Bahamut sighed deeply, as he rubbed against his brow. He felt a bit tired all of the sudden. Evidently, the festivities had been too much for him. And despite all that had happened, he was still a little disappointed. He had hoped Wyvern would return for this at least. But he hadn't. His brother was still gone, and none of the guests knew anything about him. Another year would go by where he could never apologize to him. That made the esper feel sad and cold inside as he walked through the halls. However, he had to try and rejoice as much as he could. This was going to be a good night…if they could ever get started.

Bahamut finally made his way to one of the new chambers. He stepped inside it at once. In it, he saw the makings of the nursery. Long ago, the kid espers outgrew their cribs. They now had their own beds to lay in…at least those that wanted to. Shiva, Titan, and Ramuh seemed to like them. Palidor preferred a nest like Phoenix had liked. As for Ifrit…he liked to lay in a ball on the floor with a rug. Starlet had just finished tending to them, it seemed. They were still running around, seeming to bounce about after their earlier fight. And they were talking to each other excitedly.

"Man, I almost won that fight…"

"Just because you were lucky!"

"Hey! I almost won fair and square!"

"Titan fight!"

"Where's Gilgamesh? Shouldn't he be in bed?"

"Ah, he's still moping."

Starlet sat in their midst. A hand was to her brow and rubbing it. She looked rather tired as well. She moaned a bit in their midst. "These kids must have been more hurt than I thought. They took a lot out of me."

"Maybe it's just all the action we saw today." Bahamut answered, exhaling a bit. "I'm pretty tired too."

"The kids are still perking with energy though." Starlet commented. "And they were fighting today."

"Aw, that was hours ago. I'm fine now." Ifrit protested.

"I'd just like to get my separation over with." Starlet sighed in response. "I'm going to be too tired if this goes on any longer. Let's get going."

"We should wait for Odin." Bahamut answered.

Starlet's face turned to rage. "I don't give a damn if he joins up with Wyvern and never comes back." Starlet was sharp at this. She very rarely cursed.

However, Bahamut was struck at that. The mention of his brother stiffened him up. Starlet almost immediately realized her mistake. She cupped her hand to her mouth instantly. "Oh…Bahamut…I'm sorry. I…I didn't mean it in that way."

Bahamut paused with a stony look, but eventually nodded in response. "…It's alright."

"Odin…what he did…was really rotten. I haven't seen Gilgamesh all day. He makes me so mad. I never would have agreed to have a child with him."

Bahamut sighed in response. He really didn't know what to say in response to that. And so, he said nothing. He paused for a little while, but then spoke up again at last. "The dragons that stopped by," He continued, changing the subject. "They recorded messages on the crystal in the meeting hall for us. Just their thoughts written on the crystal. I was looking over them, seeing what they had to say. But now that that's done, I'm ready to move on if you are."

With that, Bahamut turned to the side, closed his eyes, and focused for a moment. He reached out and tried to probe for Odin. It didn't take long though. His eyes reopened, and he spoke out about what he felt. "He's nearby. I sense his energy…" However, at that, Bahamut trailed off a little. His face turned to concern abruptly, and a hint of puzzlement.

Starlet saw this. Immediately, her own face grew concerned, and she leaned in toward her brother. "What's the matter?"

"That's odd." Bahamut answered. "He seems to be circling around the mountain, but I didn't see him get Slepnir. And there's something different…something unusual about his power. It seems almost artificial…different…mixed even…"

Bahamut trailed off at this. He kept staring at the sky, getting a faraway look in his appearance. Starlet looked back in confusion, but said nothing. She waited for Bahamut's response. In the end, however, Bahamut shook his head and waved it off. "It could be nothing." He responded at last. "In any case, let's go. We can meet up with him outside."

"Well…such a weapon could be made…" Leviathan responded, giving a sigh and wiping his brow. "But it would take ten days to make it as good as we could…" He exhaled again, and shook his head once more.

Gilgamesh looked a bit intrigued at that. "…You alright? You look tired."

"Yeah…I am…strangely enough." Leviathan murmured in reply.

"Me too." Ogopogo mentioned. "Man…I feel like just skipping the birthing for tonight. Maybe we could postpone it… I'm too tired."

Gilgamesh scratched his head. He felt fine, and he had been in a fight earlier. "You guys must be getting too old for us."

