Loyalty to the clan

"Kururugi Suzaku! I owe you a debt, I sympathize with you, I respect you. However in this situation! Loyalty trumps all!"- Jeremiah Gottwald

XXX

After returning to Arzenal, everything had gone back to normal. The squads were all, according to the shifts, sent to hunt down DRAGONs when singularity points were detected.

Though the other girls couldn't help but notice the change, if slightly, on Ange and Kaito's attitudes when around each other. They no longer bickered much, they were still hostile, but not to the extent as before. The girls couldn't help but wonder what happened with them on the island.

Now, everyone was off with their own thing. No squads were sent off to fight DRAGONs, so they were having the day off unless a singularity point appeared.

Then, the alarm was triggered, more specifically the alarm for intruders, which as far as anyone knew, had not sounded before. Kaito was in the hanger checking over the Overlord as the alarm wailed.

The man sighed and jumped down from his Ragna-mail. As soon as he landed, he spotted a shadow moving through the back. The former Overlord quickly moved to intercept the intruder.

As soon as he caught the intruder by the wrist, he blinked to see a young girl with short dark purple hair in a maid's outfit. The maid said in surprise, "You! You're that brute who stole Angelise-sama's first kiss and almost got arrested by the guards!"

Kaito said, unamused, "You look familiar…"

The maid struggled to escape but Kaito's iron grip kept her in place. All the commotion attracted a lot of the members of Arzenal as they surrounded both Kaito and the maid, all holding rifles aimed at the maid.

Then Ange came in and said in surprise, "Momoka?"

The maid beamed and said in joy, "Angelise-sama!"

Kaito blinked as it came back to him, "Oh, now I remember. You're that little puppy who followed her everywhere."

Jill walked in and sighed, this was gonna be troublesome.

A while later, Jill and Emma were discussing how to handle the intruder, Momoka Oginome, the maid. Jill sighed, "I have no idea whether to be annoyed or impressed. That maid sneaked in just for Ange, the fact that she could sneak past the guards is astounding, but probably not that much seeing the guards on the mainland are incapable."

Emma couldn't help but agree, "But if we send her back, we might risk exposing the truth of the Norma and the DRAGONs. She merely came to visit."

Jill sighed, "A visit… huh…"

The commander stared at the officer, "At any rate, a Norma like me won't be able to change any rules. So, what do we do, Emma?"

The officer's eyes softened as she thought about the maid's loyalty, "Just let them have their time together."

Later, Momoka and Ange were walking through the hallways, with Kaito following some distance behind. The maid was happy to find her mistress again, but she didn't like the fact that Kaito was here.

The girl glared at the man, "Why are you following us?"

Kaito sighed, "I'm going back to my room, what do you think?"

Momoka huffed and just kept walking, deciding to ignore Kaito for her health's sake. Ange chuckled inwardly at Momoka's attitude, finding it amusing.

Soon, they reached Kaito's room, just beside Ange's room. The maid was unpleasantly surprised at that fact and glared at the man, "Why is your room beside Angelise-sama's room?! How can someone like you live near her?!"

Ange just sighed and pushed Momoka into her room as Kaito remain quiet before he entered his own room. As soon as Momoka laid her eyes on the room, the smell of metal entered her nostrils and she frowned in displeasure. Staring at Ange, she said in shock, "You sleep here?"

Ange nodded, "Its all I could afford for now. Yes, its not like the smallest rooms back in the Empire, just drop it. I don't care anyways."

Momoka let it sink in as she couldn't believe her beloved princess would live in a place like this. The maid was broken out of her musings as Ange asked, "So, why are you here?"

"I'm here to assist you, Angelise-sama,'' Momoka spoke with a proud smile.

Ange sighed, "There isn't any Angelise here, at least not anymore. I'm Ange, and I'll be looking after you for the next few days. So, please don't bother me much."

As Ange went to fold her clothes, Momoka quickly took them and folded them for her, "Allow me, Angelise-sama."

Ange sighed, "Momoka, stop. You're not my maid, not anymore, and I'm not a princess anymore. You should be back at the Empire."

Momoka shook her head, "My place is with you, Angelise-sama. No matter where, no matter who you become, I will always be by your side."

Ange sighed, "With Julio being emperor, the empire is lost, isn't it?"

