Resort Area/Plaza

It had been some time since the end of the Reaper Invasion. In these years, Cero had rebuilt and expanded his training operations before returning to Europe. He had continued to dominate the European circuit, holding his reign as the King of Vanguard, a title he would still be held to after his retirement from the circuit. The news of the Vanguard Association was almost insulting to him, as it was a very similar organization to the one he had been building since before its inception and he hadn't even been asked to be part of it yet. However, this insult had not stopped him from attending the Messiah Scramble. A chance to demonstrate his power in a tournament being held by his one true rival was not an opportunity he wanted to miss. Shame he was unaware his rival would not be participating.

Far above, a jet plane towards the island. It was Cero's personal jet, carrying him as well as several other passengers attending the tournament, both spectators and participants. The notable people among it beyond Cero himself were Carlos, who had joined Cero's training operations, a young child of only 10 years old who had been acknowledged by Cero near the end of the Reaper Invasion, and another relevant fighter from Europe: Cero's self-proclaimed but acknowledged rival, Cassiano Fellini, who had never once defeated Cero in a cardfight.

As the plane approached its destination, Cero got up from his seat and said one simple thing to the other passengers: "I'll see you on the ground," and went to the back of the plane. He had a very special entrance in mind. A small area at the back of the plane was closed off, a mini-airlock that had been included to cater to Cero's reckless stupidity. He opened the door to the open air... and jumped out of the plane without a parachute, diving towards the island for his "spectacular" entrance, his intent to land perfectly in front of the registration desk. Though, there were several factors he hadn't taken into consideration...

Isle Jigen was a truly beautiful sight. A joyful bark sounded through the air as the Hakaisha family set foot onto the scene. A bundle of energy led the way. Standing a proud two feet tall on all fours was Tamotsu, the reincarnation of the spirit Okuri, who had been living a happy life as the brother's pet the last few years. The light shone beautifully off of his sky blue fur and his tail was wagging away happily. He ran circles around his family, barking to them as if they couldn't already understand his excitement. Turns out bringing him along wasn't a bad idea after all.

Earlier at the Hakaisha home, the two brothers Jessie and Bashiro had decided on attending the event. They seemed really excited about it but the question came up: what to do with Tamotsu while they were away? As they began packing the dog began sulking around the home. He would sit on the floor near one of them and just whine softly, clearly knowing they were intending on going somewhere for a while. After one day finding the canine sitting on top of Jessie's luggage and refusing to move they decided they would bring him with them which made their pet ecstatic. He behaved himself very well on the trip there, largely resting his head in Jessie's lap and sleeping the travel time away. He was a very good boy in general. But even after all these years, he had yet to ever speak a word or indicate he remembered anything from before.

But now the family had what seemed like the whole world ahead of them. A whole island to explore full of the most expensive looking merchandise one could imagine. Of course the thing to look out for was the alcohol and the women. It wouldn't be long before they lost Bashiro once he scoped the place out. Tamotsu was busy smelling and taking in everything. He would run off a few feet ahead of the brothers, then run back to Jessie's side, excitedly panting and looking at his boy with body language that expressed he wanted to play.

-----

A strange figure in a long cloak wandered about the resort. He had long, flowing purple hair and seemed to be carrying something underneath the cloak, but what exactly was unclear though there were two points to it at the least.The man moved about, taking in the scenery and then approaching various shopkeeps with a single question. "Have you seen a man with red hair?" He was in search of someone. His only real friend in the world. Unfortunately, red hair wasn't exactly a unique trait of the God of Sun. And so the man found little success or instead encountered a ginger that was not his friend. He took out a cell phone and sent a message, stating to his friend he had arrived and would be by the statue of the dragon for a time if he should like to catch up.

Karin had been laying back in one of those lounge chairs one would see by a hotel pool or at a beach; She wanted to relax as much as possible during this little vacation, now that she'd registered for the tournament. The Reaper War had come and gone, and the world was finally getting a chance to rest easy after the nightmare it had been through.

For Karin, however, things were a little more complicated. The Reaper War was still something of a haze in the public's memory, but traces of the events that had taken place back then remained etched in Karin's heart, quite literally. The tainted seed of that Reaper God lingered within her, slumbering alongside another self, the "Karin" that fell at the war's turning point. Then there was Karin herself: The current Dragonic Overlord, titled "The Cross"- Though she hadn't used her powers since the war ended. For the past two years, Karin had just been trying to forget the whole thing ever happened, however impossible it was to forget such a thing.

However, the news of the tournament coupled with the vacation opportunity was already doing her well. She felt more at ease than ever, and was genuinely enjoying her time off.

...Until she noticed something, or someone familiar, plummeting from the sky. She had to squint to make it out, but the presence she felt was a dead giveaway. There was Cero, soaring through the air, headed straight for one of the tournament's registration desks. Except, he was off course... by about a quarter of a mile. "Just when I was getting comfy, too... Well, no rest for the wicked, huh Cero?" She muttered to herself, sliding off her chair and hopping to her feet. Cero would probably survive the fall, given his Kaiser status and his overall inhuman level of durability, but Karin figured it'd be better if he at least made it to his goal. She brought her foot up in the air and slammed it down on the sandy beach ground, kicking up a thick cloud of dust and sand around her. With the cloud covering the fiery flash that came moments later, Dragonic Overlord The Cross shot out from the sand cloud and rocketed straight towards Cero.

As Cero neared the ground, still a good few hundred feet away from the closest reception desk, the Overlord popped in behind him in a burst of flames, dropping her Overlord appearence as she did, and planted her foot firmly against his back. With a swift motion, she delivered a furious dropkick to Cero from behind, shooting him the last stretch forward towards the reception desk.

"LOOK OUT EVERYONE!! MIRAI HASHIRA IS HERE AND READY TO WIN THIS THING!!"

Mirai yelled out loud to the public, already claiming to be winning the event. Everyone just stared as if she was some crazy person but this energetic female did not care. Walking a victory walk down to the registration tables, Mirai was wearing jean shorts, with a short white top with a red jacket along with black boots. Green eyes and crazy blond hair held together in a ponytail. Everything about her was wild and upbeat. Now registered, a huge grin was on her face. Excited to take on the next big challenge. That is what Mirai loves, the thrill of being in a high level tournament and pushing herself to the limit.

This was the now reborn Mirai Hashira. She was once a Seed, a fighter from an alternate timeline that had lost their future and destined a fate worse than death. In her case, she was a Noel Kusanagi from a lost timeline. But that is over now, three years over. Mirai had gained her own identity. Even though she retained the memories of the alternate Noel, that doesn't stop her from now fully enjoying this new chance at life. To be herself. Somehow holding on to her belt was her deck case that contained her trustworthy Seekers, the Royal Paladin deck with the power to Legion. What sort sort of new challenges will await this hyped up cardfighter?

