Disclaimer: I hereby disclaim all rights to all characters (save for those of my own creation) during this time of preparation… especially for the ones who are trying to relax.

~保護者~

"Scheming"

~保護者~

After his failure in the past, Black Narcissus and Dark Oak didn't care whether Yellow Zelkova died again. The poor, arrogant fool wasn't told this, of course. He still believed himself to be strong and that his death had been a fluke. That he was more than capable of destroying their old enemies. That this time he would survive with ease.

What a fool he was.

That worked to the advantage of the other two leaders of the Metarex. After what they had seen when an unfamiliar green hedgehog had torn through the weakest of their foot soldiers, the necessity of assessing the current strength of the rest of Mobian's populace was clear. It was especially necessary to see how much Sonic and the others had grown. And to, if possible, kill off the weakest members of that hated man's group of allies. And what better way to do this than to send expendable resources down to the planet?

Zelkova arrived on the surface of the planet. He had been sent with the weakest surviving troops, but in his mind this was inconsequential. Scans of the planet, scans normally used purely to locate a Planet Egg for harvesting, seemed to have determined where Sonic was hanging around. He had eleven allies in the same vicinity, meaning he had twelve targets to have fun with. They were going to die. He was sure of it.

A heavy impact deep in the forest marked the moment of his landing, and the sound woke Sonic from a light doze. He jerked upright, startled, with his ears perked. Kohaku was playing nearby and had no doubt heard the sound as well. He abruptly dropped a block and pointed at the front door. "Bad?" he asked in a small voice.

"No, hey, it's alright," Sonic was quick to soothe, getting off of the couch to kneel down in front of him. "Grandpa is going to check it out, okay? It'll be alright."

"Grandpa safe?" Kohaku asked him.

"Yes, I'll be safe. Promise." Sonic stood, ready to leave, when Silver and the others came out of their rooms.

His son looked more than half asleep in that way that he only ever was when he'd been having some truly vivid dreams. Everyone else was much more alert and clearly was paying attention to the situation at hand. Wave, however, wasn't among them. She and her new companion (something she had called "the Aether") had long since departed again by now.

"The hell was that?" Knuckles demanded. He kept his voice low so as to avoid further alarming Kohaku. "Everyone felt that, right?"

"Definitely," Amy frowned. "I swear that the whole house just vibrated."

After she said this, Cream spoke up. The bunny had just joined them in the house less than an hour ago. After explaining how long she had been alive again and the fact that she had been in Hyale all this time, she had retired to one of the rooms to rest. Now she was just as awake as the rest of them and looked quite concerned. "I can't sense any thoughts," she revealed, "but… that doesn't necessarily mean anything. If it's something mechanized or, say, a being like a golem, then I won't be able to detect anything."

"That's assuming whatever just fell out there is alive to begin with," Silver yawned, rubbing at one golden eye with a hand. "It might not be."

"...No… I'm with Cream," Sonic grumbled. "Knowing our luck, it is something living. Which is why I'm going to go check it out and be sure."

"Not alone, you aren't," Rouge argued while her son crossed his arms and peered out a window. "It could be dangerous, for one th-"

She was cut off when the door to Tails's workshop swung up. Tails came running in with wide eyes, pulling Wery by the arm. "Guys, we have a problem!" he exclaimed. "There was this huge impact outside and my security systems are indicating it's a Metarex!"

Now that woke Silver right up. He dropped his hands to his sides. "Oh… crap." Blaze immediately moved to try collecting Kohaku, and soon Kym and Ava joined her in an effort to help.

A flurry of curses spilled past Sonic's lips. "Problem" doesn't even begin to describe it, especially since we don't have Kath or Jet here to help us this time. Shit. "Then we need to get out there now and stop that thing before it can go after the Egg again," he said. "Blaze, are you staying in here with Kohaku?" When she nodded, he returned the gesture. "Right. Anyone else who thinks they can fight, let's go. We've wasted too much time already." His words were punctuated by an additional series of vibrations. Vibrations that instantly had him fearful that more Metarex were now arriving.

A door was thrown open as Eila stumbled out of her room, hastily thrown on clothes being fixed with magic. "Why the hell are the Metarex here?" she demanded, already casting a spell around the house.

"How do you know what they are?" Blaze asked with a small frown. She soon followed that up with, "...And we don't know. To steal the Planet Egg again, presumably."

"I was evil, not ignorant," Eila replied, idly styling her hair. "Of course I knew what they were. I knew well enough not to get tangled up with an army."

"Right, well… They sorta brought some of that army to us," Silver pointed out. "Which, on that note, I'm gonna go out and start dealing with that. Bye." He promptly vanished. Eila teleported out after him immediately, more than intent on aiding him. With little other choice, Sonic and the others swiftly followed.

Rather than allow this to drag on and someone she gave a shit about getting hurt, Eila immediately teleported in their midst and used her psychic and magic powers together to not so gently crush each of the Metarex in the vicinity into nothing more than mangled balls of plant-flesh and metal… aside from what she assumed was their leader, which got to be safely imprisoned in a cube of magic.

Silver, who was floating in the air nearby, blinked several times. "...Well," he eventually said. "Guess that solves that."

Eila huffed a little, shoving Zelkova over to Sonic without hesitation. She temporarily ignored Silver (while still showing she'd heard him with a slight flick of her ear) and said, "Question him. I'm not in the mood to talk to these bastards. If he doesn't know anything about what's going on, just obliterate him or something."

Emerald green eyes glanced somewhat distastefully around at all of the debris and other destruction littering this ordinarily picturesque location, but he didn't say anything about it or Eila's unexpected brutality. "He won't know anything. Near as we were ever able to tell, he's the weakest of the leaders and is treated like the same sort of fodder by the other two as these smaller ones are. …Or were." Zelkova's angry sputterings in response went ignored.

"Fine, then I'll just use him to figure out where the Metarex are hiding out," Eila huffed, using her magic to tear a piece of Zelkova's metal body off. "Do whatever you want to him. I'm tired and I don't want to get woken back up." The woman teleported away, presumably back to her room.

"Helpful," Sonic grumbled.

Knuckles walked over and was quick to wave Sonic off. "Look, I'll handle him. I took the asshole down last time and I was way more of a pushover back then. You lot just get back inside and do whatever."

"Yeah, sure," Sonic wound up agreeing with a sigh. "I'll work on figuring out what to do with all this junk later. We're not just tossing it out into space for the Metarex to find and reuse."

"No shit," Knuckles said with an eye-roll. "Now git."

"Yeah, yeah." With that said, Sonic herded everyone back to the house and inside.

~保護者~

It was worth a shot, Tessa believed. She was idly floating around in space as she sent a message out to the contact she'd been given for Locke. "Yo. Name's Tessa. Got your info from Steam and Sonic? I'm an echidna, too, and I thought it'd be cool to meet you."

It took a length of time before a reply came. When it did, it was short but more than polite. "Sorry, I just saw this. Tend to be busy. Sonic and Steam gave this to you?"

Tessa replied immediately. "More Steam than Sonic, really. Your name's Locke, right?"

This time, his responded in a much more timely manner. "Yeah, it is. I've not heard of anyone named Tessa on Mobius, though. You from Everia?"

"Yup. You from Mobius, then?"

"Born and raised. I was part of the first generation to be born off of Everian soil, actually. Also known as being older'n sin."

"Well, isn't that just interesting? I'm not nearly as old, but I still give the best of them hell."

"About what I was expecting from another echidna. Listen, though, why'd Steam give you my contact information? You need something?"

"Mostly just interested in meeting another like me. Figured it'd be a good learning experience."

There was a period of silence. Eventually, he sent her a new message. "Why don't we meet properly, then? It's easier than texting."

"Sure! Where at?"

