"All remaining guards and soldiers above deck! This is your commander Lord Arktivus Brevon speaking. The Thermal Base is under attack from a traitor in our midst! Mobilize all possible reinforcements and destroy any and ALL opposition! Bring me this clocked traitor. Immediate promotion for anyone who brings him ALIVE...right. Are we ready for the torture?"

"Everything's ready, Lord Brevon!"

"This is it, Lord Brevon. All is set and the doors are locked down tight."

"Excellent...wake them up..."

There was a stinging pain across Master's face as he was flung back into reality. He shook his head to offset the sickness and waited for his eyes to refocus. They eventually did, focusing on the room around him; it was a large room, quite different to the one he had been knocked out in, with thick pipes in the background holding some kind of light blue liquid. There was a console on the other side of the room, with a heavy metal door beyond even that, and a large pillar jutting out of the middle of the room. The sounds of humming and crackling electricity met his slowly bleeding ears alongside evil cackling. In front of him was Serpentine again, his arched hand having just slapped the daylights back into him.

"Morning!" Serpentine cackled, "Nice to see you in this...safe state."

Master growled, half out of confusion and half out of anger, and tried to swipe at the smug snake with his left arm. However, nothing happened and he couldn't move his arm. Or his other arm. Or indeed anything from the waist up. He looked down and saw, to his slight fear, that he was tied up quite tightly with rope, leaving both arms behind his back and both legs fastened together like some kind of brick. He struggled and strained, trying to fight his way out of the ropes or snap them. Again, very little happened bar the snake's raspy guffaws.

"I wouldn't try that, Scarf!" Serpentine said, "That's special-brand extra-strength rope! No way you're getting out of it."

"Unless you would like to try that whole...Hysteria form again..." came a sinister laugh. Master arched his head past Serpentine and looked directly at Brevon, who was slowly and calmly walking into the room, "Well, if not for the fact you can only do so with that Blade of yours..."

Master looked closer at Brevon; the warlord was dressed the exact same way he was before, but there was something...more to him this time. Specifically, a red woolen snake was wrapped around his hand. Wait a minute, that was HIS scarf! And, to make matters worse, Prince Dail was following in his footsteps, slowly fumbling with the unloaded Desert Eagle and inspecting it throughly. Master was, to put it lightly, annoyed.

"Hey, those're mine! Give 'em back!"

"...No," Brevon said, handing the scarf to Prince Dail, who wrapped it around his neck and looked very proud of himself because of it, "I have...well, I USED to have an accomplice that told me almost everything that I needed to know."

"I don't suppose you're referring to that cloaked dude..." Master said, to which Brevon nodded. He sighed, "Well, at least that explains how much you know about me and Blade, since our concepts don't exist in this universe and all. So he told you everything, did he? What had happened, what was going to happen and how to use that to your advantage?"

"Not everything..." Brevon looked above him to the upper decks, no doubt ablaze with warfare, "Clearly. But he told me enough. Yours and Lilac's own stupidity filled in the blanks. So please, if you don't mind, I would like to...reward you for your efforts. Observe..."

There was another slap and another yelp of pain and Master jerked his head to the centre pillar. There, attached with braces and metallic rope, was Lilac. She was hovering above the ground, her legs dangling in the thin air, while groaning with pain and shock. Nearby her was a table of some sort, her bleeding tendrils now sitting upon it and even now still bleeding and even twitching ever so slightly. Lilac herself was groggy, slowly coming to, groaning and yelling from the pain. She was taking a little too long, however, so Serpentine wound his arm back up and brought a mighty slap across her face, rocketing it sidewards and snapping Lilac back into the realms of consciousness.

"Y-Yes, mom!" She called out in shock, "Just grabbing my satchel! I...wait, where am I?" she quickly looked around, then down to herself, "Why'm I suspended like this? What's going on?" she finally looked up at Brevon, her eyes now glazing over in rage, "Brevon! I-"

"Don't bother," Brevon growled, his tone threatening and harsh, causing Lilac to stop, "Thank you. Now that both of you are awake, I believe we shall get on with tonight's festivities. A light show, if you will. Only one real catch, however..."

"Yeah!" Serpentine laughed as Brevon bashed some buttons on the nearby terminal, "You're the light!"

