Okay so before we launch into this chapter, I'm just gonna say for the record: I'm mashing up all the side stories from 6-66 and 6-67 into their own respective parts. Like this is gonna just follow Team A, the next will be just Team B and Team C will be last. And there Ain't no way in hell I'm making this thing double or triple parts, so good luck reading over 10K for the next three chapters.

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The elevator stops with a sharp jolt, forcing Charlie, Vil and the others to climb out of the elevator and look around at the vast space. Charlie tried not to look over the edge, as tempting as it was to look down into the abyss. But she'd pass out just seeing it. And the moans of the dead weren't helping her either.

"So...here we are...the Phantom prison: Tartaros..." Vil breathed, drinking in the dark space as her. "Just seeing the size and depth of it makes me shudder violently..."

Epel shivers and huddles towards Charlie. "The air's getting so cold...it's almost like back in my hometown...but it's...somehow darker...."

"Same as both of you...it feels off somehow...not in the good way..." Rook nods. "It's not that I feel the cold air...but it's more of an 'Air of Death' I can't shake off..."

"This screams of a place where any living being steps in here, they're out in .5 seconds..." Charlie murmurs. "One can wonder how deep it goes...." With their words, they began their trek down into the depths. Vil quickly looks through the digital map of the facility, four dots moving around in the map, marked as him, Charlie and the others.

"We'll need to use the elevator once more to get down to the bottom...." Vil went to unlock it, but it wouldn't respond. "Of course, it's not working now."

"Ortho's got a hold over everything." Epel grimaced. "If they didn't want us intruding on their plans then....maybe they didn't want us using a cheat or something...." Suddenly, the doors opened without warning, making everyone grow on edge.

"It's likely a trap. A mischeviously powerful android can have tricks up its sleeve...but let's get this over with." Vil hissed. As soon as the last person was inside, the doors shut behind them and plunged the whole box into darkness.

"Hello! Welcome, Team A to Tower 1 of the Cursed Tartaros Labyrinth!" Ortho sounded overhead.

"Well~, speak of the devil~." Vil smirks at the voice.

"Never did I think we'd get to try out a prototype of Night Raven Quest firsthand! And we;ve got new characters and new powers added to the roster!

" 'Night Raven Quest'? What's that?" Epel asked.

"Likely a little RPG Idia dreamt up." Charlie snarks.

"Correct you are, miss Charlie! It's a team vs team vs team type of genre! If you want to reach the Underworld and face us, then clearing the beginner stage should be easy as pie!" The darkness transforms into a galactical-themed space as the title of the game flashed in 3-D graphics above before the four's eyes, just like a real-life simulation.

"I've played this game before in the resting room...." Vil murmurs.

"That's right! If you pass one level, you're given access to travel down!"

"Aight, let's do this!" Charlie cracks her knuckles. "Having dealt with Smash Bros and more fighting games, this is gonna be a piece of-Guh!" Charlie was walking forward as she spoke, but she hit something that made her stumble back. She massaged her cheek that smacked against the wall, and moved her outstretched hand forward, weirded out, only to feel glass instead of empty space, turning her confusion to fear. "H-Hey! Hey, guys!!" she knocks on the glass, getting the three's attention on the other side of the glass from her. Epel saw her and ran up to her.

"Charlie??"

"Something's wrong!! I-I can't reach where you guys are!" her voice sounded partially muffled due to being on the other side of the wall. Epel pushed against the wall, feeling glass like her, making him scared as well.

"What's going on?!" But his fear went up as he saw her starting to break apart piece by piece like a pixelated figure, stating from her fingertips. "CHARLIE!!!"

"MILADY!!!" Both Rook and Vil tried to break the glass, forcing her figure to break apart faster as she pleaded for help, helplessly hitting the glass as she began to cry, her tears becoming pixels to match with her. It wasn't before long til her face became the last thing to vanish, dampening the trio's spirit.

