Well, this is what happens when confine myself to a set ending when writing a chapter. You have to wait months for me to finish it, that's why I try to not do it. Hell, if i did that, I WOULD STILL BE WRITING CHAPTER 4.

Anyways, enjoy these 20.000 word monster of a chapter...


Hundreds of years before the first seeds of the Revolution were even planted, when the rightful ruler still reigned supreme over his land and his people prospered, in times when the Empire was yet to feel the bitter taste of corruption, in one of thousands of chambers spread throughout the Imperial Palace a single figure laid in a large bed. A women, with hair white as snow and skin dark as coal. The sun was already high above the horizon and its rays entered the chamber yet none reached her eyes. She was wrapped tightly in her bed sheets, completely shielded from sun's wake-up call. It was however, no defense against a foot that suddenly found its way to her butt. "Get the fuck up you lazy ass!" The black woman was knocked out of the bed even though she was more then capable of dodging the incoming attack. After all, she was the Empire's Strongest. She knew the attack was coming the moment the other person stepped into her room. Or rather reentered it. That very same person was sleeping beside her the whole night long. Currant wielder of Lionelle, her second in command and on top of that, also her lover – Velvet Hashi.

A groan sounded from the cocoon of bed sheets that now lied on the floor but it didn't even flinch. "Shut up Vel... I'm tired..." Completely content with continuing to sleep on the floor, the women fell silent again, only making Velvet growl in anger. She immediately walked over to her commander and drop kicked her right in the stomach. "Hey! That hurt!" Her tone was more playful then angry and she didn't even bother to move after that, only angering Velvet more.

"For fucks sake get up!" She tried to wrestle the blanket away from her, but achieved nothing. "It's already past twelve!"

"So what? That's barely past morning..."

"You're TWO HOURS late for your meeting with the Emperor damn it!" She kicked again, but again, to no effect. In fact, all she achieved was making her leg hurt

"But I'm so tired..."

"I don't give a shit!"

"But it's your fault~" She finally decided to pull her head out of the warm embrace of her bed sheets, looking at Velvet with her deep green eyes for a second, just long enough to blow her a kiss, before disappearing under the sheets again. "The last night was soooo~ much fuuun~. Didn't think you would put your whole arm in… Not that I'm complaining~" She could almost see the blush on the other woman's face. No doubt she was getting angrier and angrier with her lover, but it was fine. It didn't matter what she did, all of it would do nothing but amuse the hell out of her. It was actually tempting to look at her again, to see those violet orbs angrily staring down at her, the pout on her blushing face as she threw one insult after another at her for being too lazy for her own good and utterly irresponsible, her short-cut black hair... And that ass… Damn, she had a nice ass… It was really tempting to take a bite of it… Again... And then fall asleep on it. What have I ever done to deserve such a perfect companion~

After a good minute of being kicked and screamed at with absolutely no response from the Empire's Strongest other then a smile that quickly found its way to her face as she started to drift back into the land of… very nice dreams, Velvet finally had enough. "Alright, that's it! I'm fucking done being nice! I'll beat your fucking ass to hell and back if that's what it takes to make you get up!"

"Oh~ Please do!" Suddenly, a hand shot out from under the sheets, accelerating towards Velvet's collar at speeds that even she, being one of the best soldiers of the Empire, couldn't react to in time. Before she knew it, she was pulled under the sheets and immobilized as her lover wrapper both her arms and legs around her like vines. She wouldn't be able to free herself from her strong grip even if she had activated Lionelle, and the black woman holding her didn't even have her own Teigu on. It was at times terrifying how one person can hold this much power, but right now, Velvet had other things to worry about. Like for example her mouth being forcefully opened and penetrated by her lover's tongue. The wet appendage itself was strong enough to push her lower jaw down to allow her access to deeper parts of her mouth, something that was immediately taken advantage of. And despite trying not to, Velvet quickly melted into the kiss, happily moaning as her own tongue engaged in this unfair battle, only to lose horribly as expected and become another toy for the other women to play with. Before long, she felt her butt being roughly squeezed, with nails digging into her flesh. It was like flipping the switch after this. Velvet immediately gave up the submissive attitude and grabbed the black ass of her lover as roughly as she grabbed her own and brought her teeth down on her tongue as it mercilessly played around in her mouth.

This time it was the other women that moaned loudly. And also as if a switch in her head was suddenly flipped, her dominating presence and overwhelming strength turned into complete and utter submission. Despite being perfectly capable to do that and far more, she didn't resist at all while her head was being pushed down to the ground. Her arms instead of holding Velvet close, moved to remove her clothes instead. Velvet allowed that, especially when she felt one of her lover's hands has slipped under her shirt and started groping her breasts. She started to run her tongue over her commander's teeth as the other women shyly rubbed her own tongue against Velvet's. She suddenly felt a light pinch on her nipple and immediately decided to retaliate against that show of disobedience. Her mouth quickly pulled away from the kiss and instead moved over to her lover's shoulder where she bit down hard, almost drawing blood, which was no easy task considering who the women underneath her is. Except of a perverted masochist who is about to get off just from being bitten and groped.

Just before she got to reach the climax though, Velvet moved her mouth up to her ear, leaving a trail of light bites up her neck, finishing it off with another hard bite on her ear. She was by then panting hard and shaking under Velvet's touch. But again, Velvet stopped right before pushing her lover over the line. She instead blew air into her ear and said. "Cassandra… Either you get out by yourself and go meet the Emperor, or I'm dragging you there myself."

She simply got back on her legs and fixed her shirt while the woman on the ground stared at her, completely stunned. "Eeeeeeeeh!?" This time it was her turn to pout and blush furiously as Velvet crossed her arms in front of her. She could see Cassandra's wet groin very clearly, but didn't let that distract her from staring the woman down. "Oh, please! I'm so turned on I'm about to explode!" She received no answer other than a cold glare and a finger pointing at the door. Cassandra wasn't having any of it though and merely grabbed her covers again and wrapped them around herself tightly yet again, still pouting like baby that was just refused its playtime.

"Alright. So be it." Velvet naturally wasn't throwing empty threats before. She fully intended, and even expected to fulfill them. And so, she grabbed part of the blanket and started to drag it, and Cassandra who refused to let go of them, along the floor. Completely uncaring how many weird looks she got from the servants or even guards and how many of them laughed at Cassandra's loud objections. Hell, even the elite guards standing right outside the throne room couldn't help to let out a quiet chuckle at that. And those guys are nothing if not stone-faced. They especially seemed to enjoy the part where she complained about her 'breaking her human right to an adequate amount of sleep' since not only is she known to be an all around lazy woman not just in the palace, but also was the one training them, and early wake-up calls were an everyday occurrence. Though it was mostly Velvet who did the waking and the living proof of that was currently being dragged over the floor behind her.

Ultimately, she threw her into the throne room like a living sack of potatoes. "I'm sorry for the wait my Lord!" She bowed her head low and dropped on one knee right after moving next to Cassandra's little cocoon. "General Cassandra has proven herself to be more difficult to persuade then anticipated."

"I can see that..." The man on the throne only smiled lightly at that. His large posture and wide, muscular shoulders combined with sharp features of his face made the man out to be someone of an overwhelming presence to anyone who doesn't deal with him on daily basis, but he only puts up the appearance when he has to. For those he works closely with, he is an outright goof, not only willing but outright happy to take part in friendly banter whenever he has the time. "General Cassandra..." Now was not the time though. He spoke, in a serious tone, only amplified by his deep voice as he turned his eyes towards the immobile cocoon. "We have an important matter to discuss. Will you get up yourself, or should I call my dear wife again?" As if under effect of a magic spell, the cocoon started to slowly move, revealing the naked body of general Cassandra for the world to see as she rose to her full height, towering over even the tallest man in the room and making her lover, who was on the shorter end of the spectrum, look like a midget in comparison. No one reacted though. Both the Emperor and all his advisors were by now very much used to her liberal take on laws against public nudity and simply ignored it. If only to quietly admire her… Everything.

Velvet wasn't having any of it though and quickly wrapped the blankets around her. "Please don't call my sis… I couldn't sit straight for a month after she was done with me last time. Even I have limits, you know..." She yawned loudly. Almost as if she was unaware of the fact that not only is she surrounded by nobelty, but also in the presence of one of the most powerful man in the world and her boss at the same time. "So, why did you wake me up so early? I was having such a nice dream..."

"General Gavin was killed." The room fell completely silent for a long second. One could hear a pin drop. Cassandra turned her gaze towards the Emperor, finally facing him with seriousness in her eyes. Gavin was not only her best friend, one who brought her to the Empire from her own country but also the Empire's Second Strongest. Outmatched only by her. It didn't seem possible that someone other then her managed to not only best him but also kill. Especially considering what his Teigu was.

"What happened?"

"He and his elite troops were sent to reclaim the Archives. I do not know what they encountered there, but the few that managed to escape back to the surface confirmed his death."

"And his Teigu?"

"Demon's Extract has already returned to it's container." The Emperor leaned forward on his throne. "There's no doubt about it. Even he has perished, the man who alone conquered wild plains of the west and protected our land from the barbarians of the north. A hero and friend to us all..." His hand curled into a fist as his eyes closed and his voice fell silent. Cassandra herself has lowered her head and held her hand against her chest, muttering prayers in her native language that no one beside Velvet could understand.

"We cannot let ourselves fall to grief now though." Prime Minister Quovadis said, standing at Emperor's right side. The man was old, but still perfectly capable of standing without support thanks to his fit yet small body formed thanks to being a general in his younger years. He was for a time Cassandra's mentor too, mostly during her first years in the Empire. That was over ten years ago though, before his health started to drastically turn for worse. He can no longer fight or use his Teigu, the one she inherited from him. He had more hair back then too. "With only you and General Deux remaining we are met with a dire question to answer. Should we seal off the Archive, or continue attempts to reclaim it?"

Cassandra didn't even hesitate before answering. "I'll go there and reclaim the Archive myself." Her face twisted into a grim look as her anger rose inside her. "Whatever killed my… Our friend will pay for it dearly, you have my word." The emperor slowly rose from his throne after hearing that and approached her. Everyone he passed by immediately fell on one knee, including Velvet. He was an exceptionally tall man by any standards, but he still came a head short of Cassandra, who was the only one to not bow in front of him.

"Are you sure about this?" He asked, looking straight into her deep, blue eyes with his sharp, green ones. "The Archive is just scrolls and books, knowledge that can always be regained with time. People like you… I value far more."

"...I'm sure." She said, her voice devoid of any doubt and filled with confidence. "I'm sure that whatever is in there will eventually get bored with its playing ground and decide to come out. We have to stop it now that we still have a chance. Who knows what it will become given enough time…" Emperor simply stood still for a good couple of seconds in complete silence before slowly nodding his head and gently wrapping his arms around Cassandra's slender body. She wasted no time before putting her hand on top of his green-hair covered head. "There, there… No need to act like a kid in front of everyone… I promise I will come back victorious. You will not be loosing another friend..." She sighed deeply. The man didn't show any signs of wanting to let go so she simply allowed him to let it out. Gods know, he deserved every moment like that after all the close friends and family members he has lost on top of carrying a nation's weight on his shoulders.

Really, if it wasn't for her sister, Cassandra was certain he would have been swallowed by grief long time ago.

