*Static*
UO: …!
Ash: …?
Natsu: !
NS: …

Nehemoth: Let there be no unnecessary words.

""
Text
Thought,
""
Super Mode/Belt/Monster
Attacks

Chapter 28: The Sound of Silence! Internal Power Awakened

Natsu flew through the air, his faithful companion Happy holding on tightly. "Will Drew and Friedrich be alright?"

"Don't worry buddy! They can kick loads of butt! Right now we need to find that Snake!"

"Ask and you shall receive, Fairy Boy!" A snide voice rang out. The two mages looked up to see a red haired male riding a long, blue serpent through the air.

"You're one of those Oracion freaks...Snake man!" Natsu announced.

His opponent faltered on his mount. "My name is Cobra. And for your information, I'm a Dragon Slayer, just like you!"

"What really?" Natsu asked. "Where's your dragon!?"

"Dragon?" Cobra scoffed. "I didn't get my magic from an extinct lizard. I was implanted with the Poison Dragon Lacrima. A much better version than learning from a dragon!"

"So you're like Laxus!" Natsu growled as he reached down for one of his Transform rings. "Next you're gonna tell me you also have one of those dumb Gaea Memories!"

"Very perceptive of you," Cobra chuckled, reaching into his pocket. He pulled out a purple Memory with an L created by a red laser.

LASER

Removing his cloak, he revealed a living connector on his chest. Jamming into his chest, his body shined before turning into his Dopant form. "Let's go, Dragon Slayer!"

"Bring it on!" Natsu boasted, slipping his Wind Ring on and activating his belt, flipping the Hand author.

SHABADOOBIE TOUCH TO HENSHIN!

"HENSHIN!"

"HURRICANE! PLEASE! FUU-FUU! FUU FUU FUU FUU!"

Now in his winged form, he raced after the snake like dopant. Venom Ray grinned and streaked up into the air as a beam of light, Cubellos streaking behind him "Too slow, dragon boy!"

Draco growled and pulled out Urvan. Pumping it, he took aim and fire bolts wind laced energy. Ray laughed as the shots missed. Draco cursed internally. I know my shotguns have sucky range, but my wind magic should have helped it.

Ray saw the hestiation and flung his hand out. "Cadmium Stream!" He fired a sickly purple laser at Draco. The dragon slayer flew out of the way but the beam struck his shoulder. He hissed as the poison ate into the armor. Then realized he was having a hard time moving his shoulder joint.

"Like it? My poison in this form can corrode any metallic surface. Here we thought the Riders were a threat. From what I can tell, our agents are holding their own!"

Natsu powered through the pain. "Good luck! They're as strong as me and I can crush you anytime!" As he said this internally he frowned. If he can make my armor useless, I need a new plan. Stripper would have a field day if he thought I was making a plan. He then noticed Cubellos flying around and flicking its tongue. He grinned to himself. That will work. He hoisted up Uravan and pumped it again.

"Didn't you already try this?" Ray shouted rushing in, his arm glowing purple. Draco didn't listen and fired anyway, missing the dopant by inches. "Hah! See~?"

"Who said I was targeting you?"

"What...CUBELLOS!" Ray screamed snapping his head around as the shot whizzed past him and struck the flying lizard. The snake screamed in pain as the shot struck home around its head and began to fall to earth. "You mon-! GACK!"

The momentary distraction was enough for Draco to close the distance. Grabbing him in a bear hold, he smirked. "Time for a ride! WIND DRAGONS'S PILEDRIVER! He flew up and then began to spiral his way down to terrafirma.

*BOOM*

Draco flew out of the crater and landed a ways away. "Time to end this and find the others!" He flipped his belt's face and activated his finisher, his own armor beginning to corrode as well.

C'MON AND CRUSH, SHAKE HANDS!

His armor glowed before he placed his hand on the head of Urvan, causing it to flash green as well.

Ray stood up, his whole body sparking. "I won't be…defeated…! Poison Dragon's ROAR!" He took a deep breath and unleashed a dark purple corrosive beam. As it raced towards the Rider, Draco lifted off and charged into the stream. Colliding with the Roar, he pushed it aside as his magic formed a barrier in front of him. Residual poison grazed his armor, but he gritted through it as he began to spin vertically.

"DRAGON'S TORNADO SMASH!" He roared as the twirling mage raced through the air. With on last spin the axe bisected the dopant. Landing on the other side of the crater and wincing, he grinned. "Old School beats New School, kid."

Ray cried as he fell backwards his arm glowing as he released his prayer. "Lord Brain, Forgive me!" As his body exploded.

The memory landed intact next to Natsu as he powered down. Picking it up and pocketing it, he walked over to the crater to see Cobra in pain, his snake hissing comfortably. "Cubellos…" He muttered.

Now that the adrenaline died down, Natsu grunted in pain as some of the effects from the poison finally seeped through his armor and began burning his flesh.

"Natsu!" Happy cried, checking him over and cringing in pain as he touched the poison spots.

"I'm fine buddy," Natsu told him. "Let's try to find Dawn and Tori."

"You think...you'll win," Cobra asked weakly.

"Yeah I think we can!"

"Then...take Cubellos with you," said Cobra, holding up his snake. "I'm probably going to jail...she's innocent in all of this." The snake flicked her tongue sadly. "It'll…it'll be alright, Cubellos. Don't bite anyone." The snake nodded and slithered over to Natsu. The dragon slayer watched as the snake wrapped around his shoulders and flicked her tongue on his cheek.

"She'll be fine, come on Happy," the Dragon Slayer said as the cat grabbed him and flew away looking for his next fight

Zodiac Vs Nehemoth

Zodiac cut another pipe, causing steam to pour out. He had limped through the piping, hacking away the metal in hope to cause the Dopant to have to come find him.

That outta buy me sometime. Be really nice if Friedrich didn't have so many damn tricks up his sleeve. As he caught his breath, he pondered something else. Nehemoth should have killed me by now...those nails were way too accurate to miss. The first time was pure luck. Second time...could it be something else is going on.

The hallway stretched on and on, no matter how far he walked. In fact, he could have sworn that he'd barely moved, somehow. Am I still even in the forest? he wondered, Did he move us over to another dimension or something? Great...Rod Serling would have a field day.

