… of Power
As the credits to the last episode of the second season rolled, Rias felt a touch of frustration and sadness. “My dream wasn't in either of those seasons,” she said.
“I didn't think so,” Ben said. “It's late. I'm going to do a little online research before turning in. Hopefully, I'll find an answer for you by morning.”
He stood.
Rias got up as well. On an impulse, she walked over to him.
“Hey, Ben?” she asked.
When she had his attention, she wrapped her arms around him, pulling him close for a hug.
“What's this?” he asked calmly.
She let go and stepped back. “Thank you. You've done far more for me than anyone else might have.”
Ben's smirk was solemn, sympathetic. “Whatever you do, don't give up. We'll get you back to your friends.”
Rias felt tears trying to escape from behind her eyes. With a nod, she gracefully made her way to bed.
* * *
The dream came back. This time, Rias woke with heartfelt pleas from three of her friends, people she had rescued from a dire fate.
Asia's words she remembered were, “I was lost. But, you gave me the gift of a new life! I will always appreciate everything you’ve done for me! You’re the best sister I ever had.”
Gasper had something to say. “If you hadn’t come along to find me, I would have had to walk the Earth as a pariah! Or, even worse, I might have died on the streets!”
And, finally, her Knight, Kiba, also tried to remind her of what she had done for him. “When I was dying, in pain - when I was consumed by hate - you took me in, saved me twice-over!”
As Rias contemplated these pleas of remembrance, tears came to her eyes. “I haven't forgotten. I'm here. I'll find a way back to you.”
“Another dream?” Ben asked the next morning, at breakfast.
“Yes,” Rias replied. “Was I loud?”
“Actually, no,” Ben said. “I've noticed it seems to happen every other night. A pattern.” He brightened. “Good news. There is a third season that aired in Japan. It finished earlier this year. The American distributor did a simulcast streaming event online. I went ahead and signed up for their YouTube channel, and found it there. It's subtitled, but I have it all set up.”
Rias finished breakfast quickly. She was excited and anxious again. To curb her expectations, she did what she could to calm herself. It was possible this rendition of her life through Issei's eyes would still fall short of providing an answer.
The events of the third season didn't have as many embarrassing moments for Rias. A lot of the antics were more with the rest of the club. Some of that did provoke Rias to jealousy, leading to rash moments of self-exposure, but the animated depictions didn't linger. The only moment that made Rias's cheeks burn was when Issei summoned her by his Sacred Gear in order to fondle her breasts and unlock a new power level.
Ben really didn't have much to say during their watch-through. Checking on him, he was unreadable. Rias guessed it might have a lot to do with him trying to keep up with the subtitles.
Then it happened.
The show caught up with Rias's most recent memories of her life. She watched the moment with someone she thought was Issei. Then it went further, showing that it wasn't Issei.
The real Issei was with Asia as they trained for the sports festival. Thanks to Gasper, the rest of the club, her family, learned of Rias's disappearance and they set out to search for her. They figured out where she was by where she wasn't, and enlisted the aid of some antagonists to reach her.
She was in the void between worlds.
Once Issei and her family were left there on their own, Rias watched her dream start to unfold before her eyes. The snippets of dialogue played out in the order that she recalled them over the last week. And, it went further. Breath shallow, Rias watched them fight a version of her possessed by a Red Dragon Gear shard. Finally, she understood why she was attacking them, and had no control.
In the show, their words broke through to the animated Rias. When she was free, she and Issei fought and destroyed the duplicate gear. The show, and the season, ended with Issei's confession of love.
“That was it,” Rias breathed. Louder, excited, she repeated herself, looking at Ben. “That was my dream!”
“Really?” Ben commented. “How much of it?”
“All of it. I could only remember some of their words each night, but I'm sure this is what I've been seeing.”
Ben stared at the YouTube screen menu, thoughtful. “It fits. As I see it, one of two things is happening. “Either you're hallucinating this.” Ben waved at his living room, indicating his entire world. “Or, you're having an out-of-body experience while your body's possessed.”
