13 Chapter 2: Encountering the Draconians

A.P. 238/3/1

More than a week had passed since Josua had joined ARKS officially, following the disastrous certification exam on Naverius. Due to his diligence whenever he embarks on expeditions, he was given the permission to conduct expeditions on Amduskia soon after. More specifically, the Volcanic Caves region of Amduskia.

FYI, Amduskia is a planet home to the Draconians. After several failures in attempts made by ARKS to maintain diplomatic ties, the relations between the two right now are a bit awkward, to put it mildly. The planet itself, geographically, is divided into two biomes: the surface that's basically a bunch of volcanoes with tunnels running under or between them, hence their naming by ARKS as the Volcanic Caves, and the floating continental plates on the atmosphere, known as the Floating Continent.

In this case, the Volcanic Caves consists of a network of lava caverns spanning the entire surface layer of Amduskia. It is a rough area with high temperature and active eruptions on its surface, so one must watch their step. Additionally, hostile Draconians might set up isolation traps in the form of stone gates that might divide squad members.

During an exploration on the Volcanic Caves biome...

He was walking for a little, passing by some areas, while mining or fishing on the way (yes, you can fish, somehow). Before long, he had an encounter with Quna. As usual, she's here on some clandestine unknown mission, though it's probably because she's looking for Haddred.

"Ah! Who--!?" She was alarmed when she turned around and saw him coming towards her.

"You... How did you notice me?" Shock was written on her face.

"Uh... Are you hiding or something?" He asked, with a poker face on his face.

"So you saw me, clear as day. Am I getting sloppy at erasing my presence? No, that can't be..." She mumbled.

The reason for her confusion is that she's typically cloaked, and even without it, she was, most of the time, not noticed because of her Cosmogenic Arm, Mai the Unseen. It has to do with its ability to turn the user invisible and its adverse effects if used frequently.

She was basically reprimanding herself for being discovered like this.

"So... You're looking for something?" He made his guess.

Her face turned a bit cold as he glared at him.

"It's none of your business. Though I never thought I'd be so easily discovered." She sternly replied.

After that, however, she felt intrigued, as not many can detect her out of the blue like that.

"Who ARE you?" She asked, staring at him a bit more softly.

"I'm just... Me. You can search the database if you want." He shrugged.

She then activated her cloak and simply left. This left him feeling a bit awkward.

"Uh... Really... I can never get used to this..." He shook his head.

"But seriously, what the hell?" He facepalmed as he continued with his expedition into the depths of the Volcanic Caves.

.....

A.P. 238/3/3

Two days had passed since that bizarre encounter with Quna in the Volcanic Caves on Amduskia. At least once every three days, he'd go on expeditions to Naverius or Amduskia.

Right now, he's walking at the Shopping Plaza. However, as he walked, there was a scene developing in front of him: A staredown between Zeno and Gettemhult.

The two in question were staring down at each other with a sense of aggression that was sparking between them. Melfonseanna (Melrandia) was behind Gettemhult, standing behind the man with her typical gloomy poker face as always, while Echo was behind Zeno, looking a bit flustered.

As he approached them, the scene began to unfold.

"Don't give me that crap!" Zeno swiped his hand in anger.

Gettemhult, on the other hand, looked more than eager to have a go at Zeno.

"You want a piece of me, Zeno!? Bring it on! This should be a good fight!" He said with excitement, clasping his hand for a little.

Meanwhile, Echo was flustered, trying to defuse the situation.

"I said calm down, Zeno!" She was panicking.

"Come on, Melfonseana! Don't just stand there; put a leash on that mad dog of yours!" She asked and pointed.

"...I'm afraid I don't know who you're talking about." Melfonseanna replied, clearly offended by Echo's remarks and decided to play dumb.

It wasn't as if she didn't want to stop him. It was that she couldn't, hence it was pointless for her to interfere in her point of view with that logic.

Before long, however, Josua arrived at the scene proper. The two quarreling parties immediately stopped. Zeno looked surprised to see him there.

"You..." Zeno was surprised.

He didn't expect to see Josua here.

"Hmph, lose your steam, did you? How embarrassing. But don't worry. There'll be plenty of other chances." Gettemhult shook his head in disapproval and shrugged.

"See you 'round, Zeno. Have fun with your little friends!" He bid his 'farewell', gesturing at Melrandia to follow him.

"...Good day." She then said, as she bowed and left, following behind Gettemhult.

The scene finally became a bit more peaceful. As Gettemhult left, Zeno continued to stare at the man before he finally relented.

"Zeno..." Echo was worried for him.

"I'm fine, Echo. Don't worry about me. Sorry for all the trouble." He apologized to Echo, before turning towards Josua.

