[A/N] -
Finale is finally up. Please enjoy this final installment of 'Within Pandemonium'. Just a warning though, this chapter is pretty damn long.

A quick summary of all the events thus far...

It all begins when Squalo, captivated by Xanxus' outstanding display of strength risks his life to help the raven out of the grim cells of Grid's main building. There was no true justification for the swordsman's actions, apart from him thinking it shameful for someone of Xanxus' caliber to be killed so early. Immediately, the two men develop a strong bond which initially is that of mutual understanding but gradually blossoms into requited affection.

Their bond is further strengthened when Xanxus returns the favour and rescues Squalo from his impending fate of being enslaved and sold at the auction house. With Squalo now unable to return to Grid, Xanxus takes him along with his two servants Lussuria and Fran, back to his own place: The Vongola headquarters. There, despite Tsuna and the other elite members forgiving Squalo for his crimes with Grid, much of the lower ranked members reject and despise him. Nevertheless, Squalo with the help of Xanxus manages to pull through the harsh comments and hostility, establishing a limited but productive life in the headquarters.

The extent of Squalo's loyalty to Xanxus is tested when the latter in a fit of uncontrollable rage, heavily injures and almost kills the swordsman. The shark although genuinely upset at Xanxus' loss of control, forgives the man he has sworn to fight for and continues to serve him. Squalo then continues to prepare for the upcoming war against Grid and is lit with new scopes of determination when Grid brutally kills Lussuria.

And now, the day of the invasion has arrived with Squalo being assigned to the main building beside four others. Their sole objective: to deactivate Grid's communication system which will result in beneficial consequences for Tsuna's group at the Axel's palace. The mission runs smoothly at first, but due to Squalo's inability to control his emotions, Grid was notified of their presence before they could completely fulfill their objective.

Squalo manages to defeat his arch enemy Taros in an intense battle but the fight leaves him with severe injuries that will likely prevent him from undertaking any more combat. On the other hand, Spanner was able to successfully break into Grid's network and deactivate the communication system, allowing Vongola's other squads to begin their own assault on their assigned locations. However, this does not stop the Axel's private army from making their way to the main building.

Although the squad at the main building have effectively completed their role, the atmosphere is grim as nobody can see a way out of their impending doom. However, Squalo remembering Xanxus does not give up hope and swears to get out of the war alive.

We now switch to Xanxus' group at the Axel's palace…

Finale –What are you?/To a better future

'But Dino…your squad is far outnumbered, y-you'll all…die…' Tsuna exclaimed indignantly into his transmitter. The device was on loudspeaker so that the five men in the area could all hear what was going on at the other end.

'I know Tsuna…trust me…we'll hold'

Xanxus couldn't believe his ears as he heard what had happened at the main building. He stood there scowling in annoyance and noticed that all the others apart from Tsuna were bearing the same thoughts in mind. No wonder the palace was empty, the whole army had gone over to the main building.

'I can send the rest of my group to the main building –'

'No, that will draw attention to the fact that something is going on in the Axel's palace. We can't afford that.'

At least bucking horse had his priorities right. Tsuna looked as though he was about to give order for them to head over there anyways but Reborn shook his head dangerously. The boy struggled for a moment before accepting the truth, as much as he disliked it.

Xanxus didn't want to admit it but a large part of him also wanted to help out at the main building. He was in a state of conflict, struggling between the desire to help Squalo and the responsibility of destroying the switch. What was more important to him, Squalo or the future of the entire city? He couldn't decide, but as an act of proficient leadership, he will remain here at the palace.

He'll be fine, the scum wouldn't dare disobey an order. But even with that thought in mind, now that the news had reached his ears he couldn't help wanting to finish his task as soon as possible.

'Dino, we'll find the switch as quickly as possible, and after we deactivate it we'll come and help you out. So until then…keep fighting! Don't give up!' Tsuna declared firmly into the transmitter.

'Understood.'

The communication device was switched off abruptly and silence enveloped them again. Even though Dino did not mention how they screwed up, Xanxus couldn't help suspecting that it might have been Squalo who was responsible, after all the plan was not supremely difficult. The piece of shit might have just lost his patience at the wrong time.

'Reborn!' Tsuna pleaded to the infant, 'they'll die! There's no way they can win against five thousand –'

'No-good Tsuna,' Reborn replied calmly, 'do you intend to destroy all we've worked for these years?'

'No, of course not! But my friends are in danger-'

'Focus on the mission at hand,' Reborn interrupted, 'we need to destroy the switch. We need to acquire freedom.'

'What's the point of that freedom if I lose everyone important to me in the process?' Tsuna exclaimed, looking livid and ready to challenge Reborn.

'It will be painful, but remember that you aren't the only one whose fate is at stake. There are all the peasants too, are you telling me you wish to risk their future along with yours?'

Tsuna looked struck by Reborn's words and he scrunched up his face excruciatingly, thinking hard. Xanxus, Byakuran and Colonello watched the scene in silence, not intending to interfere although Xanxus was starting to lose a little patience at the time they were wasting.

At last, the Vongola boss seemed to understand the situation and slowly nodded.

'W-we'll look for the switch, we can't waste anymore time,' Tsuna regained his calm demeanor in a second, now his mind was completely set on their objective.

'Good,' Reborn declared looking pleased at his student's decision, 'we're having a change of plans. Instead of our whole fighting force entering the palace, it will just be the five of us. We'll be enough to take on any resistance the Axel provides and I believe it will be the most efficient with only our party searching for the switch.'

The group agreed to this plan and made their way towards the entrance of the magnificent monument.

'I'll go inform the others of our plan,' Colonello said, flying away on his hawk to the area where all their squads stood waiting.

As the infant left, the four others without hesitating broke down the front door of the palace. Hastily they spread out, heading to different areas within the palace.

'We'll meet here when we're done!' Tsuna ordered gesturing to the large central area of the palace, running out of sight and knocking down two servants as he did. Byakuran and Reborn disappeared out of sight, taking down any individual in their path.

Xanxus chose the remaining area that was not taken by his comrades. When a few of the Axel's workers appeared and tried to stop him, he killed them mercilessly unlike Tsuna. This was no time to be compassionate, the act of leaving an enemy alive out of sympathy might potentially turn against him later.

The raven continued, room after room, killing anyone who got into his way but there was no sign of anything 'switch-like'.

The palace was gigantic and it was after a few minutes of searching before Xanxus decided to head back to the meeting spot. On the way, he was met with various corpses that were skillfully killed by individuals other than himself and understood that most, if not all the personnel in the palace had been taken care of in the short time.

When he arrived back at the central area, three others were already there waiting.

'Any sign?' Colonello asked.

'Nothing,' Xanxus replied brusquely, 'where's the Byakuran scum?'

His question was answered as Byakuran came flying gracefully down the stairs dragging a noble roughly behind him. His glowing white wings disappeared as he landed and threw the noble onto the floor in front of them.

'Kufufufu look what I fished~' he commented cheerfully but nobody missed the death-like glance he gave the noble.

Xanxus recognized the figure as the Axel, this was his first time seeing him personally. Immense hatred boiled inside him but he kept his calm.

'I-I demand for an explanation!' The Axel proclaimed on the floor, looking flabbergasted. Byakuran gave him a hard kick which caused him to howl in pain. Recovering and looking fearfully at the intruders of his palace, the blonde noble hastily reached for his mobile phone.

'Hello? Hello? This is an emergency, is anyone there-'

Byakuran swiftly kicked the phone out of the Axel's hands and Xanxus stepped on it cleanly, a sharp crunch echoing in the hall as the device was crushed beneath his feet. Both men stared down at the noble with the deepest look of disgust. The blonde whimpered as he spared a glance at the worthless remains of his communicating tool.

'Pathetic shit,' Xanxus snarled, 'don't even think about calling the other scum.'

'I-I'll have your head for this!' Pohlepa exclaimed frightfully, attempting to get to his feet. Xanxus brought his knee into the Axel's face as he was in the midst of getting up and before the noble could go flying to the other side of the hall, Byakuran caught him by the hair and held him up.

'Hmm, you're helpless here noble,' Byakuran said with a smile, 'we've disabled your communication system so you're stuck with us.'

Pohlepa gaped in disbelief as he heard this and struggled to remove the iron grip on his hair with no success.

'Byakuran, enough!' Tsuna commanded calmly. His childish manner was no longer present, a flame glowed brightly in the middle of his forehead and his eyes burned a fierce orange.

'Kufufufu, whatever,' Byakuran laughed and threw the Axel over to the others. He relaxed his posture and folded his arms, interested in watching how Tsuna was going to deal with this.

'Axel Pohlepa,' Tsuna began in a polite manner, 'do you know who I am?'

The Axel frantically shook his head but in his frightened state he still managed to look revolted at the notion of a peasant addressing him.

'I'm the head of Vongola,' Tsuna declared firmly.

'V-Vongola?' Pohlepa jumped slightly but gathered his wits quickly, 'you lowly peasants! How dare you intrude upon my-'

'Our intentions are not-'

'Halt your spurious explanations!' Pohlepa exclaimed in a flustered manner, 'I know very well what you Vongola intend to do! You wish to overthrow me do you not? You desire my power, my position –'

'You misunderstand,' Tsuna replied gently, 'we merely wish to negotiate a solution on a matter concerning the management of this city.'

'I don't trust you filthy animals!' Pohlepa roared, backing away slightly on the floor, only to be blocked by Xanxus and Byakuran standing behind him like two solid pillars. 'Heed my words and leave me be or my army will be here at my command to decimate you!'

'Consider your position trash,' Xanxus growled hatefully.

'Xanxus, let me deal with this,' Tsuna implored. The raven gave an impatient grunt and ceased to articulate his thoughts any further.

'Pohlepa,' Tsuna began to explain considerately, 'Vongola forces are battling against Grid as we speak, your men will certainly be defeated. You currently have no means to call for assistance, if you want to escape this conflict unharmed I suggest you offer us your cooperation.'

'I absolutely refuse to assist you Vongola!'

Upon hearing this, Byakuran grabbed a small dagger from his belt and lifted the Axel by his neck forcefully.

'Kufufufu, we'll have to resort to torture then,' he suggested and held the dagger dangerously close to Pohlepa's face, 'which eye should I cut out first?'

The Axel gave a terrified squeak and struggled vigorously in the grip that Byakuran held him in.

'No! Byakuran we don't need to employ violence,' Tsuna said indignantly.

'Shut up brat,' Xanxus interrupted, 'your naivety is pissing me off.'

'Tsuna, I don't think we'll get anywhere with this guy without force,' Colonello told him. Tsuna realizing that he has lost, unwillingly watched as his teammates dealt with the noble.

When Pohlepa saw that Byakuran was dead serious about torturing him, he finally gave in.

