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Dangerous Lunatic

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                              It was hard to remember that, despite a booming tourist destination, that people lived in New Vegas and its surrounding areas. While Team Defiance was going to enjoy the new sights, sounds, and lights that accompanied a new destination, some people saw it everyday, lived it all the time, and grew sick of it. With all its things to do a long-time resident would have, with time and money, eventually gotten to the point where even the most exciting of activities would become boring and mundane. Cue Adam Aldric, the 20-something redhead had lived in New Vegas for as long as he could remember with a mother he visited daily, and came to a point he no longer traveled with the exception of his own city and surrounding areas, affectionately referred to as 'his backyard'. He was kind, caring, affectionate, but an eternally described loner who had no friends and no prospects of a future, instead just a method to his madness. There was a time where he would go all over the world, take pictures of new places and people, sometimes the out-of-the-way areas that few people ever ventured to. He would climb mountains, dive under oceans, and with his own two feet would see more of the world in his few years of traveling than most people would see in a variety of lifetimes. But it was now a different story, he sat behind a computer screen with a law degree going to waste, the illuminated glow of the computer screen his only source of light on most nights. His eyes focused on the screen that made his irises glow until his ears heard the distinct sound of an explosion in the distance. Saving his work, he turned to look out his bedroom window on the third floor of the apartment complex, seeing the momentarily flash of light as an area exploded, known for being an abandoned DOGS outpost. Wordlessly he left his apartment and traveled on foot to the destination of the explosion, returning in short time with a passenger in his arms: Umiko.

                              He pulled a fudge popsicle out of the freezer and returned to his work, waiting for the violet-haired woman to regain consciousness, having determined she was alive and with a steady pulse. She would be fine, all he had to do was wait, and wait he did. He continued to work on the computer until he heard her stirring in her unconsciouness, turning to face her and begin talking to her. She, though, didn't seem to be very talkative after whatever had happened happened. Adam tried to come across as friendly as he could, especially to a stranger involved in an explosion of a former DOGS outpost, but perhaps he came off too strong. To alleviate that concern he went to the freezer and handed her a fudge popsicle. He made sure to come off as nonthreatening, friendly, and show no hostile movements. Everything he did was precise, calculated, social engineering was a big part of being a lawyer and he knew his way around people. But all his friendship, all his effort, it could do nothing to stop her. "T-That's not necessary." He looked at her, realizing quickly she was prepared to leave, not that he blamed her, a stranger's apartment was no place to be, especially if you were involved with an explosion. "But I-I need to go. I.. Thank you..." "Of course," he replied, somewhat saddened by her willingness to leave.

                              Umiko stood outside his apartment in the hallway connecting to the stairwell that led to more apartments and down to a lobby. Adam slowly, and carefully, opened the door to his apartment as Umiko started walking down the hall towards the staircase that could lead her to the lobby. The way she walked, carried herself, the shuffling of her feet, all conscious and unconscious movements in the way she was told him she held a deep sadness, something powerful and crippling. He wondered what it was, what had happened, then suddenly called out to her, "you look like the kind of person who needs help. You don't know me, but frankly I don't know you either, we're starting off on equal footing, and I don't necessarily like the idea of letting you go when you look to be in such distress but, if you leave...I...can't...follow you." He said it in such a way that hardly seemed natural, "whatever is troubling you, whatever problems you have, maybe I can help. I know it's unusual for some stranger to care but...it's who I am, what I used to do. I help people, not always the right people but...the fudge pop is still yours if you'd like it, my door is unlocked if you decide to stick around." Adam unlocked the front door and closed it behind him as he went back inside, taking a seat on the couch and turning the television on, tuning to a station playing some cartoon about a yellow sponge. He sat there in the living room, the moonlight and neon lights of New Vegas nearby shining in the distance. The suburbs of New Vegas was littered with apartments and homes, but they were not far enough to escape the bright glow of the tourist destination and town of debauchery.

                              There was something strange about Adam, a lingering sadness that followed him around like the plague and stuck to him. Whoever he was, whatever he did now, he was in no better shape than Umiko in her depression over the loss of Kaito. Adam's entire life was no longer his own to live, everything he did dictated and controlled by another. It had to have been clear to Umiko that, in his words, was hidden a message crying out in despair for some sort of help. After all, who else but someone in need would make it abundantly clear they would be unable to follow? Adam sat on that couch watching the yellow sponge and pink starfish laughing and playing, he cracked a smile and slouched in his seat, glancing to the front door every now and then and wondering if maybe, perhaps just maybe, the girl had decided to give him some company. He was terribly lonely. But one minute after the other passed, maybe five. Maybe fifteen. He didn't keep track of time, he just knew the yellow sponge was grilling burgers and stopping a green plankton from stealing a secret formula and he, heavily, sighed to himself. "I suppose she's not coming back." He stood up from the couch and entered the bedroom to grab the fudge pop he'd pulled out for the girl, walking back to the couch to sit down, pulling it out of the wrapper as he looked back, one last time, to the door in anticipation and hope that maybe she'd just been debating with herself to talk with him. He put the fudge pop in his mouth, eating his second one of the night, and continued watching the cartoon.

                              While Umiko and Adam were in the suburbs further away from the glamor and the fashion of New Vegas' neon lights, Team Defiance were talking amongst themselves trying to figure out what to do, with Daxter as their tour guide. In the back of Noah's mind, as Daxter kept talking about everything they could possibly do, one question remained that he dared not to ask: what did Daxter do to get banned from the city? Or, perhaps, was that just an exaggeration or even a joke. Noah didn't ask, he wouldn't risk getting a terrible answer he would be better off letting curiosity kill him for than get the truth of, letting Daxter ramble on about everything there was to do, only tuning back into reality when Noah realized that he'd bought tickets to each day's event with his credit card. He would need to start carrying cash if he wanted Daxter to stop spending his money, and even then he would need to be willing for all the cash he carried to be stolen. "He's onto us," Ember interjected as Daxter admitted that if Noah was against making a profit, then Daxter would make a profit without him aware of it. "Hilarious, all of you." He said, as the back-and-forth between friends led to Takashi speaking up about being okay with a casino, and a valid reason why. Even Noah could be okay with a little fun gambling. Takashi certainly needed something to keep his mind of Lynette, and the rest of them could use a break away from the thought of Vance. "I totally approve at the idea of the Phoenix Casino. Sounds like a lot of fun. But first... we gotta unpack." The idea of unpacking Daxter's stuff for him irked Ember, enough to take his suitcase and throw it into Noah and Nill's room. Now Noah and Daxter's room, while Ember and Daxter's room was now Ember and Nill's room.

                              "B-Big sister time?" Nill had asked as Ember told her to pack her stuff and Noah, irritated by this sudden change, just sighed in annoyance as he waved an arm towards Daxter's stuff scattered on the bed they apparently would be sharing. "Clean up your mess." Daxter looked over to Ember as she started walking away, "baby!? C'mon what's this?! E-Ember! You'll miss me tonight! I know it!" Nill and Ember shut the door behind them. "D-Don't come crawling into bed with Noah and I while we're bro-snuggling to keep warm. You know, cause of your icy heart!" Noah turned and walked into the bedroom, "if you snuggle with me you'll wake up without hands." Noah was clearly irritated by this change of events, not finding this vacation very enjoyable if he had to share a bed with Daxter. Regardless of this amendment in plans, Noah went to take a shower and change into something nice for the casino where people like Noah's parents would be likely to gamble at. When his shower was complete, Noah would change out of the dress shirt he wore at the recording studio earlier today while Daxter gathered up his stuff Ember had scattered back into his suitcase, finding some nice clothes like Noah and changing into them as Noah left the shower. Takashi, meanwhile, went back into his room by himself thankful he wasn't dealing with this problem with a significant other of his own.

                              The five members of the team got their stuff together and met up on the sidewalk in front of the hotel they were staying at, Noah had chilled out with Ember and Nill's arrangement, and despite Ember unhappily kicking Daxter out of their room, they weren't exactly mad at one another. They let it go, or at least made it seem that way, and Daxter hung on Ember like usual, the quintet hailing a couple of taxis to take them to the Rising Phoenix Casino. Once the taxis made a stop and Noah paid the fare, with Takashi taking care of the fare of the other taxi, much to Noah's surprise and enjoyment of - finding someone else taking care of outstanding debts being much better than someone making outstanding debts, the group would be finally standing in front of the casino. It was enormous with huge glittering lights around the building, two big spotlights shining skyward and a golden phoenix statue sticking out of the building with wings expanded. The sidewalk was lined with people waiting to get in, red velvet ropes forming the lines in both directions of the sidewalk and front gate employees keeping the line moving. "We're too good for this line, follow me." Noah grabbed Daxter by the collar of his black button-up dress shirt, "no. You're not going to cause a scene." He said simply, Daxter twisting out of his grasp and grinning, approaching the gate employee and handing her a few bills of cash, "I believe you'll find us too important to wait." The employee pocketed the cash and waved the group in, Noah patting down his pockets as he followed Daxter inside.

                              "Brilliant plan. That was before I realized you stole the cash from my pockets." Noah was patient, but he could only take so much of Daxter before he annoyed him beyond reason. Daxter handed Noah a wad of cash, grinning from ear-to-ear, "oh, I'm sorry, you mean the paltry two-fifty you carried?" Daxter handed Noah 250 dollars in cash and pocketed the rest of the wad. "You used a cash advance on my credit card, didn't you?" Daxter, still grinning, pulled the wad of cash out and waved it in Noah's face, "not this time, buckaroo. Oh no, this is all mine." Noah blinked in disbelief, cocking his head a little, "you can't call it yours if you stole it." Daxter was still grinning like the Cheshire cat. "Nope, mine, earned it." Noah snatched the cash out of his hand and counted it, "Dax this is thirteen-thousand dollars," he said in a sudden whisper, but dangerously close to saying so loudly in surprise. "Uh, duh, I counted it." Behind gritted teeth to prevent himself from yelling, Noah still expressed surprise, "how did you get thirteen-thousand dollars?! We've been in Vegas for less than an hour, and I was in the shower for maybe twenty minutes!"

                              Daxter took back the stack of hundred dollar bills and put it in his jacket pocket, looking over to Ember with a smirk, then back to Noah, "what? You think I'm completely broke?" Noah suddenly nodded, this time not holding back, "yes! You got a job in Gradia working at an electronics store!" Daxter's grin faded, then suddenly he let out a faint chuckle, "months passed after the s**t in Gradia, Noah. I did a lot of things. I made a lot of money. I've just been mooching off you because it's fun to see your reaction when I steal your credit card. Everything important I used my money for, like Ember's necklace. I always carry a little of my money on me." Noah groaned, then shook his head, "how much do you have?" He asked curiously, to which Daxter grinned again, "why? So we can get married and you take half my assets? Hah, good luck." "You've had this money...all this time...and never told anyone?" "It's blood money. I didn't think Mister Moral High Ground would want to know, and I certainly didn't want Ember to know about it." "Fine. Whatever. We're here to enjoy a night at the casino. Dax...we're going to have a talk about this money of yours." "Sure thing, dad."

                              "Well this is fun and all but I'm going to gamble." Takashi took off for the front desk to convert his cash into casino chips, then went to the gambling tables, "hey hold on! I'm coming with you! Taka!" Daxter took off after him leaving Noah with Ember and Nill. Scratching his temple, Noah split the money he carried on him with the girls, then laughed, "looks like I'll just mooch off of Daxter for once. Get this turned into chips at the front desk and I'll go make sure Daxter doesn't hurt someone, Ember, Nill, you two enjoy yourself, we'll meet up shortly I'm sure. And we'll...ah...all talk to Daxter about his secrets later. Let's just all enjoy ourselves for the night, hm? See you girls later, take care of my fiance, Ember." Noah kissed Nill on the cheek, smiling to her and Ember, then walked off after Takashi and Daxter, seemingly splitting the group up into men and women. This would give them all a chance to enjoy the sights and sounds of the casino.

                              The interior of the casino was huge, employees were walking from table to table offering drinks to anyone who wanted one, the enormous floor filled with tables of various games, and rows of slots were near the corner in the back. Blackjack, roulette, poker, Texas hold em, slot machines, and more. There were private games in the back rooms, a large bar, scantily clad women offering various foods and drinks to the men and handsome men offering the same thing to the women. It was a busy casino with people yelling and shouting, some in anger of losing and some in happiness of winning. There was always something entertaining happening, dancers in cages hanging from the ceiling to set up the atmosphere, large decorative banners and gold plated table edges to give every inch of the place an appearance of being for the wealthy.

                              After a few rounds of gambling, Takashi and Daxter met at the bar where he ordered them a few drinks while Noah continued working on blackjack. "Operation Blackout is a go." He smirked, looking to Takashi then scanning across the faces of the crowd to see if he could spot Ember or Nill. "I...am not helping you trick anyone into getting drunk." "What if I said I knew of an awesome strip club we could go to if you help me?" "I would say," he took a drink of his beverage, "no." Daxter smirked and spotted Ember and Nill in the distance, ordering drinks from the bartender, "can you have them delivered to," he paused, "table 38? Blond and redhead at the table, from an admirer." The bartender made the drinks and had a waitress deliver them to the table. Daxter paid for five rounds for the two of them, but he knew while Ember couldn't get drunk that Nill could, and that alone would be worth seeing. "Kesuk-san," "dude, I get the honorifics are big in Japan but this is America. Here we say their name. Plus, if you call me "McLain-san" I will destroy you." Takashi shuddered slightly, "I mean...Noah...is going to kill you." Takashi took another drink, "and Ember. I think they might team up to do it too." "Yeah she's kinda pissy after I assumed she'd unpack for me. Going to a strip club is not a good idea but...goddamn it it's guy's night out! Now. I'm now declaring guy's night out!"

                              Daxter and Takashi finished their drinks and went to find Noah, informing him of their (Daxter's) idea of a guy's night out. "I'm not so sure I want to hang out with you, Dax. Takashi, I would be honored to share a guy's night out with you, however." Daxter looked somewhat hurt, then Noah sighed, "alright, fine. Just...tell the girls we'll be leaving and we'll have our cell phones on us if they need anything. Takashi and I will meet you outside." Daxter ran off to where the girls were last spotted. "How much money did he lose?" "When he cashed in he was up three grand." Noah exhaled sharply in a single chuckle, "you know, behind the lunatic hides a mighty fine intellect. He's incredibly observant, quick-witted, reflexes are off the charts and this is all without his powers. If he could just focus then he would be the most dangerous man alive." "Maybe he knows that and doesn't want to be? Or the behavior is to add unpredictability?" "Perhaps. It's hard to say, he is unpredictable. Whatever the reason, act or no act, I'm just glad he's on our side. Come, Takashi, let's wait for him outside."

                              Daxter approached the girls, putting his arm around them as he stepped between them, looking back-and-forth between them, "Noah, Takashi, and I have decided to extend the guy time and are gonna leave the casino. If you need some testosterone in your life we'll have our cell phones on us. Here," Daxter stepped back and pulled out a few hundred dollars he handed to Ember, "for the gambling, drinking, general debauchery. Enjoy the 'big sister time' and call if you need us. Love ya, babe." Daxter quickly gave Ember a kiss on the cheek and walked off to meet the guys as they left the casino to explore Vegas.

                              "I know this great club, it's a lot of fun." Daxter said as the three men were walking along the sidewalk, Daxter taking the lead and crossing a parking lot to a club with loud music, flashing lights, and a large population of men. Noah, once inside, slowly turned his head to Daxter and almost let out a soft scowl drowned out by the music until he came out and said: "this is a strip club." "Told ya it'll be a lot of fun." Laughing to himself, Daxter darted off to enjoy the strip club vibe of the place he'd picked out. Noah wasn't so pleased, considering he wasn't into the idea of other women to begin with, and knowing Nill she would be freaked to find him looking at other women, her insecurities coming into play despite the ring on her finger symbolizing their eventual marriage. Takashi, however, was more than into the idea of watching hot half-naked women dance for them. "I like you a little bit more as each minute passes, Taka. Let's get you a lap dance." The night was young, and had only just begun.

BIoodbane's Fav

Ruthless Firestarter

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                      "You look like the kind of person who needs help." Umiko stood on weak legs with her back turned to him, her violet gaze looking outside as she watched the gray clouds swirl in the sky. "You don't know me, but frankly I don't know you either, we're starting off on equal footing, and I don't necessarily like the idea of letting you go when you look to be in such distress but, if you leave...I...can't...follow you." She twitched her right eye, then placing a hand over it as she felt his choice of words were Strange... Why would he say it like that...? She felt the words of 'can't follow' remind her of who she couldn't follow, knowing all to well it was not her choice to make. Was he in a similar predicament? It was a hasty conclusion that was dismissed as he continued, "whatever is troubling you, whatever problems you have, maybe I can help. I know it's unusual for some stranger to care but...it's who I am, what I used to do. I help people, not always the right people but...the fudge pop is still yours if you'd like it, my door is unlocked if you decide to stick around." Adam unlocked the front door and closed it behind him as he went back inside. Umiko sat down on the top step of the stairwell, accompanied by her own silence as she pondered her thoughts. Kaito... she beckoned to the breaker of her heart, or what was still left of it, What do I do? Where do I go? She felt the tears build up in her eyes as she rested her forehead on her knees. Without you here, I know I'm just dependent. I don't want to go anywhere... I don't want to smile or even move forward... because I just want to be with you. And I can't accept that I don't have that. A sharp inhale, a sob striking her throat in the bitter silence as the noise of TV and wind drowned out her sadness.

                      What do I do... if I can't move forward. Maybe... Maybe I can just try to fill the void with friends. Just something. Umiko cried only for a little while on her feelings towards Kaito and the thoughts of being left behind. She wasn't going to cast a spell on herself like the darker corners of her mind suggested. She could fool herself into feeling nothing and could literally get rid of all her feelings, but what would the ocean be without it's waves? Umiko knew better than to do something so treacherous to her own emotions, and if she was going to be consumed by sadness, the best way to be brought down in her mind was knowing that she would have embraced that sadness with all the strength she could possibly conjure in every fiber of her being. If Kaito was going to leave her in a desolate wasteland, not knowing she would just be living out of the turmoil of losing him, then she would do it with some purpose. If only... to remember that she did have love at some point. She turned for Adam's door, wiping her eyes and quietly walking over to the front of it. She rested her forehead against it, not making noise but just to rethink whether or not she should even go back into the stranger's home. She was broken, and falling apart inside. It was hard to assume whether or not she could once again be distracted by other thoughts and feelings. Half of my soul was ripped out today... In terms of the Chroma energy I harbor as leftovers from Mizu. I'm already in a lot of pain, she thought quietly to herself as she placed her right hand flat against his door. How can I trust somebody to not hurt me or damage me any further? What will Adam do? Will we become friends? Develop trust? Harbor pain and try to soothe it all with comfort? She could only guess and guess again, but eventually she did slip back inside his apartment, deciding it would be best to be inside somewhere.

                      She felt out of place with everything in his home, everything in his apartment, and him included. Even had he saved her from being found or consumed outside of that DOGS outpost, she wasn't sure what to do in terms of thanking him or anything. She looked at him, and then back to the floor after hearing the noise of the TV laughing and giggling. "I have a question." She lowered her eyes to the ground, no longer crying, but the red on her cheeks and below her eyes signalling the very possibility. She took a small breath before continuing, "How... How do you go on after you feel like everything has been taken from you?" She slid from leaning onto the door and curling up on the floor, her hands on the carpet. "I can still think, do, say, and feel... but... I just feel like everything that made me happy is gone. All that's left is to find new happiness, but I can't bring myself to look at it like that anymore." The truth was, inside of Umiko's turmoiled heart, she was layered with the crippling feelings of Mizu's many lifetimes all bringing up tragic results. Mizu's struggles to find a love compatible with her was never found, and eventually tore the young witch to her first vessel in hopes that instead of being reborn or reincarnated by God, she could find that love as who she was. That somebody in this lifetime could love her for who she was and wouldn't have to change or undergo any transformation. The eternal sadness buried itself below Umiko's pains, making the void expand in her heart and fill her with what seemed to be an eternal hole in her heart.

                      Meanwhile, Ember had sent a clear message to Daxter that she was not amused by his unpacking comment, resulting in her throwing his bag into Noah's room and inviting Nill to stay with her. On one hand, she wasn't all that mad at Daxter. She didn't like being indirectly told what to do, and with all the authority she had been giving into everywhere, she decided to finally step up and take a stand - her own stand - on what she wanted or how she felt. Even if it was something small and trivial. On the other hand she would be spending time with Nill. She could tell that Noah was not amused, hearing him sigh in annoyance and turn to Daxter, "Clean up your mess." Nill was so overwhelmed by the possibility of spending girl time with Ember, she paid little attention to the trio as she gathered her things and happily skipped across the halls. Daxter looked over to Ember as she started walking away, "baby!? C'mon what's this?! E-Ember! You'll miss me tonight! I know it!" Ember looked back, giving a playful wink and shutting the door. "D-Don't come crawling into bed with Noah and I while we're bro-snuggling to keep warm. You know, cause of your icy heart!" Noah turned and walked into the bedroom, "if you snuggle with me you'll wake up without hands." Ember could hear them from behind the door and chuckled softly, looking at Nill and then smiling. "I'm going to take a shower, Nill." Nill nodded, then finding the outfit she wanted to wear to the casino and getting herself ready. She slipped on a the dress from the time that Defiance and Vance's team were to assassinate a DOGS Corps member at a special gathering. Ember, after taking her shower, also straightened her hair and wore her own outfit. She glanced at Nill, the nervous angel glancing at Ember's striking appearance. "You ready?" Ember asked with a grin.

                      On the way there, Ember kept her cool and let go of any aggression towards Daxter, but not wavering in her change of plans. She was sure she wouldn't get an apology or anything, but he was unpredictable. It was clear that the two were fine, since she made sure to hold his hand on the ride there. She crossed her legs, taking a quick glance out of the corner of her eye on the way there to spot Nill happily tending to fixing Noah's tie. The ring on her finger shined, Ember then quickly averting her gaze to the window she sat by and looking into her own reflected eyes, and later spotting the casino. Ember stepped out, then looking at the enormous building and glancing at the line. She could use invisibility, grab the group and just sneak in, but Daxter stepped forward, "We're too good for this line, follow me." Noah grabbed Daxter by the collar of his black button-up dress shirt, "no. You're not going to cause a scene." He said simply, Daxter twisting out of his grasp and grinning, approaching the gate employee and handing her a few bills of cash, "I believe you'll find us too important to wait." Ember glanced at Noah, crossing her arms and keeping quiet as Noah patted himself down and then gave a look to Daxter, frustration on his expression. Nill looked at Noah, and then at Daxter, frowning that Daxter was always so grabby with Noah's money. "Brilliant plan. That was before I realized you stole the cash from my pockets." "Oh, I'm sorry, you mean the paltry two-fifty you carried?" Daxter handed Noah 250 dollars in cash and pocketed the rest of the wad. "You used a cash advance on my credit card, didn't you?" Daxter, still grinning, pulled the wad of cash out and waved it in Noah's face, "not this time, buckaroo. Oh no, this is all mine."

                      Ember also rose a brow, giving an impressed 'hmph' sound, but not being too surprised. Noah seemed surprised, as did Nill, "you can't call it yours if you stole it." Daxter was still grinning like the Cheshire cat. "Nope, mine, earned it." Noah snatched the cash out of his hand and counted it, "Dax this is thirteen-thousand dollars," he said in a sudden whisper, but dangerously close to saying so loudly in surprise. Ember widened her eyes, Why is he carrying that much? "Uh, duh, I counted it." Behind gritted teeth to prevent himself from yelling, Noah still expressed surprise, "how did you get thirteen-thousand dollars?! We've been in Vegas for less than an hour, and I was in the shower for maybe twenty minutes!" Daxter took back the stack of hundred dollar bills and put it in his jacket pocket, looking over to Ember with a smirk, then back to Noah, "what? You think I'm completely broke?" Noah suddenly nodded, this time not holding back, "yes! You got a job in Gradia working at an electronics store!" Daxter's grin faded, then suddenly he let out a faint chuckle, "months passed after the s**t in Gradia, Noah. I did a lot of things. I made a lot of money. I've just been mooching off you because it's fun to see your reaction when I steal your credit card. Everything important I used my money for, like Ember's necklace. I always carry a little of my money on me." Ember was mildly surprised at all of this, and finding out that Daxter had a secret account that not even she knew about. His tone changed after the grinning cheshire expression faded away, and it was easy to see that this money was fought for in more ways than one. She even felt a small shade of red start to come from her cheeks, as he mentioned the necklace as something important he would have to buy it with his own money.

                      Noah groaned, then shook his head, "how much do you have?" He asked curiously, to which Daxter grinned again, "why? So we can get married and you take half my assets? Hah, good luck." Nill piping into the conversation with a small oooh sound and looking at Ember, to which she responded with a blank stare and a small turn of the eyes. "Well... they'll get to practice snuggling for the next few nights, who knows what could happen," she winked at Nill, who looked to Noah suddenly with pink all over her cheeks. That got her off my back rather quickly. As long as it includes Noah she'll drop anything, Ember chuckled to herself. "You've had this money...all this time...and never told anyone?" "It's blood money. I didn't think Mister Moral High Ground would want to know, and I certainly didn't want Ember to know about it." Fun... "Fine. Whatever. We're here to enjoy a night at the casino. Dax...we're going to have a talk about this money of yours." "Sure thing, dad." "Well this is fun and all but I'm going to gamble." Takashi took off for the front desk to convert his cash into casino chips, then went to the gambling tables, "hey hold on! I'm coming with you! Taka!" Daxter took off after him leaving Noah with Ember and Nill. Ember rolled her eyes, feeling a little weird after hearing that he had a money stash he didn't want her to know about. In truth, it hurt a little to see him fessing up to Noah about it, but she decided it wasn't worth getting upset over. In fact, nothing was. Not now. I need a drink more than ever right now.

                      Scratching his temple, Noah split the money he carried on him with the girls, then laughed, "looks like I'll just mooch off of Daxter for once. Get this turned into chips at the front desk and I'll go make sure Daxter doesn't hurt someone, Ember, Nill, you two enjoy yourself, we'll meet up shortly I'm sure. And we'll...ah...all talk to Daxter about his secrets later. Let's just all enjoy ourselves for the night, hm? See you girls later, take care of my fiance, Ember." Noah kissed Nill on the cheek, smiling to her and Ember, then walked off after Takashi and Daxter. "Thank god," Ember said as she pocketed the money, Nill holding her cheek from the kiss that Noah had given her as Ember carefully glanced in her direction. "You okay, Nill? You look like you'll pass out." Nill shook her head. "N-No. I'm fine. I just get butterflies every time he does that..." Ember rose a brow, curiously and smiled, "You really are crazy about him, aren't you?" Nill nodded shyly, "It's no different about you and Daxter. Am I right?" Ember gulped, hesitating for a second and then giving a half smile, "Well of course I love him. We shouldn't stand here talking about this sort of thing, so let's go find a seat somewhere. What do you want to play?" Nill noticed the subject change, but looked around and pointed to the slot machines. Ember changed a small portion of the cash into tokens, seeing how she wasn't going to gamble tonight, and would just encourage Nill to do it. The two ladies walked over by the machine, Ember taking a wine glass from a passing tray and looked at Nill, hunching over her as she slid some coins in. "Just pull the lever. This is the easiest way to gamble," she smiled softly. Nill nodded, studying the machine carefully and then having her wings shudder slightly as her reaction to the many noises and clicking that erupted from the machine. Ember watched as Nill made a perfect score on her first try, the jaw-dropping incident of "Holy hell," all 7's. "I-I... Is that good?" Ember looked down at Nill, then back at the machine. "I thought it was a sin to gamble or to indulge in it... Hold on, here. Do it again." Nill nodded, putting in more tokens than before and pulled the lever. And all 7's again. Nill saw the river of coins coming from the machine, Ember being handed a bag by one of the attendants and looking at Nill who smiled and showed a handful to her.

                      Ember noticed they were drawing a crowd as Nill picked up all her winning coins, having them all converted to cash and later on joining Ember at a table. "Okay. That was insane. How did you do that?" Ember looked at Nill, raising a curious brow. "Do what?" Nill asked shyly, knowing what Ember was talking about as she innocently would drink her water. "That. The 7's. The machine. You only had to play twice and you won the highest mark. You took what we spent and made six grand..." Nill brushed her cheek shyly with her finger, "I-I don't know. Maybe it's a little luck?" Ember grabbed Nill around the shoulders, leaning to get closer, "Give me some." Nill laughed, then calming down once Ember went back to her drink. "I'm actually saving up for something... So I'm glad I got so lucky." Ember smiled, not questioning what it was. She would find out some other time. After a few minutes of pondering on her thoughts, Nill put all her cards on the table and looked to Ember, "Is something wrong with you and Daxter?!" She wasn't too loud, but loud enough that Ember did a spit-take and coughed. "W-What?" she asked Nill with a skeptical expression. "E-Earlier I asked if you were just as crazy about Daxter as I am about Noah, and you said you love him but you acted strange. Are you okay?" Nill shyly questioned. Ember's expression went from a look of surprise to one filled with relaxation. "Nill, I am crazy about Daxter. More than I show or admit. It's just... He's got some secrets. We all do. Maybe I shouldn't be so worried about them... and just do what I have been doing." "Oh Ember..." Nill spoke sadly in response, but then having a gasp escape her lips. "Oh! I know a secret of his!" Ember gave a disappointed stare, "He told you one?" Nill blushed, waving her hands, "D-Don't be upset! Trust me, you'll love this one." Ember sighed, crossing her arms on the table and running her fingers over her forehead and through her bangs, "Okay... what is it?"

                      "He wants to marry you." Ember gave a blank stare at Nill, Nill being smiley and fidgety more than ever. Ember sipped her drink, Nill panicking and responding, "Y-You don't believe me?!" Ember sighed into her drink, then chuckling and looking at Nill, "You take things too seriously. He's joking when he says those things. Ember McLain and all of that..." "But I can see it! He actually wants to! You got to believe me, Ember!" Nill said as she tightened her fists and gave Ember a strong look of determination. Ember looked back over at her and exhaled, "You really think so?" Nill nodding with excitement. "Well... only time will tell. Speaking of people getting married, congratulations on your engagement Nill. I wish I could have been there to see just how he pulled it off," Ember smirked, acting almost as if Nill was a prize that was hard to obtain. Nill blushed brightly and spoke, "I met his parents, and we went to a nice restaurant after his sister's fashion show. It was very lovely." Ember gave a polite smile, twirling her straw in her now empty drink, "Nice. Well, I'm happy you're happy." Nill looked at Ember and whined, "And you will be tooo~" Ember feeling the love and sympathy from the angel, but trying to stray away from the subject. She wasn't mad at Daxter about the unpacking by now, and she missed him. I just wonder how many secrets he has... and then I'm just not sure what to do about them. Pretending they don't exist is easier than giving them any acknowledgement I suppose. Not too long after the girl were talking about their relationships, a waiter brought over some drinks, saying they were from an admirer. Nill imagined her only admirer being Noah, Ember looking down and asking the waiter, "What are they--" but before she could finish her question she saved Noah, Daxter and Takashi in the background. She looked at Nill, Nill waving her hand and saying, "It's from Daxter and Noah. Even Takashi put some love in there, we can't waste them."

                      Ember narrowed her eyes, but it was too late. As soon as the angel lips met with the devil's nectar, a pink glow emitted from her person as a whole. Her first sip and she blinked in surprise, smiling and indulging more in her drink. She smiled at Ember, who grabbed her drink and spoke, "This is alcohol. Nill you're drinking a mix--" "I-It tastes like cherriiiieeeees~" Ember gave an exhausted sigh. [******** me. She observed Nill carefully, seeing that she was able to hold a conversation relatively well. Was the blushing because she believed the drink was from Noah? She did always stutter... but it became evident that after the second or third glass the tables were starting to turn. Nill did eventually scoot closer to Ember and nuzzle into her shoulder, flapping her wings and hiccuping, "I --*hiccup* I-I love you Ember." Ember chuckled nervously, then seeing Daxter on the approach. He put his arm around them as he stepped between them, looking back-and-forth between them, "Noah, Takashi," "Nill!" she exclaimed and added herself to the list, "and I have decided to extend the guy time and are gonna leave the casino. If you need some testosterone in your life we'll have our cell phones on us. Here," Daxter stepped back and pulled out a few hundred dollars he handed to Ember, "for the gambling, drinking, general debauchery. Enjoy the 'big sister time' and call if you need us. Love ya, babe." Daxter quickly gave Ember a kiss on the cheek and walked off. Ember took the few hundred dollars and looked back over to Nill, who grabbed one of the bills and looked at it carefully. She chuckled, Ember raising a curious brow at what could have been funny. "Th-The..." Nill stammered, Ember leaning in to hear her better, "T-The color of a d-dollar is a booger." Ember gave another sigh, knowing this night was going to be a long one and rolled her neck, "You're a booger." Nill seemed upset, then building tears quickly in her eyes, "A-Are you gonna pick on me?! E-Ember..."

                      I'm going to have to plan out my revenge on whoever did this. Takashi first. I'll make him sing like he's never sang before. Next will be Daxter. After all, a little teasing and testing will get me some answers. I can't imagine Batman wanting this... after all this is Nill -- she turned to look at the girl on her thoughts, but saw the angel heading out the door. "H-Hey, Nill! Where are you going?!" She ran after the fleeing angel down a few streets and across a parking lot. Nill had lost track of Ember, but was also getting lost herself as she wondered to the front of a building that flashed colorful lights and played loud music. A man came up to her, Ember seeing from the distance as she was coming closer and seeing the man place an arm around the angel, leading her inside. "Oh hell no you son of a b***h." Ember narrowed her eyes angrily as Nill was being escorted inside. "W-What is this place? It's so loud!" "This is a fine club where people come to have fun and appreciate real beauty in the world." "Tha-That sounds *hiccup* wonderful." He leaned in closer, holding her more tightly as she started to feel uncomfortable. "Say, that a promise ring? Looks like a litt-" SMACK and the man crashed onto a table next to a few men. With the music still booming loud, Ember hadn't caused a noticeable scene. She quickly turned to Nill and grabbed her shoulders, "Please... Nill..." she caught her breath, "Don't run from me." Nill widened her eyes curiously and then smiled, "I-I'm sorry~ I love you even if you pick on m-me." Ember smacked herself mentally, but the two were approached by yet another man. Ember turned her narrowed gaze at the man, who wasn't coming onto them immediately, but she held the angel's shoulders tightly and spit, "What do you want?" The man laughing slightly and peering down at the angel, "My my. A pair of beautiful creatures just walked into my business, and I can't help but wonder why?" Nill noticed him coming closer and smiled shyly, stepping back and giggling, "W-We are travelling on vacation! Ember is going t-to get married to a yellow mouse." Ember looked livid for a short second, knowing Nill was referring to Daxter in his pikachu hoodie and laughed, "She has NO idea what she's talking about. Nill, darling, we need to g--" "Whoa whoa whoa! Hold on ladies. Can I interest you with a quick way to earn a ton of cash?"

                      Nill seemed definitely interested in the making money concept as she wiggled her way out of Ember's grasp and asked, "How?!" Ember lifted a hand, "W-Wait," but knew that no matter what she said... she wasn't going to get through. The man looked over at Ember reassuring her, "Nothing will happen. I promise! I just need a performer, and she's perfect. Such an epitome of beauty unlike anyone here has ever seen, and you could keep an eye on her and serve drinks. I'll make it worth the while, and you'll be making hundreds in just a few hours." Ember groaned, looking at Nill who nodded and then found herself being escorted to the back. Ember watched as the man approached her, "If anything happens to her I won't hesitate to burn your business down to ashes, along with your pride, hopes and dreams--" "Relax, Ember is it? She's gonna be fine! My girls will help her out. All you need to do is serve some drinks, and if you feel up to making tips," "Yeah I got it." Ember rolled her eyes and looked at the stage, making her way over to another entrance and taking a couple orders of drinks. As she passed out some drinks, she noticed a man whistling her way, winking at her and pawing playfully at her short shorts. "Hey, girl on fire, I wanna play," he said in reference to her outfit and waved a few twenties in between his fingers. Ember looked at him, eyeing him carefully and then coming close, swiping the money from his hand first and grinning slightly. "You wanna play? What kind of way?" The man moved his hands in an hourglass figure, stopping the gesture to the hips and moving them side to side as he said, "How about a lap dance? Show me how you can move those hips." Ember snickered, leaning and grabbing the back of his chair close behind his head. "I'm pretty flexible, I don't think you can handle it." The man blushed slightly, Ember not noticing that her tie was loose and part of her cleavage was showing. He grinned, "I think I can." Ember smiled, taking her right heel and putting it behind one of the legs on his chair and kicking back, his elbow hitting the table and knocking his drink on him as he fell backwards.

                      The frazzled man looked up, confused at her, "I don't dance. And I'm certainly not dancing for a man who thinks it'll value at sixty dollars." she took the bills and burned them with her red flames, dropping them in ashes on his figure and making her way through the crowd. "I like you a little bit more as each minute passes, Taka. Let's get you a lap dance." Ember heard a familiar voice just ahead of her, widening her eyes in surprise. She strolled forward, stepping in front of Takashi and glancing over at Noah and Daxter, mostly Daxter with a sour look on her face, and then looking at Takashi. "A lap dance for Taka, huh? Is it on you then if I do it?" Ember looked to Daxter. She wasn't too happy to find him in a strip club... and it wasn't like she was here to enjoy herself with all the man that were hounding after any girl that pleased the eye. From eyes around, looking down at Takashi, she decided that since Daxter was set on finding Takashi a lap dance, she would do the honors herself. She set down the tray that held drinks and came closer to Takashi, looking at him and reaching for his tie and tugging it to loosen it slightly. She let go of his tie, undoing her own and throwing it casually to the floor as she did a graceful and slow spin around, showing off the twists and curves of her body in one fell swoop. "You don't mind..." Ember said as she kicked his chair legs over to face her directly and put her hands on his knees, "....right?" Whether or not Takashi would hesitate, Ember looked at him as she spread his legs apart.

                      She moved over to Takashi's left ear, letting out a spine-tingling warm breath of air before quietly whispering, ".. grab the chair's arms and don't let go..." She husked slightly, then brushing herself against his chest before pulling back and making a small humming sound. She began to sway her hips, sliding them against Takashi and between his legs as she whipped her hair and danced to the music, almost entirely lost in it. She dipped down low to the floor, her front facing Takashi as she then slowly swayed back up, snaking her hips with the tone of the music while her hands dragged up his legs. Her creamy looking skin shined with a bit of sweat, having heated her body for the effect of making this as appealing to the eyes as possible. She finally turned back to Takashi, putting his legs together and then sitting on his lap. She went ahead and lightly grinded against him, not so much as to push it but enough that surely Takashi was either melting or having tormenting thoughts. Ember licked her lips, biting her bottom one gently as she leaned backwards, moving her shoulders side to side and then taking her right hand, placing it in between the buttons of her cleavage and tugging to undo them one at a time, revealing part of her black bra underneath.

                      Cue on cue, the lights above all of them shined brightly, and pointed to the curtains. "And now for another treasure of the night, a godsend who can conjure up the lust in all of us, the Angel!" Suddenly a halo appeared in the darkness that was introduced to the stage, Nill putting the halo above her head as directed and then sending it down to the ground around her. The light illuminating the outfit she was directed to. Nill moved while swinging her hips side to side, having not noticed her group a ways away from her. She was dressed like a goddess, making her way to the pole and swinging around on it. Ember watched carefully for any predators in the crowd, avoiding looking at Noah while all eyes seemed on Nill. Nill moved her hands along the pole, swinging around it and then looking out to the crowd as she moved her hands above her, grabbing the pole and sliding slowly to her knees. Ember rose a brow, wondering just how she was acting like that... and not feeling the least bit of shame. Did those other girls teach her all this in just a handful of minutes? Nill moved her hands from the pole, sitting on the ground now, over her hair which had been styled. Her teal turquoise eyes stared into the darkness.

                      She felt a little hot, dizzy from the alcohol, but her gaze was seductive and wandering. She moved her hands over her hair and ruffled her hair slightly, tossing it over her shoulder as sweat crawled from her cheek, down her neck, and into the cleavage that was grabbing some attention from unseen eyes. She did as she was instructed backstage, taking the golden string of her skirt and pulling it to undo the shirt itself. It barely slipped off her hips since she was sitting down... for now. She moved her delicate figures down over her figure, flattening the fabric over her breasts, chest, and then getting to her skirt, digging her hands underneath and pulling out her right leg in front of her. She unstrapped a heel, taking off one of the knee high transparent socks off and then forgetting about the other. She decided she was done with messing with her clothes, then she crawled, her skirt falling off completely to reveal her underwear as her shoulders perking up slightly when she did. She dragged herself along the ground for a minute, her bare stomach touching the stage and then perking up to hold herself up with both her arms. "Meow~" Nill purred as she crawled forward, both straps falling off her shoulders from the bra-top she was wearing. She eventually crawled to where Noah was, seeing him more and more and not being able to resist the urge to go to him. "You," she came up close, almost breathless as she pressed her finger against his lips, "You are... the only one I want here. Take me home... hero~" she purred.

Dangerous Lunatic

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                              Adam had been attempting to reach out to her, he wanted to help her but was limited in his capacity, there were reasons and whys he couldn't follow her, and so she could only receive help if she was interested in getting it. He left the door unlocked and returned to the yellow sponge under the sea, sitting on the couch with a fudge pop in his mouth, waiting for her to return. He didn't expect her to, he was a stranger and she seemed in enough duress that he didn't believe she would turn to him for help. If she left, though, could he really say he'd done all he could to help her? He was the business of helping people as a defense attorney, even if he couldn't always afford a moral high ground in some cases, he worked hard and kept his dignity and morals intact. Despite the brightness of the living room, the decorations of posters, walls, and souvenirs of his travels were aligned on shelves and cases. There was a story in each item he had but those days were done, in the loneliness of the brightly lit apartment held a deeper sadness than he tried to show. Extortion, corruption. Adam was tied to a man who knew he had a starving lust for travel, a wanderlust, and wanted to squash any sense of freedom. Reaching out to help her, he was also reaching out for help.

                              As he reached the stick that held the slowly melting fudge pop in place he could hear the rattling of the doorknob, watching with a leap of his heart into his throat as Umiko entered and remained by the door. Without a word he went to the kitchen to grab her a fudge pop and handing it to her, finishing his off and throwing away the stick. Returning to the couch, he kept his eyes forward on the TV until he heard her comfortable enough to speak. "I have a question." He looked over to her, adjusting himself so he turned his body towards her, "shoot." He replied, waiting for her question. "How... How do you go on after you feel like everything has been taken from you?" She slid from leaning onto the door and curling up on the floor, her hands on the carpet. "I can still think, do, say, and feel... but... I just feel like everything that made me happy is gone. All that's left is to find new happiness, but I can't bring myself to look at it like that anymore." Adam grabbed the remote and turned down the sound of the annoyingly loud sponge laughing at something his co-worker had said. It was a good question, how does one get over an entire change in lifestyle? How did he handle it?

                              "I wondered the same thing," Adam said softly, standing from the couch and approaching a bookshelf on the opposite side of the room from Umiko, grabbing at picture frames, staring into them. "I used to travel all the time. I figured I'd travel until the day I died, all across Valor." He turned to Umiko as he looked down at her, laying on the carpet like that. "This is me on top of Mount Vespara. This picture," he replaced the frame he was holding with another, "this is me slumming with some poor farmers in Japan. Spent two months with them, culling their crops, feeding their animals." Adam turned back to the bookcase, putting the frame back, "I love traveling." Turning back to Umiko he approached the couch, leaning forward with his hands holding him up, clinging to the back of the couch as he stared at her. "Then," he paused, looking away, "my...mom got sick, threatened by the illness that has her. So I stayed in Vegas for her, did what I could for her. I haven't been anywhere new in months and I feel like I'm the one dying. I have wanderlust, an intense almost overpowering desire to move, travel, explore. I'd...take cases, work on them, take a weekend off go somewhere fun, return in time for the court date and kill it. In between cases I'd end up going wherever my heart wanted. I'm trapped now, I don't even take clients. I stay in my apartment day in and out, doing what I can for my mom." Adam sighed softly, finally looking back at her after letting his eyes wander to everything on the walls.

                              "I know how you feel...ah...I don't...know your name." He admitted softly, somewhat embarrassed he hadn't gotten it from her yet. She knew his, he told her immediately, but she wasn't very talkative at first. Umiko glanced shyly at Adam, tilting her head and thinking first before quietly responding, "...Umiko." He smiled softly, "I like that name, it's very pretty. It's Japanese, isn't it?" Umiko looked downward, tearing her eyes away as she started to regret the talk on her name... "I-It is... It means child of the sea..." She smiled small, more happy on the memory she held, trying to not let this one tear her down. He could see it was hard for her, deciding to let the topic of her name go, "well, Umiko, a-as I was saying I know how you feel. Everything I ever loved and enjoyed in life is gone. I can't go where I want, do what I want. I'm a prisoner." Adam moved around the couch and sat on the carpet near her, looking at her before falling backwards and looking up to the ceiling. "But I hold onto a hope that one day everything I loved will come back to me. But you can't just sit around feeling sorry for yourself, you become lethargic, sometimes the problems you face you have to fix yourself. Our situations are...similar but different...but the advice is the same. What made you happy that you lost?" He asked, sitting up to look at her, tilting his head curiously to the side.

                              Umiko listened carefully, hearing that Adam was telling her the advice to have hope, and keep striving instead of dragging along sorrowfully. In hearing his question, Umiko lowered her gaze of his eyes to her feet, curling her knees closer to her chest, "A man. He... I love him... and has been with me everyday. Then... he... he left. I just..." She swallowed nervously, "I feel like I've lost everything... because he was my everything." Boy meets girl, girl falls for boy, boy leaves girl. Adam had traveled so much he didn't have a steady girlfriend, he wasn't sure if he knew what it was like to love a person, but he loved traveling. Maybe he could relate, just in a different way. "I'm sorry," he said softly, carefully scooting closer and putting his hand on her back, rubbing it gently. "That sounds terrible, losing the one thing you love more than anything. If he's moved on, found someone else then time is the only thing that can help heal that but, maybe, if it wasn't something he wanted to do I'd tell you to keep fighting for him. Don't be content sitting back and letting life pass you by. Would he want you to curl up into a ball and cry? Or would he want you to fight? You have to fight for what you want in life, if you take the easy way out you end up like me." Adam stood up and approached his bookshelf again, staring to the trinkets and artifacts he'd collected.

                              "Whatever he wants.. It doesn't include me now. It can't... anyway..." she said as she crossed her arms and placed them over her knees. "And I want to fight... I'm just in the painful stage of accepting what's come to me. And... I know I'll continue trying. No matter... how much it hurts." Adam looked back over to Umiko, nodding with a faint smile, "you have to press on, Umiko. Whatever he did for whatever reasons...the path to hell is paved with good intentions, no matter how much it hurts if he loves you as much as you do him, then this is for your benefit too. Even if you don't see it that way." Umiko remained quiet, Adam piping up, "you were at a DOGS base. Why?" It wasn't a question he needed to ask, but he was curious, it was an interesting question because the base had been abandoned for a long time. At least it was supposed to be. To his surprise Umiko answered. "I... I was trying to see if I could find something that would help me find... Vance. The man that left me... he... he joined Vance. This... 'King of the World'. I need to find him... so I can fix all of this somehow..."

                              Adam paused, his blood ran cold, it was almost as though his blood had been replaced with ice water. That name, that information, everything she just said had hit him and caused him to go silent, broken only by the theme song of the yellow sponge's show, a marathon playing on the station. He took a moment to recompose himself, looking to Umiko, crouching down to her level where she laid on the floor. "I can help you," he said suddenly, "I can help you with Vance. He came to me two years ago and paid off my college tuition and...he made me Gifted. All the traveling I talked about, how much I love it? He gave me that ability. Super speed, faster than sound. He told me he'd give me this power in exchange for helping him later on. Two years later I'm "collecting" people for him, people I thought just owed him like I did. But he's using them for...for Chroma. He's making me collect people for some generator. I tried to stop helping him but...my mom isn't sick, she's his prisoner and only alive for as long as I help him. I stay in this apartment until he commands me to do something, if I leave without him knowing she'll die." Adam stood up, taking a few steps back, then shook his head.

                              "Kaito. The name you muttered when you were unconscious. This is the guy that joined Vance, right? The man who left you? He did this recently? He's been Vance's little liaison for years, he's the one who found me the first time I ran off. I don't...understand." Adam clutched his head with his hands and looked down to the floor, shaking it, "my head is spinning." Adam fell onto the couch and looked up to the ceiling, "l-look, I can help you find Vance, but he can't know I'm doing it. I do have family I need to keep safe, after all." Sitting back up he stared to Umiko, offering his help in finding Vance, explaining to her that he has as much of a reason to go after Vance as she does. Standing up from the couch there came a bright white ball of energy that exploded outward, sending shockwaves through the apartment complex. The yellow sponge on the TV who was laughing a moment ago went silent, and time no longer moved. Kaito appeared from the explosion, looking to Adam then to Umiko, realizing this was a lot more painful than he thought it would be. Stoic and unemotional was hard to keep appearances of when one was nothing but emotional.

                              "This...must be your Kaito." Adam said suddenly, looking to Umiko, her expression saying it all. "That would be me." He replied back, looking away from Umiko painfully, keeping his focus on Adam. "I don't have much time, so please listen carefully," Kaito glanced towards Umiko from the corner of his eye, "I'm still piecing together what Vance plans to do with all the people he's siphoning Chroma from, but it's big and it's more dangerous than anything I've ever seen on Valor. For the most part the people are random, cannon fodder for him, but there are a few individuals who are important to what he's doing. Special people." Kaito pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to Adam, "these are the names of some of the special people he's been seeking. My guess is they're abnormal, a mutate of the Gifted? I don't know. I'm trying to figure that one out." Kaito's nose began to drip blood, he pulled out a tissue and collected the dripping blood drops as he squinted in pain and used the couch for support. Time was fighting back. "My problem is they're so Chroma infused that I can't pinpoint their location, that's why Vance has been using people like you for years, to find who I can't." Kaito paused for a minute, holding his hand up, suddenly coughing loudly as he spit up blood onto the tissue. "I'm running out of time. Find them, if he siphons their energy it'll put him months ahead of schedule and we don't have a lot of time left. Before I arrived I cut the gas lines, you'll have almost no time at all to evacuate everyone inside before this place becomes a stain on this planet's surface. I trust you can move fast enough."

