Ashura called out in Eliksni and dregs scurried out to her. She crouched and offered her hands to them. The approached her tentatively, any small movement made them back away from her slightly. She spoke softly and assured them that she wasn't going to hurt them. She turned to see the white eyed woman standing behind her silently. "Ashura... What are you doing?" She asked and Ashura sighed. "Hunting." She said and she could tell that the other woman didn't like that answer very much. In all reality she wasn't lying. She really was hunting. Just... not for what Hinata thought she was.

She was hunting for an ally.

She began speaking in Eliksni once more and the dregs perked up. "You know where he is?" She asked and they nodded and scattered. "Have him find me." She called out in Eliksni. She stood and turned to the other woman. "How is Noah doing?" Hinata asked and Ashura looked up to the sky. "He's angry." She whispered softly. Her heart ached thinking about her young son. So young and so angry. This was more than normal toddler temper tantrums. "Well he will understand when he gets older." Hinata offered and Ashura nodded. "Yeah I suppose he will when he gets older." Ashura sighed and looked towards the sky once more. "Zavala needs us in the tower, so we might as well head back." Hinata said and Ashura nodded as she stretched, Cayde's cloak falling around her shoulders once more. She still donned the fallen armor, she just now wore his cloak.

She had been offered the vanguard position but she refused. She was not about to be bound to the tower like Cayde had been. He had been itching for an adventure and she was going to suffer the same fate he had. She was going to live for him and take a piece of him with her on every adventure she went on, it was the least she could do for him. She stepped aboard her ship and watched as Hinata followed her in. "What are you really doing, Ashura?" she asked and Ashura watched her carefully. She didn't know if she should actually explain herself yet. But she also knew she could trust the woman with her life. "I'm assembling a ground to raid the dreaming city." Ashura said and Hinata seemed caught off guard by this. "What do you mean?" she asked and Ashura propped herself against the wall of the ship.

"I'm taking my fallen and waging war on Riven."

Hinata said nothing, but Ashura expected that. It had come as a shock when she had been discussing this with the fallen as well. That's why they were scared of her right now. They didn't want another war. Not after the one where she had single handedly ended a civil war between them. To be completely honest, she had tried to be kind and compassionate, but only one leader was going to back down. She joined the side where the leader had backed down and tore down the House of Dusk and leveled everything they had. The survivors of that she spared, but once their Archon Priest had fell, she knew she had them pinned. That priest was the same one who had attacked her before when she was trying to find Sadiyah's ghost.

"I don't want to use them for this." She sighed and Hinata watched her the look in her white eyes said she understood. "Then let us help." Hinata offered and Ashura thought it over for a moment then sighed. "You can't keep doing all of this yourself. You killed Pirrha. You killed Fikrul... You also killed Uldren. If you continue this then there will be no coming back. Two of those you loved with all your heart, Ashura. The third was begging you to spare him and you did it anyways. The weight of their deaths on your shoulders must be immense..." She said and Ashura slipped her eyes shut. Images of the massacre littered her mind all the time anymore. She didn't want to think about that anymore. She rolled the small, dented bell around in her grasp for a moment, the memory of having to retrieve it haunting her. The ribbon it once hung from still melted to the Ace of spades.

She looked out to see they were approaching the loading bay in the tower and shoved herself away from the wall. "Let's go then, shall we?" Ashura asked and Hinata nodded and they made their way up to Zavala, who was struggling with a small angry toddler. "Noah." Ashura called out and he turned away from her. "Noah... Please..." She pleaded with the young boy, who turned towards her and pouted. "Mama..." "I know baby come here." She whispered and opened her arms to him. "I know I'm gone all the time anymore. I'm sorry sweetie. I have to work though." She said as she ruffled his hair softly. "Miss daddy and Uncle Cayde..." Her heart hurt and she hugged him tightly to her. "I know... I miss them too." She whispered and Noah hugged her back tightly.

"Don't leave me mama."

Her heart tugged greatly at this and she smiled at him softly. "I will never leave you. I will always return." She said as she kissed his mop of white hair. She stood back up and he watched her quietly. "Are you going to be good for Ikora and Zavala?" she asked and he nodded. A sudden burst of energy shot through her system and she looked around in a slight panic. "What the hell is that?" she asked and Zavala sighed. "That is our guest... Messing with things he shouldn't be. Go down to where Hawthorne hangs out but before you reach her, turn right and introduce yourself to the Rat in our closet." He bit out and she nodded softly. She made her way to where Zavala told her to go and she looked around for a moment before she heard someone cursing.

She ducked under the metal grate and turned to see a familiar face and a new one. "I just want to play with it!" Ashura couldn't help the laugh that escaped her as she watched the newcomer struggle with her friend. "Misra leave the man alone." She called out and the Exo let him go. Ashura took in the rugged appearance of the man before her. He had clearly seen somethings he would prefer not to talk about, but so had she. "Ashura." She greeted, offering a hand to the man. "Drifter." He offered the same greeting she did, quick and to the point. "So you're the rat in the closet." Ashura chuckled softly and his face scrunched up.

"Ok, but like... it's rude to kick a man when he's down." He grumbled with a smirk as he tossed a coin in the air and caught it between two fingers, only to open his hands and it was gone. "Neat trick." She said as she looked the grungy man over once more. "What is it that you need help with?" She asked and he only offered a smirk. "A few things. Mainly a little bit of friendly competition though." He said and she nodded, not quite trusting the man. "I think there could be a possibility of having some fun in this little game. We will be back later to discuss it, but for now I have business elsewhere." She said and he nodded. "Don't forget to stop by and see old uncle drifter soon, you hear?" he called out as she and Misra left.

"What do you think of him?" Ashura asked and Misra rushed to get beside her. "He's cool. I don't see any reason not to trust him. Plus, his game is pretty fun." She said and Ashura nodded. "Good to know. I need to have some fun to take my mind off things." She said and Misra cheered softly behind her. Ashura smiled softly. She knew everyone was worried about her; how could they not be? In the span of a month,

she lost 3 people she had cared about deeply and 2 of those in a single day. It had taken weeks to figure out where all the barons had been, it could have been worse though. It could have taken so much longer to find them all. The image of her killing Pirrha with no mercy constantly flickered in her mind. At the time, the ruthless killing of him seemed fit for the crime, but she could have done it differently.

Fikrul's demise could have been handled differently as well. Uldren... perhaps she could have spared him, but she knew it was only going to be worse if she had. He would have never been able to live in the tower again. And if he were spotted by any one of the guardians out on an assignment... they would have killed him without mercy. His death was a merciful one. She wasn't glad she had killed him... far from it. She still loved him, but she was protecting him from the consequences of his own actions. She looked up to see an irate Octavia tapping her foot at her.

