Author's note: And so ends My Dragon God. For those of you who think Lucy went too easy on Natsu, let me remind you that they were best friends. Ever since they met in Haregon, they've been attached at the hip. Not only did Lucy smack him, she rejected his friendship and denied him her trust. That's a pretty big thing for Lucy. She is very forgiving and understanding. For her to turn her back on her closest friend and not forgive him is huge. I also kind if forgot to write in Lucy's parting words to her ex-best friend. She was supposed to tell him that even if Laxus died, she would never turn to him or anyone else. Oh well. Too late now. I hope you all still enjoyed the end.
Now lets get to the part you've all been dying for, yes? That's right! It's time for the sneak peek at one of my up-coming stories! The poll has been up since chapter 7 I believe, and some people voted for what they wanted to see. Unfortunately, the poll ended in a tie between Gift of the Dragon God and The Perfect Bride. I found this kind of surprising because I thought Key to War was going to be the most popular. Not that many people voted anyway, but still. So, I asked one of my friends and pre-reader to be the tie-breaker. bixlu lover has chosen...
*drum roll*
...
The Perfect Bride!
This story is basically a murder mystery and stalker story. I'm not sure who I'm going to pair Lucy with. She looks damn good with Laxus and Gajeel and suits both of them well. Admit it! She does!
So, without further adieu, may I present The Perfect Bride.
Enjoy. :3
Disclaimer: Anything you recognize is not mine. That's why it's called Fan Fiction.
Chapter 1
Gruesome Discovery
"That was Damien Dawn with his hit single, Your Heart! Let me tell you, this man is climbing up the charts and into women's hearts. In fact, the young star will be singing at the GMG this year. That's right, girls! Damien Dawn will be performing at the X792 Grand Magic Games! Just think that in just four short months, the top Guild's of Fiore will gather once more to duke it out. It sends chills down my spine thinking of last years competition and how Fairy Tail went from being zeros to heros! Speaking of Games, I've got two five-day tickets and backstage passes to meet the participating Guilds and Damien Dawn himself! Send me who you voted to see in the Games and you could win these…" Click
A young man looked up at the sudden lack of sound. The tension in his body vanished at the familiar face standing beside the quiet radio. "Dr. Collin, you're back from your trip! How's your granddaughter?"
"I had a wonderful time, Mr. Sanders. I love my little Cora, but that child is going to send me to an early grave." The doctor slipped on an apron and gloves, joining his assistant at the occupied table. "I would have stayed longer, but I had to return upon hearing of our poor Knight's demise. However, I do recall hearing that it was a male."
The younger man looked down. "Oh! This isn't the Knight. I've already done the autopsy and written the report. This is actually one of five dead girls found chained in one of the old bunkers under the city of Crocus."
"Ah, the abandoned bunkers. You know, those bunkers were created years ago for the royal family." As he spoke, began flipping through the late woman's chart. "It was created to hide the royal family should they ever be attacked by warring countries or even assassins. They were skillfully made, however, the locations were leaked and they had to build a new one. The location of the new haven is a close kept secret of the King, you know. Very few have knowledge of the entrance or even it's existence. Mr. Sanders, what was the MPS reading for this young lady?"
"Oh, I didn't scan her for Magic. A Knight said he scanned the prostitutes himself and found no Magic Power or traces."
The older grunted and pulled the Magic Power Sensor from a shelf. "Mr. Sanders, I taught you better! You always scan a body for Magic Power yourself! I bet you were going to transfer the information to their files, weren't you?" He held the lacrima over the corpse. Two numbers appeared, one atop the other. Both were single digits. "I'm going to scan the other girls. Put down the scalpel and write this down."
The assistant slumped and did as he was told, pulling off his bloody gloves. He stood beside the doctor, copying the results of each scan on the charts of the respective deceased. Dr. Collin was scolding his colleague for skipping such an important step in an autopsy when the lacrima beeped over the fifth and final woman. The doctor looked down in surprise and nearly dropped the lacrima. The first number representing the MPS had three digits! 429! The Magic Power Tracer read zero. "Oh, dear."
"What is it, Dr. Collin?"
