SZ: Hello. Welcome to the next chapter…and before you ask 'wait…what happened to the previous chapter?' You'll have to look on A03 for that one.

"Please stop…" Geo mumbled, wearing running shorts and a black shirt, in the laboratory in the new HQ.

"But it feels nice," Sonia argued while dressed in a pink tee and lime-green shorts, the brunette's head on her lap as she was scratching his ear.

"Why is it that each time I check on you kids, something's changed?" Goodall asked, shaking her head.

"I blame him having the title of 'Megaman,'" Kazuma replied, looking at a holographic screen, "Scans show pretty much the same things as Sonia, Miyuki, and Ellie when it comes to the half state. And the physical tests show pretty much the same as when Sonia was changing."

"Personally? I blame that stupid cat virus…" Omega-Xis muttered as he floated nearby, earning a raised brow from Goodall.

"Eh heh…heh…i-ignore him," Axl sheepishly…yet nervously chuckled, ignoring the glare from Kazuma.

"We've pretty much think it's because I keep receiving blessings from the kids of the Fudegami," Geo noted, "It just takes longer for it all to settle."

"Yet your height hasn't changed," Goodall noted.

"Likely for the fact he gets this from the kids, it doesn't affect him as much biologically," Kazuma suggested, "Well…that and she is a goddess that reincarnated into a mortal slowly regaining her lost powers."

"Hmm…Yes, that is a good hypothesis," Goodall noted, "We only have stories of these Fudegami and the small interactions you've had with them. Mayhaps the next time you meet one when it is benevolent, you can seek some answers?"

"We'll try," Sonia assured.

"I hope it's the dragon next," Omega-Xis noted…before pulling his head off, "This is getting ridiculous for me. And the humor has died down for me after that Karen smacked me repeatedly when I put it in the cabbages at the market and spooked folks with the scream from the game with the zombie in a rabbit suit."

"Dragon?"

"The Gnat likes talking about the powers these Fudegami have. Dragon's got the power to 'restore' things slathered in ink," Omega-Xis explained.

"You actually listened to him?" Lyra asked.

"Know your enemy, Lyra," Omega-Xis reminded, "And speaking of enemies…where the hell is Ophiuchus?"

"Luna had to go to a meeting with the folks about that exhibit," Kazuma replied, "Ace went as a bodyguard."

"You sure it's about that?" Lyra asked.

"Considering I'm listening to the meeting through the security system? Yes, yes it is," Kazuma replied, tapping the bluetooth in his ear.

"K-Kazuma!" Geo exclaimed, sitting up.

"What? Ace asked me to do that," Kazuma replied, flicking his wrist and displaying an email from Ace.

"Even still…!"

"Considering the last few guys who need to be arrested are gonna be at the party since they helped fund it, he knew what he was ordering," Kazuma informed.

"Eh?" Sonia tilted her head.

"...You seriously forgot?" Kazuma asked before sighing, "Oh, wait…I forgot. Sex makes teenagers forgetful."

"H-Hey!" Geo and Sonia stammered, blushing heavily.

"It's part of the agreement Kazy made with Satella in working with everyone: he does and Satella arrests all the corrupt folk on the list Kazuma gave," Axl reminded, "And only three are left and will be at the event. Not one aware of the fates of their fellow folks."

"Oh…"

"Well…the event is in three days at 7pm," Kazuma informed, "Formal affair-lousy neck choking apparatus-, typical foods for the event but also recipes of old Japanese meals and snacks…oh." He frowned, "Small issue. No one to play music because they all forgot."

"Aw what?" Sonia blinked a few times before her VG Hunter buzzed, "Hm? Browse." Luna appeared on a screen, "Oh! Luna-chan!"

"Hey, Sonia," Luna greeted, "Um…Is there any chance you could lend your musical talents for the Japan exhibit's debut? I know you're retired, but…"

"Sure!" Sonia beamed.

"Great! Thank you so much for this!" Luna sighed in relief, "I owe you."

"I'm good with some crepes and barbecue," Sonia replied, giving a friendly wink.

"I'll see about it, but also an appropriate outfit for the event," Luna replied.

"You're the best, Luna-chan!" Sonia beamed.

"I know I am," Luna states in a bit of pride before she hung up…before calling back, "Oh and see if you can get Miyuki and your friend Ellie to join."

"?!" Both Geo and Sonia tensed up a bit at the latter's name.

"...Sure," Geo nodded.

"No worries! Sensei is probably with her already so it'll be nice and easy!" Sonia nodded.

"Mmm~" Ellie whined as she laid down on her shared bed, currently in her animal form as her paws covered her face, 'Ahh…I can't believe that really happened…' her thought trailed back to the other day, remembering the mixture of roughness and gentleness amidst the heat-induced daze of it all, 'Stupid cat virus…H-How can I sh-show my face to anyone…?'

Aoiro poked her head in, "Is everything alright, Ellie?"

"Mmm~!" Ellie whined as her tail covered her heavily blushing face.

"She still upset that she banged with Sonia and Geo?" Karai bluntly asked outside the room before Aoiro smacked something, "Ah bitch!"

"Idiot," Aoiro sighed, entering fully and closing the door behind her, "Do you want to talk about it?"

"….yes…" Ellie whispered as she moved her paws off her face, revealing the heavy blush…and the tears at the edge of her eyes.

"…You feel guilty, don't you?"

"…Yes…" Ellie whimpered a bit, "I…I really did that…I…I cheated on Mamoru…"

"You weren't in control of yourself…"

"E-Even still…and the fact I did it with both Sonia and Geo, too…" Ellie continued.

Aoiro gently patted her head, "It was a crazy day for everyone. I spoke with Kazuma and Axl about the last time the cat got out. From the diaries and journal they have of Kazuma's ancestors, this 'Maylu' person described the state she was in as uncontrollable, needing a constant sensation of sex to keep herself in her normal mental state, and felt incredibly guilty afterwards for all she did in that state, too."

"Did she cheat on her boyfriend?"

"No, but…I do think you may need to talk to Geo and Sonia."

"I-I can't!" Ellie yelped, covering her eyes with her paws once more, "It…It's just…I was…ohh…"

"Hey. You'll have to do it eventually," Karai pointed out as she poked her head in, "Trust me…you keep it all to yourself and not talk it out, it's gonna cause some resentment to grow in ya."

"She should know after her first time having sex in this form," Aoiro noted.

"Aw screw you, ya bloody virgin."

"And I am staying that way until I am drunk out of my mind or I find someone I wouldn't mind sharing a bed with," Aoiro stated.

"…Just so you know, I'm gonna remember the former next time we go out drinking," Karai stated before ducking under the thrown pillow, "Ha! Missed me!"

"…Is there a point in this?" Ellie asked with a sigh.

"Yes," Aoiro replied, "One thing I've learned about since coming to this planet, Ellie, is that people need to talk about things like this, otherwise issues begin building up and forming trouble that far outweighs the original incident." she gently pet Ellie's head once more, "Just talk to them later. Please?"

"…mm…" Ellie sighed as she stood up, flipping up into the air as she changed into her human state, "I…I'll try…I just hope…they're willing to listen."

"Good, because they're right at the front door with your teach and possible tag partner," Karai stated.

"EH?!" Ellie gawked, her wolf tail and ears appearing as they shot up in shock.

"...That is just adorable," Aoiro admitted, scratching one of Ellie's ears.

"M-Major…" Ellie whispered as her blush returned in spades….yet her tail began to wag a bit.

"Alright, alright. Enough scratching her ears," Karai huffed, "I'll send 'em to the living room ta chat. Have fun with that. I'm off to find some big titted single gals."

"Damn it, Karai," Aoiro sighed, rolling her eyes, "...Do you want me to sit beside you for it? As support?"

"...mmm hmm," Ellie slowly nodded.

"Okay. I'll be right beside you the whole time," Aorio assured.

"Mmm…"

"Soka…" Miyuki whispered as she sat across from Geo and Sonia, the Oina woman dressed in a black shirt and a pair of shorts with the hem of both being a rich blue, "So it's just as awkward for you as it is with Ellie…"

"Y-Yeah," Geo admitted, "I'm worried about how strong your brother is gonna be when he's through with me once he's awake…"

"Admittedly White-kyun feels the same," Miyuki muttered, "I'll admit that I mostly don't regret what happened because we're mates now."

"Really?" Sonia blinked.

"Hai. We…let our feelings be known before we did that, kyu," Miyuki admitted as a faint blush appeared on her face, "...kami-sama what a man."

"My same reaction with Geo-kun," Sonia giggled.

"Can we not?" Geo muttered, blushing, "Remember why we're here."

"Oh! R-right," Sonia nodded a bit before she noticed Ellie walking in, staying close to Aoiro as she hid behind the taller woman, "...h…hey."

"H…hi…" Ellie nervously greeted back.

"Aoiro," Miyuki greeted.

"Miyuki. How's Frost?" Aoiro asked.

"White-kyun took her to the park," Miyuki replied, "That Wave Scanner is just amazing."

"It honestly is," Aoiro sighed in agreement...before deadpanning, "Lord knows my sister is enjoying it…"

"Right…" Miyuki nodded as the two sat down on the couch opposite from Geo and Sonia, "...Before anything else, should we address the elephant in the room?" The three teens blushed heavily at that, "Who first?"

"...Ellie/Sonia I…" Sonia and Ellie began in unison, "...no, no. You…I….er….mmm~" the two whined as their ears drooped.

Geo sighed, "I'm not changing my mind on taking full responsibility for it from your boyfriend, Ellie. I mean…I could've said no or done something else…"

"I'm gonna join in on the punishment since I did offer the idea," Sonia added, scratching her cheek, "I saw how you were and knew what you were feeling in that state and how it just wouldn't stop without doing the deed and…" she bowed down, "Gomen nassai."

"...No, no…I'm sorry," Ellie whispered as she looked down, "I….I'm a terrible friend…I cheated on Mamoru…and I couldn't control myself….the memories form that time are…the roughness…the gentle….mmm~" she whined as she buried her face in her hands, "I'm such a terrible person…"

"No, no you're not," Sonia argued, "I'm the one who was terrible and forgot about Mamoru-san." Her ears drooped, "Even when I got reminded, I still encouraged you to join in with Geo-kun."

"I…was not much help when I caved in," Geo muttered.

"Still don't know who is bigger…" Ellie mumbled.

"Hm?"

"N-Nothing!" Ellie squeaked.

"Mmm…I think I understand," Miyuki nodded, "All of you feel guilty about what happened and each of you are blaming yourselves, right?"

"...yes," the three sighed.

"But it was also meant to help keep Ellie and Sonia remain sane and not in a heat long enough to give them the needed cure for their transformations, yes?" Aoiro questioned.

"...yes," the trio sighed again.

"...I think I recall something that day…Ellie, didn't you say Mamoru dealt with cursed things and it sometimes led to…well…things like that day?" Geo asked.

"...Yes," Ellie confirmed.

"Considering what happened, wouldn't it be considered a curse of sorts?"

"...yes…th-that's true…" Ellie whispered as she blinked a few times.

"He still collects those accursed things?" Miyuki asked in disbelief, "Ugh…I still remember the first one he brought home." she grimaced, "Our late parents got the skylight they always wanted but couldn't afford." she then shuddered, "And the less said about the one before we got separated from the other, the better…so many tentacles, kyu…"

"O-Oh! I…I think I know what you're getting at, Geo," Ellie noted in realization, "I…I think he'd accept that. A-and it honestly did feel like the time with the cow idol…"

"Cow idol?" everyone repeated.