"Wha..." Lilac asked in confusion, before a humming sound slowly emitted from over her head. The faint crackling sound of electricity followed in its wake and electric streams weaved across the bizarre transmitter that hung over Lilac's head. She was blank for a second, trying to comprehend what was actually above her, until it all clicked and she screamed, thrashing around in a vain attempt to free herself from her bonds, "No! You are going to regret this, Brevon! I'll make sure of it!"

"What's the matter?" Brevon laughed, "Scared? Perhaps...perhaps it was nice of that cloaked figure to tell me that you of all people are afraid of one thing and one thing only; electrocution..." Lilac said nothing, her struggles only increasing in strength as Brevon continued, "It is all rather funny. I was planning some much worse kind of torture. I could have pulled all your fingernails out, at least until I was told your ghastly race doesn't actually have them. And pulling out your tendrils would probably end up scalping you. Now I don't want you to die instantly...that would be no fun. If anything, you should be thanking me."

"THANKING you?!" Master called out.

"Well, they say electric torture is one of the more...painless methods," Brevon shrugged, "So perhaps you should be counting your lucky stars. Ever had barbed wire dragged across your wrists?"

"I have..." Master said quietly.

"Do you remember the pain?" Brevon taunted, "The agony, the never-ending blood? Such a shame it never did you in. Guess I will have to do it myself. But first, I shall have to spend the dragon girl first. Like a Fearax Credit."

"So, are we gonna electrocute her now?" Prince Dail asked in his monotone.

"Yes, get on with it!" Serpentine screeched, "I want to have fried water dragon for my dinner!"

"...Well, I suppose it makes a change from rations, I suppose..." Prince Dail shrugged.

"SILENCE!" Lord Brevon roared, causing both to yelp and stand in line, "BOTH OF YOU! If it's a fried water dragon you want, it is a fried water dragon that you will get! Now...perhaps we shall start on a lower setting...perhaps we'll start at seven?" both associates nodded furiously, "I thought so."

"Brevon!" Lilac called out, half angry and half terrified, "Don't you DARE do this!"

"Brevon, I swear!" Master called out too, "If you so much as breath on that button, I will pull your lungs out through your chest!"

There was a slight pause as Brevon looked at him, a look of confusion spread across his face. Both Serpentine and Prince Dail looked at each other, trying to figure out if he was even serious. Brevon was silent, looking at the half-crazed hedgehog, before a devious grin spread across his face and his hand spread across the console.

"Heh...cute."

Another shaking chuckle entered the room as Brevon's hand slammed directly onto the main button, sat in the corner of the terminal. The pillar that Lilac was tied to responded in force, letting out a roar as the electricity surged across its surfaces. It struck Lilac with force and she screamed in agony. The electricity did not let up, however, only slowly increasing in volume and ferocity. Lilac's screamed continued, tears forming only to vanish into the heat of the arcing streams, and for good reason; it was agony. Almost every part of her being was burning up, every part subjected to a agonizing, debilitating pain almost as hot as the fires of hell itself. Master could only scream "NO! NOOOOO!" as he struggled against his ropes, his mind going into a panicked overdrive as he struggled to find a way out of this mess. Brevon only looked on at the pained water dragon, hearing her barely audible screeching, and threw his head to the sky with an evil laugh that came across like a thick and imposing victory roar. Eventually, Prince Dail rushed forward and slammed his hand into the terminal too. The electric sounds ceased, as did Lilac's screams and she went limp.

"Why did you do that?!" Brevon roared, starting at Prince Dail, "It was just getting to the exciting bit where the eyes would pop out!"

"I would rather you didn't," Prince Dail argued, "Besides, we cannot kill her yet. We need her alive for some more information on the Chaser, do we not?"

"...Oh yes," Brevon looked dumbfounded, "I almost forgot. Oh well."

"So what?" Master shouted, somewhat panicked from the event, "You just put enough volts up her to light the whole of Bootle for no reason?!"

"Not really..." Serpentine said, "We have your Chaser friend. We've tried to extract information about the Kingdom Stone and where his base of operations is. But no matter what we do, he won't spill the beans!"

"Thankfully, just before his...betrayal..." Prince Dail said through clenched teeth, "This cloaked figure was kind enough to tell us you were on your way here to kill us. So we thought that you, and the water dragon, could help us find and eradicate these threats to our kingdom once and for all!"

