Samateus had sent word to three of her kin, all earth element types, to meet the Obsidian Flare near the Battle Moon where the Firians were located, to try and reclose the visible wound on the side of the Moon. As they teleported in and moved around the side from the back of the Moon, Xerxes almost collapsed, Graveheart moving to gently steady him as he understood the closeness the Serpentine Ahr'aht felt to the Firian people. Seeing lifeless bodies in the space between them and the Moon, with a massive crater in its side below where the Firian Palace had settled, would unnerve any. Samateus soon engaged her armour fully, left wing still close to her side yet able to use her right and limbs to direct her movement as she teleported off the ship and met her kin in the space just beyond.
All three moved to embrace her gently, drifting back after a long moment to help clear the space and gently collecting the dead to teleport away, then reappear in a flash. Two others soon appeared, helping their fellows as Xerxes and Graveheart watched. Zera had turned away, thinking of Pyrus and concerned for his well being. Zera blushed when she felt Samateus connect her with Pyrus, who let his anger at the Beast override the sadness in his heart. Neither spoke, as nothing could really be said following such a massive blow to the recently recovering Firian morale, Pyrus thanking both for their concern before he withdrew.
**Do you think he'll be alright?** Zera asked Samateus, who could be seen floating closer to the Battle Moon cautiously, more Taalrulthians appearing to help move the dead and debris from the damaged Moon.
**He's been through difficult times, though he's going to need all of us to help him through this. I need to focus on helping coordinate my kin, Xerxes is going to monitor Psionic activity through the stones while I'm unavailable.** Samateus reassured her, Xerxes' thoughts quickly taking over and connecting Zera with the conversation he had started with Jade and the others, through Sairyllia. Xerxes' ire could be felt for a long moment, cursing himself for moving his ship and not promptly having another in its place near the Moon.
**How bad is the Moon structurally, do we need to move the Firians?** Jade sounded almost aggravated, the rest realising it was from twice now being involved with Beast activity that could cause major destabilization amongst the Rockians. Such damage had not been done to the Battle Moons by the Beast before, save for two being destroyed in the previous encounters by the Beast directly. This, coupled by the loss of so many lives that she felt responsible for, had Jade on edge, Xerxes transmitting calm through their psionic connection helping her relax.
**It's fairly large, though the Bulkheads are holding... Wait, there are Firians stuck between sections, Blaze?** Xerxes quickly reached out and included the Firian General, who physically had been helping direct civilians away from the damaged area.
**Yes?** Blazes' agitation passed to the others briefly over the connection, Xerxes doing his best to send calm but also felt agitated and concerned.
**We're seeing that there are others trapped in smaller sections between bulkheads... Shall we teleport them here, to the Obsidian Flare, until the rest have settled and we can return them?** Xerxes looked to Graveheart on the bridge of his ship, where Graveheart and Zera watched on as Samateus and her fellow Taalrulthians moved about between the ship and the Moon. Blaze thought a moment, then agreed that would be the best course of action, Xerxes looking to Graveheart who turned and headed to the Cargo bay of the Obsidian Flare, where they had been when Pyrus let them know about the damage. Graveheart was then removed from the conversation, to allow him to help calm the Firians once he arrived.
**Xerxes, what happened with Ramset and Zuma on Sand?** Cryos hazarded, Sternum and Femur's shock transmitted through the psionic connection at having been unaware of such. Xerxes' frown and smirk at Zera who grinned slyly at him transmitted only in the sense that he knew she had reached through and informed her father via Samateus of her whereabouts earlier.
**Samateus hinted at a little bit, but it would seem that the Sunians and Zumahim know more about the makers than previously thought. We can talk on that more later, once the damage has been assessed and managed...** Xerxes let his sentence hang, Femur and Sternum understanding that he meant when they had a chance to reconvene in person. Tekla then could be felt joining their psionic connection with Capacitor, through his scale-stone.
**If there is anything needed of us, you know we will help. All you need do is ask.** Tekla's concern coupled by Capacitor's openness helped all of those connected to relax, Xerxes thanking them both before they withdrew. While watching morbidly as Samateus directed her kin and Xerxes monitored the rising counts of the dead, Zera asked Sternum and Femur what they were up to, both lightly laughing as Pelvus and Tibia were included. Pelvus had been doing some quiet reading on the Aurora, Tibia just finished a trip from Bone to one of the other Moons before the Beast had attacked Sand and the Firian Battle Moon simultaneously.
