Chapter 10: A Matter of Perspective

Day 42

Orion had seen all sorts of bots and cons in battle. Millions of years of warfare had allowed him to see the very best and the very worst that individuals could bring out. It wasn't arrogant for him to say that very few personalities surprised him, or that he had encountered virtually all of them at some point in his life. It was a statement of fact and anyone who had known him could verify it.

Freed Selzen was a very simple case to understand. At his core, it was clear that this man knew only of death, violence, and bloodlust. Some might reason that he was conditioned to believe in such a thing. Others might be compelled to say that it was a means to an end. That was not what this was. This monster was little more than a walking killing machine. One look at his eyes and it was clear that the only thing that mattered to him was killing.

Simply put, he loved to do it.

That made things easier for Orion. While the former Prime had no love of killing, even to the extent that it was necessary and expected in war, he would certainly not lose any sleep over ending this threat. Accordingly, he would go in with the intent to kill with every move he made intent on being the final blow.

But before he could do that, he first needed information as to the whereabouts of Asia. He prayed to Primus that she was still okay. If she wasn't there would be hell to pay.

There was also the problem of an innocent party being caught in the mix.

"I will need your help with another task." Orion glanced subtly to Kiba.

Yuuto didn't miss a beat. "Name it."

"Your client." Orion assumed an air of authority . "Evacuate him from this place."

"You got it." Yuuto replied.

"You ladies done gossiping?" Freed taunted both males. "If so, then let's get back to the main event. I didn't come here to fight bitches!"

Orion made his move, closing the distance between himself and Freed. His first move was an upper slash meant to slice his opponent's head clean in half. The white-haired man responded by leaning his head to the right so that the sharp blade passed him by mere centimeters. That was followed up by a single shot from the Ion Blaster. From point black, there was nothing that could be done to dodge it.

Freed received one clean shot to the abdomen, not enough to take him out of the fight, but more than enough to reduce his combat viability by a considerable margin and it showed on his face. His once gleeful expression was now morphed into one of pain and anger. He was now backed into a corner with a potentially fatal wound and two still-unharmed opponents bearing down on him.

It was almost an anti-climatic fight

"Dirty, filthy fucks!" Freed was now cursing at them. "I am not about to be done in by some high school brats!"

"What you want is not our concern." Orion approached, his weapons at the ready. "Where is Asia Argento?"

"Oh, you want that dirty whore of a sister?" Freed mixed a laugh in with his decreasing sanity. "Get in line! I tried to have a go at her! Ungrateful little-"

Orion moved even faster than before, grabbing the smaller man by the throat and lifting him in the air, their clear height difference showing. Once in the air, a chokehold began.

"Where is Asia Argento?" Orion applied more pressure as he repeated his question.

"You're a sadist, I see." Freed continued to be unhelpful. "I had no idea that angels hid such a devious-"

Refusing to be taken in by this babbling lunatic, Orion lifted his Ion Blaster in order for its barrel to line up with his captive's head.

"Where. Is. Asia. Argento?" Orion wasn't about to ask again.

In his mind, the former Autobot knew how illogical it would be of him to kill his one source of information, but even his patience had limits, especially when it came to individuals who displayed such reckless abandon. While he was still in control, he didn't know for how much longer he could expect to be.

Was there another way to do this?

"Tight grip, man." Freed once again proved himself to be in no mood to help by wheezing and speaking nonsense. "You ever think about trying out for-"

No, killing him would not be beneficial at all. It took some effort to reign in the killing intent. Satisfying a darker impulse would not do any good in the long run. This was a game and he would lose a battle if he gave in.

With an indifferent look, Orion's Ion Blaster retreated into his wrist gauntlets before his first met the temple of Freed. Enough force was applied to cause a total blackout of the white-haired man.

Now that things were settling down, he took note of the lack of presence from Kiba or the civilian that lived in this apartment.

"They must be outside nearby." Orion reasoned. "I best see what he needs from me."

His getting involved in this would undoubtedly place him more closely to the Gremory girl and her business, a prospect that he had mixed feelings about. He did not doubt that the girl was a kind and caring type, but he also believed that her intentions were not purely done for the sake of doing a good deed. She seemed far too good for that.

