"No, you listen to me! Go in there right now! Don't you dare to look back! Run!" the distant voice echoed.

The cries of fear and despair hastily woke up Lass from his slumber

"Gah!" he hit his head as he jolted up. "God...dammit."

Yuno flew near Lass in a whim, both his tiny arms crossed with an angry look on his face.

"Morning. You at the very least slept...your nightmares were ones of pure annoyance."

"Wait nightmares? How do you..."

"You remember the whole, 'I can see your memories', thing? It's not just limited to memories, but thoughts and of course, dreams or nightmares. And you've been having a nightmare for the entire night! I couldn't even sleep cause of it! To add insult to injury there wasn't even any image...just screams of pain and cries of help! What the hell is up with your head, Lass? You know I can help, right? Especially after everything that happened yesterday, I really am starting to feel worried here."

"I...it's probably...dad. His last words, that is. I never dreamed of it before but...that day changed everything. And all I can ever look back to is just...' run'. But...what do you mean, 'no image'?"

"Nothing, not a single picture of anything or anyone. Just...voices and screams in a black void. That's all, kind of like what happened with Neviro, but at least we had a few flashes there."

"I guess it's because the only thing I can remember from that day aside from that, is the blackout that lead me to being treated in the local church. And then the news of Dad was broken out to me..." Lass shrugged everything off quickly. "Whatever. Not worth mentioning anyway. What's done is done. It's an ugly mark in my life, but right now, I've got to keep it together for everyone's sake."

"Are you dead serious with what you're saying? You could at least look into it-" Yuno got stopped by a jolly-looking Anya.

Rushing in with a smile and excitement on her face, Anya was quick to kick the door open to greet everyone. Despite her long night out and the presumed quantities of drinks, she was to consume, she was upright and bright, ready to face the day. The room was only occupied by Lass and Yuno as the others had already taken their leave after waking up, she wasted no time in her excitement to direct her morning helloes to both of them.

Anya kicked the door open. "Good morning you two! Risa and Terna already got up a while ago, but we thought of leaving you to it since it was a hectic one yesterday, but it's already 11:00 a.m.! So let's get up and get going!"

"Ghod...shtop!" Yuno got squished between the door and the wall, "I don't want to...be squeezed...this way. Anymore..."

"For the love of..." Lass rubbed his head. "I need a painkiller."

"Wow. You seem optimistic today. I would ask what's up but first...come on, we have something to show you!" Anya started to drag Lass out of bed.

"We?" Lass wondered.

"Oh, just come outside! Terna and Risa have been waiting for a while to show you this when you woke up", Anya moved everyone outside the front door.

The moment Lass set his foot out the door it was almost clear what had happened, realizing that they had awakened way earlier than anticipated and headed out on their own little adventure, returning with a surprise most unexpected for its size.

"The only time we get to not sleep inside a tent, but a building in this city and you're treating the door like-You've gotta be kidding me..." Lass stopped at the sight of the "surprise".

"Tada!" Ikarisa, Terna and Anya yelled, spreading their arms while showcasing their surprise.

In front of Lass laid a beautiful new, blue car with a closed-off roof and freshly smelling of industrial machinery. Its tires trimmed and sporting a glossy black color further supported that it was not just new, but more than likely recently made in a factory than simply purchased from a car dealer. It looked nothing too glamorous, but rather sizeable, as he looked through the open side window to see that its back was fit with a table and even small-sized TVs like a lounge. Outside, the spacious trunk had a small open space above it, indicating that the roof could be lowered, while the tires looked as thick as a brick, more than suitable to travel on terrains other than the concrete roads. The front of it looked classy, but aerodynamic, adding to the aesthetics of it all, as a label or branding was missing from its entirety, instead placed right behind the front wheels at the door, reading 'Superior'.

"Are you dead serious? A car? Not just that, but a Superior? Those things are like a master class of pure...class. How the hell? And this smell...it's not just new. It's newly made. Fresh out of the factory, I definitely know the smell of materials fresh out of the oven. Where the hell did you all manage to get your hands on one? Wasn't there a city-wide conflict literally a day ago?"

"Well, yesterday, you can say was just the peak of the conflict. No production line of any Delp-I mean Eternal City products really ever stopped, just that they were severely compromised. Sorry about that too, but we're still up for debate on the name. Lora told me most companies will restart quickly by treating their factories as both a base for assembling, as well as creating the parts for their products until they can re-shift the wrecked facilities that were turned into weapon production plants for Neviro back to normal. But now, the important part!" Terna jumped around the car, in sync with Anya coming in front of the car and spreading her arms.

