Greetings everyone and welcome back to another chapter…finally. Before any comments go up for why I took a whole year after I last did anything is that a lot of things and crisis have come up along with classes and personal things. I have a lot of things on backlog and I do plan on getting back to writing.

So everyone who has have patients with me for these long years. Continue to do so, I will be on break and I'm taking the time to clean up then post all the chapters I have on backlog. Thank you for listening to this rant and I hope you enjoy the chapter below.

ON WITH THE SHOW!

SLASH!

Whip's and Queen's eyes widened in disbelief at the newly re-energized Ravena who smirked as she tore away the blood whip without so much as flinching.

The new Ravena's lips curled into a dark smile as she casually licked the blood off her claws. "Ahaha~! This is gonna be so much FUN!" She declared as she suddenly dashed towards the twins.

"Queen!" cried Whip as she quickly grabbed her sister and jumped out of the way just as Ravena made impact creating a great explosion that caused the building they fought in to begin crumbling. A bolt of fear shot through the girls as they see Ravena's eyes glare at them through the dust.

"Whip!" commanded Queen sharply. Whip nodded in response as they began making their way out from the crumbling building. However, their exits were all blocked by fallen beams leaving the twins no choice as they began their mad escape upwards, using whatever available ledge, beam or slab in their reach as their leverage.

"Leaving so soon girls?" They hear Ravena's voice cackle around them mockingly.

Queen and Whip could feel a sense of dread welling up inside as they tried to ignore the voice and head up.

"What the hell is going on here?! We should have broken her!" demanded Whip jumping off a beam.

"Is she a monster?!" exclaimed Queen out loud.

All of a sudden, two large clawed shadow hands shot out from the darkness and snatched the two out of mid-air and forcibly dragged the two screaming women down back into the darkness as the building exploded causing everyone in the stadium to take cover as flying chunks of the building went flying in different directions, some heading towards them. The force was so great that even the containment barriers surrounding the fields began to crack as some players in the stadium who possessed some form of shield/barrier powers quickly activated them to reinforce the shields while others were already scattering to evacuate.

Kurotsubasa watched helplessly in shock from the safety of their magic infused barrier at the destruction unfolding before them as the building was reduced to dust in an instant before their eyes.

Masukomi and CAM cautiously peaked out from under the desk. The woman looked grim as she saw the catastrophic damage to the field. "Just what is going on here?" she asked aloud to herself.

Back on the field, Whip and Queen coughed loudly as they staggered to get up, their vision blurred by the thick dust in the air.

'Cough-cough!' "Barely made it…" 'Cough!' choked Queen as she wiped the blood trailing from her thigh as a few Owl's Eyeballs floated around her and her sister. "Whip? Is thou alright?"

Whip coughed several times but managed to nod in response.

A dark chuckle could be heard as red eyes illuminated clearly through the dust. Ravena's silhouette could be seen raising an arm and swiping down clearing the area of the dust cloud in an instant. "Ara-nya~ it seems you two still have some fight left in you. Good, very good~" said Ravena in obvious glee while her eyes clearly held a look of contempt and mockery for the twins who barely managed to stand.

Whip growled as she reactivated her Whip Wing. "Are you mocking us?!"

Ravena quirked an eyebrow before bursting into laughter as if Whip had said the most the ridiculous thing in the world. "Oh I'm sorry, I must not be clear. I'll laugh harder then!" Jeered Ravena. "You claim be specialists at torture but clearly your tepid methods are mere child's play~!" laughed the catgirl some more.

The twins both grit their teeth feeling incredibly annoyed and being openly ridiculed.

Suddenly Ravena stopped laughing as she began dusting herself off before glaring directly the twins with a manic smile. "I'll show you how to really break someone!" she snarled as made a mad dash towards them.

"Don't get cocky, brat!" retorted Whip in anger as Queen raised her arms.

"OWL'S EYEBALL!" cried Queen sending her explosives forward and detonating them point-blank at Ravena.

Ravena simply smirked as she was instantly engulfed in the explosion.

"Got her!" / "YES!" cheered the twins victoriously but their celebration was promptly cut short when a metal fist caught Queen right in the face and sent her blasting a few feet away creating a small explosion. A swift kick to the gut followed soon after sending Whip flying in the opposite direction.

Ravena stood where the twins once did with the same confident smirk on her face, completely unscathed by the explosion. Her entire person gleamed to reveal her whole body encased in metal plating. "Badan Logam…" Ravena said calmly causing her body to glow and revert to its basic state.

Queen appeared to be stunned by the sudden impact and barely sat up conscious when she caught her reflection in the blade of her dagger. "NOOOOOO! MY FACE! MY BEAUTIFUL FACE! YOU RUINED MY BEAUTIFUL FACE!" screeched Queen so completely horrified and enraged that she completely dropped her regal speech pattern. Her once lovely features were now completely disfigures; contorted by the mix of hatred, rage and the nasty fist mark decorating her swollen cheek.

"Ruined? I believe I merely tore off the false mask you wear to hide your true face~" replied Ravena before breaking out into laughter.

Queen growled audibly as she took off her heels and flung them at Ravena who simply tilted her head to dodge. "YOU F-KING BITCH!" screeched Queen, who lunged at Ravena, slashing her dagger wildly in her direction.

"Hmph~" sneered Ravena as she easily dodged every swing. Queen was becoming more infuriated with each missed attack which contorted her face even more.

"Come now, is that all you got?" taunted Ravena even further as dodged another slash.

In a fit of anger, Queen suddenly turned her on herself and slashed the entire length of her arm.

"QUEEN! NO!" cried out Whip as Queen allowed her blood to spray everywhere; her clothes, the ground and mostly on Ravena.

Queen now had a look of madness in her eyes as she struck the ground with her dagger at an angle creating sparks. "CONDOR…!"

"QUEEEEEN!" cried Whip as the sparks landed on the blood spatters.

"CANDLE!" cried out Queen as her black blood ignited. Flames combusted wherever the blood had spattered to including Ravena and Queen herself as the women cried out in agony.

Whip stared in horror at her sister but was soon overcome by chilling fear as Ravena's cries of anguish turned into cackling laughter. She turned to see Ravena standing unfazed as her magic encased the fire on her body and extinguished it, simultaneously healing her body.

"Amateur~! Your flames are much too weak!" sneered Ravena. "But you know what they say~ The best way to fight fire….Is with FIRE!" she declared with her eyes ablaze.

No sooner had she said that, the flames that were burning Queen combusted, causing the woman to scream louder as Ravena laughed harder. "That's it! Scream! Scream! Feel that wondrous pain taking over you!" cried Ravena in almost perverse pleasure.

"NO!" screamed Whip as she ran over to her sister who collapsed as the flames gradually died down. "Queen…" said Whip tearfully as she dropped to her knees beside her sister. "Quinn…."

Queen barely was able to respond but managed to roll onto her back.

"Wi-Winnie….." she struggled to say before her body glowed add fragmented into data pieces.

"QUINN!"

