Author's Note: Hello one and all! Still alive and kicking, just haven't gotten a chance to just, sit and write. Working so much makes me tired and when I get home I just want to knock out lol I've also been trying to juggle playing my other games that just recently came out but! I present a new chapter! Man...I really missed writing. Thank you everyone for the views, reviews, follows and favorties! (Also...I'm super duper excited for the RE4 Remaster that's coming out tomorrow lol)

Disclaimer: I do not own the Resident Evil Franchise, all rights belong to Capcom! Any grammatical errors or inconsistencies that you may find I do hope that you can forgive me and that my chapter is still readable and enjoyable. Anything obvious that needs to be fixed I will go in and redo it when I can. Happy reading everyone!

Time was ticking. Seconds…minutes passing me by and here I stood in my workshop staring at the wall of pictures and notes, rehearsing my lines of conviction, rehearsing the next step in my grandiose plan.

Ethan Winters. A man with the most interesting mutation, second to his daughter…such a powerful superhuman. Marvelous. This man, I needed him to be on my side, we had a common goal after all. To defeat that wretched witch that had ruined my entire life, a life that's been a goddamn lie! Written up by the delusion of a woman who so desperately wanted her daughter that she'd dress up a bunch of her 'success stories' and call them her children. Replacements and nothing more.

I'm so close to bringing that man to my side…I just need him to distance himself from that woman.

That woman, Sinclair, even just thinking of her name caused the grip around my heart to uncomfortably tighten in my chest. The feeling made me nauseous as I reached up to my heart and bunched up the fabric while applying pressure against my chest in hopes to relieve me of the pain. This reaction always happened when I thought of that woman…fucking infuriating.

"I'm so close…" I began to mutter to myself, taking a puff of my lit cigar and bringing the stick away from my lips to breathe out the white smoke that bounced off the walls of pictures. From the corner of my eyes, I saw my past staring back at me, smiling at me with those encouraging bright red eyes and I couldn't help but grind my teeth together when our eyes met. "Don't look at me like that. You were supposed to be here, you were supposed to be beside me as we took down Miranda. As we took back our freedom…together! Here! You were supposed to be planning everything with me, but you threw it all away!" I growled at the smiling picture. "It's not my fault that you aren't here!"

'No, but it is my fault.' The voice, that nagging voice in the back of my head, would whisper whenever I tried to force the blame back onto that woman who couldn't fight back and defend herself. 'I gave in to my paranoia, and doubted my best friend…the only woman who ever gave a damn about my lousy existence. Who stayed by my side through good and bad.' I felt my body slump forward, using my hands to support myself as I leaned forward on the desk, the tips of my fingers grazing Sinclair's picture as guilt rippled throughout my entire being. "You were supposed to be here, Selena…"

I tried, many times I tried to go over to apologize, to bring myself to go over to the greenhouse…and many times I couldn't bring myself to take that first step forward. I was ashamed of myself and my actions that day and I just…I was a coward who couldn't face the consequences of my actions.

When I would close my eyes, her tear-filled ones would haunt me in my sleep as well as every waking moment. I didn't want to see such an expression directed at me if she were to see me again. The one person who trusted me to protect her and be by her side and I broke that trust by physically laying my hands on her. Days turned to months, and months turned to years of no contact…the guilt prevented me from going back to her and saying two simple fucking words. And at some point, I wondered if those words would mean anything anymore and if they would truly fix what I had broken. Then, when I did have the opportunity in passing to talk to her, my emotions and pride would overcome me, and before I had the chance to think carefully of what to say my stupid mouth would speak such nonsense and I only hurt her more. It got to a point where I began to think that…maybe it was for the best that I just stopped talking to her.

When that Winters boy spoke, every fucking time we made contact…admitting it at the time only spurred my anger because what he spoke was the truth. I just could never get the right words out. I'd always fuck it up. I hated everything that man was saying because he was right. I jumped to conclusions and ended a friendship with my best friend…with the woman I adored and would've died protecting her from anything that wished to do her harm.

"I'm so sorry, Selena." I was a broken man. It was times like this when I was alone that I could truly and genuinely apologize without running my mouth and making a fool of myself, and each time I'd foolishly wish that Selena was there to just hear me apologize…just once.

