Blazblue: Cognative Dissonance
Chapter 1: The wandering beast.
As the cold air rushed through the surrounding trees, a loud noise was formed from the rustling. Amidst the field of roses sat none other than Rachel Alucard, who was quietly drinking her tea and thinking deeply about the events to come:
"Where is that stupid man…what does he think he's doing." She sighed as she took another sip of tea. The rich cinnamon aroma and the rich apple flavor was one of Rachel's favorites. She could only think about the inevitable future that was to come:
"Ragna…" She whispered as she looked up at the full moon in the sky: "Oh Valkenhayn?" She called out.
"Yes Madam Rachel?" Valkenhayn appeared in front of Rachel, dressed in his usual attire and bowing slightly.
"I do believe I should pay Kokonoe a visit…I have some things I wish to discuss with her. Please take care of matters while I am away." Rachel said as she placed her tea cup onto the plate and stood up.
"Very well Madam Rachel, I wish you a safe journey and I await your return." Valkenhayn said as he bowed once more.
"The final chapters of this story are finally here…will it follow the predetermined ending or…no that is impossible." Rachel murmured to herself as she vanished into thin air…
I stared out of the window and wondered what to do now. Major Jin was still in the infirmary due to…Ragna and nobody had any plans on what to do next. I also had a large argument with Tsubaki regarding Ragna…she said she wanted to kill him since he's the root of all evil in this world…how could she say that? After everything he's done he is still seen as the villain in all of this. Where are you Ragna…where did you go?
"Ehem…Miss Noel Vermillion. Lord Kagura will see you now." Said Hibiki who entered the room.
"Huh, oh Hibiki. All right." I replied with a warm smile.
"Is something bothering you Miss Vermillion?" Hibiki asked concerned.
"Huh, oh no it's nothing important." I replied.
"Very well, this way Miss Vermillion." Hibiki gestured for me to follow him.
I followed Hibiki through the various corridors leading the way towards Kagura's room. Ever since that incident he has been working with Kokonoe on a way to find Ragna. Though I wondered why he would need me for it. Before I could ponder the question any further I found myself standing in front of the door towards Kagura's office:
"Lord Kagura, Noel Vermillion is here." Hibiki said as he opened the door. The small office was decorated with various NOL artifacts and colors, the carpet on the floor was a mix of dark red and white and Kagura was sitting behind the table with a glass in his hand…with a liquid which I guessed was alcohol.
"Hey Noel babe, just the woman I needed to see." Kagura said as he stood up from his chair and placed the glass down on the table.
"Hello mister Kagura, you wanted to see me?" I asked.
"Hmm…yeah. I heard you and Tsubaki had a fight?" Kagura asked as he crossed his arms and leaned against his desk.
"Oh well umm…it's nothing serious really we just had contrasting views regarding…" I couldn't finish the sentence as I remembered the argument and the various strings of insults that were thrown about that day.
"Ragna the Bloodedge…" Kagura sighed: "To be honest Noel, I don't think that many of us have any other choice." Kagura said with a concerned face.
"W-what do you mean?" I asked worried.
"I mean his being is literally being eroded by the Azure Grimoire. There isn't much any of us can do. And I suspect you know what will happen if he dies on his own right?" Kagura asked me a question to which I didn't want to know the answer to.
"…The black beast will be born again…" I instantly wondered as to what Ragna was doing right now…
"But just because there isn't much we can do does not mean there isn't anything we can do. After the fight with Azrael he became a man that I could respect, and hell I'm not going to let him die without letting him complete his promise to Celica." Kagura said with his usual smile.
"But Tsubaki…"
"I'll talk to Tsubaki. I honestly believe that many of the people here wouldn't want to see Ragna die. Despite his criminal status he's made a lot of valuable allies, me included." Kagura said as he walked over to me and placed a hand on my shoulder.
"I admire your tenacity Kagura "The black knight" Mutsuki." Rachel Alucard said as she appeared behind Kagura.
"Miss Rachel…to what do I owe the pleasure?" Kagura asked as he turned around.
