True Cross Academy, Fidel City

---

---

Ryuu Shosuke

The young Knight waited for an answer but it didn’t come in the form of words. Instead it was brought about through pain and a sudden lack of air. Nathaniel swung his hand out, taking hold of her throat before she was even aware of what had occurred. She could feel his sharp nails digging into her flesh, probably enough to draw blood if only a little. Eyes widening in surprise they noticed the lack of recognition in Nathaniel’s eyes. If he was there he wasn’t doing this consciously. However Ryuu was about ready to bring her Demon blade out but the should be dead man pulled back, cowering in against the wall.

At the same time, Colter had slammed the large heavy door with all his might with a murderous intent in his gaze. Wheezing for air, Ryuu touched the areas she knew hurt and when she brought them forwards, she noticed there was a little bit of blood on them. Bringing her hand up, the motion made Colter hesitate and her piercing glare told him everything was handled. With a dissatisfied sigh her old mentor stepped back behind the door and closed it; once again resuming a vigilant eye on the activity within the room through the slot.

The sight of him licking the little bit of her blood on his hands made her feel disgusted. She made sure to take note of the rest of his behavior, which was similar to how an addict would act during withdrawal. His hand reached for his chest, holding it tight against it. She didn’t care for his excuse but she knew in order to understand him, she’d have to sympathize with him. At his question, Ryuu glanced back at Colter before looking back at Nathaniel. “He’s an old friend.”

She became much more attentive once his body began to go through changes. Claws would extend and retract from his hands; his fangs grew but then would shrink. Spikes suddenly grew from his shoulders, elbows, knees and ankles, ripping through the bloodstained shirt. Ryuu watched as he struggled, not sure of what to do. “''It always h-happens... I wake up and I n-need to feed... On things not to... r-replaceable...” A look of guilt settled on his face but the redhead had yet to feel for him.

“Nathaniel, what are you?” She stood up, making sure there was a little more distance between the both of them. Ryuu began to pace the room before she crouched in front of him again. “So how do you do it? To kill them that is. What are those orbs?” There were more questions she wanted to ask but there was a limit to how many she could ask when he’s in this state.

---

---

Realisation came far too late for Marius. This refreshing wind that seemed to lift the very spirit of the falling angel, took time to blossom into the rather shocking realisation that Gravity was once again inserting its cruel influence to try and bring another unwilling object into the grounds indifferent embrace. A terrifying concept to any creature lacking the power of flight. Opening his eyes and training them to the ground, which was closer than he thought. He threw open the wings upon his back and tilted them, swooping, trying to bring himself into something that resembled flight. Human engineering was not something Marius had became familiar with yet, but as he came close to levelling out a rather large metal structure seemed to appear out of no where. Forcing his large wings forwards with all the force he could muster, he attempted to slow himself down. As he brought the large white wings back out of his line of sight he placed his hand upon the cold metal and pushed off it with all his force. The metal buckled and collapsed inwards on it self as Marius came crashing intro the concrete below the structure.

Standing himself up, and brushing the dust off his form Marius, inspected the structure he just crashed into. The large metal frame alien to him. Glancing to one side he noticed a sign off in the distance " Amusement?" he spoke out loud, the sign was in disrepair like the rest of the place. It seemed deserted and so Marius was safe in style in this form but he knew he had to hide his wings. Wrapping his wings around himself, they glowed briefly before taking the form a large white t-shirt. It was at this moment he remembered the sheet of paper within his hand. He wondered briefly what he was going to do with it, before he could come to any conclusions the paper blinded him, and seemingly disappeared from his hand. In truth it had shifted form and moved to his ear. A communicator so he could give his reports back to Aurae.

Striding away from the derelict place, he set his sights firmly on the grey looming structures that made up the city, it deemed more likely that he would find the child in a more populated area than a place with no one around, well Marius believed no one was around, in the shadows of the amusement park lurked the local youths, who had just witnessed an angel come crashing down from the sky, literally. But tracking him would surely be difficult for even Marius himself was impressed, at how quickly he had found the crowds. Marius now truly faced with the scale of his task. Chance alone could not help him, he had to narrow down the general population from the search, but he had nothing to work with. He decided for now to follow the younger looking members of the crowds, he did have that information about the child. Noticing some of the younger member's of the crowd was dressed in some form of uniform he decided to stop a passing business man to inquire about it. " Pardon my interruption... but can you tell me where that uniform comes from" he said gesturing across to the children. " Yeah the academy ..why do you ask?" the man replied, giving a rather disapproving look towards Marius. " I seek a child... around 16.... distant relation of mine" he said spinning a story on the spot. " Thank you for your time" Leaving the business man to himself Marius carried on his way, knowing he would have to check this academy out at some time.