                              Kaito stepped away from the couch, struggling to keep his footing as the frozen minutes that passed were fighting back. It was like he was standing in front of a locomotive with its wheels spinning and trying to move forward, but he was holding it back. The thousand tons of train kept fighting him, pushing him harder while he was growing weaker. If he didn't unfreeze time soon Kaito would be crushed underneath the power of the entire Time Stream trying to push forward, the only thing keeping him standing was the Time Lord power. "How long have you been working with Vance?" Adam asked, as Kaito gave him an irritated look, losing the time to explain. "Chronologically I joined him yesterday, but he's taken advantage of my time traveling abilities and I've been helping him for much longer. Everyone is running out of time and I'm doing all I can to sabotage his effort, but he's at least 2 years ahead of schedule for what he plans." Kaito groaned, gritting his teeth as the thousand tons of Time Stream energy pressing against him left large cuts across his body, arms, neck, and face. Each one bleeding and causing immense amount of pain. "Are you -- " "Just stay away from me." He clenched his teeth tightly as he looked over to Umiko, "Vance is making me sentence people to death, they are dying and I'm not strong enough to fight him. Away from him I know you're safe, with people I know will look out for you. If it makes me more compliant he'll use you against me, and I against you. Your entire life has been with me, since the day I found you, those have been the best days of my life of any world I've gone to, but Vance is stronger than any opponent I've ever faced, and now I have a God power on my side and it's still not enough." Kaito's eyes began producing blood, running down his cheeks as the Time Stream was winning.

                              "I'm not worth dying for, but neither can I live without you. Telling you we were over was the hardest thing I've done, and it was the last thing I wanted. But you can't be with me, I need to protect you. I fought Mizu for you, I nearly died for you, if I thought it was the right move you'd be standing next to me right now but you have to trust in me...that...I'm not abandoning you. That is the furthest from the truth. Umiko. I can't let Vance use you against me, or use me against you. I know you're hurt, and so am I, but I did everything for you. I need to go, now. Adam you have to die in this apartment do you understand? Once I tell Vance I'll convince him to let your mother go. Umiko," He looked at her as the wounds he suffered were becoming more severe, "go back to the team, please." "My mom, is she going -- " "you're dead to everyone starting now. If you try to contact anyone you'll screw us both over and with everything I've sacrificed you will not ruin this for me do you understand me?! Stay as deep underground as you can, as far off everyone's radar as possible. Find those people!" Kaito let out a pained shudder, blood spitting from his mouth as he looked to Umiko one more time, "The moment time starts moving again you have exactly 48 seconds before this building explodes and takes the whole neighborhood with it. Please get out of here. Umiko, no matter what you think of me or what I've done both good and bad...I love you." Time energy swirled through the apartment and imploded, the yellow sponge laughing once again, Kaito now gone.

                              Adam didn't waste anytime once the sponge was talking, "I'll get everyone out of here you just get to a safe distance." Adam disappeared in burst of speed, using the power Vance gave him to run faster than sound as he broke into the apartments and pulled everyone out to a safe distance. Kaito mentioned the gas leak would take the neighborhood with them, which meant Adam needed to hurry and reach the other apartment buildings and homes nearby, with only 48 seconds to do it he had too many people to save and not enough time to accomplish it.

                              Far away from the suburbs in the middle of Vegas in the midst of glitz and glamor, the team was enjoying their time together as they went off to the casino. Daxter bribed their way into the Rising Phoenix Casino with money he claimed was his own, though no one knew why he had it, all he said was he earned it and it was blood money. Even Ember hadn't known about it, but it was a story for another time and he was prepared for the backlash he would receive for keeping this a secret from her. It wasn't like he had a secret account to disappear with, but the money had been earned through ways he wasn't especially proud of, even for him, and because of it he wasn't going around explaining why he had it, only that he used it for important things for another reason that was unknown. But regardless of the money's origins he used it to get them inside, pay for drinks, and give the girls something to gamble with while the guys had had enough of the night at the casino and decided to head off to a strip club, which was entirely Daxter's idea. He approached the girls and noticed that Nill was already tipsy, which brought him to smirk a little while announcing their departure.

                              The strip club played some hardcore electronic music through the speakers, the bass pumping into the walls as the dancers were losing more layers of clothes while men were throwing more money to them. Noah could almost be heard growling as he entered this place, not necessarily because it was a strip club but because the music was painful to his enhanced hearing. Though he certainly didn't want Nill to think he enjoyed this kind of place or that he ventured into them frequently. Daxter was adamant that they would have a lot of fun in this place, even going so far as to get the three the best seats he could find near the stage. Daxter sat in the middle of Takashi and Noah, the two on either side of him as the "dancer" turned her back to the boys and slid herself down to the floor, her small bikini bottom barely containing her curves. Daxter grinned as he looked over to Noah who let out a scoff, then to Takashi - who was ashamed to admit - glued to her movements. "This isn't so bad." Takashi said in a soft tone, certainly helping his obsession with Lynette. Though it didn't ease the pain, it kept his mind off her. Daxter announced he was going to get him a lap dance, whistling loudly for one of the waitresses, who approached with a sour look on her face. "Oh." "My." "God." The trio said in unison, staring at Ember in her outfit having approached the three with drinks. "You work here?!" Noah looked around quickly, "if you're here where the hell is Nill?!" "A lap dance for Taka, huh? Is it on you then if I do it?" Ember said with fire in her veins. Takashi shook his head, "nope I'm good." Ember and Daxter paid no attention to him.

                              "Seriously where is Nill?" Noah said as he turned his head to Ember, suddenly standing up from the chair and going to search for her. Daxter shook his head, "oh hell no, he's not getting a lap dance from my girlfriend." Ember set down the tray that held drinks and came closer to Takashi, looking at him and reaching for his tie and tugging it to loosen it slightly. She let go of his tie, undoing her own and throwing it casually to the floor as she did a graceful and slow spin around, showing off the twists and curves of her body in one fell swoop. "You don't mind..." Ember said as she kicked his chair legs over to face her directly and put her hands on his knees, "....right?" Daxter glared at Takashi with daggers in his eyes as Takashi, figuring Daxter would already kill him, shook his head slowly. "N-No." He gulped loudly. "Ember...don't you dare." Daxter warned, as Ember ignored him and continued with the lap dance. She moved over to Takashi's left ear, letting out a spine-tingling warm breath of air before quietly whispering, ".. grab the chair's arms and don't let go..." Takashi clenched onto the arms of the chair and held on for dear life, terrified.

                              Ember moved herself expertly, speaking with her hips as Takashi was both terrified for Daxter's reaction to getting a lap dance from his girlfriend and enjoying the delicious moves of Ember. Daxter was not into the idea of his girlfriend giving a lap dance to Takashi, even if he was a movie star. No, this wasn't going to happen. As Daxter snapped out of his thoughts he turned his head to see Ember licking her lips, biting her bottom one gently as she leaned backwards, moving her shoulders side to side and then taking her right hand, placing it in between the buttons of her cleavage and tugging to undo them one at a time, revealing part of her black bra underneath. Daxter stood up and grabbed the back of her shirt, pulling Ember off Takashi, who suddenly opened his eyes and looked over to Daxter, "I-I wasn't enjoying it I promise." "Oh so Ember doesn't turn you on, is that it?" "N-No she was sexy!" "Oh so now you're eyeballing my girlfriend!" "No! N-No I swear! I don't even have an erection. I was...I was thinking of nuns and bunnies the entire time!" "So now she's not hot?" "I WANT TO HAVE SEX WITH EMBER. AHHH!" Takashi ran away as quickly as he could screaming.

                              Daxter grabbed Ember and pulled her to the corner of the club and pressed her back up against the wall, "you...you piss me off you know that?! You give him a lap dance?! What the ********?! No one touches you but me! A-And no one gets a lap dance like that but me! You were grinding on him! Argh! That was the ******** hottest thing I've ever seen." Daxter suddenly pressed her flat against the wall as his body pressed up against hers, kissing her wildly in wild passionate heat. She could tell he was aroused by her movements just by the way she could feel him, his free hand was quick to unbutton her shirt before she knew what he was doing, touching her bare stomach. He pulled away only briefly, "d-don't ever do that again. Unless it's me." He kissed her again, turning so his back was to the wall and using one hand to lift her up, forcing her to wrap her legs around him to keep herself from falling. Daxter was kissing her lips, biting them, his lips moving to just below her ear as he kissed and bit her skin, moving down to her sexy sweaty neck and sucking passionately. The two were practically making a scene in the corner of the strip club as they made out with furious passion, turned on by the display. He continued leaving marks on her neck and shoulders, going back up to her ear and biting her, then whispering, "y-you idiot, it's not as though I was here to get a lap dance. If I wanted to get touched by the hottest person alive I'd come find you. God I'm so jealous of Takashi right now. I'm going to punch him in his stupid ******** face he's so lucky I like him."

                              Ember and Daxter continued kissing and making out in the passion of the moment until Daxter suddenly stopped, frozen as he heard "The Angel" over the loudspeakers. "Is that Nill?!!" Noah was heard yelling in the distance, Daxter letting Ember back down onto her feet, regardless of how unstable she was from all the touching. "You got Nill to strip?!" "EMBER!!" Daxter grabbed Ember's hand, intertwining their fingers as he forgave her for the jealousy act, watching Nill as she was wearing a skimpy angelic outfit and dancing on the pole with moves that he didn't know she knew. "Our little angel is a slut bunny!" Luckily Daxter was far enough from stage that Nill wouldn't be able to hear it, but Noah's enhanced hearing caught Daxter's words. Noah was watching her movements both captivated and just frozen by the fact Nill was on stage. Her skirt came off as she crawled exposing her underwear, Noah not sure he was able to move at the moment. 'I...I'm going to kill Ember so dead. I-I mean kill her so hard Vance couldn't bring her back. W-Where did she learn all this!? My fiancée is stripping! She's drunk too?! GodDAMN you Ember, goddamn you Dax!!' Outwardly Noah was frozen, inside he was raging.

                              "You," Nill said as she crawled closer to Noah, him watching unable to really move at the moment. She came up close, almost breathless as she pressed her finger against his lips, "You are... the only one I want here. Take me home... hero~" she purred. Suddenly all his anger dissolved as, even drunk as she was Nill had been completely faithful and enamored by Noah. Despite the money thrown her way by the many men she was coming to him and wanted him to take her home. Noah stood up and quickly pulled off his business jacket, wrapping it around Nill's waist as he held her in his arms, Nill giggly as he lifted her up, her arms around his neck. "Come on, hun, you're going to be fighting a killer hangover so let's get some water in you." Noah watched as Daxter and Ember approached, Noah staring to Ember, "until further notice I'm holding you responsible for this." Daxter looked over to Ember, then back to Noah, "hey hey hey, I'm the one who 'anonymously' sent her a couple alcoholic beverages." "Then I'm just going to kill you." "Aw don't be like that, brother." "We are not brothers." "We will always be brothers, brother." "Then I'm about to be back down to one brother here soon." "Have fun with your drunk fiancée, brother." Noah said nothing as he walked away with Nill, hailing a cab back to the hotel.

                              Daxter waited for Ember to collect the money she and Nill made before they went outside, Ember having buttoned up her shirt by this point. Daxter grabbed her hand and looked over to her as Takashi quickly tried to slip past them, but was grabbed by Daxter. "Thought you could slip away, eh brother?" "B-Brother? B-But your girlfriend...she...I thought you..." "I like you, Taka, and let's face it for a movie star you are a huge loser. So what she did was out of the kindness of her heart. Now run along you little scamp." "But...what I said...?" "About how you want to have sex with Nill? S'all good." "I," he paused, "that's exactly what I said." Takashi ran off before his good luck ran out. Daxter looked over to Ember, "who wouldn't want to have sex with this fire goddess?" Daxter twirled her close to him and wrapped an arm around her, kissing one of the many love bites on her neck, "let's get back to the hotel, I'm eager to get a lap dance from you."

                              Daxter held Ember's hand as they walked along the sidewalk through the busy Vegas nightlife towards the hotel. "Ember," he said as they walked back, "about the bank account, I saw the way you looked at the money, it was that kind of W-T-F mixed with a little bit of hurt. I never brought it up because no one ever asked, if someone doesn't ask I typically avoid explaining anything. But I wanted you to know I'm not hiding it intentionally, what I did after Gradia to earn this money was, even by my standards, a little out there." He shrugged, "trust me, it's not so I can run off or anything, the skinny of it is what I do buy with it is typically used to invoke fun or for other people. It's kind of a karmic recharge, I earned a shitload of bad karma with earning it, so I'm making it up with good karma by doing nice things with it. I have nearly a hundred grand in there." He looked over to Ember as they reached the hotel, kissing her softly on the cheek, "I'm just going to say it again: that dance was the hottest thing I'd ever seen." Looking up at the floor they would be on he suddenly pulled her away from the hotel and darted with her through the sidewalk and the streets, suddenly stopping. "Close your eyes, keep them closed."

                              Daxter led Ember, with her eyes closed, inside a building and towards a counter. He put her hand on the cool glass counter, "I called earlier about that...erm...thing. Dax McLain, I just need to get the size right so I brought my entire girlfriend." Ember would feel a stranger's hand touching hers, wrapping something around her right ring finger, taking a few moments before Daxter moved in front of Ember and slid something on her finger. She was instructed to open her eyes.

                              "I am a mess. I am immature, loud, annoying, devilishly handsome, but ultimately a wacky goofball in a world of suits and ties. Everyone is so serious, so straight faced but I'm just not wired to be like that, not all the time. I am such a pain in the a** and you know what? I'm okay with that. I'm okay with all of it. I finally learned to love myself. But do you know how many women just get tired of the man-child thing? My Little Pony, all kinds of anime obsessions, video games, I mean I might be sexy as hell but my personality and interests leave a lot to be desired for what people want in a lifelong partner, hell a husband and father too. I would be a terrible father, I should be sterilized. Anyone who procreates with me is a retard. That said, I'm not ready to get married, maybe in a few years, maybe never. But I know I would be lost without you. You drive me crazy, you make me jealous, make me mad, you make me want to better myself and die just trying to protect you. You put up with me, you say you even love me, and I love you back. I might never want to get married, but this...promise ring...is a symbol that if I ever do want to get married it's going to be to you. I have come a long way from handing you a necklace and walking away, I am spewing out emotional bullshit like it's nothing. Well almost nothing, I'm fighting the urge to walk away. But, Ember, I really do care about you, sometimes I don't show it enough, but...I do." The ring itself was black emblazoned with red and blue fire along the edges, designed to signify their power over fire, Daxter's common red flame with Ember's blue flame.

                              "Soon as I heard we were coming to Vegas I put my order in, I've known for a while I couldn't be without you, I figured you might as well have a real symbol on how serious I am about you. The heart necklace is great but...let's admit it I bought it on a whim. This thing I put thought into, I sketched a design for hours before emailing it to these guys here. Blue for your flames. Red for my flames. I love you, Ember, you've stuck by my bullshit for so long, I really hope you stay for a lot longer." Daxter kissed her quickly, sealing the deal on his love for her.

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                      At the brink of giving up all hope, Umiko was in need of some advice, but didn't want to admit it. In a final attempt to reach out to somebody, she looked at Adam, having seen the expression he gave her earlier and wondered what his answer would be for a question like this. "I wondered the same thing," Adam said softly, standing from the couch and approaching a bookshelf on the opposite side of the room from Umiko, grabbing at picture frames, staring into them. "I used to travel all the time. I figured I'd travel until the day I died, all across Valor." He turned to Umiko as he looked down at her, laying on the carpet like that. He got up, grabbing a few pictures and displaying them to her on some of his travels. Umiko was surprised that he'd been to Japan, but this was her first time going somewhere far away from Japan. She hadn't been there long enough to call it home, but she watched his expression change. Turning back to Umiko he approached the couch, leaning forward with his hands holding him up, clinging to the back of the couch as he stared at her. "Then," he paused, looking away, "my...mom got sick, threatened by the illness that has her. So I stayed in Vegas for her, did what I could for her. I haven't been anywhere new in months and I feel like I'm the one dying. I have wanderlust, an intense almost overpowering desire to move, travel, explore. I'd...take cases, work on them, take a weekend off go somewhere fun, return in time for the court date and kill it. In between cases I'd end up going wherever my heart wanted. I'm trapped now, I don't even take clients. I stay in my apartment day in and out, doing what I can for my mom." Adam sighed softly, finally looking back at her after letting his eyes wander to everything on the walls.

                      "I know how you feel...ah...I don't...know your name." He admitted softly, Umiko glanced shyly at Adam, tilting her head and thinking first before quietly responding, "...Umiko." He smiled softly, "I like that name, it's very pretty. It's Japanese, isn't it?" Umiko looked downward, tearing her eyes away as she started to regret the talk on her name... "I-It is... It means child of the sea..." She smiled small, more happy on the memory she held, trying to not let this one tear her down. He could see it was hard for her, deciding to let the topic of her name go, "well, Umiko, a-as I was saying I know how you feel. Everything I ever loved and enjoyed in life is gone. I can't go where I want, do what I want. I'm a prisoner." Adam moved around the couch and sat on the carpet near her, looking at her before falling backwards and looking up to the ceiling. "But I hold onto a hope that one day everything I loved will come back to me. But you can't just sit around feeling sorry for yourself, you become lethargic, sometimes the problems you face you have to fix yourself. Our situations are...similar but different...but the advice is the same. What made you happy that you lost?" He asked, sitting up to look at her, tilting his head curiously to the side.

                      Umiko listened carefully, hearing that Adam was telling her the advice to have hope, and keep striving instead of dragging along sorrowfully. In hearing his question, Umiko lowered her gaze of his eyes to her feet, curling her knees closer to her chest, "A man. He... I love him... and has been with me everyday. Then... he... he left. I just..." She swallowed nervously, "I feel like I've lost everything... because he was my everything." "I'm sorry," he said softly, carefully scooting closer and putting his hand on her back, rubbing it gently. Umiko flinched slightly at the feeling of him touching her back but pursed her lips together nervously, allowing him to touch her for a little bit. "That sounds terrible, losing the one thing you love more than anything. If he's moved on, found someone else then time is the only thing that can help heal that but, maybe, if it wasn't something he wanted to do I'd tell you to keep fighting for him. Don't be content sitting back and letting life pass you by. Would he want you to curl up into a ball and cry? Or would he want you to fight? You have to fight for what you want in life, if you take the easy way out you end up like me." Adam stood up and approached his bookshelf again, staring to the trinkets and artifacts he'd collected. She watched him walk away as she quietly contemplated on his words. She wasn't sure how to react to his advice.. at least in terms of Kaito wanting her to fight for him when she was clearly told to stay away.

                      "Whatever he wants.. It doesn't include me now. It can't... anyway..." she said as she crossed her arms and placed them over her knees. "And I want to fight... I'm just in the painful stage of accepting what's come to me. And... I know I'll continue trying. No matter... how much it hurts." Adam looked back over to Umiko, nodding with a faint smile, "you have to press on, Umiko. Whatever he did for whatever reasons...the path to hell is paved with good intentions, no matter how much it hurts if he loves you as much as you do him, then this is for your benefit too. Even if you don't see it that way." Umiko remained quiet, Adam piping up, "you were at a DOGS base. Why?" She took a moment to respond, but decided to let him know. It wasn't worth hiding since he found her in such a suspicious location. After contemplating quietly she finally admitted, "I... I was trying to see if I could find something that would help me find... Vance. The man that left me... he... he joined Vance. This... 'King of the World'. I need to find him... so I can fix all of this somehow..." Something changed once she was done speaking. Adam suddenly had a dead, empty look in his eyes, Umiko narrowing her eyes with a fear inside her. W-What kind of reaction is that? Suddenly he was looking to Umiko, crouching down to her level where she laid on the floor. "I can help you," he said suddenly, "I can help you with Vance. He came to me two years ago and paid off my college tuition and...he made me Gifted. All the traveling I talked about, how much I love it? He gave me that ability. Super speed, faster than sound. He told me he'd give me this power in exchange for helping him later on. Two years later I'm "collecting" people for him, people I thought just owed him like I did. But he's using them for...for Chroma. He's making me collect people for some generator. I tried to stop helping him but...my mom isn't sick, she's his prisoner and only alive for as long as I help him. I stay in this apartment until he commands me to do something, if I leave without him knowing she'll die." Adam stood up, taking a few steps back, then shook his head.

                      Umiko was surprised by his sudden off, thinking about how Vance had Gifted him, then holding his mother hostage. So Adam did know what it was like to have Vance take something irreplaceable and precious to you.. but then he continued, "Kaito. The name you muttered when you were unconscious. This is the guy that joined Vance, right? The man who left you? He did this recently? He's been Vance's little liaison for years, he's the one who found me the first time I ran off. I don't...understand." Adam clutched his head with his hands and looked down to the floor, shaking it, "my head is spinning." umiko stood up from her position and walked over to Adam, a curious gaze as she wanted to question him more about what he knew about Kaito. That can't be possible. He just joined Vance yesterday... Adam fell onto the couch and looked up to the ceiling, "l-look, I can help you find Vance, but he can't know I'm doing it. I do have family I need to keep safe, after all." Suddenly a white explosion engulfed the room in shockwaves, Umiko closing her eyes as the blast slowed down everything and then ultimately froze time. She first caught glimpse of the TV no longer playing or emitting any audio, her eyes then glancing to Kaito. She opened her mouth to speak, but couldn't emit anything or even elicit a gasp.

                      "This...must be your Kaito." Adam said as he looked to Umiko, who seemed to be on the verge of tears. She turned her gaze away from Kaito, looking at Adam as she was actually frightened to look at the Time Lord. She could feel more of her unstable heart breaking into bits from seeing him, and Adam was the only person she could distract her eyes with in the forms of response. He spoke, prompting to whether or not this was her Kaito, and that tore her up even more. H-He's not mine... He's cant be... "That would be me." Kaito spoke, Umiko feeling surprised but sorrowful, "I don't have much time, so please listen carefully,"Umiko looked to Kaito who glanced at her from the corner of his eyes, causing her to feel curious as to what he was thinking. As he went on to explain to Adam about the special people Vance needed and more about the Chroma generators, all Umiko could think about was the curiosity of finding out why he was glancing at her, why he was doing this and why he hadn't frozen her. Shortly after his explanation, Umiko and Adam noticed Kaito's nose beginning to drip blood. He leaned on the couch for support, Umiko wanting to go to him and support him somehow.. but feeling scared to come near him for the fear that she would be pushed away again. He revealed the need to have Adam find these special people, trusting in his speed, and then coughed into the tissue. It was hard to see Kaito in pain, and feeling scared to do anything. It was one of the more tormenting feelings of feeling just a few short feet away from him, but then knowing she had to hold herself back. She wanted to nuzzle into his chest and sob, asking to not be let go and for him to take her back. To just give her the chance to be with him. She wanted desperately to go with him before the halt ended. To grab onto him and just feel him again, be with him again... but she had to stand with her back against the wall. His words, as much as she didn't want to obey them from that time, commanded her to do so... and she was painfully obedient.

                      "How long have you been working with Vance?" Adam asked, as Kaito gave him an irritated look, losing the time to explain. Umiko was glad Adam had asked, seeing how she was in complete shock of Kaito being there she lost the train of thought into thinking how Kaito had been working with Vance for years. "Chronologically I joined him yesterday, but he's taken advantage of my time traveling abilities and I've been helping him for much longer. Everyone is running out of time and I'm doing all I can to sabotage his effort, but he's at least 2 years ahead of schedule for what he plans." Kaito groaned in the pain of time trying to win, Umiko grabbing her hand that was reaching out to him and pulling it back down. "Are you -- " "Just stay away from me." He clenched his teeth tightly as he looked over to Umiko, "Vance is making me sentence people to death, they are dying and I'm not strong enough to fight him. Away from him I know you're safe, with people I know will look out for you." Umiko widened her eyes, the thought of Kaito killing all these people for Vance just for the sake of joining him to protect... her. "If it makes me more compliant he'll use you against me, and I against you. Your entire life has been with me, since the day I found you, those have been the best days of my life of any world I've gone to, but Vance is stronger than any opponent I've ever faced, and now I have a God power on my side and it's still not enough." Umiko could no longer hold back the tears as she tried to hold the cry in her throat, covering her mouth as she was still so torn up inside. The best days... and mine t-too. Why... why are you telling me all this? I-I.. It's like Vance knew I was here and he's just taunting me! I-It's just... I...

                      "I'm not worth dying for, but neither can I live without you. Telling you we were over was the hardest thing I've done, and it was the last thing I wanted. But you can't be with me, I need to protect you." "I-I never asked to be protected. I-I just wanted you to be safe. I-If I didn't think you were worth dying over... I... I wouldn't have done anything at all!" "And I just want you to be safe, which can't happen around Vance. I have Time at my disposal, I'm much safer than you would be. I won't let Vance have you. I fought Mizu for you, I nearly died for you, if I thought it was the right move you'd be standing next to me right now but you have to trust in me...that...I'm not abandoning you. That is the furthest from the truth. Umiko. I can't let Vance use you against me, or use me against you. I know you're hurt, and so am I, but I did everything for you. I need to go, now. Adam you have to die in this apartment do you understand? Once I tell Vance I'll convince him to let your mother go. Umiko," he looked at her as painfully as she was looking back to him, "go back to the team, please." She moved her eyes to the ground, burying her face in her hands as she was told to go back to the team. "I-I just want to go with you." She was weak to admitting it, knowing there was the chance her only wish would be ignored, but she released her frustrations, "I know I seem weak, and I have a way to go before I learn to control my powers, but all my life my fate had been decided. Mizu made me as a vessel... now we're just parts of Vance's game. And I'm leverage? I'm bait? I don't think so. I-I don't care what happens to me. I'd go through hell and back... just to go back to how it was. I --"

                      Suddenly Kaito let out a pained shudder, blood spitting from his mouth as he looked to Umiko one more time, "The moment time starts moving again you have exactly 48 seconds before this building explodes and takes the whole neighborhood with it. Please get out of here. Umiko, no matter what you think of me or what I've done both good and bad...I love you." The time energy imploded, Umiko realizing she didn't get the chance to say all that she wanted to, and now she was feeling the pressure on as Adam turned to her in the deal of what was now forty-eight seconds to make it out alive. "I'll get everyone out of here you just get to a safe distance." Adam disappeared in burst of speed, grabbing people to save them while Umiko tripped, picking herself up painfully off the ground. He loves me... Umiko's eyes glowed violet as she let her magic took control. The windows of all apartments and homes nearby opened, the people inside noticing their water pipes breaking, the water carrying the individuals out of their homes. ...Kaito... She looked at the people that were scared of what was happening, all of them riding a tidal wave together as Umiko picked up the pace and carried herself along with anybody else she could find. Her violet hair whipped along her face from the fast pace, making it to where Adam was and dropping off the rest of the people in the safe perimeter. Now having shown these people her magic as well as Adam, she turned for the explosion to occur and was prepared to cast a shield to protect herself and those civilians around her.

                      Meanwhile... Ember was dealing with a another level of danger. A drunk angel. After having sat at the casino and collecting the six grand Nill had earned, she was displeased to see Nill eager to taking the gift of drinks delivered to their table. Nill, after having three glasses, was somewhere Ember wanted to be. There were many attempts that Ember had tried to get drunk, but could never actually do it. Instead, she would be babysitting Nill and busting her a** to make sure she didn't lose sight of the angel... but not even twenty minutes after Daxter and the rest of the boys had left, Nill ran out the front door, tipsy in making her way towards a strip club across the block. After seeing a hand laid on Nill by a dirty man, she stepped in as the older sister figure, about to put the smack down on anybody that laid their hands on Nill. She knew if Noah found out, he would kill her, but she was more concerned about Nill than having to protect herself from Noah. In fact, she believed she could handle an angry Defiance... but wasn't willing to test him out. It was seeing Nill, as cute and innocent as she was, being taken advantage of that Ember was not going to stand in the slightest. The electronic music played loudly through the club as Ember made her way through, being so loving to the man that set his hand on Nill that she crashed his party with his skull hitting a nearby table. Shortly afterward they were approached by the club owner who inquired their interests in earning some cash, dirty cash. Ember wasn't amused at the offer, but Nill was determined on her money rake.

                      It was weird, not knowing what Nill was saving her money up for, and to be quite honest it was slightly irritating. Ember couldn't imagine what six grand couldn't cover. She could have had my half of the money or something. What in the world is going to cost that much that Nill has to save up a large sum of money? Ember knew better that her questions would go unanswered, and she felt a little sour at the angel's turn. Ember watched as Nill disappeared and she started to cater drinks. Is this what I'll be doing for the rest of my night? Serving alcohol to perverts, cheaters, old men and -- oh my god. Then as she wasn't able to complete her thought she saw the Team Defiance males all sitting near the stage. A dancer dipped herself to the stage, Noah scoffing to Ember's notice and Daxter grinning to Takashi, who seemed shy but accepting. Daxter's grin from the display obviously making her happy caused Ember's blood to boil with jealousy, even if he was doing it for guy's night out. She took a sharp glance at that female dancer, and as she came closer to them she heard Daxter say that they needed to find Takashi a lap dance. Ember knew that any lap dance Takashi would be getting, Daxter would be watching. After all, if he wasn't receiving the dance himself, he could always have the pleasure of seeing it fro a different perspective. Ember was never one to flaunt her body, and frankly she didn't feel the need to... but if Daxter was taking his male friends to go see a show... Then that's what I'll give em.

                      She heard the whistle, a sour expression painted over her features as she held up the tray with her hand. "Oh." "My." "God." The trio said in unison, staring at Ember in her outfit, the one she had been in since her time at the casino, but a little roughed up from all the traffic she was going through to get to them. "You work here?!" Ember tilted her head at Daxter and sighed, "It's a long story... but no. I'm just... caught up with--" but then she heard Noah shout, "if you're here where the hell is Nill?!" She blinked her eyes over at Noah and thought quietly, Nope. She wasn't going to get caught up with Noah in having to explain the situation as she was more focused on her moment between Takashi and Daxter. She knew Nill would be fine... and she didn't think Noah would like hearing the news from her. "A lap dance for Taka, huh? Is it on you then if I do it?" Ember said with fire in her veins. Takashi shook his head, "nope I'm good." Ember and Daxter paid no attention to him.

                      "Seriously where is Nill?" Noah said to Ember, Ember staring back as she heard Daxter respond, "oh hell no, he's not getting a lap dance from my girlfriend." Ember set down the tray that held drinks and came closer to Takashi, looking at him and reaching for his tie and tugging it to loosen it slightly. She let go of his tie, undoing her own and throwing it casually to the floor as she did a graceful and slow spin around, showing off the twists and curves of her body in one fell swoop. "You don't mind..." Ember said as she kicked his chair legs over to face her directly and put her hands on his knees, "....right?" She looked at him carefully, seeing Daxter's glare at Takashi from the corner of her eye. It was nice to see that he no longer wanted to get Takashi a lap dance, but she looked back at Takashi who replied, "N-No." He gulped loudly. "Ember...don't you dare."She heard Daxter warn. She didn't blink in his direction, figuring that she had yet to accomplish what she came over here for. To show that hopefully she had more to over than the sluts riding the poles in bikini tops. She wasn't even down to her underwear, fully clothes and all, but figured even as she was that she could pull it off. She leaned over to Takashi's left ear, letting out a spine-tingling warm breath of air before quietly whispering, ".. grab the chair's arms and don't let go..." Takashi clenched onto the arms of the chair and held on for dear life, terrified.

                      Ember moved herself expertly, speaking with her hips as she continued to swirl around. Ember was surprised she had been able to do it for as long as she had, but continued to go on until she felt like it would be more than enough payback. She had spread his legs apart, dancing in front of them and after dipping, crawling up his legs as she hips snaked side to side. She was moving her body smooth like silk, no jolts even with the beat of the electronic music taking effect. She blinked slow, everything in time seeming to do as she wanted. Ember began to lick her lips, biting her lower one as she slowly moved her shoulders side to side while leaning back and actually beginning to unbutton her top. Takashi's face was red hot, his eyes closed as she was surprised to feel her shirt being pulled, causing her whole body to detach from Takashi's. "I-I wasn't enjoying it I promise." "Oh so Ember doesn't turn you on, is that it?" "N-No she was sexy!" "Oh so now you're eyeballing my girlfriend!" "No! N-No I swear! I don't even have an erection. I was...I was thinking of nuns and bunnies the entire time!" "So now she's not hot?" "I WANT TO HAVE SEX WITH EMBER. AHHH!" Takashi ran away as quickly as he could screaming while Ember widened her eyes in surprise. Daxter was flipping the coin, being able to be offended in all kinds of ways until Takashi gave in, admitted his temporary desire, and screamed like a schoolgirl out of the club. She would have thought more on it... but Daxter then dragged her to a nearby corner.

                      He held her shoulders in a firm grip, the all too familiar feeling of being pressed against a wall returned as Ember perked her chin up to look at him hovering her, but feeling maybe she'd made a mistake. It was almost instinct now to be brought against a wall and suspect a kiss from Daxter, and her heart slightly sank at his first words, "you...you piss me off you know that?!" Ember took her breath and held it, looking right into his eyes as he unleashed on her, "You give him a lap dance?! What the ********?! No one touches you but me! A-And no one gets a lap dance like that but me! You were grinding on him! Argh! That was the ******** hottest thing I've ever seen." Those were definitely not the words she was expecting as her cheeks quickly set flame, Daxter suddenly pressed her flat against the wall as his body pressed up against hers, kissing her wildly in wild passionate heat. She could tell he was aroused by her movements just by the way she could feel him, his free hand was quick to unbutton her shirt before she knew what he was doing, touching her bare stomach. She winced her eyes, closing them in the kiss as his hot hand pressed against her stomach. She could feel the breath she'd been holding in stay because of his touch. He pulled away only briefly, "d-don't ever do that again. Unless it's me." Ember would have promised, given the time, but he quickly feeling his lips clash with her again. He always does this--! she thought as her face turned red, her eyes narrowing before their close, her silver sparking aura. He turned around, lifting her up as he rested his back against the wall and forced her to wrap her legs around him. He's always t-trying to set me on fire... and always catching me off guard!

                      She could feel Daxter kissing her passionately with a heat she didn't expect to feel for a while. Her surprise causing her to tremble slightly as she tried to support herself. He was truly testing her in this time, keeping his one hand to support her as he kept touching her from her unbuttoned shirt. He bit her lip, Ember gasping quickly before releasing a small whimper from that damn feminine side of hers. She felt his lips move from her own, pursing her shut as she felt him kiss and n** at her skin all the way down to M-My neck! She widened her eyes, gasping slightly and gripping on him tighter, her weak point exposed and she felt lie a mess. She couldn't see the people watching her and Daxter as her back was turned to them, and she felt slightly ashamed for Daxter exposing her like this, but her chest was only visible for him, as well as the embarrassing blush on her face from being in his grasp. Once he started to leave marks, Ember couldn't hold back her silent fight, and muttered his name in small frustrated whispers of stress. He continued leaving marks on her neck and shoulders, going back up to her ear and biting her, then whispering, "y-you idiot, it's not as though I was here to get a lap dance. If I wanted to get touched by the hottest person alive I'd come find you. God I'm so jealous of Takashi right now. I'm going to punch him in his stupid ******** face he's so lucky I like him." Ember's eyes lowered, her blush practically glowing as her heart felt relieved at his words. She's gotten worked up over him, hugging him around his neck and speaking softly, "I... I couldn't just sit there with other women dancing like that in front of you. I got j-jealous."

                      Ember and Daxter continued kissing and making out in the passion of the moment until Daxter suddenly stopped, frozen as he heard "The Angel" over the loudspeakers. "Is that Nill?!!" Noah was heard yelling in the distance, Daxter letting Ember back down onto her feet, regardless of how unstable she was from all the touching. "You got Nill to strip?!" "EMBER!!" [******** me..." she said again from her thoughts earlier. Daxter grabbed Ember's hand, intertwining their fingers as he forgave her for the jealousy act, watching Nill as she was wearing a skimpy angelic outfit and dancing on the pole with moves that he didn't know she knew. Nill had moved her entire body with both grace and seductiveness, then when slowly sliding to her knees from the pole, Ember thought she might have seen a lust-filled look in the angel's eyes. It was absolutely stunning to think there would ever be a day that Nill acted like that. Ember was just as surprised as anybody else was in the room, either being enamored or shocked at the sight. "Our little angel is a slut bunny!" Ember gave Daxter a 'You-Gon-Die' look as Noah sent a quick glare at him. "You," Nill said as she crawled closer to Noah, him watching unable to really move at the moment. She came up close, almost breathless as she pressed her finger against his lips, "You are... the only one I want here. Take me home... hero~" she purred.

                      Nill didn't notice that in Noah's eyes that he was seeing her staying completely faithful. In truth, Nill was attracted only to Noah, and constantly thinking about only him. Through all of thick and thin, Noah was always the most important thing she held in her heart, and while dancing on the stage, she thought, bravely but drunk in doing so, what she would want to do for Noah. She was insecure about him, seeing how she was not the most self-confident person in the world and thought just like Amak had before, that there were better women than her out there. Even the sexual tension and desires that some women such as Ember held in their very nature, Nill did not. She always felt she lacked the properties of a mature, sexy woman. When she saw Noah, she saw a mature, handsome and gorgeous man that she admired with all her heart. Her shorter stature in comparison to his, how strong he was as much as he looked young, everything. She felt like Noah was a man that stood above all men... because he accepted her. Ever since she got to first officially meet him, she knew she had a love for Noah that ran much deeper than a simple admiration. She purred 'hero' from her throat, because she always saw him as her hero. In her eyes, Noah never took advantage of anybody for purposes that were purely evil. He knew that this corrupt world was in need of change, and he took the stand that people like her could not, and proved to be one of the strongest Gifted that lacked actual powers. In her eyes, he was the most Gifted individual, and he didn't even need the firepower Vance, Daxter, Ember, or even Kaito had to be on the same level. His strife was phenomenal, and she knew he was a man that was worth fighting for.

                      And with all these feelings surmising into Nill's true compassion for her one and only companion, she cooed to him, her drunk state being able to unleash those raw feelings of wanting to be exactly what he deserved. She wasn't shy in the slightest when she looked at him, coming up to his face closer than she did normally and voluntarily. She wanted Noah to have every bit of her no matter what. With the noise of other men shouting for the angel, she'd spotted her hero and inquired the alone time at 'home' her heart desperately desired. Noah stood up and quickly pulled off his business jacket, wrapping it around Nill's waist as he held her in his arms, Nill giggly as he lifted her up, her arms around his neck. "Come on, hun, you're going to be fighting a killer hangover so let's get some water in you." Nill looked up and kissed his cheek, not really having heard the entire sentence he spoke but softly speaking, "L-Love you so much." Noah watched as Daxter and Ember approached, Noah staring to Ember, "until further notice I'm holding you responsible for this." Ember crossed her arms as she replied, "I wasn't the one who got her to be this way. Somebody sent us a round at the casino... Hmmm I wonder who." Daxter looked over to Ember, then back to Noah, "hey hey hey, I'm the one who 'anonymously' sent her a couple alcoholic beverages." "Then I'm just going to kill you." "No killin~ J-Just lovin~ Eat a muffin~ Somethin somethin~""Aw don't be like that, brother." "We are not brothers." "We will always be brothers, brother." "Then I'm about to be back down to one brother here soon." "Meow~" "Have fun with your drunk fiancée, brother." Noah said nothing as he walked away with Nill, hailing a cab back to the hotel.

                      Once Nill was put into a cab with Noah, she listened him direct them back to the hotel. It would be about a ten minute drive, but it was enough time for Nill to look over Noah and paw sweetly towards him. "Noah~" she whispered his name seductively. She glanced at him, not really being able to read his features. Maybe he thought he would be taking advantage of Nill in this sort of state, or was treating her like she wasn't herself. In any case she slowly crawled over Noah, the driver seeing the two in his review mirror what going on through a small open black window. She put both her legs on either side of him, having undone the seat belt he buckled her in and put her hands on both his shoulders. "N-Noah. You smell so good," she said as she came closer to him, taking in the scent she always knew him by. He could tell by her breathing that she was acting slightly fevered, but to see Nill like this... taking initiative and being on top of him voluntarily must have been slightly shocking. He seemed to be unable to respond to her as she sniffed him slightly, moving down his neck and then stopping short. "Your s-shirt is in the way..." she said as she moved his dress shirt slightly to reveal his collar. She found the spot she wanted and started to lick and kiss that same spot over and over. She circled her tongue against his skin, feeling his skin flinch slightly underneath her as she released a warm exhale of breath on the kiss, leaning back down and putting some pressure on the love mark she was leaving on him. "I-I love you." She leaned backward as she looked at him, pressing her finger against his lips before he could speak.

                      "Oh Noah..." she shuddered softly as she moved his hand up her leg and under the business jacket he had tied around her waist. "T-Tell me you love me too." The cab driver was wide eyed, listening to the innocent voice of this angel talking to this young man in the back seat of his cab. He tried focusing on the road, but her display was much more exciting. Nill paid absolutely no attention to the cab driver as it seemed Noah wasn't really moving, only stiffly allowing Nill to move him until they finally arrived to the hotel. The cab driver had put the petal to the metal in getting the two back to their hotel, almost sure that he wouldn't be able to drive safely with something like that going on in the back of his cab. Nill pulled Noah from the cab driver, Noah paid the fare, the cab driver refusing to look the young man in the eyes as Noah had to then pull himself from Nill's seductive grasp and once again carry her in his arms back to their hotel room. She circled her fingers on his chest as he carried her, whispering to him how strong he was, how amazingly handsome he was, how much she loved him and more little sweet things she felt everyday. Her wings twitched, her hair flowing from the brush of the much needed air conditioning once they entered their hotel room.

                      Meanwhile, Daxter waited for Ember to collect the money she and Nill made before they went outside, Ember having buttoned up her shirt by this point. Daxter grabbed her hand and looked over to her as Takashi quickly tried to slip past them, but was grabbed by Daxter. Ember couldn't imagine the little bit that was going to go down between the two of them, but now she felt sorry for Takashi getting into the scramble. "Thought you could slip away, eh brother?" "B-Brother? B-But your girlfriend...she...I thought you..." "I like you, Taka, and let's face it for a movie star you are a huge loser. So what she did was out of the kindness of her heart. Now run along you little scamp." "But...what I said...?" "About how you want to have sex with Nill? S'all good." "I," he paused, "that's exactly what I said." Takashi ran off before his good luck ran out. Ember smirked lightly, looking at Daxter who looked straight back at her and grinned, "who wouldn't want to have sex with this fire goddess?" Ember widened her eyes in the surprise of Daxter taking her hand and twirling her close to him, causing her to fluster slightly when he wrapped an arm around her and kissed a still visible mark on her neck. "Let's get back to the hotel, I'm eager to get a lap dance from you." Ember covered up her marks at this point, feeling she needed to hide them under her collar and hair as he grabbed her hand and continued their journey down the sidewalk.

                      "Ember," he said as they walked back, "about the bank account, I saw the way you looked at the money, it was that kind of W-T-F mixed with a little bit of hurt. I never brought it up because no one ever asked, if someone doesn't ask I typically avoid explaining anything. But I wanted you to know I'm not hiding it intentionally, what I did after Gradia to earn this money was, even by my standards, a little out there." He shrugged, He further explained the use of his account, Ember feeling more relieved that he was opening up to her about it. With her money curiosity gone, no further needing an explanation, she looked at the hotel and felt Daxter kiss her cheek softly, turning her head to look at him, "I'm just going to say it again: that dance was the hottest thing I'd ever seen." Looking up at the floor they would be on she suddenly felt herself being dragged away from the hotel, Daxter taking her somewhere else entirely. "W-Wait Daxter, where are we--" "Close your eyes, keep them closed." Daxter then lead Ember as she curiously thought where in the world he could have possibly been taking her. When the temperature changed from being outside to in a different building, Ember felt he her hand on a cool glass counter. What's going on? "I called earlier about that...erm...thing. Dax McLain, I just need to get the size right so I brought my entire girlfriend." Size? Ember would feel a stranger's hand touching hers, wrapping something around her right ring finger, taking a few moments before Daxter moved in front of Ember and slid something on her finger. She was instructed to open her eyes.

                      She opened her eyes, looking down and keeping her gaze fixated on the item now wrapped on her right ring finger. "I am a mess. I am immature, loud, annoying, devilishly handsome, but ultimately a wacky goofball in a world of suits and ties. Everyone is so serious, so straight faced but I'm just not wired to be like that, not all the time. I am such a pain in the a** and you know what? I'm okay with that. I'm okay with all of it. I finally learned to love myself. But do you know how many women just get tired of the man-child thing? My Little Pony, all kinds of anime obsessions, video games, I mean I might be sexy as hell but my personality and interests leave a lot to be desired for what people want in a lifelong partner, hell a husband and father too. I would be a terrible father, I should be sterilized. Anyone who procreates with me is a retard. That said, I'm not ready to get married, maybe in a few years, maybe never. But I know I would be lost without you. You drive me crazy, you make me jealous, make me mad, you make me want to better myself and die just trying to protect you. You put up with me, you say you even love me, and I love you back. I might never want to get married, but this...promise ring...is a symbol that if I ever do want to get married it's going to be to you. I have come a long way from handing you a necklace and walking away, I am spewing out emotional bullshit like it's nothing. Well almost nothing, I'm fighting the urge to walk away. But, Ember, I really do care about you, sometimes I don't show it enough, but...I do." Ember looked at the black ring wrapped around her finger, the red and blue flames engraved onto the ring's edges. She widened her eyes, looking at it then back to Daxter.

                      "Soon as I heard we were coming to Vegas I put my order in, I've known for a while I couldn't be without you, I figured you might as well have a real symbol on how serious I am about you. The heart necklace is great but...let's admit it I bought it on a whim. This thing I put thought into, I sketched a design for hours before emailing it to these guys here. Blue for your flames. Red for my flames. I love you, Ember, you've stuck by my bullshit for so long, I really hope you stay for a lot longer." Daxter kissed her quickly, Ember's eyes glowing silver from the shock of feeling his warm lips on hers. He... He pulled away slowly, looking at her as she seemed frozen in place. Her blood, though hot, seemed to stop, as her muscles twitched. She looked down at the ring on her finger once more, then grabbed his hand. She wasn't speaking, only as she lifted her left wrist to her mouth, looking down at the clean skin of her wrists and seeing the spot. She bared her dragon fangs, piercing into a specific vessel as a mixture of red blood slowly trickled from her wrist, but had shown more silver. That silver stream, Ember cringed to control, lifting from its liquefied state from her wound as she refocused it on his right ring finger, wrapping it around. Her silver eyes sharpened and narrowed as he powers were activated, the blood seeming to pulsate with her until it started to solidify around his finger. The ring formed as a solid steel band, Ember manipulating the empty spaces with her god power to seal in the formation. She narrowed her eyes, breathing rapidly as she concentrated as she powers constricted, electricity and static suddenly pulsating from where she was standing.

                      She held his hand tightly, watching the ring form as she closed her eyes and the static rippled off. Her god power kicked in, then placing a sapphire and ruby jem on the empty spaces and completely sealing her blood away and creating a ring with a dragonic texture around the band. Her silver eyes dulled, her knees weak, but she stood up still, looking at Daxter's hand and at the ring. She ran her finger over it carefully, then looking up at him and saying, "This is part of me... And I'm giving it to you." She gave an exhausted sigh as she stood up and moved her bangs slightly from her face, holding Daxters right hand with both of hers as she studied it carefully. "My father... swore to always protect my mother long before they ever got married. He still loved her, and unknowing of if they would wed, he wanted to promise her that he would always be there for her. He wanted to show her the greatest affection one could give in the worlds. Dragons... take a great pride in themselves. They are magnificent creatures, unnatural and proud. They care about their bodies, and condition themselves to be in the best shape. That's what I was told about them... anyway... But my father made that everlasting promise to her and sealed it with a ring fabricated by his own blood. His blood, the blood of a steel dragon. And I want to make that promise to you... like I never have for anybody before."

                      Ember looked from the ring back up to him, "Daxter, I'm always going to be here for you. If I can control it, I'll make sure that nothing ever harms you. I'll love you, even if you don't think things will work out with me. My journey used to be filled with sadness, torment, and loneliness. Being asked to go to Alaska with you was the greatest decision I've made, and I can't imagine being in a world like this without you. Without you, Haine would have killed me in that stadium in Gradia. The Wolfpack would have torn me to shreds, and Vance would have killed me on different occasions. But you were there to prevent me from falling, picking me up at my worst conditions and seeing past the monster I thought I was becoming. I love you... and I just want you to know that." She kissed his hand, closing her eyes. "Don't ever forget how much I love you, or you'll be the first to break a steel heart completely."

                      Meanwhile back at the hotel... Nill was being led into the hotel room, being set on the bed while Noah offered to get a glass of water. Any stammers, blushes, the surprise of seeing Nill as she was now, she didn't want him to go. "No--" she said as she pulled his shirt, surprising him with how hard a tug she made on the back of his shirt and caused him to fall on his back on the bed. Noah would have no time to get back up as Nill sat on his stomach and quickly closed the distance. She kissed him deeply, slightly off her normal coordination for still being drunk, but smoothly running her tongue against his lips, she kissed him until she was forced back to stop kissing him. Was it need for air? Was he embarrassed? Nill only grabbed one of his hands and held it against her cheek, looking down at him, she hovered above his lips, unbuttoning his shirt and placing her hands against his chest, "N-Noah... Please...." she nuzzled softly into his hand, kissing the top of it gently as she then set it down, intertwining her fingers in his and moving her lips closer, "D-Don't make me wait. I... I really want you. I love you, and I.. I want you to touch me." She kissed his lips, trembling slightly but speaking soft, seductively, "You always make me feel like I've never felt before. I need that feeling, and you are the only one I ever want it from. P-Please Noah," she hovered above his lips, unbuttoning his shirt and placing her hands against his chest, "P-Please kiss me."

                      She straddled him, her eyes looking into his as she wiggles out of the business jacket he had wrapped around her waist, hers hands tracing up and down his figure as she leaned back, sitting up and taking off what wasn't necessary. It was hot everywhere, and Nill was becoming too succumbed to heat. The sweat glistened off her from earlier, the snaking movements she had used earlier showing signs she was still able to move just like that, and looked at Noah, "I'll do anything... I'm starving."

