Spoilers: after the Anime and sort of from Manga chapter 62/3. You have been warnied.

Warning(s): Possible swearing, mild/medium gore level potential, fluff.

Pairing(s): SoMa, possibly some TsuStar and/or KidxLizxPatty

Brief: With the Kishin defeated, what new threats will rise up to face the heroes from Shibusen? Will Kid's words of warning when the Kishin was killed come true sooner than they thought? And can the Madness be eliminated completely before it consumes the world?

Disclaimer: Atsushi Okubo owns Soul Eater, not me.

Chapter Fourteen: Moving Target; The Impending Siege?

Throne Room

Kid frowned as the building shuddered, a loud series of clunks and grinding of gears echoing within the walls and beneath the floor.

"What's going on?" he asked, glaring at the armoured figure before him. "What did you do?"

"I'm surprised you do not know, son of Death," the knight replied ominously. "Do you not remember the siege of Baba Yaga Castle?" Kid's eyes widened. "Ah, so you do remember."

"Where are we going?" Kid growled, fed up of the Madness Transponder's games.

"You're beloved father," the Black Knight explained. "He must pay for all he has done. I will use the Black Fortress to crush Shibusen and raze Death City. Without Brew there to protect you this time, your precious city will be reduced to ashes and lain to waste."

"You bastard!" Kid shouted, offloading a series of shots in quick succession. The soul rounds bounced off of the Knight's shield, leaving barely a scuff on the dark armour. "I will kill you!"

"You can try," the Black Knight replied, stepping down from his place at the top of the stairs and pointing his blade at Kid. "But I think you'll die before that happens."

They stood, readied and staring before Kid moved first, using his agility to move round the Knight, firing as he did to try and lay a direct hit on the figure. He sprinted high, jumping off the stairs and attempting to use Beelzebub, but the board did not form as he had intended.

"What the hell?" he asked, distracted only for a moment or two, but it was enough; the Knight lunged, shield-bashing him square in the face and knocking the Shinigami off balance.

The sword swung in and caught him in the left side, lacerating the white clothes and dying them crimson beneath its touch. Kid winced as he put some distance between them, firing faster and faster, but the shots glanced off of the armour like they were foam bullets against a tank. Knowing it was not working, Kid focused, pouring his wavelength into Liz and Patty at once.

"Soul Resonance!" the girls shouted, matching their Meister's soul and hearing his wordless order. The pistols transformed, becoming the golden cannons of their resonating form. Six black protrusions sprouted from Kid's arms as they took shape over his forearms.

"Resonance stable," Liz said. "Noise is at eleven point seven percent."

"Black needle wavelength charged," Patty confirmed. "Adjusting for noise levels." A red HUD beamed from each of the weapons, displaying the noise levels and power spikes. The power levels fluctuated for a moment, then stabilised. "Ready to fire, Kid."

"Death Cannon!" Kid roared, unleashing the dual orange blasts from his weapons. The shots spiralled around one another as they tore forwards, striking the Black Knight head on. A plume of smoke erupted from the side of the room as the blasts hit their target and continued passed, slamming into the wall, while the other side cracked a little as Kid was flung into the wall under the force of the shots. He raised his head, glad he had not broken his spine, let alone his arms, in firing the shots with so much power. "Did it work?" he wondered, staring into the smoke. He felt something stir. "No..."

"Yes," the Knight nodded, stepping out of the smokescreen. "That is the power of a Shinigami, eh? How very disappointing, I had hoped for more than this."

The Transponder's armour was singed in places, smoking slightly and marked in areas around the initial hit. Behind him, fires burnt from the discharge and a hole had formed in the back wall, revealing a few rusty-looking gears turning lazily inside. Despite the power of the explosion, they seemed unharmed, troubling the young Shinigami.

"So, son of Death," the Black Knight went on. "Where is your passion now? Where is that fire which you possessed?"

"I will still defeat you," Kid growled. "You may be powerful, but the power of a Meister and his Weapons resonating will be the end of you."

"Is that so?" the Knight ask, a red-purple aura surrounding his body as he spoke. "Then take this into account, child; I am no ordinary Kishin soul. My Corrupted Arms, this sword and shield, were once one of your precious Shibusen's Weapons!" Kid's eyes shot open wide at this. "Let me show you the power I possess! Resonate!"

A dark, fiery aura shrouded the sword, shield and lower body of the knight, pulsing with energy and Madness. Kid could only stare as the Knight resonated with its weaponry, the vision of pure evil coming into full view before him.

