XenoMark's Note: Recently I just saw the new info and trailer for Xenosaga Episode 3, and well, I have to say that I hope this new episode is better than episode 2. Anyways, after learning some info on the game and seeing the first few screenshots and trailer, I have to say that I'll try to integrate this new information into the plot of this fic as well, so I guess that means the last chapter isn't the halfway mark of this fic. Well then, in this chapter we get an idea of what the "Mother of Destiny," along with a big revelation for Shion that Jin was trying to hide from her for a long time (obviously this revelation has most likely strayed away from the original Xenosaga storyline, but whatever). We get some more insight into Ziggy's past later on, along with the appearance of the Scientia Organization (read the script translation for Xenosaga: Pied Piper for info on this, in fact, it's probably best you do so before reading this chapter). Also, Miang gets some more action sequences, but this time she won't be fighting her sister. With that said, let's get back to the story. ---------- Roots and Revelations (Allen's POV) I can't believe what I just did... The Chief and everyone else, I... All of them were in danger and I just ran. Why, why did I do that? Is it because I knew I couldn't do anything to help them, or...? No, that's not true, I could've done something, I could've tried to do something, but I.. I just ran, my only concern being my own life. I'm a sad excuse for a man. "Something wrong, Ridgeley?" the military realian I escaped with asked. "Of course something's wrong!" I yell. "We just left our friends back there without even attempting to give them a hand. We shouldn't have done that, we should have...!" "And just what is it we could have done?" Canaan asks, calmly. "You saw it yourself, the stairways were already beginning to crack the moment the structure began to shake, there's nothing we could've done." "That's not true!" I retort. "If we had warned them ahead of time, then maybe...! Dammit!" my fist bangs against the closest wall. "I know I could've done something, at least a warning. I could have tried to help them hurry down further, but... Dammit... Dammit... Dammit!" "Calm down!" the realian orders as he takes hold of my collar. "In times of war, you can't have a firm grasp on the situation, you can't control everything that happens." "But this isn't a time of war, this..." "It very well could become one. Listen to me, Ridgeley! No matter how you look at things, there's nothing either of us could've done without losing our lives in the process. You can keep wishing you could have done something, but that's not going to help no matter how you look at it." "But I...!" "You'll get your chance," the realian releases me now. "Don't always think that one failure means the end. If you really want to help that badly, you'll have the opportunity to do so at one point. It might not have been back there, but that doesn't mean that time is long off." "...yeah, I guess you're right, Canaan," I begin to calm down now. "I shouldn't just mope around because of things I couldn't control, I have to..." "Whatever, let's continue on." The others have to be okay, there's no way that they'd die so easily after everything that's happened so far. Even chaos said it himself, one day I'll be able to comfort the Chief and wipe away her tears. That day, it may be sooner than I think. Hang on, Chief, I might not be able to do much, but I'll do my best to help you and the others! ---------- (Elly's POV) The cries that once filled the room have come to a stop; the masses that once tried to bring us harm have now settled, creeping as best as they can into the corners of the room. I see the fear in their eyes, looking past the deformities of their bodies and their rotting skin, looking into the very depths of their souls. I close my eyes in an attempt to block out the emotions I see within them, but I can still hear their sadness and fright from my ears. The actions my comrades and I have just committed, they may have been a good cause for stopping the Soylent System, but the victims of the system are still human. Yes their forms no longer resemble that of men, yes they needed the blood of humans to relieve the rotting of their flesh, but their feelings and hearts are still that of men. I look at the giant Wels that my comrades and I had just defeated, gazing deep into his eyes. His entire being is stricken with even more pain; not only is the rotting of his skin growing worse, but now he is feeling the effects of the wounds we had inflicted upon him. Seeing him like this makes my body tremble, shaking not from fear, but from the emotions that tear from my eyes. "Citan...," I turn to my spectacled comrade, "please lend me your sword." Without saying a single word or showing any objection, the man hands me his katana. I take the weapon with my left hand, turning back to the fallen in front of me. His body begins to wince once again when he notices the weapon in my hands, his body trying to struggle. It saddens me further to see him like this, the only thing I can do is bring him relief. I take my right hand at this point and bring it to the blade of the katana, my fingers closing down on the dull edge and my palm onto the sharp. I tighten my grip on the sharpened steel, the grasp causing me to wince. Droplets of ruby escape the palm of my hand now, my hand opening so that the drops may fall more freely. The spots of blood fall onto the mouth of the victim before me, his mouth barely opening so that he may catch every drop of the crimson elixir. His lips barely stretch after consuming the substance, his eyes no longer showing fear, but relief. Even though he is now relieved, his body ceases to move any more, his visage and body forever frozen in this form. "I'm sorry...," I apologize, trying my best to hold back my tears. "I guess... I couldn't help you after all. All I can do for you now is cleanse your wounds. I'm so sorry...," I cry, no longer able to keep the keep the rivers at bay. "Elly...," my long-haired comrade barely calls. I turn to the remaining individuals who huddle into the corners, their bodies still aching from the agony of their flesh. Some have fallen to the floor succumbing to the pain, others scratch at the peeling skin in an effort to rid themselves of the distress, and then there are those who simply scream due to its effect. The tears in my eyes begin to dry at this point, the sadness in me quickly replaced by determination, the determination to try and relieve this people of this pain. I quickly wipe away my tears, regaining my composure as best as I can and step onto a bench situated close by. Though I cannot fix their ailments as I have with the one who just died, the most I can do is give them support. "Please! Listen to me!" I cry, trying to gather their attention. "Stop fighting among yourselves. We are all humans! This facility was built by the Solaris Ministry...," I inform them. "It was created to implement their 'no waste' plan. Such facilities were to convert mutated humans into weapons that were used as tools for their ambitions. Just one part of their overall plan of racial purification. Of course, once you enter their umbrella of protection... ...you can avoid absolute death. But is that human life!" I raise my voice. "Even if you are the only one left, if you're devoid of a heart, what does it all mean? All of you, want to be loved... needed by someone, so we look to others... By ourselves, we are lonely, so we try to draw together to live... That's what it means to be human... That's how people live. A single hand cannot clap. To relieve your pain, I'll give however much of my flesh you need. Therefore... don't throw away your dignity as humans... Don't let go of your human heart..." I find my body beginning to grow weak now, my legs slowly losing feeling and the rest of my body soon following after. My body does not meet with the ground however, as I find it being caught in the arms of another. My pony-tailed comrade pulls me toward him, his eyes showing a deep concern as he holds me. He holds me tight, his arms lightly shaking in an attempt to keep me conscience, but even his actions can do little for my fainting. "Elly...!" he cries. "Are you okay? What are you doing?" "You think I am doing something foolish?" I ask. "No..." "I only did what I could," I tell him. "Maybe I'm a hypocrite. A well to do 'have.' Maybe it's only pity for the 'have-nots...' But if I can know the joy of giving out a little of the life within me... Then maybe someday it may just be possible that one human can truly give love to another... People can do it... I truly believe they can. That's why..." "Elly, wake up," another voice begins to call to me, frantically. "Wake up, Elly! Wake up!" I begin to open my eyes now, my vision being greeted by a pair of emerald pupils. I begin to push my upper body off the ground, only to find it falling back again, forced backward as the arms of another wraps around me, their body pressing against mine in the process. "Elly, thank god!" my lover cries as she hugs me. Another dream... No, it felt too real to be a dream, it