Chapter 139 - Tracking the Final Boss
The moment that they heard that name, along with the conversation, all Neptune and Compa saw was red.
No other colours, just red.
Red…
Red…
Red like the crimson blood that they were slowly getting used to even if they didn't want to.
Red like the blood of those who had fallen victim to the hands of Demonic beings, victims whom could have been saved if the military or anyone else had known where they were.
Red like the blood that coursed through their veins like rushing rapids going through the forests.
They didn't even realize that their bodies had begun to move.
They didn't acknowledge the rapid breathing their bodies automatically made.
They didn't register their hearts rapidly pounding like someone slamming their fists into a door battering ram style.
They didn't register the loud SLAM of the door which got shut after they exited the Bedroom, intent on just going to that location and utterly ripping that bitch apart.
Nothing else registered on their minds other than those directives, and it wasn't like they didn't know where they were going either. During their travels through the Nation, each of the girls had been fortunate enough to find and fight monsters, both normal and Abnormal, as well as more than a few Lesser Demons, among a variety of locations. It just so happened that Halo Mountain had been one of those locations. In addition to MS Mountain, if a Party were to go to the latter location, they would be able to see the vague silhouette of Halo Mountain towards the west.
Neither of them could help the storm of rage that overtook them at that moment, it had been just simply impossible. For the moment that they shot out that door, exited the Basilicom, all they could think about was to get to Halo Mountain as quick as possible. Just so that they could corner Conversation before she could pull anything else out of her backside. They just got consumed with so much rage that they didn't even know what to do with it. The way it worked was rather simple if one actually tried to think about it:
Neptune and Compa, neither of them were very rational people. They tended to act more on their emotions, thus wore their hearts on their sleeves. This meant several things: They would be easy to read since they didn't really try to hide what they thought from other people and instead displayed them in a display of open honesty. This allowed them to have a great way of inspiring other people and getting them to like these two girls, it was just in their nature to be too goddamn likable. If Neptune got dropped into a group of big burly men wearing war paint, her overly innocent demeanour would easily ensnare their hearts and calm raging fires of pure rage just with one big happy smile. It would be the same for Compa as well, any who met her and got to know her for a day would agree that her happy expressions, combined with her caring personality, would make it so that it would be classed as sinful just to make her cry. Therefore, any man would inflict deadly retribution on those who tried such a feet.
However, just like any person at all, they had their own feelings, their own bottled up emotions inside. Just like any other person, Neptune and Compa still had that potential for rage, hatred, despair, sorrow and loneliness. Something which they had been sealing up inside for over 2 weeks now. The worry they felt for the one they had a mutual attraction to, fear for the possibility that his life may end before they got a chance to bury themselves into the depths of his heart, the self-loathing of not being able to do much to help the male, and the rage at the one responsible for that male's incapacitated state. All of those emotions had been bottled up inside of them, emotions they'd managed to keep in check by doing their own thing, emotions that basically served as the true reason why they had thrusted themselves into training the way they did. Compa may be a practitioner of the medical arts, but she was only in Nursing School, and even qualified doctors as well as Nurses wouldn't know what to make of the poison which filled Nico's body right now. Therefore, they could truly do nothing for the one who meant so much to them.
However, an ultimatum had occurred.
The exact SECOND that these two girls got the name and location of the one responsible for their companion being in that state, it had been like a door had opened that gave a way out for that repressed emotion. A way for them to vent, for them to exercise their desire to impose their fiery wrath upon the perpetrator of that 'vile act' in their minds. The rage-filled fires that burned through their hearts, smothering their very souls with their heat, all of it took away any other thoughts, feelings or emotions aside from the ones to do with their desire for vengeance. In that moment…
They ceased being normal girls.
Instead…
They became the vengeful demons that they fought daily for days on end.
After an unknown timeframe, both girls arrived at the entrance to the Dungeon known as Halo Mountain. To the casual person, it looked pretty much like the one at MS Mountain, the Dungeon Layout would also be considered the same whilst different monsters would roam the place. Nothing very much different from the other Dungeons spread throughout Leanbox, if one is honest with themselves….
Although, none of that registered in the eyes and minds of those two girls as they landed in front of the entrance…
Neptune in HDD form, so she would be Purple Heart…
And Compa, having donned her Astral Dress and flown over, Sandalphon strapped to her back.
"Looks like we made it…" Purple Heart spoke blankly, her blue eyes scanning the scene for any signs of initial attacks. Constantly fighting against Demons had hardened her warrior instincts, especially when transformed, and with Soul Calibur in hand she felt more than ready to take on the enemy. As she scanned the area though, only one thing became clear to Planeptune's CPU. "We should be in the right place, for I sense an abundance of Demonic Power saturating the air…" she muttered thoughtfully, instincts temporarily regaining hold over her instead of her anger. If there was ONE thing she had learned whilst fighting hordes of Demons and Abnormals, then it would be to always keep a level head unless she wanted to lose it.
The fierce flame of anger still burned brightly within her however, threatening to take over at any moment.
"Yessie… I can feel it too… there's so much of it all over the place…" Compa muttered, her white eyes also scanning the path up the Mountain whilst she took Sandalphon from her back and held it in her hand. "If what Hel-Hel told us is true, then that woman is in here, likely doing something she shouldn't. Let's get going Nep-Nep, we gotta spank her good and hard…" she spoke, already moving towards the entrance… but then she stopped mid stride, quickly jumping to the side as she did so. Good thing too, cause a large pillar of Hellfire suddenly erupted from the spot she had just been at seconds ago the width and diameter of a Lesser Demon. "Eh?! Traps?!"
