[SS] To Eden

Like a drop of rain from the clouds.

Something as simple as that could very well distort reality itself.

It happened just this morning.

Something had entered the world and all of a sudden everything had changed.

An unknown entity appearing out of nowhere was all it would take for the frail existence that is reality to break.

No one would feel it, but upon its arrival everything would change. Everything making up the society belonging to the human race.

A man would become a woman. A father was transformed into another’s son. A Japanese twin tail girl could become the president of the United States and a madman his split personality.

There was no boundary. Each and every individual on this world would trade their proper place with that of another. The exterior and interior would switch just so perfectly well. Whoever they were, wherever they were, whatever they did, that great catastrophe would hit them relentlessly.  

There was no escaping. No stopping it. No preventing it. After all, it was entirely unpredictable. Just an event out of nowhere.

That was the great Magic Angel Fall. A spell so absurdly powerful and unseen in this world, that no Magician could have ever imagined it being invoked. No, it wasn’t simply that it hadn’t happened before, its very conception was something each and any expert in the craft would label absolutely unlikely to ever occur. Was there even someone on this Earth capable of executing it in the first place? Just what did it require to master this?

As it had come over everyone and everything some were able to notice.

Some were able to hide behind protection.

A contradiction in the formula?

Hardly.

There existed barriers on this planet that could rival its power. Powerful barriers, on papal level at their weakest. Powerful enough that there was hardly anything that could rival them. They were rare spawns, found in places like the Vatican’s thick unpenetrated walls, the catacombs underneath Saint George’s Cathedral in London or on the inside of Academy City’s Windowless Building. However, even those there were not spared entirely by the Great Magic. While their consciousness would remain clear, enabling them to see the truth, their bodies were still enchanted and thus their roles switched.

In fact, on this world there appeared only two people to be spared from its effect.

One was a spiky haired idiot living an unfortunate life in the capital of science.

The other was the mysterious caster, the culprit behind it all.

The world was in danger. With an Angel’s presence blessing the lands, the potential for disaster appears to be unlimited. No matter where they are, no matter where they would go, it would only remain a matter of time before something would happen. A possibility that in itself is too frightening to accept.

However, hope existed. A straw manifesting in a simple flaw. A flaw so tiny and unimportant it wouldn’t have appeared to anyone right away. Yet that single flaw meant something, did it prevent the spell’s ultimate completion. Until it was found hope would remain.

Therefore, the hunt would begin.

Each and every player in their right mind would send their remaining agents to do the job.

A simple mission in fact.

End the Angel Fall before the world itself would end.

The stage for it was set.

Kwansoji, a city somewhere in South Korea. The spell’s true origin.

Now, may the game for mankind’s hope begin!

June 3rd, 12:59 P.M.

Far away from the Asian capitals of modernisation and technology that South Korea was so famous for there was a traditional, beautiful yet entirely ordinary countryside. Nature was its ruler, tradition its law and a strange tranquility its demeanour. It was nothing out of the usual to say the least.

There was a road in the middle of absolutely nowhere. In bad shape and not really frequented by any kind of vehicle outside of some brave fool driving their scooter.

However, for some reason an old and battered double-decker-bus as only frequented by the thriftiest brand of tourists was driving right there, headed into the very middle of nowhere, or not? While tourism may have in fact grown more versatile, offering experiences outside of the usual scope, by not simply aiming for the most popular spots but granting new perspectives like a deep dive in the sometimes overly boring thrill of the average normal communities and everyday sights of everyday places, this one was clearly not here for this kind of purpose. No, the route it had taken was one only ever used by those that knew exactly what they were doing. After all, it had been the most prominent with smugglers and others carefully aiming to dodge law enforcement.

Ironically the passengers were actually some kind of law enforcement establishment's members.

There were six people boarding that miserable cheap-skate vehicle.

By nature there was the driver, but the other five were different. Different in a sense so simple yet perfectly distanced. They were all Magicians connected to the Anglican Church‘s 0th Parish, Necessarius. Witch Hunters through and through.

What was their purpose in this meagre unsightly piece of land?

You see, the driver – even though he was supposed some overweight nearly bald old guy who looked as though he was trapped between an alcoholic and a severe chain smoker – was replaced by a middle school girl that‘d look more natural in a hoodie with long baggy sleeves instead of the dirty hawaiian shirt she was currently wearing. And all of that was the work of the great Magic called Angel Fall. It had come without warning and exchanged the roles of all of Earth‘s citizens like a large-scale game of musical chairs. A catastrophe no one had realised had occurred. Or rather, nearly no one.

There had been some groups lucky enough to have found a shelter capable of somewhat resisting that catastrophe. This group was among those that were fortunate enough, had all of those been present in the catacombs underneath Saint George‘s Cathedral in London at the time it hit. However, even if they were lucky enough to resist they hadn‘t been spared entirely, had their outward appearances still been exchanged with that of others. As such, on board of this bus there was a battle hardened mercenary bearing the facade of a 1.35m teacher, a self-proclaimed Roman empress posing as a hunt loving pub owner, said pup owner wearing the face of some other person nobody could make a rhyme of and a ponytail butler that was cast into the role of a certain maid that all to joyously would ride on a drum shaped cleaning robot all day. Looking like a parade of clowns to the outside they were unfortunately rather self-aware on the inside.

The annoying tune of an old korean folk song was linger throughout the worn-out bus. The seats‘ leather was damaged, stained and aged, not comfortable and rather smelly. The toilet door was sealed and an «Out of Service» sign the messenger of that disastrous misfortune that was born from the ride going non-stop for bunch of hours.

And yet to make matters worse there was a fifth passenger, isolated on the far back of the upper level, an area that had become an absolute no-go-zone for everyone involved. A curtain had been drawn and all lights turned off. A wall of darkness would remain there guarded by eyes stabbing anyone foolish enough for crossing it to death.

She wouldn‘t tolerate anyone to even take a glance at her. The last person who had – the poor driver, an idiot that had easily chosen the worst possible dialogue options there were – had only been saved from that woman‘s wrath because the others had stepped in, struggling to contain the wildfire sourced in nothing but shame. Such was Kanzaki Kaori, one of this world‘s less than twenty Saints. A woman so powerful that the danger she posed easily rivaled that of a nuclear bomb.

The air was stagnant. The drive long and bumpy. The adventure at this point only a dream. The time of arrival just another unknown value. Were they even moving at all?

And thus the great journey to save the world yet again would commence!

Heinrich stretched out on the bus, silently fuming.  His identity was extremely important to him- he had taken the utmost care to hide it over these past few years, to the point that his current companions only knew him by the code names Epitaph and Gentes.  And now some bastard out there was wearing his face, even if it was unknowingly!  The worst part to Heinrich was that although his transformation magic still worked, the only body he couldn't become was his own!

