Prologue

PROCLAMATION: Day Of Mourning

Whereas at a meeting of the Council of the Corporation of the City of London, held today, it was Resolved:

"That a Proclamation be issued inviting the clergy and congregation of the ESOTERIC ORDER OF TRUE SIGHT arrange for the holding of memorial services throughout the city ON THE THIRD DAY, the day of interment of our once beloved

QUEEN VICTORIA

At the hour of ELEVEN O'CLOCK IN THE FORENOON, and that all citizens be respectfully requested to partake of the services to be held in and around the City of London and, further, that the attention of all citizens be directed to the ROYAL PROCLAMATION requesting that the said day be observed as a DAY OF MOURNING, which it is hoped will be strictly complied with by closing all places of business and entertainment until provided further notice."

These are therefore to request the citizens to comply with the terms of the foregoing Resolution by attending said Memorial Services, and generally observing the said THIRD DAY as a day of mourning. After which, the CORONATION CEREMONY of the new PRIESTESS OF THE ANCIENT ONES shall commence without delay on the ELEVENTH HOUR to usher in the new age bestowed upon us. All hail!

AMELIA WATSON

Priestess-Elect of the Ancient Ones

In testimony whereof I have signed this Proclamation and caused the same to be made public on this day.

The Right Honourable Mr. Steven Lowry,

Acting Prime Minister of The Enlightened Great Britain

AlterMyth

End of an Era

Eighty-Fourth Scene - Aristocrat In Exile

So. Dad's usurping the Queen the moment she can't fight back, huh? Typical.

Ophelia Lowry read through the haunting proclamation in the morning newspaper with a disgruntled furrow on her brow. Seeing Ame's name side by side with her father's disturbed her greatly while she thumbed through the paper under the light of a candle lantern. The aristocrat was seated quietly on a handsome wooden chair in the private study of Dr. John H. Watson's medical practice.

Blackout curtains were drawn over the large windows of the room while Dr. Watson's collection of curious trinkets and artifacts from around the world were draped in cloth. At the same time, Ophelia wore her Mauser C96 pistol by her hip and had a loaded Winchester M1897 shotgun by her side.

At the other end of the room, Dr. Watson and Sherlock Holmes were on their feet and were looking over a map of the City of London spread out over Dr. Watson's desk. The esteemed doctor's walking cane sat beside Sherlock's Webley revolver on that desk while the two men pointed to the map and argued heatedly.

"London Bridge and Westminster Bridge will be heavily guarded. They're strategic chokepoints, Sherlock!" Dr. Watson insisted, "An entirely overland route will be better."

"Listen, John. That path you're proposing is too long." Sherlock folded his arms and countered, "The longer we're out in the open, the more chances they'll catch us. There aren't a lot of us either, so I'm sure we can sneak through the bridges."

Both men then turned to Ophelia at once and asked at the same time.

"What do you think, Lady Lowry?"

"What do you think, kiddo?"

"D-don't ask me!" Ophelia got flustered and told the two men off, "I haven't exactly led an insurrection in my life before!"

Ophelia said that, but she had no choice but to do just that.

Her eyes wandered to the center of the room now where her two friends and their six loyal mercenaries chatted together. Even though their moot expedition had long since faltered, the Scots, Americans and Germans chose to stay on board with them to the bitter end. The mercenaries and their employers huddled shoulder to shoulder while they formed an assembly line that turned bottles of wine into homemade firebombs.

The sight of it reminded Ophelia of the Parisian insurgents who formed up barricades just decades ago - and the peculiar Victor Hugo book that immortalized their struggle.

We're Les Misérables now, huh? I just hope we have a better ending than the barricades.

Seated there by the covered window, Ophelia looked around the dim, candle-lit office and regarded the many peculiarities that were housed there. As a relative of Amelia Watson - and by extension Dr. Watson - she was familiar with some of those curiosities. She had always thought that those things were among the strangest to be found in the city of London. However, when she dared to part the blackout curtains and peek through the window, she saw how the city of London itself had turned into an otherworldly scene.

Green haze and fog shrouded the entire city in a harsh yet luminous dome that crackled like storm clouds from time to time. Under that dome, every single Union Jack flag was taken down from their flag poles as far as her eyes could see - from the front gate of the Occidental College, to the row of buildings above London Bridge all the way to the distant, smoldering ruins of the Palace of Westminster across the River Thames. Those flags were soon replaced by dark purple flags bearing the mark of a golden eye - the standards of the Esoteric Order of True Sight .

The sun set on the British Empire, and her capital was the first to fall.