was just like the other ones I've been having recently. That man who resembled Abel, Fei, was in it once again, but there was also another. Citan, that man who owned the sword, he looked very familiar, but who... Jin? No, it couldn't be... What was Jin doing in my dream? Never mind that, I thought Shion and I were supposed to be dead, so why...? "Shion, what happened?" I ask. "I thought we were falling after that sudden earthquake and then..." "None of us here are sure what happened," I look past my lover to find her brother standing close by. "When I came to, I found us here, with no injuries whatsoever." "And just where are we exactly?" I question, the area looking alien to me. "This place isn't anything like the area we were in previously." The entire vicinity is a rich pink color, almost the color of red. The color is everywhere, but in some areas it is more translucent than others. Some parts looks as if they are pulsing, others appear to be rivers flowing along an invisible surface. Even the ground beneath us has a similar impression, it looks like we should be falling through the surface, but the question is, what surface is there? "My only guess is that we're somewhere deep inside U-DO," Jin answers. "How's that possible?" Shion asks as she releases her grasp of me. "chaos said that Labyrinthos has become a part of U-DO if you recall," Jin explains, "and do you remember what it was like when we ventured further into the structure? It became more and more like the anatomy of a biological creature." "So then, we must be deep inside it," I conclude. "We must find the others quickly," Jin orders. "If we survived, then they must have as well. I don't want to think about what may happen to them or us if we linger here too long." "Right, let's get going," Shion nods. The two siblings begin to run forward now and I begin to follow. After taking only three steps however, the two suddenly stop, their bodies frozen in place. I stop the moment I pass them, turning back to find them in the exact same position and pose they were last in. I begin to notice that the entire scenery around me as become frozen as well, the pulsing of the environment and its flowing rivers have come to a stop. "What the, what's going on?" I ponder. Before I can be given a moment to contemplate, a small ringing noise begins to emit in my ear. The sound catches my attention, causing me to freeze for a moment. It rings again a second later, but this time I see a flash of an object in my eyes. Another ring, the same image flashing in my eyes once again, this time I see it for a second more. A third ring, and then a fourth, each one revealing the same device for a more prolonged period of time with each instance. Finally the object becomes clear in my eyes; it's a giant gold-colored artifact, almost in the shape of a cross with a gem in the vertex. "The Zohar!" I quickly recognize the device. The gem begins to shift suddenly, the luster suddenly peeling away, revealing the shape of an oval with two ellipses inside it. The new shape looks like some sort of eye as I stare into it, but... Wait, did it just move? Did the 'eye' just blink and then turn toward me? "The 'Arbiter' has arrived," a mighty voice begins to boom inside my ears now. "'Arbiter?'" the title leaves me confused. "...no, this isn't the 'Arbiter,'" the voice continues, "this is only half of it." "Are you referring to Miang and me?" I ask. "Oh 'Arbiter of the Future,' of what path do you seek?" the voice begins to question. "Is the path you wish to partake the one your eyes intend? Or is the path you seek one in which you sever the Strings of Fate? Whatever your choice may be 'Arbiter of the Future,' may you choose your destiny wisely, for it can never be undone." "Elly, what's wrong?" my lover's voice echoes in my ears again. "Huh?" I look back to find Shion and Jin standing in front of me, a look of concern on both of their faces. "I'm sorry, I must've spaced out for a second," I lie. "Time is of the essence, you mustn't do that again," Jin lectures. "Right." 'That voice just now...,' I think to myself as the three of us run, 'I've never heard it before, and yet, it felt so... familiar... 'Arbiter of the Future,' why does that title seem familiar as well? The Zohar, what exactly is it and what is it's link to me? No, what's more important is its link to Shion. I can't allow her to get in contact with it, I can't allow her to learn the truth!' "Shion...," I stop once again. "What is it?" she asks, her running coming to a halt once again. "...no matter what happens, you'll always be yourself...," I tell her. "It doesn't matter who you are, but I, no, not just I, everyone will always be by your side. Isn't that right, Jin?" Her brother's tracks slowly come to a stop after my question. His back faces me for several moments, his head turned to the side and his eyes drifting to the floor. A worried look appears on Shion's face as she watches her brother ponder, that expression worsening on my own face as I see hers. Finally he turns around, his eyes shut and his lips closed inward. "...that's right," he finally speaks. "You are you, Shion, nothing can ever change that." "Elly, Jin, what are you two talking about?" my lover asks, confused. "Did something happen?" "...you needn't worry," I try to assure her. "As long as I'm here, you needn't worry..." I'm sorry, Shion, but there are still some things that I can't tell you, and I'm sure Jin would agree with me on this subject. Please Shion, no matter what happens, stay you, stay the way you are... ---------- (MOMO's POV) My body feels so light, as if it's floating. I can hear the sound of waves flowing beside me, but my lungs still breath the air. I'm...alive, but how, I do not know. I open my eyes to find a magenta-colored atmosphere around me, the scenery beating like a heartbeat. I try to move my body, but I can find no surface to step on. I find my entire self rotating instead, finding the same atmosphere and color everywhere I turn. Wait, I see something else in front of me, another person that I quickly recognize. "Jr.!" I call out to him. "MOMO!" he turns to me. His arms and legs begin to paddle into the atmosphere, stroking outward as if he were swimming. In seconds he swims next to me, the two of us floating side-by-side. He breaths a sigh of relief afterwards, his arms quickly wrapping around me. I return the embrace and hold him close; a small fear has been lifted off my shoulders. "Are you all right?" he asks. "I'm okay, but where's Ziggy?" "...I don't know," he answers, regretfully. "When I woke up, he was gone. He said that he would do everything he could to make sure we were okay, but... Damn it, this isn't fair! After how I treated him and everything, he still...! Why did he do that? He should have just...!" "Jr., stop it!" I demand, doing my best to hold my tears back. "Ziggy didn't care how you treated him, he knew that even though you two didn't get along, you'd still protect me if he was no longer there. Ziggy would always put the need of others ahead of his own, didn't you ever notice that over this past month?" "I realize that now, but he didn't have to sacrifice himself to save us," Jr. explains. "I mean, I'm sure we all could have survived somehow if..." "The others survived, I just know it," I interrupt. "Ziggy, Shion, Elly, Jin, and chaos, all of them are okay, I just know it. It's not like you to give up hope that easily, Jr., so please, have as much faith in them as I do right now." "Faith is just a false hope...," another voice begins to echo in the atmosphere. "It sets up expectations that allow us to keep going, but when those expectations are not met, we quickly fall. It's pathetic, don't you think?" "Citrine!" Jr. quickly recognizes the voice. Our bodies begin to plummet downward after, the air quickly slicing against as I we fall downward. Everything in the vicinity begins to blue, the sound of wind screeching taking precedence over our own screams. Finally our bodies stop falling, our feet firmly placed on the ground and the scenery around us changing. No longer are we floating in an endless floating atmosphere, but we now stand in some sort of computer room. The entire room is absent of life with the exception of Jr. and me. The sound of computers clicking and beeping has taken the place of the screeching wind, but it is not enough to drown out the sounds of our own breathing and footsteps. The cold feeling of the metal floor can be felt through the material of my boots, the feeling also shown through the mist that escapes my breath. Wait a minute, the layout of this room, it looks almost like the control rooms found in Proto Merkabah, but I know for a fact that we're looking at something completely different. Actually, now that I think about it, I know this place, I know exactly where we are. I've never personally been here myself, but this entire room has been outlined in my data banks. Daddy had left me some of the information about this place, along with several codes to... Wait, is that why Mommy really had me go here with Jr. and the others? She couldn't have just sent me to help everyone, she wanted me to... "Where are we now?" Jr. asks. "You