--------------Can We Just Start Already?--------------

Jason watches the arrow fly into the air, arcing down as he lowers his bow. This isn't one of his usualy combusting arrows; he's just practicing his aim and doesn't want to set the forest on fire. Mimring watches from the shade of a tree as the arrowhead embeds itself in another tree's bark, a subtle mental conversation running between master and familiar. Even in the relative calm, something is on their minds.

Lord X-Giga-X was in the depths of his lab, within a large room accessible to only those within his own group. Like the rest of the lab, it was very dimly lit. However, it was considerably darker than the rest of the lab, the only source of light being an iridescent glow from a liquid within several containment tubes. And it was something within one of these tubes that Lord X-Giga-X, Xibu, Erahvs, and Aegis all had their eyes upon: a dark brown, ursine humanoid lifeform larger than any of them developing inside of it. It floated within this liquid, seemingly unconscious. Lord X-Giga-X let out a short chuckle. "I have to hand it to you, Aegis. You've done an excellent job replicating this thing."

Lord X-Giga-X: Aegis: Well thank you, lad.

Lord X-Giga-X: Xibu: Getting it down here was surprisingly easy. *glances to Giga* A surprising lack of interference from Jason and his dragons.

Lord X-Giga-X: Well if anything, it proves that Deathstorm hasn't said a word of this to Jason. The last thing we need is yet another incident of an experiment charging out of the lab and attacking everyone else because of him.

Jason walks to the tree and pulls the arrow out, holding it for a moment before reloading the bow. The two exchange wry glances before Jason shoots it into the air again. There is a moment of silence as the arrow reaches its peak and begins to soar down... and a quick, well-aimed spurt of flame from Mimring easily reduces all but the point to ash.

Lord X-Giga-X: Erahvs: To be fair, Jason /does/ hate experiments. *pauses* Still, I agree that this one in particular is too dangerous to have it run amok outside of the lab.

Starr is in her lab room pacing around impatiently. Her eyes glance at a piece of paper over and over again with each pass while Shockwing sat on the desk next to it with a stack of papers. She snorts loudly "I can't believe it. I just can't." Inside her room was a total mess: folders were scattered all around, papers here and there, and pencils filling the floors. "Somebody took /my/ collection of Garnere's works. I know somebody did, but who?"

Starr: Shockwing: *Blinks and looks up, confused* Maybe...you misplaced it? You are known to lose things so easily........*he coughs just as Starr shoots him a glare* U-Uhm, this is why one scans these and places them on a remote database. I told you.

Lord X-Giga-X: Xibu: Which is why the plan is for us to tell no one about this until the day comes. Then it's just a matter of wearing it down enough for me to take care of the rest.

Jason: Mimring: *settles his wings a bit and crosses his forelegs as he gives Jason a look.* /So, are you going to do it today? It has been calm, there have not been any incidents in the last few days... aside from that simulator.../

Lord X-Giga-X: Exactly. Unless something ridiculous happens, we shouldn't have any problems. *turns away from the three of them* But I doubt we'll have any problems. *starts walking away, toward what is most likely an exit* You three do whatever you want for now.

Jason breathes a resigned sigh as he retrieves the scorched arrowhead. /Yeah. May as well./

Lord X-Giga-X: Xibu: *turns toward Giga as he leaves the room* If you say so... *pauses, then starts walking in a different direction, muttering to himself* Shit, need to make more of that serum now that I think about it...

Shadow is walking outside HQ, partly enjoying the peaceful atmosphere, partly focused on the "Voidcore" that now hangs from his neck with a small chain. Espira is casually walking beside, seeming deeply in thought. She speaks after a minute or two of silence.

Shadow: Espira: ...I will hit you.

Shadow cringes on the spot. "E-eh...?"

Lord X-Giga-X: Aegis: *turns to Erahvs* Well then, looks like I'll be using this time to run some tests on you.

Shadow: Espira: *her red eyes lock with Shadow's for painfully long seconds.* Or at least I would, if it were not for the fact there is no possible way you could be lying. *she does the closest possible thing to a lighthearted chuckle someone like Espira can manage, with Shadow visibly relaxing at that. She continues,* You should keep the Voidcore, regardless. This is phenomenal even to this group's standards.

Lord X-Giga-X: Erahvs: *eyes widen at the mention of tests. His eyes switch between Aegis and the direction and direction Giga left in as he considers his options. He then chooses the obvious one, turning toward that direction and running off* Giga, wait for me!

Shadow glances down to the crystal, then back at Espira. "You... believe me, then?"

Shadow: Espira: There is no reason for me to not to, is there?

Darius: *deep into the forest, a sudden burst echoes distantly, followed by an expanding ring of darkness. The trees all around it begin bending inward, groaning with effort to remain rooted. Then, after a few moments, the darkness burst outward in another distant boom, the trees launching back to their natural state after a few violent swaying motions*

Jason looks at Mimring, who simply looks back, the tip of his tail twitching in amusement. Jason shakes his head as he begins to walk north... but freezes at the distant sound. /... Well. So much for peace./

Starr sighs, taking a seat after a moment of deep thought. "I could maybe reproduce those studies but those papers are downright ancient, valuable, original! Any collector who found out I lost Garnere's original work would skin me and make me into boots." Glancing at shockwing, who bites his lips and continues to organize his stack, starr narrows her eyes and grumbles "are you even listening???"

Jason: Mimring: /I will go check it. You do what you need to./ *The dragon leaps into the air, his wings spreading like sails as he flies towards the source of the noise. Jason blinks, then shakes his head again and continues walking.*

Shadow simply shakes his head. Well, Espira /has/ been his ally for so long it almost seems completely natural... he suddenly thinks himself as stupid for even doubting her in first place, as the Trained Assassin continues with something similar to "You should be careful from now on, however"... then, he stops, sensing something wrong. As Espira momentarily glances to him, there is suddenly a distant, unnatural boom somewhere in the forest, which stops her in place as well. A second passes. Shadow begins, "Will you...?"

Starr: Shockwing: *mumbles inattentively* sure, you'd make nice boobs.... *he stops without a word more under the strong jolt of surprise felt by his mental connection with starr* I meant boots! Boots!

Shadow: Espira: *only nods, her gaze already focused completely on the general direction of the noise.* "No other choice." *and with that, she edges forward, blurring into the brief invisibility of speed before decelerating at least ten meters away, and repeating the procedure. Shadow quickly loses sight of her.*

Lord X-Giga-X , now in a generic hallway in the lab, came to a stop as he sensed something rather unusual somewhat closeby. A sudden burst of dark mana. He let out a sigh as Erahvs had then caught up to him. "I just had to jinx it, didn't I?" He then glanced over to see Erahvs. "Well then, looks like we have something to do." He then started to charge forward, while Erahvs shifted into wolf form and followed him.

Starr: *deep within the forest, the scarlet gunslinger and Gaga both poke their heads out of their books labeled in croitian "the science behind politics and syelsapian nature" and give a short glance at each other. Gaga gets up and notices a pistol formed within vale's grip, telling her that the sudden disturbance has certainly peaked his interest. She speaks softly "I guess our lesson is over?" To which vale only answers with an assertive tone "Unless you mind, madam, I will set off to investigate"

Shadow hesitates a bit. He has every reason to remain outside of potential trouble, but... /I... can't keep doing that./ he mentally affirms, before setting off for the forest as well.

Starr: Gaga: *skips forward with vale and slams her book shut* I want to go too. That is an order. *under the slight show of assertiveness, vale spun his pistol around and handed it to Gaga as if he himself had this assurance that a weapon like that would better help her defend herself rather than a sword. Gaga awkwardly takes it and follows vale to the site*

Jason: Mimring: *swoops down slightly lower as he approaches a clearing in the forest below; he sees two people on the ground, who he does not immediately recognize. Focusing more on the two, however...* /... Jason, you may wish to change your plans and come here./ *He shoots over the clearing before turning, circling over it for a moment.*

Jason pauses. /... Right, I'm coming./ He shifts into his wolf form and changes directions, heading towards the forest at a sprint.

Darius scrunches his fingers, feeling the soft grass between them. Slowly, he opens his eyes behind the usual white cloth wrapped over his physically sightless crystalline eyes. /This... this isn't the core... or is it?/ Darius suddenly sits himself up, feeling gravity pull himself the other way. With little energy, he flops onto his back with a grunt. He rolls himself to the side, hearing the noises of the forest around him. /This is another trick. It has to be./ Darius could feel Valerie's steady breathing nearby. With much effort, Darius pulled himself to his feet, taking each movement with stride. He takes a few steps toward Valerie before stopping himself just by her. /Valerie.../ He could see her essence wafting around her body. It wasn't a fake essence as he had sensed before. It was her. Or it wasn't... Suddenly, his sense directed him to the skies. "Show yourself!" Darius called out, although his voice was more of a croak. Feeling an adrenal burst, he stepped over Valerie into a defensive position.

Jason: Mimring: *tilts his head, flaring his wings before landing a respectful distance away. He stands ready to take flight again, but this is more of a precaution.* Darius.

