"...hm... at the very end of the road... I see one side prevailing... though I can't make out which; they're both very similar..."
"...and... oh, dear... it seems that the struggle will claim someone's life... whose, I cannot say; it's too unclear..."
"...and the last confrontation... will take place where it all began..."
Bismark's words of foretelling haunted Joy in her sleep that evening, looming in her mind with a foreboding feeling inside of her. These words she couldn't entirely understand, no matter how much she tried to contemplate them. She could understand the part where both sides would fight and one would prevail, but it worried her greatly on what side would prevail exactly…and coupled with the fact someone might lose their life, she had a really bad feeling about all of it. Sure, lives were being claimed here and there because of the Corruption, but for some reason, Joy just had the feeling Bismark was talking about someone close to her…
…the thought of one of her friends dying…or possibly even her Mommy or Daddy—no, not them, not ever…she would never allow Malice to let that happen, and even then, her Mother and Daddy were strong. They wouldn't get themselves killed…
…nevertheless, this pressed against the child's mind greatly, and it strained her. Even as she was healing from her sickness, she wasn't at all feeling her spirits rise from any of this. Rather, she was just getting more and more depressed and discouraged. She still hadn't seen hide or hair of Malice at all these past few days, and it put her at an anxious edge. She knew Malice was waiting for the right moment…she was just biding time to build her strength when Joy was weak… and she was definitely being quiet on purpose to put Joy on that kind of edge…Joy may not understand some things for her age, but this she knew for sure…
She couldn't stand it any longer. She got up, opening her eyes, and simply sat there on the sofa she had been sleeping in for the past few days, looking around the cabin. It was far too late for her grandfather or Tails to be up at this hour, so it wasn't even like she had anyone to talk to. Given her low spirits, she had missed so much to interact with someone, and the time she spent with Tails and her grandfather she enjoyed, so neither of them being up at this late night put her more at unease.
It's been long enough that Joy needed to figure out her plan of action. It was obvious she was the only one that would be able to fight Malice…somehow… it wasn't just a matter of standing up to her, it was a matter of figuring out how to beat her; how to make sure that Malice couldn't ever hurt anyone else again. So far, nothing has come to mind. Malice was a part of Joy herself, and doing anything that might stop Malice for good could possibly harm Joy too. She didn't want to have to hurt herself, but she also didn't want Malice to hurt the people she cared about.
Joy was conflicted.
Around this point, a door slowly opened up not too far from where she was resting, as someone slowly walked out from it. It startled Joy with a gasp, diving under the covers timidly.
"...still up at this hour?" an old voice remarked.
"…o-oh…Professor…"
To some relief, Joy uncovered herself from the blanket to look up. Walking over to where she was, Tails let out a soft yawn as he adjusted his glasses a touch. "...can't sleep, hm?"
Joy shook her head.
"...something on your mind?" As he spoke, Tails took a seat as he looked at her.
"…I…" Joy looked down from Tails, unable to finish.
Tails simply smiled at her. "...if you don't want to talk about it, that's fine..." he hummed.
Joy just looked at Tails uneasily at that. Tails blinked a touch. "...is something wrong?"
"…I still don't know how to fight Malice…" Joy mumbled.
Tails hummed, as he nodded. "...I see..."
"…Professor, how come you're up?" Joy asked.
"...I was..." Tails began, as he let out a small hum. "...thirsty."
Joy just blinked. She wasn't sure if Tails really was thirsty or not, and whether or not she should get a drink of water for him.
Tails just chuckled. "...you should try and go to sleep, Joy..."
"…I don't know if I can," Joy said.
"...do you think I could help you go to sleep somehow?" Tails suggested, as he leaned back a touch in the chair.
"…do you…wanna tell me a bedtime story?" Joy asked.
"...of course." Tails nodded, as he closed his eyes. "...now let's see... what story would you like to hear?"
"…can I hear the story with Chaos, the god of destruction, when you and Sonic fought him?" Joy asked, a slowly growing smile on her face.
"...well... that's a good one..." With a nostalgic smile, Tails closed his eyes. "...Chaos... the god worshipped by the ancient Echidna Tribe; said to have created the Chaos Emeralds, and the anchor that hosted him, the Master Emerald. At first, he was a peaceful god; content to care for the budding race you know as Chao..."
As he continued the story, he looked up at the ceiling. "...however, the Echidna Tribe, prideful and greedy for power, sought to harness the might of the Chaos Emeralds and the Master Emerald. A young echidna girl, Tikal, tried stopping them... but even her compassion couldn't save the echidnas from the wrath of Chaos..."
Joy did pay attention to the story for the most part, but her thoughts eventually wandered to the problem at hand with Malice. She still really wanted to try and figure out how to beat her…or at least how to prepare herself the next time Malice might try to take over her.
She wished she knew exactly what to do, instead of Malice taking advantage of Joy's vulnerability, which only made Joy feel worse in a lot of ways. She had to figure out what to do…otherwise…
…she tried to avoid thinking those unpleasant thoughts. They would only make her feel worse.
So much of her wished she hadn't run from her friends and family. Even if she didn't want Malice to hurt them, she knew that if she gave them the chance…there was a chance they could help her. She wasn't sure about helping in the fight against Malice…but whenever she thought about her mother and father, she was comforted. Whatever experiences they've had with those powers…it would've helped for all of the questions Joy had.
That's when something very abruptly occurred to Joy, and she no longer realized that Tails was still telling his story because she blurt out. "Mama and Callous!"
Tails stopped, as he looked at Joy with a tilted head. "...hm?"
Joy shoved the blankets off and hopped down, going right up to Tails and taking his hand. "Mama and Callous…Mama and Callous fought!" She yelped in her epiphany. "They fought all the time! Even when she was split from Mama or together in the same place, they still fought…and Mama beat Callous!"
That's right. She'd remember the story that Metal would tell her about when he was training her mother to fight Callous, and that she managed to stop Callous. Metal didn't go into too many details, but she knew that if she could figure out how her Mama beat Callous…
…then maybe…maybe…she could beat Malice!
Tails' eyes widened as he looked down at her. "...Joy..."
"…Professor…do you know how Mama stopped Callous?" Joy uttered in growing hope. "You gotta tell me how she did it…maybe I can stop Malice the same way!"
Tails' eyes grew heavy with concern, and he settled his hand on hers. "...Joy... doing what your mother did to stop Callous... it isn't something I would advise..."
"…but why not?!" Joy uttered, feeling a little disheartened and bewildered by that.
Tails just didn't know how to break this to Joy, as he stroked her hand to try and comfort her. "...when she did stop Callous... Jillian had to pay a... heavy price..."