don't recognize this place, Rubedo?" Citrine's voice echoes again. "Well I'm not surprised that you don't, we never came this far during our mission fourteen years ago. This is the main computer terminal in Labyrinthos, located on the seventh basement floor, not even U-TIC officers with the highest security clearance have access to the contents in the computers here. But, there is one among you who can access them." Wait, how did she know about that? The only people who ever knew about my hidden data about this place were Mommy, Daddy, and the Contact Subcommittee, unless... It's just as Shelley said, the U-TIC Organization must have snuck into the highest levels of the Galaxy Federation's government and its organizations, that's probably how she knows. A figure begins to appear in front of us now, but it is one that neither of us recognize. This individual that suddenly appeared out of thin air wears a long cloak and mask, covering their entire body. The cloak and mask are exactly the same as the ones as the Testaments we've encountered so far, except that this one is a dull yellow. This new Testament begins to move their arm forward, but before anything else can happen, Jr. draws his pistols and immediately begins firing. Like the similar enemies we've encountered before, the ammunition has no effect on them, the bullets falling to the floor as if they struck a wall. "Useless," the Testament speaks, their hand glowing a bright yellow shade after. The bright light that emits suddenly brings Jr. to the floor, causing him to drop his guns and bring his hand around his neck. He begins to sweat profusely, the perspiration quickly turning into steam after escaping its pores. His expression of agony, it's exactly like that time when Citrine... "Stop it, what are you doing to him!" I yell. "He's the one who started it," the Testament lowers their hand afterward. "So how did that feel, Rubedo?" the Testament asks, calling Jr. by his real name. "Do you recall that sensation? The expression on your face, it was exactly like that. This look suits you well, Rubedo. My word, listen to me talk, I'm sounding exactly like that weakling, Albedo." "Citrine...?" Jr. and I begin to recognize the voice. "It took you that long to figure it out?" she asks, removing the mask on her face. "I really did give you and the girl more credit." "But how's that possible?" the situation baffles me. "When you were with us the whole time..." "This is my true form," she answers. "Rubedo, did you really think I survived that incident fourteen years ago? I'm not Albedo, I don't have powers of regeneration, and a simple Medica Ether could not heal the wounds that were inflicted upon my body. You and the others left me there to die, you had denied me my chance to fulfill our purpose in life. I couldn't die without fulfilling our purpose, but as fate would have it, I had been offered a second chance. 'He' recognized my 'Shining Will,' saw my true potential. I was saved at the expense of throwing away my past life, and in exchange, I had to swear my allegiance to 'him,' becoming what I am now." "And who is this 'he' you're talking about!" Jr. demands. "Is it Yuriev, or someone else? Answer me!" "And just why should I answer, Rubedo?" Citrine asks. "You're in no place to make the demands here. If I wanted to, I could just clump up all your red blood cells near your heart and simulate a heart attack, but 'he' wouldn't want that. You, the realian, and the others still have roles to fulfill." "What the hell are you talking about!" "Don't you worry, you'll find out soon enough. Besides, be glad things are this way, at least you'll be guaranteed that nothing will happen to Kukai Foundation since I can't die. Now then, you, the 100-Series Prototype, you're the one with codes to access these computers, right? Well get to work!" Not wanting to cause any trouble, I do as she says. I walk over to the terminal in the center of the room and activate the control panel. The screen of ones and zeroes disappears with the press of a button, the background changing shape into a black screen with the U-TIC Organization's logo in the center. A smaller screen shows up in front of the logo now, asking for an ID and password. I do as the prompt says, typing in my serial number and the password Daddy left in my data banks, but instead of giving me access to the server, an error message shows up. "ID and/or password are invalid?" I read from the screen. "I guess my information was wrong," Citrine shrugs, "I suppose I don't have a use for you after all," her gun appears in her hand. "Hold it!" Jr. readies his own firearms once again. In an instant, the red-haired U.R.T.V. pulls the trigger of his guns several times, each pull resulting in a bullet escaping from one of his weapons. Citrine quickly notices this, turning her magnum away from me at this point and turning it toward Jr., tossing her cloak away in the process. She fires her gun several times as well, but the projectiles that escape aren't aimed for Jr., their aimed at the bullets he fired. The heads of each shot meet in seconds, each one falling to the floor upon impact. Jr. begins to move after the last bullets fall, firing his gun again as he strafes. Citrine copies his action, loading a new clip into her firearm before resuming her fire. Again each shot misses their intended target, striking against another bullet's head or impacting against a piece of electronic equipment. The two start to come toward the end of the room, the two of them bound to meet at the curve. Closer and closer they come toward each other, each shot drawing closer and closer to their flesh. A clicking noise begins to emit from one of their guns now, the barrel of Citrine's magnum now pulled all the way back. Jr. quickly notices this, rushing in as fast as he can and leaping into the air. His foot leads his leap, but Citrine fails to act before it plants itself on her chest. His other foot follows, taking a step on her body and jumping off again, his body leaning backward so that he may perform a back flip. He points his guns at her once more, taking advantage of her moment of being stunned. His fingers begin to pull back on the triggers, but before a single bullet can escape, his entire body is suddenly forced backward, his body quickly meeting with the floor. "I never really enjoyed using my powers," she admits, her left palm pointed forward. "But I can't let you interfere with my purpose again, Rubedo. Now then, 100-Series, where were we?" she turns her attention to me once more. "Stop it!" another voice yells in facility. Each of us turns to the entrance of the room now finding the source of the voice. Tanned skin, silvery-white hair, and azure blue eyes are the most notable features of the one who stands there. chaos, I knew he'd be okay, but there's something different about him. Normally he would look at each of us with a calm demeanor, but now everything is different. His tone of voice, it definitely isn't something he normally shows us. It was full of anger and his eyes are narrowed; it's just like when he attacked Albedo in the Kukai Foundation, only amplified. Did something happen when we left him to deal with those KOS-MOS units? "That's enough fighting!" he orders. "There's been enough bloodshed for today. I don't want anyone else to get hurt, friend or foe!" "Huh, chaos, what's wrong?" Jr. asks as he pushes himself back up. "Hmph, you got lucky that the boy arrived," Citrine says as she returns her weapon to its holster. "I never want to see anymore bloodshed, is that clear!" he repeats himself. "chaos, calm down," I try to tell him. "This isn't like you at all. Just what happened when we left you?" "...it's nothing," his voice begins to lower. "This place... I never thought that..." "chaos, do you want to talk about it?" Jr. asks, tugging the sleeve of his shirt. "Don't worry, it's nothing...," he calms down a little more, heading over to the computer panel I stand behind. He begins to type on the machine now, typing in several letters and numbers for the login. In his first attempt, he manages to get past the login screen, allowing us to gain access to the server. He leaves the computer screen at this time, walking over to the nearest chair and placing himself upon it. A sigh escapes his lips after sitting, his hands burying themselves into his face afterward. "...chaos?" I try to approach him. "...you have the codes to access everything else," he speaks. "Go right ahead, just...leave me alone for a little bit." "...okay." I do just as I'm told, returning to the central computer and inputting more passwords and ID number logins that come up. As I search through the database, I find Jr. beginning to approach me. He too shares the worried look on my face, it's obvious that he's hurting just looking at chaos like this. "Is he going to be okay?" I ask in barely a whisper. "...I hope so," Jr. whispers back. "To tell you the truth, I've never seen him like this, not ever. I've always known him to be a really easy-going guy, as if he never had any problems of his own, but..." "I'm worried too," I admit. "He's acting pretty depressed. Do you think he's upset about what might have