Another judge. For half a second, Emiri briefly wondered if they could take two judges at once. It seemed, however that would not be needed, for now anyways. Either Jaakuna was charismatic or the gods were testing them, because she found it hard to believe they would recruit the favor of two judges. It seemed the new guy was is as much disbelief as she was. Nonetheless it made things a lot easier, and they arrived at Draklor with very little resistance. She wondered what events would transpire next, as it seemed that the fates had a way with twisting things as they saw fit. She couldn't help but briefly look at Isaiah, almost a glare. She prayed things would go well.

---

"Even at top speeds getting to the Tchita Uplands would take much too long." Karolina stated, looking around. "Unless...well, it's still in the experimental stage...however this is truly a dire situation...Lorenzo could always cook up another one...provided you even make it there..." She started mumbling to herself, clearly torn between stating her idea and remaining silent. However, it seems the pros outweighed the cons, as she looked to the wall. She walked over, pressing her hand, and the wall faded away, revealing another vehicle. This one was significantly larger than the rest, and Grant's face paled somewhat whereas Nadeline's was one of curiosity.

"No." Grant immediately refused. "Lorenzo hasn't even finished the Thorn, not to mention pushing it to its limit could prove disastrous."

"Thorn? Is...what is this?" Nadeline asked, clearly not in the loop.

Karolina nodded at the trio, looking at the Thorn. "Rozarria was never a match for Archadia when it came to technology. We prefer magic and nature over electricity and technology. Of course, Lorenzo had a knack for it, and when rumor spread of a certain airship in development in Archadia, he began development of the Thorn." She explained, beckoning the trio forward. "Not that the Thorn could ever stand a match against something like the Ifrit, however, should it be mass produced, then it certainly could be a possibility. Still, this is the best chance you have at reaching Archades...though I cannot guarantee your safety."

Grant shrugged, though he looked less than thrilled. "If we must. Though...are you sure about going to Archades? You were against Jaakuna's plan. No doubt we'd have to join up."

"Considering the circumstances, there is little choice in the matter." Nadeline stated simply, though she looked at Wesley. "I won't lie, my father is brilliant with machines, but if it is not complete, it has its risks. Will you still join us?"

When Wesley brought up the problem of them not being able to reach Archades fast enough, Karolina would state that at full speed, the bikes would be able to get them to the Tchita Uplands in no time. However, she would bring up the dire situation and state that they could use a rather fancied-up aircar that was called The Thorn. Grant obviously seemed nervous about it and Wesley could see why. Grant would state that Lorenzo had yet to finish it completely, so thus the danger it presents was a negative thing.

Karolina would explain that while Rozarria had never been as technologically-advanced as Archadia, they began developing a certain model ever since word of the Ifrit was being made. She would further state that the car itself, should it be mass-produced, could be faster than the Ifrit itself. Wesley’s eyes widened at this and he sort of smiled, as if wanting the danger.

As Grant would admit defeat, he would turn to Nadeline asking her if she really wanted to go since she was originally against Jaakuna’s plan, but she would then say that circumstances had changed. Nadeline would then turn to Wesley asking him if he wanted to go, considering the dangers The Thorn presented. He thought about it real hard for all but two seconds. “I am a man of my word.” He said grabbing Nadleine’s right hand with his left. “I vowed that I will protect you from any danger. If I am to be a good husband to you one day, I must go wherever my beloved goes.” He said having a certain look in his eyes. “Now, we must make haste — the others know not what danger will become to them.”

---

The four of them wondered through the first few floors of the Draklor Laboratories and Jaakuna couldn’t help but feel a bit nostalgic. He won’t lie to himself and say that he spent a lot of time here. Vincent really was the one who was Simon’s scientist, but he Jaakuna did spend a few good days in the labs, that’s how he became so fond of weapons just cause of all the weapons that were developed in the Draklor Labs. Time passed on and sooner than they realized, they were on the tenth floor. Of course, it only took limited steps and elevators and Jaakuna was very curious as to why there weren’t guards around. Like, they only encountered a few guards here and there, so to not have a lot really surprised Jaakuna.

“Isaiah, do you know anything about the lack of guards?” Jaakuna asked him.

He thought about it and it too seemed odd. “I have no idea. I know usually this place has always had guards up the yin-yang, but not now it seemed.” Isaiah said.

Savayna didn’t really care. All she cared about was getting this trip over with so that they would be able to go back and never have to look at this place again. While Savayna and Isaiah were thinking about their respective thoughts, Jaakuna could feel the pain of his left arm increasing and he would let out groans of pain here and there. Even as they went up the floors, the pain would get more frequent and more louder. No doubt that the group would hear him. If not that, then they would see him gripping his arm, his neck, and his ribs here and there. Jaakuna was even slowing his breathing a bit. He wasn’t going to admit that he felt something bad was coming, but Jaakuna knew it. Like, it was the closer that they got to where he suspected his father’s body was, the more the pain would increase.

Almost there. Good. Very good.

Jaakuna definitely heard that, but who was it? He didn’t recognize the voice. It wasn’t his father, but Jaakuna heard it in his head. The voice sounded more sinister and more…evil? It also was layered and echoed. The voice itself sounded like something from a nightmare and Jaakuna was getting freaked out, but only on the inside. As Jaakuna and the group would continue on, he didn’t notice this yet, but slowly Jaakuna’s body was being overtaken by a black glow. It wasn’t noticeable fully, but it was very faint. By the time that the faint, black glow happened, they reached the twentieth floor.

Nadeline smiled happily at Wesley, though she nodded. Karolina nodded as well, holding out one finger of hers, and she scribbled a name in the air: Lenore. The words came together and formed a key. She handed it to Nadeline. "I'm driving." Grant told Nadeline, taking the key out of her hand.

"Fine by me, if we crash I won't be to blame." She scoffed lightly, and Grant opened the small cockpit, revealing two seats. A tiny silence followed, and in that time Grant couldn't help but shoot Wesley a look. Nadeline giggled as Grant got into the driver's seat, and she motioned for Wesley to take the second seat. Once he was in, Nadeline would carefully climb in and sit on his lap. Karolina nodded, he door to the outside opening, and she left the workshop. The others did the same, though they went outside. Nadeline readied herself, leaning back against Wesley. She looked up at him, shifting slightly. "I hope I am not too heavy." She told him quietly enough so that Grant did not hear. "In an airship...I never dreamed this would be how I would get in this position with you."