Dangerous Lunatic

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                              Despite the control of time flowing through his fingers, Kaito was running out of it a lot quicker than he would ever have assumed. He was in over his head, controlled by a man with more power than he did even with a God power at his side, and to make matters worse his love interest was someone he had to distance himself from, no matter how painful it was for either of them. He didn't arrive in the apartment to see her, but he couldn't stop himself from letting time flow for her as well, watching and listening as he explained what he did to Adam about finding the special people that Vance was after, and then how he had to protect her. Despite every warning bell in his head going off, he went against all of it to speak to her about how he needed to protect her, why he was doing it, and ultimate that he loved her -- something he'd never said before. He didn't have time to explain more, or say all that he wanted, despite the overwhelming might of the still-growing Time Lord power he was still at the mercy of the Time Stream. To pause time without consequence would mean to become a god, as a Time Lord all he could do was hold it for longer, a dozen minutes instead of a few, and take less effort in doing so. But Time wouldn't yield to him, it couldn't be pushed back and so it continued trying to press forward like a hundred ton steel train trying to press on while he held back, just to get a few extra seconds with Umiko.

                              Kaito's skin felt like it was on fire, his lungs were burning like he was inhaling ash and smoke, his eyes were stinging and all the pain receptors of his body screamed at him. He could feel the sharp pain of Time's fighting ripping his body open, the time energy flowing through him as he held back the train, unleashing the full power of the Time Stream through his pores and ripping his skin apart. He bled, he ached, he hurt, and he pushed forward. He wasn't going to let this kill him, he wasn't going to bleed to death in front of Umiko and Adam while just trying to tell him everything, and tell her enough. Kaito could feel this crippling pain pulsing through his veins, his heart, it beat against the constriction of Time's embrace. Pausing Time was the most difficult power anyone could ever accomplish, because you weren't pausing an area, you were pausing the entire Time Stream, every single universe connected to it. If a universe lost sync with another it could collapse the whole system, so Kaito didn't pause time for Valor, he paused it for everything that ever did and will exist. The fabric of reality was on hold for this conversation, and every person who was unpaused with Kaito were removed from reality, from the Time Stream so they could speak. The complexities of Time were why being a Soldier of Time was the most demanding thing one could do. Kaito weighed every possible action, everything he did he scrutinized, and everything he did was for the protection of the continued Time Stream. He was what an Angel was to God, a soldier, a protector, if God was threatened then an Angel would arrive. He was an Angel of Time.

                              Kaito knew his time was coming to an end, if he didn't resume the timeline, putting Umiko and Adam back into their unfrozen reality, then he would be killed as the train of time pushed ahead and crushed him underneath its power. He could only allot them 48 seconds, only 2 seconds after he'd created the gas leak, but he knew Adam would be fast enough to save more than enough people with few casualties. Disappearing from the apartment with time resuming, Kaito going back to safety to nurse his wounds, Adam began work on darting into every single room, every single area so he could find and carry those who were stuck in the area to safety. He concentrated on people that Umiko wasn't able to save, but to his amazement the two of them were able to get everyone in the neighborhood to a safe distance. Adam stood next to Umiko as she cast a shield to protect everyone from the impending explosion, looking over to her with a faint smile. "This is where we part ways, Umiko. Kaito said I have to die in the apartment, so that's what's going to happen. Tell your boyfriend thanks, and yeah he's forever your stubborn boyfriend." Adam put a hand on Umiko's shoulder, counting down the seconds in his head, "I hope to see you again, and good luck. He really cares about you, and I know you care about him too. I hope I find a girlfriend half as concerned with me as you are with him. See you on the other side." Adam practically disappeared, moving so fast he sparked an instant sonic boom as he ran around the shield and towards the apartment building. His mind was racing as fast as he was, heading into his apartment and taking everything he could save in a matter of seconds, the explosion rumbling from deep within the ground and expanding throughout the neighborhood. The fireball rose towards the sky with Adam still inside, every house consumed by the fire as it destroyed everything in a large crater. The explosion kicked up high speed winds, the rumbling caused a small tremor all the way out to downtown Vegas. Adam was gone, letting himself die in the apartment, at least to everyone watching that was how it went, dead to the world. Umiko would watch the fireball die out, the fires raging through the grass, trees, and wood that hadn't been obliterated in the explosion. Minus Adam, everyone was perfectly safe thanks to them. They were heroes.

                              Back in Vegas, the tremor mostly ignored as the clubs with loud music blaring hid the momentary shaking, and the fireball almost blending in to the bright neon lights, Team Defiance was enduring their own struggles as Daxter, Takashi, and Noah were experiencing a guy's night out sponsored by Daxter, courtesy of the local strip club. The men were shocked to see that Ember was their waitress, and the one who was going to be giving Takashi a lap dance. Noah was shocked she was here, which meant Nill couldn't be far behind, Daxter was shocked he didn't know this about her, and Takashi was shocked because Ember had a real fire to her second only to Daxter, and she was going to give him a lap dance? He didn't know what to think about it, but as his mind settling into the idea of Ember, who was such a beautiful woman, dancing for him, he couldn't help but agree to the idea. After all, he was probably screwed either way, if Daxter was going to punish him for accepting a lap dance from his girlfriend, then he was going to die with Ember's amazing body grinding against him. While Noah took off to find Nill, Ember got to work dancing for him, and it turned. him. on. Takashi was practically hypnotized by her moving hips, the way her hands trailed up his body, her body, her hair flowing like a fire on her head. Daxter wasn't just lucky, he was the luckiest, having to have a woman like that in bed with him, making love or having sex, just experiencing her like that. It didn't take long for Takashi to get lost in the dance and just imagine a naked Ember dancing against him. Daxter was right, or would be right in about 15 minutes: he was a loser. Takashi had spent so much time as a recluse because of his powers that he never had a social life, much social interaction. The closest thing he'd had to a girlfriend in years was Lynette, and she was avoiding him, hiding from him, all kinds of things. She wasn't even a girlfriend, just a girl he liked. Takashi was handsome, he was talented, and he was rich, but it couldn't make up for a personality that had a lot to be desired.

                              Takashi's eyes opened as he felt Ember move away from him, seeing Daxter pull her off of him as her bra was exposed for him, suddenly questioned like a police suspect about whether or not she was hot. Of course she was, but he wouldn't admit that, at least until Daxter's back-and-forth bipolar questioning caused him to just blurt out he wanted to have sex with her, then running away. While he hid in the bathroom bonking his head against the stall, Daxter was pissed about what Ember was doing and confronted her about it. But something was off, as much as Daxter was angry he was jealous too, and Ember's display was something magnificent, arousing, and absolutely perfect. The only thing about it he wanted changed was that he would be the one to receive the lap dance, and he went ahead and was honest with Ember. He was jealous, he wanted the lap dance, he didn't want anyone to touch her like him or experience her like he did. In the end they admitted to one another that they were jealous. Ember was afraid that he was going to be eyeballing the other women, looking at them like he looked at her, and he had to call her an idiot because all he wanted was her, he didn't come to the club for him, it wasn't even for Noah, it was mostly for Takashi. Daxter could peg Takashi as a loser from the start, his quiet shy demeanor was a far cry from any sort of movie star, and because of that he wanted to help his new best friend get better with girls. He only wanted her. She only wanted him.

                              The two were kissing and making out something fierce, even the customers were taking notice and finding their display hotter than the current girl on stage, who left shortly afterward so the next dancer could arrive. If not for the announcement Daxter would have taken Ember to a private room and let her give him what he wanted, and then in their aroused state he would be happy to satisfy her, please her, and make her remember she was the only one he wanted to look at. Surprisingly, though, the announcement was enough that Daxter stopped his actions when he heard Noah yell out Ember's name. To everyone's surprise, and amazement, Nill came out from the back and began dancing with the kind of grace and skill of a veteran stripper. Takashi came out of the bathroom to look at Nill and see her in a new light, Daxter calling her a slut bunny in surprise to which only Ember and Noah had actually heard.

                              Nill's dance was breathtaking, Noah wasn't sure how to react so he only sat and watched as she came to him and wanted her to take him home. He couldn't even be mad, she was stunning, the most beautiful woman in the building to him and he wanted to take her home too. He, though, couldn't let himself do anything to her, she was drunk and he wouldn't want to take advantage of her. He pulled off his jacket and covered her with it, taking a cab home after holding Ember and Daxter responsible for the night they were having, which honestly Daxter was going to assume was a good thing, because this night was a hell of a lot of fun. Speaking of fun, Daxter decided to mess with Takashi a little more before he was free to go, who left quickly to return to the hotel and lock himself in his room for some private time after everything he'd seen and done.

                              Noah sat Nill in the back of the taxi and told the driver what hotel they were staying at, and they were immediately underway. But Nill was quick to get out of her seat belt and climb on top of him, whispering to him seductively. Noah looked up at her beautiful teal-turquoise eyes that stared at him with such admiration, but he couldn't let himself be taken in by her, he didn't want to take advantage of his angel when she was drunk. He couldn't. He had to remain strong while still avoiding to hurt her feelings by pushing her away, he didn't want to see her cry. Though the ten minute drive was turning into an eternity, he was losing resolve, he couldn't keep himself from touching her if they continued on. Her seduction continued, moving his dress shirt slightly to reveal his collar, finding a spot she wanted while licking and kissing it, working on leaving a love mark. Noah shivered in pleasure, he shuddering an exhaled sigh from his lips, closing his eyes as she continued to leave a mark on his neck. "N-Nill," he said almost breathlessly. "Oh Noah..." she shuddered softly as she moved his hand up her leg and under the business jacket he had tied around her waist. "T-Tell me you love me too." He could feel her soft smooth skin, inching closer to her inner thigh as Nill guided his hand to almost touch her, feeling the warmth from her intimate area. "Nill...I...love you too." He remained as stiff as he could, but she was moving his hand enough for him, until the driver finally arrived to the hotel. Noah and Nill quickly escaped the back seat and he paid for the ride, with a generous tip included since he didn't want to bother with change and instead lifted Nill up into their hotel room.

                              The rush of cool air from the air condition was a relief, he could cool down after such a display and get Nill into bed, a glass of water to help relieve tomorrow's hangover, setting her on the bed to get it. He was surprised that she told him no and pulled him onto his back on the bed, looking up at the ceiling. "Nill, what are you -- " his words were interrupted when she sat on his stomach, looking down at him for only a moment until she leaned down to kiss him deeply, her tongue against his lips. He wanted to push away, do something, but she was so amazing, so beautiful, that his drunk angel was winning this battle and he couldn't stop himself. Defiance's most dangerous foe was his own fiancee, and there was nothing he could do to stop it, because there was nothing he wanted more than her. Still, despite her winning he was able to push her away so he could inhale deeply, catching his breath from their deeply passionate kissing. She, in response, grabbed one hand and held it against her cheek, instinctively brushing his thumb against it as she unbuttoned his shirt and held her hands against his chest, all the while hovering above his lips in such a teasing fashion. "N-Noah... Please...." she whispered softly, nuzzling her cheek into his hand. "Nill, I --" She kissed his hand and intertwined their fingers together, her teasing lips moving closer. "D-Don't make me wait. I... I really want you. I love you, and I.. I want you to touch me." She kissed him, he could feel her tremble, and Noah melted as she spoke her mind, told him what she wanted. Perhaps being drunk was the only way she could really have the courage to tell him exactly what she wanted without embarrassment, maybe despite being drunk because of Daxter she knew what she was doing and was doing it to get what she wanted. Speaking softly, seductively, she continued to make him melt with her words, "you always make me feel like I've never felt before. I need that feeling, and you are the only one I ever want it from. P-Please Noah," she put her hands against his chest again, Noah shivering slightly. "I..." He didn't know what to say, he was at a loss for words. "P-Please kiss me." "A-Anything you want, lover."

                              She straddled him, her eyes looking into his as she wiggles out of the business jacket he had wrapped around her waist, hers hands tracing up and down his figure as she leaned back, sitting up and taking off what wasn't necessary. Noah was burning up, he was trapped by her desires, his body heating up as she was stripping for him and all he could do was lay there like he was paralyzed. The sweat glistened off her from earlier, the snaking movements she had used earlier showing signs she was still able to move just like that, and looked at Noah, "I'll do anything... I'm starving." He couldn't stand it anymore, he wanted her and she was going to get what she wanted. He rolled to pin her to the bed and kissed her with passion and lust, whispering, "take off your clothes for me." He told her as he pushed off onto his feet, kicking off his shoes, pulling off his socks, and stripping off every piece of clothing that was only getting in the way anyway. In her drunken state she was more than eager to get herself nude for him, the two heated bodies tangling together on bed as they kissed, sucked, licked, and toyed with their other half's bodies. Nill was surprisingly active, touching him so freely and holding him in her soft hand, stroking him gently. Noah was kissing her neck, chest, and kissing her breasts as she shuddered and squealed in delight. The two were going at it like horny teenagers for the first time, their hot breath counteracting the air conditioning and keeping things warm. Their passionate moment lasted well into the night, turning the first time they'd ever made love on its head into something so hot, heavy, and almost animal that their love making tonight was something much more powerful. By morning Noah would be worn out by his angel, she having exhausted him with all her lust and need.

                              While Noah and Nill were enjoying perhaps the most intense and arousing night of their lives together, Daxter and Ember were sharing a more romantic side, an ironic turn of events as the two couples seemingly swapped what was normal for them. It was common for Noah and Nill to be romantic while Ember and Daxter were just fiery, but tonight they seemingly swapped lives as Daxter showed a rarely seen romantic as he presented her with a promise ring that, should he ever feel ready for it, he would get married to her. It was beautiful, in fact it was personally made based on their abilities. This wasn't like the heart necklace, this was something he put time into, sank money into, and wanted to make perfect. His speech about her was inspiring, sweet, something far different from what Daxter had been used to saying. This time was nothing but loving, showing her a side to him no one else had ever seen before. She didn't reply to it, Daxter wondering if maybe he'd done a little much, until she bit into her wrist and controlled the silvery blood around his right ring finger into a dragon-like ring of his own, her God power creating a ruby and sapphire, her abilities forming jewelry he could wear to signify their eternal partnership, even if they never got married, it didn't seem likely they would be parting from one another, and he hoped that was true.

                              Ember talked about her father, a little about their species, making a promise that she would always be here for him like she'd never been for anyone else. He promised her to remain by her side, and now she was promising the same thing. It was surprisingly emotional to be loved so unconditionally by someone else, especially now that he cared about that sort of thing. He could be himself around her, accepted for what he loved and what he obsessed about. This was so far on the other end of the spectrum from 10 years ago that he had to wonder if he was living as a completely different person now, and the only answer he could think of was yes. Daxter McLain was so much different now than he ever was before that he didn't think he could think of himself as the same person from his teenage years. He was glad for that, finally happy.

                              "You were there to prevent me from falling, picking me up at my worst conditions and seeing past the monster I thought I was becoming. I love you... and I just want you to know that. Don't ever forget how much I love you, or you'll be the first to break a steel heart completely." Daxter smiled as he looked down, for probably the 50th time during her speech, at the ring she formed for him. He laughed slightly, "you're such a show-off." He said grabbing her around the waist and pulling her close, teasing her lips with his own, "I design and have made a beautiful ring for you in a period of weeks, and you one-up me in minutes. You...are such a huge pain." He grinned though, it was the most thoughtful thing anyone had ever done or given him before, "not everything is a competition, babe." Daxter kissed her before she could argue what he said, holding her cheeks in his hand as he bit her lip playfully while pulling away from her, looking into her gorgeous emerald green eyes, "I love you. Let's go back to the hotel."

                              Ember and Daxter made it back to the hotel, hearing the throes of passion from Noah and Nill's room, Daxter putting his ear against the hotel door. "Wow, they're really putting the porn I watch to shame," Daxter looked to Ember with a bit of a grin, "think we could have more fun than them?" Ember playfully punched him in the shoulder and went into their room, technically her and Nill's room but it was apparent that Nill would be busy with Noah tonight, Daxter following her into it. "Alright, no, that's cool I'm just gonna cuddle you tonight anyway. You know, unless you want to do anything." Daxter shut the door behind him and grinned as Ember went to sit on the bed, running a hand up her leg and staring with a wanting look at Daxter. He darted to the bed and tackled her, kissing her passionately. After such a wonderful night perhaps it wasn't surprising that the two couples would be ending with such passion. While Noah and Nill enjoyed their intense session of love-making well into the night, Daxter and Ember made a more gentle love between them, full of desire and passion, the bodies of two lovers in tune with one another on a new level. Gentle, soft, caring, attentive, making sure she was happy, pleasured, Daxter was nothing short of a magnificent lover to Ember, and the two of them would be going to bed happy, satisfied, and deeply in love.

                              By the time Team Defiance woke up after such a night, most of the guests that would be going to breakfast had already ate and run, gambling or taking in the sights, leaving the dining hall empty for when the team would use it. Noah woke up as the sun shined through the window and hit him in the face, yawning but finding his muscles were sore from last night, looking as their room was a mess from their clothes strewn everywhere, the blanket on the dresser, the sheets laid out across the floor carelessly, and half of the bed's mattress off the frame. He and Nill had certainly been rough, but loving as could be, last night. He groaned painfully as he sat up, looking down to his beautifully nude angel as the sweat and juices from last night could still be seen between her legs and on her body. Noah blushed slightly from the sight of his angel in such a position, something he wasn't used to seeing but unable to look away from the beautiful curves of her body shining in the sunlight. He was enamored by her, completely in love and though every muscle he had was sore, he was crazy about her.

                              Nill's eyes slowly opened after such a night, taking in the sights of how their room looked from their movements last night, "morning, lover." Noah said to her with a smile as he pulled her up so he could kiss her lips. "How are you feeling? I'm sore, you wore me out last night, I may have finally met my match." He chuckled lightly, kissing her again, "take a shower with me." He said softly, leaning down to her ear as she was in the process of waking up, "I want to wash your beautiful body." If she hadn't woken up yet, that would definitely perk her up. Noah scooted off the bed and helped Nill up, the two of them going off for a couple's shower as it seemed that was what Noah wanted, and Nill was rarely one to disappoint her hero.

                              Daxter's eyes opened, his mouth emitting a faint yawn as he looked down to his nude fire goddess cuddled up to him. The two were underneath the covers unlike the dirtier pair next door to them, who would be cleaning up the hotel room after their shower. Daxter carefully got out of bed without disturbing Ember, heading off to the shower with a towel and a change of clothes. Nude from the events of last night, Daxter turned on the shower's water to as hot as it could be, stepping underneath the shower head as the water sizzled against his skin, but feeling like a warm rain against his skin. He shuddered softly as he placed a hand on the slick wall of the shower, looking up to the steaming water falling from the spout. The hot water struck his face and slid down to his chest, the droplets sliding across every defined muscle of his body. His hair matted to his face, his red eyes blinking as his thoughts crossed to Ember and her lap dance, to their kissing, and to the love they made last night. He could feel himself aroused at the thought of her, smiling softly as he turned his back against the water and let it trickle down his every scar, his lower back, sliding down across his smooth skin to the bottom of the shower and to the drain. He could feel that arousal, powerful in his thoughts for Ember, causing him to visibly show signs of it, suddenly surprised when he heard the shower curtain pull back to find Ember joining him in the shower. "I couldn't...let you enjoy this alone." She said softly as the hot scalding water felt good against the fire-staters' skin, Ember pressing her wet, slick body against Daxter's wet hard body, the two kissing underneath the shower head as Ember's hands pressed against his chest, feeling his ever flaw she loved so deeply, his scars she adored so much.

                              Meanwhile, Nill seemed back to her old self as Noah wrapped his arms around her neck and pressed his toned body against her delicate skin, the two enjoying a cooler shower than their heated counterparts. Noah was taking in every detail of perfection in Nill's body, her eyes opening to look at the marks on his neck, chest, stomach, and lower that her mouth and kisses had left. She blushed, the cool water doing nothing to help ease the warmth her face was producing. Noah chuckled lightly as the cool water coated his every hardened muscle, "you were adventurous last night, love." Nill emitted a small squeak as she tried to speak, he wondered if she could remember any of it, or if it was all a blur. He hoped, secretly, that everything she wanted and had done was remembered because he had enjoyed last night and hoped that someday he would get a repeat performance. However, if not, he would love her all the same.

                              Noah grabbed the body wash and lathered it up with a loofah sponge, pressing it against her stomach and kissing her softly, voluntarily washing her body for her. Nill acted much like he did last night, remaining stiff until he moved her, out of pure embarrassment. Noah found it cute, adorable even, smiling as he turned her back to him and started to carefully wash her back, running his hand across her small, beautiful, wet angel wings. "I love you so much, angel. You mean everything to me." Noah leaned forward and kissed her back between her wings softly, wrapping his arms around her from behind as he held her tightly, giving himself a few minutes to enjoy her before continuing their shower.

                              The couples finished their shower together, got their stuff in order and cleaned up their messes of which Daxter and Ember had none to worry about. Dressed and prepared for whatever their mercenary tour guide would present them with today, they all made it down to the dining hall where Daxter seemed to disappear while the remaining four enjoyed breakfast to an area all to themselves. To their surprise, Daxter arrived back to the table without a word, until he stood behind Noah and spoke, "mornin' brother." Noah looked up from the paper he was reading while everyone glanced to Daxter for his sudden arrival, Takashi looking up with a start. 'Oh, great, we're doing the "brother" thing again.' Noah mentally sighed, then figured he would play along. "Hello, brother." Noah replied, looking back to the paper. "I made a pot of kool-aid," Daxter replied, holding up a pot of red liquid in it, the liquid splashing about inside. This was the moment everyone looked up but, due to their utter confusion, said absolutely nothing. Only Noah spoke, looking back at Daxter and his pot, "you don't make a pot of kool-aid." This seemed almost illogical to hear, because he acted almost confused on why one didn't make a pot of kool-aid, possibly thinking it was normal. "Well...I-I did."

                              "Is it hot?" Noah asked, looking back for a moment as Daxter shrugged in reply, "maybe maybe not." "It's hot isn't it?" "Yep!" Daxter replied, a slight laugh to his reply as he displayed the pot of kool-aid higher into the air, the liquid spilling slightly over the rim and onto the carpeted floor. Noah thought this was the strangest thing, and no one else could come up with any reason to speak, staying silent at this weird exchange. "Hot kool-aid?" "Well I could put some ice in it if you like." Daxter replied, glancing back to where the ice would be located. "Oh, no, I'm not thirsty." Noah picked up his cup of coffee and took a sip of it. "Brother!" "I'm not going to drink it!" Noah wasn't just slightly disgusted by hot kool-aid, but he was somewhat weary of what Daxter may have added to it. Spices and such. Never again after last time. "I made this for you!" Daxter suddenly said, to the surprise of the table. This was clearly him ******** with Noah, at least that's what the consensus was hoping to be the case. Noah was not having it. "No." He said sternly.

                              Daxter was agitated. "Drink it!" "No!" "I want you to drink this!!" "I'm not drinking it!" Noah replied, still firm in his decision. "Drink this right now or I'll pour it on the floor and blame it on you!!" 'Oh my god is this really happening?' Takashi thought to himself as this exchange continued. "Oh yeah," Noah laughed, "real mature." "I MADE THIS FOR YOU!!" Daxter said loudly, yelling to Noah about the hot kool-aid. "Oh grow up," Noah replied, clearly tired of Daxter's childishness. "I DID...BECAUSE I LOVE YOU!!" If anyone at the table had tried to ignore Daxter and go back to their plate of food...well it wasn't happening anymore. 'What the hell...' Noah thought, just unable to comprehend what he was doing, or what Daxter was doing for that matter. Screw it, Noah wasn't going to give into Daxter's insanity.

                              "Well I'm not going to drink it." He told him flat out, Daxter gritting his teeth and suddenly yelling, "I HATE YOU!!" "That's all I ever hear, you make some stupid mixture you want me to try. Remember back in LA? What was it you made...uh...cinnamon toast and...what was it..." "mayonnaise. It was a good idea!" "Let's not forget Rocky Road and Tabasco. What was it, three hospitalized? You cook stupid things and want me to try it." "YOU. DRINK THIS. RIGHT. NOOOOOW!!!!" "Drink your own damn kool-aid!" The table was in stunned silence. "There's so much left what am I going to do with all this hot kool-aid?!" Daxter replied in surprise curiosity. "Drink it!" Noah was annoyed. "No!!" "Yes!" "NO!!!"

                              Daxter quickly moved to his seat, sliding into it where he could look at Noah while sitting next to him, the pot of kool-aid on the table in front of him. "Brother." "...yes?" He replied in a slight sigh. "Please. Drink. My. Hot. Kool-aid." Daxter said in a whispered, but strong, tone. He poured a glass of the hot liquid and slid it over to Noah, who eyed it cautiously. "Okay." Noah finally relented, knowing this would never end if he didn't try it. If he had to be in the bathroom all day just to get this over with, so be it. "Okay." Noah grabbed the glass and held it up to his lips, almost studying it for a moment before he finally pushed the bottom of the glass a little into the air and took the liquid into his mouth, tasting it before finally swallowing it. He set the glass back down on the table as everyone, Noah and Daxter included, remained silent for several seconds while he analyzed the taste of the liquid he just ingested. Noah then exhaled in an almost relieved sigh, "yeah, that's pretty good." Daxter looked at him, almost astonished, as Noah finished with, "yeah I like that."

                              Daxter stood up from the table with the pot of kool-aid in hand, walking away but stopped by Noah who took the pot and put it back down on the table, causing Daxter to walk away empty handed. It was a strange event for the team to watch, even stranger for Noah to partake in, but in the end Daxter returned to the table and began eating in silence, almost as though he was a defeated puppy eating quietly so as not to disturb anyone. Then, finally, he spoke up, "I'm taking Ember on a date today, I figure we can meet-up at 7 at the Planet Vegas Theater for the magic show tonight. I've taken the liberty of ordering us some cosplay outfits for the Anime Expo event we can go to tomorrow, the outfits will be here later today." Takashi suddenly asked, "uh...what are the costumes?" "Outfits, Taka, outfits! And it's a secret. We all have one, I know you'll love it. We've got Gurren Lagaan, Puella Magi Madoka Magica -- " "Oh my god I love that one..." Takashi said suddenly, looking away as the table stared at him. "And some other cool costumes from other series' I like." "So we do our own thing until the magic show tonight?" "That's my plan, I don't care what y'all do but I want to treat Ember to something nice." "Sounds like a plan. Before you go...what the hell was up with the hot kool-aid?" "I make things. You try them. If you don't I yell. Then you do. It's just lucky hot kool-aid is harmless this time, not unlike your stomach virus from eating the mayo and cinnamon toast." Daxter cackled as he stood up from his empty plate and walked away, planning to enjoy the day with Ember.

                              Noah didn't know what to say as Daxter got up, so he just let him leave. Since Daxter was planning on a day with Ember, unless she decided to have other plans, Noah would spend the day with Nill and show her the sights. There was a zoo that was supposedly vastly superior to the one that he'd taken her as their first date back when he was working with Vance, so that would be a good place to go. There was also the crater from the gas leak explosion last night that, surprisingly, none of them picked up on that he wanted to check out. No one had been hurt or killed in it, some of the witnesses describing a blur and magic running water carrying them to safety, but no names or descriptions on the heroes. Noah didn't know anyone that could be a blur, but it sounded Gifted and worth checking out, as for the water he knew Mizu had that power, but was dead, so he wondered about Umiko. She was connected to Mizu, if she died would Umiko gain her power? Was that possible? Or was there another water-based Gifted out there. Either way, it needed to be explored.

                              Noah stood up from the table and returned to the hotel room to pick up his utility belt before heading out for the day. Once everyone had parted ways in whatever combination they would go, this to be the time for Nill or Ember to speak up about wanting to hang out with one another instead of their fiance or boyfriend, it was time to start the day and see what new exciting things would occur. Day 2 of New Vegas was sure to be just as fulfilling as the first day of their vacation.

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                      Umiko had casted the shield before her, looking grim to the neighborhood and surroundings that were going to blow to bits. Her purple hair whipped from the wind as the bangs plastered to her face. She then turned to Adam's voice, "This is where we part ways, Umiko. Kaito said I have to die in the apartment, so that's what's going to happen. Tell your boyfriend thanks, and yeah he's forever your stubborn boyfriend." Umiko widened her eyes, slightly surprised at what Adam had said, but before she could say anything about the title he'd given Kaito... he stopped her. She felt a small smirk on her face lift, although she was sad to see him go. "I..." Adam put a hand on Umiko's shoulder, counting down the seconds in his head, "I hope to see you again, and good luck. He really cares about you, and I know you care about him too. I hope I find a girlfriend half as concerned with me as you are with him. See you on the other side." "A-Adam, this isn't goodbye!" Umiko spoke as he dashed. The feeling of his hand once laying on her shoulder pressed firmly into her heart as her eyes raced to see his blur back to his apartment. She couldn't imagine the risk he was taking to 'die' in there, but somehow, even with him having to disappear, she felt tears start fill her eyes. Vance takes everything from the people who do nothing but struggle until we're left with nothing... even our existence... But I promise, Adam, that I won't let you hide in the darkness very long. You will travel again, freely.

                      She watched carefully, only a few seconds lasting and she was left to stand there with thoughts running through her head. Kaito's appearance throwing her entirely off guard, then Adam having to 'die' to the world and winced her eyes as the explosion started with a powerful tremor in the ground. Umiko's eyes widened as she watched, the leak causing a powerful fireball to rip through the ground upward and skyward. As the explosion kicked up the high speed winds, Umiko held up the shield with as much strength as she could muster. While watching the destruction before her, the homes of these people, the tears contained in her shield, their crying loud, Umiko joined them as she screamed against the explosion. "VAAAAAANNNNCE!" she shouted as the wind was so powerful and the voices of others consumed the air that she cried out in frustration. The smell of burning grass filled the air first, and was overwhelmed with more than that. The debris of broken houses were everywhere, all these people having worked so hard to make something out of nothing, desolated. Umiko looked behind her to the people that were in tears over what was happening, families huddled in groups around their children who would have nowhere to sleep they could call home for a while. Her heart raced as she made eye contact with some of them after she turned around and saw most of them looking at her. They were happy they were alive, not dead, overwhelmed with gratitude, but when a woman stood up in front of her, wanting to thank her Umiko stepped back to avoid physical contact. "D-Don't touch me..." Umiko said as she stuttered, the shadows hiding her eyes. "You are our hero!" "No..." Umiko said as tears fell down her cheeks, "...Not yet."

                      Umiko vanished after that, knowing the people would be able to fend for themselves after this, and the LA officials would offer them help. Umiko, however, disappeared to miles away, walking along the side of a highway as her arms fell limp to her sides. I'm not a hero yet. Umiko's eyes narrowed at LA in the far distance, her feet picking up pace as she walked to it. Even with it being somewhat far, she was willing to push through and actually walk there. She needed time to think about everything that had just transpired, so instead of using anymore magic to teleport herself, she took things slow. Kaito came there and gave Adam a mission... she thought quietly, her steps creating puddles of water. The way that he looked at me.. looked away and looked back from the corner of his eye... it hurt but I just didn't know what to think at first. It was like he wasn't sure how to handle me... Or what to do. I thought I should have been frozen in time. I almost preferred not hearing anything from him. I was so scared he was going to reject me, say something hurtful. I felt depressed in even thinking Kaito could be such a cold person... but I just didn't want to get hurt again. I nearly committed suicide, and seeing him there flashed nothing but the darkness in my heart to burst... that dark sadness... Umiko raised a clenched fist to her heart, feeling her face heat up slightly as she wiped the tears away from her cheeks, And then.. he turned to me... his heart reflecting in his eyes. The Kaito I loved so much was looking at me with frustration in having power, but not feeling like he had enough to truly change anything. I know that feeling... she thought as she recalled him walking away from her and following Vance... being at the base and seeing the Chroma generator with her own eyes.

                      He... He looked at me and while expressing his sorrows and frustrations... I had to resist with every fiber of my being to run up to him and hug him. I just wanted so badly to be in his arms, but anything I imagined him doing scared me. I... I-I don't want to be scared of the person I love... especially after being told that they love me back. There's never been a moment I've been away from him, but now that he is I feel the colder than sleeping at the bottom of the ocean for all those years. He told me he didn't want to have to be forced against me, or for Vance to use me against him. But I just have this undeniably strong urge to just seek his warmth in any way I can... and while I'm sitting here, feeling confused and broken in my puddle of emotions, Kaito... is fighting. He is... for me... I'm... I'm not a hero. Not yet. Umiko broke a soft smile, even while it held misery in it. She was close to Kaito again, but not in the way she wanted to be. Holding that closed fist against her heart was brought to her lips as she recalled every second of being within his reach and thought, But I.... I can't look at him without having to fight the urge of loving him. I want to be near him again, and I would do anything to do so. If that means I have to train myself to get stronger... to defeat Vance or die trying... I will. I should have never left Team Defiance... but I'm glad for the short time I did. After seeing what Vance is doing to these people... I need to tell the team. I have to let them know. Kaito... I'm... I'm fighting for us. I... I miss you so much. Umiko continued her walk, thinking about how much she missed him as the gears of her mind were turning towards revenge on Vance. A once pure soul... soiled with corruption and sadness was going to wake in power and vengeance.

                      Back in Vegas, nobody noticed the tremor caused by the explosion as it blended into everything else in the chaotic night. Ember would have noticed, but she was too preoccupied with having to balance protecting Nill, and jealousy. She's found the trio of men sitting by the stage up close, having women that were barely clothed bending their assets in attractive perspectives. To see Noah scoff showed his lack of interest. To see Takashi guilty but admiring wasn't frowned on because he was technically single. To see Daxter grinning between the two had ticked her off. She had widened her eyes in disbelief to the satisfied smirk she believed to be seeing on Daxter. Rather than thinking of Daxter being generous to Takashi, she couldn't imagine by the looks he was holding that he wanted to go to this club. Ember quickly assumed that Daxter wanted to come here to have fun, and Ember wasn't into him having this kind of fun. Maybe it was natural for most men to go to this kind of thing, but Ember was never acquainted with this sort of 'entertainment'. She'd heard of these things in the past, men hoping they would get lucky and see something to totally turn them on in the tease. She couldn't understand how somebody would find pleasure in that, but she learned her lesson quickly that men could be womanizers. The twists and curves of a woman were appealing, and thoughts had crossed her mind of using those assets as a weapon. Although, Ember was a conservative type. She wasn't confident her body was anything to use to seduce men, and DOGS Corps members were her only targets. Even then, she wasn't willing to come physically close to them for anything. She targeted, engaged in battle, and killed. Coming close to a man just to toy with him seemed like a waste of effort, and Ember felt it would dirty her techniques.

                      However, while seeing Daxter and the other boys enjoying themselves with girls running around half naked, Ember decided that if she would ever use her body as a weapon, this would be the time. She'd approached Takashi and stood in front of him, sizing her up with his eyes. His green hair with the black star dyed into it. His sharp fire-colored eyes looking at her. The faint blush located on his cheeks as he first denied her offer but was ultimately ignored, Ember didn't know much about him, but even with how he looked she saw somebody who wasn't as confident as his appearance. She wondered what happened to Hikaru, Lynnette, whatever her name was, but Ember figured she wouldn't be imposing on a relationship that wasn't official. Aside from the shocking looks she was getting from nearby tables, her peripherals were focused on Daxter, seeing him out of the corner of her eye. Truthfully, Ember's heart raced slightly at looking at Takashi, and she almost didn't want to do it. Maybe she's gotten revenge from her turn around and spreading his legs apart, but she felt the jealousy boil her blood and needed to see just what Daxter would do. She looked at Takashi, but her mind covered him as Daxter, and that's where the heart of her performance came from. She snaked in slow, sexual motions and went with the beat of the music. The red on her cheeks was evident, feeling like she was exposing a part of herself that the public hadn't witnessed until then, but she was entrancing herself into the motions. She moved her hips to the way Daxter would hold them, swerving them gently as she envisioned his hands running down her sides. Then when she sat on his lap and leaned back, she envisioned Daxter looking at her, studying her intently with her eyes. Rather than him undressing her with his eyes... she was doing it for him.

                      Then she was yanked away from Takashi and taken elsewhere. Her imagination snapped, and she felt Daxter pull her back and interrogate Takashi for how hot she was and if he was eyeballing her. As back and forth as he was, the argument Daxter made in defending Ember's attractiveness was pleasing her to ears, and an innocent smile graced her lips as she watched the moment between the two. The aftermath was something Ember paid for deeply. Not only was she dragged to a wall, pinned once again, but she was completely overpowered. She loved Daxter, and as much as she had a strong, defiant personality, Daxter melted all those defenses in a single instant. He surprised her, causing her to feel like Daxter was actually jealous. Her plan had worked, but soon backfired not soon after getting the surprising results. Daxter took her lips by force, kissing her passionately. In the corner of her wide-opened eyes, she could see some of the men behind him, blushing from the liquor they were drinking, the sight they were seeing... just staring at the lovers. Ember, who never showed her weak sides, was forced by Daxter to. Ember could barely contain her fluster from Daxter exposing this side of her in this kind of place, but her ultimate comfort came from his heat and the small comforting thought that these drunks would forget her. These were faces of strangers, and the only face she cared to remember her was the one that was mere millimeters from her own. She felt that lingering embarrassment as he continued to display just how she was his to hold, putting her up and forcing her to wrap her legs around him for support. Ember clutched his collar tightly while holding herself up, blushing brightly at her shirt open and exposed to him and him alone. I love you so much... she whined softly in her thoughts, now somewhat eager to go back home.

                      But she couldn't. Not long after Nill had come out, Noah seeing Daxter mildly upset. Ha. Mild. To everyone's surprise, and amazement, Nill came out from the back and began dancing with the kind of grace and skill of a veteran stripper. Takashi came out of the bathroom to look at Nill and see her in a new light, Daxter calling her a slut bunny in surprise to which only Ember and Noah had actually heard. Nill had some alcohol, and was definitely a light weight, but she was never more bold with her emotions before. Nill stood, her heart ready to leap out of her throat at the racing thoughts of Noah in her head. All throughout her performance, she whispered his name, every blink his image flashing vividly in her head, the sweat running down her body not because of a fire power like Ember, but just from the want and need of him. She looked around as she danced on the pole, then sliding to her knees in a slow motion. Her hands went from the top of her head and smoothed out to reveal every single curve on her body, sensually feeling herself as she imagined feeling Noah's hands on her, and what she wouldn't give at that moment to feel him too. I wish I could find him. Where are you. My hero? Nill could see all the paper that was being thrown onto the stage she was standing on, doing as she was told but as she crawled forward, slipping out of her skirt, she saw him. She couldn't ignore what she was seeing right in front of her, and crawled to him while breathless. Noah she took her small inches forward, her face looking up at his figure, her eyes glazed with desire. Noah she felt straps slip from her shoulder, her nervousness gone. She approached him, and he took her home.

                      Being near him and knowing it was him was overwhelming. She looked over to him sitting next to her. His built figure, but boyish charm. His brown locks and that bit of green streak that brought out the emerald in those eyes... those incredibly detailed, silky emerald irises that, when reflecting her in their vision, made her feel more incredible than she could looking into her own eyes. More than into anyone's. Noah made her feel alive with his touch, bringing all her senses to life as they refocused on him with such high intensity. She couldn't hold back, unbuckling herself and setting free the girl that needed to be on him, holding him, getting him to touch her and feel her heat. She whispered his name, no longer feeling the filter holding back her voice as she played his heart strings as elegantly as an angel on a harp. The song she heard from his lips was the sweetest sound on this planet, and she wanted more. She grabbed his hand and slid it up her leg, he could feel the silk of her skin as well as the goosebumps forming on her as she shivered slightly. Her blonde hair was messy, falling down to the small of her back and over her shoulders as she hunched over him. "N-Nill," he said almost breathlessly. "Oh Noah..." she shuddered softly. "T-Tell me you love me too." "Nill...I...love you too." He remained stiff, put she continued to move him, moaning softly into his ear.

                      She was led to the bedroom, being set down as he turned to get a glass of water, but she reached in desperation to keep him there. She pulled him back and forced him onto the bed, crawling on top of him and straddling him with her legs on either side. "Nill, what are you -- " his words were interrupted when she sat on his stomach, looking down at him for only a moment until she leaned down to kiss him deeply, her tongue against his lips. She managed to silence him from asking what she was doing as her mind raced. Noah please just touch me already. I can't stand it. I love you... love you so much. Don't ask questions, don't think twice. See just me... and me only. When he pushed her away she retrieved his hand, as if she needed some form of physical contact to stay or she might just die without it. She acted cold, coming so close to him in such a need for heat."N-Noah... Please...." she whispered softly, nuzzling her cheek into his hand. "Nill, I --" She kissed his hand and intertwined their fingers together, her teasing lips moving closer. "D-Don't make me wait. I... I really want you. I love you, and I.. I want you to touch me." She kissed him, he could feel her tremble, and Noah melted as she spoke her mind, told him what she wanted. Speaking softly, seductively, she continued to make him melt with her words, "you always make me feel like I've never felt before. I need that feeling, and you are the only one I ever want it from. P-Please Noah," she put her hands against his chest again, Noah shivering slightly. "I..." He didn't know what to say, he was at a loss for words. "P-Please kiss me." "A-Anything you want, lover."

                      She straddled him, her eyes looking into his as she wiggles out of the business jacket he had wrapped around her waist, hers hands tracing up and down his figure as she leaned back, sitting up and taking off what wasn't necessary. The sweat glistened off her from earlier, the snaking movements she had used earlier showing signs she was still able to move just like that, and looked at Noah, "I'll do anything... I'm starving." Nill felt her cheeks lighten up as she saw him lift himself and rolled to pin her to the bed. He suddenly kissed her with the passion and lust she was yearning from him, hearing him whisper, "take off your clothes for me." She did as he asked, him doing the same and then the two of them taking old of each other with haste. They were tangled in each other, kissing, licking, sucking on each other's skin. Nill was in a blaze of heat with him, doing what nobody would ever suspect an angel in doing. It was as sweet as sin to be so close to him like this, but since their first night, Nill wanted to continue feeling him like this. They never did this as often as she wanted to admit, and it was slightly frustrating. The last time time they'd done this was their first time. She'd silently, quietly suggested it for a while... but now it was finally happening. Nilll wanted to be with Noah every second of every day, and she was ever hardy not at his side, but having to be beside Ember while the guys had fun? She was starving secretly on the inside and just craving for more attention that she could never be so rude as to interrupt and get herself.

                      Nill was surprisingly active, touching him so freely and holding him in her soft hand, stroking him gently. Noah was kissing her neck, chest, and kissing her breasts as she shuddered and squealed in delight. The two were going at it like horny teenagers for the first time, their hot breath counteracting the air conditioning and keeping things warm. Nill was able to keep up, wanting him more and more as she craved all of him, looking to him throughout their passionate love making and telling him just how crazy he drove her, how much she needed him, and how she could never let him go. Even with the sweet things said, it was scarce since they were so in tune with each other's bodies. Two souls melting into one as their passionate moment lasted well into the night, turning the first time they'd ever made love on its head into something so hot, heavy, and almost animal that their love making tonight was something much more powerful.

                      While Noah and Nill were enjoying perhaps the most intense and arousing night of their lives together, Daxter and Ember were sharing a more romantic side. Ember never expected for Daxter to present her with a promise ring. Ember knew that Daxter could be romantic, vividly recalling the time that he had sang the song "Thousand Years" to her at Noah's home in Los Angels. How he tried to say things to prove to her how much he really loved her. In truth, after what happened on the bridge in Griffith park, Ember was actually a little more scared to hear the things she didn't want to hear. She could usually handle facts and truth, but when Daxter and Ember had made it to that point in time, they'd share two very powerful kisses and struggled to survive their encounters with Salem. It was tough for the both of them, and they went through plenty of mental changes... but what had truly rocked Ember's mind was how Daxter told her that he didn't know if he loved her or if he could. His words contradicted what he'd claimed about Sapphire when fighting Salem, saying how he was mad that he was threatening the only woman he'd ever loved. Ember had went through captivity in Vance's hand, hearing his voice ruin her mind and disintegrate her confidence to ashes. She became empty, soulless, and literally lost her color. Her hair turned brown, her eyes dulled to a plain, dark grey, and her skin pale as paper. She was dangerously skinny, and was miserable. When Daxter saved her, he assumed Vance's torture had done that to her, but looking at the ring of blue and red flames on her promise ring, she knew that the truth was clear. She ended up that way because she couldn't live without his love... In some bit of irony, she felt like at that time she deserved to be left alone, because of her complex with Zack and having taken his life away.

                      In that critical point of despair and lost hope, Daxter recovered her. He confessed his true feelings, opening her eyes to the truth he had. He told her he lied, that he was scared of losing her, but this was what losing her felt like, and he wouldn't have it. Ember knew the past was a pain to remember. There were hurtful moments, and bittersweet times, but a million memories flooded over the bad. They shared a kiss in the snow, an element that surrounded them entirely that had the nature of burning out flames, but they melted it away. They shared a kiss at the arcade, Ember opening her eyes for the first time that she was starting to fall in love again when she thought she couldn't. How they had their first night, her first time, together, revealing that she'd never been raped and that he had her in a way nobody else could. Ember could remember these precious moments and more, and everything else.... suddenly didn't matter when he put that ring on her finger. Ember's eyes studied it carefully, seeing the onyx black engraved with two colors of flames. Though she'd never had blue flames until the time where Daxter saved her, she felt like maybe those flames were her stronger ones. Maybe they resembled finding the true strength inside herself? Her heart necklace was beautiful, but this meant so much more as he explained that he wasn't sure if he was ever going to marry somebody or ever want to, but ultimately promising that person would be her. She didn't reply to it, Daxter wondering if maybe he'd done a little much, until she bit into her wrist and controlled the silvery blood around his right ring finger into a dragon-like ring of his own, her God power creating a ruby and sapphire, her abilities forming jewelry he could wear to signify their eternal partnership, even if they never got married, it didn't seem likely they would be parting from one another, and he hoped that was true.

                      She put a lot of work into that ring, trying to make it just as meaningful as what he had given to her. The design of her own lacked, besides the ruby and the sapphire. The dragon ring itself was constructed like the ones dragons gave their partners to assure that they were bound to them in some way. I don't care if I get hurt now... Because I'm not going to regret my decisions anymore. "You were there to prevent me from falling, picking me up at my worst conditions and seeing past the monster I thought I was becoming. I love you... and I just want you to know that. Don't ever forget how much I love you, or you'll be the first to break a steel heart completely." Daxter smiled as he looked down, for probably the 50th time during her speech, at the ring she formed for him. He laughed slightly, "you're such a show-off." Ember widened her eyes slightly in surprise as he grabbed her around the waist and pulled her close, teasing her lips with his own, "I design and have made a beautiful ring for you in a period of weeks, and you one-up me in minutes. You...are such a huge pain." She blinked, seeing him teasing her lips, knowing that she was going to squirm and blush slightly, but to see him calling her a pain over the gift she's made was surprising. He grinned though, it was the most thoughtful thing anyone had ever done or given him before, "not everything is a competition, babe." Daxter kissed her before she could argue what he said, holding her cheeks in his hand as he bit her lip playfully while pulling away from her, looking into her gorgeous emerald green eyes, "I love you. Let's go back to the hotel." Ember felt her throat dry as he pulled away, a glazed look of admiration in her eyes as she stared up at Daxter and for once, nodded shyly.

                      Ember and Daxter made it back to the hotel, hearing the throes of passion from Noah and Nill's room, Daxter putting his ear against the hotel door. "Wow, they're really putting the porn I watch to shame," Daxter looked to Ember with a bit of a grin, "think we could have more fun than them?" Ember playfully punched him in the shoulder and went into their room, "Come on," Daxter following her into it. "Alright, no, that's cool I'm just gonna cuddle you tonight anyway. You know, unless you want to do anything." Daxter shut the door behind him and grinned as Ember went to sit on the bed, running a hand up her leg and staring with a wanting look at Daxter. Ember flickered her eyes, looking at him as she put herself on the bed in invitation for him. He darted to the bed and tackled her, kissing her passionately. While Nill and Noah would be going at it like animals for a change, Ember looked for love, comfort and care from the holder of her heart, and surely that's what she found. Gentle, soft, caring, attentive, making sure she was happy, pleasured, Daxter was nothing short of a magnificent lover to Ember, and the two of them would be going to bed happy, satisfied, and deeply in love.

                      The next morning came peacefully after their crazy night filled with chaos, adventure, liquor and love. Nill slept soundly next to Noah as she felt him move slightly from his previous position beside her. She opened her eyes slowly, looking from his arm which she was turned to and then slowly gazing at their mess of a room. Nill was still in her half dizzy phase of waking up, her wings flinching slightly as she released a small yawn the squeaked at the same time,"morning, lover." Noah said to her with a smile as he pulled her up so he could kiss her lips. Nill blushed brightly, noticing they weren't under the sheets like they usually were when they would wake up, and then everything started piecing itself back together. Nill blinked wide at Noah cradling her head in her hand to lift her to a kiss, but she started to recall the events that caused her them to -- "How are you feeling? I'm sore, you wore me out last night, I may have finally met my match." "M-Met... Met... Met..." He chuckled lightly, kissing her again, "take a shower with me." He said softly, leaning down to her ear as she was in the process of waking up, "I want to wash your beautiful body." Nill widened her eyes with a blush from ear to ear as she grabbed her hand, pulling a nearby sheet to cover the front of her and looking at Noah with a face brighter and burning hotter than the sun, "O-Okay... N-Noah."

                      In the other room it seemed Daxter had woken up before Ember, being careful not to wake her and leaving her to sleep as he went to go take a shower. Shortly after he stepped into the shower, Ember's emerald eyes opened sharply. Her senses picked up the water, picking up the missing heat that was beside her, and she woke up, moving her hair over her shoulder and taking a look at the dent in his pillow where he rested. A long time ago... she'd heard that Daxter used to have trouble sleeping and that he rarely did. To see a dent in the pillow, being cuddled up to him overnight and knowing that he was sleeping made Ember's heart feel at ease. She was pleased that he was able to sleep so well, and that he was able to actually sleep with her. She even went back to recall their first night together in an igloo that he created, not knowing still why that igloo cracked and fell apart, but knowing she had rested her back against his at that time when he admitted some of his past to her in terms of his parents. She was happy that Daxter was open with her and trusting, then taking a look at the ring she was given last night and kissing it softly. She climbed out of bed, looking at a mirror, turning her back to it and looking at the DOGS Corps tattoo along her back. She narrowed her eyes slightly, feeling that it was still ugly... But Daxter had once touched her back sensually... and the thoughts burned in her head. I may have bad things about my body... but he's always treated them better than that. I can never think something is truly ugly about myself when he proves me wrong... Can I? She let her hair down, the walking over to the shower and climbing inside. "I couldn't...let you enjoy this alone." She said softly as the hot scalding water felt good against the fire-staters' skin, Ember pressing her wet, slick body against Daxter's wet hard body, the two kissing underneath the shower head as Ember's hands pressed against his chest, feeling his ever flaw she loved so deeply, his scars she adored so much.