Heinrich didn't trust this current crew just yet.  He had barely met them when Angel Fall had occurred, and now here he was traveling through Korea with them.  He didn't trust them enough to reveal his true name, nor to let them see his face.  You see, despite the fact that he was in casual dress of khaki pants and a white dress shirt, Heinrich wore one part of his body armor: the face mask.  

Heinrich wasn't sure of what he thought of his companions aside from the fact that he didn't trust them.  The Butler seemed calm and submissive, and Heinrich found him quite agreeable.  The Pub Owner seemed like a fun guy to talk to; Heinrich decided he'd be a great guy to hang out with if he was able to open himself up to this crew.  The Roman Girl annoyed Heinrich; why obsess over a decadent and failed empire, trying to restore it when even the greats such as Charlemagne were unable to?  Heinrich felt somewhat biased as said empire had only brought ruin and suffering to his people.  The one who Heinrich was the least sure about was the Saint, yet he felt a large distaste for her.  What kind of comradery was she fostering, isolating herself and acting better than everyone else?

Heinrich ceased thinking about his comrades or his loss of his face, and returned to the book he was reading.  He had picked up a fascinating biography of the American president Andrew Jackson, a man who Heinrich felt like he could identify with.  Heinrich occasionally lifted his mask slightly to drink water or nibble on a survival ration which he had pulled from storage. Feeling hot, Heinrich made sure no one was nearby before pulling the snakeskin from his pocket and tapping the mask, whispering a short prayer. A shadowy snake appeared from his hand, unhinged its jaw, and swallowed the mask whole. Heinrich checked once again to see that nobody was watching; he didn't want them to see his face, and thought it was a little early to show off too many of his abilities. He curled his thumb and pressed the rune in the ring on his finger, feeling a sharp prick of pain as the needle drew blood. Appearing in his hand was a cloth mask with a smile painted on it. Heinrich repeated the action, and a pair of dark-tinted sunglasses appeared. He put these on, covering his face up once again. Heinrich returned to his reading, shaking his head.  It was going to be a long ride.

The blonde haired man with glasses still in his distinctive bartender clothes was minding his own business. He was sitting at the front on the upper floor on the left near a quiver with a bundle of arrows, some were notably different and his bow; its half golden and silver design was unique and it glistened from the little light found up there. It hung from the seat next to him whose owner was focusing on the notebook in his hand.

Showing no sign of awareness of the figure in the back, it was more because he kept to himself. He knew what the Saint looked like and how dangerous she was so there was no reason or logic to disturb the women who clearly didn't want to be disturbed. So he acted as she wasn't there, but he did mind to open one of the many upper windows near him so the smoke from his occasional cigarette wouldn't become an annoyance.

He had been focusing on his small notebook for some time, writing and even drawing a rough sketch of the Korean peninsula. With his memory, he didn't really need to write things out to remember, but among his numerous memories he often wrote out what seemed more important to him. In this case, he used it for reference since he had no maps and while he saw this country from maps in the past he didn't have time to bring one with him.

However, anything he would create in his notebook wouldn't be sufficient for magical means, but the point was to track roughly where they were while they had traveled. He noted locations they would pass with additional marks to his sketch from memory and what he saw to see exactly where they were going.

He may never forget, but having references often get his mind to arrive at those memories quicker.

And while he studied his notebook; Leon the greekhound companion who came with him on this mission was the best of his pack at tracking and was very aware of even the slightest movement. The hound had been gazing outside for some time clearly curious about these new lands it had never seen. It would take a distinctive and low pitch whistle for Leon to finally move from the seat a few places behind his master. Strolling up towards the front, the hound also hadn't disturbed the Saint having been trained to not be a bother others unless encouraged.

When Leon reached the front, the bartender would take a moment to pet him. Clearly, he cared about his hounds and Leon was no different, since they were basically his partners in the field.

"You OK boy?" Nikolas asked his hound companion and continued to pet him.

Leon is a good boy.

Vita was practically bubbling with excitement. But as with many things in life, such as purchasing birthday presents for your friends or plotting murder, bubbling in excitement was something to be done in private, without making a display of yourself. It was just good manners, and those were something no one could accuse the young empress of lacking.

Even with the world literally ending around her, it seemed good things still happened. Only coincidentally, they had been within the bounds of one of Necessarius' most protected strongholds at the time that the event, 'Angel Fall', had occurred. The world had been normal when they entered, but when they left, it had gone insane around them.

People were not who they should have been. The immediate assumption was that the city had come under attack from some group, but the summons from their superiors quickly put that notion to rest. The event had not only been limited to London. And while the scale was terrifying enough, the implications of the name that it had been given went even beyond that. Angel Fall.

As someone who was once a member of Christianity's largest denomination, she perhaps understood the implications even better than most, though anyone with the slightest knowledge of the occult would know to be afraid. Somewhere in this world was someone who torn an angel down from heaven. A human had accomplished that feat. And somewhere, there too was the angel who had fallen. And she was one of the very few who was expected to deal with them both. Not out of any faith in her ability, but simply because she had been in the right place at the right time. Because there hadn't been anyone else.

Looking at her companions, she saw the consequences of that fact. Necessarius was one of the strongest magical organizations in the world, a preeminent force in the world of the occult, but those few they had been able to gather were haphazard at best. Some random mercenary who didn't care to even show his face and operated under what was obviously an alias. Nikolas Remes, a man whom she would never have worked with again, if not present circumstances. Neither of them brought any sort of calm to her heart when thinking of the task that laid ahead of them. Neither were auspicious partners in the slightest.

Thankfully, the other two presented better tidings. Dewain Luxovius she had only interacted with sparsely in the past, and they had only even met quite recently, but he came off as both amenable and capable, traits sorely lacking in the rest of the group. And for the last of the group, though her impression of their personality was still...pending, given the events with the driver, their presence was a source of great relief. Kanzaki Kaori, one of the world's less than twenty Saints. If you searched the entire world, you would find few personages who Vita would be as glad to have along as her.

But even that was hardly enough to dispel the pressure that weighed upon her chest. So it hardly posed any surprise what welcome news any good news at all was. It had only been coincidence; the five of them had needed to confirm exactly what roles Angel Fall had attempted to force upon. The others had all been strangers, people none of them had ever seen or heard of, but Vita alone was different.

She had taken the appearance of none other than Nikolas Remes, the object of her ire himself.

Stress needed an outlet. And from the start, after the events in that inn, including but not limited to how he had attempted—and would have succeeded, if not for Saravati—to drug her in her sleep, she had fully intended to enact a reprisal. It was only a matter of securing the right opportunity to do so. So when granted such a perfect chance, who wouldn't take it?

Even regarding their current status as partners, well... It wasn't as if their relationship could get any worse than it already was. Poison was poison no matter how you drank it.

