YuYuGiDigiMoon: Dawn of Chaos

by Kanius

Tamers, Sailor Moon, YuYu Hakusho, YuGiOh/GX/5Ds, Frontier, Savers, Adventure/02, and exclusive OC crossover. In March 2009, a forthcoming chaos disrupts worlds, timelines, and dimensions. Facing multiple enemies, Japan's heroes must stand united or become divided in order to stop Paradais from subverting time and space.

35. The Chaos Simmers Down for Now!

A/N: Ok, time to wrap these fights up and resolve some of these conflicts. Sorry for the delay, but I think I can only do a chapter per month (sometimes two on rare occasions). These past chapters have been very strenuousto say the least.

Ok, to recap, we've got: Varuna vs. Blitzkrieg part III, Orcus/Sailor Quartet/Tuxedo Kamen/Aster vs. Abyss, Sedna vs. Melancholia part II (with Dimitri, Yugi, Jaden, Yusei, Neo Moon, and RJ possibly getting involved), Helena having to overcome Kitoss' treatment, Kyo vs. the Neo-Spirit Detectives, Shingo's first battle as the Moonlight Knight, Vipris and his assistant vs. Lien, our Chimera friends needing to overcome Parasimon X's mind tricks, Igasu still running loose, Venus and Mercury vs Toad, and Mars possibly meeting a Rajita general she's quite familiar with.

What do you get? Chaos... for now.

Enjoy.

xxxxx

Sara's Mind

"Sara, c'mon, it's time to for dinner."

Opening her eyes, Sara found herself in a familiar setting. She gasped once she realized it was the orphanage from long ago. She frantically looked around as everything was filled with shades of gray. Only she stood out colored in a sea of gray, white, and black. These were memories she didn't want to recall. Hearing her name, Sara saw a fat, middle-aged man calling out to her, but she wasn't the one being called out. Sara turned to her left side and gaped in shock when a smaller and timid girl wearing a cute dirty white dress and pink shoes walked forward carrying a dog plush.

Shaking her head, Sara was baffled at what she was seeing. It was herself at the age of six! She saw herself carrying the dog, but not smiling. Rather, the child's eyes were lifeless and dull.

"It...It's me...!" Sara gasped as she saw younger self walking up to the fat man. Her face contorted with disgust. "Ugh, that man. I've always hated him. He was always putting on that fake smile just to lighten the mood. He had all the good meals, but me and the other kids just had small portions and leftovers." Clenching her fists, Sara raced up and tried to stop her younger self. "Stop! Don't listen to him!" As she tried to seize the child, her arm went through her. "What?" Sara jerked her arm back and blinked in befuddlement. "What's going on here?"

The fat man suddenly pivoted his view and smiled evilly at Sara's direction. He held the child in front of him, folding both arms around her neck as he bent over. Then, the skin on his face seemingly started melting off. The face behind the 'mask' was revealed to be Parasimon X, who laughed devilishly at Sara.

Taken aback, Sara angrily rebuked at the Neo-Rajita. "YOU!"

"Doesn't this take you back, my dear? You don't seem to hold very fond memories of where you spent your childhood."

"This is the last place I want to remember!"

"And you don't seem to be fond of the man I assumed the form of."

"Because I never once felt any good vibes being around him! It was Hayata who saved me from that sick freak!"

"Oh, ho," Parasimon X chortled as he pulled the younger Sara close to him. A pair of long tentacles protruded from his skull and slowly wrapped around her neck. "Shall we repeat history? Only this time there won't be a Hayata to save her now."

Sara tried shaking her head to get Parasimon X out of her mind. "Stop... STOP! NO!" Before she could even attempt to intervene, she felt her feet being pinned down. She saw her own feet sinking through the dirt as it became akin to quick sand, but she stopped sinking at the waistline. She struggled to pull herself out. As she tried to turn intangible, she realized her powers weren't working. "What?"

"That won't work here. I've infiltrated your mind and have access to your full memories. I can manipulate the events in your memories and make it so that I have full control of what will happen. And I've made it so you can't use your powers. Relax, sit back and enjoy the show." With that, the sick-minded Rajita focused his sickening intent and moved his tentacles through the child's dress. "Ah, yes, and so it begins...!"

Suddenly, everything in the dimension seemingly turned pitch black and Sara heard a familiar voice call out to her.

"SARA! WAKE UP! SARA!"

"Larry? LARRY! IS THAT YOU?" Sara shouted, as she watched the ground that swallowed her disappear. She saw the child image of herself run up to her. Sara knelt over and picked the child up as they vanished from the dimension, leaving Parasimon X to howl with fury.

xxxxx

Hayata's Mind

Hayata stood in a spacious room where there were kids sleeping. It was the same orphanage where he and Sara spent their childhood. He remembered being a loner and unable to socialize with the other children. Sara was the only exception as he'd protect her from bullies and the adults. He remembered this was the horrific day that Sara was nearly harrassed by one of the caretakers.

"Sara," a man's voice emanated behind the young teen.

Recognizing the creepy voice, Hayata's instinctively clicked and fiercely turned around. He shot an angry and intense glare as he saw the same fat man sitting beside Sara's bed.

No! It's THAT night! Hayata mentally growled as he ran up at the fat man and stopped the minute he saw his younger self holding a bat behind him. "It's me!" As he witnessed the boy tried taking a swing to the back of the man's head, the fat man quickly grabbed the bat with a quick reflex, which Hayata didn't recall happening.

In fact, Hayata was sure that never happened. Hayata had quickly taken the man out with the bat swing and reported to one of the other orphanage caretakers. It was this night that forged a stronger friendship between Hayata and Sara.

"I don't remember this happening! Who are you?" Hayata demanded as he watched the fat guy ripped his face off, revealing Parasimon X chortling evilly. His evil laughs seamlessly penetrated the teen's mind, causing him to withdraw and step back. "You...! I remember you!"

"Good to know. How does it feel recalling this event? This was the night this man tried to touch dear Sara."

"GET AWAY FROM HER!" Hayata roared as he lunged out to grab him, but a tendril shot from Parasimon X's forehead and batted him aside. "AUGH!" He cried out as he dropped like bricks and was kicked in the face. "Ugh!" He recoiled after having been kicked square in the face. He rolled away and grabbed his face as Parasimon X prepared to inject his tentacles into the sleeping girl. Just as he was about to do so...

"HAYATA! CAN YOU HEAR ME?"

Hearing Larry's familiar voice calling out to him, his eyes widened as the entire dimension turned black. He watched as he and his younger self vanished, leaving Parasimon X in solitude.

Irked with his plans seemingly falling apart, Parasimon X cursed angrily. "No... NO! I've lost him, too? No matter, there's still Mika!" With that, he, too, vanished from the empty mind dimension.

xxxxx

Mika's Mind

Opening her eyes, Mika let out a deep gasp and frantically looked around. She noted the familiar settings. It was the absolute last place she wanted to remember. Mika was standing in the middle of her old room where she shared a home with her father. Across the room, she saw a little girl sleeping in her bed. Baffled by what she was seeing, Mika slowly paced toward the bed.

"T-That's me!" Mika's face paled as her eyes fell on the child sleeping in the bed. As she walked closer to the bed, she turned and saw the girl curled up with a bruise on her right cheek. She stopped dead cold and folded both arms around herself, shuddering at the sight. "...no, I didn't want to be reminded of this." Then, she saw the girl holding a picture in her hand. She slowly approached the bedside and turned the paper around.

Drawn on the paper was a picture of a winged and horned demon breathing fire. Inscribed on the top center above the demon's head was the word Monster. The color on Mika's face became drained and turned white as terrible memories flashed before her eyes.

No... NO! It's... THAT... man! Mika mused as she stepped away from the bedside. Before letting out another gasp, the door pushed open and released light, which quickly awoke and alarmed the child. Mika and her child self looked ahead to see an ambiguous shadowed figure. This figure shared the same descriptive appearance as the monster drawn on the paper. It had the horns, the wings, and the seemingly demonic vibe. As the monster advanced, the startled girl's eyes widened with fear as she heard the loud footsteps. She hid the picture under her pillow and waited for the 'monster' to arrive on his daily night check-in.

"D...d...daddy...? No..." Young Mika pleaded as her eyes filled with absolute dread and terror. "What did... I... do now, daddy?"

Mika watched as the demonic figure turned into a more human-like figure. She recognized the figure as the image of her late-father.

The fury in Mika awakened as a middle-aged man with half-bald head and a black karate gi pierced a frightening glare at the child.

"Daddy... where's mommy... is she ever coming back?"

Furrowing his brows, the man grabbed the child's arm and threw her to the floor. The girl yelped upon hitting the floor. Mika roared as she rushed her father and threw a punch at him. To her shock, Mika noticed her fist seemingly going through him! She turned and watched the man kicking the child's side.

"IT'S YOUR FAULT SHE LEFT US, YOU LITTLE BITCH!"

"DADDY! NO!" The girl screamed a blood-curdling cry and pleaded. Every swift kick to the child was nerve-wrecking for Mika. "IT HURTS!"

"...mommy never returned," Mika mumbled as she averted and closed her eyes from the horrific memory. I remembered this night. Nearly every night after mother left, that monster didn't think twice of accusing me of making her leave us. And since he was an abusive alcoholic, he took his anger out on me! That bastard didn't think twice of treating me like shit! I was nothing to him! His own daughter! To think I was born from an abusive drunk and a prostitute! "Stop... STOP IT YOU BASTARD!" As she opened her eyes, she saw a slightly older version of herself confronted by her mentally unstable father.

Mika remembered this eventful moment changing her life. Prior to this moment, Mika's grandfather had gained custody of her from his abusive son. Mika's life experienced a big improvement. Her grandfather taught her martial arts, for two reasons: to help defend herself and lead her down the right path that her father squandered. Though a strict sensei, Mika's grandfather was loving and treated her more like a daughter than his son did for Mika.

However, Mika was abducted by her father and taken back to their home. Rather than cowering in fear, Mika firmly stood her ground against her abusive father. The minute the abusive man showed his daughter the 'monster' picture she drew was the last straw. Mika watched as her younger self charged her father. The man quickly backhanded the child and taunted her, kicking her while she was down.

"You think I'm a monster, bitch? Eh? You don't know what a monster is!" roared the man, who picked his daughter up. "I know my father's been teaching you! Show me what he's taught! You can't hit your father, can you?" He laughed and chopped the side of the girl's neck, dropping her like a dead weight.

"Takes you back, doesn't it?"

Caught off guard, Mika quickly turned and saw nobody. Her eyes turned green as she scanned around and spotted a shadowy figure sitting on a chair. She dashed right up and tried hitting 'him' and fired a blast that vaporized the chair.

"Hahahaha! Don't you want to watch the rest of the show?"

Mika pivoted her view and shifted back on the memory. She watched as her younger self rebounded by clipping the abusive man's right leg with a fierce kick. Then, the girl lunged right at him and landed an uppercut to his jaw. As he stumbled back toward the stairway, the girl passionately cried and charged head-on. Young Mika landed a super kick to the man's chest and sent him falling down the flight of stairs. Her face contorted with fear once she heard a loud snap and saw her father lying motionless on the floor. The abusive man not only fell down the stairs, but broke his neck and died immediately. The child sunk to her knees as she fell into a state of shock.

"D...Dad...?" The girl mumbled as she suddenly into a state of despair. "I... I didn't... I didn't mean... I didn't mean to... k..." She screamed at the base of her own voice and cried. "I DIDN'T MEAN IT TO END THIS WAY! DAD!"

Mika watched as her mind suddenly became broken. As she fell into a trance-like state, Parasimon X folded his arms around her neck. "I... I didn't mean to kill him... I... I didn't... I just wanted to make him suffer..."

"Ssssh, relax. It's all over. You not only killed your tormentor, but you completed your revenge. Now, you'll live with the fact that you murdered a man. But, not just any man... your own father. You'll have to live with that terrible truth for the rest of your life. Now, as a half-Rajita, you've long surpassed that man in strength and have become a useful weapon. Mika, let it all go and accept that you're no longer human. Give yourself to the Neo-Rajita. Join us. Humanity has already shown its dark side through this pitiful man's actions. Your own father abused you. Your mother abandoned you. Become one with the family and you'll be granted more power than you could ever want."

Parasimon X chuckled sickeningly while moving two tentacles around her waist. Another tentacle ran up her shirt and another up the back of her head.

"Let go of all restraints and accept who you are, Mika Hayashi. Embrace your Rajita nature! Killing one pitiful human was easy for you. Just imagine killing more..."

As he inserted a tentacle through the back of her neck, Mika let out a pained gasp.

"Fulfill General Kuiiza's wishes and help us enslave humanity. You can even kill any oppressors to your heart's content! You already have experience in taking a human life! It should be easy for you!"

Mika said nothing as she, like her past self, fell to her knees in anguish and defeat.

"Though as good as your powers are, you've proven to be inadequate to be a leader. You fail in the leadership role of your group. You relentlessly went head-on to fight me without considering any options. You colleague, Larry, tried to stop you. You didn't listen. Look where being thickheaded led you, dear Mika. As a warrior, your powers are more than impressive. Your tenacity knows no bounds. As a leader, you're unfit to be one! Why not serve under me? I promise you'll get a better idea of how a true leader commands one's army. The role of a follower suits you better. Even your friend, Larry, would make a more suitable leader than you. At least, he wouldn't have lead you and your colleagues into this predicament. Well, don't you agree?"

He further inserted his tentacle through Mika, causing her to scream with bloody murder. Her eyes filled with tears as Parasimon X subjected the girl to some excruciating pain, but pleasuring himself whilst listening to her pained cries.

Parasimon X chortled with sick pleasure. "Your screams are like music to me, Mika Hayashi. Please don't stop! Hahaha!"

Guys... guys! Where are you... why can't I move my body? Mika tried resisting, but something from Parasimon X's tentacles was paralyzing her. Her mouth was unable to get words out as she ceased screaming. She could only mentally speak as her eyes widened in horror as her own skin was seemingly melting off! What's going on? What's the fuck is happening to me?

Mika saw skin not only bubbling and melting off, but saw a grotesque green-like skin in its place. Then, she saw her other arm peeled off to expose more green. More tentacles shot out of Parasimon X as they ripped off Mika's clothing, leaving her to fall flat on the ground naked. Her entire human skin melted off, revealing a full green body and scaly hide. A long lizard's tail protruded out from out the tail bone area. She fell face first on the ground as she tried lifting her head up. Her face seemingly became stuck to the floor and she tried pulling herself up. Unable to scream, she couldn't get any words to come out.

My... my body? What am... what the hell am becoming? What's happening to me?

"This is what you and your friends were supposed to become in the first place! You were always meant to become full Rajita, but you defected before General Kuiiza could complete your full mutation! Something which I shall now rectify! Hahaha!"

Larry! Sara! Hayata! Maya! Help... HELP ME!

As she raised her head, her face ripped off and her full head of hair fell.

She opened her eyes and she saw herself in a mirror looking a green-skinned, dark-haired alien with reptilian yellow eyes.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

"MIKA! MIKA! CAN YOU HEAR ME?"

Parasimon X became irked once again, hearing the familiar cries of Larry. "DAMN YOU ALL!"

Larry? LARRY! HELP ME!

xxxxx

Chapter 35

The Moonlight Knight, an Ascendant, and Conclusive Battles! The Chaos Simmers Down For Now!

xxxxx

Neo-Rajita Paradais Dimension/Northern Sanctuary Quarters/Secret Quarters/7:43 PM

At last, Sara, Hayata, and Mika awakened as they opened their eyes and caught a glimpse of Larry hanging his head over them.

"YOU GUYS!" Larry exclaimed.

Valkyrie Eris deeply sighed with relief. "Thank goodness! We thought we lost you!"

Joey added as he stepped back with Mai. "We're glad you guys just came around!"

Sara and Hayata were the first to sit up as they seemed shaken up from their nightmarish experiences.

"Guys..." Larry noted the distressed looks on his friends' faces. "It was Parasimon X. That bastard was using illusions to manipulate what you saw." He saw how shaken up the two were and shifted his view over to Mika, who was needless to say in a worse condition. "Mika...? Mika!" He and the others saw Mika on the floor, curled up in a fetal position and... breaking down?

Mika was crying on the middle of the floor, mumbling and quivering with despair. Seeing the once strong-willed Chimera leader in a broken state was a surreal moment for those who know her. Sara and Hayata both snapped out of their trances as they and Larry hurried over to Mika's side. Valkyrie Eris, Summoner Venus, Adam, Demona, Joey, Mai, Hassleberry, Crow, Atticus, and Yasmin gathered behind the Chimeras while trying to get Mika back to her normal state of mind.

Larry frantically shook her. "Mika! Mika, it's me, Larry! C'mon snap out of it!" He screamed and shook the girl like crazy.

Sara, Valkyrie Eris, Summoner Venus, Demona, Mai, and Yasmin fell silent with fear.

Adam knelt over by Larry and offered to help him revive Mika. "Larry, relax. I can bring her out of this state."

"Can you?"

Nodding, Adam snapped his fingers in front of Mika's face, which promptly brought her back to reality.

"AHHHHHHHHH! STOP IT! YOU BASTARD! LEAVE ME ALONE!" Mika screamed to everyone's shock.

Larry threw himself onto Mika and folded his arms around her. "MIKA! RELAX! YOU'RE OK!"

"...He...he was making... my skin... melt... it was horrible... I killed him... my father... me...oh, Larry..." Mika cried over Larry's shoulder and broke down to everyone's disbelief. She felt Larry pull her into a deep embrace and pat her back. "...that bastard... he got into my head... he's going to pay..."

"Parasimon X," Larry said as his voice darkened, his deep contempt for the mad scientist increased that much further.

Sara mumbled. "I don't even want to know what he did to Mika."

Hayata nodded. "Me either. Say, looks like we aren't alone? Eris? Joey? Mai? And you." He pivoted his view over to Summoner Venus and Adam. "I remember you two." He turned toward Crow, Hassleberry, Yasmin, and Demona. "But, not so much with any of you."

Demona smirked. "What matters more is that you're all awake."

