"Araksis…" A weak voice called out, "Araksis…"

Eyes stirred awake as a headache of pain wracked through the one called Araksis, an Eliksni, a mere Dreg. The only thing he could see was darkness, with a tiny bit of light from above filtering down through particulates of dust. For an Eliksni, that was no problem. The dark was easy to navigate, "Araksis…" Araksis body tensed up as he heard the voice of his Captain; he tried to move but found that rubble had covered him from the waist down, rebar, concrete, and the remains of a walkway lay on top of him.
He grunted and squirmed, his heart beating loudly, "CAPTAIN!" He cried in a panic, "Captain, I am here!" Araksis looked down and hissed, but relief washed over him as his legs finally responded.
"Araksis…." His Captain called out a cough interspersed between his words, "Where are you…"
"I'M HERE! I AM COMING!" Araksis grunted as he pressed his hands on the debris holding him down and pushed up, the debris barely lifting an inch before he had to let go. "I'm stuck! Captain, can you make it to me?" he called out but received no answer. "Captain? CAPTAIN!?" Only silence greeted his second attempt.
The Dreg began to pant, his chest heaving and falling as panic set in. He was going to die… His Captain wasn't coming and was likely dead. What was he supposed to do? Would anyone come to check on them? Araksis didn't know, and that terrified him-

"Araksis…" His Captain's voice called out once more.
A sudden adrenaline rush pushed through Araksis' circulatory system like a starving Dreg on an Ether binge. With renewed vigor, he pushed the debris up and kept pushing and pushing until he could feel the room around his legs; he quickly looked around and found a metal pipe; using one hand to keep the debris up, he'd swiped the pipe before placing it between the floor and the debris. The metal audibly creaked but held long enough for Araksis to pull himself out as it snapped, and the debris landed on the ground with a loud echoing thud.

Araksis swung his head around and raced to where he heard his Captain weakly gasping, "Captain!" After a short sprint, he found his Captain resting against debris, his hands clutching his stomach. The larger Eliksni barely moved his head, only tilting it enough to face Araksis. The light shining from above illuminated his alabaster-white helmet, showing the massive dent that had formed on its side, reddish-purple blood oozing from the impact site.
"Araksis…"
The Dreg rushed up to his Captain's side, kneeling by his side, "I am here," Araksis looked at his Captain's body and gritted his teeth, "What do I-" His voice left him as his Captain coughed and wheezed, deep shallow breaths following suit.
"Nothing…" His Captain spoke, head shifting to look Araksis in the eyes, "Araksis…" He coughed as one of his hands rose from the stomach, revealing a piece of rebar piercing through his midsection, reddish-purple blood soaking his hands and the pipe.
Reality began to dawn on Araksis, "I… I can call for the crew… They'll be down here quickly and-"
His Captain shook his head, "No… I am finished…" He coughed and raised his hands to the seals of his helmet with a sharp hiss; unlocked, he cast the helmet aside. Only two of his four eyes remained; blood flowed profusely from the deep gash on the right side of his head and across the rest of his face; at the site of the wound, the chitin had broken like plates. His Captain stared at him with his remaining two eyes, "The Lightbearer… He hit harder than I thought he would… But… I am glad you survived…"
"Captain… I-"
"Araksis, stop with the formalities…" His Captain spoke firmly, a hand grabbing Araksis by the shoulder and pulling him close, "This is it for me… The crew needs a strong Captain…"
A tidal wave of confusion washed over Araksis as his eyes darted across his captain's body, "No… I don't understand. What do you mean, Cap-Yvilkris?"
Yvilkris' lips split into a sly smile, his hand moving up to hold Araksis by the side of his face, "You'll do quite fine…" His breath began to weaken, his chest's pace slowing, "You'll do fine… You're a fine…" His hand moved across Araksis' face, dragging and leaving blood in three large streaks across his face, "A fine son…" The smile grew, and with the last of his strength, he hugged Araksis, holding him against his chest.
Stunned, Araksis didn't move. He didn't dare try to pull away from his Captain. Instead, he listened to every breath until it stopped until the chest stopped moving. His eyes watering up as the muscles that held him in place relaxed and allowed him to pull away; he stared down at his ca- no Yvilkris' body and remained silent; after a moment, his head shifted to the right, glancing at the helmet. He approached it and bent down to pick it up; however, he noticed that just a bit further ahead of the helmet were Yvilkris' Wire Rifle and Arc Sword. Araksis then looked at the helmet, silently staring at its damaged surface before taking it and slipping it on.
It smelt of blood, and the dent made it uncomfortable to wear. The cracked glass of the visors made it challenging to see through, but Araksis didn't process this. Instead, he gathered Yvilkris' weaponry, slinging the Wire Rifle over his shoulder while holstering the Arc Sword's sheath to his hips. He looked back at Yvilkris' body and clutched his hands into fists. Then, looking up, he let out a snarl and hiss before screaming as loud as he could.
Yvilkris' death would not go unpunished.

