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Chapter Five: Brothers in Arms, Part One

Could you measure peace, not in the same way as asking if you could measure love from a Broadway musical? But instead in the real life, could you measure any amount of peace. Could peace be quantified, or measured, in anyway could it been seen or measured with some sort of device and would the international organization of standards even accept it.

All and all, even with every single day passing without in Carson City, they might have needed some sort of system to measure the peace in the city, because with each passing day the city passed a bit more over the edge. Could peace be measured with some sort of device or formula, maybe days over advancing threats minus the panic of the city, having a sheer negative number would be crap.

The citizens were breathing down the Outsiders' necks and given the last attack on the city they had a bit of right to be nervous. The school was blown up with ice and like that, the image of safety, the idea that the nanobots wouldn't sink so low to attack a school or burn the Earth, but instead that idea was shaken and blown away.

The people stood in their houses, and looked around out of their windows and wondered. Would this be the day that they were attacked, would this be the day that their safety was compromised. It was all very sobering to the people of the city and none more shaking and waking for the Outsiders, they counted the peace like grains of sand trapped between their fingers and they had to hold on tight, hold tight to peace and hold on to what they had.

And for all of them that was a very bad thought, that was them being shaken to their core and that was their ideals being destroyed. But in the same that passed, the city once again adjusted, as checking for a nanobot attack on the news became common place and even as their safety was threatened, the people of the city decided not be wrapped in their regrets and like that reversed, they wished to not look back and they partied, sticking it to the nanobots.

And for the Outsiders this pushed them, this told them they had to protect the people, they had to enjoy themselves and as the time passed the city normalized back. The people had lived in fear of the nanobots, counted their peace and then raged against the nanobots, they held on to peace and all the while they waited.

And in the cafeteria of the school while the breath of fresh peace was stinking up the food, for Iren she swore that she could only smell one other thing. Looking forward, she sat down and crossed her arms, placing it against her stomach. She looked forward and leaned her head as she examined the people in front of her, shame on them.

“Horny lizards, sharks and dragons." Iren looked around and saw the three couples of the Outsiders making out. Erick and Joss, Isaac and Finn, Ross and Billy, the three couples sitting down at lunch. Iren looked around and everyone seemed to be making out, love was in the air and it wasn't even Valentine's Day. Looking forward she took a breath as she realized there wasn't much she was going to do but kill the party of the six.

“God where the hell is Michelle when you need to make out." Iren copiously said hoping to distract the three, it was as unsuccessful as one would expect it. All while the human directed glare at her, the tiger sat down and looked down at her stomach, at least everyone had a partner. “God the gays, the only thing a lesbian kiss can't conquer and if anyone asks I didn't say that."

Iren leaned back in her chair and cracked her back, she put her hand and rubbed her knuckles between her vertebrae. Groaning as she did, she adjusted herself and stood up straight. Looking down, she focused on her stomach, jutting out from her body like it was going to give birth to some sort of alien creature.

“Nearly there, only a few more months and then you'll be out, just like Isaac's hairstyle." Iren looked as Finn rain his hair through what might be called a poor man's mullet that was currently nesting birds on top of Isaac's head. His black hair ran down to his purple jacket and while it might have been somewhat combed in the back, it was less then effectively on top, whether or not that was from Finn's hands was yet to be determined.

“God what is it with the threat of death and making everyone horny, don't use that word." Iren spoke down to her stomach as she seemingly conversed with the only other person who knew what it was like. “All by ourselves, but still really you poor thing, I feel so insecure, only one who can't get anything and remember it, and now I am making bad jokes, don't be like me."

And then the couples broke, as if it were some super stylized world, the three pulled away from the others at the same time. And then they looked sexily into each other's' eyes, the sexual tension was amassing in the air, or was that the musk, Iren thought, she wondered if that might damage her baby.

“Ok you six, I do have a child here, please don't scar us for life, instead let's do something productive like decide on names for the little shark boy that will slide out of moist vagina, don't say that either." Iren spoke and smiled as she put that imagine into the six men in front of her, and like that the tension was broken, her gaper smashing it into pieces.

