Mirajane and Ryker got up early the next morning. Ryker was in sore body from the night's combat, but other than that, nothing serious had happened to him.

"Good morning, Ryker," Mira greeted him as she left the room and met him in the hallway.

"Morning, Mira," he greeted her sleepily and yawning. Then he pulled her by the waist and kissed her sweetly on the lips.

Mira felt her face move with annoyance from the pain. "Is it still hurting?", she said hugging him and looking at him with concern.

"A little while, I'll be fine," he soothed her. "Let's go to breakfast. We have to see what to do from now on", she agreed and they went down to the restaurant.

Helena was at the reception and greeted them as the magicians passed her. "Good morning, Ryker-san and Mira-san", she smiled sweetly.

"Good morning, Helena. We've already talked about it doesn't have to be so formal," Mira smiled back. Helena nodded and smiled again.

"The mayor asked you to meet him at the location last night," said the receptionist.

"Let's get something to eat and go out," Ryker said.

The wizards made their breakfast, taking what they could from the buffet and preparing to meet the mayor. They left and walked to the battle site, not taking long as the town was small and they had decorated the way to the site.

The entire region was damaged, houses destroyed or structures compromised. There were many people helping in the aftermath, helping people who lost their possessions and clearing the street.

"Luiz, good morning. Where we can help," Mira greeted him seriously. She didn't think a beautiful smile would be good in that situation.

"Good morning, Miss Mirajane. Mr Ryker," he greeted them. "Can you guys tell me what happened last night?"

"Well…" Mira started but was interrupted.

"You were right. We were scouring the city for anything suspicious, when we were approached by something and…you see the result," Ryker explained.

Luiz stared at them in astonishment for a few seconds. "So you found him and fought him!?"

"Yeah, I've never seen anything like that," Mira said.

"W…what do you think it might be? A kind of demon from Zeref?" asked the mayor.

"I don't know", she was thoughtful. "After Zeref died in the war against Alvarez all his demons were supposed to disappear," she explained.

"So what do you think it might be, Mira?" Ryker asked.

"I really don't know," she said thoughtfully. "We have to investigate and know exactly what we're dealing with", she looked at him seriously, he nodded seriously.

"Anything you need, just ask," Luiz offered to help.

"Thank you", she thanked. "Now, do you need help?", she said looking at all the destruction.

Luiz looked back at all the destruction and sighed. "Do not worry about this. Focus on the creature, we get it right here. It was just material damage, that we can conquer again. Thank God no one died and that's more important," he smiled his thanks, Mira smiled along and Ryker was as impassive as ever.

Ryker and Mira walked around town, thinking about what to do and what their next steps would be.

"Any idea what to do?" Ryker asked.

"We needed to be sure what that was. I think it might be some kind of demon, but I'm not sure," she said.

"What do we know so far?" he asked.

"Almost nothing, just what Luiz told us and what we saw."

"Well, we know he shoots rays through the eyes and he's very strong. Apparently he could be in two places at once, or was it just an illusion," Ryker analyzed.

"He can also manipulate weather, creating that weird fog. And he can read minds, apparently," Mira added.

"We really have a lot to discover." Ryker thought for a moment and looked at the mountains. "Luiz said that people who went to the mountains didn't come back," she looks at him curiously.

"What are you thinking about?" Mira asked.

"I think we should go there and investigate," he replied. "That thing could be hiding there."

"So what are we waiting for!?".

"Calm down, woman!" he exclaimed. "I don't like the idea of going there like that, out of the blue. It will take us a long time to arrive and even longer walking. And the idea of spending the night in that place, with that thing, I don't like. We need to prepare ourselves".

"And what are you thinking about?" she asked him curiously.

"We should leave early tomorrow morning, before sunrise and explore during the day. If we have to spend the night we should stay together and not split up", he looked at her deeply.

Mira looked at him carefully and smirked, much like he was doing. "All right. And what are we going to do until then?".

"Why don't we have a sparring section?" he suggested.

"What!?", she was surprised.

