Corruption, Murder and Redemption?

by Man of cartoons

Corruption is said to be a monster that eats the soul of a man. So what if a hero with a pure heart decides to come to a world where the monster has almost taken over? Will he survive? Will he break? And will he get this dumb blond to stop calling him a cattle? Please read to find out. BenXAriaXSheele (Love Triangle). It used to include Leone.

26. Hideout, Imperial Castle and The Beasts?

Hello dear readers! Welcome to another exciting chapter of Corruption, Murder and…Redemption?

I got some good news! I've started the fanfiction for Generator Rex and Attack on Titan! Go check it out! It's called Generator Rex: Stuck in the World of Titans!

Now then, about this fanfiction, I should let you know that there won't be any action in this. But that isn't to say that this chapter won't be so interesting. And let's face it we can all agree that with all the fights in the previous chapters, this non-action chapter was needed.

Now on to the chapter!

Chapter 26: The hideout, The Imperial Castle and…The Three Beasts?

A night that seemed so long and trivial finally came to an end. Now it was morning as the sun rose from the horizon in the early hours of the day. Within Night Raid, the members of the infamous group of assassins were about in their own daily businesses. However, it didn't feel the same, especially for those who could act like nothing happened.

Twenty-four hours hadn't even passed yet since Ieyasu had died. Sheele was still in a coma-like state while Ben was secluded in a room with the young woman. As for Aria, she stood by the entrance of the room, outside and with a frown on her face.

And then there was Eunice. The humanoid version of the Unitrix was in the kitchen, seated at the dining table. There, she stood with a plate of soup before her while three of Night Raid's members were there. Tatsumi was in charge of cooking today while Akame sat at the other side of the dining table with Mine across her.

Presently, Akame was trying to feed Mine. The pink haired girl's right arm was in a cast so it made sense for the assassin to do such.

"Mine."

"Leave me alone, Akame. I can eat on my own, you know. I still have my good arm." Mine refused.

"I'm trying to help." Akame said. She was clearly concerned and worried for her friend.

Fortunately, Mine immediately felt some guilt and accepted.

"Alright, alright." She said and opened her mouth.

Though Tatsumi could not see the scene, he could hear it. It had only been yesterday since his best friend had been killed and one of the few people to show him kindness was in a coma-like state. It made him think.

'Ieyasu has been killed and Sheele is quiet, but yet Akame is so calm and indifferent about it.' Tatsumi thought deeply. 'And the one who did all that…I haven't even seen her face. If I had, what would it have been like? And then…there's the other girl at the table.'

Tatsumi tilted his head slightly to Eunice direction. So far the girl was quiet as she sipped on the soup with no emotion.

'She's from Ben's world.' Tatsumi continued to think. 'Since last night she hasn't talked to anyone besides Ben. I'm pretty sure Ben is the one who told her to come out here and get some breakfast. But now that I think about her…why does she hate us? Does she know about the things we do? And also…what can she do since she's from Ben's world.'

"I'm done." Eunice announced with a low tone.

Tatsumi turned to her in response, with the same for Akame and Mine. However, the girl said nothing else after that. Instead she just stood up and walked out of the kitchen. Leone then showed up and knocked at the open door.

"Oi! Tatsumi! Time to go! The boss got a special mission for the both us!" She announced.

"A special mission?" Tatsumi asked, facing Leone's direction.

"Yup! So get out of that apron! I'll brief you on the way!"

Tatsumi blushed in embarrassment and quickly removed the apron. At the same time, Mine couldn't help laugh while Akame just watched with a small smile on her face.

_(LINE BREAK)_

Eunice made her way to the room Ben was in. Throughout that time she had no other focus besides meeting up with the teen hero. In fact, even the thought of Night Raid never came across her mind despite eating in the presence of some of their team member's. As she drew close to the room's door she saw Aria standing there quiet until she saw her.

"You're here." Aria said.

"Yes, I am." Eunice replied. She came to a stop in front of the door and faced it. "Is Ben still there?" She asked.

"Yes." Aria answered. Her voice sounded sound sad upon saying that. But still when she saw Eunice reach for the doorknob she raised her hand upwards to call the girl. However, her voice never came out and she turned away.

Then there was Ben in the room. He sat on a wooden chair, facing Sheele as she lay on the bed unconscious. It was unknown for how long he had been there except at that moment he was bent over with his fingers on the Omnitrix, selecting through the alien playlist.

"Just where are they…?" He questioned with an annoyed tone.

"Ben?"

The teen hero quickly reacted. He removed his fingers and attention from the alien device and turned to the door to see Eunice standing there with the door closed behind her.

"Oh hey, Eunice." Ben greeted with a fake smile. "I hope you got something to eat. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, you know."

Eunice frowned sadly. She knew clearly that Ben was faking his expression at they stood there. But that didn't stop her from walking to the guy.

"Ben…when are you going to go out?" Eunice asked. "Ever since the woman was brought here, you've locked yourself in here. Even that girl out front slept in the room she was given before coming to the door again."

"You mean Aria." Ben said. The teen hero then sighed before dropping the act and turning back to Sheele. "I appreciate the concern, but…what happened to Sheele and Ieyasu was my fault. Now I know I shouldn't blame myself for it, but…I keep wondering what things would've been if I had actually stayed with Tatsumi on that very night he was picked up by Night Raid."

Eunice was quiet in response. She was now next to the teen hero and facing the unconscious woman. Then Ben spoke again as he scratched his hand through his brown hair.

"Man…I know Aria would want to be here, but Night Raid still doesn't trust her." Ben said. "I can't blame them. Aria did try to kill Akame the night I fought them."