A clawed hand suddenly lashed out from between the pipes once more and smacked him heavily, bouncing his helmet off the wall with a *CLONG!*

"GAH!" Zodiac gasped, feeling his head ringing from the impact. "And there goes a concussion…"

As he staggered, clutching at his skull, the area around him distorted and shifted. The hallway seemed to be widening, sunlight blinding him. He put out a hand to lean against the wall, only to stumble as he found nothing to support himself.

Where before there had been a pipe maze, a large stadium had now opened up around him.

"Labyrinth…a useful power for setting up a battle. The environment is everything, and if you can change it, you control the battle."

"And now your gonna end me using my love of sports...just...great. Like I'm gonna let you!" Zodiac clenched his hand around his sword handle. Even with him on alert, however, in his concussed state, he only barely saw the glint of silver creeping in from around him, ready to wrap around his throat.

Zodiac spun around with a wild swing and a shout, only to cut nothing. Nehemoth stood a few feet away, his blank eyes still staring ominously. The Guardian charged and hacked at him again, and this time his blade found purchase. However, even as the Dopant fell back, he vanished without a trace, reappearing even further away.

"Grey Boy," he announced, his tone dripping with menace, "Luck is still on your side. If I'd touched you, I'd have won. Imagine trying to fight back when you can only repeat the same three seconds. Over. And over. And over. And over again. Until the stars go out." His silver-taloned fingers curled and flexed. "Death would not save you. Even if I were to slit your throat, you'd just bleed out for three seconds, nonstop…"

Behind his helmet Zodiac's eyes widened in horror. Then if he touches me, I'd be…even worse than dead! Did Friedrich have to fight someone like that too?

With unnerving suddenness and silence, Nehemoth leaped towards him, clearing the space between them in a single bound, talons reaching out to rake him. Zodiac fired a burst of fire too his right and leapt out of the way.

"Just gotta stay out of range," Zodiac taunted, his voice quavering. Nehemoth's eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly, before the Rider's voice cut out again. He spun, his long, spindly tail whipping around, bristling with blades, to bite into him. However, the Fire Guardian was putting more effort into his agility than ever before as he dodged, dived, ducked, weaved, and dodged every one of his strikes. Finally he threw his fist and missed wildly going over the Rider's head. Zodiac took advantage and stabbed him in the shoulder, pinning him to the ground with a burst of sparks.

"Gotcha, you snake!" Zodiac shouted, pulling out one of his pistols and raising it to his head. Unfortunately, the Dopant then vanished, leaving the sword imbedded in the ground.

"Tch."

The Rider quickly cast his gaze around and quickly spotted Nehemoth, shaking his head. Then he lowered himself into a crouch, tail arching dangerously over his back and bristling with even more blades as his talons dug into the ground.

"Your luck won't hold for long, Fire Guardian!" Nehemoth growled.

"Then I better heat things up!" He smiled. Snapping his fingers, he created a brilliant sphere of sapphire flames in his hand. "How about this? AZURE COMET!" He reared back and thrust his hand forward, the ball becoming an improvised flamethrower.

The Dopant merely watched the roaring blaze impassively. "A stream of flames. How conventional." There was a grotesque tearing sound as his face split open, revealing a jagged mouth. In an instant, the blue flames funneled into his maw and vanished. "Did you already forget that?"

His tail jabbed forward, and the bladed barbs adorning it burst out, streaking towards the Rider like bullets. Zodiac dodged out of another swipe "No I didn't, just needed some space. Come on then!"

"You're confident, aren't you. Your friend must be so proud."

"My friend is still in there," Zodiac growled as he leaped back.

"Perhaps. But he's not the only thing in here." Nehemoth's wiry body suddenly swelled, muscle mass bulking up drastically and visibly. At the same time, the unnerving flickering and twitching that he'd been subject to ceased.

Zodiac groaned. "Fried, we really need to catalogue your-!"

He went mute again as the Dopant surged forward again, the arena shifting and warping, obstacles distorting out of the ground. "Silent Dragon's Blast Shard!" A claw stabbed into a rock outcropping, and with a soundless burst, it exploded, sending razor sharp fragments of rock hurtling at Zodiac.

The Rider whipped out Osceola and Renegade and fired multiple rounds and shattering some of the rocks taking some of the smaller fragments into his shoulders. Kicking the ground to create a fire wall he raced back into the endless pipes and hid. Calming slightly, he glanced over his shoulder. Okay so now he can turn into a minotaur like creature. Just great...I can't even get a word in edgewise….wait a minute. Zodiac looked back to where Nehemoth had eaten the wall. He said his Memory was to control sound...so why is it that I've been able to talk or even hear him. There's two possibilities. One is that his control isn't as thorough as he's boasting. Or, here he grinned. Friedrich, our Friedrich is still in there and he's fighting back hard. I'm gonna need a little more time, but I think I can at least force Friedrich to take back control.

Nehemoth's eyes narrowed as Zodiac ducked out of sight. "This fight has taken much longer than I anticipated. I should have finished him by now. Damn Parasite's making my job harder." Indeed as even though Lung's power was flowing through Nehemoth's body, it wasn't growing as fast.

"Having trouble?" Zodiac taunted, his voice echoing through the pipes.

"No, just waiting for the right opportunity to end you!"

"If you can hear me, then your control's slipping," Zodiac laughed. "My friend's still in there and he's helping me out."

"Quiet," Nehemoth snapped, muting him again. His body shuddered, swelling even larger. Silvery, shark-like teeth sprouted from his ragged maw. "Your 'friend' won't save you." He waved his hand, launching his talons like bullets at the Rider, letting them regrow instantly.

Zodiac ducked under the talons crawled through the pipes, occasionally breaking them to let out more steam. "-think he's already saved me at least twi-...-that missed me was going for my neck, wasn't-? …-Grey Boy trick rewound too fa-

"SILENCE!" Nehemoth snapped. Then he chuckled. "Since you won't shut up, how about I make it so you can't even see me!" He shuddered again before disappearing out of existence.