**We were just reminiscing on the past and bouncing ideas off each other on what we should do about the sentience showing up in our ships. It also might be attributed to the closeness to the Ark, as Xerxes suggested might be responsible for the lichen crops having increased yields.** Sternum offered, Cryos chuckling.
**I was just finishing up the follow-up address regarding Frost and his attempted coup when Samateus let us know about the attack. Do we know how the Beast managed to deal so much damage to the Moon?** Cryos could almost be seen in the Table room himself, looking over the scanner readings.
**I'm still waiting for Khilseith to get me the recordings from the observation drone. He's stepping up patrols, All of the Taalrulthians are infuriated by the damage done to the Firians, because of how close Samateus is to all of this.** Xerxes raised a brow and turned as Graveheart returned to the bridge with Flare, who appeared unharmed but badly shaken. The others gladly let Xerxes and Zera return to their current predicament and would do what they could to remain available to their allies as they continued their own duties.
"Flare, I was worried you were lost in the blast, did you see what happened?" Xerxes cautiously moved to them, Graveheart stepping back to give the serpentine Ahr'aht space, Zera cautiously moving to stand with the Rockian with a lost expression. She had come to worry for Pyrus and the Firians almost more than her own people, having been to Fire in the early days of the war against the Beast, before the revelation of the world engines and sacrifice of the Vizier. Despite it being far too hot for her, even with additional nanites to keep her temperature down, she found she enjoyed being in the Firian capital and palace, feeling at ease and welcome, despite some of the looks from the civilians and reaction to the alliance at the beginning.
"It happened so quickly. One moment I was running through part of the Outer Ring with my trainees, the next... It was as though something took a bite out of the Moon. The bulkheads closed immediately, but..." Flare trailed off, gritting his teeth and clenching his fists. Rage and loss fought him for control of his thoughts, Xerxes gently lying his left hand on Flares shoulder to redirect his attention as he looked to his right gauntlet for a moment and visibly snarled.
"That isn't far off from the truth. Khilseith sent me the recording, once we can steal Pyrus and Blaze away and meet with the others I'll show you." Xerxes gently squeezed Flare's shoulder reassuringly, meeting his gaze after a moment. Flare sighed, shoulders slumping slightly as he let Xerxes know wordlessly, only three of his ten trainees had survived with him, the rest lost to the vacuum of space. Xerxes nodded understanding, that it would be hard on them as well, losing others of their age group and classmates, and to not dwell too much on the loss as a personal one until he could steal away from the public eye.
Xerxes then sighed, looking to Graveheart a moment, almost slapping himself before he retrieved the small case he had taken with Samateus' scale-stones, removing two and giving one to Graveheart, and offered the other to Flare. Flare blinked, straightening up and a bit wide-eyed that he would be offered such while still being only an Igneous guard, even though he was already treated as though of even station and rank as his father. Graveheart and Xerxes shared a glance, smirking that Flare had much the same mindset as Graveheart himself, for so long, feeling undeserving of his station and the respect of his peers.
"You are the only other of the Firian people I believe Pyrus trusts, outside your father. I can think of no one better." Xerxes almost purred, Graveheart moving to stow the scale-stone from Samateus with the one from Sairyllia, alongside the ring box he lightly tapped to make certain it was still there. Flare hesitantly raised his hand to receive the stone, smile slowly returning as his fingers closed around it, his ear-spines slowly relaxing.
"Thank you, Xerxes..." Flare responded hesitantly, having only heard his name in passing but somehow it stuck in his head for a reason, and he was in no position to dispute that Pyrus did trust him. "I know he doesn't really say it, however, Prince Pyrus is struggling to trust anyone right now, outside myself and my Father, despite what he did. That he's put his trust in you, Samateus and Graveheart..." Flare stopped, Xerxes' knowing smile helping him further relax as Zera moved to stand closer to Xerxes, offering a smile of her own.
"They're easy to trust, and we're all here to help each other, as we should have been able to from the beginning." Zera offered a hug, which Flare gently accepted, whispering a thanks in her ear for helping Pyrus as well. Zera giggled lightly, nodding knowingly as they withdrew, Xerxes waving off the evaporating steam from the pair's physical contact reaction. "Were there any injuries amongst those trapped between the bulkheads? Maybe we can help?" Xerxes smiled at Zera's comment, chuckling himself.