Ophelia's lament was interrupted by terrified screams coming from nearby London Bridge. Londoners skittered away like rats when a gigantic three-headed hellhound with a snake's tail crossed the bridge and trampled over anything - and anyone - that couldn't get away in time.

The aristocrat's face soured. In that situation, she would have asked where the constables of Scotland Yard were in this time of crisis. However, those constables were marching on foot and on horseback behind the hellhound as if they were escorting the damn beast through the city.

Further down the bridge, the constables were also escorting another group of oddities: thousands upon thousands of Grim Reapers armed with menacing sickles and scythes. Ophelia had only fought Grim Reapers once in Bordeaux, but she never once thought she would see a whole army of them - many times more than the contingent she attacked - marching through the streets of London like an occupying army!

Finally, towards the very end of the otherworldly procession, horse carriages and chariots carried Ophelia's father - and the so-called 'Acting Prime Minister of the Enlightened Great Britain - who waved to the terrified crowds of Londoners. He was accompanied by the tall, imposing figure of what seemed like Captain James Morrison from the RMS Teutonic. However, based on what she read in the newspaper, that man was none other than the 'Lord of Death' of the Underworld - the most powerful Grim Reaper to have served the role.

This wasn't a procession mourning the late Queen Victoria at all, Ophelia bit her lip. It was a show meant to break the will and spirit of the people of London and coax them into capitulating. But what for?

London was already theirs - or rather the three fourths of the city that wasn't leveled by the meteorite that fell from the sky last night and decimated by the assault of a lone, faceless, titanic figure of light that stood thirty stories tall and emerged from the cosmic fireball. Ophelia recalled how that beast swung a powder blue, cross-shaped sword that scarred the earth with a single swing. Triangle-tipped tendrils of light fluttered behind her and swiped at people, beasts and buildings indiscriminately.

Mayfair, Soho, Covent Garden and most of the West End of London were destroyed overnight, but the assault came to a sudden stop when the titan reached the clocktower of Big Ben at Westminster. When the bells of the clocktower rang to mark the fifth hour of the morning, the titan slammed its sword into the outer walls of the Palace of Westminster, rested its back on Big Ben and fell into a state of lethargy.

That was when the green smog enveloped the city of London in its dome. Portals from the Underworld opened up within the city and the army of Grim Reapers trickled in to claim the city for themselves.

Somberly, Ophelia turned her eyes now towards that titanic figure leaning against the clocktower of Big Ben. A frown formed on the aristocrat's lips and she mused beneath her breath.

"What did they do to you, Ame? And why are you alone?"

While Ophelia was lost in her thoughts, she was startled by loud banging noises coming from the front door of the medical practice, one story down. Everyone in Dr. Watson's private study fell silent and Ophelia closed the curtains in a hurry. Despite this, the banging on the doors continued.

"Everyone, form up! Prepare for combat!" Dr. Watson urged and took his walking cane off his study table.

Sherlock took his revolver while Ophelia picked up the shotgun at her side. The rest of their companions followed suit and they carefully exited the private study with weapons, firebombs and candle lanterns in tow. Ophelia's friends and their mercenaries took up firing positions on the mezzanine balcony while Dr. Watson, Sherlock and Ophelia went down the stairs to approach the front doors.

Dr. Watson drew his sword from his walking cane and laid a gloved hand on the knob of the front door. Ophelia and Sherlock stayed a few paces behind and pointed their guns at the threshold.

In one fluid motion, Dr. Watson opened the door and pointed his sword at the threshold. Ophelia steadied her breath, looked down the sights of her shotgun and kept her finger near the trigger. However, nothing prepared her to see the figure standing at the door.

"Jacqueline… Chadwick!?" Ophelia gasped, "Didn't Ame and her friends kill you in Bordeaux!?"

"Well, they did." Chadwick raised up her hands in surrender, "But us Grim Reapers come back after a while. Death's job is never done after all, so we don't have the time to 'rest in peace' for too long."

"What do you want!?" Ophelia demanded, pumping her shotgun and pointing it at Chadwick's head.

"I'm here to parlay, little miss. In good faith." Chadwick insisted, "These past few days got me thinking about the future, you see. I've been thinking of having a career change - and I figured that puts us on the same side." While she spoke, the otherworldly parade on nearby London Bridge grew louder and louder and prodded Chadwick to beg, "Now do us both a favor and let me in before Death-sensei and your sociopath of a father come looking for me!"