My ears picked up at the sound of distant footsteps entering my factory. I shook my head in dismissal of such thoughts that continued to haunt me…and I smiled.

It's showtime.

I quickly retraced my steps and hid in the back room opposite the picture-littered wall, just beside the door I knew Ethan would enter from. I carefully planned it that way so that it would place Ethan exactly where I wanted the man to be just so that we could have a little…chat. I needed him to open his eyes and see the truth before he could even begin to comprehend how big the picture is. It goes beyond anything he's ever imagined.

The man was put through the wringer, that much I could see when he had stepped through the door and walked up to pull the sheets that I had hung over the pictures. The man looked awful…but it was nothing compared to what I had to endure. What he experienced in two days, I went through my entire life multiplied by ten.

'But I suppose we both have one thing in common that kept us sane in such dark times.' I silently scoffed as I walked out of my hiding space and quietly snuck up behind the man. 'That naive woman with the biggest heart who just can't help but want to save everyone.'

"Truth hurts, don't it?" I decided to speak up, causing the dirty blonde-haired man to jump as the scared little rabbit he is with his non-threatening gun pointed straight at me. I couldn't help the smile that tugged in the corner of my lips that I had to hide by dipping my head low as I took a puff from my recently lit cigar. "Let me guess. You're thinking…take me out like the others and then you get to go and save Rose, right?"

The man before me lowered his gun, his expression turning sour with a glare that could make any normal man tremble…if they were intimidated by a yapping dog. "I'm healing my daughter."

"Look, y-you've got this all wrong." I was in the process of trying to explain myself before that brainless, dumb idiot I keep deep within my factory decided now would be the perfect time to interrupt me in the middle of my monologue! "Dammit, I'm talking here!" I let out an irritated huff under my breath as I went over to the lightly lit grate and lifted the hatch. "Shut your fucking hole!" I yelled down into the hole, and when the noise died down at my command I looked at Ethan apologetically. "Sorry about that."

'Great first impression…' I leisurely scolded as I turned to grab a rusty, old metal chair that I tended to use from time to time and strategically placed it near the open hatch. "Take a seat."

'Never say that I wasn't a generous host.' I thought with a smirk as I maneuvered myself around the man to the table where my dim desk lamp sat, snuffing my cigar out on the desk without care. "Listen, Ethan. You're being played."

"What are you talking about?" Ethan asked in confusion as through the shades of my lens I turned back to stare at the man…who had yet to take up my gracious offer to get comfortable. "You think this is a game?"

In a slight fit of rage, I grabbed the knife closest to me, flung it to the wall and after hearing the satisfying thunk of it sticking right into my intended target I rushed over to Ethan while his attention was misdirected. I caught the man off guard and forcefully pushed him back into the chair. "I said sit!"

Ethan let out a grunt at the sudden force, powerless against my strength as I forced him to do just as I commanded. These pointless conversations, all these questions but never the important one as always. I will be honest…my patience for this man was running thin due to how dim he was being. But I needed to tread carefully, as infuriating as Ethan was, I needed him and his daughter to gain the upper hand against that witch.

I tilted my head to the side, studying the man seated in front of me before beginning my explanation in hopes to make this man see that he wasn't truly seeing the bigger picture laid out before him.

"Lady super-sized bitch…" I drew my arm back, watching as the knife flew out of the wall, and moved on to my next picture of interest. This power, my ability, coursing through my body, I could never tire of it. It was exhilarating, a feeling that I couldn't explain in words. It was as if using my ability made me feel bigger. Every metal I could control within my area was like an extension of my own body. "Ugly-ass psycho doll…" A repeated action. We were connected. One single being. "…and that moronic freak." I waited for Ethan to say something, to piece together what I was getting at by this alone, but when he didn't I knew I would have to spell it out for the man to understand. "Don't you get it? It's a test, to see if you're strong enough…" My eyes fell on the masked face of the woman who tore my whole world apart. "…to be a part of Miranda's family."

"I don't want to be a part of Miranda's family…" Ethan spat which spurred me on with such a statement. He doesn't 'want' to…but did we…did I have a choice? Did any of us have a choice to be a part of this messed up 'family'?