That was why she had taken the opportunity, before the rest of the group had boarded the bus when they were performing various last-minute preparations, to chat up the driver. Despite their current appearance, she could tell from their disposition that they were anything but the young girl they appeared to be. She hadn't had any intentions beyond that. But in the process, she had accidentally noticed something very, very interesting. And the time to bring it up was now.

As for why now and not before, well... In the end it all came down to simple boredom, no? The time was ripe.

"So which one of you clogged the toilet?"

She didn't speak with any particular accusation in her tone. By all appearances, it was a simple, honest inquiry for no purpose other than curiosity. Without malice. ...But for a ride as long as this one, the presence of a toilet was a heavy one. It would've been fine if there had been none, but for there to be one, yet have it be inoperable... It was as if it was taunting them.

"While the rest of you were packing up and finalizing your preparations, the truth is I came here to look around the bus before we all left. And at that time... The toilet was still operational," she explained.

"After that, I rejoined the rest of you until we all left, just as you remember. But as you all know, what we found when we actually departed was... This," she said, gesturing at the blocked off stall. "I found the chance to ask the driver about it, and he said that someone did come through after I left, but as he was trying to get a short nap in before departure, he missed who it actually was."

Technically speaking, that was a quite a concern from a security perspective, but having spoken to the driver herself, well, Vita was under no illusions that he was nearly quite so dedicated to his job. Her fellows had likely noticed this as well; in the first place, it was likely a part of the reason why he had been willing to ferry a group so small and odd such as them to such a far-off and remote location in the first place. But that was of little actual concern.

They had security measures of their own. And that meant...

"So it could only have been one of us," she asserted. And unless some passerby magician had just happened to decide to leave a ruinous dump in their toilet, there was little other real possibility. "So could the culprit please raise their hand and admit to the crime?"

Part of Vita's motive was the chance to possibly pin the crime on Nikolas, indeed. She didn't know who actually did it (it certainly wasn't her), but if they didn't fess up, then everyone would certainly still be looking for someone to blame. But also, when it came down to it, Vita was an empress and not an idol. She too had certain business she needed to attend to, whether you called it picking flowers or anything else.

She smiled and spoke politely as she asked her question, but make no mistake.

This was no polite inquiry, but an inquisition.

The bus was rather uncomfortable to say the least. A double decker tour bus wasn't exactly what might expect when it came to long distance travel. Not to mention there was only one bathroom, no refreshments other than lukewarm bottled water, and maybe provided pack of trail mix. Mediocre conditions for a mediocre tour.

It was most bothersome for a particularly sharply dressed man with a long pony tail.

'This is awful..truly truly awful.'

The people of the Anglican Church, those tasked to deal with the potentially world threatening disturbance, the people who he dare say were his compatriots. They were all tired and bored. It was a butler's worst nightmare. A guest's unhappiness. Not only was everyone so bored and uninterested at the surrounding scenery, but the bus was so low tier, it felt like an insult to Dewain personally.

Or perhaps this was a trial of Danu, to see to it that his service goes unhindered, even in the most bleakest of environments. Dewain had filled a rather large duffle bag with assorted items that is meant for magic. Even back up materials for the rest of the magicians just in case they misplaced their belongings.

What Dewain however did not forsee, was this situation. He would of brought a tea set and even use some of his magic to brew everyone something relaxing to drink. To calm the nerves. But what an amateur mistake he made! Despite being considered top of his class, there was still so much to improve on, being an agent of Necessarius truly challenges his profession.

"So which one of you clogged the toilet?"

"....?!?!"

Sitting a few seats in front of him a small blonde girl, who he recalled was Vita Vesta Caesar, said something rather out of the blue, with a horrifying lack of alarm in her tone. Someone had clogged the only lavatory in this horrid vehicle.

"While the rest of you were packing up and finalizing your preparations, the truth is I came here to look around the bus before we all left. And at that time... The toilet was still operational. After that, I rejoined the rest of you until we all left, just as you remember. But as you all know, what we found when we actually departed was... This... I found the chance to ask the driver about it, and he said that someone did come through after I left, but as he was trying to get a short nap in before departure, he missed who it actually was."

The toilet was out of order. How could this have happened? Worst of all, it could of been one of the guests, who rudely decided not to report this to him immediately. Then again everyone barely knows him, which might be his own fault for not giving higher quality service. Afterall, he has already remembered everyone's name by heart at this point.

"No no no! This won't do, this won't do at all." Dewain said, putting away a small book he used to past the time up until this point, putting away his glasses and reaching into his vest pocket, pulling out a pair of pure white gloves and began putting them on. His foot stepped confidently out into the aisle, stepped back toward the end of the bus with a glint in his eyes that could easily be mistaken for murderous intent. "Do not worry, Miss Caeser. I'll handle this...No fair lady should ever have to deal with such awful conditions."

A fight was about to begin. He'll be dead before he leaves this bus without making sure the bathroom was perfectly fit and clean for use.

It wouldn't take long for him to get through the door, despite it having an out of order sign and slamming it shut behind him, with a series of noises sounding off inside. The atmoshpere quickly went from it's over the top seriousness, back to it's mundane sense of false mystery.

Annoyed, Heinrich put down his book and rose. He considered it to be somewhat a non-issue, and figured it would get cleaned up rather soon. But the others were making an issue of it, and therefore he needed to join in, even if it was just to regain a sense of peace and quiet on the rickety old bus.

"Do not worry, Miss Caeser. I'll handle this...No fair lady should ever have to deal with such awful conditions." Heinrich looked up and saw the butler pull on a pair of gloves before disappearing into the bathroom. Heinrich's eyes widened with disgust as he realized the butler had no tools to clean with, just the gloves. He slowly walked to the bathroom door, and then pressed in on his ring. Being the sort of man who's always prepared, a plunger appearing in his hand. He wordlessly flung the door open and threw the plunger at the butler before slamming the door shut and walking back to his seat, shaking his head and muttering to himself "Filthy Animal."

As Heinrich sat down, his mind began to wander the old days, before he had gotten involved with the mess that was magic. The fighting had been bloody, but it was easy. Everything made sense, and he was still a scientific person. He thought to even earlier years. "I wonder what Mother would think of me now? The son of a renowned physicist, banned from partaking in the sciences, utilizing the occult. Would she have been ashamed?"

Just then, Heinrich remembered something relevant to the current situation. He had seen both the Pub Owner and the Saint go into the bathroom before the bus had left. Which one of them had caused this predicament?

The reason to be on the second floor was an obvious one as it provided a higher view of the surroundings as they passed. Though there was possibly a nibbly sense he came up here to avoid questions about the disaster that occurred below. However, since they had started traveling he had forgotten to mention about the whole thing and would only be reminded by a young girl's loud question.