Ophelia turned to Dr. Watson and Sherlock for their opinion. The both of them were hesitant, but they eventually concurred. With that, they let Chadwick into the medical practice but everyone there kept their weapons at the ready. They closed the door behind them and shut off the din of the rambunctious parade on London Bridge.

Chadwick was made to sit down on the receptionist's chair at the foyer and told her story at gunpoint. She brought Ophelia, Dr. Watson and Sherlock up to speed on what had happened to Amelia Watson after she marched into the Underworld - from her daring heist to bring Ina'nis Ninomae out of the Sous La Lune bastion to the war she waged on the Grim Reapers to escape the realm.

After that point, however, Chadwick's expression grew somber. She took a short pause and then told her anxious listeners about what she had seen - the aftermath of the Battle of the Infinite Library.

Eighty-Fifth Scene - Advent of the Priestess-Elect

Roughly three days ago, Jacqueline Chadwick, also known as J-chad, stepped through a portal from the Sous La Lune bastion into the war torn space of the Infinite Library. She was accompanied by Death-sensei, the Lord of Death himself, and Mr. Steven Lowry, the High Priest of the Esoteric Order of True Sight. The two men sauntered onto its grime-stained marble floors as if it was a second home to them both. J-chad, on the other hand, walked cautiously and avoided the spotches of grime lest her shoes get sullied.

I always hate coming here. Especially after the sadistic squid bitch has one of her gruesome 'receptions'.

Knowledge, the cosmic librarian, was battered and bruised but she greeted her new guests with wholehearted pride.

"We apologize for the mess, dear guests." Knowledge spoke in her haughty tone and her royal 'we', despite bearing fresh, black wounds that tainted her Napoleonic uniform, "My last batch of servants have all died valiantly in battle twice… and the new ones we raised are chasing a tourist who happened by."

"A tourist?" J-chad raised her brow.

"If memory serves us correctly, she was one of your subordinates, Miss Chadwick." Knowledge reported cordially, "We believe she fell into our realm when we manifested in the Sous La Lune fountain." She then pointed to one of her ash grey eyes and snickered, "The tourist was about to earn her name and have her sickle turned into a scythe before Amelia Watson shot her eye out."

A familiar face then came to J-chad's mind.

"She was about to have a really nice name too." J-chad spoke sympathetically, "That poor girl."

"Ah, that one." Death-sensei piped up with delight, "She was a heroic one. She got shot defending me from the assassination attempt - not that the detective's shot would have been any more than a nuisance."

Defending you? You pulled her in front of you, asshole!

J-chad gritted her teeth and kept her thoughts to herself.

"Worry not, Lady Knowledge. The Esoteric Order is swelling with new believers." Mr. Lowry spoke with gracious reverence, like a politician on the campaign trail visiting a wealthy donor, "Queen Victoria is on her deathbed - and her passing will throw the multitudes into despair. The Esoteric Order will embrace those lost souls and welcome them into the new age!"

"Indeed. Fresh blood is always welcomed by the Ancient Ones." Knowledge agreed and wiped some grime from her face, "In any case, we are aware of why you are here, sirs and madam. You wish to see the Priestess-elect, yes?"

At the mention of the Priestess, J-chad's lips twisted into a small frown. If Knowledge was speaking this confidently, then that must have meant that Calli failed. She started to wonder if her beloved apprentice, along with the new friends she had made, was among the black grime spilled onto the floor.

J-chad held back her words and followed Knowledge, Death-sensei and Mr. Lowry through the messy, war-scarred checkerboard hallways. Before long, they came across a solitary figure kneeling on the grimy marble floors.

It was Amelia Watson!

The detective knelt with a lowered head and her face bore an anguished frown. Threads of seven colors descended from the cosmic void above her and weaved together into a peculiar veil - the same veil that Ina'nis Ninomae was going to wear for the Ritual of Death and Destiny.

"We have already completed the ritual. The Ancient Ones have accepted Amelia Watson as their Priestess-elect." Knowledge informed her guests and walked around the kneeling Ame like a vulture, "We would have preferred to bring her back to the Sous La Lune bastion to continue with the formalities, but we made an executive decision. Had we relented or delayed any more, then Miss Amelia Watson would have escaped with her friends."

"So, the other ladies of HoloMyth are still at large." Death-sensei mused, "Where have they gone?"

"The Portuguese Azores Islands. Flores Island specifically, near the Atlantean border." Knowledge answered flatly.

"Shall I dispatch some scythes to finish them off?" Death-sensei offered.

"No need, Morrison." Mr. Lowry addressed the Lord of Death by his mortal surname, "My sources have told me that Priestess-elect's Atlantean companion is a wanted fugitive in Atlantis. If they are wise, they will avoid Atlantis at all costs."

