~Raze's Journey;Director's Cut Chapter 16~
~Times Closing In;Times Running Out~
Roarin: We're back with a new chapter. Hope you all enjoy it.
Together, Raze and Time-Turner walked down the path from the back of the Old Man's home. It was a rather lush environment filled with shrubs and trees that were neatly trimmed. The path itself was gravelly and not uniform which didn't fit the area all that well. Raze was merely playing along, following the Old Man who was too determined to get to the dilapidated building at the back of the compound.
Just behind them, Ken, Kira, Kiryu, and Cloud were dodging between each shrub. Raze was aware of their presence, but thought it would be quite harmless to ignore them for now, "Say, even if I do travel back through time, how would I find Lyral and save her? She wasn't known for having a high ki signature." But to this, Time-Turner shrugged.
Bringing down his cane harder than he had intended, an echoed slam rushed throughout the garden which tripped up the kids ever so slightly, "You'll figure it out Raze. You just have to. I'd say your biggest obstacle would be trusting me." Time-Turner turned his head slightly, catching the eye of the saiyan, "What would stop me from hurting you exactly?" That was a question on Raze's mind.
'He has a point. Who's to say that I should be following him. After all, those things he had were…' Raze wasn't sure how to completely process the information he'd already been replaying over and over again in his mind, 'Am I too trusting? I was surely on my guard earlier, but now… It's hard to feel that way.' He thought while Time-Turner's pensive gaze had him nodding slowly.
"Right-O. Then let's get going. You have things to do." Time-Turner said, returning back to his original position before pulling out a remote. Clicking in some numbers, he saw the building starting to rise up. Raze watched with anticipation, wondering what exactly was going to happen. The building formed an entrance way, leading down a long staircase that seemed to go down with no end in sight.
Time-Turner smirked and then twitched his head forward, implying for Raze to continue down the path with him. Raze wondered where exactly it led as the kids stumbled forward behind them. Eager as the little ones were, they tried to stay quiet and keep their ki down so as to not betray their following.
~With Brass~
Brass sat next to the lake that was just within earshot of the capsule corp ship. He enjoyed the sounds of nature, but would always frown as a bird would whistle by. He had been doing some fishing and keeping an ear open for Athena who seemed to be doing her usual bout of struggling.
Shaking his head in disbelief at her sheer ability to keep on trying to escape. He couldn't help but think it was a bit admirable. At least, if it wasn't so annoying. Brass had heard something different shifting around when he was walking out of the ship for the first time that morning. Though, he thought it was probably just some animal that liked the warmth radiating off the side that had been stoked by the sun.
His fishing pole began to tilt ever so slightly before beginning to be pulled taut causing Brass to grab it quickly. Brass enjoyed the sport of it, lowering his energy to about what he considered to be eight. Even then, he barely struggled to reel in the mighty fish before finally tugging just hard enough to pull it straight from the water. The fish sped towards his face, but just as the impact was sure to hit. He caught it in his hand. It flopped back and forth in the air before being dropped in a bucket.
'Too easy…' He thought while reeling in the rest of his line.
Gripping the hook, he threaded bait onto it before quickly tossing it back out. He dug the handle into the earth and then laid back in the grass.
Looking into the sky for the first time in a while, he breathed in deeply. Enjoying the clean air a little too much and exhaling. He could get used to this. As the clouds passed over his form, cooling Brass that much further. His eyes opened and his ears twitched at the sound of footsteps approaching. Trying to ignore it, he merely turned over and then he decided to tilt his head. He saw what looked like a humanoid bird getting closer.
Surprised, Brass sat up as it strewed past him. The being seemed completely oblivious to the namekian which was pretty strange, "Hey you." Brass said, causing the bird-like alien to give him a once over.
"Uh… Yes?" It asked just a bit too quietly for Brass' liking.
"Who are you?" He asked bluntly.
"Oh, well… Names Rekas and you?" He asked the weirdly colored namekian.
Brass was even more surprised that this Rekas had such a gall to ask him his own name, but he obliged because that was kind of cool, "It's Brass and you should be careful. I've got dangerous cargo here." He said as Rekas laughed nervously.
