[Soul Eater] 3 - Missions

Missions

***

Apart from Fate's fight with Black*Star, nothing else happened for the rest of the day.

	That night, Fate decided to walk around, to see the parts of the city that she hadn't visited yet and to kep an eye out just in case some Obumbratio decided to attack.

	"It looks peaceful tonight..." Fate mumbled. "It's getting late. I should head back to my apartment."

	Suddenly, several Obumbratio appeared, and they surrounded her.

	"I've got to learn to shut up..."

	The Obumbratio jumped to get Fate from above, but Fate rolled out of the way just in time and summoned her blade, launched it at the Obumbratio and destroying them. However, more of them appeared in the place that the others had just been destroyed. This was getting nowhere; she would have to finish all of them at the same time.

	She stepped back a good distance from the Obumbratio and lifted her hand into the sky. "Tonitrua!"

	Suddenly, blue thunder fell from the sky and hit half of the Obumbratio, and then the thunder moved to the same sopt, causing a great explosion that destroyed the other ones. The explosion was bigger than Fate expected, so her spell sent her flying backwards, and she landed amongst some boxes and rubbish bags.

	"That's new..." She mumbled while trying to get out of the trash. She looked at her surroundings to see if the explosion damaged the city, but thankfully all was intact, though she had made a lot of noise.

	She stood up and wiped the dust from her clothes.

	I should leave, she thought. Hopefully I didn't wake anyone.

***

	The next day, Fate was heading to Shibusen, but something was troubling her mind as she climbed the stairs to the academy.

	Why, now that I'm here, do they still keep attacking just in the night...

	"Hey, Fate!" Someone called out, interrupting her thoughts, and she turned around to see Maka and Soul.

	"Hey, Maka! Soul!" Fate greeted her new friends.

	"What's up?" Soul greeted, high-fiving the silver-haired girl. "Hey, you look tired... did you do some Obumbratio hunting last night?"

	Fate yawned. "Yeah..."

	As they entered the academy, Fate noticed that some of the students were looking at her and whispering, and Soul and Maka noticed it, too.

	"You sure got popular fast," Maka said, smiling at Fate.

	"How?" Fate asked, puzzled.

	"Well," Soul began. "Being the newest student and defeating Black*Star is something that doesn't happen every day."

	Fate sighed; she thought that maybe she was meddling too much, but it was inevitable with her friendly nature.

	"Anyway, what are you guys going to do today?" Fate asked.

	"I was going to take a look at the Mission Board," Maka replied.

	"Mission Board?" Fate asked, but then she realized what she was talking about. "Oh, that board next to the receptionist lady."

	"Yeah," Soul said. "Here at Shibusen, we do missions in order to collect Kishin Eggs."

	Before Fate could ask, Maka started to explain to her what Kishin Eggs were.

	"They are souls of people who are close to becoming a Kishin or Demon. When someone eats a human soul, their soul start to become a Kishin Egg. The more souls they eat, the closer they are to becoming a Kishin," she explain, and then Soul continued.

	"But if a person with weapon blood eats a Kishin Egg, they obtain more power. With ninety-nine Kishin Eggs and a Witch's soul, I could become a Death Scythe," he explained, full of determination.

	"Oh yeah... Kid told me yesterday that one of the objectives of some meisters was to create a Death Scythe for his father," Fate remembered." I take that you're a weapon, then, Soul?"

	"Yup, I can transform into a scythe, and Maka is my meister," the boy replied.

	As they talked, they reached the Mission Board and they found something strange on it - at least, it was strange for Soul and Maka.

	"Hey, look," Maka began. "They divided a little part of the board."

	"Maybe they're going to put a special mission up or something," Soul offered.

	Fate kept looking at the big board. There were lots of mission to do and they were classified by their difficulty from one to three stars, and part of the missions had a paper on them that said "Taken". As she was taking a look at the missions, she noticed that someone was staring at her quite closely; a boy with a peculiar hairstyle and thick glasses which were fitted with side shields.

