Unceasing explosions sounded in various locations of the city and Team Ske regrouped on top of a building where Luscev-ssu and I were staying on.

"Let's scatter; we'll cover more areas that way. Make sure to turn on your communicator and report the situation in each explosion site," Stugox instructed us.

All of us were covered in soot but our suits weren't that much damaged due to its durability. The only person who didn't even look the slightest exposed in this warfare was Luscev-ssu despite the fact that he transformed into a very misunderstood creature earlier.

"I don't have any fancy communicators like you extraterrestrials therefore I'll just give a good holler if I deem the situation of in need of assistance," Luscev-ssu drawled before another explosion occurred.

He removed his shirt revealing a finely sculpted chest and abdomen before a copper-shade feather wing sprouted out from Luscev-ssu's back followed by a raven bat-wing that stretched at the opposite direction. I noticed a purple gem secured in his navel.

"That is so awesome!" Imsothy cheered before running behind Luscev-ssu and grabbing onto his bat-wing. "Can I have one of these?"

Luscev-ssu's eyes squinted at him and Joe yanked Imsothy away. Before I could ask Luscev-ssu if he needed any companion, he fluttered his wings down and soared up to the skies where the moon can be seen. He lingered a bit and took a dive to head for the first explosion caused by the catastrophes.

I really would like to accompany him but I didn't want to be a burden. Luscev-ssu already disliked me as his reactions dictated but I was truly grateful that despite his enmity towards me, he still wasted his time for someone like me.

He was amazing-ssu!

"Hoets, there's a nuclear bomb headed towards the city," Stugox said as he pressed on the buttons of his arm and a hologram appeared in front of us which showed a massive bomb flying towards the city.

"On it," Hoets responded and busied himself with his own control panel.

"They're going to nuke the city?" Hyuk Min questioned sadly.

"They sent the military before but they immediately got taken down by the angels," Ki explained.

"So are they just going to nuke every city disregarding the people who haven't even evacuated yet?" Won questioned with a sleepy yet annoyed expression.

It was very iniquitous of them. There were people who hadn't left because they were frightened of even moving. Was this really how they treated their own race?

"Unlikely, this city is the center of the attack therefore they would want to eradicate the majority of their enemies," Stugox replied.

"Don't worry; they won't be able to nuke every city if they're dead," Imsothy assured causing all of us to look at him with disbelief with myself being more on the horrified side.

Did Barachiel really die?

Imsothy shrugged his shoulders and returned our gazes. "What? No humans no nukes—OW!" he yelped when Ki whacked his head.

"Are you really a Paragon?!" Ki screeched at him.

"Aecha, why don't you follow Luscev? We'll go on pairs. I'll have Hoets operate our ship," Stugox suggested and I smiled at him gratefully.

Now I have reason to give if ever Luscev-ssu asked why I was following him!

"Please be safe everyone!" I chirped.

"Yeah, tell that to yourself. We're not the ones who almost died five times in a row and this count excludes the ones you never reported to us," Ki huffed before turning away.

Hyuk Min placed his hands on Ki's shoulder and said: "He said yeah, you too, I'm really worried about you but I really can't admit it because I'm too shy and stubborn to show affection and compassion," he translated before getting attacked by an embarrassed Ki.

"Don't forget the oviums. Once you kill a catastrophe, pull the trigger on your ovum gun to seal their souls," Stugox reminded me. I almost forgot about that very handy equipment.

Stugox threw me a metallic bar and I pressed on the button. The bar slowly spread its hidden parts and became a pressure board for me to ride on. I waved my last goodbye to my Team and headed to the direction where Luscev-ssu went.

Once I was at a nearer distance, my eyes spotted Luscev-ssu standing at the middle of the wrecked street where a part was already chipped out and its fragmented peak touched a burning building slanted to the side. There were more dead bodies of angels, soldiers and civilians lying around and Luscev-ssu stood there like he was waiting for something.

