RPG

It was a little agonizing to see The Count order his body around like a slave. Controlling it like a puppet, it was sickening. But Raseri couldn't do much. He was locked deep in the confinements of his remaining free will and consciousness. In a mental location that the mysterious gentleman could never reach even with all of his might. Walking around what his mind represented as a vast forest, the fierce Nordic Tiger walked through the forest, causing the leaves and bushes to rustle. "I wonder why my consciousness looks like a forest anyway", Raseri wondered as he walked and walked. However, before reaching any destination that would bring him closer to freeing himself from The Count's control, the Ultimate Fighting God watched the mysterious gentleman order his body to head over to the location of his comrades and teammates: The Ebisu Headquarters. "F*ck", Raseri murmured, snapping a tree in half with a jab of frustration. Fortunately however, his teammates should already know that something is wrong with him, they should already be informed that he was under the mental control of an evil force, the necklace that he entrusted to Harumi should be glowing red and speaking to her. He was however, a little relieved since he had been preparing for this kind of situation for a while now. He had awarded his most trusted teammates and friends with important items that would allow them to fight him in case he is controlled, unfortunately, if it goes too far, that may not be enough. But perhaps there is still hope. There is something that they have that he has yet to fully recognize due to focusing on other things.  
 
The Fighting Guru's body was quick to dash over to the Ebisu headquarters. Silently walking into his team's headquarters, Raseri was visibly different. His eyes were completely white and devoid of pupils and irises. There was clearly something wrong with him. And even if The Count had ordered him to act normally, he should have perhaps thought of that before he virtually completely took over the mighty demigod's mind. He was under The Count's control and therefore he could not act like himself just as The Count had ordered. His remaining consciousness that is locked even from The Count's reach was the only source of his true personality. The moment that he walked into the living room, the Son of Asgard spoke in a calm yet unusually sophisticated manner. "Hello comrades. How is everyone doing? I am doing quite well", the mind controlled Raseri said with a calm polite smile. Back in his mind, Raseri was pounding his fists against the ground in anger. "Damn it!", he shouted. "Now they're all in danger. I better head out quick", he said just above a whisper. Dashing through the forest, Raseri remembered what his now fallen evil counterpart had told him before. Dark Raseri told him that he would have to face and defeat his personal weaknesses in order to escape. But what did that exactly mean? Raseri didn't have many. However, a bombshell was dropped as he found a tall bald man with tribal tattoos on his back, standing just outside the forest. He looked very familiar. Calmly approaching the man, Raseri asked, "Do I know you?". Who turned around to talk to him was a person that he did not expect to meet ever since a tragic incident. 
 
Turning around with a saddened facial expression, the bald muscular man, just about Raseri's size, spoke. "Of course you do", the man answered. "Krig!", Raseri gasped. But of course, it wasn't really Krig. This was merely a figment of Raseri's imagination, a manifestation of his survivor's guilt over refusing to work with his now deceased friend to launch a historic invasion. These actions resulted in the death of his once best friend. Something that till this day, the Messiah of Fighting deeply regrets. "What the hell are you doing here?", a surprised Raseri asked, a little confused but also happy to see his close friend again. "Why else would I be here? I would still be alive if you hadn't abandoned me. And I thought you were my friend", Krig answered, sorrowful but somewhat angry. "I wasn't thinking straight man. I'm really sorry for what I did. It was selfish and stupid. I really miss you dude", Raseri said, gently placing his hand on his friend's shoulder. "Sorry won't bring me back. But I don't think that's what you really want to talk about is it? Let's talk about what has really been troubling you", Krig replied, seriousness radiating from his face. "I know that you regret my death. And if you could, you'd bring me back somehow. Everybody regrets, but you didn't act like a true friend during the invasion plan", Krig continued. "I can't hold myself all the time. After what had happened, you really think I was gonna be all chummy with you man? Don't take it the wrong way. I'm really sorry", Raseri replied, a single tear of sadness running down his face.  
 
Losing a friend can hurt even the toughest of people. "I know you're sorry", Krig said with a brief smile, placing his hand on Raseri's shoulder. "But this isn't what you need to talk about is it? Let's talk about...", suddenly, Krig changed form and his consciousness now presented a familiar woman before him. A woman who has caused him great pain in the past. "Let's talk about me", Morka said with a sly smirk. "It's your fault that Krig is gone. If you weren't such snake, maybe he'd still be with us", the Mathematician of Combat said boldly as he began walking away from Morka who ran after him. "Come on Ras! You know what you want to tell me!", she shouted. "You know what you're trying to forget! But it won't work!", Morka shouted angrily. It was almost as if his consciousness was pushing him to fight and defeat his pain. "You can fight giant monsters and gods and you beat them, but when it comes to things that you can't defeat with your fists, you ignore. Well you can't ignore me here! I can come to you whenever I want", Morka pointed out, showing some realism. This was clearly the realist in Raseri speaking to him through Morka's form. With a frustrated sigh, Raseri turned to face Morka, "Fine! Let's talk! Let's talk about the f*cken problem!", Raseri shouted angrily as he began radiating a violent flame-like aura of kinetic energy that generated explosive waves. "So what's your problem with me!? You can't walk away from a problem!", Morka responded boldly. Calming down a little, Raseri took a seat on a small rock and began to speak.  
 
With a saddened facial expression, Raseri looked at Morka who had now taken the form of Krig once again. "She just walked away.. why didn't she tell me?", he said. It pained him to talk about this situation. "And I thought to myself.. 'This isn't happening to me'.. but it was. She didn't say a word, not a single breath. She just walked away", Raseri said with sorrow, pulling his hair back as he sighed. Krig taking the form of Morka, silently listened. "It was painful. You were my first love. You were the first one to lie between us", Raseri said. Turning to look at Morka who had changed to Krig again, Raseri spoke, "Krig... she was my first love. She was the first to leave. And when she left me.. for you.. I was the last to know... why man? Why didn't she tell me?", Raseri said, a tear dropping. "And all of this cost you, your life", he said. With an expression of regret, Krig replied, "Forgive me Raseri", he said. "It wasn't your fault. My death wasn't your fault. It was my fault. I was stupid. I embraced Morka's advances when I knew that you were with her. I should have done what was right. Done what a friend would have", Krig said. But he was only met with silence.  
 
