A young man stood in front of the door of a small house. After a few moving out and moving in, and especially a few years, Yuri had finally found his parents. He could already hear the voices of his sister and brother. The feeling of the snow on him did not bother him, the powder falling softly from the sky. And yet he stood there, frozen. His worn out travel bag, right next to him. His only possession.

Years had passed. Ten years precisely. Ten years since he had run away from hurting his father. He had gone through his heroin addiction, his near death from an overdose, his training in Armenia, the war in Chechnya, the death of his first love, his recruitment into the spetsnaz... And yet, while he had cheated death more times than any other man, he had faced the grim reaper, the cold, the war. And yet all this, what terrified him the most was to see his family again... To meet the eyes of-

The door opened, letting out Viktor, his father, with a garbage bag in his hand.

The giant gasped, meeting the eyes of the man in front of him.

Just a second. Just one second was all the father needed to recognize his son. Not by the shape of his face, the color of his eyes and hair, by the scar on his eyebrow, but by pure parental instinct.

The giant had grown half a meter since the last time they had seen each other, he had gone from obesity to a real mountain of muscle, and had become a rather charming young man. Hardly anyone would have recognized him.

Sebastian: He-

Yuri didn't even have time to pronounce his first syllable, when his father took him in his arms.

Viktor: My son...

The two could have exchanged thousands of tearful words at that moment. But instead, they decided to keep quiet.

Sebastian: Dad... I'm back...

Viktor: Welcome home my boy...

The father let go of his son, backing away slightly, but keeping a hand on his shoulder.

Viktor: Come inside, we'll start eating soon.

The giant nodded, walking back into the house. The father walked down the hallway.

Viktor: Olena, please take out one more plate!

In the dining room he could hear his sister's voice.

Olena: Huh, do we have another guest?

At that moment, the father entered the room accompanied by his son, and soon the family members recognized Yuri. Olena's mouth was wide open, her face hadn't really changed with the years. Her hair took on the color of their mother's purple. Nikolai, his brother, who was reading a newspaper, also seemed surprised, despite his unruffled attitude and his face colder than an arctic night. And finally his mother Yulia, sitting on her chair, had her eyes wide open.

In a flash, Olena, who was one head shorter than the giant, threw herself on her beloved brother, hugging him so tightly that the giant was really in pain, but it was a pain eclipsed by the joy of seeing his family again. After all Olena had always been the strongest of the three.

Olena: Yuri!

Sebastian: Stop it Olena, you're going to hurt me... I'm glad to see you too.

Nikolai: I was sure you were alive. It's good to see you safe and sound.

Their brother was the only member of the family with a normal height. But what he lacked in muscle, he made up for in intelligence and pragmatism.

Nikolai had always been the smartest of the three.

Sebastian: Thank you bro.

Olena: Look at you! You look just like mom!

The giant's gaze turned to his mother. The massive woman stood up from her chair. A mountain of muscle and strength. Smaller than Sebastian by no more than five centimeters.

His mother approached her son, before putting her hand on his shoulder. Smiling at him.

She was mute, and had never learned sign language. That was about as much affection as she knew how to show.

Sebastian: Thanks, Mom.

If the young man hadn't grown so hardened over the years, he would have been crying right now.

After a little while of talking about how nice it was to be together again, they all sat down to eat.

Olena: Yuri, go ahead and tell us what has been happening all these years!

Surrounded by his family, more than envious to hear what the little boy had done with his life.

Sebastian: I uh... I was taken in at death's door by an old Armenian... It was in Moscow... The guy recruited me into some kind of mercenary brotherhood. Honestly, the more I think about it, the more I think that it doesn't seem to make sense, but I assure you that it's true-

Olena: Stop. I don't think you're lying after so long.

She says with a reassuring smile.

Sebastian: That guy trained me... And then I came back to Russia, joined the army, and was deployed to Armenia. Then I was recruited into the Spetsnaz not long ago. My application to the GRU is already being considered. I have spent the last ten years fighting to be honest. There is not much else to say...

Viktor: That's enough.

The giant looked at his father who had a smile on his lips.

Viktor: You are doing something with your life, and that's wonderful, my son. I am proud of you.

The son smiled, unable to find the right words to thank his father as he wanted.

Sebastian: Enough about me, what have you been doing for the last ten years?

Viktor: An old friend from France who opened a restaurant here wanted me to be the chef behind it. Of course I accepted, and I have a job again that I like. And it pays better than the factory...

The old man laughed lightly. It was undoubtedly from him that Sebastian had inherited his talent for cooking. A chef of excellence who had worked all over the world. But he didn't really have a glorious fate once he returned home.

Olena: to me! I kept hanging out with the guys at the barracks and training with mom, a few months ago I got into a bar fight with a guy and he offered me to join his private military company!

Sebastian: Wow. Finally you get to use your fists to make some money.

Olena: Yep, they're going to make me earn a fortune~

The giant turned to his brother.

Nikolai: Not much for me. I got a doctorate in medicine, another in genetic engineering and I was selected to be one of the next astronauts to join the ISS...

The giant fell silent.

Sebastian: Are you saying that because you still haven't found the cure for cancer?

Nikolai: Notably. I also tried to teach Mom sign language. But you know how she is.

The woman rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment.

Sebastian may have had the two most loving parents on the planet, but they were also far from the most intelligent.

But he didn't care, he didn't care at all. There, surrounded by his family, finally free of his guilt, it was the happiest moment of this life for him.

The giant opened his eyes. Waking up in his hotel room on his bed. His body did not need an alarm clock. For once, it was not a nightmare. Sebastian sat up in bed. All his dreams had a purpose, and remembering his reunion with his parents like this had an explicit purpose.

He got up and went to take a shower.

His fight against the triad, and all the hatred he carried had a specific origin. His addiction that destroyed him, that fractured him into a billion pieces in his first life, but that allowed him to pick up the pieces and become something stronger.

But if he had that chance, how many didn't? How many had just collapsed into a living hell? That's why he had always sworn to fight against this kind of people. Who exploited misery to make it worse.

Sebastian got out of his shower, dressing as usual. He sent a message to the group Exusiai had created saying he wouldn't need help today. Taking a moment to look at the information that had just been sent to him on his computer. The diagrams and data compiled on the steam knights. The more he delved into the data, the more impressed he was with the engineering work.

He felt that this armor could be the product of a universe like star wars that would use steampunk exo-skeletons.

Seriously, spearheads capable of destroying bunkers, missile launchers, jetpacks, energy swords, and all this thanks to steam?

The giant was impressed by the abilities of the people of Terra. Like the little data he had from the sarcophagus, he could see that fragments of far too advanced technology were spread across Terra.

Why was he looking at this information?

Well after getting this little help from Kirsten Wright and not Krysten as I wrote in the previous chapter...

Hm hm.

After receiving that little helping hand, and now that he knew that a steam knight was in Lungmen he suspected that at some point the confrontation would come. After all, he didn't believe in coincidences. That was also why Siege had dreaded the news so much.

He stretched his shoulder and got up, getting ready for his work day. Full of assassinations...

But all alone...

He walked through the door of his hotel room. His weapons on him just in case.

As he passed the door, he could see Irina in the hallway. The young ursine leaning against the wall seemed to be waiting for something.

Sebastian: Are you up already?

he asked in surprise.

Irina: I'm an early bird.

She held up her cell phone, pointing to the conversation group.

Irina: Are you really going to be alone all day?

Sebastian: No big fight planned. So yeah...

Irina: Can I come with you? I don't really have any plans for today.

She asked with a big smile on her lips.

Sebastian: If you want.

He started to smile too. He was enjoying the company more than he seemed to let on.

Far more.

*clunk*

Sparks flew in the draco's eyes, blades clashing on the training ground. At that moment, she could think of nothing more beautiful than the sound of steel on steel. Her short ashen hair moved in the light spring breeze, the acceptable temperatures so rare in Chernobog.

In front of her the man in armor leapt backward dodging a first sword strike, the second came at him in the back. But despite the heavy plate and mesh armor and the restrictive helmet, Yuri of Ursus parried the attack, following up with a pommel strike to the face, sending his opponent flying away.

The first attacker finally returned to the charge, attempting to strike in such a way to decapitate the man in armor. Instead, the armored man stopped the blade with the claw-like grip on his gauntlet before lowering his arm a great deal, snatching the weapon from his opponent.

The two-handed sword he held, black as night, went for his opponent's throat, stopping just before it could be dangerous.

This whole part of the confrontation had lasted what? Two seconds at most?

After all, in a fight between Yuri of Ursus and two of the emperor's blades, even when it was a training session, the speed was only matched by the strength of the blows.

And yet, the young girl standing on the side of the training ground had not missed a beat...

Once the confrontation was over, she clapped her hands.

Talulah Artorius, then eleven years old, lived peacefully in Duke Koschei's palace alongside Yuri, when he wasn't on the campaign trail.

The man in armor turned to the young draco, as if he had forgotten her presence.

Both of the emperor's blades bowed forward in greeting as Sebastian asked them to leave.

Talulah: Wow Yuri that was amazing!

The man approached the girl, to remove his helmet. He approached, and despite his male build, already reaching the height of many adult men, as well as a body beyond their muscle mass, his face remained that of a young boy, maybe thirteen years old.

Sebastian: Really? But you managed to see everything Tal...?

he asked in astonishment. Most experienced warriors could not follow his movements with their eyes. So a young girl who had never held a sword in her hand?

Talulah: Of course!

The giant gave in to her enthusiasm, smiling fully.

It had been years since the two had begun to grow together, under Koschei's guidance. Their relationship was growing every day, to reach this stage where they were for each other like brother and sister.

The draco handed him a bottle of water and a towel, thoughtful as she always was.

Sebastian grabbed the bottle and towel using both and thanked the girl.

Sebastian: You don't have to come see this every day you know?

Talulah: Maybe. But I want to. I find it so... exciting!

The giant looked at her with such enthusiasm, thinking of something.

Sebastian: And what about trying it yourself?

he proposed.

Talulah: You want to teach me how to fight...?

Sebastian: Well yes-

Talulah: Then yes!

She rose to her feet. Her enthusiasm had been replaced by a steely determination. The boy in front of her was surprised. For in her eyes was the true will to become stronger.

The young woman had understood it well. The girl had felt weak... So weak, being torn away from her family, from her sister. But she and Yuri, despite their efforts, had understood that it was useless to fight against this state of affairs. She was now Koschei's responsibility, and to go against this would be to go against entire armies. The draco had accepted her fate.

But now that she was being given the opportunity, she refused to be weak again.

