Disclaimer: I hereby disclaim all rights to all characters (save for those of my own creation) in this period of fear and uncertainty… especially for the one who does precisely the opposite of what everyone expects.

~保護者~

"Fractured"

~保護者~

A short time after Sein left, Silver let out a soft sigh and asked no one in particular, "So… what do we do now?"

"We need to try and recover," Cyril offered, a deep-set frown on his face. "We… don't have much of a choice, considering how badly some people are hurt."

"Easier said than done," Silver mumbled, hugging his knees up to his chest.

Cyril glanced to Shei and Aniko, a notably compassionate light entering his eyes. "There's also some… grieving to do. I'm not terribly close, but… I can tell a good few of you are tight-knit."

Silver hid his face in his arms. "...Yeah. We were."

"I'm sorry, for what it's worth," Cyril answered, idly shuffling one of his decks. He didn't like how few cards were left within. The previous fight nearly exhausted his playing cards, which would leave him in a rough patch for sure. Maybe I should grab the other two… This seems to be a lot worse than I anticipated.

There was a short silence, one that was interrupted by Silver inhaling sharply and jumping up. He started to say something, but it was cut off by a rush of Darkness that bowled him over and threw Tails and Rose along with him. Cyril was quick to grab a card from one of his decks, launching it at them and making a barrier appear around them should the attack be followed by anything as he threw himself to his feet. A second attack, however, blasted him backward before he could do anything further. Shei started to move after the lot of them, stopping only when he fully sensed the Darkness at play. A rare grimace crossed his features. She has returned.

Aniko lightly pushed herself away from Shei, hand on her sword's handle as she further fought to control the Darkness attempting to rise within her. "Where are you?" the female chameleon barked, eyes wide and filled with murderous intent.

A tap on Shei's shoulder caused him to whip around. He was met by a grin and a sickeningly chipper, "Here," from the woman who had again invaded their lives. Nyokae gave him a small smile before flashing Aniko a grin. "I hear you've been having some family troubles as of late, my dear. Such a shame, that."

"Step away from my husband," Aniko threatened, turning to Nyokae fully. "You are not welcome here."

Nyokae tilted her head to the side, feigning ignorance. "And whyever not? I have actually come to help, believe it or not. Do you not wish to see your precious boy freed from his new God? I know I do."

"Shut. Up." Aniko spat, moving to walk forward but pausing when she noticed Armaris rising off the ground. You are not awake, yet...

With another smile, Nyokae turned to Shei. "Hand me the child. I am afraid that I have need of him." Scowling, Shei backed off and moved toward Aniko. He knew he didn't stand a chance fighting generally, but she certainly might.

"You will not have him," Aniko answered, stepping fully in front of Shei. "Get out of here."

Shei started to move, ready to utilize all of his speed to get their grandchild away from there, but Nyokae raised a finger, idly twirling it in the air. Vines borne of Darkness rose up and entangled themselves around him, rooting him to the ground and preventing him from moving. As Sako awoke and started to whimper and fuss, Nyokae tutted at the older of the two male chameleons. "None of that. As I stated, I have need of that child. I believe he will make fine leverage."

"Get. Away." Aniko snapped, stepping toward Nyokae. "That is my husband and grandchild."

Suddenly, Nyokae's smile dropped, as did her whole facade. Rounding on Aniko, she snapped right back at her. "Do you want Espio freed from his bonds or don't you, hm? Because if you continue to waste my time, we may lose the only window of opportunity that is available."

The ground nearly exploded under the weight of Aniko's step, and she continued her aggressive speaking. "You don't explain a thing," Aniko yelled, unsheathing her sword. "You say the bare minimum and expect us to blindly follow you? You are ridiculous!"

"I do not ask you to follow me," Nyokae responded, frowning. "And, in fact, I am not asking for your permission. I am taking the boy." With that said, she snatched Sako from Shei's shoulder and none-too-gently tucked him under an arm like a sack. Then, turning back to Aniko, she added, "But I will tell you this much, since you care to such a charming degree. No harm will come to this… bundle of joy. Even as he is now, Espio will not harm him. It is the only promise I will ever make to you."