"D-Don't ask…" Ellie begged, blushing hard at the memories as a phantom ache went through her breasts and spine, "But…I get what you're saying…"

"...The fuck kind of kinky adventures did you two get in?!" Karai gawked when she poked her head in.

"Oh, would you get out of here and go out and flirt with that girl you talked about?" Aoiro frowned, throwing a pillow at Karai's face.

"Fine fine…yeesh. Get concerned and you get hit with a pillow," Karai muttered as she left.

"If you still have that thing or anything like it…please do not let my sister get her hands on them," Aoiro whispered, earning a pillow to her face.

"I heard that!" Karai barked, a teasing grin on her face before running out with a cackle.

"Pfft…" Aoiro spat a feather out of her mouth from the pillow, Sonia and Ellie having to cover their mouths to avoid laughing, "My sister, ladies and gentleman…and Omega-Xis."

"Oh hardy har-har…" Omega-Xis rolled his eyes, giving a glance at the three, 'The Waves on them have shifted back away from Loneliness Waves. Not bad.'

"Alright…Are…you three alright?"

"For now," Sonia replied, Ellie nodding in agreement.

"With what happened? Yeah. With what's coming? Not really," Geo replied.

"What's coming?" Ellie asked.

"Luna-chan invited me to be the musician at the preview event of the Japanese exhibit," Sonia explained, "And she wants to invite Ellie-chan and Sensei to it as well."

"Oh?" Miyuki blinked before pondering a bit, "I would love to come by. I could always help with any information regarding the Oina tribe, kyu."

"Well…I do have a new dress I've been meaning to wear," Ellie admitted, "I actually wore it once for a photoshoot and it felt right."

"Sugei!" Sonia cheered before frowning, "Mmm…I don't have a dress for the occasion."

'Oh no,' Geo thought.

"...Shopping?" Aoiro offered as she held up a deep blue credit card, "My treat."

"Wait…you have a…" Omega-Xis began.

"We had to pay bills while we were undercover," Aoiro stated…before making a deadpanned expression, "Many…bills…ones relating to my sister's reckless spending."

"Mostly food?" Ellie asked.

"You humans make delicious cuisine," Aoiro admitted before reaching out and hooking the back of Geo's shirt by the collar, having been trying to sneak out without Wave Changing, "And we have a good boy that will be there to carry the bags and give the best opinions on the dresses Sonia will be trying."

"...Yeah, that's fair," Geo sighed, "...you're helping, too, Omega-Xis."

"What?!" Omega-Xis gawked.

"You're trying to phase through the wall."

"...uh…" he muttered as he was half-way through the wall…before waving his hand, "You do not see me phase through the wall?"

"...Get him," Geo ordered.

"OH JEEZ!"

"Ugh…" Geo sighed, adjusting his tie of the formal navy blue suit he was in the next day, "Please go over the plan with me one last time?"

"It's simple really," Ace replied, a screen floating over his VG Hunter on the dresser with 'VOICE ONLY' on the screen, "We have several people in disguise that will cause incidents that will get our targets isolated so the arrests can be made. You'll be in charge of getting one of the three isolated."

"Which one?"

"Austin Dureels," Ace replied, "Shaggy black hair, likes wearing reds, boisterous."

"So a human Omega-Xis that wears red."

"Exactly. Huh…I don't hear the guy."

"He's downstairs with Issun so I can get ready in peace," Geo replied.

"And Sonia?"

"..." Geo blushed, "She's going to be ready when she's ready. Lyra's probably guarding the door and Wave Roads that go into her room."

"Right. Make sure to remind her of her part of the plans."

"Play her tunes, be ready to Wave Change if needed, keep her brush to do a Brush Technique at the drop of a dime, and don't change into her full wolf or half forms," Geo replied before frowning, "You know she's gonna be annoyed with that last part, right?"

"Which is why you get to tell her, not me."

"...We'll see you outside the museum, Ace," Geo deadpanned before hanging up, "It's kinda funny how she went from hating her ears and tail to wanting to keep them out constantly…"

"YOU LITTLE GNAT!-!-!"

"Oh no…" Geo sighed as he looked at himself in a mirror before going downstairs to see Omega-Xis chasing Issun around the living room…his face covered in ink drawings, "Okay, what happened?"

"Not my fault he sucks at games!" Issun argued.

"I never agreed to ya drawing on my face, ya shrimp!" Omega-Xis snapped.

"I am tiny, but I am mighty!" Issun laughed, jumping over Omega-Xis's lunge.

"Can we not do this?" Geo sighed, closing his eyes in exasperation.

"Tail," Issun pointed out, making Geo open his eyes and look to see the back of his pants had gone down a bit for his tail to twitch in annoyance.

"..." Geo sighed as he got it to go away and pulled his pants back up, "This is going to take time to get used to."

"...Pfft…"

"What?" Omega-Xis glowered at Issun.

"Nothing…"

"What?" Omega-Xis demanded.

"It…It's just…your credibility and insistence on being called a dragon is in question…"

"Huh?!"

"Y-Your partner turns into a dog…s-so…" Issun snickered as he pulled out a scroll and his sumi-e supplies.

"..."

"I shall call this Idiot Dog realizes he isn't a Dragon," Issun went on as he pulled out his hammer.

"GRAH!" Omega-Xis roared, lunging at Issun, making him yelp and throw the hammer up into the air.

"Guys, come on! Let's not do th…" Geo began before the tiny hammer hit him on the head, "!"

"...uh oh," Issun whispered, his eyes going wide.

"What? It just makes your paper grow, right?" Omega-Xis asked.

"...Um…f-funny story…" Issun poked his fingers as Geo began to glow…before both blinked and Geo was gone.

"?! What did you do?!" Omega-Xis demanded.

"Ah! I-I didn't do anything! You were the one who scared me and made me drop the hammer!" Issun panicked.

"What happened to Geo?!" Omega-Xis demanded.

"He's down there," Issun replied, pointing at where Geo had been standing.

"Hm?" Omega-Xis raised a brow before floating over and looked down…to see an inch-tall Geo looking around in bewilderment.

"HAH?!" Geo exclaimed before jumping as Issun hopped down to stand beside him, "I-Issun?!"

"Gomen nassai," Issun apologized, quickly bowing down low, "My hammer was a gift from Skye-Hakase to fit in with the story my form was based on."

"And how does it translate to shrinking me?!"

"The hammer had the ability to both grow and shrink anything and anyone it's used on. But I don't use the latter because I like being tiny."

"Are you kidding us?!" Omega-Xis gawked, making Geo flinch.

"Omega-Xis, quiet down," Geo scolded, rubbing his ears.

"You get used to it," Issun assured.

"I don't want to get used to it, Issun! Change me back already!" Geo complained.

"Oh! Right, right!" Issun nodded as he looked around, "Just need the hammer and…and…" he trailed off as his eyes widened.

"What?" Geo asked, following his line of sight and his own eyes widened…seeing the broken hammer, "...Issun…Omega-Xis…"

"...Okay, that's….my bad…" Omega-Xis winced, "...M-Maybe I can find someone to fix it?!"

"With what?! Gorilla Glue!?"

"Ah! N-No worries! I just need to go to ACDC and the bunker there!" Issun assured as he grabbed the broken hammer and stuffed it away, "Mack knows how to run the 3D Printer and how to load the right programs that make my hammer work right."

"How long will it take?" Geo asked.

"Um…Twelve hours…"

"WHAT?!" both shouted before Geo groaned, holding his ears and glaring at Omega-Xis.

"...sorry."

"When I get back to normal…you are both in deep trouble," Geo grumbled as Omega-Xis offered his hand for him to get onto.

"That's fair," both slumped as Issun jumped into Omega-Xis's hand.

"I'll get to ACDC right away," Issun assured, "But…" he grinned.

"What?"

"Think of how Sonia-tenshisama will react to having a tiny you," Issun teased.

Geo blushed, "J-Just get out of here and fix that hammer…"

"Can do…" Issun chuckled as he went off.

"Ano…D-Do you think I look okay?" Sonia asked.

"Sonia, you look beautiful," Lyra assured, "People won't be able to take their eyes off you at the event."

Sonia nodded as she looked at the expanded full-body mirror. She wore a dark-pink dress that left her shoulders and the upper half of her chest bare, a magenta musical note on the part over her left breast. The left side of her dress was covered in several layers of frills, going down to her pale-blue dress shoes. On her neck was a pale-blue collar while pink and yellow fingerless gloves covered her hands, the ends reaching just below her shoulders. Her hair was let loose with two locks framing her face, her natural beauty untouched by any makeup. She walked over to her bedside table and picked up her guitar.

"I'm glad Issun-san enlarged this for me," Sonia noted as she looked it over, "It was hard to play at its original size with my new height." she strummed it a little, smiling at the tune reaching her human ears, "I thought it only worked on his art pieces, but nope."

"You ready for this? It's been quite some time since you last performed," Lyra noted in concern.

"It's like riding a bike: you never forget," Sonia assured, "Plus, we've still been practicing, haven't we?"

"Very true," Lyra nodded, "But if things start to turn sour…"

"Lyra, I'll be fine," Sonia assured once more, turning around and giving her an assuring smile, "We'll be fine." her stomach went off, "...Though maybe a snack before we leave."

"Right," Lyra rolled her eyes as she followed Sonia out of the bedroom and down the stairs to see Omega-Xis looking over a model of a city set on the coffee table, "And just what are you up to?"

"Gah!" Omega-Xis spun around, "N-Nothing. Just glad the dumb Gnat went off to see the puppet back in ACDC for the night."

"...What did you do?" Lyra deadpanned.

"What?"

"If Issun is in trouble, then by extension you are as well considering all the times you two butt heads," Lyra stated, "Also…I don't see Geo, so...I smell shenanigans."

"How can you smell? You ain't got no nose," Omega-Xis argued.

"I didn't mean literally," Lyra sighed.

"Is he almost done getting dressed?" Sonia asked, "I'm curious how he looks in a suit since he already saw me in this at the shop we got it from."

"..."

"...Omega-Xis…"

"...Okay, but don't be mad…"

"Already getting there…" both replied.

"But…." Omega-Xis began as he moved out of the way.

"...You made a figure of Geo?" Lyra blinked before taking a quick look…before her eye twitched, "...This is Geo, isn't it?"

"Yup…" Geo sighed, standing on the highest 'building' on the table.

"Eh?!" Sonia gawked, Geo covering his ears with a wince, "Nani?!"

"How did this happen?"

"Blame the stupid hammer!" Omega-Xis replied, "The Gnat bonked Geo with it and then he's all tiny! Then it broke and the Gnat took it to the puppet and we gotta wait all night before it gets fixed!"

"It broke because you knocked it away from him!" Geo snapped.

"Gh!" Omega-Xis tensed.

"...Geo? May I?" Lyra asked.

"Whatever you want, do it," Geo replied.

"Thank you," Lyra nodded…before grabbing Omega-Xis's head and threw it out the window and into the nearby river.

"?!" Omega-Xis's body followed after his head only to end up run over by a truck that went by.

"Oh this isn't good," Sonia noted.

"You're telling me. The plan's in danger now," Geo sighed.

"Plan?"

"Oh, right…Knew I forgot something after this happened," Geo groaned, "There's several people in disguise that're gonna be looking to cause chaos, so I was gonna help try and isolate one of them."

"Chaos?"

"Remember that list Kazuma sent Ace when we met? It was a list of all the higher ups that had a long list of crimes they've swept under the rug," Geo reminded, "There's only three left and they'll all be at this event. You're meant to keep folks distracted while I was supposed to get one of them to a part of the place that'll be unused for the Satella police that are undercover there to make the arrests."