Purple Heart scowled at the sight, swinging Soul Calibur horizontally and using the force behind it to disperse the flames. Hellfire wasn't something that could be dispersed by ordinary means, after all it burns everything it touches. It was something she had first heard about from Nico (PANG! An eruption of pain happened in her chest at the thought of him before she pushed it aside), then experienced herself during fighting Demons as a form of training with Soul Calibur. Therefore, one needed an extra powerful weapon, something like Soul Calibur, to deal with them efficiently. Another thing she had learned through experience, aside from how crazy these Demons seemed to be. "Looks like she's expecting trouble to arrive whilst she prepares for whatever it is she plans on doing." Purple Heart remarked, thoughtfully before she began floating forwards beside her companion in revenge. "Odds are that we'll run into more traps along the way to our goal Compa, be vigilant, we wouldn't be able to get our vengeance if we're reckless and get caught in the end."
"Yessie."
With that response, Compa gave a firm nod as she held Sandalphon's hilt in a tight manner. The flames inside her chest kept burning, even brighter and fiercer than the flames Camael generated whenever she summoned that particular Angel. She'd rather wait on summoning it though, cause with her current mental state being focused on revenge, and the aggression boost which Camael sported whenever she drew on it's power, Compa didn't want to risk anything. She had one companion incapacitated, and thus, the young Nurse-In-Training turned Spirit didn't want to nearly lose another one.
She'd probably break if she did.
Still though... why did she have this odd feeling in her chest? Like, something would be going extremely wrong...
10 minutes later, did more people arrive at the same location Purple Heart and Compa stop at. Several forms landed there in a varying amount of ways, though all of them had the same result.
"Tch, looks like we missed them." An annoyed grunt came from on IF, the BOW having taken to flight by unleashing her Wings (which looked way bigger than before, likely so that they could compensate for her more mature figure) and flying the whole way here. She'd landed in a crouch before standing tall and looking around, trying to get a feel for Neptune and Compa's energy signatures. Something which she had found herself able to do thanks to fighting alongside them and seeing them show so many energy attacks. Her coat fluttered thanks to all those motions, her green eyes alight with a mybrid of fierce, hot emotions racing through them like Olympic medallists. Her hands clutched themselves into her fists, as if just seconds away from morphing into one of her many mutations. According o her senses though, things definitely would be heating up soon, if any of them wanted to wind down after all the bullshit that happened a couple weeks ago, then they were gonna be sadly denied. 'Nep and Compa's energy is all over the place… not to mention that I can sense an abundance of Demonic Power too. Looks like we'll be having some Demonic guests tonight… man, what are we gonna do?' she added in her thoughts.
After IF, several figures followed her, landing in their own unique manners. The first, revealed itself to be Noire, the Lastation CPU. Or rather, Noire in her HDD Form Black Heart, with Balmung strapped to her back for the time being. The Lastation CPU had transformed and flown here at top speed (after she told Raiden to remain in Leanbox for the time being), just barely being beaten by IF's speed. Probably cause she wasn't as worried about the preteen as the brunette was, after all she had Compa with her. Never thought she'd think that, but since Compa had joined the 'overpowered club' like the rest of them, she definitely had more of an impact in Black Heart's thoughts. Not to mention that she could sense the abundance of Compa's Spirit Mana here, heck she'd fallowed a trail of it here, her anger had probably made a trail of her energy, similar to Neptune's divine Share Energy, and that would trace them over to Halo Mountain. Like the other factors wouldn't have clued them in anyways. "Looks like the idiot took your Nurse friend inside the Mountain already. I can sense them deeper inside, along with a large array of Demons." The thought that she would have to fight MORE Demons made Black Heart want to go home already, not because they scared her or anything, but because she had had enough fighting Demons for two lifetimes. 'Ugh, those two…! Compa I can at least tolerate, but Neptune you REALLY don goofed! What would Nico say if he saw you just go in like this! It fits more with him than you!' she screamed in her mind.
"That's no good, we can't have that."
Looking to the left, both girls soon saw Green Heart, her mint green hair flowing behind her like a green trail, descend towards them and land in one of the CPU signature floating positions. Black Heart would have questioned her on why she could transform when she had said she'd lost her powers, but the moment that Gungnir's visage entered her line of sight she stopped her gob before it could release that question into the atmosphere. The golden Spear shined brightly, that shine becoming perfect evidence that it had begun sustaining Green Heart's ability to transform.
Black Heart eyed that Spear wearily, her teal orbs running their gaze down it's glowing frame as she tried to get an accurate measurement of tat Spear's energy. Just like her Balmung however, she got nothing. Whatever that thing was, it had a good way to keep its power concealed from sensors. "You sure you'll be able to fight for long? You said that Spear is able to keep you transformed, but for how long can that last?" she questioned with concern. Not for her by the way, but more on the fact that if it ran out in the next few hours, then Green Heart would revert to her human form and become more of a liability.
If the look in Green Heart's eyes were any indication, it seemed like she knew what she had been thinking about this entire time, something that honestly irked Lastation's CPU though she chose not to show it. It would be obvious that Green Heart gained some form of special insight, she had to navigate through a huge amount of politics recently, just like how Black Heart had to do. Only, Black Heart had done it longer, so she should have been able to stop her thoughts from being read so easily. The fact that Green Heart saw right through her however, irked her. "Not to worry, I have been saving up Gungnir's power, it won't run out for quite some time yet." she spoke in assurance, before looking towards the Mountain. "So, anyone got an idea of what will be inside there? Cause from the energies I feel we likely will not be facing any monsters, normal or Abnormal."
That question got answered by IF, whom looked back towards the two CPUs. Her eyes shined with intensity as she opened her mouth to speak. "Looks like, from these readings I'm getting, we're gonna be dealing with at least Lesser Demons, so Bloodletters, Flesh Hounds, Juggernauts and the like. Not sure about any Heralds or Greater Demons though, the amount of energy in the atmosphere and how two idiots have mixed their energies within has been throwing my senses off." She replied, before a sigh escaped her lips. "Well, there's no use complaining, it was bound to happen eventually. Nep and Compa aren't as logical as the rest of us, so they'd likely have lost it sooner or later. Lets go guys, we'll back them up in case this turns out to be a trap… which I'm most certain it is."