happened to the others?" "It could be, but I don't think that's the case." "You're right, it's not like him to get gloomy; in a situation like this, I know he would still think they're alive. If he knew for sure that one of us did cross-over, then..." "Yeah, that's true. You don't think...?" "No, they are alive, I know it." "I know that, but there's something else I'm wondering about. How he accessed the database without a sweat. This computer system, along with the other electronic equipment the U-TIC Organization uses is made from Hyams Industries," Jr. points out. "Hyams Industries, I've heard about them, weren't they Vector's main business rival before the Miltian Conflict?" I ask. "Yeah, they were even started up at the same time too. During the Miltian Conflict, both of them took sides; Vector sided with the Galaxy Federation and the Miltian Government while Hyams sided with U-TIC. I've heard rumors that Hyams now makes stuff for anti-Federation forces, most of their products can be found in the black market. What I'm curious about is how chaos was able to log into their database, only the highest-level executives could have access to sophisticated systems like this. You don't think...?" "No, chaos isn't like that at all," I tell Jr. "...yeah, even though he's never said anything about his past, he's not the type to work for such a dark organization." "Did you two find anything yet?" Citrine walks over to our terminal. "Why are you getting all buddy-buddy with us all of a sudden?" Jr. sneers. "Stop it," I order the two before they can start fighting again. "I just found something. You needed to access the database to find out where the Zohar is, right? Well I think I found it." "All right, where is it?" Citrine asks. I open the file for everyone to see now. chaos gets out of his chair now and walks over to the monitor at the point, the file opening to reveal another screen. The file is a document that lists several experiments with the Zohar, listing energy readings and UMN human transportation experiments. Nearly all of the experiments for transportation have made people disappear without a trace, while a tiny 1 who didn't disappear were left brain-dead. The energy listings have been listed as immeasurable each time after only a millisecond of starting up. I continue to search through the file and finally come to the end of the report. "The Zohar is far too dangerous for any of us to comprehend," it reads. "Our technology is not advanced enough to control nor study it any further. We can now see why the team on Michtam abandoned their research twenty-four years ago. As a result of this danger, we must put the 'Omega Project' on hold. The prototype unit will be left in custody of the Ormus Sect while the production model's creation will be halted. We shall seal the Zohar in the thirteenth floor of this facility. This will be beneficial for us as well, as U-DO will not only act as a type of barrier to the Zohar, but it will also allow it to grow in time for the 'Zohar Project.' End of report." "The thirteenth floor, huh?" Citrine repeats. "Wait, so the Zohar was here the whole time!" Jr. exclaims. "And the Zohar Project, how did the U-TIC guys know about it? And U-DO, did they purposely want it to grow for it?" "Does that mean the Galaxy Federation and the U-TIC Organization are really working together?" I wonder aloud. "No, Mommy wouldn't...!" "Things are much more complicated than they seem," chaos speaks. "But MOMO, I doubt your mother would..." "No, the only reason Mommy sent me here was to gain access to the computers so we can find out where the Zohar is!" I cry. "Why else did she keep me around for so long? She never cared about me, she would always... always look down on me. I always thought that if I kept trying to grow close to her, she would finally accept me as her daughter, but...!" "MOMO, I...," Jr. tries to speak. "...Rubedo, stay with the girl...," Citrine orders. "You, we're going to the thirteenth floor," she orders chaos. "Take care of her, Jr.," chaos tells him. The two of them leave now, my tears becoming even more rapid now. I found myself beginning to choke on my own cries, with tiny gasps trying to break free from them. My nose is running as well, my eyes burning as if they were on fire. My legs begin to weaken, my palms barely catching my fall. "Why, Jr.?" I choke. "Why was Mommy always so distant from me? Why is that she could never bring herself to smile at me or give me words of praise? Why, Jr.? Why!" "...MOMO, I'm afraid that not all parents feel good about their children," he begins to speak. "I know my father didn't. Yuriev..., he only saw me and the U.R.T.V.'s as nothing more than pawns. He never saw us as part of his family. We were never praised, we were never smiled at, he would always... He was just so distant, he was like a stranger to all of us. Yuriev never wanted us to act like people, he said it showed weakness. All of us learned to accept this, well almost everyone. Albedo, he was the only one brave enough to stand up to Yuriev back then...," Jr. admits, his eyes beginning to water. "He was the only one moral enough to know how we were being treated wasn't right. The rest of us were afraid to stand with him, and because of that... MOMO, even though your mother doesn't care about you, there are other people in your life that will; that's how it was for me. Don't you remember what Ziggy said? He said he loved you as if you were his own daughter, right? And the others, they all find you to be a good friend. And then I... I feel the same way MOMO, I care for you deeply...," he admits. "I really do." "Jr...?" My body begins to move again, falling forward until my arms wrap around his frame. My tears begin to find themselves on the shoulder of his jacket, my fingers tightening around the material. His own arms wrap around my waist too, his breath pressing against my brow. More and more the tears fall, but with each tear, I find his body growing warmer. Warm, so warm his body is. I want to stay here like this, I just want to keep crying, I just don't want him to let go. I care for you deeply too, Jr. I care for you so much that you can't even imagine, so please, stay with me, even if no one else will be by my side... ---------- (Miang's POV) It's been nearly three hours since the operation began, only half an hour since I arrived on the surface of Old Miltia. The mass-produced units have secured the perimeter of Labyrinthos, though four of them have been destroyed in the process. During their last transmission, I learned that they are currently working their way inward. The stairway to the basement floors has been destroyed, so they have used an alternate route by traversing the sewers that traverse around it. Chief Inquisitor Margulis has begun to move as well, he's taken several men with him into the interior; I heard they're planning on taking a high-clearance elevator from the first floor to the basement floors. Even the Patriarch has begun to move now, I'm sure he's taken 'it' with him for this mission. It's only a matter of time before Mother and her friends find the location of the Zohar, we just need the codes the 100-Series has in her data banks to access U-TIC's highest security levels. "Unit 00-00-00-00-0, do you read me?" I get a transmission. "Yes, I read you, Agent Pale Horse," I answer. "What's your situation?" "The 100-Series has located the whereabouts of the Zohar just moments ago," Citrine explains on the other line. "Surprisingly, it was here the entire time, on the thirteenth floor of Labyrinthos. It appears U-TIC deliberately kept it here so U-DO could grow in time for the Zohar Project." "I see, I'm guessing that the researchers didn't have enough time to transport it fourteen years ago," I tell her. "We should have expected that it was still going to be there. In any case, continue as planned." "...there's been a small error in our plan though," she informs me after a moment of hesitation. "What is it?" "The entire party has been separated, at the moment the only one with me is the boy known as 'chaos.'" "As I said, continue as I planned," I repeat. "Chief Inquisitor Margulis is already within the interior and his Holiness is making his way here. As you've heard, reinforcements shall arrive shortly, so continue with the objective, over and out." I end the transmission at this point. It shouldn't be long before we obtain the Zohar, but it's certainly strange that it was in Labyrinthos this entire time. I suppose it makes sense, U-DO escaped the Zohar on that fateful day fourteen years ago, taking over the bottom half of the basement floors of the building in a manner of hours. If I recall correctly, the U.R.T.V. forces were sent in later that day, and they obviously failed in their mission. Now that I know the location of the Zohar, I must inform his Holiness. I begin to ready another transmission, but before I could do so, my sensors begin to read signs of life hiding from behind me. One, two, ...I count a total of fifteen individuals within the immediate vicinity. I pick up faint traces of plasma coming from each of them as well, they seemed to be armed with beam-type weapons. This is unexpected, I