"So, where the hell is that Parasimon X asshole?" Joey demanded as he angrily snorted. "For what he did to Mika and you two, I'm going to show him a thing or two about messing with people's heads!"

Mai furrowed her brows. "I'll have to agree with Joey. This creep has gone too far!"

"But, where is he?" wondered Crow. "Larry just said that creep slipped away when he blew up the stasis chambers."

Valkyrie Eris stood as she closed her eyes and quickly probed Parasimon X's location. "I've got a lock on his location."

Summoner Venus added as she, too, pinpointed Parasimon X's presence. "Me, too. What about you, Adam?"

"Yeah, I can definitely pick up his scent," Adam asserted. "Demona, can you smell him?"

"Unfortunately, yeah."

"Well, c'mon guys! Let's go and find this creep before he gets away?" Hassleberry suggested to the others.

Larry stood while helping Mika on her feet. "You're not getting any objections from me. We're taking Parasimon X's ass down!"

"Then, let's hurry!" Valkyrie Eris proclaimed as she, Summoner Venus, and Adam led everyone out of the dismantled laboratory. "Follow us!"

"Wait, I'll be leading, too," Larry said as he walked up to Eris. "Now, I'm ready."

With that, the group hastily raced out of the lab and hurried down through the corridor, initiating their hunt for Parasimon X. Valkyrie Eris carried Mika on her back as she followed Larry and the others through the narrow corridor.

xxxxx

Meanwhile, having distanced himself from where he left the Chimeras, Parasimon X poked his head through a wall. He silently observed Valkyrie Eris, Larry, Summoner Venus, and Adam leading their assembled team through the corridor that seemingly stretched on for miles.

Hehe, I see. They have allies, eh? Well, no matter how far you go, you'll have nowhere to hide and you're all mine to experiment on! The Rajita hybrid cackled as he emerged from the wall and hovered through another wall.

xxxxx

Earth/Azabu-Juuban District/Azabu-Juuban Midtown Apartments/Chiba-Tsukino Residence/Room #402/7:48 PM

It was a surreal moment for the Neo-Spirit Detectives. Yui, DarkGabumon, Aoshi, Kohana, and Cammy were in awe at the astonishing entrance made by the Moonlight Knight. Cammy was even more shocked to see Shingo transform into the white-garbed mysterious warrior. Kyo noted the white rose pinned to the floor and shot an irked glare toward the Moonlight Knight.

"S-Shingo-kun?" Cammy whispered deeply as she faced her friend, who walked up to her. "What happened?"

"I.. I'm not sure," Moonlight Knight offered a hand to the young Miko, who took his hand. "Are you ok, Cammy-chan?"

"Whoa... are you seeing this Yui-chan?" Aoshi pointed out the obvious as he watched Moonlight Knight and Cammy standing side by side. "This is some crazy stuff!"

As she was completely drawn into the scene, Yui merely nodded. Kyo used this time to shift his attention back on Kohana, who hastily picked up the knife she used to stab him. She held her ground and used her magic to turn the knife into a sword. Shiro flew right out of the couch and hovered behind his summoner. Everyone else turned to where the siblings heatedly faced off. Kyo turned to the open balcony windows.

"It's really cramped in here. Why don't we settle this on the roof?" Kyo offered as he vanished before leaving them with a message. "I'll be waiting there."

"GET BACK HERE!" Kohana roared as she raced out on the balcony. "Damn!"

"Relax, Kohana. We're definitely going to up to meet him," reassured Yui, who pulled herself up and turned toward Aoshi. "Are the kids ok?"

Aoshi hurried over to check to find Chibi-Usa, Raizen Jr, Ryuuhi, and Koori amassed together on the bed while looking up to the ceiling. They, too, seemed to sense Kyo's dark presence, but surprisingly didn't cry or display any alarmed distress.

"They're ok, but you're not going to believe this! They haven't cried any even when Kohana's brother showed up!"

Cammy added. "Those brave little ones."

Moonlight Knight asserted as he walked over to the balcony. "And our friend Lien led those two freaks out of here. I bet they're on the rooftop, too."

"Then, let's get up and get right to the action!" Kohana exclaimed. "Besides, we can't let Lien get away!"

"Right then, I think the kids should be ok here if they're able to hold out like this," the lead Neo-Spirit Detective stated as she turned to the balcony. She hurried over with DarkGabumon, Aoshi, Cammy, Moonlight Knight, Kohana, and Shiro looking up to the rooftop, which was only five floors above their location. "Ready? There's no turning back now."

"Screw that noise. I'm ready," Kohana said with serious intent.

Moonlight Knight took Cammy's hand as they firmed their resolve to engage Kyo in battle.

"Cammy..."

"Shingo, we'll talk more about this after we're done with this."

Aoshi readied himself and clenched his fists. "Ready whenever y'all are."

Nodding, Yui drew out her D-Ark and produced a barrier around them, which helped lift them up to the rooftop.

xxxxx

Meanwhile, as Kyo was standing in wait, he watched Lien and TobuCatmon standing off against Vipris and Geso. The Demon Knight didn't budge an inch and let the aliens settle their own dispute. Lien held her ground whilst Vipris and Geso advanced toward her. TobuCatmon hissed directly at their would-be captors.

Kyo smirked coolly, observing the Neo-Rajita fighting amongst themselves. "Seems they have some issues to sort out. Oh well, not my problem." Just then, he quickly pivoted his view and watched a purple ball hover from the side of the building. He watched as the glowing ball landed on the roof and dispersed, releasing the Neo-Spirit Detective group. Yui and Kohana quickly jumped out at the forefront of the assembled team whilst glaring down Kyo.

"Here we are, Kyo!" Kohana barked. "You can't run from me now!"

Kyo chortled with a tinge of arrogance in his tone. "Why would I run from you of all people, dear sister? Really, we should be sharing some pleasantries since we haven't seen each other for so long!"

Kohana snorted and flipped him the bird. "Here's what I think of your pleasantries. Stuff it."

Yui smirked as she put her D-Ark on her left hip. "Nice comeback, Kohana. He's starting to irk me, too."

Kyo sighed as he dropped into a battle stance. "Such a shame. It didn't have to come down this way, my dear sister. You could've given yourself willingly and I'd spare your friends."

"We'll never allow you to take our friend!" Cammy cried out as she summoned a staff and readied it.

Aoshi, Moonlight Knight, and DarkGabumon readily prepared themselves for fighting the Demon Knight. Suddenly, the Neo-Spirit Detectives attentively shifted their view from Kyo and noticed Lien standing off against the two Neo-Rajita villains.

"Hey, look!" Aoshi exclaimed. "Lien!"

Overhearing her name and seeing the Neo team, Lien turned and noticed their presence. However, before she could reach them, Vipris and Geso obstructed her path. TobuCatmon lunged forward and bit Vipris' hand, causing the general to hiss and toss him aside. Lien jumped across and caught TobuCatmon before he hit the ground.

"Lien!" Cammy cried out to the alien girl.

Kohana was caught in the middle. She watched Lien and then shifted over to her brother brandishing a sword imbued with Youki. Coming to an immediate decision, she dashed ahead to help Lien instead, but Kyo flickered out of view and reappeared in front of Kohana. Kohana abruptly stopped and sprang back, readying the sword she created. Shiro hovered over to his summoner.

"Kohana! Hold on!" Yui called out as she and the others hurried over to their colleague.

"Now, now, sis. Keep your eye on me. I don't see what you should interject in their business..."

"What's it matter to you anyway?" Kohana snapped as she beckoned Shiro over. The spirit animal turned into a stream of golden light and merged with the sword in her hand. Shiro's spiritual properties intertwined with the magic imbued in the sword and made it grow ten times bigger than it was before. Kohana held a giant sword, which she brandished and used to hit Kyo's sword. "I've been preparing for the day we meet, Kyo!"

"Impressive, sister! You've learned to utilize your sorcery to its full extent!" Kyo cackled as he hefted his sword and held Kohana at bay. He watched as mystical and demonic energies intertwined around their swords. "But, with the Demon Stone you will be presented with, your sorcery will reach an even greater potential!"

"Really? Well, that's nice to hear, but no thanks!" She shouted and brought her sword down. She watched as Kyo vanished from her reach and reappear above her.

"Spirit Cannon!" Yui's voice trailed off as a massive blue ball of spirit energy hurtled toward Kyo's direction.

Kyo quickly caught the incoming spirit beam and batted it with his sword. He watched as Aoshi jumped up and tried hitting him with rapid punches. The Demon Knight easily evaded the flurry of fists from the half-Lycan and fired a discharged Youki beam, which blasted Aoshi back. Moonlight Knight instinctively ran up to stab Kyo with his sword. Kyo merely turned and blasted him to where Aoshi was lying. Suddenly, a barrage of Ofuda scrolls flew out at Kyo. He produced a Youki barrier, which canceled out the holy scrolls. He attempted to spread a poisonous demonic mist, which spill through his armor. Attempting to flood the entire vicinity with miasma, Cammy rebounded and pulled out her bow, which she imbued with her spirit energy. She produced spirit arrows and fired them from her bow.

"Purity Arrows!"

Much to Kyo's dismay, he watched his miasma being nullified by Cammy's barrage of spirit arrows. Then, if that wasn't enough, he whirled around and saw Yui having already jumped behind him with a finger pointed at point blank range.

Kyo scowled and before he could manage a retort...

"Spirit Gun!"

Ba-Shoom!

A massive blue stream of energy engulfed Kyo and sent him plunging to the rooftop. Yui dropped down near Kyo's impact fall and watched closely, sensing Kyo's Youki still as strong as ever. The lead Neo-Spirit Detective cursed under her breath once Kyo hovered from the impact. However, he didn't go without taking some damage as scratches were visibly noted across his face and his body.

"Nice shot. You even left a few bruises on me, Spirit Detective," Kyo said, widening his grin despite having taken damage from Yui's empowered blast. "Assessing your current power, I'd dare say you're stronger than Yusuke Urameshi was when he fought Shinobu Sensui, before his Mazoku nature was awakened."

"It was only a matter of time, but I wouldn't call myself superior to Yusuke. I'm just continuing the Spirit Detective duties where he left off."

"We're the Neo-Spirit Detectives and our reputation has become increasingly well known across three realms," Cammy stated as she drew out more Ofuda scrolls.

"Very good and you indeed are living up to your predecessors very well," the Demon Knight chortled deeply whilst wiping the wash of debris from his face. He gave a subtle smirk and glared intently toward each Neo-Spirit Detective member surrounding him. "Kohana, you indeed have a unique circle of friends."

"Compared to you, they're more like my family," Kohana rebuked coldly, which diminished the Demon Knight's calm exterior.

Suddenly, as black aura began outlining Kyo's figure as waves of Youki energy expelled at every direction. Yui, DarkGabumon, Cammy, Kohana, Moonlight Knight, and Aoshi held their ground whilst the demonic waves swept through them. Cammy acted quickly as she tossed Ofuda scrolls at her friends, which formed barriers around to protect them from Kyo's Youki waves.

"Stand your ground, guys! We can pull through this!" Yui exclaimed.

Aoshi's eyes glowed as he initially transformed into his Lycan form right off the bat. He howled and charged ahead, throwing a handful of silver projectiles laced with explosive Youki inside them. Kyo quickly produced a Youki barrier, letting the silver explosives detonate over the aura. Moonlight Knight aided Aoshi and threw white roses, which merely dissolved against Kyo's barrier.

Cammy formed quick and subsequent hand seals, uttering a chant to dispel the demonic waves. "Rin, pyou, tou, sha, kai, jin, retsu, zai, zen!" With a powerful hand thrust, she quickly empowered the spiritual barriers surrounding her friends as they exploded and neutralized the Youki energy about to engulf them.

Taken aback by Cammy's powerful rebound, Kyo watched in near awe. Impressive! She was able to dispel my Youki? This one is a powerful Miko I shouldn't underestimate!

Moonlight Knight sighed with relief as he called over to Cammy. "Now that was neat, Cammy-chan! Thanks!"

"Sure... still, it does take a lot out of me..." Cammy said, slightly panting from having exhausted her own spiritual power. "I still have plenty of reserves."

Yui stepped forward with DarkGabumon by her side. "Well, this might call for extreme measures. DarkGabumon, let's form Lady Lupin!"

"Ok!" DarkGabumon answered in earnest as Yui held out her D-Ark.

Upon activating her D-Ark, two streams of light emerged from the device and wove around the two.

"Biomerge Evolution!" The duo shouted as she and DarkGabumon were pulled together, seemingly fusing into one being. "Lady Lupin!" In their place, Lady Lupin emerged and dropping into a fighting stance as a flow of intense Spirit energy expelled from her entire body. "Bet you weren't expecting this, huh?"

However, Kyo just grinned off Lady Lupin's threatening stance and dashed ahead to meet her head-on.

While the fighting with Kyo raged on, Lien and TobuCatmon were left to contend with Vipris and Geso. Vipris brought his deadly instrument down and tried to hit her with it. Even as Lien rolled away, Geso waltzed right over and opened fire, shooting a beam that knocked her back. Lien hit the floor but still held tightly on TobuCatmon and shielded him.

"Lien will protect you, TobuCatmon!"

Vipris openly laughed and mocked Lien. "D'awww, how cute. Friends 'til the end, eh? Well, if you want to die together, then I'd be more than happy to kill you two where you sit. Now hold still." With that, he opened his right hand and forged a ball of green light. "This won't hurt a bit." As he reached out to grab her, TobuCatmon jumped out of Lien's arms and threw himself out to stop Vipris. As Vipris ensnared TobuCatmon, Lien screamed beyond the base of her own voice. The more she screamed, the more powerful the resounding sound wave blasted Vipris and Geso away.

Then, Lien watched as an object glowed from her left hip. The object, her green D-Ark, floated right in right of her and TobuCatmon. The alien girl snatched the Digivice as a warm golden glow engulfed them both. Lien turned toward TobuCatmon, who shook his head accordingly.

The Neo-Spirit Detectives and Kyo once again ceased their fighting as they watched the turn of events. Kohana watched closely as Lien was holding her glowing D-Ark.

"Whoa..." Kohana mumbled.

Lady Lupin meticulously eyed the D-Ark in Lien's possession. It's the D-Ark she showed us! It's responded to her when TobuCatmon tried protecting her! Could this be what I think it is?

Lien and TobuCatmon stood up together as the glowing aura flared intensely around them.

"Lien..."

"Lien is ready to unveil that secret," the alien girl declared whilst pressing the D-Ark against her chest.

TobuCatmon gasped upon realizing what she was alluding to. "You mean... that form? The form that General Nagah forbade you to use?"

"But, she said to use it only to protect the people I consider my friends," Lien said as she turned and faced the Neo-Spirit Detectives. A soft smile slowly crept across and adorned her face. "I've already made new friends and I wish to fight alongside them!" She then shifted her view specifically on Kohana and quickly turned her eyes toward the Neo-Rajita duo. "Vipris, Geso, you two are going to pay for being mean to Lien!" Upon declaring her intent to attack them and fight with her new friends, a green aura flared and outlined her body. "Bifröst! Lien Shinka...!" She shouted as icy and cool winds swirled around the Rajita child. Lien invoked the internal and suppressed energies, which she has been keeping in reserves. Realizing her sensei forbade her from invoking this hidden power, Lien also remembered Nagah telling her to only unveil this power only to protect friends. Having become friends with the Neo-Spirit Detectives, Lien found good reason to unleash her hidden powers.

Suddenly, fractal code materialized around Lien. A green sheen then glowed around her body and intensified into a bright flash of light, greatly affecting the surrounding vicinity.

Everyone present witnessed the grand transformation, but Kyo seized this opportunity to try to capture Kohana. Lady Lupin quickly threw herself in front of Kyo and fired a guided Spirit Gun that stopped him at his tracks.

Once the bright shimmering light dimmed, Lien emerged and revealed her transformed form. Streams of green light emanated around the newly transformed Lien, who took the form of a centaur complete with a yellow shaggy tail. Her upper body still resembled her old self, except essentially older and mature-looking (though still lacking a developed chest). Adorning her head was a set of long and curved horns, slightly extending outward and framing the sides of her face. Her shoulders were now armed silver armored guards coupled with silver elbow guards and gauntlets. The sections around her arms, not covered in armor, was a black leather material. The lower section, consisting of six legs, was mostly clad in a red-and-white Digizoid armor. In her left hand was a large red crossbow, named Múspellsheimr. In her right hand, she held the sacred shield named Niflheimr. The new Lien stepped forward with her six legs guiding her, shifting a defiant and focused glare toward Vipris and Geso. She readied her crossbow and firmed her resolve to fight with her new friends.

Left in awe, the Neo-Spirit Detectives were speechless and witnessed the surreal turn of events.

Kohana hysterically shouted. "N-N-No! You mean... she can do THAT?"

Aoshi smirked. "Now that's familiar isn't it?"

Moonlight Knight added. "Yeah, for sure."

Cammy observed the evolved Lien. "She's definitely invoked the Digimon data incorporated in her being."

Lady Lupin called out to Lien. "You mind taking care of those two for us, Lien?"

Lien firmly nodded, her child-like tone replaced by slightly older one. "No problem. Since you're my friends, this one is on me." Readily brandishing her crossbow and shield, Lien and TobuCatmon readied their stance against Vipris and Geso.

Taken aback, Geso slightly stepped back. "Um, General, you mean to say the brat could evolve...? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I've never seen her transform before," Vipris remarked as he shot a hateful glare to Lien. "Nagah forbade Lien from ever transforming. Heh, but since the brat was pushed to her limit, she had to go use this last resort." Readying his stand against Lien, he dashed ahead to attack Lien. "Let's see what you've got, brat!"

Lien scoffed and charged across to engage the general. "Now I know why Nagah-sensei thinks your trash!"

As the two collided in a clash of energies, the Neo-Spirit Detectives attentively turned back to Kyo, who was hovering over them.

"Get ready, guys!" Lady Lupin exclaimed as she and her colleagues prepared to fight Kyo. "Time for us to go all out, too!"

Kohana slightly turned and watched Lien in action. Reinvigorated by Lien's fighting spirit, the redheaded sorceress whirled around and invoked her spiritual powers.