"Give him back," Aniko muttered darkly, stepping toward Nyokae. She paused again at an almost insignificant burst of Darkness from Armaris, glancing back for a moment to watch the cat walk over with her eyes wide open. You are still not awake...

"A pity that one with such a strong lineage cannot even control herself. A sorry waste, I must say." In a surprisingly bold move, Nyokae released Shei and gave an idle wave before teleporting away. "Toodles."

Armaris vanished almost immediately, leaving no trace other than the fog that naturally emanated from her while she was using her Darkness. Aniko turned to Shei, expressing her intent to follow the cat and Nyokae. The look Shei gave her was knowing and filled with concern he could never truly voice, but he made no moves to stop her. It would be a waste of everyone's time and he knew it. Aniko knew this as well, but she refused to accept it and teleported away after the both of them. The barriers that had earlier kept Sein out were now gone, allowing them all entry with ease. It was likely that they had just missed him on his return back to Mobius.

Nyokae appeared first, landing close to where she sensed Espio but not directly by him. She took a few seconds to survey the area before tilting her head slightly. He has been left alone…? Interesting. Perhaps his charge was sent to keep an eye on that Immortal instead. Standing from her defensive crouch, she walked over to the ravine where the other chameleon still was, eyeing the damage from the explosion he had let loose earlier. And he's feeling rather feisty, it would seem. This will be interesting.

Armaris appeared shortly after, almost calmly stepping after the chameleon despite having no real understanding of what she was doing. She truly wasn't awake for this, her body being led by her emotions and instincts with the intent to remove anything she saw as a serious threat. This currently included Nyokae, which is why Aniko followed to begin with. On this planet… starting a fight with Nyokae was an incredibly terrible idea. For one, she knew Zareil wanted them both corrupted, which was a problem since she didn't believe herself fully capable of fighting the demon for any extended time. Another issue… Armaris wasn't thinking, at all. This could only lead to disaster if left unchecked.

Nyokae took notice of her presence with a huff, but for now she paid them no real mind. Instead, she casually looked over all the fresh demon carcasses that littered the ground. Each had had their throats savagely torn open so severely that they had nearly been beheaded. Some were even missing much of their chests. Walking on, she spied a high ledge midway up one of the cliffs where her target sat, eyes already locked hatefully on her.

Predictably, he jumped down the moment she was close enough to speak - and, naturally, she did speak. "I must say that I am glad you abandoned the little gun you stole when retrieving that pesky little gem," she told him casually, eyes on the energy-based knife he was holding. "Guns are much too fast. Killing with them, you can't savor all the… little emotions in their eyes. It ruins the enjoyment of catching your prey if they die so quickly."

Aniko grabbed Armaris's hand to prevent her from approaching further, knowing the cat would attack once she was within range. Her gaze fell on Nyoke, ultimately, and she gave a deep frown. You are making a mistake by doing this, woman.

Eyeing her coldly, Espio flipped the knife in his hand so that it was perfectly positioned for an attack. "You are talkative… for a corpse."

The threat was clear, but Nyokae only smiled. At that point, she moved Sako into view. "That I am… and you are going to have to listen to it."

His attention sufficiently caught, Espio bit out, "Hand. Him. Here." Despite his words, there was no care in his voice. Only coldness and subtly building anger.

Smiling, Nyokae just tucked the child back under her arm. "Not yet, love. As I said, you are going to have to listen to me first. Attack me if you will, but do keep in mind that that would endanger the boy as well."

Anger surged up within Espio's energies, but he showed no outward response to it. "Speak, then." Aniko showed visible distaste at this happening, her fingers curling tightly. She didn't voice this, however.

Her gaze sliding over to the nearest corpses, Nyokae drawled out a seemingly random response. "Have you tasted it yet, love? Blood is quite delicious, I must say." She gave him a smirk. "Especially yours." He openly glared at her this time, his grip shifting and tightening on his knife. Aniko rolled one of her shoulders, a disturbed expression falling on her face at this. Nyokae continued without missing a beat, speaking casually as though all of this was somehow a perfectly normal and reasonable conversation. "Blood is warm, is it not? It is rather like drinking hot chocolate…" she wetted her lips and smirked, "...but with more screaming."

