Dolor: Stigma Vitae (Pain: Stigma of Life) - RP Thread

[Zup]

Bird was about to answer when the sky above the tower suddenly began to darken. It never reached an alarmingly-black level, but it was enough to catch all of their attentions. Bird's gaze shot upwards, as his computer was detecting strange power gathering into one region of the encroaching darkness in particular.

The energy manifested itself into the shape of a pair of white, bandaged hands larger than Bird's entire body. Soon afterwards the white-clad torso was revealed. The body was capped by a massive maw of Ujanmunt, the overseer of the tournament. A single, glowing, purple eye was exposed from behind a bandaged head. His laugh echoed around the arena, sending chills down the spines of all the competitors, save for Bird.

"The time has finally come for my entertainment!"

Bird, Clarissa, Red, and Raul took steps backward as they felt a powerful wind push at them. Bird was quick to grab the girl in case they were thrown from the roof entirely, but the air never reached such strength. They all looked upwards at their puppeteer, laughing at his playthings.

"Bird...Clarissa...Ryuka...Kors..."

At the mention of his and Clarissa's name, Bird prepared to call upon his suit. It was finally his time to enter the arena.

"Wait what about us?!?" Red yelled at the overseer, who reached his hand towards the boy without touching him.

"You may play the spectators, if you so desire..."

Ujanmunt flicked his finger, and Red and Raul were lifted into the air. They flailed about, trying to break free, but could not.

"Red! Raul!" Clarissa screamed. Bird reached for his saber staff, but he could do nothing as Ujanmunt lowered the two into the floor of the tower, dropping them into the room below.

Ujanmunt turned to Bird and Clarissa, chuckling. He opened his hands out, palms up, to his sides, and within seconds, Kors and Ryuka appeared in one hand or the other, visibly surprised.

"What the the the the the?!?" said Kors. Ujanmunt removed his hand from beneath the two, allowing them to drop onto the roof of the tower.

"Allow me to even the odds..." Clarissa, Kors, and Ryuka were surrounded in an aura of soft, green light. They all closed their eyes as they felt their energy return to them. All previous wounds were healed, and they were left at top strength. Ujanmunt's hand hovered above Bird, his fingers slowly moving up and down independently. Bird's scanners detected the electricity circulating through Ujanmunt's fingers, and he quickly caught on. He activated his suit, and as the gold and maroon armor was brought out, Ujanmunt released blue lightning from his fingertips, striking Bird all over his body.

"Bird!" Clarissa yelped in fear. Her worries soon ended, however, as Bird did not even flinch. His eyes glowed a light blue for an instant and he opened and closed his fists, feeling the suit at full power.

Ujanmunt laughed once again, his hands rubbing together in anticipation. "I expect a beautiful, bloody battle today, seeing as how I did not get that previously..." The overseer slowly began to disappear from the now-brightening sky. Before he left completely, his voice bellowed, "The four of you shall fight to the death. Only two will survive...BEGIN!"

Bird and Ryuka reacted instantly at the opening of the fight. The robot activated his thrusters and streamlined right at Clarissa, grabbing her to take her to safety. The ninja had sent out her inky clone, and the thing nearly cut Clarissa's head clean off.

"We need to work together!" the ninja yelled to Kors, who was, for some reason, standing still.

The white-haired boy narrowed his eyes at the woman, pushing his glasses up. "Perhaps it should be Bird and you to die. Less competition in the future."

Before Ryuka could respond, Bird fired off a smart missile straight at her throat. The ninja sprinted away from her previous position, but was still pursued by the heat-seeking missile. She scrambled into Kors, leaping over him, in the hopes that it would strike him instead.

It would have, had Kors not brought out a stone wall to block it.

"Dammit! You almost got me killed!" Kors bitterly spat at Ryuka.

The kunoichi folded her arms. "We must work together to eliminate him."

Kors shook his head. "Very well."

Bird gently set Clarissa down off to the side behind some machine rubble. Afterwards, he threw on his thrusters again and zoomed straight for the stone wall, drawing his saber staff. The plasma blade within flashed outward, cleanly cutting the structure in two. The robot slammed his palm into the top half of the wall as it fell. A quick burst of repulsor energy sent the stone shooting backwards, spiraling straight for Kors and Ryuka.

The kunoichi was quick to grab the boy from behind, throwing themselves out of the wall's path. Ryuka sent her shadow clone to attack Bird. The inky figure popped out from within the remains of Kors's stone wall, throwing rapid kicks at Bird, who used the narrow metal of his saber staff to protect himself.

"I can't let him fight by himself..." Clarissa said to herself. "I..."

Flint suddenly leaped out from Clarissa's arms and turned to face the girl. He nodded at her before jumping at Ryuka's shadow clone, slicing down on the inky figure like a heavy sword.

Bird nodded his thanks and switched his attention back to Ryuka and Kors.

Health scan in progress...Ryuka...health levels...98%

Health scan in progress...Kors...health levels...99%

"I believe I should...*click*...try a bit harder..."

And try harder he did. Bird fired off two more smart missiles - one aimed at each of his opponents. In the mean time, the arm of his suit transformed into a plasma rifle. He aimed the sight at Kors and Ryuka, ready to shoot at whomever he felt he had a better shot at.

Instead of dodging, Kors smacked his palm straight into the ground, and in a flash of blue light, a pair of hands of stone erupted from the floor beneath him, forcing Bird's missile to explode in them, protecting Kors. "Not gonna be that simple, you bucket of bolts!"

Ryuka dashed off, trying to shake the missile from her tail. Right before it struck her, she back flipped and called upon her shadow clone, who exploded in a burst of black ink as the missile detonated.

Bird aimed his plasma rifle at Ryuka, shooting bolts at her in as rapid a pace as possible. She was quick to dodge the first few and make her shadow clone take the hit of one, but Bird's expert aiming forced her to take three to her stomach in mid-flip, sending her crashing into some sort of generator behind her.

"That's perfect!" yelled Kors as he witnessed the scene.

Bird and Kors locked eyes. The robot's plasma rifle disappeared, returning his armored hand to normal.

Indeed...

[Redhollowlives999]

"Whoa! Whoa! Let me go!" Red yelled as he struggled.

"As you please."

Red and Raul were prepared to be brought back, but instead they were thrown away from the arena, as if they were just a feather blowing in the wind.

"Where are we going?"

A demonic chuckle could be heard, "You should know, you will see where you land."

Raul grew angry with the indirect statement, "You mean you just threw us?" He yelled over the air pressure.

"Maybe. Look sharp."

The two looked up. They were able to see lights in the distance. Red looked towards Raul, "Look! A city!"


"You two should look where you're falling."

