Here is the second chapter in this story released a little early due to the nature of it. That is because this is the shortest chapter I've released in years but it is so short because it is a special transitional chapter that explains what has happened and how things will work going forward in this series so it does have its uses and because it is so short I can release it a little earlier than most. One thing to add here is that, in terms of Black Clover pairings, I do want this to be an Asta x Noelle fic but it has to come naturally to the story and for the characters so that part will take some time and be a little dependent on how it develops in the manga. That is all I have for the administrative stuff but there were some questions left after the last chapter, one of which is going to be answered in this chapter and the other confirmed in the next chapter but the final question I can answer here, at least partially so here it is.

Will the presence of Akame and Tatsumi change some events in this world? Yes and no. Naturally I won't say what will change, those will be revealed in time, but there will be events that are affected by them and some that aren't. If you are curious for how I operate in such situations like this then check out my story 'Miraculous Quirks' (shameless self-promotion I know) as that is a crossover where two characters from one story, in that case Miraculous Ladybug, end up in the world of another story, in that case My Hero Academia, and that story is retold with their presence so that is kinda the template I will be using. I know this is vague but I am trying to avoid spoilers so this is the best I can do with a question like this.

Anyway, that is it for this pre-chapter note so it is time to sit back and enjoy the second chapter in Akame ga Clover.

Disclaimer: I own nothing related to these two great animes.

Chapter 2: Rebirth

What happens after death? That is the age-old question that many have asked and one that none can answer as, well, those who may know are dead.

Some believe that there is nothing after you die, that death is final, and you don't go anywhere. Some believe in an afterlife where your soul goes, be it heaven, hell, purgatory, or some other kind of plain of existence that you go there for all eternity with whatever bounds that eternity has for you. Other believe in the concept of reincarnation where your soul is reborn into a new life as a different person or animal with no memory of your old one.

However, there is a final avenue few believe in because if true it could very well be proven and that is rebirth, the concept that like reincarnation your soul is reborn in the world, but it is the same soul with the potential to access the memories and experiences of your old life be it through conditions or just over time. In the world where Akame and Tatsumi lived and died this concept was not widely accepted, their world believed in the afterlife more so than any other form of post death concept, but sometimes Fate itself intervened and chose a different path for the departed souls of their world.

It wasn't common by any means but sometimes Fate would step in when it determined that the souls of one world, selected due to their experience and skills, would be needed in another to balance the scales so to speak. This only occurred when someone in another world did something that violated the very laws of nature and so Fate reacted by placing a counterbalance in that world. For this to happen, however, there were only two conditions when it came down to the humans who were selected for this afterlife.

The first was that they be reborn in a different world to the one in which they died in. This was simply because it was easier to give the souls a new life in the new world that Fate had placed them in and because by taking them from another world they would be different in a sense from a soul born naturally in that world.

However, the reborn souls would retain their appearance and even their first names for that was how Fate operated, those reborn would experience similar upbringings to their old lives until the time came for them to remember their past lives and decide what to do about that. In addition, their souls would be reborn in the nature of the new world that was selected for them, and that would apply to all those who'd died in one world and were then reborn in another one no matter when that rebirth happened.

The second condition that applied to the souls that Fate had reborn in the new world was that any memories of their old life were to be locked away until a certain event happened in that person's life that would unlock their memories. This was not a complete lock because ingrained skills remained, and desires and feelings would slowly leak out but that was it. It would not be until they encountered another of those who had been reborn who they could recognize that the lock on their memories would be shatter and upon that moment all of their old memories would be released at once.

So long as these two conditions were met the Fate would take their souls from one world and have then reborn in another to serve as that counterbalance. There were other factors in the souls chosen that were dependent on what was going on in the other world that could dictate which souls were best for such a rebirth. In this case a total of 12 souls would be selected for rebirth in the new world and not all had died by the time Akame died in Tatsumi's arms after her battle with Esdeath.

That was what Fate had selected for the members of Night Raid and a few others from Akame's world. These souls had the skills and experiences to be of use in a new world regardless of whether or not they regained their memories in time. They would be of use in the coming years for there were at least two groups in this new world that were violating the laws of nature within that world and as such certain counters were needed by Fate to try and rectify this situation and these dozen souls were but one of a few measures that Fate had taken in this regard, but the others weren't relevant to these souls.

