UO-Universe

The Lunatics went back to their hotel room.

Some random guy screamed and began convulsing on the ground right by the UO.

"Help me, help me," he screamed as he flopped.

"Hey! Woah, what's the matter guy?" Aud yelled in concern as she tried to get him to stop moving so much.

"Help me, help me!" the man continued to scream. People began stopping and staring. Several of them began pointing at the UO and whispering together. A large crowd started to gather, watching the UO and the man as he flopped on the ground.

"Sorry guy but uh," Aud grabbed a dirty sock out of nowhere and stuffed it into the man's mouth to stifle his screaming. "Don't worry people! We're just trying to help!"

She turned back to the remaining UO members, "PSST, how exactly do we not screw something up?"

Snovalichi was waiting for them. "Hey there, brothers."

Xane shrugged unhelpfully.

***

"Why'd you leave?" Daelen asked, sighing. "We'd found who you were looking for."

"That man's trying to kill me, man!" Snovalichi exclaimed. "He's gonna rip my frunking tunk in!"

"...But he's a member of the UO," Daelen frowned.

"Thanks," Aud said sarcastically, shaking her head. "If I had my powers I could do something but uh, I don't, so..."

She discreetly pushed a pressure point on the man, knocking him out.

~*~

"Geez, aren't you popular with murderers?" Alarisset remarked. "Why? what did you do?"

"I got the fronmk out, sister," Snovalichi explained. "Listen I gotta talk to the Ultimate Organization. You have to tell them that their lives are in danger. Don't trust the Baon's, man. Don't trust the Baon's."

"What's going on here!" a policeman yelled. "What did you do to that man? Who are you!" More police showed up, talking on radios to bring more backup.

"Let's arrest them!" A guard agreed.

"Take 'em to the brig on Artemis Rock!" The constable snarled.

***

"Though the weather outside is SPITEful," Spite Mask sang villainously. "Your demise will be delightful..." he shouted at the villains.

"Or just shoot them!" the sheriff shouted, raising his gun and beginning to fire at the UO. "They're dangerous!"

"What's wrong with you people?" A Legionnaire, the only proper soldier, questioned as he stepped forward.

"HELHE HELHE!" the man screamed through the fabric in his mouth, his limbs smacking the pavement. The fabric fell out of his mouth. "Help me help me they poisoned me!" he yelled. "The Ultimate Organization!"

"That's why we gotta take 'em to the rock!" the centurion sighed. "Between this world and that one, that one has the better prisons!"

The Legionnaires brook up the crowd of idiots and arrested the UO. "We're bringing them to the jail and then we're shipping them back to the Sora System. No one goes to Artemis Rock, it's a red zone," He warned as the unit of blue cloaked men surrounded the UO and began to march them off into the town-centre...

***

Snovalichi glared at the Lunatics, waiting for a response...

Capima, Valhalla Station

The Admiral stood looking out over the massive command deck, hundreds of junior officers all working hard, monitoring every inch of space within four astrological units of the Capitol. This station was incredible, it’s main guns could bring down a Dreadnaught in a single blast, the place could dock five dreadnaughts, three leviathans, and hundreds of cruisers and battleships. The old man was supremely proud, looking out into the dark reaches, seeing the tens of dozens of tiny lights that were frigates and cruisers on his impenetrable patrol paths, everyone following his exact protocols to the letter. Sure the Queen had brought the Valhalla to the Capitol to defend it but he was the one who would protect the jewel of the empire. Him. Admiral Grog, the Diamond Wall of Sor. In the six months since the Capitol had been seized form the King the people below had never been safer.

“Sir?”

“Huh? Oh, it’s you Forez, what is it?”

“Sir, the outer pickets of Hosmer report several large Loyalist vessels moving toward us. They suggest taking defensive measures.”

The Admiral huffed, “Hosmer eh? That’s admiral Chu’s post right? That dump bitch wouldn’t know danger if it snuck up behind her and shoved it right up her- he stopped and cleared his throat, standing straighter, “Continue as always, Captain, if those Loyalist scum do try attacking they won’t last long.”

“Aye sir…” the Captain saluted and headed off on his way, the Admiral returning to patting himself on the back.