A bright sunny day, being smothered by the masses: vibrant and animated people. The waves of people were filled with many different expressions of joy, enthusiasm, passion, dedication, perseverance, and more positive feelings. Others were smiling and laughing, people standing on their own merged with oncoming groups of their peers. Like a droplet being drawn into a puddle; everyone here was drawn together for one reason, one purpose. Looking over, was a crowd surrounding two people standing from opposite ends of a table with cards laid on it. Their faces lit up from awe to excitement with each passing movement either player made, followed by their urgent declarations.

"My Unit attacks your Vanguard!" The crowd started to "oooo" as they awaited for the opposing player to make their move.

"I'm going to nullify that with this Perfect Guard!" The crowd jumped again. Looking over at another table, two players standing in the same positions were exchanging cards with one another, following up with a firm handshake and smiles of satisfaction. At a bench, one boy slowly peel open a pack and removed a small stack of cards. As his fingers went through each one, he suddenly jumped high from his bottom resting on the seat of the bench.

"I DID IT!" he shouted from the top of his lunges while gripping a shiny card between his thumb and index finger. "I GOT THE FINAL CARD FOR MY DECK!" Many people ran over to hear the commotion and the boy revealed the card.

"Yoooo! Congrats dood" "Wicked pull!" "Insanely luck kid!" "Yeah and right before the tournament too!" the crowd said overlapping each other.

Everyone here was gathered for one thing, one reason, one purpose. Cardfight Vanguard. More specifically, a new tournament that lured in players and competitors alike for a chance to make new friends, new rivals, and obtain new goals and accomplishments. Especially for, him.

"Yeah, this place is huge and jam packed, it's borderline scary, haha." he said while walking through the crowd. "I mean... sure I'm nervous of playing before all of these people but, I came for the game and myself, not for them, no offense." He continued to walk by when he overheard the two players who were in a game at the table.

"Final Turn!" He stopped at the sound of this of proud declaration and immediately tip-toed to it's direction. Slowly trying to make through the crowd while the bystanders gave him awkward eyes then resuming the game, he got a glance at the field and both players. "It's time for me to show you my strongest card yet! Get ready! Generation Stride!" The crowd went wild. The boy reached over for another stack of cards on the upper left corner of him and placed a card over his center card. "Dang, he's already busting out a G Unit, I hope the other guy can guard." he thought while looking at the opposing players hand. 3 cards he counted. Didn't seem like a lot to guard but quality over quantity. He looked back at the turn players side and watched him turn his center card horizontal. "I attack your Vanguard with 26000 Power!" The defending player took a minute while the crowd waited anxiously for the next move. Suddenly he snapped back, which caused the opposing player to do a double take. Finally, the defender lifted up two cards from the tip of his hands: before placing one in a stack before the deck face up and the final card being placed in the middle of the board. "Perfect Guard!" The crowd jumped for joy while the opposing player was in complete shock. "Heh.. I figured he had a perfect guard. 3 cards in hand at the beginning of his turn. Seems like the other guy miscalculated." The attacker reeled himself back into the game and shouted "Triple Drive Check!" as he placed his middle and index finger over his deck.

"First Card!" The crowd loomed over his fingers waiting to see the card flip over. "Critical Trigger! Tch." his expression turned sour before giving all of the effects to the Vanguard. "If the vanguard wasn't blocked, this would've dealt more damage. Shame." He placed his hand over his deck and proceeded to do his other two checks both revealing Grade 3s.

"Um hellooooooo?" a voice said directly in his ear. The boy came back and realized he was still on the phone. "Oh, ah, my bad. I was uhh..." he started to explain but he was halted from doing so. "I know, I just was watching these two players fight. It was getting to the good part too!" he said while he backed away from the fight and proceeded to the center of the plaza. Lined with many booths of merchandise and food being cooked at others, nothing escaped his sight. "I mean, I'm just looking to have a good time is all. I feel this is needed after everything that's been going on." He continued to walk until something pierced through the sun above him, casting a shadow over him. It was as though he stepped into another dimension, while he was looking around for something. He looked up and saw a statue while holding the phone in his ear again. He stared at it calmly until he got lost in it's form that looked, familiar. He couldn't remember what it was or what it was supposed to be, but his mind and his senses went blank as though the statue was drawing them in like a vacuum.

"HELLO?!" the loud screech woke him up and nearly dropped the phone, startling him. "I..I-.. yeah, sorry." he turn his back on the statue and walked away, aiming his head back and forth while continuing his conversation on the phone. "Don't worry! I'll be fine!" he said as he continued to search frantically for something. Finally his head stopped moving and his purple eyes lit up as he saw a booth saying "Registration". He smirked and skipped over confidently. "Look, I appreciate your concern but..." he said while grabbing a piece of paper and a pen, while pressing the phone with his shoulder close to his ear with his head aimed down so he read the papers. He twirled his pen repeatedly like it was a compass before holding it and write down his name.

"Jellal Kisaragi"

"I understand that you're worried but everything will be fine.
It's a tournament, after all." Jellal said as he gave the pen back and tore apart the front sheet and handed it to the desk attendant.

"Um, sir! Don't forget to keep those sheets." Jellal gave him a thumbs up, confirming he heard his instructions. He unzipped his bag, putting the remaining sheets in his backpack before carrying it back on his back.

"I haven't seen any familiar faces yet so... looks like I'm all alone in this party." He sarcastically remarked. "But I'll be fine, I know I will. You don't have to come and baby sit me. It'd be weird of my younger cousin to have to watch me, an adult. Just stay home." He paused to listen while looking back at the number of people who were gathered. "All of these people are here for Vanguard." he said while smiling. "If only you could see..."

"Huh? See what?" the person on the phone said.

"The people." he responded. "If you could only see the number of people gathered, that'd be the reason why I'd want you to come."

"Huh? You're weird and I'm hanging up. Don't get into trouble Jellal."

"I won't, Mitsuki. Laters." he said hanging up the phone. "Yeesh, I go on my own and I'm still nagged to death.
How annoying of a cousin, this girl." Jellal stood tall with his black and blonde hair growing longer. Wearing a black uniform similar to his original school attire. "Ah well, I suppose that's what family is I guess... annoying but caring." he said aloud before closing his eyes and continued to walk around the plaza.

"I mean, maybe people just figure that you always find yourself into a situation." a snappy response in a smug tone.

"I can take care of myself! It's just you and everyone else tends to get in my way." Jellal snapped back at... nobody?

