The Red Hand

Chapter 177 – Assemble!

"Hmm. Hmm. Hmm." Akagi hummed along happily while being floofed by Yumi. The two were currently sitting under a pavilion in the garden area, with a whole group of people watching them.

"Would it kill you to at least try and take this seriously?" Hishya sighed. She, the RRT, the Misfits, a few members of Shining Blade and Birdy had all gathered at Akagi's home for the impending attack. The Demon figured that it would be directed at her, and she wanted the team ready to act ASAP.

"Would you rather I be in bunny form?" Akagi was currently in medium-sized Catkagi mode, but she could become even more silly if requested. “I could do this entire meeting as nothing more than a happy that sits on your head if you want.” She giggled knowing how silly it would be as she'd one it before.

"Forget it." Hishya shook her head. "It's not important, and I don't want to get into it with you right now..."

{Stupid Demon cat, why do you have to do this kind of stuff to me?!?} (Hishya)

"I think it's cute." Eris chuckled. “She's so fluffy and adorable that it makes you forget she could eradicate entire cities with a single attack.”

"Yes-yes Catkagi is cute-floofy!" Imp said while petting her on the head. “Not dangerous-deadly.”

"Mew!" Akagi enjoyed the extra attention but was pulled away from Imp's hand by Yumi, who glared at the Imp.

{MY FLOOF!} (Yumi)

"And that's even cuter!" Ayama laughed. "She's so jealous."

"More competition meow~!"

[More competition!] Ara hissed at the sight of Catkagi. She wanted to be the cute cat that everyone fawned over, but Akagi was currently stealing the show.

"Now, now." Avahn bonked her on the head. "I'll pet you as much as you like."

"Nya~!" Ara cooed at the ear scratches she was provided by her girlfriend.

"I think all the fluff is making this place too warm." Minazawa groaned. "Can we please just get back on track?"

"Yeah, Hishya you've got the floor." Akagi lazily waved her on. “So have at it!”

"Don't act like you're not doing anything!" Hishya growled. "You aren't leaving this solely to me! So get your tail in gear and start helping!"

"Ok, fine..." Akagi took a deep breath. "YOU CAN WIN! YOU FEEL GREAT! YOU. CAN. DO. THIS!!!"

"I fucking hate you..." Hishya figured ignoring Akagi would be in her best interest, and so gave up on demanding help from the Demon.

"Pfff." Mixu was having a hard time holding in laughter.

{That's one hell of a reference, Akagi.} (Mixu)

"You got something to say, leech?" Hishya glared at her.

"Nope, nothing from me, lizard." Mixu was still trying not to laugh.

"Yes well, first of all. We need to figure out who's going to be in charge." Eris glared at Hishya. "I don't think I need to tell you that my guild isn't exactly one to work with Hishya, let alone take orders from her." Most members of Shining Blade didn't have the best rapport with Hishya.

"I understand your issues with me, but please think of the bigger picture here." Hishya bit her lip. "If we don't all come together, there is no way we're going to beat Serval. He's far to strong to beat without coordination from all of us."

"I have no issues following orders from either Eris or Hishya." Shiru said. "You are both capable commanders and my friends, so I don't mind working with you."

"Yup." Alveron smiled.

"I'll get to blow things up regardless of who's in charge, so I don't care." Daikael said while stretching.

"Nyo problem here nya meow~!"

[We have no problem!] Ara spoke for herself and for Avahn who was too busy petting her to pay attention.

"The RRT doesn't really care either." Aoi said. "So figure it out so we can continue." She was barely awake as she sipped her coffee, as it had been a long night due to a few sporadic returnee events.

"Zephiria and Birdy don't care either." Akagi spoke up.

"Why are you talking for them?" Hishya asked.

"Because I own them." Akagi started laughing.

"Wait, I knew you had Birdy, but what's this about Zeff?" Superbia was confused.

{She has Zeff too?!?} (Superbia)

"I sold my soul for knowledge and power." Zephiria waved off their concerns. "Nothing major, so don't worry about it."

"Zephiria!" Excelsior yelled. "How could you do something so stupid! Even for you, this is a new level of idiocy!"

"In fairness, what I got in exchange was her eternal servitude, not her soul per se. Since if I took that she would die." Akagi laughed. “So its all good!”

"You just..." Excelsior pinched the bridge of his nose. "Are you sure you're not related to Satan himself? Because by god you two are looking more similar each passing day..."

"Who knows?" Akagi shrugged. "Maybe he's a distant relative. You know, like ones you meet at family reunions and are constantly told are your cousins, but you never see outside of said events."

"That sounded oddly specific." Ayame commented.

"Don't read into it." Akagi stuck out her tongue. "Just know Zeff is fine. I only did this to see what would happen and because it sounded neat. So I'm not going to do anything bad to or with her."

{The actual amount of power I gave her is so small that I literally cannot tell the difference. But boy did it power her up. Though her body can't handle it very well yet.} (Akagi)

"So the only people who have issues with leadership are Shining Blade, which isn't shocking since you guys never liked Hishya." Minazawa sighed. "So what are we going to do? We need to work together if we're going to win. Eris and Ayame alone are powerful, but if you add in Xerxes and Tiball and that makes for a potent team. Even with Serval's bullshit damage reduction gone, we still need them.”

"I'll follow whatever decision Eris makes." A tall man with darker skin said. This was Xerxes, a pure martial build whose fighting style revolved around a short spear and shield. “This is a bit too big to just ignore, even if we don't like Hishya, so I'd advise cooperation.”

"Same. I don't mind working with Hishya in this one instance, but it's gotta be approved by Eris first." A younger man with short red hair agreed. He was Tiball, a Paladin like Hitamaguchi. Though he fought with twin blades rather than a great sword.