Momoka looked down, not answering her question. Ange let out a breath and stood up, "Well, its getting late. Have the bed, I have an extra pillow."

The blonde took a pillow and a thin blanket and laid down on the floor as she motioned Momoka to sleep on the bed. The maid reluctantly got on the bed. As they laid there in silence, Ange spoke, "You shouldn't have come here, this place isn't for humans."

Momoka just laid there, not knowing what to say. As Ange slept, a small smile found its way onto her face. While she wouldn't admit it, she was overjoyed to see Momoka. Though unknown to herself, she was subconsciously denying Momoka, afraid of how everyone left her to die when her status of a Norma was revealed.

Next door in Kaito's room, the man smirked as he heard their short conversation. He wouldn't deny it, he was slightly jealous of Ange for having such a loyal friend. Kaito had none, maybe Kouta and Mai, but those two were forgiving to a fault.

He could tell just how much the maid had gone through just to see Ange again. It wasn't obvious, but the way Momoka walked told him the maid needed medical assistance. Though he doubted that little puppy would want his help. Besides, he had no reason to even try to act friendly with that maid, much less involve himself in their little drama.

The next day, everyone was having breakfast as usual. Though Momoka was frowning openly at the dirty condition the cafeteria was. Frankly it wasn't that bad, but being a maid who worked in the palace, well, you can't blame her for not being satisfied.

As Kaito lined up to get food, he saw Momoka and Ange waiting. The man shook his head at how Momoka was acting. The maid had picked Hilda, Rosalie and Chris of all people, and demanded them to give their table to Ange.

The three had only laughed and waved the maid off like a bug. Things started to get worse until Momoka collapse due to hunger.

Ange sighed, "You stupid girl."

The blonde picked up the girl and brought her to her room with some food. Kaito merely shook his head at that.

With Ange and Momoka, the maid had eaten a burger and felt better. Ange finished her food and was about to go out before they saw an injured girl on a stretcher being sent to the infirmary.

Momoka's eyes widened in shock, "What was that? Why is she like that?"

Ange looking grim, "I told you, this place isn't for humans. It's a hunting ground, I'll probably end up like that some day. But who knows?"

With that, Ange left the room to train. Momoka stood there as she thought, 'What happened to you, Angelise-sama… This isn't the Angelise-sama I know, I must bring her back!'

With that on her mind, the maid decided to revert the former princess to her former self. So for the next two days, Momoka would try to help Ange with every simple thing, such as cleaning the clothes, cooking and so on. But no matter what she did, Ange would ignore the maid.

Soon, the maid couldn't take it anymore and decided to seek help from the last person she would go to, Kumon Kaito.

As Kaito resting lying on the grass in his private spot, the man found it to be calming, something his life in Arzenal certainly wasn't. Then he heard footsteps and knew exactly who it was. The girls of Arzenal, Ange included, all had a certain rudeness, so to speak, in their steps. The steps he heard now, however, were soft and somewhat civilized, plus the steps were careful, like the person was injured.

The man spoke without turning or opening his eyes, "What is it that you want?"

The maid spoke, "I need your help."

Kaito grinned, "Ho, and what can humble man like me do to help you?"

Momoka glared at the man's back, "Angelise-sama isn't who I knew… why is she like that? What happened? She was placed under your supervision right?"

Kaito sighed inwardly, it would seem the maid couldn't accept what her beloved princess had become. Kaito said, not moving at all, "If I tell you, what would I get in return? Nothing is free, especially not here."

Momoka pondered a bit and said, "I'll cook for you." it's the only thing she can think.

Kaito thought a bit and said, "Fine, but you'll be cooking for everyone in the cafeteria. Got that?"

Momoka nodded, it was fine. She cooked for a lot more people in the past, the number of members in Arzenal was manageable for her alone.

The girl then stared at the man expectedly, "So? Tell me."

Kaito finally stood up and turned to the maid, "First, tell me why do you want her to return back? Is it because you can't accept her as she is now? Or is it because you want to see that face that you believe would bring joy to everyone?"

Momoka clenched her fists, "I just want to see the Angelise-sama I knew."

Kaito stared at the girl and shook his head, "I see. Then I can tell you this, you don't understand her any bit. What you're trying to do now, is just selfish."

Momoka glared at the man, "What are you talking about? I am doing everything I can to help her!"