"Then allow us to provide backup."
"Eh?"
IF, Black Heart and Green Heart each blinked owlishly in unison, their faces the epitome of those whom had been taken off guard by the emergence of another voice, one that they didn't even consider would be here in this place. It was a considerably deeper, more masculine voice so it had to have belonged to a man, they thought, prompting each of the girls to turn to the source. There, walking up to them whilst a legion of 30 men in uniforms, was Stefan Von Kessal. Not only him, but Guts and Isaac were there as well, flanking his sides whilst wearing serious faces... well, Guts was, Isaac's face they thought it would be, considering how his RIG had already built it's helmet around his head. Both of them had their signature weapons (Guts' Dragonslayer and Isaac's Plasma Cutter) in their right hands, ready for them to use at a moment's convenience...
'Wait, something's up with Isaac...' IF thought, glancing towards the said man. His RIG concealed his face, but the woman managed to feel cold rage emanating from his form like a calm blue flame that the rings a cooking oven had. It felt like the sort of rage which simmered quietly beneath the surface, until the moment came where it would erupt into a fiery storm. The moment she felt it, IF had to resist the urge to groan in dismay. Honestly, with the way that things had gone so far, IF REALLY didn't want to have to deal with someone else fueled by anger so much that it may blind their judgement. Her and the other ladies were already trying to rein in another couple who had lost themselves to that anger, they didn't need to deal with another. Even so, she hid this opinion behind an arched brow as she leaned on one leg. "Not that I don't appreciate some backup right now, but why are you guys here?"
"You can thank Helen for this." Stefan replied, pulling out a communication device that looked WAY too modern for someone who looked like a soldier from the middle ages. "Me and my men were busy patrolling the paths near here, making sure that no Demons or Khornate followers came down this path, when Helen gave me a call. She given me this communicator before the Gala, so she called me and told me that, and I quote 'two reckless brats are on their way to Halo Mountain near you, would you kindly please go rein them in with their posse?' end quote." The man then gestured behind him to the two Spec Ops Agents. "These two simply took an escort Quest to help us. Thus, here we are."
After he explained his reasoning, Green Heart cupped her chin with her free hand, eyes shining with calculation gleams whilst she mauled this over. "I see..." she muttered under her breath. Now, if she were to look at these men, she saw that each of them appeared to be veterans, each of them clad with swords and flintlock pistols. Just by looking at the haggard expressions in their eyes though, Green Heart could definitely see that these men had survived more than their fair share of battles with Demons. It helped that some of them had scars which could only have come FROM said beings, as well as somehow... "And I take it you all have had previous encounters by how your men have taken pieces of their Armour to replace ones they have lost?" Green Heart questioned, pointing her Spear at some of the men who had things like bulky crimson shoulder pads, others with gauntlets or leg entire leg Armour. Judging by how some of their Armour looked a little banged up, it didn't take a genius to figure out why they had that Armour.
Stefan nodded, seeing the flashes of anger in their eyes as he raised his hands in a placating manner. "Yeah, but I had no choice. Most of the men had barely functioning Armour after a couple successful battles against those assholes, so we had to stock up on some of their gear. Not to mention that I wanted to take a look to see how they're made to see if we can make something similar or at least something that can better destroy their Armour and get tot heir vile organs." he explained, and the more he did so the more that the girls saw the man's point. Normal humans didn't have the same advantages as they did, even Stefan had been better off thanks to his Paladin gear and his Ashbringer, a sword which carried divine elements, therefore it would DEFINITELY be effective against Demons and Demonic-empowered followers.
"Anyways, if you're gonna help us, lets go. We can't waste any more time." Black Heart urged as she began floating towards the path to the Mountain. The reason why they wouldn't be flying over it, much like how Neptune and Compa hadn't was because they had sensed a powerful energy signature there and they didn't want to entertain the possibility of being shot down by Demons. They did have their Hellfire, and the aggressive nature of those flames was no joke. Without even looking back, Black Heart made the 'come on' gesture with her free arm, having drawn Balmung in case of emergency attack. "Lets hurry up and bring back those two troublesome idiots. Then give them one heck of a scolding for running off without a plan."
Glancing over at each other, each of the ones left behind soon began trailing after her, Stefan beginning to issue orders to his men whilst the girls proceeded to follow Black Heart. Hopefully, things wouldn't go too horribly...
Somehow, they just got that feeling that they had jinxed themselves.
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"This isn't right… Where are they?"
Those words soon left the Planeptune CPU's lips as Purple Heart looked around for any sign of Demonic incursion. She and Compa were slowly making their way through the Mountain, keeping their senses open for any surges of Demonic Energy that may indicate a portal to wherever these hell spawn came from. The entire area felt sick, it felt wrong and unnatural… even though the land looked completely normal. Normal as in it didn't look the slightest bit corrupted by Demonic Power, no crimson hue in the air, no vile looking decorations, no corpses, not even the faintest stench of blood. Nothing in their vicinity looked remotely changed, nothing at all. That alone served to ring alarm bells in their minds, alarm bells which caused the girls to push aside their feelings of wrath in favour of self-preservation as they gradually floated along the paths through the mountain. Not even when they entered the Dungeon itself, which looked like a carbon copy of MS Mountain's layout, had any signs of being tainted by Demonic Power…
Something was indeed wrong here, something was very, VERY wrong.
There was simply no way around that fact.
It made the hairs on the back of their individual necks stand up straight, every cell in their bodies instinctively setting themselves on high alert. Not even the tiniest movement made by small insects escaped their notice, nor did the faint motions of the wind currents. Both Purple Heart and Compa kept their eyes out for any signs of attack, but there was nothing. Not a single thing, neither Demon, normal Monster or Abnormal to speak of. Even so, there was indeed a large source of Demonic Power within the Dungeon. That much was for certain, there had been no denying that. The two girls could feel it from over 60 kilometres away from the Dungeon itself, and as they had gotten closer it had gradually made the air heavier to breathe in. It had only been their desire for vengeance that kept them going at first, but as they continuously got exposed to this energy, eventually they began getting used to it to a level where they could fight normally. Though, they didn't know whether or not that last part had been true since there were literally ZERO ENEMIES FOR THEM TO TEST THEMSELVES ON!
