Battle for Some Actual Peace and Quiet for Once

Episode 6 - Someone Loses It Completely

Pin remained floating there, helpless in a sea of eternal black.

When she saw the bright light envelop her in a rather too tight embrace, she expected to finally be taken away from this life of misery and other assorted nonsense, perhaps to face punishment for her wrongdoings. But that wasn't the case. Perhaps her punishment was indeed to spend the remainder of her life in exile, forever trapped in this void she could never leave. She watched as those who had been stuck with her disappear during the bright white, being freed from their punishments. They've arguably done far worse, she thought. If they could get away with their crimes, why not her? She felt the anger, the pure, unfiltered rage course through her veins. She cursed those that had led her to this fate: both the nebulous and unknown benefactors who had helped her, as well as the Triangle who always had a twisted smile in his face whenever she suffered, and his also-mysterious superior. They were both deserving of just as much blame, she thought. They had played their part in her downfall. They fooled her and made her do a sick and twisted dance to the tune of an incredibly terribly played piano. As she remembered everything she had done, she could only think that it was pure torture, and that the others also deserved it. She couldn't think straight, much like the author as he wrote this. She hated them, she loved them, and every single emotion in-between. She swore that if she ever managed to escape this black prison, she would get her revenge on those that did her wrong, and-

It was at that precise moment where Pin decided, for no particular reason whatsoever, to look down. At least, whatever felt like 'down' in this void where there were no points of reference for direction. As she did, she noticed a speck of bright white light appear below her feet. Barely noticeable at first, but gradually expanding the longer she looked. As she became aware of her surroundings once again, she began to notice things that weren't there just a moment ago. The sound of the wind rushing along in an otherwise silent void, and the relentless pull of gravity pulling her down into the light. She wanted to scream, as she was obviously being pulled towards a likely fatal fall, but she knew that no one would be there to hear it. She'd merely stay silent, closing her eyes and resigning herself to her demise, and allowed the pure white to consume her once again. She did not know if this was just another beam of false hope, just like the previous one was, but she didn't mind.

-

It was quite the surprise for her, then, when she ended up hitting the ground, unharmed, and with a face now full of asphalt. She coughed as she got out, trying to wipe away the probably lethal dust which now scattered itself throughout her face. It was a dull gray in color, and so was the concrete floor which was most likely where it originated from. She took a minute to regain her bearings, making sure that her legs hadn't snapped like twigs upon impact, and taking a few uneasy steps before proceeding. Once she figured out that there probably wasn't an immediate threat to her life up ahead, she took the time to look around and take in her surroundings. The skies were the color of a raging fire, bright red and orange hues dominating the heavens, although it was diluted by the grey smoke which rose up from the ground. She then turned her head further down, revealing the near-endless sprawl of destroyed buildings and structures, clear monuments to what once was here, creating a maze of avenues and alleyways that were near-impossible to navigate. On her feet was the concrete surface in question, a mere sidewalk of what was once a grand and open roadway, although now blocked by the wreckage of buildings and other, just as destroyed objects. It was quite the horrific sight, Pin thought to herself. She knew nothing of what this city was, or what became of its people, but she still felt *something* as she stood in these ruins, a sense of fear... And remembrance.

This was not the first time she had been here, Pin knew. One of the qualities of a great leader was a sharp mind, and so she remembered the last time she was here as clear as day. As she tossed and turned in her bed during one of the few cases where she could rest from that horrific competition, she had a dream. A nightmare, more so, but she somehow had a soft spot for it in her memory. It was the first time her eyes were opened to the realities of this accursed world, the truth behind it all, and the treachery that laid ahead of her. She took a deep breath of the contaminated air as she walked along the road, making sure to watch her step as she maneuvered around the destroyed vehicles that littered the place, until she finally got to where she was going. As the high spires of the city center came into full view, she stopped yet again to take in the air once again, and look up at these clear monuments to the hubris of who was once here. They were as destroyed and abandoned as she last saw them, the concrete husks not really changing much. Perhaps the rust and moss that enveloped the structures had grown slightly since the last time she saw it, but such changes are imperceptible to the untrained eye. There she sat, although she made sure she wasn't sitting on dust yet again before doing so, and waited. If this was going to be much like what had happened in her dreams, she was going to have to wait for her guest to arrive.

