As the group rushed to the castle, they were confronted by a large numbers of heartless. Serena stopped and swung her scythe once to get breathing space and starts to unleash her spells. Gureo jumped in front of her and used his blade to keep the breathing space of her.
"This thing are quite annoying!" Zero slash a Defender in two. "And you guys have to fight those thing every day?"
"More you can ever know." Flare said. throwing his inflaming Keyblade at a couple Rabid dogs.
"And you cannot exterminate them for good" adds Gureo "Only lessen their numbers to a degree… and keep this number down by terminating their leader, be it a bigger heartless or somebody fallen to the darkness."
"Thought here is no question WHO controls these bastards" came Serena and unleashed a thunderstorm which eradicates quite a number of heartless as Gureo cuts down a Neo-Shadow.
Youta just finish a Chili Ripper, as she notice Hildibrand is nowhere to be seen. "Guys where's the inspector go?"
"Please make way friends!" Everyone look up and saw Hildibrand push a big rock as it rolled at the horde of Heartless, eliminate a half of them.
"Well. That's one way to it." Kanade said, slashing two Air Battler.
"But not one that holds for long" told Serena and casts a hurricane "We should use the hole while some stay back to keep these guys busy"
"I stay back! Need for my blade more room anyway" told Gureo
"Then i'll accompany you, Gureo." Karma summon a barrier of fire. Stop the heartless process any further. "Everyone please make haste!" As Karma shoot a couple of airborne heartless.
And they rushes over fast, and they got into the castle and Serena looks around "Where is he staying exactly? The castle isn't small after all"
"Well if i was a crazy nut job and had a bomb that can turn everyone in heartless like Ver. i would go to a very large room to keep the bomb in check." Kanade said.
"That makes two places: Where Sora kicked Maleficients ass or where the heartless facility was" summerices Serena "And higher places makes an easier boom. So up with us"
"But lets not forget my trusty sidekick is also somewhere in this hollow castle." Hildibrand stated.
"Speaking of which where did you last saw her?" Youta asks.
"Let's see. last i saw her in the basement where we found some containers with strange red liquid in it."
"Red liquid…. Could it be Anti-Linker?" Flare wonder out loud.
"Anti-Linker? That stuff that desynchronizes with Symphogears?" wondered Serena "He is aware that it isn't effective against those who AREN'T using them?"
Serena thought for a while "Unless… he also got a blocker for magic. Which renders us a lot if this is the case"
"But why were you in the first place, Inspector?" Youta asks.
"A couple of days ago we heard a rumor of a couple of people are missing around this evil place. So i follow my instinct and found that the professor turn them into heartless, i was about engaging that evil man where we found the red liquid, when suddenly an explosion came out of nowhere and launching me into the sky." The inspector explain.
"How did you even survive that anyway? Are really a human?" Zero asks as a sweat drop appeared on his head.
"Maybe that's why my gear doesn't feel heavy." Kanade checking her Symphogear. "Knowing that bastard he should using that stupid Anti-Linker by now."
"Now did you mention it. I feel perfectly fine." Youta jump a couple of time. "My gear also doesn't feel heavy either."
"if he is smart, he waits with it until we are WHERE he wants us to be" told Serena "So lets hurry. we have to find this thing"
"Then how about we split up in two group? One group examination the castle for anything that Dr Ver might use against us, while the other confront the doctor." Flare suggest.
"I need to see the bomb" told Serena "If he is using that I am thinking to use to channel or concentrate the necessary energy, then I might have the right antidote of this thing"
"And what are you thinking of?" asks Kanade and Serena just said "Trust me on this one"
"We don't have much to trust about you, when we look at your actions and behavior!" was her counter
"This isn't time to pickering. We need to take care of this doctor as soon as possible. You can continue your catfight after we're done here." Zero said, Walking to the stairs.
The two girls just rolled their eyes and walked up.
"Don't worry Kanade i'll watch over Serena-chan. if anything happens." Youta reassured her childhood friend.