The Lightbearer would pay.
He'd savor every moment of their screams.
Bloodshed would be repaid in bloodshed.

/.\./.\

Araksis' grip tightened on the handle of his blade, and he pulled it through the rest of the metal, tearing it down in the process. Much to his chagrin, what came out was an unpleasant sight. Another human, though drenched in fear, Araksis didn't spare much of a thought other than that he was going to run the welp through with his blade. The Human Male also seemed to have picked up on this, attempting to crawl back in a pathetic attempt to extend its life, but before Araksis could even bring his blade down, the sound of distant explosions caught his attention.
His head shot away from the human and out to the courtyard. He noticed that the commotion had thrown everything into disarray, followed by continued explosions. His Archon, Riksis, barked orders as the civilians present scrambled for safety. A soft growl escaped from his lips. Araksis shot his head back to the human, and much to his chagrin, the human had gotten up and made a break for the path behind him.

No!

Such an action would not stand!
Araksis broke into a sprint and partial animalistic run, using his free lower arms to propel him forward in occasional bursts and allowing him to close the distance between himself and the human. The speed at which he moved would also save his life.

As soon as he was about to catch the human, Araksis felt the ground rumble or something above him rumbled. Had he been any slower, rubble would've crushed and ended his life, but as luck would have it, he had been fast enough to dodge out of the way.
The path back toward the courtyard now blocked by concrete rubble, and dust had kicked up, obscuring his vision and helmet sensors. But for a moment, Araksis swore he saw something, a figure standing at the now-present hole formed in the ceiling. Yet as the dust cleared, the figure was not there, and Araksis was cut off from his men, though he could hear them crying out his name and weeping.
"I'M NOT DEAD!" Araksis howled, his grip tightening on his blade. He didn't need to glance over his shoulder to know the human was getting away.
"OH! THANK THE GREAT MACHINE!" He could hear one cry from the other side, "DON'T WORRY CAPTAIN! WE'LL DIG YOU OUT!" It was, unfortunately, the more dimwitted of the two that answered.

"I can't believe he survived that," The other whispered before breaking out with vigor, "DON'T WORRY, CAPTAIN! WE'LL HAVE YOU OUT SOON!"
Araksis let out a growl, and of course, the morons thought he was buried beneath the rubble. He could feel every muscle in his body tense and stress itself as if holding him back from flying into a rant at the two's words. And yet, as he- No… No need for a rant, "NO! I'M ON THE OTHER SIDE! NOW GET TO THE KETCH AND SEND THE CREW TO MY LOCATION. I AM GOING AFTER THE HUMAN!" With that said and stressed, he turned on his heel and pursued after the human. He may not have seen where the human had run off or in what direction, but he had a good feeling that they would get lost far easier than he ever would. After all, he lived here for quite a long time and knew it like the back of his hand.

Despite its degradation and decayed state, the Cosmodrome, once a great human structure, had managed to hold out through the centuries since its original abandonment. The colossal, sprawling facility once hosted humanity's space flights. To this day, ships are still connected to their towers, waiting to be used and standing ominously as a reminder of what had been.

But this only mattered to a human; for an Eliksni such as himself, it was a home, a place to build something, a place to shelter. Araksis jumped from platform to pylon to support struts, his claws effortlessly latching onto the surfaces as he pulled himself up a wall and onto the roof. The chill winds swept through his cloak as he sprinted on all fours. He reached the edge and lept over it, landing on a metal platform and continuing his chase.