But that did not necessarily make her unpleasant to work with. At the end of the day, selfishness was part of the reason why civilization thrived. Without any sort of selfish desires, there would be no competition. No competition meant no advancement. No advancement meant no betterment of life. When one looked closed enough, it was not hard to see how selflessness and selfishness fueled each other in a sense.

` With Freed now neutralized, Orion effortlessly grabbed the unconscious man, slinging him over his shoulder and making his way outside.

"Everything okay?" Issei rushed over. "I heard some swords and gunfire."

"The situation is under control." Orion assured his friend. "And we may have a lead to Asia thanks to this man."

"No need for that." The next voice that spoke belonged to Rias. "I believe I know where the girl is located."

The last that he remembered, the red-haired girl was not physically present for this job, only aware of what was going on.

"I called her in." Kiba informed his fellow combatant as he tended to the civilian. "Thought we might need some backup."

"I'm glad that nobody was hurt." Rias glanced at the prisoner who remained comatose. "And it looks like this night wasn't a complete waste."

"He chose not to cooperate when I questioned him." Orion informed her. "Do you have a way?"

"It's not necessary to speak to him." Rias kneeled. "Lay him down on the ground. I'll get a read on his energy signature and I'll use that to triangulate where he's been in the past few days. Once that's done with, we can decide this exorcist's fate."

"An exorcist?" Orion was not familiar with the term.

"A hunter of demons and devils." The girl next to her, Akeno, offered an explanation. "In the past, heaven and the church were known to possess many of them in order to combat hell. Nowadays, their kind are largely repurposed for killing strays and runaways."

"In any case, an exorcist without a master isn't good." Rias commented as she analyzed him. "He might be useful for a time, but eventually, he's going to die either by his own doing or by someone else's hand."

On that point, Orion could agree with the Gremory girl. Watching her expression as she performed her task, it was clear that while she was indeed kind to a fault, she was not above anger and disliking others. It was to be expected for a child of her age. He had read in some old supernatural books that devils in many myths and legends were purported to live for a very long time, at least as long as recorded history would have it. While in human terms that was a very long time, for Cybertronians, a few thousands years was little more than a short time in a normal life cycle.

In any case, the redhead looked young for a devil, which meant she had yet to experience times of painful growth. Her own disposition proved as such.

"How long will it take to trace his power to Asia's location?" Orion inquired with a hint of anxiety.

Rias gave him a look. "I should be able to narrow down some locations by tomorrow evening. I need to comb through the entire town in the meantime. It can't hurt to be thorough."

Another day, not a long time in the grand scheme of things, but for Orion, whose mind was working as if this was a battlefield, a single day may as well be an eternity.

High School DxD - - - Transformers

Day 43

Issei had never felt more useless in his entire life last night. Kiba and Orion had gone out to fight some crazy dude and he sat on the sidelines like a total bitch.

His first attempt at rationalizing his sitting on the sidelines was that he simply wasn't on the level that they were. He was just an ordinary dude with some barebones training in unarmed fighting. If push came to shove, he could probably get himself out of a hairy situation with some other normal dudes, but human guys were not the same as angels, devils, and fallen angels. It made sense for him to stay on the sidelines because he wasn't useful.

But then he remembered that he was a target because he had a special weapon of his own. If that was the case, then why wasn't he able to use it yet? Did it have some kind of condition that needed to be fulfilled? Was he simply not strong enough? Was there something that he was missing? Would he even be able to use it in the first place?

Issei realized that the more he thought about this, the less that he understood. Here he was, trying in vain to save himself and it was only now that he was starting to realize what sort of mess he'd ended up in. All of this stuff was very real and it could potentially kill him. The first time shocked him and he still hadn't come to terms with the reality of his new world. Now there was no hiding from any of it.

So that left only one question: what could he do?

He tried to think up some brilliant plan for him to get stronger or unlock his hidden weapon or whatever, but then he came to the quick realization that until not that long ago, he didn't even know that all of this stuff existed. How was he supposed to figure out something that he only had a baseline awareness of?

