Eponine looked around the factory, noticing that they had cleared it of familiars. She was somewhat disappointed to see that the witch was nowhere in sight. She had assumed the factory was the center of the labyrinth and that they would find the witch here. She really didn't want to have to fight in the inverted forest. Eponine looked up at Violetta. She wanted to chide the girl for not assuming formation with her, but decided to just stay quiet. "Coming," Eponine replied to Violetta, though instead of jumping up to a window to leave, Eponine merely took out her frustration on the wall of the factory, hammering open a crumbling hole through which to leave the factory, and reenter the forest of inverted ice trees.

Violetta lept, and took purchase on the upside down windowsill. The vast and slightly shimmery landscape of the forest was all she could see for miles around this building, and for some reason that made her nervous. How big could a witch's labyrinth get? And what would happen when she reached the other end, would she get spat out into the real world? Or would she just bump head first into an invisible wall mid-jump and plummet to her death? She glanced down, and tightened her grip on the window. A view like that could give an albatross vertigo. Maybe the witch was down there, conveniently placing itself just where a normal human would fall and a magical girl would stay up. But nah, Michelle hadn't been that smart in life. Was she?

Violetta lept from trunk to trunk, more out of boredom then anything. It'd be so easy to just nudge a bunny around here and send it plummeting to their death or whatever familliars had instead. She, Violetta would just have to wander around till she found the witch,. Maybe she could antagonize the other two girls if they ended meeting each other again. That would be fun. It was always a source of personal annoyance that the only real power that was capable of fighting the Authority to any significant degree skulked around in the shadows rather then fight. It seemed such an inefficient way of going about things. Violetta dreamed at night of ranks and files. Of sorties and rooftop-to-rooftop duels and carpet bombings of grief seeds ready to blow. People could get behind a good war. It gave people something to do, and something to die for. Nobody makes mortal sacrifices in peacetime. It happens twice a day in a good fight.

She stepped on an upside down branch and pressed on.

Eponine followed Violetta out into the trees, and once again, went from branch to branch very slowly due to her difficulty with acrobatics. Eponine thought about how Violetta's weapon might be able to melt the trees here. It would be very powerful, but very dangerous: it would be a great tactical advantage to be able to destroy the enemy's environment, but she risked destroying her own in the process. Eponine wondered where this witch was, and where the other magical girl was.

_{@Stern Algorithm@The book of bad juju@TrixyTrix}

The factories were left behind once more as the two magical girls moved away from the factory and back into the mix of upside down trees. The previous domain had always been the backdrop of the scene, never the center of the labyrinth, so it would take more investigation for the two of them to find what they were looking for. And with the enmity between the two of them, it didn't help matters in the slightest.

Still, it was relatively easy going beyond possibly falling into the sky. Familiars occasionally showed up, but those bunny Familiars were as easily brushed aside as they had been in the factory, making things easier for the two of them.

Soon the path would change, the trees they jumped on rising into the sky and footing becoming all the more treacherous as a result. Branches met and tangled, providing paths that one could take, though one still had to be careful of the ice. And soon enough they would spot their destination, or at least a likely one for where the Witch could be; a ball of ice lattices hanging in the 'sky' waiting for them. It was likely that that was where the Witch could be found.

---

_@Ariamis

"Yes ma'am," the driver replied with a nod. With Maria inside, the engine revved and the convoy set off through the city and towards Alexandra's dwelling. It drew plenty of attention along the way as the several vehicles drove along, which was unsurprising given the importance of the transport. All were aware that the trucks following were carrying the Grief Seeds that served as tribute, and none were stupid enough to risk earning the ire of both Alexandra and Maria by attacking it.

The ride was otherwise quiet as they moved along, giving Maria time to think. There was the occasional checkpoint, but the sight of her was generally all that was needed to get them through. It was practically routine, her intentions notwithstanding.

Soon Alexandra's tower approached, a beacon amidst smaller buildings that breached the skyline. If Maria's dwelling was a base, then the tower itself was practically a fortress, more than able to drive off an attack by terrorists or by a magical girl. A concentrated assault would do damage, but the odds of that sort of thing happening were slim at best.

Still, guards would stiffen to attention as the trucks pulled to a stop, and Maria could exit as she wished in front of the tower. Time to get this show going.