"My home's probably not ideal for… multiple reasons, but we're both familiar with the home world. You ever been to Gracidae Hills?"

"Yeah. That where you wanna meet up?"

"It's an easy place to get to and not crowded with people like the markets are. So if you're fine with it, then I can just meet you there."

"Awesome. Be there shortly."

"Right. See you. And, well… just keep your eyes shaded."

"Yeah, sure. I'll keep that in mind." She didn't get any answer after that, which seemed to indicate he was no longer going to text at all. After a moment of making sure she wasn't going to teleport a random asteroid with her, she left for Gracidae Hills.

The hills were green and lush, covered in flowers and surrounded by crystal clear ponds that dotted the landscape. The water sparkled in the sunlight and was covered in lily pads that floated about peacefully in the breeze. Overall, the area was serene and quite lovely to spend time in. Tessa chose a spot and laid herself out in the grass and flowers, letting out a soft sigh. It was always nice to be back in places like this.

Several minutes passed. Gradually, the sun began to brighten and its heat intensified greatly over a short span of time. Tessa gave no serious indication that she even noticed, aside from unholstering her gun slowly. However, no threats of any kind presented themselves. Instead, a red echidna with long dreadlocks and a brown cowboy hat slowly emerged from the light and heat, though he was only truly visible when everything died down. Tessa eventually stowed her gun away when she realized there was no danger, pushing herself to her feet and crossing her arms. "No wonder you said that. Thought I mighta lost some hair if I got in a scrap with all those flames."

The man, clearly Locke, shrugged but had an apologetic smile on his face. "Yeah, sorry 'bout that. Teleportation isn't a power I have, so this is the only method I've got for long distance travel."

Tessa shrugged a little. "Makes plenty o' sense to me. I learned to teleport early so I could keep up with others. I was fortunate in that area, it seems." She chuckled.

"Not everyone's so lucky. We don't all get to have the ability in the first place." Locke shrugged again and took a seat. "I'm lucky to even be able to fly, frankly. Never appreciated it growin' up, but I sure do now."

The woman laughed openly. "Never know whatcha got until you find a way to appreciate it, eh?"

"Eh, more or less." He shifted to cross his legs and arms, head canting. "Gotta say, though… We've only just met and you've already surprised me. I had no idea our people had the potential to be born with Light."

"Neither did I," Tessa answered. "But here I am. Some sorta miracle baby."

That finally made Locke let out his own short laugh. "Yeah, no kidding. 'Miracle' might be too light a term."

"Maybe, but I ain't got a better one for it," Tessa said with a smirk. "Unless you got somethin', smart stuff."

"No, not really," he answered lightly.

"Anyway, nice to meet ya. Name's Tessa," she said, offering a hand.

He took her hand firmly, yet not roughly. "Locke," he introduced in kind.

Her grip was more on the rough side, but it was obvious she wasn't trying to cause any harm. "So, I gotta ask. You some kinda sun being or somethin'? Only thing I've ever heard of like that was the Goddess of the Sun, but I never met 'er."

"T'ehala," Locke confirmed, using their race's traditional name for such a deity. "Her name was Anthea, and she was my teacher. When she died, I found myself having some pretty big shoes to fill. Whether or not I've succeeded, the title's mine now. For better 'r worse."

"I'm sure it was for better," Tessa answered, retracting her hand finally. "If anythin', you at least seem like a nice guy."

"I try to be," Locke sighed. He pulled his hand away as well. "But that doesn't do anything to help with the things that have been going on. This role is one that exists as a means for the deities as a collective group to have a combat-oriented ally on their side. Issue is, I'm too limited to be of great use with or without the Sun powers. So, as much as I appreciate your words, it probably wasn't for the better that I took this role." He managed a slight smile. "But… it doesn't really matter right this minute, and we aren't here for me to complain. Tell me something about you. Like why you have a gun of all things, for starters."

Tessa unholstered the revolver and twirled it on her finger. "My Light's about as fast as it gets," the woman explained easily with a wide grin. "Found out that a projectile can really pack a helluva punch. After that it was just figurin' that a gun can shoot that projectile and make it better."

"Well, that choice alone definitely surprised me," Locke admitted. "Most semi-Immortals, deities or otherwise, are so ancient that swords and the like are the only tried and true weapons they'll rely on. Seeing something else is a nice change of pace."

"Catches enemies off guard too. Nobody expects a pump to the face, much less when they get blasted to hell fer bein' stupid," Tessa chuckled.

"Sounds like one of my godsons," Locke openly laughed. "He's got a thing for guns, too. You both might just get along."

"Perhaps," Tessa said. "I'm no expert, but I know a bit. 'Specially about my own."

"This kid knows all there is to know about any kind of gun you'll ever find on Mobius," Locke said. "Chances are you'd learn a lot from him."

"Well, hell. I'm down to learn more. Maybe I'll make some time here soon after Steam's plans are done."

Locke nodded, only to then ask, "What plans? I don't hear from people much, especially not out where I live. I've got no clue what's been happening recently."

Tessa shrugged to him. "Somethin' about raiding Nareish's realm. I ultimately agreed. He seemed mighty confident. Kinda spaced out though…" She thought about this for a moment before deciding it wasn't something worth worrying over.

"...Right. Apparently I'm paying him a visit today to ask what the hell he's thinking." Locke sighed again and leaned back just a bit. "Sounds uniquely insane, even compared to the usual level of insanity this war has forced us to endure already."

"He's got some wild idea of how exactly it should work, but I'm not gonna speak on his behalf," Tessa replied easily. "Not my business or place. I just agreed to help."

"It is your business if you're involved," Locke calmly argued. He thought things over briefly, then said, "Listen… if you're sure about doing this, it may be a good idea for you to visit a friend of mine. I'm not sure she's up for participating in this level of combat herself right now, but she just might be able to give your strength a useful boost."

Tessa scratched the side of her head a little. "Who might it be? I mighta heard of 'em, if they got Light."

"It's Analia," Locke told her with a slow smile. "I should hope you've heard of her."

The woman was given pause briefly, but it faded as quickly as it came. "Hah! I shoulda known a God would know her."

"That's not why, no, but yes we know each other. We've been friends a long time." Locke let his smile drift into nonexistence, his mind briefly going elsewhere, but he soon shook himself free of that. "If you're at all interested in her help, I can take you to her soon."

"I'm more than ready to meet the Analia," Tessa said, an obvious excitement brimming in her eyes despite her relaxed demeanor. "But, whenever there's time. I'd hate to be a bother."

"You're not being on," Locke assured her. "And there's time whenever, I've just got to contact her when we're done here and make sure she's up for company so suddenly. I don't want to just drop in on her if she's not feeling well again."

"Fair 'nough," Tessa replied, waving it off. "Regardless, that's for another time."

"Yeah, it is." Locke was quiet for just a moment. "What was it like for you, growing up here?" he eventually asked. "It must have been nice, especially given how beautiful this planet is."

"Pretty calm and peaceful, I reckon," Tessa replied, chuckling softly. "It was a bit of a blessin' to grow up in a place like this, honestly."

"I bet it was. I've heard a lot of stories about how friendly and gentle our people have always been here."

"No kidding," Tessa replied. "Mobius is so different. In a lot of good ways, but still."

"There's definitely a lot to be said about the good things," Locke agreed, "but it's not perfect. We've had a lot of war and a lot of strife there. Having the descendants of Eona and Zenith as well as two different Immortals being born or at least raised there… It drew a lot of evil."

Tessa let out a sigh. "Yeah. It does happen to be that way a lot of times. Our planet was lucky to not have it that rough."

"And when bad things happen, the people here band together unfailingly to help everyone." Locke managed a renewed smile. "I've seen that firsthand, the few times I've been here. Really restores your faith in people."

