-- Violet --

I was still reeling from the impact, and not to mention the gross liquids we were covered with, as we stumbled out of the giant's head. Everyone, not just me was absolutely covered in viscera, and no one looked happy about it. We had all learned a gross lesson that day, being completely subsumed in a liquid made for a decent cushion for a fall, though the shock wave did do a number on my internal organs. I want to throw up.

"FUCK!" I shouted in frustration and pain, as we hit the ground. I had just learned one of my bones was fractured and with the landing turned into a full-blown break.

"Quiet!" James yelled from my side.

I was in too much pain to, yell at him, but I gave him my best glare as I focused on healing the bone.

"This is fucking gross," Bay commented trying to wipe off as much as the gross off her body.

"We know. Just... Let's just..." Rowan stuttered out, trying his best not to get any of the blood or brain matter into his mouth.

Surprisingly, it was James who came up with the best idea, despite me trying to burn a hole through his head.

"Bay can you spray us down?"

My leg was healing and the break solid when I turned my best puppy dog eyes on Bay, "Please, and me first."

"Yeah, but it will be like a high-pressure hose." Bay answered

The feeling of all this was just unsettling and I just wanted to be clean, "Please just do it." I pleaded.

Suddenly, a high-pressure stream of water shot forward soaking us through and washing away all the sticky. Or at least washed away the worst of the guts. It was on the third or fourth blast of water when an armored car, with extra plating, drove up and pulled to our side. I wasn't all that surprised when Edelweiss popped out. I bet they planned us doing this or something.

"Congratulations! You've killed one of the Titans." Edelweiss's voice was completely filled with condescension like we were interrupting his schedule.

"It was a task but we pulled it off," James answered sounding proud. How could he possibly think he was praising us.

"Oh, and you completely ignore my orders," Edelweiss answered cheerfully.

To James' credit, he answered, "Yes. We weren't doing shit." I guess even he wasn't thick enough to think it was praise.

"Well, that's candid of you." Edelweiss said taken aback.

This was getting us nowhere so I chimed in, "Whatever. Why are you here, shouldn't you be taking down your own titan?

"We were waiting on you all."

"What?" I knew it. I knew they had planned all this, somehow.

"Don't worry about it. I'm here to give you a choice. You've done your duty. You can either stay and fight or take a ride back to the city."

"But." James started to speak only to be interrupted.

"No, we got this from here," Edelweiss said dismissively.

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James looked at all of us. I knew why he wanted to do so I just rolled my eyes. Everyone looked like they wanted to keep going. I just wanted to change. Apparently, he took that as a yes.

"I think we want to fight."

"Alright. You can just find some monsters or a Titan if you want..." Someone from the car was getting Edelweiss's attention, his eyes widening. "What what was that?"

I couldn't hear what the other person was saying just Edelweiss, "Seriously...we should just let him go."

"What... What do you?"

"Fine. I guess we aren't too far out."

The conversation must have ended as he turned back to us, "Hey one of you is a healer right."

"Yeah," I answered suspiciously.

He waved me to jump in, "Hop in. We have an idiot heading into the barrier, mind we will need your help to keep him from melting."

"Melting?" What about the barrier that could make someone melt?

"Side effect of getting too close to the barrier. You coming?"

How could I let someone die in such a horrible way, "Of course but what about us?" I said nervously, if we reached him and we just melted ourselves. What would be the point?

Edelweiss knocked on the car, "Shielded."

The one nice thing about riding with Edelweiss was I was able to get a towel, and at least get a little dry. Though I couldn't do anything about my clothes, yet. We were driving for an hour before we saw any sign of the man who went towards the barrier and none of us expected what the first sign was.

"The fuck is that?" I heard Edelweiss exclaim from the front, and I moved to see what he saw.

"Is that a car?" I asked. Something about half the size of a car was sitting in the middle of the plain. It did look like a blue car, but one that was leaking bright blue smoke and already half-melted.

"If it is a car it's disintegrating." The driver commented. I never got his name, as he just sat quietly and drove. Neither was up for conversation during the drive, and I didn't try to engage.

"Then what the rot is that?" I asked, he sounded like he knew what it was.

"I don't know but if I didn't know any better...no they are." Edelweiss was not making sense as he kept going back and forth.

"Are what?" I asked.

"Constructs." He said with wonder.

I was starting to get annoyed. "Those are..."

"Items made out of mana. But to create something that big would use an insane amount of energy."

By the way, he was saying this, I could only guess it was a big deal. "Is it the guy we're looking for?"

"Most likely, but if that's the case...maybe that's how he plans to get to the barrier." Edelweiss started to talk to himself again, and I was trying to follow but he wasn't explaining anything.

"Look." The driver pointed out and even I was shocked to see a trail of literately hundreds of random objects, from toys to cars to, food. Almost like the worst toy box ever, and the kid wouldn't put any of the toys away, and they were all disintegrating.

"This is kind of weird."

"Just follow the trail at least he made it easy for us," Edelweiss told the driver,

After driving for a while we ran into another oddity a literal blue trail that was dissipating, like the other constructs. Except this one was like a sidewalk.

"Did they make a road or something?" I asked.

"Possibly. This whole thing is odd. We should have caught up to them by now, and they should have collapsed." Edelweiss answered

"Maybe the constructs were helping somehow." I reasoned.

"I don't know, but we need to get him before he goes too far out." Edelweiss was starting to actually sound worried.

It was that worry that threw me for a loop. I could understand wanting to keep someone from pain but why go to this extent? "Why the fuss won't he respawn?"

"This close to the barrier...maybe."

"What?!"

Edelweiss seemed reluctant as he answered, "It's not something we talk about but...if you get too close to the crack there is a chance you won't be back."

"And you let us fight out here?" My voice was starting to become a shriek. If we could have died and would be gone forever, then why the fuck didn't they tell us. "What the fuck is wrong with you?"

"Relax you would have to be beyond the limit for it to happen."

I had to restrain myself before asking through my teeth, "How close are we to the limit?"

"We're in it now." The driver answered. Drawing a glare from Edelweiss.

Well, fuck. Nothing to do about it now, "How close to the barrier are we?

"We're coming up on it now." The driver answered.

"And there he is." Edelweiss pointed out a person with their hand on the bright white barrier. It was when we started to get close that I started to notice that the person looked familiar.

"Is that?" I asked.

Edelweiss looked out in disbelief, "I think it is. How did he get out here?"

"I thought you had him locked down." The driver asked.

"I did," Edelweiss replied.

It took me longer than I liked to realize who it was. He looked gaunt, pale, and nearly emaciated. How could he have changed so much in a day, "Aster? How the fuck did he even get here?"