And speaking of her sister… She has just now entered the throne room, unnoticed by both the Emperor and Cassandra until it was too late for… "Ooooh… So that's how it will be, huh?" The two turned their heads only to see an angry women with features almost identical to Cassandra, save for abnormal height. "Got so bored of me you need to satisfy yourself with my sister's chest?" He only now realized that he was unintentionally hugging himself into Cassandra's perfectly shaped, mid-sized breasts. Before he could even attempt to look for excuses though, the other woman had already grabbed his ear and started to pull him away from Cassandra. "Tonight, I'll make sure to explain to you why my chest is the better one..." She whispered, holding his head right next to her head as she smirked seductively at him, lightly slapping his cheeks. "If you behave, that is..." Cassandra could almost see his arousal manifest.

She could only laugh at what just transpired. I'll come back… For sure… With that thought, she started to walk away from the throne room. She had to prepare.


Not even half an hour later, Cassandra was fully dressed again and on her way to the dungeons. She could feel the familiar weight of her lightly armored clothes and the sword on her back, providing her with sense of comfort the likes of which only Velvet could reproduce. She was from a tribe of warriors after all. She was simply not complete without her weapon… Or her lover beside her. Now, she had both of those things, so there was noting that could make her happier given the situation. "So, what are we here for?" Velvet asked, cracking her knuckles as she walked past dozens of cells filled with prisoners. Most no longer had any fight in them after the interrogators were done with them, but some still looked at her and Cassandra with anger and hate in their eyes. Not that either of them cared about opinions of a bunch of corrupt bureaucrats, foreign spies and bosses of criminal underworld. "Going to try squeezing something out of the saboteur again?"

"Yeah, I have to at least try. He created whatever is in there and rigged the Archive's defenses against us after all. What better source of info can we find?"

"Maybe so, but no one was able to get anything useful out of him. Just more rambling about the Empire heading towards its own doom." She sighed. "And to think he was the wisest man of the Empire since times of the first Emperor. He even created the Shingus the former Emperor wanted… Shame they all got sealed away god knows where though. Some were really nice weapons..."

"I know he'll likely not say anything, but it's better to try then feel sorry later." Xardas – a prodigy in all fields of science ever since he was but a young student in Imperial Academy. The amount of discoveries and advancements he has attached to his name was frankly staggering and a source of both respect and jealousy from all that surrounded him. Personally, Cassandra never got along with the man and often butted heads with him which inevitably ended in him making fool of her every time things got heated. She did respect his vast knowledge, but just couldn't get over his personality. Something most would agree was not among his good characteristics.

He always seemed like a loyal servant of the Empire though. He had trust of the Emperor on his side and many privileges that came with his position. By all means, the man was Emperor's most trusted advisor, save for only the Prime Minister. The news of his sudden betrayal were therefore unexpected to say the least. Without anyone realizing, he had used his free access to the Archives and did something to the Danger Beast guards that he himself created. They went crazy and started to attack everyone save for him. He had even activated all of the traps in the Archive on top of that.

General Gavin was leading the fifth attempt at reclaiming the Imperial Archive and thus far the most crippling blow Xardas' actions have brought to the Empire. And Cassandra was going to make sure he pays for it. Dearly.

Moving down to the lowest part of the dungeon, one reserved for the most important of prisoners, they approached the last cell in the hallway. The only one with a guard posted next to it. Neither of the two women could see his face because of the helmet covering it, but both could definitely hear him gulp as he saw them. "Ma'am?"

"Open the cell for us." Cassandra said in a commanding tone. Guard only nodded and hastily did what he was asked. "Stay outside." She said as she pushed the heavy steel framed door open, immediately focusing her gaze on the old man sitting behind a wooden table with his hands tied in front of him. His wrinkled face covered in bruises, some fairly fresh, not older then an hour. The room was filled with smell of his feces and piss, a staple for the prison block he was in. The clothes he wore were nothing but rugs by now, completely destroyed from the beating and torture he was subjected to since his imprisonment, completely stained with his blood and barely held together. Yet despite the miserable state he was in, the old man still had it in him to grin as he saw the two women enter.

"Cassandra… Velvet… How can I help you?" It really took all self control Velvet had to not activate Lionelle and rip that grin off of his face. Along with his head.

"You know why we're here." Cassandra threw the table into the wall as she approached him, shattering it into splinters. She then grabbed his neck and lifted him up to her level with casual ease. "You're going to tell us how to stop what you started." He met her death-cold gaze with a mocking smirk.

"I've already... told you... all… I have… to say..." He was clearly struggling to keep on breathing. Especially since he was over 100 years old. Cassandra was actually surprised he didn't fall apart like a sand castle the moment she touched him. And furthermore, he never stopped mocking her with that smirk and the way he kept looking at her with those white eyes of his. Always looking down on her, regardless of his position… She wasn't going to take any more of it. This time, there were no rules to stop her from expressing how she really feels about that damn old fuck. Hell, she could probably kill him and no one would come to her complaining. He was due to be executed anyways.

Not letting up her ice cold glare for even a second, Cassandra slammed the man into the wall, precisely calculating how much strength she uses to make it hurt more then anything. She could hear his ribs cracking as he screamed out in pain – a music to her ears, one she didn't even realize she wanted to hear. "Then I guess I'm just going to enjoy myself." She was by no means proficient in torture, but dealing pain was hardly difficult to someone with even basic understanding of human body. 'Intact bones are good, broken bones bad' and such.

She proceeded to snap the old man's bones and beat him into a bloody pulp, turning the once highly regarded scholar into a quivering mess. She was sure it was extremely painful, but somehow despite every breath bringing him more agony, he was still smiling, still looking down on her. "Was that really necessary?" Velvet asked, before Cassandra could get back to it. "We don't exactly have a permission to kill him just like that, you know..."

"I do... It's just that..." Velvet lightly placed her hand on Cassandra's shoulder, gently grabbing her by the hand. "...Thanks." Velvet almost smiled at that. Comforting her lover always made her feel exceptionally good about herself. Though she sure as hell was not going to show it. Cassandra always teases her when she does.

A dark chuckle suddenly sounded through the cell, immediately making both women turn towards Xardas again. "You're afraid... Aren't you Cassandra?" He somehow managed to sit straight with his back against the wall. "You've always reacted to what you don't understand with violence." He chuckled again. "No wonder this Empire is heading towards its end..." Cassandra proceeded to step on his broken knee, letting her heel to dig into flesh. "You want to know, don't you? Very well... I'll tell you. It's not like you will live long enough to do anything with it..." He looked straight into her eyes, completely dropping his mad grin. "The Empire you claim to defend is dying Cassandra. And the people you defend are the ones that will strangle it."

Her gaze sharpened. "Bold words for a dirty traitor." She moved her leg away from his knee and proceeded to stab the heel into his shoulder instead, pushing him against the wall. "The Empire is prospering like it never did before, the people are happy and alliances strong. What makes you think the Empire is about to be ruined?"

"Oh, don't get me wrong, I am not saying that the ruin will arrive anytime soon... But it will. It always does when humanity is involved." His eyes darkened as Cassandra felt her instincts flaring up. "We are truly a broken race, Cassandra. I give the Empire no more then 300 years before its decay results in it's collapse. The corruption will run rampant, people will die on mass in pain and misery... I can already see the seeds of what is to come being planted. The prosperity you speak of is nothing more then fuel for greed to take hold. It's only a matter of time before the noble clans start to reach for more then they should. Before they start to reach for power they don't deserve. The Honest clan for once is a likely candidate for becoming a catalyst of it all. Young noble clan, disregarded by others, and yet slowly gathering more and more power... Sooner or later, a true monster will be born, a tyrant that will run this nation into the ground for his own gain. Just like it always happens. All great nations crumble sooner or lager, burned in flames of revolutions and buried in human greed. This cycle was repeated more times then you can imagine girl. And it will continue to repeat itself long after your precious Empire is nothing but dust and ruins... Unless..." Cassandra couldn't help but anticipate an attack. Her senses were s reaming at her, yet she couldn't locate the source of that sensation.

It wasn't long before she got her answer though. As soon as she focused on Xardas again, she could feel his malice and killing intent focused on her like a laser burning into her head. "Unless someone stops it all!" To both Cassandra's and Velvet's great surprise, the old man suddenly got back on his feet as if nothing happened to him and sent his fist flying towards Cassandra's face. Even despite feeling the danger beforehand, she was so shocked to find that the old man she all but tore apart moments before was its source that the punch reached her before she reacted, sending her flying straight through the wall, back into the dungeon's corridor.

The attack was strong. Freakishly so. No normal man of his age should be able to deal so much damage, especially considering what she did to him. The shock of it actually happening didn't last long though. Her sharp instincts quickly kicked into higher gear as she steadied herself mid-fly and landed on her legs, instantly ready to engage in a fight. She quickly analyzed the situation before her. After punching her out of the room, she had broken through the wall right where the guard was standing. The she could see blood coming out of the back of his head but couldn't tell if the wound was fatal now as she had to quickly divert her attention somewhere else.

Back in the cell, Xardas was already on his way to attack Velvet. The other women however, while also surprised by his sudden by the development, had just enough time to react. As soon as the old man's hand started to approach her, she pushed it aside with her own, immediately sending a powerful kick towards his chest. He quickly jumped into the air, using the ceiling to push himself back towards her, aiming to smash her head with his foot. Velvet was quick to get out of the harm's way. Her body started to twist and bend in ways possible only for a Rakshasa Demon, even a former one. One's body simply does not forget the kind of training required to move like that. Never. She quickly wrapped her leg around Xardass', using it as a leverage and moving right behind him.

He had no way of reacting when she quickly sent a powerful kick his way. The man was immediately thrown out of the cell through the same hallway Cassandra made because of him, right where the tall woman was waiting with her sword in hand. With one lightning quick swing, she severed his head from the rest of his body as he flew by her. She didn't even have a scratch on her after being smashed through the wall by him. "So much for not killing him..." She muttered under her breath, putting her blade inside the sheath on her back.

Cassandra then looked at Velvet who was approaching her. "What the hell was that..." She said, rubbing her aching bones. Just because her body was still more then capable of doing what it was trained for, doesn't mean it enjoys it. She has left the four Demons for a reason after all.

Cassandra turned back towards the immobile body of the old man. She could see that the soldier she was thrown into was waking up, scratching his head and groaning in pain. "Are you alright?" She started to approach him, holding her hand out to help him get back on his feet. But she didn't get a chance to. Just before she made the final step, the feeling of danger suddenly returned. She immediately jumped away, only barely managing to avoid getting impaled on a hand that just shot out of the guard's chest. The man screamed out in pain as he drew his final breath, soon falling motionlessly on the ground as his attacker rose back on his feet.

"I'm very sorry girl, but that is simply not going to suffice..." Xardas said. His head was dangling from a tentacle that connected to the rest of his body for a few more seconds before being put back on its place. Wasting no time Velvet rushed back to him, throwing a punch aimed at his chest that he met with his own. In the end though, the woman's hand was far stronger, and shattered Xardas' bones like a pack of matches. She then grabbed him by the neck with her other hand and threw against the wall. He hit the stone bricks with a loud thud, cracking the wall's surface with the strength of the impact along with his rib cage. She was still not done though. Not letting up the offensive, Velvet swung her leg at her opponent's head, aiming to smash it to bits. "Foolish girl..."