The woman smiled softly at this, nodding in affirmation. "It's really something, but I suppose that's what happens when you live in tribes as opposed to cities."

"Yeah, that could have somethin' to do with it," Locke agreed. "I haven't spent much time here, but I've seen people band together and do some wonderful things for others during those few visits. Makes me smile to think about."

"Mhm. So, being God of the Sun, what other cool people have ya met?" She sat back in the grass, arms behind her head. "I know the other deities, well, semi-Immortals with cool titles… I know they exist. Anyone interestin'?"

"It's more than just titles," Locke corrected with a chuckle. "We're filling existential roles, and that grants us special abilities we wouldn't otherwise have. But, yeah, they're quite the characters, some of them. The one I work most closely with, since our roles are similar, is Sona. She's the Goddess of the Stars, and she can be quite the spitfire. But she's also just as likely to be sleeping and refuse to do anything else."

Tessa laughed a little. "A'right. Fair 'nough. Anyone else interestin'?"

He hummed thoughtfully. "The God of Night, Finis, is interesting to me for a couple of reasons. First of all, his body is almost entirely intangible, like a shadow would be. Yet it's physical enough at the same time that he can grasp objects and wear clothes and the like." He chuckled some more. "Quite a conundrum, that."

"Woah, that's quite the situation." The woman looked up into the sky. "I can't say I've met anyone that unusual."

"Beyond him, me either. But that's not even all of it." Locke let his gaze drift to the sky, idly watching the sky. "See, 'night' is loosely classified as an actual energy. Or, well, it is an energy but the name is very unofficial. Darkness exists, and so do shadows. Night is what exists between where one ends and the other begins. I had no concept of that prior to meeting him. Took me a while to grasp it, honestly."

It took Tessa a moment to think over this before nodding slowly. "Yeah. Definitely unusual," she laughed.

"Okay, your turn," Locke smiled. "Who's someone interesting you've met? Doesn't have to be anyone you know well, necessarily."

"I once met this black cat, uses magic and a scythe of all things," Tessa explained. "Anyway, man shows up and knocks this one guy I was in a scuffle with and me out at the same time! I woke up like an hour later and he said that he'd needed to evacuate us. Nearly blasted him for not trying to at least speak to us!" Despite the overall agitated tone, it was plainly obvious that she was more than amused by it all. "Had to thank him, though, once we realized what he saved us from."

"Sounds like a guy named Ylden," Locke told her, "though there's a fair chance I'm wrong. What did he save you from, though?"

Tessa frowned a little. "Some monstrous beast," she explained unhelpfully. "'Parently, it was drawn to my Light."

Hearing this made Locke straighten a bit. "...Was it made of crimson and black energy?" he asked. "No physical body?"

"Uh, yeah?" Tessa asked, only properly connecting the pieces now. "Well, shit. Guess he really saved my ass."

"If he killed it by himself, it must have been a very minor spawn of Malevolence," Locke mused, "but… yeah. I'd have to agree with you there."

Tessa shrugged a little. "Regardless, no hard feelings were had. He seemed like an alright guy. Little rough around the edges, but that was prolly 'cause of fightin' that damned creature."

"Yeah, he can be like that from what I've heard," Locke said. "We've not really interacted much, though. Fought against a few shared enemies simultaneously once or twice, but that's about it."

"Fair 'nough," Tessa replied. "You know any other interesting Light beings?"

"A couple," Locke teased with a small grin. "Analia's two sons, Sonic and Sen, have Light. Though, Sonic's situation is more… complex. His sons, Grey and Silver, also have Light. Silver's son, Kohaku, and his daughter, Ava, both also have Light. Plus, on top of all of that, there's a cat named Rose who has it, too."

"Wow, you know a lot," Tessa answered, smiling. "But someone like you's bound to."

"I mostly just know them because her family is practically my own and vice versa," Locke told her, a wistful smile on his face. "And I met Rose by pure chance. We were both traveling all around existence, so we could have gone our whole lives without crossing paths, realistically."

"Still," Tessa said. "That's so cool."

"It is, yeah," Locke agreed easily.

"When you're not out kicking ass as a literal depiction of the burnin' sun, what d'ya like to do?"

"I never have time for much of anything else, anymore," Locke sighed, his demeanor getting a bit sadder. "I used to love history, though. Reading, digging around ancient ruins, that kind of thing."

Tessa nodded in response. "I used to do some o' that. Finding planets that used to be inhabited and explorin'. Found plenty of interesting things."

"What kinds of things?" he inquired, curious.

The woman vanished suddenly, then teleported back with a box in her hands. "This is just some of the stuff I've found," she explained, grabbing the first object on top. It was undoubtedly a sundial, and the inscriptions were Babylonian, in all of the places where the numbers would normally be. "I never could figure out what the symbols say, but I know it's a sundial. Found it in bad shape on another planet near… well, what I've been told was the original Babylon. Fixed it up."

"You-… Tell me you understand how significant this is," Locke breathed, eyes wide. He stared at the fragile metal artifact in absolute awe. "Babylonians haven't built, much less used, sundials since the days when they lived in tribes. They haven't done that since eons before the Faein went to sleep."

Woah. Tessa looked at the sundial, tilting her head. "Almost makes me feel bad for fiddlin' with it."

"The fact is, it exists and it was found," Locke said. "That alone negates anything negative anyone could say about modern repairs done to it, especially since you can't even really see the difference in pieces with your naked eyes from what I can see. It can easily serve a purpose along the lines of simply showing how these things used to look and function."

The woman set it down gently in the grass. "I never thought 'bout it that deeply. If that's so… I may need to drop by New Babylon and hand it over. They deserve to have their history."

"I'd have to agree. Especially since, after recent events, there are people around again who'd probably appreciate the reminder of their old home. Back when artifacts like this one weren't nearly obliterated from existence." Locke stifled the urge to sigh again. They lost so much… and for what?

"I'll make sure to do it soon," Tessa assured. "There's some other neat stuff, but I'm curious to see if you can find anythin' else of serious importance in here."

"Well, pull 'em out one at a time and we can have a look together," Locke offered, managing a renewed smile.

Tessa nodded and began taking things out of the box, setting them out in a row for Locke to see. Some of the items were stored in their own small boxes, due to either being broken or just fragile, while others were almost haphazardly placed together. "I've found a lot over the years," she chuckled.

Her words were acknowledged with a nod, but Locke was already focused on something else. He'd zeroed in on another item of importance and picked it up gingerly with both hands. "This was made by the Viskari," he murmured. "That race hasn't been around in… a long time. God, I couldn't even tell you how long. Nareish's armies wiped them out when they dared to start taking up arms against her. There's practically nothing left, not even the planet itself."

"Woah," Tessa breathed. "I never thought about… what it might even be."

"It's remarkable, even though I have no idea what the thing is, exactly," Locke said. "I just recognize their specific brand of metalwork. They tended to infuse certain crystals into their metals, which is what all of these clear bits on this… whatever it is, are." He very, very gently set the item back down.

Tessa nodded a little. "You know a lot that I didn't expect to ever learn."

"Spent a lot of time studyin'," Locke explained sheepishly. He started to say something else, only to stop short when he spied some loose bits of stone. His expression went blank for a moment, hands automatically reaching out to pick up the fragments with even greater care than he had shown toward anything else so far. "Where… Where did you find this?" he breathed.

"It's been a while… I'm not… exactly sure," Tessa admitted, carefully picking up one of the fragments. "I think I know, but I'd have to go back to check."

Locke nodded slowly, then placed the fragments back down. "You've kept these safe so far. I have to ask that you continue doing that a while longer. These… These are more important than I could ever hope to explain. We can't let anything happen to them."

Tessa didn't like how serious that was, immediately frowning. "What? What do you mean?"

