"Ok, so now that we're all relaxed and refreshed this morning, I think it's time we address the elephant in the room," Render said with a shrug as he sat in the bathwater.
Down the hallways inside the expansive villa a cold arctic wind flowed by, frosting over windows and the walls while lights flickered.
"Elephant in the room? What elephant?" Gabriel asked looking around the bathing room puzzled while sitting in the water as well.
A few guards who were stationed around the hallways shielded their faces with their arms as the chilled wind raced by, frosting over their black outfits and sunglasses while they shivered from the extreme cold.
"It's just a phrase Gabriel, he means he wants to point out something overly obvious that's not being seen by everybody else. But what are you talking about Render?" Gin asked as he lied back with his arms behind his head casually, sitting in the water along with the other boys in the group.
Ice spires and frozen shards erupted away from a hallway intersection as a furious arctic wind blasted through, flash freezing the floor and ceiling as icicles trailed sideways off of edges and corners.
"Really? This doesn't seem odd to you? Nothing about this seems off to you in the slightest?" Render asked with a raised eyebrow while glancing to something.
Large shards of ice jettisoned up into the hallway on the second level of the building, the floorboards breaking apart violently while a few guards jumped back with surprise.
"What's so odd about us bathing here together? We've got plenty of room, and we're not exactly total strangers anymore. What's the problem?" Ahakon asked as he washed his hair casually.
An entire hallway dropped down into the lower level, the debris falling into the snow and ice that had blanketed the lower hallway and kicking up a snowstorm while the lights flickered above.
"I don't think he's referring to us bathing together, I think he's referring to the fact that your friend is bathing while wearing earbuds and having an mp3 player in his hand," Leon said, pointing over to Dark with a puzzled expression. Everybody looked over to the shadow demon as he was just sitting back in the bath against the edge, looking down with closed eyes, and was once again listening to music through a new player and set of headphones.
"What's so weird about that?" Rason asked with a smirk.
"Dark's always had a thing for music," Razico said with a shrug while he was lying back against the edge of the bath, relaxing in the warm water while he was looking up with closed eyes.
"A thing? More like an obsession," Gin chuckled.
"But why is he wearing them while bathing? Nobody does that," Render said looking around the group with confusion.
"Trust us, he does. In fact, don't be surprised to see him wearing them everywhere he goes," Rason said glancing to his silent friend.
"Everywhere? So, what, he's a big music fan?" Render asked looking over to Dark. Rason nodded and looked over to him with a shrug.
"Something like that. It's perfectly normal for him to have those things on all day every day; actually it was kind of weird seeing him without them for so long to be honest. Just pay it no mind, and whatever you do, don't ever try to take them from him," he said assuredly. Render and Leon glanced to each other then to Dark as the demon was still silent while listening to his music.
"Well, I'm not going to judge him for wanting to listen to music, but isn't it going to be a little hard talking to him if he's listening to it all day?" Leon asked glancing to Rason. Rason shook his head then nudged Dark, earning a glance from the demon.
"Just out of curiosity, what kind of music is on that player?" Rason asked. Dark looked at him for a moment then shrugged.
"Mostly classical symphonies with a little rock mixed into the playlist," he said casually.
"That seems a little tame for you, nothing with a stronger beat?" Rason asked, showing a more curious expression on purpose.
"I only requested these be put on it for now, I'll update the library later on when I have more time," Dark replied. Render and Leon stared at him with wide eyes while Razico glanced to Dark with one opened eye and a smirk, the warlock waving slightly to get the demon's attention.
"Say Dark, I've been meaning to ask you, that was some ring you forged for Mizore. How exactly did you do that anyway, I've never seen a ring quite like that before," he asked casually.
"I had Kokoa use her overcharge to superheat some ice I had hand carved into the ring, the extreme heat and pressure forged it into a crystal band. I also imbued the ice with my own essence by a few drops of my blood to give it a bit of flair," Dark said casually.
"Wha… how is he hearing us?" Leon asked.
"Maybe the music is turned down to a low level?" Render guessed with a shrug. The others laughed a bit as Dark looked back down with closed eyes.
"Not exactly, he can read lips," Ahakon explained.
"Read lips?" Render asked.
"Yeah, as long as you're in his eye line he can understand you perfectly," Rason added. Render looked at him curiously then to Dark.
"Well, he can understand us anyway, not so much with Mizore," Gin chuckled.
"Why not with her?" Leon asked.
"Her lollipop interferes with the way he reads her lips. So far he's been rather… off with his assumptions on what she's been saying to him," Rason said with a shrug. Leon nodded slowly as he examined the demon wearing the headphones then looked down with puzzlement.
"But doesn't that present a bit of a barrier for them? If he listens to music so much, and she can't be understood by reading her lips then, doesn't that cause some problems for them?" he questioned.
"Not really, nothing seems to be able to keep those two apart," Rason said shaking his head.
"Except for a demented snow angel from heaven with some serious anger problems," Render added. He looked up curiously for a moment then to the others again with a quizzical expression.
"So… what's her story anyway? How come she thinks she and Dark are going to get married?" he asked. Everyone glanced to Dark, seeing that he was still looking down with closed eyes and remaining silent while listening to music just as he had grown accustomed to doing so. Gabriel then looked up as the others turned to him with curious eyes.
Down one of the hallways inside the expansive villa Mizore dashed through the storm of flurries and frost that billowed around, the ice maiden glancing to the side as she kept both her katanas ready. Her hair was frozen over while visibility in the corridor was almost zero, the temperature dropping fast around her as ice etched across the walls and floors wildly. From the wall next to her a large explosion of ice and debris shot out towards her, with Arial swinging her claw towards Mizore causing a furious wave of frozen spikes to strike out at the snow maiden. Mizore jumped up over the wall of ice that crashed into the other wall, then swung down and threw her katana in a sharp spin towards Arial. The snow angel flapped her wings with a powerful thrust and launched up, just avoiding the blade as it struck down at where she was and piercing through the solid ice with a mighty thrust.
