It was the next day as the sun was preparing to set, which Altare, Axel, Shinri, Hakka, Zaion, Dropscythe and Zai began to make their way to where they needed to head off to. As far as they had planned, Flayon, Melody and Henya along with the remaining members of the TEMPUS group will remain behind and keep an eye on the survivors for the time being. 

They were quickly making their way through the city streets, avoiding the drones that were patrolling so they wouldn't alert Malware of their presence. The usage of their Glamour seemed to have been coming in handy when it came to avoiding detection. Though from Zai's perspective, he knows that Divine Glamour would be doing a much better job than the half-assed job that ordinary Glamour would be doing since the idea that you can simply change your own presence combined with your own appearance makes one like a perfect spy in a sense.

They eventually made their way to the roof of a building that overlooks the base of operations they are going to infiltrate, Altare and Axel were busy scoping out the place with their pairs of binoculars. Everyone else was busy discussing how they were going to proceed since they needed to figure out where the captives are being held, alongside rescuing the VIPs, though Zai wasn't paying attention to that at all as he had something else on his mind.

He remembered the look that Lukas had the previous day when it came to the topic of his family in question. He could remember the pain, the anguish and even the uncertainty behind the pain that his eyes held. It was reminding him too much of his past self, forcing him to quickly shake his head as he was trying to recover and think more clearly.

He knows that Lukas is going by himself to investigate the strange source further in the city, but he can't help but get a gut feeling that something is going to happen. 

[Flashback]

Earlier in the day, while they were preparing to head out, Lukas was doing some stretches as he was simply making sure that he was ready for the day. Even though everyone else was busy, Zai decided to approach him.

Sonzai: "Hey Lukas, you got a sec?"

Lukas stood in place as he turned around, looking at Zai as he neatened himself.

Lukas: "Yeah Zai?"

Sonzai: "Listen, I want to ask you something in private."

Lukas could tell right away that Zai was being serious, making him sigh as he nodded. They both quickly went somewhere private as the two could have a chat, though Zai had a serious expression plastered on his face, showing a form of uncertainty. Lukas on the other hand had a bit of a serious expression, showing a hint of nervousness.

Sonzai: "Lukas, how do you truly feel about your family right now?"

Lukas was unsure on what to feel in his own honest opinion, but he simply looked away, not making eye contact as he had to think carefully on how to answer that difficult question. He was looking at the other survivors as their needs were being attended to.

Lukas: "Honestly, I don't know... Things just aren't in the most comfortable state you could say... My sister was a master manipulator. My parents did care for me at some point, but when Angelica was born, they wanted me to be responsible and be the big sibling for her... Yet I never knew she despised me until it was too late... I'm not blaming my mother and father about it, but..."

Sonzai: "I get it. You aren't mad at them right now."

Lukas: "Deep down, I knew my parents weren't exactly the best... I was just trying to earn their affection, but I was just an idiot..."

Zai then sighed as he gave his opinion on the matter.

Sonzai: "You were ignorant at the time. You can't blame yourself for something you couldn't control or understand. However, the fact that we need to save them... You wanted to save the unknown person out there instead because you don't want to confront your family again after they disowned you right?"

Lukas then looked down, knowing that was true. He turned his head to look at Zai as he tried to keep calm in the moment as this sensitive topic was something he didn't want to talk about, however he knew that Zai is just trying to help. So he could guess that he did need to vent a bit if needed.

Lukas: "Yeah... I don't hate them, nor do I like them... I can't see them as the happy family that it once was... However, I know I will have to confront them again, but I'm just not ready for that yet..."

Zai then closed his eyes, getting the idea as he realized that they both kind of had something in common.

Sonzai: "It would appear that we both had crappy parents..."

Lukas: "What...?"

Sonzai: "Never mind... I'll explain to you another time. Yet the only thing that I can promise is that your family will eventually get the karma they deserve. They can cover up their acts, but it will only cause their downfall sooner."

Lukas: "Thank you... I know that you probably would be better at going for the solo rescue on the other side of the city but... I just think that you are needed now more than ever. You would be better at the infiltration than I would. You have more experience and raw power behind everything you do... I still have a long way to go."

Zai then opened his eyes as he had a look at Lukas, noticing that he had a mood that showed that he was feeling down about it. He felt like he knew this exact feeling, something that he had gone through before. 