	"Um..." she mumbled, beginning to feel awkward. "Can I help you?"

	"I've never seen you here, so you must be the new girl everyone is talking about," the boy said while adjusting her glasses. "Fate, if I'm not mistaken?"

	"Uh, yeah, that's me."

	"I'm Ox Ford. I've got to say that you've made yourself some reputation."

	Another boy came up from behind Ox - he had brown hair tied up in a spiky ponytail and a red visor covering his eyes.

	"Hey Ox, who are you talking to?" He asked with a serious tone.

	"Ah, there you are, Harvar," Ox said. "I'm talking to the girl who's in everyone's lips in Shibusen lately."

	"So this is the one who defeated Black*Star," Harvar said in a cold tone. "I expected someone who looked more... intimidating."

	Harvar's comment bothered Fate a little, but she brushed that aside. Soul heard them, so he decided to step into the chat.

	"Watch your word, Harvar," Soul said, leaning his arm on Fate's head. "This girl could kick your asses without even trying."

	"You're giving me too much credit, Soul," Fate said, smiling up at him.

	Maka joined the group. "Ox, when did you arrive from your mission?"

	"We arrived yesterday at night, Maka," he answered. "I've got to say that we did a magnificent job. It was nothing that the Lightning King couldn't do."

	"Tell me, did you fight someone when you arrived?"

	"No, we didn't, why do you ask?"

	"Because Soul and I saw some huge lightning bolts last night, and we thought that it could be you," the scythe meister explained. Fate couldn't help but gulp upon hearing her.

	"I didn't fight anyone yesterday, sorry," Ox said.

	Soul then looked at Fate. "Hey, Fate, you were dealing with the Obumbratio yesterday right? Did you see something?"

	"Well..." Fate was trying to come up with an excuse, but then someone came up and interrupted their talking.

	"Excuse me, are you Fate?" The person addressing the warrior asked, and Fate looked at the tall, muscular man who had a blue tone in his skin.

	"Yeah, why do you ask?"

	"My name is Sid Barett. I'm a professor of Shibusen," the man answered. "Shinigami-sama sent me because he wanted me to explain to you about that small section of the Mission Board."

	The others were curious about that part of the board, so they listened to Sid, too.

	"Look, we've been getting information about Obumbratio roaming other places." Sid began, and Fate's face turned serious. "Shinigami-sama thinks that it could be good to go investigate, so he divided that section of the Mission Board for you. When you have time, we'd like you to take a mission off there."

	Fate gave the Mission Board and concerned look. She couldn't help but think that if the Obumbratio were starting to appear in other places apart from the city, then her mission would take a little longer, but being who she was, she didn't mind. Besides, she was starting to think that maybe the Obumbratio weren't the only threat.

	"Understood," she said. "Thank you for the clear explanation, Professor Barett."

	"No problem, and call me Professor Sid," Sid said. "I always like to make things clear, that's the kind of man I was. Oh, and one more thing..."

	"What is it?"

	"Shinigami-sama said that if you want, you can take other students with you. Sometimes it's better to have someone watching your back," he said, and then he left, waving his hand to the students.

	As he left, someone called the group from behind.

	"Hey guys!" The person shouted. It was Black*Star, followed by Tsubaki.

	"Good morning, everyone," Tsubaki greeted kindly. "What are you doing?"

	"Professor Sid just explained to us about that separated portion of the Mission Board," Maka said, and then Black*Star and Tsubaki looked at the board.

	"Oh, what is it?" The black-haired girl asked.

	"It looks like our pal Fate is going to have her own custom missions in that section," Soul said, smiling at the warrior. "And she's allowed to take other students with her."

	"WHAT!?" Black*Star shouted, startling the others, and he looked at Fate. "I'll go with you, then! With a Big Star like me at your side, you won't have to worry about anything!"