However, Gilgamesh had barely finished saying that when he heard a sound over them. It seemed like it had just entered the crater, was beginning to echo in it. The espers all turned and looked up to it. It seemed strange to the ear, and yet at the same time was also familiar. As they looked up to it, in the darkness of the night they recognized a vague shape. And they recognized the noise as well. It was the same sounds that the airship had made earlier. And now, it was coming down again.

"The airship?" Leviathan asked.

"The Lufenians are coming back?" Ogopogo ventured.

The sound continued to grow louder. Itcame downinto the mountain hollow. The espers continued to look up curiously, wondering what this latest turn meant. The ship kept coming, and as it did, Leviathan began to change. A look of interest went over his face, and intrigue at the sight. However, as it descended over half the cave and kept coming, Leviathan's face suddenly froze.

"Guys…I sense Odin's power in that thing."

Ogopogo and Gilgamesh both turned to Leviathan in surprise. Then, they wheeled back to the airship. It was then that Gilgamesh realized it wasn't the same. This airship had only two propellers. It was long with a very thin body, and a lot of tails behind it. It seemed meant to move itself around than carry people. It was also covered with metal, not wood like the last ones. It kept lowering, closing in on the others. At once…the espers didn't feel all that good above the coming airship. In fact, they were getting rather fearful about it. The ship kept descending, and they began to tense up as it did. They all began to feel Odin's power now…but this definitely wasn't Odin.

Finally, the airship was about thirty feet from the ground. There it halted. Immediately, it turned to the group. For a moment, they all saw a light suddenly glow from it. A bright white line just shot up from the ship. Then, abruptly…the light seemed to break off from the ship. It condensed and twisted, and abruptly formed a circle of white light. The circle spun and danced in the air…and then curved straight for the three of them.

"Oh no…" Gilgamesh gasped.

"Run!" Leviathan cried.

Immediately, the three scattered. Gilgamesh dove to one side, just in time to miss the slice cutting into his previous position. It kept traveling, however, cutting down and seeming to go toward the water for the older espers as well. But they too dove into the water. They were clear, and the light circle cut just over them. The water sizzled as it went through it, vaporizing partially and turning to steam. But the circle kept cutting through, and returned to the ship. A locking sound was heard, and the circle seemed to rejoin it. The espers immediately went back up again. Gilgamesh raised his head again and looked around nervously. However, Leviathan and Ogopogo immediately went to work.

"Aqua-ject!"

"Aqua-ject!"

Moments later, the two serpent heads snapped back as two larger buzz-saws of water, much larger than the last one, fired forward at the airship. They too twisted and cut through the air, and headed straight for the ship. Yet it seemed to be rather adept at avoiding as well. It dodged up and then moved to the side, moving out of the way of the blades. Yet Leviathan and Opogogo had both learned new tricks with their attacks. Abruptly, they both stuck out their whiskers at them, and in response both blades halted in mid-air. Then, moving their whiskers back, the blades came rushing back at the airship from behind. Quickly, it had to dodge again, but unfortunately it did dodge. The two soon moved their blades back, but it dodged these as well. It was nimble for being so big.

Gilgamesh began to rise from his spot on the ground, seeing what was occurring. However, Leviathan instantly called out to him. "No! Don't stay, Gilgamesh! Run and get the others!" He ordered.

The youth paused a moment, but in the end he did do what he was told. He turned, and he began to run back in toward the tunnels once more. While he did so, the two espers continued to make their blades of water dance around the thing, trying to move in to cut it. But it kept dodging, no matter what they did. And slowly…their attacks were losing their force to them. The blades would eventually run out. But what was worse, both espers realized that even these simple moves seemed to be tiring them out. They wouldn't be able to keep up for much longer.

Abruptly, two panels opened on either side of the airship. They revealed small dark holes within. As it continued to dodge, these dark holes too began to glow. A new energy attack was being summoned within them. Suddenly, both fired at once, sending out beams of light at both water disks. Both erupted and exploded into fragments of steam and water as the blasts hit them. Both Leviathan and Ogopogo gaped at the result. They stared at what had happened, and then stared at the airship. But before either of them could summon another attack, it fired again. This time, both of its light beams were aimed for Ogopogo. Both of them struck the esper together a moment later, and Ogopogo's body arched violently out of the water, twisting in two different ways. Leviathan, in shock, shot back from his brother as the attack struck him. He gaped at the airship and at Ogopogo, as he fell back to the water and slammed down on it. He went limp on the surface, and moved no more.

