Blazblue: Infinite Possibilities (Discontinued)

by DripGodRagna

Revamp of this story posted.

20. Chapter 20: Departure

Noel: Time for the review!

Tsubaki: Woah Noel, you seem really happy.

Noel: Of course I am, I can't help it!

Makoto: Well she was saved after all, I think she's just happy to be free again.

Celica: All thanks to you all! You guys were great!

Kagura: Aw well you know, savin' the world one girl at a time. Also Noel, you mind um…wearing that suit more?

Rachel: I would rather see Noel without that crazy get up. She was practically naked.

Noel: Oh don't remind me! It was so embarrassing!

Ragna: Well anyway, your back and that's really all that matters.

Saya: Yeah! Don't go making your big sis worry like that again Noel.

Noel: Ok Saya.

Makoto: Still though how does that work? Seems like your whole body should've blown up Ragna.

Tao: Tao thinks you shouldn't think too much. That what Tao does.

Makoto: Uh… Let me try that…

*Makoto stops her brain*

Makoto: Oh wow… Suddenly everything makes perfect sense in this series!

Tao: Welcome to Tao's world.

Kagura: Ok… Anyway are you sure your going to be alright with one arm Ragna?

Ragna: Yeah I'm good.

Terumi: I guess he's been "disarmed"?

Ragna: Awww…

Terumi: You need a "hand" Ragna?

Ragna: Awww…!

Terumi: I think I can give you a "helping hand"?

Ragna: Awww!

Terumi: You seem to be in pain. I guess I can lend a "hand".

Ragna: Oh my god please stop…!

Terumi: Haha… Ah… Man I'm good.

Jin: You had to be the one.

Terumi: Of course! I mean I can't be a troll without being one after all.

Tsubaki: Talk about an ego… I guess it can't be helped.

Terumi: You say something?

Tsubaki: Just saying how annoying your going to be from here on out.

Terumi: What does that third eye make you psychic, cyclops?

Tsubaki: No, but it doesn't help me see bullshit.

Terumi: Hey you know what?

Tsubaki: What?

Terumi: Fuck you.

Kagura: Ok, let's just continue ok?

Celia: So we gotta continue from last chapter. Hey, Hakumen, your up.

Hakumen: Right. I am suppose to do "my first time" right?

Valkenhayn: Yes. However I must ask, has anyone seen Nine, Jubei and Kokonoe?

Ragna: Well I dunno, but I think Kokonoe and Nine are busy.

Saya: Busy with what?

Ragna: Well since master went out for Kokonoe's busy cleaning the carpet.

Celia: Wha…?

Ragna: What? Nine needs it and with master not around and Celica here she needs someone to do it. Apparently it's starting to look like a bush.

Terumi: Heh…heh…heh…Hah…!

Valkenhayn: I am going to…forget I heard that. Now, Lord Hakumen.

Saya: So Hakumen, what was something you did that was memorable to you that was your first time?

Hakumen: Let me see... Ah! I have found one.

Jin: Ok share.

Hakumen: It is a magnificent story! It was almost breath taking to see how cleanly my blade sliced through! The smooth clean slice, leaving no stain on the blade. My first clean cut!

Celica: Um…should we really be…?

Makoto: Ok, I REALLY think you shouldn't continue.

Hakumen: I felt the rush! The pure rush and the sensation I felt at that moment was unlike any I have every felt before. It was…beautiful…

Saya: Wow…um…wasn't expecting that.

Tsubaki: That's…kind of gross.

Hakumen: How so? Have you all never cut a fish clean in half before?

Noel: What!?

Nu: A fish? Nu thought you were talking about a person.

Hakumen: A person? Now that is sickening. Why would I talk about killing a man? I…am talking about FISHING!

Celia: Fish…?

Kagura: Fishing?

Hakumen: Yes! The joy of fishing! When I was in my youth I would always get up early and go out to the lake and fish! Sometimes I would get so excited I would prepare myself the night before!

Ragna: This is a little creepy…

Rachel: So the leader of the six heroes…has an affinity for fishing? Fascinating

Hakumen: You all…just don't understand. Fishing…is life itself!

Kagura: Even though he doesn't have eyes…I swear I can see the gleam…

Terumi: Haha… Fishing is so dumb…

Hakumen: What!? Say that again! I swear I will drop you to your knees and shove my blade so far down your throat your going to be shitting my grip for a WEEK!

Terumi: I would love to see you try you wannabe power ranger.

Makoto: Well at least he doesn't look like John Lenin joined the mafia with that dumbass hat of yours.

*Terumi breathes*

Terumi: I'm giving you a ten second head start beastkin…

Makoto: Thank you, I'm going to need it. Your very fast.

Saya: Well before this takes an even more awkward turn… Let's see who's next.

*Izanami reaches into the box and pulls out a name*

Izanami: Jin Kisaragi.

Jin: It is me? Very well.

*Jin reaches into the second box and pulls out a card*

Jin: What turns me on.

Kagura: Ok Jinny! Say wh—!

Celica: Will be revealed next time.

Kagura: Oh your kidding me!

Ragna: The stories gotta go on.

Kagura: Why the hell do you want it to go on!? Your fucked pretty much!

Makoto: Sad part about it is…he's not wrong.

Ragna: Let's just get this over with.

Noel: Start the chapter!

Terumi: TEN! BEASTKIN!

Makoto: OH SHIT!

Chapter 20: Departure

The atmosphere was more then a bit tense. Terumi, Akahana, Litchi and Relius was standing before them along with one other women. The unidentified women was staring at Ragna and ignoring everyone else. She had long platinum colored hair, azure blue eyes and wore a rather revealing dark purple kimono.

Her kimono opened at her chest, revealing her rather large cleavage, the kimono consisting of a short sleeveless tunic that was opened on both sides, revealing the side of her breasts, but are held closed by a dark obi, which is wrapped with a skinny purple rope. Her groin was covered by a purple cloth that hung down from her tunic and one at the back. Another cloth is hanging at her sides, but is held by a lavender colored bow and her legs were covered with black thigh high tights.

"Who is that?" Tsubaki asked.

"Imperator…" Rachel says as a drop of sweat trickles down her face.

"Wait that's the imperator!?" Tsubaki gasped.

"Damn she's fine… If I wasn't so hurt then I'd…" Kagura smirked.

"Now is not the time for that Kagura… Can you keep your boner down for two seconds?" Makoto sighed.

"It kinda has a mind of its own."

"Can we FOCUS!?" Kokonoe yelled at them.

"Imperator… What have you done?" Hakumen grips his blade, ready to charge in and strike at anytime.

"Nothing remains… "Possibility" has vanished." The Imperator said. Her voice was cold and commanding and that only served to tense up the atmosphere as her presence alone was a threat.

"Possibility has…?" Rachel began to think about what she said as a look of horror came across her face. "I can't believe you actually…" She found herself at a loss forwards as she could only stare in awe and gasp. "You're… You're mad…!"

The imperator let's out a "Hmph" and spoke. "I care little what you have to say to me. I have nothing to say to you, Rachel Alucard. Your very presence…disgusts me." The Imperator glares at her with pure hatred, everyone in the room feeling that immense hatred and malice.

"Ok… This might be a problem…" Kagura groaned, as a drop of sweat trickled down her face.

"All fractured world's have disappeared… No longer shall other world's…"rejected world's"…be pushed upon us… These Azure fragments have vanished along with their respected wielder and "dream"."

"So collecting Azure fragments is thrown right out the window… And I thought my day couldn't get any harder…" Kokonoe groaned. "This bitch is playing for keeps…"

"However… That is enough talk. I have not come for any of you.." The Imperator turned her attention to her primary target. "Ragna…" She cared little for everyone else, as he was the sole reason for her arrival. "How I've longed to see you again…"

"!" Saya quickly caught on and ran in front of Ragna and Noel. She puts her hands on her blades, readying herself to defend her brother and sister. "I won't let you lay a finger on them!"

"Hmph." The imperator vanished and in less than a second, she appeared in front of Saya. Before Saya could even gasp, the Imperator rammed the hilt of her sword into her stomach. The blond hacked up blood, her eyes opening to the size of watermelons as she held her stomach and goes down on her knees. "I am not here for you." The Imperator took her up, grabbing her by her collar and tossed her to the side like a rag doll. Saya landed on the ground with a hard thud, her body becoming unresponsive as the pain from the previous blow rendered her immobile.

"Saya!" Ragna gasped.

"No!" Noel shrieked.

"You bitch!" Makoto charged at her in rage, her fist charging up as she went for a right jab. The platinum haired girl didn't even need to turn around as all she did was raise her sheathe up, her fist ramming into the black metal. "Wha—!?"

"Weak." The Imperator spun around and delivered a rib shattering kick to her sides. All of Makoto's breath left her at that moment as an unbearable pain coursed through her body. The platinum haired woman dug her feet far and sent her gliding on the floor, bouncing a few times and finally coming to a stop.

"Makoto, no!" Tsubaki quickly ran over to her and bent down to her coughing friend. "Makoto, are you ok!?"

"S-Shit…" Makoto hacked up some dried blood a few times before opening up her eyes again. "She hits…like a fucking…freight train…" It was like every bone in her body was broken from that one attack, the pain that coursed through her telling her to stay down and her instincts telling her to get the hell out of there as fast as she could, or she was going to die.

The imperator turns her attention back to her priority. "Now…"

"You…bitch…!" Ragna cursed as he tried to get up, but fell back down as he couldn't even feel his feet. 'Damn it…!' Quicker than he could blink, Noel goes in front of him and extends her arms to cover him. "No Noel…! Get back!" He needed to move, and now. But his body wouldn't listen to him as he tried to get up and fell back down again. "Shit… I need to move…!"

The imperator just glares at her, Noel giving her a glare of her own. "Get out of my way. My business isn't with you."

"I won't let you hurt him!" Noel declared. "Leave him alone!"

"N-Noel…" Saya raised her head slowly and clawed at the ground, trying to get back on her feet to help defend her sister and brother, but it was no use. 'Damn it…! My…body won't…!'

The imperator said nothing more to her and took her up by her by her shirt. "You have used up too much power. I doubt you could walk let alone fight if you wanted too Noel." Not saying another word to her, she tossed her to the side as she was nothing more than a hindrance. The blond landed on the ground with a grunt and heavy thud.

"Damn you!" Hakumen puts a hand on his blade.

"Annoying…" The imperator mumbled as turned to them and sent them a sharp glare. "Silence."

"Wha!?" Jin gasped and looked down to see odd black chains coming up from the ground. It went around all of them and wrapped around them tightly, pulling them to the ground and binding them as seals appeared underneath them. None of them really had the strength to escape their bindings, the after effects of them being pulled into the boundary still weighed heavy on them and fighting Mu only made it worse.

"This…is nothing…!" With a yell, the chains around Hakumen shattered as he ran straight for the Imperator. She doesn't attempt to move as Terumi quickly swooped in and hindered his advancement. "Damn you serpent…!" The hero gets into a menacing stance and yelled. "Get out of my way!"

"Sorry little Hakky. Normally I wouldn't mind a good old fashion cock block, but Imperators orders. You know the deal." Once he said that the space around them started to shift as Jin looked at the cauldron to see an excess amount of seither pouring out of it.