Again, Eunice said nothing. She wasn't being emotionless though, but rather she felt sympathy as she continued to look at Sheele.

"This woman…Sheele, helped you to get away." Eunice said suddenly. "Her teammates were set to kill you and yet she stood in their way at the last moment. I can see why you feel so much for her."

"Eunice…" Ben called. He then turned to the girl. "I'm sorry if this is off, but…how do you know that? In fact…how do you know about Night Raid? I'm guessing Azmuth has something to do with it."

"He does." Eunice admitted. Then she pointed at the Omnitrix. "You may not know this, but the Omnitrix has an information-gathering feature. Basically, whatever happens to you is reported back to Azmuth."

"That's not right." Ben replied. From there a clear annoyance showed on his face. "I mean, I get Azmuth wants to keep tabs of me, but it's not cool to invade my privacy like that. Just who knows how long he has been listening on me?"

"A month now."

"Huh?"

"The feature has been activated for only a month." Eunice said, elaborating. "It's true the feature is there, but it hasn't been active until sometime you've spent in this world. Azmuth won't admit it, but it's clear he's concerned about you, so don't be angry at him."

Ben smiled a bit. "Yeah…I guess I shouldn't." He said. "So can you remove the feature now? I really don't feel comfortable with it."

Eunice shook her head in response. From there she knelt down on one knee and held Ben's hand with one hand and her other hand on the Omnitrix.

"I can't remove the feature. Azmuth didn't inform me of that extent of the Omnitrix. But I can turn it off." Eunice said.

The girl then did some taps on the sides of the Omnitrix. In response the alien device beeped and she stood up. "There, the feature is turned off."

"Nice." Ben smiled at the Omnitrix device. Then he got an idea and turned to Eunice. "Hey, by any chance you know the Master Control? I mean I don't need it now, but it would really be cool to know."

Eunice smiled and giggled in response. "Nice try, Ben, but I'm not permitted to give you access to it yet." She said.

Ben's eyes widened in response. "Wait, so you really know?!"

Eunice said nothing in response. Instead she just giggled and walked out of the room. In response Ben went after her, calling her name.

_(LINE BREAK)_

The Capital was known for a lot of things. It was a den of corruption, thievery and psychopaths that needed to be flushed out. But with all that, there was another terrible place within its walls, and that was the torture house.

The torture house was basically what it's referred too. Innocent people who were deemed to be treated in such manner where taken there to suffer in the worse and most gruesome ways possible. In fact, just within its buildings had muscular masked torturers leading naked men and women within a large room where a man's eye was plucked right out of its socket, a woman was tied to a big wheel and stretched beyond her limits and men were tied to big wooden planks with more torturers whipping them severely.

But there was more to the horror. Screams could be heard all around as these torturers continued their work. Some of them wore metal sharp knuckles to punch women in the face while a man was sat on a chair of sharp spikes. But if none of that were enough, there was a giant cauldron where the water was extremely boiled hot while men and women were forced into it, stirred by two torturers at each side with long sticks.

Sadly, there was more. A torturer chopped off the feet of a person and laughed cruelly.

"Come on! Let's see if you can scream even louder!"

And then there was another torturer. His head was exposed as he stood there bald and cruelly laughing as he raised a naked woman by the hair.

"This is what happens to those who oppose the Prime Minister!"

Just then, a single high heel made contact with the ground. The owner was close to the torturers as she then spoke.

"What is this…? Looking at you all is just pathetic." She said in obvious disgust.

Of course, her disrespectful tone wasn't taken likely by the bald guy. As a result, he began to turn to her with a threat.

"What was that? You want to join -"

And then he realized who he was speaking to. The woman behind him was no ordinary woman, she was the General Esdeath and behind her were four individuals. One of them was Sunny; however the others were males in different sizes and dressed in a similar uniform.

"ESDEATH-SAMA!?"

The three torturers there were quick to fall on their hands and knees for forgiveness. They even began to beg for it; however, Esdeath didn't seem to care about it. She just seemed disappointed as she stood there.

"You guys are quite unskilled in the art of torture." She said. "Truly pathetic! For instance, what's with the temperature of this cauldron? If it's this hot, they die too quickly, right?"

The ice queen then reached her hand forward to the cauldron. What happened next after that was the giant thing being covered by ice on its body. Now Esdeath was pleased.

"If you lower the temperature a bit, you can prolong their suffering even further." She said.

Sunny clapped cheerfully in response. She found no wrong in the act nor did she have a disgusted emotion towards it. Hence, she just continued cheering for the woman.

"HAHAHA! Good one!" She shouted.

The torturers were in agreement. They were still bowing before the woman as she admired her hand.

"Yes, ma'am!" One said.

"Thank you for the valuable less, ma'am!" said another.

With that, Esdeath commanded her men and Sunny to leave as she walked away. The kid of the group waved goodbye at the torturers while Sunny giggled at the juvenile's action. Meanwhile, the torturers who bowed before Esdeath rose up, with one of them dreamily admiring Esdeath and her group.

"That's Esdeath-sama for you, such an extreme sadist." He said admirably.

"Yeah…" Agreed another one. "She's a sadist, heart and soul…as well as the males following behind her, The Three Beast Warriors. When the Northern Tribes were executed by being buried alive, it seems they were the most gleeful about carrying out the job. They certainly are a blood thirsty group of animals. I'd love to be invited into their group…."

"But from what I hear, the training for the group is so horrible that almost everyone dies before they can finish…" replied the bald torturer to his friend.

"But what about the girl?" The torturer asked. "I heared that just she alone drove away some Teigu-wielding invaders in Imperial Castle just when they were close to killing the Prime Minister."