Sebastian: Fine... Go get a training weapon. Which one you like, I'll teach you how to use it.

The girl walked to the weapons rack, and grabbed a two-handed sword. Seeing this, the boy laughed slightly, then the draco stood up in front of the boy. His posture was not perfect, or the way he held his sword. But Sebastian didn't care. That would come later, they had all the time in the world.

Sebastian: Right now I just want to see what you're good at. Do what you think is right. I'll let you attack first.

The draco threw herself forward, starting directly with a piercing trust towards the giant's face.

Either she was taking this training very seriously, or she was really confident that the giant would manage to stop her weapon.

Sebastian parried the attack, striking his sword just at the tip of the draco's. The strength he put into his sword was a great help in stopping the attack. The strength she put into this attack, coupled with the steel grip she had on her weapon and her poor balance due to a lack of experience in footwork, caused her to be thrown slightly to the side with her weapon. But surprising the giant, she took advantage of this momentum to spin around and follow up with a slashing attack on the side of the armored man.

He let go of the handle of his sword with one hand, bringing the blade upright to his side, his free hand held higher on the blade itself to block the attack. The young boy was once again surprised, for the strength of the draco was impressive. Certainly the ancients were always stronger than the earthlings, but even in spite of the ancients her natural strength was great. Especially since in this world, strength was cultivated in such a strange way that the only thing the giant could compare it with was a video game. So in a short time there would be no doubt that she would be able to reach great heights.

While he thought for not even a second, the draco wasted no time. Following up with a kick to the side of the knee of the man in armor, the joint taking a hit despite the armor plate. He was destabilized and leaned slightly on the side. The girl immediately followed up with another attack with her sword, as if she was aiming to crush the giant's helmet with the pommel of her sword.

Smart move, using the blunt part against a man in armor...

But despite all his speed, his strength, it was far from reaching Sebastian's level for the moment. He got up and moved back, dodging the attack, then it was his turn to go on the offensive.

He gave a first vertical strike that the girl dodged leaving a hair in front of the sharp blade of the giant, then he followed up with another vertical attack, from bottom to top, making a much lesser version of its swallow strike. But again the draco dodged. The giant in a flash gave a sweep to the girl, with the idea to finish this test.

But Talulah decided otherwise, she jumped, dodging the attack, using the knight's leg as a step before jumping again, this time much higher, passing over his head, to land in his back. Striking with a ferocious blow from her draconic tail to the skull while going.

It was both humiliating, and impressive for her agility.

Talulah swung her sword at the giant's head, but he too showed agility despite the plates of his armor and swung the sword in his back, blocking the attack. He turned around, and went to disarm his opponent, the girl tried something he did not really understand.

But the result was there, their two swords flew in the air, before reattacking on the ground, the two fighters disarmed.

Sebastian's eyes were wide. He began to smile as he looked at the girl.

Sebastian: Wow.

She showed phenomenal strength and speed, great reflexes, and a sharp mind.

Sebastian: And you learned all that just by looking at me...

Talulah: Pretty much... I also watched the wendigo from time to time...

She rubbed her hand behind her head, still waiting for a real reaction from the giant.

And with that an excellent memory and assimilation capacity.

The giant was admiring, he had no talent, all his strength was based on his particular body and his experience. Talulah in his sense was his opposite, brimming with incredible talent, but without the slightest experience for the moment. He was going to remedy that.

For the girl standing before Sebastian was a born fighter.

Sebastian: A little more and you'll crush me.

He put a hand on her shoulder.

Sebastian: You have a great future ahead of you.

He said with a big smile.

Talulah opened her eyes, her gray orbs no longer shone with the same flame of life as they did back then. Instead, a spark of hatred, anger, and pure evil lurked behind them. She got up from the bed with silk sheets and yet so cold. Her cold eyes feeling tears running down her face which she wiped off, her necklace made years ago around her neck.

Talulah: Do you still have tears to cry? It's no use. That past is dead.

The draco got up from her bed, dressing in her old luxurious dress and putting on her boots, reaching for her sword, before angrily remembering that she no longer had it. She left her room and walked into Chernobog's palace, looking at the ruins and some of her men camped there.

One of the lieutenants came to her kneeling before her. The draco only sent him a murderous look, beckoning him to speak.

Lieutenant: Madam, the sarkaz have arrived to fight for us.

Talulah: Good. Let them join their own.

The draco resumed her march to the training grounds, passing through the hordes of desperate infected. Dwarfing all of them. Her intimidating presence coupled with her height and of course her aura of leadership, caused all to greet her in awe.

Once arrived on the training ground, the Wendigo who was watching the training of the recruits turned his gaze to their leader. Surprised at his presence here. Before he even needed to ask his question she answered.

Talulah: Buldrokkas'tee, get your weapon ready, I need some training.

It had been since the battle against Rhodes Island at Chernobog that she had not touched a sword. For some, going months without training and asking for a fight with Patriot would be considered suicide.

The draco put her hand on the longest sword she could find. A little wider, a little lighter, and a little shorter than Purgatory, but it was the best she could find and it suited her preferences.

She did a few reels, warming up her wrists, as the wendigo rose to stand in the middle of the field, making a halberd appear in each of his hands.

Patriot: Arts ?

Talulah: Not on my side.

The draco faced the wendigo, the rest of the reunion troops moving aside. Perhaps some waited for a signal. The sarkaz stood guard. And suddenly the draco disappeared, raising a cloud of gravel where she stood.

All this only to be followed by a thunderous explosion and the sound of an impact, like a hammer on an anvil. The draco had reappeared right in front of the wendigo, her weapon blocked with difficulty by the two halberds of the sarkaz, forming an x.

Understanding that her weapon would be blocked, except in one direction, the draco threw her sword in the air above them both, distracted for a quarter of a second in front of such a counter-intuitive technique, the draco took the opportunity to punch the Sarkaz right in the face.

Again her strength was such that the wendigo recoiled, and the ground beneath his feet shattered. The young woman caught her sword in mid-air and went to deliver yet another strike to the colossus. The wendigo raised both weapons to deflect the attack. The momentum she had made her continue her attack and gave the wendigo this tiny window of attack.

He struck with his two halberds horizontally, one above the other in a scissor-like fashion, as if he were really trying to slice the young woman in half.

But for the draco it was not an ordeal, she jumped into the air, passing through the thin space between the two halberds of the Patriot.

Using all the speed he could muster, the wendigo struck again, barely finishing his first attack, vertically, still targeting the draco. The young woman's reflexes were as sharp as her opponent's weapon though, and she used her draconic tail to create an impulse on the ground, redirecting her and putting her out of danger. Returning to his side where the wendigo could not attack her, his right halberd planted in the ground.

She swung her sword, the edge of the blade stopping just short of the sarkaz's neck, showing that she could have decapitated him.

Patriot: Well done.

The draco put away her weapon. Lowering her head slightly in front of the wendigo, as if to show him a fragment of gratitude. It wasn't that she wanted to, but she had to make a good impression on all those pitiful worms.

Every reunion member was impressed with the draco's immense talent, most of them thinking that her arts were the thing she was best at. Everyone was afraid of Rhodes Island and their doctor, a man capable of slicing through mountains and sections of mobile cities, but with their leader, they were comforted in the idea that they could bring the whole world to her knees.

After all, the only reason he had won that day was the surprise effect and the meager bit of resilience the draco offered the parasite in her mind.

Not far away, Frostnova was wandering around the palace, in an area that had been forbidden by their leader. But prohibitions were meant to be defied...

She arrived in a luxurious room, even if it was almost in ruins, and covered with dust, as if no one had been there not since the capture of Chernobog but since much earlier.

For a moment she wondered whose room it was. But she thought she understood when she saw the armor display in the corner.

It was Yuri's room.

Curious, she explored the room, which seemed to be empty of anything interesting, a few books, on just about every subject. Some material to take care of an armor and a sword. But nothing interesting. She approached the bed, and felt something emanating from the single bedside table.

She opened the drawer, to lay her eyes on a photo and a strange pendant. She looked at the photo first, immediately recognizing the draco as she had a smile on her face this photo must be from ages ago, especially considering the person who was with her in the photo. Yuri, who was also smiling, rabbit ears made with the draco's fingers in his back.

Shortly after their meeting, Talulah had talked about her relationship with the emperor's red hand. So it wasn't a surprise for her to see them both together, but what caught her attention was the strange pendant next to the picture. A chain made crudely at best, and what seemed to be half a nut at the end.

She didn't have time to really figure out what it was before she heard a noise nearby. Despite her rank, she didn't really want to be surprised in a place that was off limits to her.

The cautus stuffed everything in her pocket, hurrying out.

*tap* *tap*

Irina: Are you sure people won't think you're my sugar daddy when they see us?

Sebastian: Those kind of people don't usually go to cemeteries.

It was early in the morning. The two of them were waiting in the doctor's car, the bear tapping on the door with her fingertips, a coffee in her other hand.

Slightly disappointed that her action was not having the desired effect on the doctor.

Probably because he was taking his current task too seriously. The giant was looking out of his window, parked not far from the cemetery, where it could be seen that a funeral was taking place, in small group. He too had a coffee in one of his hands.

Sebastian: So you don't regret coming with me?

Irina: It's okay... Hadn't got anything to do this morning. And then I thought you'd enjoy the company.

She says with a smile.

Sebastian: Aye, not entirely wrong.

Irina: And if it wasn't me, I wouldn't know many people who would be so heartless as to go and watch a murder in a cemetery.

Sebastian: Hm.

Irina: And how do you plan to do it?

The giant looked around the coffin, confirming that his target was there.

Sebastian: All those who are here have already been sentenced to death in other countries.

He handed the young woman a detonator that he had in his pocket. She took the detonator, curious.

Sebastian: the honor is yours, whenever you want it.

The ursine began to smile, as rarely before. Maybe W had tainted her soul and mind, but if it was to blow something up, the young woman would gladly accept. One of the reasons she was an adept of grenade launchers.

Irina: Hehe kaboom.

She pressed the detonator, and suddenly the coffin exploded in a ball of fire, killing all those gathered around it. This startled the young woman as to where the explosion was coming from.

Irina: What the hell, in the coffin...?

She asked, a little doubtful that they were in the right. And especially surprised by the lack of humanism that the doctor was showing.

Sebastian: Anyone there would not have deserved any respect in life or in death.

The doctor was so vehement and there was so much hatred in his voice that it hurt the bear. Because of course she could guess that there were more reasons to this hate than what he let see.

Irina: At least it's settled... One less head in the network, right?

Sebastian: Yeah.

The giant started to drive into Lungmen to reach the next step of his plan.