"When she was alive, she was just another villager in Mizore's hometown. From what I've heard from the elders in heaven she wasn't very friendly with anyone, always keeping to herself and her music," Gabriel said softly.
Arial flew up and swung her claw out towards Mizore as the snow maiden started to descend from her leap, creating another massive wall of frozen ridges and shards that expanded out towards her target. Mizore dropped down and tucked into a roll on the floor, just missing the wall of ice that flew over her body by an inch before crashing into the wall and decimating it. Mizore rolled back onto her feet and swung around with her other katana, missing Arial by a hair as she darted down under the swipe.
"She's always had an anger problem; ever since she was little her temper has always gotten the better of her despite the peaceful nature of most snow people. She was always frustrated she could never find a boy to like or a potential husband, and grew bitter and cold to all those around her. The only thing she had to love was her music, which she played all day every day to tune the harsh world around her out."
Mizore darted to the side, just avoiding a massive ice shard that shot past her and struck through a statue of a horseman near the wall, the stone ornament being obliterated while a wild torrent of chilled air flew around Arial. Mizore raced up and swung her blade at the snow angel again, her attack swift and steady while Arial flew up above it, her frosted wings stretched out as she hovered above the snow maiden. She geared back with both hands over her head before swinging down with them, creating a giant ice shard that flew down towards Mizore out of thin air. Mizore lunged to the side just before the wall of ice struck into the floor and crashed down through it, with ice spires erupting around it and shattering the floorboards.
"Then one day a wizard came by their village, saying that either they worked for him and provided all the ice crystals he needed for his research, or he would destroy them all. The village laughed him off, thinking that a lone wizard wouldn't be a threat for any of them. They were proven wrong however, as the wizard summoned a true killer to slay them; a shadow demon."
Mizore ran over and jumped up onto the top of the ice shard that was struck down into the ground, leaping off of it and swinging up at Arial with her blade. The snow angel darted back while swinging with her claw, clashing against the katana before Mizore followed through with her other hand, forming ice around her fist as she swung at Arial with a vicious snarl. Arial dodged the attack and pushed Mizore away to the side, the snow maiden dropping back down onto the ground which she immediately started running on. Arial watched with anger and frustration as the snow maiden ran and jumped up onto the wall next to her, leaping off and flipping around in the air with a spiral. As she did she flung her ice katana at the airborne snow angel, the blade whipping through the air while Arial swung out with her claw again. A torrent of arctic air blasted around her, causing spires of snow and ice to wildly fly out around her in a spiral, the spinning shards of ice blocking the blade which struck into one of the spires with a slick crunch before launching off to the sides and into the walls. Mizore landed back down and held her hands out, forming two new blades as she turned to face Arial with a cold glare.
"The shadow demon slaughtered a good portion of their village, doing just as he was commanded to by his master. He killed without mercy, without remorse, and without question. Until he came across Arial," Gabriel said softly.
"Question," Render asked holding his hand up. The others looked to him as he scratched his head.
"So, cool story and all, but when do you get to where Dark and Arial meet?" he asked.
"What? Dark is the shadow demon, you couldn't figure that out?" Rason asked bewildered.
"How was I supposed to know? Maybe there were two shadow demons, and Dark killed the other one because he was killing everybody, and they had like this epic swordfight and that's what Arial saw while she was frightened and alone, causing her young, innocent mind to instantly become fixated on him," Render said with a shrug. Everybody just stared at him with blank expressions while Dark was still looking down with closed eyes. After a long pause Gabriel shook his head and looked up with a dull expression.
"Anyway…"
Mizore ran towards Arial with her blades down at her sides, her feet running across the frozen ground with grace while Arial growled furiously. The snow angel yelled as she held her claws out at her sides, causing a shockwave of frozen wind and ice spires to blast away from around her. Mizore watched with surprise before rolling off to the side, avoiding a barrage of spires that flew past her. Mizore quickly rolled back onto her feet and jumped off to the side, just before two more spires struck into the floor where she was just at with a powerful strike. As she regained her footing on the frozen floor Mizore whipped both katanas towards Arial, the blades whistling through the air in sharp spins as Arial flipped around in the air. The blades whizzed past both above and below her as the angel twirled around before reorienting herself, her eyes locking onto Mizore again as the snow maiden held one of her hands back with the other at her side in front.
"Dark was going to spare Arial's life, because she was just a young child. However the wizard ordered him to specifically cut her down, something that even a monster from hell wouldn't have done. Striking down a young child is a horrible deed, and even those from hell itself would never harm an innocent child. However, faced with his order, Dark carried it out with remorse, and mortally wounded Arial with his blade."
Arial yelled out furiously before she dived down onto the ground with a mighty strike of her claw, the impact sending out a rolling wave of frozen shards that engulfed the hallway and crashed towards Mizore. The snow maiden focused her power with all her might, her sheer determination to finally set Arial in her place pushing her forward, then held her other hand back to the one behind her, holding both together as a swirl of frozen air spun around her. As the wall of ice tumbled towards her she growled loudly before swinging up over her and down onto the ground, her hands striking the floor and erupting forth a large solid column of ice. The frozen pillar from the snow maiden launched up and struck through the ceiling, jettisoning up into the floor above where the floor was breaking apart along with a few guards running around in a panic. Arial's frozen wave crashed into Mizore's pillar, with shards and icicles flying past Mizore on both sides as her pillar was chipped away violently while blocking the wave from hitting her dead on. Mizore stood up and glared ahead as she watched her pillar crack and shatter slightly before the frozen wave finished flying past her, with shards and frozen debris now covering the walls and hallway behind her. The remains of her pillar shattered and dropped down, collapsing into frost and snowflakes while Arial growled furiously at the snow maiden.
"After seeing what he had done, what he was forced to do, he couldn't take it anymore. He hated himself and wanted to die, but mostly he wanted his master to die for what he had done. Dark butchered his master, painfully, and slowly. He did what shadow demons do best, he made his master suffer before violently executing him. After that Dark expected to die, to be removed from this world after the horrible act he had done. However he survived, because of her."