"Neither did I! But here we are." My voice rose in volume, I grew tired and irritable by everything that came out of Ethan's mouth. I paced back and forth, feeling a feral growl come from the back of my throat the more I riled myself up. "And I'm next in line, right? Kill me, move up the chain!" I turned on my heels, once again meeting the golden mask of the woman who disgraced me and I momentarily lost it. I flung my hand up as the knife that was embedded in Moreau's photo created a deep gash through Miranda's image. "Well, fuck that!"

As dust and debris began to fall, in the corner of my eye I saw a single piece of paper slip off my desk. My head followed in its direction, watching it sway in the dead air before landing just at Ethan's feet. I momentarily froze because I knew what exactly was on the other side of the paper that lay face down on the ground.

I panicked. As quickly as I could, I rushed over to grab for the paper before Ethan could but I was a tad second too late. Ethan had gotten to it first and in my mind, I cursed his very existence as I watched him turn the paper over in his hands. The man's eyes widened before blue eyes stared accusingly back at me.

"It's hard for you to face your own mistakes, huh?" Ethan pointed out, his eyes still on the piece of paper in his hands which allowed me to snatch it back before he could move it out of my reach.

"What mistake?" I huffed indignantly, keeping the image facing away from me as I went over and slammed the picture back onto my desk. I quickly came up with an excuse that sounded passable. "I simply forgot to put it up. Nothing more."

"Are you really going to fight me on this till the very end?" Ethan pointed out and when I didn't answer quickly enough it seemed to only fuel the man on. "Fine, put it back up."

I hesitated. Ethan had called my bluff and instead of laying on his back and submitting to my explanation, this man rose to challenge me and my words. And it seemed my silence was all that Ethan needed to keep that sudden courage he discovered. "You can't, can you? You're ashamed of what you did…because you can't admit that what you did was out of line. That you jumped to conclusions too quickly and lashed out from anger."

I felt my body sag, letting out a sigh and resisting the urge to pinch the bridge of my nose due to the oncoming headache this man was creating for me. "Why are you so invested in this?" I mumbled under my breath as I turned to Ethan. "You owe Sinclair no allegiance, you've only just met her a couple days ago."

"Because she's helped me, and I've seen how much it's been eating her up inside to not have what you both had in the past." Ethan pointed out with confidence, though he seemed to still sit in the chair so…there was a small part of the man that was weary of my power. "You wasted years with no contact over a mistake you caused and you couldn't even muster up the courage to apologize to her!"

My body tensed, my head hung low, and my pride was not allowing me to physically say that Ethan was correct. All I could do was wallow in the truth as I felt my body vibrate with rage. "Shut up…"

"Selena never came, not because she was afraid of you, but because she didn't want you, her best friend, to hate her any more than she thought you already did!" Ethan shouted.

"I said!" I mirrored Ethan's volume, yet my mutation reacted to my emotional state as I curled my fingers and summoned the blade I was previously commanding back to my side. The metal vibrated from being suddenly yanked out of the concrete as I flung it at Ethan, stopping just centimeters from the center of Ethan's forehead. Inwardly smiling in satisfaction when Ethan had flinched thinking that the blade was going to be the thing that would end him. "Shut your trap, Winters!" I clicked my tongue against the back of my teeth in irritation. "Last time, mind your goddamn business."

"You wanna know what I think?" Ethan mustered up the confidence and courage once more to continue to speak to me with such disrespect even with the threat of my blade placed just between his eyes.

"No, but I'm sure you're going to tell me." I sarcastically growled.

"You haven't put up her picture like the others because you can't face the warmth of the eyes staring back at you. To face the person that trusted you, that loyally stuck beside you, all these years." I watched Ethan grind his teeth, the emotions that flashed across his eyes…the two grew close in the span of two days. Though, that was how Selena was, the shining light that attracted and comforted everyone even in the darkest of places.

Two opposite ends of the spectrum. While Miranda rules her test subjects and experiments by fear alone…undying loyalty is given freely to Selena. Nothing is ever forced upon or commanded of her villagers…and never once has Selena considered them simply a number nor replaceable.

There was truth in his words…what was new. I've had time to reflect, of course, it always happens after the opportunity has passed me by…and then I'd beat myself up more because I never caught it earlier or never said the right thing in the first place.

