Chapter 5 - Deals in the Dark

Fenrir Far East Branch, Scathach's Room - God Eater World - Immediately after the end of the previous chapter

(Scathach's P.O.V)

I stare at the smirking veteran Contractor as I slowly move to take a seat on my bed itself while keeping eye contact with Xigbar. It is a tense silence before Xigbar finally chuckles and soon says..

"What's the matter, too tired to hear what I have to say Scathach?" The sole eye of Xigbar gazing at me as I remain silent and guarded, soon though he just shrugs, and then while staring at the room he suddenly makes a move that I was not expecting..

Xigbar suddenly summons the No Named Keyblade that made Master Xehanort from the Kingdom Hearts series so infamous before he simply says.. "Stopza…". A sudden wave of time-magic ripples through the room as I immediately have my lances in my hands and ready for a fight.

Strangely it's almost as if the entire Fenrir branch is covered in a time bubble, the only reason the time magic didn't affect me is because of my Paradox and Destiny Defences. Xigbar smirks before letting the No Name Keyblade fade from his grasp and soon says..

"Now that we don't have to worry about anyone suddenly coming in and interrupting us, will you do me the honors and put away your lances, I am quite certain you don't wanna tussle with me right now.." While his tone is quite friendly and amicable, I can tell that he is more than prepared to fight me if needed.

I ultimately sigh and put my lances away, seeing the one-eyed contractor sigh in relief strangely and soon he says.. "Good call Kiddo, now let's get down to business at last.." while leaning forward, gazing at me intently with his sole yellow eye.

He suddenly reaches into his own pocket space and retrieves a slip of paper and puts it on the coffee table in front of the couch he's sitting on, before gesturing me to take a look. While wary of any sudden moves, I pick it up and my eyes widen at what's on it..

"You can't be serious, I have barely started this world and you want me to drop everything to go to a new one?!" I can't help but say in disbelief, the paper was a printout of the Waifu Catalog Mission [ Kill The Unfairness ], a mission that would boot me to the world of Akame Ga Kill if I accepted.

Xigbar chuckles before he simply responds by saying.. "Oh I'm 100% serious kiddo, and I'm willing to make quite the bargain if you accept.." Before once more summoning the No Named Keyblade and placing it on the coffee table casually.

It takes me a few seconds before I finally realize what he's offering and find myself saying.. "You intend to give me the No Name Keyblade to sweeten the deal…". My words make Xigbar smirk and point a finger gun at me and say..

"Bingo, do you have any idea how easy it is to get another one of these things in the company, oh sure it's pricey on the open market but with so many opportunities to steal this, there are at least several on the open market for roughly….1k credits each..?" His words make my eyes narrow before he realizes what he is implying and rushes to say..

"Oh don't worry, once you take it you can bind it to yourself, I already got multiple unbound ones as part of…let's just say a personal collection.." His tone gets particularly dark at the end but remains quite friendly.

Even though that does assure me of one thing, I find myself with just more questions as I soon find myself asking.. "Why exactly would you offer so much for what could be a relatively long but doable mission..?"

Xigbar is silent for several seconds before his friendly demeanor drops to a more tired, haggard, and more grounded expression as he simply asks.. "Do you mind if I take from your beer ration, this is gonna be a bit of a long explanation.."

Seeing the sudden shift in Xigbar's demeanor, I nod and watch the man get up and rummage around my Fenrir Fridge for the beer can. Once he finds it, he immediately opens it and takes a sip while letting the buzz hit him as he walks back to the couch.

"Alright, where do I begin…." Xigbar says as he slowly collects his thoughts before sighing and soon speaking up by saying.. "You see Kiddo, I wasn't a solo act until roughly a month or so before you got reborn as who you are now, I had a wife who joined me…"

My eyes widen as I do recall that there is a couples account version of a contractor, meaning that Xigbar here would have had to die at roughly the same time as his significant other. As I process this Xigbar continues his explanation and says..

"While she wasn't a woman back in her first life, she possessed a version of Aqua, and as such we ended up working out things together, although we did have quite the harem between us, we made sure to stress that my fellow contractor was my first and head wife…" Xigbar looks as if he's reminiscing fond memories before he sighs and soon continues to speak..

"What we had was quite special, then one day as we were discussing some missions we could take after Christmas when she proposed the idea of going to Akame Ga Kill and doing this mission in hopes of finishing things by adopting the poor kid.." Xigbar says as he slowly starts to grip the beer can while he struggles to get out his next words..

"Then just before Christmas, on new year's eve at that, we got jointly challenged to a PvP session by what we thought was a friend of our family still….and that's when everything went completely wrong.." Xigbar says as he sighs loudly and deeply as he takes a few seconds to collect himself before he finally says..

