Here we are, the final installment of the New Beginnings Arc, last time we witnessed Astro learn how to use his Devil Fruit Abilities as he combated Kuroka and ultimately got her to surrender. However there is a battle about to be waged in the Underworld and Astro's best friend was in the center of it.

Within the Underworld where the Devil Faction call home, a battle was about to take place. Within an arena was Issei, determined to free Rias from her engagement to Riser Phenex. "Issei, remember you will only have to the count of ten, anything more will destroy your body." Ddraig said as the gem in the Boosted Gear shined. Issei simply smirked as he locked eyes with his opponent, a man with blonde hair and arrogant look on his face. He was dressed head to toe in combat gear.

This man was Riser Phenex, Rias's fiancé and Issei's opponent. "You're brave for a mere servant, I will give you that. However with my immortality you have no chance of defeating me!" Riser boasted as he pointed at Issei. Issei however merely smirked at Riser, slipping Astro's goggles over his eyes. "Then you should have no problem kicking my ass, right you flaming piece of poultry?" Issei retorts in a taunting tone as a blood vessel bulged on Riser's forehead.

"I hope you are ready to make a fool of yourself in front of all Devil Society! Now face me boy!" Riser shouted as wings made of flames burst from Riser's back as he took off into the sky. Issei began charging towards Riser, ready to set his plan into motion. "Issei, you should equip the Scale Mail. That will be your best bet at countering him while in the air." Ddraig suggested as the gemstone in the Boosted Gear shined. Issei however smirked, he wasn't ready to play that card just yet. "Not yet Ddraig, the Scale Mail is when I'll be at my most powerful, I need to save it for the right time." Issei said as he noticed Riser aiming his hand at him. A smirk spread across Issei's face, he could do this.

          "Turn to ash! Hellfire!!!" Riser shouted as he sent a stream of flames at Issei. Issei however jumped before aiming the Boosted Gear to his right. "Dragon Shot!" Issei shouted as a red magic beam fired from the gauntlet, propelling him to the left, out of the way of the deadly stream of fire. Issei landed back on the ground before aiming the Boosted Gear at Riser. "That pathetic magic will do nothing against me!" Riser said smugly as he watched Issei charge up his attack. "Dragon Bombardment!!!" Issei shouted as he fired another magic beam, however this one split up into ten smaller beams that all curled towards Riser. The ten magic beams all hit Riser on various points of his body, knocking him backwards slightly.

           Riser's wounds immediately healed as he cracked his neck, the smug smirk never leaving his face. "Not bad boy, but you still won't be able to harm me with a pathetic attack like that." Riser said, arrogance still heavily evident in his tone. "Dragon Shot!" Riser looked down to see that Issei had propelled himself into the air using Dragon Shot and was flying right towards him. Issei reeled back his left arm before punching Riser across the face with the Boosted Gear. Riser was sent reeling from the punch, the left side of his face burning from the punch, the wound unable to heal. "W-What the hell did you just do?!" Riser asked as he felt the still irritated injury on his face, Issei floating a few feet away from him, his Devil Wings now deployed. "Simple you prick, I have one of these on hand!" Issei said as he held up a holy cross that was fastened to one of the fingers of the Boosted Gear.

Rider's eyes widened in shock, how could this mere servant be holding a cross without it destroying his own body? The answer however quickly dawned on Riser as he looked at Issei as if he were insane. "Don't tell me, you sacrificed your arm to that Dragon didn't you?!" Riser said not wanting to believe the teenager would do something that insane. Issei simply smirked as he flew towards Riser, not in the mood to chat. "BOOST!" Ddraig shouted as the Boosted Gear shined with light, its power increasing. "Hellfire!" Riser shouted as he fired a stream of intense flames at Issei, however the teen performed a barrel roll, narrowly dodging the attack. "TRANSFER!" Ddraig shouted as the energy from the earlier boost was transferred into the cross.

