Disclaimer:I do not own Danball Senki, the concept and its characters, they all belong to their respective owners. All I own is my OC and nothing else. I also made up some LBXs and attack moves but I make no claim on it because the idea still belongs to their respective owners, just to let you guys know.

Chapter III: Truth and Purpose

I stared at the ceiling of my room here in NICS, trying to process what had taken place yesterday. After what Jin and Yuuya had revealed to me the other day, I felt like there was so many things I didn't know about mom and dad's work. I've always watched them and studied their movements, hoping someday I'd follow in their footsteps and be a better cop like them. But I guess I was just a kid that time, a naïve one at that, to think that I thought I already knew the gist of it and then suddenly in the end all I was seeing was just actually a tip of the whole iceberg.

"Then could it be dad too…" I trailed off, thinking that they'd been hiding something so big from this whole time.

"What do I do now?" I whisper to myself and then closed my eyes as I replayed the events from the other day.

-Flashback-

"The sender was your mother." Jin replied and my only response to him was a laugh of disbelief. My mom? How could she have known such things? I understand she's part of the police force like dad but for her to pull a stunt like this? There's no way she could've done it.

"In the longest time I've watched my parents in their line of work, there is one thing I'd like to tell you. I hate liars the most, my mom and dad know it so I know they'd never pull a stunt like this. Especially my mother." I answered, my voice rather sharp as if I was accusing them of lying about mom being the sender.

"What if she was hiding it from you? Hiding is different from lying, Rei." Yuuya added in and I shook my head, there's just no way would mom do something like this… no way. There has to be some mistake in their conclusion, a loophole around it. But I knew there was none, even with the maker of Aegis still a big question mark, mom could have just easily gotten her hands on it and then sent it to me as sender. So she could be the sender and not the maker… but…

"Then, why would she reveal her name? Why didn't she just give it to me at home?" I questioned, trying to prove my mother's innocence to this whole affair.

"It's not in my positon to say… If you really want to know, you'll have to ask her that yourself." Jin replied and that's when I turned and walked to my room.

-End-

I guess it was easier said than done.

If I did find out about the truth then what? It's not like I'd get mad at them. They were doing it to protect me. None of this even had to happen had it not been for those creeps and their twisted goals. Sighing to myself, I got up from the bed and grabbed my CCM, dialing mother's number and hoping this time to get an answer.

"No backing out now." I mutter as the receiver picks up and I see my mom's green eyes looking back at mine from the screen.

"Ara, what's wrong, Rei?" Mom asked worriedly. I took a deep breath and exhaled as I turned to stare at Aegis… the black shield glinting from the light coming from the window.

"I heard from Jin and Yuuya that you were the sender of Aegis. I didn't want to believe it but their implications made sense. All I want to know is why me? It's like your hiding something big from me and I want to know what that is."

"I see… I'm sorry for hiding it. If you wish to know the truth then I'll gladly tell it. After all, I can trust your new friends and I know they'll do what it takes to protect you." Mom smiled and I looked down as I leaned on the wall beside my bed.

"The Perfect World Liberator dreams of is not farfetched really, if you have the right amount of data then you'll easily be able to cross out the bugs from the fruits. That is why the moment the second child was kidnapped, we knew that Liberator was after something very big. The entire data of every human being on earth is stored in three buildings in an uncharted island. To get into the server would require 12 access keys, each of which is embedded in the body of 12 individuals all of whom are children of different race, gender and status."

"Then what does this have to do with me? I mean, they already have all twelve kids." I pointed out and I saw my mom grip her shoulders tightly as if trying to control the shaking of her body.

"I'm sorry, Rei. Just know that mom and dad loves you very much…" Mom apologized but I assured her that I wasn't mad. It made me a bit at ease to know why I was here and for mom to tell it to me now was alright with me.

"As I was saying, all twelve keys each require a series of long encoding to be able to be used. The reason why they're after you is because somehow, you gained the process on how to encode them. Whether you know it or not, your eidetic memory recalled every specific process to manipulate the server. Remember that day, Rei? The one where you stumbled in our research facility."

"I-," I paused when those memories came flooding back. I was young then, maybe about five or six years old. Since no one was home to watch me, mom decided to take me to work. The rule was simple really, just sit down and wait for mommy. I waited but kids never really stay put do they? Before long I ended up walking around this long hallway until I reached a huge room where a lone computer stood. Various numbers and words as far as the eye could see, I didn't actually know that I had stumbled on something very confidential then. By the time mom found me, I was back in her desk, playing as if what I had seen was just some boring picture I grew tired of.

