The battle in the fighting pit raged on. Jeon Jungkook was doing surprisingly well at putting up a fight against Jung Hoseok, and so was Kim Namjoon against the fiery rage of Lilith. The roars of approval from the crowd said that they were certainly entertained.

Yoongi's commentator voice erupted over the chaos, his body still out of sight and unseen, "Well this isn't the greatest show that ever was yet. It's just some scrappers in a pit. It seems like we could do with a little more excitement around here to liven things up even more, eh?"

Hoseok had been saving his move. At the echoing of Yoongi's voice shaking around them, that red headed combat specialist took his chance. He led Jungkook into the perfectly wrong stance. Hoseok swerved. TICK.

Jungkook wasn't expecting the blow of Hoseok's flat hilt into his lower back, nor the way Hoseok's heel twisted beneath Jungkook's own foot.

The young pilot was launched down into sand.

Then Hoseok ran for it. With Shae unarmed, his elbow slung around her like it was a horse shoe and she was the bottleneck at a carnival. A few seconds later, and Hoseok held one of his small Geji blades to Shae's throat. Deja vu.

Except, the anti-magi suspension in the arena was still working. There was no eruption of seismic waves or blue light. No earthquakes or lightning and hail. Just Hoseok, knife pulled to Shae's throat.

Joon became distracted, his eyes flitting between Shae and Hoseok, and towards the fierce little opponent that was Lilith.

Lilith took full advantage of the situation--not only disarming Kim Namjoon, but sending the man rearing backwards into sand empty-handed. Lilith stepped over Joon with her blade pointed to his nose, and his eyes crossed as they watched the tip of the blade inch closer to his face.

"Give me an excuse. I dare you," Lilith seethed down at Kim Namjoon. He kept his hands lifted in surrender and remained mute.

Meanwhile, Jeon Jungkook scrambled messily to his feet. The voices were a chorus of panic within him at the sight of that blade to Shae's throat, but there was nothing that he could see to do. Any second, Hoseok could tug that blade across Shae's neck and it could be over.

Jungkook shouted, "What if I surrender? What if we just stand down? I can surrender, you can win, just don't take her life, hyung. Just. Just let her go and we're done. Who says we have to do this anyway, some stupid game rule?"

Hoseok's arm slackened from around Shae's neck, but the small Geji blade was still pressed into her throat. Then, Hoseok shoved Shae roughly before him so that her knees fell into sand. She closed her eyes and waited for the death-blow.

Yoongi's announcer voice growled over the stadium and drowned out the rest of Hoseok's words, "Let's remix this shit."

There was a sound like heavy metal falling into heavy metal from somewhere far away. As the grinding sound echoed across the arena, with it came a wave of energy within the air—like electricity and static prickling the skin in the midst of a thick, moist heat.

Jeon Jungkook could suddenly feel it. He could feel it in his fingertips. He could practically hear it like bells chiming a beautiful melody in his ears.

He looked down at his hands. To his immense surprise, his hands were pulsing with a gorgeous electric blue light that zinged and flickered around his skin. Then he looked back up at where Jung Hoseok stood.

Hoseok's own hands and forearms were the epicenter of green waves of flame rippling and pulsing around his closed fists. His blade had been slid back into it's sheath.

Lilith's twin blades now had vibrant pink pulsing from the metal, and a sheen of pink like a motorbike visor fell over the front of her face.

"What did you do?" Jungkook knew it was them. "Why?"

"Just wanted to put on a good show," Hoseok answered sadistically.

Jungkook realized that Hoseok was was now aiming his hands encased in flickering green flame towards Shae's back, where she still sat with her knees in the sand. Her apologetic eyes looked up at the pained expression on Junkook's face.

"Don't do it, Hobi."

"Watch me, Kookie."

Click.

