"Welcome…"

After passing through the gates into the Daystar Industries, everyone watched in awe at the tall building that dwarfed the entire city. One would have to count the windows multiple times without losing track to figure out how many floors it had.

There were helicopters occupying landing zones, tanks being manufactured to best suit the driver, and a fountain welcoming all those who entered. The grass was so well-taken care of that it looked like elves had painted it, and the beautiful sky only made the building much more attractive. One could imagine dragons soaring through the clouds.

"…to the Daystar's Arsenal: Avalon.

Midir's face lacked the expression, but his eyes were revealing a small side of him being impressed.

To think of the day I’d see this building with my very own eyes…

Midir turned around, seemingly aware of how the building operated despite its knowledge being kept away from anyone but three specific people. As much as Midir is knowledgeable, he can only see the present and not the future. Although he himself was full of information, he decided to ask Lorin so that his answer would enlighten everyone else.

"There must be a reason no one has broken into this place, including her," said Midir as he glanced toward Eris.

"Oh, trust me," Lorin replied. "You’ll see soon. This is the most impenetrable base of the entire world. By the way, Helios. If you plan on becoming the next Head of the Daystar Industries, you should atleast learn the very basics. Heirlooms are indestructible, yet yours managed to be broken by Cameron Sin… Maybe I should have my engineers teach you how to make weapons so you can have a new one. What about you, Akihiro? Want me to replace your Onikiri?"

"Thanks, but I’ll deny the offer."

"Did he just say thank you?" Ivory jests.

Helios looks at the empty sheath that rests beside his leg and sighs as he thinks over the offer: the blade he had was destroyed. He looks at Lorin starting to notice some similarities but waves it off as he shrugs.

"…Go ahead, not like it'll top my aunt's."

Lorin’s face isn’t even an expression of confusion at this point, quickly getting used to Helios'... special personality.

"You do realize your aunt is my mother, right? The technology and blueprints are the exact same." Lorin comments, attempting to motivate Helios to actually focus on improving himself since all the strength is needed against Fenris

"Alright then, let's head inside."

Lorin reached out and a massive holographic lock manifested on the door. After a minute of manually undoing the lock, the hologram dispersed, and the door began to swing open automatically. White lights greeted everyone's eyes as they entered, revealing a massive stairway leading upward, showcasing the building's humongous structure. Ascending the stairs, they found multiple receptionist desks and suspended vehicles, like helicopters, hanging from the ceiling. Several garages led back down outside for vehicle exits. Further up the stairs, a row of elevators bustled with assiduous workers. The group was awestruck, although Helios seemed unimpressed, most definitely out of spite. Akihiro and Ivory, on the other hand, seemed to be thinking about their ability to take on the entire military alone and wonder if they were to emerge victorious. Lorin noticed Midir's familiar expression, not impressed but sightseeing nonetheless, which only gave Lorin more than enough curiosity about Midir's origins. Upon reaching the 70th floor, the group exited the elevator one by one, finding themselves in the Heirloom forging factory.

"Have a look around. I suppose only Helios needs a new one made, but you can see the ones already made for the actual military. If any of you don't have one, let me know."

Everyone just hears buttons being pressed as they watch Helios get to work, surprised to see that he's actually in his element seeming focused outside of battle. Selene slowly creeps up behind up, peeking over his shoulders to get a better look at his craftsmanship as the machine finally releases the brand new blade holding it in his right hand before turning back to the group grabbing his sheath with his other hand.

"...Impressive. Just like Aunt Reyna."

Selene admires the blade up close as even Apollo walks up to it amazed at the simplistic yet effective design chosen, she turns around as Apollo & Helios begin conversing as she looks at the options…she frowns at katana, sword, nunchucks, and rifle before setting her eyes on a wooden staff.

Her eyes remained glued to it as if it was calling to her somehow, she was so transfixed on it that she ignored Apollo & Helios arguing about who had the better blade before she begins to make her own weapon. After a few clicks & hisses, it spits out a normal wooden staff as it catches the attention of Helios & Apollo with even Eris actually taking interest with it of all people.

