Unfortunately, everyone got seperated in the portals. Ludger ended up with Jude, Leia, Elize, Teepo, Sectonia, Lloyd, Scott, Ramona, and of course, Rollo. The group looked around and took in the landscape. That's when Leia realized something.
"Wait... This is...Rieze Maxia!" Leia said.
"The breach must've opened again." Jude told her.
Scott looked around. "Is it just us? Where are the others?"
"We must've gotten seperated when we went through the portal." Lloyd deduced.
It was true. Ludger looked around, and couldn't find Julius or Elle.
"Don't worry about Elle. Zelos was with her." Ramona told Ludger. "They couldn't have landed too far away."
"It's true. Zelos can be dependable when he wants to be." Lloyd commented.
Jude looked down, concerned for Milla.
"I'm sure she's fine." Leia told him.
Jude nods at that. "There's a village called Nia Khera at the bottom of this hill. Maybe we'll find out something about the others there."
On their way to Nia Khera, Sectonia and Ramona ask something.
"Say, Jude. There's something I've been wondering." Sectonia mentioned. "Who's Milla?"
"She was our travelling companion about a year ago." Jude told her. "She was the avatar of the Great Spirit Maxwell and held a very powerful presence, even being able to summon the four Elemental Spirits. Nonetheless, she cared very deeply for both humans and spirits."
"Sounds very powerful. What happened to her?"
Leia spoke up at this. "When the schism was dispelled a year ago, she became the new Maxwell and went back to the spirit realm. But now... Thanks to Chronos..."
Ramona finished for Leia. "She got sent to the abyss between dimensions. Don't worry. We'll find a way to bring her back. I know it."
"Thanks you guys. You really know how to cheer me up."
Jude smiled at this. "Odd, since cheering people up was your specialty, if I recall."
"Sounds kind of ironic, now that I think about it."
As they approached the cliffside, they were surrounded by a swarm of monsters. Despite everyone's efforts, they just kept coming.
"There's too many of them. We'll never make it at this rate!" Scott declared.
"Chromatus! Any time now!" Leia told Ludger. He attempts it, but fails.
Sectonia notices this. "Wait... You can't transform?"
"Lousy time to get stage fright!"
A blond woman then came charging in with her sword. "Hey, snap out of it!" She cuts down the monsters one by one until she defeats the last two with her fireballs. "This place is very sacred to us, you know. Outsiders aren't welcome." The woman then walks away further ahead.
"That was the version of Milla from this dimension, wasn't it?" Elize asks.
Leia nods. "Yep. No doubt about it. Shall we push on to Nia Khera?" Jude nods.
"But we've got a problem." Teepo points out.
"Isn't Ludger our ticket home to the prime dimension?" Elize asks. "If he can't transform anymore, then we're stuck." Elize tells the group. That is a big issue, but they'll figure it out once the group reunites.
In Nia Khera, Elle was conversing with the rest of the group, suggesting they look for Ludger's group. However, all that worrying was for nothing as Ludger and the others have arrived.
"Are you guys okay?" David asked.
"Yep! Everyone's safe and sound!" Lloyd says happily.
Ludger then went to talk to Julius before his GHS rang.
Vera's voice came out. "DODA here. After analyzing the coordinate deviation of the fractured dimension, we've determined there's a high probability it contains a Waymarker. If a Waymarker is found, its retrieval will become your top priority."
Julius smiles. "We risked it all, but it seems things worked out."
"Hold on. What's a Waymarker?" Scott asked.
Vera responds to the question. "They're clues to Canaan's location, all hidden in deeply fractured dimensions. They're always fused with catalysts." That was all Vera could say before Julius closed the GHS, ending the conversation.
"Leave the rest to me." Julius told Ludger then let out his hand. "The pocketwatch."
Ludger was about to before David grabbed Ludger's hand. "Not until you tell us what's going on, Julius!"
Julius looked down. He doesn't know much about David, only that they met on the Stribog Line, the train that was hijacked, before being sent to a fractured dimension. Seeing as though he has no intention on leaving Ludger out of it now that Bisley has a Universal Core key, Julius decides to tell him. "Origin's Trial."
"Origin's...Trial?"