“Wow, I never thought a moment could be ruined like that, you just ruined vaginas, childbirth, my appetite and my boner at the same time." Isaac glanced over as if expecting an apology for that. Iren just loving smiled and soon the shark found his appetite back anyway as he spooned his food and shoved it back into his mouth. “If you keep cursing like that sailor then we'll have to take that from you."

“Yeah yeah, little Finn Jr. listens to Beethoven at night, so shit, piss, fuck, cunt, cocksucker, motherfucker, and tits to you." Iren spoke, Isaac just laughed and Finn groaned a bit as he turned back to his food. The shark looked down at it and as he shoved his fork into it, he imagined it as metallic and make of thousands of nanodevices.

“I just hope that nothing is going to happen, I've seen sitcoms and if TV has taught me anything it is everything that can happen when you go at will, and also not to be the idiot dad." Finn shoved the mashed potatoes into his mouth and chewed them, all while Ross and Billy were laughing.

“Don't worry we have the idiot dad over here." Erick said as he put his hand against the letterman of his boyfriend. Joss laughed a bit and leaned into Erick, nuzzling his nose against the lizard's neck. Iren groaned a bit, was this the team that was supposed to defend the city, she, Ross, Erick, Isaac and Finn, she wished Michelle was still with them.

“God I am going to come apart at the seams and don't make a pregnancy joke out of that, those are not cool." Iren berated the six horny males on the other side of the table as she pulled her fork out of the mashed potatoes and pointed them at them. Finn laughed a bit more and then leaned against Isaac, the gravity shark wrapping his hands around Finn.

“Ok, let's just be a bit smart. Don't worry Iren, we are in a first world country and we are a part of the Outsiders, you will get the best medical care, because we need you out on the field as well. I should be more worried than you are, what if anything happens before the birth?" Finn tried to level with Iren, the tiger taking that personally as she looked at Finn.

“Yeah Finn I've seen inside her mind and I see what she sees, and you do not want to be inside that room, you might want to schedule something with the nanobots that day." Erick truthfully spoke and Iren looked at the Komodo Dragon as he ate his mashed potatoes.

“Erick don't look into my mind you will find bad things and you need to watch what you do with that, keep you powers in control and don't let them control you, as easy as it would be to allow them to get your information…" Iren started off on the tangent.

“I know, I am in control and I control what I see don't worry about it." Erick waved off her fear and quieted her as he went back to his food, shifting his spoon, all the student started to dump their trays and Ross went with Billy, taking his empty plate and silverware with him.

“I don't know, do you believe that you're going to going to be a good father, just Finn please don't abandon this child, you need to be his father figure." Iren said as Finn breathed and looked at her, looking around the three of them breathed silently, and looked around.

Joss and Erick stood up from the table and left the three of them alone to discuss it, the tension between them was palatable. Finn looked over to Isaac and Isaac back to Finn, they nodded and looked to Iren. Iren raised an eyebrow as she realized something was happening between the sharks.

“Ok you two are thinking about something and I'm not included, so then tell me, what do you want me to cancel this or do you want to run away to Japan, or would you like to abandon me? But let me be the first to tell you, that is not how it goddam works!" Iren yelled, the school looking over to her practically showing teeth. She giggled for a second and put her hand on her stomach as she covered for herself and leaned back into the table. Finn pulled back and looked somewhat offended.

“Listen with all the danger until the nanobots and the Kagens are dealt with I think that we should keep him with us, Isaac's house is the most protected with the perception filter and what not, and with what happened to my parents, I think that we should at least try to keep him somewhat a secret to them." Finn calmly spoke with a calm in voice and then suddenly the pressure turned on Iren, now she was the bad guy.

“Listen, don't be unreasonable, you can stay with us and we don't mind that, I just don't want to get more people hurt, they can see in cameras and that is why our perception filters are always working." Isaac explained to Iren as the tiger took that in and she looked at the two in front of her.

“Well then, I don't think you are being unreasonable, but only if there is danger, once the danger ends then we can go back to our normal settings." Iren added and both of them nodded, Isaac and Finn looked at each other and they nodded.

