Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Lasarius Chronicles ❯ Interceptions and Realizations! Six Post Faire! ( Chapter 8 )

Nevermore22's Author Notes: ...Holy crap, this chapter is long. *sweatdrops* ..Sorry for the amazingly long wait on this one, readers, but we just couldn't stop writing. ^^; ..And, yes, 'we'! It's a Round Robin! The other three authors are Alba Aulbath (who has fanfic here on ff.net), Cecilia (my sis, who never wrote any fanfic before this), and Kassil ven Roshah (who writes loads of good stuff in various places). Try to guess who writes what part. ^_^ Enjoy!

Alba Aulbath's Author Notes: Disclaimers and Useless/Useful Stuff To Know: I don't own this. Never will. Wish I did.

Kassil ven Roshah's Author Notes: First off, thanks to the original authors for letting me join the madness - so far, it's been fun, and I'm looking forward to continuing it. Hope y'all reading this have as much fun reading it as I did helping to write it... Oh, and Neko, I blame you for it all.

Cecilia's Author Notes: I own it all! Dahahaha! You can't have it! ... Er.. Anyway. Hope you like it. Can't wait to write more! ^_^;;

Nevermore22: ..Uh-huh. Apparently, Alba had no idea what to put, and Cecilia is insane. Okay. Well, enjoy! And review! ^_^

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Nevermore22's title: Interceptions and Realizations! Six Post Faire!

Alba's title: Guilt TAKES oveRRRrrrrr...

Kassil's title: Fright! Events spiral! Multiple Primes?!

Cecilia's title: ...Do I have to title this? ^^;

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Third Person: Orion

Light gradually filtered into the deep, dreamless depths where Orion's mind passed away the hours of sleep; he fought against the urge to wake, hoping to hold onto the illusion of safety for a short time more before being dragged back to the waking world. Unfortunately, the very act of trying to remain asleep dragged his mind back to the surface, until he was finally dragged from the darkness into the light.

Carefully, he cracked his eyes open; for a moment a blinding white light assaulted his eyes, then faded down to a tolerable level as his eyes adjusted; gradually it resolved into a light overhead, oddly different from the one he was used to seeing. It looked almost too normal for him to believe - just a simple pair of the incandescent bulbs, with a shade hiding the bulbs from view, rather than the harsh white glare of the bulb his cell had.

As his mind gradually caught up to his body, he became aware of other strange things - the feel of something other than a cold floor under him, and the smell of actual medicines, rather than the foul stench of the labratories that normally assaulted him with their stink upon awakening. Also different was the sound - the muted noise of a busy place, with none of the ear-piercing screams that marked the passage of time for prisoners in the cells.

Carefully, he opened his eyes the rest of the way, silently lifting his head just enough to look around. What he saw was even stranger; the room wasn't a cell or a labratory, instead looking almost like a hospital ward. Orderlies moved around, checking each of the patients occupying the beds that filled the room in neat rows. One of them noticed the movement as he raised his head a bit farther, and hurried across the room towards him; as he silently tensed, ready to fight if she tried to sedate him, she stopped at the foot of his bed and gave him a smile that seemed strange, at first - strange, that is, until he realized that it was a genuine smile, with none of the edge of insanity he'd grown accustomed to seeing.

"Oh, you're awake! Wonderful!" Scooping up the board at the end of the bed, she continued to aim a beaming smile in his general direction as she ran down whatever the clipboard's paperwork said, and then looked back at him. "Considering where the report said you were found, you're in remarkably good condition. If you'll come with me, we'll get you some clothes and pass you on to someone to take you on a tour."

Orion blinked, slowly, at this. His voice was harsh from disuse as he coughed, cleared his throat, and spoke. "...Tour of what?" The look he aimed at the orderly explained the rest of the questions he wanted to ask, such as, 'Where am I? Who are you? And what's going on?'

"Oh! That's right... You've been unconcious since you were rescued, haven't you?" The orderly gave him an apologetic look. "A few weeks ago, you were brought in with a lot of other rescued captives. The team that found you told us you were strapped onto a table with half a dozen needles embedded in your veins, out cold from whatever was being done to you. They brought you back here to Knothole2, and you've been in the trauma ward since then. If you're feeling up to it, we can check you out and turn you over to someone willing to give you a tour of the place. We'd ordinarily keep you a day or so more, but..." she paused, and looked sheepish. "...We really need the bed freed up."

For a moment, Orion gave her a flat look, not quite sure how to react - then, with a silent inner shrug, he slowly shifted around on the bed, and lifted himself to his feet - at 6'5", he was unusually tall for a human, and the months spent in the torture equipment of the labs had burned away what body fat he had, and the lack of anything else to occupy him had left him in better shape than he'd ever been before in his life. The only things detracting from the rugged, fit image were the scars criss-crossing his body and the ridiculous hospital gown - exactly like the hospital gowns of his world, down to the funny blue-green color and the open backs. "...Lead on, then." Having the gown open didn't bother him - his modesty had been the first thing to go, as a captive.

About twenty minutes later, he looked his clothing over with a halfway amused expression. A dark blue T-shirt, blue jeans, and a pair of sandals that they'd dug up from somewhere made him halfway presentable, and his hair, by now halfway down his back, had been neatly trimmed by the orderly before she released him into the care of a young man who introduced himself as Micheal Angeles.

"So, you're the guy they rescued from the torture chamber, huh? Bet you're glad to be out of there. Anyway, if you wanna follow me, I'll show you all the important spots, then take you to see somebody who can help you get set up with a place to live and a job of some kind." Micheal was one of those incredibly nondescript people who could fade into a crowd without any trouble, with plain brown hair and equally plain brown eyes, strictly average in height and build, and with easily forgettable features.

"...Eh." Orion shrugged, not bothering to form a real reply as he took in the scenery. He felt oddly out of place in real clothing again, without the familiar weight of the shackles on his arms and wrists, out in the clean-smelling air of this place. He absently rubbed at the pale band of scar tissue around his wrist, feeling the difference between the scar and the rest of his skin. "...So what, exactly, is Knothole2?"

Micheal gave the taller man a glance from the side before answering. "The headquarters for a resistance movement, commanded by Neo Queen Selenity Tsukino. It's not much, as far as cities and armies go, but we're really the only hope to stop Lasarius and his soldiers from taking over the entire multiverse. While not all of us are warriors, we all help the effort in some way."

"...I see. And if someone who gets rescued doesn't want to help?"

