Everyone looked around in confusion when they exited the portal. None of them had ever seen a house like that except for the people Bethany had summoned. As they began to spread out a bit in the large spacious room, a human man and a winged golden lion raced in, "Bethany!" the man cried in worry. He pushed his way through the crowd of Elves, heading straight towards Licht, who still held his unconscious daughter in his arms. Licht was surprised when the Human and Lion rushed right up to him and the man snatched the Mage out of his arms, "Bethany! Are you okay? Please, just let me know you're okay!" the human begged. Bethany shivered a little and moved closer to the man, who sighed, "oh thank god, she is okay!" he exclaimed in relief. "Um, excuse me Sir?" the Elf asked, finally causing the human to look up at him.
"Oh! It's you. So by the look of things Bethany managed to pull her plan off" the man said with a nod, "okay, both Lichts, Raya, Vetto, Fana, both Patry's and Prince Lemiel, please follow me. I'll put Bethany to bed and explain a bit too" he said. "Wait, what about me?" Tettia asked. "Oh, Princess Tettia, I'm sorry about that, yes, of course you can come as well" the man replied. The listed Elves and humans began to follow the man, before the current Licht stopped and got everyone's attention, "we'll be back soon. Until we do, please be courteous, remember, we are guests in this house" he requested of his people and friends. The other Elves murmured their agreement, and the others followed the man and winged lion out of the large room. Current Licht, who still held the young Patry in his arms, decided to speak up as they left the room, "um, I'm sorry, but I'm afraid we never got your name?" he asked. The human man stopped dead and sighed, "I knew I forgot something," he muttered, before turned to face the people who were following him, "my name is Paul Middleton, I'm Bethany's Father," he explained, chuckling awkwardly, "sorry about that".
"It's nice to meet you Sir" Licht replied as they were led into a large room that was obviously a bedroom for two. Paul laid Bethany down on it, "okay, so, this is our world, it doesn't have Elves, or Devils or anything like that, and people don't use Grimoires. In fact, very few people have magic at all in this world. Only those born with magic like my wife, Girlfriend and Daughter have it. I'm a special case, as I was born to be the Temporary Form of one of the Card Guardians. I wasn't born with magic, rather, I was born to be the vessel for a being that could. I don't have any magic, but Yue does. However, I didn't even know that I was Yue's Temporary Form until my Daughter sealed the last Clow Card. Anyway, come with me" Paul said, leaving the bedroom and leading everyone to another one. "You can leave Patry here to rest, I promise he'll be okay" he said. Current Licht nodded and gently placed his younger friend into the bed, covering him with the blanket. "Well, I should probably get cooking, Bethany will need a lot of food when she wakes up to restore her Magic fully" Paul explained.
"And I really need to sit down, it's very tiering carrying a large pregnant belly around everywhere" Tettia said. "Why didn't you say so sooner Tettia?" Lemiel asked worriedly, as her Fiancé moved to her side again, "here, let me help you dear" he said, wrapping his arms around her. "Thank you Licht, I appreciate the help" the human Princess replied.
Black Clover
A little later, as Licht was speaking with Raya, Vetto and Fana about their next course of action, someone came up to him, "um, excuse me, Licht?" the person asked timidly. Looking up the group found a copy of their Leader, no, the Alternate Future Patry, who was in Lichts cloned body to be standing behind them, looking nervous. The older Elf smiled and turned back to the others, "excuse me for a moment please" he asked, standing up. The two went to a corner that was fairly private (ie: not crowded with Elves) to talk. "So, what did you want to speak about Patry? I would have thought you'd rather speak to the version of me that was from your own time period" Licht asked curiously. The younger but older looking Elf grimaced, fidgeting, "um, w-well it's-" AF Patry clenched his fists and eyes shut before taking a deep breath and looking up at his alternate Leader, "it's about my alternate past self. I'm worried about him. I've been through a similar thing, and I know just what that Devil can do when he wants something.
I'm afraid of what that experience may have done to his mind, and I'm also worried that that bastard may have planted a piece of his Soul within him. He has shown massive strength for a Spirit, able to use his Word Soul Magic even without a body. He once turned me into a Dark Elf, so I'm very familiar with the bastard's aura. His evil Mana is still clinging to my younger self's Soul. I'm worried that he did more than just escape. So I thought it would be a good idea to check and make sure that everything is okay" the former boy explained. "I see. I must admit that I never thought of that. What would you suggest to help him?" Licht asked.