“I don't think I would have it any other way, once the danger ends then the baby can be sent back between both houses until you move out of your parent's houses and then maybe we can agree on a single household but that is the future as well." Isaac spoke, seemingly solidifying the verbal contract between both of them. “Well then cheers for us not having to appear on a daytime television court show."

…

“God Earl what am I going to do, I don't feel like Finn will ever be a good father to this kid, he wasn't ready." Iren asserted as she leaned back against the table, the other kid that knew about Outsider activities sat down next to her. The good lizard, Earl, the scavenger of the desert and constantly covered in a layer of dirt or sand.

“Well is anyone ever ready to be a parent, are we ever, give him time and he seems to be going on a war path for that child. So once things calm down then see how it goes, don't worry yourself over that." Earl spoke out one of his little gems and Iren took a breath of relief.

“Your right, how did you get so smart, I'm going to name this baby after you." Iren joked as she leaned back further against the table, cracking her back finally and giving it some relief. They both laughed.

…

“Ok then now onto Calculus 3, god save me, no get a good education." Finn complained to himself as he seemingly went off from the cafeteria, dam his glorious mind. Looking back, he was jealous of everyone who went back to the first version of the course, still at least he wasn't Isaac, who was in the advanced class, not that it mattered, Isaac still skipped that class and got a hundred.

“Sorry Finn you need to come with me." Suddenly a hand grabbed Finn and the shark was dragged into the janitorial closet. Finn turned as the door behind him closed and luckily it seemed no one saw him. Bright was standing in front of him and the shark seemed a bit worse for the ware, his face was sweaty and he looked worn out.

“Do you have any idea what you're doing?" Whispering Finn's hands went ecstatic as he waved them in front of Bright trying to jog the Kagen's mind.

“I don't know, did the Kagens sent humanity an advanced AI chip only for them to build a robotic crocodile that survived the flooding of the Earth?" Bright retorted as he pulled Finn deeper in the closet. “The Kagens want to see you and it is not a good sort of see, they're not feeling the treaty as much as you thought they would."

“Well then as much as I would love calculus, I think I can skip that class today and tomorrow and anytime you want." Finn gladly joined Bright as the shark clasped on to his wrists and the two of them felt the energy shared between their bodies.

“Don't worry you'll learn that in order for the universe to be understood, and asymptotes to be solved, Isaac Newton really just needs a stern talking down to, using twenty-six-dimension geometry all your calculus problems will be solved, but something tells me that I should have spoiled that." Bright then started to glow and the closet was traded out for the winds of Lake Tahoe blowing in his hair.

“Well then where are the overlords?" Finn asked as he looked around, the Kagens that were still transporting materials stopped in disbelief and looked at him, while the others started to run away. “I see my reputation supersedes me."

“Yeah, the killer of Riftwalkers and one that was on Earth for such a long time does put you in the spot where they will run from you if you teleport, but not listen to a speech." Bright said as he started to walk, the Kagens encircling them spreading out as he walked forward and the tent of the Kagens standing in front of them and casting shade on them.

“Ok well then come on scramble, I didn't kill a Riftwalker for nothing, learn to make peace and get out here!" Finn said as he walked forward, following behind, Bright didn't have the most helpful look on his face.

“Remember if I die, well then Isaac comes after you and gives you a permeant place in the stratosphere." Finn half-seriously threatened as he and Bright walked into the Kagen par-tent-eon. Passing through the two flaps, Bright took him down the outer most layer and Finn followed.

“Well with this, if you made this place like a mile long and wide, then you would have some sort of building in the shape of the Pentagon, but I should again I shouldn't be telling you that." Finn commented as he walked forward, the wind blew against his legs, just under the tiny space between the ground and tent flaps.

Walking forward Bright then stopped and grabbed a hold of a parting in the tent, there were some symbols on the door way and either way it seemed to be conveying a combination of “don't enter" and “Kagen High Command". Looking forward Bright signaled for the shark to enter.