"That's just a rumor." The bald torturer said. "However…" He turned to where Sunny was as she walking away with Esdeath. "…if such a thing is true then I wonder what kind of monster she is underneath that smile."

Just then, something unexpected happened. Sunny turned to them with a creepy and menacing smile. But if that wasn't enough, her pupils became pink and shaped like a cat and sent terrifying shivers down the men's spine.

_(LINE BREAK)_

Within the Imperial Palace, Esdeath and Sunny were bowing on one knee before the emperor in the throne room. The Prime Minister was there by the kid's side while Esdeath held her general hat in her hand in full respect of the kid ruler.

"General Esdeath." The emperor called her.

"Yes, Your Majesty." Esdeath responded.

"Your conquest of the Northern Tribes lands was superb! We are prepared to reward you with ten thousand pieces of gold for your effort." He said.

"I am grateful, Your Majesty." Esdeath said gratefully. "We left not a soldier alive in the north."

"Splendid." The Emperor said. "Now then about last night, you have my greatest thanks. What happened then was unexpected. To think that Grand General Budo would fail to rid us of the Teigu user was an unfortunate surprise. If you weren't there, who knows what would've happened to my rule. That is why I've considered stripping General Budo of Grand General and placing you in his place as the Prime Minister has suggested."

Esdeath smirked, with the same for Sunny. With this promotion, General Esdeath now had full control over the imperial army. However, she had other thoughts.

"I appreciate the offer, Your Majesty, but I must decline humbly." General Esdeath said. "My place is where I am. Besides, ridding the palace of the nuisance was all thanks to my new subordinate here. As for General Budo, he is presently in hospital care. I believe he should be allowed to recover and be in your presence to explain his failure."

"Right." The emperor said. Then he looked over to Sunny. "I hear your name is Sunny, correct?"

"That is right, Your Majesty." Sunny said obediently. She was calm and relaxed like Esdeath as she continued. "I must say it is an honor to be at your presence. I apologize that my cousin and that organic Teigu companion were so much trouble to you. I did my best to restore everything as it was."

"You did a good job. Do not worry about it." The emperor replied assuredly. "What you did yesterday is something to earn high praise and a reward. General Esdeath surely chose someone with good intentions."

Sunny snickered in response. Of course, this was out of line as it surprised the emperor and got the Prime Minister and Esdeath strict attention.

"I-I'm sorry." Sunny apologized quickly. "I ask for your forgiveness, Your Majesty."

"You…You're forgiven." The emperor accepted. He was taken aback by her action, but he put it aside and said. "On another note, what is your Teigu and where is it? The power that I heard you displayed doesn't march the records of Teigu we have in our possession."

"I understand." Sunny said respectively. "My Teigu is gives me the power of life energy. Since every living and non-living thing has some form of life in them, I can manipulate them to a certain limit. I used one of its trump card yesterday to fix your humble palace. As for where it is…well it's like…"

Sunny blushed a bit in embarrassment. "It's somewhere…I can't show you…being a girl and all. I'm sorry."

"I-It's fine." The emperor said, taken aback. "If it…is displayed like General Esdeath's tattoo then I won't push you to show it."

"Thank you."

"Right." The emperor said and gulped. In as much as he hated to admit it, he was still a kid and so any topic that seemed sexual was really awkward to him. Fortunately, after a cough, he recovered as he turned his attention to Esdeath. "I apologize for bringing you here despite you recently returned. However, there is work to be done. An atrocious group known as Night Raid has begun running rampant around the Capital; The same for the boy who invaded the Imperial Castle and threatened the stability of my rule. I wish for you to focus on purging this group and him from my city."

"I understand." Esdeath gladly accepted. "I would like to ask one thing of Your Majesty."

"Um…soldiers, is it?" The emperor asked. "You may use as many as you wish."

Esdeath had a different thought in mind. "I have heard that the enemy possesses many Teigu. It takes a Teigu to fight a Teigu, Your Majesty. That is why I would like a seven man group of Teigu users to be assembled. It'll be sufficient for my needs. I will form a group of nothing but Teigu users that will maintain security in the Capital. You have seen how effective Sunny was. Just imagine what good she and the group could do for the empire if you allow it."

"Doesn't the general have a group of Teigu users?" The emperor asked. "Those ones are known as the Three Beasts Warriors, correct? And yet you ask for seven more?"

"Your Majesty." Prime Minister Honest called humbly. "Though I am still hurt physically underneath these luxurious clothes because of the attack of the enemy, I still wish to stand by your side. As such I can honestly say we can rest easy by entrusting this task to General Esdeath."

"Um, if you say as such, then I will not question it." The emperor said in acceptance. "Will you handle the preparation?" He asked Honest.

"Of course, Your Majesty. I will see to it personally."

The emperor sighed with a smile in response. "Then I can be assured that peace shall return to the Capital."

"Makoto, General Esdeath is a very loyal subject." Honest chuckled joyfully.

Unknown to the emperor, however, Honest thought devilishly of Esdeath. The general and the Prime Minister may act well before the emperor, but they were truly different. Thus, Honest in that moment thought of Esdeath's nature as a woman of fighting and the fact that she was a trump card.

Just then, the emperor spoke again top Esdeath.

"I don't believe just giving you gold is a suitable reward for what you've done." He said gladly. "I wish to give you something special. Is there anything you desire? Such as titles or lands?"

Sunny smirked a bit in response. She had her reason for such, especially because she already knew what the general desired. But still that didn't stop the woman from saying her mind.

"There is one thing…If I may dare…"

"What is it…?" The emperor asked, now curious.

And it happened. The woman known for her sadism and hunger for battle smiled a beautiful and womanly smile right in that moment.

