Harbinger of Ruin: Ch.21

The ground shattered as Kiba shot forward, the sword in his grasp glowing before Satanael smirked as the knight accelerated even further.

Sandanzuki

The air rippled as Kiba swung his sword through the air, the Cadre quickly bringing up Arondight and swinging it forward before his smirk turned to a grin when the knight vanished with a puff of iridescent smoke.

Appearing behind the Fallen Angel, Kiba grunted as he swung his blade down and Satanael swiftly spun around to block the strike and shatter the blade at the same time.

Death-Dealing

Yet, Kiba did not care as the blades warped with a simple thought, another Demonic Excalibur Copy appearing in his grasp while Satanael frowned as he swiftly sliced and shattered the fragments of Death Dealing flying at him.

Watching as Kiba vanished while leaping back once more, he wasn't given more time to worry about the Knight as Xenovia rushed in from behind, leaping into the air with a twirl before bringing her blade down with a roar.

The holy aura of Excalibur Destruction bellowed as it clashed with the overwhelming demonic aura of Arondight while Xenovia gritted her teeth as the shockwave from said clash sent her flying backwards.

Kiba was quick to react as he rushed around and caught her, landing and letting her run away right before creating a shield of Rho Aias right as Arondight came down and slammed into them.

Surprisingly, the triple-layer of shields blocked the attack and Satanael frowned for a brief moment before smirking as he leapt back right as Xenovia rushed through while swinging Destruction at his neck.

“Ohohoho~ Not too bad, Yuuto Kiba.” He spoke with a smile as he twirled Arondight and Kiba frowned as he dismissed the shields while creating a Holy Devourer in his hands.

“I have a stupid idea, but I don't believe it's going to work.”

“All ideas are stupid until they work.” Xenovia spoke with a smirk and Kiba chuckled before he nodded while tightening his grip on the Excalibur copy.

“Okay…here we go.”

Reinforcement

Sandanzuki!

Kiba was a blur as he shot across the field, each step accelerating him further and making sonic booms echo around him before he swung his blade forward right as Satanael did the same.

“Trace! On!” However, Satanael's eyes widened when Kiba shattered his blade while sliding under his slash, the knight gripping as he tapped a finger to Arondight's hilt before his eyes widened as he bore witness to the blade's internal structure.

He could see every fold of the mystical metal, see how each of its runes slowly twisted from the pure holy energy it produced to the malevolent demonic energy it was exuding and he could feel the rage and anger of its previous wielding clinging tightly to the sword itself.

As Kiba finished scanning through the information and hopped to his feet, he stumbled a bit as he felt his heart beating, looking down at his finger to see the flesh of it bubbling before looking back up to see Satanael frowning.

“What did you just do?” The Cadre asked and Kiba chuckled as he felt his Sacred Gear resonating with what he just saw of the sword.

“Ah, I feel like I just broke the wall down.” Kiba spoke cryptically as he took a deep breath before a large Gremory crest formed on the floor in front of him.

He has been having trouble unlocking this specific ability of his Sacred Gear as he thought that he would be able to do so with enough training, but now he finds that it is not only training that is needed but also the necessary strength and motivation that is needed to do so.

'A blade that adapts constantly, absorbs demonic and holy energy at the same time and is sturdy enough to clash with the Fused Excalibur and Arondight…' As Kiba kept thinking of what his blade needed to do, Satanael watched with an excited smile while Xenovia watched in slight awe as the devil Knight knelt down.

Slowly standing up, both of the other two fighters were then confused and bewildered as Kiba pulled out a sheathed katana, its sheath a deep black with a smiling golden dragon wrapped around it while its hilt was wrapped in gold with black ornaments on the gold wrappings.

'I may have stolen some parts of its design, but I am proud to say that this might be the most overpowered weapon I have made.

Balance Break: Muramasa

“…Hmm, from its simple design, I'm guessing that your blade is more than just a simple katana, yes?” Usually, Satanael would dismiss the simple blade, but as he had learned from his thousands of years of living…

'The simpler something is, the more dangerous its effects could be.'

“One could say that, yeah.” Kiba nodded in agreement as he unsheathed the blade and Satanael had to admit that the blade's steel was a vibrant and mesmerizing dark grey with golden temper lines that were prominent on its sides while a scarlet flower-styled pattern rested atop the temper lines.

Kiba just smiled as he slowly walked towards Xenovia, who was still a bit shocked as she watched the sheath of his blade transforming and sinking into Kiba's skin before black segmented armour made out of some wooden-like material formed around his hands and arms like gauntlets.

“What does this one do?” She asked as she snapped out of her awe and Kiba just held his blade with both hands before taking a deep breath, exhaling slowly as his eyes shimmered with a reddish-black glow.