"Well, as you know, when I was turned into a Dark Elf, Asta was able to help me. Maybe he could do the same for my alternate past self" Patry replied. The Elf Leader smiled brightly, making his clone blush, "thank you for the suggestion Patry, I think it's a good one. Young Asta has certainly mastered the new properties of my old swords. He should very much be able to help your younger counterpart" he replied gratefully, "why don't we both go find him?" AF Patry nodded and the two set off. Finding the boy was pretty easy, they just relied on their magic sense to find the huge empty spot that was Asta's anti-magic. "Asta!" Patry called to the human who had pretty much forced his way into becoming friends with him.
Hey, when someone saves both you and your entire race from losing your Souls, you kind of become close. Besides, he had literally been inside the Light (and currently Light and Sword) mage's Soul. How much closer could you get? The Black Bull looked up at the sound of the Elf's voice and smiled at the two of them, "hey Patry! Hello Mr Licht" the boy said politely. "You don't have to be so formal you know" Licht replied. Asta scratched the back of his head, "Yeah, sorry. After seeing what you could do during the first fight against the Devil, I kinda got scared of pissing you off- I-I mean upsetting you, not- *sigh* I'm really bad at this" the orphan muttered. Licht smiled, "it's fine, I actually like you very much, and would be happy to have you as a friend, even if I won't be around for very long. I'm sure if my alternate future self had had the chance, he would have liked to become friends with you too" he replied. Asta's eyes practically bugged out of his head, "no way, seriously!?" he exclaimed in shock.
The man nodded, "I'm sure of it, after all, we're pretty much the same person" the Elf Leader replied. "So basically, we want you to use your sword to make sure the Patry from this time doesn't have any residual effects from the Devil on his Soul" AF Licht explained. Asta nodded seriously, "sure, I can do that" he replied. The Patry from his time smiled at him, "thank you, Asta" he replied gratefully. Then they were in front of the door to the room that Patry was in. The alternate Licht knocked on the door, "come in" his current timeline counterpart called. They opened the door to find the Elf Leader worriedly tending to the boy, "I was worried about Patry, so I decided to come and see how he was doing after everything that happened" he explained without having to be asked.
Alternate Future Licht walked up to the bedside along with the other two, "how is he?" AF Patry asked in concern, after all, it's not everyday you see yourself in a condition like this. The young Elf was sweating and although his injuries had already been healed, he was whimpering in apparent pain. Licht was frowning, clutching his friend's hand in an attempt to provide some comfort, "he won't wake up. No matter what I do it's like he's not even aware the outside world even exists anymore" the mentally, emotionally and spiritually younger Elf Leader replied worriedly.
"That might mean he's trapped in his own mind, kind of like how I was when I was turned into a Dark Elf" AF Patry said thoughtfully. He turned to the grey-haired teen, "do you think you can help him Asta?" he asked. "I'll try" the anti-magic user replied, pulling the Demon-Destroyer Sword out of his Grimoire. "You guys might want to step back a bit" he stated. The three Elves did as requested. Asta turned his attention back to the whimpering young Elf and took a deep breath, "okay, here we go again" he muttered, before lightly resting the rounded tip of his anti-magic weapon against the small teens's chest. Suddenly dark energy flowed out of Patry's body, though not as much as the first time he did this. It engulfed the two 15-year-olds and blocked the Elves views of them.
Black Clover
The Black Bull once again found himself inside Patry's Soul, but it was a lot different than before. Instead of all the hatred and rage that had engulfed the boy in his timeline, it was much quieter and the memories were brighter and more colourful, indicating the much healthier mindset the young Elf had. Of course there were still some darkness and scars, mostly from the things he saw in the Veiwings and his kidnapping at the hands of the Devil, but he seemed to have held out a lot better than the Patry from his time. "Probably because this time all his friends were still alive and he had faith that he would be saved" he mused. Soon he was enveloped by a bright light, as opposed to darkness like last time. Blinking, Asta found himself in a bright area, though swirls of darkness were beginning to consume the place.