Leviathan gasped in fear at what had happened. He was stunned at first, thinking Ogopogo was dead. But then…he sensed his power. He saw that it had not diminished. Instead, it was still very strong. In fact, the great airship suddenly turned off its light beams and closed them up. Afterward, it immediately pitched forward and ran up to the fallen Ogopogo. It halted a moment later right over him. Leviathan watched it for a moment…but then saw a new thing happen. Abruptly, some sort of shiny lines…like tendrils of some creature, erupted out of the sides, extended down, and fastened themselves onto Ogopogo's body. After that, the airship began to whir and make noise. What was going on wasn't readily apparent. Leviathan, however, could sense it. The airship was sucking the energy out of Ogopogo…adding to its own strength. Indeed…within seconds, he felt not only Odin's power within the airship…but Ogopogo's as well. But the ship soon finished. It retreated its tendrils, they wheeled around and focused on Leviathan next.

The esper paled. He knew he only had one chance now. It would have to be his Omniapex…his Tsunami. Quickly, Leviathan coiled up and tensed up. He started to focus his own outer power, beginning to call upon the waters from the air and the lake around him. But he had only started…when his splitting headache returned. It was worse than ever, and forced him to cut off. He did for a moment, but then started to summon again. But this time, he felt exhaustion grasp his brain, and pain radiated from it. Meanwhile, the airship opened its panels again…preparing to fire once more. Leviathan grunted and struggled again…but it was no good. He could sense his own power now…and now he realized why he had been tired and weak. Even though the ship wasn't touching him, it was still somehow draining his power.

Already…he felt weak signatures for himself, Starlet…and Bahamut…inside the airship.

Leviathan could do nothing else. He could only sit there and stare as the thing charged up its weapons again and fired.

Bahamut rubbed his eyes sleepily. "What…what was that?" He asked, in a half-daze.

Gilgamesh sighed in exasperation. He didn't know what was going on now, but he was sure that the airship had something to do with it. He had run back to the other adult espers, only to find that Bahamut and Starlet were worse than Leviathan and Ogopogo. They were slumped down in chairs, dangling over the tables. Their arms and legs were sprawled out, and it seemed they were barely keeping their eyes open. Starlet, however, was the worse of the two. Her head wavered, and she seemed to be waving in and out of consciousness.

"There's a thing out there…an airship or something." Gilgamesh reexplained. "It's doing something to us. It's sucking the life out of us or something. It was attacking Leviathan and Ogopogo, and they tried to help me. But I don't know what happened to them. I only know I can sense their energies now as part of that thing. But what more…I can sense your guys' energies too forming in that thing."

The other young espers froze. They looked shocked and terrified at this latest news. But Starlet could only half listen at this point. Bahamut was the only one who was alert, and he barely managed to keep his head up.

"That…explains some things…" Bahamut answered. But then, he grew a musing look. "Strange…I'm feeling such large effects…but you guys seem fine… It's like it was targeting the adults on purpose… Whatever it is…it's draining us dry and fast."

"What can we do?" Gilgamesh asked, his own tone much more panicked and fearful compared to the others. "We have to kill it, but how?"

"I have to get out there…" Bahamut managed to speak. "I have to…try and destroy it…with one of my breath attacks. But it's not sunny…so I can't use my Sol-pyrin." After saying that, however, Bahamut lazily turned his head over to Starlet, seeing her in her own position. "Starlet…I'm going to need you to give me all the power you have…"

However, in response, Starlet simply collapsed all together. Not having the strength to hold herself up, Starlet fell completely out of her chair and fell to the ground. Gilgamesh sensed her, and felt the last bits of her life force drained away. As the thing drained more…it apparently was able to drain faster. At any rate, Starlet was in an almost coma-like state without her power. She was no good to anyone now. She could only lay helplessly on the ground. Farther away…the airship fully filled up on Starlet's power.