"So which one of you clogged the toilet?"

Nikolas' eyebrows had raised upon hearing this though he seemed to be focused on his small book. He was writing down coordinates and directions, though this wasn't needed for his own personal use. There would probably be a time the others would need to find their way around and he intends to prepare at least something. He valued preparation before any mission, though this time he was given barely any.

"While the rest of you were packing up and finalizing your preparations, the truth is I came here to look around the bus before we all left. And at that time... the girl known as Vita would continue talking below and while Nikolas was still listening he wasn't reacting having thought it was best to finish what he started before he would respond. Leon though sat there beside his master with a curious expression, turning his head every time the girl below had continued and back to his master. He was a very smart hound and understood the bad habits his owner had which could be a testament to their bond and so thought he required a simple nudge.

Leon had achieved this having push against Nikolas' knee with his paw. This small nudge and its meaning were clear to Nikolas since he also understands the behavior and nature of his hounds.

He sighed as he turned stiffly towards Leon.

"Seriously?" He asked towards Leon who only seemed to brush his knee again.

"Alright." He says once more after seeing his companion's insistence and would pet him once more before placing his notebook on the chair beside him and the pencil he used was slotted through the coil binding which held it together. He stood up with some reluctance as Leon went on to guide him toward the stairs. He would make his way down at the right moment to witness one certain individual flung a plunger into the bathroom.

Standing there at the bottom of the stairs he would study everyone's expression and actions trying to get a grasp of the situation. He wouldn't individually focus on anyone and noticed that it was the butler who had decided to plunge into the bathroom to do what was necessary.

He felt a little guilty; Nikolas can't forget anything though even he had can get distracted by busy work and trying to prepare a semblance of understanding about where they were going had consumed his attention.

In hindsight that sounded like an excuse.  

He would unbutton his sleaves in a methodical manner and roll them up before he verbally responded to Vita's question.

"Sorry, that was me." he spoke holding his right hand up and gave a nervous laugh, though it was genuine he clearly felt awkward for anyone to admit to that disaster. However, Nikolas was the sort of guy who owned up to his mistakes though it seems he lacked the ability to go through cleaning up his own mess.

And that's the reason why he rolled his sleeves up. The bartender would now proceed with doing just that or offer assistance to the butler who decided to take the plunge quite literally.

Deciding that the reason for his absent-minded mistake was simply an excuse.

As he can only imagine what the butler saw when he opened those doors.

It was a scene of bodily waste that had exploded across the very bathroom, it was even dripping from the very walls. Nikolas had remembered the pain he felt and the worry that came with it as he would describe it like shooting lava right out of his anus. He had vividly recalled the amount of loo roll he had used leaving the cardboard cores scattered across the floors and claw marks he left towards the cupboard which they had originally laid.  

Only one loo roll with a decent amount of tissue had remained from a pack of twenty.

There was possibly even some blood on the floor, but Nikolas quickly moved on from that as it occurred to him he at least tried to clean up.

Though he literally raged quit the moment the toilet brush got stuck in the loo which should be now still there. Remembering all this he would walk over towards the bathroom before anyone could respond and opened the door to take a peek into the room. He had noticed immediately there was a pair of socks covered in shit that he doesn't recall and left him with his own questions.

But with a further nervous smile, he would offer his assistance to help the butler with the cleanup and then briefly turn towards the others.

"How about I cover any lodging expenses we may occur on this mission?" Nikolas said offering a token gesture to make up for this mistake. This may not be enough for certain people, but it was an honest start.

He would turn back towards the butler in the bathroom before mentioning under his breath.

"That would be first and last time I try food from Taco Bell."

What Dewain Luxovious encountered in this tight cabin had been far more than just a toilet ruined by humanity’s worst. No, it was far worse than any of that. The air was stagnant, something evil was luring therein. However, a stuffed toilet would be nothing in the face of a butler as skilled as him. An elite like that would have to fear little in the face of this terrific encounter. His talents and experience were simply that great. Or weren’t they?

He had been working and working. The toilet brush had been used like a holy sword meant to gut the vicious dragon, but no matter how many times the process would be repeated there was no end in sight. No matter how often he would flush. No matter how often he would pour the cleaners in there. Everything was to no avail. No effect was accomplished. What was this?

Failure.

It had taken over, becoming the ruler of all of his actions. No matter what he did. No matter how hard he tried doing it. No matter whatever happened. The result was always the same. Failure followed up by failure. It was an unending process unending repetition. And yet he couldn’t stop was he himself driven by some sort of desire, drawing him in each and every time he would let off. It was only his internal drive guiding him to action, yet not his rationale. In fact, he wouldn’t even realise it entirely, but his rationale had been locked away entirely. Sealed away behind the unending desire, drawing him towards the hole that was utter failure.

And as he would continue and continue and continue, caught in that unending loop the scenery of the old and ragged cabin would surround him like a temple of madness. There had been drawings everywhere, both painted by pencils or pens and carved with knives. All of them had the appeal of any vagabond teenager’s mischievous creativity, were they both abstract and vulgar. Yet at the same time there was some odd sense of order to them. A rose with seven petals. Seven times the number seven. Seven round circles drawn in green. Seven blue things reminiscent of birds drawn as nothing more than two lines to show their wings. Seven. Seven. Seven. Seven. Seven. Seven. Seven. Always seven of everything, somehow, somewhere.

«Netzach and the four sevens of the Minor Arcana.»

The voice announcing the new discovery belonged to the same person that had just so easily forced her way towards the door of the toilet cabin: A tall woman with long hair tied to a pony tail, wearing a white t-shirt tied to a knot at the bottom, revealing her belly button, and jeans with one leg cut off right at the upper limit of the thigh in combination with a gun holster carrying a Japanese sword of two metres length – at least that’s what her true appearance was. Her name was Kanzaki Kaori and she was in fact the final member of the company riding on this bus.

«This cabin was transformed into a temple of both desire and failure. No matter who enters it, once the door is closed shut behind them they will automatically consumed by unending desire, yet no matter what they do, they will not cease failing.»

She spoke in cold precision, revealing the true nature of that stuffed toilet and the cabin surrounding it. A spell, the work of nothing else than magic. Magic someone had taken the liberty to prepare, possibly way before they even had arrived. By nature, none of them had been able to discover the trap, as it had used their natural urges against them, as proven by the case of Nikolas who had to let it all out and then found himself unable to clean the mess properly, resulting in the first catastrophe, and Dewain who was now in an unending struggle against the stuffed abyss. It was cruel, yet perfectly effective, after all whatever they did or would do, the toilet would remain perfectly sealed unless fully destroyed, was the temple’s foundation just too perfectly crafted.

But what gain would one have from simply blocking something as puny was a toilet cabin?