"You ramble," Espio muttered, already tiring of her presence.

"Not at all," she easily countered. "I am reaching a point. That point being that there are some aspects of this little world that suit our kind's needs quite well. Although… there are certainly aspects of your short stay here that I cannot imagine you enjoy. Servitude, for one thing. It does not suit you."

That caused another wave of anger, this one prompting him to speak. "You are partially to blame." Aniko frowned, watching these two. She knew that free will was important, but there was so much context she was missing regarding the relationship between these two that left it impossible to make a judgement.

"Perhaps I am," Nyokae shrugged, "and yet… I believe I may have a solution to your little predicament. Your only job is let me do as I please for a moment."

"I will not," Espio muttered darkly.

"I believe you will, once you realize that this will set you free," Nyokae challenged. "By aiding your own Darkness in consuming the various taints within it, you will have your free will returned to you. Is that not what you want, love?"

"This was your plan?" Aniko muttered, grabbing Armaris more fully and pulling her away. This is intensely dangerous...

"It is the only plan," Nyokae calmly corrected. She turned to face Aniko. "Do you know what happens, if he does not hold out on his own? He remains a demon forever. A powerful one. Eventually, he takes control of all other demons in Kaden's stead when that man dies. I have seen it happen before in other far drearier realities. Do you wish for it to happen here as well? Because if you do, I will gladly stay my hand and allow events to unfold."

"You have caused many of these problems yourself, but if you truly are trying to free him…" Aniko bit back more that she wished to say, not wanting to leave this in the hands of the woman who had hurt her family so much already.

"Yes?" Nyokae taunted, smirking. "What if I am?" Though it was pointless, Espio glared at her back.

"I will ensure you die if you manage to survive this," Aniko huffed, motioning for her to continue with a notable level of agitation.

"I look forward to it." With that said, she roughly threw Sako at her and, anticipating Espio's lunge, intercepted him. Just like that, the two of them blurred into motion and began to fight as they always did, their battle rapidly turning excessively violent and destructive as they moved further and further away.

Aniko moved to catch the baby, but Armaris phased in front of her, collecting the baby and holding it close with the intent to protect. She quickly began moving the cat, regardless, as she sensed a very familiar aura begin to draw near. She's returning because of the fight.

Zareil chose this moment to appear, slamming into the ground and glaring at the two with a flare of hate before beginning to walk toward the fighting chameleons. She didn't wholly expect Aniko to intervene in this, being thrown against the wall of the ravine by a severely pissed of chameleon. "Oh, so you want to die, then?" the demoness asked, glancing between Aniko and Armaris. "Fine by me." Kaden, can you pacify the cat, or do something with her? This chameleon is about to get her brains bashed in.

More focused on Nyokae and Espio at the moment (though, curiously, not intervening in the slightest), Kaden responded by issuing a simple order to Armaris, knowing she was in a state of mind to listen right now. "Remain where you are. Do nothing." The cat stood still at this order, still holding Sako close. She simply watched as Aniko and Zareil viciously traded blows, both being forced back by each hit and neither willing to give the other any ground.

Zareil slammed her fist down at Aniko, only for the blow to be redirected and a foot to crash up into her chin. She didn't budge, however, using this to grab the chameleon's leg and slam Aniko into the ground. The chameleon twisted her body powerfully, using the strong grip of Zareil to throw the large demon to the ground and kick her back up against the wall to keep her out of Nyokae's fight (as little as she wished to allow said fight to happen). Zareil soon returned to her feet, viciously slamming her spear against the now defending chameleon's sword.

A truly powerful explosion interrupted their brawling, one which caused a sensation akin to an earthquake that travelled through the area. Numerous demons were drawing to the sight of this outpouring of energy, especially when they sensed that one of those energies suddenly no longer belonged here. Aniko felt this explosion and grabbed Zareil by the neck, forcibly kicking her in the stomach, then the chest before twisting in the air and throwing the demoness several miles away so that she could rush over to check on what happened. She was met with a bit of chaos for a second as the fight in this area suddenly resumed, but it stopped when a much smaller explosion launched the two combatants apart. Upon landing, Espio tossed his mother an impassive glance… with eyes that no longer glowed. She stood there, a touch… amazed at the fact that Nyokae had truly appeared to help the situation.