"These were thought for tens of millions of years or more to be lost forever," Locke told her urgently. "They belonged to a generation of Immortals that died all at once, likely killed by Nareish herself instead of her pawn the Widow. Everyone assumed these were destroyed with their creators, but since no one could ever find where they died it was never confirmed."

"...What?" she asked, utterly dumbfounded. "Are you saying that these are that important?"

"Yes," Locke answered, putting as much emphasis on the word as possible. "There's no telling what kind of information was stored when all of these broken pieces were still together. By the looks of things, you might have found the pieces of multiple stones."

She made a hasty decision and grabbed his arm, scooping up the pieces in her Light and teleporting them both to where she'd stored this all before. "There's other pieces here, somewhere," she said.

"Where?" Locke was quick to ask her. "And, for that matter, where did you find these?"

The woman began digging through boxes, rapidly reclaiming the pieces and chunks of the stones she'd found in the past. "I don't… know the name of it, but I've been there. I can take you."

"Please do," Locke said. "I have to know where this place is so I can get the word out to others."

"Do you want me to take you now?" Tessa asked, looking back at him over her shoulder.

"Even if you just drop me off there, I'd appreciate it," Locke replied. "I need to see this place for myself."

Tessa was quick to end her search, standing upright and offering her hand. "By the way, sorry for just draggin' you here."

"Not a problem," Locke assured her, taking her hand with a slight smile. "Trust me, with friends like mine you get used to this sort of thing real quick." The woman chuckled a little and teleported them both to where she'd found the stones to begin with.

~保護者~

In ages long past, heroes of old had achieved a sort of pyrrhic victory against her.

While Nareish's identity hadn't been known back then, "the Widow" was a name known by many. It struck fear into the hearts of the Immortals, the deities, and other semi-Immortals. The Privilege the demonic woman had had back then was immense. Four generations of Immortals had lived and died by hers and Nareish's hands by that time. The fifth generation had seemed only too destined to share in that fate… until they hadn't.

One of those Immortals had left a Stone of Lore behind, speaking of the Widow's three "leaders" whose power was much greater. Greater to the point that none could hope to defeat them, in fact. Those leaders were, in fact, three of Nareish's High Generals. Back then, Nareish had indeed afforded them far greater Privilege for a short time.

Her plan had been to send those three after the Immortals to spare her the trouble of doing it herself this time. That had been a mistake. Not positioning the Widow with those three had been one as well. They weren't with her when a short-lived war had suddenly broken out. A war fought with but one goal in mind: kill the Widow.

While they had succeeded, in the end, her lovely demoness hadn't gone down quietly. Six semi-Immortals, powerful enough to have been regarded as minor "deities" (without actually having been deities of any kind), had been the first to die. Zenith and Eona had found themselves temporarily sealed away within their respective realms, rendering them incapable of joining the fight. Two of the three Balancers had died similarly swift deaths.

Following that, the last of the powerful combat-oriented beings of Light (so-called "Warriors of Light") in that era had been slaughtered alongside similarly powerful beings of Darkness, each having perished in an effort to help take the Widow down. They had failed. But where they had failed, others had begun to succeed.

Cere, Finis, Anthea, Azanae, and other deities had joined the Immortals for the final push. In a final act of spite, the Widow had violently sealed Teyan and Ythene within their realm. The sisters sustained so much damage that they were rendered dormant at the time. Countless mortals had died, caught in the crossfire of this attack and innumerable others throughout this conflict. But after that, she had died.

Months after the dust had settled, Nareish had ferreted out the Immortals. She'd held them largely responsible for what had taken place, for taking away her beloved pet, and she had killed them. Drained them. Strengthened herself with them. After that, it had become yet another waiting game. Waiting, that is, for the next generation to rise up, age, and gain power. After they did, they too were killed.

After accomplishing this, Nareish had discovered some things. Firstly, she learned that Teyan had been able to reach her mind past the seal on her realm and contact one of the Immortals. Nareish had taken care of that shortly thereafter. But something else had come to her attention, something that had made the murder of her Widow suddenly very worthwhile.

A band of Light Warriors, it seemed, had actually survived. So scarred were they by that war and the deaths of their comrades that they were now filled with hate and rage. Those emotions were turned on the most obvious scapegoat: beings of Darkness. Be they truly evil or merely neutral, it mattered not. This group declared war on them all. Misplaced though their feelings were, this band of rogue Light users had clung to their newfound desire for bloodshed and revenge with vehemence. Beings of Darkness were decided to be nothing more than a scourge, one that they now had a desire to destroy with extreme prejudice.

Sometime after that, Nareish and her armies had taken to the scene again. They wiped no fewer than twenty-thousand mortal races out across existence in order to draw her Immortal prey into the open. Three had been found and were subsequently killed. In their broken, scarred little minds, the Light users had found it in themselves to blame this massacre on the beings of Darkness as well. A new war began to brew… and the group marched on Zyr. The chameleons and other, less civilized beings who called the Garden of Darkness home were blindsided when they suddenly found themselves under attack by, of all things, Light. Powerful Light, at that. Thousands had been slain in minutes.

Nareish had found the sheer number of casualties to be delightful, but it had had an unfortunate consequence. The sole Immortal of the fifth generation to have eluded her was alerted to the genocide and had arrived on the scene. Despite the potentially disastrous consequences that existence would suffer from losing yet more Light, she had decided that this situation was too dire to ignore. Darkness was, after all, just as needed as Light was. So she had taken up arms.

Powerful and motivated though she had been, the woman did not and could never have killed them all on her own. Many had escaped. While Nareish had descended upon her prey and set about killing her, the surviving chameleons had fled. The Immortal woman had convinced some to leave. Others did so only when Nareish arrived. But it didn't matter. Nareish had been perfectly happy to let them, and their attackers, go free.

However, where the chameleons had lived on, the Light users had not. Still hellbent on murder, they had found themselves on Black Doom's doorstep. While far from organized or unified at the time, the Black Arms had descended upon the intruders with a fury beyond anything even Nareish had been anticipating. Black Doom himself had personally ended the lives of numerous warriors with teeth, claws, barbed tail, and truly ancient Darkness. Darkness that was far older than even Nareish herself. It had been a glorious sight to behold.

The final blow came when Malevolence had awakened, brought into existence by the actions of its newfound prey. The slayings in Zyr had left a severe gap in power. There weren't enough of them left for them to be the most powerful source of evil Darkness in existence anymore. Something had to take their place for the sake of balance… so Malevolence was born.

While the Black Arms preyed upon the fallen warriors in their territory, the few survivors had fled to lick their wounds. Malevolence found them, drained them of their Light - thus killing them - and subsequently gone to sleep. With that, the genocide was over. The story might have ended there, too, if not for a few things. The most important of those things was her eventual revival of the Widow. But there were two other matters that had also prove quite important in the continuation of this very ancient tale.

First of all, Nareish had been greatly entertained by those people from the first moment their thoughts and desires had come to her attention. It was her secret meddling that had they had been capable of using their Light at all despite the growing taint in their hearts. Their efforts to wipe out the chameleons had unexpectedly led her to the Immortal she had been searching for, on top of showcasing to her the strength of the surviving chameleon families. Her interest in that race had been truly born on that day, as had her interest in Black Doom… for very much the same sort of reason.

Then there was the fact that she had stolen quite a lot of magic from little Calypso. With it, she had been able to temporarily expand her necromantic powers. Among others, she had revived those beautiful, wicked, destructive Light users, freeing them to wreak havoc all over again. Some had swiftly died a second time, but that was of no consequence. Bringing them back once more had been child's play.

Still, their strength could no longer adequately keep up. Their failure in Hyale was proof enough. So Nareish today had done the only logical thing and fully unlocked the potentials, just as she had done for the rest of the delightfully evil beings she had revived. She was tired of waiting for them to go back out on their own. Now they had motivation.

