Hollow Black Shadows

by Mister House

Sequel to Fallen Blue Sky: The past torments our lives, becomes the darkness within us that doesn't disappear easily. Sometimes, it's easy to fight against it, other times, it breaks us with no regret. Now, it's that darkness that threatens both worlds, and the existences that live within them. WARNING: Rating subject to change due to violence and language in later chapters.

10. Human Cry

Author's Note: This chapter is really good and it brings up some history, so I'm sorry if it strikes a chord to anyone, but I'm merely using it to convey one of the sub-plots. Either way, enjoy the chapter.

Black Rock Shooter and co. belongs to Huke.

---

"Human Cry" - Gun Dog

---

"Hey, time to wake up sleepy-head..."

A groan emanated from underneath the covers that shrouded a teenage body, a bit of rustling occurring that was visibly shown as the sheets moved, but it all settled and a soft, muffled snore reverberated through the sheets, irritating the person standing in the room. A few seconds passed before the person laying on the bed felt the sheets get ripped away from her body, causing her to get up and look around, her mind trying to comprehend what just happened as her blue eyes wandered around the room. For a moment, the girl thought that the room looked familiar, but she couldn't remember why until her eyes locked on the person standing beside the bed, the sheets gripped by both of her hands, not even bothering to let them go. Everything seemed to freeze for a moment, her mind waking up until an emptiness settled itself within her head, erasing any thoughts that were about to form, but it didn't matter as things started making sense to her. Covering her mouth as a yawn escaped her, the girl stared at her mother, raking through her unruly hair that traveled down her back, possibly stopping halfway down her back as she stretched slightly.

"Sorry kaa-san, I was just enjoying a nice dream, or something like that..." The girl said as she tried to remember her dream.

"Well you can't stay in bed Rock, it isn't healthy for a high school student," The girl, Rock, got as a response.

Rock watched as her mother dropped the sheets to the floor and headed out of the room, the older woman's eyes hidden behind her bangs as she closed the door behind her, leaving Rock awake in her room, with no chance to fall back asleep considering that any chance she had disappeared with the sheets being removed from her body. Shaking her head from one side to the other, Rock slowly moved out of her bed and stretched slowly, readjusting her body as she walked over to her closet, where her school uniform hung against the door. Rock stared at it for a moment, her mind trying to comprehend the uniform's design, the white blouse covered by the black blazer, with a red skirt below both upper-body clothing, the colorization seeming vaguely familiar to her. Even so, the more thought she put into the clothes and why they seem familiar to her, the more the thought gets pushed back into her head for some reason that she's not sure of, her hand reaching out and trailing down the black blazer, her movements appearing slightly rigid. Her actions slowly became fluid, and all thoughts behind the uniform disappeared as she took it from its hanger and placed it on her sheet-less bed, stripping herself of her shirt and pajama shorts before heading to her drawers, searching for some underwear so she could get ready and start the new day.

The following minutes were quickly accompanied by Rock's mechanical actions, her body slightly rigid as she slowly got dressed, her mind elsewhere as she slowly put on the underwear that she found in her drawers before moving back to the bed, where her school uniform rested. She could barely feel the clothes touching her skin as she promptly put on the blouse before focusing on the skirt, her mind caught in a numb frenzy that she couldn't put her finger on. Once she slipped her arms through the blazer, she shook her head before sighing and buttoning the jacket before stopping halfway, her eyes focusing on the red fabric that needs to get tied around her neck, her right hand reaching out for it as Rock could see her fingers shaking slightly. Brushing away any hesitation that was running rampant in her hand as she closed her right hand for a moment, Rock reached for the tie and grabbed it, bringing it up to her neck as she started tying it around her neck, her hands movements as automatic as she finished putting on the tie before buttoning up the rest of her blazer. She took one last look around the room before heading towards her desk, where her bag rested, grabbing it by the straps as she headed out of her room, the room that she has lived in for the past sixteen years.

"Hurry up Rock, or else you'll be late.." Rock heard coming from down stairs.

Not willing to waste any time, Rock rushed down the stairs, her eyes taking in the layout of the living room as she made her way to the kitchen, everything seeming familiar to her to some degree, but Rock pushed the thoughts aside so she could make a quick breakfast and head out. Grabbing some slices of bread and butter, she took a knife from one of the drawers and started applying the butter on top of the bread slices, spending a couple of minutes on the task before heading towards the front door. Before she could reach the entrance-way and sit down so she could put on her shoes, she felt a cold hand clamp down on her right shoulder, freezing her in place as the light in her eyes dimmed for a moment before she looked behind her, noticing her mother standing there smiling with a bento wrapped up. Rock could only nod and take the bento from her mother before bending down and putting on her shoes, wondering why she froze up for a couple of minutes, even the memory of having a small one-way conversation with her mother was phasing in and out of her mind. Figuring that she's wasting time, Rock opened the door before her and bid her mother farewell, waving back to her as she broke off into a run, hoping that she'll reach the school before the bell rings, which is the last thing she wants happening in this seemingly bizarre day.

"Take care Rock," Her mother called out before letting out a small smirk to herself, "I'm pretty sure you'll enjoy these days..."

Rock's mother went back into the house and closed the door behind her, unaware of the pair of eyes that was watching her from afar before the pair of eyes centered on the running form of Rock.

---

Mato could hear the rampant shouts that's filled with anger throughout the hallways as Dragon Slayer continued venting her anger on the machines, but the sounds were the only source of relief for her, because the amber-eyed Anomaly's anger managed to drown out the sounds of her sobbing to herself as she kept on walking on her own. It wasn't easy to forget the look that rested upon Geshumaru's face when everything came to light, in fact, every time Mato thought back to that moment, the look of unbridled shock that appeared on Geshumaru's face would keep itself at the forefront of the teenager's mind, if she could even call herself that now. Looking at herself now, appearing just like B RS, wasn't what she expected to happen when she came to, but after hearing the summary of what happened from Geshumaru and remembering what happened last night before everything went dark on her, the implications weren't lost on her. Losing B RS was only the beginning in their new set of problems, especially since Mato isn't sure if she could use B RS's abilities in the real world, even though the real world and the Otherworld are melding together; there are differences between both realities that makes the issue complicated. Stopping in the middle of her walk, Mato moved towards the wall and leaned up against it, sliding down to the floor and burying her head into her thighs as her arms wrapped around the top of her head, Dragon Slayer's roar and destruction still echoing throughout the halls.

"This is my fault, I shouldn't have..." Mato mumbled, ignoring the fact that it isn't her voice coming out from her mouth.

Mato could hear footsteps nearing her, but given how Dragon Slayer was still wrecking everything in the machinery, that only left one person, "What do you want Geshumaru..?"

"Eh, I figured you need someone to talk to, especially since Dragon Slayer won't stop until rationality sets in," Geshumaru told Mato, sitting down beside her, "Besides, we got to talk about certain things, and you know what I mean"

Mato sighed before raising her head and looking at Geshumaru, "What..?"

"What is it that set you off and launched yourself at Kanna last night, because I won't stand for something like that again..?" Geshumaru inquired, her relaxed expression replaced with narrowed eyes and a slight frown.

"I-I just.. it's because... she said something that struck me while she wasn't.. right in the head," Mato told Geshumaru, looking away and opting to stare at the floor.

"And that's suppose to matter.. how..?" Geshumaru asked, her expression not changing one bit.

Mato frowned, not willing to delve into the specifics, "I.. don't want to say..."

"No, we're not playing this sort of game, I need answers," Geshumaru thought bitterly as she grabbed Mato's left shoulder, "Tell me, otherwise, I'll force you to tell me, and you don't want that to happen"

Mato stared at Geshumaru, realizing how serious she's being, "But.. I can't..."

"Mato, I don't care if we're friends, or something similar, but I will force my hand to get the answers I'm looking for," Geshumaru stated, causing shivers to run down Mato's back, "Either you tell me now, or I manipulate you into telling me, got it..?!"

There was a moment where Mato hesitated before she relented, scratching the side of her head in frustration, "Argh.. she practically called me pathetic and says that I'm acting like I'm happy..."

"But that's not the entire story, is it..?" Geshumaru asked, arching an eyebrow as she continued staring at Mato.

"No.. I rather keep the rest to myself, it's just.. a bit too personal..." Mato told her, her chin resting on her arms.

Geshumaru frowned at the answer she just gained, but didn't press the issue further as something else managed to catch her attention, such as the massive emptiness that now accompanied the hallways, which were echoing with the sounds that came from Dragon Slayer letting out her anger, which the amber-eyed Anomaly focused on the unusable machines. Getting up from the floor, Geshumaru walked through the hallways for a few minutes until she reached the machinery room, where Dragon Slayer stood in the center of the room, heaving as her broadsword was still in her firm grip, but the tip of the sword was touching the ground, indicating the amber-eyed Anomaly finished lashing out. The blue-eyed Anomaly started making her way to the lower floor, but the sound of her footsteps caught the amber-eyed Anomaly's attention, her amber eyes staring at Geshumaru, who merely shivered due to the intensity that still lingered in them, which was meshing in with something she could barely make out. They didn't look like the eyes that were fitting for a devious observer like Dragon Slayer, they instead look like the eyes of someone who fought in many battles, only to lose the very thing that's important to them at that time, and Geshumaru couldn't help but feel a bit of pity for the amber-eyed Anomaly. The look disappeared from Dragon Slayer's eyes and she straightened herself out, but considering the grip that she still had on her broadsword, it would take a while before she could really relax.

"Sorry, but are you done..?" Geshumaru asked, preparing herself for anything.

"More or less, but don't take that for what it seems like," Dragon Slayer told Geshumaru, brushing some stray hair away from her eyes, "Fucking.. Icicle managed to turn everything against us now, and it only took one simple action for her to pull it off..!"

Geshumaru's eyes widened slightly at Dragon Slayer's statement, or more precisely, the word she used in it, "But I'm guessing it's more than just Icicle that set you off, hun?"

"Icicle placed us in a troublesome situation where Shooter is out of commission, and all we have is her useless real self, who won't help us because she's shrouded in a sense of fear and obliviousness," Dragon Slayer vented, turning around to face Geshumaru completely, "Do you have any idea how frustrating that is..?!"

"I'm in this as well, so I understand how you're feeling," Geshumaru told her, "But that doesn't mean we can't rely on Mato, she does have some experience..."

