~ The Boy - Part Two ~

"So," Xavier began. The children step aside as he slowly approaches the ones who had their backs firmly pressed against the wall. One tries to run, but Xavier violently slams his foot against the cement surface to prevent him from leaving, causing everyone to simultaneously flinch at the harsh bang as it echoes throughout the room. "Tell me, why are brats willing to remain as prisoners," he spoke in a rather dark tone.

"I-I'm not telling you anything!" the little boy squeaks, his knees quaking as he struggles to remain standing.

Alphonse tried to step in and stop him before things get out of hand, but Ulric extends an arm in front of him, stopping from moving an inch. He was about to send him a quizzical look only to find his entire body shivering as he stares at the icy expression in the older boy's sky blue eyes. Although his gaze wasn't aimed directly at him, just looking at him was enough to cause Alphonse to lose his voice.

"I found it odd how there were no kids in this country." Xavier slid his foot off the wall before taking a few steps closer. His voice dripped with animosity as he spoke, "When I was taken, I was expecting to find my answers. But instead of that, I find myself in a room full of younglings." When he lifts his head up, his bangs part just enough to reveal his blind right eye. This caused the boy to scream as this was a first to see one up close. "So tell me, why are you stuck up brats here?"

Those that stood on both sides of the boy found themselves petrified. While they knew running was AN option; the malefic aura surrounding Xavier's small body was enough to place some invisible restraint on their lower limbs. As for the majority that stood behind the four, they too were scared to speak up. All of the children had felt as if one word would suffice in ending their short lives.

Before Xavier could say anything else, he felt the back of his coat being grabbed before being lifted off the ground.

"Alright, that's enough," said Ulric. "Me, Echo, Succu and Stein were assigned to scout this world for potential resources and recruits. And I can confirm that this world is worth revisiting. We're not allowed to do any bodily harm to any residence, remember?"

Xavier clicks his teeth and relents. The wolf was right; they had their orders and, before their capture, had finished it. If what he says is true, that means they no longer have the rights to further investigate the affairs of this world. So, as much as he wanted to interrogate the kid, that window of opportunity was closed the moment Ulric told him of his group's report. Odd how he only mentioned this now instead of when he regained consciousness.

After confirming that he was no longer a threat to the children, Ulric places Xavier back down. Dejected, he turns around and rejoins the others with his eyes fixated to his dark brown boots. After making sure he won't make another attemps, Ulric turns back to the resident children, who had all slouched against the wall and relaxed after Xavier left. With him gone, it was his turn to have his own questions answered.

While what he had said was true, Ulric found out, thanks to Sound, that there was a small loophole to that rule. Well, there were several, but this one was easier to get around. And, given the type of people how poorly run their Department of Outside World Affairs (D.O.W.A.), he knows they won't notice if certain details in a report is falsified or purposely omitted.

He just brought it up to get Xavier to back down before he went any further. Plus, one of them had to take on the role as the bad cop.

"Sorry about that," said Ulric, immediately changing to a much friendlier demeanor. He bends forward to the kid's level and smiles. "He's just grumpy he hasn't eaten any of the sweets he was promised. You can relate, right?"

Xavier's eyes went from surprise to pure outrage after realizing the type of stunt Ulric just pulled on him.

Rather than calling him out, Xavier angrily barks, "DON'T MAKE ME SOUND LIKE I'M A DIABETIC."

"You just insulted yourself," Ulric sighs, shaking his head. He turns his attention back to the kid, who appeared to be somewhat calmer. "Anyway, I think it's best if you tell us what's going on."

It wasn't necessarily a threat. However, they needed answers, soon, and whether he likes it or not, Ulric will use his grandfather's methods extracting the necessary info from the kid if he has to. Hopefully, they won't get to that point.

Just as he was about to say something, a girl steps forward. "Wait, I'll answer for him."

Ulric was apprehensive, but he accepted otherwise. "Alright, let's hear what you've got to say." He wanted to say that the boy appeared about ready to wet himself, but after a moment of consideration, he kept that part to himself. Especially since every other little boy, aside from Xavier and Alphonse, had the exact same look in their eyes. "So, how much exactly are you willing to spill?"

The girl appeared to be the oldest out of all the other kids in the room. She had short poofy dark blonde hair and small brown eyes. While the girl didn't necessarily appear mature due to her doll-like appearance, but the air around her said otherwise.

"As long as you can assure that no harm will come to us."

Xavier cocks a brow and crosses his arms. He retorts, "We're a bunch of weirdos. Aside from myself, the others aren't exactly the type to dirty their hands with that kind of blood."

"WHAT my friend is trying to say is that we don't plan to do anything to you," Ulric cuts in as Succu covers the boy's mouth and pulls him a back. "But we do need answers. We don't blame you for being worried that we may do something to your worl- country, but I promise we won't do anything," he saud, correcting himself at the end before she noticed.

The girl, although uncertain on whether she made the right decision in speaking up, chose to tell them. She wasn't gonna lie; the things she has seen has made her question several things for quite some time. The sad truth about it all is that adults will never listen to the children. Unless something dire happens, they'll continue on with this cycle, ignoring their thoughts and opinions due to the substantially large age gap and lack of experience.

"So, why are you here?"

----------------------------------------

"They're doing what...!?" Rei quietly gasps.

The woman hushes them before others could notice. "Shush...! We must keep our voices down. This city has many eyes. There are few that know about the existence of World-Faring, so we mustn't say anything unneccessary out loud."

"As if... That's like announcing that we're here to kick someone's ass." Rei's uncharacteristically snide comment caused Percy to snap his head in her direction. She shrugs, "Without Xavier around, someone has to fill in for him."

"Right," Percy coughs then changes the subject. "About your son, how did you know he was taken by these people?"

The woman was risking a lot to hold this discussion in such a place. Locations like this HAVe to be safe at all times for Travelers, but there are still In-Worlders that are able to slip in, intentional or not. That's why every Traveler is silent whenever they enter to get a break from having to blend in for so long.

The establishment was quiet, as expected of an establishment only known to Travelers. Although appearing somewhat cramped due to how narrow it was at the entrance, the inside of the pentagon-shaoed room was enough to occupy more than a dozen comfortable seats. To be quite honest, it felt more of a living room rather than a cafe. Then again, that simply added to it's charm, something Percy found comforting.

There were various unique types of clocks which hung on certain parts of the walls. However, most of them run on different times. Underneath each clock was a copper place, and written underneath them ranged from either universal english to a language not even a well-versed Traveler could fully-translate.

The table they sat upon was placed in the farthest corner of the room a few feet close to the poorly built chimney. If it weren't for the clocks, the aged, yellow wallpaper would have turned off any potential customer. And Percy only figured out this wasn't a design after inspecting the wall beside him. Because of this, he wasn't certain if the oak table had been properly maintained either for it to feel so flaccid whenever he moved it.

However, despite his nitpicks in the location of choice, this was the best spot for any Traveler. Any Inworlder would come in and feel a sense of repulsion before promptly leaving. That way, rather than going the extra mile in this building's location, made sure that the existence of the cafe wouldn't be known via rumors. Rumors would spread caught the curious ear of many, most expecially the children, to try and locate the establishment.

"About that...." Percy and Rei took notice of the woman's hesitation.

"Is something the matter, Erin?" Rei asks. "I know you're worried about someone eavesdropping on our conversation, but since this cafe is a Traveler's Waypoint, there's nothing to worry about."

"N-No! It's not that..." The brunette hugs herself and averts her green eyes away from the couple. "It's not that... it's only now I'm really who you two are." Her eyes began to appear most as she finally stares at them directly in the eye. "I know what you two are."

She didn't have to finish. It was clear just from the way she was looking at them. Percy wasn't at all surprised. With her thoughts collected, it was only a matter of time before she noticed their eye color. While they'd usually wear sunglasses or contact lenses to conceal them, most of them in the group felt it was unnecessary. They weren't certain they'd encounter any Travelers.

With how the number of worlds felt infinite, the chances for such an encounter was slim. The woman was lucky that she ran into others familiar with people like her, but, at the same time, she was unlucky to have ran into people like them.

"I've heard of your people before... and the type of world you come from." She clenches the collar of her shirt and bows her head. "I know why you're here, and I know what you're searching for."

"That's a bold claim." Percy leans back and crosses his arms. "Are you certain you want to delve into that topic this soon? " He paused, watching her carefully. "You many not like the answers you'll receive before finding your son."

"Ah! That's not what I meant!" She quickly shakes her hands in front of her. She admits, "I simply mean I know why your people are risking your lives like this. I can tell you're not entirely like me as I initially thought. I showed you my identification yet you never showed me yours. And there's the fact one of you wears a piece of armor..." Erin trails off as she stares at Percy's gautlet hand resting on the table.

"I told you not to wear more than your chest plate..." Rei mumbles, elbowing the boy's arm.

"It's not like I can walk around without any so casually..." he hissed. Coughing, Percy asks, "I apologize for my hostility. We were warned beforehand about revealing ourselves to others, including you, Travelers."

Many rules were established before many were given permission to participate in the search. One of being that they were not to establish any personal contact with anyone of other worlds, and that includes Travelers. Belial wants knowledge of their existence to be kept at a minimum, especially since what they are doing goes against the laws which maintains the barrier between all worlds.

However, as long as they don't mention anything about who they are, then they are free to interact with an Inworlder or a Traveler. There is only a limit to those numbers if it pertains to the rule which restricts them from interferring in the affairs of another world. While the two remained uncertain, as much as they are allowed at the moment, they want to help the mother find her child.

"It's fine." Erin smiles. "Anyway, I need your word on one thing before we continue talking about my son and this world's current situation."