"Ultra-powered electric car that reaches a max of 250 Km/h per hour! Fully customizable, with reinforced metal structure, Damascus of Thema class metals with Obsulyte-based infusion process, perfect for taking hits from bullets, all the way to explosives! Comes with the latest type of Superior All Purpose tires, making it capable of driving even the hardest of roads practically anywhere in the world, no matter the weather conditions! I did tell ya we'd get a little upgrade when reaching Eternal City, and if this ain't one, I dunno what is!" Anya showcased the car.

"Don't forget the ability to fit an entire family at once having the biggest and most comfortable space in the current market!" Ikarisa jumped in with Terna.

Lass folded his arms, "Are you trying to describe the car to me, or trying to sell it to me? Urgh...whatever. It's done now. But truth be told, how did you manage to get your hands on one this fast?"

"Well, big guy, with the daughter of one of the most famous merchants in the world, plus the idol prodigy who freed an entire city from a civil war overnight, it wasn't that hard.", Anya smiled proudly, patting Terna in the back.

"To sum it up, copious amounts of money." he sighed.

"I would count that as a valid point. Two of them actually...both pretty big." Yuno promptly caught Lass's words, "Plus with something like this, we can probably get along, instead of a damn horseback! I mean, sure, mechanical horses are cool and they probably maneuver faster being smaller and flexible but...I mean, dude, it's a Superior."

"See? Even the little winged annoyance agrees!" Anya pointed at Yuno.

"Put those words where they belong, thief. You can buy the world to me, but I still want a sorry coming out for all you did." Yuno looked down on her as he folded his arms again, flying moderately high, "Add you squishing me with the door this morning to the sorry too."

"Cute little flying creatures are squishable though! Kind of like Risa!"

"I'd rather not." Ikarisa and Yuno both said.

"Fine by me. So, besides that surprise, can we eat first before we are off?" Lass grabbed his stomach.

"Sure thing, but I need to go check on the rest of the rebels from last night." Ikarisa said in a caring manner, getting ready to get out of the car.

"No need. The medical teams will attend to them. No reason for you to see anything you shouldn't, Risa!" Terna said.

"Hasn't she technically come across bloodshed already? Not to mention the millennia of experience on the matter-" Yuno got grabbed and squeezed by Terna.

"Hush! They will be fine! That much I can guarantee! Don't bring this news to little ol' Risa, ok? Monsters are one thing...humans and animals are another. Hence why we all agreed to keep her out of bloody sight and out of the fight this morning! We have a wonderful journey to go on!" Terna let Yuno go.

"One might even come and complain where the parental supervision was and still is lacking for what you all are doing..." Yuno told Terna through her squeezing him.

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

"Don't know when you agreed to it, but I could agree with it as well. The less she gets to see, the better...after all, back in Reingard, she was...bad. Arguments could be made about Kaci and the state of some prisoners, Lilith included. But it's better this way." Lass looked at Ikarisa while she stretched on the car seat, waiting for them.

"Lass! You said we would get going! Come on, it's lonely in here!" Ikarisa said with an excited look.

"She's suspiciously cheery today, despite all that happened yesterday. Anything said between you two?" Anya smugged.

"Had a little heart-to-heart, maybe at the worst time possible before the final push." Lass confirmed, "Though...most of it wasn't exactly reminiscing good old times, since we've met this month. What the-"

"Hey! No dragging down with bad thoughts now! Everyone in! Terna, you ok with driving?" Anya grabbed and tossed Lass and Yuno into the car.

"What the hell, mutt?!"

"Yeap, sure!" Terna took out the keys, "All abort! Let's get going!"

Not before long, both willingly and with force, Lass and Yuno found themselves quickly driving outside the city. Hitting the road they were finally able to relax a bit more, given the stressful situations they had gotten themselves into. With their new vehicle, it was easy for them to avoid detection from a crowd most ready to cheer on their heroic acts of theirs, smoothly transitioning from the city center to the suburbs. The streets, despite it all, were once again bustling as people were about in the shops and returning to normality while going to work. It a sight most charming to them, having not gotten used to a routine themselves, but being both happy to witness and somewhat wishing that one day, they too could entice themselves in the safety and guarantee of that routine. Smells, smiles, it was all but a celebratory day, not with music and loud cheers, but with the city of technology's own, fascinating way, even stopping at a drive-through to get themselves ready with breakfast for the day, weirdly full by other every day Obsulyte and non-Obsulyte users hustling through their schedules and making a line in it like before.