"Damn… This isn't good!" Jin gasped.

"What the hell!? What's wrong with the cauldron!?" Makoto asked in a panic.

"It seems as if she set the cauldron to collapse on itself. We should not be around when that happens." Izanami said.

"What's gonna happen!?" Tsubaki asked.

"We'll be drawn into the boundary…" Kokonoe clicked her teeth. She tried to wiggle her way out from her binding, but they were too much.

"No—!" Ragna tried to move, but fell back down as his injuries still haven't healed yet. "Damn…it…! This isn't the time to sit on my ass…!" He had to move. If not, they were done for. He raised his right hand and recited a chant as the shell on his glove opened. "Restriction 666 released… Dimensional...interference field…deployed… Blazblue…!" He tried to activate it, but coughed up blood as the shell closed and he fell forward.

"I wouldn't do that," The Imperator warned. "Your body has already reached it's limit. With the 'Soul eater', if you were to activate it now, you would shorten your life span."

"Rag…na…!" Saya tried to get up, but couldn't as she was bound to the ground by the chains, as was Noel.

"Oh now this is getting good! Gonna kill them all in one go! Haha!" Terumi laughed. "Hey, shit vampire," The man turned to the confinded Rachel and smiked triumphantly. "Who's laughing, now!?"

"You…vile…!" Rachel used all her strength to force a scowl at the snickering man, which only served to make him laugh even harder.

"Look at you, you helpless little bitch!" Terumi's gloating was put to a halt as he dodged a quick flash of light. He loooed at the attacker and snickered. "You feeling left out?"

"Fiend! Step aside!" Hakumen commanded.

"Aw so what are you gonna do? Huh, Hakky? Save them or stumpy over here? You choose." A cocky smile came across the serpents lips as he snickered darkly. "But which ever one you choose, you're still gonna die here…"

"Bastard…" Hakumen growled.

"Akahana." The imperator called as Akahana came down right next to her. "I wish to be alone with him. Do you have the power to do that right now?"

"Yes, but what about you?" She asked.

"I'll rejoin you all once I have finished my business with him." The imperator told her.

"Very well." Akahana asked no further questions and snapped her fingers as a black sphere surrounded Ragna and the Imperator. A second later, the sphere disappeared, as the two were gone and the entire place was shaking and ready to collapse.

"Oh, shit if we stay here any longer we'll be dead." Terumi looked above to see the ceiling starting collapse and then looked back at Hakumen. "Sorry to kiss and run, but we've gotta go. Hey shitty vampire, kisses to the old man for me. Oh! And Hakky," Terumi snickered. "Keep my 'body' warm for me…"

With a yell, Jin and Izanami break out of their constraints and went straight for Akahana and Terumi, but the two quickly jumped back as three figures quickly descended down in front of them. The smoke from their landing cleared as they saw Litchi and two others now blokcing their paths. Jin and Makoto's face cringed at the sight of two of the two new faces.

"Setsuko…" Jin growled.

"Jin Kisaragi. Greeting once again."

Jin puts a hand on the hilt of his blade. "Greetings my ass!" He scowled. "Get the hell out of my way!"

"Hey look, it's the dirty beastkin! Flat on your ass just like before huh?" Yasha chuckled. "Guess some things never change, huh…?"

"Shut the fuck up… You bitch!" Makoto spat.

"Let us not waste time." Relius walked over to Akahana. "Let us be on our way."

"Alright." Akahana looks at Kokonoe and says. "If you run into Konoe or Celia, tell them I said hi and I'll see them later." With a snap of her fingers they disappear as does the chains. With the chains finally gone, they all got up on their feet, ready to leave. Not wanting to stay and get dragged into the boundary. Wouldn't be the best vacation spot in their opinions.

"Shit! We have to find, Ragna!" Kagura said. A piece of the ceiling fell down right next to him as he covers his face with his hands from the club of dust that rose up. "But first, I think it's time we GTFO!"

"What about Ragna!?" Saya asked.

"We shall see him when we escape." Hakumen told her.

"Yeah, I'm not taking that from the guy who tried to kill him." Kokonoe said nonchalantly.

"He is right. The imperator does not mean any harm to him. Let us evacuate for now. I just pray that the worst doesn't come to pass." Rachel said. With no other option, they all make a break for the exit and with them on the bottom floor it wasn't gonna be easy. They all felt like they were about to pass out because of the intense amount of seithr that leaked from the cauldron. The intoxicating cloud of darkness soon covering the hallways as they all tried their best not to breath it in.

However, as Saya ran, she couldn't stop worrying over Ragna, as he was all alone with the Imperator. That woman was dangerous and how he was right now, there was no way he could even put up a fight, much less lift his sword. Right now though, she needed to escape, then she could go after her brother.

'Brother… Please be ok!'

---

Ragna groaned and opened his eyes as he found himself submerged in darkness. He wondered if he was even awake as this all seemed like some bad dream. With a heavy grunt, Ragna stood up and looked at himself. Not only was he able to see his bright red coat and black glove, but his left arm was still missing. So he wasn't dreaming, so at least that was a plus. He knew at least he was alive and looked at his stump of an arm so it hasn't been that long, probably only a few minutes since he black out.

Seeing no real point in just standing there questioning where he was any longer, he took the initiative and started to walk around aimlessly. Though something was strange. Not only the space, but he couldn't hear Azure's voice anymore.

"Azure!?" He looked at his grimoire and called out to her, but got no answer. "Shit, where the fuck am I!?" Ragna yelled in frustration. Suddenly, Ragna came to a halt as he felt a surge of pain hit him like a ton of bricks, most likely due from him using the Idea Engine like he did. He himself didn't know the after effects it would have on his body and he knew it was nothing good, but this was just freaking ridiculous. "Damn… Where the hell am I..!? Hey! Jin! Saya!"

"Nobody can hear you, Ragna."

"Wha!?" He heard a voice. He knew who it was, even though he's only heard it once before. That stern manner of speech managed to imprint itself in his mind for him to easily recognize. "Imperator!" He called out. He knew he didn't have the strength to fight, given his clear disadvantage and hoped that he didn't have to. He heard footsteps approaching him and looked behind him to see a woman walking over to him.

"Hello, Ragna." She greeted him.

Ragna felt it. The intense pressure coming off of her was a bit more then he could stand. She wasn't one to be underestimated that was for damn sure. "Son of a…!" He slowly reached for his blade and grabbed the hilt.

"I wouldn't do that." She vanished from sight as Ragna looked around frantically for her. He felt someone behind him and drew his sword as quickly as he could. He whipped his body around, using the force of his spin to empower his attack, but it proved useless, as she deflected his blade by just rasing her sheathe. The hard collision knocked his sword right out of his hand as it spun in air a few times before stabbing itself in the ground a few feet away from him.

"Shit…!"

"I suppose somethings never change. You act without thinking." She took a step towards, Ragna as he quickly stepped back.

'Not good…!'

"Honestly…" The platinum haired woman moved her hand up as Ragna closes his eyes, preparing himself for what's to come. What was she gonna do, he wondered. She was able to deflect his sword with just her sheathe. He wouldn't be surprised if she could kill him with her pointer finger at this point. However…

"What the…?" Ragna felt no pain, but he did feel a rather gentle touch. He opened his eyes and saw her hand on his cheek and look of melancholy in the smiling woman's eyes.

"It's been so long… So long since I've seen you, Ragna." She said softly, caressing his cheek as she spoke. "Now we can finally speak… Even if it's not for long…"

Her tone was odd. It was filled with sadness and yet happiness at the same time. Ragna found himself letting his guard down and just standing there staring at her. This woman acted as if she knew him, but he's never seen her before in his life. Just who was she?

The imperator moved a hand up to his hair and rustles his bristles with her fingers. "So this is what happened to you…" Her fingers escaped from his locks and moved slowly down his face, stopping under his right eye and resting her fingers below it. "The Azure accepted you. I never would have imagined that after that you…" The Imperators glare dropped to his missing arm and sighed. "Now you go and destroy your other arm. Reckless as always… At first I wondered where you got this from… Then I look at your mother and father… Just what am I going to do with you…?"

"Who…are you?" Ragna asked a little hesitantly.

"I see…" She felt her heart stop a little as a lump filled her throat, her ability to speak ceasing for a short moment. "To think that you don't remember me… I guess it has been a long time, but still…" The Imperator sighed. "I guess my appearance has changed quite a bit… More then a bit I suppose." She admitted. "Though… I could say the same about you, but I guess…you've always been this idiotic. Nothing, but an idiot..."

"What…?"

"It's nothing." She looks back up at him and puts her other hand on his other cheek. She moved closer to him as he backed up a little from the approaching woman. As he backed up, he tripped and fell, the Imperator falling right along with him.

"God…damn it…!" Normally a fall like this wouldn't hurt so much, but with his body screaming in agony, a gust of wind could probably take him down. He groaned a little and picked half his body up to rise, but stopped as the Imperator laying right on top of him, her azure blue eyes glaring right into his. There was something about her… Something that felt familiar… 'Just who…is this woman?'

"It's because of your actions my plan went well and without little issues. The only issue is that 'she' inherited the 'eyes'. However," The Imperator smiles as her tone changes to that of a playful one. "Your little stunt did delay my plans a bit. Now tell me, should I punish you for that, Ragna? I wonder..."

"W-Wha...?" 'I already have to deal with crazy… Don't think I want kinky too…'

"Did you just have an indecent thought about me, Ragna? I feel as if it's something I need to slap you for." She groaned.

"N-No!"

"Heh heh," She giggled a bit. "Well, it matters not. Otherwise from the Azure eyes being lost to me, I should thank you. So I shall grant you a gift," She puts a finger on her glossy pink lips as a tint of red showed itself on her cheeks. "A rather special one… You have the right to know after all… Being able to make it this far."

"What are you…talking about?" Her words made no sense to him. She was speaking like how Rachel and Izanami would. Talking about shit he didn't know about, but expect him too. To be honest, it was starting to piss him off. Like can't they just talk in English?

"Instead of telling you… How about I show you. I apologize in advance for being selfish. Fair warning," The platinum haired woman moved in a but closer and said lustfully. "I am rather thorough."

"Thorough? What are talking ab—?" Before he could finish, she closed the gap between their lips and claimed them for her own. He stared bug eyes at the Imperator as she kissed him roughly. The platinum haired woman wrapped her arms around his neck and held him tight as it didn't seem like she was going to let go anytime soon. Her tongue slowly pierced his lips as she took him down to the ground, her soft, luscious lips tenderly massaging his, as a moan escaped her every now and again.

When she said 'thorough' he didn't think she meant like this! Like, holy shit, who is this woman? His thoughts were soon taken away as the kiss started to feel strange. It wasn't normal is what he knew for certain as a few words and images popped up in his head.

'Kushindas Linchpin… Tenjo was… Then my family was supposed to guard it?' His mind raced, overworking itself as he tried to process the excess flow of information, none of which he could make sense of. Why wasn't he told this before or was informed if this had to do with his family? Why didn't his mother or father tell him about it? Maybe he figured they did, but he was too young to remember or they just never got a chance to tell him. But what bothered him most of all was, how did she know about it?