Arial screamed and flew toward Mizore, the snow maiden quickly forming both her katanas once again. She darted forward and swung with her blade, with Arial darting under it and swinging towards her with a frozen claw. Mizore blocked the strike with her other blade, pushing back as Arial continued to push with incredible force. Mizore yelled out as she swung down with her other blade, just missing Arial as the snow angel jumped back before lunging forwards with two swipes of her claws. Mizore blocked one with her blade then kicked Arial back, the snow angel flying off-balance before quickly regaining herself. She growled furiously then screamed as she arched back, causing another blast of arctic wind followed by dozens of frozen spires erupting from the ground. Mizore darted around one then avoided another, her movements fast and agile as she closed in on Arial and swung down again with her katana.
"Arial had watched the whole thing; she saw how Dark killed his master after what the man did, how he went against his code as a summoned being and turned against the one that summoned him. She saw the anger and torment in his eyes, and felt moved by his actions. Even though he had struck her down, struck her parents down even, she felt no anger towards him. It was quite the opposite actually, as seeing a powerful demon turning against his master all because of her caused her to become instantly attracted to him. It was in her last moments in life that she fell in love with the demon, the one who she believed was her soul mate."
Mizore swung towards Arial with her blade before a blast of chilled air erupted around the snow angel; knocking Mizore back while the walls and floors flash froze instantly along with spires erupting around Arial. The hallway started to rumble as the ceiling above was losing structural stability, with ice and wood dropping down in pieces around the hall. Mizore regained her footing and swung towards Arial again, her blade clashing against Arial's claw and stopping there. Mizore swung with her other blade, again being blocked by Arial as the two girls entered a power struggle. Arial's wings arched back as the ground around them erupted outwards with frozen ridges and spikes. The two girls glared at each other with fire in their eyes while struggling to push against each other. Even though Mizore was bigger than Arial in size, the snow angel's arctic storm that continued to blast around her was working to keep Mizore at bay.
"She had grabbed his old master's bracelet at the last moment, making her his new master. Just before she died she ordered Dark to be free, so that he wouldn't be forced to kill against his own will again. After that she was thrown into the limbo that was once a monster's afterlife. However, recently monsters have been allowed into a special heaven of their own, and with that Arial and many others have been relocated there. Ever since she came to be there, she's obsessed over Dark, pestering the elders to tell the tales of what her demon has been doing down on earth, and eagerly awaiting his arrival when he too crosses over. Dark dedicated his life in her memory, seeing her as a guardian angel. She however saw him as her soul mate, and has ever since longed to be his official wife. She won't listen to any of the elders, none of the angels or even her parents can sway her from this crusade, nobody can talk her out of this pursuit of hers; she's madly in love with Dark, and refuses to let go of the demon that overcame his nature for her."
"HE'S MINE!" Arial screamed as the ground cracked and refroze over instantly.
"He's mine, forever!" Mizore yelled back as she struggled to stand against the powerful torrent of snow blasting against her.
"Nobody will ever take my demon away from me! You hear me? NOBODY!" Arial screamed as a wall of frozen ice blasted up around them, destroying the hallway and crashing through the ceiling. The floor above them rumbled before being torn apart by the spires that had struck up through it. Mizore and Arial continued to push against each other in their struggle while all around them debris and broken shards of ice rained down and crashed into the ground.
"He chose me as his girlfriend! He chose to mark my heart as his! He chose me as his wife! He chose me to spend his life with, not you! I'm his wife Arial, he's chosen me!" Mizore yelled back as she kept her blades sturdy while pushing against the snow angel's claws.
"HE DID NOT CHOOSE YOU! HE CHOSE ME!" Arial roared, her power fluxing and blasting away from her furiously. Mizore stumbled back before a wall of ice exploded around Arial, demolishing the hallway as debris and snow flew back down the hall, with Mizore stumbling back further while struggling to stay standing. Arial growled loudly then arched back as she screamed, the entire hallway around them flash freezing in an instant while Mizore saw icicles protruding from all sides near her. The snow maiden jumped back just as dozens of spires shot out from all around the hall at her, the frozen shards clashing into each other and exploding into more while Mizore kept darting back to avoid the onslaught. She leaped back as another volley of frozen spires caved in all around her, the hallway filling up with shattered walls of ice and snow while Mizore was pushed further and further back.
"Dammit… I've had enough of this girl, she's not the angel my Dark spoke of, she's not the angel I gave my thanks to at night; she's a fucking nightmare!" Mizore yelled out with anger. The walls of ice before her shattered apart and flew towards her, the swirling waves of frozen ridges and spikes destroying the hall completely while Arial flew through the center of the torrent towards Mizore with a claw geared back.
"HE'S MINE FOREVER!" Arial roared as she raced towards Mizore with fire in her eyes.
"Over my dead body!" Mizore yelled as she ran towards Arial with her blades held at her sides, glaring at the angel with anger.
Inside the girls bathing room all was quiet as everybody was trying to enjoy their last relaxing moment before meeting with the boys to discuss the insanely large list of problems they needed to address all at once.
Moka and Kokoa were slowly washing their arms and legs while looking down with unfocused eyes at the water, both knowing trouble was looming ahead while at the same time concerned about their mates. Moka's was isolated inside of Paradise which was even further beyond her reach as now she was trapped in the human world. Kokoa's was still in the human world with her, but was the target of another's affections, one who she unfortunately was also stuck with.
Near them Ran and Sun were quietly washing their arms, both sirens keeping their eyes locked downward as well. For Sun she was worried about the strange monster in the darkness that was after her for some unknown reason, as well as concerned about Gin's choice in a girlfriend over her. Ran however was mostly concerned about the siren next to her, wondering if this girl really was the one she saw destroying her home and killing her parents. There was that, and how the dream she had about Ahakon might not have been a dream after all, as the mage was indeed walking around at that hour and how the kiss she felt from him seemed so real.