"But how did you find out?"

"You started drawing them unintentionally… really, you can never hide anything from a parent, Rei." Mom giggled and I pouted.

"I wasn't hiding it… I just never really gave it that much thought."

"Well, you better give it that much thought because with that memory in your mind, Liberator will do whatever it takes to claim it. That was why I had to have Aegis created… to protect you. I'm sorry, Rei. If only I hadn't taken you to work that day."

"Then I wouldn't have known something so big… Mom don't punish yourself. Maybe it is fate, I mean I wouldn't have met people like Ban and his friends, right? And then think about it, Mom. I'll be helping you defeat these bad guys and bring peace to our world. Didn't I always tell you that I'd want to be a cop when I grow up? So here I am!" I smiled and Mom smiled back at me.

"Thank you, Rei."

Liberator… this time, we'll put an end to you once and for all.

"So that's what my mom told me." I narrated when all of us finally gathered in the control room, Secretary Kaios nodding after I had finished my speech.

"This is quite a problem. It seems Liberator has the upper hand here, I'll take note to station guards for you just to be on the safe side." He replied.

"With Ami and Kazuya back with Professor Yamano, our fire power has diminished quite a bit. Liberator's on the move again, sending more rampaging LBX's on our direction. We've held them off so far, so they're planning to diminish our firepower by having their members attack simultaneously on different areas. I think you already know what this means, right?" Secretary Kaios explained as he showed us the affected areas of the rampaging LBX.

"You want us to put a stop to these until you can track down the black carrier plane, right?" Jessica guessed and her father nodded.

"That's why I'll be sending you on group missions to eradicate these rogue LBXs. Ban, Hiro and Ran will head to London and stop the rampaging LBXs that have taken over a satellite building there. Jin, Yuuya and Jessica, you three will put a stop to a couple of LBXs that have taken over a naval port in North America."

"Wait a minute… why am I out of the team?" I questioned after Secretary Kaios had distributed them into groups and briefed them on their missions. Just because I was a target doesn't mean I couldn't fight, I won Artemis for crying out loud.

"You're a target. Liberator has the upper hand on this war, we can't afford to be too careless by letting you in on the mission."

"But I can fight, Secretary Kaios. Trust me, I won't fail you!" I begged. Strict blue eyes looked at me and I glared back with a determined expression. I know what he's doing after all, he's trying to get me to submit with the 'I'm-the-boss-so-follow-me' look but I won't give in. If I'm going to be a police then not being part of this mission is not an option. We had to stare for quite a while until he sighed and then shook his head.

"Kids… Very well, you can go but only if you beat one of your friends here in an LBX battle." His condition made me widen my eyes as I turned to all my friends who looked at me worriedly. Beat any of these guys in a battle? I barely made it passed Hiro and we ended in a tie. How can I at least beat any of them?

"Do I choose or you?" I asked and that was when Secretary Kaios took out a box with sticks in it. He shuffled them before putting them in the box and distributing it to the group.

"Of course not. The one who draws the shortest stick is who you'll battle." He said and I sighed. Figured he'd do something like this so I won't try to pick out the weak one from the team that I can at least manage a win.

"Aww! And I was so looking forward for a rematch." Hiro groaned when I saw that he picked a long stick, even Ran seemed disappointed that she pulled a long one.

"So, who got the short end?" Secretary Kaios asked and a lone hand was raised. I looked at the owner and turned pale. There goes my chance of being able to join them.

"Hm… So you'll be facing Kaidou Jin then." He only said and I mentally face-palmed myself at the terrible luck I had. After all, they don't call Jin the Split Second Kill Emperor for nothing. He can literally beat his opponents within a few seconds in the battle field. Yup, that was how fast he was.

"There's no rules here so you can go out on full power. If you win Rei then you get to go on the mission. If you lose, you stay and you can't ask for another chance to go out and join in on the mission or any other mission after that." Secretary Kaios reminded me as we gathered in a training area where a lone D-Cube stood. I faced the left side of the cube whereas Jin took the right, I felt my hands go sweaty as I took out my CCM while praying and praying in my head that I would win.

"I don't plan on going easy on you, Rei-san. So know that I'm being serious here." I cringed at Jin's words and I nodded. Man, why does he looked so scary right now? I can practically see dark smoke billowing around him.