'Figure out where your allegiance lie, Sinclair. Because at the end of this, you're either my ally...or you're in my way. Good going Karl…' I thought to myself as I kicked up a few pebbles with every step I took just to vent my frustration.

"A dog growls when it's angry, and wags its tail when it's pleased. Now I growl when I'm pleased, and wag my tail when I'm angry." An echoing voice caught my ears causing me to stop in my tracks that cut through the outer layer of trees that surrounded the outskirts of this greenhouse. "I always love that quote, for you see, I embody it so well." The voice darkly chuckled, the voice echoing throughout the forest. "If your intention for coming here was to apologize, as you've attempted so many times in the past, sorry to be the bearer of bad news big boy, but you did a piss poor job and once again made our precious Lady sad with your poor choice of words."

"Has the Cheshire Cat come out to play?" I mocked as I looked around for the man that always seemed to wear a mischievous smile on his face. "You know, there's something unnerving about someone who smiles all the time."

"That's the whole point, isn't it? If my smile makes you uncomfortable…discourages any who come here with ill intent, then I am fulfilling my Lady's wishes." This man, while Ianto was the leader of this little group Selena created…I was more wary of the man who knew and saw all. There was an irritated click of a tongue against teeth as I heard a sharp intake of air. "Darn, seems my fun ends here. I was hoping to truly teach you a lesson this time."

"I'd like to see any of you try." I scoffed under my breath before stopping my advancement forward as I saw Selena's old caretaker standing just in my way. "So now the mutt has come out to play."

"I'm not here to play, Lord Heisenberg," the old man's lips turned upward into an eerily content smile. "I'm simply here to make sure you make it out of here in one piece."

"Escort duty?" I scoffed as I continued walking, my shoulder bumping into the man as I passed him by. "Sinclair really has you four out doing all the dirty work while she stays holed up in her home looking pretty."

"Is that your 'go to' response? Insult the woman who, even after everything you've done and caused, cares very much about you and you in return? What you did back there only further hurt my Lady." Ianto replied as I heard a second set of steps keeping up with my pace. "That's in very poor taste, Lord Heisenberg. Especially barging in when a full-grown woman is naked in the bath."

I stopped walking, hearing the man behind me let out a hum in confusion. "I know, Ianto. It's just," I reached up and tugged the brim of my hat low to cover my sunglass-covered eyes. "I don't know why I do it. I just open my mouth and…a bunch of bullshit is spewed. Everything I say has the intent to inflict as much pain as I had felt that day." I averted my gaze to the beaten path that I had walked on so many times in the past. "My words fail to deliver what I feel deep within my messed up mind."

"Young man, you were never good with words to begin with, ever since you were but a child." Ianto scolded as I watched him pass me and our roles had switched in an instant. Ianto took the lead, as an escort, while I followed simply to hear what more he had to say. "But I have seen through your actions that you still worry for Selena and her wellbeing, even when your words say otherwise." I watched the man throw a knowing smile my way from over his shoulder. "Especially when you constantly tell us to look after her after you're falling out several years back."

"With what I did, I can't be beside her to watch her and make sure she doesn't get lost or trip over her own feet." I spoke honestly. "Left unattended, she'll invite a killer into her own house, and offer them food and comfort without suspecting a thing from the stranger. They'll stab her in the back the first chance they get and she would be none the wiser until the very moment it happens. I worry for her."

Ianto's booming laugh echoed throughout the forest, a genuine laugh compared to the ones that were always humoring me on the rare times I visited. "Lady Sinclair does seem like the type who would do such a thing." Ianto continued to laugh through his words. "But I think you should give Selena a little more credit, Lord Heisenberg. It is because of you, and the strength you have given her, that she has become a force to be reckoned with. You just haven't seen that side of her yet."

"I don't doubt that." I felt the side of my lip tug up, unable to stop myself from feeling a sense of pride welling up inside of me at hearing such praise before letting out a sigh through my nose as I continued forward as only I could go any further due to the man's sense of duty as the ever-watchful guardian of Selena's. "Do keep an eye on her, won't you?"

"As you always command, Lord Heisenberg."