Pin closed her eyes for a minute or two, and when she opened her eyes, the man was indeed now there: his face still the same shade of bright red, his blue shirt still glistened like a cloudless morning sky, and his pants were still as brown and unkempt. It was still strange seeing him, even though she had associated him as being a native of this land, and was still unnerved as he stood there with his fixed smile, before he proceeded to walk up to her to stare at her directly in the eye. She considered getting up to meet her, but the man would simply crouch down instead, negating the need to do so.

The man took a moment to stare at her in pure silence, before laughing to himself. "...You're just as clueless and naive as the day I last saw you." He would say in his usual deep voice, which came straight out of a horror movie. Pin scoffed, unfazed. She had seen so much, and done just as much, that this scene straight out of a cliche-ridden film didn't scare her one bit. "...You." She fired back. "Did you miss me?" The man asked. "Not one bit." Pin replied. The man chuckled. "Still as feisty, too." He sighed. "How have you been?" He'd then ask. Pin stayed silent for a minute or two, recalling everything that had happened to her since the last time she saw the man. It played out in her head like a movie on fast-forward. She could remember every single detail, she *had* to. Those events played on repeat as she contemplated her next move as she floated around in the void, regretting both what she had and hadn't done. She finally opened her mouth to speak up. "I've been doing terribly." She began. "I thought I could do it. I thought I could open their eyes, just as you have opened mine, and show them the way of peace..." She sighed, remembering the friends she had left behind. Well, 'friends' with a whole lot of quotation marks. "...But I failed. Miserably." She remembered Triangle and his partner in crime, banishing her (and themselves, inadvertently) into that dark place. "...They defeated me."

The man took a moment to digest what she just said, staying still and silent, before getting up, his legs clearly strained from such strenuous exercise. As she got up to continue staring at him head-on, she'd notice that, even though his smile remained fixed, it felt as if it had gained an extra curve to it. The man chuckled. "...Everything's going just as planned, then." Pin raised an eyebrow. "...What?" She'd ask. The man remained silent. Clearly, he felt like she didn't know any better, and so chose to remain as mysterious and enigmatic as before. Not that he wasn't already, what with him being entirely different in build than everyone else Pin knew. "...*What*?" She reiterated. "You set me up to *fail*? You gave me this revelation, along with my powers, knowing that I couldn't accomplish my task?" The man chuckled. "...I wouldn't call it failure." He sighed. "It's more of a calculated maneuver which worked perfectly. If anything, you succeeded in your task." Pin scoffed. She was a great leader, but even she couldn't quite crack what the man was heading towards. She failed miserably, yet he was saying she succeeded with flying colors? What was he on about? Her eyebrow couldn't raise any higher. "...What're you talking about?" She asked. "Of course you couldn't do it." The man explained. "You were far too inexperienced. You were rushing along, wanting to get it over and done with immediately, and failed to see your shortcomings."

Pin felt that hit to her pride like it was a bullet straight to her heart. "I *could* do it!" She yelled defiantly. "If I had more time, if I had picked up more allies, I could-" "Enough with the arguing." The man raised a hand up to her, indicating her to shut up. "...That isn't why we're here, anyway." He sighed. "...The goal wasn't for you to succeed. It was for you to make your way here." Pin was confused yet again. "...What?" She thought about it, feeling like she was just missing something. Something easy to miss, yet critical. "...But... I already was here, right? During that dream?" "My point exactly." The man replied. "That last time was all but a dream, affecting nothing. I couldn't do anything then. All I could do was inform you of what was up ahead. That's all the good dreams can do, anyway." He sighed. "In order to prepare you to *truly* make them believe, I had to bring you here. To my domain." He continued. "Your powers can do so much, yet you only know so little. You just need the right training, and you could become so much more." Pin thought about it again. "...You can teleport using the powers, right?" She asked. "I've seen others do it. Triangle, for instance." The man nodded. "Yes, you can. Both you and him have the same powers, yet use it differently. You can do just as much as he can, given enough training." "Why couldn't you just teleport me here?" She asked. "The circumstances of your disappearance would've been too suspicious." The man replied. "If I did that, they'd immediately begin hunting for you, and they'd eventually find me... And defeat me."