With a soft breath, she releases him, their tongues connected with a string of saliva before snapping a second later. Her glimmering azure eyes locked onto his mismatched ones, chuckling to herself as she asked. "Did you like that, Ragna…?"

"What did you…just do?" Ragna asked. Right now, he was more confused then embarrassed. What was Kushinadas Linchpin? Just what the hell was really going on?

"I just showed you what you needed to see. You can figure out the rest on your own. The other half was just me being selfish." Her fingers traced his body as she said lustfully. "A woman can only wait so long, Ragna..." Her expression soon morphed into displeasure she looked up to see a small crack in the darkness. "They found us already… Nine truly is like her sister." She looks back at Ragna and gives him a light kiss on his lips and after a few seconds separated from him. "I'll see you later Ragna. I hope we meet again soon."

"Wait a minute who are y—!?"

She puts a finger on his lips to stop him as her body started to fade. "Sometimes you should just be quiet and listen to women. Things will go much smoother that way, Ragna." The imperator giggled a little as a small smile found its way onto her smooth lips. "You have to figure that out on your own. I'll be waiting, Ragna. Don't keep me waiting long… I can be very impatient if you remember..." With that, a blinding light engulfed the space as he shuts his eyes to block the radiance.

After a few seconds he opens his eyes and looks to see Saya and Celica standing over him with tears in their eyes and smiles on their faces. "What…? Ugh…" Ragna sat up with a pained grunt and held his throbbing skull. "Where…am I now?"

"Ragna!" The two girls lunged at him and hugged him tightly. "You're ok!"

"P-Pain…! Everywhere hurts, remember…!?" Ragna hissed his teeth as the two girls quickly let him go. Shaking off the pain from the bear hug, he took a look around and found himself in a forest, which was odd since he was in the NOL branch a few minutes ago and even more strange as he was in some kind of black space just a few seconds ago.

"It took me a while but I finally found you. Damn…" A tired voice said. He turned his head and saw Nine standing behind him, along with Jin and the rest of them. Ragna couldn't help, but notice the injuries on Nine. They seemed to be healed for the most part, probably by Celica's hand, but it still seemed pretty limiting.

Makoto and Noel went down on their knees and asked in worry. "Are you ok!?"

"Yeah… Wait," Ragna gasped. "Where's the imperator!?" He quickly rose to his feet and turned his heae bith ways, but heard something snap and held his shoulder. "Shit…!"

"Don't move too much, you idiot." Kagura walks over to him and throws his arm over his shoulder to hold him up. "So the imperators gone? What happened?"

"To be honest… I don't even know." Ragna said wearily.

"Well, shit. That doesn't help much." Ragna heard a familiar voice. This particular voice served to piss him off a little as she was the cause of Lambda interference. The person in question walked up to him. Lollipop in her mouth and a hand in her pockets.

"Celia," He growled. "What the hell are you doing here? How did you get here?" Ragna asked.

"Don't give me your shit right now, we'll deal with that later." Celia sighed. "I left after your little battle with Terumi. I had an itchy feeling that wouldn't go away. Guess I was right in the end." She bit down on the candy and spat the stick out and turned around. "Now come on."

"Where too?" Ragna asked.

"I'm gonna give your dumbass a new arm." Celia took a remote out of her pocket and clicked a red button on it as a fairly large ship appeared above them. It descended a little ways away from them as they make their way to where it landed. They find it as the hatchet opened and they all walked in, the ship taking off after the door closed. It hovered over the ground, ascending slowly until it kicked off with a burst of speed.

They walked over to the resting bay and put Ragna down carefully onto the bed, the armless man going into unconsciousness just seconds after being laid down. They all walk out, Celia being the last one as the door shut behind her and the scientist scratched her head and sighed.

"Goddamn idiot… I just hope he didn't blow up something more then his arm."

"So do I…" Noel said in worry.

"You can stay with him if you want too. It's gonna take a while to reach our destination from here and I think you all need to rest for a bit." Celia told them. They didn't really say no to that as Noel, Saya, and Celica went into Ragna's room and the rest walk off. The scientist made her way to the control room and sat at the main desk, making sure everything was in order for their trip. The scientist sat in silence at a heart wrenching thought that lingered within her.

"Lambda…" Celia was trapped in her own world of self loathing. There was no other way to achieve her goal, but that doesn't mean she hasn't considered the option of her dying. Fists clenched tight and the pain growing ever more in her bosom, she took something from her sleeve. It was a mask, with a red eye in the middle and two antennas on the sides. "Damn it…" What she did, she couldn't forgive herself. The scientist recalled the terribly injured Lambda and how she was the one that put her in that horrible situation in the first place.

"Shit," Celia bit her lip. "No matter what I do I'm never good enough. Son of a bitch I'm useless…" She takes a breath and looks ahead. "I owe that idiot this much at least since he's about to have hell on earth." Celia swipes her hand on the screen as a picture of a wanted man pops up. "SS class criminal…" She reads it aloud.

"The Grim Reaper… Ragna the Bloodedge."

After several hours of flying they finally arrived at Sector Seven. The camouflage was gone as their whole ship came into view. The ship slowly descended down to the ground as the hatchet opened up. They all walked out, Ragna being carried by Kagura with his arm on his shoulder. Walking up to the main door, the large group were halted by the guards as they were highly suspicious of them, given the fact of how big a group they were and an unconscious body being carried on Kagura's back. Celia showed them her identification card and once they read it they quickly got out of their way and made them pass.

They walk into Sector Seven, Makoto and Noel looking in awe at the large halls. They felt no arsmagus, everything around them was pure science and electricity. They passed by a few scientists that turned their heads at them, but quickly turned and ran away as Celia shot them a venomous glare. Celica could only laugh nervously to herself as just her glare was enough to make grown men cower in fear.

'I guess Mother and her really are sisters…' Celica thought to herself.

Finally getting to the bottom floor, Celia lead them to her room and tells them all to stay out in the halls as she takes Ragna and heads inside, leaving everyone else outside and a bit anxious.

"Can she really make a new arm for Ragna?" Celica asked.

"Knowing her, yes." Nine folds her arms. "All we have to do now is wait."

"Well, I don't know about you guys," Makoto stretched her arms and yawned. "But I'm taking a nap. I didn't get enough sleep on the way here." The beastkin tapped her lips and made her way over to her own personal space and takes a seat. Tsubaki, Saya and Noel join her as the three girls find comfort in her fluffy tail as the four girls fell asleep. Now that they were asleep, Kagura attempted to sneak into their group, but was met with a one inch punch by the sleeping Makoto as he fell into unconsciousness.

"Idiot…" Jin sighed. He hissed a little and held his arm in pain. "I suppose getting some rest isn't such a idea…" The blond stepped over the unconscious Kagura and took a seat down on the floor. He lets out a worn sigh and shuts his eyes as sleep came and took him. As they slept, Kokonoe began to fill Celica exactly what happened while they were at the NOL as Nine and Jubei wander off somewhere else.

"No more possibilities…" Izanami mumbled quietly to herself. She couldn't help but think about what the Imperator said as she began to contemplate not only her strategy, but the consequences it could have brought. "That's a very interesting way to go about it. Risky…she could have annihilated all of existence if that plan of hers didn't work out."

"That is a good and a bad thing. With this they do have the element of surprise on their side. If Jubei has returned however, I suspect he must've found exactly 'where' the linchpin is." Rachel said.

"I suppose so. So for now, while they gather themselves I believe we should too. We have what we will use, but how we will use it is another story." Izanami said.

"I shall go to, Jubei. I have a few questions for him." Rachel told the goddess as she walked off, leaving Izanami behind.

Time passed by as everyone ended up falling asleep in the hallway, snores and groans filling the halls. Jin woke back up before anyone else and went off, saying he needed a walk. Celica was still awake however as was Izanami as she couldn't help but feel a little worried for Ragna. Is he really ok? Did something else happen to him that she doesn't know about?

All these thoughts filled her brain and caused her to worry even more. Nine might've said to leave it to Celia, but that didn't shake of the feeling of worry she had. With worry over taking her Celica got up and walked over to the door. Before she could knock the door opened. Celica jumped back and looked to see Celia. "Hm? Celica?"

"Aunty! Is Ragna ok!?" Celica asked.

"Yeah he's fine. The idiots still out cold though." Celia sighed.

"Can I go in and see him?" Celica asked. Celia shrugged and walked away as the auburn haired girl smiled and walked in. She took a look and was amazed by the state of her lab. To put it simply; it was a pigsty. Celica spotted a room ahead and figured that's where Ragna was. She made her way through the junk on the floor, being careful not to step on anything she would rather not step on.

Celica walks through the door and looks to see herself in what seemed to be a regular bedroom, save that their was only a single bed a certain platinum haired man was sleeping on and no dresser. Walking to his side and looking him over, she saw that his jacket was fixed and his arm was back. A smile of relief came across her features as she pulls the sleeve back down and sighs.

"Honestly Ragna… You are so reckless." Celica bent down and rested her forehead on his. "So…so reckless." She smiled and stood back up as she made her way out the room, not wanting to disturb the sleep that he needed anymore.

With her worries cleared and nothing to do, she figured she look over everyone for the time being, and did exactly that. She left the room and checked on her sleeping friends to see if they had any other injuries. As she checked Tsubaki, the redhead groaned as her eyes flickered open.

"Oh, Tsubaki… I'm sorry, did I wake you?" She whispered, trying to keep her voice down so she didn't wake the rest of them.

"No, you didn't. We're you tending to me?"

"I just wanted to see if there were anymore injuries." Celica told her.

"Thank you. Sorry for being such a inconvenience." Tsubaki got up and took a look around to see everyone that she saw here last time besides Jin. "Hey Celica, did you see where Jin went off too?"

"He went for a little walk. He said he needed to cool down and think for a bit." Celica told her.

"Well ok. So what are you going to do now, Celica?" Tsubaki asked.

"I was going to go to my mother. She wasn't in the best condition and still isn't doing too well so I'm going to go tend to her. So Ill see you later." She told her and ran off. Tsubaki waved and watched her go, but she couldn't help, but be a little worried, since Celica wasn't really the best when it came to directions. Throwing her worry aside and trusting Celia, she started the other way in search of Jin.

The place was huge and all the walls looked exactly the same as she worried she might get lost. Now she was wondering if she really should've went with Celica to make sure she would be ok, but it was too late for that. Tsubaki sighed to herself as she took a look around saw nothing that gave her some kind of indication where she was.

"Am I actually lost?"

"It seems that way. I did not think you were so careless Tsubaki." A deep voice said as footsteps approached her from behind. Tsubaki turned around and smiled as she saw the person she was looking for.

"Jin!" The redhead ran over to him and asked. "Are you ok? Are your wounds healed?"

"Yes, I'm fine. But how about you? Are your wounds healed?" Jin asked.

"Yes. Celica took great care of me and I think she tired herself out with just us two and I don't even want to imagine with Ragna." Tsubaki said, earning a slight chuckle from Jin. His chuckle soon faded as his expression stiffened. She grew a little worried over his sudden change and asked. "Are you ok, Jin?"