"I was thinking it would be nice to try being in love." She said honestly.

Both the emperor and the prime minister were in shock; even Sunny had raised eyebrows from what she just heard. General Esdeath was known for a lot of things throughout the empire. But when it came to love in regards to desiring someone else that was very much unheard of other than her love of combat and torture. However, the shock faded as the emperor delightfully clapped his hands together.

"That right!" He said. "You are of marriageable age, and yet you are not married!"

"However, the general surrounds herself with those who adore her, does she not?" Honest asked.

In response, Esdeath moved her eyes to a suspicious one and said. "Those are 'pets'."

Anyway, now was Sunny's chance. She could see the opening right before her, so she immediately spoke while being the façade of respect to higher authority.

"Pardon me, Your Majesty, but I may know someone who may be qualified for our dear general's heart." She said.

Esdeath looked to the girl with curiosity. The same was with Honest and the emperor as they turned to her as well.

"Is that so? Then tell us." Makoto permitted.

"Thank you." Sunny replied gratefully. "However, the young man I'm about to mention may not be in your best interest. But I can assure you that General Esdeath will be more than enough to change him. I'm talking about my cousin, Ben Tennyson."

Honest and Emperor Makoto were immediately surprised. Of course, Sunny had expected this reaction and more as she stayed in her kneeling pose before the emperor. But still that didn't stop the Prime Minister from showing his objection.

"That's ridiculous!" Honest stated strongly. "General Esdeath cannot let such a man taint her with his rebellious ideals! That mustn't be allowed! Besides, he is a criminal that His Majesty ordered to be dealt with!"

Esdeath didn't like the sound of that. It was true that she accepted the mission, but she didn't approve all that Honest said. Thus, she then said firmly. "Taint me? Sorry, Prime Minister but that is where you're wrong. It is not he that will taint me, but I."

"Besides…" Sunny said with a sly smile. "Esdeath-sama is acknowledged for her ways of swaying men to the right path. What difference shall it make with my cousin?"

"Hmph…! It appears you don't understand then." Esdeath said subtly. Her response, of course, surprised Sunny but the woman said nothing else to her. Instead she reached into between her breasts and pulled out a scroll and faced the emperor. "Witten on this scroll is the things I desire most in a partner. Please inform me if anyone meeting these criteria should appear."

"What if we can't?" Emperor Makoto asked.

"Then…I guess I will make Ben Tennyson a sole candidate." Esdeath answered. "Do not worry, Your Majesty. My loyalty to the empire is eternal."

"I understand." Emperor Makoto replied. "You have done so much for the empire. If you are unable to find someone, you may do as you wish with Ben Tennyson. I have no doubt you will be able to persuade him to your side. But until then we will keep an eye out for someone else."

"Thank you. I appreciate that very much, Your Majesty." Esdeath said.

Sunny mischievously smirked in response. 'All the pieces are falling into place! Foolish human boy! It may not be in my character to be 'underneath' a human, but I guess playing the subordinate is fun! Besides, Esdeath is so interesting that I can't ignore her! Just who knows what she has in store for my eyes to see and witness! So you better pray she remains, little boy!, because once she ceases to entertain me, I'll have no need to let this empire stand! Now…I just need her to fall for Benny! This is going to be good! I know it!'

Back at Emperor Makoto, his mind went on about Ben. It was true that Ben Tennyson had been so close to ending his rule, however, the fact that the teen backed out of the chance was odd even though Esdeath came sometime after. And now that he was brought up again, the emperor became silent as he recalled the hero's words.

'Well…I can't blame you for hating me. I basically barged into your place and wrecked it. But believe me when I say this…I don't mean you any harm nor am I your enemy…'

'But you attacked Honest.' Makoto retorted in his mind. From there his mind flashed to when Honest held by Ben.

'I hate your ass so much! You've done so much wrong that it makes me sick! Heck, I should even make you feel every terrible thing you've done! But you know what?! I won't! I never want to cross the line you have! People like you will never understand that with great power comes great responsibility!'

'What did you mean by that?! The Prime Minister has always been a good man! What kind of man do you think he is?!' Makoto thought angrily. 'It's all his fault the Capital is shaken! Him and Night Raid has to –'

'If you're open for advice, here's one. Get off that high horse of yours and take a look outside. Things are worse than you've been let on.'

'Worse that I've been let on…?' Makoto questioned. He found himself confused as he turned to a window. 'Now that I think of it…I've never been outside the Imperial Castle. What does happen outside its walls…I wonder.'

"Your Majesty, are you okay?" Honest suddenly interrupted.

"Huh? Oh…" Emperor Makoto muttered. His thoughts were gone as he turned to Honest with a small sheepish laugh. "Um, sorry. My mind just went back to that night. Sorry, Prime Minister."

"No, it's fine." Honest assured with a smile. "But be cautious and do not let yourself be swayed by his words. A man as dangerous as Ben Tennyson might try to influence you to the wrong path."

"Right!" Emperor Makoto nodded with a smile. "You always know the right thing, Prime Minister. Thank you."

"You're welcome, Your Majesty." Honest smirked. "You have nothing to fear. I can assure you."

With that, Emperor Makoto turned away. However, in a brief moment, he seemed doubtful as he stared back at Esdeath and Sunny. So if one where to take a picture of him and Honest, there would see the Prime Minister standing by the side of a curious Emperor like some kind of devil.

_(LINE BREAK)_

Back at Night Raid hideout, every member was gathered at the briefing room except Sheele. There, Najenda, the leader of the group of assassin, sat at her usual place while Leone and Tatsumi stood before her closer than the others.