"Ragna is without hope right now. Noel do you remember the story I told you before?" Rachel turned to me.
"Y-yes Miss Rachel." I recalled the time when Rachel told us about the story of the girl and her book.
"If you remember then you should understand that the ending is predetermined, there is no way to change fate." Rachel said with a hint of sadness.
"Ahem, sorry Miss Rachel but I'd be willing to disagree with that." Kagura said as he looked at me.
"Me too. I don't care if we're characters in some story written by that girl, if she can't change the ending, then we will do it ourselves." I said with determination.
"Oh?" Rachel was surprised at this answer: "Tell me Noel, who is Ragna to you?" She asked.
"W-what?! Umm well I uhh well…" I was getting flustered as to how to answer this question.
"Hey what kind of question is that?" Kagura exclaimed as he lowered both of his hands.
"Let Noel answer the question Kagura." Rachel said calmly: "Well Noel have you come up with an answer?"
"…Ragna…he's…an important person. He sacrificed his left hand to save me and has acted like an older brother that I never had…He's someone who has saved me many times. So now it's my turn to save him." I answered with renewed determination.
"Hmm…well this will be interesting. I truly do hope that you will stick with that determination Noel Vermillion. Ragna does not have much time left as it is…" Rachel said as she turned around and began to head towards the other end of the room.
"Yes I will!" I exclaimed as Rachel teleported away.
"Hmm…Well Noel babe, I've got one more thing for you." Kagura said as he came closer to me.
"One more thing?" I asked with a bit of worry.
"Yeah well you see I've got this bottle of champagne that I'd like to drink in the compa-" Kagura didn't get to finish his sentence because at the exact moment…:
"GREAT MAKOTO PUNNNCCHHH" Makoto burst through the door and hit Kagura straight in the face which sent him flying across the room.
"M-Makoto!" I shouted at her sudden appearance.
"Get your dirty hands off of her you damn pervert!" Makoto shouted at Kagura who was hunched up against the wall.
"Owww…that hurts Makoto." Kagura groaned.
"Hmph. Are you ok Noel, did he touch you anywhere strange?" Makoto began to dust off my clothing.
"Uhh yes." I answered with uncertainty. I've seen this episode happen multiple times before.
"How many times have I told you to avoid this damn pervert, he only wants one thing from you Noel." Makoto scolded me while Kagura got up. The wall which Kagura flew against had a giant dent left in it. Made me wonder how hard Makoto hit him and how strong Kagura was to simply brush it off.
"Makoto…I know you're jealous but I promise I'll take you out to dinner later. I just want to spend some quality time with Noel here." Kagura made a weak smile.
At this point I felt that Makoto was gripping my shoulder roughly: "H-Hey Makoto, you're hurting me…Makoto?" Makoto was beginning to shake slightly.
"…" Makoto started to breathe heavily.
"Makoto are you ok?" I asked worried.
"Uh-oh…" Kagura started to back away from Makoto as if she was about to explode.
"…Kagura…" Makoto said through clenched teeth.
"Y-yes Makoto?" Kagura asked with a hint of fear.
"HOW MANY TIME DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU I'M NOT JEALOUS!" Makoto turned around and jumped onto Kagura, beginning to punch him in the face repetedly.
"This will take a while to clean up." Hibiki sighed.
"Umm…shouldn't we help him?" I asked with more worry this time.
"He'll be fine. We should leave for now though." Hibiki said as he turned around to leave the room. But before he could he bumped into Tsubaki and stumbled backwards.
"Oh, I'm sorry Lady Tsubaki I did not perceive your presence there." Hibiki apologized while bowing.
"It's quite all right Hibiki. Kagura you said you wanted to see me?" Tsubaki looked over at Kagura who was knocked halfway into the floor.
"Huh, Tsubaki? I doubt this idiot is going to be seeing anyone soon." Makoto said with a guilty smile.
"H-hey Tsubaki, what's up?" Kagura asked with a loud groan.