"We let them go home. Lasarius might capture them again, of course, and most of them want to fight, since they know first-hand what the other side's capable of. We've got some weird groups working together here..." Micheal glanced sideways, and shook his head with a grin. "Of course, you probably wouldn't recognize any of them - as far as I know, there're only a couple of people in the entire army who know about more than their own universe." A slight, dark smirk crept onto Orion's face, but he remained silent. "Anyway, up ahead is the shooting range. We'll swing through there, then I'll show you the rest of the place."

Three hours later found Orion in the presence of one of the apparent leaders of the resistance force, a short young woman, almost childlike in appearance, by the name of Donna. Despite being only a little over five feet in height and seeming almost like a child, there was something to her that forced Orion to stifle a grim smile - something told him that she was far more than she seemed, and that her childlike appearance hid a rather strong spirit.

Donna's POV:

It's been a full six weeks since the 'Battle of the Fair', as it's now being called by the various people. Jen and I were titled soon after that battle as Selenity's 'Generals'. I'm not quite sure how or why the title was needed. I suppose I shouldn't complain about it, though.

Rikku, of the Final Fantasy X group, had become quite active since the Battle. If I am Selenity's General, Rikku seems to be my lieutenant.

In an update on everyone else: Lulu is, indeed, pregnant. It's somewhat early in the pregnancy, but it's allready obvious that the unborn fetus is not completely human. Despite the black and white scans, pointed canine/feline ears and a rope-like tail are visible on the child.

Kimahri locked himself in his quarters/room once he found out. He hasn't come out for anything other than food for a month, now. Lulu cries every night, or so I've been told. I believe this may be why Rikku has been so active; Anger, determination and hatred for the ones to put her friends through so much pain.

Filia had a miscarriage days after the Battle. After finding that other babies (we counted four infants) had her DNA, she had an emotional breakdown. Lost the child that she had been impregnated with.

Mighty remembered what happened during his captivity. In the worst possible of ways. Woke up screaming one morning a week and a half ago. He was very shaken up, but refused to tell anyone exactly what had happened. He actually found a therapist here in Knothole2. I feel badly for him; He is only sixteen.

With my new title, many of my responsibilities have been made stronger. New responsibilities had even emerged. I was, at this moment, discussing a few of the going-ons with my self-appointed lieutenant and another who tended to show up at the strangest places.

"The mobian echidnas we rescued at the Battle of the Fair have finally opened up. Some of them, anyway. Some terrible things happened to them, General." Rikku stated.

"They spoke of a traitor, of one who crossed into enemy lines during captivity." The mettallic grateing voice of Dinobot II informed me. Despite that the skeletal veloceraptor robot was technically labeled as a 'villian', he was quite beneficial to our cause.

"One who crossed into enemy lines? Which one?" I asked the pair.

"They say that his name was Locke, father to Knuckles." Dinobot replied.

"Yeah, Athair told me that they took Locke away once and, when he was brought back, he was walking with Lasarius's troops willingly. Tobor even told me that Locke personally tortured them."

I frowned at Rikku's words. "Locke was fiercely loyal to the Brotherhood of Guardians. Something big must have been done to turn him."

"It does not surprise me in the least. Does our enemy not have countless torture devices? Even without, Lasarius' recent alliances would have helped to turn even the strongest will. Psychic and technological mind controll, brain washing, reprogramming, even the Yeerks."

I stared at Dinobot, mildly impressed at his words. He's been paying attention. "Very good points, Dinobot. Which brings us to--"

A new voice cut me off. "General Kunz?"

I looked to the doorway. Two people, one familliar and one not, stood there. "Nurse Joy, er.." I looked at the numbered sticker on the Joy's apron. "..Four? What's wrong?"

She smiled sweetly, gesturing to the man at her side. "This is Orion, one of the ones rescued during the battle six weeks ago. He woke up a few hours ago." She paused for a moment. "He was held, at one point, with Guardian Knuckles' familly."

I nodded in understanding, looking to Rikku and Dinobot. "We'll continue this discussion later. Dismissed."

Both saluted and walked away. I'll never get used to that.

Looking back to the new man, Orion, holding out my hand for a handshake. "I'm General Donna Kunz." I smiled. "Welcome to Knothole2."

Third-person: Orion

For a moment, Orion regarded the young woman with a carefully neutral expression; at first glance, he almost suspected this to be a joke of some sort - she was younger than him, clearly, and almost tiny compared against his scar-crossed mass. A closer look, though, revealed small signs that it wasn't a joke - the confident stance Donna took, for one, and the fact that a Transformer - one of the 'evil' ones, by the looks of it - had saluted her.

Still, he paused for a moment before actually shaking hands with her. "...Thank you." He held the handshake for a moment, letting himself savor the feel of a living person's hand without any need to hide behind his telepathic barriers, and then took a step back, releasing her hand. "It seems a bit... Strange, not to be wearing shackles of some kind."

Donna frowned at him for a moment, before smiling slightly. "You'll have to get used to it. If I have any say in it, you'll never have to wear shackles again." She paused, and gave him a questioning look. "Has anyone told you about Knothole2, yet, and of anything going on?"

Orion shook his head slightly. "No - I've been awake for all of about two and a half hours. Most of that was spent finding clothing that fit and getting something to eat." He grinned slightly, and continued in a dry tone of voice, "I would guess, however, from what I've seen that it's a resistance army against Genereux's boss, with troops drawn from just about any universe that has nonhumans... Although I have to admit finding 'evil' Transformers in the group leaves me a bit puzzled..."

Donna laughed a little at that statement. "It was just as interesting for even me when they first came here. Even more curious, they follow my orders." Her expression shifted back into a smile; an idle corner of Orion's mind speculated if that was her natural expression, or if it was a front she felt she had to keep up.

"Mmm... You must be a unique person, then. Even on my best days I doubt I could get them to follow my orders..." Orion sighed. "Anyhow... I'm sure you have questions for me... There someplace where I could sit? Being unconscious in bed for a month and a half doesn't do much for stamina, unfortunately."

Donna smiled slightly wider, a humerous expression, and pointed to a nearby chair. The smile slipped for a brief moment as she thought about how to put her first question into words. Finally, she settled for the simple and direct approach. "What happened to them?"

Orion lowered himself into the chair before answering, sighing slightly - after a year of torment, the chair seemed almost impossibly comfortable. "...I'm guessing that by 'them' you mean the Brotherhood." He paused again, and sighed - wearily, this time. "The short answer is torture. Torture in the most extreme ways I've ever seen, to be honest. It varied... Sometimes, it was electroshock - needles implanted in the nerve clusters and then used to conduct electrical charges. Sometimes it was psychological - they had sensory deprivation tanks, and virtual reality tanks. Also... There was a telepath working for Genereux. She'd read out their worst fears and help the simtank technicians program a nightmare specifically tuned to the victim. It didn't work with me, thank Eris, but it was hell on them..."