Issei slammed the Boosted Gear into Riser's face, the force of the punch sending the pure blooded devil crashing into the ground. "I will admit, I did not expect you to pull off such a maneuver without the Scale Mail. Is this one of those additional plans you mentioned a day or two ago?" Ddraig asked his human partner, curious as to what else he had in mind. A smirk spread across Issei's face, he knew he would need the Scale Mail to take down Riser eventually, but he would be lying if he said it didn't feel good to knock that jerk on his ass without it. "I'm just getting warmed up here Ddraig!" Issei said confidently as he looked down at Riser, who had gotten back on his feet, shooting a hatred filled glare at Issei.

           "A lucky shot, but now I know all your little tricks! Now lay down and die like a good little Servant!" Riser shouted as he once again took off from the ground at high speeds, flying directly at Issei, his fists engulfed in flames. Issei smirked as he reached into his jacket with his left arm and pulled out a skinny tube vial filled with water, an H was labeled on the side of it. Riser reeled back his right fist before swinging it at Issei. Issei held up his left arm, catching the fist with the Boosted Gear, Riser's fist shattering the vial, splashing the water onto his fist. Riser let out an agonized scream as his fist was smoking covered in horrendous burns. "Not a fan of Holy Water? You didn't think I only brought a Cross did you?" Issei said smugly before he grabbed hold of Riser's right fist with his right fist, it no longer being in danger of being burned due to the Holy Water weakening Riser's powers.

"BOOST!" Ddraig shouted before Issei unleashed three rapid fire punches onto Riser's head, the cross burning his face each time it connected. Issei felt Riser's hand begin to heat up as he released the injured fist. "You insolent little pest! Do you know who I am? Do you know the gravity of the situation?! Do you honestly think your little parlor tricks are enough to defeat me?!" Rider ranted as he clutched his injured hand before both his fists ignited with fire. Issei however smirked at Riser, enraging the pure blooded Devil further as he flew at Issei. "You call them parlor tricks Riser? Truth is I'm not smart enough to pull this off all on my own!" Issei retorted as he reached into his jacket and pulled out a second vial of Holy Water. Riser reeled back his left fist before taking a swing at Issei

Issei lunged to the right, dodging the punch as he pulled the cork off the vial before splashing the Holy Water at Riser. "TRANSFER!" Ddraig shouted as the Holy Water shined before splashing across Riser's face and neck. The Devil screamed in agony as he clutched his head in pain, smoke coming off it. "I learned to widen my field of vision because of Kiba!" Issei shouted as he reeled back his left fist, not planning to give Riser any time to recover. "BOOST!" Ddraig shouted before Issei punched Riser across the face with the Boosted Gear, sending the Devil crashing into the ground. Issei quickly landed on the ground a few feet away from Riser, who shakily got back on his feet. "Ddraig, let's do it!" Issei shouted, it was time to go all out and play his trump card.

          "WELSH DRAGON OVERBOOSTER!" Ddraig shouted as a suit of Draconic red armor formed onto Issei's body.

"Let's see how you handle this Riser! Boosted Gear, Scale Mail!" Issei shouted as the protrusions from his shoulders shot out green energy. Riser growled in rage, his face bloody and wounded from the boosted Holy Water as he launched a giant beam of hellfire at Issei. "BOOST, BOOST, BOOST, BOOST!" Ddraig shouted as Issei rocketed towards Riser, launching himself into the air over the beam of fire. "TEN!" Ddraig shouted as Issei took aim with his left arm. "Akeno taught me how to properly use magic!" Issei shouted before he fired a Dragon Shot that hit Riser square in the chest, sending the Devil sliding backwards. "NINE!" Ddraig shouted as Issei took off rocketing towards Riser once again.

"Do you honestly think a suit of armor scares me?! You're still just a lowly servant!" Riser shouted as he fired an even larger beam of hellfire at Issei. Issei performed a barrel roll, narrowly avoiding the beam of fire as he continued rocketing towards Riser. "EIGHT!" Ddraig shouted as Issei closed in on Riser, reeling back his right fist before throwing a bunch at the man, only for it to collide with Riser's own fist. "Koneko taught me to aim for the center mass!" Issei shouted as he reeled back his left fist. BOOST, BOOST, BOOST, BOOST! SEVEN!" Ddraig shouted before Issei punched Riser square in the torso, causing the devil to let out a strangled cough, easily winded by the punch.