And nodding, Finn grabbed the tent flap and entered. Sitting down in front of him were two Kagens, Octavius and Zonate. Bright entered afterwards and the two sat down, on a bench, facing the two Kagen leaders. Finn looked forward and saw what was sitting before them, the first draft of a treaty.

“So then little mortal boy what makes you so sure that you want to play in the big leagues and interfere with the immortals?" Zonate spoke, a snake like playfulness coming from his mouth as he almost waved back and forth, Bright glanced at him and shut him up.

“This treaty needs to happen and will happen or else I will find you some sort of universe to fight in and it will not be as nice as this one. This is as fair as possible and this peace will happen, because the other option is not viable." Finn leaned forward and put his hand on the table, looking down at the paper and wondering if he would have to do better with his offerings.

“Listen you get to stay on this Earth, and you get access to anywhere you want, all we ask is peace on this planet, I don't care if you fight in space or fight on another planet, just leave Carson City and Earth alone. Fight on Mars no one really does like Mars." Finn tried his dammed hardest to convince the Kagens but they seemed to be having a little bit of a hard time getting that idea down.

“Listen you have seen what I have done, and I have taken down Joel like you think I did, then you will know that I don't fear doing the same to you." Finn threatened as he stood up and pointed at the treaty. “Accept this or get off my damn world!"

Finn stood up and walked towards the tent, grabbing the wrong side of the flap he struggled as the tent pulled back down to the ground, he slipped under it and looked forward. “And goddam this stupid tent, build a building for once!"

…

Sitting down in his poster covered room, looking up at the white tiled ceiling of drywall, the Komodo Dragon known as Barry laid back in his bed and looked around. Throwing a ball up into the air, he caught it once and threw it again, catching it and then throwing it again.

“Ouch!" Barry watched as the ball ran off his face and onto the floor, he groaned as he reached down and it was out of his grip. He looked around and looked at the ball, in the middle of a brown sea, alone and no one surrounding it. “Well then it looks like the ball still has more friends than I do."

“God if you come in that door and give me three minutes of your time with the nanobots or the Kagens or the Riftwalkers well I would kill for that." Barry leaned back into his pillow, a head shaped mark was beginning to form. Where the hell did his brother go during all this time? “God is he act ally patrolling, I don't think in four years of that he has ever, what is he doing with his time."

And then Billy came to terms with the sudden realization that we all need.

“Oh dammit he is looking in people's minds, dammit, he can't do that, he can't get like that again." Barry leaned up and looked forward. “Well not much I can do about that."

And then the slow clock of time continued again and the dragon was left alone in his room, his hands rested down onto his shorts and then they just slipped a bit under, and then all feeling was lost. He pulled them out and groaned, wiping them on the bed, he then slapped his face and groaned from that as well.

“God nothing feels the goddam same way anymore, maybe Finn is going for that three-way now?" Barry asked himself and he knew that answer. Here he stood alone in his room, superpowerless and with too much time on his hands, slowly but surely ticking away at his sanity. He didn't know what to do with himself and it was wearing away, slowly but surely the eighties effects would begin and his room would start to distort like he was on some acid trip if he was luckily.

“Ok I need to do something with my life." Barry came to the conclusion in his mind, was it any wonder that he wasn't crazy. He was going to lose his sanity at this rate, he needed fresh air. “Well isn't that the story of my life, is it any wonder I'm not a criminal?"

Standing up, Barry looked to his left and right, his parents weren't home and his window was unlocked. A komodo dragon was going to be unleashed on the town and it was going to be time to party. Grabbing the window, the lizard opened it and the screen below it, he secretly taped the screen to the main body just to gain some seconds when sneaking himself or someone out of the room.

Stepping over the edge, Barry looked out and the Secret Ladder v2, Trademark, slid out from his window and down to the ground.

“And down we go." Barry put his legs to the side and slid down to the ground, landing with a thump and wobbling out of his room. The ladder pulled itself back up and the window closed as the balance was disturbed. Walking forward, Barry clapped and rolled his hands as he walked out.

“I'm going to do something, I'll do something and I don't dam care about nanobots, or immortals attacking, I'm going to do something without being negatively compared to my brother." Barry celebrated and walked out to the street, jumping onto it and nearly hurting his feet as he landed on a sewer grate, he looked to his left and to his right.

