Black patches of smoke stirred into the grey blanket that smothered the skies of the City of Spades. S4 burned as the residuals of the Amalgam’s flames spread like wildfire, eliminating all that it touched as it spread through the fleshy networks of the Crimson Hunger like lantern fuel.

Lurking beneath the sea of black and grey was Ignis’ Musculo-skeletal form. The steam generated from the sheer size and contractions of its mass added to the rising ambient heat. The blanket of smoke trapped it as flocks of people flooded the streets in a desperate effort to escape S4.

And elsewhere, Justica Arms and their hired Associations and Offices were bringing refuge to those in the shallows of S3. But aside from the Hearts, the Syndicates that suddenly found themselves at the mercy of the Amalgam’s companions, the glow of the mysterious floating diamond, and the City of Spades itself; something else formed in this hell.

Something beautiful in an ocean of despair where life itself could no longer thrive.

A giant, pale egg stood in the place of the Complex Heart beneath the cliff face. Roots of the same pale rock carried the egg upright like the stem of a flower. The architecture was smooth unlike that of a root, made from a material so beautiful that it shone like a lotus in a world of mud and embers.

More than anything, however, was that within this egg which was roughly 5 meters in size resided a Corrupted Ber and a desperate Frost. Standing aside with sunken ears and drowning in the thick air of despair was what was left of the triplets.

Cer and Res stared at the egg as Res collapsed to her knees, her eyes widened in utter shock as her body refused to listen to her commands. The overloaded guilt of having made Ber suffer rattled her mind to no end.

“Ber… Berrrr…” Cer could only repeat the name of her sister, her vocabulary adrift in the face of their loss. But unlike Res, she did not collapse, but it was crystal clear that she was on the verge of throwing herself to the floor in a fit of anguish.

“I’m sorry. It’s all my fault! It’s my fault that Ber – She’s –!”

“Don’t say that!” Cer dropped down to comfort her, understanding that it was not Res’ fault. “It’s no one’s fault! We made these choices on our own! But I KNOW there wasn’t anything we could do about it back in that damned village so don’t blame yourself!”

She embraced Res, needing the tangible warmth of her sister more than Res needed hers. Even though they were so tightly knit there were foul strings woven within their bonds. They were always aware of Ber’s suffering, but there was truly nothing they could have done.

“How can you say that when we both know that I’m the reason why she’s – She’s –!” Res could not begin to bring herself to utter Ber’s state of despair. Her head spun, and her body down to the fingertips felt numb as she found it impossible to move.

They had been fighting monsters of nightmares. Monsters that devoured sanity, defied the rules of existence, and trampled on the very meaning of life. But there was never a single moment when either of them had locked up. Res stared down into her palms, sweating as her ears drooped permanently.

“All this time… I knew it. Ber was still hurt all along!”

“We all are! It’s not just Ber! It’s no one’s fault! It’s theirs!” Cer seized Res by the shoulders and began to violently shake her. “We tried to forget it all with Serum G and non-stop fighting! Just… when I thought she’d slowly be recovering… slowly overcoming it, these scums of the world decide that it’s not over for us. Raoul cursed us!”

“We cursed Ber. All of us did! She’s also the one who took that teddy bear that night! I should have recognized it! I… I didn’t know all she wanted was someone to be there for her… Isn’t that what we did? I thought I was doing everything I could to help her. Not like this… Why after all this time does it have to be like this!?” Res grieved, her gaze crackling with violent electricity.

“RES! PULL YOURSELF TOGETHER! I DON’T WANNA LOSE ANYONE ELSE! MOM! RAOUL! BER! NOT YOU TOO!” Cer’s fangs were encased with a similar striking current. Their chemistry had suddenly collapsed on the onset of Ber’s Corruption, and it became clear just how fragile their bonds truly were.

The Derma Layer was indicative of the exposed cracks. The sheer emotional weight was too much for their broken foundation and bonds to remain together. Like Ber, each of them shouldered woes none wished to delve into, hence the reason why they took Serum G upon Ber’s suggestion.

But something had slowly whittled its effect away, and now the puss from the depths of their hearts oozed out for the world to see.