Raul looked up and took quick measurements, the way he say it; they weren't gonna make it. "Red! We're not gonna make it! We need something to lift us higher!"

"Your fire bending! You can use it to boost us higher!"

Raul twirled in the air and suddenly fire bursted out of his legs and fists. "Red!" Raul moved closer in to Red, who grabbed on to Raul's shirt.

"Hold on tight!"

"I'm sorry, I didn't know I wasn't!" Red responded.

Raul took a deep breath and fire exploded once again out of his Fists and Feet; causing him to elevate upward.

"Looks like it'll be a rough landing, you ready?"

"More than I'll ever be!"

~~~~~~~~

".... H...o? Hel...o?"

Red woke up with a massive headache, he tried to sit up, but the nurses wouldn't allow him.

"Please let the healers finish."

Red watched as 3 women attended to his wounds. "Where's Raul?"

"He's talking to our village teacher."

"Ahh. Where can I find him?"

"We will take you as soon as we are done."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A woman could be seen talking to Raul. "You do require abit more training, bu-"

"Raul!" Red interrupted.

"Red. I was talking to this women, she's a teacher."

"I think we need to go bro."

"I understand; the score predicted this."

Red and Raul looked at the woman. "The score?" Responded the two.

"You don't know about the score? Where do you come from?"

"..."

Raul finally responded. "From far away; we've been closed off from the world. So certain things do allude us."

The woman looked at the two boys, but proceeded. "Very well, come with me."

The woman lead the two through the city.

"Huh, theres no poison in here."

"Yes," began the woman, "Yulia city keeps the Miasma out."

"Oh, its called Miasma."

"Here we are. The Score. The Score is a gift from... Oh bother, this story is too long. If you look carefully, you can read about which path is best. Its like a glimpse to the best future."

"I wanna see!" Red pushed Raul and looked at the crystal, in it he could see... Bird! And Clarissa! And the other 2 fighters.

"Uhh.... Red?"

"What?" Red turned to see the other fighter, teleporting in coughing; resting on 1 knee.

"That poison! Stupid lake!"

"You didn't try to go in the ocean of miasma did you? The Qliphoth is not the place you'd like to 'swim' in. Its an ocean of pure mud and poison."

"Ah ha! So this place is named the 'Qliphoth'."

"Anyway," continued the woman, "We will tend to the poison."

"I'll be fine." He spat. "Are those the other fighters?"

"Yes," responded Raul. "Shh!"

[Rammerrush]

"Camas..."

Camas heard his name being called out, he wanted to open his eyes but it seemed like too much effort. He was so comfortable.

"Camas."

The voice was a little more insistent this time. Where did he know that voice? It seemed so familiar; like a voice he'd known for a long time...

"Camas!"

Okay, now he knew he knew the voice. Few voices could get so loud and so angry at him that fast.

"CAMAS!"

"What is it Essie!?" Camas's eyes shot open and he glared at the direction of the voice. "I was having a great dream."

"Look where we are." Camas's vision started to clear up and for the first time, he noticed his new surroundings. He was in a small cold room; no doors, no windows, no light whatsoever. He stood up straight against the wall, but not by choice. His arms and legs were shackled against the wall, forcing him into a somewhat T position.

"What's going on?" Camas asked, looking for some sign of his friend. "Where are you Essie?"

"I'm over here!" Essie's voice seemed to echo throughout the room, making it impossible for him to just follow her voice.

He was about to give up the strain on his eyes when a greenish gold aura radiated out from the wall to Camas's left. "There you are. I couldn't see anything."

"Well that's cuz you have human eyes," she mocked. She always took advantage of the few moments that being a sword was a good thing. It only made him want to return her to normal even more; if only to stop the mocking. "But don't worry, I'm here." She added in a teasing tone.

"Why would I worry," he scoffed. "I can take care of myself." They did this kind of teasing alot. As much as Camas did care about her, he still hated looking vulnerable.

"But I can't..." Essie said quietly. "Thanks for finding me back there Camas, I had no idea what was going on until I saw you."

"He made you human again, that's what happened."

The room remained quiet for a few moments, while Camas and Essie got used to the idea of being trapped in a small enclosed space. However, Essie had an easier time that Camas did.

"Arrgh! Get these freaking things off me!" He shouted, struggling against his restraints. "I'm not into this kind of kinky crap, and havent you ever heard of no means no, you freak!"

"Oh god," Essie sighed. "Camas you're so embarassing."

Camas slumped as low as his shakles would allow him and gave Essie an annoyed look. "How could I possibly be embarassing you?" He asked. "We're the only ones in this tiny room."

"What about that voice guy, he could be in here too. He's just a voice." Essie said, clearly trying to get Camas to stop making such a scene.

"She has a point Camas, I could be anywhere." The deep, dark, malificent voice sounded through the room.

"Here to finally make things interesting again?" Camas prodded. "I hope it's not more lizard guys, I don't think you could fit many in here."

"Oh things are getting interesting. Just not with you." The voice laughed at what Camas could only assume was some private joke between himself and his imaginary ego. "You see, the next round of fights has already started. Would you like to be involved?"

"Yes!" Camas almost screamed, eager for a chance to win Essie's humanity.

"Too bad," the voice growled. A breeze seemed to flow through the room before Camas felt pressure against his right side. The certain spot that was getting the pressure caused him to release a sharp gasp of pain. "That's right, I know you had to pay a price to use Ifrit's power."

"Oh no, Camas you didn't." Essie said, surprised that he would summon Ifrit, even knowing the price he demanded.

"Sorry." Camas forced a smile through the pain.

The pressure retreated from his side. "Now stay nice and quiet in here or I'll make that burn look like a mosquito bite." With that said, the voice's presence evaporated from the room, leaving Camas and Essie alone.

"Is it just me, or did it seem like he wanted me to get louder and angrier?" Camas asked with a cocky smile painting his face.

"So embarassing."

[Zup]

Kors dashed off towards Ryuka and the broken generator, his eyes locking on to a piece of broken metal he found on the ground. Bird was not aware what the boy was about to do, but he truly did not give it much thought. Instead, his thrusters kicked on and he zoomed backwards, hovering right beside Clarissa.

"Clarissa...*chirp*...open a portal right here," Bird said, pointing to a spot on the ground.

The girl was confused. "W-what?"

"Trust...*click*...me."

Clarissa nodded, then touched her hand to the spot on the floor. As she removed her hand, a ring of orange light opened in the region, though nothing was within it. She looked to the robot, asking, "what about the other end?"

Without answering, Bird grabbed the girl by the waist and carried her off towards Ryuka, who had gotten to her feet, and Kors, who was now wielding a deadly lance in his hands.

"Throwing her into her death, huh?" Kors yelled at Bird, readying his weapon. "I'd be happy to impale her!"

Clarissa screamed at hearing what Kors had said, and she struggled to remove herself from Bird's grip, believing him to be plotting her death. Her fear, however, was incredibly unwarranted. Bird simply landed on the ground, putting Clarissa down and opening a force field in front of them, just in time for the energy bubble to block Ryuka's shuriken.