Ryuu Shosuke

The silence was troublesome. It only added to the tense air after Nathaniel’s attack towards her. Cold red orbs locked on to his blue-yellow ones. There was no sympathy in her eyes nor was there any in the lines of the grim expression that had settled on her features. His silence was beginning to work on her patience. The red head was never really patient to begin with but she understood her time with him was limited.

She raised a brow at his vague answer, for he answered her first question within one of his own. Not knowing what one was something she herself had dealt with in the past. Now she cares not for what she is and only dwells on what she can do because of it. A small spark kindled the warmth of her sympathy but Ryuu was quick to quell the miniscule amount of emotion, now was not the time. In response to his own question, Ryuu’s eyes danced along his physical body, trying to gauge any semblance of information that would lead her to an answer simply from what she saw before her. The Knight could see that he was beginning to revert to the persona she knew from working together with him as a fellow teacher.

“I drained them of their souls. The orbs are the same thing. I do not use stamina or mana as you do to power my capabilities and they are far more expansive than I have ever shown the Academy. I can do more but my power s-source..'' He looked away and the very action irritated her. Shortly after pausing, he continued with a lowered voice and shoulders. ''Is souls. From people demons or angels alike. I try not to feed often but I need to be careful lest I lose myself to my more primitive and volatile self. I can be very dangerous too dangerous for this world perhaps . . . '' His voice drifted off into silence.

Ryuu wasn’t sure of what to make of this. As she began to evaluate what he had just told her, Nathaniel continued. ''W-what... happens now, Ryuu? What will you do with me... to me? I am not blind to your lack of empathy towards me.'' Her eyes widened slightly at his statement of awareness but as he already knew she didn’t care. “It isn’t up to me on what to do with you. Do not call me by first name, we are not friends. At least not right now . . .” Her voice was cold and harsh however the latter was spoken quietly so that only Nathaniel could hear. The look in her eyes told him not to make note of her meaning and hopefully he caught on.

''I can see it...'' Eyes following his hand as they pointed to her chest. ''There. You do not have sympathy for me. You can barely understand as it is. Perhaps you never will, not that I can blame you. My place is a rather confusing one in this world and many others I have seen.'' A snort escaped her lips followed by a smirk that passed as quickly as it came. “Is that so?” ''So tell me what you are going to do with me now and be done with it.'' She could tell he himself was becoming impatient. Not knowing what would be done to you wasn’t an experience she would like to go through if she could help it.

“I have no authority over what is to be done to you. The only reason I’m in here speaking with you is because you called for me by name. It seems you wish for this conversation to be done however I’ve a question that has been bugging for a while now.” Ryuu looked over her shoulder at her fellow Knight. Their eyes met and it was surprising just how well they knew each other. He gave her the nod of okay and Ryuu turned back to Nathaniel. “What can be done with these orbs? Are they just that, orbs? Or is there something to them that you haven’t told me-I mean us?” At this point Ryuu was being careful with what she said. She realized that by referring to herself wasn’t a smart move but maybe, just maybe Nathaniel understood where she was getting at.

If her theory was right and if Nathaniel confirmed it, then it would mean the others are aware. It gave her all the more reason to keep them from getting their hands on those orbs. Although the Order stood for the protection of Fidel City, Ryuu was all too aware that they would not hesitate to use those orbs for their own personal gain. Especially now that certain factions have begun to stir due to recent events. Almost at once Ryuu’s train of thought went towards Aurora but now wasn’t the time to worry about her students.

He had had a rather rough day so far and the rain didn't help much. Normally the middle aged man would have rejoiced with the coming of rain as he once did when he was much smaller and much, much younger. Nowadays the rain simply reminded him of how it was Natures way of cleansing the world of its dirt, cleansing the people. Unfortunately the great Mother of the World was thwarted once more by waterproof canvas large enough to ensure a person wouldn't be damped by the rain. Allen himself was once of those people, too wrapped up in their own little worlds of dryness. At such a moment a spark of color dashed to his right. His deep brown eyes followed the young woman quickly and for a moment he pitied her lack of dryness, for she did not carry with her an umbrella. Almost as soon as he began to do so his attention returned to himself and he was reminded of how bad a day he was having.