Rei, being as careful as possible, reaches across the table and places her hand over the woman's. "Of course."

To their surprise and the other customers present, Erin knocks over her seat as she abruptly stands and seizes Rei's hand. A look of desperation crosses her pale features as she held her hand. Fearful at the sudden contact, Rei was about to pull back only for Percy to stop her by secretly placing a hand on her lap. Although worried, he cannot say anything to calm Rei down without indirectly revealing her status as a Cursed Blood.

"Please, don't take him with you!" Erin cries. Rei was slack jawed whereas Percy simply stared with wide eyes from his side of the table. "Please..." She leans against the table and tearfully begs, "He doesn't deserve to live like that... He's just a boy..."

----------------------------------------

"Xavier, wait!" Alphonse's protests fell on deaf ears as the other boy marches out of the room.

While Ulric and Succu were busy preparing the children for their escape, Alphonse chased after Xavier when he suddenly declared he was going to have a conversation with the people in charge. Though he could not blame him. Even he couldn't believe the things he had just heard.

However, this was the last thing for Xavier to be doing. They deserve it, but storming off to purge whoever's within the vicinity would only make their escape off world difficult.

"You can't just go and slaughter everyone!" He grabs the snowy-haired boy before he could turn a corner. Alphonse forces Xavier to turn and face him. "We need to keep our heads straight and think of a way to get out of here."

"My head is straight on..." Xavier said quietly, his head bowed. Slowly, as he tilts his head back to look directly at Alphonse - the same animousity from earlier causes the hairs on his back of his neck to stand. Xavier's eyes appeared as he smiled. "I'm just going to clear the path for us. I'm sure scum like them won't be missed if they're willing to go this far."

Shaking off his previous fear, Alphonse argues, "You can't. You don't have the right to judge these people."

"And you don't have the right to stop me," Xavier coldly countered. He slaps his hand away and steps back. "You've travelled around, so you must have seen places where humans, or anything similar to them, reside."

"Yeah, but..."

"And you've also seen even the types of civilizations that are established. You'd think that with all this creativity these so called gods have, they'd at least have some originality with their creations." His small hand balls into a tight fist. "What a joke."

The bitterness in his voice, the disdain which hung over every word, all of it showed just how deeply he was affected by what they just heard. Just earlier, Xavier was eeriely calm and collected, nothing seemed to have phased him. As soon as he heard the truth, it was like a dam within him broke and became purely driven by his emotions.

The only questioned which remained in their thoughts was what to do with that information. Except for Xavier, who seemed have a clear idea what to do. Alphonse knew it wasn't the best course of actions to take; not while they're stuck in gods knows where.

Just as the blonde was going to speak up, they heard a pair of heavy footsteps around the corner. Alphonse was about to turn back and run, but only after turning did he realize just how far they've gotten. While he frantically looks around for a possible hiding spot, Xavier was more focused on the footsteps. He closes his eyes and leans just close enough without exposing their position. He counted the number of steps.

'Four... No,' Xavier shook his head at the initial thought. 'Six seperate footsteps. Three guys, huh?'

He thought of slaughtering them before they had a chance to spot them, but with Alphonse with him, he knew he couldn't act as freely as he wished. Not simply to avoid exposure, but because he doesn't want to receive another earful from another who is against senseless killing. Looking around, Xavier takes a small tear shaped vial from his pocket and throws it to the ground.

Hearing the sound of breaking glass, three individuals run to the source. When they turned the corner, they found the hallway empty, except a large puddle of water on the ground.

"I swear, I thought I heard something," one of them states.

Inside the supposed puddle was Xavier, who held him close and had kept a hand over Alphonse's mouth as he struggles to break free from his grasp. Xavier strains his eyes as he peers up at the trio, all of which were scratching their heads. An expected, yet boringly dumb, move on their part. They appeared to be wearing silver thermal suits and a gas mask that appeared to have the same design as the one worn by plague doctors.

Still observing them, Alphonse finally breaks out of his hold but panics when he realized they were under a large body of water. His body reacts on instinct and starts holds his breath. He was about to swim up to resurface for air, but Xavier grabs his shoulders to keep him in place. Still panicking, Alphonse's begins to fight back.

Rolling his eyes, Xavier slaps the boy across his cheek, almost knocking him out from his unexpected strength. Shaking his head to regain his senses, he watches as Xavier opens is mouth and breathes, demonstrating the water breathable factors of the water.

Stunned, Alphonse tests this by breathing in as well. It still felt like he was swimming so he felt slightly unnerved at the weightless sensation, and the darkness below certainly didn't help with his anxiety. Xavier placed a finger to his lips and points upwards.Understanding what was going on, he nods and listens with Xavier as the three above began to converse.

"Well, I guess it's nothing," a man shrugs.

"While we're here, I wanted to ask you guys something." Xavier and Alphonse were surprised to hear a woman's voice. She asks the two, "I heard that one of our guys caught two Cursed Bloods. What's going to happen now that we have them?"

"Not sure..." One of the men hums. "From what I gather, they plan to weaponize the silent one's curse."

This grabbed Xavier's full attention.

"And the girl?"

"Dissect her of course," the other man bluntly tells her.

Xavier's blood began to boil once again, and from Alphonse's perspective, appeared to have doubled compared to his earlier rage. If he thought he had seen the full extent of Xavier's fury, he was deeply mistaken. And apparently, he wasn't the only one that could feel his leaking bloodlust.

Above the puddle, all three began to feel the pressure of Xavier's rage. Luckily for the two, none of them were smart enough to look down to find a pair of dead violet eyes glaring directly up at them. Xavier's anger earlier was reflecting his further disappointment in another version of humanity, this time is was far more personal.

"Frederick!" the woman gasps, appalled at his lack of empathy. "I know they appear different, but they're just kids."

The man, who was called Frederick, states the obvious, "One of them has fox ears. You think a scientist won't go nuts when seeing something from an extinct animal species on a human body? We've already gone too far, you think anyone's going to care?""

"But..." she trails off.

"Quiet it," the other man interrupts. "Dwelling on this SUBJECT won't do us any good. Let's just get some of the kids and call it a day."

Xavier clenched his fist as they watch the two men walk over the puddle to the direction of the room they were previously locked in. Appearing dejected, the woman bows her head and hugs an arm around herself. She was about to follow after her associates until she notices something strange about the puddle. When she tests it by taking a small step over it, the water ripples, but doesn't spread out as it should.

The woman could have just walked away, but a part of her was telling her something was wrong. She was about to call for the other only for a hand to suddenly burst from the puddle and grab her by the ankle.

"Out of all the times for someone not to be stupid..." The woman gasps as a head slowly rises. Xavier holds what appears to be a gun and said, "Then again, least I know common sense exists in other versions of humanity."

Just as she was about to scream for her associates attentions, a tiny threat is shot from the 'gun' and wraps itself around her neck. Xavier lets got as the woman stumbles backwards, struggling to breath as the thread cuts through her suit and begins to suffocate her. After several seconds of choking and coughing, the woman lays on the ground, completely limp.

Casually stepping out, he keeps the gun up as he extends hand and helps pull Alphonse out.

"The heck is that..." he mutters, after crawling out. H wasn't certain himself if he was referring to the strange looking gun or the pocket dimension they were just swimming in.

"This?" The 'gun' dissolves from Xavier's hand and turns into dust, which re-enters his armband after making sure she won't regain consciousness anytime soon. He explains, "This is what we use as a means to defend ourselves. Can't use it on humans and we can't use it too much in certain worlds unless we got confirmation the creatures we make it from are present. We tried coming up with other names, but we usually call it Astral Dust."

"Astral Dust?" Alphonse repeats with a raised brow.

"Well, Pixie Dust was on the list of suggestions, but we, of course, decided not to after learning it was already a thing in a different world." Xavier frowns and shakes his head. "Gotta say, not the nicest kid on the block."

Seeing the coast was clear, Xavier decided to hold off on his plans in committing a central genocide and opted to return to the others. Rather than run back as Alphonse initially thought they would; they were simply walking back - at a rather slow pace. Even slower than the two men that, shockingly, haven't noticed their missing associate. It was concerning to say the least.

Then again, after watching earlier how Xavier calmly stowed the woman's unconscious boy in a nearbly empty cell, he could only assume there was nothing to worry about. Although the boy appeared to be around his age, but carried himself and acted as if he was older. Almost like Alphonse himself tends to act. Then he recalled what he had said earlier.

"Xavier," he said, causing Xavier to stop in his tracks. Alphonse pauses before continuing, "When you said I was like you, can you please tell me what you meant?"

"... You sure you want to know?" Xavier answered slowly.

"I just... need some kind of idea on the type person I was. If I'm really a Cursed Blood, I need to be ready."

The look on Alphonse's face said otherwise. His eyes, although young, began to show the tired look similar to an old war veteran. Alphonse was tired. He was tired of constantly running in circle in search of answers. He was tired over wondering why his sister insisted they travel for as long as they had. While this wasn't the time and place for this discussion, plus there was his earlier breakdown, it's best to get it out of the way.

He wasn't ready the first time, and he still isn'tbut he has to be. Once he reunites with his sister, he knows the chances to receive his answers will slip away from arms reach. And so far, Xavier's been the only one that appeared open to discuss this.

Xavier, on the other hand, could easily see that Alphonse wasn't as mentally prepared as he believes himself to be.

He waves it off and continues walking. "Sorry, but we can talk about this later. "

"But-!"

"You can't say you're ready to listen after experiencing an existential crisis." Xavier stops and turns his head to look over his shoulder. "It was my mistake for telling you in the first place. It was my bad."

Enraged, Alphonse runs up and grabs the boy's arm, forcing him to stop.

