[Earlier]

"So, one of us has to turn into goo, correct?" Serra asked.

His uncle nodded. "Correct."

He turned to look at me. "Guess I'll be the base."

I scratched my head. "Okay."

"Wait, you know how to do so?" Osamu asked.

I turned away. "Yeah, when Serra was teaching me how to use my dragon form in the Realm of Dreams, I accidentally turned into goo a couple of times."

The king narrowed his big eyes at me. "I see..."

I gritted my teeth. This guy... He kept needing my help, but he still disrespected me.

Serra placed a hand on my shoulders. "Tetsu might come off as simple minded, but there are times where he overthinks things."

I leered at him. "Serra, I prefer no defense to that."

He backed away. "Sorry."

"That said, I'm glad that I'm the goo. Last time a gooey abysmal surrounded me, it felt suffocating. Not to mention, the dampness."

The king nodded. "It isn't pleasant at all."

Serra laughed. "Well, I'm already used to you slobbering over me. Like on the bus."

I smirked and jumped at him, but he dodged. "Why are you running away, Serra? I just want to give you a hug!" I asked, trying to maintain my smile.

My heels dug into the ground as a sword fell between the two of us. We both turned to look at Osamu.

He held his hand out, recalling his weapon. "Behave like men, not children. We have little time."

Serra lowered his head. "Sorry."

I crossed my arms. Great, I went ahead and did it again...

"You ready, Serra?" I asked.

He nodded. "Go ahead."

I closed my eyes. My body shifted in shape, turning into a giant dark red blob with a dragon-tail.

Aventine smiled at me. "You look like your uncle Woolsey when he was a newborn."

"He was a blob?"

"Yeah, but smaller and with sheep-like traits. Your dad and the others were apparently similar, but with traits of their eventual animal forms."

"Will this work? It's a blob, not goo," Osamu said.

"Don't worry," I said, jumping at Serra. My body spread out in multiple directions, giving me the feeling of having multiple multiple limbs. Was this how a spider felt with its eight legs? No, I had way more limbs than a spider now.

Serra closed his eyes. He squirmed and began to heat up as I spread from his head to his feet. Which is why I was glad I wasn't the base. I lingered like that for a few minutes, but nothing happened.

"Huh, it's not working," Aventine said, crossing her arms.

Osamu rubbed his regrown beard. "Could it be because they're both abysmals?"

I jumped off of Serra. "Maybe. Dad did fuse with you, who aren't one."

"Oh, why don't you fuse with Uncle to try it out?" Serra asked, waving his index finger.

Osamu backed away. "No."

I nodded. "He's one of the last few I would want to fuse with."

"Last few? Who else is there? Well, guess there is Eiichi," Serra said, chuckling.

"I don't think it's that," Aventine said, closing her eyes. "At least, not the sole reason. The core is the key to fusion."

Osamu nodded. 

"What do you mean?" Serra asked.

"Takeshi took this boy's core to form the core of Agnes."

I sighed. "Yeah, my crummy old man plucked my heart out as a baby."

"Oh, right. You did mention that. Wait, but Tetsu has Agnes on his person. Shouldn't it work still?"

I tried to get Agnes to pop up, but it wouldn't work.

"Takeshi also tried to use me while in his animal form. He figured the only way to have it work is to keep me away while he transforms."

"Is there something about our bodies which prevents an angel tool's powers from working?"

"It's something that goes beyond angel tools. The effects of what you're wearing fade away along with the clothes, with a few exceptions."

"I still had my clothes in my draconic form when I fought Hyosetsu," I said.

"That's because you found a workaround. That said, I'm not sure that your core will work for the fusion as long as it's part of Agnes."

I gasped. "Wait, I think there is a way." I reverted back to my real form.

Serra tilted his head. "What did you figure out?"

"I could integrate Agnes' core back into my body. If I were to do that, maybe the fusion will work!"

"That might be dangerous," a voice called out. I turned around and saw Ma on the back of her pegasus, flanked by Amu.

"Ma! What are you doing here?"

"Wanted to see how your training was coming along."

"What a weird place," Amu said, staring at the arena-sized flat in the center of mountains.

"Yeah, it was carved out by the Seven Hills of long ago," I said. 

Amu stared at Ma. "Oh, so that's why you said we were heading to a seat of the Seven."

Ma laughed. "Yeah. This is where our ancestors trained."

"Wait, Ma, why did you say it might be dangerous to use Agnes to fuse with Serra?"

Ma sighed. "That's because of the orb that your father used to upgrade Agnes."

I recalled the space within Agnes where I'd seen Yuko's time in Xeleria. Within it was that strange egg-like object that Rosa had taken from Behemoth's nest. It let out a heat hotter than the midsummer sun.

"What was that anyway?"