Zodiac smirked. Step 1 down, he's getting sloppy. Now for Step 2. Carefully, he looked around and noticed him missing. Bet he used something that turned him into Predator...You know Dad really should stop showing me violent movies at age 9." Putting his thoughts aside for the moment, slowed his breathing down. Alright then if you want to play that way, then how about I show you what greed does to you. He took a deep breath, placed his hand around his mouth and blew out a steady maelstrom of fire all around him. With the steam and fire raging, it was now near impossible for either side to see or each other. The Rider however wasn't looking for a way to hide. He watched the flames closely, looking for a change in their behavior. Come on take the bait.

Moments late, the flames began to swirl and be pulled to his right. Zodiac raced into the flames, taking a moment to quickly to pick up his phone.

Nehmoth hummed as he swallowed the flames. Foolish, to think he wasted this much power as a smoke screen. As the flames began to die down, he then had a thought. It's almost...like he wanted to!

STANDBY CHANGE: CAPRICORN!

Zodiac charged out of the flames and speared the dopant into the ground. The rider's armor had changed from a golden red to a darker blue and white. Sprouting from his helmet were two long goat horns while his chest bore a weird looking N that trailed of to the right. On his hands were two metal knuckles. Said weapons were being introduced to Nehemoth's face. Being the first time he actually got a hit onto Nehemoth he was taking advantage of it by throwing several punches to the larger dopant's face. After about ten punches, the beast finally flung the Rider off. Landing on his feet, Zodiac charged again, lifting him up and shoving against a larger pipe causing steam to bellow out before lifting him up and then suplex him back on the ground.

Nehemoth steamed as he slowly stood up. "You...are dead!" he growled and charged at him. Zodiac stood his ground and bounced his right leg up and down, glowing as he did so.

"Sweet...CHIN! MUSIC!" With one powerful strike, his leg snapped forward and caught him under the chin. The impact rattled the pipes and actually stunned the larger Dopant as his head snapped back. Then he rushed him and grabbed him by the waist. Then he hosited him up, which was impressive considering Nehemoth's current size, and powerbombed him into the floor, creating a large crater.

Zodiac rolled off and stood up. "You got a little sloppy there. Normally, you would have countered me right out of the gate."

Nehemoth chuckled as he stood up. "Sloppy...from where I was, you couldn't even beat an S-class mage!"

"Yeah, well maybe it's true," Zodiac said knocking his knuckles together. "But the man who helped us wasn't you."

"That parasite you took advantage of and neglected like yesterday's trash?"

Zodiac visibly winced. "If...there was neglect, then I apologize. I should have pushed to see what was wrong with him, but I didn't." He stared Nehemoth down. "Friedrich, if you can hear me, I am sorry. I am sorry I wasn't a better friend, and I should have seen the signs." He looked at his belt. "You're a Fairy Tail Mage where it counts. That's why, Gabby and Tori are gonna kill me for this." And then to Nehemoth's shock, he pulled out his phone and pressed a button on the side.

End Call

Zodiac's armor burst off him. leaving Drew in his place.

"You think that'll make a difference?" Nehemoth scoffed. "I've killed before. Even this parasite has killed before." His now-enlarged arms shuddered, before a long, crescent-shaped blade split the scales open, sliding out and gleaming in the sun.

"I know that." Drew replied. "But can you end me?"

"Only a fool DISARMS HIMSELF!" Nehemoth roared, rushing in. Drew stood his ground, not even flinching as the Dopant raced closer. The blade on the monster's arm stopped inches from his neck. "What you're doing is something a foolhardy hero does." As he said this, his body started to twitch, his eyes flickering. "Why can't I…hit you…?"

Drew shrugged. "Seems like you have a problem. Maybe Friedrich, the one I know, finally has enough control."

"Are you trying to be a hero?" Nehemoth asked, his voice wavering.

"Sometimes heroes are the ones who don't know what their doing," The Guardian said.

"Do you even know what a hero does? They throw their lives away for no reason."

"I know there are heroes here," Drew snapped. "Including you, Friedrich Holmgardt."

This took Nehemoth off guard. "What…?"

"I know Friedrich was a hero back on Earth Bet. And because of the morals he learned on my Earth, he probably kept that world from falling into the void. In my book, he's a Guardian in all but name."

The Dopant lurched visibly, swaying. "You-?! S-shut up!" He lashed out, his fist smashing into a wall behind Drew as the environment flickered and warped rapidly. "Shut up, shut up! You don't know the first thing about me!"

"Don't I?" Drew asked. "I see myself if I let my power go to my head. Friedrich, I know we made mistakes, don't let this ruin you."

"Ruin…me?" Nehemoth spat ot. "Heroes, are just people who throw their lives away! They're the ones who ruin themselves!…So why did I…no, he! Why did HE just take my body and throw me into the danger all the time? Nehemoth staggered, his head pounding with images of Friedrich's heroics. He knew nothing about that world! How pointless it was to fight for anything other than himself!" He gripped his head spastically, nails digging into flesh and scales with a shower of sparks. "Why…why did he care…?! No, there was no reason to leave them alive. Why did I, HE, bother?! Why...why did he jump in to save people, even when he didn't know what he could do...?"

Drew tilted his head. "You know, I always thought Friedrich was the bravest guy I know. Irony, as the lion is one of my sigils. He's always wanting to evolve and adapt, something I've had problems with."

"Courage…" Nehemoth scoffed. "Commander Matthew always said the talk of courage by the other side was pointless. Especially when you're dead!"

"Courage is defined as overcoming your own fears. I face it everyday." He took a step closer. "When I die, I've got people to carry my flag!"

"And then the next person, and the next person! Its an endless cycle of violence-"

"THEN LET THIS BE THE GENERATION IT ENDS!" Drew screamed catching the dopant off guard. He sat down and looked away from Friedrich. "War. Destruction. Poverty. Hunger. Prejudice…I've seen it so much. With this power, I want to end it. I want my kids, and my kids kids to never have to experience it. And I know it will get worse...before it gets better. But with my friends, current and future, I know we can do it. And will do it, without becoming you." He said glaring up at Nehmoth's eyes.

For the first time this whole fight, Nehemoth was rendered speechless. He glanced at his claws. "To...end...I never imagined a world like that. Can it...be possible?"