"Then there was the guy Genereux had implanted." Orion tensed slightly as memories whipped across his mind's eye. "A mimetic implant, to be exact. Transfers someone else's nerve impulses to the body - leaves you completely aware of what your body's doing, though. It tends to drive the victim completely insane in a few weeks. I think his name was Locke - he was an echidna, at least. The others seemed terrified of him."

"It probably didn't help to have Foxfire around, though... He is - was, rather - from the same world as me. Knew all about the Brotherhood, since he was a Sonic fan, which threw all the echidnas off. He died after getting lost so far in his own little world that nothing translated through the right way. I hope he just got stuffed into the recycling bin again - I'd hate to have him roaming around as a ghost with him being as crazy as he was..."

Donna frowned, a strange expression on her face - a mixture of horror and determination, with a touch of realization. "Mimetic implant on Locke.. Thats why they thought he was a traitor.." She frowned further at the news of a telepath, eyes diverted to the side, yet seeming genuinely surprised. "A telepath? Odd. Lasarius classified them as Mutants, to be killed.." That idle corner of Orion's mind wondered who she was talking to - herself, him, or the Nurse who was still around? Looking back at Orion, her expression turned slightly sympathetic, "I'm sorry about the loss of your friend. Is there anything else that happened? Did they target any one specifically?"

A bitter smirk flashed across Orion's face. "Not so much a friend as someone I always end up running into each time around.... And none of them that I'm aware of, no. As for the mutants - there were a couple of psionically-active people working in the lab - and at least one other working for Lasarius..."

"There were a few other tortures - drug experiments, also. One that Genereux seemed fond of worked to amplify any pain felt - the Brotherhood were all regularly dosed with it towards the end of my time being locked up in the room with them." He pauses, as another memory prompts. "...Mmm. You might want to have the Brotherhood X-rayed, if you haven't already - I remember overhearing Genereux talking about implants made out of mithril..."

Donna stared at Orion with a deeply troubled expression. "Mithril?" She paused for a moment, the troubled expression becoming more pronounced. "Did you just say mithril?"

Slowly, Orion nodded in reply. "Yes, mithril. Which form of it, I don't know... But either way, if what Fox mentioned about the Brotherhood's powers is right, then any of them with the implants can't use their powers without electrocuting themselves..."

Donna continued to stare at Orion for a moment, the troubled expression still on her face. She looked over at Nurse Joy Four, who'd been standing there the entire time, a horrified expression on her own features. "Nurse, tell Selenity-sama to call a meeting now. If what Orion-san is saying is true, this could mean a load of crap has already gone down."

Donna's POV:

Neo Queen Selenity not only verified my worst fears, but amplified it ten fold. "Tayata Lasarius has made an alliance with Sauron."

It became so silent after this proclemation, a pindrop could have been heard.

I frowned, grumbling to myself, "Well, that would explain the Orcs.."

The relative silence was broken by Aragorn. "How is that possible? I would have thought that Lasarius would want destruction on those not of his kind."

"Unless they were to help further his goal." Selenity responded. "Keep this in mind, however; The One Ring is still safe here."

Aragorn found this reason enough to calm down, sitting back in his seat.

Selenity sighed once, frowning, and then turned to me. "General Kunz, I have been informed that one who was held captive with the Brotherhood of Guardians told you what happened to them."

I nodded, noticing Knuckles' eyes stareing at me from his seat. "Hai, Selenity-sama. From what I've been told, they've all been hurt very badly. I've also been told to conduct a few X-Rays on them, to check--"

A scream interrupted me. Loud, reverbrating throughout the room, but obviously came from outside. The voice was familliar. Very familliar.

"..Holy shit, Sharon." My younger sister was the one who screamed. I practically jumped out of my seat and ran out.

Several ran after me, just as concerned. Seems we forgot about protocol for the moment. I honastly didn't care.

My sister screamed. She never screams. Heck, I scream more than she does.

Sharon's POV:

I'm not sure who I barreled into as I ran out the door. All I know is that there was someone standing in my way, and both of us round up flying in the opposite direction.

I was slightly disoriented with my back on the floor, but quickly got up, eyes darting around fearfully. Flashes of nightmares, old and new, swarmed my mind.

Where was it?! Where?! RUN!!

"Sharon! Sis! Shit, calm down!" My sister's voice called from the doorway.

"Calm down?! Fuck that, D, there's a fucking BUG in here!!"

There was silence for a moment. Had this been anime, i'm positive that everyone's eyes would have been pinpoints. Blinking pinpoints.

I was practically hopping in place, searching for the millions of insects crawling all over the room that I was sure were here.

"..I am not a bug, thank you. I am a Mobian fireant. There is a difference."

I looked over to the voice from my dresser drawer. A six-inch-tall figure with four arms stood there, wearing a hat and jacket.

..What the hell?

The fears swam away as I was overcome by confusion. "..Wha?"

My sister sighed from the doorway, and whoever else was here grumbled and made their way out. My sister's voice, "Someone drag Auron off. I think he's unconscious."

Someone cursed, and the sound of something being dragged off. I continued to stare at the odd creature, who simply stared back. "..Huh?"

My sister walked over to my side. "Shar, you're nuts. You know that, right?" She then addressed the figure that confused me so much. "Archemedes, what did you do?"

"I teleported in. I honastly didn't think your sister would react like that. I only wanted to ask a few questions." The Archy replied.

Now I felt as if my eyes were pinpoints. I blinked twice. "..Huh? Wha?"

Donna stared at me. "..Don't go all Gourry on me, Shar. It's okay. It's only a--"

"A funny-looking people?" I interrupted her, in a high-pitched cute voice.

Both continued to stare at me. Donna was first to speak what was on both their minds: "..Riiiiight." She paused for a moment. "Archemedes, whatever you wanted to ask my sister, it may have to wait.. She's officially gone into insanity mode."

The Archy-thingie paused for a moment. "..Insanity mode? Should I even ask?"

"No. No, you shouldn't." My sister sighed.

I stood there for a moment. "..I like cheese." This is what happens when I get scared: I act insane. It's a good coverup.

Silence for a moment more.

"..All right, then." The Archy-thingie said again. A *poof* and some smoke later, and the thingie was gone.

I responded in kind: "..Uh?"

My sister patted my shoulder. "Very nice, Shar. I'm going to go back to the meeting, which was in progress till you screamed. I owe Selenity-sama an appology for that." She headed out.