Catacomb Room

Kai stared at the woman who had materialised from the black goo the strange crescent creature had spewed onto the floor, then back to Crona, who was shuddering uncontrollably.

"Your mother?" he asked, turning to see the grinning woman. "That's Medusa Gorgon?"

"Oh my, how interesting," the snake-woman said with mocking surprise. "You're a sharp one, aren't you? I can't say I've met you before, but your soul seems familiar."

"I'm not surprised," Kai replied levelly. "Your research into Black Blood, it was inspired by the experiment which created me."

"So that makes you Project Vulcan, right?" Medusa hissed. Kai tensed at the name, but stayed firm. "So, you've finally shown up again; I did wonder how long you could stay hidden, especially with that Meister of yours hurt so badly-"

"How do you know about that?" Kai snapped, cutting her off.

"My my, so easily goaded," she tutted. "I was certain my faithful servant would get to you, but I had no idea you would abandon your Meister to join Death."

"Shut up!" Kai barked, his right hand and forearm changing into a sword blade. "You're the one responsible! I'll make you suffer for what you did to Abby!"

"But we've hardly been acquainted," Medusa pouted mockingly. "I am Medusa Gorgon, and this is my project, the Purple-Dyed Clown. And you are?"

"Kai Friel," Kai replied. "The Kishin Weapon known as Project Vulcan, and the man who will kill you for what you have done to my Meister!"

Without waiting for Crona to move with him, Kai lunged, jabbing wildly with his bladed arm while Medusa backed up, dodging his attacks in rapid succession. Her back touched the pillar behind her, and he swung in a horizontal line, aiming for her neck, but the witch ducked and the angered Weapon's blade crashed through the pillar as he missed his target.

"How unruly you are," Medusa hissed in mock offence. "Let me fix that." The witch raised her arms over her head, then aimed her palms at Kai. "Vector Arrow!"

Sharp, arrow-tipped tendrils fired out from her back, weaving rapidly this way and that as they closed in on the Weapon. He dodged some and hardened his arms using his Dragonscale Armour form to defend himself against the magic as it attacked. His fury only grew as he was scratched by the attack, a line of blood etched across his cheek. As the Kishin Weapon continued his onslaught, Crona watched the battle from the sidelines, trembling all the time. He wanted to help, truly he did, but he could not will himself to get involved in the battle.

"What do I do?" he murmured worriedly. "Ragnorok, what should we do?"

"How should I know?" the liquified Weapon asked, still nervous of Medusa when she was on the opposite side. "You're meant to be the Meister, idiot!"

Their conversation was cut short as Crona felt a sudden presence behind him. He turned and his eyes went wide as he saw the yellowed, sharp teeth in the deformed mouth.

"Goobee?" the crescent-shaped creature purred as it fired its frill outward and latched on to Crona.

England Room

Maka swung Soul, the red blade glinting in the dim light as it arced towards the Clown, but its heavy right arm intercepted the scythe and parried the attack. The Meister tightened her grip on her Weapon as she backed off to evade the counter attack,, then lashed out with a right swipe, scraping the left upper arm of the fiend but barely leaving a mark on the tough skinned opponent. She gritted her teeth and growled inwardly as she tried again, focusing her wavelength with Soul's, but they were not making a dent.

"We have to resonate, Maka," Soul's voice echoed from the scythe. Maka backed off as the Clown's bladed arm swung close to her face, clipping her loose bangs slightly as she dodged.

"I know," she replied. "But we can't run the risk off you becoming a Kishin either, Soul." She looked to him. "You need to get that demon back."

"Working on it," Soul replied. "Try to hold out on your own; this will take a lot of concentration."

"Alright," Maka nodded. "Be careful, Soul."

"Come on, Maka," he replied as he started to enter the Black Room. "You know it wouldn't be cool to leave my partner in the middle of a battle."

"Yeah, I know," Maka smiled softly as she felt Soul close the door of the Black Room behind him. The Clown cackled, its head turned through almost ninety degrees and its disfigured smile seemed wider than normal. "What are you laughing about?"

"It appears the scythe has left his Meister all alone," the Mad Clown cackled. "What a shame."

"Soul hasn't abandoned me, Clown," Maka growled, disliking the creature's doubts in her Weapon. "Besides, you should not be concerned with the state of my Weapon."