Some ten minutes later the rain let up and he, like everyone around him, shook their umbrellas out and put them away so they wouldn't be in the way. Horatio wished he had taken the metro but alas he didn't have the money to pay the fare. "Pardon my interruption... but can you tell me where that uniform comes from" It took him a moment to realize he was being spoken to but he responded. "Yeah the academy. . ." He looked to the man and was troubled by his age, not realizing the look of disapproval on his face. "Why do you ask?" " I seek a child... around 16.... distant relation of mine" Another look of disapproval came about but it soon softened as the stranger explained to Horatio the situation. Nodding along, Horatio pointed towards the center of city. "Head towards the center of the city and you'll arrive at the Academy grounds." Horatio then left him to his business and continued on his way to his meeting.

Not even five minutes after their separation did Horatio registered the strange feeling he had when he spoke with that stranger. For some reason he felt calm, forgetting his trouble, almost happy really. He looked over his shoulder to see if he could spot the stranger but he wasn't able to but someone else was. This tad younger fellow watched from the rooftops of a nearby building. Had he not had the luck of encountering a new exorcist on patrol, he would never have found out about the Orders attentiveness towards the skies. It took him a while to get the poor guy to talk but eventually he did. It seemed like the Order was aware of a lot of things. Solomon had never encountered an Angel before and he was quite eager to meet him.

He had been quick to send his familiar to the his higher ups the moment he caught sight of the Angel as he fell. A grin parted his lips with excitement. Solomon ran across the rooftops before finally climbing down to ground level. He followed after the Angel for a while, getting bored as he did. It wasn't long before he realized the Angel was heading in the direction of the Academy. His curiosity ensnared again, Solomon followed the Angel with tad more eagerness than before. He was aware the Order had gotten much more vigilant towards the warring factions for a while now. Solomon had been preoccupied by his thoughts of caution that he hadn't noticed they were on school grounds.

Solomon glanced upwards to see that a young student with blonde hair seemed to be approaching the Angel. His eyes narrowed and he thought of maybe interrupting the pair but he saw someone else of more concern, a senior exorcist. With a huff of air Solomon pulled up his hood to not only obscure his face but to hide the tattoo on the back of his neck. The tattoo depicted a tribal crow spreading its wings in white ink, the White Crow. Unfortunately now would be where he'd have to leave his Angel.

Of all the things he had been expecting to come across this certainly wasn’t one of them. The young man could only stare at the beautiful creature that stood before him. From what he could tell the creature was a canine but it was no ordinary one that’s for sure. Just a second ago it had spoken to him in such a formal manner it sent shivers down his spine. Had it not been for the fact that it said Principality, Solomon probably would have tried exercising the holy thing. For whatever reason the brown haired Tamer thought that he had been chosen to aid this Aritos fellow but in actuality he had been randomly selected by an Angel who needed the help of a human.

Pride began to swell in his chest and Solomon grinned down at the canine. “I’d be more than honored to help Principality Aritos in his mission. Just lead the way.” Motioning with his hand as he spoke, Solomon followed after the canine as it led him to where this Principality was.

Upon seeing him, Solomon felt a surge of emotion but it ultimately led to a sort of calmness. Looking at the Principality with arrogant eyes, he bowed to the angel in disguise. “I have answered your call oh gracious one. How may I be of service?” Had it been anyone else Solomon’s words would have been laced with sarcasm however in the presence of an angel he kept his tongue in check.

Ryuu Shosuke

The corners of her lips curled ever so slightly at his act of loneliness although she had an inkling that some of what he said was truthful. They held a weight of someone who had seen and done many things but had no one to really share those experiences with. Red orbs followed Nathaniel's every move, taking note not to be caught off guard like before when he had tried to choke her. While it hadn't been the first time she had been choked it was the first in that sort of situation.

Upon mentioning those orbs of his Nathaniel tensed, something Ryuu was willing to take advantage of if meant he would cooperate. They would have to be of some value, personal or not, for him to behave in such a manner. Suddenly Nathaniel began to speak of Colter. Hearing his words, Ryuu couldn't help but snicker at how wrong he was albeit he was correct on some parts. The red knight glanced over her shoulder at her old mentor, giving him a look that only he would recognize. Now wasn't the time to try and exert your dominance through a steel door. It just made things complicated and somewhat awkward.

