Nashi found herself squashed towards the back end of the guild hall with everyone else, watching as her parents and Levy fiddled with the book. More guild members had joined them since, filling up the guild hall. All of them watched with baited breath, not knowing what to do.

"I'm just saying Lu," Levy said, "undoing all the enchants on the book will take a while."

"How long, do you think?"

"It would help if Natsu could tell us what exactly he did," Levy replied. "How many spells did you seal this thing with?"

"As many as possible," her father replied. He looked irritated by the state of affairs they found themselves in. "I didn't keep track." Levy also looked annoyed by this, but didn't argue. As the pair inspected the book, Nashi watched Azzie push through the crowd.

"Um," she said, "I think I could help you out."

"Azzie?" Her mother asked, "can you?"

"Well, I use Dispelling Magic, so if I'm careful I can cancel out all the books protections so you can open it."

"You can be that precise?" Levy asked, "if you aren't careful, you might dispel the book's power."

"I know what I'm doing," Azzie reaffirmed. Nashi couldn't recall the last time she'd seen the girl look so determined. "I can't help in the fight with the Demon Lords, so please, let me help you now." Her mother smiled gently and nodded, Azzie moving forward. Once she got there, she raised a hand towards the book and closed her eyes. After only a few seconds, the purple-haired girl stumbled backwards and held her forehead.

"Azzie?" Levy asked, "what's wrong?"

"I..." Azzie started weakly. "Good Lord. N-Natsu, how many years did you spend on that book?" Nashi's father shrugged.

"Want the honest answer?" He asked.

"Of course!" Her father scowled.

"Ten of the years I spent were on the book," he said. This caused eyes to widen. "I travelled the width and breadth of this continent, finding mages to help me seal the book. I had them add measures and counter-measures. Safety switches and double guards. I never wanted to see this thing again."

"I can tell," Azzie replied, raising her hand again. "In only those few seconds, I detected several false enchantments that trigger backdoor explosion runes. Hair-trigger spells that sense even a molecule of dispelling magic and activate a spell of siphoning. This is going to take longer than I thought."

"How long?" Nashi's mother asked. Azzie frowned as she though.

"Hour or more," she answered. "I need to sense all the spells and work through all of them, one at a time. This is dangerous work."

"Well," Her father said as he got up. He walked towards her and placed a hand on her head, ruffling her hair. "We're counting on you, Azzie. Get us back into that book."

Azzie looked surprised at his show of confidence. She nodded.

"I will," she affirmed.

Azzie had already been working for twenty minutes, and it was already taking a lot out of her. Chelia and Wendy were working together to keep the girls magic flow constant, ensuring she didn't fail in the middle of an important spell. Everyone else, now left with nothing to do but wait, loitered around the spoke in hushed whispers. No one got loud for Azzie's sake. Again, breaking her concentration could be lethal.

Nashi, for her part, was sitting with her mother. They retired to one of the nearby tables to watch, regarding Azzie's work with admirable eyes.

"It's a good thing we had Azzie here," Her mother said as Luke slept in her arms. "Otherwise opening the book could have taken days. Weeks, even."

"How were you planning on dispelling it?" Nashi asked curiously.

"Levy's word magic can alter runes and spells," Her mother replied, "And Freed could have been called in to help as well. It would have been harder, but doable." Nashi nodded quietly, looking back at her friend.

"It's lucky we found her," she said.

"We didn't find her, " her mother said. Nashi looked towards her, seeing a smile on her mother's face. "I'm sure she was sent to us on purpose."

"By who?" Nashi asked.

"I don't believe for a second Anhkseram spent the last ten thousand years just watching," Her mother replied as she looked at her. "I bet he's been quietly pushing things in the right direction, gathering people who could stand against Zomrus. Don't you think?"

Now that Nashi thought about it, it actually made a lot of sense. She realised as she looked around the guild hall just how many specialists she had helping her. They had both God and Devil Slayers, with magic specifically created to fight Zomrus. They had people with holy magic properties like Sting and Michael, who could counteract that evil.