"Okay. Glad to know. You don't mind if I fish here, right? Brass?" Rekas asked to which Brass merely gave him a courteous nod and layed back in the grass.
Trying to regain that sense of tranquility, Brass relaxed even beginning to doze. The welcome visitor made sure to move at least out the way of Brass' own fishing spot before starting to set up his own. Rekas took out his fishing rod holder and dug the piece of metal sticking out the bottom into the dirt beneath. After being satisfied with the steady composure of the object. He quickly gripped his fishing rod and got to the hook.
Putting his own bait on, he swung back and then let loose the line. Satisfied with the distance it had traveled, Rekas set the rod down inside its holder. He seemed pleased with himself before turning back to watch Brass.
"So, have you been around this area before?" He asked Brass who didn't give him an answer.
"That's fair." Rekas said, turning back to watch the breeze sift through the grass on the shoreline.
A bit of time would pass and Rekas would get a bit rustled in his feathers. He watched like a hawk, hoping to see the line so much as twitch. Yet, nothing had happened. Fifteen minutes. Here he was and still nothing. Rekas heard Brass beginning to snore just beside him. Twenty-Five minutes. Rekas had begun to sweat.
A sudden jerk made Rekas leap up and firmly grasp his fishing pole, but just as it had moved, nothing happened. Again? Strange, right? Rekas set the rod down again. Tapping his own shoulder nervously before realizing that Brass was no longer snoring. Brass had appeared already standing in front of him. Rekas couldn't believe it. Nothing had happened! Nobody had moved! Yet, here was Brass!
"Amazing! When did you? Ermm… How did you?" Rekas pointed at the empty spot of grass and that's when he noticed extra details such as Brass being soaked while holding quite a large bass.
"It's not a big deal. I just heard the fish and here's the fish." Brass waved the rather large Bass in his hand in front of the bird man. He dropped it in the bucket with the other one he had caught.
Rekas sighed and fell backward, "I guess most of my fishing trips don't usually go well. I try my best for all those kids back at the manor…" He said wistfully as Brass arched his left eye out of curiosity.
"Oh? So, you're an operator at that orphanage in town?" Brass asked to which Rekas nodded.
"Yeah! I promised the kids that I would go catch them some fish and make a big dinner out of it. Though, I've had less luck as of late." Rekas said as Brass nodded slowly, "That and I haven't seen the Mistress in the last day or so. It's very strange." Rekas scratched the bottom of his beak.
Brass thought back to when Raze spoke of Lyral and then he replied, "That person wouldn't happen to be named, "Lyral" would she?" He asked Rekas who nodded so fast he practically became a blur.
"Oh yes! The Mistress! She left at the start of our day and was gone for such an unnatural amount of time. I was wondering if she'd be taken against her will at this point!" He gushed while Brass took the information and then Rekas immediately shook his head, waving his feathery hands at the albino namekian, "Oh! I shouldn't burden others with such information! I apologize, good sir!" He said profusely, but Brass shrugged it off.
"No issue there. In fact, it's good to have a stool pigeon." Brass said as Rekas gave him a beady eyed look.
"Really Sir?" He asked as Brass grunted with an affirmed nod.
"Take or leave it. I won't apologize." Brass said to which Rekas shrugged his shoulders.
center~The Ks and C~/center
The pathway kept going on further and further down. Ken and the others were just so tired of following the Raze. Not to mention how dark it was getting in this tunnel. They weren't sure it would ever end.
"Ken, can we just go back?" Kiryu whispered the question that even Ken wasn't sure what he said.
"Huh? What'd you say?" He asked back while trying to keep the distance between them and the duo they were following as distant as possible.
"I think we should just turn back." Kiryu said a little louder.
Kira jumped in, "No! I gots to see dis!"She said while walking past Kiryu, but Ken grabbed her arm as she tried to go by him.
"Slow down, I don't think we should be getting too close, but I need to know what they're going to do about Aunt Lyral." Ken had indeed remembered his lesson from before about potentially dangerous situations. This was one of them. He would be careful and make sure everyone was safe. But he couldn't turn back.
Cloud was just behind them, "If it's important to Ken and Kira, we should back them up." He said clearly enough for Kiryu to understand even though he seemed unnaturally on edge.