"Yes?" she sighed and the hive warlock began ranting at her and Ashura tried to tune it out, that was until a certain name caught her attention. "Riven?" she asked and Octavia rubbed her face in irritation. "Yes, I heard you were going to take on Riven. I want to accompany you. I got a score to settle with her." She sneered and Ashura nodded. "Ok then, you're in." Ashura said and Octavia began ranting again about how before she said no that she should hear her out, which made Ashura cross her arms over her chest and watch her with a smirk. It took a few minutes for it to sink in but once the realization hit, the woman huffed and crossed her arms over her chest as well.

"You were gonna just let me keep ranting, weren't you?" She asked and Ashura laughed lightly. "Well yeah..." She said and Ashura offered her a small smile. "And... You immediately assume that I don't like you. I don't not like you." Ashura said and Octavia watched her curiously. "Really?" she asked and Ashura nodded. "Yeah... you can go on a tangent sometimes and get super bossy at times, but I'm like that too so it's hard not to like you." Ashura said and Octavia just stared at her. "I hate you though." Misra cut in as she strolled past and Ashura rolled her eyes. There was always one.

"Can't say I like you much either, Vex brat." Octavia spat and Misra shrugged. "Hive brat." She said as she continued walking. "Ok so if you two are going to be like this when we go face riven neither of you are going." Ashura said and the two stared at her in shock. "We need more help so come on." Ashura sighed as she made her way to Zavala to let him know they were going to need help.

:-:-:_:-:-:

Her room was so dark... and so silent. That's how it had been lately. Noah was usually with Ikora and Zavala so she spent most of her time alone. She touched her blankets softly, the remnants of Cayde's light tingled softly against her fingers. She had noticed that wherever someone went they left small traces of their light, it was comforting to an extent. It would have been more comforting had she not realized this because of Noah. Noah was training with the vanguard because he had come to her one night with a ball of light. He offered it to her, but when she had asked him how he had done that he dispelled it. He drug his small hands over her bed and had drawn traces of light it of it. Her son had discovered he could pull the light out of things and this worried her.

If he could pull light from inanimate objects... Could he strip someone of their light?

She pulled her knees to her chest and buried her face in the top of her knees. She couldn't help the tears that fell over her cheeks. Her heart ached, but so did her body. She felt all her losses so deep within her form that she doubted even death could fully absolve her of this pain. She dug her fingers into the cloth of her pants and sobbed. "Oh... Uldren..." She sobbed, her entire body shaking with her sobs. "What have I done?" She whimpered as more tears fell. She rolled onto her side and laid in the fetal position. She didn't want to move anymore. She couldn't bring herself to even if she wanted to. The fingers on her left hand twitched uncontrollably and she used her right hand to grab it to stop it.

Sobs racked her form once more as Cayde's light comforted her from the blanket. "Cayde... I'm so sorry..." She sobbed as she pulled the blanket up to her face. Her eyes slipped shut as she cried. She didn't know how much longer she could hold herself together in front of everyone else. She came into her room to cry continuously. It felt like she were falling apart. Inside and out she were breaking down, sure... she could hold composure in front of others, but when she was alone there was no hiding her anguish. She heard a knock at her door and she wanted to move, but her body wouldn't. She wanted to regain her composure, but she knew who was there.

The subtle whirring of mechanical parts, the sloshing of the liquid within their cybernetic veins...

"Ashura." Misra called out softly as she opened the door. The light stung her eyes when Misra turned them on. "Go away... You don't need to see me like this." She whispered, but the footsteps only came closer. A weight on her bed made her uncover her face. Misra was sitting on the bed, watching her silently. Her lip trembled as Misra moved to lay next to her, facing her. She just softly patted her on the head after a moment. "I see you're doing the big sad." Misra began and Ashura withheld the urge to roll her eyes. "I am gonna need you to get it together though. Because you are not a sad bitch." Misra said and Ashura pulled the blanket further away from her face more.

"You are a bad bitch. Not a sad one. Now get out of bed or else." Misra said and Ashura tried to hide the twitch of her lips. She wanted nothing more to smile. She pulled the blanket up over her head once more, but it seemed Misra wasn't going to have any of that. Ashura yelped as she was yanked up off the bed, blanket and all, then dumped into the floor. "If you're really mad, fight me." Misra challenged as Ashura picked herself up out of the floor. "Now come on. We have things to do." Misra sighed and Ashura looked up at her. "Like what." She grumbled softly and Misra held up a small object that she had seen before. "Is that... An awoken talisman?" she asked and Misra nodded. "Petra said she would meet us there if we fixed it. So, I think it may be time to head that way." Misra said and she nodded.

:-:-:

Misra watched as Ashura zoomed past her, pulling up onto the steps of the watch tower once more. She watched as Ashura made her way up the steps and into the building. She knew this place haunted her. Misra felt bad that she was going through with this, but Ashura was not the type to sit around and do nothing while there was something that needed to be done. She looked back to see familiar faces behind them. "Well howdy." Misra greeted as they all made their way up the steps as well. It was like an army had formed to cleanse The Dreaming City. She looked over each and every person that was there with amusement. She had no doubt that some of them were going to show up sooner or later, but their reasoning honestly surprised her.

"We came to give Ashura backup." Hinata said softly, her usual shy demeanor nowhere to be seen. That took her by surprise honestly. She looked over to see Sasuke and Sakura staring past her to the watch tower. Naruto seemed super psyched to be here, while Shikamaru and Gaara gave no tells on what they were feeling. Unlike usual, their communications expert, Ino, was there with them. The entire lucky seven had graced them, as well as some friends Misra was excited to see, and one she wished wouldn't have shown.

"Why would we be left out of all the fun?" Artemis said with a smirk. Octavia made her way up the steps to follow Ashura, who was watching them all silently. Rev sighed as he scratched the back of his neck, he was clearly only here because Artemis was. "So, we have two entire raid teams here. That's what's up." Misra said as she turned to Ashura once more, the white haired woman offered them a small bow from atop the stairs and she felt relieved for a moment. With this much support Ashura was going to be just fine. "Thank you all for coming. We are going to need as much help as we can get. Remember, stick together and watch each other's backs. We don't know exactly what we will be facing, but we do know that the wish dragon, Riven, is here and she may have control of everything." She said and they all nodded.

"Let's get to it then." She mused as she took off up the stairs after Ashura. The resounding echo of footsteps as they fought their way through the building was astounding. She didn't think there had ever been this many guardians willing and ready to engage in some tomfoolery. If Misra could grin, she would have the biggest shit eating grin anyone had ever seen. She wondered if they would ever be in the same place like this again. With the group they had, it was screaming that some insanity would ensue, but she loved insanity.

