Chapter 63: Warning and Gratitude

"By the way, what's up with that guy?" Sasha suddenly asked when they emerged onto the balcony from in between the tree's roots. Looking at where she was pointing, his eyes twitched in surprise. She was pointing at his hand, more specifically at the circuits covering it.

What should he say? He looked away, scratching the back of his head and shoving his marked hand into his pocket. That's when he felt it. The link, the itch of the circuits lighting up.

"A pleasure to see you again Ms. Expanse," Crow bowed, manifesting beside him. Raising her eyebrow, she answered him coldly.

"Just call me Alex." He nodded unfazed, meeting her cold gaze. Slava felt a shiver travel down his spine. He knew that look, a look of intrigue, curiosity, a challenge and more importantly a threat. The surrounding space began to shift.

"Crow!" At the sound of the familiar voice, the mood instantly lightened, the tension dissipating. Not getting the chance to move, Crow was grabbed from behind. "How have you been? I never got the chance to thank you…" he greeted. Jack's body was still gathering when he paused, his eyes landing on Slava.

"Are those… clothes?" He stood stunned. Jack out of all people… Slava brought his hand to his face. Now that he thought about it, ever since they'd met, he'd always been wearing his suit.

"I'm glad to see that you are both well," another voice chimed in from behind. Slightly turning around, they were met with Angel and Ceator walking through one of the doorways. At her words, she and Crow crossed eyes. C on the other hand seemed lost in thought, a serious look on his face. Just like Sasha, they'd all forgone their ceremonial clothes.

As soon as they'd arrived, they began to talk. Angel nudged C pushing him towards Sasha. He asked her something about test subjects, but Slava didn't hear because he was distracted by Jack.

"And do you know how long I had to kneel for?" He just wouldn't shut up. Slava almost smelled the joy exuding from him. "Even Alex didn't want to do it, but Angel insisted." Slava could see Crow and Angel talking out of the corner of his eye. "Saying that it was 'necessary for the people'." He was about to excuse himself to see what they were talking about when he heard Jack's voice shift slightly. "I mean, she was probably right, everyone looked a lot happier after." It was as if he was talking to himself, a sense of longing hidden in his gaze. "What am I saying, you probably saw it too, right? I couldn't see much, but…" Slava interrupted his monologue.

"How's your family?" he asked out of the blue, stunning Jack. He looked shocked more than anything. It seemed like he really didn't expect an answer. "They are fine," he smiled. "My wife and daughter are well, they…" he started to reminisce when his expression changed to a bitter one. "What a bad habit I have… you were right, Beatrice." it was odd, he looked as saddened as he looked relieved. His tone had also completely changed. He was much more calm and serious.

"I should thank you, I wasn't sure before, but I am now, as much as I hate to admit it, I know Crow would've never helped me normally." He grabbed his shoulder. "You saved my family, I will never forget this, I owe you greatly… friend." It was Slava's turn to be speechless. He didn't know what to say, he felt his chest tighten as he looked up.

Time around them seemingly stopped as Slava analyzed everything around him. His suit was also reacting to him, overloading him with information. Sasha was concernedly talking to C while firmly grasping his shoulder. Angel and Crow looked to be having a stare-down, their eyes speaking louder than words. And Jack…

"Hey, are you alright?" he asked. Slava really didn't like this. This feeling… this pain…

"I'm… fine," he answered, grabbing his head. He wasn't used to it. To be surrounded by so many people like this. It brought up memories of Kolya, his sworn brothers, his mother, his family, his sister…

"I think we've idled for too long, don't you guys have work to do?" Everyone froze at Sasha's question. "C did you sort through the Awakening incident reports?" She walked past him, her eyes scrolling from side to side. "What about you, Angel? How are the structural development plans? I still need to get them approved for Serena." At the mention of Serena, Angel's gaze turned cold, but strangely enough, the corners of her mouth seemed to slightly curve up.

"Jack, if I'm not mistaken, you still need to go over the algorithmic integrity and the barrier stability." Like that, she reached Slava's side. Jack met her piercing gaze, before glancing to his side. He seemed to be hesitating, but once he met her dagger-like eyes a second time, he turned to the others.

They didn't exchange a word. Nodding in acknowledgement, they started to make their way to the balcony. One after the other, they left. First was C who elegantly jumped down, then Angel unfurled her wings following him. Jack was last, taking a quick glance behind him, he waved, his body turning into a cluster of grey particles that followed after them.

"Crow, go after them." To his master's words, Crow vanished into smoke before his sigh could come out of his mouth.

"Is he always so reluctant?" Sasha asked once he was gone. "Yep," he answered, still staring at the balcony where Jack used to be. "And he was the one who decided to follow you?" she asked again. "Yep," he repeated.

The silence that followed felt uncomfortable, but he was unwilling to reply to the eyes drilling into him. This place really was built upon the dreams of the fallen. Hope, protection and memory. When he looked at the statue, her words automatically came to mind. There were no other ways to describe it. He couldn't help but think of all the people he knew and how they would've loved this place. He certainly didn't belong here.

"You're probably wondering why I called you here." Startled, he tried to crack a joke. "I thought it was because you missed me." To be frank, he didn't know whether she was talking about the tree or the ceremony. She sighed, ignoring him.