“That’s rich coming from you considering you see Frost as a replacement! Don’t shout at me like you know much it pains me! A-A… I’m sorry. I’m sorry Cer!”

“Tch… Res, there isn’t anything you can say that can mess with me. And Frost… Wouldn’t let anything happen to Ber. So I don’t wanna say it’s over until I see it for myself! Res! You got the best eyes so why can’t you see that!?”

“Because Ber’s not here right now! Ber… Ber…!”

“Stand up and stop whimpering already! Have some faith in Frost! She’s saved Ignis and Jury! What wouldn’t she do to keep Ber from becoming a Corrupted!?” Cer bear hugged her and tried to bring her up to her feet. Midway her ears suddenly twitched as rubble dribbled down the cliff face, scattering before their feet. “Tch… Dammit. We have company. Lowlife scumbags are seeing this as a prime opportunity to attack!”

Expecting more of the Fragments of Ber, Cer prepared to begin her warpath against the Crimson Hunger. However, the figures that incrementally crept upon the edge of the cliff with their silhouettes in view were adorned in red combat apparel, multiple limbs, wings, and all manners of features that did not belong to the Crimson Hunger.

Stolen story; please report.

Both her and Res immediately recognized those silhouettes, and Cer with burning hatred, growled with pure malice.

“Midnight Team…”

“Jesters of the Nexus…” A Red Giant donned in bloodshot armor made from an unreflective metal spoke with a grating, static voice. “Surprising that mission statements were accurate. Moons meddling in our territory with no upper authority ought to be eliminated.”

It was an Arachnid rather than an Insectid, and possessed eight blade-like legs that allowed it to hang from the walls in a gravity defying manner. Her skin was a dark purple, and her mouth possessed mandibles that clicked as she spoke and gazed upon them with all 8 of her beady, black eyes.

“Bzzt. I could count the number of treaties broken on all four hands. Bzzt.” A Bee Insectid uttered, unraveling each finger until every digit became visible.

The apparel of the Blood Giants and Blood Moons were like that of an insect’s carapace. Whether they were Dragonids, Insectids or Orcs – they all wore the same thing. The fact that Cer and Res could not check their status confirmed their nature, and Res, realizing their predicament, painstakingly dragged her eyes above.

The shadow of a Star and 7 Moons were cast upon them, enshrouding the giant egg that seemed to pique their interest, but not to the point where they verbally admitted it.

Midnight Teams were designated by a specific symbol that showcased a moon hovering over a horizontal plane. Dawn teams had a sun begin to rise as the moon set beneath the horizon. Noon was a sun rather than a moon above the flat plane, and Dusk was the opposite of Dawn.

“Awfully convenient of you to arrive here all of a sudden! 8 members? Isn’t that a bit overkill for an Elimination Team?” Cer asked, her instincts screaming that something was awry. The Scarlet Logic had not shown their faces until the very moment they lost Frost, and if their suspicions were correct…

… Then they were here to kill them.

Res and herself sensed blood in the air, and the Scarlet Logic Midnight Team were amused by the battle stances they immediately assumed. The jolts of electricity were certainly a force to be reckoned with. The triplets were, after all, particularly interesting Moons underneath their derogatory label.

However.

“Hmhmhmh…”

“Ahaha…?”

“Bzzt… Humorous. Jesters as per usual.”

“The legacy of their namesake goes on.”

“Risking injury despite the odds? Jesters in all its namesake encapsulates…”

“But we would do the same. That ferocity belongs in the ranks of our brothers and sisters.”

“Elimination team… I suppose it can be difficult for an outsider to tell us apart.”

Various voices spoke with no known origin. They blabbered with mockery, wanting to sew fear deep into their spirit but the triplets defiantly stood still, demanding what their mission entailed. With how far rooted the Impuritas were here, they had every right to believe that the Midnight Team were on their side, and when Res suddenly accused them:

“It doesn’t change that you’re working alongside the Hungry. Either that, or you’ve been given explicit orders to ignore them.” She prodded.