"Exactly..." Brevon laughed, "Wake up the Dragon Girl. Then, bring in the Chaser..."

Prince Dail saluted, walking over to the limp dragon girl. She was in quite the state, with a good portion of her once purple fur now a disgusting charred grey. In fact, the same kind of grey that the transitional War Lilac looked like in Master's dreams. His still leaking stomach flushed the resultant horrible feeling in his stomach out into his clothes; this was it! This was where the timeline divided! Where Lilac would begin her horrible transformation into War Lilac! And there was nothing he could do about it! Master gulped, his mind still running wild with panic, desperately trying to find a bright side to any of this. Nothing.

The Prince was now directly in front of Lilac, slowly shaking her awake. This accomplished little, so he looked out over the room and his eyes met with the two separated tendrils on the rails. His eyes then lit up as he slowly walked over to the rail and grabbed one of the tendrils, before walking back over to Lilac again. He reared up and whipped Lilac across the face with the tendril, causing her to yell out in pain again and awaken almost instantly. She looked at him, trying to keep a straight face through the pain and the burns, plus the stinging agony of the two new gashes below her right eye. She was shivering, tears in eyes, trying desperately hard not to sob or show any signs of weaknesses. She looked up, gasping and groaning with the effort, before she noticed what was in Prince Dail's right hand; her tendril. It was only then that her expression finally fell and she couldn't hold it in anymore; she lurched forward and retched, a gurgling stream of puke rupturing out of her mouth and splattering all over the floor. Prince Dail yelped in shock and managed to dart back just in time to avoid any of the splash. He could only watch as Lilac went limp again, coughing out the last of the bile, before she stared at Brevon again.

"Gross!" Serpentine called out, "KILL HER NOW!"

"No!" Brevon said, grabbing the snake by his throat, "That was...disgusting. But it might just be enough to get the Chaser to belt it all out too. Just...not in that way. Bring in the Chaser!"

Soon enough, the shutter doors behind him slowly opened and there was Torque, tied up in a very similar way to Lilac, only to a wall with one of the soldiers pressing a laser rifle to his head. He, as anticipated, showed full well that Brevon had lied; he had been tortured, quite obviously, but nowhere near the levels of Lilac. He was just a bit roughed up, bleeding from his mouth and with a few gashes here and there, but was otherwise okay. Outwardly, at least.

"Brevon!" he said, angry and defiant, "What're you doing?"

"I'm only doing what you started," Brevon said, "The one thing I've always wanted to ask, before you all die horrible deaths, is why did you risk your lives and limbs coming after me? All I want to do is escape this planet, and your Kingdom Stone was the best possible choice. I do not wish to harm your planet, but it appears that your innate stupidity and insanity has made me...change my mind."

"Wait..." Master said, "So you weren't gonna attack our planet, even though you've glassed damn near half the sector at this point, but now you're insisting on it now we've got involved? How's that early morning bowl of bullshit working out for you?"

"Hmm. As expected," Brevon taunted, "Someone of your near mindless disposition would not be able to comprehend how someone like me works."

"He's right, though!" Torque called out, "No-one's believing a word of that! The absolute moment you get your Dreadnought airborne, you'll use it to turn this planet into a crater!"

"Now that's just exaggeration..." Brevon said, annoyed, "As I said, I do not wish to destroy your planet. Though I DO intend to destroy most of its settlements, enslave its greatest warriors and turn the smoldering remains of the disgustingly pretty planet into a mechanical wasteland. A base of operations to rule the universe with an iron fist. But I will NOT destroy the planet."

"Oh, well that makes me feel better..." Master grumbled sarcastically, "Freakin' scum..."

"...What was that?" Brevon taunted again, mimicking holding a hand to his ear, "Was that, 'Brevon, please electrocute miss Lilac again'? Well, if you insist!"

Brevon slammed his hand down onto the console again and once again the electricity surged outwards, striking Lilac and reigniting all of her burns. Once again, she screamed in abject agony, and then it suddenly stopped. Lilac went limp yet again, this time still awake, retching a second time with nothing escaping her stomach.

"Please..." she was beginning to whimper, her once proud rambling fading as fast as her life-signs, "P-P-Please...no more..."

"Lilac..." Torque said softly, "I'm sorry. I couldn't see you getting dragged into this..."