Kiryu sighed, "I want to be there for them. They're the reason we got saved at all, but it feels like we shouldn't be here." He finished as Ken looked at him in disbelief.
"Are you even the same Kiryu? Didn't you stand up to Athena despite having no chance to win?" Ken asked as Kiryu nodded.
"But that was different! This isn't something we've faced before." Kiryu said as Cloud sighed.
"You've never faced a hallway?" Cloud asked as Kiryu frowned.
"Why do we hang out again?" Kiryu asked as Cloud smiled with a shrug.
Ken cut in, "Regardless, I really appreciate you guys backing me up. Thanks." He said, his cheeks betraying that he was crying a little at that.
Kiryu looked away, but nodded, "Sure… Let's go make sure your aunt's alright." He said as Kira grinned when he walked by her.
"Thank Kiryu!" She said as he tried to ignore her.
Cloud moved to follow him, "That typically means that it's all good. You ready, Ken?" Cloud asked the fellow half saiyan who nodded, wiping away his tears, but still holding Kira's arm as to make sure she didn't do any rambunctious things.
~Raze and Time-Turner~
"We're almost there… Do you have any objections so far?" He asked Raze who shook his head.
"Of course not. Why even ask? Once I've accepted that I'm going to do something… It will get done. The only way it won't is if death comes knocking." Raze said with conviction that made Time-Turner smirk.
"You sound like a younger me. If it weren't for this aging body, I'd be able to do what I wished. It's just not fair that everything happened the way it did." Time-Turner remarked, thinking of those days.
That was something Raze didn't understand. He has a time machine! There's no reason that he couldn't do what he liked. Time-Turner should be able to defy all the odds with such an item. The saiyan couldn't wait, he needed to hear an answer to his newest question.
"If you've got a time machine. Why wouldn't you remedy this situation? Can't you run wherever you like?" Raze asked the old man who stopped again.
"If it were that easy, I'd have never met you nor Lyral. I feel as though that the circumstances have been fated since the beginning that we would eventually meet." Time-Turner said quickly enough as he turned to Raze, "Remember, this time machine only has one charge. I couldn't go but to one place and that would be the end. At least now, it has a purpose besides sitting underneath this old dinghy building." He brushed his fingers through his beard while Raze remembered that he had indeed told him about the last charge.
"So, the battery can't hold more energy? Couldn't you fix that?" Raze asked as Time-Turner chuckled.
"I don't believe that would be sporting. I'm tired. I've run from so many different things and people. If this is the last place it took me. Then I'm fine with living it out here." He said as Raze felt a different kind of emotion at that, but he couldn't completely place the feeling and Time-Turner continued, "Don't look too deep into it. It wouldn't matter to you, but to the person I knew… He would know what to say." He finished, turning back to his course.
"Anyhow, just a little bit more. Then we'll get you where you need to go." Time-Turner continued down the path leaving Raze not much more option than to follow.
'I wonder what Brass is up to? It seems like I never get a chance to really relax…' He thought to himself.
~Brass~
"This is getting us nowhere." He said as Rekas agreed.
"Indubitably. So, I've asked you if you would like to come with me to the orphanage. We can hide your ship on the estate and you can eat or drink what you like." Rekas said as Brass looked over at the ship, "See? You're just worried about that. It's no problem to park it over there." Rekas finished as Brass gritted his teeth.
"That's not the point. That could put you and the kids in danger over there! No way in hell am I parking at your estate!" Brass shouted back at the unphased bird-man.
"You do care! Still, I insist!" Rekas exclaimed back at the namekian.
"URGH! Stop being a dumbass!" Brass angrily cut out through his teeth.
"Stop being a stubborn shit, Sir!" Rekas retorted which made Brass grin.
"So, you spit back, huh? Heh. I can respect that, but you're going to have to respect me and deal with the fact that I'm not going to accept your deal." Brass said to the bird who shook his head.
"I have until the time of five thirty to continue this argument. Try me, Sir." Rekas returned to the namekian quickly enough.