"I guess Bisley never told you. The Trial is basically a test to see if the people of this world are worth saving and if they can control their selfishness and impurity while striving for perfection. To pass, the world's people have to reach Canaan before one million divergence catalysts are created. If they manage to, Origin will grant them one wish of their choosing."
"High stakes. People will be willing to do anything to get that wish."
"Oh, you have no idea."
It was at that moment that Milla walked towards the group. "Would you mind taking your banter elsewhere? You humans are giving me a headache."
"S-sorry, Milla." David said meekly.
"Wait, do I know you?"
"Well, not really." David then looks to Jude, Alvin, Elize, Teepo, Leia, and Rowen. "But they seem to know someone who looks just like you."
"I see. I'd remember such a motley crew." Milla then walks past them.
"Geez... No hesitation."
Milla then looks down to Rollo and smiles. "You hungry, fat cat? I'll bet you're always hungry. Come on." Rollo took this opportunity to follow Milla.
"Seems Rollo's got the right idea. Let's follow her."
Julius nods. "Yes. It might lead to this dimension's catalyst and the Waymarker."
The group followed Rollo to a tent near the entrance of the village, where Milla made soup for Rollo, which Elle says was really good. However, Milla told her that no one in the village would eat her food for some reason. After a talk, Muzet came in, with her eyes closed.
"You've been concocting that putrid human food again, have you?" Muzet asks.
Milla looked down and apologized. "I'm sorry, Muzet. These people were hungry, so I-" Muzet fires a dark sphere at Milla.
"You know full well how much that smell bothers me!"
"Stop! What do you think you're doing?!" David asks in Milla's defense. "You can't just attack your own sister like that!"
"How did you know we are sisters? I don't recall meeting you."
"I have my sources." David then thought something. (This must be the fractured version of Muzet... She seems more brutal than in the prime dimension, even from what Jude and the others told us happened last year.) David then noticed something. (Wait... Those eyes...)
Milla got up and apologized. "Forgive me, Muzet..." Elle rushes over to defend Milla, but Ludger stops her by grabbing her arm, re-igniting his chromatus transformation. This turn of events got Sectonia thinking. Milla was surprised at the site. "What in the world?!"
"What's wrong?" Muzet asks as she glows a sort of purple.
"Muzet, what was that?" Milla askes as Muzet struck, but Ramona stopped her.
"Quit your stammering! Anyway. it's time for me to be going."
"Yes, Muzet..." The group looks on in sympathy. "You're done here, aren't you? You'd best leave before we return." Milla says as she leaves with Muzet.
"How strange... There was a purple glow when Ludger grabbed Elle. Almost as if the catalyst was reacting to Ludger." Raine thinks.
"So... Does that mean Muzet is the catalyst?" Colette asked.
Julius nods. "Yes. For a certainty."
Scott thinks about this. "If we destroy Muzet, this world...will disappear..."
"Where were those two going, by any chance?" Sheena asked.
"Most likely the altar at the top of the hill." Sectonia asked. "That's where Ludger's group ended up when we escaped from Chronos."
Leia walks up to Rowen. "Rowen, please take care of Jude. I don't want him involved in this."
Rowen nods at this. "I understand." Rowen said as the group splits up, leaving Ludger with David, Sectonia, Zelos, Ramona, Leia, and Alvin.
"Alright then. Let's head to the Hollowmont." Alvin said, leading the group.
On the way to the Hollowmont, David, Ludger, and Julius engaged in a few conversations.
"So, Ludger. I've been meaning to ask. Who's really Rollo's owner?" David asked.
"Julius." Ludger responded. He felt he trusts David enough to be honest with him.
"That's right." Julius confirms. "I found him three years ago, when he was still a newborn kitten. You remember that night, Ludger? You had just been shot down by a girl you had liked and had run away from home."
"There's nothing to be ashamed of about that." David said. "It happens to all of us at one point or another."
"Quite right. Anyway, I went out searching for Ludger, and found him crouching over Rollo in some back alley." Needless to say, Ludger was embarassed about that story. "But didn't you and that Nova girl end up being friends?" Ludger tried to shush Julius to keep him quiet.
"I guess everyone copes with rejection in different ways."
"Quite so. But chin up, Ludger. You'll find the perfect girl for you someday." Ludger smiles in assurance at that. "By the way, David. Your team is an...interesting bunch."