She was surrounded by some of the most uniquely skilled mages of the age, all conveniently under one roof and working together.

"I think you're right," Nashi said, her head buzzing as she recalled Anhkseram's smile. "He brought us all together. He hasn't directly intervened, but he's done enough to make sure we could do this."

"He did believe in human strength, after all," her mother agreed. "He believes in us." Nashi let out a small chuckle.

"We weren't particularly religious before this," she noted. Her mother laughed as well.

"I suppose having it confirmed to you that a higher power exists and is actually helping makes it all the more real, huh?"

"It does. I feel bad now that I've never prayed and thanked them."

"Save your prayers. I'm sure you'll need them soon enough." The happiness died away, and Nashi frowned.

"I think you're right about that."

Katsuchi watched Azzie as she worked, a part of him hoping it'd never work and they could cancel this mission.

But he knew her better than that. It would work, and then they'd be sent to almost certain death.

"I'm glad she gets to contribute to this fight in at least some way," Tetsu said from beside him. "I'd have felt bad if it was only us helping out."

"I feel better knowing she's staying here," Katsuchi told him. The man nodded quietly.

"I am too," he said.

"Did you tell Takara you're going?"

"No, not yet. But she'll be in soon, and I'll tell her then." Katsuchi frowned.

"She's not going to like it," he said.

"No, really?" Tetsu asked as he raised an eyebrow at him. "I thought my long lost sister would be fine with letting me run off to my death. Thanks for the heads up, bro. I appreciate it."

"Shut up," Katsuchi said, pushing him. "You know what I meant. Just get ready for her to be emotional."

"Yeah yeah," Tetsu said. "I just hope she doesn't fight me too hard."

"She will," he replied, "she was in Tartarus, man. The last thing she'd want is for you to wander off and get tangled up in that mess." Both of them were quiet for a moment before Katsuchi sighed.

"We'll have to face Vantros, you know." He said. Tetsu grunted.

"I know," he answered.

Vantros, the Demon Lord that Taisho had been connected to, was no stranger to either of them. It was his power that had been injected in them to try and create some sort of super soldier. Katsuchi stared down at his open palm, an uneasy feeling coming over him. What if going to the Twelve Circles caused those powers to awaken and they did something horrible? What if they sided with the Demon Lords, or Taisho could control them? He had no time to concern himself over it. They needed God Slayers on their side, and that was what they'd get. Katsuchi would rather die before he sided against the people that gave him a chance at life again.

"Tetsu!" A voice said, "Katsuchi!" Looking up, he saw Takara and Jason jogging up to them, giving Azzie and the book of END a wide berth.

"Morning," he greeted as the two reached them. "Sleep well?"

"Barely," Jason replied, "Is today the day?"

"As long as Azzie can open that book," Tetsu replied, "yeah."

"What is that book?" Takara asked. Katsuchi wondered how best to explain it.

"It's the seal for Natsu's powers," he said. "Unsealing him is our best bet." Takara still seemed lost, but she nodded all the same. Katsuchi spared Tetsu a glance, who looked uncomfortable but nodded back at him.

"Taka," Tetsu said, "I need to tell you, Kat and I are going to fight." Takara didn't reply right away, and Katsuchi waited for her to argue. She let out a sigh.

"I was worried you'd say that," she said. Turning back to them, he noticed she had a sad smile on her face. "Is there anything I can say to convince you not too?"

"No," Tetsu answered honestly, "They need our power, and we'll lend it. That's all there is too it." Takara nodded sadly, looking down at her feet.

"I wish we didn't have to do this," she said quietly, "but I'm not so selfish as to ask you to let the others down. Just please be careful."

"Of course," Katsuchi answered, "we're always careful."

"That's horrifying," she answered, making him snort. Takara walked over to Tetsu and sat next to him, wrapping an arm around him. "Just please be careful," she said, "I don't want to lose you again, baby brother."

"You won't," Tetsu said, "I promise." He squeezed her close, and Katsuchi felt a pang on of jealously. It wasn't their faults he didn't know his own blood family, or if they were even still alive, but he still wished he knew them all the same.