The young ursine was yawning. Her head resting on the dashboard.

Irina: You know, with all the action we've had, I would have imagined we'd at least have a decent fight for at least one of those four bastards...

Sebastian: Life is not all flamboyant action Irina... Plus it's weekend. We can relax a bit.

The giant was once again hiding in his car. Looking ahead, a man at a bus stop. One of their targets, the money launderer.

Irina: I'd expect at least that such a big man for the mafia to have his own car.

Sebastian: Probably an ecologist. Do you know anything about pickpocketing?

Irina: Yeah... I had to feed myself when I got infected...

Sebastian: He'll recognize me if I go out. So go ahead...

Irina: If you were going to be alone this morning, why did you need my help?

Sebastian: I didn't need your help, it's just that it will be easier if we do it this way...

Irina: You don't know how to talk to a girl, you know that?

She asked disappointed. Her morning for the moment was rather boring, the giant was so concentrated that he did not react to the awkward retorts of the ursine and almost did not speak. That and the fact that her morning consisted mostly of sitting her ass on the car seat watching people from afar.

At least the said seats were comfortable.

The giant turned to the girl and smiled.

Sebastian: It's true I didn't need your help. But you're here, and I like the fact that you're here not because you're useful to me, but because I enjoy every second I see you, every second I spend with you.

The ursine started to blush slightly. The effect of the doctor's compliments having their effect for a second, before she told herself to reassure herself that it was surely smoke and mirrors, then she totally chased the blood from her cheeks saying that the roles were supposed to be reversed.

Irina: See ? When you want it…

She got out of the car and started to walk straight towards her target, passing by several people, then going behind her target's back, she took his phone which was in his back pocket. The man did not realize anything, then the ursine made the big turn, avoiding to pass again in his field of vision to return in the car again. Handing the phone to the giant.

Sebastian: Thank you dear...

He tried to grab it, but the ursine took it away at the last moment.

Irina: Nope, wait a sec... I want something as a reward...

The giant sighed. He didn't dare to imagine what the girl's dirty imagination would be.

Sebastian: And what do you want?

Irina: A favor.

He rolled his eyes.

Irina: If you should fall into a fight with Crownslayer... Can you spare her?

The giant was surprised. To say the least. Maybe he was turning deviant. The face of the ursine was as serious as ever. He sighed.

The giant no longer considered Irina as an acquaintance, or a colleague, who had laughed and fought at his side.

He didn't consider her as a friend either... The trust she put in him, and what happened between them that night made them go far beyond.

Sebastian: You could have just asked me without it being a favor. And I would have accepted without hesitation Irina.

It was the ursine's turn to be surprised. The giant could already go far beyond what was moral or legal for what he considered his friends. And Irina although in a short time had quickly become close to him, so he didn't even need to think about her request.

The giant with emerald eyes had complexes in him only his biology.

His mind, his intentions, his emotions, everything about him was in the simplest form it could be in a human being.

Irina: Thank you...

She said with a smile.

Irina: she was my first real friend... If I could survive this path that she is also going through... It would be unfair if she died.

The giant began to smile slightly. At the same time touched by the words of the ursine, then an idea crossing him. To reverse their roles as tormentors.

Sebastian: And you're sure she's just your fiend and not your lover girl...?

The ursine looked at him, without reacting, shrugging her shoulders slightly.

Irina: I am rather sure to prefer dudes doc...

Somewhat disappointed by his mediocre performance, the giant sighed once more. Then Irina started to smile as usual. She looked at her window and said with a tone of voice quite banal:

Irina: But I think that a threesome with her and you for your birthday could be an idea.

The giant was startled, and was so embarrassed by the fact that the ursine said this as if nothing had happened that he avoided her gaze and looked at his window.

But just imagining the scene, gave a little of that red on the cheeks of the ursine ... Maybe her season was not quite over yet, or she was really starting to have the mind perverted, but the idea was ...

Not to be discarded in any case.

Irina: Oh don't make that face... She wears stuffy things, but I'd say her breasts are just the right size for your hands... And then she just turned 18, deeply desperate to have never known love... So you can do all the dirty things you want to her...

Sebastian: Please stop... I beg you…

She was finally fed up with the doctor's embarrassment. Even if making the doctor's imagination work also had an effect on her own.

In any case the doctor would never look at his enemies in the same way again...

Sebastian: Fasten your seat belt.

He said still embarrassed, but the young ursine still in her euphoria did what he asked her without thinking.

Irina: Wait, are we going to leave now? How do you intend to kill the guy there.

The giant started his car, while the triad man looked left and right in the street, preparing to cross. When he decided to cross the road, the doctor put his foot down. Irina was propelled to the back of her seat, thanks to the sudden acceleration of the mechanical marvel.

The noise of the engine inevitably attracted the attention of the launderer, his eyes opened wide like a deer caught in the headlights of a car, even if there it was rather the case. The man was knocked down by Sebastian's vehicle, his blood splattered on the blue paint, the armored car having no scratches.

Following the impact, the ursine, shocked, leaned on the dashboard, looking at the giant.

Irina: God fucking damn it ! Next time could you at least, oh I don't know… Tell me beforehand ?!

She sighed.

Irina: Are you sure he's dead?

The giant looked in his rearview mirror, and put the car in reverse.

Irina: Oh no...

*Crunch*

There she was sure that he was dead.

The giant left in the streets of the city.

A whistling sound caught the ursine's eye, she was placing two plates and some cutlery on one of the bar tables, as the giant had asked her to, a delicious smell emanating from the kitchen. Irina turned to the front door when she heard it open, her bear ears twitching slightly. The giant walked in, his old license plates, a screwdriver and a bloody rag in his hands.

Irina: Sometimes you're so good at doing that, I wonder if you didn't do it in a previous life...

Sebastian: Who knows... Well, it should have done cooking.

Making a detour to the kitchen, the giant returned with a small pot of what appeared to be some kind of soup or stew, as well as a plate full of toasted tortillas.

The girl's nose was marveling as she sat down in her seat.

Irina: It smells good, what is it?

Sebastian: I can't remember the name, but it's a lentil soup with chorizo that can be eaten with a spoon or by using the ends of the tortillas to dip into.

For her, these kinds of dishes were completely exotic. Like everything else she had eaten in Lungmen. The food in reunion centered more on the survival than on the fact of pleasing oneself.

He handed her a lemon.

Sebastian: Many prefer it with some. But not me...

The young woman began to eat and was soon flooded with pleasure, the giant's immense talents as a cook still striking.

Irina: This is really good...

Sebastian: Thank you.

The highest praise Sebastian could receive, was that his dish was appreciated. So he smiles, honestly.

Irina: It's very spicy.

She says after a few moments. Drinking a sip of the glass of milk she had poured herself before.

Sebastian: That much?

Irina: I come from ursus doc, I'm not used to spice... except those sweets Yelena gives.

The giant heard her talking and was intrigued. Instead of spending the meal in silence, he might as well ask questions...

Sebastian: You never talk about your past.

He said, stating the facts. The bear seemed to shut down for a moment, but she thought she owed it to Sebastian.

Irina: I don't really know what to say... I had a pretty normal childhood. Even though our father was never at home, always working on his scientific research in Chernobog. Just like Lyudmila's father. One day we had to escape from the house. Because ursus soldiers were after us. My mother took us to the infected ghetto... the only place where the soldiers would not follow us. Honestly, I don't remember much from that time, it was a lifetime ago, I remember that time in the ghetto better. That's when I became infected and my mother too. But we were happy, together... Even if my father was no longer there.

Sebastian: I'm sorry.

Irina: Water under the bridge doc. A lot of water, it's okay. One day there was a roundup, we were separated and my mother was killed. I had to flee Chernobog. Then I ran into the reunion troops while trying to cross the frozen tundras.

The ursine took a deep sigh. The giant felt foolish, talking of the past for him was a harmless gesture as an earth human, something rather pleasant to make conversation, but he kept forgetting that this was not earth, but Terra, and that life here would always be infinitely harder than on the blue planet.

Irina: Yep... I don't have much to say about those days... Even in the ghettos I felt that my life was normal and that it would last.

Sebastian: But what happened? Why did Ursus suddenly want to eliminate you when you had done nothing?

Irina: My father and Crownslayer's father were working on a project for Ursus in Chernobog.

Sebastian: The sarcophagus...

The giant muttered, the gears in his head began to turn. The ursine turned to him, seeing that he understood.

Sebastian: where they found me. Amnesia...

Irina: My father and the other scientists refused to make a weapon for the government... And someone betrayed them, they were all killed... If I find the one who did this... I promised myself to kill her.

Sebastian: Because you know who the snitch was?

Irina: Another scientist. Name of Kal'tsit.

The giant was startled by the name.

Sebastian: Dr. Kal'tsit is one of the three main leaders of Rhodes, along with Amiya and me...

It was the young girl's turn to be surprised, even though she looked angry.

Irina: Seb...

Sebastian: listen... I know a little about this woman... it wouldn't look like her. I can't promise you she didn't do it. But if you want, I could arrange a meeting with her, to clear this up?

The ursine seemed hesitant. She trusted the doctor... But did she really trust him enough to let the person responsible for all her misfortunes escape.

Irina: If you think she is not guilty... I can listen to her... But Seb, what if she is?

He looked to the side.

Sebastian: Then I don't want to have anything to do with this woman and what she stands for...

Irina: Then I will meet her. For those eyes of yours.

She added, with a smile, the giant feeling that it was better to change the conversation, he did so.

Sebastian: And how was reunion like? Like between each other?

The ursine began to smile slightly.

Irina: I think I'll talk about before Chernobog... It was... Good. When Exusiai was describing Rhodes Island, it was so much like it. We would go through the tundra, camping every day, helping the infected and the hamlets, and they would help us too. We spent our time fighting the infected patrol... It was really cool. It almost felt like a family. Faust and Mephisto were always hanging out together trying to come up with new jokes, Patriot was looking at everyone tired and amused at the same time, like an old father. Crownslayer was the one who never talked, and I was the one who talked too much. Frostnova would make those really spicy candies and give one to the newbies to baptize them. Watching over everyone with care at the slightest scratch. And Talulah... Some people thought of her as a friend, but as soon as I got there, she was even colder than the white donkey.

Sebastian: The white donkey?

Irina: Frostnova. Apparently you called her that, and the name stuck.

The giant laughed lightly while the ursine had a mocking smile.

Irina: At night we drank to our lost comrades, and celebrated for having survived another day.

Sebastian: That sounded good.

Irina: It was. But it was six months before the attack, Talulah started brainwashing us with her plan for Chernobog... feeding us more and more hatred of the uninfected and the governments. And the world...