Apoch and Astreal were also showing concern about the upcoming conflict that was sparking a war between the two worlds, both however finding a slight amount of comfort knowing they at least weren't alone with their struggle. They had nearly all of their friends with them once again, along with two new boyfriends who had proven themselves capable fighters by freeing them from their evil doubles' control. Astreal sighed quietly as she thought about her kindhearted boyfriend while Apoch was blushing slightly, imagining her boyfriend in fighting form along with his aura that just melted all her fears away.
Kurumu and Ruby were looking up at the ceiling with distant gazes, both occupied by their own thoughts and not really paying much mind to anyone around them. For Kurumu she was worried about Luna, fearing that the chronofly would be enduring a hell similar to what she herself experienced down in the actual hell. Ruby however was replaying her night with her warlock in her head over and over again, trying to calm and soothe her mind the best she could by remembering how she and her boyfriend finally expressed their true love to each other in a very intimate and kinky way.
Complica was looking down at the water while she sat against the bath's edge, deep in thought as always. With her however her mind wasn't focused on one thing, as it never really was, but multiple things. What was going to happen to her sister Luna? Will she ever be able to return home to heaven? Was it just brotherly love she felt towards Ceal or more? Would Arial go ballistic and try to kill Mizore again? What was her sister Falla doing while trapped in the monster world? Were those herbs in the bath water going to turn her skin green? If she held her hands over her ears and shut her mouth while sneezing would her head explode? What was that monster in the dark world and why was he after Sun? How come she felt like all her actions and thoughts were being dictated by some unknown force like she was trapped in some sort of story being told?
Yukari sighed and leaned back against the bath's edge, looking up with a blank expression while she thought about all the crap the group was going through once again.
"Are we cursed?" she asked worriedly. The other girls looked over to her as she shook her head.
"I mean, it's always the same with us, every day it's just another thing going wrong," she said softly.
"We're monsters, there's always a fight around every corner," Moka said looking down again. Yukari looked over to her with concern.
"But doesn't it seem like it's just fight after fight after fight with us? First there was the vampire lord that wanted to kill you, then Fairy Tale was trying to wipe out the human race, then Alucard was threatening to destroy everything, and now this guy in the dark world wants to start up a war. Every time we finally put one of these jerks down another just steps up in his place," she said with disbelief. Moka nodded slowly then shrugged.
"It's not like we're going out looking for trouble, we didn't ask for any of these things to happen to us. But we've survived before, each time something like this came at us we came out on top in the end," she reasoned. After a pause she glanced to Yukari with a small smile.
"After all we've faced we can handle this, I know we can. We'll stop this war from breaking out, and we'll set things right with Complica, Arial, and Luna as well. With all of us together on this there isn't a doubt in my mind," she said assuredly. The other girls looked at her then to each other. Sun and Ran looked at each other for a moment before Ran looked down with worried eyes. Sun showed a concerned expression then wrote down something, showing it to the other siren with a sympathetic look.
Is there anything I can do to prove to you that I'm not the monster that destroyed your home?
Ran looked at the pad for a moment then to Sun. After a pause she sighed then looked down with closed eyes.
"You helped keep those two young angels alive down here, and Gin does seem to believe you're a good soul. Maybe you weren't the one that killed my family, you don't seem like a heartless killer to me, but you being there when it happened is still too suspicious to me," she said softly. Sun nodded then wrote down something else, the other girls all looking over to her as she then nudged Ran and showed her the pad.
I never meant to accuse your own family with what I saw. I'm sure your sister had nothing to do with what happened to your home, I'm only sorry I wasn't able to stop it all from happening.
Ran looked at the pad then down again with gentle eyes, trying to believe that the girl next to her wasn't the one responsible for her family and village's demise. After a pause she glanced to Sun again.
"I'm sorry… for attacking you before. I just assumed… with what you said and you being there… I'm sorry," she said softly. Sun nodded with a small smile and wrote down something else.
I don't blame you at all for what you did; you had every right to be angry with how what I said sounded. I am sorry for your loss, if it would make you feel better I will renounce my last name, I don't want to take anything away from you in having your family's name.
Ran smiled a bit and shook her head.
"No, keep it if you like. I'm sure Rin would be happy to have another sister. Maybe not Ren so much, but Rin would," she mused softly. Sun smiled curiously and tilted her head. Ran giggled slightly and nodded.
"If you're going to be in our family, you're going to have to deal with having three sisters. And just so you know, Rin's a handful," she said with a shrug. Sun smiled and nodded as the other girls smiled at them, Kokoa not so much of course.
"I'm glad you two worked out your differences, there's no reason for you two to be fighting. We're all in this together," Moka said, then glanced over to Kokoa. All the girls looked over to the redheaded vampire as she growled quietly.
"If you think all is forgiven between you and me, you're out of your goddamned mind," Kokoa snapped at the siren. Everyone looked over to Sun as the siren glanced away.
"Sun, you do understand that Gin loves Kokoa, right? Please respect his choice and leave him be, you have no right to chase after him anymore, especially since you turned him down before," Moka reasoned gently. Sun glanced to her then wrote down something on her pad, showing the vampire as the group looked at it as well.
Excuse me, but I haven't charmed him or anything have I? And I already did apologize for kissing him before; I apologized to him directly on that matter. What's so wrong about me being near an old school friend?
"What's wrong with that is you keep staring at him, peeping on him when he's changing, and saying that I'm not good enough for him!" Kokoa yelled out. Sun looked at her with a dull expression then wrote down something more.
There's nothing wrong with me looking at him, he had his door opened a crack so it's not my fault I could see him from out in the hall, and yes I do believe you are not the ideal match for him. But I'm not stealing him away from you by force am I?
Kokoa growled furiously and stood up in the bath.
"Like hell you even could, now I'm telling you for the last time to stay away from my mate!" she yelled out with anger. Sun calmly glanced around then looked back to Kokoa with a raised eyebrow. She then wrote down something and showed it to her.
And just how can I do that if we're stuck here like this? We're all in this together, remember? I'm not going anywhere, no matter how much you try to threaten me.
Kokoa growled through bared teeth while she clenched her fists.
"If you so much as touch him, if you even try to undress him with your eyes, I will beat you into a bloody smear on the ground. Do you hear me?" she shouted out with anger. Sun just looked at her with a dull expression then wrote something down.