thought that we were the only ones here. "...I know you're hiding there," I sigh. "Are you going to sit there all day or are you going to attack me?" I turn around to find each of the individuals coming out from the rubble that's scattered throughout the area. As I had expected, each of them is armed with a beam-type weapon of some sort; three are equipped with beam rifles, two with beam swords, and the rest with beam pistols. All of these people wear gaudy clothing, none of them wearing a distinct pattern of uniform. They're all wearing baggy street clothes for the most part, are they some sort of rebel force that's been occupying Old Miltia all this time? "So you must be the KOS-MOS unit we've heard about," one of the women in the group begins to speak. This woman seems to be the leader of the bunch; the rest of the members seem to clear a path for her so that she may approach me. Her clothes are just as gaudy as the rest of these men; she wears a ragged, black tank top, along with a faded, green long coat which drags down to her ankles, along with a tattered scarf that wraps around the collar of her jacket. She wears a pair of leather gloves, but the glove on her right has the index and pinky fingers torn off. She wears baggy pants that have the same faded color and shade as her jacket, it's obvious that she hides a beam pistol in the back of the clothing. Her face is covered in soot, but I can still make out the color of her grayish-green eyes. Her mahogany hair however, is clean for the most part, the strands cut at her shoulders. Now that I think about it, this woman's face is outlined in my data banks, it's... "My name is Meris Orthas," the woman speaks, "perhaps you've heard of me and my organization?" "To be more specific, you are Meris Orthas the Second," I read from my data base. "Your great-grandmother, Meris Orthas the First was the founder of your organization, Scientia. Scientia is notorious of being the largest Anti-Federation organization in the universe. Your organization is responsible for pirating many Federation government ships and government officials. You're classified as the most dangerous terrorist organization in the Galaxy Federation." "You're quite informed, KOS-MOS," the woman smirks. "What is it you want from me?" I ask. "The Zohar Project, what is it?" she tries to interrogate me. "We of Scientia would like to know what the Zohar is exactly and its effect on people. My great-grandmother witnessed what it was capable of firsthand, but she never knew what it was exactly. Tell me, KOS-MOS, tell me what you and the Galaxy Federation want with it and what it's capable of." "And if I should refuse?" "You're in no condition to," Meris snaps her fingers, each of her men pointing their beam weapons at me afterwards. "Our spies in Vector have informed us of your creation, along with your battle capabilities. Beam weapons are most effective against machines because it causes them to short circuit, and you're no exception to this rule." "You've certainly done your homework, but there's much more to me than what was outlined in Vector's data bases," I inform her. My right hand begins to rise now, my fingers unfurling from a fist and the back of my hand facing my enemies. A rush of warmth begins to burn within my arm now, the sensation transforming into a sphere-like purple orb in the palm of my hand. The orb grows quickly with time, my foes quickly notice this. Their fingers begin to pull on the triggers of their weapons now, but before anything can escape their guns, the erratic energy in my hand escapes. The fire that escapes from their weapons is unleashed now, but each shot is absorbed into the stream of aura that escaped from my palm. Each of them rolls to the side to evade the attack, giving me time to prepare my own attack. I run to the enemy closest to me as he recovers from his roll. By the time his eyes meet with my own, my own fist has already launched forward. My knuckles meet with his abdomen in an instant, the back of my left hand striking the side of his face soon after. Two others begin firing at me after I attack their comrade, but I evade each blast by taking the man before me and pulling him into the line of fire. Each attack meets with either an arm or a leg, I make sure that none of them strike his back or head. I toss the man away the second they hold their fire, my hands collecting more forms of Ether into their palms. "I have no intention of killing any of you," I inform them. "However, that doesn't mean I won't beat each and every one of you into the ground!" Another barrage of fire is opened after my words, but this time I make no attempt to evade. I move my arms forward at this point, the energy within my palms forced forward and expanding in seconds. The barrier of Ether absorbs the attacks once again, returning to my palms afterward only to shoot out once again causing each of them to scatter again. I draw the pair of tonfa on my belt at this moment, my arms quickly spinning them afterward to block several more shots. The incoming fire stops shortly after, halted by either the attacks returning to their instigators or by the need to reload. The ones armed with beam swords rush in at this moment, one flanking me from the right and the other to the left. Both try to swing their blades downward at the same time, but my arms quickly push out to the sides so that my weapons may block theirs. My left leg pushes to the side after, meeting with the chest of the one on my left, the tonfa on my right striking inward after, knocking my attacker in the side of the head. His ally with the same weapon tries for another slash with my back now turned to him, but my elbow pushes back in time so that my other weapon can block it once again. My body turns once again, my right arm swinging with it so that my tonfa can strike my enemy to the floor. I turn back to the rest of the opposition only to find one of my weapons being shot out of my hand. Another shot catches its twin, knocking it in the same direction. I look to the source of the shots to find the leader of these men now charging at me with her gun aimed forward. Two more trigger squeezes follow, but I move to the side to dodge each one. Her remaining conscious comrades begin to shoot as well, forcing me to remain on the defense. The blasts continue to fire at a rapid rate, my legs constantly trudging back and forth to evade each shot. This constant pace of moving back and forth is making it impossible for me to charge my Ether, there's no way I can keep dodging these attacks forever. I haven't been conditioned to use tertiary weapons like the mass-produced units yet, but there is that one weapon. It still hasn't been tested yet, but... The barrage has become too rapid now, there's no way I can dodge the next shots. I begin to move my arm now, quickly swinging it inward from the side. A beam of light begins to form where my arm had swung, the beam solidifying soon after into the shape of a blade. I quickly take the hilt of the sword at this point and begin swinging again, striking at the incoming fire. The weapon in my hand begins to clash with the individual shots, the flat side of the blade deflecting each blast away. After parrying several hails of fire, I begin to move forward, charging toward the opposition, continuing to deflect each of their attacks. Two of the Scientia soldiers try to block my path, but I easily cut through their weapons with my sword, slashing at their arms in the process with an under-handed strike, forcing them to drop their weapons. More try to shield my path again, mimicking the actions of their predecessors. It is of no use however, as the result is the same as before. The only one that remains now is the leader who fires her pistol at the same time she draws an beam knife. The firearm loses all of its ammunition in seconds, its owner quickly tossing it aside as she charges in with the energy blade. She screams as she runs toward me, the knife held close to her body as she charges. I bring my arm upward and prepare for a downward strike, only to bring the weapon down sooner as I find the knife suddenly hurled at me. I deflect the knife in the same way as the bullets, but I quickly realize that was only a decoy attack. A beam sword now appears in her hands, the blade already swinging forward from the side. I quickly notice this, jumping backward after to avoid the initial swing. She tries to go for a lunge soon after with my feet still not touching the floor, I can't avoid this one either. My blade swings outward as hers launches forward, the blades coming in contact for only a mere second; it is obvious that this battle is over. She stands paralyzed now as the edge of my weapon barely touching her throat, the energy in her weapon no longer taking shape. She drops down to her knees after, her entire body still frozen from the shock of my sword absorbing the energy from hers. I keep my blade resting against her neck, all of her men that are still conscious can do nothing but watch as their lady kneels before me. This battle is over, I have no intention to continue it any further. "What was that...?" are the only words that can escape Meris's