The man sighed. "...I alone cannot bring peace to these lands. That's why I recruited you, after all." He continued. "That... Other man." He sighed. He hated remembering that accursed name. *GD*. "He made a wise move by recruiting that darned Triangle. He pretty much doubled his abilities by having an associate. I couldn't do anything to stop them, even if I tried. Two is better than one, after all." He'd glance at Pin, who now remained silent, either listening to him, or simply pretending to. "That was why I chose you to be my associate. Perhaps by doing so myself, I could still have a chance..." He trailed off. He realized he was going off on a tangent, and so got back on track. "...Once you were stuck on that void, pulling you out of it was as easy as... Well, something easy, I guess." He'd shrug. "You shined like a beacon in the void, and so I simply took hold of that beacon, and pulled it straight to where I was. Here." His smile seemed to shift and change again, although it didn't really move at all. "...That sums it up, no?" Pin still wasn't pleased with that explanation, however. "...You're missing one crucial thing, though." She finally spoke up. "What?" The man asked. "Do I *really* want to join you?" She folded her arms. "...You seemed so enthusiastic the last time." The man argued. "You were so happy that I showed you the way. The symphony of peace. What made you change your mind?" "Did you even *SEE* what I experienced?" Pin yelled back at him. "After all that, I don't want any part of it! Leave me alone!"

She'd then proceed to storm off, or at least try to. She didn't know where she was going. All she knew was that she wanted to be as far away from that strange man as quickly as possible. Plans had changed. There were new things on the agenda. Even though she didn't want to be part of this strange world anymore, it had now become personal. This was now about *Needle*. She tried to take away the one person she truly loved from her, and she had to pay. So what if she was inexperienced and untrained in her powers? That was irrelevant. She was clearly powerless to stop her. She simply had to get back to her, hunt her down, and-

"I don't think we'll be having that, now."

As soon as the man's words became naught but disturbances in the wind, Pin suddenly froze. A force would suddenly prevent her from whatever she was intent on doing, and began planting seeds of fear in her. As if she was a chess piece being rotated around by a bored player waiting for his opponents next move, she would be turned to face him again, and the effects of the force would then be lifted. The man would then walk up to her again, chuckling along the way. "...Is *that* how 'heroic' leaders are supposed to act in your world?" He asked. "Call it quits and walk away as soon as things don't go your way?" He scoffed. "Pathetic. You're just like the others. You promise to do everything in your power to attain something, and then immediately do nothing as soon as the eyes are off you." His smile seemed to turn into a frown, but as soon as Pin focused, it was back to its usual, unchanging smile. "...If you must, however... You could at least show me what you know. Perhaps if you impress me, I'll let you keep your powers." He'd then point to the nearby wreckage of a car. It was crumpled up and dented all over the place, but it was somehow still in one piece. "...Can you finish the job and destroy that car for me?" He asked. "It *has* been getting in the way of my morning walks, and I can't be bothered to do the job myself." It seemed almost like a cruel joke, Pin thought. Why would he need her help in something so trivial? Regardless of the sheer inanity of the task, however, she'd proceed to comply, realizing she won't be allowed to leave if she didn't.

She reached out towards the wreckage, concentrating fully on it. Everything else seemed to blur for her as she stared at the ruined vehicle. intent on wrecking it even more than it already was. Try as she might, however, she couldn't seem to do the job. All she could do was make the car slightly hover in the air by several inches or so. She couldn't even make it come closer. She'd desperately struggle to prove herself for a minute or so, all while the man alternated between staring at her and the floating wreckage, not impressed in the slightest. He chuckled. "Is that all you can do?" He sneered. "...So much for being a great leader." That seemed to do the trick for Pin. In an instant, that second blow to her pride seemed to awaken something in her, something she was familiar with, yet hadn't actually seen before: sheer and unfiltered anger. She thought she had seen it before, especially whenever she cursed Needle for her predicament, but the sudden burst in ferocity almost overwhelmed her. She could remember Needles twisted smile in near-perfect detail, or whenever she was having an intimate moment with *her* Coiny. She could remember every single moment which outraged her: every time someone had disobeyed her orders, or whenever her plans didn't go well, or some other third thing. And for just a moment, she felt like she was experiencing what Flower felt all the time: the world hated her, and she hated them back.

