"Maka!" A flash of light revealed Soul in his human form once more. He had fallen a good fifteen feet away from Maka, as she had lost her grip on him while airborne. "Shit! What the hell did you do to her?!" Soul's panic and fury were clear in his voice.
"Lord Death should understand. Good luck little scythe." Sukai pursed her lips in a knowing smile before floating away into the night.
"What the hell?!"
"Soul…" Maka whimpered. Soul rushed over to his meister, fearing the worst. He watched in fear as she fell into unconsciousness. The pair had been through black blood, magic paralyzing spider webs, and complete madness. 'What the hell is it this time?' Soul thought to himself.
The town square was still bathed in light from the fire, though it was starting to die. The brick felt smooth and cold through Soul's jeans.
"Damnit! What the hell do I do now?!" Soul got up and started pacing in front of Maka. He couldn't go after the witch nor the egg without his partner, and even if he could he wouldn't abandon her. He needed help, guidance. He thought furiously. 'What's Lord Death's number? Oh, Maka has a rhyme for it. Damnit! What is it!'
He frantically tried to remember the rhyme Maka muttered every time she contacted Lord Death.
'Does she have it written down? God why didn't I pay attention?!' He rummaged her pockets, looking for any aide. In her right hand coat pocket was a little notebook. Scrawled on the front in her neat, small handwriting was "for emergencies!"
Soul opened up the booklet and on the first page was important numbers. 'Trust Maka to prepare for the worst… I should really start doing the same. Focus!' At the top of the list she had written "Lord Death - 42-42-564".
Soul ran over to a window nearby, fogged the glass with his breath, and used his finger to write the number. The numbers disappeared into the glass and the window went black. He could hear the ringing of a phone dialing. "Come on, come on…" he muttered under his breath bouncing on the balls of his feet.
"Hello! Hiya! How are-" Lord Death's child-like voice came on. His image appeared on the window like a screen. He was in a black robe that covered his entire body and a white mask that was where his face would be. Behind him appeared to be a desert lit by a light blue sky, but Soul knew that was just the Death Room.
"Lord Death! We have an emergency! Maka has been hit by some kind of magic by this witch Suco or Sakka or something! She's unconscious and her soul's beginning to feel faint!" Soul took a shaky breath, his emotions getting the better of him.
"Oh dear! I was afraid something like this would happen. I have already sent Professor Stein." He paused. "Can you describe the witch to me?" His tone became serious, like the witch was the most important problem then. Through the white mask you could see his concern.
"Uhh, well she had black hair and a bunch of blue on. That's all I can remember of her appearance, but she seemed to know about our battle with the Kishin. But what about Maka? Is she gonna be ok? What did you mean by 'something like this'? What the hell do I do?" Soul was on the verge of being hysterical.
"You need to remain calm. How did the witch approach you?"
"Calm!? A witch just attacked my meister and took her out in a single blow, then proceeded to fly off into the night! Now you're telling me you thought this might happen even though we were sent alone!" Soul had lost control of his cool, letting his worry consume him.
Out of the corner of his eye he saw movement near Maka. Instinctively he changed his arm to a scythe, ready to kill anyone touching his Meister.
"We need to get her back to DWMA." Professor Stein, clad in his stitched-up lab coat, knelt next to Maka. His gray hair billowed in the slight breeze. Soul could see the fire reflected in his big, round glasses.
"Soul, grab your bike and meet me back here."
Soul made to continue his argument when his gaze landed on his Meister's deathly still form and thought better of it. As he ran across the plaza, he could hear Stein speaking to Lord Death.
"Lord Death, please relay a message to Naigus to prepare for an incoming patient?"
"Of course Stein." And with that the window became transparent again and the call ended.
Stein paused for a minute, lost in thought. "Professor, aren't we in a hurry?!" Soul had already jogged his bike over and his patience was running thin.
Stein snapped out of it. He seemed to be continuously scanning the area for something. "Maka's fighting to survive…" he muttered, more to himself than Soul.
"Then why is her wavelength so weak? Shouldn't it be stronger as she fights?" Their connection was strong; Soul knew this. When others couldn't resonate during the war on the kishin, they hadn't had a problem.