Right before her leg made contact with his face, the man's eye started to shine with a purple glow. She realized she is in danger in an instant, even if she had no idea what was it's nature. Immediately, she halted her attack and attempted to get out of the way as an energy beam shot out of Xardas' eye. She was forced to contort her body again to avoid the attack, but the beam still managed to pierce her leg. Not knowing what else to expect, she fell back, barely letting out more then a hiss at her injury. "Was that... A Teigu? That can't be..." She has never heard of one like that, and neither has Cassandra. It definitely felt like one though.

"Why, yes. It is in fact a Teigu. Is it so hard to believe that I -the man responsible for the creation of all Shingus- have eventually managed to create weapon to match a Teigu?" He chuckled at them. "Allow me to introduce to you my most advanced creation..." His eye started to glow again. "The Eye of Judgment – Tazeron!" He immediately shot his beam at them. Velvet who was standing in front of Cassandra, has immediately dodged aside to avoid the attack, yet the other woman merely moved her head slightly.

"A Teigu you say... And pray tell, how did you manage to gain the necessary materials? Teigus were made from Ultra-class Danger Beasts, which are long gone and as you said yourself once, Shingus couldn't match Teigus because of the lacking materials. Even if you somehow managed to find one still alive, I doubt you would be able to prepare the manpower necessary to take it down in secret from me."

"A surprisingly good question from someone like you." She almost felt as if he spat in her face. "And I will gladly enlighten you. You see, I have found an Ultra-class Beast still alive. I have not killed it though. Never even thought about it. I joined it instead. And it gave me a purpose..." His hand reached for the side of his face, touching his Teigu. "What I said before was not merely my prediction. It was the future. A vision she showed me that only confirmed my suspicions. I saw this country rot under foot of a tyrant. I saw people suffer unimaginable injustice at the hands of those meant to protect them. I saw children made into killers, soldiers punished for not spreading evil of their superiors, slums filled with poor, villages pushed into poverty, crime running rampant on the streets and discrimination against people we now call our allied. I saw this country burn in flames of revolution... And I saw nothing change. The revolution will be long and bloody, but before long another tyrant will arise and start the cycle again." He suddenly fired at her again, this time forcing her to duck.

"She showed me the future, Cassandra. And she is the only one that can stop it. My queen will cure this world. Purify our race!" He attacked again, firing one time after the other. "She gave me strength to be her champion! To guide her to domination over this world!" Seeing Cassandra dodge all of his attacks casually, he rushed forward, ready to strike with his full power. "And the time has come! Your death will mark the beginning of new order, Cassandra!"

His fist moved so fast that by the time it reached her face it was the air around it was starting to catch fire, sending a shockwave throughout the hallway that almost pushed Velvet away the moment it hit it's mark. "W-Wha..." Cassandra wasn't even fazed though. Xardas' strongest strike was met with her open palm, barely even registering as an attack. The women didn't move an inch, just stood still and for once, she was the one looking down on him. "How are you still-!?" Cassandra's hand was suddenly engulfed in flames, and so was his. He immediately backed away, groaning in pain as his hand outright melt from the heat.

"I assure you Xardas... You are the fool here." She moved her hand over to her face, watching as the flames danced on her skin before closing her fist to put them down. The old man's hand quickly grew back, but the damage done to his pride was irreparable. The woman he's been looking down upon ever since she was brought to the Empire as a mere teenager, was now staring at him as if he was the insignificant bug here, barely worth her attention even after displaying his strength. Her gaze held a flame within it. A blazing hate that he could feel throughout his body; hate and anger directed at him that she was holding for all those years of mockery and shame she suffered from at his hand. Immediately after his hand grew back, Xardas fired off from his eye, aiming straight at Cassandra's head. Despite the speed with which the energy beam traveled towards her, Cassandra reacted faster, reaching her hand to her sword and letting the beam touch its tip. The man could only stare in amazement as the attack that should easily melt through even the hardest of metals did nothing to her blade, save for heating it up a bit.

"H-how-!?" He suddenly felt the heated tip slash at his cheek. He didn't even see her move move an inch from her spot, all he saw was his own blood suddenly appearing on her blade's tip.

"If a Teigu battle is what you want so badly... Then that's exactly what you will get!" She twirled her sword in her hand as flames started to engulf it. The flames slowly started to spread out on her arm and her long hair turned from white to red, shortly catching fire as well. She stabbed her blade into the ground, finally calling for her Teigu to appear. "Incursio!" An explosion of fire completely blinded the old man and forced to back away once he realized the heat is melting his skin off. This was the first time he witnessed the legendary armor being summoned by her, finally realizing why she is known as the Empire's Fire Demon. Incursio – the armor that adapts to its users, changing for each one to suit their needs... No one before Cassandra has managed to awaken the flames of the Demon Armor before as far as he knows, but as much as his mind always wished to study it, his pride would not let him. She was nothing but a worm that wiggled its way into the royal family with brute strength while her sister did the same with her loins.

He could never accept that. They were just given what he had worked for ever since he was a child. People called him a prodigy, a natural genius, but he was neither of those. He was just willing to put in the effort all those other worthless bugs wouldn't. And while he spent all of his days on his studies, hoping to one day be noticed by people above, these two just came to the Empire and received everything he had to earn on a silver platter. And he was never truly acknowledged on top of that. Yes, they did praise his intellect and wisdom, but no matter what he accomplished, it was never enough. He was tasked with creating weapons to match the Teigus, weapons that took hundreds of experts from many fields and materials that could never be obtained again... Him. Just one man. From the start there was no way he would be able to match the craftsmanship of those weapons, but he still did his absolute best, hoping that the effort he put in will be appreciated only for his creations to be called a disappointment and thrown away like garbage.

But then, he met her.

While he was simply strolling though the forest, not really thinking about anything but relaxing away from the city walls, he saw her. The most beautiful creature he had ever laid his eyes on. She whispered to him, talked to him. She showed him the future the Empire was being led to and finally appreciated what he had done for all of its people despite them never bothering to thank him for any of it. And she ultimately, gave him the tool he needed to finally match the weapons that hunted his every waking moment ever since his Shingus were met with looks of disappointment.

She gave him the purpose to keep going, to work even harder. To help her save humanity from self destruction, and the Empire along with it. To achieve that, he offered her a new home in the Empire's Archive where she will start her efforts to change humanity as a whole once the time comes. And the time is near. No oversized black brute of a women was going to stop him from watching as the world is being reborn.

As soon as the flames that surrounded her started to disappear, she emerged from between them, now clad in her silver armor from head to toes. The scale-like plates tightly hugged her body but restricted no movements while the heels that were now on her feet only made her look higher then she already is. In her hand she still held her sword – Incursio's key. Her hair were sticking out from the back of the helmet that covered her face, still covered in hot flames. He couldn't see her eyes now, but could still feel the fire burning in them. "I promise, this is the end for you. And your 'Queen' will be next." His expression twisted with anger. He immediately was forced to jump away as she rushed at him, swinging her sword down at him. She still managed to cut a deep wound on his chest. Wound which immediately caught fire. "It would seem that your regeneration powers don't do so well with fire. Good to know, especially since you already told me your powers come from your bitch in the Archive. I'll make sure to give her a very hot greeting to our Empire."

"You will not get to see her... You will die here!" His eye suddenly turned completely black as he fired several beams from it at once. Some were coming straight towards her, others passed behind only to turn around. In the end, all of them hit her at once, but she didn't bother to dodge or block any. She stood there even as the explosion of energy surrounded her, because she simply knew there is nothing he can do to harm her. Before the glow of the explosion even disappeared, she rushed behind him, so fast that for the first few seconds after seeing the spot she stood in empty, he didn't even realize. For a split second before smashing her flame covered fist into his face, she saw as his expression turns from anger into realization. Realization of just how strong she really is.

He flew past Velvet, who was just watching the events unfold with her arms crossed in front of her, straight back to his cell's back wall. "You know, I actually used to look up to you a lot when I came here..." Cassandra said as she reentered the cell, watching as he struggles to regenerate the blazing hole left by his missing lower jaw.

"Back then I thought very little of man, my tribe was mostly women after a plague killed most of our man years ago and made it difficult for boys to be born. They were treated so special ever since being born it just made me sick. I get why it became like that; with only one out of ten newborn boys surviving the aftereffects of the plague a healthy male being born is important for the tribe's survival, but... When I looked at those pathetic, lazy, pieces of shit, surrounded by no less then 5 women at any given time, each serving their every wish, it just made me sick. When I saw Gavin I thought he was just like that too, but when he offered to help me on a hunting trip in exchange for a place to stay, he proved me wrong, showed me that he's different... He showed the first how different man from outside can be. And once he brought me and my sister here, I met the Emperor, man who carried a whole nation's weight on his back even though he could drown himself in riches his predecessors gained. He might have been born into the position he was in, but he never used it as an excuse to take it easy, rather a responsibility that weighted on his family. I saw him work himself unconscious more times then I can count. And then... I met you. The one man that worked his way up from the very bottom with nothing but his own two hands and an oversized brain. I admired you... I really did. You are the one that finally allowed me to abandon the view of man I held back home... You have no idea how disappointed I was when it turned that the man I was admiring so much turned out to be the same attention hungry piece of trash I thought I'll never see again. You are Emperor's most trusted advisor right after the Prime Minister himself, widely acknowledged as the man who renovated the Capital after centuries of neglect and on top of that, the creator of Shingus. You think that nobody cares about them? I honestly wish the previous Emperor was still alive so I can smack that prideful moron in the head for sealing them off Gods know where. They were fine weapons that could turn the tide of many battles, even if they were not Teigus. Every commander in the army told him to not do it, and to this day people are looking for the vault he sealed them in, because we all know how much those weapons are really worth. And you still want more then that? That's still not enough for you? Does all of that mean so little to you that you would sell yourself out to a damn Danger Beast for some nice words and an eye that can't even make a dent in my armor? This thing is pathetic work of an attention starved child that forgot to put some heart into it. A worthless toy for you to play with while your 'Queen' destroys the humanity as we know it if you are any indication of what she wants to do with us. Honestly, the Shingus were far superior weapons. This doesn't even belong in the league under them, let alone with Teigus."

Xardas' face grew more and more red from anger with every word she spoke yet he couldn't say anything with his jaw burning away faster then he can recover it. He proceeded to growl angrily as he fired at her again, not stopping the assault even after it reached Cassandra's chest. The energy beam slowly started to grow in size, but the women didn't even move an inch. She just stood there as she was being completely engulfed in the energy. Xardas' eye soon turned black again while blood started to come from under it. He didn't stop though, even though pain was ripping his head to shreds with its sheer intensity. Before he knew it though, the pain disappeared, only to immediately be replaced with another one. This one was worse, and he quickly realized why. His eye, his Teigu was gone. "Aaaaaaaaaa!" He screamed in pain, holding onto a hole in his eye socket. Cassandra meanwhile just stood over him, holding his blood covered Teigu in her hand, looking at it. "My queen… My queen…" He tried to crawl his way back to Cassandra, but as soon as he tried to move, Velvet stomped on his hand, turning it into bloody mush and drawing more pained screams from him. As she watched him, she realized he is no longer regenerating. Whatever that 'Teigu' of his was, it was probably the source of that ability. With it gone, he was just an old man again. And he will bleed out in no time.

