Ikaruga Civil War

The razing of the Wadatsumi Castle.

The Ikaruga Civil War was a conflict between the Ikaruga Federation and the Novus Orbis Librarium that began in 2191 and ended in June, 2197. Publicly, it is believed that the conflict began after the Federation announced their independence from the NOL, but in reality, the war was dragged on so that Sector Seven could create a Kusanagi, and that the NOL could harvest enough deaths to awaken Izanami.

This war was the first time that Ars Magus was used by humanity against itself on such a large scale, and the second war to have ever used it. For this reason, it was known as the Second War of Ars Magus.

Information

Prior to the war's beginnings, those who possessed the ability to use Ars Magus had been given preferential treatment across the society that was dictated by the NOL. The higher the aptitude, the better treatment received. As one's Ars Magus aptitude is decided by their genetics this led to the discomfort and dissatisfaction of the population that had little to no aptitude. By 2090, the socio-economic gap between those who could and couldn't use Ars Magus had considerably widened.

Whether through the dissatisfaction caused by the aforementioned widening gap or by its own motives, the 5th Hierarchical City of Ibukido began to move independently of the NOL. In 2191, Ibukido allied itself with 5 other Hierarchical Cities in the Ikaruga Region. These were Yabiko, Kazamotsu, Wadatsumi, Akitsu-Kou, and Akitsu-Otsu. Together, these allied Hierarchical Cities declared themselves the Ikaruga Federation - the movement was not acknowledged by the NOL and they moved to oppress the Federation. This began the Ikaruga Civil War. Around this time, Sector Seven began experiments, namely on the creation of a Kusanagi, but those who knew of it believed the experiments were to create a Black Beast instead. The Committee believed that they had orchestrated the war in order to collect enough souls to create a Black Beast, but in reality, they were being manipulated by both Relius Clover and Yuuki Terumi.

There is a period of the war that is ambiguous. Tenjo Amanohokosaka was the Imperator of the NOL, but at some period, she was overthrown by Relius and Terumi. Due to the identity of the Imperator being unknown to anyone bar the heads of the Duodecim, the coup was successful. Tenjo became the head of the Ikaruga Federation - it is unknown if the reason for the Federation's rise was out of Tenjo's retaliation or if she had been ousted after the Federation had formed and declared its independence. Regardless, throughout the war, she was only publicly as the leader of the Federation and her identity as the former Imperator of the NOL was kept as a closely guarded secret by those who knew, such as Houichirou Hazuki and Kagura Mutsuki. Tenjo remained in contact with those loyal to her within the NOL, especially with Kagura, and positioned herself in Wadatsumi for most of the war. An alliance between Kagura, Kokonoe, and Tenjo was formed, one that remained a secret from the NOL, Sector Seven, and the Ikaruga Federation.

In 2192, the Ikaruga Federation began to expand their territory, coming into more conflict with the NOL. The Federation had formed a relationship with Sector Seven, and the Committee used a laboratory deep within Ibukido to conduct their experiments with creating a Black Beast, although the Federation itself was seemingly unaware of these intentions, and Tenjo resented it altogether. Around this time, some began to suspect the war - the sheer military might of the NOL could raze the Ikaruga Region within weeks, but the NOL were hesitant to end the war and only skirmishes occurred. Experimental weapons were deployed to the front lines, as well as the Ninth Squadron, an NOL unit which weakened the Federation's forces and allowed other units to take the glory of the kills, thus leading to numerous promotions.

Attack on Celica A. Mercury's Church

Terumi's assault on the church.

In 2192, Yuuki Terumi launched an attack on Celica A. Mercury's Church. Although this event did not directly involve the NOL nor the Ikaruga Federation, it was an important event that happened during the war and had links to it. Saya, a young artificial human girl living at the church, was desired by Terumi and Relius Clover to act as a vessel for Izanami; she would also serve as the basis for the creation of Boundary Interface Prime Field Devices numbers 11 - 13, two of which were made in the Ibukido experiments.

