When the shit hits the fan

Subject: Re: When the shit hits the fan Wed 19 Jun 2019, 08:44

Some time in the very, very distant past. When tragedy had yet to strike, before a child nearly lost everything for the mistake of helping the wrong individual.

Within the former Aoba household, a spacious and extravagant condo.

Aoba Shiori stood in the kitchen, prepping various ingredients for the dinner she was going to cook. As she heard the front door open, she assumed it was her husband, returning with some required missing items. "Yu-kun, that was fast, even for you! Did you actually-"

She was cut off by the sound of loud, running footsteps, followed by whimpers and sniffling. The woman quickly realized what had happened, dropping what was in her hands to turn and kneel.

A young Shion collided with his beloved mother, immediately clinging to her as he cried. "M-mommy...!"

"Shion..." Shiori whispered, hugging her child tightly. "What happened?"

Although she asked, she already had a good idea. Her son was bullied just about every day, by the other boys in his school. Even when he kept to himself, his bullies seemed to delight in going out of their way to torment him.

"M-my lunch..." Croaked Shion pitifully, his voice muffled against her. "T-they said that they forgot their lunch money...s-so they took mine... A-a-and then they said it looked gross...s-so they threw it away... I'm sorry Mommy...e-even though you worked so hard to-"

"Shh..." Rubbing his cheek gently, Shiori shook her head. "You have nothing to apologize for, my love. I'm the one who's sorry... You've done nothing wrong, you know that don't you? Children can be cruel...they don't understand why you're so different, so they try to hurt you. And no matter how many times I complain, the teachers dismiss it because they aren't seeing anything happen to you..."

She sighed deeply, "I'm such a failure of a mother-"

"N-no you're not, Mommy!" Shion shouted, almost angrily as he looked up at her with tears in his eyes. "You're the best! I love you more than anything!"

Blinking a few times, Shiori couldn't help but smile at him. "Even more than Artorias?"

"Mhm, lots more!" The boy insisted, kissing her on the cheek.

Giggling, Shiori kissed him on the nose. "I should be the one trying to cheer you up, but look at you~ What a considerate little cutie you are~"

"I'm like you, Mommy~" Claimed Shion, his cheeks a rosy pink as he put his arms around her neck. After a few moments, he frowned. "Do I...have to go back to school...?"

"Hm..." Shiori stood up, lifting him into her arms as she pretended to consider his question. "Nah, what could you possibly be missing anyway? My little treasure is even smarter than me, after all~"

Shion smiled brightly, resting his head atop his mother's shoulder happily, his previous pain already a distant memory. "No way Mommy, you're the smartest. Daddy and Aunty Shiena always say so too~"

"Oh? But Sumire-chan was the one who told me that you're smarter than me~" Countered Shiori, tilting her head. "I'm inclined to believe her. She takes such pride in her adorable cousin, after all."

"You must be hungry though, why don't we have a preview of dinner?" She wondered, poking her son's cheek.

Shion smiled, his laughter close to giggling, to match his distinctly feminine appearance. "Can I help you, Mommy?"

"Of course you can!" Shiori replied, just as the front door opened again. "Ah, Yu-kun."

Aoba Yusuke entered the kitchen with some bags, blinking as he saw the two loves of his life. "Shion, what are you doing home?! Was today an early day?"

Shion looked at his father nervously, "D-daddy...I...um..."

With a gentle breath, Shiori spoke for him. "That's exactly what it was, it seems it was a bit impromptu. That's okay, isn't it?"

"Of course!" Yusuke answered cheerfully, setting the bags down and approaching to kiss them both affectionately. "I could only ever be happy to get to spend more time with my two girls~"

Shiori inadvertently snorted, covering her mouth and turning her head away.

For a few moments, Shion was happily hugging his dad, before he let out a surprised gasp. "D-d-daddy! I'm a boy!"

"Ah, that's right isn't it? I keep forgetting." Quipped Yusuke with a grin, ruffling the child's hair roughly.

Shion's face scrunched up a bit cutely, "I'm not your daughter, Daddy!"

"I wouldn't exactly mind if you were, though." Yusuke replied while pinching his cheeks.

Giggling as the boy argued with his father, Shiori stepped back to make a bit of distance. "Okay, Yu-kun, that's enough~ He'll get upset if you keep teasing him like that~"

"Right, right." Yusuke scratched his head, chuckling. "Anyway, since we find ourselves with a few hours of extra time, what should we do? Shion~ Do you want Daddy to teach you more martial arts? If those other boys try to pick on you again, you-"

"I want to Dive with Mommy." Shion interjected.