Who will you turn your new strength on first, I wonder?

Slowly, Nareish grinned.

Who will be the first to die?

Her amusement was far from diminished by the time her thoughts on this subject had ceased. She stood from her throne and strode out of the room she spent most of her time in, then set about issuing some orders. There was much to be done, as always, but not by her. There was plenty to keep her soldiers busy while she focused on much more… delightful objectives.

Teleportation brought her to her target. With the speed of numerous dead Immortals, she delivered a blow with a dagger and ripped her weapon free. Blood was easily collected in a sphere of her energy before her victim could react. All was accomplished before they could even blink, for that matter. By the time he had blinked and turned, the sphere had been made to vanish, leaving no trace of its existence behind. Not even a scent, a fact which she was careful of given who she was targeting. She needed him unaware. So unaware he was.

Not so much of the stab, though, but she wasn't sorry. That fact was communicated through her smile and falsely sweet, "Hello, Saethrim."

"I'm gonna warn you here and now," Saethrim muttered. "Not in the mood for your bullshit. Get the fuck away from me, got it?"

Nareish allowed her weapon to disappear. "I will, in a moment," she murmured. "Before I do, however, I wished to… chat, shall we say." She tapped her own nose lightly for emphasis and continued, "That sense of smell of yours is quite a thorn in my side, I must say. I got what I wanted, in the end, and your allies won a small victory… but I was not quite prepared to hide my corruption efforts from your nose so suddenly."

"Okay?" Saethrim replied, rolling his eyes. "I knew you were lying, I just couldn't tell what it was."

"My point, Saethrim, is that I successfully corrupted an Immortal… and you failed to do anything about it." Nareish smiled at him. "I had so much time, in fact, that it took an act of a nearly Faein-level Immortal from another realm to save him. He very nearly killed dear Kath and has opened the door to the Void running rampant."

Saethrim mockingly mimed her words with his hand before not so politely motioning for her to leave. "Of course. I had other things to deal with. Fuck off with your bouts of gloating. If you want to win, just go ahead."

"This is less about gloating, and more about… warning you." Nareish's smile darkened to a degree. "There are seeds I have planted within individuals you know and care about, as well as those capable of harming even you."

The da Asani chose to stand up finally, clenching his fists. "Nareish. You're already throwing this all away. You do realize that, right? That all of this is the worst possible thing you could have ever done?"

"You are wrong," Nareish murmured. "With the Void finally gaining true power, I am closer than ever to the victory I have been pursuing all this time. You and your friends have failed to stop me time and again, failed over and over to save the little Immortals I hunted. What, pray tell, will cause this to end any differently? I will have him, no matter what you do."

"You know I hold my cards close to my chest, and I've got an inkling that something is coming that will shift the tides," Saethrim replied. "So much so, that you might get yourself caught on the back foot, and you're not gonna know what exactly to do about that, considering you've spent all this time being the unfathomably strong and unequivocal Immortal killer. You're not ready."

"Hm, we shall see. In the meantime, do keep an eye on my pet, will you? I may have released it, but that does not mean I am no longer interested in it." Nareish idly glanced about the area, not looking at anything in particular. "Especially considering how well it learned to obey in order to save its own skin."

"Let me reiterate my earlier warning," Saethrim said darkly. "Get. Out."

"Hm, I suppose. I have had my fun. You are nowhere near as entertaining today as I had hoped." Nareish shrugged. "Oh, well. Ciao." With that, she vanished.

Saethrim let out a sigh and sat back down, mentally forcing the few lifeforms in this isolated location to leave him be. She did something. It's not like her to just come out to where I am. He chose to take a second, inspecting his body with dexterous fingers. Finding an almost closed (due to his rapid healing) injury, the man groaned.

God dammit. Now I'm gonna have to pay closer attention to things. No telling what the hell her real goal was. Guess I'd better watch Black Doom, too, and make sure that what they did doesn't leave an imprint on his psyche forever. If they imposed some kind of twisted behavioral training on him… No telling what kind of damage that could have done. He scowled to himself. Fuck, the moment I get my hands on those two…

They're going to regret everything.

~保護者~

Sul was the next Faein to awaken. He supposed he was currently the most well-rested of the four of them, as he had thus far been woken up much fewer times than his kin had. For that reason, it was easy to phase through the various layers of existence without ever moving. He sensed Steam's desire to speak with one of them, and he knew already what the reason was. But that last detail was unimportant. He was more than happy to physically hear the man out. "You wish to talk, yes?" he prompted gently once he appeared. "Please, go ahead. I am here to listen."

Steam let out a sigh. "Glad you were so quick to get to me. My idea is simple, but it requires a lot of help, help I can't get without you all, as you know." The hedgehog paused, collecting his words before speaking. "I have a plan for a raid on Nareish's realm. My intention is to lay waste to her armies and use that as a front to remove her stronger pawns, either through purification or death."

"I am aware," Sul confirmed. "But there is more on your mind, is there not?"

"Of course." I just present information this way… 'cause it's the only way I know. "I need you, or one of the other Faein, to stop Nareish from being able to revive her allies."

"This can be done, but not as drastically as you would like," Sul cautioned. "None of us, my kin or I, are at full strength. If it comes down to having to choose, I will focus on the Widow before any other enemy. She is the most deadly of those you will face on that day apart from Nareish herself."

"I have reason to believe the Widow won't be killed," Steam said after a moment. "I don't think Nareish will allow it. We're not gonna be enough on our own to keep her that busy."

"Not on your own, no," was the quiet agreement. "However… I have reason to believe that your recently wayward ally will be able to keep his agreement with you. He is not totally consumed yet."

Steam nodded. "I know. And I've got reason to also believe that… we may have another very strong ally soon. Someone we know already. It's gonna be the least expected person to most people, but I'm keeping my eye on them."

"Understood." Sul thought for just a moment before continuing. "Even so, my warning still stands. If I am unable to do all that you asked, you and your allies must be prepared to 'beat a hasty retreat', as they say."

"The only people going anywhere deep will be those who can get out immediately on their own, like Saethrim and Ghune," Steam said easily. "I'm already coming up with exactly how to do this."

"I know it." Sul managed a ghost of a smile. "I will see you when the time comes, Steam."

"You seem to be more than okay with the idea of this raid, so I assume it can go well if I don't fuck up," Steam said, shrugging.

"It will go well because of you," Sul answered. "Do not forget that."

Steam immediately averted his gaze, coughing a little. "Sure. Anyway, that's all I needed. The only other one I have immediate concerns about is Gerald."

At this, the normally neutral and yet kind being's eyes narrowed ever-so-slightly. "I am aware of him and his… actions… and I do not approve. He chose to target a being whose entry into existence I witnessed and whose care I handled while he was tiny, blind, and helpless. I will not allow further harm to be brought to him by that man."

"I can't allow it either," Steam murmured. "Reputation be damned, Black Doom is Shadow's father."

"Indeed he is. And a loving, giving father at that. For Gerald to rip them apart as he did… This, too, is something he will soon pay for."

Steam shook himself for a moment when he realized he was subconsciously heating up the area around him, reminded of how badly he reacted to irritation. Calm down. It's okay to care about Shadow, but not to set things on fire around you. "Good."

The Faein inclined his head. "There are several potential people who may go for the ARK. Saethrim, Toru, and Ghune are the most likely to make the attempt. If any of these three head there, let them go. Unless some drastic changes, it will be one of these three who destroys that ship and brings an end to Gerald's second reign of terror."

"All three of them are also intelligent enough to realize if there's anything that needs to be taken from there, and I trust each of them to end it," Steam replied.

The hedgehog let out a sigh, shaking his head. "I know, but Malevolence being angered puts everyone in danger."

"There is nothing I personally can do right now," Sul said, an apology in his voice. "This falls to you and those like you."

