SHS Training Facility - 11/03 11:27 am 51EE

Beads of burning sweat trickled down Hiro's nose, all the way to the tip, before dripping down onto the white concrete. The walls surrounding him were beaming white, tall red beams ascending to the padded ceiling. Hiro was standing with his legs far apart and slightly bent allowing him to hunch forward and hold onto his thighs for support. His nose twitched as his hair invaded his peripherals. He slicked his hair back with the sweat soaking his forehead and rubbed his nose.

Standing before him were six people, all dressed in white and sweating just as much as him. Hiro stood up straight and clutched onto a small disc, his lungs heaving as he could barely catch a single breath. He stepped forward and put his biker helmet on, a bright yellow with a long white stripe going around the helmet. He flipped the visor down causing his face to be wrapped in void. In a flash, he zipped forward and threw the disc heavily. His six opponents all pounced onto the disc but out of nowhere, Hiro's helmet flew threw the air toward the disc. Without warning or sound, Hiro was instantly transported to the location of his helmet with it back on his head.

He grabbed the disc and evaded all of his opponents. They all pushed past each other and reached for Hiro. He threw the disc upward and swung his leg around to belt two of his opponents' jaws with his heel. The force caused them to be flung back as Hiro quickly grabbed the disc. He kept running as the remaining four opponents surrounded him. Hiro leapt over them and threw his helmet and the disc towards a large net. His opponents all quickly reached out to the disc and grabbed ahold of it just before it entered the net. However, Hiro's helmet flew through the air and hooked the disc inside of it.

Hiro grinned and recalled his helmet with the disc in his hand as his opponents all fell into the net. In one quick fling, Hiro threw the disc into the net as a blaring buzzer went off. All of his opponents groaned as they got up. They all stretched and rubbed their bruised body. A few took long gulps of water with one of them just spilling a whole bottle of water on themself.

Hiro heard a light chuckle from the sidelines followed by clapping.

"That makes what? 29? Impressive."

Carleton sat on the side bench and leaned on his fist. His smile was so wide it looked as if his eyes were closed.

Hiro wiped his brow.

"Yep, so when are you gonna play?"

Hiro grabbed a water bottle and took a long swig.

Carleton chuckled nervously and waved his hands around.

"I'm not in the market to make your win streak 30."

Carleton stands up, his attire stands out compared to the bleak white room and sporting uniforms Hiro and the others wore. He had a teal dress shirt with orange polka dots splattered all over it. He kept his sleeves rolled up and wore navy blue shorts with suspenders. He dressed like an old person, with his socks riding up to his knee and circle glasses.

"Plus sports isn't my strong suit."

Hiro throws a towel over his shoulder.

"Your loss."

They begin to leave the court and head outside, the sun's rays were toxic to the exhausted Hiro who dragged himself across a large dirt path to shade.

Carleton is unaffected by the sun and stands in its glow while Hiro sits on the grass by a tree.

"How have you been finding this place? I know it's not as grand as the headquarters back in the Night Precinct."

Hiro leans back to look at the cerulean sky.

"I grew up in the countryside so it isn't too bad. Familiar. The real sucker in this place is having to walk everywhere. There's no proper roads for my bike so the poor girl has had to sit in the garage for weeks."

Carleton stands on his tippy toes and quickly sways back to stand on his heels, keeping his smile the whole time.

"I like walking. It makes me feel... alive."

Carleton stops his swaying and loses his smile.

"I believe we are getting called."

Hiro looks up confused.

"Huh? What do you-"

Suddenly an elegantly dressed man in a suit walks up to us, he has white hair tied back and a clean-shaven beard. He looks old, his eyes are narrow, and his face wrinkled. He holds a tin cloche and stands tightly together.

"My Lord wishes to speak with you, Mr Carleton."

Carleton nods.

"I'll just be a second."

The man walks off as Carleton turns to Hiro.

"Seems something exciting is finally happening around here, let's not waste a Lord's time, Hiro."

Carleton walks off as Hiro scurries to his feet and runs to catch up. They walk through the training facility, everything sporting a militaristic look with forest green paint and dreary concrete walls. Spectators dressed in their white uniforms walk by as distant sounds of a battle rage on. Soon Hiro and Carleton reach a large dome, Carleton walks into it without fear but Hiro seems anxious about what is going to happen once he steps through.