Prior to the attack, Terumi had mentally assaulted Saya and given her the Nox Nyctores - Mucro Algesco: Yukianesa. She then gave it to her older brother, Jin Kisaragi and the barrier surrounding the church eventually broke down. Terumi entered and Observed himself to maintain a physical form. Soon afterwards, Terumi murdered Celica A. Mercury, the nun who looked after the church, and broke both Saya and Jin, kidnapping them. The eldest brother returned to the church before Terumi was about to leave and after he had set the building on fire. The spirit commanded Jin to cut off his brother's arm and the eldest was left to die. Terumi returned with Saya to the NOL and she would not be seen until she had become a vessel for Izanami. Jin was abandoned but was soon adopted by the Kisaragi family. The eldest brother survived and later became known as Ragna the Bloodedge.

Despite there being no military action, Terumi's assault on the church and acquisition of Saya meant that the war was not for nothing as she was the only one who could be Izanami's vessel. Jin would also later prove to be an influential part of the war itself.

The Phenomena Weapon Dispossession Operation

Azrael destroys the mercenaries.

Circa 2193, Bullet's Mercenary Squad was hired by Sector Seven to retrieve the Nox Nyctores - Deus Machina: Nirvana after Relius had told them about its location. The scientist had also talked to the Committee and Kokonoe about the possibility of creating a Nox Nyctores, and that he would reward them with a Prime Field Device for their efforts. Nirvana was required for Tenjo, who sensed that her time was near and had the ability to transfer her soul between vessels. She intended to extend her life by using Nirvana. Relius had known of its whereabouts as the NOL had recently excavated it and were in the midst of taking the Nox.

The squadron was deployed to the 4th Hierarchical City of Naobi, a city controlled by the NOL. Bullet, one of the members of the squad, was left behind because of an injury she had sustained earlier. The rest of the mercenary company went instead and retrieved the Nox. However, the NOL had come to finish the excavation and a battle occurred. Azrael appeared and destroyed both forces, but not before the leader of the squad dealt a blow to the Mad Dog and managed to escape with the Nox in tow. Azrael's appearance was thanks to one of the Committee hiring him, likely to cause more death so that a Black Beast could be created. Kokonoe took in the leader and the resulting surgery to save the man's life drastically changed his appearance. He was injected with Demon Cells, the only thing that could regenerate his cells, and later became known as Iron Tager. During one brief stint of consciousness before the surgery, he asked that his memories be sealed away. As a result, Tager was unaware of his life prior to being in Kokonoe's service, something he willingly contracted into as she promised to find a way to reverse his condition and turn him back to a normal human. Kokonoe would later tell Tager that he was a victim of the Burning Fields of Ikaruga. Litchi also became Kokonoe's assistant around this time.

The Ibukido Experiments & the Burning Fields of Ikaruga

The experiments on Lambda.

In the labs underneath Ibukido, Sector Seven, had acquired Lambda-11, a Prime Field created by Relius. She was the first of the Prime Fields that were based off of Saya, but she was not used for combat nor was there an attempt to make her a Kusanagi. Instead, Lambda was relentlessly experimented on, to the point where it was essentially torture. Tenjo resented the use of the experiments and had planned to use the Kushinada's Lynchpin to stop Terumi and Relius from creating a Black Beast.

On the 25th of December, 2194, Christmas Day, scientists involved in the Ibukido experiments had begun the final phase of smelting Mu-12. The process was going smoothly. Hazama had attempted to fuse with Mu, but she refused him and the two were unable to become a Kusanagi. As Mu was being smelted, the scientists noticed a considerable concentration of seithr above their location. The Nox Nyctores, Gigant: Take-Mikazuchi, which had been fired into Earth's orbit after the Dark War, fired upon Ibukido. The result was devastating as the entire Hierarchical City, which once boasted to be one of the largest cities on the planet, was destroyed in an instant. The event was later known as . Nearly everyone in the city at the time was killed by the blast, although there were survivors, such as Mu and Lambda. Mu lost her memories, but was soon found and adopted soon by Edgar and Claire Vermillion. Mu was christened Noel Vermillion, and had no idea of her origins. Lambda had seemingly died and was left to rot within the facility.

