For thousands of years, even before the formation of the Empire, there was a great fear spread amongst the people. Regardless of when and where they were born, whether they were poor or rich, no matter how much they excelled in combat. They all feared the Tyrant. The Danger Beast that grew into a legend, crushing anything and anyone that stood in it's way. The greatest warriors were nothing more then bugs. Mightiest weapons mere toothpicks. Tallest and thickest walls simply stones it crushed under it's body. Nothing could stop it, or even slow it down.

But it wasn't always like that.

There was a time when even that great beast which the whole world feared was weak. There was a time the weakest of warriors would force it to run and hide. There was a time when every weapon was a threat. There was a time when even rocks would seem like an impossible obstacle. There was a time when Tyrant was simply weak. The weakest.

And it remembered that time well. Because it knew very well that this weakness was the source of it's strength.

Still, not everyone saw it like that.

And Tyrant remembered what it was like when it found out about it. The crushing feeling of its own powerlessness as a pair of giant black eyes looked down at it through the violet fog. It was a gaze only a disappointed parent can make, and it crushed the young beast to the very core. The creature that gave Tyrant it's life saw nothing of value in what it created.

It was cast out. Broken both in soul and body only to be thrown away like a piece of garbage.

Tyrant could do nothing but watch the eyes that belonged to its father disappear in the fog, never to be seen by it again. The despair it felt was crushing, but there was one thing that kept it's flame of life lit and forced it to hold onto it with all it's remaining strength.

Anger.

It wanted revenge. It wanted to prove it's not a mere failure. That it can still lift itself back up and survive.

And so, the beast started to crawl away from the fog. A long trail of blood left behind it. It oozed from it's body in liters, but Tyrant didn't stop. All the pain did nothing more then add to the fire that has formed in it's eyes. But the blood it has left behind was a clear trace for anything around. Trace that led straight to the wounded, young beast Tyrant was at the time. The smell would tell every predator where it was and that it was week.

It wasn't long before before the first ones started to appear. Rats.

Small, annoying, and numerous. They were watching from afar, safely hiding in the bushes until more of them come to join the feast they are expecting. Some were brave -or hungry- enough to close in and bite Tyrant's hurt legs, but they didn't live long enough to do any damage. Even in that state, Tyrant was more then strong enough to handle a couple of rats. Which meant nothing if they all came at it at once. There was simply too many of them.

However, before they managed to put those numbers to use, something else leaped from the bushes. Another predator, a Zmei. The black draconic creature used it's wings to dash towards Tyrant, sending one of it's 5 heads -each resting on a long, serpent-like neck- to grab Tyrant's throat. It's scales just barely managed to save it from the otherwise fatal blow. Zmei quickly fell back after the failed attack, avoiding Tyrant's claw. The counterattack was enough to throw Tyrant off balance, and almost make it fall to the ground, giving Zmei a perfect opportunity to attack again.

This time it went after Tyrant's limbs. Four of it's heads bit their teeth into each of Tyrant's legs, pinning it down to the ground. A roar of pain rang through the forest as the young beast felt it's legs slowly being ripped out. The last of Zmei's heads hung over it. That was the main head. Bigger then the rest and covered with thicker scales. It hissed at Tyrant as one of its front legs pinned its prey's head to the ground, giving it a perfect view at the weak spot on it's neck.

It wasted no time, immediately biting right into it.

Tyrant's roars of pain were quickly silenced, trapped in its lungs. Life was quickly leaving it, and it felt a surge of rage because of that. It was merely a few meters away from the place where it made a promise to itself. A vow to return and prove what it's worth to the parent that rejected it. And it was going to be killed so soon?

No. Deep within, something like a voice called out to it. Survive.

That command kept ringing in the beast's head. It's body was calling for it to give in, to let go and end the pain. But something beyond that didn't want it to. And Tyrant was going to listen to that inner voice. It continued to struggle against the Zmei, no matter how hard it would bite into its flesh. There was no way Tyrant would let it's journey end now. Its body suddenly started to burn with pain it never felt before. It came from the same place that inner call to live did, and Tyrant was more then happy whatever it brought with it.

Zmei was getting tired of waiting for Tyrant to give in, but it still persisted. At least until it felt small spikes pierce the inside of it's five mouths. Instinctively, it jerked away from Tyrant, immediately noticing thin, sharp spikes that appeared all over the young Tyrant's body. It didn't have much time to adapt to the situation though. The very next second after letting go of it's prey, Zmei was faced with Tyrant's red eyes, both full of burning rage.