"Oh yeah, there are a few more who will be joining you later." Akagi winked. “So expect a bit of backup during the fight.”

"Who else? Isn't this everyone?" Hishya asked. "We reached out to as many returnees as possible, but no one else agreed.”

{Idiots all of them...} (Hishya)

"I could tell you, but that would ruin the surprise." Akagi laughed. "I've been prepping a crack shock team for such an occasion, and I think you'll appreciate the backup. But for now, let's just say you know each and every one of them." She was looking forward to seeing their reaction to her brand new team.

"That is a concerning statement." Mixu rolled her eyes. "What about Silfana? Is she going to help?" Her question made the pavilion go silent.

"That's up to you all." Akagi shrugged. "If you want her to help, then I don't mind lending her. Its not like she's weak, and she has no choice in the matter."

{Though she's absolutely going to HATE working under Hishya.} (Akagi)

"Can we even trust her?" Minazawa asked. "She's a World Boss and someone we've clashed with in the past. Not to mention she's a fucking crazy ass monster who wants to kill or enslave the world."

"I don't exactly like the idea of having her at my back." Excelsior commented. "She could easily betray us during the battle, so I don't want to risk it."

"If she does, then she gets to join Armalthy." Akagi's words made everyone uncomfortable since they knew what he was enjoying at the moment. "Trust me, she's a good girl that knows better than to disobey me. Unlike Yumi here, Silfana listens to orders and doesn't engage in insubordination."

This comment earned Akagi a bonk on the head. "Don't make it sound like I did something bad!" Yumi growled.

"Hey, it might have been benign, but you and Chloe did commit insubordination." Akagi laughed.

"What did they even do? I can't imagine your people betraying you." Minazawa asked.

"Excel won't like this, but umm. So you know the Church of Satan?" Akagi said nervously.

"Yes..." Excelsior glared at her.

"So those two idiots went behind my back and made their own secret cult dedicated to me. Something I told them not to do, but they did anyway. Currently, the two are being punished, with Yumi being forced to coddle me, and Chloe was relegated to maid duty for a month." Akagi laughed.

"So that's why Chloe was getting yelled at by Maryanne!" Shiru laughed. "I heard something about her tripping and breaking glass earlier this morning.” It was not a good idea to anger the seven foot tall angry, and strong hobgoblin who ran the clan's maids.

"Yeah, that stupid cat is clumsy when it comes to household chores." Akagi sighed. "Oh well, it wouldn't be punishment if it was fun." She laughed internally as she imagined Chloe getting a verbal and physical lashing from Maryanne.

Everyone paused and stared at Yumi, who had a big smile on her face as she pet Akagi.

{I see you are a totally non-biased judge.} (Hishya)

"So now we have a religion dedicated to the literal incarnation of evil." Excelsior sighed. "I'm just going to pretend I didn't hear that."

"Ah come on Excel! It's fun! We do potlucks and play games!" Zephiria smiled. "It's great fun, and we had a blast yesterday. Watching Sakura get blackout drunk and dance around was hilarious!" She giggled.

"Why am I not surprised that you joined in?" Excelsior waved her off. "Forget it."

"I wonder if we should register as a non-profit? We need tax-exempt status!" Yumi's comment made everyone laugh hysterically, even Excel thought her joke was funny.

"Getting back on track." Hishya figured that if she didn't call things back to order, it would derail entirely. "We need to figure this out, Eris." She looked at the red-haired woman. "I don't want to sound arrogant."

"Oh, so that's not intentional?" Eris commented.

"But...." Hishya was going to ignore that. "I'm the best person for the job. I have the skills and experience leading raiding parties, specifically ones against Serval, so I won't back down and just casually accept you as leader. Not because I don't think you could handle it, but because I know for a fact that I can do it better." Hishya's skill in tactical and strategic planning was well known, and no one here would take that from her.

"Yes, that's all true. However..." Eris pointed to her. "I'm not happy with the idea of taking orders from you again! You used your position to kick me and so many others out of the Assault Team because we were inconveniencing you. I know that you've come to repent over these years, and I won't disparage such efforts. However, you still have things to answer for! Thus..." She summoned her glaive and pointed it at Hishya. "I challenge you, Hishya! We will have a match! 1v1 between you and me! The winner will take command of this joint team for the duration of the battle!"

{Oh? I wasn't sure what would happen, but I'm glad to see my favorite prediction come true.} (Akagi)

Hishya's mouth twisted into a terrible smile. "Deal." Her eyes locked onto the red-headed woman. "I've been wanting to see just what kind of training Akagi put you through anyway."

"Training?" Superbia looked at the Catkagi. "What is that about?"

"I made a place for returnees to train and get stronger." Akagi smiled.

"Why didn't you say anything to us?!?" Avahn growled. "I wanted to get even stronger!"

"Yeah meow~!"

[Yeah!] Ara protested as well.

"Eris was the only one who asked." Akagi shrugged. "Y'all are free to go in if you want, just don't come crying to me when Bonko fucks you up." She laughed.

{Not to mention Alveron helped make it. I guess he said nothing.} (Akagi)

"Bonko?" Minazawa raised an eyebrow.

"Don't tell them! Let it be a surprise!" Ayame laughed. The clown bear had become an inside joke at this point, and she wanted to see other people's reactions.

"Alice had fun helping me make him." Akagi chuckled. "So I think she'll be happy if he gets more playmates."

"Eris..." Hishya turned to her. "What the hell kind of training did you guys do?"

{Akagi you bastard!} (Hishya)

"Oh you know, a bit of this and a bit of that. A few trapdoors and massive monsters with crazy weapons. The usual." Eris smirked. "Trust me, I'm not as weak as I was before. This time... this time little dragon, I'm going to defeat you!" Sparks flew between the two women, as their rivalry heated up once again.