---

As they proceeded, it seemed they met very little resistance. No, that was not correct: they met no resistance. While she would normally be preoccupied with this, she couldn't help but notice the further they went in, the more Jaakuna was...reacting to something. To his tattoo, specifically. She could practically feel the Mist oozing off of him. No doubt his father was to blame. But the more it strengthened, the more she worried. No, the more she realized that letting Jaakuna see his father had been a grave mistake. Eventually, however, something was visible: the darkness surrounding Jaakuna. "Jaakuna...?" Emiri asked, holding a hand out to him.

*babum*
*babum*

The sounds of Jaakuna’s heartbeat slowly increased the more he waked, the pain in his arm increased the closer they got to the 70th floor, and the glow around Jaakuna slowly got more visible the deeper they went into the Draklor Labs. It wasn’t until they got to the 40th floor that he started to really feel it. Every single heartbeat like nails grinding against his skin, every ounce of pain like bricks being cracked over his back, and every spec of the dark glow like walking deeper into a cave void of light.

And then he collapsed.

On the ground, shaking , quivering, and doing just about anything and everything that was wrong. Jaakuna remembered feeling like this. It was back when he had his panic attack. He remembered now, but that wasn’t all. His body slowly flashing pure black and all the while his tattoo was flashing like it did when he initially absorbed his father’s soul into him. He gripped his arm just like before, and as he did before, he yelled out in pain, but something was different. Sure, his voice was what yelled out, but on the backends of his voice, a sinister laugh could be heard. The more yells he let out, the more dominant the laugh got.

And then silence took over.

Jaakuna was as still as a corpse. The black glow was gone, his heartbeat was at normal, the pain in his left arm was nonexistent, and his shaking gone. Savayna, Isaiah, and Emiri all watched on as they saw motionless Jaakuna lay there face-first. For a few minutes, the worst would be expected, that Jaakuna was dead, but after five minutes of not moving, he slowly rose. He used his arms to push himself up, and Jaakuna looked at them, smiling.

“Jaakuna, you okay?” Savayna asked raising an eyebrow.

“I’m fine. Nothing to worry about.” He said.

---

Seeing only two seats, Wesley looked at Nadeline and to Grant, who no doubt would give him a glare of sorts. As they would get in the car, Wesley would get in the passenger seat and Nadeline would get on top of him. She would then whisper quietly to him that she hoped that she wasn’t too heavy. He smiled. “Of course you aren’t.” He said holding onto her tightly, though not too tight. As she would say that she never dreamed that all it would take was a two-seated airship to get her in a position on top of Wesley. He smiled quite naughtily. “Maybe we should get one of our own then.” He said still smiling, though perhaps semi-too loud as Grant most likely heard, or maybe he didn’t; Wesley was hoping for the latter.

Nadeline's eyes widened at Wesley's rather bold response, though she smiled devilishly. She liked the idea, and would let Wesley know with a quick kiss. "Alright, here we go." Grant announced, clearly displeased at their rather compromising seating arrangement (though by luck had not caught their conversation). Though as Grant would launch, the entire ship jetted forward, sending Grant back into his seat and Nadeline onto Wesley. The speed was far greater than that of their previous vehicles, though the ride was someone bumpy as Grant struggled briefly to regain control of the ship. Nadeline held Wesley's hand, slightly nervous. This must have felt much like an airship, though because of their size and lack of Ifrit's more lavish technology, they felt every bump along the way.

"What's wrong?" She asked him as they shook.

"The body of this thing can't handle the current speed." He informed them. "That is what I believe is causing the shaking."

"Then slow down, we must make it there, even if we must sacrifice time, we need to prioritize our arrival above all else. Go as fast as you can without completely destroying the Thorn--at least, not yet." Nadeline ordered. After a moment, the ship finally became smooth. The two Rozarrians let out a small sigh.

---

What the actual fuck was that?! Emiri looked at Jaakuna, completely in shock at what she had just witnessed. It was Giruvegan all over again, though she did not recall hearing that...that laughter. It had sent chills down her spine. The darkness, the pain, the yelling--what did it all mean? What in the world could that have been? Even as Jaakuna smiled, Emiri could not believe him even for a moment It certainly looked like his usual smile, but it was...too calm. Jaakuna, of course, was the type who would get his arm cut off and insist he was fine, but that smile of his...it was unnerving. Why? What was wrong? Why couldn't she figure it out?

Isaiah was not the one she was watching anymore.

When they took off, the ride was looking to be nothing but a bumpy one. Nadeline would hold Wesley’s hand and ask what was wrong and it would seem the Ship’s little body couldn’t handle the amount of speed. Wesley would gulp as he feared they might all die, but thankfully with the advice(not needed) from Nadeline, Grant would alter the speed to a point where they could fly without any bumps in the sky. It was a relief and the three would sigh all in unison. “Hopefully the ride is like this all the way through.” Wesley said

---

As they proceeded more up the floors of the Draklor Laboratory, there was a very constant worry for Jaakuna from the other three. No one who was screaming like that just gets up like it was nothing. Emiri thought that, Isaiah thought that and Savayna definitely thought that. Plus, aside those worries about if he’s alright, the laughing that they heard was also something to be worried about. Savayna didn’t know where to place it, but she knew that laugh meant nothing good — nothing good at all.

As ten minutes rolled around, they made it to the fiftieth floor and as they came to an opening, which was just a steel room that had a circular steel floor with an eclipse sign going on it and in the middle of it and in their way, was a tall and muscular man. His height and weird had to be up there in the high department and Isaiah knew exactly who it was.

“Judge Robur, why are you here?” Isaiah asked Robur.

The tall Judge said nothing, only breathing was heard.

“He asked you a question, freak!” Savayna called out.

Robur said nothing still.

Jaakuna would step forward. Slight laughter could be heard as he continued walking. He walked even more still. It got to the point where he was a mere foot away from Robur. The giant looked down at Jaakuna. The blonde-haired man simply touched him and out came a black pulse and it sent Robur flying ten feet backwards, his body flipping once, and landing on his back. Robur let out a slight yelp of pain. He would then get up, armor slightly cracked at the chest plate and helmet off, revealing white eyes and spiked, beige hair.