"You don't the half of it." David looks down at this. "However, we've only assembled a week ago. We have no means of making a mark in the universe. No team name, no means of- Well, we have Ramona's handbag. That's how we got to Elympios. But, we don't have a handle at all..."
"This is your team's first outing, right?"
"Yes."
Ludger responds to this. "You shouldn't stress yourself about it, then."
Julius smiles at this. "Ludger's right. It may take some time, but the perfect name for your team will come to you when the time is right."
David nods at this. "Got it. Thanks, Julius, Ludger. I'm not so angsty about it anymore."
"Hey, any friend of Ludger's is a friend of mine. Speaking of which, what happened to your job at the station?" Ludger went silent at that. "I see. So you entered this dimension deliberately. You're an agent of Bakur's. Or rather, of the Spirius Corporation."
Ludger nods at this. "The same job as you, Julius."
"I see... I've always strived to be a brother you could be proud of. Now that seems to have backfired spectacularly."
David came to Ludger's defense. "Ludger didn't have a choice. It was the only way the police would be off him for what happened at the train hijacking. Plus, Bisley had a Universal Core key."
"I see. An artifact like that would be dangerous in the wrong hands. Ludger, everything has a dark side. That includes the Spirius Corporation, and it includes me. You don't need to explore our dark side. In fact, you should stay out of it."
"Julius..."
"I know, I know. I shouldn't treat him like a child. But I'm his big brother. I can't help it."
"Well, you can count on me and my team to support him if anything happens."
"Thanks. It's nice to rely on someone dependable. In fact, you might be more mature than I am. And that says a lot, considering your age."
"I've been living in tough times ever since my family died. I had to learn to fend for myself. You two should relish in the fact that you still have a family."
"And those words just proved my point."
When the group got to the Hollowmont. the group saw Milla in front. who turns to them.
"I thought I told you to leave." Milla tells the group.
Suddenly Leia's GHS went off. "Oh shoot! I forgot to tell the paper I was going undercover!" Milla shot a fireball at Leia, but Sectonia blocked the shot.
"Sectonia!" David and Leia called out as David rushed to her.
"Why did you do that?!" Julius asked Milla.
"She's holding a spyrix!" Milla told the group. "It's our mission to destroy spyrix technology along with anyone who uses it!"
"Looks like she's riled up. Now what do we do?" Ramona asked.
"Let's lie our way out of this." Ludger suggested.
"Ludger, don't!" Julius whispered.
"Zelos and I are the smooth talkers. Let us handle this." Alvin said as they walk towards Milla.
"You'd lie to a friend?" David asked Alvin.
"You said it yourself, once the catalyst is destroyed, she'll disappear anyway."
Zelos starts them off. "Why don't you listen? There's something wrong with your sister. You noticed that, right?"
"With Muzet? That's preposterous!" Milla said back.
"So you mean to tell me she's always been like this?"
"Don't you dare insult my sister! After all, it's my fault she ended up this way."
"Doesn't it seem like something is controlling her, though?"
"My sister is a Great Spirit! Nothing can control her!"
"You sure about that?" Alvin asked. "Ever noticed Muzet talking to herself, as if someone else is with her? Like she's possessed?
"How'd you know that?!"
"You saw it, too, didn't you? That thing glowing in her body? There's no way you could've missed it."
"That light...what was that?"
David spoke up. "That's a divergence catalyst. It possesses people and warps reality."
"And we're here to get rid of it." Ramona concluded.
Milla thinks about this. "An object that warps reality. It's just like a spyrix."
Zelos speaks to her. "Think about it. I have a sister myself. The two of you used to be inseperable, right? Is she really the type to attack her own sister the way she did?"
"Never! Muzet was always so kind! She lost her sight trying to protect me! The sister I remember...was a different person."
"So you admit it. Good think Ludger here has the power to seek and destroy those catalysts."
"Show her, Ludger." David commanded. Ludger nods and used the chromatus.
Milla took in the sight. "Is that...the power of the spirits?" Milla looked down, thinking about this. "If this 'catalyst' is destroyed, will Muzet go back to normal?"
David hesitated at this. He is aware that when the catalyst is destroyed, the dimension will fall apart, but to get to Muzet, the group needs to earn Milla's trust. "Uh... Y-yeah! She'll be back to her old self in no time!"