'No! Stop! What do you want from me? Get that thing away,' Pohlepa shook violently as the blade was less than an inch from his face, 'I-I'll tell you everything!'

'Where's the switch?' Byakuran asked in a dangerously calm voice.

'W-what switch?'

In one swift motion, Byakuran inserted the blade into the side of Pohlepa's face. Slowly, he dragged the blade across the flesh, splitting the soft skin in half like a knife in butter.

'Stop! Stop!' Pohlepa was on the verge of sobbing, a trickle of blood dropped down his face from the cut, 'I don't know what you're talking about!'

'The barriers surrounding this city,' Xanxus growled, patience rapidly disintegrating, 'there's a switch to remove them, where is it?'

'I-I don't know!'

Byakuran made another cut, this one deeper. Blood splashed out and Pohlepa gave a howl of pain.

'Please, I really don't know!'

Byakuran was about to properly stab the Axel before Reborn stopped him.

'Byakuran, he doesn't seem to be lying this time.'

Byakuran paused and glanced at the infant. Shrugging, he dropped the noble into the floor but the dagger remained in his hand.

'Listen Pohlepa,' Reborn began, 'is there an area that you aren't familiar with in this palace?'

The five men watched the Axel intently, the noble recovered himself a little but did not talk. Xanxus gave a hard kick to Pohlepa's face, right on the wounds that Byakuran inflicted a moment ago.

'Answer the fucking question.'

Pohlepa whimpered and casted a fearful glance at the raven. Xanxus' ruby eyes burned with wrath as he looked at the noble, the savage gleam in his eye prompted Pohlepa to reply.

'T-there's an area, underground –'

'Show us,' Byakuran grabbed the Axel's hair and threw him forward. Pohlepa crawled to his feet and reluctantly lead the five Vongola men past a heap of rooms and into a desolated small area near a shelf of books in one of the rooms. Hesitantly, he took two books out from the shelf and immediately, the shelf opened to reveal a hidden circular stairway. Then, he paused as if waiting for them to enter first.

'You in first,' Byakuran smiled widely before pushing Pohlepa roughly into the stairway. The five men followed after him, glancing around and taking in their new surroundings.

'Be on your guard,' Reborn warned them. Xanxus grunted softly and studied the compact staircase as he walked down. It wasn't long before they all reached the ground, a small circular area met their eyes. There were gigantic double doors at the end of the chamber, two tombstones were stuck in the ground side by side a few metres in front of the metal doors.

'Behind those doors sit my family's greatest treasure,' Pohlepa explained meekly, 'but how to enter there is beyond me.'

Xanxus walked forward and observed the two tombstones and felt his teammates do the same, there were symbols carved into them. He traced the intricate engravings, not able to understand a single word of it. There was a moment of silence as everyone tried to decipher the codes written on the tombstones, and how to open the gate.

'I'm almost certain that the switch is in there,' Reborn announced finally, 'but how to get in?'

Xanxus continued to stare at the symbols on one of the tombstones, he ran his finger down the smooth rock. There was a single word carved neatly at the centre of the stone, standing out from the miniature text underneath it. Xanxus examined the word slowly, the first letter was a wonky upside down 'U' shape. It looked like a lower case 'n'. He went on to the other letters and realized with a jolt what the letters spelt.

'Noble…' Xanxus murmured softly but in the silence it was enough for everyone to hear, 'it says noble.'

Colonello gave a gasp at the other rock, 'I know now! This one says peasant!'

The others gathered around to scrutinize their discoveries. Indeed, the words on the rocks did resemble the words 'noble' and 'peasant'. Reborn looked at them silently but he too could not grasp a reason as to why the words were carved on the rock.

'What do you think of this, Tsuna?' Reborn asked his student. The boy thought hard before answering.

'My hyper intuition tells me…it's a blood sacrifice,' Tsuna said slowly, 'do you trust my instinct?'

'I expected nothing less from Pohplear…' Reborn commented.

Xanxus suddenly understood the meaning behind the two tombstones now. If the brat was correct, then blood from a noble as well as a peasant would be needed to open the metal doors.

'Blood from a noble is easy-peasy,' Byakuran immediately grabbed Pohlepa nearby, took out his dagger and created a deep gash onto the Axel's arm. The blood splashed cleanly onto the tombstone displaying 'noble'. When the liquid made contact with the rock, the tombstone began to glow.

Tsuna motioned for the knife and cut his own arm over the other rock with 'peasant'. The tombstone like its partner began to glow too. When both rocks were radiating the eerie light, a loud cranking sound was heard as the double doors slowly moved apart, opening up to a brand new area. The six men stood gaping in awe at the new room.

'Everyone needs to stay focused, Kora!' Colonello commanded seriously, 'the place was probably built by the first Axel himself. Who knows what kind of traps he included to prevent people from finding the switch.'

'Colonello's right, we need to take it slow,' Reborn warned, eyeing the room ahead of him critically.

Xanxus didn't like taking anything slowly, especially now when Squalo was about to be overwhelmed by Grid forces. Nevertheless, he took the Arcobalenoes' warnings carefully. What kind of switch was this that required so much effort to find? When he had previously imagined it, he always thought it would be a system-like structure which could be turned off at will.

'Y-you opened the door to my family's greatest treasure…' Pohlepa did not seem to hear anything that Reborn or Colonello had said, instead he was gazing at the opened doors mouth wide with wonder. Without hesitating, he leapt forward but Byakuran was quick to react. The white haired man grabbed the back of Pohlepa's robes before the noble could stumble into the new room.

'Not so fast~' Byakuran sang but there was a deadly tone in his voice, 'you can be our scapegoat.'

Tsuna looked dismayed when he heard this but did not voice his thoughts on the matter. Instead, he followed his comrades to the entrance of the newly opened room. The party was met with a room of white. White walls, white ceiling, white everything. Xanxus looked around him, there were pathways and walls blocking his view, the place reminded him greatly of a maze.

There was also a trace of improbability that the room left on him, as if once he entered there would be no escape. True enough, when the six individuals all stepped into the white area, the doors behind them shut abruptly. Nobody wanted to voice the notion that they were now locked deep beneath the Axel's palace, with no evident pathway for escape. The only way was forward, into the labyrinth that Axel Pohplear had skillfully crafted.

Pohlepa didn't seem to perceive that the doors had suddenly closed behind him, he was more interested in what treasure lay in the chamber. Before anyone could stop him, he ran forward to the nearest turn eager to get past the maze. Tsuna suddenly seemed to notice something.

'Wait! No-'

But it was too late, a laser shot from one of the metal holes in the wall onto Pohlepa as he was running. The force of the laser burnt the Axel to crisp, the man was reduced to dark sooty ashes which fell to the floor in a neat pile. The five Vongola elites stared at the scene in front of them, taking a while to realize what had happened. Even Xanxus was a little taken back at the speed in which the Axel died, but most of all at the destructive power of that laser.

One careless step and he could be the one getting struck by that laser, if that happens he wont be able to see Squalo again…

Fuck, he growled in irritation, he didn't have time to be thinking of that damn shark right now. Not when the difficulty of his own mission was so unexpectedly high. None of them were expecting a goddamn maze in the midst of the palace.

'I sense traps everywhere,' Tsuna warned, evidently disturbed by the Axel's abrupt death, 'only my hyper intuition can detect them.'

'What else can you detect?' Colonello asked.

'An energy at the centre of this maze, it must be where the switch is.'

Reborn nodded and motioned for Tsuna to lead the way, the boy willingly complied. Xanxus found himself depending on Tsuna's ability for survival and he detested it, but if he wanted to make it out alive it was the only option he had.

The group felt themselves walking for minutes, turning various corners only to meet more lengths of white wall. Xanxus felt bored even, as they walked and walked without the slightest trouble in their path. All this time had passed and he had not even enjoyed a proper battle. He wondered if Squalo had managed to defeat Taros, or if they had even crossed paths in the chaos. He wondered if the shark would place their promise before the war-

'Xanxus!'

Xanxus woke from his thoughts to see a large metal pike flying towards him. He sidestepped ungracefully as the weapon missed his vitals by an inch and found its way neatly into the wall behind him. Somewhere in his heart a spark of fear made its presence and as much as he tried to beat it down, there was no denying that if it weren't for Tsuna's warning along with his own inhuman reflexes, he would be dead by now.

'Stay focused,' Reborn reminded him, 'I would have expected better from you of all people.'

Xanxus scowled but didn't complain. He managed to subdue the panic but the solid truth grew clearer as the seconds passed. He might not make it out alive…

This maze right here was beyond anything that he had faced before. The unpredictability, the danger and the potential the area held was overwhelming even for him. Alone, he could annihilate thousand-man armies, conquer any fighter who came into his path but he knew he could not make his way through this labyrinth. His inability to do so brought his attention to the weakness which he strove to avoid. A weakness? Impossible, because he had none.

'Scum, how close are we to the switch?' Xanxus growled, maybe talking would take his mind off things.

'Not far off,' Tsuna replied absent mindedly for his attention was solely focused on identifying any possible traps that could spring up. They were walking for another couple of minutes before they came to a wider and taller block of path.

As soon as they stepped into this path, many different beams of laser suddenly switched on from the walls ahead in front of them. The narrow beams criss-crossed and formed what looked like a laser net coming from the walls.* It provided an effective barrier to prevent anyone and anything from crossing as the net ran about two metres tall and spread in front of their path completely.

Before the group could figure out how to travel past the barrier, the net began moving toward them at a rapid speed.

'Shit, Reborn hold onto me!' Colonello yelled before the net got dangerously close. For a split second, everyone was in their own world, using their own means to avoid being sliced and incinerated into a million forgotten pieces.

Without thinking, Xanxus pulled out both his guns and fired downwards, successfully launching himself into flight. He was pleased to see that the height he gained placed him in a safe distance from the edges of the net below. Utilizing another strong blast from his gun, he performed a perfect forward-flip and landed on the other side of the net with a thud.

Looking back, he noticed that the net continued to move but in the other direction, down the empty hall that they passed through. Looking near the ceiling, his teammates were all airborne. Byakuran was hovering calmly, white wings flapping in fluid motions, Colonello's hawk managed to hold both him and Reborn, Tsuna was back in his hyper mode, eyes burning brightly and hands firing a continuous blast which kept him up. When they all realized that the net had disappeared, they landed on the ground beside Xanxus.

Nobody exchanged any words or glances, instead they silently walked onwards together. Xanxus trudged along, grimly anticipating what they could meet next. What if they couldn't avoid the next one? He didn't blame himself for worrying slightly because from the shared silence around him he could tell that the others were thinking the same. No mortal could not worry in their situation.

Tsuna suddenly halted in his step, causing the four others following to immediately do the same.