                      She pulled back for a moment, looking at Daxter as the water steamed against her skin, outlining her curves as she pulled back and looked at his eyes, "Daxter..." she mustered is name as she allowed her hands to keep travelling. She loved Daxter so deeply that she continued to touch him, trying to make him feel good but also allowing herself that pleasure of having him be secluded to her in this sort of way. Ember was protective, jealous, and defending of Daxter. She didn't want any woman having the pleasure of being able to do what she could. She moved her hair back, it sticking to her skin as her green eyes peered up at Daxter. Her eyes studied him carefully as she could try to make him blush, then taking the lead in the shower. It was surprising for Ember to parttake in this sort of thing, but it seemed some of her jealousy still lingered from the previous night, just as Daxter had been an amazing lover to her last night didn't mean she couldn't beat him to it first today. She slid against his skin, wrapping him softly around her finger. She'd only seen Daxter blush a few times, but enough that when he did he would bite as his closed fist, trying hard not to show that he was embarrassed in any way. Ember was determined to make Daxter squirm as she did the unexpected, making the water of their shower nowhere near as hot as what was actually happening behind closed curtains.

                      Meanwhile, Nill seemed back to her old self as Noah wrapped his arms around her neck and pressed his toned body against her delicate skin, the two enjoying a cooler shower than their heated counterparts. Nill felt her heart beating rapidly against her rib cage. Noah had hugged Nill, allowing her chin to rest on his shoulder as she recalled all the events and dirty details from last night. W-What happened to me? She thought as her teary eyes were hidden by the shower's water. Noah pulled away from their hug, allowing her to look at all the marks she'd left on his neck, chest, stomach, and O-Oh my god. She blushed, the cool water doing nothing to help ease the warmth her face was producing. Noah chuckled lightly as the cool water coated his every hardened muscle, "you were adventurous last night, love." Nill emitted a small squeak as she tried to speak, not knowing what she could possibly say to make this any easier on herself. I... I straddled him... p-p-pinned him down and made him t-t-t-t-touch me. O-Oh my god. She could recall the way he talked to he during, the raspy voice he'd said in telling her to take her clothes off for him, and how much that turned her on. She was surprised, her hands coming up to her face as she blushed like mad at the thought of her hero telling her to do things... dirty things. I-I can't believe w-what came over me last night! I'm so em-embarrassed I could die! She thought about what he would do if he touched her and demanded her to do something, the thoughts of Noah overpowering the angel and telling her to do things becoming something of a new fetish for the poor angel. She shook her head, she just had to! I-I.. I gave in so much... B-But he looks so happy... I-I love him so much.

                      Noah grabbed the body wash and lathered it up with a loofah sponge, pressing it against her stomach and kissing her softly, voluntarily washing her body for her. Nill acted much like he did last night, remaining stiff until he moved her, out of pure embarrassment. She couldn't look at Noah, feeling shy and simply embarrased from all that had happened. She let him move her, but having no real retaliation in holding herself back from being moved the way he wanted to move her. "I love you so much, angel. You mean everything to me." Noah leaned forward and kissed her back between her wings softly, making her gasp loudly. "O-Oh Noah!" she said in surprise, wrapping her arms around his that held her tightly. He was pressed firmly against her back, and she could feel his hot breathe with the cold wold being able to point out any sort of heat. It was all in her face, on the spot he tingled with his breath, and then- N-Noah! She felt his hand move between her legs... without the sponge. Nill was flustered, without having to face him as he touched her. She swallowed nervously, her hero's hand going between her thighs and sliding against her skin as he moved closer. She thought about it again, how she would listen to her hero and give him whatever he wanted, so she loosened her legs as hard as it was for her and gave in. She squeaked and squirmed, but overall admired Noah for everything and anything he gave her.

                      The couples finished their shower together, got their stuff in order and cleaned up their messes of which Daxter and Ember had none to worry about. Dressed and prepared for whatever their mercenary tour guide would present them with today, they all made it down to the dining hall where Daxter seemed to disappear while the remaining four enjoyed breakfast to an area all to themselves. To their surprise, Daxter arrived back to the table without a word, until he stood behind Noah and spoke, "mornin' brother." Nill flinched her wings at the sound of Daxter's voice calling out but saying nothing, While Ember continued onward with her breakfast. "Hello, brother." Noah replied, looking back to the paper. "I made a pot of kool-aid," Ember looked to Daxter as he replied, holding up a pot of red liquid in it, the liquid splashing about inside. Nill also joined the concerned stare that Ember was giving him, only to feel her head being pet and then blushing lightly, having little to no idea what was going on. Only Noah spoke, looking back at Daxter and his pot, "you don't make a pot of kool-aid." This seemed almost illogical to hear, because he acted almost confused on why one didn't make a pot of kool-aid, possibly thinking it was normal. "Well...I-I did." "Is it hot?" Noah asked, looking back for a moment as Daxter shrugged in reply, "maybe maybe not." "It's hot isn't it?" "Yep!" Daxter replied, a slight laugh to his reply as he displayed the pot of kool-aid higher into the air, the liquid spilling slightly over the rim and onto the carpeted floor. "Hot kool-aid?" "Well I could put some ice in it if you like." Daxter replied, glancing back to where the ice would be located. "Oh, no, I'm not thirsty." Noah picked up his cup of coffee and took a sip of it.

                      "Brother!" "I'm not going to drink it!" Nill widened her eyes as she suddenly heard, "I made this for you!" Daxter suddenly said, to the surprise of the table. "No." He said sternly. Daxter was agitated. "Drink it!" "No!" "I want you to drink this!!" "I'm not drinking it!" Noah replied, still firm in his decision. "Drink this right now or I'll pour it on the floor and blame it on you!!" 'Oh my god is this really happening?' Ember thought to herself, like Takashi but in a different tone, as this exchange continued. "Oh yeah," Noah laughed, "real mature." "I MADE THIS FOR YOU!!" Daxter said loudly, yelling to Noah about the hot kool-aid. Nill spilled her orange juice, yelping slighty and starting to clean it from being suddenly startled. "Oh grow up," Noah replied, clearly tired of Daxter's childishness. "I DID...BECAUSE I LOVE YOU!!" If anyone at the table had tried to ignore Daxter and go back to their plate of food...well it wasn't happening anymore. "Well I'm not going to drink it." He told him flat out, Daxter gritting his teeth and suddenly yelling, "I HATE YOU!!" "That's all I ever hear, you make some stupid mixture you want me to try. Remember back in LA? What was it you made...uh...cinnamon toast and...what was it..." "mayonnaise. It was a good idea!" "Let's not forget Rocky Road and Tabasco. What was it, three hospitalized? You cook stupid things and want me to try it." "YOU. DRINK THIS. RIGHT. NOOOOOW!!!!" "Drink your own damn kool-aid!" The table was in stunned silence. "There's so much left what am I going to do with all this hot kool-aid?!" Daxter replied in surprise curiosity. "Drink it!" Noah was annoyed. "No!!" "Yes!" "NO!!!" Ember's eyes followed Daxter as he quickly moved to his seat, sliding into it where he could look at Noah while sitting next to him, the pot of kool-aid on the table in front of him. "Brother." "...yes?" He replied in a slight sigh. "Please. Drink. My. Hot. Kool-aid." Daxter said in a whispered, but strong, tone. He poured a glass of the hot liquid and slid it over to Noah, who eyed it cautiously. "Okay." Noah finally relented. "Okay." Ember stared at Noah, as did everyone, in the eagerness of hearing his final response after all the show. Noah then exhaled in an almost relieved sigh, "yeah, that's pretty good." Daxter looked at him, almost astonished, as Noah finished with, "yeah I like that."

                      Daxte stood up, Ember going back to her breakfast as he walked away, and Nill looking confusingly between everyone as she wondered what in the world was going on. Daxter came back in silence, eating breakfast. Then, finally, he spoke up, "I'm taking Ember on a date today, I figure we can meet-up at 7 at the Planet Vegas Theater for the magic show tonight. I've taken the liberty of ordering us some cosplay outfits for the Anime Expo event we can go to tomorrow, the outfits will be here later today." Takashi suddenly asked, "uh...what are the costumes?" Ember widened her eyes and dropped her fork, "Costumes?" "Outfits, Taka, outfits! And it's a secret. We all have one, I know you'll love it. We've got Gurren Lagaan, Puella Magi Madoka Magica -- " "Oh my god I love that one..." Takashi said suddenly, "W-Wait a moment we have to get into costumes?! Who the hell am I?" Completely ignored. "And some other cool costumes from other series' I like." "So we do our own thing until the magic show tonight?" "That's my plan, I don't care what y'all do but I want to treat Ember to something nice." I give up, she sighed in defeat and went back to her food. "Sounds like a plan. Before you go...what the hell was up with the hot kool-aid?" "I make things. You try them. If you don't I yell. Then you do. It's just lucky hot kool-aid is harmless this time, not unlike your stomach virus from eating the mayo and cinnamon toast." Daxter cackled as he stood up from his empty plate and walked away, planning to enjoy the day with Ember.

                      Ember looked to Nill who looked back at her as Daxter left the table, eyeing her suspiciously. Nill blinked nervously in surprise, but before she could form a sentence Ember spoke, "You were loud." Smack dead center in the middle of her face, Nill's heat signature ran hotter than the sun's in a single instant as she stumbled like mad from the table to run away after the comment, but tripped on a cloth on the floor, tripping over a chair, and tumbling to land on her front of the ground only a few feet from where she previously stood. Ember grinned, deiciding she would get some fun with Nill before she left, then getting up from the table and getting ready for her mysterious date with Daxter. Nill however went to her bedroom, her face painted with the expression of guilt, and made it to Noah's front, holding him softly and tugging his sleeve. "N-Noah..." she said small as she reached into her pocket and pulled out two tickets. "I-I used some of m-my own money to buy these. J-Just some b-but I thought maybe... w-we... we could go to a hot air balloon ride." She hid her face behind the tickets partially as she meowed at him, "D-Do you want to go with me?" Taking the opportunity to asking him out to her first date that she actually found for them.

Dangerous Lunatic

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                              The burst of time energy washed over the apartment complex, darkness spread out across the room that hid Kaito within its shadows, the Time Mage stumbling into the counter of his Tokyo apartment. The deep cuts slashed across his body were dripping blood onto the linoleum floor, his breathing ragged and pained, and he felt tightness in his chest and shortness of breath. His green irises darted from the appliances of the kitchen, his weary body rounding the counter top to the sink as he ripped off his dress shirt stained with blood to reveal deep wounds across his body. He winced as he grabbed the dry sponge and wet it in the sink, using it to wipe off the dried blood clung to his body while he used his power to speed up his healing, softening the deadening pain he felt washing over him. His mind raced as with everything that had been happening lately, the suffering he'd seen and caused on orders from Vance. He hadn't expected Umiko to be at Adam's apartment and he didn't think he'd see her so soon, but it pained him to look at her and not say what he wished he could, or touch her the way he wanted. All this was because of Vance and with the power of a Time Lord he knew he had the blessing of a God to do what needed to be done. The others wouldn't understand, but if it didn't happen then untold suffering would continue in his name. No more.

                              He gritted his teeth as he walked into the bedroom filled with vigor and determination, grabbing a short-sleeve shirt and long-sleeve jacket from the closet, redressing himself as his eyes flashed white, severing the connection to his conduit as his mind raced. "The world is in peril, innocent people are dying, the pure and just are turning corrupt and inhuman, the entire world is at the verge of chaos and I need to stop it by breaking the most important rule a Time Mage is ever told." He could feel it, the ripple throughout his connection to time, bending from an action he hadn't even accomplished yet. He knew what had to be done, the only thing left to do, all the suffering of the world would never compare with what was to come, nothing could ever be more important or dangerous that what he would do now. Time energy swirled around him but he felt its reluctance, the halting of it cooperating with him as Time knew what he planned. A Time Lord was above all the rules and regulations, but he was still in an experimental phase of his shifting of power, without notice he would lose what he worked so hard to gain and be back to the bottom of the totem pole. Hesitation would mean death.

                              Kaito grabbed at the energy with the core of his soul and encased himself in it, the explosion of energy changing the year and location as he traveled back in time to his intended destination. He could feel the rippling of Time's energy getting worse, he couldn't pause even for a microsecond. He realized so many lives would be lost that his decision would be the lesser of all the evils, even if he was going against the rules instilled into a Time Mage and risked losing his powers, risked exile, then he knew it would be worth it if everyone on Valor got to live. If Umiko no longer had to suffer. As much as he did this for the entire planet he did this for her, and he did this for himself, he had to no matter what consequence would come from it. "There, I see it." He was in the right time period, same planet, a young city. Kaito zipped up the jacket as the winds of winter struck him with accompanying snow. This was so much simpler than battling for hours, using all of your power in the hopes you could momentarily gain the upper hand, letting people die by the force of the attacks colliding into the air, your friends exposed and helpless as you fight for them. This would be the easiest solution he could come up with, the only one guaranteed to work as long as he moved quickly. He darted through alleys, zigzagged across streets, and moved swiftly with purpose. Kaito began to try and pinpoint the location of the one person he would need to find, closing in on the location as the atrocities that Vance had accomplished and would accomplish flashed in his mind. 'I can ensure you never exist with her death, with your existence erased the entire future will change. I will change the course of history by ending you before you begin, Vance. Everything will be different but this will greatly improve Valor's situation.' He was coming closer, he was ready to take the life of an innocent person to make sure Umiko didn't suffer, the planet didn't suffer, the people didn't suffer. Kaito was going to break the most important rule of time travel by altering the past to change to future. He was going to make sure Vance couldn't exist.

                              There she was, the one person that would be the sole reason Vance would have a present, and by killing her Kaito would make sure he didn't have a past. As the thought of her death flashed through his mind he paused in his step, only for a brief moment, then continued forward. It was the single hesitant thought that stopped him from accomplishing what he planned to do, Kaito was no murderer, this person wasn't the one who caused all the pain in present day Valor, but her death would make sure Vance wouldn't bring about his brand of controlled chaos. Suddenly, without warning, he heard an echoing voice booming across space and time. "THE RULES OF TIME DO NOT BEND FOR YOU KAITO KOJIMA!!" It was that voice of Kronos, despite severing the connection to his handler that he realized he'd made a mistake. If he hadn't hesitated, if he had accomplished what he set out to do then that voice would be too late, and Kaito would have stopped Vance before he even got started. Time slowed down as he approached his target, despite his attempt to fight back and keep it moving it was no longer just Kronos forcing time to stop, but every Time Mage that existed. He was going to break the most important rule, he could have damaged the Time Stream by doing this, Kaito was now as much of a threat as Takashi had been. The world disappeared as he arrived on a white plane of existence, the reality of it distorting and twisting as he was inside the Time Stream, locked away from reality. "No! NO!! I had it, I almost had it! I could have stopped Vance, that's what you wanted me to do!" Kaito yelled out as his voice echoed and carried across space-time. He turned to a monstrous entity appear before him, the Demon of Time, a protector that was sent to destroy rogue Time Mages: Dormir. Kaito backed away as the large sword scraped across the ground of the Time Plane, a dozen different men and women appearing from across time and space alongside with their identically appearing Kronos conduits.

                              "You don't understand, you lack the empathy to -- " "SILENCE!!" Kaito's Kronos conduit was now speaking through the demon, Dormir, and it sent shivers through his spine. "You dare attempt to change an established past? You have failed, Kaito Kojima. Your life is in forfeit." Kaito's eyes widened as his conduit for centuries was now taking it upon himself to end the Time Mage for attempting to stop Vance. "I am backed by The Source, it has overwritten your rule before because our God believes in me, even if you do not. You are going against its wishes by attempting to destroy me." The demon rushed forward with its massive sword, swiping for Kaito's head as he ducked and rolled, firing a beam of time energy at its side to knock it back. "I am not a threat to the The Source, if anything I am ensuring its protection! Don't you listen?! I wouldn't do this unless it was the only way! The team is too weak to kill Vance, they will all die no matter how strong their resolve! I am ensuring Vance does not have the power to warp the timeline!" Kaito glanced to the many faces of the Time Mages that had been chosen to protect the Time Stream from harm, they were so stoic and emotionless, like looking at statues. Kaito turned to the demon Dormir as it raced at him again, the large sword moving like it was weightless, slicing through the air with unnatural speed. Kaito moved quickly to dodge the attacks and retaliate with his own but found that his time powers were fading quickly. Dormir struck Kaito with the flat side of the blade and sent him tumbling across the infinite plane. Kaito stood up as the movements he made were kept at equal distance to the Time Mages and their conduits, no matter how far Kaito and Dormir moved the Mages were always the same distance from the combatants.

                              "I am not the enemy you know this! I ran the scenarios in my head, this is the power I was granted by The Source, I know what I'm doing." "If The Source backs your action then why is your power fading? Arrogant human! You believe you are so significant? You are an insect. Any of the chosen would have your power yet still be insignificant in the grander scheme." Dormir rushed at Kaito and swung the sword through the air as Kaito produced a sword of energy in a last-ditch effort to save himself, "I-I-I don't know, it-it's a mistake my power is just unstable. I know my actions are blessed by Time itself in my efforts to protect it!" Kaito's sword vanished and the effort Dormir was putting behind his swing sliced through Kaito's chest, causing him to stumble backwards as blood began gushing from the wound. He gasped, his vision blurry as he watched Dormir approach him. "It has been told that Kaito Kojima is sentenced to death for attempt to break the rules of nature forged from the beginning of existence. As it is written, so shall it be." "This...is a mistake."

                              Dormir's sword came down on Kaito's wounded body through his chest, blood coating the blade as the life began to dim from his brilliant green eyes, his body growing cold and his soul fading. With the last effort his body could produce he gripped onto the sword so wide it impaled him from his heart to his waist, looking up to Dormir as he saw the eyes of his conduit staring back at him. "I...was...chosen." "From the day of your birth your life was destined to end here." "But all my effort." "Come to an end. No Soldier can be without a commander, no Soldier is fit to lead them self." "I...I can't...die." "Your fate has been chosen." "Umiko." Kaito's dying eyes began to try and focus on the faces of the only family he had, the Time Mages chosen before or after him to protect the Time Stream, some watching emotionless as their brethren was dying for his dedication to his cause, and some holding back tears. "It is over, Kaito Kojima. Return to The Stream." The sword was pulled from Kaito's body and he lifelessly flopped onto the white ground, blooding pouring from the gaping wound expanding in a large puddle around him. "This is the fate of anyone who attempts to break the Laws of Time, they are set forth for a reason to protect not only The Source but yourselves. Let this be the last time a conduit must inhabit Dormir to end the life of a Time Soldier."

                              Kaito's demise occurred through the infinite expansion of time, as he was arguing his actions and receiving his sentencing, the team was experiencing their present in the form of the morning after. Noah had been straightforward with Nill that he wanted to wash her body and the two went off to a shower. Nill was back to her old self and couldn't believe the kinds of things she'd done last night, and Noah just wanted to keep their passion going for just a little while longer. He touched her between her thighs after giving her body a once-over with the sponge, kissing and sucking on her shoulder to leave a love mark on her, joining the many that he'd given her last night. "You feel...amazing." Noah said in a hushed tone as the cool water struck him in the back, the shower head positioned so the water struck Nill's hair and matted her hair down her body, leading streams of water onto his fingertips as he had a hard time telling the difference between her wetness and one made by the shower. "What makes me happy is that you're all mine, and only mine." He kissed her shoulder up to her ear, then whispered, "you'll be mine forever, won't you Nill?" He could feel her legs shaking and her heartbeat racing faster, panting to his touch. He wrapped an arm around her stomach and held her up as her knees gave out from being able to pleasure her in the shower.

                              Daxter found himself surprised when Ember joined him in the shower, unable to keep that sly smile off his face as he admired her every luscious curve, her amazing breasts, even the tattoo on her back she hated but he admired. She pressed up against him soon as the water from the shower touched her skin and they kissed passionately, touching him lower and lower until she reached the one part of him she could easily wrap her hand around. "Hnng," he groaned out softly as she peered up at him and moving her hair back, "what are you do -- oh hell." Her touch, the warmth of her mouth had caused him to let a whispered breath out as he let out a pleasured moan behind the knuckles of his hand he was biting to keep quiet, "n-not fair." He said as he looked down at her head while pleasing him. He could see her tattoo behind parts of her hair clinging to her back, a hand placed gently on the top of her head. [******** I love you." He said in a soft tone as she was pleasuring him in the warm shower using her tongue and lips, such a daring and dirty act that he loved the way she did for him. She wasn't just pleasuring him she was tasting him so intimately, the first time she'd ever done this for him. "E-Ember..." he whispered in a rough groan as he felt himself nearing his limit from her intimate touch, but she continued until he was finished. She stood up with a satisfied grin and watched him press her against the shower wall, sliding his nails down her stomach as he kissed the trail he made, falling down to look up at her.

                              "Stay still, my turn." In the same way her lips and tongue had gotten to taste him, he was going to return the favor as he gently spread her legs a little further apart and let his tongue in between her legs, his hands on her outer thighs. He could feel her squirm and let out the feminine moans that he thought was so unlike her but loved nonetheless, the shower head turning cold from their extended playtime in the shower. He could feel the same reaction from her that she caused from him, her hands on his head as he was able to finish and stand up to kiss her with the same grin she'd given him. "Like that?" He asked, the first time either of them had gone down on the other. Ember rested her head in his neck and he could feel her nod, her face hot. His hand trailed across the DOGS tattoo on her back as she rested against him, shaking slightly from their act. "I love your body," he told her softly as they knew their shower time had to come to an end.

                              The Team went down to the dining hall and discovered it empty, Daxter heading into the kitchen as he grabbed a coffee pot and found packets of kool-aid and sugar, combining them as it heated up the pot. "I'm really going to ******** with Noah this morning," he said to himself as he looked back towards the entrance, snickering in delight. "Hmmm," Daxter had a habit of "cooking" things and giving them for people to try, as it turned out Noah was the participant in most of the cooking he did and because he did terrible combinations he knew were terrible, he often ran into trouble with not getting Noah to try his concoctions. Daxter heated up the kool-aid and grabbed the bottle of Tabasco hot sauce, then set it back down changing his mind on actually messing with the kool-aid. No, today it would be pure kool-aid just heated up with a coffee pot. Smiling, he brought out the coffee pot of kool-aid and gave Noah a morning greeting. Daxter was really just ******** with Noah, and he knew that Noah was aware of it, but the two had a fun back-and-forth even if Daxter was the only one having fun with it. He knew that Ember, Nill, and Takashi were perhaps confused and concerned by what was happening. Still, Daxter continued the act by pushing the kool-aid onto the table in a glass and sliding it to Noah who, reluctantly, decided to try it. "Please. Drink. My. Hot. Kool-aid." "Okay." Noah finally relented. "Yeah, that's pretty good." Daxter looked at him, almost astonished, as Noah finished with, "yeah I like that."

                              With the event over with, Daxter left the dining hall with the pot of kool-aid still on the table as per Noah's request, returning to the table moments later to pile up some breakfast and begin eating it, explaining what was on the agenda for the day. With everything set Daxter and Ember returned to their room while Noah and Nill returned to theirs, Daxter watching as Ember was getting ready for their day out, then looking down to his phone as it vibrated, receiving a text message. He let out a soft scowl then looked up at Ember who was still getting herself ready, "hey babe I gotta take care of something for our date, I'll text you in a little bit and have you meet me somewhere. Trust me, it'll be spectacular." He approached her while she was still dressing for the occasion, only in underwear at the moment as he hand slipped from her back into her underwear to touch her shapely bottom, "I love that this body is all mine." He kissed her quickly, pulling his hand out as he noticed the expression on her face and smirked, "and this is all yours too baby." He let his hands showcase his body as he playfully twirled his hips, "I won't be long, mkay?" Daxter quickly took off from the hotel room and down to the street, racing off.

                              Noah and Nill were readying for their day out together when Nill approached him as he was buttoning up his dress shirt, looking at him somewhat nervously. "N-Noah..." she said small as she reached into her pocket and pulled out two tickets. "I-I used some of m-my own money to buy these. J-Just some b-but I thought maybe... w-we... we could go to a hot air balloon ride." She hid her face behind the tickets partially as she meowed at him, "D-Do you want to go with me?" Taking the opportunity to asking him out to her first date that she actually found for them. Noah smiled and grabbed the tickets, exposing her face and touching her cheek, "you're asking me out? What a pleasant surprise, I'd love to." Noah playfully tapped her nose with the tickets, "an adorable kitty," he said in reply to her meowing to him, "woof." He grabbed her hand with his free one and stepped close to kiss her quickly, looking down at the tickets. "We better hurry, shouldn't we?" He asked as the two of them prepared for the day and went off by taxi to the fields where the hot air balloons would be located.

                              Daxter had gone off on his own away from the glitz and glamor of the Vegas Strip, heading towards the seedier parts of town that the poor residents of the city would usually live in. The text message had been simple enough but as he knew the sender he wasn't about to say no to the request. Daxter had been in Vegas before between the time he left Gradia and got back into contact with Ember, and these people he was about to meet was part of the reason he was no longer allowed back in Vegas. To be fair it wasn't like he was officially banned, but this group was something of a pack of thieves that ran the underground, and they were the ones that had banned him from returning. Not that he cared much for rules or think they applied to him, but still he had to meet with them or risk sweeping up Ember in his business.

                              Daxter smirked to himself as he rounded a corner of a dilapidated building he came across a trio that waited for him, a large dark skinned man towering over the other two standing beside him, a female with long dull green hair and shining blue eyes, and a male wearing dark sunglasses with bleach blond hair. The female grinned her fangs through parted lips at the sight of seeing Daxter once more, the large tank crossing his arms. "You have really bad timing." Daxter told the group with a faint laugh while the female smirked, approaching him and walking around to his back, putting a hand on his a** with a grin as she leaned over his shoulder to look at his face. "I told you if we ever saw you in town again we'd kill you, think we're playin'? We don't let people "go", but we made an exception, now you make us look like fools?" "Who's the new b***h you got? She better than me? She's pretty, but trashy." The woman carefully wrapped her arms around Daxter's neck, kissing the exposed part of it softly, "must be so much fun to throw people away, no concern for their feelings." "Shut the [********] up, Jade. Now Dax you ain't leaving this time." "Don't make threats you can't back up," Daxter hissed. "What makes you so bad? You ain't nothing we ain't seen before. Now you got an hour to get your new b***h and leave."

                              Daxter stood still while the woman extended her neck and turning to look at him again, "c'mon baby, you gonna forget our good times? We'll forgive you you know~." She cooed softly, kissing his lips quickly and slipping a little bit of liquid into his mouth: poison. Daxter pulled out the sword he always carried and extended the blade, slicing into her neck and turning to face the rest of her body, his hand igniting and punching into her neck, fire bursting through her chest and eviscerating her. Daxter turned to face the remaining duo as the woman's remains hissed from the immediate heating of her blood and organs. "W-What the ********?! Y-You son of a b***h!" The large man's eyes went wide as the moon in surprise and sudden terror. Daxter was a Gifted and had no remorse for his former, if temporary, lover. "I only followed you because I wanted to. I earned the money I made because I wanted to. I came here because I felt like it, now I'm going to tie up some loose ends from the last time I was here." "S-She...m-my..." "You're all pathetic. Last chance, walk away and bury our history or this isn't the worst of what I can do." The big man had no choice, he couldn't fight off a Gifted. "J-Just go." Daxter smirked, twisting the sword with enough power to flick the blood off of it, retracting the blade and hiding it. "Pick a stronger poison next time, I feel tingly." Daxter giggled inhumanly as he turned his back on the remaining duo, the blond male quickly pulling out a gun from his pants and aiming at Daxter's back, his silence through the whole ordeal evidently pointing out his fear of Daxter and gruesome manner of her demise.

                              The blond man fired quickly as many rounds as he could before the magazine of the pistol was empty, Daxter turning on a dime and countering the first bullet with his sword with a combination of quick reflexes and instinct, racing towards the duo as his sword moved so quickly it left an after-image of its movement, a clear ghosting as it deflected the various bullets fired in his direction. Daxter's reflexes were off the charts especially as he closed the distance from the bullets exiting the barrel of the weapon, slicing the blond man's hand off. He screamed in pain and panic, Daxter's swiping his sword across his body three times before walking away, the blond man's screaming died down as his body fell into a pile of three large pieces. The larger man turned to the pile of human remains and let out a sickening gasp, following up with uncontrolled vomiting at the sight of what remained of his friends. "Don't ever contact me again, don't ever spy on me again, if I see you or any of your pathetic gang stalking me you're all dead. No questions. Do I make myself clear?" The large man fell over into the pool of blood, hurling up what remained in his stomach as he watched Daxter walk away.

                              Noah and Nill arrived to the field where the hot air balloons were grounded, some lifting into the air as couples or just interested parties took to the skies over the large neon-built city. He had always been so concerned with his actions as Defiance he never got to experience the true enjoyment of taking in the sights. Even in Tokyo he hadn't been able to take in the sights the way he wanted to, treating it more like a mission than an actual vacation. Going on a date with Nill was just what he needed to relax his mind and enjoy the fun time with her. The casino had been a step in the right direction, but it didn't seem enough until Nill had been drunk and let out her erotic nature to him, their wild night of passion had been unbelievable and he wouldn't be against a repeat performance. He didn't know Nill had that kind of passion inside of her, but he wouldn't be thought of as a bad person if he hoped she would find a way to do it again. Nill was so beautiful, such a darling little angel that it wasn't so bad to find the devil inside her, which he thought was the most sexy thing he'd ever seen. In the same vein, if Nill could find her devil then he could find his angelic side, letting go of the Defiance inside him for a little while to truly enjoy the ride.

                              With an arm wrapped around Nill's waist she and Noah approached the balloon pilot who took a quick look over their tickets and ushered them into the large basket of the balloon, following along after them. Noah stood with Nill at the edge of the basket while the pilot closed the gate behind them and lifted them into the sky. "This...is very nice." He said softly as the ground became smaller and more distant beneath them, the bright blue sky giving way to the horizon on the distance. Noah was in disbelief at how far he could see, how many thousands of miles leading into the curvature of the planet. It was beautiful, breathtaking, Noah had never experienced this before, never just enjoyed the sights before. Nill might not have realized it but this date was the first time Noah had ever truly seen the blue sky, the clouds, and the planet beneath them. Noah leaned forward and gripped tightly to the basket, mouth open in awe at everything he was experiencing, and a few tears falling from his eyes as he experienced emotions from the sight before him. "I've...never seen anything so beautiful before. This is where we live...what it's like without the darkness or the corruption or the evil. This is the world I want to live with you in. Clean and beautiful. Nill..." Noah closed his eyes as he stood up straight and wiped the small tears off his face, looking to his angel with a bright smile, wrapping his arm around her neck and pulling her closer, kissing her with all the love he felt for her in the moment, the blue sky beside them as the sun shined brightly on top of them. Their kiss could have lasted an eternity or five minutes, and it would have felt the same length, slowly pulling away from her soft lips and wiping his thumb over her mouth to remove the little bit of saliva off of it, licking his thumb. "Thank you, lover, this is the best thing anyone has ever given me. It's the best date I've ever had." Noah stood next to her and rested his head on top of hers, looking out over the city's skyline. This must have been what heaven felt like.

                              'Am I...dead?' His voice echoed across the infinite darkness, bright green orbs shining in the plane he existed. Kaito's body took shape without the human concept of clothes to cover him, his snow white hair floating without gravity. The darkness was pure black, if not for an inhuman light coating his skin he would have been lost in it, coated in darkness that no light could penetrate otherwise. He felt nothing, no fear, no pain, no feelings of remorse, no love. Kaito was emotionless. In the darkness a small pinprick of light could be seen, no bigger than a grain of sand that rapidly began expanding in size as Kaito realized the ball of light wasn't getting bigger but getting closer. He couldn't move, he couldn't think, he couldn't speak, he couldn't breathe. Kaito watched this ball slam into his stomach and his body immediately ripped backwards from the feeling of a freight train slamming into him. The infinite void of darkness stopped him and he floated helplessly after being pushed backwards. He tried to speak but nothing came from his throat, he could only watch as another pinprick of light came at him, but as the one bolt of light came for him so did thousands of others. Kaito was showered in light as it beamed across the darkness, striking his body as this time the darkness held him in place. Kaito could feel his essence being ripped and torn into pieces, the immeasurable pain of the ethereal suffering across the vastness of the infinite timelines hit him.

                              Endure. The voice echoed across the expanse he found himself in, Kaito forcing himself to endure the pain as the light struck him time and time again, the shower ending as quickly as it came. Kaito felt battered and bruised from the attacks against his soul, but soon found the reason it had occurred in the first place. A pinprick of light emerged from the distance but as it came closer it took on a more human-like shape to it, long nondescript hair emerging from the head past the waist of the being, slender limbs emerging from a petite torso taking the vaguely human shape of a female. The eyes were nothing he'd ever seen before, looking at them made him feel a wealth of emotions he didn't know were possible, good and bad, as he could see into every single creature that ever existed at once. Kaito could see that this entity floating before him wasn't just an entity, it was the entity. "Kala." He could finally speak and it was the name of their God, the Time Stream personified into a form he could envision, something he could see. Kaito was filled with emotion, in the infinite years of life no Mage had ever set eyes on Time itself, no one who could comprehend it. Kala, Kairos, Kronos, Time Stream, The Source, whatever the name cultures developed for it or what it was called Kaito was staring at the only thing his mind could comprehend: a human form of Time. His mind was racing, reeling, he couldn't understand how he'd been killed by his conduit in the form of the Time Demon Dormir and end up here. Was his crime so terrible that he would now be judged and erased from existence by Time? In the hundreds of years he'd lived he never felt such a deep and overwhelming fear before.

                              As Kaito floated in the infinite void unable to make out anymore words after speaking its name, he could see that the vast darkness before him was slowly giving way to periods of his life, his heroism, actions he'd done in the past and future that shaped and changed the way worlds worked, developed, or ended untold suffering. Kaito saw moments in his life where his heroism was evident: a starship pilot sacrificing his life for members of his crew that would go on to end an unending war. A pirate crew member saving the life of his captain so that he could go on to locate a treasure that would reshape time in the wrong hands. Kaito's life was being retold in thousands of videos in the plane he existed on as every heroic action, large, small, and seemingly insignificant, was shown before him. Kaito's head slowly turned across the immeasurable blackness that shaped his life. They say when you die your life flashes before your eyes, if that was true then Kaito could only imagine that it was true: he was dying.

                              Do you remember your birth, Kaito Kojima? The voice of the goddess was something surreal, to a normal person the voice may be deafening, even incoherent, but Kaito heard her in the most familiar voice he could that wouldn't cause him harm: Umiko's. The voice Time itself used to speak to him with was identical to Umiko's and it made him sad, knowing that if this was the end of his life that the woman he loved would never be seen again, but in one last twist of cruel irony the woman he died for would be a voice he would hear before his final departure. I don't. They spoke without speaking, no movement of their lips yet instinctively their voices carried across the realm.

                              The servants are chosen before they are born, they are selected across the infinite vast of my touch knowing what will become of them. Some are defiant and make their own path, some walk every step as predicted. A follower is chosen for their dedication to the cause of my protection where I cannot do for myself, a defiant is chosen because they will defy all conforms and go beyond the simple cause. Some are chosen knowing they will one day be corrupt and executed, some are chosen who will die for me. You are not the first, you are not the last, there will be others granted my power without need of a Kronos for themselves. All those who will be gifted my power succumb to its freedom and must eventually be stopped, they do not see the consequences and hurt me in the process. They have destroyed planets, reshaped history, and more than once nearly ended the Stream of Consciousness across the universes. It was believed that you too would become corrupt with freedom that the ability would grant. What sets you apart from the others?

                              I don't know. I have done as you said I would: I had become corrupted. I tried to end the life of a man not yet born in the hopes it would end the suffering of a planet. I tried to rewrite history for the sake of a planet I haven't even spent that much time in. I let the Time Lord power change me into something I wasn't, vengeful and vindictive all because I have fallen in love with a woman who, when this is all over, will remain behind because a soldier doesn't keep a companion. He fights alone. I am sorry, Goddess Kala, for endangering you and the entirety of the infinite worlds you inhabit.

                              Your intentions were pure, and you have seen your error. The numerous Lords of Time used their power clouded by evil and have never seen themselves as wrong. You were chosen to hold my power because the man that threatens the planet Valor from whence you were judged for being corrupt is more powerful than many enemies seen before. If a dragon fueled by the power of a God is no match, then it is only a matter of me before he threatens the conscious stream of my embrace and will destabilize my hold. The Conduit Takashi Kentaro may hold the power to deconstruct the flowing rivers but he does so without choice, the man the planet of Valor has collectively come to know as Vance does so willingly. Can you defeat him? Perhaps. But perhaps it is already too late. Do you know what would happen should the time stream that created Valor is removed?

                              Kaito looked up to Kala with his bright green emerald eyes, blinking softly as every word she said to him was being analyzed carefully, hearing every syllable she said. I do not.

                              To remove a Stream of Consciousness is to remove part of myself, the damage would be untold, perhaps permanent, and could begin a chain reaction that would end with my destruction. Once Time flows it cannot be stopped, that is why when you use your granted powers to stop me for your own purposes even I cannot stop you from being harmed. For that my apologies are sincere.

                              Stopping time is like stopping a flowing river with your hands, even if you alone can push back it will fight you until it wins, no matter how long it takes the flowing stream will wash you away.

                              You are correct. I am the God of Time, the creator of the infinite stream of consciousness that has enabled every person ever born and died in the unlimited universes a continued existence. The Gods that exist have created everything from the skies, to the suns, to the ground, the air, fire, and myself the creator of Time. Our work ended the moment it was set into motion, as you say we have let the rivers of our creations barrel forward, and it would take an impossible force to stop it. We create servants using our power, the Time Mages that protect the Stream of Consciousness, the Elementals that ensure the seven collective givers of life are not used to bring about apocalyptic results, and the other Gods that have granted power to those who are to see life moves forward, in some worlds with and in some worlds without the humans. We are not limited to Valor, or Earth, or the untold vastness of time and space you have yet to explore, for we blanket all worlds in all dimensions. But our touch is limited, and it is slowly fading. We are the creators but our creations continue without us, the power we have been exhausting for infinite years is waning and there may come a day Gods no longer exist. We ensure that the worlds will continue long past our disappearances by entrusting our power in those who would use it to protect. Do you understand?

                              Kaito nodded slowly, he listened intently and learned more in the passage of what would be trillions of years as the two floated in a period of time that encompassed the beginning and the end. He understood what she was saying, the Gods were dying out from exhaustion and would come to give their power to those who would continue the existence of every living being in creation, but how this pertained to him he wasn't sure, he was dead.

                              It is true that not all Gods will care for the living beings that inhabit the worlds, but it is the beings that are most suited to wield our power, the ones that will ensure our creations continue. Not all Gods are forgiving, and not all of them will speak to their servants, but those that do will value certain traits above all else. Bravery, strength, endurance, valor, heroism. Actions of a human that will fight to their last breath as you have against Dormir are traits that all the Gods wished their servants had. There will come a time that perhaps all servants will be like you, but do you know what we look at most in those who would carry on our name? Hope. Without hope there is no future that one may look forward to, and eventually the greatest of strength will falter. Hope is what keeps the servants from giving up in the darkness moment, and it is the second most admirable trait that, even if we do not understand in its entirety, that we know will work with hope to see a future in which our creations live. That is love. Love is blinding, it is also blind, but while my conduits to the Mages do not understand such a thing or believe in its usefulness, I value you far beyond what they can see. Kaito Kojima, your attempt to erase a timeline to reshape the future was foolish, it was arrogant, it was destructive and ultimately it has led to you becoming an enemy of time. But what consequences would come from it was born from the actions of a person desperate to seek a change. You hesitated to kill the creator of Vance of Valor because you are a hopeful person, and in the moment you hesitated you sought another way. You have always sought a peaceful solution, for Zero Caluxium of Valor, for Gabriel Adams of Valor, for the people of the other worlds you've been to...you have always attempted a peaceful resolve. You are what I seek in a Lord of Time, one who is not so quick to use their power to destroy but to use their influence for change. You are to be reborn, Kaito Kojima, returned to your body on the moment of your death infused with my power. Be warned that Valor's energy of Chroma created by that trickster of a God will still interfere with my power, but you will no longer be bound by a conduit. Do make me proud, Kaito Kojima of Solaris.

                              The arm of Kala reached out and touched Kaito on his bare chest, feeling a cold that was without pain or uncomfortableness, but one that touched into his soul. He would have winced if he felt anything, he might have screamed if he felt pain, instead he floated in the expansiveness of the void as her hand reached inside of him and gripped his soul. If he were alive the touch he felt in his soul would have been painful enough to break him, perhaps shred him to pieces, but in the plane that Kala inhabited where the beginning and end of all of time could be seen by her he felt nothing...and that was undoubtedly a good thing. She fueled his soul with her own power, removing the need for a conduit and granting him the power of time that he could pull from his own body. As some would have the power of energy within them to draw on whenever they needed, a Time Mage could only draw their power from a conduit, and even a Time Lord would be connected to Kala. But not Kaito, his power over time would be absolute, she wasn't just granting him power she was changing him from the inside out. He had said that Time Mages were the protectors of the God of Time, and if Kala was a God that they protected then a Time Mage was an Angel of Time. Kaito's interpretation was his own and her change in him was reshaping him as an Angel of Time, no longer a soldier or mere protector, now he was becoming something much more greater than that.

                              Be reborn, Kaito, know my power flows through you as it does for myself. Your mortality is still limited by your human form but now you are granted access to the true power of Time should it be necessary. You are no mere servant anymore, you are an Entity of Time. Kaito could feel the tug on his body and soul as he was whisked away from the plane inhabited by Kala and returned to the Time Plane, the wounds of his physical body healed by Kala. "Let this be the last time a conduit must inhabit Dormir to end the life of a Time Soldier." The Mages formed in a circle around the demon and Kaito collectively gasped as the wounds and blood were removed and he stood up as full of vigor and energy as ever. He looked down to his hands as he could see the flow of his power, Kala's gift, flowing from within him around his body. He looked up to see the demon Dormir surrounded by a dark energy infused with Time, knowing that this demon was a dark creation meant only to kill. There was no more need for that. Dormir turned, Kaito's former conduit in as much surprise as an emotionless being could produce. "Impossible, you were sentenced to death, a sentence carried out by the power of Dormir." Kaito smiled as the threads of his clothes were being changed by time, a black button-up suit replacing the bloodied t-shirt, jacket, and jeans he had worn. Now he was dressed to impress.

                              "The Time Demon Dormir is an outdated concept meant to instill fear in a Time Mage to walk a path they are afraid to stray. Living in fear is no way to live. Destroy Dormir or I shall be forced to carry it out myself, and should I be forced to do this then you too will be destroyed." Kaito's smile irritated Dormir as he swiped the sword through the air to rest on his shoulder, "your connection is gone. I am no longer your conduit." The Mages gasped, this had to mean only one thing: "I am an Entity of Time, I am not bound by the laws of a conduit, and only one being is above me: Kala." The whispered hushes amongst the Mages must have driven Dormir mad, the conduit inhabiting the demon stood in disbelief over Kaito's ascension to Time Entity, a being that drew Time Energy within itself. Dormir could be heard faintly growling at the idea of Kaito ascended into a Time Entity, but still did not retreat at the idea of being destroyed. "The Dormir demon is a necessity, without it the soldiers would hold no fear, without it they would turn corrupt. As did you." "I am the only reason you are still here. Kala and I had a long talk about revamping the Dormir project. Last chance, Kronos." Dormir raced forward as Kaito's time sword formed and clashed with the demon's sword, pushing back and blasting it with a time blast that knocked it back. Kaito raced ahead and disappeared in a burst, appearing behind Dormir and impaling the demon in the lower back, twisting to throw it to the side.

                              Dormir skidded and formed time energy like a pillar to slam into Kaito who slammed him into the floor, wiping his sword to decapitate the former Time Mage. Kaito grabbed the sword with his hand and disintegrated it instantly. Kaito's eyes shined white with the power cosmic behind it, then with a blink Kaito's form shifted into pure time energy and blasted through the demon, reshaping into his human form behind him turning to look at the demon's back. "Your destiny is to die by my hands, Kaito Kojima." "You do not control my destiny."

                              Kaito raced forward and formed the time sword in his hand, slicing through Dormir's torso. "You. Will. Succumb." Kaito turned to face him. "I'll outlast you." Kaito collected the infinite power of time energy around him and let loose a powerful beam of energy that blasted him apart. Kaito's eyes glowed a cosmic white as he did the impossible: bringing Dormir into the mortal realm and destroy him from the present onward. He would ensure Dormir was gone and could no longer terrorize Mages who have made a mistake, and in doing so pulled at his conduit's history and combined the two together, destroying both their existences without mercy. "I warned you I would destroy you and Dormir, Kronos. Every conduit from this point out will no longer inhibit a Mage's growth as they learn to accept their failures and grow stronger. No more fear mongering." Dormir could be heard growling that rippled across the Time Plane as he was being destroyed, Kaito seeing his conduit one last time as the two entities were destroyed. The destruction of his conduit and the Time Demon exploded energy across the infinite plane of time. The Mages and their conduits were seen standing around Kaito as the infiniteness of the plane was pulled forward to bring them closer, every Mage in disbelief over this power.

                              "From this point forward I am in charge of the Time Mages, you will no longer fear the punishment of death for a failure. Any conduit who disagrees is welcome to take it up with Goddess Kala." Kaito smiled brightly as the conduits remained stoic to the news, confirming individually that Kaito had been granted the power and become in charge of the Time Mages. He laughed lightly, "go back to your missions, any questions can be directed towards myself. If you'll excuse me...I have a planet to help save." Kaito disappeared as each Mage returned to their previous engagements, Kaito landing in a burst of power on Valor as he could feel the new form he took as the Time Entity flowing from his veins, but also weakened by the Chroma energy he was starting to really dislike. He still had a deal with Vance and would follow it for now, but not without one last action.

                              Time stopped itself as the leaves no longer swayed, the wind no longer moved, and the birds were halted in the sky. Umiko would find herself in a frozen world as Kaito stood in front of her free from the detection of Vance, using his new power to mask himself from Vance as he would finally have the chance, something he'd not had in over 24 hours, to let himself have Umiko the way she wanted. "I've missed you."

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                      Nill stood with her back to Noah, thinking about all the embarrassing moments that had occurred the previous night. Drinking acted as a gateway for Nill to released her inner passions that were bottled up, wanting Noah to love her so intimately. One time, their first time after being out of Vance's grasp, was not enough. She vividly recalled the moment that Noah had barged into her room when they were living in Vance's complex, and Vance had taken leave with Alice for a week for unknown reasons. Whatever they were, Nill no longer cared, especially when she was being reunited with her hero from so many years ago. Making his way towards Nill's room he didn't even think about it as he knocked and barged in, shutting the door behind him to see Nill so surprised she fell over onto the floor, Noah stopped dead in his tracks as the door's latch clicked behind him. "N-Nill I-I'm so sorry..." He was staring at Nill, wearing so few clothes. She was wearing black socks that went up between her ankle and knee, a small skirt that hadn't been fully put up, hanging carelessly around her waist and in her lap, exposing her underwear which he didn't want to admit he took in the details of for longer than necessary. Her shirt was barely buttoned exposing a matching bra, the shirt hanging off her shoulders exposing her soft shoulders and chest, the bit of cleavage the bra had given hard to pull away from, even with a man who had as much self-control as he did. He could see her exposed neck and the hair that hung in her face, the blush that coated her cheeks as they stared at one another.

                      "I-I should have knocked I'm so...so sorry. I..." He backed away, his back into the door as he reached for the knob and grasped it tightly, giving another once over to her figure, her beautiful image that sat in front of him, stunned as he was. Nill was staring at him, flustered to great heights but feeling unimaginably stiff as to move or cover herself up. This was her hero, seeing her like this. To see him frozen in a state of seeing her in such a condition for the first time with red on his face was something that made her heart race as fast as her mind was racing about him still standing there, not rushing away or out of the door. She wanted him to stay, her mind anticipating something she'd only dreamed about. Her lips, accompanied by her scantily-clad appearance was secretly plaguing him, her wings spread out as she truly was an angel that was made for him and his quest. For his use and his purpose. She didn't think at that time so far ahead, but with being on the verge of death in each of her actions, she didn't have time to think about the future. It was the now she was focused on. "Nill..." He said softly as he approached her, kneeling down to look at her, then he carefully put a finger on the heart surgery scar, tracing it along her body from the bottom of her heart to her left shoulder. She recalled that exact moment, heat taking her in it's strong hold and leaving her absolutely breathless. She panted nervously, her hot breath only exhausting the steam in her heart that ran like a locomotive, the gears sparking as it ran like mad. She could feel her whole upperbody numb from his touch, and that was just her skin...                       This time was different. That mad beating of her heart was on its own rampaging course as he knees were starting to grow weaker. That time from so long ago... I know I wanted him so badly... j-just from him touching me so gently...