It was several hours later when the Admiral sat down to the stately officers mess for dinner, having heard more and more reports of Loyalist forces, apparently they were just moving around near the front, he didn’t see why they bothered sending warning here, Capima was the Prize, sure, but the Queen was elsewhere, talking to the Loyalist Leader, and they didn’t’ have the fleet to assault even an outer colony world, let alone the capitol. He was getting tired of these reports from junior officers scared by a blatant enemy, something they hadn’t seen, Grog, however, had seen it all his life. He cut into his perfect steak and took the chunk of bloody meat to his mouth, “Morons…” he shoved the food in and began to chew, savoring the flavor. His castle was perfect, perfect and impenetrable.

His com clicked on, a voice echoing through it, “Sir, forward observations are reporting four Loyalist frigates and one cruiser exiting subspace in orbit around Kalios.” Kalios was the fifteenth and last planet at the very outer reaches of the Capima System, uninhabitable and tiny the thing was smaller than asome of the system’s moons

He groaned, “Oh come one, Forze, I’m eating here, can’t you do anything without me? Her Majesty is currently trying to negotiate with those traitors, for whatever the hell reason she has, so just Leave them be.” He clicked the com to mute.

“But sir-”

“For the love of the Matran, if they get past Lurza fire a warning shot or kill them outright I don’t care just leave me be!” he hit the right button this time.

The silverware shook lightly, the fine chine tea cup clanking against its saucer as the tea within rippling slightly. The Admiral glanced out the window to the dark space beyond, seeing several of the vessels, none were turning and so he pulled out his data pad and scrolled down. Ah, thought so, a meteor shower scheduled for tonight… how annoying a shining crystalline rock flew past the window, bounding off the shield as the base shook slightly again, but they are pretty… he conceded as he returned to his meal.

He was a few more bites in before another noticeable shake hit the base. He just shrugged it off as these things happened often with debris passing by, and so he picked up his tea. Another shaking caused the hot liquid to slosh out and land on the white table cloth. “Shit!” he cursed and began to drink again when another shake, much more violent made him spill it on himself as he dropped the glass to the floor, where it shattered, standing as he began to wipe his stained white uniform down. “Goddamn it, how long is this stupid shower going to-” this time the shockwave was most certainly not a meteorite hitting the shields. There was a clear explosive resonance ringing through the station as the red alert began to blare. Grog slapped his com unit several times as he yelled for a status report, forgetting he had it muted until he inspected further. Flipping the switch he yelled out an all station demand, “This is Admiral Grog, will someone please tell me what the hell is going on!”

Neutral Trading Post

Anora looked across the long table at the delegation on the other side, well her entourage did from behind their helm’s visors, but Anora just glared down her younger sister at the other end of the table. She couldn’t believe that she was here, speaking with her Traitorous sister. The Neutral station’s owner sat off to one side, nervously biting his nails. Outside the Legacy and Vitalia’s ship were Anchored, no other vessels in the sector. TheLegacy was massive, a Leviathan class, but Vitallia’s was just as impressive.

Siting to her left, munching away on a bowl of shelled nuts which he opened by crushing in his bare hands was a man who looked so much like her late husband’s brother it was scary, the only thing different was his demeanor, this man was not noble or honorable but was clearly cruel, horrid, and menacing. But she returned her gaze to Vitalia, boring holes into her, awaiting her so called proposal.

Neutral Trading Post

Gaurner snickered as he looked at the so called Loyalist Leader, Anora De La Sora, “Huh, you’re presence is slightly less imposing without your famous husband around, your former majesty.” He goaded as he cracked more nuts from their shells and popped tem in his mouth, “though, uo maust amid” he swallowed after talking through his mouth, “You’re ship is rather impressive, stole it form us did you?” he wasn’t helping Vitalia’s position but he was just being his true self, a very vile man, he had no doubt Vitalia would like nothing better than to kill him, that thought made him laugh though.

Capima, Valhalla Station

Grog stormed onto the bridge, “Report!” he demanded.

“Sir, ah!” one lieutenant screamed as he console exploded, shielding her face. As the smoke cleared she continued, “Sir! There were Saboteurs aboard, they’ve detonated bombs all over decks 15-40, the main gun has been damaged!”