Riser was knocked off his feet as he was sent flying backwards before crashing into the ground. "I-I-I, I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" Riser shouted as he slammed both his arms together before firing an enormous beam of hellfire at Issei. The reincarnated devil didn't have time to dodge as the enormous hellfire beam slammed into his torso sending flying across the arena before slamming into the wall. "SIX!" Ddraig shouted as Issei shakily stood back up as Riser started to laugh. "You come here and start prattling on about your friends? That just shows how pathetic you are! Needing to rely on others!" Riser taunted as fire burned in both his hands. Issei glared at Riser from behind his helmet, this was far from over. "FIVE!" Ddraig shouted as Issei got ready.

"I wouldn't expect you to understand, but it's my best friend's advice that's helped me humiliate you up until this point!" Issei said as the shoulder pieces started to release green energy again. "FOUR!" Ddraig shouted, time was running out, Issei needed to end this. "My buddy Astro taught me that an impossible situation is just a problem you haven't found an answer to yet! So get ready Riser! I'm ending this fight!" Issei shouted before he rocketed across the arena, his sights set on Riser. "THREE!" Ddraig shouted as Riser laughed as he aimed both hands at the approaching Issei. "TURN TO ASH YOU PATHETIC SERVANT!!!" Riser shouted at Issei before firing another enormous beam of Hellfire at the Boosted Gear Wielder.

         Issei however sped up, flying through the beam of fire, hissing in pain at the intense heat, but ignored it, he had to make it to Riser on time. "TWO!" Ddraig shouted as Issei launched himself out of the beam of hellfire, the Scale Mail cracked all over, Riser looking up to lock eyes with Issei. The pure blooded Devil's eyes widened in horror however when he saw a third vial of Holy Water in the air that Issei punched, drenching the cross in the blessed water. "TRANSFER!" Ddraig shouted as all the power from the Boosts were transferred to the cross drenched in holy water. Issei reeled back his left fist as Riser braced for impact, already knowing this next attack would be the most painful of them all. "ONE!!!" Ddraig shouted as Issei threw his punch.

The boosted holy water drenched cross collided with the side of Riser's head, the force of the punch knocking the Devil off his feet. Riser was sent flying backwards, his entire head engulfed in smoke from the powerful attack before he crashed into the wall of the arena. The wall cracked and crumbled as Riser was firmly embedded within the wall. Riser's eyes were rolled back in his head, a cross burned onto the side of his face, he was completely unconscious. "Impressive, I never imagined you would be able to stay in complete control of the battle from beginning to end. It makes me curious what other heights you will reach partner." Ddraig said as the Scale Mail shattered off Issei's body and the teen let out an exhausted sigh.

"How was that for a lowly servant you smarmy prick?" Issei said with a triumphant smirk as he gently slid Astro's Goggles off his eyes and once again let them hang around his neck. "Not bad, I bet if Astro were here he'd say something like: Now if only you'd put this much effort into your schoolwork Issei!" Issei thought to himself as he let out a small snicker at what he thought his best friend's reaction would be. "Issei!" Issei was pulled from his thought as he turned to see a red haired girl in a wedding dress flying towards him.

This was Rias Gremory, heiress to the Gremory Clan and one of the two Queens of Kuoh Academy. Issei clumsily held out his arms as Rias tackled him into a hug, nearly knocking the teen over in the process. "Hey Rias, yeah I managed to cobble together a plan to beat this jerk. Nothing special." Issei said as he scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. Rias smiled at Issei before planting a kiss on the side of his face, causing the teen to blush.

          "Thank you Issei, I can't imagine how much work you had to put in to achieve this." Rias said as she leaned her head against his shoulder. Issei let out a nervous chuckle as he was just relieved his plan worked out so well. "It was a team effort, Kiba, Akeno, Koneko, and Asia all helped make this possible." Issei said, not wanting to take all the credit for today's victory, he had a lot of help to achieve it after all. Rias stepped back from Issei, a slight look of confusion on her face. "What about this Astro you mentioned? You said it was his advice that helped you come up with this elaborate plan." Rias asked, remembering Issei mentioned someone by the name of Astro before dealing the final blow to Riser. Issei's eyes widened in realization, he had barely mentioned Astro to the other members of the Occult Club.