"You have no right to decide that! We've only known each other for an hour and you suddenly think you know what's best for me? No." The tone of Alphonse's voice changed. Although unfazed, Xavier could see it. He knew he was no longer talking to the same person from earlier. "I've waited too long to get my answers. And you're telling me. Right..." Alphonse tightens his grip on Xavier's arm. "Now."

". . . You done?" The blonde gawks as Xavier stares at him with a neutral face. Sighing, he takes his arm back and states, "If you think you can take it, fine. But there's a difference between seeking knowledge for good intentions from mere selfishness. You need to get your head straight, or else this obsession of yours will get someone hurt. Or worse, killed."

That wasn't a warning. It was the truth. Those without clear heads will cause others to worry and get injured in their place. The last thing Xavier wants is for the kid to unintentionally become a target if they were to enter an alteraction with the people running this operation.

As for Alphonse, he knew the other boy was right. His relents and follows after Xavier, choosing to self-reflect whether he wants his answers or not. As they retrace their steps back to, the sound of breaking wood surprised Alphonse. He was about to run towards the sounce but stops himself upon seeing how calm Xavier was. Rather than running, he continued walking at a the same pace.

He already knew who it was that broke down the door. Upon walking through the circular hallway, Xavier stops and puts his hands in his pockets once he saw Ulric's turned back come into view.

"Down boy," he said after seeing one of the men from earlier being held up against the wall. Ulric relases his hand around his neck as the boy approaches him. "I get that you're pissed, but please don't leave any evidence that we were here."

"My bad," Ulric said, sounding unapologetic. He proceeds to kick the back in the gut. He growled, "One of them said he smelled a wet dog before they entered the room. Didn't see there was a reason to hide any longer."

"You lost your temper when you thought they were referring to you, didn't you?" Ulric flinches and slowly turns his head away. Xavier sighs, "And here I was thinking of excluding your impotetence as temporary leader into the report."

"Um... weren't there two of them?" Alphonse spoke up.

They didn't have to look. The noise told them everything. Ulric and Xavier kept a straight face while Alphonse's face head began to heat up.Thankfully, the children in the room were too busy getting ready for their escape to even notice.

"Um.... Xavier, you said that young lady's name was Succu?"

"Yeah."

"Is her full name... what I think it is?"

"Yeah."

"That's all you're gonna say, huh?"

"That depends. Did your sister give you the infamous awkward sex talk?" Xavier deadpans.

The curvaceous young woman steps out from a hidden corner, licking her lips woth a satisfied smile. Worried about over the person's well-being, Alphonse runs past her just as her eyes fell on Xavier. Her satisfied expression changed to child-like delight before running over to the boy. Her long dark violet hair bounces agaisnt her back as she runs to hug him, much to his chigrain.

"Don't you DARE come near me after feeding!" he yells, but she ignores him and slams her body against his smaller frame.

As his protest cries echoed through the hall, Alphonse stops nearby the man's discarded body. To his relief, the man was still breathing. Yet to his confusion, the man was still fully clothes, even still wearing his mask. Against his better judgement, he crouches and removes the gas mask, and what he found horrified him.

Everyone stops what they were doing when they heard lets out a blood curdling scream. Alphonse runs, keeping his eyes tightly shut until he runs into Ulric, who was just about to check on the kid.

"U-Ulric! The guy! H-He...!" he fumbles with his words, unable to create a cohesive sentence.

"Seemingly died from pleasure?" Ulric finishes, to which the boy answers with a quick nod. "Don't worry, whatever version you've heard of, Succu's isn't like that."

They watch as Xavier beckons the children to come out, but as soon as they did, they were all embarassed to see the older girl cling to his head.

"She releases pheromones to relax and null a person's senses. Then, they'll start moving their bodies in ways a person finds pleasurable. When they're completely relaxed, they'll devour whatever emotions they invoked from their victim."

"So... Nothing else is involved?" Alphonse slowly asks. He refused to clarify what he was implying, and thankfully, Ulric immediately understood what the boy meant.

"That's about it. Even your regular human nose would be able to catch whiff of it if she did."

"Hey! If you're free to chitchat, help me do a head count," Xavier said after most of the children file out in the hall way. He moves out of Succu's arms and stands close to the doorway. "You sure you want to stay?" he asks the remaining children.

There were only a handful that remained in the room; all of whom had volunteered. While he did give them the option to return to their families, he knows he can't force them. They all glance at each other one last time before the girl that told him everything gave him curt nod.

"Yes," she firmly answered.

Staring back at the group one last time, Xavier steps aside as Ulric places the door back in place. All three of us weren't keen on the idea on leaving them, but they made their decision, and after listening to what they had to say, they understand why. It's what led them to make such a decision is what doesn't sit well for them.

After locking the door with the key he took from one of the knocked out guards, Xavier turns to face the rest of the children. They remained huddled closer together, scanning their surroundings for any potential threat. They had every right to be paranoid. Their lives are entrusted to a couple of strangers who had only recently arrived in this world. What Xavier and the others are worried about is how they can get this many outworld without garnering any unwanted attention.

Not only that, there's still the issue on finding everyone else. At least Xavier knows Percy and Rei are still out there. As for the twins, he knows that they were caught too, but they didn't mention Noise. That's what worries him.

'Wait,' he thought as he eyes avert to the older boy. 'Ulric doesn't know Ayane's been caught.'

Telling him would be the best option, but then there's the possibility Ulric would split from the group and tear the facility apart from top to bottom while searching for her. A wolf's loyalty is something to admire and fear. Though, Xavier wishes that same loyalty extends to the rest of them.

After much contemplation, he chose to withold the information for now. The last thing he wants is to put Ulric on a literal leash, and he'd rather not be the one to degrade the older teen's pride like that. He can at least mention Noise and Sound, which Ulric will easily believe given their recent closeness.

With his thoughts sorted out, he first turns to Succu. "I want you to take these kids to the surface. Since you're the only one that got to have a good look at this place, you're the only one that knows how to navigate to the exit." After she nods, he turns to Ulric next. "We're going to go look for Sound and Noise. Alphonse and I overheard the guys over there earlier that they got caught the two."

"And Ayane?"

"They didn't mention her," he lies, which Alphonse picked up on.

"What about me?" Alphonse spoke up.

"You're going to get in the way." Before Alphonse could say anything, Xavier brutally tells him, "You're used to travelling, not combat. I could tell from how ill-equipped you are and the fact you didn't take any initiative before I did earlier. Had I not done anything, we would have been caught. You're used to waiting around and being rescued, whereas we're ways rescuing ourselves. We don't plan on getting caught, so just leave."

Xavier looks directly at Succu, who was staring down at him with worried eyes. He simply couldn't understand why she always wore that same expression whenever they had to temporarily part ways. Although he didn't entirely care at this point, ever since they first met, it's always been like this. Is parting that difficult? He found it off considering the fact she's a creature that actively seeks various 'partners' and easily let's them go.

Even now, he still doesn't understand her strange attachement. To further add to his confusion, Succu walks up and places a hand on his cheek. Her face contorted with a mixture of fear and pain.

"Don't go doing anything reckless, got it?" she said, sounding as if she were about to cry.

He didn't know why, but he felt like as if he'd been in this situation before. Before he could say anything, Ulric calls him over. "C'mon, let's go! We can't waste anymore time than we already have!"

Wordlessly, Xavier pulls away and runs to Ulric, who was waiting for him at the other end of the hall. Seeing him approach, Ulric starts to running to the opposite direction. With the two gone, a saddened Succu and a dejected Alphonse continue to watch until their backs disappeared in the distance. Shaking her head, she was about to guide the fearful children until she noticed the boy's slumped shoulder.

"Don't worry," she assures him. Succu forces a smile as he lifts his head and looks over his shoulder. "He can be rather rude, but there's always a hidden message behind his words. Even if he comes off as a jackass," she giggles. "I'm sure he merely wants you to get out of here alive AND in one piece. You have someone waiting for you, right?"

Succu turns away and faces the opposite direction. The way things were playing reminds her of something a long time ago. Despite not wanting events to repeat, she can only go along with Xavier's plan out of respect and love towards him. She's never doubted him even back then; even if he doesn't entirely remember. Now determined, she walks forward so she was ahead of the group.

Slapping her cheeks, she relaxes her face to wear a more natural looking smile. She looks over at the children, who were curious yet remained fearful of what she plans to do now.

"Now, I need you all to be extra quiet," Succu said with a motherly smile. She places a hand on her knee as she leans down to the closest child's eye level. She places a finger to her lips and quietly instructs, "We can't alarm anyone just yet of our escape. Just hold hands and we'll get out of this together, got it?"

Alphonse was surprised at her sudden change in nature. Just earlier, she acted more child-like than Xavier. And she didn't exactly strike him as the type of be this normal around children, especially after seeing the level of affection she displayed around the snowy-haired boy. Although hesitant, many began to grab the closest hand and fall in a perfect line.

Please, she stands up straight and turns her head to Alphonse, who had been silent since Xavier and Ulric split from them to search for the others. What Xavier said to him hit all the right places, he couldn't deny everything that was said even though that wasn't exactly the message Xavier meant. Clenching a tight fist, his head snaps up. He immediately removes the contact lenses from his eyes, earning several surprised gasps upon seeing his true eye color. Succu, on the other hand, was more mortified than surprised as she watches the boy drop his contact lenses and smashes them with his foot.

Bitter but determined, he said, "Let's go."

