Annalise barely registered all that happened within those moments before the white light. Her ears were still ringing from the screeching of her protein bar-turned-mutated flesh. She slowly turned her head to take in the scene, blinking her eyes to see a giant man trying to eat Researcher Jay, followed by a knocked-out Nick being carried, or more like dragged, by Cosette. Suddenly, Nova called out for Nick to grab Cosette and then shot an arrow from her bow.

Anna winced as she heard the giant man scream in pain and then just as she predicted before the light, everything began to dissolve away that wasn't on their person. She frowned as a slow clap echoed over an intercom, causing her to sigh, and roll her eyes. The young woman looked at her guardian. "Told you this was a simulation," she spoke with annoyance as she crossed her arms.

She glanced at Toren and noticed that the young man was back to almost normal. Anna knew that Von Galloes tinkered with means beyond what was right. It was clear by Toren's expression that the mad scientist was on his hit list. She was glad that Toren was okay overall. Annalise understood having to share a body with a created monster by Von Galloes, no one should have to experience that pain.

The sound of the door opening at the end of the white room. "I trust that stairway as much as a fat kid trusts a salad," Annalise quipped and made eye contact with Nova, causing her to blush softly. "I'm just saying that we should be careful if we choose to go that way. It also seems that we don't have a choice as it is the only way out so far," she added as she bit her bottom lip softly, embarrassed that she let her thoughts voice themselves.

Once more, her aim was impeccable despite the nerves causing small tremors in her body. Her hand reached for another arrow as she witnessed the explosive result of her decision. She shielded her eyes, the second compact arrow still in her palm as the ground platform they were on shook beneath her. Not at the impact, but at the shrieking of the being, who definitely was affected by Nova's hit. She just hoped it wouldn't piss it off. Sucking in a breath, Nova ran once more, toward Cosette and the dropped Jay. If the being was to retaliate, Nova wouldn't damn allow it.

She shot a glance over her shoulder toward the group she had departed from, noticing Nick's form still on the ground. He hadn't gotten up after her shout for him to go for Cosette, and Nova knew that she meant a lot to him. Was he...? The man from the slab was beside him, curiously looking at the scene. The scientist shook her head, she'd have to check on him after she got to Cosette first, her speed already closing the distance between her and the curly-haired girl on the cold stone. The being shrieked, and Nova's heart thumped loudly as if she didn't watch him. It felt like running up the stairs after you'd just turned off the lights. She slid to a stop in between the two girls, almost losing her balance as her momentum wanted her body to keep going. She regained her footing and tried to shield the unconscious Cosette from the crumbling being, her eyes shooting to Jay to check if she was even still alive.

How had this gone so wrong, so fast?

Her laboured breathing rattled softly as she lowered hovered over Cosette, her hand moving aside the hair covering her face. It seemed she was alright, at least from what Nova could see and what the metrics in her eye were telling her. The awful sound of the large being died down, and Nova looked up as he disintegrated in front of them. A relieved sigh pulled from her chest but something in her told her that it wasn't over. God, if Kai knew what she and Annalise had gotten themselves into? She knew he was already worried. Biting her lip, she shook the thought of her husband from her mind, trying to figure out what to do next. Her eyes went back to Annalise to check if she was alright, relieved to see that she was. Before any of them could act, it was the crackle of a speaker that demanded their attention but evaded the deaf woman's attention.

She frowned, sitting with her knees on the ground in between Cosette and Jay, her neck craning as a sudden voice vibrated in her very sternum, the words being spoken visibly in her retina, but the man's tone and grating arrogance was something even Nova could hear. Von Galloes. That was fucking it. That was the damn breaking point for Nova's composure. Her hands moved under Cosette, and she lifted her up into her arms, groaning a little at the strength it took.

A gasp and a surprised flap of wings beside her alerted Nova to the awakening of Jay. Good, at the very least, that was a good start. Now they needed to get out of here. As Von kept going, Nova walked Cosete back toward Nick, Annalise and the man from the slab. Just as she arrived, the raging asshole addressed her directly. She carefully put Cosette down next to Nick before she rose, her head snapping upward to try and look into the coward's face. "You fucking cunt. Didn't you cause enough misery yet?" the researcher complained, her voice laced with annoyance and anger before she flickered her eyes back to Annalise, her features softening a little. She didn't want to be this way around the girl she was supposed to be some type of example and guardian for. Jay called at the chaos-causer, too, and Nova heard the astute Annalise confirm their situation.

Nova hated how Von Galloes pressed her points. She, an expert on CDE, was completely baffled about this site and he damn knew it, and enjoyed it, too. It didn't help Nova not feeling like a failure, which was becoming an increasingly more permanent fixture in her life. She couldn't find Stella. She couldn't fully figure out the heart of hearts and she couldn't figure out the instability in this facility. And God did she hate that man. Paris a year ago was still too fresh, too raw, and now he just fueled the rage she felt bubbling under her surface. She reconnected the bow to her back before reaching for the holster on her thigh, lifting out her gun as Annalise spoke quickly and without filter, making the guarding blink. She gave her an encouraging smile. "Yeah. If there's anything we know, it's that we can't trust this bastard." But Nova wanted to give him a piece of her damn mind. And being familiar with his antics meant that the door was the only way. But she didn't want to leave Cosette and Nick.