Sonzai: "You need to be more honest with yourself Lukas. You've improved quite fast through these months, considering that you barely knew about the Supernatural until you arrived to Vtopia. I can still remember your shy but yet timid self, unsure and uncertain about yourself. You never wanted to stand out, nor did you even want to be the Omni Magician in the first place. However as time progressed, you had shown vast improvements that could be comparable to even me back when I used to take training seriously. You are strong, while not the strongest out of all of us, you had grown. I can respect you for who you had become, but I can't protect you forever either. Perhaps one day you'll surpass even me."

Lukas was honestly surprised by Zai's words, but Zai simply began to leave, but before he did, he stopped as he put his hand on Lukas's shoulder.

Sonzai: "Just don't make the same mistakes I made okay?"

Zai then left Lukas alone, making his way to catch up with the others.

[Flashback End]

Zai knew that his words may have not been the most impactful, but he knows now more than ever that he'll need Lukas to become his best self in order to face whatever they face from here on out. He is aware that even if they take down Malware, there's still the High Society that they need to deal with. 

At first he was doubtful about Lukas's capabilities of handling himself, but as time went on, he was proven wrong. While Lukas had been getting into a lot of trouble against their enemy, he had shown rapid growth because of it. He is able to adapt to any situation as long as he is able to act. Zai had started to show a form of respect for Lukas at this point, but he has constantly been holding himself back as he doesn't know if he should reveal more about his past to him. 

He did blurt out that he killed his own family at Lukas when he was ticked off before this situation went down. So he felt responsible and he knows for a fact that Lukas is most likely wanting to talk to him about it at some point. Could he trust Lukas enough to share this secret of his own past, he doesn't know for sure. Though Lukas came all the way out to Atlas to help him, like what a true friend would do.

Though another thing came to mind the more he thought about it. The more he learnt about Lukas's past alongside what he is going through right now, trying to push it aside and help out as much as he could, he couldn't help but relate. Lukas was doing so much for him right now, it felt somewhat unnecessary, but at the same time, he felt like he owed him a lot now. This feeling was something he wasn't ever used to considering that when he became the last relative of his own family, he was trying to always move on and never think about it.

However due to this whole predicament, he knows that he is one of the strongest, thus was why he never bothered to train at all ever since 'that' day, but he is realizing now that maybe his head is getting to him. He is trying to keep his power under control, while it is calm for the moment, he knows that with the built up power that is stored within himself, he needs to release it sometime soon. While he was cocky and arrogant at times, he was prideful and nonchalant. Perhaps himself knowing that he is one of the strongest around caused him to become too relaxed. 

At the moment, perhaps it felt like it was his own fault for all of this to occur, though due to his own power, he didn't want anyone to get truly close to him. He is aware how dangerous he himself truly is, but Lukas is willing to take the risk of getting closer to him in the first place. He then realized then and there that perhaps it was time for him to open up, since Lukas had been open most of the time to him, he feels that it's only right for him to do the same in return. 

Zaion: "Hey Zai! You coming or what?"

Zai snapped out of his own stupor as he noticed the group preparing to head out, most likely it was the time to begin their operation. He simply nodded, not needing to say anything as he quickly followed along, preparing to join the action.

We then cut to Lukas who is currently walking at an average pace as he doesn't want to drop his guard, nor does he want to attract any attention towards himself. He is aware of this being a quick operation, so he had to do it as quickly and quietly as possible. He had been silent throughout most of his travel as he was in deep thought, mainly for two reasons.

The first being about his own family. While he had tried to move on, like Veladora had told him to do, it didn't seem to work at this point and it mainly came back to haunt him again. While Amelia Watson did help him out in the end, he never thought that he would have to get involved with his family ever again. Yet the more he thought about the situation, the more it made sense.

He was ignorant, that much was true at the time, but he noticed the clear signs that they were corrupt people who wanted to abuse their positions. Locking them up might be the best alternative to resort to as he doesn't want to kill honestly. Though when it came to his sister, Angelica was quite a problem for him, considering that she had always planned his downfall from the start, he couldn't bring himself to even lay a finger on her. 

But there was another issue. He remembered when he infiltrated the main building here in Atlas City alongside Zentreya that Angelica was being brought in for something, but he never thought much about it at the time. He did feel that connection between them, like as if she might actually know how to harness Magic. Though he wouldn't know why, he doubts that she is an Omni Magician as well since there can only be one per generation. Yet she clearly felt like she had a form of potential, one that could perhaps rival his? He doesn't know why she was brought in, but perhaps when the group brings his parents in, he'll most likely ask about that. He doesn't know if he's ready to face them again after everything that happened, but he knows he has to take the risk sooner or later.