Maria rolled out of the van, and kept a hand over her brow as she looked up at the tower that was bathing in sunlight. She feasted her eyes on the magnificence of the building, the throne of power in Aurora. Though she has seen it many times, having made numerous trips not only due to tax deliveries but also occasional conferences, it was the first time she saw something completely new in the beauty of its architecture.

Ahh, yes. Soon the winds of fate carry a new queen to the top of this bastion. Soon...

She approached the tower guards with her usual happy self and made the routine decree: "By the order of Her Highness, Queen Alexandra, her humble servant Maria Goethe has come to pay tribute."

Seeing that these guards were a new shift, she made a show of her magic, and had the crates float out of the trucks and slowly spin around in a circle far above her head.

Chloe wasn't expecting to be so firmly resisted, and she'd put most of her focus into that lunge, so when the other girl attempted to knock her sideways, it worked quite nicely. But Chloe was quite heavy when transformed, and her weapons were a lot of added weight. Moreover, with her arms outstretched as they were, she was quite front-heavy. Grabbing whatever she could wrap her fingers around, she used the sideways momentum to try and throw her opponent on to the ground. She didn't particularly care if they both tumbled to the dirt, since that position was good for grappling, so she more or less threw herself at the earth below them trying to add more force to the equation. And if the other girl didn't tumble but Chloe did, well, she'd just have to adapt. It was far easier to adapt to a stance change when your weapons had fingers.

Bonk. Bonk. Bonk bonk bonk. The imaginary trees of the realm sounded hollow to Violetta's ears, even if they were muffled by her blonde hair and commissar cap piling around her ears. She was glad to have them, though. They, along with the magical longcoat, kept the worst of the cold out. She smirked, thinking about how her melanin enriched companion, in her skimpy little dress was probably freezing her butt off, and carried on hopping from tree to tree. Occasionally, on her journey, a rabbit familiar would pop up, but they were hardly worth the waste in mana. She just prodded at them, and forced them to take the longest step back of their pathetically short lives.

The canopy grew downwards, and she was forced to go slower and slower as the trees angled downwards, into the sky. The white ceiling fell away, leaving a space larger then an ancient Gothic cathedral for her to jump around in. It'd be quite relaxing if it weren't for the uncanny valley effect, in an almost literal sense. The occasional beams of light coming from underneath her were a sore reminder of how much it'd hurt if she misstepped. But she was a musician's daughter, it was hardly even a thing for her. She stopped once she saw the icy spire, and tried to angle it. It was far too far away for her to get a good measure of it's size with her depth perception, it was that big. But at least she had someone with her she could, for a lack of a better word, trust.

Alice lost count of how many familiars she had destroyed. They kept hounding her not giving her any time for rest, not like resting was a good idea. The girl in purple quickly jumped to the next branch but was met with yet several more bunny familiars obstructing her path. She used her scythe to slice them and landed on another branch. Alice knew she needed to use as little of her magic as possible. The witch was not her only problem. Violetta was still around somewhere in this freezing dungeon. Moreover, Alice had a bad feeling. She needed to think things through.

Alice had decided to just let Violetta handle the witch and once the dungeon disappeared, she would just flee. After seeing how the other girl reacted, Alice realized the fact probably nothing would get the girl on her side. Moreover, Alice did not want to get dragged back to the Authority and getting herself registered or whatever. She had no interest in the turf wars and the grief seed tax payments which she saw as ridiculous. Even with wanting Violetta to handle the witch alone, Alice knew she would not be allowed to sit around and wait. A familiar then rushed at her and she pierce it with her scythe.

"There is no end to this stupid bunnies."
Alice continued on her way and slowly found out the surroundings change and the branches becoming a little harder to step on. She almost fell off once and luckily she was a magical girl or she would be falling to who knows where. Alice wondered if the change of environment meant the witch was nearby. If the witch is nearby, Violetta could be near as well. Stopping on a branch, Alice stopped to think.

What will I do?

Because Eponine's body was slowly losing the ability to feel due to her wish, and cold already had a numbing effect, cold became one of the first sensations she stopped being able to notice easily. So the cold wasn't bothering her as Violetta expected though, it did make her muscle movements alternate between sluggish and erratic at times, the effects of slowed muscle metabolism combined with the instinct to shiver. This didn't make it any easier for her to traverse the ice trees as she followed Violetta, lagging a bit behind.

