MADNESS VS MADNESS

4 months, 2 weeks after Asura

It all made sense after Rudra explained things to her.

When the weapon had come to her asking forgiveness, she told Maka everything. From the beginning, they had come to Death City for the sole purpose of turning Maka into a kishin. They eventually teamed up with Justin Law, who had hidden his descent into madness, and Mosquito. After Maka had lost her grip on sanity, they set their sights on Soul when they realized her soul type wasn't compatible.

Rudra had apologized profusely for her actions and her misguided nature.

Maka wasn't alright with how things had ended up, and that certainly didn't mean that she was going to become complacent in this maddened state. No, instead Maka had delved deep inside of herself, twisting the madness in a way that could benefit her. She would fight every person she thought she saw, and she had learned most of their moves.

She often saw Soul, and as such, they fought every time. She was ruthless against him, because it was only an illusion. She had beaten him with books once, and another time she had kicked him so hard he turned into Spirit. But one thing nagged her; would she be able to fight him when it came down to it?

That was one thing she couldn't get over; Soul being enemy number one. Rudra told her that he had eaten a human soul, but she refused to entertain the thought of it. He wasn't that kind of person. Soul would always be there for her, he was the one person she could safely rely on. He wouldn't hurt another person unless he had a reason to.

Maybe that's why Rudra showed up to free her from the dungeon; Maka had lost Soul, and Rudra had lost Agni. In different ways, they felt the same pains. She wasn't sure at first, if the weapon was real - but there was a static-y quality to real life people. It was just her mind that stitched madness into the seams of her eyes.

"Maka, it's time. I need your help now, we have to go back up the others." Rudra held out her hand and Maka hesitantly took it; when her skin touched Rudra's, the noise subsided. The crawling eyes vanished, the gnawing at the back of her head was numbed. Her thoughts slowly started filling her head, and she looked around with fresh eyes. The air felt light around her, and the ground was sturdy beneath her feet. Reality felt like a dream now.

Rudra felt a surge of power rush through her when she took Maka's hand; this is what it should have felt like when she resonated with Soul. In fact, she hadn't felt this strong in almost 800 years. Parts of her felt stronger than they ever had before. A smile made its way to her face. She felt daring.

"Hey, Maka. Think we could do a little teleportation?"

"Wha? There's no way a weapon could do that. Death scythes can't even do that."

"I used to be able to do it, back then. I think I could muster up the power for it, but only if you're game."

"We don't have time to waste. If it gets us there faster, then do it." Rudra nodded at Maka, admiring her leadership; when this was all over, she might consider switching from Black*Star to Maka as her new meister. She took Maka's other hand and they both closed their eyes, trying to find each other's wavelengths. Since Maka had a much smaller soul, it was easier for her to sync up with Rudra's bound soul. The weapon knew that she probably wouldn't survive the amount of power that came with her unbound wavelength.

She pictured it clearly in her mind; the island base she had seen pictures of, on a map. A heavy wind set over them, and they disappeared from Maka's cell.

They fell a few feet from the ground; Maka landed on her feet, and Rudra landed on her ass. The weapon stood up and brushed herself off, and they looked around - they were in the middle of the woods; it smelled like sulfur, it was hot, and it was wet out. Maka felt very drained, Rudra feeling winded as well. It had been so long since she had used that skill, she was surprised it worked at all.

"I can't believe it didn't work. Actually, yes, I can!" Maka yelled angrily, smacking a branch out of her way as they trekked through the foliage. Said branch then proceeded to hit Rudra in the face. The weapon grimaced, irritated with Maka's shrieking.

"We're on the right island. And be quiet, or they'll hear us and we'll lose the element of surprise." The wind blade cut away a few branches as they continued towards the interior of the island.

"I'm afraid you already have." Rudra's face contorted with rage; she hated this guy more than any of her prior allies. Justin Law, the former death scythe, had chosen to reveal himself. She was well aware that he was probably more powerful than Maka, and there was also a good chance he could take her on as well. Out of everyone, she had hoped to encounter anyone but him. He was good at combat, and since he had no meister to rely on, it made it easier for him to form strategies and execute them. His appearance meant that they would have to engage him, and-

"Let me take him. You go find Crona." Maka's eyes were narrowed and her mouth a thin line; she was emitting pure anger. Justin had been her mentor. He was the one who came up with the plan in the first place - and he set Soul up to be the one to do it. He had cursed her with madness, and then he took Soul. He had hurt her more than Agni and Rudra ever did. He made a complete fool out of her.