"Yeah, if you could take care of yourself: you'd be weighing three times the amount you are now. Could probably anchor your entire cruise with that kind of weight from all of eating."

"Oh hush it Blaster Dark."

"Hehe... I'm looking forward to this tournament though. A lot of people meaning a lot of competitions and players fighting."

"Yeah, finally a break to just play and relax, y'know? It's going to be awesome, I can tell." The look on his face to his body's posture to the tone of his voice. He was driven by his determination to show what he could do. He wasn't in it for the fame, for the prize, for the money, for the recognition, for rankings, nothing. He was in it for himself to see how far he could go and for the thrill of the competition, which boiled his blood.

"They really picked a good spot to host this tournament and the number of sponsors. You'd think this was a vacation spot. Even the decor is nice and creative. Even this giant statue, it's odd but feels fitting. Ah, hmmm." Jellal continued to smirk as Blaster Dark talked until he mentioned the statue and then he remembered.

"Yeah this statue... doesn't it feel... familiar?" Jellal pointed out to his avatar.

"You? Familiar? After losing your memory for a bit? I think you'd be the last person to be asking that."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"C'mon, we both know that you can barely remember if you had pizza or burger in the last two hours. I don't take your recollections seriously."

"Okay, first off! It was between a pepperoni pizza and a mushroom pizza. Second of all, don't ignore my question!"

"Right, and that has about of a difference between 'fatass' and 'fat ass'. Though now that you mention it, yeah it does look familiar. I can't exactly put my finger on it. It's supposed to be a unit but it.. hm. Doesn't look like anything I remember."

"One of the heroes of Vanguard, Blaster Dark, can't remember all of the units he fought in his battles? Oh my, oh my!"

"No, shut up. If I had forgotten, I'd blame all of the dumb stuff I have to remember in your place. Further more, I do remember all of the units that I fight against, especially if it'd look like that. That's not something I'd easily forget, Jellal. It's just... hmmm... damnit! It bothers me that I can't remember it but, ehh.. I'll figure it out later or something."

"A unit that even you don't remember. Maybe it's a new unit,
but... why would it feel familiar to us then? Ah well. It's not why we're here. Let's go!"

"Wait."

"What is it now?"

"I thought Mitsuki was your sister? You called her your cousin just now right?"

"Yeah she's my cousin. Not my sister."

"But why did she call you her brother a long time ago, and you both have the same last name?" Blaster Dark continued to press for answers.

"Because... I... don't know...?" The pair was at a stalemate filled with an awkward silence until Jellal spoke up again. "I'm going to get some food before I check into the hotel."

"Fatass."

"Welcome, welcome!" The residents and locals of Isle Jigen clapped and waved, showering their honored guests with confetti. They were almost Hawaiian-themed in how they dressed and nearly Jamaican in accent. All of this was orchestrated and led by the friendly neighborhood Buddhist: Zahvi. A large, dark skinned fellow who never seemed to ever open his eyes. Still, like the rest of his people, he never stopped smiling. Along with the local cheer and pep, the visiting officials of the Association and sponsors stood at the registration desks. Specifically, one of the three Generation Rare Idols: FUKI had personally registered the hyper Mirai after other names. Everyone wore an inviting smile, and Bashiro found himself focused on one thing.

A luscious pair of melons tightly contained within a grey uniform.

He wasn't sure if there was a merciful God out there. One beyond the Messiah, one beyond the Death God, one beyond others... but he knew. He knew there must've been a God who understood the necessity of being a man... All these years and the brawler had hardly changed one bit, even going back on his promise to quit drinking now that everything was normal once more. What had changed, however, was someone he knew had obviously blossomed - or rather, inflated - in all the right places in some years. The man clutched his fists, his uncovered eyes set on the future before him as he walked toward the beauty's desk with resolve. Oh how gorgeous she was, and if only she was blonde! It was the cool, blue-haired wonder from the announcement of the Messiah Scramble. Despite her aesthetic being plenty of dark shades, she radiated like the sun of his dreams. Short, well-groomed hair with a pretty white ribbon to go with her mystifying, yet near-colorless sky blue irises. And that was only her face, structured with perfect, soft roundness like the bubbles floating at her torso. She was modestly dressed, her lower body covered well by long, black leggings, but that didn't impede his ogling of her shapely thighs or heavenly hips. As if God himself carved this woman's flawless curves, going upward to her grey, buttoned uniform back to... back to...

They exchanged glances.

She noticed his gawking.

-

"Jessie!!" A chipper, feminine and almost childlike voice called for. The now-brunette Hakaisha who took in the sights of the plaza - keeping track of the family pet all the while - turned to see one of his best friends: Aoi Undyne. A remarkable True Hero who appeared like a shooting star in the lives of some. Jessie - who's voice sounded a lot more sharp in tone as he went through the reach of his adolescent years greeted her with pleasant surprise. Aoi nearly tackled him with a hug and further nearly squeezed all the air out of him. The kids had an exciting trip here, even if it was separate. Jessie and Bashiro had been informed of the event and looking forward to it since the announcement, though for obviously different reasons. His scummy brother said he wanted to see the redheaded vixen on stage and the bluenette who talked to them all up close, while the younger actually wanted to see everyone else again, having a good feeling they'd all be invited. Of course, Tamotsu wouldn't let them go on without him, the young pup giving clear signs of knowing they were going somewhere soon. But the brothers decided to try and make it fun with surprising him, packing without letting him see them pack a few things for him as well. When they would get to tell him he can come along, he was sure to be happy... but Tamotsu took matters into his own paws and had held one of their suitcases hostage, refusing to move from the top of it. So they broke the surprise early, and brought him along.

Aoi on the other hand had been ripping through the Chinese circuit, defending her title as the Chinese Champion with a new air about her even the masters at home couldn't comprehend. It was refreshing and vibrant, as she and her fights were filled with energy. Especially since she juggled two decks of Aqua Force, showcasing her extreme mastery picked up in Japan. Ripple and Blue Storm... Knowing that she was one of the world's best, the association did not hesitate in inviting her to the grand event. The masters felt one thing and it was that it was time for Aoi to soar of her own volition. "Go to Japan, this time to stay and fully flesh out what Vanguard means to you, young Undyne the Undying."

The aftermath of the Reaper Invasion had been hard to get over, conflicted with great relief while still gripping onto the despair it left embedded in the hearts of those who remembered. Yet... Aoi, one most affected by the evil old gods wore a neverending smile that filled hearts with light. Today, she's here at Jigen Isle to provide the same... at least, that was her plan until she had to take two planes to get to Japan, then a bus to get to Mt. Fuji and the island.

She's beat, believe it or not.

