Chapter Twenty-Six

Sorry this chapter took long to upload. I went through a period of writer's block...as well as suffered from laziness. This chapter is short, but only because the epic battles are coming up in the last few chapters. Until then, dive right in!

The gang was in sight of Asura's stronghold. They kept a good distance away from it, hiding in some bushes behind a few trees. Misao was just ahead, causing Blood to become anxious. He wanted to rush in there and save her, but he had to hold himself back, by taking deep breaths until his mind was slightly clear.

Everyone quickly turned around when they felt a slight rumbling from beneath the ground. From the dirt arose Sid. "Sorry it took us so long." He said as Nygus transformed back into her human form.

"Did you guys find anything?" Spirit asked in his weapon form.

"The fortress is unusually quiet. We suspect they might be expecting us." Sid said.

"See that tower over there?" Nygus pointed to the tall tower on the far left of the fortress. Everyone turned to look at it. "Misao's most likely in there. That's where she was the last time Sid and I came here."

Stein adjusted his glasses while staring at the tower. He then looked down at Maka, seeing she had a slightly uneasy expression on her face. "You feel it too, don't you, Maka?" he asked.

She looked up at him, then nodded. "I feel Misao's soul wavelength. But…there's something off about it. I can't quite put my finger on it. Her energy is becoming cloudy."

Stein narrowed his eyes. "It's as I feared."

"What are you thinking, professor?" Kid asked, already knowing what he was going to say.

"The orb must have absorbed some of the Kishin's madness. That negative energy it's giving off is starting to affect Misao. Time is running out." He looked at Blood, who had widened eyes. "We'll get to Misao before things get out of control." Stein placed a hand on Blood's shoulder. "Keep yourself calm, Blood. Your strength is the key to getting her out of there. Understand?"

Blood stared at Stein, trying to capture his calm essence. He took in some more deep breaths and had a short meditation session in his head. "I'm calm, professor. Thank you."

"Okay, keep formation. Our battle begins once we move into the castle. Sid, Nygus, lead us the rest of the way."

"You got it." Sid said. "I was always the kind of man who was loyal and followed orders." He and Nygus walked up to the front of everyone and carefully led them closer to the fortress.

Blood stared at his feet and the steps he took, in order to relax himself. It seemed with every step he took, his heart beat faster. Not only was Misao within the same region as he was, but he was also in the territory of the Kishin; the man who killed Misao's father and entire village, causing her to have horrid nightmares.

This thought made Blood look up towards the tower, where he could imagine Misao sitting there, waiting for him to save her. 'Stay strong, Misao. I'm here.'

"Everyone, wait!" Tsubaki said, halting the group.

"Tsubaki, what's wrong?" Soul asked.

"Yeah, what gives?" Liz asked in confusion.

The group looked to see a shadowed figure sitting near the entrance. He had a sword in his hand, holding it like a cane as he used it to slowly stand up. He kept his gaze on Black Star and Tsubaki.

"Mifune…" Tsubaki said under her breath. "Why would he be with the Kishin?"

"It doesn't matter." Black Star said. "The only thing that matters is getting him out of the way."

Mifune shifted his gaze to Blood, examining him thoroughly. "You must be her weapon partner. Am I right?"

Blood was shocked that he knew that. "How…did you know that?"

"I can tell from your eyes. You have the same glimmer of hope in your eyes that she does. Plus, you fit the description she gave me."

'This man…' Blood saw something in Mifune's eyes as well. He gathered the confidence to step forward.

"Blood, what are you doing?" Stein asked.

He didn't listen. Blood continued walking towards Mifune, eventually passing Tsubaki and Black Star. Black Star got angry. "Hey, what's the big idea, Blood? You're gonna ruin the entire plan!" he exclaimed.

Blood stopped and looked back at Tsubaki. He saw that she understood what he was going to do and nodded her head. Blood nodded his head back at her and said, "Don't worry. I know what I'm doing. I'll be careful." Blood turned back around to face Mifune. He took a few more steps until he was inches away from him. He stared deeply in his eyes; Mifune did the same thing. "Mifune…that's your name, right?" he asked with a strong, confident voice and expression.

Mifune nodded, giving Blood the same expression. "Your name is Blood."

"Before you fight us, I want to know…why you are fighting for Asura. You seem like an honorable man. I don't believe you are doing this of your own freewill."

Silence fell upon the two warriors. Despite the negative energy emanating from the castle, Blood's soul was calm and relaxed as he stared Mifune down. He watched as Mifune drew his sword and raised it at Blood. Blood didn't flinched at the sight of his blade. He never took his gaze away from Mifune's eyes.

"Blood!" Maka exclaimed, preparing to attack. Black Star did the same, going into an attack stance.

"Everyone, stay back! Nothing is going to happen!" Blood assured them with power in his voice. He lowered his voice and spoke to Mifune. "Mifune, you know I'm right. Tell me…the real reason you're fighting for Asura."

