Disclaimer: See the Prologue.

Chapter 13: A Story Out of Time

Uriko sat listlessly beside her bed, resting her chin atop folded arms upon the quilt. Across the room, her sister, Long and Yugo were muttering quietly in a small, huddled group. Though she could pick up every word they were saying with her feline-tuned hearing, she wasn't particularly bothered to engage with anything they were saying. Her focus was entirely on the woman lying on her bed.

Uranus was still unconscious after her bizarre meltdown during her match. Many long hours had passed since then, but yet she remained in a comatose state.

With the afternoon passing into evening, the light had settled into a muted orange hue, and with it, the air had relinquished most of its heat, providing a much more comfortable temperature in which to languish. Uriko had been on hand for Uranus while she remained in this state, counteracting the heavy warmth that had swamped them for most of the day with a cold, damp cloth. She'd wetted her lips and dabbed her brow clear of sweat. As the air was much milder now, she simply lounged watching her, waiting for her to awaken.

Please wake up soon. There is so much I want to ask you.

Alice moved over to the open window and leant tiredly on the ledge, letting the gentle breeze catch her cheeks. She glanced over at her younger sister, quietly commending her dutifulness over the last few long hours. She understood what it was like, having been in such similar situations before when she had been a nurse. Uriko was someone very impulsive, someone who didn't spend too long sat in one place, but she had defied all her expectations by sitting there with such unwavering dedication.

Alice couldn't hide her anguish over the troublesome situations that had started to surface from the tournament. She hadn't journeyed to Rājasībhūmi with her eyes closed over everything; there had always been something suspicious about the event. But for someone like Uriko, who had come to the tournament for something exciting to do, the elder Nonomura felt terrible that her sweet and innocent sister had been caught up in such strange and controversial things. She hated seeing Uriko so unhappy, and wished she could do more to abate her concerns.

"It doesn't make any sense," Yugo muttered aside. "Uriko is saying this woman is her?"

"Indeed, it is very strange; farfetched even. Though she could possibly be a doppelganger, or something of the sort," Long quietly surmised.

Yugo paused. "Doppel-what?"

"Never mind..."

"What about a clone?" Yugo suddenly thought.

Long's eyes narrowed somewhat. That word was almost 'dirty' to him. He cleared his throat, hiding his displeasure. "Maybe…"

"I wish Uriko would tell us more about her. But she just clammed up all of a sudden." Despite Yugo talking about her so openly, the cat-girl didn't acknowledge him, still focusing on the resting woman.

"I am sure there is much to tell, but in the meantime, are we to doubt her word?" Long had no reason to go against what she had said, as incredibly bizarre as it was. "You saw it in her eyes when she came to you in the arena."

Yugo recalled the events of earlier that day, the images flooding back to him, painting a clear picture of the fight, the meltdown and the immediate aftermath.

Before a single member of security could catch her, Uriko had jumped the barrier, rushing across the arena floor. He heard her desperate calling, at first not quite picking up on what she was saying, but as she drew closer, he heard it – she was calling out her own name, directed at the woman on the ground. And immediately, he wanted to know why.

Uriko's desperation to attend to the woman had raised many eyebrows among her friends, and they were quick to realise something personal had happened between the two of them, something she had been less inclined to reveal in the first place.

Gently cradling the fallen woman in her arms, Uriko had turned to Yugo, face wracked with anxiety, crying out to him. "Please help! She's me! She's me!"

Yugo might have held a distrust for his opponent – this Ura Tsukagami or whoever she was – but he trusted Uriko, and he wasn't about to let her down, especially as she started to weep at his feet. Despite the kafuffle caused and the security guards getting in their way – who seemed like they didn't want them helping the azure-haired woman – they finally managed to leave the arena, carrying the mysterious woman all the way back to Uriko's room at the apartments.

'Ura' had been shockingly pale and clammy, her skin cool to the touch. A tournament doctor had paid a brief visit, but had found nothing physically wrong with her, and simply told them to monitor her condition for now, and if anything changed, to call him back. Alice had taken charge of keeping tabs on her condition, though Uriko had done most of the nursing.