"Hey Patry! Where are you!?" the anti-magic user called, looking around for the young Elf. "O-over here" the boy called. The grey-haired boy followed the voice to find Patry cowering in a corner, "I'm sorry, I know you told my future self not to run and hide, but I just-" he choked on a sob. "I-It won't leave me alone, o-over there!" the young Elf pointed, going back to covering his face in shame and fear as he whimpered. The Orphan turned to the area that he could now tell the darkness was coming from. He held up his sword, "don't worry, I won't let that Devil hurt you anymore, okay?" he promised. "*sniff* thank you" he replied. Asta began to head in that direction, keeping an eye out for anything that might pop up out of the darkness, and using Ki detection to make sure he wouldn't miss anything. "Hey asshole! Show your face already so I can tear it apart!" he demanded angrily. "So, it's you again, is it?" Zagred's voice floated over to them. "I won't let you hurt Patry or any innocent person ever again!" Asta cried furiously. "Innocent? Ha! I've seen this boy's memories, he becomes one of your greatest enemies. And even better, he gave me back my body! If you want to stop that future from happening, why don't you kill him now? After all- he's nothing but a monster who murdered your beloved Wizard King" the Devil said, and you could hear the wicked smirk on his face.
Patry whimpered more from where he lay curled up against the wall of his mind, sobbing in guilt for what his Alternate Future self had done. Asta growled, "yeah, maybe the Patry from my time did do that. Maybe I was angry at him for it. But he's working his butt off everyday to make up for all the horrible things he did. And this Patry will never do that! We won't allow this timeline's future to be destroyed by scum like you!" he cried, Demon-Slayer Sword appearing in his other hand and taking on his Dark Form. Then he changed even further. The anti-magic covering his body turned from black to glowing white, the Demon-Slayer Sword now outlined with a white glow as well, while the Demon-Destroyer Sword lit up with white from within, the outside still dark anti-magic.
Patry stared at the boy in shock, "since when could you do that? And, what even is that?" he asked in confusion. "It's a bit hard to explain. But this is your Soul, you can do pretty much whatever you want here. As for how I can do this, it's a result of the bonds I share with my family, my friends, even the people I've never met before. I can't use it for very long outside of someone's mind though, so we have to destroy him here and now! If we get knocked out, he'll take your body, so you have to fight as well" Asta explained. Patry looked down, trembling. He shut his eyes, tears leaking down his face, "I can't" he whimpered, "I-I'm scared! What if he turns me into a monster like he did to the other me?" he asked. "That won't happen. I won't let it" the anti-magic wielder replied with a smile. The young Elf looked up at the other boy, wondering- 'if the alternate future me could fight him-' Patry stood up, "you're right. I have to stand up for myself.
If we really want to change our future, we're the ones who have to fight for it!" Patry declared. He closed his eyes, 'if this is really my Soul, then everything around us is me. That means that I have absolute control here. If I'm going to fight- then I will fight that Devil with all my power!' he thought. Bright light erupted around him. A flowing robe made of white and yellow light appeared around him, a sword formed in his right hand, dark black. In Patry's other hand appeared another blade, this one formed of golden Light Magic. "Yeah! Now you're getting it!" Asta cheered, while Zagred covered his eyes from the light. Patry then stood tall, still only a boy, but seeming much more mature than he had previously. He glared fiercely at the Devil, "you will never harm anyone I care about ever again!" the young Elf cried.
Black Clover
Before the Devil could react, Patry disappeared and reappeared behind him. The boy slashed out with his Light Magic Sword then his Demon Light Magic sword in quick succession. 'He's gotten faster' Zagred thought. The two swords knocked the evil creature back, where Asta was waiting to cut into him. In his purified Dark Form, the grey-haired boy was able to move much faster, and he shot towards Zagred in a streak of white. "Earth Shield!" the Devil cried, but the anti-magic wielder smashed right through the magic construct. He wasn't really sure how the bastard could do that kind of thing from inside Patry's mind, but he wasn't about to stop and ask. "Get back!" Zagred said. Asta was flung backwards, but Patry appeared behind the other boy and caught him. "Thanks!" the anti-magic wielder gasped gratefully.