'Dammit, he's stubborn and I don't need to waste that kind of time on something more than napping. Urgh… I could kill this man. Who the hell does he think he is?' He thought too damn angrily to himself.
Something glinted from a decent bit away, not coming from the ship. Brass and Rekas turned to see a portal opening up about fifty feet out, "Sir? Another one of your friends?" Rekas asked Brass who shook his head.
Out of the portal dropped a man with purple bangs that split off to each side and had a ponytail coming down the back of his skull. His irises were a deep blue and he wore a sword on his back. A trench coat adorned his body with dull green pants and brown boots. He looked incredibly serious as he turned to see the environment before settling on the albino namekian and the yellow bird-man.
"I've never seen anyone like that before." Brass said, preparing himself for a potential fight.
Rekas, seeing Brass get into a serious stance surprised him as he stepped back shakily, "Is he an enemy, Sir?" He asked Brass.
The man still looked around before finally deciding to walk toward the strange duo. Even as he got closer, Brass got a sinking feeling, 'What am I feeling? This guy is…'
Brass moved backward, 'No way… I'm being pressed already?' Even still, the sword toting man got closer.
"STOP!" Brass shouted and he was even surprised to find that the mysterious interloper did indeed listen to him.
"He's not here is he?!" The man asked Brass who was now even more confused than surprised.
"W- What do you mean!? Are you talking about Raze?!" Brass exclaimed back to the swordsman who nodded.
"Yeah, something is about to happen here. I have to stop it!" He shouted back as Brass took a step forward.
"Who are you!? Answer now!" Brass said loudly trying to get something else out of this new character.
The man looked surprised that someone had bothered to ask him, "Fine! Names Trunks. Now you tell me where Raze is." Trunks said as Brass clenched his fists.
"How about no and you take your ass back where it came from." Brass said as Trunks raised an eyebrow at the namekian.
"There's not a lot of time for us to have this conversation, Brass. I'm here on a mission to end this quickly. If I could speak with Raze, he'd understand." Trunks fired back as Brass tightened his stance.
"I'm not backing down. So, come at me." Brass said despite his body's insistence that they not do this.
Rekas flapped his wings in alarm, "You can't be serious, Brass! Get away from this man, I've got a bad feeling about this!" He exclaimed as Brass shook his head in annoyance.
"Why are you still here?!" Brass shouted, but he stopped as wind began to pick up from the direction of Trunks. Then he realized that the energy Trunk's had exuded was completely gone. His antenna blew as he finally looked over at Trunks once more to see his hair had gone completely red. Irises glowing with their own red sheen and an aura that burned like fire. Yet, it looked calm.
"I don't have time for this." Trunks said, disappearing entirely into thin air.
Brass was hit hard in the neck. His eyes blanked out, whatever energy he had was dissipated in an instant. Falling to the grass below, he flopped and laid unconscious from the blow. Trunks turned to Rekas only for the bird-man to shake his head and back off. The man smiled, his hair dropping back to its natural purple.
"I assume you have no idea where Raze is either?" Trunks asked Rekas who just shook his head.
Trunks sighed, "Unfortunate. Damn, Time-Turner really had to alert Chronoa like this?" He then looked up, "Forgot about him too. I shouldn't have gone that far."
Indeed, he was being watched by another being far away from their location. Moving past the stars and various worlds inhabiting the galaxies that spread far wider than most was a certain being peering into a staff. He seemed mildly intrigued by what was happening within and another person behind him was taking interest in the sudden event that had transpired.
"Heh… Hard to believe that they're investigating this planet. Chronoa certainly has her hands tied right now if she sent him there." Said the man obscured by shadows sitting just to the side of the angelic being carrying a staff.
"My Lord, you know that we can't get involved in these affairs. Why would you have me look into this beyond that?" The man holding the staff gave him a pensive look with a small smile adorning his face.
The person he addressed was a seemingly young man robed in the traditional garb of the God of Destruction smirked. He had assumed the role for the last seventy years. This man had acclimated to it quite well and had maintained the universe respectably, but by this time the wars in the West Galaxy had become a bit of an issue.