Mr. Lowry's network reaches as far as Atlantis itself, huh? Damn.

The high priest joined his hands together and gave his proposal.

"I will pull some strings in the Esoteric Order and call in some favors. My moles in Atlantis will deal with HoloMyth for us - and the Aquamarine Throne will be none the wiser. Empress Iustitia is still a child, after all. She will trust her regents wholeheartedly." A sly smirk formed on Mr. Lowry's lips, "That said, we will need all of your Grim Reapers to join my congregation on the streets of London. We will give Westminster Palace and the royal family a show they will never forget. Queen Victoria will be frightened to death… and Crown Prince Edward will not have the stomach to resist!"

Death-sensei rubbed his chin and concurred. He turned to Knowledge and wore a serious expression.

"Everything is in order in the human realm and in the Underworld then, Ancient One." The Lord of Death extended his skeletal right hand to her, "Steven and I look forward to continuing our partnership in this world - and the next."

"Likewise." Knowledge shook his hand and then Mr. Lowry's. She glanced over at the bedraggled Ame and mused, "Given Miss Watson's potential, our goal is surely within reach."

Goal? Come to think of it, Death-sensei never really talked about why he's been going along with all this .

While J-chad was holding her breath to hear more about this plan, the Priestess-elect Amelia shifted from where she knelt. All eyes in the Library turned to her when she spoke.

"You bastards... aren't gonna make me do anything!" Amelia was defiant, even in her drastically weakened state, "I don't give a damn… about this whole Priestess thing. I just want… my friends... to be happy."

Knowledge tilted her head, ran a dismissive hand through her wavy red hair and scoffed at the defiant Amelia.

"It doesn't matter whether or not you want to help us. Your consciousness is of no value - only the fire of your soul matters to the Ancient Ones." The librarian then knelt down on one knee and faced the unwilling priestess-elect eye to eye, "We were once like you. We had four dear friends who stood by our side. We had the time of our life. My life. But the Ancient Ones called me and demanded sacrifices."

"Sacrifices…?" Amelia croaked.

Knowledge nodded and dug into her tattered military dress. She brought out her R-shaped pendant and started talking without the royal 'we' she had pretentiously spoke all that time.

"I slaughtered my friends in their sleep and served them on a silver platter. Four wonderful people - the kind you meet only once in a generation. That was how we brought about the Victorian Era." The librarian's gaze sharpened now, "You will do the same, Amelia Watson! But it's not just your friends that you will sacrifice. You will trample the world under your feet and bring about an era of death and destruction! That will be your offering to the Ancient Ones! A war to end all wars! "

Amelia's sky blue eyes met with Knowledge's ash green. The librarian stared back, hoping for some sort of shocked reaction or aghast from the detective. However, Amelia regarded Knowledge with sympathy and spoke.

"You miss them, don't you? Your friends."

"W-what…?" Knowledge retracted her head, but the beginnings of tears started to form at the sides of her eyes.

"Don't lie... to me." Amelia insisted firmly, "I can see it... in your eyes. I'm a detective... after all."

A dark shadow formed over the eyes of Knowledge now. The librarian's proud voice weakened to a whisper and she laid her right hand on Amelia's forehead, surprising the detective. Knowledge then set her thumb square on Amelia's temple and lamented.

"You don't understand the sacrifices that I've made to get this far, Amelia Watson, but you will! Embrace your enlightenment, whether you like it or not!"

All of the sudden, a pillar of bright powerful light engulfed Amelia and Knowledge and rose up to the endless cosmic void of the Infinite Library. It was so bright that J-chad, Death-sensei and Mr. Lowry all had to shield their eyes. Amelia Watson screamed, but her harrowing, banshee-like wails were buried behind the world-shattering tremors that threatened to tear the Infinite Library in two.

The grimy checkerboard floor beneath J-chad's feet, blasted by the powerful pillar of light, took on a glass-like polish and unveiled a window over the Earth itself from just above the clouds. Through that window, J-chad and her companions looked down and saw the city of London.

The pillar of radiant light then took on a humanoid shape - one that resembled the priestess-elect Amelia Watson. She stood thirty stories tall, wearing her detective's garb and the multicolored priestess' veil over her head. The ribbons and triangle-shaped buckles on the back of her coat, meanwhile, took on lives of their own as if they were tendrils of the Ancient Ones.

A crown of five stars floated above her head like a halo - one pink, one orange, one purple, one yellow and one blue. Moments later, the remnants of the light coalesced into a large, sword-like weapon. It was a sword in the shape of a massive cross, reminiscent of sunlight breaking through the darkness.