For some reason, Joy became uneasy again…and it had to do with what the answer might have to be to what her mother did exactly…just how heavy was this price? Tails closed his eyes. Telling her this... he simply couldn't bring himself to break the news to her, the news of what her mother had done to end the threat of Callous...
"…Professor…" Joy was even afraid to ask again, but she just had to know. "…what did Mama do?"
Tails looked away. "...I can't say..." he murmured; this was still something the young girl likely couldn't handle hearing, if she wanted to do the same to bring down Malice...
"…was…was it really bad?" Joy uttered.
"...yes..." Tails nodded, as he kept looking away. Joy looked up at him sadly. Still, he didn't look down at her.
"…Professor…" Joy uttered. "…did…Mama…hurt herself real bad…?"
Tails grit his teeth, and closed his eyes. "...yes..."
Joy looked down at the ground at that. She didn't like hearing that at all. Suddenly a nice bedtime story that Metal told her turned…kinda dark. She didn't exactly understand what her mother might've done…but clearly it was drastic if she had to hurt herself…really bad…
…and Joy only now realized that even Metal wouldn't seem right when he finished off the story of when he and her mother were training. He'd simply tell Joy that she had defeated Callous and that was that…but…something was off with Metal when he touched off the story like that…like…he didn't want to talk about it.
Almost like how Tails was acting right now.
Tails just sighed. "...I'm sorry, Joy..."
"…so…whatever Mama did…I shouldn't do then…?" Joy asked.
"...none of us would want you to do it, Joy..." Tails noted. "...especially not your mother..."
"…but…if Mama got hurt…" Joy muttered. "…then…what did Daddy do…? He never said Mama…well…did anything…he just said that Mama beat Callous."
Tails closed his eyes. "...he... tried to help her..." he murmured; a half-truth, as he wasn't sure if Joy could handle hearing how Metal had originally dealt with that situation.
Well, at least for Joy, it must have worked, because her Mama was still around and she was just fine…though she probably wasn't doing too well recently with Joy having run away. Joy snuggled up against Tails worriedly as she thought about what her mother was probably doing right now. Tails simply closed his eyes as he sighed a touch.
At this point, Joy had worried to the absolute extent that she could, slowly sagging against his lap while she was drifting toward sleep. Seeing her drift to sleep, Tails let out a small sigh once more, before he gently lifted her up and nestled her underneath the blankets on the couch once more.
"…time's running out…" spoke a voice gravely beside Tails while he tucked Joy in.
"...hrm..." With a narrowed gaze, Tails glanced towards the voice.
"…they're finalizing their plans…" It was Sonic beside him, looking over at Tails. "…it's worse than we originally thought it was…"
"...can they be halted in any way?" Tails uttered.
"…no…there's way too many…" Sonic said.
Tails' eyes narrowed in concern. "...then we need a miracle..."
"…yeah…you're tellin' me…" Sonic muttered, looking down at Joy.
"...so much trouble..." Tails murmured. "...things sure grew complicated after you died..."
"…they sure did…"
And Sonic was gone, just like that. With a sigh, Tails rubbed his temples as he walked down the halls; off to get that drink he had originally intended to get.
Meanwhile, Charon's group was also getting settled into their own camp. With a small yawn, Charon simply looked down at the group getting ready for the night. For the most part, everyone was just tired, but fairly cheerful.
All except…well, Oblivion of course. She's still had a few nights where she's struggled to sleep because of nightmares. Of all the memories she erased from all the deranged people she's encountered, and only Corruption is what gives her the shivers in her sleep. Demi simply looked over at Oblivion with a worried look in his eyes, as he let out a small sigh.
Oblivion suddenly stepped up, garnering looks from everyone. She just stood for a while…
…then, she spoke, "I'm…going to spend some time alone…"
And off she walked away from the group. Watching her walk off, Demi let out a small sigh. While the others watched, they grew worried too.
"Someone needs to go with her; we can't leave her by herself," Toki recommended.
"...yeah... no telling what kinda hoodlums are wandering 'round here..." Fargus huffed.
Demi's eyes narrowed... and he stood up. "...I'll go."
Diablo nodded at that. "Right…just make sure to watch out for anything suspicious."
"...I will." With that, Demi followed after Oblivion.
It honestly didn't take very long for Demi to catch up with Oblivion. She just seemed to be wandering aimlessly, and with how much she's had trouble sleeping, she was lacking any kind of energy. Really, she seemed like an ambling zombie. She also didn't notice Demi following her while she was lost in depressed thoughts. Demi narrowed his eyes in concern, and kept following her out of concern.
Eventually, Oblivion just stopped, and rubbed her arms insecurely. Demi eventually walked up to Oblivion from behind her, and gently wrapped his arms around her. "...Oblivion..."
Oblivion gasped and jumped, but then she relaxed. "Oh, Demi…it's just you."
"...Oblivion..." Demi murmured, as he closed his eyes. "...can we... talk?"
"Yes, of course," Oblivion answered.
With a small nod, Demi looked at her. "...Oblivion... I'm worried for you... we all are..."
"…you are…?" she fidgeted about uncomfortably, but not in a way that struggled against Demi's hold; in fact, she seemed comfy in that.
"...yeah..." Demi responded, as he simply held her softly. "...ever since... what happened..."
Oblivion buried her face into Demi's arms. Demi still held her. "...you're barely getting any sleep... Oblivion... we're all worried for you..."
Oblivion shuddered a bit. "…I…I can't sleep…"
"...because of... nightmares...?" Demi assumed.
Oblivion nodded, and heard a sniffle from her, as if she was about to cry. "…I've…I've experienced a lot of things…but those nightmares…they're very frightening…"
"...I see..." Demi murmured, as he held her closer. "...please... talk to me... bottling it up isn't going to make it better..."
Oblivion turned and held to Demi, bursting into tears in his shoulder. "It's horrible…" she uttered. "…I'm doing such horrible things to everyone…just like…what happened when I was…when I was…" and she kept sobbing.
Still, Demi held onto her; eyes closing. "...don't worry... even though the nightmares remain... it's no longer there..."
"I-I know b-but I…" and 'Oblivion couldn't even hope to continue she was so upset. Closing his eyes, Demi stroked her back comfortingly to try and calm her down. Oblivion simply just cried her heart out in Demi's chest. Demi remained silent; allowing her to weep.
Finally, Oblivion calmed down, hugging Demi closely. Demi remained silent, as he hugged her in return.
"...I…I don't know what I would've done if Blood hadn't stopped me…" Oblivion uttered.