“Jackson…No, not Jackson…” Robur said

Jaakuna smiled and laughed mildly. He said nothing, but a black glyph appeared at his feet and pushed Jaakuna forward at fast speeds. While airborne for the three seconds that he was, Jaakuna placed out his right palm, and out shot another black pulse, but this time extended tendrils from the circular form it originally took. These tendrils would bind Robur as tight as it could, squeezing him until his armor started cracking. All the while this was happening, Jaakuna was smiling, licking his lips. The tendrils started to emit a dark, misty-like aura around them, seeping into the cracks of Robur’s armor. The feel of the mist felt like the hottest burning poison out there and was twice as strong and fast as Bioaja.

“You…You’re…Him…” Robur said.

Robur’s body slowly became overtaken with blackness and the minute that followed, he would be transformed into a sticky, hardened black shell, and Jaakuna would take his hands and send a wave of black magickal energy through him, and as it was with his armor, Robur was dead.

Jaakuna turned to the others. “My father awaits.” He said signaling them to follow as he would walk ahead.

Savayna felt so uneasy about all of this. Something was seriously wrong with Jaakuna. She was beginning to think that Nadeline was right. Maybe whatever Jaakuna absorbed wasn’t his father. Isaiah was thinking the same thing, but what about Emiri. “Emiri, usually I won’t tell you what to do, but if we don’t follow him, he might do away with us like he just did with Robur..” Savayna quietly said to Emiri.

Despite the less than stellar beginning, the trip was surprisingly smooth. Still, it cost them time not being able to go as fast as they could. Grant brought up a menu, requesting permission to enter the Archadian Aerodome. Nadeline spotted it from the back and looked at the back of Grant's head. "This vehicle is unauthorized--and Rozarrian. Would it not be best to enter through the Tchita Uplands?" She asked him.

"We've lost enough time as it is, going straight to the capital is our only option." Grant reminded her. "And it looks like despite its incompletion, Lorenzo did ID it...under a Dalmascan ship under the name of Strahl. Huh. Anyway, we will be landing momentarily."

---

Emiri felt so cold.

The darkness within Jaakuna seemed to chill her to the bone.

"Stay at a distance. This Mist...this darkness...it's...dangerous." Emiri spoke quietly to Savayna and Isaiah. While it seemed as if she was stating the obvious, she spoke with fear in her voice. The way Jaakuna was, the way he acted, why did it all seem so familiar? It wasn't until she really thought about it that she realized it. Jaakuna was just like she had been in her nightmare so long ago. Had she forseen it? If so, why could she not stop it? She could not shake off this feeling of terror, and it was not because of his display of power nor his sheer brutality. "Jaakuna...I'm so sorry." She whispered, almost in tears as she followed him.

As they continued further up the floors of the Draklor Labs, the group would find themselves just fourteen floors away from the very last one, which was where Jaakuna’s fathers body was being held at. It wasn’t until the fifty-third floor that they reached a point where Jaakuna’s mist was so visible that the mist was beginning to warp the air around him. Tendrils of darkness began to show every other few minutes. It seemed that the closer they got to the top floor, the more the darkness was visible.

As they continued even more, Jaakuna stopped, which caused the group to stop as well. Jaakuna was acting weirder than before. He turned to the group and Savayna and Isaiah would grip their weapons,, but as they saw Jaakuna’s eyes, one was pure black and the other his usual emerald green. Looking at him, Jaakuna body began twitching, his head shaking radically. His voice going into high pitches here and there. At points, his regular was breaking through.

“Emiri….Help….me…” Jaakuna’s regular voice was coming through, but after that it was gone. “Sorry about that, I guess something was wrong. Fixed now~” He said, and even though it sounded like his real voice, Jaakuna was definitely not there, at least on the surface.

Savayna looked to Emiri. “There still might be a chance. He’s in there somewhere.” She said.

---

They were getting closer and closer to Archades and the suggestion came of going to the Tchita Uplands came up from Nadeline and while Grant considered it, he denied. It would take too much time to get to Archades, and the ship itself was flagged under the ID of Strahl. Wesley smiled. “My, my, Lorenzo sure does like taking old names, doesn’t he?” Wesley couldn’t help but smirk at the fact that this ship was named after a relic of a ship.

As they came into view of the Aerodome, Wesley knew that they had to hurry. Whatever was to happen, he knew haste was going to be their best friend.

---

On the 80th floor of the Draklor Labs, there was a room, with computer monitors, and just what one would expect. However, there was also a bed that contained a body of a silver-haired man with light mocha skin. Wires were attached to his body, and there was another monitor that kept track of his heart beat. It was faint, but it was till there. Ivy tubes were attached to his body giving it nourishment. Vincent sat at a chair looking at his father. “Very soon father. Soon you will be revived and you will come back to mother and I.” He said as he would look to his father and get up. Little did he know, his father’s eyes were open as Vincent turned away. They would close again, but the fact remained that Simon’s eyes opened just briefly.

---

Sitting in his office, a knock came to his door. Hamut would speak. “Come in.”

As he looked up, he saw his assistant. “Sir, Roman is here. Shall I bring him in?” She said.

“Yes, please do.” He said.

As his assistant left, she would go down the hall. [/b]“He will see you now.”[/b] She said to Roman.

It was odd, but Emiri was actually somewhat relieved to see that Jaakuna was there. She could still help him. The question was how? Maybe she could try that mind probe thing again? Although last time, she had Aloa to guide her. She would need time, calmness, but it was worth a shot. Even if she failed, even if it didn't work, she would have to try. Still, with everything that was going on, would she even get a chance? What were the extent of this...entity's powers anyway? Could it read minds? Oh dear gods she hoped not. It was then a rather terrifying thought crept up on her. With all that Mist, would her own powers even work on him? She hadn't thought of that. Her mind was such a mess, she didn't know what to think.