"Open the...*click* *click*...other end of the portal here," ordered Bird, pointing to the ground.

Clarissa nodded and touched her palm to the floor here, and a ring of blue rapidly spiraled open. She could see the red sky in the oval. "What now?"

"Buh bye!" Bird replied, his head cocked to the side, waving cheerily. He gently pushed Clarissa into the portal, and the girl popped up on the other end, confused but safe. She turned to Bird, who was still waving at her. She waved back, giggling.

"Where did she go?" Ryuka muttered to Kors, twirling her sword in her hand. Her shadow clone popped up next to her, imitating her movements.

"I'm not sure," replied Kors, spitting on the ground. He brandished the lance he had in his hands. "But that's nothing right now. He's still alone." To add to Kors's cockiness, a shadow clone of his own rose from the ground, a similar, inky lance in its grip.

"You would be dead without me," commented the kunoichi.

"I can say the same to you, you b-"

Their conversation ended when Bird killed off his force shield. His hands were spread open to his sides, palms down, fingers wide apart. However, the robot simply stood there, staring at the two, not even budging an inch. They were ready to vocalize their questioning when Bird's hands clapped together before him. The armor around his hands began to transform, melding together into an odd, three-barreled, complex rifle in front of him.

"3...2....*chirp*...1..." said Bird. As he completed his countdown, each barrel shot out a beam of different energy. One fired a blue beam of electric energy at Kors and his clone. The boy had to quickly bring out another stone wall, crouching behind it as his clone was splattered against the structure he had created.

The second barrel erupted in a jet of fire, setting Ryuka's shadow clone alight. Ryuka's eyes widened at this display, as she knew her clone would not return any longer. Bird's flamethrower had completely eliminated it, once and for all.

Her mourning was short-lived, as the third and final barrel released a stream of a thick, frosty mist that caught Ryuka's feet, trapping her against the roof of the tower.

"No! Kors!" She reached out her hand to the boy while trying to break free of the ice solidifying around her legs. She hacked away at it as ferociously as she could, but it was no use - the ice was far too strong.

Ryuka looked up into the eyes of Bird standing tall before him.

"This could have been...*chirp*...avoided, had you not touched Clarissa."

The ninja stabbed at the robot with her sword, but it was no use. Bird easily avoided the attack and grabbed her wrist in one of his hands. The sound of his repulsor whirring sent chills down the ninja's spine before it erupted in a flash of blue light, severing Ryuka's hand.

Her scream pierced through the air.

Bird quickly drew his saber staff, the plasma blade flashing out in time to block Kors's lance attack. Ryuka simply stood there, clutching her wrist, which was bleeding profusely, yelling in pain.

Kors and Bird clashed their weapons together, with the robot slowly advancing forward, forcing Kors to take steps back in defense.

"Don't think you've beaten me, yet, you heap of scrap metal!" Kors growled as he ducked beneath Bird's swing.

The robot said nothing as he continued his advance.

Clarissa watched as the scene unfolded, temporarily burying her head into her hands upon Ryuka's scream, not wanting to catch sight of that particular moment. Her eyes gradually returned to spectating, however, and she couldn't help but cheer for Bird, who seemed to be doing an excellent job.

I can't just sit around here and do nothing... the girl thought to herself. She looked to Flint, who stood beside her, also watching Bird and Kors duel. Her gaze shifted back to the portal before her and her hand.

An idea struck her.

The girl crawled to the edge of the tower. She was incredibly fearful that she would fall, but she kept her resolve. Her hand reached out over the edge, and she flattened her palm against the side of the tower, feeling the portal open there.

Bird's eye barely managed to catch Clarissa's fingertips peeking out from the ground behind Kors. He glanced over at her to see that the girl was leaning over the edge of the tower for some reason. Her plan suddenly made itself clear to him, and he shook his head in a bit of admiration.

Quite ingenious, Clarissa.

Kors was aware of the portal behind him, however, and was not about to just step into it. He suddenly shifting the duel to the position in which he was the aggressor. His fast slashes and swings momentarily surprised Bird, and the two began to step back, with Bird in the defensive.

"Prepare to die, you piece of-!"

Bird suddenly felt the shadow clone's kick on his back. He had forgotten that Kors's clone was not set on fire, and that his computer could not detect it. It was an error he should have seen coming, but he had not.

Bird stumbled forward after being struck from behind, and Kors slashed down with his lance, cutting Bird's armor across the chest. It was not a deep cut, but it was enough to elicit a scream from Clarissa, who was fearful that Bird had lost. She grabbed Flint and threw him into the portal as best as she could from the odd angle that was given to her.

Flint emerged from the portal behind Kors, leaping into the air to hack down at the white-haired boy. Unfortunately, Kors had seen it coming. He whipped around and sliced Flint across the chest, sending the little Djinn toppling backwards.

"Not gonna happen, sweetheart."

Kors turned around to finish off Bird when he saw the robot's hand extended to the side, surrounded by a thin purple light on the palm. Kors's eyes widened as a generator the size of Vulres rose into the air behind Bird.

The robot was magnetically lifting the thing, and Kors knew what was next.

The generator was hurled straight at the boy, and though he tried his best to avoid it, it hit him square in the back, throwing him into the portal below.

Bird stood up, dusting his hands off as he heard Kors's screams slowly fade in the distance. He turned to Ryuka, who was crouching over, no longer screaming.

Health scan in progress...Ryuka...health levels...13%

The robot walked up to his final foe, though their eyes never met, as she refused to look up to him.

"P-p-p-please...kill me now."

Bird was silent as he drew his saber staff, the plasma blade pulsing in the air. He raised it high above him, then brought it slicing down.

Once the battle was won, Bird flew over to Clarissa, helping her and Flint get back on their feet. Thankfully, the Djinn would survive without any truly harmful injuries; just a scar. The robot walked over to one of the remaining generators, his scanners detecting the energy inside. Bird placed his palms on the structure, and his suit drained the energy from them, recharging his battery in the process.

“That was truly an interesting battle,” Ujanmunt’s voice echoed through the air as the sky darkened once again. The overseer of the tournament appeared above Bird and Clarissa once again. “Though I find it…rather irritating that you did not truly participate in the fighting, Clarissa.”

“You set no…*chirp*…rules for that,” clarified Bird. “She did nothing…*click*…wrong.”

“I suppose not,” commented Ujanmunt, chuckling. “Very well, robot. You have earned your resting day. I shall take you to Yulia City.”

“I can…*chirp*…get us there.”

“As you wish.” Ujanmunt’s hand pointed to the distance. “Yulia City is in that direction. I don’t think you’ll have much trouble, robot.”

Bird nodded and grabbed Clarissa. His thrusters kicked on and he soared in the direction Ujanmunt pointed. The overseer looked down to Ryuka’s corpse, chuckling. “Grisly sight. Clean-up is in order.”