In that moment, Nyokae walked back into view, huffing and dusting herself off with her free hand. "You do not need to be so rough. Honestly, after all the nasty good I just did."

Espio glared severely. "You do not deserve to be treated gently."

Nyokae pretended to pout. "Do you not care if I am harmed?"

"You are worth more to me dead," was the exceedingly cold response. Aniko almost echoed this sentiment, but thought better of voicing such and simply crossed her arms. Nyokae opened her mouth to say something, but Espio cut her off by suddenly appearing in front of her and slamming her into the ground with a vicious kick. Not even a full second later, he was in front of Armaris, taking in her strange condition with impassive eyes before somewhat gently taking Sako from her. The cat didn't make a move, simply standing there and watching with blank, white eyes as he did this. He idly noted that she appeared close to ascending into some out-of-control Dark form, but gave that no real mind overall.

Gathering a ball of energy in his hand, he started walking away. Once far away enough to ensure Sako (who was still fussing and otherwise expressing his distress) wouldn't be hit, he threw the ball over his shoulder, allowing it to hit her and creating an explosion that ripped through the area she was standing within. Armaris stood there within it all, eyes narrowing slowly as the energy ripped at her body. She refused to die to this, but… she still couldn't move an inch. Aniko was quick to rush over and collect Armaris, despite some physical protesting that the cat did in an attempt to stay where she was, and ultimately just ended up watching Espio quietly. This is better than you being a demon… but not enough so for me to be pleased.

Since she was close, Espio stopped and turned to face her. Without perhaps the very last shred of his true self shining through, he handed Sako to her (albeit somewhat roughly) and muttered, "Take him."

Aniko welcomed Sako into her arms and watched Espio, nodding. "Take care of yourself, please. Do not let them attempt to control you, no matter what it takes," she murmured, hoping that he would listen just this once despite his current state. Whether or not he did was unknown. He said nothing more before turning and teleporting away. Aniko was quick to teleport away with Sako and Armaris before Zareil could fully recover from the attacks. The two landed on the ground, the command on Armaris being allowed by Kaden to dissolve as they did so, and Aniko ignored everything else in favor of walking to Shei. She wrapped her free arm around him in a hug far too tight for his good.

He immediately coughed and struggled in her grip, hoping to ease it enough to be able to breathe. With his arms pinned, he was helpless to communicate with her and ask her to gentle her hold. Sein took on the risk of walking closer and very carefully tapping on the woman's shoulder. "Hey… you're crushing him."

Aniko seemed to panic at this, releasing her husband from the hug and looking at the ground quietly. "Forgive me. I am simply overwhelmed," the woman murmured, sighing.

Able to breathe again, Shei signed, "It is alright. What happened?" He took her into his arms at that point, knowing she needed the affection since she had been the one to initiate a hug in the first place. He would leave the talking to Sein. Or anyone else, really.

"Nyokae… she helped Espio free himself from the demonic corruption so that he was no longer being controlled. Afterwards, though… he openly attacked Armaris and gave Sako to me, then left," Aniko explained slowly.

Sein was quick to realize that she was in no state of mind to explain in more detail, and as such simply set a hand on her shoulder. "Is there anything else of note that you think should be said?" A shake of her head served as the response as she further moved into the hug, closing her eyes. Sein understood and looked to Shei, asking if there was anything he could do for her.

Ignoring the silent question for now, Shei used one of his hands (despite their race's sign language typically requiring two) to awkwardly sign a slightly disjointed question - in that he had a hard time conveying his meaning as easily as normal. It could still be understood, though. "He gave the baby to you?"

Aniko felt the movements and opened her eyes once more in time to watch his signing before giving a soft nod. "He did, after taking Sako from Armaris."

Shei frowned slightly. He was relieved and grateful, sure, but… "That does not sound right."

"Perhaps he has… essentially abandoned Sako…?"