"Wave of flames!" the Devil called and flames advanced on the two boys. "Oh no you don't!"Asta cried, releasing his hold on the Demon-Slayer Sword for a moment and the Demon-Dweller Sword appeared in his hand instead. Then he leapt in front of the magic flames, blocking and absorbing the magic into the Demon-Dweller Sword. "Oh sorry, was that yours?" the boy asked, "here, why don't you have it back then!" Asta exclaimed, swinging the blade and shooting off his own wave of flames. "Vacuum Barrier!" Zagred cried, the invisible vacuum sucking up the redirected attack. "Light Creation Magic: Light Swords of Conviction!" Patry called, shooting off his own attack from behind the Devil. He turned, 'wait, when did he get behind me?' he thought. "Gravity wave!" he said, Asta and Patry slamming into the ground. They groaned. Asta strained against the pressure and forced his arm forwards to grasp the Demon-Destroyer sword tightly once more. "Demon-Destroyer Sword, Anti-magic: Fate Release!" the grey-haired boy cried, anti-magic flowing into the air around them.
As it did the effects of Zagred's spell were erased. The Word-Soul Devil frowned, "what a nuisance" he muttered in annoyance. The two boys got to their feet again, ready for round two.
Black Clover
"Tempest of blades!" the Devil cried, a portal opening up and shooting out hundreds of bladed weapons down at the two boys. Asta and Patry blocked each strike with their own swords, "we need to find a way to drive him out of my mind so that the others can help!" the teenage Elf exclaimed. "I know, but how?!" Asta replied, dodging out of the way of a sword before knocking an axe out of the way. "I could try flooding the place with anti-magic?" he suggested, before shaking his head, "no, that would break the spell that Bethany placed on you too" he realised. "Light Creation Magic: Light Whip of Judgment!" Patry cried, slashing out with the whip at the Devil. The evil creature just flew out of the way. "Damn it" the boy muttered. "Hah! Even if you could hit me boy, your attacks would do nothing to me! I thought you knew that" Zagred mocked, before having to dodge Asta's anti-magic blade.
Then suddenly Patry was in his path, his black light sword aimed for the monster's heart- fake as it may be in his mind, surly the hit would at least hurt the Devil? "get-" Zagred began, before Asta shot forwards as well, distracting the evil spirit, "oh no you don't!" he roared. The distraction was enough, because the Demon Light blade pierced through his vile form. Zagred screamed, even as a Soul, appearing to feel the pain of the wound. "This is for my friends! I won't let you hurt them!" the teenage Elf cried in determination. Then Asta slashed him with the Demon-Destroyer Sword, before reaching out and making the Demon-Slayer Sword appear in his hand once again. Raising the large black sword, Asta focused his anti-magic into the bade, transforming it into the Black Divider. Because the blade was how so big and heavy, the boy was forced to release the other sword, which vanished into thin air. The magicless boy grasped the handle of the now giant sword with both hands, "Now Patry!" he cried.
Suddenly a Demon Light Whip of Judgment wrapped tightly around the evil Soul, "what!" Zagred cried in outrage, turning slightly to see the teenage Elf clenching the black light whip in his hands. He gave it a pull and the part that was wrapped around him constricted further, "I won't let you get away!" he exclaimed in determination. "You filthy brats really think you can defeat me!?" the Devil cried in outrage. "Vanish!" Zagred ordered, and the Spell holding him faded. "No! Asta hurry!" Patry cried. "You may have the advantage in this boy's Soul, but what about outside of it!?" the Devil laughed, before seeming to fade away. The two teenagers just stared at the spot where he'd been for a moment, before grinning at each other, "we did it!" the white-haired Elf cried in excitement. "Yeah, it's not over yet, but at least the others can actually help out now" Asta replied, sighing as he released his- glowing form? White-Black form? "What do you even call that form you were using?" Patry asked the human as he walked towards him.
"Hm, not sure. I've been thing of something like- White Anti-magic Asta" the grey-haired orphan replied. The Elf frowned, "you call your normal anti-magic form your Black Asta, or Black Form, right? So how about just White Asta instead?" he suggested. The orphan grinned, "short, sweet and awesome sounding! I like it! Thanks Patry" he replied. Then the two left the teenage Elf's Soul.
