The Knight and The Blackguard

"Please move aside then." I request the Incarnate standing before me.

"Pardon?" The blond haired man asks, naked confusion on his face. Now that both of us are standing so close to each other, I can get a better look at the Incarnate's features. He's middle aged, but attractive in a matured, successful sort of way. That does not mean he's handsome though. If you walked pass this guy on a random day of the week, you probably would not give him a second glance. Bland facial features combined with a fit but slightly pudgy physique make the Incarnate look completely unexceptional.

What really wins it for him is the manner in which he carries himself. That kind of confident self-assurance that a successful man has. The clearly expensive look of his clothes. His polite but firm demeanor. The Incarnate is the kind of guy who would probably attract a girlfriend much younger than himself. The charm of an older, more experienced man exemplified.

"Michael, right?" I explain, "You said that you're at my service, so I would like you to move aside." My eyes dart towards the battle between the Perfecta and SOPO for a brief moment. The Perfecta is still chowing down, and all is right with the world.

A humorless laugh comes from Michael, "A comedian. Not what I expected from the Tyrant's servant. But no, I fear that I have to disappoint."

I raise an eyebrow, "You actually know who you serve. Not like Chance. So which one are you, the knight or the serving boy?"

A slight gasp from Michael as he responds, "You know what I am? How?"

I shrug, "There's a bloody visual novel out there starring you pack of cucks and your goddess. It doesn't take a genius to make the connection you know."

A bright smile crosses Michael's face as he regards me, "No one takes the legends seriously anymore, except perhaps for the people truly in the know. Not even the goddess's devout know the true nature of my existence. I must say, it is a relief to be finally able to speak freely with someone."

He salutes me again, this time with a serious expression, "Let me reintroduce myself then. I am Sir Castiel, the sword and shield of milady."

"Not afraid your secret identity will be leaked, cuck man?" I question while getting into the ready stance.

Michael, no Castiel, smiles gently with his own guard still relaxed, "There will be no one to leak it blackguard. Don't bother trying to rile me up with your verbal jabs either. Unlike Enma, my hot blooded days are long behind me."

I blink in surprise at Castiel's statement. How old is he actually? He does not look much older than Chance. And why is he identifying as his ancestor instead of his actual name?

"That's pretty big talk for someone who's hiding their real body." I remark, "Scared I'll beat it within an inch of its life the way I thrashed your buddy Enma?"

Castiel rests the tip of his saber on the asphalt and clasps both hands on its hilt before lecturing me, "I fight to achieve victory for milady. The means used are unimportant. If the methods I employ make you regard me as a coward, so be it. You are bluffing as well blackguard. You are not certain of defeating me despite your bluster."

His even voice takes on a hectoring tone, "If you were confident, you would have continued your attack on me already. No, what you are trying to do is to run down the clock on the Perfecta's lifespan, am I right? Once that happens, you will use your flash bangs to flee. How am I doing so far?"

"Pretty good." I acknowledge, "Doesn't mean that you can stop me though." The Perfecta bellows in the background as it continues to gorge itself, heedless of the conversation between the two of us.

"I don't need to." Castiel answers, "You forget blackguard, that I did not come to this fight alone."

As if on cue, the screeching noise from the helicopter rises in intensity and the SOPO officers fighting the Perfecta start to collapse from the magical onslaught. The Perfecta roars in delight and begins to help itself to the food presented to it. But my stomach sinks as I realize what Castiel had been getting at. With the pressure taken off the Perfecta, it no longer has the need to flare its core. The Idol's racket will eventually overcome the monster and the Hero will move in to sedate it. The Hero and Heroines remain standing some distance away from the Perfecta, unaffected by the Idol's magic and confirming my fears.

Castiel shouts at the Hero while keeping his eyes firmly planted on me, "Tensei! Wait for the Alpha One to calm down before getting close to it! Kira should be able to stun the Alpha One again soon!"

Damn. I furrow my brows in consternation as I see the Hero pause at Castiel's instruction. Brocon and Magic Police Girl are of no help either, both of them clearly taking their cues from the Hero. If this continues, Castiel will be able to retrieve the Perfecta and continue his work at unlocking the codex.

The grenade launcher sways restlessly on its sling as it hangs from my shoulder and my left hand snaps out to bring it to bear against the Perfecta. But Castiel's saber slashes upwards in a blur, cleaving the weapon's barrel in two. As the barrel clatters to the ground, the saber's tip points squarely at me, while Castiel all the while bears an infuriatingly confident smile on his face.

"None of that, blackguard." Castiel says, "Let the boy have his moment."

"Strange that you're working with Tensei." I reply, "You know his true purpose, right?"

Castiel frowns at my statement and rebuts, "Tensei is a child of the goddess, just like everyone else. I may oppose Tensei in secret, but it is ultimately for his own good. Unlike you, I seek to redeem him and bring him back to the proper path."

I snort in derision and roll my eyes. Go on, tell yourself that.

Castiel shakes his head in response and takes an offended tone with me, "You would doom Tensei to be murdered. Not only that, an innocent girl, through no fault of her own, would bear the sin of that murder. His children would be deprived of their father's love and be used as pawns by the great powers. You are not in the right here blackguard. You are in no position to cast moral judgment."

"And I suppose you're doing the right thing then?" I sneer, "It just so happens that you're helping your goddess at the same time?"

Castiel goes back to smiling that insufferable smile of his, "One can do good and do well blackguard. Virtue is often rewarded in this life and the next."

I bite back an insult lying on the edge of my tongue and survey the scene for any means of salvaging the situation. And what do you know, the solution is there right in front of me. Big Tits, in all her big breasted glory is lying among the comatose SOPO officers. I concentrate and fire off a mental command to the Hero.

Big Tits is in danger.

The Hero noticeably staggers the moment he sees Big Tits's body in the middle of the scrum. He raises his voice and yells at Castiel, "The Alpha One is eating people, sir! We have to stop it now!"

I hear Castiel click his tongue before answering the Hero, "If you provoke the Alpha One, even more people will be killed! Let Kira stun it before acting!"

Who thought Big Tits becoming the Hero's lover would pay off so quickly. I smirk and mind blast the Hero again.

Your lover could die. Because of you. Because you wanted to play it safe.

"Irene! No!" The Hero shrieks like a lunatic and summons a spirit sword, charging at the Perfecta and hacking furiously away at it. The beast's core flares as its regenerative response is triggered and it begins lashing out indiscriminately at everyone around it. Brocon and Magic Police Girl rush into the fray to support the Hero as I turn my attention back to Castiel.

"You were saying?" I ask, barely holding back laughter, "You forgot that Tensei thinks with his little brother, not his brain."

Castiel rubs his glabella in frustration and gestures at me with his saber.

"Let's just get this over with blackguard."