----------------------------------------

His ears continuously rung as volts of electricity continue to be injected into his body. Right as soon as Sound regained some feeling in his finger tips, he would be experience another charge throughout his body. His eye sight had turned completely white after being subjected to numerous lightning flashes from the device hovering over his head. He wanted to scream but he couldn't. He musn't

In fact, much of his energy went to making sure not a single sound came out of his mouth. Despite knowing the people present in the room deserved it, he couldn't risk it. Not without accidentally harming Noise with his physical curse while they're still in the same room. All Sound could do is swallow back his screams as his body convulsed and press itself forward against the leather body straps that pinned his boddy to the table. His heart felt like it would explode from how fast it was painfully beating.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, someone spoke up. "That's enough. We only need to trigger his curse not kill him."

As if he regained his ability to breathe the moment the device was turned off, Sound had to hold back a cough after a sudden sharp intake of air. Every breath was painful; he couldn't control the small raspy sounds his throat made but he careless at that point. Somehow, he'd been about to hold back his voice the whole time, but it rendered his throat dry and aching after having kept his mouth wide open for so long. It felt like his entire body was being stabbed with numerous pin needles once his nerves started to kick back in.

Which was ironic pins (the size of a woman's hair ornament) were embedded deeply into his skin almost all the way to his muscle tissue. Though not as painful compared to when they were initially inserted; the muscles in his body had became stiff due to the amount of strain they had to withstand. Even a slight twitch of his wrist could cause one side of his body to ache. His hearing had somewhat returned, though he can only hear raspy breathing in his ears. He could somewhat make out the whispering echoing in the large, circular laboratory.

One of the assistants gasp, "Amazing! To have survived 600 joules unscathed, as expected of a Cursed Blood!"

"To think, their curses will go to great lengths for the host to live for as long as possible..." the other murmurs. "It's honestly a sad existence."

Sound could hardly make out certain things except the ceiling an the nearby machinery. His vision had become so blurred that he couldn't even tell that someone had approached his bedside until a hand was placed on the cheek of his mask. While fighting back the urge to cough and painfully breathe as quiet as possible, he opens one eye tto secretly glare at the woman.

For a moment, he thought to himself 'too bad she's pleasant to the eyes' as he stares up at the woman's amber eyes. She didn't have a body as impressive as Succu's, but her beauty made up for whatever she lacked. Too bad the warped expression behind her glasses ruined her beauty in Sound's eyes.

"You know why we're doing this, right?" the woman, or doctor is you want to be literal, questions him. When he refused to look at her, she grabs his face and forces him to directly look her in the eye. "You Cursed Bloods are so feared yet you refuse to acknowledge the power you hold. You could have done something with it. Instead, you choose to hide it."

Too tired to fight back, his focused what little energy he has left in keeping both eyes open as she adjusts her hold and roughly grabs the bottom of his mask.

"But out of all of them, yours appears to be the most useful. Yet you refuse to tell us what that curse is."

Around the room were various flasks filled with blood. While he does applaud the cleanliness of the laboratory, unlike a certain back back at home, he's disgusted with what they chose to focus their scientific endeavour on. If he could, he'd spit at the woman's pretty face or write 'too bad your face conceals your dirty insides'.

A wicked smile crossed her red tinted lips "Well no matter, we've drawn enough blood from you. I'm sure we'll figure it out on your little friend."

His energy immediately returns upon seeing Noise once the woman steps away. Ignoring the friction of the leather on his body, he struggles to break free as the woman approaches the other bed. Unlike him, the red-head lying in bed unconscious without a single restraint on his body. Sound froze when an assistant walks up to her side and holds a tray towards her. A smirk crosses the woman's dark features as she takes the item on the sterile tray, holding up for him to see to reveal a small syringe.

The contents inside it is what caused Sound to panic and move frantically against his restraints. No matter how hard he tries to break free, he is forced to watched as the woman rolls up Noise's sleep and prepares to inject his forearm. He doesn't know wether the adrenaline in his body is causing him to lose his perception of time or the woman was intentionally move slowly, but everything around him appeared to slow down.

His heart, though still beating hard, felt different this time. He couldn't allow this to happen. There was no way he would allow another loved one become like him right before his eyes again. This was enough to cause him to finally crack.

Unable to hold back any longer, Sound bellowed his name, "NOISE!"

The second his voice reached their ears, as if a chain reaction occurred, the entire room was inflicted by some unknown force to insure nothing but chaos. It first began with the woman's heels suddenly snapping in half, causing her to fall backwards. As she fell, one of the upper pipes suddenly began to overfill with water, causing several bolts to pop out; unable to withstand the sudden pressure from within.

After her back harshly hits the cement floor, she could hear several bolts ricochetting off the cement walls, followed by the dreaded sounds of breaking glass. She stares up at the ceiling, speechless as she listens to blood curdling screams of several individuals in the room. After a moment of clarity, her thoughts began to process itself as she snaps back into reality.

Rolling to lay on her stomach, the doctor orders the nearby guards, "Restrain everyone that's been contaminated!"

"No need." She finds her body being pushed to the ground as a foot rubs and presses against her upper back. Slowly tilting her head up, she finds herself what she believed were the cold eyes of a monster. She flinches when the large curved blade of a scythe is swung in front of her face and blocks her view of the entrance. "I wasn't going to use this on anyone since we didn't get a confirmation. But..." The anger on the little boy's face caused her to shudder.

As Xavier towers over her with one foot on the brunette, Ulric effortlessly took out all of the present guards. Many laid on the ground unconscious, the rest were curled up and groaning in pain from the blows he had delivered. He had just held one up by the color and punched his face before he noticed Sound at the center of the laboratory. Dropping the man, Ulric purposely steps on his stomach before running to the table.

"You've given me a perfect excuse to construct my weapon. I have to thank you for that." Xavier sets the curved side of the blade and leans against the long handle. He murmurs, "You must be proud of your work. Experimenting on us Cursed Bloods... Using children to do the type of labor no adult volunteers to do..."

Recalling what's in her hand, the doctor tried to use the syringe as a weapon, but before she could raise her hand, he stops on it, shattering the instrument as he crushes her hand. She lets out a pained cry as the shrapnel pierce her skin.

"Oops..." he mockingly said. "Seems like I got you infected. Isn't that ironic? Considering the fact you were about to do the same to my friend..." His taunts only added to the fear that was welling up inside her. "I don't know who you are or what your position is in the world, and I don't think I give a damn. Nor anyone outside of this world will, you're just a side character created to be cut down by someone like me."

As he continues to taunt the woman, Ulric helps unstrap Sound and catches him when he tries to hastily slide off the bed. He was weak all over. He felt that any minute now he'd like out his insides from all the stress his body had been forced to endure. Still, Sound couldn't relax. He weakly extending his hand and makes a writing gesture, which Ulric immediately picked up on.

Lucky for him, he came prepared this time. Ulric was honestly surprised they never bothered checking if he had any weapons on him before they chucked him in prison. He takes a small notebook and a pen from his inner vest pocket then hands it to Sound. He tried to take it, but his hands began to quake when he tried. Still, Ulric patiently waited before Sound could write a coherent sentence.

Sound scribbled, 'Is Noise alright?'

Ulric nods. "Yeah, we got here before she could touch him."

Although relieved, he was now worried about someone else. Sound tried to write more but his hand no longer listened to him. His entire right arm was shaking, almost to the point where he can hardly twist his wrist in an attempt to shake it off.

He had to ask him, no one else knows something is going to happen to his sister. Without waiting to see what else he has to write, Ulric helps Sound to his feet, but his legs were so weak that they buckled just as soon as the former removed his hand from under the boy's arm. He caught Sound before he could fall. Rather than leaving him all, he places his arm around his shoulder and slowly guides him to Noise. Stopping at the head of the bed, Sound looks up and immediately springs to life as soon as he saw the red head.

Ulric releases him as Sound stumbles a bit while he rushing to Noise's side. Without thinking, Sound tears off his mask and hovers over Noise's as he carefully inspects every inch of his face. When he touched the surface of his skin, Sound almost felt his legs give out when he felt the warmth from Noise's cheeks. Quietly, he lets out a relieved breath and leans down to press his forehead against his. Sound closes his eyes, listening to the boy's soft snores, relishing the sensation of his skin against his.

As this was going on, Xavier crouched closer to the ground as the woman continues to lay still, her fearful gaze fixated his scythe. Seeing his reflection through the dark blue metal, she tremble underneath his intense glare.

"Miss, what's your name?" he playfully asks, changing his tone to sound similar to that of a child.

Daring herself to look him directly, she lets out a loud gasp upon making direct eye contact. Xavier rested his elbow on his knee and placed his cheek against his open hand. His smile sending very uncomfortable shivers; even Ulric felt uncomfortable as he watched the two from afar. Xavier's eyes, although dripping with malice, appeared as if they were smiling.

"You know miss, it's bad for adults to make an example out of children~ Isn't it polite to tell your name when asked?"

The woman gulps. "D-Doctor Klara Heil Pölzl.."

Xavier smiles briefly drops and pulls away from his hand, straighting his back as he stares back at the woman in disbelief. This reaction confused her, same went for Ulric. But for Sound, who had kept his eyes on Noise, had heard the woman's name and understood the boy's reaction.

At first there was silence, then Xavier placed a hand over his face to appear as if he was in a stark of disbelief. Then she heard a chuckle, which grew louder as Xavier slowly slide his hand down his face until he was under a fit of hysteria.

"How interesting! To think I would ever find a version of the woman whose chamber will bake up a version of my world's genocidal maniac!" Her expression turns grim as he cackles, "That's very interesting... Very interesting indeed! Since you love experimenting so much, maybe I'll keep you alive." He stands up and retracts his scythe. "Think of your life itself as an experiment. Will you raise a child to become your humanity's dictator or will you use that child to redeem your past sins."