"No Magic my arse! This lady was no prostitute! A Mage would never lower themselves to such a profession! This is why you perform the scans yourself!" The doctor held out the crystal for his subordinate to read. Dr. Collin stalked over to the desk and picked up the Crime Scene Report. He examined the papers, searching for the description of the women and their bondage. He read and re-read the same sentence seven times before closing the file and dropping it on his desk, his mind racing.
"Doctor?" The elder man looked up to see Mr. Sanders fiddling with the lacrima.
"Dr. Sanders, contact Captain Lahar and tell him it's an emergency."
The younger man nodded and left, holding the door open for two Knights guiding a rolling table with an occupied body bag on the metal slab. They dropped the file and all but ran from the room as soon as the doctor signed the forms. The old doctor went about something he'd done a thousand times and prepared the body for examination. He identified all odd markings on her body and copied it into a new chart. The older man sighed in grief. The girl looked to be in her late teens; much too young to have her life drained away. The exterior evaluation took a while to complete. The girl had several stab wounds on her back along with bruising on her wrists and a few minor scratches.
Overcome with a sense of curiosity, the doctor walked over to the first woman and read her chart. The woman was a brown-eyed blonde with a star tattoo below her naval. The doctor was skimming when something caught his eye.
Victim has four stab wounds along her back. Death was quick.
Dr. Collin placed the chart back on the hook and moved to the next girl; a green-eyed blonde.
Six stab wounds along the back in a seemingly random pattern.
On to the next he went, checking the charts and even looking at the punctures. The wounds were random but immaculate, as if the person had selected the placement of each wound and was careful with his or her precision. These girls were found after the Rune Knights received a complaint about a rancid smell in a certain area. It was estimated the women had been dead for around a month and had been locked in the bunker for even longer. Reading the chart again, the wounds appear to have been made by a leftie or someone ambidextrous.
"I'm sorry your lives ended in the hands of a serial killer, my dears."
A loud crack echoed in the vast room. Due to the barrier to prevent eavesdroppers, the sound was louder than normal. "Everyone, take your seats!" The dark-haired man glanced over the group of Mages before taking a seat alongside the only other non-Mage in the room, Dr. Collin.
The crowd quieted and claimed a chair around the incredibly large table. They each looked to the violet-eyed man at the tables head. Some portrayed irritation at the sudden meeting, others were curious, and a few were relaxed and rather bored. Gajeel and Rogue were two of those who were bored. While Gajeel simply sat back and propped his feet on an empty chair, Rogue was flipping through a rather large book. A red-head clad in armor glared at Gajeel until he set his feet back on the plush carpet. Erza Scarlet nodded and returned her attention to the man who had called an emergency meeting to Guild Masters and S-class mages from a select group of Guilds.
"Hello and welcome. I thank you all for arriving so quickly as I'm sure most of you had plans or had to abandon a mission."
"Why are we here, Captain Lahar?"
Lahar turned towards the source of the shout. "Ah, Master Sting. You will wish you hadn't said that." Lahar opened a file. "I'm sure you all have heard of the dead Rune Knight nearly two weeks ago."
Master Bob spoke, his voice tainted with sadness. "An unnecessary death. I hear he was stabbed in the throat. A horrible way to go."
"Yes, well, what you haven't heard is that he died in the very cell that the bodies of five women were found." The air filled with a mixture of gasps and growls. "We have reason to believe that the killer was returning to retrieve something, saw the Knight and killed him before retreating with what he'd left behind.
"The reason I called you all here is not for the Knight, but for one of the women found in the cell. Upon first examination, it appeared as though all five females were wh… prostitutes. Further investigation of our head Doctor determined that one of them was in fact a Mage." He set a lacrima on the table and an image of the dead woman's face appeared above him. "Do any of you recognize her?"
Goldmine crossed his arms. "Yes. She had come to my Guild with an interest of joining. Guild rule dictates that Mages looking for membership go through a probationary period and complete ten missions before receiving a Guild mark. She left for her first mission and never came back. I thought she had lost interest. It pains me to know that a talented Crash Mage like her died like this. I remember her saying that it was her dream to meet Fairy Tail's Crash Mage. I think you would have liked her Gildarts. Kinda serious, but you could just tell she had kind heart."
The SS-class Mage, sitting beside his newly titled S-class daughter, was quiet.
Makarov peered at the Crash Mage before closing his eyes again. "What's on your mind, Gildarts?"
"We know that the psycho is rich. He would need some heavy duty Magic Cancellation Cuffs to hold a Crash Mage against their will."