I smiled slightly. Now, since that was over with, I can finish what I was doing before.

Heading to the mirror, I continued to fix my hair.

Jen's POV:

I stood atop a hillside. No, hill was too strong a word. It was just a mount of dirt, burnt trees around me with little plantlife left around. Dried blood was spilled upon the ground, dead people (no one in specific came to mind then) piled all around me. I squinted at the sky; it was tinted red, kind of like the ground was, almost like in a forever locked sunset. Would have been romantic if it wasn't so disturbing.

I brushed away some loose locks of brown hair. Well, sort of brown. It was stiff, sticky, and redder since the battle. I wiped away some of the blood on my cheek and licked it.

Hmm... salty...

It was quiet.

I held up my hand, folding it into a "pistol" shape with a sadistic smile.

"Bang," I said.

And the world exploded.

Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.

"I hope that's my alarm and not a heart-beeping thingy," I moaned, half asleep. I picked up my clock and peered at it. It was 10:14 A.M. Where are your children?

I sat up and hopped out of bed. Got dressed. Time for breakfast! WHEEE!

It was a normal morning. Normal as you can get when you're stuck in the middle of a war with too many people as your "men" since you're a general who's also 17-years-old.

You know, I try my best to get along with everyone here. I actually do a keen job. Either you think I'm a psycho, too happy, or just real friendly. I'm the type of person where you think Hey, if she was cold-heartedly serious, then it's the Apocalypse.

Then there's that one person you despise for really no good reason at all.

I bumped into Ken Ichijouji, my tray going flying and landing into Trowa Barton's hair (HAH! regroom that!!) as I mentally waved good-bye to my pancakes, french toast, bacon, eggs, milk, and orange juice. It's going to need a funeral later...

Ken's tray ended up onto our shoes, in which I also mentally waved good-bye to my nice pair of boots I just got three years ago. (I don't really have that many pairs. Actually, I think this was my only pair; curse it)

"Nice one," I said with deep sarcasm. "So the athlete's got some clumsiness, too?"

"I noticed yours had a graceful leap, but a rough landing," Ken replied smoothly. "No, wait. I'm not going to fight with you..." He picked up his tray and quietly went to get someone to clean up the mess, but I managed to nab him by the arm.

"I don't really like leaving a fight to a draw," I noted to him, recalling to one of my fanfics having used that line. I smiled a little. I don't really think I smiled all that nicely since he flinched. I don't like to be mean, but... I don't know why, but my guts didn't agree with this kid.

"I don't feel like fighting at all!"

I kicked away some of the food on my boots, glaring at him a little. "Now that doesn't exactly sound like the Digimon Kaizer to me much, does it?"

Ken winced very noticeably. I hit him pretty hard with that name.

"Now, now children! We should be getting along like civilized people!" Vash the Stampede laughed, pulling both Ken and me apart. "No way to treat each other as team members, right?"

Normally, I'd be agreeing with Vash full heartedly and acting like his pupil or something, but I just decided to pull away from him and nod. I gave Ken a farewell glare and marched away from him.

I don't think Ken really liked me that much after I called him the Digimon Kazier. Figured I had to hit him where it hurt. I didn't even mean to. I don't like making people feel that bad. Sure, I tease people a lot, but I'm usually scared of hurting people's feelings. With him, though... I just blurted out the worst things before I could think about it.

Oh well. For some reason, I didn't really care...

Donna's POV:

On the way to the 'special' child day care which was built to care for the rescued infants, I heard laughter. Innocent child laughter from two or three little girls.

Normally, this wouldn't have seemed strange. However, considering it was eleven at night, when most of the children are asleep, it seemed odd.

Turning into the mini-ally between two buildings, I came accross the sight of, and I guessed correctly, three young girls. Five or six years old, it seemed. Looking over the trio was a man in a lab coat, seemingly in his early twenties.

I recognized one of the children right away. "Lilly?"

The blonde five year old girl looked to me, an innocent smile on her face. "Oh, hi, General!"

The other two girls and the adult looked to me, as well.

"You're one of the Generals?" The man seemed surprised. He must have recently arrived to not know about me, then.

I nodded, raising an eyebrow, amused. Why are people always surprised when they find out i'm a general?

..Probably because it even surprises me. Nonetheless..

The man surprised me when he suddenly hugged me. Tight hug, too. "Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you! You kept my little girl safe!"

I sputtered for a moment, somewhat shocked at the hug. "..Ah.. You're Lilly's father, then?"

He stopped the hug, and backed away a pace, suddenly embaressed for the show of affection. "Um, you can say that, I suppose."

Lilly/Bubbles actually flew over, hovering in the air. "He's the Professor!"

I paused, and stared at the man. Now that I looked it over, he did bear a strange resemblence to the two-dimensional drawings from the 'Powerpuff Girls' cartoon. I then looked over to the other two girls, knowing at once who they must have been.

Smiling as well as any adult talking to young children would, I bent slightly to look down at them. "You two must be Lilly's sisters, right?"

One girl, with red hair that nearly reached her feet, actually saluted to me and spoke in an as much of an authorative voice as a child that young could have. "Thank you very much for taking care of my sister, General Kunz! I appologize for any trouble she may have caused!"

Lilly actually pouted. "I didn't cause any trouble.." She looked to me with overly large eyes. "..Did I?"

I couldn't help but sweatdrop slightly, "No, of course not." I streightened up again, smiling again to the three children, then turned to their father. "It was a pleasure meeting you all. Now, if you'll excuse me.." I made my way out the ally.

Lilly was the only one who said anything as I departed.

"See you later!"

I headed into the 'special' day care. It was more of a twenty-four hour care, actually, considering none of the babies had real parents to care for them. The most unusual people were working to care for them.

As soon as I entered, the three currently careing for the children looked to me. I sweatdropped, not able to help the amused expression on my face. "You don't have to stop just because I'm here." All three went back to whatever they were doing. I headed over to the nearest caretaker, Sylphiel. "How is everyone holding up?"

The white mage smiled at me, holding what appeared to be a baby Mobian echidna with golden fur and small dragon-like wings, "Everything is fine so far, General." She paused. "However, something about a few of these children surprised me earlier today."

I looked at her questionably as she unbuttoned the cute little pink baby jacket that the child was wearing, revealing the infants' cheast. I stared at the design on the baby girl's (I assumed it was a baby girl, considering it was dressed in pink) fur.

A white crescent from the neckline, almost like a strange necklace.

"No way." Was all I could think of saying.

Sylphiel frowned. "Isn't this the same mark that Guardian Knuckles and his familly has? I believe he once mentioned that it was the mark of Guardian."