"Good work on the mission, Tatsumi and Leone." Najenda said, congratulating them. "Though taking out those scums with close links with the Prime Minister may not affect the empire massively, there is no doubt that this would benefit the Revolutionary Army well."

"No biggie, boss." Leone said with a smirk. "Just doing our job, right Tatsumi?"

"Yeah." Tatsumi nodded and smiled at the blonde woman.

Earlier in the day, Najenda had sent Tatsumi and Leone to deal with the assassination of two political heads with ties to the Prime Minister. It wasn't a normal request, as it came from the Revolutionary Army themselves. As such, the mission was done swiftly, but not without Tatsumi having to learn something new. A small kid of one of the men had walked in and seen his dead father, so it had an emotional effect on Tatsumi. Fortunately, Leone was able to cheer him up and disclose how she got her Teigu and what she plans to do to the Prime Minister in person.

Anyway, back to the present, there was one thing Tatsumi noticed. Everyone was gathered in the briefing room, including Mine. It wasn't unusual, but considering Mine was meant to be inactive until she was entirely healed made him suspect something. Thus, he looked over to Najenda.

"I know this might be off-putting but…why is everyone here?" Tatsumi asked.

Najenda smirked in response. "You have a good idea, Tatsumi. That shows your training is effective." She said and then crossed her leg over her other leg. "But you are right to suspect something. Mine is here because I believe everyone should know about the reports I just received."

"Okay." Tatsumi said.

From there, Najenda's expression changed. It became serious when she spoke again.

"Last night something big happened in the Capital." She said straightforwardly. "During that time we lacked information of the incident until now. And to tell you all the truth, it might shock you, especially if we put it with what Satou told us last night."

"Satou?" Tatsumi questioned.

Lubbock answered. "You know, that man that was with Ben and Aria. He said that it is possible that Ben defeated the Imperial officer and her organic Teigu before running into Budo, the grand General of the Imperial army."

"Is he that bad?" He asked.

Mine scoffed with a low tone. "That's a dumb question to ask." She said rudely. "But if you must know, Grand General Budo is someone with a powerful twin gauntlet Teigu called Thunder God's Rage: Adramelech. With it, he controls and manipulates lightning and in a way can alter the weather. He's basically a Teigu user none of us can beat singlehandedly."

"And yet Ben did." Najenda disclosed.

Everyone was immediately surprised. It was obvious, as each had their own expression even though a few like Bulat and Akame tried to hide it. However, Najenda wasn't done as she took her cigarette from her mouth and let out a puff of smoke.

"Yesterday was a mess. Even our sources were scattered on the matter until recently." Najenda informed them. "Now we know that Satou was correct. Ben Tennyson fought the Imperial officer called Seryu; however it seems to be after Ieyasu was killed. I can guess from there that he became furious at the scene and went all out of the Imperial officer and her Teigu. From what I've gotten, the damage from the fight is so severe that the areas have been blocked from public views. And yet…that is still the tip of the ice burg from that night."

"Tip of the iceberg?" Bulat questioned subtly. "So there is more?"

"Correct. So much more that it makes me…cautious of the lad we've allied ourselves with." Najenda replied.

For the first time in her life as Night Raid's leader, Najenda actually sounded troubled. It was obvious by her tone then as everyone stood there. But then Lubbock was quick to react by acting laidback about it even though he was worried.

"So the kid took down General Budo, so what? I'm sure all of us together could take that guy on and win." He said.

"That might be true, Lubbock." Najenda replied. "But the fact doesn't remain that Ben Tennyson is powerful. I've even learnt that those who witnessed the battle from a distance spotted whom they could describe as the Prime Minister's son in the midst of the battle. Think about it, if Ben was fighting the Grand General and the Prime Minister's son at the same time and he beat them then that mean he's more powerful than we realized."

"Wasn't that obvious?" Leone asked. "Ben alone caused the Black Scare. But wasn't the Prime Minister's son away on vacation? I didn't know he had a Teigu."

"He does, from what I got." Najenda disclosed. "However, the object in which it is personified is unknown. All we can acknowledge is that he's able to teleport with it. Be sure to add it to the book of Teigu we have. Every information counts no matter how small it is."

"Will do." Leone said.

Najenda then spoke again. "Good. But don't get me wrong on one thing." She said. "Ben Tennyson is dangerous, but he is an ally now. And with that, is a good thing." She said and smirked a bit.

Tatsumi was surprised by this. He understood what Najenda meant, but he couldn't help but feel that way. So before he could think more on it, Najenda revealed something else.

"I must admit that Leone was right." She said.

Leone was confused. "Right? What was I right about?"

"To follow Ben Tennyson." Najenda answered. "It would seem that young Tennyson broke into the Imperial Castle on that same night. That means he was closer than any of us and the Revolutionary Army had to taking down the emperor and Prime Minister."

Everyone was once again surprised. This time even Akame couldn't hide the expression. The Imperial Castle was known to be heavily gathered by well hidden traps and trained Imperial guards. Upon that, there was the fact that the walls of the Capital were so huge that getting into the place without being spotted was nearly impossible. In other words, Ben had achieved something Night Raid and the Revolutionary Army couldn't do from their beginning.

The shock was still there when Akame spoke.

"Does that mean that –"

"Yes." Najenda interjected with a smirk. "Ben Tennyson was close to ending everything right there and then."

Again everyone was shocked. In fact, some of them were even taken aback by the news. Anyway, Najenda continued.

"Reports are vague though and uncertain." Najenda said honestly. "No one knows how Ben got into the Imperial Castle's compound nor could they be certain he approached the Emperor and Prime Minister. However, knowing the kind of power he wields, there's no doubt he came close to bringing the revolution."