"Your father thinks it's Behemoth's Shinju," Ma responded.

I tilted my head. "Shinju?"

"Shinju is an orb that contains a creature's concentrated powers. In this case, a Ryuu no Shinju. Other creatures with such gems include kitsune."

Serra looked away. "Kitsune, huh?" my cousin mumbled.

"Wait, so that monster didn't have its full power when it was fighting us in Wynaga and in Xeleria?" I asked.

"Seems that's the case," Ma said, nodding.

Serra smiled. "Rosa at least kept Grandpa from having that creature at full power."

Did Reginald learn that I had it? Or was he still unaware? If the latter, what would he do once he figures out.

"Even if it doesn't hurt Serrano, the presence of other elements probably aren't good for the prospects of fusing," Aventine said.

"Fusing?" Amu asked.

"Yeah, we're trying to recreate the power that my old man and Mr. Grumpy over there used to defeat King Tabiki years ago," I said.

Osamu just sighed at my comment. Maybe he was used to being called that and just didn't want to bother with it anymore.

Amun crossed her arms. "You plan to use that to defeat the demons and the abysmals?"

I grinned. "Of course."

"But it's not working as Tetsu's core was used for his angel tool," Serra said.

"Why don't you try to flip your roles?" Anis asked.

Well, seemed that all those times I'd gotten muddy would finally come in handy.

"Let's do this, Serra!" I said, bracing myself.

Serra scratched his head. "Uh, I don't know how to turn into a blob like you."

"I can teach you, but it might take us who knows how long."

Osamu stared at his sword. "There is another way, but it'll hurt and could have be bad if done wrong."

"You mean destroy his body like Tabiki did to Takeshi?" Aventine said, turning to look at him.

Osamu nodded. "Exactly."

"I rather do the Agnes core thing," Serra mumbled.

"If the energy is too much, maybe you'll turn into goo," I said, chuckling.

He narrowed his eyes at me.

I stretched out my arms as if I were going to hug him. "Come on, just try it."

He sighed. "Fine," he said, holding his arms out as well. "Do what you had in mind earlier."

I grinned and bent the metal making up Agnes.

Ma gasped. "No way, but that thing's Oricalcum, Seraphim, and a bunch of other stuff!"

I grinned. "Your little boy has grown, Ma."

She frowned.

I turned away. Maybe I shouldn't have said that.

Ma laughed. "I guess you have."

I smiled and moved Agnes's orb toward Serra's chest.

He gritted his teeth as it pressed into his skin.

"You need to dissolve," Aventine said.

I nodded and turned back into a blob. This time, I targeted my core. The emerald sphere absorbed me as if I were a Wynagan dragon. Wait, could it be that father hadn't originally made it to house a dragon but to house me instead?

I looked around. I found myself in the same space where I'd seen Yuko training with her sister. Now, I only had to spread out.

Serra's screaming echoed from outside. Was the heat from the Shinju affecting him already? I'd better hurry up!

I spread outward as much as I could, filling up the space. While retaining my tail inside, I spread the rest of my being outward.

Serra shook his head and stumbled back. My own body began to feel funny.

"Serra, son!" Ma yelled as her pegasus neighed.

Serrano fell to his knees as smoke filled the place.

*Osamu*

I got closer to Serrano, ready to stop the two of them, until smoke flew out of Tetsuya's core.

"It's working," Aventine said, gasping.

The smoke cleared to reveal a young man slightly more muscular and tanner than Serrano. Long, wavy white hair with lavender tips draped his shoulders. The youth wore Tetsuya's pancho around his waist and Serra's white button up shirt and blue jeans. Around his neck was a silver necklace with a emerald stone, with matching cuffs on his wrists. On his ear was Serra's earring.

"So, this is fusion," Serrano and Tetsuya's combined voices came from his mouth. He opened his eyelids, revealing platinum irises, and smiled. "This power is greater than that of the Second Heaven of both my components."

Anis smiled. "I knew that Serra and Tetsu would make a handsome kid."

"He's their fusion, not their kid," I said, grumbling.

Anis giggled. "Still, it gives one an idea of how one would look."

The fusion waved at her. "Hello, Ma." He gasped and reached for his earring. "Aventine, transform!" The jewel lit up, but just as it did, smoke filled the place up again.

The two boys coughed.

"It ended so fast!" Anis said, blinking.

"Lame," Amu said, sighing.

"Darn it! I was so close to using Aventine!" Tetsuya screamed.

Serra laughed between coughs. "Yeah, you almost got to experience wielding it after all these years."

The smoke clear to reveal the two seated on the ground. Tetsuya had his head down.

"You can always try again," Amu said.

"I wouldn't recommend it," Aventine said, stepping toward her protectee and the son of her previous one. "Both strained themselves a lot in order for it to work the first time. They'll need to recharge."