Bahamut sighed tiredly. "…Well then…I'll just have to destroy it alone." With that, he put his hands underneath him, and slowly pushed. With a lot of effort, he managed to lift off the table. After he did so, he inhaled deeply and began to push up off the floor. All of it was slow going, and he strained and grunted a lot. His power was fading too fast. It's be gone in no time.

"You can't face it!" Gilgamesh protested. "Your power's too low!"

"Every second only makes it lower…" Bahamut answered. "It's better to do something now than when I'm drained dry. Stay back here, Gilgamesh…guard the others… I'll take care of this somehow…"

With that, Bahamut turned around to the exit of the room. He inhaled deeply, but then began to walk. He wavered and wobbled as he did so, but with a staggering gait he did manage to make his way down the hall, toward the battlefield. Gilgamesh was left behind, staring at him and looking uneasy all the time as he did, his mind not ceasing to worry about what would become of him.

"Hey!" Ifrit yelped, jumping out of his bed. He immediately dashed down to Gilgamesh, who was still turned and looking out to Bahamut. "What's going on? What were you guys talking about?"

"And what's wrong with my mother?" Palidor added, hopping out of her nest and beginning to run over to the white esper.

Gilgamesh turned to the others, swallowed a moment, but then began to explain again. "There's something out there. There's some sort of airship that's draining the energy out of everyone. It got Leviathan and Ogopogo. It got my father too, I think."

The other kid espers perked up at this. They began to get out of bed as well and jump down to the others. As for Palidor, she ran down to her fallen mother. She shook her and nudged her for a few moments, calling to her to wake up. But no matter what she did, she wouldn't rise. Palidor began to look worried as the others came down, growing panicky. She looked up to the others in fear. "What's wrong with my mom?" She asked.

Gilgamesh frowned in reply. He bowed his head a little and exhaled. "…I think it must have her too. It's draining life out of all the adults, even if it doesn't find them."

Palidor's face turned to fear. "No!" She cried.

"Where'd Lord Bahamut go?" Ramuh asked.

"To fight it."

"But isn't his power also being drained?" Shiva asked in reply.

Gilgamesh frowned in response, but then nodded.

"Then fighting is suicide!" Ramuh protested.

"But he's the only esper still standing." Gilgamesh answered grimly. "Without him, we'll be undefended. He has to try something."

The others went silent at that. They stiffened and held for a few moments. They all turned away to the ground and looked worried. Palidor turned to her mother and put her wings around her, but no matter what she did she couldn't make her rise. She couldn't come out of this. They all stood stunned, not knowing what they could do now or what was going to happen to Bahamut. However, after a pause of a few moments, Ifrit frowned. He suddenly sprung his head up and spoke.

"Hey! What are we?" He announced. "We're espers too!"

The others wheeled around to the fire esper.

"Are you nuts?" Shiva blared. "What are we supposed to do?"

"Fight, of course!" Ifrit shot back. "We've got powers too. And we haven't been drained."

"But the others have." Gilgamesh returned. "That thing now has the powers of Odin, Starlet, Leviathan, and Ogopogo. Soon, it's going to have the powers of Bahamut too. We couldn't possibly fight that back."

"Why not?" Ifrit protested. "You aren't all being chicken, are you? You saw what me and Shiva did today."

"Oh, give me a break!" Ramuh protested. "You're nothing compared to our parents."

Ifrit frowned in reply. But Gilgamesh supported it. "He's right. I've studied the battle a long time ago. We're not even as strong as our parents were back then, and Bahamut was so much above them…" However, on saying this, Gilgamesh trailed off. He seemed to suddenly realize something, and looked up for an instant. The others saw this, and stared at him for a moment. But then, Shiva interjected.

"What is it?"

"I just got an idea…" Gilgamesh responded. "It's something from years ago, during the last fight with Griever."

"What is it?" Ifrit demanded impatiently.

"Lord Bahamut's the strongest one of all of us." Gilgamesh answered. "Right?"

The others paused a moment, but then began to nod and admit it. "Right."

"Well, during their fight with Griever, Bahamut was out of power at one point. Because he was the best chance at winning, they all gave their power to him. Starlet used a technique to transfer their energy into Bahamut, and he refilled. Now, Bahamut's drained right now, but maybe we can give him all of our powers instead. That could fill him up and he could destroy the airship."