"Tsubaki…" He wrapped his arms her and brought her in for a hug. Tsubaki's entire face lit up like a flame as her heartbeat skyrocketed, her words coming out as gibberish and total nonsense. Overtime she calmed down as the red faced Tsubaki asked. "U-Um J-Jin… What are…you doing?"

"I didn't really have the time to do this earlier, so I'm taking advantage now since I have all the time in the world. Forgive me for this, Tsubaki."

"N-No it's ok Jin. I," Tsubaki's glare fell to the ground as her voice went to a whisper. "Don't…really mind it."

"Tsubaki… I'm sorry…"

"Sorry? For what Jin?" Tsubaki asked.

"He took you away and I couldn't stop him. Tsubaki, I'm sorry I couldn't protect you…"

"Don't apologize Jin it wasn't your fault." Tsubaki said softly.

"Yes it was!" Jin held her tighter and continued. "It was my fault… It was all my fault. If I got there sooner! If only I got there sooner then maybe I could've stopped him. But what did I do? I let him take you away from me."

"Jin, don't blame yourself, please. The fault is mine and my own weakness…" Tsubaki said.

"You're just…so important to me."

"!"

"You're precious to me, Tsubaki… I treasure you and the time I spend with you. Those days are irreplaceable and the time I am around you are those a cherish."

"I'm…important to you, Jin…?" She asked in shock. "I'm precious to you…?"

"Yes, you are. You're so important me Tsubaki... That's why I couldn't take it when I saw him take you. I lost you right in front of me. I have never felt so awful…so lost and weak in my entire life. I felt as if a part of me was stripped away." Tsubaki couldn't believe what she was hearing, but his rather gentle tone made her think otherwise. He meant every word he said. "I can't tell you just how much I treasure you…"

"I-I… Jin I… I don't know what to say…"

"You don't have to say anything. However, Tsubaki… I want you to promise me something."

"What is it Jin?" Tsubaki asked.

"Don't leave my side."

"W-What!?" Tsubaki gasped, her bright vermillion cheeks growing even brighter from his reques.

"I don't want you to leave my side again, Tsubaki." Jin held her tighter in his arms, his soft and caring voice ringing in her ears like angel bells. "I don't think…I'll be able to take it a second time."

"Oh, Jin…" Tsubaki moves her arms around him and places her hands on his back. "I understand, Jin. I'll stay by your side, Jin. I won't let something like that happen again."

"Tsubaki. I promise you that this time, I will protect you. This time, I know I'm strong enough to keep you safe from anything that can hurt you. I won't let anyone take you away from me again." Jin moves a hand to the back of her head and rests it there gently. "I swear it."

"Finally! Goddammit, I was wondering when this was gonna happen!" An excited voice caught their attention as the two look to where the voice came from and saw a certain giggling beastkin walking happily towards them. They quickly separated as she stops in front of them and smiles wide. "Look at the loving couple, so sweet…"

"It's not like tha—Ok you know what, arguing with you is only going to serve to raise my blood pressure." Jin rubs his temples and let's out an annoyed groan. Makoto just laughs and turns her head to look at Tsubaki. Her face was glowing a sizzling hot red and when she looked closely she could've sworn she saw steam coming from her ears.

"So Tsubaki…when you guys gonna 'get it on' huh?" Makoto teased.

"What!? Makoto, that is inappropriate!" Tsubaki said sternly.

With Tsubaki like this, Makoto couldn't really take her normally stern tone seriously and just kept poking fun at her. Jin just watches the two argue and let's out a small chuckle. Makoto caught wind of his chuckles and raises a brow. "You're laughing? Holy shit, I guess possibility really isn't destroyed after all."

"Heh…"A small smile found its way onto his normally cold face as he chuckled under his breath. "I guess not."

"Jin." The three heard a rather gruff voice call Jin's name. They recognized who it was and turn their heads to see Jubei walking towards them.

"Mr. Jubei!" Tsubaki smiled.

"Howdy." Jubei gives her a smile and stops right in front of her. "I see yall are doin' just fine. I reckon all your wounds are healed up nicely?"

"Yeah we're good." Makoto tapped her muscles and smirked. "Nothing can keep me down!"

"Haha! Glad to hear it." Jubei turns his attention to Jin as he took a more stern approach in speech. "Jin, we need to talk." It's not something you hear everyday from, Jubei. He's always relaxed, even when in the face of danger and doesn't really change from his usual upbeat and relaxed manner of speech. But if his tone was like this, it would be best to listen.

"What is it, Jubei?" Jin inquired.

"This power in ya… It's just like, Hakumen. Looks like you got yer hands on the Power of Order while you were wanderin' around in there. And if that's the case, I need to see just how much of that power ya got." Jubei said.

"I see… Very well. Besides, it's not like I can go back home now anyway." Jin shruged.

"What are you talking about Jin?" Tsubaki asked.

"Ask Celia about that. If I tell you that it wouldn't really amount to anything. For now, Jubei and I need to talk, so I'll see you later, ok Tsubaki?" Tsubaki asked no more questions and just gave a nod and watched him walk off.

"So Tsubaki, you heard what he said right?" Makoto snickered. "Better make good on that promise of yours, Tsubaki. Wouldn't want to break it."

"S-Shut up…" Tsubaki whimpered.

"Alright, alright." Makoto chuckled. "Come on, let's go see Noel. I'm kinda worried about her and her condition. I hope their isn't any long lasting effects."

"Me too. Come on, let's go."

---

"Ugh…" Ragna groaned as his eyes ruby and emerald eyes were revealed from under his eye lids. They were still blurry and unclear and the headache didn't make it any better. It last for only a few seconds as he found himself in an odd blank room. "Where…am I? If I remember correctly…Celia said she was gonna fix my arm…"

"Ragna… You're awake." He heard a monotone say. While this voice was monotone, it had some joy hidden within it. He knew this voice and quickly whipped his head to his left and gasped as he saw Lambda standing beside him.

"L-Lambda…?" He stared bug-eyed at the Murakumo as he slowly rose from the bed. "You're…You're ok…! Lambda you're…"

"You're, finally awake, Ragna. I'm glad. I was starting to think that you wo—" The blond was robbed of her words from as Ragna quickly rough her in for a hug and held her tight.

"Lambda…You're alive…!" Ragna smiled joyfully as a few relieved laughs came from him, his voice overtaken with relief and joy. "You're here… You're really here, Lambda…!" He puts a hand behind her head as her cheeks turns pink. She felt warm as her heart began to beat like a drum. She could feel it pumping in her chest and thought it was going to come out.

"Ragna…" Lambda smiles and cuddles on his chest a little. "You're so warm…"

"Lambda… I'm sorry. I'm sorry you had to get hurt because of me. I'm so glad, your ok…"

"It's ok, Ragna. I did it for you…" Lambda closed her eyes and wrapped her arms around him. "You're here now, Ragna and that's all I care about. I get to hold you like this and I can feel your arms wrapped around me. I feel so happy right now, Ragna." Lambda felt like she could stay like forever. His arms wrapped tightly around her gave her comfort and filled her with joy. They stood there for what felt like hours, just wrapped in each others embraces. Neither of them spoke as silence took up the room. However, that silence was soon broken as Lambda felt her communicator go off.

Ragna separates from her as Lambda does the same as she answers her call. "Hello?"

"Sorry for ruining your reunion, Lambda, but I need to run a few tests on you to make sure you're ok."

"Ok Professor Celia," Lambda nods. "I'm coming."

"You're being called?" Ragna asked.

"Yes. I will see you later, Ragna." Lambda smiles and makes her way out. He watches her about to leave, but the door quickly flies open as an energetic Celica jumps in. "Lambda! Is Ragna awake yet!?" She asked.

"Yes. He is currently in the room behind me." Lambda points behind her as Celica ran passed her and made her way through the garbage and finally to Ragna. She leaped across the room and tackled him down onto the bed. "You're awake Ragna! I can't tell you how worried I was about you! I'm so glad your ok!"

"E-Easy there Celica…" Ragna chuckled.

"You really are a hero! You saved Noel and defeated Terumi! You're the best Ragna!" Celica giggled.

"Aw come on don't give me all the credit." Ragna blushed.

"Jin, Saya, everyone one of you! You guys are amazing! But…" Ragna heard the drop in her voice as she sat up on him and looked him dead in the eyes. "I want you to promise me you will never do that again, Ragna. I was so worried about you! I wake up to find you missing! I swear I was about to have a heart attack!" He saw some tears twinkling in her eyes as a single one came down her face. If there was one thing that really made him feel guilty, it was watching Celica of all people cry.

"Aw, jeez… Come on don't do that to me, Celica." Ragna groaned.

"What do you expect me to do, Ragna…? You," Celica looked down and whimpered. "You scared me…"

"Aw, man… Look Celica, it was the only way I saw that I could keep you safe."

"And what about you, Ragna?" Celica took a hold of his left arm and ran her hand along his arm. "You lost your arm for crying out loud…" She clenched his arm as her tears dripped onto his face. "You can't expect me not to feel sad about it… Even if you don't, I do, Ragna."

"Celica…"

"So!" Celica gave him a stern glare and said. "I don't want to see you pulling that sort of behavior again mister! Do I make myself clear Ragna?"

"Y-Yeah…"

"Good." Celica expression lightens up as her usual cheery smile comes back. "Now before anything I need to thank you Ragna. Getting Noel back and protecting Kokonoe and keeping them all from harm. I can't thank you enough. But I can give you a prize!" Celica smiled.

"A prize?" Ragna questioned.

"Yep! We'll, it's kind of like a prize, but it's more of me being selfish and you paying me back after knocking me out." Celica giggled.

"Alright, alright… I guess I do owe you. Ok then Celica, give me your prize."

"I thought you would never ask Ragna." Celica giggled as her eyes and closed the gap between their lips. Ragna just laid there. Her nice and soft lips tenderly rubbing against his, the room filling with silence. About five minutes as she opens her eyes and slowly releases him, the blushing Celica moving a few centimeters away. "Did you like my gift, Ragna…?"

"Y-Yeah…"

"But I guess this is ok for now… I've got a head start on them now…" Celica smiled.

"Head start?" He echoed.

"Now that's a secret… But don't worry," Celia smiled playfully as she set a finger on her lips. "I'll tell you later, ok? Can you wait for me until then?"

"O-Ok…"

"Hehe… I just hope, Ms. Rachel and the others doesn't get too jealous. All is fair in love and war after all…" Celica got off of him as he got up and just stared at the smiling girl. There was something different about her all of a sudden. He didn't know what it was and he didn't mind it either.

The two open the door to walk out and saw a certain jittery blond standing in front of them. She jumped at the sight of them and took a few steps back so they could walk out. "You're finally awake, Ragna. I'm glad."

"Hey, Noel. You, ok?" He asked.

"I'm fine. But I'm more worried you." She looked at his left arm and smiled at its return. "Looks like you got your right arm back… I'm glad." Noel said.