"Sai is already on board and helping out as best she can. The death count keeps rising, however... I worry how this will affect the populace. They only just had something to brighten their lives a bit, and now this." Xerxes growled audibly, stepping back and sweeping his arm out at the carnage still being addressed by the Taalrulthians. Flare blinked, stepping away from the other three to gawk, ear spines drooping as he realised just how bad the damage had been.
Flare shuddered as he got a good look of the crater in the side of the Moon, slate grey bulkheads visible amongst the reddish coloured stone. Samateus, in her smaller form, could be seen hovering near one of the bulkheads, allowing Xerxes to judge the crater to be approximately a kilometer across the surface of the moon. At the deepest portion, one of the inner walls of the Moon, likely the outer wall of the Second ring, could be seen, blackened by explosive damage, but otherwise intact. The bulkhead at its center had small hints of the metal walkway that had once been there, jagged metal walls and twisted ends of I-beams just barely visible alongside the stonework and wall. Graveheart frowned deeply, working out in his head the size of the crater and damage and lightly cursing under his breath.
"At least the second ring wasn't breached, there aren't any bulkheads there..." Graveheart shuddered, Xerxes looking at him in shock.
"Gods, really? I suppose that is a welcome revelation, yet still does nothing to lessen the damage. Will this offset the balance of the Moon? Samateus and her kin can do their best to return the debris to the Moon, the Earth-types can meld stone together fairly effortlessly." Xerxes asked Graveheart, Flare also shuddering at the thought of how much worse it could have been had the second ring been breached. He and some of his trainees had been saved by the bulkheads, one of which showed the location of a hallway that had led from the second ring to the outer at the mid-point of the crater, but so many more would not have been protected by such, and the Firian race could have been almost wiped out in an instant.
"It might, get Samateus to piece together what can be, the metals and such can be reworked and replaced later." Graveheart offered, Xerxes sending this to Samateus who acknowledged and began coordinating the reconstruction. Zera then rasied the concern at what was being done with the dead, Xerxes sighing and explaining, though the others could tell it hurt him deeply.
"Samateus and her kin have an ability that allows them to teleport, or blink, into and out of places they have already been. Those that are helping assist with retrieval are taking the dead to their WorldShip, to a muster area otherwise unused for the moment. The debris that cannot be reworked by the earth-element Taal is being placed planet-side in a secure location, until we can return it to Rock later." Xerxes watched out the viewport of the bridge, gaze still on the massive wound in the side of the moon, concerned and feeling responsible for allowing such a gap in their defenses to give the beast a moment to attempt such a bold move. Graveheart moved to gently rest a hand on Xerxes' left shoulder, the Ahr'aht tilting his head just enough to meet his gaze out of the corner of one eye, expression softening and closing his eyes to nod lightly.
**You really must have been close with Magmus, if you're beating yourself up this much...** Graveheart directed his thoughts at Xerxes, who offered a slight smile and another nod.
**As I explained earlier, becoming a Firian for that first time, feeling the elemental affinity I'd only ever hinted at or seen allowable to the Taal, I owe the Firian people more than I care to admit. Pyrus... He needs us all now, more than ever, and while I did make it known that I'm here for all the leaders and their closest officers, I'm hoping to spend more time with him on the Moon.** Xerxes' explanation hit a chord with the Rockian, Graveheart nodding and offered a smile of his own.
**I was thinking of doing the same, though I'm sure Jade would protest.**
**You need to stop looking for an opportune time to bring out that ring, nevermind spreading yourself more thinly.** Xerxes' playful grin was met with a red-face bearing an expression of shock and slight shame. **Propose to her later, I'm certain it will help take the edge off of what we need to do for the Firians.**

Some hours later, Xerxes, Graveheart and Zera accompanied Flare with the rescued Firians who had been caught between the bulkheads during the attack to the Battle moon, teleporting to the inner ring where Blaze and Pyrus had been doing what they could to lend support to those who had lost family. Xerxes was thankful the base for his device had not been destroyed or lost in the damage, the silvery tree momentarily forgotten with the space lost insectoid lights having teleported to it and powered down in the decompression. Pyrus noticed the others arrive first, brightening up when he spotted Flare with the group, Blaze relaxing visibly when he realised they had appeared.
