Guardian

by yasha012

I used to want to save existence... I saw it as this beautiful place, capable of fostering life in all of its many forms. A place with the potential to nurture so much Light. But the closer I got to it... the more I fought for it… the better I could see the Darkness waiting within… the evil we would all rather forget. (Part 4 of the Hero series; sequel to "Eternal Shadow Falls".)

137. Sisterhood

Disclaimer: I hereby disclaim all rights to all characters (save for those of my own creation) in this increasingly tense time… especially for the one who shows their love so aggressively.

~保護者~

"Sisterhood"

~保護者~

Alana sighed softly to herself and leaned her head back against the wall. She was sitting beside Kath in the hallway just outside of the medical ward. They, along with Arkiri, Sein, and Yareis were all awaiting news about Calypso's fate. Kath had been painfully silent for some time now, saying nothing to anyone. The fact that everyone else had been just as silent was starting to… get to her. She was used to being quiet herself, sure, but she wasn't used to that being the case for everyone around her as well. Especially not Sein. The stress was eating everyone alive and she didn't… like that.

"I…" Sein turned to everyone, frowning. "I might have a plan. I'm sure I can do it, but it… it's the best way I know to ensure that she lives."

Without looking at him, Kath simply directed, "Explain."

"Well, Immortals are capable of tying someone else's life to their own. I think I can do that. Maybe not for more than just her, but she might need it to get through this," Sein explained quickly. "If I can…"

Alana immediately understood. So long as he does not permanently die… neither will she. "It may be her best chance," she agreed quietly. "I believe it is a good idea."

Kath was silent for a time before also speaking. "You are certain you know how to do this?" he eventually asked.

"I think so," Sein murmured in reply. "Even then, I… I have to figure it out either way."

"It is worth a try," Alana said. "I will aid in any way I can, if necessary." She stood, motioning for Sein to do the same. "Come, there is not much time."

Sein quickly stood with her and stepped into the medical ward, pointedly walking directly over to where Calypso was. This better work. It has to.

The pair set to work together for close to ten minutes, pooling their energies together with great effort to try and accomplish their task. Eventually, Alana hesitantly pulled her hands away. "Did it work, Sein? Do you feel her life force?"

Sein nodded slowly, letting his hands rest on the side of the bed as a few tears slipped from his eyes. "Yeah. I… I feel it. It worked."

Relief flooded through Alana. "That is… That is wonderful news. We must tell the others."

"I need a second. Could you tell them for me?" Sein asked, choking up briefly.

"Of course. I will be back." Alana quietly hurried out of the room, closing the doors behind her.

Sein felt his arms waver and he stared at Calypso, fresh tears flowing as a smile grew onto his face. "You'll live, Calypso. Nobody has to lose you." He took a moment to collect himself, wiping at his eyes and standing up straight again. "I care too much to let anyone take you from us." With all of this said, the hawk turned and walked back to join his wife, content in the knowledge that she would be okay in the end.

Kath looked over at him when he approached, then looked away with a small, "Thank you."

"You would have done the same," Sein murmured in response. "I was just trying to do the right thing."

"You did well."

Yareis laughed and smiled openly. "I'm glad you did it, too. Damn good thing."

"It definitely is," Arkiri said in response. "I'm pleased to say that someone close enough to be family has been saved. Tarin will be happy to hear this."

This matter being settled, Alana was suddenly reminded of another worry that had been eating at her. "Sein… now that she is safe, is there any way we can help with Jet?"

Sein's face grew more serious at this, frowning in thought. "I… I'm not sure. I can try to go talk to him."

"How?" Alana asked. "We do not even know where he is, Sein. We-" She paused. Her senses strained. After a long moment of silence, she hesitantly ventured, "Did… you feel that?"

"Yeah," Sein murmured in response, slowly nodding. "I felt it."

Before she could even ask, Kath frowned and muttered, "That emanated from that world he crafted. The wintry one, A'latria."

"Why would he be altering reality there?" Alana wondered aloud, her concern growing.

Sein crossed his arms. "Something is wrong," he answered. "Absolutely."

"Go check it out," Alana quickly decided. "I will stay here, in case he returns to this place a second time."

"You cannot teleport straight onto that world if he does not allow it," Kath was quick to inform. "I sensed that when I visited. You may have to fly the rest of the way, after reaching a certain point."

"Got it. Anything else?" Sein questioned.

"Exercise caution," Alana murmured, as much as it pained her to. "We do not know what sort of mental state he is in… or how he will act toward you. Given the Void's influence and what he just went through in that awful place…" She trailed off, unable to finish.

Sein nodded slowly. "That's what I was planning to do. I'll do my best."

Alana gave him a quick hug. "We will see you again soon, Sein."

He returned the hug gently before pulling back. "I'll return soon." Sein then teleported away, finding himself some distance from A'latria. Already he could tell that things were… different from what they should be. It was… unsettling to say the least. He couldn't just stay here, so he began flying toward the planet.

Abruptly, a thread of mental connection reached out to him, closely followed by a voice. "Sein."

Sein didn't stop his movement, a faint frown on his face. "Yes? Who is this?"

"My name is Aethra," the voice replied warmly. "I trust you remember hearing from me once before."

"I do," Sein answered. "Thank you for the help you've provided us. It's… appreciated."

"Of course. But, please, though your words honor me, we must focus. There is something you must know." She audibly sighed before continuing. "The place where you located your son after his abduction has been destroyed. Petry and Astra are no more, and never will be again. This is something your son must be told. It may stabilize his behavior enough for you to speak with him nearly as well as normal."

"Was it the both of you that did this?" Sein questioned further.

"It was not," Aethra explained freely. "My dear friend, Rusen, is largely behind this, although I aided him to a minor degree with removing Petry from existence. Without her, there is also no Astra. Eila herself then did away with that awful place. Jet is safe from those now."

"So, wait. Petry? Was something possessing her?" he questioned, vaguely confused. "You're implying that it's not Eila that was doing this."

"It was not. Petry was… another side of her, in a manner of speaking. A separate and unwanted personality that, at times, assumed control."

Sein quickly began typing on his communicator, sending a message to Alana directly explaining what he'd just learned. "Fuck… I feel a bit bad for assuming it was her, but nobody knew what was happening, yeah?"

"They did not," Aethra confirmed. "The only people who knew were Rose and, after some point, Eila herself."

That didn't help Sein feel much better, but at least he knew that there was a likely reason for what happened in her life. I… I'll talk to her soon. "Is there anything else I need to know?"

"I do not believe so," Aethra told him gently. "This should be enough for you to be able to speak with him, although it may take him a short time to be fully willing. I regret to say that bringing these matters up to him may initially cause bad reactions, however, as can only be expected. But as he is now… he will not harm you. The Void itself may wish for him to, but he himself has no such desire. You will be safe. Defending yourself will not be necessary."

"Thank you, Aethra. I'll do my best," Sein murmured in reply. "I have to. He's my son."

"Of course." The connection started to fade as she severed it, but then she paused. "One final thing. I have just checked in on him again… It would seem that his stress levels have become rather high in the past several hours. He and the Void are not… shall we say… 'getting along'. He has been known to spike stress-related fevers in the past. It may be wise to keep an eye on this matter."

Sein grimaced, but ultimately nodded again. "Understood." With that, the connection was fully severed, leaving him free to resume his travels alone. With his level of speed, he was maybe a few minutes away from the outer atmosphere of A'latria at most. Even from this distance, such a snowy, ice-covered planet should have been visible to a Babylonian's keen, space-adapted eyes. However, it wasn't. Instead, everything up ahead was just… dark. Concern, among many other things, built up inside the hawk as he continued growing closer. This… can't be good.

The closer Sein got, the more oppressive the darkness grew. However, none of it prevented Sein from progressing. He attempted to keep it out of his mind, not wanting to think too deeply about everything happening. Eventually, he made a landing on the planet and began walking, stretching his senses to find his son. Really, it wasn't that difficult. Not this one time, anyway. Hidden away on his own solitary world, Jet had no reason to be hiding his energies from the senses of others. Normally, way out here, there wouldn't be any others. Perhaps one or two now and then, but not usually. There certainly weren't any other people here today. Only he was present, his aura emanating from the one solitary building on this planet.

Sein began his approach, a faint frown on his face as he moved closer and closer to the building. When he finally reached it, he carefully opened the door to step inside. "Jet?" he called. No answer actually came, but the energy Sein was following didn't become hidden. So, most likely, Jet was either absorbed in what he was doing and hadn't noticed Sein or was willfully ignoring him.

"Fuck," Sein murmured, slowly advancing toward Jet's energy. I'll find you and do what I can… I promise. Deeper within the castle, Jet suddenly began doing something that made a bit of a ruckus. It sounded for all the world like a stack of books falling over, closely followed by an annoyed curse in Babylonian. Sein moved a touch faster toward the sound, eventually walking into the room it had come from.