Lahar cleared his throat. "The young lady was bound by simple rope. No MCC's."
Gildarts' eyes grew wide in surprise. "Are you shitting me? A rope wouldn't hold any Crash Mage for long!"
"We know…" Lahar shared a look with the older man by his side. "And that's why we believe a Null is involved." Those who knew the term became agitated and worried. Cana Alberona, a newly ranked S-class Mage, leaned over to her father.
"Dad, what the hell is a Null?"
Gajeel answered, "A Null is like the opposite of a Mage. They have the ability to cut a Mage off from their Magic, rendering them vulnerable to attack."
Bacchus of Quatro Cerberus added his two cents. "They're pretty rare, thank the Gods. Each Null is different. Some have to touch you, some have to be in a certain range, and they can only affect a certain amount of people. When a Null is discovered by the Magic Council, the are swiped off the streets and undergo heavy testing. Eventually, they are imprisoned or executed."
"Executed?! Isn't that a little harsh?!"
Gildarts placed a comforting hand on his daughter's shoulder. "They have to, Cana. Null's can be very dangerous."
"He's right." Laxus' deep timber rumbled through the air like thunder. "As a Null grows more powerful, the less mentally stable they become."
Hibiki Lates, another new S-class, was searching through his Archive Magic. "'Nulls are prone to mental illnesses that become more apparent as they grow older. No one knows why, but their Magic causes their minds to slowly degrade until nothing's left but the a psychopath. They do not feel emotions and will kill anyone that poses a threat to themselves and their wants.' That's what it says here anyway."
"Forgive me for interrupting, but I am a little more focused on the other four girls."
Lahar nodded. "You're right, Miss Kagura." He touched the lacrima and five images appeared in the air, each of a woman's back. "Each woman has a series of stab wounds on her back in an unidentified pattern. At first we thought it was random, but Dr. Collin said that the wounds were carefully made. Our killer selected these places specifically and I've got a gut feeling that if we find the pattern, we'll be one step closer to catching this sick bastard. Take a look and let me know if you see anything."
The room filled with conversation. Soon enough, a few arguments began about the placement of the knife and what the pattern could be. Erza and Mira were studying the scars quietly with Laxus offering his opinion. Gildarts was comforting Cana.
Gajeel watched his partner, Panther Lily, join the two other exceeds. Frosch and Lector greeted Lily and they began chatting about their partners and what they've been doing since they last saw each other. Frosch said something about Yukino and her new Constellation book. Rogue smiled and let the exceeds flip through the borrowed tome. Lily pointed out all of Lucy's Keys and looked up the new one she had bought recently.
"'Andromeda,'" Lily recited for the two exceeds in front of him. "'otherwise known as the Chained Princess, is a powerful Key. Andromeda has the ability to lure or repel certain people. She uses a form of Mind Magic to encourage those in range to do as she and her Master please. It is rumored she also can bind her opponents in chains that remain even after she is sent back to the Celestial Realm.'"
Frosch peeked over the book to look at the drawing of the constellation. "Wow! Fro thinks that's amazing!"
"I agree! An ability like that would come in very handy."
Lily smiled and flipped to another part of the book. Gajeel turned his attention towards Sting when the word torture was mentioned. "Not likely. These aren't wounds of torture. If they were, then we're dealing with an amature."
Lily, Lector, and Frosch ignored the humans and continued flipping through the book. They continued looking, pointing out odd shaped constellations or to comment on a Spirit. Lily stopped and stared at a star formation. It was rather simple, six stars and shaped like a fish, but it tickled the back of his mind. He looked up at the transparent images and searched the unnerving pictures. His eyes finally landed on what he was searching for and he froze. The placement was perfect, precise. If he were to connect the dots in such a way, it would look like the constellation Lyra.
If Gajeel taught him anything, it's that there is no such thing as a coincidence.
Lily shivered with dread. He suppressed the dark conclusion his mind was forming and tapped his companions. Lector and Frosch looked between the delicate art of the book and the sickening image of a dead woman's back. They caught the similarity.
"Gajeel!" Lily picked up the book and brought it to his partner. He pointed to the floating image. "I think I found the connection."