Mifune's eyes narrowed. He was impressed at Blood's confidence despite having a sword at his throat. "Angela…" he finally whispered to Blood.

"Angela?"

"She is a young witch I'm protecting. Asura promised he'd make the world safe for her to live in. But…I know it's a lie."

"He's using her as a hostage to make you fight for him." Blood realized.

Mifune nodded his head with pained eyes. "I'll do what I can to keep Angela safe."

"This isn't keeping her safe, Mifune." Blood told him. "This is putting her in the worst danger imaginable."

Mifune chuckled. "Misao said something like that to me not too long ago."

"Maybe we can help each other." Blood said. "We can get Angela and Misao out of here."

"I'm afraid it's not that easy." Mifune said in a pained voice. "If I don't fight, Angela will be the one to pay the price." He finally pushed away from Blood, lowering his sword. "I'd give up my life before anyone harms Angela." Mifune spoke in a normal tone of voice again, so the others could hear him as well. "I will fight for Angela's sake; the same as what you'd do for your meister."

Tsubaki approached Blood and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Blood, we have to stick to the plan." She said to him. "Misao is waiting for you."

"She's right, Blood." Stein reminded him. "Don't lose your focus. Let's hurry forward."

"Blood!"

Suddenly a voice called to Blood. It was a voice he knew all too well. He and the others looked up in the direction of the tower to see Misao leaning out the window.

"Misao! I'm here!" Blood yelled back, excited to see her.

"I knew you'd come for me, Blood!"

"Hang on a little longer! I'm coming for you!"

Misao nodded, but then was dragged back into the room by the neck. "Let me go! Blood!" She screamed as she was pulled away from the window.

"Misao, no!" Blood quickly turned to Stein. "Professor, we need to get in there now!"

"Remember, Blood, you need to stay near me at all times!" Stein said as he ran towards Blood just before they entered the castle. "Black Star, Tsubaki! Be careful!"

"Don't worry about us!" Black Star exclaimed. "Just find Misao quickly!"

"Let go of me! I…can't breathe!"

Justin's hand took the form of a large shackle-like hook that had Miaso by the throat. He used all of his force to pull her away from the window, and then threw her against the wall before releasing her.

Misao coughed repeatedly while refilling her lungs with air once again. "You bastard."

"It would go against the Lord if I were to let you look upon your friends for a long time, and fuel your hope." He said, slowly approaching her. "Your body… and your soul… belong to Lord Asura alone." Justin pointed at Misao. "That includes the orb within you."

Misao's reaction was to cover her chest with her hands. She looked down at herself, feeling a bit of the orb's energy. It still pulsed violently within her, but it wasn't as painful as before. "As long as I draw breath, I will protect this orb with everything I have. This I swear on my very soul."

A knock came at the door, and then opened to reveal Noah and Gopher. "You two getting along in here?" Noah asked jokingly.

"I'm doing my job, as per Lord Asura's orders." Justin said in an overdramatic tone. He flailed his hands around, pointing them towards the sky in honor of Asura.

'This guy can't be for real.' Misao stared at Justin, believing his soul wavelength was just a fluke.

"Right, and you've done a great job at it." Noah told him. "But the real fun is about to start. Asura wants Misao back with him. Now that her friends know where to find her, it's better if she's moved before they get too close." He turned to Gopher. "Gopher, where are our guests?"

Gopher looked on a small monitor he held in his hands, locking on Blood and the others with the help of the surveillance cameras hooked up around the castle. "Right now, they're headed towards Giriko."

"Oh, I know he'll have fun with them."

"He won't win." Misao said as she stood up. "The DWMA is stronger than you give them credit for. With Blood on their side, Giriko won't last a minute against my friends."

"Is that so?" Noah approached Misao with a side grin. He got close enough to her, that he pushed her against the wall and then rested his forearm on the wall above her. "I'm really lovin' your courage, princess. No matter the situation, you still manage to look me square in the eye and speak whatever is on your mind, without the slightest hesitation."

"Like I told you before, I'm not afraid of you." She said to him, glaring evilly.

"I wonder if you'll keep this attitude when Asura takes that orb from you." Noah took his index finger, and stroked Misao's neck and upper chest without touching her inappropriately. He gave one last smirk before pulling away from Misao and saying, "Speaking of which, we should get back to him before he grows impatient."

Just as Misao was free to release a breath, Justin came up behind her and used his shackle-hands to restrain Misao's hands behind her. She quickly looked behind her and tried to get free. "What the hell? Let go of me right now! I mean it."

"You will behave properly in front of Lord Asura." Justin morphed his forearm into a blade and held it up to Misao's throat.

"My friends are going to save me. I'm not scared of you, no matter how many times you threaten me."

"Let's see if Asura can change that little tone of yours." Noah said as he walked out of the door, with Gopher close behind him.

Please R&R! Thank you!