(Real World)

At that moment in a small house in England, a young woman's body went completely limp as she toppled out from her chair and hit the floor with a crash. Her computer screen blacked out displaying only two words in crimson bold letters;

GAME OVER….

(FFW)

"Aranya…That was quick~" quipped Ravena nonchalantly.

"You…" Whip spoke as she balled her hands into fists, black blood dripping from her injuries.

"Oh, you're still up and kicking huh?" Ravena turned to the remaining sister and scoffed at her. "Tch…talk about a buzzkill. Why don't you clear out, I'm through with you."

"Through…THROUGH! AFTER WHAT YOU DID, YOU THINK YOU CAN JUST TOSS ME ASIDE LIKE THAT!" Whip's rage broke through as her Whip Wings thrashed about wildly. "THE HELL WE AREN'T THROUGH HERE BITCH!"

"It's always the ones like you who want to fight…who can't stand unless they have a reason. Pathetic…it's no fun playing with a broken toy."

"THE ONE WHO WILL BE BROKEN IS YOU!" With all the energy she could muster, Whip then launched a series of lashes with her Whip Wings, Trying to hit the evasive catgirl.

"DIE! DIE! STAND STILL AND DIE YOU MURDERER!" Whip poured her heart and soul into her onslaught as she continued to try and grab hold of the bored looking nekomata.

"I…I…I have no words to describe what's happening. Even after all that, Ravena just stood up and completely decimated the sisters. In one of the most shocking displays I have ever seen. She has defeated Queen and now Whip is beside herself, attacking in rage." Masukomi continued to do her job despite the terror that was occurring.

(Kurotsubasa)

"What's going on with Ravena-chan? It's not like her to do something like this." Illu said, shocked and fearful at her friend's vicious display of power.

"Yeah, I don't even know how she's still standing and smiling like that. Ravena doesn't like blood to the point that she should be paralyzed, not only that but her wings were sliced off. That pain is enough to cripple anyone." DB said as well.

"I don't know what to think of this. It could be that Rave passed out and Felis took control." Key hypothesized as he watched the battle passed the barrier. "But even so, I've never seen Felis act this sadistic in a fight."

Shadow just remained silent as he stood with Punnya and Amaya worried around him. His hand was still clasp tight around the mark on his neck; he didn't even care about the pain as all he felt was concern.

'Is that even really Felis…no I'd probably would know if that was her.' Shadow said as he watched on. As he kept his eyes on Ravena he noticed something that only few in the crowd could see.

Ravena was shrouded by a dark, malevolent aura. It was faint, but floated about her form like a miasma; a dark and twisted aura that matched this Ravena perfectly as she dodged and swatted away Whip's attack.

"Looks like you've still got some life left, but your tricks are so boring." Ravena added a yawn to enforce her point. "Why don't you just drop already?"

"F-K YOU BITCH!"

Whip then suddenly changed tactics to having her hair grasp Ravena's limbs and held her up into the air. The girl smiled sadistically while she huff air into her lungs, finally glad to have her sister's murderer right where she wanted her.

"You mangy little bitch! You think you could do what you did and not get away with it?" Whip asked through breathes.

"Hey, you two wanted to play. I just showed you amateurs how to really get your hands dirty. Not my fault you two went way over your heads." Ravena replied in boredom as if this was all a chore to her. "Could you get on with it?"

"Huh…the hell you say?!"

"Is this really all you got? Even if you are broken I expected more than just this." Ravena said as she eyed her bonds. "Is this all you can do with this rat's nest, on your own?"

"Oh I definitely got more than just this." Whip said as she then pulled out her earrings and sliced open her palms. She then threw her hand out and suddenly Ravena's arm was grazed by what seemed to be a chain of hexagons.

"You see that? A little move I save for those who really piss me off. That chain was just so you can see what's gonna end you…right now I'm deciding where to aim? Should I make it quick, no…I want you to suffer for what you did." Whip now had a hysterical look on her face. "I want you to beg for forgiveness as I cut you to pieces, same way you did with Quinn!"

"Quinn? Ahahaha, that's her name?! Priceless!"

"Shut up!"

"Aww, is whittle Whippy mwad dat her swister isn't here?" Ravena talked down to her.

"Shut your mouth!" Whip fired another chain, slices another part of Ravena, though the catgirl just continue laugh and belittling the girl. Finally, in her rage, she snapped and fired a chain towards the girl's head. "Die!"

*Thunk!*

"Wha-wha-what is this!" Masukomi said as the sound of impact echoed throughout the arena. Everyone was staring in silence as they looked on the screen to see what had happened.

Ravena's hand was free and was grasping on the chain Whip had just fired. The hexagons had cut the nekomata's hand but she still kept a tight grip, keeping it from piercing her head. She then flexed her other hand to show her now sharpened claws and suddenly her bonds shattered apart into drops of blood.

Whip stumbled and fell back in fear as Ravena fell and landed gracefully, now free from her restraints. Her chain then shattered to pieces and turned to blood, as its user had now dropped any and all concentration.

"I got bored of waiting up there for you and the joke about the royal bitch died, so I decided to come down…course I don't appreciate a broken toy running too long. Are you finally out of steam?" Ravena asked as she walked over to the now fearful Whip.

"St-stop! Stay back!" Whip said as she backed away on the ground.

"Aww, you don't want to play anymore? No more quips? Aren't you gonna call me a bitch one more time? It wouldn't be the first time after all."

"Stay away from me!"

"I guess you really are done then, oh well. This time just stay broken!"

In a flash Ravena appeared right on top of Whip, with her foot pressed onto the girl's chest. Before a word could be spoken, Ravena smirked as she then slowly stepped down onto her victim's ribs.

*Crack!*

Whip's screams echoed loudly across the battlefield, telling everyone the pain that the Dead Blood was currently in. The glass shattering screams then died out as Whip passed out from the pain. Seeing her toy now "broken" Ravena kicked her aside.

"So boring…" Ravena finished seeing the girl teleported away, probably by her teammates.

"W-well I guess that's it everyone. The winner of the match is…"

"Hold it!"

That outburst caused Masukomi to stop before she could declare Ravena the winner. The one who called out to the audience was the catgirl herself who had a look of defiance on her face.

"I'm not done yet! Give me someone else to fight!"

"There aren't any more opponents left for you to…" Masukomi tried to explain.

"Oh there are plenty of them out there." Ravena smirked as she pointed out to the cameras and in-turn the audience. "There are people out there who can offer some fun. Come on, I'll take on anyone who's willing to step into the ring!"

All throughout the stage, there were loud talks going on in the crowd. Conversations raged from "Is she serious?" to "This girl is psycho!" though the main talks were about the nekomata's offer to fight anyone who would challenge her in the battlefield. As chats continued throughout the audience, the guilds were having their own talks.

(Dead Bloods)

"Well that was an interesting change down there. I would've never guessed that girl was capable of anything like this."

Doc spoke as he watched Whips' body was now laid across from an unconscious Meat's. Zaraki was in his own corner growling while Shiro's attention was focused on the screen.