Black Clover
Meanwhile AF Patry and AF Licht stood tensely watching the ball of darkness that was Patry and Asta. Bethany sat in a chair inside the room, watching the ball closely, ready just in case she had to intervene. She had a bad feeling about what was going on in the boys mind. Her feeling hadn't failed her since she became the Cardcaptor, so she decided to act. "Patry" she began, drawing the Licht Clones attention, "yes Ma'am?" he asked. "Go get the Lemiel from your time and Yami please" she ordered, voice cold and gaze focused. "Oh, yes, right away!" the Light and Sword Mage replied, vanishing in a flash of golden light. "What's happening Bethany?" Alternate Future Light asked, body already tensing. "Get ready" the human Mage replied. "Bethany!" Yue called as he burst into the room, "what's going on? That evil Magic!" the Moon Guardian demanded to know. "Yue, prepare to use The PORTAL Card! This will need to be split second timing!" the young woman ordered, yes, actually ordered, and quite fiercely too.
Suddenly Alternate Future Patry reappeared with Yami and AF Lemiel. "That Mana, he's coming" the former Prince stated with a dark glare at the ball of anti-magic. Everyone tensed, before the Devil suddenly broke through the darkness surrounding the two boys. "Now!" Bethany cried. Yue glowed and the swirling vortex that was The PORTAL appeared. AF Lemiel sent an attack at the evil Soul, forcing him to retreat backwards into the portal, while the others followed, "keep an eye on them and let them know what's going on!" Bethany ordered immediately as the group rushed in after Zagred. Then the hole in space closed behind them. Patry and AF Asta blinked in confusion as they realised they were nearly alone in the room. Asta looked up at the Moon Guardian, "what just happened, where did the Devil go?" he asked warily. As Yue explained the current situation, he couldn't help but pray that his Master and Daughter would be alright.
Black Clover
As the group landed in the new dimension, Zagred laughed, "what do you think you can do against me? I've seen your little friend's memories, and you could barley kill me the first time! An outcome while I will not allow to repeat itself" he mocked. As Bethany came through the portal, the Card vanished. "Uh, hey Moon girl, I think your kid just up and left us!" Yami exclaimed. "No, this is what I ordered her to do- She returned home. In the event that we are gone longer than a certain period of time, Yue can use his control over her to open a portal to this place and retrieve us, because if I run out of Magic, then we'll have no way back until I recover" Bethany replied by way of explanation. "Good plan" AF Lemiel complimented. "So, what are you going to do this time, Card brat? Drop an avalanche on me? Electrocute me? Maybe you'll try to cut me with that little sword of yours?" the Devil mocked. "Actually, I'm going to sit right here" Bethany replied, settling on the ground.
"Oh? So you're too scared to fight me this time?" Zagred asked. Bethany shrugged, getting comfortable. "Heh, he, he! I knew it, you know that you can't defeat me, you're too weak!" the monster cried. "Actually I'm the strongest being in this Universe" the young woman replied casually. "But it wasn't my people you tried to massacre" he added, as AF Licht began the battle by slashing with his sword and sending several Origan Flash attacks at the Devil. He dodged, only to be met with AF Lemiel sending a Light Magic attack at him. "Return!" Zagred called, only for the reflected attacks to be met by AF Licht again, which he absorbed using his Demon-Dweller Sword, before shooting them out twice as powerful. "Vaccum Barrier" the Devil said, blocking the attack before it could hit him. However, while the monster was focused on that, Yami was behind him, readying his own attack: "Dark Magic: Dark Cloaked Lightless Slash!" he called, slashing through the air with his Dark Magic coated Katana. Unfortunately, Zagred flew out of the way.
"Sword Magic: Origin Flash Rampage!" AF Licht cried, sending countless slashes of Sword Magic at their enemy. "Earth Shield!" Zagred cried, blocking the attack. "Iron Lances!" the Devil added, the Elf Leader dodging or cutting through the spears that tried to impale him, while Lemiel dodged each one and Yami cut them apart with Dark Magic infused slashes. AF Patry shot Demon Light Magic attacks at the Devil, but they were also dodged, "damn. We need a way to pin him in place" he hissed in aggravation. Unbeknownst to them Bethany had been gathering Magic for the whole battle as she meditated, 'just a little more' she thought. "Mana Zone: Light Magic: Lamp of Avior Gloria!" AF Lemiel cried, shooting countless blasts of Light at Zagred. "Vacuum Barrier!" the Devil cried gleefully, absorbing the attack. Before he could speak again though: "Mana Zone: Light Magic: Lamp of Avior Gloria!" the former Prince cast the same spell a second time, catching the evil being off guard. He was hit with the attack and screamed in pain.