"What are you-"

"You can't deny you know who I'm talking about. Surely you didn't think I wouldn't notice you used your mother's maiden name rather than your actual last name." She watches him with a horrified expression. He continues, "You're aware of the existence of us Cursed Bloods, that means you also know about everything else. Which is pretty impressive."

"Y-You can't do anything to me! It's the law!" she sputters. Dr. Heil sounded so confident in herself, but Xavier was unfazed.

"You know..." Xavier slowly reaches up to his right eye. "The fact there's a group of outsiders means we're not your average Travelers. If you were able to gather that much intel about those laws and the beings that created them, then surely you must have heard a sliver of information about a certain world that defies those laws on a daily basis."

The color drains from her face just as the boy had removed his contact lenses. Staring back at her was an unnatural shade of gold, but they were unyieldingly cold, and she was uncertain what else she could say. The boy said she'd be allowed to live, yet indirectly, he was telling her her life is nothing but a sick joke.

As she was slowly broiling with anger over her humiliation, Xavier steps back and looks around the people who were cowering in the room, many of them covered in the blood they had collected for gods knows how long. He almost wanted to laugh at the irony of the entire situation. After picking up the previously discarded mask from the wet floor, Ulric approaches Sound from behind, making sure to be as careful as possible to avoid looking at his face.

Wordlessly, Ulric hands it to Sound. As if recalling his curse, Sound was about to immediately reach for it but freezes upon realizing whose hand was holding his mask. Ulric stares at the back of the noirette's head, waiting for his next move. But he didn't need to know what Sound wanted to wrote - 'don't you dare touch me'.

"I know you're still mad at me, but for your sister's sake, just cooperate with me just a tiny bit. Okay?" said Ulric.

Before he could react, Xavier spoke up, "Ulric, take those two out of here and rejoin the others." Sound's head snaps to Xavier's direction. "I'll take care of the rest."

Sound begins to panic. He turns around, but his hastened movements caused him to stumble and fall to the ground. He had to tell Xavier where Ayane was, he was the only person who last saw her before they got separated.

Xavier, having heard the fall, tells Sound, "Don't worry. I'm not going to flood this place just yet before I find her."

Before Ulric could ask who he was talking about, Xavier, wtih his free hand, creates a sickle with a long chain attached to the handle. Once fully formed, he throws it at the closest overhead pipes. When it stabs all the way through the metal, water begins to gush out.

"Go, now!" he yells.

Not wasting another second, Ulric changes then and there, which was met with horrified and confused screams. Most of the people finally felt it was time to run. All three of them didn't see any reason to keep them around any longer. Dr. Heil was about to sit up but froze once more upon hearing a strange animalistic sound. She slowly turns her head and her breath hitched upon seeing a larger version of another animal that has long since been extinct in her world.

Towering her was a large grey wolf, with only a line of white fure on the top of its head all the way to its tail. When she saw his piercing blue eyes, she knew he's the one that had burst into the room along side Xavier. What she couldn't understand is how she thought his wolf appearance remained just as handsome as his human form. Staring down at her one last time, Ulric gently picked Noise up with his mouth and placed him on his back. The next was Sound, who initially fought to be taken away.

He refused to leave; not without his sister. But because of what his body had been out through, Sound was easily placed on the wolf's back and carried away. With the three gone, Xavier turned his attention back to the brunette woman, who was slowly trying to crawl away.

"Don't think you're going anywhere." Xavier grabs her by the ankle and, with a sudden inhuman strength, lifts her up with ease. He wraps the other end of the chain around her ankle and crystallizes it. "Unless you want your entire life a work to be under water and keep your leg, I suggest you hold still."

"How dare you-!" When Dr. Heil tried to reach out and grab him, she wails in pain when the crystal grows around her leg and pierced through her skin.

"Crystalization is usually used on Astrals," he said. Crouching back to her level, he mockingly tells her, "But it's never been used on physical flesh before. I wonder what will happen if you continue thrashing like a baby." He purposely tugs at the chain with his finger, inflicting even more pain."Still, considering how much leg work you've forced children into maintaining the only machine providing power to this world."

He smirks at the conflicted expression on the woman's face.

"What, think I didn't know? I heard from one of the volunteers." He clicks his teeth and shakes his head, making appear as if he was disappointed. "An adults metabolism is extremely low in this world, hence all of the enhancements you've made to society despite the fact you're faaar too early for that type of technology. As for the children... They're still young, they have their whole life ahead of them."

He roughly grabs her hair, forcefully lifting her head up. Dr. Heil tried to get up, but Xavier uses is scythe to pin her jacket to the ground, rendering her incapable of any further movements.

"And they're faaar less whiny that adults. That's why you gave these kids the ultimatum." Although he maintained a straight face, his aura was dripping with bloodlust once more. He mumbles, "Live most of your life as a disappointment to your family, or was it your childhood in order to make your wonderful parents proud of your sacrifice. It's the least they can do since they're basically freeloaders in the household."

Xavier's seen this scenario so many times that he doesn't now whether to lose faith in humanity or just give up on it altogether. Dr. Neil does not deny his claims. Instead, she continues to glare up at him with defiance blazing in her green eyes, to which almost earned some respect from the boy. Almost.

"Welp, not gonna say anything else. It's your world." He turns and starts waking away. "I can assume your patron god left everything up to your people to take care of their creation. And look what you chose to do with it. You're lucky ours hasn't chosen to dropped by for a visit for his stupid patriotic missions. I'm sure yours would receive a rude awakening to see what you've done."

"WAIT!" the woman cries out as she struggled to break free. "Won't you listen to what we have to say? Why we've been pushed this far!?"

Pausing in his tracks, Xavier looks straight ahead with a blank stare. There was a lot more he could say, but that would waste more of his time than he already has. He's vented enough of his anger towards this world on this woman. Anymore and he's certain he could do far worse that potentially leaving this woman crippled.

"Why should I? You're just a side character with a name."

Then he left, but not before using his scythe to slash a few pipes. Just enough to get some water to leak into the room. If the area is where he thinks he is, it's best to start giving these people a hard time while they're still around.

----------------------------------------

Rei tried her best not to accidentally obliterate the walls of the building after they exited the room. They had just gone over a lovely meeting with the world's leader, and nothing could perfectly summarize their meeting. All that can be said is that it had left a bitter taste in their mouths. For all their achievements, the lack of concerns towards their people, mainly the children, was very difficult to process.

Percy has met several leaders in the last, but rarely has he met such cruelty. What he couldn't believe that such cruelty reached even worlds outside of his original home. Then again, he was warned when he first joined Avarus to expect to such things from other worlds. The only thing Percy hopes is that the other's aren't in any danger.

He knows they can handle themselves, but he still can't help but worry.

"How could they brush us off that like!?" Percy jolts at Rei's booming voice. "We're doing everything the correct way, but why does it always turn out this way?"

He knew the brunette wasn't addressing him. She's been doing this far longer than him, so her frustration was understandable.

Rei places her hands over her face and stops to lean against the wall. "I just... Don't know what to do..."

"Hey..." Percy steps in front and brings her into a hug. "You're doing your best. Remember, you're the one that decided to go the pacifistic route." He chuckles, "Or would you rather go gung ho on the place like you used to?"

This was enough to cause the girl to smile. When he began petting the top of her head, despite wearing a chest plate underneath his poncho, Rei rests against his chest. She thought of hugging him back, but she chose not to in fear of hurting him.

"You know Cariad, there's a lot we can or can't do," said Percy. "But just know you did what you thought was best, and there's nothing wrong with that. Your initial plan failed, but at least you know what to do next." He pulls away but keeps his hands on her shoulder to look her in the eye. "And you know what we have to do, right?"

Before she could say anything, several guards ran past them behind Percy's back. And to their surprise, they were heavily are, appearing as if they were ready to take on an army. While he has become accustomed to different version of modern times, Percy still felt rather uncomfortable at the sight of guns. Seeing that they were about to huddle in a group, Percy places an arm over Rei's shoulder and turns her around so their backs were facing the group.

He places a finger over his lips and jerks his head over his shoulder. She immediately understood and listened with him as the captain began to speak up.

"There have been reports of intruders in the underground," said, who they presume is, the captain. "We don't know the extent, but we must prepare for the worse. If the 'fuel' is taken, then the engine can no longer run properly. That's why I want you all to participate in the search once it is officially announced by the president."

One of the guards raised their hand. "But sir, what of the fox?" Reo snaps her head to Percy while the boy stares straight ahead with wide eyes. "Are we not to make sure it doesn't escape?"

"Hmm... Alright, I'll assign three of you to guard her. The rest of us shall be on standby until further notice. You're all dismissed."

It was a miracle itself that none had noticed the couple even after they returned to their duties. Still, they couldn't help but worry over who they had just mentioned. They could us their Holos to communicate with the others, but they were given strict orders to use little to no communication. But they were also told to use it for emergencies.

While he's uncertain, Percy felt this should be considered as it is an emergency. He leans close to Rei's ear and whispers something to her. As he was whispering, one of the guards from earlier finally noticed pair just after the boy had finished whispering to her.

"Hey, you there!" he calls out just as Rei leaves. He marches over and reaches to grab her. "I said wai-" His words were suddenly caught in his throat as Percy draws his swords from underneath his poncho.

Percy glares from underneath his hood. "You better choose your next words carefully," he warns. "We both don't want you to be demoted from your current status."

The guard gulps, choosing not to - although he had some idea - probe into what the boy had meant. Percy pulls back his hood, revealing his abnormal, crystalline light blue hair, which was tied in a high pony tail. Due to the lighting, the guard wasn't sure if it was due to the hair, but he appeared to give off some sort of glow. Almost making him appear as if he were an angel. An angel which was holding a sword to his throat.