"In the Otherworld, not in a world where physics from two different realities are clashing," Dragon Slayer rebuked, narrowing her eyes, "Do you think she can pull the same feats as Shooter, who fought against you in the real world, who understands the limitations placed upon her..?"

Geshumaru frowned, "So what if we're given a crap piece, you know how to work with everything that's handed to you, so what's the problem?"

"The problem is that I'm not going to waste time on someone who will defy everything that I planned, just to follow her heart," Dragon Slayer roared, cracks forming from the floor, "I'm trying to save two worlds from obliteration, and everything that she's done placed Shooter at risk twice, with the second time putting up in this predicament..!"

"Dragon Slayer, you're not alone in this," Geshumaru told her, "You don't have to fight and do everything on your own..."

"No, because Icicle is treating this as a game between me and her, a game full of consequences, and I'm not planning to lose anyone," Dragon Slayer told Geshumaru, grabbing the blue-eyed Anomaly by the shoulders, "I won't have another death placed on my shoulders, not like Clara..!"

Shock firmly planted itself on Geshumaru's face, "What..?"

"I.. no, forget it," Dragon Slayer told her as she pushed away, moving towards the upper level in the room, "Talk to me later when my frustrations isn't taking control over me..."

Geshumaru could only watch Dragon Slayer walk up to the observation office up above, trying to understand what the amber-eyed Anomaly just said to her as she just learned a bit about something that Dragon Slayer never mentioned; a name of a real self doesn't matter if the person knows them, but Geshumaru heard a name that not only comes from a different country altogether, but the way that Dragon Slayer said it means the name holds some sort of significance to her. Hearing the door to the office up above slam shut, Geshumaru pushed her thoughts on Dragon Slayer to the side and focused on the more pressing issues that the amber-eyed Anomaly stated, well aware that Dragon Slayer's words holds a lot of significance since there's more problems utilizing their abilities in the real world. While B RS is a novice, she understands enough from her first time in the real world that the limitations can become a massive burden, and their abilities are more destructive if they don't hold back, and given how they want to avoid massacres, holding back their abilities to non-lethal limits requires a lot of focus and understanding. Geshumaru could understand why Dragon Slayer is angry since their situation was more problematic than it seems on the surface, and they have no time to actually train Mato on everything they know about fighting in the real world, especially since Icicle was probably getting closer to finding out where they are residing based on how she and Dragon Slayer found a closed rift in the forest. Icicle was taking advantage of their situation by capitalizing on their faults, which is why without B RS to help them out, it would force more work on both Geshumaru and Dragon Slayer, and the blue-eyed Anomaly wondered if there's any chance to get help.

"Fuck..." Geshumaru grumbled as she kicked at a scrap piece of metal sticking out, creating a dent in it.

---

The moment the door slam shut, Dragon Slayer dropped to the floor, "This isn't how it should go..."

[We can't have everything...]

Dragon Slayer frowned when she heard Kanna's voice echo throughout her head; the person that the amber-eyed Anomaly is using as a medium was oddly silent throughout Dragon Slayer's outburst, but Dragon Slayer reasoned that Kanna only did that to allow her to let out her anger at everything around her, instead of dealing with an Anomaly that was beyond enraged over their situation. Dragon Slayer had to admit that Kanna's been taking everything in stride, save for some headaches that managed to catch up to her, but it seemed like she was grasping how everything is affecting the world, and that they have to push aside personal issues and focus on what's before them. Getting up from the floor, the amber-eyed Anomaly made her way to the desk as she raked through her hair, brushing away any stray strands of hair before smoothing them out as her eyes focused on the map pinned to the wall, her eyes going over all the markings and thumbtacks placed on it. Dragon Slayer looked around the desk before spotting the red marker, taking it in her right hand as she moved towards the map while pulling the cap out, writing on the map around the spot that they've been at today, her amber eyes holding no sense of amusement or acknowledgement, but a worn-out existence that held suspicion close to her sleeves. Moving away from the map, Dragon Slayer sighed as she leaned back and plopped down on the chair, staring up at the ceiling as she allowed her mind to wander without worry, all the pent-up stress taking its toll as she felt tired.

"Kanna, am I an idiot..?" Dragon Slayer asked.

[Well, you're vindictive, manipulative, and a general sarcastic person.. but you're not an idiot...]

"I'm grateful that you reaffirm my identity, while insulting it," Dragon Slayer told Kanna, chuckling slightly, "But I feel like I'm losing control of this situation, that every action that each of us make ends up opening gaps that Icicle can take advantage of, it's very unbecoming..."

[The odds are practically stacked against us, so we just got to find the loophole in all of this...]

Dragon Slayer merely arched an eyebrow, "You really believe that there's something that we can use against Icicle..?"

[I'm not discounting the possibility that Icicle is probably leaving cracks that we haven't seen yet, so we just need to figure out what they are...]

"Icicle is as meticulous as I am, so finding the cracks isn't an easy task," Dragon Slayer stated, sinking a bit into the chair.

[Everyone can't become perfect, that's not how the world works...]

"I agree, but I rather wait until it shows itself, since it tends to when I leave cracks in my plans," Dragon Slayer told Kanna, subconsciously rubbing her gut that used to have a hole through it roughly a week ago, "Anyways, I'm tired, so I'll let you take control, unless something comes up that requires my attention..."

[Got it...]

"Well, first time in a while that I've felt this tired, best I make use of it," Dragon Slayer mumbled as she slowly closed her eyes, exhaustion shrouding over her.

When Dragon Slayer closed her eyes as sleep took control of her, her form started disappearing as it got replaced by Kanna, who opened her eyes before shutting them quickly, feeling the soreness from Dragon Slayer's movements when she was active, causing the young woman to groan in pain as she got up from the chair. Kanna could safely say that the one drawback of being a medium for an other self or an Anomaly is the soreness that will hit you when you regain control over your body, and complaining about it won't help either way since there's no cure for it, and nothing will happen that's forces someone to learn a way around the unwanted pain. Aside from that and the intense fear that comes with every fight that might lead to death, Kanna felt at ease with the Otherworld issue that's she's been debating by herself, and how everything that has gone about the past few days allowed her to step into Geshumaru's world and understand what she practically does in her life. Granted, the difference between Geshumaru and Dragon Slayer is staggering, considering that the blue-eyed Anomaly also lives another life as her dead sister, but now it seems insignificant compared to how everything is going about, and Kanna now understand what Geshumaru is risking playing two lives. Kanna frowned slightly at the last thought that ran through her mind, noting how that fact didn't matter now since they're fighting against Icicle in a world where two realities are being meld together, which took the dual lives away from the equation because there's nothing for Geshumaru to hide behind.

"I guess I should work for a while before falling asleep, if only for this pain to disappear while I'm knocked out," Kanna said to herself as she moved towards the map, but stopped when she heard something going on outside of the room.

Moving slowly to the barely boarded-up windows, Kanna peeked through the openings left by the boards and watched Mato walk around the ruined machines, the teenager's fingers tracing the dents and gashes made by Dragon Slayer, the damaged leaving jagged bits of rusted metal sticking out. Kanna could remember what she said to Mato when she got caught up in her anger, but she didn't even think that way about the teenager, so to say that the young woman is just confused behind the tension between each other would actually be correct, considering that she wasn't right in the head when she said that Mato is afraid of being like B RS. Despite her confusion behind the words, she felt as though she was staring deep into Mato's mind when she was ready to deliver the final blow before Dragon Slayer stopped her, so she didn't feel regretful when she said everything that affected Mato to the point of running away. There in lies her confusion since she knew she didn't have regrets, but the way it all went about seemed out-of-place for her because she isn't that kind of person, but it certainly seemed like something that Dragon Slayer would say if she's focused on decimating her opponents like with Icicle. Groaning in irritation from the headache that was slowly forming in her head, Kanna stepped away from the window and went up to the map, deciding that it's best to push away those thoughts, otherwise, it will become an unwanted burden placed on her shoulders.

"Besides, if Mato ever does stop hiding and just lets her emotions out, then maybe this tension between us will disappear," Kanna thought to herself, mindful to keep it away from Dragon Slayer so she doesn't wake up the amber-eyed Anomaly, "Until then, it looks like we can't really trust each other, at least for now..."

---

"Okay, the hell were we called in for..?" Kagari asked after she slid the door open to the consultation room, her eyes focusing on the sitting form of Saya.

Despite Kagari's irritation at getting pulled back from going home, Yomi couldn't help but agree with her as they, along with Yuu, headed back into the school and made their way to the consultation room, all three of them picking up on that flare of energy that was signature to only Gold Saw, but they knew that there's more to just being called back if their conversation earlier was any indication. They all stared at Saya, waiting for her to speak up and tell them to come inside the room, but all they received as an answer was a mere hand gesture to the couch, and the silent treatment was slowly getting on Kagari's nerves since there's no reason for someone like Saya to pull off something so immature. Grumbling mostly to herself, Kagari entered the room and headed straight towards the couch along with Yomi and Yuu, who looked back at Saya for a moment, wondering what was going on with her since she never acted this way with any of them, but she didn't keep the thought at the forefront of her mind and sat down with her friends. The moment that they sat down, the three teenage girls could pick up on how different the consultation room felt, how it seemed like all the life that was in the room got drained completely from what was originally here, and they couldn't help but match that to Saya's current mood and how she just plainly ignores them, as if they were non-existent to her eyes. They watched Saya taking a sip from her cup, which prompted Yomi to hold Kagari back from doing something irrational since her childhood friend was barring her teeth, snarling a bit as Saya looked at them with her eyes as lifeless as the consultation room.

"Icicle informed me to tell you three of the status of our.. problem with the three that continue to defy everything," Saya told the trio sitting on the couch, her tone flat.

Yomi looked over to Saya, all while restraining Kagari from jumping out from the couch and tackle the grown woman to the floor, "We're well aware that things been going in our favor, aside from a few problems..."

"I am well aware of them, and Icicle suggests that you don't put your life at risk again when dealing with Dragon Slayer," Saya told Yomi, her voice turning icy for once, instead of remaining monotone, "But the issue also centers on the other two Anomalies that are active: B RS and Geshumaru..."

"So, it's not like we'll have any problems," Kagari said, cooling off a bit after being restrained by Yomi for a few minutes.

"Even so, Icicle was able to capture B RS and attempted to control her, but the process never finished as Dragon Slayer intervened," Saya told them, the icy tone reverting into the monotonous tonality that Saya started speaking with, "This prevented her from reaching Kuroi Mato, but Icicle informed me that it's far from over..."

