Haruto felt like he was losing his mind. Like his skull was splitting open. He'd lost sense of his surroundings and that was clear to L-elf. He wanted to focus on Cain and stop him from whatever he was doing. But it was probably behind Haruto's reaction. Cain simply smirked to himself as he put a hand to the unfinished valvrave's core and it lit up with an intense glow.

L-elf watched in awe as the glow turned into the shape of a person. Their clothing was strange and their hair a bright blue. They only had eyes for Cain, but only for a moment before noticing Haruto.

"It's time for us to go", Cain said in a commanding voice, still smiling at his nearly assure triumph.

L-elf put a hand to Haruto's shoulder, trying to get him to come to his senses. The screaming had stopped but he was still holding his head in his hands, still not present in the moment.

"Haruto!", the odd spirit of the core called out, his voice echoing.

Cain's eyes narrowed as the spirit floated out and attached itself to Haruto, melting into his body. His hands dropped from his head and when he opened his eyes, they weren't a bright blue but rather an electric orange.

"Is this your answer? After what the humans did to you?", Cain asked. His question left L-elf in the dark. And he hated that.

"I'm choosing this now." Although it was Haruto's mouth doing the talking, it was a stranger's voice coming out. L-elf took a step back from him. He didn't know whether to focus on Haruto or Cain. And with the flow of this conversation, he felt truly out of his depth.

"Suit yourself", Cain said. He made a move to escape and while L-elf thought he'd be quicker with his bullets, Cain had already disappeared into the shadows. How did he get past the defenses in the first place? What did he want? And what the hell was that thing possessing Tokishima Haruto?

"We need to talk", the not-Haruto said.

L-elf agreed and allowed himself to be led back to where Unit I rested. They sat in the cockpit and immediately the screen lit up with an excited Pino.

"Big brother!"

"Pino!"

L-elf watched the interaction with a neutral expression. He was here for answers. "Tell me everything."

The spirit used Haruto's face to frown in a way that looked weird on his face. Almost as if he was disgusted with L-elf. "My name is Plue", he began. "This is my sister, Pino. We are of the same species, the magius."

Before today, L-elf might've scoffed at that. But now he was just silent. Plue told L-elf about the magius. L-elf already knew about the runes Haruto took in so that the valvraves could work. Apparently that ability came from the magius, who needed them as well. It was also from them that all the pilots had that L-elf hadn't seen in action, immortality.

"You can't die?", L-elf asked.

"We can if we run out of runes", Plue said. "But our bodies are not physical. So long as we have the energy, we can move to another host. Scientists from JIOR have doctored that into a quick healing factor." He went on to explain that all the students had this, but it was only awakened when they became a pilot. When they were asked to once and for all give up their humanity.

L-elf looked into the orange of Plue's eyes, trying to find a sign of Haruto in there but finding nothing. It was disorienting.

"This is the VVV project envisioned by JIOR's top scientist. And it involved trapping magius and using them as weapons. Using their children as soldiers." Plue's fists shook. "But Dr. Tokishima, Haruto's father, he had even worse plans for his own son."

Plue remembered, being in that laboratory and being experimented on. His only reprieve had been the few times he got to see his sister, and the many visits from a small boy who was allowed to talk to him. Plue eventually learned that this was Dr. Tokoshima's son. And while he could never forgive the man that headed this research project, he couldn't share those feelings with the innocent child. And eventually Plue wasn't even allowed to talk with him.

Haruto no longer had access to the lab, in keeping the secret of JIOR's weapons program. And young children did forget things so easily. It was no wonder that Haruto hadn't remembered any of this until recently.

This was a lot for a normal person to take in. But L-elf was not a normal person. There was only one thing he was concerned about and it was how any of this would effect his plans.

"What is your goal?", L-elf asked.

"I only want freedom for my sister and I. And to protect Haruto. Which makes you a problem." There was that look again. The one that said that L-elf was worse than a nuisance. That he was an actual hindrance.

L-elf frowned back. "How am I a problem for Tokishima Haruto?"

"Because he's confused about his feelings for you."

Aaaaand we finally begin season 2! Stay tuned for more!