For the souls that were reborn this process would occur right after their deaths in their original world. They would be reborn in their new world and begin their new lives unaware of the true nature of their souls until the lock was broken.

One thing that was a factor for them, though, was that time ran differently in this new world so there would be about five years between the births with two being born first, followed by two more a year later, then four would be born a year after that before those who fell in final battle would be reborn on the same day more than 3 years after the first two rebirths. The final two had yet to die and would be reborn last and their deaths would not be known about for a long time.

All those who were reborn would be reborn in similar circumstances to their last world and spread out over the continent thus adding to the time it would take for them to see one another in the new world. There was just one key difference for those who were to be reborn and that was that their souls were now of the new world and as such had to fit its idiosyncrasies, but such was natural in that world.

Thus, those who Fate had selected for rebirth would be reborn with magic for they were born into a world where magic was everything and all but one human, or other sentient species, would have it. Their magic however would be tied to their past life and what they could do there for in their past life they had all bonded with similar, supernatural or beyond normal, things so their souls adapted what they knew to the concept of magic. There was one exception as the magic of the new world couldn't adapt to that person's old life so the attribute that person was born with was tied to other things from that person's old life.

In addition, though they wouldn't know it, they would be born with magic on the level of nobles at least even for those not born into nobility because of their abilities to wield Imperial Arms. There was something else about their magic but where most of them were reborn that concept didn't exist so that would not be learned until time and events revealed the full nature of the reborn souls' magic.

Such was the nature of rebirth like this for while it was by Fate to balance a violation of the laws of nature it was still not natural so unintended consequences of the rebirth came from it. Regardless, though who were reborn got a second chance at a life that had the potential to be better than the one that they'd had before, that had been cut short in their primes and perhaps this time around they could find the peace, happiness, love, and longevity that they'd sacrificed in their past life.

So it came to pass that the last three members of Night Raid were reborn in this world of magic. They were born into a nation called the Clover Kingdom, one of 4 kingdoms on a large continent in the world on which Fate had plans for them, as well as the others who'd come before and after them for they were to all help in the events that were yet to come. The key figures in the continent changing events were yet to be born however and wouldn't be for two more years but already the strings of fate had been woven and paths would inevitably cross. That was in the future, for now it was the final rebirths.

The first was a boy with a tuft of brown hair and green eyes born in a remote village in the far north of the kingdom, right on the borders of the strong magic region and where winters were long and hard. The second was a girl with black hair and red eyes born into poverty in an unknown part of the nation to parents who saw her as nothing more than another ticket to wealth especially after her magic potential was noted. The last was a golden-haired girl with matching eyes born in the slums of the castle town of Kikka.

Unbeknownst to them or anyone else, on that day a fourth child was born to the far north of the Spade Kingdom in the bitter snows that existed up there, a girl with skin as white as the snows in which she was born with light blue hair and eyes as blue as the ice around her. She was one of the few born outside of Clover but like the others she too would play her part in time as the paths of the reborn began to move towards their intersections in the years to come.

Thus, all but two of the ones who were to be reborn had now been so in this new world. Their new lives had begun, only Fate would know if they were to live better ones than the ones they'd last lived as their new lives as mages in this new world began.

I know this is really short, it's basically chapter 1.5 hence why I'm releasing it now so that when I do release a chapter a week after the first one it is a full chapter, but I didn't want to ruin the cliffhanger with it and there wasn't much need for it to be added to what comes next. As y'all can tell, this rebirth concept will apply to more than Akame and Tatsumi which answers a review question nicely and will come up as more and more of the reborn are revealed though I am sure y'all can guess who they are. However, this story will focus on Akame and Tatsumi as they are the main two from Akame ga Kill but the others will play a role at time. Of course, Asta, Noelle, Yuno and the other Black Clover characters will come and play their own roles, Asta and Noelle are going to be major characters in their own rights, but all in good time. The next chapter will be a full length one of course and will focus on one of the pair and the arc that that person will go on before I move onto the next beginning arc as I'm calling them. So, stay tuned for what is to come but for now I will leave it off here. If you liked it then please follow, favorite, review, PM, etc. it is all appreciated and helps me get better and stay motivated to keep producing more content and any questions asked I will do my best to answer both privately and at the start of the next chapter. Until next time.

Stringdog