"Which means..?" Yomi asked, suspicion rising slowly within her.

"That B RS will remain inactive, allowing us an opportunity to finish what we started," Saya stated, "And for Geshumaru, separating her from the others will give Icicle time to capture her, and if successful, bring her into the collective"

"'The collective', what is this, some parasite b-movie..?" Kagari semi-joked, caught off guard by Saya's statement.

"Either way, within the next few days, the construction will finish and we will be given one last task to carry out," Saya informed, ignoring Kagari's comment, "That's all, dismissed..."

The trio got up from their seat as Saya continued to sit down in her chair, taking a sip from her cup while the three teenagers stared making their way out of the consultation room, each of them with a different thought running through their minds about what they got told as Kagari slid the door open, exiting along with Yomi as they looked back at Yuu, who remained in the room. Yomi and Kagari knew that there's been issues growing between the two lately since Icicle obtained I.B RS, so they knew better than to interfere in issues that's not related to them since it would only cause problems in the long run, but that didn't mean that they couldn't wait and watch to see if they need to jump in. Now that they are waiting on Yuu to deal with the issue before her, they now had time to think through what Saya just told them and the way she acted all throughout the debriefing, trying to make sense of the older woman's shift in attitude because they don't know what caused it. Before Icicle managed to get I.B RS's body, Saya was still the same as ever, if only motivated to beat some sense into Dragon Slayer from their fight in the Otherworld that ended with her original broadsword piercing through her, but now it looks like all life just vanished within her, leaving nothing more than a hollowed-out body that just working automatically, not giving a single thought into the things that she's doing. The more that they try to think on it, the harder it gets to find the answer that they're looking for, but they shelved their thought process to the side and refocused on Yuu, who balled her hands into fists and took a couple of steps towards Saya, her expression firm.

"Saya, why are you acting so cold to me.. to all of us..?" Yuu asked the grown woman who merely sat in her chair.

When Yuu didn't get an immediate answer, she moved towards Saya and grabbed her left bicep, "Saya, tell me, this isn't like- ah..!"

Before any of them could even react, Saya immediately stood up at Yuu touching her and backhanded her across her face, sending the teenager down to the floor, Yomi and Kagari rushing to her side as Saya scrutinized them with her narrowed eyes before walking out of the room, leaving the three in the bleak room that felt more haunting than what they could imagine is possible. Kagari could hear the sounds of Saya's heels disappearing from the room before she got up and rushed towards the hallway, barring her teeth as she tried to find any sign of Saya still in the hallway, but all she got greeted with was just emptiness as the sun slowly moved down from the horizon, causing the shadows to shift slowly throughout the hallway. Kagari looked back into the consultation room and her anger slowly disappeared as she watched Yomi help Yuu up from the floor, the latter still in shock over what just happened with Saya, and how her world was slowly crumbling around her, disappearing into nothingness. Yomi and Kagari shared a look that got them wondering how this could potentially affect the four as a team, but that was secondary to their thoughts lining up the problems to Icicle, even thought they don't know how directly involved she is in regards to Saya's new attitude, nor to Yuu in regards of her promise to the girl. Figuring that it's best to keep their thoughts to themselves for now and not mention a thing about it to Yuu, the trio started making their way out of the school, but only two of them felt that something's brewing, and it's larger than any of them could comprehend.

---

Rock blinked as she slowly raised her head from her desk, her mind fuzzy as she slowly tried to regain her bearings while looking around the classroom, which was still attentive as the students focused on their work while the teacher supervised the class as usual, something that's commonplace in her life since she started going to school, even thought there's blank fragments in her mind in regards to all of this. It was troublesome to remember anything since the harder she tries to figure out what's missing, her mind wounds up getting fuzzy and her focus gets derailed from its target, causing her to pass out for a moment before snapping back to consciousness, unaware of what she was trying as everyone in the room ignored her. Rubbing the side of her head, Rock looked back down at her desk where the worksheet laid, her mind clearing up as she took her mechanical pencil and started writing down the answers to the problems on the sheet, forgetting what she was trying to remember a moment ago. Her mind centered on the worksheet as the small sound coming from the mechanical pencil making its mark on the paper, her hand moving mechanically for a moment, which prompted Rock to pull her hand away from the paper and shake it for a moment before going back to work, her eyes darting around each problem and remaining transfixed on it for a few minutes as she jots down the answer. Before she could reach the last few problems on the worksheet, the bell rang and Rock dropped the mechanical pencil to her desk, groaning slightly in frustration as she took the worksheet and started making her way to the desk up at the front of the room, turning in her paper along with her classmates.

"Well, this is gonna suck..." Rock thought to herself as she turned in her paper before heading out of the classroom.

Stepping out of the classroom, Rock let out a breath that she was unaware of holding in as she walked down the hallway, her mind wandering as she navigated through the hallways with no aim or thought, her eyes more glued to the tiled floor than on what's in front of her. This left her unaware of her surroundings as she felt her body rushing down to the floor, her head hitting hard against the tiles as she heard some sinister chuckling coming from above her, causing Rock to look up at her assailant, her green eyes holding nothing more than a sense of superiority and sadistic glee at her pain. Looking at the girls who stood beside the green-eyed girl, she could make out the yellow eyes that belong to the blonde-haired teenager, while the one with orange eyes was quite shorter than them, but that didn't change their attitudes as they just sneered at her in disgust, like she was something that came right out from the dumpster. Sighing to herself, Rock slowly picked herself up from the floor and brushed her clothes off with her hands, figuring that they should just have their fun as she started walking away, only to get pulled back by the blonde-haired girl before getting slammed up against the wall, her back aching a bit from the force the girl applied into tossing her into the wall. Rock knew that she wasn't coming out of this situation without something happening that would demoralize her to a degree, and she was right when the orange-eyed teenager went up to her left and restrained her while the blonde-haired girl shifted to her right, leaving her wide open for anything the green-eyed girl can do to her.

"I was right, this was gonna suck..." Rock thought to herself as the green-eyed teenager leaned in close to her.

"So, are you going to apologize for bumping into me, I could have sprained an ankle..?" The green-eyed teenager inquired, a smirk gracing her lips.

Rock grimaced a bit, "I got nothing to apologize for..."

Before Rock could prepare herself, she got slugged in the gut, causing her to cough as the green-eyed girl continued talking, "I'll repeat myself, apologize to me"

"No," Rock said before she wound up getting punched in the gut again, causing her to cough as she felt her gut ache from the punches she's receiving.

"Listen to Ojou-sama and apologize," The blonde-haired teenager told Rock, narrowing her eyes at her.

The orange-eyed girl frowned when she glanced at Rock, "I highly doubt apologizing is enough to satisfy her..."

"I agree, bring her to a classroom, I got an idea," The proclaimed Ojou-sama told the other two, who proceeded to drag Rock along with them.

Rock wasn't sure which classroom they were dragging her towards, but she knew that whatever happens once she's in there with the three girls that assaulted her, there would be no one to help her out of the situation, and even struggling to break free wasn't a good choice to make since it would only result in her getting the wind knocked out of her body again. It was only a few minutes until they entered an empty classroom, the green-eyed teenager heading over to a chair and pulling it out before sitting down on it, her legs crossed as she watched Rock getting pushed down to her knees, blue eyes glaring slightly at the person sitting down before her. Rock could tell what the green-eyed teenager wanted from her, and that's to bow down like any servant and kiss the Ojou-sama's feet, which was a disgusting thing and something that she will never do, even if they have to force her down and move her head for it to work. She couldn't believe how right she was when in the following minute, the two girls that were restraining her forced her down to the floor, near the green-eyed girl's left foot, which caused Rock to grimaced at the situation she's in as her anger slowly boiled within her gut, the pain dulling a bit over time. Her mind started getting fuzzy again and she thought that she was going to pass out again, but there was a familiar heaviness that was taking over her, her mind opening up as certain things were flashing through her mind within seconds, but she couldn't comprehend it at the moment due to the predicament she's in.

"Well, must I have them force you..?" The green-eyed teenager inquired, shifting slightly in the chair.

[W■■e u■, th■s i■n'■ r■al...]

"Come on, it'll be a lot easier on you if you just do it," The blonde-haired teenager told her before looking up towards the green-eyed girl, "Perhaps we should toss in a little 'incentive'?"

[T■is l■f■ y■■'r■ li■in■ is ■a■e, op■n y■■r ey■s ■o t■e tr■th...]

"Maybe she can become our gopher..?" The orange-eyed teenager toss out, her white hair swishing slightly as she looked at the blonde.

[R■me■■er w■o ■ou a■e, do■'t f■■l in■o t■is l■e t■■t sh■ c■ea■■d...]

"No, let's make use of her as a slave, after all, she's always being the weak one," The green-eyed teenager said, a devilish grin gracing her lips as she stared at Rock, sadism shining through her eyes, "Besides, there's really not much she can do, she's nothing more than a broken toy"

[Snap out of this B RS..!]

Rock wasn't sure what happened in the next moment until her eyes cleared up and her mind wasn't caught in a daze, noticing all three of the girls that were abusing her laying on the ground, groaning in pain as the blue-eyed girl stared down at the green-eyed teenager, recognizing her for a moment before a headache started forming around her temples. Forcing herself up from the downed teenager's body, Rock gripped her head with both hands and shut her eyes tight, feeling the headache intensify for a moment, the strain threatening to rip her head in half until it started calming down, but there was a clarity that accompanied it, a clarity that didn't end any thought that was running through her mind at the moment, which allowed her to look around the classroom. Instead of the room being tidy as it was when she was first dragged into the room, everything seemed broken to unsubstantial degrees that eluded Rock's knowledge, but what surprised the girl even more was how she could see how the color shifted back and forth between the spectrum and grey-scale, which caused some paranoia to rise within her. Rock took a couple of steps back from where she was standing, shock coursing through her until the shock got replaced with another headache, one they was trying to eat away at her until it went numb. Her mind was slowly becoming fuzzy as consciousness started to slip from her grasp slowly, but Rock fought against it as much while exiting the classroom, her vision going crazy as she struggled to stay active and not pass out, unaware of the dangers that awaits her if she's overcome by her own mind and passes out.

"Just.. what's going on with me today, why is all of this happening so suddenly," Rock asked herself as she broke off into a run, trying to push the pain away as she focused on getting far away from the classroom, and possibly the school, "How did I do that.. can someone help me..?!"