"It's a beautiful thing in my mind. A world without war, without true sadness, a world where the world can progress as a whole and not divided," Drew smiled.

"You...are a fool…" Nehemoth trailed off, his voice losing the edge he had, "Matthew showed me the power of the Darkness. There is nothing that can ever destroy it completely."

"Rather be a fool with a dream, then a monster without a heart."

There was a long, painful silence as the monster stared unblinkingly at him. Finally, he sagged. "I will hold you to that…Zodiac." Nehemoth turned away, the draconic appearance slowly draining out of his body. Then there came a flash of light as he transformed back into a human.

"Welcome back," Drew said standing up as the area around them shifting back to normal.

"Thanks, I guess." Friedrich mumbled looking away. "I'm sorry."

"For what man?"

"I...You were right. When I had these problems in my head, I didn't want to tell you and it just bottled up. To tell the truth...you didn't ignore me that much. But still, it aggravates me when I try to tell you stuff and you barely show any interest. Nirvana just...exacerbated that frustration."

Drew hummed and walked around him. "If that was the case, I'm sorry. Sometimes I have attention issues, something you have as well."

"Yeah even so, I overreacted. And because of that, that guy almost killed you."

The two stood in silence, one in contemplation, one in sorrow. Then Drew broke it. "When I was younger, before Tsuki came along, I always wanted to be a hero. Now that I have it, I want to use it for the betterment of others." He turned to face Friedrich and raised his hand. "You've taught us, it's only fair that I return the favor. Let me teach you how to be a hero."

Friedrich stared at his hand and then turned around covering his eyes. He gave a shaky smile and sniffed. "Treating me like a newbie...how long was it since I was one and treated like a human?"

"We've all been there, Friedrich," Drew smiled. Then his radio went off. "Yo what's going on?"

"Where the heck have you been!?" Gabby screamed.

Drew groaned. "I knew she was gonna kill me," he whispered to Friedrich. "Sorry, something interfered with the radio. Where is everyone?"

"I have no idea, I'm with Tori and Brock. Everyone's split up. Last I saw of Lucy was when Angel came after us. And I had no idea where you are, the whole team's somewhere."

"Gabby, calm down," Drew said sensing her frustration. "Just tell me where you are, we'll try to link up with you."

"We're trying to reach these ruins about...maybe 15 clicks northeast of where we started.

"Alright, we're gonna see if we can find the others. Nirvana is currently powering up, and the issue I had delayed my response. If anyone can hear me, try to find Orion!"

"Stay safe!"

Drew sighed. "Right." He turned to Friedrich. Did you have a hero name back on Earth Bet?"

Friedrich snorted, giving him a look. "Of course I did. Even the Rogues took Cape names, ya know? Mine was Foundation."

"Any reason?" Drew asked.

"I had multiple abilities even at the start, a lot of which laid a huge groundwork for me to grow over time. When I was with the Protectorate, they liked comparing me with another hero, Dauntless, over which of us would have the largest growth in power."

"Love to hear the stories later. Let's ride, Foundation!" Drew said beginning to run into the woods.

Friedrich gave a wobbly smile. "Yeah. To the end of the line." He chased after the younger boy. The first true friend he'd had in a long time.

With Aura, Lupus and Lyon

Lupus fired from behind Lyon at a biker in front of him. As he had never had experienced firing on the move, the shots went wide of his targets. Said ice mage growled. "You can't hit the broadside of a barn Fullbuster!

"Shut up Lyon! I doubt you can do any better especially on the back of this thing!" Lupus snapped.

"Lupus, focus!" Aura shouted. He ducked a slash from Nitro and fired a bolt of lighting at the Dopant. Swerving out of the way, Nitro fired back with a pulse of fire, forcing Aura to hit the brakes. Revving up the engine again, the Rider quickly caught back up and, drawing Raikou, attempted to swipe at his enemy's rear tire, only to meet with a large crowbar.

"Don't think so, Hombre!" Nitro taunted and swung back. Aura quickly countered, parrying and striking in turn, until the weapons collided in a shower of sparks.

"You think you can stop all of us? Especially when I'm not the only one you have to worry about?" As he said this, multiple bikers showed surrounding the duo."

Aura quickly reached into his deck. "That depends, can you actually hit me?"

DOUBLE TEAM

Aura blinked out of existence and several illusions surrounded the group, making some of the Troopers fall off their bikes.

EXTREME SPEED

The illusions then charged in at a high rate of speed. Unable to figure out which ones were real, they were helpless as they were run over and bisected.

Shit! This guy's fast!Nitro cursed. "How about some firepower! NITROUS METEOR!" Multiple bursts of flame fired into the air from the exhaust ports on his shoulders. The fireballs raced high into the before bursting into smaller balls and falling into the path of both bikes.

"Lupus! Shoot them out of the sky!" Aura ordered.

Lupus raised his gun out and steadied his shot. "Ice Make: Triple Arrows!" Pulling the trigger, three streaks of ice blasted the falling debris, shattering them and keeping them from hitting the ground. Some the fireballs fell through and were about to crash into them when,

"Ice Make: Lion!"

A large lion of ice sprang from a magic circle that had opened in front of their bikes and swiped at the remaining meteors. The white haired boy chuckled his coat tossed aside. "Can't let you have all the fun, Grey!"

Lupus 'tch'ed but with the two ice mages began to work in sync as the rider Troopers kept up with them.

Aura had no copilot but he had plenty of ways to disperse the shots as he held up his hand. BUBBLEBEAM! A stream of bubbles raced out of his hand, forming a wall of bubbles to absorb the falling shrapnel.

Nitro growled. "You think your hot stuff huh?" He looked up and spotted Sherry watching the battle with trembling eyes. "Let's see if you can't stop this! CITGO CROSSFIRE!

He raised his hands and fired multiple black streams into the air and then breathed fire from his mouth. The streams combined and then when the flames connected burst into three distinct balls of fire.

Aura watched the ball burst and realized the attack was not just targeting him, but also Lupus AND Sherry. Even with his speed, he doubted he could reach both in time.

"What's it gonna be Rider boy! Save yourself? Save your Guild members? Or save the girl? Come on speedy, you claim you're the fastest, pick which 'fore I do it for ya!"