Ominous as all hell.
"Its like all life has just vanished from this place…" Compa muttered to herself, a faint flower of worry blossoming within her chest whilst she clutched the handle of Sandalphon for a form of comfort. In addition to that, she could feel the Angel's emotions flowing into her, sending waves of calm through the Spirit's body to help her keep her nerves from going haywire. She had to admit, that without it and these new powers, Compa figured that in this situation she would be a bonified hot mess. Still, her friend and rival indeed had a point, plus she kept getting this feeling like they were about to go out of the frying pan and into the fire, much greater in quantity than during the Demonic Invasion 2 weeks ago. Nervously, she clutched her other hand around Sandalphon's hip as she gazed at the ground beneath her feet. "But… it still looks so normal…"
Purple Heart nodded in agreement whilst she held her free hand out in front of her and closed her eyes. Focusing on her powers, the CPU managed to draw out the Crystallokinesis within her and made some small bird-like creatures from her those said abilities, numbering at 40 in total. She then opened her eyes, and made a few hand gestures with that same hand, each bird giving what could be considered a few tweets of understanding and splitting up to go in different directions. On their creator's order after all, they were to go out into the other areas of the Dungeon, to either find some sort of Demonic Being around here or find Conversation's location. At least with this, they wouldn't be going around in circles all the damn time. "I agree, Compa. Which is why we should be extra cautious and keep our eyes open. We don't know where the enemy is, therefore they could attack from anywhere." She stated, clutching Soul Calibur and thrusting it in a random direction. This resulted in the blade releasing a single, Boodletter sized crystal Javelin that pierced a random spot on the wall.
"Yikes!" Compa squeaked, jumping visibly at the sudden action. She swore she felt her heart trying to lurch out her chest when that happened, her free hand (the one not holding Sandalphon) raising itself over the space where her heart was to reassure herself that it was in it's proper place. "Wh-What's wrong Nep-Nep?" she asked, worriedly. "Are you okay?"
Slowly, Purple Heart lowered her blade whilst she released an irritated snort. "Yeah, I'm fine… just a little on edge, is all." She replied stiffly, taking a few deep breaths to try and keep herself under control. She could feel the negative emotions within her, she could feel them with a clarity she knew she never had since before receiving Soul Calibur. She knew why she had done that really, and it WASN'T just her irritation at not finding Conversation. Soul Calibur's demonic aspect was trying to feast on her negative emotions, to fuel its power and raise it to new levels. That was the only ability from the demonic half the blade had that she could use after all. She then shook her head to clear those thoughts from her mind, lest she worry Compa more. Even if she had been changed into a Spirit and gained a confidence boost, she still was the same Compa she had travelled with for so many months.
However, even when she forced her emotions off her features, Compa didn't get fooled into thinking that she was alright. Nope, not one bit. The young Nurse-In-Training knew that look, she had seen it several times across this journey, the look of irritation masked heavily into nonchalance. She'd seen it on more than a few people, though back then she had pretended not to notice so she could keep her 'Mask' in place. Now though… "Nep-Nep, do you recall what you told me a while back?" she began, getting the CPU's attention.
"What are you talking about, Compa?" Purple Heart questioned, arching a brow whilst wondering where this came from.
The Spirit continued though, as if ignoring her question. In her eyes, Purple Heart needed to hear this. "I get it, you're worried about Ni-Ni, and its eating you up inside. Honestly, its eating me up too, its why we embarked on this the moment we heard Ni-Ni's assaulter was hold up here. But remember what you said to me way back then? If someone is bullying you, don't say 'why me', instead you say, 'try me', so I'll state that back to you. Lets not forget what we really want here and let these pesky distractions get the better of us." She told her, remembering what her friend had told her back in the Monster Cave the first time they were separated from Nico. Now that she thought about it, this was sorta like a direct parallel to that time: both times Nico was elsewhere, both times one was worried about him whilst the other cheered the first person up. An excellent role reversal if she ever knew one. We want to be able to get her back after all."
Compa knew what Purple Heart felt inside, she felt the same way, but if they lost it before they could even FIND the target for their vengeance then they'd be at a huge disadvantage. It was something Compa had recalled learning at some point in time but suppressed to keep up the illusion back when she was human. Thus, this was why she would make sure that both of them would keep a level head whilst focusing their anger onto something productive. At least, whilst they got used to the rage in them enough to still think clearly, which Compa more than managed to complete during the flight here.
It also helped that she imagined all the 'sweet' things she would do to Conversation once she found her… ufufufufu.
For some reason, Purple Heart couldn't help but release a shudder. 'That's odd, why is it that I have a sudden chill going down my spine? In the words of my fourth wall breaking human form, this should only happen in rebirth 3?' Purple Heart wondered as she looked at the smiling features of her friend. Even so though, the CPU also felt the coming of a smile from her lips, as well as amusement bubbling within her gut. "… Pft, hmhmhmhm, now this is a twist, you're the one comforting me this time…" she remarked, noting the irony of this situation between them. Even so, it felt… good, to just laugh at something. How long had it been since she had last laughed? Honestly, Purple Heart couldn't even recall that last moment, something that made her sigh in resignation. 'This story's definitely gotten way away from the comedy aspect it should have, I'll make a note to change that soon enough.' she thought.
Just then however, Purple Heart noticed with her acute vision, one of the crystal birds she had sent out coming back to her. It flapped its wings madly, rushing back to its mistress and stopping right before her. In that moment, her mood dropped, and she became serious once more. "Did you find your targets?" She asked it, getting a nod from the creature. "Show us." She ordered, and the bird once again began flying away towards the direction that led deeper into the Dungeon. Turning to her friend, whose eyes also darkened with vengeful wrath, Purple Heart scowled. "Looks like we have our target. Let's go." She stated as she floated after her creation, Compa soon following behind.