Kaito sighed and turned from the maid, "Did you lent her your shoulder for her to cry on, after her mother died?"

Momoka's eyes widened as she remembered the events on that fateful day. Kaito continued, "Of course not, you didn't want her to remember about that, nor did you have the chance since she was sent away almost immediately. I won't say you're at fault, but from what I see now, you understand nothing about her."

Momoka didn't reply, she couldn't refute his statement. Kaito turned a bit and looked at the maid before he turned away and said, "When Ange first came here, she acted all high and mighty, believing that she was not a Norma. I won't blame her for that kind of reaction, but she indirectly killed three people here. Do you know why?"

Momoka stayed silent as Kaito continued, "Ange tried to run back to the Empire. The girl simply couldn't accept that she was a Norma, or a freak according to your definition of a Norma. And because of that, she caused the death of two young girls who adored her."

Momoka's eyes widened as she heard that. Kaito paused a bit before he said, "Someone once told me, 'Those who break the rules are scum, but those who abandon their friends are worse than scum. And the ones who don't understand their friends' feelings are much worse than that."

Kaito let out a breath and turned his head slightly to look at Momoka, "That's all I can say. What you want to do from now on, or at least for the time you're here, is up to you."

Momoka stayed there silent before she nodded, "Thank you for your advice."

The maid turned and moved to left, but not before saying, "I misjudged you, maybe you're that bad of a man."

With that said, Momoka left the area. Kaito chuckled, he didn't know that last comment was a compliment or sarcastic. But he didn't care anyways, at least now the whole crew of Arzenal would get a better meal for once.

Later, Momoka was sitting with Ange in the cafeteria. They were both having the same food, as Momoka wanted to know what it was like as a Norma, so to speak. As for Ange, she was curious at the sudden change, but more concerned with what would happen to Momoka after her time here was over.

After they quietly finished their meal, Ange said, "Momoka, let's take a bath. I mean you haven't had one since you came here, right?"

Momoka blinked and realized it was true, the maid had not cleaned up in the time she was here. The girl took a whiff and frowned, she smelled absolutely terrible. The maid nodded as they walked to the onsen.

Soon, the two girls were relaxing and cleaning up in the small pool of water. Ange noticed a scar on the maid's hand as they washed up.

Momoka noticed Ange looking at the scar and smiled, "Angelise-sama, do you remember this scar?'

Ange blinked, "What do you mean?"

Momoka looked at the scar and said, "It was a long time ago, I accidentally broke your doll, and I cut myself at the same time. You didn't get mad at me, instead you ripped off your dress and bandaged my wound."

Ange blinked, she barely remembered that, it was only that Momoka mentioned it that she remembered. The former princess said, "But that's a long time ago, a really long time ago."

Momoka nodded, "But its because of that, I saw that even Norma were humans. I came to admire you for that, Angelise-sama.''

Ange sighed and said nothing as Momoka continued, "I spoke to the br- I mean Kaito-san, he told me everything. I'm really sorry, I should have been by your side, I should have supported you, yet… I didn't even understand your predicament."

Tears started to form in Momoka's eyes as she said that. Ange was surprised that Momoka actually talked to Kaito and called him by his name.

The former princess spoke, "Momoka…"

The maid stared at the blonde in the eye, "Please, let me be by your side."

Ange sighed and looked at the water, "You can't stay here, soon you'll be sent back to the Empire."

Momoka wanted to say something before the alarm sounded, Jill's voice rang through the speakers, "Squad 1, prepare for launch."

Ange sighed and stood up from the water, turning to leave. The maid spoke, halting the princess, "Are you going?"

Ange nodded, "Its my job now."

Momoka nodded and said with a smile, "I'll be waiting for your return, I'm your number onemaid after all."

Ange didn't reply as she walked out to get suited, thinking fondly, 'Idiot…'

As the blonde's Vilkiss got ready to launch, Kaito and Jill's words suddenly rang in her mind, 'In Arzenal, you can get anything with money.'

Deciding it was better than nothing, the blonde launched out into the sky, determined in killing as many DRAGONs as she could.

On the battlefield, Kaito and Jill noticed Ange's vigor in killing the DRAGONs. The two, one on the battlefield while the other in the command center, smiled inwardly, both thinking in unison, 'It seems she's realized it.'

