Date A Live: Starting as Acheron

"Um, Kyo?" Shidou mumbled dumbly. "What exactly… is happening?"

"Plan B is what's happening. Say hello to… eh, we'll give her the codename [Victim] for now." Kyo patted the large wriggling human-shaped burlap sack that was currently slung over his shoulder. "Say hi."

Shidou's expression cramped, and he nervously ran his hands through his hair. "Don't give me that! Who the hell is in the sack? And why are they here?"

"...like I said, they're going by the codename [Victim], and they're here as part of Plan B. I'm not repeating myself again, so pay attention from now on." Kyo set the sack on his white lawn chair before taking out a coil of rope, tying down both the sack and whoever was inside to the chair.

"MMMPH!" The sack twisted around restlessly for a moment before going limp, as though giving up.

"Alright. So basically-"

"I thought you were done taking hostages! Don't you realize that this person definitely has people who care about them?!" Shidou walked up to Kyo, reaching for his shirt. "Why did you even apologize in the first place if you were going to-"

FWOOM-

Before Shidou could register what was happening, the world itself seemed to do a somersault. When he finally realized what was going on, Kyo was already standing over him, his foot planted squarely on his chest and his sheathed katana sparking with purple lightning.

"How many families did Kurumi tear apart in her little escapades?" Kyo laughed, a mocking expression on his face. "Just shut up. After all, you agreed to my training. And who's to say that [Victim] didn't sign her own?"

Shidou stopped struggling, turning his head in an attempt to examine Kyo's eyes. "Wait, she did?" 

Kyo didn't respond, opting to instead look away into the thick foliage above. 

"...she did, right?" Beads of sweat began to form on Shidou's forehead.

"MMMPH!" The person in the sack, [Victim], groaned.

"Yeah, what she said. Anyway, listen up." Kyo tapped the edge of his sword sheath on the ground next to Shidou, sending a small shock up his arm. "You're going to fight me until you literally can't stand up. However, once you can't, I'm going to kill [Victim]. Got it?"

"You- WHAT?" Shidou's eyes widened. What the hell is that plan?

"...I'm not explaining that again. Now get up. We begin in thirty seconds." Kyo lifted his foot and walked over to the person in the sack, seemingly whispering something to them.

"..." Shidou quietly got up, brushing dirt off his clothing. "Kotori? Kotori, come in. Kotori?"

No response. What the hell's happening? Did something happen to Kotori? Wait, did Kyo…?! Shidou glared at Kyo's figure, who was now casually sauntering over.

"That's time. Ready?" The Spirit readjusted his grip on the sheathed katana.

"What the hell did you do to Kotori?!" Shidou demanded, curling up his hands into fists.

Kyo gave him a sideways glance. "To Kotori? I've done nothing at all. I'm just jamming all electronic signals in the area, which includes the electromagnetic waves that your earbud uses to communicate to Fraxinus. I'd rather them not interfere. Why else do you think I moved us into the forest?"

"...you bastard." Shidou grit his teeth, grimly contemplating his options. But there should be a few remote drones following us right now; Kotori should still be able to see the situation. I just need to trust her. She's my dependable little sister, after all. 

Kyo laughed, slamming his katana into the ground like a staff. "Enough. We're beginning."

Suddenly, Shidou found himself on the ground again, a sharp stinging pain around his foot. A quick glance down revealed that his foot seemed to be bent in an unnatural way. Oh, fu-

——————I am the dividing line omits a swear and skips time——————

Shidou coughed weakly as ethereal flames burst to life over chest, slowly mending what felt like his full set of ribs back together. Kyo stood over him, a pleasant smile on his face.

"Man, you are out of shape. Really ought to do some cardio," he said nonchalantly with a shake of his head. "But in all seriousness, this is worse than I'd imagined. Not even a cold breeze or a small flaming axe? And you claim to have sealed three Spirits?"

"You… I…" Shidou huffed, struggling to form a full sentence together. His entire body felt as though it were on fire, which, as far as he knew, could've been entirely accurate thanks to the healing flames still mending other wounds across his person. How long has it been now? How much longer can I keep on going? 