Carleton noticed Hiro's hesitancy and turned around to face him.

"Something wrong, Hiro?"

Hiro looked up at the dome and shook his head.

"It's nothing."

Hiro made his way inside to find a massive arena, viewing stands loomed above as loud bangs could be heard in the centre. As Hiro and Carleton walked in they saw a man appear from a cloud of smoke, he was covered in strange objects and gave a hearty chuckle.

"GAHAHA! I've missed battles like these!"

The man could be seen clearly now, his entire body was covered with comedy masks, each sporting a different expression. He had a menacing figure, standing taller than anyone Hiro had ever seen.

On the other side of the arena, a man in a blue sailor's outfit was kneeling, covered in cuts and bruises.

"I'm glad... I could provide a sufficient battle... Lord Vitruvian Limbic."

Lord Vitruvian Limbic scoffed and took the mask concealing his face off. Soon all the masks on his body disappeared as he stood bare on the battlefield.

"Please, the other Lords are not here. Just call me Vivian, I do not share their passion for rules or conformities."

Hiro looked weirded out by the naked man standing there.

"What the hell is this?"

Carleton smirked and looked down at the ground.

"It is simply play. Though we aren't here to spectate."

Carleton approached Vivian nonchalantly.

"Vivian. I believe you called for me."

Vivian looks at Carleton and nods. Soon the elegantly dressed man from before walks up to Vivian and hands him a hot towel.

"Thank you, Terrintul."

Vivian wipes the sweat from his body.

"Carleton I assume? A new situation has arisen beyond the eastern coast. Since you are in charge of the facility here, I wish to request a handful of Spectators to aid in... a coming battle."

Carleton's eyes widened.

"A situation? Is it Ignition again?"

Vivian shakes his head.

"A Haab'. More specifically... a Haab' in the clutches of a Necrosite."

Jia Precinct - 11/03 12:04 pm 51EE

Century sat on the couch chewing on the string of Rina's maroon hoodie, Which Rina lent Century, as the television was left on the news channel. Two news anchors spoke but Century had tuned them out, hearing only white noise. Her arm hung off the edge of the couch as she was thoroughly bored. Petra was on the floor, watching videos on Yuro's tablet like usual. The noise from it combined with the TV created an obnoxious atmosphere that slowly nipped at Century.

Century let out a long groan.

"Turn that down!"

Century kicked Petra over.

"You've been addicted to that thing for weeks now."

Petra rolled across the living room, she had noticeable bags beneath her eyes and her skin was greasy.

"What the hell is wrong with you!"

Petra sighed in frustration.

"Geez, why are you even here? Shouldn't you be with the others?"

Century pouted and turned to lay on her side.

"I wanted to... apparently only important people are allowed to go."

Petra looked offended.

"Figures. I wonder why they didn't bring along then..."

Century shrugged her shoulders.

"You weren't brought along because you're disgusting. I wasn't brought along because Werren said he was afraid I'd just cause trouble."

Century shot up.

"AND HE'S RIGHT GODDAMNIT! THAT'S THE WHOLE REASON I WANTED TO GO!"

Century punched the couch.

Petra furrowed her brow.

"Stop being such a numbskull. They probably didn't want us to go because we're still SHS members."

Century gave a puzzled look.

"What does that have to do with anything? Aren't they just going for ice cream like they do every day?"

Petra held in a laugh.

"Pfft. That's what they tell you? Wow, they really don't trust you."

Century was insulted and kicked Petra across the room.

"What are you talking about!? Where are they then?!"

Petra bounced around the room before coming to a stop. Her head twirled as she waited for the dizziness to fade.

"If you would let me speak before KICKING ME then I could tell you!"

Century kicked Petra again.

"WHERE ARE THEY!?"

Petra screamed as she rolled into the kitchen. Century went after her.

"STOP DOING THAT ASSHOLE!"

Petra composed herself.

"Now that I can explain, they aren't going out to ice cream, that's stupid. Though you falling for that lie isn't surprising."

Century lifted her leg, preparing to kick Petra once more.