“Is it disabled?”

“No sir,” another answered, “But the mechanism is heavily damaged, its fire rate is greatly decreased.”

“Calibration is off too, sir, we are trying to compensate.” Another added.

“How long?”

“Thirty minutes before we are back to operational efficiency.”

He cursed as he looked to the security station, “What about the Saboteurs?”

“They’re trapped in bay fourteen, sir, trying to get away, we’ll have them soon.”

He smirked, “Just a flesh wound, get the cannon fixed, you have Eight hours to get it back ot fully functioning. And someone shut that alarm off.” He began to turn to leave when the tracking station blared, “What now?”

“Sir, two more Cruisers and eight more frigates have joined the other Loyalist units, they are setting a course here!”

“Send out a few interceptors, if they think they can take this base with a few frigates they’ve got another-” the alarm blared again as he looked out the forward screen at the lights that was the enemy fleet, [i]what the hell now?[/I} as he looked the lights began to multiply, several more ships warping in suddenly. The officers were calling out the contacts, three titans, four, six! Over thirty Dreadnaughts! The numbers were growing. It was a full scale attack.

For the first time his castle felt like it was on shakier ground than he’d have liked.

"Major News!" a legionnaire shouted, rushing out of a recently arrived cruiser and heading hurriedly towards the group that was apprehending the UO. "Um, I'm looking for MAjor News, have you seen him?"

"No," one of the legionnaires said as they shook their heads. "You can tell usm we're about to transport these criminals back to Sor."

"Ah, good. We need you back in Sor! The Rebels have-," the legionnaire began, before being kicked in the jaw by Xane.

"Let's get outta here!" Xane shouted as he and the UO pushed the guards out of the way and ran through the crowded Baoan streets.

"Go where? There's Legionnaire's all over the place!" Mellodia screamed.

"The commanding officer of those Legionnaires told us we can't go to the Rock. Said it was a red zone," Xane explained. "If that's not as good a reason to go there, I dunno what is...Besides, nothing happens there important, no one will think to look for us there while we plan things out," Xane shrugged, as they ran throughout the streets, attracting the attention of other legionnaires mixed in with the crowds.

"The Rock?" Mellodia questioned. "Are you certain?"

"It's a good idea," another voice spoke up. Sentrius Tetran joined them, tackling his way through several legionnaires. "I've checked and it's as I feared. Seed is gathering there. I've misheard several of their number talking about it and taking off in a ship not an hour ago! We have to stop them!"

"What, you're not afraid of the manymore?" Xane asked. "Afraid of being targeted by the Heir?"

"I've learned that to get rid of one's enemies, one must face them head on instead of waiting for them to come to you," Sentrius smiled.

"That's the spirit!" Xane nodded.

"Are you coming with us?" Mellodia asked.

"I don't see why not," Sentrius frowned.

The UO then circled their way over towards a Knight Prefect Ship, named the "The Whirlwaver", finding the unconscious Nulix and taking him with them along the way.

"Excuse me, you can't-," a Knight standing watch on the ship began, before the UO grabbed him by the collar and tossed him out. They took off minutes later, in a hurry as a hoard of legionnaires charged in after them. The legionnaires were too late. The ship had taken off.

***

"Uh, I'm Baoan!" Chu frowned. "Chu can trust chee."

At that moment, Lun arrived in the hotel room, his face looking more agitated than normal. Glancing up at Snovalchi, he frowned, asking, "Whose this fool?"

"He's Stuart Snovalichi," Daelen explained. "Brother of Gordon. He's ,ah, a new addition to the team."

"Great...," Lun sighed, expressionlessly. "He looks useless, let's hope he can pull himself together during the tournament." At that moment, a knock was heard at the door. Lun opened the door to reveal a Longbaoan messenger.

The messenger looked up at Lun in shock at first and then, bowed slightly. "U-um," he stuttered. "Your match. It has been reschedculed to this afternoon," he informed.

"Thank you," Lun nodded. "You may leave." the messenger than nodded and quickly walked off. "Well. We need to look forward to that I suppose."

"Something bothering you, Lun?" Daelen asked.

"No...Yes, actually," Lun muttered. "My brother is the current emperor. He's nothing but a puppet, though. Not fit to rule."