Aura grit his teeth as time seemingly slowed down. He's right...even if I could go my fastest, I can't save both. What do I do?! What do I…-

Suddenly, everything vanished. In the dim light around him spanned a massive, glittering spiderweb, adorned with thousands of twisting, iridescent shards.

In the center sat a black, shadowy creature. Five red eyes glared at him, judging for a moment.

"Hmph." With a grunt and a kick of one of its limbs, it flicked one of those shards right at him. "Prism."

And then, it was gone. Aura gasped. "What….is this?" In a blink of an eye, Aura vanished, making everyone blink in surprise.

"Where did he go?" Nitro asked quickly snapping his head around.

"THUNDER!" Nitro was instantly electrocuted by the massive bolt striking his helmet. The dopant glaring despite the electrical shock. He then grinned. "So that's your choice, leaving your allies at the mercy of my flames!"

"I'd look again if I were you," Aura said.

Nitro curiously turned to see Sherry and saw….another Aura? This one was a slightly darker blue than normal and was holding up his sword as he cut through the descending flame storm. Snapping over to Lupus, steam rose from where...a third Aura had used a large Water spell to put out the flames. This one had a purplish tint over his chest, mixing with the blue.

"What...what the hell? When did you get magic like that?!" Nitro screamed.

"This isn't magic," the one in front of him said. "But it does let me do this!" He held up his hand, showing off a card with his Bulbasaur firing Solarbeam and swiped it across his belt before leaping back.

SOLARBEAM

His Prism Clones held up two other cards. One was his Charizard using Fire Blast, the other was his Squirtle firing Hydro Pump.

FIRE BLAST

HYDRO PUMP

TEAMWORK COMBO: TRIPLE FINISH!

As one, the three clones powered up their respective cards, three powerful orbs appeared in front of them, glowing larger.

"Screw this!" Nitro yelled, trying to race away, only for a large ice wall to erupt from the ground in front of him.

Behind the wall was Lupus and a shirtless Lyon. "It seems like you've hit a dead end," Lupus grinned.

Nitro panicked and turned around as the three attacks combined and collided in a brilliant fireball. When the smoke died down, Nitro's body was short circuiting. "Damn...it...my engine's fried!"

The original Aura quickly slid his cards across his belt buckle, powering them up.

THUNDERBOLT: MAXIMUM ENERGY!

IRON TAIL: MAXIMUM ENERGY!

COMBO: LIGHTNING SLASH

As the three bodies merged back together, the Rider felt his body charge up, as if he gotten an instant charge on his laptop battery as he gripped his sword. In a blink of an eye, he raced towards Nitro and cleanly bisected him.

"And that's the checkered flag for this battle," Aura said landing and sheathing Raikou.

Explosions rocked the dopant before falling over and exploding. "Forgive me!"

Aura powered down and he turned to the fallen mage as his Gaea memory landed in front of him. "That's one Oracion member down." He took note of a small rune leaving Racer's arm and frowned.

"That was awesome!" Lupus said powering down, just as shirtless as Lyon.

Sherry ran over and glomped Ash. "Thank you! I would have been burnt rubber!"

Lyon, however, had another thought. "That cloning trick...where did you learn that?"

Ash scratched his head. "Um…two minutes ago."

"Wait you created those clones and you literally just...learned it? That's some bullshit!" Grey growled.

"I don't know what it was," Ash began. "I saw this big…spider-thing. It threw something at me, and then I just…knew how to do it."

"Spider?"

"Yeah…or something." Ash said rubbing his head. Before any further questions could speak, Ash's and Grey's radio crackled to life. "If anyone can hear me, head Northeast and link up with Orion! Nirvana is powering up and I had a serious delay on my end!"

"Grey can you track Gabby?" Ash asked.

Grey took a whiff of the air and pointed behind Sherry. "Got her, she's that way!"

"Lead the way then!" He ordered as they took off into the woods.

Tenshi Bliss Vs. Pleiades

Pleiades snapped Mutsuraboshi at the flying dopant, the metal tendril streaking out with a lash, only to just fall short. Tenshi giggled sinsterly. "Oh, you missed me! I actually felt the breeze on that.

"Grrr…" the rider growled. "Shut up, you murderer."

"Murder?" Tenshi mocked gasped. "No no my dear. That wasn't murder, that was more..natural selection."

Pleiades and thrust her weapon forward again. The angel merely dodged it. "Is that all you can do?"

The Rider grinned and held out her free hand. The whip split into several segments before turning and racing towards the Dopant. She screeched as she the knives cut through her back. "Damn you, bitch!

Seeing an opening, she quickly swapped out Virgo's key for Aquarius and jammed it into the her belt.

SUMMON! WATER BEARER SPIRIT!

"Oh?" Tenshi asked curious as Pleiades transformed. "You have the key to the Water bearer. Such a powerful spirit." Then she smirked as she pulled out a golden key. "Open, Gate of the Scorpion: SCORPIO!"

A familiar bell chimed as a golden gate appeared. Out of it was a large tan man with a red and white hair. The top half of his body was bare save for a flower shaped collar. His lower body was that of a metallic scorpion with a gun shaped tail.

"We are...rocking!" The man said.

As Pleiades watched him, her body froze up. "Honey!?" Aquarius asked. The Rider gasped as her armor was ripped away and her human form appeared.

"Hey baby, what up?" he said casually, throwing up the rock horns.

"Sorry I got pulled away from our cuddle time~!" cooed the mermaid, hugging the scorpion with hearts in her eyes.

"We are! Doing more now! Later losers!" Scorpio said as they disappeared in a cloud of sparkles.

"Hohoho!" Tenshi laughed. "Some celestial mage! You didn't even do your research on what they do when they aren't at your beck and call."

"Shut up!" Pleiades snapped, grabbing Leo's key and slamming it into her belt.

SUMMON: LION

"Oh, him…" Tenshi said unconcerned. "I remember one of my new spirits talking about him. Let me introduce her. Open, Gate of the Ram: Aries!"

"No, not her! You bitch!" Leo screamed as the familiar bell rang. Out of the circle came a well endowed woman with short, curly pink hair. She wore a fluffy white dress of wool, with matching cuffs and leggings. On top of her head were two small ram horns. The spirit looked away bashfully. "I'm sorry, miss, but…I have to fight you."