Some time afterwards, Tager was sent by Kokonoe to the facility where the experiments occurred. He procured Lambda and took her back to Sector Seven where Kokonoe would spend the next few years repairing her. The destruction of Ibukido was because of the Takamagahara System, but everyone believed it was because of the NOL. What started as a war then became a demonstration of the NOL's sheer power in the eyes of the public. In 2196, the Federation tried to negotiate for peace, but the plea fell on deaf ears. The NOL had retaken most of Kazamotsu and Yabiko after the destruction of Ibikido, but Wadatsumi remained inaccesible and was a battlefield. Looting began to increase from those who lost their homes and those who lost their homes tried to migrate to Yabiko and Kazamotsu. Protests in Kazamotsu began to spiral out of control - the NOL had a strong presence in the city, but the officials there expected a mass civilian uprising after the looting of various Ars Magus vessels. Kagura and Hibiki moved to have the refugees transported to the 13th Hierarchical City of Kagutsuchi, which was still undergoing construction.

Spiral Shift – Hero of the Frozen Blade and That which is inherited

Jin's arrival and deployment.

Jin graduated from the Military Academy in the January of 2197 and accidentally came into contact with Tager at the ruins of Ibukido. After retreating, he returned to Yabiko and was scolded by Kagura. After a brief run in with Meifang Lapislazuli, Jin met his assistant, Corporal Honoka. The two were sent to the front lines and were placed under the command of Captain Grimwood Huster of the Ninth Squadron. Jin also met Corporal Karenjina Parsett here as well, and they were soon deployed to a battle against numerous rock giants that were created by Sector Seven.

Relius returned to Sector Seven to analyze Nirvana, and in his own time, was able to create the Fluctus Redactum: Ignis that was based off the Nox. Relius used his wife, Ignis Clover, and daughter, Ada Clover to be the identities for both Nirvana and Ignis, but required additional help from Sector Seven to smelt their identity. Relius had tipped the NOL about Sector Seven's plan to create a Nox Nyctores and they immediately attacked the facility. The cauldron in the facility where the cores were being smelted was infiltrated, and Tager was deployed to stop the soldiers from advancing to the center of the facility.

Relius' manipulation.

The cauldron went out of control and a miniature Black Beast was created. It took the souls of both NOL and Sector Seven soldiers alike. Kokonoe was forced to use sorcery and the spell Infinite Gravity in order to seal away the Beasts into cores that could be harnessed by Nirvana and Ignis - the souls of Ada and Ignis Clover, respectively, were used to fuel the automatons. Before falling into unconsciousness, Kokonoe used Nirvana to strike at Relius and wounded him. When she awoke, he had disappeared, as had both automatons.

Jin and the Ninth Squadron went to the laboratory to retrieve Nirvana but were 2 hours too late, and were the first to report on the situation that had unfolded. Kokonoe had already disappeared by this time, as had Nirvana and Ignis. A Necromancer was in the area which was being operated by Relius, and it made the corpses from the earlier incident arise as Ghouls. The Ninth Squadron, however, fought them off. Tenjo later heard about the events that happened in the laboratory and expressed regret at the loss of Nirvana and Kokonoe's injuries. She then transferred her soul into the Phoenix: Rettenjo, leaving behind her body as a puppet with only some semblance of her former self within.