"Don't! I'll be serious now. They've been having meetings with the Lockdown squad."

Century calmed down and put down her leg.

"Meetings? Seriously? Glad I'm not going to those then."

Century picked Petra up and brought her back to the living room.

Petra sighed.

"Well, it might not seem like a big deal to you but I still have loyalty to the SHS, and knowing what's happening in those meetings could aid the SHS."

Century flung Petra onto the couch and sat beside her.

"Good for you. SHS and I aren't getting along too well so I could care less about what they want."

"Even if what they're saying could help aid in you becoming a villain?"

Petra raised one of her eyebrows.

"Also don't you wanna hear about their plans? If they've been having daily meetings for almost a week now then they must be talking about very important things."

Century looked off to the side.

"Stop trying to manipulate me into going. I don't listen to anyone."

Century thought for a moment.

"But fine, we can go spy on them for a bit. Better than sitting on my ass doing nothing."

Petra smirked.

"I knew you had it in you! Y'know me and you should go back to the SHS, I think we'd make a pretty good team!"

Century put on her glove and made Petra explode into a gory mess.

"This isn't a partnership. We're doing this MY way. And why would I ever want to be on a team with you!?"

Meanwhile...

The church had been fully repaired. It was one of the first things rebuilt to a pristine state, it was as if nothing ever happened there. Most of the town had been rebuilt with the help of the Lockdown squad. The residents were happy they had finally gotten a break from all the insane events. Inside the church, Werren, Yuro, and Rina sat by the altar. Werren tapped his foot as he looked at his box of cigarettes, debating if he should take a quick one.

Suddenly the front doors open with Eliowen and Nayjhren assisting Archbishop Blues inside. Blues' injuries had mostly healed but his sickness was getting worse, his skin had begun to turn green, his hands and knees trembled after any slight movement.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

Eliowen had his hand on Blues' back.

"Just take it slow, Father."

Blues chuckled.

"I'm trying Eliowen. I never thought I'd have regular old man problems but here we are."

They soon joined up with Werren and the others by the altar.

Nayjhren looked at Blues feeling guilty.

"I don't understand. Why did he have to heal his wounds naturally and why is he still sick? Can Rina not heal him with her powers?"

Werren shook his head as Rina looked down.

"Unfortunately no. Blues' has a very specific illness. Or rather, he has a mutated version of our illness."

Nayjhren looked confused prompting Yuro to speak up.

"You haven't learned this yet so I don't blame you for suggesting using Rina but, Strand is a lot more complex. It's a part of our biology, to put it simply, Strand is a parasite. Our bodies have evolved to keep the parasite in check but our bodies have also evolved with the parasite in us so our brain has made room for it. This keeps the parasite in check meaning it would never be able to kill us unless more of the parasite were to enter our brain."

Werren chimes in.

"Let's lay it out like this. Our brain is around 0.0029% infested with the Strand parasite. This is a healthy amount. If even 0.0001% more of the parasite is to exist in one's body then they will begin to die. This is known as Strandiase. It's why Necrosites exist, they are the part of the brain that houses one Strand abilities and it's why Necrobeasts hunt us, they want to feed their Necrosite so that it will grow larger."

Nayjhren looks disheartened.

"So... if Rina were to bite him she would get the parasite..."

Nayjhren looked even more guilty.

"Is there a cure?"

Werren ponders deeply for a few minutes.

"There are a couple of solutions. The first is to excessively use your powers to quell the parasite. The other solution is a bit outdated but there used to be a special type of crystal that could zap all of the parasites from one's brain, it would get rid of the illness but also one's powers. However, the crystals were used in biological warfare a lot since the parasite would be trapped in the crystal. In the previous Era, they were used to spread a mass amount of the parasite and caused a great plague through the Central Continent."

The room fell quiet. Blues laughed breaking through the barrier.

"I'll be fine! I've been using my powers a lot to help rebuild the town and my house. I'll only have it for a little while longer."

Eliowen clutched onto Blues' hand.

"I promise."

Eliowen smiled. Suddenly the church's front doors swung open. Sunlight ran in before the shadows of figures blocked the way. They waltzed inside, their footsteps heavy. The first to enter was Crux, he wore large orange cargo pants and kept his coat wrapped around his waist, he had no shirt and large goggles that hung around his neck. His hair was long and spikey.

