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Description
Apollo Stardust

I’m trying to get to it. I’m seriously trying. I know that it has a mind, even if it’s not Bartleby’s. But it’s just too obstinate, too resistant to accept any empathy.

One of the arrows pierces my shoulder, making bits of it disperse. I guess that if I can’t beat it, I can at least buy the other Warped some time to escape.

“Why don’t you break? Why don’t you die?” The God entity, in a way, borrows Bartleby’s voice as it does her body, but leaves it almost indistinguishable, accompanied with screams and otherworldly sounds. A truly horrible chorus.

“You don’t need to keep on with this! The one responsible for her death died, in guilt for doing so and consequently creating you. You won already.” Its mind is far from contempt, though, covered in too many layers of hate for me to send it any message. The menace loads another arrow and uses it to pierce my heart. From this side of the parking lot I sense that the survivors remain hidden underground, waiting time until they are completely sure that the storm has left.

“I’m getting tired of you.” The thing inside of Bartleby’s corpse comes towards me and punches my face, dispersing my jaw. I tremble and fall on the floor. Of course, I’m not feeling any pain, but giving the illusion can only help.

Then I hear something. Something that I hadn’t heard since our arrival at Eos… The sound of spacecraft landing.

“What is that?” Those are the last words that the God-thing says before, out of nowhere, a huge monster of metal crashes between us and the airport, wrecking a large part of the parking lot and making the earth shake in the process. It has a cylindrical disk-like shape with an approximate radius of 120 meters and 30 of height, weighs probably around two hundred tons heavy and with nothing resembling wings or brakes. I laugh internally. Leave it to Ani to land a whole space station in the designated parking place.

“That is your bane.”

The creature aims the bow at the spacecraft. The arrow penetrates the exterior, but doesn’t go beyond the walls.

“I’ll deal with you later,” the God-thing warns before personally heading towards it.

Ethan Hornette

Still a bit dizzy because of the sudden landing and gravity changes out of nowhere (really, save Angelo everyone is dizzy) we follow the pilot through the maze of cubicles, with him going through the roofs and us following the sounds of the steps as well as the occasional visual prompt. I can’t complain and I’m happy that he went out of maniac killer mode so I can’t complain, but it’d be good if he could speak.

Finally, though, Angelo lands next to one of the outer walls and opens it, tearing it out with both hands, for us all to pass. Both warped’s wings are a bit inconvenient, but finally we all reach the spacious room, probably meant for spacecraft landings. Its most notable feature right now, though, is the huge hole that leads outside. That hole is also the sole source of illumination for the almost unlit room.

“What now?” Kate asks. “We just head out, find the God and fight it?”

“No.” Ethan seems to have a fairly clear idea of what he wants. “We wait. Let it come to us. This demon is hunting for Warped and that’s exactly what he’d find here. Something this big falling from the sky is bound to call its attention.” Angelo gives a nod, approving the idea.

“...Something’s bothering me,” Dani states nervously. “You were acquaintanced with this woman, meaning the one that was possessed by the God. Will you be able to just attack her resemblance?”

“Yes.” Ethan answers almost immediately, attracting the attention of everyone else. “It has happened before. When I had no other choice… I might be numb to that, at this point. But I’m also taking responsibility for it. And if it’s what it takes in order to save everyone, I’ll forget who it is that owned her body.”

Kate seems a bit upset about the whole discourse but, before she can manage a reply, it’s another voice that calls him.

“A noble sentiment, Ethan.” The voice is familiar and it immediately puts everyone on guard. It is also different, though. Whatever taints it can’t be truly described, but it is a sound of nightmare. “Not everyone would understand the burden of taking a life.” Bartleby’s figure approaches from the hole that Angelo had made to enter the Gatekeeper. However, it’s not with the caring attitude from the time when I saw her in the base. The eyes that were once hers show a tremendous rage. “But it is unneeded, though. I intend to die again soon enough, once that I’ve taken out the Warped. Those who are not Warped have no need to worry, much less interfere.”

I notice something, though. Nynniaw isn’t even aiming at Ethan but at Angelo… This is bad.

But I can do something about it.

Holding the materia tight, everything around me stops. I’m getting used to this and the materia really helps, but I don’t think I’ll be able to do it many more times, if at all. Let’s just focus on what’s important.