An order went through for the attack on Wadatsumi and the castle where Tenjo was. Kagura did not want this order to go through, believing that there was already too much death that had occurred. The Ninth Squadron were able to detect a hidden entrance to the castle using Karenjina's Drive - Seagull. They entered, but Karenjina was left behind and Jin was forced to fight against a monster made of liquid seithr. When Jin caught up to the rest of his squadron, he saw several of them dead and Grimwood neck held by Meifang. The area hidden underneath the Wadatsumi Castle had a coffin suspended above a large hole; a conveyor belt was throwing the corpses of both NOL and Ikarugan soldiers into it. Meifang decapitated Grimwood and knocked out Jin, sending him to a cell. She also had the Zero Squadron interrogate Karenjina. Throughout the war, the Zero Squadron disposed of many traitors and tortured many people to get the information that the Imperator desired.

The end of the war

Kagura had put in a great deal of effort to rebuild Yabiko and Kazamotsu after it was retaken, to the point where it was difficult to believe it had been a battlefield one year prior. Jin was sent to Yabiko by the Imperator with a decree for Kagura after being released from his cell - deploy all forces into combat and swiftly end the war; it also stated that the Ikaruga Region was to be sealed off from the outside. Kagura had also received a report from Taro Sasaga'e about Jin not being able to control Yukianesa at the Academy at one point, raising concern.

Kagura deployed numerous forces, including the Eighth Squadron, into battle. He had Jin stay behind and battle in only small skirmishes against the main Ikarugan forces and Sector Seven. Tager stood on the other end of the forces and attack Jin before being teleported next to Kagura's side. The two battled while Hibiki took command. The Black Knight was bested and Tager teleported away - the injury sustained by Kagura was so serious that the Zero Squadron had no choice but allow him to take an Ars Magus vessel out of Ikaruga and to the main NOL headquarters. In reality, this battle was a farce organized by Kokonoe and Kagura. The battle was done so that Homura could be smuggled out of Ikaruga, something that could only be practically done with an Ars Magus vessel. Jin would later investigate Ibukido and briefly battle against Tager once more before being repelled and returned to Yabiko.

Homura's determination.

In reality, this battle was a farce organized by Kokonoe and Kagura. The battle was done so that Homura could be smuggled out of Ikaruga, something that could only be practically done with an Ars Magus vessel. After talking with Homura, the young heir decided that they would reclaim Ikaruga in the future and rebuild it.

Jin, left in command of the troops as the only member of the Duodecim left on the battlefield, stormed Wadatsumi and decided to end the war that same day. Yukianesa had attempted to corrupt him and tempt him to kill, but he was able to singlehandly wipe out the Ikarugan forces with ice, not taking a single life. The Ikarugan Ninjas were wrapped up with fights against the other NOL forces, with Bang Shishigami leading the charge and evacuating the Wadatsumi population. The NOL torched the Wadatsumi castle and the numerous buildings within the city while Jin continued his charge alone into the castle.

Tenjo's last moments.

When Jin arrived at the castle, he met Bang, who had run into the castle to save Tenjo. Before the soldier arrived, Tenjo had given Bang the Rettenjo with her soul within it. Jin effortlessly defeated the ninja after freezing the room with his Arctic Dungeon technique, leaving an 'x' shaped scar across his face. Tenjo told Jin that she was only a "doll" that would give birth to "death" and asked that she be cut down to fight back against death itself. After throwing a charm at the First Lieutenant, Jin struck her with his Yukikaze technique. Tenjo was dead and the war was over. Honoka appeared and revealed that he was actually Hazama - Terumi used his version of Mind Eater to take away the memories that Jin possessed and he lost recollection of the events with Tenjo. Tenjo's corpse was then taken and replaced with another one by Terumi and Hazama.

Aftermath

Immediately following the news of Tenjo's death, the Ikaruga Federation soldiers lost their will to fight and they surrendered. Some NOL soldiers attempted to continue the slaughter but Jin commanded that no more lives were taken. As the war ended, Jin was awarded the title "Hero of Ikaruga" by the NOL and promoted two ranks to Major, becoming the youngest commander of a squadron in NOL history. Taro, Noel, Tsubaki Yayoi, and Makoto Nanaya attended this ceremony.

