2 Days before the Operation
"Come on. Can't you do me this one favor?"
Shin almost wanted to throw his phone across the room. He had been on the phone with her for over 4 hours and she'd been talking circles around him. He sighed as he scratched his head, running his pencil across one name among a series of names on a piece of paper that he had in front of him. Shin stayed silent as he waited for her to reply, setting the pencil down and petting Ran's fur.
"I know you're still there," Shin said.
"Give me a minute. I have to look through things. You know how things are here. People don't use computers to store ancient information so pardon me if I'm taking too long, dumbass," the girl on the other end of the line said.
"Well, it is you. You'd find it eventually. Are you sure you don't have anything on you that can blast a hole through a Cadre Class Fallen Angel?" Shin put the pencil on his upper lip and balanced it.
The girl sighed. "Onii, if I did, I wouldn't be looking now would I? Now give me a second. You're asking for a lot right now," she said. "Why do you need something that strong anyway?"
"I'll tell you later but I need it now. I need to set it up in the next few days… or now, preferably," Shin said.
The girl on the other end of the line remained silent. "Let's see… Some of Onibaba's old books. No, no… No…"
Shin raised an eyebrow when he heard the sound of scrolls and books being thrown across the line. He drummed his fingers against the table, waiting for her to say something. The sounds of shuffling and pages being flipped were all he heard for the next 10 minutes. As he was about to speak, the girl he was on the phone with finally said something.
"I have something for you. Of course, it might be overkill but this will work… hopefully."
"Hopefully?" Shin asked.
"It's in one of the old books that Grandma and Grandpa keep in the shrine," the girl said. "Ancient Furude style onmyoudo. I'll text you the details later but this… this spell can get you in hot water. Are you sure you want to use it?" she asked.
Shin closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair. He ran his fingers through Ran's fur. The softness of Ran's fur sent a hit of dopamine through his brain, allowing him to relax slightly. The truth was that he didn't know what to expect. The very possibility of facing off against Kokabiel was not something he wanted to entertain and at all costs, for Ichika's safety, he'd rather not fight him.
However, the chances of that happening were slim.
"Yeah."
"..." After a few minutes, the girl spoke up. "If you use this ritual, Kyoto will notice you messing with the Dragon Veins."
"Yeah, I'll make a few calls after this. A few people in Kyoto owe me some favors so I'm sure I can sweep this under the rug for now," Shin said.
"You're really going all out for this," the girl said.
"I have to. None of us are anywhere near as strong enough to handle whatever Kokabiel might have in store. It's better for me to run in prepared than to run in blind," Shin tapped his pencil against the desk.
The girl said nothing and simply let out another sigh. "I'll send you the spell on Line. Do you want anything else?"
"Yeah, can you get me some clay pots? Like, 20 of them? I need them to set something up. Oh, and send them to Kuoh. Ravel will pick them up for me," Shin said.
"...I'm not your errand girl! I'm your sister!" the girl said incessantly over the phone.
"Come on, Kureha. Can't you do me this one favor?" Shin begged.
"It's one favor after another with you, Onii! You owe me big time!" Kureha said before hanging up.
Shin sighed as he set his phone down. He looked down at the list of people he needed to call. He crossed off Kureha's name once more before going down the list.
"I need to call Ravel and Sona about this. I need Ravel to set up the pots for me before I get there and…" Shin reached into his pouch and pulled out a talisman. He weaved a hand sign and the charm glowed before exploding in a puff of white smoke.
Before him, there were 20 katashiro. He frowned, eyeing each one carefully.
"Only 20 katashiro. There are…6 of us. We can only get 3 between 5 of us while the other gets 5," Shin said.
"Master, if you need to, you can always unleash Hirume's Matoi Kajiri," Ran said, sitting up on Shin's lap. Her tail swished slightly, brushing against Shin's torso.
Shin shook his head. "As a last resort. Secace and Clarent should be enough for now. Especially since…" Shin picked up his phone as soon as he heard the notification ringtone from Line. He opened the message and his eyes widened when he saw the details of the ritual. A wry smile spread across his face. "So this is what she meant that Kyoto might get pissed if I cast this spell."
Ran hopped off his lap and shifted to her human form. Her eyes widened when she saw the details of the ritual.
"Your family had something like this?" Ran whispered.