"...don't dwell on the past..." Demi whispered in a comforting tone. "...what's done is done... there's no sense in worrying about that now..."
Oblivion nodded. Then she asked, "…is he…still doing alright?"
Demi slowly nodded. "...he is strong... keeping Corruption at bay is no mean feat, and... well, he manages it neatly..."
"…that's good…" Oblivion murmured.
Demi still held onto her; humming in silence.
"…Demi…" Oblivion muttered. "…there's…something I need to get off my chest…" and she looked up at him. "…I met him…"
Demi's eyes widened, and he looked down at her. "...Oblivion...?"
"…I…I met your great uncle, Deity Novagod…" she spoke quietly.
Demi's eyes widened. "...you... did? How...?"
"…you see…" Oblivion closed her eyes. "…when you left Safe Haven…and Metal Sonic came to the island, Diablo and Kiri had developed an interest in Jill. One day, Diablo, with Raider's help, actually kidnapped Jill."
Demi's eyes widened, and he held his mouth. "That's dreadful..."
"…they did…horrible things to her…and all of that torture they put her through was because of her other personality, Callous. They wanted to draw her out…" and Oblivion actually shuddered.
Demi's eyes narrowed in concern, and he settled a hand gently on Oblivion's shoulder.
"…it got to the point they involved me, and on that day they tried to force my powers to their use, by erasing Jill's memories so only Callous remained…Charon was able to come to the rescue and we were able to break Jill free. I erased all of the memories of her torture, because she didn't deserve to remember them…though the whole thing caused such a commotion that we disrupted some dormant explosives that were planted around the island. Charon and I had to relocate to another hiding abode since he had been seen when the explosives went off…"
Demi merely nodded, as he rubbed his neck a touch.
"…since then…I learned much about her past, especially when we met Jack and he told us stories," Oblivion said. "…but…"
She looked away uneasily.
"…I didn't learn as much as I did…until that fateful night of the outbreak of Corruption."
Demi kept looking at her in silence, as he tilted his head whilst taking this information in.
"…there was a raging fire in the jungle, and I had only stepped away for a moment…" Oblivion closed her eyes and shuddered some more.
"…then…there was Diablo again…"
Demi slowly narrowed his eyes. "...what... happened then...?"
"…it…it wasn't really Diablo…it was…" Oblivion didn't seem like she was able to speak out the rest. Then she tried to breathe and looked up at Demi. "…do you know…why…Diablo panicked when he saw you…? What made him so…afraid like he is now…?"
Demi blinked... and slowly, his eyes widened in realization. "...wait... you're not saying that..."
Oblivion looked at the ground.
"…that night…the spirit of your great uncle…had possessed him."
Demi's eyes widened considerably.
"…while your fangs have the properties they do because of blood, your great uncle…" Oblivion trembled. "…he can…feed on the very life and spiritual energy of someone…and not that alone, but whoever he does feed on…he can control…"
Demi's eyes widened as he looked at Oblivion. "...no... he didn't..."
Oblivion bit her lip and looked up at Demi in silence.
With wide eyes, he just looked back down at her. "...did he... take control over you...?"
"…he…did…" Oblivion muttered, rubbing her arms insecurely. "…I…didn't feel like I was in my body…yet…I remember what he tried to make me do…he was going to make me corrupt Charon…but…Jack was able to stop me…"
"…then I blacked out…"
Oblivion shut her eyes again and held to herself tightly.
"…and…so many memories…filled my head…"
Demi gently held her as she continued; looking down at her in concern.
"…your great uncle…did…so many things to so many people…" Oblivion uttered. "…and…I felt as if…I was the one doing those things…so when I think about when I was Corrupted…how similar that felt I…"
And Oblivion couldn't continue.
Demi just kept hugging her as he closed his eyes. "...Oblivion..."
Oblivion hugged Demi back. Throughout this, Demi remained silent; hugging her as he could think of nothing but to simply try to comfort her.
"…but…even if people have mistaken you for him…"
Oblivion looked up.
"I want you to know Demi," she said. "…that I see nothing like him in you…"
Demi looked back at her with a soft smile. "...thank you, Oblivion..."
Oblivion smiled back and hugged him tighter. "…you manage to make it easier to deal with this…"
As he hugged her in return, Demi just smiled. "...anything to help you out..."
Oblivion continued to hug him for a bit longer.
"…though…could you…sleep next to me tonight…?" she blushed a little bit in embarrassment. "…I'm still…afraid…"
Demi blushed slightly as well, but he didn't waver. "...of course, Oblivion..." he nodded.
Jill gave a yawn, getting up pretty early in the morning before the sunrise, and she made herself some coffee. Tails Doll gave Tasha company last evening when they went to sleep, so she was alone for a good portion of the morning as she simply sipped coffee and watched the sun rise in the horizon of her window. She was gathering her thoughts together to think before she'd have to push them aside again to get through the day. Tasha was struggling a little bit now and then since she's been staying here, and Jill has provided her with the support she needed, along with Sonia whenever she was over, but for the most part, Jill was caring for Tasha when she needed help.
She sighed. Tasha had someone here for her during her time of need, but when Jill had been pregnant with Joy… it was anything but easy. It was probably one of the hardest times for Jill, along with the year she spent being tormented by Deity in her teenage years.
Then Jill shook those thoughts aside. She didn't want to grow bitter against the ones who were giving her just as much support in her time of misery. Besides, it was her own fault running away. She had the choice to stay with Tails and the boys despite what happened, and could've had support…
Anyhow, at that point, a knock on the door came that interrupted her thoughts. Jill looked over at the door, and tilted her head. Who would be coming over this early?
She stood up and went to answer the door. When she opened it, she stopped…and then gave a dry look. "…oh…it's you."
"...well, good morning to you too." With a huff, Trash folded his arms, as he stood in the doorway. "The Captain wanted me to check up on ya."
Jill sighed, and turned to walk away. "…come in then, I suppose…"
With a huff of his own, Trash entered the apartment. Jill went back to her seat by her window, sighing again as she sipped her coffee.
"...so, how are the days going, hm?" Trash hummed, as he took a seat a smaller distance away from her.
"…decent…" Jill answered.
"...well, guess that's good." Trash remarked.
Jill just sipped her coffee again in silence.
"...so... what's your take on this whole thing?" Trash eventually remarked.
Jill simply glanced at him long and hard.
Then she turned away. "…you don't want to know."
"...no, you know what?" Trash hummed. "I think I want to know. All this business going on... especially after that stunt Novagod pulled off back then... I wanna know what the hell we're gonna have to deal with."