"You too. I'm sorry you had to see that. Just think of it as another side to me. One I'd rather not go into, if you don't mind." He apologized to Josua as well.

"No no, it's fine. Really. People have their own issues, I won't butt in unless you want my help." Josua shook his head, waving his hand.

This was a bit of a lie, maybe. Because technically speaking, he had already been involved to a certain degree.

"Anyway, I'm gonna go cool off for a bit. See you later." Zeno bid his farewell and ran off.

"Hey! Wait up, Zeno!" Echo was taken aback for a little, before she went off to follow him.

Before she does, however, after taking a few steps, she turned to Josua.

"Sorry, but I have to go after him!" She bid her farewell.

"It's fine. Just go after the man." He waved his hand.

She then ran off after Zeno.

'This problem won't be solved unless I actually save Melfonseanna when I travel back to 10 years ago... But...' Josua pondered.

It wasn't an easy issue to resolve. He wasn't willing to transform the timeline THAT much. He couldn't help but sigh at the whole thing. This problem wasn't something that he could tackle by himself. He planned to discuss this with Xiao after dealing with Luther.

Of course, that would mean he'd have to allow Gettemhult to become [Elder]. It wasn't as if he's doing this for Gettemhult, but perhaps, it was just pity for Melrandia.

.....

A.P. 238/3/8

Josua had just rested for a couple of days after his expedition from Naverius. He also had accepted a request. While he was walking around the Shopping Plaza...

"Oh man, what am I gonna do... What am I gonna do!?" A young man panicked.

'Ah, it's Wright.' Josua thought after seeing him.

Poofy black pants, dark green-haired ponytail that reminds you of those from people during the Qing Dynasty (except that he still had enough hair to cover his head), round glasses, white clothes, and the visible expressions on his face... That's Wright (no pun intended), the assistant of Professor Aki.

Wright was scratching his head, panicking before he saw Josua who was walking nearby. His eyes sparkled at the sight of his probable savior from his current predicament.

"Hey, you there! Yeah, you!" He pointed at Josua.

Josua couldn't help but shook his head as he then went to Wright.

"You're an ARKS op, right? You must be the one who accepted my request!" He exclaimed.

"A request? Hmm... Ah yeah, I did." Josua thought for a moment before checking back at the request on his comm and realizing that Wright was the client.

"Oh, where are my manners? My name's Wright. I'm Professor Aki's assistant." Wright introduced himself.

'Yeah, I know.' Josua rolled his eyes on the inside.

"So... Where's your professor then?" He asked.

"Where's Professor Aki now? Well, that's exactly why I asked you here!" Wright answered.

"See, lately she's been kind of obsessed with the draconians on Amduskia." He began to explain.

"Now it looks like she's let her ARKS op certification go to her head and gone off to investigate them on her own!" He continued.

"I'm worried sick about her... There's any number of things that could go wrong. So, getting back to my request: can I ask you to go find her for me?" He finished his explanation and asked.

While explaining, he made numerous gestures, clearly expressing himself. He was far too easy to read by others.

"I-I'll make sure you're paid!... Though I may have to dip into her grant funds to do so. Anyway, whenever you have some time on your hands is fine! ...Though personally, the sooner you can find her, the sooner I can sleep easy again..." He was flustered yet again.

'What a worrywart.' This was his verdict for Wright.

"Sure, sure. I'll try to find her later." Josua answered, waving his hands.

He then left the plaza and went to Amduskia for the period's expedition.

.....

Later on, inside the Volcanic Caves on Amduskia...

Josua looked around, and his luck wasn't doing him good for the moment. He tried to find Professor Aki, but she's elusive as ever. It took him awhile, following several battles with the local draconians and some Falspawns, before he found said person in question.

Blue-haired, a bit spiky and to the back, red-framed glasses, and black undersuit with white armor covering it (with green tints on it as well). Such is the appearance of Professor Aki, who often would go off and not notify her poor assistant, Wright, in her pursuit of research.

And right now, she's in front of him, pondering before finally noticing his presence.

"Hm? What are you supposed to be? If you're not a draconian, I have no use for you." She tilting her head.

"Are you Professor Aki?" He asked for confirmation.

'For the sake of the story...' He shrugged inside.

"What's that? Is my name Aki? Interesting. Do you always go around asking people to identify themselves like this?" She folded her arms.

"Um... It's a matter of confirmation and courtesy though..." He mumbled.

"At any rate, yes, my name is Aki. Now, who are you? I have no recollection of you, and my memory is never wrong." She waved her hands and pointed at him.

"Errm... I'm the-" He said before she interrupted.

"No, wait, don't tell me. You're here because Wright asked you to come find me, aren't you? I can't think of any other reason why you'd come here looking for me." She said.

'She's a looker but damn she doesn't give a fuck when she's focused on something!' he sighed in his mind.