"Alright. I'll help you until the catalyst is destroyed. But once you do, you will leave this place and never return. Am I making myself clear?"
David smiles at this. "As crystal."
"Good. As long as we have an understanding. My sister relies on sound and smell to get around. Eliminate those, and she'll be left vulnerable."
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Sectonia asked once Leia finished healing her up.
Milla nods at this. "Come. She should be at the top." Milla leaves for the top of the Hollowmont at that.
"Can you do this?" Julius asks Ludger. Zelos spoke up.
"Stop giving the kid so much grief, Julius. Sometimes you need to get your hands dirty." Zelos told him.
"Don't I know it. That's what worries me."
At this, the group leaves for the top of the Hollowmont.
When the group reach the Hollowmont, they spot Muzet.
"There she is." Sectonia says.
"Please... I've carried out my mission beyond your expectations." Muzet said, as if in a sort of prayer. "May I finally return to the spirit realm now?"
Milla looks on. "Every night, my sister mutters things like this to herself."
"Who do you think she's talking to?" Ramona asked.
"I don't know... She refuses to tell me." Milla looks to Ludger. "Listen. I'll distract her, but it won't work for long." Milla then moves closer. "Muzet."
Muzet then looked to the group. "What did I say about wandering beyond the shrine?!"
"But I was worried about you. What are you doing here, Muzet?"
"That's none of your concern!"
"Why would you say that to me? You used to tell me everything!"
"I have nothing more to say to you, Milla! Go home!"
"Tell me why..." Milla muttered as she clenched her fist. "Tell me the reason you've been acting like this!" Milla launched a fireball at Muzet which caused her to be encased in a fiery pillar. "Ludger, now!" Before Ludger can make a move, however, the flames subsided.
"Milla... You've made your sister very angry!" Muzet says as her entire body blackens, turning into a divergence catalyst.
Milla was horrified at the sight. "So, it was true... Everything the others have told me... You're a monster!"
"How dare you call me that, human!" Muzet says as she launches a dark sphere. Elle came to Milla's defense, and Ludger's blocked the blast with his chromatus. Everyone in the group went on to fight Muzet, except Milla, who was still terrified by her transformation. However, due to her strong spells, she's becoming quite tough to beat.
"Freeze Lancer!" David shoots multiple ice crystals at Muzet.
"Thunder Blade!" Sectonia drops a blade of lightning at Muzet as well. "David, now!
"Got it!"
They both called. "Lightning Tiger Blade!" Sectonia shoots lightning from above while David strikes down. Muzet fires a blast at Ramona.
"Oh no! Ramona!" However before the blast hit her, Zelos blocked it.
"I just don't like it when women get hurt." Zelos told Ramona. "Plus, Scott will kill me if something happened to you." Ramona smiles at this, glad that Zelos came to her rescue regardless. Zelos then walked to Muzet. "Normally, it would be against me to injure a lady. But since you attacked my friends, I'll make an exception." Zelos' back got red angel-like wings at that. "I'll show you what I'm made of..." A light hits Muzet, which causes a puddle of light to appear from the ground. "Take this! Divine Judgement!" Multiple lights hit from overhead, causing Muzet to pass out on the ground.
"Wha... That was amazing!" Sectonia said in excitement. "Zelos, what did you just do?"
Zelos' wings fade as he explain. "What I just did is called a Mystic Arte, a technique so powerful that it can decide the entire battle."
"Wow... Do you think David, Ramona, Scott and I will have our own someday?"
"I'm sure you will. I mean, everyone has at least one."
Milla looks to Muzet. "Please stay down. You're hurt."
Muzet can only sheath in anger. "I don't need your pity. You putrid, pathetic pitiful human!" Muzet tries to strangle Milla. Zelos and Ludger with his chromatus, sprang into action and blocked Muzet while deflect her attacks. "Don't you dare interfere!" Milla took Ludger's chromatus spear and pierced Muzet with it. "What...?"
Milla was in tears at the act. "You... you made me do this..."
However, because Milla pierced her and not Ludger, she was still alive, and she looked to Milla. "No human can harm me." The spear fell off of Muzet.