After chasing the bird down for what felt like about 30 minutes, or half an hour whatever one wanted to call it, both Purple Heart and Compa finally came face to… well, back, with their loathed nemesis. The one whom had the gall to harm the one they loved. "YOU!" Purple Heart sneered, vicious anger writing itself onto her features as she gripped Soul Calibur so hard with her right hand that any normal weapon would have buckled under the strain her HDD form's strength would provide. Compa too, if she had the ability to, she could have summoned Camael ALONGSIDE Sandalphon, so she could benefit from both their powers to showcase her anger at this woman.
The duo had found themselves at a platform much like the one where they had first encountered Black Heart and unknowingly fought her there. The platform being circular and filled with earthen dirt. Deep down below the platform, there lay a huge chasm to their right which seemed to go on forever, whilst the platform itself looked just big enough for a fight to break out. Something which, in all honestly would likely be happening regardless of the intentions each one had.
Before them, a woman wearing robes befitting of an evangelist stood with her back facing them, sort of like in a stereotypical evil villain pose. She looked to be eyeing something with the way that she had her head tilted downwards and how her left arm looked to be angled. Though, what that something was, the girls couldn't see thanks to her robes getting in the way. Not only that, but the woman's stature just screamed this eerie calmness that oozed from her in large waves. Only, it managed to merely succeed in irking the two girls further as it felt like the woman purposefully ignored them in favour of looking at this strange object.
Eventually though, the woman raised her hooded head slowly, the sounds of cracking bones filling the air as if the woman had started so long that her neck had stiffened. Though, they couldn't tell if whether or not she were in discomfort over this, nor would the two girls care. Especially with the rage in their systems, as the woman spoke with a tone implying extreme disinterest. "So…" she began, slowly turning towards them, though her hood hid the top half of her face. Her lips retained a similarly detached, disinterested expression, like making any other sign with her lips would prove to be too much effort. "You two have come."
"You're the one who calls themselves Conversation, am I wrong?" Purple Heart spoke slowly and carefully, trying not to let the bubbling anger inside of her take control. She would not deny that she had thought during their flight all the way to here of how she would feel when encountering this woman. She had thought that she would be angry, and boy did Purple Heart agree with that sentiment. Just looking at this woman roused a rage in her so fierce that it would rival that of a Bloodletter's. When she didn't get an answer after a full 5 minutes, Purple Heart's patience began to wear thin. "Answer me!"
At this, the woman gave a small chuckle, one that she hid behind the back of her hand in that typical oujou sama demeanour. "Ohohoho, my how rude. Is that any way to talk to your superior? My, what a rude little girl you are." The woman replied, a strong sense of mockery about her whilst she giggled some more. Afterwards, she lowered that hand and placed it against her hip, a sense of condescension escaping her whilst she did so. "Now then, how about you-"
Whatever she was going to say was cut off, when… a wave of Spirit Mana suddenly went by her, just barely missing her body by like a millimetre so she could still feel the heat from the strike pass her by, as the wave flew on harmlessly. At once, her lips formed an 'O' shape, as the woman took a step back, hands slightly raised while if her eyes were visible, then she would definitely be showing a stunned expression right about now. "Wha-?"
"Please, answer Nep-Nep's question." Compa spoke whilst returning to a standing position after having slashed Sandalphon at the woman, just barely missing her though that ad been intentional. The young Spirit girl had a big, wide and innocent smile on her lips… but, combined with the dark shadows in her eyes and the SLIGHT aura of sadism dripping from her being, it became clear JUST what she was feeling deep inside. Not to mention how her Angel also reflected her current emotions with the way its aura fluctuated like an angry serpent. "Cause I'm getting tired of your bull crap, Mrs whoever you are. So please, like I said, answer the question or I'll not miss and this time, I'll target your genitals... maybe even make it so you can't procreate or even speak without coughing that sludge you call blood? Oh, SO many ways I could make you squeal like the pig that you are..."
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"…Holy shit." The woman muttered under her breath, all pretense of superiority dropped from her face faster than dropping a mic, as she looked to Compa's direction with no small amounts of shock, surprise and more than a little dread in her system. Heck, her skin tone rapidly lost all it's color as her mind reeled from the sudden, unexpected attack from the normally quiet and meek girl of the group.
Heck, she hadn't been the only one, either.
'… Note to self: Don't get on Compa's bad side.' Purple Heart thought with a sweat drop. Now she got EXACTLY where she felt that shiver from earlier from. Turned out Compa got much more than just a confidence boost from her transformation, for she had NEVER seen her friend act like that before. It… felt rather scary actually, the way she just so CASUALLY released an energy slash like she were walking down a street without a care in the world. She didn't want to even THINK of what she might do when royally pissed off. Plus… she got the feeling that she should probably keep an eye on her when she had a supersized Angel and would be going for her boobs.
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For a moment, everyone remained silent as they reeled from the… rather 'unique' way of expressing anger that Compa just displayed, and just when the Nurse-In-Training made to raise Sandalphon again, the woman quickly held up her hands in a placating manner. "Alright, alright! You get your wish, I'll do it already!" she exclaimed, the other girl maintaining her sickly-sweet smile whilst she stopped raising her Angel… she didn't put it down though, not to mention she didn't dismiss the building energy within it either. "hey, I said I would, aright?! So, will you just lower that sword now!?" The woman yelled, and by the Goddesses she hoped that the brat would listen to her.
"You two!"
Fortunately, the woman's untimely salvation came when the sound of IF's voice broke into the area, prompting everyone of them to turn behind them to see the brunette, along with Black Heart, Green Heart, Guts, Isaac, Stefan and his men running up to them. If they were to look at her, then the trio would definitely pick up on the rather pissed off look that IF sported, though two of them just felt nothing but relief in actually seeing her. The moment that the third saw them, Compa's eyes brightened considerably as she ran on over to them whilst beaming happily.