The interjection pierced Yusuke's heart like an arrow, his body nearly crumbling. "I...I see. It's just like Lethe-chan said, the bond between a mother and son is...on a whole other level..."

"Aww, don't be so sad~" Shiori cooed, blowing a kiss to him.

Shion watched his dad until his mom glanced at him, causing him to nod. "I love you lots too, Daddy~"

"Ah..." Yusuke immediately perked up, stepping closer to hug them both. "I'm glad to hear that~ Maybe I can uh...join you two this time?"

"I'm sorry, honey~" Shiori smiled apologetically at him. "I actually want to show Shion something new, but you won't be able to join us on this particular Dive~"

"Really, Mommy?" Shion looked up at her curiously. "What kind of Virtual World is it?"

Tapping her chin thoughtfully, Shiori raised a finger. "An apparitional one."

"Appa...?" Yusuke gaped at his wife, question marks practically hovering over his head.

"There's ghosts there!?" Shion gasped excitedly, his cheeks turning pink.

"Eh?" Yusuke gulped nervously. "Shion, you know that word!? Wait, do you like ghosts too?! I thought that Artorias guy was a person!"

Shion nodded to him, "Artorias was the greatest knight to ever live, but he ultimately succumbed to the abyss he drew his power from. He lost his mind when the Abyss corrupted him, so he's technically not really a person anymore."

Shiori was beaming now, brimming with pride over her son's knowledge of the the series they both loved most.

Backing away awkwardly, Yusuke sweat lightly. "You sure know a lot of big words, for such a tiny little thing..."

He blinked as he realized what his wife had meant, "Oh, Shiori...you mean you're taking him there? Is that okay? I thought it wasn't finished yet?"

"Hm, it's perfectly fine~" Decided Shiori, rubbing her head against her boy's.

Shion looked up at her curiously, "It's an unfinished World?"

Shiori smiled at him, "In a manner of speaking, perhaps. Calling it so may be a matter of perspective, so I'll let you decide for yourself. It's a very, very special one though. This World we'll Dive into may just change your entire life~"

"R-really?" Shion blinked, excitement written all over his face.

Giggling again at the sight of his expression, Shiori nodded. "Indeed! Look forward to it, alright? I think this adventure will be extremely helpful for you~ But before that, shall we tackle dinner together? The takoyaki tagliatelle isn't going to prepare itself~"

"Takoyaki tagliatelle?! Is that even legal, Mommy~?" Wondered Shion, as she set him down and put a little apron on him.

With a wink, Shiori smirked mischievously. "I will make it legal, sweetie~"

"Uh...yeah, okay." Yusuke frowned, moving aside. "I'll just be over here, watching...left out because you two are on a wavelength I can't understand."

-
The blue haired man's eyelids fluttered before slowly opening. They were greeted by a foreign sight, a ceiling of a luminous white substance. His eyes wandered briefly, trying to take in the room he was in, a very strange room. When he looked to his side, he laid eyes on something familiar. "Sae-tan...thank the Gods... Or should I say thank Satan...?"

Saeko's head was close to his, laying on the same pillow as she sat at his side. Her own eyes opened when she heard his voice, sitting up. "Shion, you're awake!?"

"Um, I think so? I wouldn't be surprised if I wasn't, though. Cuz this place is a bit...well, a lot out there?" Shion scratched his head as he sat up, surprised to find that he felt sluggish. "Ugh...what the hell happened to me? How long have I been sleeping?"

"You...don't remember?" Wondered Saeko nervously, staring at him.

Shion looked at her for a few moments, before shaking his head. "That reaction. I guess I didn't dream up all of that, then. We were in the Ascendant Realm, right? We went through tons of stupid intense battles that the others will never believe... We fought Urizen himself, sort of...then I had to duel his rival, Mael... And that guy was unfathomably skilled and powerful. I had to go to...extreme lengths to beat him. I remember him opening a portal as he promised, but..."

He shrugged, "Did we get out okay?"

"So you don't remember anything after he opened the portal?" Saeko tilted her head.

Shion looked up in thought, "Not really... Well actually, when I think back, I recall...warmth. The touch of someone I miss..."

He rubbed his head, "But maybe that's...because I had a dream about Mom and Dad..."

"You...did?" Saeko blinked at him as he nodded. "Well, anyway. We didn't exactly get away, per se. Well, not at all actually. When we were about to skip out, Uri showed up to totally rain on our parade! He told Mael that their mutual master demanded our presence, so he just rolled along and we had to come with them here!"