"Kyo! If Lien is willing to stand up and fight that bastard, then I'm ready to give you all I've got! Yui! Everyone! Let's take this jackass down!"

"RIGHT!" The Neo-Spirit Detectives cried out in unison and stormed ahead to give Kyo a lasting impression he'll never forget.

xxxxx

Neo-Rajita Headquarters/Central Quarters/6th Floor/Toad's Sanctuary/7:53 PM

After clearing the entire vicinity of the Parasimon swarm, Dai-Valkyrie Sailor Venus, Aphy, Cupid, Dai-Valkyrie Sailor Mercury, Hermy, and Kairyu readily faced off against Toad, who had three Parasimon sitting around him and clicking their pincers. Venus and Aphy instinctively were grossed out by the large arachnids. Mercury, on the other hand, finished scanning Toad thoroughly with her visor.

"Splendid show, ladies," Toad clapped nonchalantly for their team efforts. "Now I see why you're so famed. Your teamwork knows no bounds."

"You and those three are all that's left," Mercury said with such cold logic.

Venus heatedly pointed to Toad and the Parasimon. "That's right! We're clearing this place of you filth."

Aphy nodded as she gagged at the Parasimon. "And take them with you! I've had just about enough bugs today after having stripped for an overgrown cockroach!"

Hermy waved over to Aphy. "But, had it not been for that, we wouldn't have been freed from that place."

"Case in point... I hate bugs, Hermy."

Shaking his head, Toad slowly reached down and drew out a gun. He pointed it to the group, who readily prepared to intercept him. He fired a guided shot, which flew above the group and blasted through a pillar behind them. They turned and watched as the pillar turned into a pile of dust.

"Just one shot from this gun will be enough to turn any of you into dust," the mad scientist smiled coolly and devilishly, blowing the smoke spilling from his gun. "Why don't we play a game of tag? But, here's the gist of my version of tag. Once you're tagged, you're a goner. This game will be determined by a process of elimination. The last thing standing will emerge from this vicinity the winner and that one individual will get to pass beyond the doors behind me." He held the gun over his face and chuckled calmly. "So, what do you say?"

"I say you're sick!" Venus exclaimed. "We're not here to play games!"

"I accept," Mercury added.

Hermy concurred. "Likewise."

Aphy spat out. "Not you, too, Hermy! We don't have time for this!"

Toad chuckled and twirled the gun with one finger. "Perfect. This will be a fine game. Now, if I were you, I'd start running like chickens with their heads cut off. I won't withdraw for any reason. Get ready to flee!" With that, he fired the first shot through the ceiling and followed everyone scattering about around the vicinity. He saw the Parasimon, too, flying around.

He pointed his gun and turned to fire at Venus. The beam went straight toward her, but she quickly pulled a Parasimon toward her and threw it to the beam. Toad watched as his shot vaporized the Parasimon. Then, Toad's eyes blinked thrice as Venus teleported out of view. Dai-Valkyrie Venus reappeared over Toad's head and kicked him hard in the face. The gun fell right out of his hands, which Venus caught and threw down.

"I told we're not here to play games."

"Heh, I'd be careful where I place my foot on, young lady."

"Eh?"

Ba-Boom!

The gun exploded right under Venus' heel. Luckily for the blonde-haired idol, she teleported away from the explosion and reappeared by Cupid's side.

"Ugh, this guy really isn't playing around!" Aphy shouted.

Mercury stood after seemingly holding her hands on the floor. She watched as the cloud of smoke spilled from the spot where the gun exploded. Before Toad realized it, an icy cold wind wrapped around his feet. Then, the cool air mixed with the smoke and seemingly turned to ice whilst holding Toad down. Overtaken by surprise, Toad tried moving his feet and realized he was pinned down. As the two Parasimon scurried off to save their master, Aphy and Hermy barricaded the arachnid's path. Then, Venus dashed right up to Toad and landed a fierce kick imbued with intense power.

"Venus Love Kick!" Venus shouted as she summoned energy-imbued energies, which wrapped around Toad's body and bound him in place. "Chain Entanglement!" She quickly then turned toward Mercury, who hastily formed her attack.

"Water Drainage!" The blue-haired Dai-Valkyrie Senshi cried out, opening her right hand and sending a burst of water that drenched the Neo-Rajita general. After dowsing him with water, she sensed his power seemingly being drained by the water's effects. The more water entering his body, the more energy was being siphoned away. "Now, final step initiate... Blood Water Manipulation." She said with coldness in her tone as closed her hands tight, utilizing the water inside his body and bloodstream whilst controlling Toad like a puppet. She sent him directly toward the Parasimon. "Now finish each other off."

As Venus blasted the ice around Toad's feet, the general's body was manipulated on its own by Mercury's unique 'blood bending' ability. She sent the wary general toward the Parasimon.

"Wait, no! Don't attack!" Toad frantically cried out as he was 'drew' out a sword while bringing down and slicing through one Parasimon. The arachnid's blood splattered as a little hit Mercury across her left cheek. He quickly turned and stabbed the other, landing a killing blow that dealt the Parasimon in. Then, Toad was 'forced' to put the blade toward himself. "No, no, no! Don't do this!"

"Show us the way out of here," Mercury demanded as she slowly closed her hand to seal his fate. "Your fate is in my hand."

The snide general goaded her. "Are you sure you're the same kind hearted Sailor Mercury? You wouldn't kill me..."

"Do you wish to test me? Now, point us to the exit out of here. I've scanned the entire room and the doors behind you lead to a dead end. Show us the real exit."

As he seemingly gave himself to her demands, he pointed to the right direction were a door was situated behind two pillars.

"How do we know that's not a trap?" Aphy pointed out.

Venus folded her arms and glared suspiciously at the general. "Yeah, how can we be sure you're not tricking us?"

"He's telling the truth," Mercury reassured the group after re-scanning the door that Toad pointed to. "That's the only way out of here. Every other door leads to an endless subspace. If we had taken one of the other doors, we would've been trapped with no way out."

Hermy smiled. "Good job checking every perimeter, Mercury."

"All right then! We're out of here!" Venus said with a coy smile.

As she dropped her hands, Mercury relinquished control over Toad and let him sink to his knees. She and her cohorts proceeded toward the door to their right. On both knees, Toad took a few deep breaths and freely moved his arms around. As they approached the door, a low chuckle escaped the general's mouth. The group stopped moving ahead and turned to face him. Toad tried standing and pointed to the group.

"You should've finished me when you had the chance, but I'm glad... heh," Toad snickered, not taking his eyes off Mercury. "You will regret letting me go. Any brilliant mind should approach a situation with hard and cold logic. Not killing me will come back to haunt you." Suddenly, he flickered from view and reappeared on the opposite end of the spacious room. "The next time we meet... heh, Sailor Mercury, you'll be mine." Upon leaving his final warning, he teleported from the area and left the group in the dark with his subtle warning.

Mercury averted her eyes from where Toad was and faced the door in front of them.

"Mercury..." Venus murmured.

"Let's keep going, everyone," Mercury issued as she pushed the doors open.

With free access beyond the doors, Mercury and Venus lead their team through a narrow corridor to another vicinity. Mercury suddenly felt an itch on her right ear and stopped to feel a slight pinch.

"Are you ok, Mercury?" asked Hermy, noting the Dai-Valkyrie scratching her ear.

"Just a slight itch, let's keep going."

Venus pivoted her head and viewed Mercury behind her. "Mercury?"

"Are you ok, Mercury?" Kairyu addressed to the Dai-Valkyrie.

"I'm ok, Venus, Kairyu. We have to keep going."

"All right then."

As she felt the itch stop, Mercury deduced. What is that Rajita planning? Perhaps I should've finished him when I had the chance. Well, should we cross paths, I won't let him go freely. But, finding the others is more important right now.

xxxxx

Neo-Rajita Paradais Dimension/Southern Sanctuary Quarters/7:58 PM

There was an unsettling and despondent mood as Melancholia slowly walked down the steps. His cold, green eyes fell over the amassed group of leaders. He kept pressing forward without backpedaling despite the overwhelming numbers stacked against him. Standing away from the stairway were Valkyrie Sailor Sedna, Dimitri & Faith, Valkyrie Sailor Neo Moon, Raizen Jr., Yugi, Jaden, and Yusei. Not for a moment did they take their eyes off Melancholia, who jumped off and hovered over halfway down the steps. He landed on the floor and quietly stared the group down.

Everyone stood their ground and waited to predict his next move. Sedna tried her hardest not to act steadfast and attack with a full head of steam. Dimitri threw an arm out to barricade the Ice Senshi from flying at him.

"Congratulations for making it this far," Melancholia calmly commended the leaders. "Outsiders don't make it this far. Me or my fellow generals would've easily dispatched of intruders quickly." His cold and distant eyes narrowed directly, casting a dreadful gaze over them. "But, this is as far as you go."

Upon this, Dimitri merely scoffed. "Is that right?"

"Where's Helena and Sailor Pluto?" Sedna demanded.

Neo Moon cried out angrily. "We demand to know where they are!"

"If you wish to know, they're still alive."

"That's NOT what we asked!" Sedna and Neo Moon exclaimed.

Yugi snarled with anger. "You arrogant bastard!"

Yusei barked. "They asked you where they are!"

Raizen Jr. readily popped his knuckles. "Ok, which one of your arms am I gonna have to break off to make you talk?"

"BWAHAHAHAHA! YOU TWERPS REALLY ARE A CONCEITED BUNCH!"

The leaders heard a booming voice echoing from behind them. They felt thunderous footsteps and low growling behind a blanket of darkness. Sedna, Dimitri, Neo Moon, and Raizen Jr. readily came at the forefront, waiting to meet the source behind the thunderous voice. A behemoth emerged from the blanket of darkness, revealing himself as the 10th Neo-Rajita General Babbi. Babbi lumbered forward and stopped, staring down the leader group.

"Melancholia, relax. I've got these wimps!" Babbi bellowed as an overly arrogant and fiendish grin adorned his face. "You won't even need to draw your sword after I crush the bugs!"

Raizen Jr. groaned. "Seriously? Just a typical big guy blowing smoke outta his ass."

Neo Moon added. "Easy or not, he's getting in our way."

Sedna quickly turned her head, alternating her view between the two Neo-Rajita generals.

"We need to get ourselves out of this mess, guys!" Jaden exclaimed.

Yusei remarked. "Easier said than done."

"Relax," Dimitri's face conveyed a look, which exuded confidence. He waltzed forward, showing no fear as he stood right in front of Babbi. He beckoned a nod to Faith, who flew off his shoulder. "Guys, hold your ground. This big guy's mine." He raised his head and smirked calmly, which befuddled the loud-mouthed behemoth.

"Wait!" Neo Moon called out to the young man. "He'll crush you!"

However, Raizen Jr. saw the vibe emanating from Dimitri and put his arm out to stop the princess.

"Oh, RJ! But, why?"

"I trust him," RJ initially said, grinning a toothy smile.

Sedna stood and watched. "Yeah, Dimitri has this one."

"Are you sure, Sedna?" Yugi turned to the Ice Senshi. "Does he possess enough strength on his own?"

"Dimitri! Don't get carried away, ok?" Yusei called out to the focused warrior.

Babbi smashed both fists together and cackled, towering his posture over Dimitri and Faith. "You should've listened to your friends, little punk! I'll give you five seconds to back off and I'll let you go freely. Deal?"

Dimitri smirked. "No dice, big dunce."

With that, Babbi's fury awakened as Dimitri explicitly and outright insulted him. He roared and shot his right fist down, hitting Dimitri with full force.

Neo Moon gasped and turned her head away. However, Sedna smirked and shrugged.

"Showing off as usual, Dimitri," the Ice Senshi chortled. "You Ascendants never change."

Melancholia blinked as he listened to Sedna. Ascendant? He turned and watched as a bright aura of light intensified around Dimitri. The general quickly assessed Dimitri's power and felt an intense pressure emanating from him. "What's this?" His eyes widened as he watched Babbi already down on his knees and bellowing.

However, Babbi's loud bellows became high-pitched whines and cries. Dimitri held Babbi by one hand and forced the giant primate to plead in agony. Neo Moon reopened her eyes and glanced across in shock. She and everyone present were abruptly bewildered at Babbi at the mercy of Dimitri's hand grab. Yes, it all took was Dimitri grabbing Babbi's right hand to force the giant on both knees.

"PLEASE! STOP! IT HURTS! YAAAAA! IT HURTS! LEMME GO! I SWEAR I'LL LEAVE!"

Dimitri snorted as he finally let go and turned his back to Babbi.

Babbi blew on his pulsating right hand and whined. "...y...you're letting me go?" Taking no chances of letting the boy crush his pride, Babbi raised his other hand and prepared to open fire by turning his hand into cannon.

Sheen.

Ba-Shoom!

It happened in a bright flash. Everyone watched as Dimitri and Faith seemingly merged as one after being 'magnetically' pulled to each other. The merger of the two beings gave rise to a single warrior. In place of Dimitri was a warrior in light golden armor and a bodysuit with an outward body design resembling MagnaAngemon. The attire was modified to fight his human frame. His sword remained sheathed and strapped over his back. He retained his normal human face with his now green eyes burning with scorn toward the Neo-Rajita general. His golden hair somewhat turned spiky and flowed outward. Adorning his back were a pair of metal-based wings, shaped like blades. As he stopped, the Ascendant produced another golden sheen, which engulfed him from head to toe. The golden aura exuded strong waves that nearly blew everyone, including Melancholia back.

"Ah, so, you've decided to go all-out Ascendant, Dimitri," Sedna promptly stated.

"WHOA! HOLY COW!" Jaden exclaimed.

Neo Moon blinked thrice in awe. "Go...Golden hair?"

Yusei gaped at the sight of the Ascendant. "It's like he went all Super Saiyan on this guy!"

"Super Saiyan? Almost, but not quite. In the world he comes from, they call themselves Ascendants," the Ice Senshi explained to the others, who were obviously ignorant of the what she was referring to. "Case in point, to become an Ascendant, he needed Faith to merge with him. An Ascendant is created once a capable Chosen taps into the full potential of their Crests. Only very few have been able to pull it off. The other prerequisite is that one must be a human born in the Digital World, and must be born from a Digi-Destined."

"So, I take it since he's Matt and Mimi's son..." RJ pointed out.

Sedna smiled, observing the transformed Dimitri. "A-huh, Dimitri's more than overqualified. He's a possessor of the Crest of Hope, which he inherited from his Uncle TK. On top of that, he's born from two Digi-Destined. Of course, it had to take the pain of loss for him to achieve this power. And since then, his power's grown beyond measure. Even beyond my expectations." She focused and assessed her boyfriend's current power. "Ascendants are basically the next step in digi-evolution, if humans were to become like Digimon. Dimitri and Faith merged as one to become Angemon X."

An awestruck Yugi muttered silently. "Amazing..."

RJ shouted. "That big bastard didn't know who he was messing with!"

Neo Moon nodded, clasping both hands together. "Oh yeah! He'll take care of that big brute!"

Melancholia's face conveyed shock as he assesses the Ascendant's awakened power. T-This is nothing I would've anticipated. Just who is this boy? Babbi, you're a fool to goad him into a scuffle!

"AUUUUUGGHHH!" Babbi howled in agonizing pain as the Ascendant dropped the behemoth's hand. "UGH...! RAAAUGH!"

"Quit bawling like a baby. You're irritating," Angemon X snorted as he ran up and kicked Babbi hard in the face. Then, he followed it up with another kick that knocked Babbi through a set of pillars behind him. Angemon X reached over to unsheathe his sword.

Everyone, excluding Sedna, witnessed the shocking turn of events unfold and move quickly before they realized what happened.

"Damn! Your boyfriend made him look like nothing!" RJ said as he turned to address the Ice Senshi.

Sedna merely shrugged. "Dimitri's fought a lot stronger guys than these generals." She turned as her eyes gleamed toward Melancholia. "But, I'm not letting Dimitri have you."

Suddenly, Valkyrie Sedna disappeared in a hurry and reappeared in front of Melancholia. Both quickly drew out their weapons and clashed against each other. Sedna's Ice Trident collided with Melancholia's sword. A sudden output of energy spilled and filled the entire spacious room, causing the surroundings to tremble.

"This place is going to come down!" Jaden alarmed his colleagues.

Just then, Winged Kuriboh materialized on Jaden's right shoulder and squeaked to get his attention.

"Winged Kuriboh?"

Winged Kuriboh's form solidified as he flew over and beckoned over to Yugi.

"Yes, you're right! I should Spirit Fuse!" Yugi said as his entire frame became engulfed by golden light. Then, in his outfit's place was the Dark Magician's garb. "Yusei! Call forth your dragon!"

Nodding, the Signer let his Dragon Mark glow as he drew out his famed and legendary dragon. "You got it, Yugi!"

Meanwhile, Raizen Jr. and Neo Moon hurried over to watch Sedna and Melancholia exchange a series of blinding-speed attacks. Sedna and Melancholia were able to counter and perceive each other's strikes as they expelled energy to repel one another back. Sedna twirled her Ice Trident and threw a cold wind at his general direction, Melancholia ran his hand across his blade, which expelled a green wave of energy that neutralized Sedna's ice wind. Sedna flickered from Melancholia's view and reappeared, bringing down her trident over his head. Melancholia hastily countered the Ice Senshi's strike and hefted his blade whilst holding her at bay. Sedna phased out and reappeared, clubbing Melancholia's back with her Ice Trident. Then, as she went for a quick thrust, Melancholia phased quickly out of her reach and reappeared behind her pointing a finger to the back of her head.

"Die," Melancholia muttered.

As he prepared to discharge a beam, Raizen Jr. and Neo Moon launched two charged projectiles at the general.

"Demon Gun!"

"Lunar Heart Beam!"