When they saw the giant ball of ice hovering below them, Eponine was bit relieved. It was large enough that she could land on it without slipping and falling into the endless sky, and it seemed like the likeliest place for the witch to be. Without another word, Eponine jumped down from the branch she was one and right before she hit the ice ball, turned on her shield and activated 'reject', making sure that she incurred none of the damage from the fall while transferring all the force of the impact into the ball. What happened next would depend entirely on how strong the ball was; would it absorb the shock, would it shatter, or would it do something else entirely?

Violetta took a moment to steady herself, and sat in the nook of a tree while her companion tried to play interlabyrinthine snooker with the nine-ball somewhere far below. No need for her to get her hands dirty when there were dirty hands to do it for her. She snuggled into the warmth of her coat, and bit down on a lump of leftover tobacco. With any luck, all she'd have to do was wait, and the lilac revolutionary would come around this way. And then the two girls would fight. And then, either one of them would die, and their friends would get all pissy and revengey, or they'd back away, letting their views of the othet side fester and sour. Hell. maybe this would finally be the spark that sets the powder keg alight.

Even though, Violetta privately observed, this was probably not the best choice of firestarters. Between the two of them, she judged, they had about as much malice as the dalai lama, and almost as much polititcal sway. A silent bodyguard who let nothing slip and a revolutionary who probably thought Gavroche was a kind of broccoli. Hardly the spitting fire to start a neverending inferno with. But you made do with what you had. The girl snuggled down undee the tree, jaw bobbing up and down, rhythmically, and pretty thoughts of wanton cruelty running through her head.

_{@The book of bad juju@TrixyTrix}

Violetta and Alice would probably go unmolested beyond the continued Familiar attacks, though they diminished in intensity with Eponine beginning to attack the Witch. If they were close enough the two might be able to see the cloud from the shattered ice thrown into the air. It wouldn't do anything for them, but it would be a sign that something was happening.

The two were out of sight of each other for the moment, but it was likely that they would be able to hear the other fighting if they were particularly violent about it. And that left out the possibility of one of them going to aid in this fight that would yield a Grief Seed and the destruction of the labyrinth.

It was inevitable that the thing would get new tricks though, and new Familiars emerged to fight the Girls in the barrier, but not fighting the Witch itself. They rose from the branches themselves, earmuff wearing snowmen with icicle arms and razor teeth, clawing and snapping as they separately moved towards the two. It seemed that not fighting the Witch would not make things easy either, and it would be up to them to decide if they wanted to go help, stay here and fight, or to move on and avoid a major conflict.

---

_{@Stern Algorithm}

The ice held for brief moments under the impact of the collision, given the full force of the collision as a result of Eponine's magic. It held for a few, brief moments, before shattering into a jagged hole that dropped the magical girl inside the spherical construct. Fortunately the entire thing didn't break, just the portion she had landed on.

The insides was strange, but Eponine wouldn't fall too far once breaching the surface of the sphere. The inside was cold, bright with refracting light off of the various surfaces inside as ice branches ran from one section of the sphere to the other, some acting like bridges while other portions terminated and branched out, still leaving large gaps for things to move. At least she wouldn't have to worry about falling to her death anymore, probably, as the ice surface she had so recently plunged through reformed, patterns different but solidity the same. There would be no retreat that way.

More important to her though would be the opponent she found in there. The Witch, hovering near the center of the ball of interwoven ice, awoke, a shriek emanating forth as it noted the intruder. It was hidden, to some extent it's physical form hidden in what seemed weird kinds of rainbow scarves, hats, mittens, and the lice. Beneath there were glimpses of white, but nothing could be gained from that. She would, however, be able to make out runes in that strange script, labeling this Witch as Byrea, for what that was worth.

With another cry a trio of icicle-esque projectiles were fired at Eponine from it's 'sleeve', and the fight began.

---

_@Ariamis

The guards glanced about as Maria introduced herself and presented her cargo, the hovering crates a bit unnerving. They knew she wasn't an immediate threat, but that didn't change the intimidation factor involved. Just as she had been aiming for.

It didn't see much of a realization though as a girl approached. It wasn't Alexandra herself but rather Caroline, her second in command and follower. The girl eyed Maria and her entourage with a hint of distrust, but said nothing of it. If Maria was going to go through with her plan in the future, this girl was going to be someone she would have to deal with.

