Editing BlazBlue:Calamity Trigger Part 1 Chapter 4 (section)

===Part 0===

The small fireplace in the cozy living room was her favorite spot. Gathering around it, each with a warm cup in hand, they would bask in the flickering glow of the fire and enjoy cookies. It was a time she cherished.

She loved tea. Her eldest child would happily drink anything, and her middle child preferred lemonade. The youngest loved milk tea and cocoa, but being so clumsy, she often burned her tongue on the hot drink.

Perhaps that was the most blissful time for her.

But it was a lost time.

The church, beloved by the aging sister, was burning, painting the fading blue sky orange.



'''March 1, 2192 — Sunset'''

"Jin! Saya!" 

When the sudden explosion startled the sister, who was harvesting vegetables in the garden to prepare dinner, and she rushed back through the back door, the church was already engulfed in flames.

The exploding walls spat out sparks, and the hot wind shattered the windows. The swirling heat seemed to sear her senses, blurring her vision, dulling her hearing, and killing her sense of smell. The narrow corridor leading from the back door was covered in multiple layers of orange curtains, mercilessly burning the old woman as she called out the names of the children in her care.

Still…

"Jin! Answer me! Saya!" With a strength that belied her age, the sister shouted as loud as she could, as if to overpower the heat. She ran through the corridor, diving into the veil of flames. She pushed open every door she saw, brushing aside the billowing smoke.

As she opened the door, air rushed in, and the heat swirled. The flames licked at the sister's face as she peered into the room, searching for the small figures.

"AHH!" Whether it was the flames or the initial explosion, just as she was about to leave the room, the ceiling of the corridor came crashing down with a terrible thud.

As soon as it hit the floor, a huge amount of sparks flew up and engulfed the sister's petite body. A scream escaped her lips, only to be swallowed by the heat. Her parched throat burned. Her vision was blurry, and she could barely see. She could smell her hair burning.

(Please...) She tried to say it out loud, but it came out as a hacking cough that felt like it was tearing her lungs apart.

Ignoring the burning sensation on her skin and fear of the flames, she stepped over the fallen ceiling tiles that blocked her path. She had seen and experienced far worse. Running through a church that was about to be engulfed in flames due to a spell was nothing compared to that. What scared her was doing nothing and being unable to do anything.

(Please, be safe...)

Dragging her heavy feet, she reached the door to the living room and forced it open. It was the largest room in the church after the chapel. But since the church hadn't been originally built to house children, it was a bit small to be called spacious.

Nevertheless, it was the sister's favorite room. She couldn't count how many times they had talked in front of the fireplace at the back of the room. Every night before bed, they would all sit on the sofa in front of the fireplace and have a leisurely cup of tea. For the past few years since she had taken in the three children, it had been a makeshift family of four, but it was a room filled with precious memories.

When she rushed into the room, it was already almost completely burned, engulfed in flames that obscured the walls. It seemed that the explosion had occurred in this room. Part of the wall and ceiling had been blown away as if by something, all the windows were shattered, and flames were spilling out as if seeking fresh air. The fireplace at the back was completely destroyed. And there, in front of the ruined fireplace, was the figure she was searching for.

"Jin!" The flames cast an orange glow on his short blond hair. He had grown considerably since she had last seen him. His beautiful green eyes reflected the color of the flames as he stood blankly, staring into the distance in the fire-engulfed room.

"What are you doing? Get out of here!" Running over, the sister took Jin's hand. She tried to turn around and take him outside immediately, but Jin planted his feet firmly on the ground and refused to move. It was as if his feet were glued to the floor. 

Surprised by his resistance, the sister lost her balance. But she didn't fall. She knelt down and looked into Jin's face.

"Jin, snap out of it. Look at me," she said sternly. 

Strangely, Jin was completely unharmed by the flames, his face as cool as if the surrounding fire were an illusion. There wasn't a drop of sweat on his forehead. His green eyes were unfocused, staring vacantly into space. The sister ran her fingers through his golden hair, forcing him to look at her. A green glow flickered beneath his downcast arm.

"...Sister." With a voice barely a whisper, Jin spoke. The sister smiled at him, her face smudged with soot. A wave of relief washed over her.

"That's right. Good, let's get out of here. Or we'll both be burnt to a crisp. And where's Saya? Weren't you together?" Before coming to the church, they had both been reading in their room. But when she had checked the children's room earlier, it had been empty. Perhaps they had gone to the river to fetch water after Ragna. She usually would scold them for that, but now, she couldn't help but hope that was the case.

"Sister..."

"What is it?"

"Sister." Although his eyes were fixed on her, Jin's gaze was vacant. At first, she thought he was just confused about what was happening. But the more she looked at him, the stranger it seemed.

It was as if half his soul had been taken away. Jin, who kept repeating "Sister" in a voice devoid of emotion and temperature, seemed like a phantom, and in a panic, the sister reached out to pull her beloved foster son into a hug. 

She tried to.