"Oh…" Sonia cringed, "That'll be hard given your…er…small problem?"

"..." Geo sighed, but couldn't hide the smile, "You've been spending too much time trading puns with Axl."

"Maybe," Sonia giggled before reaching out with a hand and aimed her pointed finger at Geo with the thumb extended, "But I do know we're gonna need to do what we do best."

"And that is…?" Geo asked as she turned the hand upside down and let him get on it.

"Improvise," Sonia replied, bringing him up to her face, "Oh, your suit looks very nice."

"...eh heh…thanks," Geo whispered, blushing a bit as he rubbed the back of his head, "Wanted to look nice for you at least…"

Sonia giggled, "Why thank you, Geo-kun." she placed him on her shoulder, "Now we better call Ace and see if we can't change the plans, ne?"

"Right," Geo nodded before yelping when she turned.

"Geo-kun?" Sonia looked down to see him gone from her shoulder, "Eh?"

"...Cleavage," Lyra sighed.

"Nani?" Sonia looked down to see Geo's legs peeking out of her cleavage, "Ah!"

"You turned too fast and he forgot to grab something," Lyra shook her head.

"Oops," Sonia whispered, blushing a bit as she carefully picked Geo up from her cleavage, "Gomen…"

"I swear this is gonna become a recurring occurrence…" Geo muttered with a heavy blush, only growing stronger when she kissed him, her luscious lips completely covering the side he had been kissed on, "S-Sonia…"

She giggled as she let him stay in her hand as she went to get her VG Hunter.

"I do not get why you humans enjoy things like this," Ophiuchus noted, sitting at a nightstand wearing a purple formal dress with a slit on the side to allow one of her shapely legs covered in a violet stocking be exposed while her hair was let free and brushed straight with a pair of bangs framing her face.

"It's meant to be a sign of one's status or meant to make one more presentable to others," Luna explained, braiding her long hair into a single braided ponytail as she wore a blue formal dress with a white semi-transparent fabric trimming the top parts of the dress with white leggings and shoulder-high gloves.

"Mmm…I'd say the cerulean for tonight, Luna," Vogue advised, offering a container of cerulean-colored eyeshadow to her in her paws and a container of dark-green eyeshadow to Ophiuchus, "A-And some f-forest green to g-g-go with yours, Ms. O-Ophiuchus."

"...Thanks," Aphiuchus muttered as she took it, "..." she looked at Luna, "What do I do with this?"

"Just follow what I do," Luna advised as she started to apply hers.

"...Ah, like the material some of my former comrades on Planet FM used to apply to their faces to deal with bright lights on campaigns," Ohpiuchus compared, following her lead, "...I'm surprised at how well you've adapted to all this."

"Hmph. How are you surprised? I've grown since the little girl dealing with family issues that you once Wave Changed with," Luna replied, "Humans learn to adapt quickly to situations."

"Much like the boy contracted to Omega-Xis…" Ophiuchus muttered.

"Considering who Omega-Xis is, I'm not surprised at how fast Geo adapts to things," Luna shook her head.

"I'm surprised he can handle someone as pigheaded as Omega-Xis….then again, Omega-Xis used to date Vulpecula…"

"Who?"

"Trust me…you don't want to know. The least I can say is that she was insane," Ophiuchus replied.

"Ah…I s…" Luna began as she turned before facepalming, "Ophiuchus…That's too much, eyeshadow."

"Hm?" the disguised FM-Ian raised a brow…her entire face forest green in color.

"Right…May be longer to get ready than expected," Luna sighed as she grabbed some makeup cleaning supplies and got to work correcting Ophiuchus's makeup, "Vogue, please inform our escort we'll be delayed a bit longer due to unforeseen issues."

"Understood, Lady Luna," the rabbit Wizard replied as she floated out.

"I see you tried to avoid associating with my motif with that little rabbit of yours," the FM-Ian noted.

"I like rabbits," Luna replied, "Plus…as you put it, yes. I...tried to keep that part of my life out…"

"And yet here I am..back from the dead once more," she smirked.

"Hey, hey. No smirking. You'll smudge the makeup as it's being applied," Luna scolded.

"...Fine. I'll stay still...If I'm going to be attending this thing, I may as well look my best."

"All women need to do that," Luna huffed, "This isn't like Planet FM. And, yes, before you ask, I did ask Lyra about Planet FM's culture, so no trying to be sneaky."

"Blast you, Lyra…" Ophiuchus muttered.

Meanwhile, Vogue floated down the hallway and came to the laboratory in the HQ. She knocked on it and waited a moment before a panel opened and Axl poked his head out of it.

"Password?"

"Oh! Um…I-I'm sorry…I didn't know there was a password," Vogue apologized.

Axl chuckled, "Ah, I'm just kidding." he pulled his head back in and opened the door, revealing him to be in a formal cobalt suit with a red tie and white gloves, "What can I do ya for, little lady? Here to feed the Bunny Viruses again?"

"Oh! Um…maybe later. Lady Luna sent me to inform you and Mr. Kazuma that she and Ms. O-Ophiuchus will be delayed a bit."

"Oh thank goodness," Axl sighed as he jabbed a thumb over his shoulder…showing Kazuma running around, tossing things about as he looked for something, "He lost his tie, so that gives us a bit more time to look for it."

"Hm? But…isn't it…?" Vogue pointed at Kazuma's back…where an orange tie was pinned to his cobalt suit.

"No, no. Let him figure it out himself or he'll be a pouty boy all night," Axl warned.

"I am not a pouty boy!" Kazuma barked, digging through a box.

"You are when you don't figure something so obvious out for yourself!" Axl replied.

"Ah shaddap!"

"Oh, you remembered to tell that Wizard the family company made about this event, right?" Axl asked, making Kazuma pause, "...Kazy…"

"Maaaaaybe…?"

"Oh dear…Is that bad?" Vogue asked.

"The girl's a worrier," Axl replied, "And a bit of a klutz. You'll probably see her tonight…if Kazy finds his tie!"

"I'm lookin', I'm lookin'!"

"Well hurry~! Don't wanna keep a lady waintin'!"

"But she's…" Vogue began.

"He don't know it yet," Axl whispered, an amused smile on his lips, "I'll let him know later, ok? You wanna go see the Bunny Viruses again?"

"Um…well…y-yes, please," Vogue admitted, blushing a little, "They're just so little and cute…"

"I know, right?" Axl chuckled, escorting her over to the Virus Breeder, "Gonna go check on the adorable ones, Kazy! Don't get all tied up looking for your tie now! You know I've got your back if you decide to give up and ask." he grunted as a magnifying glass bonked him square on his forehead, "Gah!"

"No punning right now, Axl!" Kazuma shook a fist.

"Fine…Mr. Party Pooper."

"Wh-?! That's it! I…!" Kazuma began as he turned…resulting in the tie to flip up and over his head, "...It was on my back this whole time, wasn't it?"

"..."

"...ugh…damn it, Axl."

"It's not funny!" Geo grumbled as Ace struggled to not fall over in his laughter, dressed in a navy blue formal suit.

"Pfft…! H-His voice…so squeaky…" Bud choked back a laugh, wearing a red formal suit.

"Ahem," Sonia cleared her throat as she glared at the two with her markings all glowing ominously.

"...Sorry," Ace and Bud muttered as they stopped, sweating a little in worry.

"Try this, Geo-kun," Sonia noted, pulling her guitar out and detaching the top part of it before presenting it to Geo on her shoulder.

"A mic part?" Geo pondered before speaking into it, "This better?"

"Yeah, you sound normal," Ace replied before grimacing, "How did this even happen?"

"Blame Issun and Omega-Xis," Geo replied in annoyance.

"...How?"

"You know that mallet Issun uses to grow his scrolls in size?" Geo asked, earning a small nod from Ace, "Let's just say thanks to Omega-Xis, it hit me, broke, and…" he paused as he motioned to his current self, "Yeah."

=This…This does not computer…= Acid noted, popping up beside Ace =Given the mass reduction…and the temperature…=

"We don't know a lot about the tech behind that hammer of that little guy…or much about him at that," Ace spoke, swatting the back of Acid's head to try to reboot him.

"So you're stuck like this for the whole mission?" Bud asked.

"A full twelve hours…maybe longer," Geo replied with a sigh.

"Seriously?" Taurus asked, "Why?"

"Because Issun needs the hammer repaired first back in the underground lab in ACDC before he can unshrink me," Geo replied.

"Ahh…"

"They didn't bring it to the mansion?" Ace asked, sounding disappointed.

"Some things likely can't be removed from it due to some security system or something," Sonia guessed.

"Still, what do we do now?" Lyra asked, "Geo had an important job, didn't he?"

"We can make up for this," Ace assured, rubbing his chin in thought, "But how though…"

Sonia scratched the back of her head as she looked up to see a pair of squirrels run by, "...Oh! I think I have something!"

"Hm?" the four normal-sized beings looked at her as Geo got a funny feeling.

"Sonia…What are you planning?" Geo asked.

"Excuse me~!" Sonia waved up at the squirrels, "Yes! You two squirrels up there!"

"(Aw geeze, Billy. Another loony human's talkin' at us again.)"

"(Just ignore her, Paul.)"

"Hey, I'm not talking at you two, Billy, Paul!" Sonia argued, making the squirrels pause and look down, "I'm talking to you."

"(Uh…Billy? Did she just…?)"

"(Those ones that get drunk always take random guesses.)"

"I assure you I am not drunk, Billy," Sonia pointed at the squirrel, "I promised my late Mama I'd never touch the stuff unless it's with a loved one and I'm in my twenties."

"...Is she…?" Bud looked at Ace as the two squirrels moved down to her.

"Oh right…She got this from the pig and the snake," Ace recalled as she discussed it.

"Okay, so a big bag of nuts to the tree five blocks down from here, right?" Sonia summed up, earning a chitter from Billy, "Okay. Deal's a deal." she offered a finger and both squirrels put their tail on the finger and shook it, "Okay! We got two special agents for Geo-kun to work with!" she pulled out her purse and rummaged through it, "I'm so glad I kept that spare Issun-san made. Paul agreed to help Geo get around and do stealth reporting on the locations of the guys that are getting arrested. Billy's gonna do private work and will sneak about to give me info on anything suspicious in the event."

"...You're going to have him ride squirrels?" Bud raised a brow.

"Hey, without the help of a good squirrel friend Issun-san made, Sensei would've been miserable still," Sonia noted, scratching the underside of Paul's chin as Geo was strapping on the handmade saddle that was leaving Billy to shake his head in exasperation.

"...Point taken."

"Okay. This can work," Ace nodded, "Geo with his two new squirrel buddies can take a ceiling view of the place. Your VG Hunter shrank with you, right?"

"Yes, but we tried the call function and the mic is too small to pick up my voice on the speakers of other VG Hunters. You'll have to be used to getting messages from me," Geo replied.

"Okay," Ace nodded, "Send us those messages when the targets are alone or in a good place to be apprehended without notice."

"Understood," Geo replied.

"I'll try to send some messages through the songs I'll be singing if I spot something Geo-kun, Billy-kun, and Paul-kun don't," Sonia assured.

"Good. And if things get dicey, Kazuma and Axl will be in with the rich folk since they're Luna's bodyguards tonight," Ace spoke.

"Speaking of…" Sonia looked around.

"Already inside," Ace replied, thumbing at the building.

"Got it," Sonia gave a thumbs up.

"The workers did a great job keeping the feng shui," Axl noted, his armor replaced with a formal navy blue suit as he and Ophiuchus stood near a table that Luna was at with an older woman that resembled Luna with her brown hair pulled up into a bun and an older gray-haired man in a brown and gray suit.