"We-well me too! I'll beat you, Jin." I retorted and I saw him smirk. I mentally face-palmed myself because it was so obvious he didn't take that threat seriously. Of course, it didn't sound threatening! My voice was stuttering all the time I was saying it. Ugh, I just suck at this!

"If there are no qualms, then let the battle begin." Jessica refereed.

"Go, Triton!"

"Let's go, Hel!"

BATTLE START!

The moment the battle started, Triton vanished from its position making me widen my eyes. Fast! I panicked and turned just in time to dodge its attack, the weapon cleaving the ground into two.

"Had that been Hel then this battle would've been over." I muttered to myself as I dodged another strike but was sent slamming to a wall with Triton's punch.

"You made it past ten seconds without getting hit, congratulations." Jin commented coolly and I frowned. Did he just insult me? That's just wrong in every way. When did I ever get him mad at me?

"Attack Function!" I cringed when Jin summoned his function and I used to give me enough time and made a run for a huge mountain.

ATTACK FUNCTION: OCEAN BLAST

A huge torrent emerged from Triton's weapon, the water heading straight for the mountain Hel was hiding in. Mud flooded the field as my eyes grew wide at the sight. There Hel stood, covered in mud, the mountain that I used as a hiding place completely shrunk to half its size. Not even my Ocean Blast could do that. I gulped as I stared at Jin's Triton waiting like a predator from on top of one of the mountains. How am supposed to beat something like that!?

"Is this is how powerful a winner of Artemis is? How did Hiro and Ran lose to this?" Jin sighed as he did more rapid encoding that made Triton slam Hel to another mountain. If he's goading me to fight then it isn't working. The more he beats up Hel the more I can feel the insignificance and it's frustrating. Is this really the power I had when I won Artemis? How pretty lame…

This is just so pathetic…

-Jin's POV-

"This is just sad…Jin's just beating her up. He's not even going easy on her." I heard Hiro whisper to Ran before flinching at the sight of Hel being tossed around like a rag doll.

It wasn't that I was cruel but I had to let her see what the true danger was in forcing to do something dangerous without knowing what's in store. She may have managed to do something against Ran and Hiro but I'm different. I wasn't like them…

I didn't have mercy when it came to LBX battles.

That was how passionate I was in battles. If Rei couldn't see that then she'd never win this battle.

"This is the end." I only said and as Triton was about to deliver the killing blow-,

*Drip*

I had Triton stop attacking, the weapon nearly a few millimeters from Hel's head. I looked up from the battle and saw Rei, gripping her CCM tightly as tears streamed down her face, hitting the screen.

"R-Rei-san?" Yuuya called out to her worriedly. So is she going to resort to this sympathy? I wonder where that bravado from a while ago go? Didn't she want to be in on the mission? So why is she crying when she's on the verge of losing? I guess it just goes to show how uncertain her resolve is.

"Oi, Jin-san! You made Rei-san cry." Hiro frowned and I shook my head as I faced him.

"If she couldn't handle something like this then she never should have asked to join the mission. There are bigger dangers that lie ahead and if she doesn't have the resolve to push on even if it gets harder then she'll never win." I only say and Ban sighed at my comment.

"You're right but have you forgotten that we started like her too? Even we barely knew what was going on when Innovator attacked. I'm not saying you should go easy on her just… don't scare her. I mean look at her, you've got her completely overwhelmed." Ban said and I gave Rei one more look and frowned. She stopped crying that's for sure but the way she's battling isn't how she usually fights as how Hiro and Ran narrated it. Her attacks are sloppy and reckless as if she's hoping that attacking recklessly would somehow get her an opening.

"And you call yourself a winner of Artemis, Rei. It's time to end this…" I sigh and before Hel could land another blind hit, I grabbed the spear and was about to hit Hel with Triton's weapon when Hel suddenly vanished from my grasp and I saw the scenery shift as Triton was sent flying to a nearby earthen wall. I raised a curious brow and I looked up to see Rei, her face hidden by the shadows of her hair as she muttered something over and over.

"I won't lose." She muttered more loudly over and over as Hel was on offensive, parrying and then attacking Triton repeatedly. I felt myself pulling off an extra effort as I had Triton dodge her attack function. Is this the same girl? I looked at her intently and my eyes went wide when I saw her emerald ones burning a deeper shade of green on the corner of the irises…

Could it be?

"Attack Function!" She shouted and a barrage of electricity was sent towards Triton. This is bad, I was too careless and got complacent. The attack made contact and a huge explosion erupted from the impact. As the dust clear, I saw Hel fly out of the explosion and I frowned.