"CHARLOTTE!" Vil screamed hitting the glass in frustration, but the simulation before them booted up, forcing him to start the game without his permission. The small monsters as well as the rock giant however, seemed to have gained some sentience, and began to throw stronger attacks than normal, depleting the team's energy faster, until they were knocked off their feet in exhaustion and the simulation booted down.

"No...We...we lost?!" Rook breathed, trying to get some air into his lungs.

"Afraid so....but that's due to the game has reached a far more difficult level than how I recalled! We lost on purpose." Vil got to his feet.

"Ahahahaha! And you lost almost imeediately! Sore loser!" Ortho taunts. "That means I can't let you through! You're too weak to beat this level on max difficulty!"

"Ugh...like brother like robot it seems..." Vil scoffs.

"Oh....is that what you think...? Well, maybe you're right. Nii-san and I are alike!...However....you seem like you've got potential, so it shouldn't end here so soon. How about a second chance? And maybe....throw in a little fun into the mix. You pass the level..." From a space up in the air, a crystal bubble floated, revealing Charlie's figure inside, body hanging by her wrists, unconscious. "...And she'll be released!"

"CHARLOTTE!" the three scream in fear.

"What have you done to her?!" Vil sneers.

"Just put her in a small state of stasis. I wanted to see what power each of you really held! And from what my sensors gathered, Charlotte Luchessi is leveled in high enchantments and powerful magic that hasn't been seen in years! Having her would be a bit of a hacking through the level! So I sealed her away from you three just in case~!"

"So her disappearing....that was you!" Epel put the dots together.

"Exatamungous! So, what are you waiting for~? Game Start!" This time, the three were prepared as they focused on using their powers in sync to damage the robots and annihalate the rock monster in sync, beating the level.

"Hell yeah! We beat the level!" Epel smiled.

"Well~! It seems your tactics changed instantly! But don't think things will get easier from this point on~! Anyhoo, you pass, and I'll release Charlotte." Ortho relents. "But if what Nii-San said was true....Vil suits a tank...then what would Rook and Epel be labeled as...maybe even Charlotte herself?! I'll just have to see how this tripe acts when they reach newer levels~! See you at the next gate~!"

The doors in front of them hissed open and all three tumbled out as the smoke cleared around them. But there laid Charlie, on the ground and her body still as death.

"Charlie!!" Epel and Rook ran to her, the latter gathering her in his arms as her head rested on his shoulder for support.

"Milady, say something!" He begged as Epel checked her pulse. It was normal, thankfully. A groan of exhaustion slipped past her lips as her eyes crinkled open and looked around carefully.

"Huh...am...Am I out...?" She murmurs, slowly regaining consciousness and strength.

"Yeah." Epel nods, helping her to her feet. "Do you remember anything while you were sealed up?"

"Well, it's a little weird but....when I felt myself getting taken elsewhere....it's like I had an out of body experience....like I could see my body hanging in the air and I was also watching you guys battle the video game monsters...it felt as if my soul was wandering on its own...." She sighed bitterly, "I can't believe that Ortho locked me out of the level you guys were at..."

"Hmph, they're a duo of malicious brothers, indeed..." Vil nods. "But soon enough, WE will have the last laugh."

"I can't believe this is what Tartaros acts like..." Epel shivered once more. "And now that the elevator's busted, guess we'll have to move forward on foot..."

"From what the Staff said to us in the control room, all of the phantoms on this level of the asylum are freed, so they'll be lurking wherever we trek." Vil murmurs and Charlie responds.

"We'll have to be on guard if we cross paths with one. In the meantime, let's move." She begins to walk ahead as the other three copy her.

Being in front of the pack, Charlie had time to think to herself. Although Ortho had trapped her inside of the bubble, the OOB experience she went through...that wasn't something HE did. Maybe...was it her own magic responding in turn to the offensive spell? That even if it couldn't break her out physically, spiritually was off the table?...something didn't quite make sense...

"Charlotte, wait." Vil's voice called her out of her trance. She turned back and saw a rather somber look on his face, making her raise an eyebrow.