"I think we deserve some answers when she wakes up. That is, if she actually does wake up," Yugo said with a half-hearted shrug.

"Like the doctor said, there isn't much wrong with her physically," Alice interjected, turning from the window to engage in the conversation once more. "She's perfectly fine. And you've seen that I've been checking her hourly for any changes, but she's still the same. Thankfully, she hasn't deteriorated. There's no reason she shouldn't come around soon. Whatever has happened is beyond a medical explanation." She left the window and walked over quietly to Uriko's side, kneeling down next to her sister. She watched the woman she knew as Ura Tsukagami lay there, each breath simple and calm.

Uriko let out a sigh, though nothing else.

"Who is she really, Uriko?" Alice pressed, though not too forcefully.

"Me," Uriko mumbled. She paused for a long moment before she spoke again. "She'll tell you." Her voice became almost a whisper. "It's up to her… to tell you…"

Alice looked over at her friends and sighed. They'd all been given relatively the same answer each time they'd asked that afternoon. Long, who could usually get the girl to open up to him with gentle persuasion, had received nothing but a heavy wall of silence. And when Yugo had tried an argumentative tactic, he had ended up with a bruised ear from Alice, who wasn't impressed with his rudeness.

There was a soft knock at the door. Alice got up to answer it. It was Kenji.

"How is she?" He asked.

"Still out," Alice informed him as she stepped aside so he could enter.

His brow furrowed. "Shouldn't we be worried then?"

"We can call the doctor back again if we're really worried. But there is always the hospital as a last resort, in case she goes downhill fast," she said, sighing beside herself. "There just doesn't seem to be anything really wrong with her. Well, besides whatever's gone on inside her head."

"Have you tried smelling salts?" He asked, carefully sitting on the end of the bed.

"The doctor tried, but she didn't wake up. Just kind sighed and didn't do much else."

"I see..."

Alice sat on the end of the bed. "The doctor gave her an adrenalin injection before he left. He refused to leave any other medicines with us. He said that as we were not relatives of Ura, we weren't allowed to handle any medication on her behalf without her consent, in case we were involved in illegal activity or might be considering substance abuse or suicide." She rolled her eyes after the last few words.

Yugo snorted. "The guy was a moron."

Kenji just nodded in a semi-understanding way, though before he could ask where everyone else had got to, Uranus began to show signs of life, letting out a small breathless hiss as she began to stir.

Uriko bolted upright, hand petting Uranus's arm.

"Well, it looks like we'll be getting some answers real soon," Yugo said, moving over to the bed.

Eyelids flickered, and slowly but surely, ambers eyes greeted the world once more.

Shina's phone rang for attention in her jacket pocket.

She scowled, letting out a colossal groan, which caused a few heads to turn inside the Chinese takeaway where she was currently in the process of picking up a mass order of food. She put the small tower of boxes back onto the counter, though with an annoyed slam, pulling her phone out to answer it.

"Yeah, what?" She leaned back against the counter, scaring off any eavesdroppers with a fierce glare. "DAD! MERDE! You choose the most inopportune times to call me! What the hell do you want?" She managed to gather all six food packages into the crook of one arm and left the gawking crowd of patrons pretending not to stare as she walked out. "I'm getting food for everyone, that's what I'M doing! Where the hell are you and Miss. Bat-Slut?" She pulled the phone away from her ear, smiling at the loud thundering shouts that came through the speaker. When it died down, she placed it back to her ear. "Quite finished? Good. So, where are you?" She had to stop momentarily, just in case she fumbled and dropped the boxes that had decided to start wobbling. Having to push back her annoyance, she continued to listen to her father, rolling her eyes. "You're off investigating? Oh, then best not to say anything over this kind of line, right? Well okay, just don't be too damn long. See you later! Bye!" She hung up and slipped the phone back in her pocket, shaking her head in irritation.

She was decided that the next time everyone wanted to do a bedroom camp out, she'd make sure not to end up as the flunky sent off on the food run. Maybe she could convince Long next time to do these kinds of tasks, just because he was too kind to say no in these situations. And besides, he'd have probably been more suited to order from a Chinese takeaway anyway.

