Ossomaru Arasharma and his friend Cassander were currently on their way back from a job with a stone treasure chest that was floating next to Cassander. What excited Ossomaru to the point of pestering Cassander to take such a low-paying job was that this box was supposed to contain extremely ancient celestial spirit gate keys. The archaeologist who posted up the job had no need for them and agreed to let them have any keys that were inside in addition to 5,000 jewel. When they got to a fork in the road they saw someone standing in their path.

"Excuse me, we were hoping to get past." Ossomaru said.

The man turned around, revealing his dark red eyes and black hair.

"Give me the box." The man said. "And then leave."

"That's not happening." Cassander said flatly.

"You get one chance to leave with your life." The man said. Ossomaru noticed how dead and emotionless his eyes were.

"You took the words right out of my mouth." Cassander said.

"Maybe we can compromise-" Ossomaru started.

"Shut up and hold this." Cassander said as he made the chest float into Ossomaru's hands.

Then Cassander jumped into battle. Literally. He used his magic to lift himself into the air, descending onto the strange wizard and using his momentum to empower a punch from above. The wizard dodged it and kicked at Cassander while he was gaining his footing. Cassander jumped backwards to avoid the hit and tried a kick of his own. The red-eyed man sidestepped it and pulled two daggers from his waist, slashing at Cassander with them. Cassander sent the daggers flying away with his magic and then held a hand toward the man, lifting him into the air. The man produced a silver gate key from a chain at his neck. Ossomaru gasped as the man held it outwards.

"Open, gate of the Sacrificed Princess: Andromeda!" The man said. In a silver flash of light a woman made of fire with bat wings sprouting from her back appeared. She carried a pickax that was attached to a chain. She expertly spun it before tossing it at Cassander, who was forced to release the red-eyed wizard as he jumped back. Both Andromeda and her wizard attacked Cassander, the spirit flying at him from above while the man retrieved his daggers and sprinted toward him.

"Are you gonna stand there looking stupid or help out for once?" Cassander called behind him.

Ossomaru realized that was directed at him and reached for his keys. "Open, gate of the Red Monkey: Hóu."

A humanoid monkey appeared beside Ossomaru, hefting his staff over his shoulder. "What are we doing this time?"

"Help Cassander." Ossomaru said.

Hóu ran forward, holding his staff as he launched himself upward at Andromeda. Andromeda flew higher to avoid his hit and lashed out with her pickax. The ax bounced right off of Hóu's fur as he used his Hardening magic on himself. He jumped up again and hit Andromeda, sending the spirit to the ground.

Cassander used his magic to disarm the red-eyed wizard before blasting him with a wave of telekinetic force. The wizard dodged it and grabbed a red key.

"Open, gate of the Snake: Shé." He said calmly.

Ossomaru's mouth gaped as the gorgon appeared next to the black haired wizard. "He just opened two gates." He said in astonishment.

"Then you do it, too." Cassander said with annoyance as he dodged a swipe of Shé's claws before jumping as the enemy wizard kicked at him.

"I...can't yet." Ossomaru said.

"You're so useless." Cassander complained.

Ossomaru frowned before he got an idea. "Thank you, Hóu, but you gotta go back."

The monkey hit the sacrificed princess with his staff one more time before disappearing in a red flash of light. Ossomaru grabbed a platinum key.

"Open, gate of the Dove: Columba!" Ossomaru called. The pale woman appeared in a long white gown made of feathers.

"Ugh, what did I say about forests." Columba complained. "You can't afford to replace this dress."

"There's no time." Ossamaru said. Cassander was having a lot more trouble now since Andromeda had joined the assault. He didn't seem to fare well against the three of them together. "Give him more power and speed."

Columba materialized five feathers that she held like a fan in one hand. She took out two with the other hand and drew a symbol in the air with each one. The symbols appeared, glowing white, on Cassander's legs and arms. After they took effect Cassander moved faster, dodging the attacks of the wizard and his two spirits. He unleashed a wave of telekinetic force around him, sending all three of them flying away. He used his magic to pull Andromeda toward him, punching the flaming woman as she got closer. The blow sent her back to the spirit world.

"Transform him." The wizard told Shé. The serpent spirit pointed at Cassander and he was immediately encased in a substance like serpent skin. After a few seconds it shed from his body, shrinking, to reveal that he was now a harmless puppy. Harmless for something that was growling fiercely. Ossomaru looked at his keys, going through each of them.

"Opening another gate?" Columba asked. "I was about to suggest it. It's a mostly painless death so you can put yourself out of your misery before they can."

"I'm looking for someone to undo that transformation." Ossomaru said as Shé and her wizard approached Cassander.

Columba sighed in annoyance before she drew another symbol with a third feather. Cassander glowed white and returned to human form. He hopped to his feet and jumped backward, holding a hand toward his two attackers.

"Strengthen that attack." Ossomaru said quickly.

Columba drew a symbol with a fourth feather and Cassander released a blast of force so powerful it sent Shé back to the spirit world and the red-eyed wizard flying.