Starr: Vale: *a scream-- catching such noise amidst the clusters of forest noises, vale's eyes show a faint glint of surprise. His body leapt from tree branch to tree branch rapidly, even moreso with a building gauge of curiosity compelling him to. Vale mutters to himself with an exhale* that sensation I felt just now....

Darius 's head follows the direction of a large essence. A dragon. Why would there be a dragon conjured?... Darius stiffened his muscles, a sudden pulse of strength coming through him. He could feel his ripped gi billow in the wind, although he was unfazed by it entirely. "You..." Darius started, pulling his arms into a defensive, aggressive stance. "I've had enough of these tricks. Leave us. The core is gone!"

Starr: Gaga: *stops right before the clearing and senses vale dash right past her to take position within the forest foliage. She grips the pistol carefully closer to herself. She can feel the flow of her divine energy invading the very structure of the weapon, causing it to spark and heat up immensely. Of course, she thought, he gave her the weapon for that reason. If one keeps void energy and divine energy together, the clashing feedback was very powerful. Gaga smirks under the thought, then inching closer and hearing Darius' cries. Her heart suddenly sank*

Jason: Mimring: *Backs up slightly, confused and defensive* Darius, do you even know where you are?

Darius tightens his fists. "Stay back now!" he demands, the air around him suddenly growing silent. A threatening lack of sound befell the clearing for several seconds as Darius eyed the dragon through his cloth. "I won't be fooled anymore. CrazE depends on me."

Jason trots up beside Mimring, taking care not to get too close. Darius and Val. Only Darius seems to be awake, though perhaps confused or something. He shifts back into his human form, but says nothing, staying at Mimring's side for the moment.

Starr: Vale: *phases into view(by Gaga only) sitting on a branch near the clearing. A faint snap can be heard as a sniper rifle formed within vale's arms. The scarlet gunslinger hefts the weapon into position, peering into the scope to grab a good view of what was going on. Nothing was said nor shown by his relax expression but a brief glint of red shine from his scope*

Starr: Gaga:*slowly but carefully inches forward. Darius along with Valerie came into view and almost instantly a cacophony of high pitched frequencies emitted from Darius Alone was enough to make her stop right where she was. However, the concern she had made her ignore her mind picking up such things* D-Darius...!?

Darius sees a familiar essence encircling around another individual. Then a third, then a fourth, each distinctly familiar. /These essences can't be real... no. This is another trick! This has to be!/ Directing his vision toward the essence he knew was Gaga's and Vale's, Darius lowered his stance. "You would dare impersonate those I knew again," he hissed. Suddenly, the energy that had previously ended the sound within the clearing began to become visible around his arms. Like flames, it licked the air and shifted with a light blue glow. Suddenly, the loose soil around Darius began to rise, little pebbles and pieces of dirt levitating upward. /They're not making a move... what is going on? Why aren't they moving? Should I move? I have to do something.../

Jason exchanges a glance with Mimring. He stays where he is, but speaks up. "Darius, I don't know what you just got out of, but I assure you, we're real." It must sound like a weak argument, but he really doesn't know what else to say. Mimring tenses up beside him, but makes no move to attack. No need to unless Darius strikes first.

Starr: Vale: *vale grimaces and takes an aim. His gut was already telling him this was no normal circumstance. His ally's hostility and confusion warranted much caution. His intention on the outside was to shoot to kill, but something within him withheld. He takes a breath and concentrates*

Starr: Gaga:* shakes her head, her voice cracking ever so slightly* what are you talking about? Impersonate? Please, just calm down...!

Shadow: Espira: *arrives there in that moment, smoothly decelerating out of her illusion dash and softly touching ground within the actual clearing, the closest anyone has gotten so far, but still a distance away. Her eyes momentarily fall on the unconscious girl behind Darius, soon shifting back to the latter. Her tone is neutral, though it carries somewhat of an authority.* "Cease. You are in no physical state to consider fighting. I believed you to be much more reasonable than this."

Darius feels a slight movement nearby. Sourcing from the supposed essence of Vale, he sensed the very minute shift of breath that told him the readiness of attack. He knew it. Darius opened one of his fists, a large amount of energy gathering into his palm. Within the instant of doing so, the orb flew directly into the trees, tethered toward Vale's essence. In the same instant, Darius thrust both of his palms forward, a sudden burst of energy expanding rapidly toward the others.

Starr: *when the energy ball bit the tree, a red glint flashed just before a dozen shined around the vicinity. Red bullets darted towards Darius- though not too close to injure him or val- and released black chains in a flash that wrapped around the floating man to keep him in place. Once voice called out*

Jason glances at Espira as she arrives, but his attention is drawn away as Darius attacks something hidden in the trees. He has no time to ponder this, though, as the man is now turning on the rest of them. Mimring snarls, launching into the air as Jason's form rapidly shrunk into that of a raven. The bird follws the dragon into the air, shifting back into human form above Mimring and dropping down to ride.

Starr: Vale: I assumed you were more in control of yourself than I was, but this display makes me want to pull back that previous opinion *not anywhere in sight, vale stands by*

Shadow: Espira: *blinks in surprise, but then instantly moves aside, covering a vast angular range from the expanding wave to fully evade it and reposition herself. The faintest traces of residual Mana circle one of her hands, which now wields an obsidian blade... but despite being in the clear for a perfect attack, she only states,* "I will not give you another chance."

Starr: Gaga: *yelps and maneuvers around to avoid being bit.* Dangit Vale that was uncalled for!!

Darius feels the trees in front of him flatten from the blast, but none of the essences touched. Black chains shot up from all angles; just as they did, Darius retracted his arms which, at the same time, released several spikes of glowing energy. Each spike launched into the links of the chains, thrusting the chains in all directions and staking them into the earth beneath. Nearby, the essence of Espira resides nearby. Darius hears Espira talk, but he couldn't hear the voices around him anymore. "I only need one chance." Darius turns to face the Espira essence, already tracking her spiritual essence. Expanding his fingers, a sudden burst of spikes erupted from the ground where Espira was. Darius tensed his muscles, readying instantly

Lord X-Giga-X: *As soon as the spikes began to erupt from the ground near Espira, they began to retract back into the ground. Shortly afterward, Grodisflare came into view above the group, with both Lord X-Giga-X and Erahvs on his back.*

Shadow: Espira: *takes perhaps a split second too long to detect that Darius had just attacked--her first impulse is to move forward, but before the spikes can reach skin, they stop and slowly retreat. A split second later, she is already upon Darius--paying no mind to the outside factor for the moment--a horizontal slash with her blade quickly nearing Darius' midsection.* /Spirit. Of course./

Lord X-Giga-X looked down toward Darius, remembering him despite him having disappeared a while back. "Well, here's a face I haven't seen in a while," he muttered. He then glanced over to Jason, who was now on Mimring's back. "So what the hell's going on here?"

Starr: Vale:* snaps and allows the chains to decay as they should along with brief fragments of Darius' energy that came into contact with it. It seemed as though espira was his next target. Under gaga's scold, it seemed like she did not want him to act without her word, but he kept his rifle at hand* fool *he growls*

Jason: He seems to think we're imposters. We haven't gotten much else out of him than that.

Lord X-Giga-X listened as Jason explained what he knew about the situation. What little of it he knew. "Interesting..." He then looked back down toward Darius, thinking about this situation. "Hrm... Could this have something to do with that dark mana I felt here a moment ago?"

Jason: I wouldn't doubt it.

Starr: Gaga: Whatever it is, I want him to snap out of it without us hurting him..

Shadow finally arrives--the sounds of battle having made him accelerate his pace to a sprint. He stops near the others, short on breath but paying full attention nonetheless. He only got a fragment of the conversation, but... his eyes immediately move to the confrontation between Darius and Espira, definitely not even close to how a friendly spar would look like. With Valerie unconscious only meters away from them. "W-Why are they fighting!?"

Darius suddenly blurs from existence, reappearing inches from Espira's face. His emotionless, hardened and scratched up face turned into a growl of anger as he gripped Espira's arm in both hands. With a swift and surprising jerk, Darius flung Espira at blinding speed into the thickening of the forest. He blurred again to be positioned just above Valerie once more, extending his arms to summon several hundreds of energy spikes to fly in the directions of each sensed essence

Shadow: Espira: *Her other hand sweeps upward as Darius catches her attacking arm, a black dagger aiming to both break contact and injure Darius' arm with an upwards, piercing stab through muscle. She simply shifts her body weight--the rest of her momentum allowing her to break free, gain a new attacking angle, and twist the dagger in place in case it connected.*

Lord X-Giga-X glanced over to Gaga as she spoke, then glanced back down to Darius. "Perhaps we should just pin him down until he calms down?"

Jason: Mimring: *snarls in frustration- even if he wanted to fight back against his confused former ally, he doesn't want to rist hitting Espira by mistake. He contents himself with a spurt of fire at the enrgy spikes, winging out of the way just in case. Jason grips the dragon's back plates and looks down to the actual fight.* "You know, this would be a lot easier for everyone if you would just let us help you, Darius!"