---

When Kanna opened her eyes after falling asleep while typing up something on her laptop, she was expecting to see the small office that looked like it hadn't seen better days, but instead, she woke up in a bed that looked like someone from a higher social standing would sleep in, dressed completely in Dragon Slayer's clothes, which unsettled her a bit. Looking around the room that she wound up waking in, Kanna wasn't sure what to make of the room since it was certainly different from her home, in fact, the way that everything appeared as, she couldn't help but think that she got sent to a different time period, but she pushed the thought away as it seemed ridiculous for her to travel through time after falling asleep. Shifting around, Kanna pushed herself out of the bed and started walking around the bed for a moment before eying the double doors, noting how polished the wood was and the unique handles that adorned them, but the young woman stopped admiring them when she reached the doors and opened them, exiting out into a hallway. There was a lengthily, detailed rug that went the length of the hallway, with windows adorned to the right of Kanna as light shined through them, giving life to the beige coloring of the walls, while a few doors were to Kanna's left, which probably lead to other rooms in what Kanna believes is a mansion. It only took her a moment to reach the stairs and head down them, but as she got closer to the lower floor, she could hear the subtle sound of waves that originate from the ocean, her eyes darting around the entrance-way as she tried to pinpoint where the sound is coming from.

"Just.. where am I..?" Kanna thought to herself as she walked to her right, passing through an open frame and stepping into what looks like a living room.

As she looked around the living room, Kanna could hear someone speaking faintly as her eyes darted towards a door with glass panels in-between the frame, "... Ah, I'll never get tired of this ocean breeze..."

"Well, we have been here for six years already, so even if times change, there are things that remain endless..." Kanna heard, which prompted her to hurry towards the door and open it, passing through the door-frame to see the two people who are talking to each other.

The moment the second person spoke, Kanna could recognize the voice and she found her suspicion to wound up correct as she saw Dragon Slayer, or a transparent version of her, standing behind a woman who looked like her, aside from the hair color and clothing, which was the dramatic difference between the two. The woman who Dragon Slayer was talking to had luscious brown hair and hazel eyes that seemed to shimmer a different color depending on the lighting's placement, wearing a knee-length skirt and a buttoned up blouse, a glass full of wine between her fingers. Dragon Slayer was also wearing different clothes that were more skin-tight, but not enough to alter her defining presence, her jacket completely unlike the bolero jacket she now wears, but there was something else that managed to catch Kanna's attention. The amber-eyed Anomaly's attitude seemed different compared to how she usually is, which is unnerving when she let out an honest chuckle when the woman said something to make Dragon Slayer laugh, a sound that Kanna could barely recognize. Kanna walked closer to them as she tried to not apply too much pressure to her footsteps, making sure to not make any sound and alert both of them, even thought she knew at the back of her mind that not was really going to happen.

"Dragon Slayer, how long has it been since.. my aunt and uncle died..?" The woman asked, taking a sip from the glass as she looked through the porch, staring at the ocean.

"My, probably ten years, give or take a month," Dragon Slayer said, thinking for a moment, "Even thinking back to that time reminds me of that sensation, but I know how much you don't appreciate me detailing my.. exploits..."

"Ha, I'm surprised you care that much, even thought I don't care about that anymore," The woman barked, laughing for a moment before calming down, her mood becoming somber, "I can still remember their smiles, but it's often marred by their blood.. all because of Nazi Germany, them and their invasion..."

"There was nothing you could have done, it was bad timing all around," Dragon Slayer said, giving the woman a sympathetic look before frowning in anger, "The whole lot of them couldn't bother understanding what they started, and the decimation that followed certainly caused their inevitable collapse"

"They were stubborn, not idiots, but I suppose it doesn't matter in the end," The woman said, sighing before taking another sip of wine from the glass, "But I suppose living my life now is all that I have left, and doing it for them makes my life that more satisfactory, don't you think..?"

"I couldn't agree more, besides, if it wasn't for me helping you, your life would have ended in France due to the war, instead of your home in Great Britain," Dragon Slayer told her, smiling as she walked over to the woman before leaning against the railing, "Times are changing, and we have things to get through, don't you agree.. Clara..?"

Kanna froze where she stood as her eyes widened in shock over what she just heard, recognizing the name that Dragon Slayer shouted out earlier on to Geshumaru while still caught up in her frustration, but she didn't expect the person that Dragon Slayer was talking to was the Clara that she mentioned. After the shock settled in, Kanna started thinking about real selves possibly looking similar to their other selves, even though she knows there's subtle differences between the two, the appearance tends to act as a key behind figuring out who's connected to who. One primary example that she could think off from the top of her head was Mato with B RS, even though the latter looks like an older version of Mato, there were the tiny aspects of the blue-eyed Anomaly that managed to separate the two aside from height. Even so, Kanna knew that there's a deeper meaning to Dragon Slayers words when she said that she won't let anything happen that occurred to Clara, and the young woman couldn't help but think that the reasons won't come out so easily, all due to the amber-eyed Anomaly being adamant about not talking about her past, and getting her to talk about it will never happen as long as she keeps it to herself. Kanna pushed her thoughts to the side and refocused on Clara's conversation with Dragon Slayer, half expecting to learn something that no one knows about the amber-eyed Anomaly, despite the risk she was taking in listening in to something possibly personal for the Anomaly.

"When France got taken under their control, I was already sent to my aunt and uncle, unaware that the country would get massacred and brought to their knees," Clara said as she just stared out to the sea, "So when the war ended, I was glad, even thought I felt like I'm all alone, with no one to support me now because my siblings don't really care for me..."

Dragon Slayer blinked, "And this stems from how you mother had to act like you didn't matter to the family..."

"Because I'm a bastard to their eyes, a mere child not born with the same father," Clara stated as she took another sip from the glass before tossing it to the floor, the glass shattering, "The nerve.. they believe that love should stay fixated on one person, just smothering that person with the desires instead of genuine care, which is why my mother got pressured to stay with that man until her poor heart couldn't take it anymore, it sickens me..!"

Dragon Slayer nodded before smirking at Clara, "Which is why you're glad that he's dead"

"Of course, and getting away from my older brothers certainly helped, but that gave them time to mold my poor sister into someone else," Clara stated with a hint of regret seeping into her voice, "I wish I could have done something for her, but I couldn't stay there anymore, not while that have the mental image of me with my blood surrounding me"

"That's quite disturbing..." Dragon Slayer commented, arching her eyebrows.

Clara exhaled through her nose before looking at the amber-eyed Anomaly, "Sadly, I've thought more about it and it's not out of the realm of possibilities, I fear that I won't see the end of this decade through"

"Don't say that, I won't let it happen to you if the time ever arises," Dragon Slayer told her, her expression turning grim for a moment before her smirk regrew, "Besides, you have a living god here as your guardian angel, if you can consider me that; nothing will ever happen to you..."

Dragon Slayer's words caused Clara to frown severely, the woman's eyes narrowing at the amber-eyed Anomaly, "Don't ever call yourself a god; I asked for God to save my aunt and uncle, but they would up getting prosecuted while being executed in their home,, the amount of lives lost in the war will haunt everyone for the rest of their lives.. to me, there are no gods that exist in this world, your life's sealed by either old age, or some event that will lead to your death"

"... Very well, but understand that I won't give up protecting you, I always keep my promises," Dragon Slayer told Clara, smiling a bit.

Clara didn't say anything as she walked up to the amber-eyed Anomaly, leaning in close to her left ear, "Don't make promises that you can't exactly keep, you know your raison d'etre and followed through with it, so what is left..?"

Kanna watched as the image of Dragon Slayer faded away while Clara walked back into the mansion, the amber-eyed Anomaly looking somber for a moment as she watched the doors close behind the brown-haired woman, the woman heading off to the couch and sitting down on it with her hand down, her hands covering her face as she silently sobbed. The young woman standing on the porch wished she could do something, but that thought disappeared when she watched the image fade away like a dream, an empty space that's littered with hovering mirrors all around her, a sunset-like sky handing above her head as Kanna looked around, wondering where she wound up at now. She remembered the place for when Icicle tried to capture both her and Dragon Slayer after they managed to best Gold Saw, so she tried to focus on getting out of the area considering how the place seemed to creep her out, but after a few minutes of focusing her mind on getting out of the area, nothing happened. Kanna sighed in frustration before walking away from the mirrors that were beside her, half expecting to find her way out as she looked around, trying to see if there was anything else in the area aside from the mirrors, but she couldn't spot anything from her line of sight, which bothered her as she didn't expect to wound up in the middle of nowhere. Kanna was truly lost in her thoughts, so when she felt a hand grab her right shoulder, many thoughts started running through her head until she got turned around, and her eyes focused on a very irritated Dragon Slayer, who looked like someone just violated her in the worst way that's imaginable.

Before Kanna could say anything and try to defend herself, Dragon Slayer barred her teeth and poked her forehead while saying, "Why are you even here, leave..!"

Kanna's head snapped up from the desk it was resting on, causing her mumble out cries of pain as she grabbed the back of her neck while rubbing the placed that Dragon Slayer poked her at, well aware that Dragon Slayer knows what she's done and isn't too pleased about it, which will probably result in some frostiness from the amber-eyed Anomaly until she calms down and goes back to how she normally is. Sighing in slight irritation that mixed with exasperation, Kanna leaned back on her chair while keeping a hand to the back of her neck, trying to soothe it from when she woke up, staring up at the ceiling as she thought about what she saw and how different Dragon Slayer was in that dream, if it can even be called a dream. The way that Clara and Dragon Slayer were conversing, the way their clothing looked different from modern clothes, and how angry the amber-eyed Anomaly was afterwards made it seemed like it was a personal memory than a dream, but Kanna was only grasping straws since there isn't a lot that she can go by. Frowning to herself, Kanna pushed up in the chair and got off it, walking towards the map like she did hours ago as she analyzed what's been written and marked down on the giant slip of paper, her eyes going over areas that's circled and the lines that she made with the marker, trailing one line with her index finger. Kanna's focus on the map and the information placed on there by both her and Dragon Slayer allowed her to ignore just about everything, so when Geshumaru knocked on the door before entering, Kanna's eyes were still glued to the map that she pinned up, shifting to different points where she placed the thumbtacks through.

"Uh... Kanna..?" Geshumaru said, arching an eyebrow at the amount of attention the young woman was giving to the map.

Kanna jumped a bit before turning around to face Geshumaru, "Gah, don't scare me like that..!"