Taken were getting stomped all around them, arrows flying and hitting every target in sight. It was pure insanity, but not for them. Misra slammed a knee right into the face of a taken knight, Sakura coming from above to crush him into the floor with one of her terrifying punches. "The crusade marches on, but not for you." She chuckled threateningly as she moved on to the next enemy in their path. Sasuke was cutting things down just as swiftly, he and Naruto were working together to confuse and decimate. This was a tactic she knew they were all too familiar with.

Ino and Shikamaru were doing the same, Ino taking over their bodies while Shikamaru froze them with his shadows. Ino would let her grip go before anyone could absolutely destroy whatever she grabbed. She had flowers in her grasp and would spin and send them out at the enemies in a whirlwind of death. Her only complaint seemed to be the sand that was getting into every inch of her form as Gaara used his abilities. She had originally thought Gaara had been the one she needed to fear the most, but that was all shot out of the water when she had seen what Hinata could do.

To Misra, none of the others carried as devastating a power as she did. The speed and fluidity of her movements had been unmatched so far. Her hits were gentle, but precise and devastating. She watched as Hinata dropped down onto a taken centurion, but with a single palm to the chest he crumpled to the floor. She had never witnessed the woman fight in the crucible, but she felt like she would be unstoppable, especially with those eyes of hers that could see through walls. She had heard stories of Hinata's sister and cousin and was terrified of the possibility of more of her. No one would be safe.

She glanced over her shoulder at Octavia and Rev who seemed to just be chilling, which she could understand there wasn't much to do with the wave of destruction that was in front of her. They came up to the portal in which the chimera had come from before and Ashura seemed to freeze as she made her way up the steps. She stopped and touched the floor there lightly, a small dent in the floor which Misra knew was hurting her. She crouched as she ran her fingers over the space. "Ashura?" Misra held up a hand to the others, who were confused as to why Ashura was doing this.

"His light... It lingers."

Misra felt sadness at this, she wanted to comfort Ashura but she didn't know how. "Then you keep pressing on, for him and Cayde." Sasuke said and she looked over to him. "He would want you to keep going, never give up." Naruto offered and a small smile crossed Ashura's lips. "I know he would, he would also be telling me I was a dumbass for being such a big baby over this." She mused and Misra shook her head lightly. She reached down and touched the floor there lightly, only for a shock to catch her off guard. An image of someone who looked a lot like Ashura flashed through her mind. Uldren was by her side and he didn't seem to amused, but the girl... she was absolutely wearing a shit eating grin.

"Dumbass." Misra mumbled, only for a slight joy to course through her. "He called me that too." She said and Ashura's face lit up in pure joy. "Of course he would, we are sisters after all." She said and Misra chuckled lightly. "I looked a lot like you." She said and Ashura looked over to her from where she was staring at the portal. "Of course you did." Ashura said with a smile. "He loved you so very much, you have no idea." Ashura said and Misra watched her curiously. "You were his best friend, and you were the only reason I met the love of my life. So, for that, I will be forever grateful." Ashura said and Misra hugged her tightly.

"Now, let's go. I need to obliterate Riven's existence from this place because I wish I had never made the wish." Ashura said and the group nodded as they stepped through the portal. When they arrived on the other side, there was a dense fog that they couldn't see through. Hinata stepped in front and offered a hand to the Ashura. "Follow me and I will lead us through the fog." She said and they all linked hands and followed.

They made their way up a small path, and the higher they got on the small hill, the clearer their view got. The heard a noise overhead and they looked up to see a ship flying overhead. "Petra's ship! Follow it!" Ashura ordered and the group all nodded, which surprised Misra. It didn't seem like all of them would be too keen on following her orders, but here they were. Being led by Ashura. They approached a small island where they saw three small taken hovering overhead there. Artemis attempted to hit them with an arrow from across the gap, but it were as if they were shielded. So they did what any logical person would do... they jumped the gap. When they did, they realized their mistake immediately.

They had been pulled into the ascendant plane. Misra looked around and saw that they had all been separated. She saw that Octavia and Hinata were with her, but they had no idea where the others had gone. Octavia wasted no time when the taken began rushing them. Thrall came up from the ground and began fighting with them. A taken minotaur appeared and Misra looked over him wickedly. "That's a nice leg there... And a nice core." She said and the two with her stared at her oddly. "I'm going to need those." She bit out wickedly as she attached herself to the minotaur. He struggled to get her off of him and she could only laugh as she dug her blade into the socket of his hip and sliced through the wiring there. Once it began to spark, she swung her legs up into the air, only to bring them back down full force on that leg.

The minotaur crumpled to the ground and she ripped the leg off the rest of the way, only to then ram her fist right through the glass on its chest that held the radiolaria within. She stood up and held the massive leg into the air proudly. She then turned and began using said minotaur leg as a weapon. She kept smashing taken thrall with it and laughing. She meant it when she said utter tomfoolery was going to be had earlier.

:-:-:-:-:

One by one they all started appearing on a bridge, but when they looked around, they realized they had never seen anything like this place. Ashura smiled as she looked around, this was everything she had every dreamed it would be. It was everything he had ever described to her. She was in love with this place. She wanted to live here one day. She would do so just to hopefully bring Uldren some joy if he were watching over her. 'I love this place, it's beautiful my love.' She thought, a small smile on her lips. "Ashura, are you coming with us?" Misra called out and she turned to see that the whole group was here now. She looked back across the bridge and something felt like it was pulling her that way even though the rest of the group were making their way the opposite direction.

'O child, I beckon to thee. Follow my voice and you shall see the gift I bear for thee.'

Her eyes narrowed slightly she knew what she was going to do. "You all go ahead. I will meet you all there. First... I have something I need to do." She said as the image of a small building flickered through her mind. "You're going to go say goodbye to him?" Hinata asked and Ashura smiled at the group. "I wish to tell him I love him and that I will do everything I can to help his home." She said and the group nodded. She watched as they made their way across the bridge, only Sasuke stopped to linger and watch her for a moment. She could tell he didn't believe her. He was quite perceptive that one, always had been.

"What are you doing?" he asked and she crossed her arms over her chest. "I will only tell you if you don't tell them, they worry too much sometimes." She sighed and he frowned at her. "They are well within their reason to." He muttered as he stepped closer to her. He reached up and pulled the helmet from her head gently. She couldn't look him in the eyes, she really didn't want him to know. "I know there is something going on with you, you aren't telling anyone and you are acting odd." He grumbled and she still refused to meet his gaze. "If you don't tell me, I will tell them. I know the signs. I've seen this before, only at a much worse scale. You know I have..." He said softly, his tone different from the usual bite.

