Queen stood in stunned silence, ears aching from the torrent of profanities and frustrations Seven let loose before she took the gate. King also said nothing, though he stroked at his chin and took deliberate steps around the desk to show a certain calm even in the face of… whatever it was that just happened.

Nine muttered confusion over Queen going silent, but she ignored him. Three back out of nine, two lost, one resistant, still no confirmation from Nine or Deuce, and Cater went radio silent with Gaia VIII some time ago.

Queen touched a finger to her chin. "I don't know what to do."

King said, "We should call everyone back."

Seven burst through the doors. "What in the actual hell?"

Queen looked her way. "We missed something."

"No duh!" Seven stalked forward. "You kinda screwed up, not telling me there was a freaking vessel on the planet! Bhunivelze had the kid marked for years! How was I supposed to remove the parasite that feasted on his mind for centuries? How was I supposed to know he never let go?"

"We didn't see him."

Seven stopped within hand's reach and Queen found herself surprised that Seven didn't slap her or something. "Seriously, what were you all smoking?"

"Bhunivelze saw us coming," King said. "We never stood a chance."

"Like hell we didn't!" Seven jabbed a finger toward the ocean. "I could have stopped him! I was this close! If I just knew he was there, I could have kept him from getting to Hope!"

Queen took a measured breath. "We've been juggling too many variables to account for this turn. Either he hastened his plan or he's getting desperate. Either way, we might find a way to turn this to our advantage."

"We didn't even get Katzroy or his son back, and now we've lost Estheim! How is this supposed to be made into an advantage?"

"Not the losses themselves." King folded his arms and propped a foot up on the desk. "But they show that Bhunivelze is in a hurry and if we find out why, then we can use that against him."

Seven scoffed. "You say that like it's easy!"

"Simple," Queen said. "It's simple. Not easy. Go check in on Jack – I will petition Mwynn and we'll continue as planned. If we have to make extra trips to get the rest, we'll do it."

"Because Mwynn's been so responsive."

Queen bit her tongue. It was true that since Vanille took in Her presence, Queen struggled to hear answers like before. What remained of Mwynn must have sealed itself away in the vessel.

"Bring the l'Cie," Queen said. "We should update them."

Seven bit out a retort and left the room in a huff.

King let out a long breath and shook his head. "They're not going to take it well."

"I realize that."

"They'll want to change the plan."

"It's not going to happen."

Lightning burst through the door first, with Snow close behind, then Vanille and Serah. "Where are they?" Snow scanned the room. "Who is it this time?"

Queen lifted her chin. "No one."

Confusion. "Then what is it?" asked Serah. "Did something happen? We felt the warp of the gate, but…"

Vanille looked to Queen and in those possessed eyes, Queen saw understanding. "Hope is taken," Vanille said. "Taken by the God of Light, as is Dajh."

A dreadful moment of silence, tense enough to make the room feel full of the humid air before a storm. Lightning turned to Vanille and hissed, "What?"

"Then where's Sazh?" Snow demanded. "He was with Dajh, wasn't he?"

King removed himself from the desk and stepped toward them. "Sazh is… somewhere else. We have no way of contacting him, so our best hope is that he finds us."

Serah's chest heaved and she placed a hand on her mouth. Said nothing, cried no tears, but panic showed in the wide rims of her eyes.

Lightning turned to see Queen. "What, you mean Bhunivelze got them?"

Queen pursed her lip. "He took both as his pawns. They're not lost forever, but it will be difficult to bring them back now. Dajh has only been inflicted with madness and power, while Hope now serves as the vessel that Bhunivelze uses to walk the stars."

"Take me there." Lightning's lip curled in a snarl. "Right now."

Queen shook her head. "We have no idea where he's gone – I could trace his unbound presence thanks to the twisted souls he left in his wake, but now he's taken up a conditioned vessel. The trace left before has vanished."

"I'm going down there." Snow turned toward the door and Queen slammed it shut with her mind.