"Yes, I'm hired by your assistant to find you." He shrugged.

"I bet he was bawling his head off about how I haven't come back yet, wasn't he. Ugh, I keep telling him that nothing's going to go wrong." She said with a smug, before shaking her head because of her assistant's unnecessary worry.

'Yep, she knows him well.' He shook his head.

"But, all right. Now that you've found me, I guess I can oblige him and head back." She shrugged, seemingly hesitant initially to leave.

"Oh, right. If you don't mind, could I ask your name?" She then asked.

"The name's Josua." He introduced himself shortly.

"Hm. So that's your name." She seemed intrigued.

"Interesting. You might be a far more fascinating specimen than the draconians." She smirked, clearly saying her thoughts.

'Uh... UM?????' He felt he was thrown into a loop.

"Oh, don't mind me. Just thinking out loud." She was amused at his slight fluster.

'THEN DON'T SAY IT IN THE FIRST PLACE!!!' He screamed inside.

"I'll remember your name. See you around." She bade farewell and left to go back.

"Uhuh. Sure. Bye." He replied perfunctorily.

There was a short silence after she left, before he sighed.

"Why is she like a vixen? Yikes. I'm really getting the hibbie jibbies." He shuddered at the thought.

After that, he went on with the expedition.

.....

Some time later on, at an unspecified date but within the same month...

During an expedition to the Volcanic Caves, Josua finally had another encounter in a while. This time, it's the gun-loving, voiced by Kanazawa Hana in the previous reality, trigger-happy CAST Risa.

"Hello there. How are you? I'm feeling fine and dandy after wrapping up a job, and I just HAD to tell someone." She said.

Her glaring, lit up red eyes were looking at him with unrestrained joy.

"I gotta say, guns are the bee's knees." She began to praise guns.

"They're easy on my hands, and there's nothing more graceful than death by gunshot. The way they crumple...! I'm getting goosebumps! How about you?" She exclaimed, with a slight shiver.

"Uh... Not to your extent." He scratched his head, trying to keep himself calm and not feel a tad scared of her fanaticism for guns.

It wasn't as if he hated guns. In fact, he do love them. It's just that compared to Earth, ARKS has more variation of weapons, and their doctrine isn't strictly limited to just guns as well.

"It's this feeling of total domination... Aaah, just talking about it is getting me in the mood again!" She felt the urge again, excitement visible in her eyes.

'Is she... Aroused??? From guns???' He felt like he was in a loop yet again.

"On that note, Risa will leave then. Adieu, adieu!" She bid farewell and left.

"Uh, yeah. Adios." He replied.

Awkward silence was the only thing happening after this whole thing, before he too went on with his expedition.

.....

On another day, at an unspecified date but within the same month...

Yet another encounter during his expedition to the Volcanic Caves. This time, it's the twin informant sisters, Pati and Tia.

"Heyooo! It's me, Pati!" Pati greeted.

"Hi, I'm Tia." Tia followed suit.

"Yo, you two." He greeted them.

"Today, we've got a crazy-huge scoop! You won't REALLY wanna miss this IMPORTANT info!" Pati said with excitement, emphasizing on really and important.

"Well, shoot away then." He said.

"It's about our enemies, the Falspawn!" She introduced the topic.

"Falspawn are labeled a buncha things, like dangerous, terrifying, fearsome, and all that jazz. But what's that even MEAN?" She opened with a question.

"You tell me then." He threw it back to Pati.

"And so for the first time...! No, wait, maybe the second? Uhhh, whatever! Introducing: the horror of Falspawn!" Pati began to narrate.

"Okay, take it away, Professor Tia! I leave the rest to you!" Pati then threw it to Tia.

"Oi!" He made a karate chop gesture.

"What!? Why me all of the sudden?? Ugh... Ummm, we're talking about Falspawn, right?" Tia was taken aback by her sister's sudden handover of the job.

"The most horrible thing about Falspawn isn't their raw strength, but their ability to corrupt." Tia began to explain.

"To put it simply, it's like a disease. If someone's corrupted by the Falspawn Factor, they'll slowly lose their mind... and finally..." Tia explained.

"They become a Falspawn themselves. And that's no joke!" Pati completed Tia's words.

"Once someone's corrupted by Falspawn, they become more violent, especially toward ARKS members. And once the corruption's taken hold, there's practically no way to reverse it. Any attempts will only make it spread further." Tia continued with her explanation.

"So if there are any signs of corruption, it's best to take them out as quickly as possible." Tia concluded.

"Th-That's a lot harsher than I expected." Pati quaked a little.

"Oh, uh, but don't worry! We ARKS members are protected by our photons, so we won't be corrupted!" Pati waved her hands, clearly trying to be a bit positive.