I stepped on the retraction button of my pressure board and then it floated up for me to grab before I landed securely on the ground. The rotting scent was definitely here however, where were the ones causing it?

I squatted behind one of the broken cars and looked around. There were people within this area that was for sure but I cannot distinguish ally from foe just from the presenting dots in the map.

Where was Asahi?

Luscev-ssu took another whiff of air into his nostrils and I heard a simmer of growl in his throat.

"I can smell you, come out. What are you afraid of?" Luscev-ssu asked in a mocking tone.

Was he referring to me? I lifted my arm and took a whiff of my armpit before blinking in thought. I really cannot distinguish my scent because I generally just smell like smoke. Maybe I can ask Luscev-ssu to smell it for confirmation?

My breath hitched when a tall armor-clad man walked out of the alley slowly and relaxed. His obsidian colored armor and rugged-looking red cape were far too ancient for this era. His eyes were completely voided of light and his dark hair presented unwashed and untouched for probably centuries.

Lucian-ssu's big brother!

"Ah, my grand nephew, what a valuable moment indeed," a feminine voice came out from his ashen gray lips. "You are still a handsome man. Lucian must be proud to have you and all of the ancients residing inside of him must have sung in praise every day," he added.

"Cut the crap and go back to your grave, the rotting should stay dead," Luscev-ssu retorted.

Lucius-ssu chuckled. "But your beloved uncle isn't completely dead is he? He still has some ancients inside of him. Don't you want to save him?" she asked teasingly.

I did not catch the name of the Queen that possessed Lucius-ssu but I know that she attempted to possess Lucian-ssu when she left Lucius' s vessel during that day.

I observed the bitter look of abhorrence in Luscev's face and discovered a shocking revelation.

Oh dear...

"Why would I want to save the man who betrayed my ayah's trust and sided with putrescent people like you?" he bitterly spat.

The Queen (in possession of Lucius's body) expressed her emotions and reactions through him. She raised his brows in amusement and put his weight on his back leg.

"Your uncle did the right choice of releasing us. This world doesn't have any hope of surviving to the next century. In hopes of cleansing the world again, we have to eradicate the ones who spoiled your father and your uncle's sacrifice," she stated with menace lacing in her voice.

"The only reason why my ayah had to do that sacrifice was because of you. He didn't have to endure it but he did just to keep your rancid asses in place!"

"Humanity's time has ended so step aside child because I will not hesitate to kill you— family or not," she warned.

This time, I wasn't just going to hide and watch after hearing such threat to Luscev-ssu. I came out from my hiding spot and ran in front of him.

"Don't worry Luscev-ssu, I am here!" I assured him.

"I'm more concern of you being in here and who do you think you're talking to?" Luscev-ssu questioned with an annoyed tone and pulled me behind him.

"It would seem that you made friends. Your ayah must be sad that the son that always followed him around is now all grown-up and ready to abandon him with his peers," the Queen chuckled. I felt Luscev-ssu tense up from that allegation and even I felt myself disgruntled by that.

Luscev-ssu will never do that. He will always have Lucian-ssu in his heart.

"Shut the fuck up..." Luscev-ssu seethed —his voice trembled with resentment. He widened the base of his standing and his tail pierced out from his pants. "Don't compare me to the likes of him because unlike Uncle Lucius, I'll NEVER abandon my ayah for anyone!" he growled with Kawaii-Desu's fury knotting his voice.

A smug smirk plastered on Lucius's face and catastrophic Lucians came out and joined his side. There were also various faces that seemed rotting but had visible fire on their hands. They were more focused on burning buildings rather than fighting though.

Why did they keep on setting everything aflame?

Bones started to crack in Luscev's body and he started to fully transform into Kawaii-Desu. I activated my pressure board and got on top of it before I could be swatted away by his tail. I stayed afloat and prepared my crossbow. I cannot be down there with Kawaii Desu because everything moving for him was an enemy of the United States of Lucian-ssu.

Lucius-ssu stayed still and let himself be an easy target for a now charging Luscev.