Okay, that was pretty bad thinking...

A second later, someone stepped purposely into her path and she bumped headlong into them, almost dropping the boxes. After a bit of heroic balancing, she managed to keep her cargo wedged into the crook of her arm.

She was about to lose her temper when she realised the person who'd stepped in front of her was Cronos; though, it took her a moment to realise it was him under the dark, round sunglasses and black low-profile cap with the phrase 'I Love Pie' written on the front, which was hiding most of his silvery hair.

"Hello, Jane," he greeted warmly.

"Cronos! You shouldn't just leap out of nowhere!" She stepped back for the sake of personal space, resting a hand firmly on top of the boxes, just in case they decided to be pesky and slip out of her grip.

"I apologise," he said while bowing to her respectively. "I only just noticed you while I was walking around here. I was looking for the road that leads to the apartment complex. I should have remembered from my last visit, but I must admit, I wasn't paying much attention on the journey there."

"Well, I'm heading back that way, so, if you're still going, you can walk with me," she invited.

He glowed with appreciation. "Thank you."

They walked together for the most part in silence. It wasn't as if things were particularly awkward between them; though Cronos wasn't exactly a man of a thousand words when it came to small talk, and Shina was trying to figure out what to say to him. It didn't help that recent events had caused a little underlining friction, with Yugo mouthing off and Shina having to be brutally honest about the investigation. And not only that, but she felt some apprehension with getting close. Maybe it was what happened in the pond, or maybe it was just some natural unease over the social divide. She could linger all day on her reservations, struggling to find an answer to her own feelings, but aside, something deep down was warning her to be cautious. Maybe it was a little voice from the past calling out from one of her fragmented memories, telling her not to get too close; not wanting her, with some small irony, to get burned.

As they walked along, a few people cast glances their way, some even double-taking at the young man, each thoughtfully trying to decipher – with some ounce of recognition – who it was they were seeing. A few had probably figured it out very quickly, but nobody seemed to hassle him or draw too much attention to his presence. He was trying to be just like everyone else in that moment; just another member of the crowd. It only really dawned on Shina that he, the Prince of the Zoanthropes, was out by himself; not a bodyguard in sight. The surprise was only brief as she'd recalled a couple of times he'd been without them, though, it was only because he was out without permission; pretty much – she assumed – as was the case now. But really, she viewed Cronos in the same way as she did everyone else. Well, except he was more affluent and lived in a palace, but that was digressing from the point.

"Umm, can I ask?" She suddenly spoke.

He looked at her curiously. "Yes, what is it?"

"What's with the cap and the glasses?" She asked, fighting but failing to stop herself sniggering.

His face reddened. "I'm trying to blend in. Though, I think I'm doing a rather bad job of it."

"Well, you might have been less conspicuous if you weren't wearing a shirt that's worth more than a car around these parts." She poked the finely tailored black garment to make her point.

"Well, I didn't really have the time to prepare efficiently for this little, uh, excursion. Though, it was my young friend, Deven, who gave me these items as a gift some time ago. I thought they would be suitable to hide my face. That was my main worry."

"You didn't want to get mobbed, is that it?"

"Well, in some respects, yes."

"Hey? Where's that fat guy? Actually, where are ANY of your bodyguards?"

"Oh, well, I've left without permission… again," he muttered, confirming her suspicions. He was quietly embarrassed that it seemed he had to be looked after all the time.

She chuckled. "I see, so that's another reason for the disguise, right?" He simply nodded. "Why? Is there someone you were going to see?" Her stomach slowly knotted as she said that, and she realised the implication of her words and bit her lip.

"Actually, there is someone I wish to see," he said carefully, and noticed that his companion was all ears, even slightly blushing. He smiled at her. "Though, I might add, I was planning to visit you at some point."

"What, you really-" Realising how thrilled she sounded, she broke into forced laughter to divert from what she had been saying. Quickly, she switched into a more offhand tone, though she kept her eyes averted while she spoke. "Um, well, I mean, it's always great to see you, and we could have figured something out. You know, meeting up and such..."