"Yeah," Ragna works it out a bit and says. "Good as new… Its like I never lost it. Something about regeneration from cells, but I couldn't follow." He shrugged and put a hand on his hip. "Well, at least your ok, Noel. I'm sorry I couldn't get you fast enough."

"It's not your fault… I want to say I'm sorry to you in particular…" Noel's glance lowered to the ground as the whimpering blond played with her fingers. After a moment of silence, she looked back up to him and wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him.

"Wha!?" Celica gasped as she watched them kiss. It was short as Noel slowly left his lips and took a step back.

"N-Noel, what the hell was that!?"

"I just…wanted to thank you. Y-You saved me and I-I just… What I mean is…!" She entangled her fingers together and circled her index fingers around each other. "What I want to say is that… Well, Ragna I… I um…! I…!" Noel started, but stopped and looked down.

"Hey, Noel… Are you…ok?" Ragna asked.

"No… Well, yeah, but I just… I want to tell you that… That I…! Oh…! This is so hard!" Noel groans in frustration as she took a breath and started over. "I want to say that I…! I…!" She kept stopping, unable to finish her thought as she felt as if she was going to pass out from the way her body heated up. Noel whimpered and looked down to the ground as her bangs fell over her face. "Oh jeez… Why can't I say it…?"

"Ragna, you son of a bitch! Again!?" An enraged voice broke through the awkward atmosphere. Walking towards them were Kokonoe, Makoto, Saya, Izanami, Rachel and a rather pissed off Kagura. Kagura stops right in front of him and grabs him by the collar as he shook him like a rattle. "Why do these girls keep falling for you!? Damn it! First it was sweet Celica! Then cute little Saya! Now adorable Noel!? That's it!" He stops shaking him and stares directly into his eyes, his eyes lit with the shimmering flame of both passion and jealousy. "You and me! Right here, right now! I'll prove to all these girls here that I'm the alpha male here!"

"Hold on there, Kagura!" Celica says, trying to calm him down.

"I ain't holding on to nothing besides the championship belt once I kick his sorry ass! Now you got Noel falling in love with you!"

Noel gasped as her face turned beet red. "N-No Kagura that's not it! He saved me and I just wanted to show a little appreciation! So please just calm down!"

"Seriously… I don't think any of us wants to deal with this…" Ragna sighed.

Kagura takes a few short breaths to calm himself down. "Good point…" He lets him go and takes a look at his left arm to see he's got a new one. "So you got a new arm?"

"Yeah. Celia said something about regeneration, but I couldn't follow it. So basically it's like I never even lost my arm."

"That's good. I'm just glad your ok, Ragna." Saya smiled.

"So am I…" He sighed in relief.

"Ragna. Your up." They turn around and look to see Lambda walking towards them. She walks up to Ragna and jumps on him, a smile shining brilliantly on her face. Ragna felt a murderous presence behind him and turns his head to see Kagura giving him a hard glare, his eye twitching a bit.

"Ragna. Who is this?" He asked sternly.

"This is…Lambda."

Lambda buries herself into his chest. "You're so warm, Ragna…" The Murakumo looks up at him. "Ragna. I want you to pat me."

"What? Why?" He asked.

"I like when you do it." She said. He hesitantly moved his hand on top of her head and slowly patted her, earning him a wide smile from her. "This feels nice…" She cuddled up more to him and sighed in bliss.

Saya's eye twitched slightly as she asked in slight annoyance. "S-So brother… Who is this?"

Ragna saw her rather pissed off expression and shivered a little. "W-Well this is, Lambda…"

"Lambda? Wait, you told us about her…" Makoto recalled back at Rachel's house when they were told what Noel and Saya were. That they were Murakumo units. During that conversation, Ragna told a story about him and three other Murakumo units and they didn't meet well ends. "Isn't she the one that…"

Lambda looks passed Ragna towards Saya. "Scanning… Scanning… Scanning complete. Prime Field Device number ten. Name, Saya. Hi, big sister."

"Wha!?" A light pink came across Saya's cheeks lightly as the blushing blond waves her hands dismissively. "P-Please, don't call me that! Just call me, Saya. That's my name, ok?"

"If that's what you want." Lambda said and immediately goes back to snuggling in Ragna's chest.

"When are you gonna let go of him!?" Saya asked.

"Now I can be together with him…" Lambda said, completely ignoring, Saya.

Kagura watches Ragna and Lambda and couldn't help, but laugh. He heard footsteps and turns around to see Jin walking towards them. He gives a wave. "Yo, Jin! Where were you?"

"I was speaking with Jubei. I see brother is up and already a little busy." Jin said.

"Yeah… Lucky bastard." Kagura looks back at him and groans. "Anyway…" He takes a breath and turns back to , Jin. "How you holding up? You, ok?"

Jin let's out a worried sigh. "I want to say, yes…but what Terumi told us… It still has me a bit curious. I do not want to believe that man, but the way he spoke…I found no folly behind his words…"

"What was it?"

"That the Black Beast is not as dead as we may believe."

"What!? The Black Beast isn't dead!?" Kagura yelled, his sudden outburst catching everyone's attention, especially Izanami and Rachel's.

"Kagura… Would you say that again?" Izanami said.

"Jin just said some freaky shit! He just said that Black Beast you all keep talking about is alive. The hell is he talking about?"

"Yeah…" Ragna clicked his teeth. "That bastard, Terumi said something like that… He said that the Black Beast is still alive and that it wasn't created by man, but summoned from beyond the gates."

"Summoned, hm? I suppose a more accurate description would be, 'lured out'. Though, summon would be just as good a word as any. I guess he would know better then any other." Rachel said.

"Hold up. You knew?" Kagura asked.

"I did know that it was brought out from behind gates. However I did not think it was still 'alive' in the boundary." Rachel clarified. A sudden chill ran down their collective spines as a supposed monster that was slain millions of years ago was still alive. Everyone had the same question in mind as Ragna brought it out to light.

"Rachel… Just what IS the Black Beast?"

"I would love to know that myself really. It can be called many things. 'Devourer of dreams', 'Death', 'Monster', but I do not think anyone truly knows what the Black Beast is." Rachel said.

"So then how does the Black Beast…? I thought it was the fusion with the Azure Grimoire and a Murakumo unit?" Ragna asked.

"Yes… The fusion of them does bring the beast out of the boundary. Though you can look at them more as say 'sacrifices' to the beast. With the fusion of those two, the beast can use them as a vessel to escape into. The Murakumo can not handle the beasts power alone, so the Azure Grimoire acts as a sort of intermedium to store it's incredible power and the vast 'information' it carries."

"Information?" Tsubaki asked.

"Yes. The Black Beast is a creature of the boundary. It may act like a raging beast, but it still posses a vast amount of information. Once you delve deep into the boundary, you begin to 'see' just how this world works. It is one of the many reasons why humans can not survive in the boundary. Not just from the seither, but the influx of information would drive them mad and consume them whole." Izanami explained.

"So if the Black Beast is a separate being then… Ok, so do you guys know exactly how the Black Beast was integrated into the Murakumo unit and why it's able to only be contained by one? There has to be more then one way to contain it then just a Murakumo." Tsubaki said.

"There is. Which is why Terumi created the Azure Grimoire. Of course, as you all know, it went out of control. He seemed to have tried to make a duplicate grimoire as the Azure Grimoire is known as the 'original codex'. Containing the information stored in the boundary since it can directly draw power from the Azure, and—" Rachel was stopped as she heard what sounded like groaning. The vampire turned to the source of the annoyance and saw Makoto with what seemed to be steam coming out her ears and her eyes and head twitching a little. "Is she alright?"

"Yeah… You probably just overloaded her brain." Kokonoe shrugged.

"Just give her a minute." Ragna told her. They look to see Makoto starting to calm down as she takes a breath and slaps her face lightly with her two hands.

"Ok, I'm back! Now… Continue."

"Right," Rachel sweat dropped. "So with trying to obtain the eyes of the Azure I can surmise that Terumi sought out something more then just location the master unit."

"So what do you think we wanted?" Jin asked.

"The Azure Flame Grimoire…" Ragna mumbled.

"Azure Flame…Grimoire? The hell is that?" Kokonoe asked.

"Ragna… Where did you hear about that?" Rachel questioned.

"Terumi said that's what he wanted. Something about obtaining the 'True Azure' and that's what it was called. He also said that the Azure Grimoire is actually an imitation of that. If that's true, wouldn't that mean he was able to directly touch the Azure in the past?" Ragna asks.

"So that's it… Well, we can focus on that another time." Rachel said.

"Alright then. But, Rabbit. I need you to tell me something. I found out about it before we left the NOL branch and its been bugging me?"

"It has? Now what would that be?"

"Can you tell me what Kushinadas Linchpin is?" Ragna asked. The glare he received from her was a bit chilling as it seemed like she was expecting that from him

"Do you mind telling me where you heard it from?"

"Well the Imperator told me…or at least showed me," Ragna recalled how exactly she 'told him' as a slight blush appeared on his cheek. He did his best to mask it, taking a few seconds to calm himself before speaking again. "Apparently, Tenjo was guarding it and that role was to fall onto my family next. So, I just want to know, just what is the Linchpin and why is it so important?" He asked.

"The Linchpin is an artifact created during the time of the Black Beasts reign." Rachel told him.

"So the Dark war?" Noel said.

"Yes. The Linchpin is something that will shift the way to our victory or our defeat." Rachel said.

"So just what is the amazing power of the Linchpin?" Ragna asked.

"It may be able to fully suppress seither." Rachel said, getting a few gasps and eye stretches from her claim. "If the rumors are true, then the Linchpin is able to sever the connection between the cauldron and the boundary. Completely nullifying the flow and use of seither." She explained.

"That's…amazing…" Kokonoe couldn't believe what she was hearing. A single device capable of eliminating seithr. It was too crazy to believe, but then again, with all the shit that's been going on lately, something like this wouldn't be so out of the ordinary. They broke that barrier the moment that started hoping into other worlds.

"It is the main reason I asked Jubei to head to where the Linchpin is located. He has found exactly 'where' it is and we now have the means to open the way." Rachel said.

"We do? So, what's the key?" Celica asked.

"Noel. You are the key to open the gates." Izanami said.

Noel points to herself and gasps. "Me!?"

"Yes. As the chosen successor of Azure, you have the ability to observe and unlock the gate. Tenjo had sealed the Linchpin at the boundaries edge so that Terumi could not get his hands on it. Thankfully however we not only have the exact location, but the means to open it." Izanami explains.

"Wait but…didn't I…?" Ragna started to think.

"You may have prevented the smelting, however she still posses the power of the "eye". If she can observe the gate she will be able to open it. Once that happens we can retrieve the Linchpin and use it to defeat Terumi and the imperator."

"I see…" 'So if she still has the Azure, then…!'

"However," Rachel sighed. "This does put Noel in a very…dangerous position."

"How come? Is Terumi gonna try and kidnap her again?" Kagura asked.

"No. Most likely this time he will come to kill her." Izanami told them.

"He's gonna, what!? Like hell he is!" Makoto exclaimed.

"Why would he come to kill her? If he captured her, wouldn't he be able to use the Linchpin?" Jin asked.