"But he didn't, correct?" Mine asked. Her question sounded rhetorical as she became serious.

"Yes." Najenda answered. She then frowned in disappointment. "Tennyson is a powerful ally, but his heroic beliefs likely got in the way."

"Dammit!" Mine shouted in anger. Not surprising her reaction caught everyone's attention. But she didn't care. "I'm sorry, but that's just shit! Are you telling me that we could've been basking in a new era if he actually killed the Prime Minister and the emperor!? Well he can go and shove that ideals up his –"

"Enough!"

Everywhere became quiet. The one who had shouted wasn't Najenda or any of the members of Night Raid. Instead it was Eunice standing not far from everyone with Ben and Aria by herself. But it was clear from her angry face that she didn't approve of what just happened.

"How dare you!?" Eunice yelled angrily. "How dare you –"

The girl was suddenly interrupted. This time it was by a hand on her shoulder, belonging to Ben. The teen hero didn't seem angry or upset. In fact he seemed responsible as he and Eunice exchanged a look before the girl calmed down. Hence, Ben walked forward towards Mine with a straightforward look.

"Eunice and I just showed up, but I couldn't help but ignore what you had to say." He said calmly. "So if I don't know better, I think this is from what happened to you, Sheele and Ieyasu."

Mine gritted her teeth angrily. Ben may be a hero, but that attitude he had was upsetting to her. To the girl, she felt like he was mocking her because of how things turned out. As a result, she walked over to him and slapped him right at the face.

Not surprising, her reaction was unexpected by everyone. Eunice hadn't seen it coming, nor did Night Raid thought it would happen. However, Ben said nothing as he stared at the angry face of Mine with his hand on the cheek the girl had slapped.

"You!" Mine shouted angrily. "Tell me, did you really get to the Prime Minister?! Did you!?"

"Yes…I did."

"Then why didn't you finish him off!?" Mine questioned angrily. "Ever since I was born, I've known how vile and cruel the world had become because of that man! Thanks to him children are orphans, parents are separated and people are left to either starve to death or survive in poverty! And then you had the chance to take him out, only to then blew it because you want to be a hero that bad!? I hate you! This has nothing to do with what happened to Ieyasu! Any of us could die in this line of work, so I can't hold grudges for someone who couldn't react on time!"

Ben was silent to respond. This was expected due to how heavy the air was. However, after Mine said nothing else, the teen hero finally continued.

"I…understand now." Ben said finally. He didn't sound sad or depressed. In fact he seemed sincere. "Everything that has happened was because of my carelessness. Throughout my stay in the Capital I've learnt the harsh realities of things. But I won't put down my moral values just because the empire is that way. I'm not trying to be a hero. It's just the kind of person I am. But I can promise you this. I will do everything I can to make sure that no one dies. That way…when all the craziness is over and a new era of peace and tranquility happens we can smile to a new life ahead."

That was completely unexpected. The words Ben just said were inspiring and positive. In fact, even Mine was taken aback it as her anger slipped away. But if that wasn't enough, Ben smiled at her and brought his left her to her.

"So…what do you say, Mine?" Ben asked.

Mine suddenly had a flashback. This time it was with an older man that resembled an older version of Ben, bringing his hand forward on a little version of her.

"So….what do you say, Mine?" The man asked.

Present day Mine almost cried. For some reason, Ben reminded her of a man she knew a long time ago. But still she acted stubborn and looked away from everyone.

"Geez…why do you have to do all that?" She questioned.

"What?" Ben was confused.

Mine said nothing back. Instead she grabbed his hand in acceptance and looked at him with a small scowl.

"You better keep to your promise!" She said straightly.

Ben smiled. "Don't worry. I will."

Mine smiled back almost immediately. For some reason, Ben sounded different than the teen she had pictured him to be. Meanwhile, Eunice was amazed at the turn of events until a small smile formed on her face.

'I've been gone from Ben's life for so long that I've forgot the kind of person he is.' She thought. 'That girl once threatened his life and yet he was able to make peace with her. Maybe…for his sake, I should make peace with Night Raid since he's willing to give them a chance.'

With that, Eunice now had a resolve of her own. She watched then as Ben and Mine let go of each other before Najenda spoke.

"I must say, you're kind of outstanding, Tennyson." Najenda said honestly. "Most people would react negatively in a situation like this, and yet you reacted calmly."

"Thanks." Ben replied. "Sorry for keeping the details of last night from you. We are allies now, so I think we should be honest with each other."

"I like that." Najenda smiled. "So is there anything you want to add?"

"Well…" Ben began to say. At the same time he walked over to the woman. "For one, I did actually kick three Teigu users butt and faced the Prime Minister and the Emperor, but then bad news came. Sunny and Esdeath are back."

Najenda was surprised, with the same for everyone else. Esdeath was supposed to be fighting the Northern Tribes for a year at least. In fact, the chances of her coming back had never been something that they would've expected.

"Then I guess the Northern Tribes has fallen to the empire as well." Lubbock acknowledged. He was scared, but not enough to show it.

Then there was Leone, who just growling and punched her fist into her open hand.

"Your bitch cousin!" Leone shouted angrily. "I so want to put my fist into that damn face!"

"Calm down, Leone." Akame cautioned her. "Lubbock, Sheele and Mine weren't there. It would be unwise to fight her since she's a being far stronger than us." Then she turned to Ben. "Tell me, by some chance is she allied with Esdeath?"

"I believe so." Ben answered. He now stood some feet from the female assassin. "I didn't see them meet, but it's no coincidence that Sunny was in the Imperial Castle just a moment after General Esdeath showed up."

"And you didn't fight them?" Akame asked. She was now curious.

