The group chased Badr throughout the compound, mowing down any Beastfolk that stood in their way, until they finally reached the top.
"What the…? What's that?" Valfor asked, seeing a sort of magic circle behind Badr.
"That's…the Ether Gear?!" Vivian asked.
"Don't get any closer! Don't you care what happens to him?" Badr asked.
"Using hostages? Seriously?" Yangus asked.
"This guy is just pathetic." Rosalie said.
"Say what you will!" Badr said. "My reinforcements will be here any moment now. Just stand still, and I promise that your deaths will be brutal and torturous."
"You're supposed to say 'quick and painless', idiot." Captain Cold said.
"Don't you dare lecture me on how to threaten my enemies!" Badr said. "I'm nothing like those chumps that follow a sense of honor. That stuff means nothing to me! Slaughering people while they beg for their lives is the greatest pleasure of all, wouldn't you agree?"
"Maybe there was a time where I once thought that. And still do on occasion." Cheetah said.
"Exactly, as huntresses, there is no greater thrill than mounting a kill on your prey." Badr said.
"But that's where your methods differ from us, Badr." Esmeralda said. "Those in the wild only hunt for the sake of survival. You only kill for the sake of killing. Those who hunt for sport and to maintain dominance are nothing more than monsters."
"Ha! I'll take that as a compliment." Badr said as Beastfolk start to surround the group. "You people are utter fools to think you can put up a resistance."
"And what is wrong with that?" Wyatt asked.
"You Humans are all the same. You throw your lots in to protect each other instead of saving your skins." Badr said. "I know you Humans very well."
"So it would seem. But Human determination seems to be a subject you are bad at." Wyatt said.
"Wait, old man! Don't!" Galil said.
"Wyatt, don't be careless!" Barbarosa said.
Wyatt started to pull his head back. "(Galil… Cheetah… I leave the rest…to you…)" he thought as he slammed his neck at Badr's axe.
"Oh no… Dad!" Azura called out.
"Wyatt!" Barbarosa called out.
"A-are you mad?! Why would you say all of that just to get yourself killed anyway?!" Badr asked. "Don't screw with me!"
"...I've heard enough…" Galil said, tightening the grip on his sword.
"Huh?" Badr asked.
"The old man… He may be a piece of work, but he was the best father a lot of us could have. And no way in hell am I going to stand here and waste his sacrifice." Galil said.
"He's right. Prepare yourself, Badr!" Cheetah said.
"Damn punks… I'll just wipe you all out!" Badr said as he got ready to fight.
"Here we go." Jessica said as she launched a fire blast at him.
"Have some of this!" Valfor said as he started scratching him up.
"Damn it, just stay down already!" Badr said as he swung his axe wildly, continuously missing the group.
"We were gonna say the same thing to you, ugly!" Aoesia called out as she and her guards continuously attack with their spears.
"This world is better off without you." Nesma said as she attacks as well, Kareem and Bassam supporting her with dark magic.
"How would you like a taste of your own medicine, bastard?!" Barbarosa asked as he swung his axe at Badr. "Galil, Cheetah, now!"
"Right, let's go!" Galil said as his sword glows brightly, dealing massive damage on Badr.
"It's over!" Cheetah said as she furiously slices away at Badr.
"Damn it… Damn it…!" Badr screams to the sky before the Ether Gear's dark flames go out and Badr falls dead on the ground.
"Whew… What a piece of work…" Valfor said.
The group went to check on Wyatt, who was lying on the ground.
"Damn it, why did you do that?" Glacius asked.
"I know it was suicidal…" Wyatt said weakly. "But it was all I could think of… I couldn't afford to have you all…die on my behalf."
"Old man!" Galil called out to him.
"Cheetah… I ask much of you in your short time here, but… When this whole war against the Daemons is over…" Wyatt said weakly.
"I understand. You do not have to say anymore. Please…rest in peace." Cheetah said.
"Don't say that kind of stuff, man!" Renzo said.
"I still haven't repaid my debt to you, Wyatt. Don't say such foolish things." Barbarosa said.
"Barbarosa, Renzo… I have one last favor to ask." Wyatt said. "Galil and Azura… Take care…of them both…" he said as he soon laid dying. As this happens, the dark clouds started to dissipate, light shining down once again.
After condolences, the group went back to their ships.
"The Ark, and the Dark Cruiser, hm? They are a lot bigger than I imagined." Renzo said. "So, what is our next move?"
"I think…I want to carry on the old man's will." Galil said. "We were born and raised in a suffocating world smothered by rain clouds. The old man tried to change that."
"Yes, we could see that he was very active in defeating the Daemon menace." Esmeralda said.
"When I told dad about the world with the blue sky, he would always laugh, but he enjoyed listening to me." Azura said.
"But now, we know there is a way to change that." Galil said. "That's why I wanted to see this through. Do you all remember what happened after Badr was defeated?"
