Shop Handsome

"I see." was all he said in response as he waited to be returned. Manipulative witch that Harbinger is. Actually that made the insanity driven Seifer like partnering with her even more. A sadistic grin crossed his face, hidden mostly by the fact that he had his back to Fuki now. "You're going to make this game of yours even more interesting aren't you?"

Fuki blinked at Seifer, her expression hollow and empty - mostly unamused. Then, the screeching of eldritch nonsense filled her mind with the current situation on Earth. Placing a hand on the Reversed entity's shoulder, she decided a better idea would be to take him there herself, and used the gateway card to vanish from the Akasha Straum with him, leaving Shop Handsome with the same teleportation as well.

Sophie sighed, bored as she sat at her usual spot. She looked miserable. "When she said to help her cause despair and chaos...I didn't think she meant sit around doing NOTHING!!" As she continue to grumble, Trinity was alone at a corner, staring at the exit of the Card Shop. She had been like this since being subdued under Harbinger's will, rubbing her stomach as she sang a soft tune, which Sophie found odd. Trinity's golden eyes, face, and actions looked so lifeless and dull, yet she was somehow able to bring out some sort of emotion into her voice to make the song still sound lovely and soothing. "Man...what did you put in her Boss? The Destroyer of Worlds?"

The door opened within Shop Handsome, or it would have if there still was a door. Slow footsteps walked in as Malice looked up to see if any of the Reapers were here. He could sense that another battle had happened, another loss for the Reapers. If they wanted to make this war into a game, they were losing. The forces were weakening.

He stopped as he was near some of the fight tables, looking out towards the counter Harbinger usually was in. "It seems the almighty Reapers are being defeated by the Broken Sword and her little band of merry men," he said to anyone there who would understand. He wanted someone to address the comment so he would know who it was he was speaking to, if anyone like that was even here.

After the retreat ordered by Fuki, Seifer stepped into the opening that USED to be Shop Handsome's door. Someone new was here, not that he cared. "Hello Mamma, we're home. Got a little gift for you while we were out." he spoke to Harbinger who was hopefully still here. Even if she wasn't, she'd probably know, knowing her. Pulling Mirai off his shoulder, he placed the still knocked out blonde in one of the booths for Harbinger before going to a table in the back corner and sitting up on it, still completely ignoring the newcomer.

Karin walked through what was left of the doorway. They really had to get that replaced at some point.

"Sorry for failing, will do better next time, etcetera etcetera." Karin let out with an annoyed tone, walking past everyone else and taking a seat in the back of the shop. If this was going to be her new workplace, she may as well get used to it, she figured. Maybe she'd learn something new while being here, anyway.

Karin propped her feet up on one of the tables, leaning back and pulling out her deck, flipping through the cards, organizing and reorganizing them. She wasn't actually sure what she was looking for, but at least she looked busy. As long as Overlord remained silent, she'd at least have some range of freedom, and as far as she knew, she was the only one who could hear Overlord's voice. Well, maybe Solis could hear it, being another of Overlord's avatars, but he didn't seem to care much.

A flash of black and red light blinked into the cardshop, revealing Fuki and a wounded Solis. Harbinger ceased her focus on Fubuki, turning attention to those returning from the most recent attack. Arms folded, the same never ending grin was plastered on her face. The garbled howling of Hydra came into the overlord's mind, letting her know it's back and alive as well. Shop Handsome's customers barely reacted, almost entirely used to this now. Not only that, but repairs to the door just finished!

"Solis, what happened?!" Kachidoki inquired in a panic.

"... Scorpion's dead, I..."

"You lost", the boss sneered, the two redheads staring at one another.

"... Y-Yes... I apologize for my utter failure." Solis gritted his teeth, aiming his gaze toward the floor in shame.

"Unlike Scorpion, you survived. You're less of a weakling than him, so just don't fuck up again."