If he wasn't terrified for his life, he'd have noticed that the entire blade of the sword was made out of some unknown gemstone. Which had a very similar color to Percy's hair. Looking around to see if any other guards were close by, Percy jerks his head, silently telling him to follow. The guard showed no resistance as the two slowly make their way to a nearby corner. As soon as they were out of sight, Percy grabs the man by the collar and throws him to the wall.

He was about to use his gun, but Percy was quick enough to thrust his sword into large ring of the riffle and pin it, and the man's arm, over the man's shoulder onto the wall behind him. Percy didn't have to worry about potentially injuring the guard's hand. With how thick the gloves were, he knew he merely grazed the surface of the material. Unable to escape, the guard was, much to his embarassment at the mercy of a teenager.

"Now, as much as it pains me to know this is destroying every bit of your pride-" Percy moves closer and demands with a low voice, "I want you to tell me where she is."

Rei found the most secluded spot in the building near the inner gardens. Which she has no idea why it exists or understands the purpose of it other than its calm appearance. She's been to buildings such as this one in the past, and thankfully, no one visits the area. Before any guard could see her, she opens the glass door and slowly shuts it behind her back.

Checking the surrounding area one last time, she touches the teardrop-shaped gemstone of her dangling earring and closes her eyes. And, slowly but surely, it begins to emit a small glow.

The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

----------------------------------------

After making some minor 'adjustments' to the plumbing system, Xavier stops when he feels a warm sensation on the pinna of right ear.

"You know we're not allowed to use our Holos unless it's an emergency," Xavier said sternly.

"I know, but we have a problem." She paused to check her surroundings once more. "You still playing prisoner?"

"Nope!" Xavier casually slashes at one last pipe before deconstructing his Scythe. "I'm actually trying to set them back an Age or two. Since Ulric said there are potential Mongrel recruits, we can't have these guys having the high ground. Especially since I found a doctor that knows about us."

"Anything else I should know? Percy and I met with this world's leader for some assistance." Rei clicks her teeth. "The prick requested we deliver a message to Belial. 'Send one of your worst soldier as a sacrifice and we'll consider talking.' Given what you just told me, I think I understand why he said that."

Xavier punched the cement wall beside him. While it wasn't enough to punch a while like Reo can, it did leave a crack on the surface. And just when he thought he couldn't hate this world any less. The world was honestly lucky in his eyes. If it weren't for the rules Belial had set specifically for the Faction, Tunera Clypse, and Floaters like himself, he's certain this place would have been destroyed from the inside the moment Ulric and his team set foot inside.

"Anyway, that's not why I called. They've got Ayane here."

Xavier freezes in his tracks.

Rei looks around then hides herself in the deeper part of the garden. She continues, "Percy and I heard from a group of guards earlier. Two of them will assigned to guard a 'fox', and last I checked, this world is devoid of fauna like her. I can only guess that when they flora died out due to the heavy pollution, only the livestock remained. Something like Ayane is far too valuable."

Now that he thought about it, he hardly saw a single potted plant or tree in the streets since they arrived. If that's the case, then how are they still able to breath? The smog in the air was so thick Xavier could hardly see the sun. He almost thought that the sky itself was made to look that way before this world's patron god(dead) decided it was time to take a century's worth nap.

And just like he told the crazy doctor earlier, they'll be sorely disappointed with what's happened to their creation.

"Alright, you two find her then," said Xavier. "I found Ulric and Succu, they're coming your way as we speak, and with company. Make sure you find Ayane before you meet up."

Rei lets out a relieved breath. "Guess that means you'll find the other three. Good! The sooner we get out of this world, the better!"

"Heh, you're not the only one that thinks that..." Xavier comments after Rei cuts off communication.

At least Xavier doesn't have to worry about those two and Ayane. All he has to do now is find Echo and the two newbies that were brought along; which shouldn't be much of a hassle considering how they dealt with Ulric. They don't seem to be the type to execute trespassers, but they also don't seem like the type to treat them well if the said trespassers were discovered to be Cursed Bloods.

The people leading this world chose not to dissect her, which is a good sign, but if they kept her as a pet, a certain sibling of hers will do more than wreck havoc. And Xavier wants to avoid that as much as possible, or at least until they get back home so Ulric's team can report their findings.

Walking through the seemingly endless hall, he stops upon stumbling across a massive opening. The room was far more darker than the endless brick corridors he's had to traverse through for gods knows how long. Barely a minute inside, Xavier was greeted by a blast of heat. At least it was well-ventilated.

The heat was so intense that his hair had become drenched with sweat, and he had only just arrived. Since the clothes were only temporary, Xavier decided now was the time to shed some of the extra layers of his clothes. First he removed his coat, followed by his knee high socks and waist coat, casually tossing them aside. He then rolls up his sleeves to completely expose his arms.

He thought of removing the bandage wrap on his right arm since it was beginning to itch, but he chose to keep it on. Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Xavier steps closer to the metal railings and scans the environment. Hanging from the ceiling were various chains, some with empty cart. There were conveyer belts which were laid out in a criss cross formation on both walls and slowly brought about large amounts of coal, bringing them straight to the lower floor.

Although he didn't want to look any further, Xavier strains his eyes to stare at the bottom. Working tirelessly at the lower ground were, as expected, children, all of them shovelling coal. There were even those that were sorting them out; tentively checking and organizing every single piece into seperate piles. Several others maintaining many parts of a giant machine at the far side of the dark room. With no protective gear, many were violently coughing due to the prolonged exposure.

Upon closer inspection, he soon realized what it was that the children were working tirelessly in maintaining. Like a heart beat, bursts of fire were blown in between the metals of a large coal-powered generator. The generator lets out a lot roar each time coal was thrown in to increase the flames. Due to the continual pressure, the movement of the metal sounded as if it were moaning. In a way, it almost appeared as if it were a beating heart, except the exterior reminded Xavier of Tank's severely overused helmet.

There were various pipes which led directly to the ceiling. With some steam blowing out of the cracks, causing several to whistle with each breath the generator took. The generator itself appeared in a state of disrepair. Despite that, the children in charge maintainence were able to keep it together.

"So this is what they've been using the poor kids for..." He spat over the railing in his disgust. "Adults always spew out dumbass reasons for making the young suffer. All because we were born small, they think those kids can maneuver better and complain less about pay since they have no clear understanding in the importance of money. Shit like this never changes."

Spotting the bridge which safely led to the otherside, Xavier walks to it as careful as possible. Asides from the concerning sounds from the oversized furnace, there was only some coughing and shoveling of coal which echoed all throughout the room. Xavier stealed himself for the cross once he reached the first end of the bridge. The bridge was made of metal, though must of it was covered in rust.

While it was dark enough for him to easily cross without being seen; unless he was stupid enough to look down by completely leaning the rusted rails, he should be safe. The only issue remains was the panels whiched were deeply welded together. They were thin, meaning one misstep could make a sound loud enough to attract the attention of whoever's down below. Xavier is certain that it wasn't just the children that were down there.

And he refuses to risk a bullet to the head to check. Gently taping his foot on the surface, after hearing a small sound, he realized there was only thing he could do. He had to walk barefoot. From his years of experience in his previous life, he's learned that walking barefoot on a hallow surface is easier compared to when you wear shoes. He finds he has more control of his footsteps that way.

After removing his shoes, rather than bringing them, he also chucks the pair aside and stands an inch from the bridge. There's no point in wearing them any longer. Material things, such as his boots, are easily replaceable. It was expensive to make, but his life is more important. While they were useful, he'd rather wear something that's more convenient to wear. He doesn't know why people thought adding more than one buckle was necessary, but he does admit they look cool.

Slowly stepping forward, he rubs his feet on the surface to adjust to the cold, rough anterior surface. He can't simply walk without getting used to feeling things with his feet. It's like telling a person to blindly walk across a field of broken glass. Once he got used to the new sensations, he starts making his way across the bridge. As he was walking, he pauses when he hears a loud crash from down below. Not being bothered to look, he remains in place and listens.

"Hey! Did I tell you to stop!?"

"I-I'm sorry," a child whimpers.

"You there, get this kid back to his feet or else your replacements will never come!"

Xavier grips the bottom of his shirt. He murmurs, "Guess that excludes those kids..."

He uses his Astral Dust once more to create one last construct. He's used up far too much at this point, but since he's not using it on a person or an Astrals...

"Ah, what the heck." His scythe, although smaller this time, forms in his non-dominant hand. He jumps to stand on the railings to position himself. "As long as I'm here, why don't I blow off some more steam? Not like anyone else will be here to report my actions." He paused. "Well, except for the people I'm supposed to rescue."

Playfully lifting his foot up, balancing on the rails as he waits for someone to notice. And as he expected, rather than the useless guards, it's one of the children that spotted him. When they make direct eye contact, Xavier winks before stepping off and dropping down. The other now notice him began scream upon seeing Xavier's falling dorm, drawing the attention of every adult in the room. Now focused, he maneuvers his body to a standing position as he holds his scythe over his shoulders.

When he lands, Xavier is quick to swing his weapon around, causing much of the coal dust to fly in the air. Those nearby were either blinded or unable to breathe as the blackened dust struck their face. Making the blade as dull as possible, Xavier uses it as a hook to drag one person by their waist and forcefully flung them towards their co-worker. Hearing a click behind his back, Xavier brought his scythe around his body and shielded himself before the bullet could hit.

He almost rolled his eyes when he heard the man gasp after one shot. Was now really the time to be impressed? Twirling it around with one hand, he maneuvers himself around the open space to knock down as many guards as humanly possible. While that's not necessarily his main goal, he'd rather not have the hassle of blocking bullets, especially since he'll be using the last ounce of his Astral Dust to deal a few more blows to the facility.