Seemingly redirecting the burst of energy through her body, she could feel the blood rushing through her arm suddenly rush through her veins at extreme speed. She could feel it as it made their way through her arm, and into her hand, and then the extremities of her fingers. Just a moment after the blood pooled in her fingers, the wreckage would suddenly erupt in such high speed and intensity that surprised even her and the man. The car immediately broke apart into its individual components at incredibly high speeds: the remaining tires shot out of the chassis, and the engine came clean off, ripping off the hood in the process, and then proceeded to be ripped apart into its individual components as well. Ten seconds barely passed by the time everything had settled down. The car was no longer in any recognizable form, now only a pile of scrap on the ground. The man's smile seemed to widen once again, pleased with what had happened. He'd crouch down to be level with Pin once again. "Don't you see?" He finally continued. "Don't you see that you are capable of so much more? Don't you see yourself doing that exact same thing to your sworn enemies?" He'd sigh. "You just need to be steered in the right direction. You need someone to guide you."

The man got up. "You just have to join me, Pin." He extended his hand to her. "Together, you- no. *We* can exact *our* revenge on our enemies, to make them suffer through the same things we have, and so much worse. We can change worlds, even those beyond ours, for the better. Make them see the light. Make them... Peaceful." He sighed. "You just have to join me." He repeated. Pin would reach out to shake his hand, but hesitated at the last moment. What was to say that this wasn't yet another one of his 'calculated maneuvers'? What if he was just setting her up for failure once again? Those thoughts intruded on her head once more, but this time, a more powerful force than her hesitation managed to overpower them. She felt the genuine rage course through her veins as she unleashed her fury on that wreckage. All she could think about is how she wanted to do the same to Needle, as well as to the others that had defied her. Much like any normal person, anger would overpower her and cloud her judgment.

And without a second thought, Pin shook the man's hand.

-

The sun was high in the sky, and the expedition team continued to walk along the course of the road. They didn't care at all about how hot it was, mostly because Objects didn't work like humans, and therefore didn't suffer things like heat syncope, but also partly because the shade of the trees mostly filtered out the sunlight before it reached their weary bodies. They had entered the forest a few hours prior, and now enjoyed the cool breeze of the place. How did they manage to make it to the forest that quickly, when vans that were clearly traveling faster still took some time to travel that distance? It's simple science, really. The more mass something has, the more energy is required to move it. The Objects were so heavy that even an engine with as much power as it could be given still couldn't quite get the van moving, and so the vans were traveling pretty much at walking speed. What an incredibly great in-universe explanation as to why this immersion-breaking event occurred so that I didn't have to write a whole bunch more boring chapters about fictional characters walking! Hooray for contrived plot events!

Despite the author's efforts to make this segment not boring, however, this segment was going to remain boring. The expedition team simply didn't do much other than walk and sometimes talk about events that have already been discussed in detail in this fanfics prequel. In order to make things not boring, the author decided to have the expedition team do something other than walking.

Match groaned in sheer and utter boredom. "Like, are we there yet?" She asked. Coiny groaned. "We'll get there when we get there, alright?" He replied. "If you don't like this much walking, then nothing's stopping you from just turning around and walking back to the living quarters. We're probably better off without you, anyway." Match scoffed. "Well, like, excuse me! I don't want to, like, walk alone all day!" "I could walk with you!" Eraser joined in. Everyone would then stare at him, and he would begin blushing slightly. "...I mean, I agree with her. This is boring!" "You guys agreed to this!" Coiny replied. "Why did you guys even agree to this when you were going to back out anyway? Unbelievable!" He'd sigh again. "And then you follow me around for an entire day anyway! What is wrong with you guys?" Match folded her arms. "We got, like, nothing better to do!" "Yeah!" Eraser added. "We wanted to get away from the competition, but this sucks just as much!" As they continued bickering about how boring the whole expedition was, Teardrop would suddenly tug at Fireys arm, causing him to stop walking. "Huh?" He'd try to continue walking, but Teardrop just wouldn't let him. Firey would then look at her. "What is it, Teardrop?" He'd ask. "We're going to get left behind if we stick around!" Teardrop would then point to a spot between the trees. A half-ruined concrete path seemed to be just a ways away from the road, and then, just beyond it, the outline of something far more entertaining than walking along a boring road.