"I'm not any human. I'm your sister!" Muzet was about to strike when Ludger came in and struck Muzet, causing her to disappear as Milla realized what the group has done. The divergence catalyst breaks and a light falls into Ludger's hand as Elle runs to Milla.
"Elle, what are you doing?!" David asked when he saw her. Elle grabbed a shocked Milla just in time for the dimension to collapse.
The group were still in Nia Khera, but this time back in the prime dimension.
"Looks like we're back." Ramon said.
"So the fractured dimension is kaput?" Zelos asked.
"Should be." Sectonia answered. The group turn to Ludger's hand, contains white gears instead of black. "So, that's a Waymarker."
David looks to Elle and Milla. "Uh, guys... We've got a problem. Elle brought that dimension's Milla to this dimension."
Julius looked on. "So, it's true..."
Milla looks to the group. "Muzet... And my world... They're gone, are they?"
David looked down. "I'm sorry. There was nothing we could do."
"You know, you don't have to lie anymore."
"Huh? When did you-"
"As soon as Muzet faded, I knew what was going on. My dimension...was a fractured one, wasn't it?"
"Yeah. It was taking energy from our dimension. We didn't have a choice."
"It's not in my nature to see a troubled soul, but..." Milla then sits on the cliff face, thinking what to do now. At that moment, Ludger's GHS began to ring.
"You probably shouldn't. It's a spyrix." David said, looking at Milla. Ludger answered anyway, with Jude on the other line.
"Ludger, are you okay? I guess you guys destroyed the catalyst, right?"
"Yep." Ramona commented. "I guess you all made it back, too?"
"Yeah, we're fine. Everyone else is with me."
"Then I guess it's mission accomplished. Let's regroup." Sectonia said. Ludger hung up his GHS when he saw Milla.
David looked too. "Look, I know you don't trust us after everything that's happened, but it's better than staying here." Milla slowly nodded and went with the group as they headed back to Nia Khera.
When the group got back to Nia Khera, the others were relieved.
"Thank goodness you guys are alright." Scott told the group. "Of course, we expected as much, since we're back in the prime dimension and all." The group then saw the fractured Milla. "Uh... What's she doing here?"
"It's a long story." Ramona told her boyfriend.
Ramona told the group about what happened after they left for the Hollowmont.
"Unbelievable..." Jude muttered.
"Don't be too hard on Ludger. He had to take out Muzet. He didn't have a choice." Zelos said, trying to console him. Julius tried to take the Waymarker from Ludger, only to be met by David's gaze. Then a familiar voice came in.
"Very interesting... So that's how you made your new friend there." Rideaux said as he and Ivar show up. "What a fascinating tale."
David glared at Rideaux. "And just what do you think you're doing here, Rideaux?"
"An odd question for your new Department of Dimensional Affairs Director. Though, things would've just gone much smoother if you had just let former Director Kresnik have the Waymarker."
"I made a deal with Bisley. He'd give me the Universal Core key if I helped Ludger complete his task."
Julius smiles at David's resolve. "He's not the type to be moved by mere words, Rideaux."
Ivar looked over to Milla. "Lady Milla..."
Rideaux looked to Ivar at that. "Don't get yourself all worked up. She's not your Milla, you know."
"I... I know..."
Rideaux chuckles at this. "Welcome to the real world, kid. Like Julius is any different. He rigged poor Ludger's entrance exam, after all." Ludger heard this and looked at Julius.
It was then that David finally had enough of Rideaux's attitude. "What do you know?! Julius just wanted what's best for Ludger!" The brothers were shocked to hear David at their defense. "Sure, he can hard on Ludger at times, but when it comes down to it, he's a nice guy."
Ludger was able to make out some words from all of this. "David... You don't have to do this."
"I know... But he's the reason you had to resort to working for Spirius. I'm not going to let him look you down any longer!"
Rodeaux scowls at this. "So... You wish to fight me?" Rideaux does a spin kick on Julius, knocking him to the ground.
"Julius!"
"The employee handbook is quite clear about punishment for insubordination. If you insist on continuing this farce, I shall make an example of you myself."
The others try to help David, but Ivar gets in front of them and draws his swords. "No way! This is their fight."
The two combatants charge at each other and clash, broadsword on knife.
"Your reason for being mad at me is understandable." Rideaux said, taunting David. "I knocked Agent Kresnik with a high debt for an incident you got involved in, and now I've hurt one of your friends."