"Let me see." He pleaded as he grabbed her chin gently. She looked him in the eyes and he sighed. "How long?" he asked and she frowned, she knew he had seen this before. She couldn't forget that he had, it had been Uldren the last time. She looked at herself in the reflection of his helmet, the shining silver of her eyes surrounded by the foreboding darkness. Like smoke swirling in her eyes. "Since I vanished. She pulled me here, out of my bed." She said and he sighed. "I knew you had made a wish, but I wasn't sure what you had promised her." He sighed and she offered a sad smile. "Nothing anymore, she reneged on her part. I have lost two of the ones she promised me who would live. I don't want to lose anyone else." She said and he nodded.

"So what do you plan on doing?" he asked and she smiled. "I plan on saying goodbye to Uldren, and ending her. Of course I wont be doing it alone, I will have all of you. I will come back." She said and he nodded. He held out his hand to her and she gripped his tightly. "I promise I won't go pull another Taniks." She said with a smirk and she physically felt him roll his eyes, it seeped off of him... the sass. Just like it had with Uldren. "You better not, because he isn't here to help us reign you in." He sighed and she smiled up at him. "He's not physically here, but I feel his presence... Lingering and every now and then it feels like we cross paths. I cant quite describe it other than... a wisp of light." She sighed and looked up to the small building once more.

It felt like the touch of his fingertips as they caressed her cheeks ever so gently. It felt like every time his lips would touch her skin trailing little butterfly kisses up to her cheek and along her jawline. That little wisp of light... it made her feel all those small intimate feelings that he had, so she was going to enjoy it every chance she got. "I have to go, Ino is wondering what my hold up is." He sighed and she nodded gently. "You all be safe, I will do the same." She said and he nodded as he vanished from sight, a small pebble dropping to the ground where he once stood. That right there would never fail to amaze her.

She turned to look back up to the tower in the distance once more. The wisp caressed her cheek once more and she looked to see Uldren standing there beside her, the knuckles of his fingers dragging over her cheekbones gently. Her eyes slipped shut as her heart ached for the feeling. He motioned for her to follow him and she did. "I'm so sorry, my love..." She whispered and he shook his head. "No. If anyone should apologize, it should be me." He said and she frowned as she followed him. She knew he wasn't real, she knew he was just an apparition created by Riven. She didn't care though. She was just happy to see him once more.

'He is not of our creation.'

Ashura couldn't help the look of confusion that crossed her face. If he didn't belong to riven, what made him? Upon seeing the look on her face, he released a laugh. That genuine rumbling laugh that made her heart soar. She looked over to him and he offered a hand to her. She reached out, but as she expected her hand passed right through. "Don't tell me you cant recognize a ghost when you see one." He mused and she looked over at him oddly. "Seriously? You're surrounded by ghosts all day every day and you don't even recognize when one is right beside you?" he asked and her heart dropped.

"Are you... a mechanical ghost?" she asked, searching around her for his small hovering body. He sighed and shook his head. "I am ethereal." He said and she sighed as she rubbed her eyes. "Fuck, you're haunting me?" she asked and he laughed at this as well. She couldn't help the smile that crossed her lips as they made their way up the stairs to the top of the tower. "I mean, I'm just surprised Cayde's ghost isn't haunting the both of us." He sighed and she cracked up at this. "A ghost scared of being haunted by a ghost. What an oddity." She mused and he smirked at her.

When she approached the top of the steps, she could see the dais he was laid to rest upon. She reached out to touch the body on top and he stepped in front of her to stop her. "I... wouldn't do that. You would never find me attractive again." He said and her heart ached. She reached down to place his Starshard back on him but he stopped her from doing that as well. "That is yours now... Give it to Noah when he gets older and tell him all about me." He said and she frowned at him. She looked down to the blade, which had been dark and silent for the longest time now.

Its glow was enchanting to her, it wasn't like before but it was just as beautiful. "I told you it was actually me." He mused as she held the blade closer to his visage. She turned to smile at him, but her heart stopped when a taken portal opened up and swallowed the both of them. He looked around him and then to her. "What is this?" he asked and her heart raced, this was Riven. The familiar clawed appendage reached down and scooped her up. She leaned over the side of the hand to see him following up on his own. She came face to face with the large creature and she cursed under her breath. When Riven spoke, it wasn't the usual tone she had been familiar with. It was a voice she knew deep in her soul and it sounded so foreign to her after not hearing it for so long. Uldren's ghost seemed caught off guard by this voice as well.

"We request this one keeps her end of their deal." Kira's voice echoed around them. "What the hell do you think you are doing? Using my sister's voice to speak to me?" Ashura snarled and the creature watched her oddly. "We thought it would be of some comfort." Riven said and Ashura narrowed her eyes. "Why do you want to comfort us? What could you possibly have to say that would want us to be comforted by YOU?" Ashura snapped and the creature was silent once more before she moved Ashura closer to Uldren. "We intend to uphold our promise of the wish." She said and Ashura narrowed her eyes at Riven once more.

"Show me how." She demanded and with that, the space around them began to change, revealing the same area they had been before. Uldren's body still lay upon the Dais as it had before, only now a small ghost with a reef themed shell was scanning him. After a moment Uldren's body shot up and he gasped for air. Ashura looked over at Uldren's ghost, he didn't seem too sold on the possibility of this actually happening. "And what about Cayde?" Ashura snapped and Uldren's head jerked to look over at her as their surroundings shifted once more. She knew what this place was, it was the infinite forest on mercury. Then the gateway of the infinite forest flashed brightly, a shaded image emerging from within, stumbling forward and shaking themselves out. Ashura's heart fluttered when she heard Cayde's voice echo around them.

"We will even show you someone else who will benefit from you keeping the deal with us." She said and the image of Osiris appeared before them. A large figure appeared behind him and she couldn't tell who the person was, only that she could tell they were a titan and held a brilliant violet glow. She looked over to Uldren's ghost and she smiled at him softly. His eyes went wide and he reached out to her. "Ashura no!" he yelled as she looked up to Riven once more. "I accept." She said and she turned to look at Uldren's ghost once more and tears were streaking over his cheeks as he appeared to be frozen in the position he had been when he had tried to stop her. His image began to pulse with light and then it faded away and she looked over to riven once more.

Riven opened a portal to the Dais and she looked through to see that Uldren was sitting up looking around. The sweet little ghost, Pulled Pork hovering around him in excitement. Tears slipped over her cheeks as she watched as he stood and observed his surroundings. "We have kept our end of the deal, now you... You must keep yours." Riven said and Ashura nodded. "What is it that you need me to do?" She asked and Riven leaned closer to her and Ashura now felt uneasy. "Protect us." She said and Ashura swallowed nervously. Her heart began to race as she looked down to see that the familiar odd inky substance was crawling up over her legs. Ashura's eyes slipped shut as she allowed the stuff to cover her form.