As Cassandra inspected the eye, she quickly realized that the it's still watching her. The iris kept following her, analyzing every move. "Whatever you are, better get ready. Because you have hell coming your way." She promptly turned the eye to ashes in her hand, turning her attention back to Xardas as she dropped them in front of him. He looked at them for a second before looking up at her with tears and blood covering his face. She didn't even let him speak, simply stabbing her sword into his chest. He didn't even scream as his body was covered in flames, soon reduced to nothing but charred statue. "Hmph..." Cassandra quickly turned away from his remains, looking at the damage his last attack left behind. There was a hole in wall at the end of the dungeon large enough for her to go through without lowering her head and reaching all the way out of the palace. It was no doubt visible to half of the Capital, so she could expect people coming down here to investigate soon. "Come on Vel. Let's go. We have to get ready to move out into the Archive tomorrow." She said as the Demon Armor's flames started to disappear, soon followed by the armor itself. As Velvet looked at her, she saw that the women didn't even break a sweat.


"Damn, I'm beat." Cassandra exhaled loudly as she dropped onto her bed head-first.

"Stop complaining. It was just some paper work." Velvet sat next to her, hissing in pain from which spread through her shoulder. Without a word, Cassandra rose back on her feet and took of Velvet's night gown, motioning her to lie down. She sighed and did just that, soon feeling Cassandra's warm hands on her back. "This is just getting worse and worse… Think I'm growing old?" She moaned quietly as her lover started to slowly massage her pained body.

Cassandra only chuckled at that. "You're only 28. That's hardly old no matter how you look at it." It was weird though. Most Rakasha Demons start to experience symptoms like that only if they make it to 50, when most are relieved from active duty and replaced with fresh blood. Velvet's body showed signs of decline long before that, and she had to step down from her position faster then any Rakusha did before her. Ignoring those who have died in action at least. Doctors couldn't find any root cause other then her body's condition simply degrading faster then usual, which combined with the extremes to which she would usually push it to, resulted in the pains she was dealing with now. Becoming the new user of Lionelle has definitely helped with all this, but there was only so much that it could heal. "And you're still the prettiest woman in the whole palace." She kissed her cheek, bringing a small blush to Velvet's face that she immediately tried to hide with a pillow. This only encouraged Cassandra to tease her a bit more, and so she proceeded to slide her hands down to her naked butt, squeezing it lightly. She felt a slight twitch coming from Velvet's muscles, resulting in a small smile appearing on her lips that only grew when she glanced back at her face. She was looking at her with anticipation in her eyes and blush that now reached all the way to her ears. Even though as soon as Velvet realized she's looking she turned away without a word, Casandra already knew that the woman wants the same thing she does – to finish what was stared this morning.

"Just get this over with and let's go to sleep… W-We have job to do tomorrow..." Her initial reluctance to give in to her desires was always so adorable… And very enjoyable to slowly break apart.

"Hmmm… You like my massages so much then?" She didn't answer, simply pulled the pillow harder against her face. "Well, How can I say no then… I'll just let myself… Spice things up a bit." Before she knew it, Velvet had Cassandra's naked breasts pressed hard against her back. She managed only a muffled yelp, with no words actually spoken, not even when Cassandra started moving her chest up and down. Slowly. "Do you like it, Vel?" She whispered into her ear, biting it lightly. Velvet still didn't respond, but with the way her body was shaking and the quiet moans released into the pillow, it was clear that she's enjoying it. Cassandra allowed her arms to travel along her side, soon sliding them down to reach her chest. This time, Velvet's reaction was more definite. She twitched from the touch, pushing against Cassandra with her back as she moaned loudly, rising her head from the pillow just a bit. And that bit was enough for Cassandra to seize the moment. She immediately captured Velvet's lips with her own, pushing her tongue past her lips and holding her head in place with her hand. Velvet moaned in surprise but made no move to stop her.

The two soon melted into each other. Velvet lied on her back and hugged Casandra close to her as the other woman pushed her down against the bed. Velvet wasn't having any of it though. Her hand quickly moved to the back of Cassandra's head and she grabbed a handful of her white hair. She pulled on it hard, forcing the woman to move her head back and allow Velvet to place her lips against the nape of her neck. Cassandra only smile at that, happy that Velvet finally got into it. The smile quickly disappeared though, overwritten by her loud moan as Velvet's teeth sunk into her skin. She was quickly thrown down on the bed, with Velvet not letting go of her neck until the moment Cassandra was nothing more then a submissive doll. Just the way she likes it.

It was hours before they finally decided they've had enough for the night and proceeded to lie down in each other's arms and simply bask in each other's presence. Balancing between sleep and consciousness, Velvet slowly and gently run her hand over Cassandra's butt cheek, almost as if apologizing to it for the abuse she brought upon it and… All of Cassandra. There was no need for it though. The woman knew very well how aggressive Velvet can get in bed, and it hardly bothered her by now. Quite the opposite, she loved every second of it. Still, it was hard for Velvet to just accept that with just how many partners have left her because of that. Cassandra was the first that not only would let her go all out, but also could take it. She did not want to lose her to something so stupid as her sick fetishes.

They've been together for over two years now, spending almost every night on having sex, but she still couldn't get rid of the feeling that one day, Cassandra will simply get fed up with satisfying her desires and leave her just like every other man and women she was with did. Even ones that actually enjoyed that stuff couldn't take it after a while. "Hey… Are you asleep yet?" She felt a light bite on her neck. It was enough of a response to her. "I… Have something for you..." Truth be told, she was going to save that for a later date, with the whole ordeal with the Archive it seemed better to wait for things to calm down before but… Thinking about things made her want to do it now.

She slipped out of Cassandra's embrace and moved over to her nightstand at the side of the bed. Cassandra rose to a sitting position as she watched Velvet move things around the mess that was only rivaled by the one the short woman kept in her purse. As collected and mindful of her duties as she was, maintaining order in her belongings was not one of Velvet's virtues. Cassandra herself could only scratch her head when she was asked to find something in the garbage pile that she calls her wardrobe. Hence why they have to keep their belongings separately. It was just easier that way. For Cassandra at least.

To general's surprise though, it only took a short while for her to find what she was looking for. Weird... It always takes her a while... It was almost as if she already knew precisely where to look for it. She could easily spot a bright blush on Velvet's cheeks as she closed her fingers around the object, preventing her from looking at it. "Okay, so... I know I'm a pain in the ass to deal with most of the time... Quite literally if I am to be honest... A-And I just thought... That I should p-probably thank you for staying with me despite how I am... S-So I made this for you." She held her hand out towards her. "H-Hope you like it..." Slowly, Cassandra moved her hand over to Velvet's and as soon as she could, dropped the object into Cassandra's palm. Object that turned out to be a necklace. Or rather, a locket as Cassandra quickly realized while looking at the beautifully decorated silver two-part disc hanging from the chain. Smiling like a love-struck teenager she suddenly felt herself turning into, she opened the locket only to be greeted with a miniature painting of herself and Velvet.

It wasn't a widely known fact, only reserved to a small circle of people Velvet was close to, but the woman enjoyed painting in her spare time. She was actually very good at it, enough so that if she wasn't so embarrassed by it, she would probably become extremely famous for her art. The small painting she was seeing now was without a doubt Velvet's work, and definitely her best one yet considering how much details she managed to put on such a small surface. It was almost a photograph, just colored as opposed to black and white. Probably took a lot more effort then the size would suggest too. The locket itself was probably at least in part a work of her father and mother, a blacksmith and jeweler respectively.

"W-Well? Do you like it?" She asked as if she couldn't see Cassandra's wide smile.

She got a playful chuckle in response. "I love it, Vel... And actually have something for you too." She put the necklace on and immediately slid her hand under the mattress. This was one of her hiding spots for things she didn't want Velvet to see. There were others spread around the room, behind furniture, hidden under the floor and such, all meant to store things like gifts she planned to give and other things Velvet wasn't suppose to know about or even see. She is far below her in military ranking after all. Meanwhile, all Velvet needed to do to hide something from Cassandra was to simply place it in one of her garbage piles that Cassandra didn't even bother to look at on her own. "I was going to save it for later too but... I feel like this is the right moment."

Soon enough, she pulled her hand back out with a small black box now resting in the palm of her hand. Somewhere in the back of Velvet's head, something clicked, but that train of thoughts didn't manage to reach its target before Cassandra smiled brightly and opened the box, holding it out to her. Inside was a wooden ring, decorated with silver, carved from Iron Tree native to Cassandra's homeland. An incredibly hard wood, almost as much as actual iron. "Will you marry me?"

Velvet didn't answer, staring at the ring for a long while before suddenly a tear started to run down her cheek. Before it even fell on the bed though, Cassandra was already pinned down to the bed with Velvet's mouth tightly sealing hers.

In the end, the night for them lasted a few more hours.


"General." Cassandra turned to the voice, ripping her gaze away from the raising sun. "Everyone is ready to move out." Velvet said, standing with her back straight and wearing her set of light, loose armor, one she used to wear as a Rakasha. On close inspection, Cassandra spotted the ring she gave her on her right hand. She could only smile at that as she lowered herself down to Velvet's level and kissed her lovingly, melting away the serious expression on former Demon's face.

When she pulled away, she was met with a pink blush adoring her face and dreamy, half-lifted eyes. "Well, let's not keep them waiting." They both stepped back into the palace, returning to the group Cassandra decided to take with her to the Archive. It was composed of 200 people, all elite soldiers, handpicked and trained by her personally. Each was strong enough to take on an Earth Dragon without issue. One of them was also a Teigu user and a likely candidate for a next General. With General Gavin dead, Emperor was bound to search for someone to take up the role in his place soon, and the man was definitely going to get her recommendation. He was already high in the chain of command within her personal army and among her most trusted people. In fact, if Velvet was Cassandra's right hand, then he was her left. "Hey, Akemi!" She called out to him as soon as she spotted him at the very back of the group.

He turned to face them, unsurprisingly to both, he had his face stuffed with snacks. He had so much food in his mouth he actually reminded them of a chipmunk. "What whis whit (what is it)?" He said, not bothering to swallow or even stop shoving food into his mouth. Despite how ridiculous he looks now, his normal appearance is actually quite serious and often outright frightening to some. Long black hair, piercing red eyes, stone cold glare and near-expressionless face... If he really wanted to she was sure he could be giving people heart attacks just by looking at them.

"For fucks sake, learn to eat you damn pig!" He looked at Velvet confused for a second before seemingly experiencing a sudden moment of enlightenment. Cassandra could swear she saw a light bulb lit up above his head as he pointed his half empty box of cookies towards Velvet. "No! I don't mean you should start sharing! I'm just saying you need to learn some fucking table manners!"