The sound had come from behind a half-open door into a study. Jet knelt on the floor by a set of shelves, muttering a few curses along with a vague complaint about "that fucking asshole". All the while, he worked on picking up the books that had been knocked to the floor, his and the Void's energies at times visibly manifesting around him while the two internally argued. Sein took the calculated risk of speaking, walking somewhat near with a concerned frown. "Hey, something wrong?" he asked gently.

Jet might have jumped normally, but he restrained the reaction. He just frowned and, quite curtly, told him, "Nothing."

Sein nodded slowly, then decided to ask. "Would you like some help picking those up?"

"No." Jet stood with the last of the books in his arms. His aura made short work of repairing the bookshelf and he set about putting the books back on it. Despite the repairs, residual Void energy lingered on the ancient wood, clearly displaying who (or rather what) had broken it in the first place.

"Alright," Sein said gently, taking note of what he could see on the bookshelf. "I came here to check on you and see if everything is okay. We could tell you were manipulating reality."

"It's fine," Jet muttered. He put the last book on the shelf, then used his aura to further repair and reinforce the shelving against any future incidents. "You don't need to be here."

"I've got some news for you, before I go anywhere. I'm sure you'd like to hear it," Sein started. "For starters… Calypso will live. I tied her life to mine to ensure that."

Some of the borderline seething temper that had been simmering just below the surface abruptly eased, just a touch. Jet was silent for a second before saying a simple, "...Good," in response.

Sein nodded gently. "Yeah. Everyone else is relieved too. Adding to that, a lot of your friends and allies got some direct help from Rusen."

That made Jet frown more. Rusen? Finally, he turned to face Sein. "Who the hell is that?"

"He introduced himself as Rusen. Some da Asani. He completely removed Astra and the part of Eila that was acting as her… well, from existence, apparently," Sein explained. "We don't have to worry about her being a threat again."

Jet was completely silent. He turned this information over and over in his mind, but ultimately only one thought really struck him. No mortal or semi-Immortal can even hope to do such a thing.

"On top of that… the place that Astra took you to. Eila destroyed it completely. I… figured you might want to know about that, too," Sein said.

A lot of unpleasant thoughts and memories hit all at once, but with great effort (and, strangely, the Void's genuine help), Jet was able to force them all away. He looked elsewhere, thinking deeply about this information for a time before repeating what he'd said earlier. "...Good."

Sein nodded with a small smile. "So… good things all around, I suppose. What about you? How are you feeling right now?"

"I'm fine," Jet told him, not returning the smile at all. He pondered over everything he'd been told a bit more before saying suddenly, "If you truly believe they are a da Asani… you have been fooled."

"I figured they were more than that," Sein murmured. "To simply show up like that at all seems a touch out of the ordinary for their kind. The level of aid he provided was incredible, too."

Pure blue eyes blinked thoughtfully. "They are more than all of us," he said cryptically, already understanding in full what was going on here. That pair who saved Analia… I should have realized it then. But now I am sure.

Sein hadn't quite pieced it together, but slowly nodded in vague understanding. "Either way, they've helped a lot. I figured you would appreciate it."

Out of the blue, the Void's displeasure physically manifested again. This time, purple energy struck violently at the wall with enough force and suddenness to make Jet flinch away. Dust filled the air and a deep gash was left behind. He cursed under his breath again. "Fucking bastard."

Grimacing sympathetically, Sein let out a soft sigh. "It won't leave you alone, will it?"

Seeing the answer as obvious, in his opinion, Jet didn't bother to voice it. He used a very small amount of wind to rid the room of all the stone dust. Only after doing that did he speak again. His usual self shone through in spades for a moment, long enough for him to grumble, "It's been lashing out all day and has no intention of stopping. You shouldn't be here, so far within striking range."

Sein shrugged gently. "I came here for you. No amount of danger will ever come close to being enough to make me not care for you."

Traces of irritation quickly came back, but it was soon clear why. Jet's own sense of care toward Sein fueled the emotion quite readily. "That has nothing to do with it. This thing can wipe whatever it wants from existence. If it strikes at you and chooses to do that there's nothing I can do."

Though he really didn't want to go anywhere, Sein nodded slowly and asked one more question. "Do you want me to leave?"

"You have to," Jet insisted, looking away tensely. "It's the only option."

Sein let out a long sigh and nodded again. "Please do your best to be careful, bud. Me, Kath, and your mom are all concerned. We want to make sure you're okay."

"I'll be fine," was all Jet said in reply.

Sein turned and headed for the door before casting a gentle smile to Jet. "I'll see you soon. I'll do whatever I can to make sure you're okay." Jet only nodded a little before turning away again, busying himself with using a bit of magic to begin repairs on his wall. Sein then teleported away, making his way back to Babylon.

~保護者~

Han was sitting within a plume of magic deep within the Lost Hex, healing deep wounds and regaining energy after a vicious fight. Or, rather, he was hovering in a quasi-meditative stance while he recovered. However, he opened his eyes immediately when Cyril appeared mere feet away from his position. Rather than get into a defensive stance, he merely asked, "I trust you are yourself again?"

Cyril nodded quickly before asking, "Where is Wave?"

"I hid her and her brother. I cannot speak of their location aloud. This realm is unsafe." Though he wasn't fully healed, Han stood and stepped out of the plume of energy. "Come, I will take you there."

"Got it," Cyril answered, moving over to Han.

The Hexan promptly whisked them away using his own personal magic. They appeared within a simple wooden construct that acted as a strangely secure (courtesy of yet more magic) hut-like home. Han gestured to a door leading into one of the rooms. "They are in there."

Cyril nodded and quickly walked in, clutching his tarot card tightly. "Thank you, Han."

This earned a small nod. "Thank you," he answered, "for coming back here. She has asked about you. Reuniting will do you both good."

The finch nodded and walked further in, looking around slowly. Wave's younger brother (who was tan like their father), Alec, straightened and looked over. Seeing Cyril, he initially tensed, only to then relax and nod. "You're back to normal then. Good."

"...Yeah. I didn't enjoy any of it," Cyril murmured. "I need to see Wave, though. I can help her."

Alec looked across the room to the bed where his sister was sleeping. "If you're ready to talk to her, I can wake her up," he offered.

"Please," Cyril murmured. "I would really appreciate it."

"Sure." Alec crossed the room. Laying a hand on Wave's shoulder, he gently shook her. "Hey, sis… You're friend's here to see you."

After letting out a few small complaints, Wave (without opening her eyes) exhaustedly mumbled, "Who is it?"

Cyril quickly moved closer, standing by the bed. "It's me, Cyril. I'm… myself again."

As Cyril said this, Alec pushed Cyril down by the shoulder to make him sit down. No sooner than he'd done this, Wave opened her eyes and pushed herself up. Despite her condition, she was quick to do two things. First, she gave Cyril's head a hard whack. Second, she dragged him into a tight hug. "Don't ever scare me like that again," she chided, her deeply relieved tone belying her previous actions. "I was so afraid we'd lost you…"

Cyril blinked once at the hit before slowly wrapping his arms around Wave in return. "I don't want to do that ever again," he responded, activating his tarot card and beginning to heal Wave. "I hated it."

"I know, dummy," Wave mumbled, drawing in a shaky breath. She suddenly found herself close to tears. "I did, too. You're one of my oldest and closest friends, Cyril. I don't ever want to fight you for a second time."

The finch was quiet for a moment, only able to nod. He choked up, but eventually forced himself to speak. "I won't do it again… not if I have anything to say about it."

Wave leaned back a bit and gave him a smile. "Good. I'm glad to hear it."

Cyril made good use of his ability to heal Wave before his eyes flashed with the various colors of his magic and he brought Han to him as well. "Hold still," he said, extending a hand to the man and carefully healing him as well. "I came here to do this and make things right. I won't allow myself to not do it."

Wave and Han traded a look, but neither moved. The former, however, did voice a question. "And what, pray tell, are you doing?"

"Well… first off I'm healing you guys. High Priestess, if you guys remember anything about them. I can heal you guys well since I'm close to you," Cyril explained easily. "It's the least I can do after the trouble I caused."

Sure enough, their wounds were stitching themselves back together. Han quirked an eyebrow, but once again only Wave spoke. "Thanks, Cyril. We appreciate it."

Cyril nodded again with a bright smile. "Not a problem, my dear friend." A bit of his usual sparkle of sorts entered his eyes and he stood up for a second. "I got lucky. Some da Asani person showed up and helped Eila and myself. I think they stayed and talked to Rose and Analia as well."

"I'm glad they did," Wave said. She pushed the blankets aside and moved to stand. "Were they the one that freed you?"