Darius , sensing the upward motion toward his arm, released the arm immediately before twisting around with force. As Espira moves back, Darius's leg comes up to intercept her with a strike to her midsection. As soon as he kicks, he retracts and releases, retracting his arms before extending them again with a new volley of spirit-tethered energy spikes

Lord X-Giga-X: Grodisflare: *notices Darius' attack coming, creating a barrier around himself and Giga*

Starr: Gaga: *Turns her head for a split second at Shadow, then senses a harsh energy feedback heading her way. The only sound she had the time to yell out was a very surprised "ack" until she aimed the pistol at the incoming projectile. /What can a mere pistol do?/ though she did not know if any bullet shooting out of that thing would successfully deflect it, she had no choice but to trust in Vale's own specialty. She pulls the trigger and out of sheer panic she holds on to it, allowing a blast of grey energy blast at the energy spike. Upon contact, the area flashed white briefly as the combination(somewhat) of Vale's energy and Gaga's caused a reaction that consumed and seemed to cause the energy spikes clashing with the bullets to be consumed and disintegrate*

Shadow: Espira: *quickly shifts to the side to narrowly avoid the kick, throwing the dagger towards Darius as he retracts his arms. The tell is clear this time, however, and she leaps into the air just as Darius attacks, a small arc of knives forming in front of her and immediately launching towards him.*

Darius regains his stance, hearing the very slight whistling of agile knives whistling through the air. Having dodged the other previously, he knew he couldn't dodge these as well. He couldn't, either; Valerie, just beneath him, shifted uncomfortably. She was still unconscious. Darius, tightening his fists, turned and faced the knives with an arm pulled in front of him defensively. The knives sped at him almost instantly; in that very instant, they flew off in all directions. With each strike against Darius' arm, a ripple of blue energy pulsed over his arm which inevitably redirected the knives in all directions. Darius, easily recovering from the hit, blurred once more. This time, he levitated toe-to-toe with Espira, an arm extending forward with a sharp stream of energy following his two fingers

Lord X-Giga-X: Erahvs: Yeah, I doubt he's going to listen to us at this rate.

Lord X-Giga-X glanced down to Grodisflare. /Yeah, let's just get this over with..../ Both he and Grodisflare then stared over toward Darius, their eyes beginning to glow an iridescent purple. At exactly the same time, the two of them unleashed surges of telekinetic energy at the uncooperative man.

Starr: Gaga: *Calls out in sheer horror while Darius kept attackig* Stooooooop!!!!! *She then goes silent, feeling a breeze phase past her. Some knives ahead of her that were redirected suddenly fell down one by one like flies. An almost delayed, thundering sound of shots being fired ringed throughout the area. Gaga's gaze looked down to see the fallen knives a tad closer, revealing long bullets (most likely from a rifle) pinning them down and releasing out smoke. She looked back up and spotted Vale on top of a tree just behind Darius, cradling his rifle between his arms*

Shadow: Espira: *widens her eyes at the speed--almost even rivaling her's, in fact. But she is very familiar with that precise speed tier. Somehow, she evades in midair by twisting her body to the side, spinning in place only once but enough to evade the obviously-dangerous strike. As gravity begins pulling them down in that second, Espira performs an angled, crippling slash at Darius' still-outstretched arm.*

Darius would witness the trees just ahead suddenly bursting in half from his energy flying through empty air, but instead retracts his body in a powerful spin. He hears the sound of Espira's dagger slicing the air near him, feeling his body swell further. /What if... What if they're not... No... I have to defend Valerie./ Darius completes an almost 360 spin before he extends his arm once more toward Espira. His outstretched arm aimed directly at her, his energy surged into his fingers. Just as he was to loose a blast directly through the girl, a sudden force knocked him out sync with the fight. With a powerful thud against the ground, Darius grunted and bounced a few more feet before coming to a rest. His senses seemed out of place for only a moment before recovering himself. Almost instantly, his eyes directed toward Valerie, who was showing signs of movement. No longer feeling the strain of his body, Darius blurred and stood above the girl once more, hands clenched in readiness. /They want to end us for what CrazE did. This.. this is an illusion. It must be.../

Starr: Vale: *he stared at the two from above. Violence wasn't getting them anywhere, so with a grunt the scarlet gunslinger called out rather calmly at Darius specifically, giving Espira a glance or two* Darius. If there is any more you wish to do to us, your attention should be diverged towards me. It seems you need a little reasoning to snap you out of this manic state. *He stops and grows silent, preparing his body to evade any attack*

Lord X-Giga-X prepared another attack when he noticed Darius position himself above an unconscious girl who was now slightly moving.... Wait a minute, isn't that girl... He felt Grodisflare preparing another attack as well. /Grodisflare, stop!/

Lord X-Giga-X: Grodisflare: *glances up to Giga, his eyes once again glowing an iridescent purple* Can it wait after I hit him?

Jason: Mimring: *snorts out a puf of smoke and lands, eyeing the battle with his tail blade raised and claws unsheathed. Jason climbs off of him as the dragon waits for an opportunity to actually enter the fray. Jason spares a slightly worried glance towards Valerie, who is now apparently coming to. Hopefully this fight will end soon...*

Lord X-Giga-X: I doubt it'd be wise hit him with another surge from this angle with how he's positioned above Valerie. *blinks as he immediately realizes what he had just said* /.... Wait... The fuck did I just..../

Shadow: Espira: *angles her body downward, choosing to land in order to avoid Darius' next attack, but what she instead sees is Darius suddenly tumbling downwards from the sky. She immediately dashes forward--unfortunately not quickly enough to get him while he was incapacitated--but reaching him the moment he visibly reappears in front of Valerie. She catches him by the throat, quickly slamming him downwards and into the ground. Her sword soon follows, landing an inch next to his neck. In fact, several more swords follow, appearing from midair and raining haphazardly down on the immediate area, though never hitting him or the girl. He's effectively pinned.* "Will you listen to reason now? I have no intentions of killing you; do not give me a reason to do so."

Darius feels the world spin as, almost as suddenly as he appeared, Espira had him pinned to the ground. With a hand on his neck and a dagger accompanying it, Darius felt his inner spirit essences begin to churn. As what would be an imminent counter to Espira's pinning, Darius suddenly stopped. The warmth of the sun touched his hands, although not his face due to Espira's looming shadow. Taking a few breaths and feeling the grass beneath him, Darius' body slowly relaxed. "The sun..." Darius spoke softly. "They never had the sun..." Darius rested his head down onto the ground, a sudden wave of exhaustion overcoming him. "Espira... I'm sorry."

Shadow practically rips himself from his position at this point, only stopping once he reaches, more or less, the farthest sword in the mess of obsidian stakes that spread outwards from the outcome. He comes expecting the worst, but he breathes a sigh of relief upon finding that all of them had intentionally missed Darius and... Valerie. While she seems to be slowly stirring awake, his gaze is drawn towards Darius' fallen form. He watches Espira release her grip and stand up as Darius mumbles something.

Starr: Vale: *Bows his head and jumps down, allowing the rifle he held to vanish. The scarlet gunslinger gave a reassuring glance at Gaga and stood in place. He was a little at ease* It was about time you came to your senses, Darius. Even in such...circumstances. *he looks at Darius sharply*

Jason and Mimring visibly relax, and although Jason can hear Darius's apology, the dragon remains cautious. "So, wait, that's it? It was as simple as letting him know there's a sun?" Jason's expression, while relieved, has a hint of pokerface to it.

Shadow: Espira: *does a vague hand motion--not towards Darius, but towards the surrounding area. The blades that litter a portion of the clearing crumble and vanish into Mana that is quickly lost in the air.* Rest for now.

Lord X-Giga-X: Erahvs: *blinks, having heard Darius talking. He narrows his eyes* Seriously? All of that, and it's the /sun/ that calmed him down?

Starr: Gaga: *lowers her weapon. The woman witholds a smile but then fails and gives off a very soft giggle. But then she stops and gives a look towards Darius and Valerie* /I wonder what made them act out like this....the feedback I got from Darius while this battle went on was an incredible burden to my mind...why../

Lord X-Giga-X sighed as Grodisflare descended to the ground. "Surprised it took him this long to calm down if that's actually the case." /Then again, this guy's associated with crazE, so really, what am I to expect from this guy?/

Darius closes his eyes as his exhaustion overcomes his will for consciousness. Closing his eyes, his body's tension is released as he goes unconscious once more.

Lord X-Giga-X sighed once again as Darius then fainted. "Terrific..." He then pulled out his hand and examined the symbols marking the locations of achlymperists in Ustream. Symbols marking himself and Jason were in their obvious location. Although relatively nearby was another one. And as he examined it, he felt a somewhat familiar surge eminating from it that widened his eyes. "Wait.... that can't be right..."

Jason glances over to Giga at that last comment. Raising his eyebrows in curiosity, he simply asks, "Something wrong?"

Lord X-Giga-X glanced over to Jason as he asked the question. "I was drawn here by a sudden burst of dark mana, but..." He paused for a moment. "I don't understand why or how, but the source of that burst is most likely Darkside."

Lord X-Giga-X: Grodisflare: *blinks at the mention of Darkside* Wait... but isn't he...