“What we need to, but I'm going to need you to start fighting with a bit more intensity.”

“Very well.” She nodded as she held her Excalibur Destruction in her left hand while raising her right hand to the side.

“O Peter, O Basil and the Blessed Virgin Mary. I ask of you Saints to hear my prayers.” The air besides her rippled as a golden magic crest with a shimmering white cross in its centre appeared besides her, Xenovia slowly opening her eyes as a vibrant blue blade slowly came out of it.

“In the name of the Saint who blessed this blade, I hereby set you free. Roar your name once more, Durandal!” The moment the chains around the blade shattered and Xenovia pulled it out as the crest dissipated, Satanael was in awe as he stared at the sheer beauty of Durandal's holy energy.

Kiba on the other hand was in awe at the beautiful design of said blade, the holy aura it was exuding nearly surpassing that of Satanael's as the air around it shimmered with an ethereal glow.

“So…you couldn't have used that sooner?” Kiba asked before shaking his head as she just smirked while stabbing the blade into the ground, which rumbled as Durandal's holy energy nearly exploded had she not pulled it back.

“I would have, but the sword is not the best to use in the presence of comrades.”

“Hmm, so that is why you were sent here to face Kokabiel on your own. I must admit that the blade truly is a beautiful sight, but you yourself can't control its destructive cravings, can you?” Satanael asked with a grin, chuckling as Xenovia just smiled while pulling Durandal out of the ground and pointing Excalibur Destruction at him.

“I admit I do have some problems with controlling the blade, but that is only when I wish for it to hold back, not when I give it free reign to destroy.”

“Then, by all means, show me how much destruction you can cause.” With those last words, the ground shattered as Kiba shot forward at a blistering pace.

Satanael frowned at the increased speed before responding in kind, his blade clashing with Kiba's before his eyes widened slightly when he saw not a single scratch on the demonic blade the knight was wielding.

“You can't use that blade at its full power.” Looking up at Kiba, his frown deepened at the knowing smile Kiba gave him when he pushed the Cadre away for a brief moment, spinning around before slashing downwards and unleashing a wave of demonic energy at him.

However, Satanael's danger senses blared and he jumped away instead of blocking, glancing at the aftermath the energy wave left before raising an eyebrow when he saw nothing.

He had expected a scratch or some effect from Kiba's demonic energy, but it was the sight of nothing being there that disturbed him even more.

'This might be more dangerous than I expected.'

“I wonder what this one does?” Satanael muttered as he turned back and Kiba tightened his grip on his Balance Break while smirking as he held the blade towards him.

“Just know it's versatile enough to help me fight back now.” He spoke with determination gleaming in his eyes before glancing at his side as Xenovia walked forward, Durandal blazing with holy energy while Excalibur Destruction crackled in her other hand

“Are you prepared for the coming battle?” She asked and Kiba chuckled as they slowly shifted into their stances, Satanael scoffing as he did the exact same with a smirk of anticipation.

“Yeah. Let's go.” In the blink of an eye, Kiba crossed the distance with a grunt, his blade raised high as he brought down right as Satanael intercepted it with a slash from Arondight.

The burst of flames that came from Satanael's slash was enough to force Kiba back lest he get burned by the powerful flames, but Xenovia did not waste time as she took the opening and swung Durandal in a wide arc.

The simple swing unleashed a shockwave of pure light that carved through the air, Satanael swinging towards her and parrying the blade with a growl even as the sheer force of it was enough to sent him skidding backwards.

Digging his feet into the ground to stop himself, Satanael's smirk faded and a look of annoyance took its place as he stared at Kiba with a glare.

The knight just smirked before he vanished, appearing crouched besides Satanael with a deep exhale as his armoured gauntlets and Muramasa crackled with demonic energy when he swung the blade down.

Kuzuryusen!

Nine precise strikes delivered in the blink of an eye made Satanael focus on the battle as he rapidly parried the overlapping movements in a blur, but he gritted his teeth as the downwards left diagonal slash slipped through and grazed his cheek.

The Cadre snarled as he stabbed Arondight into the ground, unleashing a wave of black flames in all directions and making Kiba jump back as Xenovia rushed in with both of her blades held to the side.

With a roar, she swung them both inwards before spinning them around and swinging outwards once more, unleashing twin X-shaped blasts of holy energy that cut through the flames and roared towards Satanael.

The Fallen Angel in question growled as he parried each of the attacks, but Kiba was as of a nuisance as always as he aimed and threw his katana, surprising him before Satanael's eyes widened when he spun around and blocked the slash aimed at his neck.

Glaring at Kiba as he smiled and vanished once more, the Cadre quickly held Arondight behind his back as Xenovia rushed in with Durandal, prepared for its sheer force this time as he dug his feet into the ground and stopped the attack.

