…B-boy…"
"…Eh?..."
Shidou's throat produced a weak gasp when Nia called him.
He could not believe his eyes and his brain refused to accept the scene in front of him.
Shidou was covered with blood.
Nia's blood.
Nia had been pierced by some sort of spear.
Shidou did not even need to look at the wound to know it was a deadly one. The blood splattered all around was enough of a proof.
"B–urgh…"
Nia's attempt to call Shidou again failed as blood came out her mouth. Her pale face was tetanized.
Nia's hands, trembling, weakly gripped the spear but as soon as she did, the spear suddenly took off with a disgusting noise, causing Nia to moan in pain.
"Aaaah...!"
The spear disappeared from Shidou's vision.
Paralyzed, he could only see Nia, severely injured, in front of him.
Nia looked at her hands covered with blood, confused, staggered and fell on her knees.
Before she could hit the ground, Shidou's body reacted on its own.
Shidou found himself holding Nia in his arms, on the ground.
He had not been hit and yet, his chest was so compressed it seemed crushed by a hammer.
Shidou's breathing became harder.
Unable to speak, he looked at Nia's face and realized she was doing the same for him.
Her face was so white that it was frightening. And yet, as it magnified her icy blue eyes, she was still beautiful.
Beautiful despite the unbearable sight of her wound, despite her lips stained with blood.
Nia was not very thick, but at this moment, Shidou felt how much she was fragile.
Fragile was not the right word.
Nia was about to die.
And, unlike Shidou, she could not heal. She did not have Camael's regeneration ability.
Time slowed down as Shidou tried to find a solution to save Nia. All of his brain cells were focused on that sole task.
Was it possible to give her Camael's flames? Perhaps but he didn't know how to do it.
Carrying her back to Fraxinus, in order to heal her in a medical Realizer? She would bleed to death before he could reach the airship.
Open a gate with Michael to teleport them aboard? No, he didn't even know where the airship was.
Freeze Nia with Zadkiel to gain some time? No, he did not master the Angel enough to do it precisely and risked to kill her.
(Think. Think. Think!)
The solution came to him after a few intense seconds.
"Haniel…"
Shidou summoned Natsumi's Angel to close the atrocious wound, stopping the bleeding. He had used that before when Mukuro had unintentionally stabbed him with Michael.
All he could do was that, he could not totally heal Nia but hoped it would be enough until Ratatoskr would give her a proper medical care.
Yes. He had to hurry and contact Kotori so Fraxinus could pick them up.
Shidou, obsessed by his will of saving Nia, had even forgotten that someone had attacked them.
The only thing that mattered now was to save Nia.
"N-Nia, I'll…"
Whatever Shidou planned to say, he did not finish his sentence.
Nia was smiling, despite her state.
Her eyes were feverish, drops of sweat on her forehead.
"Shi…dou."
When she called his name, Shidou shuddered.
Her voice was quiet.
"It's… fine."
And Nia silently closed her eyes.
Her voice no longer reaching out was now quietly smiling.
"…Nia?..."
Shidou's call echoed in the empty park, remaining unanswered.
Knowing the meaning of this, Shidou tried to deny everything that had happened within the minutes, to melt these moments into an untruth.
(Nia… it can't…)
Shidou's thoughts were beyond confusion and astonishment.
The person he loved and whom loved him too.
(Nia… I?...)
With whom he shared a true, genuine love.
(I couldn't save you?...)
Nia, who persuaded him that he could live, that he deserved to live despite his condition.
(Nia…)
That they would find a way together.
That they would be together.
(Nia. Nia. Nia.)
Nia was gone.
An unknown feeling seized Shidou. It was the first time he experienced something like that.
Anger. Powerlessness. Sadness. Grief.
Shidou's thoughts grew darker and darker.
(I simply wanted to go on living with you.)
If one could have described Shidou's feeling at this moment with words, it would have been…
(A world without you in it…)
Bottomless despair.
(…wouldn't be worth anything.)
Shidou's consciousness suddenly vanished.
A dark cyclone surrounded him, consisting of reiryoku and the darkest emotions that could exist.
Only looking at him would have sufficed to frighten anyone.
Compared to the Itsuka Disaster, Shidou was not brimming with Spirit power. At that time, it looked like he was wearing an Astral Dress made of pure light.
The actual Shidou was drowned in an obscure mass of negative emotions and unleashed reiryoku.
Yes, it was like the exact inverse of his form during the Itsuka Disaster.
As unbelievable as it could be, Itsuka Shidou had Inversed
Aboard Fraxinus, Kotori and the others had been able to witness all the scene thanks to the Yggdfolium following Nia and her Incam.
Nia had turned off her Incam to focus, but only the audio communication. If she could not hear the crewmembers, they could still hear her.
Kotori couldn't help but feel her heart hurt when Nia and Shidou confessed their mutual love. Even if she was happy for her brother, she…
But, cutting through her jealousy, something unbelievable happened on the screen.