I get close to the God using Bartleby’s body, focusing at all times to maintain the… Well, lack of time. I tentatively touch the arrow and I feel a spark on my finger. Not extremely painful, but not pleasant either. Will have to ignore it. I push the tip a bit up and a bit to the left. It won’t hit anything by a long shot, but it might trick Nynniaw into thinking that it was his mistake.

And anyway, I’m just buying time for Ethan and Kate to do their thing. I return to my original position.

Now let time flow again.

Nynniaw’s face as the arrow shoots tremendously away from the target is just hysterical, but the god quickly recovers his composure, blocking Ethan’s slash with a his arm and then taking advantage of the swordsman’s own impulse to kick him out of the station. With incredible reflexes, he also dodges the attack from Kate, who gets pushed back by an invisible force.

It doesn’t look like they had serious wounds… But it clearly took the god no effort at all to do that. How to defeat someone that deflects swords and pushes the warriors aside in such a casual manner.

“I didn’t harm either of you because it’s not you that I seek and I’m not a cruel God, but I suppose that you now understand how futile any further attempts would be. My patience is limited, though. Stop trying.”

“That is a way to see it,” Kate says, fully recovered and once again ready for combat. “The way I see it is that Ethan has just flanked you and I didn’t actually miss my target.”

Nynniaw looks at his dark bow and then drops it. When it recovers its original appearance it becomes evident that the string has been severed. Kate smiles, as do I.

“On a second thought, you have already crossed the limits of my patience.”

Kate Garritsten

Nynniaw is a god which means that he’s powerful. That can’t be taken as an understatement. This couldn’t possibly be an easy fight.

With that said, though, I think that he has limits.

Not noticing right away that I cut off the string means that he’s either not all that bright or too focused on something else. For the sake of not being overconfident I’ll go with the second one and imagine that we have all of the focus now.

Second is speed. Or rather, movement. Bartleby’s body as a host is not ideal. Also, he had to actively block Ethan’s attack with his arm in order to shield from it. Put those two together and between Ethan, Angelo, me and Faunus if he chooses to join, finding a blind spot shouldn’t be all that hard.

There is a third one, but Ethan won’t want to use it to our advantage, which is the temper that will keep Nynniaw prioritizing the Warped.

As I stand up, Ethan and Angelo are already jumping at the enemy, that blocks claw and sword one with each arm. An additional attack with Angelo’s left claw almost reached Bartleby’s stomach, but was stopped by some invisible shielding force.

So it’s not enough with just penetrating the guard. Still, if he could make the shields appear just like that, why wouldn’t he do it all the time?

As I stand up, my line of thought is interrupted by the hard facts, when a punch to Angelo’s stomach makes a very ugly sound, accompanied with falling blood.

...No.

Ethan, angrier than I have ever seen him, responds from Nynniaw’s back, aiming at his shoulder. Meanwhile, I head towards Angelo, grabbing him as he’s about to fall. He’s hurt. Severely so. Chunks of metal are falling and some others do nothing but stabbing the flesh abdomen that’s below the metal plate. He lifts his thumb, though, and I realize that it means that he is alright, or at least that he wants to pretend that.

“I AM TIRED OF YOU!” I look up and see the God pushing Ethan back again, now with far more strength than before. I then see my companion rolling on the floor until he finally crashes with a rusted, broken car, as Stardust had called them. Around me, the younger Ethan seems too tired to do anything, and Faunus places himself in front of Dani, in a protective manner. Which leaves me as the only fighter left.

I look at Nynniaw and smile when I see a detail on Bartleby’s shirt. Blood on the shoulder.

“You’re vulnerable,” I state. “That is what made you so angry right now, isn’t it? You didn’t want us to figure that out.”

“Can’t you remember Bartleby’s speciality? I can heal my own wounds faster than you could possibly inflict them,” Nynniaw says, faking calmness. “Besides, it took me two seconds to defeat them both, too. Do you think that you’d do any better?”

Fourth: He is way too prideful. I contain a smile.

“It depends. For instance, Ethan and Angelo lowered their respective guards trying to defend each other. In a fair fight, I think that any of us three would have a good chance.”

He glares at me with eyes full of hatred for a couple of seconds and then rushes in, holding me by the neck and lifting.

I don’t struggle. I don’t even try to cut him. I hold my breath and look back. Showing weakness here is not an option here.