'A trap?' Byakuran suggested. Tsuna shook his head and placed both hands on the wall beside him. He seemed interested in the blank white wall and felt it for a few moments.

'The fuck are you doing brat?' Xanxus snarled. Tsuna paused before answering.

'Xanxus, can you blast this wall apart?'

Xanxus wasted no time hesitating at Tsuna's suggestion, he pulled out one of his guns and sent a fireball to the wall. The force of the flames was so strong it blasted the white metal cleanly apart, leaving a smoking but large hole, big enough for a human to fit through. Tsuna nodded at the hole and motioned for the four of them to follow him through.

'I sensed the energy growing strong on this side,' he explained, 'if I'm not mistaken, this will lead us directly to the central area.'

Hearing this, the others quickened their pace through the hole. Sure enough, when they reached the other side they were met with another area but considerably larger, even larger than the Axel's own hall. This one was evidently the main part of the maze, the centre.

It was somewhat decorated, there were metal statues situated around the circular walls, other than that the place was empty. White tiles covered every inch of the floor, and at the centre of the room stood the most prominent statue of all. In front of the statue was a rectangular stone block with a glowing pink orb sitting on it. The party made their way to the centre where the orb and the silver statue were.

Xanxus was not interested in the orb yet, even though it glowed with an intense foreign energy. His eyes were fixated on the gorgeous statue next to the orb. It looked so life-like, so real, whichever craftsman shaped it must have been a master at his job. Each detail was intricately carved, when Xanxus went closer he could even see the pores on the statue's skin.

'This is the first Axel, Pohplear,' commented Reborn staring up at the statue.

'How nostalgic, to see his damned figure again,' Colonello growled, eyes blazing with hatred. The two infants were also immersed in the living monument of the man who transformed them into their cursed selves.

The Axel was wearing a battle suit instead of the traditional royal robes, he held no weapons and stood there fierce and proud. The most prominent aspect of the statue was the pendant handing from his neck.

Xanxus didn't like the statue at all, it seemed almost too real to be a frozen metal figure. When he stood near enough he felt as though the statue was breathing and living, once or twice he thought he even heard a heart beating softly. He thought it was his imagination until he went to observe the pink crystal orb next to the statue. When he was beside it and gazing into its smoky depths the beating heart grew slightly louder until he could deny it no longer. There was definitely something strange about everything in this room.

As he looked around, he noticed that none of the other statues were shaped as intricately as the one of the first Axel. He had no problem accepting that they were all normal statues, but there was definitely an element of eeriness which graced the Axel's statue.

'It's this orb,' Tsuna said, examining the pinkish glow it gave off with evident curiosity, 'Reborn?'

The two infants turned away from the statue and moved over to also look at the orb.

'Reborn, I have a feeling that this sphere is related to the switch,' Tsuna told his mentor, 'but I'm certain something bad is going to happen if we touch it…'

'I can hear a heart beating when I get close,' commented Byakuran.

Xanxus backed away from the orb slightly so that the Arcobaleno could come closer. So it wasn't just him hearing that unnerving heartbeat. After a while of observing, the infants could detect nothing more than what was already established.

'We have no idea what the orb is, or its function,' Reborn said, 'the only way to find out is to touch it.'

'But – '

'There's no time to waste Tsuna!' Reborn raised his voice, sounding even impatient. Tsuna nodded reluctantly.

'Prepare yourself for the worst!' Colonello commanded and placed his hand on the orb.

The five individuals backed away from the orb which started to glow brighter. Xanxus moved one hand on his gun, ready to attack or defend at any time. The others set up their own defenses and readied themselves for anything that could potentially attack. All eyes were on the pink sphere standing atop the stone block. As the seconds passed, it shone brighter and brighter as if something was burning inside it.

The swirls moved around rapidly until the object began to sizzle and shake slowly at first, then more erratically. Something was hissing and stirring inside, like a beast awoken from a timely period of slumber. The Vongola elites watched the scene intently, frozen in their steps. The orb was just shaking as if it were about to explode and release a hefty amount of energy.

Then suddenly, the smoky pink gas trapped inside the orb began to seep out although the surface of the orb remained smooth. The substance was escaping the glassy confines and hovering around the shiny sphere, moving around rapidly and searching for a place to go. When what seemed like all the gas had escaped from the orb, the object ceased to glow and shake. It lay there unmoved and still whilst the pinky gas swirled outside it.

The gas then gathered around closer and closer until all the substance was condensed into a small blob. Before Xanxus or anyone else could properly glance at the pink blob, the substance shot backwards and straight onto the pendant of the Axel's statue.

As soon as the substance hit the metal, the statue began to glow in a similar fashion. Color began to seep into the features of the first Axel, his eyes, his skin, his armor. The pinky swirls were now trapped inside the gemstone attached to the pendant and the owner of the pendant stood there more lifelike than ever.

Without warning, the statue began to move. The action almost shocked Xanxus out of his wits but he stood his ground, gazing with horrific fascination at what had happened. The pink substance had given life to the statue! He heard Tsuna yell out in start as the statue, or what was previously, began to walk over to them, step by step. The movement was awkward at first but after a couple of strides it became smoother.

When the rebirthed figure was a few metres in front of the group, it began to speak.

'I had guessed,' the Axel's voice was deep yet oddly calming at the same time, 'that someone would eventually threaten to remove the barriers that I had created.'

He cast his deep blue eyes at each individual of the Vongola group, scrutinizing them. When those eyes met Xanxus', the raven gazed back with greater intensity, so much that the Axel looked away with his lips curving into a smile.

'You lot seem like an impressive bunch,' he commented, studying each of them slowly.

'Pohplear,' Reborn said, eyes blazing with acrimony.

'You five wish to fight me?' Pohplear asked although the statement sounded more like a warning.

'No!' Tsuna shouted before anyone could answer. Xanxus stared at the boy curiously, wandering how he was planning to talk their way of out the shit they entered. The first Axel was infamous for his inhuman fighting strength, the only solution he could think of was to engage in combat with the legendary figure.

'We only wish to remove the barriers surrounding this city,' Tsuna explained.

'Which amounts to pretty much the same thing,' Pohplear laughed, 'you wish to oppose me.'

'We only desire to find the switch!' Tsuna implored but upon hearing this, the Axel laughed even harder.

'Foolish peasant…' he mocked, 'I am the switch.'

A sudden realization dawned on Xanxus as he heard this. He saw his comrades' expressions of shock at the news but he was not intimidated or dispirited the least. If this living replica of the first Axel was indeed the switch, then all they needed to do was defeat him. He almost grinned at this idea and the desire to fight was growing in his body. Finally he can battle after entering this war and waiting whilst others were risking their lives.

Savage excitement continued to burn as the fact started to sink in, even though he was most likely going to 'share' this prey with four others, he didn't mind. This opponent was likely going to be the most skillful and powerful of all he's faced up to now, he couldn't have asked for a better one.

'Scum,' Xanxus spoke in a voice of unhidden impulse, 'we just need to defeat you.'

'How obnoxious, being addressed as scum by a lowly peasant,' Pohplear gazed at Xanxus again with a hint of anger in his eyes, 'you'll be the first to die then.'

Xanxus grabbed both of his guns and was about to launch into attack before Tsuna held out a hand to halt him.

'Wait Xanxus,' it was not Tsuna who spoke but Reborn. Xanxus cast an annoyed glance at the infant but was moved to see the message written in his eyes: you can't beat him alone.

Xanxus almost snarled but stopped in his step, trying to accept the truth. Who was Reborn to say that he didn't stand a chance against the first Axel? For a moment he wanted to attack anyways but then his rational side held him back. He cursed silently for almost allowing his excitement to overcome him.

'I see your friends have the common sense in which you lack,' Pohplear commented sardonically.

'If it comes down to it, we will fight you Pohplear,' Colonello threatened.

'Whether you are planning to fight me or not is none of my business,' Pohplear replied calmly, 'but just a warning though; I cannot be defeated by noble or peasant alike. So it's pointless in trying.'

Xanxus was starting to get irritated by the cockiness the Axel was showing. Plus, they were wasting time here talking, Squalo might already have….

Don't think about that…Xanxus gave an inward shudder and drove his attention back to his own situation. Tsuna looked as though he was still planning to negotiate with the corrupted ruler and was trying to find the right words to express his ideas. Pohplear didn't bother waiting though.

'I commend you peasants on how far you've come in trying to remove the switch, but sadly your journey is at an end. For as long as I'm here, the barriers will remain. Only when I'm defeated will they disappear, but I'll repeat again, I will not fall under the hands of a noble or a peasant. This is my ultimate move to isolate Tephire city from the outside.'

Without warning he leapt forward and aimed a punch at Tsuna who managed to react to the attack and block it barely. At this move, nobody decided to hold back anymore. Drawing his guns Xanxus fired two successive blasts at Pohplear who was still hand to hand with Tsuna. As the balls of energy found their mark, an explosion occurred, hindering the two fighters from view.

'Don't hurt your own team!' Colonello yelled at him.

Xanxus grunted and withdrew, observing hard at the smoke which was clearing away. Tsuna looked slightly damaged by the attack from the guns but Pohplear did not have a single scratch on him. He didn't even bother dodging the blast, and yet the energy made no effect on his skin or strangely enough, his garments either. Tsuna coughed slightly from the force of the hit but Xanxus did not feel a hint of remorse. Whether his teammates lived or died did not matter to him, if they got in the way of his attack then they'll consequently pay the price.

Tsuna looked slightly shocked about something, and took a few steps back.

'This guy isn't human,' he said looking at the Axel in awe, 'he's…like metal.'

Byakuran as if trying to confirm this, flew forward and delivered a hard kick to the Axel's face. Again, the ruler did not try to dodge and was sent crashing against the wall. Byakuran winced slightly, and bent down to observe the leg which had initiated the kick. His white dragon danced around him playfully.

'Tsunayoshi is right,' the white haired man revealed, scowling a little, 'he's in human form but his skin feels like the silver he was made of.'

Xanxus understood, that's why his flames did not deal much visible damage to the man. He watched as the Axel slowly stood up from the pile of destroyed wall around him and walked calmly back to the midst of the scene.

'Must I repeat myself?' He commented lazily, 'your attacks will not work.'

The five men stood apart but all were trying to determine how to launch their next assault.

'Why do you do this?' Tsuna yelled, unable to help himself anymore. He looked as though he couldn't understand Pohplear's reasoning behind his actions. 'Why are you so intent on isolating this city?'

Pohplear paused and cast a look of deepest hatred at the five individuals standing before him.

'You peasants possess the power of flames,' he started, 'we nobles are not blessed with that ability. Before I ruled this city, when Tephire was connected and involved with the other cities, people with my blood were so often spat upon and ridiculed. Placed below your kind because we were physically inferior in strength, ruled over by your kind no matter how hard we trained or fought because the difference in blood meant a difference in strength which was not ours to blame.'