Shadow looks over towards Darius and Valerie--they seemed relatively well, but by the way Darius reacted... There is a persistently nagging feeling in the corners of his consciousness that tells him something is wrong somehow, despite their reappearance. He blinks at the mention of Darkside. "...Shouldn't we move them to HQ, or... something?"

Jason nods. "Yeah. Let's go. Unless he turns up, we can worry about Darkside later." He looks almost thoughtfully at Valerie and Darius. "As it is right now, these two need medical attention."

Lord X-Giga-X nodded, then jumped off of Grodisflare's back. His eyes once again glowed an iridescent purple as he extended his arms forward toward the unconscious pair. Outlines of similar colors appeared around the two as he then levitated the two of them off of the ground and toward Grodisflare, carefully placing the two of them onto his back.

Shadow: Espira: *suddenly speaks up. She appears to have be looking around, sparing a brief glance as the two bodies are psychically pulled up.* However. Based on the assumption that their disappearance is linked, that does not explain why crazE is still missing.

Jason: Mimring: Darius mentioned that crazE "depends on him" just before Jase arrived. Perhaps when he is in a better condition, he may be able to tell us more.

Lord X-Giga-X: Erahvs: *moves back as Valerie and Darius are planted upon Grodisflare's back. He sniffs around the area for a moment* Mimring may have a point. If he's anywhere, it's definitely not anywhere nearby.

Lord X-Giga-X scowled at the mention of crazE. But as much he didn't want to help him out, in the end, he really had no choice. He sighed. "Let's just get these two back to HQ then." He nodded to Grodisflare, who then nodded back to him and began to fly toward HQ.

Shadow looks around, realizing something... if what Espira said was true, then... "But, crazE--"

Shadow: Espira: We should prioritize their condition before getting information. Come, we should go as well. *begins walking towards the direction of HQ.*

---One Timeskip Later---

Valerie scrunches her eyelids as a sudden headache came upon her. /There's too much light here... I'm not used to it./ Valerie puts a hand up to her face in order to shield the brightness shining from above, pushing her head into the pillow beneath her. /CrazE said there wasn't light this bright in the Dark Zone... CrazE.../ Suddenly, Valerie's eyes burst open upon the horrifying picture of CrazE returned. /We left him behind!/ Valerie blinked repeatedly in order to adjust her sight, trying to get a clear picture of her surroundings. /Are we still in the Dark Zone?/ "Darius?" Valerie's voice croaked. After a moment of hearing a sudden shifting of feet, Valerie's heart beat quicker. "Darius? Where am I?" Valerie put down her hand in order to look up, suddenly greeted by an entirely different view from what she had expected.

Starr got up from her desk and slowly made her way up to Valerie's bed. Its been a while since she's seen her. The sensation of seeing a familiar face stirred feelings of confusion but more importantly of worry. She hid a syringe within her pocket--a calming injection just in case-- and gave a look at Shockwing who was pacing around in the room. Her voice remained low as she spoke. "Shh..don't push yourself, Val...you're alright..." All of this seemed very strange. Why wasn't her cousin with her? From what Gaga had briefly told her when they all returned, the situation only gave her a chill. Even she did not know why she felt that way. As if something-- "You're safe here in good ol' HQ...Darius is too."

Lord X-Giga-X silently stood in a corner of the room, focusing more on the symbols on his hand than Valerie coming to.

Jason is leaning against the window as Val wakes up, watching out of it as if expecting to see Craz or even Darkside appear. Occasionally he glances at someone else, but his attention is only really diverted away as Valerie actually wakes up. He looks over, as if to make sure she's alright, but Starr gets there first. He would ask if she was alright, but...

Valerie 's eyes widen as her visual sense is overwhelmed with Starr. "No..." Valerie spoke out, sitting up instantly. "No.. this is another illusion. Where's Darius?" Valerie, gripping the cloth beneath her, starts to feel a sick well open in her stomach.

Starr steps back while Shockwing stops and stares. "I-Illusion? No, Val...its really me, Starr...calm down, you're really not in any condition to stress..!" she says with concern.

Shadow blinks as he senses movement--while having been waiting in the room with the others, his thoughts were drifting somewhere else. "Val...?" he calls out tentatively, stepping a bit more into view from the edge of the clinic. "Are... are you okay?"

Valerie feels the cold wall behind her, suddenly realized she was cornered. Pulling her hands up, she faces her palms toward the people within the room. "S-Stay back.." she says with a shaky voice. Suddenly, the air around her hands began to vibrate rapidly, a strange, low humming sound resounding in the room. /I can't let them take me. CrazE left us so we could escape.../ Valerie, feeling her heart beat faster, prepared to unleash a resounding kinetic blast... until, that is, her eyes suddenly met that of Shadows. Feeling herself skip a breath, she pointed her palms toward him. "N-No! You can't do that!" She yelled out. "Show me your vectors! If you're real, show me your vectors!"

Starr looks at Shadow and nervously shuffles back a few spaces. Shockwing quickly runs over to Starr's side and pulls her behind him. /Val...whats wrong with you..?/

Shadow blinks, caught a bit off-guard at the request, but obliges. A single, ethereal limb snakes out of Shadow's back, making it halfway through the distance between them--as a hand--before retracting near his position. "Is... that okay?"

Jason seems to mutter "Fuck not again" as he moves as if to intercept, but he stops and watches carefully as Valerie and Shadow have a short exchange. The events earlier obviously still have him at least cautious of another fight breaking out.

Valerie stops her breathing as, slowly and gently, a semi-clear appendage cautiously approaches toward her. She keeps eyes fully upon its form and appearance before it finally retracts back to the Diclonius. "I... I-I..." Valerie starts, putting her arms down with the energy subsiding with the motion. She grabbed her forehead with one hand, trying to recall the events that had transpired the last time she could remember. "I... I'm at HQ?... You're all here?" Valerie looked around at everyone, feeling a strange sensation wash over her. At first, everything was numbing. The thought didn't entirely register for a few moments. Then, as her thoughts flooded back to her, she burst into a fit of tears. Her legs retracted to her chest as she shrunk into the pillow beneath her.

Starr attempts to reach out for Valerie but is stopped by Shockwing's hand intercepting. The young man gives Starr a cautious look, almost as if he were telling her to just wait and watch. Or at least to let her be. Starr bites her lip and looks down.

Shadow suddenly feels bad as Val starts crying. It is kind of unreal, even... knowing that she isn't one to break down easily, at least from what knows of her. "H-hey..." He approaches, less hesitantly. "What happened...?"

Valerie wipes her eyes. "It was horrible..." She spoke through a few breaths. "We were taken before I could do anything... We've been running from these dark creatures, trying to keep us from getting caught... Then we were captured again after running some more..." Valerie wiped her eyes. "We did it on purpose in the end to wipe out the core of it all... but we spent forever in the Dark Zone, trying to break free..." Valerie, looking up at Shadow, felt a new wave of pain. /The way they betrayed me by looking like Shadow... by making me think he was in danger.../ Valerie suddenly lashed out, grabbing onto Shadow to feel his tangible form after a month of not doing so. "It... It was too much... Please tell me I'm not dreaming..."

Shadow: Wh- *is interrupted as Val practically latches onto him. It feels oddly calming after the events from not too long ago... he shivers slightly at the recollection. Something he would rather not think about right now.* No... definitely not. *he shakes his head, retracting the vector.* Everything's real.

Starr blinks and shoves Shockwing's hand away. She could only whisper one thing "Valerie...." until she goes back to her bedside to place a hand on her for comforting purposes.

Jason stays out of the exchange now; Shadow seems to have it covered, anyway. An expression of relief is on his face, probably at Val being calmed down easily (compared to Darius) and relatively unharmed. He prods Mimring through the mental link; the dragon is scouting outside, but appears to see no sign of Craz or Darkside.

Dark: Jude: /Hmm, if they had escaped the Dark Zone by destroying its very core, then what of Alexander? If he left them while in the Dark Zone to try to rescue them from its horrors, then that means.../ Valerie, if Darius and yourself escaped, then what became of Alexander?

Valerie: Darius: *Stirs on the cot that he's placed on, suddenly lifting his head to the sounds happening around him. He sees the familiar residual essences of the cultists around him. He gingerly pulls himself into a sitting position, letting his body work out its soreness. He looks over to Valerie, seeing a whole cacophony of emotions running through her essence. He tightened his lips, remaining quiet as he pulled his legs off and gently placed his feet onto the floor*

Starr flinches and sticks her full attention to Valerie

Valerie , after several seconds of simply taking in the warmth of the people around her, pulled herself away from Shadow to wipe away her eyes. Although it helped, it didn't make a large impact as all of her feelings showed running down her cheeks. "He.. H-He stayed behind... to help us escape..." Each word left a bitter taste as it sliced the air. Valerie closed her eyes as she sniffled, trying to keep herself composed while her heart sank.

Dark: Jude: /It is hard to stomach, but knowing this, he must have martyred himself to rescue them. I would have never thought him as one to do such a thing./ He... stayed behind? There is no chance he found his own method of escape?