Soon Morka appeared beside Krig. "I'm sorry Raseri", her words however, enraged Raseri. Suddenly, the ground began to shake violently as the sky darkened. Raseri's eyes were glowing as he got off the rock and stood to his full height, facing both Morka and Krig. His anger was peaking. "I'll be the first to say that for the first time, I'm fine without you two. Krig.. I can't forgive you for what you did. But if you were still alive then maybe things would have been different. But I can't let other people I care about die because of me. I will protect everyone with my life. I told you when I found out about you and Morka that you would regret it". Turning to Morka in anger, Raseri shouted, "But you.. I'll never forgive! You were my worst love! And I'm glad that I let you go! You were the absolute worst!", Raseri shouted, shaking the ground with his rage. Turning to face Krig, tears ran down his face. But anger soon evaporated them. "Krig, she was worst love! And I wanted to tell you way back, but you didn't listen! So I'll tell you now. She was my worst love! She'll use you! And when she leaves you for dead, you'll be the last to know", the Nordic Tiger said, his anger fading. 
 
After so many years of keeping it all inside, Raseri finally released his anger and frustration about his past. It hurt him deeply but it was now all over. There are many solutions on how to deal with such anger. You can bottle it up forever and let it devour you from the inside, you can unleash it on those responsible or you can just let it go. In this case, Raseri did a little of the last two. For so long he was trying to forget and ignore the pain, but now he's done the right thing. He was moving on from it. He no longer held any guilt or pain. Minutes past after Raseri's words, Morka and Krig disintegrated into sand as a voice told Raseri that he had broken yet another mental barrier and had moved on from a personal weakness. But the voice told him that there were still others that he had to deal with, other more difficult ones. With a calm demeanor, Raseri nodded his head, "I know what I have to do". However, far away from his mind was the real world where his body had entered the Ebisu HQ where all of his companions were located at, perhaps expecting to do battle with the mind controlled Raseri. 

Everybody knew something was wrong. The necklace around Harumi's neck was glowing unnaturally and Raseri hadn't been seen for days. That was until he marched into Ebisu acting strange. Harumi stood up, her face straight and unreadable, despite the lack of thick make-up. With her casual grace, Harumi marched down the stairs from her room towards the main hall where Raseri stood. The light of the necklace nearly shone through her blue kimono it was so bright. Harumi felt uncomfortable, as if she was meeting Raseri for the first time in a dark alley. She stood at the top of the stairs and stared down at Raseri with her two cold and calculating brown eyes. "Hello Raseri." She stated, deliberately not using her endearing nickname 'Rasi-Chan'. "You've been gone for a while. Where were you?" Harumi asked, one hand held the banister while the other rested on a kunai knife concealed in the taiko knot on the back of her obi (kimono sash). Harumi wasn't convinced that she needed to use the knife, but yet again she was trained to be prepared. Harumi also didn't think that she could stand a chance against Raseri, which was why her mind was focused on the necklace.
 
"Nobody knew where you were. Next time you should leave some information with me. I'll not have my team members going missing. It's bad for business." Harumi stated, trying to act like nothing was wrong, trying to put up an act to spare her time. She needed her team mates, and she needed time to think. But she also needed answers. What was up?

Never in his life Calis had used a weapon so well balanced or crafted as the Gull Blade gifted to him by Raseri in Asgard. The Knight fought in hundred of battles, using thousands of different weapons. His hands remembered each blade and hilt he used, wooden, metallic bone, crystal, any kind of material, a infinity of scars and calluses, the product of years of training, suffering, effort, sweat and blood. Wounds so deep that were carved in the Warrior soul and mind. Each swing, impact and slashes written in blood on his muscles. Callis followed a standard form of swordsmanship, human-like, similar to this world fencing, as he used the sword given to him by Raseri. After the training in Asgard he thought it over and over and decided never to leave the sword alone, as his friend, the Nordic Tiger granted him this power, as sword capable of even hurting a god, as a show of trust and friendship. Losing the sword or letting it end on the wrong hands woud be not only a disgrace for the world, but it would also mean that Callis failed to his friend, unable to fufill the task he was given, or protect the responsability he had to carry. With determination reflexed in his eyes, the Knight ended the form, a throust, and cut, a block then a spin and an attack with the guard of the hilt. He was still getting used to his new body, and he had trashed the training room severa times in the attempts to control them, and thankfully after several tries he managed to take hold of his new skills and put them to good use. The only problem he is training left was meeting the rest of the group, as most of the others members in Ebisu didnt knew about his change of body. Unluckly they would get to know it in the worst way possible. 
 
The Maestus Knight sensed the scent of hostility inside the Ebisu HQ, and a faint diabolical prescence. Callis sheated the blade and placed it in the harness in his back and dashed towards the living room, where he found Raseri talking to Harumi. From his point of view Callis didnt saw the glowing necklace, thus he didnt thought that anything bad happened. With extreme diplomacy, Callis cleared his throat to get their attention, hoping that he didnt ruin a private moment, since he previously decided to step away and leave Raseri and Harumi be, ignoring his own feelings about the Geisha.  Hhrug... Sorry to interrupt, but I think there is something wrong lurking the Headquarters, I can feel it in my nose. The Knight advanced as he talked, hoping that Raseri talked to Harumi about his changes in Asgard, but as he got besides Ebisu leader he discovered the glowing necklace. The Knight looked at Harumi with evident terror and said, Harumi, get behind me, I think Raseri's worst nightmare got real said the Knight as he unsheated Mundicelox, standing in guard.

What would the ruthless Nordic Tiger face next in the plains of his hidden consciousness? It is certainly something that will surprise him, but it is something that he is aware of. However, far from the deep corners of his remaining independent mind, Raseri's body was confronted by Ebisu's leader, Harumi. The geisha was quite cold towards the mind controlled behemoth, a clear sign that she knew something was wrong. "Hello Raseri", she said, seriously in a calm yet straight tone. Upon hearing Harumi's voice ride all the way into his consciousness, Raseri while walking along what seemed to be an endless beach was surprised that Harumi was the first person to confront his mind controlled self. He was hoping that the first person would at least be Callis who possessed the Gull Blade, an indestructible sword powerful enough to strip even fully fledged gods of their life. "Oh sh*t", Raseri thought, dropping to his knees on the sandy beach. He was certain that The Count would not hesitate to unleash his body's full power and eradicate his team leader. "I have to be quick", Raseri murmured, getting to his feet, quickly dashing off in search of more personal weaknesses and fears to defeat. His determination was now even stronger than before. He was watching his most horrible fear come to life. "I can't let anything happen to her. She's too dear to me. If he does anything to hurt her..", Raseri thought, running as fast as he can. But even god-like speeds wouldn't help him reach his fears and weaknesses in an instant, he had no control in his consciousness, his consciousness had control of him. It was almost painful to think of what would become of his closest friends after The Count decides to strike. 
 