He was charmed by her almost uncharacteristic bashfulness. "I don't think I've ever seen you blush so much." She coughed loudly in response.

"You're seeing things!" She scoffed, her cheeks flushing an even deeper shade of red. She distracted herself by idly fiddling with the corner of one of the boxes. "So..." She began, drawing out the word, trying to get back to the topic at hand. "Who were you planning to see then?"

At first he didn't respond, seeming to hesitate, before deciding to ask a question of his own.

"Do you know where your friends took that woman after she collapsed?"

"Oh, you mean that Ura woman? She was taken to Uriko's room. That's where everyone is taking care of her." She huffed with disgust. "They all soon changed their tunes. One minute they don't trust her and the next everyone's happily playing Florence Nightingale. But I guess they're doing it for Uriko's sake. She's got different ideas about the woman." She turned to see Cronos's perplexed expression. "What's wrong?"

"Oh, I was just listening to you speak. You seem very angry all of sudden. Is it because of that woman?"

"There's no love lost between me and Ura Tsukagami… Or whatever her real name is..." She dwelled, before turning to him with curiosity. "She's the one you want to see, isn't it?"

"Yes, she is. And you're right; Ura Tsukagami isn't her real name. I don't know it either. All I know is that she's called Uranus, and…" He couldn't outright say it at first. To say it in front of someone else it sounded completely absurd. He took a shaky breath, looking up towards the apartment complex, which was now only a minute or so ahead of them. He forced the confidence back into voice as he continued, "… And, she's… my mother."

Her arm lazed as she turned with surprise towards him, and in that instant, the boxes slipped from her arm. They only survived with the Prince's quick reflexes to stop them from hitting the floor. His hand pressed them back against her arm securely.

"You're kidding, right?" She questioned.

He shook his head. "I know it's unbelievable, but it's true." A small smile came to his lips, if only for a moment. "I found her after all…"

She stood dumbfound, trying to swim through the confusion that had suddenly swamped her mind. She shook off her slack-jawed gawping when she saw his mask of calm and assurance, suddenly feeling quite stupid. It didn't seem like the type of thing he would lie about, but at the heart of things, it really was absurd. She cursed herself for doubting his word, even for a moment. This was Cronos after all, the sweet and innocent young man raised to be a good and honest gentleman. He would only tell her things that he believed or knew to be true. The more she looked into his eyes, she realised that he might appear to be calm, but was actually hiding a melting pot of unbridled emotions, just about ready to overflow. It didn't take her long to start feeling somewhat guilty about her reaction.

"Cronos, I'm sorry," she said, her head bowing shamefully. "It was stupid of me to say that."

His hand came to rest on her cheek, raising her face so their eyes could meet. "No, it's fine. I probably wouldn't have believed me either. But I would never lie you, nor to myself for that matter. It's a rather complicated situation to be truthful. I will try to explain everything later. For now, if you don't mind, if you're going to your friend Uriko's room, then may I accompany you? I want to see her. I want to know she's alright."

"Okay… but she was still unconscious when I left a short while ago, so, don't get your hopes up, okay?" His nod was as certain an answer she was going to get, and they approached the entrance to the apartment block in silence once more.

He held open the door for her so she could pass through first with the boxes. She brushed by him as she passed inside, noticing through their brief contact that he was shaking. The surprise almost caused her to crash into another couple who were approaching the door from the opposite direction. She apologised, embarrassed by her own gracelessness. Cronos continued to hold the door for the other couple to exit then stepped inside, surprised when Shina quietly took hold of his wrist. He looked down at her hand, then up to her concerned gaze, questioning him without outright saying a word.

"Cronos…"

"It's alright," he said in understanding, "It's just that things aren't exactly in good stead at the moment with regards to family matters." No matter what, he had to keep positive or he would fall prey to his emotional turmoil. For now, he said nothing more. Instead he focused on being in the right frame of mind to face to his mother again.