Rudra had half a mind to argue; this guy was a death scythe, after all. He was probably much more powerful than he let on, but Maka was making her nervous. Even if she said no, she wouldn't back down from this.

"I don't know what'll happen to you if our resonance breaks. You could go mad again."

"Fine, so I'll come find you when we're done here." Justin Law was beginning to approach them, a blade protruding from one of his arms. Maka forced blades to come out of her back and forearms, and she saw the madness-soaked grin he had plastered on his face. So, they would both be out of their minds for this fight? Even better. Rudra's hand was gone, and the cold air soon turned into a searing pain that crept up her veins and through her body. She opened her mouth in a silent scream, and Justin aimed a swipe at her throat.

Her arm came up to parry his attack, her face shadowed by her loose hair. Her shoulders began to shake and she lifted her head, revealing a similar grin to his own.

Maka leapt at him, blades shooting from her elbows as she brought them down on him, though he blocked with his own blade. He pushed her back hard, and her deft hands wrapped around a tree branch. She swung around and let go, launching her transformed foot at his face. It hit a moment too soon, her boot hitting his lip. He bent his neck and allowed her to transform over his head, while his arms circled her torso and threw her violently into the ground.

She coughed and he was on her in an instant, punching her in the stomach and in the face. Maka gained her bearings back after a minute and swung her legs up, kicking him in the head. She rolled away from him and hopped back up, wiping the black blood away from her forehead. They were both still grinning at each other, and they were both beginning to circle one another. His earbuds were still in, and Maka could hear the music coming from them. She wondered how he could focus like that.

She lashed out at him, her blade licking his left shoulder as he dodged. He got in close and used his Silver Gun technique, nearly cutting her in half. She brought her elbow down on his head, and he watched as black blood stitched her wound shut. He was pierced a few times by the bloody needles she summoned, but he jumped back to regroup.

They were both swimming in their own madness, unsure of how the fight was actually going; Maka's blades only came out half the time, and Justin's accuracy and mercilessness were suffering from his time spent around Soul and Agni. He wasn't even sure if he was still fighting Maka anymore.

He noticed her eyes dart somewhere to the left, and took this moment to swoop in; two blades came from his arms and he struck her once, then twice; his signature Saint Cross Knife. Maka took the brunt of the attack, screaming from the pain. The black blood could only protect her from so much. He had taken out his headphones in anticipation for her scream, and sighed dreamily.

"What a wonderful sound. I relish the chance to hear real music."

Maka's screams turned to laughter, and her body began flopping against the ground like a fish. She jumped up quickly and brought her cupped hand to his ear harshly; he was knocked onto the ground and he couldn't find his balance. She was on him in an instant, scratching and hitting his face while laughing still.

"Why did you do it!" She said between gasps for breath; there were tears coming down her face, but she was still smiling, still laughing as she beat him. He gained his senses back after fighting the nausea, and with a hard punch in the side, he broke two of her ribs. She rolled off of him and he scrambled to get away; his face hurt, and his nose was broken.

But her question was amusing; her desperation was even better. He chuckled deeply, which soon turned to a roar. She was still on the ground, clutching her side painfully. He looked down at her and she got to her feet quickly, anticipating his attack. She blocked it with her blades, but he wasn't letting up.

"Why did I do it? Why did I destroy your lives? Because the world needed a revolution that only chaos could bring." Her leg shot up and kicked him in the chin, but that did nothing to ease the pressure. Without an option, Maka headbutted Justin with enough ferocity to draw blood and to make him draw back. This had to end soon. Maka felt like this battle had lasted hours; all concept of time was lost on her now. But his answer made her feel a deep anger rise to the surface of her soul and it bubbled over; Maka let out a snarl and began to relentlessly bring her blades down on him. He blocked the barrage, wondering what she planned to accomplish by mindlessly bearing down on him. Her stamina wasn't that high, her soul wasn't as big as his.