"I'll do what I can," Steam said. "I can't face a shinobi, but maybe I won't have to."

Sul inclined his head. "I must take my leave now, but I trust your judgment, Steam. Take care to prepare for what is to come, and all will be well."

Steam nodded a bit to this, frowning. I'll be needing a lot of luck with so many moving pieces so suddenly. Sul, meanwhile, inclined his head in silent farewell and faded away. The hedgehog ran his fingers through his hair and took a moment to calm himself down, thinking. The best chance to stop Haru would be Shei… but is Shei even feeling okay? I guess now's the time to find out.

~保護者~

"I t'ink he be home soon," Calypso sighed. She was seated on the edge of her son's bed, doing her best to reassure him so that he would go to sleep. The only issue was that doing so was difficult. They both shared the same concerns.

"But what if he doesn't?" Trekk demanded. "What if he's just gone again? I heard what he told you, Mom. He couldn't promise that he would come back and be fine."

Damn t'at man… I know he have a responsibility to creature like Black Doom, but I do not want him to die over it again. Despite her fears and misgivings, Calypso kept her words consistent. "I t'ink he will be alright and t'at he will return soon, Trekk."

"Liar," the teen quietly accused. "You don't think that. You hope. It's not the same thing."

His mother sighed. "Go to sleep, my son. I will check on you in a while." She stood up and left the room, headed for her own. She settled down on a floor cushion and closed her eyes to meditate and pass the time. If she was fortunate, this would also calm her emotions somewhat.

Time did indeed pass. After more than an hour, she got up to check on Trekk as promised. She was pleased to find him asleep by now and quietly left his room again. Right around the exact same time, Saethrim phased back into the house, idly stretching. "Yo. I'm home."

Dark arms crossed and Calypso huffed. "I see t'at. But you have explainin' to do, Saet'rim. What in t'e hell happen?"

He almost dismissed it, but his instincts told him that if he tried, she might blast him. Or make him sleep on the floor. Perhaps somewhere in between. Saethrim chose the smarter path. "Nareish kidnapped Black Doom and one of the people working with her tortured him."

Calypso's eyes narrowed. Unacceptable. This thought was closely followed by, Now his anger make sense. "What you do? What happen?"

"I tried to break into Nareish's realm to kill whoever was torturing him," Saethrim admitted after a moment. "She stopped me, of course, but I couldn't just avoid doing something."

"T'at not a smart t'ing to do, Saet'rim," she pointed out. However, most of her tension and fear-based anger left her when she sighed. "Is he alright? Did you get him home?"

"He's safe with Ghune at the moment, at the hive. It's gonna be a bit before he's back to being himself." Saethrim sighed as well, finally bothering to take a seat. "It's fucking awful."

"He have any problem?" Calypso asked him. She moved to sit by his side, leaning against one of his arms once she was comfortable. "Behavior or such. When Kat' go t'rough extreme experience, it change him in way t'at people can still see even today. I never see him so cold and angry as he was in his first few year free of my people." It were only year later t'at I start to see t'e real him and get to know what he really like. Too many year.

"He does," Saethrim admitted, immediately wrapping an arm around her. "He didn't even recognize Ghune, and he didn't seem to fully realize who I was at first when I showed up to help."

"And how he be since t'en?"

"It's been rough," Saethrim explained. Calypso waited to see if he would say anything more on the subject. It soon became evident that Saethrim didn't exactly want to speak more, falling abnormally silent.

Calypso sighed softly and wrapped her arms around him in a hug. "And how you be t'en, hm?" she asked.

"Awful," he mumbled simply. "One of my few friends feels awful and I can only do so much."

"Is t'ere anything I can do to help?" she asked him.

"I don't know," he admitted further.

"Are you tired?" she inquired, voice gentle. "We can lay down if you need to rest, Saet'rim."

Saethrim let out a soft sigh. "If I'm honest, I can't tell if I'm tired yet."

"T'en come lay down, anyway," she told him. "If not'in else, you should rest your body for a time."

The man stood once she'd said that, stretching again. "Might be a good idea."

Calypso stood with him. "Come, t'en," she urged, tugging him toward the bedroom.

Saethrim chuckled a little, walking with her. "Alright, alright, but before we lay down, is Trekk alright? I left all of a sudden and all. No doubt he might've overheard."

It wasn't until they were in the room with the door shut that she answered him. With the door closed and Trekk's room down another hallway, there was no real risk of Trekk overhearing anything this time. "He hear everyt'ing we say before you leave," she revealed. "He very worry about you and did not believe me when I say you would come back."

"It'll take more than Nareish to kill me this time," Saethrim murmured. "I'm outright fed up with her bullshit."

"Good," Calypso said. "Maybe you tell him t'at t'ough, since he not believe his mot'er."

"He should. You've never steered me wrong before," Saethrim replied, shrugging. "But yeah, I'll make sure he knows."

"T'ank you." Calypso answered. She moved to lay down.

Saethrim dropped unceremoniously onto the bed and immediately wrapped an arm over Calypso, letting out a sigh. "'Course. It's what I do."

"You are good wit' kid," Calypso smiled, closing her eyes. "Even grumpy one who are teenager already. Maybe it all your year of handling were-creature and such, hm?"

"Considering one of the aforementioned creatures was a teenaged Black Doom, I'd like to think children are a breeze," Saethrim answered, amused. "They don't try to eat me."

This earned a quiet laugh. "T'at true enough," she agreed. "Trekk not gonna eat you, ei'ter. He still only eat food from plant, like t'e black apple my people grew. T'at part about him not change since he were little. You remember?"

"I remember." Saethhrim smiled fondly. "It's good to know."

Calypso snuggled up to him a bit and asked, "What Black Doom like when he t'at young? Bet he be very… t'e word… 'grumpy'?"

"Bitey is the correct word," Saethrim replied easily. "But grumpy works too."

"He do bite you, t'en?" Calypso inquired, amused to no end. "What you do to deserve it?"

"Take care of him, try to teach him not to bite me, basic stuff like that," Saethrim shrugged.

Stifling the urge to further vent her amusement, Calypso nodded. "You do good for many creature like him. T'at he trust you so much despite how he be wit' other is proof. I'm sure he still trust you. T'at mean he not broken, Saet'rim, no matter what t'ey do to him. A broken creature, sent'ent or not, trust no one. He trust you still, so he not broken inside. So he will get better. Saet'rim."

"Oh, I'm aware," Saethrim said. "I'm fully sure that he'll make a faster recovery than most people ever could hope. He'll be okay, just not right now."

"Good. So long as you know t'at."

The man pulled her into a hug and let out a sigh. "Turns out my student wants to return the role I passed onto him. He doesn't feel like he was ready for it."

She let out a hum of acknowledgement before asking, "Why he t'ink t'at?"

"He's missed a lot of important things that I probably wouldn't have, and creatures we're meant to protect have suffered or died," Saethrim explained. "It's a fair reason, but I don't want him to give it up just because I failed to fully teach him."

"You not fail," Calypso corrected. "You die. T'at not your fault. But if he feel he not ready, t'en you take it back for now. Do not burden him. T'en when he ready to try again, you start teach him what you not able to teach him before."

"I could've done better. Made a shit-ton of stupid mistakes when I was alive before," Saethrim explained further. "I shouldn't have even been in the situation to get killed, but regardless, it's in the past." He didn't address the second part of what she said, if only because he was considering the matter. Calypso decided to stay quiet, allowing him whatever time he needed to think things over. Eventually, he spoke again once his train of thought had completed. "And yeah, I suppose I could pass the role back in the future, assuming he wants it."

"Yes, you could," she agreed.

"That aside, where the hell is Tempest? It's been abnormally quiet lately, and I almost miss the bloodcurdling screams of people she's ripping apart…" Saethrim thought this through, then reiterated, "Almost."