She looked up at the giant.

Irina: Seb... How do you think this will end?

Sebastian: It's not what I'm hoping for, but I can't ignore the fact that this will probably end in a bloody mess between Rhodes and the Reunion. We're all convinced we're right. And we're all willing to fight to the death. So sorry Irina. But there will be deaths. That I can be sure of.

He said, crossing his arms.

Irina: Why did you spare me. That day?

The giant looked down. Thinking about his answer.

Sebastian: I... I don't really know... I guess at that moment I thought that this world was cruel enough as it is. That enough lives had been lost for nothing.

For once, the doctor seemed to doubt. He seemed almost lost. That was what shocked the young woman. He who always seemed sure of himself, without the shadow of a doubt, or the slightest hesitation. Who always stood in front, with this confident smile.

The girl was moved. If she thought she saw the doctor vulnerable, when she threw him into pool of embarrassment, or when she had seen him go into combustion to fight her, but here she could see him in his true colors, when he let down his protective walls. And there she was not seized of excitement like when she observed his embarrassment.

Seeing him almost hurt like that and hesitating, it made her want to hug him more than anything else.

Sebastian: So I thought if I spared you, it would be a middle finger to all of Terra. That letting you live, when absolutely everything wanted me to kill you, would prove that I had the strength to stand against the will of this world.

Irina: Will you try to do the same with the others? What you did with me? Spare me? Convince me that reunion wasn't necessarily right.

Sebastian: I'd like to do that. Believe me.

He looked down at his hand that was resting on his table, looking at the lines of his hand, like all those scars that don't show up on his skin.

Sebastian: I just don't know if I would have the strength Irina. I've already come close to a game over, just a few seconds away.

She grabs his hand.

Irina: Seb...

The emeralds met the rubies.

Irina: If there's one thing I've learned this past week, it's that if you're not strong enough for something, then surely no one in this world is. I want my friends, my family to stay alive. And, I want you to stay alive too. If I can ever help you, then I want to be with you... If you want to give Terra the finger, can I do it with you?

He began to smile softly.

Sebastian: Yes... Irina, we've defied the natural order of this world enough to send it go fuck itself. Both of us.

What the hell...

When Irina looked into his emeralds, when she too abandoned all her walls all her protections, to show her heart. The sensation was intoxicating... She could feel her heart beating faster than in battle.

For her, it was a feeling of intimacy, was like dropping all their clothes to mix the heat of their bodies.

The pink tinted the cheeks of the girl, when she saw his face, she had only one desire, to lean forward, put a hand on his cheek and kiss him once again.

Maybe it was her season that was acting up, despite the fact that it should be over, and that she was still taking her medication.

Or maybe it was an unstoppable attraction to the man in front of her.

Damn it...

She really had fallen in love, hadn't she?

Sebastian: Go on, finish your plate while it's hot.

The two of them finished the meal, in good company.

Ch'en was at her desk, the lung dealing with the mountains of paperwork, leaving the files about a dead man run over by a car, and an explosion in a cemetery on the side.

The door of her office was opened with a bang.

Hoshiguma: Yo!

Ch'en: Can you close the door please?

The oni started to smile all of a sudden.

Hoshiguma: Why? Are you going to bang me now on the desk?

The lung gasped, blushing intensely. Not being used to the oni's charm in the workplace.

Ch'en: Don't say that so loud!

The young woman laughed and closed the door.

Hoshiguma: Come on, it's okay... By the way, I have the file you asked me for. It was just as you thought. It was in the hands of unit three.

The superintendent frowned, there was only one unit that didn't obey her orders in the whole L.G.D.

A unit that only responded to Wei Yenwu's orders. She had never really liked him. But after what her aunt told her, she really hated him.

Hoshiguma: I didn't open it.

The lung took the file and started to read quickly.

Ch'en: The last remnants of the reunion in Lungmen have been eliminated... One week after the defeat of Skullshatterer.

The two young women looked each other in the eyes, confirming their fears.

Hoshiguma: The bastard is holding Rhodes Island prisoner in Lungmen...

Ch'en: Sebastian must know...

Three felines were looking at an aslan. The aslan was looking ahead, her lioness tail still, a lollipop in her mouth, and looking sad. Her head resting in her arms. As she half slept on a table.

Morgan: Can anyone tell me what she's doing...?

The feline asked Dagda and Indra, who was watching their leader, acting strangely.

Indra: Dunno. She looks bored to death.

Morgan: Nah, but like, why does she look like a puppy without her master?

Indra: She's an aslan without her mate.

She said with a slight mocking smile, Dagda shook her head left and right, denial gripping her.

Dagda: Oh come on, we have no way of knowing if she really sees him this way...

Morgan: Isabelle, you saw it like I did yesterday, her tail wrapped around the doctor. We all know what that means. Good old Verna sees the doc as her mate. And since she's an aslan, that means he's the one and only...

The feline dressed in this clever mix of punk and gotic hid her face.

Dagda: Oh... Why him... Why so early... She couldn't have waited for Victoria to be liberated before falling in love...? It's already a lot to protect her, so if on top of that I have to protect her husband... And then they'll have cubs that I should protect too...

Her descent into hell continued until Indra hit her in the back of the head.

Morgan: We're not there yet. All we can do is make sure the doctor doesn't hurt her... And prepare for Victoria to have a king and queen again...

Dagda: I'm worried about nothing... Maybe we just got it wrong...

Tired of her excess of imagination mixed with denial Indra sighed.

Indra: Hoi Verna ! Doc's calling he got a problem !

No sooner had she finished her sentence than she jumped up from the table, startling the gang members around her, it only took her a short while to grab her hammer and go to Indra.

Siege: Then let's hurry up! What's the problem?

Indra: He told me that the problem was that you had stolen his heart...

She says with a slight smile.

Siege: R-really...?

The aslan asked, again missing the obvious, but the slight flush on her cheeks and the way her tail wagged frantically did not fool anyone.

Indra: Dunno girl. But I'm pretty sure.

Then Siege realized that Indra had been mocking her. The queen frowned, and swung her hammer in the face of the tigress who fell to the ground laughing.

The embarrassed aslan sat back down where she belonged.

Morgan: Maybe that wasn't necessary, Hannah.

Indra: Saw that Isabelle? No disgust. It is what it is.

Dagda: Oh no... This guy is not fit to be a king... It's obvious... And we don't even really know where he comes from... And if he does come from Ursus it would be a scandal...

Morgan: Come on, let's calm down girls. We knew perfectly well that this day would come... And then we have to put it into perspective, our queen could have found a much worse future husband...

Sebastian: *sneeze*

Irina: Somebody's talking of you…

Sebastian: Come on, we both know it doesn't work like that.

Sebastian was working on his laptop. Taking care of all the jobs he had as an engineer, business in Kazimierz, Kjerag, teacher for his ursus class, shadow broker... Assassination planner...

Irina, on the other hand, was discovering the wonders of a smartphone, Sebastian having given her one, lying on a bench.

Sebastian: So, what do you think of the indispensable tool of the modern man?

Irina: It's fucking great.

Sebastian: I would have thought so.

He says, laughing slightly.

Sebastian: You're a young girl. I'm not surprised.

The ursine looked at him, sighing.

Irina: And I was trying hard not to call you an old man...

Sebastian looked at the young woman, offended, he frowned.

Sebastian: I'm here for work.

Irina: Never mind, old man.

The giant put both hands on the table, sighing. Then he looked at the young ursine. Calling him an old man, hurt the giant in just the right place. He was not old, he had just accelerated the aging of his body, to reach his optimal physical performance ...

He was not old...

He was seized with a mortal desire to return the steam to the young woman. To get even.

He noticed the glass of milk she had right next to her. Another one.

Sebastian: You know that drinking milk doesn't make your breasts bigger, right?

Hearing this, the ursine dropped her phone on her face.

A face gradually turning as red as a tomato, the ursine experiencing the greatest embarrassment of her life, covering her face with her hands.

After a few moments, she sat up violently trying to answer something to the giant.

Irina: Oh, it's okay! We all have our problems! I'm sure you've got your complexion too!

Sebastian: 27.

The ursine frowned, not understanding.

Irina: 27?

Sebastian: Centimeters.

He took a sip of his coffee, a small smirk filled with pride on his lips.

The ursine began to think. Before she understood.

Her cheeks turned red, then her face returned to the same state as before when she realized how big it really was.

Sebastian: So no, I don't have anything that makes me complex.

As she began to have her mind spinning in a loop, thinking of only one thing, the giant clapped his hands in satisfaction.

Sebastian: Come on, one thing done !

Thinking of changing the subject, the ursine asked the giant.

Irina: Is everything okay?

Sebastian: Let's just say that the restaurant franchise owned by the launderer has just fallen into my possession... Which means, I've just cut off more than half of the triad's funds.

He says with a smile.

Sebastian: And to cut them off completely, there is only one step left. Hit the logistician, his brother.

He held up the phone that the ursine had stolen.

Sebastian: And I already have a plan.

The giant ran a program on his phone to find the location of the person he would make the call with. He rubbed his vocal cords, modulating them to imitate someone else's voice.

Then he called.

Zhao: Hello brother?

The other voice on the other end of the phone rang out. And Sebastian answered.

Sebastian: Hi bro, I think we have a problem.

The voice that came out of his mouth was of course another one than the doctor's. The voice of the man he was talking to. The voice of the man he had murdered earlier in the day.

Zhao: What do you mean?

Sebastian: The stock market value of the franchise is plummeting, and if we don't do something, we're going to lose all the shares. I need your help, I don't understand what's going on.

Zhao: Okay, meet me at the bank as soon as you can to discuss it.

Sebastian: See you later.

He hangs up the phone with a smile on his face. The ursine approached and looked at the screen of the giant. To see that it pointed to an address in the business district.

Sebastian: And now we know where to strike... Let's go.

In a flash he grabbed his coat and put it on.

Then the two of them left the bar, only to realize that it was raining heavily. Courtesy of the weather control tower that was giving a middle finger.

Irina: I fucking hate the rain...

Sebastian: I swear, if they don't fix it before the festival, I will.

They both got into the giant's car and set off.

It didn't take them very long to reach their destination. The rain always falling in a diluvian way.

Irina had fallen asleep in the passenger seat, lulled by the sound of the rain and the gentle vibrations of the vehicle.

Once parked, the giant turned to his companion, taking a second to admire her.

Before giving her a little tap on the arm. Seeing the almost military training she had, her light sleep making her already awake.

Irina: Are we there yet?

Sebastian: Hm.

Irina: Are you okay?

He frowned.