He looked down, thinking. “If I were to write it, it would be the out-of-body experience. The void between dimensions could also act as a gateway to other realities.”
He glanced at her. “When the shard took over, your soul was ejected from your body, and it ended up here. Thankfully, God protected you by giving you a temporary vessel. You're here until the events in the void are resolved. Time has no meaning there, so it could be going on right now.”
His eyes narrowed in thought. “Your dream's the key.”
Rias thought she saw where he was going. “The words I remember. They're in order. My last dream was the pleas by Asia, Gasper, and Kiba.”
“Interesting. My guess is that once your dreams catch up with what we saw, you'll be going home.” Ben smirked at a funny thought. “If you want to be sure, you could always ask God.”
Rias contemplated that thought a moment. “I don't think that's necessary,” she said. “He's proven himself through you enough. I see no reason to doubt your conclusions.”
“Then, it's simply a matter of waiting,” Ben said.
* * *
After lunch, Ben went into the room next to the living room. Rias glimpsed an office, and could hear him busily typing away. Later that afternoon, he came out of his office. He mentioned taking a break from typing. Then, out of the blue, he asked a question that Rias wasn't prepared for.
“How would you want to discover Al in your universe?”
“Uh...” Rias had to think a moment. Finally, she admitted, “I don't know. I hadn't really thought about it. I'll have to get back to you on that.”
Ben had drifted into the kitchen while she answered. “What if he accidentally killed Issei?”
“What?! No!” she protested, instantly alarmed at the idea.
“Keep in mind, 'alternate reality',” Ben said. “And, from a story-telling perspective, it would be the most rewarding, and not just for the shock value. Think about it a moment. After surviving your initial attempts at retribution, and generally knowing the setting's story from prior adventures, he'd feel obligated to replace Issei as part of your team. I imagine you'd even demand it of him, impressed with his power or abilities.
“Since you and your team wouldn't completely trust or like him right away, he would have to spend time earning that trust. And! He'd be in an interesting situation. He can't be reincarnated into a devil or angel of any kind. So, he'd be relying on his abilities as a modified super-soldier against people with powers. It might get to a point where he has to fall back on his link with his creator-God to overcome some of the most powerful demi-gods.
“Thoughts?”
“I don't like it,” Rias said without any hesitation.
She did admit to herself that his reasoning was sound. The possibilities were intriguing. But, her emotional attachment to Issei overrode all that.
“Yeah,” Ben said. “That one strays a little too far. I'd have to 'Atlantis' that one.”
“Atlantis?” Rias asked.
“Oh. In Plato's dialogues, he often used Socrates as a mouth-piece. When people asked what Socrates thought of Atlantis, he said something to the effect, 'He who created Atlantis also destroyed it,' strongly suggesting that Plato made Atlantis up.”
“Ah,” Rias said, pleased that Ben had some knowledge of history, and wasn't strictly a student of fiction.
“When I put Al in anyone else's sandbox, I tend to have the adventure 'undone', as if it hadn't happened, especially if the adventure really wrecks the initial story line it's derived from. He was never really there to begin with, so, when he's gone, the timeline goes back to normal. The events are solely for his benefit. Though, I do tend to leave a little something to torment a character or two with what was, yet isn't.”
“Okay,” Rias said, understanding. “Like Plato and Atlantis, you make the events around Al, then unmake them.”
Ben stepped up to the shelf wall that partitioned the kitchen from the living room. “Something to keep in mind when devising your ideal encounter. You wouldn't normally know to be looking for him. Again, he wasn't born into your reality, but merely deposited. He has no history there. So, unless he lands right in the club or in front of one of your friends, it would require contrived events to bring him to your attention.”
“Like 'he's being chased by fallen- or Heaven's-Angels?” she offered.
Ben thought for a couple seconds. “Being a foreign element, he could attract their attention right away. I don't know your world's policy on 'outsiders'. I imagine your crew could be ordered to investigate his arrival for the devil faction.”
“And, that's some other me,” Rias reasoned. “After my visit, here, I will know to look.”