"Feng shui?"

"It's an art of sorts meant to help with one's karma in a building or place or life," Axl explained, "Glad Kazy, Issun, and me visited here a few times to make sure everything was accurate."

"I see," Ophiuchus noted, "Speaking of, where is your partner?"

"My brother in all but blood had a little issue to handle," Axl replied before seeing Kazuma enter, his hair combed and pulled into a wolf tail at the base of his head, "There he is."

"Mother, Father, this is Kazuma Hikari," Luna introduced once Kazuma approached the table.

"Hm? Hikari?" her father repeated, "Hm…that's a name I haven't heard from in a while…"

"Our family's been having to deal with some private matters for several years now," Kazuma explained as Luna raised a brow at her father's comment, putting a hand over his chest and giving a formal bow to the father and accepting the mother's offered hand and gently kissed her knuckles, "A pleasure to meet you both, Mr. and Mrs. Platz."

'WHAT THE HELL?!' Luna thought in shock, 'Where was this the whole time I've known the guy?!'

"Quite a polite young man," her mother noted, "Though you seem to be rather…"

"My apologies for my lateness. I had to make sure some of the workers here were being careful with the artifacts my family donated to this event," Kazuma explained.

"Hm?"

"The majority of the objects we have here are because of the Hikari family," Luna explained, "The bunkers they were all found in are all owned by Kazuma."

"Truly?" her father asked in surprise.

"Indeed. They were made by my ancestor Skye Sakurai in the case of emergencies," Kazuma explained, "And I say losing our history and culture counts, wouldn't you, sir?"

"But of course," he replied, "Even now, I'm left speechless at times by how much culture we've seemed to have lost in two hundred years."

'And the story behind it would be unbelievable to you,' both teens thought.

"Kazuma-san~!"

"...Oh no…" Kazuma groaned as a Wizard hurried over, looking like a human girl a few years older than him with white armor resembling a business suit and her blue hair pulled into a side ponytail.

"Who is this?" Luna's mother asked.

"My secretary. Her name is Rising Collective Operations or 'RiCO' for short," Kazuma introduced, "Before you ask, she's a Wizard. We saw footage of this one Wizard in Dealer and, well, we just had to figure out how."

"You…You forgot to sign the last three pieces of paperwork for…for the event…" the girl panted.

'What does a boy need a secretary for?' Luna's father pondered as Kazuma facepalmed.

"RiCO…Did you forget to put them with the other paperwork…again?"

"No, no, no!" RiCO quickly shook her head, "Certainly not like last time! I found them under one of the exhibits!"

"Right…" Kazuma sighed before bowing to the parents, "Please pardon this momentary interruption." he pulled RiCO off after that, "Right…Skye just had to make sure that digital writing was not an acceptable substitute for physical signatures in the family company."

"Luna…What does he mean?" Luna's mother asked softly.

Luna grimaced, "...He runs HeartSoul Industries."

The two did a double take, "He does?"

"Yes," Luna replied, looking over at Kazuma as he wrote his signature on the offered clipboard with several documents on it, "First time I met his secretary, though."

"Running it at such a young age," Luna's father rubbed the underside of his chin, "Yet, the markets all show an increase in their prices and no signs of falling anytime soon." he nodded, "Luna…"

"Yes, father?" Luna asked.

"I approve of him."

"...Wh-wh-what?!" Luna squeaked, her face going red in shock, "N-No, it's nothing like that, father! We're just…I mean…ah…"

"What is with her?" Ophiuchus questioned, looking at Axl.

"Eh, teenage hormones," Axl shrugged, "If I find a gal I like, I'd probably be like her if my parents approved of the gal I'd like."

"Your parents?" she questioned, Axl pausing.

"...Oh, look! A waiter carrying those fancy rich snacks that people can make just as easily at home," Axl spoke quickly, speeding off in a fast walk, "Oh garcon~!"

"...NetNavis are confusing beings," the serpent FM-Ian muttered.

"That cat virus was fairly amusing," Jorogumo smirked, watching some form of recordings of nonsense of it and focusing on Geo, Sonia, and Ellie's threesome, "And beneficial."

"How did you…?" the karasutengu began to ask in surprise.

"I got my resources. The trick is absolutely being something they never give a second look at, Karu-kun."

"Soka…"

"But enough of my peeping tom habits," he spoke. "How are we on the DarkCard production?"

"Umm well…good sir but…you're not gonna ask about the other thing?"

"Oh him? I'm waiting for a big stage for that."

"..."

"Oh, what now?"

"She left."

"..."

'Feels like I never even left it,' Sonia thought, sitting in a break room as she finished tuning her guitar, old familiar sensations flowing through her body, 'The pre-show jitters…the butterflies in the belly from the excitement…'

A soft knock went off from the door to the break room and a worker poked her head in, "Five minutes to showtime, Ms. Strumm."

"Thank you, Skeeter," Sonia thanked with a nod and small smile before the worker left, "Okay…Time to give a good show." she looked at her VG Hunter once more, memorizing the lyrics and notes once again for the music for the night, "So glad I was already practicing on playing these long before this was even thought of."

"Remember, Sonia, no ears or tail," Lyra reminded.

"I know, I know," Sonia sighed, "It just feels weird for me to not have them out lately."

She giggled, "It's rather funny. You used to hate them something fierce when they first came out, mostly for the fact you kept falling over onto your face."

"Don't remind me," Sonia grumbled as she walked out and headed for the stage set up for the event.

The guests that had managed to be invited or purchased a ticket for the pre-opening event that noticed her had to take a few double takes. While most people Sonia had spent a lot of time hadn't noticed, those who didn't could see the key things. For one, the way Sonia walked was slightly sensual with a sway to her hips that would send a light jiggle of her impressive breasts, her rich, flawless skin pronounced the redness of her full lips and the vibrant jade green of her eyes. A nearby AC caused some of her hair to get in her eyes, making her move a hand up to brush them behind her ear. Several men and a few women couldn't stop a small gulp as she made her way to the stage, the lightning on it illuminating her and making her seem all the more divine in looks. A few Wizards appeared, readied at the various instruments set up with music sheets appearing before them.

"Konbanwa, minna," Sonia greeted, "Or, in English, Good evening, everyone. It's been quite some time since I was last on a stage, so don't be surprised by how I look nowadays." she winked, "I've spent a lot of time practicing the music found where all the amazing things you'll be seeing in this exhibit were found and donated from, so hope you're ready for a little jukebox from me! Hope you all got your complimentary translation program, otherwise you may not understand the lyrics." she glanced to the ceiling, her eyes managing to spot Geo riding atop Paul on them as Billy was over at another part, the three looking around for the three needed, before grinning as she readied to play, "Are you ready~?" As if on cue, the crowd began to cheer her on in response while they began to play.

'Practice my ass,' Omega-Xis thought, dressed as one of the waiters with a dragon-themed kabuki mask over his face, as he carried a small platter, 'Girl's a natural.'

"Have you ever been to one of her concerts before, kyu?" Miyuki pondered, sitting with White and Ellie, the Oina wearing a figure-hugging ice-blue dress with a normal blue shawl going over her shoulders with white shoulder-length gloves and her hair pulled into a bun with dark blue chopsticks in it to hold the hair in place, the sole male wearing a formal suit with an orange tie, and the youngest of the three wearing a pink formal dress with white gloves like Miyuki's and her hair pulled back into a ponytail.

"No...I don't think I have," Ellei replied, "I've heard her music, but..never could afford a ticket to one of her concerts."

"I could, but I've never been one for concerts. You can never properly hear the music. Either the crowd is too loud or you're too far away," White admitted, "But I will admit that her singing is quite above any other, even when she first started."

"What about you?" Ellie asked.

"I've been to one when I could," Miyuki admitted, "And, yes, I can agree…often too loud or the crowd was too rowdy at times."

"Just be glad it's not like it was in the 2000s," Axl noted as he walked by, carrying two drinks, "Idol Culture was ravenous and vicious with a high mortality rate. If you were alive back then here in Electopia and Sonia was found to be dating Geo despite being retired…nothing good would be in store for them if they weren't who they are."

"Yikes," White winced, getting the implications.

"Huh/Eh?" the two looked at White.

"Long explanation that wouldn't be good for the night," White replied.

"Oh/Fair enough."

"Message from Geo," White spoke.

"Eh?" Miyuki pondered before her VG Hunter buzzed on silent mode, "?" she looked at it, "Oh. Geo-kun sent a message. One of the targets is heading for the restroom."

"Will let Ace know," Axl noted.

"The target is the only female, kyu," Miyuki added, making Axl pause.

"Ah, so that's why he messaged ya. …" he looked at White, "How'd you know he'd send that?"

"Mmm," White shrugged.

=Want me to take care of her?= Minor asked from Ellie's VG Hunter.

=No= Major instantly stated.

"I'll handle it," Miyuki replied, finishing her drink before walking off to the restrooms.

"Will she be alright?" Ellie asked.

"She'll be fine," White assured, "She's your mentor and can give the target a surprise with her abilities."

=But what if her dress is ripped?= Minor asked.

"I modified your dresses in case you need to get physical tonight," White explained, taking a nibble of one of the snacks on the platter on the table, "The lower half has elastics interwoven into it to maximize the limit before it rips and they can be removed in emergencies."

"So that's why there were a pair of shorts with it…" Ellie realized.

=Kinky= Minor quipped before a smack was heard =OW!=

"Ugh~ Why did they get Sonia Strumm of all people?" a tall blonde woman in an expensive looking dress complained to herself, looking at her reflection as she was putting on some new makeup, "She's nothing more than some forgotten teen idol…and what's with that new body of hers? She looks like a slut….must've been plastic surgery or something…anything a brat like her will have to do to keep up with beautiful people such as myself."

"Oh, it's all natural actually," a voice spoke, making her pause and glance to see Miyuki working on her own makeup, "She was a late bloomer from what the doctors explained. Something about how the stress of being a teen idol was causing it."

"And you are…?"

"Miyuki Nanaya."

"The famous wrestler?"

"Yup…and, as of recently, her coach."

"...her…her coach?"

"Yes. You think she got her figure just from late blooming? She also has an exercise routine to keep her fit," Miyuki replied, "Girl can bench press three tons if she wants with my training."

"...th-three tons?" the woman repeated before shaking her head, "Whatever…just shows she's also a brute as well."

"Oh a brute, huh?"

"Yes! She's learning from someone who plays a sport meant for men!" she continued, "I mean, honestly, girls her age need to worry about finding a love life…or focus on being a good servant to whatever man she falls in love with."

"Oh, she doesn't have to worry much. She's dating the Geo Stellar."

"Megaman?!" she gawked.

"It was a headache getting her to admit she was in love with him…and then even longer to get her to work up the courage to tell him how she feels," Miyuki sighed, "Teenagers, right? Can't be honest about their feelings, but blunt about everything else."

"..."

"So…you're a member of the international police, yes? I remember seeing you on one of the photos on the list of people who are in charge of it all," Miyuki noted.

"Ah…Uh…Y-Yes, I am!" she replied, "I'm one of the people who let you muscle ladies get to have your 'fun' with that men's sport."

"Yes, yes, I see…" Miyuki nodded, "So you're also the one who looks the other way when ladies commit crimes so long as we give you a nice 'donation,' yes?"

"Crimes?" she repeated before giving a small laugh, "Oh please. I am an officer of the law. I wouldn't dare do that to any criminals. I do receive donations, yes, but never to pardon any crimes. We need to prosecute all of them."

"Mmm-hmm…" Miyuki nodded, "Yes, yes, I am fully in agreement, yes."