Kyo nudged him with his shoe before sighing. "Yeah, you're at your limit. Well, it was fun while it lasted. [Victim], anything to say?" Right… her life is on the line… 

"Eh? No? Alright then." From the corner of his eye, Shidou saw Kyo turn his back to him as he slowly made his way closer and closer to the limp figure in the sack. No… not like this…

"N-no…" A weak voice escaped his lips. I need to get up… she's right in front of me… I need to save her!

Kyo pivoted his body backwards, eying the boy with mock pity in his eyes. "To be honest, you could never beat me, even if you did have an Angel. Sit down and accept your uselessness."

Is… is that true? Shidou's vision wavered as his body continued to burn… or actually, was it freezing? No, even if he believes that, I won't accept it. I just need to get up. Get up. GET UP! 

Shidou continued to fight against his drooping eyelids, clawing at the forest floor like a starving racoon pawing through a trash can. Kyo had his arm raised in the air now, his katana ready to strike down at any moment. Please! I just need to get up! He grit his teeth. I won't! Accept! This! Outcome! 

As though resonating with his thoughts, Shidou suddenly felt a torrent of power surging through his arm, accompanied by the sensation of freezing burns up the length of his body. This is… I can… 

"[ZADKIEL]!!!" Shidou roared, putting all his strength into one final clawing motion towards the Spirit, sending a wave of icy crystals up from beneath the ground. As his vision finally faded to black, Shidou saw a brief flash of shock appear on Kyo's face. A small flash of satisfaction through him, quickly dampened by one last thought. I'm sorry…

——————I am the dividing line that shifts perspectives——————

Kyo watched in silence as Shidou finally fell to the ground, thoroughly exhausted. [Zadkiel], not [Sandalphon]? Well, I suppose that always was his main defensive Angel. Putting the thought behind him, he turned to look at the burlap sack.

"You can come out now," he said simply. The sack responded with silence. "Oi. You're not asleep, are you?" He gently shook the person inside. 

"Mmmnyah… eh? Is it over? Finally!" Nia slowly poked her head out of the sack, breathing in deeply. "Ahhh, fresh air. How I've missed you!"

"You've literally spent an entire week in your apartment before," Kyo deadpanned.

"Ahaha…" Nia looked away as she quickly slipped out of the intentionally-weak knots Kyo had tied. "By the way, what's with the lame nickname? [Victim]? Really?"

"...next time, you can come up with your codename beforehand," Kyo offered lightly.

"Nuh-uh," Nia shook her head, crossing her arms over her head in an X. "We're not doing this again. I sat in that chair for so long that I ended up taking a nap!"

"Is that so bad?" Kyo raised an eyebrow. "Aren't you usually complaining that you need sleep?"

"Eh? Oh, uh…" Nia brought her hand to her chin, contemplating how to refute his statement before letting her arms flop back down loosely. "Just humor me, ok?"

Kyo snorted, raising his arms up in surrender. "Alright, fine. Thank you for your cooperation and sacrifice. I owe you one, Nia."

"Well, it's fine. Someone has to go along with your crazy ideas. Honestly, isn't a staged kidnapping a little too intense for a Plan B?" She put her hands on her hips, shaking her head playfully. "Or perhaps… did you just want to see me tied up?"

"...I say the results speak for themselves." Kyo tapped at one of the newly-formed icicles, purposefully ignoring Nia's last point. And anyway, I couldn't even see you for 99% of the time.

"But still, isn't this just a repeat of what you did last time?" Nia continued, putting a hand on his shoulder. "You should really stop with these types of plans…"

"This is nothing like Yoshino," Kyo refuted flatly. "Shidou isn't a child; he's an optimistic fool whose attempt to save Kurumi nearly got me killed instead. And yet he still harbors idealistic thoughts like 'saving all the Spirits.' Frankly, the string of coincidences that he'll have to encounter to fulfill that plan is outright miraculous. I have no problem beating someone like that to his senses."

"Uh…" Nia smiled awkwardly. Ah. 

"...sorry," Kyo sighed. "Let's stop with this depressing talk. Why don't we go for yakiniku tonight? My treat, of course."

"Eh? Ah… sure!" Nia put on a small smile. "And you'll pay for alcohol too, right?"

"...I worry for you sometimes," Kyo said, a small smile stretching across his own face.