"Iffy! Lady Black Heart! Everyone, so great to see you!"
"Don't you 'Iffy' me, you and Nep just left without warning or with a plan! When we get back to the Basilicom, you're getting scolded young lady!"
"Hehehehehe!"
IF and Compa quarreled once again, though it looked more like one was just yelling at the other who laughed innocently. All the while, both Purple Heart AND the woman heaved a heavy sigh of relief, hands covering their boobs in a protective manner.
Soon enough however, everyone returned their attention back to the woman, the moment having finally passed to allow tension to return to it's rightful place in the atmosphere.
Once she had gotten some of her rage at her friends recklessness out of her system, IF finally had the time to notice the robed woman whom had stood there, watching all of this play out. Her eyes had been hidden by her hood, but judging by the way her mouth looked the brunette felt like the woman had the most prominent 'WTF' look on her face she had ever seen. Nevertheless, IF narrowed her eyes at the woman. "So, I assume that your name is Conversation?" she asked with a scowl, a hand on her hip. 'Whelp, at least the girls found our target but didn't engage yet, If they had, who knows what would have happened. Fraud or not, Conversation is STILL an Evangelist from Lowee. Pretty sure their Nation wouldn't appreciate losing one of their devotees.
She felt sure there would be some political bullshit in there as well, but that was beside the point for her.
The woman made to say something like a gloat, but then a look towards Compa changed her mind. She did NOT want to entertain the thought of losing her beloved breasts thank you very much. Was this what guys flt like when they were threatened with the removal of their genitals? In any case, the woman gave a coy smile as she politely nodded her head. "Why yes, is there anything you wish to speak with me about? Maybe perhaps to join the ranks of Lady White Heart?" she questioned, tilting her head in a COMPLETELY fake innocent manner.
A manner that everyone saw through whilst Green Heart stepped forwards, her eyes narrowed and her aura powered by Gungnir fluctuating due to her silent anger. "So... YOU are the one, then? Very well, I would like for you to return what should be rightfully mine, if you would." she stated, not a single trace of subtlety or beating around the bush. This chapter already did enough of that in the beginning, after all.
In the response, the woman known as Conversation took a moment to look at Vert, her gaze hidden but the way her mouth hung open sightly gave away her surprise. "What? How can you...?" she muttered, disbelief etched into her words as she regarded the transformed Leanbox CPU with shock and dismay. However, she soon noticed the glowing golden Spear that she held, and with her senses she soon managed to connect the dots. "Ahhh, I see... so, you found something left behind by one of your predecessors... something which somewhat restores your abilities as a Goddess..." Conversation mused, a tint of amusement entering her tone in a gradual manner. "Hmph, I'm almost impressed. For a gaming sissy like yourself, you have done quite well."
"My, please do not underestimate the powers of gaming otakus, if you please." Green Heart retorted, a rather cold smile forming on her lips whilst her amethyst eyes darkened considerably. Her aura grew colder and colder by the second, which sent chills down everyone but the woman's spines. "Though, I will admit that the methods you used resembled a mystery game I cleared, with some 'differences' of course." she spoke further, and whilst she smiled even colder than ice itself at this point, her eyes looked almost like the shadows of night in terms of how dark they became. Memories of the Demons invading her cherished Basilicom invaded her mind, meshing into a mass of crimson, blood, dying screams, frenzied howls, and metal meeting either more metal or flesh.
Behind them all, Stefan frowned at the callous way that this woman, this evangelist, held herself. How she held so little regard for the life of her fellow human. As someone who wielded Ashbringer, someone who'd brought hope to humanity countless times before this day, Stefan did NOT like to see characters like this woman. He'd seen them plenty of times, both throughout the Nobility AND the military families throughout Leanbox. Most of the people in this Nation viewed life with such little regard that it sickened him. Every day, he would wake up after having extreme nightmares over how he would fail his men, his subordinates and trusted comrades. Of how he would one day fail to live up to the namesake of being Ashbringer's wielder. It was one of his greatest fears, yet also one he couldn't afford to let control him, cloud his judgement etc.
Guts scowled as he held his sword over his shoulder, giving the woman an especially dark look meant for those whom he truly wished to kill with all his being This woman, something about her felt WRONG to him, he didn't know what that something was or why he felt it, but if THAT on his neck slightly heating up would be any indication, this meant that she had to have been involved in some pretty big Demonic Shit. That would be MORE than enough for him to hate this woman, not to mention how she felt so much like HIM, but less of the acting that he experienced back then...
At the CPU's, Conversation scowled, momentarily clenching her fists beside her robes. As if biting back the urge to retort as she took a deep breath, calmed herself, and gave a dark smirk once more. "Hmmm, how interesting. Perhaps I should pay that publisher a 'visit' for daring to try and emulate my plans... hmmm, yes that does sound very tempting at the moment..." she mused, seemingly losing all interest in the conversation. At that point, two things happened: One, Green Heart had to bristle with repressed anger at the audacity of this woman, to be surrounded by so many enemies and yet be ignored completely, and...
"Alright, start talking."
Suddenly, everyone blinked, more owlishly than the said animal itself, when a harsh, cold and angry voice cut through the conversation like it had become a vocal blade. Something that surprised all of them into silence, and low and behold...
It wasn't anyone of them, not even Guts.
The cause? It turned out to be Isaac Clarke, Plasma Cutter trembling in it's wielder's arms whilst he suppressed his anger, though failing, as he stepped forwards. He continuously stepped forwards till he stood between the woman and the girls, just barely holding himself back from unloading on the woman before him. "You have information I want, and you WILL answer if you want to keep your limbs intact." He spat, every word he spoke almost containing enough toxicity to rival actual poisonous venom from serpents. "Who are the ones who did it? Where are those fucking scumbags hiding?"