She clicked off the safety from her gun, her eyes steeling as she looked at the odd mix of companions. To Annalise, she spoke first. "I know I say it often but, stay close." Her eyes went to Jay, then to the man on the slab. She didn't know these two, but she had to trust them like Cosette had trusted her in the submarine. And the girl and her stepfather were able to weigh in. "Jay, you good? And what about you?" She asked the woman and the man from the slab, her finger curling around her gun, aimed to the ground and ready for anything Von would throw their way should they head up those stairs.

---

It didn't take very long. Buluc's tightened grasp easily squeezed Nick into slumbered unconsciousness. Buluc might as well been squeezing on a tube of toothpaste, with Nick's head being the lid. How? How had everything gone so sour, so fast? Was one of the last things Nick consciously pondered as he struggled against the Mayan war deity.

If Cossette had listened carefully through all the noise, or read his lips, she would have heard a faint, "Run." Nick was fully aware of his inability to protect her at this point, and a certain lack of generalized self preservation, despite best efforts. The realization was that his idiocy was currently getting him killed, and he hoped against all odds that Cosette would learn from his mistakes. But then again, Nick also realized that Cosette was a de Villiers...

Dammit, Thierry.

At one point, Cosette's screaming turned into Nova's. A brief thought crossed his mind as he zoomed in and out of a waking state. I'm lucky to still be alive at this point. The yelling turned into an explosion? Check. Then more yelling? Check. Then Von Galloes' cackle? Check, check, and check. The feeling that Von had been behind this whole thing had been with him from the beginning, but was heavily incapacitated, thus unable to react beyond the occasional exhaled slow blink.

With one last shaky inhale, Nick was out cold. Or was he?

Questioningly, Nick easily got to his feet, "This is a simulation." He said as he twirled around on his heels, "It has to be, but where the fuck am I?" He'd been whispering to himself as he steadily walked down the darkened hallway. Doors to his left, a waiting room to his right. An empty hospital. He knew this place? It felt heavily familiar, but he couldn't remember why.

The lights above were unsettling to say the least. Their brightness lingered awkwardly with a faint humming sound... Where the hell was everybody?

The voice was slightly monotoned, as if he was bored... or maybe merely mimicking human speech after having freshly learned it, "So we meet again, Von. Do you ever miss the real world? Surely, living in these simulations can't be healthy." But his demeanor was off, and would feel slightly amiss to those who knew Nick personally.

The girls had already yelled and said their angered piece, but Nick seemed uneager to join in. A dead give away that this wasn't the real Nick. Nor did he aim for his guns. "I admit that these games you play are quite intricate, Von, but I come with a message of sorts."

A certain smirk played across his lips, "Fear your own shadow." Before Nick's body collapsed like a ragdoll. The shadow had used Nick like a puppet, but had meant the young man no harm.

An inhaled gasp as Nick pulled himself upright. Much slower than before, more in tune with the grimacing pain. He felt odd, but not just because he'd been Buluc's play thing. The sensation felt tingly, sugar coated with a massive migraine. He rubbed at his forehead gently, trying to soak in the bullshit scenario he'd got caught up in. He'd felt this way once before and mumbled to himself, "The Hollow. Damn."

The girls seemed to be okay, much to Nick's relief at seeing Nova, Jay, and Anna. But what about... ? Stumbled around on his knees to her, before patting at her limp body, "Cosy! Cosy, stay with me!" Realizing the situation was just as shitty as ever, Nick placed his hands on his hips with a sigh. Inhaled, catching his breath to a normal rhythm again. An idea rattled around his mind, and knew it was an idea that he'd probably kick himself for later.

"Von, let's make a deal." Nick looked up at Von, stoicism danced across his expression to hide an otherwise pleading tone of voice, "You hired me on a year and a half ago, to do some digging for stuff found with TRUMPET. Just..." He sighed heavily while looking to the girls, then back to Cosy, "Let me do my damn job."

Under calmer situations, Nick would have asked to let the girls go, without hesitation... but the realization that he needed their expertise, their help, was rather overwhelming at this point. They were all in over their heads, but Nick couldn't help but think Von was as well.

Remember me.

@SporkoBug, @Days, @WhiteAngel25, @Lexisheeps

---

“HEY WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT ABOUT?"

Von Galloes looked down at her, disapproval evident in his tone as it reverberated through the speakers.

“Now, now, is that any way to speak to your company's largest investor? At least, I would be, if anyone in Mechozs.io was awake…”

His eyes locked onto Toren briefly, his face a mask from where he stood in the observation deck, before he moved on.