"And so...?" Daelen asked, not liking where this was going.

"After we win the tournament, I plan to eliminate the weakling," Lun answered. "And reclaim my title as Emperor. You can all join me if you see fit, I don't care. I want to take back my throne."

"You seem confident that we'll win," Daelen sighed, brushing his coat off slightly.

Lun laughed. "That I am! That I am..."

***
"Well...welcome home, Aud!" Xane muttered as their ship soon entered the atmosphere of Artemis Rock, the windows of the ship, completely covered it a cloud of orange and brown. "And we're in a sandstorm. Don't worry, I still got clear visuals."

Their ship then brushed up against what was once the the tower of Ajab Abaj's palace. Their ship spun out of control briefly before burying itself into the sand.

***

The Lunatics arrived at the massive, recently built arena in Longbao, the stands were filled. Not a huge feat, seeing as half of the seats weren't even finished yet, an empty dark space, covering where they should've been. The crowd that was there was sizable however.

As the announcers took their seats, the Lunatics saw that their Seed opponents were looking a little...lacking. The only ones present were Ylyncount. Other Seed members were either present but severely injured and decked in full body casts atop lawnchairs, such as Natayla, Lacorra, and Benson, And others were wimply not present, such as Ebiman, Sai Ko, and Wong.

"Where is my uncle?" Lun asked indignantly. "I was looking forward to seeing that he pays for hsi treachery."

"Not present,, I'm afraid..." Ylyncount shrugged. "Had some business on the Rock, I hear."

"Damn it," Lun muttered. "Than even this tournament was a waste of my time. From the looks of it, you're the only one fit to fight. Either forfeit or we'll just be on our way."

"Ebiman said you'd say that," Ylyncount chuckled. "But he can't have you causing any problems! Yuk! Yuk! Yuk! I mean, don't get me wrong, he'd kill you, but you're rambunctiousness would ruin everything! And so, I've been ordered to stall!"

"Yeah," Lun sneered. "Good luck with that, facing us all at once."

"Oh, I'm not stupid enough to do...SHAT!" Ylyncount chuckled.

"Chu sure about FAT?" Chu asked.

"No, no...I think I'll just use this opportunity to gauge how good some of our new recruits are. Well..." Ylyncount paused, before beginning to whistle. As he did, a swarm of men and women in navy blue Seed assassin uniforms poured out from the shadows of the unfinished section of the stadium. And form every entrance, every exit, every window. A large number of Audience members in the stands ,revealed themselves as Seed recruits as they discarded their disguises and climbed down towards the arena where the Lunatics stood. They kept and kept pouring in until they completely surrounded the Lunatics, weapons raised and Phoenix abilities drawn.

"Is this allowed?" Daelen questioned.

"Seed runs this tournament behind the scenes," Lun muttered. "What little rules there are are theirs to break."

"I see," Daelen nodded. "Then it seems to win this tournament, we'll have to defeat all of these recruits."

"Let's CHU it!" Chu chuckled.

"Indeed," Lun muttered, his right arm transforming into a giant watery claw. "Well, you Seed slime. I'm very sorry you had to come all this way to die!" Lun cried, lunging forward swiping at them with the claw

"Ugh.. Y'know, I'd say I'm glad to be back but that'd be like the thousandth time I'd be lying to ya'll..." Aud muttered as she slowly picked herself up. She was also cursing herself for the hundreth time for her lack of powers. It was irritating her more with every step she took, every reminder that thing would be easier had she been able to control but a drop of water. It was digging at her sides like a blade at the hands of a man who liked to play with his prisoner. She had seen it to be painful. Experiencing it, well it gave her more empathy towards those she had seen in the past.

"Guys? Everyone alright?"

~*~

"I'm certainly not dying here," Alarisset snarled viciously as orbs of water appeared in her hands, a dark murky brown invading the clear liquid. The poison was meant to slow her opponents down, Alarisset in a vindictive mood once again. It was not confidence she felt right now, but fear. The need to make someone suffer was strong within her and as she unleashed a barrage of water orbs, it became overwhelming.