I nodded. "It is. There shouldn't be any possible way for this kid to have it." I looked to her. "How many babies have this on them?"

Sylphiel buttoned the little girl back in the jacket. "Four others. Three, like this little one, are mostly echidna. One is a human with fur."

I frowned, thinking. How could these children have Knuckles' mark? Knuckles was never held captive. His grandfathers were, but most of them are too old to have children.

..Most, but not all.

"Shit."

Sylphiel gave me a strange look. "Don't swear in front of the children."

I sweatdropped slightly, but quickly appologized anyway. I then turned, and headed out the door. I'll have Selenity call a meeting in the morning.

Third Person: Orion

After being more-or-less abandoned by both the nurse and by the General in the wake of his note of Lasarius having access to mithril, Orion found himself wandering by himself in a small park, half of his mind considering the last few hours, the other half keeping an eye on his surroundings.

The resistance was apparently managing, although how well was another matter entirely. The instincts lodged in the back of his mind whispered quietly, going over just what he'd seen so far - the hospital, the debriefing, and what little of the town he'd seen outside this park. That there was a park at all told him a great deal.

He caught himself as he nearly tripped over the tombstone set off to the side of the path he'd been following; stepping back, he kept his expression neutral as he knelt and looked it over. It was slate grey, surrounded by many layers of flowers, most of them well on their way to returning to the dirt they lay upon; new blossoms lay atop those, however, nested around a small wooden sculpture.

Brushing lightly at the flowers, he gave the sculpture of Hare a puzzled look - then looked up, and read the inscription on the stone. 'Life's thread too soon done; We will remember, though you are gone.'

A memorial, he realized. To a fallen member of the resistance. That piece of knowledge settled into place with the others, and he felt them all gradually begin to fit themselves together. A slight smile - the first real smile in over a year - crept onto his face as he drew himself to his feet. "I think I need to talk to whoever runs this place..."

"Look, I don't care if she's in a meeting. I need to talk to her. Let me in." Orion glared down at the two young women blocking his way; one clad in blue, the other in red, with black hair and a crow feather tied into it, neither one looked particularly imposing - aside from the furiously determined look on their faces.

"We'll let you in after she's done. If you try going in before that, you have to go through us." The blue one matched Orion's glare, giving him the impression of a fierce raven - or, perhaps, a crow - ready to attack him if he pushed her. The other one gave him a similar look, with a slight hint of defiance, as if daring him to try.

Inwardly, he smirked.

The doors to Selenity's quarters swung open, revealing Orion as he calmly walked into the room, looking around with a bit of curiosity. He gave the impression of supressed amusement - and for good reason. The two young women who'd tried stopping him from entering were braced against the floor, straining as hard as they could to hold him back - and having absolutely no visible effect.

The two people in the room - Selenity and Donna - stopped their discussion to stare at the sight as Orion stopped in the middle of the room and offered them a sarcastic grin.

"Sorry to barge in, but your guards here wanted to argue with me." Sheepishly, the two girls stood up, a bit embarassed at their utter failure to stop him. "I need to talk to you - there're things I know that I'm willing to bet that you don't."

There was a pause as Selenity and Donna both gave him odd looks, before Selenity sent the two guards - Sailors Deimos and Phobos, apparently - back to guard the door again. Another pause followed, broken as Selenity lifted an eyebrow at Orion curiously. "Well?"

Orion sighed, and sat on the floor near the doorway. "First - I can tell you about several of the experiments they're running on captives - some of them to improve their own troops, others to try and hurt your side. A big one of the latter is a drug that amplifies pain - Genereux was testing it on the Brotherhood a few months ago. If she's managed to work the 'bugs' out of it, they're probably ready to start producing it for regular use by now."

"And speaking of Genereux... I can give you the layout of a large part of the lab complex - and I can recognize more, if I go back in."

"What?" Selenity gave him a weird look, one that spoke of total disbelief. "You're willing to go back in there, after how long you were a captive?"

"Of course." A slight smirk flashed across Orion's face. "After all - I still have a score to settle with a telepath on their side. She tried getting into my head far too often for my tastes... And before you say that I'm the first or one of the few people willing to go back into someplace like that, I'd like to point out something..." He lifted his right arm, indicating the scars. "There're several kinds of people, when it comes to being tortured - those who snap like twigs in the face of a hurricane, those who resist like a mountain until they finally wear down and shatter into pieces, and those who seem to resist it fine up to the point that they finally can't take it any longer. And then... There're those handful of people such as myself. When the flames of torture leave others brittle and burnt, they just forge us into ever-stronger steel." He dropped his arm. "And before any of you wonder what kind of world produced me, don't - I'm from a Prime. My life before being captured is just as dull as any other Prime's life."

"You're from Earth Prime?" This seemed to startle and frighten both Selenity and Donna; Orion blinked at them for a moment, before the way they'd said it hit him.

"...I'm from one of them, yes." As startled shock faded into confusion, Orion bit back another slight smirk. "Let me guess... You all only know of a single Earth Prime, don't you?" At their nods, he let it slip out. "Figures. Most Prime worlds tend to draw in things near them... Lasarius was probably aiming to get to yours, but my world got in the way of his pet Worldwalker's gift."

"See, there is a single, central Earth Prime - but it casts off echoes, shadows of itself that have the same weird effect of creating alternate realities around them - they're weaker, with fewer worlds born from them than from the Earth Prime, but they're still Primes. They even have Prime echoes of their own - and those have echoes, and so on."

"Simple enough, ne?"

Donna stared at Orion, a strangely curious expression; it was a mix of shock and understanding. "Like a sort of ripple effect?" Was her query. She may have failed basic sciences in the typical school she once attended, but she does understand the basic concepts of multiple universes.

Orion shrugged, slightly. "In a sense, yeah. More like a waterfall effect - the splashes into smaller streams at Earth Prime, and into more, even smaller streams with each echo-Prime down the line. I'd guess my world is an echo of yours, if the pet Worldwalker Lasarius has got it instead of your world." He sighed, then, and shook his head slightly. "It's the basic effect, but I have trouble getting hold of it as much as I do - of all the people I can think of, Washuu's probably the only one who could completely get it. Her, and maybe Skuld..."

Donna let out a small 'hmm', as Selenity looked over at Orion, frowning. The queen asked the question first. "What, exactly, is a Worldwalker? You've referred to such a thing several times, now."