The catastrophic Lucians released a piercing shrill and the sound of the land shaking occurred. When it came to physical strength, I did not believe that they stood a chance against Luscev-ssu however, if Luscev-ssu destroyed their vessels, they would attempt to possess him and a possessed Luscev-ssu uncontrollable to anyone was a world doomed.

I loaded up my tech-puff with the oviums and I started to release my arrows at the catastrophic Lucians. The ones releasing fire didn't seem to be of any threat for now but the fire scattering across the city was bothersome because I did not see any purpose for them. I was at least somewhat resilient to fire and Luscev-ssu was for sure not affected by it so why?

Lucius-ssu pointed his finger at the charging mutant and purple electricity sparked from his index and middle finger before it zapped out and became a strong electrical current that temporarily halted Kawaii Desu but didn't falter him enough to stop.

Kawaii Desu bashed the catastrophic Lucians with his horns sending them in different directions and I pointed my ovium gun at one specific catastrophe whose neck snapped back. The decaying soul rose up from its body and as I pulled the trigger, the soul that was supposed to be absorbed by the ovium was absorbed by the fire.

What?

"Aecha, they're using the fire to create new vessels!" Hyuk Min told me. My eyes widened when the soul that was absorbed came out with a new vessel and a stronger one at that.

The newly born catastrophe released another piercing cry that not only caused the ground to shake in a magnitude of seven but also, it caused Kawaii Desu and I to stop and hold our ears. The fragile buildings plummeted down to the ground and I had to fly higher up to prevent myself from getting crushed.

The ground continued to shake as new catastrophic Lucians release their cries of decay. Thunder clouds swirled from above covering the only light source we had and causing the future of the city to be more engulfed by darkness.

"Is everyone alright?" I asked through our communicator. I heard various groans and Stugox did some roll call in which everyone responded except for two.

"Joe? Are you there? I repeat Joe, are you there?" Stugox asked. "Hyuk Min, please respond," he spoke again.

"Joe was screaming a while ago and then he fell silent," Ki commented.

Actually, the whole city became eerily quiet. I can't even hear Kawaii Desu's growls anymore. A rampaging Kawaii Desu was bad but a silent Kawaii Desu was worse.

"Many buildings collapsed in their assigned place. Ki and I will drop by and scan the area," Stugox murmured.

I soared back down from where Lucius and Kawaii Desu were and stepped down from my pressure board.

My mouth ran dry and my eyes widened in horror as my ticker reeled in the fastest rate when I saw the vessels crushed beneath the buildings. Kawaii Desu was groaning weakly underneath the rubbles with dark souls covering him and trying to get inside.

My tech-dutifully shot at Luscev-ssu and the ovums absorbed the crowded souls trying to infiltrate him. Kawaii Desu slowly shrank as it whined in distress and Luscev-ssu reappeared.

"Sh-shit... Shit!" he cursed out. I ran and removed the rubbles off of him before kneeling down.

"It got me... It got me! That fucking leech got inside!" he groaned. Branched veins appeared on Luscev-ssu's face and I rummaged through my mind to find solutions for this possession.

Wait...

I was an antidote to these kinds of conditions!

I lowered the defense of my hardware and ripped off my sleeve. I placed my arm against Luscev-ssu's gritted teeth and urged him to bite.

"I am an antidote to Tom-Ak-Ta. Please, if you must, drain every drop of ascian from me," I pleaded.

Luscev-ssu took labored breaths and glared at me before finally snapping down on my arm with his sharp teeth. I yelped when I felt his teeth grazing my inner ascian structure which were like bones to this planet. I endured the pain as he sucked on to my blood. Relief spread across my ticker when the branched veins faded away and the soul of the Queen rose bearing beauty similar to Lucian-ssu's.

The Queen looked at me with teary eyes and I nodded at her. I know that she didn't mean any of this to happen. Her other half overpowered her just like every other cronie that I faced in planet Aecha and became victims who ended up victimizing everyone around them.

