"So, it appears to be the end of the snow wizard already, falling at the hands of a controlled comrade. How sad." Celina said as she appears to be well aware of what might be going on. "I was hoping this was going to last much longer, but that doesn't appear to be the case. Perhaps I just simply overestimated your friends, Aster."
...
Yukina
Yukina is in real danger now. She and Tsubasa were paired together when they went after Aster at Arcane Tower. However, Joe got in their way. When that happened, Tsubasa fell under Joe's control and attacked Yukina. With her pinned down, Tsubasa is in the perfect position to end her life right now.
"Tsubasa, don't do it! You said you fight with honor, didn't you?! What would happen to that honor if you do this?!" Yukina called.
"You can yell all you want. It's not going to help." Joe said. "Finish her off already!" Tsubasa was in the perfect position to kill Yukina right now. Despite earlier, Yukina couldn't bring herself to fight against someone who is being controlled. Tsubasa could end her life right now...but he isn't. What is he waiting for? Yukina could see his sword was shaking.
"No... I won't..." Tsubasa said.
"What did you say?" Joe questioned. Tsubasa was actually resisting the magic that was controlling him. Yukina could see it.
"I won't...do it." Tsubasa said as he pulled himself away from Yukina. They couldn't believe it. Tsubasa was fighting back.
"That's impossible! No one has been able to resist my control! How is he doing it?!" Joe questioned.
"Tsubasa?" Yukina questioned as she wondered if that was really him.
"I don't want to hurt her anymore. I don't want to hurt anyone from Phoenix Flame." Tsubasa said as he struggled to stay in control. "Yukina, I'm sorry for everything." He said with Yukina surprised he would say that while he's being controlled. "Before I met Phoenix Flame, I thought a guild was just place for wizards to get work. I owed your father my life, and that is why I stayed with him. Everyone back in Fiendish Gargoyle told me what guilds are like, so I didn't think I would have been better off. I was wrong when I saw your guild in action. You care for each other, you fight for each other, and it's not about money and power for you. I never knew a guild could be such a loving place. Perhaps a part of me thought I could become a part of that, but why would I if all I bring them is pain?"
"Tsubasa..." Yukina was amazed that's how he felt. She thought everyone from her father's guild was cruel, but he wasn't.
"This is getting stupid. Just kill her! I command you!" Joe called. He managed to regain control and had Tsubasa swing his sword at Yukina and managed to cut her left shoulder. Tsubasa did just what he didn't want to. "Looks like all you do is bring her pain, whether you like it or not." Despite being controlled, Tsubasa felt himself in pain from doing that.
"I was wrong." Yukina said as she got back up and fought through the pain. "I escaped my father and joined Phoenix Flame because I wasn't like him. You asked me what it's like. It's everything you said it was. I was wrong, Tsubasa. You can join our guild. In fact, someone like you deserves to be a part of our guild!" Tsubasa managed to hear her, feeling like he's already being accepted.
"Enough of this! Kill her already!" Joe ordered.
"No!" Tsubasa said as he was fighting and turned to face Joe. Joe couldn't believe it. His magic can't keep his hold on Tsubasa.
"Tsubasa, here! Blizzard!" Yukina called with her unleashing a blizzard in the middle of a fight. It was a fierce one.
"You think a little snow can... Wait. What's that?" Joe noticed something off the snow was swirling around his sword. His sword was glowing while the snow swirled around it. Even Celina couldn't believe what she was sensing.
"This magic power... It couldn't be... A Unison Raid?"
Tsubasa took the power he now held and slashed it right down on Joe. All the force of a storm in one attack. It was powerful enough to bring him down in one strike.
"We got him!" Yukina said.
"Yes. My mind is beginning to clear." Tsubasa said. "Snow magic... Delicate, but can be lovely and powerful. The oppsite of your father."
"I'll take that as a compliment." Yukina said, but Tsubasa did notice her cut and felt guilty. "Hey, don't worry about this. It's not your fault."
"But it was my blade." Tsubasa said.
"Perhaps, but people make mistakes. What matters is that you fix them, and that's what you're doing." Yukina said. "So, if you want to be a part of Phoenix Flame, I think you have the right attitude for it." Tsubasa was really pleased to have Yukina of all people say that.
