"An overzealous exaggeration," Zelriane spat, crossing his arms. "I am here to reduce your odds of success from practically nonexistent, to irredeemably impossible."

Bruce spread out his hand, palm down, distributing sand particles throughout the chamber. It wasn't a uniform layer, but enough for him to feel where everyone stood and when they moved.

He glanced behind him to Jenso and, in addition to motioning him forward with a flicker of his eyes, mouthed "Go."

Inside of a few seconds, Bruce had a stone wall erected between Jenso and everyone else, cutting him off from sight.

'If she cannot see, he might get through.'

A mass of earth particles shot out of the bag, hovering in the air and shifting rapidly to extend the wall blocking Jenso from view. At the same time, behind that wall, a complex maze of turns, crawl spaces high enough to slide under and elevated gaps took shape. All of the walls continually morphed and changed position- a path leading to the stairs was always present, but it never stayed the same for more than a handful of moments, and the only constant was that one had to be inside the maze to actually see anyone else who was also inside.

"Irreedeemably impossible? Surely you jest. Jenso's right; you don't even have the muscle here to stop Bruce, and Shaidra couldn't stand up to me when I barely knew I had access to my Ki." Alvios leaped into the air, high enough to see Zelraine and Shaidra over the wall. A highly condensed ball of light formed in his hand as he looked down at them.

"You don't even have the right to look at us!" He threw the ball up above, a quick veil of light covering his own eyes as it exploded. Rather than cause damage, the ball acted as an overwhelming light source, like a miniature sun had entered the room, filling even the shadows with its rays. The veil over his own eyes gave him perfect clarity through the glare, and as the light reached Bruce, a veil appeared over his own eyes as well. It would either force them to stand near the door in blinding light, or go up and try to contain the source, hopefully.

Jenso nodded at Bruce the moment the maze appeared. Jenso dashed forwards through the maze, sliding and hopping quickly in order to reach the exit while using the constantly twisting pathways to his advantage. Jenso moved to attempt to advance up the staircase. 'Here goes nothing..!' He thought.

Zelriane sighed. "Blather nonsense all you'd like." Zelriane blinked and shut his eyes tightly as the light flooded the room. Shaidra did not, rather, encompassing her entire body in an aura of shadows the blocked the rays of light from reaching her body. Although she couldn't see very far, she stood right in front of the stairwell, waiting patiently, just as she was told. "Unlike you few who push forwards desperately, strapped for time, we can wait here as long as it takes." Zelriane stepped back and took a fighting stance once again. "Approach at your own dismay."

As Jenso advanced through the maze, he noticed the light veil that appeared over his eyes. Was Alvios casting some kind of blinding technique? Perhaps he could make that work to his advantage. "Hey, Bruce. Do you think you could create some open space at the last wall of the maze so I can travel the entire length of it? And...do you think you could make an army of golems that look similar to me, and line them up right near the last wall, on the inside of the maze?" He whispered into his communicator, to avoid Zelriane and Shaidra from hearing. Even if they did, they would most likely still have a hard time pinpointing Jenso's location in the maze. "...They'd also need to be able to advance forwards when I clear the path, like you've done before." He whispered.

Bruce didn't flinch- not so much as a muscle on his face moved to betray that he heard Jenso from his communicator. He doubted it mattered, but he was multitasking a bit, trying to attain peace.

Nonetheless, the manipulation of his earth changed slightly to accommodate Jenso's request- just before the final stretch of the maze that lay between him and the stairs, which Bruce knew by tracking his progress via the sand, golems crawled out from the ever-changing walls.

Some were composed of stone, others cement, a few even of sand, but all had Jenso's features in common. Bruce opened up the area, but maintained the walls keeping Jenso from sight for the moment. He'd be moving forward soon, and the golems, also still out of sight, would move in formation ahead of him in reaction to his Ki signature approaching.

That done, Bruce waved his right hand and his familiar blade came into being. He didn't wield it, however. The disembodied replica of his own hand made another appearance, clutching the blade by the hilt and slashing horizontally, sending a Ki wave toward Zelriane and Shaidra.

None of it meant to be a real threat- it was a warning.

"This will be less of a hassle, Bruce said to Alvios coolly, neither acknowledging nor ignoring anything Zelriane had been saying. "If we fight back-to-back."