The relaxing silence of the bus ride was all of a sudden interrupted by a disturbing sound emerging from the bus’s engines, followed up by an abrupt shaking. Then, all signs of motion would disappear. The bus had stopped right in its tracks.

Nikolas turned his head slightly towards the Saint who had spoken without warning, he studied her as she spoke about the mystery behind the toilet cabin. What she revealed was of interest to Nikolas, though the end result had left him feeling frustrated. He would be willing to admit that he wasn't the most versed in what this actually means.

Taking a look at the tarot symbols, making a mental note of their design inside the toilet cabin had only confirmed what he had thought.

Golden-style magic.

It was a complex magic, using Hermeticism and Kabbalah in its foundations which were something he would need to study further to even begin to properly understand. He had come to this conclusion because he once read that Netzach is the right foot in the Tree of Life, its opposing side was Hod who was the left foot and so on. There was hope he could have a point to start from to actually begin understanding the meanings as the Golden-style magic had incorporated elements of Greek mythology and that was his expertise.

He was going to respond to Kanzaki Kaori, though that was denied with the sudden interruption in their journey. It sounded like a mechanical failure as the engines had died and the bus immediately came to a halt. He hated coincidences as much as he hated anything to do with the Golden Dawn. And this sudden stop had some awfully good timing.

"Driver? What happened?" Nikolas asked the instinctive question and took a stroll towards the front as he past Leon he would give the simple hand gesture indicating for Leon to stay put. Leon responded by keeping his head down below one of the many chairs inside the bus, though you can see he was still paying attention with his ears remaining perked.

Nikolas having asked the question made his way to the front to get a sense of the situation with own eyes, looking for anything strange or out of order.

Dewain Luxovious was not aware of the trap he had entered. Or perhaps the saint outside have mistaken his unordinary personality of being the best butler, as a magical trap as no man was sane enough to enter such a toxic environment willingly. The merciless battle with the toilet went inefficiently, and even Dewain Luxovious realized that the tools he had were not working. It was either whatever was provided by the magician earlier was of poor quality, in which he questioned his intelligence, or person who went last was quite an irresponsible person.

"Oh dear this is quite worrying..."

Dewain was perfectly unaware of the trap before him, and didn't realize no matter what he did the toilet would remain unclean. While his ultimate desire was to clean the toilet, and he still wished to, but thinking about alternative ways to deal with the situation, it became clear that this toilet and the feces inside were an unstoppable evil.

How could he clean something that wouldn't be cleaned? Complete of task never meant to be finished? This was clearly a trial of Danu, as there was a solution that was there to make sure no one came to the bathroom and deal with the mess, never having to smell the devilish odor, that to Dewain was nothing that grotesque as he fertilizes plants often, and it didn't personally bother him. That is when he got the idea. "Balance is necessary...What I want is obviously important, but I often have to do stuff I don't want to do on a regular basis...Necessarius...Necessary Evil...Hmmm..."

Dewain only found one option that was certain was going to ruin his record as S-Tier butler, but it was for the greater good. Going against his unending desire with unending loyalty to his Goddess and her teachings, creating a bit of a hybrid of desire and resistance. With a long deep breath, Dewain let out a sigh as his body began to glow a red outline, the mistletoe toe in his pony tail faintly glowing.

"O màthair de bheatha uile, thoir dhomh an teine ​​a thòisicheas ùr." The Butler brought his fist back, and with a single punch, attempted to destroy the demon in front of him, attempting to break the plastic toilet. Regardless if it actually broke into pieces or not, the bus would visibly shake slightly from the attempt.

Heinrich sat in his seat, trying to rest when the bus suddenly lurched to a halt.  The Saint had gone into the bathroom saying something about some ritual trap or another, news of which shocked Heinrich.  He had checked the bus before the trip started for all manners of traps ranging from the magical to decidedly scientific ones such as explosives.  He had given it the all clear, yet somehow this trap had slipped past him.  He had failed.  He had failed to protect his comrades.  Even if he didn't know or fully trust them, they were still his comrades.  And he had failed them.

Heinrich began to tear up.  He had failed them, and now the Butler had ended up in a shitty situation.  His thoughts turned dark for a moment: what was even the point of being here if he was just going to let everyone down?  He contemplated retrieving his bayonet before grabbing his hand and covering the ring.  "Not yet.  Not like this.  Not the easy way.  You need to suffer. You can't be a coward." he whispered to himself.  Heinrich stood up and banished the thought from his mind.  He would not fail again.  He would redeem himself and protect the others.

Heinrich took a look at what he was wearing; the shirt and pants were crumpled, the gloves faded, the sunglasses dirty, and the bandanna was almost untied.  "How long was I asleep?"  Changing would have to come later; they were in danger.  He pressed in on the ring twice and the arrow and bayonet appeared in his hands.  Heinrich readied himself for any sign of trouble, and stifling his displeasure for her, walked to the bathroom to ask the Saint a question.  "Do you have any idea who could have done this? I swear it wasn't here when we left, but I could've missed it.

Kanzaki Kaori bit her lip at the sight of that small cabin and her comrade who had been drawn into that vicious cycle of a curse. Even upon repeating her analysis of the entire situation in her head, she couldn’t quite figure out or understand how exactly it had slipped their mind in the first place. Then again, she hadn’t been the one to check through the bus, had she relied on the others’ actions too much. And even if, what had been done in here had been done too perfectly. Even an expert Magician could be fooled into just shrugging it off as random graffiti over anything threatening.

«It’s not your fault. Whoever did this was a professional at hiding trickery like this in plain sight.»

The sword maiden was convinced that none of them could be blamed for any of this. It could have been set up by anyone. Possibly previous passengers even. A mischievous joke or cruel intention?

The latter however, appeared to be the single right suspicion was the timing of the bus’s engine dying just too perfect. Immediately her state became even more alert, would she ignore the butler’s intention of freeing himself from his fate, turning towards the front of the bus instead.


«Mwahawhawhawhaaaaaah»

The driver’s voice would echo throughout the interior of the vehicle. That girl who would just so perfectly fit into a pullover or hoodie with floppy sleeves but was actually a burnt out chain-smoking middle-aged man was currently standing on top of the driver’s seat, holding what seemed to be a crowbar above her head, swinging back and striking. She swung and struck again. And again. And again. Her cause was destruction, her demeanour that of a maniac.

«Bfahahauahuahaufffbaaaaakrkrmrkrmrkrmrmk»

What left her mouth was neither word nor laughter. There was not even a hint of sanity in any of what she was doing. Her eyes were spinning, her motions unnatural and her intentions stupefied.

She had gone crazy entirely.