"Selena has helped guide me and offered me a safe place to rest. This is where she has led me, that after everything you've put her through…she said that I should at least hear you out. So, I've come to do just that with my goal remaining the same. To fix my daughter."

'Daughter…' I blinked through the haze, having briefly dozed off from this man's ranting over things he decided to meddle in. I scoffed and flung my arm to the side, not even bothering to see where the knife had landed. "You're not the only one Ethan, do you have any idea how powerful that kid is?" I wanted to avoid this man's constant accusations, even if what he was speaking was the truth, my focus was solely on the matter at hand. From the corner of my eye, I saw Ethan open his mouth in which I immediately cut him off. "Even Miranda's scared of her-" I heard the sound of an engine revving up once more and I could feel my body slump in exhaustion as I shook my head side to side in exasperation. The monster interrupted my persuasive spiel that I had practiced numerous times in my head in preparation when meeting this man face to face…and this brainless idiot that I created was ruining everything!

"Last time, you freak," I yelled down into the open grate. "I swear to god…!"

Though this oaf had not a single brain cell remaining, my creation understood obedience and submitted to my words. I heard the engine die down after initiating my threat. I ripped the glasses off my face, holding it in my hand as I bent lower to be face to face with Ethan when I rounded toward where the man sat and continued my attempt to persuade him. "You and me, Ethan. Together we go save Rose, and we can use her to grind Miranda into paste."

"My daughter is not a weapon!" Ethan spat as I saw his jaw tense up. "Fuck you!"

'Huh, that I didn't see coming. Pictured this conversation leaning more in my favor.' I was taken back for a brief second, standing back to my full height as I briefly glanced down at the man and then behind him toward the open grate. 'Care for a little…fright?' I lashed out and kicked the chair Ethan was seated upon. I reacted to my impulsive thoughts, but I had no intention to allow the man to fall down the rabbit hole just yet. I grabbed for Ethan's wrist, and Ethan then reacted back as he held on to my wrist for dear life. His chair was balancing on its back legs and I couldn't help the satisfaction I felt knowing that his fate was now, and truly, in my hands.

"Last chance." I warned the man as I pointed toward the open hole with my hand that held my sunglasses. "You don't want to find out what's in that hole."

"I'll take my chances." The man didn't miss a beat and let go of my wrist, didn't even rethink after my threat, the man has some balls.

"Your funeral." I said as I tossed Ethan's arm back, watching the man's eyes widen as his chair started to tilt backward.

But then I heard something, a flutter of fabric and hastily approaching footsteps coming from behind me. I turned to look and to my genuine surprise, I saw the one woman who hadn't stepped foot in my factory…in my home…in ages. Blonde hair drifted past me as my eyes followed to see that she had reached out with both her hands to grab onto Ethan's wrist to prevent him from falling down the hole.

And what followed next wasn't a surprise…to me at least. I saw her feet begin to drag against the ground at the sudden weight of attempting to hold onto a full-grown man who was being pulled down by gravity. The idiot flailing his arms didn't help their situation either as Ethan attempted to rebalance himself to have a better footing…but failed. I began to panic when I saw that Selena was close to the edge, close to being dragged down the hole to meet my greatest and dumbest creation.

I reached out to grab for Ethan's free hand, forcefully pulling the man back so the woman hanging on to him wouldn't fall, but still teetering over the edge so that I still held his fate in my hands.

The three of us stood in silence, I could hear the beating of my own heart pounding in my ears before I slowly turned my head toward the woman standing beside me, and to my surprise, she too was turning her head to look at me. Our eyes met, and it was as if I forgot how to breathe, as if time had stopped altogether. I couldn't believe that the woman who tormented my waking existence, the cause of my grief and shame…was physically standing beside me. Standing so close to me once more.

"…Selena."

It came out before I could even register that her name had escaped past my lips. It felt natural, it felt right…I hadn't called her by her first name so sincerely in years.

I watched as for a brief second, her eyes grew wide with hope…before a bright flame ignited behind those fiery eyes. Those bright red eyes stared at me as she took a deep breath before letting out a snarled response:

"Are you two out of your fucking minds!" Selena began to yell as she glanced down at the man she was holding and then back to me. "And don't you 'Selena' me, Karl Heisenberg! The absolute nerve of you!"