"…You didn't seem willing to listen to anything I say before…is what happened really what calls for it now…?" Jill hummed, sipping more of her coffee.
"...if it weren't for you, me and Brawn would've died... or worse." Trash remarked. "...y'know there's a reason I haven't been harassing you like I did when this whole... thing started. I've been thinking, and... yeah. I was a dumbass for doin' what I did." He huffed. "...funny how almost dyin' forces ya to just look at yourself, huh..."
"…actually dying is even worse…" Jill hummed nonchalantly, sipping more of her coffee.
Trash blinked, as he looked back at her. "...is that supposed to be sarcasm or something?" he assumed.
"…I'm actually being honest; dying is worse…" Jill murmured.
Trash just looked at her...
...and then he glanced aside. "...well... yeah, that should be a given. Once you die... that's just it; game over. You don't get a second chance..."
Jill actually chuckled at that, but made no other response, sipping more of her coffee. If only he knew.
"...but still..." He glanced seriously at Jill. "...I'd like to know more about... whatever the hell Novagod's got cooked up wherever she's hiding. You seem to know, so..."
Jill quieted down, setting her cup of coffee in her lap between her hands.
"…you're not aware of this, but she's not the first Novagod to be doing this."
Trash tilted his head. "...really?" He folded his arms. "I knew the Novagods were a bunch of occult weirdos, but... not to this kinda extent..."
Jill tensed a bit, holding the cup tightly.
"…none of them…compare to this one…"
And she held the cup so tightly she actually shattered the cup in her lap. This startled her, though thankfully she had finished her coffee and none spilled on her when she shattered the cup.
Trash reeled a touch back. "Geez! You okay, there?"
Jill just closed her eyes. "…I'll be fine."
"...well... if you talk more about this Novagod creep, chances are you might not be." he remarked, as he rubbed his neck.
Jill hissed a little through clenched teeth. "…oooh…you have no idea…"
Then she sighed. "But for the most part, I can rest easy…so I'll be able to keep my composure for the most part."
She looked at Trash. "Deity Novagod. He's either a great uncle or just an uncle to Patricia Novagod, but I'm pretty sure that name isn't going to ring any bells for you. He was probably the least well known Novagod to exist to the public."
Trash hummed. "...no kidding. I've only really heard about Patricia and her brother, Bismark before."
"…but Deity's the one who invented that godforsaken power…"
Jill looked seriously at Trash. "But before I really go any farther, I hope you know this is actually classified information. Only the Commander herself actually knows all of this info…"
Trash blinked. "...seriously? Not even the Captain or the Admiral know this shit?" he uttered.
Jill shook her head. "The Admiral has…some idea…but he doesn't know the full brunt of it; not like the Commander."
"...right..." Trash murmured.
"…Deity Novagod created what is called Corruption. It's a destructive force that tears you apart from the inside out, and it doesn't stop there…it's been known to bring out the dead, bring out the absolute worst in those that have been infected…it can manipulate others with darkness and illusions…and it just all around gives you nightmares if you've ever come into contact with it…"
Jill closed her eyes again. "…which…I have plenty experience of…"
Trash was silent, though he looked at her with wide eyes as she explained.
"…but Corruption isn't alone…there are other forces out there that combat it."
Jill looked up at him. "One is the complete opposite of Corruption, called Purity. It's a holy power that can heal, and for the most part, undo whatever taint the Corruption has done. It's also unstable in its own way, just like Corruption, and both powers need very able users to keep themselves from being overtaken. The only upside is that with Purity…it's less destructive…but just as difficult to control under stress…"
"…and then there is Unity. It was created by somehow mixing the two powers together, with Chaos Energy as its anchor to keep them together and balanced. It's much easier to control since there's so much at work…but even Unity has its flaws…"
Jill looked down at her hand. "…I wield Unity."
Trash's eyes narrowed. "...so... that darkness shit that Novagod threw around was Corruption... and you used Unity to repel her, right?"
"Right," Jill answered.
"...are there others who can use these different powers?" Trash hummed, as he rubbed his neck.
"…That…would take a while to explain…" Jill mumbled.
"...I can settle for the cliff notes." Trash noted.
"…you've met Callous…" Jill murmured. "…but believe it or not, we used to be two separate beings. She came about because Deity tore a part of my soul out, and with Corruption, concocted her up. She used to use Corruption, but now that she's a part of me, she can use Unity the same as me."
"...huh..." Trash just tilted his head a touch.
"…Metal Sonic…but I don't even trust you knowing any more than that," And Jill glared at him.
Trash just looked back at her with a small nod. "...alright."
"…and….and my daughter can use Purity…"
At that, Jill placed her face into her hand to hide any expression she made from Trash, which was quite a hurt one. Seeing this, Trash narrowed his eyes in concern. When Jill regained composure again, she sighed and looked at him with a serious look again.
"As far as I know, they are the only ones that wield any of those energies, besides Patricia and her growing army," she went on.
"...wait... did you say army?" Trash uttered with a surprised look.
"…yes," Jill answered.
"...son of a..." Trash rubbed his head with narrowed eyes. "...how many are we talking?"
She sighed. "…at this point…countless numbers…"
"...son of a..." He grew worried. "...and if they all got that crazy ability... and they know about Safe Haven..."
Jill just looked at him in solemn silence. She had already known this fact for a long time.
Trash just hissed as he realized this. "...shit... this isn't good at all..."
"…you're telling me…" Jill mumbled. "…and there's no real way to stop them, unless you can use Purity or Unity…which…well, no one else can use."
Then she closed her eyes, "…or if you were a warrior like Spiel."
Trash blinked. "...Spiel? Who's that?"
"…He was a co-founder of Safe Haven, but he passed away two years ago," Jill mentioned. "His tombstone is by the harbor."
"...is that right..." Trash just folded his arms.
"…he didn't use any powers…but he was more than capable of fighting the Corrupted…that's all I can say," Jill said.
"...I see..." Trash seemed thoughtful.
"…is there anything else you need to know?" Jill hummed, deciding to pick up the pieces of her coffee mug that she had shattered earlier.
"...well... can't really say I can think of much else..." Trash murmured, as he closed his eyes. "...but... does anyone but you know about this army... and that they could probably overrun this island?"
"…only my friends, who are currently busy with something else at the moment…and they would be too far away to come to our aid…" Jill spoke, standing up with the shattered pieces of mug in her hands. "…we will have to defend ourselves when the time comes…which, I might add, is quite possibly soon…"
"...damn..." Trash glanced aside with a narrowed gaze.