The rest of the expedition team was still arguing about participation in the expedition, and so Firey would shout to get their attention. "Hey!" He'd shout. "Guys! Teardrop found something!" Everyone would immediately stop and would turn to Firey. "What is it?" Coiny asked. "Yeah!" Match joined in. "Is it, like, a way out of here?" "I think so." Firey would glance at Teardrop. "Lead the way!" She would then proceed to immediately rush out into the trees, and everyone else would follow. It would take them a minute or so as they made their way around the trees, and as they struggled to keep the branches and leaves out of their faces. As they proceeded towards the place, the ground would change in color from a normal green to a sickening brown, as the grass seemed to disappear and gave way to the softer dirt below. The expedition team would feel this change, and would be somewhat disgusted by it. After some more time, they'd eventually come across a section of forest where the trees just stopped growing entirely, enclosed by a wire fence. The fence curved inward to prevent whatever was inside from getting out, but didn't prevent people from climbing in. "...You led us out to a *fence*?" Eraser asked. "It's not just the fence, you-" Coiny stopped before uttering an insult. It was probably best not to make fun of the only people that could tolerate you. "...There's something beyond the fence." He'd then look at Firey. "Firey?" Firey (that's three Fireys in a row, excellent writing there, me) would simply nod, clearly knowing what Coiny wanted him to do, and burned a hole into the fence large enough for them to go through. They'd then proceed to do just that.

The area enclosed by the fence was mostly flat, and completely devoid of trees. The only thing which broke apart the flat surface was a massive metal building, purely white in color, and bore insignia that were familiar to them. A flag still hung by the nearby flagpole, clearly torn apart by time and the weather, and although it didn't flutter on the wind, it was clear that it was a defaced white flag. A symbol of surrender, yet also not. The surfaces of the building were just as flat as the ground surrounding it, with the exception of holes for windows which were now shattered. Near the top of the building were the same symbols as the flag, this time painted onto the wall to be clearly visible to those wandering around the place to remind them of who owned the land.

Everyone's gaze would immediately be fixated on the building, especially Coiny, who'd look up at the top of the building with anger in his eyes. "...It's them." He muttered to himself. "Huh?" Firey would notice him saying something, and would ask him to reiterate. Coiny simply sighed in response. "...Nothing." He'd look at the building for another moment or two before looking back at the expedition team. "We can take a look around this place for an hour or so, then we'll go back to the road." Match and Eraser then sighed in relief. "Like, thank you!" Match said. "Like, I was thinking we could rest here, and..." "We can't just be idle." Coiny replied. "You could at least walk around and explore." Match scoffed. "...Alright." She'd then proceed to walk up to the building and look around for anything interesting. Eraser and Firey would do the same thing not long after. Coiny, however, would take another minute or so to look at the building. Teardrop would tug at his arm, urging him to come along with her, but Coiny would remain still, prompting Teardrop to look where he was looking. She'd then turn to face Coiny, and pointed at the symbols. Although she couldn't say anything, Coiny already knew what she was talking about. He sighed. "Yeah, I know. It's bugging me too." He continued staring. "What were they doing *here*, of all places?" Teardrop shrugged. Coiny would finally look away. "Alright, let's go." Coiny would then walk towards the building, and Teardrop would follow suit.

Coiny and Teardrop would enter the building's front door, unlike the others, which had entered through the gaping holes that were once for windows. One of the added benefits of entering the right way is that you don't have to watch your step for shards of glass. The lobby of the building was just as old and abandoned as the exterior, as things generally are. Seats, propaganda posters, and other small objects were strewn about the floor, suggesting that an earthquake had struck the place in the time people had disappeared from here. The only thing which seemed to be somewhat intact was the lobby desk itself, the monitors attached to the walls, and the mural which once again presented who owned the place. On the wall was that symbol, painted once again, with the words "GD INC" painted in large green letters beside it, just like in the roof. The words that were painted below the massive logo seemed to indicate what this place once was: "GD INC RESEARCH FACILITY - ORAN BRANCH". Coiny only had an inkling of an idea what a research facility was, as he had seen the word plastered in several buildings during his terrible time, but neither of them knew what 'Oran' was. Perhaps it was the original name of the place before its original inhabitants disappeared through any number of means, or perhaps it was something different. Neither of them knew, and they didn't really feel like figuring it out.