Shots were fired as soon as he knocked the firsr shooter to the ground. Xavier paced himself carefully as he moved, sliding his bare feet across the floor as he controls the circular motion of the long pole between the fingers of his left, non-dominant hand. Barely moving his upper body, the bullets would merely move past him as they would change direction when briefly bouncing off flat side of his weapon.

Those that took cover couldn't help but watch in awe. Although it was fairly obvious that he wasn't taking the fight seriously, he was careful, he was focused. And most of all, he was attentive to his surroundings. Which was saying something compared to the guards that were spraying bullets all over a coal-filled room. Any potential spark could cause the entire area to go up in flames, and that is not how Xavier wanted this place to go down.

When he stopped, Xavier held his scythe to his side and pointed it to the ground. The guards had run out of bullets, but still, they chose to point their empy barrels at him. Xavier almost wanted bark out a laugh now that he saw the design of their weapons. He can't for the life of him figure out the purpose of a cogwheel being in place of the receiver sight. It's no wonder they hadn't hit anything. They can't see shit with that wheel constantly rotating with every fired bullet!

"You know," Xavier began, causing all of the guards to raise their weapons. "It's a very simple process. You guys put your guns down and run off, while I stay here and mess with the thing you're risking these young lives in maintaining." He shrugs. "Or you can be the idiots that charge at me with their empty guns and try to beat the living shit out of me. I mean, it wouldn't be the first for some of you to lay your hands on a kid."

When he caught sight of a man jerk his arms, Xavier looks at him in disgust.

"Wha- EW! I didn't mean THAT!" He points at the stunned man and looks around the room. "Did you guys know that your buddy here is a pedophile? You can't deny you all saw his reaction!"

"Okay, that's enough!" The accused pedophile runs straight to the snow-haired boy with his empty weapon raised above his head.

He was about to swing down on the top of the kid's head only for Xavier to reflexively react and twirl his scythe inbetween his fingers, almost jabbing the sharp end of the weapon to the man's lower jaw. His jaw slacked, he refrains from moving any part of his body a single inch closer. Rather than disappointed, this simple act flipped a switch within Xavier.

"Thank you very much, mister." Xavier slowly turns his head to the man's way. His violet eyes appeared to smile like his lips as he coldly stares up at the older man. "You gave me the perfect excuse to break a specific rule. Don't blame me for what happens afterwards."

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As soon as the three resurfaced, chaos immediately insued in the surrounding populace. And Ulric was certain he wasn't the cause, at least this time. Rather than looking back, Ulric sniffs the ground and immediately follows the closest familiar trail. Sound clungs to the wolf's furr while also maintaining a firm grip on Noise. Although he was awake now, the red-head was still a little groggy from all the sedatives that were injected into his body.

He did, however, maintain eye contact with the masked boy since waking up. Or at least, he thinks that's what's going on. The eye socket on the fox mask were so small he can hardly see Sound's eyes. Looking behind for a split second, Sound immediately pulls Noise's hood up and brings him closer. He wanted to ask what was going on but he was too sluggish to form a single cohesive word. Sound didn't have to worry about hiding his face.

The only thing they can use to identify him is his fox mask. Aside from that, there's nothing else to go on. Since it was now night time, Sound could clearly see the cause for the uproar. Not only were the lights within the buildings and on the streets seemingly ceased to function, but other appliances as well. Cars stopped running, hot-air balloon slowly began to make their unplanned descent, and the list goes on from there. Even limb prosthetics ceased to function.

Only this much disarray could be caused by Xavier. Who else would know how to indirectly instill fear in massive numbers? As he was running, Ulric slowed down and lost track of what he was doing when picked up another scent. Sound noticed and stares at the back of the wolf's head with a raised brow. His right ear twitches as he picks up a certain voice. Ulric was calm until he picked up an earpiercing scream, which came from the last person he wanted to hear it from.

Out of nowhere, the wolf snaps his head to the right and changes direction. Sound had to clutch tighter to avoid being thrown off of the wolf's back. They went from being in the open streets to a narrow alleyway, then across several rooftops. The scent was becoming stronger, but the closer he got, the more he began to catch another scent mixed with hers. The sickening smell of blood.

'She's fine,' was Ulric's initial thought. 'She HAS to be.'

He can't understand WHY no one told him she was here. Even her own twin didn't even bother to write about it. And he's her sibling! While he knows the fox is just as capable as everyone else in taking care of herself, his animal instincts will not calm down until he knows she's okay. Running across one last rooftop, he jumps in between two buildings and lands right over several armed soldiers.

Ulric digs his claws into the brick floor to prevent himself from clawing any enemy within his line of sight. While he is pissed, he still maintained some control over himself to prevent bloodshed. He growls at whoever remained standing. Crying out in fear, they cowardly ran when he gnashes his teeth at them. Those that were knocked down froze when they heard him stomp towards them.

When they look up, they shudder under the glare of the wolf. Ulric licks his teeth as he continues to growl at them. Finally regaining enough of their senses, they clumsily get off the ground and ran. Two of them even forget to pick up their guns. He huffs through his nostrils and turns around. Sound, making sure Noise was fine to leave alone, slides off Ulric's back. Using his sword as support was Percy, who was so relieved that he allowed himself to fall on his knees from exhaustion.

Behind him was Rei, who appeared just as exhausted and had to lean against the wall beside her as support. However, it was who she was carrying on her back is what concerned the two the most. Holding back a gasp, Sound dashes past Ulric and goes straight to Rei. He skips beside her and instantly reaches for the person on her back.

"Heh... Nice to see you too..." mutters Rei. Not only did she appear tired, but it was in her voice as well.

The boy pulls back the hood and felt a strong wave of relief hit his body when he sees a familiar pair of fox ears pop up. Ayane was sound asleep. But from the bruises on her former rosy cheeks, he knew she wasn't merely fatigued from escape. They did something to her, and it pisses him off.

"She's fine," Percy pants. He stumbles a bit but is caught by Ulric, who uses his snout to assist him in standing. "She only has a few bruises, but we think she only got that from fighting back against her captors. Aside from that, she seems perfectly fine."

Sound touches her cheek and rubs his thumb against her skin, prompting Ayane to smile and leans against his hand. After regaining enough energy to stand on his own, he notices how intently Ulric was staring at the three. Or more specifically, Ayane.

"You can just talk to her," said Percy, surprising the wolf. When all he got was silence, he continues, "I know things have been awkward between you two, but you have to give it a chance. Ayane is willing, so why not you?"

Since he can't speak in this form, all Ulric can do is narrow his eyes and turn his head away. There were things he wants to say, but Ulric knew that in doing so, he'd be unable to turn back. And he knew Ayane deserves better.

"Ugh, enough with the sappy talk." Xavier jumps onto Ulric's head, purposely annoying him, before hopping down to stand in front of them. "Let's get going. I provided us more than enough time to get away."

Percy noticed his tone and grabs the smaller boy's shoulder. "What did you do?" he accused.

Xavier shrugs. "Like I told Rei, I set these people back an age or two. As wonderful as their advancements are, I can tell it's something they're not worthy of improving just yet. Plus, I put all the blood they've collected to good use."

The next to jump on Ulric from above were Echo and the newbies, Mitchell and Stefan. Compared to Xavier, the two were far more careful when they got on top of the wolf's back. Mitchell almost missed the jump but was caught by Echo, who blankly stares at him as he thanks her. Although relieved to see they were unharmed, Percy was about to question what Xavier was talking about earlier until a bullet flies in between the two. Everyone gets a defensive position as a soldier waves over the rest of his troop.

"They're over here!" a woman shouts.

"Shit!" Xavier curses. He digs for something else in his pocket and breaks open a small brown sealed vial. "Ulric, smell this!" he said, holding up to the wolf's nostils.

Ulric was about to until he read the label on the vial. Jerking his head back, he scrunches up his face and glares at the boy.

Rolling his eyes, Xavier tells him, "I know it's Succu's, but she's the only one that's waiting for us beyond the borders of this city. Her scent is the strongest out of everyone here." He holds it up higher. "This is the least you can do for botching a simple scouting mission."

As much as it annoys him, Ulric knew he was right. Holding back another growl, he leans forward and memorizes the scent.

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"Alphonse!" Erin immediately hugs the little boy upon seeing him.

He almost bumps into another kid after his sister practically slams into him. She squeezes him a bit longer before going on knee to, annoyingly, inspect every inch of his face.

"Are you alright? Did they hurt you?" The woman even went as far as to check his teeth. "They didn't torture you, right?"

Alphonse coughs after forcing her hands away. "I'm fine, sis! I've met some good people." He glances over at Succu, who was keeping some of the younger children by allowing them to play with her dyed dark-purple hair. "She's one of those that helped us escape."

They were on a hill far from the city. It wasn't a surprise to Succu that the land was almost barren, but whenever she looked at the nearly greyed sky above them, she felt her heart drop to the pits of her stomach. The land was almost stripped of all life. Various tree stumps were scattered as far as the eye can see. The sky was far darker in comparison to the city, which had pillars of dark clouds rising past the buildings and towards the sky.

Just as she was about to stand up, she froze upon hearing the sounds of abnormally loud heavy footsteps. The ground itself soon began to quake as the source begins to approach them. She whirls around, ready to defend the group, but when she came in direct eye contact with a pair of violet eyes, she gasped.

"Xavier!" She jumps straight towards the boy just after he jumps off the wolf.

He yelps as she seemingly flies towards him and wraps her arms around him once more; this time knocking them both to the ground. Xavier groans as the others laugh. He cracks open one eye and finds his field of vision mostly covered by her dyed dark-purple locks. Rather than complain, he rolls his eyes and starts patting the back of her head.