Lord X-Giga-X finally looked up toward Valerie in response to her having to reveal the fate of crazE. At first, he was actually silent for several seconds as he took the news in. And then a silent chuckle came from his mouth, which then quickly evolved into laughter. "Are you for real? He actually went and did that?" He continued laughing. "I'm sorry, but that is quite possibly the best thing I've heard all month!"

Dark: Jude: *focuses his attention on Giga, an angered glower developing on his face* Giga, you are truly an insensitive fool.

Dark pipes up, very audibly annoyed with Giga, "You may have hated him, but the rest of us didn't. Celebrating the death of a friend is incredibly insulting."

Shadow freezes as Valerie speaks. The Dark Zone, the creatures inside it, and the fact he stayed behind while the others left... he has no context, but anyone can weave forth understanding even from these pieces of information. "T-that..." everything suddenly feels... gray. Numb. "He has to have escaped, he's crazE after all..." and he does not even believe his words. Then, laughter. He blinks. A strange, conflicting emotion is born. He turns towards the source, only staring blankly as Giga just... laughs.

Starr freezes up, practically feeling every sound around her go completely mute until she shaked her head and held a very concerned face at Valerie. Her hand, now slithering down to the side of the bed, began to squish the fabric together. No, this couldn't be, right? She couldn't rely on such conclusions but something within her chest began to sink slowly. A look of disbelief soon masked her actual deep reaction. "..W-What did you say..? No-- No," she took a deep breath and stepped back. Her footing was absolutely terrible at that point. She whispered "..Tell me....he's alright....he got..out, didn't he? He always....I know he's--" Starr went quiet and stepped closer to Valerie. "...Val, please...tell me..."

Shadow: Espira: *minutely glances towards Darius as he attempts to stand--or sit up, at least. As a precaution more than anything else, considering his mental state an hour ago... Her gaze returns to the main scene at the reveal. She raises an eyebrow at the information. /That.../ her thoughts trail off. Too little information. And even though she barely knows crazE, the fact that he is a close friend of Shadow's... The laughter immediately makes her turn towards Giga. A death glare piercing through him. As she is about to speak, though, she witnesses the impossible happen within a second.*

Shadow 's vector flies towards Giga's neck. There is virtually no time to react as the ethereal limb's hand clasps his throat, slams the achlymperist to the wall behind him, and lifts him dozens of centimeters off the ground. The usual look in his eyes is completely gone, replaced by an intense, determined flare as the Diclonius glares at Giga from his position. "You didn't mean that... did you? You can't possibly have."

Starr: *Shockwing stands idle next to Starr. The news of CrazE's heroic sacrifice hit him harder than it should have. He could feel his master's emotions swirl and tangle with confusion and disbelief, making him even more shocked than anything. The comment Giga spewed out made Shockwing growl and clench his fists together, but it wasn't worth it. Shockwing reached out to pull Starr back from Valerie in an attempt to calm her down, however, he was met with a very low pitched hiss.*

Lord X-Giga-X stopped laughing as he then noticed Espira's glare, about to predict what was about to come next. However, he wasn't prepared for Shadow to suddenly slam him back into the wall and lift him off of the ground. An expression of suprise was on his face as he had realize what had happened. He remained silent for several seconds before finally speaking. "Yeah, I can agree with you there. I've done nothing that could ever measure up to what he has apparently done. In fact, I've unintentially messeds things a lot more than I'd like to admit." He paused for a moment. "However, I honestly don't think crazE's worth the effort for me to be crying over him. Especially with how much of a pain in the ass he's been since I've first met him"

Jason has had an increasingly annoyed, frustrated look in his eyes ever since Giga began laughing. Mimring has been trying to quell the irritation, with little success- the Familiar wasn't totally neutral now either. He waits as the other cultists begin turning on the Second-in-Command, but it is only when something physical happens- when Shadow's vector shoots at Giga- that the Shapeshifter reacts. A shout echoes through the room, almost to the volume of a dragon's roar. "ENOUGH!" A look at Jason would reveal his eyes narrowed, shifting partially into his Darkwing Firedrake form and using the expansive wing span to keep Giga away from... well, everyone, but mostly Shadow. He gives a moment for everyone to either fall silent at the sudden roar, back off, or just attack. He's equally ready for all three.

Valerie , suddenly shocked from the swift strike by Shadow's vector to the casual Giga, retracts herself back to the pillow. After the loud blast that came from the dragon, Valerie couldn't take it anymore. With a panicked leap off the cot, she fumbled a few steps before rushing out of the door

Valerie: Darius: *Stands up as his sore muscles tense, the roar only electrifying his nerves. The standoff, for what seemed like hours, started to generate an immense amount of tension. Then, his focus diverts to Valerie's fleeing form, taking a step forward before wincing and falling to one knee*

Shadow only glances at Jason--despite the roar, he remains where is he is--the vector still holding Giga up the wall despite the Shapeshifter's efforts, when even Espira had quickly stepped away into neutral ground, looking almost ready to act at the sign of anything that further resembles an attack. One second. Two seconds. Three seconds. He gives Giga one last, piercing glare during the moment of awkward, almost deafening silence that extends, before the vector loosens its grip and withdraws. Shadow looks away, staring into nothing in particular, trying to calm his breathing in first place... he barely even notices Valerie exit the room or Darius stumble around. Everything just sort of feels detached.

Starr steps back, arm still extended, and turns her attention to Shockwing. For once her eyes bore absolutely no true named emotion. It seemed shocked, sad, everything. Shockwing only stayed quiet until Starr barely gave out a mumble "....Shock.." Starr places her arm on Shockwing's shoulder and nods at him. All she needed to do was build up enough power to compose herself for one moment, one second to tell shockwing what to do "...stick around here...alright..?"

Lord X-Giga-X blinked as Jason's wing had suddenly expanded in front of him. His eyes darted over to the shapeshifter, who was obviously annoyed by these past few seconds. He smirked as his hand rubbed his throat. "As far I'm concerned, that was well worth it." His smirk then vanished as soon as it appeared, being replaced by a serious one. "Either way, we don't have the time to either be grieving over his loss, or talk about how I'm apparently enjoying myself too much. Especially not when we're most likely going to be having a new problem in the next few minutes."

Starr: Shockwing: *nods, opening his mouth to answer until Starr follows closely after. The only thing he needed and felt like doing was simple. Shockwing's head turned right at Giga, flashing him a very dark, macabre glare. /Its not worth it now, Shockwing./ he pulls his glare away and composes himself as best as he can and goes over to Darius's side to make sure he was fine. Though he wasn't *

Jason gradually returns to human form, sparing Giga an irritated glance. As the wings fold down and merge back into the Shapeshifter, he actually turns to address the human. "Whether you think it was worth it or not, that probably wasn't your smartest move." His voice has a growling edge to it, but it's mostly just dry. "What's the /new/ problem?"

Lord X-Giga-X: Remember when I said Darkside was the source of that burst of dark mana I felt earlier? *pauses as he ponders what little he had heard of the story* Well, all that talk of their adventure made me think for a moment that Darkside is most likely tied into it. Though I'm not quite sure how. *stares back down toward his hand, watching a single symbol in motion* All I'm certain of is his next destination: HQ.

Jason sighs, rubbing his forehead. "Goddammit I'm not in the mood for this," he mutters. "We should check it out, at least. Try not to insult any recently dead for a few hours or so, alright?" With that he glances around the infirmary to see who's still there.

Lord X-Giga-X: I got it out of my system for now, so don't worry. *pauses as he then remembers something else, then whispers to Jason* On a related note though, remind me to talk to you about someone else that has died recently. *then vanishes from the room in a mist of dark mana*

Valerie: Darius: *allows Shockwing to help him into a standing position, nodding in gratitude.* Thank you. *Looking off after Valerie, Darius lowered his head. A solemn frown was splayed across his face*

Jason opens his mouth to respond, confused enough to be momentarily taken aback by the sudden change of tone, but Giga is gone. Jason blinks, standing there for a moment, before turning to look over to Shadow. As much as he wants to say something to the boy, he just doesn't know what.

Starr: Shockwing: *whispers to Darius* Don't worry, Starr's not going to leave her alone....just take it easy, we'll deal with the rest.

Shadow: Espira: *has visibly relaxed after the situation dissolved without escalation. She, too, looks at Shadow with an unreadable expression before addressing Jason.* Giga should take what happened as a warning, if anything else. *she says rather cryptically, heading for the doorway.* I will be personally making sure Darkside's destructive tendencies do not interfere. He is the last witness, after all. *and with that, she walks away.*

Jason nods in acknowledgement as Espira walks away, leaving him with Shadow. The Shapeshifter approaches the boy carefully, perhaps like someone approaching an injured animal. He would probably put a hand on Shadow's shoulder or something if the scene hadn't made him momentarily /extremely/ wary of Shadow's reflexes. As it is, he approaches, stops just over an arm's length away, and speaks softly. "Shadow?"

Valerie continues running, going down hallways and up stairs until she finally struck the door to the roof. Blasting through it, she continued her dash until slowing to a stop near the ledge, falling to her knees as her gaze extends out over the forest. She stares, letting her eyes soak in the colors as she lets her thoughts go into the wind. Slowly, but surely, she let the tears fall obliviously to her own senses.