And the source of it all could be found in an item dropped onto the floor right next to her. Old yellowed and wrinkled paper. Lots of it, folded to somehow fit into a pocket. A map, back from the olden days. Or at least it should have been. What it was, however, was better left unexplored. To say the least, however, it was just like that hellish graffiti. A catalyst of madness hidden in the oh so ordinary.


The dashboard was beyond saving, the engine had died and the driver had become a lost cause. Could it get any way worse than that?

With a bang so loud it would hurt their ears, the butler’s fist would place the cherry on top of the cake. Guided by madness’s effect he would not just crush the loo, but everything beyond in tandem. Now, instead of just a stuffed toilet the bus would bear a neat big hole and a new wall paint…


They had been deceived, outplayed and stopped right in their tracks. The bus had been transformed into useless waste, with all of its important assets having been ruined within moments. And to top it all off, they had no idea where they had been right now, had their sole guide in this unknown territory become this mindless figure.

«This isn’t over yet.»

No, if at all, this was the beginning of something else. Kanzaki immediately tensed up, as she watched the spectacle of the havoc wreaking figure. Whoever had been behind this surely had something more for them planned. After all, something like this wouldn’t suffice an elite group like theirs.

But first things first.

«We need to save her!»

When Nikolas approached the driver he didn't expect that sort of response. He had to stand back for a moment when the craziness started to happen. He was honestly bewildered, anyone would for something like that to occur suddenly without any real warning.

"Good god, it's like Mania's curse." Nikolas said to reference the goddess of madness and insanity in Greek mythology. But he couldn't just remain there and do nothing. He had figured this was no coincidence, there timing was far too close and perfect for this not to be connected to what was in the bathroom. In there what caused the problem was the graffiti, something that seemed so harmless it was considered a problem or a threat.

As Kanzaki put it, it was in plain sight.

The question was what? It had to be something new since the effect has only occurred. Compared to the toilet incident, the effect was immediate and unnoticeable once you entered the bathroom. So the question for Nikolas was what actually seemed out of place this time?

Effortlessly this didn't take too long, Nikolas had recalled the moment they originally entered the bus with the driver in the seat and every other moment his eyes were drawn to the front of the bus. The one thing that was different compared to every other time was the old and yellow wrinkled paper on the floor.

And it was in plain sight.

There was no need to waste any further time and he darted forward, remembering exactly where the emergency door control was he pressed the open button as he passed it. The door should open despite the damage to the dashboard, being emergency controls it was separate from it and besides the bus doors were never actually locked. They're normally kept closed due to air pressure once moving, so even if the power was gone from the bus, the bartender could easily pull them open like a normal door.

His plan was to simply remove the offending cause away from the driver, and though he can't be certain the Bartender had confidence that this seemingly harmless object was the cause. There was also the danger he could also be affected by the madness, but in his experience, it wouldn't be new to him.

Nikolas had already thought it through.

Had the worse happened, and he was afflicted by the madness it wouldn't be a serious issue. Not only was he unarmed, but he was very easy to restrain compared to some others. This was unlike the driver who was swinging a crowbar around like it was nothing and there was a chance it could remove the curse from her once he interferes with the cause.

So while he did hesitate at first, the bartender would reach for the yellow wrinkled paper, making sure he had his gloves on beforehand and planned to throw it through the door.

If the door had remained closed he would force it through anyway.

The question would be was the bartender right? And would the madness effect him?

With a plastic click, the deed was done.

She'd heard Nikolas' admission of guilt and offer of recompense, but she gave no reply. She was not simply ignoring the man; certainly, the appeal of free lodging was one that was close to her heart indeed. Normally, images of five star hotels and suites and penthouses would float through her mind (though tempered somewhat by the now somewhat disappointing remoteness of their destination), among various other plans.

Now, however? Her eyes and the whole of her attention had been absorbed by the disaster that had once been worthy of being called a bathroom, but was no longer. She had seen messes and disgusting sights before, but the pure human revulsion of this one was unmatched and she was thus fixated, forgetting even to consider vomiting.

Almost unbidden, her hand had wandered into her bag and removed a camera. It was a cheap, plastic disposable one, which needed its film to be developed to be of any use. Hardly the pinnacle of human technology, but it served her purposes. She directed its lens towards the sight, and just as the butler thrust his arm shoulder-deep into the cesspool of human feces, blood, and filth, she took the picture out of what must have been sheer force of habit, or else some morbid fascination.

But with the plastic click and the overlapping impact of the butler's mighty thrust (plunging into depths that she felt were certain to soil his soul beyond all hope of recovery, with the fate of his clothes not needing to be spoken of), the deed was done, and she was snapped out of her stupor.

She had not been the victim of any type of spell, as per Dewain or the bus driver. No. Her heart had simply been filled with equal parts worry and awe that such a thing could be produced from a human body...

"Well, it does at least mean we're on the right track."

Focusing on work was the better option. Magically-induced insanity and vehicular sabotage, she could deal with—far better than she could the complex feelings welling up in her heart towards the two men who had taken center stage in the drama of the defiled lavatory.

Personally, she thought it most merciful to just bury Dewain here and go on their way.

"If they've set up this welcome party for us, that means what we're doing is bad for them. And therefore, good for us. Let's deal with this quickly and get on the road."

She followed up behind Nikolas, taking a grape from her bag as she went. Normally saving the bus driver would have been rather low on her list of priorities, but since the Saint had already said as much, she may as well go ahead and do it.

"Do ut des: Vulcanus."

With those words the grape in her hand burned to nothing, and gaining the forge god's blessing, she entered within range of the crowbar without fear. Power adjusted so as not to kill, the instant the madman's assault turned her way, she would blow him away and disable him with a burst of exploding flame.

At the same time, she prepared the spell for a different, more subtle application. Fire was the traditional tool used for consecrating grounds of the forge god's worship, blowing away any malignant spirits infesting the area. It would have the same effect upon the madness that had overcome the bus driver, literally burning it away... And if necessary, Nikolas and the yellowed map too.

It would be a shame to lose a clue such as that, but if they couldn't even pick it up without succumbing to the effects, it was better to destroy it and whatever spells it was fueling. As such, she kept a sharper eye on the bartender than the bus driver. If it seemed that he was falling prey to the spell as well, well, he'd find little trouble finding his way off the bus.

If there is a God, how can there be evil?

The duality of the universe itself.

The Tree of Life and the Tree of Death.

Sephirot and Qlipoth.

Light and darkness.

Even if only by accident, that short peek Nikolas Remes took at the cursed map was enough to unleash its terror upon him. The drawings hidden in its design were impossible to understand by ordinary human means. Even worse for one who was noz given the time to process them all. Actually, it may have been his fortune, was only the path set, but not a single thing set in motion.

But the pathway was enough, did it require for his entire foundation to be shaken.

The damage had been dealt.