Eventually, he couldn't think up anything and he was forced to turn to the only other people who were not normal human beings and ask them for help. Unfortunately, his nerves were frayed when it came to supernatural things that were not Orion, so he asked his trusty friend to accompany him in case things got hairy or if he lost his courage. It was a cowardly thing to do, the brunette knew that much, but he simply wasn't brave enough to do this on his own and he wished that he was.

Issei could only begin to appreciate just how much that his companion was going through in order to keep him alive. God knew that he would have ended up as a red smear on the ground by now if not for the good karma that was shown to him.

Now here they both stood. The doorway to the Occult Research Club was directly in front of them. The only thing left to do was knock on the door and make a devil with the devil, literally.

"You have no reason to get involved any further than you already are." Orion reminded him gently. "If you are having doubts, you can always turn away now."

"I hear you, I really do." Issei sighed as he stared at the door. "But no matter how hard I try to let this go, I can't do it. I still see… Raynare's face every night when I sleep. Every time, she's sweet-talking to me, telling me how we'll be together forever and then she asks me the same question that she asked me that night."

Would you die for me, Issei?

That question continued to haunt him even when it was just him. He hated that his mind couldn't just move on. He wanted out of this madness loop one way or another. If the path was tough, then so be it. He just wanted out of the hell hole that was this trauma.

"I need the strength to face Raynare and take her down." Issei clenched his left hand. "I don't care what it takes. If I have that kind of power, I want to get it."

"I understand." Orion's reply came after a few seconds of silence. "Just be careful on your way to power. Do not forget why you originally sought out that power."

"I'll try not to." Issei turned his head to look back. "I mean, I'm only doing this to be less afraid. How bad could it be?"

Orion's response to that was a strange look. Did he have some experience on the matter? God, this guy seemed to have all sorts of experience with stuff, but then again, he was an alien, so that didn't seem all that implausible.

"Well, not time like the present." Issei took a breath in and out. "Let's do this."

With some more forced bravado, the shorter boy knocked on the door.

"Come in." A sweet feminine voice sounded. "The door's open."

Taking a moment to compose himself one last time, Issei opened the door and helped it open for Orion. The two of them quietly and quickly made their way inside.

"Ah, it's you two." Akeno Himejima sat on one of the couches and waved them inside. "Sorry, but if you're looking for a status update about where Asia is, then you'll have to wait a bit longer."

"We do want to know about that, but that's not why we're here." Issei smiled weakly. "Or rather, that's not why I'm here."

Despite trying to be polite, he couldn't help but stare at the huge gazongas attached to the raven-haired girl. Those knockers looked absolutely divine. Those mounds among many things were the very reason that this girl was one of the most beautiful girls in all of Kuoh Academy. Not a single guy in the student body thought that this gift to Mankind was not beautiful in one way or another. Really, there wasn't a single part about her that was flawed. It would be appropriate to call her a goddess if it wasn't for the fact that she was a devil already.

Not now. You can fantasize about them later. You're here to be serious, so act like it, dammit!

"I need the power to beat my… ex-girlfriend." Issei felt stupid when that came out of his mouth, but he rolled with it. "A-and you guys are super strong, so please help me! I want to get strong too! I don't want to die!"

He bowed his body to a full right angle. He sounded extremely desperate in his plea, but he couldn't think of any other way to get through to them without being genuinely honest about his fear.

"Heheheh!" Akeno giggled. "He's so cute, don't you think, Koneko?"

"He's still a pervert." The white haired girl in question responded with a deadpan. "And I still don't like him."

"It sounds like you're all getting along just fine." The sound of Rias's voice cut through. "Apologies for not being here to personally greet you two."

Is that Rias? And is that her in a bathrobe?

Rias Gremory had taken a shower in this club room.

She had just been naked not all that long ago.

And he was right nearby.

"NOOOOOOOOO!" Issei cried out for all of Mankind. "THE INHUMANITY! WHY!? I MISSED MY CHANCE TO SEE THE GREATEST GIFT OF ALL!"

He staggered to the floor on all four, pouding it with a fist and cursing his bad luck to all that would hear it.

"Are you okay, Issei?" Orion had kneeled down and grasped his shoulder.