"I didn't even know this ritual existed. How the hell did she know where to look?" Shin ran a hand through his hair. "Damn. I guess I really do need to call in a few more favors." He pulled a piece of paper out and wrote down some phone numbers. "Ran, call these people for me. I'll make the calls to my contacts in Kyoto." He held out a slip of paper for her.
Ran nodded and looked at the slip. "Only 6?"
"The ritual says that I need 5 items to act as conduits," Shin said as he pulled out his laptop. He typed in a few words and pulled up a satellite map of Kuoh. "I also need more things to prepare for this job. Especially since… our opponent is a Cadre Class Fallen Angel."
Shin gestured for Ran to look at his laptop's screen. "We need five spots across Kuoh to set up the conduits and make…"
"A pentagram," Ran's eyes widened as she saw the lines being drawn across Kuoh.
Shin nodded before leaning back. He placed a hand on his forehead and sighed. "Problem is, we need to get this right the first try so I'll need five powerful items to act as conduits. I don't have five shikigami that can work so we'll need subs. That's what the numbers are for. One of them can make items I can use as substitutes for the shikigami."
Ran nodded.
"And the rest of them?"
Shin smiled. "Let's keep that a surprise for now."
"Haaaaah!" Ichika rushed forward, ducking under the path of Bea's strike. She let out a breath as she delivered a punch to her master's side.
Beatrix's eyes widened as she slid back a few inches from the force of Ichika's blow.
"I-I… I hit her! Holy shit! I hit—!"
Ichika was sent flying into a wall by the ferocity of Beatrix's attack. She coughed up spit before falling to her hands and knees. Her body groaned and protested as she tried to get up. The pain was almost unbearable to the point where she wanted to collapse but she needed to keep going. Her eyes burned with determination as she dropped back into a stance.
"Don't get distracted just because you landed one hit. Press your foe the moment you realize you have an advantage," Bea said as she gestured for Ichika to continue.
[Boost]
Ichika rushed forward, feeling a surge of power rush through her.
"The power of the [Boosted Gear] comes from the fact that you can stack your power by doubling it every 10 seconds," Bea parried her blows before sending her back with a burst of holy aura.
Ichika hissed before rushing back in.
"Power left unchecked is dangerous in combat. Channel and concentrate that amplified power to single places on your body. When you deliver a punch, make sure the power isn't distributed throughout your body but in the places that matter most," Bea casually dodged Ichika's sweeping kick.
Ichika clicked her tongue and jumped back. Her eyes narrowed as she took in the sight of her master's stance. "Shishou, am I really going to fight a Fallen Angel that powerful?"
Bea raised an eyebrow before nodding. Her red eyes darkened in barely restrained fury and anger. "Yes. If I had it my way, I'd keep you and the others here and send Dulio or Vasco Strada. However, that's not the case."
"Why can't you head down to Kuoh, Shishou?" Ichika asked.
"I'm locked in the same position as they are… and," Bea trailed off. Other things I can't tell her about… She rubbed her temples. "A fight between me and Kokabiel would cause collateral damage and they aren't taking chances if I accidentally kill the Sitri and Gremory Princesses."
"So we're being sent there," Ichika said.
Bea nodded silently. "I'll prepare you as much as I can. Unlocking the Balance Breaker is our top priority. I'll teach you some Miracles before you go. How far did you get in the Bible?"
Ichika looked down at the ground, feeling slightly embarrassed. "I… uh, I just started Exodus."
Bea raised an eyebrow. "That's fine. I can work with that. Sit down."
Ichika nodded and sat on the ground, watching as Bea closed her eyes.
After a few seconds, Bea opened her eyes. A violet glow began to emanate from her hand. Strings of characters manifested in the air. It was in a language completely foreign and alien to Ichika. Even the inherent omnilingualism granted by her "special" condition couldn't decipher them.
"Do you remember what I said about Miracles when you first asked to learn them?" she asked.
"It's a semantic magic that utilizes the power of the System to string together ideas to generate phenomena," Ichika answered.
Bea nodded in approval. "To cast a Miracle, normally, humans need to either undergo rigorous building of Faith and Prayer or to be blessed by the Heavens and possess innate Holy Power. But you have neither of that, so we'll go with a different route."
Ichika tilted her head in confusion. "A different route?"
"Normally, Exorcists foster holy power to cast miracles by using their faith and chanting prayers from the Bible," Bea said. "I will have you do something else. Channeling."