"Sparring! Let's train with each other," he shrugged.

"But what about your injuries?" she reminded him.

"They're not that bad and warming the body can help. Or do you think you can't?", he smiled mischievously.

Mira looked at him defiantly and took his hand and pulled him along. "Let's go!" they walked out of town, towards the countryside.

Ryker and Mira looked at each other in a field outside the city. There was no one around, so there was no problem with them hurting anyone or being interrupted. Just the two of them and nothing else.

"Why is that, Ryker?" Mira asked.

He smiled and crossed his arms. "The truth is, we have to fit together if we are to defeat that thing. And I want to see your abilities too. What better way than a friendly fight", he smirked.

Mira looked at him in surprise and after a few seconds she smiled sweetly. "Okay," she got into fighting stance. "Just don't cry when I'm through with you," she teased him.

Ryker smiled happily, he was so proud of her. "You're the only one in the guild who really knows how to have a combat stance," he referred to her stance with her hands clenched and arms flexed, ready to attack and defend herself.

Mira smiled out of the corner of her mouth. "Very similar to yours." Ryker and Mira had very similar combat stances, but he kept his hands and arms closer to his body and face.

"Why don't we make a bet?" he suggested.

"What kind of bet?" Mira asked.

"Whoever loses pays everthinks until the end of the mission," Ryker smiled defiantly.

Mirajane looked at him and smiled confidently. "Bet, darling."

"May I?" he asked.

"What's it taking so long?"

"Smart-ass...", he smiled and went to attack her.

Ryker ran towards her, throwing punches, which were easily blocked. Mira dodged a punch and spun her body to hit him with her right elbow, Ryker blocking it with her left hand. He immediately dropped her, tripping her. The Take Over mage fell to the ground, but quickly rolled to her side rising to her feet and assuming her combat stance.

Mira took the initiative, distributing punches and kicks in succession. Ryker managed to dodge and dodge every blow she delivered, but incredibly, and to his own dismay, it was proving to be very difficult. More and more Mira's blows come closer to hitting him. She was pushing and pushing him back.

The takeover mage spun her body at an astonishing speed, hitting it with her elbow. Ryker managed to react quickly and blocked it by raising his right arm. Mira straightened into position and seeing the opportunity kicked him hard, making him fly away and fall to his knees, holding the spot that was hit.

"She managed to hit me!", he was surprised. "What's happening to me? I would block those blows, but…" Many thoughts ran through Ryker's head at that moment, distracting him from the confrontation with the white-haired mage.

She launched herself at him, who was taken by surprise, being hit by punches and kicks. Ryker dodged and blocked most of them, but a few hit him. He tried to fight back, throwing blows, but he landed none on her. It was strange, Mira managed to dodge and prevent his blows from reaching her. Ryker jumped back, getting a few feet away from her.

"Okay, I think I better take this more seriously", he said and smiled.

"Then I will too," she said. A light shone around her, she assumed the form of Stan Soul. Her expression was more serious, with an air of confidence and brutality.

Ryker was startled. "Hey! I don't know if that's fair!" he squeaked.

"Too late", she smiled evilly and jumped towards him. The blows were faster and heavier. Clearly Mira was surpassing him in her agility, the kicks, the punches, the elbows were all closer to going in and the pain of impact was felt more often.

Ryker boosted his energy to the max, surprising Mira. It was fast and he managed to balance the dispute. Her blows weren't coming in and he dodged it more easily.

He caught a punch from Mira and spun her, knocking her to the ground. He straddled her and during the ground fight he tried to apply an amrlock but failed. Mira managed to straighten and kicked him away. They rose and went against each other.

Neither of them was getting the upper hand in the fight. As Mira applied her blows, Ryker defended and counterattacked. He managed to apply torsions, to her hands and arms, but with mastery she always managed to break free. However, it was being more difficult for him to get rid of her attacks, it was as if she was much stronger than him and much more experienced.