"As of now, there's no record of any ARKS member being corrupted! ...Probably. I think." Pati further said, lacking confidence on the last few parts.

"You do realize that ARKS may have just not recorded such a thing to prevent panic among the ops, right?" He then immediately posed the elephant in the room.

"A-ah! You might be right on that one!" Pati was shook and began to ponder.

"Not to mention, there might be cases, but they were taken care of. You know." He added fuel to the fire.

"T-that's true." Pati was a bit shook.

"You could compare our battle with the Falspawn to a fight with an uncurable, ever-spreading illness. To continue with that metaphor, I guess that would make ARKS like an alliance of doctors." Tia gave a metaphor to elaborate, switching the topic.

"Ugh, I feel all weird now after hearing that stuff. Have I also been corrupted!?" Pati held her head, looking a bit dizzy.

"Definitely impossible. Idiots can't be corrupted. Everyone knows that for a long time now." Tia disagreed, though clearly taking a jab at her idiotic sister.

"What a relief! Wait, uh... Hold on. You didn't just call me an idiot, did you?" Pati felt relieved, before realizing that Tia was taking a jab at her.

"I dunno if you're an idiot or what..." He facepalmed, shaking his head at Pati's slow thinking process.

.....

On a different day, at an unspecified date but within the same month...

Yet another encounter during his expedition to the Volcanic Caves. It's Gettemhult and Melfonseana - ahem - Melrandia. Gettemhult approached Josua while Melrandia was standing next to Gettemhult.

"Yo, I got a GOOD look at your fight." Gettemhult said.

"Uh... So..." Josua tilted his head.

"I could hardly bear to watch. You're just as much of a greenhorn as I expected, since you hang out with Zeno. And that's not all." Gettemhult looked a bit irritated.

'That's because I wasn't taking it seriously.' Josua kept his poker face.

"You're seriously lacking in guts--the guts to smash your opponents' faces in, that is. You're soft. That's why nothing's frightened of you and your fights drag on." Gettemhult explained, shaking his head in disapproval.

'It's a matter of do I wanna bother or not, you numbnut.' Josua rolled his eyes inside.

"Without the guts to kill anything that gets in your way, you're dead weight on the battlefield. Fools like you always make hopeless mistakes when it comes down to the wire." Gettemhult elaborated.

"If only you had more guts, you'd be a much more worthy opponent." He said before turning around and left abruptly.

"That's because I wasn't in the mood, you idiot. If I was in the zone, you'd think twice before you try anything stupid." Josua said a bit loudly, making sure that Gettemhult who had left heard it.

The man in question stopped for a moment, looking back at Josua, before leaving with a smirk on his face. It's the kind where he looks excited to kill the other party.

"I'm certain he was trying to give you advice." Melrandia spoke softly.

"Lass, I'm not sure that's the right way to give someone an advice. I do appreciate the concern though." Josua shook his head.

"Master Gettemhult hardly ever concerns himself with others. I'm...a little jealous." She muttered.

"I dunno if that's something to be jealous about though..." He shook his head again.

"SEANA! What're you blabbering on about!? GET YOUR ASS OVER HERE!" Gettemhult shouted at her from afar, seemingly aware of her words.

"I shouldn't have said that. Please forget it. Excuse me." She bowed, before bidding farewell and left.

"Yeah, go on now. Before he gets more annoying." Josua waved his hand.

'She's hopeless. Too hellbent on becoming her sister instead of herself. Probably why Gettemhult got worse instead of moving on proper.' Josua gave his verdict on her.

.....

A.P.238/3/19 - 11:00

More than a week had passed since Josua found Professor Aki and completed Wright's request. At the moment, Josua was still lazing around in his Personal Quarters. Sarah had just left for her investigation into Luther's shady shit, working side-by-side with Xiao and Maria.

He was sitting on his sofa, with his feet up, when the message came in to his comm.

"Hmm? From Aki?" He raised his brow.

He read the message. It basically said that she wants him to come to the Volcanic Caves and help her investigate (and probably establish a proper diplomatic connection) on the draconians on Amduskia (or at least, start with the ones in the Volcanic Caves region first). On an additional note, Wright was also said to be there.

Josua shook his head as he then stood up from the sofa and left his home. Meanwhile, on the table in front of the sofa, there was a paper with a sketch of what's probably the next-generation for the neuVR. The date he wrote on it that would be the release was somewhere in 2026, or next year, basically.

It didn't take long before he got to the Gate Lobby and departed on a Gateway Ship.

.....

A.P.238/3/19 - 12:00

An hour after he departed from the ARKS Ship, he arrived on Amduskia and deployed into the Volcanic Caves region. After a minute or two of walking, he found Aki and Wright waiting for him in an area inside the Volcanic Caves.