David and Rideaux clash each other a few more times, blow for blow, arte for arte. "That... And your personality reminds me of a snake, which I hate, for the record." David casts Freeze Lancer at Rideaux. "You enjoy this kind of sadistic torture, do you?"
"Sadistic? Whatever do you mean?"
"Don't play dumb."
"This isn't even your world. I can never understand why these people mean so much to you."
"Because they're my friends...and I won't let you get away with hurting them!" David managed to deal a big blow on him with his new attack. "Light Spear!" David performs a horizontal spin that leaves a spiraling trail of light from his broadsword while he jumps into the air, following through with a strong downward thrust into the ground at an angle coming at Rideaux.
"This must be...a joke." Rideaux says as he's knocked out. Rideaux manages to get back up, though. "Impressive, albeit a wasted effort. Since you already have the Waymarker, I suggest heading back to HQ."
"Fine. But only because of my deal with Bisley, not because of you."
"Whatever way you want to do it."
Ivar reluctantly points a sword at Milla. "You're coming with us. I insist."
When the group makes it back, they run into Vera.
"Mr. Bakur has been expecting you all." Vera tells the group.
"Hey!" responds Nova as she walks to the group. "Say... Have you heard anything from Julius?"
"Nova, I've told you that's classified."
"I'm off the clock. Just a question between friends."
Ludger smiles at Nova. "This is Julius we're talking about. I'm sure he's fine."
"O-of course. You're right. He's your big brother, after all. More than that! He practically raised you."
Sectonia decides to calm Nova. "Don't worry. Everything's going to be alright." She says as the group leave with Vera.
The group make it Bisley's office.
"Excellent work, Ludger. You've gone above and beyond the call of duty." Bisley said. Julius is in restraints with Ludger and Rideaux at his sides. "You must be proud of your talented brother." He says to Julius.
"That's enough. Don't go praising him." Julius whispered to Ludger.
"You got that right. Doing a good job meant destroying my world." Milla muttered.
Bisley looked to Milla. "They told me about you. What was your name, again?"
"Milla. The former Maxwell."
"You're serious?"
"Pretty skeptical for a destroyer of worlds."
David looked down. "It's not like we want to do this."
Bisley heard him. "The boy is right. We do it to protect the prime dimension. Also, we do it to reach the Land of Canaan."
Milla took this in. "Canaan. The throne of the Great Spirit of the Void, Origin, guarded by Chronos."
"You were serious about the Maxwell thing. I can see that now."
"It was just something I heard from my sister. You know, before these guys went and killed her."
"Then your sister was a very well-informed woman." Bisley got up and looked out the window. "Legend has it, Origin will grant the wish of the first person who comes before him to plead their case." Julius tries to get Bisley to not tell them, but Rideaux has a knife to Julius' throat. "That was the pact made eons ago between humanity and spirits. The three Primordial Spirits."
"The three were Maxwell, Chronos, and the Great Spirit of the Void...Origin."
"The pact came to be known as 'Origin's Trial'."
David was in though about this. "Origin's Trial..."
Julius spoke up. "I discussed a bit of that with you earlier."
This time, it was Raine's turn to speak. "Present yourself to the Spirit of the Void and any wish may be granted."
Genis was concerned, though. "And by that, they really mean anything?"
Bisley spoke up. "Yes. The Void gave birth to the whole of creation. Its Great Spirit, Origin rules over all of his kind. A being so powerful can surely grant anything and everything."
"Why was such a pact even made?"
"To test us. To test our strength, our will, our ambition. Or so some believe... Perhaps they just find enjoyment in watching humanity struggle and suffer."
David shook his head. "I don't believe that. They're not that sadistic."
Ramona spoke up. "Well, there was Chronos. Remember, he casted our Milla into the abyss between dimensions just for siding with humans, and even attacked us. Clearly, he has no intention on letting us, or anyone, reach Canaan."
Julius spoke up. "Not only that, but the scions of Kresnik have waged war amongst themselves for centuries, each one hoping to reach Canaan first. At times, father against son." David and the others who were on the Stribog Line heard from Vera that Ludger and Julius are half-siblings who have different mothers. It took Julius' quote to realize that Bisley is actually their father. Those from Earth thought it was Star Wars all over again.