No, she needed to stay focused. She needed to act normal, like everything was fine. If she panicked or made the slightest error in her actions, someone could get hurt. She hung back a bit, staying with Savayna, mostly. "Leave Jaakuna to me. If it becomes too much, just run. Nadeline...Grant can seek help." She spoke as quietly possible, her voice barely above a whisper. As soon as she finished talking, however, she would walk faster, close to Jaakuna but not too close. She looked at him with a slightly worried expression. "Is this happening because of your father's soul becoming close to his body?" She asked, feigning interest. Anything to throw off suspicion.

---

Once they landed in the Aerodome, it seemed all was well. Before they left the ship, however, he looked back at Wesley and Nadeline. His eyes briefly flickered to their position, though it seemed he managed to suppress his urge to hit Wesley. He brought out three hats, tossing the other hat onto Wesley's head and passing the last hat to Nadeline. "Our faces are all known here, it wouldn't do for Vincent to catch word of our arrival. Not that these are perfect disguises, but they'll divert attention from our faces." He said as he tucked his long hair into his hat, pulling down the visor over his eyes. Nadeline noted that despite it being a silly idea, at first glace she really couldn't tell it was Grant.

She nodded, placing her hat on her head, as her own hair was much too voluminous to tuck it in like Grant could. They exited the airship, making their way into the city of Archades. It was ironic for all of them, as last time they were each here it was for very different reasons and on opposite sides. Grant looked at Wesley. "Where do you think they could be?" He asked him.

---

The time of truth was it?

Roman entered the office, staring at his grandfather. Who was he to believe? Who could he rely on? Being in Archades was poisonous. This would not end well.

"Grandfather." He said, bowing his head. "I have arrived."

Savayna still didn’t trust whatever was in Jaakuna. Or whatever was happening to him. She just had a bad feeling overall. She was definitely thinking about doing whatever would be necessary. Even as Emiri would tell her to leave Jaakuna to her, she still had doubts that not even she would be able to get through to him. That’s why when Emiri would walk slightly closer to Jaakuna, Savayna would lean closer to Isaiah. “Listen, if she isn’t able to get him out of…whatever this is, you and I will have to do what needs to be done.” She said quietly, but clearly to Isaiah. He looked to her and without saying but a single word, he nodded. He was feeling the same exact way as well.

Jaakuna or whatever has control of him would sometimes lose complete control, like right now. When Emiri spoke, the real Jaakuna heard and not whatever killed Robur back then. He heard her words and he spoke. “I don’t know, it’s a possibility.” Jaakuna said actually sounding like himself. He didn’t know what was happening to him and he wasn’t sure if he had much memory of it. From what he can gather, sometimes he gains control of himself and sometimes he blacks out. Yes, that’s exactly what it was. He blacks out and doesn’t remember much, just a thick blackness around his body. “I don’t know what’s happening to me. I mean, sometimes I go in and out.” He said as he kept walking. “I don’t know what’s going to happen when we get to my father, but..” And with that, The Darkness within Jaakuna took over, as seen by a quick flash of black.

---

When they touched base at the Aerodome, Wesley caught Grant’s glare as if he was wanting to hit him or something. Thankfully, they were able to get out before that could happen. As they would go through the Aerodome, Grant bought them some hats. It was a good idea for them to wear these hats as to not get noticed so easily cause they are wanted by the Empire. Wesley would tuck his hair as much as he could into the hat and then the three of them were off.

As they went into the city, Grant would ask Wesley where he thought they might be. Wesley thought about this. It was tough to guess, but he does know that the Draklor Laboratories are where a lot of research and other risqué business goes down. “The Draklor Labs.” He said, “yes, I’m positive that’s where they are. It’s the only place I can think of where they would go.” Wesley said hoping he was right.

---

When Roman had arrived, he bowed his head and Hamut would motion him to sit. As he did, Hamut smiled. “Roman, finally we can do what must be done. Let us begin, shall we?” He said as he laid out the plan of going to Vincent himself and presenting facts about what he has done wrong as Emperor, his misfortunes that had happened since he took over and just everything that was known to the judges and the senate. “And that’s how we’re going to do it. By presenting these facts and from the aid of the Senate, Vincent will be dethroned tonight and you will be dubbed the new Emperor by tomorrow’s dawn.”

Tonight, huh? Roman listened carefully to his grandfather, though he found himself remembering Vincent's words. Which did remind him of something else. "And where is my younger brother?" He asked Hamut. "Surely you don't think he isn't aware of this?"

---

Draklor Laboratories, huh? Grant was pretty sure where it was, and he would beckon Nadeline and Wesley to follow him through Archades. As they walked, he thought about how they would be able to get in. Savayna hadn't opened the watch yet, so hopefully it meant that the group was most likely still safe. He wanted to think Meli and Lola wouldn't show up, but Michel appearing was not entirely out of the question, considering that he still served under the Emperor. As they neared the entrance, the trio stopped. Nadeline looked at the two, her hand on her chin as she thought. "The question is how to get in now." She mumbled.

"Put them to sleep, and we will sneak in unnoticed." Grant stated, nodding at her.

Once she was sure no one was watching them, she looked to the soldiers guarding the entrance. "Sleepga." She whispered, and soon enough, each one would slump to the ground.

"Vanishga." Grant copied her, though their cloak of invisibility wrapped around them. Nadeline thought it felt weird to be invisible again, but she had no time to think about it as Grant ran ahead. She followed suit, and soon enough they were inside. Now all they had to do was find their friends.

---

Going in and out, huh? Then the moments where Jaakuna was in control would be Emiri's chance. Yes, it seemed the closer they got to Simon, the more active this...thing was. Maybe it would outright leave Jaakuna and go to Simon, though for some reason she didn't think it too lightly. She had half a mind to tackle him and pin him down while she would try the whole mind in mind thing, but as soon as the thought crossed her mind, it seemed Jaakuna was gone again. Fluctuating, it seemed to be. The Mist in the air was quite thick around him, and that feeling of suffocating returned with quite a vengance. She remained calm, however, as she needed to be attentive. Next time she would see Jaakuna come out, she would take her chance.

As Roman spoke, he smiled. “No, he does not know any of this, that I am most sure of.” Hamut said, “I can assure you that the judges I chose to help me with dethroning Vincent are 100% committed to the cause.” Hamut said absolutely sure that Vincent did not know of anything that was going down. He did wonder why Roman would bring up such a thing, though.