He gaze passed over Annalise, before a chuckle reverberated over the speakers. “Yes, the little one who fluttered like a lost butterfly through the hallways of my labs… Annalise. Wouldn't you like to know what I had your parents working on…?”

"You fucking cunt. Didn't you cause enough misery yet?"

“Oh, you don't know the half of it, my dear.” Von Galloes said, the sneer evident in his voice.

"I admit that these games you play are quite intricate, Von, but I come with a message of sorts. Fear your own shadow.”

There was a pause as Von Galloes paced a little closer to the glass of the observation deck, hands clasped behind his back casually.

“Well, well, and here I thought we had an understanding…” He said, before shrugging.

It was then Cosy slowly roused herself, blinking in a confused manner before she looked up at the observation deck. She immediately paled, trembling where she half-sat up.

Von Galloes relished in the group's attention, hands clapping together once. He leaned forward a bit, a cruel smile on his face. “Now, since you've failed so dreadfully at discovering the source of this aberrant site, I have a new task for you.”

“Haven't you wondered ehy everything is… so strange? What are your memories beyond our last little… exchange in the Ethera?”

A hologram appeared in the center of the raised stone table. Everyone would be able to discern a disturbing sight.

In a white room, there were six tubes. Suspended within, hooked up to breathing apparatuses, were themselves. Nick, Cosy, Jay, Axen, Toren, Nova, Annalise, everyone. Eyes shut, appearing dead, or asleep.

“What you are witnessing is yourselves in the real world. Oh, yes. Nothing is quite as it seems, and I have had quite the hay day in your absence.” Von Galloes said, a deep chuckle in his throat.

“Alas, its a bit boring not having anyone witness what I've done, my latest creation, my eternal domination… So I've decided to return you to the real world. Yes, yes, you can shower me in your gratitude in a minute.”

The hologram shifted, flicking through live feeds of other tubes in different locations. Stella was one of them, Dragon was another. Close associates of the group, in need to saving.

“I want you to try and find them. Your old friends, loved ones. Fight against me, in your pitiful way. It will satisfy my desire to crush your wills.” Von Galloes said with a cold laugh.

“Any questions before I send you to the real world? Come on, speak up.”

"Largest.... Investor?" Jay uttered quietly before she looked to Axen, hoping for any sort of explanation before she listened to Von Galloes explain everything, she hadn't really paid much attention to the rest of the group before now, she looked back and noticed Toren staring up at Galloes. "Uh, who's the new guy?" She asked out loud before Galloes caught her attention again, Ethera? What the fuck was Ethera? She thought to herself before she glanced towards Axen again.

Axen was looking towards the tubes, moving slightly to flutter towards the hologram, looking at himself and Jay. "How.... How long have we been living a lie?" Axen asked, looking back to Jay, mild fear in his little eyes. Jay pulled herself up and moved to follow Axen quietly, furrowing her brow but she said nothing.

Toren watched Von carefully, before he glanced over towards the hologram of the tubes. Oh fuck, How long had he been here? He could sense Maw slowly putting things together, trying to figure out everything in his own time before he let a rumble out of Torens' mouth himself.
"How long without food?" Maw rumbled loudly, staring back up towards Von angrily. His voice more rumbly than Torens, it was definitely easily distinguished from Toren's more shy-sounding voice.

Annalise gripped her hands into tighter fists seeing the group hooked up to wire, encased in glass, and practically motionless aside from the movement of their eyes moving behind closed lids. Her expression dropped when she saw Stella, Theo, and Dragon in the same states, but obviously in different locations. She paled and gulped softly feeling a coolness wash over her. Then for a brief moment, Anna saw it. Stella's right pointer finger twitched, followed by a flick of her closed ocean hues. She was alive!

The young woman's attention was quickly brought back to Von Galloes as he asked if anyone had questions. "Just one from me. How much dark matter energy can your system handle?" Anna smiled wickedly, knowing that whatever underground bunker Von Galloes was in, stood no chance if enough energy focused through.

She quickly dashed over to Toren and quickly grabbed his hand. "Help me, please, and we'll get you that well-deserved meal," Anna said to the man who needed to consume. She knew that Toren had been experimented on enough that the energy inside him was a being of its own accord. Now, that the illusion had been broken, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She focused on what she knew she could control, and that was guiding both her and Toren's dark matter energy to overwhelm Galloes' system.

Annalise could feel the crackling of her abilities in her fingertips, radiating up her forearms to her elbows. In her mind's eyes a figure in white guided her consciousness quickly to the server. Using the dark matter within her and Toren's systems to throw the system into an overflow that Galloes' system could not contain. Within minutes Anna's quick thinking had beaten whatever plan Galloes had to wake the group up, whether by injection or otherwise.