'Phew. That's…' she thought before gagging as Miyuki pinned her and displayed a screen for the woman, showing her registration as a temporarily deputized officer.

"As such, you are under arrest for bribery and the obstruction of justice," Miyuki stated before putting her into a sleep hold while reading the woman her rights.

=Report. I've detained one of the thieves= Miyuki whispered from the VG Hunter.

Geo nodded, sending a response back via text, "Well, that was easy enough. Two left and it's not even an hour." Paul chittered, "What's up?" he looked over the side to see a plump man in glasses watching Sonia's performance, "Found another." he looked to see Ace to the man's left and Axl and Omega-Xis serving some guests with the former providing light commentary about a part of the exhibit, "Alright." he pulled up his messenger, "'Ace. Target two is to your right.' 'Axl, get Target Two-who is on your left-to leave the area.'"

=Gotcha= both replied on the audio after a moment.

Geo sighed, "I swear, that hammer can't be done sooner…" he looked out to Sonia and smiled, seeing the happy look on the redhead's face as she sang another song, 'It's like she never retired from the stage.' as she sang, Sonia glanced up at where Geo was and winked, making him blush, 'I have an awesome girlfriend.' "Okay, Paul, let's keep looking around up here, alright?"

Paul chittered before going off. Below them, Sonia finished up the melody and placed a small break card on the stand by her. She gave a wave at the applauding party goers and made her way into the backroom of the museum. After a few moments, Billy climbed down a pipe and landed on her shoulder.

"How is it up there?" Sonia asked, offering the squirrel some cashews from the buffet setup for the workers.

"(Have to admit that this place is rather cozy in terms of temperature. May have to see 'bout making a secret entrance for Paul and me for the winter and summer months.)"

"I won't say a word," Sonia assured, "How goes looking for the three because Miyuki took out the female."

"(Well, I saw the chubby one near your pal Ace. And da loud red wearin' bloke's canoodling with a few ladies near da back by da bar. Ain't no way of gettin' him yet)," Billy replied.

"Moment he's alone, contact the nearest agent," Sonia whispered.

"(...Lady, did ya forget I'm a squirrel and don't know how ta talk your fancy stuff?)"

"Oh, right. Go find Geo-kun and Paul then."

"(Now dat's smart thinkin',)" Billy winked at her before climbing back up to the ceiling using a nearby pulley system.

"I gotta try and get a better handle of this…" Sonia whispered to herself, 'You'd think I'd be used to this by now…but everytime I do, a new Fudegami pops up and gives me something new…' she mentally paused as she looked at her reflection in a nearby mirror, '...with a more developed figure on the side every other time…' she ran a hand along the side of her figure, thinking of just earlier that year she had still been looking like she had barely aged since she first met Geo, '...I'm a reincarnated goddess, so I guess as I'm regaining the powers of my past life, it's making me look more like her? But…wasn't she a wolf?' she frowned, "I'm going to give myself a headache overthinking this again…"

She was about to walk off before tensing, swearing she just saw Vulpecula walking past her in the reflection, making her quickly turn…to see no sight of her anywhere. She looked around the area for a moment before she turned to the side, swearing she saw the Fox's tail sway by…still nothing. She took out her brush, looking around for a few more moments, before ultimately sighing and walked back to her stage with the brush returning to its space in her cleavage.

A rather plump man in a well fitting suit for him chuckled as he looked around at the festivities, 'These Platz sure do go above and beyond for their shindigs. Even getting a retired musician to resume her career for one night only. And my god! They must have been digitally editing her something fierce to hide those curves!'

"Ara ara, enjoying yourself, sir~?"

"Hmm?" the man blinked before looking to the side, seeing a rather voluptuous woman with long flowing crimson hair, a fox tail hanging off the back of her elegant dark purple kimono that did little to hide her curvy figure, "?!" he blinked and the fox traits were gone along with the kimono, replaced by a stunning black dress that split on the right side of her hips to expose the entirety of her right leg that sported gray stockings and gray shoulder-length gloves that left her fingers exposed, "H-Huh…? Um…I…I suppose so…" he glanced at the drink in his hand, "Maybe a little too much…"

"Oh nonsense!" she giggled, moving her head a bit to let the long bang that hid her right eye sway a little as her golden left eye glistened with an enticing glint, "It's a party. To indulge is to be expected."

"I…I suppose…" he gulped before shaking his head, "Name's Bezzel, Tom Bezzel."

"I suppose you may call me Mae," she replied, "And speaking of parties, I do intend to enjoy myself~" she walked by him, an alluring sway to her hips earning several eyes from the other partygoers, "Enjoy while you can~"

'...This party is filled with the hottest dames!' Bezzel thought with a perverted glee before spluttering when a tray of drinks him, "GAH!"

"I-I am so sorry, sir!" a shorter, curvy girl in a maid uniform apologized, wearing an orange helmet of sorts.

"Ghh…It-It's fine…"

"Oh, please, sir. Allow me to escort you to get you dried off," she offered.

"Yeah…I-I'd appreciate that," Bezel muttered as he began to follow her, 'Not as large as the songstress or that woman just now, but damn~!' they entered through an employee's only door and the girl giggled once it closed behind them, "Hm? What's so funny?"

"Well…I just think your name is…rather fitting, no? Tom Bezzel…say it fast enough and you get 'to embezzle,'" she noted, looking over her shoulder at him, a sharp look in her eye, "Such as the case for how much you've been skimming off the top of WAXA and the Satella Police's budgets. Shall we say…the 9.3 Million Zenny you've gotten off of doing this the last decade or two has been quite lucrative, hm?"

"?!" Tom stumbled back a bit, "H-How did you…?!"

She giggled, "Oh honey…I know a lot about you~"

"...you little…!" Tom growled as he grabbed her by the neck, "You really want to test me?!"

"Gh…oh…by the way, you want to know something else…?"

"What?!" Tom growled before he heard a gun clicking, making him look down to see one pushed right against his neck.

"This ain't how I normally look," she winked before, in a flash of light, Axl grinned at him, gun still in hand and against his neck, "Name's Axl, bud. And before anyone screams…A-Trans: Darkman."

Another flash went off and Axl was replaced with a tall, ominous figure shrouded in robes of black accented in purples with a pitch black dome engulfing his head. Before Tom could scream, his shadow shot up and wrapped around his mouth while binding his arms behind his back. The purples of his robes turned orange as he placed a black gloved hand on Tom's head…

*CRACKLE~!*

…before Tom let out a muffled yelp as he was electrocuted for a brief moment, his body going slack in the shadow-made bindings. His orange bled back to purple before waving his hand and insect-like legs emerged from the shadow binds, carrying Tom away. Nearby, Ace let out a slow, impressed whistle.

"You are really good at that," Ace noted before A-Darkman chuckled in a deep smooth voice.

"I should…Kazzy and I always practice with a form we obtain until the body is akin to a second nature of sorts," he noted before flashing back to Axl, "And that's two down! All that remains is Geo's former bounty, right?"

"Eeyup," Ace nodded, "And so far everything's going off without a hitch….and that worries me."

"Hmm?"

"This feels easy…almost too easy."

"...Ahh~! Why'd you have to say it like that?" Axl groaned, "Now we gotta be ready for anything and everything~! I ain't my big bro who does that! Nor is Kazzy like his great-great-great-great-great granduncle Skye! And don't you dare say I could because I'm a NetNavi and am a digital being who can do all sorts of calculations quickly! That is racist, dang it!"

"Wasn't gonna say that," Ace quickly assured, holding his hands up in assurance.

"Right. Well…I'm going to try to enjoy the little time left before chaos descends upon us all by teasing Kazzy and Lulu," Axl huffed as he adjusted his tie and walked off.

"Sure it's not because of a snake lady?" Ace called out, chuckling as Axl tripped and fell flat on his face.

"So get this…" a man wearing an all red attire grinned as he was surrounded by a few women, "I was out on the beach one night when I spotted it...possibly the most beautiful pearl laying out in the open…and not just any pearl, baes. The ever elusive Melo Melo…"

"Ohh~ What kind of clam does that come from?" one of the women asked.

"That's the thing, it wasn't made by a clam, oyster, or any mollusk…but of a sea snail," the man grinned, earning awes from the women, "Now see…I thought that would be too easy, but then all of a sudden…a mermaid came out of the water asking for it…and funny thing," he paused as he shot them a grin, "She looked like one of you ladies~"

"Oh my~" one of them giggled as they all blushed.

"Do you still have the pearl?"

"Yup," the man replied as he reached into his suit, pulling out a large pearl held up on a golden chain with various sea-shells on them, "She gave them to me with a promise….On the that day I find her again, we would be together forever…a forbidden love between land and sea~"

"Gag me…" Geo muttered as Paul made gagging motions, the two looking down from the ceiling's 'pathways' of pipes and scaffoldings.

"Now the question is…could it be one of you lovely ladies?" the man smirked at the women around him…before they all began to argue and fight, trying to proclaim that they were his mermaid, 'Heh…ahh women…such lovely things to toy with…yet who can blame them? I am…'

"Perhaps I could be the one~?"

"Hmm?" the man raised a brow before the woman that had approached Tom earlier began to approach him, '?! Woah~ What a jackpot…!'

"What the…?" Geo pondered before yelping as Paul let out a startled cry and bucked, causing Geo to fall off and begin falling to the ground, "?!"

"K…" Omega-Xis began, spotting the falling one-inch male, before quickly shutting himself up as he tried to be discreet in moving quickly towards the falling male before sighing in relief when Geo landed in a filled drink cup, "Oh that's…" the man grabbed the drink, focused far more on the crimson-haired woman, 'NOT GOOOOOOOOOOOD!' he looked around before spotting Axl walking by with two drinks and proceeded to smack him upside the head with his empty tray.

"Gah! What?!" Axl grunted, dropping the drinks before Omega-Xis grabbed his head and turned him to the sight, "Oh sugar honey iced tea…" his eyes darted around before spotting the stage, "...Ohh, I think Sonia's going to be mad at what I'm gonna do."

"Just say 'Geo was in danger.' She'll be grumpy, but she'll understand. Plus, she has only a few notes left in this one," Omega-Xis shrugged before hissing, "Now whatever you're doing, do it!"

"Right! …Wait, how do you…?"

"Just go before I have to figure out how to do a stomach pump with my claws."

"Right, right!" Axl squeaked before dashing off along the side of the exhibit hall to the stage.

"Whew…That's the last one for now," Sonia noted under her breath, Lyra disconnecting the mic to keep her quiet.

"Axl's heading this way," Lyra spoke up from her guitar.

"Hm?" Sonia looked to see Axl, who was managing well to not earn attention, "He looks panicked."

"You think something happened and we're needed?" Lyra asked.

"Mmm…I don't…" Sonia began before a flash went off from Axl.

'Oh god, I'm gonna be drunk!' Geo thought as the man prepared to drink when…

"LOOOOOOOOOOOK AT ME~!"

Everyone looked out to the stage and blinked several times. Upon the stage was a large humanoid blue shark in black pants fused to boots and a green armored vest. Sonia raised a brow behind it. At a nearby table, Kazuma struggled to not facepalm as Luna gave him a sharp look.

"Tell me whaaaaaat you see," the shark sang, glancing over his shoulder at Sonia, giving her a 'just go with it look.' "Am I goooooooood or baaaad?"

"What on Earth is he doing…?" Ellie blinked.