                      Her passions started to stir as she muffled her moans, having given Noah the opportunity to wash her body no other in this world could have the opportunity to do. But now he was touching the most sensitive parts of her person, and it was causing her to stifle in her stand, then he started leaving a kiss mark, causing her to flinch and release an unexpected gasp. "You feel...amazing." Noah said in a hushed tone as the cool water struck him in the back, the shower head positioned so the water struck Nill's hair and matted her hair down her body, leading streams of water onto his fingertips as she could feel everything wet running against her, and she blushed hotly. The water was cool, but his words ignited the lingering heat of her heart to pulse in every cell of her body. She didn't want to say anything in response, as he was touching her. She wasn't sure whether she wanted to refuse his touch, to see if he would go beyond her wishes for his own, or if maybe she should just lay against him, her mind racing with thoughts from last night as he continued to keep the passion going on his own. "What makes me happy is that you're all mine, and only mine." He kissed her shoulder up to her ear, then whispered, "you'll be mine forever, won't you Nill?" Nill felt her heart pounding, his whisper snapping the last remaining strength in her legs as his voice was slightly rough, pleasuring in tone, and caused her to He could feel her legs shaking and her heartbeat racing faster, panting to his touch. He wrapped an arm around her stomach and held her up as her knees gave out from being able to pleasure her in the shower. They eventually finished their shower, Nill taking a moment until she found the strength to stand, get dressed, but unable to look Noah in the face for a little while after. She didn't think Noah was going touch her so intimately just then, and that caused her to tremble in thought, pace, and more.

                      Meanwhile, Ember walked into the shower recalling the last time he suggested they do so. She knew this was something that he wanted... and even though she honestly hated parts of her body exposed, especially her back.. she wasn't too against giving Daxter what he wanted now. She pressed up against him soon as the water from the shower touched her skin and they kissed passionately, touching him lower and lower until she reached the one part of him she could easily wrap her hand around. "Hnng," he groaned out softly as she peered up at him and moving her hair back, "what are you do -- oh hell." Her touch, the warmth of her mouth had caused him to let a whispered breath out as he let out a pleasured moan behind the knuckles of his hand he was biting to keep quiet, "n-not fair." Just hearing Daxter talk like that, having been riled up and flustering with his words for once... And I'm the only one who can do this now... She looked up at him, her emerald eyes peering into his blood red ones as she studied his reaction carefully, then continued to work on it. She wasn't so bold behind closed doors, knowing that her femininity got the best of her from time to time... But she wanted it to be different this time. This time she wanted to do what Daxter always did, and after such a loving night she shared with him, she was the one who took initiative to keep passion going. It was difficult, hard to breathe, but easily at the same time, slowly getting more used to it and adjusting herself. Eventually he put a hand on her head as he stuttered a frustrated [******** I love you."

                      Ember could hear that frustration, soft as it was. It was like he was being forced to admit that he loved her, and it reminded her of the time he pushed her against the wall at the arcade, saying she had done this to him, having plagued him with the illness that could only be tamed by a kiss from her lips. That she made him love her. By the end of this, she was going to have made this something to remember. "E-Ember..." he whispered in a rough groan as he felt himself nearing his limit from her intimate touch, but she continued until he was finished. She stood up, a small fluster on her cheeks but nothing showing a weakness in the grin that accompanied her expression. She'd gotten all that she wanted, and felt proud of herself for having-- but then he pressed her against the wall. His nails were sliding his nails down her stomach as he kissed the trail he made, falling down to look up at her. Ember couldn't explain the feeling... Daxter dragging his nails against her skin as he left down caused her to be intimidated somehow... More curious and more aroused somehow. "Stay still, my turn." In the same way her lips and tongue had gotten to taste him, he was going to return the favor as he gently spread her legs a little further apart and let his tongue in between her legs, his hands on her outer thighs. Ember's eye widened in shock when she felt him start, and she squeaked. W-What is h-he doing? Ember could feel it. The distinct feeling that was hard to ignore, and causing her to elicit the same sounds and flush to her face as to what she caused Daxter. Is.. Is he always looking for a way to backfire at me? O-Or -- but her thoughts weer cute short when she felt a surge cause her to grip at her hair, panting louder, "D-Daxter a-ah!" She was losing her mind, and wasn't sure what to think. He did this out of love she knew that, but she couldn't help but feel like in some ways, he was wanting to see that weak face of hers that belonged to him, something only he had.

                      He let her go after she was done, and she couldn't think as she used the wall for support. So strong.. so brave.. and so kept together. How is it that it's just him and something so small... and I end up crumbling on the spot? She looked him in his blood red eyes, still recovering her breathing to a regular pace. "Like that?" He asked with a similar smirk. "D-Damn you Daxter..." she muttered softly, her eyes falling to his chest as she pushed herself off the wall and rested both of her hands flat against his chest, the cold water still running down their bodies as she rested her head in his neck and nodded, hotter than hell. His hand trailed across the DOGS tattoo on her back as she rested against him, shaking slightly from their act. "I love your body," he told her softly, making her blush only slightly brighter. This body she hated in different ways.. exposed in the most ways possible... and he told her he loved her body. Somehow she hated it less, and was happy that she'd taken this opportunity with him. She didn't regret it, even if she had her own opinions about herself... Daxter's was more important. Whatever he thought about her was all she cared about, and even while she knew their time had ended now.. There would be more to come.

                      The dining hall was empty when the team arrived, Daxter taking opportunity to make a scene with Noah by picking fun at him. Ember knew Nill wasn't used to Daxter, and that Takashi was the same case.. But there would be plenty of time for them to get used to this just as Noah and Ember had. They were survivors strung together by a chain of events from so long ago.. in constant contact in some form or another. Somehow though, Ember felt out of the entire loop of being open to all her teammates. There were still a few secrets not revealed to the rest of the team, and she wasn't playing into the team concept well except for the physical force she provided. She wasn't sure she could share everything with everyone... but also wondered if she even should. Somehow, everything she was still feeling remorse and regret for, she kept to herself. She hadn't admitted to Noah that she was the reason Zack disappeared, death delivered by her hands alone. She hadn't told them what she'd seen at the last base they infiltrated at Los Angels. They were just piling one on top of another, and she wasn't sure how long she could escape the guilt that would continually cripple her heart in some form or another. Noah would probably act out in absolute rage if he found out about Zack. So what if he did? Ember thought for a moment, but before the touch of the cup could hit her lips she paused, almost with horror hidden behind her calm eyes. ...Was... that mine? She narrowed her eyes into her drink, having successfully masked her confusion of the evil nature that she'd spoken in her mind as looking as if she didn't like whatever she was drinking. Since when is it okay for me to think that it would be find for Noah to lose it over the death of his best friend? Seriously... I need to get a grip. Yeah I get a little frustrated with my leader from time to time... but Zack's death has kept me in a corner for years. That wasn't me. Just another ******** demon talking to me. Noah's a good guy. I can't tell him.... not now.

                      Daxter and Ember later left the dining hall and returned to their own room, getting ready for the spectacular date Daxter said he had in store for the both of them. She was curious, excited, and no longer thinking about secrets at this point as she was trying to get away from all of that. This was time to have a real vacation and forget about all these fights. Vance wasn't on their tail for now, and she preferred it that way. "Hey babe I gotta take care of something for our date, I'll text you in a little bit and have you meet me somewhere. Trust me, it'll be spectacular." She didn't look at him as she was still getting dressed, having finally got down to her underwear and bra, but felt his hand slip in and, "I love that this body is all mine." He kissed her quickly as she turned, her face lighting up slightly with a flustered expression, eyes narrowed from being embarrassed by him again, "and this is all yours too baby." He let his hands showcase his body as he playfully twirled his hips, "I won't be long, mkay?" Ember rolled her eyes, a small smirk perking up on the corner of her lip as she allowed him to do whatever it was that he needed to do, and would catch his text message when he sent it. As he left, she looked down at her outfit. A crimson top, a black collared shirt over, and tight fitting jeans. She switched the shirts with a long sleeve black shirt, all fitting her figure, but she just didn't want to risk her clothes getting caught onto anything... since she didn't know where they would be going. She suddenly felt a stinging pain in her head, clutching onto the left side of her head in her hands as she started to cringe slightly.

                      Ember walked over to the restroom, quickly grabbing hold of the medicine cabinet that had painkillers and cracking it open. Ember closed the mirror of the cabinet, looking at it as she opened the bottle and grabbed two pills. As she looked back in the mirror to take her pills, she widened her eyes at what she saw. Ember's mouth was open, her palm open with the pills resting on it, but the mirror showed a different reality. It was her with silver eyes, slits in them as she was engulfed entirely in dragonic nature. Blood ran off her face in small streams, her red hair stained by the dark crimson. Her mouth was open, her dragon fangs extended as Zack's still beating heart was convulsing in her palm. Ember jolted, her eyes looking to the pills, the illusion transcending the mirror and showing it still in her hands. Her eyes glowed silver as her heartbeats caused her legs to tremble like she was being rocked by an earthquake in the epicenter that was her body. Ember clutched at her shirt above her heart, breathing fast and heavily like she was suffering a heart attack. A cold sweat broke out, trailing down her face as she looked in the mirror, her sweat showing more streams of blood. Quickly, she swiped her hand to the right and grabbed the newly forged blade, lunging to close the distance between her and the mirror, stabbing at the mirror once and causing it to shatter, but not completely. Her image rippled into several, all showing different perspectives of my demons. Ember was filled with rage, boiling up from her toes to the top of her head in less than a few seconds as she took her hand back, still holding the blade and started bashing at the remains of the mirror left. Her hands were exposed to cuts from holding the glass down, stabbing it and accidentally brushing it on her skin, but she wanted the images gone. She wanted everything about this gone. She slowed down her breathing, seeing the glass gone, but the carpet of the bathroom having a few spots of blood on it. The maid would clean it when they came by, so Ember only bothered cleaning up the glass. She looked at the painkiller bottles, melting it in her hand with absolute disgust and then throwing it in the trash, where it belonged.

                      Meanwhile, Noah and Nill were readying for their day out together when Nill approached him as he was buttoning up his dress shirt, looking at him somewhat nervously. "N-Noah..." she said small as she reached into her pocket and pulled out two tickets. "I-I used some of m-my own money to buy these. J-Just some b-but I thought maybe... w-we... we could go to a hot air balloon ride." She hid her face behind the tickets partially as she meowed at him, "D-Do you want to go with me?" Taking the opportunity to asking him out to her first date that she actually found for them. Noah smiled and grabbed the tickets, exposing her face and touching her cheek, "you're asking me out? What a pleasant surprise, I'd love to." Noah playfully tapped her nose with the tickets, "an adorable kitty," he said in reply to her meowing to him, "woof." Nill's blush extended ear to ear when he woof'd at her, making her wings twitch with such rapidness of their flutter a few feathers fell loose. He grabbed her hand with his free one and stepped close to kiss her quickly, looking down at the tickets. "We better hurry, shouldn't we?" He asked as the two of them prepared for the day and went off by taxi to the fields where the hot air balloons would be located.

                      Soon, Noah and Nill arrived to the field where the hot air balloons were grounded, some lifting into the air as couples or just interested parties took to the skies over the large neon-built city. Nill was rather excited, ever since the time that Noah had taken her outside for the first time after years of being trapped in the complex by Vance. She knew this world was beautiful, but the two of them were about to experience this beauty in a brand new way. She looked up at the hot air balloon, entirely excited about the whole thing. She was rather enticed by the idea of being up so high. She hadn't tried to fly with her new wings, the ones that could extend with power of light, but she was afraid to take flight at the same time. Like a baby bird sitting on the edge of the nest, she wasn't ready just yet. She would try one day, but she had a long time before she would ever have to encounter a need to. But... Instead of flying to embrace the world in height, she was going to wait for practice of flying until she'd gotten to share the beauty with Noah first. With an arm wrapped around Nill's waist she and Noah approached the balloon pilot who took a quick look over their tickets and ushered them into the large basket of the balloon, following along after them. Noah stood with Nill at the edge of the basket while the pilot closed the gate behind them and lifted them into the sky. "This...is very nice." He said softly as the ground became smaller and more distant beneath them, the bright blue sky giving way to the horizon on the distance.

                      Nill looked at Noah with a smile, then looked out to the world that was becoming so small below them. Nill looked out at the world, the blonde hair lifting off her shoulders as sit flew behind her with the breeze taking it, but she didn't care. It made her feel just that much lighter when she was up here. Holding Noah's hand, they both moved to the edge of the basket, taking a look at the world below and how small it was. Nill widened her eyes in amazement, pulling her eyes away from it to look at a more breath-taking sight than the world and all it's glory, only to spot clear streams running down his cheeks. She was struck in surprise, wondering if he was upset, but he seemed to be in shock at what he was looking at. Before she could even begin to assume the worst, ask him a question or anything she heard him speak, "I've...never seen anything so beautiful before. This is where we live...what it's like without the darkness or the corruption or the evil. This is the world I want to live with you in. Clean and beautiful. Nill..." Noah closed his eyes as he stood up straight and wiped the small tears off his face, looking to his angel with a bright smile. She watched his approach, her heart fluttering with the breeze that ruffled her wings and hair as it did his. He wrapped his arm around her neck and pulled her closer, kissing her with all the love he felt for her in the moment, the blue sky beside them as the sun shined brightly on top of them. Nill's heart jumped to her throat as she was kissing Noah at such greater heights than either of them had ever been. Her kiss was longer than expected, seeing how he first pressed on her lips, but when he pulled away the first time she expected him to say something. He only exhaled quickly, going to her lips again. The third. The fourth. Eventually she tugged on his sleeve, the pilot being good at being invisible to the two of them as she thought, M-More.. Noah don't leave my lips a-alone. Her thoughts becoming loud in between the pants of them kissing, "Y-You've started. P-Please d-don't stop yet."

                      She slowly opened her closed eyes, having kissed him so passionately for the few minutes they had as he felt his finger graze over her lower lip slowly and start to take away the leftover saliva from their evident passions... licking his thumb. She blushed a deep shade of red as she closed in closer to him, "Thank you, lover, this is the best thing anyone has ever given me. It's the best date I've ever had." Noah stood next to her and rested his head on top of hers, looking out over the city's skyline. They looked out to the skyline, but Nill, as she rested against Noah, noticed something strange going on with him. He was holding her rather tightly against him... almost suffocatingly so. Nill winces slightly as she spoke up, "N-Noa--" but was turned to be put behind him as Noah grabbed the blade that the pilot had lunged for her back. The blade cut a fresh wound into Noah's hand as his blood stained the straws of the basket, dripping through the cracks of the woven and dripping like a small rain to the world below. "N-Noah!" she gasped as she stood against the edge of the basket. Noah glared at the pilot, taking the knife's blade and reaching for the handle of it, elbowing the pilot in the jaw and confiscating it from him. Noah looked as the pilot cracked his head, unaffected from the hit to the jaw as he grinned at Noah. "Oh Defiance..." the voice said in the tone of "Vance!" But Noah was mistaken. It was another human figure that was over powered and brainwashed by Vance himself. Noah wrestled with the pilot as Nill stood on the sides lines, but in a last ditch effort to apparently kill the two of them, the pilot put out the flame that kept the balloon inflated and caused it to start falling. Nill and Noah floated out from the basket in a second, but started falling quickly. Nill shrieked as the pilot wasn't going to accept defeat from Noah, fighting him just for a while. Noah was winning, asking him in midfall, "Are you working for Vance?! Answer me!!" He noticed the pilot refusing to give in, taking his own life with his blade before hitting the ground he was sure they would hit.

                      Noah looked at the pilot's demise but looked to Nill, who was frightened entirely. He spread his arms out to slow down his fall, allowing her to falling toward him as he yelled, "Nill! Grab onto me and don't let go!" Noah wrapped his arms around her tightly, securing her against him as her heart raced. She pursed her lips shut as tears fell from her eyes, but she felt her wings fluttering behind her to try and slow their speed. They were so small, they couldn't catch wind. Nill clutched onto Noah, the fear of death's embrace coming closer when they neared the ground, but suddenly Nill glowed a bright white, her wings extending fully and catching so much air she flapped them downward that Noah and he literally stopped from falling and bounced back up. Nill clutched onto Noah, holding him tightly as he held her, her wings supporting the both of them as they softly hit the ground, Noah's back resting on the grass as she shrank her wings back to normal. She opened her tear filled eyes to look at him, smiling brightly with the worry leaving her as she patted on Noah and hiccuped, "W-We made it. N-Noah--!" she kissed him, holding him close as she was sure they were going to die. She kissed him over and over as his wound healed quickly from her light, holding his face in her hands as she kissed him passionately. They survived, and nothing could relieve her more than knowing her hero was okay.

                      Meanwhile, Ember had left the hotel room after taking a moment to regather herself. She walked down the sidewalk holding her hands in her pockets as she swiftly turn the corner of the hotel, walking in the big city. She walked quietly as the voice in her head returned. Now now Ember, you need to relax. You seemed a little tense back ******** off. Come now is that anyway to talk to your best friend? Oh no don't go there. You've done nothing for me. I don't even want to hear it. I wonder if his heart tasted good. That.. That never happened. ...Don't lie to yourself, Ember. Ember froze momentarily in her steps, her eyes narrowing at the sidewalk under her feet. That was no illusion. Remember in Alaska when you looked in the mirror and saw yourself and Daxter? She made haste, quickly started running up the stairs instead of taking the elevator, and made it to their room. She quickly slid her key and walked inside, slamming the door behind her and then pressing her back against the door. Seconds turned to minutes as Ember stood there, and her bangs covered her face. While she stood in that same spot, and the millions of feelings began to unfold, she felt a great wave of complete agony and pain overwhelm her. I'm so sorry... she thought as a couple tears landed from her eyes onto the carpet. Ember spoke, "I'm so sor--" and then she paused, moving a hand up to her eyes and feeling the tears swell up. She pressed her palm firmly against her left eye, closed, and started to cry, releasing a growl and sliding against the door as she cringed in agony. She recalled being treated by Daxter, him opening up to her about his past, hearing him sing, finding her in an alleyway, and the burning kiss that tortured her lips. She bit her lower lip, making it start to bleed as she gripped the carpet floor with her right hand and started crying. What was causing her to cry was a simple guess...

                      A voice spoke, "You don't want to hurt him, don't you?" Ember stopped her crying, where she thought she felt some peace, and looked up. She stood up and walked out to the center of the living room to look for the figure and its source, "You're a monster. You killed Zack with your bare hands, knowing that he was an innocent soul tormented by mechanical devices. You know you didn't set him free. You took his still beating heart out of his chest and crushed it with your bare hands." Ember's silver eyes lit up as a surge of flames spread out in a quick ring around her. The intensity of the heat broke the light bulbs as her silver irises looked in the dark setting. She fought back and forth continually with the shadow figure, arguing it with her feelings over Daxter, and how she denied them needing each other. She stopped trying to attack it and looked around, seeing a mirror and a light enter the room from the setting sun outside. She could see her reflection in the mirror, and Daxter coming behind her. She watched the reflection of herself smile brightly when Daxter wrapped his arms around her neck and pulled her against his torso. Ember glared at the image as she could see what the demon was trying to do. Her reflection smiled, then digging her claws into Daxter's skin when he winced in pain. They then both went up in flames. There was no real winner, but in that fire in the mirror, Ember saw flashing images of herself becoming a beast. A dragon shredding it's enemy to pieces.                       Ember widened her eyes from the flashback, knowing this was not her first encounter with a mirror's illusion. Though that had not come true, and she'd never gripped him in transformation of becoming a monster, the voice interrupted, Your God Power allows you to see the uncontrolled actions of your counterpart... the part of you that loses touch with humanity and drives a rage so powerful that its actions are forgotten and predicted. That's impossible... How much do you know about this power to prove me wrong? ... That's right... nothing.

                      Ember shook her head, continuing to walk down the sidewalk as she wondered what was true, and what wasn't. No. No no that's a lie. There's no way that my God Power could do something like that. I've.. I've always been aware of my actions. I never ate his heart... I think... No no stop. You didn't do it, Ember get a hold of... I... I........ I might have... Ember held her fingers up to her lips as her eyes flickered a silver color. I... I did... eat his heart. He was laying on his back, tears falling from his face from the pain. "Uuuugh...E-Ember no p-please... just... just run..." Ember straddled him, her eyes looking at him carefully as she placed her hand on him, surging multiple strikes of electricity into his body, like trying to stir a pulse into a dying person's heart... but in Zack's case it was trying to burn out all mechanical wiring installed in his body to a crisp. "Come on Zack, don't you love me?" She asked, tears falling from her silver eyes as blood started to bubble from his mouth. She was killing him more than she was saving him. She was out of her normal state of mind, looking down at Zack with a crazed gaze, broken in her heart but scrambled on her expression. "Zack. Zack. Zack." She said his name over and over, the syllable matching the pulses she sent into his body as he cried, "Stop! Ember!" he gasped as he grabbed her hand. Ember felt him grab her hand, pushing it away from him as it was the source of all his pain, but Ember threw his hand off of her and put her hand back on his chest, "Shut up Zack! Let me save you!" Zack cringed in enormous pain, his powers sending haywire strings of energy to flow out of his body, whipping across the floor and scratching through the carpet and digging into the wood, "E-Ember!"

                      She wasn't succeeding in whatever she was trying to do, but she continued as she pleased, ignoring his pleas entirely. She looked at him, a sick grin spreading on her face as she decided she was done hearing his cries of pain. "I TRIED SAVING YOU WHY DO YOU PUSH ME AWAY?!" She lunged her hand into his chest, gripping his heart as she looked him in the eyes, both of their hearts racing, "I love you Zack. But.. You won't let me save you--" "E-Ember, you're no-not saving me! Y-You're literally tearing me apart!" "Do you WANT TO DIE?" she griped his beating heart, keeping him alive by force with her God Power, "That's it... You don't love me anymore do you... You... You just hate me!" Zack tried to retaliate, but she gripped it tighter, pulling it from his veins that spilled back into his body as she took his heart from him, life fading from his eyes. "If I can't have your heart, then I'll take it by force." She heard him mutter her name in horror as she pulled back his heart, bringing her fangs to it and --                       She stiffened until she felt the need to vomit. Her whole body felt electrified by pain before she dropped to her knees. She broke into a sweat, pulling herself up quickly and ran for a bar, heading into it without looking at anything, anybody or anyone as she went the restroom and vomited.

                      She couldn't breathe, her nose running and her eyes watering from throwing up everything she'd eaten. Ember couldn't take the truth of the illusion, but took a solid half hour piecing herself back together before leaving the restroom and going out to the bar. She walked for the door, her walk wobbly as she lifted a dazed hand in front of her, "I need to see Daxter." She didn't know what to do with herself. She was experiencing memory shock from having remembered Zack's death... and the way that she broke him in the worst way imaginable. Then she was grabbed by another male with brown hair, "Are you okay? Y-You don't look good maybe you should sit down. The other ladie--" [******** off," Ember snapped as she took her hand back from the stranger and walked away. The male took a few steps back, having felt her snap at him and watched her leave along with other patrons in the bar. She made her way outside the bar and continued walking, but that same man came back and grabbed her left shoulder, holding it firmly, "Wait!" He said as he was worried. Ember looked at him, her God Power and whatever else was happening mixing into her person. "You really look deathly pale! Are you sure you're okay? I wouldn't feel right about letting you leave like this." "...You..." Ember said lazily, dazed slightly as she smiled, "You fool." She forged a blade from her hand, slicing at his cheek and causing him to back away. He backed up, surprised at this attack as he looked at the girl he was trying to help stare him down intently. She licked her blade, wiping his blood clean off it as she said, "I told you to ********. off." He didn't hesitate leaving after that display, making his way away from her and going back to the bar.

                      "Well that was quite a display..." said a familiar voice. Ember turned around, releasing several blades from her hand that all hit "Lucia." Lucia gave a puzzled look, the blades Ember had forged hitting a poisonous coating on her body. "Why did you try and attack me--" "Why do you have a poisonous cover on?" Ember tilted her head, forging another blade in her hand and giving Lucia a dark glare, "...You didn't forget how good a dragon's senses are... did you?" Lucia scoffed, crossing her arms and looking over Ember with disgust as she shook off the blades, all of them having melted points. Her poison worked faster than usual... Ember kicked up the dirt as she took a step forward, ready to close the distance with Lucia and talk, "What do you want--" But suddenly Ember felt a sharp point tap on her neck, blinking as suddenly Lucia was holding a blade out of seemingly nowhere. How she managed to be that fast was beyond Ember, who immediately back off with a growl. "Your mentality is breaking, Ember.... And I knew this would happen. I was supposed to try and change this... But now I can't. Nor do I have the time to try again. So... before you sentence us all to uncertain death, I need to erase your existence now." "What the hell are you talking about?!" Ember shouted as suddenly Lucia bolted for her, fast on her feet. Lucia skidded, dashing so quickly behind Ember she looked to be teleporting to whatever position Ember left an opening. The blade Lucia had forged from something tried to strike her, but shards of steel protected Ember's body, making midair contact with the weapon anytime the blade reached within a certain distance to Ember's body, forcing the blade to bounce back.

                      "W-What the ******** are you?! I thought you just had poison power!" Ember shouted as Lucia didn't spare any words. It was certain that Lucia had either lost her mind over the thought of revenge on behalf of her parents and sister... or she was really out of her mind. Either way, Ember grabbed the blade before she could use her steel powers to catch it, gripping the blade but realizing it was not made of steel. What the ********] Ember asked herself as she was confused. She could grab almost any weapon and bend it, break it, crumble it, but this one was made of... "Time power." Ember narrowed her eyes, gritting her teeth as the blade started to break skin, "I have time powers, Ember." Lucia lunged for Ember, trying more swipes for her as Ember continually jumped back, again and again, trying to force Lucia to lay off or show signs of fatigue. "Stop it! I don't care what kind of powers you have but you're really starting to piss me off! Aren't we on the same team?!" Ember shouted angrily, sending blue flames of fire towards her. "Do you actually BELIEVE that Ember?! You're the one who's not in the team anymore!!" Ember widened her eyes, being caught off her guard for a split second as the blade came inches by her cheek, Ember catching her own reflection in the blade that slid right next to her. "I won't let you become a monster Ember!!!" Ember growled all the more, but suddenly just a few moments later Ember's body was scratched up all over. She winced, Lucia having used quick slashes of time energy to hit her body. Ember tumbled back, grabbing at the concrete as she skidded back. "I realize now I'm the only one who can do this right."

                      "What the hell are you talking about?!--" Ember lit her blue fire in her hands, aiming it as Lucia, but Lucia cutting through and protecting herself from the flames. "I was sent to this planet with a mission. Vance was going to take over this world, and one of the contributing factors towards his success was you. In order for Vance's plans to fail, I had to make sure that you would never join his side or break apart in a way where--" "I'm never going to join that b*****d's side! Do you even hear me? Why fight me! I hate him more than any of you!" "That may be true but you're missing the point Ember! There's a reason that I've lived on this planet for such a long time. There's a reason I got you kidnapped by the DOGS and tortured by Vance!" "I don't have time for your BULLSHIT LUCIA!" Ember charged at Lucia, throwing her flames embedded with hundreds of steel needles. Lucia deflected them with barriers, holding her own against Ember's rampage as she continued talking, "Ember you have to die. Think about Daxter, Nill, Noah... The people you love. Think about your your father Vincent--" Ember's eyes widened, her wings emerging from her lower back as she transformed, her red hair growing in length as her steel feathers screeched against the concrete. "Don't you dare ******** say my father's name." Ember gritted her teeth, stopping her flames as they circled around her violently. "Don't act like you know HIM OR ME!" Ember pounced off the ground, the earth shifting under her feet as she started to violently attack Lucia with her God Power. She was starting to fall apart again, like the time that she was in complete turmoil over having to kill Zack, except this time.. she wasn't going through any sort of real devastation. She was breaking slowly out of anger and frustration.. something she was known to control.

                      As Ember pushed back Lucia, slowly breaking through her defenses, she heard her shout, "Don't you know how to think about anyone but yourself?!" Ember laughed, her silver eyes showing signs of blue in their color. "Did you suck him off?" Lucia furrowed her brow. "Excuse you?!" Ember cracked her neck. She narrowed her eyes and laughed at Lucia, "Did you suck him off?! That old boyfriend of yours... Vance? Such a ******** lover boy to just string you along like a pawn. And what of Salem? Do you just like to ******** all the bad boys or what? You're such a tainted whore." Lucia couldn't believe how blunt and rude Ember was talking. Usually Ember was calm, level-headed and serious. Now she was doing what Daxter had done to her once upon a time, pushing buttons to make her break out in a rage of anger to charge. "You really have lost it.." Lucia growled as she skidded to a stop, Ember walking disheveled. She looked at Ember's blue flames and spoke up, "I know you never used to have that fire. Vance... Vance is the only person on the planet other than you with magical blue flames. Tell me... when he tortured you for those three long weeks... did he..." Ember laughed, sending sharp shots of steel to pierce her. "You're so clever. You think you know everything don't you? That's right.. You just know it all don't you..." Ember shouted angrily, tears building up in her eyes, "That monster kept me in a cage for three mind-numbing weeks, beating into my head that I was a monster! I'm NOT a monster! I refuse for anybody to call me such. He didn't do anything! These flames are my OWN. I overcame death and Daxter saved me! You think Vance gave me these flames? ******** liar! These flames or my scars of your torment..." She looked at Lucia, her eyes brightening in their glow, "T-That's right... You... You're the reason I suffered those three weeks. You said so yourself..."

                      Lucia back away rather quickly, taking a look at Ember laughed to herself before darkly turning to Lucia, causing the flame to ignite all over the ground. "You're nothing but a monster... I know you are. I tried to save you... change fate... but I've seen what you can do and what you will do. I just.. I don't care what my higher ups have said before, there is no other way! You MUST be gone! I'm going to make sure you never cause another person pain like you did me, and I won't allow you to become anything that you should never to be!!!" Lucia managed to keep herself up with her time powers, charging for Ember until Ember created a silver vortex in her right hand, surprising Lucia and engulfing her into this vortex. Ember laughed quietly, the vortex disappearing as she'd gotten rid of her rather easily, the swirling silver vortext sealing the screams of Lucia until all was silenced. "Enjoy where you're going..." Ember laughed darkly, sweeping up her flames and continuing to walk to the destination she received only a few seconds after from Daxter, texting her with a heart which brought Ember back down from her half-crazed state, immediately forgetting the encounter she'd just had and feeling excited about meeting with Daxter.

                      Meanwhile.. Umiko walked close to the city, making it to a park. She looked around, hearing the laughter of children left and right as she continued to sulk on her thoughts about Kaito and all she'd experienced... Until suddenly she found herself in a frozen world as Kaito stood in front of her. She took a moment to look this over, seeing if maybe her own magic was playing a prank on her, tricking her into seeing what she desired most, but then, "I've missed you." That unmistakable voice that belonged to Kaito caused her to step back slowly, covering her mouth with a gasp as she felt her heart jolt, and seconds after, tears filling her eyes. What was this? What was he going to say to her? From what she's experienced with him so shortly ago, she couldn't imagine this being what she wanted... but she gazed at him, unable to speak or move, frozen like the rest of time as her tears fell.

Dangerous Lunatic

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                              Nothing had been more exciting than the morning the couples shared, the showers and touching had been unbelievable and the two couples were anxious to start the day. After Daxter's scene with Noah the quartet returned to their respective rooms, swapped from their fight night of Ember/Nill and Noah/Daxter sharing a room, which had been completely forgotten about by the morning. Daxter watched Ember closely as she was undressing out of her morning clothes and dressing into her clothes for the date he was planning. He had been surprised to find that his cell phone was vibrating to indicate a new text message, looking down to find the old group he ran with here in Vegas texting him. He hadn't changed the number in years and was often a work-related phone anyhow, being a mercenary at one point which he seemed to have more or less given up on. Or, due to the constant moving between cities and continents had just slowed down considerably. Deciding to take care of the problem he would be facing with the group he considered full of idiots, Daxter approached Ember as she was changing and put a hand down her underwear to get a good feel of her, then kissed her after announcing he had business to take care of related to their date. It wasn't related to the date, but he would pull some last-minute miracle to make it seem like he had done something special. He left the hotel towards the ghettos to meet up with the criminal group that had dared to threaten him.

                              Tyrell was the big guy, the ring-leader of the group itself and big man on campus, literally. He was respected, they followed his command and did whatever he asked without hesitation. He wasn't Gifted, which made him a big target for Daxter's sights. The woman, Janet, had been a former lover of his, but less emphasis on lover and more akin to the idea of a disposable toy, he held no connection to her beyond their short period of hooking up. He was, however, very good at playing pretend like he could ever acknowledge her good enough for him, not that she would know. Then there was Gary, a simple guy who stayed quiet and did whatever was asked of him. They were the best the gang had to offer, and to Daxter that just meant the entire gang had been easily disposed of, proved when he took out Janet without missing a beat. Gary had been pissed by her death and, despite Dax's clear use of power, thought shooting at the guy who just punched the hole in her neck to fill her body with fire was a great idea. Even with a gun he could only fire so fast and Daxter had faster reflexes than Gary had a rapid trigger finger. Luckily, Tyrell was smart enough to realize he was severely outclassed by Daxter's sudden reveal of his power, letting him leave without a fight.

                              After Daxter left Tyrell wasn't just one to let this go without punishment, even if Daxter was a Gifted he had connections and decided even if it meant the end of his own life he would call in that connection. Within a few minutes after Daxter had left the payment information and target had been specified. Oblivious of what was to occur, Daxter left the ghettos to return to the Vegas Strip with all the tourist traps, casinos, and attractions. Not used to the feeling of weight on his ring finger he wiggled his left hand's ring finger, looking down to the ring Ember crafted for him with a faint smile crossing his lips, remarking in his thoughts at how much he could get used to the idea of being taken. His eyes were wandering across the Vegas Strip as he started to think about the ideas he could pull for the date, in all honesty despite telling Ember he was going to take her out on a date he hadn't the first idea of what he would do. He had hoped that they would just wander around Vegas until they found something they could do together. Daxter was admittedly stumped at what to do with her. Everything he wanted to do with her alone they would be doing as a group, she wasn't even interested in video games or anime the way he was, so going to the convention would be no fun for her. Daxter thinking about someone other than himself was a surprise even to himself, and though she might not be interested in the convention together, as a group it could be a lot more fun. He'd probably spend most of it geeking out while the rest of the group just tried to see what all the fuss was about.

                              For a change ideas weren't rummaging through his head, he wondered if maybe he was failing at being a good boyfriend, thinking that without a great idea for a date that she would be disappointed. He didn't want to disappoint her, sure there were plenty of people he didn't mind disappointing or just flat out lying to, but Ember wasn't one of them. "Alright, ideas, gotta be something we can do. Think jackass, think." Daxter began walking through a crowd of people as he lost himself in thought over what he could do for the date. Daxter absentmindedly bumped into a few people, one of them he bumped harder than he expected which caused him to snap back to reality. Seeing the long-haired man draw a sword surprised him, instinctively bringing up a fire sword to counter, "whoa calm your tits." He said with a bit of a laugh, being bumped into was no excuse to draw out a sword and filet whoever the offender was. "Dax McLain, your life is in forfeit." The man's sword collided with the fire sword, Dax's flame sword holding back the samurai sword. "Should've killed Tyrell." It wasn't hard to guess that the one man he left alive was the one to call out this hit on him, and looking into the eyes of the attacker he knew who he was, "Xain~." Daxter cooed slightly, biting his lower lip and winking, "you did this for me~? I'm so touched!" "Silence, creature. Your comments mean nothing to me, they only serve to distract yourself from your death." He spoke coldly, every word stoic and unemotional. "But baby~!" Xain twisted his arms and sliced through the flame sword, nicking Daxter in the cheek as the sword traveled up to slice into his head.

                              Daxter stepped back as the battle was now causing people to back away in mild terror, Daxter quickly pulling out his collapsible sword and extending the blade. "Is that yours? It is pitiful." "What?! ******** you this thing is amazing, I worked my a** off to earn the respect of its creator!" Xain gave a deadpan chuckle, "incompetence is imbued into the folding of the steel, all the imperfections may not appear to your untrained eyes..." Xain swung his sword, adjusting the arc as Daxter raised to block, striking with precision as Xain's sword shattered Daxter's blade, "...but they are not hidden to mine." Daxter was surprised, even hurt, that the sword he earned was destroyed, his shocked stature giving Xain one more opening to strike the blade, breaking it down to the hilt as the shattered pieces of the blade lay on the sidewalk. "Humans are fallible, even the best bladesmith creates flawed pieces. Only the inhuman can create near-perfection." "T-That was...b-but...i-it...you broke my sword, Xain!" Daxter's taunts stopped immediately at the destruction of his sword. "You say that as if it had meaning." "It had meaning to me! It was the first thing I ever decided to earn, I could have stolen it, killed the creator, but I earned that s**t!" Xain, again, gave a deadpan chuckle. "You should have spent less effort on it."

                              Daxter's most prized possession, second only to the pocket watch that Ember had gifted him, was the sword he had earned. It meant something to him because it was the turning point in his life he had actively tried to be a better person and not give in to temptations. Sure, nowadays it was the darkness within him that he learned to embrace, but the efforts he put into it weren't meaningless, and the assassin that had been sent to kill him had just rendered all his hard work a moot point. Daxter stared at the broken sword, the mechanism used to retract and extend the sword broken by Xain's strikes, just a broken piece attached to the blade that once retracted into the handle. "Besides, if you give into a gimmick - such as a collapsible sword - then the stability of the piece falls apart. You cannot have a solid blade crafted with the intent to expand from the handle." "I'm going to kill you." Daxter said in reply, fire erupting from his hands, "you can't fight a Gifted." "Of course I can." Daxter rushed at Xain intending to strike him out of anger, swiping at him with his hands ablaze pumping out intense heat in the form of his black fire. Xain dodged each rapid hand swipe at his head, twisting behind Daxter and slicing into his leg with his sword, "power of flames, black. Flight, beams, body suit. Power of smoke, teleportation, phasing. Fighting style: predictable. What made you dangerous was your unpredictability. Since you'd acquired a girlfriend and worked on your mental instability you have become decidedly less deadly." Xain proved his point by letting Daxter go who turned around immediately, Xain slicing into Daxter's neck the moment he exposed his front. "Face it, McLain, the only threat you pose is the threat of returning to life as a spirit."

                              Daxter put a hand on his bleeding neck, luckily Xain had missed his major arteries or purposely avoided them, and his words stung almost as much as the wound. "I am plenty unpredictable." Daxter seemed to be getting angry, phasing into a smoke form to shift behind Xain and ignite a beam of fire. Xain's sword moved underneath Daxter's arm from behind and twisted his body so that Daxter was bending forward, the sword used as leverage that could dislocate his shoulder if enough pressure was put on it, "how did you...?!" "Predictable." Daxter was pushed down onto the sidewalk on his stomach, the sword moved so the tip of it was digging into the back of Daxter's neck. Xain reached into Daxter's pockets and pulled out the pocket watch and the cell phone, his knee digging into Daxter's spine as he dropped the pocket watch next to Daxter's head. "A loving trinket from your girlfriend? Cute. I'll guess that it means something to you, and not just because it was a gift." Daxter grabbed the pocket watch, relieved the housing wasn't damaged by the drop, then started pushing himself up as Xain scrolled through the phone. "Dax with his power of fire, dating a girl named Ember. The coincidence is uncanny." "Stay out of my phone you cockbag!" "I cannot very well learn your texting pattern without seeing your other sent texts."

                              Babe meet me @ the fountains in 15 for sexy tiems Love love <3

                              Ember would receive the text message from "Daxter" telling her to meet him at the Bellisimo Fountains in 15 minutes, Xain tossing the phone to Daxter so he could see the message. "Wow you even copied my purposeful misspelling of sexy times. Well, thanks for my phone back dumbass," Daxter said as he began texting her, but Xain was quick to put his sword through the phone, destroying it instantly. "And ******** you." Xain slid the sword's blade underneath Daxter's neck, pulling it up so he could feel the cold steel against his skin. "Shall we go meet with your girlfriend?" Xain grabbed the back of Daxter's hair and pulled him up to his feet, Daxter pushed along by Xain to begin walking. Daxter decided to see where this went, but he didn't want to admit he was starting to get a little scared of what Xain might do to him, maybe he was becoming a lot more predictable as his mental stability increased, as the demons he fought against that took over were now part of him. If Xain was right then perhaps the deadly Killzone was nothing more than a memory.

                              Noah and Nill began their day excitedly as they reached the hot air balloon field, the two of them overlooking the various balloons that they could be taking to the skies. Before they could begin their ascent they approached the pilot and handed him the tickets, entering the basket to take to the skies. Noah could see the world for the beauty that he had never seen before, never actually taking in the sights. He'd been blind for a long time, even if he had taken time to himself he could never experience the beauty of his surroundings, and when he'd regained his sight he never took a day off, not even after the events of Gradia. But now he was on a date with Nill and all he could do was take in the sights, and he was appreciative of her gift to him, it was amazing. He kissed her lovingly as the blue skies surrounded them, the ground distanced from themselves. Their kissing had been intense for the several minutes as they let the passion take them to the heights the balloon was doing physically. After a momentary break Noah was surprised when Nill spoke up, "Y-You've started. P-Please d-don't stop yet." He smiled softly and kissed her repeatedly until the two had their fill of their kissing and love. He playfully licked his thumb of the saliva off her lips and turned back to the horizon stretched in front of them. "Thank you, lover, this is the best thing anyone has ever given me. It's the best date I've ever had."

                              Noah's radar hadn't gone anywhere, but he wasn't very paranoid about the pilot as he seemed like a decent man making an honest living, but the unmistakeable shape of a knife pulled from the pilot's pocket caused him to perk up. The pilot aimed for Nill, Noah quick to pull her close to prevent him from getting a clean shot as she suddenly noticed he was squeezing her tightly, turning to face the pilot as he grabbed the knife which cut into his hand. Nill gasped his name out noticing what was happening, Noah running through the scenarios in his head on how to keep her safe while fighting this guy off, and who he was working for. Noah glared at the pilot, taking the knife's blade and reaching for the handle of it, elbowing the pilot in the jaw and confiscating it from him. Noah looked as the pilot cracked his head, unaffected from the hit to the jaw as he grinned at Noah. "Oh Defiance..." said the voice that sounded very similar to "Vance!" Indeed he could be forgiven for mistaking the normal man for a Vance alter-ego. Noah took a step forward and wrestled with the pilot as he put out the flame for the balloon, the two continuing the wrestling as the balloon began to lose altitude. Pushing the pilot against the basket's edge, he pulled out a second knife but this time used it to slice at the ropes tying the balloon to the basket. The instability of the balloon's flight and the basket's cut ropes sent them off the edge to begin free-falling to the ground below.

                              Noah heard Nill shriek as the pilot refused to admit defeat, "Are you working for Vance?! Answer me!!" Instead of replying the pilot sliced into his own throat and fell lifelessly to the ground, Noah floating over to Nill and grabbing onto her as they were falling. "Nill! Grab onto me and don't let go!" Nill's wings weren't large enough to carry them with and Noah couldn't fly, he didn't even have telekinesis to use anymore, instead all he could do is fall to the earth below them. It was unfortunate that they were falling to a field, perhaps the ground would be soft enough that their landing would only be accompanied by a few broken bones, but Noah knew that one of them would likely hit hard enough to be killed. Noah positioned himself below her while holding tightly, if they were going to hit the ground he'd hit and she could use him to soften her landing. It was suicidal, but it was her life he was concerned about not his. As his radar detected the ground he knew they were coming up to it quickly and that this was it. 'D-Damn it...there's nothing I can do but wait for impact. I...I can't believe this.' Noah closed his eyes tightly as the ground raced up at them, until suddenly he could see a bright white light infiltrate his vision, opening his eyes to see Nill glowing, seeing her wings extending enough to catch air, flapping them so they hit the ground with a soft thud. They laid on the ground as Noah was thankful Nill had that power in her, but was suddenly feeling a little less than enthusiastic at his pure uselessness. Nill patted on him and hiccuped, "W-We made it. N-Noah--!" she kissed him, holding him close as she was sure they were going to die. She kissed him over and over as his wound healed quickly from her light, holding his face in her hands as she kissed him passionately. They survived, and nothing could relieve her more than knowing her hero was okay.

                              Noah smiled in her kisses, looking at her and pulling her close to him, kissing her back, "thanks to you, you saved our lives." Noah stood up from the ground and pulled her onto her feet, realizing that their date had been ruining, if not their entire vacation. If it wasn't Vance it was one of Vance's minions that had attacked, which meant that either Kaito's deal had fallen through or the deal was just a formality. There was the other possibility that this wasn't Vance's doing to purposely attack them with. Either way this needed to be investigated as this blatant attempt on their lives was not something that could be ignored. "I don't know about you but after attempted murder I'm always hungry, let's go have lunch." Noah put his arm around Nill's waist and led her out of the field, the balloon and basket crashing into the ground as they hailed a taxi and took off before the news crews or bystanders could show up.

                              Noon, Bellisimo Fountains. The fountains were considered the most beautiful in the world, large water spouts flowing through the ground into the air in a pattern with a thin layer of water surrounding them, usually lit with color at night that would attract lovers to kiss underneath the water that flew into the sky, falling down like rain. The attraction had a lot of visitors even during the day, the main attraction an enormous stone fountain that spat water dozens of feet into the air that would fall like rain across the entire fountain. It was a light mist that would create rainbows as the sun shined across it during the day, and during the night provided the atmosphere amidst the pillars of colored water. It was most famous for its shows where the water spouts would move like dancers to a song broadcast across the area in tune to movement and colors. It was amazing and beautiful, the thin water layer allowed people to walk across a liquid mirror as the water sprayed above them, closed off only during official shows that happened nightly. It was noon so the fountain was open to people who wanted to walk across the thin water surface near the spouts that shot water skyward. It wasn't as crowded as it usually was, but it was still filled with enough people it could be seen as a popular attraction regardless.

                              Ember would likely arrive to the fountains about the time Daxter's message instructed her too, ready for their date together that sounded like it was already starting out romantic. The fountains were a beautiful attraction, even if it messed with a fire elemental's power water could still be beautiful to look at. Ember would be waiting, likely coming down off her high from the battle with Lucia while looking around for Daxter. As she waited there was an announcement over the loudspeaker accompanied by faint music behind it. "The 12:05 performance is scheduled to begin in two minutes. All visitors must remove themselves from the fountain immediately, thank you."

                              The music suddenly carried across the entire block from the speaker system, the music pumping in a hard rhythm. It was the moment the sound carried "Rules of Nature" at precisely 12:05 pm for the unscheduled afternoon show did a fireball rocket towards the fountain and land with a hard splash of water everywhere. The fireball was extinguished by the water as another projectile landed near the fireball as the song's tempo continued on high, the fireball and other projectile revealed to be Daxter and Xain, respectively. Ember would notice this. Xain kicked Daxter into the water spout as he tried to use his fire power, but found the water was keeping him weakened and unable to ignite the air as he usually did, too much moisture to power through it. If Xain hadn't spent the time since arriving at his location of the hotel rooftop beating Daxter, then perhaps he could have ignited a black flame and evaporate the water instantly to dry the area and use it to his advantage, but as weak as he was he wasn't doing much in the way of fire. He stood up as Xain kicked him across the face with a roundhouse kick, instructing him to stand, which he did. Dax rushed at Xain and dodged the sword swipes and attempted to phase into smoke form, Xain's sword slicing through Daxter's mist-like form which caused the smoke to spazz out which caused Daxter to solidify in his human form and fall to the water, coughing heavily. "W-What, how d-did you do that?!" Daxter put an arm around his stomach as he suddenly released a torrent of blood from his mouth, one arm holding him up. "W-What did you do to me?! No one has ever hit me in that form before!" "Prepare. Anticipate. Strike. Your smoke is nothing more than a stylistic form of energy, disrupt the flow of it and you are done for. Now then, where is your girlfriend? She is watching I do believe."

                              Daxter wasn't sure what was more humiliating, Xain slicing through his smoke form with a crowd of hundreds watching, or the beating he was receiving while Ember was watching. He had always tried to be so strong for Ember, not that it was an issue but her God power made him second best to her, even at his strongest her God power blew him away and it emasculated him more than he would admit. He had been a sociopath for a long time, but it was the break in mental stability that caused it, hiding away his purity for a long time, and not until he could bury his darkness could he start to feel anything. But this sociopath who usually cared nothing about social norms, conventions, or people felt a wealth of emotion for Ember, and as his mind healed a little more day by day he was becoming more normal because of it. His emotions that he had hidden away with his good self were displayed more prominently, and he'd become the kind of person he always wished he could. But now he was discovering these emotions, he'd never handled before, were difficult. He loved Ember but wanted to be better than her, frustrated when he couldn't which he took out in different ways. He wanted to enjoy his psychopathic behavior but didn't want Ember to be turned away by it. He wanted to be strong and dominated her to do so, but to be toyed with by Xain was destroying him on the inside.

                              "At one time you used to be feared and respected. All you are now, no matter the rumors that persist, is a man. Do you know what men can do? They die. They die quickly. I have prolonged yours only for the sake of breaking you down into a shell of your former self. You are as you live: a pathetic specimen of the human race." Xain twirled the sword until the sharpened edge pressed against Daxter's neck, as he remained on his hands and knees attempting to catch his breath from the disruption of his smoke form. "Your girlfriend can come now, she can try to save you, but any movement she makes my way will only aid an unsteady hand to make the wrong move. You will be empty of blood before she can tear the spine from my torso. Speak your last words, Daxter."

                              "Hahahahahaha," Daxter laughed, "I guess after all this I'm not as awesome as I thought I was. Man oh man. You know something? I keep telling Ember I don't know if I want to get married cause I'm ******** up, I'm not scared of that. I already want to be with her the rest of my, apparently, short life. Nah, I just am afraid of having a kid and it turning out like me. But...you know what? If I'm going to die I'm going to die letting Ember know...I love her, and I'd marry her in a heartbeat. So ******** you, Xain, ******** you for showing me my weaknesses, letting me know that the man I am now is nowhere as powerful as I used to be...and I hope you join me in hell soon, you ******** piece of s**t." Xain pulled the blade away from Daxter's neck and kicked him hard enough to send him tumbling across the fountain, his sword rising to block Ember's blade as she arrived to protect her lover. "The dragon has arrived. Your boyfriend is dying of his internal injuries." "S-So that's why I can't stop coughing up blood..." "I did not just disrupt his smoke form, I forced him back together in mid-swipe of my sword, as he reshaped I cut into his organs. How long do you think he has left? Minutes? Do or die, Ember Dusk, this is his life in your hands. Now...show me your God power."