Arienne followed promptly behind the... family. She kept her distance and nobody seemed to mind. They didn't pay her much mind, as she didn't to them either. There were far more interesting things. Like how that Midir person stayed by her instead of with the main group. Maybe he didn't know them well, not that he knew her any better. Unless of course he stalked her and knew more about her than even she consciously knew of herself. Her thoughts wandered when something finally caught her eye. The Heirloom factory proved worthwhile as soon as she laid her eyes on a staff. Not very thin, but not at all tacky. Her eyes began to glow as, almost in a trance, she walked to it and touched. It suddenly lit a deep blue in its intricate crevises.

"Can I have this?" She asked Lorin, just in case.

Midir took a glance at the staff Arienne pointed out, and the staff resonated with her ability quite well. Is that supposed to happen? Normally, people would have weapons manufactured to fit with their aura, but it seems Arienne's ability is one of nightmare fuel. Maybe it makes sense for her weapon to be "unfit" due to those circumstances. Although, the black staff with spikes was certainly an impression.

"The blue fits. Can’t say it doesn’t match with your choice of attire."

"That’s peculiar… You can keep it."

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There was one other weapon Lorin was interested in: the Duskwilt scalpels. Ivory's primary Heirloom which seemed to be one manufactured by herself, but it didn't appear to be an aura weapon. But aura weapons were supposed to be indestructible, so how come the Boneripper matches them in durability? Lorin turns to Kronos, who possessed a knife the same size of the wielder.

"Yours was crafted by Fenris, I'm assuming? I don't think there's a need to replace it, since he has our technology."

"No. Contrary to what most would believe I made it actually, technically at least."

Taking credit for my work, said the voice in Kronos' head.

Casper, shut your incorporeal ass up.

"Didn't need to use Daystar technology, either. Used some other methods to create it. Worked out just fine as you can see. No way in hell Fenris would've let me make what is basically an enlarged kitchen knife."

Lorin stood there, completely baffled at what Kronos had just spat from his mouth. A child being able to make an aura weapon on his own, and especially without Daystar Technology? Which was supposed to be the only method of manufacturing it? Something didn’t make sense, and especially since the kid hadn’t even earned his trust yet. Feeling a lingering feeling of threat to their goals of stopping Fenris, Lorin began to reach to where his gun was held when no eyes were settled upon him--

"Are these the guests you went out searching for?" a voice called out, gathering everyone's attention as all their eyes dragged towards the figure walking towards them. It turned out to be a man none would dare to call anything but flamboyant, carrying a wooden staff with flowers decorated onto it. His robes were pure white that had pink trails at the ends, and his hair looked like a waterfall of pure angel feathers.

"Such dissonance," the man said with a dramatic flourish of his staff. "I can't say I expected a warm welcome, but this is a bit extra, don't you think?"

Lorin approaches the new figure, and stands beside him.

"Allow me to introduce to you one of my subordinates: Merlin. Once Fenris and Cerberus destroyed Camelot, Merlin was left as the sole survivor. Allow me to show you as to why Merlin is the reason this is the most impenetrable fortress."

Lorin then tried to stare at the leader of the group he invited, only to realize he couldn’t really tell who it was. Was it Midir, who seemed to be handling the group with a calm authority? Or was it Helios, the one everyone seemed to be associated with?

"Follow me."

Lorin led the way, and Midir waited for everyone to pass before following along with Arienne beside him. His eyes immediately stuck to a large gate. Once it swung open, his gaze met a pillar which seemed to hold the roof in place, though it actually did not. The pillar had multiple cables attached to it, appearing to connect throughout the entire building. In truth, the pillar was a generator, its energy source an essence of darkness at its very core. This artifact emanated a discomfort that surpassed even the unsettling mana Arienne constantly reeked of.

Midir turned to Akihiro, who appeared awestruck, his eyes wide with a mixture of amazement and disbelief. Ivory was clueless, obviously, but this presence was one Akihiro had experienced before. An entertained smile crept up Akihiro's face as he couldn't take his eyes off the artifact, asking Lorin, "What exactly is this?"

"The Void," Lorin replied with a tone of reverence. "The essence of nothingness, contained within this artifact, is the wellspring of all abilities. It births every form of energy and mana imaginable. By harnessing the substance of nothingness in this artifact, we fuel the entire arsenal with an inexhaustible well of mana. But it's Merlin who elevates us to another level."