Argent certainly wasn't going to stand by. Sweat coated his body and tiny tentacles reached out, sensing the surrounding opponents. He smirked and the tentacles grew and lashed out, ensnaring Seed members left and right. Their bodies became coated with Argent's sweat and while many would joke about the smell, it was the very sensation of having someone else's sweat shoved down your throat that would make weak men gag. Or really, anyone considering it was Argent.

Derek wasn't a valiant man. He tried to dodge what he could and stayed near whatever Lunatic was close in hopes they would fend off his enemies for him. If he had to, he would fight however and a lame hand was a hindrance but not a deterrent.

"I certainly hope so," the man who had been flopping around said, picking himself off the ground and shaking himself. "That was a crazy crazy crazy crash. I can't believe I'm alive... Or that any of us are alive. Holy crap, we're lucky!" He laughed.

Nulix's eyes snapped open to the sound of distant drumming, fast paced and military in style. He glanced around, he was in a ship; a small utilitarian one fitted with metal bolted walls and small circular windows, from which blinding white light poured in. Standing before him were the idiots from before. Outside the drumming was accompanied by whistling, from hundreds of men it sounded. He liked his lips before sprinting forward, pushing past the ignorami and kicking open the metal door loudly.

He emerged onto a dry, gold-bricked square. Standing before him were hundreds of brown-skinned, white-eyed men marching. Their uniforms were like Legionnaire's only with short, cut off-legs and sleeves for the heat. The blue cloak too appeared lighter and drifted in the air behind them. "Royal Art-Abajian guard!" A strong, Sorillian voice called. Nulix turned around to the commander. "Night Watch!" Nulix ran away as the Legion began to march in unison, their boots loudly landing on the ground as the put their rifles in the air and then onto their shoulders.

"You!" Nulix approached as he ran up to bare-bellied, brown-skinned man. The middle-aged citizen glared at Nulix with confused, pastel coloured eyes. "Where the hell am I?! Why are they saying night, it's the middle of the day!"

"O' yes. Honourable Mister Opert has not worked out a Rock calender yet and we are temporarily on Longbao's," The man explained in an accent Nulix had never before heard. "It is midnight, good Sir!"

Nulix turned back in horror and looked up from the square to the massive, white palace. "That! What is that?!"

"The Palace of our late Emperor of the Abaj, Ajab. From it he ruled all the green fresh-water valleys of the continent, defending it from the dangers of the deserts that surround us and our lake, and the savages in the Northern deserts," The man explained. Before he had time to say more Nulix ran off again, past the UO's ship in the square and ducking through openings between the drummers and lines of native born Legionnaires. He scampered up the steps but was stopped by two Sorillain Legionnaires at the entrance.

"Halt," One called. "The Governor's Palace is off residence to citizens during the war."

"I'm not here to go in," Nulix replied, truthfully, as he turned around. Below him was a settlement surrounded by walls. From atop the palace steps beyond he could see green jungle stretch onto the horizon. It was a small town, bustling with life most likely the largest settlement the Rock had. From the west entrance thousands of soldiers marched into the jungle, at least two Legions. Nulix turned to the guard worriedly. "What about a war?"

"The war in the north," The guard explained. "Well, war might be pushing it. It's not so much the natives that are killing us off it's the desert."

A door on the palace entrance opened. Lord Wanksor Opert stepped out. "Nulix?" He questioned. "Nulix Princeton?"

"Do I know you?" Nulix asked nervously. "Yes, indeed you do! You and your friends saved Longbao from that monster of an Emperor. The one who killed his father and marooned you there to get into office - honestly, the ghaul of some people!" Opert exclaimed as he took Nulix's hand. "Please, come inside."

He escorted into the palace, decorated in war colors and full of Legionnaires, almost too many for the unbelievably massive lounge. They walked toward a large, mapped table. "See, we are here," Opert said, pointing to the one spot of green in the otherwise beige and white map. "The only green spot on the continent, thanks to the rivers that run from the lake about three-hundred miles south. Seven hundred miles north and the jungle ends. That's where the desert begins, the desert that surrounds this place."

Nulix glanced up. "Who are you fighting?"

"Our own people," Opert frowned. "Around one-hundred and seventy years ago a ship from Bovum crashed here, in the north. Only one, very large family survived. We come here nearly two-hundred years later and there is an entire populous, hundreds."