"Lucy...its Aries! That was the spirit I tried to protect."

"Then go back, I can summon someone else!"

"No, our pride won't let us! Sorry, can you handle yourself!"

Pleiades reluctantly let him separate. Loke quickly rushed the ram spirit who also didn't want seem to want to fight either.

The Rider instead focused on the Dopant. "How could you put her through this?"

"Simple! I killed her previous master and now she's mine! Though they may be friends, those who fight for different masters are bound to be enemies. They must follow their master's orders!"

"That's not right and you know it!"

"You're right...I should just end this. Open Gate of the Chisel: Caelum!"

Out of the magic circle came a large metallic sphere with a strange looking eye. Putting her hand on it, it glowed before sinking into her skin. Her right arm morphed into a large cannon which she pointed at the two battling spirits and powered up.

"NO!" Pleiades screamed.

"Why should you care, they're immortal," Tenshi asked nonchalantly. Time slowed down as she fired the gun, kicking up the water around her. The blast raced towards Aries and Loke, who turned and paled to a ghostly white. Pleiades reached out to them in a vain attempt to save them. No, please, I need to save them! ANYTHING!

[Destination]

Everything stopped. Everything vanished: trees, spirits, even Tenshi Bliss disappeared, leaving onto a dim gray sky. Lucy looked around, reaching for her whip, only to realize that not only was it not at her side, but she was no longer in her armor. She looked around, seeing only flat ground in every direction, then upward. A shiver ran down her spine as the sun loomed down on her, abnormally large and flaring with golden light.

[Agreement]

She gasped as something thrummed through her head, countless impressions and abstract images pressing in on her consciousness.

[Satisfaction]

And then, everything resumed. Her hand was still outstretched. Behind Aries back, a large green tear opened up and swallowed the oncoming blast.

"WHAT!?" Tenshi screamed, her powerful blast completely nullified. "WHAT DID YOU DO, BITCH?"

Pleiades said nothing and raised her hand at Tenshi.

Behind the Dopant, another green portal appeared. She had just enough time to turn around before her own blast struck her and sent her flying into the trees. "What the...What the hell... was that?" Bliss breathed out, her body steaming from the impact.

"That's what I want to know," concurred Loke.

Pleiades looked at her hand and in her head a phrase passed through it. "Portal Creation."

"Like our gate keys?"

"Something like that...wait!" The rider got an idea. "Loke, you trust me?"

"What do you need?" The lion spirit said with no hesitation.

Instead of answering, she brought her hand to the ground and opened another portal. With a nudge of her head, Loke leaped in and appeared behind Tenshi who was ready to cut off the Rider's head. "REGULUS IMPACT!" A left cross sent her skipping down the river before Loke leaped back.

"How dare you?" Tenshi snapped. "Aries! Attack!"

Aries looked at Loke who smiled and winked. The ram girl turned to her master. "No…"

"What was that?" Tenshi growled.

"I'm...sorry, but I can't follow you. Not after you showed your colors. Loke's master is much more pure hearted than you."

"So what? I still have your key! See...what?" She looked down to where she kept her keys, only to find that Aries's key was missing.

"Looking for this?" asked Loke, twirling the key in question on his finger.

"How?"

"No idea, but I'm glad she's away from you!" Pleiades growled. She turned to Aries. "Aries, I know, you're contracted to that bitch,"

"OI!" Tenshi snarled.

"But if you want, you can join me right now and we can work out the contract details later!"

Aries stared at the Rider and then looked at Loke, who took her hand. "She's nothing like Karen, or her. She's probably the kindest person to have ever been a celestial mage. There's more to her than you realize, please."

Aries looked into her friends eye and nodded with a watery smile. She turned to Pleiades and handed her her key. "I'm sorry I attacked you."

"In the future, you won't have to apologize to me ever," the Rider told her, gently taking the key. "Now, let's fight together!" The ram girl nodded and Pleiades inserted the key into her belt. "This will feel weird."

SUMMON: RAM

The Leo armor armor split off and Aries gasped as her spirit particles were absorbed into the armor. The symbol on the telescope flipped to a fancy V, which looked like ram horns. As she glowed, her armor took on a pink and white color, with gold around the shoulders. On her feet, were a pair of white boots with pink hearts and pink wool on top of them. Additional wool appeared on her wrists and around her neck. On top of her light pink helmet were a pair of large ram horns.

"Pleiades: Aries Form!" The Rider cheered. "Aries are you alright?"

"I'm fine, sorry. It's just I've never merged with anyone before. But this power, it feels so warm!"

"Do you have any magic I can use?"

"Um...all I can do is Wool Magic, it's not the strongest for attacking, sorry. Wait…"

"What's up?"

"This armor, it's giving me a new weapon. Bring your arms together fists up. The Celestial mage did so, frowning under her helmet. Then, with a flash of light, her arms were suddenly weighed down. A pair of small, golden, elliptical shields now adorned them, the tapered points covering her hands like oversized gauntlets.

"Shields?"

"Sorry, my magic is more defensive… but I hope this will suffice."

"Thanks Aries."

Tenshi growled, summoning Caelum again and pressing her hand to it. It glowed before a large blade popped out of the sphere along with a handle. "How dare you steal my spirits!?"

"How dare you kill their previous holder?" Pleiades countered.

"Survival of the fittest!" Tenshi snarled, charging at the Rider. Letting out a warcry she swung at the Riders head. Only for a layer of wool to come up catch the blade in its clutches. Taking advantage of the shock, Pleiades swung her shield and smashed the Dopant across the head.

"Miss Lucy, it appears I can control the wool around our armor to act as a second layer.

"This is almost like bigger versions of Zodiac's shield. But I don't think he uses as an offensive weapon."

"I'm sorry, but they are definitely big enough to defend and attack."

Pleiades turned to Loke. "You ready?"

"I've been wanting to save Aries for a long time, let's rock!" The lion grinned rushing at Tenshi.

"Screw you!" Tenshi screamed. She charged Pleiades again, only for her knock the blade away with a swing of her left shield.