Ben quirked a brow. “Now, that's an interesting iteration.”
* * *
Ben was still scheduled to work on Wednesday. Instead of going with him, Rias decided to stay with his mother. If it was merely a matter of time, she wanted to expand her experience here. This would also let her get to know Ben's background a little more.
Barbara lived in a small town by the name of Springville, which was only a few minutes from Cedar Rapids. Her house was a narrow, single-story farm-style house set next to a creek with a singular Weeping Willow on the lawn by the stream. The garage was the only part of the house seen directly from the driveway. A sidewalk went around to a front stoop, but Ben accessed the house through a side door leading into the garage, to a door into the kitchen.
Ben's mother was a pleasant lady. Her dark hair and eyes set her apart from her son, and she was short. But, after close scrutiny, Rias discovered minor shared features, including Ben's sturdy build.
Barbara was a bit more chatty than Ben. She had lots of questions which she would ask Rias throughout the day, Wednesday. However, she was a busy-body. When she wasn't trying to pry information out of Rias, Barb watched informational shows, cleaned at her house, or crafted.
Rias joined her for the shows, and spent time with the cats when Barb was keeping her hands busy.
Noir wasn't alone in the house. Barb had a British Short-hair named Violet. Rias found the name clever and ironic in the same way as Noir. British Short-hairs were a blueish, silver gray. Violet also happened to have darker tabby stripes at the end of her tail, and small calico-style splotches of vanilla and peach. Violet was friendly enough, and she got along with Noir easily. Where Noir's purr was quiet, though, Violet's was loud, sounding a lot like a lawn mower. Sometimes, her loud motor purr would get rusty, starting to squeak.
Wednesday seemed to be the most that she had seen Barb active. As the week progressed, Ben's mother seemed to have a harder time moving around. The older woman's legs and hips were starting to swell. Barb's appetite also seemed lighter and lighter.
Thursday night, Rias threw together a small snack at Barb's request, taking it to her in her bedroom. Except to use the bathroom, Barb had spent the day sequestered in privacy. The next morning, most of the meal remained untouched.
“Can you help me up?” Barb asked after Rias checked in on her. She sounded weak, out of breath.
“I'll try,” Rias said, her voice quiet with sadness.
“Don't worry,” Barb said. “My healing's coming. It's only a matter of time. This, too, shall pass.”
Rias nodded. She could see where Ben got his faith. Rias decided not to voice her misgivings. Rias tried to offer her arm, but, it wasn't enough. She pulled on Barb's arms, trying to get some momentum to get the older woman on her feet. A couple of tries and Barb finally succeeded, talking herself past her weakness.
Barb had a walker in her room which she used for the first time that Rias had known her. Using that, Barb worked her way laboriously to the bathroom. Rias left her in private to do what she needed to do. Afterward, Rias had to help Barb back into bed. The older woman's legs were surprisingly heavy, and they felt damp. It was as if she had sprung a leak, the swelling was so bad. In fact, Barb's sheets and pants were damp, reinforcing the notion.
Rias wanted to call an ambulance or Doctor. Her worry had grown to the point she couldn't really keep her mind on anything pleasant while Barb remained sequestered. The lines from her dream had been a continued sign of hope for Rias. Now, she couldn't begin to focus on even that.
When Barb could still move around the day before, Rias believed Barb's claims that it would go away. Now, she was watching Ben's mother deteriorate. But, Rias held her peace, trying to trust in Barb's faith that God would heal her in a day or two.
Then the moment of disaster she had dreaded finally came.
Late in the afternoon, Rias had to help Barb struggle into the bathroom again. Not long after, Barb called out. Rias, more anxious than normal, came to the beckons, finding Barb still seated. Ben's mother looked exhausted and out of breath.
“Can you help me up?” Barb asked, her voice sounding weaker than earlier.
“I'll try,” Rias said, her chest tight with emotion.