"Tetsu," Jason said, "Katsuchi, I have a favour to ask of you." Turning back to the other blonde, Katsuchi noticed he looked upset.

'What is it?' he asked. Jason swallowed hard and balled his fists.

"I don't know what's going to go down when you face the Demon Lords," he said, "but I can bet Hades and the Children will be involved. If...If you see my sister, and things are going South...I want you to kill her."

Katsuchi's eyes widened.

"Jason?" Takara asked worriedly.

"I've already thought this over," Jason replied weakly, looking ready to cry. "I've wanted to avenge my sister for so long, and then I found out she was alive...But she's barely a fraction of who she was. I don't know if it's possible to get her back. If things go wrong, and there's no way to win, I want you both to promise me you won't let Hades have her. Kill her, and let her rest." Katsuchi spared a glance at Tetsu, who shrugged.

"Are you sure about this, Jason?" He asked carefully. "There's no room for error or forgiveness anymore."

"I know," he said, "I know. But I'd rather she be dead than let Hades run her around like a puppet. If you have too, if there's no way to free her, I'm begging you. Kill her." Katsuchi frowned and watched him for a moment, before steeling himself and nodding.

"Okay," he said. "I'll do it. If we cross paths, I'll see if she's savable. And if not...Well, I'll do as you asked." Jason almost seemed upset that he'd agreed, but swallowed hard and nodded.

"Thank you," he said. "I hope you don't have too, but...Thank you." Jason outstretched his hand, and Katsuchi grabbed it. They shook on the agreement, and Katsuchi felt a weight fall onto his shoulders. He really hoped he didn't have to fill the poor girl, but, now he'd promised.

"Don't thank me yet," he said. "Thank me once we either save Sarah or kill Apate."

Azzie's dispelling of the enchants took the rest of the day, after dinner and into the darkness. Nashi was impressed that the girl never once lost her composure, but she didn't. The food eaten was scarce, as the longer it took the more antsy people got. Nashi found herself bouncing her leg up and down as she watched, hoping nothing went wrong. The others were spread around her, doing anything to distract themselves from the task at hand.

After hours and hours working at it, Azzie finally collapsed backwards. She was caught by Tetsu, who helped her sit down in a chair nearby.

"Is it down?" Her father asked. Azzie gasped for air but eventually nodded, wiping at her forehead.

"It's ready," she said. "I dispelled every enchantment protecting the book. You can open it now."

"Azzie," Simon said, "that was incredible. How many spells did you undo?" Azzie made a face as Katsuchi handed her a bottle of water.

"Every single enchant had a backdoor alarm spell and several would've reset the entire job had I stopped," she replied. "I had to go all the way back to the second spell set on it, or else I would've blown up. You did a lot of work on that thing, Natsu."

"I wanted to make sure," he answered simply.

"As for the number..." Azzie trailed off as she gulped down the entire bottle. Once she was done, she gasped for air again and said, "around 22,000 spells."

"22,000?!" Elise demanded, "holy shit."

"Like I said," Nashi's father replied. "I wanted to make sure. Now, everyone back up towards the bar. Lucy, Levy, it's time." Nashi watched as her mother set Luke down with Juvia and walked forwards with Levy, everyone else backing up towards the bar. Once they reached them, Gray set up a wall of ice in front of them. Nashi watched in anticipation as her father handed the book to Levy, who gulped and pulled out her Word Magic pen.

"Let me be clear," Levy said, "last time we rewrote the book, I made it so it released END's magic on whoever opened it. Lucy and I need to rewrite that as soon as possible to channel all that magic back into Natsu. Gray, keep that shield up okay?"

"I've got it," Gray replied.

"I'll help," Ultear said, moving to stand next to her Dad, "we'll need all the Devil Slayer Magic we can have." Gray nodded, and Ultear worked to reinforce the ice wall protecting them.

"Ready?" Levy asked her parents. both of them nodded, and with a single deep breathe, Levy opened the book.