His hand slammed down on Ryuka’s body, causing the tower to vibrate upon the impact. The tower soon toppled completely, sinking into the ocean of deadly gas and mud below.

With a snap of his fingers, a new, clean tower slowly faded into existence in place of the old one. It was completely undamaged; it was as if none of the competitors had ever been there.

“That robot is certainly an interesting one,” Ujanmunt commented, staring into the distance at Bird and Clarissa as they flew off. “Hm…”

[Rammerrush]

Kors hit the ground. Hard. He picked his beaten and bruised body off the stone outcropping and looked around at his new, lower surroundings. His small safe harbor was surrounded by the dank, purple poison fog that seemed to cover most of the world on all sides except for behind him, where the stone ledge he had created branched from the tower.

"That was close." He muttered to himself. "If I hadn't prepared that circle on the tower before the battle started," he stabbed his spear into the ground and deposited most of his weight on it. ""I'd have either fallen to my death or I would've been poisoned by this... stuff."

Kors turned his head up towards the top of the tower. He forced himself to watch as Bird flew away with the girl he had been protecting. The girl who had almost killed him.

He heard a dark laugh followed by a loud roaring bang. "What the the the the the?" He looked around trying to scan anything that could give him the answer. He saw the figure that had forced the four of them into a fight. As Kors tried to scan him, the figure turned toward him and with a gauze covered mouth smiled, the cockiest smile Kors had ever seen. And he'd looked in the mirror before.

The figure vanished and the from the tower Kors could hear another rumbling bang. He looked up as a part of the tower fell speeding toward him. Kors moved out of the way and crouched low. He looked back to the tower and realized what was happening: the tower was collapsing, and he was expected to die with it.

Not gonna happen

Kors grabbed at the spear and broke off the handle, not bothering to remove the whole thing from the ground- he didn't need it anymore- and started drawing another circle on the side of the tower. He finished and pressed his palm to the circle; with the soft screech of stone rubbing against stone, a ceiling formed above Kors head.

"That'll keep me safe for a few seconds." Kors said, but as soon as the words escaped his lips, the destructive sounds coming from the tower increased. "Crap, better hurry." He started carving another circle into the stone at his feet. As he finished, he clapped his hands to the ground and immediately the floor began to extend backwards, away from the tower.

Kors thought he was safe but chunks from the top off the tower started to fly off toward him. He didn't have time to draw another circle but he had to do something.

Thank you Ryuka.

An inky shadow appeared infront of Kors and launche itself at the rock. Kors breathed easy, the danger passed for the moment. That is until another rock shot toward him. He was able to summon the shadow just in time, but as soon as his shadow made impact another rock appeared.

"F*ck!" Kors focused on his clone and was able to concentrate enough energy on bringing him in front of him, barely blocking the blow. Kors watched out for any more flying rocks, but seeing no more coming toward him, he put more energy on extending his makeshift bridge.

Kors closed his eyes and pressed down harder on the circle, feeling the indents leaving marks on his palms. He focused on stretching, he didn't need the bridge to last, he only needed it this one time. He tried to think about stretching the molecules of the stone underneath him, making one centimeter stretch to 2, unstable but effective.

He was interrupted by the sound of a thumb from behind him, he looked behind him and saw that he had reached land. He stepped off his bridge and immediately recognized it as the island he had made the boat on. He sighed in relief as the bridge behind him crumbled to dust, and the sounds of the tower collapsing entirely sounded through the area.

[Zup]

The robot easily located Yulia City, and finding the entrance was simple enough. The city was magnificent, and had he not been carrying Clarissa or been involved in a vital tournament, Bird would've flown around the structure, analyzing it and admiring the architecture.

But he did not.

The two landed in Yulia City, in awe from the inside of the city as well. There was a bit of a faded reddish-purple hue to the place, likely due to the deadly ocean surrounding the city on all sides. It was fairly devoid of activity, as well. Only a few humans were caught on Bird's computer, in the distance, wandering about. He sensed no hostility from the denizens, but he could never be too sure.

Clarissa yawned, stretching her arms high above her head.

"Tired?" the robot asked.

The girl nodded. "Yeah. Is there someplace I can sleep?"

Bird lead his companion towards the innards of the city, on guard the entire time. As he walked, his gold and maroon suit returned to its place beneath his plating, both as a tactic in drawing less attention and to preserve its battery for later, when he truly needed it.

The stroll was without conflict, thankfully. None approached them; none were even close to them. They were all off in the distance, likely attending to affairs they would deem more important then greeting odd strangers.

They have probably already met the others, Bird considered. And are likely aware of the situation.

"Don't walk away from me you heap of junk."

Bird's systems instantly went alert. Kors?

The robot and the girl beside him quickly turned around to see the white-haired boy on the far end of the walkway behind them, that cocky grin on his face. He was holding scrap metal in his hands, though for what purpose, Bird could not decipher.

"How?...*click*... You fell into the-"

"I fell onto a ledge for safety. You think you're so d*mn smart, don't you, robot? Tch." He pushed his glasses up on his nose, chuckling. "A human mind is infinitely superior to a cheap computer."

"Bird what's going on?" Clarissa nervously asked.

"I believe we were...*chirp*...manipulated by Ujanmunt."

"Right you are, robot," the heavy voice sounded from above. Bird, Clarissa, and Kors all looked overhead as the room darkened and Ujanmunt's upper body formed before them. "Finally witnessing a battle between you all was less than adequate. I was in need of more entertainment."

"You told us that...*chirp*...we had won the fight."

A hand shot up from the ground a few feet in front of Bird and Clarissa as Ujanmunt laughed. The land had its index finger twisted in front of the middle.

"Fingers crossed," said the overlord. The hand shot back into the ground, disappearing. "I was not satisfied with the results of the battle, you see. The future of this tournament will be far more interesting with these new results."

"What-?"

In a flash, Kors's metal was transformed into a machine gun, and his finger wrapped around the trigger in an instant. The bullets flew through the air, striking Bird's armor and Clarissa's defenseless body. The robot took a step back at the sudden attack, though he suffered no real damages.

Clarissa, on the other hand...

"The girl has not entertained me in any way," Ujanmunt explained, laughing as Clarissa's bloody, torn body fell to the floor. Bird bent down to his knee to catch her. She was still breathing, but barely. "Whereas Kors, here, has potential."

The boy spat on the ground next to him. The gun in his hands dropped to the floor. "Potential? No, I'm going to win this stupid tournament."

Bird's scanners were quick at work analyzing Clarissa. She had been shot a total of four times, one grazing her arm, two lodging in her stomach, and one in her chest. She was barely clinging onto her life.