"Hm?" Now curious, Conversation once again returned to her coy demeanor from before as she put a finger to her jaw. For a moment, it looked like she was recognizing him from somewhere, though given how deceptive this woman had been so far that would remain a debatable subject. "Um, apologies, but I do not seem to recall anyone important that fits your description. Who might you be again?"
THAT served to piss him off even more, as ow Isaac no longer had the capacity to withhold pointing his Plasma Cutter and letting off a shot at her left leg. However, the woman merely smirked deviously at him... and kicked the shot into another section of the cliff face beside them. Even so, Isaac ignored this, as well as the stunned looks that the onlookers sported at this development. "I won't ask you again! TELL ME WHO THE FUCKERS THAT SICKED DEMONS ONTO THE BASILICOM, OR I SWEAR TO THE GODDESSES I'LL FILL YOU WITH SO MANY GODDAMN FUCKING HOLES YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO BREATHE WITHOUT COUGHING FOR THE REST OF YOUR MISERABLE FUCKING LIFE!"
...
...
...
...
...
"In any case, you're a boring one, so can we move on already?" Conversation questioned, crossing her arms over her chest and glanced from left to right, rinse and repeat. She also upturned her nose, just to mock the man further whilst she ignored this rabble's mad ramblings. Not to mention with the way she presented herself, it made everyone realize she was looking down on him, sparking flames of irritation throughout all those present. "This stain on humanity is starting to bore me..."
"Why you..."
Furious anger pumped itself through Isaac's veins. like an overflowing river coursing through his body and inciting his hateful desires towards this woman. This woman who DARED to stand in between him and his revenge. That would not, and will not stand, he would make her pay. Oh yeah, he'd make her scream as he tore open her throat and ripped out her guts whilst she still breathed air through PUNCTURED LUNGS!
Just before Isaac made to make good on his threat (something which would likely not even work considering what happened before), Conversation's eyes suddenly widened as a light bulb switched on over her head. "Huh? Oh, a light-bulb, I've been wanting one of these for a while." the woman mused, taking the light bulb that actually appeared over her head and pocketing it. "Wow, guess when ideas do come to mind light bulbs do appear. Now, what was I talking about? Oh yeah." She muttered under her breath, before a dark, wicked and absolutely DEVILISH smile crossed onto her features. "If you wanna know so bad, I may be able to tell you, but... only if you survive a little something of mine."
The moment that the others heard that, all of them felt chills run down their spines, not to mention they got overtaken by how they suddenly felt like caged animals. That gaze of hers, that evil, sinister and wicked predatory-like gaze just screamed that something bad was going to happen, and just when Purple Heart made to move forwards Isaac held up his Plasma Cutter and spoke within a low growl. "And what would THAT be?" his eyes shined with vengeful flames, flames that resembled Hellfire's weaker form quite a bit which spoke volumes about the hatred he had going through his system.
"Why..." that smirk turned into a grin, and if possible the previous opinions about that smirk evolved into something even more ominous and gut-wrenching. It was like the situation known as 'the cat caught the canary', as the woman took out of her robes what looked to be... some sort of floating crystal clear orb? It totally befuddled everyone who looked at it,, not to mention that it carried some form of mystical, eerie vibe... as well as the scent of death itself. It sent more than a FEW chills down his spine. "THIS, of course. Lets see how you all handle, a THOUSAND DEMONS of high caliber with a very... interesting head!"
Once Conversation boisterously yelled that part out, she threw the orb down to the ground, and in that moment where it touched the earth beneath them... it suddenly erupted into a bright flash.
"Guh!"
"Ugh!"
"Geez, what now?!"
"Now, this is quite vexing..."
Purple Heart, IF, Black Heart and Green Heart made startled responses whilst closing their eyes and covering their faces. Everyone else either grunted or made a 'tch' sound whilst doing the same thing. The flash also unleashed a huge gust of wind from is source, one that erupted into all directions with the force of a hurricane, blowing them all backwards by a good 20 meters.
By the time 4 minutes passed, the winds began to die down, till they pretty much died entirely as the light that blinded them dissipated into nothingness. Once they felt absolutely sure that it had gone however, did everyone finally lower their arms and open their eyes, allowing them to witness what had been apparently been brought into being. Just by what Conversation had said before, the group all assumed to be suddenly surrounded by like hordes of angry and hungry Bloodthirsters, Flesh Hounds, Juggernauts and even a Greater Demon or two. They HAD sensed the powers of the Khornate Demons throughout the entire Dungeon, that had been for certain...
But instead?
All that they got was a simple man.
No Demons,
No army,
No nothing, but that one lone man who stood in front of the dumbstruck-looking Conversation.
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
Purple Heart, Black Heart, Green Heart, IF, Compa, Guts, Isaac and Stefan along with his men all stared, each of them wearing deadpanned expressions at the rather... anti-climactic looking situation before them. The brunette of the group soon summed up their thoughts in one simple question as she looked towards the robed woman. "So, uhhh... what the heck is going on here?"
"This... This wasn't supposed to happen!" Conversation exclaimed loudly, gritting her teeth and clenching her fists in sheer anger. Not to mention that, as she tried to feel out the many Demons she had kept hidden for a climactic reveal and then tear these worthless fools apart. However, to her dismay none of those energy signatures registered anymore. Shifting her gaze to the man, she soon gave him an angry glare more fitting on a Demon rather than a human. "What happened to them?! What happened to all the Demons I prepared?!"
In response, the man (whom had been cleaning some wax out of his ears before cracking his neck), soon shifted his form so that his head faced her whilst his body still faced the onlookers. He looked like a mix of a man whom belonged in a Basilicom, and a man who belonged on the battlefield, with graying, decayed flesh that had holes in certain areas as well as showcased a large portion of his bones (much to the disgust of the girls, Stefan, Guts and Isaac had no reaction), wearing what looked like a large red kimono that had the left arm sleeve hanging at his waist, exposing a black clothing with golden details. Aside from that plus a white scarf, his torso remained bare. On his lower body he wore a red, black and white shihakusho, with Japanese-style sandals and black socks. On his left hip, was a single sheathed sword. His hair was wild, bushy and held in a ponytail in a way that would not hamper his battle abilities, whilst a black headband covered his forehead, just above his red eyes.