"Remember that friend I had to throw an emergency going away party for a little over a week ago? His name is Astro Quinn, my best friend since I was a kid." Issei explained as he introduced his best friend using his fake last name. Rias's eyes widened in realization, she had heard that name more than once. "You mean the student that consistently had the highest marks since he first set foot in Kuoh Academy?" Rias asked hearing about their school's most intelligent student mostly from Sona, who had been interested in recruiting him to her own Peerage. "Yeah that's Astro, he's living with his grandpa on his island. Right now I know he's working hard with his grandpa to create some amazing things, which means I gotta work just as hard to keep my promise." Issei said in a thoughtful tone as he gently clutched Astro's goggles.

"What promise Issei?" Rias asked, now curious about what exactly this promise was. Issei turned to look at Rias, a smile in his face. "I promised that next time we meet, that he wouldn't be the only one that's grown as a person." Issei said as he looked up into the sky, a confident smile on his face. A look of surprise spread across Rias's face that quickly morphed into a smile. "I hope I get to meet this friend of yours one day Issei." Rias said as she let out a relieved sigh. Issei shot Rias a confident smirk, he had a feeling that her and the rest of the Occult Club meeting his best friend would happen eventually. "I hope you're ready Astro, you'll barely recognize me when you come back to Kuoh!" Issei thought to himself as he continued to look out into the sky.

Egghead Island
It had been a day since Ratchet and Kuroka were apprehended for their attempt at stealing one of the Devil Fruits contained on the island. Astro was currently sitting within his bed reading over the regulations book for SWORD. "Seems I have a lot of work ahead of me, even if I am just an active Warden for Egghead, I could be called away to assist with a mission anywhere in the world once I become a fully fledged member." Astro mumbled to himself as he closed up the book before setting it on the nightstand. Astro lets out a sigh, despite resting all day he was still tired from the use of his Devil Fruit powers, he would hopefully be back at one hundred percent by tomorrow. "The sooner I recover, the sooner my training begins." Astro thought to himself as he leaned back against the head board of his bed.

Astro however got a sudden urge to stand up as he slowly crawled out of bed before walking over to one of the walls of his room. Astro pressed a button on the wall, causing a panel to slide open revealing a window. Astro looked up at the sky as a smile spread across his face. "I get the feeling Issei just pulled off some ridiculous stunt." Astro thought to himself as he looked out at the moon. "Why are you out of bed?" Astro jumped slightly as he turned to see Lilith standing in the doorway of his bedroom, a tray with his dinner on it. Astro scratched the back of his head nervously, ever since he passed out due to stamina loss, Lilith had been watching him like a hawk. "I-I just wanted a slight change of scenery." Astro admitted nervously as he avoided making eye contact with Lilith.

            A glare was plastered across Lilith's face as she marched up to Astro before grabbing his arm and dragging him back over to his be and forcing him to sit down. "You need as much rest as you can get, once you're fully recovered, Kuma is throwing you right into training." Lilith said in a stern tone as she grabbed the utensils before holding out the spoon to Astro in order to feed him. "I know Lilith, I just wanted to get out of bed after being stuck in it all day." Astro said in an apologetic tone as he looked down meekly while Lilith fed him. Lilith's glare softened as her face was dusted pink. "I know, but I also don't want to see you hurt yourself even more before you start training." Lilith said softly as she continued to feed Astro. Astro let a smile spread across his face, he didn't know what was in store for him in his training, but he was happy to know he had people around him that cared for him.

With that the New Beginnings Arc of the story has come to an end! Issei with the help of his friends and Astro's advice devised a strategy to defeat Riser! Next up will be the beginning of the SWORD Training Arc where Astro will learn to better utilize his Devil Fruit Powers! As always leave your thoughts and opinions in the comments! What training lays ahead of Astro now that he is becoming a member of SWORD? Who will he meet during his training to help improve himself? What will he invent that will further assist him? Find out in the next Chapter of Highschool DxD: The Grandson of Vegapunk!