"Flare, I'm glad you're alright..." Pyrus smirked, turning serious and his almost pleading eyes nearly making Xerxes cave and reveal his secret then and there. "How bad is it?" Flare sighed, shaking his head and looking to Xerxes, ear spines flat against his skull as he found he had no strength to speak. Zera could tell the rest were loathe to express just how many had been lost, taking their silence for reluctance to worsen an already bad situation.
"Three hundred and five were recovered... The outer moon is being repaired by Taalrulthians to help with the balance of the internal mechanics." Zera offered, Pyrus stiffening and gritting his teeth angrily, Blaze shaking his head solemnly.
"We've not had a population loss like this in decades... None are going to feel safe here after that attack, I certainly no longer wish to be here, no offence to those who helped us." Blaze frowned, looking apologetically to Graveheart who waved it off.
"I can't blame you, or any, for feeling uncomfortable after all of this, however I don't think there is anywhere else at the moment... Unless you have something?" Graveheart looked to Xerxes, who sighed and shook his head solemnly.
"We need at least another month to test my terraforming plan, nevermind make it stable enough for settlements or the palace. In the interim, I have an idea, -well, it's more Tekla and Capacitor's idea- but I don't know if it would be well received after what happened on Bone with the shield generator Lamprey had used." Pyrus remained silent as the others conversed, turning to watch some of the families greeting those who had been evacuated from the bulkhead sections, Flare's three remaining trainees quickly going to look for their families. Subconsciously, Pyrus had moved a hand to the blade at his hip, thinking on how his father or the Vizier would approach this loss publicly. The first evacuation had been difficult, his people coming together in solidarity once they realised they had no option, feeling his words had not done anything to help, though others knew better.
Zera knew Pyrus' silence meant he was working things out in his head, not really listening to the conversation as a whole, Zera gently nudging him after a long moment when Xerxes and Graveheart had stopped speaking.
"Sorry, just thinking how to address this and keep panic to a minimum... The evacuation went well because we had urgency, this..." Xerxes' softened expression and curling pinions to Pyrus' unease and uncertainty could be read differently by others, Blaze knew it to be pride, Zera concern, and Graveheart saw his concern for Pyrus as that of an uncle to a nephew.
"While not an urgent issue, this was a direct attack intended to cause unease, panic and disarray. I'll help you write a speech, work out in your head what you wish to tell them for now while you have some time. Blaze, if I remember correctly, as Regent-General, you can enact temporary measures to keep the civilians under closer watch. Use this as best you can to reassure the people we will not allow the beast any ground. Khilseith is closing the Ahr'aht fleet around the alliance worlds, we're going to have more patrols of Taalrulthians out and about, and the Siren's Revenge will remain alongside the Moon permanently while there are civilians on it." Xerxes' quick plan made even Blaze raise his brows, surprised at how quickly and efficiently the Ahr'aht worked. Pyrus relaxed a bit, smiling at Zera and nodding at her expression of concern, to let her know he would be alright, the young Prince visibly taking in a deep breath to help his inner calm recover further.
"You are correct, though Martial Law has not been enacted in... Inferno knows how long. Flare, I'll need your help organising this." Blaze nodded and went off with his son after bidding the others a brief farewell, Graveheart and Xerxes looking to Pyrus and Zera.
"I need to gather something from the Obsidian Flare quickly before I meet you and the rest to show you the recording... Will you be alright for a little while with these two?" Xerxes' concern almost weighed on Pyrus, who nodded with a forced smile.
"I need to do something to relax my mind anyway, I'll pilot?" He looked to Graveheart who nodded and Zera smirked.
"At least we can be certain we'll be safe with all the Taalrulthian's on high alert." Zera chuckled, Xerxes smiling and nodding as he looked to Graveheart a moment.
**Please watch him, I know it's not my place, but he doesn't even trust himself right now.** Graveheart understood what Xerxes alluded to, reassuring the Ahr'aht wordlessly that they had been through rough patches as a group before, and the solidarity of the rest of the alliance leaders in supporting Pyrus had worked once. They could do so again, better this time, with the Taalrulthians and Ahr'Aht assisting.