Ryker was applying everything he knew, everything he'd learned over the years, but nothing was working. They fought for a long time, until Mira hit him in the pit of the stomach with a powerful punch, making him double over in pain. She knocked him down with a trip and with her right arm she pushed him backward, making him fall backwards to the ground. She straddled him and looked at him with a sadistic smile that startled him.

Mira fisted her hand and prepared to hit him, Ryker waiting for the blow that never came. He looked down at her hand with a raised index finger touching her nose and a serious look she gave him.

"Bad boy, bad boy!" she said.

"W…what!?", he didn't understand anything.

"Be quiet and behave yourself!", she ordered, in her Satan Soul form.

"Yes ma'am?", he said and Mirajane smiled back to normal.

Mira jumped up and down with glee and clapped her hands several times, smiling silly and happily.

"I won! I won!", she celebrated waving her arms. Nothing could be more beautiful than her animation, above him, for Ryker. He would admit defeat, with pride... for her.

Mira, after celebrating, looked at him confused and worried. "You didn't look the same. Did something happen?" she asked.

Ryker turned his face away, not looking at her. "In fact, that was weird. But seeing you now and thinking it through, I think I know what happened." He looked at her and smiled so sweetly it made her sigh. He never looked at her like that and made her blush.

"So what… what happened?" she said softly, almost in a whisper.

Ryker put his hand to her face and stroked her cheek with his thumb, smiling down at her, totally at peace. "I opened my guard to you", she was surprised. "It was not on purpose. I have always opened my guard to you. You destroyed all my defenses, so it was always easy for you to help me, even when I didn't want to and was stubborn," he chuckled.

"Ryker, I..."

"I shouldn't say this, but I'll always lose to you, Mira. This is your power over me. And I appreciate it, because without it I wouldn't be here", he said admiring her.

"Ryker…" he didn't let her go on and pulled her into a hot, smoldering kiss. They only stopped kissing when they needed air and broke apart.

He looked at her and smiled, being reciprocated in the same way. "Now you're going to be convinced and use this against me," he scowled falsely.

"Me, convinced!?"

"Of course! And you're still going to use all your power to blackmail me and force me to do whatever you want", he ripped the elastic from her bangs, making it fall over her face.

"You silly!" she complained and slapped him lightly on the shoulder.

"You fool," he snapped back.

Mira looked at him and laughed happily, her face so angelic. She lay on his chest and played with his hair, feeling his heartbeat, the sign that he was there, that he was real.

"I love that about you," she said.

"That what?" he asked her.

"Your way", he looked at her confused, wondering at her behavior. "I love when you are playful, your light and cheerful way of being. And, I shouldn't say that either, but I love when you tease me. I just love this about you," she blushed lightly.

Ryker didn't know what to say, he never imagined she liked something he didn't even know she had. "Mira… my… light and cheerful way of being!? Playful!?".

She smiled. "You are. You may not realize it, but it is. And the best part, you just show me that side." She lifted her face and looked at him. He didn't know what to say and the expression he was making made her laugh.

He noticed and turned away, flushed and indignant. "Stop laughing, Mira. It's making me uncomfortable."

She laughed more and he laughed too, they both laughed. Mira eyed him mischievously. "And you know what's best?" she asked.

"Holly crap!"

"You'll pay for everything until the end of the mission," she said happily.

"Have mercy, Mira!" he begged. "If I run out of money for rent I swear I'll go back to your home."

Mirajane looked at him sadistically and he swallowed. "You better get ready… Ryker", she laughed and kissed him sweetly. At that moment Ryker cursed himself.

After dating some more they went back to training with each other for the rest of the day before heading back to town and the inn. The practice was good for both of them, they understood each other's movements better and they meshed well. She demonstrated moves she learned from him just by looking, which impressed him and filled him with pride.

When they arrived at the inn, they each went to their respective rooms, showered and dressed before going down to dinner at the restaurant, which Ryker paid for. On the way back to their rooms, he entered Mira's room, they brushed their teeth and he lay down on her bed and watched her comb her hair before lying down.