"Then it's settled!" Hildibrand pint points up. "Fear not Nashu! We will save you or my name isn't Hildibrand Helidor Maximilian Manderville!" And with that he run to the other stairs leaving a trail of smoke behind him.
"Come on, Kanade. We better follow him before he get himself into more trouble." Flare said and run after the inspector. Kande sigh in defeat as she follow her brother.
Serena got her scythe out and told "Let's go… we really need to move up"
"Affirmative" told Zero and they moved up the stairs. For a while nothing happened, aside from a few stray heartless but just before they reached their destination, Serena stopped and Zero asks "Something wrong?"
"I can feel how my magic is blocked… so Ver got somehow his hands on the necessary artifacts."
"He's prepared that's for sure. Where did you get those artifacts?" Zero asks.
"Mostly in worlds that tries to counter Magic" told Serena "But even then, they are very complex to transport to other worlds. And also they vary on how efficient they are. Most are only for the magic of the world of origin. Other types are only partially or completely resistant towards the blocking. The very few artifacts that works for any magic type are often lost artifacts"
"But to get something that important. He must have an accomplice doing his dirty work." Zero said.
"For sure not his other self" told Serena "In magic he is a null."
"Can you still fight even with your power being blocked?" Zero asks
"Don't worry. I still have a couple of trick in my sleeves." Serena said and points to her darkness made scythe. "We better get moving. The bomb has to be close by."
Then she goes to the door and wondered "Normal opening or kicking for dramatic purpose? We are in a fanfiction after all."
"We're what?" Zero tilt his head.
"I think it would be better to open it slowly. Just in case if he boobytrap the door." Youta said.
"Robots first" told Serena "You can be repaired later on"
Zero stuttered as he slowly opens the door. As Youta whispered to Serena's ears. "I didn't know you can break the four wall, Serena-chan. My dad is the only one who know about it."
"There are others…" told Serena "They are just rare and spread out. Like Deathpool" before turning to Zero "Any Traps?"
"No. But I found our bomb." The group enters the Grand Hall as the girls as the bomb close to a machine with a heartless shape symbol on it.
"I don't like this machine" told Serena "And that apparently nobody is here… so where are you Ver?"
"I am right here!" told his voice and they looked up where he is on a platform with a sort of energy field surrounding it "I am here and ready to watch your downfall once this bomb explodes and turns everybody but me into heartless"
"So you use the shield…" concludes Serena "You know it is untested and only useable once?"
"Oh I did the tests… plenty of them. While the one use stays true, it will protect me for sure! And no matter how much you will struggle, you will either vanish today OR become heartless and listen to my orders!"
"No!" Youta jump toward Ver and punch the barrier, but to her surprise it didn't even make a dent.
And also she felt very heavy out of the sudden while Serena got above with the help of a dark corridor and swung her weapon down, only to break upon impact with a second shield…
"A light shield?" she exclaims in shock while suddenly the ceiling began to shine with a white glowing glyph and she screams in sudden pain as she falls down uncontrolled. Also Youta is feeling the pain as the power of the glyph was reacting with her inner darkness. "It hurts!" Youta scream in pain as her Symphogear disappeared.
"Do you think I haven't prepared for you? I have seen what you are able to do, so I prepared everything! Even something for your odd friend here!"
"Bastard! What did you to do the girls?!" Zero shout, drawing his sword, leaping toward him and performing a couple of slashes to Dr Ver's barrier hoping that it will break. But the barrier didn't even flinch and Ver simply told "I only prepared something called "Darkness breaker." This little glyph terminates any darkness within a certain area, and the two girls have a very strong connection towards the darkness. Thus it harms them this way."
"Undo the glyph! Or else!" Zero yelled.
"And what's a mere human being going to do about it?" Dr Ver asks.
As Zero jump on the barrier and shout. "Tenshouha!" As he punches the barrier and summons a pillar of light from above. that destroying the glyph and the ceiling letting the sunlight in the building and also making a breaking on the barrier. "And for your information, I'm not human. I'm a reploid!" Zero jump off and asks to the girls. "Your you two alright?"