	"That's not up to you, Black*Star," Soul said.

	As they talked among themselves, the only thing Fate did was stare at the mission and think about why the Obumbratio didn't attack her as frequently like always. There was a possibility that the Obumbratio were being controlled by someone, but she didn't even want to think about that someone. She was lost in her thoughts when suddenly Maka called her.

	"Fate, you look worried, is everything okay?" She asked.

	"Uh, yeah, it's nothing... don't worry," Fate said, but Maka was still concerned about what was troubling her, so she decided to do something.

	"Hey Fate, could Soul and I go with you on a mission?" She asked.

	"I like the sound of that," Soul said with a smirk.

	Black*Star stepped in. "Hey, that's not fair guys, I called first!"

	"Yeah, but you fought with her yesterday."

	"And she went with Kid to watch over the city on her first night here," Maka added. "So now, it's our turn."

	Fate raised an eyebrow and looked at them. "Hey, what do you think I am? A pet?"

	Everyone laughed.

	"So, what do you say, Fate?" Maka asked.

	Fate crossed her arms and thought about the offer. "Well, I don't see a reason for not letting you come, and I'm curious to see your fighting style, too," she said with a grin.

	Soul looked at the board. "Choose the mission, then. They're for you, after all."

	"Okay, let's see..." Fate mumbled, taking a look at the missions.

	There wasn't much to choose, but one mission caught the Sapphire Warrior's attention. She took the paper - it said that some people had seen strange things in a forest; one person assured that they saw a giant chameleon. Soul and Maka glanced at the mission information and both of them looked puzzled.

	Fate let out a little laugh. "It's a type of Obumbratio, or it should be... that's why we're going to go there to find out."

***

	Fate, Maka, and Soul were travelling to the nearest town where some people stated that they saw strange creatures in the nearby forest. Since the three of them wouldn't fit on Soul's bike, they decided to use the train, and right now, Soul and his meister were explaining to Fate about the works of Demon Weapons.

	"So, if the souls' wavelengths of the meister and the weapon aren't compatible, they can't make a team?" Fate asked.

	"Yeah, but even if they are compatible, they have to match their wavelengths. Their souls have to be in harmony," Maka explained. "That's why the people who watched your battle against Black*Star found it strange that you could grab Tsubaki in her shuriken form."

	Fate scratched her head. "Well, I didn't do anything special. I just grabbed her without thinking."

	"You must have some kind of super soul or something," Soul said with a smirk. "Hey, tell us something about your magic now."

	Very few people were interested in her magic and this was the first time someone requested some explanation about it, so Fate had to think about how to answer that question for a moment.

	"Let's see... unlike demon weapons, magic requires the strength of the heart, not the soul. Someone with a strong heart could be a wielder if magic chose them," Fate explained. Maka interrupted her for a moment.

	"People call you one of the Three Chosen Ones, but as far as I know, there are tons of other magic users where you come from," Maka said. "What makes you different from them?"

	Fate put her hand on her chin. "To be honest, I have no idea," she responded with a goofy grin that made Soul and Maka sweatdrop.

	"And what are you capable of?" Soul asked. "The only thing we know is that it's really useful against the Obumbratio."

	"Well, my main power is the ability to seal away darkness, preventing things like the Obumbratio from roaming," Fate explained. "However, the attack to your city is different... there's no source that they're going after... so I gotta eliminate the Obumbratio until they leave. Also, I can create multiple weapons and use all sorts of magic in the form of my own."

	By the look on her face, it looked like Maka realized something.

	"It was you, right?" Maka asked with a mock serious face. "You were the one who made those lightning bolts and caused that racket."

	Fate let out a nervous chuckle. "Yeah, sorry..."

	"Anything else?" Soul asked, chuckling at her reaction.

	"Yeah, one last thing!" Fate answered, and she summoned her sword, which surprised Maka and her partner. She handled the sword with the hand grip pointing at the scythe meister. "Here, take it."