---

Heading up more floors, they would be met with resistance now. The soldiers, however, never saw them coming. Whether it was Dark Jaakuna’s black tendrils, Isaiah’s Lightning, Savayna’s Ice, or Emiri’s arrows, they would all be put to death before anything could be done about alerting anyone who was on the very top floor. It wouldn’t be long before that they were at the final elevator that would bring them to the top floor. At this point, Dark Jaakuna’s mist was so visible that it practically melted the ground he stood on.

When they would get into the elevator, the stench of a sticky, black mist would takeover all three of them and Savayna and Isaiah were actually feeling queasy. The way the mist would penetrate their noses and their eyes, both Savayna and Isaiah could barely stand it. They both would look at each other knowing full well that when they finally reached the top floor, all hell would break loose.

It was only a minute later that the elevator would move upwards and as it opened, there they saw it. The room was there, a silver-haired, light mocha-skinned, man attached to a respirator. Upon further inspection, they saw his son, Vincent, looking at them and smiling.

“Glad you could join us. Please come, I won’t hurt you yet.” Vincent said smiling as he motioned them to follow.

As they would walk in, Dark Jaakuna didn’t even look at Vincent. He looked at Simon. He licked his lips and on a quiet tone, laughed. It was the closer that he would get to the body that Dark Jaakuna’s licking became more frequent and that his laughing became louder and louder. It got to the point where Savayna and Isaiah heard it and they began to get worried. Vincent also took notice to it. He raised an eyebrow.

“Jackson..” Vincent said.

While Vincent stared at Jaakuna, Savayna got a really bad feeling. Such a bad feeling that she took out the Pocketwatch that Grant gave her. She looked at it, and saw the dark glow and she opened it. “Please get here in time.” She whispered to herself gripping the white watch close against her chest, near her heart.

---

It was only a few minutes that it took the trio to get to the Draklor Laboratories. Getting in only took the simple matter of putting the guards to sleep from Nadeline’s Sleepga and making them invisible from Grant’s Vanishaga. When they entered the Labs, they knew they had to speed up. Stopping for loot or anything of the sort was not going to be an option. They all knew that getting to the top floor was top priority, just would they get there in time before anything would happen to them was what Wesley’s main concern was.

---

Looking at what Dark Jaakuna was doing, Savayna felt…well she felt scared. Yes, she actually felt scared. Isaiah was freaked out and Vincent actually felt uneasy about his brother. He still raised an eyebrow at his brother. All the while, Dark Jaakuna was at the bedside of Simon. Looking down at the man, smiling, licking his lips, and laughing. Just as Dark Jaakuna was going to place his hand on Simon’s chest, most likely going to transfer the soul into his body, he stopped. It wasn’t of his own accord. Dark Jaakuna was being stopped by the real Jaakuna. The real one was gripping his left arm as if resisting the control that The Darkness had over him. They both went back and forth for almost five minutes. In that time that they did, Savayna and Isaiah looked on almost in disbelief.

Then they heard his voice.

“Ego tollam vos! Ego tollam vos! Ego tollam vos damnare, et spuria(I expel you! I expel you! I expel you damn bastard)”

In those words that the Real Jaakuna spoke, he froze for a minute. There was no movement, no sound — nothing. It was as if he was comatose standing up. No one didn’t know what to do. They didn’t know if going near him was going cause something bad or what, but they wouldn’t have to, cause in the minute that followed, a large quantity of black smoke-like Mist came from Jaakuna’s body, specifically out from his mouth and the smoke was materializing on the far side of the room. Soon, it would take a form. Once it did, the laughing came from whatever it was and Jaakuna collapsed on the ground.

When Emiri had described the Mist before, her words had not come of her own volition. It had been how she felt. The darkness was dangerous.

And now that it manifested before them, the word 'dangerous' had clearly underestimated it.

As they rode in the elevator, she felt her vision blur slightly. Was she going to collapse? She didn't know what it was--no, that was a lie, she knew exactly what it was, but her head felt so foggy and clouded that her thoughts had been scrambled. Simon's body was revealed to them, as was Vincent. She couldn't help but lightly freeze up at the sight of this man, though for one reason or another, he let them through. Ironically enough, as she had hoped, once they reached Simon the darkness did in fact get out of Jaakuna--albeit unwillingly and by Jaakuna's own hand.

And then it appeared.

Emiri wasn't quite sure what had happened, and by the time she realized what was going on, she was on her knees, holding Jaakuna. She blinked, not even remembering how she got there, though when she looked she saw it before them.

---

"What IS that?" Nadeline asked, her voice somewhere in between curiosity and worriedness.

The walk through Draklor had been mysteriously without any resistance. Grant didn't like it at all. They had been careful, but seeing as how there were literally no guards or soldiers around, they had proceeded rather quickly. Everything was more than fine, in fact it was too good to be true. He half expected to stumble onto the group at any minute, but something just wasn't right with all this. Nadeline thought the same, though the absence of resistance just made her feel uneasy. If the others were here, did they draw the enemy's attention? Had they been captured? She just didn't know, and it wasn't easy not to consider the possibility as they walked. No news was better than bad news, right?

She thought so, at least until they discovered the darkened corpse with a hole in it.

The princess dared not to get near it, though Grant wasn't too keen on getting close either. It was highly disturbing, though he was slightly more concerned on what did it rather than the how. A monster? A person? Who or what could it be? For the first time in a very long time, Grant actually looked and felt nervous. He managed to get a grip on himself, however, if only because Nadeline cast him a look. She managed to stay steady, though she would admit that this disturbed her deeply. She let out a small yelp as a very small burst of magic emitted from Grant's left hand, clearly having been on edge.

"What was that?" She asked him, looking immediately at the corpse.

"The others are in trouble." Grant stated, clenching his fist as the magic dissipated into the air. "They're directly above us. Let's hurry."

The trio continued through the laboratory, now running seeing as they weren't going to be meeting resistance. The further they went up, they would see the remains of the battles the others gone through. Nadeline noticed Emiri's arrows in some of them, as well as traces of Savayna's magic. Yet their friends were nowhere to be found. Grant on the other hand noticed that the same dark power had been used on these soldiers. That meant that whatever it was, it didn't attack Jaakuna, Emiri or Savayna. As far as he knew, Savayna couldn't do anything like that, leaving the possibility to Jaakuna or Emiri, though he knew for a fact Emiri had no talent for any magic besides Time based ones. That left Jaakuna, but there was also the possibility of someone else with them.