Eventually going back out in the highway, they lowered the windows down, getting some much-needed air to blow inside the car. Lass and Anya sat behind together, Terna taking the wheel with Ikarisa next to her, Yuno plopping down on Ikarisa's comfortable, puffy hair. Spacious as it was, the car made it comfortable for more than 4 to travel, coming equipped with everything they needed and more, even a small table and TV for them to entertain themselves in their long travels. It was a day like many others, the sun shining with a few clouds above in the sky, making travelling a very pleasant experience, the nearby meadows coming from both sides of the road clinging on with all their flowery aromas, the two girls in front enticing themselves with a nice chat while Lass lost himself in his thoughts behind, nibbling down on his breakfast until he was finished. He thought again and again but was unable to pinpoint what exactly happened yesterday, getting only faded images that told only a part of the story. However ignoring that fact, it wasn't long before tension would rise again, between the relaxation and the nagging.

"What the hell do you mean you don't have enough space, mutt?! Stop pushing against me already, you're doing it on purpose while I'm trying to think stuff over!" Lass pushed against Anya.

"Triple 'A' treatment here! This female has to get some open-air space! Plus, I'm doing your ass a favor, any more of these thoughts of yours and you'll become a standardized edge lord!" Anya kicked away Lass.

"I call, bull-shit! You wanna go?!" Lass slowly drew his sword, although too cramped to make a move.

"Called it! Edgelord." she smugged once again.

"Hey, stop! Both of you! If I hear one slash, explosion, or rev up of a chainsaw, we're dumping the car and walking on two feet!" Ikarisa yelled.

Her cheerful mood that existed in the city faded away slowly, soul drained from her eyes as she quickly realized that she had to step in to take care of things again. This time, it was different. It was as if she was happy enough to embrace it, accepting it though not allowing it to continue, in a manner that didn't keep her grumpy after the fact. Still, everyone paused at the mere sight of Ikarisa yelling, stopping all fighting at once, as they only heard her sipping her coffee afterwards.

"Ah...much better." Terna relaxed.

"We're still not done by the way," Lass whispered.

"No! You are, Lass...jeez. Can't you guys find a more calm approach to take care of things?" Ikarisa sighed, moving around slowly to avoid knocking Yuno down.

"I'm agreeing with the goddess on this one." Yuno sat down on Ikarisa's in a better position, "Sorry, goddess. If this annoys you, I'll move right away. Though you're puffy her, they're...kind of relaxing and nice to sit on, for someone my size."

Ikarisa giggled, "Its fine. It's like someone constantly has their hand on my head, it feels nice."

"Hmm...I have an idea. So big guy...how good are you with cards?"

"Good enough to kick your ass, that's for sure."

"Better than nothing." Terna silently said.

"Look, you'll get used to it. On day 1.5 I did, and my tolerance isn't that high." Yuno reassured her.

"Ooh. Smack talking already. Alrighty then...Poker. Conditions for the winner and the loser are discussed after. You in?"

"Bring it. And just to make sure, I'm the dealer."

"Fine by me.", Anya smugged, "Let's get it started."

"Your stereotypical smug won't save you this time, mutt."

And as Anya and Lass indulged themselves into their fierce game of cards, the front seats could finally relax, as conflict seemingly came to a temporary end.

"You know Terna...you handled the situation rather well back there. How so?" Ikarisa wondered.

"Oh, that? It's nothing, really. Probably a small freak out of Anya not having enough territory to run over. Wolven people are somewhat territorial like that, especially Alpha-like Anya. Could not even be on the person honestly, rather than the instinct."

"An Alpha?" Yuno wondered.

"Yeah. Alphas are easy to spot once you get the hang of it. It basically means that their Wolven instincts are more honed than others and I can see that very well in Anya. A little research that happened around the 2500s, when we first spotted feral demi-humans around rural areas."

"You seem to know a lot about it! That's quite interesting." Ikarisa said.

"Oh, that? It's nothing!" Terna giggled, "You know, before it came that I wanted to be an idol, I was actually a farmer back at my old place. Well farmer-in-training and whatnot. My parents had all sorts of animals in their farm so, conflict between them was a common sight. So I learned how to break them up here and there. Before I knew it, I ended up learning very interesting things about cultures of different countries, demi-humans and all the sorts. At their core, even humans have pure natural instincts too!"

"Wow, really? That's actually quite interesting...from small farmer to idol in the big city? Quite the transformation. Reminds me of your typical underdog story." Yuno said.

"I know right? My parents always used to tell me-", Terna fixed her voice to that of her parents, "'Do what makes you happy in life, no matter what that is. Even if it's overachieving, so long as you feel good reaching for it, go for it! Though, I got there in both weird circumstances and...Well, up until I did something that renamed an entire city, it wasn't going well for me at all. Barely made anything to go by for years until my big debut."