Jill left to throw the pieces of the mug away, figuring that she wasn't going to tell Trash she had a plan, or, was at least working on one. At the very least, Trash wasn't going to harass her anymore…which was relieving, quite honestly. The last thing she needed was him to be an irritable liability to whatever she needed to do.
"...well... I should head off, now..." Trash murmured, as he rose from where he had been sitting.
"…right…" Jill spoke.
After a long day of traveling yesterday, many of Vanessa's group had slept in for a good part of this morning. They were all pretty exhausted the day before, and considering no one had gotten much sleep the night before last, they needed it. The only ones who were actually awake this early in the morning were Snap, since he was a robot that did not require sleep, and Vanessa, since she kept watch around camp while Snap surveyed the farther perimeters outside.
Eventually, one of those asleep woke up with a yawn, and Kristine sat up drowsily. This was a bit early for her, but she had a strange dream that caused her to wake up fairly early, and the more awake she became, the more bewildered she was by the dream. While she rubbed her eyes, Vanessa glanced over to notice she was up.
"Sleep well?" Vanessa hummed.
"For the most part…" Kristine got up and sat on the log next to Vanessa, sitting by the fire to warm up.
Vanessa smiled, and just tended to the fire to bring up the flames a bit more, adding more heat.
"…I had a weird dream…"
Vanessa looked over to Kristine, and saw she was definitely confused. "About what?" Vanessa asked.
"Well…hm…how do I explain it…?" Kristine scratched the back of her head. "…you remember when Milo wandered off to think on his own and I followed him?"
"M-hm," Vanessa answered curiously.
"…he admitted that he, y'know, had these feelings for me."
"Really now?" Vanessa hummed again, smiling as she looked over at Kristine. "And where is this going to go?"
"Well, I think I had a dream based on that…" Kristine said, looking over at Vanessa. "I remember him being there, and I was walking around with him talking about…something…I don't remember what. We started walking to somewhere actually really pretty looking…"
There was a distant look in Kristine's eye that Vanessa noticed while she continued. "It kinda felt like it was underwater…but we both could breathe. Everything felt so light, and everything was basked in this beautiful blue glow; again, like everything was underwater or something…and we were wandering around these ruins of some kind…don't know what that was really about but I felt at…peace…"
"…I remember Milo saying something along the lines of…anything can happen in dreams…once you realize it's a dream, you can control it…and make it anything you want to be…which is what turned into that underwater looking place I wandered with him."
Kristine sat her chin on her palm, looking even more dazed as she continued to talk about the dream she had. "…there was some glowing energies that were floating around, and when I followed them with my eyes, I remember looking back at Milo and I just stared at him while those energy things fluttered around us…" she closed her eyes softly.
"…it's…kinda blurry at that point, but I remember feeling…a strange bliss."
Vanessa just smiled more watching the way Kristine was just lost in thought as she described her dream. Slowly, a smile crept across Kristine's face too and maybe even a faint blush across her face. She felt warm all over without realizing it exactly, still lost in thought about that dream filled with soft, tender sensations. She had never felt anything like that dream before, and though she couldn't remember much of the images, she still remembered the feelings from it, which warmed her up far more than the fire was.
"So, I'm guessing that you enjoyed the dream then, despite how 'weird' it was?" Vanessa asking that snapped Kristine out of her day dream startlingly.
"Uh…y-yeah—I mean…" Kristine yawned, and rubbed her eyes again. "…dreams mean something, right Vanessa?"
"I'm no expert on that, but from what I hear, they are a result of the things we tuck away into our subconscious," Vanessa replied, poking at the fire with a stick again.
"…does the dream mean that I might…y'know…like him back…?"
"Well, I think that's up to you to determine, isn't it?" Vanessa figured, looking back at her. "I can't answer that; you're the only one that would truly know the answer for yourself."
Kristine nodded, looking at the fire unsurely.
"…just as long as this doesn't interfere with your training, think on it; no need to make any snap decisions," Vanessa added as advice.
Kristine looked over at Vanessa for a long time.
"…what about Jack's father? Did you love him?"
Vanessa jolted at that question, and gawked over at Kristine for what she asked. Kristine actually flinched when Vanessa reacted like that, wondering if she shouldn't have asked. "I-I mean…uh…"
Vanessa just blinked, and then looked at the fire. Her mood dampened a bit on the depressed end, but not too much to really put any kind of tension in the air. "…that's…a complicated thing to explain… Kristine…" and she closed her eyes. "…us Leoniels don't exactly know what… 'love' is. The only ones that know are Jack, because of the way I raised him…and apparently my dead brother because it sounds like he had died the second time because of love…"
"…but…I'm asking you…" Kristine pointed out.
"…no…I don't think I loved Jack's father, unfortunately…especially when his idea of revenge was to rape me for what I did to his clan, thus in turn conceiving Jack…" Vanessa admitted. "…but…then again, I was a very confused type of person back then, so I can't really answer that question…"
"…but…I can at least admit that I feel guilty for his death at…my father's hand."
Kristine looked at Vanessa while she grew solemn, and lost in her own kind of thought. "…if I had run away the same way I did…but with his father…both of us intent on raising the child to be nothing like the Leoniels…I've always wondered how things would've gone…if Jack had a father to look up to and to connect with. Throughout the years I've raised Jack, I've always thought about if his father would've been proud to see him grow up the way he did…or to see how Jack would've turned out with his influence…"
It was Vanessa's turn to look at the ground this time. "…I've even wondered what that would've meant between me and him to be honest…we weren't exactly on friendly terms…but he was willing to take the child if it had not been a lion…at least he still saw life as a precious thing…something that baffled me, as a trained killer from my own birth."
"…at the very least…I know we'd stick together for Jack's sake…and who knows…maybe over time, we could've ended up growing to love each other, or he probably would've left when he felt Jack didn't need him anymore…" Vanessa mumbled in supposing.
"…but to answer your question," Vanessa finally looked up at Kristine then, trying not to seem so serious, "I don't think I loved his father…to be honest, I've never had the benefit of loving someone in that aspect. The only love I've ever known is a motherly love for Jack."
As the two of them spoke, one figure that had woken up a while ago, but hadn't budged from where he laid, was Jack; simply lying there as he heard them talking about this.
"…but instead of wasting time getting caught up wondering about that, I did what I had to do to raise Jack…" Vanessa answered.
"…I see…" Kristine answered.
Jack just remained silent as he listened in on this. Kristine looked at Vanessa for a moment longer, and stood up, walking over to Vanessa. Jack glanced towards her, but made sure that it seemed like he was still asleep.
Vanessa simply looked up at Kristine with a hum.