When he whirled her way, face contorted with rage, she said, "There's nothing there anymore."

"But-… There has to be something we can do. I'll go looking across the worlds, I'll talk to world leaders, I'll-"

"No." Queen took deliberate steps toward them. All four stiffened at her approach. "It's too dangerous for you to leave. We need nine vessels and we've lost one out of ten. As it is, I've sent Cinque to retrieve Mog for our last chance."

"You can't keep us here," Lightning said.

"No, but I wish you would understand my hesitance." She looked to Vanille. "What does Mwynn say?"

Vanille shook her head. "She's kind of quiet now, but there was something about nine meeting nine. We need to find Fang and the others before we can worry about Hope." Her voice shook. "And… his chances aren't good."

Queen looked to Lightning. "We can't afford for the same to happen to any of you."

"So, what!" Snow flung his hands to the sides. "I'm not just gonna wait here and fiddle my fingers until the others get back! It would help if the people out searching had better numbers, wouldn't it?"

Queen pursed her lip. "That's beside the point."

"Wouldn't it?"

"… Yes."

Lightning exchanged look with Snow. "That settles it."

Serah took Lightning's arm. "I don't know about this. What if you get hurt or worse? Time isn't something to be meddled with."

"You think I don't know that?" Lightning wrenched free of her and stalked toward the door. "Who's still out there?"

"Deuce," King said. "And Nine. Cater is dispatched but we've lost contact with her and her world."

"So Fang and Yeul." Serah took a deep breath. "That doesn't sound too hard, right?"

Queen closed her eyes and thought to that magic-laden planet of Earth. Green and colorful things danced through her mind for a moment, a stark contrast to the barren planet of Gaia VI. "I'll keep an eye on these two worlds and King will look for the others. We'll keep you from getting lost, but there's nothing we can do if you encounter one of Bhunivelze's pawns."

"They're not just pawns." Serah whispered.

"No." Queen opened her eyes again. "But we can't afford to waste time thinking of them as otherwise because their previous connections will do nothing to impede their destruction and tampering with Mwynn's plans."

Snow looked at her in that way she knew he wasn't going to listen to that either.

Etro Take Her, what kind of partnership did they get themselves into if they weren't going to pay the slightest attention to each other?

Queen cleared her throat. "I suppose I can do some research into our archives and see what I can figure out for regaining lost allies. But please prioritize the mission."

"We will." Lightning turned on her heel and strode out the door. Snow followed behind.

"We'll give you some space." Serah guided Vanille out and King and Queen were once again left to themselves.

"We're not screwed," King said once the doors shut. "Not yet."

"How?" Queen asked. "The dead won't listen to a word we say, the gates are glitching out and sending monsters across innocent lands, Jack can barely move, and we've lost at least two vessels already. I've searched all over the worlds and not found much of any reason to hope."

"There's still a lot to do." King gave her an intent look. "That's why we keep taking steps forward."

"Until Bhunivelze takes all of us?"

"Until we've done all in our power to stop him."

Queen chewed on her lip. King offered a hand and she took it. Let him wrap his arms around her and despite leaving their mortality behind, she took comfort in the closeness of her brother. The only one she allowed herself to look up to. "I'm scared."

"We all are. Just can't let the others think we've given up, okay?"

"I know." She sighed and pulled away. "Until death."

King furrowed his brow. "Defeat, more like. Though I guess I'd prefer death if it came to it."

"Death is familiar. Death is easy. I can't imagine what defeat feels like."

"I won't like it, I know. But we can't ignore how new we are to this whole being-a-god business and dealing with all of Mwynn's crap."

"… Should we send a message to Mother?"

King stiffened, but before he could respond, Ace's voice crackled in over the link, "Hey, Queen, good news."

She closed her eyes and dipped her head. "Please continue."

"I talked to the resident world hoppers and they say they've made a breakthrough in retaking vessels."

Queen looked to King and he gave a casual shrug – his way of offering encouragement.

He was right – they weren't done. But she wished it didn't feel so much like they were.