"Don't you juuuuuuuuuuuudge so fast," the shark continued, Sonia catching on as she started to play on her guitar, "Hey, hey, hey! I know you think you know me, you made your own conclusion. You think that I look scary~?" he did a spin and a flash before he switched to the form of a lanky skeleton-like NetNavi with orange armored gloves and boots and skull shoulder guards, "But that's your own delusion!"

"What is your partner doing?" Ophiuchus softly asked in disbelief as Kazuma facepalmed.

"An old cartoon movie from the first half of the 2000s," he explained under his breath, thankful Luna's parents were too focused on trying to understand what was going on and why there was a humanoid singing shark on stage, "It was called The Bad Guys and one scene had the piranha start belting this song out when the snake was about…to be…" he looked over his shoulder to where the man and the woman were staring at the stage…with Geo trying to get out of the drink, "...sonuva Darkloid…"

"Where?!" Luna gulped, looking around.

"No Darkloid, just an inch-tall Geo nearly getting drunk," Kazuma replied.

"Oh that's a…" Luna began to sigh in relief before both females looked at him.

"Wait, what?" both asked.

"HELP!" Geo screamed…which fell on deaf ears as he tried to swim away from the liquid the man was drinking.

"Listen when I tell ya, there's more than meets the eye~!" Axl kept up the song as he did another A-Trans to become a NetNavi resemble an armored wizard with gems blocking the ends of his sleeves before doing a teleport to appear between the man and woman, making them both jump and send the drink's liquid-and Geo-over the man's shoulder and land on the counter, "If you take a closer look, you'll find a real good guy~!" he did a spun, managing to catch Geo, before teleporting back to the stage and shift to the shark form once more, "We're not the bad guys!" another flash and the skeleton replaced him, "We're the good guys."

"Geo," Sonia whispered, the flash of A-Trans disguising the shapeshifter's movement of tossing Geo to Sonia, managing to get him to land on her shoulder.

"I am so thankful your hair is so long now," Geo muttered, using said hair to hide from everyone's sight, as his cheeks were bright red, "A-and I'd like to-HIC!-let it go on re-recording that y-you are…you are very hot!"

"G-Geo?" Sonia blinked.

"He's tiny and was swimming in an alcoholic drink," Lyra noted as Axl continued to belt out lyrics.

"Y-You're an alcohol-HIC!-alkaline drink!" Geo slurred as he leaned against Sonia's neck, "Heh heh…ahh Paul ran like a wimp…"

"Ran?" Sonia repeated, snapping out of her stupor seeing her boyfriend drunk, "Ran from what?"

"I dream of th-hic-the lady, she with dark red h-hic!-hair~~!"

'Okay, if this wasn't serious, a drunk Geo is a silly Geo…' Sonia thought, glancing around before spotting said woman and the man she was by, "The one by Austin Dureels? Our last target?"

"Heh heh….eeeyupppp~"

"Why would he…?" Sonia began before tensing, swearing she saw the woman grinning at her alone as her finger traced something on the man's forehead…and saw the dark purple markings on said woman, "?!"

"Did…Didsh any-hic!-one tells ya youse shoulds wears this perfume more often?" Geo asked, nuzzling into her neck, "It…Itsh a good one for…Zzzzz…"

"Aaaand he passed out," Lyra sighed.

"Liven this party up…my Faux Tube Fox," the woman whispered to Austin as she began to walk off, the man grunting as he struggled to stand up and stumble around the bar and out of sight.

"Gh….wh….h…gh…Grr…!" Austin growled out as he held his head, his eyes flashing to black with slitted pupils as a dark aura began to surround him.

"!?" Sonia barely avoided a misplay of her guitar as she swallowed the vomit that tried to come up, 'Shit! Dark Power's in the area…' She managed to smile and whisper behind her clenched teeth, "Axl…Dark Power in the area and I think we just lost our last target."

Another flash and the wizard NetNavi warped about, managing to glance behind the bar and went stark white for a moment that he disguised with a few firework like 'spells' from his red gems, and teleported back to stage. As he kept up his song, he held up a crystal to his back and let Sonia see green fire appear, showing a man bending and twisting before taking form of a fox. As the last lines went out, he teleported off and Sonia quickly put the break time card on and hurried off.

"Lyra, send messages ASAP for immediate evacuation of the place!" Sonia ordered once they were in the backrooms before the fire alarm went off, "?!" she jumped and looked to see Axl having pulled it, "Or…or we do that…that's good as well."

"Hey. Better than nothing," Axl argued before he quickly rushed off.

"Sonia!" Omega-Xis called as he phased through a wall to fly over, "I didn't see the kid! Where is he?!"

"Asleep," Sonia replied, gently getting the snoring Geo from her body.

"He's asleep?!" Omega-Xis gawked as Sonia changed into Lyra Note.

"Not his fault. His tiny body couldn't handle the alcohol in that drink," Lyra argued, "Also, something happened with Paul."

"Oh great. I'm taking half those nuts we agreed on for this!" Omega-Xis growled.

"Not the time! We have Dark Power in the area and…" Lyra Note began before a feral roar erupted back in the exhibit hall, "?!"

"...Our last target turned into a Yokai like Golds, didn't he?" Omega-Xis asked.

"Uh-huh," Lyra Note replied before her Transer went off and she answered it, showing one of the Wizard officers.

"Oh good! You're already transformed! Hurry! Some sorta fast moving thing is zipping about!" the Wizard informed, "Please! Hurry back and…" the communication was cut off just as the Wizard started to scream in agony after something collided with them.

"...Oh what are we dealing with now…?" Lyra Note whispered in worry.

In the main room, everyone was beginning to panic as the fire alarm went off, a blur shooting around while leaving large claw marks on the walls and floor, bits of blue fire coming off them as they began to burn up any nearby paintings and displays.

'I am so glad these are just replicas…' Kazuma thought, fire extinguisher in hand and he began to blast at the flames with Luna and her parents behind him, 'Dammit. Where's…' a blast of pressurized water zipped past him and blasted a path through the flames, causing him to look over his shoulder to see a tiny child-sized figure in a cream and pink 'dress' of sorts with blue balls for hands, blue feet, and a glass ball for a head filled with water that showed a watery smile and big eyes inside of it along with at tiny spray of water coming out of the top of its sphere, "Axl!"

"Hm?" Luna and her mother looked before doing a double-take, "Oh my goodness! Too adorable!"

"D-Dear?" Luna's father gawked in disbelief.

"I am so glad Aquaman was one of the first ones we got the A-Trans for, mizu~" the tiny figure noted, holding up the large hose in its ball-like hands, "No worries about being all fired up now! I'll wash out a path to safety, mizu~!"

'Don't punt him, Kazuma…There are girls who are going ga-ga over him nearby…' Kazuma thought, his eye twitching before tackling Luna's father.

"Wha…?!" he began before a streak of tainted white raced by raced by where his head had been, wisps of blue flames dissipating being the only sign, "?!"

"Apologies, sir," Kazuma apologized as he pulled the man back up, "Axl, make a path!" he whistled sharply, managing to earn the attention of the panicked people still inside, "This way! Calm and orderly!"

"This way! This way please!" Ace shouted as he escorted more people out, only to tense when a wall of blue flames blocked the exit, "!?" 'Shit…is it trying to trap us in here?!'

"Tch…Axl!" Kazuma shouted.

"Hai, mizu~!" A-Aquaman saluted as he shifted back to Axl and hopped into Kazuma's glove.

"SynchroChip, Download!" Kazuma declared.

"CrossFusion!" the two declared as, in a flash, Axl Rod was already on the move.

"A-Trans! Quickman!" Axl Rod shouted, a flash replacing him with the speedster NetNavi that became a blur of his own.

A moment briefly passed before an impact and a yelp went off before the bar was crashed into. A-Quickman landed on one of the tables and shifted back to Axl Rod.

"BubbleSide, Download!" he declared, his buster arm shifting into a clear container filled with bubbling pressurized water.

He aimed and fired it at the doors, causing the flames to be extinguished by a long line of watery bubbles. As the steam settled, they saw it rising from behind the bar…a horrific monstrous looking fox-like creature that stood on its hindlegs. Its crimson/tainted white fur flared up as its head and face was covered in a green hood with a fox mask on the front, all while its brush-like tail flicked about.

"Oi, get these people out of here," Axl Rod ordered, glancing over at Ace, "I'll hold it off so you can get back suited up. The folks are more important than this thing, got it?"

"...Got it," Ace nodded, starting to get people to start getting out through the now fireless doors, 'Guess it's true that a Hikari always puts others before themselves when a danger is about.'

"Come on, ya big palooka! I'll rip that fur coat off ya, wear it, and prance about as all the folks be askin' where I got my skanky fox coat!" Axl taunted.

"...You and your big mouth," Axl Rod muttered as the fox-like creature swung its head to glare harshly at him, letting loose a massive roar, before lunging at him, "...Idiot." a flash went off and sand rapidly ensnared and engulfed the monster, revealing Axl Rod looking like a basic NetNavi with a sand coloration to his form, "Can't go full Desertman like Axl, but his disguised state is still good enough for you, mutt!"

The fox's tail, having avoided capture, flicked around before brushing along the ground, causing blue flames to rise up around Axl Rod, making him flinch as the creature managed to free itself and jump away.

"Ice Craft: Diamond Dust!" Blizzard Kyuubi's voice shouted as a series of ice shards headed towards the fox-like creature, prompting it to swipe its tail on the ground as more blue flames blocked the ice, "Tch…a Tube Fox, here?" she grunted as she and Canis Trinity landed near Axl Rod.

"T-Tube Fox?" Canis Trinity repeated.

"They're also known as Kuda-gitsune or Kano," Axl Rod explained, "They're said to be familiars of powerful sorcerers, able to hide within bamboo tubes or pipes, hence the moniker 'Tube Fox.' This one's a variant that acts as an attacker of sorts, often said to lay fatal curses upon its master's enemies: the Izuna."

"So we got a crazy fox monster after us…Gee…why does that sound so damn familiar?" Minor muttered in heavy sarcasm, "Lousy Vulpecula…"

"This world has made her far more dangerous," Major noted before they split from Canis Trinity to make CT Major, CT Minor, and CT Core, "And this one's incredibly dangerous. Sorry for the destruction to all this."

"Eh, no worries. These are just duplicates the family made to preserve the originals," Axl Rod replied before a HeroSword replaced his buster arm and swiftly blocked the claws of the Izuna, "Gh! Focus on dealing with this!"

"Go crazy on the fox demon. Gotcha," CT Minor grinned as she cracked her knuckles, flicking her hands as claws lined with black flames replaced them, "Time to go nuts!"

"Hopefully, Sonia and Ace can get back to help with this," CF Major noted, extending her own claws with white lightning crackling along the tips.

"This way, hurry! Hurry now! Ah, no! Don't go that wa…!" Ace began before a group of people that had been trying to head for the elevators instead of the stairs froze before rapidly running past him to the stairs, "Huh?"

"Okay…I am so glad for that Brush Technique," Lyra Note noted as she landed beside him with brush in hand, "Anyone who tries to go another way, I'll get them going the right way, Ace-taicho."

"...Thank god for your brush, kiddo," Ace sighed in relief, "Any sign of Geo?"

"Asleep…fell into alcohol and…well…"

"Ahh. Say no more…you focus on helping get people out," Ace ordered.

"H-" Lyra Note began before tensing, the area around them suddenly freezing, "...wh…what…?"

"Well well…seems the little goddess is enjoying herself~"

"?!" Lyra Note tensed as she quickly turned, seeing the dark red-haired woman looking at her with a coy smile as her dark purple markings glowed.

"Vulpecula?" Lyra pondered, earning a giggle from the woman.

