Welcome to Gaia! ::

The Shadow let out a loud, authoritative sigh as Sano appeaered in ti's room. This was someone that stood in direct opposition to his peaceful kingdom, and he'd arrived at the worst time. "You don't know what you're talking about. You're just throwing a temper tantrum like a child." Despite the King's disposition, what Sano represented was exactly the opposite of what it had told them just moments ago it wanted. A world of peace, seclusion...one where stillness could be found and others would not trample upon your soul. Sano on the other hand was one to kick down walls, and ruin people's hearts with his bloody heels...and even the King could see how absurd that dystopia would be. But despite Sano's immature ramblings, he'd been armed, and the fire that appeared was not so feeble as it's master. "Power gained simply to harm others is pointless. Even these children know better than your master. At least Orochi-Hetero seeks solidarity in his vision." The fire began to burn across the room, and the Priests began to let out a shriek as they were melted one by one, Shadows twisting and burning like melted plastic, giving off ear-splitting cries and a horrendous smell. And as the fire moved towards the King he simply focused on Sano, raising a hand above his shoulder. Power gathered into his palm, a lance forming with a decrepit edge that dripped with a wet green substance. Even as the fire ravaged his paradise, gathering about his legs, the King took a step forward and thrust the weapon into the air. Suddenly a blaze of azure light and the pitch black shaft of the weapon shot towards Sano, crushing the front plate of his armor as a sickle flicked into existence and struck him, forcing the Shadow Messiah back, back, into the wall of the entire floor...and then through the stone-like structure as if it were nothing! None in the room could see what happened as Sano was blown away by the power that the King had been saving, nor could they confirm whether he was even alive (or dead as well, I suppose)...but he was gone from the floor of the Tower, without so much as another word.

The fire meanwhile had already burned at the hem of the King's clothes, and as he turned and lowered his hand to snuff it out, it seemed the Emperor Arcana Shadow would remove the Gallen threat, and return to his business in a moment...easily finishing the crowd he'd summoned. And yet, as he lowered his hand into the fire to banish it, nothing happened...in fact, the shield that appeared around his hand like glass began to shatter from the damage, latching on to the fingers beneath. 'What? This flame is...that b*****d!' The Emperor attempted to withdraw a step, but his throne was already engulfed in flames, and as he looked around it seemed the Shadow finally noticed the pain his subjects were enduring, the writhing that seemed to not only be taking place amongst the Priests, but the very Shadows that made up the walls and floor...the substance that held the bath house together at all. As the flames rose around the Emperor, obscuring the vision of the I.Teamers, a deranged and vengeful howl filled the air, one that seemed overcome with a wounded rage they could never imagine.

Moments passed, and the team remained. There was no exit from the floor to be seen, except for the tall light on the far side of the fire. Just as they began to exhaust their options however, another sound came, through the shifting flames...and as one flame died it became possible to see further inside, towards the pained groan. There, amidst the flames, stood something entirely different...not the Shadow from before, but the silver haired man who'd scorned the female I.Teamers, tearing at a black substance that had been scorched by the blaze. The sound they'd heard sounded like a growl, but now it became clear that he was crying, prying burnt flesh from the Priests as he tried to dig his companions out from the fire, his limbs already scarred and burnt from the flames that ate at him even now. "Get up! I command you to escape at once! Leave my world before you suffer further. Get out!" Even as the silver haired figure tore through another layer of shadow, something wriggled beneath it. A hand emerged, holding a mask...but even as the lesser Shadow emerged, seeing the flames that inched closer to their lord, it quickly sprung to action and covered his wounded arms. A shriek filled the air as the Shadow was destroyed in seconds, leaving the Emperor alone once more, kneeling in defeat. His eyes were human now, no longer a pale gold...but inside them he seemed lifeless, as everything he'd worked for crumbled apart.

"Thanks to him, I have nothing. The gift Orochi-Hetero gave me...this world of peace...I've allowed it to vanish once again." Oddly, as the man spoke the flesh that was burning from Sano's attack flecked away like ash, but revealed another figure beneath. His skin was nowhere near as pale...his silver hair was fading...but even as what he'd once been melted away, it seemed the flames around the boy didn't even phase him. "I'm going to wind up all alone again. I couldn't help her, and I couldn't save them...I can't protect anyone." The young man turned his head to look at Yuuya and the others, as if he finally saw them all, but his face was awash with tears as he truly allowed his defeat to settle in. He wasn't the mighty Shadow from before, or the calm Emperor that they'd imagined...for the first time since they'd been trapped inside this strange, dissipating dungeon of a floor in Babel...he seemed almost human.