Laxus overheard and leaned over to check the painting. He looked at photo Lily was pointing at: a definite match. Laxus read the name of the constellation and fought to keep himself from jumping out of his seat. He told himself to wait until everyone was distracted to escape. The Lightning Mage cringed at the piercing whistle that erupted from Gajeel's mouth. "Found out what one of those patterns represent! That one is a perfect match to the constellation Lyra."
"I've heard that before. Where have I heard that before?" Erza mumbled.
Lahar relaxed, if only slightly. "Good. So we might be dealing with someone associated with stars. Do any of the other… images match with a constellation?"
"Leave that to me!"
Hibiki picked up the lacrima containing the women's backs and activated his Archive Magic. He downloaded all five images and began searching for any matching constellations. After a few moments of searching, the screen began beeping. Four more pictures popped on the screen, all matching a pattern on a corpse's back.
"Lyra, Pyxis, the Southern Cross, Canis Minor, and Horologium. Each one is a Celestial Constellation and..." A picture of a familiar and well-loved woman appeared on the screen. "All registered to a Miss Lucy Heartfilia."
The room grew quiet, the atmosphere tense. Everyone knew Lucy. She made it her duty to reach out to all of those here, save the Doctor, and make them her friend. Even Orga, silent and reserved, could not help but succumb to the pull of Lucy's charms and harbored a secret crush on the lady. He was not the first and most certainly won't be the last. Most men, Mage and Non-Mage alike, found themselves drawn to the young woman. She was playful and sweet, but firm when she needed to be. She was a perfect mixture of a strong independent woman and defenseless, vulnerable lady that needed protecting. Many men would give anything to be her knight in shining armor.
If their conclusion is correct, she certainly needed one now.
"Wow. She looks a lot like the dead body we have in the mor…."
Lahar wrapped a hand around Mr. Sanders throat, cutting him off. The poor lad had just came in to talk to his teacher only to be assaulted after making a simple comment. "What other body? You didn't say anything about a sixth body!"
The young medical graduate shook with fear, not only of the Captain, but also the dark glares promising pain from the Mages. Erza had equipped into her Heavens Wheel Armor and pointed every sword in his direction. He gulped and began stuttering out an explanation. "W-W-Well, it came in a week ago. The same day you called the emergency meeting, to be exact. We thought it wasn't involved in this case since she wasn't found with the first five and she had stab wounds on her chest and abdomen instead of her back. However, the wounds were made with the same knife and angle of a left-handed attacker. I came up here to tell Dr. Collins!"
Lahar dropped the man back in his seat and leaned against the table. "Okay, so we have six bodies now. Do we have an image of her her wounds?"
"Um, yes!" The young man put a lacrima on the table. Lahar picked it up and handed it to Hibiki.
"Would you do the honors?"
Hibiki hesitantly took the crystal from his hand and connected it to his Magic. An image of a pattern came up, no body. Since Mr. Sanders said it was her front torso that was attacked, he probably only took the actual pattern and not the canvas in respect for the deceased. That's what Gajeel thought, anyway. The search didn't take long. The pattern of the stab wounds were of a Zodiac constellation. "Capricorn. Registered to none other than Lucy Heartfilia."
"Makarov…" Mira was shaking in fear.
The old Guild Master was quiet, pondering the situation before coming up with the best strategy. "If what you say is true, that a Null is responsible for these crimes, then we are all in danger. Lucy will be watched by two people at all times! Any sign of the Null, you are to grab her and run. Do NOT face it! It has murdered before and it will again!"
"Him."
Heads turned towards the trembling man beside Lahar. "What?"
He gulped and sat up straight. "It is a him. I didn't want to bring this up, but there were signs of sexual trauma to the pelvic region of each girl and left over semen in two of them. One of the girls was… was pregnant when he killed her."
Mira and Cana, along with a few other people, bent over and threw up on the floor. Erza comforted Mira as best as she could. Gildarts held his daughters hair back from her face and provided a shoulder to cry on. Gajeel, Sting, Rogue, and Orga were shaking in unadulterated rage. Dragon Slayers and God Slayers alike were family oriented. At the moment, they defended their Guild because they were family. When they finally do take a mate, they will become even more protective, bordering possessive. The second their mate becomes pregnant, the gloves come off. They were raised to protect their loved ones at all costs. No mercy would be given to those who dared to harm a Dragon or God Slayer's mate and child. To know that this… bastard killed a woman carrying his own child? Each one of them was ready to commit murder themselves.