"What's up?"

"Before we go any further, I have something to say....to all of you." Vil continued.

"Roi du Poisson? What is it?" Rook urged.

"...Upon being reunited, we never had the chance to speak to one another since we had to run into enemy territory almost immediately...so while we still have time, I wish to speak. Rook...you abandoned Pomefiore even if you were the vice leader just to come after me...I know you to be a man who does things out of the ordinary, and yet...during such a critical moment when the whole school was under attack All those days ago...you showed such irresponsible actions. And as Dorm leader, this will not go unpunished." By the end of his speech, Vil was starting to glare.

"No, Vil, wait!" Epel stopped Vil before he could do anything hasty. "He knew what he was doing but still-!"

"Silence! I'm not done. The matter of me being spirited away and Rook abandoning his responsibility as vice leader are two sides of the same coin. Anyone else who stayed behind at the dorm must've been keeping an eye on things whilst he was gone. So if anything, I'm rather ashamed to have chosen an irresponsible man who followed his own emotions over the task of being the vice dorm leader!"

"He did it because it was his choice!" Epel defended, shielding Rook with his arms.

"No, Epel, it's alright." Rook placed a hand on Epel's shoulder to make him lax, a somber look on his face. "Vil has every right to be upset with me. And therefore, I'm prepared to be stripped of my title the moment I stepped foot off the Island...."

"But....no, you can't...!" Epel's voice having lost all its power, tried to defend Rook but he couldn't think of anything.

"As for you two." Vil looked over at Charlie this time. "You realized how dangerous coming her was, no?"

"And what if we did, huh?" Charlie growled back. "Who gives a flying fuck about danger? I laugh in the face of danger, buster! You saw what I did to you at the VDC! And you've also seen what I did to those robotic guards! But I was holding back! Because the real enemy is the one I will NOT hold back on! And even if I stayed behind doing nothing, I'd never forgive myself if anyone else came back dead!" She and Vil held one another's gazes with either impudence or crude fury, but neither of them broke the tension for a while. But then Vil looked away and sighed.

"You mistake me, Charlotte....but I'm done speaking as the Leader of Pomefiore...but as Vil Schoenheit the person....it's different." Vil sighed. This made her raise an eyebrow and looked to the other two with confusion. "When I heard Idia say that you three arrived to the Isle, I felt happiness...it felt like years since I felt a true onslaught of positivity!" But before anyone could say anything, Vil began to place smooches on their cheeks, first Rook, then Epel and lastly, Charlotte. This made the girl short-circuit out of nowhere...

".....che cazzo è stato... è successo davvero... credo di essere ubriaco in questo momento......"

"Forgive me for my brash action, but....to see all of you really here and alive ...is more than I could ask for....thank you all..." Vil had a small smile as he pulled all three into a group hug. But Charlie was still out of it...and after she was let go of, she promptly fainted to the floor dramatically.

"I think you broke Charlie..." Epel tried not to laugh at the sight for Charlie's sake as Rook carried her over his shoulder, sliming her over like a sack of potatoes. "Oh wait! Vil, you won't believe what happened! I found my Unique Magic on our way here!" And this made Vil do a rather comical double take.

"It's true! You should've seen it earlier!" Rook smiled. "A glass shield traps an enemy within!"

"Wait...THAT'S his spell?!"

"Damn sure! 'Sleep Kiss' it's called....it lets me trap anyone inside of it, freezing them in their tracks. It's still not mastered though...maybe around 30...40%...?"

"And that's not all! He also used it to protect my lady and mistress Charlotte when a swarm of Charons had them cornered! It's too bad none of you had a camera on you, it was real sweet~!" Fawkes pops up out of nowhere with a Huge ass grin.

"Aaah!! Bug!!" Epel screamed trying to swat at the little creature. But Fawkes merely dodged his slow as fuck hand swats as Vil and Rook could only stare at the bobble head sized being.