The finch grimaced and shook his head. "No… it was Jet. He had this… weird energy. He wasn't acting like you've mentioned he does, either."

That made Wave frown. Deeply. "Weird energy?" she questioned. "...Wait, what did it look like?"

"Uh… purple? I don't really remember much else about it," Cyril answered.

Though she tensed up, Wave did her best to keep her voice level. "Did you notice anything else about it?" she asked. "The way it made you feel, the way it behaved, anything?"

"It was… weird. Nothing like anything I've ever seen," Cyril responded. "Felt dangerous. At the time, I couldn't really think much about how it made me feel, but I know that it's dangerous."

Wave was definitely tense now. "I have an awful feeling that I know what it was. Do you know where he is?"

"No… I don't," Cyril murmured. "He vanished after he freed me."

"Crap." Wave tapped her foot rapidly. "That's a big problem." After a long moment of silence, she asked, "Listen, I really need to know one more thing. You said he was acting differently? How, exactly, was he acting?"

Cyril frowned. "Kinda… cold? Harsh, I guess?"

There wasn't much of a better reply Wave could make, so she repeated, "Crap." After a lengthy pause, she let out a heavy sigh. "Okay… I'll see about trying to handle that. Thanks for telling me. You should go rest now… okay?"

"I don't think I can rest. I just… A lot of information was thrown at me. I've got some answers to find and some stuff to get done," he answered.

"I understand." Wave gave him another quick hug. "Stay safe, okay?"

Cyril returned the hug. "You too, Wave."

Soon, Wave released him. "Alright, you and your fancy new magic should get going. I'll see you soon."

He chuckled softly and nodded. "Alright. I'll see you again soon." With a motion of her hand befitting of her name, Wave bid her family a short farewell and vanished… as she often did. Shortly after, Cyril did as well with intent obvious in his eyes. "I'm gonna figure out what happened to Calypso," he murmured to himself as he began moving rapidly through space.

~保護者~

It had been some time since Li had managed to convince Novei to return to his forge with him. He had even gotten her to work with him, but this morning was different. The wolf woke up with the Therian's arms wrapped tightly around him (almost too tight) and her face buried into his shoulder. Li blinked a few times before smiling widely. Good to have you back.

He was content to lay there with her until she woke up as well, and they resumed life as normal like the problems had never happened. Both were content to leave the past behind them as they worked hard. Li had received a request from Steam, a certainly odd one, but not unwelcome as it posed a new challenge.

And so, the two were hard at work with Li forging away and Novei taking care of the cooling and transportation of the metals he needed. They worked in sync with one another, happy to be in one another's presence before Novei broke the silence between them.

"You seem exceptionally happy today," she observed, watching him quietly.

Li shrugged gently. "I guess today is just a good day."

Novei tilted her head at him, confused and unsure as to why that would be the case. It was another day, after all. Hardly any different from all the rest. "What do you mean?"

The wolf finished hammering away and handed off the metal to be cooled before speaking. "I guess just… seeing you be yourself again makes me really happy."

"Why would another person make you so happy? It is plainly visible." Novei crossed her arms in confusion, though she kept a tight grip on the tool holding the cooling metal until she could hand it back.

"Because I care about you, a lot," Li answered before reheating the metal and beginning his work again.

Novei frowned in thought. That didn't necessarily answer her question, but it left her to think. If her own well being really mattered that much to him, what else mattered in such a way? Surely for people such as him, there would be more than one source of happiness. With this thought, she shrugged and walked over to him as he finished what he was doing once more. Together, they dunked the metal in water and let it cool before Novei suddenly grabbed him by the arms and began carrying him away. "Come with me." Li yelped, flailing about in confusion and surprise before resigning himself to his fate. Whatever she had planned, it was likely that it would be happening whether or not he had work he wanted to finish.

~保護者~

Rather than take Ryuji to the man's newly-constructed home (as it was right by Kal), Espio teleported to his own home instead. Once there, he quickly made Ryuji sit. "How severe are your injuries?" he quietly demanded, already examining what he could see on the surface. He suspected there was even more internally that wasn't visible.

"I am fine," Ryuji muttered. "I will heal."

"The hell you are," Espio muttered back. Then he added, "If your regeneration was going to take care of this, it would have started already." She must have blocked it somehow… Father mentioned once that doing so was possible, but I didn't realize it could be done so easily.

Ryuji sighed gently. "It will be alright. I'm sure of that."

"Why didn't you fight back?" Espio suddenly asked him, frowning. "You already would be alright, had you done so."

Ryuji was silent at this, turning his attention elsewhere as Armaris walked into the room. There was a deep frown on her face as she came to them both, inspecting Ryuji. "What the fuck happened?" Espio didn't answer, waiting to see if Ryuji would explain for himself.

A sigh escaped Ryuji. "I had a fight with my former partner."

"This wasn't a fight," Armaris countered harshly. "Don't lie to me." Once more, Ryuji fell silent in response. He didn't want to explain.

After that point, Espio began to quickly clue in. Immediately, he eased up on his questioning and his tone of voice. "...Does it hurt at all?" he asked, switching the subject. He gestured to the myriad of wounds Ryuji now sported. "Any of it."

"It does," Ryuji answered after a moment, shifting uncomfortably.

Nodding, Espio crossed the room and opened up the storage compartment in the wall. There, he dug out a bundle of plant stalks that, when chewed, numbed sensations of pain rather well. This was a type of medical treatment used since ancient times, and for good reason. It was very effective. He grabbed a few from the bundle and took them to Ryuji. "Here," he said, handing them over.

Ryuji nodded slowly and accepted them, slowly beginning to chew on one quietly. Armaris shifted closer to Espio and whispered, "What happened?"

Using a few subtle signs he told her, "Attacked. His partner is wicked. I don't know how long she was there."

Armaris frowned deeply and signed in return. "It's serious. I've been in this condition. It is possible that medical attention will become needed if he keeps refusing."

"I know." Returning his attention to Ryuji, Espio carefully asked, "I have medical supplies. If you won't let me help, can I trust you to use them yourself?"

Ryuji shrugged lightly. "I suppose so," he answered.

"Yes or no," Espio responded, a touch more firmly. "No half-answers."

"I will," Ryuji murmured, crossing his arms. "Does that please you?"

"For now." Espio retrieved the medical supplies he'd mentioned and handed them over. "Get to it."

The man huffed and took the supplies, carefully beginning to tend to his wounds. "She knows our sign language?" Ryuji asked suddenly, glancing over to Armaris.

"She grew up in the original Hyale for a time," Espio answered, taking a seat. "She and I did not know each other well, but she was being raised by my parents. They taught her much. She also learned plenty on her own."

Ryuji huffed softly. "To think that an outsider would be raised among our kind," he mused. "It explains some of her mannerisms." Whether the cat was listening, nobody would know since she'd chosen to lay down on the floor and relax for now.

"It does," Espio agreed, somewhat indifferent about the idea since it was so normal to him by now. The man tensed faintly when he sensed a few people approaching, pausing the careful treatment of his wounds to glance outside. He frowned minutely at the sight, but said nothing. Espio motioned for him to just take it easy as he glanced outside as well. Aniko, Shei, and Tyria all approached the home quietly, with Aniko and Shei a fair distance behind Tyria. Espio pursed his lips together, thinking. "Do you need me to take you away from here?" he asked quickly.

"No," Ryuji answered. "I will… be fine."

If you're sure. Espio let himself gradually relax, watching as Tyria and his parents jumped up onto the porch.

Tyria stepped aside and let Aniko and Shei walk in before her, only following once they were fully inside. Aniko glanced over at Espio, a frown on her face. "Everyone is safe, yes?"

"Yes," Espio and simply.

"Good," Aniko murmured before turning her gaze to Tyria. "We will speak another time. The matters I am about to discuss are personal." Tyria nodded her understanding and walked out, teleporting away somewhere. Shei, meanwhile, took a seat away from the others, choosing to inhabit a dark area of the room.

Ryuji watched quietly as Aniko sat in front of him, staring deeply into his eyes as he simply waited for her to say something. When it became apparent that she wasn't sure what to say, he spoke for her. "Something is on your mind?"

"Yeah," she muttered. "A good few things are."

"You are free to speak," he invited. "Please, feel free."

Her eyes narrowed. "Why the hell did you treat me like you did when I was a child?" she suddenly snapped.

Ryuji didn't seem surprised or at all bothered by the sudden anger, at least externally. "You would not believe me if I said it, but I was following the words of Kal."

"You're right, I don't believe you," she muttered, clenching her fists. "You treated me like shit."

"I know," Ryuji murmured, standing up slowly as though ready to leave. "It is not something I expected you to believe, and I understand why you feel this way."