"Oh, but nor should you, foolish girl," the Clown purred, its head turning further with a sickening series of cracks and crunches, turning to 180 from normal. Maka had to will herself not to be sick as the papery, sickly grey skin about the neck stretched thin over the mess of bones and dark veins. "Did you truly not realise that it was he who protected you from my full effect?" Maka's eyes widened as she realised what the creature of Madness meant. "Now it is too late for you. Good night, foolish girl..."

An aura of deep black emanated from the Clown, shooting pitch tendrils in all directions and making Maka's vision dark. She screamed as the effect of Madness laced her mind and pulled her in, dominating her Exorcism Wavelength and dragging her in deeper.

Inside his own mind, Soul was unaware of the goings on above ground, for he was descending the stone stairway into the recesses of his mind. The stone corridor felt cold all around as he walked lower and lower into his own head.

"Man, this place is creepy," he muttered to himself, pulling his suit closer over himself. "How much farther does this thing go?"

No sooner had he asked this did he find himself at the door which opened into the circular room. A small table which had held the box he was trapped in stood in the centre, but the box was gone, replaced by a familiar red-skinned demon in a black suit. The creature turned its head as it laid eyes on Soul.

"Oh my," it said, clearly amused. "It seems I have a visitor at long last. Something wrong, Evans?"

Death Room, Death City

Lord Death looked to Spirit and Stein, his mask obscured by worry. His Deathscythe and the greatest Meister of Shibusen had both been informed of the information passed on from the front lines, and neither were too happy to hear it.

"It's moving towards us?" Spirit asked, still in shock. "How is that possible?"

"The fortress must have a mechanised system in place within it," Stein replied, taking a drag of his cigarette and letting out a skull-shaped plume. "It would need a phenomenal level of power to run something of that size for as long as it would take to get to here. It can't be using Brew, or the Magic Tools as we did with Death City against Arachnophobia, but it may be using a similar system."

"Indeed, it is troubling to imagine what those kids are going through inside the walls of that monstrosity," Lord Death agreed. "I know there is no chance of reaching the Black Fortress before it reaches Death City, and while I have faith in the agents of Spartoi to stop this threat, it does pay off to be prepared for the worst case scenario. I want you to evacuate the City and prepare the Meisters and Weapons to defend the City. The less experienced partners can help defend the civilians in their evacuation.

"I would like you both to head the defence of the city," Lord Death continued. "You are the greatest duo we currently have to our disposal. However, if it seems that all is lost, fall back. Don't risk yourselves needlessly; if you feel you are fighting for a lost cause, retreat to the fall back point outside Death City. Leave the city to its destruction."

"We could never do that, Lord Death!" Spirit protested. "What about you?"

"This enemy is coming after me, Deathscythe," Lord Death said levelly. "If it comes down to it, I will give myself up to protect the city."

"But-"

"We understand, sir," Stein nodded, cutting Spirit off.

"Stein," Spirit said, surprised.

"If worse comes to worst, then it may be the only way to escape this, Sempai," Stein said in his normal monotone. "Don't mistake my words for insurrection or blindly following orders; I have no question that this course of action may be our only option if the enemy is truly this powerful."

"Excellent," Lord Death nodded. "One last thing, Sempai, Stein; have you heard anything more of our friend?" The Deathscythe and Meister exchanged a quick look.

"Nothing as of yet," Stein replied. "It is feared that he has gone missing in the attack on Arachnophobia. While it is doubtful that we will find him, I believe we may find out more from the wreckage of the battle site."

"Very well," Lord Death nodded. "I will contact Tezca Tlipoca to investigate the site while we deal with this threat. Now, hurry; we have no time to lose." Spirit and Stein nodded and went to leave, but Stein stopped short. "Something wrong, Stein?"

"Just one more thing," Stein replied. "It seems that she is back on the radar." Lord Death's mask shifted to a look of surprise as he peered into the mirror. "I think she may be at the Black Fortress now."

"I see," the Shinigami nodded. "It's only a matter of time then..."

Sorry this took so long to write, but exams take the priority at the minute.

Anyway, I hope you liked this instalment; I've decided to write the next chapter with Black Star's fight as the main focus. Hopefully that will go down well. I will also link in the smaller sections such as Soul's talk with the Little Demon, so stay tuned.

See you guys and girls later when I next update.

Oh, and just to clarify; if I write 'Death Scythe', it refers to a Scythe-type Weapon with a Deathscythe designation, whereas 'Deathscythe' only refers to the full powered Weapon and Spirit's nickname.

Anyway, bye for now!