He seemed even more confused, but this time he swallowed before speaking. "So you don't want any?" Velvet could only sigh at that but reached out into the box and grabbed one cookie anyways. He then pointed the box to Cassandra who also took one. After that he proceeded to spill the rest into his mouth all at once and munch on them loudly. "Sho are whe gowing tho mofe out now (so are we going to move out now)? This time Velvet didn't react, at least not verbally. She still shot him an angry glare as she was eating her cookie. He ended up swallowing quickly. Not because of her. "I believe we should move out as soon as possible before the others grow any more anxious." General looked back at the group spread throughout the chamber. They were all the best Empire had to offer in terms of conventional force, but underneath their uniforms and armor they wore, all were still normal people with lives and families waiting for them. Knowing that a General many of them admired deeply has already perished trying to combat what they will be facing was hardly making them feel safe about their chances of making it back.

Still, none would back away from the task, and Cassandra knew about it perfectly. That's why she chose them to accompany her. After all, even though death of General Gavin filled their hearts with fear of this new opponent, it also filled them with anger and desire for vengeance. And those simple, primal feelings were not to be underestimated. "Everyone!" She called out. For a split second, she could see some of them grinning in anticipation. "Gather your toys, boys. It's time to move out and get thing done. As always." They started to move around the chamber, getting off their resting spots to pick up their weapons and adjusting their gear. Within less then a minute, all 200 of them were armed and ready to go. Cassandra smiled at that as she turned towards the gate leading ingside. "After me!" Velvet and Akemi stayed at her sides. The man had put on a black mask over his head, an old family heirloom, same as his armor and coat he wore over it. All black naturally. The coat reached all the way down to his ankles, covering his legs. The armor it covered was made of hardened skin that tightly hugged his body and reinforced with though scales of a Danger Beast it was made of. The most visually noteworthy part of the whole thing was definitely the helmet though. It covered the wearer's whole face, leaving only small, slits for the user to retain some eyesight, but at the same time force him to rely on other senses instead. Through those slits, one could occasionally see his red eyes, almost glowing from the darkness that shrouded his face.

Supposedly, it was quite a terrifying sight at night.

The whole set was awarded to his family by the first Emperor himself as a sign of honor and compensation for the sacrifice his ancestor made fighting in his name. He was the man who managed to bring down the Tyrant after all, and paid the ultimate price as a result of using his weapon. The armor they received was made from the Tyrant's body, just as her own Teigu was. It was nowhere near level of a Teigu, and had no special abilities, but it was still extremely durable and supposedly, could even to an extant counter the effects of the curse that killed both the Tyrant and the one who defeated it. The curse of One-Cut Killer, Murasame. The very same blade that was strapped to Akemi's back. Blade that was almost exclusively kept in his family as well. She didn't know if there is any truth in this rumor as the last time anyone has used Murasame's Trump Card was centuries ago, and Akemi was the first one deemed worthy to use the blade in generations.

"Come to think of it, I haven't seen you around much lately." Velvet said as they marched through the palace. "Where have you..." She trailed off, almost slapping her face when she saw him holding another box of cookies while in the middle of biting into one already. Where he pulled that out of, she didn't know, and didn't want to.

Luckily for her, this time he swallowed before speaking. "I was sent of to play a bodyguard for Honest clan." He shoved another cookie into his mouth and devoured it almost instantly. "Not what I would call a fulfilling work, but the Emperor was worried they might be planning something dirty so he started to spread rumors about someone planning to kill them. I was supposed to investigate them as much as possible. Still, I didn't like being there. The old Honest was… A creep."

"Ah, yes… I remember your families being at odds with one another." Cassandra joined in, not turning her head to either of them. "Their household is in the other side of the Empire though. Did you take your family with you?"

"Yeah, but I think I shouldn't have. We own an old mansion in the area, so they didn't have to be there with me, but on the few occasions they were there..." He paused for a moment, just long enough for Cassandra to feel some Killing Intent emanating from him. "The old Honest was giving my daughter strange looks… I didn't like that..."

"Well, have you found anything?" Velvet asked, sharing a short eye contact with Cassandra. They both still remembered very clearly what Xardas has said a day before.

"No… Though I wish I had. I could feel something was wrong with these people, something very… sinister… I'm sure they're hiding something, I just couldn't find anything to prove it. Emperor ordered me to pull back a week ago before they could start getting suspicious. I actually came back to the Capital yesterday, around the time the 'fireworks' started." Velvet raised an eyebrow, questioningly. "I mean the giant laser that flew out of the Palace."

"Alright you two, that's enough of talking for now. We can continue this later." Cassandra said, making a mental note to start taking a closer look at Honest Clan's actions. "We're here." She halted in place, right in front of the barricaded gate leading into the archive. Two elite palace guards stood on each side like metal statues. They were informed beforehand that she will be arriving and upon seeing her and her man approaching, immediately started to prepare the gate to be opened. Cassandra patiently waited for them to finish as she focused on the sounds around her. Her man were quiet, making final preparations before the fighting starts.

And then, as soon as the lock on the gate was brought down, Cassandra kicked them open and entered inside. She was met with deep darkness that shrouded the whole area and angry growls of Danger Beasts that surrounded her. Immediately, she solved both problems as she summoned Incursio, burning the surrounding danger Beasts and bringing light into the area. Akemi and Velvet rushed in right after her, both with their Teigus ready to use. Murasame was quickly stained with blood as Akemi's lightning quick slashes left one Beast after another as immobile corpse, some slashed into pieces, others lightly cut across their bodies and left for the curse to finish. Velvet has activated Lionelle, turning her hands into sharp claws that she immediately used to tear open throats of a couple of Beasts. Her arms and legs were soon covered in black fur and her eyes formed vertical slits that easily pierced the darkness surrounding them. She proceeded to jump right into the group of approaching Danger Beasts, only to smash her hand into the ground sending both debris and some of the smaller Beasts flying away. Some of those that were closest to her outright lost consciousness after the shock wave hit them while the rest was finished off by the rest of Cassandra's man. They all rushed in right after the three, with spear- and swordsman that carried shields at the forefront and group of crossbowman right behind them. Every single one of them had a small lamp attached to their armor, lighting the way for them.

As soon as they've entered the scene, they formed a circle around the entrance, making sure nothing gets past them while the two guards close the gate behind them. It was hardly a problem for Cassandra, Akemi and Velvet though. The three of them were more then capable of reducing the number of opponents to nearly zero despite the minimal support. By the time gate was locked again and the rest could join the fight, they had mere leftovers to deal with. They suffered no casualties whatsoever, but that hardly gave then any reassurance. After all, between the bodies of Beasts they've slain, were bodies of those that came there before them. People that were just as skilled as they were. All with their heads removed.

They knew perfectly well that whatever was hiding in the darkness, they only got a small taste of what's to come.

"Cassandra, look." Velvet pointed her hand into the darkness. She was the only one able to see relatively well in the dark, so Cassandra was forced to move closer, with Akemi and the rest of the group following her. She didn't have any lamp strapped to her as the flames dancing on her sword proved to be more then enough. Soon enough, they approached what Velvet was pointing at. A giant ice spiral that formed a way straight up. Cassandra motioned at one of the crossbowman, who only nodded and grabbed one of the bolts he carried. He inserted it in a small oil container he had on him and held it next to Cassandra's sword to ignite it, before loading his weapon and pointing it straight up. He fired without any delay, showing everyone how the spiral seemingly pierces the ceiling of the Archive. "So that's the illusion hiding the Beast Hive, huh? No clue how this thing works..."

"Neither do I..." Cassandra said as she stepped onto the ice. The spiral was large, almost like a tower. The surface wasn't slippery at all though, despite everything being made of ice. She had no doubt that the structure was left here by Gavin himself. Only he could manipulate the ice like that. She sighed and lowered herself down, placing her hand against the ice. It wasn't cold in the slightest, yet didn't show any signs of melting. "Gavin..." She whispered, closing her hand into a fist. A whirlwind of emotions filled her head, but before long she felt Velvet's hand on her shoulder, calming her down in an instant. She smiled as she got up, placing her hand on top of Velvet's head, ruffling her newly acquired cat-ears.

"H-Hey!" She immediately stepped away, covering her ears with her hands and blushing brightly. Laughter quickly reached her as the soldiers behind them burst out laughing. "Shut up guys! I hate it when she does that!"

"Yeah, right! Everyone saw your little 'grooming' session from a week ago!" One of them pointed out as he continued to laugh loudly. There was one person that wasn't laughing though. Akemi did nothing but stare at her, seemingly completely emotionless. Or more precisely, he was staring at her hand. It didn't take him long before approaching her and as soon as he did, he grabbed her hand, the one with the ring Cassandra gave her on it. The group suddenly went silent as they noticed the ring as well. "Is… Is that..." Velvet's blush instantly grew a few shades brighter, but she didn't make a move to hide the ring.

"Ah, that's right." Cassandra approached her from behind, wrapping her arms around the smaller woman's body and pulling her towards herself. "The two of us are getting married. All of you can consider yourself invited." She suddenly kissed Velvet's cheek. Before they both knew it, they were getting bombarded with congratulations from all sides. With Akemi at the forefront, everyone started to wish them happiness and joking about the couple's antics that they all got to witness over the years. Some older soldiers even joked that they should name their first kid after them, despite the obvious problem being in the way of that. "Alright, alright, you guys..." Cassandra said and suddenly jumped into the air, slashing her sword at the air. Or at least, that's what it seemed to most of those below at first. By the time she landed though, they all knew what was going on, as along with her, a dead Danger Beast fell on the ground with one wing cut in half. Akemi immediately proceeded to finish it off. "Break time's over boys." She turned back towards the ice spiral. "Let's get this over with."


"Aaaaaaaaaaa!" One of the spearman screamed in pain as he was suddenly lifted of the ground by one of the flying Beasts. It flew down so fast that he was unable to raise his shield in time to defend himself from its sharp claws that now sunk into his shoulders. His pained screams were quickly replaced by ones of pure terror though. The Beast had carried him away from the ice spiral and unceremoniously let go of him, leaving him helpless to stop himself from falling down onto the ground, deep below. He wouldn't reach the bottom for a good minute though. The least he could hope for is smashing into one of the lower floors before. At least it would end faster, now that he was already on a straight path to death.

The Beast that did it was quickly shot down by one of the crossbowman who hit it in the wing, but this was the third time this happened. They are surrounded from all sides, with Beasts rushing at them from bottom and top of the spiral simultaneously, while the flying ones circled around, waiting for opportunities to strike. Cassandra was sure they will make it to the top though. They were the best of the best, her elite. They could do anything as long as they've put their mind to it. "Keep pushing! We're almost there!" Slashing her sword at the air she sent a blade of flames cutting through the front row of the Beasts coming from above as a group of spearman run in front of her, forming a line that finished off the rest of approaching Beasts, allowing them to continue on. One the back of the group, Akemi and Velvet have also finished tearing through the group of Beasts that attacked from below, but they could already hear more coming. "Akemi!" Velvet reached her arm out to him. He immediately took it, and was subsequently thrown by the women, straight into the approaching Beasts, with a rope tied to his hand connecting him to Velvet, who held onto a hook attached to the other end.

Akemi spun around, turning himself into a spinning blade that quickly cut down the Beasts. Some were only glazed by Murasame, but that was enough for him. All would die once struck by the One-Cut Killer. As soon as he was at the end of the rope, Velvet pulled him back before he would fall off the spiral, preparing herself for his approach. She placed her hands on the icy ground and extended her legs towards him. Akemi landed on them and was soon propelled forward again as Velvet kicked him all the way back to the front of the group. As soon as he landed, he slid on the ground right between legs of one of the Beasts that were now attacking them from the front again. He cut its stomach open as he passed, spilling its guts on the ground. He quickly got up and started to cut down the other Beasts, dancing around them and slashing his blade at any that came into his range. Looking back he saw Cassandra has joined the crossbowman in getting rid of the flying Beasts, lighting them up with her flames and revealing others for crossbowman to take care of.