The Queen soared up and didn't say a word. She disappeared into the darkness of the thunder clouds.

Luscev released my arm and ascian fluids dripped down from his lips.

"Can you stand up?" I asked him and he nodded. I assisted Luscev-ssu up and felt this uneasy feeling on my chest.

"Lucius is under those rubbles," Luscev-ssu stated and pointed at the rubbles across us. "My ayah would like to at least see him one last time even in this state," he murmured.

We sauntered to where Lucius lied and I dug through the piles of cement before finally seeing his head. Luscev-ssu helped me pull his uncle away from the debris and once we got him out, Luscev-ssu fell on his butt and I saw his eyes tear up with grief. He pulled one knee to his chest and leaned his fist on top of it to bury his pursed lips behind his knuckles.

"I hate you. I really hate you..." Luscev-ssu murmured before placing his hand on top of Lucius' head and grinding him down bitterly to the ground. "Do you hear me? I hate you, you traitor. Fuck you, you bastard. You deserve it. You deserve to rot like them. This is for leaving ayah. This is for leaving me you sick fuck!" he snarled at his face as his tears cascaded down his cheeks.

I stood coldly beside Luscev-ssu as I witnessed such hate rooted from love and just as when I was being delusional of hearing Luscev-ssu neighing as he cried, Hyuk Min and Joe sprouted from our communicator.

"AECHA! WE'RE RIDING A PEGACORN!" Hyuk Min cheered.

"I think I'm gonna die. Am I dead yet?" Joe asked us. I looked up to the dark skies and found a horse-like figure soaring round-and-about headed towards us. It had a luminous blue color with majestic wings and more of its kind followed.

My eyes narrowed down when I saw three figures riding the leader with a fragment child Lucian cheering:

"Argo, vlastos!"

Was that a command?

"Dodge you idiot!" Luscev-ssu snarled and tackled me to the ground.

Yes, it was a command indeed.

Circular beams of light swirled on the horns of the creatures and relinquished the powerful energy towards the corpse of Lucius. Luscev's wings covered the both of us from the shock and I was mesmerized that he would even worry about me when he was still grieving.

The pegacorns landed on the ground and Hyuk Min carried the child Lucian on his arms before hopping down with Joe. The fragment squirmed out from Hyuk Min's hold and came toddling to Lucius's burnt body. He slapped Lucius's face with his hand as he squatted down on his short legs and blinked at his brother in wonder.

"Onii-chan, wake up! Argo did the blast for you!" he spoke. "Come home now onii-chan? Come home now please~" he begged sweetly. Luscev-ssu gazed sadly at the fragment and gently approached him. He squatted beside him and placed his hand behind his small blonde head.

"He isn't coming back. I'm sorry," he murmured. The fragment started to wipe his eyes and a hiccup rose up from his throat.

"He's not?" he asked with a low tone of voice.

His face reddened especially his nose and he gazed back at Lucius hopefully. The fragment took a deep breath before plopping his butt down on his brother's face making all of us question Lucian-ssu's sanity as a child.

"Aww Lucian not again!"

We heard a groan originating from the man under Lucian's butt and Luscev's face lightened up. Lucian-ssu giggled and slipped off from his face and Lucius-ssu slowly pulled himself up. Before he can fully stand up, Luscev-ssu gave him a tight embrace.

"You really stink uncle...You really fucking stink."

Lucius-ssu was startled at first and he didn't know where to place his hands yet he started to warm up and returned the embrace with a smile of exhaustion.

"I know Luscev, I know."

Joe's jaw drop and his eyes suddenly getting distracted caused the temporary reunion to be immediately cut short when the fire around us began to rise up and the oviums cracked open releasing the souls of the catastrophes. The blaze fused together and the person I was looking for materialized from the fire created by the catastrophes.

"King Asahi..." Lucius trailed off as he eyed the newly born King. "So it worked."

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A/N: Hello my bootiful creatures.