"It's okay, Orion." Issei sniffed as he looked up to his friend. "I'm just lamenting my bad luck. I was so close to seeing them."

"Issei." Orion scolded him. "Remember why you came here."

"Yeah, I know." Issei sniffled, then straightened himself up. "Um, Miss President, I need-"

"There's no need for that here." Rias gave him a wave of her hand. "Just call me Rias. We're all friends here."

"R-right. R-Rias." Issei was still nervous. "I-I need the power to take down a Fallen Angel. Can you help me?"

Rias gave him an amused expression. "It's not everyday that I get that sort of request, but in all honesty, I was expecting this to come up sooner or later. Very well, I'll teach you what I can about your power."

"You will?" Issei lit up.

"In exchange, I will need a favor." Rias eyed him. "More specifically, I will need Orion for a favor."

"What?" Issei deflated somewhat at this declaration.

"Explain." Orion narrowed his eyes.

The brunette did admit to himself that he was willing to take any measure needed in order to get the power to beat Raynare. He had said that, but the thought in his head and the actual events unfolding felt like two different things.

Reality really had a way of letting down his expectations.

You got yourself into this shitstorm, man. Stick it out like a man and get it done.

Transformers - - - High School DxD

Rias went on a brief explanation into the generalities of life of a devil and this time, she made sure to be forthcoming about the details regarding devil society. Everything from societal structure to the Rating Games and all the details that would be necessary in order to prove to both Issei and Orion that this time, she was being completely forthright with her intentions.

After that explanation, she went on to describe the specifics of her personal situation, about her marriage to Rise Phenex and her desire to get out of that marriage via the Rating Games. Because Orion wasn't a part of her peerage, she couldn't compel him to take part in it, but the deal this time was that in exchange for training Issei on how to be a better fighter and how to make use of his Sacred Gear, Orion would need to participate with her in the Rating Games to determine her future.

The one serious gamble in the Gremory heiress's plan was actually getting Issei's Sacred Gear to become fully active. The only experience she had with other Sacred Gears was with her hidden servant Gasper Vladi. Before he had been sealed away, she barely managed to grasp the intricacies of what such power entailed. In all likelihood, she would have to make it up as she went, but with her time running short, she needed to work fast.

As Rias spoke, she made a note of watching both Issei and Orion as she explained everything, particularly focusing on the latter. It was clear that the blue-haired boy was far more experienced in the ways of combat, but in order to obtain that prowess, convincing him would be the real challenge. The connection between himself and Issei was going to be her best shot at obtaining his cooperation.

Both boys were respectful enough to let her go into detail about what she wanted and needed. That made the process slightly easier, but the redhead remained alert to their moods. So far, they were listening, but depending on how she worded things, that could change for the better or for the worse.

When she got the end of her executive summary, she took a moment to catch her breath and waited patiently for the two of them. As expected, Issei turned to Orion and the two of them began having a quiet conversation. Out of respect, Rias ordered her peerage to not listen in on the conversation and she too didn't listen. Her devil attributes would make eavesdropping easy, but the last thing she needed was to give the two of them a reason to distrust her.

After a couple of minutes, the real conversation began.

"I have several questions." Orion spoke firmly. "Firstly, why are you being married to this Riser Phenex? What is the nature of this union?"

"To keep the blood of the devil houses pure." Rias remained neutral in her expression, although her tone was laced with poison. "It's a matter of tradition and pride, nothing more. It's merely a holdover from our old ways."

"I see. Second question." Orion's poker face was perfect. "Will my participation in the Rating Game change me physically in any way?"

"No." Rias shook her head. "You will act as a substitute piece. You will be unchanged in every sense of the word with exception to your official part in the game."

"Understood. Third and final question." Orion's face became hardened. "If your servants asked for their freedom and if you had the ability to set them free, would you?"

And there was the heart of the matter. This was the most important question of all. If she failed here, she may as well get married to Riser Phenex right now. While there were technicalities that wouldn't allow her nor any other high-class devil to release a servant, she knew this answer well.

"If any of them asked this very moment for their freedom and were there no punishment for a devil leaving their master, I would allow it." Rias looked him dead in the eye. "I am the master of everyone in this room, but I do not dictate their every move."