Sein shook his head. "No. He gave the baby to you," the hawk explained. "He's making sure that Sako will be safe." Shei said nothing more and silently moved his arm back to where it had been before, holding Aniko alongside his other arm. The woman didn't move from where she was, holding Shei a bit tighter and casting a glance to Sein. She appreciated what he said, and the hawk gave a small smile to show that he understood. The hawk then turned his attention to Shei, a frown on his face. "Did Li and Novei leave again?" The chameleon looked over and nodded. His gaze eventually shifted to Armaris, who was still standing perfectly still and certainly in her Dark form. "What… happened?"

Freeing a hand again, Shei communicated what could be roughly understood as, "She nearly ascended when Nyokae appeared."

"She was deeply upset before this all occurred, yeah?" Sein asked, attentively watching the cat. Shei gave a single nod. "It's likely that her Darkness rose at the arrival of Nyokae, since she likely sees that woman as a threat. That means she's probably acting purely on instinct and emotion… which means she's in a state where her Darkness is controlling her and not the other way around."

Shei signed briefly again. "That is most likely."

Aniko frowned deeply at this, not liking the implications that she was now aware of. "This means that she will remain in this state until she exhausts herself or is forced out of it…" Not wanting to leave anything this sensitive to someone else, but understanding that she had no way of safely managing something so sensitive, she looked at Sein. "Can you help ease her out of this state?"

"I can try. I've never… really attempted this before," he answered, already walking to Armaris and setting a hand on hers. The cat turned to him, assessing him, then simply watched. Sein smiled softly, set his other hand on her free one, and said, "Let's get you out of this form. It doesn't suit you, kiddo."

~保護者~

Silver finished carefully checking over Tails and Rose's wounds, rebandaging wounds that had been busted back open after carefully laying them down in the softest grass he could see. Once he was sure they would be alright for now, he turned to Sein. "Hey, um… since you're here, can I trouble you for a bit of help? That medicine you guys got for my uncle was destroyed with Espio's house. Is there any way someone can go get more?" He sighed and tossed a worried glance in the direction of Shadow. "He's starting to get sick again. I don't know how bad it is, but based on my understanding it's going to get worse pretty rapidly."

Sein frowned as he looked over to Shadow, then over at Espio's destroyed home. Damn… I really missed a lot… Pushing these thoughts aside, the hawk gave a soft nod to Silver. "Of course. It may take a few minutes, but I'll make sure it happens."

Visibly relieved, though that didn't do much to take away from the sorrow in his eyes, Silver nodded. "That's fine. I get it. Thanks."

Sein flashed a bright smile, waved, and teleported away. He was only gone for a few minutes (as he said) before returning with more of the medicine in hand. "There we go, bud."

Silver accepted the medicine with a grateful smile, though it ultimately didn't last too long. "Thanks," he said again. He started to hurry toward his uncle, but stopped. "Listen… I'll be right back after this. There's something else I've gotta talk to you about once Uncle Shads is taken care of."

The hawk blinked once and gave a gentle nod. "Alright. I'll be here, waiting for you."

With that, Silver hurried over to where Shadow was seated. "Oh, uh, sorry," he quickly mumbled, stepping past Toru on his way over. "S'cuse me." Toru gave a gentle nod of greetings to the aptly named hedgehog, choosing to stay silent for the moment. After acknowledging that with a glance, Silver knelt down in front of Shadow. The older hedgehog appeared to be almost dozing (a good thing, if Silver were to be perfectly honest), but even when asleep it was clear he was unwell. He was shivering and shaking, his breathing and pulse were completely abnormal, his thoughts were racing all over the place… Not good. Reaching a hand out, he gave Shadow's shoulder a quick shake. "Hey, Uncle Shadow?" he quietly called, for once dropping his usual nickname.

Shadow started badly, causing Silver to wince in sympathy, but somehow was able to focus his attention on Silver straight away. Maybe he wasn't doing quite so terribly after all? Silver couldn't really say for sure. "...What?" Shadow mumbled, pushing himself up so that he was no longer slouching against the tree.