The duality between two sides of the same coin had infected his mind, throwing into disarray everything and all he had known. Such had happened to the driver before him. Such was the foundation of something worse. The condition required for madness to invade one’s mind.

Yet before any of that could follow, the map was ignited and burst into flames.

Still.

Something was no longer correct. Or rather, to him it wasn’t. He didn’t quite understand and he possibly would never. But that was just proof that the infection had befallen him. As such he no longer was the same Nikolas Remes as before. No, something had been changed. Something had been shattered. Something that could very well be treated as the foundation of his existence as a Magician. The very baseline of everything he did and could do.

His system of belief had been overthrown, torn apart, ravaged, ruined.

And gone with it was his most basic: The ability to use any and all of his well-honed Magic.


Kanzaki Kaori’s eyes widened as the driver who was just about to hammer down her crowbar was hit by a sudden explosion, too weak to kill, but powerful enough to launch her straight through the nearby windshield. It had happened too fast and gone entirely unlike the wish she had just spoken out.

«What are you doing?! You idiot!»

This wasn’t going to save them. No, it would only add more to the harm dealt.

But she wouldn’t allow for any of that any longer.

Mustering speed unlike any other she’d charge forward, right after the poor victim of both madness and violence. Even as the limp body was flying through the air, it was easily overtaken by the charge of one of the less than 20 Saints. She’d catch the frail girl (who was still actually a middle-aged man with terrible body-mass-index) mid-air long before both of them would hit the ground. Yet unlike any expectations, her landing after the catch was both graceful and soft, not suiting circumstances at all.

And even then, she could not smile in contempt, was the sight of the driver still the same horrendous spectacle it had previously been, were their eyes still spinning and the limbs bringers of mindless violence.

She was lost in her mania, flailing her floppy-sleeves-less arms left and right in attempts to harm anything and all that had come close to her or even herself. However, caught in that Saint’s herculean grip there was none of that to be accomplished. All threats – both to others and herself – had been contained within the former priestess’s arms.

However, the real threat still remained.

Kanzaki’s eyes remained fixed on the bus she had just emerged. A flame was lingering within, destroying another tool of the evil that had befallen it. But was it the end? Or just one of many traps set up therein. She could only guess. Attempting to find out the truth, however, only meant more harm. Therefore, only one logical conclusion to keep everyone protected was to be drawn..

«Everyone get off the bus!!!»

She’d shout using the full volume of her lungs. Then, only holding the poor driver with her left, she’d draw her sword with the right.

«Nanasen!»

The next instance the bus was struck by those infamous seven wires, tearing through all of its compounds like a knife through butter. No space was spared. All was sliced. The entire bus was split, not simply into its compounds, but neatly cut into bite-size pieces like cabbage by a Japanese chef.

"Oh dear...I might of gone a little too far."

With a noticeable sweat, the butler stood on the edge of the bus, having made a giant hole where the toilet used to be. In fact that entire wall was blown off by his punch that. He wouldn't really notice the trap had disarmed, and his desire to clean had went back to normal levels, mainly because he didn't even notice the trap in the first place.

Though Dewain did notice a commotion going on inside the bus, turning around with a somewhat puzzled look as he removed his gloves and tossed them away, replacing them with new pure white gloves as he tried the door, realising it was still suspiciously locked and jammed.

"Well that's peculiar...Hm..The bus isn't moving either. Maybe I startled the bus driver and made them pass out?! Oh no no no! I couldn't even properly clean the toilet and now I've harmed one of the driver!!!"

However, the Celtic warrior would soon realise that the issue was far more dire than before, as he head the voice of a saint cry out in panic, a simple order.

«Everyone get off the bus!!!»

Dewain's eye furrowed, not even hesitating for a moment as he swiftly turned around from the door, jumping out the hole of the what used to be the bathroom, chanting in gaelic as he called upon the Earth Mother to grant him the strength he needed. Using that strength he pushed off the but with ease, flying a good distance, before flipping over onto his heels, and sliding in the dirt as he watched the carnage that unfolded.

Despite the chaos of recent events, Heinrich remained composed- he had been in tougher spots before. What concerned him was protecting the others on the bus. Holding the snakeskin, he touched his belongings, uttering "Lord of music and magic, heed my cry!" as a snake appeared and swallowed the objects. Hearing the Saint shout at everyone to get off the bus, Heinrich began to move down the aisle. He had seen the commotion earlier, and as he passed by the Roman he paused for a moment. He put his hand on her shoulder and quietly, yet assertively stated "It isn't the wisest idea to harm your allies." Saying this, Heinrich began walking again until he reached the ruined front of the bus, at which point he hopped off.

As Heinrich stepped away from the bus, it appeared to cease to exist. The Saint had carved it up, and only ruins remained. Heinrich smiled, as he hadn't been a fan of someone else driving him anyway. He tossed down a piece of paper that had a rune of Veles carved into it, and pressed the ring on his finger. As he did this, an old beat up army truck appeared, the back covered with a canvas. Heinrich walked to it and happily ran his hand along the side as he walked to the driver's door. He'd had this truck since he first learned magic, and it was the one comrade who never failed to come back. He got in and put the keys in, revving up the engine. He honked the horn and shouted to the others "What are you waiting for? Get in, we've got somewhere to be! If someone's watching us, we're really not in a good place to challenge them. Let's go!"

He may never find words to recount what had happened in that moment and he may never even understand it. However, something had changed which not only shook his core, but had shattered it to a point he could no longer recognise what was broken or just lost.

He wouldn’t have much time to think about it anyway...

..FWWOOM!

Fire would consume him from behind and the bartender was sent flying from the bus and crashed into the grass outside. It would take a moment for him to regain a sense of his surroundings as the bartender though in pain would struggle to push himself up. His clothes was singed and he was a tad muddy from the landing let alone feeling bruised all over. His glasses had seemed to be missing, but a moment searching with his hands would quickly find that slightly broken lenses.

It was the right one which had a crack and this entire thing would result in an array of expressions he would not take any effort to hide.

It was a mix of frustration and anger which then turned to confusion.  

He actually didn’t know what to feel as he had felt he had left something behind in those flames. Though maybe it was his ignorance of what had occurred or just the bond he shared with his hounds that his mind assumed the obvious answer.  

“Leon!?” Nikolas had shouted in concern as he abruptly turned back towards the bus. “Leon! Where are you?” He shouted with a sense of panic as he watched the others abandon the bus and was about to step forward only to abruptly stop as the missing hound followed the tallest man from the bus.

It had something in his mouth.

It was Nikolas’ bow which he had been left behind, not really expecting to be blown from the bus or for everyone to abandon it. The bartender actually felt annoyed with the hound when he approached with the item. The bow was something that can be remade and even though it would be expensive it was nothing compared to Leon’s safety.