"Sister... Sister, Sister, Sister." As the sister reached out to embrace Jin, who was muttering the word over and over like a mantra, another voice overlapped his. "Siisteeerrrr!" A mocking voice, as if to further fan the roaring flames. 

At the same moment, the sister's movement stopped. 

The sound of something piercing her was lost in the roar of the flames. But the deep, heavy sensation of something tearing through her abdomen and out her back was undeniably real, even against the heat and noise.

"Oh..." The sister exhaled. Something had pierced her, and with a muffled cough, blood stained her lips and teeth.

A prayer formed in her heart. The sister shifted her gaze to the shadow standing between her and the blazing wall. Since when had he been there? She hadn't noticed at all.

Ignoring the light source, a tall, indistinct human-shaped shadow loomed over her. Cloaked in a green mist, with only round eyes and a slit-like red mouth visible, it was looking at her through Jin. She had never seen this figure before, but she already knew who he was. His voice was enough. She couldn't forget it. It was the voice of someone she could never forget.

"Could it really be... you, Terumi?" Her voice, strained and hoarse from burns and blood, called out his name. The shadow shrouded in green mist laughed.

"Well, well, well, the old hag. Ah, Sister, was it? It's been ages, hasn't it? Decades, I think. Though I never wanted to see your face again, you know." He spoke fluently without moving his lips. With a casual wave of his indistinct arm, he made a gesture as if pulling something back.

"Ugh!" Following his motion, the thing that had pierced the sister's abdomen and exited through her back was forcefully pulled back and out. It was a long, chain-like weapon with a dagger-like ornament at the end, which was pulled back toward Terumi, passing by Jin who still stood there blankly.

Seeing this, the sister's face twisted in sorrow.

"A phenomenon weapon... the Geminus Anguium: Ouroboros... you still have it." 

"As if I would easily give up such a useful toy."

About ninety years ago, humanity was in the midst of the Dark War against the Black Beast. The weapon Terumi possessed was developed at that time to counter the Black Beast and was lent to him personally. 

History records that six heroes used phenomenon weapons to defeat the Black Beast. Terumi, who possessed the Ouroboros, was one of those six heroes. The power of each of these weapons was immense. After all, they were capable of defeating the Black Beast, which could not be harmed by any ordinary weapon.

"It's not surprising, coming from one of the Six Heroes, the unparalleled genius magician, Nine. You made something like this, huh?" Terumi laughed heartily, seeming to find it all very amusing.
And no wonder. Nine, one of the Six Heroes who had defeated the Black Beast. She was the one who had created the phenomenon weapons that had turned the tide of the war. She was the sister of the sister standing before him. So that meant…

"I'd love to show Nine this. To see her most cherished little sister killed by the weapon she created! Hahahaha!"

"AAAAAHHH!" The shadow's hand released the chain again, and the dagger at its end pierced the sister's thigh, tearing through her flesh. 

The pain of her flesh and bone being torn apart made her momentarily lose consciousness. Leaning on her hand as she fell to the floor, she took a ragged breath, trying to steady her wavering consciousness, and lifted her head.

"Jin... run away. Take Saya and run! Go to Ragna!" She cried out, her voice hoarse. She shouldn't be here. She shouldn't be with this man. But Jin didn't move. Beyond the frozen figure of Jin, the shadow laughed merrily again.

"Oh, oh, oh, even in old age, you're still so naive. Think about it for a moment. There used to be a barrier around this area, didn't there? Annoying, bothersome, and inconvenient. But it's gone now. You understand that, don't you? So the question is, who and how did they break your barrier?"

"Who... how...? That's right... even with the Ouroboros, it wouldn't have been possible for you to break a barrier like that... so how?" The sister asked, her voice trembling as she pressed her hand against her abdomen, which was heavy with blood. Terumi laughed loudly, unable to contain himself.

"Kyahahahaha! That's right, that's exactly it. Unfortunately, that was too much even for me. I'm not strong enough now. I don't have a body, after all. A borrowed body that's only good for a quick fix just won't cut it. Besides, I've always been weak to your aura."

His feigned disappointment was filled with a cheap sense of mockery. Then, suddenly looking disgruntled, Terumi continued with annoyance.

"Ah! ...Now that I think about it, it makes me angry. Because of you, I've had to go through so much trouble. Yeah, it's all your fault that I had to prepare all this stuff this time. Damn it, it's annoying." As if to threaten her, Terumi tossed the Ouroboros dagger, dripping with the sister's blood, into the air and caught it again. A few drops of red fell from the sharp tip. Then, as if regaining his composure, he formed a crescent-shaped smile with his red lips.

"Oh, right, we were talking about the barrier. Let's settle this. It's simple. The answer is that we had a collaborator on the inside who used another phenomenon weapon to break it from within."

"Another one...?"

"What? Can't you figure it out, old woman? That kid's been holding it this whole time." The shadow gestured with its chin. It was pointing at Jin.

The sister strained her smoke-clouded eyes to see. In the hand opposite the one she had been trying to pull away from, the hand that didn't seem to feel the heat of the fire at all, was a beautiful blue sword sheathed in a scabbard. How could she have missed it?