"Channeling?" Ichika parroted.
"It's a technique that novice exorcists use when they start. They become conduits for the System by holding holy artifacts or by consistent prayer. With you, we don't have time so we'll force a channel open between you and the System," Bea said.
Ichika nodded.
"Close your eyes. You are in the Vatican, a place on the Earth close to the System set up by God. Grab onto whatever string of holy power you can sense with your own energy and chase it back to the source," Bea said.
Ichika took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She had learned the basics of sensing energy from Shin. And so, as she put out her feelers to get a grasp of what she should be sensing, Ichika almost wanted to throw up. The sheer density of holy power in the Vatican was immense and it felt like she was drowning in a sea of it.
Her eyes shot open and she fell to the ground. "Bleegh!" she dry heaved. "W-Wha… There's so much of it…"
Bea nodded. "The amount of Holy Power in the Vatican is equivalent to 5 Satan Class Devils. All the ambient holy energy radiates from the prayer and holy artifacts here. Even a High-Class Devil can be severely injured by simply stepping foot in a Church consecrated here."
Ichika wiped her mouth and shakily got to her feet. "I can do it."
Bea nodded.
Ichika closed her eyes once more and extended tendrils of her spiritual energy through the vast sea of consecrated power. Blood trickled down her nose as she left herself open to the holy power around her, while her own feelers raced to find the source.
Find the source. Find the source. Find the source—
A sharp pain shot through Ichika's chest. She wanted to scream. Whatever it was that was inside her, it was rejecting the Holy Energy around her. No, it was more as if something inside her was drawing in the Holy Power around her forcibly but ran into the obstacle of incompatibility. As if there were some pre-existing factor in her body that made it hard for her to—
The Evil Pieces!
Ichika's eyes closed even more tightly as she felt the searing pain grow stronger with each second.
She had completely forgotten about that. Since the encounter with Yaldabaoth and the subsequent revelation that she wasn't a Devil, coupled with her seeming immunity to all things holy made the fact that Rias had used her Evil Pieces to save her slip her mind entirely.
And now, the two attributes were vying for supremacy inside her and tearing her apart from the inside out.
I can't—
"How pathetic. Even this much can hurt you…"
That voice is…
"Hmph, did you forget what we absorbed into our body? Tch, whatever. I'll save you this once because… I cannot die now."
The pain slowly began to ebb as a new sensation rushed through her.
Bea's eyes widened as the tips of Ichika's hair began to turn white.
The voice disappeared as quickly as it came. Eventually, Ichika latched onto a flow of energy that stemmed from a singular swirling source. And so, she grabbed it. The pain returned once more but it was different. It felt like her whole body was being incinerated from the inside out. She could feel the burning pain down to the last cell in her body.
She fell to her hands and knees, eyes wide open. Blood rushed down her nose as a triangular halo appeared above her head. Her mouth opened to let out a silent scream. "S-Shishou…" she finally managed to utter.
Beatrix rushed over and placed a hand on the back of Ichika's neck. "Stop. You're leaving the channel open. Close it now."
Ichika tried to make sense of the words through the pain. She closed her eyes, fighting to stay conscious as she closed the channel she created between herself and the Holy Energy surrounding her. As she did, her hair turned back to brown.
"It hurts," Ichika said. Her entire body was raw to the pain. While she suffered no outward injuries, every pain receptor in her body was in a state of constant firing.
"It's most likely because we forced a connection for you to use the System. Normally, new Exorcists prepare for this by praying and reinforcing their bodies with their faith. They can mitigate the effects of taking on this level of divine power," Bea said.
"Really? I couldn't tell—OW!" Ichika rubbed the back of his head. She puffed her cheeks and glared at her teacher. "How dare you! I am the Red Dragon Empress… I conquered 10,000 worlds," she whimpered.
"Stop moping and get up. I did this because we had no time for you to pray for months on end in order to prepare for connecting to the System," Bea said, holding her hand out for Ichika.
Ichika frowned and grabbed her hand before pulling herself up. "Is it going to hurt like this all the time?"
"It will the first couple of times. The pain should go away after a few uses," Bea said. "But, the more your body acclimates, it won't hurt anymore."
"Why do Exorcists do this? Isn't it enough having light bullets and light swords? Some of them can even wield Holy Swords? It's not worth going through that much pain just to cast miracles from the Bible," Ichika said, stretching her back.