Shadow seems to have calmed down. The earlier look in his eyes is all but gone, though it is replaced by a sense of dullness. He turns to Jason. He quite actually has a lot in his mind, but still replies, his voice also having lost edge or definite firmness. "...Yeah?"

Starr follows quickly after Valerie. Tears began to well up in her eyes with each step she took until she arrived to what was once the door to the roof. Something within the serpent, the otherwise selfish and very insensitive serpent, struck her. She looked back and allowed one single tear to fall, then looked forward and moved onto the roof. There she saw the young girl crippled by her grief. Her eyes widened as she slowly stepped closer to her. The sound of her heels clacking[?] against the roof's surface almost choked the silent atmosphere, masking Starr's cut off mumbles which were attempts to say something, anything. Finally she arrived right next to Valerie. Starr turned on her heel to face her side, and finally...without any words, she crouched down. Her warm arms embracing the young girl in a tight hug.

Jason sighs. Why is he doing this he sucks at comforting people. He glances at the floor for a moment, but quickly looks back at Shadow. "I know Craz was your friend. I know how hard it must be for you to hear this. And I'm not going to defend how Giga acted... but neither am I going to condone your response." He pauses for a moment. "Whether we get along or not, the Cult is supposed to be a team. We can't be trying to kill each other." He looks more directly at Shadow, the authority from before slowly creeping back into his emerald eyes. "Besides, if you freaked out badly enough to all but attack Giga, how do you think Valerie feels? They were cousins, after all. Giga may not take that into account, but I'd have expected you to."

Starr: ....Val...*she swallowed, then continued with the softest voice she ever had* ....let it go....cry...cry as much as you need to. I'll...be here with you..

Valerie suddenly feels Starr's warm arms wrap around her, causing her to flinch ever so slightly. A shudder escaped her lips as she was pulled into the world again. "He did it for us," she spoke softly. "He did it for all of us. If he didn't do what he did... they would be here to consume everything." Valerie wiped her eyes. "He didn't give us much choice, either. He always jumps in like an idiot..."

Shadow sighs. He is not even sure why he did that in first place, it was completely unexpected even as he reached for Giga. It just, at that very moment, felt like it was the only right thing to do. "...I know." he says, "I shouldn't have done that. With everyone having different points of view... it was only natural." he lets out a brief chuckle--a very dry one at that. "...But I couldn't just stand there and... watch him laugh. I just couldn't."

Starr sniffles and swallows again before speaking. "..he's always been like that...who knew...it would be of something worth admiring in the end..." She then placed her chin on top of Valerie's head and closed her eyes, allowing some tears to flow down. "....I never got to say goodbye..."

Valerie: Darius: *Approaches both Shadow and Jason, limping* It's alright, Shadow. *Darius places a hand onto Shadow's shoulder, both for condolence and for support* Everyone handles death in certain ways. Whether you'd believe it or not, Giga is affected as much as anyone. How people handle it is how they handle it.

Valerie feels Starr's chin upon her head, closing her own eyes. With a slight quiver of her lip, she replied. "Neither did I."

Starr: Shockwing: *Bowing his head down, he sighed.* /Just when we were starting to become...friends../

Shadow: *in ways he can't exactly comprehend, Darius' comment irks him.* I don't believe that. He... he never cared in first place.

Jason nods to Darius in acknowledgement and greeting, though doesn't outwardly agree with the statement that Giga's affected as much as everyone else is. What comes out of Jason's mouth next is in a very dry tone. "Personally, I never really understood the tears. Sorrow, sure, but everyone dies at some point..." He sighs and shakes his head, then looks at Shadow again. "Try to avoid Giga for the time being, until you calm down, if you don't want to risk seeing him laugh about it again." He starts to walk away, glancing back at the two as he does so.

Shadow simply blinks, staring at Jason as he walks away. That's... it? Looking death at that way... in fact, it contrapositions with everything someone once, a long time ago, taught him. /Then... isn't everything pointless?/ he gives an exasperated sigh, too confused to even deal with such existential thoughts, falling back a bit and sitting on one of the beds, a hand gripping his forehead in frustration. He says nothing else.

Dark: Jude: Regardless of what feelings Giga truly held, his comments were in very poor taste at best. He laughed at the death--no, at the prospect of an old friend becoming a martyr to rescue people he cared for. That, to me, is beyond insulting, and I am not certin if I can think of Giga the way I once had done.

Starr looks down at Valerie. Without any words. /Not...not again...why am I always left like this....left so alone..?/ She exhales calmly and keeps the young girl in her arms, comforting her as much as she could.

Dark: Jude: It is not at all who I am to become angered as I am now, but he crossed a line very few have ever crossed.

Valerie: *On the outskirts of HQ, a dark figure limped. It held a determined, yet weak trudge as it eyed the building's foundation all the way up its walls. The figure's blood red eyes were slightly glazed, yet fully aware at the same time. Darkside stopped a few meters from the complex, holding onto his right side. Here, a large whisp of dark energy was streaming from his body, along with parts of his leg and torso. Darkside's labored breathing seemed to emphasize his distress, due to never having to breath in the first place. He took in a breath and yelled.* Darius! Valerie! Are you in there?

Dark: Jude: *turns towards the door to the infirmary and opens it a crack before looking back at Darius and Shadow* If I am required for anything, I will be on the lower floor of the library. *leaves the room, almost slamming the door behind him*

Lord X-Giga-X emerged from behind one of the outer walls of HQ, his full attention resting upon the exhausted Darkside. "You know, when I sense you approaching, I can honestly say that this not what I was expecting at all."

Starr snaps open her eyes upon hearing Valerie and Darius's names being called out from a distance. Her teeth grit together. "...what the--"

Valerie feels herself calmly falling into Starr's warm embrace, her head bowed and ready to fall into a deep sleep. The pressure of staying awake was more than she could handle at the moment. /Maybe... Maybe if I sleep.../ Suddenly, her eyelids slid open as a familiar voice echoed into the air. "Darkside...?" she whispers, slowly raising her head. /Did he survive as well?.../

Valerie: Darkside: *pausing, Darkside's eyes met with the heterochromatic gaze of the familiar darkness user* . . . I'm not here for you. Tell me where Darius and Valerie are.

Lord X-Giga-X listened to Darkside speak as he observed Darkside's body, his eyes widening as he realized something very wrong. The symbol... It was gone. By some means, the Tragedy Lock had been undone. He narrowed his eyes as he answered. "Why are you even looking for them in the first place? And why are you free of the Tragedy Lock? The only people capable of freeing anyone from that besides myself aren't anywhere near this continent, let alone Ustream."

Valerie: Darkside: *chuckles slowly* You think seals are unbreakable? You need only enough energy to break its foundations. Father did that quite easily. *Returning to a frown, Darkside shifted his stance* I don't need to tell you a thing. This is between me, her, Darius and CrazE.

Valerie: Darius: *After a moment of letting Shadow compose himself, Darius suddenly turned his head with an urgent essence pulsing from him. He could see someone outside, the essence he knew all too well* . . . We need to get out there. *turning to look at Shadow, his face held a serious tone* We have to get out there now.

Jason approaches from inside the building; it seems he had heard Darkside's shout, after all. While not quite standing by Giga's side, the way he's carrying himself does make it clear that he isn't exactly with Darkside either. "Alright, look, too much has happened today, I'm not in the mood to deal with your shit right now," he says, voice short- almost snapping- but also weary. "You're on our land, though, and you're clearly injured, so I don't think you're in the right position to be demanding."

Shadow looks up to Darius as he addresses him. What is with this day in particular? He doesn't immediately register the urgency in Darius' tone, much less the context behind it. "Huh...? What do... you mean?"

Valerie , looking up at Starr, gently proceeds to pull Starr's arms to the side so she can stand up. "If you heard that too, that means we need to find him." Valerie hesitates, tucking a few strands of hair behind her ear. "He helped us, after all." Valerie then had a shocking thought. /What if... What if he could have grabbed crazE?.../ Although the chances were fleeting, she felt something swell within her. A little piece of hope; not too big, but just enough to get her moving.

Starr blinks and stands up. "Wh-what..? What if it's a trap..? Val." Looking over the vast distance the roof provides, she bites her lip.

Valerie: Darkside: *Scowls at both Jason and Giga, taking a slight step back to reposition himself* I have to make sure I didn't drop them into the vacuum of space. It would be easier on my conscience knowing I didn't invert their lungs, if you could do me the honor. *the last few words held a sharp tone as Darkside shifted his blood red gaze from one to the other*

Lord X-Giga-X blinked in response to what Darkside had just said, his eyes widening to further express his surprise to it. "Wait what?!"

Jason raises an eyebrow warily, but replies anyway. "They're both fine. A bit worse for wear, but they're alive."