	"W-Wait, are you sure?" Maka asked, full of doubt. She didn't expect Fate to say that.

	"Fate nodded at her with a smile. "Don't worry, nothing bad will happen."

	Maka grabbed the sword, a little nervous, and she looked at it in amazement; she could feel the power that lied within the sword. Suddenly, while she was contemplating it, the sword vanished from her hands, which took her and Soul by surprise.

	The sword appeared in Fate's hand. "The magic chooses its wielder, so if you summon a weapon and another person takes it, it'll just come back to you."

	"That's why Black*star's disarming didn't work very well," Maka said, and Fate nodded.

	Then the train stopped.

	The group left the train and walked for a few minutes before reaching the town, where they separated to ask some people about the forest, and after half an hour, they met near a fountain in the the center of the town.

	"Any luck?" Fate asked. The people just told me what we already know."

	"Same here," Maka said. "Soul?"

	"A guy told me that some strange things appear here at night, just like Death City," Soul answered.

	Maka let out a sigh in resignation. "We'll have to wait until night then..."

	There was a pause, and then Fate's stomach grumbled.

	"We should eat something."

***

	Later that day, the mission team started to walk towards the forest. None of them were talking, so Maka decided that it was the perfect time to ask Fate why she looked so worried at Shibusen.

	"I'm curious, Fate," Maka said. "Why did you pick this mission over the others?"

	"I wanted to check something," Fate answered. "I suppose that's why you wanted to come,r ight? To find out what was bothering me about the Obumbratio."

	Maka gulped and let out a sheepish laugh. "So you noticed..."

	Fate gave her a sad smile. "I appreciate your concern, Maka, but you don't need to worry about me. I'm sure you guys have more problems apart from the Obumbratio."

	"Come on, we're all friends, it's normal that we want to help you," Soul said, and Maka nodded.

	"Okay, you win," Fate chuckled, happy to have friends like this. "But I'll tell you when we return to Shibusen, deal?"

	"Deal!" They both agreed.

	After a few minutes of walking, they arrived at the entrance of the forest; it was really dark, but they could see a little bit. All of the people in the town were now sleeping, so it was very quiet.

	"This place is giving me the creeps," Soul commented, and then a branch breaking could be heard.

	"What was that?" Maka asked.

	Fate stopped in her tracks and started to look around.

	"It could be the Obumbratio. Stay close," she replied.

	"Soul, transform," Maka ordered, and Soul obeyed, transforming into his scythe form.

	Maka and Fate stood back-to-back, looking at their surroundings, but Soul said something.

	"I wish your ability of Soul Perception could work with Obumbratio," he said.

	"You can see other people's souls?" Fate asked, amazed. "Wow, you're really something else!"

	Maka blushed a little at her compliment. "Thanks, but it's not just me. Kid and Professor Stein can do it, too."

	Fate then had an idea. "Maybe it can be useful if I give it a little boost," she said, and Maka looked at her with a puzzled expression.

	"Boost?" She asked.

	Fate placed her hand on the blonde's shoulder. "Try using your Soul Perception now."

	Maka nodded and closed her eyes, and she could feel that Fate was using her power to help her look for the Obumbratio. After a minute, she could see it - almost like looking at a soul; it even had its own wavelength.

	"I can see it. It's approaching us from the left," Maka said.

	Fate summoned her sword and looked to her left.

	"Auris!" She called out, and a blast of ice came from her sword that froze a tree, but also hit the tail of the Obumbratio, making it appear. "Here's our giant chameleon... looks like I was right after all."

	"Uh, Fate?" Soul asked.

	"Yeah?"

	"I think that reptile isn't alone."

	Fate looked behind them to see that they were surrounded by a ton of Obumbratio - plant-like shadows, soldier-like shadows, and giant shadows that looked like pure monsters.

	"Well, what do we do?" Soul asked.