"And Fuwatan too!" But you wouldn't believe it through her tone of voice, sounding full of energy as she called the energetic pup by her preferred nickname for him.

"So how have-" Jessie began to try catching up with his friend while she held her arms out for the hyper puppy, but two consecutive crashing noises were heard.

It was the sound of someone flying right in front of a registration desk, surprising some of the officials, while another was sent flying from a desk for different reasons.

-

"Ara ara, it's Kachi~?" A sickeningly sweet voice called out to the cloaked man by the six-winged dragon statue. Though, it sounded much more seductive with the charm of a wily minx. The green-haired, reformed-through-rebah Chrisaline "Chris" Egao made herself known to her 'fellow' of sorts. With her was the blonde jock of razor-sharp shark-teeth and the redhead he was looking for: the God of the Sun - Solis Guren'ou. The ginger's colorless eyes were noted as the locals whispered behind his back, thinking him to fit the stereotype of "soulless gingers". While Solis wouldn't admit it vocally, it did actually annoy him.

But they'd never say it to his face. Solis was one of the fighters that emitted a pressure by simply being there. His presence alone felt as powerful as it was in the war of years' past.

"Sorry we're late, friend." Solis greeted his comrade with kindness through an apologetic smile.

-

Tomozo and Koga had been laughing up a storm for a solid three minutes now.

Bashiro was on the ground, steam emitting from his body after having skid across the terrain as the bluenette's foot let him meet a few yards of pavement.

"Pervert! Don't keep staring at me!" The woman shouted, her soft tone intact but it was deepened slightly by the fury she felt boiling.

"So this is it, huh... What the Pearly Gates look like... I'm glad... I'm alive."

He's never going to learn.

Something caught hold of the young pup's attention. The figure of a woman. An equally if not more energetic being than even himself. His nose twitched a bit as he sniffed the air while as she drew closer. It was Aoi who had given Jessie a tackle that would give Tamotsu a run for his money. Her call "Fuwatan" came and with it his ears and tail picked up as he ran to the girl with all the energy he could. Aoi was the only one who could call him that and get any sort of reaction out of him. It was as if the animal had acknowledged the nickname but only so far as the Gumball was the one to use it. The dog jumped into her open arms and started wiggling around trying to snuggle every part of the girl, whining all the while. Before he could get to licking at her face two loud noises interupted the reunion. The canine's ears twitched in the direction of the noises and he poked out from around Aoi to see if he couldn't figure out what had happened. But that only lasted a moment as the puppy returned to greeting his good friend. A new place with new smells but with familiar friends was the height of excitement for the young spirit.

-----

Kachidoki had been admiring the statue of the dragon when a female's voice caught his attention. Turning to the source the man was soon face to face with Chris, Gastor and Solis. All of them were former allies of sorts with him as servants of the Reapers. But despite them all recalling their time together those things had not technically happened in this new world of theirs. The thought of this future existing was enough to depress the man's mood however the welcome from his friend was strong enough to override it.

"It has been some time hasn't it?" he said calmly after loosing the head covering and lowering the cloak below his mouth to reveal his face fully. He shook his friend's hand and felt the usual fire of the Overlord radiating out from the warrior's body. Whatever he was carrying on his back shifted some as he did so but stayed within the confines of his traveling cloak. "My apologies for not keeping in touch more often. I must say though I'm impressed to see so many of us back in one place together. It seems oddly nostalgic." he said, seemingly happy to see the other ex-drones. They were all the closest things he had to friends or family in this world.

Neo left the Hotel and headed towards the resort area to register himself for the Messiah Scramble tournament. He was filled with so much energy and passion, something he didn't have all of those years ago. Which is something "someone" took notice of:

"I haven't seen you this excited in a very long time. This is the Neo I like to see!" Blitzkrieg told him

Yeah well I have all the reasons to be! I cant wait to play in this tournament and too see everyone again! Its just been so long and I kind of just.. walked out on everyone all those years ago so it should be fun reuniting with everyone" Neo replied

Neo finally made it to the desk and registered himself for the tournament. After he was done he took in the wonderful scene that was in front of him. It seemed that nothing could go wrong. Then in the corner of his eye he noticed someone he knew and couldn't believe it. So Neo walked up to him and gave the person a pat on the back.

"Is that the one and only Jellal Kisaragi?! Long time no see!" Neo said with excitement seeing one of his old mates again.

Inside a plane, going as fast as it could to a widely known island, a young man was looking at the sea through the window. Everything happened so suddenly, so he had trouble recalling the chain of events that got him there: The actual Vanguard King of Europe, Cero Kirugis, invited him ('Forced him' is a better term) to participate at the new Messiah Scramble event, that was about to take place on Isle Jigen. Even though he was looking forward to meet again with his old friends, he wasn't really feeling anything else at the moment.

Alongside him, the King brought with him two more guests, but he was way to shy to stablish a conversation with them. The young man remembered his little bit of history with Cero, as he helped him in the past and, in return, the King allowed him to train with him to improve his lacking Vanguard skills. But suddenly... He stopped. He decided to leave the game, rendering all his training and effort useless. At the plane, the young man turned his attention advertisement for the Messiah Scramble, the greatest event in card game history, that was finishing his ninth repetition. The sight of the idol group Generation Rare singing, dancing and having a good time in general (Specially Koga and, even more specially, Fuki, the love of his life) drew an honest smile on his tired-looking face, giving him hopes for a reunion with the woman he fell in love with.

The name of that young man is Carlos Estevez, a rookie cardfighter that fought alongside the Resistance against the eldritch Deletors and their Drones during the Repaer Invasion, the greatest war that only a selected few, including him, managed to remember. In the past, he was a happy and somewhat of an avid player of the most popular (and influential) card game of all time - Cardfight Vanguard. But nowadays, he decided to distance himself from the game as much as possible. The reality and severity of the things he felt and witnessed during the cruel fight that he and his companions waged against the invaders took him quite some time to finally hit him. And when it did, it was very, very hard.

Once the plane was near to the island, Cero got up from his seat and told Carlos and the other passengers "I'll see you on the ground", and... Jumped from the back of the plane without a parachute. "You know... I kinda missed this" He thought, not amused in the slightest at such display of recklessness. The plane then landed properly, allowing the rest of the passengers to exit the plane in a normal way. Carlos, thinking about the commotion caused by the Cero's landing, took his belongings and made his way to the Resort Area of Isle Jigen along with the rest of the passengers. Everyone took separate ways, and he found himself at the center of the Plaza, admiring the beauty of the island was and how nice the locals seemed to be with everyone.