Nulix made a disgusted face. "So they're-"

"Inbreeds, correct. If they have white skin and live in the desert they've had their way with a sister at one time or another," Opert frowned. "They speak Sorillian, too. Broken, admittedly, but Sorillian all the same. They are our people - never so tragically has the right to civilize had to be put into effect."

"And that's all there is on this planet? The natives in the jungle and them?" Nulix asked.

"On the opposite side there is more green and many more lakes, filled with natives. It's unlikely they have ever had contact with the people here and we have set up diplomatic missions," Opert said.

Nulix glanced even farther north of the map, where more desert remained. "And what's farther north then the inbreeds?" He questioned.

"Nothing but sand," Opert replied. "What are you doing here, Nulix? We're in a red zone during the conquest, no settlers allowed."

"I need a horse," Nulix admitted quickly. "A fast one."

"We don't have horses here," He swallowed. "But I think I have something else that'll do the trick."

***

Vitalia sat opposite of Anora, staring blankly at her. If it weren't for the pale bleached skin, extravagantly coloured hair and dyed eyes the two sister's may have still resembled one another.

"On Behalf of the Kingdom of Sor and the Senate of the Sora System I present to you this proposal. All worlds currently beneath the Lady Anora's control shall surrender immediately to the Sora System, all previously employed armed citizens shall return to duty among their former order's, be it the Knight's or the Legions, and all newly employed armed citizens shall be added as additional recruits in Legion's Six-Hundred and seven, Six Hundred and Eight, Six Hundred and Nine, Six Hundred and Thirteen, Six Hundred and Seventeen, Six Hundred and Eighteen, Six Hundred and Nineteen, Six Hundred and Twenty. All military vessels shall be returned to their former orders be it the Knight's or the Legions, all nobility in support of the rebellion shall be excused unless placed under investigation for war crimes, for we shall not forget our civility. Lady Anora and her brother Lord Raziel shall be acknowledged as Queen Anora's biological siblings, older and younger respectively, and shall both be appointed the titles of Princess and Prince, respectively. All political trades of the Rebellious Sorillian Sate will be put under review for modified agreements with the parties involved or deletion and all governments set up by the Rebellious Sorillian State shall be nullified immediately. All of the following will be put into effect by the 1st of January, 2251 or the individuals who have signed and not met into agreement shall be in breach of treaty."

Vitalia gave a reluctant smile. "But I don't think you'll agree so allow me to be blunt. The Sora System is at risk of predicted annihilation from forces within and without. We are fighting each other as barbarians reach the gate, easily opened by those already inside. All issues you have with I and I with you can be resolved in private. I do not wish the system to pay for our disagreements. Now is not the time to be petty." She swallowed. "I cannot stress enough how agreeable your help would be. You are my sister, Raziel is my brother. Anything I did to any other member of our dynasty I did for a greater good. You must trust that."

***

"Bad news, man," Snovalichi muttered to himself as he shook his head. "Bad news."

"Alright guys, we gotta up the ANTe," Xane commented, as he saw some Rockian wrangler herd a giant ant down a tunnel. "By which I mean we gotta wrangle up some ants."

"Up the ante...good one," Sentrius muttered, writing the pun down on a sinister looking notepad. The UO, not noticing, followed the ant harder down a tunnel, dimly lit by torches aligning the wall. They arrived in a large cavernous room under the palace. In one section on the left, they noticed various large pins and cages lined up with farmers, scooping giant mounds of sugar into the cages. The sugar was then devoured by giant ants of various shape and size.

In other section in the directly in front of them in the center, was a large entrapment featuring the biggest ant the UO, including Aud, had ever seen. It was bright red and had enormous wings sprouting out of it's back. Surrounding it was a massive clutch of giant ant eggs. Above that entrapment were several dens hanging from the ceiling, with various flying ants emerging from it, soaring in and out of their den. And lastly to the right, were were enormous wads of fur and snout. Giant anteaters, kept in tightly secured cages and managed by more attendants than any ant.

"Groovy, wonder if they're for purchase...?" Xane muttered as he walked further into the cave.

"Purchase? No...but you can rent them if you want," a handler shrugged. "Where are you riding to?"