If I really wanted to steal Gin away from you I would just charm him into loving me and charm you into jumping into a river. And for the record who can't hear you when you're yelling all the time?
The group looked at the pad cautiously then to Sun while Kokoa fumed with rage. Yukari looked at the pad carefully then showed a puzzled expression.
"Wait, charm her?" she asked. Sun glanced to her and nodded. Ran looked at the pad then to Sun curiously.
"What do you mean charm her, I thought sirens could only charm men," she said confusedly. Sun glanced to her and shook her head then wrote down something else.
I can charm either men or women with my voice; I've done so before to get rid of disruptive guests at the inn I worked at. I never harmed them though, just got them to leave before they caused any trouble. A quick melody into their ear and I would order them to leave and never come back.
The group looked at Sun curiously from that.
"You can charm women with your songs as well?" Ruby asked. Sun nodded before the other girls all looked to each other with wonder. Yukari looked down in thought for a moment then jumped with a gasp.
"That's it… that's it, that's why this guy wants Sun so badly!" she declared looking over to Sun.
"What, what are you talking about Yukari?" Moka asked. Yukari pointed to Sun as the siren had a puzzled expression.
"That's why he's after her; he wants to use her to charm more warriors to follow his command. Just like with Ren, Rin, and Ran, only with Sun she can charm anybody, not just male warriors," Yukari reasoned. The group all looked to Sun as she pointed to herself curiously.
"Oh my, that's right. He used Ran and her sisters to charm legions of followers, he must want Sun so he can obtain even more for his army, ones that they couldn't steal away for him," Ruby said carefully. Ran looked at Sun worriedly then gasped.
"Oh no, if that's true, and if her voice really is so powerful, all her enchantments will be even stronger than our own. She could singlehandedly lead his entire army with all of them under her spell," she said nervously. She jumped then looked around at the others with fright.
"If they're charmed to such a powerful degree, they may be hexed with her voice for the rest of their lives," she said fearfully. Everybody looked at Sun as she had a surprised expression.
"So that's what he wants with her, to expand his army and make them his permanently," Ruby said cautiously. Sun looked down with a stunned expression while Kokoa eyed her carefully.
"He sent so many monsters after her, a dragon even, he wants her badly. Sounds like we know what he wants her for," Kurumu commented.
"He doesn't want three normal sirens to keep his army hexed, he wants one powerful siren," Yukari said pointing to Sun. Moka looked at Sun with caution then down in thought.
'No wonder he gave up on Ran and her sisters.'
'He found a more powerful replacement, one that will ensure complete control over his enslaved army.'
"Well Ms. Sun, it appears Mr. Fang Fang was correct," Apoch said carefully, with everyone looking over to her and Astreal. Sun showed a worried expression while Astreal nodded in agreement.
"You're going to want to stay very close to us from now on, seeing as how you are indeed in need of protection," Astreal reasoned. Sun looked at them with concern then down as all the girls looked at her carefully, everyone now seeing why this particular siren was so sought after by the dark monster. If her voice really was so powerful then she wasn't being sought after to be used as a weapon, she was being sought after to charm every warrior, male or female, that the dark monster wanted, permanently. Complica shook her head then rushed over to Sun, hugging her while her wings fluttered slightly behind her.
"You can't let that monster take Sun away too; he's already taken one of my sisters! Don't let him take her as well!" she cried out. Sun gently held her while looking around at the other girls worriedly.
"We won't Complica, we'll protect her just as we will with you," Moka said gently. Sun looked to her with concern, the vampire nodding assuredly at her.
"I promise Sun, we won't let him take you away," Moka said. Sun nodded slowly then looked down at Complica, the chronofly whimpering while holding onto the siren closely. Kurumu smiled and nodded in agreement.
"She's right, we've dealt with problems like this before, you're as safe as can be around us," she said confidently.
Suddenly a wall in the bathing room exploded violently, shards of ice and debris scattering out and raining down near the girls while dust and frost billowed into the room. They all screamed in surprise before a large shard of solid ice struck down right behind Sun, piercing into the tiles near the bath's edge with a loud crunch. All the girls jumped away from the side of the bath as they stared with wide eyes, shivering as a freezing wind blew into the room.
"What the hell is going on?" Kokoa cried out as she held her arms around her body, lowering herself down deeper into the water to avoid the freezing draft.
"That's it, we're cursed! There's no doubt about it now!" Yukari whined as she shivered wildly. Sun and Complica stared with wide eyes at the shard of ice that nearly crushed Sun then looked over towards the ruined side of the room where snow and debris were strewn about.
"What happened out there?" Ruby called out as she held a hand over her breasts to shield them from the chilled air.
"It's so cold!" Apoch and Astreal cried out as they covered their bodies above the water the best they could. Kurumu whined loudly while holding her arms around her, trying to block the chilled air from washing over her breasts which she could barely cover up.
From the broken hole in the wall Mizore tumbled out into a roll across the floor, the other girls watching with surprise as the snow maiden rolled back onto her feet and whipped an ice katana towards the broken entrance. Another barrage of frozen ice barreled through the hole and annihilated the katana, crashing down towards Mizore who jumped away from the collapsing wave.
"Mizore!" Moka cried out. Mizore regained her footing just as Arial flew out from the broken hole and over the newly formed frozen debris, the snow angel racing towards her target with her claws held out to her sides. Mizore growled then ducked under Arial's swipe, swinging over with her other katana and blocking the furious angel's second claw from razing across her face.
"Arial! Mizore, stop!" Kurumu cried out.
"Are you crazy?" Yukari yelled out
Arial growled furiously then swung around with her claw, the strike being dodged by Mizore who rolled off to the side. A giant explosion of frozen shards and spires shot out past Mizore and crashed through the wall, the volley seeming to have been created out of thin air by the furious snow angel's attack. Mizore swung around with her katana, with Arial darting over to the side as the blade swung down and struck the ground, causing a splashing effect of frozen shards to jettison away from the blade and up into the air before freezing into place.