"What happened to Miss Kitty? She feels different from before. Shiro thought she was off a bit before but now…she's turned into a bully." Shiro said as she huffed at the screen's image of Ravena.

"Whatever, we definitely do not need this shit right now. We've lost, so let's find a way out of this before Admin Guards get called here." Zaraki then landed a punch on the barrier around their guild's booth only for it to absorb the hit. This only served to anger the Dead Blood more.

"Hey, let us out here already! We lost so we get to leave, don't you people know your own stupid rule?!"

"Zaraki" The angered man stopped and looked towards Doc. "This barrier may just be the only thing protecting us from that girl down there."

"Are you saying that girl is a threat to us? I don't care; the rest of us active can just rip her to shreds and be done with it. Considering that you fainted, I was SUCKER KICKED, and Ms. Leader fell over from a nosebleed!" Zaraki argued his point.

"Whip and Queen were both in top condition and looked what happened to them. Besides…" Doc took the moment to adjust what remained of his glasses. "The Admin will be busy dealing with a disaster during a Guild War; they'll barely take the time to worry about criminals like us."

"Tch, you better be right about this." Zaraki folded his arms and stood in anger. All Dead Bloods could do now was wait for an opening.

(Kurotsubasa)

"Why is this barrier still up and going?! It should've dropped after the fight!" DB said as he kicked the barrier again, trying to find a way to break it down and get to their friend. "Why is Ravena still keeping us in here?!"

"Don't know, but she put this spell up before the change happened. It could be a way of protecting us…but right now, we don't need protection." Key said as he summoned his keyblades. "We need to end this Guild War already."

"What do you have in mind, Key?" Grim asked, wondering why the Beta summoned his weapons of choice. Doppelman also appeared over to watch the development.

"I don't think your fancy swords can cut through that barrier. If Fangs over here couldn't even dent it with his monstrous strength, what are your powers going to do against it?" Doppleman brought up his point.

"This barrier is made by Ravena's magic. It's a strong spell, but spells can be broken. Her barrier works by locking us in, so I should be able to unlock and dispel her barrier with my keyblades." Key said as he aimed his keys to the barrier surrounding the guild.

"The barrier was made with strong magic, so you have to use strong or stronger power to dispel something like this." Grim said as he watched the Beta get prepared. "I'm not doubting your ability as a Beta, but are you sure you want to do this on your own?"

"Some of you are still recovering from your matches. It's best that I do this alone and give it my all." After Key was done speaking, he began working on the barrier. Two beams of light fired from the tips of the keyblades and into the barrier, signaling that Key had started his plan.

While that was going on, no one else noticed Bella's eyes fluttered open as she slowly regain consciousness.

'What was that? There's been a lot of negative energy going around since I was asleep.' Bella thought to herself as she looked over to her friends working on the barrier. "Are we still in the Guild War? What's going on? Did we win?" Before she went over to check on them, she saw Shadow was off on his own.

"Shads what's going on?" A voice said, snapping Shadow out from his thoughts. He turned and saw Bella slowly making her way over.

"You shouldn't be up yet." Shadow just said.

"Hard not to be up with all the commotion; so, mind filling me in?" The toongirl asked.

"I would…if I knew what was going on."

(Battlefield)

"Come now, why is everyone so shy~?" teased Ravena. "Oh I see, you all are being held back by the barriers~ Silly me~" chuckled the girl as her eyes glowed summoning multiple violet and blue spirit fireballs around her.

"Let me get that hindrance out the way~" she smirked. Suddenly, the spirit balls shot forward towards the shields creating multiple simultaneous mini explosions. Various players screamed as more cracks appeared on the shield which was barely able to repair itself from the damage earlier.

Ravena laughed maniacally as she threw more and more shots at the shield, relishing in the discord she creating. Her excitement grew as she could see the barrier ready to break. "Just one more~" she grinned as she created a large spirit ball in her hand and threw it straight at the barrier.

Various people grabbed each other and screamed in fear, as the spirit ball grew larger.

AURA OF NEGATION! Came a yell followed by a bolt of light as the fireball was slashed clean in the middle and exploded into two smaller explosions.

Ravena clicked her tongue in annoyance at seeing her fun disrupted as a single emerged from the fire and landed on the ground wielding a black bladed sword.

"Speed!" exclaimed DB in surprise to see the most unlikely Admin to appear on scene.

"Hmph, Child's Play," smirked Speedgain as he tossed his sword into the air which glowed and transformed into a young woman who landed slightly behind Speed. The woman had pale skin and long black hair and wore the uniform of the Night Troops unit, which was Speed's chain of command. The uniform consisted of a black sleeveless shirt and black pants along with black steel-toed boots. She also had dark grey chest armor, elbow length black gloves with steel plates on the wrist. A white bird mask concealed her face as she stood battle-ready.

More members of the Night Troops and even more regular members of the Admin Guards joined the two quickly.

"Oh? The Admin have finally decided to join in the fun?" asked Ravena aloud with a voice filled with slight interest as well as annoyance.

"It appears that the Grim Reaper is not as competent as his reputation claims him to be, Tsubaki," stated Speed obviously displeased as he glanced up towards the Kurotsubasa box. Grim narrowed his eyes and returned the glare.

"Indeed, Master," replied Tsubaki.

Ravena stared at Tsubaki a bit before a small smile crept on her lips. "Hmm? I know you…. well, sort of, " said Ravena with a chuckle. "Seven years ago, Tokyo City Square? You were a lowly, no-name cadet then."

Tsubaki narrowed her eyes and growled.

Speed glanced over to Tsubaki and quirked an eyebrow. "You know her Tsubaki?"

"Yes sir," replied the Admin Guard as she materialized a ninjato in her hand. "She's a B-Ranked rogue I've been chasing down for years…"

"And the fact that you've been unsuccessful to this day clearly shows how competent your skills are," mocked Ravena suddenly appearing beside the young woman and picking off the woman's mask.

Tsubaki widened her eyes as she instinctively slashed at Ravena, only to find her gone. A mocking laugh directed everyone's gaze to see Ravena siting atop a broken pillar, one leg crossed over the other as she held Tsubaki's mask over her own face.

"We never did get to finish that fight oh so many years ago, isn't that right, Tsubaki~?" smirked the Nekomata lifting the mask.

The Admin Guard Leader twirled her ninjato and prepared herself. "You may have changed your name and appearance, but you have hardly changed at all, "The Rookie, Raven's Familiar!"

Murmurs of surprise and shock echoed through the stadium the instant Tsubaki mentioned the name.

"Did she just say 'The Rookie'?"

"THAT Rookie?!"

"Raven's Familiar, the rogue?!"

(With Kurotsubasa)

The Guild looked around feeling confused and bewildered. "Nani?! What's going on here?! Who is the Rookie?! Who is Raven's Familiar?!" Demanded an almost teary-eyed Illu.

"No clue owlgirl, though she must be something if she's got everyone freaked out like this?" Bella said, placing her thoughts on the matter. "This is the first time I've heard of her."