"It's good to see you. We've been waiting. You know what we're after, right?" Aki asked.

"Uh... Investigating-" Josua said before she interrupted him.

"Ah, wait, please excuse me. You're the one ARKS operative I trust, so that question itself is rude." She shook her head.

"Now, let us be on our way. My intellectual curiosity must be sated at once." She said before she went ahead.

"..." Silence was Josua's only reaction.

Wright, who saw that Josua looked a bit clueless, stepped in.

"S-Sorry... We haven't even explained anything. But, um, we're investigating the Draconians as usual, so..." Wright apologized.

"It's fine. She seems like the kind to just waltz into the scene." Josua replied, waving his hands.

"The professor seems to have something else on her mind. Honestly, I'm scared of another frenzy happening. If it comes down to it, we'll just have to drag her out of here." Wright explained.

"I see... Don't worry. We'll deal with it when we get there." Josua pondered before nodding.

"Well then, I hope today-- No, I hope I can count on you again." Wright then concluded.

"Sure." Josua replied succinctly.

The two then followed Aki who already went ahead, as they began their investigation into the locals in the area.

.....

A.P.238/3/19 - 12:40

Forty minutes into the investigation, after a slew of slashing, shooting and etc...

Aki stopped in her steps, and began to ponder aloud. Josua and Wright were right beside her, so the two also stopped walking.

"I feel like the Falspawn have been multiplying. That's not a good sign." She remarked.

"Ma'am, the Draconians are capable of repelling Falspawn on their own, aren't they?" Wright asked.

"Yeah. That's why they've officially denied ARKS' intervention. I'd advise them of how dangerous that stance is, if I could." She answered, shaking her head at the Draconians' stubbornness.

"ARKS' mastery of photons makes it the only group capable of completely eradicating the Falspawn. The Draconians can repel them with brute force, but that won't eradicate them. Falspawn residue will always remain." She elaborated on her disapproval.

"Not that I blame them though..." Josua shook his head, understanding her plight, but also the draconians' as well.

The logic of the draconians is: 'If we can take care of them ourselves, why should we rely on outsiders like you?'. Not that it's wrong in it of itself, but...

Recall the nature of the Falspawn, and that's the sole reason why ARKS would even bother intervening. If not because of that, they would've only focused on the planet itself and not bother contacting the draconians in the first place.

"I'm sure there's an underlying cause behind the Draconians' sudden change, but I can hardly delve into that without their cooperation.That's why our only option is taking to the field for some good, old-fashioned legwork." She then finally explained her reason for the investigation.

The three then continued on with their investigation, deeper into the Volcanic Caves.

.....

Not long after they continued on, they found a carcass laying on the ground. It was the carcass of a Draconian fighter.

"This... WAS a Draconian cadaver at one point. This is horrific. It's barely even recognizable." She commented.

The draconian looked... What's the word, mutated?

"I don't feel so good. I can't believe you can touch that stuff, ma'am. Urgh...blech..." Wright said before he started puking at the back.

"You should know these things as my assistant. I enjoy doing research on living creatures." She scolded him.

"Are you really okay being this... Weak? It's part of your job, you know?" Josua remarked Wright's behavior outright.

"Guh... I have no words to retort that..." Wright lowered his head in shame.

"I have no interest in what's dead and gone. This is just an object--a thing. No reason not to touch it." She shook her head as she knelt down.

Aki began her 'autopsy' of the deceased draconian on the spot. It wasn't a pretty sight. Josua could still handle it, but Wright though...

"Now, let's see its viscera..." She said as she began dissecting the cadaver.

"Urrrgh... blurgh..." Wright puked again because Aki pulled out some guts from the cadaver.

"... You really should bring a vomit bag or something..." Josua, meanwhile, was speechless at Wright's seemingly low tolerance towards such things.

"Pipe down, Wright. Either you're interested or you're not. Pick one." She scolded Wright again.

After some time, following several more organs getting cut out, tissue dissection and observations, Aki finished her investigation/autopsy. She stood up with a frown as she turned towards Josua and Wright unconciously.

"Hmm... It's as I suspected." She muttered.

"Ah, sorry, let me outline my thoughts better." She said when she saw Josua noticing.

"Destroying Falspawn with non-photon methods leaves byproducts that-- Oh, have I told you this before?" She explained before she paused and asked Josua.

"Uh... No." Josua shook his head.

Let alone telling him before, there wasn't even any prior briefing before they went into the whole investigation.

"Well, whatever. Long story short, specks of dirt can become mountains when you put enough of them together." She summarized her explanation briefly.

"So... These draconians like... Absorbed some of the F-Factors but were slowly getting corrupted due to their lack of photons?" Josua tilted his head.