However, he was surprised when the girl smirked and leapt back right as she threw Durandal into the air, his eyes widening when he saw Kiba appear above it while grabbing onto the hilt of the blade.

'Come on! Come on! Just one…second!' Kiba gritted his teeth at the wave of scorching pain that rippled throughout his body as he grabbed the hilt of the blade, holding it high before swinging Durandal down with a roar filled with pain and determination.

To Xenovia's shock, she watched as Kiba's body exuded potent demonic energy that fused with Durandal's own holy energy, unable to believe it as Kiba quickly let the blade go.

The resulting holy-demonic energy was unleashed in the form of a monstrous wave, Satanael gritting his teeth as he swung Arondight and unleashed a holy-demonic energy wave of his own.

The clash forced Kiba to unfurl his wings as it forced him to the ground, landing with a grunt while Xenovia caught Durandal and stabbed both it and Excalibur Destruction into the ground to stop herself from being sent flying.

'Hah…Hahahaha….Ahahahahaha~!! I see!! Oh, this must be why I have this!'

“Yuuto Kiba!” Kiba blinked as he heard Satanael shouting his name over the explosion, looking up only for his hand to instinctively catch the blade thrown at him.

Looking at Arondight in his hands and looking to Xenovia who looked just as confused as he did, they looked back at Satanael to see the Cadre looking as if he was not just in a battle for his life.

“The next time we meet, I wish to see you having reached the pinnacle of power!” The Fallen Angel spoke with a smile of anticipation before a magic crest appeared under him, Kiba just watching as the Cadre vanished before slowly looking to Xenovia.

“What…just happened?”

“…I have no idea, but we may as well take what we can get. Now, let's go and help Irina and Nero take care of Valper and Freed.”

“No need to worry about us.” Turning around, Kiba raised an eyebrow as Nero and Irina walked towards them, raising an eyebrow at the sight of the unconscious Freed and Valper in chains that had some mystic runes on it and being dragged by Nero.

“I see you guys had as much fun as we did.” Kiba spoke with a smirk while gesturing to the tears on Nero's outfit as well as Irina's dishevelled hair and the girl huffed as Nero nodded with a shrug.

“Yep, turns out having them fuse together the Excalibur fragments made Freed a bigger menace than we expected. Actually forced me to use my Sacred Gear too.”

“You got one too?”

“Yep, though I can't tell you what it is. Organization secrets and all that.” He answered with a shrug and Kiba snorted as he nodded while dismissing his own Balance Breaker.

“Understandable.”

“Also, we can't have you destroying the Fused Excalibur since we don't exactly how that would work, but we did bring you this to do with as you wish. Found it on Valper's person.” Irina spoke with an apologetic smile and Kiba's eyes widened as she held up a light blue crystal towards him that had a shimmering white glow at its centre.

'…I get a new toy and something to upgrade my Sacred Gear? Don't mind if I do.'

“Thank you. I'll…do something with it.” Kiba said with a slight head bow as he took the crystal before quickly chucking it into a pocket dimension when he felt the crystal burning his hand.

“Uh…I did not expect that to happen, I promise.”

“Don't worry. It's something we should have expected.” Kiba muttered as he slowly put Arondight into the same dimension before turning as an explosion rocked the Academy grounds.

Staring at the pillar of light rising up high into the sky as well as the blue and reddish-black lightning crackling in the air, Kiba frowned as he turned to the exorcists.

“I'll take these to the others outside.” Irina said as she took the chains from Nero, who nodded before the teen stretched his arms while turning to Kiba with a smirk.

“Okay, then. Let's go save your girlfriend.”

“You don't have to, you know?” Kiba said as he began jogging over to the battlefield, Nero and Xenovia keeping pace as the bluenette snorted.

“You've gone out of your way to help us. It would be a sin if we did not do the same.”

“Besides, if we didn't, Irina would be pissed at us for not doing so.” Nero chimed in and Kiba chuckled before turning back with a determined look in his eyes.

'Looks like the battle has just begun.'

A/N: I was going to keep going, but decided to end it here and continue on with the final bit of the arc next chapter.

Also, Kiba got a new weapon and his Balance Breaker~!

To clarify, the Balance Breaker is not yet completed as I didn't have anything big planned for it (Think of it as an X-Side Balance Breaker) and I'm planning something bigger for it.

Also, Satanael is, by heart, someone who wants to see all Sacred Gears evolve to Longinus-level Sacred Gears(I think?) and he believes Kiba can do so which is why he gave him a head start.

Anyway, next chapter: The Stars vs the Devils.

As always, read, enjoy, review and until the next one…

Ba-Bye~!!