Aniko snapped hatefully, standing up as well and letting out a growl-like sound. "Don't act like you get what I'm feeling, dammit!"

"Aniko!" Armaris called, walking over. "You're not going to get anywhere by snapping at him the whole fucking time. Let him talk and try to hear him out."

Though she wanted to snap at Armaris too, Aniko couldn't make herself and ultimately let out a low grumble before motioning snappily toward Ryuji. "Continue."

"Your mother told me to do many things," Ryuji explained, looking away. "Some of which I did not agree to. I followed her blindly much of the time because I felt incapable of making my own decisions."

Aniko glared at Ryuji. "Continue."

Ryuji nodded slowly in response. "I listened to her. If I did not, she would bring harm on me. Sometimes more than I could handle physically. She had no problem bringing me to the edge of death only to allow me to heal. It continued like this for much of the time that we were together."

"Why didn't you leave, then?"

"I was unsure if I was able to. I did not feel as if I could leave her, whether it be for fear of my safety, yours, or the simple belief that it was impossible to leave," Ryuji explained. "That… is the best I can explain it as."

Aniko didn't seem to fully believe him, so Armaris spoke up again. "When someone hurts your heart and soul to the point where you break down, it feels like you can't escape them no matter what you do. Until they leave you or something helps you get away… it honestly feels impossible." Espio frowned and looked at her, but said nothing for the time being.

"I see," Aniko murmured before taking a seat once more and mulling over the information she'd just been given. Both Espio and Armaris understood what that experience was like, apparently, and they both seemed to be agreeing with what he'd said. Does that mean… he's actually telling the truth?

Ryuji took a seat in front of her and carefully lifted one of her hands with his own. "I cannot ask for your forgiveness, nor can I ask for you to care for me. All I ask is that you at least understand that my words are true, and that I bear no ill will toward you."

Aniko pulled her hand back, but gently this time. "I… need time to think on this. I would prefer some distance from you."

"I understand," Ryuji murmured, watching as Aniko stood up and left suddenly. He let out a pained sigh and leaned back against a wall. "I feel awful…"

Espio pursed his lips together, more than a little concerned. However, in the end, all he said was a soft command. "You should rest. It will not fix anything… but it will help you be prepared for whatever comes later." Ryuji murmured some sort of reply with a nod. Espio stood walked over, then tugged Ryuji to his feet by an arm. "Come." He gently led Ryuji away to one of the two bedrooms, intent on making the older man at least try to sleep.

Shei watched them go in silence. That… could have gone far, far worse. I almost can't believe that it didn't.

Armaris glanced over at Shei, raising an eyebrow. "You think this'll end up decently?"

Her former father figure blinked and looked at her. After a lengthy pause, he signed back, "It may. We shall see."

She let out a long sigh. "Hope it does. Who knows what'll happen if she turns on him?"

"I do not believe he will take it well," Shei answered, "though it does seem he has long since prepared himself for that outcome. That he appears to see it as inevitable is… disheartening."

Armaris nodded slowly before shrugging. "I think I can help her slowly either way. It'll just be a matter of whether she listens to me or not."

"I cannot promise that she will," Shei informed her. "For her, this whole matter is deeply emotionally charged. Your efforts may well be in vain."

"We'll see," Armaris murmured, already turning to head back to the bedroom. "I have to say, though… you're acting a bit different. You're usually more optimistic than this. If you need to talk to someone, I'm always willing to do my best to help."

"I will not burden you further with my problems," Shei responded without hesitation. "One way or another, they will be handled. Do not concern yourself with it."

"That's not what I want to hear," Armaris answered lightly. "You're not burdening me. You were like a father when I was a kid. It's the least I can do to try and return the favor."

Shei shook his head, but not in any upset manner. "I appreciate the sentiment, Armaris. However, this is far from something that I am willing to discuss with most people. It most certainly is a burden to those who do know. I will not inflict that upon you as well. Trust me when I say it is going to be handled as soon as can be managed." Internally, he sighed. And just as soon as we discover precisely how to manage it.

"That's all you had to say," Armaris murmured, turning properly to face him again. Her Darkness manifested into several tendrils around her and she shrugged before letting them fade. "I've been in the same situation before. You'll likely talk about it when you're ready to. Best of luck, Shei." Shei merely offered a tiny wave and teleported away, off to go join Aniko wherever she'd gone. Armaris returned the wave and walked off to join Espio, content with what she'd said.

Espio had only just gotten Ryuji to lay down on a spare futon in the guest bedroom while Zei repeatedly tried to climb in with him. Once Ryuji was actually laying down, Espio scooped his daughter up and then did the same with Sako when the boy tried to start climbing things as well. Huffing, he turned to leave the room, only to be met with Armaris in the doorway. Armaris carefully moved beside him and wrapped an arm gently around Espio, a gentle smile on her face. "Things are calm again for a little bit, yeah?"

"For now," Espio agreed.

"Want to just laze around and relax for a bit before something else can come up?" she asked, nuzzling up to him.

"Ask them that," Espio huffed in vague amusement, glancing down to his two pouting children.

Armaris carefully wrapped her tail around Espio's and a wide smile planted on her face. "They can join us. As much a part of the family as I am."

Her actions with her tail didn't strike Espio as odd in any capacity. Chameleons very often did the very same thing with the person they cared for. As a result, he (without even thinking about it) copied her action. "Come, then," he told her, beginning to walk. "I suspect they will object to being held much longer."

"Gladly," Armaris replied softly, following beside him.

Zei caught on to what was happening and exclaimed, "You can play with me! I wanna play. Playing is fun."

"Of course, Zei," Armaris replied softly. "We can play a lot."

The little girl thought about this, then her eyes went wide. "Can we play forever?" Espio smirked.

"Not forever, but we can definitely play a lot. There's still a lot of things you've gotta learn, after all," Armaris explained gently.

This earned another bright smile as Espio took a seat in the front room and set the kids down. Zei beamed up at Armaris. "Daddy trains me already," she said, quite proud. "I broke his stick! Twice!"

"That's awesome!" Armaris exclaimed gently. Her smile grew and she teleported her guitar in hand. "Do you know how to play instruments yet?"

"Nuh-uh." Zei shook her head. "What are those?"

"You're about to find out, dear," Armaris answered, gently strumming away. "I'll teach you about the guitar." Entranced, Zei stood there staring at her with wide eyes. Armaris continued playing, adding her voice to the mix as she gazed over Zei, Espio, and Sako all at once.

You and me, here we'll be. And everything will be just fine. We'll be just fine.

~保護者~

Sleeping off the pain of purification hadn't been intentional. Nevertheless, Marthal found himself waking up curled in the grass beneath a tree after an unusually deep nap. A quick self-assessment quickly yielded proof that he was himself again, through and through. He sighed heavily in relief. "Oh, thank fuck," he muttered to himself. His hearing aids screeched a protest at the sound of his voice, despite him having kept his volume low, and he winced. Taking the devices out, he began to fiddle with them and the hopes of adjusting their volume instead of stubbornly trying to keep himself silent. With them out, it was only thanks to his nose that he realized a now familiar person was nearby all of a sudden.

Tyria took a seat near him and watched the cat, vaguely curious about what he was doing but not saying anything just yet. Shortly thereafter, Marthal finished what he was doing and put the devices back into his ears. Immediately, everything sounded normal again. That was good. He preferred his ears to not be bleeding due to high-pitched noises, thank-you-very-much. The woman waited a few seconds before speaking. "Are you alright?"

Deep blue eyes glanced at her. "Uh… yeah." Marthal looked away again. "Yeah, I'm alright. Thanks to you, mostly. So… thanks for that."

The female shrugged lightly. "There is nothing to thank me for. I was merely sating my own curiosity."

"Still, whether you meant to or not you wound up doing me a favor. I appreciate that." Marthal shifted to sit cross-legged where he'd been laying down and sighed. "You came an awful long way just for the sake of curiosity, though."

She shrugged again. "I did."

Marthal answered her shrug with one of his own. "You don't have to stick around here on my account. Since I'm myself again, I'll be fine."

"It's not about that," Tyria responded gently. "I am here to check on you."

"And you did," Marthal pointed out. "You asked if I was alright, and I answered. That's usually good enough for most people."

Tyria shrugged. "I am not like most people. According to some I speak to."

"Guess you can add me to that list," Marthal answered. "Actually, both lists. Those who say that sort of thing and those who, like you, aren't conventionally 'normal'." He gave in to the sudden urge to stretch his limbs out a bit, then let out a small yawn.

"Normality is an incredibly inconvenient thing at times. Doing things the way you prefer is far better than trying to do things how everyone else wants you to," she murmured.

"Yeah, I can agree with that a fair portion of the time," Marthal said.