"Oh please…Boku wa Mae…Tamamo no Mae," she replied while letting a large bushy fox tail and long black-tipped fox ears emerge, "That weak fox is no more…With the Dark Power, I have been reborn as something…more~"

"M-more?" Lyra Note repeated before yelping as Vulpecula…or rather Tamamo was instantly before her.

"You've certainly…filled out since our last encounter, oh 'little' sun goddess," she smirked as she pressed herself against Lyra Note, their generous breasts squishing against one another.

"G-Ghh…" Lyra Note grimaced, feeling the Dark Power emanating from her as her stomach did a roller coaster inside of her.

"What's wrong~? Can't handle my presence now~?" the fox teased, trailing a finger along the underside of the wolf's jaw.

"Gh…!" Lyra Note grunted as she jumped back, swiping the air with her brush just as Tamamo swung her tail, causing a large shockwave to come off the two, "?!"

"Did you forget…I can do what you can, too~" she smirked as her tail swayed before her the tip glowing just like Lyra Note's brush was, "And them some~"

"?! You're why time feels frozen," Lyra Note realized.

"Bingo~" Tamamo confirmed, "The 'memory' of your previous life's battles against Orochi-dono that bled into the DarkCards that were used to help me ascend were just enough to let me see a few of the Brush Techniques you never reclaimed when his curse befell the lands." she brought a curled finger to her lips, "I won't even need to transform fully to fight you at this time."

"?!" Lyra Note's eyes widened as she attempted to jump back, only for dark vines to shoot up and bound her into place, "Gh!"

"What's wrong, puppy? Not feeling scared, are you~?" she teased, looking the girl over and giggled, "Ara~ You really have enhanced your looks, have you not? All that power you've been regaining and how it breaks your chains with mortality with each one…I wonder how long it will be when you've stopped aging completely and outlive your so-called 'friends.'"

"Sh…shut up…!" Lyra Note grunted as she tried to free herself from the dark vines.

"Why…whatever for? Does hearing what goes on within your body feel uncomfortable? Perhaps, it makes you want to stay away for their peace of mind?" Tamamo guessed, "Hmm…perhaps even your 'mate' would be dejected if you do something like that and would need someone with a little…stronger…touch~"

"?! YOU STAY AWAY FROM MY MATE!" Lyra Note snapped, struggling even harder as her markings glowed fiercely to compliment her glare aimed at the kitsune.

"I thought you wanted Omega-Xis," Lyra noted in surprise.

"Hah~ Truly a pity with that. He had so much for him…until coming here," she replied, "But me?" she giggled, running a hand sensually along her curves, ending with cupping her breast and giving it a small squeeze, "My body has evolved beyond what and who I once was…and what I want now is a strong mate to breed with. Creating a fallen hero would be such a…delightful…mate, would it not?"

"?!" Lyra Note's eyes flashed as she gave a fierce snarl, the dark vines beginning to weaken as her markings began to glow stronger.

"Ah ha~! That seems to have set you off!" Tamamo laughed, "Show me, Amaterasu…What can you do?"

"What I…can do…" Lyra Note growled, her muscles starting to be defined in her pulling on the vines before managing to rip an arm free of them, "IS MAKE YOU BACK OFF!"

She swung her brush and a cherry bomb appeared, going up in an explosion that set the vines on her ablaze, engulfing her in them before Ammy erupted from them with a snarl. Vulpecula sneered as she rushed at the white wolf, shadows engulfing her as a slender black fox with purple markings in the same spots as on Ammy emerged from them, just as built as the white wolf and sporting a blood red sword with nine branching spikes going along the sides of the blade. It swung and collided with the mirror that shot off Ammy's back, sending out sparks as the spiraling mirror grinded against the blade. Their tails flicked and flames collided with water, unleashing steam that enshrouded the two. Sparks of mirror meeting sword briefly illuminated the two within.

Tamamo merely smirked as she continued to parry Ammy's blows, her tail swishing before a fierce gale blew behind her, knocking the white wolf back as the wind blew her back along with the steam. She lunged and managed to get a slice into Ammy's right hind leg, earning a yelp of pain from her. Tamamo spun around for a stab only to meet mirror once more. She let out a chuff before Ammy leapt over it, the fox's eyes going wide when she saw that the mirror did not return to her back…because an elegant blue double-edged sword rested upon it, the hilt separated from the blade by an encirclement of golden storm clouds. The sword seemed to come alive on its own and shot down at Tamamo, forcing her to jump back and leave the blade to deliver a deep gash into the floor.

Both Ammy and Tamamo growled at one another before the two pounced, the flames hiding their forms for a moment as both transformed back into their human states, swords clashing as they glared at one another.

"The Tsumugu…" Tamamo whispered, narrowing her eyes, "Thief. Your past life took that as a trophy from slaying Orochi-dono."

"Stay away from Geo-kun, kitsune!" Lyra Note snarled, putting pressure before they were forced back from one another by a piece of the ceiling falling, "!"

"Seems we've caused a bit of damage in this hallway," Tamamo noted, seeing the slices in the piece that fell, "Ah well…" she dismissed her sword in a swirl of shadows, "I think I've had enough entertainment tonight and made my declaration known. Just know, little wolf…" she paused as she grinned at her while backing into the shadows, "There's more dangers for you to face…each a part of Orochi-dono, empowered by the Dark Power~" she giggled as the shadows raised up and began covering her, "And keep your mate close~ Otherwise, he'll. be. Mine." she was pulled into the shadows at that, leaving a frustrated Lyra Note snarling at where she had been.

"D'oh…ooh~! Oh, I hate that fox…!" Lyra Note growled as she dismissed her own blade.

"Worry about her later. For now we need to go help the others!" Lyra reminded her.

"Ah! Right!" Lyra Note gasped as she quickly ran off.

"...AHH!" Ace gasped as he was able to move once more, "What the…? Who the…? Where did Sonia go? And what happened here?!"

"GYAH~!" Blizzard Kyuubi screamed as she sailed over CT Major, who was charging at the Faux Tube Fox, going for a kick only for it to catch her leg with its tail and throw her into CT Minor who was going for a sneak lunge.

A wave of sand shaped like a lion's head rushed at the beast only for it to swing its tail and the blue flames to quickly collide with it, turning it into a glass sculpture. A flash went off and the Faux Tube Fox backhanded the rushing Axl Rod, shattering the LongSword he had tried to use. CT Core managed to catch him mid-flight.

"Ah…W-What are we going to do?" CT Core asked.

"This thing's strong…" Axl Rod grunted as Blizzard Kyuubi skidded over to them, "And fast to boot."

"I tried freezing the floor, but it melted the ice," Blizzard Kyuubi grimaced.

"Hmm…Water…Got it! A-Trans!" Axl Rod shouted as a flash of light replaced him with a taller, slightly buffer looking NetNavi in a black bodysuit with cobalt and silver armor with clear yellow-tinted glass on his head and on his shoulders, "Flashman!"

The Faux Tube Fox growled at the new intruder, preparing to swing its tail before a bright flash went off, making it wince as it suddenly stopped, almost as if its entire body was paralyzed. A-Flashman chuckled, holding a neon sphere in both his hands.

"Flash Light," he spoke as he lowered his hands, "Pierces through all kinds of defenses, even invisibility and invulnerability."

"That sounds incredibly busted!" CT Minor shouted as the two ran over to them.

"Hey, I have a BattleChip that instantly refreshes all of the ones I've used…including itself," A-Flashman pointed out, "It's so broken that it was banned from everything and later models of PeT were programmed to reject and delete the data. Lemme tell ya, that was not a fun time erasing so I can have it in case of emergencies."

"You seriously have something like that?!" CT Minor gawked.

"With the limits put on BattleCards, something like that would be a benefit for the police and a nightmare for them if it became a thing since criminals would likely have access to it as well," CT Major noted.

"Hence why I refuse to let anyone have the code," A-Flashman nodded before slamming a hand down on the water on the floor the Yokai was standing in, "Spark Arm!"

His hand crackled before the water and the Faux Fox Tube lit up with a powerful blast of electricity. The Yokai howled and screeched for several moments before it ended, leaving the Faux Fox Tube stunned once more.

"Paralyzing doesn't last long. Only a few seconds," A-Flashman warned, "Hurry and take it down before it can move!"

"OH! R-right!" CT Core nodded, "Major, Minor!"

"Understood," CT Major whispered as azure lighting crackled off her.

"Hell yeah! Finisher time ya lousy beast!" CT Minor grinned as crimson flames cracked off her.

"Fall and never return, foul spirit!" Blizzard Kyuubi declared as she gathered the cold to her as ice formed and engulfed the Faux Fox Tube's tail and legs.

"Here we go!" Axl whooped as Axl Rod brought his hands together.

"Quake 1, Quake 2, Quake 3, Download!" Axl Rod declared, "Program Advance: Heavy Stamp!"

The elements gathered around the legs of the three women as all five crouched down and jumped up. CT Major and Minor glowed before recombining with CT Core, letting her feet be engulfed in both elements, as ice and snow spiraled around Blizzard Kyuubi's left leg as a massive gunmetal weight form on Axl Rod's right leg. Blizzard Kyuubi slammed into the Faux Tube Fox just as its stunned state finally ended, causing it to screech as more ice formed on its body as she jumped away from him. The dual element kicks from Canis Trinity slammed into it next, engulfing it in fire and electrical burns where ice and frostbite weren't already on it. Finally, Axl Rod's weight slammed into it and caused a large explosion. All three landed away from the smoke-filled area the Faux Fox Tube had been in, keeping their eyes focused on it. A heavily damaged Faux Fox Tube erupted from it, giving a maddening screech as it lunged for them…before gagging as it split down the middle with several Demon Fangs popping out of its body. Its halves bounced a few times on the floor before landing before the three as the halves turned into beds of flowers. They looked to see Lyra Note running over, her brush in hand.

"Are you all okay?" Lyra Note asked.

"We…We're good," Canis Trinity assured before squeaking as Lyra Note hugged her.

"Oh, that's a relief," she sighed in relief before looking at them in worry, "Vulpecula's evolved again. She was the woman who turned him into that Yokai."

"Grr…" Blizzard Kyuubi frowned upon hearing that, feeling Frost shake in worry.

"That was Vulpecula?! …Sonuvabitch…"

"What?" Axl Rod asked.

"She was hot, dammit!"

"..." he ended the CrossFusion and suplexed Axl, leaving him halfway embedded in the floor, "You know what you did to get that!"

"Well…there's also some good news," Lyra noted.

"What?" Omega-Xis asked as he floated over, the squirrels on his shoulders.

"Congrats, Omega-Xis, Vulpecula doesn't want you anymore."

"..." Omega-Xis struggled to not cry in joy.

"Bad news? She wants Geo," Lyra noted.

"Huh/Eh?!"

"Ugh…n-not so loud…" Geo groaned, hissing as he held his head, "Ah…my head…it-URK!"

"Ugh…Kid~" Omega-Xis groaned as Geo vomited onto the AM-Ian's hand, "Wait…Vulpecula wants the kid?"

"Apparently, this new evolution of hers made her more compatible with human reproduction," Lyra noted as Lyra Note continued a constant growling, "And since he's considered one of the strongest humans thanks to being Megaman, who you help make…"

"I get it," Omega-Xis replied with a deadpan tone and expression, "What else?"

"...She has more Brush Techniques than me," Lyra Note admitted, "A lot more."

"How?" Canis Trinity asked.

"Apparently, she got them from the 'memories of Orochi' inside of the DarkCards," Lyra replied, "And she's now calling herself Tamamo no Mae."

"?! Tamamo no Mae?! As in…the Tamamo no Mae?" Kazuma asked as they all dropped Wave Change aside from Lyra Note.