Between the handrail on the wall and Rias trying to pull on Barb's other arm, Barb started to move. But, Barb quickly gave up, heaving. Again, she tried to talk herself past her weakness. They tried a couple more times. The third time seemed to be a huge success.
However, just as Barb lifted off the seat, her knees gave out. The older woman collapsed to the floor, ending on her hands and knees.
Worry turned to outright fear. Panic brought tears to Rias's eyes as she felt overwhelmed at the suddenly impossible task. “I'm not strong enough to help you like this,” she blubbered. More firmly, she announced, “I'm calling an ambulance.”
Vision starting to blur as Rias lost composure, she raced out of the bathroom, through Barb's living room and into her kitchen. Phone in hand, she tried to remember the emergency number Americans used, but it escaped her frantic, panicked mind.
Racing back to the bathroom, Rias found Barb still on her hands and knees, but her arms were on the verge of collapse. When Barb finally did fall, she at least still had the clarity to collapse onto her side, though she cried out in pain.
Rias clamped a hand over her mouth. “Oh, god. Are you all right?”
Barb huffed for a few seconds, but eventually answered. “I'm okay.”
“What number do I dial?”
“Nine one one,” Barb replied after a couple more labored breaths.
The ambulance took what seemed like an eternity to arrive. In that time, Rias tried her best to make Barb comfortable, covering her over with a towel and getting her a pillow. The cats were also concerned, and Rias had to keep them off Barb, then out of the way when the paramedics came into the house. The entire time, Rias kept wiping tears away, wondering how they wouldn't stop.
During the wait, Barb said something that bewildered Rias.
“I guess he'll have to learn to live without me,” she murmured.
Realizing that Barb was contemplating her own mortality made Rias's tears flow harder. “No,” she pleaded. “Don't die. You can't.”
After that, she was at a loss for words. Now, more than ever, did Rias lament not having her missing powers. She could have used magic to heal Ben's mother, or used her strength to get her off the floor and back into bed. She felt guilty for being so powerless, and wondered if her presence had caused this.
The paramedics were busy loading Barbara into the ambulance. They had asked if she wanted to come along, but Rias refused. Someone had to stay and watch the cats, since Ben was still a day away.
Barb, though weak, was very awake. Her dark eyes looked into Rias's. “Call up my daughter. And, get ahold of Ben's work, so they can let him know.”
Rias nodded.
A paramedic handed her a card to contact them and keep track of Barb's destination. Once they were loaded up, the Ambulance drove down the lane, crossed the short bridge over the creek, and disappeared over the hill next to the town's Pond Park.
Though her cheeks were crusted from dry tears, Rias could feel yet more behind her eyes. Turning, she was about to head back inside. She paused, feeling a presence. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a shadow.
In the street, unmistakable against the wild, wooded brush on the other side, stood the man from the ride-along, the self-proclaimed servant of the 'Great Red Dragon'. He was dressed the same way from when she met him at the gas station.
“Was this your doing?” she demanded, immediately angry and suspicious.
Something, a thought or instinct, kept her rooted to her spot on the driveway. Rias didn't dare approach him in her current state. Without Ben around, she might not be safe. He hadn't had the opportunity to flaunt his power.
His smile repelled her in spite of his perfect white teeth and chiseled, handsome jaw. “Maybe,” he drawled. Without showing his eyes, he looked in the direction of the departed ambulance. “Such weak, short-sighted critters. Even the most protected can be harmed through those who aren't. If only she had kept taking her meds. But, oh, her honesty got her removed from the state health insurance, even though she is actually still eligible. Oversight. Now she can't afford them. Whoops!”
He ended his mock concern with a mean cackle. “I don't understand what the Creator sees in them,” he concluded derisively, spitting on the ground.
Rias could feel her blood start to boil. “Well, when your numbers reach near extinction levels after the war, you might find they'll make great replacements for your forces,” she snipped. “What I don't understand is how a powerful creator would allow something so evil as you to continue existing. If I had my powers, I would blast you into oblivion!”
“What's stopping ya?” the servant taunted. Somberly, he added, “My reckoning is coming, along with my brothers. Oblivion might be more preferable.” He turned his brim-obscured stare squarely in her direction. “You made your decision?”