Health scan in progress...Clarissa...health levels...12%.

9%...

7%...

"You, robot, are free to live. You're an intriguing competitor." The overlord's right hand slowly began to position itself over Clarissa, palm open and facing down.

4%...

2%...

"So much destructive capability..."

Bird could do - and did - nothing as black tendrils erupted from the ground around him and Clarissa, swishing back and forth in the air. He simply stood up and backed away as he witnessed the death of the girl he had protected. He had made it his mission to protect her.

And now he witnessed her lifeless body being dragged underground by Ujanmunt. The overlord.

The overseer who had lied to them. The overseer who had manipulated the tournament to end Clarissa's life...for kicks.

The robot's gaze shifted to Ujanmunt, who returned the look right back. Neither said a word.

Kors was the one to break the silence. "Hmph. Now that that's done, I'll be off to rest for tomorrow."

Bird suddenly shot his eyes to the boy. "I will destroy you, human."

Ujanmunt roared in laughter. "I await that sight, robot. But you'll have to postpone your vengeance for another day. The humans need rest. None shall die for the next day. Hm...This twist was certainly a wise decision..." He laughed once again.

Kors pushed his glasses up on his nose again, beginning to walk up to Bird in order to pass by him. He showed no fears at the confirmation of the invincibility. He even smirked as he passed by the robot.

Bird whipped out his saberstaff and slammed it against Kors's shins, toppling the boy into a faceplant. The robot released the plasma blade and jabbed it into Kors's face, a mere inch from contact.

"I will kill you."

The boy did not respond. Bird returned the weapon to his back, watching as Kors walked away from the scene, dusting himself off. The robot looked over his shoulder at the looming Ujanmunt above.

"You...*click*...manipulated us."

The overlord chuckled. "And there is nothing you can do about it."

With that, Ujanmunt faded from Yulia City, returning the light to the room and restoring Bird's minimap to working condition. The robot solemnly stared at the spot in which Clarissa was buried. Ujanmunt had left no signs of the earth swallowing the girl's lifeless body, but Bird knew the exact spot. They hadn't even had time to exchange words; it happened far too suddenly.

The robot looked towards Yulia City, his computer whirring to formulate new offensive tactics to utilize his suit to its fullest capabilities. No longer did he have to account for Clarissa's safety. No longer was he bound to defensive strategies. No longer was he limited to response.

He was now the killing machine he was created to be.

[Redhollowlives999]

Red stared at the giant crystal, with his jaw dropped low. "..."

Raul leaned on a wall near by, with his eyes closed in meditation. "Tch, little boy stuck again."

Red clutched his blade, his face empty. Darn it, I promised I'd protect her.

Raul headed for the exit. "Come on Red. We need to do something." He commanded. His voice sounded just as empty as Red's face.

"..."

"About time the fight ended." Roared the green giant right by the exit.

"Shut up," Red said as he passed by the exit, angering the giant. "Not in the mood for your stupidness."

"Tch, be happy I'm in a good mood, I'm gonna be the only to kill that pipsqueak."

Red didn't hear the last part, nor did he care what he said. He just hates not keeping promises. Although he didn't know her for long, she was like a little cousin or sister. He couldn't imagine Raul though, he really felt bad for her.

"Raul... You okay?"

"No."

"Mhmm." Red wasn't surprised, he started to get lost in thoughts. What now? How were they gonna make it? His thoughts were interrupted when Raul's arm got in Red's away. Red looked in confusion, but soon caught on; Kors. They had been walking into an intersection, with them heading north while Kors headed east.

"Bastard," Raul took out his blade "I'll kill y-"He began to yell, but he was interrupted when Red stopped him.

"No."

"SHUT UP!" Raul shoved Red to the side. He ran towards Kors to deliver a fatal slash -or he would have- if something didn't completely freeze him from the neck down. Raul turned to see the source, although in his mind he already knew. "Let me go!"

"Dude, calm down!"

"LET! ME! GO!"

"Look at you," Red sat down to a wall not too far from Raul. "You're so angry, you haven't even realized that you can release yourself."

Raul's eyes widened as he realized what Red meant. He gave a big sigh as he slowly melted the water around him. "Sorry, she was just so innocent..."

Red and Raul watched as Kors walked away. "Now what?"

"We give her a proper burial."

"How?"

Raul started to walk, Red ran ahead to catch up.



While walking, the two encounter another player. Bird.

Raul walked right passed him, Bird doing the same. But Red came to a complete stop. Bird did not respond to Red's halt.

"Bird," Bird kept walking, "Bird, please wait." He still continued walking. "BIRD!" Red took the water from the sewers flowing below him, creating a giant tidal wave, it happened too quickly for Bird to avoid.

As the water flowed, Red froze him, just as he did Raul. He froze it so Bird looked at him. "Bird, listen. I know you're mad, we both are. But we wanna see if we can make a proper funeral for Cl-" Before Red could finish, Bird broke free. He unleashed his Glowing double sided spear thing and pointed it towards Red's neck.

Raul, who was abit ahead, stopped. "Invincibility."

Bird put his blade away. He simply watched to see what they would do.

"Your eyes look cold. Fine, I can see you no longer care." Red turned towards Raul and began to walk. "Lets go Raul."

"Right."

"Why do you *chirp* persist in being... so 'kind' to the other contestants? *click*"

"No, just you; for now. We don't intend on hurting anybody unless we are attacked. Question is, what do YOU intend to do from here on out?"

Red stopped at Raul's question. "We won't bother you, from here, but just answer this. Are you are friend or our foe?"

"I'll recharge you right now if we are," Raul said.

"Or we will go our separate ways if otherwise."

I am neutral. *chirp* And shall *click* remain that way.

"Mhmmmm... Very well."

Red looked away and walked. "If you ever need help, you know where to find us."


The two kept walking until they got to the spot where they were sure Clarissa was killed.

Raul looked up. "Yo Ujanmunt!"

Nothing.

"Stop being an idiot, I know you hear me!"


"What the the the the the do you want."

"Her body."


The voice stood in silence for a few seconds, but finally, it gave its response. "No."

"I'm not taking no as an answer."

"Me neither."


"What do you plan on doing for her body?"

"I'll kill myself."

Red's eyes widen abit, but he knew what he had to do. "Me too."

The voice fell into silence once again.

"Well?" Raul said.

"That sounds fun; but bad for business. Fine. But in one condition."

Red sighed, he knew this wouldn't be easy. "Being?"


"You fight in the next arena battle."

Raul's heart stopped, but after a few seconds, it went back to its regular rate. "F-Fine."

Red look at Raul, he was concerned. "Don't worry, we stick together no matter what. I agree with to your terms."

A chuckle could be heard in the air. It caused a sweat bead to fall out of Red's face. "VERY WELL. I'll even clean her up for you."

A dark cloud appeared, and from it, Clarissa.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raul started to pat the ground where Clarissa was, it was so well patted, Red wasn't sure where she was any more, his eyes were busy looking at the beautiful garden. The only flowers in the giant room gave off a serene glow; like moonlight. He smiled at the beauty his eyes recorded; the miasma behind the window gave a nice feel to the room. "Red? Wanna give a small speech?"