There were few routes for the human to take, and Araksis doubted the troublesome creature knew the Cosmodrome all that well. So, the risk of them taking a chance to escape through the walls was next to zero; after all, it would be easy pickings. The darkness was a place Eliksni could survive in with little trouble, and humans were next to useless without a light source to guide them.

It was honestly a pity.

Yet their evolutionary downsides were a boon for Araksis, making them predictable. Their soft, squishy bodies couldn't endure the pain an Eliksni could; they couldn't regenerate limbs over time. They could not live in conditions where toxic waste or radiation was abundant; humans died in those conditions, starving far more quickly. But most importantly, humans couldn't run as fast as an Eliksni or for as long as one, and they lacked the strength to match in close combat.

A grin spread across Araksis' lips; he spotted the human running in the open field up ahead. As he reached the end of the metal platform, he leaped over the railing, landing on a small garage roof, and continued his pursuit; as the roof ended, he jumped down and moved on all fours in a sprint.

The distance between them grew smaller. Araksis switched from all fours to a standard sprint, his lower pair of arms unsheathing his swords and passing them up to his upper pair while every muscle in his body tensed; the perfect moment presented itself. Araksis lept forward, both blades coming down on the human's back, yet missed by a hair inch, and in that moment, the human briefly turned around; his clutched hand swung forward and opened, and an object thrown right at him.

Light enveloped Araksis's vision and intense heat washed over him. Flames licked across his body, yet they never touched him. A field of energy rippled and crackled; his energy shield had protected him. As his vision cleared and the flames subsided, he lunged forward at the human who had not moved a single inch.

His blade caught between sharp teeth and intense jade eyes boring into him. A young human with yellow-gold hair and an x-shaped scar across his face had bitten down, caught his blade mid-swing, and held it in place.

For once in his life, Araksis was stunned at such a bold action, something so nonsensical he could only swear that those things, the lightbearers were capable of such a feat. In the second that followed, Araksis activated his blade's Arc energy field, setting it alight with crackles of energy traveling along the blade. It would've fried the human, but the young male seemed barely bothered even as his skin burned and charred; worse yet, it unnaturally healed even as it burned away.
Whatever the case, all it needed was an application of more force! Araksis let out a growl and pressed forward, and with his free arm ready, his second blade, whatever this human was, it would die here and now! And yet, the human was not yielding even as the Arc energy burned-
Suddenly, a force hit his stomach and sent Araksis back by several feet, his shields taking the brunt of the impact before they broke and his hardy carapace-covered body taking the rest. He landed on his back and let out a hiss, a growl as he chittered, head rising just in time to see the younger human lunge forward. The world slowed down as adrenaline pumped through his veins, just enough for him to glimpse a shimmer closing in from the side, the air crackling, and a field of energy, no, a cloaking field dispersed, exposing the sharp, pointed end of a Shock Pike. As the remainder of the field broke away, it briefly revealed the figure of a fellow Eliksni, a Vandal, one of his right-hand men.

His Lieutenant, Zeivick, Master of Arms, always had convenient timing when needed, which was outshined by Zeivicks skill that earned him his place as a Lieutenant.

The blade crackled with Arc energy as it was jammed right into the younger human's gut, the pike embedded deeply, skin burned from the release of volatile energy, and as the blade pulled out, blood burst onto the grass. Most importantly, the sudden surprise strike was enough to send the human staggering back, hands held tightly around the wound as he growled like a feral animal.
Zeivick cloaking field enveloped him again, but Araksis knew he was still present, poised to strike again.

Araksis jumped back to his feet, remaining sword in hand, the blade coming to life as Arc energy coursed through it, "What good timing you have, Zeivick," His eyes focused on the wounded human, a soft hiss escaping his lips as the human wound knitted itself shut, skin healing over, the younger human eyes full of hate. Still, he did not yet move, instead remaining in a tense stance as those jade eyes observed him, "You saw it already; he's unnaturally strong, but not invincible," It was clear one of them had to make the first move, and it would be them, yet before he could move a voice called out.

All three fighters turned their head to the source.

"Wait! We don't want to fight!" It was perfectly understandable, not human, Eliksni, but its source was the human dressed in green, "Please just hear us out, Captain Araksis!" The human he had been chasing stepped forward, though not past his compatriot, who grumbled something in his native tongue.