Xanxus listened but the majority of his attention was intent on working out how to defeat the beast in front of him. A living statue where normal attacks did no damage, a being which claimed that could not be defeated by anyone with either noble or peasant blood. In the worst case, he'll have to…reveal everything. But he didn't want to resort to that.

'Is it our fault that we lack the necessary genetic properties to produce flames?' Pohplear continued, 'The same imbalance of power existed previously, except that peasants were those dominating nobles, using us as slaves, forcefully manipulating us due to our weakness. I abhorred this distinction between our kind, so I grew strong and took over this city as it lacked a ruler. When I became Axel, I coined the labels 'peasant' and 'noble'. Furthermore I spread the notion that peasants were inferior to us nobles by blood. This was revenge for all the mistreatment you peasants bestowed on us before, now you'll pay the price. My plan worked, after I created barriers around this city, only my laws were perceived as the truth. If I ever removed the barriers, Tephire will be under the influence of the other cities and we nobles will be pushed to the bottom again.'

The bastard had finished his explanation, now Xanxus was stuck. He still couldn't figure out a way to defeat the Axel and his inability to do so lead to frustration.

'I promise!' Tsuna replied determinedly after hearing Pohplear's deduction, 'I'll change things! When I switch off the barriers, I'll have us peasants living in peace with nobles.'

Pohplear gave a deep, scornful laugh when he heard Tsuna's words.

'Curse me to hell before I place my trust on a peasant,' the Axel replied, readying himself for another attack.

Xanxus couldn't care less about the Axel's reasons for locking Tephire up or doing the things that he did. There will always be a party who suffers under the hands of another, there will always be scorn and ridicule between different classes and groups. Sometimes you just needed to find that one individual who understands you, and fight through the injustice together. Xanxus had grown up learning that.

And the person he had finally found and connected with would be killed if he didn't hurry the fuck up and work out a plan. Xanxus watched impatiently as Tsuna and Pohplear clashed fists again, the Vongola boss choosing to dodge the blows instead of blocking them to reduce the pain. He watched as the pendant danced around the Axel's neck as its owner moved about gracefully. At the sight of the glowing pink gemstone, Xanxus' mind cleared and all his confusions were answered.

Fuck! If only he had realized earlier! He looked around to find the other people in his squad watching the fight between Tsuna and Pohplear ensue, trying to assist their boss in any way. He ran towards them, eager to enlighten them on his theories.

'The gemstone,' he stated brusquely to the other three. They gathered around him listening, 'fuck, I think we need to destroy that thing.'

Byakuran gave a small 'ah' as he too realized what the key was. Reborn nodded and called to Tsuna.

'Tsuna, hold him for a minute!'

Tsuna turned around quickly and nodded, resuming his fight with Pohplear with much more determination. As the boy was holding him off, the four other Vongola elites quickly tried to formulate a plan.

'Nice deduction there brat!' Colonello looked pleased at Xanxus, 'we need to pin the bastard down if we want a clear hit of that pendant.'

'Leave that to me,' Reborn said, 'Xanxus, Byakuran, I want Pohplear's hands in plain sight. Is that clear?'

Xanxus growled and gave a 'don't order me around' before he and Byakuran leapt off to fulfill Reborn's requirements. The Axel was caught up deeply in the fight, leaving his back empty for the two men to sneak up from behind.

As soon as he got close enough, Xanxus quickly grabbed one of Pohplear's arms and lifted it with all his strength, forcing it straight and outwards so the Axel's palms were wide open. He saw Byakuran do the same with Pohplear's other arm and glanced over at Reborn. The infant was ready for them, holding his small pistol in one hand, he shot two rapid bullets which found their way squarely into their targets.

As soon as the small bullet pierced the metal-like substance of the Axel's hands, the bullet transformed into a sharp claw-like structure which spread through the hands. It then released a small chain which imbedded itself to the white tiled floor, effectively dragging the Axel's hands down with it. The ruler fell to his knees, looking at the two hooks which held his hand in place with surprise.

He tried without success to lift his hands up but they were pinned solidly to the ground, he couldn't move at all. The metal which he was made of only reinforced the strength of the hold.

'What's going on?' Tsuna asked, surprised at the sudden interference of Xanxus and Byakuran.

'Tsuna, destroy that pendant,' Reborn called to him, 'use your X-burner!'

Tsuna looked at the pink glowing gem and understanding fell upon his face. He nodded quickly and moved his arms into stance. Xanxus hastily jumped out of the way to avoid being incinerated by the upcoming attack. For a moment, Xanxus thought the brat was going to let his compassionate personality stop him from delivering the killing blow, but he was mistaken. Without a hint of hesitation, Tsuna blasted right on the pendant, flames engulfing the vulnerable gem and expanding. After the attack was finished, Tsuna stepped back, waiting intently on what was going to emerge from the smoke.

Xanxus watched too, wondering vaguely whether Pohplear had managed to die from the attack or if he really was unable to be harmed by peasants. If Tsuna's attack truly did not work, then he really would have to take matters into his own hands.

A chilling laugh echoed through the gigantic area as Xanxus' worst suspicions were confirmed. The smoke cleared and Pohplear was as good as new, although his hands were still held in place by the bullets Reborn had used.

'What did I say you peasants?' His voice was no longer deep and calm, but maniacal, 'nobody with peasant or noble blood will be able to destroy me! You were right about the pendant though! But how are you going to destroy it when I'm immune to your attacks?'

Xanxus snarled and felt his own anger rise dangerously. This was seriously taking longer than necessary, and the Axel's persistence was pissing him off greatly. Slowly, he strode over, half reluctantly but determined to play his part. He was somewhat afraid of what the others would think of him once he did what he was about to do, but there was no choice. He couldn't afford to waste anymore time, not when there was a war going on above him.

Roughly, he pushed Tsuna out of the way and stood in front of the Axel who still had the malicious gleam in his eye. Xanxus grabbed one of his guns and leveled it plainly with the pendant dangling loosely on the Axel's neck. He began to charge the weapon, steadily allowing his flames to channel through his hands and onto the metal. The black gun glowed orange as it was being powered up by flames.

'Xanxus, what are you planning to do?' Colonello yelled from his spot, 'you're a peasant! Your attacks won't work!'

'Fool!' Pohplear hissed, 'no peasant can – '

'Shut up,' Xanxus said in a low voice, 'I'm not a peasant**.'

The Axel's eyes widened and his smile disappeared as he heard this but it was too late. The gun in front of his chest was prepared and radiating with energy. Xanxus stared deep into the Axel's blue eyes before calmly pulling the trigger, sending a small but heavy energy-condensed beam through the noble's chest. The power of the flames managed to completely destroy the gem, as well as create a fist sized hole in the Axel's torso.

The other Vongola men stared in shock as Xanxus' attack actually dealt damage, unable to believe their eyes. Pohplear choked and spluttered as the pendant was destroyed and only useless pieces of chain hung down his neck. The wound in his chest, instead of oozing blood started to disintegrate rapidly as if every cell were being ripped apart from the other. The Axel began to shake erratically as the wound grew bigger and bigger. A sizzling sound was heard again, the ruler was being burnt and destroyed from the inside.

Various parts of Pohplear's body began to disappear into dust now, his legs, his arms, his torso. He looked down and stared in horror as his own torso began to disappear and fade away, he glared fearfully at Xanxus, like he was a monster from hell.

'What…are…you?' Pohplear spluttered with his final breath, before his face exploded into millions of miniscule shards of glowing dust. Xanxus watched him disappear without emotion.

What are you? How many times had he been asked that question? Every time he killed someone, the same question would meet his ears. It drove him insane, because other people expected him to know something that he didn't. He even asked himself so many times, what was he?

The raven turned around to face his teammates who were all staring at him in a new light. He didn't know why it made him feel so uncomfortable to be aware that he was completely different to the rest of them. He didn't know why he felt the need to help them defeat the Axel and disclose his true identity. If Squalo wasn't in desperate need of his help, he wouldn't have bothered.

'X-Xanxus,' Tsuna gazed at him in wonder, 'you're not a peasant?'

Xanxus ignored him and walked towards the two infants who still looked at him in surprise, wondering what on earth he could be if he wasn't a peasant or a noble. Before anyone could speak, Byakuran flew near and landed next to them, smiling in fascination.

'Well this is a pleasant surprise,' he commented, observing Xanxus with interest, 'it certainly helped us out didn't it?'

'That's right,' Colonello laughed, looking slightly proud at what Xanxus did, 'the barriers are gone now, I can feel it.'

Reborn nodded, Xanxus ignored his intense gaze. Tsuna ran over to the group, smiling for the first time since the war started.

'What are you?' He asked the raven politely.

Xanxus averted his eyes, deciding whether or not to voice his true answer.

'I don't know,' he murmured, suddenly feeling ashamed and empty. It was the genuine answer, he did not know what or who he was, or if he was even human. The secret he had kept to himself his whole life, his misty heritage that he wasn't even sure of. Now four others were also aware of this fact, how would they react?

He didn't want to admit it but having no solid confirmation of what he was and where he came from left a vulnerable chunk of his identity empty. No matter how much training he did, how many people he killed, it never managed to fill that emptiness. It was that curiosity and desire to know his own history and his own birth which stimulated him to assist Vongola. Maybe he could find the answer one day in another city.

Tsuna looked on the verge of asking Xanxus more, but when he saw that the raven did not like talking about the subject he stopped himself.

'Ah, there's still the war!' Tsuna hit himself on the head, in a much more cheerful mood, 'come on guys, Dino's squad is struggling at the main building, we need to help them.'

They nodded, Xanxus brushed away thoughts concerning his heritage when he remembered Squalo's situation.

'My intuition tells me that the area above us is empty,' Tsuna said, looking up at the ceiling, 'we can just destroy the top-'

Before he could finish, Xanxus, Colonello and Byakuran all sent their attacks to the roof, causing a huge explosion and a dangerous amount of debris falling beside them. The ceiling cracked and the force of the attack left a spacious hole on the white material. Blasting himself upwards with his guns, Xanxus flew through the hole, escaping the horrific white labyrinth once and for all. His teammates flew out behind him, yelling with delight as the eerie white walls were no longer surrounding them.

Softly, they landed near the hole and looked around. Xanxus noticed that they were back at the entrance hall. Quickly, without waiting for the others he made his way outside, eager to find the Varia and leave.

'Everyone, take your squads to the main building! We're going to help!' Tsuna yelled out to the four of them. They all gave their silent agreement.

Xanxus found his squad waiting impatiently at the edge of the front lawn of the palace. Bel was talking quietly to Fran who was the first to spot Xanxus running towards them.