"Sure," Red took a deep breath, "We are gathered here today to pass on 'Clarissa'... Whats her last name?"

"No cl-"

"Neel. *chirp*"

"Came to give your respects?"

"I..." Bird really didn't know why he came. But he was there. Really he didn't know why they needed a burial, but he decided it would put any ties he had with Clarissa behind, so he might as well. "I suppose. *Chirp* I apologize for *click* failing you. I will... *chirp* avenge your death."

"Same here." Red said.

"I'm gonna rip that kid's head off with his own arms." Raul added.

Bird turned to explore the city further; he had no reason to be here.

"Good luck..."

"*Chirp* I need no luck, *click* I do not intend to fail."


Red watched as Bird left. "Raul, what do we do now?"

"Well, we are fighting in the next arena battle, how about a little spar?"

Red watched as Raul clapped his hands clean. "Sure, but, can we not do it here?"

Raul walked past Red, "Then lets go to the lobby; then the bedrooms to rest. I want to show you something I picked up."

"Alright. Lets go, this place just went from peaceful to gloomy."

The two made way for the exit.

[Zup]

Bird continued his walk through Yulia City, taking in the scenery. To his disappointment, there was little more to see other than the odd inner architecture that soon grew all too similar to one another for him to keep interest.

Nevertheless the robot trudged on. He finally made it to where the denizens of the city were, and though they glanced at him in curiosity, nothing more became of the interactions. Bird just walked on and on, heading in no specific direction or destination.

His walk took him to a large room that was practically empty. What caught Bird's attention, however, was the figure already inside.

Vulres.

"Bird thing..."greeted Vulres, who was leaning against a wall when Bird entered. His body language was not hostile, and Bird's computer even confirmed it. "Hmph...Quite the exciting fight you were in."

Bird said nothing as he himself leaned against the wall a few feet from Vulres.

"You cared for the girl?"

Bird looked to the orc, hesitating. He ended up shaking his head. "I have no capacity for...*click*...emotion."

The orc grunted again, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. He folded his arms across his chest, his incredibly large muscles bulging with the motion. "It appears we have a common enemy."

"We are all enemies."

Vulres chuckled. "True, true...Kors..."

Bird glanced over at Vulres. "I will slaughter him."

"I have no doubt that you will. I myself would like to snap his scrawny little human neck...Stomp on his chest and crack his ribs...Slam his body against stone..."

"You will have to...*chirp*...wait in line."

"No," said Vulres, standing up from his leaning position, slowly walking towards the door. Bird watched as the orc chieftain strolled by, not an ounce of hostility detected. "The kill is all yours, bird thing. I will not stand in your way." Before the orc left, however, he looked over his shoulder at Bird, his eyebrows furrowing. "But do not consider that cowardice. I will gladly destroy you should we meet in combat."

Bird was once again silent as Vulres left the room. He nodded his head, and stayed leaning against the wall. He would have to wait for his chance to kill Kors.

But it would come. And he would slay the boy.

[Redhollowlives999]

Raul and Red walked right past the rooms that were given to them. He looked at the bed with tired eyes; the longer he stared, the more we craved sleep.

"Red, lets spar later; I'm tired."

Red looked towards the beds. "Mhmmm, alright."

"We can spar tomorrow or something." Raul made his way to the room, he scanned the room for the most appealing bed. "I call that one."

"Whatever." Red went for the nearest bed, not hesitating to jump on it and get comfortable. "Well, good night brah."

"Good night."

"Try not to cause a fire with you sleep bending."

"Shaddup." Raul said as he leaded his head on the two pillows under him; ready to drift to sleep.

"Mhmm..." Red muttered as he fell completely unconscious.

[Rammerrush]

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-Kors Wulone-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Kors closed the door behind him and leaned against it. He placed a hand against his head and released a silent scream he had been holding in since the fight. Slowly, he sunk down to the ground and closed his eyes shut.

"Clarissa... Clarissa Neel..." He kept repeating her name, making sure her face was seared in his mind. "I killed her..." Kors' voice started to shake. "She was weak, she had no place here." He said trying to steady himself. He wouldn't let himself breakdown. Not here, not now.

He removed his glasses and started rubbing his eyes, ignoring the fact that he was starting to tear up. "I shouldn't have shot so wildly, why did I just...." Kors paused for a second, catching his breath. "F*ck!" He slammed his fist into the door behind him.

"Wait..." Kors said, replacing his glasses. "Ujanmunt... that was his name. There might be a way everyone can win..." Kors stood up and dusted himself off. "I just need to be clever, and Clarissa, Ryuka, Camas and everyone can get back... Plus I can still get what I want."

Kors began to move toward the bed, when a bright light enveloped the room. He watched with eyes wide open, his Scan allowing him to examine the light in detail. He knew exactly where he was heading and who else was going to be there.

The light burned out, revealing the tower where he had started the fight with Bird. And sure enough, there he was, staring at him from across the tower with a murderous look in his robotic eyes.

Kors pushed his glasses up his nose, hiding most of his face, and when he moved his hand he was wearing his cockiest smile and hate filled eyes. Although, inside, he was still mourning over the girl whose life he stole. Despite his posturing, he didn't want to actually kill anyone, it was all just a mask to win this game.

"Welcome, to all of the remaining contestants!" In the middle of the tower, Ujanmunt's ghastly figure appeared. "In exactly 5 minutes, it will be midnight and you will all be shifted to the next tournament ground."

Kors started to count down in his head. He scanned his opponents and evaluated their abilities to help him achieve his goal. Red was asleep on the ground, yawning and stretched out spread eagle style. He didn't seem like a likely candidate for help, but his dagger might be useful against Ujanmunt.

Raul stood at Red's side, but instead of keeping a watchful eye over his friend, he was staring at Kors with a look rivaling that of Bird's. He knew he wouldn't get any help from him, but that didn’t mean his abilities had to go to waste. Quietly, Kors drew a touch of Raul’s abilities from him.

Vulres was sitting on the ground in some sort of meditative stance, clearly in deep concentration. His strength was immense, Kors had felt it first hand on each side of the coin, but he doubted that Vulres would have a chance against Ujanmunt with strength alone.

Then there was Bird... He was a force to be reckoned with. Kors just had to keep doing what he'd been doing. Giving him a target, making him deadlier and deadlier; in case he fails, Bird would be his failsafe....

"Midnight, have fun!" With a flash of light, the five contestants were whisked away.

+++

Once Kors' vision had recovered from the flash of light Ujanmunt had used to transport the contestants, he appeared in what seemed to be a backyard of some sort on a deep dark night.

