Dante looked at them then at Matias “I want to make a difference…I have a way to get information…to help people…I can’t leave now…it means nothing if I let them win…” he rubbed his face, looking stressed now.

Bane sighed and said “Dante…it’s too much now…it’s not worth it…not anymore…”

Matias stepped forward, glaring straight at Dante now.

"Listen. You can use whatever skills you have without being in a place that treats you like a literal punching bag."

His words were laced with poison and fire, spat out from between furious lips. He pointed, his finger a bit too close for comfort to Dante's chin bruise.

"Your brother, wasn't it? Tell him to shove it. You're only 'letting them win' by letting them beat and burn you."

His eyes narrowed.

"The whole point of our damn rebellion is to keep stuff like this from happening. You're making it worse, if anything. So cut it out."

Dante looked at him then said “Matias I can…handle it…”

Iris stared at him and said “no. If the boss saw this she would be telling you the same thing! Dante your not sleeping, you refuse to feed…your killing yourself”

Matias could feel his hands tightening with every passing second. His nose twitched, and his teeth were starting to show.

"You know what? Do what you want. I don't care."

The distance between him and Dante closed and closed.

"If you think being treated like an animal by animals is going to help us take down this piece of shit system, then by all means go ahead. As for me, I'm going to make real changes once the boss heals. I'm done arguing with you."

He stepped away to turn his back and walk away. Right at the doorway, however, his head turned back, his messy black hair obscuring all but his nose, cheek, and eye.

"See what those pigs do about those notes if you even manage to live that long at this point. Hell, maybe they'll even help you kill that moth or whoever before they kill you. Fingers crossed, chico."

And he was off.

Dante closed his eyes then vanished, his vampire speed kicking in. Iris cursed and said “what the heck are you doing?!” Bane hit the wall and said “shut up both of you! Some team mates you are. Yelling and chewing him out for doing his job…” he cursed and said “I’ll find him…”

The door opened next to Matias and Midnight was standing there, breathing hard. “Enough yelling all of you. Bane, call Scarlet and tell her to find Dante. Iris, go get more supplies. Bane go with her. Matias will stay with me because I can’t fight like this…”

There was a sudden gust that smacked Matias right in the back, making him turn around and make the discovery that Dante was now gone. His eyes went wide for a moment but quickly reverted to a glare when Bane berated him. He snarled, a cluster of venomous words building up in his gullet, but it all went away when he saw something move at the corner of his eye-- or, rather, someone.

"What are you doing?" Matias hissed. "Lay back down before you start bleeding all over the place again."

He at least stayed quiet to hear Midnight speak, but almost immediately after he practically shoved himself back into the room and lightly tugged Midnight by the collar behind him.

"Vamos."

Once they were in, he slammed the door behind him shut with one foot. He stood there for a few seconds, looking close to exploding. His eyes met Midnight's, and his finger met the bed.

"Lay. Down."

Bane and Iris nodded and went to do what she said. When the pair were alone Midnight placed a finger on his lips.

“First breath…take a deep breath. I’ll lay down. But you need to calm down…” she turned and flinched, holding the wound. “Would you mind helping me to the bed? I don’t want to trip”

"Are you deaf? I said–"

Matias was immediately silenced by Midnight's finger pressing against his mouth, but his teeth were still bared at that moment; it would have probably taken just one last inconvenience for him to want to bite that finger right off her hand. Eventually, however, his lips fell over his whites like shutters, and the fire in his eyes was burning less brightly. He actually listened then, taking a deep breath as told. While he wasn't totally alleviated of his rage, there was less of a want to throw himself out the window in him.

"I don't know why you got up," he grumbled, scooping Midnight up in his arms. "You better not leak, I swear."

He slowly and carefully took her to the bed, laying her head right on the pillow before gradually letting the rest of her body slide onto the mattress.

"Now stay there."

Midnight nodded and said “needed to get their attention. Getting up made a statement. No leaking. I wrapped the smart skin with another bandage…” she closed her eyes a moment.

“And now I plan not to move…until the skin finishes it’s job…” she sighed and said “now tell me why you you hate cops so much…enough that you missed how much Dante was hurt before…”

Matias raised an eyebrow, his frown deepening.

"Are you kidding me?"

He stepped up to the bed until his knees were in direct contact with the wooden frame.

"Do you really think that I was yelling for the sake of yelling? Of course I saw what those pigs did to Dante. Though, truth be told, it doesn't shock me in the slightest. All pigs ever do is tread over those they consider lesser than them. It's been like that for years and years."

His eyes pointed off to the ceiling as Matias collected more thoughts, quickly returning to their original position.