lips. "The sharpness of this sword is determined by the user's Ether level," I explain. "Not only that, it can also absorb the energy of beam-type weapons, the amount it can absorb is also reliant on the user's Ether level." "Even if that is true, the blueprints that were given to us by our spies said that your Ether level is only three times stronger than a human being's!" she growls. "Correction, it was only three times stronger than a human being's," I explain. "To put it simply, my Ether level is infinite; this Ether Edge weapon is capable of absorbing anything else your current equipment can strike me with as long as it's my hands. Don't even try and grasp the blade," I read past my enemy's next action. "Just wrapping your fingers around it will have them cut off, faster than how a hot knife goes through butter. I have other matters to attend to now, so if you'll excuse me." I jump into the atmosphere afterward, my feet landing on the rooftop of one of the still standing buildings. I leap to the roof close to it and the one after, trudging across the roofs so that I can make my escape. So that was Meris Orthas the Second, I can't say that I am impressed with her skills, even without my sensors I'm sure I could have spotted her. Still, I have no intention of killing her or any of her men. She still has a role that she must fulfill after all. Regardless of that role or not, I truly did have no intention of killing any of them, I've already gotten others involved who did not need to be not too long ago. Elly, Mother, do you hate me for all I've done so far? Elly, I'm sure you must hate me by now by forcing you to be here. If I did not have my debt to 'them,' I would leave you and all of your friends out of this. I'm sorry, my darling, I'm sorry, Mother, but... This is the way things must be, not only because of my debt, but for the sake of the universe as well... ---------- (Shion's POV) It doesn't matter who you are, everyone will always be by your side. Just what did Elly mean when she said that. And Jin, he basically said the same thing. What is it that's worrying the two of them so much? Could it have had to do with that talk they had this morning in the dining area that made Elly storm out? 'The truth,' what did Jin mean by that in the Kukai Foundation's meeting room earlier? "Miang?" my lover suddenly stops in her tracks once again. "Elly, is something wrong?" I ask her. "...I thought I just heard Miang's voice just now," she explains. "It looks like we've reached the end," Jin informs us. We look to his direction now and find a pair of large metallic doors in the distance. The doors look rather rustic, their perimeters almost absorbed into the magenta atmosphere. The three of us run to the giant doors at this point, the atmosphere pulling them apart as we draw closer. In seconds we find ourselves running through them only to end up in a room filled with darkness. Before any of us can even turn around to go back out, the doors shut on us, leaving us in the black room. "What is this?" I ask the others. "Shion, Miss Elly, stay close," Jin orders. Something begins to creep against my hand at this point, my body jumping as this sudden touch falls continues to glide against it. The creeping stops soon after, replaced by the feeling of something curling against my fingers. I realize now it is only Elly's hand holding my own, along with her head now resting on my shoulder. I breathe a sigh of relief upon realizing this, my fingers closing on her own. We each begin to walk forward now, our steps really slow and short. The only sound we hear in this room is the sound of our own breathing. The sound of metal barely enters my ear soon, but then I realize it's only Jin drawing his sword. At this very moment, the color of white suddenly flashes over our eyes, along with a strong gust of wind that blows into our direction, nearly knocking us to the floor. My hold on Elly's hand quickly tightens, her other arm quickly wrapping around me in the process. The gust begins to die now and the flash begins to dim. The entire room is illuminated now and we now see the entire room. We find ourselves standing on a broad, metallic walkway, the other side of the railing showing us the floor below us. A forklift zooms after on the floor below us, the vehicle sitting the maximum occupancy of two people. I look further down to find several cranes moving as well, along with an observation area that's sealed in glass. There are several individuals inside the area, but I can't make out any of their faces. "What is this place?" Elly asks as she observes the area around her. "Wait a minute," my brother suddenly speaks, "this is... It can't be!" "Jin...?" "No, that's impossible, this can't...!" The sound of humming begins to echo in our ears; though it is faint, we quickly notice that it's coming from the same floor as us but at the end of the walkway. A man stands there, a pencil in one hand and a clipboard in the other. He begins to tap the writing utensil against the board, the tapping matching the rhythm of his tune. Who is this man exactly, and why...? "Hey Dad!" another voice echoes from behind us. We each turn around now only to find a shock. The one who called the man, it's none other than Jin! My brother, there's two of them, but why? No, this one's a lot younger, he looks about the age of thirteen or fourteen. Then the woman that walks beside him, she's obviously older than him, and... Wait, if this is Jin, then the man he called out to and the woman walking her are... "Hello, honey," the woman greets him. "Darling, Jin, what are you doing here?" "You said we could visit you today, right, Dad?" the younger version of my brother says. "You said that it'd be okay if we watched today's experiment, isn't that right, Mom?" "Mom...," their appearances cause something to stir within me. "Dad...?" "Mom? Dad?" the titles baffle my angel. "Shion, Jin, what...?" "No, this can't be...," my brother says in disbelief. "I can't be seeing this, not again. Mother, get out of here while you still can!" he cries to our parents. "Father, you can't start the test, you just can't! Please Father...," he begins to sulk into the floor. "Please, listen to me..." "Jin, are you okay?" Elly asks, placing her hand on his shoulder. "Shion, what's wrong with...? Shion?" "My parents...," I still find myself paralyzed by their appearance, "why are they here, what...?" "You came at just the right time," our father tells the younger version of my brother and our mother, "the test is just about to begin." "Dad, what are you up to?" I barely voice my question. "Mom, why...? Jin... what's going on here? Jin? Jin!" "No, don't start the test!" my brother screams again. "Mother! Father!" My brother gets off the floor instantaneously at this moment, running to our father. To all of our surprise, Jin's hand passes through his figure. The initial passing causes him to back away for a moment, but he tries again after only to get the same result. He attempts to reach him again and again, each failed endeavor resulting in a tear rolling down his face. A whistle begins to blow now and the entire area begins to shake shortly. I look onto the floor below us to find the ground pulling apart, along with a gold colored object rising from the growing gap. The cross-like shape, the gem-like device, it's obvious what this object is, it's none other than the Zohar. But what's the Zohar doing here, and how does my father know about it? He never mentioned anything like this to me when I was growing up. "This is it, son," my father tells the younger image of Jin. "This is the key to Mankind's future. This is the Zohar." "Father, please...!" "Is everyone ready? Then start up the experiment." The men in the observation area begin to work on the control panel as everyone else in the vicinity turns to the Zohar. A light begins to barely emit from the relic, at first it is only a small reflection of light, but that reflection grows brighter and brights. The gem-like device on the Zohar shines as well, its light glowing stronger than the rest. Elly and I can do nothing but stare in awe as it glows, but before we know it, that glow is soon replaced by a flashing red light that flashes in the entire area along with the sound of a horn. "What the, what's happening!" my father suddenly panics. "Sir, something's wrong with the control panel," one of the men in the observation area reports. "The power output is gradually increasing, there's no way I can stop it. We've already tried cutting off the electronic link to the Zohar and shutting down the machine manually, but..." The entire vicinity begins to shake at this moment, the alarm now taking precedence over the sound of everyone's panicking voices. The people in the vicinity begin to run, each of them passing through our forms as if we were specters. Pipes and other pieces of the ceiling begin to fall now, some striking fleeing workers and other pieces of machinery. My parents and the younger version of Jin however, stand in shock as they continue to stare at the Zohar. "Why, what could have happened that could've caused this!" my father asks, slamming his palms onto the railing of the