“It was you as well, in the end. You could have kept her safe, but with Ethan you decided that she wasn’t good enough to keep you company.”

I don’t answer. The God releases me and I lose my balance for a second when I land. Still, I keep my eyes on Bartleby’s.

“Apollo was right. My anger at the Warped was misguided. They followed orders from someone already dead. It was humans that left her alone dealing with the storm and the monsters.”

“And what are you going to do about it?”

The god actually growls out of anger before turning his back on me and starting to move away.

“You are getting your fair fight, and fairly you will die.”

Before leaving, I help Dani and the small Ethan, whose combined efforts aren’t enough to turn the unconscious Angelo around to treat the wound I suppose.

“You are right,” Dani states as we managed to turn the Warped, exposing the wound. “He is vulnerable. Still, do you think that you could defeat him?”

“No. In the fair fight that I suggested I’m guaranteed to lose and probably die. I’m just buying time for a miracle to happen.” It’s what Ethan would do, isn’t it? Endure and wait for a miracle. “Please don’t try to stop me.”

Samson McGee

Going out the exit, we notice that what it made the loud as a motorcycle orchestra sound is a…

“Is that a satellite?” I ask Sierra.

“Yes. That is a satellite.”

Well, a satellite landed in the parking lot.

Go figure.

Other than that and perhaps even more important, there are four figures on the parking lot. Kate, Ethan and Bartleby are to be expected, of course, but…

“Is that Apollo?” Edwin's question is rhetorical, for sure, since it is indeed, without a doubt, Zee that's standing on the parking lot, not too far away from the satellite.

"Bartleby is alive!" The one that speaks is Mouse, who jumps out of excitement. However, I feel like her joy might be misguided. This is all too strange.

Starting with the very basic, Ethan is on the ground against a car, which has a dent matching the shape of his back. Kate is getting her sword ready and Bartleby…

It’s certainly her, but as she stares at our direction something seems wrong.

Terribly wrong.

“Argh! No. No. No!” Again, it’s Mouse that yells, getting on her knees and covering her ears.

“What’s the matter, Mouse?” Ryon asks.

“She spoke to Mouse… She said Mouse was next after Kate. Scary voice... Scary voice.”

She sounds almost traumatized. In my head I get a feeling of great danger. That something is terribly wrong and I must be careful.

And then Kate and Bartleby start fighting. Although it’s not much of a fight. Rather, it looks like Kate is just desperately trying to dodge a barehanded Bartleby.

“Get Kate away from there, Sam. We’ll handle the rest.” No real need to mention it. By the time Sierra started speaking, I was getting Kitty ready for action.

Flying comes the Yellow Flicker, to save the day again.

The fight is incredibly uneven. It’s clear that Kate has no chance at all to come away as the victor under the current circumstances, and Bartleby is.just playing. Was she this powerful all along?

I’m not too far away when Kate finally chooses to take the offensive. Still, and confirming my suspicions, Bartleby gets hold of the sword with a single hand, clearly ignoring the blood that comes out of it, and kicks Kate away.

In just an instant, she turns back and looks at me with intense fury and throws Kate’s weapon at my direction. I know that she wasn’t even looking!

...This wasn’t expected.

Holding my breath, I trigger my intangibility just in time so that the sword traversing through my head doesn’t do me harm. And now to catch Kate.

Bartleby’s kick was really powerful, literally sending the swordswoman flying through the air. I’m guessing that I can’t really prevent the damage already done, but at least I can prevent the collision.

As I heroically catch the damsel on my hands, I hear the sound of thunder.

Edwin Shinra-Taliber

“That was a warning shot.” Sierra slowly lowers the materia as she speaks through the speakers of the armor. Meanwhile, Bartleby holds her arm, clothing destroyed and skin burnt due to the lightning magic. “I recommend you to give a good explanation for this, because the next one will be serious.”

I look back. Mouse and the kids are already inside of the airport and looking out. I signal them to go farther away. This could become dangerous.

“Sierra...” Bartleby chuckles as she pronounces the name. “I should have pictured that you’d intervene. You give warning shots now?” She releases her arm, showing that it’s in perfect condition. “Nice gesture, but with Bumblebee’s healing even your best shot won’t do much.”

Sierra looks at me and then aside at Ethan’s direction. Got it. I start running- not the easiest activity for the premiere day of my new legs, but I think I can manage it - towards the wounded swordsman. Catching a glimpse, I see that Bartleby is looking at me and starts running to intercept me. I don’t stop. However, the earth trembling below me makes it a bit more complicated to run.