The second thing that was on his mind was what Zai told him earlier in the day. It was clear that Zai was trying to cheer him up, or even motivate him to some capacity, but at the same time, Zai didn't seem like the type to give that very easily. He could tell that Zai clearly was troubled by something, much like he was in the beginning when he came back to Atlas. He knows that everyone is going through a rough time in a time like this, but Zai seems to be one of the people who's having it the roughest, besides himself.

Lukas did remember Zai mentioning that he killed his parents, but he didn't want to intrude on that matter as the last time he did, Zai clearly wasn't in the best of moods and as a result, he got punched in the face for it. Yet even though Zai seemed to have calmed down recently, he clearly has his moments that he is agitated or somewhat in a bad state. He is trying to figure out if it's Zai's Chaos Magic that is causing the entire situation for him, or if it was something else. Lukas knows that his inner darkness Kage gave him a bit of trouble, considering that Calli did try to murder him once. 

Yet he wonders if Zai is going through something similar...

Veladora: "Hey Lukas~ You are thinking too deeply again~"

Lukas snapped out of it as he quickly shook his head to clear his mind as much as he could. 

Lukas: "Y-Yeah... Sorry about that Vela."

Veladora: "Don't apologize to me, focus for a little while. I know things aren't exactly the best and you're trying to wrap your head around what's been going on recently, but think of the bigger picture here. While I will agree that your parents should be held accountable, but you shouldn't worry about them as they aren't really related to you anymore." 

Lukas: "I understand what you're saying Vela... but I just think so much about it because I can't get over it..."

Veladora: "You have been experiencing a lot of trauma through these recent times, so yeah... that does make sense~"

Lukas then stopped for a moment as he heard vehicles, making him immediately run into a nearby destroyed store as he began to hide. He could hear the sound of heavy armoured vehicles as they were driving by at a slow pace, making him peek up a bit to see. He could see that it is most likely an ATLAS Enforcer Patrol, but his eyes widened as he noticed one of the them looking entirely different from the rest.

He could feel the Magic flowing from the robot, but it seemed to have been swirling from within its chest, underneath all the armour. He realized that this must be one of the other androids that was created by the Atlas Corporation before Malware's Takeover. He could assume that to be ARC.

Veladora: "Lukas, do you feel that?"

Lukas: "Yeah... Must be this ARC... It definitely feels like Mana, but it just doesn't feel entirely natural..."

Veladora: "Well, I do remember that little Henya explaining that they were creating Artificial Mana Cores."

Lukas: "Yeah... We need to wait for them to pass, then we can get a move on again..."

He was waiting patiently for them to pass as once they disappeared and he couldn't hear them anymore, he quickly leapt out of the store through the broken window as he looked around. He noticed that they must've moved on, noting to himself that he must be moving along one of the patrol patterns that was most likely set up by Malware.

A few minutes later as he made his way to the exact location he needed to go, he felt an unbearable presence as he felt uneasy. Sweat was forming on his face as he didn't know what this feeling was at first since it felt completely unnatural, like it could be Supernatural, but not at the same time. Yet the feeling was weirdly messing with his body, like sending warning signals all over, blaring and forcing him to want to back off.

Lukas: "Vela... What's... happening...?"

His voice was getting raspy as he couldn't bear the sensation. Veladora could feel the exact presence he was feeling, but she had to act quickly. Lukas immediately felt himself feeling refreshed as he was confused, but he then noticed that his Mana Barrier was up as he noticed the glow, only for it to dissipate.

Veladora: "I had to do a forced activation to help you. That presence is something I've never felt before... It definitely feels Supernatural, but not at the same time. I can't properly explain it, but it's relatively close. We're almost there."

Lukas then nodded as he began to pick up the pace, unsure and uncertain on what exactly was causing him to at first feel that way. He could tell that this person or being must be quite powerful, or otherwise his body wouldn't have acted the way it did. He is just hoping that it isn't a Monster or something like that as he needs to confirm that it isn't someone who is not really in control of their own power or something.

It took him a full minute to find where the uneasy presence came from as he noticed a building that seemed to be somewhat intact in comparison to some of the other buildings. He knew this District personally as it held mostly office buildings. He sighed, taking a small breath in and out before making his way inside, trying to find the presence he was feeling....