Solis stood in silence for a moment before nodding, trying not to think about the cruelty they committed to the now-dead reaper. Not only was Scorpion abandoned by everyone, but even Harbinger didn't care about his death. The mother of all reapers simply listed him and probably Kraken as weaklings. The man of fire sat down and absorbed this, learning a little more about his leader with every new situation. While he wasn't a fan of it, he knew the end would be soon enough, so dealing with it seemed appropriate. At least Karin was here just as a fellow of Kagero to give him some ease.

Nobody said ending the world was going to be a happy process.

Unless you're Chris.

"The game's getting more exciting", Harbinger finally replied to Malice, apparently joyous over the Reapers being defeated. Being the invincible armored titan she was, this was good buildup until she herself went to crush them. Then, a look to Sophie and Trinity. "Everyone else went out to do work, your boredom is your own problem. As for her... I put something in her that's going to help me wake up that idiot soon enough."

And now Seifer and his new "friend".

"Ah, this one uses Seekers!" The Reaper's grin grew wild and malicious, showcasing her thirst to harm Royal Paladin in particular. "I'll get to her later. As for you, Fuki, tell Gigaton he's next."

The blonde nodded.

Karin looked up from her deck as the last few drones teleported back in, the door's repairs finished (what a coincidence, Karin thought), and Harbinger spoke up about the most recent developments. She hadn't even noticed before, but she actually recognized a couple of the faces in the shop. Seifer, the man who had Nouvelle's good grace... At least until now, it seemed. He didn't quite seem like his usual self, but it was definitely the same person.

Then there was Solis. He actually looked hurt. "...You alright there? For a Kagero player, you aren't looking so hot." Karin made another poor attempt at humor about another life-or-death situation concerning Solis, partially to spite him, and partially because she actually did care. At the very least, Solis tried to fight against the Reapers in his timeline. Failed, but still tried, and Karin couldn't really blame him for the choices he made- She had given in too, after all.

"Hmph", the injured Solis scoffed at the stupid pun. Karin wasn't exactly wrong, but he had to keep a front of a warrior. He was still bleeding, and Fuki had returned to tend to his wounds. His expression was pained and disgusted with himself, angry over not being able to bring out his best against a fool with a magic gun. He could have done more, but the power of Regalia's Yggdrasil sealed him off, dealing a finishing blow quickly before he became a problem. The man would remember Satoshi's name, just to do better next time by not underestimating him.

He didn't respect his foe, like he normally would.

"I'll be fine", Solis answered Karin, his mood unchanging. "Thank you", still came from him, expressing gratitude.

Malice couldn't help but give a grin at the sight he was seeing. The Reapers, mighty and powerful as they were, were all licking their wounds from a beating delivered by humans. What an unsightly thing. He sat on a chair as he understood the situation. The Kagero girl from the battle before was here, fighting against the Broken Sword. What an odd turn of events considering how determined she had been to help humanity. Seifer was here as well, the Broken Sword's sibling who he had been worried about before. It seemed that now he was not an issue. Things suddenly became easier for him. Mirai was with him as well, the reincarnation of his own Seed. This was getting better by the minute.

It was becoming hard to hide his delight as he looked at Harbinger. He gave a blink and said, "I wondered what a wounded Reaper looks like, but it seems you are fine as it is. I will be able to get what I want and you can have your fun with the humans. Its almost surprising how you can line up your servants to die so easily, but its oh so fun to watch."

"I have a little surprise for them when they get past Gigaton. It's no fun if humanity can't get anywhere, they just give up on the game. 'Give them an inch, take a mile', or something like that."

That saying was close. It wasn't entirely correct, but it was close. Harbinger throwing out her kin and drones without a care in the world if they die - actually hoping a little bit they lose just so the enemy can get their spirits up, was a horrible act that Link Joker didn't seem to care for until it was them who were dying.

"Mutual business partners. In the end, we both get to watch everyone suffer."

The grin that Harbinger had was now shared by Malice as well. He turned from her as he simply said, "That's all I wanted to hear. I'll be sure to give you much more suffering to see on a global scale as I prepare the end phase of my own ambitions. You'd do well to prepare for your 'gift' from me when it all ends."