Her sleep had been like walking through an endless void of black, treading on broken glass and torn pictures from a photo album. The more she walked, the more pictures appeared littered across the ground, their glossy surfaces filled with colourful imagery. They depicted times and places that she'd once had some attachment to, but needless to say, she couldn't recall them clearly anymore. They were precious memories, scattered at her feet, detached from her body. Moments before awakening, a light had pierced into the void, almost twinkling as it surrounded her, and the pictures had started to float towards that warm, welcoming illumination. Each and every picture was absorbed into those bright rays. And instantly, her mind started to overflow with beautiful memories. It was if the light had been born of her heart's desire never to forget. Through that light, in the last moments before she was welcomed back to reality, she saw the image of a young woman, long locks flowing around her, and her breath was taken away.

She was seeing so deeply into herself, she wondered if her true identity was finally starting to break free.

Upon awakening, a tingling sensation ran through her entire body, fighting its way through the numbness until she was able to feel again. She flexed her fingers, and then her toes, before stirring her body to move from its laid position. But the moment she started to move, her limbs protested, sending sharp aching pains through her joints. Thinking better of exerting herself for the moment, she remained in her reclined position.

Taking in a deep breath, she let out a sigh, happy that she was still alive. She recalled the sensation of something inside her breaking, as if her soul had finally given up the fight. But yet she still remained; her psyche and body intact, ready to fight another day. The pieces of her had slowly come back together to mend themselves in a rudimental way, enough to give her a sense of herself again, despite being a muddle of personalities crammed into one body. Even so, she felt somewhat like herself again.

Well, whoever 'Uranus' was meant to be.

Even though she was glad to be awake, her head felt like a rock. A dull headache had clamped hold of her skull, to which she groaned in response. She blinked tiredly, the blurriness starting to lift its unwelcome veil until she could finally make out the finer details of her new location.

She was no longer in the sandy arena with thousands of voices clamouring overhead. The yellows and browns were replaced with the softer pastel colours of the wallpaper decorating a large bedroom. She realised very quickly that the room was not her own, but for the time being, this didn't really bother her as the bed she was laid upon was soft and comfortable. Shifting slightly, the velvety covers rubbed against her arms and legs, which lazily yielded to the smoothness. For a moment, her body felt like going back to sleep, but she refused to relent to such whims.

With each and every second that passed, her strength returned to her, and she could now properly think and react to everything in a more practical way. Turning her head, her eyes met Uriko's, and she was washed with a wave of comfort; though she quickly realised that it wasn't just the cat-girl in her presence. She sat up carefully, taking in the other faces around the bed. Alice had moved to kneel by Uriko, whose face was calm and welcoming. Long was stood to her left, his expression amiable and pleasant. Yugo, who stood at the foot of the bed, was the complete opposite, face hard and showing his uncertainty. Kenji, who was right next to him, had an unreadable expression.

Their faces were as if she's conjured ghosts to her bedside, and she unwittingly clenched the folds of sheets into her slightly shaking hands.

"You're alright!" Uriko exclaimed, finally perking up after spending the afternoon under a black cloud.

"I... think so..." Uranus said tentatively. How was she supposed to know if she'd be fine or not with this unpredictable body?

Alice moved to plump the pillows as Uranus sat up properly. "We were worried that you wouldn't wake up. You had such a very strange turn."

"You're telling me." She brought her hands up to rub down her face before resting them atop her lap carefully, feeling ill at ease under their gazes.

"What the hell is going on?" Yugo wasted no time in starting his questioning, ignoring the dark stares from Alice and Uriko for his rudeness.

Uranus was taken back. "I don't…"

"Why is it that when we start investigating Orion and the tournament, you suddenly turn up?" The wolf Zoanthrope snapped sharply. "And might I say you're not some run of the mill kind of girl. I don't know many people who can shoot electricity from their body."

"I'm not, as you say, your run of the mill kind of girl. I didn't get this way without alteration," Uranus admitted.

"Ah ha!" Yugo pointed at her, almost triumphantly. "So it's true, you are an experiment!"