"During the fight, the bastard revealed that he got his hands on a Tier X version of Monika and commanded her to send my wife out of the PvP match dimension, and well…let's just say she did her job a little too well and accidentally erased my wife from existence…" I can't help but gasp in complete shock as the gravity of the situation sank in..

"N-normally the defenses would prevent that and they did..but booting my wife into the spot between the PvP match dimension and reality, I had to watch as she was constantly made to jump around in that space by her own defenses…she was saved eventually but…" Xigbar says before taking another sip of the beer as he soon says..

"She's in a coma right now as she's trying to recover from being constantly having her existence ripped over and over by the defenses trying to save her, as for our friend…despite the fact it was indeed an accident, I still dragged his ass to a Kingdom Hearts world after the match was ended and forcefully split him into both a heartless and nobody…" Xigbar takes a deep sigh as his expression is filled with both sorrow and regret.

I find myself staring at Xigbar and soon asking.. "What ended up happening to him..?". My words force Xigbar to look away as he takes yet another sip of the beer can before he soon replies.. "Oh he got better but we don't talk to each other much anymore despite our respective harems trying to help us patch things up…don't think we can until my wife is awake anyway.."

I stare at the broken-looking man before me, just feeling rather surprised at how one with Xigbar's body could look so broken and regretful. Thinking about what he told me, I manage to piece together exactly why he's offering so much and ask.. "You want me to complete the mission in both you and your wife's place don't you..?"

Xigbar sighs and nods before saying.. "Don't worry about me trying to swoop in and grabbing the kid afterward, I just want to watch you succeed so I can be sure that once my wife wakes up, we'll be able to do what you did but better.." His tone lightens up at the end as he slowly starts to chuckle..

"It's alright if you don't accept though, you're not the only hot babe of a contractor I'm keeping watch on in her first world although you are the first I've pitched my offer to…" Xigbar says as I blush slightly at the compliment.

I sigh before finally saying.. "Can I have some time to think about it, this is gonna be affecting my remaining time here in Fenrir..". Xigbar nods at my words before he retrieves the No Name Keyblade and the mission printout before pulling out a company phone that has a Nobody symbol case protector and saying..

"Here, I'll put my number in your phone so you can call me when you've made up your mind.." Making me nod and retrieve my own from my pocket space and we exchange each other's numbers.

"Right then, I guess I'll get going then…although I do hope you respond to my request soon, I'd really appreciate it kiddo…" Xigbar says before he gets up and puts the empty beer can in the trash can before holding out his hand.

He opens a corridor of darkness and goes to walk into it but stops and turns to look at me, smirking before saying.. "You know, you'd look even hotter wearing that dark-mode bodysuit that you'd get from using the power of darkness~!"

My eyes widen as I blush again before giving a sultry smirk and replying with.. "What, the bodysuit I got on not hot enough for you~?". My words make Xigbar bark out laughing before it goes from laughing to chuckling as he replies..

"You have a point miss Scathach, you do look much hotter prancing about in that skin-tight body suit actually~!" His words this time make him chuckle slightly before he finally walks into the corridor of darkness, however before it closes he does say one final thing..

"You be a good girl now you hear~!" Xigbar waves with a taunting smirk as the corridor of darkness finally closes. Once it disappears the massive time-bubble suddenly disappears along with it as time in Fenrir resumes as normal..

Well, at least now I can take some R&R without a surprise visit now, although I am still reeling mentally from the sheer amount of information I just got from Xigbar's visit.

I sigh and find myself deciding to take a moment to lie down on the bed after letting my shroud of power strip me naked, the bodysuit disappearing into the shroud as it fades while I simply just enjoy the breeze hitting my skin directly.

The sensation is particularly pleasant due to the heat inside the room, I end up falling asleep on my bed due to just how comfortable it is despite how overly efficient everything in Fenrir can be at times…

It is a peaceful slumber at least..

Meanwhile, Fenrir Far East Operations room

(General P.O.V)

The Engineers are stil going over the Ouroboros core that Scathach brought back with the help of Lindow and Soma, with many of God Eaters excitedly chatting about the kill with the mission itself not classified everyone was able to get their hands on the details of the mission.

That, unfortunately for Lindow, means that what he said during the mission is also public knowledge. Hence why he's being stared down by one Sakuya Tachibana and his sister Tsubaki Amamiya..

"H-hey, I was just complimenting a f-fellow combatant, is that so hard to believe..?" Lindow says as he can't help but feel uneasy with the two women staring down at him while Soma does nothing but watch him squirm.

Meanwhile, both Aki Tamashiro and Kota Fujiki both just look on as Lindow tries to explain himself to both his sister and Sakuya with Kota soon looking over at Aki before he says.. "Huh, one would think that maybe Ms. Tachibana has a crush on Captain Amamiya or something.."