Although she was confident in herself for being honest, she couldn't help but be slightly nervous at that look she was being given. It was as if Satan himself were judging her, or rather it would be more appropriate to say that God himself was judging her, but seeing as he wasn't from heaven, that wasn't the right terminology either.

Rias could sense her servants growing worried and even a bit tense. She knew that each of them was in a better place thanks to the second chance she had given them all, but from a certain point of view, it could be argued that none of them necessarily had a choice in the matter. It was either them dying or her taking them on as servants in exchange for living. Regardless, she wasn't lying when she said that she wasn't their overlord.

It was at least another minute before Orion seemed to come to some sort of conclusion mentally. He closed his eyes, appearing to compose himself. He didn't look completely satisfied with this outcome.

"I have heard all that I need." Orion eyed her. "I will take everything that you say and consider it as the truth. Thus, I agree to your terms, but this is not only a decision for me to make."

Issei realized that he was being referenced. "Right, um, I guess I don't see a problem either. If he's on board, then… I guess I am too."

Rias smiled. "Thank you, both of you. After our deal is over, I promise to ask for nothing more. I hope that even after all of this, we can become friends."

"As do I." Orion gave her one nod. "We can discuss the details regarding the Rating Game later. For now, what progress have you on locating Asia?"

"As Akeno mentioned, my search is still ongoing even now." Rias explained the situation. "But we do have a general area where we believe she's most likely to be held. It's in a neighborhood with an abandoned church at its center."

"Is the church not the most suspicious location, then?" Orion deduced. "Why not start there?"

"Perhaps, but bear in mind that if Asia is in the hands of someone who is hostile, they would be putting themselves at a disadvantage by going to an obvious place." Rias counterred with her own thought process. "It would better suit them to be held in a place that is less obvious or at least hidden. Thus, we need to comb the entire surrounding area of the church before we can confirm for sure that the girl is being held there."

"And what of our prisoner?" Orion was referring to Freed. "Has he supplied any further information?"

"No, but his taunts were enough to reveal what I needed to know." Rias grimaced. "He's not working for any devils nor is he the type that heaven would allow into their ranks. That leaves only one logical conclusion: he's working for the Fallen Angels."

"...could he be connected to Raynare?" Issei chimed in with his own idea. "I mean, that can't be a coincidence."

"Agreed. It's too perfect." Rias concurred with the brunette's theory. "And assuming Raynare is involved in this plot, then it's even more important that Asia is recovered quickly. Who knows what she'll be subjected to if she remains any longer."

"Whether or not the Fallen Angel is involved ultimately does not change our objective." Orion said with a very grave tone. "Securing Asia is our primary objective. Combating Raynare should only be done if she directly interferes."

"I take it you have experience in this sort of thing." Rias couldn't help but notice how he was able to take charge of this conversation. "Pray tell, what have you been involved in?"

"I know enough to assess this situation with a careful hand." Orion only answered her question vaguely. "And my life experience is only relevant in that I know how to perform hostage rescue."

The Gremory heiress didn't expect much from her probing, but it was still a disappointment that she couldn't get any more from him. However, if she had to make an inference based on his reflective comment, then she would say that he knew a great deal about things involving high-pressure situations. Maybe that's where his demeanor came from. Constant exposure to stressful events had a way of either driving people mad or forging them into unbreakable steel.

"Apologies. Curiosity got the better of me." Rias playfully tried to downplay her question. "In any case, when it comes time to rescue Asia, we will formulate a plan. We should prepare for any situation that we might be faced with."

"Um, not that I'm of much help, but can I do something." Issei raised his hand cautiously. "I know that I can't do much fighting, but I want to be useful."

"Patience, Issei." Orion responded. "Your time will come."

High School DxD - - - Transformers

Orion logically knew that Rias had disclosed the full truth to him. He carefully watched her as she delivered her reasons and presented everything she needed and wanted from them. He knew a liar when he saw one and she wasn't lying. Millions of earth years had taught him everything he needed to know when searching for a deceiver.

Still, despite every indicator that he could trust in what she was saying, his feelings on the matter were muddled. A part of him almost expected her to either be withholding information or be lying about her true intent, a mindset that was ultimately unhealthy.