However, no matter how cheerful his surroundings were, Carlos couldn't stop thinking that every single one of the locals and tourist actually died once. It was by no means a happy thought, but he simply couldn't stop himself from doing that. In the end, he found himself at the entrance of the registration area, wondering if he could find someone he knew there. It was a matter of time before he recognized someone. "H-Hey... Isn't that Bashiro?" He said while following the familiar-looking brawler. He was welcomed, along with the rest of the tourist, with the clapping and waving of the residents of Isle Jigen, led by a dark-skinned happy-looking person.

At the registration desk, he found a lot of familiar people: Yuk- "Yukino?" He thought. "That's the woman in the advertisement of the Messiah Scramble! I mean, I knew there was something familiar about her, and she's kinda giving the same vibe as Yukino, but she looks completely different. Actually, I think I can pinpoint two, eh, huge differences". Anyway, Yukino, the fearless leader of the Resistance whose sudden change in appareance shocked him; Koga, a green-haired rude but lovable brat; Tomozo, an unresolved plot point (At least for him); and... Fuki. Slowly, he advanced to the desk with the intention to at least say hello to Yukino and the sisters, but a sudden smackdown to Bashiro coming from Yukino stopped him. It was kinda obvious that he was... Doing something inappropiate. "B-Bashiro!" He said running to his side and checking on him while he contained his urge to laugh at him. "M-My god... A-Are you ok?".

Say Hello to Bogey

Isle Jigen. A crisp and clean, yet artificial paradise. Even with his years and years of exposure to various forms of the urban jungle, and despite having once yearned to be a part of the big city bustling life, Satoshi Kurosaki had acquired some disdain for that which was devoid of raw, natural beauty. How this place could function as a haven for any of humanity, he had no idea. But he also cared not to know, leaning against a wall of the building overlooking the beach and the ocean. A lit, carefully-wrapped joint sat in his mouth as he gazed out over the shimmering water. At the very least, the caretakers knew not to ruin the blue brine with pollution.

Satoshi took a puff, then blew out a bit of smoke that was small, yet bearing an intense stench. This was something that normally, from what he understood of various world cultures, would get him arrested in public, but this particular private setting had been paid off to allow for some mildly..."inappropriate" behaviors. And it wasn't like he was trying to bother anyone with it, anyway. He only smoked parts of his cultivated weed stash when he was deep in reflection, and this was certainly a time when he needed to.

Why was he here? He had no plans on entering, or even sponsoring the event. If anything, he was much more content with meditating and avoiding competition these days, simply to cultivate and develop his already expansive view of the Neo Nectar side of the Zoo nation. It's also not like he had anyone to root for, or that he cared to root for, anyhow. Most of his contact, much like the time where he struggled emotionally in the past, had been rather limited, outside of a select few people, whom he tended to only interact with via text or email every so often.

No, Satoshi was here on a whim, invitation aside. A strange sense of...mystique? Dread? He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but something compelled him to, at the very least, spectate, and potentially encounter events that could change history.

Change history? Alright, maybe he had smoked a little too much.

---

Lisse couldn't sit still, much as she wanted to. All signed up for the tournament, and there were so many contenders, some of which seemed to be a little familiar...but she wasn't really the type to approach them first, unfortunately. She sat at a small table, picking through her deck and making sure she had what she wanted all prepared. She and White Witches were going to come through in a strong way. At least, that was what she was hoping.

Setting her cards down for a moment, she twirled her hair a bit. Whenever this started would be better sooner rather than later, before she had a mini heart attack due to the anticipation. It's a lot easier to relax when you're not competing, but her nature drove her to be involved as much as she could, to show she could be up there with the big boys...or girls. Whoever was good here, probably. Honestly, she couldn't remember distinctly who was prominent and who wasn't, only guessing more by their attire their talent.

And, of course, that would possibly lead to some bad reads.

---

"Yes, ma'am, I'm entering with my Silver Thorns. I promise you, the show will simply be spectacular~"

A man in a full tux and top hat gave a bow at the front counter, finishing his registration with a flourish. Of course, it was likely impressing no one, but he didn't care. Had to stay in character, after all. Sabaki Hosei replaced his top hat, and walked off to get coffee, strutting forth with a fancy cane. He had to look as expensive as possible for his run, so that perhaps he could get the right information he was looking for.

In truth, Sabaki hated this particular facade. Tuxes were uncomfortable as all hell, and the hat clashed extensively with his shorter, spiky hair. He much preferred wifebeaters in the summer and turtlenecks in the winter, like most other intelligent men who pursued comfort over gaudiness. The things you do when you're on a self-imposed mission...

Requesting a regular black coffee, he gazed out at the various people inside of the venue, leaning back against the counter from which he ordered. So many of them had no idea how they were going to be conned this time around, win or lose. For the shady man's only aim was quite simple:

Find a way, whether in bracket or otherwise, to pick the brain of one Chrisaline Egao.

Cero's glorious landing plan was almost going to fail... He had misjudged the location of the registration desk, though by significantly less than one would have expected considering he jumped with absolutely no knowledge of its location and was far too high up to be able to see it from the plane. It seemed at least some degree of luck was on the Kaiser's side, or against it, as instead of simply getting to land at an imperfect location, as he approached the ground he felt a sudden surge of heat behind him before a foot was applied to his back. There was only one thing this could mean: Cero had just been furiously dropkicked by Karin.

Cero rocketed towards the desk with a drastic increase in speed, people screaming and diving out of the way as he slammed into the ground and slid through the tiled ground, shattering a significant amount of it, before coming to a stop right at the registry thankfully doing no damage to it. Cero raised one of his arms and put it in the registry and dragged himself off the ground.

"I'd like to register," he said, apparently completely fine other than now being covered in dust and debris. It took him a moment to realize that the person at the desk he was talking to was Yukino. Her appearance had drastically changed, to the point where in the advertisement he couldn't even tell it was her, but in person, there was no mistake. Without a doubt, this woman was his rival. His facial expression changed to one of complete and utter shock, even though he himself and gone through some drastic changes. His muscle mass had greatly increased, and his hair was shorter and perhaps somewhat messier, as though there was a permanent electrical current running through it, and his features seemed significantly more defined. He had a new jacket as well, but it had fallen off in his descent, landing somewhere else on the island. Someone else would probably find it. Eventually.

The Kaiser shook his head, clearing his mind to focus on the event. He raised his hand and dramatically pointed at his rival, "I expect to see you on the battlefield! Brackets permit, we shall face off in the finals," he shouted, loud as usual. By his voice, it seemed he had no doubt in his mind that he would be one of the cardfighters to reach the finals, but whether or not his confidence was justified remained to be seen.