Nia was transpierced by a spear-like device.
The scene was so surrealist that all Fraxinus' crewmembers remained paralyzed.
Kotori immediately understood.
(DEM!...)
She was the first to react.
"Bring them back here! Teleport them aboard!" she yelled.
They had deployed Yggdfolium, these mini-satellites equipped with Realizers to retrieve any Spirit (or Shidou) if they were to get in trouble.
She could've ordered it as soon as Nia found Shidou, but she felt at this moment that it would've been better to let them be, which proved to be right.
But now was not the time.
If Nia was not treated quickly…
"What are you waiting for?! Active Yggdfolium's Realizer and bring them back!"
"It's… It's impossible, Commander!" Shiizaki gasped. "We…"
"What?!"
"The Yggdfolium's Realizer is obstructed by another Realizer. The latter is stronger and thus cancels our own" Reine explained, opening multiple windows on her screen. "The video is still on but that is all."
"…It can only be…"
"Commander! Realizer's activity detected! Near Shidou and Nia's position… the signature is… Ellen Mathers'!"
"Kuh!"
The world strongest wizard, Ellen Mira Mathers. She was under the orders of Isaac Westcott and served as his right arm.
(We have to stop them now or Shidou will either die or be captured… But… we won't make it in time and if we throw the Spirits in the battle, we will probably do what DEM expects us to do. If only Mana was close by…)
Kotori was trying to find a way out of this mess when something attracted her attention.
(Wait. All of this means DEM foresaw our actions… But… why didn't they act sooner?)
If DEM knew that the Spirits were alone in Tenguu City and if they had the means to prevent Ratatoskr from teleporting them back, why didn't they simply snatch them?
And why did Ellen Mathers miss Shidou? After all, it was their plan, right? To kill Shidou to Inverse all of the Spirits…
Kurumi had told them that…
Kotori glared at the screen.
Shidou was still holding Nia's body.
During that short time, Ellen Mathers, even if she did miss her first attack, would've been able to launch another one.
Yet, she did not.
(…if she doesn't attack… does it mean, Nia was their target?...But why…)
"…Kotori. Alert."
Maria's voice warned Kotori.
"Maria?"
"I have detected a change in Shidou's reiha."
Kotori held her breath. A change?
The simple fact that Shidou possessed a reiha signature was incredible itself but a change was…
"As impossible as it sounds… Negative values are confirmed. The reiryoku's nature is also the same, and increasing at an alarming rate. This phenomenon meets all the criteria of…"
"Don't tell me… Inverse form…"
"Yes. It seems… Shidou is Inversing."
The entire control room became silent at Maria's statement, as, in Tenguu City, the spacequake alarm resonated, calling people to take cover in the shelters.
Inversing was impossible for a human. After all, humans didn't possess reiryoku to begin with.
Only the Spirits could Inverse. That was what they all thought, excepted Kotori.
All the pieces suddenly fell in place.
Reine's explanation about their Sephira Crystals being slowly transferred and built up inside Shidou's body.
The Inverse Form.
DEM's intentions.
Kotori was shaking in fear now, despite her commander ribbons, despite her composure.
They had been manipulated from the very beginning of this so-called declaration of war.
"No… No… SHIDOU!"
Kotori's cry could not change anything and it did not.
? days ago.
Location: unknown DEM's facility, Westcott's office.
"Ah, Ellen, Artemisia. I was waiting for you."
Isaac Westcott, sat in a comfortable chair at his desk, was smiling. His hands were laying on the wooden surface but he seemed genuinely impatient.
"Isaac" Ellen saluted while Artemisia only nodded.
The two strongest wizards of the world were standing straight in front of Westcott. The room was dim, and it only served to magnify the light in Westcott's eyes.
"No need to be so tense. I convoked you to expose our next and finale move to finally take what is rightfully ours."
He smiled, grinning like a child at Christmas's Eve.
"As you may know, Itsuka Shidou has managed so far to successfully seal ten Spirits. In all these years, we did not detect another, and my researches with Beelzebub confirmed me that the only remaining ones are Nightmare and the First Spirit."
Westcott had stolen Nia's Qlipha Crystal, allowing him to use a different yet as powerful version of Rasiel, the omniscient book Angel.
Despite Nia's partial jamming, Westcott was able to find all the information he needed, it just took him more time.
"Mh. So… are we to strike and kill Itsuka Shidou? Given his relation with the other Spirits, there is a high chance that they will Inverse. Taking advantage of the chaos, subduing them would be easy" Ellen said, reasoning as a military.
"I thought of that plan. But I discovered something interesting" Westcott answered, his smile larger than before.
Ellen frowned and Artemisia yawned.
"Knowing you enemies gives you a big advantage and on top of that, it is very fun to see what they are up to. So, I searched Itsuka Shidou's daily life and I found out recently that… One of the Spirits loves him."
Ellen clicked her tongue.