Sebastian: Take your sword this time. I don't feel good about it.

She nodded.

Irina: Do we have a plan?

Sebastian: We go in, shoot everyone we see, get the boss, shoot him, get all the info we can and get out.

Irina: Simple. So where does the bad feeling comes from?

Sebastian: Call it instinct, girl.

He grabbed his sword and got out of the car, the young woman with him, her short sword sticking out from under her leather jacket. The two of them hurried across the street, because of the drizzle that was coming down. Irina was the first to try to open the bank door, only to find it was locked.

The giant understood the problem and got down on one knee and took out his picks. Deciding to go easy rather than setting off an alarm.

Irina: I should also have stolen his keys from this buffoon...

The ursine complained, running a hand through her hair to get all the water out, before looking out the door.

Irina: Doc...

Sebastian: One second.

Irina: Doc I see something on the other side.

The slightly panicked tone of the ursine challenged the doctor, who also began to look through the glass, trying to see through the darkness of the building. He could see wires and cylinders...

His instincts went into battle, he got up abruptly and pushed the young woman in his back, getting up with all his height and taking advantage of all his stoutness to protect the girl behind him.

An explosion resounded immediately, throwing a ball of flames and shrapnel in the direction of the giant and the young woman. The blast threw them both backwards. The flames burned the giant's skin, causing him unimaginable pain. The shards of metal that were embedded in his body from the bombs were nothing in comparison as the giant felt his brain being shaken as if it was in a drink shaker.

When he came back to him he was on the ground, Irina beside him, he got up in spite of everything, to see if the ursine was well.

And she was not well...

Not to mention the shock of the explosion, a piece of shrapnel had managed to hit her, right in the liver.

The giant gritted his teeth.

Irina managed to open her eyes weakly.

Irina: Seb...

she said, coughing up mountains of blood. The doctor held her still with his hands.

He was in a much worse state, or would be if his resilience didn't took effect, but the ursine had received a fatal wound.

Sebastian: Save your strength-

*bam* *bam*

Shots rang out, again acting rather quickly, the giant raised his forearm to protect his face. The bullets stuck in his arm.

A van had just arrived from which was descending sanktahs armed to the teeth. The one who had just fired had an assault rifle, but he could easily see one armed with a shotgun, and a third with a heavy machine gun. He didn't take any more time to survey the weapons they had, as the giant began to take a veritable downpour of lead. Once again he stood in front of the ursine to prevent her from being further damaged by the fight.

Like an organized, trained squad, the sanktahs all took up positions and took cover.

The giant drew his revolver, retaliating and ignoring the rain of fire, which mixed with the celestial drizzle, and fired, emptying his barrel, the first two shots exploding the skulls of two soldiers who hadn't had time to take cover, their helmets flying as they were hit with the nine pellets of buckshot.

As he lost more and more biomass from everything that fell on him he called upon his sword, the weapon flying in his hand, he parried as many bullets as he could, using his other hand to throw a flashbang. Right where he was. He took advantage of the microsecond he had and took the young woman in his arms to jump behind his car. The vehicle being bulletproof, they were both safe for a moment. The giant looked at the young ursine who was at death's door.

His energy was already low. So to use his arts to heal her... And of course like an idiot, he who always planned everything, had not taken chlorophyte.

Bloody hell...

Was she going to die...?

No chlorophyte. No arts. And with combat, no ability to heal her in the standard way.

The dagger...

The giant had a suggestion in his mind, so supernatural, so unexplained...

And yet he grabbed the Kazimierzan dagger that had appeared in his hand before he even realized it. He placed one of his hands on the wound, gently removing the shrapnel.

He closed his eyes.

Not really knowing what was going to happen. He began to pray.

His instincts, his inner self, had guided him to the course of action he had taken. But now he didn't really know what to do...

So he began to pray. For the girl to survive.

With his eyes closed, he began to feel a presence around him. A soft warmth like the gentlest of hugs from his mother.

A light wind, coming from the west, the smell of valleys, hills and lakes.

A hand rested on the one holding his dagger. Holding his hand as if it were made of the most fragile porcelain.

Strangely, he didn't feel like opening his eyes, as if he wasn't quite in control of his actions. Another hand was placed on the hand of the giant which was on the wound of the young woman. Hands even more tender than the touch of a lover...

He felt again the heat crossing him, the torments driven out of his mind. Like a lighthouse in the middle of the fog. The presence that was with him reassured him.

He opened his eyes again, and could see golden flower petals flying all around him. Just like that day when he had received his dagger, or when he had met that lady who had told him where those who had taken the members of Penguin Logistics had gone.

But the most important thing was that the ursine wound was healed. Miraculously.

The giant felt strong in that moment. Even if he was weak, having a miracle save the person he cared about. He stood up, feeling the strength fill his veins.

He walked around his car and faced the squad of santkah who began to shoot again. The giant was losing more and more biomass, standing there motionless, and yet he refused to give in.

In his back he felt the same presence. But he refused to turn around and look.

You don't need to see me, to know that I'm with you...

The sanktahs stopped shooting, wondering if what they were seeing in the giant's back was a hallucination.

The giant's energy was restored, despite all the wounds, despite the short delay, all of it thanks to the presence.

Thinking about his next actions, he took control of the cells in his bones.

He could not regenerate as long as his enemies were watching. But his cells could duplicate themselves if they were not watched. Like the ones under his skin.

So Sebastian's bones began to grow. Pushing outwards, piercing his skin and flesh, beginning to form an armor around the giant, an armor made of his own bones, generating a terrible pain making him scream a blood curling roar.

But this pain was nothing compared to the pain that the loss of Irina would cause him.

The shots started to come again. Only to stop against the giant's bone armor.

The energy swelled his muscles and they became more explosive than ever. He threw himself forward, and it was a massacre on the sanktah side.

They could try any weapon they wanted, grenade launcher, shotgun at close range, sniper, any martial art they knew, nothing could beat something invulnerable.

When they were all blown to smithereens, the giant watched the blood drip off his armor, carried away by the rain, to mingle with the blood on the ground, going into the sewers in no time.

His gaze fell on a car further down the street, which started up, and sped off.

The giant picked up his sword and threw it with all his might at the car, slicing the vehicle in half and generating an explosion.

He walked slowly to the site of the accident. Noticing that the accountant was indeed inside. What a dumbass… To get present on the scene of the fight. Wounded and half burned, he pulled him out of the car, leaving him on the ground in the rain.

Zhao: You killed my brother you bastard!

The giant lifted his foot, and with a sharp hit

crushed the skull of the man in front of him.

Not bothering to listen to him.

Instead he leaned forward and picked up his cell phone.

He walked to the ursine who was under the rain, and put her in his car, so she wouldn't get even wetter and catch a cold.

He looked around, the sun setting on the horizon. Flooding the streets with its golden color while above the city the sky was black as charcoal with rain clouds. The falling water reflecting the light of the star.

This business was nearing its end, he could feel it.

He looked at himself in the car window, seeing his bone armor on the skin.

Sebastian sighed.

All he had to do now was rip his bones out.

Irina opened her eyes, snapping out of her dream, to see that she was in the world's end, sitting on a couch. With her senses she could hear the giant singing upstairs in the shower. She could see the traces of blood on the floor, so instinctively she looked to where her wound was only to see nothing anymore.

She just remembered the explosion, her wound, and that strange dream...

After a while the giant came down. Smelling good of soap, and dressed as usual. Even if he looked a little bit tired.

Sebastian: You're awake. Cool.

Irina: What happened?

Sebastian: We fell into a trap. You got hurt and passed out. But I was able to complete the mission and heal you. How do you feel?

Irina: Good...

She looked at her hands.

Irina: Doc, I had a weird dream...

Sebastian: What do you mean?

Irina: It was too real to be a normal dream. There was this woman-

Sebastian: You know it's getting harder and harder for me not to wonder about your sexual orientation.

Irina: Oh shut up! I'm not a lesbian! 'It's you that I love, you idiot!'

The ursine caught her breath, chasing away the embarrassment.

Irina: There was this woman... She held my head on her laps. We were in the middle of a clearing and the leaves on the trees looked golden. The woman who was there was dressed all in white, she had a veil, like the nuns, and long blond hair... But she was wearing this black blindfold, to hide her eyes.

Sebastian: Hm...

So far nothing weird.

Irina: She had wings on her back... But not like a sanktah, like bird wings, whiter than anything I've ever seen.

Sebastian: What was so strange about your dream?

Irina: I could feel her caressing my hair, Seb. I still remember the feeling... I could really feel the touch. I had all my senses, not like in a real dream, she smelled like nature... The smell that there is in the forest in spring. I remember everything... Nothing was a little foggy like in a normal dream, she was talking to me she was comforting me. She was telling me that everything would be okay, that you would be safe...

She looked down.

This woman in her dream had given her so much affection that it was disorienting for her.

Irina: She reminded me of my mother... Even though she didn't look like her at all.

The giant looked at the ursine in front of him. He too had felt this presence, while he was awake. He had felt the same indescribable emotions he felt when he used his arts, or when he used his dagger.

Sebastian: I don't know about that... I'd be mean if I said that the explosion shook us up a bit... But I'll try to do some research.

The door opened with a bang.

Angelina: Ahoy!

The vulpo walked into the bar, her infectious smile on her lips. The good mood she gave off quickly brought a smile to the doctor's lips.

Sebastian: Hi Angie.

Irina: Heh, I thought it was a day off today?

Sebastian: I asked for everyone to get together.

Soon the rest of their team arrived, everyone was gathered except for Texas. Emperor had just come down from the floor.

Nian: So doc, what are we all doing here?

Sebastian: Thank you all for coming.

He looked at all the members of the team he had assembled.

Exusiai, Mostima, Lappland, Sora, Emperor, Siege, Indra, Feater, Irina, Nian, Skadi, Waai Fu, Hung, Aak, Yushia Angelina...

Slightly unbalanced in terms of men, women. But it was his team. A team he was proud of and with whom he had bled these last days.

Sebastian: It's official, all four heads are dead. Only the main one is left. Phobos.

He showed a cell phone, which was not his.

Sebastian: Thanks to Zhao's data, I know everything there is to know about the triad... Just like I know there's only one of their strongholds left in town.

Lappland: The final battle...

She says with a big smile, eager for blood.

Sebastian: Exactly. I have the place where we will attack. I'm warning you. We're going to run into hell.

It was unusual to see the giant talking like that, as if he wanted to discourage them.

Sebastian: The enemies will be legions, well-armed, pushed to their limits. The catastrophes are all over the region right now so we have a very short window to act, or Phobos could escape as soon as they're over. So again, and one last time, I'm not forcing anyone. But I'm asking all of you. Who wants to come?