'Ah, boss has returned,' the illusionist pointed. Levi's head spun around, when his eyes fell upon Xanxus, he stood up straighter and even saluted.

'Boss! Your orders?'

'Scum, we're going to the main building,' Xanxus told him quickly and got on their private van. Bel and Fran quickly followed him on, Levi took the wheel as usual. They took to the skies along with many other Vongola vans which were also ordered.

Finally, his shit was over. Now he just had to destroy a bunch of Grid hunters and army men, stuff like that was child play to him. His previous worry was no longer present, he was sure that Squalo was in the building somewhere, waiting for him and holding his ground. After all, he didn't fall in love with weak shits who couldn't defend themselves.

The removal of the switch also removed a heavy load from his shoulders, he had a future to look forward to now. He just had to survive and pull through, then he'll be free, they'll all be free.

Xanxus stood at the entrance of the van as it was flying, not bothering to close the door. He allowed the wind to catch the dangling beads in his hair as he looked ahead at the main building coming into view. Levi started to descend the van slowly, allowing Xanxus to grasp a clear image of what was happening around the building. The Axel's army men were flooding into the single entrance of the tower, however they seemed to be making slow progress. There must be something on one of the floors blocking their path because apart from those trying to get in, the rest were lounging about, waiting for their turn.

Without warning, Xanxus jumped off the van as it was descending. He landed around a hundred metres from the entrance of the building. The Grid hunters and army men around him gave a start when they saw him but he effortlessly blasted them dead with his gun.

His eyes were focused solely on the monument ahead of him and the small entrance in which men were attempting to make their way through. His eyes glazed over the gigantic floors which ran high up to the sky. Squalo was in one of those floors, he had been assigned to reach the control room so he must still be near that area.

And those bastards at the entrance, trying to make their way in to give him trouble. Xanxus' stomach bubbled in anger at the thought of a Grid hunter cutting Squalo down and delivering the mortal blow. He heard other vans landing behind him, Vongola's reinforcements were finally here.

Waiting no longer, he ran forward intending to kill every single one of the scum who were huddled up at the entrance. He was going to blast his way through that place, into the damn building where Squalo was waiting for him.

He wasn't going to rest until his shark was safe in his arms.

~x.x.x.x~

Squalo opened his eyes and the control room met his gaze once more. They had been waiting here for ages now, and still no fighter had made it up to the top floor. He couldn't help feeling assured that their squad was holding off quite well against the forces, but there was also the worry at the back of his mind that something had gone horribly wrong.

Dino was sitting there quietly, twiddling his thumbs and humming a soft tune to himself. Spanner was observing the machines and systems in the room with great interest. Squalo grumbled, he tried moving his body but the wounds would ache in result. Slowly he tried standing up, ignoring the pain from his damaged flesh and the reproach he received from all the nerves in his body.

'Squalo, you should sit down and let yours wounds rest,' Spanner said from his corner but his eyes remained fixed on the computer he was studying.

'Voii? And hide up here like a fucking coward?'

Spanner didn't answer but Dino looked up in concern.

'You aren't a coward Squalo,' he said reassuringly, 'you've played your part already. You defeated the Grid captain.'

Growling, Squalo reluctantly took a chair and sat back down. He looked at Dino curiously and a question popped into his mind.

'Bucking horse, you're a noble.'

Dino inclined his head, waiting for Squalo to elaborate.

'What's your purpose for supporting Vongola?' Squalo never really deeply thought about Dino's reasons behind his actions, he had always taken the blonde's heritage for granted. He wondered how the whip wielder had even gained the trust of Vongola.

Dino smiled as if he were eager to tell his own story.

'I guess we don't have much time for me to properly explain myself, so I'll just do so briefly,' the noble started.

Spanner paused from his studies and shifted his head to listen.

'I'm pretty sure my parents left me at the low district during one of their visits and never bothered to look for me again,' Dino laughed, 'Tsuna's father found me and then I was just raised up along with him the whole time. I'm a noble but I grew up in a world of peasants.'

Squalo nodded and asked no more questions. Tsuna's father must have been a honorable peasant, he didn't blame the sins of the other nobles on children who had nothing to do with the conflict. Instead, he had taken the initiative to raise the seed of the enemy in the hopes to destroy the hostility between the two races. Dino had been lucky, a noble child left in the low district was as dangerous as a peasant child abandoned in the high. Squalo didn't really see the point of all this hatred and he found it hard to care about the distinction between peasants and nobles. To him, anyone with strength no matter who they were should be respected. Anyone who had spent time and effort refining their skills was worthy of honor and acknowledgment.

Getting up to his feet again, Squalo made his way to the door.

'Voii, I don't care what you say but I'm going to fight,' the shark felt a hand on his shoulder, pulling him back as he was about to leave the room. Dino also stood up, looking determined.

'I agree with you Squalo, I'm going to join you,' Dino turned around back to Spanner, 'you'll do fine by yourself here right? I'll make sure no fighter steps past us.'

The mechanic gave a thumbs up from his spot and immersed himself back into his research. Squalo felt himself getting excited again, he was going to fight despite the heavy injuries he had suffered. Even though he was risking his life again to engage himself in combat, he didn't care. He might die and fail Xanxus, but his pride would not allow him to cower away from the ongoing clash and choose the easy path to survive. As a warrior, he will fight like one, and emerge from the embers of war alive after fighting.

He ignored the intense pain with every step he took and saw Dino pull out his whip, eyes blazing with the desire to assist his men. The two warriors made their way out of the control room, mind on nothing but the battle ahead. Squalo saw Taros' corpse leaning on the walls outside the control room and turned around. The staircase to the lower floors were ahead of them, Squalo drew his sword and lit it again with his blue rain flames.

However before the two men could take a few steps toward the stairs, a sudden explosion occurred right behind them. The force knocked both of them forward, sending them crashing to the floor in front. Squalo felt himself get blinded by an intense white light as a deafening crash reached his ears. He felt rubble fall onto him, hitting his already injured back painfully.

Opening his eyes frantically, he looked around to see Dino panting and staring in shock at what had happened. Most of the roof of the top floor had been blown off by something, leaving a splendid view of the sky and the city in front of Squalo. Along with the roof, half the floor had also been decimated including the area containing the control room which they had just left. Squalo turned around and jumped to see that the floor he was standing on a moment ago was no longer there.

Instead, there were cracked hinges hanging off the floor he was currently standing on, leading to nothing but air. The whole control room had been incinerated, destroyed. Squalo felt a gush of wind rush past him as he stared out to the horizon, the new exposed view of the city from his height. It would have been a stunning sight if he were not in such a dangerous situation.

'W-what is this…' Dino looked around in equal astonishment as he saw the view of the city from all around him. They were literally standing on a platform now, the top floor was no longer recognizable. When Squalo looked below him, he could see hover-vans and grid hunters, fighting and crowding around the building and fighting against Vongola forces.

'Spanner…he's…' Dino's eyes were wide as the truth started to sink in. If half the floor was blown off then the people on that floor must also be –

'Dead,' Squalo confirmed, feeling a slight tinge of regret as he remembered the blonde mechanic. Within that regret also blossomed a mountain of fear. If they had even dawdled for a minute back then, they would have been blasted apart along with half the floor. He was feeling irritated now, what the fuck had happened just then? What could have happened?

His question was answered as twenty or so battleships hovered around the building, guns charged up and ready to fire.

'Shit!' Squalo swore as he realized how exposed he was now that there were no longer walls around him. The battleships were suspended in air, on their level surrounding them. The only escape was the staircase on the other side of the floor which had not been victim of the previous blast.

Dread filled both men as they stared blankly at the hover-vehicles surrounding the top half of the main building. Whatever had happened beneath them, whatever their squad had done to stop the army men from reaching the top was so effective that Grid had to resort to obliterating the top floor. Sending men up didn't work so why not just destroy it altogether? And that would effectively kill any Vongola men who happened to also be on the top floor as well as any Grid hunter. It was the ultimate move of desperation by Grid, the only indication to Squalo that Vongola were dominating this war.

Another strong wind gushed by and almost knocked him off his feet. Squalo wasn't afraid of heights but it was nevertheless an unnerving thought to know that if he lost his balance he would be falling to his death below.

'Squalo! Duck!' Dino grabbed him and pulled him to the floor as a laser beam shot by, missing his head barely.

Fuck, they were so vulnerable, surrounded by hover-ships like lambs surrounded by a pack of hungry wolves. Another laser beam shot by suddenly, burning a small hole through his right shoulder. Squalo hissed as the extra pain was added to the pain he was already feeling from his reopened wounds. Blood began to seep down his torso again.

Dino got to his feet and started to run toward the staircase, Squalo did the same. However before they could even travel halfway across the floor, more laser-fire blocked their path and they had to halt. Dino panted, looking desperately around at the multitude of merciless Grid vehicles.

Squalo saw with panic that the lot of them had began to simultaneously charge another attack. Blue orbs began to form at the tip of the gigantic guns attached to the vehicles, they were preparing another giant blast like the one which blew off the whole floor.

'Shit, bucking horse we need to get out of here!' Squalo snarled urgently. They tried to run toward the staircase again but like last time, more laser-fire prevented them from going any further. Squalo cursed Grid to the deepest abysms of hell.

Those bastards were playing with them! If they had wanted to kill them, they could have done so with the laser gunfire straight away. But instead, they laughed and forced them to watch and wait for their own deaths. Squalo hated how well Grid's plan was working, both he and Dino were short range attackers. Nothing they did would even reach the nearest battleship. His mind raced desperately as he watched the blue orbs grow bigger and bigger with energy.

It was only a matter of seconds before the attack would be released. They were helplessly trapped, unable to prevent their own deaths from arriving.

'Ha…' Dino murmured shakily, 'I guess this is the end…'

Squalo didn't answer him but waited, the worst was coming any moment now…

Suddenly a glorious white dragon appeared out of nowhere and flew in front of them, destroying at least five completely charged ships. It left a trail of golden-white flames as it flew in the air, taking down and burning Grid's hover-vehicles. Squalo blinked and watched the dragon blankly. Was he hallucinating?

A blue blast from another direction shot through a string of battleships on the other side. Squalo almost yelled in shock as the vehicles stopped charging and flew back intending to retreat for the time being. Many more shots like the previous were fired from an unknown source, heavily damaging the ships.

He looked around frantically, trying to find his saviors. At last, he saw Byakuran hovering in the air, breaking Grid's hover-ships like they were made of nothing. His white wings danced on his back as he flew effortlessly around the building. On the other side, Squalo gasped as Colonello, airborne from his hawk, carried his gigantic machine gun and fired a multitude of dangerous blue beams which shot through the metal of the hover-ships like tofu.