"No!" groans Serena "For undoing the glyph… punching it isn't enough… you need to defeat the caster!" and she forces herself on her feet
"It can't be him, so it has to be someone else." Zero said as he look at the mad doctor.
"As long he gets aid, he can be the one" countered Serena "And I need to reach the bomb…"
"What?" asks Zero and Serena explains "I know what he is using for the part that turns everybody into heartless! And I can disable it if I get close enough!"
"And how will you do that if you cannot perform magic?" taunts Dr. Ver, when they heard a sound getting closer by the second.
"What is that sound? It almost sound like a…" But before Youta could finish her sentence. Lusina bust in the room riding a "Motorcycle?!" Youta shout, surprise
"Leroooooy!" Lusina shout as she revved her motorcycle that looks like Cloud's bike but white and jumped as the back wheel hit Ver's head knocking him off the platform. "Jenkins!" Lusina jump off the bike as she rolled on the ground and get on her feet. As the bike crash on to the ground. "And that class is how you make an entrance."
"Lusina-san?! How?" Youta asks
"Talky later Crazy guy now!" Lusina try to shoot a dark ball at Ver. But to her surprise the dark energie won't come to her, and asks "Why can't i use the dark energie?" As she shaking her arm.
"A darkness destroying glyph." told Serena "Need to get close to the bomb first."
"As I would let you" told Dr. Ver slowly get up and snaps his fingers to call upon his defenses for the bomb. The ground shakes and the walls grumbles away, And a giant robot body was revealing and four different colored containers appear around them while the bomb moves to the robot body.
"Found this beauty in some ruins as I looked for parts for the bomb"
"That quit the big toy you have. But you know what they say the bigger they are the harder the fall." Lusina said, turning to Zero and asks"If you don't mind i'll take the girls to a safer place, think you can handle with this buck of fun?"
"I can" told the Reploid while Serena shouts "Get me to the bomb first! It explodes soon!"
"In three minutes to be exact" smirks
"And how are you going to get there? Our powers over the dark are pretty much seal up. Unless you have a backup plan." Lusina ask.
"Remember what you said before you knock me down a few ago?" Serena ask. "Well I'll show you how creative I really am."
"Is that so? In that chase." Lusina then grab Serena and throw her on to the platform. "Show me what you got, Little Serena."
Deciding to talk about this later, she rushes to the bombs and began to fiddle around but suddenly the large robots hand grabbed her and raises her up, trying to crush her.
"Two more minutes" told Dr. Ver and Zero shoots at the massive body and even adepts to slash but the attacks are only leaving scratches. Until he would reach it deeper, too much time would pass.
"Hey I just thought of something." Lusina turn to Dr. Ver and asks. "Should you run away like scary cat by now?"
"Why should I?" he asks in wonder
"Because if the bomb blows up everyone will turn into a heartless, even you, so why stay and enjoy the show?" Lusina asks.
"He has a shield that protects him!" informed Zero then jumping as thunderbolts are raining down as the yellow container began to glow brightly.
"Thats right!" Dr. Ver said. "As long if i have this. I'll be still human, then I'll get my revenge on that bitch once and for all!"
"We have to hurry or the bomb explodes before we could disable it!" said Zero and Ver laughs "One Minute! Good luck!"
"Don't you dare…. call my mom that! Ver!" Youta growled at him.
"But she is one! And In 30 seconds you are all turn into heartless" told Ver as he activate the barrier with a grin and a countdown was running down visible now for the entire world.
"Damm!" told Zero and tried to go for the Bomb but hand swipe sends Zero back as the bomb is slowly reaching zero.
Youta closes her eyes and waited for the blast…. and it explodes and the initial shockwave sends them back while Dr. Ver laughs madly "now my revenge is complete! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" but his laugh died out in a cough as he saw that here aren't new heartless… in fact nobody seems to have been affects
"But… how?" shouts Ver while staring.
"Ouw, that hurt." Youta getting up and rub her head when she relished that she still human. "I'm still me? Did Serena-chan make it?" She wonder, looking at her hands.
"Looks like it." Lusina said. dusting the dust off her clothes "And now let's have a little chat with the mad man shall we?" Lusina look at the doctor.