There was an eruption of blue light that rippled like a seismic wave from Jeon Jungkook's skin that rolled and blasted Jung Hoseok and Lilith through the air. Where Joon had still been sprawled into sand, the waves rippled and pushed him harder down into it so that he couldn't lift his body or move. The blue waves echoed into the walls of the stadium itself, causing the crunching and groaning  of stone as the very foundations of the stadium were challenged and shook.

It was like an invisible protective shell coated the space around Shae, though. The blue waves of electric fury rippled effortlessly around her, not through her. She remained on her knees, untouched, as if trapped inside of a bubble of complete peace.

She stood and looked up. There was Jungkook, high above her head now.

"He's...he's flying."

He opened his mouth and spoke, and though a chorus of voices echoed like a siren from within him, loud enough for every ear in the entire stadium to hear clear as day: "Threaten this Satoor Ai life, and you will find that swift justice awaits you. Err on the side of peace, and you will find great blessing in return. Heed this warning... or see the end of mercy."

There was a final heavy pulse of electric blue energy and then peace settled as Jungkook's body gently drifted downwards towards the sand. Jungkook's almond eyes still glowed vibrant blue and his face was stern beneath the brown hairs whipping and curling around his cheeks. Once his feet touched ground, the blue light flickered out of his eyes and he gasped as if surfacing from below water. Normal brown eyes gaped at the sandy pit in his midst, tracing over his fallen friends, and then finding Shae.

All at once, she rushed towards Jungkook. She didn't even think, as her hands reached out and cupped around his cheeks. His face had a gleam of dirt and sweat across it, and his almond eyes searched her face, as if he were desperate for some kind of reassurance there.

This. This happened because of me, didn't it? Somehow.... Shae was breathless as she asked, "Are you alright, Kookie?"

"Yes, m'Lady."

Joon, Hoseok and Lilith scrambled to their feet as Shea's hands slipped from Jungkook's cheeks and the two of them turned to face the remnants of Noon Mool fortress in their midst.

There was a general hum and rumble of fear and awe as people in the stands continued to gawk down at the unbelievable sight that was unfolding before them.

Joon took a few steps towards Jungkook and Shae, pain and fear in is eyes. Jungkook stepped protectively forward, his arm bracing backwards against Shae's front, and his eyes glaring threateningly towards Kim Namjoon. The look made Joon stop in his tracks, confusion lighting his features.

Before any words could form between them, the sound of a singular clap began to echo through the fighting pit and amplify effortlessly up, up through the stands. Everyone turned towards the eerie noise.

"PETRA?!" Joon took a few steps forward, as if getting closer could confirm what he saw. "But you should be--"

"Dead, or dying?" She gave a deliciously satisfied laugh. "As if I were really so fragile. Funny how things don't always go according to plan, isn't it? Like with this one."

All eyes inside and around the stadium fell on Petra, on her hand which seemed to be balled into a fist encased in a black ghost of magic--and her fist was clenched around the hair on the head of Kim Taehyung's lifeless body. By the strength of the rune in her hand, Petra was dragging Tae effortlessly through the sand. His body looked positively spotless, and he'd been changed by Hoseok into soft white linens.

The sight of him would have been peaceful if not for the rough way that Petra yanked and then tossed Tae towards the sand, his stiff frame landing heavily.

Even though he was cleaned up and carefully tended, Shae thought she would surely be sick any moment at the sight of Tae...dead.

"Oh that's right dear, you hadn't seen yet." Petra's playful smirk danced in Shae's direction. "Dreadful, what they did to my pet. I think that it's only fair I return the favor." Petra was smirking devilishly at Shae. She reached a hand forward and, even at a distance, a black smoky shape formed around Jungkook's neck. He tried to claw at the black wisp, but there was nothing there to touch, as the black cloud pressed in against his wind pipes.

"Stop it!" Shae reached towards his neck, and she felt a strange sensation like dipping your hands into warm water as her fingers dug through that black mist. The the constricting black mist was far from solid, Shae's fingers somehow seemed to brace beneath it as she growled, "I SAID STOP!"