Murasame was now drenched in blood from hilt to the tip, as was his armor. They've been fighting like this for at least half an hour and while neither him nor Cassandra and Velvet had problems with that, the continuous fighting was starting to wear on the others. They needed to find a break and allow them to rest, otherwise this whole escapade will end in failure. Even Cassandra wouldn't be able to do it all by herself. Using Incursio is more draining on the user then most other Teigus, and her flames drain that energy even faster then usual. She can take it for a long time, but he's already seen what happens to her when she overdoes it. Last time she did, she was hospitalized for a whole month as her body recovered from exhaustion. It shouldn't be difficult once they manage to get inside of the hive. They will be able to barricade themselves in somewhere and catch their breath.

The place where the spiral connected to the hive was not far away, he could already see the hole General Gavin left in it. It was small, but just large enough for them all to enter with their all gear while at the same time making it difficult for the Beasts to do the same, at least the larger ones. "Cassandra! We have to punch through, now!" He called out to her, just as he cut off head of a Beast that aimed to remove his. The woman tore herself away from throwing flaming blades into the air and nodded, now charging forward at the Beasts approaching from the front as Akemi jumped in her place, keeping the crossbowman safe from the attacks.

Cassandra, now covered in flames, jumped right into the center of the Beast's lines, turning all that she has passed into charred corpses in a flash. Those that were not in front of her were not any more lucky. Soon enough, Cassandra started swinging her sword left and right, easily getting rid of the Beasts one by one as the spearman behind her rushed to support her. Their weapons started to pierce into the Beasts, cutting into their throats and eyes. Some of the soldiers were outright able to overpower the Beasts and pushed them off the edge. They were right by the entrance, but now had to deal with the problem of the Danger Beasts that were coming at them simply sliding out of the Hive's outer wall. They needed to stop them for at least long enough to allow everyone inside, and Cassandra had just the right tool for the job. "Everyone, get inside! I'll cover you!" With that said, she spread her arms out and with a scream, spread her flames onto the walls, killing any Beast that might try to come out into corpse before they become a problem.

Akemi was the first one to get in so that he can make sure the area is safe, followed by everyone else. Soldiers entered inside one by one, with a few keeping the Beasts that still attacked them from below and above at bay. However, while everyone else was getting in, Cassandra was entirely defenseless. Continuously stretching her flames to that level was a huge strain, even for her. She had to focus nearly all of her attention on keeping it up and was simply unable to react in time as one of the Beasts started to charge at her.

Luckily, she still had Velvet.

The other woman was quick to kick the approaching Beast off the spiral, sending it flying down to it's death as another started to approach them, seeing Cassandra's focus on the task as an opportunity. It was naturally quickly removed from the equation by Velvet's fist. "Come on! Everyone's already in!" She snapped her lover out of her focus and helped her get inside. After straining herself this much, her legs were slightly weak and she was feeling dizzy, so as soon as Velvet pushed her through the hole in the Hive -which proved to be somewhat problematic due to Cassandra's size- two of the soldiers helped her keep moving.

Velvet's small body had no problems fitting in, but she still waited a bit before that. There were still Beasts coming from below, and they probably had no intention of stopping anytime soon. She had a plan for dealing with that though. As the Beasts kept approaching, she waited for the first one to get into her range and promptly grabbed it with her hand. The larger Beasts were too big to fit all the way through the entrance, but Velvet still started to pull it in behind her. Its bones started to crack as it was pushed through, turning the organs inside into a mush and that completely blocking the passage. The unlucky Beast was dead as soon as Velvet dropped it's head to the ground, with it\s with blood now flowing out of its corpse in bursts. The first few were large enough to make it's eyes pop out from the sockets. "Well, that takes care of it." Completely ignoring the gruesome scene she was the author of, Velvet turned around and started to look at the scene. The entrance has led them into an ice chamber that General Gavin likely used to allow his troops some rest, just like Cassandra was doing now. With Akemi and two officers that were still in a good enough shape guarding the passage that led deeper into the hive, the others were setting up a field camp with the little supplies they had on them.

The two soldier that were helping Cassandra -who was now out of her Teigu- move after she overused her powers have sat her down by the wall to let her charge back up in piece before joining most of the others in refilling their lamps with oil. "How are you holding up?" Cassandra opened her eyes and looked up at Velvet as she approached hand. Without saying a word, she grabbed her lover's hand and pulled her down, only to wrap her arms around her as if she were her personal teddy bear.

"Getting better~" For once, Velvet decided to not try getting herself out of this position and instead just hugged Cassandra back and made herself comfortable on her lap, earning herself a kiss on a cheek. "I'm fine Vel, you don't have to worry about me dropping unconscious like last time. Spreading Incursio's flames that much is tiring, but I've gotten somewhat used to it. Give ma a few minutes and I'll be good as new. Almost..." Velvet sighed, opting to just relax in the embrace for a moment.

"I'm just wondering why is that ability so draining on you..." She said. "I mean, General Gavin could make all of this-" Her hand pointed at the icy chamber they were occupying. "-and even larger structures pretty much just by snapping his fingers. Does Incursio really drain you that much?"

"Guess so..." She took hold of Incursio's key, letting her eyes admire the blade from hilt the tip. "To be honest though... I sometimes feel like there's more behind this Teigu then I, or anyone is aware of. I know that all Teigus have something of a mind of their own, but with Incursio..." She trailed off. "It feels like it's looking for something... And whatever that something is, I don't have it. I really don't know how else to describe this, but it's like I was just... Acceptable. A bare minimum of what it would consider worthy of itself..." Letting out a short sigh, she placed the sword back in its sheath. Not really sure how to respond, Velvet allowed herself a minute of relax more before getting up and switching with Akemi. At least in part because others started teasing her about 'suddenly getting touchy with General'. It's not like it was her fault though. It was Cassandra's. Nothing would be wrong if she hasn't proposed to her last night...

Idiot...


Cassandra naturally wasn't going to let her man make themselves too comfortable on enemy territory and as soon as she has fully recovered, ordered everyone to move out. With her at the front, leading everyone, they marched through the tunnels that spread all over the Hive's structure. Velvet and Akemi were again on the back, making sure nothing will attack them from behind... The thing was, that nothing did. And the same goes for any other direction. They were in the middle of beast's belly, in more literal way then any of them would like, and yet as they marched through the tunnels, they were met with nothing. "General..." One of the spearman lined up behind her spoke up, clearly worried and fearful of what this development means.

"I know. We're being led where they want us to go..." That much was clear to her. She could hear passages closing off in the distance as they traveled, forcing them to follow a trail of bodies left by general Gavin's group. All headless. Her man didn't like it, and she sure as hell didn't either. There was little choice on the matter though. The place they were being led to was their target from the start. The main chamber where the Hive's heart is located. And where Xardas planted his 'Queen'. There was no doubt in her mind that whatever that being turns out to be, she can be sure of one thing. It's going to be a problem.

She knew it. So did Velvet and Akemi. Even the man marching behind her knew something big was coming. The tension in the air was so thick, one could almost cut it with a knife. Cold sweat run down everyone's back with each step they took, deeper and deeper into the darkness, unsure of what awaits them. It continued until they eventually found themselves inside of a large chamber, the very one that was their target. Soldiers immediately formed a circle as they started to slowly move in deeper within. "Velvet, do you see anything?" Cassandra asked. Cat-woman's eyes were already scanning the area as much as they could, but the chamber was so large, even her enhanced sight couldn't reach every corner of it. There as one thing she could clearly see though.

"There is someone there." She pointed her hand forward. "It's-" Suddenly, color disappeared from her face and her eyes widened. "By the God... This is..." Her mouth stopped once again. "I-It's... General Gavin."

"W-What?" Cassandra almost felt her heart skip a beat from shock. Looking back at her man, it was clear she was not alone in that feeling. "But how is that possible? Demon's Extract already returned to its container and it can't be removed with anything other then user's death." Akemi only nodded at that.

"I can't believe it either, but... He's there and... It looks like he's approaching us." She couldn't tell more then that, darkness was distorting her sight too much to tell anything else from that distance. Cassandra could feel something was off, but still started to march forward. Everyone else followed her, never dropping their guard even a little bit. And that's probably what saved them from an ambush that awaited them just a few steps ahead. Hive's Danger Beasts suddenly emerged from the floor all around them and with the spearman already having their shields held up, ready to use, they just barely managed to avoid substantial losses. Only two unlucky ones got caught in jaws of the attacking Beasts.

Akemi and Velvet quickly joined them in dispatching the threat, easily removing one Beast after another as the group of soldiers has spread out as soon as they realized that Beasts also started to appear directly under their feet. Crossbowman were forced to abandon their weapons in favor of swords that until now rested at their sides. Some of the spearman did the same, realizing that sword's versatility will be more useful in this situation over spear's reach. Cassandra was quick to join in as well, cutting down dozens of Beasts that surrounded her in a second, but something quickly changed. A sharp pain suddenly shot through her head like a bullet, almost bringing her to her knees in an instant. For a short moment she was completely paralyzed in place and the Beasts that were around her... Ignored her. As soon as they emerged from the ground, they all headed straight into the battle with the others, passing by her as if she were not there... No, that wasn't it. They treated her as one of them.

Before she was able to properly gather herself up, she felt something grab the back of her head and the pain returned with twice as much force as a second ago, this time forcing her to bend a knee as she yelled out, bringing Velvet's and Akemi's attention to her. They would have proceeded to run straight towards her to help, but both of them quickly run into trouble. The soldiers they fought beside until now have suddenly started to attack them. When Akemi had his back turned to one of them, he suddenly felt a surge of Killing Intent, and reacting on pure instinct, dodged under an attack coming for his head. Before even acknowledging who the attacker was, he swung at his extended hand, realizing who it was only after the soldier fell to the ground, holding his chest. Not even a second after the body hit the ground, Akemi had to dodge a spear aimed at his neck. He sidestepped, still shocked at what was going on. In the corner of his eye, he noticed one thing though. The eyes of the man that attacked him... Were pitch black... Any and all emotions were gone from his face, turned into pure indifference to anything.

He quickly realized what was going on as soon as he saw the same thing on other soldiers. It was mind control. The one thing he hoped to never be forced to deal with. There were Danger Beasts that could cause take control of other animals, including humans, but he never encountered any, for which he was glad. The idea of fighting against your allies when you know they are being forced to attack you against their will repulsed him. And not only has he found himself in his nightmare scenario, he knew he will likely have to kill at least some of them, if not all were it come to worst case scenario. To say the least, he was not thrilled by the idea. He could still remember eating dinner with the man he just killed and his family few months back.

Unable to consciously bring Murasame upon his friends, Akemi was forced to dodge attacks from his former allies with Danger Beasts in between. Being pushed back little by little, he suddenly found himself back to back with Velvet. "This... Is bad..." She said, not even looking back at him and neither did he look at her. They were far more focused on a growing group of enemies that surrounded them from all sides.