"As expected of the ARKS op that I trust! You catch on quickly! You interest me more and more." She complimented.

"Uh... As much as I want to do some inappropriate shenanigans with you, I will refrain myself from doing so." He remarked.

"Ahem, speaking of which... Are we done with the investigation then? Assuming you've gotten what you wanted?" He switched the topic to keep things from getting awkward.

"For better or worse, I've retrieved some tissue samples. This should help me move forward with my research." She said, smirking at him for a moment.

"But I don't think we'll get to the bottom of this so long as we can't talk with the Draconians..." She shook her head at the thought.

"The issue remains..." He pondered aloud.

After that, they left the now-gory site and went on with their investigation. Seems like she does plan to establish some diplomacy with the draconians.

.....

A.P.238/3/19/13:00

The trio went into the depths of the Volcanic Caves. After they reached it, they encountered a standoff between two Draconians. A Draconian youth, Hi'En pleads with his elder, Hi'Roga, to cease the pointless scuffle.

Hi'En looked like the draconian carcass earlier, except he's more like the Force, instead of a Fighter, given the staff he's wielding. Meanwhile, Hi'Roga, the rampaging elder, looked like what you'd think as a dragon normally, with its two wings, two legs and two arms, not to mention his enormous size when compared to the young draconian.

"(Lord Roga!) (Calm yourself!) (Why rage?) (Why fight?) (Answer me!) (Lord Roga!)" Hi'En said.

The language of the draconians, while can be translated, is a bit... What to say, all over the place, when they're translated into the common language. Hence, some that don't understand would only think that they're simply roaring or even just moving their mouths.

"(Grrroooaaar!)" Hi'Roga roared, clearly not listening to Hi'En's words.

The elder does not communicate beyond roars and attacks. He spits out fire towards the young draconian, blasting him off his feet.

"(Gah...) (Lord Roga...) (Why...!?)" Hi'En pleaded as he stood up and tried in vain to calm the elder.

The trio at the side were baffled when they saw this. Aki, in the meantime, had already made her hypothesis from her observation.

"D-Draconians battling each other? Are they having a row?" Wright was baffled.

"I can't deny that possibility, but based on what they're saying, that doesn't seem to be the case. Now, then..." She said as she took a few step forward.

"Huh? Wai- Professor? You're not going to get involved, are you!?" Wright said, trying to stop the professor (in vain) from approaching the battlefield.

"It's useless to reason with him, Draconian. He's been corrupted by Falspawn and isn't in his right mind." She shouted towards Hi'En.

"(ARKS...?) (I haven't the time for you.) (Depart!)" Hi'En scoffed at Aki's words.

"See? Let's do as he says and get out of here! It's dangerous!" Wright attempted to use Hi'En's words to discourage the professor from going any further.

"That's enough out of you, Wright. Be quiet." She smacked Wright's head before turning back towards Hi'En once more.

"Now, Draconian. You may say that, but what exactly do you intend to do about the problem before you?" She posed the million dollar question.

"(Lord Roga of the Hi clan.) (Our guide.) (However...) (He corrupts our fellows.) (Horrendous.) (Violation of our laws.) (Those who break laws.) (Returned to Kasheena.)" Hi'En explained.

"Kasheena... The Hell dragon spoken of in Draconian myth, correct? I see. So I understand you'll kill him." She immediately understood his intentions.

"(Clever ARKS...) (What are you thinking?)" Hi'En asked, seemingly impressed by her knowledge of their culture.

"I'm saying to let us handle it. Forsaking a living being is a waste. I won't allow it." She said, before turning towards Josua.

"Listen up. If we suppress that Draconian with the power of photons, we might make it in time. We might be able to save him." She said.

"I can't guarantee it, but...there's value in trying, at least." She continued.

"Got it." Josua replied shortly.

While they had just finished their conversation, Hi'Roga, the elder, roared, signalling the start of the battle between Josua, Aki and Wright, against the elder draconian.

.....

"Wright, buff us up first and then to the left! Spam ice techniques at it!" Josua said to Wright.

"G-got it!" Wright stuttered for a moment before he casted Shifta and Deband, buffing the trio.

"Miss Aki, to the right! Keep firing at it!" He said to Aki.

The battle started a few moments ago. Josua had already deployed his Gurenbana and charged from the front. He had Aki keeping the pressure on Hi'Roga by barraging it with gunfire. Wright, in the meantime, had already casted some buffs to all of them before they began their attacks.

'Destroy the horn, then the crystal lump at the tail, and then the thorn at the back between the wings!' He immediately recalled the weak points of the Vol Dragon, which Hi'Roga, the elder draconian, is also a part of.

As he charged from the front, he activated the rifle mode of Gurenbana and fired upon the horn on the Vol Dragon's face.