No one was on the roads, no one was driving down at speeds that would knock a man out to San Francisco. The lizard laughed, the city had returned to normality that soon, or maybe he was just behind. He laughed and picked his foot up, and then something stuck him. The sun was blocked up as a blue light shot up into the sky and surrounded him.

Barry stood still and looked down as the light stopped, he looked down and saw it, in the sewer. Before he could run away, it jumped up at him, destroying the sewer and making it into a gas midair. Barry fell down from the ground and into the sewer, something was touching his hand.

He looked over and saw it, a little collection of blue liquid, what could barely be called a nanobot mutant, but it didn't have the eyes or the organic pieces, it was pure and it only had floaty metal bits. Breathing slowly, Barry realized what was happening. And like that the ominous Latin chorus found themselves reemployed and started to sing.

Barry was trapped, from his hand, his entire body started to seize and his mouth foaming and like that he realized he was truly fucked. The liquid hit his blood stream and like that the pure red that ran through his hands started to be replaced by blue. It shot through the capillaries and like an out of place tattoo, it showed through to his skin.

And then it grew up his arm, Barry tried to do something but he was caught in the trap. And then he knew why it had chosen him, he found himself with a voice again and maybe he could bargain with the bots.

“I know I can reason with you but please don't do this, you know it is me, I'm Barry, Erick's brother, and you want to hurt him but please don't it will mean little to him." Barry spat out dying as he felt his arm completely taken over, it started to move on its own, his hands turning into a fist without his command.

“No I have to focus on myself, I am Barry, I am Barry!" The dragon enthusiastically spat out as he threw his body around, trying to focus as much of himself into the nanobot from of himself. He struggled, if he could overload his body and nerves with enough of himself then maybe a miracle would happen and he could live on.

“I… Am… Barry!" The dragon screamed as the liquid started to flow up the neck, he was losing control of his lungs and throat. The nanobots started for the miracle for their own and it wasn't a massive summer sale as it seemed. Barry struggled as the nanobots started to control him, Barry found his voice failing as the nanobots started into his head.

“I…… Am………. Sorry." Barry barely spoke and then his eyes started to glow blue, his brain was completed and the nanobots took over they in their infinite wisdom replaced the neurons in his brain. They infected the muscles and took over the nerves in his head. Barry's body seized as it was taken over and they were ready for a miracle.

“The nanobots have set me free!" Barry stood up and clapped his hands, his entire body glowing with blue nanobots in his hands. Looking around, he enthusiastically walked around and looked at everyone, it was perfect. Looking at his skin he realized something as his personality merged with the nanobots.

“Well then brother, will you be set free because this is a miracle, and while we touched and went our separate ways, one way we will find you and turn you against your team, because I get it, the blue liquid, it means I am a generation two nanobot warrior." Barry talked to himself as he walked deeper into the sewer, metal starting to jut out of his skin and the only thing guiding him was the blue light from his body.

His body started to shift as he walked down the sewer, nanobots destroying the skin and forming a layer of metal on top, he felt no pain. And then looking down to his hands, the new nanobot saw blades exit his wrists. Yet he could pull them back and shift the matter, blades exited his knuckles and then he shifted the matter to his back, quickly nanobots gathered in his back and wings spread.

“Oh yes, brother will find himself having a hard time with this one." Barry laughed as he walked down the tunnel, the blue glow in his eyes and his body metal. He was lost, his personality absorbed for shits and giggles and he was now the Outsiders worst enemy, a generation two nanobot. Of course the first lesson was to not tell but instead to show and laughing as he walked forward, he would make sure that the Outsiders knew his power.

The blue glow hit the sewer and he walked forward, as he put out his hands and blades jutted out in a burst of power, they would know his power.

…

“Let me tell you, I do not like to feel this underappreciated. What have we done in the last four months, the only big was the battle of the square and you two didn't even fight in it!" Screaming and sending spittle out of his mouth, General Maverick berated the two superheroes underneath him. “Would you like to disappointment more, have you been talking to them, have you been dating them as well?"