There was a small play structure off in the far right corner, and across from it stood a marble covered bird bath. The grassy area wasn't very big and it was surrounded by a white picket fence on all sides, except for where the house sat of course.

Kors moved to the play structure and sat down, but as soon as his butt made contact with the cold plastic, a shriek sounded through the air. He stood up quickly and scanned his surroundings. Immediately, Kors located the source of the noise.

From under the bright blue plastic of the slide, a small figure crawled toward him. If Kors hadn't scanned it he would've assumed it was just a defenseless baby in this light. But thanks to his ability, he saw it for what it really was; it was an imp, complete with small fury wings, demonic horns sprouting out of its head, and snake like fangs jutting from its mouth.

Kors heard more shrieks coming from all around him, and with every shriek a new imp appeared, crawling toward him, hungry for his blood.

Slowly, Kors started to back away toward the sliding screen door of the house, but after a few steps one of the infant monsters reached toward him with a malicious smile twisting its already traumatic face. A few muttered words and an explosion of concussive force rocketed from the small hand of the imp.

Entranced by the surprising amount of power behind the attack, he couldn't help but scan it. It seemed to be an attack using the built up agression of all the imps in the area; the more imps near by, the stronger the force. The blast was about to impact with Kors, but he had measured the distance between him and his attacker, and was able to roll out of the way in time.

He looked back at where the blast hit, expecting to see a burning husk of the house, but everything seemed untouched; aparently the attack only affected the target, probably to avoid hurting their fellow imps.

Kors broke into a high speed sprint toward the closest imp, deciding he needed to have that very useful ability. He grabbed the imp's head with one hand and just kept running as fast as he could. He jumped on to the bird bath and quickly moved the imp infront of his face as he gripped its soft head in both his hands. "This might hurt, you little bastard."

Kors laughed as the imp cried out in pain from the intensity of the draw that Kors was performing. Usually his draws were completely painless, most times they even went unnoticed, but he didn't want to lose this ability any time soon.

When Kors finished absorbing the monster's ability he dropped the incapacitated imp and jumped down from the bird bath. Back on solid ground, Kors examined the remaining dozens of imps; while he was running with the imp and draining its power on the bird bath they had been rushing forward after him with fury in their eyes. However, now after he had completed the draw, they backed away in confusion.

Curious, Kors scanned them for the answer. Apparrently, his massive draw had an unforeseen side effect; he had taken so much of the imp's power that all the other imps now saw Kors as another, very large imp.

"Hmmm, might come in handy." Kors made his way past the crowded bodies of the imps and to the door. He opened it and entered the house, with one look back to the odd little creatures, he slammed the door shut.

The house was dark, not a single light would turn on. If Kors didn't have his Scan he'd be blind. He took a seat on the stairs and adjusted his glasses; as if on cue, a figure burst through the open front door. The man quickly closed the door and looked around the house, trying to see through the darkness. He couldn't see him, but Kors had no problem seeing him, it was Red.

"Hello Red," Kors straightened himself on the stairs and watched as Red tried to make out his face. "We have to talk."

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-Camas Rikehart-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Camas opened his eyes to an off white ceiling staring him in the face. He sat up from his bed and looked at his new, unfamiliar surroundings.

It was certainly an improvement to the cell he had come from. The bright blue wallpaper covering the walls had a calming effect, even in this situation, Camas couldn't get too upset. Anything would've been better than the dark stones he had been surrounded by. His bed was against one side of the room and on the other side hung a mirror with a sink in front of it.

Camas got out of bed and walked across the room to the sink. He splashed some water into his face and stared at himself in the mirror. He looked normal; his dark hair and blue eyes staring back at him through the mirror, but his normal clothes were gone. They had been replaced with a clean white shirt with pants to match. He couldn't help but be reminded of the clothes Wisdom had made all the kids they'd kidnapped wear.

"Morning, Mr. Rikehart," Camas saw the uniformed man walk through the door he had somehow missed. "Ready for some time in the common room?" The man asked, already leading Camas toward the door.

"Common room?" Camas asked. "Where am I, and where's Essie?"

The man looked back at him with a sympathetic frown. "Come on, Cameron, you know the common room."

"Cameron? My name is Camas!"

The man shook his head, frown worsening. "Oh, Mr. Rikehart, are you and the others still going on about that fight thing?" The man took a firm grip on Camas's uncooperative arm. "You know how Dr. Neel feels about that. I think it's time for her to have another talk with you."

Camas struggled against the uniformed man's hold on him, but for some reason his strength was failing him. Was this guy just incredibly strong, or had Camas become weak all of a sudden?

"You know better than to get rowdy Cameron, calm down." Cameron again; every time he heard that name Camas wanted to punch the guy in the face. Unfortunately, the man seemed to know what he was thinking. He grabbed both of Camas's wrists and held them together. "Let's go. I'm sure that when she's done with you, she'll want to have a talk with your friend 'Bird' too."

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-Red Hollow-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
“Mmmm, that was a good rest.” Red said, sitting up sleepily, eyes still closed. “Jeez, is it cold in here or what, Raul turn up the heat.” Red opened his eyes, expecting to see his best friend warming the room with a conjured flame, but instead was welcomed with a dark moonlit city.

Red shot up quickly and scanned his surroundings for any trace of Raul. All he saw were a few dumpsters in the alley he had woken up in and a menacing street to his right, toward the exit of the alley.

“Raul!” He screamed, desperate to find his friend. “That. Bastard.” Red muttered, giving up on Raul hearing his shouts. “I can’t believe he separated us again. Even after we both agreed to be in the next fights.”

Red walked out of the alley, into the desolate street. There wasn’t a soul in sight; like everyone who lived here had met with some kind of horrible fate. Maybe Ujanmunt had decided to take them to some kind of post-apocalyptic world.

“So what, am I here alone?!” Red shouted at the crescent of the moon lighting the sky. “Come on Ujanmunt, answer me!” He waited for a reply, but none came. “So I’m just supposed to die of boredom, is that it?”

“Don’t worry about being bored Red,” Said a deep foreboding voice as light as the wind. “Raul may not be with you, but you’re certainly not alone.”

“But we already agreed to be in the next round, there’s no point in separating us!” Red screamed at the disembodied voice of the Overlord.

“Oh, you’ll both still fight, but you won’t have the good fortune of being together while you wait for your opponents to get here.”

Red was about to scream some challenges at the voice, let him know he wasn’t scared of his threats, but a rustle from behind him drew his attention before he could say a think of anything. “Someone there,” He asked. When no answer came he asked a second time, “Hello, who’s there?” Still no answer.