Tyria nodded before laying back quietly and sighing. "I have been traveling much recently," she murmured.

"Any particular reason for it?" Marthal asked, tails idly moving side to side a bit. "...Besides tracking down my corrupted ass, that is."

Tyria glanced to him. "Protecting my people, primarily. Scouting on the side for places outside of the Highlands. Removing any demonic presences I can sense."

"Ah. Got it." Marthal stood up, stretched again, then said, "Well… unless you have something more you want to talk about, I guess I should get going. I should let the others know that I'm fine and all."

"Your friends likely miss you. I will be seeing you again soon. For now, return to them and spend time among those who care for you. It may well help your recovery," Tyria murmured.

"Yeah. Maybe." A bit of fire sparked in Marthal's fur, and he gave a wave. "See ya." He teleported away in a burst of flame.

Tyria stood and began walking quietly. It seemed she would be heading back to the Highlands now. So much traveling...

~保護者~

Steam landed outside Tails's home and idly tapped away at his communicator screen, maneuvering his way through the living room to the workshop as he put the finishing touches on some blueprints. He almost didn't notice as Wery greeted him, tearing his attention away from his work to give a nod. "Hey. I got some more stuff I wanna show you both. I think it would be useful."

Tails rubbed at his eyes (suddenly, he recalled that he'd skipped out on sleep in favor of work again) before offering Steam a tired smile. "Sure, what have you got?" he invited.

"I'm sending them over," Steam said, lowering his arm and walking over to join the two foxes. "It's two devices that can borrow some ideas from those swords. Thinking it could be good in giving you two some more firepower against the demons, since you're not physical fighters."

Tails blinked. It took his tired mind a second to catch up, but once it did, he straightened. "Oh. ...Yeah, I can see how that would be useful." He chuckled weakly. "We, uh, probably could use something like that."

Wery took a look at her tablet, wiping at her eyes blearily. "The design is good. How long have you been doing stuff like this?"

"A while now," Steam answered.

As they spoke, Tails looked over quietly, his eyes scanning the screen before giving into a small yawn. After that, however, he once more steeled his resolve and willed himself to remain awake and ignore his fatigue. "Wanna give us a hand making these?" he asked Steam. "It'd be appreciated, but I understand if you've got other things to do."

Steam thought about it for a moment before nodding. "Sure. It would be… nice to help make something like this for the first time in a while."

This earned a smile. "So I was right? You know how to work with tech, huh?"

The hedgehog nodded gently. "I figured you'd realize with the blueprints I've brought to you," Steam said. Tails laughed a little. He'd had plenty of suspicions before the blueprints had been shown to them, but there was no real need to comment on it.

"You realize that the ones you've brought are really good, right?" Wery asked. "There's barely even any tweaks necessary."

Steam rubbed the back of his head with a laugh. "I suppose so. I learned a good bit out of necessity and realized it was a good outlet if I couldn't do much else. Even drawing up blueprints alone can be fun to me."

"I know what you mean," Tails agreed. He got up out of his chair, stretched, then looked over the blueprints they needed. "Okay, I'll start getting things together for this. Be right back." With that said, he strolled off with confidence into the depths of the workshop

Steam and Wery were both quiet for a few moments after watching Tails leave before the female fox spoke up. "So, uh… you're from another timeline. Right? Is that how you've been planning for a lot of this stuff?"

"Yeah," Steam agreed easily. "I've been through a good portion of the stuff happening."

"Is that how you could tell what I was gonna say that one time?" Wery asked curiously.

A faint smirk flickered to life on Steam's face. "You've got some patterns in how you speak, so yeah. I took an educated guess."

"...Wow," she murmured, nodding slowly. "That's crazy to think about." When Steam cast her a curious gaze, she elaborated. "It's crazy to think there's another me out there somewhere. I've always known about parallel universe theory and alternate timeline theory, but… wow."

Steam chuckled softly. "You'll catch on eventually. It took everyone time to adjust to finding out the first time. Just take it a bit at a time."

Wery nodded with a gentle smile. "I'll keep that in mind. Thanks."

Shortly after Wery gave this reply, Tails wandered back to them with various supplies in arm. Trailing behind him was a hovering table-top-like platform with more supplies piled on top of them. He set what he was holding down on an actual table before saying, "Okay, I think I got everything." He looked at the both of them. "...Something going on? You look like you just had a talk."

"I was just curious about something," Wery said. "Asked him about being from an alternate timeline and all."

"Oh-h-h, got it." After that, Tails changed the subject. "Alright, Steam, these are your projects. Which one do you want to work on first? You've got free reign."

"The barrier would be the most important overall, but it doesn't matter which. We've got some time to get them done," Steam answered. "The cannon would likely be the easiest to adapt from the swords, however."

Wery frowned in thought before nodding. "I'm kinda curious about the idea you've got for the barrier. The output it has seems… crazy."

Steam nodded slowly. "It's meant to cover larger areas like Hyale. We've been without a barrier for long enough."

"We can definitely get to work on that one," Tails nodded. "I know Espio and his family would appreciate having something like that to better defend their homelands."

"Especially since they seem to trust Rose, and that's who we're relying on for this. Thing is meant to make a barrier out of Light or another energy if possible," Steam answered.

"All things considered, we might wanna expand the storage containers for the crystals. This would be enough, but we've seen how strong those demons are. Set up some backups and maybe make a few smaller units that expand the reach of the barrier and provide some extra power out of the way," Wery explained, already beginning to draw up her own ideas.

"That sounds like a good idea," Tails said. "We've been lucky not to see any other high-ranking demons aside from the World Eater - thank god Wave was here to beat that one - and Zareil. You know, excluding Kaden himself. Being trapped now, he might start mobilizing the stronger forces sometime soon. I don't know why he hasn't yet, I'm guessing it has to do with his warring against Nareish, but it's a threat we might be facing before too long."

Steam nodded slowly. "There's a good chance that something big is coming soon. Zareil is currently acting as the leader of sorts in his place, but they're undoubtedly working together. She's been around him a lot."

"Yeah, she's too loyal to just completely do her own thing. If she's acting, she's almost always doing it because he indicated he wanted her to, or straight-up ordered her." Tails let out a heavy sigh. "The main question now is what they're getting ready to do."

The thought of this visibly stressed Steam out, but he didn't have time to really think on it as Wery came up to both of them with her prototype blueprint. "I think we could use something like this to essentially build a relay system that'll keep the barriers up longer."

A small grin broke out across Tails's face. "Wery, that is genius. We should absolutely implement that."

Steam nodded easily. "It's a good idea. The only thing would be keeping these energized, but if these go down, our bigger issue is gonna be keeping up the main shield anyway. I'm down."

Wery smiled and nodded happily. "I'll finalize the blueprints and get them ready for us to work with."

"Go for it," the hedgehog invited, walking over to the various supplies Tails had collected and sorting through it. "Tails, by chance do you still have a couple of those crystals for the swords, or were they all used?"

"I've got a few, don't worry." Tails walked over to his main desk area (the one where his computer sat) and grabbed a small palm-sized box. He took it back over to Steam and handed it over. "They're in here."

"We'll test the barrier's design once it's finished. Might ask someone like Espio or Armaris to help since we really need to see how it responds to strong Darkness," Steam said, accepting the box and tucking it away under his arm for the moment. "Sure, even if they manage to break through it, we can see how easily they manage to do it and adjust accordingly."

Tails pursed his lips together in thought. "Asking either of them to do that might be dangerous for them but, objectively speaking, Espio's Darkness is - in terms of raw power - much more like the sort of threats Kaden will potentially throw at us. We may have to use him, but carefully."

"All I was planning to do was ask him to throw an attack against it. If he agrees to help us, he likely won't hold back much, if at all, and the one attack should give us a good metric to work with," Steam replied.

"Yeah. It's just… You know, it's tricky. His Darkness has been so volatile up until really recently and all…" Tails sighed again. "I get what you're saying, I do, it's just… Well, he's my friend. I've known him for a long time. Can't really help worrying about him."

Steam nodded his understanding. "I get it. I don't want to ask him to, but something like this is important. Worst case scenario, we ask someone like Armaris or Ylden if he doesn't want to, or if the situation is too dangerous. Hell, we could ask Toru, now that I think about it."

"Erm… not," Tails disagreed. "He's really got his hands full at the moment. He and Shadow have… a lot going on, it turns out."

Realization dawned on Steam's face and a vague irritation came over him. "Fucking hell. They get it rough enough as it is. People can't leave them alone."

Recognizing the emotion that had hit Steam, Tails looked at him in surprise. "Wait… you know?"

"'Course," Steam answered. "I helped a lot with Shadow in my timeline. I also saw the aftermath of them being attacked in this timeline, but I didn't put the pieces together because of everything happening."

