Orie watched as the void she fought flew away. The question of whether she should have killed it still lingered in her mind. The only thing the executor can do now is stick to her goals and find more information about that void.
She felt the overflowing EXS. That can only mean the Gate of the Abyss is nearby. She also began to feel the presence of someone familiar making their way towards it. Her eyes widened when she realized what they were doing.
'No… He wouldn't… That's where Paradox is!'
The injuries she sustained from her recent battle still lingered, but she had to push through. If he really means to challenge her, he could use the help. Even if she could only offer a little support, anything to make sure he makes it through this Night alive.
"Please be safe, Kido."
Masking her pain, Orie runs as fast as she can to reach the Gate.
Current Area: Altar of Light and Dark
"This is my Strength!" Hyde shouted
That last attack took everything out of him. Any reserve EXS he had was used up to make sure Paradox was defeated for good. Honestly, he wondered how he was able to still stand at this point.
'I'm still standing… I wonder how long-' Insulator dissipated and he began to fall. 'And there we go…' he thought in a smiley daze.
"Kido!" Orie rushed in and held him up just in time. "Are you okay?! How are you feeling?!" She asked with a worried expression.
Hyde had several stab wounds all over his body. And with the end of his last attack, it would take a while for the boy to recover his injuries. She was relieved that the wounds stopped bleeding, but it still made her worry for his safety.
Hyde gave her an assured smile. "Hey Harada... I'll live. Just exhausted…" The moment he took a good look at her, his face paled. "If anything, are YOU okay?"
He saw Orie had several wounds on her body. The top of her head had blood trickling down and her shoulders looked like they had… bite marks? He thought he was roughed up, but seeing her….
"No seriously. What the hell happened to you?!" He was now worried for her.
"I might have rushed in here after fighting a powerful void…" She said while looking away.
Hyde put his head down and sighed. "So much for not overdoing it…"
"Says the one who fought Paradox alone." Orie fired back.
"You got me there." Hyde nodded. "Speaking of…"
With the help of Orie, the two made their way to Hilda. She was lying unconscious, but something about her looked… off. A part of her chest had a small red mark on it. Hyde didn't remember seeing it when he fought her.
"What happened to Paradox?" He asked.
"Her vessel has been damaged. She will no longer be able to use EXS for some time in this condition." A voice explained.
The two turned to the voice's direction. Hyde gave a relieved smile upon seeing who was talking to them.
"Vatista! You're alright! Are you okay walking though? You shouldn't push yourself." Hyde said.
The little girl gave her arm a stretch. "Despite the injuries received from Paradox being deemed severe, none of my vital areas were damaged. It will not take long for my basic functions of combat to be restored."
"That's a relief…" Hyde gave Vatista a gentle head pat. "You had me worried seeing you like that."
"Worried?" The autonomic tilted her head. "I do not comprehend. But I assure you that I will make a full recovery in time."
"Well good." Hyde turned his focus on Paradox. "So what do we do with her then? I only wanted to stop her, but I take it the Licht Kreis have other plans in mind?" He asked Orie.
"Yes." Orie nodded. "She will be under arrest for the terrors she's inflicted upon this Night and this city. Can you stand on your own Kido?"
With Hyde nodding, she let go of him. The executor pulled out a pair of cuffs when a voice was heard all of a sudden.
"Sorry, but I'm afraid I can't let you do that."
Out of nowhere, a large lizard shaped creature came down and tried to slash at the three. Hyde, Orie, and Vatista jumped out of the way. It was only after they backed off that they noticed the creature wasn't actually trying to attack them.
"Very good, Azhi Dahaka." Another voice complimented the creature.
Coming out of the shadows near a pillar were two individuals. One was a young man carrying a book. He had white hair, blue eyes, and wore red rimmed glasses. His gray turtleneck, jacket, and pants gave him the appearance of just an average guy, were it not for the fact that he appeared to be in control of the giant lizard.
The one next to him was a tall muscular guy. He had purple eyes with his black spiky hair covering one of them. He wore a long purple jacket that exposed his bare chest and black pants with his right hand resting in his pocket. He would have looked menacing enough, but him casually holding a giant purple scythe over his shoulder made him look all the more intimidating.
"You're… Amnesia!" Hyde assumed.
"Gordeau, the Harvester of Greed," Orie said. "And…" She turned towards the bespectacled man. "You!"
"It's been a while, girl of Licht Kreis." he said with a casual wave.
"Harada, you know him?" Hyde asked.
The executor nodded. "He is known as Bloody Chaos, Amnesia's strategist. I encountered him when Amnesia invaded one of our bases. He stole the Chaos Code, the very book he is holding right now." She glared at Chaos.
"Nothing personal about your injury that Night. I assure you I didn't mean for Azhi Dahaka to get too rough with you." Chaos rubbed the head of his creature.