"Of course. It's his job to make them fall for him!"
"I am not done. The best thing is… it appears Itsuka Shidou also loves her in return. That is the first time such a thing is happening."
After a brief silent, Artemisia tilted her head.
"Well... it is only normal. Human males do have needs to satisfy."
"… don't say that so lightly!" Ellen protested.
"Perhaps his main objective is reproduction. In ancient times, people built themselves harems to assure the continuation of their lineage."
"Why, you…"
Westcott waited for their quarrel to end and spoke.
"This reciprocal love creates new possibilities for us. As you know, one is easier to break if they hold something dear."
"So, do we kill Itsuka Shidou so that Spirit can Inverse? Not that it would change anything, the others will Inverse as well…"
"Negative. The Spirit in question is Material A, Sister. She cannot Inverse anymore."
"So what?!" Ellen growled, impatient.
Westcott crossed his legs and straightened his back.
"Ellen, why can Itsuka Shidou use the Spirits' powers?" he asked casually.
"What?"
Ellen, taken aback, frowned.
"Because he sealed them, right?" she then answered, knowing that Westcott would not back down with his games.
Westcott's smile widened. He was truly enjoying this.
"What exactly is a seal? How does it work?"
"Well… by… kissing them, he creates a bond so the reiryoku circulates between them. The Spirits are deprived of most of their powers."
"And does it seem logic to you?"
"No, I don't understand why he has to kiss them…"
Westcott chuckled.
"True, but I was not talking about that."
"Eh?"
"If we follow what you just said, it means that by having a Spirit's reiryoku, one would be able to use their powers and even their Angel."
"Yes."
"That is really illogic. Because, we tried all these years to use Sister's Angel and did not success. Using her reiryoku did not give any result. So, why is Itsuka Shidou able to do so?"
"…"
Ellen was thinking.
What Isaac said was true. Even if Itsuka Shidou's body welcomed the reiryoku of the Spirits, it was not enough to allow him to use their Angels.
As for example, even if Ellen was to give her reiryoku to someone else, he or she would not be able to deploy the same abilities as her with a Realizer.
Yes, what gave their powers to the Spirits were their Sephira –or Qlipha– Crystals. And Itsuka Shidou didn't have—.
Ellen stood there, aghast, when an idea, an absurd idea, crossed her mind.
She looked at Westcott with an incredulous face.
Westcott seemed to notice that Ellen had understood and was displaying a large grin.
"Don't tell me… Itsuka Shidou steals their Sephira Crystals?!"
"Right on the mark, Ellen. Congratulations. That is the conclusion I reached too. Through the bond he has with them, Itsuka Shidou slowly steals not only their reiryoku but also their Sephira Crystals. It would explain why he's growing stronger and why his ability to use the Angel also increases. I searched this information with Beelzebub but there was nothing. As if someone didn't want anyone to find it out..."
Ellen, who knew Westcott very well, guessed his next intention.
"And I suppose, you want to check that if Itsuka Shidou possesses Sephira Crystals, he can Inverse, right?"
Westcott clapped his hands slowly.
"Absolutely. And we will do that by killing in front of him the one he loves. With the appropriate timing, it would be enough to make him taste bottomless despair."
Ellen was caressing her chin.
"And once he Inverses?"
"Simple. We will throw all of our forces to kill him and recover the Qlipha Crystals."
Westcott laughed.
"We have absolutely nothing to lose here. If Itsuka Shidou can Inverse, we will apply that plan. If he cannot, we will simply kill him as we originally planned and that way, the other Spirits will Inverse. Even Elliott and Ratatoskr will have to make a choice, by letting us killing Itsuka Shidou or to kill him themselves."
"That's true. Plus, they won't expect us to target Sister. She's the useless one of their group as for now. They will protect in priority Itsuka Shidou, not her."
"As expected of you, Ellen."
Westcott stood up.
"Of course, it will require a lot of preparations and discretion. I know that Nightmare is always spying on us, but we can use that to our advantage. Leaking false information, for example. Let's get to work."
Present time, inside Fraxinus' control room
"Commander! Warships incoming from all the directions, surrounding Tenguu City!" Shiizaki gasped.
Kotori, still stunned by DEM's plot and Shidou's Inversion, took some time to answer.
"How many?!"
"Total, thirty!"
"It seems they are deploying Bandersnatch units! All of them are converging towards Shidou!" Minowa said.
DEM's plan was so clear now.
Causing Shidou to Inverse was only the first step.
Now, they simply had to kill him.
Kotori tried to calmly analyze the situation.
From what Reine had told her, the Spirits could barely use their Limited Astral Dresses.
Shidou was downtown, Inversing, and only god knew what would happen.
DEM was launching their all out attack now in order to kill Shidou.
Nia was dying, and could not be retrieved.
Their own ship, Fraxinus, would not be able to beat an entire fleet by itself, despite its crew's skills.
(What…am I to do?... What can I... do?)