"How could he do such a thing?" Rogue's voice, though quiet, resonated with barely controlled fury. "To kill a defenseless woman is sick, but to kill her while she carries a child… his child... This bastard deserves to die!"
Lahar held up his hand. "Calm down, Mr. Cheney."
"Don't tell him to calm down! This prick is out there, wandering the streets! He is kidnapping women, raping them, and stabbing them to death! All because he is obsessed with a woman that's too kind for her own good!" Sting leapt to Rogue's defense. He, too, had a small crush on Lucy. When they first met, he treated her and her Guild with cocky disgust. When the Dragons swarmed through the Eclipse Gate, she defended him and the rest of Team Sabertooth from a nasty attack. One of her Spirits were able to cast a wool barrier and protect us, but Lucy still took the brunt of the attack. She had every right to hate Sabertooth for what they'd said and done, but she risked her life to save them. And afterwards, when the wool barrier fell and she was called elsewhere, she gave them a smile.
"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Makarov's Titan voice shook the air, startling everyone into silence. The magic pressure surrounding the old man dissipated. "It pleases me to see so many people ready to jump at Lucy's defense, but we cannot lose our heads now! A Null is very dangerous and is to approached with caution. We will have to come up with various strategies on how to subdue the threat and keep Lucy away from harm. Mira! I want you out on missions and listening for any clues as to the Null's whereabouts."
"Yes, Master!"
"Erza! Take Gray and Natsu out on missions and keep an ear out for any information on missing women."
The red-headed woman shot to her feet. "I cannot do that, Master! Let Team Natsu keep watch over Lucy! We are partners and we won't let anyone harm her!"
"I know how close you all are, but Natsu and Gray have a tendency to act before thinking things through. I need people with quick minds and strong magic to watch over our Lucy. Tell Lucy you wish to train their self-control. I have no doubt she'll believe you. If you feel like that won't be enough, have Mira take one of the boys off your hands."
"But Master, who will guard Lucy?"
Makarov patted Mira's hand. "Don't worry, Mira. I have the perfect duo. Laxus is a strong Mage and smart to boot. He won't let anything happen to a Guildmate. And though he has just earned his S-class title, Gajeel is more than suited for this mission. With their experience and Magic, no two could protect the Fairies Light better than them."
"Sorry to intrude, but Laxus is missing."
Everyone looked around, startled by Jura's comment. True to his word, the Dragon Slayer's seat was empty and the man wasn't in the room.
"Where the fuck did he go?"
Frosch, the little darling, put his hand up. "Fro saw Laxus leave while Hibiki was searching for constellation matches to the pictures."
Orga twitched. "And you didn't think to mention it earlier?"
"It looked like he was being sneaky! He didn't want to be noticed, so I respected that! Rogue always tells me to be quiet when someone is being sneaky."
Everyone sweatdropped at the exceed's innocent confession. Sting and Rogue rarely went anywhere without their companions, this included missions. Though most of their missions just required brute strength, there were a few that required stealth and silence. After Frosch gave them away on a recon mission, Rogue told little Fro to be quiet when someone is being sneaky. It was only meant to be applied to them and whoever had joined them for a mission, but Rogue's wording included everyone. Laxus is a friend, therefore in Fro's mind, he must stay quiet and not give him away.
"Where the hell is he?"
"Where did he go?"
"What's more important than catching this sick fuck?"
Makarov ignored the murmuring crowd and pulled his communication lacrima from his pocket. He whispered his grandson's name and poured a hint of magic into the crystal orb. After a few moments of soft ringing, a scarred face appeared. "Hey, Gramps."
"Laxus, good to see you're okay."
"I'm back at the Guild. I wanted to keep an eye on Lucy until we have set guards for her. No doubt it'll be Flame-Breath and Ice-Prick."
Makarov smiled at the undercurrent of jealousy in his descendant's voice. He didn't notice that the room had quieted and now focused on his conversation with his family. "Actually, I have decided that you and Gajeel are much better guardians than Natsu and Gray. They don't have the experience to handle something this important. How is our Celestial Mage, by the way?"
"Strolled in a few minutes ago. From an S-class mission."
"What?! How did she get an S-class mission? It was Natsu's fault again, wasn't it?"