"…I'm sorry…" Kristine finally said, looking rather sad.
"Sorry for what?" Vanessa asked curiously.
"…for…your childhood…" Kristine murmured, looking away from Vanessa.
Vanessa actually smiled warm-heartedly, and she chuckled. "Oh, that's alright Kristine…there's no need to apologize for something like that; it's all in the past now."
Still, Jack remained silent, a thoughtful look crossing his face.
"I suppose we ought to start getting everyone up," Vanessa suggested.
Hearing that, Jack closed his eyes again to pretend to be asleep.
Kristine then went around to everyone. "Okay guys, time to wake up!"
"...already...?" moaned Striker, rubbing his eyes.
With a light groan, Nage slowly sat up.
"...haah... that time, already...?" Guts murmured as he rubbed his eyes a bit.
Ani groaned, but was able to get up. Then she went over and shook Milo. "Hey, time to get up."
At first he didn't even budge.
Ani blinked. "…Milo?" She shook him harder, yelling in his ear. "Hey, wake up sleepy head!"
"…hrm…?" Milo finally hummed groggily, twitching a bit.
Yawning softly, Jack eventually 'woke up'; rubbing his eyes as he sat up as well. "...nh..."
"Good, everyone's getting up," Vanessa said. "In a little bit, we'll cook up breakfast."
"...sounds good to me," Milo hummed, and then he looked over at Kristine. For some strange reason, they stared at each other...
...and then, Kristine blushed and turned away. "I'm gonna find firewood!" And like that, she took off.
Jack just rubbed his eyes more. "...nh..."
"Guess you didn't get lots of sleep last night, huh?" Nage assumed as she glanced over at Jack.
"Have a bad dream, Jack?" Striker asked.
"...I dunno..." Jack remarked in response.
Vanessa hummed wonderingly at this.
Blinking, Jack glanced at Vanessa. "...something wrong?"
"Oh, nothing's wrong, son," Vanessa said with a smile. "Now, who wants to help cook breakfast this morning?"
"...I could give it a shot!" Jack suggested.
"I'll help too," Milo offered.
"Wonderful," Vanessa responded cheerfully.
"Alright! Let's get to it!" Jack said with a grin.
...well, I guess cooking's a good substitute for giving girls good dreams. a familiar voice remarked in Milo's head.
Wh-Wha? I-I... Milo was silent for a bit. Then...
...I don't know what you're talking about...
Clearly you should. Did you even hear anything Kristine told Vanessa?
No, I was asleep...wait, Kristine was talking to Vanessa?
Yup. Told her about this dream she had... and you were in it.
Milo gulped then. Well...er... And he started to blush. ...what...was the dream about?
Well, you guys were walking and talking, and then it seemed like you were underwater, and glowing energies surrounded you as she gazed at you... and, if I'm not mistaken, she said that she felt 'a strange bliss'. I'm sure you know what that means.
...um... And Milo's blush worsened.
Oho? Don't tell me that you know what the dream was about? Do tell; was it some kind of metaphor, hm?
N-no! It's not that! I-uh...
Well, if it isn't that, why are even your thoughts getting flustered, hm?
I-I… And Milo was blushing so badly that everyone else started to notice to some wonder.
...hey. People are staring. And a chuckle followed.
Milo jumped and tried to mind his own business, with everyone just tilting their heads at him.
"Milo, you okay?" Ani asked.
"I'm fine…" Milo insisted.
"...are you sure?" Jack uttered with a tilted head.
You know, I'm not so sure that you are.
"…Yeah…I just…y'know…have a sunburn…" Milo muttered.
Striker blinked at that…and then a small smile grew.
...ooh? I think someone's onto ya.
Milo just looked away and went back to his work. Striker also didn't say anything, but he continued to smile.
Noticing that, Jack blinked. "...Striker? What's up?"
"Oh, it's nothing," Striker said, but he kept smiling.
"...okay..." Jack blinked, as he tilted his head a bit; his gaze not leaving Striker.
Meanwhile, with Kristine, she kept wandering, half-heartedly looking for the firewood, but mainly thinking about that dream she had, and why she felt so awkward looking at Milo. It was the first time she was silent while she was by herself; usually she would talk to herself aloud, but this time, she was deep in thought.
So deep in thought, in fact, that she wouldn't yet notice the dark figures slowly slithering up after her...
She kept wondering if she actually felt something for Milo or not...
...and then suddenly, she felt uncomfortable.
"...end of the line, toots." And suddenly, dark figures erupted around her; surrounding her.
Kristine stopped in her tracks, her eyes widening nervously. Surrounding her were lions; their eyes a golden, wicked hue as darkness oozed off their bodies. They weren't just any lions, though; they were Leoniels, the very same that had once hounded her before she had met Vanessa's group. She backed away slowly, growing more uneasy.
"Aaaw, look at that; the little girl's afraid of us." one of the lions sneered, as they began circling her.
"Well, she better be... she couldn't even look at Astaroth without breaking into a wild dash." another of them chuckled.
"…stop it…" she growled.
"And what're you gonna do about it, huh?" one of them laughed.
"Hey, how about we turn her?" another remarked, as he stepped closer to Kristine. "I'm sure she'd love it once we introduced her to this stuff..."
Kristine stepped back even more. "No! Don't try me! You'll regret it!"
"Oh, listen to the tough girl, huh?" The lions laughed mockingly as they kept stepping closer to her.
"What're you gonna do to stop us, huh? Oh wait, you can't." With a mocking chuckle, one of the lions suddenly pushed Kristine roughly to the ground.
Kristine yelped when they pushed her down.
"...y'know, I honestly can't decide..." As they surrounded her, the lions all smirked. "...do we just corrupt her right away... or do we catch up on old times and warm her up a bit?"
"I'd think that'd be obvious..." another lion chuckled in response. "...we just do both at the same time. I doubt she'd mind once we've started..."
A scream got caught in Kristine's throat, choking her. These guys were more intimidating, and because she didn't have the power to combat Corruption…
…suddenly, though, a beam shot out at them. "Back away from her!"
The lions suddenly ducked away from the beam, as they glared at the one who had shot at them. Two other lions jumped in front of Kristine; one of them was Milo, and he looked down at her worriedly. "Are you alright?"
"…y-yeah…" Kristine uttered, ashamed that she had to be saved.
The other was Jack, who glared at the lions whilst clenching his hands. "...more Leoniels... and they're Corrupted, too!"
"...hey... what's with this kid?" one of the lions hissed, as he looked Jack up and down. "He looks like he could pass off as one of us... but I've never seen anyone like him..."