"Well, I was trying to catch your attention, but it seems focused on something else," Geshumaru stated as she walked towards the desk, hopping on top of it, which didn't seem like a good idea once Geshumaru heard it groan a bit, "So.. what is it that you're trying to figure out from the map, it's not like we will magically find this weapon if it is somewhere in the city..."

"Even so, if we can get some sort of radius, then that really narrows the search area," Kanna told Geshumaru as she cupped her chin, looking up a bit, "I was thinking that the three of us head back to the city and do some scouting, especially since we know Icicle did focus on the park, school, hospital, and the residential district"

Geshumaru looked back at Kanna, blinking, "So, we're gonna explore the places that we didn't go to?"

"Yeah, I was thinking we could check out the shops and the downtown area for anything that could help us, but I'm not placing my bets on us finding anything useful," Kanna told Geshumaru, turning away from the map, "Icicle's too good to leave us breadcrumbs, and we're a bit handicapped as is..."

"You're talking about B RS not being here, and Mato completely taking her place..?" Geshumaru asked, figuring that even Kanna is thinking the same thing like Dragon Slayer.

"Yeah, well.. I don't necessarily share her reaction towards the news, and I don't know much about Mato to understand if she can handle being an indefinite replacement," Kanna admitted, scratching the back of her head, "So, what do you know about Mato, has she.. ever been in my position..?"

Geshumaru hopped off the desk and turned fully to face Kanna, "Only once really, and that's something I barely got information on"

"Well, give me what you got," Kanna told her, leaning up against the wall as she crossed her arms.

"All I know is that this occurred in the Otherworld and she fought against Shooter, who wasn't herself at the time in a way," Geshumaru told Kanna, shrugging a bit before turning towards the door, "I can't get into specifics because this was before I hunted down Shooter, even trying to keep an eye on her didn't help all that much considering the Otherworld was quite fractured..."

"So even they fought," Kanna said mostly to herself before focusing on Geshumaru again, "Thanks, I probably don't need all the details, but if did fight before, then maybe we got a bit of a leeway"

"Well, I gonna go wake up Mato and tell her what you're planning, but she might not like it," Geshumaru told Kanna before walking towards the door, leaving the office.

Kanna nodded as she watched Geshumaru open the door before exiting the room, and once the door completely closed behind the blue-eyed Anomaly's back, Kanna went back to her thoughts and focused them on Mato and what little she learned, trying to think of a plan to work their handicap to their advantage. She knows that Mato has some experience and was in her position before, but given how Geshumaru stated that it only happened once, there's not a lot that the young woman could really plan that would work, only having a few options before her. Two of those possibilities could have worked if there wasn't a city full of people who act as Icicle's eyes, and the battery life on their cell phones is quite limited since there's no possible way to charge them, and even her laptop won't last any longer from what got charged. Having only one possible plan could put them at a disadvantage if things don't pan out, but if Mato could find a way to bypass the restrictions that the real world side to the limbo world and make use of B RS's abilities, then they really won't have that much of a problem. Even so, Kanna was dissecting the idea and trying to go over each part in her head, trying to create a scenario that could benefit them without outright screwing them over if they wound up getting into a fight, especially since they don't want Icicle coming in and screwing things up beyond belief.

"I guess that if we need some progress, I gotta play on the same field with Dragon Slayer and Icicle," Kanna thought as she turned around and looked at the map, her eyes focusing on it before staring down at the floor, a sigh escaping her lips, "Fuck my life..."

---

"Is everything ready..?" Icicle inquired, staring through the window and observing the streets below.

Saya nodded, staring forward through the window, "Yes, it's set up as you wanted"

Icicle nodded as she waved Saya away and stared down at the street, where people were moving about as cars passed through the road, going about their day while remaining oblivious to what goes on in the shadows unless something catches the malevolent other self's attention. To her, the real selves that went on with their lives were nothing more than mere watchdogs playing in a field, and this was separate from their role as a medium for her continued existence in the real world, despite trying to meld it with the Otherworld so her plans could progress as she wanted. Stepping away from the window, the malevolent other self turned around and stared at the lifeless body that offered many things to her, the husk's shadow connected to her as a sign that Icicle now controls the body and even uses it as her own. Despite the advantages that it offers, Icicle couldn't comprehend the emotions that's shrouded by the anger and determination that I.B RS primarily showed, and the way that they influenced her was unbecoming as she remembered her actions towards Saya when discussing about Gold Saw's brutality and her theory on making others just as lifeless as I.B RS. While separated from the body, she couldn't feel anything just from remembering the experience, which caused her to remain cautious about the body that she uses as a second skin, since she's not sure about the effects that using it would have on her long-term.

"It seems that Anomalies will remain as they are, and I certainly wish that I could make use of them," Icicle thought to herself before looking back out through the window, "Either way, it won't make much of a difference..."

Icicle started walking towards the lifeless body when she froze, not moving a muscle before relaxing, "It seems we have guests, time to welcome them back..."

She didn't have to focus on everyone that's moving around outside to know her subordinates are already taking action, but that didn't stop her from sending a message to them as she slowly inserted herself into the body, phasing into it.

---

"Alright, we're here, but we can't just take off just yet since I need to explain to you two how this is going to work," Kanna told them, turning around so she could face the two that was behind her, "Frankly, we all know how much of a disadvantage we're at, and not to mention, there's only three of us that can physically appear depending on the situation, so we're splitting off-"

"Whoa, the hell are you saying..?!" Geshumaru nearly shouted, reining it in as the thought of giving away their location passed through her head.

Mato started shaking her head furiously, instantly disapproving the idea, "No, I don't care if I'm the weakest link out of us three, we stick together..!"

Kanna could feel her left eyebrow twitch as the two started sharing their thoughts, unaware that she didn't share her plan fully, "Hey, can you two let me finish speaking..?"

Mato and Geshumaru stared at her for a moment before relenting, allowing Kanna the chance to speak and finish what she was saying, "Alright, now that I can continue from where I got cut off from.. we are splitting up, but I'll keep watch over Mato"

Geshumaru could slowly see what Kanna was getting at when she finished speaking, well aware that the young woman was practically leaving her alone to go searching around any places they haven't been at, but that was second compared to the tension that surrounded Mato, Kanna, and Dragon Slayer. Geshumaru knows that no one can turn back time and fixed anything that's already been done, so Kanna was taking the initiative to get Mato alone with her so they could probably talk and get through whatever is troubling the blue-eyed teenager. The only variable in this idea that Kanna managed to think up without the amber-eyed Anomaly's help is if Mato is willing to talk to her, because there's an air of distrust that Dragon Slayer started and never really hid from anyone, so Geshumaru can't really predict if anything will happen from it. Looking towards the girl in question, she could see the surprised look on her face, but that only masked the slight worry at what could come from Kanna since the blue-eyed teenager knows she made things complicated, assaulting the young woman the way she did. Biting her lower lip, Mato stared up at Kanna's eyes in a worried way while expecting to find some hidden desire from the young woman, but she couldn't see the things that Dragon Slayer or Geshumaru could see, so gave up and let out a sigh full of resignation.

"Alright, but what about Geshumaru..?" Mato asked, showing a look of confusion that wouldn't fit B RS.

"Well.. Geshumaru, did you bring your cell phone..?" Kanna asked, taking out her own cell phone and shaking it slightly with her hand.

Geshumaru nodded, but their conversation slowly derailed as Mato looked at them, feeling slightly betrayed, "Hey, what about me..?!"

"I'm keeping an eye on you while we explore, so I highly doubt you would need your cell," Kanna said, her tone indicating that it seemed like the most obvious thing to anyone, "Besides, this is so that if any of us is nearing danger, we can alert the other and rush to their aid at a safe spot.. it's not fool-proof, but we're gonna make our search quick and zip around the uncharted spot before they can zero in on us..."

Geshumaru tossed Mato a sympathetic gaze, "Sorry, I kinda knew beforehand, but not us splitting up..."

"That's.. that's okay, I just didn't expect this," Mato said, trying to let out a smile.

"Look, we're just gonna explore what we haven't reached and hopefully get back without any problems," Kanna told them, grateful that they were following her line of thinking, "Geshumaru, if you feel like the situation isn't in your favor, cut off your powers and hide.. they're more than likely to become bloodhounds if you wound up in an unavoidable fight"

Geshumaru nodded before taking a few steps to the right, getting her legs working before she dashed off with her eyes bearing the determination that the three of them need now, her hair billowing as she disappeared from both Kanna's and Mato's line of sight, both of them waving to her before running off in the opposite direction, focused on their task at hand. Kanna looked around as they weaved through the streets while trying to avoid any contact with the people roaming around now, feeling the sun beaming down on them as they reached another street with cars passing them on the road, their eyes wandering as the young woman tried to figure out where to go next from where they are at. Mato was ready to run off in one direction until Kanna grabbed her by the sleeve of her jacket and shook her head, gesturing to the blue-eyed teenager that she should follow her and take it slowly since they don't want to trip up and bump into someone, and that's certainly something that Mato wants to avoid since dealing with Icicle will be a pain in itself. Kanna started walking to her left with Mato following closely behind her, the girl looking around as they weaved through the sidewalk, the amount of people moving about not bothering either of them as they focused on getting to the next intersection, and to Mato, it looked like they were heading downtown. Despite observing the area and trying to focus on just exploring the surrounding area, Mato still felt a bit uneasy since they kept going back to the lion's den while knowing the risks they were taking every time they go back to the city, looking for something that no one is sure is even placed somewhere in the city.

"Hey Mato, we need to talk, and don't try avoid it either," Kanna told her, keeping her voice low as she caught the teenager's attention, "Also, try your best to keep your voice low, that especially means that if you wound up feeling shocked, surprised, or angry, you got to contain it..."

Mato was unsure for a moment before nodding, understanding what Kanna meant, "What do you want to talk about..?"

"About what happened when I went crazy and tried to kill you, B RS, and Geshumaru," Kanna told her, noticing her Mato's eyes widened slightly, "Listen, about what I said.. I don't really regret it"

"What, but you were saying that everything that I'm showing is a lie and that I'm afraid of becoming like Roc- B RS..!" Mato said, catching herself on the near slip-up.

Kanna frowned a bit as she walked around a person nearing her, "Listen, I don't regret what I said.. but it seems that you think that what I said is a lie..."

"It is..!" Mato hissed slightly, frowning while glaring a bit at the young woman she nearly stands with head to head now.