Back in the Ebisu HQ, outside of Raseri's mind, the mind controlled Son of Thunder responded to the geisha's greeting with a smile, "Hello Harumi. It's a pleasant day wouldn't you say?", Raseri said, taking a step on the stairs. Harumi was quick to get to the point. "You were gone for a while. Where were you?", she asked, secretly maintaining her guard. "I was in Asgard", Raseri's answer was simple and straight to the point. "I was training with Thor", he added, almost mechanically, hardly without emotion. "Nobody knew where you were. Next time you should leave some information with me. I'll not have my team members going missing. It's bad for business", Harumi replied casually. "Don't worry. I won't make that mistake next time", Raseri said, removing his hand from his pocket. Back in his mind, Raseri continued to run intensely. "Why doesn't she just remove my powers with the necklace? It'll save everyone", Raseri asked himself, wondering why Harumi didn't instantly resort to using the necklace to remove his powers. Perhaps she had another plan in mind that would allow Raseri to retain his powers and his freedom. "But removing them won't completely save them. Kinetiske Stil will still be there, and so will the pressure points. The Fist of Life is even worse", Raseri thought, sweat dripping from his forehead as he worried. But almost as if his luck was taking a turn for the better, Callis had arrived. It was both good and bad. It was good because Callis had the Gull Blade with him and could fight Raseri with it, but it is bad because now both of his closest friends are in danger of facing death. "Hhrug... Sorry to interrupt, but I think there is something wrong lurking the Headquarters, I can feel it in my nose", the Knight said.  
 
His words almost shocked Raseri who soon turned to face Callis with his white eyes and a smile, "Don't worry Cal. I would feel something too with my energy sensing powers. But I haven't felt a thing", Raseri chuckled calmly. However, as the Knight moved closer to Harumi, he discovered the glowing necklace and his expression said it all. It was one of terror. "Harumi, get behind me, I think Raseri's worst nightmare got real", Callis said, unsheathing his sword as he stood in front of the geisha, taking a defensive stance. Calmly taking two steps up the stairs towards his two teammates, Raseri held his smile and replied, "Now now, nothing is wrong. I am perfectly fine. I assure you Callis, my worst nightmare will never be real", Raseri said. The Ultimate Fighting God continued, "As long as I have friends like you, my nightmare is but a nightmare". Raseri didn't expect them to believe his words and just in case, he took a secret defensive stance but not one of his legendary three martial arts, it was different. Deep in his mind, Raseri felt that The Count would use Raseri's abilities differently without as much precision and technique, he would discard the Son of Thunder's combat mastery and focus on his overwhelming destructive power. "Damn it Cal! Why doesn't he just gut me with the Gull Blade?", the Fighting Guru thought, continuing his journey along the endless beach. "He's a good friend but he's gotta think of the team now and not me", the Nordic Tiger thought. His fast run across the beach however, was stopped as a powerful telekinetic force blasted him off his feet and onto the ground. Coughing a little as he got to his feet, Raseri spotted a tall shadowy muscular figure standing meters away from him. "What the hell was that for?!", the King of Fists asked boldly as he walked towards the mysterious figure. What he stood in front of however, surprised him. He spotted a taller, more muscular, slightly older bearded version of himself in heavy royal Asgardian armor, holding a flaming axe.  
 
This unknown version of himself was even more intimidating than his current version. This Raseri had a flowing red cape on his back. It was very odd seeing his own self dressed this way. The Greatest always refused to wear his Asgardian attire unless going to war. Yet this version of himself wore the armor with pride. His hair was a little longer than Raseri's and his beard was quite impressive. But what was most striking about this mysterious version of himself was that his eyes were glowing blue, that only occurs when Raseri is using his Halv-Gud which is triggered on its own. "Who are you?", Raseri asked without fear, approaching his larger self. In a composed but regal and serious tone, the unknown version answered, "Me? I am God Raseri", an answer that brought shock to the eyes of the Son of Asgard as he was rendered speechless. 

Emerald walked down a street, humming to herself with a big smile on her face and a worrying number of bags in her hand. It had been a good day. First, she delivered some packages (She was the only one that did it in Ebisu! Or at least it seemed so!), then she had gone shopping with the money she made with the deliveries. She had a lot of fun, she bought presents for everyone in Ebisu , and for herself too. A set of combs for Raseri (He looked kind of obsessed with his hair those days) although he hadn't shown up in Ebisu for some days, a cute blue dress for Harumi (That girl was always with those unconfortable japanese clothes that Emerald hated) and a shinny solver bracelet for Dahlia. For Callis, she couldn't resist and bought him a little whistling toy mouse she saw in a store. Then she saw "Ninja Attack 3", a cheap action movie, and she laughed her brains out.  After a day like that, how couldn't she be happy? 
 
The Tarot Seeker finnaly reached Ebisu Head Quarters. Her smile got bigger as she reached the door. "I want to give them my happiness, so they can feel as good as me!" she thought, opening the door. "Hi guys! Are you ready for some Em.. Bitchnuggets!." Emerald wasn't expecting the scene that was happening inside the room. Harumi and Callis, who was menacingly weilding a sword, stood in front of Raseri, that looked as normal as ever. At the same time Emerald entered the room, Dahlia appeared in it too and suddenly runned towards the muscled titan. Emerald, despite the shock, act quickly. She dropped the bags and reached for the Tarot Deck in her pockets. With a shriek of desperation because the lack of time, Emerald threw the entire deck to the air and pronounced the incantation as fast as he could. "Come, possesion of the merchants, Power of the Earth! Three of Pentacles"  Between the rain of cards, one shown briefly and then three giant golden pentacles appeared in the air. Fast as lightning, one of the summoned pentacles shrunk and blocked Dahlia uppercut. Meanwhile, the other two got bigger and pushed Harumi, Callis and Dahlia to a side of the room and Raseri to the other and they stayed there, acting as a barrier between them. Emerald walked to the middle, with both her arms stretched, aiming at the Pentacles. "Stop it guys!" She said with a mix of anger and surprise, her head turning to stare at Raseri and the others. "Can someone explain me what the hell is going on?"  She took a deep breath and before anyone could say anything, she continued. "One at a time! Raseri, you first! The rest of you, be quiet!"  She turned her head back to Raseri, pushing the barriers a little more further, so that they couldn't break it.