"You'll have to ask them. Only a couple of them choose this path since magic is looked down upon in the Church," Bea said.
Ichika closed her eyes and nearly doubled over as she tried connecting and channeling holy power again. She closed it and let out a sigh. "Alright, let's get this going."
"Let's begin by explaining the three types of Miracles," Bea said as she pulled her Bible out. "Miracles are generally split between Powers of Prayer and Powers of God. Powers of Prayer, I'm sure you've encountered before. Sophia told me all about your encounter with Fallen Angels in Kuoh."
"Yeah, Raynare was able to turn one of her light spears into a dozen of them and summon chains that tied me down," Ichika replied.
Bea closed her eyes. Swirls of text that radiated a holy aura swirled around Bea's arm. The text spun and glowed before fire appeared in the palm of Bea's hand. The fire grew stronger until a vortex of flames took shape within the palm of her hand.
"This is a Miracle that controls fire but I shaped it to resemble the Pillar of Flames from Exodus," Bea said. She closed her fist, causing the flaming twister to be snuffed out. Bea turned to face Ichika.
"Powers of Prayer are the Miracles available to anyone. Any exorcist with sufficient training and an established connection to the System can cast these Miracles. Angels can cast them as well but they can use their innate light power and divinity rather than acting as a conduit," Bea explained.
Ichika nodded along.
"Are you following so far? Let me know if this is too much for you," Bea said.
"No, I'm following along."
"What did I just say?"
"Powers of Prayer are Miracles that everyone, even Exorcists, can cast."
Bea nodded. She continued on, causing a swirl of glowing violet script to appear around her. The script crackled with energy as violet lightning and flames danced around Bea. "The second type are Powers of God. Powers of God are specific Miracles. The best way I can describe them is that they are the same as… an Authority of a God."
Ichika's breath caught in her throat. An ability similar to a God's Authority?
"These Miracles cannot be learned… normally that is. But they can be inherited," Bea said. She opened her hand, causing a swirl of violet light to dance lazily in the palm of her hand. The light's rays shot off in small, wavy wisps. Whatever the wisps touch instantly melted or turned to ash.
Ichika's eyes widened when she saw the soft violet light on Bea's hand. The sensation and the feeling it gave off was almost exactly identical to something she'd seen before. That's the same as the one Sophia used in the Church…
"I can tell from the way you're looking that you've seen this before from Sophia," Bea said.
Ichika nodded. "Is that a…?"
"Yes. It is a Power of God Class Miracle, Qemetiel," Bea said. She closed her palm, causing the light to vanish. She pulled out a slip of paper from her pocket and wrote three terms down before handing it to Ichika. "Now that you know. We can get started on learning a few. I'll give you three Miracles to learn. All of them are practical for combat so it shouldn't be much of a problem—"
"Wait. You said three. What was the third one?" Ichika asked.
Bea looked at her for a few seconds, wondering how she should go about explaining this. Since Ichika would most likely keep learning and going, it would be better for her to hear it now rather than stumble upon it later and hurt herself trying to learn it. And so, after a few seconds of deliberation, Bea began to speak.
"Forbidden Miracles."
"Forbidden Miracles?" Ichika raised an eyebrow.
"Miracles that are heavily regulated. These Miracles cannot be cast without permission. As such, they are locked behind a keyword," Bea said. "You probably read about one in there already. You said you got to Exodus. Then you should've read it somewhere in the Book of Genesis. A miracle capable of incredible destructive power and can reduce all living things to pillars of salt, the Netsiv Melakh."
"S-Something like that… I can learn it too?" Ichika asked tentatively. The very idea of wielding that much power was unthinkable to her. She remembered reading it but to her it was just a story. Now that she heard it from her teacher, the mere idea of being able to wave her hand and cause mass devastation was frightening to her.
Bea stared at her silently as she weighed her options on how to respond. After a few seconds, she spoke.
"Yes, you can," Bea said.
A Day before the Operation
"You haven't been overworking yourself, have you?"
Sophia looked up from her computer, grateful for the interruption.
Shin smiled as he set down a coffee mug in front of her. Sophia was never a coffee girl, but there were times like this when she appreciated a shot of caffeine straight into her body. She picked up the coffee cup and took a sip of it.