Upon noticing the beams hurtling at him, Melancholia phased out of the way and let the blasts impact the stairway, causing it to explode and crumble. Melancholia reappeared and descended on the floor as Sedna flew through him at blinding speed. She pushed him through a pillar and buried him under debris. She didn't waste any time and imbued her trident. She gathered as little moisture from her surroundings and coalesced with the cool air spilling from her Valkyrie armor. The newly formed ice covered the trident, forging sheets of snow and ice that solidified the instrument. As the trident broke apart and dispersed into orbs of energy, the energy condensed and turned into a long ice sword.

"Frozen Tundra Blade," Sedna muttered. "Sedna Arctic Breeze!" She swung the ice sword across, sending a cool mist that swept through and turned the debris burying Melancholia into a solidified ice dome. However, she didn't didn't take her eyes off the ice-covered dome and sensed a incoming influx of power emanating from Melancholia himself. C'mon, you sneaky bastard. I'm ready!

"Clustering hopes will become a new shining star! Become the path its light shines upon! Take flight... Stardust Dragon!" Yusei roared, slamming his trusted card onto his duel disk as a cyan light beamed out. Out from the stream of blinding light, the Stardust Dragon emerged and hovered over the Signer, letting out an air-piercing and resounding screech that shook the entire foundation of the spacious vicinity. "Yugi, Jaden, let's take that big ape down!"

"Right!" Yugi and Jaden called out.

Jaden drew out a card and summoned his Elemental Hero Neos. "Let's give this a go!"

Neos nodded and crossed his arms over his chest.

Brandishing his magician's staff, Yugi pointed his staff forward and charged up a magical blast.

Angemon X quickly turned as he saw the three Duelists with their main arsenals ready.

"He's all yours, guys!" The Ascendant beckoned and moved aside.

As Babbi gingerly stood and pushed away the debris, he turned and caught three combined blasts hurtling toward him.

Dark Magician Yugi, Jaden's Elemental Hero Neos, and Yusei's Stardust Dragon combined their attacks, converging them into a single blast that even Babbi wasn't prepared for.

"AW, SHI-!" Babbi bellowed as the Duelists' attack impacted Babbi and sent him hurtling through a series of walls behind him.

With Babbi taken out of the equation, everyone shifted their focus back to the ice dome. Green streams of light beamed out and cracked the layers of ice. After an explosion ignited and destroyed the frozen construct, Melancholia floated out with his uniform garb seemingly torn. Everyone present stood their ground as Melancholia floated in front of them. Angemon X withheld the urge to kill him outright, considering he has the power to outright wipe out the general where he stood like he were nothing. However, he respected Sedna enough to allow her and the others to defeat him on their own.

"Dimitri, I know with your power you can easily crush him," Sedna said, defiantly staring down the stoic general. "But, let us take the rest of it from here."

Angemon X nodded and withdrew behind the group. "Kill him quickly."

"Neo Moon, RJ, Yugi, Yusei, Jaden!" The Kuiper leader announced as the leader assembled close to her. "Back me up!"

Melancholia floated into the air and drew out his sword.

"You will tell us where Helena and Pluto are!" Neo Moon shouted defiantly at Melancholia.

Taking no chances with the general, Sedna, Neo Moon, RJ, Yusei's Stardust Dragon, Jaden's Neos, and Dark Magician Yugi guided themselves forward to engage Melancholia with their combined force. All the while, Angemon X analyzed the leaders bombarding the general, who seemingly evaded most of their attacks. Sedna was the one to match Melancholia speed-wise and took the fight to him while the others provided the support.

Sedna, you've gotten a lot better since the last time we all teamed up against Paradixalmon. The Ascendant watched as he mused deeply. I know you can beat this guy, but... should anything go wrong, I won't hesitate to step in. "Keep it up, guys!"

Unbeknownst to Angemon X and the others, they were monitored by security cameras. And this could only mean they were undoubtedly being watched by the other Rajita generals, and Charon.

xxxxx

Neo-Rajita Paradais Dimension 2/8:04 PM

The winds were calm, until a clash of energies collided and caused so much disruption that areas of land were being cleared away. Two streams of light blasted through a rock formation and caused it to collapse at the seams. Valkyrie Sailor Varuna and Blitzkrieg locked up with hands tied around each other. Sparks ignited between them as they didn't take their eyes off each other. Valkyrie Varuna and Blitzkrieg pierced intense glares, attempting to psyche out one another and utilize psychological warfare to overwhelm the other. However, neither battle-hardened warrior budged. Blitzkrieg, physically being the stronger of the two, tightened his grip and crushed Varuna's hands. As Varuna tried to resist the pain, Blitzkrieg caught her with a headbutt. He followed it up by another, but Varuna refused to relinquish her hold. After a third headbutt, he sent her plunging toward the sands below.

Blitzkrieg jetted downward to engage Varuna and opened his right hand, forging a ball of azure light. He tossed it forward and watched as Varuna caught the ball with her hands. She rebounded and launched the ball right back at Blitzkrieg. The Neo-Rajita warrior quickly batted the energy ball and sent it hurtling into the sands where it exploded. As pounds of sand kicked up from where the explosion ignited, Varuna flew up and saw Blitzkrieg vanish out of view. She focused and tried to follow the Neo-Rajita general's energy signature. Suddenly, she homed right on his location and flew toward a tall rock formation at blinding speed. Readying her right fist, she imbued energy into it and punched the rock formation, shattering it completely and unveiling Blitzkrieg. The general flew up and dove toward her. Varuna narrowly evaded his close quarters attack.

Blitzkrieg immediately stopped and whirled around as Varuna vanished. Valkyrie Varuna reappeared above Blitzkrieg and landed an overhead forearm shot into his back. She dropped Blitzkrieg to the ground and flew down by drawing out her battle ax. As she came down hard to hit him, Blitzkrieg phased out of the way and let Varuna pulverize the ground with an earth-shattering ax smash. She whirled around as she sensed Blitzkrieg behind her.

Bam!

He landed a vicious gut punch and stumble forward. Blitzkrieg quickly backhanded Varuna aside with ease, sending her sailing through a pile of sand. Blitzkrieg picked the battle ax off the ground and stalked toward the fallen Valkyrie Senshi. Varuna pulled out of the sand and shook off the blows she received. Blitzkrieg stood over Varuna, wearing a demented grin on his face as he dropped the ax over her head. However, Varuna caught the ax as the blade was barely inches from her face. She struggled to hold the ax and stood, planting her feet firmly into the sand. Blitzkrieg used his upper body strength to gain leverage over Varuna. Varuna saw through an opening over Blitzkrieg's legs. She dropped down and rolled away, letting the ax cut through a slab of rock. Varuna sprang up and landed a kick to Blitzkrieg's face. Then, she dropped down and swept him right off his feet. She then subsequently landed a series of punches that dazed the general. Pulling back her right fist, she thrust and hit Blitzkrieg hard she pushed him 20 feet back.

Blitzkrieg had both arms crossed to counter Varuna's punch, but even her blow was enough to stun him. He watched Varuna pick up her ax and readily hold her ground.

"Yeah, I'll give you this, Varuna! You're so tenacious! I love it!"

Varuna dismissed him. "I'm tired of playing. I'm ending this."

"Why end our fun so soon? I was just getting thrilled with the notion of grinding you into dust!"

With that, Blitzkrieg flew into the air and channeled energy through his fingers. Unlike any typical hero, Varuna jetted upward to intercept whatever Blitzkrieg's concocting. The battle-crazed general concentrated and his claws began glowing. Then, with quick precision, he made rapid slashing motions that forged giant 'claws' of solidified energy from the end of each finger.

"Smilodon Claws!" He howled and used slashing motions to send them toward Varuna.

Unable to react in time, the force behind the claw slashes knocked her toward the ground. Blitzkrieg quickly phased behind Varuna and kicked her up into the air. As he flew over her, Blitzkrieg stomped over Varuna's gut and kicked her multiple times before sending her to the bottom. Varuna hit the ground hard and lost her battle ax, which fell out of her hand. As she struggled to stand, Blitzkrieg reappeared and attacked her with multiple body shots at blinding speed. He placed one hand in her face and charged up ball of condensed azure light, which exploded at point blank range.

"Azure Flare!"

"Ugh!" Valkyrie Varuna grunted after being repelled by Blitzkrieg's blast.

Blitzkrieg was gone once again as she opened her eyes.

She turned around as a barrage of dark purple crystalline darts hurtled at her direction. She summoned the power of her rabbit's spiritual force and summoned a barrier, which neutralized the crystallized darts that exploded against her barrier. She quickly undid her barrier and whirled around, only to get a backhand to the side of her face. Varuna fell face-first as Blitzkrieg stood over the beaten Valkyrie Senshi.

Clenching and opening his right hand, Blitzkrieg scoffed over Varuna's battered form. "That all ya got, Varuna? For a tough bitch, you sure go down so easily." He kicked Varuna over on her back and watched her holding her side. "That's it. C'mon!" He watched as she sucked it up and stood, staring him defiantly. "Any last words before I finish ya?"

"...yeah, screw you," Varuna smirked, seemingly trying to ignore the pain from the body blows.

Blitzkrieg grinned evilly as he ran up and drove a knee into her gut. Doubling over in pain, Varuna sank to both knees. Seizing her by her neck, Blitzkrieg picked her up and raised her over his head. As she dangled in front of him, the Neo-Rajita general collected a ball of shimmering azure light in his right hand.

"Can you take this at close range? I doubt you can!" Blitzkrieg cackled, wearing a menacing grin.

Varuna slowly stirred and grabbed his hand, trying to pry his fingers from her throat.

"You're not making this fun, Varuna. Is this how it's gonna end? You disappoint," Blitzkrieg angrily sneered, concentrating while expanding the energy ball.

Hell no... like it's going to end this way! Hel, I'm not going to give up when you're still out there!

The last thing Varuna saw was a glowing flash of light being driven into her.

xxxxx

Meanwhile, the group Varuna left behind were gaining closer toward the vicinity of the ongoing battle. Riding atop Seto (the Blue-Eyes White Dragon, were Lyn, Jack, Battle Jupiter, Ryuuhi, Carly, Chazz, and Mako. Seto got a better view from the distance ahead of them and noticed streaming flashes of light that seemingly dissipated. Lyn and everyone aboard noticed the disappearing lights.

"Look! Over there!" Chazz pointed out.

Ryuuhi noted. "No doubt about it. That's where they were fighting just now."

Battle Jupiter added. "Ryuuhi, I can barely sense Varuna right now."

"Likewise, but her life energy isn't faint. Her battle spirit hasn't withered."

"For as long as I've known Tyra, she's very hard to put down," Lyn asserted, staring off and pressing a hand over her chest. "That Rajita guy has no idea who he's dealing with. To stop Tyra, you'd have to kill her."

"Not likely to happen," Jack interjected as he and Carly walked up next to Lyn. "I saw the passion burning in her eyes. I tell you, she's got a burning soul as strong as mine. I can sense it within her."

Carly added. "Let's not lose any hope in her! Ok?"

"Yeah, you're right!" The blue-haired young woman declared, raising a clenched fist and shooting an intense glare toward the distance. "You hear me, Sailor Varuna? Don't you dare falter! You hear?" She yelled so loud her voice seemingly reached beyond the perimeters of their current location.

"We're getting closer," Seto announced to everyone.

"TYRA! WE'RE COMING!" Lyn called out as they gained closer to Varuna and Blitzkrieg's battle site.

xxxxx

Lyn...?

As her ears picked up on Lyn's loud cry, Valkyrie Varuna became rejuvenated as she surprised Blitzkrieg. She shot a knee into his face and dazed the Neo-Rajita general. She quickly lunged at Blitzkrieg and wrapped her legs around his neck, flipping him over on his back. Varuna then waited as Blitzkrieg sprang up. She rebounded and drove an elbow into his back. Blitzkrieg stumbled forward and favored his back, allowing Varuna to spring back. Creating a distance between them, Varuna pressed both hands together, forming a square and fired a condensed white beam at the dazed general.

"Varuna Flash Cannon!"

Blitzkrieg barely recovered in time and evaded the beam, which hurtled past him. As Blitzkrieg took to the air, Varuna rocketed up to meet him. The two traded rapid fisticuffs. For a while, Varuna had the advantage and battered Blitzkrieg with closed fists. She even dazed him by catching his face with her fist. All it took was one punch from Blitzkrieg to knock Varuna through an assortment of rock formations. Blitzkrieg lowered both hands and launched a barrage of blue beams, which cleared away the section of the debris. Blitzkrieg descended to check over his handiwork and saw no clear signs of Valkyrie Varuna. He scoured around and tried sensing her energy signature. Suddenly, a beam of light shot through the sand. Blitzkrieg quickly swerved around and fired a beam to nullify the blast.

Suddenly, a streak of light flew out and vanished in front of Blitzkrieg. He whirled around and saw Varuna behind her. He fired, but his beam went through an after image. Then, he saw a few after images of the Valkyrie Senshi dancing around him. He randomly launched energy blasts to catch her. Whilst the general was distracted, the real Varuna came up holding her ax in one hand. Blitzkrieg barely turned and before he could react...

Slash!

...Varuna brought down her ax and delivered a clean slash across his chest.

Blitzkrieg gaped in aghast and bewilderment as Varuna demonstrated ingenuity to get the better of her stronger foe. She dropped Blitzkrieg as he lied on the ground with a deep cut across his chest. Valkyrie Varuna landed next to the general, lying on her back to catch her breath. She slowly turned her head and noted the large gash her ax made on him.

"And stay down, you stubborn bastard," Varuna muttered as she tried sitting up, only to lie back while feeling pain in her side. "Shit. You got me good." She grabbed her ax and planted it to the ground. She pulled herself off the ground and steadily balanced her stance. She leaned against her ax, taking a few deep breaths. He sure took a lot out of me. "Now, you're going to tell me where my friend, Helena, is. Where is she?"

She barely turned her head and noticed he was still lying on his back, motionless.

"Well?"

"...heh, heh, heh, hahahaha. HAHAHAHA!"

Valkyrie Varuna's body froze as the bone-chilling laughter from the general caused her to nearly falter. Before she could stand, Blitzkrieg sat up and manically grinned despite the pain he was trying to overcome.

"...you'll have to really beat me within an inch of my life to get that! Now, pick up your ax...!"

Varuna scowled and grabbed her weapon, barely able to stand. I can't last much longer in this condition. If he hits me with more of those physical blows, I'm fucked. "C'mon...! I'll beat it out of you!"

"That's the spirit!" Blitzkrieg laughed as he, too, was barely standing while blood spilled from his grisly chest wound. His claws grew longer as his eyes turned dark green. "LAST ONE STANDING IS THE REAL KING!"

Varuna didn't respond, but let her action speak for her words. She dashed forward at blinding speed and raised her ax, engaging the Neo-Rajita general for their final clash to determine the victor.

xxxxx

Meikai/Beyond the Valley Dead/Catacombs/8:09 PM

Meanwhile, deep within the Meikai realm, the Demon Knights lured the Spirit Detectives and their cohorts out toward the feared Catacombs, a dark underground cemetery. These were the grounds where the deceased of famed demon kings were buried like the Catacombs of Rome, except ten times the size and more spacious. Yusuke, Yasha, and Rio arrived at exactly the same time as they pursued 'Kyo' and Selipa. They managed to find the Demon Knight duo standing atop a limestone platform. Yusuke wasted no time as he charged ahead to meet Kyo head-on.

Then, Yusuke seemingly vanished out of Kyo's sights. Caught off guard, the Demon Knight turned as Rio dashed right past him.

"Hey, Kyo! Let's have ourselves a nice brotherly talk on the other side!" Rio called out as he bolted through the Catacombs

Kyo snorted irritably and pursued his brother. "Selipa, can you handle the other two on your own?"

"I'll do what I can!" Selipa answered as she evaded Yasha's punches and kicks. She jumped into the air and landed on another platform. He looked ahead as she caught Hiei and Shiki bolting through the doors. "Oh, look we're not alone. Welcome, Shiki, glad you could join us."

As Shiki and Hiei traded sword play, Yusuke and Yasha turned as they saw the two blade wielders countering each other's strikes. Hiei went for a straight thrust, but Shiki sidestepped the demon and backflipped out of his reach.

"Hiei!" Yusuke exclaimed.

"Don't let your guard down, Yusuke!" Yasha barked as Selipa jumped Yusuke from behind. She quickly threw herself behind Yusuke and countered Selipa's attempted strike. Yasha seized Selipa's right arm and threw her into the ceiling.

Yusuke acknowledged the white-haired half-breed. "Yasha, thanks! Though I could've handled that one!"

"As if you could," scoffed Yasha, who firmly stood and watched Selipa scaling the wall. "You can't make any mistakes with the Demon Knights!"

Selipa licked her side lips. "Oh, Yasha, you interfered. How dare you."

Suddenly, the other members of Yusuke's group and the Demon Knights piled in through various corridors. Kurama was seen throwing Gami across using a rose whip. Storming out from another corridor, Toki and Mizuno exchanged blows, which led to Mizuno blasting him back with water that had the force of a powerful blast. Kanzo and Brimstone were running through a wall as Brimstone blasted him back with a fire-imbued cannon shot. Kuwabara, Maya, Chuu, Rinku, Shishiwakamaru, Jin, Touya, and Suzuka chased Maga, Chii, Shin, Moriya, and Namiza. The enclosed underground cemetery now became the site of an all-out clash. The dead would not find any rest as long as they caused enough commotion to anger the spirits.

Selipa jumped off the wall and landed several feet from where Yusuke stood. "This place will appropriately become your graves, Spirit World and Makai representatives. The Catacombs are the ancient graves of the fallen kings and warriors who have perished in previous wars throughout millennia. All of them have fallen during various warring periods. And many of them perished attempting to raid Sheol, the capital city of the Demon Priests' impenetrable fortress. What hope do any of your have to stop the Priests' and the ritual?"

"Simple. We kill you all," Hiei smirked evilly, brandishing his blade. "Until nothing is left."

"That's right! You might've been untouchable for all these years, but we ain't going to falter," Kuwabara openly declared, turning to his friends. "Right, guys?"

Kurama slammed his whip down and coldly rebuked Selipa's proclamation. "You're sure of yourself, Demon Knight. Can you maintain that level of confidence once we've successfully infiltrated your impenetrable fortress. Nothing is impenetrable."