J-chad had seen the color of that sword once before - the blue, triangle seal on the letter of Cover Corporation.

What in the world are they planning to do!?

The cross sword slammed onto the floor of the Infinite Library with immense force. J-chad nearly fell off her feet from the impact alone, but Death-sensei and Mr. Lowry were shielded by the Lord of Death's magical barriers.

"The priestess-elect is ready to face her destiny." Knowledge declared proudly, shouting over the rumbling of the massive transfiguration, "All that is left now is for the actors to take to the stage!" She spread her arms out wide and cheered maniacally, "The sun shall finally set on the British Empire - and the rest of the world will fall soon after!"

When Knowledge said this, the towering giant of light in Amelia's image stirred. It picked up the cross-shaped sword by the handle with both hands and drew it from the cracked marble like Excalibur.

Once the sword was lifted, the circular glass-like mirage beneath their feet cracked and rang in J-chad's ears. Moments later, the glass mirage shattered and the titan of light fell through the floor of the Infinite Library like a meteorite descending to strike the Earth.

"The wheels are in motion, my friends." Knowledge spoke with expectant glee, "We look forward to manifesting in the land of the living once again."

Eighty-Sixth Scene - Rooftop Rendezvous

Chadwick sat quietly on the receptionist's chair, unable to maintain eye contact with her listeners any more. The senior reaper bit her lip and then went over what she expected to happen over the next three days - from troop numbers and formations to weak points in the defenses of the Grim Reapers, Scotland Yard and the congregation of the Esoteric Order.

Together, she, Ophelia, Dr. Watson and Sherlock Holmes had a tense back and forth about the best course of action, but all of them knew that it was a shot in the dark. Even if they combined their efforts, linked up with the other resistance movements forming in the city and struck at their weak points, they wouldn't be able to get anywhere near the struggling titan of light resting on the tower of Big Ben.

"The only reason three fourths of London is still intact is because Amelia Watson's spirit hasn't been completely broken yet, but who knows how long she can hold out." The reaper explained, "On the third day, at the eleventh hour, if things remain as they are, Amelia Watson will become the anchor of the Ancient Ones in this world. That means Knowledge and her whole damn circus of Ancient Ones will come bursting through and end this world as we know it."

Ophelia Lowry bit her thumb and paced around the lobby. Her eyes turned to the large painting of the late Queen Victoria hanging over the hearth of the room. The painting had tilted to the side after the tremors of Amelia's titan of light stopped its rampage halfway through.

Is this going to be the end? Are we going to die like rats in this damn city?

While Ophelia was grumbling under the gaze of the dead queen, she noticed the painting shift ever so slightly again. Dust from the ceiling trickled down to the floor before the aristocrat's feet and her face went pale. She then grabbed her shotgun again and yelled to her allies.

"There's something on the roof!"

"Are they coming to look for me already…!?" Chadwick clicked her tongue.

"We'll discuss this later. For now, we must check the roof." Dr. Watson interrupted with a stern voice. Once he had everyone's attention, he turned to the people gathered in the foyer and organized the defense, "Lady Lowry, Sherlock, Miss Chadwick, come with me up to the roof. There's a stairwell to the top we can take. Everyone else, take defensive positions. They may attack from the front door as well."

Chadwick and Ophelia looked at each other and nodded. Sherlock Holmes, on the other hand, cracked his knuckles and looked like he was raring for a fight. The four of them hurried over to the rooftop stairwell and climbed it all the way up to the top.

Dr. Watson and Chadwick took the lead and opened the door to the roof together. They crossed the threshold and the senior reaper summoned her tremendous scythe, prepared for battle. Dr. Watson likewise drew his cane sword while Sherlock and Ophelia toted their guns.

Just as they expected, there was indeed someone on the roof - a lone figure in a warm brown traveling coat and a hat bearing traces of the green haze that surrounded the British capital. That figure, with its back turned to the defenders, took off its hat and let its long locks of frizzy orange hair with green highlights flowed down to its shoulders. Dr. Watson, Ophelia and Sherlock carefully advanced towards the figure with their weapons in tow, but Chadwick stopped them.

"Wait a second. I know her. There's no mistaking it." Chadwick urged. She dissolved her scythe, rushed past the advancing line towards the figure and called the figure by its name, "It's you, isn't it? Calli's friend!"

The figure dusted off the traces of the green fog from her coat, turned around and then showed its face to Chadwick's British acquaintances for the first time. She then greeted the four on the roof with a muted, but still definitely cheerful greeting.