Shin's eyes flitted over to the computer screen in front of him. His head hurt when he saw all the complex diagrams and explanations of genetic recombination and the employment of the system to create Pure Angel DNA. His eyes scanned the lines of text written in the log.
"The MS-series?" Shin asked.
Sophia glanced at the screen. There was an unreadable expression on her face. "Yeah, it's the last batch of Miracle Children produced in Project Daybreak. It stands for Maria Sancta."
"621 Miracle Children in total were successfully delivered out of 1000. The maternal and infant mortality rates among the mothers were far less than we projected," Shin read.
Sophia nodded. "They're the only ones delivered via natural birth. The women all signed up for IVF treatment and they got it. But… for some reason, all the children end up missing and there are no records of the mothers afterward."
Shin sighed as he took a sip of his coffee. "Sounds like Abbess Maria wanted to cover up her tracks. The more I read about this, the more inhuman she sounds—"
The sound of Sophia's mug being forcefully set down on the table caught his attention. Shin raised an eyebrow when he saw the white knuckle grip Sophia had on her mug and the way she clenched her jaw tightly. "You okay?"
"Yeah," Sophia forced out of her mouth. There was a measure of forced politeness in her tone.
"Mmm? There's an audio recording there," Shin said.
Log-IVOF-MS-2003
Sophia focused her attention back on the screen and saw an audio file attached to the text file. She clicked play.
"With the success of the Chimera Series, we've decided to refine our technique. Of all the products generated in the Chimera Series, we've been blessed once more. Perhaps the Lord is seeing our efforts and rewarded us. Sister Karina, a defector from the Grigori, provided us with some measure of technology to aid in our efforts. It was only because of her that we came across it accidentally.
"CM-001 is radiating wavelengths that match up to that of a Longinus. And not only that, CM-002 has inherited my Miracle Amplification. Perhaps this is a sign for us to move on to human trials. We've determined that embryos can be grown in environments simulating a human uterus. If our hypothesis proves true, we can have willing participants give birth to Miracle Children. For that reason, we've set up an IVF clinic near Cypress."
Shin narrowed his eyes as the recording continued.
"Unlike the Chimera Series, we have viable control groups. Firstly, we'll split the mothers into two groups. We will have normal civilian women serve as the Control Group and then we'll have willing female Exorcists serve as the trial. This series is mostly to see how different their pregnancies will be. Female exorcists have been under a great deal of physical stress and possess some level of holy energy in their bodies thanks to channeling the System for Miracles. I have placed myself in the trial group. Hah, Rae keeps scolding me for using myself as a subject. In the end, aside from myself, we'll silence the women involved to prevent a leakage of data, especially since the trial group is full of female exorcists. It is best to maintain confidentiality until the end. If it comes down to it, the Church will understand. Some sins are necessary for us to survive."
The cup cracked audibly in Sophia's hand. Shin glanced at her, worried. "Hey, maybe you should get some rest."
Sophia shook her head. "I don't get it… why? There's nothing in here they could possibly gain. Artificial life creation. That's common across several mythologies. Why is Valper selling this information off to someone else?"
Shin's eyes flitted from the cracked coffee mug in her hand to the recording on the screen that had just ended. He wished he had the answers. However, none of the information they had so far was useful in any sense, at least in terms of motives. The information was useful in other ways, but not in the way they wanted it to be.
"Maybe… they want to make Pure Angels. The recording from the Chimera Series said that she found out a way to make Pure Angel DNA from Fallen Angel and Devil genes," he guessed.
Sophia shook her head. "Maybe, but there has to be something else. Something we're not seeing."
"Well, in any case, you need to get some rest. I don't want you running yourself into the ground over this," Shin said.
Sophia sighed and leaned back in her computer chair. "I don't want to hear that from you of all people. Who was it that spent the past couple of nights holed up in the library trying to find a Miracle to bind Fallen Angels?"
"That's not the point. At least I'm getting rest—"
"Are you?"
"What?" Shin met Sophia's pointed gaze.
"Ichika told me you haven't been getting sleep. You sleep for like 3 hours and then you're up preparing katashiro," Sophia said.
"You're deflecting and that's different. You've been awake for almost 5 days scouring the logs," Shin retorted.
Sophia rubbed her temples, feeling a headache coming on. She did not want to have this argument. Not when they were so close. She let out a tired sigh. "Fine, you go ahead. Besides, this is my room so get out and go to bed. I promise I'll go to sleep if that's what it takes for you to leave my room. I can just listen to the rest of these when we get to Kuoh anyway."