When he caught Sound putting a hand over the bottom of mask and saw that his shoulders were shaking, Xavier glares and raises a hand to flip him off. Although he was silent, the snowy-haired boy knew when the mute of the fox twins was snickering at him. Xavier doesn't particularly hate Succu's acts of affection. It's just he dislikes it when she goes a little overboard. Once he knew they've been on the ground for long enough, Xavier taps her shoulder, signaling for her to get off.

She reluctantly does so. After Succu gets off, she extends a hand and helps Xavier to stand.

"Percy! Rei!" Erin smiles upon seeing the couple. "I'm glad you're well. I was about the fear the worst when I didn't see you arrive with my brother."

"Brother?" Rei repeats with a cocked brow. "I thought he was your son?"

The sibling scrunches up his face and stares at his sister. "Son?"

She nervously laughs. "I'm sorry. I thought that if I claimed I had lost my son, someone would be more willing to help me. I'm sorry for deceiving you in such a way."

"You don't have to explain," Rei smiles as Percy stands beside her and places an arm on her shoulder. "We're just glad to help."

As the three continued to talk, Ulric changes back to normal as soon as Sound got off and carries Ayane and Noise to lay on the floor. With the help of Echo, Mitchell and Stefan. He stretches his arms over his head after his body shifts back to normal and sheds off all of his animal furr. The previously fearful children ran over to stare at the pile of grey furr in awe as Ulric steps out of it. He doesn't dislike changing to his second nature.

It's just a bit of a hassle. He takes a long breath through his nostrils, closing his eyes as his senses slowly turn back to normal. While it's a fast transition for those in his tribe, it takes a bit longer for him since he's only a third of what they are. When he opens his eyes, he looks over his shoulder to see Sound tending to Ayane. Or at least he was trying too.

Although he was worried over his sister's condition, he was also worried about Noise. And it ate him up inside that he had to choose on who to focus on first. Seeing his dilema, Ulric turns around and kneels near Ayane's head.

"Go." He jerks his head towards Noise. "I'll watch your sister.

Sound slowly sits up straight and stares at the Ulric. That's not something he can easily agree to. It's not that he doesn't trust the wolf boy. Far from it. For some time, Sound's noticed there's been some tension between the two. He can't understand why since she's always clung to him since she recruited Ulric. Now it's like she's avoiding him like the plague.

He's never seen her like this. Whatever Ulric did, he's not sure whether he should place his twin under his care. Sound was about to reach for his spare notebook until he heard Noise groan and saw him curl to his side. Making a fist, Sound reluctantly nods than hastily walks around to check on the red-head. As soon as he does, Ulric takes his place at Ayane's side. But once he was kneeling beside her, he realized he had no clue on what to do next.

"Damn it..." he cursed under his breath. "I should have thought this through..."

Standing far from the group was Xavier, who was overlooking the not silent city. Just when they arrived, it was a bustling community, different types of hot air balloons moving about, the sound of turning cogwheels making some sort of tune as they turn. Now it was still silence. He's surprised a search city hasn't been sent out for them.

Alphonse walks over from behind and stands beside the boy. He looks at him then at the city.

"You know, I got a good look around this place before I got taken," Alphonse began. "I believe this place is what you'd call a steam-punk. I read a fictional book that described certain things I saw in this place. Minus the walking steam powered robots."

This caused Xavier to snicker as the other smiles.

"Huh. Explains why I kept seeing everything with cogwheels and that car Succu was speed racing looked like it had a furnace attached to it."

"Yeah..." the blonde sighs.

There was a moment of silence between the two, but Xavier knew why the boy had approached him. Now that they're in the clear, this is the best time to talk about it. That is until they're given the go to return to Avarus by Percy.

"Your memory's back?" Xavier asks.

"Not completely," Alphonse answered truthfully. "But now that I've cleared my head, I think I understand what you meant." He reaches up to touch the bottom of his eye. "So this really isn't my first life, is it?"

"No..." Xavier closes his eyes. "It isn't."

While it wasn't quite there, this was the best time to explain to Alphonse.

" I see..." Alphonse sadly stares up at the grey sky. "I guess that's why I was always felt uncertain about everything." He looks over at Xavier, who wore a meloncholic expression as he stares on ahead. "Was it hard for you too?"

"Not really." Xavier shrugs. "Unlike you, I recalled everything when I was born. It was weird being self aware of everything when I was still wearing diapers." He stretches then puts his arms behind his head. "But you know, it's not all bad. Although I'm called a Midget Grandpa by some of my peers, at least I have an advantage over them. My wisdom shall forever outweigh theirs."

"I can imagine." Alphonse snickers. His gaze returns to the oddly quiet city. "What will happen to them?"

"They could rebuild; start from scratch and make sure not to make the same mistakes." He frowns as Xavier provides the picture of the possible, grim future. "Or they can go the usual route. Make things worse than how I left them in. Humans will never stop in trying to gain more power than they are capable of handling. It's rare to encounter a world in a era of true peace."

They can only hope the people in charge will make the right decision. Although their only power source is submerged in water; with the knowledge of the blood they've collected had been exposed prior, only they can decide their next course of action. Sacrifice several men in trying to recover the generator, or enter a new era and create another, less high-maintanence, generator.

"Welp!" Xavier places his hands on his hips. "Once you recall everything, you can finally make a decision."

Alphonse cocks a brow. "A decision?"

"Leave your sister and join us." He digs for something in his pocket before turning to the boy. "Or you can forget." Xavier hold up two pills, one was red the other being blue.

Alphonse takes the pills as Xavier explains, "Your sister will be in constant danger if you remain by her side. Your curse only activates once your old self emerges. Once it does, it'll take a long time before you learn how to manage it, and there's a chance that by the time you learn how, it'll be too late." He suddenly adds, "No, it wasn't my idea to make them like that. The person that made it watched some sort of weirdass movie and thought it'd be funny to rip them off."

The boy stares down at the pills. They seem normal, but something about them felt omniscent. He clutches the two in his small fist.

"Why are you giving me these options?" Alphonse asks as he raises his head. "The person that told me to conceal my true eye color made it sound as if you don't give people such leisure. Why am I so special?"

"You're not," he bluntly tells him. "I'm just the only one that doesn't make it seem like we're kidnapping our recruits. Besides, you're the only one I've ever met who has a family member that's actively trying to cure your condition."

Travelers, such as Erin and Alphonse, have only two reasons why they chose to leave their original world for an extensive period of time. Either because their world is uninhabitable, or they're running from something. And it's always the latter. The fact the sister didn't question the sudden need for eye contacts spoke volumes. And the fact they're out here, a woman in her late teens and a child, was the final piece of evidence he meeded to understand their situation.

"She must have realized something was off about you," said Xavier. "I did, and it only took a few minutes of talking to figure that out. She's known you since you were born, so she was bound to pick up that something wasn't right about you."

Alphonse holds up the pills. "What will these do exactly?"

"One pill will help your mind unlock all the memories you've been unconsciously repressing. The other will wipe it. While you also have the potential, no one can recruit you. You're most likely past the preferrable age so they'll ignore you but they'll most likely go after your children. If you plan to of course."

He stares at the pills once more. He could finally have the answers he's been looking for, but that may force him to leave his sister. And she's been through enough as it is. Then there's the chance to live a normal life, or as normal as it can get if his sister finally chooses to finally settle down.

Alphonse thought long and hard about this. Once he makes the decision there's no turning back; there are no do-overs. Xavier carefully watches the boy; he wanted Alphonse to not feel pressured in making his decision. It's still a difficult one, but both are far better than the usual option.

And he wants to avoid as much as possible. No matter the choice, if this secret experiment succeds, he can convince Belial to use this tactic in, rather than using force, recruiting Cursed Bloods. The children - turned Mongrels - that hold the potential are usually orphans. They have no choice, but he can at least provide Cursed Bloods the chance to decide.

After weighing his options for what felt like an hour, Alphonse made his decision.

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Upon opening the door, Xavier watches as the rescued children step inside in an almost perfect line. Percy rejoins them after saying his farewells to the siblings.

"It seems they'll depart tomorrow," he tells them, or more specifically, Xavier.

Rei was quick to express her concerns. "I hope they'll be okay from now on..."

Sound wrote, 'They're Travelers. Worldfarers like them know how to get around far better than us.'

After the children enter, the rest of the teens followed in suite. Only Xavier remained in place, watching as the siblings slowly disappeared into the unknown. Percy stops right as Rei had entered and slightly turns to look at the seemingly younger boy.

"Was it successful?" Percy asks.

Xavier, not needing a clarification as to what he meant, answers, "Heh, wouldn't you like to know." He smirks and shakes his head.

Rather than disappointed, he was amused at the outcome. Xavier lifts his hand and opens it, revealing the two previously offered pills. Smiling for the first time since entering this world, he drops the pills and walks away. Although confused at his oddly cheerful reaction, Percy felt to keep his questions to himself. As the saying goes, there are just some things that are to be left unanswered.

While this rescue mission became far more exponential than intended, they completed their mission. Sadly, based on Ulric's report, they will have to return someday. Xavier will just have to be excluded from future missions since he had a hand in placing this world back into the dark ages.

Before Xavier enters the crystalline door, Percy stops him. "A moment of your time." He takes out Xavier's previously discarded arm-warmer from underneath his poncho. "I believe you want to remove those nasty bandages and put this back on."

Stopping in his tracks, Alphonse turns in time to see Xavier enter the door, now sporting a dark purple and black arm-warmer on his right arm. The door shuts itself behind Xavier's back before it disappears into crystalline dust. Donning the shades that was given as a farewell present by Xavier, he faces his sister and smiles.

She smiles back at him and extends a hand, which he takes. No matter what lies ahead, he won't regret his decision.