Dark: Jude: *on his way to the library, he overhears two--no, three voices outside. One seems to be Giga, the other Jase, and...* /Darkside? No, it cannot possibly be!/ *he stops abruptly, wheeling around an heading straight for the front door* /Giga sealed him away. If he has broken the seal, there is only one reason he would be here. I must investigate./

Valerie: Darius: *not waiting for Shadow, Darius began limping forward- quite fast, in fact. Making his way past Shockwing and through the medical room doors, he chose a direction and started following it.* /Ah, damnit... I don't remember where the stairs are in this place./

Shadow stares in confusion for a few seconds, but makes up his mind to follow him. "W-wait... where are you going?"

Valerie: Darkside: *shakes his head* That's not good enough for me. I need to see them. Whether you'd like me to or not, I must.

Jason tilts his head (a very nonhuman piece of body language) and glances at Giga, as if asking what he thinks.

Valerie , looking down at Starr, shakes her head. "No no, it's ok. Darkside isn't bad. He's just... misunderstood." After a moment, Valerie shrugs her shoulders. "I'll tell you later." Without another thought about it, she wills her legs toward each side of the building, hoping to see something. She could hear voices echoing along the sides, guiding her slowly but surely toward the source.

Starr reaches out for the young girl but stops midway. She sighs and turns around, walking back inside the building quietly...almost staggering

Lord X-Giga-X glanced over at Jason, seemingly unsure how to answer the shapeshifter. He then glanced back to Darkside. "Well to be honest with you, I have no idea where either of them are right now. Like Val ran off shortly after she came to, and I kinda ditched everyone after they both came to, so unless Darius is still where he was at that time.... yeeeah...." He then glanced back to Jason.

Shadow: Espira: *walks into view from the corner of one the HQ's outer walls. She seems to have been watching briefly, now judging the surprise factor to be completely unnecessary in this case.* Despite the fact you have nothing to justify your demands with, there are several few who would like to hear your account. *she glances briefly back to the building.* They should be here rather soon, in fact.

Starr 's hand suddenly plants itself on Valerie's shoulder as if she didn't want to be left alone. At least not now, not when there was so many questions floating in her head. The serpent sniffled and wiped away a tear, then giving a look of concern towards Val. "I wont take that last statement to heart, you know that.." her teeth pressed together again with a pause. She seemed pretty much ready to jump into some action, if any. She wanted answers and details of what happened. Even if it were to hurt her even more, at least any potential info would calm her down a bit. Starr gave Valerie a very specific look expressing her desire to follow.

Dark: Jude: *arrives at the front door shortly after Espira mentions there are more Cultists coming* And I believe those who are would be entitled to it just as you are entitled to make your demands.

Valerie: Darkside: *suddenly winces as a slight burst of dark energy evaporated into the air before going back into its steady stream* /Hold yourself together/ *Darkside's eyes met with Espira's equally crimson eyes and, for a moment, Darkside had the sudden urge to approach her. The energy he felt before... it felt tantalizing.* /Not right now.../ I... I can't wait for long. *Suddenly, a portion of Darkside's head started to seep with dark energy, making him close his left eye*

Valerie: Darius: *after a few seconds of finding the stairs and descending them, Darius finally came through the doorway to the outside. There, he limped all the way to the source of his distress* Darkside, you made it out!

Valerie approaches the edge of the roof, keeping her balance well enough as she squinted down. There, sure enough, was the darkened figure she expected. "Darkside!" Valerie called, waving a hand in the air. She looked back at Starr for a moment before suddenly leaping off the roof. She descended rapidly, letting gravity pull her to the ground. Just before she landed, her descent was quickly cut short by an invisible force, to which she landed softly on the grass below. She approached slowly, looking around for a moment before looking back up at Darkside. Already, her hope was starting to dwindle.

Jason watches almost expressionlessly as Espira and Jude arrive, and Darius and Valerie appear and approach Darkside. Maybe he just doesn't have the energy to care right now. But, since there doesn't seem to be any imminent danger, he allows himself to take a few steps back, at least managing to seem less aggressive.

Starr leaps off the roof to follow, willing the winds around her to waft her down safely. Upon reaching the ground, her brown eyes slowly scanned up to meet darkside's own.

Shadow has followed Darius outside, though upon rounding the corner he is momentarily surprised at the random, completely unexpected gather of people... with the source of attention being Darkside. Something clicks. /That's right... he would know if.../ he does not have the will to continue the train of thought, but he immediately goes there with everyone else... hanging, at least, with a single thread of hope.

Valerie: Darkside: *Looks at both Giga and Jason with an unreadable and yet calm expression, seeing as both of them weren't as hostile. He turns back to Valerie and Darius, nodding his head to both of them* I'm... Glad to see both of you made it out. It was, after all, my intention. *Darkside hesitated, avoiding eye contact again* I... I have to thank both of you for crazE sparing me. He.. gave me purpose.

Valerie: Darius: *nodding in respect, Darius unfortunately puts it together* . . . It was a true sacrifice, wasn't it? There's... nothing left?

Lord X-Giga-X glanced around the area as several people jumped into the scene: Espira, Jude, Darius, Valerie, Starr, and Shadow. It was at the point Darkside focused his attention on Valerie and Darius that he figures staying there any longer was now entirely pointless, taking a few steps back at first before starting to walk away entirely.

Starr quietly mutters out with such a disillusion within her voice. "What...exactly happened...?" Her voice rose and cracked as she held back some new tears " what happened to him?" Starr then cut herself off to try to compose herself. Surely those questions would be answered in their own time but something within her yearned for an explanation with such a panic

Shadow 's hopeful expression fades as the exchange begins. He is about to ask something, but Starr beats him to the burning question. Even with that Valerie and Darius told the rest, he barely knows anything of why they even disappeared in first place... or how it ended like this.

Jason glances at Giga as the Achlymperist first backsteps, and then walks away. A quick moment of hesitation and a mental prod from Mimring later, Jason turns to follow. "Hey, Giga, wait up a sec." His tone is neutral, at least, but it seems more an effort to convey nonhostility.

Lord X-Giga-X glanced back as Jason started to follow him away from the group. He continued walking, but allowed for Jason to catch up with him. "So I'm guessing there's a reason why you followed me out of that conversation?"

Jason catches up relatively easily. "Two reasons, actually. First being what you said earlier before leaving the infirmary."

Valerie: Darkside: *Watching Giga walk away for a few moments, Darkside turned to look at Starr. He felt a slight twinge of CrazE's fond memories penetrate into his mind, but he shrugged them off quickly.* /Those are not mine to reminisce/ CrazE... or should I call him by his birth name, respectfully, Alexander... replaced me as the catalyst in destroying Father. *after a moment, Darkside continued with more thought* Father is the one that started all of this. I.. I fled him in defiance, ending up at a moon in some backwater solar system. Here, I had to hide myself as best as possible. Seeing a creature nearby, I hid in their mind to mask my own existence- it was CrazE's. Long story short, Father was angry for me learning how to accomplish what he has accomplished- and also how to end him- and wished for me to be absorbed to no longer exist independently. However, I revealed to the group that had been caught with me *Darkside motioned to Darius and Valerie* of a runestone which could absorb a vast amount of energy and contain it. Here, we planned for me to take control of Father in order to both allow the escape of Val, Darius and CrazE and to also end Father once and for all. *Darkside avoided eye contact with Starr, instead looking over to Espira* I don't know what compelled him to do so, but he somehow found my life of more worth than his own. In the last moments, he bid me to escape as he himself transformed himself into a mass of energy. The fate of he and Father are the same...

Lord X-Giga-X paused as he remembered what he had said. "Right.... that..." He stopped for a moment. "Jason, remember when the second seal was destroyed a few weeks ago?"

Jason stops as well, thinking back. "Yeah..." A look of confusion crosses his face. "I thought Deathstorm confirmed that Charos was fine, though?"

Starr simply stood still as darkside's last words hit her like a bullet to the heart "...his life....worth less than your own?" Finally, she snapped and snarled angrily. The pain increased ten fold along with fury "didn't he take into account that he had children? Two infants that need him?! To me, t-to me, I am sure that reason alone gives him /much/ more worth!"

Jude looks at Darkside, visibly concerned, but at the same time, visibly relieved. "Though it was as I initially feared--Alexander is no more--I am more than content now that I know for certain his death was for a good cause. What he accomplished is one of the most honorable acts any man can aspire to--a selfless act of sacrifice in the name of others. For that..." he then looked toward the ground, and sighed deeply, "... for that, he will never be forgotten."

Lord X-Giga-X sighed. "She is, but..." He stood silently for several seconds. "A few days ago, Grodisflare, Erahvs and I went back to her castle to investigate. Hoping something we found there would be of use to us... But it wasn't long before Erahvs detected another body there. And to his shock, it was someone he recognized immediately. Someone you know."

Jason looks at Giga in confusion, trying to think of who Giga would be talking about. It slowly dawns on him after a few seconds- almost everyone is usually accounted for, except for a select few people. A more defensive part of his brain keeps it from fully clicking, however... "Stop beating around the bush, Giga."

Shadow only now looks fully at Darkside. At first, it does not make any sense. Starr's outburst, while almost background noise to everything that has happened this day, reflects completely his thoughts. "Th-then... he is..." Shadow does not even know where to begin... but then he remembers /how/ the others survived the ordeal. Like how Jude put it... "He... sacrificed himself for them..."