"Welcome Maria Goethe," she replied as was customary. "Follow me." She turned about, moving inside whilst guards advanced to retrieve the crates, so they could be taken off to the store rooms to be put with the others. That was part of the business of being in charge, and Alexandra would want to speak with Maria as a matter of course.

The elevator she stopped in front of arrived with a ding, and Caroline gestured for the faux-wheelchair bound girl to enter before doing so herself, and setting it for the level below the penthouse. Assuming that Maria was coming along anyway. The doors slid close and the elevator into motion. Time to meet the boss.

Maria was amused by the nervousness of the guards, and rightly so. An occasional trick or two is good for keeping appearances, not letting even close servants forget their inferiority. Maria was glad to see Caroline was punctual as always, and returned her greeting in customary manner.
She gently placed the crates down, and followed after Caroline, rolling into the elevator once prompted.

It wasn't that uncommon for Alexandra to want a quick report, since it was convenient to do so as part of the tax delivery, though more serious discussions about Aurora were made during conferences, where more Nobles were attending. Maria had absolutely no reason to decline, even if she was going to meet the very person she was later going to usurp the throne from eye-to-eye.

Regular commoners may have enjoyed small talk when going up such a long way, but the both of them knew they were far above such impolite nonsense. Maria spent the time quietly listening to the almost silent humming of the elevator as it rose up.

Eponine had half-expected to land on the tiny ice planetoid, and that the witch would come hovering over the horizon to attack her, so she was slightly surprised to have actually broken through the surface, though she did manage to land on her feet and activate her shield right before making impact with the far side of the inner wall of the ice sphere. When the witch launched icicles at her, Eponine reactively enabled her shield to shrug off the projectiles, feeling her magic drop for each icicle that bounced off of her. She looked up expectantly, waiting for Violetta to jump down, melt a hole through the ice ball and join her in her fight against the witch. It took a moment before it dawned on Eponine that Violetta may not be joining her as soon as she liked, and standing there looking upwards only made Eponine an easy target for the hostile magical abomination directly above her.

Dodging another flurry of icicles, Eponine summoned a second hammer and began spinning in place like a top, her arms outstretched, swing the hammers. After gaining enough rotational inertia, she tilted her spin slightly and launched one, and then the other hammer at the witch, hoping to do some damage. Before the hammers hit, Eponine summoned another hammer and prepared for a retaliation from Byrea.

Violetta glanced up from her packet of chewing tobacco, and glared. Her gaze was met by two blankly soulless coal eyes inset roughly halfway up a small sphere of snow that, in spite of gravity, was perched on the end of the crystalline twig. The thing slid towards her, slowly. It took a moment for her to properly understand how the snowman had skewered itself onto the trees branches. They were learning. Obviously, too many familliars had fallen into the sky for her to keep on doing that forever. Violetta tried not to feel a little impressed at that feat of reasoning and just melted the thing in a puff of liquid burning.. The earmuffs twirled in the breeze as they fell away, before the fire burned even that.

Still, lesson learned. Don't mess about in a witch's labyrinth, because it's not a circus. Tall imposing carnival folk with masks and alibis and a desire to take young girls somewhere where their parents would never find them were the least threatening thing here. Violetta tried to supress that little memory and stood up, pocketing the wad of tobacco. She bounded down to the ice sphere, and landed softly on the thing close to the man-sized hole her comrade-in-arms had left in it. No reason to bother her now, she'd probably just get in the way. She glanced up, trying to fight the nausea of vertigo, and scanned the trees for any flash of purple in the white snow, while also keeping half an eye out any of those new snowman familiars.

_@Ariamis

The doors slid shut with both Maria and Caroline inside, and the elevator began it's rather rapid ascent. It was smooth nonetheless, and quet, since neither of them seemed willing or eager to engage in idle chit chat. There was certainly nothing wrong with that, Caroline devoted to her job and her guest undoubtedly planning what she was going to report to her superior. This sort of thing was done often, to aid Alexandra in keeping a firmer hold on the city, and it did not seem a habit she would stop soon.

The elevator arrived with a 'ding', and Caroline stepped out, leading the way to where Alexandra awaited in continued silence. Stepping in front of the wooden door, she opened it, allowing Maria to enter, before going through herself.