                              Kaito's arrival to Umiko's location had no doubt been surprising, but not unlikely. He smiled as he approached her, noticing she was speechless to him showing up out of the blue. It must have been more of a surprise that he approached her and wrapped his arms around her waist and held her close. "I really missed you, Umiko. Nothing has been more difficult for me than thinking I would die without ever seeing you again." He pulled away with a smile on his face, looking at her, "I saw her, the God of Time, Kala. She used your voice, very fitting of unearthly beauty. I tried to kill Vance's mother before he was born, I tried to change the future and it made me an enemy. I thought I would die, but then Kala came to me she told me that...hope and love is a trait some of the Gods that created the universe hold to be important. She gave me another chance...and she gave me untold power. Umiko...things are changing so fast, the future is evolving faster than I can see it. Vance's goals are coming to a close, the team is in peril. This is the beginning of the end, Umiko, we are weeks away from the events that will shape an uncertain future." Kaito stepped away from Umiko but grabbed her hand, holding it tightly.

                              "I know what needs to be done, Umiko. I finally understand what needs to be done to stop Vance but the team is in disarray, everyone is separated and everyone is in danger. Daxter, Noah, Nill, Takashi, Salem, Lucia, Theodore, Melody, everyone is going to die." Kaito left out Ember for unknown reasons. "There needs to be a unifying force, the team alone can't stop Vance but the team together has no limits. This world is in danger and the only one who can really change things is...you. What's coming is going to change things and not for the better, but you can help them." Kaito's other hand grabbed Umiko's and he approached her, leaning to whisper into her ear what was coming. He told her what he's seen of the future, the reason he left out Ember's name when saying the team would die. He told her what role she would play and then backed away, his hands letting go of hers to grab her cheeks, "this is why you can't come with me right now. Because I have my own role to play, and you have yours. But Umiko I make you a promise...when this is over...when we have won? There are an infinite number of universes and stories to explore. Places you can't even begin to imagine and I am tired of being alone." He held onto her cheeks with a smile crossing his face, "what I'm saying is...Umiko, will you be my girlfriend?" He laughed, "girlfriend. I'm nearly a thousand years old and I'm asking permission to have a girlfriend. You sure you want to date a guy nine-hundred ninety-nine years and three-hundred forty-four years older than you?" He could see the confusion on her face, smiling, "If I'm a thousand years old I'm two weeks shy of being a thousand years older than you. Hence the 9-9-9 / 3-4-1. I'm kidding, "

                              Kaito smiled, leaning in and kissing her lips gently as he could feel time delicately push at him, the river ready to barrel down at him. Being given a gentle reminder than time needed to start moving instead of a rage-quit moment of beating him senseless was nice. Still, if he kept time paused any longer it would start to rip into him, and that was no fun. He left the gentle but lingering kiss on her lips and pulled away from her, "we have our duties, so let's get to it, shall we?" Kaito smiled at Umiko as he stepped closer to her again and put a hand on her shoulder, "I won't abandon you again, never again. Because I care for you." He left another kiss on her lips and disappeared as time began to move forward again. Umiko knew what had to be done now, Kaito had his own duties to perform as Vance's second-in-command. Meanwhile, Ember was now fighting Xain for Daxter's life, Noah and Nill were separated from the others, and Takashi was all by his lonesome in the hotel room. The team was disconnected from one another, everything was going to hell and the first thing that had to be done was one of Umiko's duties, given to her by Kaito. Things would only start to get worse from here on out before they got better, as Kaito said...it was the beginning of the end.

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                      Umiko had been walking for what felt like miles. She was slowly down, thinking about all the painful memories that fueled her desires on revenge even more as she could recall the sweet, sorrowed pain that injured her still-healing heart when she saw Kaito. Having met Adam, she recalled his words carefully, thinking about them as she put a hand on her chest, feeling her heart pound with a heavy weight behind it. "But I hold onto a hope that one day everything I loved will come back to me. Umiko's eyes trailed downward to her feet as she slowed down her steps. I hope. I hope and I miss him so much... but if I... If I fall.. She felt sorry for herself, feeling her depression warp a mirror around her body. Her magic kicked in just for a moment involuntarily, at least she believed it was her magic but it was rather her mind causing her to hallucinate the mirrors reflecting her sad posture. She took a looked, her eyes dulling in color from the saturation of the mirror as she stood there, staring at her own reflection. In this mirror, her colors faded to black and white, the intensity of violet draining from her eyes, the color showing it's dulled shade of gray on her hair. Her ivory pale skin turning to white like paper, showing a fragile outline of a frail woman to her eyes... but she looked at her chest, seeing a glowing red under her skin. It matched her heartbeats, as she walked closer to the mirror in front of her, placing a hand on the glass gently, the red glow fading to blue. Her heart, full of warmth and love, was turning blue, from the sorrow and the coldness. But you can't just sit around feeling sorry for yourself, you become lethargic, sometimes the problems you face you have to fix yourself. Our situations are...similar but different...but the advice is the same. What made you happy that you lost?"

                      Umiko's eyes lowered as she felt small tears building up along the bottom, her walking through the mirror as she whispered in her mind, Kaito. As she walked, she noticed the dirt wasn't tossing carelessly in the breeze. She noticed the wind had ceased, and soon her eyes trailed upward, the tears building in her eyes as she looked at what she first thought was an illusion. K-Kaito.. Kaito Kojima... The man who found me on the beach, could have done a million and one things to take advantage of me, but didn't. He rescued me, took me in, treated me with kindness I could never repay. I was alone, I was new, and I was scared... Abandoned by the sleeping cocoon that was the ocean's embrace... and took me into his embrace instead. She stared at him, the looked as she widened her eyes. ... This.. this feels different. She looked at him closer, his movements all too real, then his voice, "I've missed you." She widened her eyes, the tears falling from her eyes down her cheek immediately as if the waterfall trapped behind her glossy eyes were broken by the trigger of his words. He approached her as she covered her mouth in surprise. H-He missed me? Umiko closed her eyes tightly, holding her mouth shut as she whined into it with a sob, softening it when he wrapped his arms around her waist and spoke softly to her, "I really missed you, Umiko. Nothing has been more difficult for me than thinking I would die without ever seeing you again." Umiko looked carefully at him, throwing away the thoughts of the name she'd created for herself, the thoughts of depression as she touched his chest, clinging to him closely and breathing in the scent she knew, the way he felt, she knew. She knew this had to be him. His words caused her heart to race rapidly as she choked on some tears, snuggling into his chest as she sincerely believed that he missed her.

                      She'd quickly turned around from thinking he would just hurt her again, because he stopped time. He was the only one who could do that, and she knew her magic was not capable of such a vivid illusion. No... this was real, and the strength he was putting into this alone was absolutely unbelievable. She had no other way of getting around that what he was doing now was to see her, and to reunite the two of them together. She was touched beyond words in seeing this act that only a God could hope of repeating, and then looked into his eyes as he told her his tale, "I saw her, the God of Time, Kala. She used your voice, very fitting of unearthly beauty. I tried to kill Vance's mother before he was born, I tried to change the future and it made me an enemy. I thought I would die, but then Kala came to me she told me that...hope and love is a trait some of the Gods that created the universe hold to be important. She gave me another chance...and she gave me untold power. Umiko...things are changing so fast, the future is evolving faster than I can see it. Vance's goals are coming to a close, the team is in peril. This is the beginning of the end, Umiko, we are weeks away from the events that will shape an uncertain future." Kaito stepped away from Umiko but grabbed her hand, holding it tightly. She grabbed his hand back, holding it tightly and feeling his squeeze. What he had done could be forgiven, because there was so much to do that she couldn't imagine wanting anything else but to take the easy way out either. "I know what needs to be done, Umiko. I finally understand what needs to be done to stop Vance but the team is in disarray, everyone is separated and everyone is in danger. Daxter, Noah, Nill, Takashi, Salem, Lucia, Theodore, Melody, everyone is going to die."

                      Umiko was surprised, seeing that the team, having been separated, was in fact ruining their chances of survival. She didn't notice that Ember's name had gone unmentioned, not at first. She held onto his hand just as tightly as she listened. "There needs to be a unifying force, the team alone can't stop Vance but the team together has no limits. This world is in danger and the only one who can really change things is...you. What's coming is going to change things and not for the better, but you can help them." Kaito's other hand grabbed Umiko's and he approached her, leaning to whisper into her ear what was coming. Umiko was skeptical at first, hearing the possible future, and how it was originally to be prevented, but once she heard of Ember, and the reasons of being left out from the list of the deceased, she couldn't say she was utterly shocked. In fact.. something like that was almost unthinkable. Could a girl with God Power have done or be willing to do such a thing? But she was in love wasn't she? Wrapping rings and strings around the man she pulled close to her heart... Daxter? She was totally caught off guard, almost wondering what to do with this information given. Ember... would never believe in a prediction such as this, but what would the others think? Even then, she would sound like a babbling idiot. But Kaito was right. Unity could save the world. He told her what role she would play and then backed away, his hands letting go of hers to grab her cheeks, "this is why you can't come with me right now. Because I have my own role to play, and you have yours. But Umiko I make you a promise...when this is over...when we have won? There are an infinite number of universes and stories to explore. Places you can't even begin to imagine and I am tired of being alone."

                      Umiko looked up at him, a little puzzled by his statement but catching onto the end of it when he mentioned places beyond her imagination and him being... alone. I-Is he... she asked herself rather quickly, her mind racing all to the one possible question that he asked,"what I'm saying is...Umiko, will you be my girlfriend?" Umiko bubbled up, the blush on her cheeks as streams of tears ran down her face, pulling him with her arms around his neck so she could hug him tightly. She pulled him tightly against her, her eyes becoming somewhat red from all this crying she was doing, but she could't help but feel like she had him.. and could be happy. She imagined him wanting to leave her behind, getting rid of their relationship entirely. She felt perplexed, full of complicated emotions when he came to see Adam, and then vanished but not before saying he loved her. Now? Now she knew she had a future with him, and even while they were involved in this world and it's problems, Umiko could have no greater wish than to travel across the infinite dimensions with the only person she could truly give all of herself to. "Kaito!" she cried as she sobbed, speaking, "W-Why ask such a thing?" He laughed, "Girlfriend. I'm nearly a thousand years old and I'm asking permission to have a girlfriend." Umiko shook her head, kissing his cheek as she spoke, "T-That's not what I meant.. You... You should know by now how much I love you... and how terribly I've missed you... There's no way I could ever say no to you." She pulled back enough to look at his face, putting a hand nervously on his cheek as she confessed, "There isn't a time in my life so far I've ever wanted to be away from you... and... to be asked to travel with you from now on? I... I'm going to try and be the best girlfriend I could ever hope to be... J-Just promise that whatever world we end up in... and whatever dangers we face... t-that you will always remember that I love you.. no matter what you do." She took his hand, putting it over her heart and speaking softly, "Kaito... My heart beats... for you."

                      Kaito smiled, looking at her as he replied, "You sure you want to date a guy nine-hundred ninety-nine years and three-hundred forty-four years older than you?" He could see the confusion on her face, smiling, "If I'm a thousand years old I'm two weeks shy of being a thousand years older than you. Hence the 9-9-9 / 3-4-1. I'm kidding," Kaito smiled, leaning in and kissing her lips gently. She squinted her eyes, the joke being something she could have taken seriously and retaliated to, but to feel his lips brushing against hers, and only after two days that seemed to feel like two centuries without him? Nothing... in any world can compare to the feelings I'll ever have from you... she said softly in her mind, pressing back to kiss him passionately. He pulled away, leaving Umiko with the tingling sensation she desired.. and giving back the energy and motivations to move on that she desperately needed. "we have our duties, so let's get to it, shall we?" Kaito smiled at Umiko as he stepped closer to her again and put a hand on her shoulder, "I won't abandon you again, never again. Because I care for you." Umiko nodded, looking at him and replying "And I will never stop loving you, because I care for you... more" she added right before his lips hit hers once again. She kissed him, her eyes dried from the tears as she pulled from the kiss, and suddenly he was gone. With her eyes looking down, she winded down from the relaxing pause of the harsh reality she was experiencing. Now she knew there was a meaning behind all that had happened, and she needed to find, "Ember..."

                      Ember had come out the hotel, scrambled from the terrifying illusion she had suffered from inside the bathroom. She believed in the illusion so much that as the heart was beating in the mirror, she could feel the pulse of the real thing in her palm. To look away from the mirror and hallucinate it actually being in her hand was actually worse... as she didn't want to believe that something like her mind was playing tricks on her now. She didn't want to admit it, but the voice in her head was really starting to get to her. After the many weeks upon months that it was picking and prying into her mind, Ember never ceased to listen to what it had to say. There was a dark truth behind some of the things it told her, where as the rest was fuel to start her fires... But Ember was self-disciplined. She knew better than to get out of line and fall apart. If she was going to fall apart, it would be her body being torn apart, not by her own hands.. or so she thought. Ember didn't realize what was happening to her, and nobody could explain it to her... as her God Power was assisting her 'illness'. In the past, when she had reunited with Daxter, there were times when she claimed to be a manifestation of pain. This was true in more than one way, but Ember herself was just a half Dragon. In truth of all time.. generations of her Dragonic past and the trails of her ancestors, it was her God Power that was a manifestation of pain. True pain. Ember would never know, but as happy as she could be with Daxter, there would always be a pain, small, insignificant, that would keep a pulse in her God Power. When the pain would try to strike her heart, the powers of all her ancestors would come forward and protect her with a power, unbelievably bestowed upon her shoulders, and enough to change the world... and possibly the fate of it.

                      With her God Power being something she could not control to her very will, she felt often frustrated at times. Having smashed the mirror to bits was a result of that frustration, but nothing could compare to the turmoil she was feeling deep within herself. Until she recalled a memory.. locked away. Why this memory chose to unveil itself, she couldn't tell, but she knew that it happened, and that there was no way to beat around the bush. Telling Noah the truth about the matters pertaining to his best friend's death got harder and harder as time passed, and she wasn't sure how she was going to keep it under wraps. If she never told him, Daxter surely would someday. He would see the pain in Ember's eyes that were filled to the brim with guilt, and want to set her free, but she didn't want to lose a friend, or admittedly hurt them in any way. Nill would be so disappointed, maybe no longer looking up to her in a sisterly manner, while Noah would probably or possibly hate her for everything she'd done... hiding it for so long. She wondered how long it would be that she would continue living with lies on her face, a smile fabricated by nobody else by Daxter, and a heart wrapped in steel, afraid to leave the shell that protected it so. As she continued to feel the guilt eating her away, her throwing up everything in her as a result, she calmed down somewhat, knowing she needed to find Daxter. Her pain was something out of her control, and she needed a cooling factor. She needed somebody that could save her from the pain she was feeling. That somebody was him, and had been since he opened up to her.

                      Somewhere along the way in their travels in Alaska, Ember had found Daxter, who was complicated as he was beyond all reason, opening up to her, and that made her feel undeniably special. Why he chose to do so was beyond Ember for a long time, but she realized that she wasn't helping him as much as he was helping her by taking her along. She could always close her eyes and envision him easily, remembering the time they went through. Ember never wanted to admit it, but she didn't just admire him from find her for the trip to Alaska. In fact, she'd been admiring him for a while, even while she was with Zack, she felt some attraction to his mystery.... But never got involved. There was something about seeing somebody who knew pain like she did that she felt less alone, and now that her God Power was going haywire, she needed a conductor. Somebody to hold her hand and level out this enormous pain that she was feeling. Daxter was the only other person, aside from Vance, who knew what happened with Zack. She was on the verge of feeling like the worst kind of person, but he knew she killed him, and she had done it to protect herself. Sure, he didn't see all the details of what happened, but if he could envision a half dragon like Ember slaughtering a person to save her own endangered life, it would be safe to assume things were not gentle or quick in the slightest, depending on who. That was why she needed him now. She recalled him at the mall, telling her sweetly to come to him when the voices inside her head were bugging her, talking to her, and hopefully he would listen, but it took one person to cross her path that made her snap slightly inside. Lucia.

                      Lucia had come from seemingly nowhere with no business to do with Ember, but engaged with her into what was thought as unnecessary combat. Sure, the two females didn't get along and had some disputes in the past, but Ember was greatly disturbed by Lucia's drive to kill her, for reasons unknown. During the fight, she was annoyed with the introduction of another power, the power of Time. Ember knew it would bite her in the a**, and that the last time she'd gotten to see a time mage fight, (Kaito to be exact), she didn't make it as far into the battle as she had hoped, being struck with massive amounts of lightening. She started to doubt herself while being in Lucia's presence, hoping that maybe she would have a fighting chance. And.. while fighting Lucia, she was sure to record all the reasons why the left the female's lips. Lucia claimed it like a fact of the universe: Ember needed to be destroyed. But she had to wonder why something like that was necessary. A battle sparked in Ember's mind at that moment, but rather than her and the voice... this time she was against herself. "Your mentality is breaking, Ember.... And I knew this would happen. I was supposed to try and change this... But now I can't. Nor do I have the time to try again. So... before you sentence us all to uncertain death, I need to erase your existence now." Erase my existence? What kind of bullshit is that. She's just angry because I killed her parents. People I can't even remember. Maybe that's a little reasoning... but who cares. They were part of a greater evil, and their blood was washed away with the blood of thousands. I'm not feeling guilty for something this small. Wait... What were her parents again? They were DOGs... I've been killing DOGs off for years without the knowledge of anywhere they came from... Was I giving divine judgement on humans? Was... I okay with the eradication of DOGs just because that's all they were? Military operatives...? Was... Was I any better than the King himself on the genocide of the Gifted? I just... switched the sides, and justified it with my father's death...?

                      Ember shouted as suddenly Lucia bolted for her, fast on her feet. Lucia skidded, dashing so quickly behind Ember she looked to be teleporting to whatever position Ember left an opening. The blade Lucia had forged from something tried to strike her, but shards of steel protected Ember's body, making midair contact with the weapon anytime the blade reached within a certain distance to Ember's body, forcing the blade to bounce back. "I won't let you become a monster Ember!!! I realize now I'm the only one who can do this right." No... I've been the one making this right. The DOGs were the first to start the genocide of the Gifted, and it needed to stop. Innocent people were dying, and humans lost their morals and succumbed to fear. They didn't look at me and my father, my family, any Gifted ******** family. Why the hell should I have done the same? Fight fire with fire, extinguish the pain. I'm not a monster... I... I'm not a monster... Ember lit her blue fire in her hands, aiming it as Lucia, but Lucia cutting through and protecting herself from the flames. "I was sent to this planet with a mission. Vance was going to take over this world, and one of the contributing factors towards his success was you. In order for Vance's plans to fail, I had to make sure that you would never join his side or break apart in a way where--" "I'm never going to join that b*****d's side! Do you even hear me? Why fight me! I hate him more than any of you!" "That may be true but you're missing the point Ember! There's a reason that I've lived on this planet for such a long time. There's a reason I got you kidnapped by the DOGS and tortured by Vance!" "I don't have time for your BULLSHIT LUCIA!" The only monster between the two of us right now is her. I've done nothing wrong! I may be playing the pity game but I do it damn well! If she's not going to cry for me... I'm going to make her. That... That's right. I hate Vance, more than anybody. He makes me feel like a real monster.. and even thinking about him now is driving me over the edge. She needs to stop. I... I...

                      "Ember you have to die. Think about Daxter, Nill, Noah... The people you love. Think about your your father Vincent--" No. Ember's eyes widened, her wings emerging from her lower back as she transformed, her red hair growing in length as her steel feathers screeched against the concrete. A monster is what you want to destroy? Seek out my blood and tear me apart with every feather off my wings? You'll cut your pretty little hands trying. You're watching me transform, you know what's coming. It's a sign to start begging for ******** mercy. You come at me from nowhere, like a DOGs member that attacked my father. This time it's me? Dad, is that it? Am I going through the pain you went through? Somebody seeking you out for no reason? This excuse of a person... this evil that I know is standing in front of me... she smells like a mutt. She's just like the DOGs... DOGs just wanted Gifted gone because they thought of them as monsters... a threat. Now she says the same s**t, but says I'm endangering my loved ones? She thinks she ******** knows me. I ******** KNEW IT. I KNEW SHE WAS WAITING TO STAB ME IN MY GODDAMN BACK. From the MOMENT her knuckles hit Noah's door, I let my hand slip. I should have punched her, broke her face first, and feasted on what the world's only jurisdiction is anymore: DOG EAT DOG. Just like Zack. I loved him and he betrayed me. He knew what he was. What he was trying to do. The tears in his eyes were streams of pitiful ******** lies. He didn't care about me, so I took his heart. I want Lucia to suffer the same. There is no team with me and her. There is nothing about this 'partnership'. A tumble in the forest, and for a split second, I thought we were friends... But no. She's not a daddy's girl. She's nothing but a down right dirty dog... and now... "Don't you dare ******** say my father's name." Ember gritted her teeth, stopping her flames as they circled around her violently. "Don't act like you know HIM OR ME!" Ember pounced off the ground, the earth shifting under her feet as she started to violently attack Lucia with her God Power. She was starting to fall apart again, like the time that she was in complete turmoil over having to kill Zack, except this time.. she wasn't going through any sort of real devastation. She was breaking slowly out of anger and frustration.. something she was known to control.

                      As Ember pushed back Lucia, slowly breaking through her defenses, she heard her shout, "Don't you know how to think about anyone but yourself?!" Ember laughed, her silver eyes showing signs of blue in their color. Ember laughed more until she provoked Lucia's anger, trying to get her temperature to rise up to her own by talking about Vance, and how Lucia used to hound after him like a school girl in heat. Of course I think of others than myself... But my path right now doesn't include others. I don't see anybody else other than her. What should I do... Now that this is my business. My problem. It's not about Team Defiance. She was never part of that, now I can treat her any way I want. Lucia saw this similar talk and walk from Daxter, but to see Ember doing it was highly surprising. Ember was provoking Lucia to anger just because she wanted to see Lucia in pain, emotionally or mentally more aside from the damage she was taking from the God Power. It seemed Ember's defenses rose so much she was using everything to destroy Lucia... "You really have lost it.." Lucia growled as she skidded to a stop, Ember walking disheveled. She looked at Ember's blue flames and spoke up, "I know you never used to have that fire. Vance... Vance is the only person on the planet other than you with magical blue flames. Tell me... when he tortured you for those three long weeks... did he..." Ember laughed, sending sharp shots of steel to pierce her. "You're so clever. You think you know everything don't you? That's right.. You just know it all don't you..." Ember shouted angrily, tears building up in her eyes, "That monster kept me in a cage for three mind-numbing weeks, beating into my head that I was a monster! I'm NOT a monster! I refuse for anybody to call me such. He didn't do anything! These flames are my OWN. I overcame death and Daxter saved me! You think Vance gave me these flames? ******** liar! These flames or my scars of your torment..." She looked at Lucia, her eyes brightening in their glow, "T-That's right... You... You're the reason I suffered those three weeks. You said so yourself..."

                      Lucia backed away rather quickly, taking a look at Ember laughed to herself before darkly turning to Lucia, causing the flame to ignite all over the ground. "You're nothing but a monster... I know you are. I tried to save you... change fate... but I've seen what you can do and what you will do. I just.. I don't care what my higher ups have said before, there is no other way! You MUST be gone! I'm going to make sure you never cause another person pain like you did me, and I won't allow you to become anything that you should never to be!!!" Lucia managed to keep herself up with her time powers, charging for Ember until Ember created a silver vortex in her right hand, surprising Lucia and engulfing her into this vortex. Ember laughed quietly, the vortex disappearing as she'd gotten rid of her rather easily, the swirling silver vortex sealing the screams of Lucia until all was silenced. She had sent Lucia into the Dragon Realm, where time moved at a slower pace than Valor. In the Dragon Realm, Lucia would be trying to survive amongst thousands of souls Dragon's that may try and consume her. "Enjoy where you're going..." Ember laughed darkly, sweeping up her flames and continuing to walk to the destination she received only a few seconds after from Daxter, texting her with a heart. Ember looked at her phone, her death grip loosening as her form reverted from God Form to her regular attire, her wings sinking back in and her God Power kicking in immediately to erase the memory of her encounter with Lucia, and the terrible thoughts she had with the terrible result she had created to resolve the fight... once and for all.

                      Meanwhile, Noah and Nill were eating calmly at a restaurant, and by the looks Nill could see coming from Noah, she frowned. He seemed to be thinking about how she saved their lives, or so it appeared... And while she felt bad, she had furrowed her brows and offered the simple rebuttal that he saved her life all the time, and was the reason she was still alive to this day. If there was any arguing, it would be that she could save him at least once aside from the millions of times he had done it for her. She didn't want to risk the safety of her hero ever, but then Umiko appeared in the middle of their date, transporting and looking to the two of them. "Oh god I found you guys! Thank god!" she said as she stumbled, catching onto Nill's chair from the exhaustion of her powers. She looked at them with a nervous smile and spoke up, "I'm sorry I was gone... But I found some things out about Vance from going to a base last night outside of Vegas. Speaking of having to tell the group something, where are Ember and Daxter? You guys aren't all together?" Once she was explained the disasters of their date and how they relocated to having a lunch date, Umiko widened her eyes. "W-Wait you were in the sky?" Umiko looked at them, surprised. Nill nodded, talking about the hot air balloon, but Umiko narrowing her eyes. "No... No I think there's another reason you were knocked out of the sky. There... There must have been something he didn't want you to see." Noah replied, "Probably, but as Nill can't fly under normal circumstances, and I don't have a jetpack handy, I was going to let Daxter or Ember pull recon for us once we caught up to them later." Umiko tried to think about all that Kaito told her, trying to think of a reason why, but then thinking back to Ember. In the sky... what would happen that you could see from so far away? Unless... Umiko crossed her arms, thinking deeply, Unless Vance is... planning something for Ember. He's doing something, and he.. he's trying to separate us all from helping her.

                      Ember made her way to the fountain at the time that Daxter's message instructed her too, ready for their date together that sounded like it was already starting out romantic. The fountains were a beautiful sight in themselves as Ember looked at them with amazement. She took looks in the crowd for Daxter, hoping that she wouldn't be alone when this started. It was a while since they got to see something beautiful together, and she wanted to hold his hand while they watched... As she waited there was an announcement over the loudspeaker accompanied by faint music behind it. "The 12:05 performance is scheduled to begin in two minutes. All visitors must remove themselves from the fountain immediately, thank you." Ember looked and back away a little more to get a good view, but then heard the rhythm of the song called "Rules of Nature" start to pump out... hard. At 12:05 on the the dot, a fireball rocketed towards the water fountain which Ember widened her eyes in surprise, the water splashing hard everywhere. "W-What is going on..." Ember said as she shook off the water, then looking to see the projectile to be Xain and "Daxter?!" The two projectiles, one covered as a fireball, fighting each other, caused Ember to push herself to the front of the crowd as she struggled with the sight. Who the ******** is Daxter fighting? And why does Daxter... seem off? He's never like this. It's... scaring me. Xain kicked Daxter into the water spout as he tried to use his fire power, but found the water was keeping him weakened and unable to ignite the air as he usually did, too much moisture to power through it. She noticed he didn't evaporate the water, as much as she knew he had the power to, and looked as he stood only to get kicked in the face. It only took the two kicks and the hit of Daxter's smoke form to get injured for Ember to be beyond alert and concerned. She was terrified that she was watching Daxter get hurt beyond repair.

                      Am I watching Daxter die? She thought to herself as she tried not to hurt the people around her, waiting for Daxter to turn to her, to stand up and say something. But Xain spoke, "At one time you used to be feared and respected. All you are now, no matter the rumors that persist, is a man. Do you know what men can do? They die. They die quickly. I have prolonged yours only for the sake of breaking you down into a shell of your former self. You are as you live: a pathetic specimen of the human race." Xain twirled the sword until the sharpened edge pressed against Daxter's neck, as he remained on his hands and knees attempting to catch his breath from the disruption of his smoke form. "Your girlfriend can come now, she can try to save you, but any movement she makes my way will only aid an unsteady hand to make the wrong move. You will be empty of blood before she can tear the spine from my torso. Speak your last words, Daxter." Ember wasn't sure whether or not to step in. Daxter was always unpredictable, and surely he wasn't done. No... He's going to stand. I shouldn't butt in. This is his fight, I can see it in his eyes. He'll never say his last words or anything like that. I believe in you, Daxter. "Hahahahahaha," Daxter laughed, "I guess after all this I'm not as awesome as I thought I was." Ember's eyes widened, her hot blood numbing to a cold temperature in shock that... he... was speaking like that. He... was giving Xain his last words. "Man oh man. You know something? I keep telling Ember I don't know if I want to get married cause I'm ******** up, I'm not scared of that. I already want to be with her the rest of my, apparently, short life. Nah, I just am afraid of having a kid and it turning out like me. But...you know what? If I'm going to die I'm going to die letting Ember know...I love her, and I'd marry her in a heartbeat." Ember's eyes started to fill up with cold tears that steamed off her cheeks before they could even fall to the concrete. The water... wasn't cool at all. She looked at Daxter with disbelief, clenching the hands and feeling the rings strangle her ring finger. He was calling his life short. He was confessing a secret. He was... doing it. I can't... I can't watch this. Daxter... Daxter is...

                      "So ******** you, Xain, ******** you for showing me my weaknesses, letting me know that the man I am now is nowhere as powerful as I used to be...and I hope you join me in hell soon, you ******** piece of s**t." Xain pulled the blade away from Daxter's neck and kicked him hard enough to send him tumbling across the fountain, his sword rising to block Ember's blade as she arrived to protect her lover. Ember’s silver eyes glowed extremely. Her pale pink lips were pressed firmly in a frown, her eyes narrowed with slits, giving a feral look of aggression. “Back off!” Ember growled at him, her voice full of dust and frustration. He looked down at her, seeing her arm shivering slightly from how much force she was using in her arm to push against his blade, desperate with her demeanor and intimidation to get him to back away. It was more exciting for him, to see the alleged top Gifted in the nation—no, the world, trying to hold him back with all her might from killing the one person she was weak for. “Daxter…” she looked down at him as she was hunched over his body, trying to keep him safe. She looked at him, worried for his well being… but couldn't heal him. She didn't know why her healing magic hadn't been working properly, and only on herself. It was stupid, because no matter how much she cared about Daxter, Noah, Nill, or any of the people on her team, her magic was something she was losing her grip on. "The dragon has arrived. Your boyfriend is dying of his internal injuries." "S-So that's why I can't stop coughing up blood..." She looked as Daxter cringed in pain, Ember shooting Xain a defiant glare of hate. "I did not just disrupt his smoke form, I forced him back together in mid-swipe of my sword, as he reshaped I cut into his organs. How long do you think he has left? Minutes? Do or die, Ember Dusk, this is his life in your hands."

                      She looked at him with all the more anger, worry, and frustration in her eyes, for as much as he was feeling useless; Ember felt like her power was consuming her and preventing what she wanted from it the most. ”Now...show me your God power," the mysterious man provoked from her, Ember’s silver eyes shifting to look at him as she hissed, “You'll wish you had never asked such a thing... from me..." She said with a sharp growl erupting from her throat as she started to cover her arms in fire, blue fire. She hunched over Daxter, fighting the blade against her hand covered in steel to make sure it wouldn't slip from her grasp and end up stabbing Daxter again, but the force at which Xain was pushing it in her direction was unbelievable. It was as if he knew the exact angle and which Ember wasn't used to positioning herself in terms of defense, but her eyes started to glow their silver color, the color slipping from her eyes in the form of smoke coming from her pupils. Her feet pounced off the ground, causing Xain to fly backwards from the force that Ember used to push him away. She quickly ran, her shoes slipping from the acceleration of her fast dragon-based agility that allowed her to dash to extreme speeds which she collided with Xain, forming her own steel blades to attack him with. Four blades hovered around her arms as if her arms with like a rapid-fire launcher, the ammunition floating until she thrust an arm forward, sending the four blades and more coming after them to rain on him. Like the expert Xain was, he only backed up enough for the first few blades to land, digging into the concrete before he unexpectedly moved forward to pull one out of the ground, deflecting the many that came for him afterwards by using this newly forged weapon and charging his way back up to Ember.

                      Ember was surprised, Xain moving as his skin barely repelled her blades from touching his skin. It was absolutely infuriating, like seeing two negative charged sides of magnets never touching. They just seemed to slide right by him, flying off in random directions with the wind catching their fragile build and stabbing near the crowd. Stop moving you b*****d! She thought as she looked at Xain, the stoic expression unchanged as he slashed at her. She growled, the wind of the slash causing her to be off balance. He seemingly slashed at her like an amateur to throw her off guard in it's direction, then cutting towards her vertically after pouncing forward. He cut the middle of her shirt from her stomach to the top of her hips, but didn't shed the clothing. The blade cut her skin, Ember wincing as she rose the other arm this time, using her right to cover her wound. She bounced back enough, looking at the blades from a distance away and used her God Power in her left hand to draw them back at the speed of light to hover back. She waved her fingers in a backward motion, reforming them into bullets and splitting the steel into at least hundreds of bullets, looking with discontent at him since she could not draw the one he held out of his possession. His filthy hands are holding what's mine, Taking what's mine. Daxter's life... was in the mercy of this man. I'm going to break his hands, with EVERYTHING it takes. She slashed her arm forward as she simultaneously vibrated the ground with enough power to caused the water to sink into it's cracks, rock the nearby buildings, and throw Xain off balance for once. I'm sick of it. Xain saw what she was planning, then taking shelter behind a fountain pillar, the bullets piercing into the pillar like mad to try and break through it. In the weakness of the tall pillar, the bullets having tilted it and causing a crack to break it from its foundation in preparation to fall, Xain avoided the pillar landing on him, giving Ember the entrance to manipulate the water that had sunk into the cracks of the ground to beat at him, sending him more skyward.

                      She watched his body fling into the air, but Xain focused his body to being hit in the right ways where he could regain control of his body's movements. Ember laughed, seeing that he was a fool for thinking he would only be blasted by water. She manipulated the water to grab him, twisting him in erratic, sharp movements that could potentially cause a great amount of whiplash, and toss him the ground while encasing him in water to attempt to suffocate him. Xain fell roughly to the concrete, but broke off the water's grip on him by using Ember's blade to split the water in separate directions. He dug the blade into the ground to his right, sending the wave of water right back at Daxter with enough force that Daxter could drown in the flood of water headed his way. Ember saw what Xain was doing, and quickly, with immediate haste, manipulated the ground to lift in front of Daxter the water running over the bump and spraying roughly towards the crowd, protecting him by using the earth as his cover. She couldn't think of a quicker way to get him out of harm's way, but stopped caring about the people that were still standing by. "You really are a monster," Xain chuckled as he looked at the people Ember caused pain the crowd, children clinging to their moms as they fought waves as powerful as Water Fall Rapids. "Shut up!" She shouted at Xain, not stopping the water as it soon died down on its own, injuring people with its pressure until it gave out as she had gotten the moisture out of the area with her blue flames. "I'm so sick of you!" She shouted to Xain, running up at him again with her Dragon Speed and meeting him in hand to hand combat, except he was trying to dodge being touched by her flames, seeing them already burn holes in his gloves. "You think you can avoid me?" Ember cracked her neck, "Come on sweetheart, I wanna hear you scream my name. Come on, say Ember I'm a piece of s**t, and I'm ******** sorry for existing." Xain looked at her, stoic again as she growled angrily, "SAY IT!"

                      Xain narrowed his eyes, wincing slightly when Ember started to ignite the ground beneath them with fire, and feeling the hot temperature start to eat at him. Eating away at his oxygen supply. "I-I.." he said, breathing heavily and then leaning forward, laughing, "I'm sorry you're so pathetic! I expected better from the top Gifted. You're a Dragon right? What happened to those fangs of yours? I thought I was fighting the most wanted Gifted on the planet, not a overly attached girlfriend who's nothing but a human."Ember snapped, her eyes looking over Xain as she slashed at him, hitting his arm, causing him to drop a blade he was holding. "Human?" She laughed, "Human?! I'm so far from ******** human. I'm not as pathetic a human as you. I AM a goddamn dragon, and I'm going to prove to you just how much of an ANIMAL I can be!" She got onto all fours, her wings finally sprouting from her back as the steel wings send a sounds wave to echoe out from their summon, breaking the glass of the casino building in the distance from the fountain. She used the rock of the concrete to create a pillar to smack Xain so hard it sent him flying into the wall of the building which was raining glass, only a short ways of having been launched over the building itself as he cratered into the wall of the top floor. With him slipping out of the crater slowly, Ember used her arm to launch at least several blades into the building, all at different places across the front of the building, all intended for a specific purpose. She pounced at Dragon Speed, running up the building towards Xain who she saw starting to peel away from the crater he was in and falling slowly to Ember's eyes, but quickly to everyone else. She ran up to the third floor, grabbing one of the blades she'd previously launched and swung her body around it like a pole, then bending it as she jumped from it and propelled herself at higher acceleration towards him. She grabbed the blade she'd launched by the seventh floor, grabbing the handle and then watching the rain of glass start to head her way. She slashed this blade, it's crafty design allowing her to send another soundwave, but to make sure every particle in the air in front of her would fly back from the pressure. This meant that Xain wouldn't be dodging bullets, but thousands, maybe even millions, of shards of glass to rush directly for him.

                      Ember laughed, her laughter echoing up to Xain as he looked down, seeing what was coming. He covered his front and his face, his arms crossed in front of him as the glass started to cut all over his person, and hitting sides of his face, blood spilling up into the air behind him as he floated in place, her sound not pushing him higher, but his fall not letting him lower as the two forces evened out. Once her soundwaves gave out, he started falling with the rest of the glass shards, trying hard to scale the wall on his descent, but unable to catch anything at his rate and speed. Ember's silver eyes glowed in the distance as she jumped on an open window ledge towards the next blade, clicking it to combine with her own as they formed a glaive-like weapon. She tossed it towards Xain, covering it in her blue flames as she reached the twentieth floor, stepping on another blade to launch her up but then grabbing onto the one close to it. She fell back grip both blades, pulling them both out of the wall as she launched upward with her steel wings thrusting out to boost her into the air. Like a fireball projectile going for Xain, she saw the glaive hit Xain and injure his body, throwing her two katana-like blades at him to trick up and not only miss him, but have the blades fall behind him and wrap around him, constricting him. Xain looked at his descent towards Ember, who was closing the distance with him on the 34th floor, but then did the unexpected. He kicked off the building while trapped in her blades, back over to the fountain area and a little further. Ember turned, shocked as he did that, but then growled, "NO!" She launched herself off the building to follow him, then grabbing him and slowing their descent. "I didn't hear you say it yet!" She shouted at him as she grabbed him, throwing him to the concrete below but not enough to have killed him. He was released from the steel, coughing up blood as he rolled onto his back, Ember coming on top of him rather quickly to grab his left hand and bring it in front of her, "Say it now."

                      Xain winced, looking up at her, "B-b***h," but then shouting as Ember's fangs started to pierce in his palm, his blood pouring down his arm as he jolted in pain, "It's simple. I'm sorry. I shouldn't exist. I'm worthless." "Yet all the words in the world won't save your boyfriend from a painful death." Ember started to push her fang in deep into his palm until she heard the voice of "D.. Dax--" pulling back to look his direction. Ember was so lost in trying to cause Xain pain, to get him to submit for compensation and revenge on Daxter's behalf... that hearing his voice, him crying in pain over dying, that Ember was thrown off guard, Xain making his escape but using the glaive (he had secretly caught earlier) and slashing at Ember with it. She stood up, backing up and quickly falling backwards as he ran for his life away from them, Ember looking at her wound and healing it as she panted like mad, then turning to Daxter as she dragged herself towards him, worried over him.

Dangerous Lunatic

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                              When time slowed down it seemed like it could be a trick of the mind, an illusion created by desperation and desire; but no, Kaito had arrived and touched her so gingerly that it couldn't be mistaken for anything but real. The power of time was his to command in new and exciting ways, using time to get closer to Umiko and mend the broken relationship he had nearly destroyed. He could never take back what had been said but he could make sure things like that wouldn't be the end; Kaito returned to Umiko not only to deliver her a warning about upcoming events, but to ensure that she knew he was all hers to have and hold when this was over. He had other things to take care of back with Vance, but he knew Umiko could get things done for him. She was a wonderful person, a beautiful mind and a strong heart, if he could entrust his duties to anyone it could be her. When all was said and done he left a lingering kiss on her lips and vanished, smiling as he did, letting her do what had to be done to prevent the apocalyptic ruination of Valor. Umiko had to find Ember before it was too late, unfortunately Team Defiance was separated and none of them had a clue where the other would be.

                              Noah and Nill would be recovering from their free-fall from the hot air balloon ride, and though they were alive Noah couldn't help but be somewhat upset with himself. He hadn't been properly prepared, he'd let his guard down and because of that they were almost killed, it was by a miracle that Nill's wings were able to grow and generate enough lift that they could float down to the planet below them. He wasn't married yet and she was almost a widow already. Nill pointed out that for all the times he'd saved her and others, that he could afford to be rescued once. That wasn't the point, but the sentiment didn't go unappreciated, causing him to smile softly as he realized his attitude was getting to her, and he didn't want to devalue the rescue effort. "Perhaps you'd be a better sidekick to Defiance than anyone thought," he teased playfully, "we should invest in a costume. Mrow." He chuckled after making the 'sexy' noise, pushing his fork into his food with a little bit happier mindset, but became annoyed with Umiko's immediate arrival, using Nill's chair to balance herself.

                              "I'm sorry I was gone... But I found some things out about Vance from going to a base last night outside of Vegas. Speaking of having to tell the group something, where are Ember and Daxter? You guys aren't all together?" Noah shook his head, "well we're glad to see you back. Ember and Daxter went to have a date, same with Nill and I. Unfortunately before we got too high into the air we have certain...complications." Nill chimed in, "w-we were attacked." Noah nodded, looking to Umiko after looking towards Nill, "our date came with a complimentary skydive, parachutes not included. Though Nill saved our lives, so we're certainly no worse for the wear. My hero~." Noah playfully cooed as Nill blushed lightly in his acknowledgement for her saving their lives. "W-Wait you were in the sky?" "We tried to be, why?" "No... No I think there's another reason you were knocked out of the sky. There... There must have been something he didn't want you to see." Noah replied, "Probably, but as Nill can't fly under normal circumstances, and I don't have a jetpack handy, I was going to let Daxter or Ember pull recon for us once we caught up to them later." It was a solid plan, though admittedly Daxter could only fly by igniting his body with fire, so it was certainly difficult to remain undetectable, so it was likely to be Ember pulling this recon mission later. Noah stared at Umiko as she was thinking deeply about what was happening, the reasons for everything that was going on, suddenly Noah chimed in as he pulled out some cash and dropped it on the table. "By the look on your face we need to find the others, don't we?" Umiko nodded. He pulled out his cell phone and made a few phone calls; first to Daxter who, at this point, had his phone broken by Xain. Then he made a call to Ember who didn't answer after receiving Dax's text message. Finally he made a third phone call: "Teddy, we have a situation and need to find Ember and/or Daxter immediately. Monitor New Vegas for any disturbances, police reports, or unusually high heat signatures." Noah looked over to Umiko and Nill as he put his phone away, "until he finds something we search the old fashioned way." The group would go off in search of Ember and Daxter, waiting for Theodore to find something that could help them pinpoint their location.

                              Daxter had never felt so humiliated and weak before, he was losing a battle to a man who supposedly wasn't even Gifted, just more talented than Ember was powerful it seemed. Soon as his mist form was reformed into his human shape he could feel a sickening pain coursing through his body, every muscle on fire. He couldn't stop coughing up blood, his vision was blurry and Daxter was afraid he was going to die. Xain challenged Ember to save him, but Daxter could only concentrate on how wrong everything was. This wasn't who he was, predictable, easily defeated, when it came to monsters he was the nightmare in everyone's dreams. The stalker behind the window, the beast under the bed, he was the reason people had phobias. Daxter was a psychopath hellbent on turning the world as miserable as he was. But...he wasn't miserable anymore, he didn't hate himself anymore, he loved his life and people in it, the monster was being suffocated and no longer told him to do all the terrible things for no justifiable reason. Now he was just a normal guy with mental problems, even talented as he was he'd lost the one thing that made him dangerous: unpredictability. Monsters were unique, you could never tell which way a monster would move, but a human could be predicted accurately. Daxter spent years of his life learning how humans worked, and now all his knowledge was diagnosing himself as part of the same spawn that plagued the world. Xain was killing him because he could no longer work outside the box as effectively. It was all Ember's fault. 'N-No stop that, she didn't do this to me I did. She made it so...so I didn't want to kill myself. These scars they're all my attempts, but she made me happy. It's my fault Xain is...killing me...'

                              Xain taunted Daxter and gave him one opportunity to speak his last words, which no one believed he would ever do, but he did. In his fear of dying Daxter confessed how much he truly loved Ember, and how angry he was at Xain for causing him all this pain. He coughed up blood, the revelations his internal organs had been cut and releasing blood his body was trying to purge from his system causing him to think...think...and think some more. He had to fight Xain, kill him to regain this foolish pride he was losing. It was his duty, his fight, he couldn't rest with Xain forever gaining the upper hand over him. Daxter hadn't ever lost a fight, not like this, and it struck a blow at his psyche. But despite his need to kill Xain he could barely stand, Ember realizing the only way Daxter would live is if she interfered. He looked up at her as the two clashed, Daxter holding an arm around his stomach as he clenched his teeth in pain. "Don't. Kill. Him." He would have told her to go away, let him do this, stay away from his battles and not interfere in his [********] life. But he couldn't do it, he couldn't be so hateful to Ember for something she was only doing to protect him. But it still angered him at his uselessness, how weak he was. He couldn't let Xain kill him, he couldn't die in front of all these people. Daxter turned his weak to see the heated battle between Xain and Ember, the two clashing in brilliant display. "I-If I don't do something I'm going to die...I'm going...to...die." Daxter rolled onto his back as he could feel the heat from the battle, the shockwaves pushing the water in every direction from the fighting.

                              Daxter opened his eyes, momentarily passing out from the blood loss he was suffering. "I won't die here," Daxter said behind gritted teeth, blood spraying from his mouth as he spoke, pushing onto his hands and feet as he crawled away from the fountain towards the crowd of people entranced by the battle happening. He found dry land away from the water source and could feel himself capable of producing a small flame again, grabbing a knife from his leg holster, "I'll show you...predictable." Daxter pulled his bloodied and torn shirt to rip it open, biting down on it as he stabbed the knife into his torso and slid it towards his chest, muffling his pained screams as he sliced open his own body, his muffled screams turning to muffled laughter. The crowd watching Daxter perform surgery on himself to cauterize his wounds were a mixture of disgusted and intrigued, watching the man produce as powerful of a flame as he could in his weakened state and feel the cuts along his organs. 'I've never...felt like this before...' The beast inside of him was something of a sadist, taking all the pain he was feeling, crippling and overwhelming, and using it to send ripples of pleasure across his body. It hurt, but the hurting felt amazing. It had been a while since Daxter had been hurt so badly, but he could recall taking the pain he felt during the battles a few years ago against Kanra and using them to his advantage. He didn't seek out pain, but the pain wasn't going to startle him. It was going to help him.

                              Daxter was working on keeping himself from bleeding to death while Xain was showing Ember just how cruel she could be. Sending waves of rushing water at him Daxter was protected by the earth and instead the rushing water washed over the crowd. Xain had pointed out how much of a monster she was before they went back to their battle, Ember so caught up in the battle she focused on Xain being as broken as he was. He was performing amateur-hour surgery on himself and all Ember was focused on was some petty revenge instead of making sure he was going to live. He couldn't blame her, he might've lost himself in battle too, but realizing how much she wanted Xain to beg at her feet instead of making sure her boyfriend was going to survive was infuriating nonetheless. "Human?" She laughed, "Human?! I'm so far from ******** human. I'm not as pathetic a human as you. I AM a goddamn dragon, and I'm going to prove to you just how much of an ANIMAL I can be!" Daxter turned his head as the torn t-shirt fell out of his mouth, gritting his teeth as he watched Ember's steel wings form from her back. Daxter leaned back on the wet ground and began closing up the incision he'd given himself with fire, cauterizing it closed. He grunted loudly as he coughed up more blood and spat it on the ground next to him. Daxter could feel his death getting further away now, carefully standing up as the pain/pleasure rippled through his body. He fell forward onto his hands and knees again, looking ahead as Ember had Xain at her mercy. "It's simple. I'm sorry. I shouldn't exist. I'm worthless." "Yet all the words in the world won't save your boyfriend from a painful death." "EMMMBERRRR!!!" Xain had messed him up, he hadn't gotten all the cuts on his organs and only temporarily slowed down the bleeding, but it wasn't enough, he had missed more cuts than he realized and was still bleeding to death. Ember started to push her fang in deep into Xain's palm until she heard the voice of "D.. Dax--" Xain had picked up the glaive Ember formed and used it against her, escaping as she was distracted.

                              After the events of Xain and Ember's battle had died down, Noah, Nill, and Umiko arrived to see Ember approaching Daxter as he was badly hurt, lots of blood on the ground and in the water. The trio rushed over to the duo as they noticed Daxter's body adorned with one large burn mark from the side of his stomach to his chest. "What did you do...?" Noah asked softly as Daxter gave a soft growl, "I tried saving my life." Daxter couldn't look at Ember, all the revenge she wanted to get on Xain, ignoring Daxter as he was dying, talking about how she wasn't a human or as pathetic as a human (Xain) was had cut him deep, and interfering in his battle had wounded his pride deeply. He wasn't used to letting things like that go, he didn't have to combat those kinds of feelings before. His pride had never been hurt before, he didn't know how to handle it. Ember had arrived, battled Xain, drove him off. Daxter didn't know if he could find him or kill him, as far as he knew that was it...the feelings of worthlessness weren't going away. It hurt almost as much as the searing pain from Xain and what he'd done to himself. "H-Hold still," Nill said as she rested on her knees next to Daxter, still avoiding Ember's gaze. "Stay the ******** away from me," Daxter replied, "I don't need you, I don't need ANYONE!" Then, for a split second, he caught Ember's gorgeous emerald eyes. For that split second his anger softened, then he looked to Nill and tried pushing her away, but Noah reached down and grabbed his wrist, "we're trying to help you, you idiot. If you don't let her heal you you're going to die." Noah didn't know the extent of the injuries but according to all the blood splatter and the large scar, Noah could guess that the swordsman, Xain, had done some nearly irreparable damage. "Then I'll die! I don't want your help, none of you have to help me! I was fine before you arrived I'll be fine after!! I work better alone!!"