walkway. "Honey, we have to get out of here!" my mother orders him. "Chief Uzuki, come on!" a worker on a motorized cart drives up to my family. "Jin, you first," my father orders. "No, Father!" Jin screams. "Don't put me there. Mother, sit Mother there, please! Please, Father...!" "All right...," the younger version of my brother says uneasily as he takes the last seat on the vehicle. "Come on, we'll ride on the back," my father tells our mother. "NO!" The cart begins to drive off now, quickly whisking all of them away. Jin immediately chases after the machine, running along side it for the first few seconds, only to quickly fall behind. Elly and I naturally try to follow, but neither of us are fast enough to catch up with my brother. The cart in front of us begins jump upward now, jumping after hitting a piece of debris. More and more debris begins to fall, some on my brother and self, but the debris passes through us much like the people earlier. I look above and find a pipe falling downward, but this lead device is not falling toward me, it's falling for the cart in front of us. The pipe has contact with the skull of one person on the machine, knocking them off the machine in the process. My eyes can't help but widen the moment I realize who it had struck, my brother screaming again after the moment of impact. "MOM!" the younger version of my brother screams. "MOTHER!" Jin screams as well. He finally catches up to her, his body diving forward in an attempt to catch her, only to have her form pass through him like all the others. The very image causes something else to stir within me, my mind remembering that day fourteen years ago. The tearing of flash and bone, the screams for help, all of it, remembered again after seeing what happened to my mother. The very image paralyzes me once again, my palms forcing themselves into the ears in an attempt to block out the cries for help that were never answered that day, my eyes shutting so that I may shield myself away from those visions. It is no good however, for I still remember, that nightmare only growing worse with what I had just seen. "Stop the cart!" my father orders the driver. "Stop it!" "I'm sorry, Chief, but...!" "Dammit, that's an order!" "Chief, we can't afford to...!" "Then I'll...!" my father tries to jump off the vehicle. "Chief, don't!" several other workers hold him back. "MOM!" my brother screams again. Another flash of light emits in my eyes for a quick second, and when the flash is gone, we find ourselves in another place. We appear to be in some sort of hospital room, I can tell by the gray walls and the nearly sterile environment. I turn to the end of the room to find two individuals lined up against a bed with a person lying on it. I quickly recognize each of them, it's my family. The younger version of my brother is lying against the bed, his face pressed against the covers as sobs escape his lips. My father stands next to him, his face scrunched and tears barely escaping his eyes. "Now where are we?" Elly asks the two of us. "...this is where our mother was first treated," Jin explains, wiping away the tears traveling down his face. "What, but I don't remember any of this," I tell him. "...this was about a year before you were born," my brother explains. "Somehow..., Mother survived the Zohar going berserk, she was the first and only person to survive an accident such as that. However, her memory was never the same... What happened that day, that was the reason why she had random occurrences of amnesia. ...we've seen enough," my brother quickly places his hand on my shoulder. "Let's get out of here!" "But Jin...!" "Chief Uzuki, I presume?" a man I had not expected to see suddenly enters through the door. What's he doing here, and why does he look exactly the same way he did when...? The ghostly white hair, the bright red eyes, and the very pale skin, all of these feature show no difference from how he looks in the present. He even wears the same black suit, all of his mannerisms seem to be the same as well. Just what is Sir Wilhelm doing here? "Sir Wilhelm, what are you doing here?" my father asks. "I'm sorry about what happened to your wife, and what happened during the Zohar experiment," Sir Wilhelm apologizes. "Sorry...?" the younger version of my brother begins to peel away from our mother's bedside. "Sorry! What do you mean 'you're sorry!' It's because of those experiments that you're company's conducting that my mom ended up like this, you son of a bitch! I swear I'll...!" "Jin, stop it!" my father orders. "Go wait outside." "But Dad...!" "Go!" The younger version of Jin begins to walk out of the room, his hands forced into his pockets and his feet kicking with every step. He passes through us like the people in the last scene, slamming the door on his way out. The door barely opens again soon after, my brother's eye staring in from the other side. "Shion, we've seen enough," the older version of Jin tells me, his hand quickly grabbing my wrist. "Let's get out of here." "Stop it, Jin!" I free myself from his grasp. "Just why are you acting like this all of a sudden? Is it because of what you saw happened to Mom? I'm just as upset as you are about all of this, maybe more so because Dad never explained any of this to me before he died! So just why...!" My brother quickly interrupts me before I can talk further, his arms suddenly wrapping around my body and his cheek rubbing against mine. I find my heart beginning to beat rapidly at this moment, my breath short, and my body paralyzed. This is the first time my brother has hugged me in such a long time, but why now? Why would he...? "No matter what happens, you'll always be my sister," he suddenly speaks. "Do you understand me, Shion? You're my little sister, nothing more, nothing less." "Jin, why are you saying these things all of a sudden?" I ask. "Just what is...?" "...cover your ears, Shion," my lover begs. "Please, be deaf to the voices around you. Don't listen to a single word they say." "Elly, you too?" I find myself even more puzzled. "Elly, Jin, just what is wrong with both of...?" "Your wife is a very special woman," Sir Wilhelm begins to speak above the rest of our voices. "Yes, I know," my father says, his finger tenderly running down her bedsheets. "She's done so much for Jin and I." "Not just that, you know what she's capable of," Sir Wilhelm continues. "There are barely anymore of her kind." "Anymore of her kind?" I begin to push myself away from my brother now. "What does he...?" "Close your ears!" Elly suddenly wraps her arms around me now. "Don't listen to them, Shion. Pay them no mind, turn your attention elsewhere, please!" "...I know," my father nods. "There are barely any people left who are not descended from genetic engineering whatsoever, she is one of those very few. Her surviving the Zohar accident is enough evidence to warrant that. The doctors say her memory isn't going to be the same as it used to be, but..." "I'm afraid she is of no more use to us then," Sir Wilhelm speaks. "Such a pity, I always thought she would be the 'Mother of Destiny.' No, maybe not, she did give birth to your son after all." "...then what do you propose we do for the KOS-MOS Project?" my father asks. "The Zohar Project is reliant on the completion of that and the Omega Project." "Your wife still has use, Mr. Uzuki," Sir Wilhelm answers. "Or rather, her DNA and womb still has some use." "Wait, you don't mean...!" "We shall clone her." I find my entire body growing even more frozen before, even my lungs stop taking in air. The atmosphere and all of its surroundings begin to swirl around me, spinning so quickly that until they disappear. Everything is gone, everything except the words Sir Wilhelm had just said. The words "we shall clone her," each of them feel like a dagger piercing into my heart. They repeat in my ears as well, restarting the vocabulary stabbings once more. "Clone her? But sir...!" "It is vital to our project, is it not?" Sir Wilhelm asks. "...yes sir..." "Besides, you always said you wanted another child, a daughter to be exact. Didn't you say that you and your wife already had a named picked out as well for her? 