Emilia had barely managed conciseness. Her whole body felt like it had been set ablaze and not ever her toes could move. As she opened her eyes she was blinded by the shine of white light shaped like a ring that hung from the similarly colored ceiling. Slowly her eyes adjusted and she found she had been strapped down to a cold medical bed in a small room. Her eldest brother Krem sat in a silver chair to her right in a black suit. His face was infinitely stern and his hair was greased back. Noticing she was awake his attention turned away from his phone. "That took a frightfully long time," he said in place of a greeting.

"What the hell happened," Emilia managed in a raspy voice. Her throat was sandpaper and her tongue was so dry she could barely move it.

"You and Trem fucked up, or at least that's what Scarlette told me," he informed. "Seriously though, I'm impressed you're not dead, but I'm more impressed that you managed to shatter every possible bone in your body."

"Oh," she muttered, "so that's why I can't move." Krem shook his head.

"Not truthfully, Scarlette had them try something experimental on you." His gaze didn't so much as flicker but his eyes fell to convey a pity of sorts. "You can't move cause you haven't recovered from having the majority of your skeletal structure replaced with Kinuon." Emilia's eyes went wide in disbelief. "Even after you can move again there's a risk that using the power from the implants, which Scarlette will undoubtedly make you do, will be lethal or cause irreversible damage." Emila didn't even want to process this. This wasn't just some whim decision either, she knew why their mother had done this to her. It was a punishment from their mental and arguably psychopathic parent for failing even though there was no way in hell she could have won that fight.

"It wouldn't have mattered. H- the boy was a monster," she explained in a shaking voice as a tear welled up at the circumstance.

"The one you fought?" asked Krem. She nodded and spoke.

"He was just playing around while I went all out, then he just ended the fight with a single strike." She coughed a gut-wrenching cough the shot pain all over her waist.

"Was he stronger than mom?" he queried as a likely dangerous and stupid idea began to form and logged an inkling in his mind.

"I- I think maybe," Krem's expression softened. He got up and walked to the door, patting her shoulder lightly on the way out.

"I see. I'll leave you to rest, don't do anything rash yet alright?"

"Mm," she affirmed before a cough. Krem waved back and stepped out into the hospital's pale hallway. This can't fucking go on, he thought to himself. He grimaced as he walked through the reception area, filled with only a handful of older people, and pushed through the glass doors out into the warm afternoon sun.

This was a military installation to the east of the frontlines. A large silver and red building loomed ahead of Krem and he briskly made his way. The whole thing sat at the base of a grey cliff face and lacked any forms of vegetation. As far as the eye could see was mundane rock and dirt. The overuse of Kinuon had led to this, it seems that the energy released in the war had scarred and burned this landscape. Many other regions had similar stories and Krem had grown weary of it.

He approached the building, Fort Thirteen is was called. On his way to the door, he passed a duo of giant Kinuon cannons each individually capable of taking a medium town off the map with a single shot. He despised the cannons, he despised the buildings, and most of all he despised his inhuman parent.

Opening the steel doors he walked inside to an open space like a foyer. Along the left wall were a half dozen elevators each with a fake potted plant in between. Krem took a ride up one of the dingy smelling elevators to the top floor. After exiting into a cranberry color hallway he produced a key card out of his pocket and used it on the main door. It opened with a beep and entered a largely empty grey room. The entire wall opposite him was a window looking out on the barren world below. In front of it stood his blood haired mother who was looking down at a beaten Trem in a white uniform. "Wow, that is exactly what I expected," he said. She looked at him with a malicious grin. "That's the third time now since they returned, at least give him a chance to recover."

"My my is that pity?" she asked lightly.

"Well it'd be lovely if he didn't fucking die now wouldn't it?" he offered back doing his best to keep a hidden temper under control.

"But his blood is just so beautiful after he fails," she mocked a pout.

"And if he runs out? Christ! He practically already has," he half yelled. "He is a candidate for fucks sake." Scarlette's grin grew.

"Are you opposing me?"

"Oh fuck this, don't we need him?"

"Don't try to lighten your brother's mistakes, remember you aren't a candidate either," she warned in a tone of malice.

"I think that's enough as well," called a voice from the entrance. Krem turned to see the greying blond hair and gaunt face of Arthur.

"Father," Krem greeted with a slight bow. He wore a suit much like Krem's and his monocle let off the faint light of active Kinuon.

"The boy has paid enough, he is still necessary after all." Scarlette's expression sunk notably at this and she walked away from the bloodied and trembling Trem.

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Face to face with Arthur she spat, "even as the head of the family you will not stand in opposition to me."

"As I am the head of the family, you will not disregard my word," he told her. With a deranged smile, she shook her head.

"Do you honestly think someone like me would marry into this family to do anything other than control it?"

"You were married in to guarantee candidate offspring as we share identical marks."

"And do you think that that means we are even close to even footing." It seemed this was an issue that had been near boiling over for a while and Krem was the least bit surprised. With a sigh, he went to help his brother up to his feet.

"I will not stand for this," Arthur affirmed.

"Too bad, what are you going to do about it I won-?"

"Enough! This won't continue longer." Scarlette grabbed his collar in her left hand and Krem watched in horror as a crimson flame wrapped around her other hand shaping into claws like a wolf.