"Don't blame yourself, Commander," Brevon taunted yet again, "You all willingly threw yourself into danger. Now you all have to play your part in this little story. And you ALL have to pay the price..."

Brevon reared his head for another evil, but a large rumbling explosion sent him tumbling to the floor, alongside Prince Dail and Serpentine. Prince Dail was the first up, "Lord Brevon! The base is crumbling around our ears! Even those deadlocked doors won't hold the traitors back for long."

"You have a point..." Brevon said, slowly getting to his feet, "We must extract the information as soon as possible! Commander, all I wish from you is that you tell us not only all you know about the Kingdom Stone, but also where the rest of your Chaser friends are...or Lilac dies for her and your actions. Make your choice."

"Release Lilac and Traveller," Torque commanded, "Then I'll tell you."

"...How pathetic," Brevon sneered, "Do you think I'm raving mad?"

"...Should we take a quick vote?" Master asked again. Brevon's face twisted into an angry sneer, his hand hovering over the console. Master sprung into a panic, "Wait, no no NO-"

Brevon gave him no more time. He slammed it down onto the button once more...but nothing happened.

"WHAT?!" Brevon roared, slamming the button multiple times, "What is this?!"

"Lord Brevon!" Serpentine said with panic, studying the readouts from the nearby computer, "All power to the Torture Rooms have been disabled. No electricity...and no deadlock seal!"

Brevon roared with rage, dashing forward and grabbing Master by the scuff of his neck, "YOU! THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!"

"But...but how?" Lilac asked too, her voice weak and quiet.

"I'm afraid he's right..." Torque said painfully, "You are to blame. Sort of."

"TELL THEM!" Brevon held his own gun to Master's head, "TELL THEM WHAT YOU KNOW, COALITION SCUM! Or poor dragon girl here will spend her final moments picking charred bits of warmonger out of her clothing! DO IT!"

"Fine!" Torque sighed, "Lilac...has Master told you about his...old self?"

"Yeah..." Lilac coughed, "He said he went crazy...called himself the War Master...went on a rampage...then stopped. Moved on. Became a vigilante."

"I'm afraid his tale doesn't end there..." Torque said, " There's...another Warmonger."

There was a sudden crash as the doors behind Brevon were suddenly blasted directly off of their hinges. They skidded across the ground, flooring Prince Dail and knocking Serpentine into the wall, before finally stopping before Brevon. A number of the fishbowl soldiers from before streamed out of the now smoldering doorframe and into the room. Only now these soldiers were different, with all green parts and lights now a dark and bloody red and unusual weapons in their hands. They kept their rifles trained on everyone around the pillar, aim unwavering and forms like a mass of glowing red lights. Some of the soldiers in the back parted like a sea, and another figure slowly emerged from it; the cloaked figure! His cloak was the same old black it was, only now it was covered in blood and guts, emitting a husky and disgusting scent from across the room. His eyes were still the red dots they always had been and his gaping maw of razor sharp teeth glowed a dim red in the glow of the lava. His voice, however, was incredibly different; it was no longer mangled and obscured by static, but...normal. A medium-pitch, clear voice. And a very familiar one at that.

"You rang?" the creature laughed evilly himself, almost waltzing around the room, "Good evening, Ladies and Gentlemen! We are tonight's entertainment!"

"YOU..." Brevon growled, dropping Master to the floor and digging out his own weapon, "You will pay for this!"

Brevon roared some sort of war cry and charged forward, slashing wildly at the cloaked figure. The figure did very little until the last second, then vanished. Brevon stopped and looked around. He was nowhere to be seen. He must've killed him! Brevon laughed evilly, staring out towards the red soldiers, thinking of his latest victory. Little did he know the creature had only flash-stepped behind him, eyes glazing over in some sort of anger...and the Blade of Hysteria in his hands.

The creature savored the moment, then dug the Blade deep into Brevon's shoulder. He yelled in pain, twirling around and clawing at the knife lodged in him while the creature moved the Blade around inside the wound, making it bigger and bigger. Finally, he forced the knife straight through, cleaving through Brevon's arm with almost no trouble at all. Brevon screamed in agony as his now separated arm bounced to the floor and went limp as well, which the creature responded to by delivering a Haymaker straight into the side of his head, knocking him to the floor where he was kept by the soldiers.