Malice had seen the world of the Deletors and understood their process. They cared nothing of each other or life in general. If Harbinger wanted this to end, it would have ended already. For her, this was like eternal torture. Of course, after his ambitions were done, he could ask to use the Akasha Records to separate his body from Darren Shurensei so he would have no dangers of ever being erased. That was his final goal, to live and rule this universe for all of eternity.

Seifer just sat quietly in the back watching the entire scene play out before him, his bangs covering his eyes slightly. Now that he wasn't running on just insanity (he was still crazy though), he could actually see the others here. Two of them he recognized... He'd seen Sophie before at a Reaper attack... and Karin was a comrade before all of this began. And then there was... Ah, Malice... Darren being controlled in a similar manner to him. Kind of anyway. Oh well, things were getting interesting... And that was enjoyable, which made his lips curl up in a smile. Less noticeable than his smile was a slight static around the deck at his hip that was gone the next moment.

Trinity suddenly began singing louder, though she hadn't moved from her spot. Was she trying to get attention, soothe her fellow 'comrades', just wanted to sing loud? There was no way to know from her lifeless expression.

Mirai woke up and found herself... somewhere. Her head was in pain and her body felt like it got hit by a truck. What happened... where am I? All I remember was me helping someone who used Seekers like me... then I... She held her head as it hurt more the longer she tried to think of what had just happened. Who brought her here? Is she and everyone else safe?

"Mother dearest, she seems to be awake." Seifer hopped off the table that he'd been sitting on sliding his hands into his pockets, walking towards Mirai with a shit eating grin. "Mornin... You've been out for a while." still being an ass it seems. Oh well. Seifer quietly waited after that for what Harbinger planned to do with Mirai.

Other drones in the building had left awhile ago.

"To answer your obvious questions: You're in my domain, and no, you're not safe."

Harbinger loomed over Mirai, sneering unkindly about her situation. This girl wasn't in any original plans and mentally torturing her involved only one thing that came to the reaper god's mind. Doing what Chronojet absolutely did not want to happen: force the Seeds to recall their past selves. Heads getting stuffed with a second dosage of a full person's memories would be painful on the mind, and that makes her vulnerable to conversion. The redhead leaned over, giving a view of her face very close to her own pushed-up enormous breasts. This face was one with a deranged and wild grin, like a serial killer looking at their new target.

"I'm the God of Death, Harbinger. And you'll belong to me in a few moments as a drone, Noel."

Sophie had left to do..things. Trinity was watching quietly this time, her golden eyes staring at her Mistress' newest drone. She was staying near Harbinger, but not being in the busty redhead's way.

Death God Harbinger? Her domain? Not safe? Mirai found herself surrounded by the apparent enemy base. This was not good. Not. Good. At all. Her usual air-headed and clumsy self won't save her now. What's worse is, she is all alone. All she could do was sit there, frozen, holding to her Seeker deck tightly like if it would somehow keep her safe.

The woman calling herself Harbinger the Death God approached her as if she was about to commit a gruesome act and end Mirai's life. A person doesn't need to know her at all to know that her mind is as twisted as anything could ever be. It sucked being physically weak right now or else she would try to put up some sort of fight. Her head was pulsing more and more as the evil woman got to her. That was when she said this statement that something inside Mirai triggered, "I'm the God of Death, Harbinger. And you'll belong to me in a few moments as a drone, Noel."

"No...el... ah... AHHHHH!!! MY HEAD!! IT FEELS LIKE ITS GOING TO SPLIT APART!!" Suddenly Mirai got an extreme sharp pain in her head as if something from the inside wants to burst out. The poor girl fell on her knees with her hands gripping her head that's in massive pain, her Seeker deck scattering across the floor with Light Saver Dragon sliding in front of her. Suddenly the dreams she has been having lately all started to come back in more vivid detail. Every single dream. Every single... memory. Memories of a girl who lost everything. All her friends. Her family. Everyone. One by one, this girl lost everything she held so close. A world filled with chaos and death. No one was safe, humanity was at the brink of extinction. These are... my dreams... they are so... so real...