"Kikiriki!" Her bright pink eyes turned to Ophelia now and she smiled, "I'm the Phoenix that you and Ame were searching for in France, Miss Lowry. It's nice to finally meet you."

Ophelia froze in place, but Kiara considerately sauntered over to shake hands with her. Seeing Kiara's bright figure before her eyes, the aristocrat was dumbfounded.

"To think I'd see the last Phoenix in the world!" Ophelia cheered.

"About that…" Kiara laughed uncomfortably at first, but she quickly bounced back to a smile, "It turns out, I'm not the last Phoenix in the world. There are others who have chosen to settle down and live quiet lives." She reached into her traveling coat now, brought out a leather-bound dossier and gave it to Ophelia, "Speaking of Phoenixes, our mutual friend, Ina, asked me to send this to you as a gift."

Ophelia took the dossier and thumbed through its contents with academic curiosity.

"This is a manuscript for a treatise on Phoenixes. It's in Ina's handwriting… and it's quite in depth. She made it out of the Underworld alive, huh?" Suddenly, the aristocrat gasped, "But it's not just about Phoenixes! Did she write about Atlantis too!?"

"Mhm~! Ame and I brought Ina out of the Underworld, but Ame sacrificed herself so that we could get away. After that, Ina met an entire family of Phoenixes, and she saw Atlantis with her own eyes. That manuscript is a rough draft, but Ina told me she worked really hard on it!"

"She could make a fortune if she published this!" Ophelia was distraught by the dossier in her hands, "Why is she giving it to me?"

"Ina and the rest of our friends are en route to London as we speak. They have an army of Atlanteans riding at their side!" Kiara explained with excitement, "She asked me to fly ahead, scout out the area and to make contact with you, Miss Lowry. We need your help - and the help of everyone in London - so that we can reach Ame before it's too late. This dossier is her gift to you, and a plea for help."

Ophelia took the dossier in her hand and felt the weight that it carried for the first time. The aristocrat then scoffed and held the dossier close to her heart.

"That foolish oriental. She didn't have to pay me anything for my support. I would have given it for free!" She then beamed at Kiara and gave her pledge, "Not all Londoners have given up the fight. The resistance movements in London will support your assault, mighty Phoenix. Even we common folk carry surprises up our sleeves!"

With that, Ophelia and Kiara shook hands and sealed their pact.

After that, Kiara reached into her traveling coat again and brought out a bottle of Underworld-branded wine. She handed the wine to Chadwick now and smiled at her as well.

"Calli asked me for a favor too, J-chad." Kiara gently placed the bottle in the senior reaper's hands, "We've got a big fight ahead of us, so she wants you to be there for us when the time comes."

Chadwick smiled back and laid a gentle hand on the Phoenix's shoulder.

"You can count me in, girlie. Death-sensei and Mr. Lowry won't know what hit em!" She then paused and leaned over to Kiara to whisper, "And you're going back to see Calli again' right?."

"I am, yeah. Is there something you want me to tell her for you?" Kiara asked with anticipation.

J-chad nodded and gave her message to Kiara, "Tell her that I'm glad she found such good friends."

Eighty-Seventh Scene - Do You Hear The People Sing?

Two days later, on the fifth hour of the third day, J-chad and her hundred-strong Potomac Platoon relieved the garrison posted on the bridgeheads of the vast London Bridge and took their place as scheduled. The senior reaper stole a glance at the radiant titan of light over at Westminster still resting against the clock tower of Big Ben.

You really hung in there, detective. Good job.

She then turned away from the titan and inspected her troops as she always did before a campaign. While she did, she relayed the latest announcements from Death-sensei to them and told them to look forward to the eleventh hour of that day. After all, that will be the moment when Amelia Watson would be crowned Priestess and shatter reality to let the Ancient Ones manifest in earnest. For that reason, she announced with her booming voice, London Bridge must be secure from the grip of insurgents at all costs.

However, while she was parroting the narrative of Death-sensei to her troops, J-chad and her closest aides handed out small pieces of paper that told an entirely different story. The Grim Reapers of the Potomac Platoon whispered amongst themselves, but J-chad gave them a reassuring wink.

Minutes later, the sun started to rise over the dome of green haze. That was J-chad's signal to give her order.

"Potomac Platoon! Raise the colors!"

At her command, the dark purple banners of the Esoteric Order of True Sight flying on the bridgeheads of London Bridge were lowered. In their stead, flags of the British Union Jack were raised and flew proudly in the wind. Once the Union Jacks were raised, a multitude of disgruntled Londoners - hundreds of them - began trickling out of their homes under the cover of darkness and made a beeline for London Bridge, singing the tune of God Save The Queen all the way.