"Yukianesa...?" The sister's eyes widened in disbelief. Yukianesa, one of the phenomenon weapons. The fact that he was holding it meant that Jin had destroyed the barrier from the inside. But that didn't matter. It didn't matter how he had destroyed the barrier or why the sword was there. All she wanted was... with a pleading look, she reached out.

"Give it to me... Jin..." A phenomenon weapon was more than just a weapon. It had a soul embedded within it, and the weapon had a will of its own. That will could always interfere with the mind of its owner, and if a weak-minded person possessed it, their thoughts could be corrupted and their spirit broken. If such a thing were given to an immature boy, who knew what kind of negative influence it would have on his developing mind.

But the sister's hand, burned and bloody, couldn't reach Jin. Jin, who until now had not moved a muscle, pulled away from her outstretched hand.

"Jin..." Her voice trailed off as she begged him to give it to her. The beautiful green eyes that had once looked at her with such warmth now held a cold, piercing light.

If she couldn't reach Jin, then at least... The sister pushed herself up, leaning on her weakened arm. Her cloudy eyes fixed on Terumi.

"I won't let you... hurt my children. I will... I will protect them..." With a determination that seemed to defy her aging body, the sister stood up. She had always been protected by someone. No matter how dangerous the situation, someone was always there to embrace her and protect her. But those people were gone now. Some she could never see again. Others were busy protecting something much greater.

"I can do it too..." She had always been the one being protected. She had always been protected by him until the very end. Now it was her turn to protect what he wanted to protect. She took a step forward, her feet dragging. With each step, her body felt lighter. The pain faded. Her pace quickened.

"Hey! Hey, don't come any closer! I told you not to come any closer, you crazy old hag!" Terumi retreated in alarm when the sister suddenly closed the distance between them. 

Terumi considered the sister his natural enemy. The sister's power, her presence, weakened and negated Terumi's. Just being in the same room made him feel ill. If he got too close, he would feel nauseous. If she touched him, he would scream in disgust.

The sister knew about this strange power dynamic between them. She reached out to grab the shadow, its face contorted in fear. But before she could, a small figure stood in her way.

"Jin..." Jin, who had retreated, stepped between Terumi and the sister, his arms wrapped tightly around her. His green eyes looked up at her from beneath long golden lashes, blank and emotionless. She loved that color of eyes. They were beautiful, gentle, and the same color as those of a strong and kind person.

"Let go," she said. The sister grabbed Jin's shoulder and tried to pull him away. She used all her strength, but her fingers seemed numb, and she couldn't feel if she was touching him. Jin didn't move. Tears welled up in the sister's eyes but were immediately evaporated by the heat.

Why did she have to pull him away? Instead of roughly pushing him aside, she wanted to embrace him, telling him how much she loved him.

"Ha... Hahahaha, nice support, kid! But... hey, you old hag, don't underestimate me! You bitch!" Terumi's voice, filled with rage, swirled around the room. Yet, as if he didn't want to get too close or touch her, Terumi swung his shadow-like arm and threw it at the sister.

"Jin, let go..."

The chain, carrying the dagger, pierced the sister's chest. 

Knowing this was probably the end, the sister ran her fingers through Jin's hair.

"Jin, be good to your brother..." Before she could finish her sentence, blood filled her mouth, drowning out her words and breath. 

The dagger was pulled out, and with that momentum, her body swayed backward. As if losing all strength, Jin released her. The sister's thin, aged body was thrown backward onto the burning floor.

"............" She tried to call out Jin's name, but no sound came out. Only the sound of air escaping hissed, easily drowned out by the crackling of the burning building. 

Where was Jin? All she could see was the ceiling.

Where was Saya? Where was Ragna...?

"Hahaha! Oh, my, you're quite a bloody mess, aren't you? Tell me, how do you feel right now? How do you feel? The church is burning up too, isn't it? At this rate, you won't need a funeral pyre. Kukuku, what a caring old woman you are, aren't you, sister? Hyah-hah-hah-hah!" Terumi's laughter faded away like it was being sucked into a void. The sound of the flames, the heat of the room, and even Jin's breath—everything seemed to grow distant. Amongst it all, the sister struggled to move her fingers on the floor.

(Sister...)

If only she were as strong as her heroic sister... could she have protected these children? Could she have driven Terumi away, called rain from the sky, and extinguished the fire in an instant? Could she have hugged Jin and Saya together with Ragna when he returned?

(Oh, Ragna...) There were so many things she still needed to do. There were things she hadn't given to him, things she hadn't taught him.

(Big sister... please, lend me your strength... I need to tell him...) There was something she had to tell him. That it wasn’t his fault. That it was her fault for not being able to protect them. That he shouldn't blame himself...

But she couldn't move her fingertips anymore. As her vision faded, she heard the sound of the ceiling collapsing.

(Oh, God... please...)

Please let them be happy wherever they go.

The building collapsed, swallowing the sister's small prayer.