"Mayhem has returned, the balance will soon be broken." He'd thought as much, they were both looking for him to turn the tide of this war. Mayhem wielded the Heat Gamma suit, which he was the perfect opponent for. "It's only a matter of time before they start to push back." as they walked, the surrounding tree moved, the floor below them twisting into stairs.

Gradually, step by step, they walked down until they reached the root of the tree. Once there, a dark room spread before them, a dim green light on its horizon accompanied by weak yet familiar chirping.

"You know… I asked her about him." His ears perked up as his eyes scoured the room. "Do you know what happened?" He was perched on a vine hanging from the ceiling. "In the moment before his death, he Ascended," behind him, was what looked like an overgrown console whose screens and projections were constantly shifting, "he was able to push past his limits and integrate with his domain." They were projections of people, 'batteries' stuck in stasis. "He couldn't imprint his consciousness, but he left a part of himself, his will." As they got closer, the bird's head rose up and with a cry he took flight. "That's what he represents," she said, petting the Phoenix who had just landed on her shoulder, "Nic's will, his last words, his desires." Slava's hands were shaking, but he ignored it. "We still have so much to learn." He recognized the sigils on the figures' backs displayed on the screens. Some intricate, others simple, that was one thing he had noticed. The sigils grew with their users, representing their strength and volume.

"Yes, indeed you do." The voice came from every corner of the room. A gust of wind followed, carrying a cluster of leaves. The images behind her didn't stop moving as she appeared. She was working on saving them. Her sigil was constantly pulsing, with the vines following its rhythm. She wore her usual smile, but something felt different, although he couldn't put his finger on it. "Oh? You didn't bring your shadow?" She asked, squinting her eyes.

"You… what's wrong with you?" He spurted out, instinctively, once he got a closer look at her demeanour. When she heard him, she momentarily rose her eyebrow before bursting out in a chuckle.

"Bold as ever…" she smiled, freezing mid-sentence, "…but I like it." Looking at their expressions, she suddenly frowned. "It happened again didn't it," she sighed. And before Sasha could interject, she continued. "I've been pushing the limits quite a lot recently." To her words, the previously almost unnoticeable wrinkles on her skin deepened, while streaks of white spread through her hair. At Nic's cry, the flames covering her body dimmed, intensifying her elden features.

"You never told me you were straining yourself!" Sasha burst out, visibly distressed. "You should've told me I…" Serena cut her off with her hand, her tone growing grave. "What happened to keeping your composure?" She interjected, facing Sasha's shaky eyes. "I don't care about that! You're hurt, I…" Slava hadn't seen her this distressed since before the fall. She'd undoubtedly worked on herself a lot. Not even he could make her waver. What did she do? What did they go through together, what hardships did they face…

"No! No matter what, you're a leader now, you need to stay clear-headed. Besides, this was my decision to make, not yours." As her tone changed to a challenging one, images flashed behind her. Footage of troops sieging a forest, repelling vines and roots by burning and corroding them. A nightmarish scene of pure carnage and finally a thermonuclear bomb being dropped from above, vegetation growing at unimaginable speeds to envelop it, absorbing the brunt of its blast.

"You… told me it was only a minor inconvenience." Sasha blankly stared at the ground. "It was," Serena answered, smirking, looking back at the chaotic scene. "But I digress, now that you're both here I have something important to share with you," she expressed, opening her palm in front of her, glowing green flowers blooming at its center. "I realized something while pushing myself and spreading myself so thin." She paused as if considering the words she was about to say. "Let me ask you this, where do our domains come from?" She closed her fist, and it burst into flames, leaving nothing behind.

"They are an extension of our understanding." "They are extensions of the world's laws." They replied at the same time. The world, huh? He knew they looked at things differently, but he would've never thought of that, and now that she mentioned it…

"You are both right, our domains lay where our understanding and the world meet." As she spoke, visions invaded his mind. Images of his insignificant self and his place in the expansive cosmos. "Our domain is a part of us as much as we are a part of it, and if we are not careful, we will be swallowed whole." For a moment, he felt eyes watching him from the swirling stars. "We can easily lose our sense of self, becoming pure embodiments of what it represents." With a grunt, she grabbed her head, stopping Sasha, who was about to help her. "We'll slowly lose our humanity, slowly turning into slaves of its desires and finally into soulless forces of nature." She pierced through them with her glare, bringing him back to his senses. "Do you understand what this means? You have to be careful," she took some time to collect herself.

"When I was searching for a way to save Nic, I found some old ruins linked to the old prophecy and only now did I understand…" It was as if she couldn't describe what she had seen, it was beyond words or explanations. "I just wanted to warn you," she said as the whole room started to shift around them. The console slowly sank into the wall, and a table rose from the ground in front of them.

"I feel tired and there's still much to do, let's get on with business." She swiped her hand over the table now laying at the center of the room, and a projection appeared above it, showing a map of America with key locations marked on it.

"We have the barrier now, but it doesn't mean we're safe. If we want to survive, especially if we want to get through this, we'll have no choice but to go on the offensive." She glanced to the side at Sasha. "I've researched what we talked about and narrowed it down to a few locations." At her words, she grew pale, wearing an expression he'd never seen before. However, he wasn't able to linger on it as they were soon caught up in their plans. Things were about to get a lot more interesting.