"Yes, but he does not need it. To us it may be an asset, but to them it is nothing more then a hindrance. So we must make sure we have the Linchpin in our custody before they find some other ways and means to open the gate to the Linchpin. They are a cunning group, I am sure they will think of something else that does not require Noel to open it." Rachel said.

"Well that works for us I guess." Makoto smiled brightly and tapped Noel in the arm. "Good job, Noel!"

"Thanks! I think?"

"Ah yes, Ragna." Rachel turns to Ragna as she had an unusual smile on her face and it was kinda creeping him out. "I think a well done is in order."

"Huh?"

"You have changed the direction in which this battle will go with your own two hands. I must say I am quite impressed by your work."

"Ok…you lost me." Ragna scratched his head in confusion. "What did I do?"

"As slow as always I see. Somethings never change, but," The vampire smiled. "Something did."

"What do you mean?" Tsubaki asked.

"There seemed to be more going on with the Tagamagahara then meets the eye. Their plan was to override our existences and obtain the Azure for themselves." Rachel explained.

"Assholes… By the way, what is that? You mentioned that before." Kagura recalled. "What are they? Who are they? Or I guess, who WERE they?"

"The Tagamagahara systems is a system crafted by humans in an attempt to surpass god. It is nothing more then a feeble imitation." Izanami scorned. "Pay it no mind."

"So this Tagamagahara whatever was using us?" Makoto asked.

"In a way, yes, but the event that took place was not being observed by them, so it was the perfect chance to break away from their will. Their little plan would have worked, but you managed to do something even they did not perceive. Right there, Noel Vermillion was suppose to have vanished and the godslayer Kusanagi was either supposed to go into the cauldron and destroy the Master unit or die by your hands."

"So I guess I didn't chose either?" Ragna guessed.

"Yes. You not only managed to spare Noel's life, but you managed to draw her existence out of the boundary and reverse the smelting process. Not only that, but you defeated Yuuki Terumi," Rachel adds. "Causing the event to shift heavily in our favor. I must say I am quite impressed and it is no exaggeration to say that this world is still here because of you." A small smile came across her face as Ragna scratches his head, his cheeks pink out of embarrassment. "All because you are such a soft hearted idiot."

"Ok, really?" His smile soon faded away as he stared blankly at her. "I thought you were complementing me, but your giving me shit? Wow…" Ragna rolled his eyes. "Guess it's asking too much for you to not he such a bitch."

"So you're back up are ya, Ragna?" A gruff voice said. They turn to the voice and see Nine and Jubei walking over to them.

"Hey, Master." Ragna greeted his master..

Jubei walks up to him and gives him a curt smile. "You did good my boy. I'm hearin' you gave that bastard Terumi a much needed ass kickin'. I wish I was there to see that bastard eat dirt."

"Yeah," Ragna's smile quickly faded away as he sighed. "Yeah I did…but at the end…"

Jubei raises a brow to his students rather unexciting expression and tone. "Hey what's the matter son? You seem a bit down, which is weird for what ya managed to do."

"I know it might sound weird but…beating Terumi… It wasn't worth all that…" Ragna placed a hand on Lambda's head and sighed. "Lambda got hurt because of my own damn weakness… Then I wasn't able to get to Noel before she turned into Kusanagi and made her go through so much pain… Just to defeat Terumi… To make others go through all that… It didn't feel right."

Jubei gives a proud smirk. "Oh? Did my boy just become a man? I don't think I can call ya a boy no more son. Looks like you've found some responsibility."

"I guess so… I just don't want others getting hurt over my vendetta so… I decided that getting revenge…isn't worth it." Ragna sighs. "It wasn't worth her dying for…"

"Ragna my boy…" Jubei sighs. "Well Ragna…I'm just glad your ok. I'm glad your all safe. You did good and I'm proud of ya." He smiled. "Keep up the good work my son."

"Ok."

"Now speaking of good work…" Jubei chuckled a little. "So, Ragna… You gonna let go of that girl anytime soon? You've been holdin' onto her for a good while now. Not saying I really mind you havin' a girlfriend."

Ragna looks down to see what he was taking about. His arm was draped around Lambda and he was holding her tight to his chest. He gasps and quickly let's go. "Oh, shit! I didn't even realize!" Jubei couldn't help, but laugh at his apprentice, his laughing making Ragna want to shove his face right into the pavement. "You son of a bitch… You just love to bother me don't ya…"

"Never gets old." He smirked.

"Unlike you." Ragna retorted.

"Hey. That was uncalled for." Jubei said.

"Well my bad, Lambda… Didn't mean to hold you forever like that."

Lambda wraps her arms around his arm. "It's fine. You could hold me as long as you want."

"U-Um…"

Jubei laughs. "What is it boy? Embarrassed are ya? Well if you ever need some 'advice', you head on over to me and I'll tell you exactly how t—" Jubei was ready to divulge his vast information to his apprentice, but was stopped short by a hard blow to the head by Nine.

"Thanks for that…" Ragna groaned.

"Sure," Nine groaned. " No problem."

"Ok, Ragna there isn't anything wrong with you and your in perfect health so—ok what's going on here?" They turn around and look to see Celia walking towards them. She had what seemed to be a tablet in her hand and ran her finger on it.

"Well nothing really, just talking." Tsubaki said.

"I see… Well you guys are definitely the talk of the town or in this case the world." Celia said

"What does that mean?" Ragna asked. Celia taps the screen on her tablet as a light came from the back on it. A hologram of what seemed to be a newsletter regarding Akitsu appeared from the small camera light. "Look who just made the NOL's most wanted list."

Ragna looks and reads the names off. "Jin, Noel, and I are all wanted!?" Ragna gasped. "Are you serious!"

"I am and it looks like they are too. You three are on the front page of almost every media site."

"I guess they needed a scapegoat for all the disappeared NOL officers. Bastards…" Kokonoe growled.

"Wait…then what about us?" Kagura wondered.

"Well they only have photo's of Ragna, Jin and Noel so maybe listing you all would raise a few questions. They already issued a warrant for your arrests, so going home now isn't an option for any of you." Celia said.

"No way… Wait," Noel gasped. "What about my parents!?"

"Don't worry, I'll take care of them. I'll let them stay here so the NOL won't question them. Sector Seven is outside their jurisdiction since we're our own organization."

"Really!?" Noel smiled. "Thank you so much!"

"Don't," Celia puts a hand out, signaling her to stop. "You're just gonna regret it later. Anyway," The scientist turns her attention to Ragna and asks. "Ragna is your arm alright? Anything wrong with it?"

Ragna stretches his left arm out and works it out. "Na, I'm good. Still though…how the hell is this gonna work? I mean we can't go home…at least Jin, Noel and me."

"Well about your home…" The hologram changed to a live image as they saw what seemed to be a snowstorm and a strong one at that. Tsubaki tried to make out the city, but there was so much snow she couldn't tell.

"What is this?" The redhead asked.

"This is Akitsu." Celia told them.

"What!? How!?" Tsubaki gasped.

"The cauldron… It must've screwed up the weather control when it collapsed in on itself." Kokonoe surmised.

"So they pin the blame on us…" Ragna clicked his teeth. "Those sneaky little...!"

"If any of us come then they'll raise suspicion. Then our families we'll get targeted." Kagura said.

"Damn it…" Makoto hissed her teeth. "Fucking bastards… They really wanted to separate us…"

"We can't do anything about that now." Jin said.

"You're pretty calm about this. What you excited for the criminal life?" Kagura teased.

"I never said that," Jin shook his head. "But I am concerned about what will happen now. Just how are we going to collaborate?" Jin wonders, the same thought going through everyone's minds.

"Actually," Kagura snapped his fingers as an idea came to him. "I might have an idea about that and it's perfect since that's were the Imperator and the rest of them are heading too."

"That sounds convenient. Well lets hear it." Kokonoe said.

"I've got someone in Yabiko that would be able to get us into the branch and city undetected. Besides, if I'm there, then they shouldn't raise any questions. But then I've got to find a way to deal with my mom and I don't want to leave her alone…"

"Then I will fill her in on the situation at hand." Rachel said.

"You'll what!? You can't do that!" Kagura shivered. "She will KILL me if she found out about this."

"It is something we must do. Unless you want to tell her?" Izanami asked.

"Y-Yeah… Maybe I should be the one to break the news… But what about the rest of your families? We need to take care of that." Kagura said.

"Then we'll fill them in on what's going on." Tsubaki continued. "I never wanted my mother to know, but I can't sit at home knowing Noel is endanger."

"Tsubaki…"

"Me too!" Makoto smiled. "Don't worry Noellers!"

"Makoto… Thank you… Both of you…" Noel said genuinely.

"Ok. I'll bring them here." Nine said. "I just hope you all are ready. Once you tell them and leave, there is no going back for this. It's unfair that Ragna, Noel and Jin don't really have a choice in this, I'm sorry, I really am, but the rest of you do."

"You don't even have to ask. I'm not gonna sit around while Ragna and Jinny over there hog all the action. Besides they would be lost without me guiding them." Kagura smirked.

"I'm going too. Noel is endanger and I'm not going to let anyone hurt her." Makoto slammed her fist on her palm. "They're gonna have to get passed me if they even want to lay a HAND on her."

Tsubaki nods in agreement. "That's right."

"Kokonoe… Celica… I'm not trying to sound bias, but I really don't want you two to get anymore involved in this. But it's your choice whether you want to or not, but as a mother, I would rather you two stay at home."

Celica shakes her head. "No! I'm going with you all!"

"Same here. That idiot over there is way too reckless. I mean the guy already lost his arm." Kokonoe pointed to him."I don't think he'd last a second without a babysitter."

"Hey…" Ragna groaned.

"It's ok Ragna. Lambda doesn't think you're an idiot." Lambda told him.

"Thank you Lambda…" Ragna smiled and patted her. "At least I have someone on my side."

"But you are reckless." Lambda finished.

"Ok really?" Ragna felt his moral drop as his expression went blank.

"She's right you know." Noel agreed.

"You too? Damn so much hate…"

Kagura pats him on the shoulder. "Welcome to my world my friend… It's not a very good one…"

"I'm going with brother and Noel! No matter what! I'm going to protect Noel!" Saya says.

"As long as you have all decided this, it is time to get tie up your lose ends. Once you all set out to Yabiko, you may not return to Akitsu." Rachel says.

"Alright then…" Makoto said. A bit of sadness in her the beastkins voice as she was a bit saddened to leave.

"It's gonna be fine," Ragna gave her a pat on the shoulder. "Just hold your head up high. You do want to protect Noel don't ya?"

"I do, but I can't help, but feel a little sad." Makoto sighed.

"Yeah… I see what you mean." Tsubaki felt the same way as did everyone else in the room. It wasn't like they were scared or anything, but having to leave their families was a bit saddening to say the least.

"Well the faster we finish this the quicker we can go home. For now, you mind bringing our parents here Nine? I think we should go as quickly as possible." Kagura asked. With that Nine and Rachel teleport away, leaving the rest of them in the halls. Celia told Lambda to go the her room so she could make a few more adjustments and also fix Ragna's sword since of course he was gonna need it for the fight to come.

"So that's it? We set out away from home after this?" Kagura says.