He had paid attention, but now his interests were peaked, "We know the mortal level has to be maintained which is why I'm having you look into things there. Thankfully the different races breeding have offset the amount of death caused by this war. Besides, it's interesting to watch the new saiyan race and how it has evolved, Whis." He said as the blue angel let the light of his staff die down.
Whis smiled, "What will be your next move, My Lord?" Whis asked as the man shook his head.
"I will keep a vested interest. After all, the oracle fish has given a prophecy that soon a universe ending calamity may rise to the forefront." He leaned onto his fist and continued, "I've had you look for any such trouble, but you haven't found it yet. I wonder if that enemy may be able to hide even from the gods." He said calmly while Whis nodded.
"Yes, it's strange to think about it. Usually things are quite simple for me to locate. I'll keep looking regardless, My Lord." Whis stated as he left the room.
Standing up, the God approached a window to observe, 'And while you do that. I'll keep training to make sure that when I step in…" He looked out at the yard to find out where his protege was while clenching his fist in determination, 'That I'll end it quickly.' He walked out of the room and shut the door.
~Trunks~
Trunks opened the capsule corp ship, hoping to find something inside to help him find the saiyan, 'Shouldn't be difficult to get a location on him. There must be some kind of tracking device in here. Though, Time-Turner wouldn't just cause a time event only to be found so easily.' Trunks knew that he'd have to find it sooner than later.
As Trunks made his way to the ladder, he jumped down. Landing on the bottom floor, he felt another presence inside a room just to his front, 'Who could be in here if Raze and Brass weren't inside?' He reached out, clicking the button to open it. His eyes widened, finding Athena locked down to a chair.
'A prisoner? Wait… I recognize her! A time patrol had gone wrong. But how did she end up here?' This woman had been a time patroller they had lost long ago. She definitely looked completely different here though like she'd been experimented on.
He pulled out a device, switching it on. He clicked on it a few times until he found the list of missing in action Time Patrollers. Trunks scrolled through the list, looking for anyone that could fit the description, 'There! But…' The face was there, but the name and all other info had been wiped out. There had been an attempt to get into their interface at one time only for someone with a lot of smarts to come along and stop whoever had got in from erasing the records completely.
Trunks was disappointed at this, but put it back in his pocket. Giving her another once over. He felt worse about considering leaving her, so he began to reach out for her, even trembling a bit, but he stopped. Trunks knew that messing with events that had already happened would be a terrible idea. The only one he had to stop was Raze and so he moved back albeit reluctantly.
Even as he turned to leave, Athena gritted her teeth in frustration, 'Damn. So close to returning to my master…' The door shut, leaving her alone again and just as angry as before.
~Outside the ship~
Rekas looked over Brass's unconscious, "Come on Sir! You need to get up! We may not have much time before that man comes back!" He had gotten the Namekian some water in a canister he had brought in his pack. He poured some of it on Brass's skull and the namekian twitched from the coolness of the water.
Brass still didn't get up despite his body's unconscious movements. His mind had drifted further away. Back to a time before all this. The reality of his current situation was dissolving and becoming more or less defined in some odd way. He looked up, turning his head to find a world with a large body of water just opposite of him.
He saw some namekians moving about on the island beneath his own feet. The sun brightly shone down on the world and he felt much smaller than usual. The ocean water splashed against the cliff side nearby and he felt compelled to look into it. Yet, the namekians approaching him seemed ready to start a conflict.
"You're that weird one!" Oh right, he remembered this. A childhood like any other outcast of society. His bright skin had made him the black sheep.
They began to poke and prod at the albino with increasing fervency, "What are you going to do? Stop us?" They said, pushing him backward.
He wanted to. He had the power to stop them very easily. Yet, his surrogate father had pleaded with Brass to never use that incredible energy that welled within his body. He listened because the namekian had been taken care of since birth. Or at least, he thought he had been born here anyway. They never told him the specifics. Brass only knew the sound of a female's voice had graced his ears upon being brought into existence.
Even as the kids began to beat up on him, Brass took the hits. Knocked to the ground, the namek grunted in falsehoods. The pain he wanted them to believe they were inflicting on him was a reuse. He had no idea why he was so durable or why he was even born in the first place. He just thought it was strange that the first voice he had heard wasn't his father's.