Tails thought all of that over for a moment or two. Eventually, he said, "Honestly… I don't know what they're going to do. Shadow's not been in great shape mentally or emotionally, for obvious reasons. I'm really, really worried about how all of this is going to impact him."

Steam clicked his tongue, sighing. "I think it'll turn out okay. If my suspicions are right, then they might be getting some help," he murmured. "Professional help."

Though Tails didn't catch the added meaning to Steam's words, he suspected there was, in fact, additional meaning. But, for now, he didn't ask. "...You're friends with one or both of them where you come from, yeah?" he inquired instead.

"Shadow more so than Toru, but yeah. I get along pretty well with them both," Steam answered, shifting to stand with the box floating beside him now.

"And, from what I can tell, they aren't the only ones who've been stressed to the max lately," Tails cautiously ventured. "I'm guessing that's right?"

"What do you mean?" Steam asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Well," Tails started, "I was thinking… for multiple reasons, Shadow's been staying at home lately. All things considered, that's probably going to remain true for the most part, at least for a while. He definitely has Toru, and Espo and I will go see him as much as we can, but it might do you and him good if you go and… I don't know, hang out? I know he doesn't know you well, but he definitely seems to trust you for some reason, despite how he usually is. I'm gonna go ahead and assume you know how huge of a deal that is, coming from him."

And Jet, weirdly enough, Steam thought to himself idly. "I'll see what I can do. There's a chance that Toru will get irritable at first, though. He doesn't like people he knows little about being around the ones he cares about. Tends to watch them and wait to see if they do something wrong."

Tails waved him off, not at all concerned. "That's a pretty normal chameleon behavior. He has no reason to continue not trusting you, after getting to know you a bit better. Plus, Shadow having already accepted you will likely help."

Steam nodded again. "Yeah. Just stating it in case I come back to Amy in three pieces. I can then say 'I told you so'." He grinned lightly and glanced to Wery, watching as she began putting the final touches on her blueprints. Without much warning, the female fox bounded over and went to grab a piece of metal to get started.

Seeing what she was doing, Tails started to say, "Oh, careful, those are actually really he-"

Before he even finished his sentence, Wery effortlessly collected the metal into her arms and blinked a few times. "Hm? Something the matter?"

Tails gaped, mouth dropped open as thoughts briefly fled from him. After a long moment of staring, he mumbled in utter confusion, "But I… I had to use a robot to grab those. How are you…?"

"I've been able to do this for a long time," she stated easily. "It took a while to be able to lift things, but one day I was just able to." Wery had no clue what was so confusing or unusual about this. She had just trained her muscles to be strong enough for this, right?

More staring. Eventually, Tails found more words. "Tha-a-at's not normal," he finally said. "Like, at all. Wery, how long exactly…? You know what, nevermind, not important." Tails hurried to his computer, opened a small file, and gestured to it. "Here, read this. It describes a power called Weight Manipulation. Look familiar at all?"

Wery read over it before frowning openly and setting the metal down gently. "You really think I have that power?"

Steam suddenly spoke up, a wide grin on his face as he unsheathed his sword. He grabbed the blade end and held the hilt out to Wery. "Pick this up."

"Okay…?" She wrapped her hands around the hilt and yelped in surprise when the weight suddenly caused her to crash down into the floor. Luckily, Steam had never once let go and kept it from falling onto her, and even helped her back to her feet.

"You're a mortal, so you can't manipulate the weight of a semi-Immortal object. Regular stuff and your own weight is on the table, however," he explained easily. "Very rare. Very useful."

Wery was caught completely off guard by this, slumping down into a chair as she contemplated this. For so long she thought she'd just made herself strong. This… definitely explained a lot, though. "Wow… I never would have guessed."

Tails positively beamed at her. "I knew you had more power in you. I just knew it." He closed the file again and turned back around to face them properly. "I'm happy for you."

"And you said it's Weight Manipulation?" she asked, still dwelling on the fact of having a power that wasn't electricity.

Steam nodded to her. "It is. Considering your scientific mind, you should be able to find some really good uses for it," he explained. "Could be very useful to you." Tails nodded his agreement.

"Well," Wery started, standing up from the chair, "either way, it's good to know. Should be really useful in the near future, all things considered."

"Absolutely," Steam responded, hefting a piece of metal up to his side. "Now, let's get started."

~保護者~

The relative quiet in Li's forge was interrupted by an impact on the floor near the entrance. A pained groan in a teenage boy's voice further cut into the former near-silence. Then there was a third sound. This time, the boy had raised his voice and, voice raw with exhaustion and continuing pain, begun calling out. "Det'a…? N-Novei? Please, I need you…" ("Cousin…?")

Novei emerged from the bedroom quickly, moving over to the teenager with a frown. "What happened?" she demanded.

Calypso's son, Trekk, sat in a bit of a heap on the floor, clutching at multiple deep and bloody wounds with both of his hands. "We were attacked," he bit out. "I don't know how long ago it was. They chased me away at first and disappeared with my mother. I've been chased to the edge of the realm and back until earlier today. They were about to kill me… I think… but then they just vanished."

Novei gritted her teeth with painfully obvious anger, scooping Trekk up in her arms. "Li! Get up!" she yelled, carrying her cousin to a room And laying him on the bed. "Has anything else happened to you?"

Trekk groaned again in pain. "I… I looked for her," he answered through gritted teeth. "I couldn't find her. I wanted to ask Kath… she visits him a lot… but they wouldn't let me get anywhere near Babylon."

"Stay quiet," Novei said as Li walked in. The moment the wolf saw the situation, he bolted off and returned with medical supplies in hand, immediately moving to treat the younger boy's wounds. Trekk didn't answer, only remained tense due to his pain as Li tended to him.

Novei glanced to Li. "I'm going somewhere. I have people to kill for fucking with my family."

Li grimaced. "Are you sure that's a good idea?

Though he'd been ordered to shush not two minutes prior, Trekk answered, "You can't," he mumbled. "They're sealed away again… like they were before."

Novei's muscles tensed and she frowned deeply, but ultimately she just nodded. "Where is she? Do you know?" she demanded. Trekk only shook his head. The woman groaned and stood, patting Li on the back. "You stay here and finish this."

Li looked over, a confused expression on his face. "Where are you going?"

"To see my ma," Novei muttered, already stalking off and teleporting away with her magic. She landed on one of Therius's multitude of moons and immediately moved toward her house, throwing the door open and damn-near ripping it off its hinges as she yelled inside. "Ma! Get your ass down here!"

The ensuing argument between the two women was loud and aggressive, the two nearly going at each other's throats before Novei managed to cut in and explain what happened. "Calypso has been seriously injured!" she snapped, already having enough of this.

The woman paused briefly and crossed her arms. "You are lying. She can surely handle herself."

"Would you believe Trekk?" Novei questioned.

Several curses flooded from her mother's mouth, several things being thrown around with magic before she settled down again. "We must go. I have located her."

"Good," Novei answered, allowing her mother to teleport them both to New Babylon.

The instant they appeared, Kath jerked free of his thoughts, equal parts startled and surprised. Barely a second later, however, he simply told the older Therian, "She is in there, Tempest," while gesturing to the doors leading into the medical ward. "She will want to see you, when she wakes."

Tempest didn't bother with responding, simply walking forward and throwing the doors open with her magic and storming her way in. She immediately located Calypso and teleported there, staring over her sister's body. "What the fuck happened?" she demanded.

Amazingly, Calypso herself responded before any of the doctors could. She groaned a little in pain as she tried to open her eyes before mumbling, "My sister… is t'at you?"

"Yes," Tempest replied, using her magic to keep Calypso's eyes closed. "Do not waste your energy with needless actions, sister. Explain, if you are able."

Instead of doing what was asked of her, Calypso quietly demanded, "My son… Where is my son? He was t'ere, my sister. I know not what t'ey did to him…"

"Novei explained to me that he is with some man named Li. He is apparently tending to Trekk's wounds," Tempest explained. "Now tell me before I have to force the information out of you."

A few uncharacteristic tears slipped down Calypso's face upon hearing this news. She took a moment to let it sink in before finally saying, "I cannot say what happen to me. I do not know t'e words. I cannot t'ink of them… it is difficult."

Tempest used her magic to inspect Calypso before making a painful discovery. The floor shook for a moment before the woman managed to calm herself briefly. "What happened to your magic?"

Calypso went silent for a moment. "...Stolen," she eventually whispered. "All of it. T'ey make it… painful. It all is gone."

Every piece of jewelry Tempest wore began to glow an intense purple and she closed her fists. "Who?"

"Nareish," Calypso mumbled after a lengthy pause. "Her… and her people."

Tempest bared her teeth hatefully. "Damn. Damn it all."