Tears streaked down over her cheeks as the substance crawled up her throat and over her mouth and nose. She expected there to be difficulty breathing, but there was none. She looked around and expected to be consumed mentally as well as physically, but she wasn't. She looked around and noticed that when she tried to move her body, she couldn't control it. She wanted nothing more than to open her mouth and scream, but nothing would come out. She could scream as long as she wanted and yet her lungs would never tire. She looked around for Kabr, but he was nowhere to be found. That she knew of... her eyes caught sight of a small floating object and her heart raced once more.

Riven had taken them both.

:-:-:-:

Misra looked around. Something didn't feel right... She looked up and saw more of the taken blights forming in the sky around them. She glanced at the others in the group and it seemed like they had noticed this as well. "Something has happened." Artemis said as she touched the ground. It wasn't long before a shockwave rushed over them making all of them stumble. They looked to see where it had come from and saw that the dais where Uldren's body had been laid to rest was crumbling away. Misra tried to take off running that way, but Rev grabbed her.

A scream rang out and they all looked around to see where it had come from, but there was nothing. The energy in the building before them released a smaller shockwave and they exchanged looks before rushing in to see what was causing this. Misra ran up the steps and stopped at the large door at the top. The doorway rippled with what appeared to be a barrier. She stuck her hand through and waited a moment before she went through. It looked like an arena in there. She looked around and saw all the little platforms scattered about the room, only for her eyes to land on the small area in the center of the room.

"Welcome to the blind well, guardians." Petra's voice rang out over their comms and they all looked around at the dark room. "Misra, remember that crystal I gave you? You power it here, it is how we get into the oracle to see if we can find the queen. There are multiple charges you can use, the higher a charge, the more it charges the offering crystal." She explained and Misra looked down at the crystal in her grasp. "Lets get this over with." Misra said as she made her way into the center of the room, the group following her. they stood before the centerpiece and Misra looked at the tier three charge she held in her hand.

"Fuck it." She said and slammed it into the opening. It wasn't long before taken flooded the area. "Perhaps you should have attempted the first tier Misra, this one is dangerous." Petra scolded and Misra smirked as another taken minotaur clambered over the top of the wall around them. "Never! Tomfoolery away!" she cheered and proceeded to rip the leg off of this one and use it as a weapon as well. Sand swirled around them, knocking enemies away from them while they fought. Naruto's clones appeared all around them and began taking down the taken.

Misra stumbled out of the bubble they had been in and she felt heavy. She looked towards the group, who were all doing well still and she grunted as she attempted to throw herself back into the lit area. "Don't go out there, air heavy." She groaned from the floor and they looked at her oddly as they fought around her. She remained crumpled on the floor until she felt like she was better. She then threw the minotaur leg at a taken captain with a yell of 'Yeet.' Artemis stuck her hand outside the area and frowned when she turned back to the group.

"Stay in these bubbles as long as you can. We will be smothered by the darkness if we leave." She said and Misra gave her a look that said, Duh. Movement on the ceiling above them caught her eye and she tried to track the creature's movements, but she couldn't quite tell where it was going through the distorted view of the bubble keeping them safe. "There's something out there that isn't a normal taken." She called out to the group and the looked up to where she was pointing, the creature jumping from pillar to pillar outside of the bubble. It was watching them.

The next area opened up and they rushed to get over to it. The continued to fight off the offending taken, that thing still watching them. After a while of fighting, the odd receptacle in the center released a beam of light and Petra told them to up the charge to open the portal at the top of the hill. They followed her order and a familiar creature came out of it. A chimera. "Ok, so the flying butthole thing?" Misra sighed and the group looked at her. "It makes little orbs that make it immune to gunfire, shoot them down and then we can damage it again." She said and the group nodded. Artemis had nominated herself for tether control.

Naruto was obviously on small enemy control while Sakura cracked her knuckles and prepared to take down larger enemies. Sasuke pulled a hand cannon and stood beside Ino and Misra, each of their hand cannons focused on the creature before them one by one the weapons burst into flames and they took aim. When the chimera turned towards them, the three of them released a barrage of golden gun rounds right into its mouth. With a horrendous screech a small portal opened behind it, sucking the creature in piece by piece.

They looked around as the atmosphere of the room cleared up and they could move around freely once more. "Good!" Petra patched in. "Misra, Artemis, rendezvous with Nina and I at the Oracle, the rest of you feel free to continue to explore. I need to send three of you on a strike. We have a techuen that was taken by riven and I need you to save her." She said and the group nodded. "Hinata, Sasuke, and I would like to go after the Techuen." Ino called out and Petra returned with a mumble of agreement and said she would send coordinates to them.

Misra looked around as the group dispersed and she sighed as she looked around to try and find the creature that had been watching them so intently. She looked up to where the portal was now closed and it was sitting there at the top of the steps, a curious tilt to its head. It wasn't attacking, so she was going to leave whatever it was alone for now. She made her way out of the building, Artemis not far behind her. They summoned their sparrows and took off to the path to the left of them that had blue crystals covering the inside of the overhang. They came across a small gap and put their sparrows away once more. They hopped over and made their way over to the next area, which had a pathway that led down to a larger building.

They took out any scorn in their path and came upon the building where Petra's ship hovered overhead. They looked down to the gate that led into the building and saw that Petra was there waiting for them, Nina by her side. "Come on now, I don't have all day." She mused and Misra shook her head at the woman. "Like the new cloak." Misra said and Petra offered her a small smile. "Ok, lets go talk to my Queen." She said and led them inside. They made their way up the steps along the side of the room, there stood another one of those small star maps in the amethyst. Petra began doing something on the stone once more, then reached for the offering crystal Misra had. Misra handed it to her and it absorbed into the stone before them.

Petra stepped back and they watched as the large oracle began moving parts around it. A platform swirled around and stopped before them and Petra stepped up onto it softly. She turned back to them and motioned for them to follow her once the sphere of the oracle opened to reveal a portal within. Petra rushed within and they followed. The moment she saw Mara sitting on a throne, Petra dropped to one knee before her and began pleading with her. Telling her how much she had missed her and so on so forth. Misra stepped forward and Mara offered a hand out to her. She went for her forearm instead and a small smile crossed over the Queen's lips as she returned the gesture.

"Are your memories returning?" she asked and Misra shook her head. "I see bits and pieces, but nothing too grand honestly. I wish I could remember..." She sighed and Mara nodded. "It should all return in due time. I recommend not rushing it, if you do you might corrupt the memories. Let them come back naturally." She said as she looked out over the ledge of her throne world. "I am upset over something though." She sighed and Misra watched her curiously. "How did none of you notice Ashura was corrupted by Riven?" she said and Petra stared at her in shock.