"Destroy them!" shouts Ver and the robot unleashes rockets towards them and Zero asks "Any idea how to destroy this guy?"
"Run first plan later!" Lusina said as the three exit the Grand Hall.
"But what about Serena-chan? We can't just leave her!" Youta shout.
"Sorry dear, but as the situation stand we can do a thing." Told Lusina. "But lucky we still have some help."
Serena grunts from the fist that was still holding her "The containers… they are generators… I can feel… their core"
"Serena!" She heard someone shout and saw Kanade fly toward the robot trying to cut his arm off with her large sword, but didn't leave a dent. "What the hell is that robot made of?! Plot device?" Kanade said
"This was once the leader of a civilization of robots" told Ver "Undefeated until something unknown happened"
"The cores!" groans Serena, looking at the four different colored boxes.
"Got it!" Parts of Kanade's armor open up as it projects a vast stream of red flames covering her entire body and she flew straight to the core. The machine summons showers of ice trying to stop the red haired girl from it's tracks, but the instant heat of Kanade's fire and melted before the icicles could hit her. The Robot was about punched the flame user, but he was to slow as the Symphogear user destroyed all colored boxes. Kanande land on the ground as the flames around her's body extinguish as she turn around to see that another container, a much larger one appeared. It seems this is it's central core and several white colored robots appeared to defend this core.
"Kanade!" Zero called out, cutting on of the robots in half. "Let's go!"
"Right!" Kanade throw her sword, dashing with Zero towards the core. swinging their sword at the same time cutting the machine in two.
Nasod started to twitch as the huge robot is deactivated. The large hands falls down and release Serena while she was clenching on something which was hold at the chest. But luckily Kanade swoop in, catch her just in time before she hit the ground. "You're just as reckless as Youta, you know that?" She said putting Serena on the ground.
"Under Time limit or familiar things? Guilty as charged." told Serena and Ver shouts "HOW DID YOU DO THAT?"
"I removed the crystals energy" told Serena "Your mistake was to use one for your bomb to concentrate the waves for making everybody heartless" and she showed a dark glowing crystal in her hands
Ver stared at this sudden change of facts.
"So wait you put those energy things inside that crystal?!" Kanade asks surprised. "Is that even possible?"
"if you can manipulate crystals yes" told Serena weakly "It was in a crystal in the first place so I was able to move it to a different one"
"Damn it! Not again!" Dr. Ver was about to get away as suddenly he saw someone running towards him, and it was none other then the gentleman of light Hildibrand!
"John Wayne Vercingetorix!" The doctor tries to get away put Hildibrand grab him around his stomach and bend his back backwards slamming John's head to the ground. knocking him out cold. "In the name of Radiant garden your onder arrested by Hildibrand agent of inquiry! Inspector Extraordinaire!" He said, strike one of his famous poses
"That was an impressive one liner there, sir." Said a female Miqo'te with black hair, gray eyes, with a bandage on her left cheek. She wears a pink half-robe with gray stockings and shoes, clapping her hands.
"Seriously?" asks Serena and Gureo who just came with Karma and Flare as the he wondered "Who is this?"
"Allow me to introduce to you my faithful companion, Her name is Nashu Mhakaracca one of the Keepers of the Moon Mi'qote."
"Hello! It's nice to meet you!" Nashu wave her hand.
"Greetings" deadpans serena "Can we go now? I want to get rid this crystal in the nearest black hole"
"That's the best idea i ever heard so far." Kanade sigh deactivate her Symphogear. "I really need a nap after this."
"Then we better catch up with Youta, she should be resting at the high tower by now." Flare said
"Guess we have to accompany this inspector for a while" mumbled Serena and Gureo while they moved for the high tower and saw Youta, Lusina and Zero resting.
"Hey guys!" told Gureo "How are you feeling?"
"Tired, but fine." Zero said. "But Serena looks more worn down then us from the looks of it."
"Pulling dangerous energy from one crystal to another doesn't sound easy" admits Gureo, knowing about Serena's ability. "Especially if you work against a time bomb"
"I'm just happy everyone is okay." Youta said.