Reaching out slowly, Calypso found one of her sister's hands and gently held it. "My sister… please… try to be calm. For now."

"How can I be calm?" Tempest dared to ask. "My sister, the one who protected and raised me has had a part of her life forcefully ripped away and was so obviously tortured!" Though she wanted to, Tempest couldn't bring herself to tighten her muscles further with Calypso touching her. That was keeping her from going over the edge for now.

"My sister," Calypso tried again, "outbursts may lead t'ese people to ask you to leave. Please be calm. I need you here. It has been so long since we spoke or saw each other. I do not want you to leave."

The glow grew for just a moment before dying out all at once. Tempest let out a slew of curses in their native language before finally huffing. "Fine. I will do my best to stay."

Calypso murmured a heartfelt thank-you to her. Just as slowly as she'd moved before, she released Tempest's hand and laid her arm back down. "I can tell you t'is," she suddenly said. "What t'ey stole… t'at woman has spent it all. It will not be turned on you or I or any ot'er person. But… I do not know if it will ever come back to me."

"They all must die," Tempest muttered hatefully. She felt the burning anger return before she shoved it back down. "How are you? Your injuries were worse than they are now."

"I am… tired, is t'at t'e word?" After a short pause, Calypso seemed to make the decision for herself and said, "Yes, t'at. It all hurts. But I lived. I will keep living. I promise you t'at much."

"I am relieved to hear that, but I do not understand how you are alive." A sigh escaped Tempest before she shook her head. "Nevermind. I do not wish to hear."

Calypso gained a tiny smile. "You remember Kash?" she asked, unashamedly using he old nickname for him despite it having annoyed him greatly in the past.

"I do," Tempest murmured. "Why?"

"His son… he saved me… from what I heard."

Tempest frowned briefly, but didn't allow her thoughts to be conveyed through her expression. "I see."

Using what little strength she had, Calypso forced her eyes open. Upon finally being able to see her younger sister's face, she managed another weak smile. "It so good to see you again, my sister. I am sorry you worry for me."

"Shut up," Tempest snapped lightly, though not aggressively. "Rest before I put you to sleep."

"Bring my son here, when you can," Calypso sighed, closing her eyes again. "T'en I will sleep."

"Sleep now. I will bring him when his wounds are cared for," Tempest countered harshly.

"Could you sleep," Calypso murmured slowly, "knowing Novei was somewhere strange to you… and in pain?"

"Quiet," Tempest muttered. "I will bring him back shortly."

Understanding, Calypso nodded very slightly. "Thank you." With that said, she finally began to try and relax.

Tempest stood fully and walked out of the room, teleporting Trekk and Li to them as she did so. "Trekk. Calypso is inside. Go see her. If you wish for company, say so."

Trekk struggled to his feet, nodding weakly. "Thank you… Thank you, auntie. Please, can you come with me? I don't know how far I can walk…"

Without wasting a moment, Tempest lifted Trekk with her magic and carried him into the medical ward, appearing beside Calypso's bed and setting him down. "I have business to take care of. Will you both be able to manage without my presence?"

Calypso only nodded slightly, taking her son's hand into her own. Trekk, however, spoke up. "Yeah… I think so."

Tempest's eyes began to glow once more with her magic. "If any dare touch you again, I will return and rend their life from their flesh." She teleported away without another word, leaving the two to hopefully relax.

~保護者~

Close to an hour after his parents had come to his home to speak with Ryuji, Espio retreated to the roof. Normally, he would have done such a thing out of a desire to escape a crowd, to get some fresh air, to do things like that, but not this time. It just happened to be a bit easier to breathe outside, was all. And he was just breathless enough still for him to seek a bit of relief from the crisp, cool air. He was able to just sit out there for a while, relaxing and breathing while his family did whatever they were still doing and his children continued to nap. In the end, he was only interrupted by the sudden appearance of Rose.

Rose gave her greetings with a gentle inclination of her head before walking closer. "Are you alright? There seems to have been a stir of emotions."

"I am fine," Espio murmured. "I was not at the center of what happened. My mother's emotions were the ones running high."

The woman frowned softly. "I will not pry, but if you wish to speak about it, I am here to listen."

"It is not my place to say," Espio answered, shaking his head. "It is her business, not mine."

"I understand," Rose murmured gently. "In other news… what have you heard regarding when I went against Zareil?"

Espio blinked and looked at her. "...Enough."

Rose sighed to herself and nodded. "I am not… pleased with how I acted in that situation. It was not good for me to respond with such anger. I hope to never do it again, and I hope that knowing it does not put a strain between us."

Slowly, Espio shook his head. "You have no intention or desire to harm myself or those I care for. For that reason, nothing has changed."

The cat nodded once more before gazing at the necklace she had gifted him. "Has it done you well, Espio?"

"It only activated once, but… yes. It did what you said it would." Espio idly tucked the necklace into his kimono's shirt.

"Does it still have the energy you need it to have?" she questioned further, smiling softly.

"It seems to," Espio shrugged.

Rose smiled wider. "I am glad to hear that." Her eyes wandered and that smile faded quickly. "What happened? Something is… wrong."

This earned another unconcerned shrug. "There was a fight. It was handled."

"Against beings of Light?" she questioned, visibly concerned.

Tilting his head, Espio voiced a simple confirmation. "Yes."

"They were not good… were they?" she asked, voice low. Espio blinked, then shook his head. Rose sighed softly and shook her head in dismay. "If they show up again, I would highly appreciate you letting me know if you are able. I feel awful that there are others of my kind who can act in such a way."

"Fine," Espio agreed. "I will do what I can."

Rose frowned and looked away. "I should be going. I have something else I must do." Espio only nodded in reply. She turned to leave, but turned her gaze back with a smile. "I will see you again soon. I enjoyed speaking with you as a friend."

Unsure what else to say, Espio just replied, "See you, then."

Her smile grew a touch before she teleported away. The woman landed gently on a planet, some distance away from a man tending to an injured creature. She could only smile more as she walked closer and knelt down beside him, aiding him in his task. "Forgive me. I have had a few things to handle before I could see you again. I dislike our time away from one another."

"As do I," Kial answered gently. "I have been handling some of the aftermath of a few battles. Protecting and treating the wildlife affected."

"As you have always done." Rose, once Kial was finished, used her healing power to carefully close the wound so that it could get up and head off, but not before giving them both an appreciative nuzzle. "Is it safe to assume you have some free time?"

Kial nodded gently, taking a seat beside her. The two leaned into one another, both relaxing in the embrace of the other. "I must say, you somehow seem more beautiful than before."

This gave Rose a moment of pause before she smiled. "I suppose I am feeling better than I have in quite some time."

"That is good to hear." Kial pulled her a touch closer, a still gentle smile on his face. "We will both have to go soon."

"Of course. We both have our own duties. We will see each other once again, that much I assure you." Rose laid across his legs, letting out a contented sigh. "But this moment is ours. Let us make the best of it."

Kial's hands ran through Rose's hair gently, untangling it and simply playing with it. "Of course."

And so the two stayed in one another's company, simply enjoying the presence of the other.

~保護者~

Eila felt herself pass into a realm she had never once been to, her gaze shifting around anxiously. She couldn't shake the feeling of worry that had come over her, considering she was about to speak to the force of good in existence aside from the Faein. Her own life had been nothing but evil and destruction, and the idea of potentially having all of that thrown in her face didn't sound appealing. Despite all of these thoughts, she continued moving. Rusen's words and actions had motivated her so much that she could hardly comprehend it. So she floated through the Realm of Chaos, briefly in awe by the appearance of an energy she had never seen before. At one point she found herself stopping to examine it, despite not fully understanding the energy as a whole. Eila then returned to her search, looking for any sign of Eona.

The woman she was searching for made herself known in a curious way. A flicker of Light appeared before Eila, flashing and shimmering in a way that was nothing if not friendly and inviting. It twirled briefly around the woman, almost playfully, and it was through this action that it revealed itself to be alive. This was none other than one of the few remaining Light Sprites, the tiny and energetic beings of Light that existed alongside more powerful entities such as Analia, Rose, and even Eona herself. It was tinier than most, much more so, but seemingly happy and very healthy. And, judging by the way it darted off a few feet and then waited, it wanted Eila to follow her.

Eila frowned for a few seconds before making after the sprite, her gaze locked onto this entity. ...Why? she questioned to herself as she moved after it. A sensation of additional happiness washed over the area the sprite was in when she moved closer, then it darted forward again, this time a bit farther than before. The feeling of… happiness was almost painful to Eila. Yes, she could be happy, but it was overwhelming to her. Yet… she continued following.