"It's a couple different things - for one, it's a psionic gift that has a couple odd effects - one, there's a natural grasp of mathematics so advanced that even Washuu would be confused by them, and two, there's the ability to step 'outside' of the world, and more-or-less walk to another one. The grasp of math lets them navigate the emptiness - hence the second meaning - Worldwalkers are pretty rare, thankfully, and they can't carry people with them - they could, however, carry a beacon, a gate generator, or things like that with them..." Orion shrugged again. "The one Lasarius has as a minion calls himself Gabriel. Hates nonhumans - he's a religious fanatic, as well; he's convinced humans are the Chosen Race. He said he had a brother who went to the side of 'evil'..."

Donna blinked several times at the last statement. "..A brother who went to our side, then? No one by the name of Gabriel has told me that they had a brother working for Lasarius." She paused. Then, seemingly forgetting the proper way to ask questions when in the Queen's presence, "Actually, do we even have anyone named Gabriel in the resistance?"

Selenity quickly gave Donna a strange look, an eyebrow raised, before looking back to Orion. "If we were to construct a team to infiltrate the laboratory, would you be willing to join them and aid them?"

"For one... The guy on Lasarius's side is Gabriel. I don't know who his brother is." His eyes narrowed slightly. "And of course - on one condition. I want to help with the team construction - I know what kind of people you'll need for this thing." He climbed to his feet, slowly. "And more than that, I know what kind of people you need to keep off it."

Donna raised a brow at Orion's final statement. "..Who to keep off of it?" A pause. Selenity actually had a wry grin, one of slight amusement. Of course, the Queen knew that there are some to keep off of ANY team.

Sharon's POV:

I stared at my sister for a moment, letting the words sink in. When it did, I jumped into the air and began to dance.

"Woohoo! I finally get to do something! It's about damn time!"

My sister stared at me as I did the little dance. "Somehow, I thought your reaction would be different."

"So, who am I leading?"

Donna coughed a bit, looking over a sheet of paper she held in her hand. "..Uh.." She sorta began. "A whole lot of odd people, actually. Nine others, including that new Orion guy that woke up yesterday." She paused. "You haven't met him yet, but he's an okay guy. Not chaotic in the least."

"..That sucks. We need more chaotic people." I fake-sulked. "Chaotic people rule, dude."

Donna gave me an odd stare at my sufer-dude imitation. "Zelgadiss is on the team as one of the long range fighters, if that makes you feel better."

"..He's not chaotic. He's a depressed rock."

"What's your definition of 'chaotic'?"

"Xelly-sama."

"Xellos is not on the team."

I sulked. "Aww.."

"Ryoko is, though. She's pretty damn chaotic."

"But.. But he's a poisonous talking frog!"

"Ryoko, not Rikuo!"

"Oops." I paused. "..Well, she's okay, then.. Who else am I leading?"

My sister winced. "You're gonna kill me for this one.. A chosen and a Digimon.."

"I don't even know who the hell they are."

"Koushiro, the really smart teen. He's even more technical than I am." She paused. "And Renamon. Renamon is just quiet and sneaky and can do a teleport thing."

"Hey, the talking evil dog thing?"

"…No, the talking fox woman."

"She's the evil dog thing that's constantly PMSing!"

"Don't say that in front of her. She'll kick your ass."

"Meh. Who else?"

"Cloud Strife, you know him. Zangulus.."

"Ah, Zangy-sama! …Can I have his hat?"

"No. Kiyone is there, but you know nearly nothing about her. To put it basically, she's a police woman with very good aim. Kurt's the last one on the team."

"Furry blue monkey!"

"..Nuh. Furry blue elf. There's a difference."

I did a little happy dance again. "Yaay, I'm leading a team!" I paused, then grinned. "..I'm hungry. I want chicken. Do we have chicken?"

Donna continued to give me a strange stare. "Go to the cafeteria, see if there's any left."

"Yaaay! Chicken!" I ran off. Too much sugar. Hehe.

Donna's POV:

I looked over the holographic words several times over with continued uneasiness. The list of the infiltration team members.

My little sister is actually leading a team. I worried, hoped that she would be fine, would do a good job.

Nine others on the team, Orion amongst them. I did not know Orion very well, only having a short time to meet and speak with him, but he seemed like a well enough guy. He seemed like the type that would watch for my sister.

Jen, Orion, Selenity and I deliberated for six hours to find just the right ones for the team. Orion said it from the start just which spots needed to be filled.

Team leader, hacker, two melee fighters, two long range fighters, three teleport-capable fighters, and the guide.

Sharon, Koushiro Izumi, Cloud Strife, Zangulus (last name unknown. Does he have a last name?), Zelgadiss Greywords, Kiyone, Kurt Wagner, Ryoko, Renamon, and Orion.

The group was to be sent out tomorrow, in the evening.

I prayed for their safety.

jeN's POv:

I think I have a problem.

No, seriously. I think I do. I keep feeling like I'm

F

A

L

L

I

N

G

and it HURts. Not my body. My heart. It's not a disease; hell, I haven't broken a single bone in my body. No, not exactly my heart. Sometimes I get a ache in my stomach like I feel like guilt, like I did something wrong. I know I was an ass to Ken the other day, but still...

Whatever it is, I don't think it's good...

And food, for once, doesn't solve it.

My hands hurt now... not hurt, wrong term. Like I can't move them they don't want to cooperate with me to write this entry.

IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaccccccccccccccccchhhhhheeeeeeeeeee

MAke iT sTOp.

I think I'm seriously freaking out. Not seriously; isn't serious for me wrong? Isn't that NOT me? I'm supposed to be making you smile. That's my job. I don't get paid for it, but it makes me feel good. It makes everyone feel better because they aren't me.

its all my fault this happened hahahaha i am so WIIIIRRRRED it pulls and pulls and pulls

Ugh. This is making about as much sense as l33t talk. Or Lain.

Ever watch Lain? Really a show that makes you think. Utena the Movie was just something that you had to make sense if you were drunk off your ass, and the Yellow Submarine was something you had to make sense if you were stoned. Lain just made you think was all.

Now I'm thinking all over again.

What

is

wrong?

I DID IT ALL HA

HA

HA

HAhahAHAHaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

Funny, I don't remember having salsa last night... or today...

Maybe I need a nap.

................................................................ ........................................................No.

No. That won't help. I think that'll make it worse. I'm a little afraid to sleep if I'm writing this. What'll my SUBCONSCIOUS do?

It started happening today. My stomach, my heart, and my head... it hurt, like a guilt trip, like my dad was going to open my progress report and I had to promise to get above a C+ 'cuz I KNOW I could do better.

Rambling. Sorry.