"If you asks me i'm kinda disappointed." Lusina pull a purple crystal out of her pocket. "I was just dying to see what this baby can to. Oh well maybe next time."
"Uhm… what is that?" asks Gureo in wonder but suddenly they heard Dr. Ver laughing madly "How could I have been so blind? Magic, Darkness, Crystal! This combination… this unique combination… only one could it be from this dimension!"
"Shut this guy up" growls Serena weakly
"Allow me." Lusina summon her guarding as it slam his fist,,,,,, in to John's jewels, hard. He howls in pain and somehow keeps laughing "The Magic Princess of Darkness and Crystal… the daughter of the dark Keybearer… Serena… Yuma…" and he passed out from the hit.
Serena stared at Ver as he was able to spit the one thing out she didn't want to be spoken out by anybody… especially at the minority of the present people.
"Did. Did he just say your name?" Youta asks to Serena. "Why did he also say my family's name too?"
"He could be talking about another person. There are people who have the same name you know." Lusina said, as she winks at Serena.
Catching on she nods "Yeah. After all Yuma is used on many worlds and Serena is a very common name. Who knows about who he talked about?"
"Then what was this part with Magic Princess of Darkness and Crystal?" asks Zero "Or Daughter of the Dark Keybearer? Who IS the dark keybearer?"
"Her dad bears the title" told Kanade, pointing towards Youta "Thought the only person we know that is able to do any crystal tricks is Faith-san"
"Let's not forget that this man is insane. He could be telling lies just to confuse us." Gureo state
"But this time he stated the truth." told a new voice "Serena Schwarzmagier is in truth Serena Yuma. Daughter of Faith and Kuran Yuma"
They turned in surprise and saw somebody in mage robes
"Who the hell are you?!" Flare asks, summon his keyblade.
"Where were my manners? I am Echido Crane. Dark Mage, Glyph master and former partner of Dr. Ver here… in fact I was the one busting him out and helped him with his plans for revenge."
"For what end?" asks Serena and Crane told "Simple… for a sample of your powers. Darkness, Magic and Crystal. These three I need together with many other ingredients of this dimension."
"Let me guess you're also after Youta and her Aegis?" Lusina asks
"I already have the necessary ingredient as she used Gungir… which was lucky as this odd bird attacked. No. What i still need are a few harder things. But I won't tell you what." explains Crane "And why did I team up with Ver? Simple! While Youta had the darkness, the magic talent resting in Miss Faiths Blood Line would only bloom with the blood of the Yumas. But what was easier? To lure the magic talented child from a different dimension or set up a situation where an affair would happen? I thought going to a different dimension was much easier"
"So you saying Serena is Youta's half sister or something? Cause I won't buy it from a guy dress like a loonatic!" Kanade activate her gear and leap toward the mage with her sword in hand.
"Serena, Youta and Gureo are related by their father on dimensional level" spoke Crane while blocking her with ease by a shield "My word could lie… the blood cannot. If you don't believe me, test the blood of the three. And the truth will be revealed"
And with a white flash he was gone and Kanade flew back in a spiraling spin, cutting without intention the arms of Youta, Serena and Gureo to their surprise.
"That stupid jerk! If i see him one more time. I'll kick his ass sky high!" Kanade growld and ask Youta. "You're not going to believe what that loon just said, right Youta?" Kanade asks, as Kanade looked at them, she noticed how close the green eyes of Gureo and Serena looks like the green one of Youta's odd eyes.
"Let's move" told Serena "We wasted too much time already." As both Gureo and Serena walk towards the exit.
"Well, this quite a plot twist if you asks me." Lusina said, and asks. "So Youta you think that wachko tells the truth?" after a couple of second of silence until Youta answered her question. "I-i don't..."
"I think it would be best discuss this later at Youta's home." Karma said. "It would be unwise to continue this discussion while everyone is exhausted."
Unknown to them Echido Crane. was watching them from above "Yes… discover the truth… and form with her the final ingredient I need for my plans"