Gradually, as the sprite led her deeper and deeper into the realm, the amount of detectable Light began to exponentially increase. Eona was close, close enough that the sprite no longer needed to guide Eila. Still, it stayed by her side, offering silent comfort and encouragement. Eila was silent, her apprehension and concern growing the closer she got. However… she couldn't make herself stop. As she continued onward, Teyan and Eona gradually came into view. They were sitting across from one another, eyes closed to aid in concentration. However, Eona soon opened her eyes in order to aim a smile at their new guest. "Hello, Eila. I have been waiting for you."

Eila froze and she felt her heart skip a beat as her gaze fell on Eona. "I…" she turned her head away, trying to find something else to look at. Fuck… why did I come here?

The other Light user's head canted. "Would you like to sit? You do not have to come closer if you do not wish to, but we have much to speak about."

Eila shakily nodded and came closer, despite her desire to not. She sat down and took deep breaths, trying to steady her nerves. "Wh-what?"

"Sit," Eona invited again with a motion of her hand. Her tone was infinitely gentle and loving, as was her expression. "Please, do not be so nervous. I am not upset with you, and you are safe here. I am just so thankful to see that you are alright again."

"Alright…" Eila watched Eona nervously, biting her lip despite the other woman clearly stating that she didn't need to be nervous.

"How are you feeling right now?" Eona murmured. "Does anything hurt at all?"

"My body is okay," Eila answered. "I am alright."

Eona thought about this for a long moment before saying, "If you will allow me… I can make your statement true. Healing you is no trouble. It would be my pleasure."

Eila's eyes watered for a moment and she shook her head. "I could never ask that of you…"

"Then do not ask," Eona murmured, smiling again. "I am offering, sweetheart. I would do the same for any of my children."

"I…" Eila trailed off, her gaze wandering.

"Will you allow me to aid you?" Eona gently pressed.

"...Okay," Eila answered. Visibly pleased with this response, Eona swiftly and painlessly healed her, as promised. Eila felt this happen and closed her eyes, wiping away the small tears that threatened to escape. "You… said you wanted to talk? Or am I remembering things wrong?"

"I did," Eona murmured. "You hold many fears close to your heart right now, Eila. I hope to offer you a safe space where you can give voice to them. Letting them out will help you feel somewhat better."

Eila sighed, lowering her head. "I don't… It's hard… I was so… evil. You're just… not. I don't think you'd really… get it." Her voice was kept low and she tried to hide how anxious she was becoming just thinking about it. A small part of her just wished she could go back to the depression, something she knew. It felt more comfortable than this.

"I will not pretend to," Eona promised, her voice quiet. "However… you are, in nearly every conceivable way, part of my family. I will always, always care for you. I cared for you then, and I care for you now. My opinion has never changed in spite of the past. You have so much good in you, Eila. It may take time for you to see it for yourself… but it is there. It always has been."

"I don't… fully believe that," Eila muttered. "I'm not good. My parents didn't even see enough good in me to consider passing on our family's legacy to me. They were so… focused on Rose. She was obviously the better sister…"

"Better… no. Your parents made mistakes. I cannot condone the way they raised yourself and young Rose." Eona sighed a little and closed her eyes. "They did not truly believe that you were lesser and that she was greater. But they did give that impression… and I am sorry for it."

"Mistakes my ass," Eila muttered in agitation. "They were lousy and sloppy." Her train of thought shifted and she sighed. "Despite that… I turned out so awful and my sister turned out amazing. Everything I ever thought a being of Light should be. Strong, courageous, loving… It's incredible and I'm happy for her. I just… I can't be like her. I'm not… enough."

"You have always been enough," Eona answered. "It saddens me greatly that your parents never did their part to help you see that truth, growing up. But there is one thing I want you to know. You are also strong, Eila. You hold more courage in your heart than some will ever understand. You are learning again what it means to love, rather than turning your back on it. I can never overstate how proud I am of you for that fact. For all of those facts."

Eila huffed softly. "It's not like most people care. I can never look Jet in the eyes after what I did to him, not to mention after Petry took control again. Sonic doesn't want me around, and I'm sure most others just tolerate me."

"Tails is doing what he can to move away from the past and learn to trust you," Eona pointed out carefully. "Silver is already finding some success in doing the same thing. Cyril and Wery have heard some things about your past, but they trust you and care for your wellbeing. Do they not count?"

"It's hard to make friends," Eila countered. "I know that at any moment, Nareish could choose to use me for my knowledge of Black Magic. It's better if nobody cares."

"Making friends is often difficult for many people," was the gentle response. "That makes what bonds you do form all the more special, Eila. There is nothing wrong with people caring for you. It is a good thing. Friendship is merely another form of love. Love is something you dearly need more of in your life." Eona opened her eyes again. "And as far as Nareish goes… she can do nothing to you any longer. You are under Rusen's protection, and that of his kin. On top of that, Nareish is sealed within her realm for the time being. You are safe, and so is everyone around you."

Eila sighed, lowering her gaze away from Eona. "I hate myself for everything I've done. Sometimes I wish I could just lay down and die."

"Dying will not ease the pain," Eona murmured. "It will only make it eternal. If you end it all with such emotions in your heart, they will only continue to make you suffer."

"Suffering sounds better suited for me sometimes," Eila said quietly. "I wish people would exact revenge on me. Give them some form of retribution."

"You do not deserve to suffer," Eona said, shaking her head. "The people you are around may not all like you, I am sad to admit, but they will not inflict such a thing against you."

"They should," Eila muttered.

"They will not," Eona told her calmly. "They never will. It is not how they are."

Eila bit back the urge to react in a harsh manner, instead settling for a more quiet version of what she would have said. "I wish they would. Pain is easier to comprehend than happiness."

"That is unfortunate… but it will change." Eona gave her another gentle smile. "You will come to understand happiness with time. I am sure of it."

A few tears welled up in Eila's eyes and she whispered something under her breath before speaking up. "I'm just… I'm scared of everything. Life is scary…"

Eona inclined her head. "Life can be cold. It can be cruel. However… you should never lose sight of how beautiful it can also be. You have experienced much darkness, but there is so much light to be found as well. Even when we are alone, there are things to be positive about. The warmth of the sun, the whisper of the breeze, the fragrance of the flowers…" Her smile grew a touch wider. "And then there are the times when you are not alone. When you are with friends and family. You can experience even more wonderful things then. Laughter, smiles, hugs, fun, peace… There is much to fear, yes, but in the end… I have always been of the opinion that there are far more things to enjoy."

"I hardly have family left anymore," Eila answered quietly. "Rose is everything. If… if I lose her…" she trailed off again, unable to even properly process the pain that came with these thoughts.

"You will not," Eona suddenly promised. "She has many, many more years to live. She is not going to die."

Eila's gaze shot up. "Wait, what?"

"Your sister will live," Eona reiterated. "She will not be lost to you any time soon."

The cat nodded slowly, a happy smile on her face breaking through the soft crying. "I'm… glad." Eona murmured an agreement. Taking a moment to calm herself, Eila wiped at her eyes. "I have… a question."

"Of course," Eona invited. "What is it?"

"What do I do?" Eila asked. "I don't… know what to do with myself."

Eona gave that some consideration. "Forgive me for answering your question with another question… but I feel this is an important matter for you to consider. Is there something you want to do?"

Eila was briefly taken aback by this, left to frown quietly in deep thought before finally speaking again. "I… I want to try and undo some of the things Petry did with my body…" she murmured.

"In what ways?" Eona further questioned.

"There are things she's done and places tainted with the magic she used," Eila answered. "I want to make sure that there are no traces of her left."

"That is a good place to start," Eona smiled. "If ever you need a hand, please feel free to reach out to me. I am always available to all of my children."

Eila nodded slowly. "Thank you, Eona…"

"Of course." Eona turned her attention to the little Light Sprite that she'd sent out to guide Eila here earlier and gently nudged it back toward the other woman. "She is a personal friend of mine, this little one. She also seems to quite like you. If you ever would like her to, she appears to be more than willing to stay with you." As if to prove Eona's point, the sprite flew in circles around Eila, almost as if trying to cheer her up.

"Got it," the cat responded gently. She couldn't bring herself to say no to the small being of Light that had apparently taken a liking to her. "I think I've realized what I should do first."

"What is it?"

"The place where Petry tortured Jet…" Eila murmured. "I'm gonna tear it down and make sure nothing is left."

Eona inclined her head slowly. "That will be good. For everyone."

Suddenly filled with a bout of confidence, Eila stood and waved a hand, opening a portal. "That's what I'm gonna do."

"Travel safely, Eila."

"Thank you," Eila murmured softly before stepping through the portal. Eona merely smiled and returned to her and Teyan's work.

~保護者~

15,136 words this time. Hope y'all enjoyed. Many thanks as always to Blazing Winds for all of his help and support. Posted (at about 10:10 p.m.) 02-28-21.