The situation had just taken a turn for the worst. Dahlia made her entrance into the tense confrontation between Harumi, Callis and Raseri. At first it seemed as though she unlike both Callis and Harumi, had no idea of what had happened to the Nordic Tiger. But soon, almost as if she had peaked into his mind, Dahlia's fist was balled up and without a word, she lunged at him, on the verge of delivering a powerful uppercut. Raseri himself was unaware at what would happen next, all he could think of was that the three people that he cared about the most were in mortal danger. "Dahlia's the only one going for the hit.. but what if she gets hurt?", Raseri worried since Dahlia was closest to him, second only to Harumi, the center of his heart. What if The Count decided to begin attacking now? Now that his teammates were ready to combat him. But almost as if luck was on his side, Emerald had arrived to temporarily halt the brief scuffle. Walking into the area with her usual cheerful demeanor shining through her face, Emerald was surprised at what she saw. "Hi guys! Are you ready for some Em.. Bitchnuggets!.", she said, desperately searching for her Tarot Cards. With a quick summon, she used some pentacles to block Dahlia's strike. In the meantime, the other two grew larger and separated everyone. "Goddammit! Em and Dahlia shouldn't be there, only Callis and Harumi have the keys to kill me", Raseri thought, disappointed. But at the same time, it was a relief since Emerald was preventing a battle. Walking over to the center, Emerald urged her teammates to stop fighting. "Can someone explain me what the hell is going on?", she was clearly confused, the only one of them that didn't know that something was wrong. "One at a time! Raseri, you first! The rest of you, be quiet!", Emerald demanded, turning to face her teammate.

It was then that The Count had issued another mental order. He made it clear that he wanted Raseri to act normal and claim that his teammates had attacked him for no valid reason and continue to state that he is unbeatable. "Well Emerald, let me just say that I am not sure why they attacked me. They did it without reason", Raseri said, calmly turning to look at Emerald. His eyes still devoid of pupils and irises, the look in his eyes could paralyze ordinary people with fear. It wasn't a look that Raseri ever had in his eyes, it was The Count's look. "I am unbeatable, I do not know why they attacked", Raseri said at The Count's orders. However, The Count's choice of words would give away his secret, perhaps even to Emerald who is usually oblivious to these things. Raseri never refers to himself as unbeatable outside of a fighting ring, his immense self-assurance and brimming confidence is shown only in battle, especially during fighting tournaments. He has never spoken to his teammates in such a way, it was definitely something odd. However, because of The Count's choice of actions, Raseri himself while trapped in his own consciousness was glad. He was glad that The Count decided not to have him attack his teammates, this way he was hurting his own plans by giving his teammates more time to plan and use the Gull Blade and the necklace and at the same time, they were unharmed. "That was pretty close. I've gotta thank The Count for this one. For makin' these kinds of mistakes. Harumi's smart, she'll think of something, as long as that vamp gives them more time", Raseri thought. However, there was still the task of freeing himself from The Count's control by defeating his hidden fears and inner demons. And at the moment, he was facing a particularly special one, a fear that he was never aware of, but one that most certainly existed.

"So you call yourself God Raseri huh?", the Ultimate Fighting God asked, still a little surprised from this mysterious new version of himself's declaration. "Lemme ask you, why do you.. I mean I call myself that? I never wanted to be a god, ever", mighty Raseri asked, curious as he stood face to face with a taller, armed, more divine, more muscular, bearded, armored version of himself. "I am what you do not want to become. What you could become", God Raseri replied, seriously, not taking his glowing intense eyes off of his more humane self. "What?", Raseri was surprised at what he was hearing. "You treasure your humanity more than your divinity. You choose not to embrace your godliness because you do not want to turn into a god. You reject Odin every time he offers to grant you full godhood. You interact with humans more than the gods, you spend more time in the mortal world than in the realm of the gods, even more so.. you have fallen for the mortal woman that leads your so called team", God Raseri said, visibly disgusted. "I was never scared of becoming a god, I fear nothing. I just don't want all of that. I never wanted to be a god", the Fighting Guru replied. "No.. you fear this. You are scared of turning into me. Embrace your power and you one day will! And in order to ensure that I will exist, I must kill you.. I must kill my humanity", God Raseri announced, the outward flailing aura of lightning around him growing wilder. "No..", Raseri said just above a whisper. "I can't let this happen. I can't abandon my friends and the world. My teammates, all of them.. Callis, Dahlia.. and especially Harumi, I'll never abandon them", The Greatest replied, taking a The Nor Way fighting stance. God Raseri in turn, took an unknown stance with a tight grip on his flaming ax.

Callis was surprised over Dahlia sudden entrance, and he was starting to get worried, as Raseri wasnt talking as usual. The Nordic Tiger always called him Cal and not Callis, but he wasnt fast enough to alert the Tatoo Warrior, that tried to use her powers on Raseri, power unknown to the Beast Knight, as most of the time he was in the same room as Dahlia he either fainted or was already fainter, or sometimes he even gave a excuse to leave so he wouldnt show his chronic shyness. Callis was in fact very scared of dominant women, more than more quiet and pleasent women, so Emerald and Dahlia, that always exteriorized their thoughts and emotions scared the Knight out of his wits, since they reseembled the Princess of Via, the woman Callis once served as bodyguard and butler, working under horrible conditions to fullfill the spoiled princess bizarre and sometine contradictory commands. He thought a lot of times about just snapping her neck, but he knew that as a Knight his job was to close his mouth and obey orders. The only time he tried to oppose he was locked in the castle dungeon and tortured for weeks, the princess even went down to whip him herself, while laughing madly. That's when Callis chronic fear and shyness over women started. Now this fear was the only thing that stopped him from giving Dahlia a proper warning as she was about to do something really dangerous, she was trying to attack the World Greatest Unnarmed fighter with an uppercut.

Callis stuttered a warning and tried to stop her, but he was too worried that if he moved he would leave Harumi unprotected. His legs didnt moved, and his mouth could muster a word, but thankfully Emerald entered the room, and using her card of Pentacles she blocked Dahlia attack, and separated the room into two parts, leaving Emerald and Raseri in one side and Harumi, Dahlia and Callis in the other side. The Blonde Tarot Warrior asked Raseri what was happening, and the, seemingly, mind controlled Demi-god repplied with lies, blaming Harumi and Callis as if they attacked him. The Beast Knight decided to act fast and gave Mundicelox to Harumi while whispering, Messa Sayuri, once again trying to gain some emotional distance from the beautiful leader of Ebisu, keep this it'll protect you of any magical attack if you block it using the blade, Callis then talked to the blade itself, Gigas protect her, and I'll dispell the blade, so you can move on to the afterworld, The Knight offered the Spirit of the Swordmaster a gift he was thinking to give, Callis would break the contract tying both of them to the blade and leave him free, while the sword losed all it's magical properties. Callis was fond of Gigas company, and he apreciated how many times the blade saved his life, but he was too kind to keep using knowing that he was keeping the Saevus Swordmaster trapped inside. M-messa Magenta, I t-trust you w-with Messa Sayuri life, I'll try to reason with him, whipered Callis as well, asking Dahlia's help while trying not to stutter too much.