It was his paranoia that was doing this, he knew this. Plenty of times during the war, there had been spies and double agents on both sides. Neither side was above using unsavory methods to achieve goals. As much as the Autobots were supposed to be a force for freedom and peace, to say that it had no incidents of unjust or uncalled for actions would be a lie.

Orion knew fully well that it wasn't fair for him to be so harsh of the Gremory girl. It was him that was the problem and unfortunately, as much as he wished that he could trust her intentions, he wasn't completely sure either. He had to make sure that what she said was nothing but truth and facts. Only then would he accept her for who she was.

For now, during this operation, he would be trusting her to hold up her end of the bargain in terms of the strategy that they devised. The cybertronian-human hybrid had volunteered himself to be the single individual that would do a frontal assault. If Raynare was there, he was confident in his ability to engage her and neutralize her as a threat, but he would keep his guard up all the same.

The former Autobot leader stood in front of the church that was confirmed to have a supernatural presence within. Once he opened the door, he would be prepared for contact. His Ion blaster was in one hand and his wrist blade was in the other. He was simply counting down the seconds to start.

Seven.

Six.

Five.

Four.

Three.

Two.

One.

Zero.

Orion pushed the doors wide open and did a sweep with his canon, detecting no physical presence within his immediate facility. He proceeded forward, keeping his weapons at the ready. He reached the other side to the altar, finding nothing that looked particularly unusual.

However, his senses were picking up unusual energy signatures. Something out of the ordinary was here. His eyes looked to the left, then to the right. He looked up and found nothing unusual there either.

He looked down at the floor.

He looked harder.

There.

Orion took careful aim and shot consecutive blasts through the floor until he produced a hole clean through it. He continued to fire.

He could hear a guttural scream of rage from beneath his feet.

Target sighted.

THIS IS A GENERAL REMINDER TO ALL OF MY READERS. I WILL BE LEAVING FOR BASIC COMBAT TRAINING ON AUGUST 4TH. JULY, THIS MONTH, WILL BE THE LAST MONTH THAT I POST CHAPTERS FOR ANY OF MY STORIES. UPDATES WILL RESUME IF AND WHEN I AM ABLE. UNTIL THAT DAY COMES, EXPECT NO FURTHER UPDATES FROM THIS STORY.

ALSO, WHILE I'M GONE, I'LL PROBABLY DEVELOP SOME NEW IDEAS ABOUT STORIES, NEW AND EXISTING. I'VE GOT SOME IDEAS CURRENTLY ON MY PROFILE PAGE. IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN ANY OF THEM, MAKE THAT INTEREST KNOWN BY VOTING ON THE POLE WHICH IS ALSO ON MY PROFILE PAGE.

Now back to the author note.

Issei is still a pervert. I know that some of you might not care for that, but a major part of my enjoyment of the show comes down to Issei and his lewdness creating hilarious scenarios. In any case, it's not going to be that easy to curb that desire.

Many people have pointed out that Orion shouldn't trust Rias nor should he accept her and the way of the devils. To an extent, I would agree with that, but bear in mind that while Orion/Optimus has his own ideals that he wishes to uphold, he is also respectful and professional about how he approaches others with differences. If he tries to disrupt the entirety of devil society because he wants to free everyone, that is essentially forcing his ideals onto someone else and that is NOT what Orion/Optimus is about.

Think about it like this. Freedom exists in most of the world, but plenty of nations still don't have democracy. Whether it's because of the political landscape or the culture, certain barriers prevent freedom from becoming the next step. Of course, if foreign intervention is introduced, that's not much better. How do you expect a country to accept liberation when all they've known is rulership under one man or a few men?

It's a moral debate that ultimately comes down to how you wish to interpret the finer details. The bottom line for me is that Orion, while he might disagree with the devils and their way of life, he will respect it for the time being, at least in the case of Rias. Yes, the way she recruited the members of her peerage are questionable at times, but she doesn't mistreat them nor rule over their lives, at least not as far as I can tell.

But what do you guys think? Reviews and feedback are appreciated.

Thanks for reading and I hope to see you all real soon.

-Ktyou