Once they reached the final elevator, Nadeline felt her head buzzing as they surfaced. She wanted to credit it to the height, but something felt...off. She looked at Grant and Wesley, who no doubt felt the same. They braced themselves as the elevator doors opened. "What the actual fuck...?" Grant spoke, clearly surprised by the scene ahead of him.

As the trio made their way through the labs, they found themselves halfway through it and to a room where they saw a big blast shell with a big hole running through the chest area. Wesley was more curious than concerned about this thing. Of course, somewhere inside Wesley felt very uneasy about it. He just wondered what could have done such a thing. He felt sorry for the man that used to be this thing. He would say a silent prayer.

After finishing the prayer, Wesley was alarmed by the slight burst of magick coming from Grant’s left hand; though not as much as Nadeline. When she would ask what that was, he would respond by saying the others were in trouble. Wesley didn’t know how he knew, but right now was not the time to doubt his words. Somehow he knew that Grant was right. They continued up the floors and as they got higher, they would see bodies laid out. Some of these bodies had traces of lightning magick, some had ice magick, some had arrows, and then some seemed to have a black essence. Wesley didn’t know what was going on, but as they would reach the final elevator, perhaps they would get the answers that they need.

Along the elevator ride up, everyone felt a little dizzy no doubt. Wesley sure felt it and as Nadeline would look at him, he saw the look in her eyes. It was a look of uneasiness. Whatever was on the final floor was definitely not good. And then they came to it. The elevator doors opened and what they saw..well Wesley didn’t know how to explain it. First, they saw Emiri clutching a seemingly-unconscious Jaakuna. Then, they saw Vincent standing beside a bed that had the former Emperor Simon in it. Then as Wesley looked to the left, he saw Savayna and The Forth Judge Magister, Isaiah. Wesley wanted to control his anger at the man for now. Wesley would look to what everyone else was looking at it and if he hadn’t seen it with his own two eyes, he wouldn’t believe it.

“What the hell is that thing?” Wesley asked.

Hearing Wesley and Nadeline, Savayna turned around and saw Grant. “You made it.” She said smiling softly to him. She would go and hug him, but right now wasn’t the time for that. “To answer your question, that…thing is what came out of Jaakuna.” Savayna said, informing them what she knew. “Nadeline, you were right. Coming here was a mistake, but right now is not the time for that.” Savayna admitted.

While everyone was talking about the black armor thing, it would laugh so manically. It turned and faced them and then looked to Jaakuna. “I must thank dear Jaakuna. Without his weakness for his dear ole dad, I would have never gotten out of that prison in Giruvegan.” He said laughing still. “It was so easy too. All I had to do was put on the voice and soul essence of the fallen Emperor, Simon Darcone.” The Black Armor said.

Looking at him, Savayna, Isaiah, and Wesley were all angry, but they were just as equally as terrified of the thing. Wesley would speak, however. “So, who exactly are you? And what do you want?”

The thing looked at Wesley, and he could have sworn he saw a smile. “You Humes have called me many things. Some called me The Forbidden One, some have worshipped me and called me God. Though, to my creators, I am simply known as Zodiark, King of Precepts.” He said, shocking everyone.

Wesley couldn’t believe it, Savayna couldn’t believe it, Isaiah couldn’t believe it, and hell even Vincent was in shock. “Zodiark? No, you’re lying. That one was sealed away from the gods. Zodiark is an esper.” Wesley said trying to gather himself.

Zodiark laughed. “Yes, I am indeed an esper, and contrary to what’s in your tome, lady,” he said looking to Nadeline, “I was not buried deep within the Henne Mines. I was sealed away from my creators in Giruvegan.” He continued, “they feared my power and thus they locked me away with the queen herself. However, I must thank that foolish hume, Hamut Darcone. He sealed his own son’s soul in Giruvegan and I latched onto that soul and slowly ate away of it and thus how I was able to work my way into dear ol’ Jaakuna’s body.” He said, “the rest, as they say, is history.” He said as he kept on laughing.

When Nadeline thought that she wanted to smack both Jaakuna and Emiri and scream at them that she was right, boy oh boy did it take a lot of restraint to not actually do it in front of everyone right then and there. Grant appeared shocked as well, though he never would have dreamed they would have met the ultimate Esper when they would find the rest of the group. Emiri herself didn't seem too surprised by the revelation of Zodiark being right in front of her, though she credited her own rather dulled senses. It did explain exactly why the darkness affected her so much, he was an Esper. Still, he was much more powerful than any they had encountered so far. She held onto Jaakuna tightly, looking down at him. It was as if he entire world had crumbled around her. She had been such a fool, she knew this had been wrong. Nadeline was right after all.

"The Keeper of Precepts...I almost don't believe it. Though that knowledge of yours exceeded what I expected." Nadeline stated rather simply, appearing as unfazed as ever, though of course within she was just as shocked as the rest of the room.

Hearing what Zodiark said, Savayna and Isaiah could only watch in horror, in fear, and in dread. They didn’t know if they should run and try to get away or fight Zodiark. It seemed like there was nothing that they could do but just watch and pray for mercy. All the while, coughing noises came, and after ten minutes or so, Jaakuna was coming to. He coughed up blood and of all people, Vincent went over to Jaakuna.

“Is he alright?” Vincent asked, though he got the death glare from almost everyone.

While Vincent was trying to get news about his brother, Jaakuna would open his eyes and see Emiri. He would then see Vincent and nostrils flared. Though, Vincent would back up and as Jaakuna would look around, he saw everyone and then he saw Zodiark. He would struggle to get up, but with the help of Emiri, he did and he would glare at Zodiark with a ‘I’ll kill you’ look. Zodiark laughed as if amused.

“Jaakuna, glad to see you’re up. I didn’t expect you to up and on your feet so soon.” Zodiark even seemed surprised. “Not like it matters, soon every single one of you will die, it’s only a matter of when, not if.” Zodiark smirked and laughed.

“You never answered my question.” Wesley said, stepping forward. “What do you plan on doing?” He asked.