Nashi was nearly blown backwards even through the ice wall as magic power erupted from the book, dark evil flames swirling around the guild hall as they threatened to burn everything down. She recognised the feel of the power, but it was different. Her own END's powers were controlled, protective; her father's threatened to burn and destroy everything they touched. The tables and furniture not protect melted in an instant into goo on the floor, and then the floor started to go as well.

Then the wall began to go as well.

Without a word, Sting and Michael went forward and sent out a sheet of holy magic. Nashi watched as the dark flames recoiled in irritation at the sheet. Clearly her fathers flames weren't a fan of holy magic.

In between all of this, she saw her own mother and Levy working like maniacs. Words circled them as the letters changed and altered position, the book of END pulsing like a heart. Her father stood nearby, his fists clenched at his sides, and a vein popping on his forehead.

And then, the flames roared.

She watched as the flames began to circle themselves, gathering into an orb in the center of the guild hall. Then, once it reached the size of an egg, she watched as it flew towards her father and into his chest. He let out a roar and collapsed to his knees, the dark flame consuming him. Nashi wanted to run to his side, but was kept in place by the knowledge that this would destroy them all if it failed. Levy and her mother continued to work, flipping the books pages and rewriting what needed to change.

After an agonising time minutes, something changed.

The flames around her father began to dissipate, going deeper inside of him rather than expanding outwards. He gained a dark glow around his figure as he got to one knee, his teeth grinding so loud she could hear it from across the hall.

After a few more seconds, the book of END leapt from Levy's hands and onto the ground, it's pages flipping backwards like a gust was blowing on it. It closed completely, it's cover facing upwards. Then, her father's glow disappeared, and he exhaled loudly it relief. After a few tentative seconds, Gray and Ultear lowered their ice wall, and Sting and Michael lowered theirs as well. There was silence in the guild hall as everyone waited for someone else to speak, for good or bad.

"It's done," Levy said, sweat dropping down her forehead. "We transferred all of END's sealed powers back to Natsu and gave him total control of it. He's...Well, he's exactly what we need now." Nashi looked at her father for confirmation, watching as he got to his feet. He took a deep breath and exhaled, opening his eyes. They were the same they had been, but she sensed an enormous strength behind them now.

It took her until this moment to realise her father had been weakened all this time. His true strength, given to him by Zeref, had been sealed into the book. And now it was back, and so was he. He looked down at his hand, almost looked angry at himself.

"I never wanted to feel this power again," he said, "but if I need it to protect my family, I'll use it on anyone." He looked towards her and nodded, making her smile weakly. He then turned to Damien, who was still gripping the Staff of Anhkseram in his hands. "Damien, are we ready to go?" The white-haired man looked surprised that he'd been called on, but he gulped and raised the staff.

"I think so," he said. "If we're ready to go, that is." No one objected, all eyes on him. Damien nodded solemnly, raising the staff in his hands.

And it leapt from his hands immediately. Everyone watching it soar through the air into the center of the guild hall, and began ticking like a clock's hands. Once it reached a horizontal position, a white gateway sprung from it's edges. Nashi couldn't identify anything beyond the portal, so they all looked towards Damien.

"He spoke to me," Damien said weakly, eyes glassy. "He said we have to go somewhere else. Somewhere more spiritually charged. The staff is leading the way."

Everyone exchanged nervous glances, realising the time was finally upon them. After some nervous chattering, Nashi watched her father walk to stand in front of them.

"This is it," he said, silencing them. "This is the battle that decides whether or not the God of Death wakes up. None of you are here by force, so I'll give you one more chance to back out. No one would blame you."

No one moved, making him smile.

"Ten thousand years have led to this moment," he said. "We're who Anhkseram has placed his faith in. Let's show him he didn't misplace it. It's time to finish the story we started so long ago. It's time to defeat Hades and the Demon Lords!"

A roar of approval came from everyone, but Nashi stayed silent. It dawned on her again just what exactly lay on the other side of this portal.

"Let's hope you were, right, Anhkseram." she whispered to herself.

You know, it's times like these I wish I hadn't put up that arc list years ago. I mean, I could've baited you all into thinking this was the last arc, you know? How funny would that have been? Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed, leave a review! Let's try and get five!