I was stumbling to the cafeteria. I thought I just needed food. Food makes everything better, right? That's always been in my mind. My cafeteria buddies always agreed with that, too.

I ran into Ken again.

Our trays clashed.

Dropped.

I ignored my stained boots.

And I picked my tray quietly.

And I hit him with it.

With no reason.

And I laughed in his face.

And I. Didn't. Care.

I'm sorry now. I wasn't just guilty because I made his friends mad (I love them all, really I do, not just Daisuke). I don't like to do anything without a good reason. I merely picked a fight with him the day before and insulted him. Today I just hit him with no good reason.

When I didn't feel sorry for what I did, I was grinning, still chuckling.

"We're the same and we're different. Oh, what a fucking paradox," I had said.

I don't know what made me say that. I don't know what made me do anything. So I just ran out of the cafeteria.

I didn't get to eat, in case you were wondering. If not... well... ah, anyway...

I felt lousy. I feel lousy.

I was sorry. I am sorry.

I hit my head a little on the wall. Argh; what was what is wrong with me?!

"Jennifer-san?" Amelia asked quietly. "Are you all right?"

"Wish I knew," I said honestly. I know what's wrong. Everything about me because

I MADE OUR LIVES HELL

ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

and i dont give a fuck

"Jennifer-san?"

I rubbed my forehead. "I could use some Tylonel. Look, um... 'Melia? I'm not feeling well. I'll see you later. If anyone happens to ask where I am, point 'em toward my room. If you hear crashes i'm probably not doing so well, okay?"

sure she replied

i left

and

i went to my room

whatiswrongwithmethepainthrobs

ha ha ha ha ha.

I think I'm literally insane.

because i did it all and

i

regret

nothiiiiiiiing

Donna's POV:

I was there when Jen hit Ken Ichijouji with the food tray. I stared, shocked, at the uncalled for violence. The first and second Digimon groups were all angry, stunned, shocked. Jen had never actually hit someone before, atleast no one that really did not deserve it (Lord Raptor being an example of one who does deserve a good whack every so often), and never before one of them.

"..What was that about?"

I looked back at the small white and green rabbit-like Digimon. Terriermon. Well, one of them. Wallace's partner, by the looks of it. Jenrya's Terriermon looks different, now.

However, that's a tale for another time. I frowned at the Digimon. "Not sure." I glanced to the door way a moment after Jennifer left. "I'll be back soon. I'm going to check on her."

"'Kay." He waved weakly as I dashed out.

Jen was no where to be seen. Amelia was, however, a somewhat confused expression on her face.

"Amelia? What happened?"

The princess-sorceress looked to me, concern and confusion easilly readable in her eyes. "Something is wrong with Jennifer-san." She frowned. "She said that she wasn't feeling well, and went to her hut. She seemed so.. Different."

I nodded. "She did seem a bit odd." This was troubling. "I'll have a talk with her later."

Amelia nodded, still appearing troubled, making her way to the cafeteria.

All I did was look towards Jen's hut, not sure how to approach this.

Third-Person: Orion

After finding an out-of-the-way spot in the park, Orion slumped to the ground and sighed, rubbing at the scar tissue on his wrists. Tomorrow evening, he was heading back into the labratory that he had, as far as his memory was concerned, escaped less than a day ago - with a team of people he didn't know, most of whom he'd never even heard of before. Cloud, Ryoko, and Kiyone he knew of - enough to know that Ryoko's personality might be a little bit of a problem. Beyond that, his only useful knowledge was how well he knew that hated lab by now.

He sighed again, and tipped his head back with another sigh, closing his eyes against the blue-tinted lights on the roof. He needed a weapon if he was going back in. He wouldn't be able to get the weapons he wanted in the short time before the return to the complex, but he needed something to carry when he went in, even if it was something as plain as a heavy metal bar.

Hearing footsteps approaching, he opened his eyes and turned to look. The creature, he noted with vague interest, resembled a distant cousin of the Klackons he'd seen in the depths of the lab; distant, in that the Klackons resembled giant humanoid ants, and this creature more resembled a ladybug.

Apparently, it was also talking to itself, since as it got closer, Orion caught it mumbling to itself in mid-sentence. "...elieve that they're making me stay behind. Who'll protect Koushiro-chan if I can't?" About that point, the creature - the Digimon named Tentomon, Orion guessed from what he'd picked up during the effort to build an infiltration team - noticed the rather large human man sitting along the side of the path and stopped suddenly. "Uhh... Hi."

Orion remained silent for a moment, looking Tentomon over. "...You're the partner of Koushiro?"

"Yeah. Who're you?"

"One of the others on the team with him. Orion." Tentomon blinked at him a few times; he offered the Digimon a slight grin. "Don't worry too much. I know the entire lab's layout. His only job's gonna be to hack the codes for the blast doors - we've got others for if we get into trouble and have to fight it out with the guards."

"...Promise?"

"Indeed. If it'll make you feel better, I'll keep an eye on him."

"You will?" The Digimon paused. "But... I should be there to protect him!" As Orion gave him a look that was halfway between annoyance and bemusement, Tentomon sighed. "...I suppose I'll just have to hope he'll be all right."

"Mmm. Don't worry." Slowly, Orion got to his feet; a slight smirk flashed across his face when he saw Tentomon's expression - impossible to read, he was sure, to anyone who hadn't dealt with either Tentomon or the Klackons for a long while - register a kind of blank surprise as he rose to his full height. "...You know where I can get a weapon?"

"...Sure. Follow me."

"You have to be kidding." Orion regarded the weapon he'd been handed with the same blank surprise that Tentomon had shown when he stood up. "You're expecting me to carry this thing out for a mission where stealth is the key?" The weapon in question was one of the standard-issue Cresent Beam Rifles; as far as Orion was concerned, it was pointless. Not only did it look too small for him to use effectively, the decorative cresent moon images made it resemble a mobile target. "I don't suppose there's anything else?"

"Well... I could try and find some of the old, discarded weapons of some of the troops."

"Anything would work better than that."

"I'll look..."

"...It's better than that rifle, at least." Orion tested the balance of the hammer he held, giving it a few experimental swings. It wasn't the world's best weapon, but it'd let him put his strength to good use. He thrust it through the belt of the clothing he'd been given, and bowed. "Thanks."

"No problem..."

Donna's POV:

I decided not to approach Jen about her behavior. If something was truely wrong, I'm confident that she would let me know about it. Otherwise, it's probably as simple as a bad day and that she needed to be alone.

At least, I hoped that was the case.

The following morning came, the day my sister would be leading the infiltration team into enemy territory. We were, currently, at Yet Another Meeting, one that I prompted Selenity to call.