"Well…" Ben uttered. Honestly, he didn't want to disclose that the Omnitrix timed out. There was still time for trust to grow.

Fortunately, Eunice came to the rescue. She went over to stand close to Ben while speaking.

"That isn't important." She said. "What is important is the fact that those two will be trouble. I was able to save Ben using Budo's Teigu power, but when I clashed with Sunny I lost. We were just fortunate to get out of there in time."

No one responded to that. It wasn't that they couldn't, but because they were surprised about Eunice. The girl had been silent towards them with clear resent, and now she was talking to them with that attitude of hers seemingly gone.

"So you're finally talking to us?" Mine questioned, clearly offensive to the girl. "And what's this about using Budo's Teigu?"

Najenda and every other Night Raid member were now curious. It was true that Eunice was a mysterious girl, so they all wanted to know about her. Hence, the girl turned to Mine with a more open attitude.

"I'm sorry for the way I acted towards you all. It's just that…I was cautioned to not trust any of you, and that was with evidence with the way you all tried to kill Ben once." She said.

Leone turned to Ben. "You told her about that?" She asked.

"No…She actually knew from the start." Ben revealed.

Now hearing that got everyone even curious. Eunice had come to their world just recent, so she was someone unknown. And then there was the fact that the girl knew about something that happened long ago was something else.

Fortunately, Eunice decided to be honest. Hence, she placed her hand on her chest and turned to the view of everyone.

"My name is Eunice and…I was the first attempt at creating the Omnitrix."

Everyone was immediately surprised to hear that.

_(LINE BREAK)_

Back at the Imperial Castle, the meeting with the emperor was over. Now Esdeath, Honest and Sunny could be seen walking on their own and discussing.

"As always you do as you please, Prime Minister." Esdeath said.

Presently, the general and Honest were walking side by side. Meanwhile, there was Sunny who was just twirling and playfully following them as they continued to talk.

"Of course, those who don't agree with me are killed." Honest replied. He had a huge gleeful smile on his face that reeked of pride and evil. "When I eat, I eat only the best of meat. What type of thrilling person would it do to fill your desire, though? If you ask me, someone as troubling as the young man yesterday won't meet to it."

"I beg to differ." Sunny interrupted.

With that, both Honest and Esdeath looked to the gap between them and saw Sunny's heading poking there. But before a word was said, the girl playfully twirled in such a way that she was now in front of them, facing them and walking backwards as they continued their walk.

"My cousin is quite the man and he meets all of Esdeath-sama's requirement." She said. Then she brought up one finger. "One, he has an untapped potential that Esdeath-sama can get him to unleash. You saw it right? Last night he didn't kill you because he was too naïve to do such."

Honest growled. He hadn't known the girl for long, but he hated to be reminded of that weak moment. However, Sunny continued as she lifted another finger.

"Two, he's fearless; he may be naïve for having that hero ideology but he certainly is the bravest guy I've know." She said. Then she lifted her third, fourth and fifth finger. "Three, he wasn't raised in the Capital. Four, he's younger than Esdeath-sama, so he can be under her direct control, and five, he has a pure and innocent smiling face that I bet Esdeath-sama would love. Trust me. I've seen it."

Honest looked to Esdeath with annoyance. It wasn't at the woman though, but because of Sunny that he felt that way.

"I see you let your subordinate in on it." Honest said. "I do not disapprove of it. But I assumed she was in the same rank as your Three Beast Warriors."

"Those three are different." Esdeath admitted. Then she smiled slyly. "On my way here, I saw her wondering the forest, and right then and there I felt something I haven't felt from anybody. Raw power. Of course, I had her prove herself in battle and she passed without a doubt. So now I wish her to be part of the team I want to be setup. Believe me when I say this. She may act like this, but she's a lot stronger than you can imagine."

Honest smirked, intrigued. "Then does that mean she's stronger than you?" He asked.

"Hmph! I really don't know." Esdeath smiled back. Then she looked over to Sunny. "But I can say this. I look forward to the day you become serious."

Sunny said nothing other than smile. Of course, she knew what would happen if she became serious in a fight. However, she really didn't say anything before doing a twirl and walking forward with a cheerful smile on her face.

"What an odd one you have there." Honest commented plainly. Then he turned to Esdeath with some interest. "Are you really considering taking the girl's offer?"

"Perhaps." Esdeath answered. "There are not so many men who would be brave to storm the Imperial Palace and succeed. But she's right on some of his requirement. I had seen the way he responded the moment I stood there with him. In his eyes held so much untapped potential, bravery and a sense of innocence that I might admire."

Honest frowned in response. It had been a shock to him that Esdeath was considering love, but now he knew she was serious. Fortunately, Esdeath found his response funny without even turning to face him.

"I can sense you have a deep grudge against him. That's clearly obvious, correct?" She asked.

Honest said nothing. He could see the woman was having fun with his reaction. But he still remained silent as he looked forward, seeing Sunny just walking.

'The fact that she's showing interest in that young man is very troubling.' Honest thought with irritation. 'But still…this is still Esdeath, a woman who lives for war and battles. If she is able to cultivate such a man to be like her then…'

Honest smirked devilishly. "I don't approve of the brat. But if you are able to get him to return his feelings and ally with the empire then I might look the other way."

Esdeath said nothing in response. It wasn't that she disapproved of his response. No, it was the fact that she had expected him to have a twisted thought. But still, the fact that she was thinking of him made her think of her new interest in love.

"Though it quite strange." She said. Her smirk disappeared as she became uncertain. "Till now, all I have cared about has been carnage and warfare. Even I…don't understand where these feelings have come from."