“I already have my answer,” she said defiantly. “If you really were watching me, you'd know that.”
“So, it'll have to be the hard way. See, my master really wants to meet you. So much so, I'm supposed to bring you back by any means necessary.”
“What's stopping you then?” Rias asked, turning his taunt back on him. “Instead of talking, you would have snatched me away by now.”
With a grimace, the servant took steps toward the driveway, but stopped at the edge. After a heavy sniff, he growled. “This ground's been prayed over so much, it's practically hallowed.”
Rias was both surprised and amused to hear this. She became aware of a light shining down on her from behind, even though the sun was still well above the western horizon to her right. Looking toward the sun, she caught sight of a giant shrouded in light standing over Barb's house, but only out of the corner of her eye.
Rias's smile had a little venom in it. “You have no power. Believe me, I can relate. But, I don't sympathize. I'm not going with you. I will wait until Ben comes to get me. My dreams have been on schedule and I've seen how they're supposed to play out. They're catching up with my reality. Once they do, I'm heading home.”
The servant didn't say anything. Turning his head in contemplation, he took a step and vanished.
Rias waited a few seconds, to be sure nothing more would happen, then turned toward the house.
“Thank you for your protection,” she said equally to what she assumed was an angel of God, and to Ben's God equally.
Then, she went inside to spend time with the cats.
Ben showed up on Saturday evening, much as Rias expected. As they gathered up both cats, Rias felt the need to apologize.
“I'm sorry about your mother,” she said while holding Noir in her arms. “In some ways, I feel its my fault. If only I had my powers -”
“Don't,” Ben interrupted, quiet but stern. His features softened. “I know you mean well, but there really is nothing you could have done.” He put the cat carrier on the kitchen's island bar.
“First off, it's not your fault. Mom was hospitalized a few years back for dangerously high blood pressure and an enlarged heart. She's been in perpetual heart failure, ever since. It was only a matter of time before that caught up with her.”
He managed to stuff Violet into the carrier. “Even if she passed, my mom's a believer. She'll be in a better place. Like I said, I don't think you'd be able to revive her as a devil, even if you had your powers. And, I doubt she would have accepted magic healing, either.”
Brightening, he reached for Noir. Rias handed the old cat over, and Ben wrestled him into the carrier while he added one more thought. “And, don't worry. For us Christians, death isn't the end. When Jesus comes for us, those who died believing on him will be resurrected, just like he was two thousand years ago.”
Gate closed on the carrier, Ben looked in Rias's general direction. “But, It's still too soon to give up on her. I'm praying and believing she'll be alive when the rapture comes.”
* * *
When Ben went to visit his mother in the Hospital on Sunday and Monday, Rias stayed home with the cats and YouTube. He had mentioned friends and family would be visiting, as well. With her own departure fast approaching, she didn't feel comfortable giving the wrong impression, and there would be prying questions, if Barb was any indication of the rest of the family. She also figured it would be boring.
Both nights, he came back looking tired.
“Anything new?” she asked when he arrived late Monday evening.
“Only that she's fallen into a coma,” Ben said, unconcerned. “They're still working to stabilize her. They can't tell which way it's gonna go, for now.”
He plopped down on the couch.
“What is God telling you?”
“He hasn't given me an answer, yet.” Brightening, he looked at her place in the stuffed chair. “Tonight's the night, isn't it? Fitting. It was a Monday, about this time, when I first found you.” He glanced at her face. “Well, if I don't see you in the morning, it was nice to meet you, Rias Gremory.”
Rias stood and walked over to plop down beside him on the couch. Once seated, she leaned over and wrapped him in a hug. “Thank you – for your kindness and generosity.”
Ben reciprocated with a single arm, then pulled away, standing. “One last meal before turning in?”
Rias brightened. “A bowl of chocolate pudding?”
Her eyes had barely closed when Rias was on her feet standing in front of a man she had never seen before, yet recognized. They were surrounded by a swirling, colorful background. Rias knew it to be the void between worlds.