Pleased to be able to deliver some good news, Silver managed another fleeting smile. "We got you some more medicine." As proof, he held up one of the medicine vials and the disposable syringe to go along with it. Then, glancing down, he said, "Your hands aren't shaking too bad, and Dad said you know how to handle medical stuff now. Think you can handle this, or do you need some help?"

Pushing himself up the rest of the way, Shadow motioned for him to hand them over. "Let me do it."

Silver obliged, giving the items to Shadow and letting the darker hedgehog do what needed to be done. Once he was sure Shadow had successfully completed this small task, he took the objects back and stood up. He left the hedgehog be after that, hoping he would go back to sleep, and promptly returned to Sein. "Um… what do I do with these now? I don't know how to dispose of medical stuff."

Sein carefully lifted the items out of Silver's hands with aura before willing it to be spontaneously destroyed. "That should be good enough."

"Right." Stifling a sigh, Silver dropped his gaze and turned his head away. "You said… that Uncle Jet has a headache right now… right? One that isn't natural."

The hawk nodded. "Yeah. There's no way it can be something normal."

This time, Silver's sigh escaped him. "I was worried you'd say that."

"Why…?" Sein answered, a confused and concerned frown on his face.

Silver plopped down into a sitting position in the grass, too emotionally exhausted to remain standing. "I dunno if I've told you before or if anyone else has, but I hail from a really long line of people with mental abilities. I lucked out in that they were never dormant in me, so I've been able to train with them my whole life. When you mentioned an unnatural headache that was enough to put Uncle Jet down… it made me think of some of the abilities people like me have. It's sometimes a really slow and painful process, causing things such as the kind of migraine you described. That is… forcibly taking over another person's mind."

Sein's expression immediately shifted to something a bit more angry, if only because of the thought of someone trying to control his son's mind utterly infuriated him. He quelled this, taking a deep breath before speaking again. "Is there anything you can do about that, or anything we can do?"

"That's actually what I wanted to talk to you about," Silver told him. "It won't… be as easy by myself, without Cream here, but…" He swallowed hard, forcing back emotions before continuing. "But I still want to do everything I can for him. Which, hopefully, could be a lot. I just didn't want to do anything without talking to you first. You're his dad and all, you know?"

"You are more than welcome to do something, even if it doesn't work. I understand your intentions," the hawk answered, managing a bright smile. The fact that Jet's pain was someone's deliberate plan seriously bothered him more than he was willing to openly admit.

Eyes slipping shut, Silver immediately began to focus. "I'll see if I can loosen their hold. It'll just… take a second to see how strong it is, since I'm not close to him or his attacker."

Sein nodded, standing by him with a vaguely curious look. "Gotcha. I'll be right here."

Things were quiet for a minute or two before Silver let out a sharp breath between suddenly gritted teeth. "Crap… this looks bad, Sein. There's so much already happening… they have to been at this for a while. How long has he had this headache?"

"At least four days. He was recovering for a bit, but it hit all over again and set him back to square one," Sein explained quickly.

Grimacing, Silver nodded. "I'll be as gentle as I can, but I'm gonna have to dig deeper. It doesn't make sense that someone could take him down like this unless there's something I'm missing."

Sein took a deep breath before nodding. "Do what you think is necessary."

More silence answered him initially. After a time, Silver grimaced again. "It… I think… someone did something really rare. Almost no one I've ever heard of is strong enough to plant the seeds of control and then just leave it for years on end, constantly feeding it power to help it fester and grow… but it looks like that's what someone freaking did."

The hawk's expression morphed into one of deeper concern. "What the hell… How could someone manage that?"

Silver swallowed hard. "There's… a lot of damage here. Old, old damage that's never healed. Would've made it easy for someone to do something like this… 'specially when the damage was fresh." He sighed again. "...I'm… not surprised to see this. I don't know what anyone's told you, but some of the stuff Uncle Jet went through… there's no way it wouldn't have caused this. And the fact that he never seemed to have gotten any measure of help for any of it…" He trailed off and shook his head.

Sein clenched a fist, but ultimately left it as it was and sighed. It took him a moment to hold off the surge of emotion this news brought on. "Do you know what's caused this damage…?"