"Yes. That Ether Gear thing was destroyed. The black clouds started to dissipate, and light was starting to form from the cracks." Nesma said.
"There were five of these built across the surface world, and the one we destroyed no doubt weakened the Great Barrier." Tiggy said.
"Which makes our objective destroying them all." Cheetah said.
"But how were they built in the first place?" Rosalie asked. "That seems to be the question on our minds right now."
"With your permission, I shall explain." Vivian said.
"Go right ahead, Vivian." Luke said.
"This may take a while, so please bear with me." Vivian said.
"Do not worry, this may give us a chance to look at things from the Daemons' perspective." Glacius said.
"About a thousand years ago, the Daemons conquered the surface world to quash the 'chaotic energy' of Human Sigimancy." Vivian explained. "I believe that Human civilization, with its rapid advances in Sigimancy, was deemed a threat to Daemons. Some records still state that ancient Human Sigimancy was once just as powerful as our Sorcery."
"So, did humans have Etheracts back then too?" Azura asked.
"We now perceive Etheracts as sigimantic weapons, but history describes colossal Etheracts as large as buildings." Vivian said. "This Arc is likely one such Etheract, built by ancient humans."
"Hmm… Given what we know about this Arc so far, it does make sense." Cheetah said. "After all, the surface world has deemed it nothing more than a myth."
"But for it to be built this big? That had to be quite the feat at the time." Poison Ivy said.
"So Sigimancy contains wonders yet to be discovered…" Cheetah said with intrigue.
"The Sigimancy Guild is actively researching Etheracts, but this is clearly beyond our understanding…" Agursu said.
"And the humans' development for Sigimancy is why the Daemons decided to act, correct?" Cheetah asked.
"Yes. Under the orders of the Council of Eight." Vivian said. "The Council of Eight, as its name suggests, consists of eight lords. It is our highest governing body. I believe they have dictated the current laws and social order on the surface. I heard that the Council even authorized the invasion of the surface, before the great war."
"Hold on, you keep saying stuff like you 'believe' this, or 'heard' that." Zamazenta said. "It's almost as if you weren't even there yourselves."
"Because we weren't. Ignace and I belong to a different clan that immigrated to Area 18 after the war." Vivian said. "You could say we are among the second generation of Daemons."
"Area 18? What's that?" Valfor asked.
"It's where the Daemons live, far beyond the sky above the surface." Vivian said. "Strictly speaking, Area 18 is the name of the administrative region, while the world we live in is called Daemonia. One could call the surface world the eighteenth of the Daemonic territories."
"Hence, Area 18." Belladonna concluded.
"So Daemonia is the home of the Daemons…" Valfor said.
"Exactly. It's actually a pretty nice place, you should come visit some time!" Vivian said.
Ignace sighs. "Oh, Madam… only you would be eccentric enough to invite humans to Daemonia."
"Back on subject. The destruction of the Ether Gear made a change to the Great Barrier, correct?" Cheetah asked.
"That's right. Observing the Ether Gear at the Bastille has shed some light on the barrier's current state." Vivian said. "This may be just my hypothesis, but some architect may have engineered the Dark Current."
"But who made that Dark Current?" Nesma asked.
"That, even I am not sure." Belladonna said. "Something seems off, but neither of us can tell what."
"When you say it like that, the Dark Current doesn't really sound all that Daemonic, at all." Aoesia said.
"Because it may not be." Ignace said. "You see, we Daemons do not act unless we believe it is logical to do so. Actions without purpose are meaningless to us. However, I do understand the intent to divide the human world and impede development while preserving diversity of civilizations. But… The Dark Current does not feel intended to accomplish this at all… If the Dark Current really was a deliberate act, it must've had a purpose of some sort."
"Now that you mention it, yeah. If the intent was to destroy humanity, wouldn't the Daemons be doing that themselves?" Riesz asked.
"That would be most efficient, I would agree." Ignace said. "I just can't fathom the thought of someone being so wasteful as to use the Dark Current just to kill humans. It would completely go against our system of values."
"Ignace is correct. I cannot help but suspect that the Dark Current may serve an agenda not of Daemon origin." Vivian said.
"Sounds to me like we should destroy more Ether Gears to get some more answers about that." Esmeralda said.
"Regardless, if someone manipulated the surface world to its current state, then we have no choice." Ignace said. "Once we destroy the Ether Gears, we will eventually find our way towards the mastermind."
"It's going to be a daunting task by ourselves." Cheetah said. "We should gather anyone we can from the realms and have them pledge their support in our endeavors."
"Oooh… That's a pretty big-brained move from you there, Cheetah!" Glacius said.
"One that we all seem to agree to." Barbarosa said.
"Alright, then we have our objectives. Destroy the remaining Ether Gears, and enlist help from every guild from the realms we can. This is going to be a heck of an adventure." Zamazenta said.
"Will they really be of any help against…him, though?" Agursu asked.
Cheetah gives a slight nod. "They will…I'm sure of it."