I couldn't help it, I took the bait. It was like only she could reel me in and rile me up this way. It tended to be my first reaction whenever it concerned Selena. I'd open my mouth and make a fool out of myself…I'd argue back because that was how I was: "I have the absolute nerve!?"

"Yes." My lips curled into a thin line. "Yes, you have the absolute nerve to speak to me that way!" I argued while my grip on Ethan's hand tightened just as my emotions spiked.

"Speak to you that way?" Karl dramatically gasped. "All I did was say your name!"

"All these years apart, and not once have you ever said my name! It's always been 'Lady Sinclair' or 'Sinclair' or sometimes you wouldn't even dare speak my name." I glared at Karl. "You'd always just…show up, state your business, and then saunter off without even so much as small talk. No 'how's your day, Sinclair', 'you'd never guess what happened today at those boring meetings, Sinclair', or what about the most important conversation that we should've had all those years ago!"

"What the hell are you talking about?" Karl let out a sarcastic scoff.

"How about the obvious?" I asked with a roll of my eyes. "I'm sorry, Selena, for what happened all those years ago."

"Fine." Karl rolled his eyes before snapping the arms of his glasses open and shoving them back onto his face. "I'm sorry, Selena, for what happened all those years ago."

I rolled my eyes at Karl, typical of the man to hide the very windows that would reveal his emotions when he didn't want anyone to see how he truly felt, but I knew. He was already done with this conversation. "You are un-fucking-believable, Karl Heisenberg."

"What I do now? Hm? I said exactly what you wanted me to say!" Karl continued to argue with me.

"That's the point! You said what I wanted to hear, but do you even mean it? Or are you just saying it because now I'm making a fuss?" I pointed out causing the man to go silent, but if he had to take a second to respond then I knew my answer. "You prideful, idiotic, insufferable jackass."

"That's rich coming from you." Karl said in exasperation. "If I'm all those things then what about you?"

"Where do you think I learned it from!" I spat back. "You're the only one I hung around with throughout my whole life, including our siblings."

"Your siblings." Karl corrected. "Never once did I want to play along with Miranda's fantasies. Your allegiance may have been toward them, but not me."

"Oh shut up, you know, you always do this." I grumbled. "You blow everything out of proportion, sure I loved my siblings, but never once did I see myself on their side."

"Then whose side, if not theirs, were you on? Miranda's?" Karl muttered under his breath which riled me up even more.

I turned and stepped up to Karl, standing on the tips of my toes to get in his face. "Yours! You fucking idiot! I've always been on your side! I have always been on your side!" I growled as I moved back to my spot and turned my head away from him. "You always do this, ever since you misunderstood and assumed I aligned myself with Miranda, you think I've been deceiving you since we've been children trapped in that godforsaken cell."

"You stopped coming to our meetings and kept busy doing what Miranda asked of you every time I visited. You were meeting with Miranda in secrecy and never told me!" Karl yelled.

"I stopped coming because Miranda stopped informing me about them! She always gave me these pointless tasks and only after the actual meeting finished did you tell me I missed them!" I challenged him. "You, too, were too busy doing your projects for Miranda…but unlike you! I understood why you were so busy!"

"And what about your secret meetings? Huh?" Karl pointed out. "Explain?"

"Now you want me to explain?" I sarcastically scoffed. "Again, you are un-fucking-believable. Last time you wouldn't let me get a word in edgewise! And now, you tell me to explain?" I finally turned to the man I was holding on to for dear life. "Ethan, you know everything by now, tell me, was I in the wrong?" I asked. "Don't you agree that Karl here, as usual, overreacted!"

"Guys…are we really going to do this now?" Ethan at first had attempted to ask to be pulled back and was quickly shut down, but considering how heated the conversation was between the two Lords, Ethan took one glance behind him to the long drop that didn't seem to have an end in sight before looking between the both of us in consideration. "…you did overreact, Heisenberg."

"I overreacted!" Karl's voice boomed incredulously. "How am I in the wrong here!"

"All you had to do was listen!" I argued. "Those secret meetings? I was trying to keep Miranda from finding out about your metal army that you started to build deep within your factory!" I glared at Karl. "You're so…stubborn!"