Crux tossed a screwdriver into the air and caught it once it came back down. His large leather gloves creaked as he clenched his screwdriver.

"Sorry for bein' late! Got caught up in fixin' some guys fridge."

Behind him was a rather short girl with black hair in a ponytail named Draco. She wore a navy leather harness with a navy sleeveless top and orange microfiber gloves. The most notable feature of her was her two prosthetic blade legs that were orange with navy accents.

Draco stepped forward and stood up straight.

"Yes. Apologies."

The next to walk forward was a short boy with messy silver hair named Pyxis. He had a long navy coat with a turtle neck collar that he left unzipped. He also wore orange shorts with two straps hanging from his hips.

Pyxis walked forward holding a compass.

"Don't be so clinical Draco. They aren't the captain."

Another person walked forward, her name was Meda. She had long wavy brown hair and shining pink eyes. She wore a similar coat to Pyxis but left it off her shoulders as she wore a red sleeveless dress and high heels. She looked very out of place from the rest, most would think she was rich or famous but here she was, hunting Necrobeasts.

Meda giggled softly.

"But I'm sure these good men and woman would like to be treated with respect, Pyxis. You should always treat your elders with respect.

Meda gracefully bowed.

Pyxis grinned.

"That's why I treat you with the most respect ma'am."

Meda's eyes widened but she still kept an eerie smile.

"Excuse me?"

Pyxis froze.

"Nothing!"

Meda walked up to him and grabbed him by the throat, not letting go of her smile.

"No no. REPEAT IT!"

Meda's eyes glowed brightly as Pyxis struggled in her grip, her long nails stabbing into his throat.

"GET INTO POSITION IDIOTS!"

From the door, an imposing figure stood. Captain Navie. She walked forward, as she came into the light. She wore a navy peaked cap with gold accents that hid most of her hair but traces of orange could be seen poking out. Most of her torso was concealed behind a thick capelet that had a wide variety of military badges and flailing gold tuffs. A long coat reached down from beneath her capelet that was adorned with gold buttons and chains. Each step with her combat heels brought fear into each of the Lockdown members. Without any other words, each of them lined up and made fists with their left hand before placing it over their left eye, mimicking how one holds a spyglass with one hand. Navie walked through, her expression stern and her demeanour serious.

"That's more like it. Just because we've had it easy in this town for the past couple of weeks DOES NOT MEAN you get to slack off and mess around. Remember our enemies are always watching, we must look strong at all times."

Each member gulped, they looked like statues.

Werren sighed but was rather amused by Navie's authority.

"Don't worry about being late. We're in no rush."

Blues gave a smile.

"Please, no need for such command in this place. This church is a place of relaxing, know time does look down upon you here."

Navie kept her head low to hide her eyes. She looked up slightly revealing her glowing white eyes.

"If you wish, Archbishop. At ease Lockdown."

All of them let go of their salute and slumped to the floor. Crux crawled up to a seat.

"Oh god, I thought I was done for."

Meda stood firmly.

"I had no worries. You all should relax a little.

Meda continued to stand tall and firm like a tree.

Werren stood up and walked over.

"Now that we are all here. Let's get onto today's meeting. Nayjhren, Eliowen, please wait outside. We won't be long."

Eliowen and Nayjhren nodded before leaving together.

Navie crossed her arms.

"Hm. Now that Archbishop Blues has decently recovered I believe it's about time we discussed Father."

Outside of the church, Eliowen and Nayjhren closed the door behind them.

Eliowen sighed as he hung his head low.

"I do kind of wish we got to hear these meetings."

Nayjhren looked over.

"Why? I feel like they can't be talking about things too important considering they've been having so many recently."

Eliowen kicked his feet while he walked.

"I know but... I'm worried."

Eliowen stopped walking and turned his head up.

"I'm worried about my father. About the town. About the Haab'. I feel like I'm not doing enough despite being the Archbishop's son. During the Necrobeast attack, I did nothing. I didn't help anyone all I did was cause more problems."

Nayjhren rubbed his shoulder.