"Captain," Zeivick said, glancing at him. It was quite the predicament, a human speaking perfect Eliksni; it was impressive. Yet they were humans. They must die no matter what, and if Araksis were caught engaging in conversation. Araksis glanced to the corner of his helmet's HUD, a string of transmitted code moving along, position and coordinates, weapon transmit, and then a percentage bar. Araksis raised his lower left hand and narrowed his gaze.

An opportunity presented itself once more.

"Why should I listen to you?" Araksis pointed his blade at the human, "You're on our grounds, trespassing, attacking us; those explosions must've come from your allies, no?" He didn't have much proof beyond human being a human, and where there was one, there were always more, and the timing of the attacks. It was the only thing that made sense, but the human didn't flinch at the accusation. A determined look had been etched across his face.

"I don't know what happened there, but I can promise you I have no involvement, nor my friend here," The human shook his head and took another step forward, "I don't know how to explain this or whether you'll believe, but we aren't from here wherever here is…" A soft pause followed as the human glanced off to the side.
"A likely story. You're just another rat coming to harm us again," Araksis retorted with a half-hearted laugh, "To take away what we value." He gestured with his right arm to the Cosmodrome. It may have been rust and debris, but it was something for his people rather than nothing. He glanced at the corner of his HUD, reading the feed.

/…TransmatStatus… 35%.../

A few more minutes were all he needed at most.

The human's brows furrowed as sweat beaded down the side of his cheeks, "W-well, I swear on my honor as an honest Merchant that I, Otto Suwen-"

"Save the pleasantries, get to the point, or I'll gut you," Araksis hissed; his interruption seemed to anger the blonde, who stepped forward, snarling something in his native tongue. A small chuckle escaped Araksis, "Struck a nerve, did I?" A part of him wondered if the blonde would get back up if he lobbed off his head or stabbed him in the heart.
And he was entirely right. The young human was taking another step forward and speaking rather loudly, and while he couldn't understand a lick of his words, it was clear that the young human was easily goaded. Araksis primed himself for the first move, getting ready for whatever the blonde would do. However, his ally called out, causing the young human to pause and snap back at his companion.

The human, Otto, gulped, "Garf! Just hold on for a minute; they have Petra!" He urged his words, causing the blonde Garf's eyes to widen with shock. Sweat ran down his face. Otto's gaze returned to Araksis, "Listen, we're not from this world. It's hard to explain, but we were taken from our home. You have one of our friends. I implore you to bring her back and let us go!"

The humans' words were sincere, a rarity; however, that did not change the fact that the people before him were humans, and even the most heartfelt words could easily be well-rehearsed lies. Araksis glanced at the percentage bar.

/…TransmatStatus… 60%.../

Almost there.

/…TransmatStatus… 65%.../
Almost there…
Araksis stood tall and huffed, "So, that's the girl's name? Petra, I see I have a bargaining chip," A hearty chuckle left his lungs, "How quaint. It seems I hold the cards and your lives in my hand."
"Yes… You do," Otto said as he stepped back, "Please, we're far from home, and we don't mean any harm. Perhaps we can provide a service to you, and in return, you help us?"

It was a bit of a shame; Otto seemed almost amicable, and his perfect Eliksni was admirable, a pity that it wouldn't work out. Araksis glanced again at the percentage bar and stepped back, blade lowering as he shook his head, "A part of me wishes I could believe you; I truly mean it," He locked eyes with the human one more time, "But you saw, what awaits those that fail the House of Devils."

/…TransmatStatus…100% Location confirmed and firing…/

In a split second, the transmat fired off the roar of machinery coming to life, and Araksis jumped back, landing on the materialized hull of the Walker, a hand grabbing onto a railing as the weapon of war fired off its round. The round detonated and kicked up dirt and smoke, small debris raining down. Then suddenly, the pair burst out from the smoke, unharmed, and Otto was carried over Garf's shoulder.
"What!" Araksis cried out; the sheer sight of it left him stunned. The Walker whirred and whurred, its large legs moving as it tracked the pair. However, they were faster and stayed ahead before Garf managed a herculean leap onto some platforms on an interior wall and disappeared inside. The Captain jumped off the Walker and sheathed his sword, glancing at where the duo had run off before walking around the Walker, and Zeivick appeared from his concealment.