Some looked at each other in the bar.

Exusiai: To the end of the world, right doc? I'll come!

Mostima: If both of you are there, I'll come without even asking.

Lappland: As if I would miss such a fight!

Sora: They took advantage of my influence to distribute the drugs... I'll chase them to the ends of the earth if I have to!

Emperor: Aye... Sorry big guy, but I don't think I can be useful on the front line unless I get a gundam or some shit... Though, you get all my support.

Siege: ... You've helped me a lot... Me and my gang... I'll return the favor.

Indra: Ah, if a buddy calls me for a fight, I won't miss it!

Feater: Ooh, that'll give me inspiration for my movie battles... I'll come.

Irina: Do you really need to ask me? Of course I'm coming, what would you do without me ?

Nian: Heh. I could use a bit of a challenge to let off steam.

Skadi: Hm.

That was the only answer she could come up with because of the stress.

Everyone turned to her, putting a lot of pressure on her and adding to the anxiety she felt about speaking in front of others.

Skadi: I'll come...

Waai Fu: I don't have class tomorrow. So if we have a chance to fight the evil in the city, I can't not come...

Hung: Hey doctor, someone will have to take over if you're tired of taking the hits. So I'm coming.

Aak: Damn, and you all find interesting things to say, I just don't want to spend my day alone, so I'm coming.

Yushia: They dared to attack my family... It's a matter of honor. I will come and put an end to it too.

Angelina: I um... I will come too!

The giant smiled. Except for Emperor, who was much more of a supporter in this whole thing, everyone else wanted to come. And they seemed to be excited about it.

Sebastian: Good... So let's all meet here tomorrow morning at four o'clock. Until then, get some rest and get ready. We'll all need it. Or have a drink.

Before he even noticed, Sora slipped behind his back and went to the bar. And as soon as she was behind the cabinet, she gained that confidence and air she didn't have otherwise.

Sora: Are we having a contest again?

Sebastian: I've been waiting for this, my dear.

He also said with a smile, before starting to mix the drinks.

A short evening followed of a more quiet fashion. Most of the members avoiding to party before the battle and preferred to just relax.

The giant drove around Lungmen at night. He had received a message from an unknown number, telling him to meet in the city. Even though he had an idea who it belonged to. He stopped in front of a restaurant. The rather expansive kind.

He got out of his car, leaving his weapons inside to make a good impression.

His heavy grey trench coat on his back, the rain having reduced in intensity, but still being there.

He entered the restaurant and scanned the room for someone. In this case, the person he was interested in. A woman, near the restaurant window, a perro, blonde hair, Columbian clothes. She was looking outside, admiring the rain with a serene air. With her back to him.

The giant approached her.

Sebastian: Whether it's for a date or a secret meeting of scientists, I know much better places. Ms. Kirsten.

A/N: You want to know how many fanarts of her i could find that wasn't lesbian ? 0. That's why she doesn't get one as her illustration.

He sat down in front of her. And the woman started to smile.

Kirsten: I only chose the place that called to me the most.

She looked at the giant, scanning him from top to bottom. Making him raise an eyebrow in curiosity.

Kirsten: I'd expected you to be shorter.

Sebastian: I get that a lot.

Kirsten: Did you take care of that favor I asked of you?

The giant reached into his pockets and pulled out his cell phone, showing it to the perro. A video was playing on it.

It showed a man in an opera house, watching the play.

Sebastian: Can you confirm his identity?

Kirsten: That's him... That's M...

The giant picked up his phone for a moment and sent a message, then gave the video back to Kirsten.

Kirsten: This is live...?

The man in the video was shot in the head from who knows where, creating panic in the opera house, the video stopped.

Understanding that this man was indeed dead, the perro put the phone down gently before putting her face in her hands. More relieved than ever.

Kirsten: God... Finally...

She looked at the giant, her face on the verge of tears.

Kirsten: You have no idea what you just did for me, doctor... That man... stripped me of everything I had in an instant.

M, a man similar to this good Phobos. Some of those who slithered in the dark to gain control of the world.

Sebastian: So that's quite a service...

Kirsten: I imagine you have some requests and questions.

Sebastian: I do. How did you know about my team, Phobos, and the queen...

Kirsten: I have a certain talent... to be able to bring to light what is most important to keep hidden.

Sebastian: And I have only one request. That you leave Rhode Island, Ifrit and the former members of Rhine alone.

Kirsten: That goes without saying.

He was surprised that it was so easy.

Sebastian: I have your word...?

Kirsten: Of course. You just gave me back my life, and my dreams, Doctor. I owe you a lot and I won't hide it...

Sebastian: But you didn't come all the way to Lungmen for that...

He said, looking at the young woman's bag with papers sticking out of it.

Kirsten: You're very perceptive.

Waiter: Ladies and gentlemen, may I serve you?

Both were honestly surprised to be accosted by the waiter. They looked into each other's eyes, Kirsten had completely forgotten that they were actually in a restaurant. The giant shrugged his shoulders.

Kirsten: Have you eaten...?

Sebastian: No...

Kirsten: Well, while we're... I'll have the evening formula.

Sebastian: The same...

Waiter: And to drink?

Sebastian: A glass of mercurey for me.

Kirsten: Bring the bottle.

The giant was surprised.

Kirsten: Let me invite you. I can do that for you now...

Soon the waiter returned with the bottle, the giant serving them both out of politeness.

Kirsten: Good choice.

Sebastian: Thank you.

Kirsten: Tell me, Doctor. You are a man of immense intellect. So what do you see at night when you look up at the sky.

He frowned.

Sebastian: The fake sky...

Kirsten: Almost nobody in Terra has noticed that the stars in the sky have disappeared. And what do you think caused that?

He sat back in his chair. Thinking. He knew that the woman in front of him was gifted with an extraordinary intellect, and that she probably had more knowledge about this world than he did.

Sebastian: Judging by the overabundance of aurora in the icefields of Infy... Intensification of the planet's magnetic field. But given the fluctuations of the star in daylight, inadequate response with solar winds and irruptions. So I would say it's artificially induced coupled with the fact that the magnetic poles are too perfect. So the planetary shield must be acting up.

Kirsten: And that's it in ten seconds, the origin of the false sky of Terra... That's the second reason I came to you doctor. It's taken me ten years and thousands of men to figure it out.

Sebastian: If you need a scientist, then you have enough.

Kirsten: No, I don't. I don't need just any scientist. I need an expert in everything, with enough space to learn. I need you for this project. And no one else.

She took the blueprints from her satchel and laid them out before the doctor.

After a few seconds, his eyes widened.

He recognized the project in front of him. Or rather the general intention.

Sebastian: A colony ship...

He sat back in his chair, looking completely shocked. Running a hand through his hair.

Sebastian: That's...

Kirsten: Impressive?

Sebastian: Completely crazy.

Terrans didn't have gunpowder, knew only one of their continents. Stared extinction in the face. And yet here they were... already looking up at the stars.

Kirsten: I present to you the Horizon arc project.

He looked more closely at the plan.

Kirsten: So?

Sebastian: It's not going to work... The magnetic coils on the launch pad won't be powerful enough, nor will the ship's power source, it won't produce enough energy to power a shield sufficient to break through to high orbit... And to talk about the details of the ship itself, the gravity system is far too complex... The slightest mistake or accident would jeopardize the mission... Not to mention the cryogenic chambers, the greenhouses, and the main propulsion system which is... Draft. And liquid propellant for atmospheric passage is an idea to throw out the window, at least with this composition.

He looked up at the perro. And she could feel the passion in what he was saying.

Kirsten: That's why I wanted you. Doctor, I want you as the head of the project.

The giant was surprised. It was a huge responsibility.

Kirsten: I think you can do it.

Sebastian: Why...? Why all this?

Kirsten: Why? When we have not yet mapped our own continent... Or measured the height of our atmosphere, why engage in such a crazy project? Aren't we all born to pursue knowledge ? For we were all born with naught and yet even before we are given a language, our hands reach out, without being taught. All can see, all can know. We think, we uncover, we theorize. Us and those who come after. Bequests of the once great old, are dotting our land. But they do not grant us any enlightened futures. Real enlightenment hides within these black thorns of the crystalines. Originium, harbinger of our calamities, herald of our creations. Catastrophes engrave our minds and motions. And yet we remain, unbroken, unyielding just like our hopes. They transcend ages and yet remain strong. But a new border offers itself to us, doctor. Only fools remain stagnant. Idly descending as history drags them. Lifeless, eroded, like pebbles become sand. This is not the fate that we should wait for. Visions, not of the land beneath, but of a world above we shall seek. Forerunners were gone in glares. Aftercomers seek their vestiges, but dead the past shall remain, our only sight should be our future.

The doctor looked at the woman in front of him.

He was moved, not by Kirsten's speech alone, but by the will that transpired. The will of the great, the leaders, the heroes, the legends. Sebastian was certain when he saw her, Kirsten would succeed.

She would succeed in taking those indispensable giant steps.

Like a baby taking its first steps, he could see that it was Kirsten who would allow Terra to take its true first steps.

Sebastian: I'm in.

he said, convinced.

Sebastian: I'll work on the project.

The young woman took a sip of her wine. Her throat slightly dry.

Sebastian: You should keep a note of the speech though... For the general public...

The woman laughed slightly.

Kirsten: That was the plan... I wanted to try it out on you a bit.

Sebastian: Well, it's a success. I'll work on the project. But, I won't work only on it and nothing else. Save the people of terra by taking them to the stars, and I'll try to save them here.

Kirsten: Well... I can't refuse. Naturally, you will have all the resources you require in addition to the branch that has been created specifically for the project. You will also manage the selection of researchers, engineers, and settlers in any way you wish.

Sebastian: Kirsten. You are crazy.

Kirsten: I prefer the term visionary. Because I think you're doing a much better job than I am on the subject of crazy.

Waiter: Madam, sir.

The giant cleared away the plans, and as the evening wore on, the wine bottle was emptied. And the two brilliant minds exchanged. Meeting at last a mind on a par with the other.

Sebastian's knowledge was almost esoteric, as it seemed out of this world. Well, because it was. But he was sorely lacking in knowledge about the history of the world, its peculiar chemistry, and originium. His knowledge in engineering, astronomy, physics, chemistry, genetics was simply unrivalized.

But his few knowledge gaps that Kirsten was more than happy to fill with her own.

When the perro finished her dessert. She sighed, and looked at the giant with a smile on her face.

Kirsten: When you arrived, you told me that you knew of better places to go on a date or for a secret scientific meeting. But I'm sure this place has done well enough both.