Little stones of asphalt hit me as the ground emerges from below it to block the path.

“I am your opponent and you will focus on me.” Sierra’s voice is assertive and confident. I keep moving forward, reaching Ethan’s unconscious body. I rummage through the bag of materia until I manage to catch a light-blue one. Cure. That’s the one I need.

As I activate the material a bright light surrounds the warrior. I hear a series of loud explosions and look back at the fight and smile as Bartleby, or whatever is possessing her, struggles to fend off the missiles that come one after the other from Sierra’s weapon. Now that’s the woman I married.

Still, can’t be too confident, I need to-

“Where is Kate?” I feel Ethan’s grip on my arm, fully awake and still healing. No surprise in his face, just… Concern. Over someone he barely knows.

“Right there, with Sam and Ani,” I say, pointing at the fallen space station. The spandex-clad hero is also accompanied by a boy and what seems like a warped with sort of a demon shape, administering Cure materia to them. “They are being healed right now.”

“Good,” Ethan answers, holding his sword tight. “That’s one worry less.”

...Seriously?

“Look,” I say, pointing at Bartleby, engulfed in flames but still struggling to get up. “That, right there? My wife just used enough firepower to take down-” what’s a nice simile that Ethan would get? “-Six elephants.” Sounds accurate. One per rocket. “You’re brave, Ethan, but you are just a man with a sword! Perhaps this might be out of…” I stop as Ethan looks at me intensely, face full of determination and disapproval. I immediately understand the fact that I could not possibly stop this man.

“I am a man with a purpose, Edwin,” he says. “And little to lose, to top. You might be right. I might be way over my head right now. But don’t underestimate what a man can do for the sake of a purpose. You won’t stop me, and the creature is weak now. There’s no better moment for my attack.”

Mh…

“Alright,” I say resigned, digging on the materia bag and looking for the orange one. “But you might at least want this, if you wish to make the fight even remotely fair.” He takes the sphere, holding it firmly on his left palm. An orange aura starts to surround him. “Good luck.”

Description
Apollo Stardust

I’m trying to get to it. I’m seriously trying. I know that it has a mind, even if it’s not Bartleby’s. But it’s just too obstinate, too resistant to accept any empathy.

One of the arrows pierces my shoulder, making bits of it disperse. I guess that if I can’t beat it, I can at least buy the other Warped some time to escape.

“Why don’t you break? Why don’t you die?” The God entity, in a way, borrows Bartleby’s voice as it does her body, but leaves it almost indistinguishable, accompanied with screams and otherworldly sounds. A truly horrible chorus.

“You don’t need to keep on with this! The one responsible for her death died, in guilt for doing so and consequently creating you. You won already.” Its mind is far from contempt, though, covered in too many layers of hate for me to send it any message. The menace loads another arrow and uses it to pierce my heart. From this side of the parking lot I sense that the survivors remain hidden underground, waiting time until they are completely sure that the storm has left.

“I’m getting tired of you.” The thing inside of Bartleby’s corpse comes towards me and punches my face, dispersing my jaw. I tremble and fall on the floor. Of course, I’m not feeling any pain, but giving the illusion can only help.

Then I hear something. Something that I hadn’t heard since our arrival at Eos… The sound of spacecraft landing.

“What is that?” Those are the last words that the God-thing says before, out of nowhere, a huge monster of metal crashes between us and the airport, wrecking a large part of the parking lot and making the earth shake in the process. It has a cylindrical disk-like shape with an approximate radius of 120 meters and 30 of height, weighs probably around two hundred tons heavy and with nothing resembling wings or brakes. I laugh internally. Leave it to Ani to land a whole space station in the designated parking place.

“That is your bane.”

The creature aims the bow at the spacecraft. The arrow penetrates the exterior, but doesn’t go beyond the walls.

“I’ll deal with you later,” the God-thing warns before personally heading towards it.

Ethan Hornette

Still a bit dizzy because of the sudden landing and gravity changes out of nowhere (really, save Angelo everyone is dizzy) we follow the pilot through the maze of cubicles, with him going through the roofs and us following the sounds of the steps as well as the occasional visual prompt. I can’t complain and I’m happy that he went out of maniac killer mode so I can’t complain, but it’d be good if he could speak.