Shin's lips thinned into a line and he shook his head.
"Fine. But remember, we're leaving really early," Shin said.
Sophia rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah."
Shin sighed and left her room, closing the door with a silent click. Sophia glanced at the door and then back at her computer screen. She scrolled down the folder, trying to find something when she saw something that caught her eye. This recording was stuffed in the MS-series folder, despite it being dated years after the other recordings.
Unlike the other logs, this one was a video log. She hesitated to click on it, afraid of what she might see, of what she might find. The cursor hovered over the file for a long time until another person came into the room. She clicked on the file and a prompt for the password popped up on the screen.
"Huh? It's password-locked. Why the hell did she lock this file out of all the files—"
"Sophia."
Sophia jumped and turned around to see Bea standing behind her.
"S-Sis!?" Sophia placed a hand on her chest, trying to calm her heart.
"I thought I told Shin to tell you to get some rest," Bea said. She glanced at the computer screen. Her red eyes landed on the file Sophia was about to open.
"I…"
"Hmm? I didn't think there were still photos left," Bea said. She picked up the picture frame on Sophia's desk. Her fingers brushed over the picture of the dark-haired woman in a white nun's habit. "Where did you get this photo?"
"It was in the docket Ichika found in Father Marco's office," she said.
Bea said nothing and traced the image of the dark-haired woman's face, committing it to memory. "It's really been 9 years."
Sophia said nothing.
"It wasn't your fault," Bea said as she set the picture frame down.
"What? What's not my fault?" Sophia asked, confused by her older sister's words.
"That day. Mom. None of it was your fault," Bea said.
"What—"
"The other day you told me that we shouldn't run from this. But at the same time, I'm not going to let you run towards death just because you think you have an obligation to protect our mother's legacy," Bea said.
"You—! I'm not going to let him use Mama—"
"You still blame yourself for what happened to her."
Sophia's protests died in her mouth as she stared at her older sister incredulously.
"The only reason why you're so obsessed with this is because you think by stopping Valper and whoever he's working with, you can get some sort of forgiveness for what happened to Mom. For what happened to her on that day. The only thing that will happen is you driving yourself to an early grave and for Mom's sacrifice to be wasted," Bea said.
Sophia gripped the hem of her shorts tightly as she listened to her older sister's words.
Bea sighed. "Please, just get some rest, Sophia. At least, do it for me," she gave her younger sister a sincere smile and squeezed her shoulder.
Sophia said nothing and just sat there, staring at the floor.
Bea closed her eyes and took in a sharp breath of air before leaving the room.
The light of the rising sun barely peeked over the horizon, bathing the entirety of Rome in a perpetual twilight. While the rest of the city was still in the process of waking up, the Church was already with preparations right underneath the eyes of the public. Exorcists walked about, making sure everything was in order. The Vatican's airstrip was busy with people doing their final checks on the plane.
Teleporting into Devil Territory was tantamount to an act of war so, it was proposed that they fly into an international airport in Japan and just drive into Kuoh. It would be a long and boring flight but at least they'd be alive.
Shin yawned, unfazed by the cool air of the night nipping at his skin.
"I told you to go to sleep early," Ichika said, handing him a cup of coffee.
"Sorry," Shin rubbed the sleep from his eyes. "I just needed to make the last batch." He reached into his pocket and pulled out 3 katashiro before handing it to her. "Here."
"Paper dolls?" Ichika raised an eyebrow as she accepted them.
"Keep them on you and when you get a chance, smear your blood on them. It'll save your skin just in case," he said as he sipped his coffee.
"Ahh! Shin-chan! Ichi! You're here early!"
The two turned to see Irina and Xenovia walking toward them. The two were dressed in cloaks. Asia followed closely behind them, holding her skirt nervously.
That's totally not suspicious at all, Shin thought.
"I don't even need my Dragon's Eye to discern that you two will stick out like a sore thumb," Ichika said.
"What? This is practical wear for any mission," Xenovia said. "It's good for stealth."
Ichika shook her head. "Where's Sophia?"
"Right here."
The group turned to see Sophia yawning as she walked toward them. There were dark rings under her eyes. It was clear that despite both Bea and Shin's efforts, she did not get a single wink of sleep the night prior. Sophia raised an eyebrow when she saw the pointed look in Shin's eyes.