"Cassander, I can summon Pegasus and we can get out of here now." Ossomaru said.

"No," Cassander said flatly. "I'm finishing this."

"But-"

Cassander chased after the red-eyed wizard and Ossomaru began to follow him until he remembered Columba was supposed to be at his side.

"Come on." Ossomaru told the Dove spirit.

"Absolutely not, I refuse to rip this dress on all these branches and roots." Columba said.

Ossomaru sighed. "Then...get on my back."

"Excuse me?" Columba said.

"It's that or you walk yourself." Ossomaru said. Columba rolled her eyes and climbed up onto Ossomaru's back. It took him a while to find where Cassander had gone from the weight of Columba on his back and the chest in his arms. When he reached the clearing he found the black haired wizard was standing over Cassander who was unconscious on the ground with a dagger held over him. Columba climbed off of Ossomaru's back. "Help Cassander." He told the spirit. Then he grabbed a rock and threw it at the enemy wizard, knocking the dagger from his hand.

"I can give him more magic power." Columba said. "But I can't wake him up, so are you sure that's your decision?"

That was when Ossomaru began to panic. But he took an extremely deep breath and pulled out another key. "Give me more magic power."

Columba laughed. "If you get yourself killed and he-" she pointed to the red-eyed wizard "-ends up with my key, I'll drag you back up from the underworld and-"

"Just do it." Ossomaru said, getting really tired of the attitude.

Columba drew a symbol with her last feather and it appeared on Ossomaru's forehead. "I'd say it's been a pleasure, but it wasn't." She left in a flash of platinum light.

When Ossomaru felt his magic reserves were filled again he held out his green key. It was just in time because the red-eyed wizard had pulled out a key of his own.

"Open, gate of the Green Wolf: Reed!" Ossomaru called.

"Open, gate of the Hero: Hercules." The other wizard said calmly.

A wolf made of ice appeared next to Ossomaru, jumping into his body and coating him in ice.

A man appeared next to the enemy wizard. He touched the ground and his body slowly absorbed the stone beneath their feet, coating himself with it. He flicked his arms and his fists became maces.

Ossomaru gulped before he launched himself at the spirit. He ducked and dodged underneath Hercules's swings before punching his attacker. When he saw how effective it was he tried again and didn't notice the red-eyed wizard appear behind him, aiming his daggers at Ossomaru's back. Ossomaru noticed that the daggers were plunged into his back but didn't break his skin. Since he was coated in ice it didn't hurt much but, while he looked behind himself in shock, he didn't notice Hercules winding up to hit him with his mace. Ossomaru grunted as he was hit in the face twice by the Hero spirit before the wizard behind him kicked his legs from underneath him. He hopped back up to his feet and aimed a punch at the wizard, but he missed and was hit in the head from behind by Hercules. Ossomaru decided to switch strategies. He began dodging the attacks of the two aggressors until he was able to get far enough from them to grab another key. He'd never done this before and it took a second of thinking about how stupid he must be to try this. But he gritted his teeth and held out the silver key.

"Open, gate of the Polar Bear: Ursa Major!" He called. A woman in a white dress with a lot of fur detail materialized beside him.

"What do you need now, honey?" Ursa asked with a bright smile.

"Stop Hercules."

"Is he trying to hurt my baby?" Ursa's smile disappeared. When Ossomaru nodded she turned into a polar bear and barreled toward Hercules on all fours. The hero spirit dodged it and swung at her with his arms. Ursa stood up on her hind legs and fell down onto him, knocking him to the ground. The red-eyed wizard grabbed another platinum key and held it in front of him.

"Open, gate of the Warrior: Perseus." He said. A man with long, blonde hair appeared in front of him.

"Who wants to hear about how I slayed the leviathan-" Perseus started.

"Stop the bear." The red-eyed wizard said. "Now."

"I'll tell you later." Perseus said. "Requip!" A sword and shield appeared in his hand. He ran toward Ursa, who was swiping at Hercules while she had him pinned down but couldn't get through the stone coating his body. He swung with his sword, but Ursa turned back into human form before blasting him with cold wind. Perseus raised his shield, reflecting the attack back at her. Ursa flew through the air, turning back into bear form so she'd land faster with her increased size and turning back into human form so she could summon a hundred shards of ice. The ice flew forward, knocking Perseus's shield from his hand. Hercules charged at Ursa so she blasted the ground in front of him, coating it with ice. Hercules slipped for a moment before making the stone on his feet sharpen like cleats. Ursa blasted him with cold air, but he turned his arms into shields. Ursa turned back into bear form and charged at Hercules, taking advantage of him being stuck to the ground so she could attack him while his movement was limited.

Ossomaru was currently grappling with the red-eyed wizard. He raised an arm to block one of his daggers. Despite being made of solid ice his arm cracked and he felt a shooting pain go through it. Reed was getting weaker. So was he. He barely had time to duck under the wizard's other dagger. He tried to throw a punch, but he moved too slowly and the red-eyed wizard kicked him in the stomach, sending him to the ground. The combat skill Reed gave him was starting to fade as his magic power did.