RATATATATATTA!!!

"ROARRRR!!!" The dragon roared as he was barraged by Josua's gunfire.

On the right side, Aki had been firing her AR non-stop, while keeping mobile and trying not to get hit by any of the attacks by the Vol Dragon. Meanwhile, on the left, Wright had been casting Barta and Rabarta non-stop. He was shuddering in nervousness and fear every time the dragon roars.

Even as Hi'Roga tried to charge at Josua or the others, it failed as it continued to get staggered by their attacks.

The environment being hot wasn't exactly a great motivator for Josua either. Hence, he wanted to finish the whole thing as fast as he could. Being a level 75 op, however, it was easy for him. As he got to the front of the dragon, he switched from Rifle mode to Sword mode. He dished out a 2nd stage charged Nova Strike, in which he would unleash a spinning attack with his two-handed sword.

SWISH! SWISH! SWISH! SWISH! SWISH! CRACK!

The attack broke the horn when it was finished. Hi'Roga roared in rage. It spewed out fire breath at Wright, who was scared half to death and immediately rolled away from the incoming fiery breath.

Josua then went under the elder and towards the tail. There was a giant clump of crystal on the tail. It was his second target after the horn earlier.

He then dished out another 2nd stage charged attack, this time however, it's the Rising Edge. He swung upwards to the crystal lump, and basically rotated the blade for three times. Each strike carries a heavy punch to it.

THWACK! THWACK! THWACK! KABOOM!!!

The crystal lump on the tail was destroyed. The dragon then went limp and dropped onto the ground, seemingly stunned for the moment. Aki on the right took this as her chance and fired on the right wing with her rifle.

BRATATATATATATA!!!

The gunfire that continued to spew out hot lead enhanced with photons eventually crippled the right wing. The webbing on the wing was riddled with holes, while some of the bones were blasted, with only the sturdier ones remaining that allowed the wing to still be attached to the body. The dragon was still stunned at this point. Only a few seconds had passed since then.

Wright on the left, meanwhile, changed his target, from just the body, to the left wing. He continuously spammed Barta and Rabarta at the left wing.

SHING! SHING! SHING! SHING! SHING! SHING! SHING! FOOOH....

Slowly, but surely, the left wing was also crippled. Its webbing were frozen and inflexible, with the scales on the wing being cracked from the extreme temperature difference.

The dragon had finally awaken from its momentary stun. However, it was crippled. It then decided to dive into the ground, and into the lava. Josua jumped back as he noticed this.

"Be careful! Keep moving! It'll surface in a few moment!" He shouted to the two.

Not long after, the dragon resurfaced, this time covered with some extra layer of armor, courtesy of the lava that hardened. However, this would only last only for a little. Aki had already begun blasting the armor with her rifle, while Wright would crack it with his ice techniques.

RATATATATATATATA!!!

SHING! SHING! SHING! SHING! SHING!

'Final target: the thorn on the top!' Josua confirmed and then he jumped onto the dragon.

"ROAAAARRR!!" Hi'Roga roared, as he tried to get the annoying ant off his body.

"Oh no you don't!" Josua shouted as he shifted from Sword mode to Blade mode.

He unsheathed the katana and immediately went to town with it. He used Morning Mistreaver to close onto the thorn, sheathed the katana, and then switched back from Blade mode to Sword mode. All of that took three seconds. He then used Blazed Parry as the opening attack for the thorn. This Photon Arts was actually meant to guard against enemy attacks and use it to strengthen his own slashes. But this time, he used it purely for the number of slashes it could produce in a short moment.

SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH!

The dragon was on its knees again, as Josua had hit its critical point.

"And now... For the coup de grace!" He shouted as he unleashed Cross Cut.

SLASH! From the left to right.

SLASH! From the right to the left.

And finally...

SLASH!!! From the top to the bottom.

"ROARRR!!!" Hi'Roga roared, as he was too weakened at this point and dropped onto the ground.

The battle had reached its climax with Josua's Cross Cut, and ended with Hi'Roga's roar.

.....

A.P.238/3/19/13:30

With Josua now on top of the now-weakened Hi'Roga, it was the perfect chance to purify the elder draconian.

SHIIIIIING!

Blue light shone as it dispersed the F-Factor from Hi'Roga's insides. It was visible as the dark, red particles flew out from the body and dispersed completely (and safely). He then jumped off the dragon as it began to wake up.

"(Gah...) (What...?)" Hi'Roga said with a weak, hoarse voice.

"(Lord Roga!) (You have regained your senses!?)" Hi'En shouted in joy over his elder's return from rampancy.

Josua sat on the ground, taking out a bottle of water from his inventory, and chugging the water down to quench his thirst. Wright was also on the ground, but more because he felt like he had just had a staredown with death and lived. Aki, however, dragged Wright to stand up, and went towards Hi'Roga. Josua also went along after he finished the bottle of water and stood up.