---

Elsewhere, from the plane carrying those who accompanied Cero emerged a new face to the scene outside of Europe. The Champion of Italy, Cassiano Fellini. Servants from the hotel approached to take Cassiano and Cero's luggage to their hotel rooms, as well as guide the young Asuka to her personal hotel room. Why did Cero let a 10 year old have her own hotel room with no supervision? Nobody knows.

Cassiano headed straight towards the registry, determination in his step, which was swiftly stopped by a sight out of the corner of his eye. A beautiful woman, with some others accompanying her but the tunnel vision had already set in, causing him to miss the far fairer prize behind the man he claimed to be the rival of. He moved towards Chris with... something some people might refer to as "swagger." Other people might refer to is as "trying too hard to look cool."

"Excuse me, signora, I couldn't help but notice your beauty. Never in my life have I seen a woman with such beautiful hair, green like the most beautiful field of grass, eyes glittering like emeralds..." He attempted to move in closer to Chris and take her hands, "My name is Cassiano Fellini, Champion of Italy, and rival to the King. Tell me, bellissimo, what is your name?"

--

Fubuki entered the plaza for registration just in time to watch a rocket crash into it and Bashiro to fly halfway across it in the opposite direction at almost the same time. She breathed a heavy sigh and brought her palm to her face. It had been years since the end of the Reaper Invasion, and it seemed the people she met during it were exactly the same as they always were. The silver-haired girl took a moment to look around the plaza to see where Aoi was, and walked towards her friend. Bashiro's final resting place was conveniently on the way so she took the opportunity to deliver him her own kick to the ribs, as she knew that whatever it is he had done to be put in this situation, he deserved it.

Once she was past the man who had been helping her hone her combat abilities the past couple of years, she smiled at her friend... only to realize that the attention of her friend was too focused on a dog at the moment. So Fubuki just kind of stood there awkwardly for a moment, unsure of what to do. This is why she had wanted to meet Aoi when she was getting off her bus... Getting her attention now would be borderline impossible.

With another sigh she turned to look for someone else she could talk to in the mean time, only to see that Chris was surrounded by boys at the moment, with one in particular seeming very... interested. Fubuki decided that it wasn't going to be worth getting involved in that either. Once again, Fubuki sighed. It seemed that getting to interact with either of her friends was an impossibility for the moment, so she awkwardly moved herself to the side of the plaza to see if there were any food or drink stalls while she waited for a better moment to interact with someone.

Karin let out a small sigh. She'd caused a massive scene, but no one had seen her in her armor, and Cero was notorious for pulling stunts like these anyways, so there was little harm done in the end. At the very least, she wouldn't have to stick around to chat with Cero, given that he seemed to be in a rare good mood, and she could talk with Yukino later. Jumping from the beach to the had left her with the beginnings of a headache, so she figured she'd head back to the hotel and see about getting a drink or two- not that she could actually get drunk, seeing as alcohol burned up inside her body within seconds. But it was better than hanging around here, Karin thought, and she needed to go back to her room anyways...

...She'd left her day clothes back on the beach, meaning she was stuck in her two-piece swimsuit until she went back to pick them up again.

"Oh well", she grumbled to herself, and made her way to the hotel's cafe.

Yukino stared, bewildered by the absolute nonsense going on before her. The event hadn't even started, but she's certain she now hates Narukami players. Something about these two idiots in particular always rubbed her in a kind of way that left nothing but a black hole of annoyance. In fact, it was so grating, she couldn't even respond to Cero for a moment. Fuki only raised her hand, opening her mouth: "I regret to inform you, but she's not participating in the Messiah Scramble, she's only hosting it." Fuki did a good job of trying to handle what Yukino couldn't, like a good secretary. Though, Yukino only groaned, knowing she was stuck with these shenanigans for a week.

And for Bashiro - who had just gotten kicked again by his cute protege - felt the realization sink in.

Not only was the bluenette Yukino, but he just flirted with the wife of one of his friends.

...

Gods don't have mercy on the sleazy.

"Wait, really?" Bashiro grunted before getting up and asking. He could tell by the fact that Cero recognized her with such a front and declaration... it was the leader. The woman who led them against turmoil in the Legendary Era standing right in front of him. Because of her and Cero... he became motivated toward things he didn't even think about. These two progressed him as a human being... He took a moment to regain his composure and take in the serenity of that fact. This was truly a reunion - the two towers that changed his life forever were here again. His friends were around the place with others still coming in. It was simply a concept he didn't think about, but... he missed his friends. "It's really... like that. The hell happened to your look?" Bashiro got over his initial shock to ask the obvious. "You get implants?"

"... Yes, Bashiro. I'm the type of person who wastes money on pointless things like implants." Yukino answered sarcastically, squinting her eyes with clear irritation.

"Okay, it's definitely Yukino."

"Really? You don't say?"

"Well, I wasn't entirely convinced! Maybe if you let me cop a feel, I'd remember."

"I'm calling Haruka-"

"wAIT WAIT WAIT HOLD ON" Bashiro hollered as Yukino quickly raised her phone.

"I suppose I'll just pen you both in for Narukami..." Yukino sighed.

Fuki gave the appearing Carlos a smile and a wave, seeing as Bashiro had completely ignored him for the pretty woman in front of him instead. The blonde offered to pen him in along with others coming along in the scene.

-

"What the hell was that? I'm gonna go check on it. Bashiro probably got himself in trouble, as usual." Jessie stated with sweat running down his temple. His expression told a story and that story included many of the brawler's antics getting him smacked down or worse. Leaving Tamotsu to Aoi, the brunette rushed off while the gumball held Fuwatan in her arms, keeping him close to her chest as she gazed about the beautiful scenery. What she found more delightful than anything was the energy in the air. Everyone was active for their own reasons - everyone was alive. Times have changed beyond the critical era of despair and conflict... it lit up her heart. Though, Aoi noticed one of the very people she was hoping relished in the new, peaceful and sunny days. Her best friend: Kaiyo Fubuki was on the scene.

"Fubupls!" Aoi called her by a dumb nickname she used before, rushing with Fuwatan in arms.

-

Chrisaline was... much more of a woman than before. Not just her tone, her figure had matured into that of a sultry temptress. However the body worked, men and women alike wanted to know as her growing hair and teasing licks of her ruby lips frustrated them with the secret. Chris' bodacious form not only came with becoming naturally busty, but her hips and thighs were forces to be reckoned with. As if blessed by the goddesses of fertility in Zoo, they swayed about hypnotically. Her new wardrobe consisting of mostly short skirts wasn't helping her case at all. So, of course someone - namely Cassiano - would approach her trying to play it cool - be smooth - get her number. And boy did she have some quips. Her expression had surprise on it, but her heart had a mountain's worth of snark to spit out. Rival to who? Champion? Never heard of him. And he's trying way too hard to flaunt his non-existent swag.

