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... I...

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...where am I?

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... nightmare...

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... there was this creature...

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... couldn't touch it...

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Why...

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...aaah! No!

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It... it wasn't a nightmare. I remember-- the wind in my ears. A flash of red. The... sword...

How did I.. get here?

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I don't...

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...remember.

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I'm back in Ginza... somehow. Did the Manikins...? No, they wouldn't dream of leaving their hideout, let alone come to Hikawa's turf. Maybe I did imagine everything, after all...

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No. No no no. I didn't imagine it. I don't know how I got here, but they saved my life. That... [/I]thing[I] was a monster. A real monster, not like the regular demons of this world.

I tried to go back, to find another route. There wasn't. Every time, the Candelabrum's flames came alive, and the sensation of dread came back stronger and stronger... I was so paralyzed the last time, I probably would've stayed there and gotten sucked in again if Pix hadn't pushed me out.

But there are no paths aboveground either. That conduit... is my only option. And it's barred by something-- something that shouldn't be.

I... perhaps I can stay here a while, and get stronger. Let my friends' power grow. But will it be enough? Even if we could match it blow for blow, that creature... that [/I]Fiend[I] dodged everything we threw at it. How can we survive long enough to defeat it if we can't even touch it?

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I don't know how to feel about letting these guys join me. I could be leading them to their deaths, for all I know.

I don't dare go to Madam Nyx's for help, by this point I'm sure Loki knows I've been to his bachelor's pad. But there's gotta be [/I]someone[I] around here who knows about that Fiend! I have to get across, someho--

Pix?

What is it? Why are you tugging at my fingers like that?

You want me to follow? Uh, okay, sure.

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...the Cathedral? Do you have any ideas for fusing our friends, Pix?

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A Koppa-Tengu! He looks strong. Lots of room to grow, but... hm, he's immune to Force. Didn't the Matador use a Force skill?

I didn't know you were so good at fusion combinations, Pix! That's awe...

Why do you look so upset?

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I can hear Take-Minekata growl at our new arrival from all the way back there. He carries Li'l Pix within him -- he must still remember that cat that hurt her in Shibuya's mall.

"Not good enough"? Pix? What to you mean "not good enough"?

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N-no.

Pix, no. You don't have to... We [/I]do[I] have enough-- You can't--

......

Wait, Pix!

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Don't...

She just...

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Before she went into the machine...

Was that a... goodbye kiss?

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That was... my Pixie...

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Is that... Is she...?

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Pix, you've...

Miss uzume... Is this what you've become?

I try to look under the fan covering her eyes, but she keeps turning away. Her smile looks... sad.

Oh, Pixie...

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We... we have enough, more than enough to face the Matador once again. Let's hope all this sacrifice is worth it.

We've only taken a few steps before Miss Uzume asks about my magatama. Whoa. I had forgotten all about them in all that.. excitement, but Wadatsumi is wriggling so violently it's almos bouncing off my hand. I wonder...

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Our strength has certainly grown.

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And Koppa-Tengu has that same move Pix... used to have.

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Once more into the breach.

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But on the way over, we run into a whole bunch of nosy hairballs just delighted with the light of Kagustuchi. Unlike other demons who go nuts over it, though, these ones are just deliriously happy.

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One of them calmed down enough to join us after Kagutsuchi dimmed down, though.

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This is it. Just around this corner...

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And Wadatsumi all but spews out a new ability into my mind. It must have sensed the danger and reacted accordingly.

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Before we head in, Miss Uzume points at a different magatama to ingest: Hifumi.

Did... did she always have this knowledge, or is it a result of the fusion?

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My heart is pounding. I'm not even sweating anymore, but the light [/I]oozing[I] from my tattoos feels cool and sticky all the same.

I hope--

No.

I don't hope. I [/I]know[I] we will defeat this Fiend! I won't let Pix down!

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There he is.

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The Matador.

I've been too easygoing so far. Trying to make friends with even the most dangerous demons. But the truth is, most of them would sooner kill me than even talk to me. It's because I've been so trusting that the Matador almost killed me last time.

But not anymore. It's me and my own against this world, and if it's not gonna pull any punches, neither are [/I]we[I]!

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Bring it on!

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As expected. But this time...

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We can bring you down!

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We see through your capote!

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You'll play with us no longer!

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And you can't hurt us anymore!

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Take that!

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You can keep using that, and we'll keep taking it away!

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Even if we trade blow for blow, we have someone to keep our spirits up!

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Augh! That could've been dangerous if we hadn't been at full health. We must be bringing him to the brink if he's using these heavy attacks.

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It's time to press on the attack! We can't give him the chance to use his capote again --I can't use Fog Breath anymore, and Koppa's good for only one more casting of Sukunda. Miss Uzume could help, but I'd rather she keep up the healing instead.

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...oh no...

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No! Not again! PIIIX!

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Gotta get her back gotta get her back she took that blow for me gotta get her b-- huh?

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Nekomata... did it?

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I... guess she did! And Miss Uzume is safe. After all we sacrificed to get here, I suppose we can count this as a victory.

And now... I have another one of these things. The Matador must have been carrying it. What should I do with it?

But no sooner did the battlefield melt away into the pipes and concrete of the underpass, than I heard a familiar voice...

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Wait, she [/I]gave[I] me the original one knowing it could attract the Matador? What the hell!?

I have half a mind to just dump these here in a sewer drain, but something tells me that would be a disastrously bad idea. Ugh. I'll have to hang on them for a while.

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And if just one Candelabrum attracted that thing... I ingest Kamudo just in case.

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The sewage treatment plant past that corridor quickly becomes a pipe maze. Bridges, overpasses, sluice gates... Even with my sense of direction, I have to double-back and backtrack just to find the right way.

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And that doesn't help much!

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I learn a new ability. Berserk has outlasted its usefulness --the fight against the Matador proved that.

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Hey, there's a familiar face.

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You're way behind the times, but thanks for the advice anyway!

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Nice work, Minakata! Now don't do that again. Ew.

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Her too? I wonder how many demons evolve all on their own without having to fuse with another.

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When will this maze [/I]end[I]?

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Oh, please let this be the exit...

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Yes! We're... uh.

This isn't the kind of place I was planning to visit on this trip.

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That sounds ominous.

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Oh... no. And those robes...

Did the Mantra do this? Do they just capture Manikins and toss them out like this when they're done?

And I'm supposed to seek an alliance with them to take down Hikawa?

What kind of world IS this?

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I have to force my attention elsewhere. Just seeing that mound of Manikin stuff makes me shiver to my bones.

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The burning wreckage of Ikebukuro doesn't exactly fill me with confidence. Neither does the guard stationed at the entrance.

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...even if he's a bit of a pushover to us.

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Here we are. I wonder if demons are naturally attracted to shopping malls... or if that says something about the malls themselves.

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How does that even work?

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