Bang evacuated the remainder of the Ikaruga survivors to Kagutsuchi and they built Roningai, a district in the city. The Ikaruga Civil War made many civilians view the NOL in a bad light as they saw the destruction of Ibukido and Wadatsumi as the NOL demonstrating its own strength. Even years after the war ended, both cities were unable to recover, but the other four cities that comprised the Federation eventually received restoration efforts thanks to Kagura. Ultimately, the attempts to create a Black Beast failed, but the amount of deaths that occurred considerably sped up the process to awaken Izanami. Tenjo had also been eliminated, which was one major cause for the war. The NOL was ultimately declared the victor while the Ikaruga Federation dissolved.

Participants

Novus Orbis Librarium

• Colonel Meifang Lapislazuli - head of the Wings of Justice
• Duodecim
  • Mutsuki
    • Colonel Kagura Mutsuki - secretly conspired with both Sector Seven and the Ikaruga Federation; Tenjo's former pupil
    • Captain Hibiki Kohaku - Kagura's secretary; conspired alongside Kagura
  • Kisaragi
  • Yayoi
    • Tsubaki's father - head of the Yayoi household; worked in the Imperial Guard during the war
• Ninth Squadron
  • Captain Grimwood Huster - leader of the Ninth Squadron; deceased
  • Corporal Karenjina Parsett
  • First Lieutenant Jin Kisaragi - ended the war and became known as the Hero of Ikaruga; was promoted to Major after the war
  • Corporal Honoka - Jin's assistant; was actually Hazama in disguise
  • Owl - deceased

Ikaruga Federation

• Tenjo Amanohokosaka - the former Imperator of the NOL who was secretly overthrown; deceased
• Homura Amanohokosaka - Tenjo's child and heir to the NOL
• Bang Shishigami - head of the Ikaruga Ninja; was entrusted with the Phoenix: Rettenjo by Tenjo

Sector Seven

• Committee
  • Kokonoe
• Iron Tager
• Lotte Carmine
• Bullet's Mercenary Squad - hired to retrieve the Deus Machina: Nirvana; all deceased, barring Bullet and Tager
• Azrael - hired by a Committee member to cause more death

Other

• Yuuki Terumi - manipulated both Sector Seven and the NOL to attempt to awaken Izanami
• Relius Clover - manipulated both Sector Seven and the NOL to attempt to awaken Izanami
• Takamagahara System
• Edgar and Claire Vermillion
• Noel Vermillion/Mu-12
• Lambda-11

Official Descriptions

BlazBlue: Central Fiction Library Entry

Ikaruga Civil War

A war fought between 2191 and 2197. Also known as the 'Second War of Ars Magus.' An alliance of Hierarchical Cities led by the 5th Hierarchical City 'Ibukido' called themselves the 'Ikaruga Federation', and declared independence. The Librarium then proceeded to suppress them by force.

In reality, this war was plotted for two reasons. The first was an 'experiment' requiring the gathering of a massive number of souls, in order to smelt the 'Black Beast' once more. The second was the elimination of the 'previous Imperator.'

Second War of Ars Magus

Another name for the 'Ikaruga Civil War.' It was the first war 'between humans' where 'Ars Magus' was used as a weapon, but second overall, thus it has this name.

Phenomena Weapon Dispossession Operation

An incident where Sector Seven plotted to steal the Nox Nyctores Nirvana, discovered by the Librarium. The operation was a success, but Sector Seven's assault team was annihilated, with only a single survivor.

Ibukido Experiment

An experiment worked on by Sector Seven in the Ikaruga Federation in 2194. The experiment to connect with the Boundary using a Boundary Interface Prime Field Device ended in failure. Immediately afterwards, an attack by Take-Mikazuchi annihilated Ibukido.