"...And there's your change, sir..." the creature said manically, wiping the blood and bits off Blade and sprinkling them onto Brevon's twitching body, "Have a nice day..." he turned to the others, such as Dail, "Does anyone else wanna parley?! NO? Good..."

"You're..." Lilac wheezed, "You're insane!"

"Takes one to know one...doesn't it?" the creature grinned.

"...Are you..." Lilac asked, "Are you me?"

"Tsk tsk. So slow to catch on..." the creature said happily, "I mean, come on Traveller! Lilac, old girl! Have the clues not been there? Who in this world would know the No-Zone Multiverse Rules? Who would have a massive grudge against you? And who..." he pointed to his own wrists, "Would have marks on their wrists like that?"

Master checked the hand that held Blade. Large scars in the wrist. Almost like...barbed wire.

"Blade..." Master said weakly, "No..."

"I'm sorry, kid..." Blade said too, "I had no choice...it's him!"

"Indeed it is..." the creature said, slowly grabbing his hood and flipping it down. He was a hedgehog, brown-furred with black and red dotted eyes, clad in sunglasses and a mouth full of fangs. A bit like Master. Infact...

He WAS Master.

"War Master..." Master cried out.

"Oh, don't act surprised," War Master giggled, his voice boisterous and ham-fisted, "You should've known better! Can't keep a crazy bastard down. Who would be there to spoil the punchline?"

"So..." Prince Dail said, exhausted, "Our adviser...has been my enemy? My father's killer?"

"No kid," War Master growled, "For the final time, it was Brevon! HE killed your father! HE tortured you for a straight week! HE made you his bitch!"

"No, it isn't true!" Dail pleaded, "It can't be!"

"Look inside yourself..." War Master grinned, "It'll come. Now then..." he turned to Lilac, "I believe we have some business to attend to..."

"So you're War Master..." Lilac said, keeping her composure despite the agony she was in, "The killer of countless trillions..."

"...Sort of," War Master said, "Torque was right; Traveller didn't tell you everything. I'm a clone. Created from the dying embers of the intelligent embodiment of this creature they called Solaris. They wanted me to do great things, kill many people, be easily controllable. But that don't fly with me! So, I...did the only sensible thing by killing my creators and striking it out on my own. I followed Traveler EVERYWHERE, taunting and fighting him at every possible opportunity. Even had my own mechanical version of the Blade of Hysteria to use...until he destroyed it, shot me in the stomach and left me to bleed out in the middle of a snowy wasteland. So I'm here to..as you say, settle the score. And cause as much chaos as possible on the way! It's what the real War Master would want."

"So you manipulated everyone..." Torque said damningly, "The Majister, Mayor Zao, Dail, Brevon, us...all to get closer to Traveller and cause chaos!"

"I know!" War Master said gleefully, pointing around the entire room, "I'm such a rockstar! I played all you chumps like fiddles and you never questioned me. The cloak, the eyes, the teeth, the voice...no-one thought I was a bit dubious? Like, no-one at all? No wonder you all go to war on a regular basis! No wonder Carol chose the one smart thing to do; leave. Go back to the Red Scarves and re-join their ranks."

"Wha..." Lilac said, tears welling up, "What? She's not coming to save us? She's abandoned me?"

"AND Milla can't help you either," War Master said, laughing, "She's run off to join her. I...think. Maybe she just doesn't want to be seen with an utter...psychopath."

"Do you mean yourself..." Torque asked, "Or Traveller?"

War Master slowly turned to Torque, "...What's the difference? Well, that's kind of a lie, there are a LOT of differences. It's just that, well, they don't show on the surface. You people don't know the first thing about someone like me...but I'm here now. I can show you. I WILL show you. I will show you just how far someone like me can go-"

"DIE, FECCULENT VERMIN!" Brevon roared. He had got out of the small pile of soldiers he was forced under and even now dashing towards War Master again, bleeding dagger in his one remaining hand. However, this time, he was stopped. He was pulled to his back and restrained by a flash of green, slowly forming to a certain royal panda. Prince Dail, quite clearly having mulled the given information over in his mind, was now holding Brevon's one good arm while two soldiers grabbed his legs and forced him to a kneeling position. War Master was clearly not amused, clicking his fingers and signaling another soldier to come up behind him. He did so, holding some kind of camera and training it on Brevon's face.