"Me too."

Nayjhren's face lightly scrunched.

"I'm sorry by the way. I never said it."

Eliowen was surprised.

"You are? Why?"

Nayjhren's face turned red.

"Why? I feel responsible for your father's illness getting worse. I controlled Century and made her hurt him. I feel so stupid, I don't even know why I thought that was a good idea. I felt like I needed to be angry. To get revenge on all of you but... I can't. You're my family."

Eliowen smiled.

"That's why we forgave you Nayjhren, you're family. And if you feel stupid then I do too. I bet wherever Kaleido is, she is feeling stupid as well."

Nayjhren smiled back but then Eliowen blurred out as Nayjhren looked past him to the church, he saw Century trying to place a long ladder against the church but the wind kept knocking it. Distant shouting of profanities was all that could be heard.

"Uh. What is Century doing?"

Nayjhren walked towards her.

As he got closer a whistle was suddenly blown. Nayjhren covered his ears.

"CENTURY! THEY SPOTTED US!"

Petra was sitting nearby acting as a spotter for anyone who might rat them out.

Century spun around.

"Oh shit."

Century kicked the ladder away.

"You uh... didn't see that did you?"

Eliowen walked forward.

"See what?"

Nayjhren raised an eyebrow.

"You mean the ladder?"

Century groaned.

"Damnit! You shits saw. Welp I will have to kill you now."

Nayjhren waved his hands.

"Wait! We won't tell! What are you trying to do anyway?"

Petra spits at Nayjhren.

"That's SHS business! Stay out of it!"

Century didn't listen to Petra and blurted out their plan.

"We were planning to spy on the dumbasses inside the church to find out their plans."

Eliowen looked surprised and stepped forward.

"Really? Could... we join you?"

Petra looked at Century dumbfounded by how easily she spilled their plan.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?"

Century rolled her eyes.

"I told you! I'm not listening to anything you say so I told them since you didn't want to."

Petra grinds her teeth and froths at the mouth.

"Oh my god, you petty worm... I see why Julie wanted you DEAD!"

Century grabbed Petra and bashed her against the pavement.

"I wouldn't be talking head! I'm sick of you already, take a hike!"

Century punted Petra into a wall, splattering her brain all over the place.

She quickly reformed.

"Haha so funny. Haven't seen me getting kicked before, how original!"

Nayjhren and Eliowen didn't know what to do so they slowly crept to the ladder and placed it back against the church. While Century and Petra argued they climbed up to the roof.

Petra noticed them on the roof.

"HEY THICKSKULL! THOSE TWO ARE STEALING OUR IDEA!"

Century turned around and panicked.

"What the- Those shits... I'M GONNA KILL THEM!"

Century picked up Petra and tossed her toward Nayjhren and Eliowen.

Nayjhren dodged Petra causing her to land on the roof with them.

"Wha- Hey! Don't throw heads at us!"

Century ripped out a hair tie.

"I'll throw more than heads..."

Nayjhren's spine shrivelled as he grabbed Eliowen's hand and rushed up to the bell tower.

Back inside the church, Werren and Blues listened to Navie intently. The atmosphere was serious as everyone gathered around.

Navie pulled out a small tablet.

"Nine years ago we first encountered the Necrosite naming itself Father Oak. Back when Werren and Rina worked with the Initiates they attempted to kill the Necrosite but it barely managed to slip away."

Navie showed the tablet to everyone, an image of a giant tree burning beneath the moonlight, another image showing a scorched forest, the aftermath of the event.

"Little is known about Father Oak, when we tried to interrogate Nayjhren all those years ago we got no new information. We believe that Father Oak is a hyper-intelligent Necrosite, beyond the likes of any human alive."

Navie brings up another image, this time the image of a massive tunnel, Crux was visible as a tiny dot in the corner.

"Since the event, the Initiates have made many attempts to find Father Oak but all have been unsuccessful up until recently. The recent Necrobeast siege on this town was no coincidence, it was orchestrated by Father Oak who had been hiding beneath the ground this whole time. We are unsure of its motives but one thing we can assure is where it is currently."

Navie brings up a picture of an island.