She wore a pink silk nightgown, which showed off her entire voluptuous body. Ryker had to use all his strength not to die, but he was sure this woman would kill him sooner or later. She sat up in bed watching him.

"Isn't it time for you to go to your room? We'll have a long day tomorrow," she said.

He looked at her and laughed. "No! I'll spend the night with you, whether you like it or not."

"Ryker! We agreed... Kya!", he stopped her from pulling her onto the bed and lying on top of her.

He was kissing her neck, back and forth, tickling Mira, who laughed with his advances, and even with her protests he wouldn't stop, laughing along with her.

"AHH! Ryker, stop!" she laughed and swayed her legs. "You're tickling… Ahh! Stop! Hahaha", she kicked, which gave him more reason to continue.

"If I remember correctly, you said you liked me to be playful and that you liked me to tease you", he chuckled and continued his attack on her.

"YOUR…YOUR SILLY! STOP!" she managed to say. "We are on a serious mission, not on a date!" she complained.

Ryker stopped and pressed his face against hers, so close they felt each other's heat. "That doesn't stop us from dating a little bit", he smiled and caressed her face. "Anyway, I would never do anything you didn't want. I just need to be with you tonight, My Queen," he buried his face in her neck.

"Queen!?"

"You are the Queen of my life", he kissed her. Mira smiled silly.

"You can stay", she said stroking his head, he laughed and kissed her again.

He hugged her protectively and they slept together, clinging to each other, feeling the presence and warmth that was so comforting to them.

Ryker and Mira were climbing the mountains, there was a small, narrow path leading up through the damp, cool forests. Some of the back trails went deeper into the woods and in other directions, but they wanted to climb higher, to the top, explore from above and go down. Luiz reported that the higher up, the darker the mountains became. Mira and Ryker chose that region as a priority for their investigation.

They had risen early and set out on their adventure, even before the sun left the horizon. It was cold with poor visibility, even well wrapped up was not being enough, the humidity in the air was stealing all the heat from their bodies. Ryker was handling the situation better, but Mira suffered a little more. He put his coat over her, who thanked her and blushed at the gesture.

Mira and Ryker continued to climb, an increasingly difficult path, the higher they went, the worse it got. Fewer people used that route so high, so maintenance was not done. After a few hours they emerged from the tree line and passed through the cloud cover, revealing a field of grasses.

"It's very beautiful," Mira commented.

"It is, but let's go Mira. We don't have time for this right now." Ryker pulled her back to the mission.

The two continued walking, higher and higher, until the path forked, one side going down and the other going up. They chose what went up, and the situation was dire. The path became narrow and unsteady, stones falling off and falling to the cliff beside it. The wind blew them against the mist-wet wall and made everything slippery and more dangerous. Mira held onto Ryker, who struggled to keep walking safely and not fall down the mountain. The weather was unstable, sometimes it was sunny, sometimes it rained, sometimes there was a dense fog.

For hours the two walked along the mountain trails and found nothing. The day was ending and they didn't know what else to do.

"This is getting complicated. We're losing the sun and we haven't gotten anywhere yet," Ryker said worried about their situation.

"I think we're getting somewhere," Mira intervened positively.

"Only if it goes nowhere," he said sarcastically and Mira scowled at him. Ryker chuckled at her reaction, and ruffled her hair.

The two continued walking for a while longer without finding anything or even feeling a dark presence. At one point Mira looked around and saw what appeared to be the entrance to a cave.

"Ryker, look!" Mira said pointing to a mountain entrance.

"Maybe we found what we were looking for," he smiled out of the corner of his mouth.

They approached the entrance and looked inside. If there was anything to describe it, it would be sinister and terrifying, not to mention the cadaverous smell that came from within.

Mira covered her mouth and nose, trying to keep the scent from reaching her. "What a rotten smell is emanating from this place," she commented.

"Can't say I'm not used to it," Ryker said resignedly. Mira rested a hand on his shoulder in support. He looked at her and smiled at the gentle smile she gave her.

"Then? Shall we go in?", she asked a little annoyed.