"We're gonna do a search through the towns," Xane explained. "We're looking for a group of people."

"Oh....in that case..." the handler muttered. "We've got a group of flyers that caused us nothing but trouble. If you're really going out into that...red zone or whatever, you'll probably die. You might as well take those things with you. Asser!" the handler called. "Bring out those wild ones!"

"Right then," the other handler nodded, reigning in a group of five flying ants that were struggling to free themselves. "Hop on now, I can't hold onto 'em much longer!" Asser grunted. The UO and Sentrius shrugged and obliged, each finding a place on an ant, which was then let go as they soared out of the cave.

"Woaho!" Xane shouted, steering like a tool on his and Mellodia's ant. They flew across Ajab Abaj's former land. Across his old townships and passed a vast expanse of forest.

"These things are hard to reign in!" Xane commented.

"We forgot Nulix!" Mellodia shouted over the wind blowing in their faces, which Wing soon ceased with a wave of his hand.

"Nah, I think he mighta found the Opert Clan," Xane answered. "They're less tools than most nobles. He should be alright." They soon flew past the forests and jungles and found themselves crossing over familiar territory. The place where their last major battle over the desert planet took place. And soon enough they passed over territory familiar to them ,but mostly to Aud. Alarisset's former land.

It looked better than they last saw it. Yet war was still covering their land. This time a battle between Sor's Legionnaire's and the citizens of the Rockian towns. Fire bottles were being thrown at the kegionnaires as rifle fire peppered the citizens. "Nothing ever changes that much, eh Aud?" Xane asked.

They next passed over the towns and visited an expanse of desert, though this was more of the ant's volition than theirs. "What the hell?! Turn back you stupid bug!" Xane frowned.

"Xane, look! This is...weird," Mellodia frowned, pointing to the ground. Hordes and hordes of wild ants were marching towards the same direction as their flying ones. It was a sight to see as the grains of yellow sand was covered in a wave of red and brown carapaces.

"Hmm, interesting..." Sentrius muttered as he eyed the insects' migration. They soon reached a town ship where the dust storms grew heavier, causing the ants to fly downwind. They hung low enough for something small to be visible in distance. A small sign and a fully armored man standing near it.

"That sign!" Sentrius exclaimed. "It has the mark of Seed! Let's try and get the ants to dive down!" the ants then soared downward and landed next to the sign and the man, who was dressed in an old Legionnaire's uniform, not a Seed one.

"Mercenaries?" the man, likely a former legionnaire asked.

"Probably," Xane answered.

"Fair enough," the man grunted, pointing his thumb behind him. "The worksite's that way. You'll get informed some more at the checkpoint!"

"The checkpoint...?" Mellodia asked.


"Yeah and the storms'll only get worse form here," the former legionnaire sniffed. "Better foot it from here on out. I'd advised you to leave the ants here. don't worry, if they've picked up your scent, they'll return to you."

"Great..." Xane frowned. The UO then trekked, not much farther whne they arrived at a line that they assumed was the checkpoint. "So now what is this?" he asked.

"You're here for the big construction project, right?" the Checkpoint Guard asked, glancing down over at his clipboard. "Who's group are ya registered under?"

"Uh," Xane muttered nervously. Sentrius seemed as if he was about to speak, but Xane pointed over to a woman in front of him. "Hers. Uh, it's Deloria, right?" Xane muttered, pointing at the somewhat familiar face.

"Ah, so you're with the Rockian Workers Union then? Ya don't look like a Rockians tryin' to earn some cash for your crappy village! Maybe some Sorillian sympathizers? You don't get much in sympathy if you're gonna work for Seed, but hey. You're choice!"

"Assassins hiring mercenaries," Xane muttered. "Weird...hey, Delorian. What are you doing here? Since when are you a mercenary.

***

Lun lashed out with a whip of water, wiping out a large number of Seed recruits as he raised a fist at Ylyncount. "We're coming for you next and once we get out of your damned trap, we'll be on that worthless rock to hunt down my uncle!"

"Sure, have fun with that!" Ylyncount yawned, napping on a gargoyle as Daelen tossed dozens of Seed recruits into the air with a wind funnel. "I'm just stalling you anyways..." Ylyncount shrugged.