"Our gamble paid off, and just in the nick of time. We must credit the resilience of the Draconian constitution." She said.

"(Clever ARKS...) (What did you do?)" Hi'En inquired.

"It's simple, Draconian. Photons reduced the Falspawn tissue within." She answered succinctly.

"Of course, the real credit goes to this one, not me." She pointed at Josua.

"We can't do much about his wounds, but Draconians recover quickly enough. It should heal in time." She then said.

"(Is this an ARKS power?)" Hi'En asked again.

"Hold, Draconian. It's too early to be relaxing just yet. This is only the beginning. Before long, more Draconians will deteriorate the same way." She replied, holding her hand up in gesture.

"(What) (do you seek from us?)" Hi'En then asked.

"Conversation. Draconians and ARKS need to start up a dialogue." She immediately replied.

"(...)" Hi'En was silent for a little.

"(My name) (is En of Hi.) (I ask your names.) (ARKS.)" He introduced himself and asked the trio.

"My name is Aki, and this is my assistant, Wright." She introduced herself and Wright.

"I'm Josua." Josua introduced himself shortly.

"(Child of ARKS) (I apologize for the rudeness.) (And...) (I express gratitude.) (The power to save Lord Roga.) (I will not forget this debt.)" Hi'En expressed his gratitude.

.....

Not long after, Josua left, returning to the ARKS Ship. Meanwhile, Aki and Wright remained on-site to discuss further on the terms of their possible cooperation.

'Hmm.. Should check on Matoi...' Josua thought as the Gateway Ship docked into the ARKS Ship.

Leaving the Docking Bay and back into the Gate Lobby, he went to the Medical Bay inside the Gate Lobby. He then met Filia.

"Ah, Josua. Are you here to check on Matoi?" She asked.

"Yeah. Can you please bring her here?" He nodded.

"Okay, be right back in a moment." She said before she went to Matoi's room.

A few minutes later...

"Okay, I'll leave you two to it. Call me when you're done." Filia said, bowing before leaving them.

"Sure." He nodded, before turning towards Matoi.

"Ah, I've been waiting for you. Have you come to chat again? I'm so happy you did." Matoi smiled.

"I've come to check on you. But, why haven't you talked with anyone else?" He tilted his head.

"I'm not very good at talking with others... If anything, I'm scared of it..." She looked a bit down,

"How come?" He frowned.

"Filia said I might be traumatized, but I couldn't really say." She shook her head.

"Though, for some reason... Talking with you seems to come naturally." She said.

"Hmm..." He continued to ponder from her words.

"That's why it doesn't bother me so much. I might not remember anything, but as long as I have someone to talk to, I'm fine with it." She continued.

"Sigh... Listen up, Matoi." He sighed.

"Yes?" She tilted her head.

"Talking only with me won't help you much with your... Lack of social interaction. You need to talk more with others, like talking with Filia. I'm sure she'd listen to you from time to time. I'll also keep coming by to check on you, but my line of work doesn't allow much when it's mission time." He explained.

"I see..." She was on thought.

"Don't worry. If you need anything, you can call for me if Filia isn't available or it's something she can't do for you. I'll do my best, okay?" He smiled as he rubbed her head.

"Oh! Okay..." She was taken aback once more, before breaking into a dumb smile with a blush.

Soon after, he called Filia before he left the Medical Bay.

.....

A little while later, Josua met up with Xion, who appeared when he was near the monument in the Shopping Plaza. As usual, there's no one around, and only he could see Xion.

"In all things, infinite choice is but an illusion. It is necessary to ascertain and accept what follows your actions." She started to speak.

"A new Divergence Matrix has been born. Events are awakening to new potentialities, and your path, though long, is solidifying." She continued.

"Your actions will determine the future. That is all I am capable of expressing. I apologize for my circuitous phrasing." She concluded.

"Xion, please wait!" He said.

Xion, who was about to disappear once more, stopped.

"Before you go, I wish to give you this one question: If you were to be given the opportunity to become like the 'individual', but you will lose your power as the 'being', would you take it?" He then said immediately.

"..." She looked at him in silence, with her eyes closed.

"I hope you can answer the question when the time comes. Please." He pleaded.

She then opened her eyes. Even with her face not betraying her thoughts, her eyes reflected her surprise at him. She looked softly at him before she disappear proper, leaving him alone at the Plaza once more.

"I really hope..." He muttered while his eyes was closed after she left, clenching his fist hard.

He can only hope that she'll at least consider his question, or to be correct, his request. He then left, returning back to his Personal Quarters.

Episode 1, Chapter 2: Encountering the Draconians END.