Beyond was an executive office, though whether it had served that purpose originally was anyone's guess. It offered a good look of the city from the windows, and a desk sat at one end, with papers, boos, and the other affairs of business. There was a more cordial atmosphere, less iron and authoritative, but still set up to remind you that the person behind the desk was in charge.

Alexandra sat at the desk, wearing a pleasant, business minded smile as Caroline moved off to a corner, silently observing in case she needed to intervene. "Hello Maria," she began. "A pleasure as always. I hear things have been busy in your territory recently." Best to get the rumors and such out of the way first.

---

_{@Stern Algorithm}

Byrea cried as she took the two hammer hits, smashing through ice pathways as she was knocked backwards. Her recovery was quick though, the broken ice already reforming itself into new pathways, new routes for her opponent to take if she wanted to try and get in close. There were no real signs of visible damage yet, but those were sure to come in time.

And indeed a response came, jagged shards of ice flying once more down at her to either shatter or impale themselves, whether it be in the ice she stood on, her shield, or her own body. The Witch swooped amidst the orb of it's own making, disturbing chilled air as the fight continued. Eponine was going to have to do more damage if she wanted to turn this in her favor.

---

_{@The book of bad juju@TrixyTrix}

The hole that Violetta stood by, created by her companion, had sealed up with new ice, and the ice she stood on creaked distressingly as well, whether it be a result of her weight, or the heat she gave off. Staying for too long in one place here would most likely result in her falling through to join Eponine, as the sound of fighting emanated from within the sphere.

There was no sign of purple yet, as she looked, but the new snowmen Familiars would soon approach, cresting the horizon of the sphere as the weaker snow bunnies hopped along with them. It seemed that they were not about to give up on her, much as she might want to avoid fighting. Being this close to the Witch probably didn't help either. Still, things could be worse.

Maria came closer until she deemed she was in a respectable distance to Alexandra's office, and then made a bow as a formal greeting. She then spoke with an air of grace and humbleness: "Your Highness, I am at your service."

Alexandra sat at the desk, wearing a pleasant, business minded smile as Caroline moved off to a corner, silently observing in case she needed to intervene. "Hello Maria," she began. "A pleasure as always. I hear things have been busy in your territory recently." Best to get the rumors and such out of the way first.

"They have been, Your Grace. There was a disturbance caused by a rogue magical girl, but my knights had it immediately taken care of."
Maria didn't enjoy truckling to Alexandra, but she played her part like the talented actor she was. She knew not to let her true intentions come to light before their time, and none of it showed in her face; she has been honing her poker face for years, and nothing would sway her at this point. She was like a shark, staying deep under the water while she stalked her floating prey, before she would finally reveal themselves to the hapless victim. But for now, Maria would submit.

Eponine looked upwards again, hoping Violetta would join her, but her anticipation was not answered. Eponine noted the slight damage her thrown hammers had done, which was somewhat expected. She swatted away two incoming icicles with her hammer, and activated her shield to defend from the rest. Eponine decided she needed to gain some height and started running along the ice columns interspersed within the sphere. She moved with more confidence and recklessness, since a mistake would only drop her to the bottom of the ball, instead of plummeting into the sky eternally. She also couldn't afford to be as slow as she was in the inverted trees or else the witch would be able to get some good hits on her, and Eponine was already feeling her soul gem darken from continued activation of her shield. As she tried to reach higher ground, Eponine tried to be smarter about avoiding the witch's icicle attacks, by hiding behind columns and dodging rather than relying too heavily on her shield.

Once she was directly above the witch, she jumped down at it feet first, making her hammers longer and their heads bigger. She held her arms out horizontally, and once she was about to hit the witch, swung her hammers downward so that each hammerhead would connect at the same time her feet struck the closest thing that could resemble the witch's head. In this moment where her feet and the hammerheads impacted simultaneously, she activated her shield's rejection ability, multiplying the force of the impact. While her feet transferred force down vertically on the witch's head, the hammers, which swung in opposite arcs, dealt force horizontally, but on both sides of the witch's head, creating a three-way crushing force. Eponine bent her knees, crouching on top of the witch and surveyed the damage. If Byrea was about to retaliate, Eponine was already crouched and ready to leap off the witch at a moment's notice. If the witch was stunned, but not yet defeated, Eponine would press the offensive.