"I guess so…" Noel sighed. "I'm sorry everyone… I got captured and now…" she feels a slight bump on her head as she rubs the middle of her head to ease the pain. She looks up to see Ragna frowning.

"Listen here," Ragna groaned and pulled on her cheek as she started to whimper. "We came after you on our own because we wanted too." He lets her go and places a soft hand on her head. "So don't feel bad alright?" A slight blush came onto Noel's cheek as she gave him a slight nod. "Good. Now, Kagura," Ragja turned to Kagura. "I think you should be the one to set out first Kagura. We need you to get us in there as soon as you can."

"Yeah, good call. I'll get him on the phone." Kagura said.

"I think I'll come with you. I can set up somethings while I'm there." Kokonoe said.

"You can do that? If so that would be great. But won't you need help with that?" Makoto asked.

"Oh don't worry," Kokonoe snickered. "I've already got someone. My aunt already picked up my little helper from home and he should be in her lab right about now. It shouldn't be a problem by the time you guys get to Yabiko."

"I'll go with you all. I think it would be best for brother and Noel to travel separately." Saya suggested.

"So we aren't going together?" Tsubaki asked.

"No, we aren't. That would be a little too risky. We might run into some trouble on our way. Remember, only brother, Noel and I are marked as criminals. If you guys are seen with us it could cause some difficulties." Jin said.

"So I guess just teleporting is out of the option. They would expect that…" Tsubaki said.

"Yes. You all have plenty of time. Like Celia explained, with the successor of the Azure with us it sets their plans back a bit. That is good for us, so we can prepare for our countermeasures." Izanami explained.

"Where we're located now, we're right off the third hierarchical city of Iwasu and Akitsu. Right now it should take you at least two months to get to Yabiko by foot Ragna." Celia hands him a map as he looks to see the directions marked on it. "Just follow this. You do know how to read a map right?"

"Yeah I do. Still...that's one hell of a walk." Ragna said.

"Alright then, I'll be back soon." Celia said and walked off.

"It might be a long way, but at least I know I have time. There's something I need to do." Jin muttered.

Jubei walks up to him. "Remember Jin, I need you to come with me. I gotta see just how well you can wield the Power of Order Jin. I have a feeling of what your planning on doing Jin, but before you go and see him I need to evaluate ya. You'll probably see him on your way anyways, he's already heading there."

"Understandable." Jin turned to face his brother. "After this brother, I won't be able to see you for a while. So for now," Jin walked up to him and puts his hand out. "This is goodbye."

Ragna smiles and shakes his hand. "Yeah… Good luck Jin. Be safe."

"You too." Jin turns away from his brother to his sister and said. "Saya. If you arrive before I do, do not cause brother any trouble. I do not want to hear that he's dead by poison."

"I can cook! Just you watch!"

"I don't think I want too… But still… Be safe." He said genuinely.

"You too, Jin." Saya said.

"Let's go, Jubei."

"Oh look at you Jin. Ya sound like a real man now. I guess that Power of Order forced you to do some growin' up."

"I suppose it did." 'As there is someone I need to protect… No matter the cost.' Jin turned to Tsubaki gave her a genuine smile. "Take care." He said softly.

"Y-Yes! You too Jin." He looks at Kagura and Makoto with a slightly worried expression.

"You two already know what I'm gonna say to you…"

"We know Jinny…" Kagura put his hands behind his head. "Talk about kill the mood… Shove a knife in it why don't ya…"

"Aw don't be like that, Jin. I'm not gonna cause any trouble." Makoto said.

"I doubt that."

"Be careful, Jin! We'll be right behind you!" Noel reassured.

"You too." With that, Jin and Jubei left the group alone in the hallway, Tsubaki watching them until they were no longer in view. She wanted to chase after them, but she knew she needed to leave Jin alone. This was something he needed to do alone.

'Jin… I'll keep my promise…'

"Well at least we're lucky. We don't have to walk, unlike Ragna, Jin and Noel. We can just take the ars magus transport. Still though… From here to Yabiko…and the confusion going on the Akitsu branch… It would take at least three weeks to a month to get there." Kagura said.

"Yeah. For now though, let's just focus on our families. Telling them we've been fighting against the NOL and jumping into other world's isn't something you tell them normally." Tsubaki sighed. "I wonder what my mother's gonna say…"

"I wonder what my parents are gonna do to me… Oh man…my dad is gonna kill me and my mom…!" Makoto shivered. "I don't even want to think of that!"

"They should arrive soon. Prepare yourselves." Izanami warned.

"I'll go to aunty Celia and help prepare." Kokonoe walks off as Celica walks behind her. Ragna decided to stay, even though he really doesn't need to he thought he might be able to help them explain, just incase. After waiting about a good ten minutes, Nine and Rachel appeared with their parents and they did not look too happy. Kagura felt a shiver go down his spine as he looked at his mother's glare.

"Oh boy…" Kagura backed up a little.

"So, there really was something going on… It's not just some club… You all were fighting the government! Now Ragna, Jin and Noel are criminals!?" His mother stomped over to him and looked him dead in the eye.

"Look, I'm sorry mom, but I couldn't tell you about this. I didn't want you to get hurt."

"Is that working out Kagura?" His mother asked.

"No…"

"At least you know." She wraps her arms around him and gave him a tight hug. "Go kick the libraries ass."

"Woah! Didn't expect that." Kagura gasped. She separates from him and looks at him dead in the eye, a proud smile on her face.

"To think you've been doing this all by yourselves. Then you all save Noel from the NOL itself. I want to be angry with you all, but I can't help but feel so proud of you Kagura!"

"R-Really?" Kagura stared bug eyed at his mother, honest to god shocked what she said.

Noel's parents walk over to her and hugs her tightly. "My baby… I'm so sorry you had to go through all that." The mother looks at Ragna. "Thank you Ragna for saving my daughter! I can't even begin to repay you for what you did."

"It's no problem. I was happy to do it."

"Take care if my daughter will you?" The father asked.

"You don't even need to ask. I was planning on doing that anyway. I promise you I'll protect her."

"You have our thanks, Ragna. We leave our daughter in your hands." The mother smiled. The father walks up to him and punches him lightly in the chest.

"Give 'em hell son."

"That was the plan."

Makoto's parents and her brother and sisters walked over to her, her mother and father giving her a sharp glare. Then just like that they jump on her, holding her tightly. "Makoto, be careful. I can't stop you and I don't intend to try. Just come home safely." Her mom said.

"Ok…" Makoto nods and wraps her arms around them.

"Get them big sister!" One of her brothers told her.

"You can do it big sis!" One of her sisters cheered.

"Your damn right!" Makoto boasted.

Makoto's father turns to Ragna and walks up to him. "Now Ragna, I want to ask you something."

"Ask me something?"

Makoto's father nods. "You know how my daughter can be sometimes. Please watch out for her."

"Hey! I can take care of myself thank you!" Makoto pouts.

"A father can never be too sure. Besides didn't you say that y—?" Makoto yelled and quickly ran up to him and covered his mouth.

"No, don't say it! It's too embarrassing!"

"But didn't you already kiss him big sister?" One of her sisters asked innocently.

"How do you know that!?" Makoto gasped.

"You were talking to yourself one day and we heard you. You sounded so happy too." The mother smiled.

"Hey you guys are trying to get back at me now! No fair!" Makoto turned to a blushing Ragna and pointed at her family. "Don't listen to them ok! They're crazy!"

"Oh don't be like that Makoto. Just s—"

"NOOO!" The beastkin ran and tackled her mother and covered her. They couldn't understand a word she was saying, Makoto doing her best to keep her mouth shut. "Stop it! Don't say anything!" Makoto whimpered.

"I guess I have something against her now." Tsubaki giggled.

"Tsubaki dear." She turns back to her mother as she continues. "Please be careful. Come back to me Tsubaki." Her mother hugs her tightly as Tsubaki returns the warm hug.

"I will. I swear I will."

"That's a promise." Her mother let her daughter go and asked. "So we'll stay here right?"

"Yeah. It would be better like this so the NOL doesn't show up at your doorsteps asking for us." Kagura said.

"Ok. When are you all leaving?" Noel's mother asked.

"We would like to leave as soon as we can. Kagura and Kokonoe are leaving soon, once Kokonoe gets back they'll be off." Ragna explained.

"Ok," Kagura's mom nodded and gave her son a kiss on the cheek. "Please be careful, Kagura. The NOL is ruthless, you know that. Watch your back and try and call me any chance you can."

"I will mom." Kagura hugs her. "It won't take long."

"Alright we're back!" They heard Kokonoe call out, but they also felt the ground starting to shake. They look to see what these monstrous footsteps were and saw something resembling a man with devil like features. Ragna knew what it was as he's seen it before.

"Holy shit, you got him to work!? That's amazing!"

"Yes I did. This place had the power to turn him on finally and my aunt gave him a little tune up so powering him up won't consume so much energy." Kokonoe explained

"He's so nice! Greet them Mr. Tager." Celica said.

"Very well. As you heard from Celica, my name is Tager. It is a pleasure." His voice wasn't anything like they expected it to be. They thought he was going to have a very dark and menacing tone, but he was very proper, calm and sophisticated. "So," Tager adjusted his glasses and examined them. "These are the ones who we will be collaborating with?"

"Yeah…" Kagura walks to Ragna and whispers to him. "Hey, did you know about this guy?"

"Yeah. Kokonoe's been working on him for a while now."

Kagura looks back at Tager and glosses over the large robot. "Damn…this guy could break me in two with just those muscles alone… That's a good way to make men feel inadequate."

"That's exactly what I said…"

"Ok so…how are we gonna get him on board an ars magus vessel?" Saya asked, a little unsure if he could fit or not or if he could bring the whole ship down.

"I have one prepared for them already." They look passed Tager, which was a bit difficult to do, but they managed and saw Celia walking towards them. "You can use my ship. You should be able to dock in Ibukido, given that nobody is there. I already sent Tager the coordinates. After you dock in Ibukido, you guys can head to Yabiko from there. You shouldn't have any problems."

"Alright then. Let's go!" Celica said vibrantly.

"Wait a minute, Celica." Nine stops her and puts her hand out as a magic circle appears in front of her. The circle spins to face towards the ceiling and began to descend down to the floor. As the circle went down, a large doll began to take shape. Once the circle fully touched the ground it disappeared, leaving an automaton behind. "This is—"

"Hi to you too Minerva. It's nice to meet you. I'm Celica A. Mercury!" Celica walked up the automaton and greeted. "It's a pleasure to meet you too! Hehe!"

"Um…" Nine stared at her daughter in confusion. "...How do you know her name? I didn't even tell you yet."

"Minerva told me." Celica said.

"But she didn't say anything…" Noel said.

"I can hear her. I guess you guys can't." Celica puts her hand out as Minerva takes it and shakes it. "So your my partner now? Thank you mother!" The auburn haired girl ran to her mother and jumped on her.

"Y-Yeah…no problem. Sorry it took a while, but the implementation of its power core took some time. Thankfully I got it working right."

"Ok then! We're off on an adventure!" Celica cheered.