Meanwhile, Firey wandered around the building's corridors, his flame lighting the way through the dark hallways, which would fortunately not set off any smoke detectors or fire alarms. He walked slowly, looking around for any potential threats, although he knew that such things were unlikely to happen. He'd glance at the signs posted beside the doors, indicating what the rooms inside them were once for. There were a countless number of offices, each one given a number in sequential order. But there were also a whole bunch of other rooms: recreational rooms, meeting rooms, and other business-related places that Firey couldn't bother trying to understand. After wandering about for a few more minutes, he decided to finally look inside one of the rooms, and chose one at random. The one he picked was yet another office, this one with a three-digit number. He slowly opened the door, making sure that it wouldn't suddenly come off its hinges. The furniture of the office was just as strewn about as those in the open rooms which he peered into for a moment or two at a time: the monitor was lodged into one of the arm rests of the seat, the pictures that were hung on the walls were now on the floor, their protective glass now shattered, and the carpet still had stains from long ago, leaving a dark impression, serving as yet another reminder of what once was.

Firey would slowly maneuver around the cramped space, making sure that his flames didn't even slightly touch the possibly-flammable furniture. Besides all the ruined furniture, there wasn't really all that much to take note of. The only things that weren't lit up beforehand by the literal living ball of flame were the cracked concrete walls and the ceiling lights barely hanging on to the roof. He'd make his way over to the office chair, gently pulling out the monitor from the arm rest and putting it down on the desk, and proceeded to sit down, not really thinking about how dumb that idea was. In any normal instance, the chair would've immediately caught fire and caused a not-fun time for Firey and everyone else in the expedition. Fortunately for him, however, whoever originally created this building had graciously provided whoever used it with seats that weren't flammable. There would only be slight charring in the area in which he sat, and not much else. He'd place his arms on the arm rests, managing to figure out what those were for, and contemplated resting his back as well, but he already didn't feel safe with how he was already sitting, so he decided not to move an inch. The reason he decided to sit down in the first place was in an attempt to figure out the purpose of the building, and determine what the previous occupants were doing in it. He reckoned that by getting a feel for the place, he could make a somewhat educated guess. But as he continued sitting down, feeling himself gradually sink into the seat as the material became more pliable, he realized that he wasn't getting anywhere with this.

Firey was just about to get up and leave when he suddenly heard a ringing noise from the desk. The desk seemed to vibrate as well as it did so, which obviously freaked him out. The desk would then stop shaking about a few moments later, but yet more moments later, it would proceed to do it again. By that point, the fear had lessened, and Firey would look around for the source of the sound. He'd look down to inspect the desk further, and noticed that there were several drawers built into it. He'd proceed to open and close them in rapid succession, until eventually he found what he thought to be the source of the commotion: a small plastic slab, with several small features breaking up the solid black surfaces, and was mostly dominated by a single glass pane, protecting... Something. The thing in question glowed, being yet another source of light in the otherwise dark room. Firey hesitated to grab it as it continued vibrating and ringing. Eventually, however, the slab would die down, and it would return to being *just* pure black. After spending several moments making sure that it wasn't going to do it again, or nobody was going to walk up to him to see what was all the fuss about, he'd finally grab the slab. He'd then proceed to inspect it just to see if he could figure out anything else about it. Literally any other detail had either faded away with time, or couldn't be seen even with a literal fire right beside it. After spending a minute or so just looking at it with a close eye (but not too close), he'd shrug in defeat and just carried it with him as he finally left.