"...y'know..." another lion chimed in. "...he kinda... reminds me of Astaroth..."
Jack's eyes narrowed as he glared at them. "...you don't wanna make that comparison." he warned.
"Yeah, I wouldn't do that," Milo agreed. "Now back off…or we'll use force."
The lions just hissed. "...you're just kids! The hell could you do to us?!"
"...lots of things." Jack noted, as he glanced at one lion... and he hurled a small spark of pale-green energy towards him.
The spark, as it turned out, suddenly combusted into a flare of Purity which knocked that lion back; causing him to yelp in pain. "SHIT! That hurts, goddamn it!"
"Again, we're gonna warn you; don't try us," Milo said firmly.
The lions looked among each other... and then they just glared back at them. "...try THIS!" And they suddenly leapt straight at Jack and Milo; throwing powerful punches.
The ones going for Jack, though, were met with his own palms blocking the punches; though just narrowly. "...don't take them lightly, Milo! They're still gonna be really strong!" he warned, as he had some Purity seep through his palms to make the lions stagger back, before he kicked them away.
Milo tried blocking off the punches, and staying by Kristine, trying to keep her away from them. That meant that Jack had to knock the lions back; and even with Purity, he still had to face off against lions that had been trained under Astaroth's watchful eye. The blows exchanged were powerful, but neither side would budge a single inch; Jack trying to push them away from Milo and Kristine, and the lions attempting to knock Jack out of their way. Jack seemed to be faring better than Milo, because they were slowly overpowering him, as well as tiring him out.
He was still determined, though, to keep them away from Kristine.
However, one of the lions dealing with Jack noticed that Milo was tiring from this... and with a smirk, he had made a feint to make it seem like he was going to strike Jack from the side, so when he blocked, he dashed around him from the other side. Jack couldn't react in time to stop the lion from rushing over to Milo, and brutally swinging a fist at his face while he was occupied.
Even if Milo had seen him coming, he was unable to stop him, and the punch at his face sent him to the ground harshly.
"Milo!" Kristine actually gasped when she saw Milo hit the ground.
However, that soon led to the lions swarming Kristine; grabbing her before holding her up so Jack could see her. "Alright, kid, end of the line!"
Noticing that, Jack stopped, as his eyes widened. When he did that, though, two of the lions quickly pinned Milo down as well, while the rest of the lions circled around Jack. "...don't you hurt her..."
"Oh, we're not gonna..." one of the lions chuckled, as he held his hand close to Kristine's cheek; his palm having Corruption ooze from it. "...but if you put up any kind of fight, well... we can't guarantee her safety."
Milo looked at that in fear, and though he wanted to struggle, he stayed put for Kristine's sake, who was nervously eying the goo in the guy's palm.
Jack slowly clenched his hands as he looked back at Kristine... but with a sigh of defeat, he just closed his eyes...
...in time for one of the lions to harshly punch him in the gut; making him keel over as his eyes widen. "Hah! That's for that weird flashbang ya did earlier!" the lion who punched him sneered, before the surrounding lions all began harshly beating on Jack.
"…J-Jack…" Milo uttered weakly. He didn't like seeing him get beaten down like this.
Jack just took the blows without a single sound escaping his lips; even as he was visibly pained from the brutal pummeling.
"Hey, hey, this kid's got some guts!" one of the lions laughed, as he threw a harsh kick at Jack's back. "Let's make him scream! Crack some bones and cut him up a bunch!"
"…s-stop!" Milo uttered. "Look, don't beat up on him! If you need someone to beat up, beat me!"
Kristine just gawked at Milo for volunteering like that.
The lions just laughed, as one of them shot a look at Milo. "Well, why didn't you say so to begin with?!" And a few of them suddenly ran up to start beating Milo up too, while a group still kept beating Jack up.
The ones holding Kristine just laughed at this. "What a dumbass... the hell does he think he'd accomplish?"
Kristine just bit her lip, watching as the two boys were being wailed on.
With a chuckle, the lion glanced back at Kristine. "...so, what to do next, huh...?" With a smirk, he moved his hand closer to her. "...maybe we just corrupt the lot of ya, and then have you guys corrupt those other guys you're traveling with?"
Kristine shook her head with widening eyes. "…N-No…"
"Aaaaw, don't be afraid... it only hurts for the first couple of seconds. Then you get used to it, and then... man, is it a rush." the lion chuckled.
"Hell, that one lion guy?" One of the lions motioned to Jack was he was beaten up more. "I've seen someone else like him back at HQ... guess that means he's been corrupted before. Why don't we see how well he takes being corrupted again?"
"And what about the pipsqueak?" The first lion suddenly grew a wicked smirk. "Oh, I get it... how about we corrupt him first, and then have him corrupt you, eh?"
"No!" Kristine yelped.
Then suddenly…there was an explosion. Nearby.
It didn't hit anyone, but it was near enough to steal attention away. It also served to stop the beatdowns, as the lions glanced towards what could have caused the explosion. Milo coughed from the rough beating they gave him, but he was still able to look up.
Suddenly, another explosion happened…and this was much closer; nearly blowing away the Leoniels.
Quickly, the lions began backing away; though they stuck closely to Jack, Milo and Kristine. "The hell?! Is someone firing rockets?!"
Jack's eyes, though they were dull from the pain, lit up somewhat as he gazed ahead.
When the explosion cleared…someone was standing there. Someone that Milo and Jack instantly recognized.
And Jack's expression brightened intensely as he saw this figure. "...ah... Arsenic...!"
The lions growled. "...hey!" one of them called to Arsenic. "The hell are you playing at?!"
"Who does this guy think he is, playing with explosives like that...?" another lion chimed in with a growl.
Arsenic simply stood there, not really looking at anyone.
Then, a smirk crossed across her face. "I could say the same thing about you dweebs messing with Corruption. It isn't something people should play around with."
With a snarl, one of the lions stepped forward. "...watch it, pal." he remarked, before he hurled a sphere of Corruption straight at her.
Arsenic's hand shot up, deflecting the Corruption up into the air by some strange force. And this made the lion just gawk. "...the hell...?!"
"…You guys think you control everything by Corruption?" Arsenic hummed. "Well, I know how to control the particles that make up everything in our world. I'd say I still might have more of an advantage than you."
She shot a few firebolts at the Leoniels and blasted them away with explosions. Milo put up a barrier of Purity that protected him and Kristine from the explosions. Jack just crossed his arms as the explosions blew away the Leoniels; scattering them around the area.
"...kkh... this guy's tough...!" one of the lions uttered, as he glared at Arsenic. "Fuckin' ratboy...!"