"Sure," Nine chuckled a but to her excited daughter as the smile on her face showed no sign of fear. It was like the fate of the world wasn't at stake and everything would be just fine. The mage made her to Kokonoe and hugged her. "Take care of yourself Kokonoe and…make sure Celica doesn't get lost."

"I will…" Kokonoe wraps her arms around her. She separates from her and asks. "So what will you do now mother?"

"I'll go check on the situation with the Linchpin and some other suspicions I have. Izanami will be coming with me so you won't hear from us for sometime." Nine smiles and gives Kokonoe a kiss on the cheek, causing the beastkin to blush hard and jump back.

"H-Hey I'm not a kid!"

"Well your my kid. I don't care how old you are you're not old enough to revive a kiss from your mother." Nine walks over to Celica and gives a kiss on the cheek as well. Celica giggles a bit and hugs her tightly. "Be safe Celica…"

"I will! Come on let's go!"

"Brother?" Saya turns to Ragna.

"Yeah?"

Saya moves her head up to his cheek and plants a soft, quick kiss on his cheek. "Be safe."

"Yeah," Ragna smiles. "You too."

Kagura hugs his mother and runs over to the rest if them as they walk off and out of sight. However Ragna looks to see one of them coming back as he looks to see Celica running over to them. She stops in front of Ragna as be questions. "What's up Celica? You forgot something?"

"Yeah..." Celica blushed as she moved to his lips and kissed him, causing everyone's heads to turn in shock. Celica slowly parted from his lips and smiled softly "Sorry, Ragna… But I couldn't be satisfied with just one..." She took a few steps back and said "I'll see you later, Ragna..."

"Y-Yeah..." Celica giggled and runs off, leaving Ragna in a daze. The platinum haired man heard whimpering and looked next to him to see Noel puffing her cheeks and looking up at him with watery eyes. "H-Hey Noel, are you ok?"

"Idiot!" Noel yells as she folds her arms and turns away from him.

"What...?"

Ignoring what just took place, Tsubaki and Makoto decide to leave together and head out right after Kokonoe did, Celia giving them a map and them wishing everyone good luck and giving Noel then a big hug before they left. Ragna watches them off and turns to Rachel. "So what are you gonna do?"

"I will be accompanying you. I have to keep an eye on Noel. Remember her situation?"

"Alright. So Celia, is Lambda ready?"

"Yeah. She's waiting outside. Normally I'd give you a ship to fly with, but I think you all should walk too. It'd be bad if you guys got there before Kagura did. And if anything, Rachel can teleport you all there."

"Ok then. Noel let's go. I think we stalled this enough." Ragna says. Noel nods and hugs her mother and father, the two giving her a kiss and a good luck before they all walked out. Celia told them where to find their rooms as they all walked away, Izanami walking away as well, leaving Celia and Nine alone.

"So Celia… Why are you helping now?" Nine asked.

"I owed him for protecting Lambda and putting Terumi in his place. I'm just showing some appreciation. Besides, I want to kill Terumi with my own hands and if I can't do it, then I want to see it." She puts her hands in her coat pockets and continues. "So…when are you leaving?"

"Izanami is waiting for me… So right now."

"I see… Be careful… Konoe…" Celia started to walk away, but was stopped by a hand holding hers. She turns to see Konoe holding her hand.

"Celia…you can get in serious trouble from both the NOL and Sector Seven."

"I know. I'm aware of what might happen. So you don't need to tell me." Celia turns to her. "Your situation is worse… You could be killed if your not careful…"

"Well I can't really stop now… Even my kids are gonna be in this fight… Too late to back out." Nine sighed. "I'll see you later." The mage let her hand go and walked away

Celia felt her heart stop when her sisters hand left hers and reached out to her, but quickly retracted her arm to her sides. She wanted to chase after her, but knew that she couldn't get in her way. Not again. "Please be careful…"

---

Ragna, Noel and Rachel make their way out of Sector Seven, traversing the long halls and finally reaching the exit. They walk out to see it was evening and it was about to go into the night time. They hear footsteps and looks to see Lambda walking towards them, Ragna's blade in hand. "There you are Lambda." She hands him his sword. Ragna takes it from and swings it around a few times to get the feel of it. "Good as new."

"Yes… Celia told me she added something to your weapon."

"What is it?"

"She said for you to focus the azure's power into your sword." Ragna groans and does exactly that. Noel watches as his blade moves up and extends outwards, a red energy extended out of it, forming a large scythe. Ragna looks at his weapon and gasps.

"Holy shit!"

"I guess this is the improvement." Rachel said.

"Fucking sweet…" He canceled the flow of power as his sword returned to normal. He twirls his sword a few times and sheaths it on his waist with a loud click. With his sword now back where it belonged they started off, leaving Sector Seven in the distance and their old school everyday life in the past as well. Even though the situation they were in, they couldn't help but feel a bit giddy about it. They had the open road, or in this case forest, to themselves.

It didn't take long for night to fall down on them and they found an adequate place to camp for the night. Lambda went for firewood as Ragna went for food, hoping their was at least something around that's safe to catch and eat. As Lambda got the fire started, Noel sat by the fire and stared inside of the blaze. She rested her chin on her knees and clenched her arm as she couldn't stop thinking that this was her fault. She blamed and scolded herself of what she'd done, but her scolding soon came to an end by Rachel.

"It is alright to feel guilty, Noel."

"!" The blond turned to her as thr vampire went on.

"That idiot does not hate you... He cared for you enough to give up an arm for you."

"Yeah," A smile comes onto Noel's face as she blushed. "Yeah… I guess so…"

"Ok, I got something! Might not be much but we ain't starving!" they turn back to see Ragna walking with a rather large animal in hand. He sets it down on the ground and rubs his hands together. "Alright time to cook him up. I already cleaned him before I got here, make life easier."

"Ok. Ragna, I will help you with preparations." Lambda says.

"Really? That'd be a huge help." Ragna started to cut the animal up into bits, Lambda following him and doing exactly what he was doing. He was surprised that Lambda knew how to cook as she explained she would cook for Celia all the time. Noel offered her assistance in helping prepare, but was heavily insisted by Ragna that she should just watch. With her constant whining and pleading, he gave her the job of cutting the meat as Lambda gave her one of her blades.

Ragna looked to Rachel and told her to help, but she said no and told him that a servant should cook for the master and not the other way around. What he wanted to do at that moment was pick up a piece of meat and throw it in her face, but that would waste more food so he decided not too.

As Noel cut the animal, the smell of it seeped into her nostrils. The smell of the dead animal was a bit nauseating, but not too much that it was down right repulsive. After they cut it all up, Ragna puts the pieces on sticks and hung them over the fire to cook.

"Ok… It should take a few minutes to cook." A thought occurs to him as he looks at Rachel. "Hey rabbit, where's the old man?"

"He is accompanying Nine and Izanami and will report anything they find." Rachel explained.

"Uh-huh…" He sighs and stares up into the sky. "All this…is just crazy… Never knew I'd actually turn into a criminal later in life. Weird…"

"I guess so. I never knew I would either." Noel looked up to the night sky as well. "I just hope Tsubaki and Makoto are ok."

"Yeah… I hope Jin and the rest of them get there safely as well. Shit… I can't shake this feeling of worry." Ragna groaned. "I just hope Kagura doesn't do anything too crazy. Knowing him… I wouldn't put it past him."

"I suppose that is what the phrase 'the pot calling the kettle black' would fit. Wouldn't you say Ragna?" Rachel teased. He didn't give her a response and just rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to the food.

"Should be ready soon."

"Ragna, you had best hope you cool them right. I do not want to end up having to get my stomach pumped because you failed to learn how to cook a decent meal." Rachel said.

"I know what I'm doing rabbit so stop bitching. If you don't want to eat I won't force you. More food for the rest of us." Ragna takes a stick up and chops down on the meat. He pulls it up and slurs it down, a moan coming from his lips. "Fucking great…" Lambda saw just how much he was enjoying it and took one and takes a small bite. Her noamlly blank expression lit up as she took another bite of the juicy meat.

"It's good."

Noel followed her lead and took a bite. She felt flavor explode in her mouth as she hummed in satisfaction and dug into her food. Rachel sighed and took one as she had no other option. The vampire bit into it and finds that it was the perfect temperature. It wasn't too hot, and the meat was very tender and juicy. She carefully slid the meat off the stick and ate it. "Hm… Not bad. I have never eaten food like this before. This is a nice change of pace."

"That was pretty good," Noel finished hers and smiled. "I've never eaten food like that before. Camping like this and eating outside isn't so bad. I might get used to it." Noel says.

"Yeah… Maybe…" Ragna took the last piece of meat off his stick and threw away as he looked up to the sky. "Yeah…"

"Are you scared Ragna?" Rachel asked abruptly as she couldn't help, but notice is rather worried expression.

"Na not really… More like…anxious." Ragna continues. "I mean with all this…now we're going to Yabiko, I can't help, but feel anxious about all this."

"I guess we are basically dealing with the fate of the world. It's scary when you think about it. We're basically fighting against the government… I wonder if we'll win." Noel looks up to the sky as well. "Can we?"

"We will win." Rachel said confidently. "I am not one to accept defeat, so winning is the only option available."

"At least we can catch a breath… God," Ragna sighed. "Today was exhausting."

"You were great Ragna! You saved my life and I'm grateful for that." Her face reddens slightly as her voice softens. "It was…really sweet, Ragna."

"O-Oh um…don't worry about it." Ragna blushed slightly. "It was…my pleasure."

"You saved my life too, Ragna." Lambda leans her head on his shoulder and holds his arm. "Thank you. It's because of you I'm still here."

"Anytime…" Ragna smiled. The Murakumo cuddled up on him a bit more as a warm smile came across her face. She soon fell asleep as everyone else followed her lead. It was a tiring day and there was more to come even worse than this.

Rachel's familiars transformed into a blanket and pillow as she went over to a tree and made herself comfortable as she quickly fell asleep. Ragna gently picks Lambda up and leans her against a tree, making sure she was comfortable, Noel taking her spot next to Lambda as the two slept.

Ragna stayed awake, the cool night breeze swaying his hair and caressing his skin. As he sat in silence, he began to think of the consequences of their defeat and the fate that waits. This battle was far from over and it was only gonna get tougher from here on out. But he was ready for it, as was everyone else. "If fate is really that of destruction then it's time," Ragna looks up to the sky.

"To rebel against the end."

And that's the end of that! I hope you guys are enjoying this story as this chapter ends the first arc of this story and we're finally moving past their school life and heading to Yabiko. Sorry for the long ass chapter, but I needed to wrap things up. Also about the map arrangement in Blazblue I just REALLY stopped caring about it. So anyone wondering why it would take them so long to reach, that's your answer. I mean seriously… So anyway hope you guys liked it, review and criticize like I always say. The next chapke that long to get it out anyway since the next two chapters are gonna be pretty short so it won't be a long wait. I'll see you all next arc.

Next arc: Kushindas Linchpin: Chapter 21: The road ahead part 1

Happy Birthday Ragna! We wish you were here to enjoy it, but I hope your having fun partying with Amaterasu behind the gates.

Revised on 6/18/17

Had to add a few things.