“Sir, we have been doing our best to lull the power of the nanobots but they have been too much for all of us, we cannot do anything against the leaders, the Outsiders have a team, we have us." Michelle spoke as she sat down, in her hand energy flowed, she was getting it ready for something almost. A gun and then a staff appeared in her hands and she looked angry, almost like she was ready to use it, she nearly stood up and Livewire looked at her. “I realize that you will not be happy with us, but if you will not appreciate us then we can just go and join the Outsiders."

“You wouldn't do that, they don't want you and if they did then you would be a laughing stock to them." Maverick walked forward, looking at Michelle and calling her bluff. Livewire backed up, Tidus looking as the two and their crazy eyes met, this would certainly be an interesting battle.

“Oh would I, well then better their than here where I am a piece of shit to you, so then if you would like to keep your funding coming I suggest you find some appreciation in your bones and allow us to the work you really can't do without us mortal, and if you don't know, now you know." Michelle spat out her sick burns as Maverick steamed and then Livewire stood up, putting his hands between the two of them.

“As much as I might enjoy this fight, I do need you two alive, so then let's all breather and calm ourselves." Tidus kept his hands between him and Michelle, he saw it all but too possible for the human to come in and rip his head right off. It wouldn't be that far of a stretch for her as well.

“Your right, we should be focusing on the enemies, the nanobots and the Kagens, they are the ones who are trying to kill this city and we need to stifle their attempts or else then we become dead." Maverick breathed as he gained his calm head and looked at his two assets.

“Fine then but everything I said was true, so don't disrespect us and we won't do the same to you." Michelle added as she looked back and like that Tidus breathed, he looked down at his watch. Time was coming and going so quickly it seemed and soon everything would come head to head at time.

“Well then, we need to go on patrol and we'll do our best to find something for you, but we need to work with the Outsiders, we do and you cannot deny the fact of that." Tidus said as he stood up and looked Maverick in the eye, he needed to accept that fact if he wanted to remain relevant to the situation. And like that the man crumbled under his words.

“Fine then work with the, for all I care. If you think that will work and get us money, then do that. But don't abandon our ideals, keep those in your heart and keep them strong." Maverick pushed on them as they stood up, Michelle smiled at him and started to work.

“But don't let ideals cloud your judgement, because we will need clear ideas and strong ideas to lead us in the future, because we want to be the winners, because winners write the history and then winners fight the won wars." Michelle added as she left the room, pushing through the room and Tidus left as well, they passed through the door and closed it behind them.

“God what the hell is his problem." Michelle complained as she walked out and started to walk down the hall. She groaned and then checked her watch, continuing down the hall as Tidus followed, he looked at his watch as well. “I mean needless to say, he just doesn't know to give up when we are the losing team."

“And someone once told me that as well, they were Finn and Isaac, four months ago and now look at them, this game is still open and you need to play it to win, you can't lose life if you don't play it but on the other hand you can't win either, but do remember, some of us are given better cards." Tidus tried to teach her that lesson but she just groaned again, she looked tired and just pushed.

“I know but it just seems the deeper we go the angrier and whiter he becomes and the crazier it all gets, I miss being on the winning team, but I'd feel as much as an idiot as he said I would if I diverted, do you think we should switch?" Michelle said as she walked forward and Tidus laughed a bit, looking around he looked at her and shook his head.

“Once you learn with the good guys and with the bad guys there is no losing side, the better because if not then you will have a very bad time ahead." Tidus warned Michelle as they walked forward and she looked back at him. “Like I said some of are given better cards and I can tell that the cards ahead are dealt to the nanobots."

“I guess so; we are maybe all just on one team. I guess it really doesn't matter who wins the battle so long as well all help." Michelle summarized and Tidus nodded, he opened the last door and then the two of them exited the military base, looking out into the city was nice.

“Now then I don't like the feeling I have, something bad is going to happen and I don't like the feeling of it, be careful today." Tidus said to her as she walked away, he turned and walked down the other way. The two military generals walked the other way down the road, and then looking forward Tidus froze.