"You think you can say that to an Akuma? You don't even know what that is, you have not even the tiniest clue of the game the looms in front of us." She let out a soft chuckle as she plunged the red claws into his throat and knocked him to the ground. "I must admit," she said as she landed on top of him keeping her claw logged in his throat. "As detestable as you are and no matter how much I hated you, I loved your blood the most." She started passionately licking the blood off her other hand as she moved the claws around in his throat. Krem was frozen in place. His heart rate shot up in fright as he heard her begin moaning and touching herself. Spreading blood all over her uniform as her eyes rolled back in revolting pleasure. Remembering Krem's presence she looked over at him. "Want to join?" she asked. He near stormed out without a word half-carrying Trem with him.

She was more than a demon, it was not a new realization, but it was written in stone now in Krem's mind. He entered another door on the top floor leading to a large bedroom decorated with fancy yet dated furnishings. He set Trem down on the bed and pulled out his phone. After a few swipes, he contacted the on-site infirmary requesting medical assistance before crashing into a chair with a big exhale. He was shaking he realized as he held his hand up in front of himself. Closing it into a fist he slammed the wall. "Oh fuck this," he muttered. No doubt his mother would take complete control of the family, she was simply that much more powerful, none could do anything about it. He had seen this coming eventually but this was horrific and vile beyond words. "Damn it all..." Why now though? She could have assumed control long before, was it perhaps to do with that game she mentioned? Surely it was metaphorical but...

He looked over at a knock at the door. Expecting it to be someone from the hospital he opened it but was met by a short man, nearly a boy, in a trench coat. "Is Scarlette here?" he asked casually.

"Over there," he pointed to the main door. He didn't really know why he told them, much less what business they had, however, it was their funeral. "but-"

"Don't even say it," he said warned as he let out a breath. "I know what I'm walking into." Odd, thought Krem as he watched him leave. He was pretty sure he had never seen him before and had no idea what on earth he would be doing looking for Scarlette.

Thomas got to the door Krem had pointed to and put a hand to its lock mechanism. Kinuon makes this too easy, he noted as he unlocked it with his principle of reversal. A skill developed from his mark letting him reverse the energy in Kinuon and candidate marks to a certain logical extent. The locked door which for an unnecessary yet convenient reason contained Kinuon, in reversal became unlocked. The sight that met him made him fully stop for a moment. "You know maybe I should come back in a bit," he said with a blank face grabbing Scarlettes attention. She finished doing up her blood-soaked uniform as she glanced over at him. At her feet were the remains of a man completely torn to ribbons whos blood had splattered and re-colored half the floor. Thomas could tell her uniform used to be white but it was entirely covered in crimson without a single spot being missed. Above all else the smell was horrible.

"No no, I have been waiting after all," she assured.

"You know that's the most unsettling way to greet someone," he pointed out while lacking any tone.

"I have been waiting though, and how did you get in here? I hope I don't need another security team."

"No, you need a new one." Her expression fell slightly.

"Oh."

"Anyway, mind if I am blunt?"

"It's faster."

"Who the hell are you, how do you know about the game and what are you doing here?" he asked.

"That's a lot of information how about you answer the same questions first?" she offered with a grin.

"Alright that's fair enough, my name is Thomas, I've played or rather survived the last game and am now looking for this world's complex. What I actually came here to ask is if you know where it is."

"You were part of the last game?" Scarlette asked curiously while ignoring his last question. He let out an exasperated breath.

"Yes but-"

"You're not as young as you look," she interjected. "Are you an Akuma?" He shook his head.

"The game doesn't recognize me as one in my current state." She tilted her head.

"Doesn't recognize you?"

"How about I feed your curiosity if you tell me where the complex is."

"Fine," she conceded as she produced her phone out of her pocket and pulled something up with bloodied hands before tossing it to him with a sly smile. He caught it while taking out his phone and copying over a set of coordinates.

"I was an Akuma until I broke a rule, now the game doesn't officially see me as one but I still can invoke my number if I want, provided the game is in session."

"And what number would that be?"

"Seven," he answered.

"Oh, you're in the top ten? I'm not sure I believe you."

"Well I am regardless, are you one as well?"

"Twenty Three," she replied.

"And what in hell are you doing here?"

"Playing war, it gets awfully boring in the other worlds when everyone is just pretending to be friendly."

"I see, we just need something and then we'll be on our way."

"Well, that does explain things." Thomas looked back at her.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Why a Keeper came to a non-participant world." His expression turned to surprise before he shrugged.

"Wouldn't be the first time," he muttered as he turned to leave.

"One more thing before I just let you walk out," he just glanced back as he kept walking.

"Which world did you pop out from?" he didn't answer as he reached the door. "Oh, come on now, I'll say I'm from Rakai if that's what it takes."

"You wouldn't know it." He exited leaving Scarlette alone in the room as the sun neared the horizon.

"How foolish you are." She doubted he could take a fight with the Keeper and survive and so in a sort of triumphant glee she chuckled to herself. "It does seem like we are about to start the game once more." With a villainous smile and exclamation, she turned towards the window and cried, "I've missed this."

She wasn't wrong, principles were special powers held by some candidates. They were absolute to the logical extent meaning the Keeper's negation would stop Kuro's principle regardless of what it exactly was. Thomas had no idea what Kuro was going to walk into but in the end, it was necessary. They had to find something before the game began, the only chance it wouldn't go the same way as last time. The only chance it wouldn't be a slaughter, control was necessary.