As he took their kicks, he noticed that their attacks were getting lighter and lighter. They looked bored, 'Yes… They'll go away now.' He thought as it indeed happened.
"You're boring. Why don't you try fighting back?! Do you think you're better than us?!" They asked while Brass simply laid there.
Frustrated that they couldn't get a reaction out of Brass, they left after giving him one more kick for good measure. Those other namekians wouldn't stick around to see Brass get up. Completely fine, he merely grunted and walked toward his home eager to forget what had transpired. It had been like this even before this time of day. He had hoped to hide from the other children to make sure that they wouldn't have found him. Yet, they still persisted despite his efforts.
As his homestead came into view. The white exterior with the strange spherical windows was just a comfort to the little namekian. The namekian standing outside it was much less so comforting. It brought a scowl to the bright namekian's face.
"Ah, Brass! You're here! Did you find what you were looking for earlier?" He asked the little namekian.
'No…' But Brass wouldn't voice that as he spoke up, "It was just another usual day for me, Ollusk. Those kids treated me like a menace." He said, but realized he should have kept it to himself as his caretaker gave him a glowering look.
"And did you strike back?" Ollusk asked him to which he shook his head which made the taller namekian soften slightly, "Good." His face hid behind a mask he created long ago when dealing with Brass.
Brass couldn't stand looking Ollusk's way. He could feel somewhere deep inside his mind that this namekian didn't look out for him, but just the man himself. A lonely fragment floating on the wind was all Brass knew, but he counted on Ollusk for some reason. Brass could hear a voice telling him to kill them. Yet, at the same time… He suppressed that voice innately. Whatever lived in his body seemed to crave battle and lived for conquering. Was Brass capable of it?
Looking at his hand, Brass saw the white colored skin that was green for the others and the gray parts of his skin that would usually be a fine pink. He didn't just despise the namekians around him, but himself as well. Clenching that hand while walking past Ollusk, Brass felt his nails pierce the flesh. His blood coalesced in his palm before dripping slowly down his wrist. It was purple like the rest of his race. So, why? Why did he turn out so different?
Walking into his small corner of the house, he turned back to see Ollusk leaving. The other namekian mumbled under his breath as he walked out the door. Slamming it shut, which left Brass alone for the first time all day. Falling onto his back, the namekian slammed his fist into the floor.
Even though he looked straight at the ceiling. He imagined it was anything else. A place where he could truly be free. Holding his hand up, feeling the pitter patter of the blood dripping onto his dirty shirt. Brass slowly dropped it back down to his side, frustration seeping out into the floor as he finally fell asleep. The blood that had dripped, turned into water and he felt it spilling onto his face.
Brass opened his eyes, but he only saw Rekas standing over him, "Ah Sir! You're up!" But Brass merely sat up, looking over to where he felt Trunk's energy. The walls inside him were breaking down. He had felt this before when Athena had used her sound assault on him. If that had lasted any longer than it had. His eyes became more focused as sparks began to emanate from his body.
Rekas dropped down onto his backside as the wind picked up. His fear was strong as Brass fully stood up and began to emanate a black aura from deep within. A grin begins to overtake the neutral frown that had once been on Brass's face. Bringing his arm's together, Brass unleashed a loud roar, "HRAAAGGGGHHHH!" Rekas was sent flying away as was most of the earth that had been close by.
"SIR! WOAH!" Rekas shouted as the pressure being exhibited continued to send him off despite his wing's best effort to keep him stable.
"So, this is what it's like to be free?" He questioned, looking at his hand. Clenching his fist he saw Trunks leave the ship.
Trunks had felt the energy beginning to spike out of control, "W- What?!" However, he had no chance to see it coming because Brass had grabbed his face and was already flying straight toward the forest with him in tow.
"So, you like to play?! Let's play my game now!" Brass shouted, slamming Trunks through several hundred trees and damn near ripping up half the forest on his way through. Before slinging Trunks directly into a mountain with as much force as he could muster.