"Yes!" Uranus shouted back at him to his surprise. He probably wasn't expecting her to so readily admit it. "I am! But I wasn't Orion's experiment if that's what you're thinking! HAH! Did I just ruin your theory!?" She turned away from his hard stare. "What a ridiculous way to go about investigating; basing your accusations on assumption alone!" She folded her arms defiantly. "And just so I make myself clear, I'm not siding with King Orion nor do I want anything to do with him. I was experimented on by a completely independent company. Well, two actually, but the second one you won't find because they won't exist for another few years yet, and that is if this timeline ends up going in a similar direction."

Yugo was left dumbfound, any further questions going out the window. "Eh?"

"Would you care to explain the details to us? We are quite unsure of what you are saying?" Long asked, speaking on a much friendlier level than Yugo.

"Well, to put it plainly, I'm from the future. Well, a future that was directly related to this timeline. The time stream is a vast subspace with infinite realities," she enlightened, hoping she was making sense. "I left my time to escape the horror that had consumed everything I'd once known." She paused, her voice becoming low. "A Zoanthrope and human war had destroyed the world."

"Hey, if you're from the future, then why did you accuse me of killing your sister?" Yugo interrupted, just remembering what she'd said to him during the match.

She carefully ran a hand through her blue hair, looking up at him. "You didn't kill my sister per se, but the future you from my time didn't make the effort to save her when she died."

Yugo rubbed his head tiredly. "I'm starting to get really confused."

"Keep up, Yugo," Uriko mumbled.

"So, you knew versions of us from your time?" Long asked watchfully. "And, is it true… you're Uriko in some way or form."

Uranus nodded, her eyes falling to her hands. "Yes, I knew you. And yes, I'm Uriko Nonomura from the future."

Yugo swore in disbelief, while everyone else was left in a bewildered silence.

"This is so amazing," Alice eventually remarked. "You're a real life time traveller!"

"So…" Yugo had to consider everything slowly, just so the information processed in his brain. "… Who is Ura Tsukagami?"

Mass groans echoed around the room.

"It's just an alias, Yugo," Kenji informed him.

"It was based on my own name and my sister's original last name." Uranus smiled over at Alice, who beamed.

"I knew it! I knew we were related somehow!" She laughed softly, patting Uranus's arm. "It's nice to have another sister."

"How did you end up changing so much?" Kenji asked. "Did you say things only happened a few years from now? I mean, Uriko looks pretty young for her age, and you've undergone some pretty dramatic changes." Uriko stuck her tongue out at the mole Zoanthrope.

"It was those original experiments that Tylon preformed on me that caused me to end up like this," she explained. "The first experiments performed when I was child became unstable, and eventually when the stress overcame me many years later, the instability transformed me, and I ended up in this new body."

"So, how did you end up here, Uriko?" Alice asked.

"You can just call me Uranus to save confusion."

"Oh, okay…"

She sighed softly. "Maybe I should start at the beginning, just so you understand why I came to be here in this time and place." She chuckled sombrely. "Gather around children for story time."

With everyone's undivided attention on her, she began to speak, telling a story she thought she'd never have to impart to anyone.

"This tournament happened in my time, but with a few events that have not yet occurred in this time. During that tournament, someone killed King Orion and some human officials that were at the tournament as part of a peace treaty. Nothing happened straight away, but turmoil built in the government and then tensions between humans and Zoanthropes went to breaking point and beyond. A few years later, all communication broke down and the human population went on a rampage to wipe out the so called 'scum' of the Earth. So many innocent people died. All my friends and family were caught up in the crossfire – everyone here, besides Uriko obviously, were taken one by one. I remember a time when it was just me, my mother and a few other people, and I think, ShenLong too." Uranus watched Long's uncomfortable expression at the mention of the man. "Well, it was a lonely time, and I just couldn't take it, living in the slums fearing for my life. My mother was the last thread of my sanity, and then one day, in an explosion, she was gone too. And I cracked…" She had to clasp her hands together to stop the violent shaking. Both Alice and Uriko offered comforting hands on her arm.

"Take your time," Alice said softly.