Zodiark looked to Wesley. “Wesley of Dalmasca, you are brave and noble, for that I will answer your question.” He said. “My plan is but a simple one. “ He said as the tendrils of darkness waved around on his back. “I will bring darkness to this world and from that darkness will birth a new world, without prejudice or discrimination. My new world will have only one ruler, only one Emperor — me, the Keeper of Precepts, me Zodiark, your new god.” He said outstretching his arms, tendrils surrounding him. Like the smoke that he took the form of when he departed Jaakuna, so was he from their sight, but his laugh was still heard and words as well. “Enjoy your freedom, Humes, for come three days from now, I will realize my plan.” He said as the sound of his voice was soon gone and thus the evil laugh was gone too.

And as quickly as he had arrived, Zodiark had left. Nadeline silently cursed. This must have been what the viera had alluded to, though truth be told, the tome had mentioned absolutely nothing about Zodiark being powerful enough to manifest. Emiri was more concerned with Jaakuna, letting him use her to support himself, though she was sure he would need medical attention. Still, now that the Esper was gone, she felt physically better, so to speak. "Well fuck." Grant stated, breaking the silence. "What now?"

"Calm that mouth of yours, it's obvious, isn't it?" Nadeline snapped at him, clearly displeased that Grant was also starting to take after Jaakuna and Savayna. Gods forbid she needed another one of those, Wesley was bad enough as it is. She looked at the more friendly faces, lifting an eyebrow at both Isaiah and Vincent. She cleared her throat slightly, though she looked once more at her allies. "We regroup, plan, and get back out there. We have much to discuss--much to tell, and I am sure you need to do the same." She looked at both Vincent and Isaiah. Both were issues in and of themselves, and she decided to pick on (or rather confront) Vincent first. "Now then, it's four abled bodies against one--two." She briefly glanced at Isaiah, though turned her attention back to Vincent. "I do hope you aren't looking for a fight, but knowing your violent tendencies I wouldn't be surprised if you decided to draw your blade now."

Grant shook his head, though he too wanted to know exactly what the hell Ixion and Vincent were doing with the group here.

With Zodiark gone, everyone just stood around wondering what they could do. Grant made a loud curse and Nadeline caught him on it, but then she would go on to say that they were to regroup and talk a lot of things out. Jaakuna, Savayna, and Wesley heard her. They all nodded to themselves as they said nothing. They all agreed that there was much to talk about. However, Nadeline would turn her attention to Isaiah and Vincent, and stated that it was four-against-two and that should a fight break out, they would be at a disadvantage.

When Nadeline said that, Isaiah would put his hands up as it telling her that he wouldn’t fight. Vincent stood up and scratched his head. “Cool your jets, sugar tits.” Vincent said, “I have no plan on fighting any of you.” Vincent said, definitely shocking the rest of them, most notably Jaakuna.

“Are you saying you’ve turned a new leaf, Vincent?”[/b] Jaakuna asked him holding onto Emiri for support.

Vincent laughed slightly and looked to Jaakuna. “I wouldn’t say that, but things have took a turn for the worst and I don’ think any of us can afford to be enemies. That also means that, as one of my final acts as Emperor of Archadia, I hereby drop all charges on you all. I will personally make sure that every citizen knows of the grave mistake and that none of you are barred from coming to Archadia as you see fit. “He said turning his gaze to Isaiah. “As Judge Isaiah Darcone as my sole witness, this will become known.”

Isaiah went on one knee and crossed his right arm over his chest. “I, Forth Judge of the Archadian Imperial Court, Isaiah Darcone, hereby take notice of my Emperor’s will and clear Emiri Iniko, Princess Nadeline Lenore Roselia, Prince Grant Marshall Roselia, Prince Wesley Alexander Dalamasca, Former Archadian General Savayna Glacie, and Prince Jackson Tunick Darcone, all charges from the state and declare thee free in the eyes of the Empire.” He announced.

Jaakuna couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Vincent actually cleared them all of their charges. Jaakuna was going to respond to that, but something caught his eye. Actually, it was someone — his father — laying in the bed. He had Emiri help him over to his father, and while he sat down on a chair that was on one side, Vincent circled around and sat on the chair on the other side of the bed.
“Is that..”
Yeah, it’s him.”
“Is he still..”
“Barely. “
“What do you mean?”
“His injuries are so far gone that any help I would have brought in did no good.”

Jaakuna couldn’t believe it and now he understood why Vincent kidnapped Emiri.

“Is that why you kidnapped Emiri? To heal father?”
“You caught me.” He said laughing a bit.

Jaakuna turned his gaze to Emiri. He didn’t know if she would do it, but he had to ask. “Do you think..I mean, is it possible that you can fix him, Emiri?” Jaakuna asked. He probably was asking too much.

As Jaakuna was asking Emiri that, over with Wesley and the others, Savayna walked over to Grant and nearly tackled him as she hugged him. Actually she did tackle him. They were both on the ground and Savayna just held onto him, repeating his name in such happiness and relief. “You really did come.” She said closing her eyes.

Having been originally watching the rest of the group, Grant didn't see Savayna until she was right in front of him. Or rather, she was, as she had quite literally tackled him to the ground. He let out a slight grunt of surprise. She hugged him to tightly he thought she was trying to squeeze the air out of him, though after a while she said that he really did come to her. He shook his head, lightly patting her head, though he did let out a small smile. "I admit my surprise, when I said trouble, I was not expecting the King of Espers." He joked. "Though I'm glad to see you safe. All of you, I mean."

Emiri looked at the barely living Simon, though she said nothing. It seemed this was the reason for her previous capture. She looked down at the body before her, completely silent and still, his breathing barely seen or heard. She didn't want to deny Jaakuna's request, though as she and Vincent had discussed, it was not a matter or will or won't, rather was she even able to? Nadeline crossed her arms, no doubt displeased at the situation, though she too said nothing. Emiri actually felt somewhat relieved, it was as if the blonde was granting her permission or something.