Jenso smiled as the golems appeared, and placed his hand against the wall in front of them. Arki energy began to spread across the entire wall, besides one part at the far left. Jenso headed over to it, and snapped his fingers. The entire wall exploded in white flames, engulfing the golems in the energy of Jenso's white flames as Jenso willed the golems forwards. A large smoke screen of dust erupted due to the collapsing wall and the explosions as well, with many rocks that were launched in every direction. 'Can't mess this up...'

In the process, the golems had been coated by the same burning smell like Jenso had. The very second the wall came down and some Golems at the middle and right sides charged forwards as bait for Zelriane and Shaidra, Jenso grabbed ahold of the part of the wall that hadn't collapsed while some golems near the left also advanced to avoid making it obvious, albeit still a good distance away from Jenso.

He hoped the large smoke screen and Alvios's blinding light would make it difficult for them to see where the real Jenso was. Unlike his enemies, Jenso could clearly see them now, thanks to Alvios's Veil and Jeff's visor, within the smoke after peeking out from behind the small chunk of wall that remained and was now coated in smoke from the rest of the wall that had collapsed.

Jenso focused deeply as the flames around his body dissapeared, bringing his energy down as low as possible. 'Flame dash..!' He thought, as a burst of flames erupted briefly from his feet, launching him forwards in an instant as he ripped a large chunk of stone out of the wall in the process. He held the large chunk of rock in front of his body, using it as a shield to avoid Zelriane or Shaidra from seeing him while the golems themselves clearly stood out to draw their attention away from him, as he attempted to reach and climb the staircase. He'd timed it so, that it appeared that the chunk of rock that he was hiding behind, just seemed like yet one of many that had been launched around in all directions from the explosions that had just occured.

Alvios nodded towards Bruce, and entered his Lightforge state, a ring of swords appearing in the air behind him. He had noticed Zelraine actively looking away from the light, meaning whatever power he had beneath the mask didn't shield his vision effectively. Capitalizing on the confusion between the explosion and the newly-installed skylight, he jumped into the air, and threw all eight of the main swords down at Zelraine and Shaidra. He took Vale's sword in his hand, ready in case Zelraine decided to strike.

Shaidra might take a moment to reorient herself under that dome she made. It's Zelraine I have to keep my eyes on for now, to react to his speed.

Zelriane stood firm with his eyes shut. He didn't need sight. The noises, shifts in atmosphere, and distinct smells that wafted through smoke and dirt were enough for him to at least avoid any incoming attacks. Zelriane's body shot towards the ground, underneath Bruce's attack, while Shaidra phased through it as it reached into her miniature bubble of darkness, before moving backwards, up the stairs herself. As the swords came towards Zelriane, he began to side-step them. To the left and then to the right, he weaved carefully, while making a small amount of progress forward. As several similar figures burst out of the maze however, his senses were momentarily confused. Jenso's smell was there, hidden within the smoke, but there wasn't much else to distinguish him from the rock clones. So Zelriane just began punching, taking out any figures that approached him with a swift series of strikes. The stone clones crumbled into dust upon being struck, and Zelriane darted towards the next silhouette of Jenso that struck his senses. Then, an obvious sign gave Jenso away. He was much faster than his clones. Zelriane changed his focus immediately, appeared behind Jenso, and overcoming his speed with ease. With both hands, he grabbed Jenso's shoulders, and began to activate his Agoniki as Jenso neared the stairwell.

Bruce may not have been able to follow Zelriane's movements, but having fought him once, he was familiar with his tactics. The fact that the faster Order member took Jenso's back was hardly a surprise, and precious moments were not wasted collecting the sand Bruce had spread around the chamber beneath Jenso.

Two arms of sand, identical to Bruce's, flew up just behind Jenso, golden Ki concentrating, folding over and humming in synchronized melody in each hand. In the right hand, Bruce's blade took form again and slashed upward, intention of severing Zelriane's hands clear. In the left hand, spiked chains materialized and erupted forward to embed themselves in Zelriane's torso.