Finally, though, Angelo lands next to one of the outer walls and opens it, tearing it out with both hands, for us all to pass. Both warped’s wings are a bit inconvenient, but finally we all reach the spacious room, probably meant for spacecraft landings. Its most notable feature right now, though, is the huge hole that leads outside. That hole is also the sole source of illumination for the almost unlit room.

“What now?” Kate asks. “We just head out, find the God and fight it?”

“No.” Ethan seems to have a fairly clear idea of what he wants. “We wait. Let it come to us. This demon is hunting for Warped and that’s exactly what he’d find here. Something this big falling from the sky is bound to call its attention.” Angelo gives a nod, approving the idea.

“...Something’s bothering me,” Dani states nervously. “You were acquaintanced with this woman, meaning the one that was possessed by the God. Will you be able to just attack her resemblance?”

“Yes.” Ethan answers almost immediately, attracting the attention of everyone else. “It has happened before. When I had no other choice… I might be numb to that, at this point. But I’m also taking responsibility for it. And if it’s what it takes in order to save everyone, I’ll forget who it is that owned her body.”

Kate seems a bit upset about the whole discourse but, before she can manage a reply, it’s another voice that calls him.

“A noble sentiment, Ethan.” The voice is familiar and it immediately puts everyone on guard. It is also different, though. Whatever taints it can’t be truly described, but it is a sound of nightmare. “Not everyone would understand the burden of taking a life.” Bartleby’s figure approaches from the hole that Angelo had made to enter the Gatekeeper. However, it’s not with the caring attitude from the time when I saw her in the base. The eyes that were once hers show a tremendous rage. “But it is unneeded, though. I intend to die again soon enough, once that I’ve taken out the Warped. Those who are not Warped have no need to worry, much less interfere.”

I notice something, though. Nynniaw isn’t even aiming at Ethan but at Angelo… This is bad.

But I can do something about it.

Holding the materia tight, everything around me stops. I’m getting used to this and the materia really helps, but I don’t think I’ll be able to do it many more times, if at all. Let’s just focus on what’s important.

I get close to the God using Bartleby’s body, focusing at all times to maintain the… Well, lack of time. I tentatively touch the arrow and I feel a spark on my finger. Not extremely painful, but not pleasant either. Will have to ignore it. I push the tip a bit up and a bit to the left. It won’t hit anything by a long shot, but it might trick Nynniaw into thinking that it was his mistake.

And anyway, I’m just buying time for Ethan and Kate to do their thing. I return to my original position.

Now let time flow again.

Nynniaw’s face as the arrow shoots tremendously away from the target is just hysterical, but the god quickly recovers his composure, blocking Ethan’s slash with a his arm and then taking advantage of the swordsman’s own impulse to kick him out of the station. With incredible reflexes, he also dodges the attack from Kate, who gets pushed back by an invisible force.

It doesn’t look like they had serious wounds… But it clearly took the god no effort at all to do that. How to defeat someone that deflects swords and pushes the warriors aside in such a casual manner.

“I didn’t harm either of you because it’s not you that I seek and I’m not a cruel God, but I suppose that you now understand how futile any further attempts would be. My patience is limited, though. Stop trying.”

“That is a way to see it,” Kate says, fully recovered and once again ready for combat. “The way I see it is that Ethan has just flanked you and I didn’t actually miss my target.”

Nynniaw looks at his dark bow and then drops it. When it recovers its original appearance it becomes evident that the string has been severed. Kate smiles, as do I.

“On a second thought, you have already crossed the limits of my patience.”

Kate Garritsten

Nynniaw is a god which means that he’s powerful. That can’t be taken as an understatement. This couldn’t possibly be an easy fight.

With that said, though, I think that he has limits.

Not noticing right away that I cut off the string means that he’s either not all that bright or too focused on something else. For the sake of not being overconfident I’ll go with the second one and imagine that we have all of the focus now.

Second is speed. Or rather, movement. Bartleby’s body as a host is not ideal. Also, he had to actively block Ethan’s attack with his arm in order to shield from it. Put those two together and between Ethan, Angelo, me and Faunus if he chooses to join, finding a blind spot shouldn’t be all that hard.

There is a third one, but Ethan won’t want to use it to our advantage, which is the temper that will keep Nynniaw prioritizing the Warped.