“Our missions are absolute. ‘Working’ with the Hungry is a grand besmirch to our comfortable Atelier. But even so, do you think we’re one to deny the absolution of our mission? Jesters like you would never understand the privilege of being a Moon.” The Arachnid did not explicitly admit it, but they understood that the Scarlet Logic had zero qualms so long as they worked within their missions’ parameters.

“Because they ‘saved’ you, isn’t that right? What a miserable life. Want some face paint to go with that clown of a reason?” Cer’s tongue visibly caused one of the Moons to shudder wrathfully. “You’re not here to eliminate us. But we sure as hell know that you know what the fuck is going on as well.”

“Whether we know or not matters little. We’re only here because that’s what matters. Must be nice pretending to be free.” A female Dragonid stretched her wings and began to bite at her long claws. “Aaaaahhh, I’ve always wanted to break that mouth and get a Wandering Healer to squirt serum after serum of Serum X down there. You seriously piss off a loooooot of Moons just by being alive.”

“Rejecting all manners of Ateliers. For that waste of life. Rejoice. Our intelligence tells us that the other jester has been eliminated. Good riddance. This makes our job easier.” The Arachnid Star proclaimed, instantly causing Res’ eyes to glow dangerously as the smell of ozone began to seep into the air.

“BER IS NOT DEAD!”

“Our intelligence says otherwise. I believe in them more than the tongue of a jester. Scoundrels of the Nexus. Wastes of air. But with a blood so valuable that Ateliers will overlook it all.” One stated.

“That’s some pretty bold words for a dog that only barks when told. Dragonids. Insectids. Orcs. They rounded the most miserable people and made a kill squad out of them. Must be nice reveling in that position. They say go die and you go ‘yes please~!’. Heh. At least Act X has some tact and aren’t megalomaniacs.” Cer’s words endlessly struck exposed nerves. Out of all the Ateliers they despised, the Scarlet Logic was the worst by far and she had a gifted knack of wriggling underneath their skin.

No. She was like a fishing hook.

“… Had we been given the choice of elimination; you’d be split into quarters right this very instant. But that’d be too merciful of a death. Wretched jesters. There is no Black Dove present, so we can only assume that they’ve been killed.” A red-skinned Orc stated.

“Bzzt. Good. This makes our job easier. But it would have been nice to torture a human you two have apparently grown close to. Bzzt. Rip that smile off for good. Bzzt.”

Suddenly, upon the mention of Frost, both Cer and Res glared at them with widened eyes, as if unable to believe the audacity they possessed. It was strange. They did not appear to know of the Amalgam.

Then, with deadpan eyes, Cer formally warned them much to their surprise.

“You seriously have no. Fucking. Idea… What you’re about to start.”

This did not come from the jester they had always known. Rather, this came from someone else entirely. A ‘matured’ Cer could not help but pity them, because she knew that the moment Frost was made aware of their intentions here, then there’d be hell to pay.

It was rather refreshing knowing that even if they faltered, then they had someone to fix their wrongs, one bite and punch at a time.

But of course, Cer and Res were proud wolves. They weren’t going to allow this Team to do as they wished without a fight.

2 vs 8 was a grand order. But they were at least confident in their strength to stall long enough for backup to arrive.

“… Somehow, I hate that look of determination in those eyes…” The Arachnid spat. “The extraction of Serum S has been long awaited. That blood of yours is required by our Atelier. If you could so kindly comply –!”

Suddenly, each member of the Scarlet Logic Midnight Team drew an eight-pronged staff made from crimson metal. The prongs then began to vibrate as red electric current ran through each node before a long, tentacle like-current began to chaotically wriggle in the air like a leash.

That weapon was called the Unstable Capturer and was used to ensnare people. Naturally, as an electric-based weapon, it had paralytic and stunning capabilities. Neither could work on them, but its tethering effect certainly could.

It was at this moment that Cer and Res understood this team’s designation.

“Surprised? Collection Teams aren’t only reserved for our lesser teams. Hehehe. We’re the Midnight Collection Team. Our target? You both~” The female Dragonid said, eager to carve their flesh.

The Arachnid Star deeply nodded in approval.

“We need them alive. But I am not opposed to bending them into submission. My statement as the Manager will not record our actions. So – You have my authority to break them.”