Tyrant opened it's jaws and bit right into Zmei's main head, piercing one of the eyes. This time it was the one to roar in pain. It's four additional heads were rendered useless with the main one unable to give any commands, so Zmei was forced to get away with its wings. It knew Tyrant couldn't hold itself attached to it's head with no ground under it's legs for too long. It was right. Tyrant fell on the ground with a loud thud, immediately bringing itself back into a standing position, ready to fight back. Its legs were shaking, bleeding from open wounds and twisted by broken bones.

Another roar rang through the forest around them. But not one of pain. That roar was a threat. A combined might of all of Tyrant's rage and will to survive focused against the enemy before it.

It gave the Zmei a pause, but did not stop it, quickly getting itself ready to attack again. What did stop it, was a giant white paw smashing it's tail into the ground. It roared in pain, desperately trying to get away. All it's efforts were for nothing though. Mere seconds later all of it's heads along with half of the torso were bitten off by giant jaw of the beast that attacked it - a white lion with yellow, almost shining eyes.

It swallowed Zmei like a small snack before turning it's eyes towards Tyrant. It still stood there, unwilling to drop its guard, despite knowing very well who the beast was. The aura surrounding the lion was overwhelming, it was almost crushing the smaller beast under its gaze. But Tyrant still wouldn't give in. It met the Lion's eyes with its own, defiantly standing before the king of beasts. But that defiance was meaningless. The lion standing before was not an opponent Tyrant had even a slightest chance of harming, much less defeating.

The lion slowly approached Tyrant, still focusing it's eyes on the immobile child before it. A low growl sounded in it's throat, both as a threat and... a sign respect? Tyrant wasn't sure what it felt after hearing that.

Still, it remained in place. It didn't move even as the lion lifted it's giant paw into the air. The first thought that crossed it's mind was that an attack was incoming. Tyrant was prepared to jump away, but then the lion suddenly brought the paw towards its own jaw and bit it hard. Blood immediately fell all over Tyrant's body, covering it's silver scales in red. The reaction was almost immediate. The burning sensation from within has returned, twice as intense as it was when it pushed Zmei away.

The call to survive returned as well, making Tyrant roar out as loudly as it could. It soon felt its legs reshaping, its bones returning to their previous form. Withing moments, Tyrant could feel all of it's limbs completely healed, with not even a scratch left on them. Its shaking ceased as it panted. Slowly, Tyrant looked up. The lion wasn't in front of it anymore, rather standing at the edge of the clearing where Tyrant stood. The king of beasts looked back, waiting.

Two beasts' eyes met again, but this time with no hostility or threats in them.

It wasn't long before Tyrant followed the lion.


"Goodbye..." That single word cut deep into Tatsumi's soul. Deeper then any blade could ever hope to. It made something snap inside of him; the complete resignation and acceptance of death in Leone's voice felt like he was being stabbed in the heart... And he wouldn't allow her. Not now. Not when they already won. Not after they survived for so long.

Not after he promised himself to not let any of his companions die again.

Not Akeme, not Boss, and not Leone. He's already lost too many of his friends. People he would call his family...

"No!" He roared just as she was about to reach her hand out to the door knob. Leone paused for a second, but decided to ignore Tatsumi's cry and continued on. But Tatsumi didn't allow her to leave. Leone was soon pulled away from the door and pressed against the wall, now face to face with Tatsumi who held her shoulders. "I won't let you do this! I won't let you die! Not now, after all this..." He cried out, his eyes overflowing with tears but with unbreakable determination hidden behind them. Leone could see it clearly, and it almost gave her the motivation to keep going.

But almost is never enough.

"Tatsumi... It's not a matter of whether you let me do this or not... I'm already on borrowed time..." She quietly spoke up after a long second. "I don't know how I managed to keep going as long as I have but... This is it Tatsumi... I'm sorry, but there's nothing you or anyone can do about it... So, please... Let me leave... I don't want you to see me like this..." She felt tears flow down her cheeks, but a gentle smile appeared on her face nonetheless as she placed her hand on top of Tatsumi's head, slowly running her fingers through his hair.

"No, Leone." He looked up at her, staring right into her eyes. "You're wrong. This is not the end." Again, Leone could hear absolute determination in his voice. It was as if he didn't care about her wounds at all, simply stating that she will live on and completely rejecting any possibility that she won't.