Firey would eventually manage to meet up with Coiny and Teardrop after wandering through the corridors for a few more minutes. "Firey!" Coiny would call out to him. "Where have you been?" He asked. "I was just looking around, just like you said." Firey replied. "Did you find anything?" Coiny asked. Firey simply shrugged. "Nothing much. Just boring 'off-eye-ses'." Coiny would then point at his hand. "Then what's that you're holding?" He'd ask. Firey had forgotten he was carrying the slab by the time he met up with Coiny, having been distracted by looking around the building. "Oh!" Fireys eyes would widen. "Right. I found this as well." He'd then present it to them. Immediately upon seeing it, Teardrop would begin fluttering her arms towards Firey. He'd simply glance at her, confused. "Huh?" "I think she wants to check it out." Coiny replied. "Maybe she knows something." Teardrop would nod in response. Firey shrugged. "...Alright. She'd probably know more about these sort of things than I do." He'd then give it to her. Immediately, Teardrop managed to make the slab light up again, and proceeded to tap it furiously with her fingers, sometimes sliding and scrolling. Firey and Coiny would watch in bewilderment, unsure of what was going on. "...What's she doing?" Firey asked. Coiny simply shrugged. "I dunno. I think I saw several people during..." He visibly cringed. "...My disappearance, using things like that. I couldn't grab one for myself, though."

Teardrop continued at it for a minute or so before stopping. She would pull her fingers back, allowing Firey and Coiny to see what was going on. The slab was now displaying a moving picture of sorts, which amazed Firey, but didn't seem to faze the other two. They would stay silent as they proceeded to watch it.

-

Triangle and several of his associates were standing around the test chamber, with their company-mandated lab coats on and wearing their protective safety goggles. Triangle wrote a few things down in his clipboard before addressing his companions. "These better be some good specimens." He remarked. "I traveled half the world for this. If I'm disappointed, I'm shutting down your department." "You won't be, sir." One of the people accompanying him, a black cube, replied. "These... Creatures. They're special. Unlike anything we've ever seen before. Unlike us, even. We've managed to crack the genetic code of the-" "No need for the spiel." Triangle interrupted. "I already read the document you sent me twice over. I know how these guys are supposed to be special." He sighed, contemplating why he decided to willingly catch a flight to this facility, despite the fact that there was conflict brewing elsewhere. "Where's our documentation equipment?" He'd ask. "Oh! Right!" The lab partner then proceeded to pull out a phone out of his lab coat pocket, spent a moment or two tapping and moving around his fingers, and then pointed the phone camera at him. "We're ready to go!" Triangle nodded. "Alright, alright... Let's get this going, shall we?" He cleared his throat.

"This is GD Inc Oran Research Facilities Experimental Initiative 24-B, Test 01 on Prototype Capability." Triangle spoke with a monotone voice, as if repeating a movie script in boredom. "Bring in Subject A-1, if you may please..." The lab partner would then spin around to face the camera towards the door, which would immediately open afterwards. Two other identical lab partners would then walk into the room, carrying batons. And in-between them was the subject in question: a living ball of flame, with its appendages glowing a dark red. The baton-carrying lab partners would lead the flame over to the other end of the room, and the camera would pan to keep them in frame. The lab partners would indicate the flame to stay still with their batons, and then they proceeded to make their way over to Triangle. "Firearm Test." Triangle continued in the same monotone voice. He'd then nonchalantly pick up a handgun from a nearby desk and proceeded to shoot at the flame. The bullets would harmlessly pass through it, and would ricochet off the walls and land on the floor, now a slightly-melted piece of metal. "Passed with flying colors." Triangle remarked, slightly going off-script and causing a few of the lab partners to chuckle slightly. "Bring in the more powerful weaponry." He'd point to the baton-carriers. They'd immediately comply, and would exit the room. After half a minute or so, they'd return to the room, with one of them now carrying a shotgun.

"Firearm Test..." Triangle trailed off. "...2. Keep your ears covered for this part." He'd put the clipboard down and take the shotgun. He'd take a moment to aim properly at the flame, and proceeded to fire away. After several shots, however, the flame began to lose its composure. It had a neutral expression during the start of the experiment, but gradually grew angrier as Triangle continued to shoot at him. Eventually, the flame seemed to have enough, and began shooting flames out of its hands. One particular burst of flame would end up coming worryingly close to Triangle, who would actually be scared because of it. "JEEZ!" He'd shout. "CANCEL THE TEST! SUBJECT HAS GONE ROGUE!" The baton-carrying lab partners would rush towards the flame, and the lab partner that had been recording the entire time would finally stop, ending this terrible bit of the chapter.