Callis unsheated the Gull Blade, and slashed the pentacles twice, opening a perfect triangular space to walk throught, and without stopping he rushed throught and tried to attack Raseri in the arm, to get his attention, while running to place himself between the Nordic Tiger and Emerald. Messa Flamefate! Raseri isnt himself, he is being controlled by somebody or something, Messa Sayuri can inform you of that! Callis spoke to her for a moment and then turned his head to face Raseri, Come on, Ras! Snap out of it! I dont want to use this! The Maestus Knight took a orthodox fencing style and tried not to shiver in front of the most powerfu fighter in the world. Callis really didnt want to use the sword, but he was scared of not finding another way to win

While Callis was essentially telling Harumi to stand back. Harumi obliged and took the sword Callis offered, Gigas. Harumi refused to fight Raseri. He was far to strong. But Harumi would not be useless. She took the necklace off and held it in her hand. From the top of the stairs, Harumi stood, holding the necklace in one had, and a kunai knife in the other. I will be strong. I will make the right decision. His powers are in the palm of my hand. I mustn't take them away if the time is not right. Be smart. She told herself. Harumi wouldn't be able to look Raseri in the face if she misused the power Raseri had given her.
 
Harumi's plan was to watch the situation with diligence. At the first sign of Raseri fighting back, she would press the necklace to her lips and irradiate his powers. "Raseri..." Harumi called from the top of the stairs.  "If you're in there, and if you can hear me, come back. That's an order. But also, I'm sorry, if it comes to the point where I must take away your powers. But I will also maintain my promise." Harumi stated. "Callis, as soon as he makes a move, I order you to stand down and back. That goes for you too Emerald, and Dahlia. I will not have my subordinates harmed. You are all not to harm Raseri, and I do not wish for you to be harmed. As your leader, it is my responsibility to keep you all safe." Harumi's face was straight and cold-- an unreadable poker face.
 

The taxi stopped near the Kiyoto base of Ebisu. A young man stepped out of the yellow car. He was wearing a long brown overcoat and were carrying a small suitcase. "That would be 1300 Yen." The taxi driver stated the faring fee. The youth paid him and thanked for the drive. The boy took a deep look on the Ebisu HQ in the distance. He let out a sigh. "I'm back." The red-haired boy said. Daisuke was still reluctant to add the "home" tag to it. Yes, from then on he is going to live here, with the Ebisu. He had traveled back to London to arrange his transfer. The process was tiring and took an entire week to finish. Surprisingly, the Association was completely lenient on Daisuke. The problem was someone else. Rin. Convincing her was like fighting a war of attrition. She was fairly suspicious of the Ebisu and feared that Daisuke might end up being used by them. No matter what did Daisuke said, her opinion didn't change. Perhaps after seeing the boy's solid determination, which didn't die out after 6 days, even Rin had no choice but to allow Daisuke to leave.

So Daisuke got back to Kyoto. He promised Rin to call her every week. Daisuke knew that Rin was just worrying about him. His choice was sudden and reckless. Still, he believed he won't regret to join Ebisu. Daisuke went up on the hill which led to Ebisu's main building. He was excited to meet Callis and everyone else. The boy knew that his instructor had been training with Raseri. He also heard that Callis became much stronger. That made Daisuke very happy. His instructor was similar to the red-haired boy. They both sought power. Not the kind of strength you can show off. Callis and Daisuke probably never thought they were superior just because of their abilities. Their way of fighting lacked any sense of pride. Instead, their power existed to serve others. In Daisuke's case to protect people's happiness. In case of Callis it might be something else. It didn't matter. The fact remained that the two of them were strangely similar.

After a long walk Daisuke finally reached the front door of Ebisu HQ. Strangely, no one came to greet him. (Hm, maybe they forgot my phone call.) Daisuke shrugged and entered the main hall. He found many familiar faces, Callis, Raseri, Emerald. There was also a girl he hadn't met yet. "Hi...!" Daisuke waved but his smile suddenly froze. He sensed a strange aura of enmity. There was a strange silence like Daisuke were experiencing a scene on the battlefield. "Raseri..."If you're in there, and if you can hear me, come back. That's an order. But also, I'm sorry, if it comes to the point where I must take away your powers. But I will also maintain my promise." Said another familiar voice from the stairs. It was Harumi, the leader of Ebisu. Daisuke had only met her once but she appeared to be a kind person. In comparison her voice sounded cold. For some reason Daisuke guessed she must be holding back her emotions. "Callis, as soon as he makes a move, I order you to stand down and back. That goes for you too Emerald, and Dahlia. I will not have my subordinates harmed. You are all not to harm Raseri, and I do not wish for you to be harmed. As your leader, it is my responsibility to keep you all safe." Harumi ordered her teammates. Since Daisuke was outside her view, she probably didn't notice him yet. The red-haired boy was very confused. "Hey, what's going on here?" He stepped forward and asked Harumi, still being unaware the current situation of Ebisu.

It was quite painful watching his friends plead for him to try and break free of The Count's mental control. At this very moment however, Raseri was feeling a little disappointed in himself. "How could I let this happen..", the undefeated fighter asked himself, his facial expression showing slight shame and disappointment as he was trapped in the small corners of his consciousness, nearly helpless as he watched his friends confront his mind controlled self. He was so scared for their safety that he almost forgot about the tasks that he was to face in order to gain freedom. Soon however, Harumi took a more militaristic stance. Ebisu's leader spoke in a particularly cold and straightforward tone as she ordered Raseri to attempt to break free of The Count's control. Hearing Harumi's voice ring in his ears made him clench his fist tightly. "I can't let this happen!", he shouted, using what little willpower he had left to temporarily regain control of himself, but it was only for a mere second. For a single second, Raseri's eyes changed back to normal and his expression showcased his humanity, "Harumi!", Raseri shouted, but it soon faded away as The Count's overwhelming mental power tightened it's grip and Raseri ultimately lost control, his eyes becoming devoid of pupils and irises once again. "Damn.. almost", the Nordic Tiger thought. "Isn't there anything I can do?", he wondered, almost forgetting that he was currently face to face with God Raseri. The geisha was quick to order Ebisu members to refrain from fighting Raseri, was she ready to use the necklace? Raseri hoped so. But the situation soon took a turn for the worst. One of Ebisu's newest and youngest members walked into the tense area. It was Daisuke. The Ultimate Fighting God himself has never truly met the boy but he seemed like a gentle spirit, almost like Callis. And though there was no friendship between them yet, Raseri respected him as a teammate despite the large age difference between them. "Oh man.. the kid is here. How many people are gonna get in this? Only Harumi and Cal must be there to stop me", Raseri murmured as he soon screamed in frustration and anger.