"Huh? Oh, them." The man spoke, an air of nonchalance about him as he glanced throughout the Dungeon. His red eyes carried a gaze that held both arrogance and contempt, though his lips formed a slight smirk on his lips which suggested that he had done something naughty. Something naughty like say... "I just got a little bored back there, so I decided to cut loose a bit... without realizing, I killed all those red things. No idea what they were, but they weren't anything noteworthy."
"They were needed!"
"Meh, by who? you? Please."
Hence, begun the argument (well, more one side teasing the other who reacted hook line and sinker) between the two. Completely forgetting that they had onlookers viewing this spectacle.
Said onlookers could only watch the drama unfold in front of them. Black Heart scowled in disappointment, hefting Balmung over her shoulder. "Well, that was certainly a letdown..." she remarked. It did more than grate on her nerves a little, especially with all the stuff that had happened to lead up tot this moment. It felt like such a waste to her, and Black Heart didn't like to waste anything.
Purple Heart nodded her head in agreement, her eyes now holding a slight flame of pity for Conversation as she argued with this strange guy. "Indeed, she looked t be all set for a climactic showdown but ended up with..." she began, before gesturing to the... thing, going on in front of them. She didn't even know what to call it anymore.
Their comments earned a low-grade, sadness filled sigh of agreement from the Leanbox CPU, who looked at the situation in front of them like she had seen the greatest failure of all time. Though, it soon got mitigated when she remembered what Conversation had done to her, and her eyes hardened with a cold smile forming on her lips. "In any case, the only thing she has in the end, regardless of circumstance, is an old geezer who looks like he's all talk. It will not be difficult to take them down, so shall we ladies?"
"If we must..."
The moment Green Heart and Black Heart spoke those words, the man's ears twitched, suddenly stopping his argument as he looked back to the women before him. "Oh? Wow, these girls really must not know their history. Well, since they are women, I guess its not completely impossible for them to not know about me." The man remarked, starting to pace towards them. Without glancing behind him, he spoke once more to the one who summoned him. "If you don't mind, please stand back, cause right now I have some aggression to fulfill."
Just when Conversation made to retort, all of a sudden...
GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG!
It happened faster than their senses could perceive. An INSTANT rise in bloodlust EXPLODED outwards from the man's, filling the air around them and saturating it with it's presence. It almost felt like the air began to try and choke them as the man stopped before the group, and held the sword in his right hand in a sword stance. The bangs of his hair darkened the shadows over his eyes, though not enough to completely conceal them, nor the dark grin slowly emerging onto his face. "Its been a while, so I may be a bit rusty, but hey tat was what those red things were for, right? Don't you worry, Okada Izou will show these tramps who the real swordsman around here is."
"...#GASP# Did you say Okada?! As in, THE Okada?!" Stefan shouted, his eyes widening as the color drained from his face like a vampire sucking the blood of his victims. Not only him however, every one of his subordinates also had similar reactions, fearful whispers echoing through their ranks whilst Guts and Isaac quickly got into battle stances. Their eyes shone with deadly seriousness the moment they heard that name, the name that many in the current generation of Leanbox Spec Ops Agents, not to mention every family in Leanbox, knew by heart.
Glancing over to them, Green Heart tilted her head whilst Black Heart and Purple Heart readied their weapons too, same for IF (who formed her Blades, Tendrils and Armour) and Compa who readied Gabriel instead of Sandalphon. She'd switched Angels almost out of self preservation as she took to the skies above, taking the aerial advantage. "My, whatever is the matter, Stefan? Do you know this man, or something?"
"Know him? Yes, my Lady, I do. In fact, if you were to ask any Leanbox native, you will see that EVERYONE has heard of this guy." Stefan replied, gripping Ashbringer whilst getting ready to fight. Just by this bloodlust alone made him realize that a battle would be inevitable at this point.. He just hoped his men would be able to survive this. "Okada Izou, also known as one of the four great man-slayers of the early days after you left for the Console War my lady, holding the alias of 'Manslayer Izou'. During the early days of the Console Wars, this man singlehandedly held off entire armies of Planeptune, Lastation and Lowee soldiers, either individually or when they teamed up against him, but none of them could touch him. He only had minor scratches from every battle he's fought in, and in the end he only died of old age, holding a record of never losing a dual. Swordsmen DREAM of becoming as OP as this man, and he doesn't even use any special tricks. He mainly uses swordplay, with either one sword or two." he explained in a deep, grim manner as he eyed the man's stance. "Looks like he's sticking to one-handed swordplay for now, but be warned, if he were to wield his sword with both hands... only carnage will follow."
Well... that wasn't ominous at all, now was it?
Chapter end
Alright, sorry for the cliffhanger, but I feel like this would be a good time to end the chapter. Now, there had been many ideas for the cliffhanger of this chapter, ideas that cycled through my head faster than IF blushing at being called cute by Vert. You all may have guessed this already, but me and King Carlos are working on something and he's been helping me with ideas for this story. He's the one who gave me this idea of using Okada Izou from Fate Grand Order, a samurai who killed a whole load of people and had a wide arsenal of skills at his disposal. None of which he ever mastered. Sound familiar to anyone in OEG?
Not to mention that Conversation hasn't revealed her identity and power yet, cause I actually have things in mind for her moveset, things that will make her a HUGELY dangerous opponent on the battlefield, an opponent that NONE of the Goddesses in their current state will be able to take on at this moment in time. Their strength simply isn't that great enough for this woman. Then there will be various other surprises thhat will come from this battle, surprises that MAY shock you all when reading them, so look forward to those!
Now then,
Peace out, my dudes and dudettes (no judging here!)