"Then tell me this, from the limited time that we had to know each other, do you really think that I could say something like that..?" Kanna inquired, splitting of from Mato for a moment as they navigated around another person.

Mato blinked, not sure how to answer the question, "Um, well..."

"Because I don't, I wasn't myself and it seems like my actions and tonality at that time was similar to someone else," Kanna told Mato, who looked lost in her thoughts until a light appeared in her eyes, now understanding what the young woman was getting to, "I'm not like Dragon Slayer, and I invaded her personal thoughts, which I had no right to.. so whatever got you in a frenzy with me, just drop it, because it isn't good for all of us in the long run"

Mato nodded before frowning, "It's always Dragon Slayer, ugh.. I'm sorry Kanna"

"Eh, it happened, but it's better to focus on the now since we got problems before us that needs to disappear," Kanna said as she gestured around, the various buildings and wide space indicating that they reached to downtown section of the city, "Now, let's get this done and head to the next spot..."

As both Kanna and Mato took their next step, they started shivering as they thought about what just happened a few seconds ago when they felt like they just passed through something cold and barely solid, the lighting in the area dimming as a crushing weight forced them down to their knees, their faces contorting in pain as they tried to look up and see if anyone else was reacting the same way that they were. What caught their attention wasn't just the dimmed lighting, but how there was no one in the area as they slowly got back to the feet and struggled to walk on, but the more they moved forward and tried fighting against whatever it is that's forcing them down, the harder it got to fight against it. Focusing on what's going on and trying to fight against the pressure, Kanna could smell something that made her sick to her stomach and caused the urge to throw up where she stood rise; the smell of death lingering around the dimmed downtown intersection affecting both her and Mato to an incomprehensible degree. Before Kanna knew what was going on, she felt Dragon Slayer wake up and replace her in the limbo world, the amber-eyed Anomaly gritting her teeth as she brought out her broadsword and swung with all her might towards the sky, the pressure weakening before it disappeared, but the attack didn't change the area in any way aside from eradicating the unnatural force that tried to crush them. Mato dropped to her knees and started dry heaving as she struggled to figure out what just happened, only looking up when she saw Dragon Slayer near her before extending a helping hand towards the girl, a gaze full of apathy bearing down upon the blue-eyed teenager.

"It's best to accept it without thinking, even if you hate me now for everything that Kanna said," Dragon Slayer told Mato, her expression remained plastered to her face.

[So you were listening in, not that I have a problem with that, but I could make do without the grumpiness.. or apathy...]

"I'll deal with you later, so don't interrupt this moment," Dragon Slayer told Kanna before focusing on Mato, "I hate you, I think you go against what real selves should mean for their partners, and you choose to remain ignorant of what's set before you.. but this situation isn't about that, it's about Icicle and the end of everything, so focus on her before focusing on me"

"Well, screw you Dragon Slayer, because I don't care, so take every damn that I should give and shove it..!" Mato roared, glaring up at the amber-eyed Anomaly as she slapped the helping hand away, like it was something that merely offended her.

Dragon Slayer growled as the hand that Mato slapped away whipped towards her head and grabbed it, pulling the blue-eyed teenager closer to the Anomaly until she felt it impact the asphalt, causing pain to course through the back of her head as she looked up at the amber-eyed Anomaly, watching Dragon Slayer's eyes just focus on her as the pupils dilated. Mato could feel Dragon Slayer's aura trying to suffocate her as it slowly spread itself from the amber-eyed Anomaly, but what frightened her even more than the aura was how there was no emotion within the amber-colored orbs she was staring into, how they seemed to get locked away instantly without provocation. It was like she was staring into a vast emptiness similar to that of Icicle's, the only difference being that Dragon Slayer doesn't have a body temperature akin to that of a freezing winter, but felt more like the slow eradication of magma that's flowing from a volcano, burning away anything that stood in its path. For a moment, Mato was sure that Dragon Slayer was going to kill her as she felt the amber-eyed Anomaly dig her fingers into her skull, but that disappeared when the older being seemed to calm down and let go of her, which allowed Mato to step back in fear because she didn't want to lose her life, but the focus of her fear shifted when she noticed Dragon Slayer glaring at something that's behind her. Getting up from the road, Mato kept staring at both Gold Saw and Dead Master as she slowly made her way back to Dragon Slayer, paranoia coursing through her head as she tried to figure out what's going on, but her paranoia stopped for a moment when the onder being stepped forwards and pushed Mato behind her.

"Again, I don't care if you hate me, stay directly behind me and don't run away," Dragon Slayer told Mato, lifting her broadsword as the tip focused on the two other selves, "If it's these two, then I can handle them..."

[They showed up too quickly, so Icicle already knew that we were here.. Dragon Slayer, I don't like these implications...]

"I know, but we certainly are getting closer to our goal, now let's focus on the matter at hand," Dragon Slayer told her partner as her eyes narrowed at both Gold Saw and Dead Master, "You two chose a bad day to go against me, I'm not in the most 'cheerful' mood..."

"Well, the moment you three stepped into the city again, we we're notified to watch you all before taking action," Dead Master told Dragon Slayer, twirling her scythe in one hand, "Nice try on trying to bypass our system though, but splitting up was a horrible idea when you think about it"

Dragon Slayer took one glance at Mato, "If you interfere, you'll wound up dead and I'll never forgive you..!"

Time ran out for Dragon Slayer as she noticed both Dead Master and Gold Saw rushing towards her with their weapons drown, but that wasn't what troubled her, because the person that was watching her defend against both other selves before pushing them away noticed that subtle shift in Dragon Slayer's demeanor, something that she couldn't describe as a black crown formed around Dragon Slayer's head: the drive to kill.

---

Geshumaru leaned up against the wall of a house, hiding away from both STR and Chariot so they couldn't spot her and place her in a troublesome position, especially since Kanna wanted to avoid any fight against them and Icicle if possible, but considering their luck recently and how the two other selves started hunting her down, she had to think that they already knew that they were back in the city. The moment she saw the two jumping around above her, trying to track her down, Geshumaru immediately did what Kanna told her while running off in a different direction, her powers hidden away from their senses, but that only made her situation similar to a game of needle in a haystack. Pulling out her cell phone while looking around for any sign of STR or Chariot, Geshumaru started running from her hiding place and started calling Kanna, trying to alert her about them being compromised until she felt something that caused her blood to go cold, her thoughts racing as she dashed away from the residential district and started making her way downtown, not caring if anyone finds out where she's heading towards. Reaching the road, Geshumaru timed herself as she jumped on top of the car's rooftops as they kept going, people keeping an eye on her and muttering words to each other, but she was less focused on them and more focus the familiar killing intent that she was picking up. Her actions certainly caught both STR and Chariot's attention when they finally found her and started chasing after the blue-eyed Anomaly, because they weren't sure how to respond to Geshumaru's actions considering that, despite being enemies, they know that Dragon Slayer was showing that she won't hold back and will kill anyone that gets in her way.

Geshumaru kept on running as she was able to make out Dragon Slayer's form from where she was at, the form becoming more visible as she got closer and she could clearly see Mato hiding behind Dragon Slayer as the amber-eyed Anomaly got attacked by both Gold Saw and Dead Master, the latter circling around as she raised her scythe so she could behead the older being, which prompted Mato to duck before she gets caught up in it. Dragon Slayer noticed the attack and flipped her grip on her broadsword so she could block the attack and hold at bay while keeping her focus on Gold Saw, reaching out with her right hand to grab King Saw before it could cover the foot necessary to reach her head. Dragon Slayer growled before turning as she locked up Dead Master's scythe with her broadsword before sending her flying towards a building, while bringing Gold Saw up to the air before smacking her against the asphalt, cracking it as chunks of the road flew up to the air before dropping down around the amber-eyed Anomaly. Geshumaru could see how Dragon Slayer was tearing apart both Gold Saw's and Dead Master's defenses in a systematic fashion, her eyes showing no sympathy nor empathy as she raised her broadsword slightly before thrusting it towards Gold Saw's head, and the blue-eyed Anomaly was sure she heard STR scream slightly in fright before calming down as she watched the red-eyed other self roll away before the attack pierced her. Dragon Slayer took a couple of steps back while keeping her eyes focused on Gold Saw, who was getting back up while flicking away the blood flowing a bit from the cut she sustained from the amber-eyed Anomaly, her eyes widening slightly as she realized who exactly she was dealing with now.

"Even if you trained endlessly, just so you can fight me on equal ground, you would still lose," Dragon Slayer told Gold Saw, who merely gritted her teeth, "Go ahead, tempt fate because the moment you do so, this broadsword is going straight through your heart..!"

[Dragon Slayer, we're not going to kill them, hold back now..!]

"No, Icicle wants to toy with us, then I'll make this statement so she understand who she's dealing with..!" Dragon Slayer roared as she and Gold Saw dashed towards each other, ready to continue their fight.

Before either of them could clash blades with the other, the moment got interrupted when a trail of blue fire separated to two combatants from each other, causing Dragon Slayer to look towards Geshumaru with anger seeping into her eyes until it got replaced by shock as she tried to move towards the blue-eyed Anomaly, only to find herself standing still as she slowly lost control over her body. Before she could try to take back control, Dragon Slayer felt Geshumaru kick her off her legs and drop her to the ground, getting on top of the amber-eyed Anomaly as she restrained her arms before she could try anything, causing the older being to glare up at Geshumaru until she got slapped across the face. Turning her hand back so she could stare up at Geshumaru, she could see the worried expression that was on the blue-eyed Anomaly's face and understood what she was doing, feeling the weight of all the stress tiring her out slowly as she stopped struggling, which allowed her to hear a sigh full of relief echoing in her head. Mato could only watch everything unfold as the fire that acted as a separator for both sides started growing weaker, but her eyes remained fixated on Geshumaru bringing Dragon Slayer up to her feet again, the amber-eyed Anomaly regaining control over Kanna's body as she settled on glaring at Geshumaru, despite knowing what the young Anomaly was trying to convey. After all, she rather take a verbal lashing for attempting to kill someone they don't want dead, and Dragon Slayer knows that it's coming, but she allowed herself to wait for Geshumaru to regain her bearing and figure out what she wants to say to her.

"The hell was that, do you want to cause us more problems..?!" Geshumaru roared, not restraining her anger as she glared up at Dragon Slayer.

Dragon Slayer narrowed her eyes at the blue-eyed Anomaly, crossing her arms, "Humph, well excuse me for venting out all the stress that's been building up in me, besides, this war was never easy to being with..."