Before she had any chance to further think about it, Tatsumi has moved her away from the wall and laid her down on the bed he previously occupied. Resisting him was fruitless, and Leone knew this. Right now he was in a whole another league compared to her. She honestly doubted that she would stand a chance even if she was at full strength. "Tatsumi, what are you..." Her words fell on deaf ears. The focus in Tatsumi's eyes was overwhelming, enough so that it made her shut up and simply wait for whatever he has in store for her. Still, she couldn't help but wander... What can he possibly be planning?

"Lionel is not dead yet..." He said, almost as if he sensed her confusion. "Just like with Tyrant, being turned into a Teigu was not enough to truly kill the king of beasts. It may have been hurt, cut to pieces and molded into a weapon, but it was never broken. And it never will be." Her confusion only grew. What did he mean by 'never broken'? Honest broke it with his Teigu, there's no way for her to use it again. "The belt was nothing more then a vessel. Merely a way for the true Beast to move between users. Lionel was not in it from the moment you first used it, it was always inside you."

"What... Are you talking about? He can you possibly know this?"

"I don't. Tyrant does. It remembers many things about Teigus it saw over the years. But that doesn't matter now. Because now..." Tatsumi moved his hand over to his mouth. "It's time for yours and Lionel's younger brother to return the favor." To Leone's astonishment, Tatsumi bit into his arm, not hesitating for even a moment. His teeth seemed to become longer and sharper just before he bit into his own flesh, crushing scales that protected it like they were not even there.

She was sure it was painful, but he never showed even a hint of that. Soon, his blood started to drip down his arm, right onto Leone's stomach. And the moment the red liquid made contact with her skin, Leone understood that everything Tatsumi said was true. The fire she felt every time Lionel was used suddenly returned to her, growing each time a bit of his blood fell on her. It started to fill her whole body, moving beneath her skin, burning away her pain.

Her hand closed into a fist as she roared out loud. All of her instincts were becoming sharper then they ever were as her body merged with the beast inside of her. Beast she was turning into now. Her body was engulfed in white flames, burning the bed under her black. She felt her body transforming again, but not like it always did. This time it went past the point when it would usually stop. She felt her parts of her skin being covered by fur, but not yellow as it always did. It became white as snow. Muscles under her skin became even stronger, making power Lionel's transformations would give her before look like that of a child be comparison. Cat ears and tail she grew accustomed to also appeared again.

Most importantly, she quickly felt Regenerator -Lionel's Trump Card- activate, almost immediately making wounds that have been causing her pain all this time heal within seconds.

The flames around her disappeared and suddenly the whole room became quiet. The full meaning of what just happened slowly started to sink into Leone's mind. Then, after a good half a minute of staring at the ceiling, she started to laugh, quietly at first. Tears flowed down on her face again, but not that of resignation, but rather happiness she thought she wouldn't feel again. "Damn it Tatsumi..." She got into sitting position. "You just don't know how to-" She paused as her eyes turned towards Tatsumi. Or rather, his beet-red face. He was downright boiling on the inside.

Leone followed his eyes, eventually focusing hers on her own chest. The transformation that just happened have not only burned the bed, but also turned her clothes into ash. She was completely naked, not counting the white fur that now covered her legs, arms as well as parts of her chest. And Tatsumi was staring right at her breasts.

"Ahaha hahahahaha!" She grabbed onto her stomach, unable to contain her laughter. Happy tears were still filling her eyes. "Well, there goes the atmosphere!" Without warning she grabs stunned Tatsumi's face and happily shoves it between her breasts. The soft flesh causes Tatsumi's body temperature to grow just a few degrees higher, making Leone laugh even louder.

Even the door to the room being kicked open by Nejada and the doctor couldn't stop her. "Leone, what's wrong!?"

"Ah, Boss! Good thing you're here. I think I broke Tatsumi, think you can fix him? And maybe fix me a drink while you're at it? That would be nice. I need to get drunk, because this-" She points at her transformed body. "-is a lot to take."


Author's Note: Thought I'm gonna kill her didn't ya?

Well, at first that was a plan but around the time I was finishing the second chapter I changed my mind. Figured there's still a role for her to play out. And just so you know, Leone's new form is exactly what it was in the manga. Google it if you haven't read it. Or even better, read it yourself.

Song of the day: Disturbed - Tyrant