He heard Dino whoop out with joy as he saw the other Vongola elites. Squalo couldn't even stop the elation from rising in his own body. Fuck they were saved!

Byakuran and the infant landed softly on the floor in front of them.

'Colonello! Byakuran!' Dino gasped in awe, staring with evident relief at his comrades.

'You brats are doing well without us!' Colonello greeted, grinning at the expression of disbelief on Squalo's face.

'You guys! What about the switch?'

'The barriers are gone now~,' Byakuran answered looking at Squalo bemusedly, 'you can thank Xanxus for that.'

Xanxus. The name stirred something within Squalo and suddenly he remembered.

'Voii! You're all done at the palace?' He yelled, unable to contain his excitement. Xanxus was here, at the main building!

'Calm yourself brat!' Colonello told him, 'but yeah, we've won. You can leave those flying vehicles to us.'

With that, he took his hawk and leapt into flight again, charging up his machine gun. Byakuran left too, jumping off the building and gliding through the sky with ease.

Squalo gave a small nod to Dino before running off, down the stairs. The war was almost over and Xanxus was fighting here in the building. Squalo wanted to find him and fight alongside him, like he had always dreamed of doing. It was his duty to support the raven, he was going to slice his way down all the floors to do so.

The injuries on his body forgotten, Squalo leapt down the stairs to the lower floor, glancing frantically around him. His sword was still lit up from before, he still had energy left. Ignoring the protests from his body, he continued to run across the hallways, eager to descend to the lower floors where all the action was going on. He didn't know why he was so eager to enter battle when in his condition he would be nothing but a burden.

He could feel his own blood drenching his clothes but he ran on anyways, past the empty floors where an occasional corpse lay. Friend or foe, he couldn't tell. When he was around halfway down, he ran into Gokudera who was lying injured on the floor, breathing heavily. A part of Squalo stopped him in his tracks, despite his hurry to find Xanxus.

Squalo didn't know what made him do it, but he knelt down and helped the boy into a sitting position, leaning him on the wall. Not because he cared about the boy, but because he felt that Gokudera deserved be helped after all his efforts for Vongola. Now that the switch was destroyed, Vongola on the verge of victory, this boy deserved to face the reward of a better future.

'Voii, bomb brat, you still breathing?'

Gokudera stirred slightly and opened his eyes. When he saw Squalo, his posture slumped into relief and nodded.

'How unlike you, to help me,' he commented softly.

'Don't think you're anymore than trash to me,' Squalo snarled back at the boy. They had never really gotten along all these months at the headquarters, 'but you're a friend of the katana brat so I'm doing him a favour.'

With that, Squalo left Gokudera slumped on the wall and resumed his mission to find Xanxus. As he reached the lower floors, he saw more people fighting now, mostly Vongola men. There were more frequent Grid corpses on the floors and more injured but breathing Vongola fighters, helping each other. Many scenes met his sight as he traveled, lower and lower, down the twenty floors of the main building.

He saw Hibari holding his own at one stage, a pile of army men lying dead around him. He looked tired too, bruises on his face and various injuries covering his body. Despite all that, he fought on. Yamamoto was also doing well by himself, unaware of his friend's situation on one of the upper floors. The katana-wielding boy cut down his last two opponents before releasing breath and relaxing.

Squalo noticed that no more Grid fighters emerged from the doors anymore which meant that he could effectively charge through. When he reached the second floor, there were still people fighting and clashing weapons.

A few army men jumped forward to attack him but Squalo slashed his sword through their bodies without hesitation. Many more people tried to assault him on his way, taking advantage of his already injured state. Squalo didn't mind them, his focus was all on getting to the entrance hall where Xanxus was probably fighting. Enemies from the Grid army tried to sink their weapons into his body, sometimes they succeeded but most of the time Squalo managed to kill them before they could do so.

As he ran on, more injuries were added to his body. Blood was now everywhere, flowing down his legs, his torso, his neck, his arms. There were cuts added to his skin, whether it was from an army man who succeeded in stabbing him, or a defeated Grid hunter lying on the floor who tried to trip him. Sometimes he felt that there were small weapons imbedded in his body and he didn't even notice. He felt as if pain was natural now, he was able to ignore it completely. It didn't hinder his determination to find Xanxus, it did nothing to detract his will from the task at hand.

When he reached the first floor, his mind started to grow dizzy from the loss of blood. The bandages that Spanner had fixed on him were virtually non-existent now, slashed apart by his enemies. The number of enemy fighters was reducing rapidly, and yet there was still enough to prevent him from reaching the entrance hall. Angry and impatient, he slashed his sword around, killing nobles left, right and centre. He didn't even bother dodging the hits they bestowed on him, the pain in his body was so intense that just a little more didn't matter anymore.

He struggled and went on, feeling as if the floor beneath him was smoldering. His body was at its breaking point, he had been reckless to charge into the fray like this without preparation. How could he be of use to Xanxus now? As he realized his mistake, a surviving grid hunter managed to puncture his ribs with a spear.

Squalo yelled out in frustration and sliced his attacker's head off cleanly. He felt as if his legs would give out at any moment, it was a miracle they still held on. Even if they had won the war, he doubt he could survive now. If he had waited patiently on the top floor, he would have certainly been able to make it out alive. If he had waited, he could definitely enjoy the future after this conflict was over, but he didn't wait. Instead, his pride did not allow him to. His pride drove him to fight and challenge himself further, his pride had blindly refused to accept reality. Squalo learnt now, being proud was a bitch sometimes.

Now, because had uncontrollably tested his limits, he was going to die. And if he was going to die, he wanted to see Xanxus one last time before he did, he wanted a glance at those hard red eyes one more time. He cut down the last of the Grid hunters on his floor, it was almost over now, Grid have lost, they had no more fighters left. This war was a victory for Vongola in every way.

Panting and pushing himself forward, Squalo leapt down the stairs and into the entrance hall. His eyes were heavy lidded with fatigue but he managed to make out a few more skirmishes happening in sight. There was blood, corpses everywhere, bodies in his way. The Grid forces here were the last of them, Squalo swung his sword and killed a few more but his eyes were searching the room, trying to find a certain dark haired man.

At last, he spotted Xanxus in combat with a few more Grid hunters. The hall was almost empty save for the dead, the Vongola fighters and a small amount of leftover Grid fighters. Xanxus had his back towards him, and blasted his opponents dead with a single fireball from his hand.

Squalo forced his legs to move forward, to reach the one he had missed so dearly in the past few hours. His body was going to break and collapse at any second, he had to reach the other man.

'Xanxus!' Squalo yelled with his final ounce of energy, staring desperately at the silky black hair and the feathers.

Xanxus jolted slightly when he heard Squalo's voice. Turning around quickly, his red eyes met those silver ones of Squalo. And then he stared at the shark, eyes wide.

When Squalo caught sight of Xanxus' fiery crimson orbs, something inside of him felt complete. His body chose that moment to snap and his legs refused to hold him up any longer. He fell onto the floor on his chest gasping, panting but satisfied. Reality decided to attack at that moment. His injuries were hurting now, more than anything else in his body, his head felt dizzy and his mind was blank. His consciousness was slowly slipping away and darkness was washing over his vision.

Still, he felt no regrets now. He had seen Xanxus, gazed into those beautiful red eyes like he wanted to do. But why was his mental state refusing to give up? He should have died ages ago, but the irritating part of him refused to let life go.

He could feel what seemed like the last drops of his blood escape his body, onto the stone cold floor. He wanted to give up now, everything was telling him to give up now, but he kept on fighting. He wanted to live, he couldn't lie to himself but he wanted to experience the freedom that was denied to him all this time.

He had grown up within pandemonium and now he wanted his share of that future which looked so bright and promising.

He felt stupid for doing so. Even when his mind was telling him to accept death, he refused. Just like how his pride refused to have him cowering and hiding from the conflict, he was now refusing to accept death.

Suddenly, he felt himself get turned over by strong hands. Xanxus was kneeling beside him, looking at him. Squalo stared at the other man, he could see concern, compassion, a hint of worry, a mixture of affection and relief.

Squalo slowly brought one of his hands up to touch the other's face. It was warm as usual, containing the heat from the fire which would burn for all eternity within the other man. He gazed again into those eyes, the eyes which held all the answers, the eyes which could send him chasing the ends of hell if they wished him to.

'Xanxus…' Squalo coughed, grinning in spite of himself. Xanxus cradled the shark's face with a large warm hand and softly pinched the other's cheek.

'I…killed…him…'

And then he lost consciousness.

~x.x.x.x~

Squalo woke again but this time he was lying in a soft white bed. He grumbled and opened his eyes slowly, taking in the scene in front of him. He was in a small room, he recognized it as one of Grid's healing rooms. There was a closed door at the other end of the room and someone was sitting on the chair beside his bed.

Turning around in his bed, he winced as he realized that the wounds were still present on his torso. But when his eye caught sight of Xanxus next to him, watching him intently, he jumped up into a sitting position.

'Voii! You're…' Squalo paused, trying to beat down the dizziness in his head. His body screamed at him silently for his erratic movements. Slowly, he moved his hand forward to feel the other man's face, making sure that it was real and not an illusion. When his fingers touched solid flesh, a spark of electricity shot throughout his body.

'Fuck! You're real!' Squalo yelled, unable to help himself. Ignoring the protests from every cell in his body, he threw himself onto Xanxus, eager to feel him, touch him, anything. Xanxus stood up and stopped him in mid-air, forcing him down onto the bed again.

'Scum, take a fucking rest,' he growled harshly but resumed his seat on the edge of Squalo's bed this time. Squalo was about to load the raven with insults before a gentle hand tilted his chin and warm lips met his own. His annoyance with Xanxus vanishing completely, Squalo wrapped both his arms around the raven's neck and kissed back furiously. At the same time, the truth was beginning to sink in. He had survived, fuck!

He didn't know how long he had lost consciousness but it couldn't have been that long for his wounds weren't even treated properly. But who cares about that now, he had survived damnit! And Xanxus was with him, what more could he have asked for?

He was still lip-locked with the raven, tongue thrashing in the other's mouth. He was beside himself with passion, mouth grinding horribly against the other's lips. He didn't even bother holding back, and shuddered with pleasure as Xanxus brought his hand up and stroked the back of his neck in rhythmic motions. When both men were out of breath, Squalo withdrew panting and gazing with desire at Xanxus.

Then, he jumped forward again but this time he did not kiss the other man. Instead, he buried his face into Xanxus' chest and encircled his arms around the raven's waist. It was the only way he could express all the emotions that have been burning inside him, his relief and joy that both of them have made it out alive. Xanxus looked slightly taken back at Squalo hugging him, but his own emotions gave way as he twined his fingers into Squalo's spiky silver hair and returned the hug.