"I had no idea." Petra said and Mara nodded to her. "But they did. They knew she made the wish, and because of Riven... she killed my dearest brother." Mara said, then her eyes cut to Petra. "Something you were willing to do as well." She pointed out and Petra dropped her head in shame. "He killed awoken..." she pleaded with Mara, but Mara didn't seem to care. That was what Misra found odd. The woman cared if her brother died, but she didn't care about the lives lost because of him. She withheld her mistrust of this woman, she needed her for now, but when they found Ashura she was going to let her know that something wasn't right with the queen.

Mara turned back to them once more and looked dead at Artemis. "I have a job for you. There is a dungeon below my city. I need you to go clear it of the taken. Consult with the statue of Sjur to retrieve your prize for doing so, since you all seem to need rewards for everything you do." The queen bit out bitterly and Misra once again denied the urge to make her distaste known. They all bowed before her once more and made their way out. When they stepped off the platform Misra looked between Nina and Artemis silently. "Well, lets go." She said and they nodded.

:-:-:-:-:

She followed them through the shattered throne. She wondered briefly why she hadn't attacked them, but she was grateful. She didn't want to hurt them, but if she did she couldn't stop herself. She had encountered another like her, he was more interested in her than he was them it seemed. She glanced behind her to see him still following her around. He had clearly been a titan at one time, his bulky armor singing that tune clearly. She wondered if he had been trapped by a wish as well. His movements were not predatory, not like hers were.

She didn't like not being in control of her own body. She sighed as she lunged to another area, gripping onto a column and circling it to watch her friends. She followed them all the way through to where the approached the statue. She slipped down and got closer. She realized what Riven was using her for now. She wanted a spy... she willed herself to ignore everything they were talking about, but she couldn't tune it out no matter how hard she tried.

"Offer your talismans." The statue commanded and the three of them placed the talismans before the statue. "A gift from a traitor, how... unheard of." The statue of Sjur mused when Nina placed hers before it. The two others looked over to the woman in curiosity, not understanding why the statue had called her out as a traitor. Ashura didn't understand either. She watched as Nina knelt before the statue and begged forgiveness from Sjur. Ashura slipped closer so she could hear better. Nina was admitting that she had killed Sjur Eido. The embodied light of Sjur turned her direction and she slipped back against the wall to blend in.

"Now is not the time or place for you to beg. Stand and do what you do best... Kill." She commanded and the embodiment of her became the image of a long bow. "I grant you the Wish ender. It will come of use to you in due time." Sjur said and Ashura felt Riven hiss angrily in her mind. This seemed to be something she was worried about. 'Dragon Slayer' She seethed in her mind and Ashura was confused. She soon realized though, that Sjur was one of the awoken who had gone out on Ahamkara killing expeditions. She smirked inwardly as Artemis took the bow. It couldn't be in better hands, she never missed anyways.

She hoped they would free her.

"You need to find the Queen." Sjur stated and they looked up at the statue once more. "We have already found the queen, she is within the throne world." Misra called out, but Sjur chastised her swiftly. "I am full aware of where that one is. I mean the Queen of Kells." Sjur said and Ashura was confused by this. "The prophecy of that is all screwed. There's no way we can come back from it now... At least that's what we have heard." Misra argued and Ashura listened intently. "That is where you are wrong, young one. This is only a break in the path. There are always other paths to take to get to the same destination. She has ensured that much." Sjur stated and she was so confused. "Can you tell us anything more?" Misra asked but the apparition of Sjur faded away. She was extremely amused when Misra yelled something out about everyone and their damn prophecies and being a bunch of cryptic assholes.

She watched as the trio made their way further into the dungeon, she made a move to follow, but the titan from before grabbed a hold of her and threw her against the wall. She didn't feel the pain, and that she was grateful for. He made his way over to her and pulled a taken sword and held it to her neck. "I suggest you crawl back to whatever hole in hell you came out of creature." He said and heard herself screech at him from the ground. She had never felt so trapped in her own body before. She lunged for him when he turned his back and she took him over the edge of a platform. He opened a portal beneath them and they collided with solid ground. She rolled to her feet and watched as he rushed at her, sword held high over his head.

He swung it down on her and she rolled to the side, her body contorting out of the way that if she thought about it too much it would make her sick. He missed every hit he attempted to land on her, but she couldn't land any on him either. Similar to that of taken thrall, he would blink in and out of existence it seemed. She knew it was probably just the effect of being taken. He ran her through with his blade and she screeched at him once more, her body struggling to remove herself from the blade but he had rammed her into a wall. She felt a mild relief wash over her, seeing as if she were stuck pinned to a wall she couldn't cause any harm to the others. That relief was short lived as she pulled her legs up and sent him flying backwards and she pulled herself right off the blades handle.

He rushed at her once more, this time he lunged and tried to shoulder charge her, but she hopped up and onto his shoulder and sent him sprawling to the ground with her knees in his back. He ripped her off of his back and threw her. she rolled to her feet and looked up at him from a crouch. Her secondary arms made themselves known, flexing dangerously at him. He seemed slightly disgusted by this. "By the traveler... what hell did you crawl out of." He muttered and if she could show her distaste for that comment she would. She rushed at him, but before she could touch him he opened a portal beneath him and he vanished from sight. He appeared behind her and slammed his fists against the ground, Shards of black ice sprouted from the ground and encased her.

She watched as the taken aura faded from his form to reveal an Exo. Her eyes went wide as she realized who he was. This was one of Eris' teammates! He was the Exo who had gone missing when she had first been revived. He turned to walk away from her, but she kept trying to call out to him. She regained just enough ground on the taken consuming her to call out to him.

"A-Arma Sordes."

He whirled on her then and looked her over curiously. "So you are in there..." He murmured and she continued to struggle within the ice. "Such a shame, I guess I will have to let you live a little longer. Perhaps they can free you, because... sorry to say that's not my job." He sighed and she watched him with a rage burning deep within her. 'Why you lazy Bastard.' She growled inwardly as he strolled away, his hands folded behind his head. He paused after he had gotten about fifteen feet away and turned back towards her, if he were human she would have sworn there was a wicked smirk on his face.

"Have a nice fall, kid."

It wasn't long after he said this that the ground opened up beneath her and she felt her body drop, still encased in the ice. She looked down to see that he had literally dropped her from above The Dreaming City. She fell straight into the fog, struggling to free her limbs the entire way. She saw the ground coming swiftly and she closed her eyes, but the collision never came. She looked down to see that she had fallen right into a familiar hand. She groaned inwardly as Riven thumped the ice and it shattered to the ground below. Riven looked her over in interest.