Having recovered during the previous scuffle, Chuu snorted whilst cracking his knuckles. "What he said! You blokes ain't gonna sit comfortably on your thrones for long! We came for our pals! We know you're keeping them captive!"

Rinku exclaimed. "Where's Hokushin, Natsume, and her brother Kujo?"

"Ahaha," chortled Toki. "If you really want to know, they're obviously held prisoner."

"Enough," Selipa cut off her fellow colleague from delving too deeply. "Yes, it's true. They're alive and prisoners of the Demon Priests. Two of them are locked away like the caged animals they are, but the woman you call Natsume is safe with Lady Tsukiyomi."

Chuu scoffed. "You say safe, but I ain't buying it!"

"You can choose to believe or not, but I'm not one to lie."

Kanzo chortled as he approached near Brimstone. "Enough chatter! I say we kill what's left of them!" The symbiote demon covering him added, speaking in a devilish and high-pitched tone. "Yes, kill them all! Butcher them! Ahaha! I love the fresh spill of blood!"

Hiei turned as he held his sword and watched Shiki closing near him. Kurama and Mizuno stood side by side as Gami and Kanzo came forward.

Kuwabara growled as he drew out his Dimension Sword. He eyed Maga, who stalked toward him. Maya prepared to engage Chii. The Makai warriors got into a circle once Shin, Moriya, and Namiza advanced toward them.

Yusuke and Yasha took fighting stances while Selipa casually walked to them.

"I declare that this battle royale commence," the female Demon Knight smiled perversely as she stormed forward to engage Yusuke and Yasha. She initiated the first strike and threw a volley of Youki blasts at Yusuke and Yasha. She turned as the duo evaded her shots. "You won't get away!" She threw another Youki beam, which Yusuke batted away. "I won't fall to you!" She flew up to attack Yusuke, but Yasha interceded and kicked her away. "Augh!" As she was kicked away, Selipa rolled up into a ball and launched herself back and hit Yasha.

"Yasha!" Yusuke shouted as he jumped across and punched Selipa back. "Without Kyo, you can't win against us!"

As Selipa hit a wall, she recovered and forged a blade made out of Youki. "I can win! I'll teach you thing or two!" She charged steadfast at Yusuke and Yasha. Rio? What's taking you? We have both Rio and Kohana in two different realms? What's the delay?

xxxxx

Rio dashed past several catacomb hallways before he came to an abrupt stop. He looked up and caught Kyo hanging above the ceiling. Kyo vanished and reappeared behind Rio, pushing a Youki blade into his brother's back. Rio narrowly sidestepped his brother's sneak attack and jumped back. Both the Demon Sun Stone and Demon Moon Stone wielders gathered balls of energy in their hands as they launched black stream blasts.

"Burning Black Sun!"

"Frozen Black Moon!"

Both attacks coalesced with each other and exploded with intensified Youki shattering the surrounding catacombs. Rio and Kyo came into close quarters combat. They engaged into fisticuffs. The brothers infused Youki through their fists as their knuckles collided, igniting black Youki to leak out and blow away more sections of the underground cemetery. The S-Class warriors pumped out more Youki through their Demon Stone armors, which enveloped and outlined their bodies whilst increasing the output of their unveiled powers. As Rio jumped forward to attack Kyo, his fist seemingly went through his brother. Kyo smirked evilly and relocated 20 feet on the other side of the spacious vicinity. Rio propelled himself through the air to meet Kyo head-on.

"Oh, dear brother!" Kyo laughed as he flickered out and reappeared on a stone platform. "Don't you see? This fight is pointless."

"You're out of you mind! You're not even being candid about wanting to capture me and Kohana!"

"Speaking of our beloved sister, I'm right where she and her friends are on the other side..."

"STAY AWAY FROM HER!"

The Demon Moon Stone wielder shrugged. "No can do, Rio. Sorry, but the ritual can't be delayed any longer."

Rio angrily retorted. "Kohana's friends will stop you. You're making a big mistake underestimating them."

"Oh, they're proving to be quite the..."

xxxxx

Earth/Azabu-Juuban District/Azabu-Juuban Midtown Apartments/Rooftop/8:14 PM

"...handful," Kyo muttered as he evaded through Lady Lupin, Cammy, and Kohana's barrage of attacks. Indeed, Rio, perhaps you were right, but I'm not going to give up! I have you and Kohana where I want you!

"Double Spirit Swords!" Lady Lupin jumped right at Kyo and summoned two Spirit Swords in her hands, which she picked up from Kuwabara. She came forward and rapidly executed slashing motions to hit Kyo with. She followed Kyo across the rooftop and forced him to take into the air. "Come back here!" She reached Kyo and made slashing motions to hit the Demon Moon Stone wielder, but Kyo merely made evasive counters to dodge every strike. He phased and flew down to where Kohana was standing. "No!"

Kohana smirked evilly as her blade began glowing. "Big mistake, Kyo. I've been perfecting my craft while you've been gone."

Cammy, Aoshi, and Moonlight Knight threw themselves in front of Kohana, readying their attacks simultaneously.

"Hey, I don't need help!" Kohana snapped.

Cammy quipped. "But, he's coming for you and there's no way we're going to stand back idly."

"Let us help, Kohana," Moonlight Knight stated.

Aoshi warned them. "Here he comes!"

As Kyo flew in closer, Lady Lupin cupped her hands together as ball of ice materialized around her as she channeled ShadowMetalGarurumon's power. The ice balls formed into missile-like projectiles that hurtled toward Kyo and exploded around him.

"Frozen Bombardments!"

One missile narrowly missed Kyo, who moved slightly away from its range. He evaded every missile that exploded and trapped trapping him in ice. He pressed forward with his sights specifically focused on Kohana. Cammy quickly forged spirit arrows in her bow.

Then, Kohana's blade turned back into a simple knife and Shiro himself. Discarding the knife, Kohana gathered spiritual power throughout her body and focused. She slammed her right hand into the ground as a giant cloud of smoke kicked up around everyone on the rooftop. They watched as a large four-legged behemoth emerged behind the thick blanket of smoke. Kyo and Lady Lupin came to a stop as they thoroughly analyzed the behemoth concealed behind the smoke. Cammy, Aoshi, and Moonlight Knight whirled around as they felt a large presence behind them. They jumped back as a large paw extended through the smoke. Three more large paws poked through the smoke. Then, a large head resembling a Shisa (Okinawan lion-dog) emerged.

As the cloud dispersed, a large Shisa resembling Shiro stood in the wake of the explosive smoke. It was at least half the width and length of the entire rooftop. Its entire base form was covered in layers upon layers of black-and-golden fur. The eyes of the beast were crimson and burned with fury. Sitting atop the giant Shisa's head was Kohana and Shiro, both smiling proudly as they noted Kyo's shocked look.

Lady Lupin shook her head. "Show off. You're bringing the big gun out, huh?"

"Whoa, she went ahead and summoned him?" Aoshi exclaimed.

Cammy replied, eyeing the giant, majestic beast. "I just hope Kohana has better control of Shiranui."

"Shiranui...?" Moonlight Knight said, greatly taken aback by the giant's presence. "You guys... just never cease to amaze me."

"Says the guy who just transformed into an Arabian warrior..." Kohana knelt down and patted Shiranui's head. "Looks like your big brother is ready to play, Shiro."

"Yeah, now that he knows who our enemy is," Shiro said as he pointed toward Kyo. "Big brother Shiranui, you see that guy over there? He's been giving us trouble! Let's teach him a lesson for messing with us! Oh, and he even picked on me!"

With that, upon hearing Shiro's pleas, Shiranui's fury was awakened as he took to the skies and rushed toward Kyo. Kyo hastily moved out Shiranui's reach and watched as the behemoth turned, expelling a golden beam from his mouth. Kyo swerved out of the beam's range and watched as the giant Shisa turned into a giant ball of golden light. Kohana and Shiro were pulled into the golden orb, allowing themselves to become immersed with the spiritual properties within the ball of light. As Kyo propelled himself across to stop what she was concocting, Lady Lupin phased in his way and interceded his path.

"Going somewhere?" She quipped whilst attacking him with her Spirit Swords.

Meanwhile, the golden orb of light condensed and compacted itself into Kohana's body.

"Shiranui, allow our powers to resonate!" Kohana cried out. "Armor Upgrade: Demon Chaser Mode!"

Materializing across her sorceress garb was golden-and-black armor. The front area of the armor, which covered her chest, resembled a Shisa's face. Her arms and legs were now covered in black material. Golden-and-black armor adorned her shoulders, elbows, knees, shins, back, feet, and head. A golden sheen of light outlined Kohana's form. To complete her upgrade, a sword, forged from one of Shiranui's fangs, materialized in her right hand. The complete merger and armor upgrade augmented Kohana's overall stats thrice fold. Shiro, now twice as large as before, hovered beside Kohana.

Gazing onward with shock, Moonlight Knight was in awe.

Aoshi added. "Not bad, Kohana."

Cammy smirked. "With this power-up, she's as strong as Lady Lupin."

After repelling Lady Lupin with a Youki beam, he pivoted his view and gazed upon Kohana in her new form. His eyes widened while measuring the spiritual power exuding from her. It was shocking turn of events that even Kyo hadn't taken account to. Lady Lupin hovered over by Kohana and Shiro.

"Good, now both of us will be enough to take him down," Lady Lupin said.

"In our Demon Chaser forms, we've been given a boost from Shiranui," the sorceress confirmed, brandishing her sword as she pierced a cold gaze toward Kyo. "We're not holding back!"

"That's what I want to hear!" declared Lady Lupin.

After listening to their boasts, Kyo shrugged off their threats. However, before he could initiate his attack, Lady Lupin, Kohana, and Shiro blitzed forward, moving at blinding speed. Lady Lupin and Kohana attacked Kyo head-on with a flurry of slashes. Kyo made evasive counters while dodging their forward attacks. Shiro went for a flying headbutt, but Kyo phased out of the way. Lady Lupin whirled around and cupped her hands together, forging a blue ball of light that she condensed into a beam.

"Spirit Wave!"

As Kyo turned, Lady Lupin's blast hit him with full force and sent him plunging toward the ground. Kyo stopped as he hovered halfway from landing in a heap. He shot upward and saw two streams of golden light impacting him out of nowhere. Kyo's head snapped back after Kohana and Shiro hit him simultaneously. While Kyo stumbled back, Kohana's armor glowed, reflecting the power of Shiranui resonating with her. She rocketed forward with her sword in hand and delivered a slash, which he was unable to anticipate. The force of the sword strike was enough to knock him 20 feet back. While Kyo was sent sailing away, Cammy released a hundred spirit-empowered arrows from her bow. All of them hit their mark and exploded around Kyo, who tried to putting up a Youki barrier. Aoshi threw a barrage of silver-laced explosives as they, too, exploded around him. One even impacted Kyo's chest and damaged a portion of his Moon armor.

If that wasn't enough, Lady Lupin and Kohana flew ahead, hitting Kyo with fists imbued with spirit energy. The amount of spirit power leaking out from their fists nullified the Youki surrounding Kyo. Their combined spirit energies seemingly overwhelmed Kyo and sent him sailing into the skies. The Neo-Spirit Detectives watched as Kyo vanished inside the beam of spirit energy.

"Yeah! We got him!" Aoshi exclaimed.

Cammy probed Kyo's presence. "I'm not getting anything, you guys."

"Whoa, you mean... that's it?" Lady Lupin blinked in befuddlement, nearly letting her jaw drop. "Talk about a letdown."

"Letdown? Screw that noise! As long as that bastard is dead, I could give a rat's ass!" Kohana shouted.

Overwhelmed with his seemingly empowered friends, Moonlight Knight walked up near Cammy and tried getting her attention.

"Relax, it's over now, Shingo," the Miko reassured the white-garbed teen.

"Guys, it's cool we got rid of Kyo and all, but there's Lien! Surely you didn't..."

Lady Lupin kindly cut her friend off. "Relax, I didn't forget Lien and TobuCatmon. Let's go and see if those two are ok."

With that, Lady Lupin, Kohana, and Shiro flew toward where their colleagues awaited them. They turned and moved ahead to find Lien's whereabouts. The last they saw of her was seeing her and TobuCatmon leading Vipris and Geso from their apartment rooftop.

xxxxx

Vipris and Lien glided towards each other at supersonic speed. The two flew around and impacted blows around various rooftops. They landed on the tallest building in the district and faced off from both sides of the roof. Vipris waved around his instrument and beckoned Lien to attack him. Lien hastily dashed forward, galloping over one side of the roof to the other. She phased out and reappeared on Vipris' right side.

Lien readied an arrow and had it aimed for Vipris' chest. "Inferno Frost!" She opened fire as the arrow turned into a barrage of arrows of light. She kept firing while Vipris swerved his bladed weapon and negated all the arrows that nearly hit him.

Before he realized it, Lien phased in front of him and landed a front kick to his chest. Vipris was knocked across the roof as he fell off and landed in mid-air. He descended from his stationary position and landed on the roof.

TobuCatmon and Geso were on the sidelines, observing the heated battle between the two.

"General Vipris, allow me to assist you!" Geso cried out, offering help to his general.

"No! Lien is mine!"

TobuCatmon hissed and dashed over to Lien's side. "C'mon, Lien, finish him!"

"LIEN!"

Suddenly, Lien withdrew from facing Vipris. Everyone turned to notice the Neo-Spirit Detectives arriving at the site.

"FRIENDS!" Lien called and waved over to the Neo-Spirit Detectives. "Lien is happy you found us!"

"Lien's ok," Kohana said as her friends got the impression she was worried for the alien child. She noted Lady Lupin giving her a suspicious look. "What...? I can't be thankful she isn't hurt?"

Vipris thrust his hand through and seemingly cut a hole through a fabric between two dimensions. Lien and TobuCatmon noticed Vipris was cutting a breach into Digital World. Geso quickly hurried over beside Vipris as the fissure expanded.

"Why don't we settle this on the other side, Lien?" Vipris snickered devilishly as he and Geso stepped through the gaping hole.

As streams of white light seemingly spilled out of the hole, the Neo-Spirit Detectives landed on the roof whilst averting their eyes. Lien turned toward her new friends and then shifted her full attention on the two Neo-Rajita villains. Lien focused on her true intentions. She came to terms and to a decision.

"Take care, friends. Lien had a good time with you all."

"Wait, you're going after them?" Lady Lupin inquired.

Lien smiled vaguely and nodded. "Yes. Don't worry. Lien will return, but Lien must teach these two a lesson and find Nagah-sensei. She'll punish these two for treason behind her back."

Not letting this slide easily, Kohana pushed through and grabbed a hold of Lien's left arm. Taken aback, the Rajita hybrid gasped and watched Kohana giving her slap on her side.

"We'll be waiting. Don't get killed," the redheaded tomboy wore a halfhearted grin.

Lien knelt over and kissed Kohana's forehead. "And thank you, Kohana. Lien thinks you've become the closest friend." With a parting wink, the alien charged ahead to pursue Vipris and Geso through the portal. "TobuCatmon, let's go!"

"Yes, Lien!" TobuCatmon said after bidding farewell to the Neo-Spirit Detectives.

"Damn you, stupid girl..." Kohana muttered as she and the others witnessed the portal behind them.

"She'll be ok as long as we believe in her," Lady Lupin reassured Kohana. "She has her own fight ahead for her."

Cammy wondered. "I hope we'll see her again."

Aoshi asserted. "Yeah, me, too. She was growing on me."

Before she and the others could react, a black beam hurtled toward them and impacted the roof. The explosive blast abruptly knocked the group back and neutralized them altogether. Lady Lupin was split back into Yui and DarkGabumon whilst Cammy, Moonlight Knight, Aoshi, Botan, Shiro, and Kohana were scattered in a giant heap on the rooftop. Kohana's Demon Chaser form dispersed. After being knocked unconscious, Shiro vanished.

The culprit behind the attack was Kyo, who had faked his own demise and concealed his Youki from their detection!

Wearing a smug grin, Kyo descended near Kohana's side. The sorceress slowly got to her feet and defiantly dashed forward to attack him. Kyo effortlessly sidestepped his sister and landed a light chop to the back of her head, knocking the girl out cold. He put an arm over Kohana and flung her unconscious body over his shoulder. Yui raised her head and cursed under her breath, crawling with all her might to grab Kyo's left ankle.

"...you... you were dead!" snapped Yui, who looked just as spooked as Kyo would expect. "How did you...?"

"Survive? Child, you and your cohorts are not adept to sensing beings capable of suppressing their Youki down to zero," the Demon Knight smiled as he eyed the unconscious Miko. "Even a Miko of her caliber wouldn't have known I could mask my Youki beyond her detection. I played you all for the fools you are. Such a shame you can't join me and my sister as honored guests. Unfortunately, this was supposed to have been a quick errand. I have to deliver my sister back where she rightfully belongs."

"No... let her go! I MEAN IT!" The Neo-Spirit Detective defiantly and angrily chided the Demon Knight. Her tone tinged with hatred as she secured a stronger grip around Kyo's ankle.

With a swift kick, Kyo brushed Yui aside and chuckled. "Thank you for a wonderful fight, Spirit Detective. Too bad you'll never be on Yusuke's level. He's a real opponent I look forward to finishing on the Priests' turf. But, you have potential, dear." Suddenly, his body began to fade, preparing to shift back to the Meikai Realm. "I know you'll come to the Meikai, but do hurry. Tomorrow will be a glorious event, and one to change the fate of the three realms! Arago's revival is imminent!"

"NOOO!" Yui screamed as she suddenly rebounded from her fall and lunged forward to tackle Kyo. As she reached Kyo, he flickered out like a blur and slipped back into the Meikai. She hit the concrete and rolled across.

She failed to save Kohana from Kyo.

Having been outwitted by Kyo, Yui punched the ground several times. "No... we failed? No! No! NO! NO! NO!" Leaving a large hole on the ground, she raised her head and screamed at the top of her lungs, calling out for her friend's name. "KOOOOOOOOHANAAAAA!"

"GUYS! THERE YOU ALL ARE!" Botan's familiar voice garnered the Neo-Spirit Detectives from witnessing Kyo and Kohana's departure.