The kid espers looked to each other for a moment at that. They looked around to see if there were any signs of approval among them. Palidor rose her head. Ifrit turned about. There was silence for a few moments. But in the end, the ground shook a little…as Titan jumped out of his bed and made his way forward. He stood before all of the others, raised his massive arms, and then bellowed out a yell.

"Titan fight!"

"Sounds good to me." Ifrit responded. "Though I still wanted to take a swing at this guy."

"But who's going to do this?" Ramuh protested. "Starlet's already down."

Gilgamesh paused for a second. He swallowed and looked uneasy. "Well…I suppose I could give it a shot…" He admitted after a moment. "I have been trying this kind of stuff…with Leviathan."

"Sounds great."

The espers all turned to the one who spoke lately. When they did, they saw that it was Palidor, rising up from the ground. But she looked determined now, and her eyes were focused on getting revenge for what had happened. Her look was resolute. "Let's do it."

Ifrit began to grin at that. "Yeah! Let's do it!"

"Titan fight!" The hulking esper added.

Shiva merely shrugged. "Might as well."

Gilgamesh held a bit longer. He looked to Ramuh. However, the most cowardly esper merely shrugged. A cold feeling went into the pit of Gilgamesh's stomach. He wasn't that eager to fight the thing that had so easily put down his father. However…this could yet be a chance to prove himself. Thinking of that drove him on. Besides, he had to do something. If they waited, the thing would just come after them next. He nodded in the end, turned, and then motioned them on.

"Alright…follow me!"

Cheering and egging themselves on, the kid espers tore out in a mess from their room and flooded the hallway. Palidor hesitated a moment first. She bent down over her mother again and moved her limbs to make sure that they were positioned comfortably. Afterward, she told her she would return, then turned and rose and ran out after the others. She was well in the rear now, but she didn't care. She abandoned her parent for the time and was eager to help with Gilgamesh's plan.

The other five were already running down the hall, cutting past the other openings. Palidor turned and began to go after them, picking up speed to run before them all. They were pretty fast, and indoors she couldn't fly that well. But she picked up speed none the less. She began to gain on them as she passed a main branch in the hallway at long last…

Palidor…

Suddenly, the esper froze. She stopped flying and fell to the ground, perching for a moment. A voice, soft and whispering, had just struck her in the ear. She looked back down the hallway to the others…but none of them seemed to have heard it at all. In fact, they were still running away down the stone path and widening the gap. Palidor was about to take off and chase after them. She figured that the voice had just been her imagination if no one else had stopped…

Palidor…

Instantly, the bird halted again. She knew she heard it that time. It was a strange tone…somewhat wispy and weak…but distinctly imploring and calling to her. What more, it had a direction this time. She turned her head to the source…and found herself staring up the other branch hallway. Behind her, the footsteps began to vanish. The group turned the corner, ignoring that Palidor wasn't with them, and kept running on to the battle. The echoes of their steps remained, but began to fade away soon after. Palidor turned back down to them. She held a moment uneasily. She knew that she should have followed them…but she was uneasy about it. The voice that called to her intrigued her, piqued her curiosity. And she had a feeling from it she couldn't put down. She hesitated a moment longer, not sure what to do…

Palidor…

The voice called again, definitely from up the hall. And when Palidor heard the name this time, it burned within her. It was like a small fire that wouldn't go out. It created a yearning like for morning after a storming night. She couldn't suppress it. She was definitely curious now, more curious than she had ever been. She had to see what was making the voice, and what it meant. She wasn't scared. Nervous a bit, but not scared. She knew there was nothing in Terratopolis to hurt her. And so, she turned, and began to slowly make her way up the hallway.

Slowly, Palidor's lone footsteps echoed along the stone halls. Lights and torches had been put in long ago, and so her way was lit. She could see everything as she moved up. She passed through a few other branches on the path, before the voice called out again…stronger and more insistent this time.

Palidor…!

In response, Palidor began to move somewhat faster. It only fueled her curiosity and the unexplained burning desire inside her. Had she been a more sensible girl, she might have wondered why she felt this desire…and why it continued to grow in her more unnaturally. But for now, she only knew that the voice was leading her farther up. And so she went, her lone footsteps still echoing against the stone tunnel. All else was still. There wasn't another soul anywhere. She continued to climb, going higher and higher up. More entrances passed her by, and she began to realize where she was headed…some place that only the adults were allowed.