She gasped in sudden breath as she sat forward suddenly. The movement was sluggish as Anna realized that she was in a giant glass tube of liquid. She touched her face, finding an oxygen mask secured to her face, and wires with adhesive patches attached to her skin. Anna ran her hands along the glass, looking for an opening hatch. When she couldn't find one, she placed her hands on the glass and used her dark matter ability to vibrate the glass to shatter it. Annalise moved as quickly as she possibly could. She popped off her wires, took off her oxygen mask, and ran over to the computer monitoring the group, her fingers working quickly to ensure everyone would wake up.

Nova's weapon felt heavy in her hand, both foreign and familiar. A chilling tremor coursed through her as Nick stood, threatened Von, and collapsed again. Then, he mentioned the Hallow. The news hit her like smoke swirling up, stinging her without mercy. What was she even doing here? She was a scientist. A basement dweller. Archery had once been just a sport—a way to blow off steam from her work, her financial troubles, and bloody Brenda's antics. Now, her arrows had felled both a glimmering dragon and a towering entity. Her aim was true, but her confidence wavered. Yes, she was skilled, perhaps even the most knowledgeable person when it came to the Heart of Hearts and CDE. But damn, did she feel out of her depth. Nova hated how Von Galloes poked at her greatest insecurity. Not figuring out what was going on while so many people counted on her.

Why had she come at all? After last year's battle, she’d promised herself she’d focus on her studies and nothing more. But Annalise—that’s why. Nova didn’t fully understand it, but she’d go to the ends of the earth for the girl. As would Kai.

The thought of her husband made Nova blink, her back straightening slightly as her eyes swept over her companions before locking onto the taunting man behind the glass. Right now, she missed Kai more than she missed the sun on winter mornings, more than she missed the calm of a life before all this chaos. Before the Ethera. A hot pressure built behind her eyes, but she pushed it down. Now wasn’t the time to cry, or let emotions take control. Besides, someone shifted beside her. Nova broke her stare from the man to glance at Cosy, who was finally stirring. She offered the girl a reassuring smile, almost moving toward her, if Von Galloes hadn’t continued speaking.

He knocked the woman off her axis completely. An awful, sinking feeling settled in the pit of her stomach as she stared at the hologram atop the table—Cosette, Annalise, Nick, her companions, and... herself. Her eyes widened as the reason for the dread clawing at her consciousness became clear. The gun felt heavy in her hand. Nova dropped to her knees, her eyes wide in disbelief, her free hand covering her mouth as a tortured sob threatened to escape.

The real world.

She wasn’t real. Not right now, at least. Her body in the tube wore the earrings Kai had given her before the Gala at the Louvre. Had they been trapped there since the battle at the Ethera? Had they never escaped, as she thought—as they all thought? The realisation crept in like a cold tide, and with it, hindsight. Tiny inconsistencies she’d overlooked. Minuscule. Things she had blamed on the damage to her body after the fight. One less plant in her sunroom. Annalise’s sudden appearance. Brenda actually succeeding at something. All too small to notice—until now.

Von Galloes talked but Nova barely registered as he showed Stella, in a tube in a different room- no, different locations. But when it was her very own husband, the man she loved and adored, shown in a tube, unconscious, his eyes closed and unaware, Nova's eyes watered and the harsh reality of it all hit her like a punch to the gut. He never got down on one knee in front of her. He never slid a ring onto her finger. They didn’t exchange vows. They never signed any papers. She never kissed him at the altar. She never moved into his house. Annalise never joined them. She never married Kai. The weight of all that was lost crashed down on her, suffocating in its finality.

It was all a simulation.

And it pissed Nova the hell off. The sight of her suspended, unconscious husband—reality be damned—had her seething, her desperation morphing into rage as she pushed herself back onto her feet. She spun around to glare daggers at Von Galloes. Her fingers itched to grab an arrow and send an explosive round toward his smug, ugly face, but she was sure the glass was reinforced. He was positively gloating as he explained that they would be released to play more of his wicked games in the real world, tasked with finding Stella and Kai. She’d go far for Stella but for Kai?

Nova would burn down the whole goddamn world.

Beside her, brave Annalise spoke up, but her actions pulled Nova from her resolve, forcing her to focus on the one she was meant to protect. She watched Annalise dash toward the man who had been on the slab. Instinctively, Nova followed, driven by a need to safeguard Anna. But when Annalise grabbed the man and closed her eyes, Nova realised what was happening. She was going to try to get them out of this on their own terms.

Nova took a shaky breath. Her consciousness was about to be thrust back into her own, actual body. Kai wasn’t here right now, but he was in the same simulation, wasn’t he? He must be. At this moment, she was still connected to Kai's simulation, even if he might be unaware of being in it. Once she woke up, she was tasked with finding him. Nova lifted her hand to the device in her ear, her wedding ring reflecting the shimmer of their surroundings. "Kai— I don’t know if I’m reaching you, but... I love you. And I’m going to find you."

Dropping her hand, her eyes were on her ring, her heart sinking as an odd sensation swallowed her whole.

And spit her back out into the real world. Her eyes opened wide, blurred by being suspended in some form of clear liquid, her heart hammering in her chest. Immediately, she stretched her fingers and glanced down at them.