Away from it all, Cassandra was still held by the head, unable to regain control over her body. The pain grew from intense to outright head-tearing in a span of mere seconds, quickly making her body grow numb. In a last effort to free herself, she summoned a small flame on her head, forcing the hand that held her to back away. The small opening this created, gave her an opportunity to grab her sword and swing it at the enemy. She completely missed, but at the very least it forced the attacker to back away further, leaving her with just enough time to get back on her legs, if not necessarily to stand still. She quickly found herself forced to use Incursio's Key to keep herself from falling over. What she saw after looking at the figure in front of her however, was almost enough to negate all of her efforts. "Humans are... Interesting..." It was Gavin, but he was... Different... If there was anyone who deserved a title of 'dead man walking', it was the man standing before her. His skin was deathly pale, seemingly dry as if there was barely any blood in him, same with the rest of his body. The blue eyes that used to decorate his face were now replaced with black orbs and his golden hair lost its deep color.

With all of the darkness that surrounded her, she was almost wiling to say it was not him, and her eyes were just playing a trick on her. Until the figure spoke again at least. Then, everything became clear. "Creatures of such fragility... And yet... Some of you possess... A will to resist... Even us..." Cassandra could feel the pain slowly slipping back into her head, making her legs feel weak. "You... And the one who... Is our voice... And face... You are both... Strong... But no human... Can resist us... Forever..." The creature Cassandra now recognized at the mind of the hive brought here by Xardas started to approach her again, step by step, forcing Cassandra to back away. "The others... You came here with... Already... Joined us... But you... You will serve us... As our voice... And face... This one's blood... Rejected us... Made this body... Weaker... But you... Are stronger... You will... Replace it... And your weapon... Will join us..."

"Go to hell..." Her vision started to get blurry. All she could see by now was a silhouette reaching it's hand towards her. She just barely managed to swing her sword at that hand, again buying herself a bit more time, but nearly falling over in the process. "What do you want..."

"To free this place... To save humanity... From itself... To save the world... From humanity..." As Cassandra tried to swing her blade again, this time the hand she was aiming for simply pushed it away and reached forward, grabbing her head. Incursio disappeared from her body almost in an instant as the key fell from her hand. "All conflict... Must end... All minds... Will become one... And peace will last... Forever..." A needle emerged from the ground behind Cassandra and stabbed itself fight into her neck. "It's time... To join us..." Gavin's body suddenly fell to the ground. All strength pumped into it by the Hive left in an instant as the body was rendered useless by the Hive's new acquisition. His body simply fell apart after being shrouded in a block of ice.

A similar thing happened to Cassandra, however, it was not her body that was broken into pieces. It was her mind. She could feel as it is detached from everything and pushed back into some dark corner of her head where it will do no harm to the new master of her body.

The newly made Avatar of the Hive and its Queen rose to its legs, turning its face to the two warriors still fighting for their lives against an endless supply of enemies. They seemed to be unaffected by the spores that filled the air, but while the hive knew why it is so for the male, the female's immunity was a mystery. The male was... Repulsing. Or rather, the weapon he held was. That sword was like a virus in the perfect world that was to be created, the one thorn in the Hive's side that not only annoyed all of it with its mere existence, but could outright prove itself to be... Problematic, if it were to appear anywhere near the heart of the Hive.

The women however... She was different. For some reason she was able to resist the effects spores should have on her. By all means she should already be a willing part of the Hive and on her way to becoming one with it, and yet... She didn't appear to even be fazed by them.

This one was going to require... Examination.

Bending down, the Avatar reached down to pick up Incursio's key, holding it in front of it's face and staring at it, only for it to suddenly burst into flames, forcing it to drop the blade back on the ground. "So... You reject us too... Brother..." Completely switching its attention away from the blade, as if it no longer existed., the Avatar focused back on the two humans still standing. With a single command of the hive, all of the Beasts and joined soldiers stopped attacking. To the two's confusion, the Beasts started to dissolve into the ground, leaving no trace of them ever being there, while the soldiers simply fell to the ground, where each and every single one of their heads were suddenly pierced by needles that emerged from the ground.

As the Avatar made its presence known, they quickly snapped out of their shock and turned towards it, only for their faces to twist in shock of seeing their friend has become part of the hive. "C-Cassandra?" The female whispered quietly. She seemed particularly... Crushed. With memories and knowledge of the female that became the Avatar now being part of the Hive, it was very much aware of why that is, even if such emotions were out of the Hive's understanding. All that mattered to it now, was getting rid of the male and his sword, while securing the female's body.

And in order to achieve that, the female's emotions would prove advantageous. The Hive could easily recognize that the male was by far the stronger of the two, even discounting his weapon, and as such he was the one Avatar targeted first. It was easy to tell that the female's body was decaying from overuse even before Avater's memories were added to the Hive, and that along with the emotional shock of realizing that her lover is now her enemy caused her to completely fail to react in time as the Avatar run past her, straight towards the male. He barely managed to react himself, attempting to jump aside before Avatar's fist met his jaw, but only managed to do that. Because as soon as he was off to the side, the Avatar hooked it's leg around his knee and forced him to bent it. It quickly redirected the punch, hitting the man square in the face, making him fall to the ground with a loud thud.

For the whole half a second it took the Avatar to take down the man, the female didn't move an inch, still paralyzed in place. "This body..." Avatar said, looking at it's hand. "Is stronger... Then we thought..." It turned towards the female, slowly approaching her as she took one fearful step back after another. It wasn't long before the Avatar reached out its hand, grabbing her by the neck and lifting her up. "You… Will join us… As well..." Tears started to fall down the woman's face as she watched the Avatar grab a spike that had just extended itself from the ground and slowly moved it closer and closer to her head.

However, just as the spike was about to enter her brain so that the joining process may begin, the Avatar felt something grab its hand. "Give her back..." The thing that grabbed the Avatar was the female's hand. Focusing it's attention back on her face, which now was contorted with anger, despite tears still rolling down her cheeks. "GIVE BACK MY FUCKING WIFE YOU PIECE OF SHIT!" Suddenly, the female's other hand smashed into Avatar's face. It did nothing in the way of hurting it, but it did give the her a few short moments to prepare her next move. Her head outright slipped through the Avatar's hand as if it was a mere liquid, freeing the female from the choking hold of the Avatar and giving her an opportunity to strike again. She smashed her fist right into its chest with a wild cry, using all of the strength she could muster. It was hardly enough to truly hurt the Avatar, but that did push it away.

That turn of event was… Surprising, to the Hive. It knew that the female could stretch parts of her body to a level a normal person would not be able to, but it had no knowledge of that ability going to this extant… And that could only mean one thing – The woman that became the Avatar somehow managed to hide it from the process of joining. She somehow hid away part of her mind when all of it should have been absorbed into the Hive… And that raised a question of just how much of her mind was she able to hide. "I see… Human emotions are… A double edged blade..."

"Cassandra, please! Snap out of it!" The Avatar wasted no more time. It rushed forward, sending one punch after another at the woman who just barely managed to avoid them all. She twisted her body in all the ways it was never meant to be twisted, outright defying logic at times. Even when the Avatar managed to land a hit, smashing its feet down onto woman's knee and seemingly breaking it in, the woman suddenly wrapped all of her body around the Avatar's like a snake, holding her in a tight hold even the immense strength of Avatar's body couldn't immediately break. "Wake up you fucking idiot! We're suppose to get married, remember!?" As those words reached the Avatar's ears, Hive suddenly felt the one thing it never experienced. Resistance. Not from the woman that bounded its Avatar with her own body, but from inside of the Avatar itself.

"Vel..." For a second, Velvet could see her lover's eyes shine through the darkness that covered them. She unwrapped her body and quickly stepped away in case of an attack, but in the end, it never came. The Avatar- no, Cassandra yelling her head, groaning in pain as she desperately tried to force the Hive out of her mind. "Vel... vet..." She fell on her knees as blood started to pour out of her nose. Velvet quickly knelt down and grabbed Cassandra by the sides of her face, gazing right into her eyes as they constantly switched between her own and the black fog the Hive filled them with.

"Hey, listen to me. Look at me. I'm here, you hear me. I'm here." She gently rubbed the woman's cheeks with her hands. "Everything will be fine, alright? You're stronger then this piece of shit. You can break free. You will break free."

Cassandra could barely hear her but just the fact that she did was enough to fill her with determination to fight back with all of her strength and then some. It felt like she was ripping half of her brain out of her skull, but it didn't make her pause even for a second. She continued to push against the hold Hive had over her until it was all but gone... However, the Hive was not just going to let it happen. After already getting a taste of what Cassandra's body is capable of, it was not going to just let go of it merely because of some unexpected setback.

Just as Cassandra was about to rip her mind out of the Hive's control, it suddenly completely let go of it. She didn't have time to think of it as a victory though, because as soon. as that happened, she felt a needle being inserted into the back of her neck. Her body immediately stopped obeying any of her commands. It seemingly we t completely numb, as if her head was severed. It wasn't long before she realized what is going on. But it was still too late. "Velvet, get awa-" Her hand suddenly shot forward with speed of a lightning. Cassandra's eyes were suddenly stained with blood as her own hand pierced right through Velvet's body.

The woman screamed in pain, holding her bleeding stomach as she fell on the ground. Paralyzed by the realization of what the Hive aims to do, Cassandra didn't say a word as her body rose to it's feet and approached Velvet. Before the wound even had a chance to start healing, Cassandra's hand was pushed into it again. It grabbed her by the spine and lifted up, filling the air with the woman's agonizing screams. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry..." Those were the last words Cassandra managed to speak before her mind fell to hive's influence again. She could still see what was happening, but it was as if she was closed in a cage like an animal. Any remnants of her resistance disappeared once she started hearing Velvet's spine cracking under the pressure of her body's grip. It eventually broke in half and Velvet fell back on the ground, no longer able to scream.

The Avatar looked down at the woman. It saw her breathing lightly as she cried in pain, both physical and emotional. It was just about to let her be absorbed into the Hive so her body can be studied... But yet again, it was met with unexpected resistance. Not from within, and not from the dying woman it was about to take for itself... It was coming from behind. With only a split second of time to react, the Avatar jumped to the side just barely dodging the cursed blade tat nearly cut its back. The man wielding it was quick to swing again, so fast if the Hive was to use any other body as its Avatar, it would have been lost to the cursed poison. He easily pushed the Avatar back as it had no way to bypass his weapon.

Unlike the Danger Bests the Hive was in control of, the Avatar was not replaceable. It could be healed if need be, once the body was destroyed, it would stay that way, leaving the Hive without a face to present to the world and with no hand to enact its will. Having a strong Avatar, especially one as strong as this, was unspeakably important to Hive's plan, and it simply couldn't allow it to be destroyed. Therefore, in order to avoid that outcome, the Avatar was quickly pulled down into the Hive's body where that cursed sword couldn't reach it.

Seeing that, Akemi immediately dropped down to Velvet's side. "Velvet! Velvet, can you hear me!?" She weakly opened her eyes and looked at him. "Thank the god... We need to-" He suddenly felt her hand grab onto his.

"Cassandra... I need to..." It was clear that even with Lionelle's regenerative capabilities, she wasn't going to make it. He needed to take her back to the surface if there was to be any chance of saving her, assuming there was any in the first place.