In a sudden jerk of Shae's faintly glowing fingers, the black smoke snapped and dissipated.

Jungkook coughed and sputtered, breathing freely once more. He reached a hand out towards Shae, bracing it against her shoulder. She thought it was to steady himself, but when he pushed her body behind his and stood tall between Shae and Petra she realized otherwise.

"Your Gwangju Ai is so loyal, isn't he? You've certainly trained him well," Petra remarked coldly. "Mine was too, but then you had to ruin him." She gave a careless wave towards Tae's motionless body in the sand.

Kim Namjoon's cold voice snapped, drawing the temptress' attention, "Petra, what are you saying?"

Petra gave a malicious laugh. As she spoke next, her voice echoed through the stadium, "This petty little crew and their parlor tricks are trying to scare you into thinking that you're in some kind of... danger. Think that'll make them seem like convincing allies, worthy of your allegiance, because they have ONE measly Gwangju Ai and a pathetic Satoor Ai owner who doesn't even know how to handle a sword. But in case you were wondering who really deserves your allegiance...."

There was a rumble of footsteps, of bodies in motion. Joon, Shae, Lilith, Jungkook and Hoseok all looked up around the rim of the stadium to see more bodies than they could count on two hands that had just positioned themselves on the stadium's edge, up amongst the stands.

"You thought I just had one Gwangju Ai to off and be rid of? How cute. But no, I HAVE AN ARMY."

She lifted one of her hands and snapped her fingers, a puff of black smoke emanating from it.

As a result, all the figures that stood around the stadium lifted their own hands, black magic waves or electric bursts flickering and whispering from their limbs. A wave of gasps and screams echoed around the stadium in response.

Meanwhile, a look of nauseated disgust washed over Jung Hoseok's face at the realization of what Kim Taehyung had been. At what had been motivating him this whole time. Hoseok braced a hand against his leg. He thought he might be sick.

"Don't tell me you didn't KNOW? HOW FASCINATING!"

Hoseok turned to one side with one hand braced against his leg and another still gripping his longsword. He gave a heave and threw up into the sand. Lilith snuck to Hoseok's side and put a comforting hand on his shoulder until he righted himself again, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand and pivoting towards Petra with a look of icy fury flaring beneath his red hair.

"Well, as for you." Petra's gaze fell back onto Shae. "I wanted to keep you alive, little girl...to use you for your boundless energy, to fuel a project or two. Maybe the planet, who knows? But I certainly didn't expect you to be clever enough to form our own Gwangju Ai! Perhaps I underestimated you, pet."

Petra gave a wave of her hand and then it balled into a fist, and the body of Jeon Jungkook was lifted from the sand in pulsing black energy, then dragged through the air right up to where Petra stood.

Jungkook gasped, his nose practically touching Petra's.

"Stop it, leave him alone!" Shae shouted as she started to run forward--except Joon raced into her and wrapped his arms tightly around her, holding her back. She tried to wrestle Joon off of her, to run forward anyway, but his arms and his determination to protect Shae were too strong.

Petra gave a mad cackle. "Since we're technically family, Shae dear, let me set a few house rules. From now on you aren't allowed to have any pets. Only I am."

Petra balled her hand into a fist as a smirk danced across her lips, and Jungkook let out a cry of pure agony where his body hovered before her. He twitched and writhed as a black cloud pressed in around his chest. In his pain, he slowly reached out both of his hands and tried to tuck his fingers around Petra's throat. Each inch his hands moved was a lifetime of effort, but he didn't give up, scowling into her face all the while.

"I will...end you...." Jungkook managed to growl between gasps.

Something about the earnestness of the look in Jungkook's almond eyes unexpectedly struck a nerve. Petra didn't find it so amusing. "Enough." She gave a flick of her wrist.