Bare, and without a loving ring.

Looking up, she noticed Annalise at the controls just before her tube began to drain, slowly lowering her feet to the bottom and returning her weight as the tattered gown she had worn at the Gala—and during the following battle—felt heavy against her body. Once the water fully drained, a hatch popped open, and Nova disconnected herself from the wires, taking a shaky step out. She coughed, her long hair dripping onto the floor and forming puddles of misery.

“Anna...” she breathed, gratitude shining in her eyes as she glanced toward the other tubes draining. With unsteady legs, she walked to the one beside her, where Cosette had been suspended. As the liquid drained, her hatch opened. Nova reached out her hand. “Come on, I’ve got you,” she said, ensuring Cosette could step out safely before turning her attention to the other tubes holding Nick and their two new companions.

“Nick, you good? Jay? And—God, what’s your name?” she asked the hungry man on the slab, who had somehow helped Annalise get them out.

Nova gathered her hair, twisting her locks and squeezing out the moisture. It was time to get her damn husband back.

@SporkoBug, @Days, @WhiteAngel25

---

"How long without food?"

“My poor, dear Maw… If you had just obeyed, you would be here with me, instead of living on the brink of death like a dog.” Von Galloes said in a cruel tone.

A pause, before Von leaned in from his observation window. “Two years. You've been asleep for two years.”

"Just one from me. How much dark matter energy can your system handle?"

Von Galloes stared with mild curiosity, before a notification flashed on his watch, alerting him to the dark matter energy fluctuating in the servers. A low chuckle.

“You clever, stupid girl.”

And the simulation disappeared.

---

---

Cosy woke in her own tube, staring out at the shapes through the liquid. There was a gentle hiss as the water levels lowered, resting her feet on the steel floor. Slowly, the hatch door slid opened, and Cosy exited, still dressed in her gala dress. A ginger extrication of the oxygen mask and IVs, dropping them to the side. Cosy gave Nova a grateful smile as she was helped out.

”Thanks, Nova… I think I got muscle atrophy.”

Cosy, pensive look on her face, moved to stand beside Annalise.

As Annalise moved through the database, she would find the room they were in one of hundreds. There were countless people sleeping away in this facility they found themselves in, each in their own tube, and a group of tubes in a room. However, as she searched, she would come across something very, very annoying.

They were currently residing in Chicago. Stella, Sabrina, Dex, Allen and Theo were held at another HiveMind Facility in New York. The terminal Annalise had access to would only allow her to view their location. If she wanted to wake them up, she would have to travel there in person.

Dragon and Aurélie were held at a CDE site, high security, and evidently very dangerous to traverse if they were unprepared. The CDE site was located in Paris, at the remains of the Louvre Museum.

The terminal held a lot more information of people in tubes. The people who were sleeping were in the thousands… in the millions.

Upon waking up, everyone would have the strong sensation of not being entirely… whole. Like a part of their minds were lost to the stratosphere. Concerning…

The room they were in wasn't remarkable besides the tubes and the terminal. But the group would encounter another problem as everyone was coming out of their tubes.

Nick… Nick wasn't waking up.

Maw looked up as Von spoke, giving a rumble at the mention of if he had just 'obeyed'; he wasn't anyone's pet, he didn't need to obey anyone. He felt his skin prickle angrily at the mention of not eating for two years, he was about to charge towards the stairs before everything went white.

---

The water levels dropped quickly in Maw and Torens' tube, Toren was shunted directly to the back of the mind as Maw tumbled out and fell onto his hands and knees. He didn't seem to have noticed the girls as they stood near him.
Maw breathed heavily for a moment before he felt his body tremble, he started to cough; bringing up bile and blood.

The blood caused him to sneer, it smelt sour - like it was sitting in his gullet for way too long. It felt clotted and horrible coming from his mouth. The hidden seam across his cheeks where his mouth extended from felt tight, like it had almost healed over.
"F...Fuck." Maw spoke, his throat was sore and his voice felt scratchy. "Hun...gry. T..two years..." He grumbled as he slowly pulled himself up from the ground, using the edge of his tube to stabilize himself as he winced.

He was sore, everything hurt. He felt a growl rumble through his body as he moved to open his mouth, larger than his lips - making sure the slits across his cheeks weren't healed over. He'd need to make sure he could still eat as much as he needed to. "Take... Pain for Toren..." Maw mumbled to himself, he felt like something was wrong in this body; which was stopping him from using his energy to warp the body into something more comfortable for him, but Toren wasn't responding in the consciousness.

---

The tube slid open, Axen tumbling out before his lights flickered. He wasn't injured like he was in the simulation, his body buzzed for a moment as he slowly came to and looked around to find Jays' terminal to get her out too.
Jay stumbled out slowly, Axen moving to grab the back of her shirt to keep her from falling to the ground.