"Quite the nice message to give! Your parents must be so proud you made it here!" Ikarisa clapped her hands together.

"I'm sure they are...especially Dad. Mom I kind of...forgot about it. Not that it's my bad memory of holding things unless I write them down...but I more so tried to forget how to bad our goodbye was. Still, some things, even if you don't write them down, you will always remember. But I'm also sure if I were to tell her that instead of growing powered-up crops with my voice, I did so to an entire army of soldiers, she'd be pretty amazed regardless. Music quite helped crops grow, you know, so imagine how cool they were with my voice when they heard it! Scientifically proven to be out-freaking-standing!" Terna winked.

"That's another thing...your duet with Ikarisa was spectacular for sure but...why Ikarisa specifically? Was it because of her powers as a goddess?" Yuno asked.

"That was the main reason, yes. Risa's powers and mine seem to be quite compatible as I realized back at the sewers where you found me. My voice can enhance the powers of others, and Risa’s powers can, for some reason, further boost the effect. So what you saw back there was the combined effort of two beautiful voices in a gathered pace!"

"And what about the other reason?" Ikarisa wondered.

"I knew that the only way to get to mess around with your hair was to invite you on stage with me so that we can take care of make-up and the outfits...seriously! What kind of bath soap are you using? Or maybe it's a conditioner? Your hair is so nice, silky smooth and glossy...even down at the sewers! Especially how they twirled and moved while you fought!"

"Uh...what's a conditioner? I just use any soap I find labeled as 'shampoo' in the shower. I use body wash if I can't find one." Ikarisa softly shrugged.

"Wha-you don't use any of that?! So it's natural?! Life really is unfair sometimes, there was also that fashion idol that inspired me to become a singer myself, and when she revealed her diet compared to how thin she was...man. Although, I'll be honest. Your singing with me wasn't that...mandatory. Turns out, your powers affect me if I'm in the nearby vicinity, it's just mine that needs it! Any sound I produce, that is, with voice or instruments!"

Ikarisa was stunned, "Wha-?!"

"Hehe...sorry Risa! But even when I did find out down at the studio, I just had to do it! Even when you left, it was so fun doing this with someone else. I wanted to push you a little bit, to get you to come out of your shell. But excuse me, I guess that was a bit too aggressive for a newbie like you. Especially with all the livestreams of different people's P.O.V. with their phones on BetterVid and Platform. However, you did get recorded doing some really amazing moves down at the front lines! You're so cool when you want to be!"

Ikarisa blushed, "M-Me? Cool? No..."

"The way you punched, kicked, dashed, flipped, it was all amazing! And again, those wavy brunette hairs of yours, are so elegant! Waugh!" Terna got goosebumps.

"I mean, she is the Goddess of Life and all...maybe her powers keep her hair upright like that? I'm not an expert on that department anyway." Yuno said.

"Maybe...also, Yuno. Can you please refer to me exclusively as S-uh-Ikarisa or Risa from now on? I don't really like the "goddess" thing and title..." Ikarisa frowned.

"Uh sure thing...Risa." he tried another way.

"Thank you...now I just have to be on high alert for when Lass and Anya get out of hand again."

"Eh, that won't be necessary. Anya essentially challenged Lass into something when they said they were going to play cards. Wolven people usually tend to pipe down a lot after a defeat or loss." Terna explained.

"Hmm...I see. But how did Wolven people even come to exist in the first place if that's the case, Terna? It's weird...I may have the title of millennia years old but I wasn't always around here. In fact, it struck me as quite odd when I first saw them, though some cultural things that existed had me more than prepared to accept them, series on TV and whatnot.", Ikarisa asked.

Terna blushed. "I-I mean...I do know a very little amount on the subject, based on speculation entirely...they are essentially human-wolf half breeds but...You know what, you can ask Lass's consent first, then I'll tell you everything!" Terna looked away.

"Wha-why do I have to ask Lass for it?! Right now, I'm even old enough to drink! I hate it that everyone treats me as a kid...heck, I'm more than 5.000 years old you know!" Ikarisa angrily said.

"5.000 years of experience but she still is a klutz, from what I saw on Lass's memories...ehm!" Yuno blushed and cleared his throat as he whispered.

"Uh, aren't you worried that Lass might smack you for that?" Terna asked, overhearing him.

"What? The only two reasons I said it is because, one it's true and two, they're both completely lost in their game of cards." Yuno pointed at Lass and Anya.