Jenso felt Zelriane's hands touch his shoulders and channeled Ki to them. He wasn't sure who it was, but it was most likely Zelriane. Soon after, he heard Bruce's melodical technique as well. He began to slow down as his dash technique wore off, allowing Bruce's technique to have a good aim at Zelriane's hands. Rather than wasting time to look over his shoulder, he began to focus Ki within his shoulders as a powerful shockwave of Ki erupted from them, in order to get Zelriane to release his grip, while white flames flared up violently from his back in a concentrated stream towards Zelriane's face.

He focused solely on getting Zelriane to release him and get him away from him, despite still moving toward the staircase. He kept using the smoke and Alvios's light as cover as he advanced, not wanting Shaidra to portal him away. The remaining Jenso golems in the meantime, continued their advance to continue to throw her off.

Alvios decided that Bruce had things under control with Zelraine, and he had to; they didn't have to stop Jenso at the foot of the stairs, just cut off his path up them. He created and threw one more sword down between Jenso and Zelraine for good measure, but made more of a motion to kick off of a bit of light and dive towards the stairs--and Shaidra--himself. She was arguably the bigger hindrance here; even if Zelraine got pinned and Jenso got ahead, it made no difference if the little wench just telepoofed Jenso back to the start.

Or, worse, somewhere they wouldn't have the chance to help him.

Vale's blade on its own was mysteriously sharp enough that Alvios didn't have to fold and refine the Ki as much; simply matching the form was enough to make a very potent wave of Ki, the white light lashing out towards Shaidra as he moved to intercept.

Zelrian opened his eyes and pivoted to the side in response to the continued assault from all three heroes. First the sword and shock wave, he stepped back and let Jenso go, allowing his shockwave to deflect both Alvios' blade and Bruce's weapons, while he circled around the battlefield one again. With his back to Alvios, he kept his eyes open and followed the man through the dust, staying a few feet behind while zig-zagging chaotically. Jenso neared the door quickly, but Zelriane wasn't all too worried, until Alvios flung another attack forward. The ki wave crashed against the edges of the path that lead upstairs, and Shaidra retreated further backwards, turning into a scurry for her life up the stairs. Zelriane stopped hard and spun in place, pushing the sand at his feet away with a circular outburst of wind, along with the nearby debris. Alvios was in pursuit of her now, and she didn't seem too eager to stick around. What was worse, getting to Jenso was no easy task with Bruce watching his back. Not in the way he wanted, anyways. "Stupid little dog," He muttered to himself, shaking his head and turning towards Bruce with his fighting stance readied. "I suppose it's adequate to trust his blade." Jenso had a clear route to escape, while Zelriane shifted his sights over to Bruce. "I will drop you first."

Yziera stood over Oz, poised to erase him. But before he could, his eyes shifted away from the tower, and towards a figure that stood behind him. He stepped to the side as a stream of Ki flew past him, cutting a small hole that quickly repaired itself in his barrier. He turned towards Dacer, who stood upright in his one-with-Gaia form once more, atop Jeff's wind board.

"Hole in my chest, running on fumes, and my hair is fucked."

"On and one with these cliches and boisterous claims," Yzeira interrupted, firing a beam towards him mid-sentence. Dacer grinned and disappeared from view, before landing next to Oz with his bow pointed directly at Yzeira's back.

"See ya." He released another Ki arrow, and it tore through the barrier. Yzeira's body split in half, and faded into a cascade of red smoke, his eyes unblinking, but visibly irritated. His body faded, and he was no more.

At least, that's what it seemed like. Dacer looked up at the sky, and back down at Oz. "That was too easy," He grunted sarcastically, falling down on one knee. His form vanished once more, and he collapsed next to Oz, his body facing the sky. The tear, once slowed, had quickly regained its pace. He chuckled and looked at Oz sideways. Tiger strode up next to the bulky man and grew to his full size. "I'm uh.. I'm comfy here, bud. Why don't you take this big lug upstairs." Dacer looked at Oz carefully, glancing at his missing arm. "One helping hand is better than no hands."

The prone fighter stirred. He let out a drawn out groan. "I feel like I fell in a river of cheese graters." He pressed off the ground with his arm and slipped off balance. "I can still fight. Hell, we can't afford me not doing so." Oz forced himself to a kneeling position. He was already starting to feel better and his arm was no longer bleeding despite the crimson rag tied around it. Those pills were something else. He looked down at Dacer, fallen beside him. "I owe you one. Don't you dare die on me." He got up aided by the cat, slowly regaining his mobility. "Otherwise I can't pay you back."