Palidor!

The voice was almost a harsh command now. It arrested any resistance inside of the girl. She had to keep going. And so she did. She continued her ascension, going higher and higher. At last, she reached the end of the hall. When she did, there was only one entrance left…and it was indeed where she could not go: the meeting place. But it was no longer in her power to resist. The voice would not be denyed, and its power over her drew her on more than ever. She continued to climb until she reached the top. And then, she turned and entered the room.

Palidor!

The inside was still and cold…more so than it should have been. It was dark too, though it had been lit up. The lights were dimmed down and it seemed especially still within. The only thing other than her and the places for the adults in the room was the large crystal in the center. Palidor stopped at the entrance for a moment, and looked inside. She didn't move…but she felt that her heart was now racing. Her wings were sweating. She was definitely nervous now…and fear was beginning to come in too. Despite everything, she was getting scared. She wanted to leave, and yet she couldn't.

Palidor!

The bird esper saw it this time. It came from the center…from the crystal. When the voice spoke, the crystal seemed to turn and swirl light within it. Something was there. Palidor blinked at it a moment…and remembered what had happened earlier. The dragons had all left messages for the adults there. But now, it seemed, a message was for her too. And so…she began to step forward to it, her curiosity rising again, putting down her fear momentarily.

Palidor.

The voice was softer now. It seemed to be more at ease now that she was coming. And it was more inviting as well now. And so, Palidor kept walking. She grew closer and closer to the shimmering crystal. It began to shimmer more now, swirling with lights within even more potently than before. At last, Palidor stood before it. She halted there, and stared at it a moment.

Touch me…

The bird esper hesitated. Inviting as the voice was, soft as it had become again…she was still wary. She raised a wing, but did not put it on it. She held a moment longer. But then, she thought…it had to be just a message. Nothing more than that. Something for her. So she lowered her wing a little…held it again right above the crystal, quivered a bit…and then finally put it down and rested it on the crystal surface. Immediately, a warm feeling washed over her in response. It felt good, like a nice hot bath. Palidor smiled in response. She closed her eyes…and focused on it. The voice spoke again, softly within her.

Today is the day of birthing… It said. Palidor kept her eyes closed and enjoyed the feeling for a moment more.

Then, abruptly, the voice turned vicious and cruel, and harshly snapped within her.

…And you will be the vessel of my rebirth!

Palidor's eyes shot open as the cold, heartless voice pierced her head. Her eyes filled with terror. Then, in a flash, the warm feeling turned horribly, horrible hot. It was like lava had suddenly poured into Palidor's veins. The bird esper arched in agony. She opened her mouth to scream, but no sound came out. She could say nothing. Her body burned. Red heat began to gather around her. A cloud of energy whipped around her body, and the ground began to shake and tremble. The room turned darker, and the air grew charged. A moment after…and an icy feeling pervaded her next. The cloud turned blue, and Palidor felt like ice. Her whole body turned so cold and freezing that it choked her breath, dried her eyes, and turned the blood in her veins to rock. Yet that lasted only a moment too…before the aura turned yellow. Now, electricity snapped out of her body. It shot over to the walls and tore huge rifts into them. It splintered the floor and burned her feathers, blackening everything around her and arresting her of her senses. Her consciousness vanished. She blacked out…and the horrible, horrible pain vanished at last. Her body was thrown off the crystal and flung into the nearby wall. She smashed into it, but then rolled off and fell to the ground.

Somewhere, deep within the Planet…an evil voice laughed.

Bahamut could barely hold himself up at this point. He managed to throw himself out of the tunnel and lean against a wall. But other than that, he could do little other than stand there and pant. Perhaps Gilgamesh had been right. Perhaps this was a bad idea. He hadn't felt so drained since the time he split into the dragons. His heart was struggling to beat. His lungs were struggling to breathe. Even thinking too hard drained his reserves. His power had only been drained more and more as he had run out to the battlefield. Now, he doubted he could even muster the strength to perform a Pyrin, let alone anything that could do any real damage. He could barely focus on the ship before him.