"Kinda wish I didn't, but… yeah," Silver admitted. "We learned a long time ago that Uncle Jet was… tortured. We don't know by who or why or even exactly when, though. Part of that is because so many of his own memories about the matter are… iffy at best." He focused for a second solely on what he was doing before continuing. "I don't know how long that nightmare lasted. He never said, either, but… it was long enough to leave a lot of permanent scars in and on him. And not just mentally, either."

Sein stood there, grappling with his feelings on the matter. On one hand, he felt hatred for the person or people that did this to his son, but… on the other, he felt immensely guilty for having not been there for his son to help him through this. He didn't speak about this, but these feelings obviously began to weigh deeply on him. "Is there anything else you can find out?" the hawk asked.

"I'm looking," the hedgehog promised. "I'm thinking that whoever is doing this to him now likely had a direct hand in what happened to him then, so I'm trying to glance through his memories. It's… hard, though. Most of them are too fractured and broken to even make sense of anymore. All I can get from them are his emotions from the time the memories formed. They're… awful."

This didn't improve Sein's mood in the slightest, but he kept his composure and simply frowned. "You can't find anything where he's actually able to see someone?"

"Not yet… no." Silver continued on looking for a long while. Eventually, a deep frown settled upon his face. "I found something. Looks like… at least three people. Two of them are part of a race he once described to me and the others. He called them Syxans, I think? He was in a huge war with them, alongside the rest of New Babylon, before and after he was captured. We used to think that maybe the Syxans did this crap to him, but… the third person doesn't fit in with that scenario."

"How so?" Sein immediately pressed, his fists clenching tightly. If there was any chance at being able to stop the person responsible for this, Sein was going to take it and run with it.

"The couple of memories he has of this person are really faded out, but I can make out details," Silver was quick to reveal. "For one thing, the Syxans have colors ranging from dark purple to black. This person is completely white. They seem to be kinda petite in build, so maybe a girl? And they kinda seem to have a tail."

"So it has to be another race…" Sein murmured to himself, thinking. A Babylonian is probably out unless it's tail feathers, but… that likely just leaves Mobian races. Few others have tails like they do. Cats… foxes, and reptiles come to mind. He quickly turned his attention back to Silver. "Did they have fur, or can you not tell?"

"It's hard to say, but I think so?" Silver hesitantly answered. "Like I said, everything is really vague and out of focus, he seems like he was nearly unconscious at the time, but it seems like they might have."

Sein's mind went back to work, thinking of how to deduce the difference. "Are… there any other features you can make out?"

After yet more searching, Silver responded, "It… seems like they're using magic in this memory. Or something similar."

The hawk's eyes widened and he muttered, "Fuck. That doesn't bode well at all."

Slowly, carefully, Silver withdrew and opened his eyes. "I can't find anything else without risking causing him more harm. These memories were already present, but digging up stuff that's buried… I don't want to be the one to dredge those up and reawaken his suffering. I just can't do that."

Sein nodded slowly at this, frowning. Silver had a point, for sure. "I think I know who is doing this… but I really don't like the idea of it being her."

Silver looked up at him. "...Who?"

"Her name is Astra. She was a being of Light who corrupted herself, then was corrupted into a demon. She's a magic user and… well, she's dangerous in that right alone," Sein explained.

That alone couldn't be enough basis for such an assumption. "Has she attacked him before that you know of?" Silver dared to ask.

Sein nodded immediately. "In an attack on New Babylon. She attacked both Sonic and Jet, but it seemed like her focus was on Jet. He was left in a state of extreme mental anguish."

"That's bad news," Silver said, closing his eyes. "Gimme a sec… I'm gonna look at those memories." Once again, there was quiet for a time before he next spoke. "It's not possible to say for certain, but she does seem to resemble the fuzzy images from those old memories."

This left the hawk feeling more anger than anything else at the moment, but he made absolute certain that it would not surface. "What do you think, then? Does it sound right?"

"It could," Silver sighed, withdrawing again. "But, either way… I can't seem to dislodge her hold on him at all. She's dug in roots way too deeply for me to do anything on my own. I just… can't without someone to help me."