She was angry that he had the choice of ruining her life, and that he had chosen it. He had warped Soul into a kishin, and he was going to destroy the world. Her arms transformed from blades to fists and she brought one down on his head, taking him by surprise. He punched her in her hip, hurting his knuckles. She drew back once more.

Maka had killed Asura, and she wasn't this strong when she did it. She was strong; maybe not stronger than him, but if she put her mind to it, she would be able to defeat him. He didn't want to underestimate her; he had trained her, and he knew most of her moves. Even if they were sporadic, she still only knew one way to fight; with risk, and an over-dependence on luck.

In his analysis of her, Maka found an opening. She rammed her blade into his side, piercing the soft flesh under his rib cage. He grunted in pain, bringing his leg up to kick her. She ducked under the delayed movement and swept his feet out from under him. Thinking quickly, he transformed his leg into a neck shackle guard, and clipped it around her neck. He pulled her head down and he landed on her, possibly breaking her nose under weight. He jumped off of her and before she could get up, he kicked her in the stomach. He was sure he had agitated his earlier wound, because she made a choking noise.

Bloody needles rose to pierce him, but he swiftly dodged it; he had gotten used to her usage of them. He leaned down and pulled her up by her hair before letting go and punching her into the dirt. He stepped on the back of her head and ground her face into the Earth.

He looked down on her for a few moments, preparing to kill her with his Silver Gun, only for her to cut off his legs. He came crashing to the ground, his gun misfiring and cutting the trees behind her. How could he have not seen this coming? How had she taken him so off-guard? All of these questions ran through his head as his stumps hit the ground, crushing leaves and dirt into his exposed tissues. He screamed, and as he landed on his back, Maka delivered an axe-kick to his chest with a transformed leg. He was cut in half; his body disappeared and only a kishin egg was left behind.

That awful grin had imprinted itself in her mind; there was a dull sense of surprise, as she hadn't expected to defeat him. He was out of her league, in skill and power. He had been fighting longer, and he had come into great power long before she had. Perhaps it was the madness that wore at his mind, or maybe she really had caught him off-guard.

She fell back as well, staring at the red soul. What was she supposed to do now? The trees warped into a swamp, and Medusa was pacing in front of her and the soul. Maka considered trying to eat it; but there was no way she could open her mouth that wide. Her eyes flickered up to the witch that constantly pestered her mindscape, wondering why she had to appear at strange times like these.

Why was Medusa even in her mind? How could she go wherever she wanted to. Even when Maka was buried deep inside of her madness, Medusa still wriggled her way through to tease and poke at the meister.

"Well, what will you do with that soul?" Medusa stroked the soul with her foot, and Maka made a face of disgust at the lack of disrespect the witch showed for the dead. Then again, Medusa had never been respectful in life. She posed a good question; what would she do with it? She was a meister, but now that she had activated her weapon form, could she take in souls? And if she could, would it make her madness worse? If she gave it to Medusa, would the witch come back to life?

Maka slowly wrapped her arms around it and it absorbed into her. She could feel anger spread through her, and a little more madness. After a few minutes, the soul purified inside of her. She felt stronger than she did before. Is this what Soul felt like after eating a soul? Her chest and arms were warm and tingling from touching the soul.

Medusa laughed at Maka's reaction, and she squatted down in front of the meister. Her snake-like eyes peered into her own before narrowing a bit. While Medusa was little more than a memory, she could still feel enjoyment and she felt it the most when she tormented Maka with big questions.

"So, are you going to go meet up with Rudra?"

Medusa never recommended good ideas. She always had a way of suggesting things that made them seem okay - but Maka always knew that Medusa wasn't the person to listen to while she was compromised. If she met up with Rudra, she would have to fight Soul. Could she do to Soul what she did to Justin?

He would want her to save him. To kill the kishin in him, to destroy something that threatened the entire world. He would do the same for her. But something made her soul squirm inside of her flesh. The thought of ripping Soul in half was absolutely gut-wrenching. She could never fathom bringing him true pain.

She recalled their fight with Crona, what seemed like so long ago. She had been broken up over that for weeks; he was hurting because she wasn't strong enough. This feeling was familiar. That disappointing feeling wormed its way into her chest, and she wanted to cry. Maka wasn't strong enough to kill Soul. She wasn't strong enough to go and help her friends.

She would just quietly disappear and live the rest of her days in madness.