Uranus nodded, and swallowed, forcing herself to hold back the tears. "I cracked and suddenly, I transformed into this." She gestured to herself with some loathing in her voice. "I went nuts. This body... It's made for violence. I've killed a lot of people in my anguish. In some ways regret it, but... I had to make someone suffer for the death of my friends and family, especially my mother. Then one day, I was captured, and for a short time, was held in a facility where I was experimented on. That's where I got the name Uranus. They'd named a lot of their experiments after Gods and whatnot. I didn't stick around for long to suffer under their torture. I escaped and not long after, I managed to find the power to break a hole in time and escape…"

"Knock, knock! It's your personal delivery service!" Shina waltzed in, showing off the food packages. She noticed Uranus was awake and huffed. "Finally, I thought we'd be here all night. Oh! And we have a guest." Cronos stood in the doorway, trying to hide his nervousness as he removed the cap and sunglasses, looking across at his mother.

Uranus's face twisted to a look of disgust upon seeing him. "What's HE doing here?"

"He came to see you," Shina said, frowning at her. Ungrateful bitch, she thought to herself, refraining from saying the words aloud.

"I just wanted to make sure you were alright," Cronos said softly, taking a few steps into the room.

Uranus turned her face away from him, quietly seething.

"Now you've seen she's alright, you can go," Yugo snapped. Uranus was going to say something but Yugo's words seemed enough.

"I really don't appreciate being spoken to in this way," Cronos retorted to Yugo. "I merely came out of concern and respect. So please don't stand there thinking you can so casually and rudely order me around."

Yugo gestured to the annoyed woman on the bed. "Uh, well, it's clear she doesn't want you here. If you can't see that for yourself, then you're denser then you look! So, take a hint and leave, or I'll make you."

Cronos scowled. "You can't stop me from seeing my own mother."

"I don't know what kind of uh, analogy that is but-"

"Yugo, don't you get it," Shina butted in. "She IS his mother."

The wolf Zoanthrope's expression turned to one of wide-eyed scepticism, as if he'd just seen a pig fly before his eyes. It was a contagious look, which quickly spread amongst the others as they glanced between Cronos and Uranus, the latter of which had her hands covering her face.

Alice was puzzling over the age difference as she spoke. "Uh, Uranus…"

"Yes, it's true," Uranus spoke half muffled by her hands. "He is my son."

Uriko was the one who looked the most shocked, maybe even mortified.

"You're kidding?" Yugo dubiously asked.

"That's what I said, but yeah, it's true," Shina answered. "Well, more true now that she's admitted it."

"He maybe my son, but I couldn't give a fuck about him," Uranus harshly stated, hands falling from her face. "I have nothing I want to say to him and neither do I want him in my presence."

"I don't see what I've done wrong!" Cronos exclaimed with perplexity. "You hardly made any sense the last time we met."

"You clearly refuse to listen or understand that your father is a conniving old murderer! He's been leading experiments right under your nose and you've just been happy to prance about as if everything is perfectly right in the world!"

Cronos was stunned into silence, he wanted to argue, but it looked like Uranus might bite his head off. That and the fact that Yugo and others had said that his father was conducting experiments. He'd not seen them himself but it didn't mean it wasn't happening. The more he heard it, the more it was starting to become real and believable. He kept his mouth firmly shut, left silent by an inward debate as to what was the truth and what he was willing to accept.

"I think this is where you might want to continue your story," Kenji prompted.

Uranus recalled where she had got up to and continued, despite the fact that Cronos was still there, statue-like with conflicted emotions.

"I escaped through time, twenty-five years into the past," she continued. "I was here, lying in the desert just outside the old city before it became this larger kingdom. Orion found me, and took me back to his home to care for me. I was just so desperate for some love and affection that I just… fell for him, strange as it may seem. I felt safe and secure. Feels like a distant memory now." She sighed and went on. "I obviously slept with him otherwise Cronos wouldn't be here. And I was happy with my family; it was the thing I really needed. I was there for about four years, and then I found out about him getting involved with Tylon. I went crazy. I thought I might explode. Then I made up my mind that I wanted nothing more to do with him or the child we'd had. I couldn't love a man who supported the company that made this happen to me. I was lost, looking for a way out until I thought of the assassination. It became clear to me that was how all the misery started. I decided that if I stopped it, nobody in this time would suffer the pain I'd had to, and I could finally live in peace. Even though I want to kill Orion myself, I've got no choice but to keep him alive and figure out who is planning to murder him. But I've had no such luck thus far. So, that's how I ended up in the here and now, in this tournament."