”Leon!” Nikolas said with a sense of disapproval, though that was quickly overshadowed with his relief that the hound was alright. He would reach out to pet him and then take the bow before swinging it the weapon over his shoulder. He would pet Leon once more to ensure the hound was alright, before turning towards the tall man who was shouting from an army.. truck?

What are you waiting for?  Get in, we've got somewhere to be! If someone's watching us, we're really not in a good place to challenge them.  Let's go!"

"Where did that come from? Nikolas said feeling confused he understood that they shouldn't remain here and would head towards the truck with his faithful hound. He was entirely sure who threw those flames having his mind preoccupied and that it came from behind. He was certain that he felt angry about what had happened, that attack was reckless and no concern for the driver's safety the least his own.

However, the sense of relief from having assumed what he felt was lost had been found in the form of Leon was only his mind fooling him in light of his ignorance of what actually happened at that moment. Making his way to that truck with Leon, the bartender's mind had thought was it also his arrows? or the book he made to document the journey?

That feeling had clouded his mind and consumed his thoughts.

Not yet aware what he truly lost.

Immediately following Kanzaki's warning, Vita lightly stepped down the stairs and onto solid ground, tracing the path that Nikolas flown over just moments before on foot. Among her companions, two had vacated the vehicle by means of flame-assisted flight, two had leaped from it with superhuman strength, and the only one besides her to leave normally was the mercenary.

She heard his words, but did not immediately respond. She glanced towards both Nikolas and the driver, and confirming their safety, satisfied herself that her decision was sound. And she'd confirmed more than their safety in the process.

Following the mercenary's prompting, she entered the new vehicle (mentally noting the usefulness of a spell that can bring out a car on demand), and it was only then that she finally spoke.

"Vulcan's flames don't just possess the heat of the forge, they have the properties of purging impurities and foreign elements as well. If that was just a normal curse, then that should've been enough to purge it, but given the driver's condition that doesn't seem to be the case."

The saint had called her an idiot and the mercenary had rebuked her, but when faced with an unknown enemy any bit of information was pivotally important. And besides—she knew how to control her strength. It had been far from an act of wanton violence.

"Nikolas, Dewain, how are your conditions? And Nikolas, the map—did you get a look at it?"

The effects of the spell had continued for the driver, but what about the other two? They had also come into contact with the enemy's magic, and while Nikolas seemed calm, Vita wasn't sure if Dewain would soon try rushing back to the toilet or not.

And as for the second question, Vita was familiar with Nikolas' memory. If he'd gotten even a passing glance at the map, he might have gleaned some sort of useful information from it. And as before, gathering information was more important than anything else right now.

...Except for maybe one thing.

Though with a slightly hesitant look, Vita nonetheless raised one of her hands towards the butler in a gesture that indicated a desire for him to come no closer.

"Also... Dewain. Please walk."

The reason was simple.

"You stink."

Kanzaki Kaori was the last to enter the vehicle, the former bus’s driver still trapped in her grasp as powerful as a roller coaster’s safety bar, still flailing their arms in despair, yet only for just a moment longer. Suddenly, all power would leave the insane girl that was actually an old overweight men, as her eyes fell shut. Stunned like that she would remain in the ponytail priestess’s hold. The origin, however, was not quite as harmful as some sort of menacing spell, consisting of nothing but a simple rune she had traced on her bare neck using her finger.

Still, being incapacitated didn’t mean they were safe.

«We need to save her.»

She would repeat her earlier statement to underline the situation’s urgency.

«Whatever this spell is, it seems to be using imagery related to the Thoth Tarot and the Tree of Life to invoke an alteration in the victim’s perception of the world itself. It’s like presenting someone a deck of cards to encourage their belief, just on a wholly different level. Just looking at the complexity of the foundation of what we have found in that cabin, it’s easy to see that the degree of work invested into building the symbolism is beyond simple practice, up to a point where the mechanism is like an overly complicated jigsaw puzzle itself.»

Simply sitting by idly and hugging the poor innocent girl would not solve the problem. Instead, the Saint determined that addressing the actual matter would help them move directly to the core of the issue. Furthermore, it should have been common knowledge among all Magicians that any and all spells could be broken only once true understanding of their baselines was reached.

«Not to forget…we can’t be sure that the two of you are secure just yet, Dewain, Nikolas.»

Carrying visible signs of worry in her voice, Kanzaki would support the concerns for her allies Vita had just raised.

«Gentes, get us somewhere safe for now.»

The terrain was entirely unknown to them. The only reason they had been able to travel until now, was the support of the driver who was a fairly knowledgeable local. However, now that she was out of the picture – as well as the map – they were basically lost somewhere in the Southern Korean wilderness. However, the mercenary’s skills in handling this kind of situation should be sufficiently reliable.

Heinrich looked back through the wire lattice separating the cab of the truck from the passengers just in time to hear the Saint.  She was sitting on the benches in the back with the Bartender and his dog, the bus driver sprawled out on the bench opposite of them.  The Roman had climbed into the passenger seat next to Heinrich.  
"Saint, I'm gonna get us out of here for now, but after that you're gonna have to direct me to wherever the hell we have to go."
Saying this, he pressed his foot to the gas and sped off, leaving the ruined bus in his wake.  He kept glancing in the mirrors to check for pursuers, yet saw none.  Feeling cautious, he took a hand off the wheel and pressed in on the ring, a sheathed knife and arrow appearing in his hand.  He slipped sheath onto the belt loop of his pants and stashed the arrow in the driver side door.  He then thought of his oath to his mentor, and steeling himself, pressed in on the ring.  A pistol and clip of ammunition appeared in the hand, and slipping the bandanna down momentarily, held the clip with his mouth to load the pistol before stashing it too in the door.  

He glanced his eyes to the mirror, staring at the passengers in the back before saying Any new information on where to go?
There's flasks of water and protein bars in a lock box under one of the benches, as well as a first aid kit you can use for the driver.  Be careful not to jostle though, there's many more boxes filled with live munitions."

He then turned to the Roman and stated "The radio on this old thing is shot to hell, but it still gets a few stations.  You can put some music on if you wish."

Heinrich kept driving, constantly checking behind.  He had let someone slip a trap onto that bus, and the responsibility now fell solely on him to make sure nothing else happened to his companions.  He began to feel a small headache, and was about to ask for an aspirin from the back when suddenly his temple filled with a searing pain, a voice filling his mind.

Heinrich, talk to them.  Trust them.  Don't shoulder this all on your own.  If you don't work well with them, I'll take control.  I'll share our secret.

Heinrich rushed his hand to his temple, as if he were attempting to rub the pain away.  He suddenly shouted out loud, screaming for the world to hear.
 "SHUT UP! Stop talking. Shut up Steven.  Please stop talking. Its not your turn.  We have boundaries.  Its not your turn."