"You wanted to see me Kagura." Tsubaki said in her usual formal tone.
"Oh yeah. It's about Ragna the Bloodedge and the whole killing him deal." Kagura said as he got up, again without any visible signs of him being hurt.
"What about it?" It was clear that Tsubaki was interested in this topic.
"We're not going to kill him. Simple as that." Kagura stated the obvious to Tsubaki.
"What! But he's the one who hurt Noel and Jin, he is the evil in this world personified." Tsubaki said with a shocked face.
"That may be but he along with Jinny, Celica and Noel here saved our asses from a catastrophe. You might see him as the evil personified but if I'm honest I'd say that the previous imperator is a larger evil, and we need Ragna to take her down once and for all." Kagura explained calmly.
"This…" Tsubaki was about to say something but decided against it.
"Tsubaki, we know you hate Ragna but please, understand that at the moment there is a larger issue looming over us all." Kagura said with a smile.
"Hmph…very well. But if I see Ragna the Bloodedge I will not hesitate to fight him." Tsubaki said as she turned around to leave the room.
"That girl is as stubborn as Jin…" Kagura sighed as Tsubaki left the room.
"She's just like she was before." I said as I remembered our academy days.
"Anyway, Noel, if Kokonoe finds any traces of where Ragna is I'll send to go after him. I think it'd be best if you were the one to meet him first." Kagura said as he walked over to his table and picked up the glass once again.
"A-all right. I'll be on my way now mister Kagura." I said remembering that I had to go to meet professor Kokonoe to discuss my power.
"All right see you around Noel. And don't forget my office is always open for beautiful ladies 24/7." Kagura said with a cocky smile which earned him another punch from Makoto.
As I left the room I looked out into the long corridor and remembered my discussion with Ragna about real objects and fake ones and how it does not matter if a fake is a fake. As long as it's real to someone it isn't a fake:
"I promise I'll save you Ragna." I whispered as I looked out into the brightly lit, blue corridor…
"Kokonoe, what is your plan on finding Ragna the Bloodedge?" Tager asked with his typical tone.
"Hmm, well since all the sethir is practically gone it's going to be rather easy to single out his Azure Grimoire." Kokonoe said as she took a sip of her coffee.
"His Azure Grimoire still works?" Tager asked with interest.
"Kagura already explained this to me. Apparently only certain people chosen by the True Blazblue are able to still use their powers." Kokonoe said as she became lost in thought.
"Kokonoe?" Tager asked with mild concern.
"What is it Tager?" Kokonoe replied with a bit of annoyance.
"What exactly should I do once I find Ragna the Bloodedge?" Tager was sent out to look for Ragna as soon as possible, he didn't have any time to be filled in on the details so he decided to ask Kokonoe along the way.
"Avoid fighting him for starters, if his Azure Grimoire goes berserk it'd be bad for all of us. Try to subdue him without force if possible. If push comes to shove i've implemented a number of tranquilizer darts into your body. One of those darts is enough to even subdue that goddamn father of mine." Kokonoe explained calmly: "Hmm Tager, there's a signal around 10km west of your current position…in a forest in between the 6th and 7th hierarchical cities. I'm assuming that that's Ragna. Head there and check it out. Report as soon as you get there." Kokonoe ordered Tager.
"I'm on my way." Tager said as he closed his intercom and began to fly in the direction of the signal…
I kneeled down to drink some water from the river. Now that I was far away from the city I had to make do with the various resources of nature. The sun shone through the various trees scattered around me, most of them lacking any distinct branches to break the sunlight in a noticeable way. I got up and continued onwards to my destination: "The first integration city of Ōkoto". I needed answers and where else will I find them apart from the NOl headquarters. The Azure Grimoire, the imperator and most importantly…that which resides within me: "The black beast". Though my name is infamous throughout the entire world…marching into the NOL headquarters is a suicide mission…even for me. I had decided that I'd think about this issue on the way there. It was at least a week's journey from here even by skycar so I have plenty of time to think. I was on my way to the 7th hierarchical city of Kazamotsu where I would be able to get a direct link to the 1st hierarchical city. It would be a long journey with many stops…especially since I'd have to hide in the cargo hold to avoid having any useless wannabes try and arrest me. Less trouble for me would be the best option. As I walked along the path I suddenly felt a sharp pain in my right arm, nothing new. I've been having these repeated pains regularly now…which wasn't a good thing. I can only keep this thing in control for so long before it'll finally break free:
"Ragna the bloodedge…" A calm voice said behind me.