"Captain," Zeivick called out, "What do we do?" But Araksis did not answer; instead, he stared at where the Walker had fired and stepped forward. With the smoke cleared, it became clear how the duo had survived. A wall of earth had been raised, meters thick enough to take the shot from the Walker and leave a decent crater in the center. Araksis raised his upper right hand and felt along it, "Captain, what shall we do?" A small device fitted around Araksis's upper right arm began to beep rapidly.
Araksis pulled his hand back, stared at it, then the device, and chittered, speaking low, "Zeivick, we will find these Lightbearers and," Zeivick stepped back as Araksis stepped towards him.
"Tear them apart."

/.\./.\

Garfiel Tinsel's instincts had roared at him not to trust a single thing when he saw those creatures, and that instinct had been right; fortunately for him, his amazin' self was quick on his feet to react. Though admittedly, that small fight did leave him hurting, thanks to his sturdy nature and the Divine Protection of Earth Spirits, the wounds were gone. Garfiel puffed up his chest and smiled, scratching his cheek, "They ain't got nothin' on my speed, huh bro?" He glanced down to Otto, who was currently heaving with wide eyes and holding his chest, murmuring like a madman.
"We were so close to death; what even was that thing? How did they make it appear like that?" The answer to all of these in Garfiels mind was simple: with a smile, he knelt and patted his bro on the shoulder.

"'s simple, thr' ain't no way they beat my amazin' self, now ya good t'move?" Otto looked over his shoulder, exasperation and delight etched into his face as he turned around to hug Garfiel, "Woah!"
"THANK YOU FOR SAVING MY LIFE!" Cried the Merchant. Otto pulled a hand away to wipe away the tears in his eyes, "But… We have to go back for Petra," He stood up and ran a hand through his hair, "Which is going to be harder than expected," Otto scratched his chin, "We'll have to regroup and figure out a plan to retrieve her."

Garfiel clicked his tongue and looked off to the side while leaning against a stone wall. Petra… He was not expecting to hear that, and if those things had her, they'd have to get her back. But his amazin' self instincts were telling him it was a bad idea. While he could tell by how the one called Araksis held himself was not much of a danger to him, it was the invisible one that worried him. He couldn't smell the bastard's scent, and he didn't even notice his presence, and those weapons of theirs packed a punch… It would be a nasty combo if he got hit with a surprise attack.
That didn't even account for the metal monstrosity they produced; it was bigger than some of the Ground Dragons he had seen. It wasn't fast, but it sure as hell had the firepower. He was sure they'd be goners if it wasn't for his quick acting and manipulating the earth with his Divine Protection. It reminded him of a book about Hero Reid, his encounter with a mighty Dragon, and his use of cover to avoid being blown to smithereens.

Though Garfiel supposed that thing wasn't as powerful as the Dragon in the book, it still was pretty nasty, and his gut was telling him there was more than one of those things.
"Garfiel."
Garfiel snapped from his thoughts and looked to Otto, "Huh, somethin' up?" He was honestly glad to see his friend.
"It's just crossed my mind, but how did you know where to find me?" Otto asked sheepishly, "I thought I was alone for the most part."

"Oh yeah!" His smile grew wider, "Well, ya see, my amazin' self was with Ram n' we were lookin' around n'..." Garfiel paused and scratched his chin before sighing; he wasn't quite sure how to put what he and Ram had found into words, "'s hard t'describe better t'show ya," He walked past Otto and gestured for his friend to follow him.
As the duo trekked through their dilapidated surroundings, they would make little talk; Garfiel would chip in to mention that he and Ram had discovered handwriting from Subaru. All in all, the journey ended up being quiet and taking around twenty minutes before they arrived at a small alcove in a small dark room barely lit by natural that seeped in from holes in the ceiling; at this alcove was a large rock that protruded from the wall.
Garfiel approached it and, with little effort, pushed it aside, revealing a hole in the wall, "'s pretty well hidden; it took me and Ram a moment t'find it." He stepped aside, allowing Otto to pass through to the other side. Otto followed suit, but not before sliding the rock back into place.
The duo would walk briefly through a narrow passageway and would be met at the end with an expansive but messy and dusty room by blue light originating from strange metal stacks, dotting it an assortment of items, black containers with thick black cables that led to strange holes in the wall. Cases with locks, tables littered with items and papers in text neither could read. The weirdest was a peculiar spherical object with a detailed drawing suspended by a metal limb that arched around it and held it from above.
It was a storage room.

