It was the beeping of the heart rate monitor that woke Joshua up. He groaned, blinking as his eyes adjusted to the brightness of the room around him. This was the second time in less than a month than he had woken up staring at incredibly bright overhead lights, he realized as he looked around, but at least this hospital room seemed a lot friendlier than the last one. For one thing, he was lying on a proper hospital bed, and not a metal table. There were an assortment of tubes and monitors to his right, the sort of things you'd typically see next to a hospital, and further beyond that he could see other hospital beds covered by curtains. The room was overall more clean and well-lit, too, like it was actually in use instead of like…

Well, Daniel had said that place had been abandoned, hadn't he?

Joshua tried to sit up to get a better look around the room, but found himself unable to move. His arms and legs felt fuzzy, as if the rest of his body was still asleep, and he struggled to even lift a finger. "Don't try to move so much, now," a familiar voice said: Joshua looked over to see Stan leaning against the opposite wall."You've still lost a lot of blood, and you'll disturb your bandages."

"Stan? Where am I?" Joshua asked confusedly. The last thing he could remember, he had been talking to Daniel on the phone when everything suddenly seemed very dark and far away. "You're in the hospital," Stan answered, walking over to Joshua. "Apparently you collapsed after your fight with an enemy Stand user. Alexa called us with your location, then kept you stable with that Stand of hers until we could take you to the hospital. Good morning, by the way."

Good morning...Joshua thought. So I've been out all night, then. That's not good. Instead of worrying about his concerned and probably very angry mother, though, he asked, "How is Alexa? Is she alright?"

"Hmm? Yes, she's fine," Stan replied. "Some light bruising, but no major damage. Especially compared to you." He reached arm out toward Joshua's forehead, leading Joshua to wonder if Stan meant to check his temperature. Then Stan's fingers struck Joshua forehead with an expertly aimed flick, leaving it lightly stinging with pain.

"Ow, that hurt!" Joshua complained irritatedly, but Stan remained stonefaced. "Rib fractures, lacerations, massive internal and external bleeding: it's really only thanks to Alexa and the good doctors that you're still alive. More importantly, what were you thinking, walking into the building like that?" Stan reprimanded. "I told you to recapture Rednex, not get into a fight with the head of the Cobalt Order! What were you thinking, doing something so reckless!"

"I - You're right. I'm sorry," Joshua said. He had been reckless, he realized; it was only through the tiniest of margins that he had managed to not die in that building. Still, he hadn't died, and that had to count for something, didn't it? "In my defense, it wasn't like I chose to fight him," he said, turning away from Stan. "By the time we realized what was happening, his Stand had already blocked any way to escape. I had to fight for my life." He paused, as the vision of Taste of Honey shooting Cesar flashed in his mind: he had been too tired to really react then, but it was starting to sink in what he had witnessed. "And he wasn't even the head of the Cobalt Order," he said, trying to distract himself from the looping moment in his head.

"Yes, I know. Alexa told me as much," Stan said. With a sigh, he sat down on the edge of Joshua's bed. "You know, you don't have to be doing this," he said. "Going out of your way to fight the Cobalt Order, I mean. This is my job, I do it for my living, but you're still just a kid. You shouldn't be having to fight for your life, or any of this."

Oh, Joshua thought. That's what this is about. "I know I don't have to fight the Cobalt Order," he said slowly. "But the Cobalt Order kidnapped me, and nearly killed me giving me a Stand. To be honest, I still don't fully understand why they did it." The words "World domination…" flashed through his mind as he spoke. "But I do know this," he continued, dismissing the words. "I'm not the first person the Cobalt Order has tried to hurt. I'm probably not the last, either. If I can fight them, then I want to. And frankly, I can fight them."

He had never said it out loud before, though he had been thinking about it for a while: fighting like this seemed to have come surprisingly well to him. He'd never thought of himself as a good fighter - he'd never even been in a fight before - and yet somehow in the past month he had won every insane fight he had been in. Was it because of his new Stand, or was this something that had always been lurking inside of him? He didn't know the answer, and it thrilled (and if he was being honest, scared) him. "I've been in tough situations before, but I haven't lost yet, even to more experienced Stand users - even to you."

Oops. He probably shouldn't have said that: at some point he had started to become impassioned without realizing it. "Besides, I'm certainly on the Cobalt Order's shit list now, if I wasn't before," he said, a lot more meekly. He looked away from Stan, embarrassed that he may have offended him, but Stan only sighed flippantly. "Honestly, all you teens are the same. You get a superpower and suddenly you think you're the next Katniss Everdeen, or whoever it is you're reading about in your books these days," He said, standing up from the bedside. "Well, if you must continue this fight, then as the adult in the room it is my duty to make sure you stay safe in the process." Joshua looked over to see Stan scratching his beard, an ashamed expression on his face. "In other words, I am sorry," Stan said, bowing his head slightly, "that I was not able to help you face that Stand user."