"How kind of it to return our treasure." She said and Ashura couldn't help the rage that burned within her. She wanted nothing more than to spew vulgarities at the creature, and it seemed as if she could tell. Judging by the amused pat she received to her head from a single clawed finger.

:-:-:-:

Misra sighed as they all met back up in the tower. They had been searching everywhere for Ashura, but even her light was untraceable. She panicked when she saw the young boy make his way over to her and sit down at the table with her. "Hey Kiddo" she greeted softly and he just stared at her, his lower lip poked out. "What's got you in a mess little man?" she asked and he looked to his fingers. "Mommy." He said and she frowned. She patted him on the head lightly and he tucked himself into her side. "What about your momma kiddo?" she asked and he looked up at her with the saddest look in his little eyes.

"She misses me." He said softly and she ruffled his hair. "I know." She said then caught on to what he had actually said. "You spoke to your mom?" she asked and he nodded. She watched him silently for a moment, unsure of how this could be when they had been trying for weeks now to get in touch with her and failed. "How did she come see you kiddo?" she asked and he blew a raspberry at her, not the stick your tongue out disrespectful type, but rather the exasperated type. "In my sleep." He said softly as he began rolling a small orb of light across the surface of the table.

Ok so that wasn't so far fetched. Ashura had the tendency to have the weirdest dreams, so it couldn't be too much of a fib if Noah did too. "So what did she say?" she asked and he held up the little ball of light for her to take, which she did and she pretended to eat it which made him slump over on the table. She placed it back in front of him and he smiled up at her, all she could see was a tiny Ashura it was adorable. "Momma said... I love you, bean. I love you." He repeated this a few times and she sighed as she pulled him closer. That was Ashura alright, he was her little beanie baby.

"Anything else?" she asked and he looked up at her. "She is sad..." he murmured and she gripped his shoulder gently. "Nightmare place." He muttered, only to then roar like a little dragon and her jaw dropped slightly. He roared at the little ball of light and picked it up and told it to 'protect us' before he dropped it. Ok so the kid was definitely talking about Riven, judging by the remarks of the dragon. "Ok, buddy. We are going to take a trip to good old Uncle Drifter for a minute, and then I am gonna go try and make your momma come home, Ok?" she offered and He nodded rapidly as she scooped him up out of the seat.

She briefly looked back over to her food, only to sigh and leave it. She did grab her drink though. She rushed down to the Drifter and she slipped under his bars with Noah still in her grasp. He quirked a brow at her upon seeing them. "Uh... whatcha got there?" he asked and she looked at him oddly. "What do you mean? Never seen a kid before?" she asked and he rolled his eyes. "Not that." He grumbled and she looked to the smoothie in her other hand. "A smoothie?" she offered and he narrowed his eyes at her this time. "No you idiot, that!" he grumbled pointing to her hip.

She looked down to see the last word strapped to her hip, in her mind she was poking her lips out in a 'why you suspicious?' manner. Too bad he couldn't see it cause he probably woulda laughed. "Nope, don't see nothin." She said, looking directly at the weapon on her hip. "Nothing at all huh?" he asked and she nodded as she dropped Noah in front of him and slipped back under the bars. "Uh... what the hell am I supposed to do with the kid?!" he yelled as she took off up the stairs nearby. She made it all the way up the stairs when she saw a familiar little bird there.

She groaned in exasperation as she proceeded to follow the bird. It lead her all the way down into the city below and she grumbled the entire time. She slipped through the crack in the wall and watched as it burst into flames and Osiris appeared before her. She looked him up and down a few good times and grinned internally. "Misra!" Elkin scolded and she chuckled lightly. He already knew what she was thinking. She very much did enjoy the fact she liked what she liked. "Bird daddy." She greeted, only to freeze when she realized it had actually come from her mouth.

"Fuck." She mumbled as he just continued to stare at her oddly. "Where is Ashura, I keep trying to contact her but something keeps slaughtering my phoenixes." He grumbled after a moment of just staring at her in a cross between amusement and slight disgust. "Uh... Yeah, bout that. She hasn't contacted any of us directly, but she has found a way to communicate with Noah." She said and he raised a brow at her. "Yeah yeah I get it the visiting in the dreams thing is odd but its her thing. She basically told him Riven has her protecting her." Misra sighed and Osiris went silent once more.

"She collected on her debt it seems." He mumbled after a moment and she looked up at him oddly. "What did she wish for?" he asked and Misra tried her best to remember. "I think it was something about... ensuring neither Cayde or Uldren die, but they did so..." She sighed and crossed her arms over her chest. "What were her exact words?" he asked and Misra delved into the depths of her memory. She cursed under her breath when she realized what he meant.

"Her exact words, as she told me were: I wish that everyone I love will be safe, I wish that they all will live." She repeated to him and he furrowed his brow for a moment. "They all?" he muttered and she looked at him oddly. "She said them all, not them both." He muttered once more and suddenly his head snapped up to meet her gaze. "She made the wish for more than just Uldren and Cayde. She made the wish to save so many more. Riven definitely perverted that wish..." he bit out and she cursed under her breath as well. "Anyone Ashura held dear needs to be monitored at all costs, starting with her son." He ordered and she nodded.

"I will let Zavala know not to let Loki leave the city for a while either." She said as she turned to make her way back up to the city. She looked over her shoulder to see him vanish in the same way he had appeared. She made her way up to where Zavala hung out. "Zavala! We have to keep a close eye on Loki and Noah." She said and he turned to face her, Noah waved at her from the ground in front of Zavala. "Clearly." He stated and she shook her head. "Riven is after Loki and Noah." She said and Zavala narrowed his eyes. "Ashura made a wish to save everyone she loved, Noah and Loki are part of this because of that." She explained and he frowned.

"But so are you."

:-:-:-:-:

Misra watched the taken carefully, it didn't seem to want to make a move on them as of yet. She circled around behind where he was seated and he just watched her. Sakura was circling around the other side, Sasuke was in the middle. They were going to do what they could for this taken guardian. They all lunged for him at the same time, but when they made contact with the space he had been, he was gone and there was a dent from where their attacks hit. Before they realized where he had gone, Sakura had been sent flying with a swift elbow in the gut.

He lunged for her next and she did a backflip to avoid his punch. She skid backwards and landed in a crouch. She whipped her head up to look at him, but his sword was already coming down on her. It was swiftly intercepted and sent flying to the side by Sasuke's sword. The taken lunged for his own blade, only for Sasuke to follow. Their swords clashed repeatedly and Sasuke chuckled lightly. "Gotta say the guy has good moves." He mused and Misra nodded as they continued to exchange blows with the blades. Misra raised her arm over her head, summoning the sentinel shield she had become quite fond of. She spun to the side and let it fly.