"Me too, though they got a lot of old posters about her around bars and places bounty hunters hang around. Still that doesn't explain what's going on." DB then turned to Key, who's attention was still on the barrier. "Key, if anyone would know this it's you. Who's Raven's Familiar?"

Key was silent at first, considering all of his attention was on bringing down the barrier. He then took a glance over to the guild.

"Raven's Familiar…is one of the few players given a flee-on-sight order for most players. She was wanted by the Admin for assaulting guards and evading arrest on her first day."

"So, we've technically done that too right when all this Admin mess started." DB reminded him.

"True; however, it didn't just stop there." Key stumbled a bit, as he had to split his concentration between talking and trying to break the barrier. "She eventually stopped running and just fought back, she took down any Admin Guards sent to retrieve her. Most of them didn't even survive to be treated by healers."

"It came to the point to where they couldn't send weaker players after her for fear of their safety, so they when they put up the bounty for her they also put a cap to stop those too weak from pursuing her." Grim then added.

"So you know about this bounty too?" Shadow asked, seeing as Grim added to Key's info.

"There isn't a mercenary or bounty hunter that doesn't know about Raven's Familiar. Not only was she a notorious rogue, she had a pretty big name in the Underground Information Vine as well. Called her the 'Mata-Hari'. Oddly enough though, one day she just completely fell off the grid. No one has seen or heard a word of her appearing anywhere. So it was decided that the bounty be suspended due to her absence…" Grim kept his eyes down at the battlefield. "Of course now that isn't the case."

(Battlefield)

"It's nice to know someone who remembers me after all these years, ~ You look like you've got a bone to pick with me." 'Ravena' gave the masked Admin Guard an amused smile.

"I've got more than just a 'bone' to pick with you, criminal." Tsubaki's voice remained calm, though her mask did cover up the hateful glare her eyes was giving the girl.

"Are you related to one of those idiots who tried hunting me down?" 'Ravena' teased.

"HUH?! YOU KNOW FULL DAMN WELL WHO I AM!" burst out Tsubaki in a rage, her hand gripping the ninjato tighter.

"Do I now?"

"F-K YOU! You said my name earlier too!"

The nekomata then took a mock thinking pose. "Hmm, did I?

"Now I know you are mocking me!"

Ravena yawned loudly. "Too easy…"

Tsubaki growled loudly and then vanished in a burst of wind, only to appear in front of Ravena.

CLANG!

The catgirl used her shackle to hold back the wind-chakra enhanced ninjato. Despite the slicing power added to it, the blade made no dent as it sparked against the precious metal. Wind then began to gather around her free hand and she moved to run her hand through the cat girl only for her target to teleport out of her reach.

"Hah, been awhile since someone came at me to try and kill me! Ok, you got my attention, what did I do to the wittle tweety birdie to get her all hot and bothered huh?" Ravena grinned with excitement rematerializing in a swirl of magic energy.

"If you must know; I was in the first Admin Squad you wiped out. I may have only just been a simple guard, but to be batted away like a fly by someone like you…it made me sick!" Tsubaki explained. She then dashed to begin her assault, slashing at Ravena with grace and precision; she continued to talk as her target blocked and evaded her attacks.

"You humiliated us that day, but most of all you humiliated me! Even when I absorbed your powers all it has done was backfire and sent me flying."

"Wait…oh yeah; you were the idiot who thought she beat me by copying my powers! Ahahaha that was a riot! The way you went flying was hilarious!"

Ravena laughed as she took a step back, just narrowly dodging a slash aimed at her jugular, the blade just missing it's target by a hair. "Temper, temper, Tsubaki dear~"

"I see the years have made you more crude."

"And you have become more of a prude."

Ravena stepped out the way as the wind cut through some loose strands of her hair. She then slashed back using her own claws, the neko's claws held back Tsubaki's ninjato as they stood in a standstill. Ravena then smirked as a ball of fire appeared in her free hand. At the same time Tsubaki called on some wind chakra.

Will o'Wisp!

Wind Style: Wind Wave!

A loud and large explosion shook the battlefield as the two fighters have been separated by the blast. As Tsubaki landed she then turned to her reinforcements to give them a silent message. The Anbu-like guards then drew their weapons and charged at the renegade rouge.

A crazed grin grew on Ravena's face as she made no move. "This is too easy!" she cackled as her sharpened claws were ready for some blood.

"Alive or Dead, just stop her!" commanded Tsubaki brandishing her ninjato as she took the lead.

"ROGER!" responded the troop.

Ravena's Cheshire grin grew even larger as her eyes became more manic.

BADUMP!

A dark pulse waved through the entire area as everyone began seeing darkness followed by a piercing stare accompanied by a drop of sheer coldness. The sudden dark feeling was strong it froze the troops in their tracks including Tsubaki as it was like time suddenly stopped for her.

"You were a weak loser then and you are a weak loser now….Hmph, you're not even worth my time…." mocked Ravena cruelly as she glided by Tsubaki.

Tsubaki's eyes widened before feeling a sharp pain in her gut as blood spurted before her eyes. Just like that, time suddenly resumed its pace as the entire troop simultaneously cried out in agony and dropped to the ground while Ravena had appeared behind them without so much as a scratch.

(Kurotsubasa)

Illu clutched herself tightly as she collapsed to her knees while Bella put her arms around the girl trying to console her. "Nani….Nani goto da…? Rave-chan..." whispered Illu to herself.

"Ravena/Kitty…." Said Grim and Doppelman simultaneously in shock.

"Rave…." Muttered DB in shock as well. "That can't be our Rave…"

"Key!" Shadow said, turning to the Beta, who had sweat pouring down his brow.

"Hang on, almost got it!"

(Battlefield)

The Admin Guard coughed up some blood as she looked towards Ravena in disbelief. 'To think she grew this powerful after all these years…..' thought Tsubaki before suddenly smiling inwardly. "Heh….just what I expect from you Rookie…" she muttered.

"Ara, Ara…If that's all it took to obliterate the famed Night Troops, I'm severely disappointed," lamented Ravena with a sigh when she suddenly ducked, only just missing a swing from Speed's katana that would have easily take her head clean off.

Ravena quickly executed a leg sweep, prompting Speed to jump back. The Admin wasted no time resuming his attack as he furiously swung his sword at Ravena who dodged and deflected each strike. Speed was also quick to defend himself as well as Ravena who fought back with equal strength.

"Not bad for a girl," sneered Speed as he avoided a strike to the abdomen before striking his katana down onto Ravena who quickly clasped it between her palms.

The Neko smirked in response as they both stood in a standstill. "Thanks, I was gonna say the same about you" she responded.

KRRRCK!-SNAP! - went Speed's katana as Ravena snapped the blade clean off with her hands. A single kick from her boot sent Speed flying backwards into a large piece of broken wall.

Just as Ravena stood watching a dust cloud arose from the crumbling of the wall, a whip of wind from the side prompted her to jump out of the way into the air. Ravena quickly turned and flung the broken blade she held in the direction of the blast.