The man, Jesus, had a glow of light about him. His gaze captured hers with warmth and love. She couldn't look away.
“The battle for your soul is concluded,” he said in a kindly, full-throated baritone. “It's time for you to return to your beloved Issei.”
“Wait! Which was it?” Rias asked. “A hallucination or an out-of-body experience?”
“Ben had the right of it,” Jesus said. He gestured with a hole-scarred hand. “I couldn't let you have a copy of your normal body. I didn't need you tempted to use your power, only to deny a lot of your actions. You would also have suffered in Ben's presence. He is a man of faith, after all.”
A desperate thought came to Rias. “Could Ben come with me?”
Jesus smiled. “Come, now. Do you really think I would simply hand over something I paid a high price for to someone like you?”
“Not even on loan?” she tried a compromise.
“Not even for a conjugal visit.”
Rias deflated. “I had to try. I -”
“You see in him what I see,” Jesus said, completing her thought.
“What's to become of his mother?” Rias asked quietly
“Her time has come. Tomorrow, new developments will force the family to decide. She will come to be with me, waiting for the soon resurrection.”
“He seemed so lonely,” Rias said, feeling sad. “Why did she have to die?”
“To facilitate a series of events that I want to happen,” Jesus said. “Don't worry for him. He's not lonely. He has me! He always had, always will. He will be just fine. Ben will move on, doing the tasks I guide him to until I rescue my people from the time of testing. Then, he and his family will be reunited. Just as you are about to be with yours.”
“What about my world?” Rias asked.
“I haven't given up on your world,” Jesus said.
That made Rias unbelievably happy. And, then, she had a new thought come to her. “What about the Ben in my world. Is he anything like yours?”
“That Ben won't be the same,” Jesus said. “Without me, without my spirit to seal and guide him, he will have struggled with his fleshly nature on his own. He would have no protection. He won't have the spiritual discernment. In many ways, he would very much be a disappointment if you're looking for a direct copy of the Ben you found here.”
He graced her with a warm smile. “I felt your pain, while you were here. And, I know the pain you face, as you are. But, it doesn't have to be that way. You can forget. I can wipe your memory of your time here.”
Rias's heart froze at that thought. She understood the logic behind accepting, but part of her didn't want to give up this one connection, however faint it may be, to a person she grew to appreciate in the week she was here.
She heard her thoughts echoed in Jesus's voice as he explained.
“You don't have to go back to your world, tormented with the memories of your time here. If you keep your memories, you'll be tormented with the desires you acquired here. How can you be faithful to Issei if you still daydream of one of my children? Issei loves you unconditionally. Will it really be fair to him if you share room in your heart with someone else? And, you will never see Ben again. Over time, your memories for him will fade. Would that be fair to him? Would it be fair to you?
“But, if you forget, you can blissfully give Issei your total attention. However, you won't be openly watching for when Al comes to your world. You won't be able to empathize with normal humans, not having spent time in their shoes. You know, now, what it's like to be powerless, at the mercy of others to a degree you didn't get as pure-bred devil royalty. You would not be aware of other realities, of potential hope, of me! You would no longer retain learning to understand an omnipotent creator of universes.
“Which is more valuable? Experience? Or Loyalty? You have two choices to make before you return. Do you want to remember? And, do you want Ben to forget?”
His gaze turned distant. “Time to go. Make your decision now.”
Rias could hear voices in the darkness.
“You’ve got to wake up!” Xenovia called out, as if from a distance.
As Rias started to wake up, she recognized her friends, their voices becoming clearer, closer.
“Please, try to remember! Remember my voice – my face!” Akeno pleaded.
“Come back!!!” Issei cried.
Hearing his voice brought a warm feeling to her heart. She opened her eyes, tears starting to flood her face.
Akeno gasped, catching everyone's attention. “Rias?”
“Issei?” Rias asked into the swirling void, weakly calling for the man she loved.
“I’m here!!” Issei answered joyfully.
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