she was failing.

How the mighty had fallen.

“Great,” the Phenex replied disinterestedly, as if her faction preparing to go to war was less important than whatever it was that she was working on in that notepad of hers. It was an act, Carmilla knew. She’d figured out, once she had enough presence of mind to push her fear to the side, that they’d been playing her all along.

They’d poked at her pride, provoked her with taunts and mockery to get her to agree to what they were doing. Davis wasn’t annoyed when she used his title because she offended him somehow, he was annoyed because he didn’t like being called by his title. Yet, he made her do it because it worked for their plans. They’d been deliberately insulting so that she’d be more motivated to fight against the Tepes.

Whatever reason they had for all that…

Carmilla kind of had to respect their methods, because they had worked.

It galled her, to be sure. She wanted nothing more than to strangle the both of them with her bare hands and then drain them of all their accursed blood. She was more insulted after she figured that out than by anything they’d done in their little theater play. She hated the both of them with a passion.

Yet, Carmilla hated the Tepes faction even more.

So, she’d have to make do with this infuriating pair. They were her chance. Hell, they were more than that, really. Davis could likely win this war all on his own, after what she’d seen – sensed, more like – him do. His spells loomed over her house like giant monsters, guardians and automatons. His magic permeated the whole place like they were submerged in an ocean of it.

It was comforting, to have such strength protecting her – them –, but it was also completely, absolutely, utterly terrifying.

Another spell washed over her as it was cast and Carmilla stiffened. She’d never get used to that, she knew. Like an ice cold wave washing over her and the burning feeling of the sunlight that got through curtains on her skin rolled into one thing, it was deeply unpleasant toeing the painful line. Yet, through that, there was the barest hint of comfort, like the magic was whispering her reassurances that meant nothing in the wake of its might and presence, like someone telling her everything was fine while pointing a holy sword straight to her heart.

Terrifying, and she’d never not think that, Carmilla knew.

“Was the charade necessary?” she asked, taking a deep breath in to steady herself. Was it a good idea to reveal that she knew? It might not be, but then again, playing stupid was not only deeply insulting and unpleasant, but also didn’t really help. At least that way she could regain some of her self-respect and might earn some respect from the two of them too.

Not that she thought she was that lucky.

“Maybe, maybe not,” the Phenex replied, apparently not at all surprised that she’d seen through their little act. “We determined that it was the most effective way, so we did it,” she added, not quite shrugging, but she could almost hear the gesture in the devil’s voice. “Mr. Davis didn’t want to risk you turning us down, so he went for what we thought was the best option.”

“Mr. Davis, not Lord Davis?” Carmilla asked and the girl smiled, amused.

“He hates the title. He’s not a fan of Mr. Davis either, truth be told. He much prefers to be called just Joshua,” the Phenex informed her and Carmilla could only blink owlishly at her. “I can’t call him that though. It’d be terribly unprofessional of me. You can do it though, if you’d rather. He’d like that.”

What in the…?

Carmilla had known they were acting, but she had not known it had reached that extent. Were they anything like they appeared to be? Not knowing that didn’t help her feel any better, even though the Phenex painted a much more… friendly picture.

“If you think him being laidback is a weakness though…” the Phenex said, trailing off and grinning in a way that made Carmilla nervous. Somehow though, that was preferable to the very confusing attitude she’d displayed just before. “... I’ll make you regret it… so much.”

“... Noted.”

[} Chapter End {]

Hey guys! How’s it going?

I’ve been feeling in a PoV switch mood, evidently. Not sure why I stopped, honestly. I really enjoy writing different perspectives regarding my stories and my MCs. I guess sometimes I’m just no feeling like it or it might not fit the moment? Or maybe there’s more than one Muse possessing my body and they have different preferences.

Who knows? Not me, that’s who.

Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter.

Discord Link: discord.gg/UTDransjJZ

Random Question: I’ve asked this before, but I’ll do so again. Any character in particular you’d like to see some of? I know there’s too many characters for me to juggle anywhere near well, so it’s almost guaranteed that I’ve either knowingly or unknowingly pushed several of them to the side.

See you.