"Well...as I was saying...I'll show you just how far someone like me can go. And then..." War Master grinned, taking Blade out and holding it to Brevon's throat, "And then...I will break you."

And, with a silent roar, he slowly dragged the Blade across Brevon's throat. Both were screaming as the Blade dug into the insect's hard skin and then came flying out the other side with an audible schwing. Prince Dail let go of Brevon's remaining arm and the warlord instantly grabbed at his throat, his screams now totally replaced with a pained gurgling, as he desperately tried to stem the blood flow. Finally, his own eyes went dim and he fell forward like a sack of bricks, slamming into the floor and going limp. War Master watched smugly as the final breaths of air escaped his throat and his cape became stained with the rapidly expanding pool of blood forming around his neck and chest. Torque was silent, mouth agape, only slight stammering sounds escaping his throat.

"Y-You...you've done it. Brevon...h-he's..."

"CORRECT!" War Master bellowed, throwing himself in front of the camera, "Coalition of Planets, the insectoid scum of the universe, Lord Arktivus Brevon, is DEAD!"

"I understand now..." Prince Dail said, visibly and vocally shaken, "I...at least I know my father has seen proper justice."

"Exactly..." War Master said happily, slapping the Prince on the shoulder, "Glad to be of service. Now take Serpentine upstairs and...dispose of him. I have no need for snakes in MY army! Oh, and if I could have that gun you have..." Dail nodded, giving the empty Deagle to War Master and walking out of the room, two soldiers taking Serpentine by his arms, "Thank you! What a worm. Serpentine, I mean. Prince Dail's a good enough kid. Bit of a shame about his parents. Parent killing and torture...that's not being evil. That's just being a bastard."

"Says the guy who laid waste to an entire universe..." Lilac growled, "You're just saying you dislike certain things so you look better!"

"They're called 'standards', Lilac dear..." War Master sighed, "Even dimension killers have lines they refuse to cross..." he suddenly looked at Master, slumped in the corner, and knelt by his side, "Hey! Chin up, bucko! You're almost outta this mess! They're even referring to you by that nickname you love so much!"

"But...Lilac..." Traveller wheezed, "I've got to stop her...transformation."

"What is he talking about?" Lilac asked.

"War Lilac..." War Master grinned, "This...amazing creature. This marvelous amalgamation of good and bad, of light and dark! You...past the brink of insanity. That was his mission. The tale said Master would be the one to drive you nuts. So of course, he went in to steer this timeline back onto the main path. But as even his own mind told him..." he grinned, slowly shoving a spare magazine into the Deagle, "He never had the wheel."

"Wait...so YOU'LL drive her to insanity! You'll be dooming a planet to four years of non-stop genocide! Why're you doing this?!" Traveller shouted, "Why not leave her be?!"

"Oh, trust me, I wish I could!" War Master said, "Had I any other choice, I'd be walking the other way with you and you alone in tow. But I need a replacement. You know clones. They...degrade. Not mentally, as fiction tells you, but just in strength. This body of mine is dying, faster than you could ever imagine, and I'm pretty sure I don't have long left. But YOU..." he approached Lilac and took her scarred and blistered arm, "Your body is pure, strong and just so freaking NORMAL! It would be perfect! Four years, you say? My money's on EIGHT!"

"I'll never fall into your ways!" Lilac said defiantly, struggling within her bonds again to almost no avail, "Just let...let me go..."

"That's it, get weaker..." War Master said in a mock-soothing tone, slowly stroking the dragon's arm, "Those ghastly electric shocks have sent you to the brink of death. Well, near enough to it anyway...nah, that's not good enough."

War Master racked the slide of the new loaded Deagle and jammed it squarely into Lilac's gut. He laughed wildly and pulled the trigger. The resultant gunshot was ear-splittingly loud, drowning out Lilac's own presumed screech of pain, as well as Traveller's own. War Master finally lowered the smoking gun and observed his work; a large gaping hole was now in Lilac's stomach, almost neatly matching Traveller's own. Lilac had once again gone into shock, stuttering and gasping for air that just wasn't there anymore in this stuffy environment. War Master looked sad if anything, slowly stroking Lilac's ruined hair.