                              Daxter was angry, his pride was hurt and Xain had destroyed him, reducing his self-confidence into rubble. Perhaps Ember would see all the anger was directed at her, and the more angry Daxter seemed the more he looked at her, most of his words said as he looked to her, even if they weren't all intended for her. Right now Daxter wanted to go back to being a lone mercenary, unpredictable and dangerous, "I'm just a pathetic human, right Ember? I'm worthless, so either go away and let me die or let me do this myself! I don't want you --" Nill continued working on Daxter until she was surprised that Noah punched Daxter in the face, which shut him up before he could finish his sentence 'I don't want your help'. But because he couldn't finish the sentence, while he was looking at Ember, he told her he didn't want her. "You may want to heal that too," Noah said softly to Nill, looking down as Daxter turned his face away from everyone. He closed his eyes as Nill continued to heal him until she started to repair the burn scar on his chest, reducing the size and intensity of it to the point it blended in with his skin, nearly removing the entirety of the mark. "Stop being such a child," Noah told him sternly, "we are your friends and I don't care about your stupid pride. If you have a problem with being rescued by a woman who risks her life for you then you are a tool. No one will forget the idiot who was too stupid to get a little bit of help, and no one ever died from it. Is that how you want to be remembered?! As a spoiled child who would rather die than let his friends and lover keep him alive? How stupid are you, McLain?" "N-Noah..." Nill said softly as he straddled Daxter and gripped what remained of his shirts, looking down at him with a glare.

                              Daxter looked up to Noah after being berated, scowling, "you wouldn't understand!" "What wouldn't I understand?! That I was going to die for Nill so that she would survive? Or in that one moment I was utterly useless while Nill saved our lives? It's like you don't know who I am," Noah said, shying away from using the name Defiance as the crowd of people were still around, cops and medics arriving now. "I'm used to doing things on my own, but there is a point in my life even I have to realize I can't do everything. For everything I can't do I have Nill for. For everything you can't do you have Ember for. Vice versa for Nill and I, and Ember and you. Stop pretending like you're the only person in the world to know pain, or the only one who has had wounded pride. The only difference between you and I is I got over it, and if Nill wants to stubbornly keep me alive then who am I to push her away? I'd rather be dead than lose her, which is the only way I ever will. What're you gonna do, McLain? Keep pushing everyone away until you're alone, or are you going to man up and realize everyone could use help every now and then?" Noah let go of Daxter and stood up, the healing Nill had done to him recovering him from the wounds giving him the strength to stand up. But after all his yelling and anger, Daxter saw Ember had left.

                              The mercenary turned towards Noah with a thin smile crossing his face, then gave him a right hook to the chin and knocked Noah onto his a**, which only caused the hero to look up with a smile of his own. "You feel better?" "No. But I don't want Ember to think I hate her." "Then you better go after her," Noah told him as Daxter darted off after his flame princess, Umiko suddenly speaking up, "we can't separate!" Noah looked over to Umiko and shook his head, "we stopped Daxter from dying, everything will be fine now. We won't get too far away from them but they need to talk, c'mon." Noah looked to Nill and grabbed her hand, the trio stopped by the police. "Hold on you're not going anywhere," one of the officers said as he held up his hand, Noah looking to the officer. "Unfortunately we have more important matters to discuss with our teammates, any questions can be directed to," Noah pulled out his wallet and fished around for a business card, handing it to the officer, "my lawyer. Unless we're being arrested we'll take our leave." The officer blinked as he looked down to the business card, Noah leading Umiko and Nill after Ember and Daxter, as Umiko was still concerned with everything that was happening, though Noah was less worried about it.

                              "EMBERRRR!!! Where are you!?" Daxter yelled out as he continued to look for her, stopping near a building and resting against it, still recovering his strength from the course of the events. [********] Daxter sighed and rested his back against the building, the back of his head hitting the wall as he could no longer find Ember who'd ran off after being told...indirectly...he didn't need her. He realized what he said, but that wasn't what he meant, he didn't get to finish his sentence and so little of it was actually directed at her, he just had to keep looking at her or lose himself to his anger. He was still hurt and upset over Xain nearly killing him, but he needed Ember a lot more than he needed his pride to be intact at the moment. Groaning, Daxter slid onto the ground and pulled out the pocket watch, watching it tick away the seconds as he felt frustrated by everything.

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                      Ember couldn't believe that the man she was fighting was even capable of getting Daxter to submit to fear, and enough that he even spilled what would be remembered as his last words. This world was warped, and there were some still ******** up souls that plagued Ember' chances of living in a happy world. That was another disgusting fact... This world was entranced by Vance to be a paradise, but even people like Xain could reveal the faults of Vance's rule by driving Ember over the edge. There was no way she was going to live in a world like this, and she would have done anything and everything to make sure that Vance was going to fall and crumble into nothing. Seeing Daxter in pain, aside from the confessions he made, caused Ember's heart to cry. She didn't want to ever hear such sorrowfully strung-together feelings come from him from the fear of death's sweet embrace. Seeing this world get so out of hand that even Daxter was on his hands and knees, at the mercy of another person's dominance? She felt it was her fault... but just didn't know how true that was. She could have never imagined that everything that ever happened to the world and Team Defiance... was all her fault. Aside from the lack of insight, Ember could see in plain view that Xain deserved death. After torturing Daxter and causing him such great amounts of pain, Ember wasn't going to stand by and do nothing. No, Daxter was her everything. He was the reason she came out of the dark, fought the demons in her heart and head, and continued to fight for their future. It was for him. He shouldered her pain, took her out on many dates, sang for her, made passionate love to her, even just last night after giving her a promise ring. She had so much to look forward to less than twenty four hours ago... and Xain brought the ticking hand of Daxter's pocket watch to a close end.. The minutes winding down to seconds as it seemed... Daxter would die.

                      He's not going to die. I won't allow anything like that to happen, she thought as she actively fought Xain, as if Xain was the cancer that had damaged her lover. Surely if Xain was gone, Daxter would be okay. They would be okay. As she tried to protect Daxter during the fight, her still same feelings of regret showed when she spotted him in pain out of the corner of her eye. She couldn't heal him or help him in any way, and in some ways she was worthless. When hearing Daxter demand she shouldn't kill him... she overrode that demand and tried to destroy Xain for what he had done. She wanted to protect Daxter, and would become a beast to the fullest extent. When Xain called her pathetic at the attempts to keep Daxter alive, all her efforts showing she was nothing but a human who was acting like an overly attached girlfriend, Ember felt a powerful sting in her heritage. Her father was highly respected for being a dragon, for being powerful and being able to protect the ones he loved. Ember felt like Xain was saying she was not living up to her race, disappointing her father, and bringing shame to her kind in matters of strength. So she laughed, darkly at how she was a dragon, and far from human. In a breaking point of the battle, Ember losing her humanity to the dark creature inside, she wanted to give Xain something to fear. He moved expertly, smoothly and full of caution, but just as cunning and dangerous to avoid her attacks... but no more. When she reshaped into her God Form, she was determined to show the height of her powers against Xain. She continued to chase after Xain, throwing him around like a ragdoll and stabbing at him with everything she had. First he makes Daxter feel pain.. then he makes him talk? He's good. It's like he knows all my buttons before he even knows who I am. He's like Vance... and just knows the ways to really send me over. I should feel a little perplexed... being so weak over Daxter. Seeing him in pain... causing my mind to split in two... But I won't give up.

                      Ember rushed forward, using the building to her advantage, taking gravity into account for all the damage she could do, and giving Xain the thrill of his life. To fight her midair with nothing to aid him. She watched how helpless he was the moment he was pressed into the crater, and any other hero might have let him fall, get trapped, and end it there. They may have kept him alive and took him into questioning... but no. Ember saw the look of pain on Daxter's face, and she wanted Xain to feel a pain like how he made her feel pain... seeing her lover in near defeat. It was then that she did everything in her powers that she could control to offensively attack him over and over again. She wanted to manipulate the world around them to crush him to shreds, the glass to cut him in shreds, and lastly... her fangs to tear him to pieces. When the battle was close to ending, and Ember tasted the blood off his palm, hearing his shout of pain, she soon snapped out of it when she heard Daxter shout her name, angrily. "EMMMBERRRR!!!" "D.. Dax--" Ember said, Xain soon escaping after using the glaive he'd caught to slice at Ember and get her to fall back. Ember fell to the ground backwards and landed roughly against the concrete. She felt herself land, then taking a pause to look at Xain escape. She sat there, flat on her a**, stiff as a board as she watched him leave, but then her shaking hand moved to her chin, wiping off a liquid she saw, blood, H-His blood. She swallowed involuntarily from the fear of becoming the beast she had nightmares of... then feeling more of Xain's blood pour down her throat. The taste still stuck in her throat as she widened her eyes. She could barely remember piercing her fangs into his palm... but... she did. Surprised and shocked, Ember still felt pain as she was going haywire, her powers trying to heal her wounds as it also attempted to lock away the fresh memories of the fight with Xain, seeing how she had indeed let herself go in the heat of it all. And while her God Power tried to multitask between healing her body, reverting her appearance to regular form, and locking away the memories of the beastly experience she had lived, she turned to Daxter, dragging herself towards him.

                      She looked at Daxter, ignoring all those who approached the scene as her eyes started to study his body, and she widened them in horror. His body was marred and scarred beyond compare. She'd never seen something so grotesque with her own eyes in the form of injuries. To see this kind of damage on the enemy was something Ember welcomed. To see this scar, these scratches, burns and melted skin on her lover? She trembled softly without the strength to stand as she coughed, unable to say anything. She looked at the ground, clenching her fist against the concrete as she heard Noah's voice, "What did you do...?" Noah asked softly as Daxter gave a soft growl, "I tried saving my life." I couldn't heal him.. and I just... I tried to destroy Xain... but I didn't want this. Ember's eyes studied her clenched fist, seeing dry blood and scratches, and feeling the water trails along the ground that were mixed with Daxter's own small pools of blood. While I was off, fighting Xain and trying to get revenge for what he did to Daxter... Daxter went through the worst pain imaginable to save his own life. Am I THAT ******** pathetic to not only be unable to HEAL him, but I can't even save him from pain he HAS to cause himself to save his own life?! Am I here for nothing but to fend off attackers, being the worst excuse of a lover? Whatever Xain wanted from me, to see my God Power or just piss me off, I just gave him what he wanted. I gave into the beast inside me... and kept going. I can't remember what's happened to me. Bloodlust? Revenge? Anger? My mind is so clouded and I can't even recall everything that's happened... but even still, I remember all of Daxter's cries. I remember how useless I was to save him from the fire. I can't even protect him... And now here he is, wearing a scar that marks half his chest. It's a sign that mirrors my failure to help him. I.. I'm not fit to heal or save anybody... am I?

                      She turned her eyes upwards to meet his gaze, desperately looking for him to look at her, say something about this whole mess, and at least say he was alright to her. Even if it was a lie. When she did, she saw his eyes turned away, a scowl on his face spelling out that he refused to look at her. She knew that he knew she was worried, sitting there on the concrete just a few feet away from him. Ember stared at him for the seconds that seemed to drag onto minutes, and for the first time in her life she felt incredibly hurt... just by him not acknowledging her worry. He didn't even meet her eyes... or her heart for the pain she was going through. Suddenly her God Power filtered the emotions she felt before fighting Lucia as she desperately was going to search for Daxter. I was in so much pain... Ember's eyes looked down towards the ground as her lips pressed firmly together. I was being called a monster... I envisioned eating Zack's heart.. I remembered eating his heart... and then I truly felt disgusting.. But now... now I feel like a monster. Now Daxter won't even look into my eyes. I was searching for you Daxter. My heart was screaming for you after I relived that hellish nightmare... so please... after all I'm trying to do to protect you, even if I am a monster, why won't you look at me? Don't you love me? Don't you know how much I care... "H-Hold still," Nill said as she rested on her knees next to Daxter, still avoiding Ember's gaze. Ember's eyes traveled up to Nill, who she would now have to painfully watch do what she could not. Nill would heal the wounds that Ember could not save him from, and for a small few seconds Ember despised Nill's angelic nature. It was tormenting to see the fragile hands of that angel... doing what she couldn't do. Touch him to heal his wounds while hers did nothing but claw and tear apart the enemy. Creating the wounds angels would heal. What I wouldn't give... For hands like that. For a heart like that.

                      "Stay the ******** away from me," Daxter replied, "I don't need you, I don't need ANYONE!" Ember widened her eyes when she saw Daxter yelling, her attention going from the jealousy of Nill's power to Daxter's outburst and rejection of the healing. He snapped his head in her direction, his blood red eyes looking directly into Ember's and while he was calming down only for the split second, Ember misinterpreted the look as something aggressive. Hatred. He said he doesn't need anyone, and then he looked at me. No... come on Ember... He... he gave you a ring. How could you doubt everything now? She instinctively moved her left hand over to her right, touching the ring finger to feel that promise ring still there and holding it... as if she relied on its proof of existence to lift some of the load from her shoulders. Then he looked to Nill and tried pushing her away, but Noah reached down and grabbed his wrist, "we're trying to help you, you idiot. If you don't let her heal you you're going to die." "Then I'll die! I don't want your help, none of you have to help me! I was fine before you arrived I'll be fine after!! I work better alone!!" Ember could see Daxter looking at her while he yelled, almost as his all his words were meant for her. Sh-Should I have just let him die? But what about me? What about us? What about the things you said when you confessed how much you love me? Would you have rather died alone with your pride in tact and just let me go? I-I don't want to be in a world without you-- but it seems you're so upset that I wanted to help! Why do you hate it so much?! And why is it work... is life work? He works alone every day? Does he just work with me? Why can't there be a day when we're just two people, in love, just two people... moving forward. I want to turn back time and stop this madness. I don't want to see you so angry at me. I don't want to see you looking at me with such hateful eyes. It's me... Ember. My heart is on my sleeve... don't... don't tear it up.

                      Daxter was getting more and more angry, looking at Ember as he stood up and Ember's mind clocked into overtime. Her God Power began to blind her, shedding away and adding bits and pieces to the reality that she was experiencing. She looked at Daxter as she felt her heart splitting in two. "But Daxter..." she spoke, trying to get the words out of her mind and out of her mouth. She always kept so many thoughts to herself, and maybe actions couldn't fix this. She needed words to convey how much she cared... She needed to at least try and tell him... just how much she cared... but then he spoke up, "I'm just a pathetic human, right Ember?" Ember's eyes looked over his figure with concern, "W-What? I never said that you were I-I--" "I'm worthless, so either go away and let me die or let me do this myself!" Ember scooted herself to her knees and then started to rise from the concrete only slightly. This can't be real... He... He's serious. He wants me to leave him alone.. H-He... No.. He- "I don't want you!" Ember's tears immediately streamed down her cheeks as she stared entirely at him. Her heart started to shatter in two as she repeated the words in her head. "I don't want you Ember! I'm DONE with you!" Daxter shouted at her angrily. Ember frozen in her mind as it re-fabricated the illusion actively in her mind so she was experiencing it real-time, while Noah had already punched Daxter in reality. "But.. I was only trying to protect you..." "I don't want your protection. I don't need anything from you anymore..." He said to her coldly as she grabbed her ring finger. Then Daxter looked at her, the cold stare coming from his eyes, "It's all your fault. You ignored me in pain, in request, in everything. You're a shell I can't open... and I'm not going to try. So go find somebody who isn't as pathetic a human as I am, because we're both just wasting our time."

                      Ember vanished shortly after, her tears not being seen for long as she quickly got away from the scene and made it a farther distance away. A test of time, Ember. If you really care for something, you're going to learn how long to hold onto it, and when to let it go. Her father's words rang into her head as tears silently spilled from her eyes. The dream she dreamed for many months began to relive itself in her hallucination as she walked along a rooftop, stopping on the middle as the wind whipped her red hair off her shoulders, blending into the color of the sunset. She knew this dream so well... but now it was becoming real. The rooftop on the ledges and corners set blaze to Ember's golden blaze as she could recall seeing her younger self. She closed her eyes as she felt the embrace of heat coming from the flames that set the perimeter of her space on this rooftop, thinking about how in the dream she could see all her loved ones melting and succumbing to her flames. It was a dark dream that had woken her up every other night, making her sweat with fear and causing her to roll out of bed from Daxter's arms around her so she could vomit, sweat out the beads of guilt in remembering and reliving Mar's and Zack's deaths, then going back to bed at the end of every night... But when she opened her eyes this time she saw Daxter standing amongst her field of flames. She didn't dream of her younger self, this time facing him as she looked at him, her heart shattering at the sight of him. She walked on the rooftop to where she saw him, and he looked real. He looked down at her, his blood red eyes reflecting her in them. She swallowed and spoke.

                      "I love you," she said, tears spilling down her cheeks. "Ever since I was young... I felt like a monster. The world tried to eradicate the Gifted, and took my father away. And when they did... I was ready to become their worst nightmares." She reached down, holding herself back from grabbing his hand, crying at the sight of inches between them, and how she would sacrifice everything right now just for him to hold her. Her fingers twitched in visible hesitation as she continued to talk, "You told me that you were the same. You were torn apart by the evil inside you, and you became people's worst nightmares. You studied humans for weaknesses, and become an unpredictable force that could ruin them all. That's all I wanted to do. You had what I was attracted to in terms of power. Unpredictability.. But it also hurt. You never lost that unpredictability Daxter... Because now..." "I've broken your heart.. is that it... Ember?" Ember looked at the ground, seeing the few inches that kept them apart as tears filled her eyes again. "So what if I'm predictable..." she started to sob weakly, "I guess I was a monster after all. Maybe everyone else can see me for what I can't. Maybe... I'm not human... and I'm just a monster. But if I am... why do I think you are so beautiful." She fell to her knees in front of him, curling her back over as she gritted her teeth and cried, "I may be a monster but you are the most wonderfully perplexed person I've ever met. Your dark self that you've embraced, the person you've become... You hurt me... and I STILL want you. I can't let you go! You don't understand me Daxter-" "Because you're not human, I can't read you-" "No! You don't understand how much I still love you." She stood up and looked at Daxter, her emerald eyes fogged with misery but still looking for him, for the soul behind his glass eyes. "I LOVE you and you've never accepted that have you? Have I just been bad at communicating it? Daxter I'm sorry! But I--"

                      Then the illusion of Daxter disappeared as a blue circle of flames cased around Ember's body. She was being constricted in the flames, and felt them whip around her body as a voice spoke, "When are you going to realize that there's nothing there anymore." Ember turned, her eyes widening in the mixture of anger and fear she held when she spotted, "Vance." Ember stood, his flames unable to tear apart her skin as she fought them off and broke their hold on her body. She looked at him, not feeling like she could fight now that she'd lost the love of her life. "You realize it's over... and you're not even fighting your fate anymore. Don't you see what's happened? It's over... Ember. I saw what happened... and that Daxter sure hasn't lost is unpredictability, just like you said. He's even moved on to wishing he was alone, so are you going to give him what he wants? In fact.. what are you going to do Ember? You've lost him in a fate that's worse than death. Now he'll walk this planet, alive, without any need or want of you by his side." Ember looked at Vance, her emerald eyes looking at him carefully. "Why..." she spoke softly as she closed her eyes, reopening them in a tired fashion. "Why do you know how I feel? Why do you know so much about me... and why... why are you trying to hurt me so much? Am I such a monster that people from seemingly nowhere just seek me out... my whole life?" Suddenly Vance was in front of her, grabbing her chin and lifting her up as she didn't fight it this time. "I've been with you your whole life." Ember looked at Vance, weak as she exhaustively asked, "How?" Vance smirked, having finally grabbed Ember's chin and the acceptance her body allowed him to showed signs that he was just a few short steps from taking her over completely.

                      "When your father died... it was the major turning point that would spark this world's change of fate. The path once laid out by nature and God were overruled, and your God Power that puts you on a pedestal so high that you can no longer see... created me." Ember looked at him, her eyes widening from how tired they once looked to being slightly more alert. She parted her lips slowly, unable to speak as she listened, "Your God Power is a literal manifestation of pain... and not just yours. It's the pain of all the ancestors in your string of generations of Dragons. All of your family members had sacrificed something sacred and secret about themselves. Some to gain power, some to change the fate of others, themselves.. or in your case as well as your father's... love. What you are experiencing now is a natural consequence of having adopted the God Power. It tries to protect you from pain... but you... created me. You wanted a force that could change the world. You were so warped on the revenge for your father's protection, so tied towards the destruction of all humankind that had it out for the Gifted, and the anger that true love didn't exist that I was born." Ember's lips having been parted gasped as she smacked his hand off of her and screamed, "YOU'RE LYING!" Vance laughed darkly, the rooftop covered in her golden flames turning blue. "I'm here to break the reality to you Ember, because you REALLY are a monster. You created your worst enemy." He rose his hands, creating all the figures of people she loved one at a time in front of her. First it was Mars. "If you didn't create me, the DOGS Corps wouldn't have been after you. If they weren't after you... Mars wouldn't have been in so much danger of being your partner... and he wouldn't have died hating you so much." Ember stood in disbelief, watching Mars curse her existence as he melted away horrifically in front of her. Next was her mother. "If you didn't create me... Your mother and you could have escaped the Underground assault led by the DOGS. But.. because you wanted so much revenge, you ended up giving away your position to me, as I led the DOGS to assassinate our mother... so you could feel pain. Your mom died protecting the child who would be the reason she dies in the first place."

                      Next was Zack. "If you didn't create me, Zack wouldn't have had to been experimented on. He would have been spared the life of a half-man, half-machine working for the DOGS corps... But because the DOGS were after you, they modified him to match your level of power. He would have never had to live the life of an actual mutt, strayed away from his best friend and eventually being torn apart by YOUR hands." Zack melted, and next was Nill. "If you never created me, I would have never caused anything that would have required Nill to die in Solica. She would have never died in the first place, but because she was, she was re-fabricated by my dark powers and was enslaved to me. Then she fell in love with Noah, and you know what happened? I traumatized her for life by drilling the darkness into her soul, causing her to nearly die in front of Noah and bring him the greatest pain I hope he'll relive again someday." Nill melted and Noah was next. "Without creating me... Noah would have taken down the DOGS over time by himself in a more peaceful protest. Without your hasty revenge that you worked so fast to try and accomplish, Noah would have released all the Gifted from their torment, but ironically you delayed that freedom, enough time to almost shed the rest of the Gifted from existence for your own selfish goals. Not only that... but if you didn't create me, Zack would have never died... but Noah still lives in the shadow you've casted over him, hiding him behind the truth of his best friend's demise." Noah melted... and then stood Melody and Melony hand in hand. "If you didn't create me... I would have never planned for the PMCs to interfere with Daxter's parents in order to capture you and torment you. Salem would have never killed Daxter's mom, who would still be alive to this day.. if you would have just left Daxter and his family alone.... But you dragged them into your problems. And now its cost him an irreplaceable family member. All that sorrow he felt in losing his mom was your fault."

                      Then Ember fell to her knees slowly, the flames rippling off of her body as the last figure Vance formed was no one other than Daxter. "If you didn't create me... You would have never caused him all the pain over his parents. I would have never set up everything in my pursuit of Team Defiance, which I know he grew tired of. Have you looked at all the scars on his person? The scars you run your fingers over that you love so much? I guarantee that some of them are yours indirectly. Each time he suffered fighting me, trying to protect you from me, trying to save you and rescue you from Haine, from being killed, from everything... and it was all your fault. You played the victim, but you're the reason it happened. You're the reason you're still in so much pain Ember. Your God Power won't stop until you crumble from the pressure of the miserable cycle that YOU have set in motion. You are the weakest person to exist. How does it feel to know Daxter hates you because you're stronger than him, when in REALITY you are the weakest person to have ever existed. You are falling victim now to everything that YOU caused." Ember's bangs covered her face as the flames that wrapped around her started to ignite from the truth. "No--" she shouted as she started to sob in sharp pain, "NO!" She covered her eyes, her steel wings flying out and jolting up towards the air as her flames wrapped around her, spinning violently into the sky. "Give up Ember Dusk..." Vance urged her as Ember's eyes glowed silver and she dug her nails into the rooftop, holding tightly as the fire tornado formed so high that it broke into the clouds in the sky, spinning around and around loosely the higher it went, but never leaving the epicenter that was Ember's body. Her body started to fade in the appearance of the flames, Vance no longer being able to see her as the fire became thick. He smiled, waiting for his reward, but not feeling any different... In fact, he didn't sense the vessel being empty, which was Ember's body.

                      He studied the tornado carefully as Ember sat like a shadow in the fire tornado, her silver eyes sparking in the darkness of her body as the fires mixed the orange and blue flames. Ember's eyes glowing were in direction of Vance directly as her wings expanded, showing all her steel feathers. The grooves of each feather tinted a light blue, her crying mixed with an unusual sound. She stood up slowly, walking slowly as the fire tornado went into maximum overdrive. When she took her first step out of the flames, Ember's appearance had changed, and the tornado shattered to ashes in the sky. The sparks of fire fell like snow, but were obviously sparks of fire that rained from the sky continually. It was the fire that defied nature, not dying out as they fell, their warmth hitting the skin of many below like rain would cause one to be cold, but this caused one to feel warmth before it died out. Ember's emerald eyes had changed to a sapphire-jeweled color, the azure of the sky mixed in the pools of her new eyes. Her black shirt hugged her body tightly as the rest of her outfit was repaired, and her long red hair flowed in the breeze behind her, but accompanied with a small tint of blue on the ends of her hair. Vance was surprised, but she approached the figure of Daxter that had not yet melted and twisted its fabrication, grabbing the hand of him and moving Daxter to behind her. "You were right Vance. He left me. He said he didn't need me.... Who would want a monster like me anyway. Everyone I loved died and has yet to die in the end, don't they? Noah will hate me, and Nill will succumb to hating me alongside him... no matter what I do." But then she wrapped the illusion of Daxter's arms around her shoulders, a dark look in Daxter's eyes as the illusion and Ember herself looked at Vance. "Mmm yes... I am a monster. I'm a walking sin of whatever God decided to permit my existence, and I even created the world's greatest enemy. I don't know... what you're doing with this planet. I don't know why you want my power so badly... But no creation of mine if going to rule a kingdom meant for me."

                      Ember gave a dark smile as she looked up at Vance and spoke up, "And I..."

                      Meanwhile...
                      "EMBERRRR!!! Where are you!?" Daxter yelled out as he continued to look for her, stopping near a building and resting against it, still recovering his strength from the course of the events. [********] Daxter sighed and rested his back against the building, the back of his head hitting the wall as he could no longer find Ember who'd ran off after being told...indirectly...he didn't need her. He realized what he said, but that wasn't what he meant, he didn't get to finish his sentence and so little of it was actually directed at her, he just had to keep looking at her or lose himself to his anger. He was still hurt and upset over Xain nearly killing him, but he needed Ember a lot more than he needed his pride to be intact at the moment. Groaning, Daxter slid onto the ground and pulled out the pocket watch, watching it tick away the seconds as he felt frustrated by everything. But soon the ashes of the sky fell, hitting Daxter on his head, shoulder and hands as he would notice it was "...warm?" He would have thought it was snow, but the closer look he took at these sparks falling from the sky were bits of blue and orange fire. Daxter immediately recognized these blue and orange flames, then looking around for signs of Ember. He figured from the sight of the fire falling in the sky that she would be nearby, but when he turned to his left he saw "Ember!" He looked at her, tempted to run but she teleported close to him. Before he could say anything, Ember pressed her thumb against his lips, holding his cheek softly with her right hand. "Daxter..." she said as she felt the heat from his face. He would see her eyes had changed color, her appearance altered with a new outfit never seen before, but so form-fitting, and boots laces up to her knees with heels as sharp as daggers. If she didn't look menacing to people before, she certainly did now.

                      Ember used her God Power to keep him in place, not allowing him to escape as she carefully pressed him against the wall, using her sound magnification to keep him from saying anything from her. He was being silenced, but only for Ember to talk. "Daxter... You said you don't want me..." she met his eyes as she stared at him, "But I still want you." She traced her thumb along his lips then looking at his lips longingly as she continued, "I don't feel like I have communicated my feelings to you properly... but now that everything has fallen apart all I want to do is make sure that you are all mine. There is no time for me to go back and undo the damage that's been done. If I was going to try and fix absolutely everything, I would have to kill my past self. Isn't that funny? That's what I was told... and I believe it... But that doesn't matter. In fact, I've let go of my memories. I've let it all go, because I was so sick of it. All that pain. Come now..." she leaned up towards Daxter's lip, "And you'll join me Daxter. We.. We never needed a world that betrayed us..." she hissed carefully as she then pressed her lips firmly against his. She kissed him deep and passionately, the darkness pouring into him. Ember didn't want to be let go as some tears fell from her right closed eye, but even still she kept Daxter against the wall, parting his lips with her tongue as she kissed him with vigorous amounts of passion. She pulled herself closer into him, driving him slightly up the wall as she pressed herself firmly against him, her hips locking against his as she pulled her hands down to his chest, inserting more of the darkness. "I want you to be by my side," she said breathlessly to him as she pulled away, their kiss glistening their lips as she spoke, "And I'm not going to let you go. Ever." Daxter would probably cringe from the darkness as she loosened her paralysis on him, allowing him to move finally as she completed what need to be done. She wasn't sure if he was consciously aware any longer of what she had done to him, but she put his hand on her chest and smiled deviously, "We will always be two minds... two bodies... and one soul. I love you, Dax..."

                      She waited for his response, as now she was certain that he was finally all hers.

Dangerous Lunatic

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                              Talking with Umiko had been a whirlwind of emotions that encased Kaito in a cocoon of feelings, both good and bad, that he took some time to process. He had admitted to her he needed a companion and was rather lonely, after all the time he'd spent alone traveling to the various universes it was nice to have someone who could go with him. As a Time Entity he had control over his own destiny, he could remove people from the timeline and place them on the same level as a Time Mage, sans the abilities, giving him the freedom to take people with. As a Time Mage it was all up to their superior, and now that Kaito had no true superior he was giving himself the permission he wanted to take Umiko with him. It felt nice to have that power, and instead of temporarily using the Time Lord power he'd had for a short time to travel between dimensions, now he was free to go as he pleased without evoking that power. It gave him a break from Valor and give him the chance to see his friend again, discussing certain upcoming events and getting advice.

                              In the other world Salem was a hero, someone to look up to who never backed down, on Valor he was a bit different, but that was what made the worlds unique. Smiling as he saw the sun shining down on Earth having gone back to the universe he was most familiar with, Kaito seemed to be interrupting lunch between the two Wolf brothers: Salem and Jin. They had an odd love/hate relationship between them, it was this time that the sorcerer Jin was a force for good, citing a journey he'd gone on in another realm. Who was to question the power of a sorcerer? Nevertheless, Kaito approached the two and exchanged pleasantries, enjoying a quiet lunch with them chronologically after he'd met with Umiko, talking with them casually as friends. All he needed, after everything that was happening, was a chance to unwind before going back into the thicket of things. He spent a few hours with the brothers having lunch together, discussing various things, future events on Valor, before finally deciding he needed to return to Valor before he got too comfortable with his freedom.

                              The familiar choking sensation surrounding his energy returned the moment he was back in the compound Vance called home, Kaito had returned only a few minutes after he had finished speaking with Umiko. The compound had a weird feel to it, it was almost as if something was wrong and Kaito wasn't sure what it would be. He moved through the halls until he felt something warm coming from his stomach, blinking as he looked down to see blood coming from his stomach, a sword piercing his body. When his head moved back up to see in front of him he could see the blood coating the walls and floor from a massacre, though Kaito didn't know whose blood it was until he saw Vance turning the corner with the limp body of Adam Aldric impaled on a sword. Vance swiped the sword to throw the body onto the mess of blood, having been expecting Kaito, no emotion across his face as it was clear to Kaito what had happened. "You trust the wrong people, Time Lord, he wasn't as good at flying under the radar as you hoped. Because of it he and his mother are dead, so too will you be." Vance flicked the sword of the blood on it, Kaito feeling the sword behind him removed, bleeding even heavier with it no longer blocking the sliced arteries. "How..." "...did I know? About you coming or Adam? The answer is the same. I know that you know about the artifacts, your mistake was assuming you were untraceable. I have eyes and ears everywhere, even your neighbors." Vance's unemotional look was replaced with a slow forming grin as he held up a necklace made of macaroni. To Vance it was a poorly made worthless piece of crap, to Kaito it meant the world to him; sometimes Kaito would be given items from another world and take it with him, his apartment outside of the timeline made to occupy the space of the world he lived. It was a safe place for him, combined with an existing place in time that would be his. Able to exist in other dimensions he visited it held everything he was given: a pirate's sword from his adventures as part of a pirate crew, a piece of technology unseen except in future timelines, or a macaroni necklace made for him after saving the life of a child. It was an item of personal importance not unlike the feather of a wing, or a piece of string, a broken watch. "When...we saw that you..." "...were only using metaphysical? For you I had to, I couldn't do it otherwise. I made great strides in ensuring that I had something important of yours to track you with." "How long?" "Long enough. You've been attempting to play me from the start, Time Lord, and I don't appreciate the betrayal." Kaito was still bleeding, but time was keeping him alive, "I know about your minions." Vance paused, then smirked, "then I suppose we're both at fault for why our partnership ended poorly. I'll be sure to take care of your precious Umiko after your passing."

                              Vance readied his sword and rushed at Kaito, blood splattering underneath his feet as he moved quickly, Kaito not going to give Vance the time to approach, freezing time instantly as everything stopped, Vance having been moving fast enough to have the blade inches from his throat. "Even space bends to time," Kaito said matter-of-fact as he realized the ugly truth of everything that was happening: Vance knew Kaito's will over time could cause it to freeze, and he knew that Kaito had the power to keep away from his attacks. Vance had his minion surprise Kaito with a sword to the back to weaken him so Kaito would be forced to retreat, perhaps Vance was aware of the Time Entity upgrade he'd received? Either way, this meant Kaito was too weak to fight Vance right now even if he continued to pause time. It was proof positive he was weakening, even as he was pausing time Vance was able to get close enough that a simple sneeze would have caused his head to touch the blade. "Do you know I can't take a life with the timeline frozen? Or was this just to weaken me enough I was forced to retreat? Damn you." Kaito moved away from Vance and disappeared, the time stream moving forward while Vance stopped his attack and grinned. "Just as I thought." Vance looked down to his hand, the macaroni necklace taken by Kaito, but it didn't matter anymore...his plans were approaching fruition.

                              "S-So...a little help?" Kaito asked as he appeared behind Team Defiance after they started going after Ember and Daxter, his voice causing Noah, Nill, and Umiko to look back at him while he was holding the bleeding wound on his stomach, his front and back bleeding equally. "Chroma-infused sword, I can't reverse the wound. Trust me. I tried. I'm sorry is anyone else extremely cold?" Kaito fell backwards, but he didn't hit the ground as the panicked Umiko grabbed him quickly, Noah and Nill approaching hastily to help him to the ground as Nill, without a word, immediately began working on healing his wounds but...there was a problem. "I...I can't help him. I don't know why b-but he's not responding to my healing." Nill looked up to Noah with concern in her eyes, unsure what to do to help him. Umiko was worried that Nill couldn't save him, and the Chroma energy that was infused in the wound made it difficult for Kaito to reverse the wound and heal himself. "K-Kaito," Umiko said softly, upset that Kaito might be dying and there was nothing that could be done.

                              "Time," Kaito said groaning softly, "is a difficult thing to understand, even more impossible to master. There are infinite worlds out there each one more different than the last, and I have seen so many but barely touched the surface of all that exist." "Don't give us your final words, not yet." Noah told him, the pillar of fire expanding skyward as suddenly all of Vegas was set in a panic at the towering inferno that reached beyond the clouds. "Damn it, we're too late," Kaito told them as Noah took off his jacket and shirt, wrapping the shirt around Kaito's torso tightly to help control the bleeding. "Ember has already turned, given up on the world and everything in it. That means that Vance might be getting what he's been seeking from the start: Ember's God Power."

                              New Vegas was panicking at the tornado of fire stretching into the sky, burning the sky orange as it could be seen for miles from all over the town. It was immediately seen as a sign of the coming apocalypse, end-of-days, and while most would stop and stare at the pillar, some would see it and hold their loved ones close, the ones who knew they would be going to hell would be making sure they got their last hoorah before going, and before long windows were being shattered, people were throwing things, and fights were breaking out. Anarchy reigned supreme with Ember's display of power as she'd given up on life and Vance attempted to gain control of what created him in the first place. "I have to go, I have to stop this," Kaito tried to sit up but Noah stopped him by having disappeared and returned with a stretcher, picking him up and laying him on it. "What are you doing?" "If superpowers aren't going to do the trick, then all we have left is human ingenuity." It was too late to help Ember and Daxter, they would have to be on their own while the rest of the team worked on saving Kaito's life, hurrying him to the nearby hospital amongst the rioting the city was experiencing. It was a state of anarchy and even the hospital was unsafe as desperate people began rushing in to steal what they could while the team hurried Kaito past the lobby, deeper into the hospital and to an operating room. Noah was taking charge of Kaito's life while the doctors and nurses were focusing on other patients, security working on getting the situation under control.

                              "Nill, Umiko, if we're going to save Kaito you need to do everything I say without hesitation or question, understood?" Noah stood tall as he took charge, no doubt Nill would be entranced by her hero, and Umiko was so concerned that Kaito would die that she wouldn't argue anything he said to her. Kaito looked up to the bright lights of the operating room as his vision became blurry, everything becoming cold as he was losing feeling to his limbs. "Y-Yes sir!" Nill said suddenly, hearing her Defiance speak that caused her heart to flutter madly. "Anything," Umiko replied to him with, Noah turning to Kaito. "Umiko, there's a set of shrink wrapped surgical instruments in the drawer underneath the sink, I need that, a bowl of warm water, and a sponge. Nill, in the cellar is going to be a cold storage room with different blood types, I need at least three bags of O-negative, it's the only type in the world that can give to anyone. Go." Umiko and Nill would immediately set out to get what Noah required as Umiko finished first, handing him the instruments on a rolling cart. Noah opened the pack of surgical supplies and sliced off the wrapped up shirt and Kaito's shirt to reveal the wound.

                              "How are you going to save him?" Umiko asked curiously, a little worried over what was happening. Noah was assessing the damage to the internal organs and attempting to figure out how the Chroma was impeding the healing process. Thankfully, Nill didn't take too long and came back with the bags of O-negative blood that he required. "I...I don't know. The Chroma is the reason he can't heal himself, and I suspect his time powers are interfering with Nill's healing. Best I can do is close the wound and give him a blood transfusion so he doesn't bleed to death. Perhaps the Chroma will dissipate naturally but..." "No, Vance did this and...I guarantee that...he knew this would kill me. Blood will only delay my death, but this...this Chroma is lethal to my healing...the wound won't heal at all. We have...have to remove the Chroma energy." "We need Takashi, he can absorb -- " "he can't control where he absorbs it from, only how much he absorbs. It's unlikely...he'll absorb it from me with plenty of abundant sources from you three." Noah was setting up the IV for the blood transfusion while also working on closing up the wound to prevent it from bleeding any further, but the internal bleeding was too severe to make the clean up easy, this would be a lot of hard work. "He may be the only hope you have." Noah told him sternly, causing Kaito to groan in pain and think about the consequences of the actions ahead of him. It wasn't worth risking the fate of Kala's existence for his life, and though Kaito was feeling a lot better by now, he was far from safe, even if the blood transfusion had helped he was still in danger.

                              "There is one other I can ask," Kaito said quickly, pulling out the disk that Jin had given him in the other dimension, pressing the center button and waiting for something...anything...to happen. But nothing did. Ultimately, even as powerful of magic that Jin had he couldn't quite cross the dimensional barriers a Time Mage had to pass to access universes. Kaito stuffed the disk back into his pocket and realized that he was going to be without the sorcerer's help. "I have no choice then, between death and a cataclysm I have to accept my death." Umiko would have in no way accepted that answer, and not surprisingly neither did Noah as he glared to him with the infamous dirty look that Defiance was well-known for. There was no way Noah would allow Kaito to just accept death, any chance was worth it. He believed Takashi had the power to do what was necessary without bringing about the end of the world, after all he'd been practicing his powers since the filming of Fallen Gears, Kaito was just too worried about a slim possibility to give it much thought. "Takashi has the ability, are you really prepared to die?" Kaito paused for a moment, then shook his head, "I...want more time with Umiko." "Then I'll bring Takashi here." Kaito nodded, "perhaps my only chance. I'm starting to lose feeling in my limbs again, vision is going fuzzy, I'm starting to lose too much blood. I think my powers are the only reason I'm at all stable but it's not enough to reverse the damage. If Takashi can't do it...I'm going to die." This clearly upset Umiko, who put her hands over her mouth. "Nill, Umiko, you two stay here with Kaito while I retrieve Takashi. Nill, could you set up the second blood bag for the transfusion? It'll keep Kaito's strength up, I'll be right back." Noah wasted no time taking off for the hotel, hoping he was still there.

                              It didn't take too much time before Noah returned with Takashi, who was caught up to speed on what was happening to Kaito and given the only task he hoped he could handle: siphon energy from Kaito. Takashi was a little worried about this, especially with Nill and Umiko around that could cause his power to siphon from them instead, but if Kaito was dying because of Vance then he would give it his best shot. But, even if he could feel the little bit of Chroma from Kaito he couldn't grasp it, unable to control where he was siphoning from as he started taking power from the world around him, and the other three in the room. Even without them, Takashi would have taken from the largest pool of Chroma energy which was the environment, rather than Kaito. He couldn't control it, which caused Noah to inquire to Kaito: "if we leave would it help?" "Except there's still a chance by trying to siphon the Chroma from me he siphons too much. He has to siphon to concentrate, by time he ends up concentrating on me it could be too late."

                              Takashi suddenly started panting heavily, his nose bleeding as he shut his eyes. "I...can't..." "Takashi that's enough!" Kaito suddenly began screaming as Takashi began stealing the Chroma energy that was intertwined within his body along with the energy in the room, the team no doubt terrified by what was happening. "What can we do?" Noah asked as calm as he could be with a cataclysm starting. "You...have...to...stop...me!" Takashi's power was becoming too much, the Chroma energy he was collecting swirling around the room. Noah knew there was only one way to stop the cataclysm before it became too powerful and destroyed everything. He grabbed a scalpel and prepared to slice it into Takashi's throat. He was their friend, he was their teammate, killing someone like that would haunt him the rest of his life but there was no one else who could do it. Kaito was incapacitated by the Chroma interrupting his powers, and no one in the room could help Takashi control his powers. Kaito almost opted to kill Takashi the first time around, but found another solution. They didn't possess time powers, they didn't have another option. The only way was to kill Takashi.

                              "Noah...don't," Nill said suddenly, grabbing his hand, she didn't want to see anyone die and he couldn't blame her, but this had to be stopped. "If I don't...if someone doesn't...then we all die. I don't want to, Nill, believe me I don't want this to be what I have to do, but it does. Please, let me go, and please...don't hate me." Before Noah could plunge the scalpel into Takashi's neck, Kaito leaped from the table and the two exploded in time energy, disappearing from the room. "What happened?!" Noah asked quickly, looking around for signs of the two. In a surprise return moments later Kaito and Takashi fell from their point of return onto the surgical bed and onto the ground, Kaito and Takashi groaning. "Well, ow, there goes a few thousand years." Kaito stood up and cracked his neck, helping Takashi up as Umiko immediately jumped to Kaito's arms, hugging him tightly. He reciprocated the hug and gave her a soft peck on the cheek. "Er...what just happened?" Noah asked curiously, looking to Kaito.

                              Smiling while he let go of Umiko, Kaito looked to the rest of the team as Takashi took a seat on the surgical bed. "I took Takashi to the end of the universe and disconnected that from the rest of the time stream. The end of the universe might be missing a few thousand years, dissolved from the cataclysm, but as it stands we're a few hundred trillion years from that point anyway. Needless to say, Takashi had his cataclysm." "So...what does that mean?" Takashi asked as he struggled to catch his breath. "Well, the cataclysm required a lot of energy to create, now that that's out of the way you won't be siphoning as much energy anymore. In fact, the automatic accumulation should be out of the way entirely, if I'm right...with a little practice...you should have no trouble controlling your powers. Congratulations, you caused the end of the universe. Well, the last thousands years of it anyway." "Then everything worked out?" "Yeah, everything's fine now, Takashi siphoned the Chroma from me and I was able to heal, only thing left is trying to find Ember and Daxter."

                              Kaito sighed softly as he managed to prevent the second attempt of a cataclysm, this time by actually having Takashi go through with it, looking to the rest of the team, as he finally caught his breath and let his time powers help heal himself. "Let's get going, the sooner we find them the better." Kaito encased time around the ground and manipulated space-time to bring them back to the fountains that Daxter and Xain would have been battling from, the rioting slowly getting under control the police arrived in full force. The situation in Vegas was still dangerous after Ember's display, but everything was returning to normal. If they could find Ember and Daxter then they could start to make sense of everything, hopefully they weren't too hard to locate.

                              Meanwhile...Daxter was sitting beside the building after his tantrum that caused Noah to step up and give him the wake-up call he needed. He'd been an a*****e to Ember just because of his stupid pride, and everything had turned into a huge misunderstanding. Soon as he said he didn't want her, indirectly and interrupted from his full sentence, she'd run off and he felt like an a*****e. Daxter was frustrated with himself for being such a child about it, suddenly feeling snow falling from the sky, the sky itself bright orange as he realized this "snow" was "...warm?" He stood up, anxious as he realized this was a sign that Ember was nearby, and it was clear where she was: the towering pillar of fire. He recognized that power, the desperation, solitude, hate. If she was half as destructive as he was when he did it then Vegas was in danger, but he was surprised that the tornado died down and he spotted his beloved "Ember!" He was overjoyed to see her, but realized that something was wrong...everything was wrong. The way she was walking, her eyes, this wasn't the Ember he knew, this was something else entirely. He wondered about running off, perhaps this was a darkness-infused Ember and if that was the case he wouldn't dare fight her, not because she would be powerful but because he didn't want to fight her. Before he could do it, though, she teleported to him and touched his cheek, holding her thumb over his lips.

                              'This isn't right, this isn't my Ember.' He hated to admit that what she was wearing turned him on something fierce, but the fact she carried herself differently, her eyes a different color...it felt so wrong. "Daxter... You said you don't want me..." 'No that's not true, I need you, Ember.' He thought, unable to speak as she kept him in place, unable to talk or move. "But I still want you." 'Stop this...this isn't you, this is something I would do, but not you. You're better than me.' "I don't feel like I have communicated my feelings to you properly... but now that everything has fallen apart all I want to do is make sure that you are all mine. There is no time for me to go back and undo the damage that's been done. If I was going to try and fix absolutely everything, I would have to kill my past self. Isn't that funny? That's what I was told... and I believe it... But that doesn't matter. In fact, I've let go of my memories. I've let it all go, because I was so sick of it. All that pain. Come now..." she leaned up towards Daxter's lip, "And you'll join me Daxter. We.. We never needed a world that betrayed us..." Daxter wanted to say something, but he couldn't, and he tried to think but his thoughts were interrupted the moment she kissed him. He could feel the darkness from her entering his body and corrupting his mind. But was it corrupting? Was he being forced or just unraveling the tightly wound spring?

                              Daxter didn't know what to do or what to say, he was being changed by darkness but it wasn't a literal change inside of him. In fact, he could say she was just bringing out the best in him. She was corrupted, different, in fact it almost pained him to see her like this and yet...this was something he couldn't help but love. She carried herself differently, she was acting different, for as much as this wasn't his Ember perhaps this really was more of his Ember than he thought. He didn't know how the God Power worked, what parts were here and what parts weren't. Was this a corrupted Ember or an uninhibited Ember? They kissed so deeply that Daxter would have consented to having passionate sex right then and there, then again there wasn't ever a time he would say no to her. He wanted to speak, to say something, but she was pouring darkness in him faster than he could comprehend and yet...after all of it...he couldn't say this wasn't welcome. Daxter had been torn for so long, so split between good and evil and only recently had he been able to find a harmony between the two of them. But, somewhere along the lines he realized he missed the darkness. It wasn't something he wanted to be every single day, but old habits were hard to break, but now his old habits were causing him guilt thanks to a conscience that had finally been freed. It was difficult to admit to himself that the darkness was fun, especially after so many years of trying to be a good guy and then realize that he had more fun before? It would have driven anyone mad, especially him, to realize all his effort would be meaningless if he just went back to the way he was. But, that was Daxter, no one understood him and he barely understood himself. If he was to make any kind of guess as to what he really liked...it would be whatever made him happy.

                              He could feel the change inside of him, a welcomed change of pace from the good guy he'd tried so hard to be. But if Ember was going to the dark side then he would gladly join her, he would follow her into hell if that was the case and he know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, she would do the same for him. Would be even be able to convince her that this wasn't the path she should take? He didn't know, but he didn't care. They kissed deeply and passionately, Ember being so forceful to push herself against him, her soft breasts pressing against him as his back was pinned to the wall. He wanted this. He wanted this, and above all else he wanted her. "I want you to be by my side," she said breathlessly to him as she pulled away, their kiss glistening their lips as she spoke, "And I'm not going to let you go. Ever." Daxter closed his eyes from the darkness finishing the penetration into his body, mind, and soul. 'Ember...why...' Daxter's eyes opened as she put a hand on his chest and smiled devilishly. "We will always be two minds... two bodies... and one soul. I love you, Dax..."

                              'Take me high and I'll sing
                              Oh you make everything okay
                              We are one in the same
                              Oh you take all of the pain away
                              Save me if I become
                              My demons.'

                              Daxter opened his eyes and grabbed at her hand, resting his head in her shoulder as he was in her shoulder, smiling devilishly while she held her head high. "We never needed a world that betrayed us," he repeated to Ember as he remained close to her, "but I've always needed you." It didn't seem like it was Daxter, but it was. It was the feelings he kept buried away, all his hate and loathing towards a world that betrayed the Gifted and made them feel like criminals for just being born. Daxter had long hated the world he lived in, but his hatred for himself and actions always taking precedence. But he'd hid them with video games, or just pushing them down. Now, though, Ember had taken the deeply hidden thoughts and brought them out, giving Daxter enough reason to hate the world without forcefully turning him into something he wasn't. Sure, when this was all over he might have had a word or two with her, but for now all it was was her taking what already existed. He could feel some kind of weight lifted off his mind as Ember had somehow managed to bring the demons to the front, but there was no Dax, no Taco, there was just him and, for the first time in his life this was some kind of controlled demon that was being freed. Daxter wasn't in the background of his own mind watching someone else control his actions, he didn't have to scream as he was committing terrible atrocities he didn't want to. It was all him. Everything that he would do now was him, unchained, unrestrained, and completely without remorse. Was this darkness bringing out the beast in him or was he always standing between light and dark waiting for the one tipping point that pushed him in a single direction. Daxter had to be some kind of bipolar nutjob, because no sane person in their right mind would flip-flop between dark and light so many times. Spend so many years trying to be a good person and willingly let it all go because it wasn't as fun. Maybe, just maybe, it was all because of Ember. The only way to truly tell would be for the darkness to let up and no longer manipulate Daxter. Perhaps this was the darkness telling him he liked it, maybe Daxter would hate the way he was. Only time could tell.