"Me!" Karl let out an exasperated gasp as if I dared to call him stubborn while at the same time, I felt Ethan's weight begin to slip when Karl's grip on the man's wrist loosened. The both of us quickly readjusted our grip to avoid dropping Ethan down into the pit behind him.

"Yes, you! I may be stubborn but you didn't want to hear a damn word that came out of my mouth that day when I wanted to explain myself! You didn't give me a chance to explain or even realize all the nonsense that was coming out of your mouth!" I growled. "From a complete and utter misunderstanding, you threw our friendship away! It's been years since I've even had a proper conversation with you!" I let out a mocking laugh. "This is probably the first time we've spoken this long without you storming away and telling me you didn't want to hear about it!"

"What more can I say, Selena?" Karl sounded broken…like he was begging at this point, his jaw clenching through each word he spoke, soft-spoken and strained.

"You should know by now what I want to hear…" At this point, I wanted to hear it…I wanted us to heal and go forward together. I missed this man, missed my friend.

"Will that make you happy?" Karl's free hand fell to his side in defeat. "I'm sorry, Selena." And for a second, I truly believed him…until the man opened his mouth once again. "Feel better?"

"No, I am not happy! And I do not feel better. A simple apology is not a cure-all!" I felt my eyes begin to heat up when I looked pleadingly back at Karl. "You know what will make me happy. Being able to have my best friend back in my life! To…to have our normal back!"

"Guys!" Ethan's voice overpowered our own, bringing both of our attention back to the man who continued to dangle over the opening of the grate. "I'd very much appreciate the both of you talking this out without my life hanging in the balance."

Though Karl I'm sure wanted to keep Ethan there to remain in complete control of the situation we all were in, I wasn't going to allow it. I gripped Ethan's hands and struggled to pull him toward me for a few seconds before it suddenly became easier to pull his weight up. When the front legs of the chair were back on even ground, I swept my leg and kicked the grate shut to assure Ethan that he was now safe. "Sorry about that Ethan…"

Simultaneously, Karl and I let go of Ethan's hands, though Karl's was more like he flung Ethan's hand away from him as if it was diseased and infected

"So…" Ethan quickly stood to his feet and jumped away from the chair he was previously occupying, it didn't matter that the grate was already shut, it looked like he felt safer being a foot away from it. "What were you saying just before you two decided to have your marital dispute?"

"I've said all that I've needed to say to this metal idiot…" I muttered under my breath before I saw Ethan shake his head.

"No, that you two can settle later." Ethan pointed out as he continued to breathe deeply through his nose to calm his wildly beating heart. "You told us we were out of our minds. Why's that?"

"Right, yes, the simple-mindedness of both of you. And seeing that display there's one thing I can agree with that my sister Alcina said about men." I turned from Ethan to Karl. "One track minded, never thinks that there may be another solution, just the one presented. Idiots."

Karl rolled his eyes behind his glasses as Ethan cleared his throat. "And what other solution is there?"

"A different type of agreement." I pointed out. "We all have a common goal: kill Mother Miranda. As well as we have something to gain from such an outcome." I took a step back so that all of us were in each other's line of sight. "Ethan, your daughter. And us?" I turned back to look at Karl. "…our freedom."

"And what do you propose?" Ethan asked.

"Yes, Selena, what do you propose that we can all agree on?" Karl begrudgingly asked.

"Ethan, help us take down Miranda. Alone, we'll be picked off like bugs…together we're stronger." I held up my hand to prevent Karl, who I knew was about to speak, from making any unnecessary comment. "Without using your daughter. She'll be safely returned to you once we defeat Miranda."

Ethan's blue eyes turned to look at me. Apprehensively turning to look past me toward Karl. "And you can promise that she'll be returned to me…in one piece."

"I promise no harm will come to your daughter, not a single hair on her head. She will be returned to you safely." I assured. "Ethan, have I ever steered you wrong? You've trusted me, ever since you stepped foot in my home…my territory. I ask that you continue to trust me now."

Ethan took some time to think before nodding his head in agreement.

"And Karl…" I stepped close to the man who continued to avoid my eyes. "Karl, you will not use his daughter to kill Miranda."