Bisley spoke up. "And occasionally, brother against brother."
Raine told the group. "Nonetheless, we have the Waymarker, so we should be able to get to Canaan."
"I'm afraid it's not that simple, Miss Sage." Rideaux said to Raine.
Bisley spoke up again. "A single Waymarker won't get you to Canaan. You need five. This is only the first: Maxwell's Temporal Blade."
Vera spoke up. "The others are Long Dau's Dust, the Seafall Phantom's Eye, the Ark Sentinel's Heart, and...the final one is still a mystery."
Rideaux spoke next. "Unfortunately, all of these items have fallen through the proverbial cracks in the prime dimension."
Scott spoke up. "Which means we have to find them in the fractured ones."
"Precisely. You're a lot sharper than you look, Mr. Pilgrim."
"Even I have my moments."
"However, if a Waymarker exists in a fractured dimension, it would have to be the entity that differs the most from its original nature in this one."
Sectonia spoke up now. "So, if I'm getting this right, that means the Waymarkers will always be divergence catalysts. And bringing the lost Waymarkers back into the prime dimension is the real mission of the agents."
"As expected of the fallen queen of Floralia to be so insightful."
Bisley addressed the group. "Of course, not everyone is suited for a mission of this nature. An agent must have a very specific power to carry matter from a fractured dimension into the prime one."
"Here in Spirius, we have a title for someone with that ability." Vera told the group. "They are the Keys of Kresnik."
"Of course, it's referring to you, Ludger. That's right. You have the same power that my agents have sourced the fractured dimensions to locate."
"But what's Spirius' stake in this? What's your wish?" Lloyd asked.
"We will ask the Great Spirit Origin to nullify the existence of the fractured dimensions. Their numbers increase. We are no longer able to deal with them one by one."
It was then that Elle's stomach rumbled. "Looks like someone's hungry." Sheena said.
"I can't help it, you know!" Elle remarked back.
"I'll arrange for some refreshments." Vera said.
"How about we have Ludger whip us up something?" Colette asked. "Or better yet, Regal or Genis?"
Bisley was intrigued by this. "Are you saying the three of them are good cooks?"
Elle has her hands on her hips. "I guess they're okay. Milla, too!"
Bisley chuckles at this. "Well, someone had better feed this scrappy little thing before she passes out from hunger." Bisley then walks to Ludger and David. "Ludger... I have no doubt you will reach the Land of Canaan. And David..."
David replied to Bisley. "Don't worry. I haven't forgotten our deal. The updated terms are that you'll give me the key if my group helps Ludger find the Waymarkers."
"Sharp as a tack. That's what I like about you." Bisley walked out at that.
"Don't worry, Julius. I'll keep Ludger safe in your stead."
Julius smiles at that. "See that you do." The group leaves the office at that.
When the group got to Ludger's, he treated them to Mabo Curry.
"Even to cook, you depend on spyrix." Milla said, looking at the oven.
"So, Milla." Sheena brought up. "Is what you're saying true? About Origin being in Canaan? And that he purifies our souls and subjects them to reincarnation?"
"Like I said, that's just what my sister told me."
"I was just asking, because when we went against a fractured Volt, it said something about soul contamination."
David spoke up. "Jude here is a genius with spyrites. If he can perfect the technology, people won't need spyrix. I think our trouble with spyrites is linked to the soul-purification process. But even so, if Canaan and the Universal Core are so important that they will change the course of history, then we have no choice but to go. Milla, I know you don't trust us, but-"
"I'll go." Milla said, cutting him off. "I'll go with you until I confirm my world's fate. Not a moment more." She says as she leaves with Jude following her.
That night, the group gathered with Elle at a swing set. Since Ludger can't use his chromatus or perform his duties as a Key of Kresnik without Elle, and the group can't get the Universal Core key from Bisley until they get all the Waymarkers, the group decided to work their way to Canaan together. David is still undecisive about a team name, but Ludger assures him that he'll find a good name for the team soon.
A/N: Man, oh man! Those last two parts took so long! Thankfully, besides the Character Episodes, the other chapters are much shorter, so hopefully, I'll get this adventure done quicker.
A/N: Inspired by Jexi the Hunter and Hope the Victor