The resulting crash echoed off for miles as Trunk's bones reverberated and even snapped a few ribs in the process. Coughing up blood, the time patroller wasn't even permitted breathing room as he was crushed in the gut with Brass's foot. Whatever the hell was happening here, Brass wasn't giving Trunk's time to transform. Gasping as his lungs collapsed, Trunks felt his head being forced back into the mountainside with the first right hook slamming right across the jaw.
"YES! I haven't been able to do this since that village so long ago!" Brass shouted as he began to lay into the saiyan warrior. Each fist slamming straight into Trunk's face. Every hit planting firmly with blood spattering from him each time. A tooth was knocked out as Trunk's just took it while being in shock after taking so much damage for the first time in a while. Rocks crumbled as each hit landed.
~Raze and Time-Turner~
"What's going on up there, Raze?" Time-Turner questioned as Raze felt a cold sweat beginning to form on his forehead.
"It's definitely Brass, but the energy feels different. Something's wrong." Raze said as he began to head for the exit, but Time-Turner stopped him.
"You can't leave now, I need you to do this." Time-Turner said as Raze frowned.
"But my friend's got something wrong with him! I can't just ignore it!" Raze exclaimed to Time-Turner.
"But Lyral will remain dead if you don't do this! You cannot leave!" The old man said gravely and Raze realized he was correct.
However, his unexpected grace came up as Kiryu and Cloud came up. Kiryu spoke up, "I heard everything and can feel it too. I'll go see if I can help him." But Kiryu with a nervous look added, "I'm not sure what we'll be able to do though."
Ken showed himself as well, "But he could kill you! Especially if he's not all there!" He finished as Kiryu betrayed an ounce of fear.
But this time, Cloud tried to adopt a more determined look, "I'll go with him! I'll make sure he stays alright!"
Kiryu looked over to his friend, "R- Really?" He asked him as Cloud nodded and that was more than enough for Kiryu, "Right! Let's go help him." Even though Kiryu wasn't fond of the namekian, he felt like pulling some weight for all the kindness they had been given.
Kira walked up from behind Ken, "Can I go?!" She exclaimed as Ken shook his head quickly.
"No!" Ken then turned back to his friends, "I should be going! I can try turning into that gold form again! Maybe I can try to help stop him!" Ken said as Raze looked at all of them.
"No. I can't even begin to allow any single one of you to go." Raze turned to Time-Turner and then to the kids again, "I have to go. There's nobody else even remotely strong enough to help this situation… In fact. He's stronger than me at my best right now. I don't even think I could handle this." Raze said as Ken reared up to him.
"Raze! You can't leave here! Who's going to save Aunt Lyral?!" He asked as Raze bit back a response.
"Right! It has to be us. It might work out, you never know! Brass might be able to be snapped out of it by one of us!" Ken shouted as Raze stepped back, surprised by Ken's outburst.
Kira smiled, but Ken shook his head and she frowned, "No fair…" She said dejectedly, but Ken looked over as Kiryu and Cloud shook their heads at him.
"You've gotta stay here, Ken! It just makes sense. We'll handle it!" Kiryu said as he ignited his aura and flew off followed by Cloud. Ken, Kira, and Raze watched them go while Time-Turner had already turned back to his path.
"No more wasting time! Let's go." Time-Turner said as he beckoned them onward. Raze nodded, still worried about Kiryu and Cloud at this point. Ken watched them go, thanking them within his head. Kira watched them go albeit very sadly. Turning all together, Raze, Ken, and Kira followed the older man to the end of the tunnel.
As the room began to light up with each step taken inside. It also grew that much larger. What happened to be at the end of it was a large blue phone box marred by time. Nothing legible on the outside and it was entirely faded out as if it had sat down here for ages. The room shook with the level of power being asserted from the outside. Dust crumbled from the ceiling and in some spots, water dripped much faster than usual.
Raze looked at the thing in disbelief, "This is what you kept down here? That's just a damn phone booth! I'm going to go help them!" He immediately turned to leave, but the door had already shut behind them.
"Raze… I am not pulling your leg. This is the time machine." He said calmly as Raze rounded on him.
"No! You're lying and my friend is up there in trouble! You're lucky I never learned Instant Transmission or this wouldn't be a bother!" Raze yelled as he began to power up.
"DON'T!" Time-Turner yelled.
~End of Chapter~