Laxus smirked. "Nope. The fault lies with Freed this time. The same mission request was posted on the mission board and the S-class board. Lucy took it as a solo mission and no one realized the mishap until hours after she had left. She was gone for two days, so I've heard, before storming into the Guild, dragging a hogtied ex-Dark Guild Master behind her. Apparently, he threw a centipede at her and she flipped her shit." There was a commotion in the background. Laxus leaned over the railing and stared in shock at whatever was going on. "Update: he just called her mother a whore and she took exception to that. He is now dangling by his feet. The word pinata comes to mind." Laxus flinched at a particularly loud thump. "Ouch."
Several Mages in the room shuddered. Stories of Lucy's anger was whispered behind closed doors. It was easy to annoy the busty blonde, but her anger was hard to incite. When she was pushed past her limit, the following events were legendary for their swift and brutal punishments. Lucy's anger dwarfed Mira's and Erza's combined. Lucy made their punishments look like picnics.
"Keep an eye on her, Laxus. When we get back, you and Gajeel can come up with a schedule to best protect her."
Laxus scoffed, "I can protect her just fine on my own. I don't need Pincushion. I'll just use her latest mission to my advantage and make her my personal assistant. Better than what I was planning on the way here."
Sting gaped at the man in the crystal. "You're not gonna tell her? Are you sure it's a good idea keeping her in the dark?"
"If Lucy learned about this killer, she'd feel personally responsible for these girl's deaths." Erza crossed her arms and smiled softly. "Lucy is such a self-sacrificing person. She would go out on her own to face him, offer herself to save others if she must."
Gajeel tsked. "I admire her for that, but it's gonna be the death of her one day."
"Hopefully not in the near future." Mira whispered into her hands. Though her voice was quiet, everyone heard her and agreed.
"Laxus, I want you and Gajeel on Lucy duty until the... man has been caught. Lucy is too special to take any chances."
"Fine." Laxus looked up at an odd sound. "Gotta go, Gramps! Lucy! Put down the chainsaw!"
"He doesn't need his appendages to live!" Was the last thing heard before the connection was cut.
I flipped through the Sorcerer Magazine, propped up on a mountain of fluffy pillows. The girls in little bikinis id nothing for me. Nothing did, really. I would think myself homosexual if it weren't for the fact that men didn't do anything for me either. Yes, I knew of my abilities. I read the articles and books. I had made peace with it a long time ago. A Null cannot feel. I always knew this to be fact.
That was until I saw her.
I finally found the collection of pictures and a little entry that didn't come close to satisfying my thirst for knowledge of this delicate creature of light.
Lucy Heartfilia.
Even her name sounds lovely. Like her.
She had the most beautiful, flaxen hair I had ever laid eyes upon. Her eyes, brimming with life and endless love, reminded me of sweet chocolate and rich coffee. Her full lips sat beneath a small, perfect nose. Her heart-shaped head rested upon a neck so perfectly slender. Her full-figured, wet-dream inducing, sexy as sin body drew my attention like nothing had before. I was hit with emotions I had never experienced until laying my eyes upon the colorful photo. I did not recognize these… feelings when they blindsided me. It took the careful questioning of one of my so called 'friends' to decipher what I was… feeling. He said that I was infatuated… lusting over a Goddess I would never meet. I stopped myself from killing him, barely. I didn't like what he implied. Of course I will meet my little Star Goddess. I wanted her, therefore, I shall take her.
I made myself a promise that day. A promise like the ones Lucy makes.
I promised myself that Lucy would be mine. My little Goddess will belong to me and no one else. She would be mine to possess and control. I would own this little piece of the heavens and keep it for myself.
Now I am close. Very close.
I have already begun the process. Seven bodies have been left for the Magic Council to find. Number eight was currently dozing in a drug haze on the daybed. It was easy enough finding look-a-likes. Their bodies would sate me until I had the original. I had to practice for my sweet Goddess first. Need to make sure I can make her… happy.
I stroked the glossy paper. Lucy.
Two years. Two years, I have coveted the Light of Fairy Tail. I wanted this Light for my own. I wanted to own it.
I will possess it.
Lucy is mine.
Well, there you have it! I am working on this along with other stories for my pleasure and your enjoyment. You guys have any ideas or suggestions for stories, PM me and I'll consider them.
I love you all.
-SPN :3