CHING! The blade was deflected away by Tsubaki who was back up on her feet holding a large shuriken. Tsubaki's expression was livid as she flung the shuriken towards Ravena who had no trouble redirecting the projectile back at the Guard who was already making her assault as Tsubaki caught the shuriken and slashed at Ravena.

Speed was already back up on his feet, joining in the fray, now making it a two on one fight.

(Dead Bloods)

"The Rookie is still living up to her reputation," noted Doc turning the screw in his head. "I can see why she had such a high bounty on her head."

"WOW~! Shiro should ask Ms Kitty to join us then!" piped up Shiro.

"Like HELL we will!" snapped Zaraki when a sudden explosion to their shield quickly made all three hit the floor for cover.

(Field)

Ravena grinned as slid back a distance from Tsubaki whose ponytail glowed and transformed into a sickle with an extremely long chain. The girl dashed forward swinging the weapon with expertise before flinging it at Ravena.

The Nekomata deflected the bladed easily with her shackle before grabbing the sickle's handle. Ravena immediately lifted a leg and wrapped it with the chain before stamping it down, forcibly yanking Tsubaki to her feet. Ravena didn't even hesitate as she followed it up with a swift and violent kick to Tsubaki's jaw, stunning the girl.

"Tsubaki!" cried out Speed as he launched himself at Ravena who evaded and slashed at him with the sickle that he blocked with his arm guard and then threw a kick at the Nekomata. In a swift move, Ravena grabbed the leg and used it to elevate herself and swing her body until she was sitting upon Speed's shoulders. Before Speed had a chance to react, Ravena had coiled the chain from the sickle around his neck and began pulling tightly, strangling Speed as he began choking and gasping for air.

"Master!" cried Tsubaki ready to get up but Ravena quickly pointed the sickle at her.

"You move and this chain gets even tighter" warned Ravena menacingly when suddenly-

BANG!-CHING!

A gun-shot rang out suddenly as the sickle was shot from the girl's hand causing the chain to break. Speed quickly took the brief advantage and threw his body forward, flinging Ravena from his shoulders. Ravena tumbled on the ground before quickly jumping away to avoid another bullet.

"Phew! Made it in time!" sighed DB in relief as he landed in the field followed close behind by the other members of Kurotsubasa. "Way to cut it close Key!"

"Hey, let's see you try unlock a powerful force-field of Darkness!"

"Not the time guys!" chided Bella jumping in between the two.

"Master!" cried out Tsubaki, quickly scurrying to Speed who gingerly held his neck as he coughed as he gasped for air. "Are you alright?"

"Oh course I am! Don't forget who I am!" exclaimed Speed haughtily slapping away Tsubaki's hand and standing up.

"O-of course, forgive me, Master," apologized Tsubaki meekly.

Ravena clicked her tongue in annoyance. "Che, you got out…You must have some sort of Death Wish."

Shadow quickly summoned his scythe and brandished it at the Neko. The other guys save for Bella and Illu readied themselves too while Tsubaki and Speed prepared themselves to attack.

"Shads! Me and DP are going to help get the people out!" yelled out Grim as he and DP made their way to the stands.

"Butt out Shadowlight, I'll be the one to take in this criminal!" commanded Speed stepping in front.

"Someone who was almost strangled a few minutes ago has no right to be saying that line," replied Shadow coolly making Speed growl angrily.

'Bastard, if it weren't the situation at hand I would have had your head for that' Speed snarled internally.

Shadow ignored the Admin and returned his attention to the Nekomata before them. "Now for you, you are not the Ravena we know, and you are obviously not Felis," he stated narrowing his eyes. "Who are you?"

'Ravena' widened her eyes a little before breaking into a wide grin. Suddenly she threw her head back and laughed out loudly. "Oh this is great! Finally somebody notices!" she laughed before taking a deep breath and looked straight at Shadow while clapping sarcastically. "Very good, Shadow. I commend you for pointing me out."

Tsubaki appeared confused as she glanced back and forth between the two.

"As you have already pointed out, I am not that stiff you know as Felis nor am I that foolish girl you are so fond of," began the Nekomata. "I am the True Mind, the One who rightfully rules this Vessel, you will refer to me as Lynx!" she announced proudly but also with a sneer.

"What is she going on about?" Speed spoke as he slowly recovered; now massaging his recently abused throat. "None of what she just said makes any sense."

"You don't have to worry about that, right now you need to take your troops and get out of the arena." Shadow replied, not taking his eyes off of the newly introduced Lynx.

"Who do you think you are, ordering me around?!"

"The guy reminding you of your job! Shouldn't you be getting the people out of the stands instead of trying to pick a fight with me Speed?!" Shadow quickly lost patience with the Admin. "So go do your job and leave Lynx to us." Shadow said, with the rest of Kurotsubasa backing him up.

Speed scoffed at that remark. "I should be locking up all of you. Who do you think you are ordering me around?" The Admin said with an even tone as he put aside his anger for now.

"Speed-sama?" Tsubaki looked at her superior in confliction. A part of her wanted nothing more but to defeat and capture her enemy, Familiar or Not…but her first and only priority was to Speed. If he gave the order, she would put aside her feelings for revenge and follow his command without hesitation.

"Tsubaki…we're evacuating this area for now." Speed said reluctantly. "We'll have Kurotsubasa clean up their mess this time; though don't think this is over. You'll have a lot to answer for after this Shadow, and that's if you survive this fight. If it looks like you and your guild can't handle the situation we go back to doing things my way." The Admin turned his back to the fight and gestured Tsubaki to follow him as they walked away.

"And who exactly said you could leave?" Lynx fired a magic bolt at the retreating Admin. Her attack flew through the air so fast that it caught mostly everyone by surprise.

"Tsubaki…smoke now."

"Understood."

A large billow of smoke suddenly appeared; blocking view of both the Admin and the ANBU. Lynx's attacked ended up sailing through the cloud of grey and impacted further away, leaving a large explosion. The neko's attack left another sizable crater on the ground.

"Damn, I missed, and here I was hoping I could knock around those small fries for a little while longer." Lynx shrugged her shoulders, waving away the wisps of magic left on her hand after the attack. "Guess I'll just have to settle for you all instead. My 'dear'…'sweet'…'friends.'" With every word she spoke, her voice seems to have got colder.

"Whatever you say, faker! We'll take you down and get the real Kitty back out again!" Bella slid into a mock fighting stance. Her time asleep had allowed her to recover most of her strength. The toon girl had never dreamed of fighting one of her best friends seriously.

"Moi, a fake? That's hypocritical coming from you Hyna." In a flash, Lynx sprinted across the field and in front of Bella. The toon girl was shocked, but before she could slam her hand down, Lynx had gripped her omnitrix and twisted her arm.

"Aren't you nothing more, but a vessel for all those toons of yours? Each one you let out whenever you want…and some that you don't. How do we know who is the real Bella here?" The sadistic nekomata hardened her grip on the toon girl's arm.

Wincing a bit from Lynx's steely grip, she mentally had the watch transform her, blowing away Lynx with a burst of green light. That light was also a signal, because now more of Kurotsubasa began their attacks.