There in the middle stood Triton, electric currents rendering it immobile as a bluish light emits from it, a signal that it will be unable to fight. As expected from the attack but what worried me was where on earth did she achieve that power. Even if it was only in theory, Professor Yamano did mention in his studies about a handful of people who were capable of becoming one with their LBXs. A double-edged sword he called the Overload. I guess this makes it all the more reason they'd want to get their hands on Rei. I stared at her panting figure as she tried her best to stay awake. In exchange for such a power, it comes with the price, besides the pressure it could put on the users physical and mental stability, even their LBX suffers the damage if it cannot handle the Overload.

*Crack*

As if hearing what I had just said, Rei stumbles as she grips on the edge of the D-Cube, her eyes in shock as she stares at Hel as it lay unmoving on the floor, multiple cracks appearing on its body due to the strain of Overload.

"D-did I lose!?" She managed to say, staring at me for confirmation. I shake my head and scoop my hand in the Cube to get Triton.

"Ban's right. When we first started, we didn't know how we could handle Innovator… how I could handle the betrayal my grandfather had done. It was thanks to my friends and allies that helped me overcome that and that I believe is what you need." I only smile as I pocket Triton and turn to look at her. Our friends and family make us who we are, even if it is against what Secretary Kaios had asked of me… If we're ever going to defeat Liberator, we need the trust of each other and work together. Rei lacks the willingness to depend on others, so as her friends, we must show her that we can be trusted.

"Th-thanks…" She finally said before collapsing on the ground from exhaustion. I felt eyes on me and I turned to see Ban with a grim expression on his face. I nod in reply, positive that we were thinking the same thing- that Fujiwa Rei did indeed possess the power of Overload.

"So the battle… is a tie again? I guess no one wins and that means-,"

"Nope. It was Rei who won, Jessica. Triton broke over first before Hel. I'm giving the win to her." I cut Jessica short as Ran and Hiro help Rei onto a nearby bench to rest. Jessica shoots me a worried look but nevertheless leaves to report to her dad about the result of the battle.

"Overload huh."

-Rei's POV-

"W-what!? So I can go?" I asked, dumbfounded at what Secretary Kaios just told me. After being briefed at having possessed the power of Overload, I was even more nervous since not only did Jin and I end in a tie, the mere fact that I had such a power made me worried that my chances of ever going out on a mission were slim. Imagine to my surprise when Secretary Kaios actually said I could go.

"You can go, on the condition that you will be placed in Jessica's group and that you must abide to all their instructions, meaning that regardless of the circumstances you are forbidden to act without orders. Even the slightest insubordination will land you a one way ticket to your room. Understood?" Secretary Kaios warned me and I nodded in understanding. If it means getting into the bottom of this problem on a first hand basis then I'll do what is ordered…

"Very well, with that settled, you better get into the Duck Shuttle. Ban and the others have already left for their own missions. Remember your mission is to eradicate the LBXs taking over the ship. If you fail then Liberator will have their hands on one of the strongest ships and we can't let that happen. Dismissed!" Secretary Kaios briefed before we all shouted a 'Yes!' and made our way to the Duck Shuttle.

"Rei, wait a second." Jessica called out to me and I turned to see her hand me Hel. What made me surprised was the fact that Hel looked different from before. It was colored in a shade of black and violet and a long tail with violet wings decorated its back. A long black spear was placed on its right hand and Aegis retained its position on the left. It looked almost like Cygnus Noir with the exception of having a tail at the back, its wings a replica of Suzaku's except its violet and a black spear as a weapon instead of a scythe.

"What did you do to it?" I wondered in awe as I stared at my new LBX.

"We customized it in such a way that it could withstand the pressure of your Overload. After your battle with Jin we noticed it needed a lot of improvements to adapt to your fighting style. So with the help of Cyber Lance we used the data from Hel and made you a new LBX. Its name is Hel Verse." Jessica explained as I lifted the new LBX to my chest and smiled.

"Thanks!" I grinned and Jessica laughed embarrassingly at me.

"Sheesh! All I did was deliver it to you so don't thank me, thank Cyber Lance for the LBX."

"But for you to have asked them to make it for me… I'll take care of Hel Verse so thanks, Jessica." I beamed as we continued to talk about the mission while getting ready to board the Duck Shuttle that now towered before us.