He heard someone say "Requip!" A few seconds later Ursa fell to the ground. Perseus appeared out of thin air behind her, wearing a helmet on his head that had made him invisible. Perseus summoned his sword and held it over Ursa's throat. Suddenly Cassander appeared behind him and kicked Perseus in the head, sending the Warrior spirit flying away. Ursa turned into human form and got back up on her feet. She made a shard of ice as large as a spear appear in her hand and threw it at Perseus. Perseus glowed platinum and returned to the celestial world.

Ossomaru fell to the ground. Before the red-eyed wizard could take advantage of his lack of energy, Cassander blasted him with telekinetic force. Reed exited his body and returned to the celestial world before Ossomaru could even ask him.

Ursa blasted Hercules with cold air and the Hero absorbed the ice that formed on his body, coating one of his hands with it. Ursa turned into bear form and ran at him. Hercules ducked under her and rolled to the side. Ursa then lunged at him while his back was turned and turned back to human form. She grabbed onto him and tackled him to the ground, using her magic to create ice all around him. Hercules absorbed the ice into his body until he was completely made of ice all throughout his whole body. Ursa then smiled as she used her magic to shatter Hercules's entire body, sending him back to the spirit world. She got up from the ground and rushed to Ossomaru's side. He was on the ground, barely breathing from the strain of keeping Ursa and Reed's gates open for so long. Ursa helped him lean up against a tree before she returned to the celestial world. When she finally did Ossomaru felt like a weight had literally been lifted off of his shoulders but his eyes widened when he saw that Cassander was still fighting. He tried to stand but he could hardly move, watching the fight unfold helpless to do any more.

Cassander punched the red-eyed wizard. The wizard quickly shrugged it off and reached for another key. Cassander used his magic to send the necklace containing the evil wizard's keys flying away and then fired a blast of force at his opponent. The wizard flew through the air but quickly returned to his feet. He dove for his keys but Cassander used his magic to lift him into the air. The red-eyed wizard, despite floating in the air, was able to reach into his sleeve and produce a dagger. He tossed it at Cassander but, before it hit, Cassander stopped it in midair. He then used his magic to send the red-eyed wizard flying into a tree and made the dagger fly in the same direction. Ossomaru gasped as the dagger spun towards the enemy wizard, only releasing his breath when he saw it just pinned the wizard to the tree by his sleeve instead of taking a more fatal path.

Cassander strode to Ossomaru's position across the clearing. "You're really an idiot for using so much magic power." He said.

"I didn't really have a choice considering you were uncon-" Ossomaru began to reply.

"Shut up before I kill you." Cassander said. Ossomaru wisely stopped talking. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I am now."

"Good, I didn't want to have to look for a new team member. We need to get this guy to the Rune Knights."

"I can summon-"

"Are you trying to die?"

"He's dangerous when he's not restrained and we can't exactly take him anywhere while he's pinned to that tree. I got this."

"Your life to gamble." Cassander said with a sigh.

Ossomaru took out a silver key and said, "Open, gate of the Painter: Pictor!"

The tattooed man appeared in front of Ossomaru. He looked at the red-eyed wizard trying to dislodge the dagger from the tree.

"I get it." Pictor said. "He's trying show us how people are always trying to run from the natural world to these giant cities-"

"Pictor, I love your critiques usually but we don't have a lot of time." Ossomaru said. "Can you make a pair of magic-canceling shackles?"

"Sure." Pictor said. He took a vial of ink from his belt and dipped his finger into it. He drew out in front of him and the ink stuck to the solid air. His drawing of metal shackles solidified into real metal. "These good?"

"Yes, perfect." Ossomaru said, obviously having a hard time just standing.

"You can leave now." Cassander callously said to Pictor.

Ossomaru gaped at him as Pictor unhappily disappeared in a flash of silver. "You can't talk to my spirits like that."

"You don't get to scold me." Cassander said.

"Why not? We're a team."

Cassander made the shackles float over to the red-eyed wizard, clamping around his wrists. He then pulled the dagger out of the tree and held it to the wizard's back as he led him forward. Ossomaru followed him as he said, "Because this wizard broke the law when he tried to use magic for assassination. What happens to a celestial wizard when they do that?"

"Their contracts become null and void." Ossomaru said.

"Well I'm gonna negotiate with the rune knights to get you his keys as a reward for us bringing in a dark wizard."

The wizard turned around violently when he heard that but Cassander used his magic to lift the wizard into the air. Cassander suddenly stopped walking and looked at Ossomaru without speaking.

"What?" Ossomaru asked.

"Go get the chest we risked our lives for." Cassander ordered. Ossomaru went back for it and Cassander added, "This guy's keys too."

Ossomaru huffed but smiled when he thought of the keys that must be inside the stone chest and the endless possibilities of spirits he'd be able meet using them.