"Botan!" Yui and Cammy answered in reply.

"What's going on? I felt some much commotion from here!" The ferry girl hopped off her oar and landed on the rooftop where everyone gathered around her. "Koenma warned me that Kyo just happened to pop up here!"

"Yeah, and managed to fool us and capture Kohana!" Aoshi said.

"What? That's terrible!" Botan exclaimed.

"He's probably back in the Meikai by now," Cammy posited. "We need to go join forces with Yusuke's group. That's our best chance of getting Kohana back!"

Yui couldn't help but agree with her colleague. "Is there any way you can take us there?"

"I just can't go into Meikai and take you there. However, Koenma has access to the distortion tunnel between the Makai and Meikai. As I recall, the former lords Mukuro and Yomi along with Enki and a few others from the Makai are going there."

"Then, if it's not too much trouble, let us go with them," Cammy suggested. "If they're looking for Yusuke and the others, then we'll be able to reach them!"

Botan nodded. "Going to Meikai is especially dangerous, but if it's to rescue Kohana, I can't say I blame you. Oh, and I just noticed your friend..." She pointed to Moonlight Knight. "Who's he?"

Moonlight Knight openly addressed himself. "I'm Moonlight Knight."

"He's Shingo Tsukino, Usagi's brother, and our friend..." The young priestess said, blushing awkwardly while introducing him.

"Oh, then, greetings Moonlight Knight!" Botan said as she walked up to him and shook his hands. "You're really dreamy up close."

"Uh... thanks, but I'm... taken?" Moonlight Knight said hesitantly.

"B-O-T-A-N!" Yui angrily snapped, getting the ferry girl to bring her attention to the more crucial matters.

"Sorry, sorry!" Botan recoiled from Yui's wrath and flailed her arms out of fear.

"Hey, guys. The kids," Moonlight Knight reminded the others.

"I'm going to call up Keiko and Yukina," Cammy said as she pulled out her cell. "Luckily they're still around and we can get them to babysit while we're gone."

"Good idea," nodded Yui. "We can head out once they get here." Hang on, Kohana. We're coming for you...

xxxxx

Meikai/Beyond the Valley Dead/Catacombs/8:18 PM

As his real self slipped out of the human world, Kyo's astral projection flipped out of Rio's reach and bolted back to where his colleagues were fighting. Rio gave chase to his brother and leapt over, attempting to cut him off from the pass. Once Kyo arrived at the scene of the fray, the other Demon Knights and Shadow Guardians ceased their scuffles with the Detectives and company.

"Demon Knights! Shadow Guardians! It has been done!" Kyo announced as he hurried over to Selipa, who ran over to him. "Selipa."

"What happened... did you fail?"

"Not even close," Kyo said with an evil smirk, which brightened Selipa's spirits as she stood next to him. He immediately turned to the Spirit Detectives and company as they ceased their fighting with the Meikai warriors. His smile widened as the Demon Knight laughed. "I can't believe you, Yusuke Urameshi, put so much faith in those brats that I easily overpowered!"

Upon hearing this, Yusuke's heart sank as Kyo's alluded to their defeat.

"Oh, rest assured, those brats aren't dead. However, I did acquire such a great reward, which will please Lady Tsukiyomi and the Priests. Guess what, Rio? Sister's coming home."

Like Yusuke before him, Rio's heart sank like a rock as he became bridled with intense, raw emotions. He rushed past Yusuke and went straight for Kyo with a fist ready to catch him head-on. Selipa threw herself in front of Kyo and blasted him back with a beam. Recoiling from the blast that hit him, Rio hit the ground. Yusuke and Kuwabara hurried over to catch his fall. Yasha angrily glared down Kyo and Selipa, recognizing them as her mother's chosen Demon Knights. Hiei, Kurama, Maya, Chuu, Rinku, Shishiwakamaru, Jin, Touya, and Suzuka stormed ahead only for the other Demon Knights and the Shadow Guardians to cut them off from the pass.

"Victory has been ensured for this battle," Kyo said, broadening his fiendish smile and expressed a taunting gesture to his brother. "We not only outwitted you here, but on the other side. Those kids believed they had finished me, but I suppressed my Youki and slipped through their best attack. I went under their radar and followed them to await the opportune moment to strike. With their guards down, I struck and got what I want. As we speak, my real self is back in the Priests' chambers to deliver the goods. Now, Yusuke Urameshi, brother, and the rest of your entourage, we invite you to the unholy ritual in Sheol. Tomorrow is guaranteed to be an eventful moment. The revival of Arago is upon us!" With that, streams of black Youki energy enveloped the entire Demon Knight and Shadow Guardian assembly as they disappeared from the Catacombs.

Pulling himself up, Kyo sat down and cursed. "Damn it all! He... HE'S GOT KOHANA!" He lowered his head and smashed his fists into the ground. "SHIT! HOW COULD HAVE THIS ALL HAPPENED? I THOUGHT..."

"We thought he wouldn't have a chance in hell of capturing Kohana," Yusuke said, resisting the urge to go ballistic. "I... I really did put all my faith on Yui and her friends!"

"THEN, YOU'RE RESPONSIBLE!" Rio roared as he grabbed Yusuke and pushed him down. "This wouldn't have happened had you let them come..."

"Then we would've been a bigger target, Rio!"

Kuwabara interjected. "C'mon, you two! It was a miscalculation on our part!"

"Stop this senseless fighting!" Maya shouted as she and Mizuno stepped in to help pull Rio off Yusuke.

"Listen to Urameshi, Rio! If we brought Kohana along, you two would've been captured together!"

Rio turned and listened to the orange-haired man's angry outburst. He stopped moving about and pushed himself off Kuwabara.

"We didn't go in as prepared as we would've wanted," Kurama said as he expressed his disdain for the outcome. "Rio..."

Hiei simply added while everyone was still running on emotions. "Then, we'll go to Sheol and face those Priests on their turf. You think their petty army frightens me?"

"Hiei is right! There's still a chance we can stop the ritual!" Mizuno tried persuading her teammates. "It's not over Rio, you can save your sister and kill Kyo. It's as simple as that."

Yasha dismissed the proposed course of action. "No, we must stay the course and hit them tomorrow exactly as planned. Besides, the ritual can't start until tomorrow. The Priests have decreed that tomorrow be the historic day of Arago's revival. With the last and third component of the ritual here, Rio is the deciding factor that can put a stop to the ritual."

Everyone present was still and quiet after a brief moment of a heated exchange that nearly destroyed their union.

Yusuke stood and nodded before turning to his team. His face conveyed disillusion with not just his faith in the Neo-Spirit Detectives, but with Kohana's capture by Kyo. Everything he and the others 'prepared' for was shattered by the Demon Knights. They had underestimated their cunning wits and ability to cross over dimensions with ease, as well as their ability to suppress their Youki beyond Yusuke and company's detection, which put them at a grave disadvantage. Being in the Meikai certainly didn't help matters for his team.

Kurama spoke up. "We should stay put. If Kohana has truly been captured, then Yui and her colleagues will most likely be on their way here."

"How do you know that?" Yusuke said.

"It's a simple deduction. In any case, I left word with Yomi that they were to be brought along, should something like this happen."

"Let's hope Yomi and the others haven't actually entered Meikai yet," Touya said.

Jin added. "Oh yeah, or the kids are gonna get left behind!"

"I wouldn't count on it. Yomi has been quite meticulous of coming here. In other words, he's not in a rush."

"I just hope Yui and her crew can meet with Yomi before it's too late," Yusuke said as he turned to Yasha. "And you still owe us an explanation." His demeanor was less than friendly as he couldn't fully grasp the concept of Yasha being the daughter of a Demon Priest. "Tell us all you know about Tsukiyomi and how you're her daughter."

The others were left in absolute awe and deep silence over the revelation. There was a mix of distrust and befuddlement amidst the entire group.

However, Yasha conceded and nodded. "Let's return to our village first. Then, I shall reveal all you need to know about me and my entire clan."

xxxxx

Meikai/Demon Priests' Main Lair/8:21 PM

Having teleported back in the Priests' stronghold, Kyo willingly knelt down with Kohana in his arms. The subservient Demon Knight looked up, facing the three Demon Priests. Each one wore victory smiles as they felt Arago's revival was close upon them.

"At last, the time has come," Long said, wearing a snake-like fiendish grin. "Well done, Kyo. Now we wait for the third component to arrive and everything will be set into motion!" He turned and raised both arms over his head, shouting in declaration. "Arago's revival is FINALLY imminent!"

Both Tsukiyomi and Vigor shared Long's vivid enthusiasm.

Tsukiyomi pivoted her view toward Kyo and nodded. "Well done, my knight."

"Anything to please you and the lords, Lady Tsukiyomi. The day of Arago's revival has come and I can't wait to see this momentous event." The Demon Knight smirked as he carried Kohana off to the ritual chamber. Now, Rio, it's all on you to come to make this all possible. One of us is fated to become the wielder of all three Demon Stones and become Lord Arago's new container.

xxxxx

Neo-Rajita Paradais Dimension 6/8:23 PM

Having spent a great amount of time wearing down Abyss' Chimeramon body, Orcus, the Quartet, Tuxedo Kamen, and Aster's Elemental Hero Shining Phoenix Enforcer damaged the behemoth with their flurry of attacks. As Abyss noticed his Chimeramon body failing, he steadily ascended into the ceiling. Orcus and the others closely recognized the exposure of the creature's flaws. Abyss grumbled as he realized his Chimeramon body wasn't sufficient enough to bring down the united front. However, he wasn't about to let down and pressed forward to finish his adversaries no matter the cost.

Valkyrie Orcus smirked as a black aura outlined her body. "His body's weakening, mates. I say he's about as good as done."

Sailor Ceres added, observing Abyss' Chimeramon body breaking down. "You're right. We've pretty much exposed its flaws. He's an easy target for us to attack."

"All we need to do is target the head and he's done for!" Sailor Juno exclaimed.

Sailor Pallas chirped. "Oooh, can I take his head off? I specialize at that!"

"Fools..." Abyss grumbled as he raised his head. The tiny heads inside his globe-shaped mask gleamed as a green aura outlined his body. He opened his right hand as a long trident materialized in his hand. "...YOU'LL NEVER DEFEAT ME! FOR I AM PERFECTION!" He bellowed as hundreds of tentacles shot out of the Chimeramon body and attempted to ensnare the Senshi.

"ATTACK!" Orcus cried out as she, the Quartet, Tuxedo Kamen, and Shining Phoenix Enforcer spread out to clear away the tentacles.

As each fired projectiles, they managed to clear away all but a few tentacles that managed to slip by. Orcus felt as a tentacle seized her by the waist. The Quartet winded up getting caught by tentacles and were quickly yanked forward. Abyss channeled energy through his tentacles and shocked them with electricity.

"GIRLS!" Tuxedo Kamen and Aster called out.

"NOOO!" Trudge roared as he picked up a chair and tossed it at Abyss.

This sudden distraction caused Abyss to shift his attention to Trudge. He launched a tentacle toward Trudge and aimed to impale him. As Trudge closed his eyes, Mina pulled Trudge to the side as the tentacle speared through a tube. With Abyss distracted, this allowed Orcus and the Quartet to blast through the tentacles.

"NOW!" Orcus shouted as she flew across, turning her right arm into a shadow blade.

The Sailor Quartet went into a formation pattern as they amassed glowing balls of light. The orbs quickly condensed within their palms and pushed forward to form energy spears. These spears immersed together and formed into a massive concentrated burst of combined energy.

"Shadow Scythe!" Orcus shouted as she vanished at blinding speed and cut through Abyss, removing him off the Chimeramon body. She watched as he fell toward the ground and dove in after him.

The Quartet howled in unison and launched their combined attack at the Chimeramon body. "Amazoness Jungle Arrow!"

After firing their attack, it impacted the Chimeramon and blasted a hole through the monster's body. The Chimeramon body fell as it exploded into a cloud of data. Abyss witnessed in horror as his body was abruptly destroyed before his own eyes. However, that should've been the least of his concerns. Before he could react in time, Tuxedo Kamen lunged forward and cut through Abyss. His body was cleaved in half through the waist. Orcus and the Quartet formed a circle. They fired off simultaneous blasts, which converged and blasted Abyss away like he were nothing. All that remain of Abyss were charred ashes as the Senshi landed and collapsed, seemingly exhausted from the dragged out battle and nearly having their powers drained.

"Guys! You did it!" Aster cried out.

Mina and Trudge rushed over to the Senshi, checking on them.

"You girls did great!" Mina said.

Tuxedo Kamen knelt down while catching his breath. "Don't forget me."

"Hey, you, too," Trudge commended the man.

"I can't believe... we actually beat a Rajita general," Orcus said between heavy breaths. "He sure gave us a fight, huh?"

"I almost feel insulted this fight lasted longer than it did," Ceres quipped.

Vesta scoffed, scanning the small room. "Well, we didn't have much room to fly around!"

Suddenly, a portal materialized behind them. Like the other groups before them, it was a portal that leads them into the Neo-Rajita Paradais dimension. The group was wary about the portal, but as far as they were concerned, going into the portal beats staying in their current location.

"Let's go," Orcus requested as she barely stood, leading to Aster helping her stand. "Thanks... but, I can manage..."

"Hey, you just went through a hard fight and you're exhausted, no offense."

"No, you're right. Thanks," Orcus said, smiling.

Once everyone pressed toward the portal, Orcus suddenly pushed Aster to the side as something pierced through her side.

Shick.

The group watched in horror as a blade coated with purple liquid impaled Orcus' right side. The Australian grit her teeth and sunk to her knees, holding her side. Everyone whirled around and caught someone they believed to have died. It was Abyss! Though, now he was merely a walking mass of purple skin and eyeballs, a grotesque sight to behold. Emerging from a small piece of skin left behind by the Chimeramon body, the general regenerated himself and held a blade in his hand. He had everyone believing he was dead until this quick trump card.

"ORCUS!" The Quartet cried out as they raced over to the Valkyrie Kuiper.

Aster quickly checked over Orcus' wound and saw the purple liquid entering the girl's wound. "Guys, it's poison! He just stabbed her with some kind of venom!"

"Good catch, boy," Abyss chortled as his legs regenerated, allowing him to walk forward.

"How the hell did you survive? We saw you die!" Trudge barked.

"Oh yes. I died. My original body is lost forever, but..." The general said as he picked up the last piece of the Chimeramon body and integrated it with his skin. "...since the Chimeramon body was a part of me, any part of that can regrow another copy of me so as long as there's a body left. Fortunately, for me, a few pieces of skin was left before being completely incinerated. This is my fail-safe." He pointed his sword across and eyed Valkyrie Orcus. "And since I've weakened your strongest player, and with most of you exhausted, I can pick you off one after the other. How's that for intricate planning?"

"Guys... just go... leave me..." Orcus said as she tried standing, the poison entering her body notwithstanding. "Go through the portal... I've got him!"

"Orcus, you're crazy! You're injured!" Juno berated her.

Ceres tried to persuade her. "Dear, listen to us, you've been poisoned! Stop moving or the venom will spread faster!"

"This is nothing... you think this is the first time I've been poisoned?" Orcus feigned a smile as she stumbled forward, only to collapse on one knee. "I was stung by a box jellyfish when I was 7 years old. They're infamous for being one of the deadliest animals in my country. This... this venom doesn't even compare..."

"ORCUS!" Aster yelled as he hurried beside the Australian and held her to stand.

"EVERYONE, GO!" Orcus cried out as Abyss prepared to attack them with his sword.

However, none of them listened to her pleas and formed a wall in front of her. Surprised, Orcus couldn't believe what she was seeing. Her colleagues put themselves before Orcus to shield her.

"You guys..." Orcus dismissively nodded. "No, don't do it for my sake!"

"Shut up and let us do this," Ceres said. "Pallas, use your water magic to remove the venom. Vesta, use your fire to cauterize the wound."

"Right!" The duo said as they knelt over by Orcus' side.

Aster turned and helped the two with Orcus. "And I'll help. After all, you were the one to save me from that, Orcus."

"Guys... thanks..." The Australian winced as she lay on the ground, allowing Vesta and Pallas to work over her injury.

Abyss chortled as he advanced forward. "How touching, but she has but about 10 minutes to live. The venom will attack her central nervous system. Once everything shuts down, she's done for." He stopped as he noticed Ceres and Juno coming at him with energy blasts. He was blasted away by their concentrated blasts. "Ugh!" He groaned and lost his sword.

"That was for Orcus, you sick bastard!" Juno snapped.

Ceres' face conveyed no emotion as she jumped at Abyss and landed a kick to his face. The general was sent rolling across the lab as he hit the back of a tube. However, Abyss could only laugh as his body shaped numerous tendrils that shot out at the Quartet Senshi. Juno and Ceres moved out of the way. Tuxedo Kamen and Phoenix Enforcer intercepted the other tendrils, cutting and blasting through them effortlessly.

While the fighting was going on, Sailor Pallas used magical water to promptly remove all the venomous content from her body. Then, it didn't take long for Vesta to sear the stab wound. Orcus winced in pain as she opened her eyes and shot up. Aster sighed with relief and steadily helped Orcus up.

"I... I feel much better, guys," Orcus said, checking over herself. "Wow, you two did great work!"

Pallas nodded. "It was nothing. Pallas happy to help!"

Vesta wiped her forehead. "You had us scared. All the venom was removed from your body."

"I think I can go..." Orcus said as she stumbled forward, leading to Aster catching her fall. "Thanks."

Aster smiled. "Sure, but take it easy."

"Not yet," the focused Australian seemingly turned to the giant tube behind Abyss. It was filled with a green liquid that hadn't been broken yet. "I've had just about enough of this freak!" With that, she visibly let a dark aura surround her whilst concentrating on a ball of energy in her hand. "He's not going to get away with what he did. I, Sailor Orcus and guardian of Planet Orcus, won't stand for this!" As she further concentrated, the ball of dark energy compressed and turned into a scythe. She grabbed it and shifted her gaze to Abyss, who was fending off Ceres, Juno, Tuxedo Kamen, and Phoenix Enforcer. "Rajita scumbag, here's something to remember me by! You'll never forget the day you pissed Sailor Orcus off!" She threw the scythe and watched as it hurtled toward Abyss. "Orcus Darkness Scythe!"