Unfortunately for Kota, his words were heard by Sakuya and Lindow as the two blush before the two soon scream.. "We're not dating!". The two then look at each other in surprise at the exact same response occurring in unison and blush harder in embarrassment with Tsubaki just shaking her head at the antics of the two.

"I do hope I don't need to remind the both of you that the engineers are currently working on the core that was brought in, so I would appreciate it if you two didn't shout so loudly.." Tsubaki Amamiya says as both Lindow and Sakuya quietly apologize.

Soma in the meantime just watches all of this and sighs in annoyance, soon heading out of the operations room to head to his own room in order to nap. Thankfully the crowds of God Eaters from before aren't as eager to talk to Soma as they were with Scathach which allows him to swiftly make his way out without any issue.

All the while Director Johannes watches the interaction between Sakuya and Lindow intently and begins to wonder if he can't engineer a situation that may lead to something with Soma and Scathach..

As Director Johannes continues his internal musings over his dilemma regarding Scathach, Doctor Sakaki is eagerly looking over the core of the Ouroboros, making notes both regarding this Ouroboros core and also his theories regarding Scathach's powers.

Due to the more concrete evidence of her supernatural capabilities, Dr. Sakaki can't wait to explore them more in-depth and see just how it works firsthand. Although most of the focus right now is on the core right in front of him presently so that takes priority for the moment..

As both Aki Tamashiro and Kota Fujiki both watch the Doctor and the engineers work over the core, he suddenly remembers something he heard from one of the other God Eaters and looks at the Red Head New Type God Eater next to him and says..

"Oh yea, I heard from some of the other guys that there is a rumor about another New Type God Eater coming soon, from somewhere in Europe apparently although I can't help but wonder if it's another hot girl.." Kota smiles before he sees Aki blush deeply and realizes what he just implied..

"O-oh Uuh, s-sorry I didn't mean to…uuuh I think I'll shut up now.." Kota says blushing while Aki nods. While appreciating the comment, Aki is rather caught off-guard by Kota's words and slowly finds herself walking away while Kota just sighs as he realizes he accidentally made his new buddy uncomfortable..

As Kota walks over to the railing to look at the core, he can't help but be impressed that someone without a God Arc can do kill an Aragami like an Ouroboros. "Man, I guess I need to pick up the pace myself if a hot woman without a God Arc can even defeat something like that.." Kota says as he continues to watch all of the commotion occur around the Aragami Core.

He sees Lindow walk up to the railing next to him, having managed to talk down both his sister and Sakuya before he chuckles while staring at the sight of the Ouroboros core. He looks at Kota before smirking and soon finds myself saying..

"Amazed at how that Scathach woman dealt with the Ouroboros are you..?" With Kota simply nodding at Lindow's words, the man himself grins before he soon says.. "Well so am I, and I had a front-row seat to all of it.."

Having a chance to grill Lindow for a personal account, Kota grins and asks.. "Is it true that she used some sort of magic…?". The question makes Lindow grin and nods, soon replying with.. "Yep, did some strange rune stuff and when the Ouroboros went over those runes, it basically was engulfed in a burst of flames, looked like some pre-aragami action movie scene.."

"Oh man, that sounds so awesome, I wish I was there to see it.." Kota says which makes Lindow shake his head while chuckling. When he sees Kota staring at him, Lindow soon simply says..

"Hey not gonna lie buddy, but I will admit I was really worried about Scathach considering that….well a Vajra is one thing, but an Ouroboros is an entirely different class of Aragami to tackle.." Although he does internally agree with Kota that it was quite an awesome sight to behold, and he was the one who saw it for crying out loud!

Still, he can't help but wonder what Scathach's presence at the Far East will ultimately mean for Fenrir and how folks back at HQ will respond once they get the monthly reports of the situation in the Far East, although there is a chance that Fenrir HQ knows about her already due to how staggering her capabilities have proven to be..

Several Hours later - Scathach's room

(Scathach's P.O.V)

As I wake from my slumber, the first thing I feel is the cool gentle air in my room. Still half asleep, I turn my head to gaze around the room before looking at the couch intently as if something important happened recently..

Then the memories of several hours ago rush back into the forefront of my mind and I suddenly sit up, my huge breasts jiggling as I do before sighing softly. Seeing that I've awoken, my Shroud of power immediately forms over me and before long I am once more wearing the Iconic bodysuit once again.

Thinking about Xigbar's story, I won't lie and say that I'm not tempted to go with the mission. That being said though, considering how long the mission might be, I will probably be gone for the entirety of the God Eater 1 Plot and maybe even the God Eater 2 plot, let alone the butterflies I've likely caused due to being here..