"I don't like to admit it, but something about this place gives me the creeps," he commented.

"But if we want to find out what this thing is, we must go in," Mira concluded.

"Shit! Unfortunately you're right," he sighed and held out his fist in her direction. Mira looked at him confused, not understanding what he wanted. "Hit here!" he said, noticing her confusion. "It's a form of greeting, who is close to each other."

Mira laughed and slapped his fist in greeting.

"Now we're ready", he said and they laughed together. Ryker produced a glowing sphere to light the way and looked at his girlfriend to the side. "Shall we?", she waved and they entered the cave.

They walked for a few dozen meters in the cave, the entrance was relatively rough, but meters inside it opened into a large hall, if not for the light produced by Ryker, they would not be able to see anything in front of them. However what they saw was frightening.

"Are you seeing what I'm seeing, Mira?" Ryker asked, astonished at what he saw.

"Yes!" she replied terrified. "You are versed in languages. What's written?".

"I know some human languages, not demonic ones," he referred to the scriptures full of strange symbols drawn on the cave walls. Something neither of them had ever seen before. There were symbols, pentagrams, hieroglyphs, runes and disturbing images. The cave was filled with them.

"What the fuck is this all about!" Ryker was scared.

"I don't know, but I feel my magic resonating in this place," Mirajane commented.

"Does that mean anything?"

"That this place isn't good," she said.

"I imagine," he said. "Mira, look at this," he called her aside.

"What's wrong?", she walked towards him. Ryker was kneeling in a corner of the cave hall.

"You know that rotten smell?" She nodded. "It comes from here", he showed a dry body, lying on the ground, as if it had been mummified.

Mira clapped a hand over her mouth, blocking the scream of surprise and amazement. Ryker moved the body analyzing the circumstances of death.

"This guy hasn't been here that long. How did he get like this?" Ryker said.

"What are you talking about?" she asked.

"He's dried up, there's not a drop of liquid in his body. This would take years and under the right conditions. And his clothes are new." Mira looked at him and agreed with his reasoning.

Mira widened her eyes and was in shock for a few seconds, realizing something was in front of them. "He was sacrificed," she came to her conclusion.

"What!?", he looked at her with wide eyes.

"These scriptures the body… It's clear it was a sacrifice," she said in shock.

"Sacrifice!? But what for?" he asked, not understanding.

"I don't know, but we have to find out." At that moment they heard a high-pitched scream, coming from the back of the cave, making their spines shiver all the way to the back of their necks. "Get the body, we have to get out of here. Now!" she said urgently.

Ryker took the person's body in his arms and the two ran out of the cave as fast as they could. They passed through the narrow entrance, the sun had already set and it was completely dark outside.

"We have to find a safe place to spend the night", Ryker assessed the situation, there was no way they could go down the mountain in those conditions, and face the creature, not knowing what it was and what its weaknesses were not on his list. "I'm going to blow up the cave entrance and delay him," he added.

"Not! It will only make him angrier," Mira said, stopping him.

"What do you suggest?", he looked at her seriously.

"Hold on to me," Ryker looked at her in disbelief, but resigned himself to holding her by the waist.

Mira glowed with an intense light and transformed into Satan Soul. She spread her wings and took flight, with Ryker clinging to her. Quickly she flew over the mountain and headed towards the city. Not wanting to cause panic she landed in the fields near the village.

Ryker released her and threw the body, which he was holding, to the ground anywhere. He looked at her in amazement and at the same time awe.

"I, I didn't know you flew", he said in amazement.

Mira went back to her normal self and smiled from the corner of her mouth, she's looking a lot like him sometimes. "There's a lot you don't know about me, Love", she walked over and kissed him on the cheek and giggled. "Come on, we have to talk to Luiz", she pulled him out of his reverie. They carried the body and went into town.

"A body!?", Luiz said, surprised by the news.

Mira and Ryker were in the mayor's house, a simple and comfortable house, cozy with a wood fireplace and a living room with sofas and carpets and a large window that illuminated the entire room.