Lorin turns their sights to the cables, which converted void to mana through machinery and then to a pod.

"When we target the mana to Merlin, whose ability is to manipulate life, we elevate him to a power close enough to what Ivory is capable of. A mortal with infinite mana at his disposal."

"I appreciate the compliments, but won't you also introduce Saturnus?"

"There's no need to introduce them to the group. Now, Helios, come with me."

The crew enter the highest floor: the Presidential Office. They approach a table which holographically projects the structures of the colosseum along with the high amount of mana in the vicinity.

"What I suspect Fenris' goal to be is to supply Charlie with the same artifact that we use to give Merlin his power. Charlie's ability works differently from Merlin, so Fenris having the same artifact is a much greater threat to us if he hands it to Charlie than the threat we give to him with Merlin. But I know where this artifact is, while he doesn't."

Midir locks eyes with Lorin as he finally know what he's getting at.

"What you're implying is that you want Helios to reach this artifact first? If so, I'll come along."

Lorin contemplates, considering that Helios could provide information on what Midir is hiding, as they know nothing about him. Lorin turns to Helios, confirming that they're thinking of the same thing before accepting Midir's request.

"That's two. I suggest three more accompany him."

Before Ivory can raise her hand, Akihiro walks past her and stands beside Helios, not saying a word as he stares daggers at his mother, urging her to rest for once, to which she shows no revolt against.

Zero rose his hand as he walked closer and stood next to Helios with a slight smile on his face. "I wouldn't mind coming along too."

Helios takes a look at the roster and his compatibility with them so far: Akihiro, is his rival and even if they're never going to be on the same page they usually work really well together.

Zero is someone he saw grow from a lowly ranked nobody to becoming one of the strongest students in the region, eventually graduating.

Helios & Lorin obviously made eye contact with each other earlier. Midir is clearly the oddball in the group and he's definitely hiding something from them. He doesn't even object letting him join.

His eyes finally land on Arienne, besides the constant shivers that surround his entire body, he doesn’t see anything wrong with her…if anything, she's an offensive version of his twin sister so he's actually interested.

Helios counts 5 of them. Selene who seems to be apart of the group not focusing on the artifact: Apollo & Eris, but they're usually doing their own thing. With Ivory & Kronos in the back spectating.

"As for the last member, we should add Lu-"

Helios staggered, the sudden pain in his head like a heavy force pressing on his skull. His vision blurred and fractured, reality itself seeming to falter and fall from his grasp like grains of sand. Through the haze, a figure emerged, one he knew all too well yet couldn't fully comprehend.

He carefully considers his roster and finally lifts his finger towards Apollo which shocks the others.

"I'd rather have Atlas with us. Ivory & Eris can protect the child if Fenris decides to have him exterminated on sight."

Ivory nods in disagreement, secretly pointing towards Lorin suggesting that she wants to keep an eye on him. Apollo looks at Eris who nods her head before deciding to speak up as he coughs to get the group's attention.

"As much as I'd love to be apart of the main characters for once…I think it'd probably be better for the child to be stuck with you."

Apollo pats Kronos’s head as he glances at Eris & Ivory. He knows with these two alone that the kid would be safe and with Selene they could literally keep him away from harm's way but something is irking him.

Apollo jabs his thumb towards the other two behind him, as he begins to motion Kronos to go up with the others.

"Only Luna could probably protect him on our side since she's a literal pacifist, she hasn’t really killed anyone. Akihiro being the chaotic fucker he is could probably damage Charlie before anything serious happens. He's safer with you two."

Helios looks at King Yaps a lot and nods in agreement as he motions Kronos to join the main group as Apollo walks back where Eris sends him a death glare as he shivers. Kronos reluctantly agrees to join.

"..Yeah, that makes sense I suppose. I know what Charlie's little ability can do, but if you could stop calling me a child I'd like that."

Kronos walks over to get closer with the rest of the main group rather than with ms. goliath and stay with her adhd ridden strength whore of a son.

Lorin nodded, satisfied that all five members were ready for their mission tomorrow. For now, their top priority was securing the artifact as fast as possible so they may prepare for the coliseum.

"Be sure to be awake at sunrise. You're all dismissed."