"Arial stop! What are you doing?" Complica cried out while grabbing her hair with fright.
"Are you serious, you're picking now to do this?" Kokoa yelled out at the two snow girls.
Mizore swung her blade over with a powerful swipe, creating a frozen wave of ice that barreled towards Arial near the wall. Arial growled then struck down with her claw, blasting up ice spires around her wildly, blocking the wave of ice which crashed into them. The ice and snow shattered and blew around wildly while the other girls watched with stunned expressions and shivering violently from the cold.
"Ms. Mizore, stop! Don't hurt her!" Apoch shouted out while shaking her head.
"Are you trying to wipe her from existence?" Astreal cried out in disbelief.
Mizore raced towards Arial with her sword geared back, with Arial screaming out in rage while a torrent of arctic air swirled around her. Mizore ran up and leapt into a downward slice, just missing Arial as the snow angel darted to the side of the furious swing. Almost instantly Mizore then kicked Arial back against the wall, the snow angel smacking against it with a gasp before Mizore ran up and swung down with her blade, the strike just missing Arial again as she rolled off to the side. The powerful swing struck into the wall and demolished it, with ice shards and flurries blasting out from the impact along with wooden debris. Arial growled then swung at Mizore with her claw, the snow maiden reaching out and grabbing Arial's wrist before throwing her through the broken hole in the wall. With a furious yell she followed after while all the girls stared at the sight with stunned expressions.
"Oh… my… god," Ruby said looking around the ravaged bathing room with shock.
"We need to stop them, move!" Moka called out before the girls quickly jumped out of the bath and grabbed their towels.
Arial stumbled to her feet amidst a cloud of frost and dust, coughing as she looked around with narrowed eyes. Suddenly Mizore tackled her to the ground, the snow angel kicking around furiously and screaming while Mizore held her down. Arial swung her claw to the side and knocked away Mizore's katana, the snow maiden growling then grabbing Arial's hand and yanking it down. She geared back with her other fist, encasing it in ice, then swung down and struck Arial across the jaw.
"You need to learn your place right now Arial!" Mizore yelled before she punched Arial again, the snow angel recoiling to the side with a yell. From behind them the other girls ran out through the broken hole, all wearing their white towels around their bodies and gasping as they stared at the sight with wide eyes.
"He's mine! Do you hear me? Dark's mine!" Mizore yelled as she struck Arial again and again, the snow angel kicking around as her other arm flailed at her side. Mizore yelled out with anger and frustration as she punched the girl again, her frozen fist knocking some blood out of Arial's mouth.
"Arial!" Complica shrieked. The other girls watched Mizore mercilessly beat down on Arial with stunned expressions, and then gasped in surprise.
"Mizore? Mizore!" Kokoa cried out as she pointed towards them.
"Stay the hell away from my husband Arial! Stay the hell away from him!" Mizore yelled as she struck Arial again, the snow angel's face bruised with blood dripping from her mouth.
"Mizore, stop! Stop!" Kurumu shouted while shaking her head.
"He's mine you little bitch, he chose me! No way in hell are you going to take that away from me, do you hear me? He's mine!" Mizore yelled with another strike to Arial's face, the snow angel's legs dropping down while her wings twitched behind her.
"Dear god, stop Mizore!" Ruby cried out.
"I've had enough of you coming between me and Dark; I'm through putting up with you Arial! Stay away from my husband you little bitch!" Mizore shouted with another blow to the snow angel's face, blood dropping down onto the floor next to Arial's mouth as she coughed weakly.
"Ms. Mizore! Stop!" Apoch cried out while grabbing her hair.
"Know! Your! Place!" Mizore yelled out with rage, striking Arial again and again and again. With one more swing she struck at Arial's face, knocking more blood out of her bleeding mouth while she groaned weakly on the floor. Her blood was splattered over to the side from her beating while her other hand dropped down, her claws and frozen hair returning to normal as she twitched a bit. Mizore growled heavily with each breath, glaring down at the girl she was sitting on with fury while the other girls stared with shock. Slowly Mizore looked over to the other girls while the dust and frost started to settle around them, all of the girls staring at Mizore with wide eyes.
"Mizore…" Moka breathed out quietly, holding a hand over her mouth.
"The bitch had it coming," Mizore said with anger.
Apoch stared at her with horror, and then slowly glanced over to the side. Mizore looked at her carefully then slowly looked over as well. Her mouth started to quiver as her eyes widened, her body shaking as her hand slowly returned to normal. As the dust and frost settled around them Mizore saw clear as day where she was; inside the other bathing room with all the boys staring at her with surprise. Slowly all eyes turned to Dark, the demon shakily sitting up as he stared at Arial with absolute shock. His mouth was open, his breathing was short, and he slowly pulled off his earbuds, dropping them and the player into the water as his eyes were locked onto his battered angel. With a trembling hand he shakily reached over and grabbed a towel, the boy standing up and covering himself up as he slowly shook his head in disbelief.
"Dark…" Mizore breathed out in horror.
"Ms. Mizore… what have you done?" Apoch said quietly while shaking her head.
Dark slowly walked out of the bath and towards the girls, his eyes locked onto Arial while Mizore started breathing shakily.
"Dark… I… she…" she stuttered out weakly.
"Holy… shit," Rason said quietly as everybody turned to Dark. The shadow demon slowly walked up towards the girls and looked to Mizore with devastation, his normal blank expression having been replaced with heartbroken eyes. Mizore held back her tears and shook her head, slowly getting up and backing up fearfully.
"No… it's not what it looks like Dark…" she said quietly.
"Mizore… how could you?" Dark asked softly, his voice conveying real pain as he looked back down to Arial. He slowly kneeled down and held the snow angel in his arms, her wings and arms limp at her sides while she groaned weakly. Arial slowly looked up to him with weary eyes, blood dripping from her mouth as she started to cry.
"Dark…" she coughed out. Dark held her with trembling arms, looking at his angel with disbelief and sorrow. He slowly shook his head as he gently ran one hand along her hair, brushing a few strands away from her face. Mizore shook her head and took a step towards him, slowly reaching out for him while she struggled to speak.