"Two weeks ago, an unidentified island was found just beyond the eastern coast in SHS and Ignition contested waters. We believe this to be Father Oak who has disguised himself as an island but... there's one strange thing about this."

Navie shows an image of the centre of the island. There was a small pedestal with a stone fragment that had a symbol of a cloud on it. Werren's eyes widened and his mouth lay agape.

"Seen on the island is... a Haab'."

Werren stroked his chin.

"A Necrosite possessing a Haab'? That's... new."

Blues looked up.

"That is... strange. Would that mean that Father Oak has bonded with a Haab'?"

Navie nods.

"That is the only possible way. Since bonding with a Haab' can make it turn into what you want then it seems Father Oak used it to dispel the Haab's natural ward. We have no idea why it would be showing us the Haab' however. Surely it would want to hide it."

Werren began to think.

"It wants us to try and take it then. Setting bait but... for something that is apparently hyper-intelligent I don't see why it would leave such an obvious trap."

Blues interjects.

"If you don't mind. There is one other thing I would like to speak about. The Father Oak situation is concerning but if nothing has happened yet then I want to focus on repairing my Haab'. The one in my son's back."

Navie sighed.

"We are aware your town is in constant danger from more attacks but with Father Oak having left the area, attacks should slow to a stop soon. If you are really worried about your son then we can take him to our surface headquarters in the Solar Desert."

Blues looked hesitant.

"I'm not sure. He will be safer here. Could you not ask for someone to come here instead?"

Navie shook her head.

"With all due respect Archbishop, the Initiates are the most trusted group in the dial. We only exist to aid people. It would be a lot better to bring your son to our headquarters where all our facilities are."

Blues still looks weary.

"But... what if something goes wrong? How am I supposed to protect him?"

Navie looks surprised.

"Then bring some of your people with him. Archbishop, with all due respect again... your son can stand on his own. Let him fly from the flock."

Werren smiles.

"I understand how much you value Eliowen but Navie is right. These past few weeks, while you've been recovering I have seen that boy explore the world around him. You always kept him close to you but you should let the boy prove himself. I know all he wants is to make you proud."

Blues begin to tear up.

"Ha... Am I that easily convinced? I do want to protect him, it's all I ever want to do."

Blues wipes his eyes.

"You always know what to say Werren, what to do, how to do it. I'm nothing more than impressed. I guess you didn't get the title of Hero for nothing."

Blues stands up and puts out his hand.

"I want Rina and Yuro to go with him. Rina will know the way and Yuro can help guide him. I'll... trust my son. Please, take care of him."

Navie smiles and shakes Blues' hand.

"We will. You can count on us."

Werren walks forward.

"What about Father Oak?"

Navie turns to Werren.

"Well, we did inform you of it so we... we would like your help Werren."

Navie blushes and holds the brim of her hat lower to hide her face.

Werren chuckles.

"I knew that. I just wanted you to say it, Captain."

Werren has a teasing tone as he smiles warmly.

"That title really does suit you."

Navie smiles.

"It was yours once."

Werren walks past her.

"Yeah, and I'm glad I gave it up. Hero sounds so much nicer."

Werren then stops.

"Oh actually, I was wondering. I think I might have a few more people who might be willing to help us if you want extra assistance."

Suddenly the roof of the church blows open. Debris is flung everywhere as sunlight invades. Rina quickly unfolds her umbrella as the Lockdown squad all pull out their weapons. Crux flips his screwdriver between his fingers before a staff suddenly appears. Draco pulls out a strand of hair as a bow materializes. Pyxis readies his compass as Meda flicks a stray hair out of her face. Navie walks forward and pulls out a spyglass before unfolding it and swinging it around like a bat. They all took their stances as from the hole Century descended, a crazed look on her face. Nayjhren and Eliowen followed with Petra bouncing around.

Century took out her glove and turned it to diamond.

"We never had a true fight. I've been meaning to dig more graves lately."

Nayjhren and Eliowen stood side-by-side. Eliowen trembled.

"Is all you ever do fight!?"

Nayjhren shifted to a cold expression.

"Don't worry. I won't hold back like I did last time."

Century grinned.

"Just what I wanted to hear..."

A brawl between comrades commences as the emergence of a new threat grows larger and larger...