Alas, the boys wouldn't let it be.

While the relationships between the Reaper Drones as a whole group - especially nowadays post-war - were unknown, Solis and Gastor radiated with... protective hostility.

"Hey, hey, hey. You wanna talk to her, buddy? Talk to me first." Gastor's sharp tone cut in, interrupting Chris as he and Solis took a step forward. The blonde held his hands in pocket while Solis kept his arms folded.

"Oh my." Chris blushed with a little mischievous giggle.

Off in the distance coming from a food vendor, Jellal proceeded to stuff his face with chocolate bar chunks from a pack. Blaster Dark appeared to the left side of Jellal looking over his master and partner, shaking his head in utter disappointment.

"If you're going to eat like a pig, at least get something healthy." The dark knight urged as his partner turned his head towards him while licking his face and fingers of the sweet residue.

"I don't see what's the problem! I don't gain weight: why're you making this a big deal? Shouldn't you be telling me to focus on tournament?"

"The tournament I leave to you since it goes without saying I am fully confident in your ability as a fighter. I'm just looking after you as far as hygiene and well being. That's what bonds make people do."

"I know, Blaster Dark." Jellal said softly with a smile. Hearing those words come from Blaster Dark meant a lot to him considering the time they've spent together, ever since the beginning. "I know that feeling very well since back before, I used to look out for someone in the same way you're doing now."

"Someone?" Blaster Dark leaned.

"Yeah, an important friend. You should remember him considering he played your clan before I picked you up."

"You don't mean..." Before Blaster Dark could finish. Jellal and he turned to the sound a familiar voice calling over towards them. "Seems someone recognizes you." They waited to see a Neo Isamu waving as he approached Jellal.

"It's Neo. Neo Isamu."

"Surprised to see a friend?" Blaster Dark whispered.

"I wasn't expecting to see anyone, to be perfectly honest.
Not that I didn't want to see them, but." Jellal finished with a shrug until Neo finally approached.

"I guess it'd make sense for him to be here since he is super passionate about Vanguard and whatnot. Who knows, maybe we'll face off in the tournament perhaps?"

Tamotsu watched Jessie as he walked off but was content to stay with Aoi who had scooped him up. He wasn't exactly small but she seemed plenty capable of the task. He barked excitedly as the girl called out to her friend Fubuki. The dog himself didn't know the girl very well but Aoi seemed to like her and that was enough for her. Once they had approached, the canine would sniff at Fubuki curiously while happily being carried by his friend. New friends were always fun. He could even lick this one if she ever brought her hands close enough.

-----

The conversation with the other ex-drones had scarcely progressed when there was a disturbance. Kachidoki had switched into a dangerously serious mode. There was a look in his eye like he was about to kill a man with his stare alone. The approach of the flirtatious man aroused suspicion and sure enough he attempted to speak to Chris. A disgusting show of superficial attraction if ever there was one. All at once the man's cloak flew backwards with his long purple hair, revealing the clothes he was wearing but much more importantly a pair of katanas he was carrying across his back.

With one motion his right hand grasped hold of one of the blades and swiftly drew it placing the tip of the amazingly white steel at Cassiano's chest. This he did with a precision that kept him out of Solis and Gastor's ways who were both stepping up to defend their friend. "I will ask you only once to consider how much you value your heart and lungs before you continue to dishonor our friend with your sickening display." came the probably far too serious words for the situation. He held no strong attachment to Chris he thought, and yet he could not stand for any sort of threat to her. Perhaps a passing stranger commenting on her beauty wasn't the worst thing that could happen to a girl but it wasn't to be tolerated regardless.

As soon as he tried to check on his recently knocked down friend, an human rocket appeared from nowhere, crashing into the ground and sliding into the front desk, knocking Bashiro aside. To no one's surprise, the human projectile was none other than Cero. "For the love of..." Carlos thought, somewhat happy that he at least was there to see the commotion created by the king. As if nothing happened, he stood up and declared that he wanted to register himself. It took him a moment, but in the end he recognized that the changed blue-haired woman with those two huge developments was none other that Yukino.

An interesting and relatively unknown rivalry (Again, at least to him) flared up within the King as he declared his intentions to face her at the Messiah Scramble, maybe even in the finals. Yukino, who was visibly irritated at both Bashiro and Cero antics, was about to burst in flames and respond to them accordingly, but Fuki was quick to calm things down and point that this time the previous fearless leader wasnt participating at the event. While Bashiro, who somewhat quickly recovered, was trying to stablish some sort of conversation with the blue-haired woman, Carlos noticed how Fuki smiled and waved at him. Given that Bashiro basically ignored him for Yukino (He couldn't blame him, though), that was just what he needed at the moment. He was going to say hello to Yukino too, but he felt it wasn't a

"Hey Koga. Yukino. Eh, Tomozo? Long time no see" He saluted the people he knew at the front desk. "H-Hey Fuki..." He said to the blonde girl rather nervously walking towards her. "It's b-been a long time. I'm glad to see you, Koga and, eh, Tomozo doing so well after all this time". He noticed how she offered to register him at the event, but he quickly corrected her. "O-Oh, no no. Excuse me, but I'm not going to participate. I'm here because, eh, someone invited me" He said averting his eyes. "This t-time, I'll be just another spectator".

"Out of everyone in the world, there's very few people that I tell myself I owe a debt too. One of those people is Jellal Kisaragi who saved me when I wasn't in my right frame of mind many many years ago. Seeing him was actually a refreshing site to be honest after everything we have both been through. But the setting is very much different then past times. The world isn't in danger and neither of us are losing our minds. Just a peaceful setting with a tournament soon to come."

Oh I remember him. You saved his life once didnt you? - Vermillion said

Thats right. And he has saved mine once as well. We are pretty good friends - I said to Vermillion

"I wasnt surprised to see Jellal here quite honestly. I know that he has the skill to go far in the Messiah Scramble. To be honest I want to fight him in this tournament. We still haven't had a proper cardfight after all this time and this tournament would be the perfect place for it to happen. You know im surprised he didn't react to something. But then again I dont think many people would since its happened so long ago."

"You look like your in good spirits Jellal. Great to see. I hope your ready for this tournament! And I wish for us to fight in this tournament! So be ready!" - Neo said with passion and energy!

"We'll finish our discussion later Blaster Dark." Jellal said while waving at Neo. He hadn't seen him in two years, but that's to be expected since Jellal hadn't seen anyone in a long time. Still, it was... refreshing to see someone call out to him.