As I stand up, Ethan and Angelo are already jumping at the enemy, that blocks claw and sword one with each arm. An additional attack with Angelo’s left claw almost reached Bartleby’s stomach, but was stopped by some invisible shielding force.

So it’s not enough with just penetrating the guard. Still, if he could make the shields appear just like that, why wouldn’t he do it all the time?

As I stand up, my line of thought is interrupted by the hard facts, when a punch to Angelo’s stomach makes a very ugly sound, accompanied with falling blood.

...No.

Ethan, angrier than I have ever seen him, responds from Nynniaw’s back, aiming at his shoulder. Meanwhile, I head towards Angelo, grabbing him as he’s about to fall. He’s hurt. Severely so. Chunks of metal are falling and some others do nothing but stabbing the flesh abdomen that’s below the metal plate. He lifts his thumb, though, and I realize that it means that he is alright, or at least that he wants to pretend that.

“I AM TIRED OF YOU!” I look up and see the God pushing Ethan back again, now with far more strength than before. I then see my companion rolling on the floor until he finally crashes with a rusted, broken car, as Stardust had called them. Around me, the younger Ethan seems too tired to do anything, and Faunus places himself in front of Dani, in a protective manner. Which leaves me as the only fighter left.

I look at Nynniaw and smile when I see a detail on Bartleby’s shirt. Blood on the shoulder.

“You’re vulnerable,” I state. “That is what made you so angry right now, isn’t it? You didn’t want us to figure that out.”

“Can’t you remember Bartleby’s speciality? I can heal my own wounds faster than you could possibly inflict them,” Nynniaw says, faking calmness. “Besides, it took me two seconds to defeat them both, too. Do you think that you’d do any better?”

Fourth: He is way too prideful. I contain a smile.

“It depends. For instance, Ethan and Angelo lowered their respective guards trying to defend each other. In a fair fight, I think that any of us three would have a good chance.”

He glares at me with eyes full of hatred for a couple of seconds and then rushes in, holding me by the neck and lifting.

I don’t struggle. I don’t even try to cut him. I hold my breath and look back. Showing weakness here is not an option here.

“It was you as well, in the end. You could have kept her safe, but with Ethan you decided that she wasn’t good enough to keep you company.”

I don’t answer. The God releases me and I lose my balance for a second when I land. Still, I keep my eyes on Bartleby’s.

“Apollo was right. My anger at the Warped was misguided. They followed orders from someone already dead. It was humans that left her alone dealing with the storm and the monsters.”

“And what are you going to do about it?”

The god actually growls out of anger before turning his back on me and starting to move away.

“You are getting your fair fight, and fairly you will die.”

Before leaving, I help Dani and the small Ethan, whose combined efforts aren’t enough to turn the unconscious Angelo around to treat the wound I suppose.

“You are right,” Dani states as we managed to turn the Warped, exposing the wound. “He is vulnerable. Still, do you think that you could defeat him?”

“No. In the fair fight that I suggested I’m guaranteed to lose and probably die. I’m just buying time for a miracle to happen.” It’s what Ethan would do, isn’t it? Endure and wait for a miracle. “Please don’t try to stop me.”

Samson McGee

Going out the exit, we notice that what it made the loud as a motorcycle orchestra sound is a…

“Is that a satellite?” I ask Sierra.

“Yes. That is a satellite.”

Well, a satellite landed in the parking lot.

Go figure.

Other than that and perhaps even more important, there are four figures on the parking lot. Kate, Ethan and Bartleby are to be expected, of course, but…

“Is that Apollo?” Edwin's question is rhetorical, for sure, since it is indeed, without a doubt, Zee that's standing on the parking lot, not too far away from the satellite.

"Bartleby is alive!" The one that speaks is Mouse, who jumps out of excitement. However, I feel like her joy might be misguided. This is all too strange.

Starting with the very basic, Ethan is on the ground against a car, which has a dent matching the shape of his back. Kate is getting her sword ready and Bartleby…

It’s certainly her, but as she stares at our direction something seems wrong.

Terribly wrong.

“Argh! No. No. No!” Again, it’s Mouse that yells, getting on her knees and covering her ears.

“What’s the matter, Mouse?” Ryon asks.

“She spoke to Mouse… She said Mouse was next after Kate. Scary voice... Scary voice.”