"I'm sorry to say yes. We left the body at the hospital and hope they'll identify it," Mira said.

"What does that mean? Why was he there?" Luiz looked inconsolable and unrepentant.

"Good..."

"That's what we intend to find out. We found strange symbols in that cave and we don't know what it means. I believe that if we figure this out we can resolve everything", Ryker interrupted Mira, it would be better to hide certain details for now, she understood and accepted, just by looking at him.

"And what do you intend to do now?", Luiz asked them.

"There is only one person who can help us, and we need to call her. Do you have any communication lacrima? We need to talk to our guild," Mira said.

"Only in the city hall", they went downtown to the city building.

When they arrived at City Hall, Mira called Fairy Tail, and asked to speak to the book geek.

"Levy?"

"Mira-san. Okay, around? Did you want to talk to me?"

"Yes, we are having some complications here. And to solve all this we need your help"

"Yeah, fine. What can I be of help?"

"We found some weird symbols that we have no idea what they are. We believe that if we identify and find out what they mean, we can put an end to it."

"Of course, where are these symbols?"

"In our heads," Ryker said gruffly. "Meet us at the library on Crocus."

"Oh…okay, alright, " Levy's voice sounded a little surprised and annoyed at Ryker's harshness, Mira glared at him. "But why not here?"

"Now! Why... "

"Because the library at Crocus is more complete than ours," Mira interrupted Ryker and his sharpness. "And we don't want to risk going to the guild and not finding anything. Please meet us in the capital in two days."

"Of course Mira-san. I will be there"

"Thank you, Levy. See you there," she turned off the lacrima.

Luiz looked at them worriedly. "Are you going to the capital then?"

"We have to go. If we want to end this, we have to know what it is," Ryker said.

"Don't worry, it will only be a few days. During this period, be careful, try not to take unnecessary risks. If you can, stay in a safe place," Mira said compassionately. Luiz soothed with the warmth of the white-haired mage and smiled confidently.

After escorting the mayor back home, Ryker and Mira were heading back to the inn. There was an awkward atmosphere between them. Ryker tried to strike up a conversation, to lighten the mood and see if Mira's face brightened a little. He knew he had been the culprit for some reason.

"Mira…" he started but was cut short.

"Why do you have to be like this, Ryker?" Mira said in an irritated voice.

"Like!?"

"You know what I'm talking about!", she raised her voice a few tones. "You were rude and stupid to Levy, and she is helping us without asking for anything! You didn't have to talk like that!"

"Mira, I…" he tried, but she wouldn't let him.

"I'm not done yet!" she yelled and he fell silent. Mira walked up to him and placed her finger on his chest, pressing against him. "And it wasn't just Levy. This entire mission you have been acting like this. No compassion for these people, always closed, harsh, indifferent. You don't even seem to care about them!"

"You know it's not true!" Ryker called out.

"It doesn't seem like it! You demonstrate just the opposite," Mira yelled. "You should have more compassion for others, Ryker!"

"Oh sorry! But I didn't exactly have a good example of how to be nice!" now they were yelling at each other.

"That's no excuse to be an idiot to everyone! And in the guild there are many good examples for you to follow! Which, by the way, are always helping you and you treat them as you treated Levy today and Luiz! What's your problem!?", Mira was nervous and glares at him.

"If I remember correctly, you said you like being the one to see my sensitive side," he said, which pissed off Mira even more, who took on a dark aura.

Mira grabbed him by the collar, extremely nervous, startling him, "The fact that I like to see this side of you doesn't give you the right to be an asshole to the rest of the world! Being a nice and polite person has nothing to do with dating, it's a must! If you can't understand that, or be a better person myself…I don't know what I'm doing staying with you," she said with a sigh. "Leave me alone now," she released him and walked back to the inn, leaving a scared and fearful Ryker behind.

"Mi…Mira…" Ryker felt that hollowness in his chest and the ache of loneliness, but deep down he knew she was right. "Hell!" he cursed and walked back to the inn with his head down.