She then found herself as if she was said girl. No... that's not it... It wasn't that she was seeing the life of this girl... she is that girl. Noel Kusanagi. Humanity's last chance for survival in a future not far from now. I'm... Noel...? H-how... Everything was happening so fast, every single memory was being forced inside her mind like raging water breaking through a dam. The pain worsening, Mirai couldn't believe it all. The emptiness she was feeling this whole time. The thing she sought after for a long time was here. Mirai was and is Noel Kusanagi. The answer to her questions have been finally answered despite the horrible amounts of pain she has been through just now. "I'm... Noel..." Her eyes now looked lifeless, everything about Mirai's complexion looked like she was broken in two. Now that she found her answer, the ultimate question has been asked, "What am I... who am I really..."

"Well, that was easier than I expected. I didn't even to dig around in the Akashic Record for her memories", Harbinger lifted herself up, standing tall in all her voluptuous, maniacal glory. The succubus chuckled at the sight of "Noel" who just had her mind crammed with her true identity. Yes, the sight of a crumbling humanity that, by now, is long dead. Absolute isolation, thrust into a new timeline with a new name. No longer, however, the Reaper giggled. "Y̢͠o̵͡͠͡ų͞ ̧d́͜͏ǫ̷ń̴͞'́̕͏t̷̀́ ̨҉̸̧͝h̢̧a̴̶͜͡v́҉́e̢͜͞ ̴̨͡͞t͞҉̨́̕o̴͡ ̨̧̛͡b̵͘͠ȩ̛̛́ ͢҉͜a͘͏l͞ó͟͞҉ń̨͢͠ę̀ ̸̧a̧͟҉̴n̸͡͏y͏͘m̨̡̢͢ò̷҉́r̶͜͜͠e͏̵̛.̀̕͝͡" Giggling followed by eldritch nonsense came from her, a soft, tender, robotic, demonic tone of voice was given to the lost lamb. The Shepard of the lost and the nothingness grabbed the girl's cheeks from behind, caressing the pained one's face like a wicked stepmother.

"Y̴̴͘͡͠ơ̵̵̢u̴͜ ̷͝c̴̀͝a͠҉̛n̕͢ ͜͢͡b̀ę͟͠ ̴̶̸͝ą̶͟n̶͢y̴͏̧ǫ̕n̶̕͘͏ę̷̵͝ ̡͟͞͠͏ý̷̵͜͝o̢͘͘u̕ ̛͟͠͡w͜͠a̛͜n҉̶̶̷͟t̢̛҉̴͘,͘͘ ̛͘̕a҉̴̛n҉͏d̸̶̢͞҉ ͏̕I̶̶͠͠'͏͜l̨̡͢͝͝l͝҉ ̵͜͏͝t͝e͞l͡҉̸̛l̵̨̀͟ ͡y̢̨͜o̢̨͜͟u̷̡ ̧̕͢͞y̨̧o̷u̷̡'̵̀̕r̸̡͘͞e̵̢̢͝ ̸̡͜͟͝t͘͢h̷̴̷͢͟a͏͢t̴͟͏ ̡͡p̡͝è̴͝͝r̨̕͜͠͝s͏́̕o̵͟n̴̡̨͡.̵̨̕͟ ̧́͠͡͠J̢͢u͟͡͏͘͠s͟͠͞͡t̵͝ ́҉̀͏ş̸̕͟҉u̧͟͏͞b̕̕͡͝ḿ̕͡҉̛i̢̧̛t͞͏ ͟͜t͢҉́҉o̸̧ ҉ḿ̢̛͟ę́ ̴̡̀͡a̛̛̛ń̕͞͞d̢͞҉ ́t͘͢͠͝h̛́͠҉ę̴̴̛ ̴̶̧͘͜e̴͜͝n̕͢ḑ̴͟͞.̢͞͝" was purred in an alluring tone, gently picking at the victim of mental overload and breakdown. Picking at her when she was weak, emotionally confused. The perfect time to take your prey and e͢҉̢̛ą̷̀͡͞t̕͡ ́̕͟͜t̡҉̛h̸̴̷̛e̷͜͜͜͡m̵̀.̸̴̕͏