"Dark, please… it's not-"
"GET AWAY FROM HER!" he roared as he looked up to her with furious eyes. Mizore froze in place, staring at Dark with total shock as her lollipop dropped from her open mouth. Not once had he ever yelled at her, or shown her such anger before. Her heart skipped a beat as she trembled with tears forming in her eyes.
"Arial!" Complica cried out as she ran over to her friend. The other boys quickly grabbed their towels and covered themselves up before getting out of the bath, all of them watching Dark carefully as he was growling at Mizore.
"How DARE you attack her like that!" Dark yelled out. Mizore stared at him as her throat dried up, words failing her as she saw the sheer amount of anger coming from him.
"I… she… but…" she squeaked out.
"Dark, you don't understand, Arial-" Kokoa started before Dark shook his head with anger.
"There is no excuse for attacking her; I can't believe what I just saw. You of all people should know how precious she is to me, and you mercilessly beat her down to an inch of her life in front of me!" he yelled out with fury. Mizore stared at him with wide eyes and an open mouth, her body freezing in place as she tried to form a single word in her defense. Dark shook his head with anger then stood up while holding the angel in his arms. He showed a frustrated expression as he looked at Arial, the girl's arms and wings hanging down limp.
"I'm taking her to the infirmary to get looked over," he said, the concern and anger evident in his voice. He then looked to Mizore as he held Arial close to him.
"I'll deal with you and your actions later Mizore," he said sternly. Mizore just continued to stare at him, rendered speechless as she felt her legs wobble. Dark then ran Arial out of the room quickly, the now unconscious snow angel being held securely in his arms. Complica quickly ran after them, crying out Arial's name with worry. After they left everybody looked over to Mizore, the snow maiden staring at where Dark had vanished with a devastated expression.
"Dark… please…" she breathed out. Slowly she dropped down onto her knees, whimpering while shaking her head.
"What have I done? I… I attacked his guardian angel… right in front of him," she said with tears forming in her eyes. Apoch looked at her with disbelief and shook her head.
"Ms. Mizore… how could you? You nearly wiped Ms. Arial's soul from existence in your anger, attacked her right before Dark's eyes. What were you thinking?" she asked franticly.
"Are you kidding? I'd say Arial had that coming for a while now, she almost killed Mizore yesterday, remember?" Kurumu argued while crossing her arms in discontent. Mizore choked back a sob and shook her head.
"I couldn't take it anymore… I… I couldn't control myself. She wouldn't listen, she wouldn't back off, she just wouldn't let him go, I had to stop her," she said quietly. Moka and Sun walked over to her as the snow maiden looked down with heartbroken eyes.
"I lost my patience with her… I just lost it… and I attacked her with my all. I just wanted her to leave Dark alone; I didn't mean to hurt her so badly… I just wanted her to leave him alone!" she cried out before breaking down into tears, holding her hands to her face as she sobbed. Moka and Sun knelt down on either side of her, both gently holding the girl as she cried out of sorrow.
"Oh god, what have I done?" Mizore cried out as she shook her head. The other girls looked over to the boys, all of them showing worried expressions as well.
"Oh man, what do we do now?" Gin asked looking around at the group.
"I'd say we get dressed first, and then deal with yet another issue before us. I think it goes without saying that bath time is over," Leon said shaking his head.
"Yeah, something tells me this is just the tip of the iceberg for today's problems," Render said looking to Mizore, the snow girl crying softly while holding her hands to her face. Mizore trembled as she felt her heart ache at what she did in front of Dark.
'Dark, please, forgive me.'
Moka and Sun helped Mizore stand back up, the snow girl crying and looking down with closed eyes.
"Let's go Mizore; we'll get you cleaned up as well. Then you're going to have to have to tell Dark the truth about Arial," Moka said softly. Mizore looked to her with fearful eyes and shook her head.
"No, I can't do that to him, it'll destroy him inside. Please, you can't say a word to him about her," she shakily pleaded.
"He needs to know why you nearly beat that angel to death just now, you can't keep covering this up," Moka said shaking her head.
"Moka's right Mizore, Dark needs to know the truth about Arial. It may hurt him, but if you don't come clean about it then you may lose him forever," Ruby said worriedly.
"You don't understand, you don't know how much Arial means to him," Mizore argued while shaking her head.
"Who matters more, Arial or you?" Kurumu asked softly. Mizore looked over to her as the succubus showed a sympathetic expression.
"We all know how much Arial means to him, she's like a perfect angel in his eyes. But if you don't say anything Dark's going to think you really did try to kill her. He loves you frosty, but if you don't give him a reason why you attacked her, then he... he might not want you to be his wife anymore," she said with remorse. Mizore looked at her with sorrowful eyes then down, fearing that she may never get to wear that ring again as things stood now.
"It's going to kill him inside to know the truth," Apoch said worriedly.
"If he isn't told the truth then he may leave Mizore altogether, he needs to know what Arial is really like," Ruby reasoned. Moka sighed and shook her head.
"Either you tell him yourself, or we will Mizore. This can't go on, he needs to know and somebody needs to put an end to this obsession of Arial's. One way or another, it has to stop," she said with exasperation. Mizore looked at her with worried eyes then towards the doorway.
"But… I…" she said softly. The others watched her worriedly as she looked down with closed eyes.
"Alright, I'll… tell him the truth. Just please, none of you say a word about it until then, hopefully hearing it from me… won't be as painful to him," she said softly. The others nodded as Mizore shook her head slowly.
"There's no way I can resolve this without hurting him, is there?" she asked before looking to Moka. The vampire glanced to the doorway then back to her with a remorseful expression.
"I'm sorry, but it's either he finds out the truth about Arial, or he hates you for attacking his guardian angel. Either way, he's going to be hurting inside, there's no avoiding it now. Tell him the truth; let him know why you fought back against her and what really happened yesterday. If anybody can stop Arial's crusade for his heart, it's him," Moka said hopefully. Mizore nodded then looked towards the doorway again with worried eyes.
