"Damn...that hurt like hell." Ira said being healed in the temple's infirmary. "Whoa...it's like the injuries never happened."
"It's all due to my Healing Style." said a young woman in a nurse's uniform.
"Well, thanks." Ira said. "And uh… sorry again, for all the bullshit I did here."
"It's no problem. Luckily Master never even noticed you were here. But...if you went and messed with him, I'd have to get rather naughty." she said as a dark aura was seen behind her.
Ira actually whistled in respect. "Damn, that's a hell of an aura. Maybe I should've fought you instead…" he chuckled. "Also, duly noted, won't happen again."
"I'm glad to see she healed you up." Hope said as the others arrived. "Thank you, um…"
"Call me Serena." she said walking off to heal the other fighters.
"So…" Eddy said, walking up to Ira. "When do we get Markie back?"
"I… I can't say." Ira said. "It's not like I can just up and leave his soul. Right now, our egos are basically taking up the same spot. Think what happened to Kirito, but twice as bad."
"I see." Hope said. "So… these other Angels of Vice. Jexi said we'd take care of them for you."
"I wasn't planning to fight all the angels." Ira said. "Just Superbia. The others haven't fallen, as far as I know. You could probably convince them to help with Superbia, if you knew where to find them."
"And if it's to help slay an angel, I'm all for it." Simon said.
"So, what's your vendetta with this Superbia guy, anyway?" Akane asked.
"It's not a vendetta, per say… more like putting the guy out of his misery." Ira said. "He used to be my best friend, before I fell. I guess… once I was dead, there was nothing stopping him from falling into his sin. Now, he's formed some group called the Prideful Crusade, and they're planning to wipe out all demons in the Multiverse."
"Is there anything you can tell us about them?" Bardock asked.
"Well, I know one of their members is ASG's Weapons Research Head, Norman." Ira said.
"That kid from the video at the tower? Theodore's former assistant?" Dan said.
"And a former resident of the human farms run by Beelzebub." Ira said. "That one."
"We know about those farms." Jexi said.
"Yeah, well the kid hates demons. That's why he's thrown in his lot with Superbia." Ira said.
"Then Aluche and the others are in danger too if we don't stop them." Lilianna said.
"What's their plan?" Bardock asked. "How do they plan to commit genocide?"
"Wish I could tell you." Ira shrugged. "All I know is that Superbia is hella strong. He can get more powerful the more prideful he is, and since he's fallen this far… well, I did say I couldn't beat him on my own."
"Well now you have us." Simon said as his left eye glowed.
"And the other Vice angels, if we can find them." Kazuichi said.
"Well, you've already started on that job." a voice said. "Wassup, fuckers?"
"GAH!" Eddy said as the group saw Panty and Stocking standing in the doorway. "Where'd you two come from?!"
"We've been following you guys in our ride." Panty said. "We tried to call you, but none of you were in that huge ship of yours."
"Wait, what do you mean by we've already started?" Akane asked.
"Duh, you've found two Vice Angels already!" Stocking said. "Me and Panty are the reincarnations of the Vice Angels representing Lust and Gluttony."
"Oh yeah, you mentioned that back in Daten City!" Moltar remembered. "Is that why you followed us?"
"Well, that and two more reasons." Panty said. "One: Mark's my kid, and there's no fucking way I'm staying out of anything that puts him in trouble. Two: this video got posted to the Internet just after you guys left." the angel said, pulling out her phone, showing a video of a muscular man sitting in a chair, with a man and woman flanking both his sides.
"Greetings, citizens of the Multiverse." the man started. "I am Superbia, the Angel of the Vice of Pride. For centuries, I have defended the Multiverse from threats to its safety. And yet… still, the Multiverse remains a dangerous place."
The video then showed shadowy creatures feasting on what appeared to be a young looking corpse.
"Children turned into mere morsels, raised to be nothing but cattle."
Then a show of people attacking others in the streets, the attackers bearing a mark familiar to the group.
"Souls from lives past manipulated into coming back and wrecking havoc."
Then a scene of demons invading a world, with a familiar face standing over and commanding them.
"And worlds ravaged at the hands of a mad child."
The screen then shifted back to Superbia.
"I ask you, do you know what all these have in common? They were all caused… by demons. For too long, the greatest evil in the Multiverse has been demons, depraved, violent creatures that hunt humanity for sport and pleasure. I am here to tell you… no more. No longer will this be tolerated. I invite you, citizens of the Multiverse, to join me in a glorious quest to save the Multiverse… by erasing the source of all its evil. Together, we shall destroy all those who dare to meddle in the affairs of humanity. We shall show the forces of Hell that we are not puppets for them to control. We will spill their blood, tear them to pieces, and leave none alive. And to all demons of the Multiverse… behold, as we are the hammer of God, to smite the wicked and cast you back into the pit where you belong."
The scene changed for a final time, showing a massive legion of knights, tanks, ships, and weapons.
"We are the Prideful Crusade. And we are coming for you." Superbia's voice closed out as the video ended.
"He is not gonna get away with this." Simon said as his magic flared.
"This is not good. If he's doing what I think he is, it'll lead to all sorts of chaos." Madoka said.
"And with an army that huge, he'll cause lots of trouble." Hope said. "We have to stop him before he completes his goal."
"Yeah, and we gotta be fast." Ira said. "If I know Superbia, he won't wait long to make his first move. At most, we have… three hours before he starts attacking worlds."
"Three hours?!" SE exclaimed. "We don't have that kind of time!"
"Then use as little as you can!" Ira snapped before he calmed down. "Look, at most, I've got two days before my time is up. I'll do what I can to help, but if I fight again… neither me or the kid might make it."
"Well, what do we do?" Ed asked.
"You guys, gotta go find the other Vice Angels." Ira said, getting out of bed. "I've got an idea. I'm gonna go get you guys some help."
"What?" Gohan asked. "Get help? Where?"
"Hey, if you're going for David, I don't think he's going to listen." Emo said. "He's taking a well-deserved break, and no offense, but I don't think he'll be eager to listen to you."
"No, not David." Ira said. "There's someone else who might help. He may agree, he may not… but I won't know until I ask." Ira said as he walked out.
"So what do we do now? We have to figure out where they plan to strike." Ajna said.
"It could be anywhere in the Demon Universe. Wait a minute. Ace, didn't you send your people across there?" Jexi asked.
"Yeah, they're in Redgrave City helping Nero." Ace said.
"So they're in the middle of what's gonna be a massive extermination?" Jet asked.
"Oh no!" Lilianna said.
"We gotta get over there before Superbia launches his first attack." Hope said.
"Didn't Ira say we have to go find the other Vice Angels?" Fyuhiko asked.
"I know, but we can't leave Nero, Kampan and the others to be killed." Hope said. "If we could do both at once, that would help even better."
"You know we're a big group right?" Jexi asked. "So we can do both at once."
"He's right. Half of us can go help protect Redgrave City, the other can start looking for the Vice Angels. We keep in touch if something comes up." Bardock said.
"Simon will take half of my group along with Lilianna and Ajna to Redgrave City." Ace said.
"Then we'll go find the other Vice Angels." Hope said.
"Okay, let's split. We don't have a whole lot of time." Jexi said as they split off.
3 hours till attack…