"Well, while you're taking yet another poor soul's innocence..." a sideways glance at Trinity. "I'ma go for a walk. See ya mom." the piece of shit somewhat still rebellious but not quite personality that was the current Seifer gave a wave before walking out the door. "To bad we didn't get this finished before that rat left." he called back in, referring more about Fubuki at that last bit than anything else.

Trinity ignored Seifer completely as her eyes were fixated on Harbinger's work. As she did, an expression actually started to form on Trinity's face, though it was hardly noticeable. Anger. For whatever reason, she was getting angry at Harbinger's work on Noel as she placed a hand on her stomach.

Mirai... no Noel... that can't be right, it's Mirai but she is Noel so she has to be Noel but... she is Mirai.... Whoever is this lifeless person that is standing here now listened in to the strange voice coming from Harbinger. The Death God finding delight on this poor soul's now broken mind. One can easily tell this girl is just an empty shell that is trying to figure out who she really is.

"Any... anyone... I am.... I am... I am! I am M... Mi..." The broken girl just couldn't finish that sentence. Both lives clashing in her mind in an attempt to become the dominant persona but that clash was soon about to end and bring forth a victor. "I... I am... N... No.... Noel... I am Noel Kusanagi... that is who am I and who I will stay as!"

Suddenly like if something inside sparked, Noel's eyes glowed blood red. The Seed has returned. Her former dark aura retaking her body causing the room they were in to shake. Mirai is no more and the Grim Reaper of the future revived once more into this timeline.

Seifer Reverse was a bit to late in returning for the finale, but coming inside Shop Handsome to this sight was... Exhilarating. Yet another pawn, a tool to be used against the resistance... And it's because the Chosen Sword had failed to stop him once again! "Who's a good little toy?" the insane Seifer walked over to the reborn seed's side, patting her on the head almost in praise. "You don't mind if I look after my dear little sister here do you?" Seifer glanced over at Harbinger, not realizing just how close he was in that statement. Actually he meant it just ironically, since he was the one that brought her here.

The God of Death ignored Trinity's envious glare, continuing her work into converting a seed into a Reaper Drone with just mindbreaking and soft words alone. A wicked pleasure came from the fact that she didn't even have to strike an actual deal or a wish like she did with others. All she did was tell this sad child that she could be whoever she wanted to be. With the declaration of "I am Noel Kusanagi", Harbinger spoke: "You are Noel Kusanagi". "Y͟͜҉o̶̧̕u͞͝ ̴̸̀a̴͝r̡̀̕ȩ̶͘͢͝ ̢̛͢͏h͟͡ò̢p̶͏e̴̡̨͜͠ ̢́͠f͏̡o̷̧͞r͝͡҉͘ ̷̴͟s̴͢͞u̷̷̡̕͢f̢͟͢͢f̵͜͝e̸̢͢͢r̵̡̀͟͞í͘͟n̨͢g͞'̀s̢̀̕ ̧͟e̡͜͠͞ń̵͞͡d͜͝.̷̸̨́͢" The distorted voice half-lied. The Seeds were Link Joker's power - her power that she rudely yanked the strings on. Noel would cause more despair by being one of the erasers, yet, would also ensure Solis' desire for nihilism with peace through utter deletion.

What a busty spawn of evil the redhead was.

Harbinger tightened her grip on Noel's cheeks, "Ơ̵͜͝b̶̷́͡ę́̕͘y̷͡͡ ̵̸̨͢͢m̧̛̀͡e̷̢͡͏.̨͞͏" slipping into her ear, indoctrinating her slowly with maddening eldritch garble. Before doing more, Seifer spoke of how he wanted to look after his "sister". Harbinger nearly laughed at the "family" notion, but then decided: "Why not?" She spoke.