She said, winking at the giant. It was not the wine that went to her head. But the scientist could not be more enthusiastic about the idea of having made a bond, with someone who shared the same ideas as her, and ready to help her.

Sebastian: Well... I expected you to be as professional as possible...

Kirsten: I'm still a woman doctor. Who just spent a memorable evening with a charming man, to whom she already owes a lot.

She began to write on a small piece of paper, that little smile on her face.

Kirsten: I think this will be an experience to be repeated.

She handed the paper to the giant. Her phone number.

Kirsten: I think you'll find this useful. Excuse me, Doctor, but I should get back to Columbia as soon as possible. I have a mountain of work to do. And you can keep the plans.

The young woman stood up, grabbing her coat.

Kirsten: I hope to hear from you soon. And I'm already looking forward to seeing you again.

She left, leaving a nice little wad on the table to pay, before walking out the door of the restaurant. She waved goodbye to the doctor.

Another woman further into the restaurant stood up. And the doctor wondered how he had missed her presence.

His eyes were caught.

She was a rather tall woman, dressed like a secretary, except for her eccentric coat. But what held the eye, other than her body that would make more than one man dream, was her animal features.

Feathers of a liber on the head, as well as a long serpentine tail in the back, in the tone of turquoise and gray. She was at the same time elegance, beauty, and attractiveness... With that little hint of dangerousness to top it all off.

Like the most beautiful flowers being the most dangerous.

Just as she was about to leave, she turned her gaze towards the giant. Her two turquoise orbs crossing his emeralds for what seemed like an eternity.

Then she gave a slight smile.

Not a normal smile, a smile that showed madness, not a naturally wide smile, like a snake opening its mouth, and besides, she showed two fangs in her mouth.

Maybe a second. But the giant had the impression that time was slowing down...

This woman, bewitched him. There were no other words. As soon as he had put his eyes on her, he couldn't take them off.

He didn't know her name, who she was or what she was doing there. But he wanted to get up and run after her to get his answers.

Realizing that this reaction was not like him, he remained firmly seated in his chair. Thanking her for remaining impassive.

She gave a wink. And walked out.

The giant caught his breath and put his hand on his heart.

Name of god...

This woman had made an impression on him.

Did he got roofie'd again for her to just leave him breathless like this ?

Or did he fell in love at first sight…

Nah. Didn't looked like him.

Ho'olheyak: He was devouring me with those eyes...

She said as if she was tired.

Kirsten: But what man doesn't when you come into his sight?

She smiled a cheshire gri. Reveling in the fact that everyone was vulnerable to her.

Ho'olheyak: The gays.

Kirsten: Is he reliable according to Maylander's information?

Ho'olheyak: Yes... Overall, he has some problems with alcohol, and violence but I've seen worse. He cares about his subordinates more than himself. And he has a soft spot for children, in a good way. One of the old watertank projects ended up there. He is ready to do anything for their well being, like Ifrit, or the sister of this reunion leader he saved.

She felt her madness rising again.

Ho'olheyak: He tries to make us think he's just a simple raceless... And not a Forerunner... What a fool. But he gives us so many weaknesses in others.

She says by laughing out loud. Already imagining herself playing with the doctor like a puppet.

Kirsten: We don't want him to be vulnerable. We want him to be our ally. Keep that in mind.

Ho'olheyak: I have a feeling we'll get along just fine~

Her snake tongue hissed, unintentionally.

Shortly after the two women left, Sebastian got up and left as the rain increased in intensity. A vein in his forehead, he looked at the weather control tower in the city.

Sebastian: Okay you won bitch. I'll take care of you.

The giant looked at the holographic display of his monitor to notice that he would not get much sleep tonight. Earning him a sigh. He had just come out of the weather control tower, the normally guarded object was easy to infiltrate for the good doctor. Who had gone to see what was wrong.

And what the hell...

What was right was more interesting to observe. The tower was in a pitiful state, as if there had been no requests for repairs and maintenance since its construction.

On his own and in such a short time he had not been able to repair it completely, but at least he had been able to stabilize it until the festival. He was on his way back, walking along the gigantic bridge that passed over the artificial lake and that was the only access to the control tower.

In his thoughts, he didn't even notice the figure on his left, behind the security railing.

Then after a few steps he realized that there was someone there. He turned, to see Skadi the young woman standing at the railing and looking out over the large expanse of water.

He wondered what she was doing here, then even if she had seen him... The young woman didn't bother to look at him either.

He approached her, being careful not to surprise her, and came to her side, leaning on the railing.

Sebastian: That's not salt water.

Skadi: I wasn't planning to swim...

There was again a slight silence between them. A little late at night, and slightly away from the city, there wasn't much noise here. It was relaxing.

Sebastian: Homesick?

he asked, noticing that the young woman was gazing at the water.

Skadi: You could say that...

Sebastian: How is Aegir?

Skadi: You don't know?

Sebastian: I learned the language... And I have an old aegir fairytale book... But that's all.

The young woman looked ahead, trying to remember as best she could the house she hadn't seen in so long.

Skadi: It's... Wonderful. Our cities are gigantic, protected by domes on the ocean floor. Our technologies are so great that no one needs to work without relying on the originium, the automatons take care of everything while the inhabitants do what they want. Science, arts, politics, philosophy.

The giant was admiring a real utopia on this cursed world of Terra. He didn't imagine that she could talk so much. But he wanted to listen to her. After all, she seemed so passionate about what she was saying, that he could not help but listen.

Skadi: We didn't have soldiers. Until the war against the seaborns...

Sebastian: The things I saw in your dream?

Skadi: Yes...

Sebastian: The aegirs like you, and Specter's, they are mixed up with those seaborns?

he asked, his question surprising the aegir. Of course he was right, but it was kept secret. He could probably figure it out because of their peculiar appearance, and the fact that they had a psychic presence infinitely stronger than the standard aegir.

Skadi: Yes... It was a project to end the terrors. I thought I was the only one left...

Sebastian: Well, at least you can be happy that Laurentina is alive.

Skadi: Alive, and completely crazy.

She says, showing the most subtle hint of annoyance in her voice.

Sebastian: That's better than dead. Madness is fixable, not death.

He said, taking a sigh before getting up instead of leaning on the railing.

Silence returned.

Skadi took advantage of the silence. For with the doctor by her side, the presence in her head was silenced. The calm... The calm she felt around him was such a rare commodity that she couldn't help but appreciate it.

Skadi: Aren't you an aegir, doctor?

Sebastian: Despite my amnesia I am certain of the fact that I am not. I'm a raceless, with a lot of genetic mutations. And yet I bet I swim faster than you.

The young woman let out a slight gasp, like a laugh.

She wasn't expressive about anything. So for her, this was the closest thing to a mocking laugh. And the doctor understood that.

Skadi: I doubt it.

The giant took off his coat, under the eyes of the young woman, folded it carefully and put it on the low wall that separated the crosswalk and the road from the bridge.

Sebastian: Shall we bet?

He climbed the railing, and jumped, leaving a wide-eyed Skadi behind.

The giant reached the water after a dozen meters of fall, diving like an athlete. She put her sword on the wall and jumped too.

Once underwater she took a breath thanks to her gills, and could see the doctor treading water a few meters away. He didn't seem to be holding his breath, and on the contrary, he seemed to be sucking up water like her. He smiled like an idiot, then began to swim. And the aegir started to chase him...

If he wanted to race with her then this idiot will regret it she thought...

Damn, this bastard was swimming faster than her.

The young woman was surprised, she was an Aegir, a hunter of the abyss. And yet an earthling was swimming faster than her.

He stayed just ahead, and she didn't really know if it was because she was swimming just a little slower, or if he was just letting her keep the slightest trace of hope.

She redoubled her efforts, until finally, after a few minutes, the conclusion came. The doctor was simply faster.

Slightly discouraged, the aegir stopped, the doctor doing the same.

The abyssal hunter took one look at the doctor, and was about to prove to him that she was a better swimmer. She lunged forward once as if to catch him.

He immediately dodged by propelling himself upwards. But he seemed to have understood the intention. A simple game, where one had to touch the other. Their game continued and it seemed that the doctor was enjoying himself, taking the role of the most lively of the prey.

And as the aegir spent her phenomenal energy, a smile appeared on her lips. Not a half smile, or what was on her face the rest of the time. A real, honest smile.

God, how long had it been since she'd had this much fun?

For years?

Nah, she hadn't had this much fun since before her transformation.

After a few minutes, she threw in the towel again. The giant swam to the surface, before jumping out of the water to land on the bridge where their things were. The aegir did the same, landing next to the doctor, a slight laugh escaping her lips.

She glanced at the doctor to see that he was completely dry.

Skadi: I recognize it doctor... You are a good swimmer...

Sebastian: Oh, thank you.

Skadi: Do you breathe underwater?

Sebastian: In a way. But not like the aegir.

The giant smiled, slightly tired from his effort. Then he felt a call through the psychic web.

An invitation to commune.

Communing was a unique gesture among the aegir, the act of connecting one's minds to share emotions for a short time. For them it was a bit like hugging, but slightly less intimate. It was a demonstration of affection, not rare to practice with friends. And even less rare with lovers or family …

Something with which he was not foreign, thanks to his unique relationship with Specter.

The giant accepted with pleasure. Opening his psychic channels to let the aegir's mind meet his own.

His emotions were simple. He had just had fun so he was happy, he was receiving a demonstration of trust and affection so he was happy.

It didn't go any further than that.

On the other hand for Skadi, he felt joy, yes, immense joy emanating from her. But despite the little power he had with his psyche, his mind was sharpened, deep inside her he could feel terror, fear, loneliness. The same emotions that he had felt in Specter. And underneath that discreet, but intense layer, a rage... A rage so intense that it surprised even the doctor. A rage similar to that of all the sarkazs combined.

And a part of her mind that was closed off.

Except that Skadi was trying to hide these emotions, to repress them.

The giant dug, questioning through the psychic web. Surprised by the giant's suddenly overwhelming psychic presence through the psychic web, instead of shutting everything down, she opened everything up. All her psychic barriers.

Just as soon, the giant felt his mind transported elsewhere.

He was back on the beach, the black sand beneath his feet, the sky and the gray sea before him stretching as far as the eye could see. He looked around, seeing the familiar cliffs with no one on top this time. As well as Skadi who was lying on the sand a little further away. Seemingly asleep.

He felt again a divine presence in his mind.

In the water, like a tsunami, something rose up, standing in front of the doctor with its gigantic presence.

It reminded him of leviathans, a serpentine creature rose before him, its jaw smiling carnivorously.