Shadow: Espira: *meanwhile, has leaned slightly backwards and towards the wall, her arms crossed as Darkside pretty much confirms her suspicions. Almost inaudibly, she utters,* Tch. Fool.

Lord X-Giga-X: Very well. *pauses once again* It turned out that Charos wasn't alone in her attempt to protect the seal from that woman. She had the aid of another person. But while she survive, the other person did not. *pauses again, turning directly toward Jason* Jason, the day the second seal was destroyed, David died trying to protect it.

Valerie: Darkside: *Taking a few cautious steps from Starr, he now has full attention focused on her* I know. I was there... and I reminded him fully. But... *Darkside looked down* I apologize. It wasn't my choice in the end.

Valerie feels the surrealism befall her once more. The last moments of seeing crazE before falling into the darkness... he had smiled back in an understanding way. "He knew what he was getting himself into..." she muttered. /CrazE... why did you leave me so soon... why did you leave us so soon.../

Jason 's expression immediately blanks; the back of his mind had been correct. He looks at the ground several feet in front of him, unable to say anything for a moment. Mimring's attempt to console him doesn't help much. It's another few seconds before he finally says, "He was just a kid." The words, which are really more of a mutter, are spoken in a flat, inflectionless tone.

Jude turns toward Starr. She was furious that crazE had helped others escape via sacrifice. It irritated him slightly, her reaction, though he maintained a cool head, simply saying, "Pricilla, you are not approaching this reasonably. I understand your anger, however..." he then took a few steps toward her, continuing his thought, "... maybe Alexander meant this to be as much from affection for you, knowing he would be unable to see Rye, Ringo or yourself again, as he did for it to be an escape for Darkside, Darius and Valerie." He sighed once more, "I doubt Alexander would want you to be angry about his death. Rather, he would want you to be happy knowing he thought of you before he did it."

Starr clutches her lab coat tightly. This time her voice went completely hysterical. She began to snap "NO, NO! HE JUST COULDNT!" She snarled and closed the gap between her and darkside. At that point she was no longer thinking. Her entire consciousness was locked within a dark void. Just as she was about to attempt to grab darkside, she stopped in place. Her body shivered upon feeling a fine point prick the back of her neck. Suddenly, her eyes rolled back and her body collapsed. Right behind starr, shockwing stood with a tranquilizer gun and a very stoic expression. He sighed and spun the gun around, then Allowing to slide into a holster.

Starr: Shockwing: *in a deep and calm voice, he spoke to the rest of the group* I can't let her mind continue to fall into that state any further, I felt her very self slip and by experience... *he grows silent* that is something I would rather not see happen once more. *shockwing takes a moment to extract the tranquilizer round and toss it aside, then focusing on darkside* I heard...everything you said, though....I...I never thought that he would so something so noble. Truly...I've had the wrong impression of him..

Lord X-Giga-X looked up Jason with a somber expression. "I know, but given everything that occured that one day, it's definitely good to know that at least one of us was trying to protect one of the remaining seals. I definitely would say that we should have sent someone else there just in case. But..." He paused. "At least if had to go down, he at least went down fighting." He then grinned. "And we can't let a sacrifice like that go in vain, right?"

Jude looks Shockwing directly in the eyes. "Many of us did not, Shockwing. What he did was more than noble; it was brave. Alexander will be missed."

Valerie: Darius: *feeling Starr's increasing emotion, he prepared himself to jump in the way. However, before he could, he felt Starr's consciousness suddenly drop. Stopping himself from proceeding, he suddenly saw Starr fall to the ground with a thud. He turned and looked over at Shockwing, not saying a word*

Jason stays silent for a moment; he can't bring himself to return the grin. After a moment, he nods. "I'd say you're right," He says softly, his voice still flat but with a rising edge to it.

Starr: Shockwing: truly......in the end, there is no doubt in my mind any longer...*his voice softened to a whisper* that he truly was the bigger man despite what I'd hope he was not....truly he deserved her more than I

Shadow stands there, blinking, not immediately registering what just happened even as he watches Starr collapse. "I-" but he cuts himself short, unsure of what to say. Even Espira nearby seemed to tense, ready to act, but then shifted back to her passive stance. After a moment, Shadow speaks, "What... do we do for crazE? At least... just a grave should be enough..." /Something to remember him by, I guess.../ he looks towards the sky. Time's passed so quickly, the afternoon having already taken a portion of the sky.

Valerie: Darkside: *Composing himself for a moment, Darkside winces again as another wisp of darkness escapes his body. However, it seems that a portion of his shoulder seemed to be returning. He nods to Shockwing in acknowledgement* He.. he spared me. There is nothing I can do to repay what he has done for me.

Lord X-Giga-X: Despite it being usually quiet, there are still three seals left for us to protect. *pauses* And even though Sundavr's protecting one of them, that only guarantees temporary protection. He's bound to ditch his role as guardian to go free his master. And as powerful as he is, ultimately Deathstorm has a point. Our best chance to prevent Koth from being free is to somehow defeat him.

Starr: Shockwing: a memorial site would be great....something that his children can always go back to /...the twins....I don't know what will become of them..../

Valerie , having taken a cautionary step away from Starr, wipes her eyes as everything deescaltes once more. She listens to Shadow and Shockwing, nodding in agreement. "We need to give him a proper funeral..." Valerie said aloud. She then looked up to both of them for approval.

Jude: We must make the memorial site something associated with him, it is the best way to do his memory justice.

Valerie: Darius: *looking from Darkside to the others, speaks up this time around* We'll make preparations then. *looking down at Valerie, he nodded* Let's get you inside. You need rest.

Jason blinks, the random subject change wonderfully distractiing him from the news. He nods absentmindedly, but looks at Giga. "Speaking of Deathstorm, that's the other thing." He sighs. "You know what I'm going to say."

Jude: Indeed. *turns toward the forest* As for myself, I will be at my home, preparing the funeral score. *walks away*

Starr: Shockwing: he's right, you can't be pushing yourself too much. That goes for you too, Darius *he gives a glance* my orders. *then he sighed and looked down at starr. Something felt very familiar. Almost as if he lived through something similar before. Shrugging it off, he hefts starr onto his shoulder* when you guys come up with any memorial ideas, give me a call...in the meantime, I'll put her to rest, she needs it too..

Shadow: Espira: *without another word, and seeing as the rest were dispersing, she pulls slightly forward and begins walking away, only momentarily glancing and Shadow and gesturing that he should probably go too, before going her way.*

Valerie: Darkside: *nods, watching both Darius and Valerie head off. Acknowledging Jude and Shockwing as well, he takes a few moments for everyone to leave. Then, approaching Shadow, his eyes glimmer* Listen, it may not by my place to say this, but considering as how I was not assigned to the job... *Darkside smiled weakly* You keep that promise to CrazE. *With that, Darkside looks around before walking off as well.* /A future I had never expected to have... now at my disposal. What am I to do?.../

Shadow nods at Espira, already several steps into following, but he suddenly senses Darkside approach. Normally, his senses would have sprung to immediate alert considering his nature... but now, it is different, as if he unconsciously understands that he wants to tell him something. The Diclonius turns, tilting his head inquisitively, staring at Darkside. "A... promise...?" he asks, but he does not get a reply as Darkside simply leaves afterwards. /My promise to crazE.../ He stands there for a moment. Then something clicks. /That's right./ his mind wanders to Valerie. /I have--no, I... will keep that promise. That last promise./

Lord X-Giga-X sighed as Jason changed the topic. "Somehow, I knew that we'd end up talking about this again." He paused for a moment. "My answer's still no, but with only one exception."

Jason raises an eyebrow, waiting for Giga to continue

Lord X-Giga-X: Well, by all means two. One is my original deal of you finding me a dragon to replace Deathstorm in my team. *pauses* The other exception, however, would allow Deathstorm to be temporarily freed from the lock for the sole purpose of defeating Sundavr.

Jason blinks at the second exception, then chooses his words carefully. "Don't know why you seem to think I'm going to- or even can- cut your tie with Deathstorm. So finding you a replacement is... nonissue." He pauses slightly. "Could you be a bit more specific on the timeframe of the latter, though?"

Lord X-Giga-X: Alright then. *pauses for a moment to think, as if to calculate something* A week from now, I plan to release Deathstorm from the lock. He'll be free from it until we defeat Sundavr. *pauses* Of course in exchange, I will personally be training him to improve his achlympery.

Jason has to keep his eyes from widening as something clicks. It's narrow, but there's an opening in what Giga has just said. "Deal. But, say..." He glances sidelong at Giga, his expression unreadable... but almost challenging. "Think I could get in on that? For... obvious reasons?"

Lord X-Giga-X let out a slight chuckle in response to Jason's question. "Don't really see why not? Feel free to." He turned away from Jason. "As for you response to my first deal..." He chuckled once more as he started to walk way. "Let's just say that because by all means Deathstorm is my dragon as much as he is yours, it's far too easy for me to get necessary information from him."