...
Celina
"A Unison Raid... I certainly didn't expect that." Celina said. "It isn't easy to pull something like that off on your first try, but they were able to pull it off. It would seem I underestimated your friends, Aster." It would seem things are getting interesting, but Aster is the one Celina wants. "The one named Maru is getting closer. I wonder how he will do against Vedalus."
...
Maru
Since Sandy couldn't fly, Maru and Sandy made their way to the tower on foot. Sonce they were already so close, they were able to make their way to it easily.
"Here we are. Arcane Tower." Maru said.
"Do you think Aster already made it here?" Sandy questioned.
"It doesn't look like it. I don't even see a way in." Aster said as he looked around.
"Aster! Over there!" Sandy said with him pointing to the stairs. "It looks like the only way in is up."
"Better get our steps in." Maru said with him and Sandy making their way up, but didn't know someone else was already waiting for them up there.
...
Mary and Gin
As for Mary and Gin, they were dealing with another assailant that Celina sent. They were fighting the one named Lick, but he proved to be a little tricky. Gin fired a couple shots at him, but Lick was more like a frog than a lizard because of how he kept jumping around. He kept jumping around from one spot to the next. He jumped down and landed right in front of Mary. She got a little creeped by that before he jumped up to another building.
"Gin, what are you waiting for?! Shoot that freak before he tries something with me again!" Mary demanded.
"I'm trying, but I can't get a good shot in." Gin said as he tried to follow his movements, but Lick wasn't making it easy for him. "The thing about aiming a moving target is that you have to try and stay ahead of them. You got to try to see where they're going to go. The problem is that his movements are unpredictable. Just when I think I know where he's going to go, he jumps in a different direction."
"Well, you better figure something out because this guy is really giving me the creeps." Mary said. Lick jumped and landed on the wall of another wall. Just before Gin could shoot at him, Lick shot his tongue at him and Gin had to jump out of the way.
"Oh man. What's the deal with this guy?" Gin said. Lick shot his tongue at him again and managed to get it around Gin's arm. "Oh man! That is nasty!" Just then, Gin felt his arm being pulled around until Lick tossed him right into a building.
"Gin! Are you okay?!" Mary called.
"If that's all you people got, I don't know what Celina is so worried about." Lick said as he jumped off the building and landed on the ground. "Now, it's your turn, girl."
"You keep away from me, and keep your tongue to yourself." Mary said. Lick was about to make his move, but a gunshot flew past him and stopped him from going anywhere. Gin managed to pull himself out of the ruble. "Don't you people ever die?"
"If all you got is fancy tricks with your tongue, you're going to need a whole lot more to beat me." Gin said. "While I got you, maybe you can clear a few things up. What's the deal with this Celina chick? What does she want with Aster?"
"Don't know, don't really care." Lick claimed. "All I do know was that she wanted our help to bring the guy here. The rest of you are just collateral." He shot his tongue out once again, but Gin jumped and rolled out of the way when that happened.
"This is getting stupid. I don't have time to be playing around with you." Gin said. "Aster might need my help, so I don't have time to be wasting on a freak like you. I've got to get to my friend!" As this fight was going on, it had him think back to how Aster first came to the guild.
...
Flashback
"No way. There's no way you can hit that from all the way over here." Maru said. Seven years ago, it was just a regular day at the guild. Gin and Maru were already part of the guild and were just playing as kids. Gin showed off his gun skills as he shot with a toy gun and was able to knock a cup off the bar counter from a good distance. Maru was quite shocked that he pulled it off.
"You were saying?" Gin said.
"You are good." Maru said. It was just the two of them back then, but that was about to change. They heard the doors open up and saw someone walk into the guild. That was when they saw Aster for the first time.
"So this is a guild..." Aster said as Phoenix Flame was the first guild he ever saw.
"Hi there." Maru greeted said. "Is there something we can help you with?"
"This is a magic guild, isn't it?" Aster questioned.
"Sure is. This place is called Phoenix Flame. Who might you be?" Gin asked.