"No, I don't want to." Jay grumbled as she waved towards Axen tiredly. She blinked slowly as she was slowly coming too.
"You're unwell." Axen said softly, "I can sense somethings not right, how is your head?"
Jay couldn't help but grin to herself, "Haven't had any complaints." She uttered softly before Axen pecked towards her, "Ow! Sorry, I'm fine. My brain just feels fuzzy." She said with a shake of her head before she looked around, noticing Nova and Cosy. "Oh hey, they were in the simulation too." Jay commented as she slowly stepped towards them, Axen buzzing around after her.

---

4,000 miles away...

French government was normally complacent with The Louvre's sole containment of supernatural antiquity, within France's borders. But had arrested several key Louvre members regarding HiveMind's attack last year. Well, the ones who hadn't been kidnapped, escaped through the once glass pyramid, or lacking signs of rigor mortis.

Prisoner in holding cell 58R, was quiet. Except for the repetitive tapping of his left heel. Wiped some sweat from his brow then sunk his face deep into his hands. The frustration had sunk in a long time ago, but no other emotion pestered him at the moment. The Frenchman hated sitting here doing absolutely nothing, while the world around him had fallen completely apart- again. Just as he was about to stand and pace, the jingling of keys and hurried footsteps echoed from down the hall.

Frenchman swore under his breath, "Dammit, Nicholas." As he sat there mentally twiddling his thumbs. But wondering exactly what his fate was, regarding the battle with HiveMind, was the least of his concern. A cover-up? Talks of treason? The situation had gone from desperate to insane in less than 72 hours... and all because of one fuck up- the domino effect.

---

---

Distorted thoughts danced softly about like white noise. They intertwined with broken speech off in the distance. Exactly how long had he been unconscious? Sleep seemed nice and comforting, but there was a job to do. Commotion made him lazily blink both eyes open. Took in the ceiling's features as he stared nonchalantly listening to robotic pestering... Had he been hospitalized? Hopefully, he'd been taken to the correct secret HiveMind facility...

Surrounding voices indicated that the girls were okay. It was a little odd not hearing security rush in, now that they were awake. So, maybe Thierry was right with the calculations. Closed his eyes again, almost pretending to be asleep. Had the girls noticed? Didn't seem like it. There was no rush in finding the stolen artifact just yet. So he fidgeted mentally, examining his augmentations.

As suspected, the mind controller exe had been tampered with. An internal sigh washed over him, as he turned certain features back off. But overriding Von's complete control right now, would indicate self awareness. Stealth was necessary with this job, so he played dumb and left certain overrides off.

Seemed like Von Galloes wanted to play dictator, but trouble makers never truly followed orders... Left wrist felt bare without his watch, but a few slight snaps of where the augmentations were, indicated no foul play by the supreme ruler's medical team. Hopefully, they wouldn't be expecting its use. Absolutely hated having the mercenary augmentations... at first. But over time, he planned to use the ones he had, in full force.

The troubled archeologist thought to himself, Being able to turn off sharp pain... Why didn't I use this feature sooner? Carefully, a thin cranial probe behind his right ear was pulled at. It slid out easily, and with modAI turned on, no screaming to alarm the girls. He'd have to see a Louvre doctor after this, to double check his internal injuries. But at least for now, major pain wasn't an issue.

Gingerly sat upright and dangled his feet over the space bed. It was weird watching the visual augmentations monitor everybody's movement. Listing docility... It felt like cheating back in high school. Quickly moved his lingered gaze from ominous flashing, "You girls alright?" He questioned a little to calmly, with a warm smile about his expression.

His primary concern was the girls, but still politely questioned Axen and... the ominously labeled strange man, as well, "What about you three?" Then added, "I don't think we're gonna have too many problems getting outta here, but, if we're where I think we are, getting lost is a real possibility."

If sent properly, a message should have popped up in Nova's vision, Can your augmentations handle live maps? He'd never used this part of the messages interface before, opting to ignore Thierry's previous pestering.

Once he finally got off the medical bed to give Cosy a hug, he winked over at Anna, "Hey, thanks for waking us up back there. My aim was fucking terrible." Still speaking a little too calmly, or was he just that confident with himself? A soft smile played around the corner of his mouth, as he answered Nova's question, "I'm doing alright."

Was it really cocky confidence or just protective preparation?

_{@SporkoBug, @Days, @WhiteAngel25, @Lexisheeps}

---

"Take... Pain for Toren..."

Cosy looked up from Annalise and the screen, seeing a somewhat unfamiliar face approach them, mumbling to himself. She had seen him at the final showdown with that strange spectral warrior, but besides that…

Her brows furrowed in concern, and she took a couple steps towards Toren/Maw. ”Are you okay? Do you need anything? Is that… blood?”

Before she remembered her manners her French father had instilled in her. ”Sorry. I wonder if they have medicine here… I'm Cosette. But you can call me Cosy. I don't think I got your name when we were… well, in there?” She said, awkwardly gesturing to the tubes.

Before Cosy briefly turned towards Jay and Axen, Jay, of which, was stumbling about.