His statement earned a soft, indelicate snort. "You t'ink I can keep track o' her?" Calypso asked. "She go where she want, do what she want. T'at how she always be. It one t'ing when she be a child and I can keep her here, but t'at not how it work anymore. I almost never see her anymore. She came to see me when Trekk and I were hurt and my magic be stolen, but I not see her for year before t'at. I not see her too much after, eit'er."

Saethrim tapped his fingers against the bed and shrugged. "Fair enough." His nose twitched faintly at the vague scent of… sadness that came from Calypso as she spoke on this matter. Didn't realize it bothered you that badly. It makes sense, but still…

Having spied that minor movement, Calypso lifted an arm and tapped his nose lightly with a finger. "Now not t'e time to be smellin' me," she teased. "T'is be serious, you know."

"I'm wholly aware," Saethrim said. "That's why, but I also can't help smelling the beautiful woman right beside me."

"Ooh, flattery," she further teased, laughing quietly. "What next, you get me a present?"

"I happened to snag something from Ghune's world, the one with all the vampires," Saethrim explained, suddenly producing a tarot deck. "Special to them."

Calypso took the deck into her hands and began flipping through the cards before saying, "T'ese be lovely. I never see card like t'em. T'ey very different from t'e one I be used to."

"Mhm. The vampires have their own style of reading and obviously use different cards. Figured this would be something you could have some fun looking into," Saethrim explained with a smile.

She returned his smile and teleported the cards into another room with the rest of her similar belongings. "It will be fun," she confirmed. "I will look at t'em more tomorrow."

"Good to hear," Saethrim replied.

Leaning up and forward, Calypso gave him a kiss on his cheek. "You try to rest now," she instructed, laying back down. "I stay here wit' you until you wake up."

Saethrim chuckled a little and rolled his eyes. "Alright, I'll get some rest." All at once his muscles relaxed and he shifted ever-so-slightly closer to Calypso. Pleased that he was cooperating (at least this time), Calypso closed her own eyes and let her mind wander off.

~保護者~

Black Doom had no real idea how much time had passed since he'd last opened his eyes. When he awoke from his restless dreams, his mind was momentarily elsewhere. He didn't know immediately where he was or how much danger he was presently in. It was only when he felt someone or something warm near him and recoiled that reality started snapping back into place. Ghune's face gradually faded into focus and he forced himself to release a breath he hadn't even realized he'd been holding in. The hive, he reminded himself, still feeling a touch mentally distant. This is the hive. Not… there.

Not really paying attention to what Ghune was or wasn't doing, he pulled away from her and rubbed his hands over his eyes. The lack of claws and the change from having three fingers per hand to having five was still… jarring, though he didn't give it much thought at the moment. He felt hot and exhausted and weak and all around like shit and he hated it. Much like how he hated even being conscious right now. Why am I awake?

Ghune's eyes opened as soon as he pulled away, watching him quietly. Eventually, she found it reasonable to speak up. "Are you alright?"

Black Doom only nodded, having decided that his desire to sleep trumped any other need or desire for absolutely anything else in life right now. Talking was nowhere near the same level of importance. He shifted to get more comfortable and lowered his hands without opening his eyes. I want to sleep. I don't want to talk.

"What's the matter?" she asked, frowning vaguely. "I cannot attempt to aid or comfort unless I know the situation."

He shook his head. Though initially determined to leave it at that, he did eventually mumble a small, "I'm tired," as well.

"What else?" she questioned further, raising an eyebrow at him.

"I'm just tired," he responded quietly.

"Are you sure there's nothing else?"

"There isn't."

"I can feel the waves of heat rolling off you," Ghune explained after a moment. Her words did prompt a bit of thought beyond his mild desperation to return to sleep, and he wound up nodding a little to acknowledge her words. Denying them was pointless, after all. Soon, she gently grabbed one of his hands and pulled it close to her. "Try to rest. I will have something brought to aid you."

"What thing?" he asked with a sigh. If it was another drink, he didn't want it. Not at all.

"Who said it was a drink?" Ghune replied, having deciphered his likely thoughts with ease.

"I didn't," he responded, almost sighing.

"Good. I will ensure it is something else. I understand your distaste for such." She only got another nod in reply. Some time passed and someone else arrived at the hive, quickly realized to be Ryint. Many of the sentient members knew better than to attack her, both because she was a vampire as well as a friend of Ghune's. That, added with the fact that she'd been here a number of times before was enough to give her brief access to the chambers Ghune and Black Doom were currently resting in.

As soon as what she'd requested was put in her hands, Ghune put the bracelet around one of Black Doom's wrists. She was confident it would help, and so she was content to relax once more. Since he was more than used to jewelry (rings, necklaces, and even bracelets) already, Black Doom didn't react much to what she'd just done. He did finally open his eyes for a moment, but just long enough to look at the bracelet in question before ultimately deciding to just ignore its existence. He closed his eyes again, all too ready to finally return to sleep. Before long, he was out again.

Some time passed before the hive was in a stir once more, something that even Ghune noticed easily. The woman shifted to her feet, then glanced back to Black Doom to see if he was going to wake up with all of this happening. While it certainly took longer than it would have in the past (nearly a full minute of commotion passed, in fact), he did indeed wake up again. Once he was awake, he was quick to sit up and try to assess what in the world was happening.

"What are they worked up over?" Ghune questioned.

Black Doom moved to rub at his eyes, muttering something under his breath as he did so. He was sluggish to respond beyond that, but nevertheless eventually told her, "Someone is here."

Ghune let out a huff, said something quietly about the person being moronic, then teleported out amidst the hive to seek out the source of the commotion. One of the more sentient Black Arms caught sight of her and, using their long tail, all but pointed in the direction she needed to go. She headed that way immediately, drawing her blade with the expectation of a fight. She realized that there was no need for a fight shortly afterward, seeing as she had seen the intruder before elsewhere. "What the hell are you doing here, hedgehog?" she demanded.

Steam breathed out a sigh of relief, teleporting himself past the Black Arms that had surrounded him and over to the vampire. "I came to find you and Black Doom. I could use your help for something."

The woman was far from impressed or amused, crossing her arms. "Explain. I do not have time for this."

"I'm planning to raid Nareish's realm," Steam stated.

The expression of surprise and concern was readily visible on Ghune's face, even in her frown. "I'm sorry… What the hell did you just say? I heard something regarding absolute insanity."

Yeah, I figured you'd think that. "I understand how it sounds-"

Ghune cut him off and grabbed his shoulder, dragging him away from the hive members. "You're a fucking moron. Storming into Nareish's realm? She will kill all of us, you realize that, right?"

"She won't be able to," Steam replied quickly, realizing how urgent his own situation had just become. "I've already come up with a way to keep Nareish busy while people kill off or save the people she has working under her."

"Explain it now," Ghune demanded.

"Jet, myself, and a woman named Wave will keep her occupied fighting us, while people such as you could go in and wreak havoc on her forces."

"Why do you think this will work?"

"We're being left with less and less choices," Steam explained. "The longer we fight on an uneven playing field, the more we're playing into her hands."

Ghune scoffed. "You, a lower tier semi-Immortal, facing someone like Nareish? Even with the help of the most powerful Immortal since the Faein, you will die in mere seconds."

"Privilege," Steam answered. "I've been granted Privilege by-"

"What?" Ghune questioned, turning on him in an instant. "Privilege is rarely granted due to the very woman this war is with. Why the hell do you have it?"

Steam restrained the desire to huff a little. He felt like he couldn't get his words out around her. "I am from a separate timeline. I was granted this privilege by an Immortal from there."