-

The three of them stayed silent as they stared off into nowhere in particular after the moving picture ended. By that time, the slab returned to being fully black, and Teardrop simply kept it in her hands, also frozen in... Shock, probably. After the feelings finally began to set in, Coiny and Firey would look at each other, now even more confused than before. "...Firey?" Coiny called out. Firey simply nodded, unsure of what to say. "...Was that-" Match and Eraser would then suddenly enter the corridor and interrupt this otherwise-serious moment. "GUYS!" Eraser shouted. "We found... A vehicle... Thing!" "Yeah!" Match added. "Like, I wanna call it a van... But, like... It's different." She'd shrug. "But we can, like, use it to get, like, out of here!" Coiny would immediately forget that there was a sudden plot revelation just then, because more immediate plot things were happening. "Well, what are we waiting for?" Coiny asked. "Let's get moving!" "Yeah, like, I agree." Match replied. "Like, this place creeps me out!" Eraser nodded. "Alright, alright." The two of them would make their way back to where they saw the vehicle, and the others would immediately follow.

They'd eventually made their way to what looked like a garage, with the vehicle in question parked in it. The vehicle was, indeed, unlike a van. It was more of a SWAT vehicle, built to protect its passengers, although the passengers themselves would ideally also be wearing armor. They'd spend a minute or two to make sure it actually worked (because Eraser and Match couldn't do it), and quickly realized they were out of fuel. Fortunately for them, however, there just so happened to be several canisters of fuel lying around nearby. Teardrop would be able to fill it up, being the only one out of the five of them to have *some* knowledge of vehicles, and proceeded to get on the driver's seat, immediately assuming the role of driver. Coiny would sit next to her, while the rest of the expedition team would sit at the back. Teardrop wouldn't struggle all too much with turning on the engine and driving the vehicle out of the garage. Upon exiting the garage, however, Teardrop would immediately realize a critical flaw with their plan to use the vehicle to make this expedition a whole lot easier: to actually get it on the road, they had to get it out of the fenced-off area of the building, as well as make it through the forest separating them from the road. Normally, this would be enough to cause people to hesitate with going ahead with the plan, but Teardrop didn't seem to budge at all.

"...Teardrop?" Coiny called out to her, as unlike her, Coiny was beginning to have doubts about the plan. "TEARDROP!" He'd then shout. "How are we supposed to get this thing on the road? LOOK!" He'd point at the forest beyond. Teardrop simply smiled and stomped her foot on the pedal, causing the vehicle to go at its maximum possible speed. Before anyone could register what was going on, the vehicle had already torn a far larger hole in the fence than what Firey had done, and was now going head-first into a tree. Everyone began to scream as they seemed to rapidly approach their demise, all while Teardrop remained silent on the driver's seat. The vehicle crashed straight into the tree trunk, hitting it with a lot of force. Now, any reasonable writer would've written of the fact that Teardrop completely totalled their vehicle and forced them to yet more walking, but because this is *GD Inc engineering* we're talking about, that just isn't the case. What instead happened was that the tree snapped cleanly, as if it was a twig, and proceeded to fall down, causing a domino effect which toppled down other trees in the way. All the while the vehicle managed to make their way across the collapsing trunks like they were merely speed bumps on the road to victory. It would take them yet another minute or so to get back on the road, as the vehicle would obviously be slowed down by having to travel through such uncomfortable terrain, but was able to make it out *nearly* unscathed, with only a single dent as a result of the initial crash.

Teardrop immediately slammed on the brakes as soon as they were once again on the flat asphalt, and remained silent as the vehicle came to a screeching halt. She waited for a minute or so for the rest of the expedition team to regain their composure, and for the sheer insanity of what just happened to set in. Everyone would remain silent in shock, but Coiny wouldn't be able to keep himself quiet. He had gone through heck and back to be here, and he just wasn't having it. He took a deep breath to calm himself down.

"...***WHAT THE HECK, TEARDROP***?"

The sheer volume would cause the nearby birds to fly off in fear of what unholy event just occurred, if the sudden toppling of trees didn't already do it for them. Everyone else would then proceed to argue and bicker and yell at her about how insane that was, and questioned her mental state. Teardrop simply shrugged with a smug grin on her face, as she then turned the vehicle around to proceed to make their way further along the road. Within a few minutes, the vehicle had gone beyond the horizon, and the place would once again be silent, with nothing but the several trees now blocking the road to indicate that anything ever happened there.