”Axen, how is she?” Cosy asked. Of course she knew Axen and Jay. Everyone knew the hottest explorers from Mechozs.io. At least, she knew the simulation version of them…

"Oh hey, they were in the simulation too."

Cosy gave a soft nod. Everything felt so tired. Even her eyelids struggled to blink. ”Yeah. Director Galloes sure, uh, pulled a number on us. He-he.” Her laugh felt fake and weak, but it was the best attempt at humour she could muster.

"You girls alright?”

”Dad!” Cosy yelped with sudden enthusiasm, rushing over to him. She allowed him to embrace her, and she quickly hugged back. ”You're okay… you're okay, thank goodness. I was… scared.”

She pulled back, head scanning this way and that, before she innocently looked up at her father. ”Where is Ivaylo?”

That was when a soft whirring could be heard through the wall outside their door. Cosy carefully extracted herself from Nick, before she snuck up to the door and peered through the little window. A hovering, miniature Beast with a singular camera eye, chrome and plastic floated past the door, obviously doing its rounds. It didn't bother to look in their direction. Perhaps the rooms were more soundproof than Cosy had thought.

They were lucky… for now.

Cosy waited for the robot to turn a corner, before she cracked the room's door open, peering into the hallway. She looked to the side, staring up at the wall, before she yanked a piece of laminated paper off the wall, and quickly came back into the room, quietly shutting the door behind her.

She held up the paper triumphantly. ”Look! It must be a staff's map to the place! Where do you even suppose we are, anyway? …Besides Chigaco, that is.”

She held the map out, hoping everyone else would be able to make more sense of it than she.

---

”Are you okay? Do you need anything? Is that… blood?”

Maw hesitated as a figure moved towards them, they stayed still for a moment before they slowly pulled himself up onto his feet slowly. He looked over towards Cosy as she spoke to him.
He tried to focus on her words, but his head was thumping. Was it from being stuck away for so long, or was it from the endless hunger that slowly started to feel like it consumed him.

Maw looked to the tubes as Cosy mentioned what his name was, "The body is Toren." He said slowly, hesitating to continue to speak, "But I am Maw." He hoped there would be no questions, luckily she seemed to turn towards others who were coming into consciousness.

Another male pulled himself from a tube, Maw instinctively tensed before he relaxed a tiny bit as he noticed it was one he had met in the simulation. Maw could tell the other man was watching him carefully, he knew he was a threat- most of them probably knew he was a danger. As long as he kept himself in line until Toren came back, hopefully no one would attempt to harm him.

---

Axen looked over to Cosy as she spoke, he fluffed his robotic feathers to her for a moment. "Insufferable as ever." He spoke before he moved to settle on her shoulder.
"I feel groggy like a bad hangover honestly." Jay spoke to Cosy, Nick and Anna. "I feel like I need a heap of painkillers." She laughed weakly.

Jay looked around slowly, taking in the view she was seeing, everyone in tubes. Things seemed to be going through her head slowly before she froze. "Shit. Dex. Where's Dex?!" Jay looked around quickly, "Axen can you contact him?" Jay was focused on trying to find her workmate instead of the map that Cosy offered the group.

Maw on the other hand slowly stepped towards Cosy as she spoke up about a map.
"Kitchen... Food?" He asked out loud, he felt his body shiver at the mention of food. The map looked just like a large amount of squiggles to him; the hunger was messing with his head. He was managing to stay sane and stable for now, but he wasn't sure how long that would last, and he didn't want to potentially harm his new companions...

Toren was never a fan of eating human flesh after all.

Nova wrapped her arms tightly around herself, trying to preserve what little warmth she could. Her once-stunning emerald green gown was a shadow of its former glory. The elegant fabric, once an eye-catcher of the Louvre Gala, was now shredded and stained, torn above the knees during the chaos of the battle. Nova could still feel Kai’s strong hands tearing at the hem as its flowy length had made her trip while running for her life.

She remembered the absurd flicker of worry that had crossed her mind at the time, about the cost of the dress and how it was now beyond repair. Such a trivial thing to think about, given the carnage surrounding them. Now, one sleeve was gone entirely, the other hanging in tatters and smeared with dried blood from a wound long since healed. The delicate mesh over her chest had been ripped too. But it was just a dress.

People had died that day.

And Nova had lost so much since then. Stella, restful nights. But she’d also believed she had gained something: a husband and Annalise, a sense of purpose. But as she stood there on the cold floor, barefoot and dripping with fluid from the simulation tube, the crushing truth still rang in her ears. None of it was real. The past year of her life, everything she thought she had built, had all been an illusion. The only thing she had truly gained was more questions.

Nova gave Cosette a nod in response to her gratitude. “Be careful walking, Cose,” she said gently, watching as the blonde moved to stand beside Annalise. For a moment, Nova paused, observing them. What was it about these two girls that made her feel so responsible, so protective? One she had pulled from the depths of the sea, cradling her in her arms and whispering promises that everything would be alright. The other she had embraced without hesitation when Kai brought her home, braiding her hair before bed and soothing her through the nightmares.