She released a haughty chuckle as it made contact, however, it was short lived when she realized that in the midst of his sword fight... the taken had caught it in one hand. He slipped his arm through it and immediately sent Sasuke flying into the wall. She scratched the back of her neck nervously as Sasuke looked over at her from where he had hit the wall. "My bad..." she mumbled and he just shook his head as he looked to where Sakura was now exchanging blows with the taken titan with her large flaming hammer. He proceeded to grab the hammer by the handle and headbutt Sakura, who cursed loudly as she stumbled back. The taken titan dropped the hammer on the ground and kicked it away, moments later it disappeared.

He cracked his knuckles and slammed them against the floor, large shards of black ice rushing across the floor every time his fists made contact. They all dodged the ice, Sasuke and Sakura taking to the walls to escape while Misra just kept running away. After a moment the titan stopped sending the ice out and he sat down on the steps. He began dusting himself off. The appearance of the taken vanished from his form and they all stared at him in shock for a moment before Misra lunged forward and screamed at him. "You asshole!"

He Just looked up at her with a sigh. "I'm not the one who attacked first and asked questions later." He offered matter of factly and she crossed her arms over her chest as Sasuke and Sakura dropped down before them once more. "You could have said something, though." She grumbled and he chuckled lightly. "Where would the fun have been in that?" he asked and she glared at him. "What are you looking for here?" he asked and they sighed. "We are looking for our friend, she was taken by Riven." They explained and he seemed disgusted at the mention of this.

"Ah. So that Creature is your friend then?" he asked and Misra still didn't like him, especially not for how he referred to Ashura. "What, don't give me that look... She crawled straight out of some kind of hell. Creepy four armed creatures." He grumbled and they looked at him in confusion. "So... You don't like fallen either?" Misra asked and he waved a hand in the air. "Nah they're chill sometimes. But whatever that woman is... nah. Don't like that." He said and Misra wanted to scream. "Look the fallen don't go running around screeching at you like some psycho banshee, nor do they sprout more arms out of nowhere. She gave me a better fight than all of you honestly." He said nonchalantly and this time it was Sasuke's turn to be pissed off.

"Ok so next time we should just focus on killing you instead of trying to save you, got it." Sasuke bit out and the titan looked over at them in interest. "Really... hmm... perhaps we will have to go all out in our sparring next time." He said and they all shook their head. "Ok, so you weren't taken, so what the hell are you?" Misra bit out and he only chuckled. "I am not from the light." He said and she blinked. "Wait... I've heard that before... You're a friend of the Stranger's!" She yelled and he nodded.

"Not sure why yall call her that but yeah, that's her." He said and Misra rubbed her face in irritation. "She won't tell us her name." she grumbled and he shrugged as he leaned back against the steps. "Well, not my place so... yeah... I guess I could be nice and tell you where you can find the other's who have been taken like your friend." He sighed and they looked over to him once more. "What, disguising yourself as a taken actually comes in handy sometimes. They don't realize you aren't one of them. Riven doesn't seem to care where I go so, I free roam around here." He said and Misra rocked her head from side to side in understanding.

"So, she has them all protecting her. You'll have to raid her lair to save them." He said this as if it were the easiest thing to do. "You'll need that bow your friend got down in the shattered throne." He said offhandedly and Misra blinked over at him. "Your friend was following you, and I was following her." He said simply and she shook her head. This guy was odd. "I can show you where you will need to go, but I'm not going back down there. Dark disgusting places are not something I am too fond of." He said with a shrug and Misra sighed, as if any of them wanted to go down there.

:-:-:-:-:

She watched as Riven became antsy. She was clearly angry, judging from the screeches that echoed around them. She wasn't sure what had riled her up this way, but it had to be good if she were swatting things around in rage. Climbing all about and screeching like an annoying banshee. Ashura looked down to the tunnel that you had to go through to get into this room and was pleasantly surprised to see familiar faces. Her form dropped to the floor before them the moment screeched out a 'protect me.' The six of them watched her carefully as she screeched at them.

She couldn't stop herself and she knew this was going to be bad. She was glad that she knew their abilities and that Riven didn't. Not to their full extent anyways, she was glad that they had chosen to face Riven with the group they had. Hinata's radiant light comforted her soul and she couldn't help but sigh in relief. Ashura heard herself screech at the group once more before she lunged. Misra jumped out of the way and summoned her sentinel shield. Defensive maneuvers, good. Ashura's clawed hands collided with the shield time after time, only for a large solar hammer to come down at her from above.

She rolled out of the way of the hammer, only to see Artemis coming back in with another swing. She launched herself directly up into the air and spun to the right to change her direction. She landed beside Misra in a crouched position, only to launch her up into the air with a swift kick. She was screaming as she proceeded to land hit after hit on Misra, rag dolling the Exo from one end of the room to the other. She hit the ground in a crumpled heap of dented metal and sparking wires.

"Subdue her!" one of them yelled, but she jumped and rolled out of the way of one of Shikamaru's shadow hands. She lunged for Artemis once more, but a Hive knight crawled up from the ground before her. She dug her claws into the creatures head and threw his head across the room. Octavia continued to summon hive after hive and she took them all down one by one. An ogre reached up from behind and slammed its fist down onto her, successfully downing her if only for a moment. She lunged for its eye and when she made contact, her secondary arms began pelting its eye with everything they had attempting to blind it.

An arrow struck across her back and she released her grip on the ogre with a scream. She whipped to look over at Artemis once more, who was notching another arrow. It flew straight past her face and she screeched at the titan once more as she rushed for her, only to be hit with a palm to the gut that actually winded her. She hit the ground and tolled to a stop a few feet away. "Forgive me, Ashura." Hinata's soft voice called out to her. Ashura finally sighed in relief as she laid there paralyzed. She hadn't wanted to hurt any of them, but she could not get even the slightest bit of control over her body.

She stared over at Misra, who had just pulled herself up off the ground, cursing the entire time. She watched as all the dents and frayed wires fixed themselves under the kind light of her ghost. She allowed herself to calm down now, she hadn't wanted to hurt her. She hadn't wanted this for any of them... she watched as they all fought for their lives against riven now, a spectacular sight to behold. She couldn't be happier when the Ahamkara released a scream of pain, her final scream. She enjoyed the reverberation of her body colliding with the ground below her.

However...

She wasn't free.

As a last ditch effort it seemed Riven had regained control of her. She lunged right for Artemis, who had landed the final blow with that bow. A flash of white light halted all of her progress though, and the next thing she knew she was suspended in air, just hovering. The pure white coated everything around her, and she struggled to try and see what was happening. When the light began to fade, she saw glowing white eyes staring back at her.

Only for a scream to rip through her being and everything went dark once more.