Leaving Jaakuna's side, she looked at Simon's face, lightly studying it. Deciding it was do or die (hopefully not literally) she straightened up, taking in a deep breath. Here goes nothing. She thought rather grimly, closing her eyes and holding both her hands over the previous Emperor. Nothing happened for a moment, but as everyone would soon see, this nothing was time's clock going backwards. One day, two days, a week, a few weeks, a month, another month, she concentrated intently. A year returned to Simon, and time lost eventually returned to him. Farther and father, she pushed it, though the experience was entirely new to her, she had never had to turn it back so long. Another week, another month, more and more, and then two years had been restored. At this point she felt her body protest, but she knew she wasn't finished yet. Six months, ten, and then eleven, she was so close, but at this point her arms were physically trembling. She pushed herself again, and three years had been restored--right before Jaakuna had attacked him.

And then everything stopped.

Emiri opened her eyes, looking around. Had she failed? No, Simon was still in front of her, certainly looking younger. She let out a sigh of relief, though she noticed everyone was eerily quiet. She looked at Jaakuna, who was watching his father. No, it was as if she had frozen time, everyone remained still, with only herself being active. She didn't stop time, why was this happening? She looked behind her, Nadeline looking intently at her, though she too was frozen. She touched her, but she did not move. What was going on? Why was everything frozen? No, the better question was why wasn't time resuming. Was she stuck? How could she be stuck, she was the one controlling it!

The brunette turned back to SImon, slightly panicking. She was just in disarray, obviously trying to turn back time in such a matter was new, so obviously there were some...side effects. Yes, that was all. That was it. Still, it didn't exactly make her feel any better. The longer things stood still, the more she seemed to panic. Get a hold of yourself! She yelled internally, and she resumed her former position. She closed her eyes once more, holding her hands out, and concentrated. She forced the hand of time backwards, and soon, everything resumed. At this point, she felt somewhat exhausted, though to her relief, everyone around her was no longer still. Except her vision swam in front of her.

Nadeline felt something on her arm,, slightly surprising her. She looked around, but everyone remained rooted in their spots. What was that all about? She shrugged it off, continuing to watch Emiri, though something very odd happened. For a split second, she swore that the brunette had faded away. It happened so quickly that she was sure if she wasn't watching she would have missed it. She furrowed her brow, a frown on her face. She watched Emiri lower her hands, the process being complete. Simon certainly did look much better than before. As she was about to say something, she noticed Emiri sway in her position. "Emiri!" She called as the girl fell backwards, clearly having lost consciousness.

When Emiri stepped forward to Simon and Jaakuna scooted the chair back, he would only watch as Emiri would place her hands upon Simon and he would begin to notice these little changes in his complexion. Very soon his health came back. It took a few minutes and everybody watched as she would work her magic. Jaakuna certainly was amazed and Vincent couldn’t believe his eyes. This was the first time he was seeing her powers at work and boy was he glued to the sight.

During the three minutes, Savayna and Grant were on the floor, as it was Savayna’s fault this time and not Grant’s. He would tell her that he was surprised that when she used the pocket watch that he told her to use if she was ever in trouble, he didn’t expect to see the king of espers. She laughed a bit at that, but then she would press herself off of Grant’s body and stand up as Grant would most likely do the same thing.

As the three minutes were up, the group all watched as Simon’s face was at a point where it wasn’t ill-looking. Jaakuna nor Vincent couldn’t believe it. Not only was their father back, but he was back with them. As Simon would open his eyes, Jaakuna just took his eyes off of him for a moment and saw that Emiri was unconscious. He would get up to see if she was okay and he still felt the weakness from Zodiark. He fell to his knees. Isaiah would help Jaakuna up.

“Cousin, you’re still too weak to move on your own.” Isaiah said worried for his cousin.

“Emiri..what happened to Emiri?” He asked.

“Jaakuna, worry not.” Wesley said, “she just exhausted herself. Rest will undo it, so just concentrate on your father.”

Jaakuna listened to Wesley and he would turn back to his father, whose eyes were fixated on both of his sons, he sat up just a bit, aand he would speak. “Vincent…Jackson..what’s going on?” Simon asked them clearly confused.

“Father, what’s the last thing you remember?” Vincent asked.

Simon thought about it. “I remember asking you two boys to come into my office and then…” Simon was gripping his head. “I..don’t recall anything thereafter.” He said.

As Vincent thought about what he said, Jaakuna looked at his father. He didn’t even know what to say, where to begin. He was just so happy to see his father again. “Father, I..” Jaakuna began to speak.

Simon turned to Jaakuna. “Jackson, my son, what troubles you?” He asked him genuinely worried.

Jaakuna didn’t say nothing, he just hugged his father. Tears were flying from his eyes and Jaakuan cried. He didn’t want to say anything, he just cried. Simon patted his son, and then took his head to where he could look at him. “Jackson, it’s okay. I’m here my son.” He said just hugging his son.

After a minute or two of Jaakuna letting it all out, he broke free of the hug and wiped away his tears. “Father..you’ve been out for three years.” JAakuna would say.

Simon’s eyes were widened. “What do you mean?” He asked.

“Jackson is right, father. What you last remembered was three years ago. You’ve been here in the Draklor Labs ever since. ”Vincent said.

Simon was in a state of shock. Not only could he believe it, he just didn’t understand. “How did I get here and how did I end up in a coma?”He asked.

Vincent didn’t know how to answer that because he actually didn’t know, but Jaakuna did. “Grandfather did this to you. He stuck your soul into Giruvegan and then Zodiark, the Keeper of Precepts, latched onto it. I brought him here not knowing who he was — he claimed to be you — and it was only thanks to..well my wonderful girlfriend, Emiri.” He said pointing over to Emiri, who was still unconscious in Nadeline’s arms. “She was able to restore you to the very moment you last remember.” Jaakuna told Simon.

Vincent couldn’t believe it and even more so, Simon couldn’t believe it. Both of them were in a state of shock, but Simon would pat Jaakuna on the back as Jaak looked down. “Do not feel sad, Jackson. I am back now and that’s all that I need to know. How you got me back matters not. I have my two sons--” He was interrupted.

“Don’t you mean three?”
“Ah, yes of course I do. Roman is here, is he?”

Vincent and Jaakuna nodded.

“I would much like to see him.” Simon said.

Vincent looked down. “He’s meeting with Grandfather.”
“What for?”
“To take my place as emperor.”

Surprised by this news, everyone would most likely let out a gasp of surprise.