Recruits of the Potomac Platoon greeted the Londoners with cheers and passed them rifles, pistols, swords and any other weapon that they had managed to pilfer from the Underworld army's stores. Slowly but surely, London Bridge had become a fortified barricade where members of the British resistance flocked to. From that moment on, J-chad hummed, she and her troops were rogue reapers just like Calli.

Damn, this feels so liberating!

J-chad didn't have long to celebrate, however. Within the hour, four platoons of Grim Reapers and constables of Scotland Yard were dispatched to the scene on horseback - two hundred riders from Whitechapel in the North-East and two hundred more from Bermondsey in the South-East - to surround London Bridge on both sides.

Gunfire erupted between the two sides immediately, but J-chad's troops and the Londoner partisans were prepared and shot back with vigor.

In the midst of the heavy fighting, while the constables and the loyalist reapers crossed through the streets, garrisoned partisans shot at them from the windows of their homes and threw firebombs at them to stoke the chaos. The enemy cavalry lost so many riders so quickly that the survivors pulled back in full retreat. All the while, the partisans and the Potomac Platoon rushed to take what guns and ammunition they could from the fallen riders.

Going smoothly so far… Death-sensei ain't gonna take this lying down.

While J-chad tossed captured rifles over the barricade of the Northern Bridgehead, she heard war drums beating in the distance. The infantry was coming en masse. Foot soldiers loyal to Death-sensei, constables loyal to Mr. Lowry and cultists of the Esoteric Order began sweeping the streets of London, house by house, for partisans while they advanced towards London Bridge.

J-chad brought out a pair of binoculars and regarded the mass of enemies marching towards them, and the equipment they were towing along.

They're bringing out the Maxim guns and Armstrong cannons. Gloves are off, huh?

While the rogue senior reaper was ruminating, she heard a voice call out to her from the Thames River beneath London Bridge. J-chad looked down and saw a convoy of rowboats with cargo holds covered in tarpaulin heading towards the bridgehead. Ophelia Lowry, Dr. Watson and Sherlock Holmes were riding the foremost boat together with a fresh batch of partisans.

"Were you able to find them?" J-chad hollered down to them.

"Yeah!" Ophelia cheerfully hollered back. She removed the tarpaulin from her rowboat and showed an unlimbered artillery piece and some ammunition, "We found where the cannons missing from the RMS Teutonic were kept!"

"Alexander Hamilton would like to have a word with you!" J-chad teased.

"What was that?" The aristocrat tilted her head.

"Nothing!" The senior reaper laughed out loud, "Stay there, we'll help you bring the guns up!"

J-chad rallied a handful of her troops and they helped the boaters moor onto the base of the bridgehead. Together, they unloaded the weapons and ammunition in a hurry and set up firing positions as quickly as they could. By the time Big Ben struck seven, the resistance were able to install six 4.7-inch Mk. I naval cannons at each of the bridgeheads.

Thus, when the columns of enemy infantry approached, they were greeted with a relentless barrage of artillery fire. The army of loyalist reapers and constables were shocked, but they carried on with their attack in spite of the carnage. After all, the coalition army had more than twelve artillery pieces. All they had to do was set up a few Maxim guns and the London Bridge barricades would fall within minutes.

Knowing this, J-chad looked up to the green haze that covered the sky while the crackles of gunfire on all sides filled her ears. Her long, brown hair flew wildly in the wind when a nearby cannon fired too, but her thoughts were calm and a smile formed on her lips.

We've done our part, HoloMyth. The rest is up to you.

Epilogue

Rifles, pistols, shotguns and cannons fired from the fortified bridgeheads of London Bridge where J-chad, Ophelia Lowry, Dr. Watson and Sherlock Holmes led the Potomac Platoon and the Londoner partisans in battle. The bells of Big Ben rang to mark the eighth hour of the day and the full brunt of the joint loyalist army bore down on their defensive positions. Everyone in the barricade fired guns or manned the cannons, but they only succeeded in slowing down the inevitable advance of their seemingly countless foes.

J-chad had already sent out skirmishers - scythe and sickle wielding Grim Reapers - to keep the advancing army at bay but even they were already at their limit. The enemies had gained enough ground to set up their own artillery - and their vaunted Maxim guns - to tear into the defenders and shatter their battle lines once and for all.