Orie gritted her teeth as she unconsciously held her arm.
'That guy harmed Harada?' Hyde looked at him with more disdain.
"As for you, kid." Gordeau said, looking at Hyde. "It's been about a few days since that Night. My boss really put you through hell, huh?" He gave Hyde an apologetic look.
"Kido, have you met him before?" Orie asked.
"Briefly." Hyde responded. "I only saw him a little bit when Paradox held me hostage for information."
"How did you even…?" Orie was left flabbergasted.
"It's a long story…" Hyde sighed. "Anyway, what do you want? I'm guessing you don't want us to take Paradox?"
"That's about the size of it." Chaos replied. "Even though she probably deserves it, there are a number of reasons why you can't take her. So we'll be retrieving her if you don't mind."
"And you think I'll just stand by and let you?" Orie held the grip of her rapier.
"I mean, you can try to stop us. I'm always down for a fight." Gordeau smirked. "Though judging by how all three of you look right now, it wouldn't be much of a fight." He shrugged.
Vatista nodded. "He is correct. Even if all three of us fought together, our chances of victory would be 15% at best," she finished.
"See? The Little Miss gets it. So what do you say? Of course, you will get something in return." Gordeau said.
Orie raised an eyebrow. "And what is that, exactly?"
"We'll let you destroy the Gate, of course." Chaos bluntly said.
Hyde and Orie looked baffled while Vatista tilted her head.
"Really? Just like that?" Hyde asked.
"To be honest, we were against Hilda's plan to begin with. She may be crazy, but she's still my friend. You know what could have happened if her plan backfired, right?" Gordeau said
"Yes." Orie answered. "It would have corrupted her vessel and turned her into a void instead."
"Exactly. If you three failed to stop her, we would have handled it ourselves. But it looks like we didn't have to. "Gordeau looked at Hilda's beaten body. "And damn, kid. You really did a number on her. Maybe this will help knock some sense back in her."
"So. Do we have a deal?" Chaos asked.
Hyde could tell from Orie's expression that she hated this situation. As much as he would like to help her, he was in no condition to fight. And the last thing he wanted to see was her and Vatista more hurt than they already were. So he decided to speak first.
"Fine. Take her away." Hyde said.
"Kido!" Orie looked at him with shock.
"Harada…" Hyde gave her a worried look.
That was all she needed to see to know why he said that. They saw first hand what happened to Paradox when she fought while exhausted. Fighting two fully healthy In-Births in their condition would be suicidal at this rate.
"Alright… But know that Amnesia will be brought to justice one day!" She said, "And you!" She pointed her rapier at Chaos. "I will make you return what you stole. I swear it."
Chaos adjusted his glasses with an amused grin. "I welcome the challenge. I should warn you though. The Chaos Code has basically been glued to me now." The creature hoisted Hilda on its back. "Oh, and don't bother about the bodyguards here, the other members have already retrieved them."
"So that's why the building was empty…" Orie said.
"And that's that. Thanks for understanding. Don't worry. With her vessel damaged, she won't be causing any problems for a while. I can't promise we won't cause more trouble, but at least she won't be doing anything downright evil… hopefully." Gordeau said.
"With this, Hilda's delusions will simply be that. Delusions. Farewell." Chaos concluded.
The two Amnesia members and the creature left the building. Leaving the three alone.
"They got away…" Orie said quietly.
"Harada, I…" Hyde wondered if this was really the right decision.
"I know, Kido… I know…" She gave him an assured smile. "Let's focus on what we can do."
The three made their way towards the Gate of the Abyss. A large white sigil with various symbols shined in front of them. If Hilda had the Insulator, she would have opened the Gate and used it to obtain the powers of becoming a Re-Birth. Fortunately, Hyde put a stop to that.
"So this is the Abyss… The source of the Hollow Night. By cutting this, the Night will finally come to an end." He looked at Vatista with a smile. "Well Vatista. Since you were here first, care to do the honors?" He asked as he motioned his hand at the gate.
The little girl nodded. "Very well. With Paradox being deemed not a threat for the time being, this will complete my mission of stopping the disturbances in this Night" She summoned her six wings. Each wing created a pink diamond shaped crystal and with one motion of her hand, the crystals were sent flying towards the Gate, creating a sizable explosion. When the dust settled, the Gate was completely obliterated. This would also have the added effect of ending the Hollow Night earlier than normal.
Hyde whistled at the destruction. "Woah. I didn't see that when you fought me."
Vatista gave a little yawn. "I would have used that attack in my Intermediate setting. It helped me fend off against Paradox's attacks for as long as I did."
"Amazing…" Orie was in awe of what the autonomic nerve could do.