As everyone moved out of the way, the scythe went flying toward Abyss. The general didn't know what hit him next. The darkness blade hit him with full force and pierced through his head. The blade even made contact with the tube behind Abyss as it cracked and released the green liquid, which spilled all over him. Abyss screeched a loud that the liquid was melting his body.

"Nooooo... NOOOOOOO! IT BURNS! IT HURTS! KYAAAAAA!" Abyss screeched so loud, everyone but Orcus covered their ears. "MAKE THE PAIN GO AWAY! AAAAAUGHHHH! NO MORE!"

Orcus didn't budge an inch as her eyes conveyed no remorse over the dying monstrosity. For the pain he brought to her and her colleagues, and nearly killing her with a cowardly attack, this was the final straw that broke the camel's back. Orcus wasn't about to take any more chances and watched the creature melt before her eyes. Naturally, she'd feel squeamish at the sight of something grotesque dying, but she felt nothing. Nothing but emptiness as Abyss turned into a puddle of green mass.

"...I... I...am to... to...the be... ul..timate..." Abyss's last words finally slipped out before his presence faded forever. "...lord... Gamera...forgive...me..." And with that, he was gone.

Valkyrie Orcus turned away and walked toward the portal. "We're wasting time guys. Let's go..." She gasped as she suddenly collapsed.

Aster jumped in and caught Orcus, preventing her sudden fall again.

"How clumsy of me... you're awfully being charitable," Orcus smirked as Aster put an arm around her.

"You might be healed, but you're still hurt. Here, I'll carry you."

"No, no, I'm fine..."

However, Aster didn't take no for an answer and scooped her up into his arms.

Orcus scoffed and blushed. "T-Thank you..."

"No need to thank me. Just being helpful to a lady."

"All right, guys, we're done here," Sailor Ceres addressed everyone behind her.

Sailor Pallas cheered. "Hooray! We're finally getting out of here!"

Sailor Juno snorted. "About time!"

Sailor Vesta watched as Aster carried Orcus through the portal. "I wonder where that'll take us?"

"Anywhere but here, that's for sure!" Trudge said as he led Mina into the portal.

Everyone else quickly bolted through the portal and watched as it closed behind them. The group found themselves in a spacious room with upside down paintings and a stairway leading to a few floors above them. Phoenix Enforcer returned into Aster's deck, fitting inside the Duelist's right pocket. Orcus, the Quartet, Tuxedo Kamen, Aster, Trudge, and Mina scanned their surroundings.

"So, where to?" wondered Mina.

"Up the stairs," Tuxedo Kamen said, leading the group forward. "Hopefully we'll find the others somewhere." Including Usa-ko and Chibi-Usa, wherever you two are.

As everyone advanced forward, Orcus looked up at Aster and sighed.

"You know... you're a lot hotter up close, Mr. Aster Phoenix."

"Gee, thanks..." He mumbled. "I guess I shouldn't tick you off like that creep did. Or else, you'd stick a scythe through my skull, right?"

The Australian giggled. "Maybe, but that was a rare moment for me. I'm naturally never like that... but that asshole really pushed me. If it weren't for you guys, I'd be dead."

"Nothing to it!" Juno added.

Ceres asserted. "We're all a team, Orcus, but you've won our respect with your courage and tenacity."

"Thanks, and glad to know you guys think highly of me," Orcus smiled as Aster continued carrying her along.

The fourth united front, lead by Sailor Orcus, Sailor Ceres, and Tuxedo Kamen, earned their latest victory over the Neo-Rajita/Paradais Alliance, defeating the Tenth General Abyss and his front.

xxxxx

Neo-Rajita Paradais Dimension/Southern Sanctuary Quarters/8:29 PM

Valkyrie Sedna and Melancholia traded off a barrage of blasts whilst encircling each other. Melancholia swayed and flew around the ice beam barrage from the Valkyrie Kuiper. Sedna glided across and swerved right behind Melancholia, blasting him with an icy wind. After being blasted away by Sedna, Yugi jetted toward the general and threw a magical beam at his direction.

After taking a shot from Dark Magician Yugi's Dark Magic blast, Melancholia propelled toward Yugi and drove a fist into his gut. As he felled Yugi, Jaden's Neos flew behind Melancholia and tried striking him with a punch. Melancholia whirled around and caught Neos' fist. The general swiftly backhanded Neos and sent him sailing into a wall. He turned as Neo Moon flew up, readily preparing to launch a beam toward him. With quick reflexes, he caught with the beam with one hand and nullified it by channeling his own energy into it. He rocketed up and headbutted Neo Moon into RJ's waiting arms.

Raizen Jr. lunged right at Melancholia and threw a flurry of punches at the Neo-Rajita general. Melancholia utilized evasive counters to dodge his punches. RJ surprised Melancholia and caught him with a fist to his left side. That one punch knocked Melancholia into the air where Yusei's Stardust Dragon awaited him.

"Now, Stardust Dragon! Shooting Sonic!" The Signer roared out a command to his majestic dragon.

Once gaping its mouth, the Stardust Dragon expelled sonic waves from the mouth and converted it into a powerful condensed beam that blasted Melancholia head-on. Yugi and Neos rebounded as they retaliated and launched their attacks directly to Melancholia.

"Take this! Dark Magic Attack!" Yugi shouted, shooting a magical beam from his staff and guided it to Melancholia.

Neos forged balls of energy in both hands. He compressed and fired it at the enemy. "Cosmic Crusher!"

As the three attacks converged and combined, they overwhelmed Melancholia. Valkyrie Sailor Sedna phased behind Melancholia. Openly sneering at him, she landed a kick to his back and allowed the converged attack to engulf Melancholia.

Ba-Boom!

Angemon X watched from the sidelines as he watched the combined attack explode. He caught Melancholia barely slipping out and attempting to fly out through a doorway. He phased and reappeared near the door, barricading Melancholia from the pass.

"Going somewhere?" Angemon X scoffed, throwing two hands in front of Melancholia and repelling him with an incredible force of energy.

Melancholia's face contorted as the inexplicable force exuding from the Ascendant pushed him 30 feet back. He propelled himself into the air and noticed Angemon X was out of sight. He whirled around and saw Angemon X drawing out his sword to cut him half. Melancholia barely flickered out of the Ascendant's reach. Melancholia relocated near another entrance mouth, but before he realized it Angemon was behind him with his sword hanging over the general's throat.

"It's over, give up."

"Dimitri! Hold him!" Sedna called out as she descended and raced over to ice sword in hand.

Suddenly, Melancholia sensed a distress from within the entire facility. For a moment, he had sensed Helena's distress even from where he stood. As Sedna closed in with her ice sword, Melancholia quickly phased and teleported out of Angemon X's hold. Angemon X stumbled forward, causing Sedna to cease her advancement. Everyone present frantically scanned around.

"He's gone!" Neo Moon cried out.

RJ scoffed. "That chicken shit gave us the slip!"

Just then, Sedna stopped as she felt a familiar vibe strike her cord. Helena? Is she close by? "Guys, I can feel Helena! She's here!"

"Where?" Jaden called over to Sedna as his Neos flew into his hand and turned back into card form.

After calling off Stardust Dragon, the dragon returned to Yusei's card.

"Over here!" The Ice Senshi pointed toward the hallway on their far left. "Somehow, I can feel her. Guys, we have to go and see for sure!"

"Before he gets to her!" Yusei added.

"Let's move!" Yugi charged as he and everyone assembled toward the path.

Sedna picked up the pace before everyone else and bolted ahead. Angemon X easily caught up to Sedna and joined her, leading the others along.

"Karin, do you know for sure it's Helena?"

"My intuition is telling me it is and I always trust my gut feeling, especially if it's linked to one of my friends!"

"Let's hope Helena is here!" Neo Moon called out from behind them.

Yusei quickly added as he jumped over a barricade. "And hopefully find the others after that."

Jaden added. "Man, I hope the other guys are ok."

"Me, too, Jaden," Yugi replied.

Shifting her focus across the endless hall, Sedna focused and pressed onward. We're coming, Helena! We're finally getting you out!

xxxxx

Neo-Rajita Paradais Dimension 2/8:32 PM

Explosions abounded across the landscape as bombardment of blasts rained down and cleared away every rock formation. Blitzkrieg remained stationary whilst hovering amidst the billowing smoke rising from the sands. He meticulously scanned the vicinity and threw another blast that incinerated a chunk of rocks. Valkyrie Varuna hid behind a pile of rocks. The brash Senshi resorted to more ingenuity against a stronger and fiercer opponent than she bargained for.

"Come out! What are ya hiding for? This isn't like you to hide, Sailor Varuna! I know you're still here!"

Varuna resisted the urge to spring out of hiding and held her position.

Scoffing irritably, Blitzkrieg ascended further into the skies and crossed both hands across his chest. "Last chance, Sailor Varuna! I mean it! I'm clearing it all here until you come out!" Suddenly, he turned and sensed an incoming approach closing in from the distance. He dropped his guard and wickedly grinned. "Ah, so your pals decided to crash the party, eh?"

They came? Lyn, don't tell me...! Varuna gaped as she finally propelled out of the rubble and shot up at Blitzkrieg. She raised her ax and prepared to cut him down.

Blitzkrieg merely sidestepped and backhanded the ax out of her hand. Then, he delivered a vicious claw strike across her chest and sent her plunging to the sand. Blitzkrieg turned and blinked as he saw a giant red horned dragon materializing in the distance. "What's that...?"

xxxxx

Jack stood out with his dragon mark burning bright red and slamming his Signer Dragon card onto his duel disk.

"The ruler's heartbeats will now file through here! Take witness to its creation-shaking power! My very soul... Red Dragon Archfiend!"

The skies darkened upon the summoning of Jack Atlas' mighty Signer Dragon. As the clouds split, pillars of fire expelled and out came a massive dragon with a near full black body with red scales embellishing sections of its body. Its wings, twice as large and wide as its own body, spread outward. Three massive horns protruded from its cranium coupled with sharp white talons on its fingers and feet. Red bolts of lightning intensified and fizzled around its massive frame. Letting out a deep bellow, the heavens shook under its seemingly unbridled and savage power.

Lyn gawked at the sight of the Red Dragon Archfiend. "Holy..."

"HOLY-WHAT?" Chazz wore a priceless and aghast look on his face.

Everyone else aboard Seto's back was at a loss for words.

Even Carly, who had seen this dragon in action, felt her mouth drop. "I doubt I'll ever get used to seeing the Red Dragon Archfiend!"

"So, this is the Red Dragon Archfiend up close!" exclaimed Battle Jupiter.

Ryuuhi replied. "The force behind this dragon is astonishing, even this close."

"Now, Red Dragon Archfiend! Your enemy is before you!" Jack roared and pointed ahead.

Obeying its master's command, the Signer Dragon propelled forward and gaped its mouth, ready to unleash a crushing force.

Blitzkrieg's eyes widened at the sight of a flaring ball of fire being directed toward him.

"A dragon?" The Neo-Rajita general shouted as he rocketed forward. "YOU THINK THAT SCARES ME? GIVE ME ALL YOU GOT, YOU BIG LIZARD!"

"Attack now with... Blazing Crimson Hell Flare!"

The Red Dragon Archfiend opened its fists, expelling a powerful stream of fire at Blitzkrieg. Unprepared for the sheer force, the blast impacted and overwhelmed Blitzkrieg to the point of pushing him back.

"Your turn, Seto! Let him have it!" Lyn commanded.

Black-Eyes White Dragon Seto gaped his mouth and fired a cyan stream of light.

Both Seto and Lyn cried out in unison. "Burst Stream of Destruction!"

The Blue-Eyes attack coalesced with the Red Dragon Archfiend's supercharged attack, building a larger ball of pure energy with the sheer magnitude of unwavering power. Blitzkrieg screamed out loud as the combined force blasted him toward a large rock face. The merged attack incinerated the rock formation and left nothing but a crater in its wake. A disoriented Blitzkrieg swerved away and gritted his teeth, still overcoming the stress of nearly having been wiped out completely.

"T-That was close, but you got lucky! This time I'm gonna...!"

"YOU'RE NOT SO LUCKY NOW!"

Suddenly, once Blitzkrieg whirled around, he saw Valkyrie Varuna dropping in from above. She held her ax overhead and came down, delivering a quick slash across his chest. However, she didn't stop there. Her right hand was imbued with pure light energy, which she slammed right into Blitzkrieg. A beam of light came expelling through her hand and out the other side of his chest.

Bam!

With resounding force, Varuna landed the critical blow. "Varuna Light Punch!" Varuna howled as her punch landed its mark, leaving a gaping hole through his side. She then lunged and tackled Blitzkrieg to the ground. As both hit the ground, they both rolled across and landed next to each other. Varuna barely sat up, catching her breath as Seto, Lyn, and Jack gave the assist that set up her victory over Blitzkrieg. She turned over to Blitzkrieg's fallen side and seized him by his shaggy hair.

"TYRA!" Lyn called out to her friend from above as Seto landed.

Everyone jumped off as the Blue-Eyes White Dragon turned back into Seto Kaiba. Jack called off his Signer Dragon, which returned to the Signer's own card. Lyn beckoned toward Varuna by waving to her from across the distance between them. Ryuuhi and Battle Jupiter zipped right over where Varuna was laying. Lyn, Seto, Jack, Chazz, Mako, and Carly caught up behind them.

"Easy," Battle Jupiter offered Varuna a hand.

"Thanks, but there's something to take care of first," Varuna dismissed the Neo Senshi's offer. She rolled over to Blitzkrieg's side and watched a green aura cover him. As the green flash of energy discharged faded, Blitzkrieg depowered back to his normal form, having lost a great amount of energy after taking a beam through his wound. Varuna grabbed Blitzkrieg's neck and pulled him up, shooting an intensified glare through his defeated eyes. "Now, tell me where is Helena! I just beat your sorry ass! Now, where is she?"

"Heh..."

Naturally, Varuna snapped and punched Blitzkrieg's face. "BASTARD! YOU PROMISED!"

"...there..." The general barely lifted his limp arm up, pointing toward the west. "...just some kilometers... off..." He coughed. "You'll find your friend... there... but... Melancholia...might be there... I'd advise ya to be careful... and don't get your hopes up... seeing your friend... she ain't looking like herself..."

As worry swept over her face, Valkyrie Varuna grabbed her ax. "Guys, Helena is over there!"

"But, how can you be sure? He might be lying!" Lyn tried to stop her friend.

"I'm taking my chances! I have to see if Hel is ok! Don't any of you stop me!" Varuna passionately exclaimed, as even Lyn could see how vehement her friend was. "But, you're all welcome to follow me." With that, she flickered out from sight and stormed across the direction Blitzkrieg alluded to.

Everyone present stood around Blitzkrieg, who was barely managing to speak up.

"Tough... bitch... gave me a good fight..." And after a deep breath, he turned his head with his right hand pressed against his wound. Unbeknownst to everyone, a packet of green gel plopped onto the sand next to him.

"Guys, let's head off after her," Lyn said as she turned and watched as everyone ceremoniously nodded. "Tyra, I hope for our sake, Helena's ok."

The fifth united front, lead by Sailor Varuna, Seto Kaiba, and Lyn, gained a victory over the Sixth Neo-Rajita general Blitzkrieg.

xxxxx

Neo-Rajita Paradais Dimension/Southern Sanctuary Quarters/8:45 PM

Valkyrie Sailor Sedna, Dimitri & Faith (having powered down the Ascendant form), Valkyrie Sailor Neo Moon, Raizen Jr, Yugi, Yusei, and Jaden quickly stormed through toward the direction where Helena was confined in. Sedna instinctively followed where her heart was leading her while getting vibes. She and the others turned around as they found a door with a giant hole situated near it. Sedna gasped as she saw a body barely sitting up. She recognized the familiar face and saw it was Helena!

"HELENA!" Sedna cried out, trying to garner her friend's attention.

Helena gasped upon recognizing the voice. "S-Sedna...?" She slowly turned her head as Sedna, Dimitri, and the others dashed over toward her.

Suddenly, the group abruptly stopped right as Valkyrie Varuna flew in through another corridor intersecting their path. Startled, Sedna was taken aback, but relieved to see Varuna.

"VARUNA!" Sedna shouted.

"Sedna?" Varuna gasped as she eyed the amassed group in front of her. "Guys, damn, am I glad to see all of you!"

"Look behind you!" Neo Moon pointed out to the Kuiper Senshi duo.

Dimitri added. "We found her!"

Varuna quickly pivoted her view as her eyes fell right where Helena was sitting up and shivering in fright. They gasped, noting strands of hair scattered near her and saw her hair was noticeably shorter lengthened.

Varuna gasped. "Hel... your... hair! My god... what the hell happened?"

Varuna and Sedna stormed ahead to their broken friend.

"HEL! IT'S ME! VARUNA!"

"Va-Varuna?" The Brazilian shook her head as she finally came to her senses and pleaded to them. "VARUNA! SEDNA! PLEASE, GET ME OUT OF HERE!"

DemiDevimon flew right over Helena's head and watched the Kuiper Senshi enter through the hole. Sedna and Varuna hastily prepared to attack DemiDevimon with no regard for the tiny winged devil. Faith hastily flew off Dimitri's shoulder and knocked him back with a headbutt, which almost clocked him out cold. Faith flew over back to Dimitri and hissed at the winged demon. Sedna and Varuna's faces contorted as they looked thoroughly horrified and disgusted with how their friend looked. They noted the evidence of physical and mental abuse. They saw the bruises and the marks inflicted on her body. Everything about Helena was harmed by Kitoss. However, to their eyes, it seemed that Melancholia was responsible for this.

Seeing Helena in her current condition fueled the girls' anger.

"HEL!" Varuna screamed as she tried running toward Helena, ignoring the fact DemiDevimon was there.