"I'm sorry Velvet..." He clenched his fist. It was hardly what he wanted to say but he was not delusional about the situation. "Cassandra is gone... We have to... Inform everyone about what is going on here. Seal this place so that one of this ever sees the light of day." He could feel himself almost crying under his helmet, but he kept it all in for now. Time for crying over a lost friend will come later. Now, he had a duty to fulfill.

Seeing her tears falling down on the ground was almost enough to crack him up, but he still proceeded to slowly lift her, careful as to not cause any more pain. "Wait... Don't..." She placed her hand over his again. Slowly, her fingers removed Lionelle from her waist. Her body immediately twitched in pain as the healing provided by the Teigu ceased in an instant and she was hit with full force of both her injuries and her body's degradation.

"V-Velvet! What are you-!?" She placed the belt in his hand and closed his fingers around it. "No..." The message was clear. There was no way to save her. She of all people knows her body the best, she would know if there was even a slightest chance... But she knew there was none. Not even Lionelle would be able to save her, at most it would just prolong the suffering. "Velvet... I'm... I'm sorry..." Tears started to fall from under his helmet. Each landed on her face as he carefully rested her body back on the ground. "I promise you... I'll make sure this thing stays here... Forever..." In one quick motion, he rushed back to the entrance, picking up Incusio's key as he run, still crying.

Velvet could already feel her body going numb as she saw Cassandra's figure standing above her. Her eyes were again overtaken by the black and yet... She was crying. No other hint of emotions was visible on her face, just the tears running down her cheeks and onto Velvet's own chest, burning a hole in her heart along with the thoughts of what could have been... If they never entered the Archive... If they just left the army beforehand when they had a chance... If she was stronger... They could have stayed together, be happy, maybe even adopt a kid and just... Live. Just like both of them always wanted.

It wasn't long before Velvet felt her body slowly sinking into the floor. The Hive's body was entering into her, through her skin, wounds and even her eyes. She cried just like Cassandra did, reaching her arm out to her in the final burst of hope that something will wake up in her... And her last wish was granted.

At the very last moment before her head was pulled into the Hive, a sole glimmer of light reflected from the silver parts of the ring on her finger. The last ray of light let out by a candle in a broken lamp somewhere in the room seemed almost like a star shining amidst the deep darkness that engulfed her... And Cassandra saw it too. Against the orders of the Hive, her hand reached out to grab Velvet's. She held it hard, halting Velvet's disappearance for just long enough to see her final smile, one born from the assurance that the love of her life was still somewhere inside. And that one day, she will return. Velvet wished she could tell her that she loves her for one final time, but she no longer could. As soon as her arm was ripped out of her body with the sheer force of the pull from both sides, she disappeared, swallowed by the Hive.

Cassandra was left alone, with only a small portion of her mind still hers. Tears continued to fall as she held onto Velvet's hand, with her fingers gently rubbed against the ring she gave her. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry... I'm sorry... I was... Too weak... I'm sorry..."


271 Years Later...

Despite how large the distance between the top and bottom of the Archive seemed to be for Tatsumi as he descended, now that there were no Danger Beasts standing in his way, getting back up proved itself to be far quicker then he anticipated. He didn't even realize how much time he's spent on massacring the hoards that were standing in his way. Even with his vastly superior strength and speed compared to the Beasts, their sheer numbers were more then enough so turn what should have been an hour long walk at a casual pace for him into at least three hours of bloodshed. And now that this obstacle was gone, he practically jumped from one floor to another without a care in the world. The two unconscious lovers, -that finally decided to let each other go, though most likely because their muscles simply grew too sore to keep this up- on his back barely even slowed him down. And not even with their weight, that didn't even register in his mind, but by simply increasing the air resistance with their bodies. Which was still marginal difference considering the speeds at which he was moving.

He really couldn't help but enjoy his newfound strength. Back when he started to work with Night Raid, carrying two people like that would have him struggling to run at an even pace on his good day and struggling to run in the first place on a bad one. Now it didn't even count as a warm-up. There was something childish in this, in that dumb enjoyment of being stronger and better then others, the thrill in besting your opponents like it is nothing, short termed as it might be. He was perfectly aware that thinking like that is likely at least in part responsible for turning Esdeath into the monster that she was. The enjoyment of an effortless victory can last only for so long after all. And once it's effects wear off, the natural next step is to search for a challenge. From then, it's only one wrong step away from turning into what Esdeath has become. And that's hardly what Tatsumi wants to end up as.

Still, for now he would allow himself to enjoy it. It was hard not to not even two days after receiving all that strength. If he had even half of it back when he met Akame for the first time, he would have won their fight…

A light smile that was slowly growing on his face fell down in a snap. Akame… That's right, while he's already spent hours on dealing with this whole mess, she was still being tortured by her own sins. While he was enjoying easy wins against hoards of Danger Beasts, she was probably crying out in pain… I can't waste any more time. I have to save her! His smile gave way to pure determination. His moves seemed to double in speed, making him appear as nothing but a blur. Not that anyone would witness it. No one was there, and even if there was, the Archive was shrouded in deep darkness that no normal person's eyes could pierce. It was just him and the two wounded souls on his back.

However, it wasn't long before he became aware of a presence of others. Kazuto and Gab. These two were about ten floors above him and appeared to be heading down. Probably to get Asako back. She must have knocked them out good for them to only make it five floors from the control room in the time it took her to get down on her own. Or rather, roll down. She was hardly in a shape to walk. He could hear them talking, but all the disturbances and the sheer speed with which he was moving made it hard to understand what either of them were saying. Or rather mumbling as it quickly turned out. Both had their noses broken and were still dizzy after what Asako has done to them. Tatsumi looked at the women on his back. Damn, she's stronger then I thought… Or maybe that's just love… He knew that he would do the same in her position at least. If someone was going to try and stop him from saving Akame's life, he was sure to snap at them if not outright remove from the picture.

The ten floors that were between him and the rest quickly became two and Tatsumi was forced to start slowing down. At his currant speed, landing next to the two would only end up in him sliding forward for another few hundred meters. He needed to reduce that speed before that so he can pass Asako and Akira over to them. They can handle themselves from there. He has to get to searching through the Archive's storage rooms and find a way to help Akame.

Carefully using the steps to lower his speed, he watched not to just land on the staircase which would undoubtedly end in them collapsing from the force he was outputting with his movement. With the first staircase, he slowed down to a point where he could safely land without breaking anything, and as he got on top of the second one, he was simply walking at his casual pace. In all that time he didn't even break a sweat, and if the two man standing in front of him didn't head him before, they would just assume that the boy simply got back from a casual stroll through a park with a dog. At first, they didn't even notice the two bodies he was carrying, they were just shocked to see him get here so fast. "You lost something?" He asked jokingly. Asako was the first one they noticed and both collectively sighed in relief upon seeing that the women is alright. It wasn't long before they noticed Akira too. And saying they looked at him as if they just saw a ghost was a very accurate description of their reaction.

"A...A-Akira?" Gab was the first one to gather his jaw back from the floor. "You.. You're a-alive?" Slowly, as Tatsumi placed the two lovers down on the ground, against the wall, Gab started to approach his unconscious friend with his hand reaching out to touch him.

"He's alive just unconscious. Better don't touch him carelessly, he's barely managed to survive." Hearing Tatsumi's words, Gab's hand stopped in place but he didn't even look at the boy. He was more preoccupied in watching Akira's chest slowly rise and fall as he unconsciously drew one heavy breath after another. Before long, Gab's head fell down against the ground as he started to quietly cry to himself, muttering thanks and apologies to both Akira and the boy that brought him here. Kazuto meanwhile knelt over next to Asako and gently hugged her, not even saying a word. Deep fatherly love could be felt from him. Tatsumi knew very well that the man cared deeply for Asako, but now was the first time he really got to see and feel it. And he found it really heartwarming. He was honestly starting to feel pretty jealous just from looking at them. His own father didn't even bother to see him turn 5.

It wasn't long before Akira and Asako wrapped their hands together, as strong as their weakened bodies would manage. Then, as soon as Kazuto released Asako from his embrace, she laid her head against Akira's shoulder, visibly smiling upon feeling his warmth. Her smile only widened when Akira's own head was placed on top of hers. If not for the blood and bruises they were covered with, Tatsumi wouldn't even try to stop himself from commenting how cute they look together. "I have something else to do on the higher levels. Are you two feeling good enough to get back up with them on your backs?" Kazuto turned towards him, struggling to maintain a straight face with a smile constantly trying to creep its way to his face. It honestly looked quite hilarious, especially with his nose broken and bloodied bandages pushed into it.

"Yeah, we'll be fine..." He looked back at Asako. "We had a long nap..." Unconsciously, he started to rub his swollen nose, hissing in pain and quickly moving his hand away. "But… What about the hive? Shouldn't we handle that first?"

Tatsumi only smiled at that. "Don't worry about it. Leone has it covered."


"I'm sorry... I'm sorry... I'm sorry..." Cassandra's quiet cries continued. Her sobs disappeared in the darkness, just like the person she loved above all others did all those years ago. She felt lonely even though what felt like millions of voices seemed to bounce in and out of her head at every second. She wanted it to end. She wanted all of it to end. She wanted to die and join everyone in whatever afterlife was out there, if any at all. She wanted to see Velvet again...

For over two hundred years she cried and begged whatever cruel God resided over this world to finally let this torture end, for someone to finally come and destroy this dreaded place and her along with it... But for so long, no one did. And once someone finally made it to her... She lost. Even though she did everything to weaken the Hive, to stop it from influencing this newcomer... She still lost, leaving Cassandra alone yet again, unable to stop crying until the next time Hive decides her body is of use.

Which likely was not far from now. With the soldiers that recently started coming into the Archive, the path back to the surface has been reopened. Not only that, but thanks to the knowledge taken in as the soldier's minds were absorbed into the Hive, it knew all about the currant state of the Empire. It knew about the rebellion and how weak the world is now. It knew that many Teigus were destroyed and only a handful of their users were still alive. The Empire's Strongest – general Esdeath, was killed and Empire's army was devastated after fight for the Capital. Rebels were barely able to win the Capital and needed time to calm things down and regain their military strength. And other countries? They were all ruined by the Empire, either completely crushed or driven into poverty by lack of trade. It was a perfect opportunity for the Hive to strike and fulfill its sick dream of a single mind controlling the world...

*SPLASH*

Suddenly, the wall of flesh was torn open. Before the Hive was even able to fully take hold of Cassandra's body again, a hand grabbed her by the throat and pulled closer. "The fuck are you crying over..." Cassandra soon found herself face to face with two rage-filled eyes of the very same woman she just defeated. Her flesh was missing in many places, but none of it seemed to bother her as she simply smashed her fist into Cassandra's face, sending her flying across the chamber as she pulled herself out of the wall. "The fight isn't over you bitch!"


Quick update:

The poll for the next story I make after this is about to restart. The story with the first place will be set as my next project so if you care about that shit, go to my profile, read the short descriptions I've left there and enter the link to the poll.

I'll be resetting it in a few days as well as updating the list with other stories concepts I came up with in the meantime.

More important update:

The next update may also take a while. I wanted to work on a few one-shots and short stories that are on my mind lately.


Song of the day: Dry Cell – Sorry