Loke raced in, his fists glowing. "Regulus Gatling!" He threw out a combination of punches, sparks and blood flying at each hit.

"GAHH!" Tenshi screamed, her body being brutalized by the pissed of Celestial Spirit. Pleiades took her chance and slammed both shields into her back, dropping her into the river, before rearing back and uppercutting her opponent into the air. Then she leaped and slammed both shields into her chest, sending her screaming back into the water.

"You...bitch...Gemini...fight them!" Tenshi panted, wrenching herself upright and swinging her green whip angrily.

Gemini looked at her master and then at the Rider. "No…"

Tenshi's mind was blown. "What?"

"We.."See Lucy's Heart!" They began to speak in twin speak."She is…"Friends to all her spirits. She's much nicer...Than one whose heart is black...as midnight!"

Pleiades could have cried happy tears but she held it in and gazed at her opponent. "This is something that Celestial Mages like you failed to realize. They are sentient and living creatures. They are not toys! And now your greed and power lust will be your undoing." She twisted her key upwards, popping open her buckle, then pulled it out and slotted it into each of her shields, turning with a click.

RAMMING. CHARGE.

The two shields expanded greatly, easily three times her size before unfolding into a rectangular shape. "Loke, grab the other shield and get behind her!"

The lion spirit nodded, taking the large shield and warping behind her. As one both charged at their opponent. Their battered opposition could only close her eyes and release her prayer to her master. "Lord Brain…forgive me!"

*CRRRRUNCH!*

The two walls smashed into the Dopant, ruthlessly crushing her, until finally she exploded, flames bursting out the sides. Pleiades grinned as the shield shrank. "Your wings have been clipped." As she powered down she noticed a barely conscious Angel floating down the river. She flung her whip over and pulled her onto shore.

"Why...why did you save me?" Angel coughed.

"Because it wouldn't feel right to leave you to die," Lucy explained. "If i leave you untied do you promise not to run from me?"

Angel chuckled weakly. "A choice huh? When i was captured and brought to the Tower of Heaven, I didn't get much choice in anything."

"So you were like Erza and Jellal?"

Angel hummed. "Perhaps…" She stared into the blue sky. "I spent a lot of my days wondering if I could fly like a bird, or even an angel out of my cage. Out of my pain."

"You've been through a lot haven't you."

"Showing sympathy to an enemy? I can kill you you know, just like Karen."

"But you're not."

Angel smiled and closed her eyes. Lucy took a closer look at the white haired beauty. Her gloves and leggings were torn, leaving only the feather corset. "You already look like an angel, just lose the attitude. Also between you and me, you're pretty hot."

"What you some sort of lesbian?"

Lucy shrugged. "I play both ways. When you got the looks, why limit it to boys?"

Angel giggled and slowly say up. "You don't look bad yourself blondie."

Lucy looked down and saw that her green top and tan cargo shorts were torn up from the fighting. "Well that sucks. Hang on let me call Virgo. Do you wanna change?"

Angel shook her head. "I'm your prisoner. Do with me what you will."

As she said this, the maid spirit appeared. "You rang princess?"

"Do you have a spare set of clothes?"

"Yes mam!" The spirit said snapping her fingers and another dress appeared in her hands.

"Can you also clean her up?" Lucy asked her, casually stripping off her clothes.

The maid nodded and in a flash, Angel's wounds were healed.

"I couldn't repair all of the tears, princess. Punish me?"

"No," Lucy deadpanned as she put on a pair blue and gold leggings. Slipping on a matching top, she had Virgo tie her long hair into smaller pony tails. She hummed as she looked at her hair. "Thinking about streaking and dyeing my hair again. You think white looks good on me?"

Before Angel could comment, Lucy's communicator went off. "If anyone can hear this message, head north and try to hook up with Orion!"

Lucy nodded and nudged Angel forward. "If we encounter anyone, your my ticket to avoiding trouble."

Angel smirked. "I knew there was devious side to you," as they raced through the woods."

With Brain and Midnight

Brain looked at his arms as another line disappeared from his body. "That's four of my children defeated." He coughed in pain as he thought about the next step in his plans. "Those Kamen Riders will be perfect to turn on Fiore. No one's been able to stop them. Even that man who was throwing nails everywhere will be perfect, especially after I have him return my core back to me!"

As Brain plotted, Midnight watched him with trepidation. If I don't do something, he will turn on me just as easily. "Master, let me finish those approaching our location. Perhaps seeing some more bodies will cause them to waver."

"Do it, my child, and remember the cost of failure!" Brain ordered. The young man nodded and raced into the ruins surrounding the Megalith. As he wandered through the ruins, a small rabbit spotted him and bounced away.

"Buneary!" the rabbit cried, catching Dawn's attention. She immediately radioed in. "We got movement."

"I got him, looks like it's Midnight," Anabel responded, hiding in one of the windows. "Erza, you got a shot?"

In a taller tower, Erza sat on the roof, Wendy sitting behind her. The blue haired mage had reached the red head safely and healed her. They had all received the call to meet in the ruins and as the first party to reach decided to scout out the area.

"Erza are you sure your okay?" Wendy asked.

"I'll be fine. Cover your ears."

"Again with this barbaric weapons?" Carla grumbled.

"I'm sorry. According to Drew, weapons like this and his pistols are common by their military and law enforcement. Though he said they might be closer to Grey's than mine." She lined the sights on her rifle and focused. In comparison to Gabby's bow, however, she did not have a proper scope on her rifle even though it could be modified for it. In addition, she did not have the marksman training of the hunter Rider. So when Erza pulled the trigger, it pulled slightly to her left, sending the shot towards Midnight's shoulder rather than his head.

Midnight sensed he was in trouble and moments later, something clanked off the air in front of him. He recoiled instantly, falling into an aggressive stance and glaring around suspiciously.

"Shit! Anabel, I missed!" Erza called as she leaped off the roof.

Anabel narrowed her eyes and flicked her chakram open. "You didn't Erza, something deflected the shot."

"Alliance Mages, I know you're out there!" Midnight called out, reaching into his pocket. "Resistance is futile."