[Dragon Slayer, that's bullshit and you know it...]

"Quite you, no comment for those who didn't resolve the issue before it escalated into a bloodbath," Dragon Slayer shot back at Kanna before refocusing on Geshumaru, "Either way, I'm done with icicle's antics and I will punctuate my point in any way that I desire, and you can't stop me completely"

"It doesn't matter, if we're fixing this damn world, then we got to make sure things stay the same without something cataclysmic that shifts the focus," Geshumaru told her, pointing up at her without holding back her anger.

"So, we agree to disagree, right..?" Dragon Slayer inquired while arching an eyebrow, gripping the handle to her broadsword tightly.

Geshumaru groaned in frustration as she looked up at the sky, "Obviously..!"

The fire disappeared and the two Anomalies had a shift in their attitude as they turned around and attacked the other selves that were on the other side, waves full of their energy impacting them as Dragon Slayer surrounded Mato while keeping their guards up, both of them focused on their task as the four other selves started encircling them with their weapons ready. Mato wasn't sure how Dragon Slayer could change her attitude so easily, but it seemed that the aura she was letting out was receding back into her, so the blue-eyed teenager was grateful the Geshumaru managed to cool down and get through Dragon Slayer, but that doesn't change anything that happened before she got here. Dragon Slayer practically admitted that everything that Kanna said was actually the Anomaly's thoughts and even punctuates that she doesn't care if Mato likes or hates her for speaking her thoughts, the amber-eyed Anomaly was going to stay focused on the main task and deal with her afterwards once everything with Icicle gets settled and the world goes back to normal. Not to mention how Dragon Slayer wasn't holding back against both Gold Saw and Dead Master with her defense-based attacks, and how she's able to turn a handicapped match to her advantage by just a few simple movements as she dissect their defenses with her eyes before capitalizing on an opening. Dragon Slayer kept her eyes focused on Gold Saw and Dead Master while Geshumaru looked back and forth between both STR and Chariot, both Anomalies trying to think of a way to turn the fight in their favor since they don't have that exact variable to help them out, unless Mato can try to use B RS's powers despite the limitations placed on all of them.

"So Geshumaru, what's the chances of us coming out of this unscathed..?" Dragon Slayer asked, keeping her broadsword leveled.

"That depends on mow much we're gambling with," Geshumaru told Dragon Slayer before a question formed in her head, "Any idea on when Icicle will show up and send everything straight to hell..?"

Dragon Slayer chose not to answer and let a smirk grow upon her lips, "Well, it seems for the second time in my life, there's an excitement that I just can't resist..!"

Like her words were the hammer to a gun that just fired, Gold Saw and Dead Master dashed towards Dragon Slayer as their eyes glowed slightly, but that didn't deter the Anomaly as she brought her broadsword up and blocked their attack, sparks flying as the two weapons started cutting into the broadsword before they jumped away to collect themselves, playing it more cautiously than before. For a moment, Dragon Slayer could hear that clashing of bades coming from behind her before they stopped, and she could hear the tiny mechanical shifts that indicated something to both her and Geshumaru, the latter picking up Mato from the ground as they jumped away to avoid the barrage of bullets that STR sent their way, the tiny pieces of metal ripping the road apart before the white-haired other self stopped firing so she could locate them. Dragon Slayer peeks from the edge of a building before pulling back while restraining her power so she doesn't give away their location, looking back towards Mato and Geshumaru who were lying flat against the rooftop, staring up at the amber-eyed Anomaly as she shook her head to tell them they haven't been found since STR fired, which bought them some time to cover some distance from the downtown area and regroup. Dragon Slayer got up only to the point where she's just crouching and made her way towards Mato and Geshumaru, an idea forming that's very risky that they could lose everything if it falls apart, or will work if the amber-eyed Anomaly pulls just the right strings that works to their advantage, or at least to her own advantage. Reaching them, they looked up at her with expectation in their eyes, wondering what she was planning while preparing themselves for a worse-case scenario, only because Dragon Slayer could plan something that could screw one of them over for a better result in the end.

"Geshumaru, you and I will work in a tandem, adjusting our styles slightly to beat them into submission," Dragon Slayer told Geshumaru before looking at Mato, "Mato, you stay here flat against the rooftop, but stay out in the open so you don't get pulled into the shadows if Icicle intervene..."

"Eh, but I'm still at risk either way," Mato said, her eyes widening.

Geshumaru frowned slightly, "I understand what you're getting at, but leaving Mato alone won't help us..."

"And having her with us causes the potential of death to rise dramatically," Dragon Slayer stated, "I'm sorry, but it's one or the other, and you know my choice.. just try to put up with it..."

Mato frowned and Geshumaru wasn't sure what to say to her as she got up and walked with Dragon Slayer to the edge of the roof, their powers flowing through their veins as they jumped off the roof and dashed down the street, flaring their power as they raised their weapons while grabbing the each others' opposite hand. Chariot noticed the two Anomalies nearing them and started dashing towards the duo, causing the remaining other selves to notice as the blonde-haired other self watched Geshumaru take the forefront, ready to clash blades with each other. Chariot was too ready to take on Geshumaru, so when the blue-eyed Anomaly focused all of her strength to bring Dragon Slayer in front of her, the yellow-eyed other self got caught off guard as the older being used her broadsword and batted Chariot away, slashing her hips a bit. Chariot could feel the pain coursing through her as she watched Dragon Slayer toss Geshumaru towards STR, the blue-eyed Anomaly getting on top of the right Ogre Arm before slashing the left one in half, causing the white-haired other self to scream in shock. STR shook off Geshumaru from her remaining Ogre Arm, but it didn't do much as the blue-eyed Anomaly wound up linking hands again with Dragon Slayer as they started making their way towards both Gold Saw and Dead Master, the two other selves ready to take on anything the duo can toss at them.

Geshumaru and Dragon Slayer remained impassive as they started swinging the other in front of themselves, alternating depending on who's in front and putting all of their strength into bringing the other to the forefront, her eyes focused on the two other selves before them. Dead Master's eyes started wandering between the two Anomalies that were nearing them while Gold Saw merely stood her ground before them, well aware of what they were doing as the two Anomalies finally separated from each other. Dead Master hastily raised her Dead Scythe to defend herself as Geshumaru tried to slash at her with her katana, while Gold Saw took a step back as Dragon Slayer stabbed at where she was, lifting her broadsword out of the asphalt as she eyed the red-eyed other self. Gold Saw shifted from one side to another before rushing towards Dragon Slayer, clashing blades with her as the amber-eyed Anomaly took focused steps while dissecting Gold Saw's defenses with her eyes, her movements slow and prolific as she jumped back before readjusting her stance. Once readjusting her stance, Dragon Slayer took off towards Gold Saw and pulled her broadsword back, the blade splitting up as a faint amber-colored glow shined through the openings, shrouding the entire weapon in light as she slashed at the red-eyed other self.

"Understand this Gold Saw, the longer you stay in the shadows, the more you lose your sense of self..!" Dragon Slayer roared as her broadsword connected with horned other self's King Saw.

Gold Saw could feel her eyes widening as she watched Dragon Slayer's broadsword cut through her King Saw like it was nothing, the attack sending the horned other self into a building as the blade retracted, the internal mechanism moving to close the openings it formed. Dragon Slayer looked back towards Geshumaru and merely admire the work the blue-eyed Anomaly was displaying in her fight against Dead Master, moving away from a vertical slash before circling around to strike at her midsection. Dead Master stepped back to avoid the attack before spinning her scythe around as she aimed for Geshumaru's arms, trying to find an opening within the Anomaly's defense while eying the entire area. Chariot looked ready to fight and STR broken Ogre Arm was rebuilding itself, but seeing how Dragon Slayer was still active and looked no different from when she took on Gold Saw, it was obvious that they were apprehensive about interfering against them while the amber-eyed Anomaly is still around. If Gold Saw was around to help them out, then they're willing to jump in while they're recovering, but the horned other self was unconscious from Dragon Slayer's attack, and that left them all in a compromised situation.

"Hey, stay focused on me..!" Geshumaru shouted, catching Dead Master's attention as she rushed in with a horizontal slash.

Dead Master gritted her teeth in frustration as she jumped back, "You..!"

"I noticed how you guys split into two teams, like you were expecting us to separate," Geshumaru commented as she traded blows with Dead Master, "But I guess you didn't expect us to think of counter-measures, ones that we didn't say out in the open..?"

"Kanna is the variable in all of this, and I'm quite surprised how Icicle isn't taking her into account since she's quite resourceful with her interests," Dragon Slayer commented as she went through Kanna's memories, "The girl has a knack for photography, but certainly needs a bit of help with layout and finding places.. and what's the one thing that people commonly use to work against that..?"

Geshumaru narrowed her eyes at Dead Master, "I guess we don't have to explain anymore since it's obvious now..."

Dead Master gritted her teeth as she tried to hold her ground while Geshumaru focused all of her power to push the green-eyed other self into submission, the scythe cracking under pressure from the force of the blue-eyed Anomaly's attack, the strength pushing the Dead Scythe to its limits. Before Dead Master could prepare herself, the scythe shattered from the pressure placed upon it, disappearing from the green-eyed other self's hands as Geshumaru slashed at her, a wave full of concentrated energy sending her back several meters from where she was standing. Chariot and STR were ready to fight, but they couldn't do much as Dragon Slayer was already up close to them, a smile gracing her lips as she fired balls of raw energy, sending them back and away from the fight, which seemed to end with Geshumaru finishing her fight with Dead Master. Dragon Slayer couldn't help but noticed how there was a sense of relief and worry coursing throughout her body, but she decided to focus more on the relief since she already went through a lot within the past dozen or so hours, and getting that one moment of relaxation was worth it. Geshumaru looked up towards the building that Mato was laying down upon and jumped over there for a moment before bringing the blue-eyed teenager over to Dragon Slayer, getting the group together after everything that they went through.

"So, Kanna planned all of this..?" Mato asked, looking back and forth between the two Anomalies.

"Aside from us getting compressed in the downtown area by some unknown force, my stress, and this entire fight.. pretty much," Dragon Slayer admitted, shrugging slightly, "She only figured out the parts that she knows required some planning while leaving the rest for me and Geshumaru to fill, considering our instincts when it comes to a fight..."

[And thanks for flourishing what little ego that I have...]