"Aster. Aster Vinch. I would like to speak with the person in charge of this place." Aster said. That meeting didn't appear to be much, but that was how they met. Since there aren't that many kids about their age, Gin and Maru were a little interested to have them around. Aster was able to speak with the master, but they were talking privately. They were speaking behind closed doors in Velvet's office, so the boys couldn't hear anything.
"What do you think is going on in there?" Gin questioned.
"I don't know. Should we really be eavesdropping?" Maru questioned. Just then the door opened up and caused them to topple over.
"What are you two doing?" Velvet questioned.
"Uh... Nothing." Both said.
"Well, I like you to meet Aster. He's going to be our newest member and will be learning more about magic. Since you boys are basically in the same boat, maybe you can help each other."
"Sure. Hi, I'm Maru and this is Gin." He introduced, but Aster seemed a little bashful. Gin couldn't see what it really was before, but he could see it now.
End of Flashback
...
"I'm not going to waste anymore time with you!" Gin called. He was going to take aim, but Lick jumped out of the way.
"You still won't be able to..." Just then, Lick noticed something coming right at him and grabbed him by the face.
"I got the slippery critter." Mercury claimed.
"Nice work! Just hold him still for Gin to deal the final shot!" Mary said.
"Right." Gin said as he could aim properly now. With Mercury holding Lick like that, Gin fired a shot right in the back of Lick's head and knocked him out. After that happened, Mercury dropped Lick and he was taken out.
"Finally. That guy was a real freak." Mary said, but she noticed Gin wasn't as happy. "What is it now?"
"I didn't see it before, but I see it now." Gin said. He could see the pain Aster had to endure for all the years. He remembered this one other time with Aster. Gin was just walking by while Aster was sitting alone near the lake with the sun going down. Gin didn't realize it at the time, but Aster was thinking of Celina and his lost mother. He didn't see at the time how miserable Aster really was and continued to be, but that was also why Aster became so strong. Somehow, Aster turned that misery into power. Knowing Aster's story now, he can see things he didn't see before. "Aster has already been through enough. I don't know what this Celina wants with him, but Aster is our friend. We're not going to let him suffer like that anymore."
...
Maru
Meanwhile, Maru was making his way up the tower with the staircase. He and Sandy hurried up it as fast as they could, but then he felt something.
"What was that?" Maru said.
"What is it?" Sandy asked. Just then, the staircase above them just fell apart. He jumped away and grabbed Sandy to prevent him from being crushed. "What just happened?!"
"I don't know." Maru said. He looked up and did see someone. He spotted Vedalus. Maru got back up and stood on the ruble. "You caused this?"
"I did, and I can do this." Vedalus said. He held out his hand and used his magic. Suddenly, the broken pieces were floating up in the air. Maru and Sandy held on and balanced themselves as the pieces came up and went back into place.
"Hey! What's going on?! Why are the broken pieces fixing themselves?!" Sandy said as he didn't like it.
"I thought I give you a little boost." Vedalus said.
"How did you do that? Who are you?" Maru questioned.
"My name is Vedalus, and that is the power of my crush magic."
"Crush magic?" Maru said as he wasn't familiar with that sort of magic.
"It's magic that can be used to break apart whatever I come in contact with...or if I use it correctly from a distance." Vedalus claimed.
"I get it. You must be the one that caused Sandy's wings to break apart and caused us to fall out of the sky." Maru said.
"You didn't think you could just skip straight to the final stage, did you?" Vedalus said. "That's reserved only for Aster. That said, I thought the fall surely would have finished you off. You're made of some pretty tough stuff. Your little cat doesn't have to worry about his wings. In time, they should be returned to normal. That's really the problem with this magic. Even though I can destroy whatever I like with it, I can't use it to kill people." He said with a dark look on his face. He actually sounded displeased that his magic can't kill people.
"You're actually disappointed your magic doesn't allow you to kill people?" Maru said as he sounded irritated by that. "That is just psychotic."
"Potato, patato. So what? You're not going to be going anywhere to begin with." Vedalus claimed as he isn't going anywhere and is looking forward to breaking Maru into pieces. They were so distracted by what was happening right in front of them that they didn't notice that Aster made it to the tower. Celina is just ahead of him now.