The massive strange machine hovered on the ground for a moment. But then, it turned to one side and spotted Bahamut. If possible, the giant machine seemed to actually focus on him, as if it had eyes to see. Bahamut panted and glared back at it. It was made of metal and looked hard and formidable. What was worse…he now felt his own power inside it as well as the powers of the four others. That combined to make an opponent of inconceivable strength. All of them had improved since the fight with Griever. All of them were powerful. And now, this thing appeared to have all their powers within it. And it had just spotted Bahamut.

This definitely hadn't been a good idea.

The thing turned its blades of metal, and then shot over to the king of the espers. It halted and hovered in mid-air right in front of him. It was massive…easily bigger than Bahamut or any of the others. However, he frowned up at it, and managed to at least sound bold.

"Alright…whatever you are. I'm giving you just one chance to surrender…"

The machine responded by extending black, shining, metal tendrils from within it. It extended them out and arched them over to Bahamut. The esper saw this. He struggled to rise, but no strength was left in him to do it. He could only lay there. The tendrils closed in closer and closer, and eventually were just a foot from Bahamut. But then…abruptly…they stopped. They halted right in mid-air. Bahamut looked puzzled at this, but some sort of machinery moved within the airship. Finally…it spoke out, in a cold, strange, metal-sounding voice.

"REMAINING ENERGY INSUFFICIENT. OPTIMAL ENERGY DRAIN ALREADY ACHIEVED. RETRACTING."

With that, the airship pulled its cables back in. After that, it backed up a bit, and lowered itself to the ground more. Bahamut blinked for a moment, but then raised his head and stared at the airship. This latest turn was confusing. "What…are you?"

"DESIGNATE: BAHAMUT." The thing responded. "I AM AUTOMATED RESISTANCE KILLER, DESIGNATE: A.R.K. YOU AND ALL ESPERS OF MATURE AGE ARE MY OBJECTIVES FOR ELIMINATION."

Bahamut frowned in reply to that. He struggled to look tougher, but his energy was still gone. "And who sent you, Ark?"

"DISPATCHING INFORMATION IS IRRELEVANT. MY OBJECTIVE IS TO ELIMINATE ALL ESPERS THROUGH STANDARD PROTOCOL OF FIRST NEUTRALIZING THEIR POWERS AND THEN DISPOSE OF WHAT IS LEFT."

Bahamut continued to look irritated at that. "You are, eh?" He asked the machine. "I'm just refuse to you? Well, I've got news for you, buddy. I don't go down without a fight."

"RESISTANCE IS HOPELESS." Arc simply replied. "YOUR CURRENT ENERGY IS AT ROUGHLY 0.7 OF OPTIMAL POWER. MY PROGRAMMING DIRECTIVE INSTRUCTS ME TO ABSORB ENERGY OF ALL OPPONENTS PRIOR TO COMBAT TO ENSURE SUCCESS. I NOW CONTAIN THE COMBINED ENERGIES OF DESIGNATE: BAHAMUT, LEVIATHAN, OGOPOGO, ODIN, AND STARLET. ODDS OF VICTORY ARE CURRENTLY 65,324 TO 1 OF YOUR SUCCESS."

Bahamut didn't change. "I've beaten the odds before. It doesn't matter what power you have, but how you can utilize it."

Ark didn't seem to think much of that. Instead…the airship lowered itself to the ground after hearing that. Then…to Bahamut's surprise, the thing began to change. Abruptly, its propellers turned inward. It split its main mast down the middle. Its inner workings moved around and altered. Parts of it were swung into its interior. Other parts of it were swung out in response. But through the whole transformation, Bahamut was noticing something. The thing was going from being a ship to being a gigantic humanoid shape. It seemed vaguely to look like something in armor, but it looked more like a giant, misshapen man of metal in more appropriate terms. Its length became its height, and now it stood far taller than before. The last few places fixed in place, and now it was a towering item of power, and stood on the ground like a normal creature. What more, its utilization of the five powers in it had increased. It was much, much stronger than before. Bahamut suppressed his fear on the inside. He had to not show it. Before, he had been bluffing. He knew full well he didn't have to strength by a longshot to fight this thing. But now, the odds had been blown away. Unfortunately, Ark confirmed that.

"ODDS OF VICTORY ARE NOW 200,698 TO 1 OF YOUR SUCCESS."

With that, the thing stepped forward and began the attack.

To be continued...