The professor ignored the question.
The trio traveled in silence, focused on the road ahead. They were making a beeline for Death City, the DWMA facilities the only place equipped to handle Maka's current condition.
Speeding past the cactus and tumbleweeds, Soul's mind tried to piece together what just happened. A witch that knew about the pair had set a trap for them in a Sierra Nevada town. How'd she know they would be assigned to the kishin egg? Did she study all the students with such intensity or just Maka and himself? And how did she trick Maka's soul perception?
The Nevada heat was non-existent at night. The chilly temperatures were mind-boggling when compared to the inferno during the day. As they rode through the desert, Soul looked over his shoulder at Maka. She was strapped to his bike, and shivering. 'Shit, is she going to catch a cold if I don't give her my jacket?'
'If we slow down now, it will not benefit her later.' Stein spoke to Soul through their wavelengths.
"What the hell?" Soul questioned aloud. In the rush of helping Maka, he forgot that Stein could resonate with anyone, one of the reasons the professor was one of the DWMA's strongest meisters.
'It's easier to communicate like this while on the run. But don't stop, we need to get Maka back as fast as possible.'
Soul waited until they reached DWMA to ask Stein the question that was burning at him. He picked up Maka and started carrying her to the dispensary. "What's happening to Maka?"
Stein paused for a second, considering whether he should answer the young weapon. "At first glance, she seems to have been hit with some sort of madness infused magic. Not all of the madness from Asura has been suppressed, especially in the pairs who fought the Kishin directly: Black Star and Tsubaki, Death the Kid with the Thompson sisters, you, and especially Maka, since she fought him the longest." Stein's voice was monotone.
"Why did that witch attack us?"
Soul was answered with silence. He changed tactics and asked another question. "Who is that witch?" Still no answer. 'Typical,' he thought. 'So I don't get to know a damn thing.'
Stein and Soul walked quickly in silence until they reached their destination. Soul was reminded of their first encounter with Asura and how Maka had passed out still trying to fight. 'She's a fighter. She'll be fine, I know it.' The mini pep-talk didn't ease Soul's worry.
When the three reached the dispensary, Soul immediately laid Maka in the bed closest to the window. "Is there anything I can do?" Naigus was already working on Maka, but walked back to Soul.
"No, I'm sorry. She'll have to at least stay overnight. I would go home if I were you." Naigus's soothing voice told Soul. Her blue eyes searched Soul's face. Naigus's bandaged hand rested on Soul's shoulder.
Instead of listening to the mummy-nurse, he stayed. While they were bustling around, he leaned against the wall. After the professor and nurse left, Soul took the seat next to the bed Maka was placed in. He stayed up sitting and watching over her until he passed out.
Maka and Soul were fighting Crona, back in the Italian church. Maka was losing ground and would not use Soul to block Crona's attacks, knowing something about Crona's weapon was hurting him each time she blocked.
"Use me damnit!" Soul heard himself yell.
Maka ignored him, continuing to dodge the attacks instead. She was cornered, the doors behind her refusing to open. They both knew she was about to be sliced open. Just as Ragnarok was being swung down, Soul transformed back into his human form to protect her.
His vision faded with Maka's terrified face watching him fall.
Soul was on top of Baba Yaga Castle, the scene of the battle against Asura. He felt weird and out of place, like this wasn't his place to be.
The magic barrier keeping the team (Soul, Maka, Black Star, Tsubaki, Death the Kid and the Thompson sisters) was red and strong from the kishin. The stone battlefield was littered with broken bricks and boulders.
He saw Maka across from him, Asura defeated behind her. 'She defeated him! But why is the barrier still up? Something isn't right.' As Soul finished that last thought, Maka rushed at him. Shock spread across his face as he could see the madness had taken hold in her. She had a murderous look in her eyes and a creepy smile across her mouth. Soul tried to move, but he wasn't in control of his body. Her hands were around his neck and his breath became short.
"Maka?!" Soul woke yelling. He was breathless and found himself in the chair, still next to Maka in the dispensary. Her face was contorted in fear, but he didn't wake her. He looked at the clock and saw that it was 3 AM. Soul turned over and fell back into a restless sleep.