In an instant, something inside of Jungkook's body snapped. His eyes rolled into the back of his head, and his fleshy form toppled from where he hovered in place, and fell in a limp heap into the sand. Dust swirled and settled around him. He didn't stir.

"Yes, that's enough of that," Petra said, slapping her hands together as if wiping from them something disdainful.

"Is he...?" Shae couldn't get the words from her lips.

Petra took on the tone of a bossy older sibling. "Dead? Yes. And he's your first and last Gwangju Ai, is that clear?"

For Shae, the feeling of loss that struck her was beyond logic or explanation as she let out a wail of grief. She hardly knew Jeon Jungkook. And yet something inside of her that she didn't even know was there ached that his spirit had been silenced.

Shae flailed once again into Jungkook's direction, but Joon's arms only tightened around Shae's chest as he pulled her harder into him. He couldn't let Shae near that disdainful woman.

"Shae... Shae...."

She didn't even hear Joon's voice in her ear.

Petra's voice continued to echo over the entirety of the gladiatorial chamber as she went on, her playful gaze landing on where Shae stood braced into Joon's chest. "I guess my secret's out. Or, our secret, isn't that right Shae?" Petra's gaze turned towards the crowd, and her voice amplified for all to hear. "You're probably asking yourselves right about now how the hell you'll ever survive with someone like me running amok. A dangerous Satoor Ai. Well, let me assure you. The answer is that it's by being of service to me. If these fools think they can convince you otherwise with their pathetic display of a Satoor Ai...I mean, the girl can't even hold a sword the right way. Let alone lead a damn army." As an aside that the whole stadium could hear, Petra leaned in Shae's direction and said, "Let's just be real, I think you've proven that there's only room for one Satoor Ai to rule in this galaxy and, honey, it ain't gonna be you."

Just as Petra lifted her black-electric coated hand in a threat, something sailed through the air and struck Petra in the side of her perfect face. Her black electricity ceased and she twitched sideways angrily looking for the source.

"We beg to differ, bitch." It was Min Yoongi.

Lilith and Hoseok had positioned themselves in coordination with him.

The three of them had circled around Petra. Each of them held small laser blasters braced into their shoulders: one of Min Yoongi's latest projects come to full fruition.

The tech specialist twitched his black hair out of his pale face and growled, "FIRE!"

At the sound of Yoongi's voice, the three blasters all went off at once. Instead of sending Petra into an incinerated oblivion, the result was a melding of energy from all sides...that shaped itself into a solid bubble of faded red around her form.

A bubble-shaped prison then completely consumed and contained her. Her and her furious screams.

"EVERYBODY BRACE FOR IMPACT!" Min Yoongi shouted. As the blasters ended their reign of red, a swarm of Petra's Gwangju Ai suddenly descended down upon the Noon Mool crew and began circling them from all sides.

"This doesn't look good," Hoseok muttered.

"No shit," Yoongi snapped.

Shae noticed that, in the midst of the black swarm that was descending upon them...no matter how much Petra kicked, screamed, or flailed at the sides, the bubble wall didn't break. It didn't seem to allow Petra to perform a lick of magic, either. She screamed and threw her shoulder into the side of the bubble, but no sound escaped, and the force only caused the ball to roll sideways—and to flail her around unceremoniously inside of it once, twice, three times. She fell onto her side, and was attempting to pound her fists down into it, the sight like a child in a tantrum.

Or like an angry hamster in a plastic red ball.

Meanwhile, the black magic swarm was closing in.

Joon raked his forearms together and white electricity erupted there.

Jung Hoseok lifted his Geji longsword, which was flickering and dancing with warm green flames.

Lilith's flashy pink electric-visor had fallen into place over her face again, and her blade was raised and poised.

Yoongi lifted his blaster, ticked a notch into the settings on the side of the gun, and smirked as he felt the hum and shift of energy in the gun in his hands from shell-mode to kill-mode. He shouted through his laugh, "COME AND GET US YOU SORRY ASS MOTHERFUCKERS."