She’d probably go to hell and back for them, but why? Somehow, these two had awakened a part of her she never realised existed—a need to care, to nurture. It was almost laughable, how far she had come. Not long ago, she would have chosen conversations with her cat and her plants over people. Now, she’d do anything to protect them.

While the girls focused on the terminal, Nova was still trying to find her bearings, wishing for the ringing in her ears to stop and for her body to shift into action mode. The fierce need in her heart to find Kai hadn’t yet translated into her muscles. Absentmindedly, her thumb brushed the spot on her finger where her ring should have been as her eyes drifted to the two relative strangers nearby; the nameless man and Jay. Thankfully, both seemed relatively stable, though Nova noticed the man struggling back to his feet after coughing up blood. He was quiet, always hungry, and carried an air of unpredictability that kept Nova on alert. She made sure to keep him in her periphery; nothing and no one would get near the girls while she was alive, that much was certain.

Her gaze shifted to Nick, still floating helplessly in his tube, much like Kai and the others. In the background, she could hear Cosette speaking kindly to the odd man, her warm nature shining through even in this situation. She heard him introduce himself as Toren. But also Maw? But Nova’s focus stayed on Nick. They had people to save, but she couldn’t stop her mind from selfishly prioritising Kai. Yet, she’d seen Stella too... Kai had tried so hard to find her. They both had. But no—that had all been the simulation. Her brows furrowed as she struggled to disentangle real memories from the fabricated ones. She wanted Nick to wake up. He’d want to save Stella as much as she did.

Just as her fingers twitched, readying to move towards him, Nick’s eyes opened. Nova’s widened in response, a wave of relief washing over her. It pulled her out of her trance and back into motion. She quickly ensured Nick’s tube began to drain, stepping back as his raspy voice broke the silence. It wasn't long before a message appeared in her vision, making her blink. Nick was sending a message to her...mentally? She looked him in the eye and nodded in confirmation that yes, her augmentation could before Cosette barreled into him for a hug. The sight was endearing, and Nova couldn’t help but feel a small flicker of gratitude that, at the very least, those two had woken up together, just as she had with Annalise.

That thought sparked something in her: a renewed determination, tempered by anger. She nodded curtly at Nick, placing a firm hand on his shoulder and giving it a brief squeeze as he confirmed he was alright. “I’m glad. Now let’s focus on getting out of here,” she said, her voice steady and resolute.

As her heart still thumped, the company in the room was quiet as something seemed to pass its door, before Cosy snuck out. A small smile appeared on Nova's lips instead, the girl had grown a lot more confident and capable. She gave a knowing look to Nick for a brief moment before looking back at Cosette holding out a laminated map as if they were in a regular office building with fire drills and regulations. Yet, as the man, Toren, walked up to Cosette, something in Nova alerted and she stepped forward as well. She didn't know him. He had been tied down to a damn slab and he didn't seem to be entirely in the here and now. She quickly glanced at Annalise before going to stand beside Cosette, looking at the map while simultaneously forming a subtle barrier between her and the man. "Cosette, you're brilliant. One moment, keep it still, I'm scanning it," the scientist said as she ran her eyes over the map.

The vision part of her augmentation was back to its basic state. Only in the simulation had Kai paid for her upgrades. With every realisation of what hadn’t actually happened, another cut seemed to slice into Nova’s soul but she pressed on. She scanned and saved the map, carefully analysing it for keywords and ensuring that, even if the physical map was lost, it was backed up in her augmentation.

Testing her implant, she tapped twice behind her ear and found it still functional. The thought still unsettled her. The upgrades Kai had added to her retina and cochlear implants had made her sharper, and better at processing sounds and details. While she could manage without the advanced vision features like enhanced zoom and recognition, losing the auditory support felt like being thrown back into deep waters without a lifeline. Even so, she couldn’t let it distract her. She had to find Kai. Somehow, they could still become what she had believed they already were.

While Nova focused on a route or exit, the request for a kitchen made her frown in confusion and look back up at Toren. The hungry man. While the request seemed odd, she vividly remembered the moment Annalise fed the man on the slab. Something about what the girl had said made Nova think twice about writing food off as a priority. "Um, let's see," Nova said softly, her eyes shifting to Nick.

Curiously, with a couple of movements in her eyes, Nova tried to send him the map just like he'd sent her. Hoping it worked, she looked back at Toren, her eyes moving a little as her golden retina sparkled ever so slightly, signalling her augmentation at work. She was looking both at the man and the map. "There are stairs to the right. We could try those, but; no kitchen. Or, no, wait, there's an employee room. There could be supplies there,"

Blinking, she removed the map from her vision and looked over at Nick. "Nick, any idea?" She inquired before looking over at Jay and her flying dinosaur. "Jay, is there some way we can utilize your friend over there to find a way out?"