"Oh I take it that's bad," Ellie whispered.

"Tamamo No Mae is considered one of the most evil foxes in history," Miyuki explained

"Back when Choina, Netdia, and Electopia were called China, India, and Japan, Tamamo no Mae was a menace," Kazuma added, "According the legend here in Electopia, she was very beautiful, always had a fragrant scent, and was very neat and clean. Despite her youthful appearance, she was very knowledgeable in all things and was quite intelligent. She was even a lover to various heads of the three nations in different eras with Japan being her last one. When the Emperor of the time fell ill, she was exposed to be the one who was making him fall ill due to her powers. In truth…Tamamo no Mae is the reincarnation of a supremely powerful kitsune: the White-Masked, Golden-Furred, Nine-Tailed Demon Fox. She managed to escape for a time, but was eventually found and slain, her powers sealed away within a stone that would poison everything and anything around it until a monk sealed the stone under the ocean while her spirit vanished."

"...Please tell me you're not implying that…?" Lyra Note began.

"You are the reincarnation of the sun goddess herself. You do not get to argue over the fact reincarnation exists," Kazuma replied with a deadpan expression.

"...I was dating the reincarnation of a demon?!"

"A demon said to have the power to transcend life to become a goddess of her own," Kazuma corrected.

"..." Omega-Xis calmly gave Geo to Lyra Note before he ripped his head off and shoved it into one of the prop vases while putting a block of wood over the opening.

Everyone raised a brow before a muffled scream erupted from the jar as it shot several feet into the air. It crashed down, letting his head bounce up and land back on his body, his right eye twitching madly. Lyra Note looked down at Geo, who was holding his head as he looked like he wanted to die. She pulled her brush out and gently made the Bloom brushstroke. Most of the paleness of his body faded as he slowly relaxed.

"Th-Thanks," Geo thanked before groaning when the doors slammed open and Luna ran in with Ophiuchus with Ace.

"Everyone alright?" Ace asked.

"Geo's got a handover from nearly drowning in a drink," Karai scoffed, thumbing at Lyra Note, "We blew up the stupid fox, the place got wrecked, and this hot babe I was keeping an eye on turned out to be Vulpecula after she's gone through another evolution. Oh, and she may be the reincarnation of a nine-tailed fox demon that was close to ascending to godhood with the Dark Power likely tipping her to that point herself and she wants to fuck Geo over in her hands there and keep him to herself."

"...Hoo lordy we're in for a long battle," Ace muttered with a sigh.

"Kazuma…" Luna spoke as she walked up to him, "I'm really sorry about all the things your family's lost here."

"It's fine, it's fine. Remember? These were just replicas HeartSoul Industries made on the off-chance something happened and the real things could've been destroyed in," Kazuma shrugged before groaning, "RiCO's going to swamp me with paperwork for this…fakes or not, they were still made by the company and need to be signed off on…"

"It's never a fun thing, paperwork," Luna agreed before seeing a cut on Kazuma's cheek, "Oh! You're hurt!"

"Huh?" Kazuma pondered before feeling the cut, "Oh…guess it got a hit in on me."

"Hang on, I have some tissues in my…" Luna began as she pulled out a handkerchief from her purse, only to pull out a small stone tablet depicting a cat as well that shattered on the floor, "Ah! Aw no…"

"What happened?" Lyra Note asked.

"I found this small carving of a cat that reminded me of Issun's paintings yesterday," Luna explained as she picked up the pieces while giving the handkerchief to Kazuma, "I was hoping to see if Kazuma would know if it was a genuine thing or someone playing on the hype of this massive discovery of our nation's lost history."

"Keep them. When the Sun Goddess there regains a certain Brush Techique, she'll be able to repair it using just ink," Kazuma shrugged…before blinking as light began to shine down on them, "...We didn't break the ceiling, did we?"

"Nope," Lyra replied as Lyra Note looked up to see a starry sky with an incomplete constellation in it.

"...I wonder…" Lyra Note whispered as she held her brush up, dotting a fours spots to fill in what was missing.

"...A house?" Ellie blinked before squirting her eyes, "No wait. A….cat house?"

The constellation flashed as the world gave way to the realm of the Fudegami once more. The constellation changed, turning into a stone stand with a large koi fish statue atop it and a Sumi-e of a tree in it. Attached to it was a white cat with the familiar 'wings' and red markings of the Fudegami and Amaterasu. The cat did a backflip, bouncing off Omega-Xis's head and knocking it off, before landing before them all. Lyra Note jumped up, turning into Ammy, and stood before the cat. It slowly stood up…before looking at Omega-Xis's head.

"...Whatever you're planning, don't even…" Omega-Xis began.

"Mrrow~!" the cat mewled as it jumped over Ammy and began to play with his head.

"It…It's playing with Omega-Xis's head?" Geo pondered, sitting atop Ammy's head, "What do you think, Sonia?"

"..."

"Sonia?" Geo looked down at Ammy, who was watching the cat Fudegami playing with Omega-Xis's head, "...Oh no…"

Ammy barked and the cat looked over at her, one of Omega-Xis's spikes in its mouth. The cat mewled before tossing the head ahead. Ammy barked before running after Omega-Xis's head with the cat. Everyone stared with wide eyes as the realm blossomed into a grassy fieldlands as the two batted Omega-Xis's head back and forth…well…mostly everyone.

"C-Camera! My-Ahahahahahaha!-My kingdom for a camera~!" Karai cackled as she and Ophichius were barely holding each other up from the laughter escaping them both, "I-I can't breathe~!"

"Ah! No, no, no! Sonia, stop~!" Geo pleaded, barely holding onto Ammy's head by her fur, until several minutes passed and he groaned, lying atop her head while the cat nestled back onto its mural, not showing a sumi-e of cattails, "Ugh~"

"Ah…Amaterasu. Origin of all that is good and Mother to us all," the cat greeted in a woman's voice, "Once, a whirlpool of evil forced me to stay high above until a fearsome quake caused the tower's top to fall into the seas. I was able to hide within a stone from it, but fell asleep until it was broken. The world has changed much since the times of old, even from my time upon the tower that I observed all the world and its descent." she nodded, "If my power is needed once again, I, Kabegami, god of walls, shall gladly offer a bridge of hope to the realm once more!"

The Fudegami glowed before condensing into a sphere of light, the kanji '壁' appearing within.

"What's that?" Luna asked.

"It reads 'Kabe,'" Kazuma noted, "Translated, it means 'wall.'"

The sphere of light flew over to Ammy. It spiraled around her before going through her from above. The realm flashed and they were back in the ruined exhibition hall.

"So…what? Does the cat make walls?" Karai asked.

"No, Kabegami is said to teach those the Brush Technique known as Catwalk," Kazuma noted before looking over at a wall, "Hey, try drawing a line on that wall."

Ammy tilted her head before looking at the wall. Her tail swayed before flicking. A thick line of ink appeared on the wall before, after a moment, the ink burst and revealed a set of faintly-glowing cat paw prints that only Ammy saw. Ammy barked before walking over to it…and began to walk up the wall. She sat down on it and scratched behind her ear.

"...Holy crap, she's Spider-Mutt," Karai snorted a laugh before Ammy barked, flicked her tail, and the ravenette spluttered and spattered as her head was covered in ink, "Ack! Ptui! Ugh~! It went into mah mouth~! Hurk!"

"Ah! S-Sonia! Sonia! Falling~!" Geo yelped, barely holding onto her fur.

Ammy whimpered before jumping off the wall and landed as Lyra Note and dropped Wave Change, letting her ears and tail pop out, "Sorry, Geo-kun. I…wait…" she paused as she looked herself over.

"...What are you…?" Ellie began.

"Making sure I didn't change or anything. I like this dress, dang it."

"Huh?" Luna raised a brow.

"Every few Fudegami, her body's transformed into how she looks now," Ace explained.

"Oh….huh."

"Okay, phew….nothing changed," Sonia sighed in relief, "...still…what a tiring day…"

"Yeah…and still small," Geo muttered.

"Issun said it'd be ready in the morning," Sonia reminded him.

"Hope your mom had a dollhouse or something," Karai snickered.

"She didn't. We had to buy a tiny model bed," Sonia admitted.

"I was kidding!" Karai gawked before Aoiro smacked her, "Ahh bitch…"

"We're all honestly tired after today…"

"H-Hai," Ellie nodded.

"I still have a night," Kazuma groaned, "So much paperwork to be done thanks to that rampage."

"You and my parents both," Luna nodded.

"And I need to report this to HQ," Ace sighed, "Ugh…god what would I give for a nice vacation…"

"..hmm…" Miyuki began to ponder, "...I may have a spot in mind…"

"?" the others blinked as they looked at the Oina woman.

"The Sparrow Inn, a rather secret place that holds some of the best hot springs in the world," Miyuki replied, "My ancestors have always had a good connection with the owners of the inn due to us aiding the founder of it find a new place since they got separated from their family who ran the original."

"...Any chance you know where it is?" Sonia asked, her wolf ears perking up.

"I tend to visit when things get a little too wound up in my job," Miyuki replied, "I'll send you a message when I get the rooms reserved."

"Yay!" Sonia cheered, throwing her hands up…

"WHOA!" …along with Geo.

"Ah!" Sonia yelped before squeaking as Geo landed in Ellie's cleavage, "Ah!"

"Ahn~!" Ellie gasped out, blushing as Geo's tiny form struggled due to a lack of oxygen, "G-Geo!"

"...don't," Aoiro frowned as Karai opened her mouth.

"Mmm…you never let me have any fun…"

"W-What the hell?" Luna gawked as Sonia ran over to pluck Geo out only to miss as he fully sunk into it.

"Ah…gomen," Sonia apologized.

"Huh? Go…" Ellie began before squeaking as Sonia's hand went into her cleavage and pulled out Geo, "Ahn~!"

"Ugh…" Geo groaned, swirls replacing his eyes on his bright red face.

"...Lucky SOB…" Karai muttered before Aoiro smacked her, "GH! Damn it…!"

"They just dealt with this issue this morning," Aorio hissed into her ear as Sonia and Ellie tried to not look at each other with heavy blushes.

"...Right. I am going to bed, falling asleep, and forgetting everything that happened tonight except for the fun things," Luna declared.

"Honestly…I am with her," Ophiucus sighed as she phased through the floor, "This level of chaos is too much for me…"

"Ack!" Luna yelped, pulling her back up, "Don't do that! You want to cause more panicking!?"

"No. I've already got a big enough headache as is."

"Then don't phase through the floor while you're in a human guise!"

"Do you want a copy of the list of rules I had to write down for my sister for hiding as a human?" Aoiro offered.

"Oh screw you…" Karai grumbled.

"Tadaima~" Tamamo greeted as she walked back into her home base, the Imps and multiple other monsters bowing to her as her tail flicked about, "Ahh~ What a fun little event!"

"Welcome home, milady," her faithful Katasutengu replied, bowing before her, "Jorogumo-dono has informed us to tell you he requires your presence the moment you've returned."

"Ara? He did, did he?" Tamamo pondered, "Well…may as well see what he needs." she walked by him, a smirk on her lips, 'I can't wait to see what comes from you…Amaterasu…'

SZ: Sorry…so sorry for the huge delay for this story once more folks. Just…life once more caught up…

GT: Eeyup. Hopefully it was worth the wait, folks.

SZ: Yup…also for the warning future(as a reminder just in case), certain chapters and scenes will be exclusive to A03 due to how….explicit and steamy they can get.

GT: Very true. So hope you folks enjoy this and please Read and Review!