                              'Take me over the walls below
                              Fly forever
                              Don't let me go
                              I need a savior to heal my pain
                              When I become my worst enemy
                              The enemy.'

                              "It doesn't matter what happens now, long as I have you the rest of the world can burn." Daxter pulled away from Ember while still holding her hand, his other one grabbing her chin and leaning in for a softened kiss. Suddenly, though, the pair were interrupted by a slow clapping and a voice, "congratulations to the happy couple." Vance said, clearly displeased with the way things were going, giving a soft chuckle knowing that Ember had kept the God Power for herself, and that there was nothing he could do to take it. Daxter turned his back to Ember and suddenly produced a sword of fire from his hand, growling softly. "If you attack me, is it because you want to or because she's making you? Think about every action you perform from here on out, Dax, because when this is all over I can only imagine how used you might feel." Vance smirked, Daxter giving a soft scowl, "what would you know? Being a hero isn't for me, I'm a twisted person and this is how it should be." "You keep telling yourself that, we'll see what you say when the spell is released." Vance could only keep the smile as, when this was over, could be a make or break moment for the God Power. If and when Daxter managed to break the hold on his mind it would be interesting for him to see what happened, if he left Ember, then he would create a depressive darkness that even the revelations that she created her greatest enemy couldn't match. Losing Daxter would push her over the edge and that would mean the God Power was his. He couldn't wait for that moment.

                              Daxter turned and felt Ember's chest with his hand, looking down into her eyes, "I will never leave your side, Ember. Not for a world we left behind." He kissed her deeply, but everything was far from over. It was only just getting started. Vance remained standing there as Daxter looked back at him after reassuring his princess that there wasn't a reason in the world he would disappear on her. "Yes, abandon the world, abandon your mother. Oh, that's right, you still have one parent left." Vance went from looking at Daxter to looking at Ember, "she'll change him. You know she will. If she gets to him then you'll lose him, the love of a mother can outweigh the love of a girlfriend. Remember how he looked at you when you approached him, you could tell he was afraid of you. If Melody gets to him, if he goes back to his old ways...you'll lose him. You'll lose him and he'll go back to being afraid of you. Do you really want to be all alone, Ember? If you intend to keep your precious killer then you know that his mother, Melody, has to die. Otherwise, it's only a matter-of-time before she washes away the darkness and he'll abandon you. It's no less than you deserve." Daxter pushed away from Ember and darted towards Vance with the flame sword still extended, "shut up! No one will take me from Ember do you hear me?!" Vance dodged the sword, "oh?" Daxter let out a large beam of fire energy from his hands, Vance dodging to the side and rushing at Daxter, leaping to strike his knee against his stomach, leaning forward to whisper to him, "prove you love Ember, kill your mother before she can take you away from her. If you'll do anything for your lover, you'll do that." Vance's momentum was transferred to Daxter who flew backwards, rolled, then caught his balance and skidded to a stop. Vance looked over to Ember who looked ready to rip him to shreds, then disappeared. The damage was done, the insecurities were set into place, now all he had to do was wait.

                              Daxter let the flame sword vanish as he approached Ember and grabbed her hand, wrapping his arms around her and leaving a gentle kiss on her lips, "I don't need anyone but you, Ember. Let's burn this world to the ground and stand on the ashes, you and me...together." Was Daxter capable of killing his own mother? One had to wonder just how deep Vance's taunts would run before one of them would be influenced by it. Would Ember even ask that of him? If she was in a dark state, afraid to lose Daxter so badly that she would corrupt him with darkness, then would she order him to kill his mother to avoid that risk? Even more, how much of this Daxter was really Daxter, would he kill his mother and prove that Ember was just controlling him into being with her, or would be argue against it? Or...did Daxter even love his mother? Daxter, a long time ago, hadn't loved his parents, or his only friend, if the darkness had suppressed the conscience he wasn't a big fan of, then maybe it suppressed his love for Melody too. How much of Daxter was an act, how much of Daxter was real? Did he play the part this entire time and just need an excuse to let down the mask of a man with a soul...or something even worse? Was Daxter a devil in disguise this entire time? He smiled devilishly as the two lovers embraced one another, the same embrace from earlier as she rested her chin on his head. Whatever happened now would be interesting, two dark twisted souls who cared nothing for the world in front of them. Perhaps they would be more of a danger to it than Vance.

                              Noah, Nill, Umiko, and Kaito quickly followed the clues from the fountain in their hunt for Ember and Daxter, the fire tornado they had been looking at dissipating which had given them the direction to travel. Noah's radar had detected two people embracing in an alleyway, and Kaito could suddenly sense a kind of darkness he wasn't sure they were ready for, but knew they had to check out. As they turned the corner to the alleyway they came across "Ember and Daxter, finally." "E-Ember?" Kaito asked softly as he realized that...Vance didn't have the God Power, Ember did. Which meant that the desperation, the crazed state...all of it was with the God Power in her possession, which made her even more dangerous than ever. Daxter smirked as he stepped away from Ember, looking to the team. "Well howdy," he said with the smirk on his face, fire coming from his hands and traveling up his arms: black flames. "Are you...threatening me?" Noah asked, referring to the fire that Daxter was producing. "I don't make threats, I make promises. By the way, I never did manage to thank you for kicking my a** back before you became Vance's b***h." "That was months ago, have you been harboring a grudge?" Noah asked, realizing the answer was an obvious "yes. Who's got a smartphone cause you'll be Googling Burn Centers in a second, cause Noah's gonna be feelin' da burn!" Daxter cackled as he let the darkness within him let out all the little feelings he stuffed down and out of sight. "If I'd known you'd felt this way about me -- " "-- you shut the ******** up before I make you blind and mute!"

                              "This is wrong, this is all wrong. This isn't one of the futures I predicted, Vance was supposed to get the God Power, she wasn't supposed to keep it. Dax and Noah aren't supposed to fight, either. No...no." Kaito said softly to himself in a sad desperation as he realized that, somehow, somewhere along the way, his predictions of an admittedly shaky future weren't happening the way he thought it would. He looked to Umiko with a grim expression on his face until he finally openly admitted, "I don't know what's going to happen next." "That's easy! First I melt Noah's eyes, then I finish what I tried to do years ago." A slow twisted grin formed on Daxter's face as Noah, though concerned, couldn't help but wonder what that was. "Kill an angel." Now...Noah was pissed. It took a lot to piss him off, but Daxter had said the wrong thing to do it: he threatened Nill, and Noah would either beat him senseless or openly kill him. No one threatened Nill. No one.

                              "S-Somehow...Ember has reverted Daxter back to his old ways. Or...or maybe he's just not worried about scaring her off anymore. I-It doesn't matter, we can't turn against one another now, not with Vance still around. s**t." Kaito didn't swear often, but with such an uncertain future, the very real possibility that Noah and Daxter would be fighting possibly to the death, and Ember now a dark dragon with God Powers...this was an acceptable time to curse. Kaito was, for the first time in his life, uncertain about the future and because of that he grasped Umiko's hand tightly, holding it for the one bit of comfort he could find in the situation. Everything was going to hell quickly, this really did look like the beginning of the end.

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                      Having talked to Kaito, Umiko was drawn into taking the first steps on the path to recovering her once-broken heart. She had trailed back to New Vegas, feeling sorry for herself in all the ways of which she had lost the only thing that mattered, and that was Kaito.. But if someone were to go up to her and ask, "What is Kaito to you?" All she would be able to reply with is, "Everything." Such an answer from most people today would only signify a pain that dulled and healed over time, but for Umiko she had nothing to help soothe the pain of losing such an important person. Her heart was sinking into the darkness that manifested in the back of her mind, and she was completely torn apart inside on the idea of actually having lost him. Her journey had not been an easy one since the night he left. She had obtained magic and gone out of her way to find out what Vance's plans for this planet was in terms of its people, what he wanted to accomplish, and so much more. Umiko had sought to find those top secret plan all by herself, and somehow, figure out a way to stop the madness. She nearly lost her own life in the process, the feeling of that Chroma generator eating away at the expansive life force she carried... But why? Why did she continue going on even though to the group, she had seemingly given up hope? All her hopes started at the bottom of the ocean.

                      For a long time, her soul rested at the bottom of the sea. It was a sleep that could have gone on for ages as she drifted in the flow of the warm water. She was accustomed to the gentle rocking of the sea, the creatures that surrounded her but she was unaware of it all. She was just a soul, a little white bubble, trapped comfortably in her home. While that ocean carried her, the only place she had ever known or ever slept, she could feel something spark a change on her exterior. A body formed to her features, mixed with the body of a siren, or mermaid, but keeping the form of a human, to Mizu's taste. Her body was a vessel for her temporary soul, one that would one day be overrode with another, but at the beginning, she was just waking to the world. Her violet hair stemmed long with the wave spreading out each strand around her, her eyes slowly starting to open as she was pushed higher in the water. Her eyes slowly opened as she heard a gentle voice, looking at the moonlight that shined down on the water. As she came closer to the surface of the sea, her eyes started to widen with fear. She didn't know there was anything beyond the sea, and she believed that there would always be water everywhere.. but she was wrong.

                      Umiko broke the surface and was forced out of the water by magic, standing on it as she experienced a trauma she would never forget. She felt the wind whip her skin mercilessly with cold harsh stings that shook and made her shiver to her core. She felt ice cold as she got on her knees, her hands trying to pry back into the warmth of the water that she was so accustomed to... but the sea would not permit her back in. It was the magic she was unable to control that demanded she go to the land. She was full of sorrow, as if feeling she had been abandoned by the sea, or worse, but after the small defeat she realized that her breathing had changed. She no longer relied on water, she relied on air. She walked to the sandy beach nearby, coughing as her throat was adjusting to the need to have air, pushing the water out of her lungs. When she finally reached the land she collapsed, falling over and no longer able to keep up on her own feet. She was weak, extremely, and more over she was cold. Very cold. So cold that she wanted to curl up right there and cry at how cold she was.

                      Then she felt a warmth hit her skin. It sent ripples of pleasure across every cell of her skin, every fiber of her being, for whatever was touching her arm and soldier was something that she wanted to have. What she never expected when turning to find the source was a pair of emerald green hues staring down at her. She widened her eyes in awe, knowing immediately that they were of the same species... but he was unique. His hair shined just like the moonlight behind him, and Umiko gazed at him with love in her eyes. He had green eyes that looked so interesting, mixing with other tints and shades of green on their edges. They were so beautifully detailed that Umiko couldn't help but stare. And when she saw his hair, she could see the moonlight reflecting and emphasizing the white. Maybe she was thinking of the moonlight having been personified into a person at that moment, but when she saw his white hair it comforted her tremendously. In all her sleep of the ocean... She could feel her skin curl towards his warmth as he helped to turn her over, to hold her gently and asking if she was alright and if she could remember her name. From that very moment onward, Kaito became her world. It all starting with him giving her a name she would cherish to this very day above all else.

                      While he allowed her to live in his apartment in Japan, Umiko grew curious about the man who took her in. She would wake up in the middle of some nights, then finding herself to get up and take a look around, her mind wandering about him. She was with him almost all the time, never seeing him on the phone or texting somebody that he could maintain much of a relationship with. It was business talk, or other various tasks that were pinned as reminders. Empty contact books filled with business cards. No photos of friends or people he held dear. The apartment was as empty as Umiko's newborn life in terms of history. If she didn't know any better, she would have guessed that he was the same as her. A newborn soul. But for somebody who else so much kindness in his heart like he did, who could think logically and piece together timely solutions to fit the circumstances they would later come across... and his wisdom. He couldn't be so young. He held all the experience and more to help raise Umiko into the right ways to love a person, to love and appreciate the world, and show when defiance and words truly did count for something. Not much time passed since her birth, but it was her entire life so far... that the dreadful day came that Kaito not only left her for Vance's side, but did it so cruelly it drove her to suicide. She had come to realize after the close call of losing him to Mizu that she wanted to stay with him, and that she needed him. She gave him the air to try and survive that fight, though she didn't know he would continue to live on in different dimensions, she wanted him by her side... just a bit longer. She was sad at the thoughts of losing him, and later when Mizu died by Vance's hand she thought the only thing keeping her from Kaito had finally been destroyed... but she was wrong. And though she was destroyed on the inside, she sought to seek out revenge on Vance and being able to reach Kaito one last time before her exterior was destroyed as well.

                      She obtained Mizu's magic, who pushed her to trying to find love at the expense of no longer living an immortal life. Umiko only wanted Kaito, even if it killed her to have him... and so her magic saved her that fateful night of suicide and gave her some courage to fight back. However, after the encounter between Adam and Kaito, she felt maybe there was nothing. No hope. Maybe she was lost and was going to drift away. But then Kaito spoke to her, telling her that he really did still love her, confusing Umiko and having her walk towards New Vegas with new ideas in mind. She thought carefully about all that had happened, what her life had surmised to and how much hope was really there. Then he came in shortly after her experience with Adam, Kaito revealing to her the real reasons he left, what he needed to do, and what was to come. Not only did his words mend her broken heart, but gave her more than enough strength and motivation to carry on with those duties assigned to her. She knew what her duties were, having new dreams in mind and would do what she needed to in order to save the future and fate of this planet. As she sought out Nill and Noah, she noticed they were not near Daxter and Ember. She was majorly concerned, Noah seeing this concern that helped the situation as he called for a way to locate the other pair. When they found them, it was too late. Ember had fought of Xain, the man in pursuit of Daxter, and not only put his masculinity to shame of some degree, but Daxter's words had caused a stir within Ember. While the conflict was mostly between Noah and Daxter at the time after Ember saved him, Umiko kept her eyes carefully focused on the dragon girl, her color seeming to fade in its glow as she had tears running down her face. If Ember breaks... we are all done for.

                      Umiko watched as Ember stand there. While most of the interaction was done between Daxter and Noah, she noticed as well as everyone else in the group that Daxter had been keeping his eyes locked on Ember. With such a scowl on his face, Umiko was trying to piece together the reasons that he was upset. "H-Hold still," Nill said as she rested on her knees next to Daxter. "Stay the ******** away from me," Daxter replied, "I don't need you, I don't need ANYONE!" Daxter had snapped his head at Ember, looking at her with anger in his profile. What is wrong with Daxter? He's so angry... Is it possible this fight is driving him away from her? Umiko gripped the end of her shirt tightly as she watched. Daxter then looked to Nill and tried pushing her away, but Noah reached down and grabbed his wrist, "we're trying to help you, you idiot. If you don't let her heal you you're going to die." "Then I'll die! I don't want your help, none of you have to help me! I was fine before you arrived I'll be fine after!! I work better alone!!" Umiko looked at Ember, keeping steady glances on the girl as all of this continued. Ember seemed speechless for the most part, but before Umiko could do anything to try and ease the pain Daxter shouted, "I'm just a pathetic human, right Ember? I'm worthless, so either go away and let me die or let me do this myself! I don't want you --" Nill continued working on Daxter until she was surprised that Noah punched Daxter in the face, which shut him up before he could finish his sentence 'I don't want your help'. But because he couldn't finish the sentence, while he was looking at Ember, he told her he didn't want her. "You may want to heal that too," Noah said softly to Nill, looking down as Daxter turned his face away from everyone.

                      Umiko stopped listening to the what happened with Daxter and Noah as she watched Ember disappear and stood apart from the group, looking around rather quickly. O-Oh god she's gone. Ember... Where did you go... Umiko turned to look behind her at the group as Nill began to heal Daxter, Noah speaking, "Stop being such a child. We are your friends and I don't care about your stupid pride. If you have a problem with being rescued by a woman who risks her life for you then you are a tool. No one will forget the idiot who was too stupid to get a little bit of help, and no one ever died from it. Is that how you want to be remembered?! As a spoiled child who would rather die than let his friends and lover keep him alive? How stupid are you, McLain?" "N-Noah..." Nill said softly as he straddled Daxter and gripped what remained of his shirts, looking down at him with a glare. Daxter looked up to Noah after being berated, scowling, "you wouldn't understand!" Noah replied back to Daxter, talking about how it was okay to accept help. He needed to stop, and that they were going to support each other through hard times. Nill to Noah. Ember to Daxter. Umiko to Kaito. It was bound that they would shoulder what the other could not carry, and be able to help them. Daxter seemed to calm down for the most part, but to Umiko's relief she found Daxter with a thin smile on his face. That was a good sign that their group was okay, and there was still time to help Ember. They could all help Ember now, because they were still a team.

                      Umiko was surprised as Daxter then proceed to punch Noah in the chin, both females flinching to the hit that confused them as they imagined things had finally gotten better. "You feel better?" "No. But I don't want Ember to think I hate her." "Then you better go after her," Noah told him as Daxter decided to leave and search for Ember. Though Daxter and Noah were no longer fighting, made up and all, Umiko realized the dangers of splitting up and suddenly spoke up, "we can't separate!" Noah looked over to Umiko and shook his head, "we stopped Daxter from dying, everything will be fine now. We won't get too far away from them but they need to talk, c'mon." Noah looked to Nill and grabbed her hand, the trio stopped by the police. You don't get it! We HAVE to be with them. If we... If we don't... Umiko said, unsure of the terrible things that would transpire from such a resolve... and to make matters worse-- "Hold on you're not going anywhere," one of the officers said as he held up his hand, Noah looking to the officer. "Unfortunately we have more important matters to discuss with our teammates, any questions can be directed to," Noah pulled out his wallet and fished around for a business card, handing it to the officer, "my lawyer. Unless we're being arrested we'll take our leave." Umiko was relieved to see that they could get away from the lawyer rather quickly, but then something appeared behind them. If it were another distraction, destiny be damned, but Umiko froze in all her missions to turn around, wide eyed, at an injured "Kaito!!!"

                      "S-So...a little help?" They all turned around, Umiko being already in the process of running towards him as blood poured from the wound down his front and back.. "Chroma-infused sword, I can't reverse the wound. Trust me. I tried. I'm sorry is anyone else extremely cold?" Kaito fell backwards, but he didn't hit the ground as the panicked Umiko grabbed him quickly, Noah and Nill approaching hastily to help him to the ground as Nill, without a word, immediately began working on healing his wounds but...there was a problem. "I...I can't help him. I don't know why b-but he's not responding to my healing." Nill looked up to Noah with concern in her eyes, unsure what to do to help him. Umiko was worried that Nill couldn't save him, and the Chroma energy that was infused in the wound made it difficult for Kaito to reverse the wound and heal himself. "K-Kaito," Umiko said softly, upset that Kaito might be dying and there was nothing that could be done. She knew that there was so much at stake with the time they were taking, but she prioritized Kaito's security of life much more than anything else at the moment. "Time," Kaito said groaning softly, "is a difficult thing to understand, even more impossible to master. There are infinite worlds out there each one more different than the last, and I have seen so many but barely touched the surface of all that exist." "Don't give us your final words, not yet." Umiko was on the brink of crying, but she couldnt' when she felt a heat wave pulse all throughout the area.

                      "Damn it, we're too late," Kaito told them as Noah took off his jacket and shirt, wrapping the shirt around Kaito's torso tightly to help control the bleeding. "Ember has already turned, given up on the world and everything in it. That means that Vance might be getting what he's been seeking from the start: Ember's God Power." New Vegas was panicking at the tornado of fire stretching into the sky, burning the sky orange as it could be seen for miles from all over the town. It was immediately seen as a sign of the coming apocalypse, end-of-days, and while most would stop and stare at the pillar, some would see it and hold their loved ones close, the ones who knew they would be going to hell would be making sure they got their last hoorah before going, and before long windows were being shattered, people were throwing things, and fights were breaking out. Anarchy reigned supreme with Ember's display of power as she'd given up on life and Vance attempted to gain control of what created him in the first place. "I have to go, I have to stop this," Kaito tried to sit up but Noah stopped him by having disappeared and returned with a stretcher, picking him up and laying him on it. Umiko was more than upset that the chaos was stirring with Ember, the thing that they had wanted to prevent for so long... but she couldn't help Ember now. They had to help Kaito. To herself, he was always the priority, and it was great that Noah and Nill were helping their friend in need who obviously could not jump into combat while being in such conditions.

                      Nill, Umiko, Noah and Kaito made it to a hospital where they all prepared for the race to save Kaito's life. Umiko, sweating cold, was determined to do everything she could to save him. She was so nervous about the whole thing that even her powers were shaking with some instability "Nill, Umiko, if we're going to save Kaito you need to do everything I say without hesitation or question, understood?" Noah stood tall as he took charge, no doubt Nill would be entranced by her hero, and Umiko was so concerned that Kaito would die that she wouldn't argue anything he said to her. "Y-Yes sir!" Nill said suddenly, hearing her Defiance speak that caused her heart to flutter madly. She was in a rush to save Kaito as well, not wanting to experience the loss of somebody that really mattered to the team. Kaito had helped her find out who she was, and in turn that made her relationship with Noah even stronger. She had to help fight for his life no matter what! "Anything," Umiko replied to him with, Noah turning to Kaito. "Umiko, there's a set of shrink wrapped surgical instruments in the drawer underneath the sink, I need that, a bowl of warm water, and a sponge. Nill, in the cellar is going to be a cold storage room with different blood types, I need at least three bags of O-negative, it's the only type in the world that can give to anyone. Go." Umiko and Nill would immediately set out to get what Noah required as Umiko finished first, handing him the instruments on a rolling cart. Noah opened the pack of surgical supplies and sliced off the wrapped up shirt and Kaito's shirt to reveal the wound.

                      "How are you going to save him?" Umiko asked curiously, a little worried over what was happening. Noah was assessing the damage to the internal organs and attempting to figure out how the Chroma was impeding the healing process. Thankfully, Nill didn't take too long and came back with the bags of O-negative blood that he required. "I...I don't know. The Chroma is the reason he can't heal himself, and I suspect his time powers are interfering with Nill's healing. Best I can do is close the wound and give him a blood transfusion so he doesn't bleed to death. Perhaps the Chroma will dissipate naturally but..." "No, Vance did this and...I guarantee that...he knew this would kill me. Blood will only delay my death, but this...this Chroma is lethal to my healing...the wound won't heal at all. We have...have to remove the Chroma energy." "We need Takashi, he can absorb -- " "he can't control where he absorbs it from, only how much he absorbs. It's unlikely...he'll absorb it from me with plenty of abundant sources from you three." Noah was setting up the IV for the blood transfusion while also working on closing up the wound to prevent it from bleeding any further, but the internal bleeding was too severe to make the clean up easy, this would be a lot of hard work. "He may be the only hope you have." Noah told him sternly, causing Kaito to groan in pain. "There is one other I can ask," Kaito said quickly, pulling out the disk that Jin had given him in the other dimension, pressing the center button and waiting for something...anything...to happen. But nothing did. Ultimately, even as powerful of magic that Jin had he couldn't quite cross the dimensional barriers a Time Mage had to pass to access universes. Kaito stuffed the disk back into his pocket and realized that he was going to be without the sorcerer's help. Umiko didn't know what the disk was for, but she prayed that it would have helped them. To see it not... brought her heart to drop slightly.

                      "I have no choice then, between death and a cataclysm I have to accept my death." Umiko was shocked beyond words. He.. He's... giving up? She looked at Kaito as Noah spoke, "Takashi has the ability, are you really prepared to die?" Kaito paused for a moment, then shook his head, "I...want more time with Umiko." "Then I'll bring Takashi here." Kaito nodded, "perhaps my only chance. I'm starting to lose feeling in my limbs again, vision is going fuzzy, I'm starting to lose too much blood. I think my powers are the only reason I'm at all stable but it's not enough to reverse the damage. If Takashi can't do it...I'm going to die." This clearly upset Umiko, who put her hands over her mouth. Tears flows from her eyes as she didn't want to accept the possibility of a tragic fate such as this... but while looking at Kaito she wanted nothing more than to switch spots with him, Who would need a girl with magic she could barely control, while a powerful Time Lord like himself could accomplish so much more? Worlds called for his protection, and they needed him. "Nill, Umiko, you two stay here with Kaito while I retrieve Takashi. Nill, could you set up the second blood bag for the transfusion? It'll keep Kaito's strength up, I'll be right back." Noah wasted no time taking off for the hotel, hoping he was still there. Thankfully it didn't take too much time before Noah returned with Takashi, who was caught up to speed on what was happening to Kaito and given the only task he hoped he could handle: siphon energy from Kaito. "If we leave would it help?" "Except there's still a chance by trying to siphon the Chroma from me he siphons too much. He has to siphon to concentrate, by time he ends up concentrating on me it could be too late." Umiko watched the process carefully, crossing her fingers.

                      Takashi suddenly started panting heavily, his nose bleeding as he shut his eyes. "I...can't..." "Takashi that's enough!" Kaito suddenly began screaming as Takashi began stealing the Chroma energy that was intertwined within his body along with the energy in the room, the team no doubt terrified by what was happening. "What can we do?" Noah asked as calm as he could be with a cataclysm starting. "You...have...to...stop...me!" Umiko was shocked beyond words, Nill grabbing onto Umiko for comfort and shielding her eyes from watching Noah grab the scalpel. They both knew what he would have to do in order to stop such a dangerous chaos from exploding, but they cried in fear that it was going to happen. "Noah...don't," Nill said suddenly, grabbing his hand, she didn't want to see anyone die and he couldn't blame her, but this had to be stopped. "If I don't...if someone doesn't...then we all die. I don't want to, Nill, believe me I don't want this to be what I have to do, but it does. Please, let me go, and please...don't hate me." Nill looked sadly into his eyes as she wanted to spare Takashi's life. It was all their choice to bring him into this situation, consequences accepted. Could she really stand by as they allowed yet another innocent person to die on the behalf of attempting to save another? It all seemed so incredibly wrong. Before Noah could plunge the scalpel into Takashi's neck, Kaito leaped from the table and the two exploded in time energy, disappearing from the room. "What happened?!" Noah asked quickly, looking around for signs of the two. In a surprise return moments later Kaito and Takashi fell from their point of return onto the surgical bed and onto the ground, Kaito and Takashi groaning. "Well, ow, there goes a few thousand years." Kaito stood up and cracked his neck, helping Takashi up as Umiko immediately jumped to Kaito's arms, hugging him tightly. He reciprocated the hug and gave her a soft peck on the cheek.

                      Umiko was relieved to see that he was okay, and that made everything so much better as the worries in her heart started to wash away with the familiar comfort of being in his arms once again. "Er...what just happened?" Noah asked curiously, looking to Kaito. Smiling while he let go of Umiko, Kaito looked to the rest of the team as Takashi took a seat on the surgical bed. "I took Takashi to the end of the universe and disconnected that from the rest of the time stream. The end of the universe might be missing a few thousand years, dissolved from the cataclysm, but as it stands we're a few hundred trillion years from that point anyway. Needless to say, Takashi had his cataclysm." "So...what does that mean?" Takashi asked as he struggled to catch his breath. "Well, the cataclysm required a lot of energy to create, now that that's out of the way you won't be siphoning as much energy anymore. In fact, the automatic accumulation should be out of the way entirely, if I'm right...with a little practice...you should have no trouble controlling your powers. Congratulations, you caused the end of the universe. Well, the last thousands years of it anyway." "Then everything worked out?" "Yeah, everything's fine now, Takashi siphoned the Chroma from me and I was able to heal, only thing left is trying to find Ember and Daxter." Umiko felt bad for Takashi having put so much energy into all of that explosion, but it was good news for all of them now, and Kaito had yet again helped the whole situation entirely.

                      "Let's get going, the sooner we find them the better." Kaito encased time around the ground and manipulated space-time to bring them back to the fountains that Daxter and Xain would have been battling from, the rioting slowly getting under control the police arrived in full force. The situation in Vegas was still dangerous after Ember's display, but everything was returning to normal. If they could find Ember and Daxter then they could start to make sense of everything, hopefully they weren't too hard to locate.

                      Meanwhile... Ember had finally found Daxter. She pressed him against the wall in her newly designed attire, her emerald eyes had been replaced by sapphire-like gems as she gazed at him carefully and pressed her thumb on his lips, "Daxter... You said you don't want me..." she paused, looking over him carefully, "But I still want you." She looked over Daxter carefully, not wanting to particularly know his thoughts on what he felt about her. He didn't know right now that she was the reason Vance existed, why so many bad things happened to him and created the lifestyle in which they were forced to live. For now he was clueless, and she preferred it stay that way. "I don't feel like I have communicated my feelings to you properly... but now that everything has fallen apart all I want to do is make sure that you are all mine." It's true. My life is in shambles now... and there's no reason to be good anymore. There's no reason to keep hiding the darkness inside me. I want him. "There is no time for me to go back and undo the damage that's been done. If I was going to try and fix absolutely everything, I would have to kill my past self. Isn't that funny? That's what I was told... and I believe it..." It's all my fault. It's the path I chose blinded by revenge. Now that I see everything so clearly... I guess I'll take the guilty crown I've created for myself. "But that doesn't matter. In fact, I've let go of my memories. I've let it all go, because I was so sick of it. All that pain. Come now..." she leaned up towards Daxter's lip, "And you'll join me Daxter. We.. We never needed a world that betrayed us..."

                      She pressed her lips firmly against him and kissed him with a deep amount of passion, want, desire, lust. She needed to feel Daxter on her lips, and it was vital to everything about her now that he stayed there forever. She continued with the darkness pouring into him. I want this. I want all of this. I'm just.. I can't let him go. Even if I have given up on the world, on myself, on my inhibitions and everything else that my heart formerly desired, at the end of every day... at the end of every second, hour, minute, day, week, year, century, everything for all time... I just want HIM. I just NEED him. He's the only reason I got this far. I won't give totally into the darkness and become some tool. I'm still a lover. I'm his girlfriend. I'm in LOVE. I'm not going to let the light die. Not as long as I'm still me... His Ember. Ember didn't want to be let go as some tears fell from her right closed eye, but even still she kept Daxter against the wall, parting his lips with her tongue as she kissed him with vigorous amounts of passion. She pulled herself closer into him, driving him slightly up the wall as she pressed herself firmly against him, her hips locking against his as she pulled her hands down to his chest, inserting more of the darkness. "I want you to be by my side," she said breathlessly to him as she pulled away, their kiss glistening their lips as she spoke, "And I'm not going to let you go. Ever." She watched him cringe ever so slightly, her manipulation on his ability to talk and the paralysis fade as she knew she had him in the palm of her hands. "We will always be two minds... two bodies... and one soul. I love you, Dax..."

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                      When Daxter opened his eyes she noticed he grabbed at her hand, resting his head in her shoulder. Just to see him move and immediately grab at her hand was the most comforting feeling in the world. Her eyes were sharply glowing silver as she wanted to honestly cry. She felt loved after all tat had been revealed to her by Vance, and that was more than enough reason to keep moving forward now. She held her head high, the devilish feelings sinking into her skin as she heard him speak, "We never needed a world that betrayed us," he paused, Ember glad to hear that he had not only repeated what she said, but continued, "but I've always needed you." Ember closed her eyes as she recalled all the sadness and the pain that she'd felt in her lifetime. This world and all of it's twisted desires to get rid of the Gifted only made it worse for them in the end. The Gifted might have never acted out against the human race if they weren't being forced into such a thing as genocide. It was impossible to think that anything the humans had done could be justified, but when she heard Daxter's voice calmly telling her they didn't need that world anymore she felt nothing but pity for the humans finally under her rule. Vance had always been stronger than the two of them in all their fights, but now that she knew he wanted something she had, she would fuel it more with what it was created by: Misery. And by fueling it with more misery and terms of lost hope, she would reign supreme over the world that God left behind.

                      "It doesn't matter what happens now, long as I have you the rest of the world can burn." Daxter pulled away from Ember while still holding her hand, his other one grabbing her chin and leaning in for a softened kiss. Are you really going to kiss me? she blushed as she slowly closed her eyes, reaching to still hold his hand tighter and pull their chest closer together. Suddenly, though, the pair were interrupted by a slow clapping and a voice, "congratulations to the happy couple." Vance said, clearly displeased with the way things were going, giving a soft chuckle knowing that Ember had kept the God Power for herself, and that there was nothing he could do to take it. Ember snapped her eyes sharply at Vance as Daxter turned his back to Ember and formed a sword of fire. "If you attack me, is it because you want to or because she's making you? Think about every action you perform from here on out, Dax, because when this is all over I can only imagine how used you might feel." Vance smirked, Daxter giving a soft scowl, "what would you know? Being a hero isn't for me, I'm a twisted person and this is how it should be." "You keep telling yourself that, we'll see what you say when the spell is released." Ember looked sharply at Vance as she was determined to keep this darkness over Daxter.. but he... He did bring up a good point. What would Daxter do if he gained all of his willpower back? Would he feel like his pride was truly demolished at that point? She didn't want to think she had made a mistake already, and when Daxter turned back to her she refocused all her of thoughts on him and the darkness she held inside of him.

                      He put a hand on her chest as he spoke, "I will never leave your side, Ember. Not for a world we left behind." Ember widened her eyes slightly, happy to hear such a thing from him as he kissed her deeply, the two of them tasting each other while a glare shot out at Vance from the corner of Ember's eye. "If you think you will take him from me... you will die trying." Vance stood there, watching as Daxter reassured Ember that he would not leave for any reason in the world as he spoke, "Yes, abandon the world, abandon your mother. Oh, that's right, you still have one parent left." Vance went from looking at Daxter to looking at Ember, "she'll change him. You know she will. If she gets to him then you'll lose him, the love of a mother can outweigh the love of a girlfriend. Remember how he looked at you when you approached him, you could tell he was afraid of you. If Melody gets to him, if he goes back to his old ways...you'll lose him. You'll lose him and he'll go back to being afraid of you. Do you really want to be all alone, Ember? If you intend to keep your precious killer then you know that his mother, Melody, has to die. Otherwise, it's only a matter-of-time before she washes away the darkness and he'll abandon you. It's no less than you deserve." Ember's lower lip trembled as she stood her ground sharply, feeling stings of pain for the reminder that it was a possibility that Melody might be able to affect some things, but Ember was sure that she had overrode any possibility of Daxter being taken away from her. Daxter, to her surprise, suddenly pulled away and extended his fire sword at Vance, "shut up! No one will take me from Ember do you hear me?!"

                      Ember's heart drifted into ease with Daxter's words. Vance swiftly dodged the sword, "oh?" Daxter let out a large beam of fire energy from his hands, Vance dodging to the side and rushing at Daxter, leaping to strike his knee against his stomach, leaning forward to whisper to him, "prove you love Ember, kill your mother before she can take you away from her. If you'll do anything for your lover, you'll do that." Vance's momentum was transferred to Daxter who flew backwards, rolled, then caught his balance and skidded to a stop. Vance looked over to Ember who looked ready to rip him to shreds, then disappeared. The damage was done, the insecurities were set into place, now all he had to do was wait. Ember was glad he was gone, but he needed to be permanently wiped off of the face of the planet. Daxter let the flame sword vanish as he approached Ember and grabbed her hand, wrapping his arms around her and leaving a gentle kiss on her lips, "I don't need anyone but you, Ember. Let's burn this world to the ground and stand on the ashes, you and me...together." Ember felt herself swooped into his arms as he embraced the darkness so much more than she initially thought he would. It was nice to see that Daxter was willing to stay by her side... But there was so much more to it than that now. She'd given up on the world, not caring a shred for the souls around her. Maybe instead of taking over the kingdom that existed now, they could just build a new one. One that would have a higher consequences in terms of the existence of humanity, but would provide a fresh soil for those who would carry on into the next life. Maybe it was time for Ember to decide the fate of Natural Selection. He smiled devilishly as the two lovers embraced one another, the same embrace from earlier as she rested her chin on his head. Whatever happened now would be interesting, two dark twisted souls who cared nothing for the world in front of them. Perhaps they would be more of a danger to it than Vance.

                      Ember held his hand, closing her eyes as she couldn't ignore the threats made by Vance. While Daxter had been filled with enough darkness to shadow him entirely, there was still some good in Ember. It was the unrequited love she held for Daxter deep within her heart, her selfishness to have him that kept her from fading into oblivion completely. She knew that his mother might be a threat, but what were the chances they would run into his mother. She discarded such an idea from her mind, and was half certain that nothing would break this spell. Yet on the other hand Ember was slightly terrified of the idea of losing Daxter to his mother... which made her feel worse. She didn't want to think that there was a chance in hell something could change anything, but she looked at Daxter and bit softly onto his ear, "It's okay Dax... We have each other. Forget your mom... Forget the others... Just forget everybody. Cut the strings you have for everybody else. Separate yourself from the world and become one with me. We don't need relationships, friendships, or family. We have each other. How long have we been without each other now?" She asked as she pulled back to look down into his eyes, he straightened his back and looked down at her, their lips closing in one each other. "Too long..." he replied softly as Ember's lips grazed his own, the both of their lips barely touching and only hovering so she could speak, "yes... Yes. Too long. Daxter... We'll shed this world of all the people who pushed us to the edge. We'll create seas of fire, a world suited to our favor. We'll take the fears and rip them open for the world to experience. It's their turn to feel our pain."

                      Ember quietly kissed her dark prince as his hand ran through her flame colored hair, holding her close to him as she kissed him deeply and passionately. Her outfit flared to change from covering up so much too a new design. Her tights changed to reveal words on each leg. He's all mine... Selfish. And I will crush anybody that tries to change the man that I love so much. He's here with me... and that's all that I want. If Nill tries to even come near and purify that darkness, I'll rip her little wings off while Noah watches... Cruel. Daxter... I... I don't regret anything that I've done now... Liar. The world drove me towards this insanity, and now I will exceed and surpass what it has done to me. I'm going to crush this miserable excuse of a world so we can be happy together. We could reign together, and truly be on the top without anybody to look down on us. We would no longer be on the bottom, scraping by to try and survive. We'll be the supreme ones, dominate everything, and show the world how much we truly are carnivores. Crazy. If your mother becomes a threat... I'll simply tell her she has no business anymore in this world. She can go drain out with the rest of humanity for waiting for so long to get back in touch with you. She can join her lover six feet under while you and I continue to walk and create a new world. You don't need trash like that anymore... Mean. So touch me. Take everything I am and fuel my desires to keep reigning over this world with you. I want to be by your side. I want to be yours and only yours. Don't strip me of my only desire. Lust. In return for all that you give to me.. I'll be the darkest creature to have ever surfaced this planet. Nobody will escape the destiny I set for them. I wondered why it was called the God power... but I realize now I have the power of God himself. I will be the one to wash away the good from the bad. I will determine the new path of this world and bring it to a new light. My light. Nameless Monster.

                      Noah, Nill, Umiko, and Kaito quickly followed the clues from the fountain in their hunt for Ember and Daxter, the fire tornado they had been looking at dissipating which had given them the direction to travel. Noah's radar had detected two people embracing in an alleyway, and Kaito could suddenly sense a kind of darkness he wasn't sure they were ready for, but knew they had to check out. As they turned the corner to the alleyway they came across "Ember and Daxter, finally." Ember pulled back from Daxter at the sound of familiar voices. "E-Ember?" Kaito asked softly as Umiko looked at Kaito with panic. Daxter smirked as he stepped away from Ember, looking to the team. At that time, Nill rushed up to Ember and hugged her around the waist, holding her tightly and sniffling softly, "E-Ember! I was so scared! A-Are you okay? Sis?" Ember's eyes looked down to Nill with coldness in her blue eyes as she stared. "Sis?" "Well howdy," he said with the smirk on his face, fire coming from his hands and traveling up his arms: black flames. "Are you...threatening me?" Noah asked, referring to the fire that Daxter was producing. "I don't make threats, I make promises. By the way, I never did manage to thank you for kicking my a** back before you became Vance's b***h." "That was months ago, have you been harboring a grudge?" Nill looked back at Daxter and Noah while hugging onto Ember. "W-What..." she asked herself in confusion to what was going on. Hadn't the group made up? But then suddenly Nill felt claws sinking into her arm with a steel grip, causing her to automatically look at her arm and cry out in pain. "Auugh! E-Ember!!" Nill cried out until Ember muted her.

                      "Yes. Who's got a smartphone cause you'll be Googling Burn Centers in a second, cause Noah's gonna be feelin' da burn!" Daxter cackled as he let the darkness within him let out all the little feelings he stuffed down and out of sight. "If I'd known you'd felt this way about me -- " "-- you shut the ******** up before I make you blind and mute!" Ember looked down at Nill while Daxter was having his fun crawling back to Noah with revenge for the past, while she looked at Nill with a thin smile across her lips. Her lips parted slowly, the thin smile revealing razor sharp fangs that she had never shown anybody before. A faint orange-red glow showed fire in the back of Ember's throat as she spoke, "I can see why Vance loved you so much..." She grinned, her steel fingers digging deeper past the muscle as Nill's mute screams would have been absolutely horrific to hear. The blood poured off of her arm quickly as Ember twist her arm up and made the angel to continue standing on her feet. "Ah yes... I think maybe your wings would look good in red. Crimson... deep shades of your own blood perhaps. So give me some paint," she laughed darkly as she held Nill's arm up tightly into the air. Umiko watched what was happening to Ember and Nill, looking at Kaito with disbelief as he spoke, "This is wrong, this is all wrong. This isn't one of the futures I predicted, Vance was supposed to get the God Power, she wasn't supposed to keep it. Dax and Noah aren't supposed to fight, either. No...no."

                      He looked to Umiko with a grim expression on his face until he finally openly admitted, "I don't know what's going to happen next." Umiko looked back at Kaito, holding her hands close to her own heart as she could feel the situation stirring more and more. "That's easy! First I melt Noah's eyes, then I finish what I tried to do years ago." A slow twisted grin formed on Daxter's face as Noah, though concerned, couldn't help but wonder what that was. "Kill an angel." Ember grinned at Daxter. "Oh honey... Allow me to take care of her for a little while. After all," she said as she looked back down at Nill and smiled, "I'm her big sister. Say.. Nill, would you like to share a room together? Maybe I can show you how to dress like me. You can be just. like. me. Oh... but you can't. You're too innocent." Ember grabbed her other arm, piercing her steel claws into that arm as well as Nill cried massive tears, her cheeks red as she felt like she was being tortured, "I always hated that about you. You're so ******** innocent. You're like a little saint aren't you? Making the rest of the world look horrible in comparison to everything about you. Noah calls you an epitome of beauty. All I see is a blank sheet of paper that needs to have some character. Maybe a few marks... erases, rip and tears. I like it... And I think I have just enough ink to get me started," she said as she proceeded to throw Nill into the puddle of her own blood, Umiko afraid to take a step forward into fighting Ember but then hearing Kaito continue, "S-Somehow...Ember has reverted Daxter back to his old ways. Or...or maybe he's just not worried about scaring her off anymore. I-It doesn't matter, we can't turn against one another now, not with Vance still around. s**t."

                      Umiko held onto Kaito's hand as she responded quickly, "We have to stop this! They.. They're going to tear each other apart!" Ember heard Umiko's voice and turned to the two couple, stepping over the angel who held both of her bleeding arms as she cried in silence until finally her screams became heard. The silence was lifted, allowing Noah to be alert of her situation. Ember walked halfway to Kaito and Umiko before she turned to hear Noah cursing at her and Daxter. "You think she would be the first important person you've lost in your life?" Ember stared at Noah as he locked eyes with her, curious on what she was getting at. "Please... your family is alive for now... But you did lose touch with Zack. I wonder what ever happened to him..."She grinned darkly and turned her front towards him. "Oh I lied. I know exactly what happened. Do you recall in Solica when you told us about Gradia? We all traveled without you, Noah? You really should have tagged along for all the fun. You see, Zack and I were distant from the start, but when we went on that journey I believed we had gotten closer. When we finally did start staying together more often, I found out he was programmed to kill me. Isn't that funny? So he attacked me. He broke my poor little heart. So... when he did... I took his... and I ate it." She allowed the reality of the situation to settle in for Noah as she looked over her shoulder to Daxter. "Mmm... Yes. All those emails he'd sent you about going away for something. Maybe not being able to reach you.. becoming distant. How do I know all these topics? I wrote them while sitting on his freshly torn corpse!~" Ember laughed, ignoring Noah's rejection of such a thing happening as her God Power blinded her into becoming what she truly believed she was: A monster.

                      Ember turned to look at Kaito and Umiko now, a barrier separating her from Daxter and Noah as she tried to approach the two of them. However, Kaito stood before Umiko and set up a time barrier to protect the two of them from Ember. "Oh?" she cooed in amusement as she touched the barrier. Instead of being blasted by it, the wind pushed her hair into the air in the blast that should have sent her flying from tampering with the flow of time. "Ember! Snap out of it! You're becoming a victim of your own misery!" Ember laughed in amusement, tears filling up the bottom of her eyes as she held a smile on her face, "You just don't understand! You just.. don't understand." "I may not understand but look at what you're doing! You've hurt Nill! And turned Daxter into... somebody he isn't at heart! And now... you're ruining the world around you! You've given up on yourself and any good for you, but it can't be ALL gone! Because you're not complete darkness! You're right, I don't understand... I don't understand how you can just abandon everyone to ever care about you except one lone soul. That's not just sad, it's borderline pathetic. I thought you were better than this!" Ember's tear-filled smile broke into aggression as she broke the barrier and sent blue flame towards Kaito, standing still in her own position as she spoke, "I am weak. Really weak. I gave into the darkness... But for being such a weak ******** soul, I'm glad to FINALLY be able to make a Time Lord squirm. I guess there were some good things to come out of joining the darkness." "And why Daxter?!" Kaito shouted as he blocked off some of Ember's blue flames. He looked at her intently, trying to still reason with the conscious she had left. "Are you really okay with making him fall in love with this kind of you?"

                      Ember widened her eyes in a bit of surprise from those words, looking back at Daxter as she scowled and intercepted the fight, surprisingly, between Noah and him. Kaito looked, surprised she had caused both sides to stop fighting only to see her turn to Daxter and speak, "These fools are not worth our time or our pity. They can suffer in the soil with the others that will soon be laid to rest. Come," Ember said as she touched Daxter's cheek, the both of them starting to disappear in a fiery vortex, "and let's go burn the world to ashes... now..." The vortex closed, leaving Nill, Noah, Kaito and Umiko to their own devices on recovering from the fights and the ugly truths. Umiko was frightened beyond all reason on what would happen now, while Nill was healing herself from a great deal of pain. "N-NOAH!!!" she cried out heart-breakingly so as he pulled herself on the ground into his lap. "Aughh!!! I-IT HURTS!" she cried and sobbed, wishing the pain would stop. Kaito came to their aide, to try and heal her more, but the more her wounds started to close and calm, her voice did not. Nill could hear Noah as he tried to console her, the wounds almost fully healed but she sobbed with all her might, "N-Noah! Noah.... Noah... Why?! Why d-did this happen?! E-E-Ember... a-and Daxter they-t-they became... What are they? Why does m-my heart... It hurts... N-Noah!" She cried and clung to him tightly, her sore arms nowhere near in comparison to the pain of her heart having felt such a powerful betrayal.

                      Meanwhile...

                      Ember and Daxter walked to the front of the castle in the middle of Gradia, Ember looking over to Daxter before a giant blue ring of fire engulfed the entire perimeter of the castle. Ember created another brilliant tornado, and with Daxter's black flames mixed into it, they burnt down the castle's structure to ashes. Gradia was breaking out into anarchy and chaos as New Vegas had, but Ember ignored the civilians and then reconstructed the castle with her God Power. The steel of her God Power formed the steps Daxter and Ember took as their newly built home was still being formed with each step they took. Ember entered the castle as she looked at Daxter and shut the doors behind them, looking at him and pulling him close to her. There is some part of me that's so worried about losing him... But I don't want to share him. I will never share him with another person. She traced her finger down his torso as she looked him over carefully. She was sure to show all of her appealing curves and attractive view points to him as she displayed her best features, including to turn around in shutting the door, revealing that the back of her outfit completely revealed the DOGS tattoo. She made sure to lock everything as the light shined into their well furnished domain, their kingdom as she smiled sly. "Dax... I love you so much. I want you to show me how much you love me..." She grabbed onto his collar, pulling him in for a vicious kiss. "Can you tame the animal I have become?~" Ember asked with a hum in the back of her throat. She held Daxter close as she didn't want to let him go.

                      After another kiss, Ember stepped back and looked at the giant chamber they stood in, lifting her right hand as she stood with her back against Daxter. "I think we are going to need an army for this mission..." Her magic began to shift into the ground, fire surrounded the entire floor of the chamber as magic spiraled into hundred of spot in the ground. Suddenly a large rumble shook the entire castle as her magic flowed freely in and out of the room. Steel began to meld with fabricated flesh as creatures started to rise from the ground. They had the figure of man, but they were beasts in soldiers attire, the steel creating symbols and insignia on their armor to mark that they belonged to Ember and her new rule. This insignia was ironically the DOGS tattoo that she had on her back as she twistedly accepted the concept of the DOGS and was prepared to throw that same kind of cruelty right back at the world. Execpt this time it was genocide for a race. It was the elimination of the world. The DOGS soldiers were masked with steel that came out to a straight point, their masks also engraved and carved to have the sharpest teeth to rip out the throats of their victims. Ember opened the double doors, pouring her newly made army into Gradia as they would continue to spread, and turned. "We're going to need one more thing... A sorcerer perhaps." White smoke emitted from a glowing hold in the center of the chamber as Ember grinned wide, her azure and silver eyes focusing on this vortex that was reaching into an alternate universe.

                      "You think Kaito is the only one with this kind of power?! WE'LL SEE ABOUT THAT!" She cackled lightly as she rose both hands slowly and powerfully, sweat trailing down her cheek as she struggled to pull the man from the other dimension. Once she pulled him, she had pulled a a few more combatants from that same dimension, as he may have been in the middle of a task, but her steel pierced directly through the bodies of those that once surround him and circled him, making him stay put. "Jin Wolf." Ember looked at him as the darkness would seep into him naturally, then tilting her head as she rested against Daxter's shoulder. "I require your assistance...."
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