Ghune was exasperated, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Let me see if I have this straight. You, Jet, and someone named Wave are going to face Nareish and keep her occupied while others go and ruin her army. You have been granted Privilege in order to exact a plan such as this, and you actually believe this will work."

"I didn't mention that Sul, one of the Faein, is willing to try and help look out for us and prevent Nareish from reviving enemies such as the Widow or Gerald-"

"Say no more," Ghune replied, her mind abruptly made for her. She teleported him to Black Doom's chambers. He was still sitting up and hadn't yet tried to go back to bed, actually, though being awake didn't mean he gave immediate acknowledgement. "Black Doom. We have an important matter to discuss."

He lowered his hands with a sort of sigh. Bright yellow eyes opened to glance over Steam, but he rapidly decided there was no threat present here. Still, he made no moves to come any closer. Instead, he remained where he was as he replied, "What?"

"This hedgehog has a plan to invade Nareish's realm and take out specific enemies, such as a certain man," Ghune murmured.

She hadn't said the name, but the implication was more than clear enough for Black Doom to tense up. He turned his head away, mind racing. All he wanted to do was shut this down, pretend he'd never heard this mentioned, but he instead forced a different word out than the hard "no" he'd originally intended. "Explain."

Before Ghune could cut him off again, Steam began explaining for himself. "I've secured the aid of Sul, one of the Faein, as well as Privilege from an Immortal. Me and two others are going to fight Nareish and hold her off while others take on various powerful enemies from her armies. I'm making plans for specific people to be taken down, but anyone beyond that would help us actually face her."

"It's a terrible idea," Black Doom muttered. Instincts were screaming at him about danger with so much strength and volume that he reacted exclusively to them as opposed to the logic behind Steam's words.

Steam's ears folded back a little, frowning vaguely to himself. Something was wrong, and it wasn't just that Black Doom looked like a hedgehog of all things somehow. I don't know enough about him to make a guess… But whatever's going on, it's messing with me.

The vampire among these three glanced between the two males before sighing softly. "I think the plan has merit, but needs to be fleshed out further. If Jet is truly up to the task of facing Nareish, it would stand to reason that powerful allies such as the Goddess of Judgement and God of Death may stand to strike a powerful blow through her armies." Her words didn't earn much reaction from her companion beyond a slight flick of one ear.

Seeing that the green hedgehog was apparently too frazzled by the situation to speak, Ghune once more opted to do so. "Black Doom, if you could inform the hive to not tear him into pieces should he return soon, I will allow him access to my planet so he may inform us further if his plans begin to come to fruition. Should we find them unsatisfactory, we can certainly disagree to partake."

"They will not harm him," Black Doom said, his voice and gaze distant. He didn't seem to be entirely seeing or hearing them anymore.

"Good." She turned to Steam and waved for him to leave. "Go, before I tear you apart myself for overstaying your welcome." Steam teleported away quickly. Ghune walked over to Black Doom and took hold of one of his hands. "Are you alright?"

Instincts hit again. He incorrectly perceived a physical threat to himself and practically ripped his hand away from the touch, eyes filling with alarm. It took a few full seconds for him to see again that it was just her, and he was forced to focus on trying to calm his suddenly shallow breathing. Ghune didn't move any closer, her own eyes narrowing with concern. "Are you alright?" she repeated gently.

No. I'm not. Black Doom didn't wind up voicing that thought. He calmed his breathing a little bit more before shifting the majority of his focus to the matter of his surroundings. Namely reminding himself for the second time that day that he was here and not there.

Ghune took a calculated risk and set her hand softly on top of his. She didn't try to grab it this time. He didn't pull away from the physical contact this time, but he did flinch ever-so-slightly. The moment was there and gone in a flash, and he was soon more or less alright with the touch. "Of all the things I can do, reading minds is not one of them." This finally earned her a small glance. Realizing that her way of speaking might not be helping, she chose to simplify her words. "I need you to talk to me. I am incapable of aiding you if you are silent. Anything to show you can comprehend that I am indeed speaking to you."

There was a heavy silence, but eventually he broke it. "...I saw…" He trailed off, shaking his head, then forced out, "I didn't… know it was you."

"That is okay," Ghune replied. "You… have been through a lot. I cannot understand your troubles, but I am here."

"...I know."

Ghune found herself at a loss for words, her gaze shifting to the side slightly. "I am… trying to help where I can." He nodded a little, either just acknowledging her words or agreeing with them. Perhaps even both. The woman held his hand a touch tighter, then pulled it closer to herself. "This is not something I am experienced with. Forgive me for that."

Since they were both in the same boat, so to speak, in that regard… Well, he could hardly fault her. "There is nothing to forgive you for," he murmured, moving to lay back down. Shaken and full of nervous energy though he now was, he simultaneously still had no substantial desire to be up and around.

Ah, improper wording on my part. Ghune let out a sigh and motioned for him to lay down fully. "You should continue trying to rest… even if we keep being interrupted."

While he intended to comply, something was tugging at Black Doom's mind. It was a short time before he really grasped what he was sensing, despite the fact that the information was coming directly from his connection to the hive's collective consciousness. …Shadow is in pain. Resisting the urge to let himself react too much in a physical sense, he instead asked, "You told me once that one of your vampires was trying to make a potion to help with my kind's physical suffering during spawning. Did they ever succeed?"

"...If I am not mistaken, I certainly believe so," Ghune replied. Her eyebrows furrowed. "You are speaking in regards to Shadow, correct?"

"He is experiencing pain in his lower back," Black Doom reported quietly, eyes closed to aid in concentration. Concentrating was difficult still regardless, but his motivation to do so was much stronger now than it had been before. "It is… early yet, however. Early enough that he has only just experienced the instinct to connect to the hive mind for safety. His pain is not occuring at regular intervals, either."

Some ancient curses flowed from Ghune's mouth before she asked, "Is he approaching the time to spawn?"

"It could still be hours until then. Perhaps even a day or two, depending on how things play out. But no longer than that. And… it could just as easily be sooner."

Further curses came from her and she issued a command to someone on her planet to have the potion made and taken to Shadow, if it wasn't already prepared. "The potion will be delivered."

Her words were answered with a faint nod. This is too early, Black Doom thought, frowning. But his stress… …Perhaps that is why.

Ghune had already come to a similar conclusion, frowning as well. Stress may have accelerated the process to cause him to be ready to spawn so soon… "Shadow has been resting as far as I'm aware," the woman explained. "And Ryint managed to handle a source of his stress recently."

That cryptic explanation aside, Black Doom had a more pressing concern. "No so-called 'halfling' has ever successfully spawned," he revealed to her. "Most were simply incapable of conception. The few that were did not survive the process of spawning." Granted, there had never been many half-blooded individuals (in fact, he could only remember a dozen or so of them), but that didn't decrease the concern he was feeling.

"There is nothing we can do aside from support him and ensure he has the highest chance of survival, as well as giving his child the best chance of being born," Ghune said.

Black Doom made a quick decision and connected more fully to the hive mind. "T'chalik, keep your focus on Shadow. Monitor him." With this instruction given, he refocused on Ghune again. Doing so was getting a bit harder as time went on, though. He was expending energy he just didn't have right now and he knew it. "He will need the chameleon… …Toru. He will need Toru there with him, but the blood will make it unsafe."

"I can protect him from the blood," Ghune replied, shrugging. It would be trivial for her, though no less necessary. "That much I can manage."

Black Doom nodded a little. His mind rapidly started wandering away again, returning to his earlier thoughts of wanting for nothing in life but sleep. As such, he shifted to get a touch more comfortable so that he could do just that. Ghune shortly followed suit, choosing to relax her body. Soon, both were more or less asleep once again.

~保護者~

13,632 words this time. Many thanks to Blazing Winds as always for all of his help and support and I hope you enjoyed. Posted (at about 1:30 p.m.) 02-22-21.