"Stand still!" DB slashed with his katana, hoping to land a sword slash on the quick moving feline. The vampire continued to press his attack, madly swing his sword around hoping to hit his mark.

"Yawn…do you obviously think this will work?" Lynx flexibly bent back to avoid another strike. "DB, you're better than this! Come on, liven this up like you always do!" Lynx suddenly stopped, right as DB sword was aimed at her face, causing DB to hold his attack out of shock.

"Why not light your sword on fire? Give us both a rush! Hell, maybe you should go back to those guns of yours!"

Lynx lashed out and kicked DB away, sending him sprawling along the ground. Before Lynx had another chance to gloat, a huge weight pressed down on her, making it hard for her to move. The girl hissed, as the gravity field held her down in place.

"Key, Illu, Bella!" Shadow signaled the three as he focused on holding Lynx in place.

"Right!" Key ran in first with his keyblades in both hands.

While still in the altered gravity, Lynx tried to swipe at Key only to narrowly miss. This allowed Key point his Infinity at the captured feline. He then focus his mana into the keyblade to cast his next spell.

"Stop!"

A burst a magic hit Lynx, causing her to freeze in place. Seeing her now stuck in time; Key then backed away making sure to get some distance. Bella, now transformed as TF Armada Starscream, flew up into the air and readied her plasma cannons. The transformer held out his hand and summoned a smaller droid in his hand.

"Let's go, Swindle!" The minicon combined with the Decepticon, increasing his power ten-fold. As Starscream powered up he began to take aim. "Ok, Owlgirl, make sure she's still so I can take the shot!"

"I…I…" Illu clutched onto her glaive, hesitating to make her next move yet saw she didn't have much time as Key's spell was beginning to wear off. The owl hybrid tried to focus herself to pin Lynx but she just fell to her knees, not finding the will to carry out with the attack.

"I…. I can't! I can't!" Illu broke down. Her weapon clattered along the ground as her eyes filled with tears, unable to bear the fight anymore.

"The spell's breaking!" Key called out to all of them as Lynx slowly regained her ability to move.

Seeing their strategy fall apart, the nekomata then tried to force her way out of Shadow's attack. As Lynx tried to escape by overpowering the guild leader's bindings Shadow was physically struggling to hold the catgirl in place.

"Enough of this plan! I'm taking control, Plasma Cannon fire!" Starscream fired two large beams of energy.

The twin streams of plasma rained down, getting closer to their target. Eyeing the attacks, Shadow released the field so that he could move away and use gravity to push everyone else away from the blast zone. Despite that, they were all still blown back a bit from the force of the explosion. The members of Kurotsubasa all stood up while Bella flew back to Earth and transformed back. Before they could see if the attack landed, the smoke cleared to show Lynx hiding under a barrier.

"Can you guys start getting serious? Or are you all going to keep pulling your punches?" Lynx asked while brushing off some imaginary dust from her clothes. "I thought I was some 'faker'. It should be easy to attack me…shouldn't it?" She slyly smirked enjoying the reactions she was getting.

"Well if you're not going to start out seriously, I guess I can give you some motivation."

Lynx's eyes began to glow and released a wave of magic into the ground. Suddenly, Lynx's shadow began to enlarge as several red eyes can be seen appearing in it.

"Arise my pets, Kucing Bayangan!"

Figures of shadows began to arise from it and take shape, slowly beginning to form into more felid shapes. It a matter of seconds, there was a whole group of large, snarling panthers, each of them featuring four glowing red eyes.

The rest of Kurotsubasa began taking a step back as the shadow panthers faced them and snarled menacingly. One of the panthers curled around Lynx's legs rumbling a bit in pleasure as the Neko stroked its head. Lynx smirked as she uttered a single word.

"Attack…"

The Kucing Bayangan all roared loudly as they charged towards Kurotsubasa …or at least it seemed that away. The Kucing swiftly changed directions as they began heading towards the crumbling barriers and ramming against them repeatedly.

If there wasn't enough chaos already from the audience trying to evacuate things just got a lot worse as the Kucing finally crashed through the barrier and began lunging at various players. Screams of fear and agony arose as some players were pounced on and were desperately trying to fight them off.

Other players quickly began unleashing their powers or brandishing their weapons and began fighting back the Kucing. One swung his sword and successfully sliced a Kucing in half, only for it to regenerate as it lunged at him.

Kurotsubasa stared in horror as Lynx cackled in glee. "My poor kittens have been sooooo bored with the lack of playtime," pouted Lynx mockingly before chuckling to herself.

"Stop it, Ravena! This isn't you!" yelled Bella.

Lynx rolled her eyes. "Uh, Hello? Haven't we already established that?"

"We know what you are trying to do Lynx!" spoke up Key stepping up.

"Then you should know what will happen if you don't stop them~" chuckled Lynx. "You wanna save the people? Then fight me. I'll even give you the first shot, I'm wide open~ " taunted the Neko standing with her arms open, a cruel smile playing on her face.

"You're sick!" spat DB tightening the grip on his sword.

Kurotsubasa's dilemma was obvious. They couldn't let innocent bystanders get hurt but they can't hurt their friend either. Lynx knew it was their Achilles Heel and she was milking it for all its worth.

"Tick-Tock, dearies~" she mocked when suddenly, a blast of gravity slammed into Lynx, sending her flying into a wall.

"Shadow!" exclaimed the others in shock as they turned to look at their leader who had an extremely dark look on his face. Shadow's expression was beyond angry, it was pure rage.

Lynx laughed in delight as she got up, coughing slightly as she wiped the blood trailing from her mouth. "Now that's what I'm talking about! That's a good expression you got there Shadow!"

Shadow moved to take a step forward but felt the back of his jacket being grabbed. He turned his head to see Illu looking up at him tearfully. "Please….don't hurt Rave-chan…. She begged gripping Shadow's jacket tighter.

"You heard her yourself, Illu…. She's no longer Ravena…..The Ravena we know would never do something like this. You of all people should know that…."

"But-"

"Oh always the wet blanket aren't cha Illu?!" exclaimed Lynx in annoyance as she formed a spirit ball in her hand. "You need to get dried out!" she grinned flinging the fireball towards her.

Shadow quickly scooped up Illu and jumped away while Db leapt forward and sliced the attack, creating a small explosion. A flash was seen in the smoke as a loud deafening Sonic Howl blasted through it. Lynx quickly conjured up a barrier to protect herself as the attack slammed against the barrier with a vengeance.

Lynx clicked her tongue as she placed her fingers to her lips and blew a sharp whistle, calling some of the Kucing to come down and attack.

As the feline shaped wraiths ran towards them, Blitzwolfer was preparing another howl when the Kucing were suddenly blown back by a wall of gravity. Before Bella could object Shadow was in the middle of giving an order.

"Bella, DB, Key…go to the stands and take care of these things. Help the Admin with their evacuation." Shadow turned to Illu. "Illu, you stay back here. I could use you here for healing since there are enough medics in the crowd."