"Hey, what are...?" DemiDevimon snapped, but he turned and saw Sedna preparing to fire an ice beam at him. "Gah...! Helena, are these your fellow Kuiper Senshi?"

Suddenly, a portal opened up behind Helena. Varuna and Sedna watched with dread as they saw Melancholia poking through. The Neo-Rajita general grabbed Helena and cupped her mouth. He pulled Helena through the portal. As Helena reached out for Varuna, Varuna and Sedna lunged forward to grab their friend's hand. Dimitri, Neo Moon, RJ, Yugi, Jaden, and Yusei bolted right in as they heard all the commotion. The last thing they saw was Melancholia pulling Helena through the portal. DemiDevimon flew right through the portal behind Melancholia. As the portal quickly closed, Varuna and Sedna hit the floor.

"NOOOO!" Varuna cried out, punching a hole in the floor. She cursed and repeatedly punched the floor. "HELENA!" Her heart-wrenching screams filled the entire room and went across the corridors.

Sedna fell into despair as she cursed. "Damn it... DAMN IT! HELENA!" As she stood and cried, Dimitri ran up and embraced the Ice Senshi. "That bastard took her! You should've seen her... he... he harmed her! We... We almost had her!"

"Karin, listen to me!" Dimitri tried reasoning with his broken and emotional girlfriend. "We're going to find her! I promise! We aren't going to stop until we find her and Pluto!"

"He's right! We mustn't give up!" Neo Moon quickly added.

RJ concurred with the future princess. "I'm with Neo Moon, guys."

Yugi and Jaden nodded in unison.

The Signer quickly asserted. "After all we've been through, we shouldn't turn away and give up."

"Sedna, we'll find all our friends, including Helena and the Time Guardian," Yugi stated solemnly as he approached the Ice Senshi. "Once we unite everyone..."

"...we're gonna kick that jerk's butt! I mean, we already gave him a run for his money together!" Jaden proclaimed.

"Guys..." Sedna turned as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "You're right, but if Melancholia... that bastard... if he did what I think he did... he's gonna die. I swear, either Varuna or I will kill that bastard until nothing is left of him."

"Sedna," Dimitri said as he and the Ice Senshi hugged, adding comfort to his girlfriend.

"Ok, guys. We have to get going before that sick bastard does anything else to Hel!" Varuna's fury intensified as she walked past the group. She turned and faced everyone behind her. "We don't have much time. Let's go and reconvene with my group outside this place. They're not too far off."

"Right!" Sedna added as she and everyone filed out of the room. "Dimitri, thanks for the encouragement."

"No problem, Karin," Dimitri said as he and Sedna walked side by side. "We will find her and Sailor Pluto."

"I hope so, Dimitri," Neo Moon said, looking nearly as distraught as Sedna and Varuna were before.

RJ said nothing as he reached out and took Neo Moon's hand to comfort her.

Once the group reached the mouth of the sanctuary's entrance, they met with Varuna's group and initiated their search for the other teams. Subsequently, they would unite and resume their rescue mission. On top of that, defeating the Neo-Rajita/Paradais alliance was their other priority. However, finding Helena and Pluto would prove to be more taxing than they'll realize, but nothing will deter them from completing their mission.

xxxxx

Neo-Rajita Headquarters/Central Quarters/7th Floor/8:50 PM

Meanwhile, Dai-Valkyrie Sailor Jupiter, Bacchus, Dai-Valkyrie Sailor Uranus, and Gryphon scoured through a dark, spacious disclosed corridor. The two Amazonesses, Zey and Ourany, were still in weapon forms as they settled on Jupiter and Uranus' hips.

However, even with the dark surroundings, they were still able to move around and tried sensing Igasu's energy signature. Unfortunately, they've had no luck and carefully paced forward.

"Damn. How hard can it be to look for a big Red She-Hulk thing?" Uranus scoffed irritably under her breath. She backed up behind Jupiter as they looked across opposite directions. "Sense anything peculiar on your end?"

Jupiter nodded. "Nah. Nothing. This is getting us nowhere."

"But, we have to find her before she finds Sailor Moon and the others. Remember our sworn duty."

"You think I've forgotten? Please, I'll have that big red muscle-bound freak begging before she ever harms a hair on Sailor Moon's head."

Bacchus sniffed the air and pivoted his head. "I'm picking up a scent."

"Me, too," Gryphon initially responded.

"Where?" The Dai-Valkyries quickly turned and inquired. They noticed their steeds facing the left direction. Far off from where they stood, a beam of light came through the mouth of a doorway.

"Wanna check that out?" Jupiter turned to Uranus.

Uranus added. "Be my guest."

With that, the Dai-Valkyries and their steeds paced cautiously toward the door. They entered and stumbled into a large white room coupled with bright lights hanging from the ceiling. They walked into the white and fully lighten room, absorbing their new surroundings. It was a stark contrast from the darkened room they had just departed a moment ago. Their attention was immediately turned to a wall of glass windows. They approached the windows as they barely managed to catch Mercury, Kairyu, Hermy, Venus, Cupid, and Aphy raced through a narrow corridor just one floor below them.

"Look!" Bacchus pointed out.

"Mercury, Venus, and the others!" Jupiter exclaimed.

Uranus smirked. "Good and they're just a floor below us. C'mon, let's go!"

"Wait, look!" Gryphon noted a screen displaying a spacious room where Igasu was exploring by herself.

"There she is!" Jupiter and Uranus exclaimed.

"And apparently on the same floor where Mercury, Venus, and the others are going!" added Bacchus.

"Uranus, looks like we know where we need to go!" The brunette turned and nodded to her colleague.

Uranus replied. "Right, let's go!"

xxxxx

Neo-Rajita Headquarters/Central Quarters/23rd Floor/Empty Performance Stage/8:52 PM

Pressing on through a passage, Dai-Valkyrie Sailor Mars, Garuda, and Ary stopped once they arrived in a spacious room filled with rows of seats. Across the room was a stage where plays and events would usually take place. The area looked as if it had been abandoned for a while. It was not only empty, but the lights barely dimmed. Mars sensed an unsettling vibe in the back of her head as she meticulously viewed the spacious room. She nodded to Ary and Garuda as they stayed close to her.

Sailor Mars walked down an aisle and faced the stage.

"This place is giving off some creepy vibes," said Ary, who cautiously looked around.

Mars concurred as she maintained her view on the stage. "Yeah, same here. This place looks like it had been abandoned sometime ago. Looks like where they host some staged events."

"But, since they've been so preoccupied with building up their armies, I doubt they'd have time to entertain themselves," Garuda stated, flying around and gaining an aerial view of the abandoned location. As he scanned across the stage, he watched Mars and Ary approaching it.

Mars stopped as she felt a presence behind her and whirled around, her eyes burning red and her right hand readily forging a fireball. She came to an abrupt halt once she saw Dai-Valkyrie Sailor Moon, Sely, and Sleipnir behind her. Relieved, Mars lowered her guard and sighed deeply.

"Mars, we found you guys," Moon stated the obvious, looking worried. "Thank goodness."

"You startled me!" The Miko Senshi snapped at her best friend before cooling off. "Sorry."

Sleipnir added as he watched Garuda hovering over next to him. "It's ok, Princess Mars. We've all been on edge since infiltrating the enemy territory."

"Luckily we haven't run into any bad guys since coming here," Moon pointed out as she hugged Mars. "I'm so glad I found you." She surprised the dark-haired woman, who was taken aback albeit only being separated from her for over three hours at most.

Mars returned an embrace and put arms around Moon's waist. "C'mon now... don't start crying on me. You're mature now."

"I'm not crying..."

Sely and Ary stood side by side as they watched their counterparts hugging.

"Sely, there's something I need to tell you. I had visions... visions of us... and who we might've been in another lifetime."

Upon hearing this, Sely conveyed intrigue and turned to inquire. "Really? Who were we before?"

"I think we might've been Moon and Mars in another lifetime, but I don't know if these visions are just tricks. They were vague."

Sely turned and put her hands on Ary's shoulders. "No, you know. While I was accompanying Moon and Sleipnir here, I saw a vision or two of myself being Sailor Moon herself. Well, yeah, it does sound like a mind trick, but is it really?"

"I don't know, but whatever these visions entail... I hope we'll get clearer answers soon."

Suddenly, Sleipnir and Garuda sensed a dark vibe emanating from the stage. This alarmed their riders, Moon and Mars, to turn around and face the stage. They heard a low chuckle coming from a shadow seated on a chair. Just then, lights streamed down from the ceiling and washed across to stage, unveiling a familiar face they had a scuffle with not too long ago.

The Chief Advisor and Top Neo-Rajita General herself: Nagah.

"Well, well, look who's here!" Nagah chuckled while standing from her seat and smiling down her adversaries. She slowly pivoted her eyes, glaring down the Dai-Valkyrie Senshi, animal steeds, and the Amazoness duo present. The seductive smile on her face widened while licking her lips. She slowly and patiently paced across the stage, letting the heels under her boots clap the stage. She stopped and pushed open the cape, unveiling her uniform garb and her exposed midriff. "How fortunate that the Moon Princess and my absolute favorite Senshi happen to be here."

"You wouldn't know we'd be here unless you were spying on us!" Moon exclaimed.

"Oh, perhaps I was, or perhaps I wasn't? Who knows? Am I to know where you go?" The Neo-Rajita general answered with a tinge of arrogance in her tone. "Ok, yes. I have been closely monitoring you and your colleagues. I've even been keeping tabs on the whereabouts of those Kuiper and Neo Senshi brats on the other side."

"Other side?" Sely shouted. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, didn't anyone tell you? This large fortress is divided into two sections," Nagah stated as she went into further explanation. "You see, there's a dimensional line that separates the entire Neo-Rajita base. One side is here in the Digital World and for the most part this is where Lord Gamera's operations commence. On the other side, it's been integrated with the alternate universe called the Paradais Realm."

"Paradais?" Moon wondered this.

Mars demanded. "And what's this Paradais?"

"Wouldn't you want to know?" chortled Nagah, who hovered off the stage and caused the group to move away. "We've forged an alliance with the powers-to-be in Paradais and have allowed some of our own generals to be stationed there. As we speak, those Kuiper and Neo Senshi kids are facing our generals there."

"Then, Neo Moon, Sedna, and the others aren't too far off," Moon muttered.

"Yes, but as close as they are, they're still far from your reach," Nagah proclaimed, folding her arms and standing like the authoritative figure she's become. She assessed Moon and Mars' powers. What she didn't expect was Sleipnir and Garuda obstructing the alien from their riders. "Ah, and you've brought steeds? Hmm? Yes, so these must be the powers you've acquired from the Orb of Minos. I did get a taste of your upgraded Valkyrie powers back then, didn't I?" She keenly observed Moon and Mars, then noted the Amazoness sisters behind them. "And you even brought some friends? Quite intriguing they nearly share some identical physical traits with you."

"Hey, you! Don't take us lightly!" Sely protested.

Ary stood her ground. "Right, we're friends of the Senshi!"

"Yes, yes, but my interests lie with these two," Nagah turned her gaze upon Moon and Mars. "The Moon Princess and the avatar of the Houou. Very fitting we'd meet again. You two are the ones I've invested more interest into than your other colleagues. My lord, Gamera, will be pleased to know that I'll be bringing you two to him very soon."

"Gamera...?" Moon gasped as she furrowed her brows and conveyed a more serious demeanor. "Where is he? We're here to stop him and end any invasion he has planned!"

Mars heatedly pointed toward Nagah. "That's right! Just like Ghidorah before, your new leader is going to fall!"

"Not likely. You see, he's had everything well planned out and won't make the same mistakes Ghidorah made."

An evil smirk adorned Mars' face. "So, why did he feel compelled to send you after us? Is he afraid of facing us by himself? What is he afraid of? It's just the two of us."

"Nothing you need to be made privy to yet," Nagah chortled as she unfolded her arms, letting a green aura outline her entire body. She hovered into the air and propelled herself toward the Senshi.

Moon and Mars flew across as they intercepted Nagah. As Mars raised her right arm to block Nagah's kick, Moon expelled a beam of light that knocked Nagah back on the stage. They attacked her with quick and explosive counters, which impressed Nagah. Sleipnir and Garuda propelled up to assist their riders. However, Nagah somersaulted on the stage and landed on her feet. She licked her lips and giggled with delight.

"Exquisite. Yes, your new powers put you on a new level, and I'm pleased. Finally, I'll get to let loose the full extent of my power." Flexing her right arm across, she became bathed in a bright green aura as it slowly turned into a torch-like light...

Ba-Shoom.

"That's enough, Chief Advisor Nagah. You've had your fun..."

Upon hearing the source of the powerful authoritative voice, Nagah turned while her aura flare seemingly faded. She turned and saw Gamera's face appearing on a giant screen situated behind her. Moon, Mars, and everyone else present watched in distress as they were looking upon the face of evil himself.

Moon narrowed her eyes, frowning as she conveyed displeasure. "So, that's Gamera!"

Mars added with anger in her tone. "The new Neo-Rajita leader and the mastermind behind the new Rajita regime!"

Nagah knelt over and bowed before the Neo-Rajita leader. "Milord, I was about to engage and bring their battered forms to you."

"I shall be the one to deal with the Moon Princess. You can fight the Houou's avatar, but the other generals await your presence. You must prepare them for the forthcoming war against the Digital World's main forces."

"Already...?"

"Do you question my order, Chief Advisor?"

"No, sir. I'm on it!"

Gamera wore a fiendish smile as his eyes gleamed green. "Good, then withdraw. As for you, Senshi, if you manage to get by the remaining generals and obstructions that stand in the way, then we will meet. Sailor Moon, Sailor Mars, whichever one reaches me first, I look forward to meeting you. Oh, and Sailor Mars, I am well aware of the Houou's power. I'm intrigued with your power as well as obtaining Princess Serenity's Silver Crystal. We will meet. Until then..." The visual display seemingly turned off as his laughter was felt by Moon, Mars, and the others.

Nagah stood and pivoted her head, facing her enemies. She parted ways with them with a wink. "You heard the big man, we will do business another time. Sailor Mars, you especially, our date's been postponed. All I can tell you is simply... survive." With that, she teleported from the stage and vanished, leaving everyone present behind.

Moon, Mars, and their colleagues were left hanging by the villains' explicit warning.

"Sailor Moon, we will overcome whatever obstructions they put forth in front of us," Sleipnir reassured his rider as he stepped over beside her.

Moon replied as she pat Sleipnir's face. "I know we will."

"And we will find the others in no time!" Mars added with confidence. "Gamera, Nagah, the whole Neo-Rajita won't break us apart!"

"Right! Now, let's go and find our friends!" The Moon Princess openly declared, getting a united cry from everyone near her.

Placing a hand over her chest, Mars mused deeply. I just hope everyone else is faring better. We will all be reunited and overcome this ensuing chaos. We must persevere and press forward with our heads held high. Opening her eyes, the Miko Senshi's eyes burned with renewed passion.

xxxxx

(PREVIEW)

Himura: Hello, everyone! It's been a while, hasn't it? We finally reach the Digital Underworld! But, for me and Inumon, this is the return to the realm we helped saved from Basilikmon.

Anubimon: Himura, Inumon, welcome back. Yes, I know where the Tongue of Valmarmon is being held. Seadramon, let's take them.

Inumon: I see the Underworld hasn't changed much since I left!

Phillipe: Ahhh! Guys, help!

Takuya, Himura, and Tomoki: PHILLIPE!

Jaguarmon: Where are we, Phillipe?

'Voices': Please, help us. Our queen is being held captive! We barely escaped thanks to her, but we need your help!

Jaguarmon: Fairies?

Fairies: We are called Maiden of the Moonlight and LaMoon.

Demon: Greetings, Chosen! We've come to collect the Tongue!

Masaru: Not without a fight, you cloaked freak! Agumon, let's get them!

Davis: Guys, we got company!

Ken: Who is that?

Cloaked figure: So, we meet at last, Chosen. Allow me to introduce myself... and I've brought a few familiar faces who are dying to see you.

Himakko (horrified): No... it can't be...!

Yamidramon: The last Mao King decides to show himself, eh? About time.

Phillipe: Are you the one holding their queen captive? Release them!

Chaos Command Magician: You think you can free them? Chaos Magician Girl, let us show these fools how we deal with inconveniences!

Izzy: Next time on Dawn of Chaos!

The Return to the Underworld! Fairies and Necromancers!

Himakko: Phillipe, where are you?

xxxxx

A/N: Ugh, finally. This arc is finally done! Ok, so we still have a few unresolved conflicts (Helena's re-capture by Melancholia, the impending Demon Priest war, Mars and Moon's fights with Nagah and Gamera, the hunt for Toad and Parasimon X), but I managed to wrap up a few others (the defeat of Abyss and Blitzkrieg, Chimeras being freed, Kyo's capture of Kohana if that counts). This will only build-up to the forthcoming confrontations soon to come. You have no idea how taxing these past four chapters have been. Keeping up with multiple stories taking place simultaneously and with this many characters! This is becoming more of a challenge than I imagined. Yeah, I think I'm realizing my limitations and will be making it a priority to slow down, maybe even divide up certain groups having one or two groups per chapter. For example: 2/3 chapters cover the Spirit Detectives/Neo Detectives and the Planetary Sailors. And another 2/3 chapters covering the Kuiper/Neo Senshi & Duelist side. I think it'd probably make for better pacing and not cram so much into a single chapter. Just some food for thought.

Yeah, and next chapter will be the return to the Digital Underworld! On top of that, the last Valmarmon piece hunt! :D

Anubimon and Seadramon return. New characters to show up (good and bad), especially new Duel Monster characters. How does a trio of fairies becoming Phillipe's friends sound? And a necromancer to appear? Hmm.

So, with all that being said, this story is going on a short hiatus (until maybe late-Septish/early Octish). These last four chapters took a heavy toll on me, but next chapter should be pretty easy to do once I get back to it. During the short hiatus, I intend to wrap up Summer Diaries Special Edition and getting Across Dimensions (the Digimon Fusion Kai/YYGDM/Accel Stream crossover canon tie-in to all three individual series). Until then, I'm taking a short break from this story.

Send a review and I'll get back on this later!