"We'll go get changed and meet up with you girls outside when you're ready," Rason said while looking down while rubbing the back of his head. The group nodded and started to slowly disperse, with the girls walking back through the broken wall towards their bathing room to go get changed while the boys started to walk out of theirs. As they did Ahakon walked over to the bath and looked down at the water.
"Never a dull moment," he said quietly to himself as he waved his hand to the side, causing a rippling wave of water to roll away from him with his magic. He watched the ripples and reflected light dance around the bath before they calmed down, with the water's reflection then showing Ran standing next to him. He looked up to see her watching him curiously.
"Ran?" he asked. The siren glanced around, seeing nobody else was in the room now, then back to Ahakon with a careful eye.
"Ahakon… were you… were you in my room last night?" she asked curiously. Ahakon looked at her for a moment then jumped a bit while waving his hands around in front of him.
"What? No no, you were just dreaming about me, really," he pleaded quickly. Ran looked at him with a raised eyebrow. Ahakon stammered something while shaking his head.
"No, no I wasn't, that… you… um…" he said nervously. Ran looked at him with wonder then gently held a hand to her lips.
"That kiss… it was real, you really were in my room last night, weren't you?" she asked. Ahakon looked around quickly then back to the siren. After a pause he sighed and looked down while nodding.
"Yes, I was," he said softly. Ran stared at him with amazement as he looked back up to her.
"I'm sorry, I overheard you calling out my name, so I thought you were awake and I came into your room. But you were just dreaming, talking in your sleep. I was going to leave before you woke up, and Yukari was out in the hall, I didn't want you freaking out and causing scene, so… I panicked," he said with remorse. Ran looked at the mage with wonder then glanced down to her hands as she kept them over her chest.
"Then… why did you hold me down… so forcibly?" she asked with a small blush forming.
"I didn't want Yukari finding out I was in there and getting the wrong idea. You were going to scream and cause a scene, so… I had to… stop you. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you like that, I was just concerned when I heard you calling out my name," he explained with remorse. Ran showed a curious expression then looked down with gentle eyes.
"Then what you said to me… about us… that wasn't my imagination, it was real," she said quietly. Ahakon nodded and looked at her with a sympathetic expression.
"I'm sorry Ran. I do care about you, but I'm with Yukari, and you need to understand that that's how it needs to stay," he said gently. Ran turned to face him, slowly kneeling down and looking at him with watery eyes behind her glasses. Ahakon looked down with closed eyes and shook his head.
"Please don't cry Ran," he said quietly. Ran looked at him with saddened eyes for a moment then glanced over behind him. After a pause she looked back to Ahakon curiously.
"Ahakon, can you at least tell me one thing? Honestly?" she asked softly. Ahakon looked back to her as she showed a longing gaze while looking into his eyes.
"When you kissed me last night, did it at least feel good for you?" she asked hopefully. Ahakon stuttered something as she tilted her head.
"It felt so magical for me, but… was it at least enjoyable for you? I wasn't horrible with it, was I?" she asked worriedly, slowly wiping a tear away from her eye. Ahakon hesitated then slowly shook his head with a sympathetic smile.
"It wasn't bad, you're not a horrible kisser," he said gently.
"WHAT?" Yukari cried out from behind. Ahakon looked over to see Yukari staring at him with shock and tears forming in her eyes.
"You… you kissed her last night?" she cried out while shaking her head.
"Yukari! What? No, wait, I can explain!" Ahakon said while waving his hands around in front of him. Ran looked at him innocently then down as she glanced away.
"Ahakon…" Yukari said shakily as she started to break down, holding her hands close to her chest as she shook her head.
"Yukari, it's not what it sounds like, I can explain," Ahakon pleaded urgently.
"How could you, how could you Ahakon? Is that what you were doing when I found you walking around last night, were you sneaking into her room to make out with her?" Yukari accused while starting to cry.
"No!" Ahakon cried out.
"Yes," Ran said softly, with both Ahakon and Yukari looking to her with surprise.
"Ran!" Ahakon shouted out. Ran looked at him with a timid expression.
"But you did, you came into my room and held me down, then you kissed me, you even admitted it," she reasoned softly.
"You did WHAT?" Yukari cried out with shock. Ahakon looked back to her and shook his head while stammering something incoherently.
"How could you Ahakon, how could you sneak around behind my back with her?" Yukari yelled out while shaking her head. She growled furiously then looked at Ahakon with frustration and tears in her eyes, slowly holding up her wand as it glowed softly.
"Yukari, wait, it's not what it sounds like, honest!" Ahakon pleaded again.
"You… you… YOU JERK!" Yukari yelled out as she held her wand up high.
BANG!
Ahakon dropped down with a thud from a golden washtub hitting him on the head, the boy and basin collapsing down onto the floor as Ran looked at him with worry. Yukari screamed and then ran off, her crying echoing out slightly before vanishing. Ahakon groaned as he started to sit up, holding a hand to his head as he wearily looked over to where his girlfriend had ran off.
"Yukari, wait!" he called out weakly. He started to get up before Ran grabbed hold and pulled him closer from behind. He looked back to seeing her watching him worriedly while holding him close, his head resting against her chest as she slowly shook her head.
"Ran, what are you doing, I need to go after her!" he cried out.
"Why? So she can just hit you on the head again with her magic? So she can feed you more horrible and disgusting meals that could possibly kill you? She doesn't love you like I do Ahakon; she couldn't possibly love you more than I. You're everything to me, my hero and so much more. Please, stay with me," she pleaded while holding him from around his chest.
"Stop this Ran, I need to talk to her, I need to explain what really happened," Ahakon said as he struggled to get free.
"No! I love you Ahakon! I love you!" Ran cried out desperately while holding him close, shaking her head as she whimpered while her body trembled. Ahakon tried to break free still, his thrashing becoming slower and weaker as he closed his eyes while looking down with a strained expression. His girlfriend had run off heartbroken, the cries of the siren holding him were all that he could hear, and this was just the start of the day for him.
He knew it was only going to get worse.