Joshua had to blink. He had been expecting a lecture, not an apology. "It's alright," he said, trying to hide the half-smile that had formed on his face. "It wasn't your fault that you got arrested. How did that go, by the way?"

Stan chuckled, the solemness lifting from his face. "Funny story, that," he said. "After we were brought back to the station, the police couldn't actually find any record of anyone calling in a kidnapping. There was a great amount of confusion, but we were eventually allowed to go." He shook his head. "That damned messenger Stand...I wished Birdhouse in Your Soul could've gotten the chance to sink its claws into it."

"Don't worry," Joshua said. "I got more than enough hits in for the both of us." Good, good," Stan said mirthfully. "Don't shoot the messenger indeed; if anyone deserved to be shot, it was that smug eyeless bastard!" He laughed heartily, but after a few seconds his laughter died down and his face grew serious again. "Still, its a shame," he said. "That was our only lead toward the Cobalt Order. We'll have to start from scratch, and they'll likely be more cautious than ever."

"Yeah, probably," Joshua admitted, staring at the ceiling. The sight of Taste of Honey shooting Cesar once again entered his head. He had been too shocked to realize it at the time, but the more he replayed the head in his head the less sense it made. Why would Taste of Honey shoot a member of the Cobalt Order? Something important had happened in that building, Joshua was sure of it; but what that something meant, he had no idea. Joshua continued to reflect upon the moment for several minutes, the room silent save for the beeping of the heart rate monitor.

That silence was suddenly broken as the door to the room slammed open, and Hiram rushed in, frantically waving a magazine in one hand. "Mr. Istanbul!" he shouted. "Mr. Istanbul! Do you still have…" He came to a halt in front of the hospital bed, trailing off. "Oh, Joshua, you're awake," Hiram said. "Are you alright? You were in really bad shape when we found you."

"Yeah, I'm fine," Joshua replied. "More importantly, what were you asking Stan about?"

"Oh!" Hiram shot up with a start, as if he had forgotten why he had entered the room until now. "Mr. Istanbul! Do you still have that arrow piece?" "Hmm? Of course I still have it," Stan said, holding up the golden piece of metal with a puzzled expression. "You got it back!" Joshua interrupted excitedly upon seeing the piece. In all the chaos in the fight against Cesar, he had almost forgotten that it had been stolen. "Yes, Alexa took it from Cesar after you passed out," Stan responded. "She said she didn't know what it was, but that it seemed important. Honestly, what Daniel was thinking keeping the arrow piece on him…"

"That's good to hear," Joshua said, relievedly sinking back into the bed. Then he suddenly frowned, realizing the full extent of what Stan had said. "Wait. Arrow piece?" He asked Stan, staring at the chunk of metal. It didn't look like it came from an arrow; if anything, he had assumed it had come from a knife or sword. "This is what gave you Imagine Dragons, right?" Stan asked, and when Joshua nodded he said, "There are tales told among Stand hunters of golden arrows that give those shot with it Stands. It's only a rumor, but I know that they exist, so when Daniel told me about this thing I knew it had to be a piece of an arrow."

"How do you know the arrows are real?" Joshua asked. "Because I've seen one before, of course," Stan replied, looking over Joshua gravely, before turning his attention back to Hiram. "Anyway, why did you want to see the arrow piece?"

"Oh! Right!" Hiram shot upright again, holding up the magazine - Smithsonian, Joshua read from the cover. "I was reading this in the waiting room, and there was this article about upcoming exhibits, and -" he cut himself off, flipping the magazine open to a specific page and handing it to Stan. "Well, just look at this!"

Stan's eyebrows shot upward as he scanned the magazine page, his perplexed expression shifting to one of worry. After a few seconds of silence and a sharp intake of air, he said, "Yep, you're right," Before holding up the magazine for Joshua to see. Pictured on the magazine's page in exquisite detail was an antique golden arrow. Most of it seemed relatively simple, but what made it stand out was the arrowhead: large, round, and flat, with sharp edges, it almost more befitting to a shovel than an arrow. Intricate golden pattern marked its surface, almost resembling the wings and body of a dragonfly. "Is that -" Joshua asked.

"It is," Stan confirmed. "A Stand arrow."