With an audible sigh, Ryuu swiveled on her feet to stand in front of the door. "My friend here does indeed work for those of a . . .much higher position than he or I. Regardless of who gives him orders I trust him with my life and vice versa. It's a shame to think that all those years we spent together were meaningless if he still had doubts about my actions. Don't you think Oh Sleeping Exorcist? And while we're on the subject of my friend here he is certainly dominant but he's far too lazy to come in and push you around when I can do it myself." Just as she finished Nathaniel placed his hand on her head and pressed it against his chest. She audibly snarled at the action but paused long enough to hear a soft whisper, or rather a dozen whispers echoing inside the snake eyed man's chest. One could also hear Colter begin to pull his blades out. Thankfully Nathaniel pulled back after whispering those words to her.

To think that his body itself housed all those orbs and Ryuu had little doubt that those orbs were the solidified forms of those souls. His next words were something she expected. "I wouldn't be surprised if he wanted to hold hands with you and skip in a field of daisies." The sarcasm was harsh but it was a small form of retaliation for him grabbing her in such a manner. Again for that matter.

Ryuu did not care for how he circled her. Red orbs followed him as he walked with his hands behind his back. Almost as if he was perfectly comfortable with where he was. Without a moment's haste Ryuu pulled Chomeksu out of her storage place. The blade murmuring its desire for a new kind of blood as it hovered dangerously close to Nathaniel's neck. Of course it was on the blunt side so in the end Ryuu meant no real harm. "The one you should be worried about is little ol me. As I'm sure you know many are watching so I must do my job in this extraction of information."

Suddenly a series of footfalls could be heard coming closer to the steel door. Ryuu glanced at Colter who gave her a frown and a shake of his head, warning her of who was heading their way. In return Ryuu looked back at Nathaniel with glare however she only did so to play her part as the door was thrown open. She didn’t dare break eye contact with the strange creature before her but she did speak up to those that entered. “So what brings you sorry lads to my humble interrogation cell?” addressing the half dozen men in black cloaks. Without even looking at them she could feel the power emanating from them but it wasn’t really them that she felt it from but the weapons they carried. Chomeksu began to hum softly at her fellow kin, causing Ryuu to frown in the same way a mother would when her child does something she disapproves of.

“We’ve come to take Nathaniel Jenova to a separate facility.” Ryuu tilted her head slightly. “On whose orders?” She opening questioned them, making the leader of the group stiffen. “The True Cross wishes so.” The redhead finally looked at them with one of her trademark scowls. “As they wish.” With that being said Ryuu lowered her sword, allowing for it to go back to where it was originally. “Oh before you go.” Ryuu swiveled on her foot and delivered a quick punch to Nathaniel's gut. As he could no doubt double over, the young woman placed her hand on his shoulder and she leaned in close so that he could hear her. “May Night be with you and may it protect you.” Ryuu then pushed him away as the cloaked men led him away.

To them Ryuu’s words were just some form of metaphor and in a sense it was however no one took note of the missing dragon tattoo on her arm. While she had exchanged those words with Nathaniel, she let Night slither onto his arm but he had been reduced to nearly half his size to avoid detection. Currently the Dragon Exorcist’s familiar was resting on the crook Nathaniel’s finger. With him being there Ryuu would be able to locate the man when the time was right. She just hoped the she wouldn’t get to him too late.

The Finale Pt One

---

---

Ryuu Shosuke

---

---

She watched as her fellow comrade was escorted away. Well actually it was more like dragged away as Nathaniel began to hiss and scream and struggle against the cloaked men. Ryuu knew she only had a short time frame of when he arrived at the headquarters and when they finally interrogated him. She definitely had to get him before they started that. If they did, it wouldn’t stop at just asking him questions. The Academy will surely move onto experimentation so that they may test the limits of Nathaniel’s powers. While Ryuu was unaware of what exactly he was, that didn’t mean she couldn’t help him. The power that one could gain from using those orbs is unknown at this point but Ryuu had the feeling that it was enough to really make the Academy push to obtain them. Those orbs were souls after all. Who knows what power a solidified soul held.