Red decided he should play it safe; when Ujanmunt got playful like this that was always the smart move. He focused beneath him- where he assumed by the gratings along the street that there was a sewer system- and tried to raise the water to him so he could defend himself better. Nothing came though, the sewers were dry, and there was no water to aid him.

The rustling sounds increased in frequency and seemed to be coming from all around him. If every rustle was one of Ujanmunt’s monsters, then Red would need water to take them, but seeing as there wasn’t any water, he could at least do with some refuge. He noticed an open door across the street and figured it would be as good a place as any for his safe haven.

He carefully made his way across the street, checking all around him for surprise attacks. However, he was not checking below him. Something grabbed at his leg stopping his advance to the door. Red pulled out his blade and slashed down at his assailant. The sword made contact but it didn’t even leave a scratch.

The thing that grabbed him was a hand. A stony, cold, terrifying hand; it seemed to be growing out of the ground and it was getting bigger and sprouting from the ground, becoming a forearm and then a full arm.

“Really, Golems?” Red cursed and brought out his dagger of time, knowing there was no other way to escape the Golem’s firm grip. He pressed the jewel at the end of the dagger’s hilt and watched as the world around him began to speed backward. Red watched himself sheath the dagger and un-slash his blade; the hand shot back into the earth; and Red walked backwards to where he stood on the opposite side of the street from the door.

He released the gem and time started up again, he was back where he was a few seconds ago. He looked down at the street where he knew the golem had grabbed at him. He quickly dashed across the street, giving the spot an extra wide birth. Every couple steps he felt something brush against his leg, but he was moving too quickly for anything to take hold of him.

He reached the door and looked behind him. The once flat surface of the street was now infested with stretch arms, and they were still growing, being joined by shoulders and necks. Before long they would be full bodies, chasing after him, and with only the water in his blade he was going to have a the the the the of a time fighting them.

He spat into the street, and insulted the forming bodies before retreating into the building with a slam of the door. He reached his hand to the left and felt a light switch, he flipped it a few times, but to no avail. Apparently this city had no water or electricity.

He squinted his eyes and tried to make sense of the shapes around him; a desk maybe, a few chairs, a useless lamp, stairs maybe… wait something was on the stairs. Red tried to get his eyes to adjust to the darkness and make out the shape on the stairs, was it a person?

“Hello Red,” the lump on the stairs said. “We have to talk.” A snapping sound came from the figure and the next thing Red saw was a spark followed by a flame.

“Raul!” Red shouted knowing his friend’s fire bending from anywhere. “Where have you been, did the Golems start after you too?”

Raul stood up from the stairs and walked in front of Red, but still a safe distance away. The flame began to lose some intensity and Red pulled out his blade. It wasn’t Raul; it was Kors. “Sorry Red, I’m not Raul, but I may be better. Now tell me, what do you know about Ujanmunt?”

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-Bird-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Bird’s vision had been compromised, he couldn’t see anything. His HUD was gone and all around him was just darkness. He took a step forward and his leg came in contact with something, it was soft at about knee height. He moved his head down and for a second, something he did caused him to have sight again.

He tried to recall exactly what it was he had done to return his vision. Normally his internal computers would go over ever precise detail, but not this time, they had disappeared with his HUD. He moved his head upward and was greeted by a reddish tint. It caused an ache in his forehead so he quickly looked away and rubbed his head.

But something was wrong… His head didn’t feel right, his hand didn’t feel right, and the pain didn’t feel like anything he had ever experienced. He moved his fingers to his eyes; they felt too soft, nothing like the hard metal he was used to. His fingers moved and his vision returned, he kept his fingers where they were and examined his environment.

He was in a small room with blue walls and a white ceiling. There was a bed up against one wall and on the opposite wall there was a sink and what must’ve been a window, seeing as he could see a man looking at him through it.

The man seemed to be mimicking Bird; his fingers were touching his eyes as well, Bird was not in the mood for games. He walked up to the window and the man did as well, seeming resolved on copying his every move. Bird moved one hand away from his face and against the window and the man did as well.

“Stop that,” Bird gasped at hearing the voice. His voice wasn’t his. It had no trace of the robotic tone he had been programmed with. Was this Ujanmunt’s doing too? “What’s going on?” Bird and the man asked at the same time.

“Morning, Mr. Birdson,” a man said, coming from a door that couldn’t have been there before. “Looking at your reflection again?”

“My reflection?” Bird looked at the window, at the man mimicking him. There was no man, this wasn’t a mirror, this man was him. Bird was human...

“Come on Mr. Birdson, Dr. Neel needs to see you.” The man said, leading Bird toward the door.

“Clarissa?” Bird asked in his new voice, remembering Clarissa’s last name.

“Yes, Clarissa. She has some questions she wants to ask you and your friends. You know about ‘the tournament’ and all that stuff.” Bird could tell by the way the man said ‘the tournament’ that he considered it false, but if he had a chance to see Clarissa, he would take it.

“Take me to her.” He said as he walked out the door, one hand still keeping his eyes open.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-Raul Sato-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Raul sat outside the office in the waiting room, wondering when he would be brought in to see the doctor. When he had woken up in his room, he immediately realized he was alone; Red was nowhere to be found. Even worse was that he couldn’t find the door in his room at all, but luckily there was a window. He had torn off the white shirt and pants he was wearing and fashioned them into a makeshift rope.

He opened the window and threw his rope down it, and just when he was about to climb out the window to the grassy area outside, the man walked in and forced him down. Oddly Raul’s strength seemed to be diminished or he would have just overpowered the man. Unfortunately, as things were, he was now forced to sit here and wait for some doctor to talk to him.

He had been sitting there for several moments when the door he had come in from opened. He looked up, hoping to see the doctor finally here to see him, but instead he saw a familiar face. “Camas?” Raul asked, standing up in surprise.

Before Raul could ask him how he wasn’t dead, the man escorting Camas into the room forced him back into his uncomfortable chair and placed Camas into one a good distance away. “Okay,” the man said, with an authoritative tone in his voice. “Stay in your seats and keep quiet. Robert will soon be here to join you and the doctor will talk to you guys about this whole situation.”

Good, Raul thought. Maybe I’ll finally get some answers.