Kaito keep quiet and ignored Hilda, Rosalie and Chris' complaints about Ange stealing kills. The man decided to help her once and sent her written message, causing the girl's eyes to widen in surprise as she saw the message.

The man looked at her as he cut down a DRAGON. The girl nodded understanding her thanks and continued to cut down more DRAGONs, to the ire of Hilda, Chris and Rosalie. Ersha and Vivian didn't care much since they weren't in a rush for money. Salia couldn't order the girl to stop killing the DRAGONs as she was merely doing her job.

The next day was the same. Kaito and Ange carrying the whole squad in killing the DRAGONs, causing Hilda, Chris and Rosalie to growl in displeasure.

Then, the day for Momoka to leave Arzenal for the Empire came. Squad 1 had once again launched for battle as the girl prepared to board the transport vessel.

Emma sighed and said sadly, "Momoka-san, it was a pleasure to meet you, I'm sorry we have to part ways like this."

Momoka shook her head and smiled, "Its okay, I got to see Angelise-sama one last time."

Emma smiled back, impressed by the loyalty shown by the maid, even if it was for a Norma. The maid then turned to Jill and bowed, "Thank you for your hospitality."

Jill nodded wordlessly. Then, right before Momoka could set a foot on the ship, a voice boomed through the area, "Stop!"

Everyone turned to see the Vilkiss landing in front of the ship, carrying what looked like several sacks of money. The Vilkiss dropped the sacks of money in front of the people. Then the cockpit opened and the blonde jumped down from the Ragna-mail.

Ange ran to Jill and said, "You said we could get anything in Arzenal as long as we had the money, right?"

Jill nodded, "Yes, why are you asking that now?"

Ange pointed at Momoka, "Her, Momoka, I'm buying her."

Jill grinned and stared at Emma who sighed and nodded slightly before she looked away. Jasmine smirked and walked forward, "Shall I check the money then?"

Jill nodded as the merchant went to check the money in the sacks. Jasmine nodded and looked at Jill, "The money is enough."

Jill nodded and grinned at Ange, "Congratulations, Ange. You are officially the first one in Arzenal to own a maid, slave or whatever you want to call her."

Emma sighed, "I'll ignore this just once, since it's the only way to have Momoka-san avoid execution."

Momoka beamed and embraced Ange in a big hug. The maid said, "Thank you for letting me stay by your side, Angelise-sama."

Ange's eyes softened, "Ange… its Ange."

Momoka nodded as she let go of her princess, "Yes, Angelise-sama."

Ange sighed, "Its Ange…"

Momoka said with a smile again, "Yes, Angelise-sama."

Ange sighed and decided to give up as they walked away. As they did, no one noticed the Vilkiss' eyes glow slightly before it died down. All besides one man who was standing by the shadows.

Sagara chuckled, "Well, it seems things might get interesting."

The manifestation of the Helheim chuckled and vanished without a trace. Meanwhile, Kaito was also standing in the shadows and he had a smirk on his face before he turned and walked away.

As he did, Jill's voice came from behind him, "You lent her money, didn't you? She could never have gotten that much in a few mere days."

Kaito turned slightly and Jill could see his smirk, "Well, it got the job done, besides, I don't need that much money, she's gonna pay me back anyways."

Jill said nothing as the man walked away to go back to his room.

So this chapter focused on Ange, not all of them needs to focus on Kaito. So here's another idea, what would happen if the Golden Fruit appeared in the world of Mana.

The entire landscape had changed. It was as if a tornado, a tsunami, an earthquake and a storm hit the Misurugi Empire all at once. A civil war had erupted in the country, all just to obtain the Golden Fruit.

Everyone had turned on their allies, their friends, when they heard of the rewards the fruit would yield. It bred chaos, and now only four remained in the war, and one would change the world.

Ange was piloting her Vilkiss, in Uriel mode as her Ragna-mail charged another Ragna-mail. This Ragna-mail, unlike the Vilkiss' golden theme, was pitch black like the dark night. This Ragna-mail, was the Overlord in the equivalent of Uriel mode, the Belial mode.