'Idiot,' he whispered mockingly into the shark's ear.

'Shut up,' Squalo hissed back, tightening his grip around the other man. They stayed like that for minutes before Squalo decided to let go. There were a million things he wanted to say to Xanxus, but he couldn't find the right words to express his thoughts.

Xanxus was looking at him in an amused way, eyes gleaming. Their faces were inches apart, Squalo paused before remembering Taros' last words before his death.

…I guess you must have had your own reasons to be this strong…

'Voii, what's your reason to be strong?' Squalo asked curiously. The question sounded pretty lame coming from his mouth, but he was interested.

Xanxus' expression froze when he heard the question, he looked away and retreated back into his seat next to the bed. He didn't answer, but Squalo noticed that his attitude became colder. The raven was keeping his distance as if Squalo had gotten too close to him.

'Answer my question damnit!' Squalo pestered on, fuck he was going to force an answer out of the man if he had to.

'I don't have a reason,' Xanxus shot him a glare which sent chills down his spine. It was a hard, cold glare and Squalo was astonished because Xanxus had never looked at him that way before. It was a look which tried to shun him aside and repel him. Xanxus' voice was emotionless, devoid of the warmth he showed a moment ago.

'That's bullshit,' Squalo muttered, glaring back at Xanxus. He was confident that Xanxus had a reason, and the behaviour he was witnessing now was confirmation of that. If he wasn't mistaken, the raven looked insecure about something. Whatever it was, Squalo was going to get it out of the other man.

Xanxus scowled and gave a deadly glance at the swordsman but Squalo wasn't intimidated.

'You don't trust me?' Squalo taunted mockingly, 'or are you too chicken to reveal it?'

Xanxus looked like he was about to hit Squalo, but stopped himself forcefully. He was glaring at the floor, refusing to look up. Squalo, impatient as ever, pinched Xanxus' cheek and pulled his face up by the small section of skin between his fingers. The raven snarled at the small pain from having his face dragged up but he didn't do anything to stop Squalo.

The swordsman looked directly into Xanxus' ruby eyes, this time he was the one trying to decipher the history behind the raven.

'Tell me.' It was a challenge, Squalo somehow felt the authority and the right to know about Xanxus, he felt the right to be given a chance to understand the other.

Xanxus stared at him for a long while before sighing and giving in.

'I'm not a peasant…' he said quietly, watching Squalo's reaction.

'Is that it?' Squalo asked blankly, waiting for Xanxus to elaborate. Xanxus hissed in annoyance when he realized that Squalo was expecting him to explain further.

'Are you dumb trash?' Xanxus growled, 'I'm not a fucking peasant.'

'Huh, so you're a noble?' Squalo joked, grinning.

Xanxus suddenly stood up and grabbed the front of Squalo's shirt, rage dancing in his eyes. He brought their faces close to each other, scowling.

'Don't test me, fucker,' he declared, voice vibrating slightly with anger. Squalo remained composed to his own surprise, grin still plastered on his face. Gently, he removed Xanxus' rough hand from the front of his shirt, trying to calm the other man down.

'Voii, I wasn't trying to test you,' he said smoothly, giving Xanxus' cheek another hard pinch. He waited until the raven had let go of him and was back in his seat before continuing.

'You aren't a peasant. And you're not a noble either. So what are you?'

Xanxus' eyes blazed again when Squalo asked that question. When the raven saw that Squalo was dead serious about hearing an answer, he reluctantly replied.

'I don't know.'

Squalo was grinning again, white teeth glinting maliciously.

'That's cool, because I never really saw you as a peasant you know,' Squalo exclaimed, trying to cheer Xanxus up, 'I was just captivated by your strength, that's all. Remember what I said to you when we first met? You have power, I respect that power, I don't even care who or what you are.'

When Xanxus looked at him in disbelief, Squalo felt a hiss of anger and annoyance.

'Voiii! I get it now!' He shouted, snarling at Xanxus, 'you thought I was going to fucking leave you? Didn't you?'

It was his turn to be angry. Impatiently, he used both hands and grabbed Xanxus' shirt before pulling him close and looking directly into his eyes.

'Listen to this…fucker,' Squalo declared, silver eyes shining with determination, 'if you think I'm going to leave you because of this shitty reason, you are sadly mistaken. I've already sworn to fight for you, and I plan to keep my promise which means you won't be able to get rid of me this easily. You can beat me, shoot me, send me to hell and I'll still come running back to you. I'll still be beside you, no matter how much you want to avoid me. Got it?'

Xanxus looked astonished at Squalo's sudden proclamation of loyalty. Squalo didn't wait for him to recover.

'Stop looking so damn shocked!' Squalo almost slapped the raven but held himself back, 'and never fucking doubt my resolve again.'

Squalo removed his grip on Xanxus' clothes and sat back onto his bed, face flushed. Glad that he had gotten a point across, the swordsman sat folding his arms and looking satisfied. Xanxus made a sudden movement toward him and Squalo was too slow to react. The raven leaned forward and for a second, Squalo thought Xanxus was going to beat him up but then he was genuinely surprised when instead of a punch, came a kiss on his cheek.

Squalo felt his face grow hot at the playful gesture, but recovered himself quickly. He sat there gazing awkwardly into Xanxus' eyes. They were unreadable as usual, the raven showed no emotion despite the kiss he placed on Squalo a second ago.

'Voii, I know…' Squalo said softly, 'you want to ascertain your identity right?'

Xanxus didn't lose his temper this time, instead he gave a small nod.

'Then let's go!' he continued, excitement flaring, 'the barriers around this city are gone now, you can find out more about yourself when we go visiting other places. That way, I can continue searching for strong opponents too.'

Xanxus raised his eyebrows at the suggestion but then he did something unusual.

He smiled. A true smile as he locked eyes with Squalo and nodded. The expression made the hairs on the back of Squalo's neck stand up. It froze him as he gazed at the raven's face, Xanxus had never once smiled, or at least Squalo had never seen him do so. Consequently, the shark couldn't help but stare in wonder at the rare sight.

To his disappointment, the smile disappeared as quickly as it came, and Xanxus' face was back into its usual passive expression. Squalo was on the verge of asking Xanxus to smile again, but then thought of a different solution. He was going to earn that smile, he was going to make Xanxus smile again because no one else had managed to.

'Scum, you need to heal your wounds first.'

And then Xanxus stood up, waiting for Squalo. The swordsman grunting, painfully made his way out of bed.

'Your sword trash…' Xanxus threw him the object which hit Squalo hard on the head, 'take good care of it.'

Squalo scowled but grabbed his sword and massaged his head painfully. He was surprised at how much Xanxus gave his sword attention, like he and the object have had some kind of history before. Brushing away his thoughts, he limped around to the infirmary. This was Grid's main building, he was familiar with the place so he had no problem locating one of the laser therapy rooms. After his wounds were healed to an extent, he made his way down to the entrance hall with Xanxus.

On their way down, a red haired man named Shoichi ran into them.

'X-Xanxus!' He called, motioning for them to wait.

'What do you want?' Xanxus growled.

'I'm just letting you know…that Tsuna and Reborn expect everyone from the Vongola to remain behind and help out with the organization of this city.'

The boy spoke nervously, evidently intimidated by Xanxus' murderous aura.

Xanxus didn't reply to the comment, instead he walked away and motioned for Squalo to follow him. And then they left the main building, to the fresh air outside. When they were alone and out of anyone's earshot, Squalo's anger burst forth.

'VVOIII! Did you get that? That pissy brat wants us to stay in this shithole-'

'Calm down scum, we're not going to.'

Squalo was slightly relieved to hear Xanxus say this and then reminded himself that there was no way someone like Xanxus would submit to Tsuna.

'Hah, that's more like it boss…'

Xanxus continued to walk with Squalo following closely behind.

'Where are we going?' The swordsman asked.

'Hovercar.'

Squalo nodded and obediently followed his boss. They were strolling down the streets of the high district now, the nobles seemed to have realized the result of the war and were staying locked in their homes. There was barely anyone, Squalo had never seen the place so empty. Usually it was bursting with people, slaves and carriages. Now not even the shops were open.

They were walking for a good while before they met Dino and Yamamoto in their path.

'Squalo, Xanxus,' Dino greeted, Yamamoto by his side. Xanxus grunted and stood aside, allowing Squalo to talk.

Squalo understood the raven's gesture, he was being permitted to give his 'goodbyes' to anyone before they left.

'Squalo! I'm glad you survived,' Yamamoto said beaming. The shark noticed that the boy had a few bandages on his face, other than that the laser had healed everything.

'Of course I'd survive you shitty katana brat.'

'So what are your plans now?' Dino asked.

'Voii, I'm getting the hell outta this city of course,' Squalo glared at them as if expecting them to stop him. Instead, they didn't seem surprised at all.

'So you're planning to run away,' Dino commented bemusedly.

'If that's how you'd put it, then yeah I'm running away. What are you two going to do after this?'

Yamamoto laughed when he heard this and answered.

'Tsuna's planning to integrate the noble and peasant societies,' the young swordsman explained, 'it'll be hard but I'm sure he can do it, he can do anything he sets his mind to. I'm going to help him.'

'So you're just going to rot here forever?'

'Not really, Tsuna's the new Axel now, he'll be visiting other cities for political purposes. Gokudera and I will be with him then, we'll be going to new places too.'

'And me too,' Dino added, 'don't forget that I'm helping, and Hibari. We owe Tsuna everything, I owe Tsuna.'

Squalo nodded, content at their objectives. He didn't know why but now when he was about to leave them, he considered them friends, after all they went through at the Vongola headquarters. Yamamoto had always respected him, and Dino too.

'How many survived the war?' Squalo questioned.

'More than half of us,' Dino answered, 'we've lost a lot and we're all recovering, but we've won. It's all over now.'

Squalo agreed, it was all over. All he had now was a promising future waiting for him.

'Squalo, you'll be back right?' Yamamoto asked.

'Voii, of course, this city is a shithole, but it's still my home. I'll come back occasionally for a visit.'

'Then I hope you have fun, wherever you're going,' Yamamoto said, 'next time we meet, I'll be stronger, I'll be able to beat you!'

'Hah,' Squalo exclaimed, rising up to the challenge, 'then you'd better not lose a single fight from now on, katana-brat!'

Yamamoto nodded and then walked slowly over to Xanxus. The raven did not give a 'what the fuck do you want' to the black haired boy but instead there was a gleam of acknowledgment in his ruby eyes. Yamamoto smiled, his gaze was evidently that of reverence and admiration.

'Take care, Xanxus,' Yamamoto bowed his head slightly.

Xanxus voiced a harsh 'tch' before replying a low – 'you too trash.'

Squalo gazed curiously as Yamamoto walked back to him.