"Hm… this is odd." Vatista looked confused. "The Hollow Night has ended, but there is no exit call." The little girl was left in thought. "It would seem my role here is not yet fulfilled. I must continue to function in this world until the next Hollow Night." She plainly said.
"Wha? But that's another month away. What are you going to do until then?" Hyde asked.
"The answer is simple. I will find a secluded place and remain idle there for the next two point five million seconds" She answered with the same monotone voice.
"Just standing there?!" Ories said, surprised. "That does not sound practical. If you want-" she was going to suggest something, but Hyde beat her to the punch.
"Why don't you stay at my house? It'd get kind of rough, staying outside for a month, yeah?" he offered.
"Kido, are you sure?" Orie asked.
The boy shrugged. "I already have two freeloaders living with me already. Plus, I want her to have a chance to live as herself. There has to be more to life than just following a mission, right?"
"T-that's true." the executor said, knowing first hand how much her time in Kanzakai helped her.
Vatista still looked puzzled. "Staying at someone's house implies a need to sleep. Autonomic Nerves do not require such trivialities. But if that is what you wish, then I'll… comply with your request." She gave the faintest of smiles.
"You won't regret it, Vatista. Now then," Hyde turned his eyes to the door. "I need to go pick up Linne. Wanna come with Harada? With the Hollow Night over, there shouldn't be any hostilities, right?"
"I suppose… I could use the time to mentally prepare myself for the report I have to write. So much has happened this Night alone." Orie gave a tired sigh.
"I don't know how much help I can give, but if you need someone to lean on for moral support, I'm always here." Hyde gave a caring smile.
Orie's face turned red. "I… appreciate it, Kido. I think I'll take you up on that offer."
Upon realizing how his words sounded, Hyde's face turned red as well and the two looked away blushing.
"Flirting: To behave as though attracted to or trying to attract someone. Are you two flirting?" Vatista asked.
"We are not!" Both Hyde and Orie bashfully replied as the three left Amnesia's HQ.
Current Area: Art Museum of Light and Water
As the three made their way to Linne's location, they could see that said girl was now on her feet. Hyde could see the princess look relieved with a smile on her face.
"Glad you made it back, Hyde. Judging by the look on your face, I take it you defeated Paradox." Linne already knew the answer, but wanted to hear it come from the boy.
Hyde gave a confidant grin. "Obviously! Otherwise I wouldn't be here! The Insulator's safe too. Paradox got away, but she won't be causing trouble for a while at least. Vatista and Harada here helped things go by a lot more smoothly." He turned to the two girls. "Thanks you two. I really mean it."
"Subuding Paradox was my mission to begin with. I should give you my thanks for finishing the job." Vatista gave a small bow.
"I was only able to help you in the end. Sorry I couldn't arrive sooner." Orie rubbed her arm with a sad smile.
Linne shook her head. "Regardless. Paradox is a rare vessel. I doubt she'll give up so easily. She will come back eventually. As long as she seeks the secrets of resurrection, and of the Night Blade." Linne would keep the matter of Kuon to herself for now with Licht Kreis near her.
"I'll get stronger. If she does come back, We'll stop her again. I take it the Licht Kreiss will be ready too?" Hyde looked at Orie.
"Of course. They will answer for their crimes. There's also the matter of figuring out why this city in particular is so connected with the Hollow Night if Vatista's words are any indication."
"So that's your name?" Linne looked at the autonomic nerve. She gave a nostalgic smile at the sight of her.
"Correct. My current location will now be in the residence of Hyde Kido. Pleased to make your acquaintance." Vatista said to her.
"I see. Well it's your choice. As for you." Linne looked at Orie. "Thank you for keeping Hyde safe. He can be a handful, so I appreciate it, Licht Kries."
"Oh I wouldn't say that. But I'm happy I could help him when I did." The executor gave a smile to the swordsman.
Linne gave a tired yawn. "And with that, we should probably head home. I've sent Kuu to locate Waldstein so he should be back soon. You two have school coming up, right?"
"Oh yeah…" Hyde frowned and checked the sky. "Dawn isn't out yet. Yeah, I think I still have time."
"Time? For what?" Orie asked.
"I promised you lunch, didn't I?" Hyde gave a bright smile.
The executor's face flushed red as she gave a shy smile. "S-So you did. L-Looking forward to it." She said with a nervous laugh.
"Are you two flirting now?" Vatista asked.
"No we're not!" The two quickly shouted.
"Heh. Don't try to deny it. I was young once too, ya know." Linne gave a smug grin.
"Oh don't even start." Hyde rolled his eyes.
With some playful banter, the heroes made their way back home, content in protecting the Night from Amnesia's grasp. For now at least, peace was brought to the city of Kanzakai. And in the end, that's all the Unknown Actor could hope for.