"Oh yeah, newsflash," Arsenic said, suddenly vanishing somehow.
Then she reappeared behind the Leoniel that was talking to her. "I'm a girl."
And with that, she socked him from behind. "GAH!" And he fell to the ground; gritting his teeth.
Jack just shot a look back at her with wide eyes. "Wow... Arsenic! How'd you do that?!" he sputtered with wide eyes.
"I've always been able to do that…but I couldn't exhort too much from myself," Arsenic said. Then her smirk grew. "But now…you bastards are in for it if you don't bail now."
The lions all glared back at her; growling in silence.
Arsenic's smirk fell, becoming an angry look directed at them. "You Leoniels think you're high and mighty…but not even Corruption is going to stop you from killing each other in the end; in fact, it's going to speed that process up. Corruption's just going to consume you from the inside out, without you knowing about it until the very last second."
"So do yourselves a favor by prolonging the time you have to live and not wasting ours."
One of the lions growled. "...shut your goddamn mouth!" he roared, as he shot towards Arsenic... but his hand was suddenly grabbed before he could even throw a punch.
"...you get away from her." Jack uttered as he looked seriously at this Leoniel; hand firmly clenched around the lion's arm.
Milo gawked at that. So did Kristine.
"...you get your hands off-!" the lion began, but when Purity began shining from Jack's palm, he cried out.
"...I'm not warning you a second time." Jack noted, as his eyes narrowed. "Leave."
Milo walked closer to Kristine, watching the lions carefully.
Finally, the lion managed to push himself away from Jack; backing off. "...kkh... this ain't over, kid..." he growled, as the Leoniels began sinking into the dark. "...not by a long goddamn shot...!" And with that, they were gone.
Watching them vanish, Jack just breathed out, as he closed his eyes. "...phew..."
"…Milo…I'm sorry…"
"Huh?" Milo looked over at Kristine, who was looking away shamefully.
"…I didn't try to fight them. I just sat there and let them talk at me…" Kristine muttered. "…they would've Corrupted me if you hadn't come along."
"Don't blame yourself," Arsenic suddenly spoke up.
Jack simply nodded. "...I'm sure they were scary... you don't have to be sorry, Kristine..."
When Milo set a hand on Kristine's shoulder, she looked up at him finally. "It's okay…you don't need to be embarrassed," Milo assured her.
"…o-okay…" Kristine uttered.
Smiling a bit, Jack eventually looked away from Milo and Kristine; looking towards Arsenic. Arsenic turned to Jack, smiling. "…Jack…"
"Hrm?" Kristine looked over to watch them, and so did Milo.
"...Arsenic..." With a bright smile, Jack just ran right up to her, and wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug. "...it's great to see you again, Arsenic!"
"Oh Jack…" Arsenic hugged Jack back dearly and just as tightly.
"…uh…" Kristine looked at Milo. "…what's their story?" she whispered.
"…I'll tell you later…" Milo whispered back.
Looking back at Arsenic, Jack smiled brightly. "...wow... you look great!" he spoke. "Did the operation go well, Arsenic?"
"Yeah, I feel…so much better." Arsenic said, holding her chest. "There's even a cool looking scar on my chest from it!"
"Wow, really?" Jack's eyes widened a bit. "Man, that sounds so cool!" he uttered with a growing smile.
"It definitely seems like you have more energy," Milo noted.
"I feel like I have more energy," Arsenic added.
"Alright!" Jack uttered, as he just looked at Arsenic. "...man... I really missed you, Arsenic."
Arsenic hugged Jack. "I missed you too." And Jack hugged her back in return.
Milo and Kristine just kept watching them. Kristine especially started blushing when she looked at Milo when he wasn't aware of it.
"...aah, man!" With a wide smile, Jack looked at Arsenic. "We have to let the others know that you're alright again, Arsenic!"
"Are you planning to come with the group again?" Milo asked Arsenic.
"Yeah. I'm gonna help you guys out now," Arsenic said. "So having the others know I'm okay would probably be a good thing. Let's go."
Jack grinned, as he took her hand, before leading her away. "C'mon, they're over here!"
Arsenic followed Jack, and Milo took Kristine's hand to help her up, which made Kristine blush even more.
"…um…Kristine…are you alright?" Milo asked.
Kristine stared at him, and blushed even more. Milo started blushing too, and he didn't even realize that he was still holding her hand.
"Guys, come on!" Jack called from further away.
"Oh, r-right!" Milo and Kristine both jumped and then headed off where Arsenic and Jack went.
When they returned to the camp, the first one to spot them was Nage... and her eyes shot wide open. "...holy...! GUYS! Guys, you've gotta see this!" she called out. "It's... it's Arsenic! She's back, you guys!"
"Arsenic?!" Both Striker and Ani jumped up, and they brightened. Then they came over and threw their arms around Arsenic.
"Wh-whoa..." That surprised Arsenic. "I didn't realize I was that missed."
"Are you kidding?!" Nage uttered with a grin as she ran over to hug her too. "We've been waiting for you forever!"
Jack just smiled as he rubbed his neck. "They're right, too. We've all missed you, Arsenic."
"Yes, we have," Vanessa said with a smile. "Welcome back."
"Thanks," Arsenic chuckled, while she was getting hugged.
With a small grin, Guts rubbed his neck. "Guess the band's all back together, huh?"
"Yeah!" Striker laughed.
Milo just smiled at all of this, and Kristine simply stared.
It was about time for Arsenic to notice Kristine too, as everyone finished hugging her. She walked up to her afterward.
"…so…um…it's good to see you?" Kristine murmured.
Arsenic just stared at her. Then she sighed. "I don't think you remember me."
"Huh?!" Kristine jumped at that. "Sure I do!"
"You didn't seem to notice me very much the first time you joined the group though," Arsenic pointed out.
"...w-well, uh... there was lots of things happening around that time..." Nage noted with a small cough as she glanced away.
"…and…maybe I was focused on something else then…" Kristine muttered sheepishly, scratching the back of her head.
Arsenic just chuckled. "Don't worry about it…I don't take offense to it."
And Nage heaved a small sigh of relief.
"Besides, you guys should know I'm used to being ignored; I'm still getting used to actually having friends," Arsenic mentioned.
"...well, you got us." Jack noted as he hugged Arsenic. "With us, I'm sure you'll get used to having friends really fast."
Arsenic chuckled at that, hugging him back.
"You're just in time for breakfast too," Vanessa said.
"Yeah, we were just setting things up." Guts hummed. "It's more than enough for everyone."
"Sounds great; let's eat," Arsenic said.
Yay! Arsenic is back!