"Well, I'm still confused, so someone better fill me on the first part I missed," Shina stated bluntly.

"Well, it explains a lot of things," Yugo said to himself.

"Wow, I wonder if I'll give birth to a Prince..." Uriko said in wonder.

Uranus snorted. "It's nothing you really want to happen to you. It's nothing but a hassle!" She ignored Cronos's hurt expression.

"Well, I must say, this has been a very interesting turn of events," Long said, pondering over everything he'd heard.

Uranus tugged Uriko into her embrace, turning her to face her son. "Look Cronos! Look at this girl! Really look. This is what I used to look like. This is Uriko Nonomura. I am Uriko Nonomura, or should I say, was. This is my past self. Me, before my life went to hell!"

Uriko felt uneasy as the Prince looked at her intently, but she could clearly see his shock and uncertainty in regards to this revelation.

"Fuck! I really need to know now what the first part was now!" Shina said while hurriedly unpacking the Chinese food. Long went over to help her, quietly briefing her on the bits she'd missed.

Uranus was glaring wildly at her son. "I can't love you, not a child of Orion's. I find myself sickened to even look at you. That's what the hate has done to me. You ask what you've done to me to make me so angry. Well, you exist, that's what."

It was a stab right to the heart of the Prince. The colour left his face in an instant.

Shina snapped around, enraged by the woman's words, but Long clamped a hand on her shoulder.

"Shall we give everyone their food before it gets cold?" He suggested to her, making it clear with his eyes that it was not her place to get involved, no matter her feelings. Begrudgingly, she nodded, giving Uranus a glare colder than an Arctic storm.

"If you change time, will you and Cronos still exist?" Uriko enquired.

"This timeline became its own when I changed it from my own. Whatever has happened here has been set, and cannot be undone. Time expands, creating new threads – new worlds. Even now I'm sure something we do, or maybe won't do, will create new timelines. But you shouldn't worry about people suddenly disappearing who already exist. That's not how it works. Well, unless you're a time traveller who pops in and out of time when they feel like it." She almost laughed, as if taking a dig at herself. "Of course, there will be changes if I stop the assassination. Certain events that happened there after will no longer occur, and maybe even certain people who were born later might not even be born at all, but it's a big price to pay for peace. Though on the other hand, from the peace, people who had never existed before will most likely take their place, born into a world that isn't cursed by war. And for me, even if my original timeline collapsed, I'd still exist, because I am fully embodied here and now."

"I wish… that I could make you see things differently," Cronos said mournfully. "That after everything... I might still mean something to you."

"Just, go away…" Uranus said tired, having lost some of the edge she'd had moments ago. "Leave me alone. That's all I want. Nothing more…"

Cronos closed his eyes, taking in the longest breath before quietly leaving. Just as he stepped out, Shina followed after him, closing the door behind them so it was just them in the quiet corridor.

"Cronos, I'm sorry…"

He smiled at her, though his eyes were filled with sadness, ready to shed tears. "You needn't apologise to me. It's not your fault." He gently placed a kiss on her cheek, which surprised her greatly. "Thank you, for caring about me. I must get back now." And swiftly, he left, so she wouldn't see the tears as they fell.

She hoped he'd be alright making his way back on his own. A part of her wanted to go with him, but she held back. He needed some time alone.

"What a bitch!" Shina punched the wall.

Not long after Cronos had left, Gado and Jenny finally made an appearance.

"Did I just see a certain Prince leaving from this direction?" Jenny coyly asked as she gave her a mischievous smile. Shina was about ready to punch her lights out, but with the utmost decorum, she refrained.

"You've missed some real shit hitting the fan," Shina said, ignoring Jenny. "You'd better get inside. You're not going to believe what you're about to hear."