"Yes, well, as a living being, it's only natural that you would desire the opposite sex, is it not? I actually thought you were a little slow in that area. " Honest replied. 'Though talking about things like love does not suit you.' He added in his mind.

"I see…" Esdeath replied, acknowledging what she heard. "This is a sort of bestial instinct, then? Well, for the time being at least, I plan to have fun hunting these rebels down. By the way, what has become of your son?"

Honest shrugged his shoulder. "I'm not aware. I was told he was taken into treatment, but the moment he regained consciousness he disappeared. It does not matter now. As long as he isn't causing too much trouble then he can do what he wants."

'I wonder if I should inform him that he is the one who got the boy into the Imperial Palace.' Esdeath thought slyly.

"Speaking of rebels…" Honest suddenly brought up. Then with a devilish look he looked at Esdeath. "…I think it's a little too much to request six Teigu users."

Esdeath understood what he meant. In fact, she returned that expression with a menacing but calm glare of her own. "Though in the end, you will take care of it, right?"

Honest grinned, showing his sinister side. He enjoyed what he had planned for the general; hence he gripped his beard and became much sinister.

"I will take care of the preparations…though as for what you can do for me…I…do happen to have some people I wish would disappear."

And now Esdeath understood. She didn't seem troubled by it, though. In fact she just sighed and smiled.

"Such intrigue."

_(LINE BREAK)_

Esdeath now stood before three men. By her side, she had Sunny who just stood there and curious on the three men. Of course, she knew them as The Three Beast Warriors, though one of them was a teenage boy around her age. Anyway, their posture had them with one fist and knee on the ground and the other knee up as they faced their mistress, General Esdeath.

"I have new orders for you three." Esdeath informed them strictly. "Though it's somewhat different than normal."

"Give us any sort of orders, Esdeath-sama." said the tall and slim man of the group. He had gray hair that was worn into a ponytail, a mustache and blue eyes.

"The three of us are your faithful servants." The teenager of the group added. He had blonde hair and golden eyes while possessing a somewhat cat-like look in his eyes and teeth and wearing horns as a headdress and a devil tail. As for his uniform, he wore black and white, but with shorts rather than pants.

"We will accept any orders at any time, ma'am." The muscular man of the group concluded. He was large in size and had spiky blonde hair. He also wore horns as a headdress and surprisingly didn't have pupils like a normal person. His eyes were pure white.

Anyway, Esdeath was pleased. She had no doubt that her loyal bodyguards would succeed. As such, she grinned and said. "Good."

And then there was Sunny. She couldn't help but admire the men in a way as she stood there.

"Not bad. Can I join them?" Sunny asked.

"No." Esdeath answered. "There's something else we must discuss."

Sunny grinned madly and let her eyes shine pink. "Oh goody. I can hardly wait."

_(CHAPTER END)_

I'm gonna stop here for now. I had so much planned to add, but this chapter would get too long and cramped if I continued. So what do you think? A lot is coming and I hope you're ready for them. It's pretty obvious that Sunny is trying to push Esdeath to Ben and now we're drawing close to the scene where Ben saves Spear.

On another note, sorry that this chapter doesn't have Ben regaining the Ultimates. That was originally meant for this chapter until I realized how long this chapter already was. So that awesome moment will be moved to the next chapter. How will he get the Ultimates back? You're gonna have to wait and see.

By the way, in the Akame ga kill wiki, Nyau is stated to be in his early twenties despite looking like a kid. I've decided to alter that age to him actually being a teen. The reason will be revealed when The Three Beasts fight Bulat, Tatsumi and an unexpected someone.

Now I'm going to reply to some reviews. Please keep in mind that these are for everyone to read so they can know why I did some things and so on.

Derpen: That "Are you all blind? Deploy everything you have!" was really from Rogue One: A Star Wars story. Thanks for noticing it.

ShadingWolf49: Well I always planned on Ben meeting up with Night Raid at some point. He may be powerful, but he always needed people to back him up when things became critical. Besides, having him separated from Night Raid only seemed to make the story longer and far from using the manga. So at least now the story can go along with the manga now that Ben is there. Also, you have a point for saying he's acting like Peter Parker. He did say that "with great power comes great responsibility" when he faced Honest. Lol.

Strong-bot: Thank you! Aria staying alive was inspired by another crossover fanfiction that did the same. However, unlike this one, Aria seems to have a minor role in that fanfic. I just decided to widen it in this fanfic.

Cyberbeasttitan: I agree. Omniverse had so much potential. But with McDuffie's death, it didn't go so well. I don't know to blame Wyatt entirely though. Wasn't he the art director? If so, the only thing he was in charge of was the art style and not the writing. But I'll admit he seemed to have some story control in the series since he always made claims about certain things in the show that sometimes didn't come through. Even Young (a writer on the show) stated that if a claim wasn't show on the TV then it wasn't true. Anyway, because Eunice and Sunny were barely explored, I decided to add them here.

DragoBlack: It never came to my mind that the Null Void should be referenced. To be honest, I had a different idea entirely that would've changed the chapter afterwards. But my beta-reader thought otherwise and I ended up agreeing him. Anyway, Ultimate Rath will show up in this fanfiction. He won't be the first ultimate alien sadly, but he will have an awesome show.

_REVIEWS END_

That's it for now. Also thanks tomahawkESP, SpaceEngineer643, Guest and Guest (for chapter 6) for your reviews. I hope you guys keep enjoying this fanfic.

Thank you all for reading this. Please be sure to review and favorite and follow if you haven't. Doing all these really gives me the inspiration to continue, so please keep it up. And as a reminder, the Generator Rex and Attack on Titan fanfiction is now out. If you're interested in the two shows, please go check them out. Bye!