Even Selenity herself seemed confused as to why I called the meeting.

For once, I was at the podium instead of Selenity. "As you all know, the infant Ex-Twelves rescued during the Battle of the Fair vary in parentage, bloodlines forcefully taken from our own allies. Mainly, Mighty Armadillo and Filia Ul Copt are now unwilling parents."

Line Inverse and Knuckles Echidna seemed angrier than anyone else at Lasarius's forces.

"However, in checkups and blood samples taken from the infants, something even more troubling -- and possibly even more damaging -- to our side has been found out."

It was completely silent in the room. No one said a word. Nothing made a sound. I found myself looking to Knuckles as I made the announcement.

"A number of the children have Floating Island Guardian blood in them."

A woosh of sudden chatter between various leaders followed the last words. Most looked confused, not understanding how this could be more damaging than what was done to Mighty and Filia.

Knuckles had a horrified expression on his face as he stared, almost blankly, into thin air.

I took the microphone again. "And after speaking with the Brotherhood of Guardians and a man who was held with them, we found that there was nothing scientific about it."

That opened the floodgate for shocked chatter. Some spoke louder than others, and I was able to hear their words.

"..Does she mean that they were forced to..?"

"..Oh, dear Primus.."

"..The same could happen to our friends.."

"..Fucking bastards.."

"..But, they're men.."

"..But, they're so old.."

"..Rape.."

A chair crashed violently to the ground. Knuckles ran out of the room.

None of us stopped him.

I was, for some reason, shocked to find Knuckles in the hospital's lobby. Julie-Su was with him, hugging him close and whispering something to him that I was not able to hear at my range.

Each wore a golden ring on their left index finger. They had gotten closer in the past month than they had in all the previous time combined.

Surprisingly, Knuckles seemed to be crying. Crying with an intense anguish that I've never seen in him before. As I walked closer to the pair, I found myself shocked again. Knuckles was actually babbling. I wasn't able to understand all of it through his sobs, but most of it was about his father.

I placed a hand on his red furred shoulder, gently, waiting a moment for him to look at me before speaking.

"You might want to talk to Sylphiel Nehls Rahda, of Lina Inverse's team. She lost her father, too."

Both echidnas were silent as I walked away, into the hospital.

Jenrya's Terriermon was waddling around in the hallway as I made my way towards my intended destination. He noticed me before I noticed him, waving his little arms to get my attention.

"Hey, General! How'r ya doing?" He was smiling, cheerfull, despite being dressed up in an adorable little greenish hospital gown. He looked like a plushie in that outfit.

"Oh, hey, Terriermon." I paused after my greeting. "Got bored in your room?"

He chuckled, shrugging slightly, his floppy right ear moving with the shrug. Terriermon then stopped, feeling the nearly smooth spot where the start of his left ear used to be.

The white fur there had only begun to grow where his ear had been amputated from.

I frowned. "Terr -- "

"Nah, I'm okay." The rabbit Digimon interrupted me. "It's just a little.. Weird, ya know?" He smiled, a forced one. Actually, he looked like he was about to cry.

"We could always give you a prosthetic one so you wouldn't be hampered in battle."

"Yeah, I allready decided on that. Can't let Jenrya go unprotected, right?" He forced a laugh, still smiling a facade. He then shrugged again, "The docs all said that I'm always gonna be half deaf, though."

I frowned more. "Terriermon, I'm sorry."

"You don't have to be sorry for anything. Heck, if it wasn't for you guys, I coulda been deleted!" He smiled. A true smile, this time. "You musta been on your way somewhere, so I'll see ya later, K'?"

I nodded, walking away, still frowning. "Okay.."

Just as I turned into a corridor down the hall, I looked back, just in time to see a single tear go down Terriermon's left cheek.

I headed into the room of Knuckles' grandfather, Sabre.

The brown-furred echidna, who appeared no older than thirty five years of age despite that he was actually sixty something years old, sat at a chair by the window, reading a book. He was wearing the standard greenish hospital gown and, almost cutely, fuzzy white slippers.

Sabre didn't notice me even as I walked in. Must have been a good book. I coughed.

He looked up then, and I noticed that his left eye was an odd shade of orange.

He must have noticed my stare then, shrugging helplessly, almost embaressed. "Contact lense. My vision is a bit shot in the left eye."

I only nodded at that. "How have you been, sir?" I was as polite as ever. I'm always like that with the elderly.

Sabre smiled, closing his book. "Better than I have been in a very long time, actually." He paused. "So, to what do I owe the honor of this visit, General?" I could tell that he was only being polite, and couldn't help but return the smile for a moment.

My smile quickly turned to a frown as I recalled why I was there.

Now, how do I go about this..

Sabre must have realised, to a degree, why I was hesitant. He frowned, concern suddenly on his face. "What? What's wrong?" The concern turned to alarm. "Is something wrong with one of the others?"

I shook my head, a bit sadly. "Not with the others. With you."

He was confused and worried, easilly readable on his expression. "What is it?"

I paused again, but still could not find the right words. "Locke isn't your only child."

Confusion. Then realisation. Then horror, eyes widening to twice the previous size. He blanched, complexion turning a few shades lighter.

"Oh, my.. I.." He seemed to be at a loss for words, actually slumping in his chair a little.

Now that I had said it, I couldn't stop. "There are two little girls in the special day care that, according to DNA and blood tests, are technically your daughters."

A choked sound came from Sabre as he began to tremble. He wasn't crying. Not yet, at any rate.

"Sabre, sir, what happened? Everyone is so afraid now that you were raped somehow and that the same can happen again.."

"That's just what it was." Sabre spoke as my voice began to trail off. "It was just as painfull, just as humiliating and degrading.. And I had no choice in the matter."

I slowly sat at a chair, looking at the brown echidna. "I'm right here if you want to tell me."

It was silent for a moment. Then, he began.

"It started three, perhaps four months ago.."

JEN'S P.O.V.:

I am now currently just staring at my ceiling as I lay in my bed, eye twitching...

I don't know what's wrong with me.

oh you silly girl everything is wrong with you

That's true, I guess... I can't think clearly. Everything that's happening... it's just so wrong.

and its YOUR fault you lousy annoying little girl you shrugged it off at first like it was NOTHING you

HA HA HA HA

are not ashamed of it you are proud of what youve done but you hide from it

BE PROUD little girl

WHErrrrrRRE is that pRIde noW

hUH?!?!?!?!????????????????????????????

What the fuck is wrong with my head?! It's like it's not even mine to think anymore!

aaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrggggggghhhhhhhh