Maka finally admits that she may have made a mistake in taking this mission when the strange man materializes in front of them on the bridge. His soul is a strange mix of things that are probably lethal in combination. And she's pretty sure he can use magic, which will make him a difficult opponent.
Of course the mission hadn't been going well before his appearance, between her and Soul's continuing animosity, and the fact that it's freezing outside here in London. Maka is cursing herself for not wearing leggings; her legs are freezing! Her side has started to throb from the icy chill in the air—she's going to be at a serious disadvantage if she has to fight.
Not that she's going to mention that; the last thing she needs is for Soul to think that she's weak. She's still furious that he tried to stop them from going on the mission, and that he seems to think that she's some weak little girl who can't do anything for herself. Hostility hangs between the two of them like the thick fog blanketing London. Tsubaki, ever the kind, diplomatic one, has been attempting to ease the tension between them, to no avail. If they have to fight, Maka is unsure whether they'll be able to work as an effective team.
Blackstar, ever the reckless idiot, decides to charge in headfirst. And of course he decides to use Tsubaki's Enchanted Sword mode, despite not being strong enough to use it yet. He's out of the fight in less than five seconds, without even making a dent in their opponent.
Soul and Maka exchange a glance, expressions torn between amusement and horror. Behind the man dressed in the prison uniform, Tsubaki hovers over Blackstar, face full of concern. Soul manages to land a would-be mortal blow on their opponent, but the wound closes up almost immediately. And then he decides to transform, and the shape of his soul changes drastically. Maka gapes in awe.
They're facing the Immortal Wolf-Man: this would be tough fight for just the two of them on a good day, but now?
"What an idiot!" Maka huffs, beyond irritated with Blackstar's recklessness, before turning to Soul and holding her hand out for him to transform. He takes her cue, shifting into his scythe form immediately. Maka grabs his handle and adjusts her grip, wanting to finish this quickly and go home, but yelps and drops Soul before she can even take a swing at their opponent.
"You burned me," she says in astonishment. His handle is hot; she won't be able to hold him to fight. This hasn't happened since the very beginning of their days training together, when their soul wavelengths weren't properly in sync. Which means that—Maka's eyes go wide with horror.
They won't be able to fight as a team, not like this, which means that they'll be fighting solo against the toughest opponent they're ever faced. Maka's side is already screaming in pain and she's reminded of the fact that she hasn't had a proper training session since before she was injured. No time to dwell on it now, though, as their opponent isn't leaving them any time to think.
The air feels thick and breathing is difficult, and Maka feels too foggy to avoid the man's first attacks. She hears Soul's worried cry as she's flung into an ice cylinder and then thrown towards the edge of the bridge. She narrowly manages to avoid falling off by grabbing onto one of the posts on the edge of the bridge; years of practice with Soul make it easy to swing herself back onto the bridge. Her adrenaline is finally kicking in, dulling the pain in her side a little bit, but it's still not enough to prepare her for the next attack. All she can do is try to shield herself as best as she can. We should never have come here, she thinks grimly.
She braces herself for impact, shutting her eyes tightly, but feels nothing. Instead, she's startled by a pained yelp from their opponent—he somehow managed to stab himself in the side with one of those ice cylinders he's so fond of using. He says something about being a little rusty with his magic. While he's distracted, Maka moves away from the edge of the bridge.
Tsubaki, still crouched by Blackstar's side, suggests that Maka try fighting with her instead of Soul. It's a nice thought, but there's not enough time for that to work, not against an opponent of this caliber. Maka needs witchhunter to even make a dent in this guy. Which leaves only one option.
The werewolf attacks again, and Maka miraculously manages to end up by Soul again. Her entire body aches, her side is screaming in pain, and she's absolutely freezing, but she has her weapon. They're just going to have to make this work.
"Soul," she calls, trying to get his attention. Ruby eyes snap to her face immediately. His face is etched with concern. "Transform into a scythe," she commands, putting as much strength as she can muster into her voice.
"But you can't even hold me," he protests. She does not have time for this right now.
"Do it," she orders him, her tone allowing for no argument. Soul looks dubious, but transforms into a scythe anyway. She catches him easily, forcing herself to ignore the searing heat that she can feel even with the gloves on. She doesn't need Soul to baby her; despite their wavelengths currently being out of sync, she can feel the concern radiating off him. Focus on the enemy, you idiot! I am strong enough to handle this!
She moves in to attack twice, but her hits aren't strong enough—he throws her off like he's swatting a fly. She's flung into the rail of the bridge, and now she's definitely going to be sore tomorrow. She gets up anyway, ignoring the new flare of pain from her back. She's not going to be beaten this easily.
Soul is yelling at her, as usual, telling her to calm down and focus. She brushes him off. She's going to do this her own way. Their argument quickly escalates, both of them so immersed in their petty squabbling that it takes Tsubaki yelling at them to get them to refocus. The fact that Tsubaki is actually angry enough to yell at them is enough to get their undivided attention.
Tsubaki lectures them on the importance of working as a team, and Maka feels her anger deflate a little at her friend's words. She's right, after all. If Maka wants to accomplish her goals, they're going to have to be able to work together. Both of their souls begin to relax a little, and she can feel their wavelengths shifting and regaining their compatibility. It's a relief to feel their souls in harmony again. No matter how hot it gets, I'm not letting go.
"Let's go! Soul resonance!" they cry in unison, and Maka begins to flicker with blue light as they resonate higher and higher with each other. Normally, she'd feel elated at their incredible resonance rate (and the fact that they're able to resonate at all), but something feels off this time. As their resonance rate grows exponentially higher, Maka feels her consciousness being carried, until suddenly, there's a strange tug on her soul, and she's not in control of her body anymore.
Soul watches in horror as Maka's green eyes become vacant and glassy, and she starts to giggle madly. She staggers forward, raising her scythe over her head. What have we gotten into this time?
Somewhere within Maka's soul, in an apartment full of pictures and memories, a small red demon grins to himself. "Now this is more like it."
Thank you for reading! Please leave a review if you liked it.