All hope seemed to be lost, but the resolve of the defenders never wavered. Before long, the green haze in the skies crackled and rumbled with lightning and the luminous figure of Kiara Takanashi in her broke through the barrier with her majestic Phoenix wings spread out wide. The mighty Phoenix traced a trail of bright flames through the sickly green sky and greeted friend and foe alike - this time with an unchained voice.

"KIKIRIKI!"

And there she goes…

Kiara swooped down towards the enemy troops gathering on the Northern bridgehead and summoned her broadsword and buckler shield with flashes of orange light. Powerful flames gathered at the tip of her sword into a scorching fireball and she cast it down onto the artillery positions of the loyalists. Armstrong and Maxim guns alike were incinerated along with their crews, throwing the loyalists into disarray.

The Phoenix then landed gracefully on her feet on the rooftop of the Occidental College for Young Ladies - the very same spot from where she watched over Amelia Watson and Ina'nis Ninomae from many months ago. A bright smile formed on her lips now when she recalled all the memories of her journeys thus far.

After all, this time around, she wasn't alone.

As if on cue, the waters of the River Thames started to shift beneath and around the struts of London Bridge. One by one, the thousand-strong contingent of Atlantean soldiers emerged from the river mounted on their armor-clad seahorses. A large Atlantean, the newly minted Polemarchos Bloop rallied his troops and took half of them to join Kiara in battle at the Northern bridgehead.

The other half of the Atlantean army followed the lead of Empress Iustitia IV, the young empress of Atlantis herself. Together, they assaulted the loyalist troops advancing towards the Southern bridgehead.

In short order, the Londoner partisans and the rogue Potomac Platoon reapers found themselves fighting side by side with trident-armed, armor-clad Atlantean soldiers on both fronts. Once their reinforcements joined the battle, the defenders finally started pushing back the once insurmountable tides.

Gura, Ina, Calli and Jenma emerged from the waters of the River Thames as well, bearing the aquamarine capes gifted to them by the Empress.

The prodigal Atlantean summoned her trident with a flash of powder blue light while the now lionhearted former librarian manifested her twelve tentacles behind her. All the while, Ina's grimoire AO-chan hovered behind her almost as if it was raring for a fight. With that, the pair hopped off their seahorses and charged into battle together with the grimoire.

Calli and Jenma, on the other hand, rushed over to J-chad and Ophelia on the Southern bridgehead. The Grim Reapers of the Potomac Platoon were astonished to see their former commander standing before them in the flesh. However, J-chad proudly bumped fists with Calli and shared their intricate handshake without missing a beat.

Between the two of them, at least, all was already forgiven.

However, Jenma walked over to J-chad and brought out a peculiar hardbound lilac book that bore the name of Enma in gold letters. A smile then formed on J-chad's lips.

"Don't worry, I haven't forgotten my promise to you." She then turned to the bitter street battles beyond the barricades, "Your boss is in the sewers just over yonder, under the English Maiden cafe. But we'll have to get through those bastards first."

Jenma drew her katana and nodded in agreement, "It will be a pleasure to work with you, Jaqueline Chadwick."

"Likewise, Jennifer Mathers." J-chad summoned her heavy scythe.

The two of them then hurried over to the front lines, joining Gura, Ina and the Atlantean empress in their harsh melee. That left Calli standing alone with Ophelia Lowry just outside the Southern bridgehead barricade.

Ophelia lowered her head and spoke apologetically.

"I saw Amelia when she landed in London like a meteorite. Her titan didn't have a face, but I could tell she was sad - even from afar. I was wondering all that time... where the hell did her friends go!? I thought that Ninomae and Gura had given up on her… and I was just about ready to give up too."

Calli, however, shook her head and smiled for Ophelia.

"Ophelia Lowry, right? Ame, Ina and Gura told me all about you. This was a tough battle to fight, but you picked up your scythe and swung it like a champ!" She then laid a sympathetic hand on Ophelia's shoulder, "Plus, you're fighting against someone you've respected and looked up to for a long time. That ain't easy to do."

"And Chadwick told me that you looked up to this… 'Death-sensei' like your father." Ophelia chuckled, "It looks like we're both fighting against our dads here."

"Uh-huh. But we're going to prevail." Calli insisted, patting Ophelia's shoulder's again, "Ame needs our help right now. Death-sensei and Mr. Lowry aren't gonna be able to stop us!"

"Yeah." Ophelia nodded eagerly.

With that, Calli summoned her own heavy scythe with a flash of pink light while Ophelia pumped her shotgun to expel a spent round. The rogue reaper and the aristocrat then rushed together into the fray.

Their counterattack was about to begin.

To Be Continued