"I'm so sorry, kid, I really am..." War Master sighed, "You've already gone through the wringer enough today as it is. Burned, sliced, electrocuted, whipped, copious amounts of stress vomit...it's sickening, really. But alas, I need to do this...NOW!" he turned to Traveller, "Traveller. You know as well as I do that firearms like...our little Deagle here don't really exist in this world. On the plus side, laser wounds are cauterized. On the minus side..."

"No medical procedures in place for actual bullet wounds," Traveller said quietly, "Stomach wounds don't kill instantly. If the shock doesn't get you, you bleed out soon enough."

"Gold star. Looks like old Lilac here's doomed to die a slow, painful death. Alone, unloved, forgotten within the week. Unless...we can heal her. Now I HAVE heard of these magical healing baths that can instantly restore you to full health. But I also hear the only one left is in the Majister's Royal Palace..."

Traveller looked pale, "Ahh, shit..."

"Yeah. After all the faff with Neera, the entire kingdom wants your heads now..." War Master shrugged, "So, that's out. And so are normal medical procedures since...well, there aren't any! Which leaves..." he slowly held up the Blade of Hysteria, "But one alternative..."

"Don't you DARE!" Traveller was resorting to pleading now, "That infernal thing drives you crazy!"

"Exactly," War Master said, speaking to Blade, "Blade, would you kindly set yourself to Adaptation Mode? And don't bother with the whole refusal stuff. It's still his genes in me, so you HAVE to obey. DO IT!"

"...Current Setting changed to Adaptation Mode..." Blade said, his voice quiet and resigned. The weapon dimmed, the green cracks losing all green light and the gem becoming colourless. Soon, the gem flashed an orange shade, followed by the cracks befalling a similar shade indeed.

"You don't want to do this!" Traveller said, "You put that Blade in that hand, this world'll be a crater in a few years time!"

"...Whoops."

War Master's single utterance went hand-in-hand with his actual, limp hand dropping Blade. It stopped in mid-air, suddenly zipping around and then burying itself into Lilac's own left hand. Lilac's hand responded, clasping tightly around the handle of the Blade as a strange, otherworldly moaning filled the air and small crackles of orange electricity spread across her body. Lilac grunted in a pained way, her breathing gasping and erratic, before she finally gave out and fell unconscious once more.

"Well?" War Master asked, "How is she?"

"She's...she's stable," Blade said, "For the moment. Preparing for adaptation. Healing wounds. Devoting all runtime to given command."

"What have you done?" Torque asked, still tied to the pillar, "What've you done?!"

"Saved her, what else?" War Master grinned for the final time, "This Blade will bring her back from the brink of death. Restore her to her physical prime, if not better! A new, uber-powerful water dragon of legend! Sash Lilac, plus plus!"

"AND drive her crazy!" Traveller spat, "Change her destiny to REALLY turn her planet into a crater! You've doomed everyone on this rock, you maniac!"

"I do my best..." War Master chuckled, winding up and punching Traveller straight in the jaw, knocking him out cold. He admired his work briefly, then trudged towards Torque, "Torque, buddy! Now, I like you. Always determined to save the universe from people, and not whine about it in the process. That puts you several points above Scarfulu there. So you know, I don't think I'll kill you."

"...You won't?" Torque asked.

"Nope! Think I might do this, though!" War Master reared up and punched Torque too, sending him packing too. He turned to the remaining soldiers, "Guards! Take these two to where the Prince has sent Serpentine. Find this ringed machine called a Portal Generator. Turn it on and throw 'em through. I can't have them screwing around with my plans now...OH, and if it tells you what universe to access; 112233C. The good old native universe. If Brevon's disgraceful torture hasn't killed them, the harsh weather and the anti-MasterSelf feelings over there should finish the job."

The soldiers saluted, grabbing both of the unconscious men and dragging them out of the chamber. War Master slowly looked at Lilac's frail form, the colour slowly returning to her cheeks. Her fur was going to stay charred, though, and those tendrils were NEVER growing back, but she was going to be fine.

"My own Starkiller..." War Master sighed happily, "Brings a tear to my eye..." he turned and walked briskly out of the room, tossing the gore-splattered cloak behind him. He quickly stopped by Brevon, admiring his work, before grabbing the bleeding dagger still clenched in his hand, and continuing towards the lifts beyond the doorframe.

"Still, gotta move on, gotta start preparing. Got a lot to do. If I'm going to die here, fuck it; I'm dying in STYLE!"