"Shit…" I turned around still clenching my right arm. The person who was standing before me was none other than Bullet, the mercenary who was in search of Kokonoe and answers herself: "Hey Bullet, you know it's a rather bad time right now." I said in a strained voice.
"What's with you? Hey are you ok?" She asked as I began to lose consciousness and fell over. The last thing I saw was her rushing towards me saying something…
When I woke up it was already night: "Shit…I lost a whole day." I mumbled to myself. I looked around and saw a small campfire, and then I noticed that I had a cold towel on my forehead: "What the?" I got up and looked around:
"So you're finally awake I see." Said Bullet who came with more firewood.
"Why did you decide to help me?" I asked with interest.
"Well…you did help me during that fight with Azrael. The least I could do was return the favor. Seems that each time I meet you, you always end up in pain one way or another." She explained while placing the firewood in a neat pile.
"Thanks…I guess." I said as kindly as possible.
"So what's the deal this time? Last time you were bleeding to hell and this time you collapsed without warning. You sick or something?" She asked with a twinge of concern.
"…It's my arm…and eye." I said as I look at it with a saddened expression.
"Your arm? You mean the Azure Grimoire?" She asked while pointing at it.
"Yeah. The damn thing's been a pain in my ass recently." I answered while clenching and unclenching my right arm.
"So why are you not with that guy Kagura, or Kokonoe or whatever?" She asked as she sat down on the ground.
"…That's something that has to do with this arm." I replied as I remembered what happened before.
"Where are you headed for now?"
"Why do you care?" I asked with mild annoyance.
"Well if you collapse each day on your way there you're never going to reach your destination in time." She said calmly.
"…Tch. Fair point." I had to agree with her that in my current state getting to the 1st hierarchical city would be a very tough task.
"And since you are strongly connected to Kokonoe…I'm guessing that wherever you are she's nearby."
"And what of it?" I glared at her.
"I need answers. And since you're my best bet at getting them, I'm gonna stick with you for a while." She said as she threw some wood into the fire.
"W-what?! Hell no!" I exclaimed as I stood up.
"Listen to me. I need you to find Kokonoe and you need someone to make sure you don't collapse in the center of a largely populated area and get picked up by the folks at the NOL. So we can both help each other out, don't you think?" She explained in her usual cool tone.
"…I hate it when others are right…" I mumbled under my breath.
"So now tell me. Where are you going?" She walked over to me and looked me right in the eyes.
"…the 1st integration city of Ōkoto." I said quietly.
"WHAT! ARE YOU MAD?!" Bullet exclaimed: "You, Ragna the Bloodedge, SS class criminal with a bounty well in the trillion, also known as "the grim reaper", want to head into the NOL headquarters. Did that right arm of yours mess your brain up as well?!" Bullet shouted at me while I looked away knowing that this was the reaction I would get. Still couldn't blame her, she was speaking the truth.
"I need answers regarding this arm of mine and where else can I get them other than the center of the organization which houses practically all the information in the world?" I asked her in turn.
"Tch…you're mental that's for certain. But oh well…I guess it's befitting of someone with your reputation." She said as she sat back down on the ground.
"Thanks…" I said sarcastically: "Either way, I'm gonna hit the sack cause i'm planning on getting up early tomorrow. And one more thing Bullet."
"What is it?"
"At the first sign of trouble with me…run away." I said as I fell back down onto my patch of grass and fell asleep…
A.N. I decided to start a new series because...well because i felt like it. I have another series in the works as well but for now enjoy the ones i have atm.