	"You're asking me?" Maka questioned nervously, looking at their enemies.

	"What do you think? It's time to fight," Fate answered. "They have no chance against the three of us."

	Maka nodded and charged at the Obumbratio in front of her; she swung her weapon and cut three Obumbratio down at once. While she was fighting the normal Obumbratio, Fate was dealing with the big one - the shadow lizard launched its tongue and grabbed Fate's wrist, but took that chance to use her ice spell again, freezing its mouth. She ran to the Obumbratio and hit it several times, but it recovered and tried to hit Fate with its tail, though she jumped and prepared the finishing move.

	"Glacies Tempestas!" She shouted, and she wrapped herself in ice and dealt multiple hits with a somersault attack, destroying the Obumbratio.

	Maka was slashing all the Obumbratio that charged at her, but more of them began to appear; the forest was full of them.

	"Shit, there's no end to them," Soul cursed.

	"With Fate here, this shoulder be easier, but they don't give up," Maka said.

	"Hey Fate, how are you doing!?" Soul called out.

	"I don't want to worry you," Fate started. "But it seems that more guests have arrived to the party."

	Maka looked to where Fate was and realized what the shorter girl meant; there were tons more Obumbratio, many more than they expected - more of those chameleons but also the ones that looked like knights with dual blades.

	Maka stepped back to where Fate was. "Any ideas?" She asked, and then Soul had one.
"Hey Maka, why don't we try the Soul Resonance?" He suggested.

	"We already tried that, remember? It worked against a few Obumbratio, but now there are too many of them."

	"I'm not talking about a normal Soul Resonance," he clarified. "I'm talking about a Chain Resonance with Fate."

	Fate was now curious about what he meant.

	"But we haven't mastered that yet," Maka reminded him as she killed an Obumbratio that jumped at her.

	"Maybe, but her soul can match easily with everyone, so it should work," Soul said.

	"So, basically, we have to match our souls' wavelengths, right?" Fate asked.

	"Yes, they must be in sync," Maka responded. "It's complicated, btu with your kind of soul, it could work."

	"... Let's give it a shot!"

	Maka and Fate closed their eyes and began to focus. They started to feel each other's power, their breathing synchronized, and Maka was surprised at how easy they could do this resonance, although it felt... different. Suddenly, the two of them had a golden aura around their bodies as well as their respective weapons - Fate's sword began to grow, and then it transformed into a huge scythe made of sapphire blue light, and the blade of the scythe form of Soul increased its size and was wrapped with a golden light.

	Then Fate and Maka opened their eyes, and prepared to attack.

	"Obumbratio Hunt!" They cried, and they swung their weapons as if they were drawing a circle around them. Blasts of light were fired by their scythes, wiping the whole forest of Obumbratio, although some trees were destroyed by the attack, too.

	The three of them were speechless, but after a moment, Fate let out a few words.

	"Uh... was that supposed to happen...?" She asked, a little dumbfounded. Maka was still shocked, so Soul answered.

	"Well, yeah, but we didn't expect the result to be that powerful," he admitted.

	"I think I did it wrong," Fate sighed. Maka snapped out of it and looked at the silver-haired girl.

	"What do you mean?" She asked.

	"I think we didn't do a Soul Resonance," Fate answered. "It's possible that I synchronized my heart instead of my soul with yours, so..."

	"So we did a Heart-Soul Resonance!?" Maka asked, full of disbelief, and Fate nodded.

	"That was awesome!" Soul said as he turned back into his human form. "It was like Witch Hunt, but the different in power was outstanding!"

	"Witch Hunt?" Fate asked.

	"When I resonate my soul with Soul's, we can perform a technique called Witch Hunt. It's like this, just less strong," Maka answered.

	"Black*Star is going to be so jealous when we tell him what we did," Soul said with a smirk, and it made the two girls laugh.

	"It looks like we're done here," Fate said. "We should return to Death City."