She sounds almost traumatized. In my head I get a feeling of great danger. That something is terribly wrong and I must be careful.

And then Kate and Bartleby start fighting. Although it’s not much of a fight. Rather, it looks like Kate is just desperately trying to dodge a barehanded Bartleby.

“Get Kate away from there, Sam. We’ll handle the rest.” No real need to mention it. By the time Sierra started speaking, I was getting Kitty ready for action.

Flying comes the Yellow Flicker, to save the day again.

The fight is incredibly uneven. It’s clear that Kate has no chance at all to come away as the victor under the current circumstances, and Bartleby is.just playing. Was she this powerful all along?

I’m not too far away when Kate finally chooses to take the offensive. Still, and confirming my suspicions, Bartleby gets hold of the sword with a single hand, clearly ignoring the blood that comes out of it, and kicks Kate away.

In just an instant, she turns back and looks at me with intense fury and throws Kate’s weapon at my direction. I know that she wasn’t even looking!

...This wasn’t expected.

Holding my breath, I trigger my intangibility just in time so that the sword traversing through my head doesn’t do me harm. And now to catch Kate.

Bartleby’s kick was really powerful, literally sending the swordswoman flying through the air. I’m guessing that I can’t really prevent the damage already done, but at least I can prevent the collision.

As I heroically catch the damsel on my hands, I hear the sound of thunder.

Edwin Shinra-Taliber

“That was a warning shot.” Sierra slowly lowers the materia as she speaks through the speakers of the armor. Meanwhile, Bartleby holds her arm, clothing destroyed and skin burnt due to the lightning magic. “I recommend you to give a good explanation for this, because the next one will be serious.”

I look back. Mouse and the kids are already inside of the airport and looking out. I signal them to go farther away. This could become dangerous.

“Sierra...” Bartleby chuckles as she pronounces the name. “I should have pictured that you’d intervene. You give warning shots now?” She releases her arm, showing that it’s in perfect condition. “Nice gesture, but with Bumblebee’s healing even your best shot won’t do much.”

Sierra looks at me and then aside at Ethan’s direction. Got it. I start running- not the easiest activity for the premiere day of my new legs, but I think I can manage it - towards the wounded swordsman. Catching a glimpse, I see that Bartleby is looking at me and starts running to intercept me. I don’t stop. However, the earth trembling below me makes it a bit more complicated to run.

Little stones of asphalt hit me as the ground emerges from below it to block the path.

“I am your opponent and you will focus on me.” Sierra’s voice is assertive and confident. I keep moving forward, reaching Ethan’s unconscious body. I rummage through the bag of materia until I manage to catch a light-blue one. Cure. That’s the one I need.

As I activate the material a bright light surrounds the warrior. I hear a series of loud explosions and look back at the fight and smile as Bartleby, or whatever is possessing her, struggles to fend off the missiles that come one after the other from Sierra’s weapon. Now that’s the woman I married.

Still, can’t be too confident, I need to-

“Where is Kate?” I feel Ethan’s grip on my arm, fully awake and still healing. No surprise in his face, just… Concern. Over someone he barely knows.

“Right there, with Sam and Ani,” I say, pointing at the fallen space station. The spandex-clad hero is also accompanied by a boy and what seems like a warped with sort of a demon shape, administering Cure materia to them. “They are being healed right now.”

“Good,” Ethan answers, holding his sword tight. “That’s one worry less.”

...Seriously?

“Look,” I say, pointing at Bartleby, engulfed in flames but still struggling to get up. “That, right there? My wife just used enough firepower to take down-” what’s a nice simile that Ethan would get? “-Six elephants.” Sounds accurate. One per rocket. “You’re brave, Ethan, but you are just a man with a sword! Perhaps this might be out of…” I stop as Ethan looks at me intensely, face full of determination and disapproval. I immediately understand the fact that I could not possibly stop this man.

“I am a man with a purpose, Edwin,” he says. “And little to lose, to top. You might be right. I might be way over my head right now. But don’t underestimate what a man can do for the sake of a purpose. You won’t stop me, and the creature is weak now. There’s no better moment for my attack.”

Mh…

“Alright,” I say resigned, digging on the materia bag and looking for the orange one. “But you might at least want this, if you wish to make the fight even remotely fair.” He takes the sphere, holding it firmly on his left palm. An orange aura starts to surround him. “Good luck.”