"Geez, you humans are so funny at times! It's like you've never seen a spriteling before!" Fawkes snickered. "Anyhoo, hey. My name's Fawkes, I'm a Fire sprite, one of the most powerful in my class not to brag, and I'm also this girl's right-hand man!" He pointed to Charlie, who was just getting over the whole Vil kiss. She kicked Rook upside the head, and he in turn let her go.

"A...a sprite?!" Epel looked rather freaked out.

"Fawkes!" Charlie hissed running to him as he landed on her open palm. "What are you doing?! I thought I told you to hide! Now they know you exist!"

"Hey it's not like they're gonna spill to the public!" He chuckled back. "Besides, isn't it the norm to have magical creatures in this universe~?" Just as Charlie opened her mouth to retort, Vil spoke before she could.

"Where did he come from?!"

"He used to belong to my teacher Ophelia." She answered rather hastily. "She sent him to me so that he could watch over me in her place. I-I didn't want you guys to know about him til later!"

"My Lady, you will need me to defeat these monsters! Even if you try to have me concealed, I will be exposed eventually." Fawkes urged. "Plus, as much as I admire you for taking on the task yourself, you can't do these things alone! Even with powerful spells that these bozos possess." Fawkes side-eyed the Pomefiore trio who gave back offended glares. But the air seemed to shift as Rook, Vil and even Charlie herself narrowed their eyes, looking elsewhere.

"Uh...is something wrong...?" Epel squeaks...

"Keep your Guard up, Epel." Charlie hissed. "We're not alone...."

Suddenly, from the shadows several creatures launched themselves at the group, but Fawkes was faster.

"Watch out!!!" He sent out a wave of fire that hurtled the monsters back, giving enough time for Charlie and the boys to distance themselves from the group of monsters that were sent their way. They managed to get a look at them in turn. Rather small, yet were uniquely designed to be noticeable to the eye.

"I'll take 'em all out with one slash!" Charlie shouted as she summoned her sword in hand. Gripping it with both hands, she poured her mana into her sword. "Fawkes....care to lend a hand?"

"Gladly!" the Sprite chirps. He began to imbue his power into her sword, as she kicked off the ground and flapping her wings with powerful speed, she prepared to swing her sword. Vil, Rook and Epel also lent her some help, giving some more firepower in a unison spell for Fawkes to absorb and transfer into her attack.

Charlie focused her line of sight in on the group of small creatures. 'Don't focus on anything else....focus on your enemy! One slash!' She breathed in deeply and quicky as she lets her arms fly with the sharp edge propelling forward. She screamed as she sent out blade-like waves of hot fire at each blot-gremlin, hitting them in their weak points effectively. The creatures shrieked as they were hit with the offensive slashes, their glass casings cracking on impact and shatter into pieces as they fall limp to the floor, lifeless. Charlie huffed as she lands on her feet, looking up in time to see the creatures turning into puddles of black goo, a miasma-like fog wavering off what was left of them.

"Oh my God...they just turned into ink puddles!" Epel gasped.

"The ink itself was empowered by negative energy...." Vil analyzed approaching one that used to be a monster. "We best leave them alone as to not get infected...."

"And look....the ink where their forms manifested from the earth below.....its changing!" Rook gasps, seeing the pitch black substance change to milky white, hardening like cement only to crack apart into giant chunks.

"This is only a taste of what's to come...." Charlie scowls. "If even one of these things gets out of the building, we're as good as fucked."

"We must hurry, then. The closer we get to his domain, the higher of a chance we may possess at stopping that madman and his brother in their tracks! We can't let them go through with it....even if we label ourselves as an enemy to them. Though, even before they did, it seems WE labeled THEM as enemies firsthand." Vil said. With this, the others began to trek forward as fast as possible.

"So...Fawkes?" Epel perks up, trying to keep him busy whilst they trekked ahead. The miniature Redhead fairy sits on Charlie's shoulder, swinging his legs back and forth as they descend down a flight of stairs.

"Yep?"

"You said you're a Fire Sprite?"

"Born and raised!"

"Are there other kinds of sprites?"