"Her mutation far surpasses anything we could've imagined." Karl began to argue. "Without Rose, we stand no chance-"

"Then we find another way. We always did." I cut Karl off, and using the word 'we' seemed to cause him to finally look at me. I couldn't help my reaction, I smiled in reassurance. "You've continued to build your metal army all these years. Ethan took down waves of Miranda and Salvatore's failures as well as our siblings. Together, we may just have a chance."

"It's still not enough." Ethan stated. "I don't doubt Heisenberg's ability or his army. I survived with luck…and Selena? I have no idea what you can do, but if you and Heisenberg haven't taken her down yet after all these years? Then we're short on power."

"Well, let's put our heads together and come up with a plan." I looked between the two men. "Because I'm not gonna let you two idiots just settle on the first thing that was presented when we all have something to gain by taking down Miranda through a mutual partnership."

The three of us stood in silence before I heard a low grumble come from Karl. The man reached up to rub the back of his head before letting out a hiss. "I think I may have a solution."

"And what may that be?" Ethan inquired, both of our attention now on Karl who looked unsure of what he should say next.

"It's a slim chance, but it might be worth a try." Karl mumbled as he motioned for us to follow him back toward the entrance of his factory and without me realizing it, I had subconsciously begun to move to follow. "Follow."

"Care to share with the class?" Ethan sarcastically asked, causing the both of us to stop walking and turn to look back at the blonde-haired man. When the two of us didn't say anything, simply giving the man a look of confusion, Ethan crossed his arms over his chest and lightly glared in our direction. "Listen, I may trust you Selena, and even if you trust Heisenberg I'm not as willing."

"A few days ago I noticed something was off about my factory. There was an odd presence that shouldn't be there." Karl pointed out, speaking up honestly without making a fuss.

"And how do you know you're not imagining things?" Ethan sarcastically responded.

"Nothing goes on in my factory nor the village that I don't know about, Selena can attest to that." Karl motioned with his head in my direction. "I also noticed my things moving about and being misplaced, you smart ass. So, I checked, came to find out who they were, and left them alone."

"Why would you do that?" I questioned, after all, I knew that Karl wasn't the type to allow strangers to do as they pleased in his own territory.

"They weren't bothering me, so I did the same." Karl nonchalantly replied. "I anticipated their arrival anyway, and they were harmless. Though…should they have posed a threat to my cause well…" Karl's creepy smirk was all the answers I needed as I quickly walked to catch up to the man with Ethan trailing not far behind.

"Where are we going, Karl?" I asked after we went to the locked barred door to the right of the factory's entrance.

The door burst open as multiple flat metal sheets flew down from above us, creating a few platforms for us to step up on.

"Heading to the basement of my factory." Karl said as he stepped up onto the levitating platform. "While I did dub my guests as harmless, they have grown too comfortable and have become a nuisance.."

"Who?" Ethan asked as he stepped onto the same platform as Karl.

"People who thought they were being sneaky, thought they were clever and remained hidden from my eyes." Karl held his hand out for me to take so he could help me onto his platform. "Pests need a reality check, I allowed them to do as they pleased so far. They weren't a threat to me or my creations…but they are a nuisance that I needed to clean up. Maybe they'll offer help out of the goodness of their hearts." Karl was being sarcastic, that much I could tell.

I was still upset at Karl. I still felt hurt and couldn't just brush away the feeling of being abandoned by him, so I couldn't help but let him suffer just a while longer. Instead of taking his hand to symbolize that I forgave him, I stepped onto a different platform to be alone and with Karl's abilities down we went into the very depths of Karl's factory to find our possible solution.

The two finally meet in the present! And Selena had some choice words with Karl, and of course Karl couldn't help but react in the worse way possible since he's so bad with expressing himself. I promise Selena's still angry, but the three have no time to waste with the ceremony about to start and they need to get rid of Mother Miranda fast! So...a truce has to be in place just to reach their common goal. I'm so excited to write the next few chapters hehe and I hope you all are just as excited to read too! ^^

If you are enjoying my story and looking forward to the next one, then leave a nice little review, favorite, and follow! But, again, it's not necessary. Just reading and giving my story a chance is all I need and makes me incredibly happy. Thank you everyone for reading! Updates will be slow still, but I have not given up on this story yet! I shall see it through till the end!
-SO