Oz let the cat guide him. Thinking about the whole crappy situation. He was barely conscious enough to see Yzeira get popped in front of him. No, blood, nothing. That couldn't have been him. This wasn't over. It must have been a clone like Jeff always loved to use in his tricks. But what the hell was with that power? A clone exhibiting that kind of strength? They were in for a world of hurt when they finally reached the tyrant.

"Oh yeah, no, I'll be fine," He coughed, patting the now-closed scab over his chest. "We forest people are pretty fuckin' durable. I'll be expecting you to pay me back eventually, barrier bob." Dacer let his head rest against the grass as Tiger began to lead Oz towards the tower. He closed his eyes and sighed loudly.

"I'm gonna take a nap."

Tiger quickly pushed at Oz's midsection, forcing the man onto his back. Quickly, the cat began to sprint towards the tower entrance, expecting Oz to cling to him quickly, so that he wouldn't be thrown off. He was pretty fast, and seemed unaffected by the One with Gaia fusion from earlier.



With Jenso gone, and Alvios chasing after Shaidra, Zelriane was quickly left with Bruce. The short speedster slid his foot against the rocky floor. "You should already know this is a futile effort," Zelriane rasped, charging his arms with a light aura of Agoniki, "I am even stronger here, than you've ever witnessed. No matter how long you stall me for, I will reach Jenso longer before he sees Yzeira. Then again, I likely won't have to."

Bruce hummed at Zelriane. Well, it might have been at Zelriane, but with the way his attentions were divided it was impossible to tell if he was even listening.

'Is he talking?'

Okay, so Bruce was obviously not listening anymore with Jenso having cleared the chamber.

He whistled once, the opening note to the tune he'd been playing on the way to the tower. The melody continued in his mind while he called up more elaborate golems in his image. They appeared in formation around him, one almost pressed against his back, and he put a bit more Ki into their creation than usual- lengths of chain lay beneath their Earthen exteriors. Those on the left held their weapons left-handed, mirrored on the other side.

Bruce himself unsheathed his sword, doubling up the way he had on the ground floor- one held backwards with the blade running up his forearm, the other outward and offensive.

As one, the formation ran toward Zelriane, those behind Bruce keeping pace.

Zelriane scoffed and tightened his stance as Bruce approached. He took two steps back slowly, and then faded from view. He appeared above Bruce for the briefest moment, dropping down silently with his foot extended, but disappeared again by pushing his body towards the ground behind the stone circle of clones. He landed heavily and changed the positioning of his hands so that they were sideways, vertically paralleled with the ground over one another, and flattened. "Akari" Zelriane disappeared, and in a swift motion, he dashed right through three of Bruce's clones with a cloak of energy sharpening to a point in front of him as he moved. The stone figures were not only split in half by the attack, but visibly disintegrated by the force of his strike. He stopped just next to Bruce and pivoted through another 3 sentinels, destroying them in the same fashion. The movement though, the only part of it that didn't appear as a stream of refracted light was the point in which he turned in roughly 0.4 seconds.

He appeared several feet to Bruce's left side afterwards, and spun in place, clearing the dirt around his feet with a small burst of wind. He postured himself in a similar fashion again, his hands in front of him, vertically parallel with the ground. "Hrmph," he grumbled irritably. Something about that last attack was off. He wasn't physically worn out from it, not in the same fashion that his Zenpou affected him. But he also didn't attempt to strike Bruce with it directly, either. It was a curious charge. Was he holding back?

Bruce murmured, apparently still in the midst of a song in his head.

Thoughts flitted through his mind, perceiving and reacting to the world.

Zelriane's odd pause caught his eye, and while stone clones took a few moments to reform, Ki remained nebulous when not outright destroyed- chains where the disintegrated clones had been came together again, tracking toward Zelriane's presence to Bruce's left and flying toward him from arcing angles in a semicircle, those nearer the invisible line from Zelriane's position to Bruce's flying straight toward the Order member.

The dirt sent flying back slowed and paused in its midair flight, swirling together in a vortex to summon again new limbs that joined the fray, each with palms up vertically facing Zelriane, blades of Ki protruding from them.

For his own part, Bruce followed kept pace with the attack, maintaining a few Earthen clones at his back.