"Again, I'll deal with you once I get the chance," Dragon Slayer told the pleased Kanna before dropping back to reality and continuing from where she left off, "So, we probably got some information to work with, now we just need to map it out"

Geshumaru nodded, "And that will put us one step closer to ending this nightmare"

Mato felt like the odd man out in the conversation, but it didn't matter as she realized that they've made significant progress from before and it's all coming to light, even though there was one thing that hasn't been resolved yet that's still troubling for the entire group, and that was B RS's condition since she isn't around now. Even though she wanted to focus on B RS, her attention got drawn to how, aside from them, everyone in the area was gone and the damage got repaired, which caused a cold sensation to course through her body when she realized what was happening all around them. For a moment, she thought that both Dragon Slayer and Geshumaru was unaware of what was going on around them, but that changed when she noticed their narrowed eyes and the way they were gripping their swords, the tension growing all around them as they tried to figure out where Icicle was going to come from. Mato closed her eyes and tried to focus on the Rock Cannon's appearance as she tried to bring it out so she could use it, but the more focus she put on trying to think of its image, the harder it gets to have the weapon's image locked in her head, especially since it's the one weapon that she could really think of at the time. Dragon Slayer and Geshumaru noticed Mato keeping her eyes closed while her face contorted into a frustrated expression, but before they could ask the teenager what she was trying to pull off, they got blindsided as black tendrils sprouted from behind them and swatted the two Anomalies away, leaving Mato alone as Icicle slowly rose from the blue-eyed teenager's shadow, her form shocking Mato straight to the bone as every nightmare that Mato thought wasn't possible just came to life right before her.

"It time for the endgame, my 'real self'," Icicle said, mocking Mato slightly as she grabbed the girl and slowly moved back into the shadow, dragging the teenager with her.

Dragon Slayer recovered quickly from the attack and got back up to her feet before she rushed towards the sinking form of Mato, but before she could even get close, the black tendrils whipped around and blocked her path instantly, causing the Anomaly to stare as she watched Mato struggling to break away from the malevolent other self's grip, hopelessness creeping into the depths of her own soul. Mato could only look at Dragon Slayer just standing there with a black tendril blocking most of her view on the amber-eyed Anomaly, but it didn't matter for long as Icicle managed to drag her into her own shadow as everything got masked by the pitch darkness, cutting off the teenager's vision as she still felt Icicle having a firm grip on her until she lost consciousness. Dragon Slayer could only stare on until she narrowed her eyes at the black tendrils, feeling all the relief disappear as the stress that she thought was gone came rushing back, and she focused all her power as she pointed her broadsword at the tendrils, electricity sparking as an orb full of power started growing until it condensed into a mere baseball-size orb. Geshumaru got back up in time to see Dragon Slayer shooting the orb at the tendrils before everything became a blinding white for a moment, the tendrils eroding as the attack not just destroyed the mass created from Icicle controlling the shadows that was all around, but also ripped the asphalt from the road until there was nothing more than a crater where Mato once stood, until she got kidnapped. Geshumaru walked over to Dragon Slayer and looked around the area as she wondered what's next until she noticed people reappearing around the area, and what made it troubling for the two Anomalies was that the civilians that they tried to not bring into harm's way was heading towards them, and the look they were giving was saying anything except that of kindness.

"Dragon Slayer..." Geshumaru trailed off as she looked at the people who were starting to surround them.

"She's trying to delay us, and I will not stand for such folly," Dragon Slayer stated as she tightened her grip on her broadsword.

[Then let's stop this and find Mato..!]

Kanna's words acted as a trigger for Dragon Slayer as the blade to her broadsword separated, revealing the internal mechanism as the amber-eyed Anomaly pulled out the base sword that puts everything together, the sunlight beaming down upon it as the sheen shined gold for a moment, reflecting the color that was surrounding Dragon Slayers eyes as she swung at the air, blowing the people who were surrounding them away.

---

Rock wasn't sure how long she's been running until she felt her legs give out and she dropped to her knees on the sidewalk, her feet burning from all the running she did as she heard the cars zoom by on the road, but the pain that coursed through her body from her feet was only second to the memories stemming from the display of violence that she had to figure came from her. The more she thought about what happened and how she felt at the moment when adrenaline still coursed through her blood, the worse she felt as the urge to throw up boiled in her stomach, causing her to grimaced for a moment before she emptied the contents of her stomach on the sidewalk, drawing a mixed reaction from the people who just walked by her. She heaved for a moment as a trail of saliva remained on the lower lip before it snapped off, but that didn't matter to her as she slowly got up, regaining some strength in her legs as she looked around and took in the city, trying to remember a time when the city lights looked as beautiful as they are now, only to come up with a blank. What scared her was the lack of memories aside from what she has experienced today, her fear growing slightly as she tried to make sense of who she is as she slowly walked away from where she just threw up, a hand on her head as she looked up a bit while swaying slightly, dizziness settling in slowly as she tried to understand what's happening. Before she was even five meters away from her mess on the sidewalk, an explosion occurred on another street that connected to the one that she was walking down on, burning cars flying into buildings before exploding into a shower of smoke and debris, but it's was what came out from the explosion that surprised Rock as she remained where she was while everyone around her started running away.

The person that was walking out from the explosion had an unusual tank-top on with detached sleeves going down the length of her arms, down to her wrist as they slightly covered armored, skeletal-like hands, the right hand gripping what looked like a transparent broadsword. A white belt encircled around her waist while a short black skirt that barely covered the top of her thighs while her legs remained covered by white stocking that were hidden behind the metal greaves that acted like thigh-high boots, the heels piercing the ground slightly while the buzz-saw wheels acted as the base for it. Despite these things being a focal point in Rock's attention towards the girl stepping out from the explosion, it was actually her appearance that frightened the teenager as she noted how similar they looked towards each other, aside from the shorter hair style and the blue crown that the other girl had, but that didn't matter to her. The girl who stepped out from the explosion merely brushed herself off as she looked around, noticing all the people who were running away from the destruction that she caused until her eyes focused on Rock, which caused her eyes to widened before regaining an apathetic look to them, but there was a shine in them that the teenager standing on the sidewalk couldn't make out as the other girl started nearing her. For a moment, Rock tried to will her body to move away from the sidewalk and run along with everyone else as the girl neared her, but it didn't as a thought started running through her mind as she slowly remembered something before it disappeared from her mind, her attention drawn back to the girl who was reaching out for her.

"Are you..?" Rock started until she heard the click of guns before the police that arrived started firing at the girl who was nearing her.

The bullets punctured through the girl at multiple spots as blood sprayed out to the asphalt, pooling around the road, but Rock stared in morbid curiosity as she watched the bullets exit out of the girl's body, dropping to the ground as the multiple chinks resounded as the girl stepped away and raised her broadsword, the blade passing by the right side of her head before she slashed at the air. The swing didn't do anything physically until Rock watched the road get ripped apart by some unknown force as it moved towards the police, the cars getting ripped apart while the officers that fired at the girl wound up getting ripped apart, their limbs flying around as blood started layering around the road, which caused Rock to run away in shock of what she was witnessing. Rock didn't care that her feet was aching in pain, she wanted to get far away from the monster that caused all that destruction and murder without giving a second thought, her mind whirling as she turned at every possible street, not noticing how the streets seemed devoid of life. As she turned the next corner, Rock felt her body colliding against someone before she dropped to the sidewalk, which caused her to look up as she noticed her mother standing before her with a surprised expression on her face, honestly wondering what Rock was doing here as she lifted the teenager up from the ground. Rock still felt shaken up from what she just saw, but being around her mother was more comforting that staying behind and watching all the destruction occur before her eyes, which only left her with a hollow feeling in her gut.

"Rock, what are you doing here..?" Rock's mother asked her, arching an eyebrow.

"Kaa-san, I.. I just saw.. oh god..." Rock said as she tried to regain her bearings, the shock still overwhelming her.

Rock's mother arched an eyebrow until she heard an explosion, looking up to see the figure that's moving towards them, "Hun, is that..?"

Rock turned around and looked at the girl nearing them, her eyes widening in fear, "She.. she killed them all, she.. she..!"

"Rock, it's okay, your kaa-san will protect you," Rock's mother said as she pulled Rock closer to her with her left arm, her right hand covering the girl's eyes, "Now, just let me be your eyes..."

"NO, GET AWAY FROM HER!" The girl roared as her eyes widened in shock at what she was seeing.

Rock's mother opened her eyes as the girl started charging towards her with her broadsword creating a trail of blue fire along the road, anger clear in the girl's eyes as she glared at the red-orange orbs that belong to the person that held Rock close to her, the tension that surrounded the street being laced with heavy, malicious killing intent as they glared at each other. Rock couldn't understand what they were saying as her mind started becoming a fuzzy mess, unable to comprehend anything as her shock and fear got replaced by emotions that just filtered into her head, which caused an unconscious open smile to grace her lips as tears slowly streamed from her covered eyes, all the way down her cheeks as the water droplets hit the ground. The girl jumped and neared the two, her eyes stilled focused on Rock's "mother" as she swung her broadsword towards her, but it would never get the chance to connect as she felt her form disappearing from the area, causing a smile to grace to woman's lips as she removed her hand away from Rock's eyes. There was no light in Rock's eyes as they kept an empty, glaze look to them while her "mother" moved her hands to the girl's shoulders, pulling her in close as her features slowly changed into that of Icicle's, who merely stared at the unconscious girl with the smile remaining on her lips. She wasn't worried about what just occurred as she silently mused to herself while everything slowly repaired itself, a mere construct of Icicle's control over the mind that belongs to B RS.

"Even if I strip you of your memories, powers, and emotions, it seems that I can't gain full control over you," Icicle mused as she leaned in and rested her chin on top of Rock's head, her arms dangling around the teenager's neck, "But it won't matter, because everything is coming together as planned..."

---

Author's Note: Okay, so this is another 18K+ chapter that I managed to create in just four days, so that's something, but this chapter will also stop the massive binge I've been on in developing this story as I'll probably take a week break, but take that with a grain of salt. This chapter is really the menacing punch that will help tie all the sub-plots towards the end of this story, and believe me, I will find a way to make it amazing. Also, I'm a bit influenced by Kill la Kill and Black Lagoon if you can make out how they fit into this chapter, considering what I'm trying to work with. I guess I'll leave you guys hanging at this cliff-hanger, because I always got to keep the readers interested in the story. As usual, please review and I'll see you all next chapter.