Xander stood outside the door to his office, staring at his phone. His foot tapped impatiently. He could hear the sounds of rustling from behind the door, but he knew that he couldn't enter just yet. His phone would ring in a few seconds, and he would have to answer the call. He knew that the person in his office would still be there when he was done.

The phone had barely begun to vibrate when he answered it, saying cheerfully, "Ah, Bruto! How nice of you to call!" He resisted adding, "How are you?", knowing that Bruto disliked it when his status reports were delayed by pleasantries.

"I just wanted to let you know," Bruto said, "that Augustus Cesar of Sector 20 has been killed." "Oh dear," Xander said with a frown. "That is very unfortunate news." He had already known about Cesar's death, of course but it did not make the news any less said. "His sector had been underperforming as of late, but his Stand made him a powerful asset to our Order, and his presence will be missed."

Bruto grunted disapprovingly. "We will be stronger without him. His incompetence is no longer a necessary burden, now that our plan is so close to completion." "Hmmm," was all Xander said in response. It was true that the Cobalt Order was close to achieving its goal, but he had been this close before, and he knew that it was in this phase when the most things went wrong. Now more than ever, the Cobalt Order needed to stand strong against its enemies, and the defeat of any of its Stand users could only weaken it - not to mention the horrible human cost of that defeat. But Xander did not say any of this to Bruto; he had had such discussions with Bruto before, and he knew that bringing it up again would only waste time. Instead, he said, "I trust that you have begun the process of reorganizing the members of Sector 20 into the rest of our organization."

If Bruto was surprised by Xander's words, he gave no such indication over the phone. "Of course," Bruto said calmly. "I figure that, so close to the culmination of our plans, we shouldn't continue delegating responsibility of that place to a handful of two-bit locals. That's why I've decided to take this opportunity to dissolve the current hierarchy of Sector 20, and implement my personal team in its stead."

"Yes, of course," Xander said. He would've been surprised by Bruto's plan if he hadn't already found out about it. "I leave that place in your capable hands." Rustling noises could still be heard coming from his office; Xander could've hung up the phone now, but he knew that there was more that Bruto had to say. "Anything else you wanted to report?" he asked.

"Actually, now that you mention it, there is one thing," Bruto replied hesitantly. "One of Taste of Honey's copies reported seeing two teenagers at the site of Cesar's death. In addition, recent reports from Sector 20 have included details about a handful of teenage Stand users causing trouble in their area: attacking Cobalt Order members, destruction of Cobalt Order property, that sort of thing. As such, currently we suspect their involvement in the death of Cesar."

"Hmm," Xander said, pretending to consider this for the first time, as if he had not already decided on a course of action. "If this is true, and they defeated Road to Nowhere, then they must have powerful Stands. Have them closely monitored, but do not provoke or attack them. Despite the trouble they've caused, they may still be convinced to join our Order. This can be to our advantage if we play it right - and the Cobalt Order can always use more members, right?"

A short silence followed, and then Bruto curtly said, "Of course," before hanging up.

Xander sighed, putting the phone back in his pocket. The phone call had gone just how he had known it would, and the rustling behind the door still hadn't stopped. No more delaying it, then, Xander thought, and pushed open the door.

The man in Xander's office froze as Xander entered the office, not bothering to turn the room's lights on. Immediately, the man withdrew his hands from one of the drawers in Xander's desk, his startled expression hiding behind a feigned smile. "Boss!" he said, shuffling out from behind the desk awkwardly. "I was just waiting for you - Khan sent me to get a file from your office, and you weren't in, so I thought I would -"

"Arnold, stop," Xander interrupted, holding up a hand. He had heard these sorts of excuses before, and he wasn't interested in wasting time with them again. "You were sent by the Speedwagon Foundation to investigate the Cobalt Order," he said firmly. "You succeeded in infiltrating us, and your skill and Stand ability even got you permission to enter our headquarters. You had enough information to report back to your foundation, but instead you decided you had to learn more about my Stand, which is what led you to break into my office. Is this not true?"

Armold's smile grew wider and more nervous, sweat dripping down his brow. "What?" he said incredulously. "Boss, I…" He trailed off, finding himself unable to look Xander in the eye, the weight of their silence hanging threateningly in the air between them. Then Arnold took a deep breath, and his expression turned serious. "Looks like I got caught red-handed, huh?" he said, as the air behind began to shine with the telltale shimmer of a Stand.

Xander held his hands out in a peacemaking gesture. "Hold on, now. There's no need for us to fight. I just want to talk to you." He did want to talk, truthfully, though he already knew that most of the things he could say would have no effect.