?: And you stand before me... Doctor... Admire, admire my greatness, admire the devourer of all life, the endless ocean of rage! Ishar-Mia!

The creature screamed intimidatingly.

Sebastian: Hm.

He stood still. Not looking shocked or terrified.

Ishar-Mia: Kneel down.

Sebastian: Uh, no.

The deity looked at the giant, who was still unimpressed. Despite his psychic presence being more overwhelming than hundreds of abyssal hunters, the giant was not touched.

Ishar-Mia: You... Uh, you're not afraid?

Sebastian: I expected worse. Tentacles, lots of mouths, eyes everywhere, the kind of things that escape logic... I've seen worse. You're just a really big fish.

The creature started screaming again. Outraged.

Ishar-Mia: How dare you, poor mortal! I will kill you! Destroy everyone you care about!

Sebastian: Hey, no need to scream. You can't hurt me here. We're not in the real world.

He sat down on the sand.

Sebastian: On the other hand, we are in your mind, so I can destroy you.

The deity felt his mind being infiltrated by the doctor's, the reality around them shattering, like glass.

He thought he heard the deity laugh for a moment.

Ishar-Mia: You fool... If you kill me, you kill her too...

The cracks stopped. The giant began to think about what he was doing before he made a mistake.

Ishar-Mia: My mind is in her mind... You can't kill me without hurting her. And you're that kind of person, right? The ones who refuse to sacrifice one innocent life, to save thousands in the end...

The giant frowned.

Touché.

He wouldn't choose to sacrifice Skadi's life in order to kill the creature in front of him.

Ishar-Mia: Weak. Indecisive. Like all the other species.

The giant sighed. Then he lay down on the shore, closing his eyes, relaxing to the sound of the waves.

Ishar-Mia: What are you doing?

Asked again the deity who seemed surprised. Because it was not used to not being treated seriously.

Sebastian: Please be quiet. I want to enjoy the sound of the waves.

Ishar-Mia: How dare you!

Sebastian: Oh stop yelling... I can't kill you, and you can't kill me. Skadi is in REM sleep, so we have about twenty minutes before we have to say goodbye. So either shut up and I'll wait for it to be over or we make the conversation.

He opened one of his eyes and looked at the big snake.

Sebastian: So?

For a deity it was pretty dumb. Not really knowing what to say, and rather than spending twenty minutes trying to intimidate or insult him, the deity lay down in the water, waiting too. It's head resting on the edge of the beach.

...

Ishar-Mia: How much time do we have left?

Sebastian: I would say fifteen minutes...

Ishar-Mia: That's a long time.

Sebastian: Doesn't a deity know how to handle eternity?

He asked, raising an eyebrow, clearly thinking he was looking at a cheap god.

Ishar-Mia: Yes, but the whole time I lived I was doing something interesting... Not nothing...

Sebastian: So there you go, I would have taught you what boredom is.

...

Sebastian: By the way, why destroy the world, all that?

Ishar-Mia: For the good of my superior race! So that it can rule over these uncontested lands for millennia and over the stars!

The giant had his eyebrow raised. Still not convinced by the snake.

Sebastian: Yeah, but why?

Again the deity was bewildered. It was destructive, commanding armies to invade the land. it was not used to being questioned.

Ishar-Mia: Because my race is superior-

Sebastian: Really?

He half stood up.

Sebastian: If the Aegir didn't suck so bad with the war you wouldn't be here anymore. You don't create anything. You haven't made a single discovery or scientific breakthrough, all the knowledge you've gained you steal. You have no culture, no language, no history, no will of your own. You are only parasites, plankton that unite to try to form a whole. You have neither arts, nor philosophy. Neither dreams, nor hopes. You are nothing, you know nothing. You do not know sadness, joy, love. Despite all your so-called qualities. You don't reach one tenth of the complexity of humans. Look at you now, you don't know how to answer, you don't even know how to find reasons for your will. You have developed a conscience of your own by being trapped in this body, so use it. Ask yourself questions and maybe you'll get a soul. Instead of being just a fragment of the hive.

The deity remained silent. Feeling it's memory being searched on the surface by the doctor, who was retrieving knowledge about the sea terrors, confirming his suspicions.

Sebastian: Humans are forged in the flames of hell, and by the hammer strikes of life. Over the millennia we have built, loved, explored, discovered. We have dared to embark on crazy projects, because daring is what we do best. We dare to stand up to all the crap the world throws at us, and we get up every time. And you, what have you dared throughout your history? To go to war against an enemy that didn't even know how to fight anymore? You were lurking in the abyss. And you think you're superior, while we're the ones who'll be leaving for the stars in a short while.

Confident and smiling a little, Sebastian began to let his memories of earlier in the evening slip away. Showing the deity the project arc horizon.

The snake stood up slightly surprised. The will to build the colony ship was the last nail in the coffin.

The humans were already one step ahead.

The doctor's words entered it's head. She tried to search through the memories she had assimilated, all the rhetoric of great Aegir thinkers, but nothing. The deity could not find an answer to give.

It, who crushed by numbers and brutality, was destabilized, realizing that it would take something else against this man.

And for once, for millennia, the divine will of the oceans asked itself questions, because it did not find an obvious answer.

So like a child who was confronted for the first time to a will different from his own, the god repeated.

Ishar-Mia: And yet my race dominates yours.

Sebastian: Oh for fuck's sake, you're getting on my nerves.

With his psychic influence, if he could not destroy, Sebastian made a chessboard appear on the beach.

Sebastian: It's a simple game of strategy. But every time the winner is the most intelligent of the two players, and the one who is the most clever strategist.

The snake stood up in all its splendor.

Of course, a hive-mind assimilating deity in the deepest abyss had never played a game.

Ishar-Mia: I don't know the rules. The aegirs don't have this game and neither does my host.

The giant sighed again, letting out some knowledge, the basic rules of chess, knowledge that the divinity devoured.

Ishar-Mia: Poor fool... In spite of my physical absence, I still have thousands of sea terrors that are under my psychic influence and that participate to my great intelligence! I can already calculate most of the possible options of a game!

Sebastian: Damn I'm not deaf... But since I'm a poor mortal who has no chance I can start first.

With pride the snake accepted.

Ishar-Mia: Of course, that only postpones the inevitable.

Big mistake.

The game began.

Then after a few moments, the snake moved its pieces by psychic force.

Shepherd's Mate.

Ishar-Mia: I... Lost?

Sebastian: Yep...

The god howled with rage and disappointment. The giant simply cut off his ability to hear.

Sebastian: You still think your race is better than mine?

he said, slightly satisfied. As the god continued to howl, he began to think.

Humans were definitely not something as simple as jt would have thought.

The reality around them began to fracture again.

Sebastian: Ah, she's waking up. Well, it was interesting while it lasted. But now I can stop stressing about sea terrors.

Reality broke completely, and the giant opened his eyes again, standing on the deck, next to Skadi, who opened hers shortly after.

Skadi: What happened...

She said, holding her head. Before seeing the giant who was getting up, in great shape.

Skadi: You saw it...

Sebastian: Yeah. Ishar-Mia was it? Can you explain it to me?

Skadi: Our last battle was against this leviathan... Almost all the abyssal hunters died. And I was wounded... My blood mixed with his. And now it lives inside me.

She looked at her hand.

Skadi: He presses on my mind and my blood... To gain control of my body and regain a physical form in the world...

Sebastian: And you are able to fight it's influence?

Skadi: Yes... I was just surprised by the effect of our communion, and I let my guard down... It shouldn't happen again.

Sebastian: Well, luckily I was there... I'm already enough in my head being alone, I can't imagine what it's like to be several.

Skadi: When I'm near you, he shuts up... It's soothing.

Sebastian: So if you ever get annoyed with him or want to be quiet, come and enjoy it with me.

He held out his hand to the young woman who stood up.

Sebastian: Can I give you a ride? I have my car at the end of the bridge.

Skadi: Yes... That would be nice.

The giant smiled, and set off. The aegir followed.

Ishar-Mia: Do I have a consciousness...?

The aegir was surprised to hear the voice of her demon. But this time she didn't feel the rage that was pushing at the door of her soul.

Skadi: 'Why do you ask?'

Ishar-Mia: I... need to know.

Skadi: 'I am not a philosopher. But if you are able to make a decision independently of Legion, then I guess.'

The deity began to draw on the memories of those she had assimilated, all the knowledge. Realizing one thing. She had become independent of the hive mind, her connection severed. But for all that she was really. And with all the knowledge she had, she began to answer some questions... To find ten more.

Without realizing it that night, Sebastian insulted a deity that he considered ridiculous. The fragment of a hive mind, which independently began to think for itself.

Through his encounter with Ishar-Mia the leviathan, a consciousness of its own was emerging.

Like an A.I. seeing the day from a packet of data, Ishar-Mia remained silent. Thinking.

That night, as the young woman returned to the hotel room she had checked into when she arrived in town, She was surprised that the creature was silent.

And even once she was asleep, as she dreaded every night, she did not have to undergo a long, gruesome psychic torture session aimed at making her succumb to the rage, and embrace her sea terror blood. Instead, Ishar-Mia asked questions.

About what it was. About what the world was. It's infinite rage, calmed by reflection.

While Sebastian, in his hotel room, was sleeping lightly. Feeling the stress of the next day's battle.

To be continued...

A/N: Whooooooo, that's a wrap. Honestly proud of myself, for the quickness of my work. Hope ya'll get luck on Penance and Texas alter. Even if i'm only pulling for justice lady. Also i was kinda driven mad by Ho'olheyak during the writing of this chapter, so even if it didn't really fit in the schedule i have ahead for this book and the next. Also I tried to make honor to Skadi, even if it is a character i don't really love (Andreana and Gladiaa being by far my favorite AH and Aegirs), she became a surprisingly complex character. But I know how many of ya'll love her so I tried. And the more i think about it, the more i'm making similarities between Legion of Mass effect and Ishar-Mia.

Enough talking. See you next chapter dear gents. For the last chapter of this arc. (Except if it is too long and i gotta cut it in two.)

The sounds of heels could be heard on the marble floor. As a young kuranta, her breathing erratic from the stress, began to march toward a forsaken part of her mansion.

During that walk that seemed to last an eternity. She began to wonder.

Would she really be up to the task ? Would she be able to save her family and her name ?

Would she even be able to lift a weapon in the arena ?

Would they try to kill her ?

She stopped in front of a large door in the wall of a dusty bedroom. Took a deep breath, and placed her soft hand that never harmed anyone on the handle.

Would hardship make her shine, and restore her family's honor ?

Or would she just blemish their name ?