'Squalo, you'd better not lose either!'

They were about to exchange fists before someone landed on the ground next to them. Squalo looked sideways to find Byakuran, his wings shining in the sun, his eyes glancing over at the small gathering.

'Tsunayoshi has told me to find you…Xanxus,' Byakuran stated inattentively, 'he wants me to bring you back.'

Xanxus looked calm at this statement but Squalo was livid.

'Voii, you're not laying a finger on him!' He yelled, stepping in between the two men. At that moment, a deafening whoosh brushed past his ears and a hover-van landed nearby. Bel emerged from the van, followed by Fran. Levi was on the wheel.

'Boss! Squalo! Get on the van,' Bel shouted in an amused way, grinning. When Xanxus saw his men, he walked calmly over to the vehicle.

'Scum, where did you get this?'

'Ushishishi, we stole it,' Bel smiled cheekily. Xanxus looked impressed. They all glanced over at Squalo who refused to move from his spot.

'Voii, you wanna try and stop us?' Squalo challenged the white haired man, hand drifting to his sword. Byakuran only laughed when he saw that Squalo was intent on fighting him.

'I don't feel like chasing you kids around~' the Vongola elite asserted, 'it's a boring job.'

'So you're going to let us go?'

'Hmm, if you want me to.'

Squalo felt grateful for this, he didn't want to injure himself fighting someone on Byakuran's level. The man had saved his life back on the top floor, if Byakuran hadn't intervened Squalo would have been blasted into smithereens by the battleships.

'Are you planning on leaving this city too?' Squalo asked curiously.

'Maybe~' Byakuran looked at him bemusedly, 'you'd better hurry up and leave before my killing instinct takes over and I change my mind.'

'Don't think I'll thank you for this, white haired bastard,' Squalo snarled before turning around and running toward the van. Dino and Yamamoto waved to him as he got on and the vehicle took off.

Squalo couldn't help breathing a sigh of relief as he looked at his teammates scattered around the van. He had to admire their perfect timing though. And the sight of an alive Fran reassured him more than ever.

'Voii Fran, good to see you again,' he couldn't help commenting, admiring the evident changes that have occurred in the illusionist. The boy he knew from before was no longer present, instead there was another fighter standing in front of him.

'Commander Squalo,' Fran greeted. Squalo was somewhat astonished to be addressed as such when he was so used to hearing 'master'. Nevertheless, he didn't complain.

'We're coming with you, Ushishishi,' Bel grinned, settling himself on one of the cozy seats.

'Coming with us where?' Squalo yelled.

'To other cities dumbass commander,' Bel smiled insolently, 'we heard everything that went on between you and boss.'

Squalo stood gaping at the 'prince' and then looked over to Xanxus to see what he thought about this. The raven did look slightly unnerved by Bel's information, but if he was bothered by it he kept it well hidden.

'Personally,' Bel continued, 'I think the fact that boss isn't like us isn't surprising at all.'

'I agree,' Fran commented, 'he's too scary, and Levi doesn't care either.'

Squalo quickly regained himself in front of his team.

'VOII, if you lot are planning to come then you'd better be fucking useful,' he snarled at them and was disappointed when none were intimidated by his threat.

Bel leaned back on his seat and chucked a plastic ball over to Xanxus. The raven caught it easily and scrutinized it curiously.

'Boss, whilst idiotic commander was still asleep, Levi, froggy and I made a visit to the Axel's palace,' Bel announced, 'and we managed to find that thing.'

Xanxus clicked open the ball and a hologram of a map appeared in front of him.

'It's a world map,' Bel explained.

Squalo's heart skipped a beat as he glanced at the hologram. It indeed looked like a map of the world, there were so many different cities! He couldn't contain his excitement; there were so many possibilities, so many places that he could go to. Who knows what kind of opponents he will find? Who knows how strong they'll be?

After a while, he took his eyes off the map and looked back at the Varia. Bel was twirling one of his knives in a bored fashion, Fran had his head to the window of the van, trying to look for something below.

'Can Mr. Levi stop the van?' Fran asked after seeing something near the Western tower.

Levi nodded from the wheel and pulled the van over abruptly. Fran opened the door and jumped out. Curious, Squalo got up watched the boy from the door.

Mukuro and his gang were standing nearby, chatting. They were pretty beaten up but looked lively. Fran was running towards them.

'Master.'

Squalo's eyebrows raised as he heard Fran addressing someone else as 'master'. It was a strange feeling, but he wasn't upset by it. Mukuro turned around slowly when he heard Fran. His trident hung loosely in his hand and he walked a bit toward the young illusionist, a curious smile on his face.

'Little one,' Mukuro inclined his head slightly as he watched Fran stop a few steps in front of him.

'How pleasant to see that you've survived through that mess,' Mukuro commented calmly, smiling slightly at the boy.

'Master,' Fran said again, this time stronger. Mukuro waited, looking at Fran attentively.

'Thank you for everything,' Fran bent down and gave a full bow. Squalo gasped softly as he watched the scene. Fran was thanking someone, not to mention bowing down too. It was one of the rare times he had seen the boy show gratitude towards anyone.

'Kufufufu, no need to thank me little one,' Mukuro laughed but looked touched nonetheless, 'you have potential, use it as you please, but use it well.'

Fran nodded before turning and running back to the van. Squalo couldn't help grinning as the hover-van took off once more into the skies. Now they were really leaving this city.

'Voii, boss, what's our next destination?'

Xanxus looked up calmly and observed the map again before making his decision – 'Glatina.'

Glatina, the closest city to Tephire. It was the most logical choice. Levi held a thumb up from the wheel and Xanxus threw the map at him. The man caught the map and inserted the ball into a slot near the wheel. Now, the map was not only displaying but there was also a tiny dot which indicated where they were. Levi easily tapped their next destination and a small route appeared on the map.

Squalo let out a deep breath before taking a seat next to Xanxus. Watching the plains of the lower district rush by as the hover-van sped past, Squalo couldn't find words to describe how he was feeling. He was anticipating so much, what if it was all a lie? What if something went wrong?

A battered metal fence in the distance came into sight and Squalo twitched. The fence was an indication of what was Tephire city, and what was beyond.

As the hover-van drove nearer and nearer, Squalo felt the pace of his heart speed up. When they were about to drive past it, he closed his eyes in spite of himself. For a moment he thought that the barriers would destroy them but then it never came. There was no laser to ruin everything for them, they easily flew past the old rusty fence as if the barrier had never existed.

Now that his ridiculous fear was over, excitement burned again. The thought of new opponents, new technology, new places, overwhelmed him.

'Voii, Xanxus,' Squalo muttered, 'I'm fucking worried.'

And he truly meant it. They were entering foreign grounds, who knows what could happen next? As confined as he felt in Tephire city, at least it was a reassuring place. Even though Grid had practically corrupted the city, Squalo couldn't help feeling empty as he left it. There were so many experiences and memories he gained there, now he needed to take all those with him.

Whatever happened next, he would have to accept it. But what if he couldn't accept it? What if it was too overwhelming? When something screwed up for him in Tephire, he would always have something else to hold onto no matter how bad it was. If something bad happened in another city, what could he look to?

'Aren't you worried Xanxus?'

The raven grunted and shook his head, much to Squalo's surprise.

'Don't bullshit me, you're probably worried too,' Squalo snapped. What kind of person wouldn't be worried at a time like this? Squalo wanted to shake some sense into the raven, let him know that sometimes it was better to admit what he was feeling instead of plainly denying it.

There were so many uncertainties they needed to face after all, they were all human. Humans experience emotions, even the tough ones like Xanxus had to be worried some time. But Xanxus kept refusing to admit it.

'Huh, I don't believe you,' Squalo snapped in annoyance. But Xanxus also looked impatient.

'Why would I be worried scum?' Xanxus growled and gazed into his eyes, 'I have you.' ***

~ The end ~

* - Resident evil
** - Lord of the Rings link
*** - Harry Potter link

Author's final note

You have now finished 'Within Pandemonium', so how was it? Did you like it? Did you hate it? I'd greatly appreciate any form of feedback.

This note will be a bit longer than my previous ones, mainly because I just felt like going through a few things. If you're interest in what I have to say, by all means read on.

I'll begin with my inspirations -
IDespiseTragedy : by far my biggest inspiration of all, her XS fic 'Eromenos' is what stimulated me to start this fic. She writes the most skillful AUs I've ever seen in a fanfiction. [If you are reading this IDT although I highly doubt it, I truly, genuinely, honestly tried to avoid characterizing Xanxus and Squalo the same way that you did, it was pretty hard because the way you wrote them is practically exactly what I had in mind. Your fics are beautiful.]
One Piece : the whole concept of nobles and peasants was borrowed from OP, as is the concept of the 'auction house'. This is by far my favorite manga.

And now my biggest flaws (in my opinion) -
Xanxus is OOC : Yep, he is ridiculously out of character. He's just too sappy and caring, no matter how you look at it. If you are a Xanxus fan, I am so sorry, I truly am. He must be a pathetic rendition of your favorite mafia boss. You can hate me for everything else, but I ask you to forgive me for this.
The thing is, I knew he was OOC but I didn't bother writing him like canon!Xanxus. It was unprofessional of me to take the easy way out and write a sappy!Xanxus which would make this fic 100x easier to write than a canon!Xanxus.
My childish language : I do not understand how some authors can string words together so beautifully. I end up repeating the same boring phrase 50 times every chapter. My language is plain and unsophisticated.

My general view when writing this fic - -
- No sex in an XS fic! What an unconventional approach on this pairing! I hate stories where it's all about Squalo being a pathetic fuck-toy for Xanxus. I also hate how people automatically bestow feminine traits onto him, just because he has fucking long hair and looks like a chick. Long hair =/= a female personality. I don't like how those fics ignore the basic characteristics which make up a character.
- I detest the notion of Xanxus & Squalo falling for anyone based on appearances only. When I interpreted these characters, they are both strong to the point where love will not appear just because Squalo happens to be a ridiculously hot looking male, and Xanxus fell in love with his beauty etc. etc. No, love at first sight does not work with a pairing like XS, both characters would not be moved by appearances alone, it has to be a unique aspect of each character that catches the other's attention
- Plot before romance.

And finally, some other things you may like to know -

- I have so much information on Xanxus' past, in which only like 1% could be included in this fic. I don't want all that planning to go to waste, so if you are interested, I'm considering writing a oneshot concerning Xanxus' past. There's just too much about him that I haven't revealed at all. If I ever decide to write it, it will be released as a separate story.
- I also have another AU fic planned, but you won't be seeing this one for a while.

So all in all...
Thank you so much for reading this fic!
Whether you liked it or hated it does not matter to me!
As long as you've given this fic a chance, and given it a good read...
I'm happy.

`Slamshady