"Before I joined you, I went to a lot of demonstrations, protests, whatever you wanna call them. It was mostly peaceful until the damn pigs showed up and decided that pepper spray and batons was the best way to fend us off. That never stopped us, but it sure as hell never stopped them from trying and trying again..."

He let out a "hmmph" as he straightened his back.

"So, yeah. Sorry that I'm so mean to the poor, poor cops that are meant to defend us in times of need, instead of killing us."

Midnight shook her head and tried to sit up. “You misunderstand me. I hold no love of the police how they now stand. Dante’s brother? Sir Galahad Vale, is one of the only good souls left in the department. It’s why my department is in charge of the city security has no link to that department”

She flinched as she held her wound and said “no…I’m asking was it your hate for his job that made you react to Dante the way you have? Or is it what he is?”

"Oh my god, would you STOP MOVING?!"

Matias's voice bounced off every wall it could, ricocheting this way and that until it fell upon his ears. He stood silent for more than a few moments, fists tight and eyes wide. He took a deep, shaky breath to try and collect himself, a temporary fix for the moment.

"... I'm not wasting my time arguing with a brick wall like him. If he wants to put up with what the pigs dish out, then he can do that. I said what I said to him, and you, and everyone else. He's going to end up dying with all the abuse they give him, but I guess that's what he wants. Better than a dry room, am I right?"

He said that last sentence with a teasing tone and a shrug. Most of his words were separated by labored breathing. Waving his hand dismissively towards Midnight, he perched himself by the window sill again.

"He better do what he promised me he would do before he croaks."

Midnight sighed and said “Matias…his sister was killed in the raids two years ago. She was a child. All because of what she was…he is driven to give her justice. Does it make sense? No…but I won’t stop him from finding a way to heal his soul…he will do what he said he would. His a man of his word. The others don’t know what he has lost…if they did Iris wouldn’t be so rough on him. He is finding his way back…”

She moved a little trying to get comfortable and cursed. “Just please…go easy on him till this is handled…he doesn’t have anyone who has his back in the force..we are all he has.”

She sighed and looked around. “Can’t get into a good spot where is doesn’t hurt…”

Matias's form curved to fit the window's shape, his back pressing on one side while his legs stretched down the lower frame. All the while, he listened, as little as he actually wanted to. When Midnight finished, he simply side-eyed her, the circles under his eyes seeming darker than usual.

"It won't be if he shows up with another damn mark."

He let out a sigh as he sat up, flipping away his hair which dared to fall over his face.

"Just lay where it hurts less. Do you need something, like water, or...?"

Midnight shook her head and said “it’s pressing on some ribs so no matter how I turn it hurts…but they are healing. It was worse before…” she sighed and said “so what are your theories on the notes? What else can you tell me about them”.

She was trying to get her mind off her pain by talking about anything else. She was worried about Dante and the others. But she was most worried about Matias. And she was trying to keep it from showing.

Finally, Matias thought, a different topic.

"Well," he began, "the note I found this morning had coordinates that led to what looked like the middle of nowhere. I didn't get to see how close or far it was because I was in a rush, but that's all I can tell you. Whatever that masochist finds out should help us a little more."

He sighed.

"I'm pretty sure that moth... thing, is leaving them there. It's been following me around for days, I'm pretty sure it knows where I live at this point. Why it's doing this, I don't know. Maybe it finds it funny. I don't."

Midnight frowned and a shadow moved to shake a finger at him. “No name calling. Don’t forget his doing you a favor by sitting on your place. So who is the moth?”

Matias jolted at the shadow's appearance, eyes going wide. Once he saw what it did, however, his eyes narrowed, and he pouted.

"Whatever."

He sat up.

"I don't know anything about it. That one time we saw it at the lower levels was the first time I saw the thing up close. I don't even know its name."

He scratched the corner of his eye.

"My guess is that it's some puritan grunt. It doesn't seem to think too highly of humans anyway. Not sure why it's so hellbent on chasing me around if that's the case then..."

Midnight frowned and said “why would he be telling you to do your job? He looked like he wanted to kill you. Why leave you notes? What is at those two locations?”

She looked around for her phone, holding her wound to keep the ribs from aching.

"Again," Matias sighed, "I don't know what that thing wants. If that's the guy leaving those notes, I'm a little worried about it knowing where the warehouse of all places is before I even did... Wh... What are you doing."

Matias stood to his feet, approaching Midnight from the side. His hands gently grasped her shoulder and hip and attempted to put her back in her original position.

"You really need to stop moving around like that. Are you looking for something?"