"Dark Magic: Dark Cloaked Dimension Slash!" Yami called, trying to attack while the monster was dealing with the First Wizard King's attack. "Lightning Lance!" the Devil called, the two attacks meeting in mid-air and causing an explosion. "Wave of flames!" Zagred's voice called from out of the smoke, "oh come on!" the Magic Knight Captain snarled, casting Dark Magic: Black Hole to suck up the fire as it burst out towards them. "TIME!" an authoritative voice suddenly called. Immediately everything was frozen while being tinted yellow. Bethany breathed deeply, while the Card's Spirit form appeared, "please be careful Mother, or you'll use up too much Magic" her daughter fretted. The Card Master grinned while a bead of sweat fell down her face, "don't worry, we only need a moment. Why do you think I was saving up all that Magic?" she asked.
"SHEILD, protect my allies from TIME'S effects!" Bethany called, the supportive Card Spirit appearing and forming bubble-like shields around all of the Elves and humans. They gasped in confusion as they looked around the yellow-tinted world, "is this Magic?" AFPatry asked in confusion. "Yes, my Magic to be precise" Bethany replied, but her voice already had tones of strain. Everyone turned to look at the Card Mage and were surprised to see her leaning heavily on her Staff. "What are you doing Bethany?" AF Lemiel asked in worry, moving to help the young woman, but she shook her head, "no! you need to focus on the Devil! This Spirit uses up so much Magic, that's why, *pant* I was saving it up since we got here, *pant*. I'm focusing everything I've got left into keeping this time bubble intact. You need to take this chance to destroy that monster right this second, because I don't know *pant* how much longer I can make this second last!"
Everyone looked at each other and nodded. "Demon Light Magic: Light Swords of Conviction!" AF Patry cried, shooting out black light swords. The attack hit, tearing into the Devil's body. "Dark Magic: Lightless Slash!" Yami cried, attacking with his sword. "Light Magic: Lamp of Avior Gloria!" AF Lemiel called, sending his attack out as well. "Sword Magic: Origen Flash Rampage!" AF Licht cried. That was when Bethany's spell faded, and she collapsed to the ground in exhaustion. Zagred was freed of the frozen moment, but found himself being hit everywhere at once by powerful attacks. The Devil screamed in agony as his body disintegrated. But AF Patry wasn't about to be fooled. Looking among the remaining particles of the monster, he noticed the heart first.
Before it could open up it's disgusting mouth, the clone of Licht had teleported straight to it and hit it with a burst of concentrated Demon Light Magic at point blank range. The heart screamed once more as the Word Soul Devil was finally destroyed for good. Everyone simply stared in shock for a moment. "We, actually did it. That Devil is gone for good" AF Licht said, slowly breaking out into a brilliant smile. "Not only, but we saved our counterparts from this world, as well as all the other Elves from suffering the same fate we did" AF Lemiel added, beaming at his best friend. "We did it! We actually did it!" AF Patry cheered happily, tears in his eyes. Killing that Devil for good in their world had felt good, because they'd finally ended the horror he'd started all those years ago. But now, thanks to a lot of hard work, they'd managed to stop that future from ever happening in this world! "We did it Licht!" he cried, hugging his former Leader, before he realised what he'd done and tried to pull away.
But the older Elf simply smiled and hugged back, "I'm so happy" he said softly. Lemiel joined the hug, while Yami walked over to Bethany, who was still sitting on the ground, "hey, you still alive down there?" he asked. She smiled weakly, "yeah, just *pant* completely exhausted my Magic reserves. I'm gonna pass out any second. Make sure you all stay right here, so Yue can find you when he uses The PORTAL to get here" she ordered, before falling unconscious from lack of Magic. The Captain of the Black Bulls sighed and picked the young woman up, "looks like we got a wait on our hands" he muttered, carrying the Card Mage over to the others.
To Be Continued