Chapter Twenty-Five

Author's Note: I feel like I need to warn readers that this chapter contains spoilers for one character. You'll know it when he comes up. Anyway, enjoy this chapter!

The time had come at last! The meisters and weapons headed out of Death City and towards Asura's castle. Sid and Nygus led the way, since they had gone after Misao before and saw the fortress. The weapons stayed in their weapon forms so they'd be ready for combat.

"This is it! Once I take down the Kishin, I'll be the greatest MEISTER THERE EVER WAS! HAHAHAHA!" He cackled at the top of his lungs, inflating his ego even further.

Maka knocked Black Star to the ground with the back of her weapon. "Will you give it a rest, Black Star!? This is serious!" She exclaimed. "You keep yelling like that, we won't be able to get close to Misao or Asura for that matter."

"Maka's right, Black Star," Tsubaki spoke out. "...we should try to not make so much noise."

"You guys shouldn't lecture a big guy like me. I'm going to be superior to all of you soon enough. Guarantee that I'll remember this moment." Black Star stood up while rubbing the giant bump left by Maka.

They continued on, carefully scanning the area. A few minutes later, Stein came to a halt. "Everyone, stop for a second." He ordered.

Everyone stopped and turned to Stein.

"What's going on, Professor?" Blood asked.

"I can sense Misao's soul from here." His eyes narrowed.

Blood almost stopped breathing. "Are you sure it's her?"

"It's very feint, but there's no doubt about it; we're in the right direction." He walked towards the front and then faced everyone. "Remember everyone, stay in your teams. Sid, you and Nygus know what to do."

"Right."

Nygus transformed into a combat knife and slid herself inside Sid's knife holder he had strapped around his waist. He then dove underground and went ahead of everyone else.

"Blood, stay closest to me and Spirit. Keep your soul wavelength in balance. If Asura senses any hesitation…"

"He'll use it against me." Blood finished Stein's words. "Don't worry, Professor. I'm ready for this fight."

Stein smiled. "Good to hear." He turned to everyone else. "Aright, let's pick up the pace. Move!"

As Stein instructed, Blood stayed close behind Stein. He kept watching where he was going, but at the same time, he was scanning the area, just in case there was an ambush. 'Misao, I'm almost there. I'll get you away from Asura's madness no matter what I have to do!'

As they got closer towards the castle, they were stopped by Gopher, who used his wing attack to try and strike at the group. Everyone jumped back, avoiding the attack. "This is as far as you go." Gopher dropped from the sky, keeping his wing-sleeves out and ready for attack.

"This guy's strong." Stein said. "But, we anticipated this. Ox, Kirikou, Kim, can you take care of him?"

"Leave it to us, Professor Stein!" Harvar exclaimed. "Let's do this, Ox!"

"Right! You guys go ahead. We'll keep him busy."

"Good luck, guys! The rest of you, let's keep moving!" Stein led the rest of the group around Gopher and continued on his path.

Gopher attempted to attack the group, but Ox used Harvar to block the attack, and then jumped in the way so Gopher couldn't follow the others.

"Will they be alright, professor?" Blood asked, looking back at Ox and the others surrounding Gopher.

"I am confident they will defeat him. Those meisters are very skilled, thanks to their weapons. Keep your focus on the castle!"

Blood nodded, shaking out the doubt in his mind. He replaced his doubt with the image of Misao in his arms again. 'He's right. They know what they're doing. Right now, Misao is my number one priority.'

In her room, Misao sat on the bed and clenched her stomach. She was feeling the pain of the orb after it took in some of Asura's madness. She was trying to use her own spiritual wavelength to purify the orb, but it was taking her more effort to cast it out. No matter how hard she pushed, Misao knew she was hardly doing anything.

"I can't…I can't take this pain anymore. At this rate, I'll be…"

The doors to her room flew open to reveal a young, blonde-haired man in a white priest robe. He had ear buds in his ears, and Misao could hear the muffled noises of a loud band playing through the headphones. He stared deeply at Misao as he closed the door and approached the center of the room.

Misao jumped out of the bed and backed into the wall at the end of the room. "Who…Who are you?" She asked that question, but already knowing he was a weapon based on his soul wavelength and shape. 'This man…there is something strange about him.'

The man slowly took out his headphones and tucked them into his pocket, turning off his music player while he did so. "My name is Justin. My duty and calling is to serve the one true God of this world: The Kishin Asura." His arms were spread wide as he preached. "God gave me the task of watching over you, and making sure your friends don't reach you. Also, that you don't try to escape yourself."

"You think Asura's a god? He's a monster using his strength and power to manipulate and implant fear in those around him! A god wouldn't do something like that!"

"Watch your tone!" He moved swiftly towards Misao, pushing her against the wall, with a blade extending from his forearm. He pressed it to Misao's neck. "I will not allow you to slander Lord Asura's name with your blasphemy. You are a tool he will use to spread his madness across the land. Your sacrifice…will bring about a joyous cleansing." He removed himself from Misao, turning his back to her and putting his headphones back in his ears.

Misao held her throat, feeling if there was a scratch. Thankfully there wasn't, but she was still shaken up. 'He means business. His wavelength is strong even though it doesn't show in his appearance. Also…there's something familiar about the way he utilizes his weapon techniques.' Misao regained herself and asked Justin, "You don't…have a meister, do you?"

He didn't answer her. His headphones were already in and they were already playing music. She steadily approached Justin and tapped him on the shoulder. He looked down at her with a grimace. "What do you want?" Despite his music being very loud, he was speaking in a normal tone.

"I asked you if you had a mesiter!" she exclaimed, trying to make him hear her over his headphones.

Justin took out the left one and sighed. "First of all, there's no need to yell. Even though I have my music in, I can read your lips and know what you're saying. Second of all, to answer your question, no, I don't have a meister. I am a weapon that can fight without a meister."

Misao's eyes widened slightly. 'I knew it. He's just like Blood's clan.' She thought to herself. 'Weapons that can fight alone, without the help of a meister. So, there are others outside of his clan.'

"In fact, believe it or not, I'm a graduate of the DWMA. I graduated at the top of my class, gathered 99 kishin souls and a witch's soul, forged myself into a Death Scythe, and became one of Lord Death's weapons without the need of a meister."

"Wait…a weapon for Lord Death?" Misao thought for a moment, remembering what she learned while at the academy. "You're one of the elite members he calls on when a crisis happens. But…if you're on Lord Death's committee, why are you siding with Asura to destroy the DWMA and the world?"

Justin slipped his headphone back into his ear and then said, "He chose me to be a part of his glorious vision. That is all…you need to know."

"You're just like my partner." Misao spoke aloud. "In the sense of he is able to unleash his powers without the need of a meister."

"Is that so?" Justin sounded a bit intrigued.

"His whole clan…believed that meisters held back a weapon's true capabilities, and also kept the weapons as slaves for their own selfish ambitions. That's how he was raised. But even still…when he fought alongside of my father as his weapon, and then became mine, he never looked down on us as meisters. He accepted our abilities, throwing away everything he was taught about meisters." A small smile came onto her face. "You may be strong as a weapon. But…my weapon…no…my partner is stronger than you'll ever be. He'll mow through you like paper."

Justin shared Misao's smile. "I can't wait to see your partner's capabilities. We'll see who's faith and loyalty is stronger: his…or mine."

Author's Note: For those of you who know the character Justin from the anime, his character is further developed in the manga. Go to wikipedia if you want and look up his character history. Sorry if I spoiled this character for you, but I hope you still enjoyed this chapter.

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