"What?" she asked.
"Did you even get sleep?" Shin asked.
"Did you?"
"Erm…"
"All of you are here. Good."
The sound of Bea's approaching caught their attention. Klein stood behind her with an enigmatic smile on his face. She glanced at her younger sister, who looked away from her. She sighed and placed a hand on her hip.
"Do you all remember the details of the mission?" Bea asked.
Irina nodded. "Yup. Go to Kuoh. Convince the Sitri and Gremory Peerages to not interfere while we retrieve the Excaliburs and come back."
"Xenovia, what did Irina just say?" Bea asked.
"Get the Excaliburs. Make sure the devils don't interfere," Xenovia replied.
Bea nodded. She looked over them, noticing the flight techs giving her a thumbs up. "Looks like they're just about finished doing their final checks. Be safe, all of you."
The group nodded and prepared to board the plane.
"Sophia."
Sophia stopped halfway up the steps and turned to see her older sister smiling at her. "Come back alive, you hear me?"
Sophia nodded before boarding the plane.
As the plane taxied down the runway for take-off, Bea's gaze hardened. She glanced at Klein. "You said that these Praetor things are on their way to Kuoh too, right?"
Klein placed his hands in his pockets and nodded. "Mmm. That Masked Woman hasn't been sighted but another woman was seen at the Colosseum by a worker. I wiped his memories after I got everything out of him."
"Follow them," Bea said as she turned around and walked away. "Make sure nothing happens."
"Just don't forget what I told you," Klein said as he disappeared in a cloud of black mist.
Bea kept walking back toward the Vatican with those words she heard from Klein still echoing in her head. The first words he said right after he reported that another Excalibur Fragment had gone missing.
CM-002 is missing.
Miracles
Semantic magics born from manipulating strings of ideas and concepts in order to create phenomena.
To the Church, this is not magic but powers that come from God. As such, its secrets are jealously guarded by the faithful and believed to be the ultimate power.
Housekeeping
RoyalRain20xx: The first part of what you said reminded me of an old saying that I heard from my history teacher in high school. War is old men talking and young men dying. It's pretty much the same in this regard. I mean, what kind of idiot would you have to be to send children to fight a Fallen Angel like Kokabiel? I figured them arguing over their fates, then unilaterally deciding to send literal kids at the tail end of puberty was on par for them rather than sending an able-bodied exorcist such as Bea or Dulio.
Regarding Shin's weapons, only Secace has a tie-in since it was the last sword he used in Hungary. Everything else is just a big mental block for him. None of the other blades actually have any connection but since he began coasting after his big traumatic deal, he has a block that he hasn't gotten over since so he hasn't been able to get to the process of learning other swords from Vivi's memories. It won't be this arc but in another one that I'll have him begin properly confronting his past. But you are right. If he doesn't get his shit together, Ichika is going to get killed.
Dante687: Thanks man! I'm glad you liked it.
Alright guys, this will be the first time we'll see Shin starting to get serious. This is also the first out of a lot of times (when he gets it) that we see Shin get prep time. I am fully prepared to see whatever Batman with Preptime jokes you guys have in the reviews. Please. I live on reviews. Anyway, with my shameless begging out of the way, we're heading back to Kuoh now. We're halfway through the arc now and it's time for us to slide into the conflict. The next couple of chapters is going to have some big revelations... if none of you have deduced why Sophia is so triggered right now.
So an explanation as to what happened to Ichika when she began to channel the System to begin learning Miracles. To simply put, do you all remember when Rias used her Evil Pieces to resurrect Ichika but, over the course of the first arc, she didn't show any signs of being a Devil and Yaldabaoth confirmed that she didn't become a Devil. The holy water. Raynare's light power. None of it had the severe adverse effects on her when she came into contact with them. Well, I didn't forget that she still absorbed the pieces into herself. I'll explain this more in detail when we get into Ichika's nature but for now, let's just roll with this explanation. Because the traits of the pieces gears toward Demonic Power, just imagine how her body will react when she takes in Holy Power.
The reaction she has is similar to a severe allergic reaction minus the vomiting of blood and the turning of white hair. The vomiting of blood is normal for people trying to open a channel for the System to cram holy power into them.
Anyway, that's the explanation for now with all I've given you without taking in spoilers.