"T-their master?" Shion gulped nervously, holding her hand tightly now. "I-is he... I mean, he must be..."

"An absolute monster? Probably..." Saeko smiled a bit. "I haven't met him yet. You were practically dead, so Mael and Uri put us up in this room. They said their master would be waiting until you recovered. I've pretty much been here by your side the whole time."

She raised a finger when he opened her mouth, "Oh yeah. You've been sleeping for over a week, so that's why you feel so crappy!"

Gasping loudly, Shion leaned in closer. "A week!? A fucking week?!"

Saeko's face turned a bit red with his so close, though she made no attempt to increase the distance. "Yeah...I was getting scared, honestly. I mean, you seemed fine and all your wounds healed a long time ago, but still..."

"...Sorry..." Shion whispered, pulling her close to hug her. "I just keep worrying you, don't I?"

"It's okay..." Saeko whispered back, gently laying her head against his. "I don't really know how to describe where we are right now, so... Do you mind explaining all that insane stuff you did back there? No matter how I thought about it, I can't understand how you managed to accomplish all of that so suddenly!"

"Ahaha..." Shion scratched his head. "I did promise to tell you everything, so I should get it out of the way."

He took a breath, "Rebellion. I told you that I thought Lord Ran gave it to me, to symbolize him electing me to be the uniting leader of the Players, right? That was totally wrong, it had nothing to do with leadership. Rebellion has...had...the power to awaken the hidden capacities of others. I think it could be used on people and even systems. It held the power to combine the very natures of others, to unite even the most conflicting powers into a single vessel. The form would vary, but you saw the one mine took..."

He extended the hand opposite her, gripping at the air as the Devil Sword Artorias incarnated in a fierce blaze of black and purple flame.

Saeko watched in awe, staring at the sword now. "I was confused the first time I saw you wield it then, but...you aren't equipping it, are you?"

"Correct." Shion confirmed with a nod. "This weapon is a part of my existence in PSO now. I can't equip or unequip it, it doesn't function the way every other weapon in the game does, the way that you and the others use weapons. When I banish and summon it, I'm putting it in and out of existence. In other words, when you can't see it, it doesn't exist. Though that's not very important, really."

"Agree to disagree, that's crazy!" Saeko exclaimed, pulling on his other hand.

Shion couldn't help but smile as he lowered the sword to his lap near her, letting her touch it. "This weapon is the new form I chose to give Rebellion, after taking it within myself. You see, Rebellion was essentially the key of the Abyss itself, the source of my power as the Abyss King. When I stabbed myself, I used Rebellion to unite the two primordial forces with I control...the Abyss with my Tempest Arcana. Two completely unrelated and opposing forces...and the results were spectacular, as you saw. This sword represents the new bond I forged, which produced an even greater, more unique force. The Arcana of the Sin Tempest. At the same time, I gained two new Unique Skills, Devil's Testament and Chaotic Unity. The former represents my evolution from Human into...I said the Devil before, right? I'll just go with that to humor you, I guess. It describes the changes to my physiology, having made me much stronger along with giving me a highly advanced regenerative factor. The downside is that Healing won't work too well on me anymore. The latter allows me to devour things through the Abyss, absorbing their qualities for induction through Devil's Testament and reproduction through the upgraded Skill, Sin Armiger. I need to experiment to learn more, but I think that I can technically unite anything I choose, even things that shouldn't work together. For myself, I can use those Skills to make those things a part of my own power...but I have the feeling that I can even use it to help make my friends stronger."

Saeko's jaw dropped as she listened, "That's insane...it's like Devil May Cry developments on drugs!"

"I know, right?!" Shion lifted a finger. "There's no way Rebellion was named coincidentally! I can't help but wonder if Lord Ran knows about it, or something! Naturally, I had to style everything suitably to unite my own aesthetic with DMC~"

"Yeah, you looked totally awesome when you changed!" Saeko chirped happily. "Hm~ But you can even use that power for others, huh? We should test your capabilities thoroughly, you might have actually become the strongest Player now~ Actually, I guess that's natural? Mael was way stronger than everything we've encountered together so far, combined. And then some. And you trashed him at the end!"

"I wouldn't go that far..." Shion laughed a bit. "Anyway, that's more or less it. At least, as far as I know. I'm aware that there are details I don't understand, but I can't do anything about that right now."

Saeko nodded in agreement, "True, there's no point in worrying about things you can't comprehend yet~ So, shall we step outside so you can feel the way that I did~?"

"I...guess so." Shion shifted to get out of bed, standing as the DSA was banished. "Lead the way then."