"But…I can't just stand back, I can help!" Illu argued.

"You can help by making sure I stay alive during this fight." Shadow said as he reminded them of their smiling opponent who had now had her Kucing ready for another attack. "Lynx isn't going to make this easy, so I would like a medic here."

"Are you really going to fight Ravena Shads? We should really keep the team tighter to fight that Lynx girl." Bella offered some advice.

"I should be able to handle Lynx, now go help out." Shadow said, with as much authority and finality he had.

As much as Bella, Key, and DB disliked the order, they reluctantly nodded and were about to set off before a mocking laugh grabbed all their attention.

"Bold talk Shadow, I'll enjoy stripping that self-confidence away once I mop the ground with you. Though what makes you think I'll let any of you slip out. My cute Kucing will pounce you mice as soon as you leave your hole." Lynx tried to provoke them.

"You'll be busy with your own trap before you could pounce any of us." Shadow nudged his head, signaling them to move.

"Tch, don't say I didn't warn you…" Lynx mentally ordered her pet to attack only to find the Kucing and herself trapped in place. Looking down at her shadow she saw multiple black threads keeping her and her Kucing bound.

"Threads, when did you…?!" As she struggled she recognized the spell that Shadow had cast in secret. "Tendrils of Darkness huh, how long do you think these can hold me?"

"Long enough" Shadow taunted back before glancing back at his guild. "What are you waiting for, take care of crowd then come back."

"…All right fine, but you better be sure about this Shads." Key said, surprising the other two.

"Are you serious Key?" DB asked.

"It's better to get the crowd out of danger so that she can't use it as leverage. Come on, the faster we do this the faster we can get back to the fight." The Beta said before taking off to help with the crowd control.

DB mumbled some bitter words but he then followed Key into the crowd as well. Bella had transformed back and gave a final message to Shadow. "I hope you know what you're doing Shads." The toon girl said before taking off to help with the crowd.

'So do I…' Shadow was then dragged from his thoughts when he felt Punnya tugged worried on his sleeve with her teeth. Next to her was Amaya who had her own look of worry.

"Punnya!"

"U-pyonnn."

"I'll do all I can Punnya, though you wait with Illu. Take Amaya with you and stay safe." He ushered the Manju towards where Illu was sitting on the battlefield. A quick mental message to Amaya had the young rabbit manju raise a psychic barrier of her own as best she could.

As soon as the three were safe Lynx tore her way out of the binding strings.

"Tough spell, so you're going to have to do more than that if you want to save everyone Shadow-kyun." Lynx said jokingly and smiled seeing Shadow's glare at the petname. "Aww, what's the matter? Just because I'm not little Felidae I can't use her name for you~?"

"That's exactly it, not like you care about that." Shadow got ready as he kept his glare, Byakugan active. "I'm going to get our friend back, so get ready Lynx."

"Wow, way to talk a big game, but you are the only one who isn't afraid to go all out. Though your methods raise some questions…" Lynx smirked. "All the moments you had me trapped in your gravity trap or even before with that spell would've a good time to use that scythe of yours. Makes me wonder if you're really up for this, Leader-chan~."

On that last insult, the free Kucing pounced towards the scythe-user. Shadow got ready only to be interrupted by the sound of tearing mixed in with a chainsaw. Grim no took his place on the battlefield after eliminating the two shadow cats.

"Didn't forget about me, did you?" Grim said with his sawblades out on his legs.

"You don't have to get involved Grim."

"It's my fault we're in this; besides you guys helped me so it's my turn to help you."

The two finished their banter and turned to Lynx who now was sporting an interested smirk on her face as she sharpened her claws.

"Oh, this will be fun!" Lynx then flashed forward, claws raised, ready for her entertainment.

"IIIYAAA!" cried Lynx as she stabbed a hand at Shadow who dodged left and appeared behind and attempted to strike only to have his hand caught by one of Lynx's tails. Lynx smirked as the other tail shot up and jabbed his forehead with such force that he recoiled.

Lynx's ear twitched as she sensed movement behind her, quickly turning at crossing her arms above her head. Exactly at that moment, the loud screech and grinding of Grim's Saw foot created a shower of sparks as it connected against Lynx's shackles. Lynx closed her eyes and gritted her teeth in pain as she stood her ground, bearing the shrill screeching of the rotating blades against the metal which reverberated through her sensitive ears. With a loud cry, Lynx's eyes glowed and magically blasted Grim away into wall.

The Nekomata clutched her head in pain as she growled audibly. "Alright, NOW I'm mad…." She snarled, her fists encasing in magic. Blue flames of spirit fire surrounded her in a circle, blazing fiercely.

With a mighty cry, Lynx began firing blasts at Grim and Shadow simultaneously in quick succession. Grim made no hesitation as he quickly fired up his blades on his legs and used them skate around the field at a high speed while Shadow spun his scythe and sliced through the blasts coming towards him.

"You can't protect her Shadow! You can't protect anyone! You can't even protect yourself!" Shadow heard Lynx's voice echoing in his psyche. He looked up to see Lynx's manic glare staring into his soul. "This is all you fault Shadow! You did this to her!"

Shadow's head began to throb violently as he suddenly hit the ground, clutching his head as he writhed about in agony. "AGH! SHUT UP! GET OUT! GET OUT!" he yelled out in pain.

Lynx mockingly threw her head back and laughed. "Do you feel that?! Do you FEEL that pain you pathetic fool?! It is a mere fraction of the pain I have to endure inside!" sneered Lynx jabbing at her heart with her thumb as her hair bellowed about her face.

"Then how's this for pain?!" yelled Grim as he swooped down from above on a large clay bird as he released a clay spider while simultaneously grabbing Shadow and flying into the air.

Lynx widened her eyes as she saw the spider coming towards her. Amaya quickly tried to strengthen the barrier she already had up around Illu but the sudden rise in panic began causing the barrier to falter as Punnya began to glow as the bomb detonated.

KA-BOOM! With a bright flash, an explosion erupted, engulfing the field in fire.

"RAVENA!" cried out Shadow in despair as he watched the flames die out.

In the middle of the field, Lynx lay in a crater, a thin barrier just barely covering her body fading away. The Nekomata breathed heavily as she slowly got up while Grim and Shadow watched from above. Meanwhile, Illu slowly opened her eyes, clearly shaken up. In her arms, Amaya was shivering heavily, having being stunned by the sound of the loud explosion. Suddenly Illu realized that both she and Amaya were shrouded by something big and heavy. A pained growl made Illu gasp in realization as she felt the thing shift. "Punnya?"

Punnya was revealed to have transformed and shielded them at the last moment before the bomb detonated. Punnya gave one final pained growl before collapsing to the ground as she reverted back to her original form. Illu gasped as she turned around to face the manju.

At that moment Lynx had crawled out of the crater, brushing hair from her eyes.

"Punnya, no!" she heard a voice cry alerting Lynx to turn her head towards Illu's direction where she saw Illu taking off her jacket and wrapping it around the manju.