'Shion,' wasn't it?" The sound of name sends another jolt surging throughout my body. My eyes are opened wider than ever before, and my entire body trembling. My entire body begins to grow limp, my knees weakening enough that I would fall to the floor if I was not held by the one in front of me. I feel dizzy once again, the air I breathe not doing anything to fulfill the need for oxygen in my lungs. The truth, I never knew it could hurt so much, and my name, never did I once think of it as some sort of label, but... "I... I'm a clone...?" the words barely escape my lips. "My birth, it was just so that I could be used to... All this time, I..." "Shion, stop it!" my lover's grasp tightens. "Don't say such a thing!" "So I was just born to be used by him, isn't it? Even my own father knew about it, he was responsible for my creation. Him and Sir Wilhelm, they..." "That's not true, Shion!" Jin cries. "You weren't born to simply fulfill what they have planned, you were...!" "...my father, he was never my real father... My mother..., she was the original me, the current me is only a copy... My brother..., he's not my real brother... My family, my friends, none of them can truly be mine, they're..." "Please, don't say anymore, Shion!" my lover interrupts, her own tears running down her face. "You have me! I don't care what Wilhelm or anyone else says, the fact of the matter is you are you and I'm here by your side no matter what! I love you for who you are, Shion Uzuki, not what you are. I didn't fall in love with your mother, I fell in love with you! So please, Shion, pay them no mind, because I...!" Everything begins to disappear from me at this moment. Elly's hold around me, the images of the hospital room, the voices of everyone around me, everything, gone. Everything is nothing but black now, everything that I thought was real was nothing more than a fabrication created by him. My life, what have I been doing with it all this time? Is my purpose only to be a replacement for the one I was cloned from? What was it Sir Wilhelm wanted me to do? What is it that I'm supposed to do, what is my purpose? Everything, everything that I've been doing was done according to him, wasn't it? I... I'm a puppet, ever since I was born, I've been dancing with the strings of Fate. My "father" and "mother"'s deaths, Kevin dying, Miang being destroyed and resurrected, Elly's creation, all of it was orchestrated as a show for him. My life has just been a game in the possession of another, I am just another pawn. I am... nothing... ---------- (Ziggy's POV) Darkness, nothing but the color of black. Is this what death is supposed to be? For nearly a century, this is what I've been searching for, but after everything that has happened recently, I no longer want this. I try to move, but my body doesn't react. Move, I want to move, I want to open my eyes, I want to listen to world around me. This isn't what I want, I don't want to be here. "Dad...," I hear a voice faintly calling for me. The dark hue before my eyes begins to grow lighter now, colors of other shades beginning to appear before my eyes along with figures and forms beginning to take shape. A table is in front of me, along with a lamp and other forms of furniture in the background. There is another figure that stands before me, but I can hardly make it out at first, but then it becomes clear. "Dad," the figure calls again. "What, Joaquin?" I find my son standing before me. "What is it?" "You really are my dad now!" he exclaims, cheerfully. I find myself speechless after his last statement. Proud, is this how it feels to be part of a real family? "What's wrong?" I turn around to find my wife standing behind me. "...It's just that... I always thought of myself with little emotion, but... maybe I was allowing myself to be heartless," I explain. "That's not true," Sharon assures me, her arms delicately wrapping around my shoulders. "Both you and my late husband were hurt because your hearts were too kind. Because there are too many bad things in this world." The entire scenery begins to meld together once again, coalescing into darkness for a mere second, only to return to bring me into a different scene. I find myself standing in a place I had never wanted to set foot again, a place I had dreamt of everyday for the last century, a place I so desperately tried to forget. "...So this is the Zohar," I find my nemesis standing before the giant gold relic. "It's beautiful... What an appropriate place to achieve my objective! Take heed, souls that are imprisoned in my mind! You should see this! Oh, don't be so solemn... we're about to become an existence you can't even imagine! ...My preparations are complete! Look, oh great Lord! Oh great U-DO! Grant me your power by the terms of our contract!" I frantically try to charge toward my enemy at this point, my body somehow being pressed back by an invisible barrier. My fist begins to strike against this unseen wall, attempting to reach to my wife and son on the other side. Neither of them react to my pleas however, the two of them kneeling before the relic locked in prayer. "Sharon!" I scream. "Can you hear me? Dammit! ...Sharon! Listen to me, Sharon!" "'And the bowl was poured on the great river, Euphrates,'" Voyager chants, "'and its water has dried up, so that way of the kings from the east might be prepared.' ...Are you ready to accept the way of God?" he asks my wife. "In exchange for our lives...is it true you'll bring peace to the people we love?" she asks. "I guarantee it..." "Sharon!" I bring my fist against the impassable barrier once again. "He's manipulating you! This is one of Voyager's mind hacks...!" "Mom," Joaquin turns to his mother, "now we can be with Dad forever, right...?" "Yes, we really can...," she smiles, "we'll never lose him again..." "I'm happy...," the boy returns the gesture. "Mom, I'm really happy..." "Joaquin!" I scream again. "Save Sharon! Sharon! Do you want Joaquin to die! That dream, it's a lie! You can't be happy that way!" "Then let's go...," my nemesis tells them. "Now we'll never mourn again..." "VOYAGER!" I scream. I find myself lying against a metallic surface now, my vision turned to an infinite darkness. The sound of computers tapping and clicking begins to echo in my ears, but there are no signs of human life. I try to get up now, but I find myself unable to move. I look to my body to find it strapped to the metallic surface. I try to force myself out of the restraints, but I find myself unable to do so. "Hello, Jan," the voice of my nemesis enters my ear. "Voyager!" The face of my nemesis begins to leer at me from an upside-down angle, his smirk as sinister as ever. Again I try to free myself from my restraints, using more effort than ever before to escape. A fit of laughter escapes his lips as he watches me struggle, his taunting only causing me to try harder. "Is this how you react to seeing an old friend?" he provokes further. "And just when we finally got the chance to talk one-on-one again. It's a little bit like old times, don't you think?" "Shut up, you're no friend of mine!" I spit. "Oh, and those people you've been hanging around with are? I can't believe you replaced me so easily." "My hatred for you has yet to be replaced!" "Still hung up on the past, I see," he sighs. "What happened to that notion you told that U.R.T.V. not too long ago? You know, the one about thinking only about numbers and battle strategy." "Bastard!" I curse. "You'll pay for what you did to Sharon and Joaquin!" "It's just so fun to taunt you, Jan, just like a little child. But it's not fun to keep provoking like this. No, not when there's another that can bring out the worst in you," that sinister smirk stretches. "Don't you dare do anything to MOMO!" I yell. "I swear, Elrich, if you or any of your comrades even touch a hair on her head, I'll...!" "Who said any of us will harm her when you'll be the one to do it instead." "What do you...!" Before I can say anything further, I find my entire body beginning to burn. The mechanical components in my body begin to clatter, my entire self jumping upward as far as the restraints can let me. I begin to scream from the shock that travels throughout my entire system, the systems specifications that are often seen in my eyes turning into static. Though I cannot see what is being done to me, I can still feel every part of my being burning from the electricity surging through me. More and more I feel myself being torched from the inside, my entire body becoming stiff and unmoving. Images from the past begin to play though my eyes once again. I see my parents, their faces as clear as day for the first time I can remember. My father, he hands me his beret, placing it on my tiny head. Then I see Sharon and Joaquin, both of them smiling at me. I reach for them, the three of us walking hand-in-hand into the sunset. And then I see MOMO, her arms wrapped around me with a gentle smile on her face. My hand begins to run down her pink strands of hair, straightening the silk-like locks. I find myself smiling for a moment, but that smile soon melts away. I see nothing, I hear nothing, I feel nothing. I... I am... "Awaken, Ziggurat 8," a voice orders me. "Awaken and destroy." "Yes sir," I find myself obligated to obey. ---------- XenoMark's Note: That was definitely tough to write. Is it hard to believe that Shion is a clone of her mother? I don't really think so, there's a few theories circulating around the internet about it. As for the 'Mother of Destiny,' I'm afraid it might be a bit longer before I truly reveal what that is since I don't want to give up all my answers right away. As for Citrine leaving MOMO and Jr. alone, I know it seems out of character for her, but there's still parts of her past I haven't explained and revealed yet. And chaos, we'll definitely learn more about him soon, as well as why he allowed Citrine to contact Miang. Anyways, review if you like, but please don't flame me. In the next chapter, the party finally comes across the Zohar, but will everyone be mentally prepared for it, especially when one of their own turns on them. Hope you all look forward to it, see ya!
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