Still, if I do plan to leave though, I intend to leave my own mark on this world behind. Once more the idea of introducing the Dual Blade God Arcs early comes to mind, only this time with what I've been told by Xigbar, I have a lot more reason to create the prototype or at least the blueprints for it.

With that in mind, I go to check the door to my room and blush when I realize that I forgot to actually lock it before I went to sleep. Although thankfully there seems to be no hint of anyone opening it, I might need to be more careful next time..

I decide to lock the door and once done, I open a portal back to the Pocket Dimension Manor. I head inside it with a determined look on my face as I plan to make full use of my Talents and the resource that is the internet..

Pocket Dimension of Scathach

(Still Scathach's P.O.V)

Once I exit the portal, I find myself in front of my manor. Part of me does feel sad seeing it mostly unused, but I do plan to take full advantage of it later, perhaps I could enjoy the Hotspring inside once I'm done with the Blueprints.

As I walk in, I decide to quickly pop into the kitchen and grab a coca cola can in order to indulge in my one real vice, my addiction to the black liquid that is the classic Coca-Cola. Once I have my precious Coca-Cola in hand, I head to my manor room and boot up the computer in it.

Although I'm quite happy to see that the Company goes all in on contractor's living space and luxuries such as computers, considering the Computer in every goddamn room is top of the line for 2022 PC gaming tech, it still makes me wonder just how they get all of this stuff..

Anyway, upon logging into the computer, I find the details to my accounts to my old life are strangely still active. While that does make me narrow my eyes, I figure it's because of the existence of a certain perk that allows one to return to their home world..

While that does immediately bring up feelings of homesickness, I decide to put them to one side as I get started on researching the Dual Blade God arcs in God Eater 3. It's a painstaking process to analyze videos of how both the Dual blades work as well as their Glaive form, but eventually, due to the talents of my build and my own capabilities as Scathach, I eventually manage to make an initial rough sketch of the Dual Blade schematics.

However, feeling that isn't enough for me, I decided to browse for more obscure concept art for the God Arcs from God Eater to see if there is anything I missed in the rough initial sketch. Although I do manage to make several immediate improvements, I realize that this isn't gonna be done in one sitting.

"Hmmm, I think If I wanna get this done in the next few days, I need to sneak back here for an hour or two before I go to sleep in order to make adjustments to the schematics based on what I may see in the field or through further online research…" I say to myself, staring at the rouch sketch and seeing that while it is a viable prototype, I want to ensure that what I leave behind doesn't need too much work to finish..

I quickly check the time and see I got just enough time to pop into the shower before I can rush out of my room in the Far East Branch in order to be on time for the dinner rush. I decide to take the chance to get a nice long shower before dinner..

Hey, while the Far East does have showers, they are communal ones based on gender so I would rather not induce potential jealousy from more than simply Sakuya thank you!

Still, I am unable to decide whether or not to actually take the mission and leave so early..

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions…..

Author's Note

A lot of things happen at once so let's get this underway..

Xigbar's Offer and Backstory

Yea, like I had implied before this Xigbar is a contractor, a reincarnated one like Scathach with a pretty unique build start. As one may be able to tell from how Xigbar told his reasons for offering Scathach the mission, it's based on the wishes of his fellow Reincarnated who is his wife..

Both of them were definitely Avid Kingdom Hearts fans, as well as Veteran contractors. We will meet Contractor Aqua at one point in the future, although in what state I have yet to decide..

As for why Xigbar is freely offering the No Name Keyblade here as an added incentive, it's probably one of the easiest keyblades to get one's hands-on, except for those from the keyblade graveyard of course.

Hell, the damn thing can be seen in a cutscene being displayed on a mantle in a room in one particular cutscene. So it wouldn't be hard to see that thing getting nicked constantly by contractors with the skills to pull it off.

The Reactions

More GE1 Cast dialogue and internal monologues, plus Johannes looking to try and solve his Scathach Dilemma still and he might be looking to rope Soma into his scheme somehow.

Plus hints of a very Iconic female cast member coming to the Far East soon, although whether or not Scathach will still be there though…well we'll get to that shortly..

Scathach working on making the blueprints for early Dual Blades.

I plan to have Scathach work on this for one or two more chapters, depending on whether or not Scathach ends up accepting the mission from Xigbar as this may be the final butterfly she makes before she leaves..

And one last thing

After this chapter is posted, I will be making a poll on both Fanfiction and Questionable Questing to determine whether or not Scathach accepts the mission, this will be up for a total of a full week and afterward, I will upload the next chapter.

Alright then, next time on Wrapped in Shadows: Scathach spars with Lindow, Soma, and Scathach take a mission and Scathach further improves the dual blade blueprints..

See you all at roughly the same time next week!