The shimmer of Arnold's Stand disappeared, but he still seemed to be on guard. "I don't want to fight you," Xander said carefully. "I know you came here to destroy us, but I still believe it doesn't have to be that way. You've worked with us for a while now, and you know what our goal is. Why not join us for real? You know that what the Cobalt Order will achieve will not only benefit you, but the entire world."

"Give me a break," Arnold said, as harshly as Xander knew he would be. "If you think the madness you're planning is good for anyone but you, then you're completely delusional. There's no way I'd allow myself to complicit in your insanity; the Cobalt Order must be stopped."

Further reasoning wouldn't work, Xander knew; neither would offerings of power and riches, or flattery toward Arnold's strength. Even appeals for compromise wouldn't work. Arnold was dead set against the Cobalt Order, and Xander knew he had nothing to say that could sway him. As much as he disliked it, there was only one more way to potentially resolve this stand-off peacefully: fear through intimidation. "You know that if you continue to oppose us, I can't afford to let you leave this place alive," Xander said, his voice having grown dark. "I don't want to fight you, but I will not hesitate to kill you if you force me to."

"Try it, then," Arnold responded, and in a flash of light his Stand, a small jet-like creature, rocketed toward Xander faster than he could react - or so Arnold thought. Just before the Stand collided with him, however, Xander effortlessly stepped out of the way, letting the Stand charge past him. It quickly turned itself around, charging toward Xander, but again he sidestepped the attack without looking. "I really don't want to have to kill you," Xander said, continuing to easily dodge past the Stand's assault. "If you submit to the Cobalt Order now, I will forgive everything - even this attack. I am giving you a chance to survive: you should take it."

"Yeah, right," Arnold said, as his Stand flew back to his side. He was clearly unnerved - likely he had never seen someone avoid the blitz-like attacks of his Stand so easily before - but the defiant look on his face hadn't disappeared. "I don't need you to give me anything," Arnold said. "I'll take victory with my own hands!" Just as he said this, Arnold's Stand exploded, breaking apart into hundreds of tiny missile-like objects and filling the dark room with smoke. The tiny missiles shot out of the smoke cloud at breakneck speeds, rocketing directly toward Xander.

Perhaps the oncoming onslaught of hundreds of missiles would seem intimidating to another person, but Xander knew to pay them no mind. All right then, he thought instead, let's give him a demonstration. A dark blue arm sprouted from his back, catching Arnold - who in the chaos had snuck behind Xander and picked up a nearby heavy statuette, preparing to swing it at Xander's head - by the throat. The shock of being discovered, combined with the sudden force of Xander's Stand around his neck, caused Arnold to lose focus, and the missiles disappeared before even one of them could hit Xander.

"H-how?" Arnold choked out through the grip of Xander's Stand. "How were you able to dodge my Stand? How did you know?" "The same way I knew everything that was going to happen," Xander replied, twisting to face Arnold. "After all, how many times do you think we've done this?" This was it, Xander knew; he could see it from the hopelessness in Arnold's eyes. He only needed to push a little more to convince Arnold to submit, and he could avoid unnecessary bloodshed. "This is your last chance," he said. "You can't win. Give up and join the Cobalt Order, or I will be forced to kill you."

But instead of hearing a quick surrender, Xander saw Arnold's face once again twist into an expression of defiance. "Fuck you," he snarled, as his Stand reappeared over his shoulder, launching itself at a high velocity toward Xander.

That's it, then, Xander thought resignedly. He had tried his hardest to resolve things peacefully, but in the end Arnold had chosen no path except futile resistance. A tear rolled down Xander's cheek. I'm sorry things had to turn out this way. He had wished, to the bottom of his heart, that he would not have needed to kill a fellow Stand user, but he knew that it was in these times that he needed to harden that heart.

He was Alexander Argead, the man who would lead the Cobalt Order to glory, and nothing could be allowed to get in his way.

"[We Didn't Start the Fire]!"

-To Be Continued- First Class (Act 1)

And here we are, nearly one and a half years later, having made it to the halfway point of this story! Actually judging by my story outline, we're more around the 40% mark, but narratively this makes the most sense as the dividing point, so shhh. I'm really happy to have gotten this far, but as we are at a good midway break point, I'd like to take this time to announce that this fic is going on hiatus.

Of course, this isn't a permanent hiatus. As I mentioned above, I've pretty much outlined the whole story, and there are lot more chapters in this fic's future - including some that I've been excited to write since I started this work. However, I do want to take a break from this story to write other things - some that may appear on this site, and some that won't.

The hiatus will end in a year or so, sometime around February 2021, and then I'll be back to finish this story for good. Until then, thank you all for reading and supporting this story! It really has meant a lot to me!