Isaac was in front of him, he saw the shark and he paused, was the shark coming to talk to him, did he get his memory back, and like that Tidus paused. He could risk it and quickly he turned off into a side alley, it might have been bad, and he might have been heading towards the desert but he couldn't let Isaac see him, he felt to guilty about everything.

…

All the while Michelle, was walking down the street, and while it might not have been as obvious as Tidus, she too had a guilty conscious. Holding her arm and looking vulnerable as she walked past the species that inhabited the city. Some had two hearts, some had wings and some had claws, all things she didn't have.

“Joel." And yet all the while with all the insecurity in her heart, the thing that bothered her the most was standing over the junkyard and clicking the metal trigger. The metal body shaking and the clacker hitting the bullet, the explosion inside the metal cylinder and the bullet speeding out through the pipe.

The silencer on the end of it, reducing the air pressure wave out to a tiny wave, still they all heard it. She wanted to hit him in the leg but still it didn't go as low as she wished. Amputate a man's leg and he can still feel it tickling, when you amputate a man's brother, especially one that is immortal where will he feel tickled?

Michelle walked forward and looked around, she held that secret in her heart, closed up like a locket and chains around it, sadly a door closed is a door closed on both sides. While she might have hidden it from the world, no one could see it inside her as well. Except for one person, one who could look inside minds.

“Erick." Michelle whispered under her breath, he could understand her, he must have surely seen the worse of humanity and he would understand him. He could understand her and Erick could see into her mind and absolve her of the sins she held in her body. Her mind screamed, she heard it, the screaming of the rams.

And then she paused.

Would that be what she needed? Just for it to be understood or would she need to do something, an act of redemption, save Finn, or Tidus, from something find something to make it stop inside of her mind, stop the screaming, stop the revenge, stop it and give her the silence of the rams.

She looked around on the street, her calm disposition was still holding up even while a tiny bit of sweet dribbled down her face, passing down her pores and hitting the ground. Her ears heard it strike and she heard the strike of the people's feet around her, it was all in her head.

She tried to block it out, but even in the distance, even from a long while she could hear the screaming, she could hear someone screaming. Someone screaming in her ear from five miles away and then looking to the east she realized where it came from, she realized that it wasn't just her mind.

Maybe she was imagining it but it was the screaming of Elijah and she wished for forgiveness. She looked to the east and wondered if she could find silence.

…

“Well then men, look at this, Elijah your little friend has done something amazing again." Standing over the massive pit, Riftwalker, and High Brother, Ignatius looked down into the pit and saw the flashes of energy as Elijah attempted to escape his bonds, the very idea of Finn was setting him off and it was great. “Oh come on you will have to try a bit harder than that."

“But so will the Kagens if they want to win." Ignatius said as he turned around and then saw Basil looking at him. He had that look on his face, the look of a man remorseful about his life and remorseful about what had happened. That would not be had. “Ah and look who it is have you been talking to your boyfriend, Bright, has he been fucking you, is what they say true, two hearts and two, well you know."

“Wow, you don't have to be a proper dick about it, maybe you could listen to me for once, because you should know that keeping him locked up is not going to be good. You need to understand that all of this is bad for him, he might need revenge but he needs to let energy out." Basil walked forward, looking over the edge and down the hole, it was lit up by Elijah barely realizing a fraction of his energy.

“Yeah I don't really care, he is a danger and he needs to be chained, I will not die because of your ignorance to his use for us." Ignatius said as he walked away, exiting the building and letting the two alone. Basil leaned down and looked at Elijah, his body was growing large and more beast like every day, it was almost some sort of curse, he had to do what he could do to help.

“Well then shame, I couldn't kill Finn." Basil innocuously said and then, he looked back, a massive flash of energy was realized and some of the energy of Elijah was released. That would keep him pacified for now.

“So then how long has he been like this?" Michelle asked as she looked down into the hole. Basil glanced over and didn't act surprised, why act surprised when you can feel energies? He looked at her and the bigger question was how did she sneak into the camp, but even he knew she wasn't interested in answering that.