"We have little time," Tetsuya said, pushing himself up.

"Yeah, we are going to be up against a monster on the same level as Daisaru and Grandfather soon. We have to get this right now rather than later," Serrano said, standing up as well.

"Tetsu, Serra," my cousin said, furrowing her brow.

Tetsuya smiled at his mother. "Don't worry, we'll be alright!"

"We should try to figure out why the fusion broke up so quickly to avoid wasting time then," I said.

"Couldn't have been because of Aventine, your fusion with Uncle Shi still used it," Serrano said.

I nodded. "True, but could be tied to the nature of Tetsuya's core being part of his angel weapon."

"It's actually simpler," Aventine said, sighing.

"It is?" the boys asked as if they were one again.

"Yes. Inexperience. Takeshi and Osamu's lasted so long in its onset because of adrenaline. Yours lacks that."

"Then we'll just have to keep at it!" Tetsuya said, moving his orb around.

"I'll be taking that!" a voice called. A woman covered almost entirely in blue armor resembling scales flew straight at him. Even her eyes were covered by her helmet.

"Like you will!" Anis yelled, launching chains into the air. Her chains grasped the arms of the woman.

"Mom, let me handle her!" Tetsuya yelled, reforming Agnes.

Anis slammed the woman into one of the three mountains but our mystery guest spread her draconic wings out, saving herself from crashing into the side.

I rushed at her and thrust my sword toward her mouth which was one of the few exposed areas. She raised her left arm which had a protrusion resembling a shield.

"Away, Mammon'ss plaything. I have no businesss with you."

I jumped back as she formed a crystal blue sword. With a spin of Shiva, I deflected the blade.

"How do you know about Mammon? Are you her underling?"

She laughed. "No, I am no underling, but her peer," she said, thrusting her sword at me abdomen. I side-stepped it, but the tip of the sword nicked me in the arm.

Damn, I shouldn't have gotten distracted.

Tetsuya and Serrano gasped.

"You know who that lady is?" Anis asked.

"Her manner of speaking and what she just said, she has to be Leviathan," Serrano said, gritting his teeth.

"Yess. Long time no see, welpss." She held her hand up. "Now, hand over Behemoth's orb or I'll flood this entire valley!"

Tetsuya smirked and formed a barrier around her.

"Mom, now!"

Anis covered the sphere in her chains and swung the arch demon around, sending her flying high into the air.

Dark clouds formed overhead.

"You pestss! Did you think that I would allow myself to be humiliated like my brethren?"

"Well, you already were last we saw each other," Tetsuya said, smirking.

She held her hands out, shattering the sphere and the chains attached to it. "Right, it was you who tricked Behemoth and I to fight it out. Now that I enjoyed working with that guy. But, fear not, you will get your deserved punishment!"

"Pow Pup Meteor Punch!" a voice yelled.

Leviathan turned to look at a brown, only to be thrown higher into the air.

"Mom!" Serrano yelled.

Selena smiled. "Glad that I made it on time. Knew I smelled something fishy."

"I'm a dragon, not fish!" Leviathan yelled, slamming Selena toward us.

"Got ya!" Azami yelled, catching her.

"Brother, get away from here! The rest of you go too!" I yelled.

Selena jumped off of my brother's arms and flew down to Anis. "Let's get you out of here. It's too dangerous for you!"

Anis nodded and turned to look at her trembling niece. "Let's go."

"O-okay," Amun said, trying to maintain her composure.

Leviathan opened her mouth, injecting water from it as the three flew away.

"No, you don't!" Tetsuya yelled, pushing back against it with a barrier. The splashing water punctured holes in the rocks it struck.

"How high pressured is that stuff?" Serra exclaimed, gripping Aventine.

"You haven't seen pressure yet!" Leviathan yelled, shattering Tetsuya's barrier with her tail.

Tetsuya gritted his teeth as he stumbled back.

"Tetsu!" Serra said, grabbing him.

"Thanks, Serra," Tetsuya said, wincing.

"Allow me to handle this, Serrano," Aventine said, forming an energy copy of my nephew's gladius.

I glanced at Azami. "Brother, if you plan to stay then make sure to avoid her attacks."

"Of course!" Azami said, joining Aventine in the air.

I narrowed my eyes at the demoness. Her power didn't appear diminished from what Takeshi showed me of the battle in Xeleria. In fact, it seemed greater, when it should've been the opposite in this realm. Had Ifrit and Mammon done something to give the others a work around? Could their inability to use their full powers have had something to do with it? Or was it something that applied only to Levithan?

**Solar Note: Pardon the delay. Hope that you enjoyed the chapter ^^. Thoughts? Theories? Predictions?**