(This is my idea, cuz calling Overlord's Uriel mode… the Uriel Mode seems a bit weird, since we're having it to be pitch black. I thought of this name, Belial Mode… and just in case you want to add the speed and power mode like the Vilkiss' Michael and Ariel mode… I'd call the blue equivalent to be the Overlord's Agul mode… and the red equivalent to be Gaia mode… or maybe some other names… PM if you want to change them or have ideas…)

Above the two Ragna-mails was the Golden Fruit, waiting to be claimed, whether to destroy or create a new world, no one knew.

Both Ragna-mails in their strongest modes clashed blades. Kaito yelled, "Ange, stop this! You can't have the fruit like this!"

Ange yelled back, "Kaito… I will destroy this world, the fruit is what will allow me to do it. Don't stop me!"

Kaito gritted his teeth as the Overlord pushed against the Vilkiss, "If you do this, Aura will be caught in the crossfire, the other Earth will be affected as well! Besides, we don't even know the extent of the fruit's power! It might be different from my world!"

Ange growled, "This world abandoned me. They will suffer! If you get in my way, even if it's you, Kaito, I will kill you!"

Kaito tch'd as the Overlord struggled to fight the Vilkiss. He tried to reason with Ange yet again, "Even so, you'll just involve the innocent! Think about Ersha, Vivian and Momoka!"

Ange faltered for a brief second before she pushed against Kaito, "I can't stop, not now. If you want to stop me, you'll have to kill me."

Kaito gritted his teeth as the two Ragna-mails pushed against each other, "Please, don't make me do it."

Ange didn't reply as the two lovers continued to fight. Kaito hated his weakness, he had failed to save Ange and now she was broken, her heart filled with anger, hate and despair… all because of Embryo.

Meanwhile, some distance away from the two, Tusk was fighting against Hilda. Tusk pleaded, "Hilda, stop! Kaito is only using you, he doesn't care about you. He only has eyes for Ange!"

Hilda growled as her red Arquebus (Glaive? I dunno if you're changing her Para-mail) clashed with Tusk's pink Arquebus, "Shut up, you're the same. Ange only loves Kaito."

Tusk knew she was right. The two of them were both pawns of the two lovers, but it didn't hinder him, the brunette said, "Even so, you're just a pawn to him! Are you really fine with that?"

Hilda tch'd as she flipped upwards and slashed her sword at Tusk's Arquebus, "Unlike you, you who would always hide in the shadows, Kaito is someone who would be honest about his feelings! Even if he won't return my feelings, I still love him! Someone like you, someone who hides behind a mask after being rejected, can't possibly understand that!"

Tusk flinched a bit, allowing Hilda's Para-mail to land a kick at the Arquebus Vanessa Custom's abdomen, sending him flying a small distance.

Tusk regained his balance and let out a breath, "True… but that won't stop me, I'll continue to support her! Even if she destroys the world, I'll stay by her side until the world itself ends!"

The two clashed blades as Hilda smirked, "Love sure is blind, we're both rejected by the ones we love, yet we still fight for them. Then show me! Your resolve… your love!"

Tusk roared as they both charged each other again, intending to win the fight.

Meanwhile, on the ground, laid the remains of the Hysterica. The Ragna-mail had lost its wings and its limbs. The self-proclaimed World Tuner had tried to obtain the fruit for himself using his space time powers.

Unfortunately for the blonde narcissist, the fruit didn't like it one bit and blew up in his face. As a result, the blonde lost his space time powers, losing his immortality in the process.

The blonde stared up at the glowing fruit as it seemed to mock him. Embryo growled, "Why?! I was so close to obtaining that power! Yet… why?!"

As the blonde continued to complain and whine, a voice interrupted him, "Its because you lack imagination. You lacked that drive to obtain that power. Most important of all, you lack the heart of a warrior."

Embryo glared at the man, "You mean that those two, Kaito and Ange, they have all of those?!"

Sagara chuckled, "Kaito has proven himself a lot of times, in both his original world and this world. As for Ange, yes, even if she wants to destroy the world, she has all those things, and the fruit accepted them. All that's left is for them to claim it."

Sagara then stared at Embryo in the eye, "Besides, the fruit, and by extension I, do not like the way you do things, especially ensnaring girls and using Aura as a battery just to achieve your goal."

The self proclaimed World Tuner could only glare at the man as the fight raged on above them. A battle between two lovers, two rejected people… a battle that would determine the fates of two worlds.

Thanks to Gaim no Kaze for Beta reading.