With that in mind Ryuu left the cell that had just contained her friend. Fiery red orbs locked onto a pair that seemed to douse that fire. Colter, unlike Ryuu, was not as trusting of Nathaniel as she was. Then again he never met the man until today so that came to no surprise to the Dragon Exorcist. They both knew the plan they were about to enact was pretty damned dangerous and they needed to move fast. The once student and teacher pair exited the building, keeping watch of their surroundings. “You know we only have about an hour to get this done right?” He glanced sideways at his student with an apathetic expression, or just one that was tired. Colter always seemed tired with those dark rings under his eyes. Ryuu on the other hand was bright and attentive. The two always contrasted against each other, making them the talk of the Academy when they were teacher and student.

“Yeah I know. There’s actually someone that I want to get. Although he has little control over it, his power is to be reckoned with. He might serve well as a distraction.” she said with little concern. Colter chuckled to himself. “What?” Shaking his head, he rubbed his chin. “I never expected you of all people to actually treat your students as if they were just assets. Maybe your more like me than you thought” The red head frowned upon hearing this. Her teacher had always been like that and she had vowed a long time ago that she would never do the same but he was right. She took away more from him than she had thought. After that had been said, the two were blanketed in silence. There wasn’t much to be said that they hadn’t already covered.

As they continued to walk in silence they weren’t exactly walking around aimlessly. A head of blonde appeared in front of them but it would seem he was talking with someone. A stranger it would seem but that didn’t stop the two from approaching them/ “Julius. Sorry to intrude but you need to come with us.” She glanced over at the man who her own student had been with, giving him a quick glance over before focusing her attention back on Julius. Colter on the other hand gave the black haired man a cold stare. There was something definitely off about this man but the Sleeping Exorcist couldn’t put his finger on it. Regardless of whether Julius had said yes, Ryuu hooked her arm through the blondes and led him away.

She made sure he was between her and Colter to ensure that he wouldn’t break away. They needed him for something and that something was rather important in what they planned on doing. “Nathaniel Jenova has been taken in for “interrogation”. He is not human, but the things he can do cannot be left in the hands of those who have him. In saying this, we are going to get him out of there.” Ryuu’s explanation wasn’t much but it more or less gave the gist of what it was they were going to do. “You will be aiding us as a distraction. I’m sure you’d be very pleased to have me say that you’re familiars are very strong however you have little control over them. For what we’re about to do though, control won’t be an issue.” All the while Ryuu kept her eyes up. Constantly looking around to make sure they were being followed.

“Have you located him yet?” he asked, referring to his old student’s familiar and Nathaniel. Ryuu didn’t answer with words instead she led them to a two story building. Colter looked up and grunted. “I’m going to assume the rest of it is below ground.” The red head glanced at him and nodded. “Alright time to get started.” The trio burst through the doors, alerting the people inside that they had unwanted company.

“Julius. Sorry to intrude but you need to come with us.” Julius was interrupted from his musings by a certain instructor he found himself less than eager to interact with lately. Despite his attitude, Julius still cocked his head to indicate he was listening at the very least to what Ryuu was saying.“Nathaniel Jenova has been taken in for “interrogation”. He is not human, but the things he can do cannot be left in the hands of those who have him. In saying this, we are going to get him out of there.You will be aiding us as a distraction. I’m sure you’d be very pleased to have me say that you’re familiars are very strong however you have little control over them. For what we’re about to do though, control won’t be an issue.”

At this point Julius couldn't keep a savage grin from his face, something like a form of validation. After all, Ryuu just said it herself - he was being picked for the simple fact that he had power while others didn't. Remarkably, Julius found out the conversation had taken place while they were walking so the atmosphere he'd previously been pondering on completely left the teen's memory.

"So how much power do we need? I've got a circle and everything prearranged for a third on me if you want it. Wait- back up, we're taking down another teacher just because he's not human? No offense or nothin, but where's that leave you if this isn't a faction thing? Julius found himself quickly back pedaling for information. After all if this was a faction thing he didn't want to take part in it - his concern was entirely focused on his own power and a faction in that regard would have too many responsibilities for him to properly focus on his work. Until he realized that Ryuu had already taken him far enough where he could back out.

"If this is a faction thing, I'm going to throw a temper tantrum you'll never forget" Strangely, Julius found himself rather resolved as he clapped his hands together and activated the summons therein. For the first time, both Aja and Regulus came out compliantly.
"Despite my short comings, I at least have that policy and won't compromise on while still backing up my declaration.