MIRROR

His body distorted, before turning completely black. His feminine form was replaced with a slick black reflective material. His eyes looked like silver saucers, which were pushed as if some stuck two thumbs in them. Smaller mirrors dotted his body specifically around the joints.

"As your better, Sirris Retsnom, you will find your attacks worthless!"

Anabel took her chance and threw here chakram. Once away, she quickly put her belt on and activated it. Sirris instinctively flared his magic and saw the chakram clank off his shield and into the ruins. Anabel leaped out and threw her other chakram, simultaneously swinging her arms in her henshin pose.

"HENSHIN!"

EVOLVE

The second chakram bounced off the front of the Dopant and reflected it back at the falling Rider. At the same time time, Anabel's henshin shield popped up and bounced back striking the dopant and knocking him down.

Kyokan landed in a crouch, catching her second chakram in her right hand. "I think you'll find that reflections often lie," She said catching the first and twisting her body to strike again.

"Your attacks will only hurt you and your friends," Sirris growled waving his arms, summoning brief, shimmering outlines of transparent blades. "Dodge these! INVISIBLE SCYTHES!"

The knives raced towards the empathetic Rider. She quickly closed her eyes and saw the magical outline of the knives. She bent back, her head almost touching the ground to avoid the first wave. Then she planted her hand on the ground and twisted her body in a full circle to avoid the second wave, before pushing off and twirling her body in air as the knives passed inches from her body. After two rotations, she flung both of her weapons at the wall behind Sirris.

"HAH! Useless!" He taunted. Only for the thrown weapons to bounce off a wall behind him and struck him in the back.

"Grrr! How about this, GREAT MIRROR SLASH!" He raised his arm and cut across his body diagonally, firing off a massive crescent of distorted air towards the empathic Rider. Standing tall, a card dropped into her hand and she swiped it across her belt.

MIRROR COAT

A shimmering light appeared in front of the Rider, which absorbed the blow with a flash, before the same attack was sent back at double power and speed. Sirris had no time to counter the reflected attack and roared out in pain as it hit him, the remaining energy slicing the buildings behind him.

As he screamed in pain, Erza and Dawn leaped down Kyokan. "You alright?"

"He hasn't laid a scratch on me," Kyokan grinned. "But if this is the strongest non guild leader, I'm gonna need some help."

"No need to worry!" Dawn said cheerfully pulling out her belt.

"You can count on us!" Erza declared latching her bracelet on.

"One person or three! It won't matter once my master's plans are complete!"

"HENSHIN!" Dawn and Erza shouted activating their respective Drivers.

EVOLVE

HEAVEN'S WHEEL! TAKE FLIGHT!

As Hanabi and Aquilla drew their weapons, they knew that Nirvana was close to activation. If they couldn't stop them all, it would be unleashed on the whole of Fiore

End of Chapter

UO: ...Come…(Hits antenna) *CEBBBB* NO (Hits it again) *AND IT'S A GRAND SLAM* Come On! *Hits it again* ...I think it worked...Check one two, NS can you hear me?"

NS: Yo.

UO: Oh thank god! I thought it was just me. Hey folks, sorry about that, apparently Friedrich can harm the 4th wall.

NS: Not really. We're still inside the Fourth Wall.

UO: Yeah yeah. SO! We saw a couple of VERY strange abilities, brought up by Ash and Lucy. That's not from me, that's from NS! As part of his contributions, I let him put some...relatively strong abilities through. NS care to elaborate?

NS: Righto! So, as Friedrich himself mentioned a few chapters ago, his powers are not only sapient beings independent of him, they are also growing and...reproductive. Like the Shards in the Worm-verse, Friedrich's powers will periodically create a 'bud' of themselves, which will spread to someone that he is familiar with. These buds can contain a particular fractionaspect of any one of his original powers, or a copy of one of his own copies provided by the Parasite.

UO: Bottom line, every rider is gonna get one, and NO Worm fans! We already decided on who gets what. Anyway, the two shown NS?

NS: Also, none of that pesky 'must generate conflict' bullshit that the Shards had programmed into them. As for canon Capes, Ash now possesses the power of a Cape from Worm canon: Prism. Her power is to split into up to three clones, then merge back together for a temporary power boost.

UO: For RWBY fans think Blake's Shadow Semblance mixed with the DOTA hero Brewmaster's Primal Split. It looks strong already, but knowing the future chances are that we will break it open

NS: Nah, think more like Lycan from the fan-made SLVR Linen Trailer.

UO: Anyway, Lucy's got another ability that seems out of left field for Worm.

NS: Actually, there IS a Parahuman who has an ability like it. However, Lucy's originates from Friedrich's Mysticism power, the Sun, which makes it magical in origin. Put simply, her new power is Portal Creation. She can generate any number of portals, linking two or more points in space to each other without having to traverse the space in between. In addition, the edges of said portals can be calibrated to become impossibly sharp. As long as she has a good enough mental image of the destination(s), she can open a portal anywhere, and potentially link one portal to many exits. Other effects could be discovered…

UO: Translation, her summoning ability got cranked to 11 and the knob is torn off. She can theoretically summon her spirits without a key now. On top of that, she can summon other people, weapons and even objects. Now there will be one more ability revealed this arc and then in the chapter after the arc, Friedrich will explain more thoroughly what these buds and powers are. Suffice to say, most will fit their powers and personalities.

NS: And finally, we have the power that Friedrich awakened last chapter. This one is an entirely separate power from all his other ones. Don't worry, this is the last power I had planned to give him. Anything else he'll have to copy. Anyway, the power is called Shiftmorphing. What it does is, it allows him to merge his body with any substance and then shapeshift it with himself. That's how he was able to absorb Nirvana's Core.

UO: And went nuts

NS: THAT was a separate issue.

Preview: Nirvana makes its march. The Allies make a desperate gamble to destroy the machine. All the while Master Brain has an Ace up his sleeve

Next time: Death of a Dream, Nirvana's reckoning!

UO: Hope you read and review! Show some love to the other stories, especially Machina Hero, you guys really loved it! Also if you wanna talk, NSG and I are a part of Discord. He has his own that he runs and I'm on. We're also part of Soulembrace2010's guild and Writer's United. Hit us up for an invite if your interested.

OSPREY...SWOOSH!