Nothing. Nothing there, either. Violetta paced, boots crunching against the ice, her gaze locked on the upside down horizon as her eyes scanned the thing. But all that served to do was to distract her from the snowman sneaking up on her, who managed to get close enough to sink his teeth into her arm. Unfortunately, the thing didn't seem to be bright enough to realize what happens when you puncture high-pressure canisters. She yelped as the bottom row of teeth dug into the unguarded back of her arm and dismissed the weapon. It vanished into sparkles, but the damage had been done already. The black tar-like substance burst out of where the weapon used to be, soaking into the thing's skin and making it look like it had bitten into an oil pipe. She couldn't set the snowman on fire, now. it'd take up the ball with them.

Violetta took hopping steps back, reforming the flamethrower around her left hand. She scrabbled at the leathery belt buckles holding it in place, and finally managed to detach it from her hand, and grabbed the iron tube with both hand. She swung. A head-sized snowball landed some two feet away and rolled, leaving the ice and snow smeared with black. Not, admittedly the best melee weapon. She didn't need to do melee, she had other people to do that. Speaking of, where were they? She'd been in here long enough, what was taking the Valkyries so long?

_@Ariamis

Alexandra nodded as the report was given, returning Maria's look with a pleasant smile, as befitted those in the role of master over sometimes less than cooperative servants. But she knew how to play the game, and she would not stoop to unnecessary cruelty. Better to keep up an agreeable face. Perhaps they were sharks circling each other, but to any outside observer it would not seem that way.

"Well, I am glad to hear that," she said once Maria had finished, indicating her approval as she relaxed a bit in her seat, shifting ever so slightly as she watched the wheelchair bound girl. "We can't have rogues running around inside Aurora, stealing Grief Seeds from the territory of Magical Girls just trying to live as best they can." It was better for all of them, since it lent the city more towards peace and stability, her preference on the whole.

She tilted her head then, ever so slightly as her gaze narrowed almost imperceptibly. The game, to play your cards close and give away wheat you did and didn't know. Alexandra had her own informants, though she chose to leave things undisturbed, at least for the moment. "Is there anything else of note that you would like to report to me," she asked calmly, waiting to see what answer she would get.

---

_{@Stern Algorithm}

Byrea continued their fight, crying aloud as icicles rained in scattered patterns, shattering against the ice as Eponine moved and dodged, heaving towards the Witch as it flew amongst the ice passageways inside it's sphere. At least there were no Familiars inside at the moment, which made things easier for her as she fought the Witch solo. At least she had the skill to combat this, besides the fact that the Witch didn't make things easy for her.

But she managed to get in range and attack, blowing landing like thunder as she slammed the witch from three separate angles. It screeched and crumpled under the concurrent blows, the black ichor of it's blood spraying out as it practically collapsed.

Ice shattered in loud noises as the battered Witch slammed through pathways and bridges, proving a distraction for Eponine but one that could be overcome. Byrea herself seemed to be momentarily stunned, weakened by the hit as she came to a rest against crisscrossing bridges. If the magical girl was going to push the offensive, now would be the time.

---

_{@The book of bad juju@TrixyTrix}

The Familiar didn't react as it was sprayed by the black tar that fueled Violetta's flamethrower. While they had some level of intelligence, all the Familiar knew was that it was hurting it's opponent, and didn't really care beyond that point. Perhaps to it's detriment, but it did deprive Violetta of a useful weapon in this fight.

That did little to prevent VIoletta from bludgeoning it to death, very successfully at that. But it still left the problem of the other approaching Familiars, especially with her unable to cut loose with her flamethrower to wipe them out in wide swathes. It seemed the time to fight would be quite long at that.

Fortunately, her angry mutterings were soon answered as a telepathic message reached her ear. Sorry we took so long boss. This place is killer without good agility. Be with you in a few. Well, that would be one less thing to worry about, once they had finally gotten here. Then again, it probably would have been faster without kicking the proverbial hornet's nest ahead of time. By the same tioken, they might stumble upon the other magical girl hiding within the barrier if she wasn't careful.

"Indeed I have, Your Majesty," Maria answered. "I was visited by Kyubey, you see. He wove a story about unsavory behavior going down at the industrial sector; magical experiments and whatnot. Why he chose to tell me and not Dora is beyond my comprehension. Nonetheless, I believe this is a matter that shouldn't be ignored, as questionable as the source may be."