"Nice to see you too." The dark blonde said. "Yeah I'm excited to be here since many people here are looking like they're enjoying themselves, which also means strong competitors." The thought of fighting Neo reminded Jellal of their first, last, and only fight: Maelstrom vs Vermillion. Jellal observed that Neo has grown a lot and has been treating himself well. "Got a new uhhh hair do, I see...haha." Jellal said while pointing at Neo's rather bright white hair, looking one of the kids from the Village of the Damned.

"What're you up to for the rest of the day?"

xat watched haruto go and frowned at his words, before she gripped her head and falling to her knees as she rembeers a boy and a spirit training. ”haruto....” was all she said before shaking her head and standing up and facing her guide. ”sorry about that, but that boy he seems familar.” she said to him before exsplaning more. ”could he be someone i knew before i became ruler of the spirit plan?” she asked him however at his question she looked a t him. ”you ok?” kao asked him

Im actually not sure. I was going to walk around and see who else is here but other then that I dont have anything planned. Probably just go back to the Hotel and chill in my room. I am a bit tired and all - Neo replied

Neo was actually urging to cardfight but he didn't and couldnt fight Jellal. He didn't want to reveal any new tricks he had for the tournament. So he had to contain his excitement for now

"Ah!" Jellal said after hearing what Neo had planned for the day.

"Hm.. I wouldn't mind to hang out and catch up with him, see if anyone else is around but...,
I should really get checked into my room." he thought to himself before he decided to roll with it.

"Yeah, I plan to check in my room and rest up a bit and prepare for the tournament. If anything, if you want to hang out just uhh...,
uhh.., ah!" Jellal reached into his back and tore off a piece of paper and wrote his number down on it and handed it to Neo. "If you want, just hit me up. Whether it's to meet up or to cardfight, anything really, haha." Jellal felt pressed for time, but for a different reason, and such ended his reunion with Neo Isamu. "It was nice to see you once more. And again, it's really nice to see a familiar face. Hope to see you in the ring to finish our fight!"

Jellal bolted off into the crowd, and continued to pace fast.

"You're excited to see a friend but you didn't wish to hang out with him?" Blaster Dark appeared staring down at Jellal who was rather... nervous, almost bothered. "Is something wrong?"

"Uhh...it's not-"

"Before you say 'it's nothing' I'd like to remind you, I know when you're lying." Blaster Dark declared. Jellal looked down placing his hands on his bag straps. For a moment he was silent before he looked at Blaster Dark's eyes with his own.

"I'll... explain it when we get to the room. For now, I just want to be on my own for a bit."

Neo took the paper with Jellal's number on it and watched as Jellal walked back to the Hotel.

I guess he was in a hurry to go back to his room. I hope he is ok Neo said

Neo decided to do the same thing. He started headed back to the Hotel to see what was going on.

"Hey, kid." Tomozo called to Carlos, a hint of irritation in her voice as she held up her hand, rubbing her middle finger and thumb together as she gave a hostile glare. "My name isn't 'Eh, Tomozo', it's Tomozo. To-mo-zo. Like a tomato, not a tomaato. You get me or do I have to get it through your thick skull-" Koga cut off her older sister by stepping on her foot. "Ah! Shit! Ow! Fuck!" Tomozo hollered swears as she bounced about, getting a hold of her foot as she hopped to a seat and nursed her stomped-on foot.

"Waddup, brat." Koga sounded almost thug-like in her greeting, still keeping her quirk of calling people brats.

"You're not participating? That's a shame, Carlos. I would've enjoyed watching you play. It's good to see you regardless." Fuki spoke with a close-kindness to the simple soul. Carlos had poured a lot of emotion into the sisters during the Reaper Invasion, and the blonde hasn't forgotten his sentiment - keeping it in her heart throughout these years as they started over.

Meanwhile, Jessie had finally arrived to ask what the hell went on here, but saw the bodacious bluenette and the idols on the scene, along with Cero here. Almost... like magic, the young, cynical Hakaisha figured out the stupidity that had gone down here. It sure caused a commotion but it also filled the air with more excitement. Maybe it was a good thing Cero and Bashiro don't really think.

And just arriving was the brown-haired gent escorting Xat and Kao to the registration booth. At the same time, a man in royal garbs and a crown waltzed out of the main building of the tournament area. Most people who saw him had to do a double-take. This person... literally wore a crown upon his person, blonde hair meshing perfectly with it and his glided, golden trimmed white armor. His long, fur-collared cape draped at his back fluttered in the strong gales of the coming winds, the metal he wore shining and glistening in the brilliance of the sun. It almost felt as if trumpets sounded his arrival, and the image of a red carpet had rolled out for him to walk upon. His blue eyes surveyed the masses and their activities, judging all is going according to schedule - properly organized even with the shenanigans of his subordinates and company.

Truly, King Artorias of the Grand Sanctuary attending the event as a member of the association... left the strong impression royalty naturally would.

"Enma, you've finally made your way to the stadium?" The man spoke, even his tone dignified and mighty with appropriate volume while addressing his friend.

"Oh, it's about time." Yukino chimed in. "You were supposed to be here hours ago, where have you been?"

"Well you guys said I'm kind of a big deal, so I think I'd take a walk around to get people excited. I love meeting people and hearing them talk about the hype." Enma explained, trying not to brag. He went about doing what he did because he felt it'd help out with the emotional activity. This revealed himself as an important name in the association, and the King paid no mind to the two with him.

"Wait, ENMA?!" The Hakaisha brothers shouted.

"Huh? ... Oh shit, Bashiro! Jessie!" Enma shouted back, all three of them excited and smiling.

"Who?" Tomozo asked, approaching her sisters and Yukino after nursing her foot.

"Enma, a man revered for his nigh-unparalleled skill as 'Simply the Best There Is'. He's a member of the upcoming Vanguard Association reform, and a friend of King Artorias'." Yukino explained.

"Who's she though?"

"Xateramusa." Yukino stated, recognizing Xat immediately by her out-of-place appearance and her friend's appearance too.

"Oh yeah, there was a third person from the association who was a bigwig, right?" Tomozo asked.

"Yes, and if Enma doesn't want to get further chewed out, he'll hope she's busy."

Xat smiled when she saw yukino and went over to her. "Been a while yukino." she said and kao jumped off of xats shoulder and ran to yukino and hopped on her shoulder giveing her a nuzzle before jumping off and going to xat who reached up and petted him. "So who is the one with the crown?" she asked yukino, as she looked at the people gathered there in the plaza. Kao looked at the man that lead them and shook his furry head. "you do know it was rude for you not to tell us your name and we had to find out from someone esle." he said to emna