But suddenly, in a heartbeat, God Raseri reminded Raseri that the two of them are to face each other in battle to determine who will become the dominant aspect of his personality. "Do not turn your back on me! I am a god! Did you forget that we are to do battle with each other?", God Raseri shouted, swinging his flaming ax, instantly generating countless colossal slashes of divine fire. Turning back to face one of his fears, the fierce Nordic Tiger held a calm but serious facial expression, different from his easygoing and laid-back expression. "Tilstand av Brann!", Raseri shouted, covering himself in his mystical flames as he thrust his palm forward, generating an enormous stream of fire that quickly engulfed the divine fire slashes launched by God Raseri. "Watatatatatatatatatah!", Raseri quickly unleashed a rapid barrage of light-speed Kinetiske Stil punches covered in Tilstand av Brann flames. Each punch generated a massive invisible kinetic energy fist covered in the mystical flames. A total of two thousand punches were unleashed. "Fool!", God Raseri shouted, vaporizing the giant flaming fists with a mere wave of his hand. "Damn it.. he's strong", an intense Raseri thought, going for a quick succession of an ordinary roundhouse kick and a backwards roundhouse kick, unleashing two gigantic kinetic energy slashes. Quickly rushing towards Raseri, God Raseri swiftly dodged the slashes and knocked Raseri into the ground with an earth-shattering elbow strike. "Die fool!", God Raseri shouted, calling a colossal lightning bolt from the sky to strike Raseri down. Feeling the heat of the lightning bolt approaching, Raseri rolled over to the side, narrowly avoiding the bolt, sustaining only a few burn marks and scratches from the collateral damage of the bolt's strike. Getting to his feet, Raseri dashed over to God Raseri and unleashed a flurry of The Nor Way punches that were somehow completely ineffective. "What?", a surprised Raseri wondered as he kicked into some trees by God Raseri. "There is a cloak of invisible divine energy covering me, if you wish to touch my pressure points, you must first break the cloak", God Raseri grinned.

"Then that means I can't touch his Life Holes too", the Fighting Guru realized, he needed to make contact with God Raseri's skin to manipulate his pressure points and Life Holes. With a few spinning kicks, Raseri generated a very powerful vortex of kinetic energy around him as it knocked an approaching God Raseri into the sky. "Man he's strong", Raseri panted as he charged a massive fireball that he quickly shot at an unsuspecting God Raseri. "That's the hottest fireball I've ever made", Raseri murmured as his attack burned the oxygen around it, making it difficult to breathe near the fireball. It was scorching hot, the ground beneath it was being burned to ashes like nothing ever witnessed. "Denied!", God Raseri used his ax to cut the fireball in half, causing it to explode. With a quick dash, God Raseri grabbed Raseri by the throat and slammed him into the ground. Battered and bruised, Raseri still got to his feet. "I'm not done yet. There's no way I'm losing to someone who calls himself God Raseri", Raseri said, determination brimming in his eyes. But this only disgusted God Raseri. "Yield!", God Raseri shouted, breaking Raseri's jaw with a strong uppercut. Spitting out the blood from his mouth as he got to his feet, Raseri refused to concede. "Make me", The Greatest replied, using the little strength he had left to generate a massive stream of fire with a jab. But it was in vain. God Raseri simply swallowed the stream of fire, "Smokey", God Raseri grinned. "I order you to yield!", God Raseri shouted, blasting Raseri with a powerful telekinetic push that Raseri attempted to block with his forearms. Feeling the bones in his arms break, Raseri had only his legs left. "Never", even in a losing battle he refused to concede. "Very well then. I will kill you and then once I gain control of this body, I will destroy all of the humans that are making you weak. Callis, Dahlia, Harumi.. they'll all be dead!", God Raseri mocked as he began generating a massive lightning bolt that he claimed could shatter the Earth. "No!", Raseri shouted, entering his Halv-Gud state, instantly healing all of his wounds and injuries. Quickly getting to his feet, Raseri dodged the incoming lightning bolt and began to trade blows evenly with God Raseri.

Fighting evenly with God Raseri, the King of Fists quickly broke his alternate version's divine cloak and went for a pressure point strike, disabling his arm. "I won't let this happen. I will break free!", Raseri shouted as he began generating a tremendous amount of energy in the form of an outward flailing aura of lightning and divine energy. The ground began to shake violently as Raseri was battling against his inner demons and attempting to break free of The Count's control. However, soon God Raseri smirked and entered Halv-Gud Raseri as well. "Unlike you, I can control my Halv-Gud. I have limitless strength right at my possessions. I am unbeatable! The strength to collapse solar systems in the palm of my hands, and the power to do so much more!", God Raseri boasted, if what he said was true then there is no way that Raseri can win. "No! I can't let this happen! If I drown myself in power then I'll turn into something ugly, I won't be me anymore! I'll turn into you! And I don't want that!", Raseri shouted, "Going down your path is walking past the gates of Hell itself. If I follow you then I'm gonna turn into you! The very thing that I'm avoiding", Raseri continued, voicing his opinion on God Raseri. "You want all the power just so you don't feel weak, so you become a real god. But that isn't me, you wanna avoid the flaws of humanity? That's not me. You're not me. You're just a different person in a shell that looks like me", Raseri said, standing his ground. But just as God Raseri heard these words, a smile grew on his face. His Halv-Gud disappeared and he was beginning to dissolve into glowing white feathers. "I'm proud of you Raseri", God Raseri said before completely disappearing. So was this the challenge? Acknowledging that he could turn into God Raseri and that is not what he wanted? It seemed so simple but Raseri began by completely denying the possibility of turning into God Raseri, something that made this challenge difficult for him. Soon, Raseri's Halv-Gud disappeared as well, his appearance reverting back to normal. "Shit", Raseri collapsed, panting in exhaustion. Hours later (in his mind, not real life) Raseri felt drawn to the sky and was being levitated by an unknown force bringing him higher and higher into the sky as a familiar voice called him, "Come Raseri".

Emerald couldn't understand a thing. Callis, Harumi and Dahlia attacking Raseri? Raseri mind controlled? Everyone were shouting and preparating for a battle against Raseri. And to add another problem, Daisuke walked into Ebisu's HQ. "How did we end like this?" Emerald desperatly thought as Callis cutted trough her pentacle as if it was butter and stood defiantly infront of the Ultimate Fighting God and then Harumi grabbed Callis old bad-mouthed sword, Gigas, and shouted. "Raseri... If you're in there, and if you can hear me, come back. That's an order. But also, I'm sorry, if it comes to the point where I must take away your powers. But I will also maintain my promise." Harumi stated. "Callis, as soon as he makes a move, I order you to stand down and back. That goes for you too Emerald, and Dahlia. I will not have my subordinates harmed. You are all not to harm Raseri, and I do not wish for you to be harmed. As your leader, it is my responsibility to keep you all safe."

That was a real shock for the Tarot Warrior. Harumi wasn't the kind of woman who would order like that, unless something was really wrong. With all of that going on, Emerald didn't know what to do. And the Sun didn't help her either, he kept yelling in her mind what to do. She wanted to stop everything so they could sort everything out, so Ebisu's co-leader did , driven by desperation, runned towards Callis, who was standing only a few meters away from her and pushed him away from Raseri with a yell. "Everyone! Please stop!" She cried at loud as she could, with tears on her eyes, facing Harumi "We don't have to fight!"

As Callis took position in front of the mind controlled Nordic Tiger, he tried to stop his hand from shaking, as he knew about the real might of his friend, and his instincts told him that this was bad, and if the situation started to get any worse this situation was going to affect all the members of Ebisu present, and that was something that Callis wouldnt allow, if he had to he would kill his friend, for the sake of the others, just as he promised Raseri when he received the gift of the Gull Blade, a sword so sharp it could strike down the Gods. Tense like the cord of a guitar Callis turned his head towards Harumi the second she spoke, and returned it to face Raseri in the same instant "Raseri..." Harumi called from the top of the stairs. "If you're in there, and if you can hear me, come back. That's an order. But also, I'm sorry, if it comes to the point where I must take away your powers. But I will also maintain my promise." Harumi stated. "Callis, as soon as he makes a move, I order you to stand down and back. That goes for you too Emerald, and Dahlia. I will not have my subordinates harmed. You are all not to harm Raseri, and I do not wish for you to be harmed. As your leader, it is my responsibility to keep you all safe." The Beast Knight heared the words of his leader, and nodded, trying to serene himself as Harumi did. He needed to remain calm and prepare himself for any sudden attacks. The situation couldnt get any worse, but it got worse, as Daisuke, a young Hero that was tested by Callis only half a week before and he still didnt met all the other members of Ebisu. "Hey, what's going on here?" He asked with evident confusion, as he didnt knew about the current situation. Mes Emiya , dont come near here and protect Messa Sayuri, shouted Callis with a worried voice

This series of events were getting out of hand, and the demigod actions didnt helped, as for a moment he managed to speak with his regular voice, uttering only a word, "Harumi!", Raseri shouted, but he suddenly went back to his former state, with an eerie aura around him that made Callis fur bristle. The Beast Knight knew about inner struggles, and his intuition told him that this was what Raseri was going throught, the air was charged with electricity, and the Knight concentration was fully focused on Raseri, so he didnt detected the attack from the side, as Emerald pushed him from the side. Callis was caught flatfooted, but his stance was strong enough to avoid being pushed from his position, and for an instant he reacted out of instinc, projecting his battle aura, a skill he was trying to learn after seeing Raseri do it, towards the Tarot Warrior to scare her off, while she shouted with evident sadness, and even a hint of despair, as she believed that this was a real fight."Everyone! Please stop!" Emerald was crying, and the tears made Callis feel guilty of using his Battle Aura against her, since she was only trying to protect her comrades and friends. The co-leader of Ebisu faced her best friend Harumi and shouted "We don't have to fight!" Callis felt a not in his throat, a sudden wave of shame filled the Knight mind, feeling like ashamed for letting his instincts overcome him, even if he was now at peace with his feral side. Dahlia was trying to reason with Harumi, “I don’t know about that Harumi. If we don’t do anything we’re sittin’ ducks!” , The Tattoo Warrior was protecting Harumi, just as Callis begged her, and even encouraged him. She was trying to make Harumi take action, when Daisuke, as we said before entered to the room, and Dahlia, in her current state of mind, jumped to conclusions to fast and blamed Daisuke for this mess “Who da hell is that? Is he responsible for this mess?” There was so much tension in the air, and Callis could feel the pressure over him, as he was the one nearest to Raseri, and maybe the only one capable of hurting the mighty Demi-god, without counting Harumi and the necklace.

Messa Sayuri, I made an oath with Raseri if something like this happened, for that purpose he granted me this blade, I'm not fullfilling it out of my previous Oath with you and Ebisu, but if Raseri tries to attack us, I wont have any other choice but to do the same thing. Callis said this with desesperation, not knowing what to do in this situation, that was about to overcome him. The Knight of Ebisu's voice was tainted with fear, not for him, but for his comrades and for Raseri himself, since this struggle could force him to fullfill the promise he made to Raseri. What do I do Harumi !? Asked The Beast Knight while he kept eye contact with Raseri at all times. With the situation like it was he even forgot the formalities he was using to keep an emotional distance with the Leader of Ebisu, in an attempt to hide his feelings for her. What do I do!? The Knight was scared, more scared than in all his life, and at the brink of tears, as he started to rise his blade for an attack. WHAT DO I DO!? Shouted for last time with his voice almost breaking from the sadness and pressure.

Harumi's eyes darted back and forth. Callis, Emerald, Dahlia, Daisuke, and Raseri. There were too many people, which meant too many casualties. Things were getting far too hectic. Harumi needed to spread her team out. Cooped up in here, everybody else was more than a burden. “Callis, and I are more than enough to handle Raseri.” She stated. “Emerald and Dahlia, I want you two to find the man responsible for this. Search through our records for any superhumans with ESP or mind control powers. Don’t eliminate any possibility. Caius Weaver to Professor Xavier, I don’t care. Find a suspect, and end him.” Harumi then turned to face the newcomer, she was still vague on his powers and abilities (as Daisuke only joined recently). “If you’d please join Emerald and Dahlia, that would be appreciated. But if you believe that you are better suited hear, say so.” She said to Daisuke.

 

After that, Harumi fell silent then and looked at Callis. He was a complete mess. “Callis. This is what you will do.” She demanded, her voice cold. “You will listen to what I say. You will take your life, and place it in my hands. Trust me to do with it what I will. Take my orders and carry them through. Do you understand? Your pride, our lives, and Raseri’s sanity is on the line. You do not have the luxury to think for yourself.” Harumi’s snapping voice could have easily been misinterpreted as anger, but she wasn’t angry. She shoved her emotions away and sought to relieve the pressure from Callis’ shoulders. As the leader, she would take the stress and pressure.

 

“Stand down.” Harumi demanded. “I would like to try and force Raseri out of this state through reasoning. But should he lash out, you are not to harm him. Nothing deeper than a scratch, nothing harder than a bump.” The geisha explained. “And you will stop trying to protect me, and start trying to protect Raseri. I don’t need your protection. I am a normal human. A demi-god is far more valuable than myself. Do you understand?” She hissed.

What a tense moment it must be for Ebisu's members. They were disagreeing with each other on what actions should be taken against Raseri and while some managed to remain calm, others were losing their minds, particularly Callis. Watching all of this unable to do a single thing about it, Raseri slightly regretted entrusting the Gull Blade to Callis after witnessing how much stress he had placed on his friend's shoulders. While being levitated by an unknown force, Raseri murmured to himself, "Damn.. didn't know I put so much on Cal", but there was no time to distract himself with what is taking place outside of his mind. With all of the events unfolding, it was painful to watch it all knowing that nothing could be done. Emerald was in tears, Dahlia stressed by the situation blamed newcomer Daisuke for Raseri's condition, Callis was losing his nerve, and Harumi well she was the only who managed to keep a level head. As much as mighty Raseri wanted to break free of The Count's control so that he could put an end to his team's sorrow, he knew he couldn't, the only way he could help would be by facing his mental and personal challenges. "I wonder what I'm gonna have to do this time", the Nordic Tiger thought to himself.

Soon the fierce fighter was brought to a massive cloud where a bearded frail old man sat on. "What the hell?", Raseri said just above a whisper followed by a slightly amused chuckle. He found the old man's clothing a little ridiculous as he only wore a cloth to conceal his private parts. "Who knew a guru liked to wear diapers", the Ultimate Fighting God thought, slightly shaking his head in amusement. Finally, Raseri was brought before the old man who introduced himself as "Life". "Life? Hehe well my name's Raseri but-", however, before the King of Fists could finish introducing himself, he was interrupted by Life who was more than aware of who stood before him. "I know who you are Raseri. I'm a part of you remember?", Life smirked. "Alright then, what part?", a curious Raseri asked, scratching his head. "I am the personification of the Fist of Life. Your martial art. But unlike you, I have total and complete mastery of the combat art because I am it", Life revealed, bringing surprise to Raseri's eyes. "Say what? Are you for real old man?", Raseri was shocked, he knew that though he was a master of his combat arts, he didn't expect to ever meet anyone who surpassed his mastery in any fighting style, then again he was basically speaking with something that he himself created. "Please sit with me Raseri. I must help you break free of your mental prison before it is too late", Life suggested. Simply shrugging, The Greatest sat beside Life and waited for an instruction.

"So what do we do now?", a calm Raseri asked, wondering on what steps should be taken. Closing his eyes, Life answered the ferocious Nordic Tiger's question, "Well Raseri, I'm going to help you break free of The Count's control. But to do that, you have to do something that I believe is not possible for you to do", Life revealed, making Raseri wonder what he had in mind. "I think I can take it", Raseri smiled with confidence. He was determined to help his friends. With a sigh, Life replied, "You must.. let go of your emotions and your loved ones", the bomb was dropped and it was quite explosive. Life was asking Raseri to do something that was far beyond his reach. "What? I have to do what?", the Ultimate Fighting God asked, surprised and a little angered that the price for freedom was too great. "You must let go of your emotions. Particularly your feelings for Harumi. She is keeping you from achieving your true potential. Your friendship for Callis, you lack the true ambition to become stronger because you want Callis to become stronger. Emotions are a source of pain and you must relinquish pain to be in touch with your soul in order to break free and become a true master of the Fist of Life", Life said, aware that Raseri would refuse the terms. "Let go of Harumi and Callis? Not just that but that means I have to let go of my father and everyone? That's too selfish. Emotions might be a source of pain but it is also a source of love. And I'm not going to do let go of anyone. I know there's another way", Raseri replied with certainty.

With a disappointed sigh, Life replied, "Very well Raseri. I will tell you what you must do... you must kill me to have all of my powers", this was another term that Raseri would find difficult to agree to. Defeating Life would prove to be far too difficult and other reasons would prevent Raseri from doing so. Back in real life, Raseri's body stood motionless in front of his teammates, having received no orders from The Count. Either Harumi would quickly strip Raseri of his powers before he can harm anyone or Callis would have to use the Gull Blade to kill Raseri. If both his trusted teammates refuse to do so, Raseri would have to be as quick as possible in freeing himself. However, before Life could begin the process with Raser, the undefeated Nordic Tiger couldn't help but think of his teammates. "Goddammit! Why don't Harumi and Callis do something?", he thought, a little intense over the fact that The Count would most likely use him to harm his teammates and bring the world to its knees.

Everyone was ready to jump into action, when something happend. Raseri stopped moving and his eyes became blank. A disgusting chill went through Emerald's spine when the first emotionless words came out from Raseri's mouth. "That will not be neccesary. I see that you already discovered that something is wrong with your dear friend. If you want the answer you seek, then come to Honnoji's temple, in Kioto. All of you must be there, alone, or your enourmous friend will suffer the consequences. Goodbye, members of Ebisu" Then, Raseri's controlled body punched the floor and Emerald had to grabbed from a table's edge to remain standing. In the second she lost concentration, Raseri had already jumped away from the builiding.

The Tarot Warrior's legs began to shake and she slowly fell to her knees, clenching the edge of the table, trying vainly to ramin standing. How could that happend? How could Raseri being controlled? And more significantly, who was strong enough to control the man called "The Ultimate Fightning God"? Emerald couldn't find answer to that questions with the whirlwind of things that were going through her mind. She only wanted to open her eyes and discover that all was a bad dream. But it wasn't, she looked around, with tears at the edge of her eyes and saw, in the other side of the room, the pile of junk that used to be the presents she had bought for everyone. "What should we do?!" She suddenly cried, staring at Harumi "What can we do?!"