“Elijah, forgive me, while your mind might be stuck like that, and something connects me to you, know that Finn did not kill your brother I did." Michelle yelled down the hole and yet at the mention of Finn, Elijah screamed and blasted energy, the rest of the sentence was cut off. Michelle looked over to Basil.

“The big guy is far too stupid and far to big right now to understand you, but I will try to return him to normal and if it is any consolation, I don't blame you, I forgive you, in only some other people would." Basil opened his wings and adjusted his sword on his back, looking around he exited the tent. “However, there is someone you might want to apologize to, the man you abandoned and broke apart the team."

“Yeah your right." Michelle said, knowing that Finn too might have deserved a simple sorry. Or a delivered set of fruit shaped and arranged like flowers, or maybe a box of warm mashed potatoes, with chives and a handwritten note.

“Well the thing you learn in the desert, is that I often am." Basil opened his wings and the shargon took off into the sky, Michelle looked back and knew that he was probably right.

…

As he walked through Isaac's house, Finn held his hand on the table, opening the fridge and letting the yellow light of the cooled chamber flow over his body and the darkened kitchen. Looking over to microwave, he saw the clock, it was past twelve o'clock, a new day in Carson City and no crazy events had happened.

Grabbing a cup and pouring some milk into it, the shark placed it into the microwave and likewise, activated. As the microwave did its work on the cup of cow juice, Finn looked back and through the living room. On the couch, Isaac was passed out, his left leg and left arm sprawled over the edge of the couch.

Finn laughed a bit and looked around, this was his house and this was where he and his child was going to live. He wondered how the future would be but sadly they couldn't be found in the ground. Turning to the microwave, he clicked the button a second before the clock ran out of time, and enjoyed the instant gratification of stopping it.

Yet instant gratification was the one that lasted the least and once again, the shark was facing the ground and wondering about the future, he grabbed his milk and sipped it down. At least that was comforting, but still all in all, it was strange.

He looked back to the TV and wondered how the future would be, and he saw a point of constant, as with always at the hour on the dot, TV programs would change and another show vying for ratings would come on, and as the show started a few images flashed. And then in paused as the late night news anchor started the story.

It was the image of the first Riftwalker and first Kagen press conference, mainly Ignatius shaking the ground and Bright appearing in the middle of the desert, whatever they were calling press conferences these days. And then another image flashed, while he couldn't make out what the anchor was talking about the image was different.

It was Elijah and Joel standing, Finn felt his heart sink, it was horrible, all horrible what happened that day. Elijah went crazy and he didn't know what to do about it, he might have killed Joel and he might have let his powers gone crazy, the metal beam slipped form his hand and he didn't know what happened to it.

Walking over to it, he shut off the TV and put the half-empty cup down onto the table, or maybe it was half-full. Snuggling into Isaac's arms, the gravity shark's latched onto his and Finn felt warmth, it was nice, this was where he lived now and this was where he was going to be making his living, all the same to Isaac.

And yet he once lived a few streets down, he didn't know what was happening to the remains of his house, but all the while it was neat to imagine.

…

“Wake up brother, time for play." And then instantly as he felt his head wobble, Erick suddenly found a fist grabbing onto his chin. That did the job quite well and his eyes opened, as they did, he first realized that it was at night. Looking up he could make out the moon, but something was blocking it, wooden beams.

Yet those were split open randomly and some seemed to be burned, the support beams barely standing to his side, gave him an idea and then he realized where he was.

“I'm in Finn's basement and great Barry you're the Gen Two nanobot leader aren't you?" Erick quickly pieced together with a bit of mind information from the people around him. His brother walked forward, reeling his arm back in. Erick saw his metallic face as the blue glow from his brother's arms bounced off his face.

“Well aren't you just savvy, but you burnt off some time, so then let's get down to business, to defeat the Outsiders." Barry said as he leaned forward and clasped his fist, the blue lines on his fist reimaged as well as the metallic skeleton into a cylinder, it was a hammer.

And then like that, it grew to the size of the nanobots head. And saying nothing, Barry slammed it down. Erick realized then and there that on that day he was going to die.