Lynx fixated her eyes on Punnya's damaged form, her breath suddenly caught in her throat. "Punnya?..." she whispered as flashes of a memory were triggered.

FLASH!

Ravena was fighting fiercely before she was overpowered.

FLASH!

Punnya getting struck and falling before her eyes.

FLASH!

Lynx remembered the anger and despair she felt back then as she saw Punnya lying on the ground. Her rage began to bubble more and more until Ravena threw back her head and released a long screeching cry of anguish as it transitioned back into Lynx.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH! AAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!" she screamed, over and over. The more she screamed, Lynx's eyes began glowing red as her dark magic began flowing out of her. In the stands, the Kucing Bayangan melted back into the shadows as it combined back into Lynx's magic.

Grim widened his eyes while Shadow could feel himself shudder at the raw power.

Lynx growled as a second set of eyes appeared on her forehead and looked directly up at Grim who gulped.

"She's gonna kill me isn't she?" he asked bluntly.

"Eeyup," answered Shadow.

Lynx's spirit fire turned from blue to black as she gathered it into a giant ball and fired sky high towards the clay bird.

"HANG ON!" cried Grim as he maneuvered the bird out of the way.

Lynx kept firing again and again, her rage showing clearly on her face, her intent being clear to destroy them.

Suddenly, one of the blasts caught Grim by surprise, causing him to sharply turn at the last minute. However, it also caused Shadow to suddenly lose his balance as he tumbled off the bird.

"SHADOW!" cried Illu as she saw her leader tumble from the sky.

GIGANTESCO MANO! Cried out a familiar voice as a giant hand grew out of the ground, catching Shadow in its giant palm. Illu breathed a sigh huge sigh of relief as Shadow was lowered to the ground much to Lynx's distaste. As she got ready to shoot at Shadow, six arms grew out of her back and constricted her movements tightly, two of them on he head, poised to snap her neck at any moment.

Seis Fleur! Said the voice again calmly as Masukomi appeared from the ground with her arms crossed before her. Her glasses were off and her hair was let loose flowing behind her. An army of shadow clones were already revealed to be up in the stands ready to handle any more threats while another large group stood behind her, ready to fight.

"I will handle her, you guys get to safety!" commanded Masukomi taking a fighting stance.

"No! Lynx is a part of my guild, she's my responsibility!" argued Shadow attempting to walk up but was blocked by two clones.

"And FFW is MY responsibility." Masukomi spoke in a somber tone. Unconsciously, Shadow flinched a bit. It was still surprising that the Masukomi he knew and the woman standing there, blocking his path are one and the same person.

"I'm sure you can understand why I have to do this. Fights on the battlefield are one thing but when innocents are involved then all bets are off."

A light snicker called the two's attention over to the rebel catgirl. Lynx only gave the hands restraining her a look of amusement, not even a hint of fear at the possibility of demise from the reporter's hands.

"Out of all of the surprises I've had today, I never thought I'd have to deal with a newswoman. First Grim and now this, do you have to get bailed out every time Shads?" Another laugh escaped her as her body trembled from laughter, even under Masukomi's hold. "But Komi of all people; at least I won't run out of playmates at this rate. Ahahahah!"

"Enough of this, players can only be evacuated so quickly. So for their safety, I'll deal with the threat right now." Masukomi said, tightening her hold and cutting off the girl's laugh. However, she still couldn't remove the smug grin from the nekomata's face.

"WAIT!"

Illu quickly handed the two manju's she held into the arms of a Komi clone and ran out of the safe zone and in a burst of speed grasp Masukomi's shoulder, almost breaking her concentration. The startled reporter quickly regained her composure and stared down the owlgirl. The nervous Illu managed to shake off her fear and speak to Masukomi without hesitation.

"Wait…please; you can't do this to Ravena-chan!" Illu try to plead with her.

"And why not? Do you understand how many people your friend has threatened today? Only a second ago; her spell was wreaking havoc in the stands, injuring and killing Players and Admin alike…" Masukomi reminded her.

"That's not Ravena at all! Right now…she's not herself, Felidae-chan, even Felis-san, would never ever do something like this!" Illu continued to try and reason with her friend's captor.

"Illu…" Shadow clutched his weapon hard, his grip tight enough to draw blood. Whether Lynx was a part of Ravena or not, her awakening was his fault, because he lost control all of this happened.

"Just let me talk to her, I'm sure I can reach Ravena-chan!" Illu begged.

"And what makes you think that you can reach her? She doesn't show regard to anyone, friend or foe. In fact, she was close to ending your guild leader's life had I not stepped in." Masukomi said.

"…Please. Give me a chance…" Illu's voice drop, but the urgency was still there. "Give me a chance, to get my friend back."

The field was silent, even Lynx didn't make the usual snarky comment as she stood still after hearing Illu's plea for her. Shadow and Grim were still kept behind Masukomi, not knowing if they should step in or allow Illu the chance. That feeling was shared with Masukomi, who then released Lynx, letting the nekomata fall to her knees.

"Go…before I reconsider."

Grateful for the chance, Illu quickly ran over to her friend. Before she could say anything Lynx spoke with her head still down, eyes hidden behind her hair.

"That was foolish of you. Whatever's going through that birdbrain of yours it isn't going to work."

"Ravena-chan…" Illu slowly got closer to the catgirl.

"I could care less for you or anyone else!"

Illu continued to walk closer and closer. "You forgot…when your move hit Punnya. I saw that look on your face. You were worried for Punnya, your friend." Right now, Illu was on her knees in front of Lynx.

"You say you're the real Ravena, but that doesn't mean Felidae-chan and Felis-san are fakes or gone." The owl hybrid then wrapped her arms around the nekomata. "You can stop this, come back to us Ravena-chan."

"…"

The arena was silent, letting the two girls have their moment. The three behind them were tense but they slowly lowered their guards as the thick tension began to fade from the air. Ravena was silent, Illu's words still playing again through her head. An arm rose up and pulled Illu in a bit closer, causing the girl's eyes to widen in joy.

"Illu…tan…"

Illu smiled in happiness. "Ravena-chan, I knew you wou…"

"You are so stupid."

"Eh?"

*STAB!*

Six eyes widened as the sickening sound deafened the air. Illu's expression changed from happiness to shock. Illu couldn't see it, but she could feel it. The pain dulling all other senses, as her body shut down. She couldn't even scream. From behind, all anyone else could see was Lynx's hand piercing through Illu as blood gushed into the air.

The last Illu could hear was Shadow's voice.

"ILLUUUUUUUUUU!"

To Be Continued

Next Time on FFW:

"Nobody touch them! I've called an ambulance!" commanded Hikari running into the gravity room.

"Kohaku!" "Hang in there!" were the collective voices as the group rushes Illu towards the ER.

...

Shawn punched the wall with such force that his knuckles bled. 'Dammit….this was all my fault….'

"This is only the beginning…." Muttered Hikari as she watches over the unconsious body of an unknown young woman.

-
"It's time to Deal..." mutters Kusanagi with a coy smile on her lips.

...