"Since we're a group of four people, I suggested a plan. We'll be splitting into two teams composing of Yuuya and Jessica in the first team and Rei and I in the second. That way we can cover more ground of the ship and get rid of the Brain Jacking device they planted." Jin strategized as we entered the shuttle and took our seats.

"Wait so I'll be partnered with you?" I asked and flinched when I saw him look at me, those red eyes almost made me feel like I was looking at hell. Ever since our battle, I developed this fear of ever facing him. His merciless prowess on the battlefield overwhelmed me to the point I couldn't think straight. I was lucky for the Overload but it also made me feel so pathetic to have to rely on something like that to win.

"Is there a problem? As what Secretary Kaios had said, you'll be following orders from us and you have no right to question any of the orders we give." Jin stated and I frowned but nodded in reply. As expected of him, he's just too strict.

"Rei, you okay? You seem kind of pale." Jessica asked me worriedly. I assured her I was fine and whispered that I was just scared.

"Well it's your first mission, we were scared of our first mission too but you get used to it. If it means saving the world then you have to do it for their sake." Jessica assured me and I smiled. I guess she misunderstood… that the mere fact I was scared was not because of the mission but of Jin who sat right in front of us. The moment he turned to look at us, I flinched and quickly looked away, hoping he didn't see me give him the look that screamed 'Scary!'

"Duck Shuttle, take off!" And with that announcement, the shuttle flew off towards somewhere in the Atlantic where the ship was stationed. Apparently, the naval port in North America was already secured (thanks to the A Nations elite squad) but one ship stationed by the Atlantic was hijacked and that was the one we were sent to stop. An S-class battleship like that, no doubt can put Liberator at an advantage.

"Landing will be difficult so we'll have to use the control pod in the rooms to maneuver our LBXs on the ship. There are several hostages on the ship so we have to proceed with caution. If worse comes to worse that we miscalculated their movements then we have no choice but to pull out than risk the hostages on the ship." Jin explained as he pointed on the map the location of the cabin where the hostages were being held.

"To think they'd resort to such violence…" Yuuya frowned and I nodded. I didn't think that so much sacrifices would have to be used just to achieve this false world they wanted. As the plan goes, Yuuya and Jessica would try to save the victims while Jin and I would try to destroy the brain jacking machine on the ship. A simple plan if the lives of at least fifty people weren't on the line.

"Five minutes till arrival!" The announcement rang and all of us took that as a cue and scrambled for the control pods.

"Remember the drill! Rei stay close to me until I give the signal." Jin reminded us and I nodded as we hopped into the control pod and positioned our LBXs in the hatch. I looked at Hel Verse and then at the screen that showed the view of the captured ship. Jin, Yuuya and Jessica's face appeared on my right screen, each showing a very determined expression.

"We'll be using the Flying Saucer to get to the ship. Be on guard because by now the enemies have already noticed our presence." The small metallic robot warned as our LBXs were dispatched and we made our way to the ship. It was a huge naval ship to be precise and by the looks of it several enemy LBXs have already stationed themselves in preparation for our arrival.

"Wait, where's Jessica and Yuuya?" I asked when I noticed that only Jin and I were the one's greeting the LBXs. I made Hel Verse dodge a missile aimed for us and quickly hacked at two Bulds with my spear. Jin's Triton summoned a huge waved that sent a group of LBXs on the deck to the deadly water below.

"They're fine. I had their LBXs tinkered to be able to go underwater so they'll be heading to the passengers undetected while we make the commotion." Jin assured me while he made Triton push Hel Verse away to dodge an oncoming laser from a couple of Lucifers.

"Made it!" I sighed in relief when we finally made it on the deck of the ship. Only few LBXs remained on the deck and it made me worry that majority of them might be where the passengers are. Gripping the spear tightly, Hel Verse raised the spear to the sky and a barrage of electric currents connected to the water on the deck and electrocuted all the LBX on the field. I won't stand by and let Liberator fulfill their goals. Everyone's fighting so hard and I don't to be a burden on them anymore. That's right with this new LBX and power-

"I won't let you take control!"

Yes and update and after two months... sorry about that.

Started watching WARS so yeah... kinda missed the required day I told myself I'd update. School's been nothing but tough and one of the reasons it took a while to update. Summer'll be here soon so plenty of time to make up for lost update days! Thanks so much for the review and follow. With so little people reading fics like these, it makes me happy to know someone reads it.

I'll try my best to get the next chapter up! Please R&R guys :)

-xXGemini14Xx-