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Sein immediately asked, wanting to do something to help his son.

"The only thing we can do, as much as I hate to say it, is wait for her to properly establish control," Silver told him. "Once she does that, he'll be conscious again and we can start working on getting him to wake up inside and force her out."

"I-" Sein hated that idea, his fists curling tightly by his sides. "That can't be the only thing we can do."

"I wish it wasn't," Silver mumbled, looking down. "With her having such a tight hold on him right now, though… it's the only option we have." He swallowed thickly, trying not to allow his emotions from the past days rise up too strongly, and shifted a little where he sat. Then, wanting offer give the man some glimmer of hope, he said, "But… once he's freed again - and we will free him… At that point, I suspect that there will be a lot you can do to help him recover. Not just from this, but… from all of it."

Sein managed a smile at that, nodding. "If you need anything from me, don't hesitate to ask. You've done more than you may understand, bud."

"I don't need anything," Silver answered quietly, managing a fleeting smile of his own. "I do have a bit of a request, though." He shifted awkwardly, unsure how to go about making a request to someone so ancient and strong, but ultimately just went out with it. "Once Uncle Jet is himself again… help him as much as you can, will you? He's family to me, and has been most of my life. I want him to be happy again. Like he used to be."

"He's my kid. I'd happily give my life again just to see him happy," the man answered softly. "I'll do whatever it takes."

More than pleased with this answer, Silver's smile succeeded in growing a touch. "'Whatever it takes' is gonna involve a pretty hefty amount of work. He's gonna need the help of some seriously powerful psychic users to start to mend the long-lasting damage that that Astra person has been doing since way back then, for one thing. I can definitely help, once he's free of her, but I can't do it by myself."

Sein nodded. "When the chance comes, I'll start looking for people to help. Having him feeling like a normal person… that's something I will not pass up."

"There's more that needs to be done than that, though," Silver cautioned. "For one thing, people with PTSD, depression, and everything else he's been grappling with requires a lot of emotional support and therapy. He's never had therapy of any kind, according to what Dad's told me. Not even just for his autism. I don't know how much you'd be able to lend a hand in this area, but you're his dad. I'm sure it'd mean the world to him that you even want to try."

"As I said, I'll do everything I can in my power to help. Even if it hurts… I will be there for him," Sein promised, a determined expression growing on his face.

Silver inclined his head. "I'm glad to hear that. His old 'dad'... didn't give a shit. He's always needed parents who care. Everyone does, really."

The hawk nodded. "Absolutely. That's why I'm here now, I suppose." He tried not to give the 'old dad' thing too much thought, because he knew it would bother him to no end if he dwelled on the fact. "I'm here to be his father and I'd like to see someone try to stop me."

The hedgehog properly smiled for a second. "Good."

"Hey, I really want to thank you for all the help. I appreciate everything you did," Sein said, a soft smile on his face. "I'm really glad to have met someone as awesome as you."

"Ooh, flattery. Do I get a present, too?" Silver asked, somehow managing to relax enough to create a joke on the spot for the first time in days.

Sein drug Silver into a friendly hug, smiling brightly. "This is all you get for now," he laughed. Silver hugged him back briefly, a short laugh escaping him for a second. Shortly, Sein let him go and sighed softly. "I should go explain everything to Alana. She needs to know this, but… I really don't want to be gone too long."

"What're you going to do?"

The hawk debated on this for a moment before gasping, then concentrating. A clone of himself appeared beside him, and he smiled. "I'll send my clone to them, that way I can stay here in case something happens!"

Silver offered a small nod. "Okay."

Sein sent the clone off with a small sigh. "Well, I guess that's all we can do for now. Guess we should try and rest until we figure out what to do next."

It wasn't like they had other options. Silver could only close his eyes again and silently wish that all of this forced confidence wasn't for nothing. They had to follow through with their goals. They had to save Jet from that woman. If they failed... We may all die this time.

And there would be no saving us from him.

~保護者~

7, 132 words this time. Many thanks as always to Blazing Winds for all of his help and support, and I hope you all enjoyed. Posted (at about 12:01 a.m. because I am a boss like that) 05-23-20.