Otto looked like he was going to voice a question, but Garfiel, fortunately, gestured for him to follow, and the pair reached the other side of the room where a door tucked into the protruding part of the wall sat, "Ya got a lot of questions, but y'haven't seen anythin' yet" With that said he led his friend into the next room upon which they were greeted with natural lighting, a slanted ceiling with glass tiles sat above illuminating everything. The room, in particular, was more akin to a living space with couches and tables set up for comfort rather than storage. However, the state of the tables and couches was questionable, with the couches looking faded from sun exposure and rotting in some places.

However, the main center of attention was front and center upon entering the room: large, closely linked wall-mounted flat surfaces displaying images. Twenty in total, most of them still working, but those towards the edges were black and had holes piercing their glassy surfaces. As Otto gawked at it, Garfiel felt a smile creep onto his lips, "What even is this? Are those metias and so many in one place?"
"I don't even know, bro," Garfiel shook his head with a smirk before his gaze shifted to just below the monument of eldritch technology, where a desk with even more technology and a black chair sat, "Ram, y'wanna explain this?"

The black chair swung around, and an ever-neutral Ram sat, her cheek resting against the palm of her hand, "I don't think I can," she dryly admitted before sitting up straight in her seat, "It took you long enough to retrieve him, Garf."
A snort passed through Garfiel's nose as he brushed off the comments, "Eh, I had it under control," He scratched the back of his head and walked up to the Oni with a smile, "'sides, those bug-eyed freaks never expected my amazin' self t'enter th'fight."
He'd never outright admitted that his blood ran cold for a moment or that there was a chance he and his bro could've died.

Ram didn't answer back. Instead, her gaze had settled on Otto, "Where do we begin."
The Merchant sighed and lowered his shoulders before walking up to the desk, "Well, I suppose you could start by telling me what this thing is?" He gestured to the devices on the wall and those laid out across the desk, "Are these some kind of metia?"

"We don't know," Ram flatly answered before turning the seat around to face the desk, "Garf and I discovered this place while trying to find a way out; Barusu's awful directions had been anything but helpful."
At the mere mention of Subaru, Otto's eyes lit up, and his expression lightened, "Mr Natsuki is here? That's great! With him, we could formulate a plan and-" However, his brief bout of excitement was cut short by Garfiel.
"Cap'n not here, just some handwriting from him," He lowered his gaze and scowled. Garfiel wished his Cap'n was here. He wanted his bro to be here, cheering everyone up and providing plans. He'd come up with some crazy plan that only he could come up with and ensure would pull off without a hitch. But reality wasn't kind. It was sort of a bitch in that regard; at least his Cap'n was alive!
"Oh… I see." A frown worked across Otto's lips as he turned to the wall, "So what about all this then? How did you end up here?"
"Barusu left hints," The short answer came from Ram, who reached forward to grab at a small metia with a thin rope and dragged it across, "It was almost like he was expecting us," She said before grabbing a folder of papers from beneath the desk and passing them to Otto, "He left directions… translations…"

Garfiel stared at the folder as Otto took it; he averted staring at it any longer, not because the staggering amount of reading took him aback but because his gut instincts told him that Subaru, his Cap'n, was not in a good state. Just a few cursory glances at some of the writing seemed more like the writing of a man with little hope than the Cap'n, who was full of hope and determination. His eyes flicked up to the smooth surfaces above and watched Ram's movements with the metia reflected in a small white arrow moving about before her clicking opened something.
It was clear that she had been learning how to use it while he was out saving his brother. Subaru left behind things for us," Ram said with a small crack in her voice, "I don't know what he was going through at the time, but…"
Blood ran cold as Garfiel realized Ram had learned much more while he had been out and in such a short time. His Cap'n had to have genuinely left incredibly detailed notes if Ram could pick up using the metia so quickly, "He left us something called videos, and I watched the first one…" With another click, the surface changed the visuals to a familiar face.
A solemn Natsuki Subaru.

Authors Notes:

And that's the last chapter I have done so far! But so far, I've done quite a good job characterizing Garfiel. He's, uh, still a fucking pain to write the dialogue for, but I'm getting better.